The Intergalactic Highway

(( OOC: Where's Rhinox's team? The rest of the Maximals would like to meet Airazor sometime before this episode is over. ))

"No problem Optimus."

Primal, grateful for Frilla's and Wintersong's cooperation throughout the events of the day, gave a nod to the frilled lizard and watched her disappear into the darkness in search of that large object before he heard a familiar voice.

"This is Feralnight to the Axalon, anyone there?"

The transmission was automatically rerouted to Optimus, who was pleasantly surprised to hear from that team. "This is Optimus," he answered her as he continued to carefully step around the mess and blow out the small fires. "It's good to hear from you, Feralnight. What is your current status?"

"Uh Optimus I wanted to apologize for not reporting in before." "Been thinking about the last mission in the Arctic still."

That reminded the leader, he had wanted to speak to Wintersong about that dramatic experience she had with Glowstick. "I have no doubt," said Primal, looking at her. "I was informed of the incident between you and Glowstick. Wintersong, I am truly sorry that you had to endure something so traumatic like that." Optimus' normal tone of warmth and compassion had returned, pushing aside everything that had happened today as well as the anger he had briefly developed with it. "If you need someone to talk to, I'm here to listen and to help." His offer was both sincere and genuine. He didn't want any of his Maximals to have to deal with something that could jeopardize their mentality, and emotionally take a toll on them, alone. They had to support one another in order to survive. Not to mention a distracted Maximal was at higher risk for running into very dangerous situations in the future. He knew she had been troubled since that day, and what was worse was that she already considered herself a burden to their team when Optimus thought her no less than the others and very much a significant part of their crew. It was difficult for him to understand why she always secluded herself.

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"No it's alright Tigatron, we can handle it. Luckily none of us are injured any further."

"All right," the white tiger replied. "I am glad no one sustained any injuries. I will remain here with Dinobot for the time being." Tigatron sat back down and turned his attention back to Venatrix and his comrade, who were putting on a good show. Both of them seemed to be commendable fighters.

((OOC: They are here! Finally! XDDDD )

Whitegrazer galloped alittle as she saw the Axalon. They were finally back from their mission. She bet everyone will be glad that they succeeded in retrieving a comrade. She wonder if the others had succeeded too? She didn't know. She hoped they did.

There was a residue smoke...coming from their storage faculity.

"What happened?" She asked curiously towards the others even though they didn't even know either. Whitegrazer galloped towards storage faculity, reaching it and saw Optimus and Wintersong.

"Optimus? What happened?" She asked, she could smell the smoke string her nose abit. She sniffed to blow it out.

Wintersog paused briefly to give Optimus a grateful look, "I know Optimus and it's more of the thought of being dead the same as Nightmist that day is what bothers me. It was a bit foolish on my part to charge head long at Glowstick without thinking." Going back to putting out the flames the tigeress stepped over debris or parts lying around, extinguishing the small flames as she went. Her ears twitched as she heard Whitegrazer but continued with her task, lost in thought. Wintersong had secluded herself to not bother a crew she wasn't suppose to be part of yet it seemed as time went by she was feeling more and more part of the team.

Perhaps it was time for a change? She still preferred the beautiful nature of the planet though instead of sticking in the Axalon for long, something she had become quite fond of since shortly after her activation. New crew, new friends...it wasn't as bad as one would have thought. Wintersong was beginning to think seclusion was more then likely not needed any more.

Feralnight smiled, glad to get a reply, "We're doing alright Opimus, heading back right now and shouldn't be much longer." She then glanced at the others as Icebreaker and Saber Fang joined them again the wet back to report, "And to give a brief summary we ran into Glowstick, Sonar, and Starshadow on the Levianthan but we didn't have any luck retrieving the ship nor the pilot. Turns out it's someone Starshadow knows and we had a bit of confrontation. But also we were wondering if Rhinox is back by any chance." She said.

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Optics focusing in slightly and scanning the body the lied within the pod Frilla nodded, it was indeed Nightmist. "Beast mode." Transforming the frilled lizard took off back through the trees and came to the edge, hearing a third voice near the facility. Raising on her back legs Frilla just made out Whitegrazer's form galloping to the others, Rhinox's team was finally back but she hurried on her back legs at a run to join them again. "The pod is Nightmist's Optimus but it's intact and there doesn't seem any damage besides being slightly scorched."

