Grudge Match: Whirl vs Shockwave



Highroad

What once was a splendid and grand highway has been shelled and bombed almost to the point of non-recognition. It is so cracked, potholed, and littered with debris that traveling it requires a great deal of coordination and even more concentration, a dangerous distraction when an attack could occur at any moment. The powerful bombs that hit this road so long ago were meant to cut off access to and from the city directly to the south.

Contents:

Small Drone

Autobot Sensor #7037 [Hidden]

Pile of Scrap

Obvious exits:

Fly  leads to Sky above New Cybertron Highway - Far East.

North  leads to New Cybertron Highway .

South  leads to Outskirts of Crystal City.

Whirl has arrived.

Torque has arrived.

The High Road leading straight to and from Crystal City has some some rejuvenation along with Cybertron's rebirth. The high roadway itself is slowly putting itself back together for any land-bound travelers, but the sectors beneath the road are in much better shape as well. Shockwave and a pair of Decepticon logistics experts are currently at the edge of the roadway, surveying the lands below.

"You can see there, there, and there," the green Decepticon says, pointing. "That has the telltale markings of a power generating station and a surrounding hyper-modular industrial complex." The green mech looks back at Shockwave and his colleague. "We went back through the Crystal City archives and saw that there was indeed a power station there five and a half million years ago before the Predacons demolished it. Our guess? It's being rebooted."

"With a bit of work on our part to help the process along, the complex could be operational within a few months," his red companion says. It's going to be a LOT of work, however. Even now, though, one can see tron lines marking where the complex will eventually appear. "Say what you will about Airwolf, but she kept great historical records."

Shockwave examines the site from afar carefully. "Excellent. This fits with our Crystal City expansion plans. I will order the governor to begin pushing out the boundaries of the city lines. By the time the complex is ready it should be fully absorbed into the city. The Ministry of Peace can make the territory claim once we have basic defences in place."

Shockwave's handle separates into legs as his barrel splits into arms. Straightening out, he completes his transformation into robot mode.

Combat: Your stats and limits have been reset by an administrator.

About six hundred yards down the highway stands another cyclops, this one way cooler and more awesome than the big purple hexagonal mess that is Shockwave. "You see him? All the way down there," Whirl comments to Torque who he managed to convince to come along with him on this little adventure. He holds a pair of binoculars up to his optic, struggling to look through them properly. "Wonder what they're doing down there..."

He tosses the binoculars to Torque. "Okay, here's the plan. I'm going to swoop in all heroic like and take out Shockwave before he even knows what hit him. Your job is to keep watch and make sure nothing too terrible happens. If I die, make sure to come in and get my body, I don't want my corpse to be used for some sicko experiment, okay?" With that said, the Wrecker transforms into his sweet helicopter mode and takes off into the air, spinning rotors carrying him closer and closer to the gaggle of Decepticons on the other side of the roadway. Even though the initial plan was to be stealthy about it, Whirl throws it all out the window by yelling down to the group as he approaches.

"HEY DECEPTICOCKS! GUESS WHO'S GOING TO MURDER YOUR BOSS RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU!?"

Spinister has arrived.

 LOOK Outbound says, "Oh come on now... Whatever happened to good old 'entertainment?' Argh! *hacking cough* Slagging Autobots... This is what I get for reviewing messges mid-battle. Pardon me!"

Torque seemed determined to help him the other day, but now.. now she looks just a bit uneasy about the whole thing. It's pretty much all on her shoulders now to make sure the one-eyed idiot doesn't die, much to her chagrin. Either way she's here now, scouting out the Decepticon CO and his groupies, a thin frown hanging on her lips. "Ehn.. Fine, but I just hope it really doesn't have to come to that. I refuse to be left reporting your death." She'll even jump into the fray if needed, though she's certainly no match for Shockwave.

"Just be.. careful, alright?" Torque glances to Whirl as he tosses the binoculars over and shifts, flying off to meet his Maker. Literally. Welp, nothing she can do right now but watch, so she does just that, hunkering down so as not to be spotted yet.

 Cyclonus says, "Don't be discouraged. Entertainment may still be provided when he is punished. Besides, Galvatron may decide he wants a trial after all. But unless he overrides me, there will not be one."

"Now the real problem is going to be the industrial complex," the red scholar adds, rubbing the back of his head.

"Explain."

"Well like Architect said, it's hyper-modular, and so far we've been unable to find just what configuration it's going to end up being. Heck, we don't even know what the complex is going to be designed to -make-. The archives didn't include that, either."

Shockwave looks back down at the tron style outline on the sector below. "Understood. Continue your investigation, however I calculate an 83 percent chance that *any* industrial complex can be made to provide some use to the Empire. If the odds fail us, however, then we can demolish the complex and utilize only the power station."

The green and red mechs smile at each other, glad that their proposals have been accepted. That smile suddenly vanishes when... *HEY DECEPTICOCKS! GUESS WHO'S GOING TO MURDER YOUR BOSS RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU!?* "Wha--?!"

Shockwave jerks his head up, just as startled as his companions are. His optic quickly narrows in on the approaching helicopter. Whirl could have zapped them all if he wanted, but apparently that isn't the Wrecker way. The Decepticon Military Commander takes up a defensive stance as the logistics mechs move behind him. He's the only combatant here.

