2.Dec.06
BEAST WARS REKINDLED
Chapter 10: Turning Point
Knucklehead and Twinbrush listened attentively as Dinobot taught them the
history of Cybertron. He told them of their home planet, and the confusion as to
the origins of their race. Some said that the Transformers had been built by an
alien race as slaves, only for the Transformers to overthrow them and establish
themselves as an independent species. Others said that the Transformers had been
created by a deity of some sort, named in the legends as Primus. Many other
theories existed, but Dinobot stuck to these main two.
As he talked, the Maximal warrior spoke longingly. It was clear to the other two
that he wished to return to Cybertron, even more vehemently than they did. For
while the two of them could not even remember Cybertron and felt as if they had
never been there at all, Dinobot could remember it, and missed his home
desperately.
Just as Dinobot was telling them of the Great War between the races of Autobot
and Decepticon, ancestors to Maximal and Predacon, Bunnie rushed into the
clearing. She wilted under Dinobot's glare at her interruption, but spoke
firmly. "Come quick! We've found another pod, but something's weird about
it!"
Sensing the urgency, the three Maximals stood up and accompanied the cyborg back
to Knothole's lab. Upon examining the pod, Dinobot snorted. "It's a
blank."
"A blank?" Tails asked curiously.
"What's a blank?" Sally added.
"Blank protoforms are Transformers within stasis pods that possess no life
force, no 'Spark' as we call it. Such Transformers cannot truly be considered
living things until a Spark is placed within them. Without one, they have no
minds of their own. Were they to be activated, they would be empty shells."
"So what good does it do us?" Sonic asked. Knucklehead glared at his
dismissal of the blank, but Dinobot replied anyway. "At the moment, none,
but a blank protoform might be useful in the future. I suggest we keep it here
until we find some purpose for it."
"That sounds like a good idea," Twinbrush said.
Suddenly, Rotor's computer beeped. He ran over to it, and his face paled as he
looked at the readout. "Oh, no."
"What's wrong?" Espio asked.
Julie-Su, looking over the Walrus' shoulder, replied. "The sensors have
picked up a major energy reading. Looks like the Dark Legion's got something big
going down."
"Then let's get over there!" Knuckles exclaimed.
"Not so fast; it could be a trap," Mighty cautioned.
"Trap or no trap, we've got to investigate," Charmy said.
The others nodded. Quickly, the groups divided, deciding who would go and who
would stay behind. When it was done, the three Maximals led the others out the
door.
Some time later, the group arrived at the edge of a forest that opened into a
large plain. Seeing nothing amiss, they started forward, only to stop as a
battalion of Dark Legionnaires, led by Xenin, de-cloaked.
"What do you want, metal head?" Vector growled.
"Only the Maximals are allowed past this point. The rest of you must deal
with us."
Seeing the uncertainty in the eyes of the three Transformers, Ray spoke.
"You three go on; we'll handle these chumps."
Shrugging helplessly, the three walked onto the prairie as the Dark Legion
troops and the Freedom Fighters/Chaotix slammed into each other. They had made
it about halfway to the source of the energy reading when Speedbat appeared.
Smiling seductively, she pointed at Knucklehead. "You can go on, handsome.
Deathstreak wants you all to himself. Your friends are mine, though."
A group of Mechanauts de-cloaked alongside her. Before Knucklehead could
protest, Twinbrush transformed and attacked them, shouting to her love. "Go
on, Knucklehead!"
Feeling completely uncertain, Knucklehead ran ahead. Finally, he arrived at the
source of the energy reading: a massive dome-like structure with metal walkways
ringing its structure. Standing on one of them was Deathstreak, an anticipatory
smile on his face. Sensing the energy coming off the dome, Knucklehead knew that
he could not risk transforming into Robot Mode. Resigned to combat, he leaped
onto the catwalk and turned to face his opponent.
"So, Knucklehead, it comes down to this. Never again will we meet in
battle. This time, we end it."
"My sentiments exactly." With that, the two lunged at each other,
striking out with super-strong punches and kicks, moving too quickly for the
naked eye to follow.
Back out on the prairie, Twinbrush found herself outnumbered and outmatched.
Speedbat was attacking with the speakers built into her palms, and she was
forced to defend against those attacks and the punches of the Mechanauts.
Knowing she couldn't hold out much longer, Twinbrush prayed for help.
