Stahldrache character history
By Kevin Barry
kmbarry90@hotmail.com
Upgrade, watching his hand scanner carefully, floated over a line of trees into what could loosely be called a clearing. Probably, Upgrade thought, this area had been cleared out by the crash of the stasis pod and this was what had filled in after the fires had died down. If he was right, he would find what he sought right over... there.
Swiftsting had turned him loose to find as many Axalon I stasis pods as he could, while Swiftsting and Epitaph investigated the Insecticon escape pod they had tracked to elsewhere in this archipelago. Upgrade considered himself lucky that the first of the pods he had located was close to where Swiftsting, and the action, was.
Upgrade landed on the cleared ground, feeling his feet sink slightly into the pulpy plants and soft loam that carpeted the oblong clearing. "Slag, but I loathe organics..." Upgrade muttered, clicking his mandibles and squirming his toes to free them from the dirt. He stalked across the open ground, listening to his scanner click and ping. Here, where the ground is mounded up, he thought.
Picking up a sizable tree limb, Upgrade pushed the splintered end into the earthen mound, shoving with his outsized arms until he felt the branch jolt to a stop and glance upwards to burst out of the other side of the mound. As much as his mandibles would allow, Upgrade smiled. He walked around the circumference of the mound, choosing a place to begin digging.
After a few minutes’ effort, Upgrade had cleared away enough soil to expose one end of the stasis pod. It was larger than standard pods, which probably explained why it survived its crash relatively intact. Finding handholds between the pod’s overlapping panels, Upgrade alternately heaved with his arms and backstroked with his wings to dislodge the pod from its premature burial. When it came free of the earth, Upgrade dragged the pod to the center of the clearing and began inspecting it for damage.
"The transponder is still active, so the main power is good... lifeform scanning array looks all right, but what about... yes!" Upgrade’s wings described lazy figure eights of satisfaction. He had been afraid the pod’s interface, one of the more delicate components, would have been damaged in the crash, forcing him to haul the dead weight of the pod all the way back to the Silence to plug into the ship’s computer. With the panel functional, Upgrade could work right here and take a newly activated Predacon away with him, leaving the pod behind. He produced a digital I/O cable from behind his mandible and plugged in.
"System standby—main options menu" intoned the pod’s internal computer. Upgrade reached across the panel and turned the speaker off; squatting down to read the status screens while he passed commands and files to the pod.
"First things first, my new protoform—you need a Predacon shell program to cover that ugly Maximal core. Let’s see what Upgrade has for you...." Producing a palm-sized chip from a hidden pocket, Upgrade gently pried back one of the pod’s panels, exposing the circuitry beneath. His fingers probed gently among the boards and wires, he finally tugged out a chip that seemed to be a duplicate of the one held in his other hand. Swapping the chips, he replaced the cover. Linking to the computer again, Upgrade’s optics dimmed in concentration, and after a few seconds, the pod blinked a message on its status screen:
WARNING!
USE OF SHELL OVERLAY MAY CAUSE PERSONALITY FILES TO BE CORRUPTED AND/OR LOST.
DO YOU WISH TO PROCEED?
"Well, of course I wish to proceed!" Upgrade hissed at the computer, sending it a new batch of instructions. After a longer pause, a new message appeared:
SHELL OVERLAY COMPLETE.
MEMORY/DATA TRACKS CORRUPTED: 0
MEMORY/DATA TRACKS LOST: 0
"I am so slagging good!" crowed Upgrade. "I... uh..." his celebration jumbled to a halt as he finished reading the status message:
PERSONALITY/DATA TRACKS CORRUPTED: 3
PERSONALITY/DATA TRACKS LOST: 1
"Pit! Shoddy Maximal technology!" Upgrade swatted the side of the pod, causing it to rock gently. He then queried the computer about the damaged and missing files. Upgrade popped his knuckles, fearing the worst: a vegetable, lobotomized by his attempt to create a new recruit. Finally, the computer displayed its summary:
CORRUPTED DATA TRACKS:
EMOTION SUBROUTINE 0106 - PITY (IMPROPER LINK TO NEGATIVE EMOTION)
MORAL SUBROUTINE 5602 - NURTURE/RELIEVE SUFFERING (INVERTED VALUE)
MORAL SUBROUTINE 9091 - AMBITION/COMPETITIVE URGE (LIMIT MISSING)
LOST DATA TRACK:
MORAL SUBROUTINE 0010 - PAX CYBERTRONIA/BASIC MAXIMAL VALUES
Upgrade’s wings stilled. He was stunned. He reached across the board and turned the speaker back on. Choosing his words carefully, he asked, "Computer: Is the subject protoform now a pitiless sadist, with no inner limit governing ambition?"
