EP 0.5 Talking Ice [Pistongasket]

[Deleted]

As much as he wanted to avoid having to go deeper into the war at this time the EFM emanating from Jetfire or, more specifically, the angry wavelength it gained as he spoke indicated that just might be necessary. Venting the temperature increased another degree centigrade; he had no doubt that such limited information was frustrating but he would have run out of coal several times over before he could get into the first several cycles...

"This is hardly the environment to share a more... comprehensive retelling. Had to give you the... micronized version."

He did not doubt the old dark Decepticon knew this but perhaps it would offset the frustration some. The comment regarding the Decepticon's response to the Prime's order to abandon Cybertron left him cursing his choice of words. He had to be more careful. As a look of pain shot across Jetfire's countenance again Gasket ensured his balance was steady as the weight shifted. He shook his helm, looking into the red optics as his comrade.

"Excuse my mistake; they didn't follow the Prime's orders. Best... I can tell is they realized the futility of staying around the same time as the evacuation order. My frame was off planet by... then. It was a broad-wave casting; everyone within the... sector likely heard it."

The memories flooded back as Gasket clamped down on his memory banks, shunting them off into secondary and tertiary processes in his matrix. Even after vorns away the thoughts still pained him. As Jetfire's optics closed, the
apology coming as something of a surprise, Gasket just vented allowing another pile of coal to fall loudly into his firebox.

"Worry not. despite my operative nature I am newly awakened also. Had I not been around in the last Joors... I doubt I would have believed it myself.

Shifting Jetfire's weight again he started looking over the frame for potential injuries, ensuring this bot was indeed physically sound to be walking about after his legs rebooted. Finding a place at the bot base, potentially, was something else entirely. If this old mech was still interested in the Cons he would need a scanning suite to find them accurately. Gasket almost wondered what else the old mech had with him aside from just his frame.

His optics stopped as a thought crossed his matrix... there was a way Jetfire could know the fate of Cybertron as though seeing it... through my eyes.

"An option is to cable-up..." he pondered. "Show you what footage I have left in my memory banks before... my own departure. I have no other way to provide more conclusive evidence."

Shaking his helm he thought it foolish; cabling was a touchy business normally and it was hard to regulate which memories were given and which were received. Venting once more he looked to Jetfire.

"It was a... juvenile thought. No offense meant...

[Deleted]

"Worry not. despite my operative nature I am newly awakened also. Had I not been around in the last Joors... I doubt I would have believed it myself.

Jetfire leaned back to get a good look at Pistongasket, forgetting his pains for an astro-klik. This was a surprise. It was comforting to the Seeker to know that he wasn’t alone… perhaps his situation wasn’t so unique after all.

His companion continued after a moment of pensive silence on both parties parts, suggesting a cable-up… He quickly retracted the offer, looking somewhat embarrassed with himself. The old Con was, in all honesty, disappointed. Having returned to complete consciousness, being ignorant… was difficult. He wanted to know all the answers, and he wanted them now, despite how awkward it might have been. He supposed it was a little odd to offer such an intimate experience with a bot he’d only met barely a breem or two before. Still, Jetfire was feeling oddly familiar with Pistongasket- having his life so delicately cared for was intimate enough of an experience to him.

In an effort to smooth things over, the Seeker pretended to have ignored the statement, if a little badly. “Tell me when you were reactivated… no… first tell me… Why were you ‘asleep’?” Jetfire could feel his legs releasing, codes straightening themselves out as he struggled. He needed Pistongasket’s support less and less, but he was still afraid of relying on his own joints. Perhaps standing inert was simple, but he was sure that with any sort of movement, he would lock up again. “Distract me. It’s not… pleasant… reactivating.”

Jetfire had already been wondering vaguely why they weren’t discussing a sort of escape plan from the cold. It was clear that his rescuer was doing just that- rescuing him- but how had he singled him out in the wasteland of ice and snow? Were there others that helped pinpoint Jetfire’s survival signals? If there were… why weren’t they sending transport out of this wasteland?

But something kept the old Seeker from inquiring about it… The way Pistongasket spoke of the war; Jetfire had his own suspicions… the way he referred to the Decepticons as ‘they’… his demeanor when speaking of the Prime- as if he was familiar with him. The fact that he seemed to know nothing of the data Jetfire himself had sent to Kaon- surely he would have known the Data Collector’s codename of his planet if he had come via Decepticon instructions. All these nuances could be explained with alternatives to the worst… but… Jetfire decided not to bring up the hostilities quite yet, especially considering that he wasn’t being treated like a mortal enemy.

He supposed that if he hadn’t been terminated yet, that being a war prisoner wouldn’t be nearly as bad as being locked in the ice for more cycles.

