O'Hairy Situation

O'Hare Spaceport

One of a handful of spaceports serving the Earth, O'Hare continues to set the standard for size and efficiency. Easily handling the largest space traffic in the world, O'Hare is a massive spaceport in size and personnel. Trans-orbital shuttles, intrasystem transport, and even FTL-drive craft are among the tools of this Chicago-based spaceport.

Contents:

Decepticon Shuttle &lt;Astrotrain&gt;

Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt;

Obvious exits: East &lt;E&gt; leads to Downtown Chicago.

Fly &lt;Up&gt;

Red Alert has arrived.

Sky Lynx has arrived.

Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; is flying high in the sky while approaching the O'Hare space port. The Decepticon second in command slowly descends towards his target as he reminds the Decepticons following him of theur mission, "We need to aquire shuttle parts as Galvatron ordered. Do not hesitate to cause as much damage as possible but our priority is the materials." As the arrive into range, "Decepticon ATTACK!" And then he dives towards the ground firing his weapons at the terran defenses.

Decepticon Shuttle &lt;Astrotrain&gt; is also flying high in the sky! His larger transporty-type frame probably here to haul away the goods. Or maybe to at least serve as a flatbed for any wounded types that are going to be left after this. The triplechanger himself is feeling a bit achey after his stay in medbay, but it was time for him to get out of there or else one of the medic types were probably going to eat his face. You know those patients that are always squirming, looking for something to steal or touching things they shouldn't touch? Right here. Nonetheless, there's nowhere Astrotrain would rather be than blasting the crap out of stuff...or drinking, but he just recently had to pay off Ratbat with a healthy chunk of his own energon stash thanks to Shockwave's ordered 'upgrades', so for now he'll have to settle for blasting things, which he does as he dives on the facility as well, undercarriage cannons blazing away.

Preliminary alerts begin to filter in, reporting the arrival of heavily armed and violent Decepticons approaching one of the most important transport nodes in the interior of the United States, the O'Hara spaceport! Upon recieving the reports, the Autobots dispatch one of thier swiftest response units, the space shuttle Autobot known as SKY LYNX, who rockets across the continent ferrying a small troupe of heroic Autobots. "We shall be arriving shortly!" He emits to his passengers in his proud voice. "Any additional details on which of those despicable scoundrels we can expect to enconter upon our arrival?"

"They've been quiet over the radios," Red Alert reports as he paces back and forth inside of Sky Lynx's shuttle-body. "Which means, of course, that we have to be prepared for an ambush. News reports are kind of vague and garbled, I'm afraid. I'm catching a lot about purple, though."

Porsche 959 is parked inside Sky Lynx. He relays, "Yeah, on-site footage from the newsnets is kinda blurry and scrambled. Most just screaming humans, some shots in the background. Can't hear very well, through your hull, I'm afraid."

Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; is expecting the autobots but not so fast and therefore he isn't paying attention to his radar. Instead he makes a pass over a the spaceport towards, destroying its communication equipment. There is a couple of terran units firing at him but their attacks bounce harmlessly on his armor. "Astrotrain, disable their shuttles. They will be a good source of material for us. I don't want to see any of them in the sky, including the one approaching (Sky Lynx)."

Decepticon Shuttle &lt;Astrotrain&gt; rockets over the spaceport at high speed, his giant shuttle frame surprisingly agile given its sheer size as he not only leaves a Terran shuttle crunching down with no landing gear in his wake, he even pulls a hard banking maneuver to one side and evades counterfire as he climbs for height again, the shuttle dogfighting like it were a fighter plane in a sense. "Do this, do that..." he mutters as Cylconus orders his attention on specific targets, prompting him to sweep his radar about to locate the incoming shuttle. A sudden brilliant blast of thrusterfire has him climbing up into the clouds, before he loops back down again, his course bringing him screaming down from Sky Lynx's Six O'Clock high position, undercarriage lasers humming ominously. "PFft, like shootin fish in a...eh?" On his cockpit viewscreen, the image of the shuttle superimposes, then zooms in, showing the telltale red symbols on the wings. "Haw! And here I thought the Bots were draggin their feet lately. No need to spare THIS ONE!" And thus, with no shortage of glee, he unleashes a stream of crackling laserfire stitching towards Sky Lynx's port wing.

Combat: Decepticon Shuttle &lt;Astrotrain&gt; strikes Space Shuttle &lt;Sky Lynx&gt; with his Heavy Laser attack! [Pulled -5]

"Well, it is of little consequence, for there is little the Decepticons can do once I, Sky Lynx, am upon them! No doubt they shall flee thier pointless criminal endevour once I make my arrival!" Sky Lynx replies internaly to his small cadre of passengers. So such luck, however, as Astrotrain bears down on Sky Lynx's position, scoring a hit on one of the shuttle's gleaming white wings. The damage is relativly minor, but Sky Lynx descends towards a runway regardless. "I'm going in for a landing. Prepare for deployment!" He emits, and the large but not ungainly shuttle makes a hasty touch-down on the tarmac, squealing to a halt and opening to allow Nightbeat and Red Alert to exit.

Porsche 959 drives down the ramp, and he snarks, sounding rather jaded, "And I bet they'll shower you with roses and posies, too, and maybe write some odes to your greatness." Immediately, he takes a moment to simply listen, and he reports, "Oh. Cyclonus and Astrotrain. Two of the biggest Decepticon space pains in the whole gang. Lucky us!" Then, he takes off driving, to check on the escape routes for the humans and see if those are clear.

The Global Pose Tracker marks that Porsche 959 has 'skipped' his action for this round.

Red Alert crouches down into vehicle mode as Sky Lynx approaches the air port, preparing to roll into battle. Fortunately, this means he's much more stable when Sky Lynx is struck, keeping him from bouncing or careening around the room.

"By the radio, you're right about Cyclonus and Astrotrain," Red Alert reports. "They seem to be under the impression that Sky Lynx is listening."

As soon as the hatch is open, Red Alert goes roaring out, his radar immediately sweeping the area to size up the situation. Unfortunately, this leaves him open to attack as he automatically runs for the danger.

Red Alert transforms into his Fire Chief's Lambourghini mode.

Combat: Red Alert sets his defense level to Protected.

Combat: Fire Chief's Lambourghini initiates a radar sweep of the area.

Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt;'s attention leave the terran defenses as Sky Lynx enter the fight. The unicronian blast a last hangar before executing a sharp turn and accelerating towards the large autobot. He would like to blast him out of the sky before the autobot aboard can disembark but he respects him enough to realize the triplechanger is way too tough do be that easily dispatched. Therefore he chooses to use a careful and methodic approach. After a moment he gets his target in his line of fire and shoot him with his lasers.

Combat: Cyclonus sets his defense level to Guarded.

Combat: Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; misses Space Shuttle &lt;Sky Lynx&gt; with his Oxidizing Laser attack!

