Spotlight: Zoom-Zoom
Sept 22, 2014 1:28:44 GMT -5
Post by Deleted on Sept 22, 2014 1:28:44 GMT -5
"Package for you, smidget," Topshot amiably punched Zoom-Zoom's shoulder as the black minibot stood, toiling away at the starship's only workbench. The teal grounder peered easily over the minibot's head. "Say, whatcha working on- ooohh nice. Is that what I think it is?"
Calmly, Zoom-Zoom kept working, shoving a bright blue powder into hard plastic containers. "Thermidium," he answered dryly. His servos was steady and hadn't shook when Topshop had interrupted to slug him in shoulders at all. Which was fortunate because the workbench was currently covered in a energy vacuum seal to prevent any air from entering. Thermidium would react with the smallest amount of oxygen, so the glowing purple shield was the only thing preventing a hole from being blown in the side of the shuttle.
Topshot casually draped himself onto the minibot's back, like Zoom-Zoom wasn't handling a substance that could blow them all to their death. "So, Micro's finally proved himself, huh, Vibes," Topshot addressed the thin, red mech lurking in the corner of the room, a disapproving gaze directed at the other two spooks. "You only bust out the thermidium when you're confident they can handle it to your exacting specifications."
Thermidium was Vibes specialty. The division leader didn't say anything but he lifted his chin to the side, before melting away back to the cockpit. In Vibe's speak, that was an acknowledgement, a yes. The Ninety Second Division was familiar with decoding the sparse signals given in their commander's body language given that he barely bothered to talk at all, unless over the comm channels. Topshot, the second in command, tended to handle most of talking in Vibe's place. The cohort had learnt that only when things were really going to slag did they hear Vibe's voice out-loud.
Topshot unsubspaced a datapad and waved it in front of Zoom-Zoom's visor. "Got something for ya, smidget."
"And it can wait until I'm not dealing with a highly explosive substance," calmly, the minibot shrugged Topshot off his shoulders.
"Fine, fine," the grounder backed off. "I'm just gonna read it to ya, since I already know what's it all about."
Zoom-Zoom arched an optic ridge but had expected nothing less. They were spooks after all.
"Go ahead."
"Right, right, okay. Sez here that the our medic should be bringing your experimental nannite reconfiguration system online for the mission. It's been more than 3 orns so, all the frame integrations are complete."
There were several things wrong with that statement, which was completely at odds to Topshot's calm delivery. Zoom-Zoom didn't even know where to start. But-
"Experimental nannite reconfiguration system? What the- Topshot, I don't have one of those. Whatever the frag it is," the minibot took in the slight smirk pulling at the bottom of the grounder's lip plate. "...Do I?"
Cheerfully, Topshot punched Zoom-Zoom's shoulder again. "Ah yeah, you totally do. The med-bots installed it when you were offline and recovering from the blast back at Scarvix." Amiably Topshot gave a consoling pat. "We all consented for it. This mission was coming up and we didn't have the time. 'sides, I got one installed at the same time. You know they always use us to field test the cool stuff."
Finishing up on the last explosive, Zoom-Zoom used the workbench's vacuum tube to remove any remaining specks of thermidium from his servos, then cleaned up the workspace. The mines, he stowed in the equipment locker. When he was done, he turned around, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. He didn't mind the cohort consenting on his part but-
"-Wait, the team medic is supposed to be onlining it?" Zoom-Zoom asked in horror.
Topshot gave an absolutely manic grin. "Ayup. 'ccording to these instruction they do. Wanna go see Patchwork now?"
"NO! Are you crazy? Patchwork isn't getting his servos near my systems! Especially experimental ones!"
A tall lanky flier shoved his head through the door and frowned at Zoom-Zoom. "I can hear you, you know," Patchwork informed them mournfully.
"And you're staying right over there, far away from me Patch," the minibot snapped, pointing a stern finger at him. Zoom-Zoom shot Topshot a despairing look. "He's not doing it, 'Shot. I don't care if it's orders. He's not. I haven't forgotten the repair job he did at Nervissa!"
Patchwork's sorrowful gaze did not avert. Zoom-Zoom glared back at him. Topshot's head switched back and forth between the two in their tense stand-off. Eventually, a bubbling laugh escaped from him and a smile escaped from Patchwork as Topshot broke down.
"Relax Micro," he gasped between his laughter, unwinding a cable from his wrist. "I can do it. Read up on the files and everything. Command still hasn't clued in that Patch does a better job breaking stuff than fixing 'em."
"Told them I was only a trainee," Patchwork muttered with a huff, rolling his optics.
Topshot rapped Zoom-Zoom's shoulder port. "Open up here and I'll get you sorted."
The minibot obliged and it wasn't long between the two were sharing processor space. Zoom-Zoom's firewalls easily peeled away at the familiar presence. Topshot's processor was much like the mech's personality, bubbly and cheerful, his thoughts moved with a quick and narrow accuracy that bellied his skill with as a sniper. Here, he moved with a surgeon's precision, activating lines of coding that Zoom-Zoom wasn't even aware he had. The process went smoothly and Zoom-Zoom could soon feel another system in his frame.
-What does it--
-Gimme an astrosecond, Micro. Gotta few programs it needs-
Zoom-Zoom 'watched' as Topshot uploaded...wait, where those colour schemes? Then the mech was disconnecting, pulling his processor away. He removed his cable and flashed the minibot a broad grin. "Come on, give it a spin."
"I don't even know what it is. You haven't told me anything."
Rolling his optics, Topshot backed up. "Just do it, Micro. Trust me, you'll be fine."
Hesitating, because the experimental tech always blew up one way or the other, Zoom-Zoom's trust for Topshot won out over his common sense. Zoom-Zoom shut off his optics and he activated the new programming.
Nothing happened.
One optic flicked back on cautiously to confirm. He didn't feel any different. Nothing had-
"Aha!" Topshot enthusiastically shoved a finger at Zoom-Zoom's chest. "See, it's working!"
The minibot powered up both optics and gazed down at himself. His black paintwork was changing colour and now that he was noticing, he could feel it. A crawling in his dermal layer. "Wooah," he gasped, watching as the deep blue spot in the centre of his hood began to spread out, a rippling wave that claimed the rest of his frame.
"Ain't it neat?" Zoom-Zoom's head jerked up, and Topshot's paintjob was exactly the same shade as his. Patchwork had joined them in the room and was curiously investigating Topshot's new colouring.
"Odessix," Patchwork murmured.
The minibot's helm snapped towards the flier at the mention of their target planet. At once details fell into place. The Decepticon base they were investigating, it was set on a rocky outcrop. The rocks were this shade, and the rippling pattern reminiscent of their formation. A camo job.
Eagerly, Zoom-Zoom remembered the other schemes Topshot had uploaded. "What are the other ones?" he asked, as he delved into his programming.
"Don't!" the sniper warned just as a painful shudder went through Zoom-Zoom's body as he tried to activate another. "It's gotta cool down, Micro. They haven't been able to fix that, you've got to wait for it to reset before it changes. And how long it takes varies every time. Each scheme needs to be pre-loaded too, you can only have five and writing them is a pain in the aft and takes ages. I've given you a nice selection that'll get you through this mission."
The minibot took a shuddering gasp. Ah, yes. Experimental tech. Always a joy. He straightened up then glanced curiously Patchwork. "You don't have it?"
"Didn't take," the tall mech answered easily. His optics turned to the cockpit's door. "Neither did it for Vibes. Science team didn't have enough time to get it sorted. This window isn't going to come again for vorns, we can't miss it."
Topshot perked. "Oh, Primus. I can't wait for this to be over. Haven't seen Merge and Slate for ages. Remind me to veto the next long term infiltration mission Command sends us on."
Zoom-Zoom snorted, Topshot had absolutely no rank to pull, though he functioned as Vibe's right hand. The flier gave a tight laugh at his statement however and both Zoom-Zoom and Topshot looked to him in concern. Patchwork was a newer member to the division and they had suffered several losses back at Scarvix. Both Topshot and Zoom-Zoom had been around long enough to become accustomed to the many losses that plagued the team. The two other mecha Patchwork had joined in with had...well, they had made it back in pieces. "Hey," Topshot reached out and gently nudged Patchwork. "You'll do fine."
"I'm not a sniper," Patchwork mumbled. "I can't do this for you-"
"You're good enough for me," the grounder was quick to assure him. "'sides. You're a bit too tall to sneak in the vents and watch Micro's back. So is Vibes. But I can. And if it all goes well, you won't even need to do anything, just get your aft back to the extraction point."
The mission they were on had two parts to it. Merge and Slate had spent ages getting themselves inside the Con base at Odessix. The outpost was a Decepticon manufacturing plant, mass producing blaster rifles and laser cannons to be integrated into the frames of Con foot soldiers. The mission was to infiltrate and hack the systems, find out where their supplies were coming from and any other important confidential information. Then, once that information was acquired, they'd deny the resource to the Decepticons by blowing the place sky high.