Shockwave takes aim with his arm cannon, but then thinks better of it. He can recall 728 times in the past where the Wreckers have engaged a simple diversion style attack involving a lone frontal assailant followed by numerous flankers. Shockwave glances left and right, making sure there's nobody else here moving against him. Surely there /must/ be, yet... "You are a long way from Iacon, Autobot," Shockwave retorts, returning his focus on the chopper. "Have you finally tired of fruitlessly aiding the resistance?"

Combat: Error: 'def' is not a valid defense level. Please see '!defend' for a list of valid entries.

Combat: Error: 'defensive' is not a valid defense level. Please see '!defend' for a list of valid entries.

Combat: Shockwave sets his defense level to Guarded.

Shockwave/INFO_ANSI_GUN - Set.

Yes, the /smart/ thing to do would be to have a whole bunch of other Wreckers hiding in position to flank Shockwave while he's distracted but, well, Whirl isn't exactly a critical thinker. He hovers in the air for a bit, rotors whipping dust around all over the place, before he transforms and lands before Shockwave on those ridiculous ski feet of his.

"On the contrary, hexagon-butt. I'm actually here to kill you!" He crosses his arms over his chest and glares at Shockwave with a look that could almost be described as 'smug' if he were capable of making any sort of facial expression. "Scuttlebutt has it that you've been stepping in where Galvatron has been absent, taking control of the Decepticons and ordering them around as if they were yours to command. I also have it on good authority that you're a huge jerk that should've been put down a looong time ago. Luckily for me, I've been the one assigned to do it!" He points to the red and green mechs accompanying Shockwave as he continues. "You guys! I hope you're planning on sticking around because I want there to be witnesses when I kill this bastard! I want you to tell the other Decepticons what happens here today!"

He takes a step towards Shockwave, snapping his pincher hand at him. "I've been waiting for this a long time.. I hope you're ready to die you sonofabitch!" In true Wrecker fashion, Whirl starts off this potentially epic battle of the cyclopses (cyclopsii?) by throwing himself directly at Shockwave with that reckless abandon he is so famous for, swinging an arm to nail him right in the hexagon face with the bulk of his null ray module.

Combat: Bell AH-1 Cobra  sets his defense level to Fearless.

Whirl transforms into a crazy robot. Wreck and Rule!

 LOOK Outbound says, "Is it too much to ask for someone of rank to inform Lieutenant Triggerhappy that Decepticons are considered FRIENDLIES..?"

Combat: Whirl strikes Shockwave with his FACE PUNCH (Punch) attack!

Combat: Whirl (Whirl) used "Punch": A Level 1 MELEE attack.

Combat: You took 4 damage.

 Viator says, "It serves you right that your tactical blunders are causing you harm when you were foolish enough not to summon me to the battle IMMEDIATELY! Blasted overconfident youths!"

 LOOK Outbound says, "If I did not abhor suicide, I swear..."

 Aerospace Lt. Triggerhappy says, "Hey, he threw that smoke grenade in my face!"

 Aerospace Lt. Triggerhappy says, "I wasn't -trying- to hit you this time, at least! Get over it."

 LOOK Outbound says, "Just...shoot them. THEM.. Lieutenant."

 Aerospace Lt. Triggerhappy says, "Actually I -did-."

 LOOK Outbound says, "...Only."

<Decepticon> Aerospace Lt. Triggerhappy says, "Also, I don't let go of the trigger. Not while I'm shooting."

"Kill me," Shockwave states in a tone that would be questioning were it not for his total disbelief. "An unlikely scenario. It is much *more* likely that this is another 'famed' Wrecker plot that ends with the annihilation of their ranks." Shockwave watches as Whirl transforms into robot mode and lands hard on the ground. Keeping his arm cannon trained on Whirl, he at least confirms his theory. "I have been running the Decepticons for some time now. Has Autobot Intelligence only now realized this? I would have thought the string of Decepticon victories should have made that clear." Although he thinks little of Outbound's spy ploy, he sees no reason not to corroborate what he's fed the Autobots so far.

Once Whirl steps towards him and then lunges/falls/throws himself for Shockwave, the logical mech fires a quick laser blast. Unfortunately, Whirl's psychotic charge is just beneath his aim, sparing Torque from having to find Whirl's head later.

Shockwave takes the blow square in the 'face', with the null ray box fitting in perfectly. The Decepticon stumbles back, nearly smacking into the two scholars. The pair of them scatter. "Uh, uh... uh..." the red one stammers, terrified at this turn of events. The last time he saw combat was when a robo-possum snuck into the Decepticon Headquarters at Nightsiege ten years ago. Uncertain on whether they should be helping Shockwave or not given their non-combatant status, they hesitate.

"/Go/," Shockwave orders as he steps back up to Whirl, throwing his right fist for Whirl's roundhouse punch with enough strength to knock down a small building.

Combat: Shockwave misses Whirl with his Roundhouse Punch (Punch) attack!

Combat: Gained 1 energon.

Torque is actually.. surprised to see Whirl land the first punch. It isn't as strong as one of hers, but it's enough to send Shockwave fumbling on his feet and bring a large grin to the femme's face. "Yes!" She cheers from the baackground, her voice miniscule due to the distance. But that doesn't stop her, already pumping a fist to purr on the chopper. Cheering for Whirl? Never imagined this day would come.

