"OC Episode #5"

[starshadow]

The femmes looked back because of the sound of trees being rammed by an natural bulldozer. "Keep moving!" Starshadow shouted as she ran infront of Optimus, trying to assist Cecaelia. The next second, she tripped on an ice with her face on the grass and Cecaelia was pinned down by Icebreaker.

Um.. Hi. Fancy meeting you here.. Mind releasing my leader? Maybe we could even make a trade.

Hey Starshadow, Cecaelia, how about taking that trade up. Your injured friend for Optims. I doubt that Glowstick has long before this radiation will start affecting his systems and Icebreaker was willing to help.

Cloud puppy was right. Icebreaker did help. Now everything was in one big mess. She thought Starshadow wanted to kill the alien clone she had talked about before. So the dragging and the shooting was just a waste of time? "...okay..we'll trade.."

Starshadow just hissed and spoke, "What?! That wasn't the clone?! Ughh...take him.." she stood up and dusted herself, "Let's go..." she said.

I'm not leaving Glowstick. I'm goibg to bring him back to the Darksyde for his repairs.." Cecaelia lifted the stretcher and headed back to the Darksyde.

Starshadow shook her head. [color= #BF00FF]"Beast mode.."[/color] the catbot transformed into her beast mode and disappered into the darkness after walking through thick bushes.

[WorpeX]

"Thanks, Airazor, but you betta save your strength, Who knows what's goin' on up there."

"Suit yourself." Airazor responded, and with a quick flap of her wings, she was airborne. With utmost precision, she flew up through the hole they had created and emerged from the underground labyrinth. With much relief, she took in a deep breath of fresh air. It was crisp and clean, unlike the dampness she had been breathing before. Now away from the confines of walls and ceilings, She felt an overwhelming sense of freedom as she soared through the skies. The wind ruffled her feathers as she flew onward, but her enjoyment was short lived. An explosion in the distance broke her trance, and she slowed to a hover to see what was happening.

The explosion created a huge crater in the ground where it originated. A cloud of dirt and debris floated upwards from the blast and many rocks went sent flying into different directions. Flames scorched the landscape and nearby trees were consumed by the fire. Airazor closed her eyes, hoping that no wildlife was killed in the blast. Deep down she knew that it was only wishful thinking. Nothing could survive something as deadly as that. The war between the Maximal's and Predicon's was costly, and she was learning the hard-way that real loser in this war was the innocent creatures of the earth.

Opening her eyes again, she spotted a white tiger down below her. She knew that there was only one of those creatures who would ever dare leave the cold mountains. It seemed he was hurt however, and also slightly dazed. Perhaps the blast had done damage to one of the Maximals as well. Her spark beating faster, she set off into motion again. The falcon went into a nose-dive towards the ground. She put her wings back as far as they went to streamline her body for maximum speed. Wind soared past her as she flew back towards ground. Faster and faster she went with no signs of slowing down, even when the hard surface was only a few feet away. At the last second, she pulled up and leveled herself out. Spreading her wings, she flapped them hard to slow her speed. "Tigatron!" She called before touching down on the ground, her voice soft and caring.

---



Waking up from the sound of an explosion, Manterror returned to reality. With a quick glance in either direction, he soon understood what was going on. The others had destroyed the clone, the predicons had stolen Optimus Prime and the world was doo--- Wait what!? The predicon's stole Optimus!? Furthermore, it seemed to be the female glowstick who did it along with the vampress. Not entirely sure how they managed to do that, but yet, also not really caring all that much, Manterror picked himself off the ground and charged towards the group. With added aid of his wings, he traveled quickly and arrived in only a few short minutes.

It seamed he wasn't able to get their before the Maximal's, but it didn't matter. His body had made repairs during his sleep and both of his Razor blades were in prime condition again. "OPTIMUS IS MINE MAXIMAL'S!!! he screamed, hoping to scare them away. Although, it seamed there was no such luck in that. Starting up the rotation of both of his claws, he took aim shot a spinning razor blade at both Icebreaker and Whitegrazer.

[Night-Hunter]

They wind changed and carrying with it Manterror's scent, it filled the beast's nostrils, it could smell other scents with, but the only scents it reconized was Manterrors and Primals. The beast growled as he turned in the direction where the scent was coming from and headed in that direction. Saber had no control over it now, she was just along for the ride, she prayed that she wouldn't kill any one of her comrades, she didn't think she could handle another Maximal's death at her hands.

"OPTIMUS IS MINE MAXIMAL'S!!!

The creature was partly deaf due to the explosion, but it could hear that. Crouching low it slowly stalked closer, it's ears when back as it saw Manterror. Growling deeply it stepped into the opening behind the Mantis and growled dangerously.

[Alak]

"Hey," he called down. "Uh... you guys gonna need any help?"

Scorponok looked up.

"We're fine!" he snapped back.

