Descent into Evil

Eeeeeeeee-villl! In his mind there is no other game!
"Descent into Evil"
Publisher	Fun Publications
Date	September 22, 2005 (BotCon 2005)
Cover date	September 22–25
Writer	Ben Yee
Pencils	Dan Khanna, Makoto Ono
Inks	Chuck Gibson, Ted Pertzborn, Makoto Ono
Colors	Krista Ward, Espen Grundet Jen
Lettering production	Junemoon Studio
Project manager	Dan Khanna

A team of Autobots must stop Deathsaurus from reviving the Decepticon empire with hordes of self-replicating Insecticons.

Synopsis

Aboard her ship, Tripredacus agent Flamewar reports in to her overseers, the Tripredacus Council, regarding events in the Ceti Alpha Seven system....

The Autobots have sent in a team of 6 to destroy General Deathsaurus's Insecticon cloning lab, where a first batch of clones has already been created. Four Autobots on the ground (Chromia, Ricochet, Flareup and Fallback) come under attack by Dirge and a squadron of clones. At first, the Autobots fare well against the fragile clones, but then Deathsaurus himself joins the battle.

Aboard the orbiting Autobot ship, Ratchet and Ironhide observe the battle not going well and head to the surface. They soon find the battle site and several of their comrades' abandoned weapons, then come under attack by Dirge and more clones. Ironhide defeats Dirge, but then finds himself up against Deathsaurus. He orders Ratchet to go find the others while he holds off the General. Though he fares well against the larger Decepticon, Flamewar chooses that moment to intervene, shooting Ironhide in the back. The Tripredacus Council wishes to speed up events. Deathsaurus and Flamewar argue briefly over the role of politicians vs. warriors, and Flamewar departs, informing Deathsaurus that she took care of Ratchet as well.

Ironhide and Ratchet awake to find themselves bound inside the lab. Deathsaurus informs them that the lab is rigged to explode, as a second batch of clones has been generated and they contain all the information he needs to create more. Deathsaurus signs off...and Ricochet pops in through an air duct to set the two free. Ratchet notes that he was able to gather the others before getting knocked out. The team makes a hasty exit as the lab obliterates itself.

The Tripredacus Council is pleased by the report, but the transmission is interrupted by a mirthful Bumblebee, who informs Flamewar that Ricochet planted a virus into the second batch of clones. Flamewar has given the Autobots a good chase, but now she's compromised. The Council tells her she has exposed herself to the enemy and is now a liability, and with a touch of a button, they destroy her ship.

Note: This story is immediately followed by Intimidation Game.

Featured characters

• Characters (in order of appearance): Flamewar, the Tripredacus Council, Deathsaurus, Dirge, Buzzclaw, Virulent Clones, Chromia, Ricochet, Flareup, Fallback, Ironhide, Ratchet, Bumblebee.

Items of note

• This issue was available at BotCon 2005 and promoted the various exclusive toys available at the convention, all of which make an appearance.

• This story seems to be set around the time of the Pax Cybertronia, with Maximals and Autobots working together, the Decepticons on the wane, and the Tripredacus Council on the rise. It could be in continuity with the other Timelines Beast-era stories (such as The Razor's Edge, Theft of the Golden Disk, and Dawn of Future's Past), as there are no direct contradictions. However, according to Fun Publications' Pete Sinclair, it is definitely not, and Descent into Evil stands alone.

Errors

• It's not quite clear how Ricochet managed to avoid capture. He's last seen flying skyward during the battle with the clones, so perhaps he took his leave at that point, or perhaps Ratchet managed to revive him before Flamewar took him out.