Doubletap's Garden

“How so?” Doubletap was already apprehensive.

“Turns out, what happened ta Conquerer Prime… got less an’ less pleasant. An’ you won’ believe this… it all ends in a cliffhanger.”

“Well. So much fer killin’ us all with THAT trap, huh? C’mon, forward.” The colossus got to his pedes again and led the way once his point people Midpoint and Yellowjacket had caught up.

This passageway was dark - a kind of cloying and weighing darkness that even powerful headlights couldn’t do much against. Brinkburst and Doubletap independently suspected the dark to have been augmented somehow, by the mystery technology that so much of this place seemed to run on. At some length Midpoint’s open servo shot to her mouth.

Fritz was startled at the loss of shield, and also, well, the contact itself. He scrambled to the back of the group, which left him next to - Firebomb. Oh, frag. She gave him an unimpressed look as they all moved forward.

“You’re sure a waste of space, aren’t you,”  she said, sounding almost bored. Fritz wilted and stuttered, all four servos wringing at each other.

“I - well I um - I - “

Brinkburst was on guard; he had switched to tank mode preemptively, and Doubletap was ready to change to cannon mode in an instant.

Then the tank thought he noticed something; one of the cave walls looked… well… funny. So he rammed it.

“Wait.” Midpoint stared at the center of the pile. “The gems are having a damping effect, so it’s hard to tell - but… Dragade seems to be under there. Can… can we try to get to the center?”

“Wait, she’s under the treasure?” Yellowjacket’s attention was caught by that, and he frowned, peering at where Midpoint indicated. “Damn.”

Something in Midpoint’s spark quickened - The distress signal she was picking up was getting stronger.

“How so?” Doubletap was already apprehensive.

“Turns out, what happened ta Conquerer Prime… got less an’ less pleasant. An’ you won’ believe this… it all ends in a cliffhanger.”

“Well. So much fer killin’ us all with THAT trap, huh? C’mon, forward.” The colossus got to his pedes again and led the way once his point people Midpoint and Yellowjacket had caught up.

This passageway was dark - a kind of cloying and weighing darkness that even powerful headlights couldn’t do much against. Brinkburst and Doubletap independently suspected the dark to have been augmented somehow, by the mystery technology that so much of this place seemed to run on. At some length Midpoint’s open servo shot to her mouth.

Fritz was startled at the loss of shield, and also, well, the contact itself. He scrambled to the back of the group, which left him next to - Firebomb. Oh, frag. She gave him an unimpressed look as they all moved forward.

“You’re sure a waste of space, aren’t you,”  she said, sounding almost bored. Fritz wilted and stuttered, all four servos wringing at each other.

“I - well I um - I - “

Brinkburst was on guard; he had switched to tank mode preemptively, and Doubletap was ready to change to cannon mode in an instant.

Then the tank thought he noticed something; one of the cave walls looked… well… funny. So he rammed it.

“Wait.” Midpoint stared at the center of the pile. “The gems are having a damping effect, so it’s hard to tell - but... Dragade seems to be under there. Can... can we try to get to the center?”

“How so?” Doubletap was already apprehensive.

“Turns out, what happened ta Conquerer Prime… got less an’ less pleasant. An’ you won’ believe this… it all ends in a cliffhanger.”

“Well. So much fer killin’ us all with THAT trap, huh? C’mon, forward.” The colossus got to his pedes again and led the way once his point people Midpoint and Yellowjacket had caught up.

This passageway was dark - a kind of cloying and weighing darkness that even powerful headlights couldn’t do much against. Brinkburst and Doubletap independently suspected the dark to have been augmented somehow, by the mystery technology that so much of this place seemed to run on. At some length Midpoint’s open servo shot to her mouth.

Fritz was startled at the loss of shield, and also, well, the contact itself. He scrambled to the back of the group, which left him next to - Firebomb. Oh, frag. She gave him an unimpressed look as they all moved forward.

“You’re sure a waste of space, aren’t you,”  she said, sounding almost bored. Fritz wilted and stuttered, all four servos wringing at each other.