Zoom-Zoom and Topshot were getting dropped off at the Xeptos space port, which was where Merge had managed to score a supply run shift. The two bots would be concealed inside a shielded cargo crate and delivered amongst the rest of cargo to the base. Slate would help their entry by handling the unloading and making sure no one saw the two spooks make their way into the outpost's subsystem. Unfortunately, Merge and Slate were being transferred off base soon after, so the team had only this one opportunity to carry out the infiltration.
It could take a long time, hacking the base system without alerting the Cons. Zoom-Zoom needed to study its defenses long enough that when he made a move, he could slip silently into the system and back out again without leaving a trace. They didn't want the Cons to know any information had been stolen, just that the base had been blown up by Autobot saboteurs and that was the end of the matter. Merge and Slate wouldn’t be able to offer the two mecha any further help once they were inside else they risked losing their cover. Vibes would be keeping the starship hidden in outer orbit until they needed extraction. Only once the base was scheduled to be demolished would Patchwork actually serve a role and it was only to provide covering fire for their escape if something had gone wrong during their extraction. Otherwise, the mech had the unenviable task of curling up in a cave hidden amongst the rock shelter for a couple of orns and waiting for the mission to be carried out.
The flier wasn't exactly reassured, even with the broad grin Topshot was giving him. The recent loses they had taken, not just at Scarvix, had swapped up the line-up. Patchwork wasn't supposed to have been on the mission at all. Switch was Zoom-Zoom's usual partner for such a job, as a fellow minibot he was ideal for keeping watch over the hacker's back. He'd also been a good saboteur and it would have been his job to set the charges to blow the base to the Pits. But he'd died on the mission prior to Scarvix and they'd been hoping that one of Patchwork's fellow recruits would have taken his place. If there were other crews operating out here in this sector of space, command hadn't been able to spare them. They'd been planning for this mission for a long time, with a few side ones tossed their way that had lead to their current losses and now they had to go ahead with it.
"Look, look, it'll be fine. Here," Topshot smacked Zoom-Zoom's back and deftly swiped something from the minibot's subspace.
"Hey!"
"Depositing a memory for the vault, Micro," Topshot quickly opened up Unicron and plugged in a cable.
"This is not helping," Patchwork said, the stress clear in his voice. "Now that just makes me think we're all gonna die."
"'s a good luck charm, Patch. And we're all gonna die one cycle, might as well enjoy what we can."
Zoom-Zoom took Unicron when it was shoved at him and swiftly uploaded a short clip: watching his paintjob change colour for what he hopped wouldn't be the first and only time. He passed the toy onto Patchwork.
"Come on," he said. "You're getting so freaked out and all you have to do is hide in a bunch of rocks for an orn. I'm getting to move into a vent system with Topshot as my new roommate."
"Hey!"
Zoom-Zoom levelled the other grounder a deadpan stare. "You can't sit still. This is a terrible mistake."
A rugged grin pulled at Topshot's face. "Have you seen me with my sniper? Not a single twitch. I can do this, smidget. You'll be regretting those words, just you wait. I'll put you to shame. Oh. And Patch? You take good care of that gun, it's a true friend."
The door to the cockpit slid open and the three spooks looked up to see Vibes poking his head into the room. One head tilt and they could see the looming spaceport the shuttle was on approach for. Vibes speak for 'we're almost here, now shut up and get your act together.'
The three bots settled down, seating themselves obediently. The mission had begun.
---
The nice thing about spaceports...was that there were too many people. Lots of crowds. Made it easy for a pair of bots to sneak into a restricted landing pad and then abscond inside the special cargo crate awaiting them. They'd only been able to tell it was theirs by a short range transmitter that had been emitting on a very specific frequency which they had then removed from the box once they'd found it. Merge had provided some others mean for Slate to identify their box, so they weren't worried about getting rid of the transmitter.
"Oh, nice," Zoom-Zoom said in appreciation as he took in what was stowed away in their small hidey spot.
"What?" Topshot hissed, pushing the minibot further inside and trying to get comfortable in the tiny space. Topshot wasn't a large bot, wouldn't have been picked to go in as Zoom-Zoom's partner but he was a bit bigger than the minibot and it showed. Inside the cargo container, the two were squeezing themselves in with other boxes containing base supplies.
The minibot picked up the curled up form of a disabled cleaning drone. "Merge gets me the nicest presents."
Topshot had a look of utter confusion as he took in the drone. "Hey Micro," he said slowly. "I realise that this isn't exactly the best time and maybe you aren't doing so well after Switch's death but that's a-"
"Our way in," Zoom-Zoom cut in breezily. He unwound a cable and plugged in, eagerly connecting up to the drone's processor core. The light behind his visor flicked off as he powered down his optics. "It'll give me a head-start on deciphering the security system of the Con base. It's a sample of what to expect."
Topshot paused and digested this, examining the drone in a new light. "Oh. Okay," he said. He shifted uncomfortably, pressing up close to the minibot in their cramped quarters. "You...really doing alright though? I've been meaning to ask, cause we've been running from one mission to the next without stop. And...you knew Switch best."
Behind his visor, one optic powered up. "I'm fine," he said. "No, really. Everyone dies and it just so happens that mecha in our squad tend to die a lot."
"Yeah but-"
"We have a mission, 'Shot."
Topshot gave him a stern look, optics sweeping to take in the crate they were shoved in, as if to say, "Yeah, well we still have a long trip before we actually get there. In fact, we haven't even left Xeptos yet." Then the grounder sighed and dropped it. "Your head fine?" Or maybe not.
"My head is always fine," Zoom-Zoom said sharply.
"No, it's not. It really isn't."
"'Shot-"
"You realise that you are never the last to deposit to the vault?" Topshot interrupted.
Zoom-Zoom gave the other bot a confused look but was sufficiently derailed by the seeming non-sequitur. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"You always copy unmodded memories in. Everyone knows this, which is why someone always has to come in and edit them up after you. After Switch died, you dumped just about everything you had with him in there. Micro, what the frag are you doing?"
The minibot huddled in on himself, recognising that Topshot wasn't about to go away and leave him alone. The grounder had a lot of patience and they were in for a long flight. A swell of emotions bloomed in his field. Grief, sadness, regret. "Forgetting the only way I know how," he mumbled into a servo.
Topshot carefully touched Zoom-Zoom's shoulder. "The vault's for remembering the cohort, not forgetting it," he chided quietly. The grounder's own field opened up in shared grief, offering comfort if the minibot desire it. "And I thought you couldn't forget things."
"I don't forget," Zoom-Zoom stated dully, staring off into nothing. "I update my directories with the copies location in the vault instead of inside my own core. It lasts for a little while before my systems correct themselves and brings everything back."
Quietly, Zoom-Zoom allowed their fields to mingle, accepting Topshot's presence and the comfort the other could offer. He turned his attention back to the drone he'd been studying, learning its security algorithms. Topshot recognized the conversation had come to an end and began to hum sub-vocally. It was a tune that Zoom-Zoom knew came from Polyhex, Topshot's home city. He allowed it to occupy a tiny partition of his attention as he focused his work on the drone.
There was a loud thump and the entire crate shuddered. Then, movement, like it was being lifted up. The sudden movement sent both mecha flying. "Oh, good. That's Merge then," Topshot observed dryly. "You doing alright there, Micro?"
"Just. Fine." Zoom-Zoom ground out, crushed beneath the other's weight. He pushed one servo against the floor and tried to lift himself up but Topshot was too heavy. The other had curled around the cleaning drone protectively to prevent it from being damaged. "You gonna get off me, 'Shot?"
Now the crate was being moved to the side and the two mecha went sliding in the opposite side. "Nope," The grounder replied cheerfully. "Not until the loading is done."
"When all this is over, I'm gonna kill you, Topshot."
"I expect nothing less, Micro."
--
The flight took forever. Zoom-Zoom spent most of it becoming best friends with the drone's processor while Topshot bugged him about one thing or the other.
But finally-
"Beep, beep, boop," Topshot announced. "Aaand docking has now finalized. You are now in Con outpost Soon To Be Slagged. Micro, you have no idea how long I've been waiting to play with the thermidium again."
Zoom-Zoom levelled an irate glare at his companion. "This is the point where we shut up, 'Shot." The minibot tapped the side of his audial. "Comms only till we get ourselves situated."
The sniper sighed but settled in to wait with Zoom-Zoom. The two mecha were still, optics wary on the door to the crate. Both mecha had spark dampeners activated, masking them from any equipment that had scanned their container. They could hear the rumble and screech of machinery, as other cargo boxes were undoubtedly being unloaded by the Decepticons on base. Then a servo slapped against the front of the crate. It quietly rapped a code before it was pulled off and moved on. Slate. That was their signal.
