"More Than Meets The Eye: Part III"

[una]

"And I told YOU dat it ain't no point 'n click!"

When Rattrap tried to push her away from the console, she kept her place, swatting his ratty hands away, "I know what I'm doing!" She sneered a bit at the Maximal rodent. Well, she knew how to fix things back at the Darksyde. The Axalon was a bit different, but it wasn't like she couldn't learn as she went along. After all, she build many complex tech before like that little gizmo she built several months ago that broke through the Axalon's shields.

"You better not make things worse,"

If she were childish, she would spit a raspberry at him, but it seemed like Rattrap had his hands full with her former buddies. From the heat she was feeling under her feet, it must be Inferno. She sniffed the air. Did she smell cooked rat? She chuckled to herself. Also, she heard the familiar hollering of Quickstrike. Blackarachnia could help but think of the irony of this situation for her. Here she was helping the Maximals fix the shields of their ship. Shields she always worked to bring down during battles. Heh.

As she was working on the console, she just whispered to Axalon, "I know you might hold somethings against me, but I hope you could push those aside and work for me here? All right, tin bucket? And I mean that in a nice way."

She tried something basic, but as the lights went on, they came off again. Oh. So it was going to be like that? Though, this would be easier if she had converted power from the CR chambers to the shields, but noooo. She shook her head, trying to figure what to do next while there was a battle going on outside.

((OOC: I will post for Whitegrazer later. ))

[NaitoKage]

Waspinator flew back attempting to dodge some of Rattrap's shots, the shots hitting his body with a few surprisingly bouncing off his transmetal hide, his wings however were not as durable, causing him to fall out of the air onto the ground near Quickstrike.

Quickstrike reeled his Cobra head back as it got hit with a black mark seen on the nose Yowtch! Slaggin' no good varmint! he cursed.

__________________________

"Hold on," "It won't take long to.."

Landslide nodded, then saw Dirge coming up behind Aurora and grab her, he reached his arm out Aurora!

Landslide struggled to try to get up, even with some of his systems down it didn't matter to the giant bug, he couldn't allow her to be harmed by that monster. Pointing his right arm at Dirge, his grenade launcher extended, but sparked with pieces of broken metal coming from the chamber. The warheads didn't go off, but the energon charges to propel the grenades went off inside the chamber from the electric surge he put himself through earlier. Slagging junk!

As he shouted, Ironclaw suddenly rushed out of the woods to the rescue, and soon had managed to take down Dirge. Landslide tried to get up still, but couldn't manage. After the fight had finished, he started to replace the fuses in his fuzebox, then start to solder some of the broken wires Dirge had managed to cut through when he bit into the beetle, overhearing Ironclaw and Aurora.

"On your feet" "let's take you home"

"You.. killed him,"

Landslide's chest plate slid up and over locking down to his torso as he leaned up with assistance from the insect legs on his back. Lass.. I'd of done the same. That monster took down the Axalon on his own. He nearly killed cheetor and was going to do the same to all of us.. There was nothing redeeming in that spark..

Landslide rubbed his side, then leaned down picking up his shield and looked over to Ironclaw You did good. I'll go on ahead an help Optimus out with the Preds. Be careful,Zodiac is still runnin' around.. but with that electric attack of yers, you might stand a better chance then the rest of us..

Landslide's landing gear then came down, his thrusters kicking in as he rolled forward and took off into the air, flying towards the Axalon. As he came in towards the ship, he flew rather close by grabbing his chainsword out of the side of the haul, then came down rolling towards Quickstrike and Waspinator.

Quickstrike turned pointing his cobra head at Landslide What in tarnation?! he responded in surprise at the sight of the giant maximal landing near them and started to open fire. Landslide's thrusters turned and released a burst of thrust causing him to spin and smack Quickstrike with his chainsword, sending the smaller Predacon flying through the air and off into the distance like a baseball with a trail of dust following in his wake. The shots fired from Quickstrike bouncing off his heavy armor unaffected by the paralyzing effects of the cybervenom.

Waspinator watched with widen optics, then turned looking in the direction Quickstrike was smacked, not seeing him around. Ta-Twohead?... Waspinator said nervously, then looked back at Landslide holding his shield in a defensive position, claws flipping out of the sides as he brought up his Chainsword. Yer next drone. His chainsword then activated revving up loudly. Waspinator's optics widened in terror, he then turned and started to run away screaming.

[una]

((OOC: I hope this is all right. And DarkSpark, uh oh, spark extractors! ))

"We need to figure out a way to wound Dirge and make him retreat,"

Whitegrazer nodded at Rhinox's suggestion as she gripped the electric stick. She turned on the electric side. Like she said before, it could be a good defense. She was ready to jump out of the brig's hole and head for Dirge. Especially when she noticed that Dirge was heading towards Aurora and Landslide. Her spark pounded against her chest. Knowing that one blast from Dirge would completely obliterated Aurora.

But before she jumped out, she witness someone emerge out of nowhere. Could it be...?

"Ironclaw...?"

Rhinox said exactly what was on her mind. Ironclaw had been lost for awhile, and even she was worried about the honey badger. Seeing him come to Aurora and Landslide made her sigh in relief. As she watched the battle, at least with what she could see it, it was brutal between dirge and Ironclaw. She could see Aurora's face as well as Landslide's. Actually, her expression might have matched hers as she continued to watch. Until Dirge fell down the ground, she didn't know if Dirge was alive or dead, but from what she saw in Ironclaw's raised hand, a blue orb of postronic energy. A spark.

Dirge was dead.

Whitegrazer didn't know what to feel. After all, to her, a life lost was a tragedy, life was precious, enemy or foe, and yet, Ironclaw might have had no choice but to do so. To save the lives of comrades, who were vulnerable to an attack. It was regrettable, but sometimes, it couldn't be avoided. She wondered how Aurora was taking it, though. Seeing a kill right in front of her optics.

She hit her commlink to address Aurora, "Aurora, are you all right? You and Ironclaw should make your way back to base."

Whitegrazer wondered how Zodiac felt as well. She wondered if some part of him would be anger at the lost of a comrade or did he not care. She didn't know. Her spark thudded. Made her look at her chest. There was an emotion she was feeling, but it was strange. She really wasn't feeling that. She was remorseful, not... anger.

Off in the distance, she noticed someone flying away. Was that Zodiac...?

"We should move to the command center and lend a hand to Rattrap. If you're up to it."

She shook her head. Turning her attention to Rhinox, she smiled and nodded, "I am. Let's go." She followed Rhinox to the command center. After all, with Ironclaw and Landslide back in action, they could help Optimus with Inferno and Terrorsaur.

As they reached the command center, she saw Rattrap fighting two Predacons, Waspinator and Quickstrike. Blackarachnia was under the console. Was she fixing the shields or something? Whitegrazer was surprised but then smiled at this new development. As well as the fact it looked like Rattrap was... protecting her. If they weren't in the middle of a battle, she would chuckle and say something, but she kept her observation to herself.

Then as she was going to say something towards the Predacons, she watched as Quickstrike was hit and flew way off in the distance. Waspinator gulping in fear as Landslide declared his warning towards the flying wasp. And Waspinator ran away, following Quickstrike.

"I guess all that is left is Terrorsaur and Inferno." Whitegrazer observed. She looked outside, watching a few moments as Optimus dealt with Inferno and Terrorsaur. He seemed to be doing well, but it still seemed unfair. She thought about it for a moment, looking at her stick. If only she had a hoverboard or jet pack, the only thing she could do was...