Still, it had to come sometime… but he hoped it would be when he was at a point to defend himself- though it seemed like it would be deca-cycles before he felt good enough to even walk again.


OOC: If you want him to bring up the ‘cabling up’ again that’s fine. Just keep in mind that if they share data, the cat will be totally out of the bag, and things will get a little more awkward. : P We’d probably have to bring in a rescue ‘Con in pretty quickly to make continuity work.

[Deleted]

((Sorry it took so long; been really busy on my end.))

Despite his slip-up, his suggestion of something he would not have thought to do in any other situation, Jetfire appeared to simply disregard it. For that the old mech was thankful; his spark still fluttered at the thought of there being another mech as old as he still in operation. Despite his own age Gasket could not determine the exact model of Jetfire though his matrix wanted to say either a late second or early third age energon seeker frame.

Chuckling at his own attempt at a distraction from the matter at hand he glanced back to Jetfire who still appeared to cringe in pain at his joints and pistons still not being effectively rebooted. Slowly the old mech nodded, opening his back-vents yet again as his environmental sensor temperature began to dip.


“Tell me when you were reactivated… no… first tell me… Why were you ‘asleep’? Distract me. It’s not… pleasant… reactivating.”

"I can distract... that much is possible but it won't make sence unless you know how I came to be on this planet."


The pause from Gasket was pregnant, looking down at Jetfire's legs as he could almost see the code fighting the cold of their immediate surroundings. The old locomotive's optics unfocused as his matrix dug into his more recent memory banks, algorithms searching the more pertinent pieces of his short cycles with the humans and just before.

"The war was long over; vorns in space just seem to run together... when you have nothing to compare it against." Gasket paused, intentionally omitting his payload, his mission... the internal turmoil his spark faced in those vorns.

"I found this planet... quite by accident. The star was a low class yellow dwarf, no priority on my scanners. I was merely... looking for a place to spend a few vorns before moving on." His lie was sincere, as much as he could muster. Indeed, his EFM didn't show it at all; in his mind he was trying to find a place to settle... but not move on.

"I chose this planet... for the color, the vast water deposits. After going offline for the burn-in imagine my surprise when I woke to find myself... disguised as a freight hauler for the natives." Gasket chuckled heartily. "Ironic as well... that I was a labor mech on Cybertron. After several tens of planetary cycles of observing these beings, hearing nothing from... Cybertron or the other planetary outposts I lost hope. I forced my matrix to... crash; an induced stasis lock." Gasket chuckled again, this time louder, more sincere. "I tell you, Jetfire, I was defragging for severalr straight breems when I was reactivated; would have likely felt better to... have my back plate replaced. Hah!"

Dropping his plate to his chest he laughed heartily, glancing to Jetfire with a smile. Placing a hand on his comrades shoulder he shook it gently in mirth. He hoped that his answer had not caused another torrent of new questions to arise though he expected there was nothing he could do to stop that from happening.

"I will say, however, that... I didn't have the cold to worry about. The dust had me picking particulates out of crevasses I didn't know I had." Looking down again he nodded. "Here, I'll lower your weight, see if you can support your creakin' frame."

((If Jetfire is a stereotypical Con I would not be surprised if he was struck by Gasket's casual addressing of being "used by fleshlings." Just a thought; you don't have to use it. Also, if you want to RP him actually getting out from Gasket's hold, you may.))

[Deleted]

OOC: No problem. I’m patient, and I’ve had a bout of craziness myself. Don’t work too hard. ; )

IC:
The war was over…? But he had also said it was long from over… Jetfire was doing his best not to concentrate on the enormous gap of time he had missed, but it was a difficult feat, like denying he had optics to see with.

Still, he was comforted by some things. If Pistongasket had been wandering, it would make sense that he wouldn’t have known about Jetfire’s data about this ‘Earth’. Perhaps he was overthinking things. Anyway, this idea was inconsequential in relation to what else the great bot revealed. The mech had been… disguised and used by the natives? When Jetfire had last seen any ‘natives’, they were barely out of a hunter-gatherer stage showing some sort of promise but not for an incalculable amount of cycles. If Jetfire could make any sort of assumptions on his new companion’s frame… they were certainly much farther than he’d assumed. Perhaps he simply wasn’t ready to admit how long those deca-cycles actually were.

As Gasket laughed at his own misfortunes, Jetfire’s expression remained mixed. He managed to pull a smirk of a smile in return, trying to give the mech some sort of feedback for his amusement. But his optics showed a different expression- a mixture of confusion and worry as he wondered at his strange rescuer. He understood that Pistongasket was probably trying to make light of a serious situation, but Jetfire was more interested in the idea of sentient natives and what they had made of his fellow Cybertronians. A covert nature to the situation had been mentioned, or at least implied.

