The Intergalactic Highway

Rattrap wrote:"Mind keepin' an eye on Ironclaw's stats in de CR, kid? ""Just wanna make sure he doesn't take a dive or nothin', know what I mean?"

Cheetor gave a nod to Rattrap You got it. Cheetor then headed off down the hall to the hanger CR chamber, making his way down he walked over to a terminal next to the CR chamber and brought up Ironclaw's status, observing his vitals as the chamber worked on restoring him.


Making his way back towards Wintersong, Landslide noticed her walking at the edge of the jungle carrying Ironclaw's arm. Not bad lass, with luck we'll be able to get him outta the chamber in a few hours. Landslide radioed down to Wintersong. He then turned his course coming down for a landing transforming to his beetle mode. With his long insect legs unfolded out, it just seemed to make the large beetle seem a bit larger, he walked alongside Wintersong and glanced towards her You didn't detect anything else unusual in the area did ja?

Blackarachnia had been wandering the halls, more like getting a good view of her newfound surroundings. Temporary surroundings. She was actually liking the base better than the Darksyde, a slight likely, because at least, she didn't have to worry about falling into a lava pit. Of course, If that now deceased shapeshifter had his way, the Axalon would be flooded with lava. Also, been consumed by the Earth's own insides. Fun. The only real problem she had was the constant surveillance of Sentinel and how bright the ship was. The Darksyde might had lava pits, but the black as night corridors made it more dark and ominous. Great camouflage for walking around with no one seeing. There was a security to it, but here? She felt exposed. She didn't like it.

She turned a corner, walking her normal swag. She saw a door with yellow and black stripes around the edges. It might not have said it, but it seeemed to her that this area was a no-go for her. She smirked. Maybe when everyone was too busy...

"Blackarachnia, would you report to my quarters, please?"

Blackarachnia didn't answer, but she made her way towards Optimus' quarters. Wondered why he wanted to see her. As she entered, her eyes immediately stared at the drawings. "Huh. Didn't know you were an artist." Getting a closer look at them, she realized they were drawings of alien sites and symbols. Interesting. Was Optimus going mad or was there something deeper here? Got hit by an alien disk?

She looked at the drawing of the island. Ah! Brings back memories.


_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

I'm sure that's what it is," Aurora said to excuse herself as if she had just turned in a half-finished school project. Although she couldn't quite figure out why such an interference would only happen on occasion instead of the entire time the sensors had been in the same room. "In which case the glitch should resolve as soon as we get them outside and separated from each other."

"That's possible as well. Like I said, the system hasn't been perfected yet. I'll get it working properly, don't worry."

Whitegrazer wondered if the reason for the so-called "glitches" was her. If so, she smiled to herself. There was no point in cloak and dagger now.Aurora, you did good. The truth always reveals itself in due time. Maybe it was her time. She smiled at the little one.

"Rattrap is on the bridge, so have him check out those coordinates and relay anything of importance to us before Aurora and I head over there."

Rhinox seemed to be talking to Rattrap. She watched and listened.He seemed shocked, almost dropping some equipment in the process, yet relieved. "What is it, Rhinox?

"Why those coordinates?,"

Whitegrazer didn't know how to answer the little one's question, but she thought about it. Megatron had the golden disks. Both of them. The last time she checked the map scanning the surrounding areas and beyond for Predacon activity, she noticed objects resembling towers. They must have been placed there to jam signals. And Megatron wasn't known to place things randomly. It must have a purpose. "I remembered something odd the last time I checked the map. It seemed Megatron has been oddly quiet and I believe it was to out those jamming towers up there. I'm beginning to suspect there is a reason he has done that."

That was true in a way, and now that she realized it, she mght be putting them in great risk. But if Aurora's device worked, it would help in dealing with future alien encounters.

"They're all over his walls in his quarters."

Whitegrazer laid her elbow against her other arm and covered her mouth and chin. Hiding her concern for Optimus as an attempt to be in great thought over his reasons for drawing the symbols to not worry Aurora.

"In the meanwhile Rhinox and I will head out to place the sensors. If you're certain about those coordinates, we can certainly put one of the sensors near there."

"I will go with you both." She announced. "With Optimus' behavior and Megatron's silence, I feel like we are in the eye of the storm, and I fear we won't know until...it comes." She turned around.

Taking Rhinox's advice, she went towards the bridge and used the command center to bring up the map. It seemed the area TyCross wanted her to go was inbetween a large desert and savannah. The territory wasn't acknowledged as both sides territory, but it drew the line. "It seems the area isn't recognized as ours or Predacon territory, but it is close. " It was like she thought a risk. "I have no doubt Megatron may have a jamming tower there."

Part of her now wanted to go alone. It seemed to great a risk to not too. But if the aliens were planning something, something there, they had to know. She went back towards Rhinox and Aurora to come to found out that they were already gone.

She stood there for a minute. Hope they didn't just leave without her. "Rhinox? Aurora? Where are you guys?"

Seeing Landslide arriving the tigress femme paused to allow the beetle to land, hoping that a few hours was on their side. It seem in this mini-war they fought a few hours could quickly turn to fending for their lives on a planned attack by the purple tyrant but thus far it seemed unlikely. And come to think of it she did find it particularly odd that she didn't detect any traces of the Predacons much less seen any disturbances.

"Luckily, no." Wintersong assured the large mech as they headed back to the Axalon, feeling like a mini-bot when standing next to the beetle when his legs were out, making him only look larger than ever and dwarfing just about everyone at the base. "But it does bring some concern of why the Predacons have been so quiet. Normally this long period of quietness never meant anything good." Wintersong said, frowning for a moment as she did feel something bad was to happen but couldn't quite put her finger on where this feeling came from as they arrived back to the hanger.

Wintersong wrote:"Luckily, no.""But it does bring some concern of why the Predacons have been so quiet. Normally this long period of quietness never meant anything good."

Landslide gave a nod Aye, biding their time fer somethin' nefarious perhaps.. or perhaps gettin' ready fer those aliens everyone keeps talkin' about.
Making their way back to the hanger, Landslide transformed to his robot mode and opened the door. Landslide looked towards Wintersong picking up Ironclaw's arm Lets see here.. the large beetle then looked the arm over This lad had it rough.. Some of the metal warped from the heat.. Wouldn't be surprised if he crawled his way out of a lava pool.

Landslide then made his way towards the other end of the hanger, noticing Cheetor at the CR chamber console.Guess Rhinox is too busy he thought to himself. Cheetor looked up Hey, whoa you found the arm? Cheetor said in surprise, Landslide pointed a thumb to Wintersong All the tigress lad. Now then.. Landslide walked over to the console typing into it, then pulled a lever as the CR chamber paused it's operation for a moment. The Chamber opened as Landslide walked closer holding up the arm, a mechanical arm extending from the chamber picking up Ironclaw's severed arm. Landslide then stepped back and pulled the lever closing the CR chamber.

Moving towards the console, he typed into it the command to resume operation. Alright. I'll keep an optic out fer him. Still got some work ta do down here on that. Landslide then pointed to the engine in the middle of the hanger. Cheetor looked towards the engine with a raised optic ridge The Pred ship's main drive? You can't make the Axalon fly again with just that Landslide.

Landslide shook his head Yer kiddin' right? The ship was a mess before, now it's partially fused to the rockbase of this cliff with all that surroundin' obsidian and glass. No, the engine is going to be used as a backup generator fer the Axalon. It'll act like a buffer to the Axalon's drive and reduce the power loss from the shields during pred attacks. Least if I can get it goin'.

Cheetor looks towards Landslide Well that'll make things around here easier. Your planing to make this place a fortress aren't you?

Landslide gave a nod and walked towards the engine. Between the Preds and everything else.. this planet is survival of the fittest. If our defenses aren't high enough.. we will fall lad.

Cheetor gave a sad nod. Landslide then activated his comlink Landslide to Rattrap, we're both back and Ironclaw's arm is recovered. No problems so far. I'm gonna stay down here and watch him while I work.

(To note: Edited Landslide's profile to increase his intelligence and reduce his firepower since he does alot of advanced repair work/building and his firepower is more supplemental for defensive use anyway.)

