Who We Were (Before The War)

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Who We Were (Before The War)

Post by Blackjack »

As promised, this is the beginnings of a project I will co-writing with TT (and maybe some other forum members :wink: ). The idea is to show the characters in our TF universe, as developed in the roleplay, as who they were before, during, and after the Great War. It will be a tale of action, romance, and drama; of good and evil. Not that much of this has been developed yet but as we go along it will take shape into a large and beautiful beast. So without further ado, I give you the first part.

Before you read this you may wish to take a glance at TT's Cambreaker fic as found at the link below. Much of what I'm doing comes from ideas he is writing about.

http://www.transformerland.com/forum/vi ... php?t=3371

Chapter I: The Gladiator

The crowd roared as the gladiator emerged into the light of the coliseum. He was the favorite to win haven taken so many of these matches in the past. This was just another step toward immortality, toward his destiny. It matter not who the opponent was, Megatron knew he would crush them. After all he had already gone against every one of the Senate’s silly little rules. He was perfection. His own body had become a tool of destruction, death upon his enemies in the pits. He glanced at the weapon on his arm, a tool of his daily life now twisted into a tool of this life.

Megatron looked at the ‘bot that emerged at the other end of the coliseum. The crowd made hardly any sound for this one, an up-and-coming foreman at one of the mines. Another small town tough who thought that he had a shot at gladiatorial fame. Megatron smiled, another easy victory. The challenger raised his weapons in defiance, preparing for the battle, and issuing a challenge to his opponent. He had seen it dozens of times before. Seeing that Megatron had not even so much as drawn a weapon, the challenger charged. He raised his weapon high, the spiked metal ball on the end of a chain swinging wildly as he swung at Megatron.

Seeing his opponent’s predictable attack incoming, Megatron drew a sword. It was heavy even by pit standards. He carried no shield like most of these combatants, feeling no need to defend himself. As his opponent swung high and attempted to crush his faceplate with the heavy weapon, he swung low with the double handed weapon. He was rewarded with the sickening sound of crunching metal as the sword pierced his opponent’s armored exoskeleton and sank deep into the actuators of his right leg. The sudden shock caused the attacking ‘bot to falter and allow his weapon to fall to the ground before striking Megatron.

Seizing the opportunity, Megatron threw his own sword down and grabbed his opponent around the neck with one powerful arm. His circuitry surging with energy, Megatron lifted the challenger high and slammed him onto the cold ground, one of his signature moves. The challenger faltered, unsure of what to do. His side sizzled and he found that he was unable to move his leg. Still he attempted to stand and face his opponent. This was all Megatron needed. As the other ‘bot struggled to stand, he took aim with the modified fusion cutter on his arm and spoke.

“My fellow Cybertronians, the victory that I win this day is not my own but one for all of our kind. This ‘bot is not a fighter; he is a servant of the Council and the Senate. His station is a reminder of the oppression we suffer as members of the lower class. We, the downtrodden workers of Cybertron, are the backbone of this world, not the aristocracy. We are the soul of Cybertron! And I have this to say to our oppressors.”

There came another massive roar from the crowd as he charged his cannon and fired, erasing the other ‘bots spark. As the lifeless body of his opponent clattered against the metallic ground, Megatron raised his arms in victory. His devoted fans and fellow workers began swarming into the pit, ready to pay tribute to the victor. A few moved the remains of his fallen opponent away to some scrapheap. Others rushed forward with paint, ready to cover his armor with the tattoos that signified him as the victor. They were fanatics, cheering endlessly for their champion, the hero of the working class. Megatron smiled.

Sometime later he made his way through the dirty alleys of Kaon’s underbelly to a small run down building. A dimly glowing neon sign indicated that it was “Kaon’s Finest”, a drinking establishment. Megatron liked the feel of this place, so gritty yet inviting. He thought that perhaps he would own one of his own someday. But that was but one of his ambitions. The smell of carcinogax wafted through the air as Megatron stepped inside. A much smaller ‘bot, the owner of the establishment rushed forward from behind the counter to greet him.

