Plan C, Phase One

Entrance to Autobot City

The vast atrium of Autobot City's entranceway stands before you. When Metroplex is not in residence, this area doubles as a military spaceport. Large towers relay information from around the globe and keeps the spaceport in contact with Earth's solar system outposts and the rest of the known universe.

Security cameras and gun emplacements surrounding the entrance make sure that only those who are welcome enter. Scorch marks and small holes in the wall are reminders of the last battle here for Autobot City. When Metroplex is not present, a gate allows easy passage to and from the battle station's facilities. The Space Bridge to Cybertron is constantly monitored by solemn-faced personnel. To the north is the landing pad for flights to and from Earth.

Contents:

Blurr

Laserbeak [Hidden]

Air Raid

Metroplex City Defences

Autobot City &lt;AC&gt;

Sky Lynx's Lair

Autobot Spacebridge Terminus &lt;Metro&gt;

PlayCo Toys

Obvious exits: Gated Doors &lt;GD&gt; leads to Outskirts of San Francisco, California. North &lt;N&gt; leads to Landing Pad &lt;AC&gt;.

Laserbeak squints as he judges Autobot City. The bastion of the Autobots on Earth. Full of noble, proud, gullible second-rate... His beady yellow eyes blink, he got carried away there. The roving sensor patrols were always a chore to deal with, using his sensor suite he switches to a sympathetic radar pattern to pick up the waves. All the Autobots would get out of it would be a &lt;&lt;RADAR GHOST&gt;&gt; for a few seconds, nothing substantial.

As is his favored tactic during this late night run, is to exploit the open air above the city, gaining a bit of height, then coming down right atop the city. As the radar swoops towards him, he transforms into tape mode, freefalling in a less-than-delightful tumble atop one of the secured bunkers. As advanced as Bot security was, that was hardly anything to circumvent.

Blurr is boredly watching the sensor net sweeps in one of the security rooms within Autobot City, resting his head on a hand servo. He hates monitoring duties. Seriously, this was like, below him. It should've been the gumbies' job. Ah, he was probably being punished for his outburst at Sky Lynx this past mega-cycle. He groans and checks his internal chronometer, drumming his fingers on the displays. He doesn't notice anything out of the ordinary.

Air Raid sure as Pits ain't doing anything of use or importants. Patrol's over so he's lingering within the big atrium near the landing pad. It looks like he's fashioned himself a mech-sized yoyo from hubcaps and cable, and he remains oblivious to freefalling tapes as he harasses poor tarmac workers with his sweet yoyo tricks.

The outside of Metroplex bristles with defenses, security cameras, and trip-lasers. The doors require pass-codes. There are a few air vents, which have heavy grates bolted down, with holes too small for msot cassettes to pass through. Now, there is the classic 'wait until a door opens and sneak inside then', but the gratings could also be very carefully unscrewed and their electrified warning systems disabled. What does Laserbeak do?

Laserbeak transforms back into condor-mode. He peers over the security for the area. The air vents were tempting and even a classic way to get inside, but it seems they added a screen to the ducts. They must've thought that'd keep him out after his last seven or eight times invading this complex.

He looks back to the doors below. He could sneak in well enough through a convoy, but being as its dark out, activity is sure to be lessened. He makes his choice.

The air vent security is simple to work with, even simpler when its mostly to detect tampering for the grate itself. He positions himself off to the side of the main vent, then he starts to live up to his name. His eyes focus small welding beams into the chute's base, carving a small tape sized hole into the vent. It was a simple matter to transform, slip through for that brief gap, then return to form and slowly descend into the lair. What he wanted was not available on the city's surface, after all.

Entrance to Autobot City

The vast atrium of Autobot City's entranceway stands before you. When Metroplex is not in residence, this area doubles as a military spaceport. Large towers relay information from around the globe and keeps the spaceport in contact with Earth's solar system outposts and the rest of the known universe.