"Not pitiless," the computer corrected him. "Subject protoform will feel revulsion at the pity aroused by others, and likely see any object of pity as weak and flawed. Remainder of description is correct, with one rider: subject protoform has no knowledge of Pax Amitronia or Maximal value system, making subject protoform a danger to Maximal society. Major rehabilitation recommended prior to activation."
Upgrade mouthed the computer’s last words to himself, mandibles clicking gently.
"I am so slagging good! Computer, replace missing data track 0010 with the following file...." The computer hummed as Upgrade fed it information. After a moment, the neutral voice reported "File replacement complete. Do you wish to continue with activation sequence?"
"Yes, yes, continue activation sequence immediately!" Upgrade’s wings hummed with excitement. He disconnected from the pod and floated a few feet back. The lifeform scanner array popped to life, revolving and bathing the jungle with energy from its active probe. The beam tingled as it swept over Upgrade. He could hardly wait to see what the new recruit looked like—he imagined it would be an insect, given the enormous number of buzzing, chirping things filling the air around him.
"Scan complete... the pod informed him. "Imprinting DNA... processing transformation sequence... complete. Subject protoform will leave stasis lock in 10...9...8...." Upgrade bounced from foot to foot, disproportionate arms flexing and tensing.
The countdown reached zero. The pod’s lid folded and slid backward. Upgrade waited, but nothing appeared over the lip of the pod. Concerned, Upgrade moved forward again. "Computer, what—AHH!" Upgrade’s question cut off in an abrupt yell as an enormous form launched itself from the pod. Upgrade dove to the side, avoiding collision by mere inches. Belatedly, he caught on. "Stop! Predacon officer! Halt and identify yourself!" he yelled as he spun to face the clearing.
What confronted him there was something out of a nightmare. Upgrade had seen the animals that this beast form was surely based on elsewhere on the island—gigantic lizards that dominated any other predators in the jungle, fearless hunters from the peak of the local food chain. The thing that eyed him now was built low to the ground, with a massive torso and powerful limbs ending in silvery claws. Upgrade guessed it was at least fifteen feet long from the tip of its ugly, blunt nose to the swishing tip of its long, dangerous tail. It dwarfed any of the lizards its design was based on—the new recruit would be far larger than any of the Predacons, with the exception of Swiftsting.
"I am Subcommander Upgrade, Predacon. Who are you?"
The beast twisted around, regarding Upgrade with its other eye. The tail lashed restlessly, as the jaws gaped open to reveal wickedly curved fangs. A ribbon of saliva dripped to the ground below, where plants smoldered at the contact. Poison, Upgrade guessed, and powerful stuff besides. He eyed the gleaming flanks of the lizard, all metallic scales and ridged panels. At least he’s a Transmetal - he must have been exposed in the transwarp cell explosion. The silence unnerved him. He imagined he could hear the thing’s rough breathing, or maybe it was his own. Why won’t he answer me?
"Well, speak up! Identify yourself at once!" Upgrade was losing patience with this thing he had activated. In answer, a rumble issued from the chest of the huge animal.
"I am Stahldrache. If my data tracks read correctly, you are my new commanding officer." The voice matched the speaker, deep and threatening. The eye he regarded Upgrade with was dull and black, a merciless thing. He opened his jaws and laughed, a rumbling chuckle. A forked, silver tongue flickered between his teeth, tasting the air. "What are your orders, Subcommander?"
Good, thought Upgrade, we’re making progress. Now to see how he takes orders. "First order of business, Stahldrache: transform into robot mode. Your activation code is ‘Terrorize’."