Decepticon Shuttle &lt;Astrotrain&gt; blasts overhead, overshooting his target as Sky Lynx rapidly decelerates from his landing and disembarking of his passengers. Looping around again, the triplechanger takes stock of the new arrivals, target reticles appearing over Red Alert, and Nightbeat, then focusing on Red Alert's car mode. "See this is more like it! Just like old times, Autobots churnin about on tires like the stupid groundbound losers they are!" It's not that he has a thing out for Red Alert specifically in favor of Nightbeat, it's just that it's more like a case of 'eenie meeney miney moe' and the Autobot security expert is the lucky winner of Astrotrain's affections. "I got a new surprise for you, Autobots! Let's see how ya like it!" With that, he transforms as he dips in close to the ground, the familiar twisting of armor and components as he shifts one vehicle mode to the other. There's something decidedly more...sinister when he slams down on his eight huge steel wheels this time. His frame looks bulkier, the armor more angular and modern...new gun turrets on the sides and roof of his train mode swivel about, their twin-barreled rapid firing barrels drawing a bead on Red Alert's position as they cycle up to full power. "Let's see how ya dance, Autobot!" He cackles as a staccato of energy blasts begin to rapidly slash out at Red Alert's position, 'chasing' him as they tear up the ground behind him. Astrotrain has become a Battletrain!

Armor locks in place, parts shift and Astrotrain transforms into a huge Battletrain!

Combat: Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; misses Fire Chief's Lambourghini with his Battle Cannons attack!

Fire Chief's Lambourghini starts to swerve side to side as he realizes he's being targeted, and he manages to zig exactly when he should, letting the blasts hit the ground behind him. "So far, can't say I'm impressed." Then he spins into a transformation, ending with his rifle held in his right hand and pointed directly at Astrotrain. "Or even actually surprised, really," he adds with a knowing smirk as he fires.

Fire Chief's Lambourghini transforms into his Red Alert mode.

Combat: Red Alert sets his defense level to Guarded.

Combat: Red Alert misses Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; with his High-Energy Particle Beam Rifle attack! [Pulled -4]

Porsche 959 observes coolly, "Big talk from a fellah who turns into a choo-choo train!" Looks like the humans are, for the most part, following the escape routes, but there are always some folks who like to stop and gawk. Nightbeat transforms and waves his hands at them, shouting, "Get! The Decepticons don't care where their lasers go when they miss!"

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

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

With his passenger's safely(sorta) departed, Sky Lynx's cluster of space shuttle-style engines roar to life, propelling the shuttle and it's blue cargo section aloft once more, leaving Cyclonus's rust-inducing Oxydizing Laser to hit nothing but the runway. Blasted skyward by his huge engines, he opens fire upon Cyclonus, hoping to draw the Decepticon leutenant's fire away from his comrades. "Cyclonus! I shall make short work of you, then deal with your little friend Astrotrain!"

Combat: Sky Lynx sets his defense level to Fearless.

Combat: Space Shuttle &lt;Sky Lynx&gt; misses Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; with his Dual Lasers attack!

Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; somehow manages to 'fishtail' around with a sudden boost of power from his rockets, bringing his aft end swinging about so that the front of his huge train mode is angled directly at Red Alert...and it also means the shot hits the most armored part of Astrotrain's third mode and glances off into the sky harmlessly. A huge cloud of steam blasts to either side as he vents his systems, as if giving a snort of irritation like a charging bull that missed his first attack. "Pshht. I wonder if ya can keep it up long enough? I betcha run outta fancy moves before I turn ya into an ornament for my grill! Let's see yer look of surprise after ya been molded by my boiler meeting yer face!" Another harsh roar of thrusterfire sends the triplechanger's giant heavily armored form hurtling towards Red Alert at breakneck speeds a moment later, jinking left, then right as if to try and cut him off from making a run to either side, and hit him a strategic, glancing blow with his tough body. As for Nightbeat, he gets a simple, "I'll deal with you in a second! GET IN LINE!"

Combat: Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; misses Red Alert with his Train Crossing attack! [Pulled -5]

Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; slides towards him left and then spins on his axis, avoiding the incoming laser fired by his opponent, "Always quick to boast Autobot. I hope you have more than words to back that claim." The unicronian isn't the type to go into a contest of bragging with an autobot so he doesn't add anything. As he dives towards the ground, he changes his trajectory and goes back up towards the sky, this time firing at the underside of Sky lynx.

Combat: Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; strikes Space Shuttle &lt;Sky Lynx&gt; with his Disruptor attack!

Red Alert frowns and glances about the spaceport, looking for something to act as cover - the problem is, most things around here are explosive, but at least he can keep moving, making him harder to hit. "I don't need fancy moves - just effective ones," he says, taking off at a run and circling wide around Astrotrain, studying that fancy new armor for a weakness. He radios Nightbeat, &lt;&lt;Hmmm. See where the plates intersect three quarters of the way back? Try there.&gt;&gt;

Combat: Red Alert sets his defense level to Protected.

Combat: Red Alert analyzes Astrotrain for weaknesses Nightbeat can exploit.

Sky Lynx certainly presents a broad target, although his durable armor allows his to shrug off such minor damage. Cyclonus's disruptor leaves little more than a faint blastscar on Sky Lynx's underbelly, and the large Autobot struggles to swerve around to maintain a taretting lock on Cyclonus's spacejet mode. The shuttle begins to transform, huge parts unfolding, punctuated by speech as Sky Lynx unveils his dragon mode. "I have much more than words, Cyclonus! Allow me to DEMONSTRATE!" Even before his transformation is complete, Sky Lynx's huge jaws are beginning to fill with eager flames, and his tooth-filled mouth gapes wide as he spits out a searing blast of aceltylene-fueled flames towards Cyclonus.

Sky Lynx reconfigures into his draconic combined form.

Combat: Sky Lynx misses Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; with his Fire Breath attack! [Pulled -3]

Nightbeat is as satisfied as he'll ever be that the humans are fleeing. He withdraws his photon pistols, as Red Alert transmits some telemetry data. At Astrotrain's mockery, he proclaims, "Waiting in line's for suckers! Just consider me a Frequent Flier." That said, the detective turns and snaps off shots at Astrotrain and Cyclonus, two-handed.

Combat: Nightbeat sets his defense level to Aggressive.

Combat: Nightbeat misses Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; with his Twin Photon Pistols Area attack!

Combat: Nightbeat strikes Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; with his Twin Photon Pistols Area attack!

Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; is struck finally, the shots from Nightbeat's pistols hitting his boiler on the side, as he had that particular part of it turned to face the Autobot. The shot streaks scores the armor, blackening where it passes, but is more or less minor in the long run. "Hnnf, typical Autobot style. Always callin for a buddy, eh!?" He snarls as he finally decides he can play with his new stuff later. Transforming, he rises up into his robot mode, sparks flying in all directions as he skids to a halt, his rifle rising dramatically into the air, only to be caught in one hand a moment later as he spins to face Red Alert and Nightbeat both, 'skating' backwards as his anti gravs propel him along, more sparks flying up where his big heavy feet make contact with the ground. A quick adjustment to his rifle, and he then points it ahead, firing off that wierd purplish beam that blasts outwards with it's metal-warping properties to try and encompass both Autobots simultaneously. "Ya can't keep it up forever! Here's bettin I can outlast ya!"

