The Intergalactic Highway

(( OOC: I'm just going to squeeze in a post with OP. It was a little late for Phoenix and I when we realized we should have done a joint post for this, but since some players are still quiet, here's just a little more for you to react to or read. ))

Zodiac appeared on edge, perhaps maybe even a little nervous. Was it because of the beam he caused, now learning that it would alert the Vok and inform them to return? If he knew the location of this alien weapon and how to use it, was he involved with them in some way? He couldn't fathom how... But if he was, was he afraid of them? Or was it because of the numbers gathering around him and outnumbering him? That never seemed to bother him before, but then again, he always had a purpose of gathering everyone; to kill them in one shot.

Not this time, the voice told Optimus.

Not this time, Primal repeated with emphasis and anger, agreeing and growing more confident in this confrontation with the shape shifter. He caught himself glaring at the fake Ironclaw standing before him while Zodiac seemed distracted probably with Whitegrazer communicating with him and quickly adjusted his expression back to a softer one before - he hoped - him noticing. He calmly and casually kept his hand beside his gun attached to his hip, ready to grab it in a flash.

"That is unfortunate,"

"Yes, it is," Optimus agreed, watching him closely. "Of course, I can't know for sure that Zodiac is dead unless I see some evidence." He couldn't quite tell if Zodiac thought Optimus knew he wasn't Ironclaw, so he continued playing along. He definitely wanted to keep him away from Whitegrazer, and away from the Axalon. He didn't know how much damage the ship had taken from the quakes, not to mention the repairs it still needed from the earlier attacks, so he didn't want the pretender any where near it to cause more.

"We should probably return to the Axalon so we can discuss our response to this Vok threat with the others there."

"No," he began thoughtfully. "That would be counter-productive," Primal disagreed as he watched "Ironclaw" turn and start walking by him and Blackarachnia.

His back is to us! Do it now! NOW, you fool! the voice screamed at him.

NO! Not yet! Optimus objected. If his nanotech resembles Ironclaw's thick armor, the needle won't penetrate it! We need him to be in another form.

So instead you're going to waste the opportunity and let him know that you know he isn't your upstanding Maximal colleague Ironclaw? Wasteful!

The Predacons will be here any minute. We're out in the open, we're sitting targets. I'm done playing this game, Primal finalized.

"We have time," Optimus continued speaking neutrally to the fake badger as he stealthily grabbed his gun from his hip while Zodiac's back was to him. "It typically takes the Vok days or weeks to send a response." He lifted his weapon and targeted the back of his knee. "As it stands, the only threat we're currently facing... is you," he said adding a dramatic pause and immediately fired three times at his leg in hopes of him losing the disguise and shifting to a thinner skin of armor; theorizing, of course, that this shape-shifter mimicking one's appearance also mimicked their physical strength and density of their armor plating. Now, present company to be ready for anything, or take cover. Primal wasn't going to lose this opportunity. He was going to take him down once and for all!

Rattrap started growing nervous. He was sure the Preds would have arrived by now, but it was still quiet as he looked about their snowy and windy surroundings. He glanced at Whitegrazer for any indication of their presence but she appeared to be invisibly involved with Zodiac. With Optimus firing at the fake Ironclaw, uncertain as to what his plan was, he made sure he was ready to toss in one of his electrocution charges. He also hoped to hear confirmation from Landslide finding the real Ironclaw and making sure the machine was actually off despite the beam which was too late to cut off. Whatever was already sent into outer space would reach the aliens no matter what. There was no stopping that. Slaggin' Zodiac! he cursed him.

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:"Eh. It probably ain't gonna matter,"

Whitegrazer just shook her head at Rattrap's pessimism.

When Whitegrazer tried to get inbetween Optimus and Zodiac, Optimus grabbed her arm, stopping her from going any farther. He didn't want her to get in Zodiac's way. She understood since the last two times she was wounded severely. Gained Zodiac's nanomachines around her body, and yet, they were doing some good as well. Her abilities were still slowly coming back to her.

She gazed into Optimus' optics, "Let me help you. You can't do this alone."

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:"I recognize the beam," "Now they'll know that the planet still exists. We still exist" Their fake-moon weapon failed."They're going to come back. Thanks to Zodiac activating their machine here."

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote: "He's right. Whenever dese beams fire up ta space, the aliens always respond. Every time it does, it let's 'em know dat we're still here."

Whitegrazer lowered her head. The aliens. They are going to try again, but how would they do it this time? TyCross was snickering behind her. She didn't appreciate it. Not at all. TyCross knew something and he wasn't going to tell her. Gazing at Optimus, she could see in his optics that this made him furious. Something, someone else to worry about putting all their lives at risk. So many memories. Hurtful ones. The image of him going inside the planet buster, trapped and alone and exploded. The pain that still burned inside her spark gripped her once more. This was too much. Too much for Optimus.

Phoenix wrote:It's over, is it? His mental voice would have come across as challenging to her, spiteful, hateful, ever refusing to back down. So you expect me to simply give up? Return to prison and await sentencing like a good little mech? You truly must have lost your mind. Now instead of bothering me, why don't you focus your attention on your poor comrades back at the Axalon? Oh that's right. By now the weapon has run its course, leaving them all dead in an even more merciless way than I originally intended. They are now nothing more than piles of molten metal at the bottom of a crater. And it's your fault!

Wait, he didn't know? The machine was off. There were no more trembles. She sensed it. When Zodiac yelled through the connection and blamed her, she just waved it off.

They aren't dead, Zodiac. You failed. You have a decision to make here. Do you realize that your revenge has cost you more than you realize? How much more do you have to lose? Your life? It doesn't have to be this way. Face up to what you have done. We can help you. She tried to reason with him again. TyCross just shake his head at her. Too many chances. She knew. How many more? But there was still chance. Just let go.

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:"Stand back, Blackarachnia,"

Blackarachnia raised her weapon and kept it pointed at the Ironclaw--or shapeshifter since she heard the white mare comment earlier. She stepped back a bit, knowing that whatever was going on was between Optimus, the white mare, and Zodiac. It was then she noticed the mountain glow blue and a beam shot up into the sky. Uh oh. She knew what that meant. The aliens were going to find out that their planet buster didn't work. That they were all still standing. Not burnt up to a crisp by their radiation. That was going to complicated. Not just the fact that the aliens know now, but the fact is she isn't anywhere near close to finishing what she hoped to accomplish. She didn't know how long that beam was going to take. It could take megacycles or solar cycles. But she wondered what would the aliens pull next time? They weren't going to build another moon. They couldn't do the same trick. They were prepared for them, and they knew it. And these aliens were just as ruthless as Megatron ten times over. It wouldn't faze her the slightest if they had a bomb at the core and planned to blow them up. Without them ever knowing!

She growled. Frustrated. May never have the chance to grab her revenge. Her angry was just like Optimus'.

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:"Then I suppose praise and gratitude is in order. We almost lost the Axalon, but thanks to you and your quick actions, you managed to stop Dirge, Zodiac, and deactivate the weapon. Well done, Ironclaw,"

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:"Zodiac was never a match for us. Unfortunately, I would have liked to have known how he knew about this weapon and how to use it. And on a personal note, I would've liked to have found out what really happened to Nexus. What's worse, that beam was a communication signal to the Vok, finally alerting them that their planet-buster failed to blow up Earth," he said as a matter of fact. "Now that they'll know we're still here, they'll be paying us another visit."

Optimus did know that wasn't Ironclaw, right? From the way he as talking and his facial expressions, he didn't seem to act like it was Ironclaw. He knew it was the shapeshifter like she told him. But why the charade? And why was Zodiac humoring him? Something was off. Something was wrong. On both sides. She knew more about what was going on with Zodiac then Optimus. What kind of turmoil did she leave him to fight alone? Zodiac's memories flooded back to her. But twisted. TyCross' fingers gripped her skull. Twisting the memories into his own towards her. She saw...things. Cosmic. Needles. Zodiac's being experimented on. Nemesis. Optimus' face. Then Zodiac's face. and then TyCross' face. His finger pointed at her.

And it's your fault!

Mimicked Zodiac's words towards her earlier. Except this time. They were correct.

Phoenix wrote:Shut up!,

Zodiac? Whitegrazer wondered what was going on within Zodiac. His aggravation towards her seemed to be sharp as a blade. Yet, shimmered down. Was she getting to him?

Phoenix wrote:"That is unfortunate," he finally managed to say, returning his attention to Optimus. "We should probably return to the Axalon so we can discuss our response to this Vok threat with the others there."

Once Zodiac turned his back towards them, Whitegrazer looked at Optimus. What was he doing?

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:"We have time," Optimus continued speaking neutrally to the fake badger as he stealthily grabbed his gun from his hip while Zodiac's back was to him. "It typically takes the Vok days or weeks to send a response." He lifted his weapon and targeted the back of his knee. "As it stands, the only threat we're currently facing... is you,"

Optimus shot at the back of Zodiac's knee. She raised her hand up for some objection when her instincts sent a chill down her spine. She stiffened. Closed her optics. Felt Nemesis and Umbra come by, which she knew already. But it changed. She felt their sparks beating. At different rates. Just as she could feel the nanomachines from Nemesis. Beating. Pulsing. There was already. Faint. Who was it? It was too faint for her to tell. It... It wasn't familiar. But that wasn't all. There was others.

"Predacons are coming. I felt Umbra and Nemesis eariler, but they aren't doing anything. Just watching us," she told Rattrap and Blackarachnia. "Something is coming, though. I don't know. I don't know who it is. It's unfamilar to me. Better warn Landslide to hurry."

She shook her head. She needed to make a decision here. Rattrap and Blackarachnia, Landlside and Ironclaw would have to deal with the Predacons. She needed to help Optimus here.

"Wait, you felt Umbra and Nemesis earlier? Why didn't you tell us before?" Blackarachnia glared then rolled her optics at the white mare, keeping her weapon at the ready and reloaded with a sharp snap, "Whoever it is, it doesn't matter. I'm not in a good mood. Need to take out my frustration on someone. And I supposed you don't want that to be one of you.

Megatron wrote:"No doubt Zodiac's doing, its possible that the machine caused the collapse on its own, but its just as likely that Zodiac himself created the cave in to prevent anyone from reaching the weapon and putting a stop to this madness. Following the entrance the beetle made and stay out of sight, make sure the weapon is disabled safely and as always, pick off anyone that you can, the fewer enemies I have, the better" "You will have backup shortly, Subcommander Deathroll shall meet you inside to aid in your task, Megatron out."

