Adjustments by Firestorm
Summary: The Decepticons react to the recent events.
Categories: Robots In Disguise Characters: None
Genre: Drama
Location: Library
Challenges:
Series: None
Chapters: 1 Completed: Yes Word count: 1168 Read: 655 Published: 01/09/05 Updated: 23/11/05

1. Adjustments Robots in Disguise: Conquest pt. 73 by Firestorm

Adjustments Robots in Disguise: Conquest pt. 73 by Firestorm
The boat captain smiled. Thus far, the trip was going as normal - a load of legitimate cargo going from Japan to the Phillippines, and on the return trip whatever the drug of choice was among the youth of Japan smuggled in among legit cargo. He had already dropped off his legit cargo - this time six crates
marked as "train parts" - and was now on his way back with enough of a cash value in goods to buy his own railroad.

He was distracted from his musings by the sound of a helicopter in the area. Although he didn't make out what type it was, it was clearly dropping bouys of some time. In anger, he called over his first mate to see if they had blundered into a military practice zone. When he learned that they were still on
course, his anger turned to fear.

He ordered the crew to take evasive action, but it was already too late. A pair of fighter jets swooped down, with one on either side of the boat. They were trapped, and he knew it. By the time the remaining three craft swooped in to complete the box, everyone on board had already surrendered.

*****

"I have some interesting news coming in," John said as he walked into Adam's office. "It would appear that the Ukraine, Georgia, Uzbekistan, and Kyrgistan have all just put into place either by election or revolution a democratic form of government."

"And?" Adam replied as he continued to read some reports.

"All four nations will be allied with the Earth Defense Forces, with agreements to make certain reforms in addition to democratization." John paused. "But I'm betting this doesn't surprise you in the least, right?"

"Nope."

"We really do have ourselves an incredible spy network, don't we?"

"Yep."

"Anyway, Yemen has chosen to side with PEACE, but then we were expecting that as well. Also, the water drop in South Sudan has gone off without a problem."

"Good. And the package?"

"Agent Hitch's new uniform has been completed and delivered."

"Excellent. Has he had a chance to test it yet?"

"Not yet; he's currently taking some personal time."

"Understood."

John paused. "So the question of the day is this: we're still winning, right?"

"That depends upon how you look at the matter. Galvatron and those who broke out with him are still loose, and there's a number of Decepticons and Predacons whose bodies we haven't accounted for. Given that the ones that have shown up appear to be new, I'm wondering if the missing ones haven't simply been re-built. In that regards, we have some problems. Thing is, the Predacons and Decepticons are currently operating so far underground that their attacks are coming with nowheres near the frequency that they once did. They've only tried a handful of direct assaults, and in all instances they've failed. I'm
thinking that they'll have to start probing and ambushing if they keep taking losses like they have been." He paused. "Then there's the human element to consider. Yes, PEACE now controls one point of entry to the Red Sea. But only geographically. They have limited air power in the region, and their naval capacity
is a joke; if needs be, a carrier battle group could probably open it up again. The only way for them to truly secure it would be to mine it, and that's going to hurt all parties involved. And even though they have Morrocco, the Medditeranean is still ours thanks to Gibralter, Melila, and Cuenta. If they wanted to
do anything navally in either location, they'd need China's support; the failure that our intel now calls Split-Break robbed them of precious sea and air lift capacity, so that's not going to happen any time soon. They may have numbers and some oil money, but that's all they really have. Even the NRF is starting to surpass them in the tech curve."

"So you're thinking?"

"In regards to attrition, we're winning. PEACE has taken far more casualties than we or the NRF have, and in the process lost precious equipment that they couldn't afford to lose. In regards to naval power, we're also winning. PEACE doesn't have the sea lift capability to launch a naval-based invasion, and the NRF is behind us in the tech curve. Overall technology base is also ours, as we've been able to integrate Cybertronian technology at a faster pace than anyone else."

"Just wanted to know."

*****

Daft scowled as he saw the footage. "This was within the past twenty-four hours, correct?"

"Outlaw assured me so," Octran replied.

"If this is legitimate, it is very serious indeed."

"What do you propose?"

"Although this video right here would be enough to begin to interrogate Mastermind, the truth is that we can't do one damn thing."

Octran paused. "What do you mean?"

"Quite simply, we need him too much. Thanks to the presence of Pritchard Yao and the damage he has done to our intelligence networks in the region, he's left a wide opening in our security. Quite simply, we're having to export the micro master production facilities to Chechnya."

"All because of one man?"

"The only difference between McIntyre and Yao is that Yao has the luxury of not being in the public eye. In other words, he can do as he pleases. Plus, he most likely has the backing of the EDF in some fashion. Even with as far behind in production as we already are, moving the factories will
ultimately be simpler and easier than attempting to hunt him down. And until such time as the factories are operational, we need Mastermind and his production capabilities." He took a breath. "The human term would be 'better the Devil you know.'"

*****

Galvatron sat down in Mo-Vor's cargo bay. Unlike Rollbar, Armorhide, and Ro-Tor, he was too big to attempt to sit in the crew compartment. This left him with Scourge, Mega-Octane, and the Seacons squaring off for space in the cramped area. None of them could fully lie down; they'd have to settle for leaning against one wall or the other.

He looked around to discover that he was the only one still conscious. Uneasily, he began to slowly power down his systems. As much as he hated the plan, he knew that it was the only way. He just hoped nothing would go wrong.

*****

Ivan read the notice for the eigth time, still unable to believe it. The government had decided to construct yet another launch base, this time near Vladivostok. He crumpled the paper and silently cursed. Although it made sense in regards to its location on the planet to the equator, the area was far too
dangerous. Both the Earth Defense Forces and PEACE were dangerously close to the city; a large enough push would easily result in the launch base falling into their hands. On top of this, the construction was to begin immediately, and he was to oversee the first three months of it; in the process, it would pull him away from the development program for their own transtectors. He had no idea what the leadership was thinking; just that he didn't like it one bit.
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