In a chorus of shifting and spinning parts, Astrotrain's body spins and lifts up into his large robot mode.

Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; was flying away from Sky Lynx as fast as he could after his attack. After all it is not a good idea to stick close to such a monster and despite his confidence, Cyclonus isn't going to take any chance with Sky Lynx. Then all hell break looses as fire pass just above him and as he barely avoid a photon shot. As he reaches the apex on his trajectory, he turns around and dives right at his opponent, "Very impressive Autobot, let's see how you handle this!" He's about to crash into the autobot when suddenly a civil shuttle put himself in his way? Are they tryin to help the autobots? The fools! The cybertronian starfighter passes right through it which cause a huge explosion and the shuttle starts to fall towards the ground.

The Global Pose Tracker marks that Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; has 'skipped' his action for this round.

Combat: Astrotrain strikes Nightbeat with his Ionic Displacer Rifle Area attack! [Pulled -5]

Combat: Astrotrain misses Red Alert with his Ionic Displacer Rifle Area attack! [Pulled -5]

Red Alert ducks low, left hand touching the ground lightly for balance, deftly avoiding the wide ionic beam. "Oh, I can keep it up for a fair while," he says softly. He then gets up and is moving again, mostly in an attempt to get far enough away from Nightbeat to make it harder to include them both in the same blast, but so much of his attention is now focused on something *else* that he makes a somewhat easier target!

Combat: Red Alert sets his defense level to Fearless.

Combat: Red Alert takes extra time to aim his next attack on Astrotrain.

Sky Lynx's conical, draconic head follows Cyclonus's flight path, watching helplessly as the Decepticon starfighter rips through the hapless civilian shuttle. "NO! You /villian!/" Sky Lynx shouts, unable to do anything to help the shuttle until it is too late. with no time to waste, Sky Lynx flies to the rescue, gripping the doomed shuttle in his huge claws. "Cyclonus... this is not over between us!" The Autobot dragon shouts amidst peals of angry flames, and the huge autobot retreats from the spaceport, carrying the critically damaged ship to safety, and likely a hospital to treat the wounded.

Combat: Sky Lynx sets his defense level to Protected.

Combat: Sky Lynx begins retreating, leaving himself vulnerable to parting shots from Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt;

&lt;Autobot&gt; Sky Lynx says, "You must fight on without me, friends!"

Nightbeat makes a mental note that Astotrain is an annoying bugger who has displaced all the ions in his armur, leaving it rather patchy. He drops back, sheltering behind a refuelling truck, and he stares up at Astrotrain, relaying to Red Alert, &lt;&lt;You see where 'DEX' is written on him, there? Yeah. That's where you hit him. Right in the DEX.&gt;&gt;

Combat: Nightbeat sets his defense level to Protected.

Combat: Nightbeat analyzes Astrotrain for weaknesses Red Alert can exploit.

&lt;Autobot&gt; Sky Lynx says, "There are too many wounded about this ship, I'll have to take them to a hospital for emergency treatment!"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Nightbeat says, "Ol' Florrie would be proud."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "Understood."

Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; turns to make another pass at Sky Lynx only to see the triplechanger running away to safe the civilian shuttle. Having achieved his objective, he turns his attention towards Astrotrain opponents only to see them both still standing, "Do not toy with them Astrotrain. We have other business here." Then he accelerates and bombs the ground where the autobots, and Astrotrain, are standing.

Combat: Cyclonus sets his defense level to Fearless.

Combat: Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; misses Nightbeat with his Incendiary Bombs Area attack! [Pulled -5]

Combat: Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; misses Red Alert with his Incendiary Bombs Area attack! [Pulled -5]

Combat: Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; misses Astrotrain with his Incendiary Bombs Area attack! [Pulled -5]

"Tough talk for someone who likes to tag-team!" Astrotrain growls, satisfied that he made contact on at least one of the Autobots, though he would have preferred to get both. He 'skids' to a halt again as they split up, and fumes silently to himself. "Hey Cyclonus, any time you're done playing with the birdy would be nice!" And then the whole area is filled with exploding ordinance, and he is forced to go scrambling for cover as well! A dive, a roll, and he comes up on one knee a moment later, explosions still blossoming around him, but somehow, miraculously, managing to avoid getting hit in the process. "...frag ME. WHERE ARE YA AIMING!?" He fistshakes once for good measure, but at least there's one ray of sunshine in the middle of all this. It's put him right up near Red Alert, and he proceeds to lunge forward, pulling his crackling energy blade (looking conscpicuously similar to Blitzwing's) free and closing the distance as he decides it's time to take this up close and personal. Just where he prefers it. "Playtime's over Reddy boy!"

Combat: Astrotrain misses Red Alert with his Zord-Sword attack!

Nightbeat wonders why he decided to take cover behind a truck carrying flammable liquids (Jet A). Answer: because it works, when Cyclonus breaks out the firebombs. Apparently. Nightbeat climbs up atop the truck, and he takes aim at Cyclonus with his plasma blaster. Strike the head of the snake and all.

Combat: Nightbeat sets his defense level to Neutral.

Combat: Nightbeat strikes Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; with his Plasma Blaster attack! [Pulled -1]

Red Alert may be taking time to check out Astrotrain's 'DEX', but he's still a generally... well, aware person. Cyclonus's bomb just goes wide, but the paranoid Lambo does manage to duck beneath the triple-changers sword swing. He frowns up at his opponent, realizing that he is *not* at the advantage in close battle like this, and so decides to give himself a bit of room. "You shouldn't have done that. This is going to *hurt* at point-blank range." And then, he fires.

Combat: Red Alert misses Astrotrain with his Shoulder-Mounted Rocket Launcher attack! [Pulled -2]

Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; sighs as all his bombs miss their targets. He really needs to ask someone to design a better targeting system for those bombs. Before he can make his next move, he's blasted by a plasma blaster which leaves a painful hole in one of his wing. The decepticon transforms and hovers above Nightbeat. Then without a warning he dives towards him, drawing his sword and aiming it at the detective's neck.

The starfighter unfold into the robot form of Cyclonus.

Combat: Cyclonus sets his defense level to Neutral.

Combat: Cyclonus misses Nightbeat with his Diamond-Boron Carbide Sword attack! [Pulled -1]

Astrotrain isn't about to let Red Alert get away that easily, however. Bunching his big legs under him, he catapults skywards a moment later, the explosive rocket detonating where he was a moment ago, blowing out a huge crater in the pavement of the spaceport runway. He lands on the other side, dropping into a half crouch and actually facing away from Red Alert in the process. "Oh no no no, see, we're done playing this game your way." He notes that Cyclonus is now keeping Nightbeat occupied, or so he hopes, so now things have at least, for the moment, gone back to square one so to speak. "Now ya gotta play the game the other way!" And with that, Astrotrain's form starts to shift and fold over as he transforms in about a half a second. And at point blank range, he proceeds to go in REVERSE, moving to back right over Red Alert's form with all hundred-sixty tons or so of armored locomotive weight.