Umbra listened to the radio, observing the Maximals still. Their position was way too close to the cavern entrance that Landslide had created. Observing as the blue light disappeared from the top of the mountain, he could possibly slip into the mountain from the hole created, but he would have to go around to sneak by the maximals undetected. This however wouldn't work for "weakening" the maximals..

Then Umbra was taken by surprise, Optimus was firing on Ironclaw. It's still not over? Well.. Megatron did say attack "maximals" on the way.. Hopefully this time the Maximals would maybe do the right thing and stain their hands for once, this nonsense with Zodiac had gone on way too far. He thought to himself. Transforming to robot mode, Umbra drew a few throwing blades from his wrist compartments, then sprung up into the air activating his thrusters and spreading his tentacles, his camo pattern shifting to his default black and gold appearance.

As he flew up, with Ironclaw/Zodiac distracted by Optimus's shots, Umbra threw down two throwing blades towards the fake Transmetal badger, on impact the blades exploding. Got better things to do then cleaning up after you guys, so finish it before I do! Umbra shouted as he flew past them to the top of the mountain, then cut his thrust and raises his tentacles up, allowing him to fall into the hole at the top swiftly.

_______________________________________________________

After the blue light had passed, Landslide looked around with his lights, then transformed to his vehicle mode. He started up his thrusters rolling from the ledge into the air, then hovered down, looking over the structure of the alien machine, noticing the musky odor from before becoming stronger. Landslide hovered to a pause in the air as he looked around, spotting Ironclaw on the ground. He started to make his descent flying down and landed near Ironclaw Needa lift? the beetle then said.

__________________________

Waspinator dropped off Deathroll with Terrorsaur, then transformed to his jet mode flying in formation with Megatron and Inferno.

"Oh well, wishful thinking I suppose, regardless, good to know what my soldiers can and cannot do, makes strategizing faster and simpler, and there are of course always the old fashioned methods of getting work done, yyyyyeessss"

Megatron's words echoed briefly in Nemesis mind as she settled on her perch overlooking the Maximals below. This honesty business wasn't something she was accustomed to yet, but she had quickly realized that Megatron despised having secrets kept from him. Although his idea of old fashioned methods might differ a bit from hers, given her ability to consume the very armor from her components in order to feet the nanomachines within her, she could certainly appreciate the sentiment. In some ways she was also starting to appreciate Megatron's leadership. Yes, he was ruthless and unforgiving to those who opposed him, but he also treated those that served him well fairly enough. Whereas his temper could be foul at times, his knowledge and loyalty to what he deemed to be a worthy cause was commendable. And as things were, Nemesis happened to agree on Megatron's ideal cause.

Using her wings as a cape to shield her bitter wind and constant blowing snow, she watched the Maximals in silence. Ironclaw and Primal appeared to be discussing something, but unfortunately she was too far away to make out their words. Granted, as soon as she informed Megatron of the beacon, his priorities rapidly changed.

"NO! The fool! He'll draw the Vok's attention back to us too soon!" "Join Umbra on the inside, I want that weapon destroyed and more importantly its signal cut off immediately!"

Was he serious..? He wanted her, the queen of the sky, to climb down a narrow hole in the ground..?! Her claustrophobic tendencies started acting up a bit just thinking about it. Slowly standing, she stared down at the hole that was completely surrounded by Maximals. How would they ever get down there unnoticed even if she would be able to tolerate such confined quarters?

Deciding they couldn't possibly enter the same way, her gaze went skyward to the beam that was firing from the mountain. That beacon had to come from somewhere, a fact that told her there must be more than one way inside. And from the looks of it, Umbra had the same idea.

"I'll meet you by the beam origin point," she told Umbra via com link while hoping there would be more space available than in a small hole in the ground. "We're going in," she then informed Megatron next.

"Yes, it is," Optimus agreed, watching him closely. "Of course, I can't know for sure that Zodiac is dead unless I see some evidence."

There was something about Optimus' words that made Zodiac feel a bit more on edge. Was Optimus dragging out this encounter? He still wasn't convinced Whitegrazer had seen through his disguise or not, or if she'd informed the others.. of course she would tell them if she had any inkling of a suspicion! But until any of them had said something to definitely prove his theory right, he was just going to play along. It wasn't just for the Maximals he was acting, after all, but also the Predcons that were watching them from a distance. As things were he just needed to leave this place without getting followed, something that would be virtually impossible if Megatron and his goons were after him too.

"Feel free to check the cave," the pretender told Optimus without slowing down or looking at him. At this point it hardly mattered if they did find the machine or even Ironclaw, dead or alive, down there. With any luck the entire cave would collapse while the Maximals were in there, of course this seemed unlikely given the shape shifter's bad luck streak as of late.

They aren't dead, Zodiac. You failed. You have a decision to make here. Do you realize that your revenge has cost you more than you realize? How much more do you have to lose? Your life? It doesn't have to be this way. Face up to what you have done. We can help you.

Again the female's voice entered his mind, violating his thoughts, his very being. And her words struck a nerve, proving to him that his hope of remaining undetected had been crushed. To add further insult to his already wounded pride, the pesky female dared to try to reason with him. She even went so far as to ask him to surrender.

Help me?!, he argued with her. It is the Maimals' generous 'help' that got me in this situation in the first place!

He clenched his fists as he continued walking away, keeping his pace steady as not to draw more attention to himself. Although he was surprised Optimus had not unleashed his fury on him yet. Could it possibly be that Whitegrazer had decided to keep his true identity hidden for some reason? It was true he had a hard time understanding how the female operated, but that wouldn't make sense if she was willing to just let him slip away while at the same time trying to persuade him to surrender himself. Did she honestly expect him to agree to such an unfavorable agreement? Zodiac had spent most of his life in one or another form of chains so the thought of taking responsibility for his actions, like she had asked him to do, was definitely not something he'd be willing to consider.

"No," he began thoughtfully. "That would be counter-productive,"

The pretender wearing Ironclaw's shell slowed his movements ever so slightly upon hearing those words, wondering what Primal meant by that. Was he merely saying no to returning to the Axalon because of the damage done to the base, or was there some other reason for his reluctance to do so?

"We have time," "It typically takes the Vok days or weeks to send a response."

Oh the arrogant fool, Zodiac thought to himself as he kept walking away. It really didn't matter if the Vok took a few days to a couple of weeks by this planet's time rotation. The fact of the matter was that they would be coming to resolve this issue. And the shape shifter had no plans to remain here when that time came. He would need whatever time he could spare to gather resources so that he could get off this planet. He had seen their handiwork and he had physically felt it. It was an experience that had nearly killed him. And if they returned here to find what he had done and what lengths he had gone to in order to come here and activate their weapon, part of him knew the fate that awaited him would be worse than any death he could imagine.

No, he would let the other Cybertronians who had made this planet their home deal with this mess while he escaped. He was free now, didn't have to answer to anyone, so he could be anyone or do anything he wanted. And since the few that knew of his existence would be dead and the remaining few on Cybertron that knew would believe he had died with them, there would be nothing to stop him from wrecking havoc on those who had wronged him.

Just let go.

Whitegrazer's constant attempts at reasoning with him accomplished little more than making the shapeshifter more frustrated. The more he thought about everything.. his plans going astray, the deaths of his comrades, being hunted by a bounty hunter or whatever Ironclaw was, losing the alien machine, that annoying voice in his head, Nexus Prime, Optimus... the stronger his desire to lash out one final time got. If only to stop the endless bickering in his mind and be able to depart with the knowledge that he had destroyed the one thing Primal clearly relied on more than anything. It would be his parting shot. Knowing the Maximals they would be too busy with their futile attempt to save Whitegrazer's life to be able to follow him, much less catch up with him.

His backside still turned to the others, he moved his arm up in front of his chest so it was hidden from their view. Then the wrist mounted cannon, like the ones the real Ironclaw wielded only fortified with the firepower from his own fusion cannon, slid into place. He prepared himself to end that annoying voice in his head once and for all.

Behind him he could hear Optimus still talking to him yet Zodiac paid it little heed. It was of no consequence anymore. Or so he thought, at least, not until..

"As it stands, the only threat we're currently facing... is you,"

He stopped as Optimus uttered those well calculated words, starting to move his head to glance behind him when..

The first shot rammed into his joint, hitting the vulnerable section behind the knee and causing the limb to buckle. Two more shots followed immediately after the first one, burning him, ripping holes in the armor and destroying circuitry in their path as they completely destroyed the functionality of the knee. Zodiac cried out from the sudden pain, his arms shooting out to catch him as he fell forward now that the knee wasn't able to hold up his weight. The pain was severe, a penetrating sharp and burning sensation that seemed to spread throughout the leg with even the slightest of movement in the area. And for that moment, his complete attention was on his wounded leg, now a mangled twisted mess of dislocated circuits where the knee joint had been. It took him a moment to realize that the disguise was quickly disappearing, the nanomachines sweeping over his form from the feet up to reveal his normal appearance in their wake. The bulkier form of the badger was swiftly cast aside for the sleeker, darker appearance of his dragon form. Talons grew out of his heels and ankles, scaly details spreading up his legs, thighs, sides and arms, his helmet changed to that of the dragon's head, and finally a pair of large wings burst out of his backside before coming to a rest on top of the piles of snow and ice that surrounded him.

Zodiac turned his head to look at Optimus with a pained sneer. Even in this form, his affected leg lay twisted in a most unnatural angle, making it blatantly clear that the pain that was so clearly visible on his face was not just for show. For a moment he lay still in the snow, seemingly defeated, until the nanomachines had gathered their senses enough to rush to the wounded joint and proceeded to work on it. But when they did, the process was quick, his leg regaining some functionality within the blink of an eye.

The shapeshifter wasted no time. As soon as he was able to move the leg again, if a bit stiffly since the repairs were not yet complete, Zodiac rolled to the side and pushed himself up with his arms. At the same time Umbra flew overhead and launched his own attack in the form of some blades rigged to explode upon impact. Zodiac narrowly avoided the first blade but the second one hit its mark, embedding itself into his right wing before promptly exploding to form a fair sized hole in its target. Again crying out from the pain of the unexpected sneak attack, Zodiac's wing now hanging limply at his side with smoke emerging from the burnt edges, the wounded pretender chose to ignore the second attacker for now. He had more pressing matters to attend to, and his nanomachines would repair the wound soon enough. There was still some residual pain as the repair process was still ongoing, but that wasn't going to stop him from doing what he should have done long ago.. Destroy Optimus Primal! Now in a state of pure rage, he lunged himself at Optimus at a much faster pace than should be possible given his injuries. Claws extending from his wrists, sharp enough to shred through even the strongest of armor, came slashing at Optimus while Zodiac tackled him to the ground.