The crate wall next to them retracted into the ceiling of the box, revealing the back wall of the loading bay. And, only a couple of metres in front of them was a duct into the base's inner systems. To the left and right were more containers, hiding them from the optics from any workers unloading them. Theoretically.
::Scheme two:: Topshot tightbeamed. Zoom-Zoom frowned in confusion before he realised what the mech was on about. He delved into the reconfiguration system and was wearing a white paintjob matching the flooring and walls only astroseconds later. The minibot pressed the cleaning drone into Topshot's servos.
Zoom-Zoom scooted forward and set to opening up the vent with a tool kit. He worked quickly, painfully aware of the many Decepticons moving about the hangar. If they were caught...then torture awaited them and everyone else involved in the operation was at risk.
Thankfully, it was long before he had the vent open. He slid himself inside and was joined only a moment later by Topshot. Zoom-Zoom tugged the cleaning drone from the other mech's servos and plugged himself in, synchronizing its processor up with his. Then he disconnected, having activated a remote relay program he'd installed on it during the long flight. The drone scuttled forth on its four of its eight limbs. As Zoom-Zoom set it off to explore, he was aware of Topshot closing the vent behind them. The minibot silently held out four magnetic clamps, which would hold the vent shut until they had a chance to properly fix it.
Through the drone, Zoom-Zoom was able to start mapping out the vent system they were in. Merge and Slate had passed on as much information as possible of the subsystems but that wasn't what Zoom-Zoom was after.
::Got it:: the minibot started crawling after the drone. Topshot was right on his pedes. They took a right turn and descended a level before they caught up with the drone.
And the second cleaning drone it had found.
Zoom-Zoom's servo flashed out and caught the new one. Primitive as it was, it had been programmed to clean and nothing more. It was unable to differentiate between Bot or Con, nor did it care. Zoom-Zoom plugged in and quickly overrode its internal alarm to notify the computer system overseeing and co-ordinating all drones on base. This process took only moments and went off without a hitch, thanks to all the studying up Zoom-Zoom had done on the drone Merge had left them. The minibot returned it to its work, with the added bonus of a remote relay program amongst several other things he'd installed that the drone wouldn't be able to pick up on. He sent this drone back to take care and properly fix up the vent they'd come in through.
That taken care off, Topshot, Zoom-Zoom and their original drone made their way down three levels until they came to an internal substation. Here, the two mecha rested. It was on their maps as unmanned according to base rosters, so they'd be able to use it as they please. Above their heads, the drone climbed the ceiling as Zoom-Zoom allowed the program to wander. Topshot eyed the drone for a couple of breems before:
"We're gonna name it...Eight Legs," Topshot declared in a quiet voice. "Or...Crooked Neck."
Zoom-Zoom raised his optics up to his partner, who had his neck uncomfortably crooked to fit in the vents. One optic ridge flew up. "We don't name it after our personal problems," he commented dryly.
"Death Legs? Eight Legs of Doom? The Death Cleaner?"
"Be serious."
"What about you, Micro? Prime of the Cleaning Drones?" Zoom-Zoom gave an extremely undignified snort at this. "Lord Cleaner?"
The minibot punched Topshot in the shoulder before he crawled on top of the mech and nodded up to a passageway that was out of reach. "Get me up there. That should be the line I need to get me near the main databanks."
"Sure thing," Topshot agreed easily, pushing Zoom-Zoom up and giving him a boost. "See ya later, Micro. I'm gonna find me the best places in a manufacturing plant to decorate with thermidium."
The two mecha departed, going their separate ways. The drone crawled after Zoom-Zoom, then overtook him and went on ahead. Every time they found another one, Zoom-Zoom added it to his growing collection of remote controlled cleaners. Eventually, the minibot found his way to a line near the outpost control room.
The minibot could hear Decepticons murmuring as they went on about their daily business. Zoom-Zoom felt along the walls until he found a computer node buried in the wall. Probably part of a comm relay booster but it was an access point to the base network nonetheless. Carefully, the minibot dug into the wall using his energon blade to expose the delicate electronics hidden within. He tugged out a cable, feeling along until he found an open port and plugged himself.
Zoom-Zoom immediately stopped as he came up against the base-network firewalls. He didn't try to access anything, that would immediately alert the system to an intruder. First, he needed to study it, identify weaknesses in the base codes, places where he could slip in unnoticed.
Awareness of the minibot's frame faded away as the hacker curled up, unfurled his mind and set to work. Time to dig up those encrypted files.
::Pssst. Micro::
One optic powered up dimly behind Zoom-Zoom's visor to take in the sight of a mech squeezed in the vents beside him. ::Switch?::
::Sorry, Micro. No. Switch is...gone. It's me, Topshot. How goes on that hacking thing?::
It took a long time for the minibot to understand what was going on or the question. His processor was split as it carefully manoeuvred its way through the Con network. But eventually the question sunk in and that optic brightened. ::Almost done. Why?:: he slurred through the tightbeam. Then he remember what Topshot had said about Switch and the light dimmed in his optic.
Topshot nervously wrangled his servos together. Alarm shot through Zoom-Zoom and pulled his awareness more firmly back to his frame, Topshot was never worried. The grounder's lip plates were drawn tightly together and Zoom-Zoom knew it was bad news. ::Merge shipped out okay but the Cons got Slate:: he said quietly. ::Something in his files wasn't right and they picked him up right before he got on the transport::
Cold fear bloomed in Zoom-Zoom's spark. No. Not Slate. They'd lost so many recently already. ::Where is he?:: he demanded. ::We've gotta get him out. 'Shot, tell me you've got some idea on how we're gonna do it::
The other grounder's face remained calm and closed off as he flatly told Zoom-Zoom, ::No. No, we do nothing of the sort::
Zoom-Zoom shook his head slowly, fighting through the mental sludge that came with having an entire base network inside his processor, unwilling to believe that Topshot was going to turn his back on Slate. Pits, they'd both been part of the crew long before he'd join. They couldn't leave Slate behind. They wouldn't.
...would they?
Topshot leant forward intently, staring into Zoom-Zoom's visor. ::We've gotta go:: he said softly. ::They're locking down the base and conducting a sweep on everything, searching for more intruders. It's only a matter of time before they find us in the vents or the charges that I just set, so I'm going to give you just a little bit more time to mine their databases but you need to start pulling out now::
He wanted to protest. Zoom-Zoom wanted to argue against what Topshot had set into motion without waiting for his input. But they didn't have time, which was why he hadn't been consulted. Blearily, Zoom-Zoom turned his focus back to the databanks and the files he was searching through. He started to carefully retrieve sections of his consciousness that had intruded far into the network, bringing his mind back together. He scrubbed his face when it was done, quickly pulling his mind like that had given him a massive processor ache but soon he could see clearly and make sense of all his frame inputs.
Zoom-Zoom raised his helm with a determined look as he stared down his partner. ::Where's Slate?::
::Doesn't matter:: Topshot retorted coldly. ::We're not going for him::
The minibot pointed at the cleaning drone that had kept watch over him while he'd made his way into the Decepticon computer system. ::We're not. They are. I've got some thermidium. Where's Slate?::
A grin spread across Topshot's face as he began to crawl back. ::I like the way you think, Lord Cleaner. He's in their brig, floor 4, about to get transferred to the torture chambers. Cell Delta Eight. Now come on, let's move. Exit's through the waste system::
As he followed Topshot, Zoom-Zoom sorted through the links he had with all the drones he'd hacked and started moving the closest ones he had towards the brig. The ones nearest to the two Autobots, he directed to intercept their path. As the drones caught up with them, he distributed the few explosives he was carrying, then directed them through the vent network back to the brig. It was difficult, splitting his concentration between co-ordinating the drones and keeping himself moving but he managed. The two spooks had made their way all the way down to the waste system, just as Zoom-Zoom got everything in place.
::Micro, wake-up. I'm gonna need you alert for this::
Zoom-Zoom peered past Topshot's shoulder. Beneath them, he could make out a Decepticon pacing and grumbling about non-existent intruders and the current base lockdown. He could hear the muffled howl of a chill wind, indicating they were close to the outside perimeter of the base. ::Micro, I know you're gonna hate me for saying this, but don't blow Slate out of there before we get out. We need to be safe and able to extract before we risk compromising the mission for Slate::
::No:: The minibot did not even want to hear it.
::The mission's more important than any of us. You know this::
::Topshot, no. I can't. No. Not after Switch. Piledriver. Compiler. Burnout. Too many of us, too soon::
The grounder was quiet for a moment. Then, ::Sorry Micro:: He raised his servo, transformed it, took aim and shot the Con beneath them through the grate. Topshot kicked the grate off and both bots fell to the floor. They recovered quickly, the room they were in was thankfully empty, aside from the Decepticon they'd already killed. There was an enormous pipe that ran through it, and from what their maps said, lead right outside the base. They used it for pumping out waste, either from the production plant underneath or from the outpost in general. The room they were in was for maintenance, an access point in case something went wrong with the pipe and they needed to send in a mech to fix it.