"Quite a battle!" Singe smiles up at Torque. "I must say, I'm not typically one for cheerleading, but your enthusiasm is rather infectious. It's one of your nice assets, Autobot." He glances at the mirror on his forearm and adjusts his bangs. "One of."

<Decepticon> LOOK Outbound chuckles, "Way to use your head, Lieutenant...

To actually give Shockwave a nice solid punch to the face like that is extremely satisfying to Whirl. Who says guys without hands can't punch? What's that? No one says that? Oh, well.. whatever.

"Ha! You call those pathetic strings of events victories? More like victories in showing what complete turds the Decepticons are!" Or something, whatever. Clever burns aren't exactly Whirl's forte. He's much better at dodging as evidenced by the way he expertly avoids the fury of Shockwave's fist, ducking underneath it and letting it sail harmlessly past him. "Speaking of turds, how's that daughter of yours doing? You know, the one with the water gun? Kind of odd that you would give her a water gun and then name her Flamethrower, isn't it?"

Whirl ducks away from Shockwave, putting some space between them before he lifts up his arm to point his null-ray module directly at that hexagon-shaped mess that passes for his face. "Hey, maybe you should make a robot with a flamethrower on her arm and name her Water Gun! Think about that while I zap your face, will ya?" Pew pew! Whirl fires his gun hand at the other gun-hand weilding robot with not so deadly but still really annoying and inconvienient null ray blasts.

Combat: Whirl strikes Shockwave with his Null-Ray Module attack!

Combat: Whirl (Whirl) used "Null-Ray Module": A Level 2 RANGED attack.

Combat: You took 5 damage.

Combat: Shockwave has been temporarily incapacitated.

Torque freezes at the voice of another, antennas shooting straight up like a deer in the headlights before she whips around, fists drawn up and at the ready to defend herself. Except no one's there? Not until she looks down at least, taking a step back in surprise, "Ack!" Crap it's one of those Con Nebulans, which means his other partners shouldn't be too far away. But for the moment it's just him, which helps her ease up a little, optics scanning the skies as she asks, "Hm.. you must be that Singe guy.. Where's your other two friends I keep hearing about?" With Spinister's silence and mysterious air you really never know where he's gonna pop up.

Singe takes a bow. "Flattered to be recognized, Autobot." He glances up from mid now. "And flattery will get you *everywhere*, dearest." Straightening up, he makes a bit of an 'ooooh' face as Shockwave gets stun gunned. "As for Spinister and Hairsplitter? Not here." He gives her a sideways glance. "Yet."

Shockwave's fist sails mere nano-inches above Whirl's head. Whirl can likely feel the wind against that dorsal antennae of his. Shockwave moves to lash out at him with an elbow strike from his gun arm, but Whirl is already backing away. "Quips and idle threats will not protect you from the reality of the dwindling Autobot military strength throughout the galaxy." Shockwave moves towards Whirl, but receives a paralyzo box beam blast square in the chest. Electrical sparks arc over his torso, cresting the hexagon chest plate and reaching his neck and head. Shockwave staggers, almost but not quite falling to one knee.

Voice module unaffected, he states in his calm yet supremely confident tone, "You should ask the Autobot contingent on Dxun for their opinion on the effectiveness of Subject Flamethrower's arsenal. Or the rebels during the evacuation of New Vilnacron. Or any number of encounters that ended with an Autobot slaughter." Personality flaws or not, Shockwave has no regrets about Flamethrower or any other scientific endeavor he's carried out. To him, they are all merely experiments that furthered the Decepticon cause. Subject #4590 only received a proper designation because it would have hindered her effectiveness otherwise.

"Your attempts invoke an emotional response in me has failed," he notes dryly. Where lesser robots may have been completely knocked out, Shockwave is only temporarily slowed. In fact, he's still moving, fighting against the power surges wracking his body to raise his gun arm. Whirl has mere seconds to act.

It's true, although Flamethrower is sort of a joke amongst Whirl and.. whoever else knows about her existence, it doesn't change the fact that she has played a part in the systematic genocide of his allies and having Shockwave rub it in his face like that just pisses him off. Such an angry emotion, does Shockwave even know what that feels like?

"Tch! Typical Shockwave.." Whirl waves his arms around in a stereotypical robot fashion. "Beep bop boop, what is emotion? Does not compute. I am incapable of not being a douchebag. Beeple beep! Robot noises!" This is really for his personal gratification more than anything, he doesn't usually get a chance to break out his sick robot dance to mock someone. It only lasts so long though because that gun arm pointed at him is a very real, very serious danger and the effects of his null ray only last so long. Probably shorter on a target like Shockwave.

Whirl transforms into his helicopter mode, rotors spinning like mad to lift him high in the air before Shockwave has a chance to shoot him. Sure, he can probably still shoot him but everyone knows Shockwave can't shoot for shit and Whirl bounces and weaves around in the air just to make it that much more difficult for him. He swivels himself into position, aiming the cannon attached to his hull at the Decepticon Commander, a grenade shooting out of the barrel with a thunderous BOOM.

Whirl transforms into a helicopter. So cool!

Combat: Bell AH-1 Cobra <Whirl> strikes Shockwave with his Incendiary Shell attack!