"Landslide," she said through the hole, "Wouldn't mind giving me a lift, would you?"

[DarkSpark]

OOP wrote: By "no" Terrorsaur meant yes, of course. The leader almost chuckled at himself had the situation not been so serious. Perhaps he was losing his mind because how was any of this comical? Optimus managed to shield himself from Terrorsaur's lasers by using his clubs to deflect the heavy beams toward Dirge with the slight possibility of the slower bot mistaking them for friendly-turned-traitor gun fire. With any luck, Dirge would turn his weapons on Terrorsaur and distract him. However, the TransMetal 'dactyl's lasers were too strong to allow Primal to remain in this position. They gradually pushed him backwards in the air and he could feel the handles of his clubs growing hotter and hotter in his hands, eventually starting to glow a reddish-orange hue. If he kept this up, Terrorsaur's eye lasers were going to melt them. So the Maximal quickly lowered his twin clubs and dropped out of the air for a moment to dodge the steady streams of doom. This Predacon had always been a thorn in his side. "Three against one... Hardly seems fair," he commented, not surprised.

"Says the bot who came back from the dead" Terrorsaur growled as he continued the assault, pleased to see his optic beams had served him well and Primal had been forced to put away his annoying billy clubs, now he and Inferno could really do some damage to the smart mouthed ape, their combined firepower forcing even the "mighty" Primal into retreat!

OOP wrote: "I've heard all of this countless times before," Optimus dismissively told Inferno as if his threats meant absolutely nothing to him to purposely antagonize the ant. Of course, he may have bitten off more than he could chew when he was suddenly confronted by diverse ammunition from both him and Terrorsaur. He had no choice but to go on the defensive and turn to fly away before the barrage hammered him. One shot skimmed his shoulder while another hit his hover board and sent him tumbling through the air. Primal managed to stop himself and level himself out, still gripping on to his clubs, regaining his composure and taking a moment to check his injuries. Nothing vital was hit nor did it impair his hover board's flight abilities. He rolled his shoulder which ached and had a scorched streak across it but he looked back at the Predacons to make sure they were following him. He pretended to be shaken up, to make himself look vulnerable like an easy target for them since they were so eager to destroy him. Not too far away on the ground, he spotted Aurora assisting Landslide who seemed to be functioning which was a relief, but Optimus would make sure to keep these two trigger-happy imbeciles away from his comrades until they were ready to join the fray. Little did he know that Dirge was making his way toward them as he turned all the way around to face the two fliers. Rattrap should be able to hold off Waspinator and Quickstrike, and hopefully Rhinox and Whitegrazer were still alive and able to defend their base of operations as well, but he wasn't certain. The mare's fate was unknown to him since he assumed she had temporarily severed their bond for whatever reason, but since it didn't feel like a part of his spark had been blown out like a candle, she couldn't be dead... Rhinox's gun fire toward the fake Megatron suggested he was still managing as well. There was still hope even though Zodiac was free once more...

"And Megatron willing, it will be the LAST time Primal!" Inferno snarled, invoking his leader's name as though he were a god rather than a rebel leader, as he and Terrorsaur pursued after Optimus, the ape turning tail and flying away, their last barrage barreling into the Axalon itself and exploding spectacularly, blowing an even larger hole into it than the one Quickstrike and Waspinator had invaded.

"He's trying to lead us away from his precious ship and crew, Bug Breath" Terrorsaur warned warily, wise to Primal's intent despite his desire to destroy him, having the most experience in engaging the maximal leader in aerial combat, even more so than Megatron himself.

"Quickstrike and Waspinator will handle the rest, we cannot allow a chance to destroy the Royalty's greatest enemy to slip away! Pursue or burn schemer! Your choice!" Inferno warned, the transmetal pterosaur complying with his "Subcommander's" orders, but as always doubting the logic behind his decision making.

"Its your call Inferno..." Terrorsaur replied, firing optic beams after Primal, while whispering under his breath "And your fault if this mission goes up in smoke."

"About time you learned to follow orders drone, perhaps you'll develop a spine as well!" Inferno jeered, laughing maniacally as he fired a multitude of fireballs after Primal, the shots that missed exploding with serious force on the surrounding area, destroying everything they touched from rocks to foliage, the mindless love for destruction evident on the insect's face as he gleefully filled the sky with wildfire.

"At least I know how to aim!" Terrorsaur spat back as he fired his more accurate eye lasers at Primal's hover board & legs, determined to shoot him out of the sky and put an end to this race so they could slag him and return to attacking the Axalon, he didn't trust Quickstrike and Waspinator to handle everything on their own for long.

Phoenix wrote: For a moment Nemesis wondered if she had turned invisible. Megatron's attention was solely on the fallen Decepticon soldier and not the other Decepticon, and she still considered herself such even if she didn't look like one anymore. Gratitude truly was a lost art among Predacons.

"It'll be my pleasure," she responded, not caring if Megatron could detect a bit of sarcasm in her voice. She doubted he'd care, as long as she did as he commanded. And for the time being their goals were the same, both wanted to preserve the Decepticons and give them a new chance at life. A new beginning for their kind, one that would alter the course of history.

She moved the body as requested, thankful it was still resting on the hover platforms. For the time being Megatron was busy playing the mad scientist, and she was content to let him do so since she had hopes the results would be worthwhile.

"Excellent, now then, empty the body into the mix" Megatron commanded, still holding the decepticon's spark contained in his ghoulish contraption, the predacon commander not wanting the original frame around when his new soldier awoke, so that the ancient warrior would have no choice but to accept his new form instead.

Megatron did this not to be cruel, merely pragmatic, the decepticon body wouldn't survive for long on this planet but he didn't want to risk the possibility of his new recruit being unable to let go of the outdated relic, removing it from the equation altogether was the better choice. Besides, as he'd said already, the new body he was creating for his soldier would retain his original decepticon materials, so he'd be a mix of both technologies, predacon and decepticon...The maximals would be TERRIFIED of his creation.

[NaitoKage]

(Whitegrazer battling on Landslide's back? That should be interesting. Though..melee combat will be almost impossible and Whitegrazer could slide off if she's just standing on his back.. though it always worked for Star saber on his V-star.. http://tfwiki.net/wiki/V-Star Could always put an electromagnetic in his shield.. LOL )

Landslide watches as Optimus evades Terrorsaur and Inferno, with shots striking into the Axalon. He then turns looking towards the Axalon as he hears Whitegrazer speak up.

"Landslide,""Wouldn't mind giving me a lift, would you?"

Landslide raised an optic ridge looking at Whitegrazer, then noticed the stun baton in her hand and cringed under his faceplate. Without taunting the predacons, melee combat in the air was nearly impossible since Landslide couldn't fly as fast as any of the others. I doubt you'd take no anyway Lass. Landslide then said as he put his chainsword away, jumping up with assistance from his thrusters, he flew into the hole Inferno and Terrorsaur made. Landing inside,he walked towards the gunrack Dinobot was usually getting guns from, pulling out one of the large automatic rifles. My guns are broken an I can't fly as fast as needlenose. So if yer going to do this, you need this.

Passing the gun into Whitegrazer's hand, he then grabbed the tall equine female by the waist with his right arm lifting her up as if she was as light as Aurora, his left arm throwing his shield onto his back as he walked to the hole in the Axalon and jumped out, throwing Whitegrazer high up above him as he shouted Vehicle mode!