Topshot leaned over the controls and examined them. "We're in luck, its empty at the moment." he pressed down a control and a seal popped open. "Come on, Micro."
Zoom-Zoom had been staring up at the ceiling, at the vent they'd come in through. When Topshot addressed him, his gaze fell down to the other mech in a panic. "Topshot, the drones don't have strong enough comms for me to maintain connection with them. If we leave now-"
The grounder levelled a dull stare at the minibot and bodily dragged him to the hatch. "You can still remote detonate the mines you gave them, those have stronger signals. Like I will be, once we get out."
"The drones aren't in place! I can't set the charges until we're ready to blow them or the Cons will notice!"
Topshot shrugged and pushed Zoom-Zoom on. Their pedes splashed in puddles of liquid as they hurried along the pipe. "Slate will just have to take his chances, Micro. The mission comes first."
Frag the mission, Zoom-Zoom wanted to snarl. But he shut his mouth and kept moving. They emerged some kilometres off, out in the blue rocky outcrop. Red light filtered down, Odessix's scarlet sky.
"Scheme three," Topshot rapped Zoom-Zoom's hood before taking off. The blue camo paintjob. "I'm contacting the extraction squad, letting them know we're on the move." The two bots slunk amongst the rough terrain, hugging the ground and hoping that there were no sharp optics amongst the outpost's sentries. They'd almost made it all the way across when-
Pain exploded across Zoom-Zoom's sensor net as his right leg was shredded by a sniper round that lanced right through it. He staggered, a scream escaping from his vocaliser as he went down. Topshot pivoted round and grabbed him, hauling him along. Energon leaked from the wound in Zoom-Zoom's leg before the mech shut his lines down that limb. An answering shot that both mecha recognised flew over their heads as another narrowly missed Topshot's helm. Distantly, they could hear the whine of seeker engines as a squad flew after them in pursuit.
"Get 'em Patch," Topshot panted, supporting Zoom-Zoom's weight. "Come on, we're almost there."
The next rounds ignored them, spraying the hillside where Patchwork was situated. "Slag," the grounder's face grew pinched. He twisted round, narrowed his optics at the base, then sent a tightbeam transmission to the charges he'd planted within it.
A deep rumble built. Pressure and heat expanded upwards in an explosive pulse. Crimson fire claimed the outpost as its innards erupted outwards. Metal sheets and beams were sprayed into the air, transformed into a deadly rain of debris. The ground groaned in protest as the outpost collapsed on itself.
No more shots were fired in the air as the two Autobots hurried on.
"'Shot. 'Shot." Zoom-Zoom gasped as they ran. Each step was fire in his circuits. "Slate was still in there."
"I know."
"We didn't give him a chance to get out."
"I know."
"Slate was-"
"I KNOW." Zoom-Zoom had never heard Topshot's voice like this. Cold. Dead. Empty. It was an ugly sound. "I know what I did, just move. We're almost there."
As if to prove them wrong, the whine of seeker engines returned to them. Topshot didn't stop, his pace increased at the sound. "Come on, Patchwork. Take those fraggers out."
No sniper shots came from over the hill in rescue. Zoom-Zoom's head twisted to stare at the oncoming jets. No. He could see the missile pods attached to them, loaded and waiting to be dropped. A calmness settled over the minibot as he realised that they weren't going to make it. He smacked Topshot's arm to get his attention.
"You are going to leave me and run," Zoom-Zoom said sharply. Topshot didn't have a slagged leg. Topshot could make it to the extraction point if he left him like he'd left Slate.
"Can't," Topshot said with a tired laugh. "Won't, even if I had the option. Data's more important than the two of us."
"'Shot, I can download it right here and now to you. Take it and run."
Topshot watched the scarlet sky. "Those Seekers are catching up fast," he murmured, unwinding a wrist cable. "This'll be quick."
"By hardline?" Zoom-Zoom frowned in confusion as Topshot plugged in though he didn't stop the mech. This was not the time nor place-
Topshot's processor delved quickly into his but instead of grabbing the proffered datafiles, he slid right into Zoom-Zoom's newest system. Alarm spilled over the hardline from Zoom-Zoom's mind just as Topshot activated a colour scheme. "Scheme five, Micro. You never tried this one."
Wait, what-?
The sniper disconnected the hardline, then shoved Zoom-Zoom hard to the ground beneath his body. The minibot could see the seekers approaching from his sprawl on the rocks. His frame itched as the reconfiguration system activated. He struggled against the body weighing him down, grasping Topshot's plan in an instance.
"Topshot, no-!"
"'m just a sniper, Micro," the grounder gasped in his audial as he forced Zoom-Zoom still beneath him and curled up around him. "Bots don't have enough info grabbers like you. Mission comes first and my mission has always been to get you out of here."
"No. NO. NO. NOOOO-!"
"Hey, Micro, your dampeners still online? Good, because I've got one last trick left to teach you. Time to play dead."
The missiles fell.
The world ended.
--
It was deathly quiet.
Until the Seekers came back.
Zoom-Zoom remained still. The power was off to his optics. The dampeners were still shielding his spark. But-
"Two greyed out Autobot frames, confirmed."
Dully, the minibot's thoughts flickered to those frantic moments before the bombing. The program Topshot reached for in Zoom-Zoom's processor. The colour changing system. He had to be grey now, the one scheme he hadn't checked out and so the seekers thought both he and Topshot were dead.
He could hear them. Standing nearby. Arguing over who they were supposed to report to and what they were supposed to be doing now.
"Fragging Autobranders. I'd kill them all over again, can't believe what they did to the base."
A pede crunched the ground near Zoom-Zoom's head. He waited for it, certain that the seeker was going to hit either Topshot or his frame in anger. He'd cut all motion controls to his limbs so that his frame would jerk like the offline frame it was supposed to be.
A shot rang out. Then another and another. Zoom-Zoom recognised the sound and hope flickered in his frame. That was Topshot's sniper rifle. Patchwork had to be near. He wasn't dead. He was going to come rescue them. It was going to be alright.
There was the thumps as four frames fell over. That was some shooting Patch had going on there. Not bad for a bot who was terrified he was going to let the cohort down. Then Zoom-Zoom could hear the approach of a pair of footsteps.
The weight of Topshot's frame was removed. "Topshot?" a quiet, hoarse voice questioned. There was no response.
Zoom-Zoom's vent hitched in surprise and alarm. His optics flicked on and stared up at Vibes, who was grimly checking Topshot's frame for any sign of life. "Where's Patch?" he demanded harshly, staring at the energon soaked sniper rifle clutched in Vibe's grasp.
His commander's face was grave. "Dead. Sniper got him. Come." Vibes dragged him to his pedes.
"No, wait, what about 'Shot?" Zoom-Zoom protested as Vibes began to lead him away.
"Dead."
"But- he could have been faking! Like I was. Dampeners. The colour changing system. He can't be-"
"Dead."
"He said we were going to play dead! He said- he was just faking! He's gotta be-Vibes-please-"
The tall red mech silently turned Zoom-Zoom back so he could see Topshot's frame. The mech's chest had been caved in. His spark chamber had to be breached. Zoom-Zoom's protests died and he limply allowed Vibes to lead him away.
No. No. This couldn't be real. Topshot wouldn't have- he'd been there forever. For as long as Zoom-Zoom had been a part of the cohort, Topshot had been there. Had welcomed him in where Vibes couldn't. Had taught him so much, had mentored him when he could. Selected both Zoom-Zoom and Switch as partners together. The mech couldn't be...
They climbed the hillside in silence, an air of mourning on the two mecha though Vibe's watchful optic on their surroundings never wavered. The starship came into view and it was only after Vibe's had set the autopilot and it had lifted off did the mech return with a medkit to start patching the mess of Zoom-Zoom's leg.
Zoom-Zoom stared blankly off into nothing. Topshot was dead. Patchwork was dead. Slate was gone. It was just him, Vibes and Merge, wherever the slag Merge had been sent to. A bitter laugh escaped from him as Vibe's servos worked. The division commander halted for a moment then continued on and ignored him. It seemed ridiculous, Zoom-Zoom had never ceased to feel like a rookie amongst the cohort but from now on, he'd forever be one of the older mecha amongst the group. Because the cohort always moved on. It always took new members. This mission had been hell and it had decimated most of their numbers but a scant few had survived and that was good enough for command.
No one was ever going to call him Micro again.
"We completed the mission," Vibes told him quietly.
Zoom-Zoom eyed him both incredulously and bitterly. There were cycles where Zoom-Zoom envied the emotional deadness inside Vibes and this was one of them. Instead he had a processor that would never let him forget a single moment of his life. He'd remember all the goods things about Slate, about Topshot and the rest but the horror of their deaths were a fresh stain in his processor forever.
