Epoch, an aside
Tumult
Joshin Yasha (joshinyasha@yahoo.com)
The gigantic asteroid drifted effortlessly and aimlessly through space. Within it, there lay the dormant Cenotaph for three-hundred stellar cycles. Inside the neighbouring shuttle, Taciturn continued to pilot the vessel alongside the asteroid until it enveloped the entire view of the monitors. Behind Taciturn, Misery and Stricture stood side by side, his right hand stretching across his stomach to stroke her right gauntlet, while his left hand intertwined fingers with hers. Further behind them, Ultimatum and Nainsook sat on opposite sides of the bridge, watching the three Decepticons. For the moment, Nainsook was fixated upon Stricture's possessive action, but refused to voice his anger due to Misery's dismissive response to the gold, silver, and blue Decepticon. "Tass, do you remember where you put the door or are we gonna continue to fly circles around this asteroid?"
"Patience," Taciturn gyrated his expressionless helm towards his wing-mate and captain, lips never moving as he spoke, "I was charged with hiding it, and I know exactly where it is to be found." He turned back to face the monitors, and by flexing his dactyls in what would seem a random pattern, he began to command the shuttle via telemetry. Three hundred years ago, Misery had charged him with the task of hiding the Cenotaph, one of the last remaining Decepticon warships, from the Maximal High Council and the Tripredacus Council. For all intensive purposes, the two-point-six mile long ship had been hidden in the most remote location Taciturn could think of at the time, and had since stayed cloaked and dormant. "Found it," he announced to the other four.
Misery broke her hand free from Stricture and stepped forward, leaning over the controls and tilting her helm. "Open it."
Nainsook and Ultimatum climbed to their feet, watching closely as Taciturn relayed a signal into the asteroid. Within moments, the asteroid began to break away into smaller clumps and float away, leaving behind empty space. To the untrained eye, the empty space was all that remained, but to their personal scanners, Nainsook and Ultimatum began to marvel at the Decepticon warship as it slowly revealed itself. "I've never seen a ship that big," Nainsook whispered.
It was Ultimatum who spoke next, "I have. During the Great War the Decepticon flagships were this large. Some of them larger, some of them smaller. If I remember correctly, the Nemesis was this this big."
"No," Stricture was suddenly behind and between the two, arms around the shoulders of both to draw them close, "the Nemesis was slightly smaller than the Cenotaph. It was built for speed and maneuverability, whereas the Cenotaph . . . well, the Cenotaph was built for firepower as you can see." Stricture indicated to the many dormant canons that lined the ship. "It's a planet scorcher. One of two hundred commissioned under the His Grand High Lord, the Emperor of Destruction himself, Megatron."
"Hail Mighty Megatron," Misery and Taciturn said in unison.
Nainsook and Ultimatum glanced awkwardly at the three, then Nainsook asked, "Do ya have to do that every time you say his name?"
"Or rather, did he really need that long of a damn title?" Ultimatum inquired.
"Yes," the three Decepticons answered.
"We're in," Taciturn suddenly announced, and signaled once more to ship so that the docking bay opened to allow them entrance. He sent a command into the ship's computer and began to navigate the shuttle into the docking bay. There was a time, he remembered, that the Cenotaph's bay had been filled with with the larger forms of Misery's squadron, preparing for battle, but now it was an empty tomb devoid of former glories.
After the shuttle had docked and the bay doors closed, the five Cybertronians had stepped down to the bay floor, and the three Decepticons knelt with their arms wide and fingers barely touching the floor. "What are they doing?" Nainsook breathed to the ex-Autobot.
"It's a very ancient tradition. I've never personally seen it, but it's been talked about by raid survivors." Ultimatum nodded his helm towards the three, "The Decepticons will praise the glory of Megatron and his cause by showing respect to anything left of his."
"Now we enter these hallowed halls - conquerors," Misery, Taciturn, and Stricture barely moved their lips as they spoke, bowing their heads and closing their eyes in respect. "In the memory of Megatron. For the glory of the Decepticons. For the rightful Cybertron that is ours." The three stood, peered down the nearest hallway, and began to walk forward.
"Come along," Misery glanced over her shoulder, and indicated for the two to follow. Nainsook and Ultimatum gave one another an awkward glance, still unsure of what to make of one another following the previous night's events. They followed regardless, and by the time they had caught up in pace to the three, they were all within the giant bridge. It had been built for Decepticon bodies, but it was evident the controls had been rescaled for their smaller forms. "Allow me the honour of introductions," Misery turned on her heels, faced the ex-Autobot and the Maximal, "welcome to the Cenotaph."
They were silent, watching as Taciturn typed in a sequence on the data pad, which activated a pod that lowered from the ceiling. Once it touched ground, the red and black Decepticon opened the transparent lid and climbed in, situating himself in the comforts of the pod. "Whenever you're ready, Misery."
She nodded in affirmation, "Let it be done." Misery climbed the steps to the captain's chair, took her seat, and crossed her legs. Stricture teleported next to Misery, took his place on her right hand side, and grinned to the Autobot and Maximal. His smile had been playful, but the grimace the Maximal returned to him said jealousy. Jealousy Stricture could play well with, as it always reassured him of his vanity. Nainsook would just have to learn the hard way how to play the game, he mused.
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