"Maybe... Or it's just the immense heat from the vents created by the quakes."

Aurora couldn't be sure, honestly. All she knew is that it was hot enough in this part of the ship to actually melt parts of the floor. Not that it mattered much at this very moment. Right now they just needed to get out of the ship. Hopefully anyone else that were still occupying the vessel had made it to safety by now.

The fuzor's steps on her stilts were cumbersome to say the least, but they got the job done.. somewhat. If she was taking anything from this experience, it was that Waspinator's life was not one they should envy. But at least his broken off limbs came in handy in a pinch. Rattrap would be so proud of her had he been there to see this.

"I'm here, Aurora!" he called out to her. "But I'm afraid this is the farthest that I can approach."

"It's all right," the fuzor assured the engineer, "I can manage.. I think." As she talked, she made a few more stumbling steps towards him on her stilts. But on the positive side, it didn't seem like the temperature was climbing anymore. If anything they seemed to have reached a plateau where the temperature was concerned, or perhaps it had even dropped a few degrees. As if the weapon causing this mess had been turned off.

"The others must have succeeded, " Aurora pointed out as she touched the floor with one foot to test it before abandoning the stilts altogether. "The Axalon seems to be stabilizing." She hoped it would last.

"Well, it works,"

Aurora could not help but smile at the somewhat surprised look on Rhinox' face. Or at least she did until she accidentally shrugged her shoulders enough for the pain from her malformed wings kicking in. Ouch!

"I learned from the master," she responded after letting out a small wince, gesturing Rhinox himself of course. The floor seemed stable enough, so she walked the few remaining paces to get to him.

"At least it seems the earthquakes have stopped,"

She nodded in agreement, still eager to get outside though. And to open every door and window possible on the way there to vent the base out.

NaitoKage wrote: As he flew up, with Ironclaw/Zodiac distracted by Optimus's shots, Umbra threw down two throwing blades towards the fake Transmetal badger, on impact the blades exploding. Got better things to do then cleaning up after you guys, so finish it before I do! Umbra shouted as he flew past them to the top of the mountain, then cut his thrust and raises his tentacles up, allowing him to fall into the hole at the top swiftly.

As Megatron flew in formation with his remaining troops, his optics scanned ahead as the alien site finally came into view, two things immediately caught his attention, the alien beacon erupting up into the sky to "tattle on him" to the Vok, and the sight of his stealth agent attacking the maximal Ironclaw before continuing on his way into the mountain as ordered.

"Out of sight my Predacons, I wish to see how this plays out before we make our presence known, yyyessss" Megatron replied, watching as Ironclad's damaged body shifted and changed to reveal he was actually Zodiac.

"As you command Royalty! DOWN DRONES! DOWN!" Inferno yelled, swiping at Terrorsaur and Waspinator with the butt of his gun to hurry their descent, much to both their chagrin.

"One of these days Blender Butt, one of these days...." Terrorsaur threatened as they followed their leader down and took cover behind the area's surrounding forest and rock formations, all changing into robot mode as quietly as possible, including their leader, as they watched the battle unfold from their hiding places.

Megatron wanted the traitor dealt with and the weapon destroyed, but he trusted Nemesis, Deathroll, and Umbra to that task, and while he wanted more than anything to strike Zodiac down himself, this was a good opportunity to see all his enemies vanquished at once. Either the maximals would kill Zodiac for him or Zodiac would kill the maximals, again, for him, and the survivor of said conflict would be too weakened by the experience to put up a fight against him and his own forces. In other words, the tyrant would bide his time and wait for the proper moment to strike, besides, if he did enter the fray now the maximals may attack him along with Zodiac, and he was not in the mood for another "ceasefire."

Phoenix wrote: "I'll meet you by the beam origin point," she told Umbra via com link while hoping there would be more space available than in a small hole in the ground. "We're going in," she then informed Megatron next.

"Best of luck to you Subcommander, keep me posted, and in the meantime we'll handle the situation out here" Megatron whispered back to her over their private comm channel, watching the struggle between Primal and Zodiac unfold, uncertain who to root for, but since he wanted Primal's spark for himself, and since Zodiac was the greater threat, he supposed he had Primal's best interests at spark for a change....Even if the temptation to snipe him from their current position was VERY enticing.

Phoenix wrote: He stopped as Optimus uttered those well calculated words, starting to move his head to glance behind him when..

The first shot rammed into his joint, hitting the vulnerable section behind the knee and causing the limb to buckle. Two more shots followed immediately after the first one, burning him, ripping holes in the armor and destroying circuitry in their path as they completely destroyed the functionality of the knee. Zodiac cried out from the sudden pain, his arms shooting out to catch him as he fell forward now that the knee wasn't able to hold up his weight. The pain was severe, a penetrating sharp and burning sensation that seemed to spread throughout the leg with even the slightest of movement in the area. And for that moment, his complete attention was on his wounded leg, now a mangled twisted mess of dislocated circuits where the knee joint had been. It took him a moment to realize that the disguise was quickly disappearing, the nanomachines sweeping over his form from the feet up to reveal his normal appearance in their wake. The bulkier form of the badger was swiftly cast aside for the sleeker, darker appearance of his dragon form. Talons grew out of his heels and ankles, scaly details spreading up his legs, thighs, sides and arms, his helmet changed to that of the dragon's head, and finally a pair of large wings burst out of his backside before coming to a rest on top of the piles of snow and ice that surrounded him.

Zodiac turned his head to look at Optimus with a pained sneer. Even in this form, his affected leg lay twisted in a most unnatural angle, making it blatantly clear that the pain that was so clearly visible on his face was not just for show. For a moment he lay still in the snow, seemingly defeated, until the nanomachines had gathered their senses enough to rush to the wounded joint and proceeded to work on it. But when they did, the process was quick, his leg regaining some functionality within the blink of an eye.

The shapeshifter wasted no time. As soon as he was able to move the leg again, if a bit stiffly since the repairs were not yet complete, Zodiac rolled to the side and pushed himself up with his arms. At the same time Umbra flew overhead and launched his own attack in the form of some blades rigged to explode upon impact. Zodiac narrowly avoided the first blade but the second one hit its mark, embedding itself into his right wing before promptly exploding to form a fair sized hole in its target. Again crying out from the pain of the unexpected sneak attack, Zodiac's wing now hanging limply at his side with smoke emerging from the burnt edges, the wounded pretender chose to ignore the second attacker for now. He had more pressing matters to attend to, and his nanomachines would repair the wound soon enough. There was still some residual pain as the repair process was still ongoing, but that wasn't going to stop him from doing what he should have done long ago.. Destroy Optimus Primal! Now in a state of pure rage, he lunged himself at Optimus at a much faster pace than should be possible given his injuries. Claws extending from his wrists, sharp enough to shred through even the strongest of armor, came slashing at Optimus while Zodiac tackled him to the ground.

Megatron could not help but be amused by how much trouble Zodiac was having dealing with Primal, it was actually rather nice to see the big ape be a thorn in someone else's skid plate for a change, especially live and from such convenient front row seats.

Meanwhile, deep beneath the earth Deathroll neared the mountain, the earth surprisingly easier to burrow through here, no doubt due to all the recent seismic activity. He could sense the battling bots up above him and was eager to join in the fight, but he knew his orders and thus continued on his way under the mountain, digging ever closer to the targets he had been assigned to destroy.

(I know I'm assuming a few things here NK but I hope this works. Wanted to get out and get involved)

Operatives of the council weren't usually into the business of accepting their fates. However, the situation was looking pretty bleak for the transmetal badger. The whole cave was collapsing around him and the lava was slowly consuming the only land mass he could find to prevent his death.

Ironclaw was about to be buried between a mountain and lava when a beam of light suddenly illuminated his position. The badger looked up, as the light revealed his burnt and scratched face. To his surprise it appeared that Landlside had just dug threw the surface of the mountain and managed to come across his position. There wasn't any communication, maybe being so deep the cave disrupted the transmission or perhaps it was caused by the alien machine. It was of little concern now that the beetle was flying careful down to his position. So he would've to fight another day.

When Landslide was close enough, Ironclaw stepped on and grabbed hold with one hand, leaving the rest of his body hanging by the beetle's side. Just like his soldering days when boarding a gunship. Quickly they lifted up through the cave and through the entrance that Landslide previously created. Soon the badger could see the day light more clearly and temperature changing quite rapidly. Together flew out of the hole and everything came into sight all of a sudden. Instantly the badger could see the Maximal's on the cliff side and that Zodiac had already engaged Optimus is close combat. Despite Landslide already gaining significant height, Ironclaw let go and fell towards the mountain side a short distance from the others. He plummeted down and fist first, he crashed into cliff, snow being kicked up by the impact. The snow melted at his feet and evaporated off him due to the intense residual heat.

Ironclaw straightened was looking over the Maximals and his prize.

"ZODIAC!" he bellowed down the mountain for all to hear as it echoed.

"Let me help you. You can't do this alone."

Optimus merely glanced at Whitegrazer. Disappointment may have crossed his orange optics for her blocking their connection for this long while something else was constantly invading his mind; something he was beginning to accept now instead of fighting it.

She's wrong. We CAN do this on our own. Enough of her nonsense and everyone else underestimating us! the voice told him. Primal didn't bother disagreeing this time. His focus was on Zodiac.

"Predacons are coming. I felt Umbra and Nemesis eariler, but they aren't doing anything. Just watching us," "Something is coming, though. I don't know. I don't know who it is. It's unfamilar to me. Better warn Landslide to hurry."

"Landslide, grab Ironclaw an' get outta dere! We got incoming!" Rattrap sent via his comm. link to hurry him along, heeding Whitegrazer's suggestion.

Got better things to do then cleaning up after you guys, so finish it before I do!