Landslide transformed hovering with his outer wings open, the bay to his cargobox slid up as Whitegrazer landed inside it, providing her with points to grab/footholds for support, rest the gun on, or kneel for cover, since just landing on Landslide's back would have her slide off. Landslide's thrusters then turned as he accelerated, taking off in pursuit of Inferno and Terrorsaur.

[Optimal Optimus Primal]

There was a lot of commotion coming from Aurora and Landslide's position. Optimus couldn't help but give into temptation turning his attention toward them only to find Dirge and Ironclaw in a brawl while he hovered there in mid-air high above the Axalon.

Watch. Do you see? See how easy it is? one of those whispers told him. He couldn't take his pink optics off of them below. Ironclaw, who had appeared out of no where, was overwhelming Dirge until...

Time stopped. Primal took a breath and held it momentarily. Everything was silent. There was no gun fire and no shouting. His optics were glued to the pulsing spark in the badger's grasp while Dirge fell limp and unresponsive. "Did he...?"

Just exterminate him? a whisper interrupted. Yes. Yes, he did. It's so simple. He did what you never could, Primal. Do you see how weak and useless that makes you?

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! another voice bellowed.

"I..." Optimus began out loud, but stopped himself as the whispers immediately returned.

You what?! Condone that kind of behavior? Too bad, Primal! Dirge was going to kill the ermine and the beetle. What would you have done differently?!

"I would have found another way! You don't just murder someone as your first defense! There's always another way."

Not always, you fool.

"There is ALWAYS another way!" Optimus argued with the voice in his head, unaware of how odd he might have looked up there in the sky talking to himself, completely forgetting about Terrorsaur and Inferno.

"Says the bot who came back from the dead" "He's trying to lead us away from his precious ship and crew, Bug Breath"

"About time you learned to follow orders drone, perhaps you'll develop a spine as well!"

"At least I know how to aim!"

No, there isn't! That's what you fail to grasp! Why are you so slagging merciful when no one else cares?! Megatron gets further and further ahead because he takes the risks and gets rid of anyone who stands in his way while you lollygag around and grant everyone your pity and selflessness. It has gotten you no where! The argument kept Optimus distracted, who seemed to ignore the incoming onslaught of fire power.

"You're wrong..."

I'm right, you incompetent, poor excuse for a commanding Maximal officer!

Right or wrong, it does not matter, Unicron's deep, slow voice rang in as Primal's depiction of the Vok. We will be back to finish what we started. You, your enemies, this planet and its inhabitants will perish.

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha haaaaaah! Megatron laughed. I don't even have time for your nonsense. Oh, Primal? Check your nine o'clock.

The hovering gorilla growled at first toward the tyrant's voice as it angered him until he came to his senses, shifting back to reality, and looked to his left, but it was too late for any reaction besides a gasp escaping his mouth. A lot of Terrorsaur's and Inferno's ammunition hammered Optimus, blowing him out of the sky and rendering him unconscious as he free-fell. His hover board automatically retracted just before he hit the ground, sliding and scraping across the rocky dirt with a cloud of dust following in his wake until he stopped.

Yowtch! Slaggin' no good varmint! What in tarnation?!

Rattrap grinned slightly in satisfaction after he grew a little concerned when he observed his shots basically ricochet off of the wasp. Fortunately, his wings weren't so impenetrable, so Waspy fell down, landing near Quickstrike. "Just call me de bug zapper," he smirked, pretending to blow off invisible smoke from the end of his gun's barrel.

Ta-Twohead?...

Yer next drone.

The Spy watched with joy as Landslide appeared and gave them assistance with the tiny Predacon Fuzor and pesky wasp. Dat'll learn 'em, he thought, satisfied with the beetle's handling of them.

"I am. Let's go."

Rhinox and Whitegrazer hurried to the command center just in time to find Rattrap keeping Quickstrike and Waspinator at bay, but Blackarachnia was fiddling with things under the consoles. He assumed she was actually helping them although he didn't know why she would risk her life to do such a thing for them. Well, he wasn't going to complain. They needed all the help they could get. And he supposed she was risking her life either way. Maybe there was a slight glimmer of hope that she would find the Maximal she was meant to be, but he certainly wasn't going to push the matter. She was who she was now, and that was fine with him as long as she didn't pull any stunts to sabotage them along the way.

"Oh hey, guys. Nice of you ta finally show up. I almost thought you were dead," the rodent said lightheartedly. "Did Zodiac get away?"

The engineer nodded to his shorter friend, reluctantly. "But I don't think he escaped unscathed," Rhinox commented, his gaze glancing at Whitegrazer curiously.

Perplexed, Rattrap's attention followed Rhinox's optics to the mare, not quite sure what he meant by that.

"I guess all that is left is Terrorsaur and Inferno."

"Yeah. But de boss monkey's got 'em covered," the Spy said dismissively, as if they had nothing to worry about. Putting his gun away, he watched the power flicker but hesitated to help the black widow. Knowing it was better to push his suspicions and resentment aside, Rattrap kicked some tools on the floor to Blackarachnia that she might need while he continued working above her with the key boards and monitors that had been damaged.

Rhinox wasn't so sure as he put his large weapon away and peered outside through the hole that had been made even bigger by the Predacons' barrage of gun fire, the hull sparking with severed wires and cables dangling about.

"Landslide," "Wouldn't mind giving me a lift, would you?"

"I don't think that's a wise idea...," Big Green observed considering what Whitegrazer had just been through with Zodiac. Looking off in the near distance, he noticed Dirge laying on the ground motionless with Aurora and Ironclaw nearby. ...What had happened out there...? Then he looked up when he thought he heard Primal's voice. What was he doing? "Optimus!" he called to him but was too late. He helplessly watched their leader get pummeled by Terrorsaur and Inferno's fire power, both of which were surely going to gloat about it, as his body fell limp to the ground with a hard, loud thud, sliding to a stop.

Laying on his back, a couple muffled coughs came out of the TransMetal gorilla while he regained consciousness. A lot of his body was burnt and scorched, dented and scratched, but he miraculously hadn't lost any limbs or his head. Maybe just his mind. He got up slowly with a grunt and then maximized to his robot mode, pulling his gun from his hip, glaring at Terrorsaur and Inferno, and licked the scar across his lips.

[una]

((OOC: I will post for Blackarachnia for now. ))

Despite the constant shaking of the console, the ruckus of the battle outside and in, and the constant chitchat, Blackarachnia was keeping herself focused on the task at hand. Though, she was wondering about what Rhinox meant by Zodiac not leaving unscathed. That was an interesting comment. What happened between the two Maximals and the shapwshifter. Too bad she made herself responisble for getting the shields back online. It was probably something really good or at least, entertaining. Actually, working on the shield took her mind off of what was happening around her. Took her mind off the constant doubt in her mind about her decision to seek a mutual alliance with the Maximals, the emerging itch of her wanting Megatron and Tarantulas head on a silver platter. She actually imagined using their bodies to build a throne chair. Putting their heads on a spike with their horrified, defeated expressions while she was sitting on their corpses in triumph as she made her way out of this slagging organic planet. Right now, the only thing keeping her from being destroyed was... Maximals. Maximals! Grrr! She was being protected by them. It made her angry. Weak. That's not what she wanted her former Predacon comrades to see or witness. They would laugh at her and disrespect her.

