Vernoverse

[Verno]

Just been reading this thread after finally finishing uni myself.

This is fantastic! Love the references to past series, and the high-calibre story telling.

Cheers SP, the most important thing for me was to tie it as much as I could to that which already exists in Canon. It gives it 1. Credibility :P and 2. Characters and pieces of storylines that already exist.

What are you studying?

[Verno]

“Magmatron isn’t dead”, began Rampant, and Ravage’s optics widened. “He was carried from the battlefield, heavily wounded, so we can understand your, assumption, that your blaster fire had been lethal. But the fact remains that he survived, and has now acquired an improved form in the process”, Rampant stated, unsuccessfully hiding his frustration.

“However”, Seethe cut in, for which Ravage was relieved, “his temporary incapacitation served its purpose - we, the Tripredacus Council, are now the recognised leaders of the Predacon faction, and it is due in no small part to your actions.” Ravage remained silent.

“You have valuable skills, Ravage. We may be in use of them again in the future, so we have a proposal”, said Cinder, speaking for the first time. “We have signed a temporary armistice with the Autobots and Maximals. A full Peace accord is being drawn up as we speak - the contents of which will be unpleasant for we Predacons”, he continued. “We will have to forfeit many rights and forgo a number of privileges, but given the alternative now that they are capable of traversing Time, a continued existence is a favoured outcome”.

“But we refuse to capitulate in entirety. Our day to rise up once again will come, and when it does, it will be clean and swift”, said Rampant.

“But until then, we have much to achieve: quietly, and without raising suspicion - a talent you’ve proven to possess”, said Cinder.

“We can offer you pursuits that would satisfy a warrior such as yourself, and in return for your service, we will grant you much, starting with a technologically improved form, one much more fitting to your new role as our Agent”, said Seethe, studying the great black form before them in the Chamber.

“Victory will be ours, in time”, said Cinder. “So what do you say?”

[Verno]

In Cryotek’s office, the Stranger and the Trainer, Scutter, stand before Cryotek’s desk.

“Now, Gentlemen”, sighed Cryotek, “the matter seems to be straightforward: a bet was made, the fight commenced and a victor rose… But now we’re - here?”

“His fighter had upgraded since his last fight, got some of them eye lasers”, protested Scutter.

“Technical specifications were provided prior to the bout, and impressive specifications they are too”, said Cryotek, nodding his head to the Stranger who remained silent and still. “If you neglected to read them, Scutter, then that is of no fault of our quiet friend.”

“I swear it wasn’t in the techs. He musta forged them afterwards! I’d bet everything on that fight!”

Cryotek shook his head.

“Never bet more than you’re prepared to lose - that’s a very important lesson to have learnt. And as for the authenticity of the specs, we may never know. But I am a great advocate for self-improvement, especially in young Predacons. Therefore, I rule in favour of the defendant. You have two days to make the payment, or I will become, reinvolved”, said Cryotek with finality.

“Thank you”, said the Stranger, who turned to leave the chamber.

“Compliments to your fighter”, Cryotek called after him. Cryotek’s optics returned to the room and to the miserable little Predacon that remained in his presence.

“What now, Scutter?”

“You know who that is, don’t you?” he said, leaning on the front of Cryotek’s desk.

“Of course I do, it’s my business to know.”

“I’ve got an offer for you”, Scutter said quietly.

“And what could you possibly offer me?” said Cryotek, as he went about other business.

“I hear that you’re the ‘bot to talk to about organising… disappearances? Well, you make that piece of scum vanish and I’ll pay you double what I owed him”, whispered Scutter, but this hadn’t received the response we was after. “And give you a stake in my fighter - he’s only lost three times in his five fights!”

“Oh, impressive”, Cryotek said deridingly. “But am I to understand that you are attempting to solicit the assassination of a fellow Cybertronian? That’s an imprisonable offence.” Cryotek was talking too loudly for Scutter’s liking. “But how about this: I can facilitate your request by passing it on to certain, associates, and you will pay me four times the amount you owed.” Scutter knew he didn’t have that kind of money. “Oh, and you can keep full control of your pitiful combatant - the only fighter to have been defeated by being beaten unconscious with his own dismembered arm.”

