"It's not your fault, Optimus. You had no idea what would happen."
Primal knew Saber-Fang was trying to comfort him, but it didn't seem to help. He disagreed simply because he didn't reinforce his own rules, and that costed someone's life.
"We lost a Maximal didn't we Optimus?"
Optimus suddenly looked at Wintersong, as if he was almost take aback by what she asked.
"Yes," he finally answered. Then his optics drifted along the group, still searching for the right words. He tried to sound strong after he lifted a fist to his mouth and cleared his throat, then lowered his arm back to his side.
"I am truly sorry to inform all of you that... we have lost Nightmist. Those of us who responded to her call arrived after it was too late. ...There was nothing we could do." His gaze unconsciously fell to their feet as Nightmist's last words replayed in his memory over and over again. Casually returning to the present, their leader looked up at them and continued.
"She had been captured by the Decepticon, whom I believe was what fell from space in the tundra," he paused, glancing at Orcariner as if looking for an answer or reassurance on his assumption, but the debriefing of the orca's mission would come shortly.
"As a result, whether it was intentional or accidental I do not know, but part of Nightmist was merged with the Decepticon and has now been upgraded to our technology as a Predacon." Optimus decided to break away from the gruesome picture of Nightmist's body at the scene in his mind, and went on focusing on their fallen comrade.
"Some of you didn't know Nightmist very well because she had a passion and love for this planet and spent most of her time exploring the outdoors, but make no mistake, she was kind, and she was devoted to helping her fellow comrades in need." His red optics paused on Whitegrazer who had only just been repaired earlier that day by Nightmist's steady hands and effecient skills.
"We've lost a big part of this crew... and she will be greatly missed. ...I'm sorry." Primal stopped talking to allow the others to take in the very sad and unfortunate news. He never thought he would have to speak before them about losing a friend. It was definitely tougher than he imagined, and he wasn't sure he said any of it correctly. His thoughts were obviously occupied, cluttered, scattered, and emotional. As for his own personal friendship with Nightmist, he had a lot in common with her, and they greatly respected one another.
This may not have been the first time some of these Maximals had lost a teammate, but it was for Optimus, and he took it hard.
-----
Rattrap stood there quietly for once through the whole speech. Even for a sarcastic, pain-in-the-skidplate Maximal, he was saddened by this news and watched the commander struggle for the words he wanted to say. As much as Rattrap said they were all going to die, he never actually meant it. And sure, he had doubted their inexperienced leader in the beginning, but Optimus had proven himself time and time again that he was quite capable of being one of the greatest leaders of Cybertron, much like his name-sake, whether he wanted to be or not. He had a feeling the commander's greatest test was yet to come. On the darker side of things, in war it was almost inevitable that a commanding officer was going to lose comrades under his leadership, and crew members were going to lose close friends. The worst part about this war was that they had no communication with Cybertron. There were no higher authorities available at their disposal to arrest, justify and punish the crimes that Megatron and his Predacons, the Decepticon, and the strange alien race committed here. It was just them on this dangerous planet. They had no other help. It was only them.
The rat wasn't very good at offering words of comfort, so he simply bowed his head in respect and silence, giving someone else the opportunity to speak. Lingering in the back of his mind, however, was how exactly all of this happened. Why was Nightmist killed, and what did that have to do with changing the Decepticon to a Predacon? How did the Decepticon get out of Orcariner and his team's hands? He knew Optimus was leaving out some details on purpose so as not to upset everyone even more, but he'd like to investigate this further after the funeral services. Right now, this was a time to remember and mourn a fallen comrade.
-----
Tigatron, on the other hand, had wiped a tear from his eye, feeling the pain of losing an innocent Maximal... a friend. The reality of this war and mysterious world was tragic. Life was so fragile, so precious. If you tripped, you might not get back on your feet. He could tell Optimus was extremely upset, no matter how much he tried to disguise it and he knew why, but it made the Maximal tiger extend a gesture of positive comfort and reassurance. Stepping over to their leader, he placed a hand on his shoulder and said,
"May her spark join the Matrix in peace and tranquility. What she has done for this crew and this planet will not be forgotten."
Optimus looked at Tigatron and gently placed his hand over the maximized tiger's that was on his shoulder as a wordless thank you. Tigatron nodded and pulled his hand away after the leader uncovered it. He stepped back from Primal and lowered his head in a moment of silence.
))