Never Go Into Tunnels, Part Three

&lt;Autobot&gt; Tempo says, "How ya'll doin?"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Nightbeat says, "Just filing a flight plan..."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Tempo says, "A flight plan? Ta where?"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "Fine! I'm just fine! Why shouldn't I be otherwise?"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Sky Lynx says, "...sometimes I do worry about the whole lot of you.."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Nightbeat says, "...sweetheart, I'm not going to mention where on an unencrypted frequency. I like having my knees unbroken."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Talazia Keldahoff says, "Now why would you do something like that?"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Tempo says, "Then, sugar-- I'll radio ya and ya can tell me all about it, hmm?"

You receive a radio message from Tempo: After all, tha' is th' nice things about radios, hmm?

You receive a radio message from Red Alert: Ideally, if you're heading some place you'd rather the Decepticons not find you, you shouldn't have even /mentioned/ the fligth plan to begin with. Really, Nightbeat.

You send a radio message to Tempo: Sure is! So, know those crazy Books of Primus?

You send a radio message to Red Alert: ...right. I'll remember that.

You receive a radio message from Tempo: I know a' lil' on 'em. Wha' about 'em?

You send a radio message to Tempo: Page seven, the Black Book of Primus. There's a reference to an archaeological dig on Junk. I figure we might as well check it out.

You receive a radio message from Tempo: well, if ya like.. I can tag along. I wouldn't min' stretchin' my legs.

You send a radio message to Tempo: I'd love to have you along. Every set of optics sees a different world.

You send a radio message to Tempo: In approximately an hour.

You receive a radio message from Tempo: an' where do ya wanna meet?

You send a radio message to Tempo: Outside of Autobot City, most likely.

You receive a radio message from Tempo: and.. anything I can do for ya sugar before then? Maybe help load some stuff up?

You send a radio message to Tempo: Are you always this helpful, darling?

United Kingdom

Bounded by the rugged, wind and weather-carved Shetlands, shining sea lochs, and mist-shrouded moors of Scotland in the far north; the rocky shorelines and sandy beaches of the Channel Islands off the south coast; the rolling hills, stately churches, ancient forests, and green hedgerows of England in the east; the glaciated mountains, secluded valleys, deep, clear lakes, and wild, windswept beaches of Wales; and the blue mountains, marshy plains, legend-haunted lakes, and white Atlantic sands of the north of the Emerald Isle in the west, the United Kingdom offers a huge diversity of landscapes. Along with the lovely scenery, the UK boasts more material resources such as shipbuilding, dams, and aircraft building in Northern Ireland; coal mining and refineries in Wales; hydroelectric generating stations, petroleum, natural gas, coal, zinc, and iron mining in Scotland; iron mining, world financing and investment, and trade in England.

Contents:

Tempo

Autobot Shuttle &lt;Alpha Trion&gt;

Autobot Shuttle &lt;Golden Age&gt;

Autobot Hovercraft &lt;Sentinel&gt;

Autobot City &lt;AC&gt;

White Cliffs of Dover

Obvious exits: London &lt;LN&gt; leads to London. English Channel &lt;SE&gt; leads to Brussels, Belgium. Ocean &lt;O&gt; leads to Northeast Atlantic.

Up

You receive a radio message from Tempo: Oh, there are times I'm helpful sugar, and there are times I just know wha' I want and there ain't gonna be no one gettin' in my way...

The dark femme was leaning against the wall, her arms crossed over her stomache joint, as she listened to some music in silence. Her foot tapping to the beat.

Clutch arrives from [name(where(me))] to the southeast.

Clutch has arrived.

Nightbeat wanders out of Autobot city, a datapad tucked under his arm. He doesn't seem to be hurried, but he does look over his shoulder, now and then, as if he expects ill. He approaches the Golden Age, slowly walking around the shuttle. Noticing Tempo, he greets her, "Oh, hello there, Miss Tempo."

The dark femme notics Nightbeat and waves to him, "Hey there sugar and please," Her emerald green optics lock on him, "Just call me Tempo. I ain't enough of a lady to be called Miss." She says with a smirk. She then turns her attention to the Golden Age, her chrome cable hair seems to follow her head movement fluidly, "I take it will be takin' th' Golden?"

Nightbeat looks mildly amused. The detective has this way of offending women. He has no idea why, honest! So he tries to be polite, and he gets told not to. Nightbeat will never figure out women. He agrees, fairly laid back, "Sure thing, Mi... Tempo." He checks over the engines of Golden Age. "That's what the flight plan says."

Tempo pats her chrome fingers on his shoulder before she walks past him toward the shuttle. Her steps seeming to move in a nice rythmatic beat, "Dun worry sugar, I dun bite--" She then traces her fingers along the shuttle, "And ya need to losen up a lil'. Act a lil' more lose and ya can fool alot of people.."

Ferrari F430 &lt;Clutch&gt; drives through the scenic UK countryside...at highly illegal speeds. Long before he shows up, his arrival is heralded by brief skidding noises on every turn and curve and the high-pitched winding sounds of his engine running at high RPM. He finally slows to a stop in front of the shuttle. "Did I hear right? We're taking one of these things out for a flight?"

The Ferrari transforms into Clutch the heroic Autobot!

&lt;Autobot&gt; Monstereo says, "I've decided. It's final. No buts."

Nightbeat is sober. That's really his big problem. He chuckles lowly. "Loosen up, eh? Is that your considered opinion, sweetness? And here I thought I wasn't bein' serious enough." He calls over to Clutch, "You heard right!" That said, the gangplank of the shuttle drops down, and he tromps inside.