"This is excellent news Commander, you continue to exceed my expectations, Yyyyyesssss. Once this meeting concludes, take whoever you may need to finish the recovery of our new recruit"

Nemesis nodded, happy that Megatron was pleased with her progress. She had been working relentlessly to find more Decepticons, her own kin if a bit more old tech than she was, and a chance to restore the Decepticons to their former glory even if they had to be changed to accommodate the new technology to do it. Of course she would have to draw the line somewhere. The Decepticons she was hunting down had not been part of the original Megatron's inner circle so it didn't matter too much if some of them disappeared from history altogether.

But for the sake of their history, the original Megatron and his crew would have to be maintained in their original forms. As long as this new Megatron's megalomania did not threaten their existence, she was okay with using some of the otherwise lost generation of Decepticons to do his bidding. But the original would have to be preserved.. saved.. for her race to alter the course of history.

"Have no fear, my lord, for your will shall be done. The Maximals remain clueless of your plans and don't have the means to attempt to stop us."


She briefly wondered if the Maximals would ever figure out where Deathroll had come from. Or if they would simply assume he had emerged from a lost pod recovered by the Predacons. It would seem the more logical choice.

Yet the truth was a lot more menacing. Decepticons were infamous for their devotion to the cause and their ferocity in battle. Few true Predacons could hold up to that.

"While I fear I cannot compete with the Commander's findings, I am pleased to report that progress with the jamming towers is proceeding ahead of schedule, the maximal's ability to scan or communicate, especially in our own territory, grows more hampered by the day. We're spreading out into unclaimed territories as well of course, but I suspected you'd be pleased to hear the next time they attempt to invade our lands they'll have a very difficult time calling for help."

Nemesis turned her gaze upon Deathroll, a bit surprised to hear just how effective their new recruit was turning out to be. There was certainly more behind his bulkier frame than what she had assumed at first glance.

"Impressive work!," she told the subcommander approvingly, evidently eager to see the jamming towers in action.

"Trust me my Lord, Terrorsaur, Waspinator, and Quickstrike are surprisingly hard workers so long as Inferno and myself are present to crack the whip when needed"

Her optics lit up as Deathroll spoke of controlling the troops when..

"The device you requested is complete, we'll meet later to discuss more about it in a safe location."

Umbra's private message to her came through. Nemesis smiled ever so slightly, seemingly approving of Deathroll's methods when it was actually because Umbra had just given her the means to control the most unruly of them should she need to resort to that.

"Mahahahahaha! Even better, feel free to keep the troops in shape however and whenever you can, Subcommander"

"Now then, I suppose its my turn to report my own findings"

"Alas no, my diagnostic drone was developed from my own expertise, the first of what I hope shall be many drones helping to repair and maintain this ship on a daily basis, freeing up the spare time of my troops for other duties" Megatron explained, leaving out the bit about how they'd likely be more reliable as well, going on to say "My first breakthrough is a much more profound sort, yyyyeessss."

"It is most impressive indeed," Nemesis chimed in as she glanced briefly over at the secretary drone. Until recently she had not been aware of Megatron's talents in the field of science.

"Artificial energon"

Now that was an achievement! Energon, or lack thereof as had often been the case, had been the culprit behind many wars and futile expeditions. It had caused the rise and fall of dynasties, and now Megatron held the key to artificially manufacturing it? Impressive to say the least!

"You are truly deserving of your name," she told the leader in admiration with a courteous nod.

"Anything is possible," the engineer reminded the newly appointed Chief Biologist and chemist. "But we will never know for sure."

Aurora agreed although she was disappointed and was not afraid to let it show. There were still so many questions, unanswered questions, that they would never know about now. Any bit of knowledge could be an advantage in this ongoing war against Megatron and his goons. Especially now that the aliens were likely to show up at their doorstep again.

She watched as Rhinox' face changed to that of surprise and joy as he got the news of Ironclaw's survival. Of course they had been discussing it on a private channel so Aurora could only hear Rhinox' response.

"That's incredible. I thought you said he was-"

He was what? Who was he? She was dying to find out!

"I remembered something odd the last time I checked the map. It seemed Megatron has been oddly quiet and I believe it was to out those jamming towers up there. I'm beginning to suspect there is a reason he has done that."

Jamming towers? That couldn't be good.. They would have to try to sabotage those if they could find them.

"I will go with you both." She announced. "With Optimus' behavior and Megatron's silence, I feel like we are in the eye of the storm, and I fear we won't know until...it comes." She turned around.

She watched as Whitegrazer disappeared to check in with the bridge, but then turned to Rhinox.

"Come on. We're carrying heavy equipment and Whitegrazer is faster than us. It would be a better use of time if she just meets us there."


She got on the lift and rode it down to the outside, starting the trip to plant the sensors and truly test if they worked.

OOC: Post made! See you guys after the weekend hopefully, babysitting and party preparations are in my future XD

Phoenix wrote: "Have no fear, my lord, for your will shall be done. The Maximals remain clueless of your plans and don't have the means to attempt to stop us."

Megatron nodded but added "Let us see to it that it remains that way, yyeeeessss. It would not do to clue Primal in as to the true nature of this planet, nnnnnoooo."

Primal would likely have a spark attack if he knew that they were battling on ancient earth, a place where legendary autobots and decepticons of old slept and where humanity was still in its infancy...The meddlesome ape would no doubt double his efforts to foil the Predacon Revolution if he knew there was far more at stake here than merely battling over energon and alien hand me downs.

Phoenix wrote: Nemesis turned her gaze upon Deathroll, a bit surprised to hear just how effective their new recruit was turning out to be. There was certainly more behind his bulkier frame than what she had assumed at first glance.

"Impressive work!," she told the subcommander approvingly, evidently eager to see the jamming towers in action.

Deathroll resisted the instinct to salute his superior officer since this was meant to be a meeting of those of rank, even if he was the lowest in standing present, so he instead nodded his head politely in her direction and replied "Gratitude, Commander, but I was only doing what was expected of me, or any other decepticon soldier for that matter."

"My namesake ran a tight ship, yyyyeeessss...Let us hope we can impart some of that work ethic into today's Predacons when we return home in triumph" Megatron said, jealous of the fanatical devotion his ancestor instilled in his troops, while he had to plot and scheme behind the backs of those who SHOULD have been leading the charge against the maximals, leaving him to handle the crisis on his own with whatever rogue elements he could manipulate to his cause.

"I have not seen this future Cybertron of yours except in the ship's data banks my liege, but surely not all Predacons are akin to the rabble you've been forced to...Slum with?" Deathroll imparted, proud to serve but unable to deny that the military discipline of the bulk of his lord's forces were sadly lacking compared to the decepticon army of old, even if their tech and weaponry were more advanced.

"Correct Subcommander, they most certainly are not, but good help is hard to find when you're unjustly labeled a criminal amongst your own kind, so one makes do with whatever help he can find, yyyesssss" Megatron explained, Deathroll nodding in agreement, inwardly angry over how the descendant of his first master was not already the supreme leader of all Predacons in place of this "Tripredacus Council" of pretenders he had been researching about, such cowardly fools had no business calling themselves the leaders of their faction when they bowed to autobot spawn.

Phoenix wrote: Now that was an achievement! Energon, or lack thereof as had often been the case, had been the culprit behind many wars and futile expeditions. It had caused the rise and fall of dynasties, and now Megatron held the key to artificially manufacturing it? Impressive to say the least!

"You are truly deserving of your name," she told the leader in admiration with a courteous nod.

"Yes, yes I am, aren't I?" Megatron said in reply as he admired his own creation, his tone leaving no room for doubt over his worthiness in living up to the original Megatron's legacy.

"This...This changes everything! The maximals cannot hope to oppose us with such an advantage at our disposal, and the Tripredacus Council's support back on Cybertron will surely dwindle down to nothing when you can offer the masses such power!" Deathroll exclaimed, letting his excitement get the better of him as he rose up in his seat, showcasing true decepticon patriotism at its finest, or most fanatical depending on who you asked.

"First things first Subcommander, this is indeed a great breakthrough, and I do not wish to sell my accomplishment short, nnnnooo...But alas, there is still much work to do before my artificial energon experiments become fully viable" Megatron admitted, appreciating his follower's excitement but not wanting to get their hopes up too soon.

"How so Lord Megatron?" Deathroll inquired, returning to his seat to hear his leader out.