“I - well I um - I - “

Brinkburst was on guard; he had switched to tank mode preemptively, and Doubletap was ready to change to cannon mode in an instant.

Then the tank thought he noticed something; one of the cave walls looked... well... funny. So he rammed it.

“How so?” Doubletap was already apprehensive.

“Turns out, what happened ta Conquerer Prime… got less an’ less pleasant. An’ you won’ believe this… it all ends in a cliffhanger.”

“Well. So much fer killin’ us all with THAT trap, huh? C’mon, forward.” The colossus got to his pedes again and led the way once his point people Midpoint and Yellowjacket had caught up.

This passageway was dark - a kind of cloying and weighing darkness that even powerful headlights couldn’t do much against. Brinkburst and Doubletap independently suspected the dark to have been augmented somehow, by the mystery technology that so much of this place seemed to run on. At some length Midpoint’s open servo shot to her mouth.

“How so?” Doubletap was already apprehensive.

“Turns out, what happened ta Conquerer Prime… got less an’ less pleasant. An’ you won’ believe this… it all ends in a cliffhanger.”

Midpoint was apprehensive. “I want to have the best chance of finding Dragade… if that’s possible at all… but you all have been kind enough just to take me on. I don’t want to put you in danger.”

“Is there a way that has more traps?” inquired Doubletap. “Maybe we should take the safe way - if Dragade knew there were such a path she would have gone down it rather than the more deadly one.”

“I’m not so sure.” Midpoint looked wistful. “She always was one for a challenge.”

Midpoint nodded. “I’ll help your scout in taking point. I’ll recognize Dragade from a long way away if we can find her…”

Fritz went along with the others, grumbling to himself. So much for resting. Firebomb stayed by Doubletap, and if anyone dared to say anything her hard crimson gaze made it clear she’d club them to death with her bound servos.

Midpoint examined the tools. “These are like the kind I knew her to use. If she is - was - here, she did a lot of hard work in this passageway. And yet there are still traps indicated on the map.” Midpoint demonstrated this by preempting Yellowjacket and whacking the mechanism of a spike trap in the walls, stopping it short before they could spring out and impale someone. “Pardon my lack of finesse. This is how I solve problems: quick, easy blunt force.”

Midpoint was apprehensive. “I want to have the best chance of finding Dragade… if that’s possible at all… but you all have been kind enough just to take me on. I don’t want to put you in danger.”

“Is there a way that has more traps?” inquired Doubletap. “Maybe we should take the safe way - if Dragade knew there were such a path she would have gone down it rather than the more deadly one.”

“I’m not so sure.” Midpoint looked wistful. “She always was one for a challenge.”

Midpoint nodded. “I’ll help your scout in taking point. I’ll recognize Dragade from a long way away if we can find her...”

Midpoint was apprehensive. “I want to have the best chance of finding Dragade... if that’s possible at all... but you all have been kind enough just to take me on. I don’t want to put you in danger.”

“Is there a way that has more traps?” inquired Doubletap. “Maybe we should take the safe way - if Dragade knew there were such a path she would have gone down it rather than the more deadly one.”

“I’m not so sure.” Midpoint looked wistful. “She always was one for a challenge.”

Doubletap dropped to her knees and would have cried out in anguish if her vocal processor hadn’t been strangled by her sheer despair. She stared desperately at Firebomb as she tried to regain composure. Now had to be the time for her to realize the enormity of what they had done, all too short a while ago. She glanced at Blockbuster, too, knowing he was connected to the terrible deeds done at that place too. Mentally, she recited the rolls of her known kills, which she stole from the Autobot databases in sheer remorse and self-mortification:

Ablator

Accelerando

Acrolith

Ad-Lib

Doubletap wasn’t the only one who fell to her knees. Yellowjacket gave a shout of alarm as Blockbuster collapsed, servos barely catching him against the floor, optics wide and frame trembling. No. No, not there. No…..energon was pooling at the edges of his optics as memories came flooding back, many of which he’d tried to repress, or had been thought eaten by the Gideon’s Glue. He was still shuddering when Yellowjacket ran over to him, arms wrapping around his helm, mouth pressed to the constructibot’s audio as the mini tried to whisper soothingly to him. It’s okay, it’s in the past, don’t think about it, I’m here -

“No, Midpoint,” replied Doubletap, voice quavering. “Not something you said. Something we did.”

