1219/Something known as Red Foam

**Starscream has posed:**
     Starscream was still in command, STILL going through the murder sight that was the command paperwork, and just rubbing at his optic rigging, why... Why could these idiots keep things clean, straight, and dated properly? Made him long for the days of a neat and orderly paperwork of his days as the leader of Vos.

      He'd then click on his communications link. "<<Soundwave are you about? Been over three cycles and I still don't have a blasted idea on what is going on around here! The reports are... /lacking./>>" There was something worse he wanted to say but figure it best to bite his tongue.

**Overlord has posed:**
Overlord is, of course, not far from where Starscream is seated, though not so much looking over his reports as much as maps of Cybertron on a holographic display, carefully marking regions, moving some markers, and otherwise looking like he's playing a large strategic board game of sorts.

One way chess... being both Autobot and Decepticon, carefully out-thinking himself every step of the way as he conceptualizes... "I'm certain...Soundwave is far more productively busy than Shockwave. We still need to...corner him and get his reports as well, though."

**Soundwave has posed:**
There isn't an immediate response from Soundwave. Which seems a bit unusual, but then again, the spymaster is always on the... mysterious side. Which is the way he seems to like it. Always keep them guessing.

It's not a radio message but Soundwave's voice that Starscream will hear- coming from right behind him. How'd he get there without any noise? Only Soundwave knows. After Overlord speaks, that distinctive monotone answers the two, "Busy- affirmative. Productive- remains to be seen." He's not one to falsely toot his own horn, though he will certainly take credit when its due. "What does Starscream wish to know?"

**Valour has posed:**
    Unlike the heavy-hitters active in the command center, Valour remains quiet and as immobile as possible, staring straight ahead on guard duty and trying hard not to be observed. With Starscream's return there are bound to be some shakeups, and the last thing Val wants is to be stationed at the South Pole over some faux pas accidentally committed in the presence of the Decepticon brass.

**Starscream has posed:**
     "Gah!" Starscream would yelp on hearing Soundwave, /clearly/ startled by not expecting Soundwave to be right there, right now, and he attempts to quickly hide away such emotions, but Soundwave knows.. oooh Soundwave always knows, and he grumbles.

      "Mainly a... /Coherent/ report of things that happened in our absence, such as these suppose portals that Phantom is opening, this virus Pharma seemed to have unleashed on the planet." He'd think, what else.. what else... Right Overlord was in the room, and his lip twitched up in displeasure at the thought of having to bring up the beast-former. He'd also taken note of Valours presence as well, having recognized the bot... Mentally filing away a note for later.

      "As well as Assessments of those who maybe able to help in keeping the lower ranks in line."

**Overlord has posed:**
"I am going to have our medical team follow up on the analysis and application of advanced armor deterioration. We will...most likely select a place the Autobots care for and test this in the field with the civilian population. The effort is not to...destroy them, but rather draw the Autobots away from their fortifications. Soundwave, we will need your help."

He looks up at the Spymaster. "I'd like to know...what is a 'home' to the Autobot members that they cherish, but have not built fortifications to force some stupid stalemate? Where can we hold the most impact possible with the least immediate resistance? And...which of their members is the most tangible target to strike a blow to their morale and leave them reeling in the loss?"

He looks back down at the map in front of him.

**Soundwave has posed:**
Can Soundwave look smug? It seems possible as Starscream yelps as he speaks up. Heh. "I can put together a report on recent activity, with emphasis on high priority issues," he monotones back. He turns to listen to Overlord, a flicker flashing briefly across his red visor as Overlord mentions civilians... but he nods.

Hmmm. He is silent a moment before continuing. "Maccadams: generally enjoyed by many, including Autobots. Altihex: within Autobot territory, home to many innovations and advancements, prized by elite. Translucentia Heights: also home to many elite, many luxuries.

He pauses another moment, thinking. "First Aid." There's a fraction of second's hesitation, then he adds: "Starlock. Medics are boost to both Autobot morale and health." He ignores Valour for now, but he knows you're there. He knows where \*everybody\* is....

**Valour has posed:**
    Valour is here among the big boys. Guarding the door, his stance is ramrod straight and he carries a stun-spear to supplement the cyber-claymore slung across his back. As the commanders speak, Valour keeps his optics locked directly ahead and tries to listen only to the sounds outside the door - not to the conversation between those far above his paygrade. The private is quite brave in battle, but on guard duty he makes no effort to stand out.

**Phantom has posed:**
Speak of the devil, he shall appear.

 "Did someone say my name?" The elusive seeker suddenly drifts into the room, right through the door that Valour is guarding. Seems like tonight is a good cycle to spontaneously harass Starscream.

 If Starscream has done his reading, he'll quickly be able to identify Phantom as the 'pet' Shockwave has been keeping frustratingly mum about for the past ... well however long Starscream has been trying to get information out of him.

**Starscream has posed:**
     Starscream rolled his optics at Overlord butting in, but what could he do.. He didn't exactly want to poke the metaphorical bear that was /Overlord/ of all bots.