Truth be told, the prosthetic limbs were not exactly primed for wall climbing even if the wall itself was not tall at all. The wrench dug into the dirt multiple times but continued to fail to grab hold. Scorponok could not bring himself to accept the Maximal's offer for help for his pride and vanity would be crippled as a result. Meanwhile, Terrorsaur was clinging onto the lieutenant's back with his tentacle. It was simply impossible for the flyer to climb out of the hole with an appendage he had no experience with. The added weight made Scorponok more frustrated with his predicament, but he knew there was no way he could leave the broken pterodactyl behind.

Finally, and idea popped into his head. He pushed his partner off of him.

"Beast mode!"

Transforming back into a scorpion, minus a pincer, Scorponok chuckled at his personal victory. He had remaining in robot mode this entire time underground that the thought of transformation slipped his mind.

"Hop on," he ordered Terrorsaur, who happily obliged.

Digging his many legs into the rock, Scorponok found himself climbing out of the hole with ease. Sunlight nearly blinded him as he escaped the labyrinth. Warmth engulfed his body as life itself embraced him once again. Explosions and battle still rocked the earth above, but the Predacon felt a new sense of vitality within himself. He heard a thud. Turning, Scorponok saw that Terrorsaur had fallen to the ground with his optics dimmed. The flyer was apparently so damaged that he was unable to transform and shield himself from the energon radiation.

((OOC: Not sure what happened to Glowstick's body, so I excluded it from my post))



----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Finding courage in the face of danger can be complex and difficult, but I think we both have experience with that, and since we're continuing to walk ahead, it's clear we've found some form of bravery or another. What I'm more interested in is why we've chosen to find that bravery.

"I think some things are worth risking your life to find out. Of course... this probably isn't such a thing. Truth be told, I came because you said you were going, and I wasn't about to let you just pursue your mission without me pursuing my own.

"Suppose this transwarp signal comes from a device we can actually take and use. Megatron wants it. Optimus wants it. But more importantly, I want it and you want it, if only for the sake of our respective teams. But only one of us can have it, and it may very well come down to who can take it- whether by force, or by strategy.

"Does that bother you? Does that make you think I'm wrong? Does that make you think you're wrong? And, with this grim possibility of confrontation in mind, why do you exercise courage now and charge on ahead towards the threat of aliens traps and one another? What's motivating you?"

Orcariner remained silent the whole time Steelclaw was speaking. For a Predacon, he had some wise things to say. It was certainly different from the insults exchanged in battle or the squabbling between the Predacons themselves. Then again, Orcariner could not even recall the last time a Maximal and Predacon even had a serious conversation that did not end with them trying to kill each other.

Which still might happen at the end of the day.

The black bear did bring up a good point, however. Two soldiers walking towards a shared objective, but each was ordered to claim the prize for their respective factions. The image of the giant Orcariner lunging his swords at the diminutive, gun-slinging Steelclaw was a dreadful one. Perhaps it was the common fight for survival, but the orca felt a bit of remorse knowing that he would come into conflict with the smaller Predacon in the future. Whether it happen at the end of the day or a month from now, it would happen. This same sentimental feeling was similar to how Orcariner viewed the Predacons he had worked with when he first arrived to this planet. That did not stop him from engaging those such as Glowstick in battle, but the orca still felt guilty for doing so. He started to question his choice of occupation. What was the purpose of being a soldier or a marshal if he did not want to fight?

Well, I just don't want to fight against those I know.

Orcariner's mind quickly countered. Most Maximals and Predacons, even on Cybertron, were fairly eager to act aggressively against the opposing faction whether through words or fists. Yet, would this mentality be the same if everyone had just sat down and talked? Not of legal matters and politics, but perhaps about every day things. Orcariner knew his convictions were different than most Predacons, but that did not deter him from the idea that he could be friends with them. The fact that a Predacon was living in the Axalon was proof of this possibility. Acceptance was the key to peace, and nearly everyone was afraid to accept that of which they were unfamiliar with. It was a problem that could easily be alleviated by simply getting to know the other person. At least that was how Orcariner saw it in his mind at the moment. While tempted to lie to his Predacon brother-in-arms in order to hold up a tough-guy appearance, the Maximal instead replied in truth.

"It does bother me," he said, making a right turn at the end of the corridor, "We're stuck in a rift of conflict when we could be working together to get off this rock. We want to go home. I'm sure this barren planet isn't what Megatron had in mind. Both teams don't want to be here, and yet, instead of cooperating we're wasting away our days trying to kill each other."

They were descending now, with the floor in an obvious decline. Making left turn, the duo continued to journey deeper beneath the earth.

"Personal feelings aside," Orcariner continued, "I still have a mission to complete. I was a soldier before I came here, and that still hasn't changed, just the commanding officer. I'm just glad I'm stuck with one that I'd be happy to follow even til the end of our time. If he wants me to retrieve this artifact, I'll do everything I can to get it."

