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randomplaces2008-04-29 04:02 pm
random_xtras) wrote in randomplaces2008-04-29 04:02 pm
Entry tags:
RiD verse. The city. Taken ((co-written with Ro-tor mun))
It had started out a routine Decepticon and Predacon raid for energy. Now all $%#@$ was breaking out and spreading across the city.
"Hold still," grunts Liedherz as she weaves through a cluster of electrical towers next to the train tracks, hoping to get the green SUV off her tail so that she and Ro-Tor can vanish. Then her ears flick with surprise and she looks down at her small passenger with surprise. "Slag!"
Ro-tor's grouchy enough about being out in public, but so far he's distracting himself by trying to track the others' progress. That, and telling Liedherz when she's going the wrong way.
He looks up at her, the slight frown behind the cloth mask the only sign of his irritation - apart from his tone. "What now?"
Her only reply is to twist in midair and hurl him toward X-Brawn.
X-Brawn yells and instinctively hits the brakes as a small child comes flying at him. Ro-tor yells and instinctively powers his rotors.
Except that he doesn't have any now, of course.
X-Brawn half-transforms with practised speed: an arm emerges from the side of the car to try and catch the kid-
Only it's a full-sized Decepticon that actually hits him.
Ro-tor steadies himself on the Autobot's hood, then stares down at his body. And at X-Brawn, who to be fair was probably stunned by the blow.
And then he crouches and takes to the air, drawing his gun and hovering just above the car. "Surprise, Autobot."
The comm-lines are suddenly rather noisier than before.
Liedherz, meanwhile, arrows away with a gleeful laugh, only to curse as she realizes she's picked up another shadow. From the sound of it it's a Spychanger in invisible mode.
She puts her ears back and stretches out fast and low through the electric towers.
X-Brawn out of the fight, Ro-tor folds into 'copter-mode and wheels off into the sky with an ecstatic laugh. Movor's already waiting for him.
And down below, REV picks up the pace, weaving around - and bounding over - obstacles with agility. He's not the fastest Spychanger, but this is his kind of terrain.
More importantly, he's canny enough to keep the Predacons' new friend in his sights - even if she doesn't want him to. REV knows when he's been rumbled.
The winged woman's white eyes narrow. She can't give away her secret, or she'll lose the all important element of surprise. Bad enough that two Autobots have now seen her clearly.
Her ears flick as she searches for a way out, and then she doubles back sharply and buzzes him in passing, letting him know that she knows he's there.
And there's an abnormally soft squeal of tyres as the unseen car skids and swings around and tears right back after her. REV gives a low chuckle - he knew it - but the rest of his focus is on catching up and catching her. He can't lose the stranger now. Which is why he's calling Hotshot to come join him.
She catches the transmission and swiftly cancels it, making it sound as though REV had changed his mind. If it weren't for all the wires she'd have just taken off into the air, but she can't separate the separate sounds of them so she's trapped.
-Vait....- Her ears flick toward the tracks as they start to sing.
Midnight Express is NOT a happy bullet train at this point in time. Having a pair of Predacons engaged in a catfight on your back will do that to a mech. Suffice it to say that he's not looking where he's going.
So he doesn't see the flash of white wings crossing the tracks right ahead of him. Nor does he sense the cloaked Spychanger on her heels.
In REV's experience, everyone does their job and everyone's co-ordinated enough not to get in each other's way. So he's very much focused on Liedherz, the chasing down of.
He's been working with other Spychangers too long, perhaps. He's gotten used to not having to remember certain things. Like the fact that to ninety-nine percent of the world, he's totally invisible.
And that percentage, as it happens, includes Midnight Express.
He never knows what hits him.
Liedherz pulls up with a sharp gasp of surprise and whirls, flinching as bits of shattered glass and metal fly out and strike her. She takes time for one startled 'look' and then dives into the shadows and is gone.
Midnight Express shouts and crashes to a halt as fast as a massive, speeding bullet train can. It's a noisy, screeching affair. But it's only when the colliding forms stop and Midnight gets a look at what's under his wheels that he realises just how nasty it is...
"Oh no-REV!" He transforms and kneels by the smaller Autobot, absolutely stricken. The Predacons behind him are forgotten; the shards of glass he brushes off absently might come back to haunt him later.
He's frantically calling for backup, calling for help, and calling REV almost at the same time. "Railspike! Hotshot! REV needs-"
"Midnight?" Rapid Run responds. "What's happened, buddy?"
And then Hotshot leaps from a nearby wall with a cry and pelts over. Behind him, Ironhide drops out of nowhere and follows. Over the comlink, Hotshot’s updating and directing Mirage and Crosswise in a steady stream of instructions even as he reaches his fallen second’s side.
REV comes online with a chillingly faint flicker of lights, instinctively trying to transform. The effort is aborted before it begins, though it results in a gout of pink and green and a staticy cry of shocked pain. He can hear voices, faintly... but they're moving away from him, lost in the static and the hurting.