Well, it wasn't like she had to deal with that when she awoken from the Maximal stasis pod. She was Predacon, though. She would always see herself as a Predacon. Even if some Predacons distrusted her, hated her, or some who wanted to use her for their own sick perversions. Which she made clear to Tarantulas on a few occasions. Watching his admiration, or lust, fade into a burning anger and contempt that his creation wasn't being what he wanetd her to be: a slave. Even if she might gained some respect. It would be crushed now with her decision to align herself with the Maximals. She blamed it on Tarantulas.

The console sparked a bit. She covered her optics and let out a grunt of frustration. She took out some tools from her person, twerking and fixing some of the wiring. She seen better wiring back at the Darksyde, but it seems she was making some progress as she was fiddling around in the mess.

"All I need to do is gave the shields something to juice it with, and your shields would be ready." she shouted.

((OOC: I'm not really a techy person. ))

[Phoenix]

Lass.. I'd of done the same. That monster took down the Axalon on his own. He nearly killed cheetor and was going to do the same to all of us.. There was nothing redeeming in that spark..

Aurora shook her head, trying her best to hold back the queasy sensation that was growing in her abdomen. "No," she disagreed with Landslide, if a bit quietly. She then sighed, casting a final glance at the large figure on the ground. Dirge lay silent, deathly still, his face had an empty expression, his single optic faded. The sight was enough to give Aurora the shivers.

She wanted to argue that as Maximals they were supposed to be better than that.. Above taking the life of someone who is already defeated. It is what separated them from lunatics like Megatron and Zodiac.

Yet she said nothing more, instead she merely started moving back towards the base. She avoided meeting Ironclaw's stare, not sure she wanted to know what was going through his mind right now. It wasn't that she wasn't grateful for Ironclaw intervening when Dirge had attacked her, or even that he had attacked him so ferociously. Instead it was the fact that he had merely extinguished his foe's spark without as much as a moment's hesitation. That made Ironclaw a killer. And somehow she got the impression this wasn't the first time he had taken a life. Dirge had already been defeated when it happened.

You did good. I'll go on ahead an help Optimus out with the Preds. Be careful,Zodiac is still runnin' around.. but with that electric attack of yers, you might stand a better chance then the rest of us..

She briefly stopped to glance back over her shoulder upon hearing that. Yes, Zodiac had proven to be a bigger problem than anyone could have anticipated. No doubt he was the reason Dirge had attacked their base in the first place. But she was still a Maximal, and as such she didn't believe killing someone in cold blood was ever the right choice. There had to be another solution, there simply had to be.

"Aurora, are you all right? You and Ironclaw should make your way back to base."

The fuzor had just started walking again when Whitegrazer's transmission came through. Aurora didn't respond immediately, instead she mulled over her response for close to a minute before she finally opened her channel.

"I'm all right," she told Whitegrazer, attempting to hide the conflicting emotions that could surely be detected in her voice, "Ironclaw came to the rescue. Dirge is dead."

She still hadn't thanked Ironclaw for what he did. She meant to, but the severity of the situation had gotten to her. Yes, she had seen death before. But usually it was behind a computer screen or something that had happened a while before she got there. Not like this. More and more she was becoming sure that she had been wrong when she had declared the Predacons needed to be destroyed for what they had done. Those words had been spoken in anger, and functioned more like a protective shield for her so she could separate herself from what was going on around her. But after seeing one die only a few feet away from her, having his life taken away by one of her own, she now hesitated.

The commotion in the sky caught her attention. Right, the Predacons.. she had temporarily forgotten all about them. But what were they shooting at..?

She squinted her eyes to see clearer, the glare of the sun making it difficult to see clearly. But it didn't take long for her optics to adjust and she saw Optimus hovering in the sky, not really doing anything, just staring off into the distance. She called out for him, wanting to warn him that the Predacons were fast approaching. But her warning turned ever more frantic when all of a sudden Optimus was flung off his hoverboard, falling freely towards the ground below.

"No!," she screamed in horror, running as quickly as her legs would carry her towards where Optimus had fallen.

"Excellent, now then, empty the body into the mix"

Nemesis barely managed to hold back the protest of Megatron wanting to melt this Decepticon body down for spare parts. Ever since she had lost her own Decepticon form to this smaller, Predacon version, she had wanted to go back.. to reclaim her power and extreme speed. Sure, she still retained most of her speed, but not quite to the extent she'd been able to in the past.

Still, she did as told, hoping that Megatron knew what he was doing. If not, well, there were surely more Decepticons buried somewhere on this planet. In fact she was sure of it. "As long as he can retain certain characteristics I find that many of your captured protoforms have been lacking," she responded, watching as the giant Decepticon body changed its form. It was true. Even BlackArachnia had proved to have a difficult time ridding herself of her core programming.

She crossed her arms, watching as the process continued.

[DarkSpark]

OOP wrote: "I..." Optimus began out loud, but stopped himself as the whispers immediately returned.

You what?! Condone that kind of behavior? Too bad, Primal! Dirge was going to kill the ermine and the beetle. What would you have done differently?!

"I would have found another way! You don't just murder someone as your first defense! There's always another way."

Not always, you fool.

"There is ALWAYS another way!" Optimus argued with the voice in his head, unaware of how odd he might have looked up there in the sky talking to himself, completely forgetting about Terrorsaur and Inferno.

"Curious, to whom does Primal speak?" Inferno inquired, the fire ant tilting his head in confusion, not detecting any radio transmissions for help from the transmetal ape.

"Hahahahaha! Its happened, its finally happened! The dumb ape's crashed his processor! This is priceless!" Terrorsaur jeered, cackling out loud as he watched what appeared to be his greatest enemy, amidst the maximals at least, suffer a mental breakdown.

OOP wrote: The hovering gorilla growled at first toward the tyrant's voice as it angered him until he came to his senses, shifting back to reality, and looked to his left, but it was too late for any reaction besides a gasp escaping his mouth. A lot of Terrorsaur's and Inferno's ammunition hammered Optimus, blowing him out of the sky and rendering him unconscious as he free-fell. His hover board automatically retracted just before he hit the ground, sliding and scraping across the rocky dirt with a cloud of dust following in his wake until he stopped.

"YES! We got him! We got him! Oh I knew there was a way to salvage this day, I just didn't realize I'd be scratching "kill Primal" off my bucket list to do it!" Terrorsaur crowed, laughing as he followed after Primal, hoping to claim the maximal leader's head for his trophy case.

"A glorious victory for the Royalty! He will be pleased with our success!" Inferno cheered, imagining in his deluded mind how delighted Megatron would be when he brought him Primal's charred corpse, the ant's mad laughter growing even more unnerving as he joined Terrorsaur in pursuit of their now grounded prey.

OOP wrote: Laying on his back, a couple muffled coughs came out of the TransMetal gorilla while he regained consciousness. A lot of his body was burnt and scorched, dented and scratched, but he miraculously hadn't lost any limbs or his head. Maybe just his mind. He got up slowly with a grunt and then maximized to his robot mode, pulling his gun from his hip, glaring at Terrorsaur and Inferno, and licked the scar across his lips.

"Nice landing" Terrorsaur taunted, a cruel smirk plastered on his face as he and Inferno landed, the two predacons pleased by the sight of their enemy battered and burnt, a far cry from the oh so noble and proud "hero" he liked to be presented as, now he was simply wounded prey waiting for the slaughter.

"Surrender or burn Primal, those are your choices" Inferno stated coldly, his compound eyes burning as hotly as his flames.

"We're giving him choices?" Terrorsaur asked in mock surprise, the two sharing a look before breaking out into shared laughter...Before continuing their attack!

