The Intergalactic Highway

The first exchange went off without any problems, maybe except for the distasteful facial expressions. But it was nothing that Ironclaw wasn't already prepared for. He remained firm and followed Landslide as he handed over the golden disk. The badger almost regretted giving the Predacons such a tactical advantage, it was one the Maximals sorely needed. However it was the Maximal way. We don't trade or leave anyone behind. Contrary to popular belief, this was one of the 'ways' he agreed with. The badger then followed Nexus Prime with his narrow eyes. He still didn't trust him, although most thought Ironclaw didn't trust anyone, some thing was just wrong about him. The whole situation didn't smell right, he would continue to be wary of him. His eyes followed him until he went our of sight, trust may have been misplaced. This then brought the brutes attention back to Rattrap. He could say what he wanted but his demeanour told Ironclaw something completely different. It wasn't fair on the rat, to be put in that situation. Though the whole thing wasn't fair and the badger wouldn't accept that as an excuse. Time to get Optimus back.

Ironclaw suddenly broke formation, not wanting to wait for anymore formalities. It would transform into blundering and he grew tired of Maximals coming off apprehensive or unwilling to act with purpose. He concealed the syringe in his large hand and strode across the divide. As he moved he checked the faces of his enemies. They were all smaller than him but no doubt they had already noticed he was bigger and they were already formulating strategies to counter it. No matter, he marched bravely on. He passed the first few Predacons without acknowledgement until he came to a Predacon guarding Optimus. He had a confidence about him which warned the badger, he just stared down at him, ready for the exchange to take place.

He isn't. ... Yes, We will fight. We will keep fighting, no matter what happens.

Optimus thought he felt Whitegrazer's embrace, and her thumb under his only functioning optic, wiping the empathetic tear away that had almost escaped. He thought he saw her smiling but he couldn't depict reality from their bond anymore as he laid there in his bonds on the platform, surrounded by the Predacons. He was too weak, too exhausted. Their connection flickered even more now, like a flame desperately trying to keep itself on its candle's wick in a gusty wind.

Listen to me, Optimus,what you are feeling right now. You can't act upon it. I know... I know you want to. I know you want to make them pay for what they did to you. They will pay, Optimus. People like them... always in the end. But don't let them pay at the expense of who you are. I know they took much away from you already, but don't let them destroy who you are. They wanted to destroy you, wear your ideals and good nature down. They laughed at you and treated you like an animal to make themselves feel better. To make you believe that you are no better than them. But you are. You are better than them. A better bot than all of them.

But I don't want to make them pay, he argued with her, confused by her words. He was forgetting what the voice had told him before and all that he had been agreeing with it earlier, to hurt the Predacons or worse. What was she talking about? I know I'm better than them. I can rise above their cruelty. You can help me. It was as if suddenly the Optimus she knew was right back on his feet, mentally speaking.

"Destroy them!!!! Do you realize the importance of these disks!?" "Fine....I will.....damage the disks if need be...."

Well, the rodent supposed that would have to do. He knew they were important, but to keep them out of Megatron's hands, Rattrap would rather have them destroyed so no one could learn their secrets. Although, even if they were in fragments on the ground, at least Megatron would be too distracted to fight as he would probably be on his knees frantically trying to pick up every piece. Wouldn't that be a sight to see.

"Those two dying on the way back? Pft, if only I could be so lucky, but alas, my faith in your irksome leaders' ability to survive such a "perilous journey" is surprisingly greater than your own, Primus simply isn't kind enough to do me such a favor...And believe me, trading these two for the disks was not nearly as easy of a decision to make as you may think, but in the long run I decided reclaiming my property was worth the distasteful prospect of seeing them back on their feet again. As for your miracle bonding agent...Why hasn't one of your comrades used it to close your mouth yet?"

At first, Rattrap sneered at Megatron's words, disagreeing with his dismissive attitude toward Nexus and especially Optimus surviving the trek back to the Axalon. Then a smile of pride appeared on his face as he answered the tyrant's last question with, "Nobody's got the skills ta sneak up on me." His grin faded as he realized they were wasting precious time.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaawwwww, yyyyyeesssssss"

Watching Megatron's reaction to the golden disk when Landslide cautiously placed it in his hands he was like a child in an energon candy shop, and the rodent thought about how easy it would be right then and there to fire at him. The t-rex was so engrossed and mesmerized by the artifact in his hand, so utterly distracted, that the Maximals could have capitalized on it and started a fight with the element of surprise on their side. However, it would have significantly decreased Primal's chances of survival. Like Dinobot's optics trained on the disks, Megatron surely had a Predacon or two ready to dismember Optimus as soon as something went wrong, and it wouldn't take much to kill the Maximal Commander at this point. He couldn't risk it. As much as he wanted to whip out his gun and fire a shot dead center into Megatron's TransMetal chest, he resisted the motion and instead remained standing there calm and collected while the Predacon practically drooled over the disk that was in his grasp once more.

With some relief, Rattrap glanced at Landslide as he carried Nexus to safety behind the boulders with the rest of the Maximals. His optics fell onto Whitegrazer briefly when he texted her, FROM RATTRAP: Contact the base. Send reinforcements; Cheetor and Banshee. END TEXT. Just as he turned back to the situation at hand, he noticed Ironclaw stepping out of line and forcing himself forward toward the new Predacon and Terrorsaur, both of whom were guarding Optimus. He wanted to tell Ironclaw to stop but to his surprise, he halted himself just short of in reach of Primal, placing himself on the Predacons' side, staring down the newbie and the TransMetal dino bird. Maybe the badger knew what he was doing, but if he was trying to intimidate any of those lying, evil, and sadistic Predacons, it wasn't going to work. If anything, he was probably going to make them trigger-happy, or use his bold movement as an excuse to open fire. Before he could let any of that happen, the Spy was forced to whip out the other golden disk from his subspace a little prematurely. This way, Megatron's attention would be focused on that and the rat instead of Ironclaw. Rattrap held it up in line with Dinobot's sight but hesitated to step forward in order to hand it over to the nightmare towering before him.

"Now then, the second disk, if you please."

"Like I said before, Optimus first," the smallest Maximal present said firmly as he slowly flashed the disk in his hand by twisting his wrist slightly back and forth, the sun's reflection temporarily blinding any of them standing near him if they looked at it.

TyCross, you may be right, but you are also wrong. Wrong. And so are you, voice of darkness.

Voice of darkness? the virus started the laugh. I am merely Optimus Primal's consciousness, the pitch-dark side that he suppresses day in and day out that he refuses to unleash in order to push himself further in this relentless and costly war but battles in his nightmares. I am the side no one else knows exists, that no one else sees, and no one knows his true potential. You see, Whitegrazer, you have only been debating with Optimus here and no one else. Foolish Empath.

Optimus, if I was in your situation, I would have said and done the same thing. As I know you will do the same thing if I... was the one tortured and captured. You would save my life even at the expense of the disks. Yes, they are valuable, but so are you. You are life, Optimus. And all life is sacred. The dark secrets of your past aren't going to go away if you allow yourself to be destroyed. Whatever you have done, you still have time to fix. You can't undo the past, but you can learn and grow from your mistakes. Which you are doing. I know... I can feel it. I may not know the what or the extent, but I do know you are trying. Aurora is proud of you. I am proud. So are the others. We will never lose faith in you. Never.

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! the voice laughed at her.

I CAN NOT FIX IT! Optimus ruptured inside, slipping again from his previous demeanor. I can not replace the lives that were lost! And I have to live with that every day... He slowly calmed himself. It wasn't her fault. He shouldn't be angry with her, only with himself. I'm sorry... he apologized quietly. I'm sorry. You're right. I have been learning and changing. I'm trying to find redemption and forgiveness. He cared so much for her, Aurora, and his entire crew. He would do anything for them, to ensure their freedom and safety. His beast mode had always enhanced that protective instinct in his personality. It was quite literally in his DNA, even as a TransMetal.

SHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! the virus interrupted his sappy side. The good part is coming up! The end to all of this! The end of you and me! it said joyfully with amusement and great anticipation.

Blinking, Optimus stepped out of his hazy mental instability and came around to his real surroundings again, taking notice of a new face joining the crowd in front of him. Squinting with his singular orange optic sensor, it took a couple moments of focusing near and far before it finally settled on a recognizable distance. "Ironclaw...?" The badger's name barely escaped his busted and swollen mouth but, nonetheless, there was a great deal of relief in his voice as Primal laid there on his back, restrained by his bonds. Did Ironclaw know about the virus? He wanted to put his hands up to stop him from touching him but he had no hands and his movements were still very limited because of the energy bonds. Did he have the cure with him? He didn't know but he certainly hoped so. Of course, with Ironclaw's thick armor, he wouldn't be surprised if the virus could even penetrate it and infect him. But why take the risk. He was almost free again... almost free of these "chains" and home with his faithful Maximals.

Don't let go of me... Primal begged Whitegrazer weakly as he struggled to hang on to consciousness.

Night Terror watched as Landslide came, picked Nexus up and carried him over Maximal lines. He watched as Megatron clutched his prize, the first golden disk, exuberantly.Night Terror had to admit these golden disks did peak his curiosity. What could be on them that would make Megatron, famous Predacon leader, turn into a common thief? Even the Tripredacus Counsel has mentioned them on occasion. But, I suppose, that will have to wait.

He looked at the ailing admiral Nexus slouching on a rock next to Landslide. He could only hope that his earlier suspicions were false, and that the Maximals were far from discovering his comrade's true identity. Should his cover be blown Zodiac would have to fight his way out, something he was more than capable of, but if it happened now it could ruin all of the plans.