You enter the Autobot Shuttle &lt;Golden Age&gt;.

Autobot Shuttle &lt;Golden Age&gt;

The interior of the shuttle is very roomy. There is a highly technical cockpit that seats numerous bots at various stations, and a huge cargo area for additional troops or equipment.

This vessel requires Space-Pilot to use. Syntax: DO &lt;command&gt;  - IE. do east, do +profile, do attack scourge=laser. l/o           - Looks outside.

&lt;Autobot&gt; Auto-Junk Dee-Kal says, "But I like my butt!"

Outside, Clutch eyes the Alpha Trion as he follows, he can't help but compare the two shuttles. Well, he's sure some future mission will be using the Alpha Trion and then he'll be able to see first-hand how the two match up.

Clutch has arrived.

&lt;Autobot&gt; Monstereo says, "Hardy Har Har. ~raspberry noise~"

Tempo has arrived.

&lt;Autobot&gt; Noah Wolfe starts playing a song, "I like big butts and I cannot lie...you other brothers can't deny!"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "Whoever is playing music on this fequency, cease this instant."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Auto-Junk Dee-Kal says, "(protests) Mo-o-om..!"

Rodimus Prime has arrived.

&lt;Autobot&gt; Noah Wolfe continues playing, "That when a girl walks in with an itty bitty waist And a round thing in yo..." the connection gets abruptly cut off.

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "Don't you people have your own frequencies to litter up? We get quite enough from the Dinobots and Foxfire."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Monstereo says, "I'm going to convert mt Monster Truck butt-er I mean cargo hold into a handy dandy ultramatic super high tech top of the line state of the art new and improved never before seen .... MED-POD .... 3000.... tm.... copyright... Yes."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Monstereo says, "Anti-social much? Geesh. I /was/ discussing this with /yoose guyz/ because I thought /yooze awl/ would care and lend a wrench. Grouch."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Clutch says, "He's right...you might never know it from listening to us, but this frequency is critical for updates and coordination between different Autobots in case of an emergency."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Clutch says, "(oh and by the way, what was the name of that song...?)"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Monstereo says, "Clementine."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Talazia Keldahoff says, "I like big butts by Sir Mix-a-lot."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "A discussion? Really? I'm amazed that such can be had over the racket of 'Sir Mix-much.'"

Outside, You take flight to the Skies above Western Europe.

[travel spam of spam]

Outside, You descend from space to Alcatraz.

Outside, Alcatraz

Outside, Here lies the mostly-deserted Alcatraz. Built to be a fortress, it still shows signs of typical Junkion design, which includes haphazard construction and usage of rusty, unidentifiable odds-and-ends for building materials. Serving as a prison, Alcatraz has armed sentry drones manning the crumbling watchtowers at each corner of the structure. Inside, several well-armored televisions are scattered around, each seemingly locked on "The Barneylock and Friends Show." Oh, the horror.

Outside,

Contents:

Junkion Standard Troops #5196

Pile of Junk

Junk-a-Pult &lt;Alcatraz&gt;

Outside, Obvious exits:

Outside, Fly &lt;Up&gt; leads to Sky Above The Black Lagoon.

Outside, Launch leads to Orbit of Junkion.

Outside, Northwest &lt;NW&gt; leads to Black Lagoon.

Nightbeat lands the shuttle with a slight crunch on the junky world. Why did he chose this launch site? Perhaps Alcatraz reminds him of his old 'home', the prison world. He flips the switches to idle down the shuttle, and he unbuckles himself, looking over his shoulder. He asks, "Everyone okay back there?"

Clutch peels his optics away from the viewscreen. "Hm? Oh, yeah...nice job flying. (a little slow maybe, but otherwise fine)." He turns back to the viewscreen one more time before getting out of his chair and heading for the exit ramp. "So this is the planet Junkion, huh?"

"In terms in my experience with landing on this planet in the past," Rodimus pipes up in the back, glancing up from a mobile terminal, "This one ranks up in the top five." He smirks. "I'm not sure I'd count on actually being able to /find/ anything in this scrapheap, but I guess it can't hurt to try."

Nightbeat smirks slightly at the faint praise from the boss. He moves to exit the shuttle, and he explains, "Yup, this is the Planet Junkion. It's pretty self-explanatory. If we don't look, then we'll never know, eh, Boss? Gotta give it the old academy try."

You leave the Autobot Shuttle &lt;Golden Age&gt;.

Alcatraz

Here lies the mostly-deserted Alcatraz. Built to be a fortress, it still shows signs of typical Junkion design, which includes haphazard construction and usage of rusty, unidentifiable odds-and-ends for building materials. Serving as a prison, Alcatraz has armed sentry drones manning the crumbling watchtowers at each corner of the structure. Inside, several well-armored televisions are scattered around, each seemingly locked on "The Barneylock and Friends Show." Oh, the horror.

Contents:

Autobot Shuttle &lt;Golden Age&gt;

Junkion Standard Troops #5196

Pile of Junk

Junk-a-Pult &lt;Alcatraz&gt;

Obvious exits: Fly &lt;Up&gt; leads to Sky Above The Black Lagoon. Launch leads to Orbit of Junkion. Northwest &lt;NW&gt; leads to Black Lagoon.

