"The only thing that Predacons surpass everybody else with, includin' me, is ego."
And proper grammar, the former shapeshifter thought to himself without verbalizing it.
"It ain't a weakness,"
"Isn't it?," the renegade challenged.
"How far has your Maximal compassion gotten you in this ongoing conflict against the Predacons? Has it prevented your comrades from becoming casualties in the war?" He left the question lingering in the air. Well, at least until Rattrap fell into the hole and the renegade recognized a chance to escape. A very slim chance, granted, but one nevertheless. And he took it.
He kept a straight face as he offered his cuffed hands to the rodent to help him climb out, making sure his voice held a tone of genuine concern to give the impression he was being serious. And the rat fell for his ploy, allowing the renegade to grab his weapon before dropping him back down into the hole. Now, however, he faced a bigger threat.
Do you, Zodiac? I'm not going to be arrogant to say that I know Nemesis, but I feel for her. Understand her. As I do you. The only thing I can say is what I believe from my observations from her. What I witness when she was forced to join us in fighting you, a common foe. She despised it. When she found out it was you, she took it personal as she should have. You two had a past, and she didn't expect you to treat her in that fashion. She was hurt, angry. You forced her to have to work with her sworn enemies and attempted to blow her up along with them. To her, this is personal. It is personal for both of you. That's why she wants you dead. Just like you do. It's retribution. You two have justification for wanting to have the other killed. And it would just continue.... unless one of you... especially you take a first step in dropping your weapon.
Whitegrazer's words silenced the renegade for a moment as they resonated within his mind. For the briefest of moments he hesitated, having witnessed his shots hit Nemesis rather than their intended target. She had stepped in front of Megatron and used her own body to shield him. No doubt part of her reasoning for doing so was to make up for the earlier fiasco that had resulted in her getting ambushed and tied up, but clearly that couldn't be the entire reason. After all, if Megatron was killed leadership of the Predacons would befall the female. So why would she have done it? It was baffling to the renegade.
Why so eager to take her side?, Zodiac mused via their link as he started to raise his weapon again.
She is hardly innocent in all of this. Even now she's protecting your sworn enemy, someone who has attempted to kill your friends ever since the Maximals arrived on this planet.
It would be easier for you, wouldn't it? Harder to face a person from your past you have hurt and is now hurting you back? No doubt she would try anything to get back at you? Making you have to be in the hands of people you despised?
He flinched ever so slightly at that statement, memories of being lead down a hallway while in chains and surrounded by cages filled with fellow test subjects flooding his mind for moment. Guards hitting him, kicking him while he was down, lashing at him with their whips if he couldn't muster the strength to get back on his feet in time.. Scientists drilling into him, cutting him open with their tools, burning his circuits with their laser beams.. And ignoring his screams of pain and horror. And sitting alone in a cage for days afterwards, unsure whether to bless the solitude or curse it. Starving. And then reluctantly walk back there with the guards when it was his turn again. Or dragged as was often the case.
I do what I have to, he told her, trying his best to maintain the illusion of confidence. But deep down he knew she could see straight through it, especially now that their minds were linked.
A vicious cycle. That can be broken if one shows mercy and regret. Are you willing to do that?
I can't!, he argued with her.
The predacons will not be as merciful. You're distracting me. Let me do what needs to be done!, he continued while hating how much it felt like he was pleading with her.
Zodiac, I have learned to not underestimate you. You might need their help. If you attack or do something to put us in jeopardy, I can't protect you from what my comrades might do or what might happen. I advise you to not make your situation worse.
It was too late for that already. He realized it the moment he let the rodent fall back down into the hole. It was a matter of life or death.
His life. And he couldn't trust the Maximals to defend him. Besides.. it had felt
good to let the annoying rodent fall to his doom. Almost as good as he imagined killing Optimus would have felt. Or watching Nexus Prime die.
It was you who choose to activate the alien device. You tried to kill us again, we reacted, and instead of killing you, we attacked your abilities, so you will be in equal standing.
You drove me to it!, he responded angrily.
Activating the alien machine was never my first choice. I think we both know what is about to happen because of it.
Zodiac, you have made your bed.
He sighed, his aim locked onto Megatron who was now cradling Nemesis in a most peculiar way.
"So be it," he responded, verbally this time. Oh how he wished she would get out of his mind and his thoughts!
Nemesis' arms had been hanging limply at her side when her body had seemingly shut down from the intense pain. But instead of the cold, unforgiving snow greeting her, she felt a strong arm grabbing a hold of her and preventing her from collapsing completely. She lifted her head slightly to see who it was, resisting the nanomachines' hunger wanting to use the assisting arm to fuel themselves. For once they heeded her warning and continued the repairs without resorting to dismantling the tyrant's arm. At that moment she wasn't quite sure whether to feel grateful, honored, or terrified that it had been Megatron himself that held her up. Perhaps a mixture of all three was an accurate description.
"Inferno, burn him."
Megatron's words sounded cold and unforgiving, a clear indication of how determined he was to end this confrontation right now. Nemesis grabbed her aching abdomen where some of Zodiac's shots had penetrated deep through her armor, and she struggled a bit to stand up straight again. But now that her repairs were well on the way, her strength was also returning so it took her but a moment to regain her balance.
"Thank you..," she told Megatron genuinely while watching Inferno fire his flamethrower in Zodiac's direction.
Fortunately the fire ant's aim with his primary weapon was not the best as flames had a tendency to take on a life of their own at this distance, allowing Zodiac the opportunity to move to the side and thus avoiding the worst of the initial attack. His wings were about to come in handy as a shield yet again, however, when a second wave of flames came soaring towards him. He crouched down, fully covering himself with the already scorched wings, cringing as the burning sensation licked across him yet again.