((Daaa da dah, daaaaaaaaaah, dah!))

Cheetor saw the smoke after Whitegrazer pointed it out, and his spirits started to sink. Something was definitely wrong.

Rushing to catch up to the horse, Cheetor transformed as soon as he arrived as scene.

"Woh... the storage facility... it's totally slagged." He would have asked who did it, but Whitagrazer'd already asked what happened.

Belly flopping right behind Cheetor, the hover pads hummed as Orcariner's body was elevated back off the ground. They had traveled quick, returning just in time to see smoke rising from the storage facility. The killer whale raised a brow.

"We have a storage facility?"

Yes, it was decided that one existed a couple pages back. Orcariner nodded and boosted forward not knowing what to expect. At least they themselves were bringing good news home.

Airazor flew above the team, slowly flapping her wings so to not go too far ahead. She was in beast mode and thoroughly enjoying the relaxing flight. She could feel the wind rushing through her feathers from the cool breeze. After they had gotten away from the barren lands the whole world turned from dead lands to a lush and alive world. The sky was alive with other birds and creatures. The ground had plant life and grass blooming everywhere you could see. She was glad she had been given the chance to be apart of such a wondrous world. If it hadn't been for the efforts of maximals, she may not have ever been here to see it.

Soon however, the view was tainted by the sight of destruction. Smoke billowed out from a structure, which from the sounds of the Maximal's below her, must have been one of theirs. Outside was a group of other bots, likely the rest of the Maximal's. Pushing her wings harder, the falcon sped up towards the group. As she approached, she gave a screech and descended. It seems as if the rest of her new comrades were not having such a great day, perhaps her entrance would lighten the mood.

Before hitting the ground, the Falcon spred its wings, catching a wind current and leveling out. She landed softly on the surface next to Optimus Primal. "Maximize!" She said and transformed into her robot mode as well. The others seemed almost surprised by her presence, but she simply smiled at them and looked around. They seemed like a friendly bunch. "I"m Airazor. I hear this is where the good guys live. May I join?"

(( OOC: Yay! They're coming back!

at New Moon. I can just imagine Frilla running quickly on her hind legs like that. Funny, but cute! ))

"I know Optimus and it's more of the thought of being dead the same as Nightmist that day is what bothers me. It was a bit foolish on my part to charge head long at Glowstick without thinking."

That bothered Optimus as well but Wintersong hadn't been alone during her confrontation with the Predacon squid. Nightmist was with Nemesis. And that had cost her her life. "Well," he began, "you are still with us now, and I'm grateful that I didn't lose two friends that day." Losing one was horrible enough; he wasn't sure if he could handle losing two in one day. And he was grateful for Glowstick's mercy, although it never would've had to be that way if the Predacons weren't so ruthless in the first place. "I understand you and some others hate to be trapped inside or around the base and would rather be roaming the planet, but all I ask is that you check in when you're supposed to. It's dangerous out there," he said softly, looking at Wintersong, "And I don't want another repeat of the day Nightmist was killed." Honestly, Optimus didn't think he was asking for too much, especially considering after what happened with their aerial medic. He couldn't keep them cooped up in the Axalon, and they had a right to explore the planet; that was their original mission after all, but he couldn't bear to lose another comrade, another friend. It was a simple rule: Check in before you go out, and check in while you're out and about, especially if you run into trouble.

"Sentinel, activate external lights," the commander ordered. No need to keep struggling in the darkness.

"Acknowledged." Several bright spotlights mounted on the Axalon illuminated the ground and surrounding area so everyone could see everyone else as well as the destruction and debris from the storage faclility.

"We're doing alright Opimus, heading back right now and shouldn't be much longer." "And to give a brief summary we ran into Glowstick, Sonar, and Starshadow on the Levianthan but we didn't have any luck retrieving the ship nor the pilot. Turns out it's someone Starshadow knows and we had a bit of confrontation. But also we were wondering if Rhinox is back by any chance."