      He'd fold his arms behind him and nod. "Yes, that would be highly recommended Soundwave, as /I/ am quite possibly not going to be the only one that will be needing such a report, especially once I get a message back from our lord." He'd imply as he spoke to Soundwave directly.

      Hearing those listed off as targets makes him hem. "Yes... Removing their high number of medics would be a good start, as well as this.. New purple medic of theirs I've been hearing so much about, and being a thorn in our si--" He stops mid sentence, his optics and helm then snap to look to Phantom, his wings twitching upward.

      The way he just.. phased through the door was /unsettling/ then again everything about Phantom seemed unsettling since the last time he'd seen the mech, just what the slag had Shockwave been doing in their absence?

      He'd clear his voice box. "Ah...Yes.. Phantom, There has been..." he'd think, choosing his words carefully. "Mention, of you opening quite the dangerous portals."

      He'd then side optic Valuor. "Also I believe this goes without saying, but none of this leave the room." He'd say directly to their guard.

**Overlord has posed:**
Overlord glances up at Phantom but...otherwise just ignores the mech for the time being. He's busy playing with his maps and strategic deployments. "Hmph...right, right..." He then glances over to Valour thoughtfully, but...again nothing is said. "I need to speak with Onslaught."

He deactivates his map and straightens up, pulling his datapad out and cycling through a few pages to look at something of a more...personal interest to him.

**Soundwave has posed:**
"There have been many reports, but summary can be arranged. Anything Lord Megatron desires, he shall have." As Phantom enters, Soundwave doesn't react much, but he does turn to watch the mech. "Phantom, you are to report to Medical Bay for a checkup."

**Valour has posed:**
    Valour starts as Phantom floats through the door he's guarding. It takes a moment for Valour to recover. In the meantime, his wings twitch in irritation as someone just barges into the command center without announcing themselves or following what Valour would consider to be proper protocol.

    Valour lets his optics follow the intangible Seeker for just a moment before turning back to full attention and attempting to get himself back under control. He jumps again, however, as Starscream addresses him directly. "Yessir!" he says crisply, optics straight ahead. "Understood, sir!" he repeats for good measure.

**Phantom has posed:**
Phantom holds up the hand that Goth never got to repair, inspecting it. It's healed over, but still leaking a bit. He glances briefly over at Valour, smirking, then turns to Soundwave. "I'm assuming you're referencing the injury to my hand," he says to Soundwave. "Fine."

He scoffs at Starscream. "Well, that's nonsense. I did no such thing, though I can theoretically see into my own past and maybe access it. But that's totally irrelevant and not why I came in here," he says dismissively "Goth didn't tell you about the red foam, did he?"

Soundwave will be able to tell that he's lying, but about exactly what is difficult to decipher. Some of it is true, some of it is false, and Phantom is lying pathologically, not intentionally.

**Starscream has posed:**
     Starscream nodded to Valour's response before he looked at Soundwave. "Good, It will be needed soon, no pressure." He'd state, but no, no, he knew how short notice it likely was to be, and then he looked to Phantom, that's right, one of the beast-formers reports he'd skimmed over before going to properly read over the older reports, Phantom had been compromised medically, keeping himself a good few feet out of the.... Strange, seekers range.

      "You've still not been looked at?" He'd question with a sneer, and then raised a ridge as Phantom denies such... But he'd place that to the side for the moment, as he kept his hand over a key on the keyboard of the computer he was working at, something else had his attention at the moment.

      "Red Foam?" He'd question "No, nor has the rest of Shockwave's subordinates." He'd glance to Overlord and then Soundwave.

**Overlord has posed:**
Overlord looks over to Starscream, finally seeming to give him some notice. "Red foam... sounds interesting. Tell us about it, hmm?" He looks over to Phantom with a light grin. "I'm always curious to hear things that sound interesting."

**Soundwave has posed:**
"You will allow the medics to inspect your hand- and anything else they desire," Soundwave states flatly to Phantom. Phantom is a lying, chaotic mess, and it's almost enough to give Soundwave a processor-ache sometimes, if he allowed himself to dwell on it. He senses something going on between Phantom and Starscream and simply falls silent, looking from one to the other, watching and learning from each response. Yes, Phantom, let's hear what you're going to say about the red foam.

**Starscream has posed:**
     Starscream raises a ridge, was /that/ hat was in the reported Cylinder the Beast-former had reported? and that had some unfortunate implications of what maybe running through Phantom's lines at the moment. He'd once more glance to the others. "I see... And would you happen to know where he got such in the first place?" he'd question, folding his arms.

      "Seems /awfully/ irresponsible for him to lose such a thing."

**Overlord has posed:**
Overlord thinks on the notion of the red foam... "It sounds intriguing." He glances at the doorway in the general direction of the medbay. "I'll have to talk to Goth about this...foam and see what use it might have." And, with that, he's done talking about things. At least for the moment. Phantom's medbay visit can be dealt with by the fliers in the room.

With that, he's right back working on his datapad, carefully shuffling some things until he looks at Soundwave. "Soundwave... can your scouts find pockets of survivors and scavengers in the Nyon region? I'd like to pay it a visit. It always seems to be an...interesting area that draws a curious array of responses from the Autobots."