Inferno fired a white hot torrent of flame at Primal, scorching the earth and his hide, but also obscuring his view of Terrorsaur as he and his transmetal armor lunged through the aftermath of the flames and slashed at Optimus with his twin swords, hacking and slashing at the ape swift and mercilessly!

"Personally, I prefer chop suey over deep fried!" Terrorsaur cackled as he pressed his attack, Inferno already circling around to flank Primal while he was preoccupied with the ever cruel Terrorsaur, the ant raising the butt of his gun to strike Optimus from behind.

Phoenix wrote: Nemesis barely managed to hold back the protest of Megatron wanting to melt this Decepticon body down for spare parts. Ever since she had lost her own Decepticon form to this smaller, Predacon version, she had wanted to go back.. to reclaim her power and extreme speed. Sure, she still retained most of her speed, but not quite to the extent she'd been able to in the past.

Still, she did as told, hoping that Megatron knew what he was doing. If not, well, there were surely more Decepticons buried somewhere on this planet. In fact she was sure of it. "As long as he can retain certain characteristics I find that many of your captured protoforms have been lacking," she responded, watching as the giant Decepticon body changed its form. It was true. Even BlackArachnia had proved to have a difficult time ridding herself of her core programming.

Sensing his companion's doubts, Megatron replied "Worry not, he will possess all that and more, and please, do not blame me for the maximals shoddy engineering, or Tarantulas' programming skills for that matter, but beggars cannot be choosers in this conflict, and I intend to see an increase in the quality of my troops, personally."

Megatron watched as the massive, mighty Decepticon frame melted into the protomatter mix, the substance changing its silvery hue to a darker color, as if to reflect the dark forces at work behind the birth of this new warrior.

The captive spark of his new recruit pulsated even more eagerly than before, provoking a grin from Megatron that bordered on parental affection, albeit twisted, as he said "Patience my new friend, you'll be on your feet and serving your new lord sooner than you think."

With that, he pulled a lever on his machine, the smelted contents of the vat being drawn up into its tubing and being poured into the mold on the other side, lights flashing and energy crackling all along its surface just like something out of a mad scientist's lair.

"Ah yyyyeeesssss" Megatron mused as the mold did its work, converting the melted mix of maximal and decepticon protomatter into a brand new protoform! One black as pitch and waiting for a spark to give it life.

"Ready for your glorious new life as a Predacon?" Megatron asked the decepticon spark, which pulsed three times as if to answer yes, becoming more and more excited as the tyrant neared his new body, the atmosphere itself seeming to become alive with excitement and dread in anticipation of the new horror Megatron was about to introduce to the Beast Wars.

"I knew you would be, my creation" Megatron said as he carefully deposited the spark into the dark protoform, which was several times larger than an average maximal or predacon, despite falling short of its original decepticon form.

The dark protoform seemed hungrily snatch the spark from Megatron's grasp, or perhaps the spark itself was just that determined to be reunited with its body, no matter its new form. The spark flashed like lightning inside a storm cloud within the protoform as Megatron pulled a vial from his subspace pocket and poured its contents onto his creation, much like a warlock toiling over a bubbling cauldron.

"Yes, I think you'll enjoy the beast form I've selected for you, it has it all, size, power, versatility, and teeth, lots and lots of teeth" Megatron assured the decepticon as he reluctantly pried himself away from his creation's side to do what needed to be done, return him to life!

"How fitting it is, you came here to this world in the service of Megatron, and now you shall live again by Megatron's hand, truly, you are a blessed spark my friend, it must be fate, and fate, as I'm sure you know, cannot be left waiting, nnnnnooo, so lets give it a helping hand, shall we?" Megatron said as he punched in the necessary codes, the ones which began the process of converting his protoform into a fully functioning soldier to do his bidding!

The machine screamed, as if in terror of the monster it was now breathing life into, as the protoform shimmered and seethed, glowing more and more intensely as it began to convert from gelatinous cyber matter into a predacon the likes of which this war had never seen before, Megatron's very own acolyte.

[Mystrea]

Her hand was shaking. By comparison, her hand was dainty as it was enveloped by his much larger hand. Ironclaw pulled Aurora to her feet for her only to walk past him. She approached Dirge's dead body. The badger's gaze fell on her back, all sorts of scuffs and minor damages. He was almost amazes that she had retained her innocence despite everything. Ironclaw heard the comment the ermine made though he felt no need to reply. She had good look at Dirge before Landslide piped due to a miraculous recovery. Without the badger getting a word in, the beetle took off into the sky and towards the Axalon. He grunted inwardly, that wouldn't have been his first choice and some of the Maximals seemed to just do as they pleased. Once Aurora had finished staring at Dirge she walked right past Ironclaw without uttering a word. The badger knew, he completely disagreed but he knew. He made his way over to Dirge and dug one of his clawed hands into him. Strength was not something Ironclaw was lacking as he started to drag Dirge across the ground just behind Aurora. The sound of weapons fire and indistinct voices caught his attention as he was much closer to the battle than he realised. He was right the little female when she responded to a communication then stopped suddenly when she saw Optimus in the sky. Ironclaw had already seen what was happening and had pushed ahead of her dragging his kill and quite a fast pace.

Optimus came crashing to the ground, semmingly being out maneuvered by the two flyers. Once the badger was within weapons range he dumbed the corpse and left it in his wake as he took a few steps for both Maximals and Predacons to see. However coming quickly up the rear was the brave Aurora. Ironclaw reached out quickly and stopped her in her tracks, almost lifting her off her feet. He knew she would hate him for it but he did what he knew was the correct move. "Wait(!)" he told her looking right at her face despite not being able to. "But be ready" he put his hand on her shoulder ever so briefly to encourage her to draw her weapon. Finally he turned around to help Optimus. He approached, softly but confidently, Dirge still in full sight of Inferno and Terrsaur.

"Predacons"

[una]

((OOC: Not actually what I had iin mind, Nk, but that would be so cool. ))

"I'm all right," she told Whitegrazer, attempting to hide the conflicting emotions that could surely be detected in her voice, "Ironclaw came to the rescue. Dirge is dead."

Whitegrazer could hear it in the little one's voice. She was clearly affected by what happened between Ironclaw and Dirge. Aurora... Ever since after Icebreaker's death and what she had witnessed, Aurora had shown certain emotions emotions towards the Predacons. She couldn't forget about what happened to Icebreaker and other comrades that have lost over this war. Everyone in grief and anger over lost of loved ones would always lash out at those who did it, but she could feel it in the little one's shaking tone that she wasn't prepared nor wanted to see what she had just saw.

She nodded sadly, "I know. I saw it. But... I'm glad that Landslide and you are both safe."

"Oh hey, guys. Nice of you ta finally show up. I almost thought you were dead," the rodent said lightheartedly. "Did Zodiac get away?"

"But I don't think he escaped unscathed,"

She looked from Rhinox to Rattrap. Her mind flashed back to Zodiac's strong grip to her throat, the still ever present nanomachines devouring her, or tried to at least, and then their healing abilities. They still felt strange in her body, and her internal computer warned her of foreign bodies, but she told the computer to stand down. She didn't think a flush of her systems were going to do the tricks. She might need both Rhinox and Aurora's help in getting them out of he body or maybe they could use the nanomachines to create more supplies. Healing ones, which would be a very nice advantage.

"Despite his best efforts, he lost this round, but now that he has escaped... It's still not over. Not yet." She smiled , though. "But hopefully, we can get a chance to prepare for it. At least, after we deal with these-"

The hole became larger. She shook her head at such destruction. "After we deal with these Predacons."