"My original energon production experiments always ended the same, the artificially stimulated growth of the crystals would always end with them shattering, ultimately rendered useless, hence why I abandoned the project. However, thanks to the knowledge of the alien disks, I've been able to get around that little issue, but instead of producing perfect copies of energon, only in greater quantities, thus far I've produced only unnatural energon variants not seen in nature, such as this red energon sample you see here" Megatron explained, gently placing the tiny fragment into his Subcommander's three fingered hand for closer inspection.

"I mined energon for most of my life before the Decepticon cause came into being, and I must confess I've never seen anything like this shard" Deathroll admitted, showcasing surprising care in handling the fragile looking crystal, a miner's touch.

"Not surprising, this red energon is extremely volatile and unheard of in nature, but my initial tests show that it is above and beyond more powerful than conventional energon, but alas, is likewise very difficult to manufacture. In short, until I can figure a way around these shortcomings I cannot deem red energon a practical energy source, for now at least. However, I can still experiment with the small amount I've managed to produce thus far while I explore other artificial energon variants that I have in the works, variants I suspect will be more in line with what the Predacon cause requires to turn the tide in our favor, yyyyeeessss" Megatron bragged, watching as Deathroll carefully passed the Red Energon fragment to Nemesis, the transmetal tyrant more than proud to showcase his accomplishments to those he deemed intelligent enough to actually appreciate it, or at the very least had little reason to betray him over it like a few others he could name.

"How do you know all of this?" "How did you capture those videos? And how will they be able to track her down with her stuck in the past on prehistoric Earth? With the transwarp wave? What's stopping them from attacking Cybertron without her guidance? I imagine most, if not all, of Cybertron has assumed we're dead by now or long lost in the vastness of space, so wouldn't this organization simply carry out their mission without Starshadow, meaning there's nothing I or you can do? Why keep wasting their resources in search of her? Wouldn't they just appoint someone else to lead them? It has been a long time since we've been stranded here and we have yet to see any sign of this army coming to rescue her."

Banshee took out a datapad and tapped in to her resume, setting it down on his table. Before I was a psychologist, I was a well decorated soldier in the Predacon Army. I was sent by the High Council along with other elite soldiers to be a spy in Hellfang and from then on, a double agent to gain their trust, rise in ranks and finally, uncovering their darkest secrets..." she tapped in on some of the ships reports and browsed Icebreaker's files, showing Optimus regarding the arrival of Cecaelia, "your dead comrade, Icebreaker...he engaged in a fight with one of the rookie members known as Cecaelia, and that means their Mothership is somewhere out there. You'd be surprised how important Starshadow is to the organization. Though they may function without her by having appointed commander, they are less likely to succeed in their plans without the mass of access codes she bears," the bat took a step back as Blackarachnia entered the office, "that's all the information I can give. I hope you understand how important the mission means to me. Good day to you, Optimus," she turned around, giving the spider a nod before walking out.



Starshadow was getting frustrated as there were so much knowledge irrelevant to her project.

"What's the point? Most of the materials we needed can't be found here!" she wanted to give up on the search.

"HUSH! You think I rather waste my time being inside an inferior body compared to MINE?!" the original scolded her. If the cat is to survive on her own, she must whip her into shape to be much more independent, "Since you can't be a good kitty, then get some external help to remove the bomb out of your collar."

"The Maximals?"

"Yes. The Maximals."

"Impossible."

"Why not?"

"They wouldn't help me anyway."

If she could, the original would have facepalmed, though it is a fact that the Maximals would not remove it at all or without a price to pay, especially when that flying rat is on their side. She sighed before speaking again, "You have your looks and charms. Go work your magic on the beetle."

"Landslide?" Starshadow raised an optic ridge at that.

"Yes...."

"Forget it...I'm not into hulking rust buckets of insecticons..." she wanted to gag.

"HA! In my days, I used to fool countless of Insecticons into serving me. You're an electric swatter. You can either lure him out alone, knock him out with electricity, give him to Megatron with a bow attached to him and maybe he would consider getting that thing off your neck, OR you can at least earn his trust first...you'll know the rest.."

She does not know where she was coming from but the first option sounds more pleasing to do. But she doubt that Megatron would even get Umbra to remove the collar. He is obsess with controlling things, but it is worth a try. Starshadow flew back to the Darksyde. Might be best to get involved in battles or some field trip given by the boss to increase the chance of meeting him

(( OOC: Banshee didn't have to leave just because Blackarachnia showed up, starshadow. Optimus would have liked to have spoken with both of them about the Starshadow issue, and he would have allowed Banshee to go get her seeing as how she wasn't going to take no for an answer and I'm sure you;d like to carry out your plan/story whatever it might be. I was just trying to get more development out of your character and the situation. But without further ado, I'm just going to move on with Optimus since I have a lot to cover yet. ))

Before I was a psychologist, I was a well decorated soldier in the Predacon Army. I was sent by the High Council along with other elite soldiers to be a spy in Hellfang and from then on, a double agent to gain their trust, rise in ranks and finally, uncovering their darkest secrets..."

Primal raised a brow at Banshee's explanation, intrigued and also a little taken aback.

"your dead comrade, Icebreaker...

His optics saddened for a moment, briefly recalling that fateful day and how much it devastated his crew, especially Aurora.

he engaged in a fight with one of the rookie members known as Cecaelia, and that means their Mothership is somewhere out there. You'd be surprised how important Starshadow is to the organization. Though they may function without her by having appointed commander, they are less likely to succeed in their plans without the mass of access codes she bears," "that's all the information I can give. I hope you understand how important the mission means to me. Good day to you, Optimus,"

Well, she hadn't answered everything, and he supposed he wasn't going to get much more out of her even though as the commanding officer he should know as much as possible, but at least it was more than he had known beforehand and he appreciated that. As Blackarachnia walked in, he gave a quiet sigh, unwilling at first to let Banshee go on her own, but as defiant and determined as she was, she was clearly going to accomplish this mission of her's no matter what; and, by Primus, he could relate to her about important missions and doing what one believed in. But on one condition. After she had left, Optimus hurried after her in his limp stopping at his quarters' opened doorway and calling after her, "You will return with her alive, Banshee. I will not tolerate anymore murders under my command," he said in reference to Ironclaw killing Dirge the way he had.

"Huh. Didn't know you were an artist."

"I'm not," he admitted to the black widow as he turned to observe her examining his "cave drawings".

Got hit by an alien disk?

"I wish," said Primal. "It probably would have hurt less. Can you decipher any of these symbols or words?" he asked as he limped up beside the she-spider, giving a quick lick across the scar over his mouth, which was more of a tick or a habit now, while he stared at the wall with her.

-----

(( OOC: Joint post between Phoenix and me after catching up with the rest of my Rhinox stuff. ))

"What is it, Rhinox?

The engineer looked between Whitegrazer and Aurora and explained, "Ironclaw is alive. Landslide and Wintersong just recovered him in stasis lock. He's in the hangar's repair chamber."

"I remembered something odd the last time I checked the map. It seemed Megatron has been oddly quiet and I believe it was to out those jamming towers up there. I'm beginning to suspect there is a reason he has done that."

Jamming towers again? Terrific... But if that was the case, then maybe Megatron was up to something big after all and not just lounging around waiting for something to happen. Did it have to do with the aliens? Or was it for his own agenda?

"I will go with you both." "With Optimus' behavior and Megatron's silence, I feel like we are in the eye of the storm, and I fear we won't know until...it comes."

Rhinox had eyed Whitegrazer's words with some concern, mostly because she was probably right. "That's what Aurora's sensor's are for, assuming any of this has to do with the Vok. Hopefully we can be alerted ahead of time instead of always playing catch-up."

"Come on. We're carrying heavy equipment and Whitegrazer is faster than us. It would be a better use of time if she just meets us there."

While Whitegrazer proceeded to research the coordinates she had given to Aurora and Rhinox, the ermine and the rhinoceros made their way out of the base and began their journey to start setting up the equipment with the sensors.
-
Aurora picked up her pace quickly by borrowing one of the ground based transports as she started the long trek to the location where she planned to set up the sensor. Whitegrazer's apparently random coordinates intrigued her, true, but the exact location of the coordinates was a little more tricky to get to since neither of them were flyers. Aurora came closer to being one, for sure, but without frequent updrafts to keep her airborn it was far safer, and faster to take the surface road there.

The transport, a remnant of the Axalon's original mission as an exploration ship, did a decent enough job with getting them to where they needed to go. It was a little bumpy, perhaps, but certainly faster than travelling on foot.

