IHQ Time: Tue Sep 24 22:49:26 2024

Nightsiege Spaceport

The spaceport is as pristine as the rest of the city, but it's here that you start getting your strongest indications of the sheer military presence that's housed in the Aerospace Headquarters to the north. The spaceport is divided into two distinct sections, as about a third of it is set aside for a small amount of civilian traffic and trade, and the rest is in constant motion as the patrols and strike-forces for the Decepticon Aerospace fleet scramble from one of the two landing strips. A huge stylized tower, dignified at worst and awe inspiring at best, rises over the landing strips, orchestrating all the traffic. Large hangars divide the spaceport physically. Positioned at all entrances to the spaceport are the best of the Decepticon's security troops, who, someday hope to ascend to the ranks of Aerospace.

Contents:

Autobot Shuttle <Alpha Trion>

Decepticon Advanced Troops #5848

Nightsiege Spaceport Hangars

Obvious exits:

Fly <Up> leads to Sky above Nightsiege.

North <N> leads to Outskirts of Imperial Headquarters.

East <E> leads to Courtyard.

Scrapper arrives from the Outskirts of Imperial Headquarters to the north.

Scrapper has arrived.

Long Haul folds in on himself and transforms into a dump truck.

It should shock no one that Long Haul is carrying supplies for the construction of the new war fleet to their appropriate locations, nor that he's grumbling about it. It should also shock no one that no one is paying much attention to this fact, nor even really noticing him at all, at least until he's needed. Supplies tend to be one of those things that only get noticed when they're not there. When regularly replenished, nobody thinks about the supply runner who gets the materials to their needed location. No, they might as well just appear by magic. This is one of those most thankless of jobs, the sort where good work goes unrecognized, while substandard work gets noticed, but only in the worst way.

Scrapper is a big picture guy, himself, and that big picture seems to be coming together rather nicely. Cybertron is theirs for the time being, they don't have to scrimp and lave just to keep the lights powered, and they'd got a nice war fleet to work on. What could be better? To a casual observer, Scrapper looks rather busy, hurrying to and fro. To someone who actually has an idea of what might be going on, it's actually the poor gumbies like Mosfet who are doing all the work. Scrapper is just supervising and informing them of how they're doing their jobs the wrong way. Again, what could be better?

Dump Truck <Long Haul> trundles along, focusing more on his final destination than his immediate location. While not /so/ oblivious as to actually run into and over anyone else, there are several close calls as he plows right through the paths of several folks, trusting that no one will be dumb enough to actually run into him. Thus it is that he rumbles directly across Scrapper's immediate path without bothering to notice this.

Scrapper may be busy telling other people what to do and musing about how wonderful the current situation is, but it's hard for him not to notice a bright green dump truck that's about to occupy the same point in space as he is. He swerves out of the way, sending a gumby scattering for cover. Scrapper waves his shovel, much as he might wave a fist in robot mode. He hollers, "Watch where you're driving! Or do you need your motion sensors recalibrated?"

"Watch where /I'm/ driving?" shouts back the dump truck. "Why don't you watch where /you're/ driving? I'm busy getting work done!" Something about his tone of voice insinuates that other people in the immediate vicinity are not actually doing that. He slows down a little to argue, although he keeps moving in the same general direction.

Scrapper looks just about as cross as a faceless piece of heavy machinery can. It's surprisingly cross. There's that impending sensation that one gets just before one is run over. The gumby that took cover previously continues hiding, wanting no part of this quarrel. Unluckily for him, Scrapper decides that said gumby must be the one not getting any work done and calls him out, "You there! Quit goofing off. There's important work to be done here." Then Scrapper turns back to Long Haul, all wounded dignity, and insists, "Long Haul, I am, indeed, working. If what I'm doing is too far above your shiny silver head, I'll be glad to explain it to you in smaller words at some more convenient time."

Dump Truck <Long Haul> manages to sound innocent. "Why, I didn't name any /names/, Scrapper. It sounds to /me/ like you've got a guilty conscious!" By now the dump truck has stopped its forward progress, instead turning slightly. After all, can't continue to argue about how he's the hardest worker if he's out of hearing range! The idea that perhaps continuing to work would prove his point for him doesn't even occur.

Scrapper looks around shiftily. Given that he's in payloader mode, this mean that he wiggles from side to side slightly. He says huffily, "Just didn't want you to get the wrong idea. To an untrained observer, managing," and he says that last word very slowly and clearly, "can look far easier than it is, but rest assured, I have it all well in shovel." Given his current form, he can't have it in hand, after all. "Now, what is this mythical work you're up to that lets you sit around and jabber?" Continuing with that dreadfully hard task of managing, Scrapper barks at Mosfet, "That wiring was supposed to be done yesterday!" Then, he returns his attention to Long Haul and 'hmms' meaningfully.

"What sort of stupid question is that?" demanded the dump truck. "What the Pitt am I /always/ doing? I'm haulin'! Or at least I was until you just about ran into me!" His fault for not watching where he was driving? Never!

"You should have watched where you were going. I had the right of way!" Scrapper snaps, equally unwilling to take the blame for the near-collision. Besides, he figures that he has the right of way by default, being the boss Construction and the only one with a pretty purple wing that comes out of nowhere when he wants to fly in contraction equipment mode. Fractionally calmer, Scrapper needles, "Stupid? It's a perfectly valid question. You can't be doing much hauling if you spend the entire time talking, can you? Unless perhaps you are trucking nonsense, and I'm sure I didn't requisition any of that."

"Right of way? RIGHT OF WAY? Just what planet do you think you're on? We're Decepticons! The person who has right of way is the one who's in a spot first, and /I/ was in /that/ spot first!" Long Haul doesn't even respond to the second accusation because really, he doesn't have a metaphorical leg to stand on, what with having more or less stopped work to argue with Scrapper. On the other hand, Scrapper has also stopped work to argue with him, so they're more or less even at this point.

"You are sadly deluded. I have the right of way because..." Scrapper pauses. Surely, Long Haul recognizes the awesomeness that is the big purple wing? "...because I have a big purple wing. Now get back to doing...whatever it is that you were doing." He glances over at what one of the gumbies is doing and drops his shovel to the ground in appalled horror. The payloader scoots over that way, chastising, "Nononono! You don't ground the full wave rectifier to the pilot's seat!"

Oh, of /course/ he had to rub the big purple wing in Long Haul's lack-of-face. Jerk! However, there was nothing more to be said about it, as Scrapper has moved his attention elsewhere, leaving Long Haul to continue along his original path, once more grumbling. This time about purple wings.