As if in answer, Dinobot finally joined the fray. Moving with speed and power
far beyond that of the Mechanauts, he wreaked slaughter upon them, dismembering
them with his sharp claws. Whenever he faced an opponent out of his physical
reach, he relied on the laser in his left eye to take them out. Constantly
shifting between Robot and Raptor Modes, he completely devastated the stupid
automatons.
Left with only each other to fight, the female Transformers doubled their
ferocity. Twinbrush's saw spun wildly, deflecting sonic attacks and lashing out
at Speedbat. Speedbat countered with barriers of sound and attacked again.
Back at Dark Legion headquarters, Dimitri slowly pressed the button activating
the detonation of his Chaos Emerald bomb. It had taken many resources to
construct the massive explosive, and now Dimitri still wondered if he was making
the right decision. However, he knew that Deathstreak had to be eliminated, and
if the rest of the Transformers went with him, so much the better. They had
caused the Legion too much trouble; now everything would be returned to normal.
Fighting on the catwalks, Knucklehead and Deathstreak were dimly aware that the
dome was pulsing with green light. Their sensors blared out alarms at the
increasing energy levels, but the fighters paid no heed, too embroiled in their
own battle fever. It was only as the energy spiked, the bomb glowing with a
blinding green glare, that the two realized their danger. By then it was too
late to escape, too late to try and defuse the bomb. Too late to do anything but
complete a final lunge at each other before the bomb exploded.
Dinobot, having easily dispatched the Mechanauts, turned to see the bomb shining
blindingly. A short distance away, between him and the bomb, the two females
battled on, unaware of the sudden phenomenon. Dinobot, zooming in on the
structure with his scope, could only watch in despair as Knucklehead and
Deathstreak lunged at each other. Then the bomb went off, a wave of energy
expanding outwards. The two Transformer leaders were instantly consumed, their
forms disappearing into the blinding glare.
Dinobot knew instantly that they were too close, that the explosion was too
powerful for them to have survived. However, he did not have time to think
further before the expanding wall of energy struck his location.
The two females, caught in Robot Mode by the mutated Energon, screamed in
surprised agony. They quickly shifted to Beast Mode, but the damage was already
done, and they fell into the unconsciousness of stasis lock. The wave then
struck Dinobot, but did not have the same effect despite him being in Robot
Mode. The mutation of Cybertronian technology that had birthed the Transmetals
during the first Beast Wars had made them immune to Energon. This ability was
shared by the Transmetal 2s. So all Dinobot felt was a slight shock as the wave
passed through him, going on for some distance before dissipating, its power
expended before it reached the outskirts of the prairie.
Recovering, Dinobot turned towards the epicenter of the blast. Slowly, he
increased the vision on his scope, dreading the results. When he got a clear
view, his assumptions proved correct: everything within several meters of the
bomb had been completely vaporized, with extensive damage further out. The
actual physical harm of the bomb expired halfway between where he stood and the
epicenter, leaving a large black circle on the ground.
Dinobot slowly raised his right hand to his brow, saluting and maintaining a
moment of silence in honor of his fallen leader. Then, with a sigh of
resignation, he picked up the females, throwing one over each shoulder. He then
turned and slowly made his way back towards the others.
When he arrived, the Dark Legion forces had fled. Seeing the unconscious burdens
he bore, the others ran over to help Dinobot. Upon seeing Speedbat clearly,
Knuckles asked, "Why'd you bring her?"
"She was knocked offline along with Twinbrush, and I doubt her 'allies'
care. I could not leave her out there. Once she recovers, we'll figure out what
to do with her."
Looking around and not seeing what he was looking for, Sonic spoke.
"Where's Knucklehead?"
Dinobot choked at the question, and then replied as gently as he could. "He
was...fighting Deathstreak when the bomb went off."
Dreading the answer she would receive, Julie-Su enquired, "Where were
they?"
Dinobot looked at her. "On the bomb."
The others covered their mouths in shock as they realized the implications of
his words. All of them were stunned, and some broke into tears. Others looked at
Twinbrush, realizing that she would have to be told when she recovered.
After a moment, Dinobot picked up the unconscious females and began walking
towards their transport. To his comrades, he said one thing. "Knucklehead
died as a warrior, fighting with honor. We must see to it that his sacrifice is
not in vain.”
With a sad nod of acceptance, the others set off after him.