"More Than Meets The Eye: Part III"

[NaitoKage]

"Landslide, we could use some help with moving Umbra. He got buried underneath a collapsed wall, and we suspect he is infected with the virus as well."

Landslide finished pulling the smoke out of the ship. His wings folded as he turned and closed the hanger door, activating his comlink in response. You got it lass.

Making his way down the halls, Landslide then heard Optimus on the coms.

"Attention, Maximals," "Everyone report to the hangar immediately."

Landslide shrugged, but continued on his way towards Aurora and Whitegrazer. From what he'd heard of Umbra, he wasn't someone to be left unaccounted for, and being infected made him dangerous to everyone else on the ship.

As he came to the location, Landslide tilted his head looking at the destroyed wall, then the debris on the partially covered Octopus. How the heck did you drop a wall on him?.. Landslide said as he walked closer, removing some of the heavier debris from Umbra. Alot of the metal had bullet holes through it, though it had crumbled as if there had been an explosion, as if someone had tampered with the wall.

He pulled out a syringe, then injected Umbra with the cure. A moment later Umbra's optics flashed on, his camouflage flickering through different colors in a scrolling pattern before returning to his normal gold and black color scheme. Umbra looked around, then shook his head as he noticed he could see color again, the visions of death having also vanished. This wasn't part of the agreement.. but no matter. Zodiac has control of Sentinel..No one is safe on this ship. Your target is Nexus Prime.. that's who he's been hiding himself as.

Landslide tilted his head, lifting Umbra up by the arm That's not possible, I already did a scan on him and even repaired him myself. He's just an old bot, unlike.. whatever yer made of.. Landslide observed Umbra's damage, he wasn't the most up to date on some modern technologies, but the Ninja Octopus's body just came off as strange to him.

Umbra shakes his head If your equipment is networked to the Axalon, he can make it look like whatever he wants. As for your repairs on him.. He isn't a simple shapeshifter. I shapeshift.. he becomes you. Appearance, transformation, and attributes. I don't understand his motives or technology, but he's an enemy to us both.

Umbra then looked towards Whitegrazer He made you his target, but shot her to get to you. He seems to believe you're psychic or something..Be careful..

[DarkSpark]

OOC: Anyone see Jurassic World last weekend like I did?

DarkSpark wrote: "I most certainly hope so, he was going to kill us all you stupid ant" was what Tarantulas WANTED to say, but instinct and common sense compelled him to instead reply "Don't be ridiculous Inferno! I was only..."

"LIES! LIES AND FALSEHOODS! I WON'T LISTEN TO YOUR VILE WORDS ANYMORE TRAITOR, BURN! BURN IN THE FIRES OF INFERNO! RRRRRRAAAAAWWWWRRR!" Inferno screamed madly as he threw Tarantulas across the room like a child's toy and pulled out both flamethrowers, firing fireballs blindly into the air as his cries of loss and rage echoed across the entire deck.

"FOR THE ROYALTY!!!" Inferno yelled over and over as he lit up the place, determined to slay the mech who'd taken his master away from him, even if he had to burn the entire world to the ground to do it!

"Brilliant!" Tarantulas sneered as he got his bearings and rushed for cover, hiding behind anything he could find that could conceivably withstand Inferno's insane amount of firepower.

"BURN TRAITOR! BBBUUUURRRRRNNNNNN! FOR THE ROYAL...!" Inferno continued to shriek, as Tarantulas popped up from behind his hiding place and fired his cybervenom blaster, hitting the ant square in the chest.

"Don't you know how to say anything else CRETIN?!" Tarantulas scowled, firing relentlessly at the ant before he even had a chance to fight back, mimicking their last battle back at the maximal base, when Inferno had sent Tarantulas ablaze and left him to die despite the spider being helpless before the ant's fanatical might.

Well, now the tables had turned, Tarantulas was a transmetal now, and Inferno was no longer the unstoppable brute to him that he'd once been!

"For...The...Royal...RRRARRRR!" Inferno tried to say as the cyber venom did its work, ravaging his insides, paralyzing him bit by bit, even as Tarantulas marched right up to him and beat him over and over again in the face with the butt of his own gun.

