|
Chapter 8: Of Needles and Haystacks
this page added by Perceptor
dmg2206@hotmail.com
High above Earth, a cloaked vessel released a small pod and sent it on its descent. The figure inside the pod smiled, or at least would have smiled had his face been designed with that kind of articulation, at the cunning of his five-faced masters. His descent would seem to any sensors as simple space debris burining up in the atmosphere. Furthermore, such sensors may not notice him at all, with major battles between the Autobots and Maximals against the combined forces of the Predacons, Crown, and V.E.N.O.M. And even if they did notice, everyone would have more pressing matters to attend to.
*****
A young Maximal sat at the control room of Earth Station One, pouring over the sensor readings. Most of the Maximals were gone, helping the humans in defending themselves against the Crown/V.E.N.O.M./Predacon attack, but as commander of ES1 he chose to stay behind while Shogun lead the defense of the Earth capital in Geneva. After all, Shogun was a much better tactical commander. Perceptor, on the other hand, was more skilled as an administrator, and much like his legendary Autobot namesake, an accomplished scientist and technician.
He poured over the sensor readings, looking for that little blip that might yield a tactical advantage for the troops or head off a surprise attack. Suddenly he heard a tiny scraping noise behind him. He drew his gun and spun around, ready to face any attacker.
Black Racer stood there, clearly struggling to stifle a laugh. "A bit jumpy today, aren't we?"
Perceptor holstered his gun. "Well, with all of our troops over in Geneva, we are a bit vulnerable here. One has to believe that this station is a tempting target."
"Calm down, Commander. Even with just the two of us here we're armed to the teeth. They'll have their hands full with our guys at the capital. They aren't going to be able to spare troops to come take a few pot shots at us."
Perceptor paused to think over what his friend had said. "I do hope you are right..."
Just then one of the consoles lit up. Perceptor rushed over to examine the readings.
"What is it?" Black Racer asked.
"I...do not know. There was just a blip..."
"Just a blip? Probably a sensor echo."
"No, I put far too many redundancies and fail-safes into these sensors. They would easily tell if it was a mere echo. There is definitely something out there."
"What then, Smartypants? You're the big sensor expert, so tell me what it is!"
Perceptor shrugged. "I do not know. It does not match up with anything we have on file, but it's hard to tell with just the one blip. Wait." The console lit up again for a nano-cycle. "There it is again. It is originating from a spot about ten miles from here." He paused to think for a bit. "We need to take a closer look. It is not possible to gain an accurate reading from here, and the best mobile short-range sensors we have are built into my chassis, and your hoversled mode is the fastest transport we have."
"Whoa, Commander. You're suggesting we abandon the base to chase down a crazy technogander? What if the attackers do break off some of their troops in Geneva to come here."
"Whatever happens, Sentinel can handle things."
"I really don't know..."
What do you do now?
|