As they got closer to their destination, Aurora glanced over at Rhinox. Her voice sounded quiet, almost uncharacteristically so, when she spoke. "Do you think it will even matter in the end?," she wondered. "I mean if we are able to detect the aliens. We're talking about beings who were perfectly able to destroy the planet after all." She sounded concerned.
-
Rhinox glanced at Aurora with some uncertainty. "Anything that gives us an advantage is worth while," he said optimistically. "No matter the outcome. We never know what they'll throw us at us next. It's obvious that they want us gone, but after everything, we're still here. Us against an unknown, very powerful and elusive race of beings. I think that speaks volumes, and they have underestimated us and our resourcefulness." Part of him was actually curious as to what they'd throw at them next; they were challenges. But another part of him didn't want to lose anymore friends or this planet by their tricks and traps and weapons.
-
"Those guys are sparkless," Aurora muttered as the vehicle pulled up at their pre-programmed coordinates. She briefly pondered if the Vok even possessed such characteristics as gender or individuality. Nobody really knew anything about them.

She waited as the doors opened and then stepped outside, looking out at the landscape. There was a magnificent view down to a valley at a lower level than they were, in the direction of Whitegrazer's exact coordinates in fact. But due to the difficult terrain and also some hesitation on how wise it was to just go to some random coordinates that she was still wondering where Whitegrazer had encountered.

So instead they had chosen a safer area some distance away from Whitegrazer's coordinates, but still close enough for the sensors to pick up any weird activity. Or so she hoped.

Aurora handed the bottom of the sensor to Rhinox since he was far stronger than her and was a much better candidate to get it stuck firmly into the ground. "Here, can you get this set up? I'll get the antenna configured."
-
The engineer followed the smaller Maximal out of their little vehicle and quietly scanned the area with his optics and internal sensors. He wasn't picking up any Predacon hostiles, not to say that there couldn't be any around, but all seemed calm and peaceful.

Rhinox also wondered why, how and what made Whitegrazer so interested in these coordinates. There was nothing here but nice scenery. Skeptical of her eager recommendation, she wasn't there to ask at the moment so he returned his attention to Aurora who grabbed a large part of her invention and handed it to him. He took it with ease and effortlessly carried it to an appropriate spot according to the dirt he deemed compliant with maintaining the device secured in the ground. Lifting it up above his head in both of his hands, he put his strength and force behind the motion as he jammed part of it into the ground, piercing the sturdy terrain and stabilizing it. Then he started to examine it more closely, approvingly looking over her work and figuring out the mechanics.
-
Aurora followed Rhinox and then placed the top portion of the sensor securely into the base. It didn't take long to connect the rest of it together and turn it on.

"Let's see what we can pick up," she said as she made some minor adjustments to the machine before turning her attention to the screen of her wrist mounted computer. "Seems to have some disturbances in the signal.. I can clean that up." She did so with a few taps on the screen, making a clearer image of the surrounding area show up.

The map looked different than a normal map would as it focused mainly on the presence of signals within the sensor's range. But what caught Aurora's attention almost immediately was the large amount of disturbances coming from the direction of where Whitegrazer had initially told them to go. "That's.. odd.."

She tapped the screen a few more times but the disturbances did not fade away this time. "There's something down there, where Whitegrazer told us to go. It's a bit too far to get a clear reading though," she added, a bit disappointed that the range of the sensor wasn't quite as good as she had initially hoped for.
-
Folding his arms across his broad chest, Rhinox had stepped back and nodded, smiling at Aurora and her achievement so far. He grew quiet and glanced around their surroundings again before watching her make her adjustments with the screen on her forearm, studying the map.

Lowering his arms, Rhinox leaned down to look at the disturbances on her screen and turned around to peer in the direction they were coming from, the exact area the Empath had told them to embark to. Unfortunately, they couldn't see anything from where they were. He wasn't sure he wanted to approach it any closer than where they were already positioned. If they triggered any traps, no one would know what happened to them until Whitegrazer would arrive. But in order to make sure the test of her sensors was successful, they would have to investigate it. "Is there anyway to triangulate the sensors and focus on those coordinates of the map to give us a definitive reading?"
-
"We should be able to do that," Aurora responded as she picked up another sensor. Of course this hadn't been attempted before so there was nothing certain about it. After making sure the other sensors were online, she glanced at the monitor again.

There was something down there in the valley below that resembled a structure of sorts. Whatever it was, it was big. And rather intimidating. Knowing how the aliens operated, they had no doubt hidden their base or whatever it was so that it wasn't visible from outside. Kind of like how they had hidden the weapon that had nearly destroyed them two weeks prior inside an active volcano.

"It's a little hard to make out but it definitely looks like something is down there.. a building of sorts.." She looked over the edge once more, trying to see it with her own eyes. But all she could see was just the landscape for as far as she could see.

Then suddenly the signal stopped, the machine seemingly dying for a moment. "By Rattrap's garbage," the fuzor muttered, closing the distance to the main sensor in a few steps. She re-started it and waited impatiently as it came back online.

A sudden alarm, much like the one that had happened earlier when Whitegrazer had come to see them, broke the otherwise calmness of their surroundings. Aurora silently cursed as she silenced the alarm before again looking at her monitor to see if the signal had been recaptured.

Instead what she saw left the white fur in the back of her neck standing. "Rhinox..," she told him, not quite sure what to make of what she was seeing, "We lost the original signal. But there's another one.. and it's moving."
-
Rhinox had moved to the ledge as well beside Aurora to peer down, but like her, he couldn't see the structure. Growing baffled, his crimson optics searched for anything out of place, any kind of hologram projection or interference with its surroundings but nothing jumped out.

He quickly turned to the sounding alarm and was prepared to grab her and pull her away from that area as fast as his legs could move with his heavy body. But he calmed himself and took a deep breath as the Fuzor deactivated the noise and things were silent once more. ...Until she spoke up again. The urgency in her voice made him immediately look at her monitor, noticing the mobile signal moving. Instinctively, he stretched out his arm to her in a protective maneuver, and said, "Get back," as he pulled out one of his chain guns with his other hand and aimed it in the direction of the uncertain signature in case it was hostile. He had no idea what to expect and they had no real cover to shield themselves with.
-
The signal was cutting in and out a few times and its location seemed to bounce from one spot to a different location with each time the signal was lost. Aurora watched this weird behavior occur a few times before she slowly started to let her guard down. "Never mind. I think it's just feedback from the multiple sensors being active at the same time." It had to have been. The last of the signals was so close whatever caused it would have been standing right next to them and there simply wasn't anything.. or anyone.. there.

Although she had moved back as Rhinox had told her to, just in case, but now she started to feel a bit silly for having gotten so spooked by what must have been feedback from the sensors. "Hold on. Maybe I can adjust the sensor to compensate," she told him, moving back to the single, fully assembled, sensor as she spoke.

There was a large rock formation close to where the sensor was standing but Aurora didn't think anything of it at first. Not until she knelt down next to the sensor, only to feel something strange wrap itself around her throat from behind. "Rhinox!," she exclaimed in horrified surprise.
-
Despite hearing her observation and conclusion on the matter, Rhinox hesitated lowering his weapon for a few more moments. Only when everything still remained uneventful and no one else showed up did he feel comfortable enough to let his guard down and return his large gun to his subspace. If this truly was an alien site of activity, then her sensors may not be as inaccurate as she thought they might be.

Hearing her suddenly shriek his name, Rhinox spun around to find out what had happened...
-
Aurora struggled against the force that was starting to choke her. But upon realizing whoever had her wasn't about to stop and certainly didn't plan to let her go, she stopped struggling for a moment. The grip on her neck eased up a bit as she did too, giving her a chance to gasp for air once more. Yet she dared not move much and she couldn't see who was holding her from the position she was in. Rhinox, on the other hand, had a clear view now that her attacker had moved away from his hiding spot.

"Don't.. move," a raspy yet familiar voice sounded and just then Aurora caught a glimpse of a black wing resembling those of a dragon. Zodiac stood up, towering over his captive, but he must have looked worse for wear. Indeed, the many wounds inflicted upon him during the battle at the volcano were all still there. And several more, likely related to his fall into the pit of lava. One wing was hanging unmoving on one side, broken and shredded, yet the other looked somewhat intact still. His armor was scorched, dented, lacerated..
-
Rhinox looked surprised at first, but then his optics narrowed while in his mind growing concerned for the ermine's safety. He was certain he had died. They were all certain. Optimus witnessed it. Yet, here he was standing in front of him and trying to hold Aurora hostage.