"Yeah. Yeah, we did. Frag lot of good it does us."
Calmly, Zoom-Zoom kept working, shoving a bright blue powder into hard plastic containers. "Thermidium," he answered dryly. His servos was steady and hadn't shook when Topshop had interrupted to slug him in shoulders at all. Which was fortunate because the workbench was currently covered in a energy vacuum seal to prevent any air from entering. Thermidium would react with the smallest amount of oxygen, so the glowing purple shield was the only thing preventing a hole from being blown in the side of the shuttle.
Topshot casually draped himself onto the minibot's back, like Zoom-Zoom wasn't handling a substance that could blow them all to their death. "So, Micro's finally proved himself, huh, Vibes," Topshot addressed the thin, red mech lurking in the corner of the room, a disapproving gaze directed at the other two spooks. "You only bust out the thermidium when you're confident they can handle it to your exacting specifications."
Thermidium was Vibes specialty. The division leader didn't say anything but he lifted his chin to the side, before melting away back to the cockpit. In Vibe's speak, that was an acknowledgement, a yes. The Ninety Second Division was familiar with decoding the sparse signals given in their commander's body language given that he barely bothered to talk at all, unless over the comm channels. Topshot, the second in command, tended to handle most of talking in Vibe's place. The cohort had learnt that only when things were really going to slag did they hear Vibe's voice out-loud.
Topshot unsubspaced a datapad and waved it in front of Zoom-Zoom's visor. "Got something for ya, smidget."
"And it can wait until I'm not dealing with a highly explosive substance," calmly, the minibot shrugged Topshot off his shoulders.
"Fine, fine," the grounder backed off. "I'm just gonna read it to ya, since I already know what's it all about."
Zoom-Zoom arched an optic ridge but had expected nothing less. They were spooks after all.
"Go ahead."
"Right, right, okay. Sez here that the our medic should be bringing your experimental nannite reconfiguration system online for the mission. It's been more than 3 orns so, all the frame integrations are complete."
There were several things wrong with that statement, which was completely at odds to Topshot's calm delivery. Zoom-Zoom didn't even know where to start. But-
"Experimental nannite reconfiguration system? What the- Topshot, I don't have one of those. Whatever the frag it is," the minibot took in the slight smirk pulling at the bottom of the grounder's lip plate. "...Do I?"
Cheerfully, Topshot punched Zoom-Zoom's shoulder again. "Ah yeah, you totally do. The med-bots installed it when you were offline and recovering from the blast back at Scarvix." Amiably Topshot gave a consoling pat. "We all consented for it. This mission was coming up and we didn't have the time. 'sides, I got one installed at the same time. You know they always use us to field test the cool stuff."
Finishing up on the last explosive, Zoom-Zoom used the workbench's vacuum tube to remove any remaining specks of thermidium from his servos, then cleaned up the workspace. The mines, he stowed in the equipment locker. When he was done, he turned around, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. He didn't mind the cohort consenting on his part but-
"-Wait, the team medic is supposed to be onlining it?" Zoom-Zoom asked in horror.
Topshot gave an absolutely manic grin. "Ayup. 'ccording to these instruction they do. Wanna go see Patchwork now?"
"NO! Are you crazy? Patchwork isn't getting his servos near my systems! Especially experimental ones!"
A tall lanky flier shoved his head through the door and frowned at Zoom-Zoom. "I can hear you, you know," Patchwork informed them mournfully.
"And you're staying right over there, far away from me Patch," the minibot snapped, pointing a stern finger at him. Zoom-Zoom shot Topshot a despairing look. "He's not doing it, 'Shot. I don't care if it's orders. He's not. I haven't forgotten the repair job he did at Nervissa!"
Patchwork's sorrowful gaze did not avert. Zoom-Zoom glared back at him. Topshot's head switched back and forth between the two in their tense stand-off. Eventually, a bubbling laugh escaped from him and a smile escaped from Patchwork as Topshot broke down.
"Relax Micro," he gasped between his laughter, unwinding a cable from his wrist. "I can do it. Read up on the files and everything. Command still hasn't clued in that Patch does a better job breaking stuff than fixing 'em."
"Told them I was only a trainee," Patchwork muttered with a huff, rolling his optics.
Topshot rapped Zoom-Zoom's shoulder port. "Open up here and I'll get you sorted."
The minibot obliged and it wasn't long between the two were sharing processor space. Zoom-Zoom's firewalls easily peeled away at the familiar presence. Topshot's processor was much like the mech's personality, bubbly and cheerful, his thoughts moved with a quick and narrow accuracy that bellied his skill with as a sniper. Here, he moved with a surgeon's precision, activating lines of coding that Zoom-Zoom wasn't even aware he had. The process went smoothly and Zoom-Zoom could soon feel another system in his frame.
-What does it--
-Gimme an astrosecond, Micro. Gotta few programs it needs-
Zoom-Zoom 'watched' as Topshot uploaded...wait, where those colour schemes? Then the mech was disconnecting, pulling his processor away. He removed his cable and flashed the minibot a broad grin. "Come on, give it a spin."
"I don't even know what it is. You haven't told me anything."
Rolling his optics, Topshot backed up. "Just do it, Micro. Trust me, you'll be fine."
Hesitating, because the experimental tech always blew up one way or the other, Zoom-Zoom's trust for Topshot won out over his common sense. Zoom-Zoom shut off his optics and he activated the new programming.
Nothing happened.
One optic flicked back on cautiously to confirm. He didn't feel any different. Nothing had-
"Aha!" Topshot enthusiastically shoved a finger at Zoom-Zoom's chest. "See, it's working!"
The minibot powered up both optics and gazed down at himself. His black paintwork was changing colour and now that he was noticing, he could feel it. A crawling in his dermal layer. "Wooah," he gasped, watching as the deep blue spot in the centre of his hood began to spread out, a rippling wave that claimed the rest of his frame.
"Ain't it neat?" Zoom-Zoom's head jerked up, and Topshot's paintjob was exactly the same shade as his. Patchwork had joined them in the room and was curiously investigating Topshot's new colouring.
"Odessix," Patchwork murmured.
The minibot's helm snapped towards the flier at the mention of their target planet. At once details fell into place. The Decepticon base they were investigating, it was set on a rocky outcrop. The rocks were this shade, and the rippling pattern reminiscent of their formation. A camo job.
Eagerly, Zoom-Zoom remembered the other schemes Topshot had uploaded. "What are the other ones?" he asked, as he delved into his programming.
"Don't!" the sniper warned just as a painful shudder went through Zoom-Zoom's body as he tried to activate another. "It's gotta cool down, Micro. They haven't been able to fix that, you've got to wait for it to reset before it changes. And how long it takes varies every time. Each scheme needs to be pre-loaded too, you can only have five and writing them is a pain in the aft and takes ages. I've given you a nice selection that'll get you through this mission."
The minibot took a shuddering gasp. Ah, yes. Experimental tech. Always a joy. He straightened up then glanced curiously Patchwork. "You don't have it?"
"Didn't take," the tall mech answered easily. His optics turned to the cockpit's door. "Neither did it for Vibes. Science team didn't have enough time to get it sorted. This window isn't going to come again for vorns, we can't miss it."
Topshot perked. "Oh, Primus. I can't wait for this to be over. Haven't seen Merge and Slate for ages. Remind me to veto the next long term infiltration mission Command sends us on."
Zoom-Zoom snorted, Topshot had absolutely no rank to pull, though he functioned as Vibe's right hand. The flier gave a tight laugh at his statement however and both Zoom-Zoom and Topshot looked to him in concern. Patchwork was a newer member to the division and they had suffered several losses back at Scarvix. Both Topshot and Zoom-Zoom had been around long enough to become accustomed to the many losses that plagued the team. The two other mecha Patchwork had joined in with had...well, they had made it back in pieces. "Hey," Topshot reached out and gently nudged Patchwork. "You'll do fine."
"I'm not a sniper," Patchwork mumbled. "I can't do this for you-"
"You're good enough for me," the grounder was quick to assure him. "'sides. You're a bit too tall to sneak in the vents and watch Micro's back. So is Vibes. But I can. And if it all goes well, you won't even need to do anything, just get your aft back to the extraction point."
The mission they were on had two parts to it. Merge and Slate had spent ages getting themselves inside the Con base at Odessix. The outpost was a Decepticon manufacturing plant, mass producing blaster rifles and laser cannons to be integrated into the frames of Con foot soldiers. The mission was to infiltrate and hack the systems, find out where their supplies were coming from and any other important confidential information. Then, once that information was acquired, they'd deny the resource to the Decepticons by blowing the place sky high.
