“Our people are running out of space! Our people are suffering! We need to do something!”
Ares pleaded.
“And we will. But we are not going to harm another world to do it! I am not going to put out people in danger like this!”
Oddball watches on. He was actually beginning to find the play entertaining.
1 Like
“You need to abandon this foolish project at once. No daughter of mine is going to put our subjects in danger!”
Kalliope shouted before storming off.
“Old hag. She has no idea what sacrifices need to be made in the name of progress. I’ll show her!”
Ares said before returning to her work.
Several years later (which has taken some time to reach in the play)
A fully grown Ares walks into the grand throne room, her arms behind her back. Her mother sitting in said thrown, looking down at her daughter.
“Mother.”
“Ares.”
The two seemed cold and distant to one another.
“You know why I’m here.”
Ares said.
“We’ve colonized nearly every last unpopulated rock in our star system, and yet we still run out of space! It’s time to make some tough choices for the good of our people.”
“For the last time! There will be no war while I am queen!”
Kalliope scolded.
Ares merely sighed.
“I knew this would happen. You never had the will to do what is truly best for our people. Lucky for them, I do.”
Ares extends her arm forward, revealing a large blaster built around her hand. Kalliope sat up sharply in anger and surprise.
1 Like
I guess this is what you get for naming your daughter after a human god of war, Oddball thinks.
…Or did those humans name their war god after her? Huh; now there’s some fuel for thought…
1 Like
“How dare you bring that atrocity in here! Put that down at on-”
Kalliope was cut off as Ares fired the blaster. A beam of energy shot out and impaled the queen through the torso. She staggered, putting a hand down on the arm of her throne as she struggled to support herself. Her whole body trembled, before it collapsed into a pile of stones.
Another Vex calmly walks in behind Ares. He had a black robotic body like her and many of the other citizens, but he was very well built and strong looking.
“Well, I expected that to last a little longer.”
He said casually.
“Congratulations on your change in position. What shall you have me do my queen?”
“Find me an engineer.”
Ares said firmly.
“The best one you can. If we are going to conquer the rest of this star system, we will need an army. And you and I both know the Vex populace is far from combat ready.”
The other Vex nodded.
“Yes your majesty.”
He turned to leave, but Ares stopped him just before he went out the door.
“Oh and Atlas, summon my people to the palace. I have some announcements to make.”
She said.
“Yes your majesty.”
Atlas said, and then walked out the door.
1 Like
Oddball looks up at Zed, interested in what he thought of the play. Was Ares’s takeover seen favorably in Vex society, or was it every bit the betrayal that it was?
Zed, and indeed all the other Vex in the audience seemed to be on edge. Ares’ betrayal was seen as a travesty.
Sometime later, Ares walks out on to a balcony, where hundreds of Vex citizens eagerly await her word.
“People of Kalliope! Hear me! Our queen has fallen, struck down by the Vreshie! Our neighbors, once thought to be our allies, have killed my mother! We shall not let this unprovoked attack go unanswered. We will take to the stars and wipe out those who see to do us harm! It is time the Vex finally get what they rightfully deserve! It is time, that we enter a new age! An age of conquest! An age of expansion! An age. Of. War.”
The crowd beneath cheered out.
“Hail to Queen Ares! Long live the queen!”
1 Like
If Ramjet is fine with it, Machbreaker leaves for now to start boarding up chutes.
At that, Tie-Grabber throws his current progress at Clawshot, molten material trailing its travels. He shuts off the forge soon after and just starts to walk off.
“Look in a freakin’ mirror pal for lost causes.” He huffs.
“Yeah, go ahead. I don’t mind.”
Ramjet said.
Clawshot shouted in surprise as the hot metal was thrown at him. He jumped to the side and narrowly avoided getting hit.
“What the hell was that for! You coulda’ broke something important!”
He shouted angrily as Tiegrabber left.
OOC: @keiththelegokid with as long as this fight is taking, I’m gonna have to call it to an end. I’m declaring Ajats the winner here, as he’s been more active, and it’s also a simulation, so the outcome isn’t all that important anyhow.
Oddball couldn’t help but draw some similarities between the scene before him, and recordings he had viewed of the fiery speeches that Megatron would deliver to his Decepticons during the war.
War, death conquest, yadda yadda… heard it once, you’ve heard it a million times…
A few days later
Ares sat upon her new throne. The decor of the throne room had been changed from her mother’s naturalistic style, to a more industrial style.
Atlas walked in, with an energetic female behind him. Atlas bowed respectfully, though the female did not. She was too busy enthusiastically admiring the design of the throne room.
“So this is what the inside of the palace is like! Fascinating.”
“General, who is this you have brought into my sanctum?”
Ares asked. Atlas stood at attention, and turned to gesture to the vex woman behind him.
“This your majesty, is the engineer you requested. A master of robotics and experimental weaponry. I’m pleased to introduce you to-”
“Hi!”
She interrupted, jumping over Atlas to get face to face with Ares.
“I’m Hephaestus. Its an honor to meet you your majesty!”
The engineer eagerly extended an arm out for a handshake, to which the queen hesitantly and awkwardly accepted.
“So, you need me for a job right? I would be happy to help you your majesty.”
Hephaestus said eagerly.
“Excellent. You see engineer, I need an army. The Vex people are ill suited for combat, but the attack on my mother requires immediate action. What I need are machines of war. Machines that can fight our enemies, and wipe them out. This will be no small task, I can assure you. But the rewards would be beyond what you could imagine. So Hephaestus, are you up to the task?”
“Oh most certainly your highness! It would be an honor!”
The engineer said eagerly.
“Wonderful. Soon, all shall fall in our wake, and the Vex will finally have the space we deserve.”