Armor locks in place, parts shift and Astrotrain transforms into a huge Battletrain!

Combat: Astrotrain sets his defense level to Fearless.

Combat: Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; strikes Red Alert with his Train Crossing attack!

Red Alert is knocked violently and dramatically into the air by Astrotrain's attack! He hits the ground hard, bouncing a couple of times before he finally comes to a stop in a crumpled heap. He gasps and searches around for his rifle - as luck would have it, it landed nearby. Then he pushes himself and hurriedly scrambles for it, scooping it up and taking aim.

"This never was a game," he says, voice wavering nervously as he fires after the train.

Combat: Red Alert strikes Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; with his High-Energy Particle Beam Rifle attack!

&lt;Autobot&gt; Scattershot says, "What's going on?"

Nightbeat dances out of the way as Cyclonus tries to make mincemeat of him with that overgrown machete. He whistles lowly as Red Alert gets run over by a train. But since Red Alert seems to have Astrotrain occupied, the detective busies himself with Cyclonus, asking, "So what's the scheme today? Do you even know? Or are you just a flunky, too, despite the Pope hat?" He studies Cyclonus for his reaction, ducking behind an abandoned bus.

Combat: Nightbeat sets his defense level to Protected.

Combat: Nightbeat analyzes Cyclonus for weaknesses.

"THERE it is!" Astrotrain crows in triumph as he feels that oh-so-satisfying crunch of metal on metal, and a small body bouncing away from the point of impact! Okay come hell or high water, whatever happens now, he's happy at least. Even when he gets his aftplate kicked in he's just not satisfied if he didn't at least leave his opponent hurting in some fashion or another. Of course needless to say he's much more happy when they're the ones that get crunched good and proper. He lumbers around as he goes forward again, starting to turn about as the high powered blast hits him square in the boiler, blasting a chunk of armor free and bringing up a thick curl of smoke where it passes. "HURNGH!" All things considered, the damage is solid but rather well absorbed given the situation. "Hrgh...heh heh, alright NOW we're talkin my kinda fight here." Again Astrotrain rises up as he transforms, again his glowing sword in hand, whipping overhead as he lunges towards Red Alert, bringing the blade over in a powerful two-handed overhand swing... ...that stops short an arm's length from its target. "Psyche!" Taking a page from the Triplechanger Dirty School of fighting, he instead brings up one large, blocky foot aimed at Red Alert's chestplate.

Combat: Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; misses Red Alert with his Kick attack!

In a chorus of shifting and spinning parts, Astrotrain's body spins and lifts up into his large robot mode.

Cyclonus lands in front of Nightbeat, his towering form casting a shadow over the detective. His optics are bight read but his face remain emotionless as he puts his sword back into its subspace pocket. "Our mission is not something that concern you autobot. I suggest you leave while you can." Then the decepticon second in command switftly leaps forwards and launching his fist towards the autobot.

Combat: Cyclonus misses Nightbeat with his Push into the wall (Punch) attack!

Red Alert more falls on his rear than actually dodges Astrotrain's kick, but either way, it gets him out of the way. "I bet you don't even know what you're here for!" he challenges as he starts to scramble back, out of the immediate reach of the large triple-changer, looking for where to strike next as he moves.

Combat: Red Alert sets his defense level to Protected.

Combat: Red Alert analyzes Astrotrain for weaknesses.

Nightbeat snorts and darts away from the wall and the bus, flanking Cyclonus. He drawls, "Everything concerns me, Battle Pope. I'll show myself out - after you do." He winds an arm back and throws a punch back at Cyclonus, probably around his hip, given the height difference.

Combat: Nightbeat misses Cyclonus with his Long Arm of the Law (Punch) attack!

Astrotrain totally did NOT deliver a train-wheel aimed at Red Alert's face. He totally didn't attempt to kick him, while a train. YOU SAW NOTHING! *jedi hand-wave* "I'm here to slag little fraggers like you! And somethin about shuttles, I dunno." This is why Astrotrain isn't trusted with state secrets. Though this is also why he makes a very poor interrogation target for said secrets as well, because he's just as likely to screw up the information as blab it out without thinking. As Red Alert does his 'stand there and look for somewhere to shoot' posture again, Astrotrain growls as he once more transforms. His transformation cog is getting a good workout tonight it seems, as he turns to present his side to Red Alert and fire a 'broadside' that consists of very rapidfiring low-yield shots from his on-board cannons. "Quit dancin around like a scardey-bot and fight like a real mech!"

Armor locks in place, parts shift and Astrotrain transforms into a huge Battletrain!

Cyclonus reacts with the speed of a cobra and he launches his left arm in an arc to deflect Nightbeat's punch. "You're only hope of victory is busy trying to save a bunch of useless germs. He choosed to let you die to save them." The unicronian jumps back and pulls his pistol out of a subspace. He slowly raises them and says, "It always amaze me how recklessly you autobots throw your life away." Then he aims his weapon and fires it at Nightbeat.

Combat: Astrotrain sets his defense level to Neutral.

Combat: Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; misses Red Alert with his Battle Cannons attack! [Pulled -1]

Combat: Cyclonus sets his defense level to Fearless.

Combat: Cyclonus strikes Nightbeat with his Oxidizing Laser attack! [Pulled -2]

Red Alert wasn't standing there! He was scrambling backwards and looking for a place to hit! By the time Astrotrain's broadside-blast is fired, he's back on his feet and scrambling backwards EVEN FASTER, thus getting him out of the way of the hit. He returns fire as he gets back to running, doing what he can to keep his distance from Astrotrain - though that's a particularly difficult matter when Astrotrain is, well, a train. "I'd *prefer* to fight *intelligently*, actually," he answers, voice still wavering slightly nervously.

Combat: Red Alert sets his defense level to Fearless.

Combat: Red Alert strikes Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; with his High-Energy Particle Beam Rifle attack! [Pulled -5]

Nightbeat has had his ions removed, prior. Now, he is oxidised! Nightbeat is just a whirling maelstrom of bad chemistry, today! Feeling rather weaker, Nightbeat observes, "And it doesn't amaze me one bit how recklessly you throw the lives of everyone around you away. But what's new, pussycat?" He draws his blaster and snaps off a shot at Cyclonus. Can Cyclonus outrun gun?

Combat: Nightbeat strikes Cyclonus with his Plasma Blaster attack!