Ever the strategist Night Terror was studying his enemy. How Rattrap kept the golden disk in Dinobot's field of fire. How Landslide stood protectively over Nexus. Wintersong watching the Predacons for trechery. Whitegrazer's clear concern for Optimus. And Ironclaws...

"Well this just took an interesting turn."

Night Terror watched as the large Maximal broke formation, and strode towards him. The clever bat simply gave a crooked smile, and rested his hand upon the hilt of his sword. Night Terror did not draw his weapon; he knew better. He was more trained, more disciplined than that. He took a couple of steps forward so as to place himself between Ironclaw and Optimus.

"May I help you?" He said staring Ironclaw down.

" If you would please return to your place. The transaction will be completed shortly, and then you may retrieve your leader." He said viciously.

Night Terror was ready anything but if this deal was to be ruined then the fault would not lie with the Predacons, but with the Maximals.

"Take him, with my blessing"

The smugness in Megatron's voice almost brought on a slight smile on the shapeshifter's face. Almost. There was still so much the Predacon tyrant, once little more than an ambitious thief intending to collect on the work started by his great namesake, had not yet realized. Oh, the self-proclaimed commander of the local few Predacons was highly intelligent and not one to cross, surely, but his actions had demanded the attention of the council. And such attention could easily prove dangerous. Megatron was not the first soldier that had gone rogue in pursuit of his own agenda, even if he was one of few to have lived long enough to actually see some of his plans come to fruition. The combination of intellect, ambition and skill skill was rare indeed. It made Megatron a wildcard, someone more unpredictable than most Zodiac had to deal with. Certainly more so than any Maximal.. perhaps especially Optimus.

Nexus lifted his head ever so slightly, his single cracked but still functioning optic focusing on Optimus. The severely injured Maximal certainly looked to have seen better days, but his condition appeared to have improved ever so slightly from just a few moments ago when he had been randomly shouting out. Inner demons had a tendency to show themselves more frequently when someone had been put low, after all, perhaps helped along a bit by outside forces.

Normally the shapeshifter was a master at keeping his own feelings in check to the point where they were virtually non-existent. But he could not help feeling a bit vindicated as he watched the Maximal leader suffer, knowing full well he was responsible for implementing the catalyst that was now releasing those inner demons. Now if only Night Terror could live up to his name and release the same virus upon the Predacons should they prove to be too unruly to control through other means. Once the virus had gone through the different stages and taken full effect, those mindless minions would be far easier to bend to his will. Thus it pleased him to see the Maximal commander having to face his most difficult foe yet.. his own conscience.

Ah yes, his foe had much to answer for, many dark secrets stored away so deep he normally avoided letting them surface. Which is exactly why he made such a perfect candidate for the virus, his guilt amplified, twisted into.. something else. Thus creating the worst possible scenarios for the infected individual, as well as feeding off their heightened emotional state to grow stronger later. The scientists had used a more primitive version of the virus on their test subjects to prepare them for battles to come, wanting them to be ready for any possible scenario once their training and enhancements were completed. To their surprise they soon found that the nanotechnology had adapted to the virus, overpowering its effects. Which left Zodiac in the perfect position to turn it into a weapon against his foes. One he fully intended to use.

A large shape moving towards him dragged his broken optic away from Optimus, his face still showing nothing but the stoic calm that Nexus Prime was so well known for, say for perhaps a hint of sadness. He recognized the large Maximal as Landslide, someone he sadly didn't have much information on given his short stay on this planet. There simply hadn't been much information stored in the computer's files about it, aside from the obvious facts which included the heavy armor and a skill for mechanics. Not at Rhinox' level, by far, but still something to be aware of.

Nexus Prime lifted his head a bit, giving a slight nod in acknowledgement to the giant who'd come to assist him. He allowed the beetle to lift him up and carry him off in the direction of some rocks that could provide them cover should a battle break out.

How bad are yer injuries? I have equipment and energon on hand if you feel you need it.

The aging admiral's single functioning optic flickered off for a moment before lighting back on again, his voice sounding weak yet resilient enough to still demand respect.

"I've.. seen.. worse..."

He paused, as if catching his breath, a pained cough escaping his battered face, before continuing.

"..punishment.. and.. lived.. Tend to.. Optimus.. He needs.. help.. "

His concern sounded authentic, almost pleading in fact.

"I suppose we can't really know some of these answers until we can speak with Nexus.

The barest hint of a smile could be traced on the female's face. Gratefulness that someone was actually willing to listen? Perhaps.. But she'd never admit it.

...And Zodiac."

Her expression soured considerably upon hearing that name and she let out an annoyed snuff. Zodiac had been her friend, a trusted companion during the countless painful experiments they went through, someone.. she'd harbored feelings for at one point. Only to have those emotions slam into her like a brick wall when he had betrayed that trust, betrayed her to them. She had tried to bring him along when she made her escape, only to find he'd been playing her and lead them right to her. Their captors. Tormentors. Keepers. And he had sided with them. Against her.

A mixture of sorrow and anger flashed across her features for that brief moment before she managed to control herself enough to return to the usual uncaring look. Still she was fuming on the inside just thinking about it.

"The only thing he will give you is more lies..," she responded bitterly, her voice quiet. She hated the pitiful way his mere presence had reduced her to this, without even being in the room with them.

She watched as he sat down but didn't budge from her spot to do the same despite him gesturing for her to do so.

"How did you end up here, Nemesis?"

"I made a wrong turn by Saturn," came the instantaneous reply before she even had a chance to properly consider the question. She then fell quiet.

It was a simple question with a not so simple answer. In fact a lot of it Nemesis couldn't even recall, only bits and pieces here and there. Being on the run yet again, pursued by those very same individuals she'd spent so much of her life trying to avoid. Them finding her. An ongoing battle in space. Fragments of armor drifting by her. Cold. Pain.

Oh the pain...

Her gaze hit the floor as she responded solemnly, her voice barely more than a whisper now.

"I was adrift in space, dying. But at least I was going with the satisfaction that the enemy ship was in pieces."


No longer hunted.. It would have been a good death, one she had prepared herself for.

"Then woke up here.. On the Predacon ship. No idea how I got here."

OOP wrote:
At first, Rattrap sneered at Megatron's words, disagreeing with his dismissive attitude toward Nexus and especially Optimus surviving the trek back to the Axalon. Then a smile of pride appeared on his face as he answered the tyrant's last question with, "Nobody's got the skills ta sneak up on me." His grin faded as he realized they were wasting precious time.

"So you say rodent, so you say" Megatron thought to himself inwardly, thinking of the troops he had hidden beneath the earth waiting to pounce, or the wolf in sheep's clothing they were tenderly seeing to, Zodiac.

One way or the other, he would recover what was his, and the maximals would not see it coming until it was far too late.

OOP wrote:
"Like I said before, Optimus first," the smallest Maximal present said firmly as he slowly flashed the disk in his hand by twisting his wrist slightly back and forth, the sun's reflection temporarily blinding any of them standing near him if they looked at it.

"Perhaps, but I showed a great deal of faith in you to hand over my disk when I gave you Nexus first, would it not be appropriate, dare I say, fair, for you to do the same now? I have nothing to gain from pulling something here, not with the disks at stake, though you certainly cannot afford to waste time debating with me with Primal so badly injured, and still in my grasp" Megatron reasoned, waging that even if the rat did not trust him or see the logic behind his reasoning, he wouldn't want to drag this situation out longer than necessary and would surrender the disk long before Primal's spark expired from his injuries.

OOP wrote: Blinking, Optimus stepped out of his hazy mental instability and came around to his real surroundings again, taking notice of a new face joining the crowd in front of him. Squinting with his singular orange optic sensor, it took a couple moments of focusing near and far before it finally settled on a recognizable distance. "Ironclaw...?" The badger's name barely escaped his busted and swollen mouth but, nonetheless, there was a great deal of relief in his voice as Primal laid there on his back, restrained by his bonds. Did Ironclaw know about the virus? He wanted to put his hands up to stop him from touching him but he had no hands and his movements were still very limited because of the energy bonds. Did he have the cure with him? He didn't know but he certainly hoped so. Of course, with Ironclaw's thick armor, he wouldn't be surprised if the virus could even penetrate it and infect him. But why take the risk. He was almost free again... almost free of these "chains" and home with his faithful Maximals.

With Megatron's ruby optics turned in the direction of the badger, the ill tempered one who frequently was at odds with his cohorts, nice to know he wasn't the only one who had to deal with troublemakers. Megatron was unconcerned by his all too soon approach, partly because he could crush the mammal no problem, alone or with the impressive amount of firepower he had by his side, and partly because Night Terror had already moved to intercept him. He wasn't interested in the badger's bravado, but he was interested in whatever it was he was trying to hide his closed hand from his ever watchful eyes.

AdmiralGrim wrote:
Night Terror watched as the large Maximal broke formation, and strode towards him. The clever bat simply gave a crooked smile, and rested his hand upon the hilt of his sword. Night Terror did not draw his weapon; he knew better. He was more trained, more disciplined than that. He took a couple of steps forward so as to place himself between Ironclaw and Optimus.

"May I help you?" He said staring Ironclaw down.

" If you would please return to your place. The transaction will be completed shortly, and then you may retrieve your leader." He said viciously.

Night Terror was ready anything but if this deal was to be ruined then the fault would not lie with the Predacons, but with the Maximals.

"Yeah, what the newbie said, back off badger!" Terrorsaur threatened, claws dancing ominously above Primal's head for emphasis, ready to sink in and pull out the insides of his skull at the first sign of trouble.