Midnight flinches back in fear and guilt. Hotshot is already there, holding his friend and working to keep him present and correct. Ironhide crouches beside him, trying to help without getting in the way. "We’ve got you, REV,” Hotshot says, low but urgent. “Stay with us now..."
“Just hang on ‘til we get you back to base,” Ironhide adds.
Midnight, meanwhile, is all but helpless. His hands are too big and not dextrous enough to help even if he weren't panicking. "I- I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I didn't..."
"Just take it easy and stay calm," Hotshot tells him, but the black 'bot is busy with his injured friend. Crosswise arrives, dashing over with Mirage hot on his heels, and it’s left to Ironhide to break away and go to reassure the young Autobot.
Battered intakes attempt to suck in air. Once, twice....
And then there's a soft whir and silence.
Hotshot's visor narrows, but he doesn't stop encouraging his team-mates as Crosswise swiftly restarts REV’s systems. Midnight falls silent, listening desperately - though he can't bear to watch. He has his face in his hands. He just wants Railspike and Rapid Run to get here.
This may be the longest moment of his life.
Behind them, Liedherz is listening with her hands over her mouth, but then she perks as something comes close to her and regards it curiously for a moment till she realizes where she's heard that song before. It's slightly different... lighter, just slightly triumphant at tracking her down. He doesn't seem to realize what he's left behind.
She's not going to remind him now. Just cup him in her hands, hold him close to her chest, and shadow dance away.
Minus a spark, the other Spychangers are working on nothing. The others realise it the moment Crosswise looks up with that expression over his faceplate.
Hotshot stares at him for a long moment, feeling frozen. But he pulls himself together. He’s standing over the wreck of his team-mate, with a worried science officer, a bullet train who's shutting down in shock, and… He doesn’t know how to respond himself. But he doesn’t have to, yet.
"Crosswise,” he says quietly, “help Ironhide meet up with the trains and get Midnight home. W.A.R.S.-"
"Right here." The red Autobot appears behind him, face set, streaked with ash and scratched-off paint. Hotshot looks at him, picking up the tell-tale smell that says W.A.R.S.' machine guns have been in play recently. He meets the warrior's gaze and nods.
"All right,” he says, turning to Mirage and the empty shell. “Let's bring him home."
The com crackles softly then and Optimus's weary voice comes over the line. "The Decepticons and Predacons have retreated. What's your status, Hotshot?"
There's a dead silence from the others as Hotshot replies. "We're returning to headquarters, Optimus. We've... one casualty, and Midnight Express needs medical attention."
"Casualty?" The leader's tone goes sharp with concern.
"REV is… offline." Hotshot's tone is nothing if not firm in optimism or denial. But this time he's making it very clear that there's nothing involved to hope for.
Silence answers them. Then, softly, "Bring him home."
"Hold still," grunts Liedherz as she weaves through a cluster of electrical towers next to the train tracks, hoping to get the green SUV off her tail so that she and Ro-Tor can vanish. Then her ears flick with surprise and she looks down at her small passenger with surprise. "Slag!"
Ro-tor's grouchy enough about being out in public, but so far he's distracting himself by trying to track the others' progress. That, and telling Liedherz when she's going the wrong way.
He looks up at her, the slight frown behind the cloth mask the only sign of his irritation - apart from his tone. "What now?"
Her only reply is to twist in midair and hurl him toward X-Brawn.
X-Brawn yells and instinctively hits the brakes as a small child comes flying at him. Ro-tor yells and instinctively powers his rotors.
Except that he doesn't have any now, of course.
X-Brawn half-transforms with practised speed: an arm emerges from the side of the car to try and catch the kid-
Only it's a full-sized Decepticon that actually hits him.
Ro-tor steadies himself on the Autobot's hood, then stares down at his body. And at X-Brawn, who to be fair was probably stunned by the blow.
And then he crouches and takes to the air, drawing his gun and hovering just above the car. "Surprise, Autobot."
The comm-lines are suddenly rather noisier than before.
Liedherz, meanwhile, arrows away with a gleeful laugh, only to curse as she realizes she's picked up another shadow. From the sound of it it's a Spychanger in invisible mode.
She puts her ears back and stretches out fast and low through the electric towers.
X-Brawn out of the fight, Ro-tor folds into 'copter-mode and wheels off into the sky with an ecstatic laugh. Movor's already waiting for him.
And down below, REV picks up the pace, weaving around - and bounding over - obstacles with agility. He's not the fastest Spychanger, but this is his kind of terrain.
More importantly, he's canny enough to keep the Predacons' new friend in his sights - even if she doesn't want him to. REV knows when he's been rumbled.
The winged woman's white eyes narrow. She can't give away her secret, or she'll lose the all important element of surprise. Bad enough that two Autobots have now seen her clearly.
Her ears flick as she searches for a way out, and then she doubles back sharply and buzzes him in passing, letting him know that she knows he's there.
And there's an abnormally soft squeal of tyres as the unseen car skids and swings around and tears right back after her. REV gives a low chuckle - he knew it - but the rest of his focus is on catching up and catching her. He can't lose the stranger now. Which is why he's calling Hotshot to come join him.