“Eh, just forget it”, said Scutter, who knew he wouldn’t get what he wanted and made to leave.

“Forget it?” laughed Cryotek. Scutter stopped. “I’m not in the business of forgetting. So may I suggest that you take my offer, or I might be compelled to inform some of the upstanding Maximal Peace Marshals about your backroom weapons trading.”

“I got out of that years ago!” protested Scutter, sweating.

“I have information that says otherwise”, said Cryotek, in full control. “So, do we have an accord?”

Scutter nodded.

“You have a day to find the money, or the same associates that were to look for our mutual friend might arrive at your door.”

Scutter was screwed.

“Now, get out”, said Cryotek, dismissing the diminutive Predacon, who just five minutes before had been in a small bit of debt to old Warrior, but now found himself at the bottom of a huge pile of slag. He left the room with a look of utter horror on his faceplate.

“So, with his mentor suddenly out of the picture, who would I be not to step in and, help, the impressionable young Predacon, and become the new influence in his future”, gloated Cryotek, reclining in his chair and resting his feet upon the desk. “Oh, Cryotek, you are so very good.”

[Verno]

“The Decepticons are no more”, said Magnus, studying the two dark figures before him in the chamber. “But this war is far from over. The Predacons have thrown the rulebook out the window, so we’ve had to do the same.”

Rodimus spoke up. “As you’re both probably aware, some of your buddies are stupid enough to want to keep fighting and are now flying the Predacon banner. But when the Autobots win, and trust me, we will, ‘Cons like you will still have to answer for everything you’ve done during the course of the War. Bots like Megatron and Soundwave have got the easy way out.”

“I don’t like the idea of cutting deals with the enemy, but it’s come to out attention that Megatron had you both running errands behind Pred lines before the Hub assault” continued Magnus, who was enjoying Rodimus’ stern tone.

“If word of that reached Razorclaw, he’d be quite interested in finding both of you - so here’s the deal: You keep making those trips, but you’ll be reporting to us instead”, offered Rodimus, with no hint of kindness.

“And when it’s all over, your assistance in ending the War will be shown on your records, might even get you off some of the heavier charges”, added Magnus. “This is your chance to make amends. So, what do you say?”

Ravage and Laserbeak looked at each other, then silently agreed, nodding to their new Autobot allies.

[Verno]

The two Decepticons stood in the light in the centre of an enormous room, as a large, familiar form entered, arms outstretched. “Laserbeak, Ravage, old friends! Welcome to the Predacons!”, announced Razorclaw, with little warmth in his raspy voice.

“I was saddened to hear about Soundwave. He was a great warrior, his talents were wasted under Megatron though, whose insane plans cost too many their Sparks”, he said, twisting the knife in the back of his dead leader, to the cheers of the Predacon troops in the darkness surrounding them.

“Our forces, however, grow stronger by the day”, he continued, motioning to the hall full of Predacon combatants, eagerly grinning in the darkness, studying the two ancient warriors. “And are buoyed by recruits such as yourselves.” There were sniggers from the Predacons in the darkness. Ravage and Laserbeak felt uneasy in the spotlight.

“But sadly there is little time for reminiscing about the good old days, we must get down to business.” Razorclaw, produced a large blaster, and from point-blank range, blew a hole through the chest of Laserbeak, who crumbled lifeless to the floor. Raucous cheering exploded from the audience of Predacons. Ravage prepared himself for the pain, but it never came.

“I won’t suffer fools!”, boomed Razorclaw. “I learnt that from Megatron, though he changed his tune towards the end - desperation will do that to you”, continuing his rant against his old master. He stepped closer to Ravage.

“There have been whispers, Ravage, voices in my ear asking why you’ve come. A more loyal Decepticon could never have be found, Megatron’s favourite pet, yet here you stand, ready to serve a turncoat.” The room was silent.