"Yeah. But de boss monkey's got 'em covered,"

She bowed her head, "He shouldn't even be out there fighting right now. Not after everything that has happened to him in the last several megacycles."

I doubt you'd take no anyway Lass. Landslide then said as he put his chainsword away, jumping up with assistance from his thrusters, he flew into the hole Inferno and Terrorsaur made. Landing inside,he walked towards the gunrack Dinobot was usually getting guns from, pulling out one of the large automatic rifles. My guns are broken an I can't fly as fast as needlenose. So if yer going to do this, you need this.

Whitegrazer shook her head, "Landslide." She smiled warmly. "I'm not planning on taking on an army. I plan on trying to even the playing field. Inferno is loyal yet Terrorsaur is cocky. If we can lead one of them away from Optimus, it takes some heat away from him. But Landslide, I won't put you in unnecessary danger. "

She nodded her head once, promising the bigger Maximal. It was true.

"I don't think that's a wise idea...,"

"Optimus!"

She understood why Rhinox thought so , but- She looked outside to see Optimus falling down. Her spark nearly skipped a beat at the sight. Now, that they weren't connected. She didn't know what was going on. And in that moment, she wanted to unblock her connection. Yet she didn't want to interfere.

But she did it anyway. She unblocked her connection. She was all right. The pain she felt from Zodiac's attempt to the devour her and the nanomachines crawling through her systems was now tolerable. Despite what happened to her in the last few cycles, she was better than she was. She wanted to help Optimus. As she felt the wave of Optimus' turmoil, she braced the storm. Hearing the whispers of those voices yet again, plaguing Optimus. Probably the reason that got him shot out of the sky. Hold on to your resolve, Optimus. Hold on to your convictions. That is what separates you from them.

"No!,"

She saw Ironclaw and Aurora making their way to help Optimus. Terrorsaur and Inferno landed on the ground, which defeated the plan she was going to do with Landslide. She need to find a way to end this battle right now and fast. Before anyone else got hurt or worse.

Vehicle mode!

Before Landslide decided to fly her out, she stopped him, "Wait a minute. " She rushed back inside the Axalon through the hole to grab a riot shield. She gave Landslide his weapon back, especially for what she wanted Landslide to do next. Terrorsaur and Inferno were mercilessly and brutally attacking Optimus. "Change of plans. Throw me towards them. as far as you can."

Once he threw her towards them, she rolled on her back twice. Feeling the heat of the flames produced by Inferno, she got up right behind Optimus and used the shield on her right arm to knock Inferno's raised weapon out of his hands.

[NaitoKage]

(The fast ball special huh? I'm sure Orcariner would be proud since I think Alak wanted to do that a few times. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fastball_Special )

"Landslide." "I'm not planning on taking on an army. I plan on trying to even the playing field. Inferno is loyal yet Terrorsaur is cocky. If we can lead one of them away from Optimus, it takes some heat away from him. But Landslide, I won't put you in unnecessary danger. "

Landslide raised an optic ridge at the notion of carrying a gun meant fighting an army to Whitegrazer. Exactly how did she plan to deal the fliers? he wondered to himself, since even though they'd now landed, they can still just as easily fly away.

"Wait a minute. ""Change of plans. Throw me towards them. as far as you can."

Landslide stopped mid transformation landing on the ground, then transformed to robot mode. The gun would be faster, but alright. He then grabbed Whitegrazer lifting her up, his thrusters moving in opposite directions and discharged a short burst causing him to spin in place and hurl Whitegrazer off into the distance towards Optimus and the fliers.

Looking at the gun in his hand,Landslide promptly pinched the trigger guard off between his thumb and index finger, so he could get his giant fingers to the trigger. He held the rifle with both hands and pumped the slide, then took off into the air flying towards Inferno and Terrorsaur.

___________________________________

Waspinator eventually came to a stop, panting as he looked in surprise at seeing Quickstrike embedded in a boulder. Twohead?! he said in surprise, attempting to peel Quickstrike out of the rock. Quickstrike's optics flickered back on Aw my aching everything.. You get the plates on that truck pardner?

Waspinator blinked Truck? Twohead hit head harder then Wazzpinator thought.

[Phoenix]

"Wait(!)"

The look Aurora sent the larger badger was one of anger, confusion, and just a hint of betrayal. His betrayal to the Maximal cause by taking the life of an already defeated enemy, by such defying the very essence of what she believed was Maximal nature. She started to move to the side, trying to force her way past him, determined to get to Optimus. She only stopped since Dirge was laying in the way.

"But be ready"

"What are you doing?," she demanded, "You dragged him all the way over here so that you could show off your fresh kill to the Predacons?"

She paused for a moment, turning away so she wouldn't have to look at Dirge anymore. "Dirge wasn't one of them," she then reminded Ironclaw, her voice a little quieter now, "They won't care that he's dead."

Part of her suspected that Ironclaw's reasoning was to intimidate the flying Predacons, but that certainly did not make it right.

She tensed up when Ironclaw placed his hand on her shoulder, almost flinching away in fact. Only a few moments ago he had used that same hand to kill a fallen enemy. A brief look of disgust crossed her features.

"Predacons"

And taking more lives will somehow help?, she thought to herself but she did not say the words out loud. Unfortunately Optimus was still under attack. Aurora hesitated for a moment before she pulled out her crossbow, loading it with nonlethal ammunition. She did not wish to see another life wasted today, even if it was a Predacon's.

"I know. I saw it. But... I'm glad that Landslide and you are both safe."

Safe.. was a relative term. While loading her arrow tips up with tranquilizers, she cast a quick glance over at Ironclaw.. The friend she thought she knew but that she now realized was not whom she had assumed he was. There was definitely a lot the badger had neglected to tell them about himself and his past.

"Worry not, he will possess all that and more, and please, do not blame me for the maximals shoddy engineering, or Tarantulas' programming skills for that matter, but beggars cannot be choosers in this conflict, and I intend to see an increase in the quality of my troops, personally."

Nemesis crossed her arms and remained lingering a bit in the background as Megatron continued playing his newfound role as a scientist attempting to create life. Megatron did raise a valuable point. Decepticons, and their true Predacon descendants, were inherently different from Maximals and the Autobots before them. There were differences that programming alone couldn't account for, subtle as they may seem at first, but they were there. And even the most flawless attempts at re-programming someone, could not completely erase these traits unique to each group.

She was a Decepticon, no matter what form her body had taken, that is what she would always view herself as. But she had been created a long time after the original Megatron's demise, so she had only heard the legends. And since she had spent her youth locked up, being experimented on, she had only discovered the value of freedom after escaping that horrid place. It was then she had come to realize what desperate measures the few remaining Decepticons had been forced to take in order to survive. And now, on Earth, she saw an opportunity to right the travesty of the past history of her kind. A chance to change the course of history so that the Decepticons could rule Cybertron like she truly believed they were meant to do.

Even though she found this Megatron's methods a bit crude, she still had hopes he ultimately shared her goals. So she watched in silence as he devoted his attention to his creation, apparently oblivious to her presence there. She didn't mind. Unlike someone like Terrorsaur, she wasn't in it for the glory. She had never bragged about the Maximal lives she had taken after waking up on this planet, simply because she saw no reason to do so.

[Optimal Optimus Primal]

Hold on to your resolve, Optimus. Hold on to your convictions. That is what separates you from them.