She catches the transmission and swiftly cancels it, making it sound as though REV had changed his mind. If it weren't for all the wires she'd have just taken off into the air, but she can't separate the separate sounds of them so she's trapped.
-Vait....- Her ears flick toward the tracks as they start to sing.
Midnight Express is NOT a happy bullet train at this point in time. Having a pair of Predacons engaged in a catfight on your back will do that to a mech. Suffice it to say that he's not looking where he's going.
So he doesn't see the flash of white wings crossing the tracks right ahead of him. Nor does he sense the cloaked Spychanger on her heels.
In REV's experience, everyone does their job and everyone's co-ordinated enough not to get in each other's way. So he's very much focused on Liedherz, the chasing down of.
He's been working with other Spychangers too long, perhaps. He's gotten used to not having to remember certain things. Like the fact that to ninety-nine percent of the world, he's totally invisible.
And that percentage, as it happens, includes Midnight Express.
He never knows what hits him.
Liedherz pulls up with a sharp gasp of surprise and whirls, flinching as bits of shattered glass and metal fly out and strike her. She takes time for one startled 'look' and then dives into the shadows and is gone.
Midnight Express shouts and crashes to a halt as fast as a massive, speeding bullet train can. It's a noisy, screeching affair. But it's only when the colliding forms stop and Midnight gets a look at what's under his wheels that he realises just how nasty it is...
"Oh no-REV!" He transforms and kneels by the smaller Autobot, absolutely stricken. The Predacons behind him are forgotten; the shards of glass he brushes off absently might come back to haunt him later.
He's frantically calling for backup, calling for help, and calling REV almost at the same time. "Railspike! Hotshot! REV needs-"
"Midnight?" Rapid Run responds. "What's happened, buddy?"
And then Hotshot leaps from a nearby wall with a cry and pelts over. Behind him, Ironhide drops out of nowhere and follows. Over the comlink, Hotshot’s updating and directing Mirage and Crosswise in a steady stream of instructions even as he reaches his fallen second’s side.
REV comes online with a chillingly faint flicker of lights, instinctively trying to transform. The effort is aborted before it begins, though it results in a gout of pink and green and a staticy cry of shocked pain. He can hear voices, faintly... but they're moving away from him, lost in the static and the hurting.
Midnight flinches back in fear and guilt. Hotshot is already there, holding his friend and working to keep him present and correct. Ironhide crouches beside him, trying to help without getting in the way. "We’ve got you, REV,” Hotshot says, low but urgent. “Stay with us now..."
“Just hang on ‘til we get you back to base,” Ironhide adds.
Midnight, meanwhile, is all but helpless. His hands are too big and not dextrous enough to help even if he weren't panicking. "I- I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I didn't..."
"Just take it easy and stay calm," Hotshot tells him, but the black 'bot is busy with his injured friend. Crosswise arrives, dashing over with Mirage hot on his heels, and it’s left to Ironhide to break away and go to reassure the young Autobot.
Battered intakes attempt to suck in air. Once, twice....
And then there's a soft whir and silence.
Hotshot's visor narrows, but he doesn't stop encouraging his team-mates as Crosswise swiftly restarts REV’s systems. Midnight falls silent, listening desperately - though he can't bear to watch. He has his face in his hands. He just wants Railspike and Rapid Run to get here.
This may be the longest moment of his life.
Behind them, Liedherz is listening with her hands over her mouth, but then she perks as something comes close to her and regards it curiously for a moment till she realizes where she's heard that song before. It's slightly different... lighter, just slightly triumphant at tracking her down. He doesn't seem to realize what he's left behind.
She's not going to remind him now. Just cup him in her hands, hold him close to her chest, and shadow dance away.
Minus a spark, the other Spychangers are working on nothing. The others realise it the moment Crosswise looks up with that expression over his faceplate.
Hotshot stares at him for a long moment, feeling frozen. But he pulls himself together. He’s standing over the wreck of his team-mate, with a worried science officer, a bullet train who's shutting down in shock, and… He doesn’t know how to respond himself. But he doesn’t have to, yet.
"Crosswise,” he says quietly, “help Ironhide meet up with the trains and get Midnight home. W.A.R.S.-"
"Right here." The red Autobot appears behind him, face set, streaked with ash and scratched-off paint. Hotshot looks at him, picking up the tell-tale smell that says W.A.R.S.' machine guns have been in play recently. He meets the warrior's gaze and nods.
"All right,” he says, turning to Mirage and the empty shell. “Let's bring him home."
The com crackles softly then and Optimus's weary voice comes over the line. "The Decepticons and Predacons have retreated. What's your status, Hotshot?"
There's a dead silence from the others as Hotshot replies. "We're returning to headquarters, Optimus. We've... one casualty, and Midnight Express needs medical attention."
"Casualty?" The leader's tone goes sharp with concern.
"REV is… offline." Hotshot's tone is nothing if not firm in optimism or denial. But this time he's making it very clear that there's nothing involved to hope for.
Silence answers them. Then, softly, "Bring him home."