Project Excalibur: Dishonored Knight

By Matt "Talon" Kirkby


    "There it is!" Dirge radioed to his comrades as the sprawling factory complex came into sight below them...just like Soundwave had reported from the various communications he had intercepted earlier. "Let's level it!"
    "Sounds like fun," Skywarp replied.
    On the ground, Human soldiers ran to their posts and numerous anti-aircraft batteries blazed to life, throwing streams of bullets at the two Decepticon jets.
    "How sweet, they want to play." Skywarp giggled. "I hope they like playing by Decepticon rules!" He primed two of his heat-seeking missiles.
    "Like we have any rules!" Dirge chuckled as he armed his own weaponry.
    The Decepticons' first pass left several batteries disabled and a warehouse in flaming rubble.
    Surviving defenders doubled their efforts to shoot them down. Surface-to-air missiles began to streak skyward.
    As bullets closed on him, Skywarp teleported to a point close to the ground. Barely high enough to skim over the cars in the parking lot, Skywarp fired continuously at anything which even remotely resembled a target. Cars and trucks exploded as he passed, sparking off fierce chain reactions, and building windows as they continued their chase. The factory was already dozens of kilometres behind them now and their target was weaving all over the sky, doubling back, and then diving low to the ground before climbing back high above the clouds before diving again..."You'd almost think Wildrider was controlling that body!" he chuckled.
    "Perhaps he is," Face replied calmly. "Given the way these Humans operate—added to the fact that the Stunticons have all recently vanished—well, anything is possible."
    "Yeah, well I--"
    "Stow it!" Dirge snapped. "We've got incoming on radar!"
    "What are they?" Skywarp demanded. The incoming ships were some type of fightercraft...though looking far more advanced than anything the Humans had yet fielded. "Hey, look out!" Skywarp teleported away as the three fighters opened fire with laser cannon—two mounted on each wing.
    "Counter-attack! Evasive pattern star-wheel." Altering his course, Face returned fire, damaging one fighter, though not destroying it. Their fuselages gleamed silver, lacking any kind of markings. "I have a really bad feeling about this."
    Talon heard the explosions, and the sound snapped his two minds into a temporary truce. Sharing information between both partners at—literally—the speed of thought, the new HeadMaster swung around and accelerated towards the erupting dogfight.
    Knowing that the Humans had nothing like those fighters in their arsenal, and because two of the jets fighting against them were of recognizable Human designs—though bearing Decepticon insignias—he targeted one fighter that already looked damaged. His turret-mounted laser cannon fired and the fighter's engine exploded.
    "Good shot," one of the other Jets radioed as it finished off the damaged fighter with a missile.
    The two remaining fighters fired their own energy missiles at the Human-designed craft...ending any lingering doubts Talon had about the allegiances of those fighters.
    Dirge narrowly avoided one missile, forced to break off his attack run as the fighter's cannons began tracking him. Several laser bolts narrowly missed him.
    Skywarp vanished from sight and just as suddenly appeared directly over the rightmost fighter and he raked it with fire. Then, as suddenly as he had appeared, he vanished again.
    Flying rather calmly through the dogfight, Face maneuvered himself to flank Talon, and then both jets salvoed their combined firepower against the lefthand fighter. Its cockpit a flaming ruin, the fighter plunged downward until it slammed into the ground and exploded.
    The last fighter turned to escape, and the three Decepticons ganged up on it. Their combined firepower quickly tore it apart.
    Talon, meanwhile, turned away and once again headed west.
    "Hey!" Dirge protested. "He's running again!"
    "After him!" Skywarp snapped.
    "We need to have a little talk," Face radioed as he and his comrades caught up to the jet they'd had been chasing. "Let us speak, stranger. On the ground, I think, would be best." His fellow Decepticons had surrounded the jet, boxing it in, and their targeting systems were locked on, "Relax, and do as you told. We have no desire to destroy you." The implication hung in the air. He began reducing altitude. Talon had no choice but to comply.