I will do what I must in order to survive and protect my crew! Do you understand me?! His question was spoken rhetorically, Whitegrazer's advice mixing in with the other voices of his traumatized and exhausted mind that haunted him.

Here they come. Now is your chance to follow Ironclaw's lead and take them down!

Obliterate them!

Come now, Primal, you don't have the servos to take a life. You're a coward. Useless. You'll never succeed in this war. I'll make sure of it. Megatron's voice ended with a cold, deep and sinister tone.

Optimus simply grew angrier and angrier, focusing more on the incoming fliers. An expression of rage covered his face as he clenched his jaws and grabbed one of his clubs with his free hand.

"Nice landing"

"I've given you worse," the Maximal spat back at Terrorsaur.

"Surrender or burn Primal, those are your choices"

"We're giving him choices?"

"No...," Optimus thoughtfully disagreed as they laughed together, tilting his head slightly as his orange optics temporarily locked with Inferno's. Beyond them, he saw some of his Maximals on their way to lend a hand, and suddenly his anger and hatred was replaced by respect and love which only made him stronger. But he didn't lead the Predacons on to them. "No, I seem to have more choices."

The Commander immediately crouched down on a knee to lower himself from Inferno's initial aim and held his TransMetal forearm up against the ant's flames to take the brunt of the damage. The pain of the heat didn't seem to phase him with all of the primal rage and anguish he had been through already. Although slightly distorted, it was no surprise that Terrorsaur lunged at him with his swords through the wake of the fire but the Predacon probably wasn't expecting him to be so low to the ground. So Optimus used his fists that were still grasping his weapons, and the strength of his arms to use Terrorsaur's own momentum against him, effortlessly lifting him up by his stomach and tossing him right over the Maximal.

"Personally, I prefer chop suey over deep fried!"

"And I prefer intelligence over incompetence," the leader said in a taunting manner. While Terrorsaur would spend time regaining his composure and possibly picking up his swords if he dropped them, Primal stretched out his arm and tightened it, aiming his gun at Inferno's torso and fired three shots at his non-TransMetal armor before he stood up and turned back to the cocky bird with the club in his other hand ready to defend himself against his blades. He simply tried buying time while his Maximals closed in behind these fools. Of course, it was at this time that Whitegrazer suddenly rushed in with a battle shield and blocked any more attacks from Inferno as she stood behind Optimus. He suddenly felt a great deal of relief knowing his crew was coming to his aid; nearly all of them. Whitegrazer, Aurora, Ironclaw, and Landslide. No doubt Rattrap and Rhinox were left behind to defend the Axalon and restore its power. Dirge was dead... as disturbing as that was but he would deal with that soon enough. Zodiac was gone. Quickstrike and Waspinator were likely injured since everyone was converging on Primal now. So Terrorsaur and Inferno were greatly outnumbered.

"You see, back-up was my choice," the burnt Maximal Commander mocked Inferno and Terrorsaur. "Now your's is to either surrender or flee."

"All I need to do is gave the shields something to juice it with, and your shields would be ready."

Cheetor was still being repaired in the CR chamber, so Rattrap stubbornly refused to reroute any remaining power from it. However, it was unnecessary to power the brig's section any longer, so he shut down that wing of the ship as well as the auto guns since the Predacon threat was further away from the ship now just as Optimus had purposely and effectively achieved. "Hang on," he said, almost like a warning to Blackarachnia and Rhinox. With a few more commands and codes, the monitors and consoles started to hum and flicker back on, as well as the shields although their percentage of function and damage they could endure was awfully low. They would need time to recharge. "I did it!" the rodent cheered, purposely leaving the black widow out of the equation. After all, how could he possibly accept or acknowledge of someone like her?

Rhinox looked away from the action through hole of the hull, seeing the others quickly give assistance to Optimus, back to his short friend and the female Predacon as equipment started to gain life again on the broken ship. "I believe it was a team effort," he said bluntly, glancing at Blackarachnia.

Rattrap made a face at the engineer and then sighed at all of the repairs they were going to have to do. "What's goin' on out dere?" he inquired.

"Dirge is dead. It would seem Ironclaw took his life," he answered.

"What?!"

Rhinox simply nodded.

"Uh... Dat ain't gonna go over well with the boss monkey."

"Probably not. There's something different about him."

"Yeah, he's losin' his mind. We all know dat. He's been through a lot, Big Green."

"I'm not talking about Optimus. I'm talking about Ironclaw. Anyway, Waspinator and Quickstrike are down, so that leaves Terrorsaur and Inferno, whom I imagine will be leaving shortly seeing as they're outnumbered and being surrounded," Rhinox finished explaining.

Rattrap was still in shock about Dirge. What was Ironclaw thinking? Sure, Optimus was going crazy, but he'd never go that far, nor would he encourage that kind of behavior. Wow... He was sure there was going to be punishment for it or at least some drama. This was insane! None of the Maximals under Optimus's leadership had killed anyone in this war. Not even the ones who were once under the Predacon allegiance and Megatron's command!

[DarkSpark]

OOC: Last post for me before the Christmas week begins gang, I know I won't have the time or energy to post further until after the holidays are over, so sorry if this feels a little more rushed than I would have liked, I had to power through on this one, more so than usual since I'm just so BEAT. Literally just finished all my Christmas shopping, TODAY XD. I'll try to fine-tune & finish up Deathroll's character stats & bio before he has to fight anyone, sorry about that, picking stats for these guys is harder than it seems. Hope you guys like, sorry about your lost post Phoenix, what was saved was great :3

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays everyone!

OOP wrote: "No...," Optimus thoughtfully disagreed as they laughed together, tilting his head slightly as his orange optics temporarily locked with Inferno's. Beyond them, he saw some of his Maximals on their way to lend a hand, and suddenly his anger and hatred was replaced by respect and love which only made him stronger. But he didn't lead the Predacons on to them. "No, I seem to have more choices."

The Commander immediately crouched down on a knee to lower himself from Inferno's initial aim and held his TransMetal forearm up against the ant's flames to take the brunt of the damage. The pain of the heat didn't seem to phase him with all of the primal rage and anguish he had been through already. Although slightly distorted, it was no surprise that Terrorsaur lunged at him with his swords through the wake of the fire but the Predacon probably wasn't expecting him to be so low to the ground. So Optimus used his fists that were still grasping his weapons, and the strength of his arms to use Terrorsaur's own momentum against him, effortlessly lifting him up by his stomach and tossing him right over the Maximal.

"Oooph!" Terrorsaur grunted in pain as he was thrown by Primal, using his jets to cushion his fall and retaliating with twin eye beam attacks to Primal's back.

OOP wrote: "And I prefer intelligence over incompetence," the leader said in a taunting manner. While Terrorsaur would spend time regaining his composure and possibly picking up his swords if he dropped them, Primal stretched out his arm and tightened it, aiming his gun at Inferno's torso and fired three shots at his non-TransMetal armor before he stood up and turned back to the cocky bird with the club in his other hand ready to defend himself against his blades. He simply tried buying time while his Maximals closed in behind these fools. Of course, it was at this time that Whitegrazer suddenly rushed in with a battle shield and blocked any more attacks from Inferno as she stood behind Optimus. He suddenly felt a great deal of relief knowing his crew was coming to his aid; nearly all of them. Whitegrazer, Aurora, Ironclaw, and Landslide. No doubt Rattrap and Rhinox were left behind to defend the Axalon and restore its power. Dirge was dead... as disturbing as that was but he would deal with that soon enough. Zodiac was gone. Quickstrike and Waspinator were likely injured since everyone was converging on Primal now. So Terrorsaur and Inferno were greatly outnumbered.