"First Ironclaw and now you?" Taking in Zodiac's injuries that were as fresh as the day he had acquired them, it was clear that Aurora's vile had worked exactly as they had hoped and he had had no repairs. But did he know that she had created it to stop his nanobots and take away his livelihood? And would he kill her for it? "Release her, Zodiac," he demanded.
-
Zodiac snuffed at Rhinox' demand but only half as loudly as he did when the Maximal had mentioned Ironclaw's name. "Being transmetal does.. come with.. certain perks," he replied, only to grip Aurora's neck a bit more tightly than before and extracting a frightened gagging sound from the young female.

"I think not," he then responded, moving ever so slightly closer to the cliff just to demostrate how easily he could rid himself of the annoying fuzor if he so chose. "But I won't harm her.. much.. depending, of course, on.. your cooperation." His attention was focused purely on Rhinox since between the two of them, the rhino was the only one who could actually pose a threat to him.
-
The engineer's face showed concern for Aurora when she released gagging sounds from his grip around her throat before he glared again at the former shape shifter, watching him move slowly toward the the edge. His hands balled into fists but he remained calm. "Cooperation?" he questioned, almost curiously, but also wanting to keep Zodiac distracted so he wouldn't harm Aurora. "Cooperation for what?" He carefully took a step toward them.
-
Zodiac narrowed his optics as Rhinox took a step closer before pointing an accusing finger with his free arm at the other male. As he lifted his arm, Rhinox could see the indentation and scratches made into the former shape shifter's wrists. It was as if he'd been dangling for a long time while wearing cuffs, long enough for them to leave a permanent mark in his wrists. "I told you..not to move!," he told him angrily, accusingly, the hand arouns Aurora's neck squeezing it so tightly now that it was starting to crush her throat.
-
"Alright! Alright! Just calm down," the engineer immediately suggested, regretting that his movement caused more pain to his smaller comrade, hoping that he would just as quickly loosen his grip. Rhinox's optics couldn't help taking in the marks around in his wrists. Should he feel sorry for him? Maybe if he had taken a different approach to this situation. Instead, he was threatening Aurora's life.
-
Zodiac did not let the fuzor go. "Your little friend here... was experimenting on... nanomachine technology a while back. She gave some.. to Optimus." Talking was a bit strainous right now since he was so damaged. "I need.. repairs. She will.. get my.. nanomachines.. operational .. again.. so I can leave .. this dreadful place."

He coughed a bit, a dry cough from the strain of having been near the lava for so long. The heat had caused part of his vocal synthesizer to warp a bit. It wasn't bad but noticable.

"And you.. will get the .. equipment she needs to do it."

Aurora froze as her captor talked of what he wanted her to do. Even if she did have the equipment and know-how to do such a feat, she would have no idea where to even start. She was only in the beginning stages of understanding how that technology worked. And the nanogel was all gone, leaving her with only the option of trying to find a way to reverse the effects of the virus. Something she really didn't know if could be done.
-
In his mind, Rhinox thought, Yeah right. Should he be honest with him or bluff? "You expect me to leave her here with you while I fetch the equipment? No chance. Anyway, we're fresh out of the nanotech samples we would need to reverse the effects. So it looks like you're out of luck. Let her go, and we can offer you some time in one of our repair chambers," he tried negotiating. As damaged as he was, he didn't really seem like a tremendous threat anymore. Of course, the rhinoceros didn't want to underestimate him. But he betted that he could strike him down with one strong punch to his face.
-
The dragon hesitated for a moment,weighing his options. "And I'm supposed to believe.. you won't just lock me up.. when I'm in.. your CR chamber?" He was tired.. so very tired.. and it was noticable in his voice as well as his appearance. Honestly he couldn't remember the last time, if ever, he had felt like this.

"You are not in.. a good position.. to make demands," he told the other male. "The little pest stays. It's.. my only offer. .. Take it.. or she will die." It was not a threat as much as it was a promise. As things were, he had nothing else to lose.
-
Rhinox's patience was wearing thin now. After everything Zodiac had put them through, he came back to try and pull more power moves? He was a fool. He clearly had no energy to fight and hardly had enough to stay awake. "Optimus was willing to risk his life to save you despite everything, and you come back to pull a stunt like this?" Rhinox shook his head in disappointment. "The way I see it you're the one in no position to make demands, Zodiac. I could punch your lights out before you did anything more than squeeze her neck. You know we're reasonable Maximals. You know Optimus. You want repairs, we want answers. Your alternative is: I knock you out and leave you for the Predacons. Or the Vok."
-
Zodiac would have groaned at the way the Maximal attempted to feign being in control. He had no desire to return to the Axalon. If these fools wouldn't help him, he would just have to get rid of them and focus his attention on the alien site again. it was because of the Vok that he had obtained his powers in the first place so it was likely something of theirs could reverse whatever curse the Maximals had placed upon him by injecting him with.. whatever it had been.

"As you wish," he told Rhinox coldly as he lifted Aurora into the air by the neck, his arm shaking a bit as he did from the strain, and then turned to the edge. "There's a small.. ledge.. protruding a bit further.. down the cliff. If you hurry and.. you're lucky.. you may be able to save her before.. it collapses. If not.. she'll face.. a rough landing." He moved closer to the edge, ignoring the fact Aurora had started struggling again.
-
Stubborn as ever. Rhinox grumbled in anger and suddenly threw himself at Zodiac for a tackle. If he released Aurora upon his impact, he was certain she could be quick enough to transform and glide herself to safety. As for himself, he wasn't concerned about going over the edge. He just wanted to get her out of his harmful grip.
-
As Zodiac turned with the struggling fuzor in hand, his free hand grabbed for her fragile wings with the intent of shredding them to avoid her using them to glide. But just before he could lay his hand on her, a sudden impact against his back and side forced him to the ground.

He was unable to keep his grip on Aurora as he slammed into the ground, Rhinox partially on top of him. Aurora rolled on the ground, gasping as she did until she came to a halt near the edge.
-
The robust Maximal got to his feet after crawling off of Zodiac. With his weight, he wasn't the most graceful tackler, but it got the job done. He glanced at Aurora to make sure she was alright. "Get up," he told the wounded dragon as he stood near him.
-
The dragon slowly, very carefully, forced himself up on his feet as soon as Rhinox had removed himself. It was only due to the shere amount of stubborness that he was able to do it, his body aching from top to bottom and his systems overwhelmed with pure exhaustion. And hunger. It had been so long since he had eaten anything that he no longer felt the urge to eat.

Glaring at Rhinox, he found himself wishing he had his weapons at least. But they were gone too, disappeared on the now collapsed volcano.

"Go on with it then," he told the Maximal definatly, taking a staggering step forward. "Make the shot if.. you're .. capable of it. " He waited but a nanoclick before smiling ever so slightly. "I thought not.. Leave this place.. for you have.. no business.. here. "
-
Now standing before him, Rhinox was fed up with Zodiac's attitude, and he swung his fist upward at his lower jaw just as the exhausted dragon finished what he was saying.
-
Zodiac, being in the terrible state he was in, wasn't able to avoid or even register the incoming blow before it was too late. His head immediately snapped to the side from the sudden impact, leaving the dragon feeling disoriented for a moment before he crashed back down to the ground. Aurora, meanwhile, gasped in surprise as she witnessed Rhinox punch the former shapeshifter who had caused so much trouble, knocking him out in the process.. She had never seen Rhinox as much as raise his voice, much less resort to violence, but it was evident even his patience was running thin.

Her optics darted from the downed renegade to Rhinox to Zodiac again.
-
Watching the dragon collapse, Rhinox brushed his hands together as if wiping them clean and looked at Aurora. "Are you alright?"
-
"Yeah..," she said, more baffled than hurt. "Just a little bruised. I'll be all right." Although had Rhinox been but a nanoclick slower, she might not have been.