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! YOU MINDLESS SYCOPHANT!" Tarantulas screamed over and over again, relentlessly beating the helpless insect's face in with more vigor than was necessary, flashbacks of being burned alive spurring the spider on as he pummeled Inferno into the floor, the ant's movements growing weaker by the moment.

"Hey! What the slag is going on down there?" Terrorsaur yelled downward, wondering what in the universe Inferno and Tarantulas could be doing that was more important than searching for Megatron's remains, he knew from experience it wasn't wise to leave the tyrants bits and pieces lying around where any loyal suck up could just pick them up and put them back together again.

"Oh well, more trophies for me then, eheheh" Terrorsaur crowed as he picked up Megatron's tail gun, the armored glove weapon having been blown away from the body during the barrage it seemed, smoke and the scent of cannon fire still filling the air.

"Wasp is gonna be so jealous when gets a load of this! But not as much as he will be when I take my place on the throne of course, eheheheheheh!" Terrorsaur bragged, as he noticed a pool of mech fluid nearby, one which appeared to be vibrating with ripples across the surface, which became more and more frequent by the moment it seemed.

"What the...." Terrorsaur began to say, before a pair of familiar bronze hands wrapped themselves around his mouth and pinned his arms, and with one smooth motion snapped the pterosaur's neck, dropping him like a rock down one of the holes made in the hull of the Darkside, catching Tarantulas' attention.

"By the Pit..." Tarantulas whispered in a tone that expressed both fear AND annoyance at Megatron's unheard of resilience, rushing to get the guns to target him again only for the tyrant to destroy all the hacked autoguns with his reclaimed tail cannon, before hovering down inside the ship once more, his armor covered in tell tale signs that he had indeed been hit by the cannons, at least partially, but had STILL managed to survive regardless!

"Welcome to my parlor, said the T-Rex to the spider" Megatron said, his face a mask of pure madness as he slowly advanced on the arachnid, tail gun charging, as he added "I should have guessed that you were working for Cryotek this whole time Tarantulas, it all adds up so nicely, and is just so predictably treacherous of you!"

[una]

"We need to move him quickly," Aurora finally responded as she moved another larger piece of debris off, using as much strength as she could muster to do so. "But he's still infected so we're probably better off if we give him the antidote."

Whitegrazer nodded. They had no choice but to give Umbra the cure now. If they didn't, there would be no way to give him out of this debris fast enough. Umbra was strong, but he was losing the battle. He needed medical attention and needed to return to his comrades to give them the cure. Her people weren't exposed too long to the virus, so she couldn't imagine the horror that was going on in that place. Showing compassion towards her enemies may not be approved by her friends, especially what happened to Optimus. Their actions would be brought to light and justice, but them dying in horrors brought upon by an enemy, who was now a bigger threat than they were now, they knew little about despite what Nemesis had told them. No matter what, he was a threat that needed to be dealt swiftly.

"Attention, Maximals," Optimus Primal called to each of them through his own communication link. "Everyone report to the hangar immediately."

Report to the hangar? What was going on? She tried to use her connection with Optimus. He wasn't in a calm or peaceful state of mind. He seemed to be full of anger, fear, and slight heightened level of aggression and frustration flustered inside. Frustration towards himself. Towards the Predacons. Lots was going on inside of him she felt. He needed their help.

"Hang on, 'Grazer. Landslide probably still has some vials of the antidote you can use for dat slimy squid. Tell 'im ta help ya out."

"Understand," Whitegrazer looked at Aurora, who was already on her com-link speaking to Landslide. "Rattrap? Do you know why Optimus asked all of us to go to the hangar?" If Rattrap didn't know, maybe Rhinox did. She saw Landslide come their way and injected the cure on Umbra. Okay, he should be easier to help now.

This wasn't part of the agreement.. but no matter. Zodiac has control of Sentinel..No one is safe on this ship. Your target is Nexus Prime.. that's who he's been hiding himself as.

"I'm sorry," she looked sadly at the Predacon, "Sentinel has never been this... aggressive before." Not that she knew of anyway. "Zodiac?" She never heard of that name before. And he had control of Sentinel? That would explain why Sentinel was so adamant in harming Umbra personally. When Umbra said Nexus' name, all those little questions, doubts seeded by deception and her deep pleading for her thoughts to be wrong were answered and she had no choice but to believe Umbra. Though, the question remained: Would the others? Would Optimus?