“Megatron, it’s an honor. Your usual booth? Your associate is waiting.”

“Yes, that will be fine Halimax.”

The bartender led him across the small room to a corner booth, away from the entrance but with enough vantage to allow one to keep an eye on everyone inside. Another ‘bot was already sitting on the opposite side of the booth as Megatron seated himself. The other was tall and lean, painted in red and silver. He looked up from his drink as Megatron arrived, obviously in thought about something.

“Another victory, Megatron?”

“An easy victory, but one that furthers my agenda. He was a foreman at one of the new mines. A young opportunist.”

“Tell me you crushed his spark.”

“Decimated.”

“Well done my friend. Soon we will be able to move against them.”

“Patience Starscream. Our time will come. How many of the fringe settlements have you contacted?”

“Almost all of them. Your support base is growing. Don’t you think it is time for us to make a move? We’ve waited like this…”

“I said, patience! One day I will be the rightful ruler of Cybertron.”

“And I your loyal second in command.”

“We shall see. Now tell me. What of our interests in the senate, has there been any news?”
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Post by Blackjack »

It's been a while since I put any time or effort into this. This is because I really couldn't find inspiration to write this next piece. It is a tricky subject for me. I certainly hope I do the character justice and that milady will not be angry at me for my treatment of her.

Chapter II: The Troupe

"Five cycles to show time!"

The backstage was alive with activity as they ran to and fro to get into costume and get tuned up for the performance. It was one of the biggest of their careers and there was no telling who would be in the audience that night. For the Starlight Troupe, there had never been a more crucial moment and for their lead dancer, a more stress filled time.

"You alright hon?"

Minerva came out of reviere. Her mind had slipped to thinking about what ways she could mess up her performance and the sound of her friend's voice had roused her.

"Yes, Star. I....I'm fine."

"You don't look fine, hon," Stardust replied surveying her friend.

It was no secret that Minerva had not been spending much time in recharge lately. This performance had dominated all of her free time. She had been practicing endlessly, trying to get every motion to flow perfectly with the last. It had consumed her very spark. This was to be her big break, the first time she'd been given the lead part in all of her time performing. She needed to use this moment to prove herself. She needed them to believe she was capable.

"I'm sorry for making you worry," she said sweetly, "I'm just concerned that I'll do something wrong and waste my chance."

"We're all cheering for you Minerva," her friend replied. It was just like Minerva to apologize for making others worry, "you're gonna be great, kid. Just try to clear your mind before going on."

"Thanks," Minerva said quietly, still unconvinced in her own abilities.

"Hey Minerva, got anyone special in the audience tonight," came a male voice that drifted over through the crowded dressing rooms.

She glanced up to see another of her fellow performers, Highwire, one of the larger male dancers. He had been with the troupe only as long as she had and had come from the same dancing academy. It was strange though, she thought, although they'd been friends for so long she'd never thought of him as anything beyond that. He was more like an older sibling, looking out for her. In fact, she'd never had anyone in her life like that. Perhaps that was why she felt so alone at times like this. Even though Stardust and the others were cheering her on, there was truly no one standing next to her with a hand on her shoulder ready to support her with kind words. What was it that made 'bots fall in love anyway? Such an odd concept.

"N...no," she said softly as Highwire walked over to stand next to Stardust. The two were her closest friends and she was glad to at least have their support.

"That's too bad," he replied, his jovial voice dropping some of its cheeriness and then picking up again as he continued, "hey, I hear they've reserved a whole front section for members of the senate. Maybe you'll see a cute guy down in front."

"Hardly," Stardust said, cutting him off, "all the senators are old fossils who have no interest in any kind of culture. I'll be surprised if a single one of them even shows up tonight."

"You don't have to be so pessimistic. I was just tryin' to cheer the little lady up," Highwire soundly as faux injured as he could manage.