Security cameras and gun emplacements surrounding the entrance make sure that only those who are welcome enter. Scorch marks and small holes in the wall are reminders of the last battle here for Autobot City. When Metroplex is not present, a gate allows easy passage to and from the battle station's facilities. The Space Bridge to Cybertron is constantly monitored by solemn-faced personnel. To the north is the landing pad for flights to and from Earth.

You proceed through the entrance way, climbing the ramp into Autobot City.

Main Lobby - First Floor

With a footprint of nearly an acre, Metroplex's first floor lobby provides ample room for Autobots and allies. The brilliant white walls of the cityformer's various ramps and subdivisions lend a crisp, minimalist boxiness to the tremendous space's periphery. Ample light shines in from the floor to ceiling gaps on all four sides, the elements and insects kept out by the invisible veneer of a forcefield. The entire floor is made of smooth, silvery, segmented panels that reflect light upward onto the gargantuan gearboxes and the recessed hydraulic cowlings that come into use when the city transforms. Everything is quite clean and well-ordered, with clearly designated exits etched in Cybertronian and Standard English bas-relief guiding the unfamiliar to where they need to go.

Contents:

Autobot Museum

Obvious exits: Large Doors &lt;N&gt; leads to Barracks. Small Doors &lt;NE&gt; leads to Human Lounge. Doors &lt;S&gt; leads to Autobot City - Repair Bay. Doors &lt;SW&gt; leads to Lounge/Observation Room. Blast Doors &lt;E&gt; leads to AC Command Center. Blast Doors &lt;W&gt; leads to Entrance to Autobot City. Mausoleum &lt;M&gt; leads to Mausoleum. Gravlift &lt;U&gt; leads to Main Lobby - Second Floor.

Air Raid has arrived.

Laserbeak has arrived.

Blurr has arrived.

Air Raid has gathered a small crowd that he leads into the lobby, whilst performing the walk-the-dog trick. Of course the bots think the toy is hardwired to do the tricks and blow Raid off. Comm chime! "Everyone shut up!" he shouts, hand to the side of his helm despite it being a completely unnecessary gesture. A /blip/? In /his/ Metroplex? "Keep your optics bright," he says to the quickly dissipating group of bots. "There's an enemy somewhere..." Rifle drawn, he skirts along the walls, not terribly stealthily.

Centipedes? In your... er, nevermind. They're more likely than you'd think, though!

These air ducts have not been cleaned in a while. That's probably Blades's fault! In any case, there are some pretty large dust snarls in the air ducts that may pose from problems for Laserbeak. there are also some laser-tripwires that he will have to navigate.

Combat: Laserbeak compares his Technical to 50: Failure :(

Laserbeak starts to slip down into the air vent, as stealthfully as he can be. Cautiously he dodges the big whirling fan to suck new oxygen into the complex for those human drones. A sudden intake opens up, whirring. The updraft hits him unexpectedly leading him into the fan.

Clang. Ow.

Clang. OW!

Clang, clang!

&lt;&lt;Squawk!&gt;&gt;

Laserbeak shakes his head as he finally compensates properly, then dives down the chute. Getting down to the second level of Autobot City, he welds his way out of the airvent, into the more pipe and mechanical workings of the city!

A Laserbeak in the fan presents problems for the fan's motion, and the turbines cough and groan. They aren't meant to whirl about with a Casseticon wedged in between their blades! Hence, the motors fail and a little red blip appears on one of the monitors in the security room where Blurr is on duty, indicating that one of the oxygen intakes had suddenly failed.

"Huh? What in the name of Primus? That's weird." Blurr mutters to himself. And then there is that resounding SQUAWK coming from one of the survelliance feeds near the malfunctioning fan. Finally, something to investigate! And the speedster is off like a turbofox on circuit speeders toward the source of the disturbance.

You move east to the Command Center...