She stood up. "What do we do now?," she asked, genuinely not sure what the best approach would be from here.
-
Now that the confrontation was over, the engineer looked down at the unconscious dragon, still in shock that was he was even alive. How had he survived? Rhinox sighed and looked at Aurora. "I guess we either tow him back with us or we call Optimus to come out here since we may have found a possible alien site. Right? Can we confirm our findings with your detection device?"
-
"I'm not sure," Aurora responded after a brief pause. "The equipment is acting a little weird.. It even went off when he..," she said gesturing the still form at Rhinox' feet, ".. showed up. I don't know why." Suddenly a realization came to her. "And Whitegrazer.. It did it to her as well. And she somehow knew of this place, whatever's down there.. " She stopped talking.
-
Rhinox studied her thoughtfully before he said, "I don't think they're glitches." He couldn't help but wonder how Optimus was going to react to all of this, especially with this sudden realization that Zodiac was still alive. And now all of this...

He knelt down next to the dragon to make sure his injuries weren't life threatening at the moment, carefully examining his body and vital signs. "Rhinox to Base, do you copy?" he sent, but only static returned. "Axalon? Do you copy?" he repeated. Nothing but static. "Seems Whitegrazer might have been right about those towers," he told Aurora since they weren't far enough away for the distance to interfere. Something or someone else was blocking their communications. Of course he had been hoping that would not be the case... "We're going to have to lug Zodiac back with us." Rhinox picked up the dragon under his arms, lifting his upper body, and dragged him over to their transport with the renegade's heels scraping along the ground. He managed to pull him up into the bed of their vehicle with his feet dangling out because he was so tall.

-----

"It seems the area isn't recognized as ours or Predacon territory, but it is close. " "I have no doubt Megatron may have a jamming tower there."

"Hey, 'Grazer, what's the happs?" Rattrap inquired, immediately getting up and walking over to her, sticking his nose in her business as he enjoyed doing with almost everyone. "Jamming towers? Where?" He looked over the map she brought up, seemingly a little confused.

"Rhinox? Aurora? Where are you guys?"

The rat spun around to look at the monitor he was just occupying and saw the two signatures departing from the Axalon's perimeter. "Were you waintin' for 'em? 'Cause it looks like dey left without ya."

Landslide to Rattrap, we're both back and Ironclaw's arm is recovered. No problems so far. I'm gonna stay down here and watch him while I work.

"Alright, 'Slider," he responded. "What're Cheetor an' Wintersong up to now? We might have some jamming towers ta locate and, uh, disassemble. Unless ya need help down there, send 'em on up to de bridge, would ya?"

"Hey, we've been here long enough my nose knows now." Wintersong tried to joke, showing some pride in her tracking. But it was true, they had been there for months and given that sometimes things to do here was limited it never hurt to hone some skills. It almost made Wintersong wonder what her drill sergeant would have thought when they actually returned. Well, if they could return.

She had spent some days imagining the look on his face among many others when they saw how different the crew was. Upgrades, battle scars, new attitudes, no one would recognize them. It was almost a startling realization and truly a realization of how far they had come since this whole fiasco. "Maybe a fortress is what we really need." She agreed while listening to the two mechs, turning her attention for a moment to the CR chamber. In speaking of different, just how different was Ironclaw since she had last spoken with him? From what she heard he had become a completely different bot, someone she hardly recognized with the way the others spoke. It wasn't him murdering the Predacon Dirge that bothered her, it was the fact the mech she would come face-to-face with again would be a stranger to her once more.

Ever since that time he had given her a hand after she made her own attempt at Megatron there had been something...Shaking her head the Transmetal tigress put these thoughts to rest. She would just have to be patient as she headed towards the hall, "I'm heading back to the bridge you two, and good like with the generator Landslide." She said, looking over her shoulder as she walked and disappeared into the halls, unaware that Rattrap was already calling for the two felines. In fact shortly after he had said it Wintersong was coming to the bridge herself, "Anything new going on?" She asked when seeing Whitegrazer, now curious to what was happening.

Wintersong wrote:"Hey, we've been here long enough my nose knows now.""Maybe a fortress is what we really need.""I'm heading back to the bridge you two, and good like with the generator Landslide."

Landslide gave a nod, then looked back towards the engine as he heard Rattrap on the coms.

Rattrap wrote:"Alright, 'Slider," "What're Cheetor an' Wintersong up to now? We might have some jamming towers ta locate and, uh, disassemble. Unless ya need help down there, send 'em on up to de bridge, would ya?"

Landslide responded back Aye, I'll tell them. Gonna probably need more then Cheetor's expertise convertin' this engine.. don't know as much about these transwarp drives. But I'll ask Cheetor to mark off where these jamming towers are.. Could be useful fer parts. Got some ideas fer increasing radio com ranges and those would have the parts to do it. Landslide then looked towards Cheetor Rattrap needs you to take out some jamming towers. Do you think you can mark off their location for me to pick them up later?

Cheetor gave a nod Yeah! Sure thing Slide', I'll see ya later! Cheetor then rushed off to the bridge. The large beetle stood up walking over to the console, bringing up the schematics on the Axalon's own drive, while checking on Ironclaw's status off and on.

Cheetor soon made his way to the bridge, looking to Rattrap Hey, so where's these Pred jamming towers you were talking about?

"Ironclaw is alive. Landslide and Wintersong just recovered him in stasis lock. He's in the hangar's repair chamber."

Ironclaw was alive. She was relieved at such news since they lost track of him for two weeks. Some even believing he may be dead, and she didn't know what to think, but hoped for the best as the crew had lost too many people already.

"Hey, 'Grazer, what's the happs?" Rattrap inquired, immediately getting up and walking over to her, sticking his nose in her business as he enjoyed doing with almost everyone. "Jamming towers? Where?"

Anything new going on?

Whitegrazer just smiled at Rattrap, who was very interested in what she was doing and at Wintersong who just entered, "Looks like Megatron has been really busy lately. I noticed the Predacon leader has been setting up the jamming towers in specific areas." She widened the map a bit to prove to Rattrap what she meant. Upside looked like an upside down antennae. A symbol that recognized once before. On the alien disk. Then she focused it back on the coordinates TyCross gave her, the same ones she suggested to Rhinox and Aurora. "I suggested these coordinates for Aurora's project."

Hey, so where's these Pred jamming towers you were talking about?

"Hello, Cheetor." Whitegrazer greeted the young bot. " I was just showing Rattrap that these towers are in a fix pattern." She showed the young bot the earlier map. With all these jamming towers around, any Maximal outside would have to be careful. "These jamming towers are a huge problem. If any one of us is in trouble and in need of backup, if they get inside the towers' range, they wouldn't be able to contact base. I suggest if anyone is on a mission or simple patrol, should have someone with them. It's too risky for any of us to go out alone. Not until we find a way to take those towers down."

"Were you waintin' for 'em? 'Cause it looks like dey left without ya."

"Yes..." Whitegrazer said quietly. She had hoped they waited as she realized the risk, the threat they were involved in, but it seemed Aurora may have had hoped to try her invention. She just sighed and shook her head, smiling a small smile, when she felt a slight chill. A flash of Aurora and Rhinox. "I got to go to them." She looked at Wintersong, "You can accompany me if you want." The female tiger didn't have to. After all, since Ironclaw was back, the female tiger might want to watch over the badger.

An edge of worry etched in her voice as she made her way to platform, transformed into her beast mode, and started racing towards the destination. Strong emotions pushed her hooves, feeling that Aurora and Rhinox were in some sort of trouble. She didn't know who or what it was. Though, the closer she got, the more the danger she felt lessened like the danger passed or was dealt with. As she saw the two coming into her visual range , she quickly transformed and ran towards them, "Rhinox? Aurora? Are you two all right?"

Her eyes gazed over the transport, seeing a familiar image. The spikes, the dragon-like appearance. Her eyes widened in realization. "Zodiac." The name came with surprise and shock. He was alive. Alive? Glancing up at Rhinox and Aurora, especially Aurora, "I thought... I felt him die." Or maybe she was wrong. It happened before. Maybe the pain was just too great that the link they shared temporary just cut itself, making her believe he had perished. She didn't expect this. How was Optimus going to react to all of this?

"Was he at the alien site?" She asked them. Zodiac... did he know? Did he know something? If so, she wanted to know herself. What did he know? She was intrigued and relieved at the same time. The alien site... would have to wait a little longer.

((Doing a real quick post, may be another day or two before I can do another so figured I'd respond to Whitegrazer real quick.))

Jamming towers? The Predacons had been planning something after all, which was quite a coincidence. Not but a short time ago her and Landslide had been speaking of the same thing on their way back to the ship when she got Ironclaw's arm. Somehow it just seemed to be lining up that something big might be fixing to happen, that the Predacons were likely to be planning a new attack soon.