She stroked Firebomb’s back and nestled her helm against the larger ‘con’s, then drew herself back up to full height and dusted herself off. She checked on Blockbuster to, proffering a servo across his shoulders, kneading at his load-bearing joints. “We’d better move on. Midpoint, I’m sorry, we all are, but from now on we promise to do justice to Dragade whatever it takes.”

Oh….Firebomb let out a quiet exvent, so ready to shift back into what she and Doubletap had once had, the nestling making her soften further. And then Doubletap was gone, off to comfort that constructibot, and Firebomb’s senses returned to her. Her plating tightened, quivering with rage, though it was toward herself. What the frag had she just done. She’d abandoned the thought of anything with Doubletap centuries ago, had planned to kill her in that bar, and here she was – the heli was distressed and Firebomb immediately went back to old, old instincts. Frag. Frag it all. She stood where she was, quietly shaking, servos fisted in their bonds.

Blockbuster leaned into Yellowjacket’s touch, optics dimming to nothing, though they came back online at Doubletap’s comforting servo. An understanding look surely crossed between them, and he finally stood, wiping at the energon that had trickled down his cheeks. He said nothing. Yellowjacket remained at his side, giving Doubletap a ‘I don’t trust you but I guess thanks’ look (very complex, hopefully the neut understood it) as he clung to Buster’s arm, even pressing a kiss to the larger mech’s servo. They may have been in the middle of a journey but Buster still leaned down, alll the way down, and bonked his forehelm gently against his conjunx’s.

Doubletap, against her better judgment, clung to Firebomb still. They needed each other now even if Firebomb couldn’t admit it. Otherwise how would the bigger flyer get out of this with her morality intact?

Firebomb continued to be angry at herself for how weak she’d been, how vulnerable. Yet – when Doubletap came back, when Doubletap stuck to her, she allowed it. She said nothing, tight-lipped and scowling. Yet. She let it happen. These mechs really were rubbing off on her, and not in a good way.

“Yeah, thanks.” Yellowjacket was too busy holding on to Blockbuster to snap in his usual way, his faceplates a mask of concern. Buster was still venting heavily, barely recovered from what had just been dug up. So even though it was Yellowjacket’s job to scout, he stayed in the back with the constructibot.

Midpoint spoke up. “There’s still a while to go before the chamber of the Cup. I see a lot of trap markings coming up…”

Just then a shower of molten glass rained down a short distance ahead. Midpoint winced. “Like THAT trap.”

So Yellowjacket went, pushing past the rest, obviously avoiding the trap they’d already triggered as he scanned the rest of the room. If anything else was in here, he’d find it. He might’ve kicked a few of the plants while he worked. Frag you, organics.

Firebomb clung to one of the walls by the entrance, eyeing the room with distrust. It was totally a coincidence that they were hovering near Doubletap.

Doubletap, meanwhile, merely sat among the plants, venting the cool air and meditating for a moment. Her thoughts turned to Midpoint, and helping her out - that would be appropriate repayment for at least some of what she’d done, but there was still a lot left to atone for. Nevertheless, it was good to start on a path of cleansing her guilt rather than just hiding from it.

Firebomb remained where she was, near Doubletap, glowering at the rest of the group. Blockbuster had moved forward, at least, and leaned down to admire one of the plants growing in the room.

Midpoint replied to Fritz with a shrug. “That’s just the problem. These paths both seem to terminate in the Cup chamber... eventually. There are a lot of detours along the way.”