Zoom-Zoom and Topshot were getting dropped off at the Xeptos space port, which was where Merge had managed to score a supply run shift. The two bots would be concealed inside a shielded cargo crate and delivered amongst the rest of cargo to the base. Slate would help their entry by handling the unloading and making sure no one saw the two spooks make their way into the outpost's subsystem. Unfortunately, Merge and Slate were being transferred off base soon after, so the team had only this one opportunity to carry out the infiltration.
It could take a long time, hacking the base system without alerting the Cons. Zoom-Zoom needed to study its defenses long enough that when he made a move, he could slip silently into the system and back out again without leaving a trace. They didn't want the Cons to know any information had been stolen, just that the base had been blown up by Autobot saboteurs and that was the end of the matter. Merge and Slate wouldn’t be able to offer the two mecha any further help once they were inside else they risked losing their cover. Vibes would be keeping the starship hidden in outer orbit until they needed extraction. Only once the base was scheduled to be demolished would Patchwork actually serve a role and it was only to provide covering fire for their escape if something had gone wrong during their extraction. Otherwise, the mech had the unenviable task of curling up in a cave hidden amongst the rock shelter for a couple of orns and waiting for the mission to be carried out.
The flier wasn't exactly reassured, even with the broad grin Topshot was giving him. The recent loses they had taken, not just at Scarvix, had swapped up the line-up. Patchwork wasn't supposed to have been on the mission at all. Switch was Zoom-Zoom's usual partner for such a job, as a fellow minibot he was ideal for keeping watch over the hacker's back. He'd also been a good saboteur and it would have been his job to set the charges to blow the base to the Pits. But he'd died on the mission prior to Scarvix and they'd been hoping that one of Patchwork's fellow recruits would have taken his place. If there were other crews operating out here in this sector of space, command hadn't been able to spare them. They'd been planning for this mission for a long time, with a few side ones tossed their way that had lead to their current losses and now they had to go ahead with it.
"Look, look, it'll be fine. Here," Topshot smacked Zoom-Zoom's back and deftly swiped something from the minibot's subspace.
"Hey!"
"Depositing a memory for the vault, Micro," Topshot quickly opened up Unicron and plugged in a cable.
"This is not helping," Patchwork said, the stress clear in his voice. "Now that just makes me think we're all gonna die."
"'s a good luck charm, Patch. And we're all gonna die one cycle, might as well enjoy what we can."
Zoom-Zoom took Unicron when it was shoved at him and swiftly uploaded a short clip: watching his paintjob change colour for what he hopped wouldn't be the first and only time. He passed the toy onto Patchwork.
"Come on," he said. "You're getting so freaked out and all you have to do is hide in a bunch of rocks for an orn. I'm getting to move into a vent system with Topshot as my new roommate."
"Hey!"
Zoom-Zoom levelled the other grounder a deadpan stare. "You can't sit still. This is a terrible mistake."
A rugged grin pulled at Topshot's face. "Have you seen me with my sniper? Not a single twitch. I can do this, smidget. You'll be regretting those words, just you wait. I'll put you to shame. Oh. And Patch? You take good care of that gun, it's a true friend."
The door to the cockpit slid open and the three spooks looked up to see Vibes poking his head into the room. One head tilt and they could see the looming spaceport the shuttle was on approach for. Vibes speak for 'we're almost here, now shut up and get your act together.'
The three bots settled down, seating themselves obediently. The mission had begun.
---
The nice thing about spaceports...was that there were too many people. Lots of crowds. Made it easy for a pair of bots to sneak into a restricted landing pad and then abscond inside the special cargo crate awaiting them. They'd only been able to tell it was theirs by a short range transmitter that had been emitting on a very specific frequency which they had then removed from the box once they'd found it. Merge had provided some others mean for Slate to identify their box, so they weren't worried about getting rid of the transmitter.
"Oh, nice," Zoom-Zoom said in appreciation as he took in what was stowed away in their small hidey spot.
"What?" Topshot hissed, pushing the minibot further inside and trying to get comfortable in the tiny space. Topshot wasn't a large bot, wouldn't have been picked to go in as Zoom-Zoom's partner but he was a bit bigger than the minibot and it showed. Inside the cargo container, the two were squeezing themselves in with other boxes containing base supplies.
The minibot picked up the curled up form of a disabled cleaning drone. "Merge gets me the nicest presents."
Topshot had a look of utter confusion as he took in the drone. "Hey Micro," he said slowly. "I realise that this isn't exactly the best time and maybe you aren't doing so well after Switch's death but that's a-"
"Our way in," Zoom-Zoom cut in breezily. He unwound a cable and plugged in, eagerly connecting up to the drone's processor core. The light behind his visor flicked off as he powered down his optics. "It'll give me a head-start on deciphering the security system of the Con base. It's a sample of what to expect."
Topshot paused and digested this, examining the drone in a new light. "Oh. Okay," he said. He shifted uncomfortably, pressing up close to the minibot in their cramped quarters. "You...really doing alright though? I've been meaning to ask, cause we've been running from one mission to the next without stop. And...you knew Switch best."
Behind his visor, one optic powered up. "I'm fine," he said. "No, really. Everyone dies and it just so happens that mecha in our squad tend to die a lot."
"Yeah but-"
"We have a mission, 'Shot."
Topshot gave him a stern look, optics sweeping to take in the crate they were shoved in, as if to say, "Yeah, well we still have a long trip before we actually get there. In fact, we haven't even left Xeptos yet." Then the grounder sighed and dropped it. "Your head fine?" Or maybe not.
"My head is always fine," Zoom-Zoom said sharply.
"No, it's not. It really isn't."
"'Shot-"
"You realise that you are never the last to deposit to the vault?" Topshot interrupted.
Zoom-Zoom gave the other bot a confused look but was sufficiently derailed by the seeming non-sequitur. "What does that have to do with anything?"
"You always copy unmodded memories in. Everyone knows this, which is why someone always has to come in and edit them up after you. After Switch died, you dumped just about everything you had with him in there. Micro, what the frag are you doing?"
The minibot huddled in on himself, recognising that Topshot wasn't about to go away and leave him alone. The grounder had a lot of patience and they were in for a long flight. A swell of emotions bloomed in his field. Grief, sadness, regret. "Forgetting the only way I know how," he mumbled into a servo.
Topshot carefully touched Zoom-Zoom's shoulder. "The vault's for remembering the cohort, not forgetting it," he chided quietly. The grounder's own field opened up in shared grief, offering comfort if the minibot desire it. "And I thought you couldn't forget things."
"I don't forget," Zoom-Zoom stated dully, staring off into nothing. "I update my directories with the copies location in the vault instead of inside my own core. It lasts for a little while before my systems correct themselves and brings everything back."
Quietly, Zoom-Zoom allowed their fields to mingle, accepting Topshot's presence and the comfort the other could offer. He turned his attention back to the drone he'd been studying, learning its security algorithms. Topshot recognized the conversation had come to an end and began to hum sub-vocally. It was a tune that Zoom-Zoom knew came from Polyhex, Topshot's home city. He allowed it to occupy a tiny partition of his attention as he focused his work on the drone.
There was a loud thump and the entire crate shuddered. Then, movement, like it was being lifted up. The sudden movement sent both mecha flying. "Oh, good. That's Merge then," Topshot observed dryly. "You doing alright there, Micro?"
"Just. Fine." Zoom-Zoom ground out, crushed beneath the other's weight. He pushed one servo against the floor and tried to lift himself up but Topshot was too heavy. The other had curled around the cleaning drone protectively to prevent it from being damaged. "You gonna get off me, 'Shot?"
Now the crate was being moved to the side and the two mecha went sliding in the opposite side. "Nope," The grounder replied cheerfully. "Not until the loading is done."
"When all this is over, I'm gonna kill you, Topshot."
"I expect nothing less, Micro."
--
The flight took forever. Zoom-Zoom spent most of it becoming best friends with the drone's processor while Topshot bugged him about one thing or the other.
But finally-
"Beep, beep, boop," Topshot announced. "Aaand docking has now finalized. You are now in Con outpost Soon To Be Slagged. Micro, you have no idea how long I've been waiting to play with the thermidium again."
Zoom-Zoom levelled an irate glare at his companion. "This is the point where we shut up, 'Shot." The minibot tapped the side of his audial. "Comms only till we get ourselves situated."
The sniper sighed but settled in to wait with Zoom-Zoom. The two mecha were still, optics wary on the door to the crate. Both mecha had spark dampeners activated, masking them from any equipment that had scanned their container. They could hear the rumble and screech of machinery, as other cargo boxes were undoubtedly being unloaded by the Decepticons on base. Then a servo slapped against the front of the crate. It quietly rapped a code before it was pulled off and moved on. Slate. That was their signal.
The crate wall next to them retracted into the ceiling of the box, revealing the back wall of the loading bay. And, only a couple of metres in front of them was a duct into the base's inner systems. To the left and right were more containers, hiding them from the optics from any workers unloading them. Theoretically.