"Enough Inferno, let me see his face"
Zodiac coughed, the smell of his own burnt armor tickling his throat. He was covered in scorch marks now, some areas of his wings visibly malformed from the intense heat. Had he not been transmetal, he would likely have been a lot worse off, however. Slowly, painstakingly so, he unfolded his wings and forced himself to stand up again. Ever refusing to show weakness, to give Megatron the satisfaction of seeing him in such pain, in .. defeat.
"You see where treachery takes you Zodiac? As well as vengeance without purpose for that matter? Anguish and failure"
He stared at the Predacon tyrant, knowing all too well what was certainly coming. Yet he refused to beg for his life, not wanting that to be his last act in life should it come down to it.
"Megatron, I never imagined you of all bots would be so short-sighted."
Fortunately his voice and posture held up fairly well, all things considering. He hid the hesitation, pain and dread he felt better than he had expected. He had gotten a lot stronger since his days as a frightened youth held captive while they experimented on him. Back then he would have grovelled and begged for mercy. Not now. Not anymore.
In his hand he still held Rattrap's weapon, his own weapons having been physically taken away from him during the battle and the rest he'd been unable to access ever since the nanomachines were deactivated. He raised his still cuffed hands to take aim at the tyrant's face, seeing little option than to blow that smug look straight off his face. But with his wounds slowing him down, he wasn't fast enough. Megatron's initial shot hit him in the shoulder, knocking his arm and then his entire body backwards in a sudden, painful, movement. Zodiac grimaced from the pain, wincing as he moved his shoulder forward to assure it was still intact. As a result of the impact, the weapon had hit the ground with a low thud. A few more shots followed, one narrowly missing his knee while the others slammed into his gut and almost sent Zodiac crashing backwards to the ground. He was able to catch himself at the last possible moment, however, instead staggering a few steps behind him.
"Guess I was wrong in my assumption..," the renegade muttered to Megatron as soon as he regained his balance, his hands now clutching his wounded abdomen,
"You are every bit as much of a fool as Primal and Nexus if you can't see what you're about to do!"
"Goodbye Zodiac, I'd say it was a pleasure knowing you, but that would be dishonest, and why speak ill of the dead?"
The renegade tensed up, certain this was his final moments. If that was indeed the case, he would have preferred some more memorable final words. But alas it would seem he had just run out of time..
Or so he thought for that brief moment before a smoke grenade suddenly appeared out of nowhere, covering the area in a thick cloud of smoke. Zodiac drew a silent sigh of relief for this apparently final chance at survival, taking the opportunity to move away from the Predacons while they were still disoriented. Doing so, however, brought him straight into the area where the earthquakes had collapsed much of the underground tunnel system.
Nemesis quickly stepped away as Megatron made short work of the smoke cover, her repairs already complete. She swiftly recovered her missing weapons, which were fortunately easy enough to find now due to the snow rapidly melting from the heat radiating from the lava filled tunnels.
"OBLITERATE HIM!"
"My lord Megatron, allow me!," she declared while glancing at the tyrant, taking to the air to pursue the fleeing Zodiac. They would have to act quickly as this region was becoming more and more unstable. In fact the mountain was threatening to explode at any moment. Had she waited, she might have seen Optimus Primal swooping in from above, but as things were her attention and that of the other Predacons present was on Zodiac.
"Stop running, traitor, and face the fate you have made for yourself!," she shouted after Zodiac. The renegade had no intention of doing so, however, but a sudden explosion from an impact near his feet caused the already fragile and unsteady ground he was standing on to threaten to collapse underneath him. The former shapeshifter stopped, his optics searching frantically for the quickest route to safety.
"I said stop!," she repeated, hovering near him with her weapon trained on him. Zodiac sent her a tired look, apparently unfazed by her presence.
"Go back to your new master, Nemesis," he told her, testing the ground's ability to carry his weight as he took a step then another, walking as softly as he could.
The female narrowed her optics, firing a warning shot straight into the back of the dragon's right wing.
"My master has demanded your head," she told him coldly.
"And I intend to fulfill his wishes. Now turn and face me. I wish to see your face as you die."
Zodiac could not help but chuckle at that. It was a grim laugh without any real amusement.
"I remember a time you wouldn't bow for anyone, no matter how much they tried to force you. And to think I used to admire that unbreakable spirit.. My my how things change," he mocked her before continuing.
"I don't think you realize what Megatron set in motion when he stole the golden disks.. Perhaps some day you'll learn. Provided, of course, he doesn't tire of you before then."
Finally he turned to look at her, curious to see if his words were having the desired effect.
"I'm not sure what he told you to inspire such devotion, but you should know that Megatron is nothing more than a common thief. A wannabe thinking he can cash in on someone else's efforts. And he most certainly is not the savior of our kind!"
His words sounded so sincere, the avian female almost wanted to hear her former friend out. Almost. Had he not betrayed her so easily, she probably would have listened. But her anger was still very much present.. Unyielding. Unforgiving.
"Good bye, Zodiac," she told him frigidly, her weapon taking aim at the fragile ground under the traitor's feet. The renegade only had a nanoclick to react before she fired repeatedly at the unstable ground, resulting in the rocky terrain collapsing underneath Zodiac's feet. The renegade barely even had time to contemplate how badly he had underestimated her and the hatred she must have felt for him before the surface he'd been standing on disappeared. Due to the damage to his wings and shoulder he was unable to fly, leaving him little choice in the matter as he slammed into a small platform above the lava. For a moment he blacked out, his impact against the platform violent enough to bring a small rock slide down on top of him.
) 
). Thanks for the birthday well wishes 