AC Command Center

Once you enter this gigantic room, the first thing you notice is the big scanner sitting against the far wall. Looking like Teletran One's bigger cousin, the main computer that is Metroplex sits there checking the perimeter defenses of Autobot City. The gigantic viewer currently shows the exterior shot outside of Autobot City, a pastoral view of a wide plain surrounded by a large conifer forest. Several smaller monitors show different pictures, some of Earth by orbital satellite, others of various computer graphics, giving the viewer the current situation on Earth at a moment's notice. Next to the main computer is a FTL communications terminal used for talking to Cybertron, Junkion, and other worlds. It is linked to Blaster's main communications tower located upstairs. Along the other walls are assorted computer terminals that are used by individual Autobots for data processing and accessing information from the main computer core. On the wall to the right of the main computer is a large, recently finished portrait of Optimus Prime with Prowl and Ironhide in the background. A small caption below reads, "Until All Are One".

Contents:

Teletran Two Sensor Station

Teletran Two

Obvious exits: Small Doors &lt;E&gt; leads to Meeting Room. Blast Doors &lt;W&gt; leads to Main Lobby - First Floor.

Laserbeak enters from the Main Lobby - First Floor to the west.

Laserbeak has arrived.

Air Raid enters from the Main Lobby - First Floor to the west.

Air Raid has arrived.

Blurr enters from the Main Lobby - First Floor to the west.

Blurr has arrived.

Air Raid can't match up to Blurr, but he scoots along those gleaming panels, trying to zero in on that clattery squawk. Perhaps some poor goose got jammed somewhere, it happens! The sound leads him into the control center, and he gets a few wary glances from some bot gumbies. "Pay no mind..." Sidling the walls, he squints up at the vents.

The Teletran Two base computer is located here, and it has many useful functions, such as sealing the base, doing a perimeter sweep, and checking the monitoring sensors. Does Laserbeak just want to sneak past it, or does he want to take a moment to try and suborn it? Will his

Combat: Laserbeak compares his Technical to 50: Failure :(

Laserbeak eyes the Teletran systems as he delves deeper into the city. The Condor slips into the shadows, waiting for the sweep to pass by. The Autobots were wary, and that...was bad for business. However he considers the potential in the crisis. After the sweep disappears into the distance, before that return scan hits, Laserbeak continues on his way. Eyeing one of the computer terminals deep within the hard-to-reach portions of the city, he transforms back into tape mode.

Some simple hacking later, he sends a drone request for a transport cart to meet up ahead with him, one of the garbage routines that work for parcel and service transport. However unknown to him, &lt;&lt;Such requests were already done for the day&gt;&gt;

Of course, when Air Raid arrives to begin examining the panels, Blurr is already there, doing the same. "You heard it too, huh?" he comments. "Probably some slagging Casseticon trying to get some intel or something." He doubts it's Earth wildlife...it would've been dead already. He comes upon a small doorway leading into a maintenance/utility room. "Let's try in here."

You move east to the Meeting Room.

Meeting Room

A large rectangular table sits squarely in the middle of the room, with chairs large enough to fit your average Cybertronian situated around it. A holoviewer sits in the middle of the table, currently displaying the Autobot symbol. The walls are wood-paneled and arranged on them are various pictures of Cybertron in the Golden Age.

Contents:

Autobot City Vidcomm

Obvious exits: Small Doors &lt;W&gt; leads to AC Command Center.

Blurr arrives from the AC Command Center to the west.

Blurr has arrived.

Air Raid arrives from the AC Command Center to the west.

Air Raid has arrived.

Laserbeak arrives from the AC Command Center to the west.

Laserbeak has arrived.

Air Raid doesn't look too pleased by Blurr's presence, and simply sidles /around/ him, pausing to mutter into the radio. Then back to the blue bot, "I doubt it's a cassette. It /squawked/." As if that proves anything. Optics narrowed, he tap-tap-taps the walls with the back of his fist.

Underneath the table, underneath the floor panelling, there is the heart of the city, and there is what Laserbeak seeks. But he'll have to get out of the air vent, and Air Raid and Blurr are both prowling around. This is make or break now. If he can get under the table, he'll have a chance. If not...

Combat: Laserbeak compares his Technical to 50: Failure :(

Combat: Laserbeak compares his Technical to 50: Success!

Combat: Laserbeak compares his Technical to 50: Success!