"Why don't you just go back to de bottom of the ocean, squid?!" Rattrap shouted up at Umbra, raising his fist that encased his demo charge, shaking it at him as he flew by. Wait a sec... "Uh, when did he learn how ta fly...?" he asked no one in particular. Then he watched Umbra's blades with some fear as to who their intended target was. Fortunately, after they blew up upon impact, it turned out to be Zodiac after Optimus had already shot him as well. Great. It was now or never! And just like that, he lost sight of Tentacles. Where'd he go? So, Umbra had made his appearance, but where was Nemesis? Rattrap looked around their snowy surroundings but couldn't spot her. Were they rendezvousing to the alien machine inside? Very likely. Megatron probably wanted it for himself, or maybe he wanted it shut off if it was also endangering the Darksyde. Where was old Grape Face, anyway? He didn't see him yet either, but the Spy was ready to start shooting, in any case.

"ZODIAC!"

Rattrap turned toward Ironclaw's voice - the real Ironclaw - and saw him and Landslide outside of the mountain. Phew! One less thing to worry about. However, the badger was still set on attacking the shape shifter. Since he didn't know their plan, he might very well mess up their only chance of stopping him without actually killing him, which Rattrap assumed was Ironclaw's only intention. At the same, he could be putting Primal's life in danger.

Primal grinned mischievously when Zodiac fell to his knees, all three of his shots hitting their target. He watched his knee buckle as it was nearly shredded before the nanobots rapidly began their repairs. Even they had a hard time keeping up. He almost cheered at Umbra who flew by overhead and managed to hit the pretender with one of his blades to his wing.

A direct hit! Kick him while he's down! Don't stop! Keep firing!

Wait. Did you see how easily my shots pierced his armor? Optimus asked himself.

It's a weak spot, as it is for many bots. What about it?

No, it might be more than that. He only has so many nanobots for replication. He must have limitations. Maybe he can only replicate someone so small, apparently as small as Aurora as we've seen in the past. And now we know he can replicate someone as large Nexus and Ironclaw. To make up for those expansions of larger bots, it must reduce the thickness of his armor because it causes his tech to spread out thin, explained Primal.

A valid point. I concur. You may not be as foolish as you look after all.

I have my moments. And we're about to have another one, Optimus said with confidence while he watched Zodiac return to his more familiar appearance and charge at him. The Maximal gave a toothy grin and licked his scar as he started to run with his own limp toward the shape shifter. Zodiac was quicker despite his in-motion-repair, however, and had covered more distance, colliding into Optimus first and tackling him to the ground. Primal landed on his back in the snow and started to laugh at Zodiac's obvious rage. Laugh? Yes, laugh. Not a long, drawn-out bellow of laughter, but a short, on-the-verge-of-insanity kind of laugh. Not that he was insane, but perhaps he was beginning to lose his mind. The laughing was abruptly cut off when some of Zodiac's claws slashed across his shoulder and down at an angle across part of his upper chest. A growl of agony and anger escaped his scarred mouth. With his weapon still in his hand, he shoved the barrel of it into the shape-shifter's side and started firing repeatedly until it would make him get off.

Rattrap watched this with great confusion. Why was Optimus laughing? What was so funny about this? "I think de monkey's cheese has slid off of his cracker...," he commented to Whitegrazer. His hand gently played with the charge, flipping it over and over, ready to throw it at Zodiac, but at the moment, he felt that the ape had it under control. ...Sort of... And if not, hopefully Whitegrazer had a way to help the situation.

"Wait, you felt Umbra and Nemesis earlier? Why didn't you tell us before?" "Whoever it is, it doesn't matter. I'm not in a good mood. Need to take out my frustration on someone. And I supposed you don't want that to be one of you.

"Hey, Blackarachnia, any chance you wanna head inta the mountain an' make sure dat weapon is inoperable fer good? We can't afford to let it fall inta Megatron's hands," the rat tried convincing her. "We can use the hole Landslide dug out."

"'Grazer, you stay out here with Landslide, and keep distractin' Zodiac. Optimus'll need an opportunity to get him, uh, you know. Call me when more Preds show up 'cause we know dey will," he told her. Then he motioned to the black widow to follow him, not that he was too keen on going into the mountain seeing how unsteady it probably was, AND he wasn't keen on going in with a Predacon escort who'll probably shoot him in the back, but they had to make sure that the weapon didn't fall into Predacon control. The best option was to destroy it. I must be crazy ta go in here when Umbra an' Nemesis are probably inside, too, he thought grudgingly, putting his special demo charge away but keeping his gun in his hand. The hole Landslide had made was more than enough room for both the spider and the rodent as he reluctantly made his way inside. If she wasn't willing to play along and back him up, then he was as good as dead.

-----

"It's all right," "I can manage.. I think." "The others must have succeeded," "The Axalon seems to be stabilizing."

"We'll assess the damage when it's safe to do so," Rhinox said as he sprayed the floor again with the extinguisher to keep it cooler for their feet. Despite her upbeat attitude at the moment, he frowned lightly at her burns but it shouldn't be anything her beast mode can't handle to heal on its own, he assumed.

"I learned from the master,"

That remark made him chuckle, almost sheepishly. "Where there's a will, there's a way," he smiled at the smaller Maximal. "Let's get back to the command center. We still need to establish communication with the team, after all it's a very risky mission. And we need to keep an eye out for any Predacon activity. Who knows if they'll take advantage of the situation and send a small group to attack us. Hopefully that won't be the case. We have enough damages to repair as it is...," Rhinox said, sounding exhausted as he carefully started making his way back to the bridge. "Well done on the restraints, Aurora," he complimented her work as they walked by some of the things she had tied down to restrict their movement from the earlier quakes. Doing so definitely made a lot less mess and saved them a lot of time not cleaning up and replacing things that had been prevented from breaking. "I know it might not feel like it, but the ship's ventilation and circulation is at maximum capacity. Do you want to go outside and report the damages to me?" he suggested. She probably would have liked to have gotten out of there, at least for a short while after everything that had happened and how hot it was in there.

(OOC:

Mystrea wrote:(I know I'm assuming a few things here NK but I hope this works. Wanted to get out and get involved)

That was the general idea, so no problem! )

After Ironclaw hitched a ride on his side, Landslide flew up into the air, maneuvering through the tunnel he had come through before and into the tunnel he dug out, flying out of the side of the mountain into the air at a low altitude. He tilted his head as he saw Ironclaw jump off.

Ironclaw wrote:"ZODIAC!"

Landslide then looked towards Optimus fighting Zodiac as he came down for a landing near Whitegrazer and Rattrap, transforming to his beetle mode.

Rattrap wrote:"I think de monkey's cheese has slid off of his cracker...,"

Mmmm.. Crackers.. Wait, this wasn't the time for that Landslide thought to himself.

Rattrap wrote:"'Grazer, you stay out here with Landslide, and keep distractin' Zodiac. Optimus'll need an opportunity to get him, uh, you know. Call me when more Preds show up 'cause we know dey will,"

Landslide looked towards Whitegrazer, then looked towards Zodiac transforming to his robot mode. I think we can manage that lad. Landslide's right arm opened with his electro laser extending as he pointed it towards Zodiac, he then fired off a bolt of lightning at Zodiac Lets do somethin' about that healing.

________________________________________________

Meanwhile inside the Volcano, Umbra's tentacles shifted and expanded their webbing, making almost a bell like shape. He started to parashute down, venting some air, as the heat was providing him with a surprising amount of lift. Looking downward, he noticed Landslide picking up Ironclaw and fly off. He gave a shrug, opening his leg compartments and pulled out two demo charges, setting up the timers. Less Maximal interference the better I guess. he said to himself.

Coming down near the alien structure, his legs let out a short burst of thrust to slow his descent further. He then walked over attaching the two demo charges to different points on the structure, then got out a another pair of charges, setting up the timers and placed those at other points. With those set, Umbra investigated the area further, pondering adding more explosives at strategic points of the walls and ceiling. Even if he ran out of demo charges, he could still use explosive daggers as a secondary explosive triggered from the shockwave of the demo charges to add further damage to the structure, though there would also be a risk of triggering the volcano to erupt if he over did it.

((OOC: I saved it, so I will put it back. Didn't know anyone read it yet. I just didn't like it ended. I guess I just wanted to have Whitegrazer do something, but couldn't think of one thing. Felt like I missed something.))

Phoenix wrote:Help me?!, he argued with her. It is the Maimals' generous 'help' that got me in this situation in the first place!

Whitegrazer sighed heavily. Zodiac wasn't going to listen. No matter how hard she tried, and yet, she kept trying to. Trying to reason with him. To get him to leave. Run. Run far. Run far away from this place. Forget his vengeance. Forget Optimus. Especially, after he has failed in his attempts and lost so much. Does he really want to lose everything else? His nanomachines? His life? Over this? Was it really worth it? There really wasn't anything more she could except what TyCross told her before she left. Or reliable on the others. But she really wasn't the standing around and do nothing type. She tried to talk it all out, but it seems no one was listening to her words. Or her messages. Just attacked. Ignored.

She saw that disappointment written all over Optimus' optics before he turned away from her. Sitting his sights on Zodiac. Was he disappointed because she let him alone because of Zodiac? She didn't have a choice. She wanted to unblock her connection and help Optimus, but it wasn't going to help him if she let Zodiac find a way to use their own connection against. To have Zodiac get inside Optimus' own soul. His own thoughts, warping, guilting him even forward than he already was. Though, she regretted one thing: bringing Optimus here.

They shouldn't have brought him here in the first place. That was a grave mistake.

When Optimus shot Zodiac in the knee, as Zodiac buckled, so did she. Almost like Optimus shot her in the knee. The two last shots made her crouched and clenched her knee. Gritting against the pain. She bashed her own knee, trying to make the pain go away. It wasn't like she couldn't handle it. She did. Part of her was in shock. Regret. Sorrow. Betrayed. Part of the reason why her abilities... So many reasons why her abilities were a curse was because despite how hard she tried, she would always feel pain. From her enemies. From her friends. She bashed her knee. Once. Twice. Three times before she tried to standing up again. Her knee trembled under her own weight. She kicked and stomped the snow below. Her knee was fine. She was fine. No, she wasn't fine. She watched as Zodiac started transformed into his true form. Watched his mangled leg move. Zodiac's nanomachines inside her body made towards her knee. Confused that it wasn't mangled. The pain in her systems gave them another false report, and yet, they crawled and fixed what was already fixed. Going back towards her spark once more. They prodded again. Clenched her fists. Her spark pulsed hard against her chest. Umbra came out of his hiding place and threw two blades. Watched...Felt the second one embedded into her right shoulder. She gripped her shoulder blade. Burning hot sensation took over. She patted it. Moved her shoulder around. Numb. Limb. Broken.