It sounded as if he had recited the job description of a grunt. Orcariner knew it was different, though. It was difficult to explain it any other way, but there was something about Optimus and the crew that pushed him beyond his perceived limitations.

"I suppose you can say that it's Optimus who inspires me to continue. My time with him has encouraged me to plunge into the unknown. Even if I fail, at least I'll know that Optimus can help me use the experience to my... no... our advantage in the future. There's no absolute failure with him. That's why I chose to keep going down here even though I'm beaten half to death. Whatever I bring back, physical or not, I'm comforted with the fact that my captain will find it useful."

There was something else. Orcariner knew that was only part of the reason why he was still down here. There was more to his purpose aside from simply trying to please his commanding officer.

"I was a soldier before I came here," he repeated, a bit quieter this time around, "But now I'm... more than just that."

The Axalon was first and foremost an exploration vessel. Its crew was drafted for the sole purpose of obtaining knowledge and seeking out the unknown. The most curious crewmen of all, Optimus and Rhinox, were his senior officers. Being a Maximal who was easily influenced by his mentors, it was inevitable that the characteristics of the two transformers would merge with Orcariner's personality.

"I'm a bot who's found himself crash landed in a new frontier. I'm not just a soldier on this planet... not anymore. I'm an explorer of sorts. I'm also a scientist now. Mix that job with a bit of engineering. I'm actually a lot of things now. It's hard not to be when you're stranded on a new world with only a handful of helpers. I've become one of them."

He was referring to his teammates. Orcariner once thought himself to be aloof with Icebreaker being considered his only true friend. It gradually changed as Optimus encouraged the killer whale to be more open to him. The adventures with Feralnight and Valkyrie gave him a sense of fellowship with the two, and the same could be said with Rhinox who guided him into the role of conventional and physical sciences. He even felt a newfound bond with Wintersong who had risked her life to protect him from nearby Predacons while he was frantically searching for the transwarp signal earlier this day. Orcariner was no longer the Academy-graduate seeking to be promoted to Imperial Peace Marshal. He was a soldier who had a home for himself. He found a family that he was ready to fight and die for without a moment's hesitation. His bond with them grew as the orca himself grew to become one of them.

"That's why I'm eager to keep going," Orcariner continued, "I guess you can call it a newfound curiosity that I picked up during the past couple of months. If you live with a bunch of scientists, I suppose it's hard not to start asking questions about everything."

[Phoenix]

(Ooc: we could use people posting in the new episode..

viewtopic.php?f=11&t=3607
)

[Optimal Optimus Primal]

(( OOC: LoL I love that Whitegrazer is like that, una.

Will catch up in the new episode soon, Phoenix!

Dinobot totally went all bad @$$ on the clone. Love it! ))

"STOP TWISTING THEM, MONKAAYYY!! OR I'LL BLOW YOUR HEAD OFF!!"

The twisting would hurt her eventually, her tentacles could only bend so far, with or without bones. But Optimus wasn't panicking. The way he saw it, she had two things working against her now. One, she was dragging him into an area where his beast mode performed best. Simply grabbing a root by his foot and he could probably pull himself around and wrestle Cecaelia to the ground. And two, all of the Maximals would be after her and Starshadow as they were attempting to kidnap their commander. Did they have any idea what they were doing? Of course, he shouldn't underestimate them; they could've been bringing him straight to Megatron and his reinforcements.

Um.. Hi. Fancy meeting you here.. Mind releasing my leader? Maybe we could even make a trade.

Ah. And here comes the calvary. If Optimus didn't hurt so much, he might have smiled. Without anymore struggling once Cecaelia slipped on the ice, the gorilla gently unraveled her tentacles and pulled them off of him, carefully getting to his feet. There was no need for him to hurt her. They were surrounded now. And he was a little surprised to see Whitegrazer up and about as much as she was.

"Nice counter you gave me back there. I will remember that the next time you and I are in battle." "I think you ladies should cut your losses and get outta here."

"Hey Starshadow, Cecaelia!" "How about taking that trade up. Your injured friend for Optimus, I doubt Glowstick has long before this radiation will start affecting his systems and Icebreaker was willing to help."

Hm. Optimus was quite pleased how his Maximals were handling the situation. Peacefully. The trade sounded like a fair one.

Don't move an inch.. Optimus, are you alright?

"I'll be all right, Rhinox," he answered him calmly. He was relieved to see several of his crew members return from their expedition underground. A few were still missing, though. Hopefully they were only "missing."

"...okay..we'll trade.."

"What?! That wasn't the clone?! Ughh...take him.." "Let's go..."

I'm not leaving Glowstick. I'm goibg to bring him back to the Darksyde for his repairs.."