That's not possible, I already did a scan on him and even repaired him myself. He's just an old bot, unlike.. whatever yer made of..

If your equipment is networked to the Axalon, he can make it look like whatever he wants. As for your repairs on him.. He isn't a simple shapeshifter. I shapeshift.. he becomes you. Appearance, transformation, and attributes. I don't understand his motives or technology, but he's an enemy to us both.

He made you his target, but shot her to get to you. He seems to believe you're psychic or something..Be careful..

"You were there?" she asked. Then she smiled. If he was there and they were after her, why didn't he fire at her? She was vulnerable at the time, tending to Aurora who was shot by Nex-- No, it wasn't Nexus. It never been him. It was Zodiac and always had been. She wondered what he did to Optimus' mentor. No, she couldn't think about that now. She was actually amused by the idea of them thinking she was psychic, which wasn't true at all. In her mind, the future can warn. The future was a tangible thing. Ever malleable.

She looked at Aurora. To hear the name of the person who had shot her, causing her so much pain. The betrayal of someone who seemed to be a friend. Though, she should take a part of the blame as well. "Aurora, we will have Zodiac answer for everything. Together, as a team, we will make sure of it. But we must all tread lightly. " She looked at Landslide. Umbra was right about them being careful.

"Whitegrazer," Primal called through her comm. link, "when Umbra is administered with the antidote, I want him put into a CR, secured under Maximal authorization for his release when his repairs are complete. Get it done quickly, and report to the hangar."

Whitegrazer helped Landslide and Aurora, helping move the rest of the debris, and picked up Umbra carefully. She knew what Optimus wanted, but she didn't want Sentinel to attack Umbra again especially with the CR chamber, "Landslide, can you take him to the medbay? See what you can do for him there?" She glanced at Umbra, "You won't be able to go to the Predacon base in this condition. I promise that after your repairs are complete, you will not be harmed and will be given a sample of the cure to take to your people. I gave you my word and I will not go back on it now. "

She smiled at the Predacon again before she turned her focus towards Optimus, "Optimus, what's going on?" She was getting a sickening feeling. She wondered if it was the idea of not knowing why Optimus wanted them in the hangar so badly. All of them. In one place. Or the fact she had to tell him... She should tell him now. There will never be a good time, but then she froze, widening her optics. If Zodiac had control of Sentinel... no, he had control. What if... What if it was he was telling Optimus to do this. If Sentinel could do this much to Umbra, what about a room with all the Maximals in one place. Primus! "Optimus, listen to me, there is something you must know."

[Phoenix]

Nexus followed the Maximal commander with approving optics as the protegee decided to follow the example of the teacher.

"Attention, Maximals," Optimus Primal called to each of them through his own communication link. "Everyone report to the hangar immediately."

Inwardly he smiled upon hearing those words, even though his face maintained his ever stoic and calm if a little concerned appearance. This was it. Nothing and nobody could stop his plans now that Optimus had taken the bait. Within a short time all these pesky Maximals, some of which were starting to annoy him greatly,would be dead. Nothing more than a sore memory. Already he could envision the look of utter shock and devastation on Primal's face when he realized what his actions had caused, that excruciating pain and guilt he would no doubt feel when it dawned on him that his beloved team mates had died by his hand. Of course Zodiac wasn't going to let him drown in his own misery for very long before taking it upon himself to end his miserable existence. Just long enough for the computer logs to register for all time that it was Primal that detonated the bomb that killed the others, thus destroying not only his life but also the legacy he would leave behind.. Surely that would be a treasured memory for Zodiac to bring with him on his future ventures.

Optimus Primal.. named after the supposedly greatest leader the transformers as a race had ever seen. Even though Zodiac hailed from a subgroup of Decepticon origin, he had still been weaned on the stories of the great Optimus that had defeated Megatron and brought about the last golden age of Cybertron. The great Optimus; hailed for his bravery on the battlefield and beloved leadership style. Nexus Prime had been known for many of the same traits, a fact Zodiac had taken advantage of while impersonating him. It had been easy enough to pretend to be the role model of so many Maximals, a decorated war hero worshiped by so many.. including the younger Optimus standing in front of him now. Such hypocrisy.. Of course nobody ever talked about the darker side of Prime.. Unforgiving and sometimes cruel to his foes, to those he deemed unworthy of joining his ranks. At least the Decepticons and Predacons alike were honest about their intentions, whereas Maximals hid behind this pretense of working towards the greater good.. Their greater good.