All this pain... Helped her abilities become more attuned with her surroundings. Especially, when she sensed a certain badger approaching.

Mystrea wrote:"ZODIAC!"

She was glad to see he was unharmed nor badly injured. Yet, just like Rattrap was thinking, she didn't want Ironclaw to do anything that can hurt what they planned to do with Zodiac. Despite it all, they still wanted Zodiac alive. Without his nanomachines, the asset that made him as dangerous as he is, he would just be like everyone else. There would be no need for a slaughter here.

Or that's what she thought. Except Optimus was behaving almost something she would see from anyone else. He wasn't himself. He hasn't been himself since after this mess all started.

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote: "I think de monkey's cheese has slid off of his cracker...,"

Whitegrazer shook her head, "We should had never brought him here."

Her error. Her fault. Never should have let him come.

"Optimus!" Tried to snapped him out of this... madness that's overcome him. "You are losing yourself."

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:"'Grazer, you stay out here with Landslide, and keep distractin' Zodiac. Optimus'll need an opportunity to get him, uh, you know. Call me when more Preds show up 'cause we know dey will,"

"You be careful, Rattrap. You too, Blackarachnia. I will keep you updated." She said in a pained voice, still sensing that unknown presence coming closer and closer. "It's getting closer."

Then looked at Landslide. Then at Ironclaw.

Then back to Zodiac who was on top of Optimus was laughing his head off. Didn't he know that Zodiac could absorb him with him being in that close proximity? She needed to end this. But she certainly couldn't go out and get in the way of Optimus' barrage of gunfire he was throwing at Zodiac. Not Landslide's aim. Already could feel her sides burning. Needed to do something. Needed to end this. And quickly. She clenched her side. Pain. So much pain. Nanomachines swarmed around her spark. Crawling, prodding, they were nearly there. Her yellow optics brightened. The presences in front of her.... sharper. Clearer. To the point, she could hear both of Zodiac's and Optimus' sparks beating. Feel the heat... hear the sparkling electricity imitating from Landslide's weapon. The electricity that she was going to feel shortly... unless Zodiac dodged it somehow.


________________________________________________________________________________________________

Blackarachnia was impressed by the Maximal ape's brutality and backstabbing. Especially since she wasn't the target of his ire. She looked to see that the white mare and the stinky rat held concerned and confused expressions. The white mare's looked pained. Oh, that's right. She could actually feel Zodiac's pain since she was connected to him somehow. She didn't know how that mare's powers worked, but they seem to do her more harm than good. Didn't understand why the Maximals were so concerned about their leader. Might as well enjoy the show. If Zodiac had done what he did to them, she would have made him suffer and kill him ten times over for what he did. They should all be more worried about the Predacons than their precious leader.

She lowered her weapon when Umbra attacked Zodiac instead of them, but she kept her weapon close though. Megatron had to be coming here. She knew it.

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:"Hey, Blackarachnia, any chance you wanna head inta the mountain an' make sure dat weapon is inoperable fer good? We can't afford to let it fall inta Megatron's hands," the rat tried convincing her. "We can use the hole Landslide dug out."

The rat was trusting her to go with him and check on the weapon? He either didn't think she would pull something or believed he could handle her or he wanted to be far away from watching his leader go nuts so he won't be a target. Either way, she might have a chance to grab the weapon for herself. If it was operational or fixable. "All right, I just hope it's still off. I don't want to get trapped inside an alien mountain for eternity.

una wrote:"You be careful, Rattrap. You too, Blackarachnia. I will keep you updated." She said in a pained voice, still sensing that unknown presence coming closer and closer. "It's getting closer."

"What do you keep blabbering about? What's getting closer?" She didn't get this Maximal. Just shook her head. Look at the rat, sighing before following him. Eager to get her hands at that weapon.

"Best of luck to you Subcommander, keep me posted, and in the meantime we'll handle the situation out here"

Nemesis ignored Megatron using the commander term so loosely. After all she had never asked for the position, not even desired it. Her ambitions lay elsewhere. And Megatron was not a bot that one should correct on such trivial things, so she wisely chose to keep her mouth shut about it.

She continued making her way up the mountain, keeping low to the ground as not to be easily spotted but still high enough to not leave any tracks in the snow below. The snow was whipping up around her anyway, the winds getting stronger the further up the mountain she got. Freezing cold gusts of wind tugged at her transmetal feathers, making her feel fortunate that she was indeed not a real bird otherwise she would have ended up being featherless by now.. If not already frozen to death.

Since she had taken a longer path up the side of the mountain, Umbra had already descended into the depths of the mountain by the time Nemesis got to the beam origin point. The beam itself was still firing off into space through a relatively wide opening in the volcanic mountain. She could feel the heat emerging from the otherwise calm volcano, the snow and ice having melted from the area surrounding the crater, finding it to be a pleasant change from the freezing cold winds even though she wasn't overly keen on heat either.

Well.. They'd have to stop the beam one way or another, Nemesis thought with a sigh, and jumped in. She only used her wings briefly to slow her descent and to control her landing point. A moment later she landed with a thud next to Umbra, who was already busy setting the demolition charges. Not wasting any time, she, too, pulled out a couple of charges that she had grabbed at the Darksyde before they departed, and strategically placed them near rocky columns so that when they blew the entire mountain would come down on top of the alien contraption.

"Let's go," she then urged Umbra, not wanting to be anywhere near this place when those charges ignited. "Megatron is holding back, watching the fight." If they were lucky, there would still be something left of Zodiac to bring back to the Predacon base for further.. questioning.

"We'll assess the damage when it's safe to do so,"

"I just want to cool down a bit," Aurora responded, involuntarily flinching a bit whenever Rhinox sprayed the floor at their feet. Even though she tried to keep up a brave face, this was an experience she really did not wish to repeat. Ever. Hopefully the others were okay.. The fuzor was especially worried about Optimus given that he'd been the target of the shapeshifter's rage and also the fact their leader hadn't exactly been the most stable lately. For good reasons, she was sure, but she could only hope that Whitegrazer would be able to keep him calm and focused.

"Where there's a will, there's a way," he smiled at the smaller Maximal. "Let's get back to the command center. We still need to establish communication with the team, after all it's a very risky mission. And we need to keep an eye out for any Predacon activity. Who knows if they'll take advantage of the situation and send a small group to attack us. Hopefully that won't be the case. We have enough damages to repair as it is...,"

To be honest, the fuzor wanted little more than to follow the others to the mountain. But since neither she nor Rhinox were among the fastest Maximals, the likelihood of her larger mentor agreeing were pretty remote. So she merely nodded and tagged along to the command center.

"It would be a relief if we could get in touch with them and get a progress report, for sure," she replied, unable to hold back a faint smile as he complimented her on the work she did earlier on the restraints. Yeah.. they'd help up well enough. Not that it would have mattered much if the entire base had been swallowed by the very ground itself. Thankfully the often moody planet had stilled now and the temperature had started coming down a bit.

"I know it might not feel like it, but the ship's ventilation and circulation is at maximum capacity. Do you want to go outside and report the damages to me?"

Her smile widened a bit as he said those words. "I thought you'd never ask," she said, eager to get outside and away from this infernal heat. Granted it was likely not much better out there but at least the wind could help cool her down a bit.

"ZODIAC!"

Ironclaw's enraged outburst echoed along the mountainside. Zodiac heard it but he was far too preoccupied with what had been going on to react much to it as things were. Alas it appeared that his bad luck streak had not yet ended. Could the situation really get much worse than it already was?

His knee was just about repaired by now, but strangely enough it felt like some of the pain was mirrored back to him via his link to the female. It was as if she'd been shot in the knee as well, the pain being transmitted back and forth between them and thus amplifying his own for a moment. The pain that was reflected back to him wasn't nearly as bad as the initial impact had been, some of it had been absorbed by the female, but it was still an uncomfortable reminder. He grimaced a bit at this notion, briefly wondering just how his once perfect plan had gone so wrong. Well, that didn't matter much anymore. Now all that was important was to salvage what he could from this situation and finish what he had set out to do.

He slashed Primal's chest repeatedly with his wrist blades, eager to draw blood, to end this nuisance once and for all. Primal, of course, did what he was becoming renowned for.. Refused to give up, to die! Zodiac felt the weapon being pressed against his abdomen and then the sharp pain that followed when Primal opened fire. He jerked back, fighting his instincts to remove himself from the pain, but a quick glance in Whitegrazer's direction convinced him that he'd be able to handle it. After all his nanomachines were effectively repairing the damage, even though the pain was still building to new levels. Grimacing from the pain, Zodiac reached out an arm and wrapped his fingers around Primal's weapons, allowing his nanomachines to spread out via his fingertips and devour the weapon to assist with his healing process.

Thus far he was unaware of Landslide's sneak attack..

Phoenix wrote: "Let's go," she then urged Umbra, not wanting to be anywhere near this place when those charges ignited. "Megatron is holding back, watching the fight." If they were lucky, there would still be something left of Zodiac to bring back to the Predacon base for further.. questioning.

"Commander, report" Megatron said to Nemesis over the comms as he continued to watch the struggle between the maximals and Zodiac progress, Primal seemingly to be truly out of it, delivering devastating blows to the increasingly more frustrated looking Zodiac.

"When do we get in on the action?" Terrorsaur inquired, growing impatient from waiting while the action was out there waiting for him, so many unsuspecting backs for him to stab!

"Inferno, if you would be so kind?" Megatron replied dryly as the ant dutifully replied "As you command Royalty" before bopping Terrorsaur on the head to silence him, the pterodactyle rubbing his aching head to ease the pain as he glared at both Megatron and Inferno with the utmost contempt no his face.

"Well done soldier" Megatron said in thanks as his attention was drawn back to the battle at hand with the return of Ironclaw.

Mystrea wrote: Operatives of the council weren't usually into the business of accepting their fates. However, the situation was looking pretty bleak for the transmetal badger. The whole cave was collapsing around him and the lava was slowly consuming the only land mass he could find to prevent his death.

Ironclaw was about to be buried between a mountain and lava when a beam of light suddenly illuminated his position. The badger looked up, as the light revealed his burnt and scratched face. To his surprise it appeared that Landlside had just dug threw the surface of the mountain and managed to come across his position. There wasn't any communication, maybe being so deep the cave disrupted the transmission or perhaps it was caused by the alien machine. It was of little concern now that the beetle was flying careful down to his position. So he would've to fight another day.