And a forced stasis-lock? Only a true low could have brought him to that… at least Jetfire had been deactivated during his long imprisonment. The ‘Con wouldn’t have blamed Pistongasket if he had a few processors loose after being a glorified box -and a conscious one- for vorns at a time.

Jetfire was about to ask about the natives- memories from his black-box programming reminding him of those glimpses he’d caught ages ago, but Pistongasket had other ideas to continue distracting him-

“Here, I'll lower your weight, see if you can support your creakin' frame."

The Seeker didn’t even stop to think, static choking out a hasty ”N-no! No-!” as he slipped from the other mech’s grasp. Frantic, he grabbed for Gasket’s forearm, expecting to fall back into the snow, become deactivated in the ice again… sleep for more cycles-

And found himself standing- standing-- rather securely on his own two pedes. Error codes still chirped softly at him, but only a quarter of the ones from before, and his balance sensors were in perfect order. “Oh,” he noted aloud, still not trusting himself to release his hold on the other bot, but simultaneously feeling embarrassed for it.

He looked incredulously at his unstable knees, not yet trusting the small victory. He could understand why Gasket had been abrupt about it. No time like the present, after all, and Jetfire wasn’t about to admit he could manage anything at this point, but he still couldn’t help but feel irritated. “Right, then,” he muttered gruffly, bending his knees only slightly (the screeching of metal was there, but faint.) Now what? How did he come to rescue him, anyway- walking? Even after this small victory, he wasn’t sure he could even manage that.

The Seeker craned his head back up to look at Pistongasket. Questions filling his processors but having trouble picking just one. He desperately wanted to know more about these natives of earth, but he was also in an unusual position to be asking anything about mere research. Another thought bothered his mind- take an ice sample for carbon dating- he needed to know the numbers… but… as to his rescuer… now what?

“Now what?” his thoughts were voiced, somewhat accidentally.

OOC: Jets has a very different view about ‘fleshlings’ than the average Con. He’s more interested in research than conquering. : p

Assuming that Gasket set him on his feet a little quickly, because otherwise Jets would have been leaning on him forever. : p

Also, last time he saw humans was a long time ago. Feel free to choose an age but it definitely was before Mesopotamia.

[Deleted]

Gasket's own frame creaked as he slowly lowered his companion's weight ratio further onto Jetfire's leg assemblies. His grip was strong despite this action, prepared to steady the other bot's weight if the glitches hadn't been worked out quite yet. Despite these precautions and what little warning he did give, his optics widened as his companion made a grab at Gasket's fore-limb as though he was going to be dropped.

"N-no, no!"

He allowed the grasp to clamp onto his assembly and superstructure but it proved to be unnecessary; Jetfire's stance seemed to be stable enough and Gasket chuffed a chuckle, allowing a burst of steam to escape his shoulder vents.

Worry not, take the reactivation slowly. If nothing else we have... all the time we could want.

And that was certainly true. A few more lumps of coal fell into the fire with a clank, the measure to keep his temperature up was proceeding nicely. As the entirety of Jetfire's weight was lowered from his shoulders Gasket carefully stepped back from the other old bot, ready to spring back into action should his legs give out. When they did not, Gasket nodded and stretched slightly; this bot was a fairly heavy one.

The question, however, returned things to a perspective that Gasket would have liked to avoid for a little while longer. Despite the simplicity of the question he really didn't know what to say. For the first time in their interaction, Gasket's EMF turned to an unsure tone.

"To be truthful, Jetfire... I do not know. I could... regale you with more tales of Earth and its inhabitants while you thaw and complete your reactivation. Perhaps a little more about the war?"

He paused.

"As I said, we've time to spare. And... you must have many a burning question."

Yes, Gasket was trying to avoid the subject of where they were going for the time being. If he could hold it out for long... well, perhaps something would happen and bail him out of this damned awkward situation.

[[OOC: How about neo-lithic man? That is roughly starting 10,200 BCE and is what we would likely call the "stone age of man." Stone tools, beginnings of cave paintings, art, and the first larger dwellings and small villages.]]

[aquila]

In the frigid skies high up over the Antarctic continent, Aquila grumbled to himself. Couldn't they send someone else like Soundwave? Surely he wouldn't mind carrying any sort of mission for Megatron, even boring ones. Come to think of it, they started getting the distress beacon at least two Earth vorns ago, but the signal was so broken that they hardly considered it worth investigating. But two Earth orns ago, the signal became clearer, and by then they couldn't ignore it any further.