After a moment of thought, Stahldrache tilted his head back and howled "Stahldrache, terrorize!" He pushed off the ground with his foreclaws, his head and neck folding over and down his back, his beast mode limbs folding into his torso as his robot mode limbs folded out in their place. The long tail became what looked like a multipurpose holster and carryall that laid across his back. His robot head and neck emerged from his broad shoulders. The fully transformed Cybertron loomed over Upgrade, and Upgrade found himself eye-to-hip with his new recruit. In robot mode, Stahldrache was a hulking giant, twelve or thirteen feet tall.
Again, Upgrade marveled at the sheer size and bulk of Stahldrache. Shoulders at least five feet wide supported arms with musculature that dwarfed even Upgrade’s modified arms. The broad chest tapered to a surprisingly narrow waist and hips, and the lower body was even more impressive than the upper—thighs bigger around than Upgrade’s chest, thick calves and massive, booted feet. Upgrade watched as Stahldrache found his balance, thick ropes of muscle twitching as his feet settled into the soft ground. A palpable air of menace pushed at Upgrade.
This thing’s a juggernaut, thought Upgrade. Good thing I found him first. Aloud he said, "Very impressive, Lieutenant Stahldrache."
"Thank you, Subcommander." Stahldrache’s voice gave no hint of surprise at being addressed so, he seemed to expect it. The two were quiet a moment as both inspected the new robot’s form. The diamond-shaped scales from his beast mode had become rough-textured mail armor girding him all about, ridges stretching as Stahldrache flexed broad bands of muscle. He widened his stance, slightly bowed legs straightening as he eased a stretch into his massive thighs.
Upgrade looked up into features that were startling in their brutality, a face ugly with menace. The influence of his beast mode carried over here as well. His eyebrows were heavy ridges, forming shadowed hollows with his cheekbones. Where his beast mode’s eyes had been matte black, his robot optics were a hellish red, split by vertical slit pupils. His nose looked as though it had been broken somehow, even though he had been online for only a few cycles. A thin-lipped mouth and a powerful jaw line led to the sweep of muscle that was his neck. Stirring from his own contemplation, Stahldrache noticed the scrutiny.
"Like what you see, Subcommander?" His features were surprisingly mobile, as he arched an eyebrow and grinned, exposing a frightening array of the same fangs found in his beast mode. He laughed his rumbling laugh again, and straightened to his full height.
"Indeed." Upgrade felt a surge of satisfaction - this new recruit had potential. "Close up the stasis pod and let’s go hurt some Maximals." Upgrade pumped his wings, jumping to the edge of the clearing.
Keeping his optics on his new Subcommander, Stahldrache walked slowly back to his pod. Looking at it, he felt an odd surge of emotion—a feeling of longing that he couldn’t pin down. Shrugging the feeling aside, he punched a series of commands that closed the pod back up. He wrapped an enormous arm around the pod, using his legs to lift the pod and carry it back to the mound of earth that had held it for thirty years. Pushing it back into the depression, he collapsed the soil back around it before covering it with vines and plants. He strode to the clearing’s edge to rejoin Upgrade.
"How many Maximals, Upgrade? Where are they? What’s the plan?" Stahldrache smiled hopefully, another emotion stirring his spark—ecstatic pleasure at the thought of another’s pain. His optics glowed brightly and he clenched a fist, reaching behind his back to touch the pistol grip of his shotgun.
"We need to meet up with the rest of the group first. Follow this vector and rendezvous with me at the Silence. You’ll know it when you see it." Upgrade took off at high speed over the jungle.
Stahldrache watched Upgrade’s form until he disappeared from sight. He smiled again, walked into the jungle until he found a stream and followed it to the small island’s edge. Along the way, he passed several of the lizards he recognized as his beat mode’s inspiration. They studied him as he studied them, crouching in the cool shade as he padded silently by through the blazing sun. He transformed into beast mode, and the other lizards made way for him, recognizing his size for the killing difference it was. Reaching the beach, he then shifted into vehicle mode, his limbs altering to form high-speed fans, a ridge of skin forming a plenum chamber—Stahldrache became a hovercraft. He accelerated quickly into the water, leaving the lizards, the island, his stasis pod and his Maximal origins far behind.