But she looked at the white mare when she spoke of joining her, "I..." She hesitated, a part of her not wanting to leave the base due to Ironclaw's condition. But the beetle said he would keep an optic on him which she assumed he would do in between the millions of other things going on. Though she wasn't given that long of a time to respond before the mare was already going to the lift and it lowered her down. "Whoa, Whitegrazer wait up!" The tigress called, surprised at how quickly the white mare was already heading to meet whatever was going on. Sometimes it shocked her on what the Empath was picking up or feeling from others.

"Uh, we'll get the jamming towers while we're out Rattrap, see you later and good luck on your end Cheetor!" Wintersong spoke before she hurried to the lift, not waiting for it to come back up as she dropped down instead in time to see Whitegrazer already taking off in full gallop. "And I thought Cheetor was reckless." She muttered as she transformed to her vehicle form, her side boosters bursting to life sending her in full speed after the taller femme. But with Whitegrazer's lead she was a little behind the whole way but keeping the mare within her sights so not to lose track of her until the came across the transport which he back was open. A part of Wintersong was apprehensive to know why as she slowed enough to shift her legs back to all fours and the boosters retracting into her sides.

Shortly after she did so though Wintersong could have sworn she picked up on the name Zodiac. Narrowing her optics she approaches to where the mare was, stopping beside the white femme and growling softly at his unconscious form, "Guess luck never lasts." She grumbled, obviously having not lost her dislike to the shapeshifter after his attempts to use Ironclaw and then kill the crew. But she didn't make any move to attack the unconscious mech as she glanced back to where they had come from wondering if it had anything to with whatever it was Whitegrazer and Rattrap had been looking at before.

"Let us see to it that it remains that way, yyeeeessss. It would not do to clue Primal in as to the true nature of this planet, nnnnnoooo."

The true nature of this planet..

Megatron's words were carefully selected, and quite appropriate given the recent events. Although he had but shown her a small part of the information on the golden disks, having recovered Deathroll from the swamps where he'd been condemned to spend eternity if Megatron hadn't found a new purpose for him had proved to Nemesis exactly what kind of secrets lay hidden on this planet. And she had a feeling that the missing Decepticons were but a fraction of what they were about to uncover.

Indeed. The new Megatron, second of his name, was proving to be quite cunning and more adept then she had initially given him credit for. Zodiac, Primal and his Maximals, and even the elders and the Tripredacus council had all underestimated what Megatron was capable of.

It was a realization that was as inspiring as it was frightening in a sense. By possessing the disks and the knowledge inscribed on them, Megatron could potentially alter the course of history.

"Perhaps it would be a strategic advantage to keep the Maximals distracted until we have gotten the chance to complete our work?," the female of the group suggested after a brief pause, a mischievous glint in her optics revealing a teasing nature she usually kept hidden.

"Gratitude, Commander, but I was only doing what was expected of me, or any other decepticon soldier for that matter."

"Not every soldier is equally capable of handling leadership decisions," she remarked somewhat dismissively.

It was true. In fact Nemesis herself was still trying to come to terms with the sudden upgrade in her status.

Megatron and Deathroll continued their small talk for a few more moments, during which Nemesis listened with interest. She, too, was not familiar with Cybertron as she had never actually been there. Instead her origins traced back to one of the settlements for refugees attempting to escape the Maximal high council. The traitor, Zodiac, hailed from the same group of settlers.

Much could be said of dear departed Zodiac's methods, but some held merit to them.. if, of course, executed properly. In the weeks since the traitor's treachery had become clear and he had subsequently lost his life during the battle at the volcano, Nemesis had often contemplated the aftermath of what he had set in motion. Among the things that had happened, BlackArachnia had decided to defect to the Maximal side. And she was obviously a threat given her sneaky nature and whatever information she could provide the Maximals with.

"This...This changes everything! The maximals cannot hope to oppose us with such an advantage at our disposal, and the Tripredacus Council's support back on Cybertron will surely dwindle down to nothing when you can offer the masses such power!"

"First things first Subcommander, this is indeed a great breakthrough, and I do not wish to sell my accomplishment short, nnnnooo...But alas, there is still much work to do before my artificial energon experiments become fully viable"

True. As with any great invention, this new form of energon would need a great deal of improvement and testing before they could truly celebrate it as a victory. But given time, Nemesis was confident they would get there.

She picked up the small fragment as it was passed on to her, cradling it quite gently in her hand. For someone forged by acts of extreme violence, her touch could be surprisingly tender when needed. She gazed at it for a moment, admiring it despite its imperfections.

Strange to think that something so small could potentially change the course of history..

Very carefully she handed the fragment back to Megatron.

"It truly is remarkable," she said before returning to their earlier topic about how to proceed with the Maximals.

"And our efforts can certainly give us the upper hand in this conflict against the Maximals.." She used the term conflict deliberately since in her opinion a war was much more large scale. There was going to be a war, but not until they returned to Cybertron and went up against the high council there.

"The Maximals are misguided but they are not fools," she then continued, "And we've already lost a few of our own to their cause, most recently BlackArachnia."

She pulled one leg over the other as she leaned back in the chair a bit.

"If we let such treachery slide, it's only a matter of time before more of our troops are lured over to their side. And most certainly our Decepticon brethren that will be rejoining our fold are powerful, but I feel an example should be made to those that may be harboring such nonsensical thoughts. BlackArachnia must die. If we can make her appear to be a traitor to them, we can trick the Maximals to disown her and cast her out."

Rhinox wrote: "I don't think they're glitches."

Aurora felt herself tense up a bit when hearing Rhinox say those words. Although she had to admit it was a curious coincidence her sensors had only ever seemed to react to those two.

Her throat still hurt a bit from where the former shapeshifter had squeezed it so tightly just moments before, but it didn't bother her too much.

"Seems Whitegrazer might have been right about those towers,"

"Well.. that's just great, isn't it?," the fuzor muttered, not liking the idea of being stuck out here without the possibility of calling for backup if they needed it. The alien site.. or whatever it was.. was both frightening beyond comprehension and tantalizingly intriguing at the same time. She knew the aliens were capable of horrendous things. But if they caught them off guard and found something at this alien site they could use, that would be of tremendous help to the Maximals.

Her gaze fell upon the still figure on the ground. Could they just leave him here out in the open like this?

Rhinox didn't seem to think so.

"We're going to have to lug Zodiac back with us."

She watched as he larger Maximal dragged the dragon back to their vessel. So they'd have to ride back with this guy now? The same guy who had tried to kill them on a number of occasions? She sighed, realizing the trip back was going to be a lot more cramped.

Approaching steps and a familiar voice caught her attention.

"Rhinox? Aurora? Are you two all right?"

It was Whitegrazer joining up with them. Aurora drew a silent sigh of relief, having feared the former shapeshifter had brought someone else with him. Judging by the company he'd been known to keep in the past, the fuzor had no interest in meeting any more. Thankfully Whitegrazer was about as far from a vicious Predacon or worse yet.. an alien hellbent on their destruction.. as one could get.

"Yeah.. We're much better off than he is at least," she told the mare while nodding towards the transport.

Just like them, the white mare appeared more than a little confused at seeing Zodiac there.. in relatively one piece.

"Zodiac."

Aurora remained silent for a moment, letting Whitegrazer finish. Truthfully Aurora didn't have any more answers than the mare did right now, although she'd be lying if she claimed not to be curious about the former shapeshifter's return.

"I thought... I felt him die."

Aurora shrugged.
"He's got quite the grip for a ghost if so," the fuzor responded while brushing her white tail with the black tip away from her shoulder so Whitegrazer could clearly see the mark left behind on the fuzor's neck.

"Was he at the alien site?"

The smaller female nodded, looking from Zodiac to Whitegrazer and back again. The words the mare had chosen were not lost on the fuzor.

"So you knew what we would find here," she said, seemingly a bit disappointed that Whitegrazer hadn't been honest with them from the start. Although she had been suspicious of Whitegrazer knowing the coordinates, part of her had still hoped it had been some weird coincidence. She had never suspected the mare would hold a secret like this from them and it did make Aurora wonder what else the mare was hiding.

Just then the tigress showed up as well, obviously having followed Whitegrazer out here. Aurora eyed them both a bit suspiciously, not quite sure what to make of any of it.