Someone Starshadow knows? Interesting, of all Predacons. While it was unfortunate that they couldn't stop the Preds and that they gained another ship and another member, at least his Maximals were all safe. These days that was all Primal wanted to hear. Succeeding and failing would come and go in these missions, but to return to the base alive was the most he could ask for. "That news is well enough for me," Optimus responded to Feralnight in a neutral tone. "Rhinox?" he repeated her, and just as he glanced around in the darkness beyond what the spotlights covered, his audio sensors picked up repeatitive thuds on the ground heading their way, and he noticed Whitegrazer galloping into the proximity with Cheetor and Orcariner close behind. Thank Primus. "His team is returning as we speak. Shall I have him contact you as soon as he arrives?"

"Optimus? What happened?"

Despite the mess around them, Optimus smiled to Whitagrazer and Cheetor when they approached, happy to see them return. It faded away at the equine's inquiry, and he sighed lightly. "Nemesis happened," was all he said at the moment, putting out the last fire before dropping the now empty extinghisher. Wintersong, Frilla and Optimus were still showing battle damage even if some of it had been repaired internally; meaning they had had a rough day. Even though they had returned to base, they still hadn't had time for repairs in the CR chambers. Primal looked at Whitegrazer and Cheetor with his only good optic sensor, the other one just barely lit now with it covered in a few cracks, and that whole side of his face nearly looked smashed with the dents and scratches as if a brick had made brief but fast contact with it. The odor of fuel still smelled strongly on the leader, and it had begun to stain and etch his external metal armor as it dried. His team did not have a good day, to say the least, and since it sounded like Rattrap's didn't either, he was really, really hoping for some good news from the horse, cheetah, and Orcariner who soon followed.

"The pod is Nightmist's Optimus but it's intact and there doesn't seem any damage besides being slightly scorched."

That was somewhat good news. Not so good that her body may have been exposed, but good that that's where her freezer had ended up and they could move on with her from there. "No damage?" he asked Frilla, turning his attention to her. "Hm. We'll have to wait for Rhinox to return and examine it before we try to move her and contain her body again. Thank you, Frilla."

"Woh... the storage facility... it's totally slagged."

"We have a storage facility?"

"We used to," Optimus corrected the orca. "Please tell me all of you have returned with good news," the gorilla in robot mode pleaded while his gaze fell on the group. A little doubt started creeping up on him when he didn't see Rhinox yet, nor the new Maximal from the pod they raced to get. However, Whitegrazer, Cheetor and Orcariner did appear to be in good spirits, so he held on to the last bit of hope he had left for that day. Turned out their team had been successful after all! Upon hearing a falcon's screech, Optimus looked up and watched the large bird swoop in and land beside him.

"Maximize!" "I"m Airazor. I hear this is where the good guys live. May I join?"

The new Maximal! And she's a flier! Yes, Primal was pleasantly surprised. Finally something had gone right on this day for them, but little did he know how close it was to losing her before she even came on-line. "Certainly. It's a pleasure to meet you, Airazor," the Maximal commander smiled and extended his hand to her. By this point, he didn't care what he looked like, but he did wish he could see from his crimpled eye. His perception was a little off without the combination of both working red optics. She looked fast and gave off a confident independence about herself. "I'm Optimus. This is Wintersong and Frilla," he introduced her to them.

Rhinox trotted in sluggishly, between the long distance and nearly shorting out his processor, he was exhausted from the day. As he came into range with the others he noticed the smoke from where the storage facility was, aka a storage shed they built to keep hazardous things outside of the ship. He shaked his head at the sight, then walked over to Optimus transforming to robot mode More trouble as usual I take it? Fill me in on the situation, then I'll need to put Cheetor's locking chip back in, unless Orcariner can do it.. He then looked towards the whale.


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After a very long trek, the Predacons started to return to the Darksyde. Megatron spoke up in his usual melodramatic tone Ah, while it ever be so humble.. There's no place like home. , he then tilted his head as he noticed a craft in the distance floating towards the Darksyde with a slight grin And if it isn't my lieutenant..

Megatron activated his comlink Megatron to the Leviathan, what is the result of your mission?



Glowstick looked at the main monitor noticing the large group of Predacons, then responded This is Glowstick, mission accomplished. The ship was demolished, we had a run in with the Maximals but suffered no major damages to the ship, though Starshadow suffered some major damage on the mission, she's stablized but will require a run through the CR tank. We also gained a new member to the cause, I'll be giving her a tour as soon as she lands the ship.