Zodiac carried those memories with him, drawing inspiration from the hatred he nurtured towards those who had imprisoned him, attempted to reprogram him as one of their own.. Taking advantage of his abilities, his strength, his intellect.. Yet attempting to weed out the parts they did not approve of. Nexus Prime had already been made to pay for what he had done, but it simply couldn't end there.. No. Every single one of those he held responsible had to pay. He would bring their entire world as they knew it down on top of them. Primal and his Maximals were just another step in the grand scheme.

Nexus softly patted Optimus' backside as the leader went over to BlackArachnia so that he could bring her to the CR chamber. It hardly mattered to the shape shifter. Since he had control over Sentinel, he could easily sabotage the chamber and rid himself of the annoying arachnid forever. With Primal bending so easily to his will, there was nothing that could stop his plans now.

"Target Umbra's life signs are improving."

Except that.

The pretender's mood rapidly soured as Sentinel's private message to him chimed in. So the soldier for hire was waking up.. Well, that could certainly complicate the situation a bit should he decide to spill his knowledge about Zodiac's operation. Even if he did regain consciousness, the virus should have taken full effect during his time offline. So either he could gamble on that fact or he could use Sentinel to finish the job. The problem with the latter option would be that it would surely distract the other Maximals from going to the storage bay if Sentinel opened fire again only this time with some Maximals present. No, he'd just have to hurry things along. And just in case Umbra did utter something about him, he ordered Sentinel to shut down the communication relays throughout the base. Optimus' order had already been dispatched to everyone, so hopefully nobody would think too much of it if they didn't get a response to their hails. Sentinel went silent as it went on to follow the order. Meanwhile Nexus Prime straightened out and followed Optimus.

Aurora took a step back as Landslide arrived, giving him space to work his magic on Umbra. Not surprisingly the large beetle was a bit shocked to see the damages done, taking a moment to stare at the partially buried Predacon.

How the heck did you drop a wall on him?..

"Obviously we need to fire the construction workers in this place," she retaliated before quickly adding in a more serious tone, "Sentinel." She left it at that. All the bullet holes and the crumbled wall spoke for themselves.

She watched as Landslide bent over and injected the sharp needle into the unconscious form on the ground, taking another few steps back since she didn't know what would happen should Umbra awaken.

And sure enough it didn't take long before the once still form started stirring.

This wasn't part of the agreement.. but no matter.

Her pointy ears poked up as Umbra started speaking. He sounded surprisingly levelheaded for someone who had just been buried under a few tons of rubble so she could only assume that the squid had stronger armor than she initially thought. In fact his armor looked rather bizarre, shimmering in a sense and the colors seemed to change for a moment. It was rather fascinating, honestly, but not nearly as interesting as what the male would say next..

Zodiac has control of Sentinel..No one is safe on this ship. Your target is Nexus Prime.. that's who he's been hiding himself as.

Ears immediately flattening against her head, her optics widened as she merely stared at the Predacon in disbelief. Now she knew he was lying! He had to be! Nexus Prime was one of Optimus' closest friends, he would never.. he..

Slowly the words started to sink in and she swallowed the protests that had built up in the back of her throat.

That's not possible, I already did a scan on him and even repaired him myself. He's just an old bot, unlike.. whatever yer made of..

Landslide raised an interesting point. How could Nexus possibly be..

If your equipment is networked to the Axalon, he can make it look like whatever he wants. As for your repairs on him.. He isn't a simple shapeshifter. I shapeshift.. he becomes you. Appearance, transformation, and attributes. I don't understand his motives or technology, but he's an enemy to us both.

Her mouth dropped open at that statement. So Umbra believed this shapeshifter capable of not only infiltrating them, but doing such a perfect job that he not only fooled Optimus but somehow managed to take over the computer system as well?

"You're lying," she said quietly,"You are talking about technology that hasn't even been invented yet, about.."

She went quiet once more as Umbra directed his attention to Whitegrazer, mentioning an incident she knew pained the older female just as much as it pained the fuzor herself.

He made you his target, but shot her to get to you. He seems to believe you're psychic or something..Be careful..