::Scheme two:: Topshot tightbeamed. Zoom-Zoom frowned in confusion before he realised what the mech was on about. He delved into the reconfiguration system and was wearing a white paintjob matching the flooring and walls only astroseconds later. The minibot pressed the cleaning drone into Topshot's servos.
Zoom-Zoom scooted forward and set to opening up the vent with a tool kit. He worked quickly, painfully aware of the many Decepticons moving about the hangar. If they were caught...then torture awaited them and everyone else involved in the operation was at risk.
Thankfully, it was long before he had the vent open. He slid himself inside and was joined only a moment later by Topshot. Zoom-Zoom tugged the cleaning drone from the other mech's servos and plugged himself in, synchronizing its processor up with his. Then he disconnected, having activated a remote relay program he'd installed on it during the long flight. The drone scuttled forth on its four of its eight limbs. As Zoom-Zoom set it off to explore, he was aware of Topshot closing the vent behind them. The minibot silently held out four magnetic clamps, which would hold the vent shut until they had a chance to properly fix it.
Through the drone, Zoom-Zoom was able to start mapping out the vent system they were in. Merge and Slate had passed on as much information as possible of the subsystems but that wasn't what Zoom-Zoom was after.
::Got it:: the minibot started crawling after the drone. Topshot was right on his pedes. They took a right turn and descended a level before they caught up with the drone.
And the second cleaning drone it had found.
Zoom-Zoom's servo flashed out and caught the new one. Primitive as it was, it had been programmed to clean and nothing more. It was unable to differentiate between Bot or Con, nor did it care. Zoom-Zoom plugged in and quickly overrode its internal alarm to notify the computer system overseeing and co-ordinating all drones on base. This process took only moments and went off without a hitch, thanks to all the studying up Zoom-Zoom had done on the drone Merge had left them. The minibot returned it to its work, with the added bonus of a remote relay program amongst several other things he'd installed that the drone wouldn't be able to pick up on. He sent this drone back to take care and properly fix up the vent they'd come in through.
That taken care off, Topshot, Zoom-Zoom and their original drone made their way down three levels until they came to an internal substation. Here, the two mecha rested. It was on their maps as unmanned according to base rosters, so they'd be able to use it as they please. Above their heads, the drone climbed the ceiling as Zoom-Zoom allowed the program to wander. Topshot eyed the drone for a couple of breems before:
"We're gonna name it...Eight Legs," Topshot declared in a quiet voice. "Or...Crooked Neck."
Zoom-Zoom raised his optics up to his partner, who had his neck uncomfortably crooked to fit in the vents. One optic ridge flew up. "We don't name it after our personal problems," he commented dryly.
"Death Legs? Eight Legs of Doom? The Death Cleaner?"
"Be serious."
"What about you, Micro? Prime of the Cleaning Drones?" Zoom-Zoom gave an extremely undignified snort at this. "Lord Cleaner?"
The minibot punched Topshot in the shoulder before he crawled on top of the mech and nodded up to a passageway that was out of reach. "Get me up there. That should be the line I need to get me near the main databanks."
"Sure thing," Topshot agreed easily, pushing Zoom-Zoom up and giving him a boost. "See ya later, Micro. I'm gonna find me the best places in a manufacturing plant to decorate with thermidium."
The two mecha departed, going their separate ways. The drone crawled after Zoom-Zoom, then overtook him and went on ahead. Every time they found another one, Zoom-Zoom added it to his growing collection of remote controlled cleaners. Eventually, the minibot found his way to a line near the outpost control room.
The minibot could hear Decepticons murmuring as they went on about their daily business. Zoom-Zoom felt along the walls until he found a computer node buried in the wall. Probably part of a comm relay booster but it was an access point to the base network nonetheless. Carefully, the minibot dug into the wall using his energon blade to expose the delicate electronics hidden within. He tugged out a cable, feeling along until he found an open port and plugged himself.
Zoom-Zoom immediately stopped as he came up against the base-network firewalls. He didn't try to access anything, that would immediately alert the system to an intruder. First, he needed to study it, identify weaknesses in the base codes, places where he could slip in unnoticed.
Awareness of the minibot's frame faded away as the hacker curled up, unfurled his mind and set to work. Time to dig up those encrypted files.
::Pssst. Micro::
One optic powered up dimly behind Zoom-Zoom's visor to take in the sight of a mech squeezed in the vents beside him. ::Switch?::
::Sorry, Micro. No. Switch is...gone. It's me, Topshot. How goes on that hacking thing?::
It took a long time for the minibot to understand what was going on or the question. His processor was split as it carefully manoeuvred its way through the Con network. But eventually the question sunk in and that optic brightened. ::Almost done. Why?:: he slurred through the tightbeam. Then he remember what Topshot had said about Switch and the light dimmed in his optic.
Topshot nervously wrangled his servos together. Alarm shot through Zoom-Zoom and pulled his awareness more firmly back to his frame, Topshot was never worried. The grounder's lip plates were drawn tightly together and Zoom-Zoom knew it was bad news. ::Merge shipped out okay but the Cons got Slate:: he said quietly. ::Something in his files wasn't right and they picked him up right before he got on the transport::
Cold fear bloomed in Zoom-Zoom's spark. No. Not Slate. They'd lost so many recently already. ::Where is he?:: he demanded. ::We've gotta get him out. 'Shot, tell me you've got some idea on how we're gonna do it::
The other grounder's face remained calm and closed off as he flatly told Zoom-Zoom, ::No. No, we do nothing of the sort::
Zoom-Zoom shook his head slowly, fighting through the mental sludge that came with having an entire base network inside his processor, unwilling to believe that Topshot was going to turn his back on Slate. Pits, they'd both been part of the crew long before he'd join. They couldn't leave Slate behind. They wouldn't.
...would they?
Topshot leant forward intently, staring into Zoom-Zoom's visor. ::We've gotta go:: he said softly. ::They're locking down the base and conducting a sweep on everything, searching for more intruders. It's only a matter of time before they find us in the vents or the charges that I just set, so I'm going to give you just a little bit more time to mine their databases but you need to start pulling out now::
He wanted to protest. Zoom-Zoom wanted to argue against what Topshot had set into motion without waiting for his input. But they didn't have time, which was why he hadn't been consulted. Blearily, Zoom-Zoom turned his focus back to the databanks and the files he was searching through. He started to carefully retrieve sections of his consciousness that had intruded far into the network, bringing his mind back together. He scrubbed his face when it was done, quickly pulling his mind like that had given him a massive processor ache but soon he could see clearly and make sense of all his frame inputs.
Zoom-Zoom raised his helm with a determined look as he stared down his partner. ::Where's Slate?::
::Doesn't matter:: Topshot retorted coldly. ::We're not going for him::
The minibot pointed at the cleaning drone that had kept watch over him while he'd made his way into the Decepticon computer system. ::We're not. They are. I've got some thermidium. Where's Slate?::
A grin spread across Topshot's face as he began to crawl back. ::I like the way you think, Lord Cleaner. He's in their brig, floor 4, about to get transferred to the torture chambers. Cell Delta Eight. Now come on, let's move. Exit's through the waste system::
As he followed Topshot, Zoom-Zoom sorted through the links he had with all the drones he'd hacked and started moving the closest ones he had towards the brig. The ones nearest to the two Autobots, he directed to intercept their path. As the drones caught up with them, he distributed the few explosives he was carrying, then directed them through the vent network back to the brig. It was difficult, splitting his concentration between co-ordinating the drones and keeping himself moving but he managed. The two spooks had made their way all the way down to the waste system, just as Zoom-Zoom got everything in place.
::Micro, wake-up. I'm gonna need you alert for this::
Zoom-Zoom peered past Topshot's shoulder. Beneath them, he could make out a Decepticon pacing and grumbling about non-existent intruders and the current base lockdown. He could hear the muffled howl of a chill wind, indicating they were close to the outside perimeter of the base. ::Micro, I know you're gonna hate me for saying this, but don't blow Slate out of there before we get out. We need to be safe and able to extract before we risk compromising the mission for Slate::
::No:: The minibot did not even want to hear it.
::The mission's more important than any of us. You know this::
::Topshot, no. I can't. No. Not after Switch. Piledriver. Compiler. Burnout. Too many of us, too soon::
The grounder was quiet for a moment. Then, ::Sorry Micro:: He raised his servo, transformed it, took aim and shot the Con beneath them through the grate. Topshot kicked the grate off and both bots fell to the floor. They recovered quickly, the room they were in was thankfully empty, aside from the Decepticon they'd already killed. There was an enormous pipe that ran through it, and from what their maps said, lead right outside the base. They used it for pumping out waste, either from the production plant underneath or from the outpost in general. The room they were in was for maintenance, an access point in case something went wrong with the pipe and they needed to send in a mech to fix it.