Minerva forced herself to smile at her friends antics. Stardust was right though, senators were hardly an interesting lot and the possiblity of finding ayone who even remotely caught her eye would be next to none. Stardust was seeing another member of the troupe at the moment and Minerva also remembered her mentioning that one of her friends, a 'bot named Roulette, had recently met a very nice young stockbroker. They had been encouraging her to find somoene for some time but with no success. At this rate she wondered if she would grow into an old model before she met anyone.

"Places, everyone places," the voice of the stage manager rang through the dressing rooms and some of the first performers began to clear out hurriedly in order to get to their assigned places.

"Well good luck tonight hon," Stardust said as she started off towards the stage, being one of the first herself.

"Yeah, chin up," Highwire said, "I'm gonna go get ready for my part, but I can't wait to see your performance. I'll be cheering for you from backstage."

Minerva smiled again, this time in earnest. They were right, there was no point in worrying over such trivial things right now. She had prepared for this moment and it would be her crowning moment. She spent the last few cycles before her performance sitting at the same table, adjusting her wardrobe and making sure her appearance was perfect. Taking a deep breath, she raised herself and made towards the stage.

As she stood in position, ready to go on, Minerva felt one last twinge of butterflies in her carbuerator. She took a deep breath and stepped into the smoky haze that would surround her at first. There wasn't quite a full house, but still an impressive number of 'bots had turned out to see them perform. This didn't help her nervousness, but she forced herself to clear her mind and took the two strides she needed to pull herself out of the smoke and onto the main stage where she would be naked to their eyes. What came next, was a blur of sound and lights. She allowed the music to take her, guiding her movements. Everything was in time, her form flawless, everything she had practiced. It was as though she'd done this hundreds of times before.

But as she danced, she found her mind again wandering, scanning the audience. She cast a glance at the first row, where the senators would be. There were only two bots seated there. One of them was smallish, black and gold model who watched the show with interest. The other was much larger and broader of shoulder. He seemed to be transfixed on her, following her every movement with his optics. She felt heat rise to her cheek plates as she caught herself meeting his gaze and pulled away. She completed the dance flawlessly, giving them the performance she'd hoped to give. Yet her mind wandered to that young senator she had shared a single moment with. Why was he lingering there?

Confused and hoping to see the senator once more, she moved to the center stage and gave a small bow before retreating to the backstage. She was met by roars of approval from her troupe mates and behind her the cheers and calls of 'encore, encore' from the patrons. Stardust and Highwire lifted her on their shoulders and carried her above the rest, both shouting their praises of her performace. Minerva, however, did not hear them. Her mind transfixed on the small smile she'd seen on that young senator's face as she had given her bow.
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Post by Minerva »

I think you did a great job on both this and the previous chapter, and I really look forward to read the next one! :D
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Post by Blackjack »

Thank you for the kind words. Since I am feeling inspired to keep this going lately, I thought I would share my ideas for upcoming chapters and where this is going. Again, I would love to have suggestions from the readers on what characters I should write a bit for. And any input on backstories is welcome, I really want to create our own version of the TF Universe from this and the ongoing roleplay.

Chatper III: The Gambler: Blackjack
Chapter IV: The Ninja: Sixshot
Chapter V: The Scientist: Redline
Chatper VI: The Seeker: Dirge
Chapter VII: The Soldier: Kup

I also would like to do chapters about Makeway and Double Clutch. I'm also thinking the final chapter will be titled The Emperor of Destruction (two guesses as to who that's about). I've considered writing pieces about Rattrap, Dinobot, and Sideways but as they come from alternate universes that may be difficult to fit in to this story. This is a story of the beginnings of the war from our perspective and along with TT's Cambreaker fic I'm hoping to define our Universe more thoroughly.

Don't mind that I've added something on here, but I'm trying to conserve my remaining posts up to 1,000. You will all see soon enough.