Wise decision, ladies, he thought. So they were really after his clone and not him? A simple misunderstanding, perhaps. This had actually been Primal's first encounter with Cecaelia. She and Starshadow were a difficult pair to understand. At least Starshadow seemed a little more... civil when she was around her friend. Watching them leave with Glowstick in tow and without a fight, Optimus took a deep breath and hoped that it was all over now. Wait. What had happened with the clone? And the transwarp signal?

"OPTIMUS IS MINE MAXIMAL'S!!!

The gorilla snapped his head to the right, toward the direction he heard Manterror's battle cry. "Look out!" Optimus hollered at Whitegrazer and Icebreaker. He had no weapons with him now to defend his crew, but there was someone else watching out for them.

Nearby, Rattrap had stealthfully followed everyone into the forest and crouched behind a thick tree trunk. Peering around it, he saw Manterror's disk and targeted the projectile with his weapon. In one clean shot, he knocked the razor-sharp disk completely off of its course, having it wind up stuck horizontally in another tree. The master marksman noticed Saber-Fang sneak up on the crazy mantis, so he let her take care of the rest, unaware that she was not in control of herself. Dinobot was also charging on to the scene.

"You're outnumbered, Manterror!" Optimus called to him, Rattrap's timing as impecicable as ever, attempting to ignore the pain from his chest wound and the hole through his shoulder where fluid could be seen trickling down both his front and back sides. He obviously did not make much use of that arm. "I suggest you make a wise retreat." Spotting Saber-Fang behind the Predacon, he actually grew very concerned for Manterror's life. And he didn't want Saber to do anything she might regret even though the Beast inside her had the upper hand now. If he could keep the situation calm, perhaps it wouldn't antagonize Saber-Fang and she wouldn't attack the praying mantis which could possibly kill him. He had no idea what the saber-toothed cat could or would do.

-----

"Tigatron!"

"Airazor!" Tigatron joyfully called to her, watching her gracefully swoop in and land before him. Smiling, the white tiger was very pleased to see her return and in good health. "It is good to see you," he said with a warm voice. "Have the others made it out as well?" Something in her eyes, however, told him she was in some pain. Pain for the planet, all of the innocent lives that were casualties of their war with the Predacons. It saddened his spark as well.

[una]

((OOC: Love the conversation between Steelclaw and Orcariner. ))

Whitegrazer was glad to see the ladies seeing reason but she did see the injured Glowstick. Despite being Predacon, she hoped he would recover. He looked horrible.

"What?! That wasn't the clone?! Ughh...take him.."

She thought he was the clone? Whitegrazer had to chuckle at that...inwardly of course.

Starting up the rotation of both of his claws, he took aim shot a spinning razor blade at both Icebreaker and Whitegrazer.

"Look out!"

She, instinctively, was about to push Icebreaker out of the way but the razor blade was shot by Rattrap. Whitegrazer was glad to see Rattrap was all right and smiled as a thank you before she looked back at Manterror, noticing Saber behind him. She was worried about Saber, hoping that the Predacon will be smart and vamoose before Saber did something she would regret.

She nodded at Optimus' suggestion.

Leave Manterror leave.

With Manterror gone, they could help Saber. Maybe they could get Saber to gain control over herself again.

((OOC: I might join the Arachintron storyline in 5.5.))

[Blazemane]

It does bother me. We're stuck in a rift of conflict when we could be working together to get off this rock. We want to go home. I'm sure this barren planet isn't what Megatron had in mind. Both teams don't want to be here, and yet, instead of cooperating we're wasting away our days trying to kill each other.

Steelclaw was slightly stirred by Orcariner admitting the prospect of conflict bothered him. Many Maximals (and many Predacons) would either feel remorseless or deny their feelings.

Steelclaw knew that he was also disturbed by some of the battles in the Beast Wars- and Orcariner had just provided an example of his reason why. In spite of the justice on Cybertron that Steelcaw was fighting to attain, the Beast Wars had created a situation where he was pitted against at least a few Maximals who were, themselves, quite just.

It was why he had never aimed to kill. It was why he hoped the Predacons could achieve a victory which saw them merely leaving the Maximals behind on the planet. It wasn't right to sacrifice even a small number of innocent 'bots to finally achieve victory against those on Cybertron who were more corrupt.

And yet... if it came down to making that choice... would it truly be right to leave the thousands oppressed back at home un-fought for?

At any rate, futility made Orcariner dislike the conflict? Steelclaw could understood that as a reason, but he believed Orcariner was mistaken in his analysis of Megatron. The Predacons hadn't come to the right planet, but this world was fulfilling the Darksyde's objective all the same. If Orcariner did indeed wish to stop the Predacons from inciting war, then the last thing the Beast Wars were was futile.

Personal feelings aside, I still have a mission to complete. I was a soldier before I came here, and that still hasn't changed, just the commanding officer.

Once again, they were in agreement...

I'm just glad I'm stuck with one that I'd be happy to follow even til the end of our time. If he wants me to retrieve this artifact, I'll do everything I can to get it.