"You see, back-up was my choice," the burnt Maximal Commander mocked Inferno and Terrorsaur. "Now your's is to either surrender or flee."

"RRRAGGGHH!" Inferno snarled as he recoiled backwards from Primal's gunshots to his midsection, the ant clutching at his injuries with one arm as he retaliated with the gun he carried in the other, firing fireballs at him wildly.

"Says the dumb ape who spared the shapeshifter who slagged and replaced his mentor" Terrorsaur retorted coldly as he slashed away Primal, swords to clubs, his words cutting more harshly since they were true, Optimus had Zodiac at his mercy and could have ended his threat to maximals and predacon alike himself long before things went south inside their base, and yet he had not, and now the rogue agent was lose again and posed a danger to one and all.

Both Predacons scowled and backed away as Whitegrazer arrived to defend Optimus, then noticed even more maximals arriving to intervene on the ape's half.

"Tough talk like that won't bring Nexus back Primal, or make up for what HE did!" Terrorsaur said, pointing at Ironclaw's victim Dirge, the flyer not really caring one lick for the mindless brute, but knowing Optimus and his lovey dovey crew well enough to know they weren't accustomed to taking lives as readily as the predacons were, if nothing else Dirge's death would rattle them for a while and perhaps spread dissension amongst the ranks, and Megatron would be pleased to know at least one of their targets was dead....Most of all, Terrorsaur just wanted to sully Primal's victory any way he could so he could not enjoy it after they retreated.

"You will burn Primal, mark my words, in the Royalty's name, you will ALL BURN!!!" Inferno threatened madly as mech fluid oozed out his mouth and between his teeth, Terrorsaur knowing him well enough to understand now would be a good time to take his leave, the transmetal flyer taking flight as Inferno spun around wildly, spreading fire hot enough to melt metal all around him from both his gun and his flight mode, creating a ring a fire to separate himself from the maximals and their leader before blasting off into the skies after Terrorsaur, still clutching at his injury, his blind loyalty to Megatron urging him onward despite the pain.

"Well, that was a brilliantly executed operation "Sub-Commander," Terrorsaur said to the ant cruelly as he struggled to maintain his flight pattern, "The Royalty will be ever so pleased to know that under YOUR brilliant leadership none of the maximals died, Zodiac escaped, and their base still stands. Bravo Sub-Commander, bravo! I can so see why the boss mech put YOU in charge."

"The....Royalty...Will....Triumph schemer...Nothing will...Cough...Get between him and his victory! We will return to the Colony...And...And..." Inferno wheezed, the ant looking not at all good, his failure weighing more heavily on him than his battle damage, sheer willpower being all that compelled him to continue the journey home to his master.

"And be punished for failing his royal oneness? Will that be before or after you cough up all your vital fluids and plummet to your death? Seriously, Megatron should put you out to pasture already, there's no place in the Beast Wars for outmoded relics like you anymore, transmetals should command other transmetals" Terrorsaur scowled, showing his elitist views regarding his status as a transmetal, giving him a natural edge over a standard issue brute like Inferno, who's legendary pain thresh-hold and durability had seemed to fail him this day.

Inferno merely screamed at Terrorsaur in the same unnatural tone he had first using upon awakening in the Beast Wars, the ant having no time or patience for the insubordinate pterosaur's banter, and thus the two continued onward to base, leaving their enemies behind and wondering how they would proceed from the here and now.

Phoenix wrote: Nemesis crossed her arms and remained lingering a bit in the background as Megatron continued playing his newfound role as a scientist attempting to create life. Megatron did raise a valuable point. Decepticons, and their true Predacon descendants, were inherently different from Maximals and the Autobots before them. There were differences that programming alone couldn't account for, subtle as they may seem at first, but they were there. And even the most flawless attempts at re-programming someone, could not completely erase these traits unique to each group.

She was a Decepticon, no matter what form her body had taken, that is what she would always view herself as. But she had been created a long time after the original Megatron's demise, so she had only heard the legends. And since she had spent her youth locked up, being experimented on, she had only discovered the value of freedom after escaping that horrid place. It was then she had come to realize what desperate measures the few remaining Decepticons had been forced to take in order to survive. And now, on Earth, she saw an opportunity to right the travesty of the past history of her kind. A chance to change the course of history so that the Decepticons could rule Cybertron like she truly believed they were meant to do.

Even though she found this Megatron's methods a bit crude, she still had hopes he ultimately shared her goals. So she watched in silence as he devoted his attention to his creation, apparently oblivious to her presence there. She didn't mind. Unlike someone like Terrorsaur, she wasn't in it for the glory. She had never bragged about the Maximal lives she had taken after waking up on this planet, simply because she saw no reason to do so.

The lights and sounds emanating from both the machine and the protoform it was giving life to grew more and more intense by the minute, energy lashing out like a kraken's tentacles as the pod shook violently, Megatron's sleeping giant finally stirring within as it took on its new shape and form.

"Come now, you've kept us waiting long enough, time to be reborn!" Megatron said, clenching his fist in anticipation of his creation's arrival, encouraging the growling monstrosity within to enter into the world at long last.

And that it did, with the sound of buckling metal filling the air the occupant of the stasis pod made its escape, breaking free of the pod bit by bit, like a hatchling escape its egg shell prison. First its tail busted out on one side, slithering across the floor like a snake, then a foot busted free, then a second, a third, and then....

"GGGGGGRRRRRRRR!" bellowed the new predacon as its reptilian head sent the top of the ruined pod flying through the air, imbedding itself in the wall!

"Yyyyyesssss! Did you see that? The sheer POWER of it!" Megatron exclaimed excitedly, almost like a father gloating over its newborn child, a large, armor plated newborn.

"Ggggggrrrrrrhhhhhssssss" the new predacon grumbled reply, a gruesome mix between a growl and a hiss, as it crawled forth from the remains of its pod, its every footstep making the ground shake beneath its weight, the tip of its tail scratching the floor as it dragged along behind it.

The being who was both decepticon and predacon in origin was clearly in beast mode, as many often were upon awakening from their stasis pod, and the form Megatron had chosen for his new soldier was that of an American Alligator, a MASSIVE alligator, covered from head to toe in transmetal body armor that put Inferno's exoskeleton to shame, and whose equally menacing jaws were filled with rows of razor sharp teeth! Teeth which it was not shy to show off to the only other Cybertronians in the room besides itself, its optics blinking as if to shake off centuries of uninterrupted slumber.

"Welcome my friend, welcome to your new home! In Megatron's name I welcome you, to the Beast Wars!" Megatron proclaimed with maniac pride, stretching out his arms to greet his creation, showing him that he did not fear him in the slightest, even if inwardly Megatron was prepared to fire his shoulder guns should his new recruit not show the appropriate level of respect and gratitude one was expected to grant their lord and savior.

The newcomer stared long and hard at the transmetal tyrant and his companion Nemesis, tail swishing back and forth ominously, the tip of which suddenly began to rotate and spin as its nostrils flared in disgust, roaring "FILTHY FLESHLINGS! YOU DARE USE MY LORD'S NAME SO CASUALLY? LEARN YOUR PLACE!!!"

And with that the confused decepticon turned predacon charged forward with surprising speed for his size and weight, teeth wide open and ready to punish what he mistook for organic lifeforms, not realizing in his rage that he himself was now the same as they were.