From his vantage point high up in the sky over the frozen wasteland, despite the vast distance between them, Aquila could see the target he was supposed to be retrieving down in the ice rift. However, there was another Cybertronian with him. As usual, intel was spotty and failed to provide him with all the information he needed, not that he actually needed it. The fact that there was an Autobot involved made what was supposed to be a mundane extraction mission into something far more interesting.

This alt form he had chosen upon reaching the primitive space rock suited him quite nicely. High speed and super maneuverability were things sought after by most Seekers, and he had one of the best Earth alts in the business. The added bonus of a stealthy form was something he hadn't considered, but it had its uses every now and then. This was probably of those times. Aquila was closing fast on the source of the beacon, as well as the Autobot he was surely going to attempt to rend limb from limb.

The glitched Seeker rolled as he hit afterburner, opening up his internal weapons bays as he locked onto Pistongasket, and fired a volley of four missiles. They dropped out of his weapons bays, hanging in the air for a split second before their propulsion engines lit up, propelling them towards the bulky Autobot from quite an impressive distance. At least two of them impacted the walls of the rift, blowing out huge chunks while it remained to be see whether or not the other two hit the Autobot, or impacted the ground in front of him.

It was showtime.

At the same time, Aquila nosed down and dove straight for Gasket, picking up even more speed as he did so. Upon reaching a reasonable altitude, Aquila transformed. The sudden strain from the air resistance on his frame was exhilarating to him, but not dangerous. His form was built to withstand such intense forces from multiple sources from his variety of insane maneuvers; most notably fluids and gravity. In addition to his jets, the numerous boosters strategically placed all over his body fired, slowing him down as he entered the ravine. In addition to the chunks of ice blown about by the missile impacts, the heat from the explosions clouded the area with water vapor, providing some excellent cover for Aquila as he came rocketing through the cloud, aiming to tackle Gasket right out of the ravine and up onto flat ice.

[Deleted]

OOC: Pass! Don't want to interrupt the party going on over there. Also, feel free to play Jets being surprised and possibly falling over like a ragdoll.

I thought of something to do that's less obtrusive. Still, you can play with him like a ragdoll etc.

IC:
Jetfire stood unsteadily, feeling as if his frame didn’t fit properly around his spark. He was tired of beating around the bush. “Questions, yes. Enough to ask until this wasteland melts,” he vented, the warm air from his own recovering stabilizers hitting the arctic chill with plumes of steam. “I don’t need to indulge this politeness anymore. Where are you stationed? Are there others? Where can I be repaired, and how can we get there?” it was abrupt, but the Seeker had finally come to terms with his own dire situation. Research could come later. What were they doing standing in the snow?

He sensed there was a reason Gasket was avoiding the subject, but he was finished with formalities. If Jetfire was going to be a war prisoner, at least he would be a warm one. It couldn’t be terrible if he was being received so politely, at least… would it?

Something in his spark-chamber thrummed as his systems determined to become fully operational again. He sighed again, looking at Gasket seriously. “You’re not here to-“ he was interrupted by a ping. …His beacon was being answered.

Jetfire brought up a radar in his optic HUD. Pistongasket showed up clearly on it, a red spot beside the center, but another indicator proved much more interesting. The speeds it was coming- definitely a flier but… who? An enemy? An ally? …An ally to Pistongasket? Was that one in the same?

Jetfire dismissed the HUD interface and looked up, scanning the clouds.

“What-?”

__________________________

[Deleted]

This. This was precisely not what he wanted to do.

Jetfire answered his question, allowed him to speak for several micro-kliks, before venting heavily for the first time since he had reactivated. Despite what was said, Gasket was glad that his comrade had vented. It meant that his heating systems were working well enough and it took old Gasket, who was suddenly feeling his age, a moment to think of something to say. He nodded somberly, a serious yet sincere tone working its way into his EMF. Time to come clean, as least as much he could.

”I am… stationed out of a small base south of here. This is an…”He paused and vented, although he was admitting to a crime. Despite his own newly obtained faction affiliation, saying it still felt gritty. Rusty. ”Autobot installation.”

Venting heavily he turned to his discarded drive wheels lying nearly covered in the snow. Stepping over to them he reached down, reattached them to his body with a single sweeping motion, not in any way moving toward his weapon or showing signs of hostility. Slowly turning he gauged this Decepticon’s reaction carefully before speaking once more, his azure blue optics showing an emotion of concern, almost sorrow.

”Despite your allegiance I would… gladly offer you the use of our machine shop but I must know if I can burden you with our trust. I’ve seen you at your lowest and I may trust you but… the last Prime may not be so eager.”

Gasket was normally not so easy to trust but there was something different about this particular Decepticon. The most common response he expected in this situation without an obvious indication of his faction was one querying as to who he operated for. Jetfire had been out from Cybertron for a long time… maybe he could be reasoned with. He squared his shoulders when Jetfire spoke again.