"I'll show ya intelligent fighting!" Astrotrain snarls as the shot impacts his armored frame again, another blackened point of impact, another curl of smoke to show for it. And no, what he said doesn't make any sense except in Astrotrain's very special place in his very special mind. Let's just let him think of it as a really clever one-liner that totally floored his enemy, yes? Once more he comes around, and hurtles towards Red Alert again at high speed, the ground rumbling under his passage as it looks like he intends to try and run the autobot over once again! Until he transforms yet again, using his built up momentum to hurl his big, brawny frame at the smaller combatant, moving to try and crash into him and knock him to the ground! But that isn't what he fully intends to use to do his damage...oh no, it's the fists that fly down again and again and again as he tries his best to land on Red Alert and smack him down like a schoolyard bully. THAT is his full intention. If Red had lunch money, Astro would probably even try to take it too.

In a chorus of shifting and spinning parts, Astrotrain's body spins and lifts up into his large robot mode.

Combat: Astrotrain sets his defense level to Fearless.

Combat: Astrotrain strikes Red Alert with his Astro-Beating attack!

Cyclonus is blasted right on his right shoulder. The plasma shots leaves a smoking hole in his shoulder. The decepticon warrior grunts in pain and doesn't reply to Nighbeat'S verbal assault. Suddenly he leaps into the air, transforming into his starfighter mode and attempts to ram though the autobot detective.

Cyclonus leaps into the air and quickly transforms into a cybertronian starfighter.

Combat: Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; misses Nightbeat with his Ramming Speed attack! [Pulled -2]

Red Alert is floored, but more by Astrotrain's stunning shoulder-check than Astrotrain's stunning wit. He's pretty much mowed over, and for a second time is left in a mangled heap on the ground as internal hydraulic lines burst, weakening him further. "Nightbeat!" he gasps out, knowing that the other can hear him even if he's whispering, "Little... help here!" And with that, he starts to crawl, then scramble on all fours, gun still in one hand, towards Nightbeat. He manages to get to two feet and takes a moment to look over Cyclonus's fighting stance, transmitting what he sees, attempting to help Nightbeat as he hopes Nightbeat will help him!

Combat: Red Alert sets his defense level to Protected.

Combat: Red Alert analyzes Cyclonus for weaknesses Nightbeat can exploit.

Nightbeat slides across the tarmac as Cyclonus tries to wham him out of this world and into the next. Now, the detective does not speak Lamborghini optic language. He's a Porsche. But even an insensitive jerk like Nightbeat can tell that Red Alert's leaking out like a stuck pig. He pulls out some 'crime scene tape' and sprints to Red Alert's side, tying up the leak. Red Alert is now a crime scene!

Combat: Nightbeat sets his defense level to Protected.

Combat: Nightbeat quickly patches up some of Red Alert's minor injuries.

Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; misses his target and transforms back into his robot mode before he crashes into something like a tanker truck! These autobots are really slippy but that won't stop the second most powerfl son of Unicron! He charges right back towards the two autobots and in an attempts to prevent the detective from helping his friend, he launches his foot upwards towards Nightbeat's arm.

The starfighter unfold into the robot form of Cyclonus.

Combat: Cyclonus strikes Nightbeat with his Kick attack!

Astrotrain gets up, popping his 'knuckles' at the satisfying feeling of beating down on Red Alert in short order. "Aw yeah, now git down and squeal like a...huh?" he blinks and trails off as he sees that Red Alert is not where he was a moment ago, and has 'flown the coop' figuratively speaking. And now Nightbeat has managed to link up with him, and is putting him back together no less! Undoing all the triplechanger's hard work for good measure. "GRAH! HEY! Cutitout! Get away, shoo! OH you little fraggers, I'm gonna stomp ya into tinfoil for this!" They're immediately out of reach, but Astrotrain decides to improvise, reaching over to grab onto the first thing he can get hold of, which is a big lamp post. Fingers crunching into the metal surface, he wrenches it free with a shriek of tortured metal, then hefts his makeshift, elongated 'bat' in both hands, bringing it smashing downwards to try and catch Red Alert under the end of it, just as Cyclonus is punching the daylights out of Nightbeat at the same time!

Combat: Astrotrain misses Red Alert with his Down boy! (Punch) attack!

Red Alert throws himself forward immediately after Nightbeat patches him up with crime-scene tape, and the lamp post flies over his head. He pants, then pushes himself up slowly, painfully to his feet, nodding his thanks to Nightbeat as he takes off running again - after all, there may be people here with wide ranges, but no need to make it easier on them! "I don't intend to let myself get underfoot again!" he says, voice still wavering, but pitch a bit higher, as he tries to take aim with his rocket launcher once more.

Combat: Red Alert sets his defense level to Fearless.

Combat: Red Alert misses Astrotrain with his Shoulder-Mounted Rocket Launcher attack!

Nightbeat drawls, "If you don't want me to plaster Red Alert with crime scene tape, don't make a crime scene of him!" But Cyclonus boots the detective clear over. He skids across the tarmac, getting some severe abrasion damage. With the paint scraped off his knees, he rolls up to his feet and snaps off shots at both ugly, purple spaceships with his two photon pistols.

Combat: Nightbeat strikes Cyclonus with his Twin Photon Pistols Area attack! [Pulled -1]

Combat: Nightbeat strikes Astrotrain with his Twin Photon Pistols Area attack! [Pulled -1]

Astrotrain knows that rockets are bad. They are explodey, and they hurt. He might have been all bluster and puffy chested in his train mode where he had all the armor to back up some measure of sturdiness, but like this as a robot he's decidedly more vulnerable. Needless to say it is with no small measure of self-preservation in mind that he hurls himself hard to the ground, rolling as he moves, and completing the last little bit of distance with no small help from Red Alert as the explosion detonates the ground where he was a few moments ago. It propels him into a dramatic flight through the air that ends with a not quite so dramatic landing as he skids along on his aft-plate until he comes into contact with a burning hangar bay, crashing against the wall and leaning up against it. "...close." He mutters, right before Nightbeat's shots impact against his chest and knock him off balance, and -through- the wall. Then comes that transformation sound, and the telltale blast of a train whistle. "Maybe not underfoot, how about underwheels!?" Astrotrain's voice snarls out as he proceeds to explode out the other side of the building, debris flying in all directions as the locomotive rumbles its way out from the 'cover', bearing down on Red Alert and trying to clip him with a glancing, painful blow from his armored front end.

Armor locks in place, parts shift and Astrotrain transforms into a huge Battletrain!

Combat: Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; strikes Red Alert with his Train Crossing attack! [Pulled -5]

Combat: That attack has temporarily impaired Red Alert's Agility. (Crippled)

Cyclonus is blasted once again. None of those shots really hurt him but add them all together... and the decepticon warrior is starting to slowdown. Reaching behind his back he grabs his sword and charges the detective, "It's time you meet your maker Autobots. I wasted enough time with you!" He swings his sword as he passes near his opponent, hoping to slice into his chest.

Combat: Cyclonus misses Nightbeat with his Diamond-Boron Carbide Sword attack!