"Patience everyone, no need for violence...Yet...Now, where was I? Ah yes, diplomacy. Alternatively, Rattrap, if you honestly cannot bring yourself to see reason, you could simply tell me what the oh so subtle badger is trying to hide in his hand from me, OR, you could order him to turn around, toddle back to your side, pick up my disk, toddle back, and I shall have Primal returned to you at the exact same time as he returns my disk to me, that way no one will have any opportunity to betray the other and we each get when we want. Your call rodent" Megatron offered, giving the vermin more options to choose from, all of which would benefit himself in some way shape or form, and would force the rat to give in to his desire to have the last disk sooner rather than later.

Terrorsaur grinned as he alternated between watching the situation unfold between Megatron's standoff with the maximals and Optimus Primal's suffering, the poor dumb ape looking worse and worse by the nanoklik, and the pterodactyl enjoyed every moment of his pain and discomfort.

"You'll be going home soon now Primal, assuming your friend over yonder doesn't do anything foolish, and honestly, I kinda hope he does, monkey brains is delicious or so I'm told, heheheheheh" Terrorsaur bragged, amused by how Primal seemed to call out to Ironclaw of all bots for help, sensing the ape was suffering more than just physical agony and somehow that just made the situation all the better for him, knowing he had his own doubts and inner demons ripping away at him inside.

Night Terror wrote:"May I help you?" " If you would please return to your place. The transaction will be completed shortly, and then you may retrieve your leader."

Terrorsaur wrote:""Yeah, what the newbie said, back off badger!"

Umbra merely stood and observed Ironclaw as he came near Optimus. He knew how aggressive the badger could be, and remained silent as to not instigate any aggression from him during such a delicate time.

______________________

Nexus Prime wrote:"I've.. seen.. worse...""..punishment.. and.. lived.. Tend to.. Optimus.. He needs.. help.. "

Landslide shook his head as he leaned up Understood. He then started to walk away towards the others, overhearing them as he moved.

Rattrap wrote:"Like I said before, Optimus first,"

Megatron wrote:"Perhaps, but I showed a great deal of faith in you to hand over my disk when I gave you Nexus first, would it not be appropriate, dare I say, fair, for you to do the same now? I have nothing to gain from pulling something here, not with the disks at stake, though you certainly cannot afford to waste time debating with me with Primal so badly injured, and still in my grasp"

Megatron wrote:"Patience everyone, no need for violence...Yet...Now, where was I? Ah yes, diplomacy. Alternatively, Rattrap, if you honestly cannot bring yourself to see reason, you could simply tell me what the oh so subtle badger is trying to hide in his hand from me, OR, you could order him to turn around, toddle back to your side, pick up my disk, toddle back, and I shall have Primal returned to you at the exact same time as he returns my disk to me, that way no one will have any opportunity to betray the other and we each get when we want. Your call rodent"

Making his way down next to Rattrap, Landslide responded It's a painkiller I gave the lad to administer.. I happen to be a doctor. he was lying, but the Predacons knew nothing about him, and with some of the equipment he carried it wasn't unusual for him to be seen as being a medic.

Landslide then looked towards Rattrap If you want, I can do it in the lad's place.

________________________________

Blackarachnia wrote: "Oh, I'm not planning on ruining anything." "Quickstrike, how about you and I have some fun? I know you don't like being cooked up in this stuffy base for so long. I know how monitor duty can be such a bore. You might even get a chance to slag some Maximals. Also..." "I know a strong, handsome bot like you would not let any of those Maxis lay a finger on me."

"Come on! Let go."

Quickstrike gave a dumb laugh as he responded Hehe.. You think so? Well alright.. he responded, completely forgetting why he'd even been sent after her.

(Yeah, I imagine doing any seducing would be difficult. Though in Quickstrike's case, it really doesn't matter how it's done since he's easy for women to manipulate.)

NaitoKage wrote:Hehe.. You think so? Well alright..

She knew that would get Quickstrike's attention. Blackarachnia hurried forward along with her companion. Though, she planned not to show herself nor allow Quickstrike to been seen either. After all, if anyone saw them, it would not be beneficial. Well, she knew she was safe. At least, for the moment.

She crawled up one of the tunnels. This was it, but first, she needed to scoop out. She gently scooted the rock and poked her eyes out. Her eyes blinked over and over. They were only way a few feet away, but she could see that Megatron was ready to hand over Optimus as the Maximals were ready to hand over a disk. She couldn't see which one, but the fact that Nexus was already at the other side. Megatron had one of the disk back. It could be the Golden Disk for all she knew. The only way she could save herself is if she had a distraction. And she knew Inferno and Dirge were hiding some place, ready to pounce on the Maximals.

She had to wait. She scooted the rock back and looked at Quickstrike, "We will attack when Megatron does. But keep we need to keep us concealed at all times. After all, we aren't supposed to be here." She winked at him.

****************************************************************************************************************************

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:But I don't want to make them pay, he argued with her, confused by her words. He was forgetting what the voice had told him before and all that he had been agreeing with it earlier, to hurt the Predacons or worse. What was she talking about? I know I'm better than them. I can rise above their cruelty. You can help me. It was as if suddenly the Optimus she knew was right back on his feet, mentally speaking.

Did he not remember what he had said to the voice? What the voice had said? Yes, yes, I can help. She was seeing Optimus go back to himself again.

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:FROM RATTRAP: Contact the base. Send reinforcements; Cheetor and Banshee. END TEXT.

She saw the message. If the Predacons were planning on something, it will probably happen soon. It was a wise move since... there was no clear sign of Inferno anywhere. They were up to something. She texted a message towards Rhinox: Send Cheetor and Banshee. END TEXT. Ironclaw was making a scene, which she didn't expect.

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:Voice of darkness? the virus started the laugh. I am merely Optimus Primal's consciousness, the pitch-dark side that he suppresses day in and day out that he refuses to unleash in order to push himself further in this relentless and costly war but battles in his nightmares. I am the side no one else knows exists, that no one else sees, and no one knows his true potential. You see, Whitegrazer, you have only been debating with Optimus here and no one else. Foolish Empath.

Whitegrazer just shook her head, solemn, "I know who and what you are. I may be a fool. I may be gullible. But I'm not ignorant. I know the balance between the souls of others. Everyone has a light and dark side. And I know I, myself, am not different. You... You are trying to be dominant. You want your voice, your voice to be listened to. You are only exaggerated due to the horror and torment Optimus has experienced. Your voice... louder because of the virus. When the virus is erased from Optimus' system, your voice will twinkle down. Your voice ignored and defeated with reason and honor."

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:I CAN NOT FIX IT!

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:I can not replace the lives that were lost! And I have to live with that every day... He slowly calmed himself. It wasn't her fault. He shouldn't be angry with her, only with himself. I'm sorry... he apologized quietly. I'm sorry. You're right. I have been learning and changing. I'm trying to find redemption and forgiveness.

She just held on to Optimus with a smile. No need to apologize, Optimus. Remember, you can't change the past. But we can make the future brighter. In time, Optimus, I hope... you will learn to forgive yourself.

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:SHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! the virus interrupted his sappy side. The good part is coming up! The end to all of this! The end of you and me!

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:Don't let go of me...

No. No. I won't let go, Optimus. I promise.

DarkSpark wrote:"Patience everyone, no need for violence...Yet...Now, where was I? Ah yes, diplomacy. Alternatively, Rattrap, if you honestly cannot bring yourself to see reason, you could simply tell me what the oh so subtle badger is trying to hide in his hand from me, OR, you could order him to turn around, toddle back to your side, pick up my disk, toddle back, and I shall have Primal returned to you at the exact same time as he returns my disk to me, that way no one will have any opportunity to betray the other and we each get when we want. Your call rodent"

Whitegrazer stood up from her lowered position. She didn't take a step, keeping herself in her position as she looked at Ironclaw, trying to reassure the badger, "Ironclaw, Ironclaw... It will be all right." She thought for a moment if the Predacons do try something, she knew he would be able to combat, "Ironclaw, would you take my place?"

She stepped forward, addressing Rattrap and Megatron, "Would you permit me to be the one to hand the disk over to you, Megatron? Rattrap?" She wanted to know what Rattrap said first. She only thought she was best as she was... not as intimidating. Her presence was one that the Predacons could be sure she will pull nothing or do anything to jeopardize the life of those she cared for. She was also more harmless and less armed than the others. She looked at Optimus and smiled. I won't let go.

"May I help you?" "If you would please return to your place. The transaction will be completed shortly, and then you may retrieve your leader."

Rattrap's optics slightly shifted to the newer Predacon when he spoke to Ironclaw. Typical Predacon mindset; he didn't even know Optimus and already he addressed him as if he were the scum of Cybertron. Well, look who's talking. Slagging Preds. The tension on the front lines was extremely high now, and the rodent itched to reach for his weapon. However, he remained standing there calmly with the golden disk in his hand, flashing it at Megatron.

"Perhaps, but I showed a great deal of faith in you to hand over my disk when I gave you Nexus first, would it not be appropriate, dare I say, fair, for you to do the same now? I have nothing to gain from pulling something here, not with the disks at stake, though you certainly cannot afford to waste time debating with me with Primal so badly injured, and still in my grasp"

His grip tightened on the artifact, uncertain of what to do. Instinct told him to negotiate and to stand up for himself rather than caving to the Predacon leader's words, which were likely to be broken. Actually, knowing Megatron, they already were broken, Rattrap just didn't know how yet. It was simply how Megatron always operated.

"Yeah, what the newbie said, back off badger!"

