Darksting shook hands with Auger, then looked around the room.
“The city’s really changed since the last time I’ve been here,” he said.
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“Thinking about giving it a go, then?” Hemorrhage says. “Well, you know my comm frequency.”
“Well, usually I’d take offence to the somebody calling cybertronians ‘savage’,” Backbreaker says. “But Megatron certainly fit that description.”
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“Shouldn’t we wait until we conclude business.” Timberjack doesn’t even feign asking. “But I guess if you’re going to jump in, then better tell the fighter.”
He turns his attention back to Auger. “Aside from that revival, what else has Megatron been up to? Anything else fun?”
“What do you normally get miss?” Coverfire asks, Railgun just giving him an empty look.
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“You kidding? I’ve wanted to have a go in the pits for as long as I can remember. But it’s been nothing but a mafia rat den ever since the dawn of the beast era. No way I’m missing a chance like this.”
Torchwing said.
“A lot’s changed, but at the same time a lot is still the same.”
Auger said.
“The take over itself was plenty violent, but the transition hasn’t been all too terrible. Sure we’ve managed to land in a system that clearly favors decepticons over predacons, putting us in the second class position we’ve always been in. But as long as everybody stays in line it’s all okay. Sure it’s not great, but as far as oppressive tyrannical empires go, it could be worse right? Personally the most I’ve been effected was some remodeling to fit new regulations. And also a, uh… Not insignificant loss of business. But it’s all really not too bad.”
Auger replied.
“Usually I just go for the standard stuff. High Grade on a good day. But I feel like trying something new this time.”
Nebula said.
“Right. My apologies. That’s simply the common view of my home. But I know better now that I’ve had the time to meet you.”
Thea said.
“But, my curiosity still burns. Every time I’ve heard of Megatron, it’s always been so mythologized. Spoken of like a devil who emerged from the darkest pits of Cybertron. A creature of absolute hatred, bent on causing as much death and destruction as possible. But that can’t be entirely true can it? What was he really like?”
She asked.
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“We do have some important business to attend to, like Timberjack said,” Hemorrhage reminds Torchwing. “I’m not sure we have time to be entertaining our fantasies at the moment.”
Backbreaker takes a deep breath and walks over to one of the apartment’s windows, looking out at the skyline. He still hadn’t gotten used to how clean Kaon was now.
“‘A creature of absolute hatred’?” he repeats. "Yeah, actually, I’d say that fits. The death and destruction, though- those were just… I dunno, tools, I guess. He wasn’t just out to kill people; he had ideas for how the universe should be, and he was willing to destroy anything that got in his way.
“I dunno- I just lost a fight to him once. Lotsa people knew him better than me.”
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“We might not have time later. Might as well enjoy what we can while we’re here.”
Torchwing said.
“Look, I know how you plan to go about killing Megatron isn’t much of my business-”
Auger said.
“How did you-”
Axis started.
“Look, I know you lot. Wherever you go calamity seems to follow. And wherever there’s calamity, you four aren’t far behind. But that’s not my point. Thing is, you’re not really under a time crunch. Things have been stable for a while. I don’t see any use rushing yourselves.”
The bartender said.
“Sounds a lot like my grandmother if you ask me.”
Thea said.
“So then… How do you feel about facing him again?”
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Hemorrhage turns away from Torchwing and approaches the bar, leaning over it to speak to Auger.
“Because the longer we delay,” he says quietly, “the longer Megatron’s dictatorship endures. And that alone is reason enough to be hasty.”
“Can’t wait,” Backbreaker replies. “Sooner we get to him, the better.”
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Darksting nodded, then looked around the room again. He still couldn’t shake the feeling that he’d been here before.
“Heh, that’s for sure.” Darksting chuckled.
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“And the longer it cures, the longer it would take to break.” Timberjack adds to his point.
“But, why has business been slow? Did everyone finally get jobs?”
“Straight or a mix? I doubt anything here’s as good as the snowblend but,” Coverfire says, looking at Auger’s drill. “I wonder what sort of blends they’ve got here.”
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“Eh, not quite.”
Auger said nervously.
“See, a new club opened up down the street a few months ago, and it’s been taking up most of my customers since.”
“What! No way. No bot drives my pal out of business and gets away with it. Who do I gotta thrash?”
Torchwing said aggressively.
“It’s uh… Soundwave.”
Auger replied meekly. Not afraid of the pirate per say, but what he knew said pirate would do.
“Torchwing, no.”
Bluntforce said sternly.
“Torchwing, yes!”
The predacon shouted.
“Hey, hey. No need to do anything rash. I still get some customers. Well, one customer. But you’ll never believe who it is. The new air commander! Imagine that. The new Decepticon second in command giving little 'ol me his time. He doesn’t say much, but he’s still a treet to see.”