Junkion Standard Troops #5196

=
=========&lt; Junkion Standard Troops #5196 &gt;======================= A platoon of hardened soldiers stands in loose military formation here, clearly on duty and prepared for battle. Their polished weapons are held at the ready, gleaming with use. A few of the soldiers are positioned away from the main group, bearing scout symbols and keeping a watchful eye on the surroundings.

The Junkion troops are presently at full strength and are engaged in battle. ---&lt; +troophelp for help &gt;

Pile of Junk

This is a small box about 2' by 3'long it is grey and looks rater junky. On the top of the box is a Yellow happy face that oddly resembles the Autobot Symbol rounded off. How odd.

Junk-a-Pult &lt;Alcatraz&gt;

The Junk-a-pult, big enough to fit three Junkions inside, is built from the materials on hand -- in other words "Junk." Colored a brownish/rust tint, the front of the Junk-a-pult is shaped like a old yellow school bus. In the middle is the catapault section that extends back and is fastened by a steel cable. The Junk-a-pult has big tank treads so it can move around to be repositioned when needed.

Rodimus Prime leaves the Autobot Shuttle &lt;Golden Age&gt;.

Rodimus Prime has arrived.

Clutch leaves the Autobot Shuttle &lt;Golden Age&gt;.

Clutch has arrived.

Clutch looks around in obvious curiousity as he tromps out of the shuttle. His weapons are stowed, he seems to be completely trusting of all the reports and notes that claim Junkion is friendly territory for Autobots. "Wow...this stuff really looks familiar." He points at Alcatraz. "Just like that historic site in San Fransisco on Earth." He looks a little closer. "Well, except for materials. And...well, the junk."

"Academy?" Rodimus frowns distastefully, stepping down the shuttle's ramp. The lack of a Junkion welcoming party causes a wrinkle of worry to cross his face -- but then again, the Junkions aren't exactly the most consistent people in the Galaxy. "What is it you're looking for exactly, anyway, Nightbeat?" He tucks his arms over his chest, waiting for the Intelligence officer to lead on.

Nightbeat trusts nothing and no one but his plasma blaster and a bottle of energon, and he doesn't have a bottle of energon. He exposits, "Page seven of the Black Book of Primus." His optic band narrows. "Someone scribbled something on the margin about an archaeological dig on Junk. It can't hurt to check it out, can it?" He looks around, looking at the TVs showing "The Barneylock and Friends Show" with distaste. Ugh. Didn't they outlaws tortures in prison?

Rodimus Prime scratches his chin thoughtfully at Nightbeat's response before gesturing forward. "Sounds reasonable enough, Nightbeat. But let's not spend all day digging in the trash if it turns out to be bogus," he adds, with a hint of skepticism.

Clutch says, "An archeological dig sounds pretty vague." He pans his gaze over the Black Lagoon nearby. "Any chance we can get some local help even finding a place to get started? There must be some Junkions we know out here...?" Unless they're all on Earth, he thinks to himself. "A map, survey data, anything?"

Nightbeat can indeed spend all day digging in the trash. It's a detective thing. In fact, as Rodimus Prime makes that comment, Nightbeat is digging through a pile, looking at a newspaper from Clakta dated back to 1894. He nearly winces and murmurs, "Yessir." Then, he rubs the back of his head and grimaces. "Well, that's the issue, I guess. The Junkions seem to be busy, and this whole place is like an archaeological dig, but," his gaze wanders over to the Black Lagoon, "this Alcatraz looks too recent, to me."

Clutch takes a few steps towards the Lagoon. "Hmm...now that you mention it, I think I see what you mean." He nods in respect of the deductive reasoning. "So if we do some exploring, and purposefully avoid areas with newer...er, architecture." It takes him a while to figure out what word to use for Junkion style construction.

Clutch transforms into a sleek Ferrari F430!

"Then let's not waste any time poking around here," Rodimus says, diving forward and transforming into his vehicle mode. His engine is already snarling before the last armored panels snap into place, and he starts tearing down one of the paths in the junk-strewn landscape. His headlights blip on, scanning the mounds of waste for anything that might pertain to Nightbeat's search.

Rodimus Prime transforms into a high-tech winnebago. Let's burn rubber!

Nightbeat wishes he had the kind of tyres and suspension to handle this world. He'll deal. Nightbeat does point out, "Weeeeell, sometimes new buildings are built on old ones, but let's go." He also transforms and drives toward the Lagoon.

Nightbeat slouches down into Porsche 959 form. Time to roll.

You move northwest to the Black Lagoon...

Black Lagoon

A large area is filled with a thick, black liquid, thankfully only waist deep - unless you're under eight feet tall, that is. What is the purpose of this lagoon? Does the water have healing properties? Is it used for cooling in the factory to the west? For security at the prison complex to the south? Is it just another TV show setting that the Junkions replicated to satisfy their strange obsession? Whatever it is, it's sticky. Eww.

Obvious exits: Fly &lt;Up&gt; leads to Sky Above The Black Lagoon. North &lt;N&gt; leads to Gilligan's Island. Southeast &lt;SE&gt; leads to Alcatraz. East &lt;E&gt; leads to Shores of Black Lagoon. West &lt;W&gt; leads to Assembly Plant.

Clutch enters from the Alcatraz to the southeast.

Clutch has arrived.

Hot Spot has arrived.

Rodimus Prime enters from the Alcatraz to the southeast.

Rodimus Prime has arrived.

Ferrari F430 &lt;Clutch&gt; falls into position behind Rodimus and Nightbeat (er and Hot Spot!), tires occasionally slipping a bit as he drives over debris and rubble. "Is that land? To the north of here." He swerves and heads in that direction, extending a set of trusty Autobot water-skis from the underside of his car form and using them to skim over the water.