Rattrap's attention shifted from Megatron to Terrorsaur who was creepily caressing the air above Primal's beaten head with his dingy claw fingers, to Ironclaw and the new guy before it returned to the TransMetal t-rex. Things were escalating...

"Patience everyone, no need for violence...Yet...Now, where was I? Ah yes, diplomacy. Alternatively, Rattrap, if you honestly cannot bring yourself to see reason, you could simply tell me what the oh so subtle badger is trying to hide in his hand from me, OR, you could order him to turn around, toddle back to your side, pick up my disk, toddle back, and I shall have Primal returned to you at the exact same time as he returns my disk to me, that way no one will have any opportunity to betray the other and we each get when we want. Your call rodent"

It's a painkiller I gave the lad to administer.. I happen to be a doctor.

The Spy was about to lie and say the same thing - that it was merely a sedative - but Landslide beat him to it. There was no reason Megatron should suspect otherwise, it could've been something to help ease Primal's pain. And, in a way, it was. He didn't bother looking at the beetle when he spoke up, he kept his focus on Megatron.

If you want, I can do it in the lad's place.

Rattrap raised his hand as a gesture to stop Landslide where he was. While he appreciated the offer, he felt things were complicated enough as they were since Ironclaw crossed the threshold. Syringes like sedatives didn't need to be administered by doctors, even though the beetle wasn't one anyway but he understood what he was trying to do. He needed Landslide to be ready to protect Optimus and leave as quickly as possible while Ironclaw, who was bigger and stronger than Rattrap and more armored than Whitegrazer in case the Preds were to attack, retrieved their fearless leader. This was still under control.

"Ironclaw, Ironclaw... It will be all right." "Ironclaw, would you take my place?" "Would you permit me to be the one to hand the disk over to you, Megatron? Rattrap?"

"You belong back there!" Rattrap snapped at Whitegrazer as he pointed with his free hand to Wintersong, Nexus and Dinobot behind the boulders, a little harsher than he had intended but everyone crowding him now and breaking formation was really beginning to irk him and make him uneasy. Just stick to de plan, guys! he thought angrily and then looked up at Megaton again.

"Keepin' your word once, for the de first time ever, might convince Optimus dat you can do it again but I ain't that easily manipulated. YOU critically damaged him so YOU hand 'im over first. The sooner he's in our care, the sooner we can start on his repairs. You already see your disk here without a single scratch or chip. Dis is an inanimate object which doesn't compare ta someone's life bein' in danger. You give Optimus ta Ironclaw so he can give 'im the sedative, I'll give you the disk. It's right here, safe and sound. Nothin's gonna happen to it as long as you cooperate." He flashed the disk at him again as he held it there, slowly rotating it back and forth to try and entice Megatron a little more to want it.

Yes, yes, I can help.

Primal's consciousness fluttered as his systems struggled to stay on-line, constantly battling the voice in his head. He barely felt Whitegrazer's response.

I know who and what you are. I may be a fool. I may be gullible. But I'm not ignorant. I know the balance between the souls of others. Everyone has a light and dark side. And I know I, myself, am not different. You... You are trying to be dominant. You want your voice, your voice to be listened to. You are only exaggerated due to the horror and torment Optimus has experienced. Your voice... louder because of the virus. When the virus is erased from Optimus' system, your voice will twinkle down. Your voice ignored and defeated with reason and honor.

We shall see about that, the voice hissed darkly, threateningly. It was like a hawk that had just pounced on a mouse, standing atop of it to hold it in place on the ground beneath its talons, and Optimus was the mouse.

No need to apologize, Optimus. Remember, you can't change the past. But we can make the future brighter. In time, Optimus, I hope... you will learn to forgive yourself.

I'm trying... I'm trying... Primal muttered but one couldn't tell if he was talking to Whitegrazer or if he was referring to his struggle fighting against the inner voice.

No. No. I won't let go, Optimus. I promise. I won't let go.

He weakly reached for her in their bond with his handless, injured arm before it dropped from his exhausted state and he again returned to his surroundings when he heard cruel words being spoken to him as he laid there on his back.

"You'll be going home soon now Primal, assuming your friend over yonder doesn't do anything foolish, and honestly, I kinda hope he does, monkey brains is delicious or so I'm told, heheheheheh"

"Foul-mouthed vulture..." the Maximal Commander muttered as he glared at Terrorsaur after he watched his pretentious claw-like fingers dance above his face, taunting him. The only comfort he had right now, besides the mare, was knowing that Nexus was safe. But Rattrap sounded aggravated. He couldn't blame him since he knew what it felt like to have everyone surround you wanting to help only to be getting in the way and causing more distractions. Everyone needed to cooperate now and stay calm or else all hell was going to break loose. Optimus didn't know what Ironclaw was up to, but judging by Landslide's explanation and little white lie, maybe the badger had the cure after all and they were just hiding that fact from the Predacons. They'd be wise to listen unless they wanted to suffer the same infection that he was. Terrorsaur had better be careful since the ape was contagious.

On second thought, let's hope he's careless, the voice laughed with Optimus inside.

-----

"The only thing he will give you is more lies..,"

Rhinox detected the resentment in Nemesis's voice and almost suggested out loud that she, too, could be lying to him but in case she wasn't, he didn't want to break the giant feat he had seemed to maintain so far with her opening up to him - ever so slightly - and having a cordial conversation. He wanted to believe her and felt that she was being genuine.

"I made a wrong turn by Saturn,"

Suit yourself, he thought when she didn't take him up on his offer to sit. But perhaps he was asking her for too much. He was simply being polite. He listened to her as she continued.

"I was adrift in space, dying. But at least I was going with the satisfaction that the enemy ship was in pieces." "Then woke up here.. On the Predacon ship. No idea how I got here."

The engineer had to lean in a little closer from his chair to hear Nemesis when her voice dropped along with her eye contact to the floor. There was definitely more to her than she always let on out there in the field and battle. Beneath her tough outer shell that was covered with that nano technology that interested Rhinox's curiosity, she seemed damaged and hurt. Assuming she didn't mean to show it through her solemnity, Rhinox did her the courtesy to not embarrass her about it by not mentioning what he was recognizing the longer she spoke. After all, he wanted her to keep talking. It may have been simply therapeutic to her since she likely didn't have anyone she could talk to among the Predacons without being ridiculed and bullied. Rhinox couldn't imagine not having a friend to trust and to share your fears, feelings and joys without being judged.

Giving a thoughtful sigh, he concluded, "More mysteries." He almost sounded disappointed, whether she was being honest or not it wasn't personal, he just wasn't fond of cliff hangers anymore. They had enough mysteries to solve on this planet and beyond, and it frustrated him at times, as an intelligent scientist, when he couldn't find the answers. Maybe one day she would learn more or remember more, but that was for her own satisfaction, not his. Rhinox found it remarkable that she drifted that far in space, some how ended up on this planet this far back in time, only to be reactivated and reformatted to become a Predacon despite her efforts. To him, he thought she should be grateful she wasn't worse off, even if she was the "enemy". "Tell me about that enemy ship," the green scientist asked of her to keep the ball rolling.

She texted a message towards Rhinox: Send Cheetor and Banshee. END TEXT.

For a moment, his optics seemed distant from Nemesis when Whitegrazer's text came through, and he grew distracted. Acknowledging the text, he opened his comm. link to the cheetah and the bat. "Cheetor and Banshee, Rattrap's team is seeking assistance. I would recommend arriving there just out of range until you know what's going on; don't fall into a trap." Checking the Axalon's scanners, there were no threats or hostiles in the immediate area, so he felt confident enough to be left there alone with Nemesis and Aurora. It was what it was. Whatever may happen may or may not. Nemesis could easily take him down and then kill Aurora. The mental image made him quiver inside, especially after everything they had gone through to save the little ermine after she had been shot, but these were the risks they had to take. He could only hope Nemesis would remain as cooperative as she was and not take advantage of the situation. For that matter, he hoped the transaction was going just as smoothly, or as smooth as it could be. Why Rattrap wanted back-up was a little unsettling but perhaps it was simply because Megatron had gone back on his word and they were outnumbered now. Or maybe his rodent friend was just taking precautions. Please, come back to us, Optimus, he thought quietly.

(( OOC: Rock and roll, Mystrea. ))

Even though he had already passed some Predacons there were quite a few familiar faces, including Terrorsaur who was hell bent on agitating the situation, trying to bait the badger. So far he kept his cool, noticing that Umbra character was close by too. Once the first exchange was complete Ironclaw grew restless, Megatron wasn't playing ball, he had to act now. Ironclaw aggressively shoved the smaller Predacon to one side, he then went for Terrorsaur and grabbed him by his head to throw him into the air. Rushing towards Primal's side he took a few shots at Umbra to temporarily keep him off his back then he proceeded to inject the ape with the cure, slamming the syringe directly into his chest. "Don't thank me yet" the badger said as he stood to face Umbra, who he expected to face next.

Reassured that his comrades in arms were watching, the Predacon aristocract felt very confident. He was a little surprised that the Maximal did strike out; but only a little. Picking himself up, Night Terror quickly drew his sword. Spinning the blade in his hand, he made a back-slash across the back of the larger maximal's knees; putting his entire weight behind the attack. He then spun around to the front of the maximal, who was now much closer to his own height and drove the blade deep into Ironclaw's chest. He smiled visciously, showing his fangs. The maximal gave him what he wanted, he attacked first.