When Landslide was close enough, Ironclaw stepped on and grabbed hold with one hand, leaving the rest of his body hanging by the beetle's side. Just like his soldering days when boarding a gunship. Quickly they lifted up through the cave and through the entrance that Landslide previously created. Soon the badger could see the day light more clearly and temperature changing quite rapidly. Together flew out of the hole and everything came into sight all of a sudden. Instantly the badger could see the Maximal's on the cliff side and that Zodiac had already engaged Optimus is close combat. Despite Landslide already gaining significant height, Ironclaw let go and fell towards the mountain side a short distance from the others. He plummeted down and fist first, he crashed into cliff, snow being kicked up by the impact. The snow melted at his feet and evaporated off him due to the intense residual heat.

Ironclaw straightened was looking over the Maximals and his prize.

"ZODIAC!" he bellowed down the mountain for all to hear as it echoed.

"Well well well, Zodiac is a popular bot today isn't he?" Megatron mused as he opened a com to Deathroll and said "Subcommander, change of plans, surface now and intercept the maximal Ironclaw, you can't miss him, he's a transmetal badger yelling like an idiot several clicks from here on a cliff face."

"As you command, Lord Megatron" Deathroll responded as he changed course and began to burrow upwards, towards the greatest amount of seismic activity, no doubt the battleground of which his leader spoke, where he could meet his designated opponent face to face, and maybe "inconvenience" some other foes along the way.

He wished he could see the maximals faces as he neared the surface, no doubt some of them thinking the weapon was unleashing another tremor, only for them to be greeted by a massive drill tank that tore through the earth like tissue paper, spraying debris everywhere as he barreled past the dueling Optimus Primal and Zodiac, his sheer size and bulk combined with his heavy treads and armor piercing drill making "brushing past them" quite the unpleasant experience indeed.

"Pardon me strangers, I have a badger to bash" the ex-decepticon quipped as he rolled onward, catching sight of his enemy quickly, since as Megatron had described, he had made himself a rather obvious target, so he opened fire upon him with his back mounted beam cannons and destroyed the cliff upon which he had been standing, watching as the badger fell down the mountain towards his location, his drill spinning once more to greet him once he hit the ground.

Megatron had to stifle his laughter at the sight of how Deathroll had treated both Primal and Zodiac and said "I rather like that alligator, yyyyyeeeesssss."

OOC: sorry for the wait guys, hope this post works.

"Optimus!" "You are losing yourself."

Everything seemed to happen all at once. Primal was firing point blank into Zodiac's abdomen, releasing some tension and anger, but the shapeshifter's swipes to his chest with his blades finally started to make him succumb to the pain with every cut and his weakened a little bit. He gave a quick lick to the scar over his lips as his new wounds started to bleed, dripping down his side by following the law of gravity as he laid there on his back. He heard Whitegrazer's voice which sounded distant to him, but it caused him to stop firing into Zodiac and to look over at her from where he laid.

Ignore her. She's distracting you! Keep firing, you fool!

No! She's right... Besides, my shots aren't doing any- Optimus stopped himself when he realized Whitegrazer was buckled over, clutching her knee and seeming to be in a great deal of pain despite no visible damage. She soon held her side, the same side he had just been firing on Zodiac. Same knee, same side... They are..., he thought, referring to his shots. Wounding Zodiac is harming Whitegrazer... he suddenly realized. While the mare used to be a champ at hiding the pain she'd feel through others, especially through Optimus, she clearly wasn't able to hide this, and it was his doing. His rage and carelessness was putting her in more anguish than she should ever have to cope with. This revelation forced him to stop his senseless onslaught on Zodiac, however, it was then when the shapeshifter grabbed a hold of Primal's gun and he watched in both curiosity and horror as his nanobots crept onto the barrel like a swarm of tiny black spiders, reaching out and devouring his weapon. He quickly released it, afraid and disgusted of those things getting onto him after what had happened between Zodiac and Whitegrazer.

A trembling under his body and the surrounding ground made Optimus think that the machine hadn't been stopped after all, that Ironclaw had failed. But this felt more... isolated and localized. And very, very close... But who could possibly be making all of that ruckus?

"Pardon me strangers, I have a badger to bash"

After being decorated by snow and dirt thanks to the new Predacon spewing it all over him and Zodiac, Optimus tried to watch him with his view being upside down from his position. Where had he come from?! Where did Megatron find him?! A pod that the Maximals failed to acquire or even acknowledge? Granted, they had been preoccupied, but... That's why Megatron had been so quiet lately and why he never showed up at the Axalon earlier during Dirge's attack with the Predacon fliers! Slag it all! He gained another Predacon! And by the looks of it, as brief as his observation was, he was a big, powerful Pred. "No! Ironclaw, look out!" he tried warning the TransMetal badger, but his voice was probably smothered by this new bot's cannons that he fired at a cliff. Surely Ironclaw was all right, but he couldn't help but worry. If this new Predacon had just showed up, it was likely that there were more of his teammates around, but with Zodiac towering over his body, he could see very little, nor did he have the time to look.

A bright flash drew his attention back to Whitegrazer where Landslide had just shot off that impressive and probably very effective "lightning" gun. But if it were to hit Zodiac, who would obviously suffer more damage than any of them because of his technology, then Whitegrazer was going to feel even more pain. He couldn't let that happen; he wasn't that far gone or selfish. He knew Landslide's intentions meant well to try and stop Zodiac's impeccable healing, but this time he'd have to spare Zodiac and sacrifice himself. Hopefully the beetle would make the connection and think of another way that wouldn't also mean hurting Whitegrazer... if that was even plausible. Could freezing Zodiac's nanobots slow down their functioning? On the other hand, maybe he just about to screw up Landslide's great attempt... This was going to hurt, but it would be worth it to help the mare. She wouldn't be able to feel the electrocution with him since she had blocked him off a while ago, but just in case, he put up a barrier as well within their bond. With Zodiac pulling back a little after his shots to his stomach, Optimus bent his legs at the knees and pulled them up to his lacerated chest to wedge them between his body and the shapeshifter. Then he managed to kick his opponent in the chest as hard as he could to get him out of the way, even using a quick burst from the thrusters in his feet since Zodiac was a large fellow. The "lightning bolts" zipped and zapped through the windy snowfall, and he could feel the electricity in the cold air as they neared him. After feeling a strong, numbing surge throughout his TransMetal frame and seeing a bright flash, everything went dark, and Optimus laid there unconscious with his body smoking a little while his systems frantically tried rebooting and getting him back on-line as quickly as possible.

(( OOC: He won't be out long; be up and running again in my next post. ))

-----

"We should had never brought him here."

Rattrap had frowned at the mare's words, which may or may not have been right, but assured her, "He'll get it done. He just needs an opening." Right? Yes, he argued with himself. Yes, he'll do it. He knows how much is ridin' on dis. He won't wanna let Aurora down... or Nexus.

"All right, I just hope it's still off. I don't want to get trapped inside an alien mountain for eternity.

"Uh, me either," the rat blatantly pointed out. 'Course, I'd be more dan happy leave ya behind, he thought snarkily. He assumed he was a better digger than her, so even if they did get trapped, he could eventually tunnel his way out.

"You be careful, Rattrap. You too, Blackarachnia. I will keep you updated." "It's getting closer."

The Spy stopped for a moment and looked back over his shoulder, wondering, What's gettin' closer? Blackarachnia beat him to the punch.

"What do you keep blabbering about? What's getting closer?"

"Just keep me posted, 'Grazer, alright?" Rattrap asked of her before descending further into Landslide's tunnel with Blackarachnia behind him. It wasn't dark inside as he had thought it would be; there were cracks everywhere with the glow of lava emitting from them and lighting their way with a dull illumination. It was much warmer, which he liked, but he made sure to keep his sensors and scanners on high alert for any suspicious activity, especially it came from the notoriously greedy black widow. There were a few boulders here and there that had since fallen from the ceiling after Landslide's digging but it didn't make their journey impassible. Further and further they kept walking, his gun ready to shoot, when they finally came to the area with the weapon and where Ironclaw and Zodiac must have been duking it out. It was extremely hot, and there seemed to be no easy way to get over to the alien machine. Either it was jumping across lava pits or climbing over large mounds of rocks that appeared to have been a cave-in. Of course, he'd sooner take the mounds than the pits.

Watching Umbra placing what looked like demolition charges all over the place, he narrowed his optics and shouted, "Hey! Hold it right there! You know what yer doin', Tentacles?" He targeted him with his gun. "You better be tryin' ta blow dis thing up or blow yerself up, pal, 'cause I ain't in the mood for any more earthquakes or eruptin' volcanoes." Allegedly, reports confirmed that Umbra was a saboteur and an infiltrator, having similar skills as the Maximal Spy, but who knew where this guy's intentions laid; for the Predacons to gain control of the weapon, for himself, to demolish the Maximals with the volcano, just to name a few. Then he spotted Nemesis on the side doing the same thing; planting demo charges. Rattrap was growing increasingly nervous being surrounded by so many Predacons now... and perhaps demolition charges, but mostly Predacons. He laid his index finger on the trigger of his gun but hesitated firing... for good reasons. It just made him feel better and less alone if he had his gun ready to defend himself.

There was a large blast outside ((from Deathroll's cannons)) that shook the cabin of the mountain a little bit, small pieces of rock falling every where which Rattrap jump a little. He was just ready to run if it came down to that. Glancing at the weapon, there was a lot of Vok symbols and language on it, and some damage likely from Ironclaw disabling it. He wondered how Zodiac could have known this was here and how to operate it. His only solution was that Zodiac was in cahoots with the alien species. Some how. He didn't know how or why but it certainly gave them even more questions to answers they'd probably never obtain. Those darn cliffhangers. "You guys wanna tell us what's goin' on 'ere, or are we gonna have ta prematurely detonate dose explosives yer deckin' the halls with?" he tried threatening them.

-----

"I just want to cool down a bit,"

Rhinox nodded. He'd also like to cool down a bit, but he just couldn't right now. He had to keep moving forward with their problems and finding solutions. However, that didn't mean he couldn't give her a break. Aurora had been through a lot lately, so hopefully "throwing" her outside would be a welcomed opportunity to cool off and keep her mind on other things, like watching for Predacons and checking out the damage on the exterior of the ship, particularly where the flooring was melting inside.

"It would be a relief if we could get in touch with them and get a progress report, for sure,"

"Agreed. I just have to find the problem first in order to fix it," he said with a soft sigh toward his endless efforts and work. "Until then, we'll just have to hope for the best and stay vigilant." The engineer smiled warmly at her to keep her spirits up despite her injuries and the radio silence from the team in the field.