Combat: Bell AH-1 Cobra <Whirl> (Whirl) used "Incendiary Shell": A Level 6 RANGED attack.

Combat: You took 12 damage.

INFO [#829]: %tPeople I wanna duel (in no particular order): %r%t- Rodimus Prime <completed May 2nd, 2012> %r%t- Grimlock <completed August 23rd, 2012> %r%t- Fortress Maximus %r%t- Nate Briar <completed March 16th, 2012>%r%t- James Bailey%r%t- Victory Leo %r%t- Scattershot %r%t- Ultra Magnus %r%t- Galvatron %r%t- Cyclonus %r%t- Optimus Prime %r%t- Elita One %r%t- Kenya Momesa%r%t- Prowl

INFO_ANSI_GUN [#829]: [ansi(+darkviolet,Ar)][ansi(+mediumpurple,m)]%b[ansi(+purple,C)][ansi(+mediumorchid,a)][ansi(+orchid,nn)][ansi(+magenta,on)]%b[ansi(+violet,B)][ansi(+mistyrose,la)][ansi(+white,st)]

Combat: Temporarily restricting the CORRUPT effect from all of your attacks.

The two scholars scamper away. The red one transforms into a lithe hover-truck mode, while the other shifts into a jackhammer and lands in the rear flatbed of his colleague. The truck speeds away, eager to escape the battle and relieved at being ordered to do so.

"In my experience, emotion does little to prevent the viciousness or brutality you are claiming to be against," Shockwave retorts, eyeing Whirl carefully. "You would be at the top of my list of examples." His arm is moving faster and faster even as the seconds tick by, though Shockwave holds his fire once Whirl transforms into helicopter mode and soars upwards. Ducking around like a psychopath will do little to deter Shockwave, and he tracks Whirl's movements effortlessly.

When the grenade lands at his feet, he knows the effects of the null ray have given him a mere 3 percent chance of avoiding the blast radius, and so he instead focuses on lining up his next shot. The grenade detonates, tearing into the road and causing a gaping hole in the metal. If someone fell in they'd plummet all the way to the ground below. Being caught in the blast, Shockwave is... unmoved.

Standing near the hole, the Decepticon goes on the offence. "What of you, Whirl? What are you *doing* here? It is clear you have no Wrecker reinforcements, meaning you have attacked me head-on. No matter how suicidal Wrecker tactics usually are, they always have at least *some* strategic goal in mind." Shockwave takes aim, bracing himself for the inevitable recoil of a maximum powered arm cannon blast. "But this... this is *stupid*, and can only end in one way: your complete and utter destruction!" Ka-BOOM! Shockwave's cannon explodes with searing light bolt aimed at the dodging helicopter.

Combat: Shockwave sets his defense level to Aggressive.

Combat: Shockwave strikes Bell AH-1 Cobra <Whirl> with his Arm Cannon Blast attack!

Combat: Drained 17 energon.

Mysterious Attack Copter says, "welp, that was a failed adventure"

<Decepticon> LOOK Outbound says, "Am...going to...killll...youuu..."

Did that guy just turn into a jackhammer? Wow, that's gotta be the crappiest altmode Whirl have ever seen since the cassettes. If he wasn't busy owning Shockwave with his awesome burns and grenades and such, he would totally make sure to mock that guy relentlessly for having such a bullshit alternate form.

The resulting blast from his grenade is definitely impressive but it doesn't appear to be impressive enough to put down Shockwave. This shouldn't be that surprising though, Shockwave is a tough sonofabitch and Whirl knows it which makes the fact he came here alone even stupider than before. "I already told you why I'm here!" the baby blue helicopter emits from it's intercom. "I'm here to kill you. Not because it's my job, though that is a plus." Everyone knows how much Whirl loves his job, it's in his +finger! "Not because I would be showered in praise by literally /everyone,/ no.. I'm doing it because I hate you. I hate you with every fibre of my being. I hate you more than anything I have ever hated before in my entire existence!"

The Wrecker strafes around Shockwave and prepares to fire another grenade but is struck dead-on by Shockwave. The blast tears through his armor, ripping it right off his frame and sending it hurtling towards the ground in pieces. The exterior damage is pretty awful, that's for sure, but the interior damage is even worse on account of the radiation now surging through his systems, tainting everything it comes in contact with. Smoke billows out of the gaping hole where Whirl's left side used to be and the helicopter begins a downward spiral that ends with him hitting the road with a crash so loud it can be heard all the way where Torque is standing.

But of course, it's not enough to keep a Wrecker down, especially a Wrecker like Whirl. He manages to shift back into his robot mode and pull himself up onto his feet, giving Shockwave that emotionless glare only a cyclops can give. "You seem to be under the impression that I give a damn," he says flatly, smacking out the fire that's broken out on his shoulder with his pincher hand. "Everyone dies someday. Some worse than others. If kicking your ass means my utter destruction, then so be it! At least I would die happy." He sprints full force at Shockwave, kicking off the ground at the last second to launch himself at the purple mech for a full body assault.

Whirl transforms into a crazy robot. Wreck and Rule!

Combat: Whirl strikes Shockwave with his Helluva Tackle (Smash) attack!

Combat: Whirl (Whirl) used "Smash": A Level 3 MELEE attack.

Combat: You took 5 damage.