**Soundwave has posed:**
Soundwave is unphased. That was an order, Phantom, so... follow through or face the consequences. Still, the Seeker is a mystery, and Soundwave likes \*being\* the mystery... actual other mysteries need to be solved. Need to be \*known\*. Thus why he hates how he can't read Shockwave at all. Understanding Phantom- to the degree anyone can- is on the list. So many things to do....

Add Nyon to the list, apparently. Soundwave turns to look at Overlord. "That can be done, yes. Nyon has several survivors clinging to memories of long ago. Overlord- has what in mind for it?" Of course, he not only waits for an audible response, he searches for thoughts as well.

**Phantom has posed:**
Phantom smirks, seeming pleased about Starscream's disdain for Goth. "How should I know," Phantom says, "besides, it's irrelevant. If he lost it, then he should at least have some idea of how to recover it."

 Then he frowns, optics flashing. "The mechabat is a nutcase. I doubt he'll be able to tell you anything about it," he says, "besides, is it worth the risk? Even if you do find it, you might not be able to control it," the elusive seeker says. "So few know anything about it, anyway." He seems aggravated, but why is unclear, even to Soundwave, who will just discover that Phantom isn't even sure why he's feeling what he's feeling.

**Starscream has posed:**
     While he wasn't happy with Phantom's deceit himself, he had to admit, he was impressed at how the Seeker was attempting to be manipulative, he'd rub at his chin platting. "Hrmm, I see.. and I do loath having to deal with such meches." he really wasn't a fan of Beast-formers, why he let Soundwave deal with them.

      "Speaking of Soundwave, I believe Overlord had a suggestion regarding /that one/ in particular, but it should be dressed once we've fully dealt with Phantom here." He'd muse.

      Starscream would then scoff. "Well, we won't know till we have another sample for testing, isn't that right?" He'd smirk at Phantom.

**Overlord has posed:**
Overlord gives Soundwave a very calculative look. "I want to do precisely what Nyon does best. I want to illicit a sympathetic response from the Autobots and draw them away from their fortifications into a proper conflict where they can't hide behind walls and turrets. And then I want to break their will."

He looks at Phantom for a moment and nods ever so slightly. "I want to break them one by one...or destroy everything they're claiming to fight for. When they have nothing left, then we win. It's that simple." If Soundwave were to read anything at all, it would be precisely that. Cold, calculative, calm... there's hardly a hint that he might be thinking to do other than precisely what he said he's going to do.

"Like I said, though, first I need to talk to Goth. As for risks... victory is always worth the risks."

**Soundwave has posed:**
Soundwave's visor flickers as Phantom claims Goth is a 'nutcase', but says nothing, instead letting the Seeker ramble on. He doesn't try to understand the jumble of emotions coming from him, either, but notes them and stores them away in his databanks. He finally does turn to glance at Starscream and adds, "Goth is a capable medic." That's all. He's stated the truth.

 Now on to Overlord. Soundwave listens. He's not sure he really likes Overlord, but he furthers the cause. Megatron chose him as a commanding officer and Soundwave will support Megatron's decisions. "Understood," he monotones. "Will assist in furthering the cause." He feels, for some reason, the need to state that the cause comes foremost. The cause is why he does what he does.

**Phantom has posed:**
Phantom glares at Starscream, some of that roaring aggression he'd been hiding earlier is coming out now. "Don't look at me," he hisses, "I wasn't the one who lost the sample." He narrows his optics at Overlord. "And if you don't end up victorious...?" His fists clench, and his optics flash, but he doesn't let Overlord answer the question. He turns on his heel, seeming angry and frustrated. "This is a waste of time," he seethes, and passing through the wall disappears from sight.

**Starscream has posed:**
     Starscream rolled his optics, and would send a annoyed thought to Soundwave, before he looked over to Overlord, and then back. "Understood, just ensuring he knows that he'll be needed again, ontop of all the work we've already asked of him." he'd explain with a dismissive wave of his hand.

      He'd look point blank at Phantom, and watched as the mech marched off, waiting a breem before speaking again. "....Hmph, just keep him thinking we believe him, inform the b--....Private Goth if you must in order to get him to play along, and perhaps he'll 'magically' come up with another sample." He'd scoff.

      "I will say, that while I do not enjoy being lied to, he does seem to have quite the talent."

**Overlord has posed:**
Overlord just smiles thinly at Starscream. "I'll pass the word along that his efforts are...appreciated." He gives a slight nod and then turns, leaving the command center. "Now...if you'll excuse me, I've work to attend to."

**Soundwave has posed:**
Soundwave tilts his head in an acknowledgement of sorts at Starscream. "Understood," he agrees. Soundwave would rather work with Goth than Phantom anyday... but the Seeker must be able to follow orders, or what good is he to the cause? "He will cooperate, one way or another." He watches Overlord go, and then turns to his own control center. "I have work as well." That seems to be his way of bowing out of the conversation. So much work to do....