I am going to be taking your suggestions to heart TT. I have rewritten the order of things above to reflect my new plan. Expect the next two chapters soon.
Last edited by Blackjack on Tue Jul 26, 2011 4:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Post by Time Traveller »

Sorry to state the obvious, but how about one on Sixshot? It would coincide well with the way 'Jack is headed in the RP... You could also wrap Greatshot into that one.
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Post by Blackjack »

Chapter III: The Gambler

“No no no, Jacky. This just won’t do. This portfolio is slag,” came the booming voice of the large silver ‘bot that stood behind his desk and threw a sheaf of paper down onto it.

“But Mistah Gekotron, I got all the numbahs in the right places dis time,” a much smaller black and gold ‘bot replied from the other side of the desk.

“I can see that,” Gekotron said sternly looking down his pronounced nose at his young employee, “but you’ve got too much allocated to the Kaon sector. What do you think is gonna happen, an Energon rush or something? That sector is worthless, just a bunch of mines and peasants.”

“I’ve just got a good feelin’ about Kaon, sir,” a young Blackjack replied, “like somethin’ big is gonna go down there that’s gonna turn the market around.”

“Look, I’ve told ya once, I’ve told ya a thousand times kid. Nothing is gonna happen in Kaon.”

“Yeah, but Cambreakah says…”

“Senator Cambreaker is just an idealistic young busybody with nothing better to do than poke around some alleged underground gladiatorial ring looking for some way to stir up the Senate. He’s a joke and everyone knows it. If he knew what was good for him, he’d just keep his nose out of it like the other senators. For instance, look at Senator Halfshaft, now there’s a good example of what a senator should be like. I can’t have bots working for me that want to take a gamble on every rumor they hear just flying around…”

“Good,” Blackjack replied, his voice rising, “because this employee would rathah not work at a place where the management has its head shoved so far up its tailpipe that it’s blind to what’s going on to care about the future investments they could be makin’.”

And with that, Blackjack marched out of the office leaving a startled and fuming Gekotron to consider what he’d just heard. It was the first time an employee had walked away from his firm and the first time one had had the audacity to address him in such tones.

For his part, Blackjack couldn’t have been more furious. How dare he insult Cambreaker like that? After all, Cambreaker was the only one trying to make any difference, wasn’t he? Although all of his friends stories about the underground matches seemed a little far-fetched, particularly the parts about Megatram, he wanted to have faith in his friend. And he wanted at least one other ‘bot besides himself and Roulette to realize that Cambreaker wasn’t crazy. As he descended from the upper floors of the building on his way out, he wondered how Roulette would take this news. He’d only just started working at this firm and Gekotron’s was one of the most prestigious investment companies on Cybertron. Yet somehow he felt that she would understand his loyalty.

As he stepped out onto the Iaconian street he thought about what he had saved up. It wasn’t much, not enough to get Roulette the ring he’d been considering and ask her the big question at least. It would’ve only taken a few more paychecks from Gekotron and he would’ve had enough too. Now what was he going to do. Sure he had the smarts and skill to succeed at his trade, but if he continued to support Cambreaker’s agenda it was likely no one would hire him again.

“Hey kid, ovah here,” came a voice from behind him.

Blackjack had been so distracted by the thoughts running around his processor that he hadn’t noticed the suspicious looking stranger in a trench coat who had been following him. He turned now to face the stranger who had ducked into an alley. He walked toward the alley, wondering what this was all about. The stranger’s faceplate and body were hidden by the long coat and fedora that they wore low over their optics.

“Whaddya want?” he asked quietly.

“You look like someone who’s lookin’ to make some dough kid. And I just saw ya walk outtah that big investment firm so I can tell ya know a thing or two about numbahs. Ever hear of the Kaon fights?”

“Maybe, who’s askin’?” Blackjack replied stealthily.

“The name is Connerus and I happen to be a bookie for said operation. If you would be interested in placin’ a wager I could help set that up.”
“So what you’re sayin’ is you want me to participate in some illegal gamblin’ ring?”

