EVERYONE HATES TIME TRAVEL PART ONE

[capitalm]

Who: Anybody stepping out of the TIME HOLE into present-day LA, anybody who wants to witness this going down – or to intervene
Where: Downtown LA
When: August 2nd (now!)
What: A bunch of time travellers arrive in the present to try to fix their dystopian future. See here for more details!
Warnings: time travel. everyone hates time travel.

It's late at night when the portal opens, an undulating patch of wrongness hanging in the warm summer air just a few inches above the street, bordered by shimmering multicoloured light.

A car swerves to avoid it. There's a scream or two, and people start to clear the area, eager to put some distance between themselves and the potential scene of some kind of Incident – others stay put, cell phone cameras at the ready.

If anything, though, when people start to step out of the portal, the onlookers calm down a little – this is, at least, not going to be another dinosaur incident. Cameras flash anyway. Another person screams, presumably because they're just on a roll with screaming at this point.

More than one person has called the Alpha Force hotline by now – but they might well not be the first heroes to arrive on the scene...


______________________
Everyone is cordially encouraged to make multiple threads here for either time-travellers, present-day people, or both. Feel free to NPC passersby etc. as well!
Remember that villains from the future who are following the good guys through are probably going to come through at a slight delay.

Comments

FOR MEGATRON & STARSCREAM

[deadpartners]

Solus needs to speak to Optimus -- it's his help they'll need most of all, she thinks, if only to rally the troops -- but he'll know she's coming, provided Drift and Rodimus tell him. But right now she has a more pressing concern, even more than talking to Optimus. They don't know where Wyoming is coming from, or when he'll arrive -- the resistance's information is limited to everyone's memory of that day, those of them that do remember, and there's only so much they can divine. They're prepared to defend Celestia at the opening ceremony if needed, but if they can somehow derail him sooner and prevent the entire thing...well, that'd be preferable.

So she's scouting out the area around the city, securing the perimeter in the hopes she'll see any trace of Wyoming, anything to give away where he must be hiding out. Solus drives around in her alt mode -- no longer the sporty motorcycle from her past life, her vehicle mode is now a compact but nonetheless formidable-looking armored vehicle whose tires churn through the sand with ease.

[bigfuckinggun]

The Decepticons have been keeping an eye on her signature since it came through the portal. In the middle of the city, it was far too crowded to seriously investigate – but here, now, it's all too easy.

She'll probably detect them coming before they land, but there's only so much she can do before Megatron's ridiculous feet are throwing up sand right in front of her.

"Good evening, Autobot," he says as he straightens up, grinning like a panther. "What brings you here, I wonder?"

[starscheme]

Naturally, Starscream is right behind him, though his landing is considerably more dainty in nature. With a much lighter thud he touches down to Megatron's left and puts on his best 'menacing lackey' face, cycling out his blasters and flaring his wings dramatically.

He appraises the vehicle through narrowed optics but keeps his mouth shut. For now.

[deadpartners]

Solus comes to a stop as Megatron and Starscream descend, not quite skidding but kicking up sand anyway, and she transforms right away, rising to her not-very-impressive height of ten feet, but the giant fucking hammer strapped to her back helps. Where was the forge when she was in vehicle mode? I don't fucking know, don't think too hard about it

She looks up at the two of them, her optics shifting from Megatron to Starscraem, seeming strangely unintimidated by them. She certainly doesn't back down from their menacing stares. Kind of hard to be too threatened by them right this moment when what's become of them in the future is fresh in her memory. The fact that she stands a much better chance of measuring up to Megatron in a fight these days doesn't hurt.

"My mission has nothing to do with you," she intones, her gaze shifting back to Megatron. "I'm not interested in a confrontation."

[bigfuckinggun]

"Ah, but I am," says Megatron, his unpleasant smile diminishing slightly. He really doesn't like how unintimidated this Autobot is. "What is your mission, hmm?"

[starscheme]

"Lord Megatron asked you a question," Starscream snaps a tad overzealously, without allowing Solus any time to actually answer. He jabs towards her with his blaster threateningly. "I don't recommend making him ask a third time."

[deadpartners]

Solus levels a look up at Starscream that could best be descibed as unimpressed and turns back to Megatron.