"I thought you'd never ask,"

Rhinox almost chuckled at her eagerness, watching her hurry on out, but it didn't last when he got right back to work at the communications console on the bridge.

(( OOC: Not much for Rhinox, sorry, Phoenix, but I need to wrap this up and get ready for bed soon. ))

((OOC: I will post for Blackarachnia for now. Working on Whitegrazer's part still. ))

Blackarachnia still couldn't believe Rattrap was bringing her along in this little expedition for a weapon, which she wanted to have so badly. But this only worked if the device was still functional. If that Maximal badger destroyed it, she would have no choice but to be left with her own wits, catering to Maximals while she secretly salvaged parts and weapons for her own. As she followed Rattrap through the holes dug by Landslide, she was wondering about what if this weapon was destroyed. Her plans. How was she going to get back at Tarantulas, Arachnitron, and Megatron for the way they have treated her? And nothing mattered if Tarantulas could just get inside her mind and destroy her every chance, her every move. Nothing. She needed to get that big rhino to get gruesome's mind outta of herself. But she wondered how that would go? Energon was painful, but it worked. He might have to do something similar in order for Tarantulas' link to be severed from her mind.

She was not looking forward to that.

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:"Hey! Hold it right there! You know what yer doin', Tentacles?" He targeted him with his gun. "You better be tryin' ta blow dis thing up or blow yerself up, pal, 'cause I ain't in the mood for any more earthquakes or eruptin' volcanoes."

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote:"You guys wanna tell us what's goin' on 'ere, or are we gonna have ta prematurely detonate dose explosives yer deckin' the halls with?" he tried threatening them.

Blackarachnia followed Rattrap's lead. Held her weapon towards her side. Ready to fire if Umbra or Nemesis dared to attack. She was prepared but amused. She noticed Rattrap's stance and itchy finger. He seemed nervous. She held her laughter at the fact that the Maximal rat was surrounded by people he distrusted and would give no qulams in firing if he had to. Except there was more of them than him. She saw the device and her optics brightened.

"So that is the little gizmo that was being plaguing both sides, huh? Her optics zoomed in to get a closer look herself. Noticing its design. The symbols... Familiar. Written like the language on the disk. The knowledge she stolen from Megatron's backup datatracks. She was glad it was destroyed. Only disabled. Once Rattrap was distracted by the sudden noise outside, she took her chance and make a grab for it. This could be her ticket for freedom!

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Optimal Optimus Primal wrote: "He'll get it done. He just needs an opening."

Whitegrazer understood what Rattrap meant. Understood everyone's reason as to why Optimus was here. Part of her agreed. Optimus needed to face Zodiac because he is a piece of Optimus' past. Something... Someone he needed to face. Certain facets of his past he needed to know the truth and accept it. Then move on from it. But there was another part that disagreed. No one... No one felt what she felt through Optimus when he was being beaten by Megatron in the Darksyde. No one felt Optimus' agony or torment. Conflicting emotions of trying to hold on to his beliefs to attacking those who hurt him in all his rage and sorrow. No one heard the voices inside his mind, his own mind, fighting for dominance. The pain... the anguish... The revelations he faced for the last few days haven't stopped egging him on to the point, she feared, where he snapped and do something he regretted. Optimus was hurt. Deeply. Badly. And if anything happened to him, if he did something today, it would be on her. On her hands. Because she didn't do anything to stop it. She let it happen, and a part of her may never forgive herself if it did. Because she knew. And did nothing.

Yes, it would be your fault. You are wasting the perfect opportunity you have here. Those nanomachines inside you. They are giving you back your true power. Your true potential. Have you been blinded and weakened for so long that you can't see or feel it? Or maybe you don't want to? Maybe you are afraid.

Maybe she was. The last time... The last thing she remembered when she was at full power was feeling the screams and echoes of her friends and enemies drowning out her own thoughts. Her own feelings. She screamed back at everyone, and watched them all, saw them all dead at her feet. Exhausted. Anger. Feeling used. Lied. Deceived. Wanting so bad to use her abilities to grab the lying throats of the High Council and rip them apart through the inside. Show the Tripredicus Council what it meant to kneel before a superior force. Maximals. Predacons. Those words meant nothing to her once. Only served to identify who she was dealing with. Maximals were weak and liars. Predacons were murderers and savages. A different person at the time. She was different. Her thoughts changed. She was wiser now. Losing her powers was a form of punishment she imposed on herself. A price she paid. And a price she willingly paid even if she felt useless sometimes.

Closing her optics, focused on the nanomachines. They were close to finishing. But it didn't matter. She feel it. It was like a new life awakening into the world. With her senses at full peak. Sight. Hearing. Feeling. Oh, so much feeling. Nothing could be hidden from her. She felt Megatrons's presence above. Far yet close enough to feel his dominating, omnious presence from her. Inferno's. Burning, tinkling sense. Sense of duty. Terrorsaur's. Pride. But Megatron's... It was hard to read him for Megatron sent off waves of different emotions towards her. From being rage to passionate, from serious to cold and shut. It was difficult, but she could sense his amusement. He was enjoying this struggle below him. Optimus and Zodiac's fight. As long as he kept his distance, she wouldn't have a problem, but if he dared, she would make to keep him away from Optimus. No matter what. He won't lift one finger on him.

The presence she felt earlier. She stepped back a bit. Watched as the enormous... Predacon made his way towards Ironclaw.

"Landslide! Help Ironclaw!" she shouted towards the Maximal beetle.

She would help Optimus with Zodiac. She stepped forward. Couldn't see what was happening between Optimus and Zodiac until she got a bit closer and saw Optimus laying on the ground. His body smoking and crackling. Landslide's electricty must have strike him by accident or.... he took the hit. No. That's what happened. He took the hit because of her. He saw her. He saw her in pain, and didn't want her to feel anymore. Curse herself for being so weak. She gave him more pain by expressing it. She wanted to run on there and hold him. Wanting to take him away from here. Yet, she couldn't.

I have been foolish. Careless. With Aurora. Now, with Optimus. This can't continue.

Whitegrazer put herself in between Optimus and Zodiac. Keeping Zodiac from harming Optimus. She stared at Zodiac. Calm. Serene. Zodiac, I have given you chance after chance to walk away. To leave. To let go. You haven't heed my warnings. Have you felt it, Zodiac? The power you are sensing that is growing and growing stronger by the minute. Your nanomachines... Your nanomachines... are helping me. Regaining what I lost for a long time. You wonder why? Zodiac? Why? Did you see the flash of me on the table? Have you connected the dots? It's alien, isn't it? But you ever wonder where or who they got such knowledge from?

She lowered her head. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for all the pain you went through there. They knew nothing of the power they had. The power they couldn't understand. But sadly, Zodiac, you don't either.

"Agreed. I just have to find the problem first in order to fix it," he said with a soft sigh toward his endless efforts and work. "Until then, we'll just have to hope for the best and stay vigilant."

Vigilant.. Right. Aurora would just have to keep reminding herself of that. But it wasn't easy sometimes, not one bit. "Do you think the others are all right?," Aurora inquired as she gathered her equipment to check the damages outside. The concern was evident in her voice. It had been a while since they heard back from the rest and with the long distance communication down, those worries she'd forced to the back of her mind were now starting to resurface. The machine seemed to have been stopped, at least temporarily, but truthfully Aurora was going to remain worried until they were all back together again and the sneaky pretender was back behind bars.. or whatever they ended up doing with him.

"Commander, report"

Nemesis managed to hold back a groan as Megatron demanded a progress report while they were in the middle of setting up the demolition charges. As usual their leader's timing was impeccable.

"We are preparing to destroy the source of the signal," she responded on their private channel, rigging another explosive to blow as she spoke, "Charges are in place and ready to activate."


She paused briefly as the sound of voices caught her attention. Glancing over at Umbra only to see the pesky Maximal rodent along with the traitor, brought a somewhat devious smile to her face. "And it would appear we have some company. BlackArachnia is here along with one of her new Maximal friends," the transmetal avian Predacon continued. The spider had made her choice and Nemesis was not going to defend her this time. Not that it was even possible to protect the she-spider anymore now that Umbra was reporting to Megatron as well.

"Hey! Hold it right there! You know what yer doin', Tentacles?"

Nemesis turned to face the rodent once more, her arms crossed as she did.

"You sound nervous, Maximal," the female Predacon pointed despite the fact Rattrap's question had been directed at the cephalopod. She had not forgotten how Rattrap had treated her during her brief stay with the Maximals, a favor she had no issues with repaying in full.

"You guys wanna tell us what's goin' on 'ere, or are we gonna have ta prematurely detonate dose explosives yer deckin' the halls with?"

"Lest you forget that you would be trapped in here as well, rodent, " she replied, calling him out on his bluff, while moving closer. Keeping a close optic on the traitorous spider as well, her movements appeared almost casual in nature. Even if it had only been a few short days since she had defended the spider against the rampaging Sentinel at the time, everything had changed since then. She may not have wanted the position Megatron granted her, but she was certainly not going to reject it. What Megatron had truly provided her was not just a position of power, but the opportunity to change the course of history. A chance to create a better life for herself and her kin, and the ability to destroy those who wanted to harm her.

The sound of gunfire hitting the mountain caught her attention, but it didn't seem to pose an immediate threat so Nemesis quickly refocused her attention on the rodent and the spider.

Zodiac kept slashing across Optimus' chest repeatedly, deliberately aiming each slash in a different location as to cause the most damage and not letting a single area grow numb to the pain. Granted he was not immune to the pain either and Optimus' shots against his abdomen, even if they weren't going to kill him due to the efforts of his nanomachines, the damage was still causing him to hurt. As the pain grew, as did the grunts escaping him and the grimaces on his face, and he quickly realized that Primal was simply too far gone to realize when to stop. The shapeshifter changed his position uncomfortably, his hand gripping the invasive weapon as he let his nanomachines feast on it. They effectively stripped the metal off, using the metal as raw materials.