“That’s the general idea, yes. Now tell me kid, are ya in or are you going to go home and think about it first, lose your edge,” Connerus knew that Blackjack was hooked.

“I’m in,” Blackjack replied with certainty. Taking these kinds of risks what was he lived for, “what do I gotta do?”

“Just gather up what you’re willin’ to put down as a wager and come to Kaon tonight. There’s a fight on then and if you’re there, I’ll find you.”

Blackjack nodded and stepped out from the alley. He turned to look back but Connerus had gone. This was getting interesting now, an invitation to the same ring that Cambreaker was investigating. Maybe he’d even get to see Magnatrun. He considered rushing to tell Cambreaker, but remembered that the Senate was in session that day. Then he considered telling Roulette but then realized that the diner would be packed this time of day. So without another thought to dissuade him, Blackjack headed to the nearest bank to withdraw the money he’d saved up for Roulette’s ring. It was all he had, but he would need to risk it all for the chance he’d been given.

When he arrived at the arena he found it was nothing like he’d imagined. This place made even the seediest parts of Iacon look like some park in the Crystal City. Kaon was certainly the grittiest and nastiest place he’d ever been. Somehow this didn’t bother him; in fact he felt that he blended in better here. Connerus had been true to his word and had found him shortly after he’d set foot in the underground. He’d handed over his wager and made a bet on the only ‘bot whose name he knew: Megatron. Connerus had stated that it was a wise choice; Megatron was favored to win by at least seventy percent of the commentators.

He couldn’t believe how different this place was than the city he had lived his life in. The more time he spent mingling with the crowd in Kaon, the more he understood how Cambreaker felt about this place. It was a place of poverty and sin where he witnessed things that would make any upstanding Iaconian’s fuel pump slow down a little. And yet being here, he felt alive. This was the sort of life he’d longed for. And yet what would Roulette say when she learned where he’d spent the day. Somehow he couldn’t see her being furious as much as concerned for his safety. Maybe those shooting lessons Kup had offered would be a good investment after all.

As he sat high in the stands and watched the fearsome Megatron lay the finishing blow on his latest triumph, Blackjack understood why Cambreaker cared about this place. It was a time bomb, just waiting for an opportunity to explode and consume all of Cybertron. The problem was that lugnuts like Gekotron were too short sighted to understand that such a place really existed. As he heard the words of Megatron’s victory speech, his processor filled with fear. Here was a truly dangerous Autobot, one who could change the very face of Cybertron.
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Post by Minerva »

Another great read! Keep up the good work! :)
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Post by Rhymus »

Nice work, Blackjack. i especially liked the way Blackjack kept messing up Megatron's name--the way it's kinda, "Oh yeah, I've heard of him," but the significance of just who Megatron is and what he's up to hasn't yet been driven home for Blackjack. i also liked the fusion cannon's retcon origin as a modified fusion cutter, and the fact that Megatron used a sword in the arena while his opponent uses a mace. i think either the original Megatron or the Microman Microchange pre-Megatron came with a sword, before anyone ever even thought about writing the Sherman Dam scene with Megatron using a mace; i like the way your story implies (did you do this on purpose?) that Megatron discarded the sword in favor of taking his opponent's mace as a trophy.

Couple questions: Are these in chronological order? The beginning of Chapter I seems like the end of Chapter III to me. Also, in the last sentence of Chapter III, does "Autobot" refer to Megatron? and is that an error, or is it meant to imply that all Transformers in the era Before The War were members of the Autobot "faction" (if you could call it a faction when there aren't any others)? (If you mean to imply that this story takes place before factions, perhaps you might replace the word "Autobot" in that sentence with something like "Transformer" or "Cybertronian" or "mechanoid"?)