Doubletap dropped to her knees and would have cried out in anguish if her vocal processor hadn’t been strangled by her sheer despair. She stared desperately at Firebomb as she tried to regain composure. Now had to be the time for her to realize the enormity of what they had done, all too short a while ago. She glanced at Blockbuster, too, knowing he was connected to the terrible deeds done at that place too. Mentally, she recited the rolls of her known kills, which she stole from the Autobot databases in sheer remorse and self-mortification:

Ablator

Accelerando

Acrolith

Ad-Lib

Doubletap wasn’t the only one who fell to her knees. Yellowjacket gave a shout of alarm as Blockbuster collapsed, servos barely catching him against the floor, optics wide and frame trembling. No. No, not there. No…..energon was pooling at the edges of his optics as memories came flooding back, many of which he’d tried to repress, or had been thought eaten by the Gideon’s Glue. He was still shuddering when Yellowjacket ran over to him, arms wrapping around his helm, mouth pressed to the constructibot’s audio as the mini tried to whisper soothingly to him. It’s okay, it’s in the past, don’t think about it, I’m here -

“No, Midpoint,” replied Doubletap, voice quavering. “Not something you said. Something we did.”

She stroked Firebomb’s back and nestled her helm against the larger ‘con’s, then drew herself back up to full height and dusted herself off. She checked on Blockbuster to, proffering a servo across his shoulders, kneading at his load-bearing joints. “We’d better move on. Midpoint, I’m sorry, we all are, but from now on we promise to do justice to Dragade whatever it takes.”

Oh….Firebomb let out a quiet exvent, so ready to shift back into what she and Doubletap had once had, the nestling making her soften further. And then Doubletap was gone, off to comfort that constructibot, and Firebomb’s senses returned to her. Her plating tightened, quivering with rage, though it was toward herself. What the frag had she just done. She’d abandoned the thought of anything with Doubletap centuries ago, had planned to kill her in that bar, and here she was – the heli was distressed and Firebomb immediately went back to old, old instincts. Frag. Frag it all. She stood where she was, quietly shaking, servos fisted in their bonds.

Blockbuster leaned into Yellowjacket’s touch, optics dimming to nothing, though they came back online at Doubletap’s comforting servo. An understanding look surely crossed between them, and he finally stood, wiping at the energon that had trickled down his cheeks. He said nothing. Yellowjacket remained at his side, giving Doubletap a ‘I don’t trust you but I guess thanks’ look (very complex, hopefully the neut understood it) as he clung to Buster’s arm, even pressing a kiss to the larger mech’s servo. They may have been in the middle of a journey but Buster still leaned down, alll the way down, and bonked his forehelm gently against his conjunx’s.

Doubletap, against her better judgment, clung to Firebomb still. They needed each other now even if Firebomb couldn’t admit it. Otherwise how would the bigger flyer get out of this with her morality intact?

Firebomb continued to be angry at herself for how weak she’d been, how vulnerable. Yet – when Doubletap came back, when Doubletap stuck to her, she allowed it. She said nothing, tight-lipped and scowling. Yet. She let it happen. These mechs really were rubbing off on her, and not in a good way.

“Yeah, thanks.” Yellowjacket was too busy holding on to Blockbuster to snap in his usual way, his faceplates a mask of concern. Buster was still venting heavily, barely recovered from what had just been dug up. So even though it was Yellowjacket’s job to scout, he stayed in the back with the constructibot.

Midpoint spoke up. “There’s still a while to go before the chamber of the Cup. I see a lot of trap markings coming up…”

Just then a shower of molten glass rained down a short distance ahead. Midpoint winced. “Like THAT trap.”

So Yellowjacket went, pushing past the rest, obviously avoiding the trap they’d already triggered as he scanned the rest of the room. If anything else was in here, he’d find it. He might’ve kicked a few of the plants while he worked. Frag you, organics.

Firebomb clung to one of the walls by the entrance, eyeing the room with distrust. It was totally a coincidence that they were hovering near Doubletap.

Doubletap, meanwhile, merely sat among the plants, venting the cool air and meditating for a moment. Her thoughts turned to Midpoint, and helping her out - that would be appropriate repayment for at least some of what she’d done, but there was still a lot left to atone for. Nevertheless, it was good to start on a path of cleansing her guilt rather than just hiding from it.