The small fuzor's gaze went to the floor when she heard those words. So this shape shifter that had shot her, the one that Umbra had now identified as Nexus himself, had nearly killed her simply to cause Whitegrazer pain..? To prove that she was something more than she seemed to be..? But it couldn't be Nexus! The kind old soldier who had spent time with them, who had become one of them, who..

No, there was no way anyone could be capable of that degree of evil. Even Megatron himself wouldn't stoop to such a level.

"Aurora, we will have Zodiac answer for everything. Together, as a team, we will make sure of it. But we must all tread lightly. "

She slowly lifted her head, locking optics with Whitegrazer's for a moment."It's not him, it can't be. Nexus even gave himself up alongside Optimus, put himself through that kind of torment! He couldn't possibly.."

Upon realizing that Optimus had barely been alive when he returned to them whereas the older Nexus, the one that shouldn't even have survived Megatron's onslaught, had few actual injuries to show for despite his messed up appearance, Aurora paused. Her lip quivered a bit as she swallowed the rest of her protest, silently wondering why Umbra would lie about such a thing. What could he possibly have to gain?

[Optimal Optimus Primal]

(( OOC: DarkSpark, me, me, me! Fun film, it was. ))

Optimus felt Nexus Prime's hand pat his back, where much of his armor was still missing and his paint peeled off, as he stepped away but paid no mind to it, whether it was for comfort or for encouragement. Carrying Blackarachnia in his weak arms, he navigated his way around everyone else who should be migrating to the hangar bay per his order, exiting the messy medical bay and walking down the corridor toward the bridge. Every where he seemed to look there was damage. The dim lighting, some lights flickering from loose connections, kept the hallway illuminated enough for their silent stroll. Primal looked down at the vulnerable Predacon in his grasp. He could end her life right now if he wanted to, if he wasn't so merciful. He could leave scars on her like the ones he was going to have. Despite his weakened state, he bet himself that he was still strong enough to rip her head off, or drive his fist through her breast plate and crush her spark. But how could he think or imagine such terrible and sinister thoughts? It wasn't him... Did he care? Not really, not at the moment. She was still a Maximal, deep down inside, but she obviously preferred to be a Predacon. Not all of which were bad, he knew that, but it was as if that was the only reason she chose to continue to serve with them under Megatron's lethal brutality. The Maximal Commander couldn't fathom why.

He could feel something was ajar with Whitegrazer's normally peaceful and calm nature. Something surprising or confusing? He didn't know why or what was causing it, but he preferred to be in his own state of mind and emotions and pushed their bond aside to ignore her and have some peace and quiet to himself. What they had shared while Primal was a prisoner with Nexus and tortured at the Darksyde was enough to traumatize even the strongest willed survivors. Not only had it effected Optimus, but it had also touched Whitegrazer. He didn't want to hear anymore drama or stress now.

Arriving at the two CR's near the bridge and taking in the damage that Rhinox must have been talking about when Ironclaw allegedly attacked Nexus Prime in one of them, they both seemed to be operating so Primal walked up to the one Aurora had been using earlier and carefully placed Blackarachnia inside of it, closing the door and beginning the repair process. Then he keyed in the Maximal security access code so that she couldn't escape and get loose in the base again without a Maximal releasing her or the code being overridden by another source.

"Understand," "Rattrap? Do you know why Optimus asked all of us to go to the hangar?"

"Uh, nope," Rattrap returned to Whitegrazer over their transmission. "He didn't say nothin' about it."

"Optimus, what's going on?"

"I'm going to find out," Primal told the mare in a somewhat casual and blunt voice, again keeping his answer vague on the matter. Oddly enough, her soft, soothing tone didn't have the same effect on him as it usually did; when it would calm him and make him miss her presence being physically next him. He was a bit more distant. A bit more... cold.

"Optimus, listen to me, there is something you must know."

"It can wait. I want everyone in the hangar. I'll be there shortly," he told her as he entered the command center. Unbeknownst to him and to all of them on board that radio communication may not be working now before or after he answered her.

Rattrap spun around in his chair and joyfully threw his arms in the air when the gorilla entered the room. "Fearless leader! Boy, am I..." He cut himself off as he took in his injuries, expecting him to look better than he did but was obviously disappointed and a little discouraged. "...Wishin' you were gonna look more, uh, put together." He was still a walking monkey wreck.