<Decepticon> LOOK Outbound says, "Lieutenant... Can you try covering me without slagging me?"

There is a zero percent chance that the two city planners are going to call for backup. This is because there are two possibilities here: either Shockwave murders Whirl, in which case all is well, or Whirl somehow gets the better of Shockwave against all the odds, at which point it's best not to have any witnesses. Luckily, there are none. Right?

"Then your hate will bring about your destruction," Shockwave replies. He fires another volley of arm cannon bursts, but this time the helicopter is able to evade them before plummeting into the roadway. Shockwave approaches the smoking wreckage, ready to shoot anything that moves. But Whirl isn't down for as long as one might have expected, and springs back to life with a powerful tackle.

There's a loud clang as the two bots impact with one another, and both Shockwave and Whirl are knocked back, back, back... until they hit the roadway's railing and flip over. It's a good twenty story drop from the high road to the sector below, and Shockwave wrestles with him the whole way. "What flawed reasoning," Shockwave states. Despite the fact that he and his enemy are in freefall above the ruins, he stays calm and collected. The wind rushes past them.

"Allow me to explain in further detail how this ends: You will be released and hurled into the wreckage of an ancient power station, followed by your death, followed by minor repairs on my person lasting no more than twenty breems, followed by Decepticon conquest of the newly rejuvenated sector. It seems we agree on one thing, Autobot: your life has very little value. Beginning phase 1..." Shockwave ignites his rocket boots, trying to break free of Whirl while simultaneously shoving him downwards.

Combat: Shockwave strikes Whirl with his A Sudden Stop (Kick) attack!

Combat: Drained 2 energon.

<Decepticon> LOOK Outbound says, "On second thought... Have fun."

Spinister vanishes out of reality.

Spinister has left.

Being sent falling over the railing wasn't exacly part of Whirl's plan (as if he even had one to begin with) but there's really nothing he can do about it now. The wind roars all around him as they plummet towards the ruins below, Shockwave's words just barely heard over the noise.

Despite the fact that everything Shockwave tells him is true, that there's no way he could win this encounter, that the only way this is going to end is with him lying in a heap of broken parts under the roadway, that no matter what kind of damage he inflicts on Shockwave it wont make any sort of difference in the long run... it just doesn't matter to him. For thousands and thousands of years, Whirl has harbored an unhealthy almost obsessive hatred for the Decepticon, claiming it to be his 'destiny' to kill him. Even if he fails (which he most likely will) at least his final moments would have been spent doing exactly what he always dreamed of doing: kicking Shockwave's hexagonal ass!

"Spare me the boring crap!" Whirl snaps as he struggles to hang on to Shockwave as they fall. It's really hard to keep a good grip when all you have is one hand that isn't even a hand, more like a pair of pliers attached to your wrist. "Tell me how you really feel! I can handle it, honest!" He's then shoved down by the upwards thrust of Shockwave's rocket feet, causing his grip to loosen and then finally break, the Wrecker now falling down by himself. But he's not going out without a parting shot!

Whirl pulls his photon cannon out of subspace and clutches it tight in his pincher hand, pointing it at the rapidly ascending Shockwave. "UP YOURS SHOCKWAVE!" he shouts before pulling the trigger and sending a blast sailing towards the Decepticon.

Combat: Whirl strikes Shockwave with his Photon Beam attack!

Combat: Whirl (Whirl) used "Photon Beam": A Level 4 RANGED attack.

Combat: You took 12 damage.

"It is clear to me that you cannot," Shockwave says of Whirl's ability to 'handle it' as he soars away. As planned, Whirl will hit the ground hard, meaning Shockwave can then follow it up with a coup de grace. But the Wrecker gets a lucky snapshot off with his photon cannon. No matter how much of a fluke it is, it has the intended effect. Struck in the dead centre of his gut, Shockwave's body lights up. "Hnngh..." he emits. The armour plating just above where his gun-mode trigger would be has melted almost completely through, and the impact knocks Shockwave into an ancient cooling tower of the five million year old power plant.

The weakened tower crumples under Shockwave's weight, causing black debris and ash to rain down on the entire site. The tron lines of the sector's rebirth is still visible despite the tower's collapse, but it's somewhat diminished. Now, where did Whirl eventually land, Shockwave considers as he regains control of his flight systems. The ruins provide a lot of good hiding spots. A million calculations run through Shockwave's mind. He knows the velocity Whirl was traveling at when he hit the ground. He knows Whirl's recovery factor. He knows Whirl's ground speed. As he does not see the Wrecker in the sky, Shockwave is able to determine exactly how far Whirl could have gotten in the time it took Shockwave to recover.

It is a moderately large area, unfortunately, but Shockwave has the solution. It takes only a split second for Shockwave's arms and legs to slide together as he leans forward. The barrel has only just slid onto his arms before Shockwave cuts loose with a wide area gamma burst. Shockwave doesn't need to know which specific path Whirl took: he can just annihilate the whole area.

Shockwave's legs combine as his back unfolds. A wide, silver barrel appears out of subspace and connects to his arms, completing his transformation into ray gun mode.

Combat: Laser Gun <Shockwave> sets his defense level to Guarded.

Combat: Laser Gun <Shockwave> misses Whirl with his Gamma Ray Burst attack!

Combat: Drained 14 energon.