Ironclaw felt a blade slash the back of his legs, he let out a grunt as his weight went forwards. Instinctively his hand went down to the ground to support himself. The badger's head darted up to see his agile opponent was already going for the next blow. Before he could react the sword drove deep into his chest armour to the left side of his body. The tip of the blade piercing vital circuits. However for this brief moment the sword was stuck there keeping the bat close to him. Ironclaw reached out with haste and grabbed the Predacon's neck. Despite energy draining from him, he still lifted him clean off the ground. With teeth bared, he growled and choked his enemy. After a second he swung him back down to the ground with a crash, metal crumpling against stone. As he looked down at his pinned foe he raised his fist ready to blend face with floor.

As the energon drained out of the Maximal, Night Terror laughed. He could already feel the energon starting to flow into his system. This momentary victory was short lived, however. Night Terror gagged and coughed as Ironclaw wrapped his fist around the bat's neck. Being lifted off the ground, Night Terror slashed at the larger bot's arm, but with little effect. Ironclaw slammed him down, hard, to the ground. He could only look up at his foe, as Ironclaw raised his fist, ready deliver another devastating blow. Night Terror just smirked.

"DIIRRGGE!!"

Suddenly Dirge burst out of the earth as commanded. His massive jaws created a gaping hole in the ground and threw Ironclaw off his master.

Ironclaw recovered quickly from the eruption that sent him a good distance from the bat. From a prone position he pushed himself up slightly and looked to see a disgusting insect like creature crawl out of the earth.

Dirge's large body eventually emerged from his entrance beneath the ground and began to transform, facing the direction of his next victim.

The badger got to his feet, sighting his target. He could see its armour plating, like hundred of bugs moving with purpose, rippling over its giant inner structure until it was staring at him with that singular red eye. What manner of creation was this? It mattered not, he shook the thought quickly and marched out towards the behemoth. As soon as Ironclaw was within striking distance he swung his left arm out and lunged his fist forwards.


Dirge saw the Maximal advance towards him. He took a few strides forwards and put his hand out to receive the on coming attack. The badger's fist smacked Dirge's Palm with a metallic thwack. His fingers closed round and he twisted his hand clockwise but dangerously anticlockwise for his prey.


As Ironclaw's arm twisted his whole body jolted and his head jerked upwards as he cried out to the sky above. The badger pulled his grimace round to face the single eye that loomed over. It was almost like it was looking right through him. His free hand balled into a fist, he did what he could to cope with the pain. The Predacon's armour caught his attention again, it changed, it shifted right in front of his eyes. It started from their point of contact, then tracked up the arm to the rest of the body. The plates moved and rotated to replicate the same armour type and colour that Ironclaw had. His grimace fell away to leave fear as he stared, seeing his armour being used against him. The monster made a robotic moaning noise as it leaned in closer.

Lifting himself up, Night Terror watched with great satisfaction as Dirge crushed Ironclaw's fist. He quickly ran over to the two and shoved his sword into the Maximal's back, his sword draining the energon from Ironclaw's circuits and transferring it to his own. He then kicked over the Maximal's form and looked up to his loyal minion.

"Well done. Now destroy the rest! Kill all the Maximals! For the glory of the Predacons!" Night terror yelled.

Unable to keep himself from laughing, Night Terror spun around Dirge and began firing his eye-beam towards Rattrap and Dinobot, continuing the attack against the enemy.

Dirge let go of the Maximal as his master dealt with him. He seemed sufficiently damaged as not to cause them anymore problems. Over time his armour reset to default.The singular eye scanned the battlefield and locked the targets Night Terror was already firing at. As commanded he began to transform, transform in a way that hadn't been seen before. His arm cannon took centre stage as the rest of the body moved to support and he became a turret like weapon placement. After a second of build up, the cannon fired, ejecting a large smoking shell that thudded on the ground. The blast aimed for Dinobot, Rattrap and anyone else caught in the blast.

Since he'd been left alone he took the moment to asses the damage he'd taken. He rotated his hand and flexed his fingers. That was okay, good. A few deep holes in his armour but nothing that would stop him now. Ironclaw looked over to Optimus, he still needed to get him out of here. He got to his feet without too much trouble and made his way over while those two Preds were busy.

(Left it like this in case anyone else wants to take a pop at Ironclaw)

OOC:

OOC: I assume Megs will recover the disks so he can get up to all the various disk inspired schemes he had during the show (plus some new ones), but will likely fail to kill Primal and his rotten maxies...Oops! SPOILERS!

True, but weren't the disks destroyed at some point...or at least one of them....I was just wondering if that's the plan here too since this would be a good opportunity for that scenario to play out if that's what we wanted to happen....it would just be a bit earlier than it happened in the show....but we're not going by the exact plot line from the show so I don't imagine it would matter either way....

Also, great post Admiral and Mystrea! I hoped to get one in last night, but my fiance got home before I finished it. I hadn't seen him in about two weeks. He's been working such long hours that I've been asleep before he even gets home... so I abandoned the post to spend some time with him and finished it this afternoon....here it is! Sorry it's all over the place!!

BIC:

Megatron laughed heartily at Arachnitron's suggestion. She frowned in response.

"While I appreciate your desire to be helpful Arachnitron, believe me when I say that the Golden Disks will be more than safe in my capable hands. Consider the subject closed."

"Yes, sir," she answered. She was disappointed that Megatron hadn't taken the bait and allowed her to "guard" one of the disks. She, of course, didn't quite have the courage Blackarachnia had. She wouldn't have been able to steal the disk or "lose" the disk or even destroy the disk. She could fairly quickly download its contents into her core computer while they awaited for the conclusion of the exchange thanks to the skills she was learning while working along side Tarantulas. But, now, she had nothing. She wasn't disappointed that she wouldn't be able to assist Megatron, she was disappointed that she wouldn't be able to complete the task assigned to her by Tarantulas. It seemed hopeless that she would be able to get either of the disks, let alone both of them. But she couldn't give up yet, she would have to think of something else.

Terrorsaur walked along side of her and whispered to her once they were out of ear shot of Megatron.

"Nice try newbie, you might as well try convincing Optimus Prime himself to hand you the Matrix, heheheheh."

Arachnitron looked sideways at Terrorsaur through narrowed optics sizing up the prehistoric bird. She tried to think what Tarantulas would have said to the featherless creature. She thought perhaps she could try to pry some useful information from the pterodactyl or at any rate, perhaps she could trick him into trying to steal the disk for her. Stealing it from Terrorsaur would have been easier than trying to take it from Megatron.

"Well," she finally answered. "I know you won't have any other suggestions. You couldn't even steal a cube of energon from the hands of Waspinator."

She joined the others and watched the exchange of the disks.

The exchange of the first disk went off without a hitch. Arachnitron watched with disappointment as Megatron hid the disk in his subspace. Then he turned to the Maximals expectantly.

"Now then, the second disk, if you please."

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

Dinobot watched in silence as the first of the golden disks exchanged hands. It was the one that had been hidden beneath the boulder fields of neutral territory. Dinobot held back a dejected sigh as he realized it was the one disk he hadn't been able to study yet. Now, he would never know what the second disk revealed. Was it the same as the first as was theorized or did it contain some other secrets of the universe? But as he promised the rodent, Dinobot didn't take his optics off the disk until Landslide returned to the Maximal sidelines with Nexus Prime in tow. Dinobot couldn't help but think Rattrap had been a fool to ask for Nexus first- if they were correct in their assumption that Nexus was the impostor, then they just invited a Predacon onto their side of the exchange.

Megatron turned to the Maximals.

"Now then, the second disk, if you please."

Dinobot snarled in response. "That was NOT the agreement!" he growled at his former comrade.

Rattrap agreed with his sentiments.

"Like I said before, Optimus first," the smallest Maximal present said firmly as he slowly flashed the disk in his hand by twisting his wrist slightly back and forth, the sun's reflection temporarily blinding any of them standing near him if they looked at it.

Dinobot charged up his optic lasers and let his gaze fall pointedly on the golden disk, but he didn't fire them- he was just making a point. He shut off the lasers and took his gaze off the disk momentarily and sent an angry glare at Megatron and the Predacons. He looked back at the disk again, ready for one of the Predacons to slip up.

But, it was the Maximals that slipped up first. Ironclaw moved from his post and walked boldly towards the Predacon line with the cure for the virus that was afflicting Optimus hidden in his hand. Dinobot looked away from the disk in horror.

"Ironclaw! No!" he warned sternly.

Ironclaw stood there across from Optimus, Umbra, Terrorsaur and one of the newer Predacons. Dinobot snarled again. Forgetting his place for a moment, Dinobot grabbed his sword and took a few steps towards Ironclaw to join him with the Predacons...

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

Arachnitron noticed Ironclaw walk towards the line of Predacons and stopped in front of the ones who were guarding Optimus, but he just stood there. A few words were exchanged, but he hadn't acted yet. She could feel the tension in the air as Maximals and Predacons alike were getting antsy and jumpy as they watched Ironclaw. He was predictable in that he was always one to act on his own- never followed orders....which made him unpredictable as well. No one knew what he would do.

Arachnitron's gaze darted to some movement on the Maximal front lines. Dinobot pulled out his tail sword and was ready to charge over to Ironclaw's aide expecting the Predacons to act on the offensive. Arachnitron pulled out her cybervenom weapon and aimed it at his chest.

"Not so fast! One more Maximal walks over here and I WILL shoot!" she warned. Dinobot halted in tracks and remained next to Rattrap- his gaze returned to the disk.

"Shoot, and I WILL destroy the disk!" he shouted back to her.