Ares said, in a noticeably sinister tone.
Machbreaker goes off and gathers materials, starting to board up the chutes as he goes back towards the forge area.
Tie-Grabber goes off to find Machbreaker to cool off and starts helping out in boarding up all the chutes.
Though speaking of our escaped scalawags, Overclock and RAM approach one of the dumpsters outside. The little yellow fella knocks on the side and a little horn beeps in response before driving off the edge to them. They were reunited for now, but they did still have to get inside. And Overclock had an idea burning through his chips.
An idea that does depend on how recent any of the trash bins had been emptied, if at all. If it seemed like they have not been emptied in awhile, Overclock has RAM start to sniff out for their boss’s previous entertainment. How hard could it be to find the trail of a Cybertronian corpse anyways?
Clawshot was pacing back and forth, angrily ranting to himself.
Steeljaw’s body was still in one of the dumpsters, though had been buried in trash over time.
Yep, she and Megatron would definitely get along, Oddball thinks.
Two weeks pass. Towering starships are being constructed just outside the palace, and could be seen through the throne room windows.
Hephaestus eagerly walks in, followed by three peculiar individuals.
One was a bit taller than her. It stood on four sturdy spider-like legs. One arm ended not in a hand, but a long blade. The other ended in a shield. The head had prominent swept back fins on either side.
Behind it was a very large looking creature. It had a head like a bull’s skull, with two big forward facing horns. It walked on six legs. Four towards the front, two in the back. Its proportions were very bulky and powerful.
Behind that was a four legged beast. It looked very sleek and agile. Its head had a set of jaws, lined with countless razor like teeth.
“Your majesty.”
The engineer greeted with a respectful bow.
“I’ve been working hard to meet your request. And I think you’ll love what I’ve developed.”
Hephaestus stepped to the side and her three creations walked forward, standing side by side.
“They are certainly… Peculiar.”
Ares commented.
“Oh that doesn’t even begin to describe it!”
Hephaestus replied excitedly.
“Let me introduce you. First is what I call the Hellhound.”
She approached the four legged beast and patted it on the head.
“These babies are vicious. Able to rip our enemies to pieces with their teeth. I’ve designed them to hunt in packs. My tests have shown them to be very efficient.”
She then moved on to the six legged beast.
“This one is a Charger. Brute force incarnate. When charging in a straight line they can move wicked fast! There isn’t a defensive wall strong enough to even hope to stop them!”
And finally, Hephaestus moved to the upright standing four legged one.
“And this one is my favorite! I call it a Knight. Not only are they very capable soldiers, they’re a lot smarter than all the others. I’ve designed them to be squad commanders. They’ll give order and strategy to large groups during battle!”
Ares looked at the three combat machines before her. If the had a mouth, she would have been grinning happily.
“I must say engineer, I am most impressed.”
“Oh and this is only the beginning!”
Hephaestus eagerly shouted.
“I have so many more planned. Just imagine huge tanks that can dig through the ground and carry in more units! Support machines that can repair damaged units in the middle of a battle! Silent killers that swoop down from the air to pick off the last of the enemy’s forces! I’m telling you your highness, this army is going to be unstoppable!”
“Marvelous!”
Ares replied with an enthusiasm she rarely showed.
“I want ten thousand units of every variety produced and ready to ship off. I’m giving you three months time. I’m expecting great things from you engineer.”
1 Like
Oddball’s eyes widen. Sure, this play may have been recounting events from ages ago- if they’d ever happened at all- but now he wondered if such war machines were present on this planet. He’d need to bring it up when he got back to the arena.
1 Like
The stage fades to black, and the theater sits in darkness for a few moments. Then suddenly the entire room bursts into light, as the whole theater is encompassed in a hologram show. A montage of war machines being mass produced and loaded on to ships.
Hundreds upon hundreds of thousands of units being made and moved. Some transported by fleets of the digging machines Hephaestus had described. Huge machines with four feet like treads, and a large drill on the front.
When the countless war machines finished loading up on to the space craft, they took off and headed towards a planet close to Kalliope.
Cut to the planet’s surface. A large group of blue skinned organics watch curiously as towering spaceships touch down on their planet. Doors open, and ramps extend to the ground. Ares is the first to leave one of the ships. She calmly walks down the ramp and on to the ground. She holds a fist in the air, waits for a moment, and then swiftly brings it down. Countless war machines march out of the ships and begin to attack.
What followed was something most horrendous. Scene after scene of slaughter and destruction. Civilians ran for their lives as they were hunted down. Screams filled the air as cities fell and burned. Chargers plowed through buildings with ease, toppling them to the ground. Small round flying machines searched the ruins with a bright spotlight, looking for survivors. When a group was found it let out a horrible alarm.
In mere days a planet unprepared and caught off guard was brought to its knees. The final shot of this gruesome sequence was Ares standing high on a pile of rubble backed by a burning city. What seemed to be a giant knight loomed behind her, obscured by smoke and shadow. Then suddenly it all cut to black, and the audience was left in a stunned and terrified silence.
1 Like
The slowly make their way back to the Forge as they board up all the chutes on the way there.
Busdrive keeps watch for any who would dare attack them while RAM and Overclock dig through the trash. Or rather, RAM is eating a lot of the stuff while Overclock digs through it. He was looking to find the transformation components of the larger figure.
By the time they arrive, Clawshot was trying and failing to make a new hook. All the while grumbling to himself.
Steeljaw’s T-cog was in surprising good shape. Though removing it successfully would take a great deal of care and skill.
So, how’d this all stop? Oddball wonders. Did somebody hit back at these guys, or did they just spread out and conquer until they got bored with it?