<Decepticon> LOOK Outbound says, "Lieutenant Triggerhappy and the Old Mech Viator are down. I am leaving the area on Despoiler... If their lives are worth scrap then I advise a show of force to send the Bots packing."

Where did Whirl land? Even he doesn't know. The only thing that's certain is that he was falling so fast he actually punched through whatever was left of the power plant's roof and smacked so hard against the ground that pieces of him actually flew off in every direction. The Wrecker lays there motionless for a few moments, the flickering light of his optic the only thing illuminating the inside of the dark ruins. Has he been left for dead? Is Shockwave still out there? The answer becomes all too clear when suddenly the entire building is blasted into smithereens all around him.

"Shit shit shit!" Whirl jumps up onto his feet and although just moving around gives him great pain, he makes a run for it in an attempt to escape the destruction all around him. He leaps out a structural collapse in one of the east walls of the room he's in seconds before the whole thing falls, a thick layer of dust coating his entire body. His gaze travels from the ruins up and up to the big ol' laser gun floating around in the air.

"Ahahahahahhaahhahahahaaha! SHOCKWAVE! YOU FAILED! I STILL FUNCTION!" He throws his arms up in the air and hollers a cry of victory, causing more pieces of his battered and broken armor fall off his body. "I AM WHIRL! AND I HAVE NO KNOWN WEAKNESSES! I AM... INDESCTRUCTIBLE!" He pops off a few shots of laser fire from his null-ray, trying to coax Shockwave onto the ground for some manly, mech-on-mech wrasslin'. No robohomo.

Combat: Whirl misses Laser Gun <Shockwave> with his pewpewpew (Laser) attack!

Combat: Whirl (Whirl) used "Laser": A Level 2 RANGED attack.

Whirl

Whirl is kind of a strange guy in both personality and appearance. He's a tall, lanky robot painted head to toe in a cool light blue. His head is blocky and he doesn't have much of a face, instead just an emotionless box with a single red optic. His chest consists entirely of the glass canopy of his helicopter mode, an Autobot emblem emblazoned upon it. A null-ray module is equipped on his right arm where his hand would be, and the left sports a sinister looking pair of pincers; perfect for choking out Decepticons or anyone else who he deems worthy of being choked out. There's also a strange contrapation attached to his left leg that he calls 'The Paralyzo Box.'

Laser Gun <Shockwave> remains hovering in the sky after the building explodes around Whirl. He knows the Autobot is still in there, and plans to stop firing only once he's sure that mere light blue scraps remain--the body must be identified, after all. Finally the power plant comes crumbling down on itself, sending dust everywhere. Shockwave's dorsal mounted targeting sensor lights up as he switches to infrared. Was Whirl destroyed? Shockwave considers it 50/50 odds, which aren't good enough when Wreckers are concerned.

Finally Whirl reveals himself, emerging from the ash and screaming in an incoherent manner. Shockwave catches the word 'still function' and 'indestructible'. Wrong on both counts, Shockwave thinks as he slides to the side. Every laser bolt misses, flying too far to the right. With the target now successfully flushed out, Shockwave can do what he's been saving all his power to do. Alas for Whirl, it does not include mech-on-mech wrestling. There's a loud hum that fill the sector before Shockwave cuts loose with a Full Powered Shoxcannon. The recoil sends the laser gun floating backwards, but Shockwave's handle thrusters quickly reassert control, guiding Shockwave forward to see the results of his destructive assault.

Combat: Laser Gun <Shockwave> strikes Whirl with his Shoxcannon attack!

Combat: Drained 29 energon.

INFO_ANSI_GUN [#829]: [ansi(+darkviolet,Ar)][ansi(+mediumpurple,m)]%b[ansi(+purple,C)][ansi(+mediumorchid,a)][ansi(+orchid,nn)][ansi(+magenta,on)]%b[ansi(+violet,B)][ansi(+mistyrose,la)][ansi(+white,st)]

Shockwave/INFO_ANSI_SHOXCANNON - Set.

There's really nothing Whirl can do from down here. He's not exactly in the greatest shape right now, moving is difficult enough to do, transforming is definitely out of the question. So he just.. stands there, glaring up at Shockwave with a flickering red optic. He can hear the giant laser gun powering up, he knows the biggest blast of all is coming so what does he do? Well, if he had hands he would just flip him off but he doesn't so instead he just lifts his pinchers in the air and snaps them.

"EAT IT, BUTTLORD!"

As soon as he shouts that, he's engulfed in a bright light that rocks him to the very core. The blast rends whatever armor still clings to his body off, and the intense heat of the radioactive blast burns his internal components to a crisp. There's not much left of Whirl at this point, he's really just a frame of metal standing on some ski feet with a little blinking light on what's left of the box he calls a face.

When the dust settles, Whirl manages to stay on his feet for a whopping two seconds before falling backwards and landing in a heap on the ground. He is completely motionless and there doesn't appear to be any traces of life left in him... until he slowly raises up his arm and gives his claw hand a squeeze, making a long clanging noise. "W-wreck...wreck and rule!"

The Global Pose Tracker marks that Whirl has 'skipped' his action for this round.