"Patience everyone, no need for violence...Yet...Now, where was I? Ah yes, diplomacy. Alternatively, Rattrap, if you honestly cannot bring yourself to see reason, you could simply tell me what the h so subtle badger is trying to hide in his hand from me, OR, you could order him to turn around, toddle back to your side, pick up my disk, toddle back, and I shall have Primal returned to you at the exact same time as he returns my disk to me, that way no one will have any opportunity to betray the other and we each get when we want. Your call rodent"

Arachnitron looked over at Megatron. "Yes sir," she responded and holstered her weapon. But her fingers lay over her smaller energon pistol just in case something more happened.

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

Dinobot remained along side Rattrap and watched Arachnitron holster her weapon obediently. He then continued to watch the golden disk waiting for the command to shoot. It seemed like everyone was just staring at Ironclaw and the Predacons waiting for something to happen.

Landslide volunteered to administer the drug to Optimus and Whitegrazer also volunteered to take Ironclaw's place hoping that it would get Ironclaw to return to the Maximals' line- everyone sensing that the incorrigible badger was just a few clicks away from acting out his aggression.

Rattrap told everyone to remain where they were also sensing the sensitive nature of the situation all of them hoping that Ironclaw wouldn't be the one to shoot first.

And....he was....

Everything happened so fast. Ironclaw threw Terrorsaur violently to the side, fired a few shots at Umbra, and jabbed the antidote into Optimus' chest! Shots flew from every direction as Night Terror acted in self-defense.

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

From below the ground, Dirge and Inferno awaited the order to ambush the Maximals, but Dirge responded to a different order.

"DIIRRGGE!!"

Suddenly Dirge burst out of the earth as commanded. His massive jaws created a gaping hole in the ground and threw Ironclaw off his master.

"NOO!!" Inferno shouted to Dirge. "YOU MUST WAIT FOR THE ROYALTY'S SIGNAL!"

But since his cover was already blown, Inferno also emerged from his hiding place noticing the chaos that was happening.

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

Arachnitron took cover when the shots began flying and added her energon pistol shots to the battle. Without Tarantulas around to direct her, the chaos was disorienting. She didn't know what to make of her first battle without Tarantulas by her side. Shots whizzed past her head as she tried to gather her thoughts. She decided not to act until she had time to form a plan....Tarantulas would still want that disk and this battle offered the perfect opportunity to try again.

She noticed Dirge and Inferno emerge from their position early. Dirge had already moved on to other targets by the time Inferno joined the fray, but the Maximal badger was using the battle as an opportunity to rescue their leader. Thinking quickly, Arachnitron ducked behind the boulder, her voice muffled by the weapons fire, she turned on her comm link to radio Inferno.

"Arachnitron to Inferno. The Royalty commands you to defend the Maximal prisoner!"

Inferno had been tricked before into believing that Arachnitron spoke for the Royalty. Given that her position on the battlefield was so close to Megatron, he would certainly believe her again!

And he did.... Inferno fired his rocket launcher weapon at the badger and rushed towards the Maximal prisoner!

Arachnitron emerged from her cover firing her own shots into the battle, but raced over to Megatron instead of Optimus. She dove behind cover near the Predacon commander and continued to fire at Ironclaw and the Maximals.

Megatron, Inferno and the others are protecting the Maximal prisoner! But surely the Maximals won't turn over the other disk now that negotiations have gone sour! They will use this opportunity to retrieve their commander and keep the disk for themselves. Allow me to retrieve the disk for you! I can get to it without them ever seeing me!" Arachnitron suggested. She could get over there using her stealth skills. With her help, the Predacons could end up going home with both disks AND the maximal commander still as their prisoner! She waited for an answer while she defended the Predacon commander from incoming fire to protect the one disk they did have.

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

Dinobot dropped his gaze from the disk and sent his optic laser beams at the Predacons attacking Ironclaw, but none of them met their target. He was knocked off his feet by someone else's optic beams. He snarled in Night Terror's direction and fired back at him. Then he grabbed Rattrap by the arm and began dragging him to some cover near by.

"Rattrap," he said to him over the sound of the Predacons' shots fired. "This is useless. Come with me and we'll get the last disk to safety! The Predacons want the disk! They'll follow us and the others can focus on getting Optimus back! But we must do something or the Predacons will over take us and they'll end up with both disks AND Optimus still as their prisoner!"

OOC: "Come with me if you want to live!!"

EDITED: Just edited the first paragraph of this last bit of Dinobot stuff to make it easier for Rattrap to pull away if that's what he wanted to do.

Nexus merely leaned up against the rock formation Landslide had set him up against before rushing back to assist Optimus, watching the heavily armored Maximal as he moved away. From the looks of it, tension among either side was running high. Not surprisingly the hotheaded Maximal badger who had shown the audacity to confront him earlier was now stirring up some trouble for Maximals and Predacons alike. The shapeshifter watched the scene unfold with growing interest, not in the least surprised when Ironclaw threw the first punch and started attacking his longtime friend and ally. Of course he didn't worry. Night Terror was capable of handling the situation and if things got too out of hand, well, there was always Dirge lurking underground..

So the pretender stayed where he was, merely watching. Inwardly he smiled. Yet outwardly he watched on in sorrow as the fight broke out, keeping up the appearance of the old Maximal leader.

"Enough!," he shouted, but his voice drowned in the sounds of the raging battle. Moments later the ground shook violently, signaling that his comrade's silent minion was about to join the fray. And sure enough. Bursting through the ground, sending dirt and rocks flying in the process, was the ever faithful Dirge, coming to his leader's aid. There had been times Zodiac had considered taking Dirge or another mindless but still powerful drone like him for himself, but he had decided against it after realizing that his job as an infiltrator would be on the line. Dirge wasn't exactly stealthy, so to speak, despite his rather limited vocabulary. Nor did he offer much in the way of intelligent conversation. So in the end Zodiac had decided he didn't require such an assistant, but he'd never stood in the way of Night Terror nurturing a relationship like that.

His single functioning optic shifted over to Optimus, who was still very much so within reach of the Predacons. Indeed, it had been a bit puzzling that the rodent had asked for Nexus first. Had the roles been reversed, Zodiac would have seen to the safety of his friend first and foremost. Well.. to the extent that he cared about anyone. Night Terror came closer than most, but he as well was disposable should the situation call for it. "Get.. Optimus.. out.. of.. there!," he shouted again, feigning genuine concern for the Maximal commander. He even went as far as to try to force himself to his feet to go over there, putting on quite the appearance of struggling to stand up. It wouldn't last, of course, so after a single step his knees seemed to give out and Nexus crashed to the ground. And there he stayed, one arm reaching out in Primal's direction.

Oh, he certainly wasn't about to drop the pretense now.. Not that he was so close to having them all where he wanted them. And he didn't wish death upon Optimus just yet.. not until he had a chance to crush his spark himself. The Maximal commander was going to suffer still, to pay for what he had done.. They all would in due time, for Zodiac had plans that ran well beyond killing an admiral and his pupil.

"More mysteries."

Nemesis shrugged, not bothering to lift her gaze off the floor. It was true she didn't know exactly how she'd ended up on Earth in the past but she hadn't really wondered about it either. She didn't even know how long she'd been adrift for, frozen in suspended animation before regaining consciousness aboard the Predacon vessel.

"Tell me about that enemy ship,"

His inquiry made her lift her head ever so slightly, straightening out a bit. Her head was filled with specs of the vessel in question as she always made a point of learning everything she could about her enemies, but somehow she doubted this is what the Maximal really wanted to hear. He was more interested in those aboard the ship and what their agenda was.

The memories caused the avian female to shift a bit uncomfortably and she remained silent for a long time. In the meanwhile the Maximal scientist responded to his cohorts, no doubt having gotten a transmission from them, before turning his attention back to her. Nemesis had almost started enjoying the silence when she could feel his gaze upon her once more, watching her expectantly, patiently waiting for her to say something. She kept him waiting a minute longer, merely staring into the room at nothing in particular.

Then.. she responded.

"They were mercenaries assigned with the task of bringing back a rogue soldier. "


She didn't bother to explain that she'd been the soldier, that much should be obvious to someone as intelligent as the rhinoceros. If not then she clearly gave him too much credit.

"The ship was of an experimental new fighter class, so they should have had the advantage. It had some of the most advanced weaponry and equipment to date, virtually undetectable until they opened fire on you."


A brief silence followed.

"But they must have been new recruits.. They made mistakes, errors in judgement. I managed to get in enough shots to ignite their fuel tanks. Their fate was sealed at that time, and as was mine I suppose."

Umbra observed as Ironclaw suddenly went onto the attack, throwing Terrorsaur like a ragdoll and then proceeded to open fire on himself. Anticipating the shots, Umbra activated his jumpjet as he dodge rolled the shots coming towards him. He then stood and reached for his blades, about to attack Ironclaw stopped as Night terror attacked Ironclaw instead.

Landslide watched as everything quickly broke down, hesitant for a moment as normally he'd prefer to listen to Rattrap's orders.

Night Terror wrote:"DIIRRGGE!!"

That.. is one big grub. he said as Waspinator started to fly towards Ironclaw, Landslide then flipped out his Electro laser fired off another thunderous blast from his electro laser.

Ahhhh!!! Waspinator screamed as electricity was seen spraying in arcs between his wings like a Jacobs ladder, falling out of the air to the ground, stunned by the electrical surge blowing a few fuses on his circuits.

Landslide then heard Ironclaw scream, looking over he saw him stabbed in the back by Night terror, who then promptly attacked Rattrap and Dinobot with his laser.

Night Terror wrote:"Well done. Now destroy the rest! Kill all the Maximals! For the glory of the Predacons!"