Hot Spot rumbles into the area, feeling just a little bit out of his element, "Remind me why I left Earth again?" he stops short of the lagoon, "Any idea what THIS stuff is? First Aid warned me about driving through potentially HAZARDous liquids after that last time..."

Flamin' Winnebago stops in front of the lagoon, his engine revving once with frustration. "Yeah, I wouldn't get any of that on your paint job, Hot Spot," Rodimus replies, headlight beams scanning the black surface. "There has to be a way around."

Porsche 959 &lt;Nightbeat&gt; is not particularly pleased to be driving through a sludgy Black Lagoon. He swears he can feel tentacles trying to grab his wheels. Ugh. He observes, "Looks like it! If there's anything here, you'd need to be a Dolphinbot to find it." He deadpans to Hot Spot, "Because fresh air is good for you."

Hot Spot rolls forwards slightly to the banks of the lagoon, "Be careful Clutch. It looks highly flammable -- I'm an expert in these things you know." he doesn't QUITE make it into the lagoon first. Hot Spot may be a man of action, but hey, someone has to be rear guard, "After you Prime, I'll watch our backs!"

Ferrari F430 &lt;Clutch&gt; calls out from halfway across the Lagoon, "It doesn't look too deep!" Easy for him to say. "If you have to you could probably transform and just wade through it."

"I'll take my chances with the long way around," Rodimus mutters, pushing himself into reverse gear, swinging back 45 degrees, then revving his engine as he zooms down one bank of the lagoon.

Porsche 959 &lt;Nightbeat&gt; is going with the 'transform and wade' option, though he doesn't like it. This lagoon is too deep for the little sports car. The detective looks entirely unenthused to be here, and this was his idea. Oi. It'll take him a while, but he'll eventually make it to the north, where Clutch saw that island.

The puzzle pieces of Porsche 959 rearrange into the hard-boiled Autobot detective, Nightbeat!

Hot Spot scans the long way around but can't quite make himself avoid the most direct route -- some things are just a permanent part of your programming, "Ok." he groans, "On my way." With that, the Fire Engineer leaps upwards, transforming into a towering Protectobot, "Does the book say anything specific about what we are looking for?" he asks, trying to distract himself as he wades knee-deep into the lagoon -- first at a walk and then at a jog.

The massive Fire Engine folds upwards, onto itself, and with a crunch of metal forms the Protectobot Hot Spot.

Nightbeat recites, "It was written in purple ink. "'Where did the Golden One leave to? Ref: archeological digs on Junk. Ref: Istoral Trench.'" I think that Impulse took a crew out to look at the Istoral Trench, but we may want to look again sometime. But anyway, that's all I'm going on. I've gone on slimmer clues before." And there, he's almost to the island.

Ferrari F430 &lt;Clutch&gt; continues towards the island, but takes a long, circuitous route that lets him cover most of the lake's surface between the shore where the Autobots started and the island they're headed towards. It keeps him from getting too far ahead of the others, and even though the 'water' is so dark you can barely see through it, it's kind of a new experience that he doesn't mind stretching out a bit.

You swim into the deeper waters to the north.

Gilligan's Island

Just sit right back, and you'll hear a tale...a tale of a fateful trip. It started on a tropic port, aboard a tiny ship. The mate was a mighty sailin' man, the Skipper brave and sure...five passengers set sail that day for a three hour tour, a three hour tour. The weather started getting rough, the tiny ship was tossed. If not for the courage of the fearless crew, the Minnow would be lost...the Minnow would be lost. Yes, you have arrived. Kick your shoes off and enjoy yourself. But don't expect to be saved anytime soon.

Obvious exits: Fly &lt;Up&gt; leads to Sky Above The Black Lagoon. Hidden Cave &lt;D&gt; leads to Underdark. South &lt;S&gt; leads to Black Lagoon.

Hot Spot swims in from the south.

Hot Spot has arrived.

Tempo has arrived.

Clutch swims in from the south.

Clutch has arrived.

The Ferrari transforms into Clutch the heroic Autobot!

Nightbeat manages to make it to an island. He shakes himself, trying to get the Black Lagoon swamp muck off him. He pulls out a tattered and dingy polishing cloth and tries to wipe himself down as he sits on the beach of the island.

Clutch looks around at the island. "Hnh. I hate to say it, but this is kind of a let-down. We've seen so much weird and crazy stuff so far, and then this? It's just an island..."

Tempo has been following honest! She has just been peeking into things, getting into stuff, and just being well-- Tempo. What else could be said about the dark 'ninja-dancer-former singer-fencer' femme.

Hot Spot wades onto the shore, looking around with a somewhat subdued form of his usual alertness, as if something else has taken up part of his processing unit, "Huh. Yeah, Clutch... something is wrong here." he pauses for dramatic effect, "I have a bad feeling about this place."

Nightbeat mutters, quoting Bumblebee, "The least likely can be the most dangerous." He then stands, puts away the cloth, and looks around the island. He transforms, glad to have solid ground under his wheels, and he tries to do a perimeter loop around the island.

Nightbeat slouches down into Porsche 959 form. Time to roll.

Grimlock has arrived.

Clutch gives Hot Spot an incredulous look, but then quickly turns to takes a closer look at their surroundings. He still doesn't get out any weapons, but he tries his best to stay alert. He walks further into the interior of the island, climbing a smallish hill and looking around from the higher vantage point.

