"Optimus."
Primal had been quiet during his walk through the Axalon with Saber-Fang. With so much on his mind, it was difficult to process all of the thoughts and emotions. It was then when he stopped outside of the brig that he felt Whitegrazer reach out to him. He took a breath, closing his optics for a moment, as if to assure her in some way that he would manage considering everything else that her own spark was taking in before he turned and looked at the former General in front of him. Whitegrazer had enough on her plate to worry about and he didn't want to add another burden to it, but at least he knew they were still okay out there. He wished he could see her and hold her in his arms, however, now was not the time for him to day dream. They had lost
two protoforms to the Predacons, Aerostriker was gone, and the Maximal leader had had enough of Saber's running off and seeking Sonar's help; his anger was his momentum and it came back just as quickly as the mare's distraction with her comforting connection had touched his spark.
"Dinobot captured Sonar earlier when he came knocking on our door," Optimus began as his orange optic sensors hovered on Saber-Fang.
"It seems to have been a solo mission so I can only imagine that he came here for you." His voice was firm.
"What ever has been going on between you two stops now. I demand an explanation on your history with him and what he has been doing to you on your little rendezvouses. This is your chance, Saber-Fang, before I walk in there and speak with him." Primal crossed his arms over his chest and waited for the saber's decision. He was search of nothing but the truth and his energy suggested his level of intolerance. She should know by now that she could trust Optimus and all he ever wanted to do was try to help her, but with the way this war was now, he couldn't be expected to allow her to go running off to Sonar all the time or spend days or weeks alone out in the wilderness. There was too much danger now with the Predacons, many of which would not hesitate now to kill any Maximal found wandering alone far from the base. He refused to lose another Maximal!
-----
Rhinox had watched Saber-Fang leave the command center after Optimus, wondering himself what their leader had in mind about the situation between her and Sonar. No doubt he was fed up with their antics by this point. And since this day had been another big blow to the Maximals, Primal was likely in a very bad mood. Something would have to change in order to gain the advantage in this war because right now, Megatron had the upper hand. Optimus knew this and it was weighing heavily on his shoulders.
Glancing at Onyx, the engineer returned to his duty and attempted to make contact with Orcariner's team again.
"Axalon to Orcariner, do you copy?"
-----
Upon approaching the mountain and dusty air, Rattrap held back putting some distance between him and the entrance of the newly mined cave. He watched Ironclaw move in closer and then stop and look at him as if he were implying he should go in first.
Just 'cause I'm a rat, is dat it? he thought with a sigh. However, he never intended on going in the cave. Instead, he wanted to wait and see who would come out. Why risk getting trapped, or ambushed, or buried in an unfamiliar cave with an unfamiliar being?
No, thanks. I'll wait out here and see who comes out.
Motioning to Ironclaw with a hand gesture to wait and hold his position, Rattrap transformed to robot mode and drew his gun, just in case, feeling the ground rumble beneath his feet. He held it at his side with his index finger gently rubbing the trigger, ready to fire if he had to react in an instant. Judging by the size of this hole, this guy was pretty big, that is of course it was a one-man job going on there. A falcon in the air also caught his attention; it looked like Airazor was back on the wind. Good. More cover for him. Nearby was a large stasis pod, so naturally, Rattrap took a peek at it.
Energon cubes? What the heck is goin' on here? Stepping away from the pod in case the new guy was hostile or a Predacon and ready to defend his precious energon, the small Maximal cleared his throat and called toward the cave's entrance when the loud grinding came to a stop again.
"Whoever's in dere, we got you surrounded! Come out slowly with your hands where I can see 'em!" I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die, I'm gonna die... he repeatedly nervously. But maybe this was an ally, after all it was a Maximal stasis pod. ...Then again, not all the pods held Maximals inside. Evidently. And today was just not a lucky day for the
Axalon crew.