“You have talents I can utilise, Ravage, but let Laserbeak’s smouldering wreck be a lesson to you - if your resolve wavers even for a moment, you’ll end up on the slag heap next to your comrade. Have I made myself clear?” Razorclaw was now face to face with Ravage. Ravage held his gaze.

“As I said before”, Razorclaw said as he turned and exited into the darkness, “Welcome to the Predacons.”

----

I hope you're all enjoying the opening stages of Spotlight: Ravage (3 of the 4 last posts, the one with Cryotek is from Spotlight: Dinobot). I'm open to comments about everything, but would be very interested in hearing from G1 fans about Laserbeak being used. I needed someone to get offed in the scene to set the tone, but is Laserbeak too beloved? Is there someone else people would rather see killed? They don't necessarily have to be a cassette.

[Verno]

“The famous Ravage…” said a voice. Ravage turned to see a large red Bot approaching. “Or should that be infamous. Stories of your endeavours are legend. My name is Magmatron, one of Razorclaw’s Generals…”

“One of, but certainly not the only, much to Razorclaw’s relief I’m sure”, a cold voice said. Ravage and Magmatron were joined by three dark, imposing figures. “I am General Seethe, these are Generals Rampant and Cinder. I’m sure you’ve heard tell of us - the Tripredacus Brotherhood.”

“Their reputation for tactics precedes them. That for their courage is yet to be found”, said Magmatron, with a smile in the corner of his mouth, making no attempt to hide the bite of the cutting remark.

“Your addition to the ranks will only boost the fearsome prestige the Predacons enjoy” Cinder added, apparently unaffected by Magmatron’s jibe.

“Hmph”, said Magmatron with derision. “It’ll soon be clear to our honoured recruit who’s earned their ‘prestige’, and who stole it after the efforts of others.” The distrust between the Generals, Ravage thought, was clearer than anything at present. He was sure the Autobots would be interested in this.

“If you wish to discuss leadership styles, then we would be glad to oblige you, at another time”, said Seethe, dismissingly. All traces of Magmatron’s earlier smirk were gone. “Now, however, we have more pressing matters to cover with our new compatriot.”

Magmatron knew the conversation was over, and turned back to Ravage. “It was a pleasure to meet such a formidable warrior. It’s an honour to serve beside you.” Magmatron turned and walked away without so much as a look towards the three Generals.

The Brothers watched him leave, before ushering Ravage to accompany them. “Come, Ravage, we have much to discuss.”

[Verno]

As the four figures continued down the corridor, Cinder began the conversation. “You will have to excuse Magmatron. He is eager to please and prove himself to anyone willing to listen, even one as new to our ranks as yourself.”

“His position has come through nothing but chance and stupidity - pay him no heed”, spat Rampant, clearly a Predacon of few words, but all of them spiteful.

“Razorclaw has informed us that we are to be your commanding officers. We are delighted to have been chosen, and are certain that we’ll make full use of your highly respected talents in espionage”, said Cinder, as they reached the entrance to a chamber, and ushered Ravage in.

“As Magmatron curtly alluded, we advise Razorclaw on matters of tactics and strategy.” The three Generals took positions behind a large console, Ravage on the other side of it. The door closed and locked with finality.

“We also monitor the intelligence gathering, intercepting Autobot and Maximal communications, something we’ve been successful with up until this point, but your addition to the fold will improve our abilities in this area to no end”, said Seethe, staring from behind the console.

“Given the amount of information we intercept, both foreign and friendly, we have also become an unofficial force for policing our own troops, weeding out disloyalty”, added Cinder. Ravage suddenly realised just how trapped he was.

“So as you can see, we wield considerable power and influence in this young faction”, ended Cinder.

“We’re under no illusions as to why you’re here”, said Rampant, coldly. Ravage was ready to fight his way out if need be, but didn’t give anything away. “With Soundwave and Megatron dead, you suddenly find yourself without a strong leader to stand behind.” More talking isn’t what Ravage was expecting from Rampant.