All the while, the entire fight, Torque has been watching from her post several yards away, diligently spying through her binoculars to get a good look at the brawl. Unfortunately it isn't going all that well for Whirl, as she predicted, the femme waiting on baited breathe after Shockwave's last attack, waiting for the dust to settle. But when it does all she can see is Whirl collapse to the ground.

"Frag..." She hisses softly to herself, shoving binoculars back into subspace. Guess it's her time to shine. And without further thought the medic bursts into a sprint, getting a few strides before leaping into her altmode and speeding down the road. "That's enough, Shockwave!" She calls as she closes in, horn blaring and lights giving a small flicker to try and get his attentions off the Wrecker. It doesn't take her long to reach Whirl, flipping back up to her normal mode, allowing herself to skid a few feet across the ground before coming to a halt at his side. Hopefully Shockwave holds as Torque moves to kneels beside the chopper, frowning and attempting to haul him up for transport. "I told you this would happen, idiot..."

"Enough," Shockwave states, again in that manner that isn't quite a question but implies his utter disdain for a comment. "It is not enough until every Autobot is either a smoking ruin or has bent at the knee to the Decepticon Empire." Shockwave watches as Torque runs in, making all manner of racket in order to draw attention to her instead of him. With his barrel still smoking, Shockwave flies after Torque, clearly planning to continue the fight. "So it seems Whirl was not willing to throw his existence away after all. Instead he has risked death and accomplished nothing." Shockwave fires a quick blast at the pair, though with Torque working to haul him up, she'll wind up facing the brunt of it. "And you let him do it. Autobot discipline is going to cost you both your lives." Ka-THOOM! Ka-THOOM! Ka-THOOM! The ruins continue to explode around Torque and Whirl as Shockwave refuses to let up on the pair.

Combat: Laser Gun <Shockwave> strikes Torque with his Cannon Blast (Laser) attack!

Combat: Drained 2 energon.

If Whirl could smile, he would have the biggest grin on his when he sees Torque run up to him. "Hey.. you stayed," he says with a hint of surprise in his voice. Considering how rocky their relationship is, he almost expected her to bail when shit got real but he's really glad she stuck it out like she promised. "Than-" He doesn't even get to finish that word as Shockwave continues his assault, blasting away at the two of them though Torque takes the brunt of the assault. To try and kill Whirl was one thing, to try and kill Torque was another.

"Hey!" Whirl pushes himself up into a sitting position, his entire body groaning and sparking as he does so. He lifts up his photon cannon and cracks off a couple more shots at the flying laser gun. "Get away from her you bitch!"

Combat: Whirl strikes Laser Gun <Shockwave> with his Photon Beam attack!

Combat: Whirl (Whirl) used "Photon Beam": A Level 4 RANGED attack.

Combat: You took 11 damage.

Combat: Whirl's attack has damaged your Agility!

Torque may think Whirl is a horrible person, and hate being around him, but she offers a smile none-the-less while helping him up, "Of course. I'm wasn't about to go back on a promise and leave a teammate high and d-- Erkh!" Amber optics flash bright when the cannonfire strikes, cutting her words short and sending her sprawling forward across the Wrecker's lap, smoke rising from the charred panels at her back.

"Ehnn..." She groans with a hiss of pain, hands curling into fists at the ground, trying to slowly push her back up. "That.. That aft." Torque sneers, grunting as she hefts herself to her feet to stare down the flying gun with a scowl. "I was really hoping I didn't have to join this fight... Whirl, cover me." She asides to the mech, not even looking at him, before dashing off again, running full tilt at Shockwave.

It's safe to say Torque can't shoot for shit. Hell, she doesn't even carry a gun. But what she does have are fists. Fists that are ready to pummel as legs bend beneath her when she closes in, leaping up to try and grab hold of the floating gun and grapple him. And if successful Shockwave will feel nothing but a flurry of punches wailing relentlessly on his gunmode's frame.

Combat: Torque sets her defense level to Aggressive.

Combat: Torque strikes Laser Gun <Shockwave> with her Ohgod not the giant fists! attack! [Pulled -1]

Combat: Torque (Torque) used "Powerfist": A Level 4 MELEE attack.

Combat: You took 11 damage.

Combat: Torque's attack has damaged your Velocity!

"Did you really think I would let up?" Shockwave asks. The photon beam from the still functional Whirl smashes into the side of his barrel, causing the external hose that runs from his arm to back to break loose. The end sparks violently, but Shockwave remains in the air. "Did you truly think I would refrain from killing her as well? Another error on your part, Whirl. I have often heard it said that the only true way to hurt an Autobot is to hurt his friends instead. Remarkable that YOU of all Autobots should succumb to that flaw."

That is when Torque does the very last thing Shockwave expected. He was certain--certain!--that she was going to grab the horribly wounded Wrecker and make a beeline for it, whereupon Shockwave could continue to fire at his leisure. But no, Torque instead glares at him and then /charges/.

Shockwave immediately takes evasive action, trying to rise up beyond her reach. Alas, her fingertips barely snag onto the side of his barrel, and within moments Torque is on top, mercilessly punching him. "Nnnn!" Shockwave ducks and weaves, trying to dislodge her. Her position makes transforming difficult, and Shockwave doesn't have the titanic strength in gun mode like he does as a robot.

Diving partly in an attempt to throw Torque off and partly because his rocket handle is giving out, Shockwave aims for one of the power plant's remaining spires, smashing through it barrel first. The hollowed out and blackened shell of the spire crumbles on impact, but there's a chance Torque is at least off him now.