Doubletap dropped to her knees and would have cried out in anguish if her vocal processor hadn’t been strangled by her sheer despair. She stared desperately at Firebomb as she tried to regain composure. Now had to be the time for her to realize the enormity of what they had done, all too short a while ago. She glanced at Blockbuster, too, knowing he was connected to the terrible deeds done at that place too. Mentally, she recited the rolls of her known kills, which she stole from the Autobot databases in sheer remorse and self-mortification:

Ablator

Accelerando

Acrolith

Ad-Lib

Doubletap wasn’t the only one who fell to her knees. Yellowjacket gave a shout of alarm as Blockbuster collapsed, servos barely catching him against the floor, optics wide and frame trembling. No. No, not there. No…..energon was pooling at the edges of his optics as memories came flooding back, many of which he’d tried to repress, or had been thought eaten by the Gideon’s Glue. He was still shuddering when Yellowjacket ran over to him, arms wrapping around his helm, mouth pressed to the constructibot’s audio as the mini tried to whisper soothingly to him. It’s okay, it’s in the past, don’t think about it, I’m here -

“No, Midpoint,” replied Doubletap, voice quavering. “Not something you said. Something we did.”

She stroked Firebomb’s back and nestled her helm against the larger ‘con’s, then drew herself back up to full height and dusted herself off. She checked on Blockbuster to, proffering a servo across his shoulders, kneading at his load-bearing joints. “We’d better move on. Midpoint, I’m sorry, we all are, but from now on we promise to do justice to Dragade whatever it takes.”

Oh….Firebomb let out a quiet exvent, so ready to shift back into what she and Doubletap had once had, the nestling making her soften further. And then Doubletap was gone, off to comfort that constructibot, and Firebomb’s senses returned to her. Her plating tightened, quivering with rage, though it was toward herself. What the frag had she just done. She’d abandoned the thought of anything with Doubletap centuries ago, had planned to kill her in that bar, and here she was – the heli was distressed and Firebomb immediately went back to old, old instincts. Frag. Frag it all. She stood where she was, quietly shaking, servos fisted in their bonds.

Blockbuster leaned into Yellowjacket’s touch, optics dimming to nothing, though they came back online at Doubletap’s comforting servo. An understanding look surely crossed between them, and he finally stood, wiping at the energon that had trickled down his cheeks. He said nothing. Yellowjacket remained at his side, giving Doubletap a ‘I don’t trust you but I guess thanks’ look (very complex, hopefully the neut understood it) as he clung to Buster’s arm, even pressing a kiss to the larger mech’s servo. They may have been in the middle of a journey but Buster still leaned down, alll the way down, and bonked his forehelm gently against his conjunx’s.

Doubletap, against her better judgment, clung to Firebomb still. They needed each other now even if Firebomb couldn’t admit it. Otherwise how would the bigger flyer get out of this with her morality intact?

Firebomb continued to be angry at herself for how weak she’d been, how vulnerable. Yet – when Doubletap came back, when Doubletap stuck to her, she allowed it. She said nothing, tight-lipped and scowling. Yet. She let it happen. These mechs really were rubbing off on her, and not in a good way.

“Yeah, thanks.” Yellowjacket was too busy holding on to Blockbuster to snap in his usual way, his faceplates a mask of concern. Buster was still venting heavily, barely recovered from what had just been dug up. So even though it was Yellowjacket’s job to scout, he stayed in the back with the constructibot.

Midpoint spoke up. “There’s still a while to go before the chamber of the Cup. I see a lot of trap markings coming up...”

Just then a shower of molten glass rained down a short distance ahead. Midpoint winced. “Like THAT trap.”

Doubletap dropped to her knees and would have cried out in anguish if her vocal processor hadn’t been strangled by her sheer despair. She stared desperately at Firebomb as she tried to regain composure. Now had to be the time for her to realize the enormity of what they had done, all too short a while ago. She glanced at Blockbuster, too, knowing he was connected to the terrible deeds done at that place too. Mentally, she recited the rolls of her known kills, which she stole from the Autobot databases in sheer remorse and self-mortification:

Ablator

Accelerando

Acrolith

Ad-Lib

Doubletap wasn’t the only one who fell to her knees. Yellowjacket gave a shout of alarm as Blockbuster collapsed, servos barely catching him against the floor, optics wide and frame trembling. No. No, not there. No…..energon was pooling at the edges of his optics as memories came flooding back, many of which he’d tried to repress, or had been thought eaten by the Gideon’s Glue. He was still shuddering when Yellowjacket ran over to him, arms wrapping around his helm, mouth pressed to the constructibot’s audio as the mini tried to whisper soothingly to him. It’s okay, it’s in the past, don’t think about it, I’m here -

“No, Midpoint,” replied Doubletap, voice quavering. “Not something you said. Something we did.”