“You’re not here to-“

Jetfire paused and Gasket started. Something was going on behind the Decepticon’s optics that Gasket couldn’t know. His optics widened a fraction of a millimeter as he opened the coms back to base, speaking very low. ”Prime, ready the bridge on my position. On my mark.” An affirmative from the Prime showed Gasket taking a step toward Jetfire, wondering what was going on.
Jetfire, what…?

He stopped as a strange vibration slowly rose across the glacier. Whatever it was could only be felt, not heard as he followed Jetfire’s eyes skyward. Something was coming… Prime didn’t send someone else… As he continued to look, zooming his optics as much as he could a roar slowly rose across the glacier. Then he saw something, several somethings shooting down from the dark clouds above trailed by bright lights that clearly lit the snow below in the pre-night lighting.

And they were coming straight for them.

Bearings and scrap!

”Get down!”

With no time left his servo shot out and impacted with Jetfire’s chest, sending the older bot tumbling backwards to fall flat in the snow as the objects, missiles impacted. First, two impacted on the edges of the ravine, showering them with snow and ice with several meters building up around his ankles. The second pair, the ones he was concerned about, impacted with no time for Gasket to react further.

The first impacted a meter from his feet, the other impacted low on his chest, causing his optics to widen sharply as warnings flashed in his matrix, his vocabulator screaming out as the pain receptors shrieked. His frame fell forward as his servo came out to catch his weight that crunched into the snow and ice. Alerts flashed up like gossamer.

::Warning Warning, Waist Assembly Damaged::
::Efficiency Reduced::

Bearings.

As the steam and smoke cleared Gasket looked up, drawing his drivewheel mace from its clamp on his leg and brought his offhand autocannon to bear. Venting another burst of steam he grunted, searching the ice for his adversary… who he saw quite easily. The angular frame of what was once the alternative form brought Gasket instantly on guard as the form shot toward him. Realizing he could not swing or fire before the impact the old bot squared his stance and dropped his center of gravity as his frame tenses for impact.

The Con slammed into him with an intense crash, the momentum catching the old engine by surprise as the energy barely lifted his intense weight off the ground but carried him back tens of meters before his servos clamped down on the frame and twisted, utilizing his massive strength to tear the Con from his frame before turning and tossing the offending frame away from him; the momentum of this bot likely enough to carry him far enough to at least engage properly.

He realized he should have held on, ripped the damned thing limb from limb.

Venting heavily he turned to address the Con, a cringe and sneer on his countenance. His autocannon raised as a targeting reticule swam into Gasket’s optics, his mace hand gripping the implement tightly.

”Let me guess, little one. You’ve come for your… brother.”

Gasket glanced over to where Jetfire was located without letting his eyes off this newcomer for more than a millisecond. He had no interest in combat but he’d not hesitate to defend himself.

[aquila]

It was amazing what a form designed for stealth among other things could do. Had he chosen another alt, he would not have been able to get as close as he did before being noticed. It was only when he opened up his internal weapons bays to fire his missiles that his radar cross section increased in size. Up until then it was rather small, between the size of a steel marble and a small bird.

Aquila's optics shone through the creeping darkness and vapor cover dimly before he charged the over-sized Autobot. The sheer speed and force with which he impacted Pistongasket was enough to catch him off guard and throw him off balance as he pushed him back tens of meters, enough to push him out of the ravine and back onto flat ice. It was difficult to picture something that much smaller than Gasket pushing him back. After seeing how much power Aquila's thrusters and jets were capable of putting out, it became just a bit more feasible.

However, it was during this initial assault that Gasket had managed to grab onto the Seeker. He could feel his armor plating straining and denting under his monstrous grip before the ripped him free and tossed him away. While Aquila's frame was designed to withstand the stress and strains of high-g maneuvers, like most other Seekers frames it wasn't exactly build to take damage. The two were at a distance now, staring each other down. Gasket had his autocannon aimed at Aquila while he had one of his aimed back at him. Sneer met with grin as Aquila chuckled in a sinister manner. He observed the handiwork done by his missiles, scorch marks and missing pieces of armor plating were indicators of where one of his missiles had hit, though he surmised that the actual damage was on a deeper level than that it appeared to be.

"They only sent me to get this bot," he said, gesturing with the other hand towards Jetfire. "But they never mentioned anything about you being here. Guess it's time for me to get a little...side-tracked on this little mission."