One thing that bothered me at first was that each of these three chapters seems to have a beginning and a middle, but no ending. Now, though, i suspect (and sort of approve) you did that on purpose--these are prequels, after all, but moreover, you seem to have deliberately left each piece as a kind of short story which can stand on its own, while the open endings hint at the larger story into which the pieces fit. If that was indeed your intent, may i humbly suggest a tweak to Chapters I and III: In Chapter I, replace “We shall see. Now tell me. What of our interests in the senate, has there been any news?” with something like “We shall see. Now tell me the latest news about our interests in the senate...” and in Chapter III, replace As he heard the words of Megatron’s victory speech, his processor filled with fear. Here was a truly dangerous Autobot, one who could change the very face of Cybertron. with Here was a truly dangerous Autobot, one who could change the very face of Cybertron. As Blackjack heard the words of Megatron’s victory speech, his processor filled with fear. (i don't know how to justify those changes except that they sound more dramatic to me, like the emphasis shifts--from the "news?" to the "tell me..." and from the change to the fear.)

i am flattered and intrigued that you wanted to include Makeway in this project, and if that's still something that interests you, you have my permission. i will take it as a personal challenge to reconcile what you create with my own still-evolving hypotheses about Makeway's past--just don't deliberately try to make things difficult for me, all right? Also, for now i'd rather not have any of my characters romantically involved with anybody unless i'm the one writing it. If you write a Makeway chapter, you might or might not decide to use his friends Makewaves and Microwaves; i don't know what they transformed in the pre-Earth era of these prequels, but Makewaves's altmode should be comparable in size to the speedboat she will eventually become, and Microwaves's modern modes are a robot, a microwave oven, and Powermaster engine of a jetski Transtector... but he might have been scaled down later as part of a Dreamwave-type Micromaster power conservation movement, and in these earlier days he might have been larger. (i assume you won't be doing anything with the Junkions, since they presumably weren't known to the Cybertronians until during the war.) Anything else, feel free to ask, although i reserve the right not to answer. (Might be planning my own surprises for fanfic and/or RP.)

p.s.--This thread/series is "Who We Were (Before The War)". The "Emperor of Destruction" chapter can't be Galvatron, because he didn't exist until during the war--but who else could it be about?
One shall stand; one shall fall; and the one who stands shall help the one who falls to stand once again.
--Rhymus (also known as STARS Commando 539, also known as transit)
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Post by Time Traveller »

HINT: Go read my Cambreaker fic. Srsly. Blackjack and I love complimenting each other's fictional writings and imaginings.
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Post by Blackjack »

More questions I couldn't answer until after my 1,000th post.

As you've been made aware, most of the ideas for my first two chapters come from TT's Cambreaker fic (almost wrote Cambreaker's TT fic, lol). I don't remember if I made up the part about Megatron taking his opponent mace, but yes that was a shout out to the fact that G1 Megatron uses a mace against Optimus. It's also intended to show that Megatron likes to keep trophies of his conquests.

They are meant to be in chronological order. The gladitorial combat that Blackjack attends in Chapter 3 is not the same one that Cambreaker attends and that would in fact be the same day in which TT's Chapter 3 occurs. The point is that Blackjack is now acquainted with the brutality occuring in Kaon and the true ferocity of Megatron.

I have overlooked the fact that I called them all Autobots. It was meant to imply that they were all once one race, but perhaps a term like Cybertronian would be more correct. I'll go back and fix that, thanks for the catch. I also like your suggestions for how to add drama to the story, thanks.

The chapters are written like that to imply that there is a larger story being told. Along with TT's fic, I am attempting to paint a history of Cybertron before the current roleplay, not TF canon. The story is intended to be the story of these characters before the war, leading up to the war, and with some snippets during the war. All intended to show how they became the 'bots and 'cons they are today.

I was thinking of having the Makeway chapter be about him and Blackjack, but also his work as an engineer. It will be sort of parallell to the Dirge story about the construction of the Nemesis. I have no romance intended for Makeway, but I will want your feedback druing the writing process to make sure I am writing the character correctly.

Sorry to disappoint but the last chapter will be about Galvatron. Since it's not necessarily before the war, I may change the title of this fic.
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