Combat: Laser Gun <Shockwave> strikes Torque with his Bucking Ray Gun (Smash) attack!

Combat: You took 3 damage from that attack.

Combat: You have foolishly damaged your own Firepower!

Combat: Drained 5 energon.

Combat: Torque is size 5, a lot smaller than you.

Whirl just watches in amazement as Torque leaps into the air and starts wailing on Shockwave. He already had a creepy, stalker crush on her but now... ho boy, if she thought he was bad before..

"Yeah, kick his ass, Torque!" Whirl is sure she's got this in the bag up until Shockwave rams them both into a spire. "Aw shit! I got your back, just keep at it!" He forces himself to stand up and shoots hella lasers at Shockave.

Combat: Whirl strikes Laser Gun <Shockwave> with his Disruptor attack!

Combat: Whirl (Whirl) used "Disruptor": A Level 1 RANGED attack.

Combat: You took 7 damage.

Combat: Whirl's attack has damaged your Accuracy!

<Decepticon> Mindwipe says, "The sentence being?"

<Decepticon> LOOK Outbound offers dully, "Whatever it is... I'm sure the trial will be amusing."

<Decepticon> Cyclonus says, "A surprise."

At least he hit the tower first, leaving her to only take a small amount of the impact. It hurts, yes, but not enough to hinder her too much, though it does send her tumbling from her perch on Shockwave and into the rubble of the now collapsed rubble.

"Mmf.. Oh no you don't, I'm not gonna let you off that easy!" Torque roars, scrambling into the debris to lurch forward and try to grab hold of part of his handle. He better be damn lucky or smart to manage dodging her grab, because if he doesn't Shockwave would soon find himself being spun around and around and around, the femme twirling like a competitor in the hammer throw, looking to let go at the peak of her spin and send him flying!

<Decepticon> Mindwipe says, "I just need to know if we're talking analysis or autopsy."

<Decepticon> LOOK Outbound hms, "My advice? Prep for both."

Combat: Torque strikes Laser Gun <Shockwave> with her Twirling Twirling Towards Justice! (Grab) attack!

Combat: Torque (Torque) used "Grab": A Level 0 MELEE attack.

Combat: You took 0 damage.

<Decepticon> Cyclonus says, "Indeed."

<Decepticon> Mindwipe says, "Very well."

Laser Gun <Shockwave> frees himself from Torque as he careens through the side of the power plant spire. His barrel is dented at the point of impact, but that hardly matters now with Whirl continuing to blast at him. The laser bolts from the /standing/ Wrecker rip through Shockwave's weakened armour, hitting his vital internals. The space gun pivots towards Whirl, planning to finish him off before the Autobot medic climbs up some debris, grabs his handle, and sends him flying backwards.

Shockwave's damaged thrusters aren't enough to compensate against Torque's strength, and so he goes spinning around and around as he flies away from the battlefield. Any thought of returning to the fight for retribution is quelled by Shockwave's systems diagnostics, which is showing every shade of red imaginable. As his spinning eventually slows, Shockwave angles himself back towards Crystal City and soars off.

Combat: Laser Gun <Shockwave> begins retreating, outrunning all pursuit.

"Hahahahhaahahhaaha! Yes!" is all Whirl can say as he watches Torque grab Shockwave and send him flying off into the distance. He limps his way over to the femme, waving his pincher hand around excitedly. "This mission was a great success! I got to take out my anger on Shockwave, I got some bad-ass wounds!" He grimaces in pain for a second before continuing. "And I got to watch you punch a giant laser gun." He slips an arm around Torque's waist and draws her close. "Yes, this can definitely be considered a victory for us. There is only one thing missing that could make this perfect.." The Wrecker leans in close, bonking his battered face against hers in some kind of bizarre smooch.

Combat: Whirl damages himself.

Reflex, how would you define it? An immediate action or movement made without thought? Yeah, that's a proper enough way of summing it up. And to think, Torque feels so great as she watches Shockwave spin off into the distance, grinning bright and shielding her optics with a hand. But the swelling feeling of victory quickly deflates when Whirl hobbles up behind her, snaking an arm about her and dipping in to lightly bonk her lips with his featureless face.

And that's where reflex comes in, her optics flashing and body going rigid, unable to stop herself as a fist clenches and immediatly sails for his face, no emotion like her usual anger and annoyance. Just reflex.

Combat: Torque sets her defense level to Fearless.

Combat: Torque strikes Whirl with her Powerfist attack!

Combat: Whirl falls to the ground, unconscious.

As soon as he 'kisses' her, Whirl finds himself a recipient of a powerfist to the face. He immediately crumbles to the ground, his optic light dimming completely as he goes offline. Was it worth it?

Yes.

Only after Whirl hits the ground and blacks out does Torque's little spell break, blinking in surprise while looking around and down at him. Last thing she remembers is Whirl leaning in and... oh Primus, she punched him, didn't she? "Damn.." She rubs the back of her neck. "Er.. sorry." But he can't hear her, and it's just as well, the femme giving a tired sigh before moving to heft him up and carefully transform into her altmode, allowing him to drape over her as she putters off back to base. Note to self: Don't agree to missions with Whirl anymore.