Megatron listened rather pleased Well, once again you've managed the situation. Since you'll be showing our new Predacon around, I believe it'd only be fair that you show the other two around as well. One of which could use some repairs like Starshadow.

Roger, I'll give the injured a look over. Glowstick out. he responded turning his comlink off Alright, when we land, follow me out the airlock, we can't open the cargobay door and let them see your ship. Glowstick then floated out of his chair moving towards the back of the ship, opening the door as he noticed Starshadow on the bed, he spoke up in a calm tone Hey.. We're here, think you can handle walking to the CR tank or should I carry you?

The Leviathan soon came in low, floating into the hanger and landing.

Orcariner nodded at Rhinox, and then turned to Cheetor.

"You'll need to go dark until I finish putting this back in," he said.

Retrieving the chip that he kept, Orcariner walked behind the smaller Maximal and waited until the latter was ready.

There was alittle fire beside Whitegrazer but she stomped it out. It was painlessly especially since she did it really quickly.

"At least everyone is okay."

She smiled when Airazor introduced herself because it seemed to lift the spirits up for their leader. She was glad and decided to let the good news flow as everyone needed this good news especially their leader who really looked like he had been thrown in a middle of a firefight--probably did. She kept her smile and just took in at least the fact that they had a successful mission.

Cecaelia got out of her seat and skipped to the airlock, waiting patiently for Glowstick and Starshadow.

* * * * * *

Starshadow woke up with a yawn and stretched herself. "I can walk by myself..Let's go.." she said while limping to the airlock with her ears drooped.

Wintersong turned to the others when the last one was at last out, walking over to join them. Though she would keep note of what Optimus said and do a better job of keeping the Maximals aware of her locations from now on. "Nice to meet you Airazor and like Optimus said I'm Wintersong." She greeted the new flier and smiled. She looked to the others the, glad to see all of them had made it, "And welcome back guys." She added.

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( And since the Preds are returning might as well bring the fox back)

Having been at the Darkside for a short while Snow Trix had decided to wait outside, just out of sight of the others, her fur a bit hard to see from some dust. Hearing them, ears perking forward the fox yawned and crawled from under cover of rocks, one leaned against the other as a small shelter and trotted over towards the returning Predacons. She didn't say anything to the group and only walked over towards Megatron's group. Though the purple t-rex would likely question why she had gone absent shortly after the battle.

Frilla gave a nod before glancing up, watching as Airazor landed and smiled. Least Rhinox's group had better luck and were all looking safe. Now the Nomad and Tigatron and DInobot then all would be accounted for, hopefully at least.

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"Well maybe I'll have to check. We may be nearly there so it might wait till then." Feralnight then looked to the others, "Sgould I get Rhinox now or wait till we are at base? His team just arrived."

Glowstick shrugged, then turned noticing Cecaelia skipping along down the stairs. He blinked and floated down transforming to robot mode and following the two out the airlock. He looked towards Cecaelia Er, I guess your rather excited to meet the new group. Guess I'll have to round up Megatron's new troops and start assigning rooms.

Glowstick then started to float out of the hanger as Megatron walked in front of him So, this is our new Predacon? Looks like you finally got that aquatic teammate you've always wanted..I suppose this was your doing? he then transformed to his robot mode, Glowstick nodded Er yes, I was rather surprised, unlike Tarantulus I didn't have to mess with forcing a beast mode onto someone. Her name is Cecaelia, she seems to be skilled at piloting and rather versatile, I'm sure she'll make a excellent addition.

Megatron looked down towards Cecaelia and smirked as he listened to Glowstick, then nodded Fantastic. I'm going to rest and repair in my quarters, I'll leave tending to Manterror and Inferno to you.

Glowstick blinked and shrugged Er.. Okay. he then looked into the distance seeing the giant ant and mantis Insects..Better then arachnids I hope.

Megatron then stopped as he noticed Snowtrix. Well well.. I didn't see much of you after the battle, tell me Snowtrix.. where ever did you happen to wander off to?

(Well if your going to bring up that he should question where you were.. )

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Icebreaker looked towards Feralnight and shaked his head No, we'll wait til we are at base.