The dark femme also goes to check out things, her wheel kicking down by her feet so she can keep some speed while she explores the area as well. Oh she was on alert, but when you are a hand-to-hand type of person, whatever decides to get in your face might find itself missing it.

Hot Spot peers up towards Clutch, "See anything interesting?" the Protectobot Commander stoops down to one knee to pinch some of the island "sand" between his giant-sized fingers, "Ground sure feels strange..."

Porsche 959 &lt;Nightbeat&gt; scoots over to where Hot Spot is looking at the sand. The detective opines, "This whole planet is kinda whacky, when you get down to it. Can you quantify that strange?"

Hot Spot drops the sand and stands up, "Not sure Nightbeat, just doesn't feel like the usual sand, could be some of that black -- whatever it is -- goo has seeped into the island here." he frowns, looking around, "But you bring up a good point. This /IS/ Junkion. Maybe...." he pauses, "What was that human video show on that Island? Maybe we need to be thinking like Junkions." his optics brighten slightly, "Quick... everyone look for any sort of 'hatch'. I think that would be a clue."

Tempo comes toward the two and her feet hit the ground once more as she jogs over, "I can't find anythin' yet. Think maybe ya'll should get some shovels and start diggin'." She says in a teasing manner toward how they studdy the sand.

Clutch shakes his head. "Not really. But I don't see any signs of development or construction at all here..." he trails off and nods at Tempo. "So yeah, this might be a good place to look for signs of the dig."

Porsche 959 &lt;Nightbeat&gt; bounces on his wheels, as if wincing. Think like a Junkion? No thanks. Nightbeat's thoughts patterns are messed up enough as it is. But, he does look for a hatch or something of that sort, and he ends up driving over to a cleverly hidden cave. He calls to the rest of the group, "Now this here looks interesting!"

Clutch slides down the sandy side of the hill and walks over to where Nightbeat is. "Good optic." He peers inside, then shrugs. "Only one way to find out what's in there..."

Tempo glances over from where Nightbeat yells and raises an optical ridge. "I still say Junkions would act like pirates on a' island and hide stuff like 'em." But-- Tempo was no detective, she was a warrior, and really-- This was an excuse for the femme to stretch her legs and /not/ do patrol duty-- again... So Tempo takes after where Nightbeat is on foot to go see what the detective found.%

Grimlock is here! (Someone must wanna sell some more Grimlock toys). The dinocommander stompstompstomps down towards the gathering, waving. "HEY! HEY! HEY YOU AUTOBOTS!" he bellows. "Wait for me Grimlock!"

You move downward to the Underdark...

Underdark

You'd think this was your typical damp and dark cave except for the fact that the walls are made of junk. In fact, so is the ceiling and floor. On the walls are various cave drawings of the Flintstones, Terrible Thunderlizards, and Land of the Lost. Lighting comes solely from the exit outside to peaceful Gilligan's Island. You can even hear the slight echo of the Skipper yelling 'Gilligan...'

Contents:

Junkion Sensor #6873

Obvious exits: Glowing cavern &lt;E&gt; leads to Pool of Radiance. Outside &lt;U&gt; leads to Gilligan's Island.

Tempo enters from the Gilligan's Island above.

Tempo has arrived.

Grimlock enters from the Gilligan's Island above.

Grimlock has arrived.

Clutch enters from the Gilligan's Island above.

Clutch has arrived.

"HEY! HEY! WAIT FOR ME GRIMLOCK!" It's not hard to guess who said that. The dinocommander stompstompstomps into the cave- pulling his energo-sword in the process- its red glow making for an excellent light!

Porsche 959 &lt;Nightbeat&gt; can see rather well in the dark, and he transforms back to his robot mode. As a courtesy to the other Autobots, Nightbeat turns on his wrist headlights, to add to the red lighting that is Grimlock's sword. He peers at the 'cave painting' and he rubs his chin, commenting, "I don't know if this is a good sign or a bad sign."

The puzzle pieces of Porsche 959 rearrange into the hard-boiled Autobot detective, Nightbeat!

Clutch looks over the paintings. When he comes to the Terrible Thunderlizards he can't help but shoot a glance at Grimlock before quickly looking away. "Nightbeat, is there any way to tell how long these markings have been here...?"

In the dark cave, Tempo's head lights on her chest flicker on, to add to the light of the room. She follows the others closely.

Grimlock stompstomps up next to Nightbeat, and peers at the paintings as well. "Hn. That look like me Grimlock!" he points at one of the terrible thunder lizards. "Maybe them Junkions think me Grimlock in charge!" he ponders. "That happen sometimes."

Nightbeat steps closer to one of the paintings, and he explains, "Yeah, there are ways to date these paintings, but... the Flintstones are from the Terran TV era. The paintings can't be that old. Same goes for the others." He gestures over at them, his headlight shedding some light on the situation. "But that glow down there..." He turns his head.

Grimlock hns. "What 'portant part is, me Grimlock 'portant to thems guys!" Grimlock decrees. "So me Grimlock say we go meet 'em and have big party! Like on Junk!" he fairly well beams- and then pauses, looking to Nightbeat. "...Why we here 'gain?"

Clutch turns his head to follow Nightbeat's gaze. "You know...we've almost -got- to check out something that looks that spooky..."

Nightbeat ignores Grimlock's arrogance and explains once more, "The Black Book has a scribble in the margin mentioning an archaeological site on Junk. So here we are." Then, he snaps his fingers and grins. "I like the way you think, Clutch." He heads off toward the glow.