"My mission is to keep the future of this planet from being plunged into complete and total devastation," she says, and she raises a robot eyebrow at him. "And this may surprise you, Megatron, but your own fate is tied to the future of this planet as well, and what the future holds for you now is...grave. So of all the courses of action you might take here, I don't recommend standing in my way. But if you insist on it..."

Solus hefts the Forge from her back in one hand, resting the butt of the shaft in the sand as she looks up at Megatron expectantly. She'd really rather not take both of them on in a fight right now, but if Megatron wants a fight he'll get one either way. She might as well be prepared for it.

[bigfuckinggun]

Thank you, Starscream. Good to know someone round here is doing their job.

Megatron looks her up and down with skeptical optics.

"Grave, you say. But would you judge it grave by my standards, or your own?"

[starscheme]

Starscream ruffles his wings and glances between the other two Cybertronians nervously. Solus get a tiny little glare at first, too; how dare anyone be unimpressed with him, let alone with Megatron? INCONCEIVABLE.

Her explanation is certainly unsettling though, not to mention ridiculous. It seems like he's only just registered the presence of the forge too, because when Solus hefts it forward Starscream's face contorts into a mixture of surprise and fury, anxiety ramping up a few notches. He can only hope that stupid hammer doesn't trigger Megatron into being ultra pissed with him all over again, seeing as it is kind of his fault that the Autobots have the damn thing in the first place.

"I recommend gutting the little upstart and prying that hammer out of her cold, spark-less hands," Starscream snarls, bristling from his post behind Megatron.

[deadpartners]

Solus levels her gaze at Starscream, optics unwavering.

"I'd like to see you try, Starscream." Her tone is cool, almost dry, and she scoffs out a soft vent of air.

"Your future would be bleak by anyone's standards, Megatron," she says, still holding the Forge firmly, poised to move, but there's no hostile intent in her frame just yet. "But I can tell you the Autobots certainly aren't troubled by what's become of the Decepticons under the future without your leadership. You, however, might be."

[bigfuckinggun]

Any concerns Megatron might have about the Forge are immediately eclipsed by what the Autobot says next. His impressive eyebrows jerk up, and he e takes a step towards her, looming.

"Without my leadership?" he repeats. "Surely you do not mean to say that Optimus has finally succeeded in disposing of me – I am sure we both know he hasn't the spark for it."

[starscheme]

Megatron's concerns don't really ring as plausible to Starscream. Why would an Autobot want to warn them about, or prevent any sort of future where Optimus had succeeded in defeating Megatron?

His continuing threats against Solus forgotten, the jet shrinks back a bit, eyeing the other two bots nervously and waiting in uncomfortable anticipation to hear what Solus has to say.

[deadpartners]

There seems to be a glint of amusement in Solus' optics, but it passes in a flash. She stands her ground when Megatron steps closer, lifting her head to challenge his gaze.

"I'm afraid Optimus is the one whose spark is extinguished, not yours," Solus says, her voice grave. "He sacrificed himself in order to stop a far greater threat even than you. It wasn't long after that that you abandoned the Decepticons. Needless to say, without your leadership, the Decepticons ceased to be such a critical threat."

Solus directs a pointed gaze at Starscream. Yeah, buddy, she's lookin' at you.

[bigfuckinggun]

Megatron's optics narrow. "Unicron," he says quietly, because he knows that's the only thing she could mean. But what she says next makes no sense. He actually laughs. "I cannot abandon the Decepticons, Autobot – I am the Decepticons. The only thing that will separate me from my cause is death." He may cast a pointed look at Starscream here.

[starscheme]

Vaguely, a horrific thought occurs to the Seeker, like he's puzzling this out in slow motion. Megatron willingly abandoning the Decepticons strangely does not sound like a too implausible situation to him. After all, with Optimus dead... Well, Starscream has already voiced and acted on his concerns about his leader's obsession with the Prime in the past and-

Oh shit wait everyone is staring at him.

Starscream is jerked out of his contemplation by this realization. Snapping back to attention, his eyes flick nervously between the two of them. His expression darkens into a scowl, which he directs at Solus. "Megatron speaks truly. He is fundamentally linked to the Decepticon cause, and I have come to realize that he has no equal... although I'll have you know that he has personally groomed me to keep his legacy alive, should the unthinkable ever happen. If you mean to imply that I have taken control in this supposed future of yours, while his Spark still pulses elsewhere, then it is surely a temporary state of affairs until his return. His cause is righteous, and would not be so easily crushed."