"Oh, no, not again..." Red Alert groans as he tries - and fails - to get out of the way of Astrotrain's assault. He manages to twist to the right just far enough that Astrotrain only catches him by the corner, spinning Red Alert out of the way and back onto the ground, but the whole affair damages his left leg, leaving it unreliable and himself less mobile. "This is just not my day," he mutters, mentally trying to figure out who engineered this. Because obviously, someone did. He lifts his rifle and attempts a half-hearted blast, but really, even with the patch, he's going no where, and quickly.

Combat: Red Alert strikes Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; with his High-Energy Particle Beam Rifle attack! [Pulled -5]

Nightbeat quips, "My maker was a factory. Still prettier than your maker, mind you, not like that's hard." He hits the deck to evade the sword, and from the tarmac, he aim another blast at Cyclonus. Nightbeat knows Red Alert's not doing well. It's only a question of who will be carrying whom home, he thinks.

Combat: Nightbeat sets his defense level to Guarded.

Combat: Nightbeat strikes Cyclonus with his Plasma Blaster attack! [Pulled -2]

Apparently Cyclonus is totally unable to dodge Nightbeat's attack. "It is time to finish this!" (or to make a fool out of myself). The Decepticon leaps into the air and transforms into his starfighter mode. For a moment it looks like he may be retreating but he soons come back at full speed dropping a single bomb toward the autobot detective!

Cyclonus leaps into the air and quickly transforms into a cybertronian starfighter.

Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; rumbles to a halt again, thick clouds of steam puffing from his undercarriage as if he were taking a few deep breaths in the middle of an adrenaline-filled scrap! "Hoo yeah, that's the stuff." The fire from Red Alert's rifle impacts his cab, much of it glancing off as it scores the surface of his armor again. "Yer still functioning?" the triplechanger snarls, again coming about to place his 'broadside' to Red Alert's form, and again the telltale hum of electric motors as those rapid firing cannons ratchet into place. They look a little eerie, given that they're designed for Decepticons to sit in them and use them, yet right now the empty turrets are moving by their own with no operators. "I can fix that!" The snarled words come amidst the high pitched *VIP VIP VIP VIP* of a storm of stinging energy blasts. It seems he's deliberately turned down the power level to conserve some energy. Technically it might be considered a waste, as he -does- have Red Alert at a disadvantage and should capitalize on the chance to hit him with something much more potent. But even Astrotrain needs to take a moment to 'catch his breath' so to speak. And durnit, he wants to hit something with those new guns!

Combat: Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; misses Nightbeat with his Incendiary Bombs attack!

Combat: Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; strikes Red Alert with his Battle Cannons attack! [Pulled -1]

Red Alert is hit by Astrotrain's shiny new guns!

He stumbles backwards clumsily as he's blasted in the chest; it seems that the process has twisted his leg back into something resembling alignment, just through lucky chance, but it's still not anywhere back to full usage. More hydraulics blow out, rending Red Alert as weak as a kitten... but he's not one to engage in fist-fights, anyway, given that he is, at best, puppy-level strength, normally. Then, suddenly, he glances up and mutters a curse.

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert has encrypted this channel.

&lt;Autobot&gt; Sunstreaker says, "I'm guessing something is about to go down, Red?"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "Onslaught's pulling something at the south pole, Nightbeat and I are dealing with Astrotrain and Cyclonus elsewhere. So... yes."

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

&lt;Autobot&gt; Nightbeat says, "Could Cyclonus and Astrotrain be a diversion? Or maybe Onslaught's the diversion, or maybe..."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "I don't know. Expect a trap. Onslaught is smart enough to know I might be listening."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Sunstreaker says, "I think you over-estimate these chumps, Red."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "Hmph. If *that's* the case, why haven't we beaten them yet?"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Military XO Impactor says, "Cause Nightbeat and I have only been back fer a bit, give us time Red. We'll whip 'em yet!"

Nightbeat throws himself away from the bomb as flames explode all around behind him! It would be great in a movie trailer. Red Alert's distracted by chatter so Nightbeat goes for his trusty photon pistols, to sting the bad guys once again. Eat hot justice!

Combat: Nightbeat sets his defense level to Aggressive.

Combat: Nightbeat strikes Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; with his Twin Photon Pistols Area attack!

Combat: Nightbeat strikes Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; with his Twin Photon Pistols Area attack!

&lt;Autobot&gt; Nightbeat says, "...speak for yourself, Impactor."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Military XO Impactor says, "What, you ain't gonna take part in tha beatdown? Geez, I knew ya a thinkytype Beat ... but I thought you had some mettle to ya!"

Starfighter &lt;Cyclonus&gt; burned most of his fuel in that fight without succeeding in defeating the autobots. That's a pretty hard blow to his ego and it seems he will have to rely on brute strength to force his opponent to submit. He transforms again and drops on the ground. The unicronian gets shot and his chestplate starts to look like a mess of melted metal. He grunts in pain and charges Nightbeat launching an upper cut as soon as he arrives in range.

The starfighter unfold into the robot form of Cyclonus.

Combat: Cyclonus strikes Nightbeat with his Push into the wall (Punch) attack!

Combat: You took 8 damage.

Combat: Cyclonus's attack has damaged your Firepower!

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert sighs. "Impactor, he's currently engaged in one-on-one combat with Cyclonus, and you wish to criticize him? Anyway, trap or no, *someone* should probably look into the south pole, and I'm a bit occupied."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Nightbeat says, "I'm just saying, claims that you'n'me'll win the war are a heavy thing to make. I'd rather not have that riding on me."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Jetfire says, "Grimlock and I are in the area."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "Ah, good, thank you. And now, going silent. There's no telling how soon Soundwave will have broken through my codes."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Military XO Impactor says, "One on one? Heck, back in mah day the odds were three to one ... and we still jested over open frequencies."

Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; watches as Red Alert stumbles under the fire! Oh tis a grand day for the triplechanger now! He can die happy. Well no, let's scratch that. He intends to go on living for a long time yet. "That's right Autoscrap! Keep dancin and..." And then Nightbeat's pistol shots blast across his upper cab, most ricocheting off but a few leaving little pockmarks where they pass. "WOULDJA CUT THAT OUT ALREADY!?" He snarls out, tempted to switch attention to the other Autobot. SO tempted in fact! But right now, he's still focusing on the one he's beating down, transforming and rising up once more to his full height, pausing to snap his arm back into alignment as some of the damage gears were sticking on him. The battle is starting to add up, but he's still got a looong way to go yet. "You look tired, Reddy. Here...siddown and TAKE A LOAD OFF!" Once again, Astrotrain demonstrates his tendency to grab the nearest object and make a weapon out of it. In this case, a very large water tank that he rips out of the ground from its moorings and hurls Donkey-Kong like at his smaller opponent! Red Alert may not have alot of physical strength, but Astrotrain has it in spades and is more than happy to show it off. The chicks totally dig it.

In a chorus of shifting and spinning parts, Astrotrain's body spins and lifts up into his large robot mode.

Combat: Astrotrain misses Red Alert with his Throw a Barrel at it! (Punch) attack!