You move east to the Pool of Radiance...

Pool of Radiance

This cavern is bathed in an eerie green light emanating from a large pool of green goo that fills the center of the space. The goo seems to drip down from a crack in the ceiling above, from origins unknown. Piles of rubble lie around the side of the pool, spaced almost too exactly to be coincidence. Upon further inspection, it looks as though they could have once been statues of some kind. The walls give evidence of having had holes or perhaps even doors, but all egress aside from the path used to get here seems to be blocked.

Contents:

Rocky Crag

Spider

Obvious exits: West &lt;W&gt; leads to Underdark.

Grimlock enters from the Underdark to the west.

Grimlock has arrived.

Clutch enters from the Underdark to the west.

Clutch has arrived.

Rocky Crag

A section of the cave wall, this rocky crag looks unremarkable, save for several lines etched into the surface, almost like panels.

Grimlock follows on! "Me Grimlock no think it THAT spooky. Me Grimlock scared of nothings!" he growls, and waves his sword around a bit for good measure. He pauses, however, as he notes the green goo at the center of the room. "Hnnn. That look bad."

Spider

Large, horrific, furry and white, this looks like a Nepsan Ice-Spider, only larger. Much, much larger. The spider features eight horrific legs and shuttered eyes, but also a meld of metal all over the body in a transorganic fusion. Gun turrets swivel over the armoured shell, with wicked blades over the legs

Hot Spot enters from the Underdark to the west.

Hot Spot has arrived.

Hot Spot has joined our intrepid adventurers after wandering somewhere off camera -- that tends to happen to him a lot. He approaches the group of Autobots with restrained caution -- the cavern seems to have caught him somewhat off guard. Out of his element, the Protectobot commander is not his usual excited self.

Nightbeat enters into the spooky, glowing cavern, and he's struck that his place is almost beautiful, albeit a bit junky. Then, his super-sensors start to tingle, and he looks up at the ceiling. His optic band widens as he stares up, and his mouth opens slightly.

Clutch creeps slowly towards the pool, giving the broken rubble a glance, then stepping between two piles to peek gingerly into the goo. He keeps up a running dialog in a low voice as he approaches. "So what exactly would an archeological dig look like, anyway? I've seen those movies on Earth, but those were fiction, right...?"

A massive, monstrous spider - presumably what Nightbeat is straing at - drops down from the ceiling of the cavern, partially blocking the exit out. Snowy white, it is definitely not a native of brown and rusted Planet Junkion. In fact, it resembles a Nepsan ice spider, though parts of it seem to be Cybertronian technology, almost, making this creature a transorganic. The spider slavers, venom dripping down its fangs, and all of its eight eyes seem to say, 'I'm hungry.' It reaches out a bladed leg and attempt to smack Nightbeat out of its way.

You evade Spider's Bladed Leg attack.

"If we be arkee-ologists, we need HAT. And whip." Grimlock decrees. "Me know 'cuz me saw it in movie." and then he glances up at the Spider, and grunts. "One of these things? Me Grimlock HATE these things!" he snarls- and up comes his double-blaster, and he sets off with a barrage of laser fire! "Them ALL OVER THE PLACE!"

Grimlock strikes Spider with Double-blaster!.

Clutch's optics open wide. "Nightbeat! Watch out!!" He shouts...belatedly, since Nightbeat's already eveaded the attack. He reaches behind his back and pulls out his rifle, quickly ripping off a burst of shells that glow almost like tracer rounds...

Clutch strikes Spider with Energon-Tipped Rounds.

Tempo enters from the Underdark to the west.

Tempo has arrived.

Hot Spot quickly overcomes his newfound cautious nature as his fellow Autobots are beset upon. As Clutch and Grimlock blast away, Hot Spot circles warily, trying to catch the -- spider thing -- off guard, "Grimlock... you say you've seen these things before??" while circling, the massive Protectobot has hefted a particularly large peice of rubble (perhaps a former statue head?) and hurtles it at the creature, hoping to draw it away from his commrades more than anything else.

Hot Spot strikes Spider with Chunk o' Junk.

Nightbeat narrowly manages to evade the spider's slap thanks to Clutch's warning and his keen detective reflexes. He calls over to Clutch, "Thanks!" Then, he draws his service revolver and tries to snap off a shot at the spider. He quickly finds himself backed against a wall, and he grouses, "There are *more* of these things?"

You strike Spider with Service Revolver.

It was kinda dark in here, wasn't it? Anyhow, Tempo had gone missing from the group, then out of no where, leaps from the cieling, the dark femmer with her two blades in hand. She flips in the air before bring both blades down for the spider. Is the spider fast enough to not be stabbed in the backside by two energy sabers? Lets find out people!

Tempo strikes Spider with Duel Slice.

The spider makes a hideous kreeling noise as it shrieks in pain as the Autobots easily counter--attack it. Yet, the injuries - the blaster shot from Grimlock, the energon-tipped rounds from Clutch, the junk from Hot Spot, the shot from Nightbeat, and the slicing from Tempo simply serve to make the beast hungrier. It shoots out a barbed, steel-silk line, trying to lash the Autobots.

Spider unleashes its Spider-Silk Whiplash attack on Nightbeat, Grimlock, Clutch, Hot Spot and Tempo, striking Clutch, Hot Spot, Tempo and Grimlock.