But that was unexpected. Steelclaw wondered where Orcariner was going to go next.

I suppose you can say that it's Optimus who inspires me to continue. My time with him has encouraged me to plunge into the unknown. Even if I fail, at least I'll know that Optimus can help me use the experience to my... no... our advantage in the future. There's no absolute failure with him. That's why I chose to keep going down here even though I'm beaten half to death. Whatever I bring back, physical or not, I'm comforted with the fact that my captain will find it useful.

Wow.

Fascinating... but not something Steelclaw could quite get a feel for. Why was he so inspired by somebody watching over his work? He suddenly remembered Orcariner's saying that he would hold Steelclaw to his own professed mission.

Having the approval of someone else was a mindset for Orcariner, then. Steelclaw was careful not to misinterpret that- he knew Orcariner didn't fawn over his leader, like say... Scorponok. No, Orcariner seemed to need a leader so he could better himself.

Steelclaw had spent so long watching his own path that the idea of getting someone else to do it for him was distasteful.

There was, of course, another aspect to Orcariner's statement. He was fighting for someone. And that was admirable.

But Steelclaw didn't need to feel guilty in that regard. He had many to fight for.

There was something else. Orcariner knew that was only part of the reason why he was still down here. There was more to his purpose aside from simply trying to please his commanding officer.

I was a soldier before I came here. But now I'm... more than just that.

I'm a bot who's found himself crash landed in a new frontier. I'm not just a soldier on this planet... not anymore. I'm an explorer of sorts. I'm also a scientist now. Mix that job with a bit of engineering. I'm actually a lot of things now. It's hard not to be when you're stranded on a new world with only a handful of helpers. I've become one of them.

That's why I'm eager to keep going. I guess you can call it a newfound curiosity that I picked up during the past couple of months. If you live with a bunch of scientists, I suppose it's hard not to start asking questions about everything.

Steelclaw suddenly began to feel that Orcariner was lecturing him by making an unspoken observation of his comrades, as though he were saying "See- my circle of friends does all this for me. Your group probably does less. Do you think that might tell you something about our respective sides?"

Yes, Steelclaw knew many of his comrades weren't group oriented... or even socially competent, for that matter. Alas, not all groups had great internal chemistry.

And, admittedly, some of the Predacons were more than just unfriendly- they were unscrupulous. Sonar came to mind.

But Steelclaw had already admitted to his disagreements with some of those he worked with. And those Predacons did not invalidate the morality of what he was doing.

Of course, Orcariner may have not been trying to do that at all. And as long as Steelclaw wasn't sure, there was not point in debating the matter.

Then there were two more things to think about. One- curiosity drove Orcariner to the transwarp signal. That was another thing they had in common. Two- Orcariner at least claimed to have only picked up that drive to answer questions from his fellow Maximals, meaning his curiosity was not a part of his old life. It was a small question for Steelclaw to have answered, but now it was answered.

Having been listening and thinking the entire time, Steelclaw wasn't sure where to begin verbally responding. It didn't help that his processor kept pondering everything he'd just heard.

Suddenly, he realized something. He hadn't even been asking for the answer, but it had been given to him. Orcariner had explicitly said "I was a soldier before I came here. But now I'm... more than just that." Perhaps Orcariner was just being incredibly smooth, but his claim about gaining curiosity after being with the other Maximals only helped affirm his claim.

Orcariner didn't come to the Axalon as an explorer. So he hadn't left his life behind in coming on the ship's voyage. With that possibility ruled out, Orcariner had to have had an incredibly good- and entirely separate- reason for coming aboard. What was he doing there?

Saber-Fang? No, it was clear from her conversation with Sonar earlier that day that the Maximals had no previous knowledge of her condition.

General protection for the crew? Not good enough to pull a potential Peace Marshall out of training. And with Optimus, Rhinox and Rattrap around, the chance he came "just in case" diminished even more.

Again, he remembered the encrypted file from the Axalon database, but there was obviously no definitive answer there. What the slag was going on?

Unfortunately, he couldn't just ask Orcariner. Or, rather, he could, but he wouldn't get anything important. And there wasn't any way he could ask around the matter either.

As everything rushed around in his processor, he kept himself looking calm, and finally found a reply for the Maximal- the thought that mattered the most of all the ones he could afford to say out loud.

"For what it's worth, Maximal... it bothers me too."

He took a few more steps along with Orcariner before something strange happened. His optics started flashing on and off. And he felt an immense pain in his head. He felt his joints weakening underneath him.

"Back, back!" he shouted in a panic. Fortunately, once he backed up, the strange symptoms quickly worked themselves out.

"That was weird. I think the aliens have some sort of... magnetic, or ionic- slag you're more of a scientist. They've got a field in front of us which scrambles our circuits once we step in range."

He took a quick glance around. He found the symbol which marked traps much farther down the tunnel, but noticed it kept glowing red.