Hearing Night Terror's orders, Landslide withdrew his electro laser into his arm, his four thrusters powering up as he jumped into the air, flying out of the way as Dirge transformed and unleashed his attack.

Coming down from the air, he landed infront of Optimus and Ironclaw crossing his arms, taking the rocket from Inferno to the chest. His chest and arms smoked, but only showed some burn marks from the impact area as Landslide's own shoulder guns came down and started to spin up,he turned his body in a back and forth arc as he unleashed twin Gatling gun fire onto the Predacons in an attempt at suppressing fire. His wings opened with the container on his back opening as he spoke up Get in! I wont be able to hold them long! he then reached in pulling out his Chainsword holding it with his right hand to give more space in his back, as well as prepare for any heavier armored Predacons that attempted to get close.

Umbra raised his tentacles to block as some of the bullets came his way, darting behind some rocks for cover. Even with his skills at deflecting bullets with his swords, being hit with two streams of automatic weapon fire at once was impossible for him to deflect. He'd have to wait for a chance of opportunity.

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Blackarachnia wrote: "We will attack when Megatron does. But keep we need to keep us concealed at all times. After all, we aren't supposed to be here."

Whatever you say cutiepie Quickstrike smiled with his scorpion head and snake head at the same time.

___________________________

Rhinox wrote:"Cheetor and Banshee, Rattrap's team is seeking assistance. I would recommend arriving there just out of range until you know what's going on; don't fall into a trap."

Cheetor responded on his comlink On it Big green! he then looked over to Banshee Come on, lets go!

Heading for the lift, Cheetor went outside speaking up as he transformed Vehicle mode! he transformed to his beast mode popping out his cyber thrusters, then started to run as he took off into the air.

"Cheetor and Banshee, Rattrap's team is seeking assistance. I would recommend arriving there just out of range until you know what's going on; don't fall into a trap."

On it Big green! Come on, lets go!

Banshee nodded and took off to the skies behind Cheetor. If they called for back up, could it mean that the exchange did not go well as planned and started fighting? The bat flew next to her comrade and spoke, "Cheetor, I have a very bad feeling about the exchange. We should get there as soon as possible."

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It took awhile for Starshadow to fully recover from the tainted energon. The base was oddly quiet, too quiet. She looked at the walls behind her. Since the brig runs on electricity, there had to be a connection to sever it and what lies behind the walls could be the answer. Her arms' electro blades slowly took its shape and the catbot rammed the blades in the wall, slowly cutting a large square out of it and pulled it out, revealing the wires and cables arranged in a vertical way.
"Well hello freedom~" Starshadow slashed the cables and the force field of her brig was shut down. She felt invincible for once as she stepped out and walked along the hallways and flew up to the vents, opening its entrance and started crawling. None of their prison methods besides the cybervenom could hold her down.

((OOC: Those who are at the pred base, you can choose to let the lights flicker as a sign, power goes out or just continue as per normal.))

OOC: This is the best I could come up with to respond to the gigantic slagfest that was brewing, I think its in character for Megs given the situation and how badly he wants both disks, but if you guys disagree I can edit my post, but I think what I have now makes the most logical sense, especially since both sides done goofed & their leadership will want to resolve this without losing what they came to acquire.

Mystrea wrote: Even though he had already passed some Predacons there were quite a few familiar faces, including Terrorsaur who was hell bent on agitating the situation, trying to bait the badger. So far he kept his cool, noticing that Umbra character was close by too. Once the first exchange was complete Ironclaw grew restless, Megatron wasn't playing ball, he had to act now. Ironclaw aggressively shoved the smaller Predacon to one side, he then went for Terrorsaur and grabbed him by his head to throw him into the air. Rushing towards Primal's side he took a few shots at Umbra to temporarily keep him off his back then he proceeded to inject the ape with the cure, slamming the syringe directly into his chest. "Don't thank me yet" the badger said as he stood to face Umbra, who he expected to face next.

Reassured that his comrades in arms were watching, the Predacon aristocract felt very confident. He was a little surprised that the Maximal did strike out; but only a little. Picking himself up, Night Terror quickly drew his sword. Spinning the blade in his hand, he made a back-slash across the back of the larger maximal's knees; putting his entire weight behind the attack. He then spun around to the front of the maximal, who was now much closer to his own height and drove the blade deep into Ironclaw's chest. He smiled visciously, showing his fangs. The maximal gave him what he wanted, he attacked first.

"Are you slagging nuts?!" Terrorsaur squawked in surprise as he watched Ironclaw try to grab at him, lifting his platform higher into the air to avoid the maximal's lunge, leaving him to battle it out with Umbra and Night Terror, wondering whatever could have possessed him to try to rush him like that when he was standing right behind a severely damaged Primal with a hover platform between themselves and the crazy badger.

"Hope whatever he jabbed you with was worth it Primal, cuz if your pal keeps this up a little booster shot isn't going to help you much in the long run" Terrorsaur jeered at Optimus, wondering what Ironclaw had injected Optimus with, and why he seemed to care so little for the consequences of his actions.

Similar thoughts went through Megatron's mind as he watched the badger engage in behavior he never thought any of the maximals had the stomach for...Complete and total disregard for the lives and safety of others. He'd have admired the mammal for that if it hadn't been so rash, and if it had not started a chain reaction that appeared to be going completely out of control! Even now his own minions were following the mad mammal's suit, disregarding his strategy altogether!

Mystrea wrote:
Ironclaw felt a blade slash the back of his legs, he let out a grunt as his weight went forwards. Instinctively his hand went down to the ground to support himself. The badger's head darted up to see his agile opponent was already going for the next blow. Before he could react the sword drove deep into his chest armour to the left side of his body. The tip of the blade piercing vital circuits. However for this brief moment the sword was stuck there keeping the bat close to him. Ironclaw reached out with haste and grabbed the Predacon's neck. Despite energy draining from him, he still lifted him clean off the ground. With teeth bared, he growled and choked his enemy. After a second he swung him back down to the ground with a crash, metal crumpling against stone. As he looked down at his pinned foe he raised his fist ready to blend face with floor.

As the energon drained out of the Maximal, Night Terror laughed. He could already feel the energon starting to flow into his system. This momentary victory was short lived, however. Night Terror gagged and coughed as Ironclaw wrapped his fist around the bat's neck. Being lifted off the ground, Night Terror slashed at the larger bot's arm, but with little effect. Ironclaw slammed him down, hard, to the ground. He could only look up at his foe, as Ironclaw raised his fist, ready deliver another devastating blow. Night Terror just smirked.

"DIIRRGGE!!"

"WHAT?!" Megatron exclaimed in both rage and shock at Night Terror as he summoned Dirge, one of the hidden aces up his sleeve, up from his hiding place early, and long before he had managed to secure the second disk!

What were these fools thinking?!

Blackrose wrote:

"NOO!!" Inferno shouted to Dirge. "YOU MUST WAIT FOR THE ROYALTY'S SIGNAL!"

But since his cover was already blown, Inferno also emerged from his hiding place noticing the chaos that was happening.

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

Arachnitron took cover when the shots began flying and added her energon pistol shots to the battle. Without Tarantulas around to direct her, the chaos was disorienting. She didn't know what to make of her first battle without Tarantulas by her side. Shots whizzed past her head as she tried to gather her thoughts. She decided not to act until she had time to form a plan....Tarantulas would still want that disk and this battle offered the perfect opportunity to try again.

She noticed Dirge and Inferno emerge from their position early. Dirge had already moved on to other targets by the time Inferno joined the fray, but the Maximal badger was using the battle as an opportunity to rescue their leader. Thinking quickly, Arachnitron ducked behind the boulder, her voice muffled by the weapons fire, she turned on her comm link to radio Inferno.

"Arachnitron to Inferno. The Royalty commands you to defend the Maximal prisoner!"

Inferno had been tricked before into believing that Arachnitron spoke for the Royalty. Given that her position on the battlefield was so close to Megatron, he would certainly believe her again!

And he did.... Inferno fired his rocket launcher weapon at the badger and rushed towards the Maximal prisoner!

Arachnitron emerged from her cover firing her own shots into the battle, but raced over to Megatron instead of Optimus. She dove behind cover near the Predacon commander and continued to fire at Ironclaw and the Maximals.

Megatron, Inferno and the others are protecting the Maximal prisoner! But surely the Maximals won't turn over the other disk now that negotiations have gone sour! They will use this opportunity to retrieve their commander and keep the disk for themselves. Allow me to retrieve the disk for you! I can get to it without them ever seeing me!" Arachnitron suggested. She could get over there using her stealth skills. With her help, the Predacons could end up going home with both disks AND the maximal commander still as their prisoner! She waited for an answer while she defended the Predacon commander from incoming fire to protect the one disk they did have.

"Inferno, you fool!" Megatron hissed through clenched teeth as he too emerged from the earth, AGAINST HIS ORDERS NO LESS!

Hearing Arachnitron's words, Megatron glared down at the little spider and slapped her aside like the puny thing she was!

"You will stay put and not add to this chaos! I WILL HAVE ORDER!" Megatron growled back at her, sometimes wishing he had drones to command instead of disobedient twist and backstabbers all around him, unable to follow even the simplest of instructions even when the odds were all in their favor!

Blackrose wrote: "Shoot, and I WILL destroy the disk!" he shouted back to her.