She stroked Firebomb’s back and nestled her helm against the larger ‘con’s, then drew herself back up to full height and dusted herself off. She checked on Blockbuster to, proffering a servo across his shoulders, kneading at his load-bearing joints. “We’d better move on. Midpoint, I’m sorry, we all are, but from now on we promise to do justice to Dragade whatever it takes.”

Oh….Firebomb let out a quiet exvent, so ready to shift back into what she and Doubletap had once had, the nestling making her soften further. And then Doubletap was gone, off to comfort that constructibot, and Firebomb’s senses returned to her. Her plating tightened, quivering with rage, though it was toward herself. What the frag had she just done. She’d abandoned the thought of anything with Doubletap centuries ago, had planned to kill her in that bar, and here she was – the heli was distressed and Firebomb immediately went back to old, old instincts. Frag. Frag it all. She stood where she was, quietly shaking, servos fisted in their bonds.

Blockbuster leaned into Yellowjacket’s touch, optics dimming to nothing, though they came back online at Doubletap’s comforting servo. An understanding look surely crossed between them, and he finally stood, wiping at the energon that had trickled down his cheeks. He said nothing. Yellowjacket remained at his side, giving Doubletap a ‘I don’t trust you but I guess thanks’ look (very complex, hopefully the neut understood it) as he clung to Buster’s arm, even pressing a kiss to the larger mech’s servo. They may have been in the middle of a journey but Buster still leaned down, alll the way down, and bonked his forehelm gently against his conjunx’s.

Doubletap, against her better judgment, clung to Firebomb still. They needed each other now even if Firebomb couldn’t admit it. Otherwise how would the bigger flyer get out of this with her morality intact?

Doubletap dropped to her knees and would have cried out in anguish if her vocal processor hadn’t been strangled by her sheer despair. She stared desperately at Firebomb as she tried to regain composure. Now had to be the time for her to realize the enormity of what they had done, all too short a while ago. She glanced at Blockbuster, too, knowing he was connected to the terrible deeds done at that place too. Mentally, she recited the rolls of her known kills, which she stole from the Autobot databases in sheer remorse and self-mortification:

Ablator

Accelerando

Acrolith

Ad-Lib

Doubletap wasn’t the only one who fell to her knees. Yellowjacket gave a shout of alarm as Blockbuster collapsed, servos barely catching him against the floor, optics wide and frame trembling. No. No, not there. No…..energon was pooling at the edges of his optics as memories came flooding back, many of which he’d tried to repress, or had been thought eaten by the Gideon’s Glue. He was still shuddering when Yellowjacket ran over to him, arms wrapping around his helm, mouth pressed to the constructibot’s audio as the mini tried to whisper soothingly to him. It’s okay, it’s in the past, don’t think about it, I’m here -

“No, Midpoint,” replied Doubletap, voice quavering. “Not something you said. Something we did.”

She stroked Firebomb’s back and nestled her helm against the larger ‘con’s, then drew herself back up to full height and dusted herself off. She checked on Blockbuster to, proffering a servo across his shoulders, kneading at his load-bearing joints. “We’d better move on. Midpoint, I’m sorry, we all are, but from now on we promise to do justice to Dragade whatever it takes.”

Doubletap dropped to her knees and would have cried out in anguish if her vocal processor hadn’t been strangled by her sheer despair. She stared desperately at Firebomb as she tried to regain composure. Now had to be the time for her to realize the enormity of what they had done, all too short a while ago. She glanced at Blockbuster, too, knowing he was connected to the terrible deeds done at that place too. Mentally, she recited the rolls of her known kills, which she stole from the Autobot databases in sheer remorse and self-mortification:

Ablator

Accelerando

Acrolith

Ad-Lib

Doubletap’s face softened even as her rifle stayed raised. “And what reason might that be? I’m certain you’re looking for treasure. That is, after all, why one would go mucking around hidden ruins, no?”