“You’re not a coward; you simply have no aspirations higher than post. You’re a soldier, you live to serve your faction.” Seethe’s words weren’t calming his circuits just yet. “We are no different”, he continued. “Our aim is to strengthen the Predacon Army in every capacity we can.”

“We want you to kill Magmatron.”

Silence greeted Rampant’s words. “He is reckless, brash, naïve and foolish, and breeds such poor qualities in the troops he commands”, spat Rampant. Ravage couldn’t believe what he was hearing. These Predacons would put Starscream to shame.

“For the Predacon leadership to stay strong, we can’t put our hopes in stray blaster fire to see out our wishes”, said Cinder, rejoining the discussion. “For the good of the Predacon cause, it must be a precise strike, one that finds its mark with full lethality.”

“In order for our path to be clear and the future to remain bright, Magmatron must be removed”, pressed Seethe. “Your skills for this task are second to none, and you’ve witnessed firsthand what an unstable leadership can do to a side.”

“We’ll give you time to consider your answer, but we know you’ll make the right decision”, added Cinder, “for the good of the Predacon cause.”

[Verno]

In an Autobot Command room, sits two Autobots - a red one and a yellow one.

“Have you read Ravage’s report?” asked Rodimus, throwing the tablet containing the report over the desk.

“He’s good, very detailed”, replied Bumblebee.

“Oh yeah, infighting amongst the Generals - who would have thought”, replied Rodimus, mocking the reports contents.

“Joke all you like, but if the report is accurate, and the leadership is that fragile, it lends itself to implosion”, said Magnus, returning from another meeting with a worried expression. “Razorclaw has shown himself to rule with an iron fist.”

“Yeah”, Bumblebee chimed in, “I mean, Laserbeak wasn’t just some Protoform off the shelf, he was an experienced warrior, and he killed him, just like that.”

“If Razorclaw could be removed…” began Magnus.

“Because killing him has been so easy to do before now”, said Rodimus, cutting him off.

“We didn’t have a man on the inside before now”, said Magnus, his mind somewhere else.

“Ravage?” questioned Rodimus.

“If he can get close enough...” said Magnus, only to be cut off by Rodimus, again.

“He’d be scrap before getting out of their compound.”

“Then we offer him protection”, said Magnus, now with anger in his voice.

“Protection? For a Decepticon?” asked Rodimus, not backing down from his objection.

“We’ve got to offer him something”, said Bumblebee, trying to ease the situation.

“A job that big carries an equally big price tag”, said Magnus, who didn’t like the idea of making a deal with Ravage in the first place, but knew there was nothing else to be done.

“How big?” said Rodimus.

“Amnesty”, said a commanding voice in the doorway. There, back on his own two feet for the first time in far too long, stood…

“Optimus”, Bumblebee said, delighted to see his leader back in the land of the living. All communication with Prime for the recent past had been done through his core consciousness. But there was something in his voice that gave confidence. Rodimus was also glad to see him, but continued his opposition to the idea.

“You can’t be serious, Prime.”

“Razorclaw’s Armada is headed for Cybertron.” Everyone fell silent. “We’ve lost communication with several Maximal outposts.”

“How long do we have?” asked Rodimus, now understanding Magnus’ worried expression.

“A week, at best.”

“We won’t be ready!” exclaimed Bumblebee.

“When have we ever been, old friend?” said Optimus, his voice strong and resolute. “If Ravage can stop Razorclaw, then we owe him his freedom.”

“You’re putting all your hopes of victory in a Decepticon?” queried Rodimus.

“In the spark of an enemy, there will be salvation, and in the darkest hour, there will be a light”, said Prime, reciting the Covenant, for which Rodimus had never held much stead.

“There’s got to be something else. What about the ship?”

Prime shook his head. “The scientists are still gun-shy after their last test, and progress has been slow since Csirac was killed.”

“You don’t know that he’s dead”, said Bumblebee with hope. “Maybe they’ve kidnapped him, trying to get him to help them.”