"Does that mean it's always active?" he asked, pointing at the symbol. "Because then this is really a barrier, not a trap."

((OOC: There was much to say.))

* * *

Cheetor watched wordlessly as Scorponok climbed right out with Terrorsaur.

"Chafing chips, that was easier than I thought. I guess we're headin' off then. Just watch out for an energy blast trap ahead, o.k.?"

* * *

Dinobot had the presence of mind to stop his charge when he saw his comrades negotiating with the Predacons. The situation soon resolved peacefully, and Dinobot sheathed his sword before transforming to beast mode again.

You're outnumbered, Manterror! I suggest you make a wise retreat.

Dinobot looked at the almost countless wounds covering Optimus Primal's frame. And still he stood and reasoned with Manterror. It was a wonder he was even conscious, but it was an even greater wonder he was taking the initiative to handle the situation in his condition rather than letting his now-sizable group of surrounding allies take care of things.

[Wintersong]

"Well least he used his head for something. And it'll be a surprise if we aren't all claustrophobic after that." Wintersong said shaking her head and headed from the cave taking a deep breathe of fresh air. After being underground for so long she was glad to be in open air and see forest nearby again, though the battle field did give a depressing feeling. And she thought she had heard an explosion before, wondering what it could have been and if anyone was alive and any wildlife unharmed, though it wasn't likely. Since coming there the tigeress had started to find a soft spot for the organic world and found herself at home in the unknown wilderness. Not to mention getting becoming a bit closer to the exploration crew.

Perhaps she had overreacted several months ago and avoiding the Axalon crew had been a somewhat stupid move on her part. But she still preferred to roam around and be a loner, for now at least. There was always that part in her that wanted to remain solitary and be among the wild of the planet, dangerous or not. "Cheetor I think the others are close by!"She called after sniffing the air and headed towards the trees hearing some voices ahead but she slowed and crouched creeping closer wondering what was going on.

Looking at the scene it seemed nearly all the Maximals were there and only manterror though she became a bit concerned when not seeing Orcanier, wondering if the orca was safe. Leaving her teammates to what they were doing she quietly crept around, following their scents back close to where the explosion had occurred but paused when she came across fresh scents of Tigatron and Airazor and followed it. "Tigatron,Airazor!" Coming from the trees Wintersong stood and approached the two though noticed they seemed hurt,"Are you two alright?And have you seen orcanier?"She asked with concern.

[Alak]

"For what it's worth, Maximal... it bothers me too."

Orcariner looked over at Steelclaw when he had said this. There was no reply from the giant, but not due to lack of effort.

"Back, back!"

"That was weird. I think the aliens have some sort of... magnetic, or ionic- slag you're more of a scientist. They've got a field in front of us which scrambles our circuits once we step in range."

"Does that mean it's always active?"

"Because then this is really a barrier, not a trap."

Orcariner immediately stopped as the black bear involuntarily convulsed due to invisible effects. Analyzing the effect it had on Steelclaw, the orca closed his optics and ran as many possibilities through his processor as he could. It did not take long before he derived a hypothesis.

"It's energon radiation," he said, almost with a sounding incredulous, "It's a controlled field, but magnetic waves are impossible to contain through absolute means. Come to think of it, we've had no issues remaining in robot mode during our stay underground, and it's because those walls are designed to jam wavelengths to prevent this field from reaching us. However, like I said before, complete prevention is impossible so our bodies have been absorbing radiation this entire time... only in insignificant quantities. Our dampers were running at low power, low enough for us not to notice, but keep something running long enough and its total energy expenditure will add up sooner or later. It only takes a push to send us reeling into stasis lock. Now that we're nearing the center of the maze, there are less walls which means we're more susceptible to energon radiation."

Orcariner paused. He was trying to figure out where this explanation was leading to. The aliens wanted them to remain in robot mode so that they would be tested at their peaks. The labyrinth was one massive evaluation device. Yet, there was only one reason why there would be any heavy energon radiation source to begin with.

"They don't want us going in there," he continued, "Tactically speaking, that has to be the center of control for the whole construct. I'm not sure how much of it comprises the transwarp beacon, but I can guarantee that we'll find a lot of valuable intel in there."

There was a way to get through, but Orcariner wanted to search his memories to be sure that he was correct. He tried to recall the debrief report that Dinobot provided when the alien probe emitted an EMP that sent four powerful warriors to their respective repair chambers. If he remembered correctly, all four of them were in actively engaging one another in robot mode.

"We can enter it in beast mode," Orcariner said, trying to sound confident, "Most likely, this field encompasses the entirety of the mazes' center and its adjacent entrances. We'll have to remain in beast mode until we can find a way to disable whatever is emitted this radiation or until our dampers are fully restored to maximum function capability."

Which will take who knows how long, he thought, At least he'll be able to use his paws. I'm stuck with the most useless beast mode on land.

