BRAINWASHED || BATTLE CRY (Transformers Prime)

Chapter Twenty-Five | Victory to Me

"Not with Earth in danger," the Prime replied. "And not with the knowledge that a Cybertron under your jurisdiction will only end in our extinction!"

Optimus charged forward, prepared to fight, when a familiar weapon fell in front of him. With barely a half klik to spare he dived out of the way, rolling back up to his pedes as the bomb Dreadwing had thrown at him exploded, kicking up rust and rocking the ground. The second-in-command lept from his perch at the top of the Omega Lock, transforming and flying down towards the battlefield.

Bumblebee moved to intercept, but his shielding was depleted by shots from behind, Laserbeak twittering in victory as it shot past. Bumblebee whirred in annoyance, the scout taking multiple shots despite the symbiote dodging each one. Predictably, Soundwave appeared from the sky, transforming and landing on his pedes in front of the scout. His message was clear: if Bumblebee wanted to follow his leader into battle, he would have to go through the communications officer first.

Optimus Prime anticipated the next attack from Dreadwing, increasing his shielding as the Decepticon fired upon him. He focused on the jet first, well aware that Megatron was waiting for the right time to attack, when they could face each other without interference.

Though this posed new concerns. Dreadwing and Soundwave were present - where was Ratchet?

It was disheartening to realize he expected to see his old friend here, preparing to attack him. But similarly he was relieved to deduce that Megatron might not have elected to bring the medic here, for which he was grateful. That meant he would be safe, and out of harm's way.

Dreadwing zipped past before Optimus could grab or attack him, the Prime resuming his charge towards Megatron. The gladiator was waiting for him, grinning as he deployed his own sword. Just like in the desert, Megatron wanted to toy with his enemy before using the Star Saber to finish him. That would be Optimus' only opportunity to subdue and defeat the tyrant before he was severely disadvantaged. It was one thing he could count on: every time Megatron was so close to victory, he became overconfident.

The slender spymaster was proving a challenge for Bumblebee. The scout could dodge and move fast, but Soundwave always appeared to be two steps ahead of him, countering his attack with a block then pushing the offense with a maneuver that proved difficult to counter. Bumblebee would not have been surprised if the Decepticon had not only memorized his fighting style, but also used an algorithm that told him the best course of action to take after each attack. If that was the case, then the scout would have to do extra work to take the third in command by surprise.
Soundwave angled his arm to perfectly counter the Autobot's jab to his exposed frame, the move leaving an opening that the young Cybertronian had not anticipated. Thin digits curled into a fist and connected with the thin armor along his abdomen, eliciting a whirr from Bumblebee's prosthetic voice box. Laserbeak fed information to its master while it flew, Soundwave absorbing the data stream with some surprise. He had anticipated Bulkhead to also be arriving, perhaps along with his Wrecker friend Wheeljack. But it appeared that they had not been able to make it through the Spacebridge portal before the communications officer programmed its shutdown. Knock Out also failed to check in, however that was no longer quintessential with the Spacebridge closed. Soundwave could easily open it if necessary, and he would be aware of unauthorized access.

Bumblebee quickly recovered from Soundwave's attack, noting with frustration how he seemed undistributed, despite the fact his neural net was constantly filtering in information. It was no secret that he was probably tapped into communications and the Decepticon net at this time, however his ability to be so without impediment was almost unfair. Bumblebee prided himself in being an efficient, adept fighter, and to be bested by someone who did not appear to be trying ground his gears.