Clutch circles around the giant spider as well, trying to position himself so that the spider is beset on all sides by Autobots. He stops firing for a second, long enough to shout, "'These things'? 'More'? You mean you two have done this -before-?...wow, you really know how to have a good time -NNGH!" The barbed line slashes him, opening long narrow rents in his armor. Clutch gets back to business and opens fire again, but just with a few single shots instead of a burst of fire like before. Maybe with Tempo in close combat with the spider, he doesn't want to risk any stray shots striking her.

Clutch strikes Spider with Pistol.

"Yup!" Grimlock says, happy to be an expert on, well, something. "It on derry-lickt spaceship! So me Grimlock- RARGH!" His explaination's cut off by the steel screeching over his frame- it even leaves a bit of a gash! "Grrh! Me Grimlock BEST X-TERMINATOR!" he snarls- and then stompstompstomps forward- swinging his sword at the Spider- it's got too many legs, after all- so why not try lopping a few off? *CHOP!*

Grimlock strikes Spider with Swordy Surgery.

Nightbeat somehow manages to evade the barbed spider-silk, ducking just under as the line whips out at him. He looks over at his service revolver, as if crediting the weapon with his luck. However, since he doesn't want to accidentally hit Tempo with it, he pulls out a Nightbeatarang and lobs it at the other side of the spider. He asks, ever curious, "What space station, Grimlock?"

You strike Spider with Nightbeatarang.

Tempo goes to flip off to only fine the barbed line smacking her across her thigh armor and she grits in pain as her thin armor gets sliced nearly exposing her much weaker armor and some of the lines behind it. Tempo then watches what Grimlock does and nods her head, "Sounds like a good idea.." She spins her blades, then runs, even with the pain comming from his leg. "..more like I love the look of it!"

The dark femme then also goes for the spiders legs, by trying to slice them off by crossing her blades.

Tempo strikes Spider with 'X' Slash.

Hot Spot winces in pain as the Spider's steel mesh rips across his armored frame. The Protectobot manages to throw up his arm at the last second, absorbing most of the impact, "Nnnrrrg! How --" he removes his fireman's axe from subspace with his undamaged hand with a crackling of animation error, "How did you beat them last time, Grimlock?" He takes a swipe at one of the spider legs, "The old fashion way??"

Hot Spot strikes Spider with Axe You a Question.

The spider takes yet more damage and hisses in pain. Clutch's shot doesn't do much damage, but Grimlock manages to cut off one of spider's forelegs, and it sways, having balance issues. Nightbeat's shot also does little to the cyborg creature. Tempo also manages to sever a foreleg, and Hot Spot's axe adds to the spider's woes, so the spider tips down, crashing into the junky floor of the cavern. It raises its head and sprays venom out of its mouth at the Autobots.

Spider strikes you with Icky Spider Venom Spray for 8 points of damage.

Spider unleashes its Icky Spider Venom Spray attack on Nightbeat, Grimlock, Clutch, Hot Spot and Tempo, striking Hot Spot, Tempo, Grimlock and Nightbeat.

"Not on space station! On SPACESHIP! You need listen!" Grimlock growls- and then looks to Hot Spot. "Like anything else. Me Grimlock SMASH, and-" *FFFFSH!* "OW! You Autobots need stop distract me Grimlock!" he growls- And with that said, he opts to Transform, looming over the beastly spider. "You no beat me Grimlock!" he growls, "Me Grimlock am STRONGEST THERE IS!" and he opens his jaws, spewing fire!

With a grunt and a growl, Grimlock changes into a robot T-rex! Watch out.

Grimlock strikes Spider with BURNINATION!.

Spider is deactivated under the fierce barrage of attacks.

"See. Like that." Grimlock says.

Indeed, the transorganic spider cannot take Grimlock's mighty flames, and with a last few shudders, the creature dies. Its death throes knock into the cavern walls, and it manages to dislodge something...

The Rocky Crag creaks and several panels swing open.

Rocky Crag

This ancient cave painting has three clear panels. The paint is scraped and faded, as if there have been struggles here.

Panel One

Chaos and destruction reign. Stars explode, and planets are ruined. Whole species are wiped off the face of the universe. The artwork is simple, but the pain and suffering depicted here are clear.

Panel Two

A temple with an orb atop is shown. One wall of the temple has been omitted by the primitive painter, and inside, there is a dark pool and a sycamore tree. A figure that looks like a crude rendition of Rodimus Prime, complete with a very pointy spoiler behind his shoulders, holds aloft a glowing blue and orange object. The tone of this painting is grim and serious.

Panel Three

The same stars as in the first panel are shown to placidly shine, and planets contentedly orbit the stars. The aliens that were previously dying now frolic in the sunlight. The mood of the scene has clearly lifted to a more joyous attitude.

Tempo gets sprays with the venom and uses her swords to keep the venom from getting into the wound that is already there. However she finds where the venom does hit at eats slightly at her dark armor, "..blasted all.." She mutters softly...

Hot Spot's optics dim slightly as his cycles start to shift from combat-readiness back to the general alert settings, "Huh." he looks as the spider keels over, "I guess you were right Grimlock!" he tries very hard to hide the shock in his voice, "Mmmmm.." he muses, stowing his axe on his back, "What is that?" he points towards the series of panels.

Clutch manages to duck behind one of the piles of rubble, just far enough to avoid the worst of the spraying venom. When he pops up behind the rubble again, he grimaces as he sees that most of the other Autobots had no such shelter. "No!" He leaps out from behind the rubble, his expression split between guilt at avoiding the attack and anger at the spider that launched it...then watches Grimlock fry the thing. "Uh...well, I guess you get no arguement from him. (or me)." He goes to poke the thing with his rifle to make sure it's dead, then glances at the panels as well.