Topshot leaned over the controls and examined them. "We're in luck, its empty at the moment." he pressed down a control and a seal popped open. "Come on, Micro."
Zoom-Zoom had been staring up at the ceiling, at the vent they'd come in through. When Topshot addressed him, his gaze fell down to the other mech in a panic. "Topshot, the drones don't have strong enough comms for me to maintain connection with them. If we leave now-"
The grounder levelled a dull stare at the minibot and bodily dragged him to the hatch. "You can still remote detonate the mines you gave them, those have stronger signals. Like I will be, once we get out."
"The drones aren't in place! I can't set the charges until we're ready to blow them or the Cons will notice!"
Topshot shrugged and pushed Zoom-Zoom on. Their pedes splashed in puddles of liquid as they hurried along the pipe. "Slate will just have to take his chances, Micro. The mission comes first."
Frag the mission, Zoom-Zoom wanted to snarl. But he shut his mouth and kept moving. They emerged some kilometres off, out in the blue rocky outcrop. Red light filtered down, Odessix's scarlet sky.
"Scheme three," Topshot rapped Zoom-Zoom's hood before taking off. The blue camo paintjob. "I'm contacting the extraction squad, letting them know we're on the move." The two bots slunk amongst the rough terrain, hugging the ground and hoping that there were no sharp optics amongst the outpost's sentries. They'd almost made it all the way across when-
Pain exploded across Zoom-Zoom's sensor net as his right leg was shredded by a sniper round that lanced right through it. He staggered, a scream escaping from his vocaliser as he went down. Topshot pivoted round and grabbed him, hauling him along. Energon leaked from the wound in Zoom-Zoom's leg before the mech shut his lines down that limb. An answering shot that both mecha recognised flew over their heads as another narrowly missed Topshot's helm. Distantly, they could hear the whine of seeker engines as a squad flew after them in pursuit.
"Get 'em Patch," Topshot panted, supporting Zoom-Zoom's weight. "Come on, we're almost there."
The next rounds ignored them, spraying the hillside where Patchwork was situated. "Slag," the grounder's face grew pinched. He twisted round, narrowed his optics at the base, then sent a tightbeam transmission to the charges he'd planted within it.
A deep rumble built. Pressure and heat expanded upwards in an explosive pulse. Crimson fire claimed the outpost as its innards erupted outwards. Metal sheets and beams were sprayed into the air, transformed into a deadly rain of debris. The ground groaned in protest as the outpost collapsed on itself.
No more shots were fired in the air as the two Autobots hurried on.
"'Shot. 'Shot." Zoom-Zoom gasped as they ran. Each step was fire in his circuits. "Slate was still in there."
"I know."
"We didn't give him a chance to get out."
"I know."
"Slate was-"
"I KNOW." Zoom-Zoom had never heard Topshot's voice like this. Cold. Dead. Empty. It was an ugly sound. "I know what I did, just move. We're almost there."
As if to prove them wrong, the whine of seeker engines returned to them. Topshot didn't stop, his pace increased at the sound. "Come on, Patchwork. Take those fraggers out."
No sniper shots came from over the hill in rescue. Zoom-Zoom's head twisted to stare at the oncoming jets. No. He could see the missile pods attached to them, loaded and waiting to be dropped. A calmness settled over the minibot as he realised that they weren't going to make it. He smacked Topshot's arm to get his attention.
"You are going to leave me and run," Zoom-Zoom said sharply. Topshot didn't have a slagged leg. Topshot could make it to the extraction point if he left him like he'd left Slate.
"Can't," Topshot said with a tired laugh. "Won't, even if I had the option. Data's more important than the two of us."
"'Shot, I can download it right here and now to you. Take it and run."
Topshot watched the scarlet sky. "Those Seekers are catching up fast," he murmured, unwinding a wrist cable. "This'll be quick."
"By hardline?" Zoom-Zoom frowned in confusion as Topshot plugged in though he didn't stop the mech. This was not the time nor place-
Topshot's processor delved quickly into his but instead of grabbing the proffered datafiles, he slid right into Zoom-Zoom's newest system. Alarm spilled over the hardline from Zoom-Zoom's mind just as Topshot activated a colour scheme. "Scheme five, Micro. You never tried this one."
Wait, what-?
The sniper disconnected the hardline, then shoved Zoom-Zoom hard to the ground beneath his body. The minibot could see the seekers approaching from his sprawl on the rocks. His frame itched as the reconfiguration system activated. He struggled against the body weighing him down, grasping Topshot's plan in an instance.
"Topshot, no-!"
"'m just a sniper, Micro," the grounder gasped in his audial as he forced Zoom-Zoom still beneath him and curled up around him. "Bots don't have enough info grabbers like you. Mission comes first and my mission has always been to get you out of here."
"No. NO. NO. NOOOO-!"
"Hey, Micro, your dampeners still online? Good, because I've got one last trick left to teach you. Time to play dead."
The missiles fell.
The world ended.
--
It was deathly quiet.
Until the Seekers came back.
Zoom-Zoom remained still. The power was off to his optics. The dampeners were still shielding his spark. But-
"Two greyed out Autobot frames, confirmed."
Dully, the minibot's thoughts flickered to those frantic moments before the bombing. The program Topshot reached for in Zoom-Zoom's processor. The colour changing system. He had to be grey now, the one scheme he hadn't checked out and so the seekers thought both he and Topshot were dead.
He could hear them. Standing nearby. Arguing over who they were supposed to report to and what they were supposed to be doing now.
"Fragging Autobranders. I'd kill them all over again, can't believe what they did to the base."
A pede crunched the ground near Zoom-Zoom's head. He waited for it, certain that the seeker was going to hit either Topshot or his frame in anger. He'd cut all motion controls to his limbs so that his frame would jerk like the offline frame it was supposed to be.
A shot rang out. Then another and another. Zoom-Zoom recognised the sound and hope flickered in his frame. That was Topshot's sniper rifle. Patchwork had to be near. He wasn't dead. He was going to come rescue them. It was going to be alright.
There was the thumps as four frames fell over. That was some shooting Patch had going on there. Not bad for a bot who was terrified he was going to let the cohort down. Then Zoom-Zoom could hear the approach of a pair of footsteps.
The weight of Topshot's frame was removed. "Topshot?" a quiet, hoarse voice questioned. There was no response.
Zoom-Zoom's vent hitched in surprise and alarm. His optics flicked on and stared up at Vibes, who was grimly checking Topshot's frame for any sign of life. "Where's Patch?" he demanded harshly, staring at the energon soaked sniper rifle clutched in Vibe's grasp.
His commander's face was grave. "Dead. Sniper got him. Come." Vibes dragged him to his pedes.
"No, wait, what about 'Shot?" Zoom-Zoom protested as Vibes began to lead him away.
"Dead."
"But- he could have been faking! Like I was. Dampeners. The colour changing system. He can't be-"
"Dead."
"He said we were going to play dead! He said- he was just faking! He's gotta be-Vibes-please-"
The tall red mech silently turned Zoom-Zoom back so he could see Topshot's frame. The mech's chest had been caved in. His spark chamber had to be breached. Zoom-Zoom's protests died and he limply allowed Vibes to lead him away.
No. No. This couldn't be real. Topshot wouldn't have- he'd been there forever. For as long as Zoom-Zoom had been a part of the cohort, Topshot had been there. Had welcomed him in where Vibes couldn't. Had taught him so much, had mentored him when he could. Selected both Zoom-Zoom and Switch as partners together. The mech couldn't be...
They climbed the hillside in silence, an air of mourning on the two mecha though Vibe's watchful optic on their surroundings never wavered. The starship came into view and it was only after Vibe's had set the autopilot and it had lifted off did the mech return with a medkit to start patching the mess of Zoom-Zoom's leg.
Zoom-Zoom stared blankly off into nothing. Topshot was dead. Patchwork was dead. Slate was gone. It was just him, Vibes and Merge, wherever the slag Merge had been sent to. A bitter laugh escaped from him as Vibe's servos worked. The division commander halted for a moment then continued on and ignored him. It seemed ridiculous, Zoom-Zoom had never ceased to feel like a rookie amongst the cohort but from now on, he'd forever be one of the older mecha amongst the group. Because the cohort always moved on. It always took new members. This mission had been hell and it had decimated most of their numbers but a scant few had survived and that was good enough for command.
No one was ever going to call him Micro again.
"We completed the mission," Vibes told him quietly.
Zoom-Zoom eyed him both incredulously and bitterly. There were cycles where Zoom-Zoom envied the emotional deadness inside Vibes and this was one of them. Instead he had a processor that would never let him forget a single moment of his life. He'd remember all the goods things about Slate, about Topshot and the rest but the horror of their deaths were a fresh stain in his processor forever.
"Yeah. Yeah, we did. Frag lot of good it does us."