Combat: Laserbeak compares his Technical to 50: Success!

Blurr moves into the utility room, attempting to listen for noises. He ughs at Air Raid. "Air Raid, are you forgetting something? A lot of Soundwave's little minions are actually very bird-like. Remember? Buzzsaw, Laserbeak, Ratbat...wait. Not Ratbat, that's something else. But yeah, Buzzsaw and Laserbeak. And I'm sure there are a bunch more I'm not thinking of. "Besides, I heard clanging around on the surveillance feed. Organics don't -clang-."

Laserbeak prys open the ceiling in the Meeting Room, peering in. It's positively empty, but with the Comms room and security so close by, it was going to be a desperate race, one he needed an advantage in. He hops down into the room, then under the table. He starts welding at the plates beneath him when the door to the room suddenly opens.

Stupid, stupid bird.

And there Blurr and Air Raid see their intruder, all scowls and yellow eyes under the table! Laserbeak!

The vulturebot whirrs suddenly, his cannons aiming at the room itself! Autocannon fire goes off, as his two independantly mobile firing pieces shoot the doorpad and electronic conduits in the area, to deter and detain the two flunkies, while he caught his prey and made his escape! Even now he could hear the maintenance cart whirring closer, he could still salvage this op!

Combat: Laserbeak appears from the shadows...

"Tch, yeah yeah, we'll see. I know a lot of Earth animals that clang!" And lo and behold, it is in fact Laserbeak. Raid grunts. "Okay so it's a cassette!" Before he can level his rifle, the bird tape shoots stuff! And disables the doors.

Combat: Laserbeak compares his Technical to 80: Failure :(

Combat: Laserbeak compares his Velocity to 70: Failure :(

Combat: Blurr compares his Velocity to 70: Failure :(

Blurr makes his way through the maintenance closet, which opened out into a corridor leading directly to the meeting room. He opens the door and... BAM! Laserbeak is busted! "Hah! I knew it! Stupid bird." The speedster smirks and an draws his electro-laser from subspace, aiming it at the Casseticon in an attempt to stun him before he could get away. But then the doors were sealing! Of course the city's automated systems would attempt to contain the threat, but that wouldn't do any good if he'd carved a hole in the floor or ceiling in order to get in from the maintenance shafts.

Combat: Blurr sets his defense level to Fearless.

Combat: Blurr strikes Laserbeak with his Electro-Laser attack!

Combat: Laserbeak has been temporarily incapacitated.

Aaaand, the shot just barely makes it through the crack as the doors are closing!

Contemptuously, the birdcon didn't even stop his welding as he shot at the Bots, he had an objective, the heart of the city itself. The welding was going alon

ZZZZRTRZZRRTTT

Suddenly Laserbeak stumbled forward, slumping to the ground as as electrostun overwhelmed his system. For a few brief seconds, he was vulnerable, but the door was shut and sealed. The question now, as he groggily clenched his talons, was if he'd recover before the security door was reopened?

Air Raid doesn't get in on this action. Well, he runs for the doors that Blurr just bolts right through, but alas, he's not swift enough, and slams into them. "FRAG," he curses, pounding on the metal. Then hurls his gun at the door. Then kicks it. NOTHING WORKS.

Laserbeak shakes his beak as visions of dreams pass before his eyes. He draws himself back up to his feet, then looks back. The door closed after all, and the Bots were no doubt wanting to break that down quickly. He returned to his work. His lasereyes cutting, slicing into Autobot City's core...and there it is, after his long, dangerous path, the transformation cog for Metroplex itself. His eyes blast the three conduits connecting to it, then clutches it to his talons. Up above the maintenance cart is whirring forward to its appointed rendevous. With his thrusters engaged, Laserbeak ascends to the roof, and into the cart to be promptly dumped outside the main base. This time...This time the Decepticons win. And Laserbeak is secure in his status again.

Laserbeak has disconnected.

Air Raid vanishes out of reality.

Air Raid has left.

Blurr vanishes out of reality.

Blurr has left.