Eager to test his theory, and hopefully prove it, Orcariner transformed for the first time in hours. There was a painfully loud echo of sand grinding upon metal as his body rearranged itself to form a mucky looking killer whale. Fortunately, the sound was the worst of it as Orcariner felt nothing more than irritable vibrations in every joint. The gravity lifts hummed to life and the orca pushed forward without much hesitation at all.

Here goes nothing.

Nothing happened. Relief swept over him as his beast mode effortlessly repelled the radiation. Being so lengthy in his animal form, Orcariner did not bother to turn his head too much as he spoke to Steelclaw.

"It works!" he said, excitedly.

Orcariner continued to float down the path, which was now darkened due to his lack of glowing energo-swords. Only the lighting from his gravity lifts provided the limited visibility. It was not an issue, however, as there was a notable shine up ahead coming from the end of the hallway. They were at the end of their path, and the truth that they were looking for awaited for them in the next room.

Anxious, the killer whale kept going towards the light. His eyes winced a bit to shield himself from the brightness. There, on the other side, was a room larger than anything he had ever seen in this labyrinth. Unlike the repetitive hallways the groups had trudged through before, this particular area was constructed of pure metal. The voluminous center was not empty, however. The walls were lined with computer consoles, all of which were unmanned. Four giant pillars constructed of busy machinery were placed throughout the room close to the corners. Barely peering through the entrance, Orcariner noted that these columns had large blocks in their center that seemed to pulsate rhythmically to the sounds of the heavy beating of steel. The middle of the room held a large machine with a blue, spark-like artifact in its center. This particular machine was constantly changing, but it was not an automatic process. To his dismay, Orcariner saw not one, but two of the skull creatures working on the large construct. They whispered in dark voices amongst each other in a language foreign to the Maximal's audio receptors. Based on their work pace and their speech patterns, he knew that they were rushing. It was obvious that the machine they were working on was the container of the transmitter. The two alien robots frantically installed layers of metal, and with each plate, the machine transformed once more. Orcariner was disturbed to see that this thing was developing into a bipedal construct, resembling something similar to that of a Cybertronian. In fact, it looked strangely familiar but the lack of finality of the project kept its resemblance questionable. Perhaps the alien skulls were attempting to alter the transmitter's container into that of a mobile guardian so that whichever invaders who successfully entered the room would be forced to do battle with it or retreat. It only took a few more plates and their ensuing transformations for Orcariner to realize what they were in the process of building.

It looks like me.

[New Moon]

Feralnight sighed in relief as the two Predacons left but turned as Manterror yelled something, wondering what the mantis was trying to do now. Though she was a bit concerned as Saber-fang appeared behind him yet at the same time it didn't seem like her either. Never seeing the Beast before the fuzor could only wonder what was to come next and if manterror would even stand a chance.

Not far from them Frilla followed the voice that was clearly Manterror's rolling her eyes at the bug's attempts to possibly attacking the Maximals and more then like wasn't going well. Well maybe. Climbing up a tree the frilled lizard moved along a branch, keeping within the leaves to blend in and watch the events from a height but at this angle she couldn't see Saber-fang and looked at the odds, Manterror was way out numbered and attacking Optimus would be a foolish idea.

'As if he has much the processor to run.' She thought.

Gripping the branch with her claws Frilla maneuvered herself to be upside down and get a better view, watching the events from her perch. Though now it seemed they were all waiting for something or watching for someone, whichever Frilla wasn't quite sure.

[WorpeX]

Manterror heard a growl behind him and turned to look. He wasn't entirely sure what it was, some sort of feline creature of some sort. It didn't really matter though. "Hello Kitty! I have something here for you..." In a flash, his wings spread and began to move quickly, allowing his metal frame to depart from the ground. He hadn't gone too far before he stopped and hovered in place. He was just far enough to be out of the cats range. "Aww, Kitty-cat can't fly? What a pity!" He exclaimed and unleashed two of his deadly razor blades at the cat below him. Manterror was sick and tired of getting blown up and missing with every shot. So now he decided he would fire on helpless creatures at near-point-blank range. Ah, the joys of hunting!

"You're outnumbered, Manterror! I suggest you make a wise retreat."

"Eh?" He said, and turned to investigate. Indeed he was. Apparently Starshadow and Cecaelia had bailed and left him alone. That certainly changed matters slightly...

---



"Airazor! It is good to see you, have the others made it out as well?"

"Sort of... Orcariner stayed down to recover the transwarp device." She responded, deciding not to mention Steelclaw. She wasn't too sure how he would react to the other Maximal's leaving Orcariner in the caves alone with a Predicon. Come to think of it, it was probably not very Maximal-like at all. If the Orca doesn't make it back out alive, she would feel rather guilty for not staying with him and helping.