Nightbeat is slammed into a wall, leaving a Nightbeat-shaped imprint, even as one of his pistols is snapped in half by the force of the blow. He spits up some hydraulic fluid and grits out, "If you want me to stop, Astrotrain, you know what you need to do. /Get/." He tries to stomp a foot down on the arch of Cyclonus's foot to get Cyclonus to release him, if he can.

Combat: Nightbeat sets his defense level to Neutral.

Combat: Nightbeat strikes Cyclonus with his Police Brutality (Kick) attack!

Red Alert has a relatively easy time avoiding the large, slow-moving water tank as it arcs his way, despite the damage to his leg. The move, however, sends him down to his knees, one arm also being used as support. "Not a... not a bad idea, Astrotrain. After all, I can still shoot... still shoot sitting down!"

Combat: Red Alert strikes Astrotrain with his Sinking Desperation attack! [Pulled -2]

Cyclonus gets his foot crushed...the pain! He's forced to release Nightbeat but he doesn't give him much room to escape. He may be more used to fight in space but he's still a deadly warrior on the ground. Cyclonus maneuvers to keep the autobot detective between the wall and himself. Suddenly, he springs forwards and attempts to smash the autobot's optics to impair his aim.

Combat: Cyclonus strikes Nightbeat with his punch attack!

Combat: You took 8 damage.

Combat: Cyclonus's attack has damaged your Firepower!

&lt;Autobot&gt; Nightbeat cries out, "MOTHERBOARD FRAGGER!"

Astrotrain takes the shot! Right to his shoulder in fact! If he were Brawn, it would have been fatal. As it is, there's finally an explosion of sparks from the point of impact, and he gives a snarl as he jerks to one side, having felt that last one somewhat. He's still going strong though, and it looks like it hasn't affected any of his mobility nor his ability to bend and crush things with his bare hands. "...so I see..." he growls, running forward with the heavy *TOOM TOOM TOOM* of a big Decepticon on the move over a paved surface. "Well I say we oughta fix that then!" With that, he pulls out his sword once more, pausing just a body's length away to hurl it from the hip and send the crackling blade windmilling through the air like an oversized saw blade. What the heck is it with Astrotrain and always -throwing- his sword? Apparently he has an aversion to holding onto it and using it the old fashioned way.

Combat: Astrotrain strikes Red Alert with his Zord-Sword attack! [Pulled -1]

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert's own voice sounds weak. "Nightbeat? How you... how you doing?"

Astrotrain totally didn't forget Nightbeat either, his player is just forgetful, "I got a better idea! We skrag you and take what we want anyway!"

Nightbeat's precious, prized optics are broken like a beer bottle against a countertop, the glass tinkling down and scattering across the tarmac. He's blind, and for someone with vision as good as Nightbeat, the loss is frankly horrific. Stumbling about, he steps on his other gun, and the sound of the snap sickens him. Filled with primal hate, he lashes out at Cyclonus with a spite-fuelled backhand.

Combat: Nightbeat misses Cyclonus with his Backhand of Loathing (Punch) attack!

&lt;Autobot&gt; Nightbeat says, "Stupid Unicron-spawn BLINDED me! Do you have any idea how long it'll take to get another pair of optics in? Do you? Uh... you probably do. But still! Of all the gear-grinding glitched things..."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Jetfire says, "It depends on the size of the Transformer. In your case, the time increases due to the fact you are binded to an organic creature which makes repairs more delicate."

The sword hits the same leg that Red Alert had already been having problems with, and so Red Alert, finally, chooses to transform while he's still able. He's more mobile as a vehicle, after all, but has less firepower. He also seems a distracted by something, but still he tries to fire, a small gun sliding out of an opening in his hood. Pew pew!

Red Alert transforms into his Fire Chief's Lambourghini mode.

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "Actually, uhm... Nightbeat and I both have highly specialized and powerful optics. Much more sensitive than normal, and we don't tend to keep too many spares on hand due to the sensitivity of the technology involved. Off the shelf technology doesn't work for us, anyway."

Combat: Fire Chief's Lambourghini strikes Astrotrain with his Pew Pew Pew! (Laser) attack!

Cyclonus leans backwards avoiding Nightbeat's onslaught. He takes a few steps back not because he wants to let his opponent take some rest...no he wants him to get scared, to wonder from where the next blow is going to come. They are like to boxer in a ring and despite the damage he took, Cyclonus has the upperhand at the moment. He waits for an opening and as soon as it presents itself, he kick upward, right towards Nightneat's chin.

Combat: Cyclonus strikes Nightbeat with his Kick attack!

Combat: You took 11 damage.

Combat: Cyclonus's attack has damaged your Firepower!

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "What happened? Who's hurt!?"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Nightbeat grits out,

&lt;Autobot&gt; Nightbeat grits out, "What Red said."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Eject says, "Hey, is this channel secure?"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Eject has encrypted this channel.

Astrotrain recoils as the series of shots impact his right shoulder, drilling into the armor a bit and causing another shower of sparks to fly free to the ground. "Pft, ya don't give up eh? Just how I prefer it anyway." For a moment, he raises his rifle, as if pondering to use it, but then lowers the barrel a moment later. "Yeah right, when things have started workin SO well this way!?" Again there is that rapid thudding of his foosteps falling quickly, as he thunders up after Red Alert's transformed mode, and this time moves to deliver a huge kick right under the left fender, in an attempt to brutally kick the transformed car end over end.

Combat: Astrotrain misses Fire Chief's Lambourghini with his Aft over Teakettle (Kick) attack!

&lt;Autobot&gt; Eject says, "Now it is anyway. I'm pickin' up some chatter from the purple team! They're talkin' about collecting the remains of 'this' Autobot? Something definitely is going on in that squared circle!"

Nightbeat's gun, on the ground, gets stepped on some more, to add insult to injury. He also gets kicked over, onto the ground. Operating purely on hearing, Nightbeat rolls himself down into a drainage ditch for cover, and he peers up to snap off a shot at where he hears Cyclonus to be, with the one gun that he has remaining. Red Alert sounds distracted, and he's... turned into a car?

Combat: Nightbeat sets his defense level to Protected.

&lt;Autobot&gt; Jetfire says, "This is true, Red Al..." The sound of missiles exploding can be heard. "Red Alert. However, the *master technology just makes the parts that much more diffucult to produce and install."

Combat: Nightbeat misses Cyclonus with his Plasma Blaster attack!

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "That's what I was asking about, Eject!"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Eject says, "And what did ya find out Red Alert? Foxy and I can head out there. Didn't you hear? We got the Tag Team belts!! He's Macho Man and I'm the Hulkster! Oooooh Yeeeeea!!"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "South pole or O'hare spaceport, Eject, but I... suspect we'll be withdrawing soon."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "Here in the spaceport, anyway."

&lt;Autobot&gt; Saboteur Foxfire makes a quiet huffing sound, but says nothing.

&lt;Autobot&gt; Eject says, "So where should we head coach?"

&lt;Autobot&gt; Red Alert says, "I'd say the south pole."