He twisted his head to one side before his left side boosters fired. Providing a monstrous amount of instantaneous acceleration while he activated his main thrusters and boosters. The Seeker hovered over the ice as though he was skating. He let loose a spray of autocannon rounds while flanking the massive Autobot and closing distance fast from Gasket's rear left side. Aquila left a cloud of vapor wherever he went, the heat of the booster exhaust vaporizing the ice below him. Once he was close enough, two blades flashed into existence on his arms, flash-fabricated by devices hidden under his shields. He slashed once, aiming to sever or at least damage one of Gasket's actuators in his legs, and then spun around, ending with a second slash aimed at slicing across the back of the gargantuan Autobot. With the initial pass done, Aquila moved away to avoid whatever form of close quarters retaliation he had in store for the Seeker.

[Deleted]

It took a moment for Jetfire to absorb what Pistongasket had said, but the surprise didn’t hit him like it should have. It was a conclusion that Jetfire had been trying to avoid, but he’d known it was true all along…

But there was no time to dwell on it- before he could push in another word he was shoved heavily back into a snowdrift. He grasped desperately but only caught the air. He’d never before experienced that terror that came with falling- he was a flight-alt after all, for as long as he could remember. Still, his EMF sent a jolt of jagged waves, the peaks sending jolts of terror through his frame.

It was barely a deca-klik before he hit the ground in a spray of snow, and there was the screech of feedback from his vocabulator as he strangled a cry. He’d seen the incoming attack but frankly he hadn’t expected that sort of reaction from his new ‘comrade’. He jerked, feeling exposed and like he would fall back into a shutdown sequence any moment now- but the error codes that now blocked his view showed no signs of activating a stasis, and he relaxed slightly, trying to catch a glimpse of what in the Pit was going on.

It was bad timing- his optics were greeted with only explosions of ice and snow, and he held up a hand to shield his face. He was about to call out when he saw Pistongasket actually receive his first impact- the old mech’s cry echoed in the older Seeker’s audials.

He had to get up.

This was easier said that done. He’d already spent a good breem (or was it several?) trying to do that, and the Autobot had shoved him down once again.

Jetfire stuggled a moment, the error codes becoming more persistent as he attempted the strenuous maneuvers. He was levered so a crooked sitting position, propping himself up on an elbow servo as he took in the new frame. The Seeker build screamed Decepticon, but for some reason Jetfire couldn’t find much relief from it. Probably for the tension in the air, but the old Seeker waved the feelings away. He could hear them conversing, but his own audials were having trouble adjusting after the missile impact only a short distance from him. He opened his dentals to call out, but before he could make a decision as to whom to call for, the newcomer launched a new attack.

Jetfire grunted to himself in surprise and fell backwards again. He felt like an Insecticon on its back, unable to right himself properly. Well. What was he supposed to do now? Was this a rescue from his own faction, or an extermination mission? He had just been interacting with the enemy, after all…

Then again, the political situation had changed, hadn’t it? Who knew what sort of battles were happening here…

Jetfire vented to himself, wondering what in Primus’s name he’d done to deserve this, and transformed a hand servo to his blaster, running a quick diagnostic on its readiness as he wondered who he’d be using it on with the back of his processors. He raised it skyward, aiming directly above him. It looked more like he was trying to shoot the clouds, but it was actually a futile grasp to attempt to get himself upright…

[Deleted]

For a mere moment there within the ice, the darkness, the steam, time seemed to dilate as Gasket stared down this upstart newcomer. His digits were clamped, locked down on his mace and the rounds in his auto-cannon were loaded for what was surely to come. Doubts, concerns, and other negative stimuli coursed across his matrix as damage control routines raced across his conduits trying to return his waist assembly to nominal functionality; he would not willingly fight with a handicap no matter how underhanded the cause may be.

//COMMAND LINE: Restructure Status - Active [Progress: 37%]//

No time... and this youngster won't wait for me, surely.

His optics never wandered from the youngster, intent on not missing his next move as the red targeting icon for his autocannon settled over the upstart's frame as the con spoke. Gasket nearly cringed; the voice of the con was rough, cocky, but held an aire of experience. A glitch ran up the old laborbot's back strut remembering just how many times he'd heard similar voices during the war. His dentals gritted as he realized.

He was in for quite a fight.

"They only sent me to get this bot, but they never mentioned anything about you being here. Guess it's time for me to get a little...side-tracked on this little mission."

//COMMAND LINE: Restructure Status - Active [Progress: 62%]//

The glacier exploded in a blaze of movement as both Cybertronians broke to the right, the old bot moving to strafe in his own lumbering way as a cloud of snow and steam exploded from behind the aggressor. Gasket's frame lurched with each step as the youngster moved smoothly, shifting at a rapid pace as it strafed around to flank, both autocannons roaring away.