Firebomb grimaced, while Blockbuster relaxed. So it seemed they weren’t about to be in a firefight after all. It was Fritz, though, who spoke again, stepping out from behind Brinkburst. 

“She was lost searching for the very thing you all must be.”

“An’ what makes ya so certain about what THAT is?” This, of course, came from Brinkburst, who was definitely not hostile, per se, just aggressively curious. This mech might have answers they needed. The colossus put one servo on Fritz’s shoulder and smiled approvingly at him for his boldness. The best adventurers knew when to talk out of a situation.

Fritz couldn’t help but lean into Brinkburst’s touch. It was nice to have back up. Beneath his faceplate he was blushing again, though this wasn’t clear in his voice when he said, “A map? Through this temple?” He actually moved away from Brinkburst’s servo, closer to Midpoint. He was clearly too trusting. In the background, Yellowjacket gritted his dentals and kept his guns primed.

Brinkburst licked his dentals a little. “Ya trying to make a deal?”

“I think it’s a good idea,” Fritz said. His faceplate moved and optics brightened in a way that made it clear he was smiling. “We could use a navigator, right?” Here he glanced back at Brinkburst.

Doubletap took the offered weapons and stroked Midpoint’s face in concern, while Brinkburst scanned her. “She’s tellin’ the truth.”

While Doubletap stroked Midpoint’s face, Fritz came forward to take her servos in all four of his and give them a gentle squeeze. “We’ll help you find her, don’t worry.” His tone had a hint of a promise.

He began to interpret the myth vividly for his various listeners.

“It says, an ancient Autobot leader named Conqueror Prime was the first ta find the Cup. He was what ya might call a visionary. Which us’lly means over-proud, deluded slaghead. Wi’ its infinite energon, he powered a great space fleet. But then he built a ship ta fly into the heart of a black hole. The Cup rejected him then an’ fell back to Cybertron, and he an’ his crew were forever lost.”

Midpoint almost smiled. “That’s a sparklings’ story where I come from. And Dragade used to tell it to me when I couldn’t rest, to get me to berth easier. Her voice was so soothing.”

“And where... do ya come from?” Brinkburst was always asking questions.

Doubletap’s face softened even as her rifle stayed raised. “And what reason might that be? I’m certain you’re looking for treasure. That is, after all, why one would go mucking around hidden ruins, no?”

Firebomb grimaced, while Blockbuster relaxed. So it seemed they weren’t about to be in a firefight after all. It was Fritz, though, who spoke again, stepping out from behind Brinkburst. 

“She was lost searching for the very thing you all must be.”

“An’ what makes ya so certain about what THAT is?” This, of course, came from Brinkburst, who was definitely not hostile, per se, just aggressively curious. This mech might have answers they needed. The colossus put one servo on Fritz’s shoulder and smiled approvingly at him for his boldness. The best adventurers knew when to talk out of a situation.

Fritz couldn’t help but lean into Brinkburst’s touch. It was nice to have back up. Beneath his faceplate he was blushing again, though this wasn’t clear in his voice when he said, “A map? Through this temple?” He actually moved away from Brinkburst’s servo, closer to Midpoint. He was clearly too trusting. In the background, Yellowjacket gritted his dentals and kept his guns primed.

Brinkburst licked his dentals a little. “Ya trying to make a deal?”

“I think it’s a good idea,” Fritz said. His faceplate moved and optics brightened in a way that made it clear he was smiling. “We could use a navigator, right?” Here he glanced back at Brinkburst.

Doubletap took the offered weapons and stroked Midpoint’s face in concern, while Brinkburst scanned her. “She’s tellin’ the truth.”

While Doubletap stroked Midpoint’s face, Fritz came forward to take her servos in all four of his and give them a gentle squeeze. “We’ll help you find her, don’t worry.” His tone had a hint of a promise.