The spider is very dead, Clutch. Crispy-fried dead.

Clutch was juuust making sure.

"Me Grimlock no know what you Autobots do when me not 'round for killin' stuff." Grimlock says, nudging the spider curiously with one clawed foot. He, of course, has no clue about the panel or anything- he's got to bask in the glow of victory! A glow so thoughtfully provided by a still-on-fire arachnid corpse. "Hnn. Me Grimlock no think it good to eat, though."

Nightbeat gets sprayed down with venom that bites into his armour and etches into the circuitry beneath. His face contorts in pain, but Grimlock makes short work of the beast. He looks over at the panels that Clutch is looking at, and he drawls to Grimlock, "Why, we kill things the hard way without you around."

Hot Spot steps back from the panels he was studying, "Well.... I'm no expert but these appear to be some sort of CLUE." he looks towards Nightbeat -- he is more of the clue type of guy, right? "Anyone make any sense of this?" he points towards the ur-Rodimus, "Some of these seem obvious. Some..." he pauses, frowning at the other parts of the panels, "Not as much. Maybe we just take a few pictures? If there is a nest of those things I'd rather not stick around for them to come looking for their friend here."

Tempo continues to try to ignore the venom trying to sip in as she places away her energy sabers. She waits for the egg-heads to figure this on out.

Clutch peers at the newly revealed panels, rubbing his chin in thought. "That's Rodimus Prime all right, and also..." he lowers his voice to a reverent whisper. "The Autobot Matrix of Leadership." Oh boy, looks like Clutch is one of 'those' Autobots. "And these make it look like it saves everyone. Whole galaxies worth of people."

Nightbeat tilts his head to one side as he looks at the panels. He mutters, "Well, Clutch's interpretation is certainly one way to take it." A really obvious way. Probably correct. He pull out a camera (not Reflector) and snaps off a few shots.

Robot T-Rex! &lt;Grimlock&gt; is not an egg-head. He IS, however, smart....for a dinobot. The dinosaur stomps over to the crag, and peers over Clutch's shoulder as he eyes the drawing. "Hn. Me Grimlock draw betterer than that." he notes, crosing those dinky little arms of his across his chest.

Tempo then looks at the painting and just remains silent as she looks over it. The dark femme then taps her chin gently and dims her optics close.

Nightbeat mutters, "Guess it's a bit odd to find this sort of... painting in a glowing room with a monster spider." He puts his camera away.

Robot T-Rex! &lt;Grimlock&gt; hnns, and points over at the goo. "What 'bout that stuff? It all glowy and 'portant looking!" he grunts, and edges closer, lowering his head to sniff carefully at it. "Smell bad!"

Nightbeat shrugs and kneels down to get a sample of the glowing goo in a test tube.

Robot T-Rex! &lt;Grimlock&gt; hmms, and looks at Nightbeat. "Maybe we need him Perceptor come do science stuff?"

Nightbeat looks up at Grimlock, an odd glint in his optic band, and he replies, "I think that's a great idea, Grimlock!"

Tempo leans against the wall and inhales deeply through her ventaliation. She hates spider-venom. Bad stuff, really is. "..so.. if anyone needs me.. I'll be sittin down.." She the slides down the wall and sits down on the ground.

Grimlock vanishes out of reality.

Grimlock has left.

Nightbeat will make sure that Tempo gets back to shuttle safely. Probably.

================================== Autobot =================================== Message: 3/62                     Posted        Author Junkion                           Tue Nov 11    Nightbeat -- Nightbeat appears, stained by black swamp water, spider venom, and glowing pool water. He looks injured and a bit disgruntled, and he reports, "Went to Planet Junkion to check out that reference to an archaeological dig on Junk on page seven of the Black Book of Primus. Rodimus Prime was along for a bit, but the Big Boss had to skedaddle on more important business," or so Nightbeat assumes. "So Clutch, Grimlock, Hot Spot, Tempo, and I explored around the Alcatraz, Black Lagoon, and Gillagan's Island areas. On Gillgan's Island, we found a tunnel down to a glowing pool area, wherein a transorganic spider attacked us." He points to his wounds. "Everyone's gonna be okay, though. After a concerned effort, Grimlock managed to kill the spider, which knocked open some panels that look like this."

Nightbeat holds up some glossy photos.

Triptych

This ancient cave painting has three clear panels. The paint is scraped and faded, as if there have been struggles here.

Panel One

Chaos and destruction reign. Stars explode, and planets are ruined. Whole species are wiped off the face of the universe. The artwork is simple, but the pain and suffering depicted here are clear.

Panel Two

A temple with an orb atop is shown. One walls of the temple has been omitted by the primitive painter, and inside, there is a dark pool and a sycamore tree. A figure that looks like a crude rendition of Rodimus Prime, complete with a very pointy spoiler behind his shoulders, holds aloft a glowing blue and orange object. The tone of this painting is grim and serious.

Panel Three

The same stars as in the first panel are shown to placidly shine, and planets contentedly orbit the stars. The aliens that were previously dying now frolic in the sunlight. The mood of the scene has clearly lifted to a more joyous attitude.

He comments, "Pretty weird, huh? Kinda lines up with all the damage done by that ion storm. Commendations to Clutch, Grimlock, Hot Spot, and Tempo for killing that spider. Nightbeat, out."

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