Airazor noticed the Tiger was a bit bruised and walked with a slight limp. "You're hurt!" She exclaimed. "Airazor, Maximize!" She continued and activated the transformation sequence. In a few seconds, she was back to her robotic self. While it was unlikely that she was in any better shape than the Tiger she was with, her health hadn't mattered as much to her. Kneeling down, she took a look at his leg and examined it carefully. While she was no medic and hadn't the first idea how to repair anything robotic besides going into beast mode and hoping it fixes it-self, she did know a bit about organic injuries. In the time she spent outside, every so often she would find a wounded creature and try to help it. It was the least she could do to give back to the planet which gave so much to her and her comrades.

[Night-Hunter]

((OOC: Well... that was a bad idea Manterror. You called down the thunder. Lol)

"Hello Kitty! I have something here for you..."

The creature let out a startled hiss and took a step back as Manterror took flight and was now out of it's reach, or so the mantis thought.

"Aww, Kitty-cat can't fly? What a pity!"

The frist razor blade missed but the only hit its target and lodged it's self in the creature's well muscled shoulder. Letting out an enraged roar it leaped for a tree close by the Mantis and quickly climed up it's trunk. The tree groaned under the cats weight. With a hissing snarl, it leaped from the tree and onto Manterror, slamming him to the ground with massive force. It roared in the predacons face then lifted a paw, while the other held him down to take the Mantis' head clean off his shoulders.

((OOC: Now would be a good time to shoot her with some thing, or hit her over the head with a really big tree. Lol))

[NaitoKage]

(Luckily you have that option!)

Rhinox turned pointing his guns at Manterror, then watched as the scene unfolded. He called out to Icebreaker She's lost control, do it now!

Icebreaker got up from the ground and turned pointing his weapon towards Saberfang, he moved the lever on the side of his gun, then fired off a micro missile from his frost launcher, in the air the missile appeared to unfold with a narrow point extending from the end. With the realitively short range, the missile slammed into Saber's side, strangely not exploding but injecting her with a tranquilizing agent. A green surge then emitted across Saberfang's body from the impact point.

Icebreaker sighed moving the lever again, then walked towards Saberfang and Manterror, pointing his gun toward's the Predacon's face. Cool it bug, before I turn you into a Popsicle.

Rhinox put his guns away, walking towards Saber dragging the body off Manterror.

_______________________

Megatron turned his head, after hearing the mass explosion and gunfire, his interests were peaked. He walked towards the edge of the woods, looking towards what was once the battlefield only to find a new creator site. Well.. it appears our alien guest has been disposed.. Finally. But it seems rather.. sloppy compared to last time. he said with a slight smirk, walking out into the open he examined the collection of scattered and twisted parts along the battlefield, surprisingly some parts being almost intact. He looked towards a strange sphere like object on the ground, which appeared to be heavily damaged. He transformed to his robot mode lifting the broken object, while alot of the peices atleast attempted to look like Cybertronian anatomy, this did not. A Parting gift.. They shouldn't have. he then let out a dark laugh, holding the scrap of technology in his clutches he then transformed to beast mode again, then tilted his head The Alien may be dead, but not all is lost. If we retroengineer the peices they left behind, we may be able to use the technology to our advantage, especially seeing how this was intergrated with our cybertronian makeup, making it easier to understand then these stone ruins and relics they keep leaving behind.. In a sense.. you could call this our Rosetta Stone.. Yesss...

(Insert dramatic music with a scene which will only make sense later in season 3.)

[Blazemane]

Steelclaw visibly shuddered when Orcariner transformed.

That sounded painful...

He would have trusted the Maximal's analysis of the situation anyways, but it was proven once Orcariner hovered into the field's range and was unaffected. Steelclaw immediately began following him.

Once they reached the center room and looked inside, Steelclaw was awestruck. Still, he tried his best to get an understanding of what he saw.

He didn't like it. The aliens probably knew they were coming the whole time, but now when the pair got to the front door, the aliens had their backs turned and were working on something like it was a life or death situation? They even that whatever Cybertronians came, they would be stuck in beast mode.

But what if he was wrong? The construction they were building looked foreboding. Maybe it wasn't even the transwarp device that the machine was being built around, but some sort of superdevice which, if brought to the surface in another transformers' body, could make the Optimus clone look like a maintenance drone...

If he was wrong, then it was time to act. He did know two things- that either the aliens inside the room truly were unaware of Steelclaw and Orcariner's approach, and could thus be taken by surprise, or, they were pretending to be unaware, and therefore, if Orcariner and Steelclaw played their cards right, they would still be forced to act as if they had been taken by surprise.

"Here's what I'm thinking," Steelclaw spoke quietly, so as to only be heard by Orcariner. "The aliens know our two sides are in conflict. If you back up out of the field's range, turn one of the corners to be out of sight and then start carving into the walls and ceiling like you're gonna try to bury this place, I think I can convince at least one- I'm hoping both- to come out to you. We don't stand much of a chance taking them in beast mode, and the two of us working together could provide as much surprise as us running into the room head long."