Auger said eagerly as he hastily tried to mend the situation. Maximus groaned and let his head thud against the bar counter.
“What’s his deal?”
Auger asked.
“It’s a long story.”
Axis replied.
“I usually go for the straight stuff.”
Nebula said.
“Mostly because I’ve never actually paid for anything before. I used to just sneak in back during the war and nab some drinks while Maccadam wasn’t looking.”
She added quietly.
“Can’t say I’m surprised.”
Thea replied.
“While I’d hardly call you savage, I have noticed a lot of you have a tendency to prefer the more violent options. Then again, who’s to say I would do anything different under similar circumstances. If Ares were to return from the grave and have a second go at bloody conquest, who would I be not to do everything I could to stop her?”
The princess mused.
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“Soundwave runs a club?” says Hemorrhage, very much caught by surprise.
“Believe me, if there was a way to talk Megatron out of this or something, we’d take it,” Backbreaker says. “But there’s no reasoning with him. We gotta take him down- but, Pit, maybe we could just lock him up somewhere instead of killing him. But I wouldn’t bet on that.”
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Auger nodded.
“Soundwave Superior is the name of the place. Haven’t been there myself, but it’s been the talk of the town ever since it was opened. Apparently most of the appeal comes from his musical performances.”
Thea raised a curious eyebrow.
“That is surprisingly where our thoughts differ. Vex handle our issues diplomatically whenever we can, but when all peaceful options fail, we do not hesitate in our force. To continue my comparison, I would not even consider imprisoning my grandmother. If she could not be reasoned with, then she’s too much of a risk to be kept alive.”
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“Soundwave?” Darksting mumbled. The name had struck a chord in his fragmented memory, though he was unsure if he’d ever seen him before.
“Soundwave,” Hemorrhage echoes. “Makes music?”
“Trust me, I won’t pull my punches with Megatron,” Backbreaker continues. “I’m just saying that I can consider other options- and right now, this looks like the best one.”
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“Yeah, but that name sounds familar to me.” Darksting replied. “Know what I mean?”
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If he was drinking something at the moment, he might have swallowed it wrong. Instead, Timberjack just gives a short chortle before really considering it. That sounded really cool.
“DJs, I reckon.” Timberjack says before carrying on. “I can see why. Have you tried a band or some other attractor yourself yet?”
However, the air commander coming here definitely perks up Railgun’s attention. He does a quick tap with his foot, trying to see if he can gets Auger’s attention. If he does, he tries to ask with aid of motions, “When does the air commander typically arrive?”
“Maybe our bulk friends can get you a drink for free this time.” Coverfire says.
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“Yeah? 'Course he makes music. And he’s real good at it too.”
Auger said, astonished that such a concept would be such a surprise. Of course he never knew what Soundwave was like back in the day, but his talents were so natural, he figured he must have always been that way.
“I’ve definitely considered hiring someone like that myself to help compete. But finding affordable talent has been rather difficult.”
He continued.
“You won’t need to worry about competition if we just go over there and wreck the place for ya. Then everyone will want to come back here!”
Torchwing said enthusiastically.
“Please don’t…”
Auger muttered, knowing that his pleads would be useless to stop the fiery predacon.
Railgun did manage to catch the barkeep’s attention.
“Huh? Oh, he usually comes in around late in the evening. I’ve even taken to staying open longer just to give him more time to stay. I’ve tried making small talk more than once, but he’s really not the chatty type.”
“Maybe.”
Nebula said.
“Anything you usually get?”
She asked, trying to keep the conversation going.
Thea nodded.
“Fair enough. Though what kind of challenge do you think he’ll offer? Getting to him of course won’t be easy, but with as many of us as there are, slaying one tyrant shouldn’t be too difficult.”
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“Well he must be to be stealing all your customers.” Darksting said.
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“That’s not how business competition works. If you do that, it will only look bad on Predacons and this place. Resorting to such cheap tactics and–” Timberjack stops as he remember he’s dealing with a pirate.
“Urgh. If you do it, I’m not joining…As for music talent, we might have a friend who can help you with that.” Timberjack says, giving a glance towards Juliana’s direction. “Can’t promise they will help, but if they’re willing, I’m sure they would like something…special in return.”
“Was he here last evening?” Railgun asks.
“Normally we just stick with whatever Snowblender whips up for us. An oil blend with some crysmagnetal shavings tends to do it. Never bothered trying a bulk’s place, figured they wouldn’t serve.” Coverfire says.
“And the danger,” Sheller pipes in.
“Oh, right, that part. Fuzzy optics and processing with giants around never turns out well. Or so we’ve heard.”
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“Yeah, can we please not do that?” Tripwire asks, echoing the sentiments of the barkeep. “Or can we talk about it first, at least?”
“Oh, Megatron isn’t just any old tyrant,” Backbreaker warns Thea. “I’m sure it’ll be a tough fight.”
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