Optimus wisely dropped his weapon, ceasing the onslaught against the shapeshifter and finally allowing his machines to fully heal him instead of the gaping hole the bullets had been creating. For but a moment, Zodiac slowed his movements as well, merely staring at the other male. Optimus' optics had drifted to Whitegrazer and he seemed far more concerned with her well being than with his own. And at that time, the shapeshifter's attention drifted to the female as well, actually seeing the physical pain she was experiencing that he had already felt but ignored through their link. A grin developed on his face as he took note of what was happening, his own fusion cannons sliding into place and taking aim at Optimus. "So this is how it ends.. Pathetic," he taunted, only to feel Primal's legs bend and push against his chest. The kick came suddenly, unexpectedly, and send him sprawling a short distance away from the other male. His grin quickly changing to a sneer, Zodiac glared back at Optimus only to see the other male twist and tremble in pain as the electric surge from Landslide's discharged weapon spread through his body. Smoke started rising from the now still form, witnessing of the circuits that surely must have been fried from Landslide's weapon. Zodiac remembered that weapon being used on himself a bit too clearly and it was no an experience he had any intention of going through again.

The shapeshifter's optics widened a bit in surprise before it dawned on him that Optimus' actions had just saved him from a similar fate.. And his beloved Whitegrazer as well. Zodiac must have looked confused for a moment until his opportunistic tendencies started kicking in again. He started getting up, ready to kick Optimus while he was still down.. Still suffering..

Whitegrazer got up too. This time she was a little quicker and positioned herself between the two males. Zodiac merely sent her a frown.

Zodiac, I have given you chance after chance to walk away. To leave. To let go. You haven't heed my warnings. Have you felt it, Zodiac? The power you are sensing that is growing and growing stronger by the minute. Your nanomachines... Your nanomachines... are helping me. Regaining what I lost for a long time. You wonder why? Zodiac? Why? Did you see the flash of me on the table? Have you connected the dots? It's alien, isn't it? But you ever wonder where or who they got such knowledge from?

Her question was intriguing.. yet ultimately futile. He would not allow her to keep distracting him. Not when he finally had an opportunity to rid himself of Primal and make him pay for everything he had done.

On the table.. He did remember bits and pieces of that. It was similar to his own experiences yet vastly different. Instead of implementing new technology, they were taking something.. He felt their thirst for knowledge, for understanding, as much as he had felt it when he was exposed to a similar ordeal. His taunt that had been building up died before he even had time to finish processing it. Instead he merely looked at her with his iridescent dark optics, a quizzical look that reflected his emotions well at that point in time. But the moment was not going to last..

He didn't know what the memories meant, exactly, other than that the female's history was tied to the aliens much like his own was. They were he same yet so very different.

Where it came from doesn't matter, he argued with her internally. As for the nanomachines.. well..

His optics suddenly narrowed as he used all his focus to communicate with the nanomachines via their mental link, commanding them to stop tending to her injuries but instead attack her from within. He felt the tiny machines' hesitancy initially, their limited ability to function outside their parameters causing them to question the order to attack their host body. But upon sensing the growing irritation of their master, they did comply. Due to the very limited amount that were still functional within Whitegrazer, it would not be a swift process. But it would be painful, he hoped, as they slowly consumed her vital organs from the inside. It was true he might feel some discomfort as well, at least for as long as their cursed link remained open, but it would be well worth it to see her slowly die.

They know who their master is.


He sent her one last glance followed by a wicked smile, then merely smacked her out of the way with his arm. This was followed up with a brutal kick to the unconscious Primal's gut so that he would be knocked onto his backside. He wanted to see his face when he delivered the final blow, even if the other male was not awake for it. He still wanted to see the light fade from Primal's optics.

"Oh Optimus," the pretender told him, almost sounding a bit disappointed as he crouched down next to his foe, "You struggled valiantly but in the end it was all for nothing. For you see.."

He paused for a moment, twitching a bit as he felt as if something was biting him on the inside of the armor. A sort of burning sensation, almost. It wasn't really him, of course, but instead the feedback he got through the open connection with the white female. Even now she was trying to shelter the others from the pain as was her nature. Or at least that's what he presumed was the reason it wasn't worse.

"You lose."

He grabbed the Maximal's chin with his hand, jerking the face to force him to look directly at the pretender.. his killer. Then he turned the head to face Whitegrazer, wanting Primal to know what he had set in motion before he died.

"I wouldn't count on her to save you this time," the shapeshifter continued darkly, "As she is about to join you in the smelting pits!"

Phoenix wrote:
"We are preparing to destroy the source of the signal," she responded on their private channel, rigging another explosive to blow as she spoke, "Charges are in place and ready to activate."


She paused briefly as the sound of voices caught her attention. Glancing over at Umbra only to see the pesky Maximal rodent along with the traitor, brought a somewhat devious smile to her face. "And it would appear we have some company. BlackArachnia is here along with one of her new Maximal friends," the transmetal avian Predacon continued. The spider had made her choice and Nemesis was not going to defend her this time. Not that it was even possible to protect the she-spider anymore now that Umbra was reporting to Megatron as well.

Megatron smiled at the revelation of Blackarachnia's proximity to the alien weapon and commanded "Then see to it that she goes up in smoke along with the weapon, but be quick about it, the beacon must be silenced and the weapon destroyed first and foremost...But if the spider can be squashed along with the Vok's toys then I'd call that a win win scenario, Commander."

Megatron continued to be pleased with the new chain of command he had established, between Nemesis' efficiency and Deathroll's raw power he'd build a proper predacon army out of these rapscallions yet.

OOP Wrote: A bright flash drew his attention back to Whitegrazer where Landslide had just shot off that impressive and probably very effective "lightning" gun. But if it were to hit Zodiac, who would obviously suffer more damage than any of them because of his technology, then Whitegrazer was going to feel even more pain. He couldn't let that happen; he wasn't that far gone or selfish. He knew Landslide's intentions meant well to try and stop Zodiac's impeccable healing, but this time he'd have to spare Zodiac and sacrifice himself. Hopefully the beetle would make the connection and think of another way that wouldn't also mean hurting Whitegrazer... if that was even plausible. Could freezing Zodiac's nanobots slow down their functioning? On the other hand, maybe he just about to screw up Landslide's great attempt... This was going to hurt, but it would be worth it to help the mare. She wouldn't be able to feel the electrocution with him since she had blocked him off a while ago, but just in case, he put up a barrier as well within their bond. With Zodiac pulling back a little after his shots to his stomach, Optimus bent his legs at the knees and pulled them up to his lacerated chest to wedge them between his body and the shapeshifter. Then he managed to kick his opponent in the chest as hard as he could to get him out of the way, even using a quick burst from the thrusters in his feet since Zodiac was a large fellow. The "lightning bolts" zipped and zapped through the windy snowfall, and he could feel the electricity in the cold air as they neared him. After feeling a strong, numbing surge throughout his TransMetal frame and seeing a bright flash, everything went dark, and Optimus laid there unconscious with his body smoking a little while his systems frantically tried rebooting and getting him back on-line as quickly as possible.

"Well, while I wouldn't want others to think I'm the sort to kick a bot when he's down but...What can I say? I AM the sort who'd kick a bot when he's down, shoot him too" Megatron joked cruelly, eliciting laughter from his troops.

"Take to the skies my flyers, be as loud as you like, our patience has paid off, and the time for subtlety is at an end" Megatron said, watching with a satisfied smirk as Inferno, Terrorsaur, and Waspinator took the air cackling wildly with barely contained glee at the thought of picking their enemies off when they were already so badly beaten from battle already, while he took the more subtle approach and trekked across the field on foot, hiding behind rock formations and sheets of ice and snow to hide his approach while his boisterous air force drew all the attention away from himself.

"Well, perhaps for the likes of you, but subtlety is yet of use to me, yyyyyeesssss" Megatron mused to himself as he moved as quickly yet quietly as he could across the battlefield, pausing only to find cover until he was ready to move yet again, while he observed his forces go to work as it were.

Phoenix wrote: "Oh Optimus," the pretender told him, almost sounding a bit disappointed as he crouched down next to his foe, "You struggled valiantly but in the end it was all for nothing. For you see.."

He paused for a moment, twitching a bit as he felt as if something was biting him on the inside of the armor. A sort of burning sensation, almost. It wasn't really him, of course, but instead the feedback he got through the open connection with the white female. Even now she was trying to shelter the others from the pain as was her nature. Or at least that's what he presumed was the reason it wasn't worse.

"You lose."

He grabbed the Maximal's chin with his hand, jerking the face to force him to look directly at the pretender.. his killer. Then he turned the head to face Whitegrazer, wanting Primal to know what he had set in motion before he died.

"I wouldn't count on her to save you this time," the shapeshifter continued darkly, "As she is about to join you in the smelting pits!"

"FOR THE GLORY OF THE ROYALTY!!! DDDDDIIIIIIVVVVVVVE!" Inferno screamed triumphantly, his compound eyes wide with madness and blind devotion as he led the predacon fliers downwards towards Primal, Whitegrazer, & Zodiac, bombarding the area with their combined firepower, showing no quarter to either side, attacking all present without distinction.

"Yeah yeah, for the Royalty, just shut up and shoot! Eheheheheheheh!" Terrorsaur chided, unable to contain his excitement despite his disdain for Inferno's brown-nosing as they lay waste to the battlefield and any and all who got caught in their assault.

With their first bombardment complete the three flyers returned to the skies, cackling all the while, putting some distance between them and their targets before turning around to open fire upon the maximal beetle Landmine next, the only maximal flyer currently active in the battle, a swarm of predacon missiles rushing to greet him.


While his flyers made a nuisance of themselves to Zodiac and the maximals, Megatron had finally crept close enough to the battlefield to be in position for what he wanted to do, to make all three of his enemies suffer while they were confused, frightened, and battered by his flyers sneak attack. He somehow doubted they were dead already, especially Zodiac, and perhaps even more so Primal despite his rival not being a nanotech monstrosity like Zodiac, but he could hope, and if his hopes were dashed, he'd be in the perfect position to strike them all down, as stealthily and mercilessly as Zodiac had tried to use HIM, Megatron, future Lord of Cybertron, as part of his own petty vendetta. As he traversed the battlefield he noticed Deathroll continuing his assault against the fallen badger, intending to grind him under his treads and pierce him with his drill, while his trio of flyers singled out Landmine....Good, that would keep the bug's attention away from himself until he was ready to strike. Good, good...He had three of his gravest enemies to himself, how appropriate, the pleasure of their executions would be his to enjoy.

He waited for the smoke and fire to clear as he got into a sniper position behind the best cover he could find, charging his railgun as he waited for a glimpse of any one of his three adversaries to emerge so he could silence them forever, striking them down in the name of Predacon liberty and supremacy!

OOC: I made a few edits to this post, it should check out now, sorry XD