Despite his own experience, Gasket's inability to accurately track the youngster became readily apparent as his autocannon fired wide, only striking snow and steam in the other's wake. His optics were, however, still locked on the youngster as the swift form juked back and forth, drawing ever closer. Realizing what the action was at nearly the last instant a new trigger was activated, the autocannon drawing instantly into Gasket's arm as his stride shifted to retreat more than strafing.

The plates on his arm reorganized as the old bot saw a flash of energon fueled light come from the arms of the youngster, the ranged weapons suddenly reconfigured to close combat. Barely predicting the strike, Gasket's off-servo flew into the path of the strike, narrowly succeeding in deflecting the first strike before the youngster spun sideways, forcing Gasket to react again.

This time, his mace servo shot upward, the shaft of the weapon connecting with the vicious strike as his body completed the turn to regain his footing and keep his entire frame facing this obviously faster opponent. The greater heft of Gasket's weapon easily deflected the blow which was rapidly redrawn as the Con shifted backward against any potential reaction from Gasket. However, despite the move, the old bot didn't swing his mace, didn't thrust his gaunt out for a strike; he was merely holding the slagger at bay for now. Despite his lack of reaction Gasket continued his backward steps, retreating as his gaunt plating and mace haft rang from the impacts.

//COMMAND LINE: Restructure Status - Active [Progress: 80%]//

"Respect your elders, mech. I'll not be... retired so easily."

[aquila]

The old-timer was pretty quick on the draw, a stark contrast to his lumbering appearance. That being said, it also was apparently a great indicator of his strength, as demonstrated as he easily deflected the first strike and blocked the second. And even then, it was clear that Gasket was retreating. Aquila wasn't about to let that happen. A strong burst from his maneuver boosters completely reversed Aquila's direction of travel. The Seeker felt the strain on his body from such an insane maneuver, and it felt good. He was now traveling at the same speed in the opposite direction as he flanked Gasket, cutting off his retreat. His movements, once graceful as he glided over the ice, had now become a discordant mess. His chaotic directional changes marked by his boosters burst-firing.

As he continued to swarm the Bot with his erratic movements, Aquila made several slashes with periodic potshot barrages from his autocannons. Against Gasket's armor, it seemed like it wouldn't do much, but the Seeker's goal was to soften up his defenses and catch him off balance. The speeds at which he was moving and changing directions necessitated the activation of his second set of optics. Now he was better able to process his environment during his high speed movements. What Aquila lacked in range weapons, he made up for with the sheer number of blades on his frame. Though at the moment only two of said blades were visible. The others remained hidden. Unbeknownst to him, while this was all happening, Gasket was attempting to repair his damaged waist assembly. Perhaps the current assault would either delay or halt the repairs. Either way, Aquila had to be careful. Despite his lack of speed, the seasoned veteran had enough strength to tear the Seeker limb from limb should he be plucked. But even so the Seeker had his own ways of dealing with such a possibility.

[Deleted]

Jetfire huffed and puffed, his vents sending snow swirling around him and dusting his ‘companions’. They were too busy dealing with combat to notice him, but it was all for the better. If the Seeker was on some sort of ‘extermination mission’, Jetfire at least had a chance with Pistongasket distracting him. Then again, he wasn’t sure if the Autobot would keep his peaceful stance with Jetfire himself.

Talk about a rude awakening. If it wasn’t enough that he was dealing with a hard reactivation, Cybertron was dead and the war was happening right in front of him too. Couldn’t he just get a klik to himself, for Primus’ sake?

He’d stuggled onto an elbow joint, trying to lever himself upright with his other servo. He winced as he heard the Seeker’s boosters activate, and with a surge of energy driven by fear, he heaved. He couldn’t pull himself to a sitting position, as planned, but he managed somehow to flip himself off his back. He lay prostrate for a good klik before propping himself up on an elbow again. The snow under his other hand fell away in drifts, causing him to sink into the cold.

He gritted his dentals, now getting a clear view of the battle. He wasn’t quite sure how he wanted this to end… certainly with his own spark intact but…

Well. There was one way to find out. “Brother!” he called over the sound of battle and the wind, intentionally ambiguous as to who he was speaking with. “What do you mean to do with me?” He knew they were busy- but to the Pit if he was going to be exterminated without a fight himself. He still had a hand servo out of root mode and in the form of blaster, but his position had it buried in snow and rather useless. He wasn’t sure if he would be able to fire it at all in his condition…

[Deleted]

Squaring his stance as pain sensors pinged in his waist, Gasket's vector algorithms screamed in his matrix to keep up with the erratic movements of the arrogant seeker as the attacks continued anew. This time the attacks were a mix of both point blank ranged attacks and melee strikes and, try as he might he, was driven back. Despite Gasket's extensive experience with fighting up close and personal this bot was far too agile for him to actually follow accurately.

Slag it, slag it. Slag it!