    After they had all transformed to their respective humanoid forms and landed in a cornfield—the local farmer had taken one look at the incoming aircraft and abandoned his tractor to flee into a nearby copse of trees—Talon eyed his apparent captors with a mixture of nervousness and arrogance.
    "I said it was one of those Human things!" Dirge sneered, half-raising his arm-mounted weaponry. "We should slag this little abomination right now!"
    "You need not be hasty," Face countered in a soothing voice, "He could be useful to us." He smiled politely at Talon, though his optic visor hid most of his expression. "Who are you?" he asked softly, insistently. "I am called Face." He gestured. "These two are Skywarp and Dirge."
    "My name is Whis—our name is..." He broke off and shook his head. After a moment, the mystery Transformer replied: "My name is Talon."
    Dirge snickered, "He doesn't even know his own name!"
    "Are you with the Humans?" Face asked, ignoring his comrade. "One of their...what are they, oh yes! Are you one of the Iron Guard?"
    "Hardly," Talon replied scornfully.
    "Of course, my mistake. The Guards are far more primitive in design than you." Face studied the TransFormer standing before him. "Might you be a Steel Shield then? One of Shockwave's old toys now turned against us?"
    "I am not part of any Earth military. Nor am I some mindless shell being animated by a Human. I am my own master." His blue optics flared slightly, and he paused, as if coming to some inner decision. "I am a survivor from Autobot City," which was mostly the truth, "and I have no desire to be killed in this war," which was the full truth, "so I left."
    "Excellent. I like someone with half a cerebro cortex." Face seemed to glance at his comrades who watched the interrogation with disgruntled expressions. "I believe that you can be of much use to us, Talon, yes I do think so." Of course, Megatron would be a challenge, but with the right choice of words, perhaps he could persuade the Commander of Talon's value.
    "Now wait a second!" Talon protested, even as Skywarp and Dirge opened their own mouths. "I'm not getting involved with you guys either!" Whisper exerted his own personality and his voice became more distinct: "I've already fought for the Decepticons once...and got myself blown into scrap by the Autobots while doing it!"
    Face nodded. "You seam to have recovered nicely, Whisper.
    And gotten yourself a much nicer body too, I might add." He smirked at Talon's startled expression and half-formed denial. "And, after all, it is not like you have much choice in this matter." He shrugged. "The Autobots are all but destroyed, the Human militaries are weak and cannot repel our power for long. And then what?" He gave Talon a moment to let it sink in. "We Decepticons will be ruling this world very shortly." Mysterious fightercraft notwithstanding. "Unless you wish to try joining up with the Disciples currently besieging Asia, I suggest that you join us. The best warrior cannot: stave off a tide of his enemies ...and if you are not one of us, then you are our enemy." He shrugged again. "How long will you last? Days? Hours?"
    "I—" Talon began tentatively,
    "Know that these Disciples do not make allies, nor do they take prisoners. My Decepticon brethren will not offer you an alliance either—pride and stupidity will not permit it." Face's voice took on a more urgent tone. "Accept, and you will have salvation and opportunities for so much more!"
    Talon stared at him.
    "Even if he was once one of us," Skywarp protested, "he's not now. Who knows what devious tricks the Humans have programmed into him!"
    "Yeah," Dirge agreed. "We should just slag him now and put him out of his misery," ha sneered, raising his arm-gun.
    Face stared at his fellow Decepticons. "Talon is no danger to us," he said softly, his visor glowing lightly. "He is an asset. You fears are not valid concerns."
    "No, they're not valid concerns," Dirge agreed softly.
    "We need loyal warriors," Face continued, still staring at his comrades. "This Talon could prove to be a potent weapon," He pitched his voice soft, yet insistent.
    "A potent weapon," Skywarp echoed.
    "He must be taken to Megatron, and offered the chance to join our ranks, yes?"
    "Yes."
    "Well then," Face turned back to stare at Talon. "Shall we get going?" he prompted, "Megatron is a busy mechanoid and I do not wish to keep him waiting."
    "Who are you?" Talon demanded,
    "Face," replied the Decepticon with a hint of a smile around his mouth. "Transform!"
    Talon stared back at Face for a long time before obeying.