Dinobot's threat to destroy the disk as Ironclaw had lit the match to this fire stuck in Megatron's mind most of all as everything he'd so carefully planned for began to fall apart almost instantly...This should have been his moment of triumph, the most well executed ambush of his career, one which would have ended with both golden disks in his possession and the maximals all dead! Instead the trap had been sprung early due to several trigger happy grunts who had thrown all caution to the wind for Primus knows what reason...This was in short a fiasco, an embarrassment on par with the energon discharge virus incident back during the earliest days of the war, only this time the golden disks, the ultimate source of power on this planet and possibly the universe, were at risk! Priceless assets he could never hope to replace! And he couldn't even blame Terrorsaur or the spiders for this disaster this time!

Mystrea wrote: "Well done. Now destroy the rest! Kill all the Maximals! For the glory of the Predacons!" Night terror yelled.

Unable to keep himself from laughing, Night Terror spun around Dirge and began firing his eye-beam towards Rattrap and Dinobot, continuing the attack against the enemy.

Dirge let go of the Maximal as his master dealt with him. He seemed sufficiently damaged as not to cause them anymore problems. Over time his armour reset to default.The singular eye scanned the battlefield and locked the targets Night Terror was already firing at. As commanded he began to transform, transform in a way that hadn't been seen before. His arm cannon took centre stage as the rest of the body moved to support and he became a turret like weapon placement. After a second of build up, the cannon fired, ejecting a large smoking shell that thudded on the ground. The blast aimed for Dinobot, Rattrap and anyone else caught in the blast.

Since he'd been left alone he took the moment to asses the damage he'd taken. He rotated his hand and flexed his fingers. That was okay, good. A few deep holes in his armour but nothing that would stop him now. Ironclaw looked over to Optimus, he still needed to get him out of here. He got to his feet without too much trouble and made his way over while those two Preds were busy.

Upon hearing Night Terror speak those words, the world seemed to grow silent even whilst all hell broke loose all around him and he was forced to dodge or brace himself against incoming maximal fire, turning to face Night Terror, the cackling fool who presumed to command his troops and call them to arms even as Dinobot threatened to destroy the last disk and said "THERE SHALL BE NO GLORY FOR YOU TODAY, GRUNT!!!" even as he tackled him from behind and slammed him into the ground to put a stop to his madness, followed by him shooting his tailgun into the sky to get everyone's attention as he bellowed "CEASEFIRE! ALL OF YOU! CEASEFIRE! ALL PREDACONS STAND DOWN NOW OR ELSE FACE MY JUDGEMENT! I, MEGATRON, COMMAND IT!"

Megatron stood his ground, his fury a mask of absolute, undisguised fury and disgust at how events had played out, at what he was about to be forced to do to ensure he walked away from this mess with something to show for it.

"You too maximals! You ceasefire as well and I will honor our original agreement and hand you Primal in exchange for the last disk! And then depart immediately from this wretched place to return home and inflict punishment upon those responsible for this...This...This...BAD COMEDY" Megatron bellowed as loud and clearly as he could, hating himself for taking the peaceful route, wanting badly to believe he was having a bad dream instead of facing the most twisted and unfair reality possible.

"Megatron, you can't be ser..." Terrorsaur began to argue, his shoulder launchers ready to open fire on the maximals as he and Inferno guarded Primal from the air, only to find himself ducking as Megatron fired at his head in what was clearly meant to be a killshot and not a warning, the pterosaur's eye's wide with fear as he met Megatron's murderous gaze.

"Get down here NOW" Megatron ordered, the transmetal flyer doing as he was told and lowering himself & Primal to the ground.

Turning back to face the maximals, Megatron said "I think for once we can all honestly agree we just want to get this over with and go home already, so what do you say maximals? I shall send Terrorsaur over with Primal and you can send Whitegrazer over with the disk. He knows better than to cross me as my new recruits have and she cares for the damn ape too much to risk his spark further than the badger already has, agreed?"

Megatron waited for the rat's reply before saying or doing anything else, despising every moment of this farce, all the power he had commanded over the situation all but gone, forcing him to make appeals to the maximals to get things under control and get what he wanted...No doubt Zodiac was laughing privately at his expense, his inability to keep this rabble inline...For this, Night Terror and Dirge would PAY.

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:We shall see about that,

Whitegrazer stood her ground with the voice. She had totally faith in Optimus. And this voice wasn't going to win out. Not with her around. The fact that she was able to cut down the voice a peg or two was a major victory, and hopefully, it would be a major boost of optimism for Optimus. Something that would lessen the pain and hurt.

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:I'm trying... I'm trying...

She felt him reach for her. She reached back to catch his injured arm. We are going to get you outta here. Soon. Soon. Through the bond, she was embracing him still. She wasn't going to back out of her promise to not let go. And she wasn't. She wasn't going to let Optimus suffer more. She wasn't going to allow anyone to take him back to the Darksyde. He was coming home.

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:"You belong back there!"

'

She stepped back. Rattrap was trying to keep the situation under control. The stress was getting to him. But she had hoped to get Ironclaw's attention. To keep him from doing something that may put everyone in jeopardy. She knew what the badger was like when he was angry. Nemesis and her had been on the receiving end of it. But it seemed... her words fell on deaf ears. She knew better than to talk to someone with such aggression. Ironclaw attempted to grab Terrorsaur, but the Predacon dodged, and attacked Umbra. Dinobot shouted the exact words that echoed inside her soul. Maybe she gave Ironclaw too much leadway with his antics? She was disappointed. So much chaos and disorganization. They were supposed to be better than this. Ironclaw injected Optimus with something. Was that the antidote?

"DIIRRGGE!!"

Well done. Now destroy the rest! Kill all the Maximals! For the glory of the Predacons!"

The bug came out of the ground as the new Predacon Night Terror laughed at what was going on. It would seem that the Predacons made their move, which shocked her most of all. Megatron's face seemed to prove that this wasn't what he wanted. Megatron's troops seem to be too eager to wait. The same aggression and eagerness Ironclaw had. This was madness!

She made a beeline towards Optimus. If she could... if she could get him out of here. I'm coming, I'm coming, Optimus! But Terrorsaur lifted himself and Optimus in the air. Too far for her to reach. Her fists clenched a bit. You are coming home with us. I made a promise to bring you home. I'm going to keep it. Her hand then reached out towards Optimus.

CEASEFIRE! ALL OF YOU! CEASEFIRE! ALL PREDACONS STAND DOWN NOW OR ELSE FACE MY JUDGEMENT! I, MEGATRON, COMMAND IT!"

You too maximals! You ceasefire as well and I will honor our original agreement and hand you Primal in exchange for the last disk! And then depart immediately from this wretched place to take my precious cargo home and inflict punishment upon those responsible for this...This...This...BAD COMEDY"

Whitegrazer looked at Megatron. It may had surprised anyone that the ruthless Predacon leader was calling for a ceasefire. After all, they all knew Megatron was planning on causing havoc, but he was probably waiting to spring the trap when he had both disks. Not before. It seemed like something he would do. He cared about the disks more than anything it seemed. Megatron almost acted like someone who was about to lose someone. But Megatron cared about nothing but those disks' safety. Though, she found something of Megatron that was familiar. All the reminiscing she did with Optimus about her time in the war. She remembered... after the old generals seem to die out, the soldiers born from the battlefield took their place. She remembered some soldiers from her unit, who had been transferred from other worlds, talking about tales of a new Predacon that was slaughtering Maximals left and right with brutal ambushes and ruthlessness. But she never saw the face of this Predacon nor did she know anything except memories of her deceased comrades' words.

DarkSpark wrote:I think for once we can all honestly agree we just want to get this over with and go home already, so what do you say maximals? I shall send Terrorsaur over with Primal and you can send Whitegrazer over with the disk. He knows better than to cross me as my new recruits have and she cares for the damn ape too much to risk his spark further than the badger already has, agreed?"

She helped Ironclaw. She put his arm over her neck and carried him to Landslide, so Landslide would help treat his injuries along with Nexus' as much as he could. Yes, after Megatron's display of caring for these disks, she knew it was dangerous to give them the disks. They had knowledge and with that knowledge came power.

But the Maximals', all of them and herself as well had made mistakes today, they made a mistake her former commander Warspark yelled into the processors of every recruit: Don't. Get. Caught. All of these could had been avoided if the Maximals never let Cheetor and Banshee get captured in the first place nor should they have allowed Optimus and Nexus let themselves to take their place. As she has told Optimus, they couldn't change the past. No. The past was done. Now, it was time to make the future alittle brighter. This may be their consequence, but this consequence would remain in their souls. Her soul. She won't allow anyone to go through this again.

She would make it right.

______________________________________________________________________________________________

NaitoKage wrote:Whatever you say cutiepie

Blackarachnia had to chuckle at the fuzor's response. Quickstrike might not be the smartest of the bunch, but he was pretty cute in his wors and mannerisms.

"DIIRRGGE!!"

What was going on outside caught her attention. She was actually shocked at the chaos and mayhem that happened. She couldn't believe that a Maximal attacked first, that the new Predacon called upon the ambush, but nothing compared for the simple joy she felt watching Megatron squirm a bit, she had to hold in her laughter at Megatron's face and his anger. She wished she had popcorn. Scooting over she let Quickstrike have room, "Take a look at this."

"Someone is going to have a beating when they return."

When everything stopped with the roar of the tyrant's anger, she stopped her laughter. She was made that she missed which disk Megatron had. But now, the negotiations were almost over and even though she laughed at their comrades' antics, the ambush she wished to use as a distraction was now gone. They couldn't fire now. Also, she was wondering what was happening back at base? Starshadow was probably insulted that not many Predacons were watching her. If Starshadow has escaped, Blackarachnia might need to keep low, but despite it all, Blackarachnia might to actually enlist her help.

((OOC: Hey, which disk does the Maximal have? The golden or the alien? ))