//COMMAND LINE: Restructure Status - Active [Progress: 95%]//

Twisting to the left as that leg assembly struck ground he deflected a single blow with his gaunt, twisted his mace around to deflect a feint that never actually struck, and shuddered through his frame as HE rounds pinged against the extensive armor across his chest with impact and damage warnings ringing across his audials. The ancient bot was completely on the defensive and as little damage as he was taking it was only a matter of time before something gave way and he was bested by this upstart.

He could not let that happen. His dentals gritted as he struggled to find an opening.

//COMMAND LINE: Restructure Status - Active [Progress: Complete]//

//COMMAND LINE: Waist Assembly - Efficacy: Nominal//

While the difference was not immense, the pain receptors in his waist suddenly silenced themselves as he stepped back to avoid another blow. Instantly he realized that the small fix was not enough and he would have to get proactive if he was to actually survive. As blow after blow kept incoming the old bot realized that this one had a very standardized though vicious attack style. The pattern was null but after a few strikes he felt he could follow enough of it to buy himself a few more kliks of operation.

That gave him an idea.

Gritting his dentals he stepped back again, the whelp following him for the continued attack; he had to slow this little slagger down. Venting he twisted left again to deflect another light attack but this time, edging forward, he lifted his mace to swing downward from the elbow. As his frame shifted to do just that he saw the movement he expected in the micro-klik he had, the slagger shifting back before preparing to move forward again. Gasket knew that the seeker would avoid his blow and, if he followed up with an attack the old bot would strike.

That is just what he did. However, rather than collect his mace for the block he released, the massive weapon hurtling from his servo to impact with a loud thud in the ice behind Gasket. Using the slagger's inertia to his advantage he twisted to avoid the blow and, at the apex, his servo darted out to clamp powerfully around the servos of his attacker, echoing across the ice as a strike of metal on metal. Utilizing the surprise from the action his other servo swept out as well, the servo side of the buckler reaching out to clasp the other one.

I have him!

In fact Gasket was a little surprised, he hadn't lost his speed with age... what little that meant. Applying more pressure to the connections he cemented his grip and steadied his pedes so that the little one would not get away. Locking his wrists he pressed his massive weight into the ice, slamming the slightly hovering Con onto the ice. Groaning he vented, a small line of steam coming from each of the vents on his back. A grin crossed his dentals and he paused a moment before applying even more pressure to the slagger; he would crush this con if he could.

In that instant his audials picked up a word from over his shoulder, from Jetfire.

"I suggest... little one, that you answer your brother. Answer well, your fate rests... on your words."

And the old bot was sincere. He did not want to put this seeker offline but if the con truly had no mercy, no pity, and not but a thought for war in his spark the great titan would do so without hesitation.

[aquila]

Aquila grunted and gritted his dentals as the massive Autobot brought his onslaught and flurries of slashes and shots to a grinding halt. The Seeker increased output to his boosters and threw in a few stronger bursts. However, it had only succeeded in slowing down the Autobot's progress and converting the ice below him into vapor before Gasket could drive him in. Realizing that continued use would only cause him to fall farther and farther, he cut power to them, instead allowing himself to be driven in. A set of three claws flipped down from the soles of his pedes, preventing him from slipping.

Gasket's overwhelming strength was an entirely different animal to deal with. He had overpowered his high booster output, and now he found himself being forced to his knees as he continued to push him into the ice. All manner of creaking and groaning soon followed as his armor and frame were put under continued strain. Aquila tried to push back, but found it nigh impossible. He could even feel his servos buckling and deforming under the stress. During this more or less one-sided grapple, the other flier called out to either one of them, asking what either one of them would do with him.

Between grunts from trying to resist the continued stress from Gastket's strength, Aquila shouted out, his optics glaring in the general direction of Jetfire, his words slightly slurred from creeping exhaustion, "I was sent...to retrieve you! If Megatron...wanted you dead...I would have...already killed you!" Turning his attention back to more pressing matters, Aquila only managed a grin despite the obvious fact that he was losing to the much larger Gasket.

What happened next was certainly unexpected. Aquila suddenly stopped pushing against Gasket. All of the giant's strength had now gone unopposed, and he would find himself lurching forward into the hole in the ice that Aquila had melted. Aquila freed his damaged servos and burst-fired his boosters. At the same time, what had looked like a stabilizer crest on the front of his helm lit aglow. It was readily apparent that in addition to being a stabilizer, it also functioned as a heat blade. The Seeker rose up to meet Gasket head-on, literally. Aquila aimed to cut his his head, or even his facial alloy vertically in two with the head-mounted blade. He definitely would be seeing stars after this, but he had always been a particularly persistent and resilient 'Con and could possibly recover quickly after it.