"Guess luck never lasts."

"Because our shapeshifting friend here survived and Ironclaw didn't," Aurora said a bit quietly. She still didn't know Ironclaw was alive and had returned to the Axalon.

Phoenix wrote: The true nature of this planet..

Megatron's words were carefully selected, and quite appropriate given the recent events. Although he had but shown her a small part of the information on the golden disks, having recovered Deathroll from the swamps where he'd been condemned to spend eternity if Megatron hadn't found a new purpose for him had proved to Nemesis exactly what kind of secrets lay hidden on this planet. And she had a feeling that the missing Decepticons were but a fraction of what they were about to uncover.

Indeed. The new Megatron, second of his name, was proving to be quite cunning and more adept then she had initially given him credit for. Zodiac, Primal and his Maximals, and even the elders and the Tripredacus council had all underestimated what Megatron was capable of.

It was a realization that was as inspiring as it was frightening in a sense. By possessing the disks and the knowledge inscribed on them, Megatron could potentially alter the course of history.

"Perhaps it would be a strategic advantage to keep the Maximals distracted until we have gotten the chance to complete our work?," the female of the group suggested after a brief pause, a mischievous glint in her optics revealing a teasing nature she usually kept hidden.

"They have been rather quiet lately" Deathroll replied in agreement, unaware that usually the predacons were the aggressors against the more passive yet meddlesome maximals, not that it would have mattered to him, the oppressors had to be crushed!

"Indeed. No doubt they have kept themselves busy repairing the damage inflicted to their base and licking their wounds from our last encounter. However, it is only a matter of time before they become aware of our recent construction projects, and Primal would have to be a colossal fool to not be making his own preparations in anticipation of what I, or the Vok, have in store for him" Megatron said thoughtfully, before noticing the mischievous gleam in his Commander's optics and returning one of his own.

"Whatever did you have in mind, Commander?" Megatron inquired, his curiosity peeked, he himself had been wanting to do the maximals harm but with the inevitability of a Vok invasion on the horizon he had preoccupied himself with contending with the greater threat, while inhibiting the maximal's own progress with his new jamming towers.

Phoenix wrote: "Not every soldier is equally capable of handling leadership decisions," she remarked somewhat dismissively.

Deathroll raised a claw as if to debate the matter further, but thought back to how utterly uncooperative and chaotic the likes of Terrorsaur and Quickstrike were without a heavy hand and a watchful optic to keep them in line, and finally admitted "Bluntly said, but tragically more true than I would care to admit. Perhaps a bootcamp for these Predacons might be in order."

Megatron stifled back a laugh at the thought of his minions being put through formal, rigid basic training by a literal drill tank drill sergeant, especially those with fierier personalities or black marks for treachery.

"Another marvelous idea, Sub-Commander, you're truly on point today. We'll have to put this idea into effect when time allows it" Megatron complimented, half serious and half joking.

"Many thanks Milord, I shall not fail you" Deathroll replied, taking Megatron for his word and already plotting a series of obstacle courses and brutal training regiments for the troops.

Phoenix wrote: She picked up the small fragment as it was passed on to her, cradling it quite gently in her hand. For someone forged by acts of extreme violence, her touch could be surprisingly tender when needed. She gazed at it for a moment, admiring it despite its imperfections.

Strange to think that something so small could potentially change the course of history..

Very carefully she handed the fragment back to Megatron.

"It truly is remarkable," she said before returning to their earlier topic about how to proceed with the Maximals.

"And our efforts can certainly give us the upper hand in this conflict against the Maximals.." She used the term conflict deliberately since in her opinion a war was much more large scale. There was going to be a war, but not until they returned to Cybertron and went up against the high council there.

"The Maximals are misguided but they are not fools," she then continued, "And we've already lost a few of our own to their cause, most recently BlackArachnia."

She pulled one leg over the other as she leaned back in the chair a bit.

"If we let such treachery slide, it's only a matter of time before more of our troops are lured over to their side. And most certainly our Decepticon brethren that will be rejoining our fold are powerful, but I feel an example should be made to those that may be harboring such nonsensical thoughts. BlackArachnia must die. If we can make her appear to be a traitor to them, we can trick the Maximals to disown her and cast her out."

"Flatterer" Megatron replied to Nemesis as he accepted back the red energon fragment and put it away for safe keeping.

Megatron noticed her use of the word conflict rather than war, but didn't push the matter, they may not be back home on Cybertron warring against the Tripredacus Council and Maximal Elders directly, and his army may not be as vast as his namesake's, but the Beast Wars was potentially the grandest, most essential war in universal history, he and he alone would decide the fate of the past, present, and future for all, and all he had to do to win the most important war of all time was defeat a ragtag team of maximal explorers.

However, he did become noticeably more grim when she mentioned the name of his least favorite spider, Blackarachnia, the transmetal tyrant glad he had put the crystal away already or he might have crushed it with his barehands in anger.

"Ah Yyyyesssss...My favorite spider, how I do miss her so" Megatron said, his voice charismatic but his tone laced with ice cold malice towards the traitor as he imagined plucking each of her eight legs one by one before beating her to death with them...He hadn't been this angry with a known turncoat since Dinobot.

"While I cannot imagine the likes of Waspinator or Terrorsaur ever demeaning themselves with a maximal insignia, you are correct in saying that an example must be made. I have long since grown weary of treachery, and of being tolerant of it for the sake of pragmatism alone. Blackarachnia must die, this was never in doubt, but what you propose is certainly an interesting way to go about it, yyyyessss. Blackarachnia maybe playing maximal for now, but even Primal cannot blind himself to the fact that Blackarachnia is no Dinobot, she serves him now out of self-preservation, not because of some misguided sense of honor. I don't doubt that when push comes to shove Blackarachnia will choose her own benefit over that of her new "comrades," but anything we can do to hurry their inevitable falling out along can only be for the best. The question now is, how do we do it?" questioned Megatron.

Deathroll suggested "We could frame her for a crime she didn't commit, such as the murder of a comrade or the theft of an important item the maximals cannot do without."

"Valid suggestions Deathroll, but sometimes the best deceptions are seasoned with a hint of truth, yyyyyessss. We know that Blackarachnia is not a changed femme, she merely hides amongst them to shield herself from my wrath, so we in turn must show the maximals why allowing her in their midst is not worth their time or trouble, nnnnnoooo. I can see us accomplishing this by one of two means. We either create a scenario in which Blackarachnia abandons her new playmates to save her own hide, or tempt her ambition for power and make sure she gets caught in the act. Either way, we expose her true nature to the maximals and force them to cast her out into our waiting arms" Megatron said, facing Nemesis as he added "What say you, Nemesis?"

"You will return with her alive, Banshee. I will not tolerate anymore murders under my command,"

Too bad... Killing seemed easier than bringing that certain someone back to the Axalon. But Blackarachnia was too occupied in Optimus' crazy artwork in front of her to actually care about the little conversation between Banshee and the Maximal ape.

"I'm not,"

"I wish," said Primal. "It probably would have hurt less. Can you decipher any of these symbols or words?"

Blackarachnia looked over the weird symbols and numbers, remembering her own experiences and knowledge. "These aliens.... They have a complex type of language. From my own analyze, they seem almost similar to our language with the use of mathematical and binary numbers, but they also use symbols similar to a language used by earlier humans' cave paintings. Like back on the floating island, they used a symbol to label a trap location." she pointed at the drawing with a small humanoid figure holding a think arrow stick. "Though, I believe these aliens have combined them with another language from another species, but I couldn't find out who or what. If there is another, then it may be from a species we have no records of, living or dead."

"Many of them are just the symbols they used to label their sites." Blackarachnia shrugged her shoulders and peered over, pointing at different symbols, "Like the pod from the Standing Stones and the floating island. The others are familiar, expect I haven't seen this one..., " she pointed to a drawing where it looked like an inverted triangle and what looked like a seed planted on the ground, " or that one... Whoa."

The one she looked at was a strange drawing. almost appeared like the outline of a facial structure of a Cybertronian. Well, half of it. The other looked like a skeleton and, what was that behind it? Lights? Tentacles. "That's pretty freaky. I like it." She wonder what that meant. Was that what the aliens looked like? Or was it something else?

"I suggest we copy all of these symbols into the database. It might be easier for me to translate with the use of your computer systems."