Fire Chief's Lambourghini mostly avoids the kick by being a very fast sports car and being able to outrace Astrotrain. For once. He hits a hard (and painful) turn, however, and pulls back around. He no longer responds to Astrotrain's quips, largely because he has a sinking feeling that he *will* be giving up. In fact, for the moment, he doesn't even return fire, instead just sweeping the area, doing one final check to make sure the humans have cleared out.

Combat: Fire Chief's Lambourghini initiates a radar sweep of the area.

Cyclonus easily duck out of the way when Nightbeat fires at him. Though this is no big deal since the autobot detective is blind at the moment. Cyclonus' patience is about to payoff as he silently turns around Nightbeat who's doing a good job at following him despite his disadvantage. In hope to catch him off guard, Cyclonus leaps above him, landing behind his opponent and throwing yet another punch at his back.

Combat: Cyclonus strikes Nightbeat with his punch attack!

Combat: You took 7 damage.

Combat: Cyclonus's attack has damaged your Agility!

Astrotrain fistshakes like a good Saturday Morning cartoon villain as Red Alert goes speeding off at high speed. "Fraggin Autobot! If I could catch you I'd...oh wait..." And with that he transforms yet again, hitting the ground with a dull *BOOM* as a bit of stray armor falls off in the process, a side-effect of having let one too many shots hit his lesser-armored robot mode. Nonetheless, it is with a furious explosion of acceleration that he rockets forward in pursuit, the cannons on his hull swivelling around to point forward as they fill the air with bolts of laserfire chasing after the speeding car!

Armor locks in place, parts shift and Astrotrain transforms into a huge Battletrain!

Combat: Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; strikes Fire Chief's Lambourghini with his Battle Cannons attack!

Nightbeat's back is broken by the punch, despite trying to hide in a drainage ditch. He won't be moving too quickly at all! He has also excised the meaning of 'quit' from his internal dictionary for today. Nightbeat gets up to his feet, punch-drunk and doing a very, very poor Daredevil impression. He brings out his Detective's Manual and flips through it, landing on the page about emergency repairs. He quickly follows the instructions.

Combat: Nightbeat quickly patches up some of his minor injuries.

Combat: Drained 4 energon.

"Nightbeat!" Red Alert shouts. Actually, he more whispers, but when people have hearing as good as his, it's *like* shouting. "Nightbeat, we have to get out of here! The humans are safe - we've done all we can do here!" And with that, Red Alert himself goes rolling off, trying to escape the evil Decepticons!

Combat: Fire Chief's Lambourghini begins retreating, leaving himself vulnerable to parting shots from Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt;

Cyclonus grunts as Nightbeat patches himself and wonders when will that accursed autobot finally give up and die like a good little hero. Well apparently it is not for tonight unless Cyclonus gives him a nudge in the right direction. Once again, the unicronian launches himself towards his target and unless a flurry of punches!

Combat: Cyclonus misses Nightbeat with his punch attack!

Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; chases after Red Alert's fleeing lambourghini form like a cheetah after a zigzagging gazelle! A really uh...big purple metal cheetah that is. "Oh no ya don't, get back here!" But while the sheer velocity-race may go to Astrotrain, he zigs when he should have zagged, and proceeds to plow into the side of another hangar bay, exploding out the other side as Red Alert makes good his escape. For now. Perhaps if the triplechanger really pushed it, he could probably get a few parting shots... ...but right now, there's some payback to be had. "Hey! HEY YOU!" He calls out to where Cyclonus and Nightbeat are going at it, before suddenly filling the air between himself and the Autobot with a flurry of energy rounds blasting away. Cyclonus isn't even told to duck or get out of the way. Oddly, Cyclonus isn't even touched as the energy blasts zip around, over, under and within inches of him, but none make contact. Well they -are- extra accurate cannons, right? "How's it feel, Autoscrap!? EH? How's it feel when someone else jumps in on yer fight!"

Combat: Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; misses Nightbeat with his Battle Cannons attack!

Combat: Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt; (Astrotrain) used "Battle Cannons": A Level 2 RANGED attack.

Nightbeat tips back drunkenly and falls into the ditch, thereby evading Cyclonus's punches. Huh, wha? Red Alert is bailing? Nightbeat aches all over, he has to admit, if he's real with himself. Being in a ditch also cunningly means that Astrotrain's cannons just go over him. The detective crawls out of the ditch before something can set him on fire and limps into his Porsche mode, wheeling after Red Alert.

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

Combat: Porsche 959 begins retreating, leaving himself vulnerable to parting shots from Decepticon Battletrain &lt;Astrotrain&gt;

Combat: Astrotrain sets his defense level to Neutral.

Fire Chief's Lambourghini runs away and limps home!

Parts spin, components shift and Astrotrain's body grows in size until he is an enormous space shuttle.

Astrotrain takes flight to the Sky over Chicago.

Astrotrain has left.

================================== Autobot =================================== Message: 3/198                    Posted        Author O'Hare Spaceport                  Mon Nov 30    Nightbeat -- Muzzle is filing this report, because Nightbeat is blind at the moment. The Nebulan is bruised and battered as he reports, "Sky Lynx, Red Alert, and I opposed Cyclonus and Astrotrain at the O'Hare Spaceport today. Sky Lynx in particular aided the humans in the area, but our top priority in general was making sure that the humans got out safely, and they did. That aside..." Muzzle looks distinctly unhappy now. "...we could not stop the Decepticons from stealing a large quantity of shuttle parts. Both Red Alert and Nightbeat are pretty torn up, and Nightbeat will need new optics. By Koraja's splendor... I think Chicago was safer when the gangsters were just human!"

Spinny

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================================= Decepticon ================================= Message: 2/150                    Posted        Author Shuttle Parts Raid                Mon Nov 30    Astrotrain --

Astrotrain on screen, looking blackened, burnt, a hole through his shoulder and all around like he's gone through the ringer. And yet he has that smug air about him that suggests he still sent his opponent off with worse injuries. "So yeah, dunno where Cyclonus got off to. We hit that squishy spaceport, O'hairy somethin or other...apparently we were supposed to get some shuttle parts. We hit the place, then some Autobots showed up to try an stop us. Sky Lynx, Red Alert and one of them new squishy-fraggers. Nightbleat or somethin. Anyways, early on Sky Lynx left the fight cause Cyclonus shot a shuttle full of people or somethin, and it made Sky Lynx cry. I dunno, I really wasn't payin attention. The other two Bots were stubborn but we eventually sent em packin, which gave us enough time to load up on parts. Felt kinda wierd carryin shuttle pieces home in my shuttle mode but...eh." "Anyways we got a whole buncha parts for the boss, we plugged my cargo bay with all I could hold. I figure it's about equivelant to....oh, let's say the entire Decepticon attack force after an attack on Autobot City...plus Devastator's fat aft. So yeah, mission accomplished and all that! Now I'm off to get drunk." Astrotrain gives a thumbs-up, then vanishes from the screen.

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