“As the Maximal say”, Rodimus interjected, “Better dead than Pred.”

“I would never wish harm to a fellow Autobot, but given his knowledge of our technology, I hope you’re right”, said Prime.

[Hursticon]

Verno, this is seriously excellent stuff and I think that your recent focus on tackling your narrative in a Spotlight by spotlight way is a wise and efficient approach too dude - I'm loving Spotlight: Ravage at the moment!

There is so much possibility here and I'm really enjoying your brush strokes; A character like Ravage (in this situation he presently finds himself), who's personality is basically founded on unwavering loyalty, would really be immeasurably torn IMO as he's never been faced with such a core character challenge like this.
Being that there are such high stakes and being uncontrollably forced to combat the question of allegiance, between 4 different parties no less - each with their own pros/cons and baggage, I believe make for quite a through-&-through G1 story of Spotlight: Ravage really.

With the backdrop of that era coming to a close, it makes this particular story all the more engaging.

...

Honestly man I think you're doing too good of a job really for me to suggest anything you could change or do differently, as I just keep coming up with nothing but praise

I think the best suggestion I could possibly give at this moment would be that you should definitely continue your candid use of G1 fan favourite characters and remain steadfast in their treatment, don't be afraid to take them to task with both grand and pointless deaths either as that is a core facet to the success of LSOTW.

Remember, there is a reason why the Autobot and Decepticon brands are 'retired' by the new Cybertronian casts; give them reasons to be laid to rest.


P.S. The manner of death Laserbeak faces really drives home the regime change but also illustrates the bold decisions you're willing to tackle - I like this.
P.S.S. I'm also looking forward to seeing how the Maximal group begin to rise to the decision making level akin to that of Rodimus, Magnus & Prime, I think the hand over will be quite a curious subject to tackle and you're damn capable of the challenge dude.

[Verno]

In an Autobot Command Room:

[Many subgroups have made their home within the Predacon ranks, perhaps most interestingly of all are the Voidists, who seem to have assumed a role as personal bodyguards for the Tripredacus Brotherhood. The Voidists escort them everywhere and follow their every command, without question. This has only added to the Brotherhood’s aura of intrigue, as no one seems to know a definitive story of their origins - it’s as if the Brothers just appeared on the battlefield. So for them to be obeyed by…]

“What?!” said Rodimus, reading the section of Ravage’s report again. “These ‘Voidists’ are… Unicron Worshippers?” he asked.

“So he says”, replied Magnus, watching the door.

“Does he mean Sweeps?” Rodimus questioned, scanning the report further.

“I don’t think so. Prime was confident he took out the last of them with Galvatron”, Magnus answered, still preoccupied.

“So these freaks are following the Brothers around? Like they’re some kind of Unicron spawn?”

“We’ve seen Cultists before - they’re all nuts, and it’s been pretty quiet on the Unicron front since 2005, if you excuse Galvatron of course. So if the Brothers have spun them a story that they’re somehow of his making, then the Cultists would probably jump in front of blaster fire for them.”

“Must be a hell of a story”, said Rodimus, returning to the report, but he was interrupted by the arrival of several Maximals in the doorway, dwarfed by Optimus Prime behind them. The meeting to organise the defence of Cybertron against the Predacon Armada would soon begin.

Rodimus knew better than to doubt the Maximals abilities on the battlefield. Though smaller in size, they’d proven themselves worthy warriors against the Decepticons. Although the name was originally adopted by Earth-bound Autobots, the term ‘Maximal’ was soon adopted by all off-world Autobot forces. When the Predacons announced their separation from the Decepticons by destroying Earth, the Maximals (though still Autobots) became a force unto themselves to battle the Predacon threat.

The leaders took seats around the table.

“Welcome friends”, said Prime, bringing the meeting to order. “The future is rapidly approaching and soon the blasters will fall silent. This War has stretched for millennia, and its cost has been far too great, but I think we all sense that it is coming to an end. Let us make sure that those that have gone before us have no died in vain.”