"And you still have the same damage that was inflicted on you days ago," he just as easily pointed out the obvious. "No time for a shower?"

Rattrap looked down at his chest and saw the large black wound that had since finally healed but was still visible from the lack of replaced paint. "Pretty much, what with everybody goin' crazy and gettin' you an' Nexus outta Megajerk's hands. So what's goin' on?"

"I need to see the data that was acquired from Nexus' scan earlier. It's a fairly sophisticated machine and incredibly accurate. It'll be the best way to find out who the shape shifter is impersonating," Optimus explained.

"Yeah, it's right here." The rat opened the window on the monitor that had complied all of the data that appeared to prove the Admiral's innocence. Not that Optimus felt he needed the reassurance as he was certain no one could mimic one of the older bots he knew best, but to see what information was obtained and the schematics of the machine. Then it dawned on him. "Oh, I get it. You want everybody in one room all at once so everyone's accounted for and everyone takes de scan."

Primal didn't comment as he leaned over Rattrap's shoulder to view the data. "Who controlled this scan?"

"Landslide did," the rat answered.

Seemingly satisfied with the results, Optimus nodded and started to head back out of the bridge. "Let's go, Rattrap."

"Who's gonna man the command center?"

"Sentinel can handle things."

"Uh, yeah, about dat... Sentinel's been actin' really weird recently."

"How so?" he stopped and looked at Rattrap over his damaged shoulder.

"Like... buggy. Somethin's wrong with it, and I don't trust it," Rattrap vaguely explained.

Rattrap doesn't trust something? Newsflash, everyone, he thought sarcastically. "It'll be fine. Everyone congregates in the hangar, and everyone gets scanned. No exceptions," Optimus said firmly when he began walking down the corridor again.

Sighing, the Spy handed the controls over to Sentinel and hurried after Optimus. "What if dat really wasn't Blackarachnia you put in dat CR? What if you're not really you?" Although Rattrap was certain it was judging by his scent. "What if I'm not really me?" he partially teased knowing he was him and Optimus was certain, too. "What if Umbra ain't really Umbra?" And then he gasped out loud as an idea struck him. "Can a shape shifter impersonate another shape shifter?"

Primal merely rolled his optics with some annoyance while Rattrap accompanied him to the hangar.

"I'm tellin' ya, Optimus, something's screwy with Sentinel."

"We'll look at it later, Rattrap," he emphasized. "If the Predacons are suffering with the hallucinogen, then I highly doubt they're going to risk an attack on us. You simply can't function properly with the virus. I would know," the Commander reminded him despite the pain and fear he recalled. "Besides, Blackarachnia and Umbra both infiltrated our base with or without Sentinel's help, so it doesn't really matter, does it?" his tone suggesting that he was done with that topic for the time being, and perhaps even suggesting that he was disappointed that two Predacons bypassed their security and the Maximals.

Rattrap bowed his head slightly, and briefly, recognizing the gorilla's tone of voice and inevitably dropping the subject.

They made a pit stop at the armory so that Optimus could grab a new gun. Had he had more of his back armor, he would have grabbed two new twin clubs, but he couldn't attach them to his backside and didn't want his hands full.

Meanwhile, back in the infirmary, Rhinox got up to grab a stretcher that hovered so that he could place Nemesis on it and move her about. Even though she was slowly but surely healing on her own, he carefully rolled her onto the stretcher with her stomach down so that she wouldn't be laying on her wings, one of which was certainly broken, or feel more vulnerable with her stomach facing upward and being exposed. "I'm just maneuvering you onto some transportation, Nemesis," he explained whether she could hear him or not if she was conscious enough. "I can't leave you alone here, so you'll have to come with us." He looked at her "house arrest" anklet that Rattrap had slapped on her when she first arrived and removed it. Right now the fate of her refuge with them and their lenient hospitality was likely in jeopardy judging by the stunts she pulled to help Blackarachnia. He did not know what Optimus' decision would be, though.

[NaitoKage]

"Obviously we need to fire the construction workers in this place," "Sentinel."

"You're lying," "You are talking about technology that hasn't even been invented yet, about.."

"Landslide, can you take him to the medbay? See what you can do for him there?""You won't be able to go to the Predacon base in this condition. I promise that after your repairs are complete, you will not be harmed and will be given a sample of the cure to take to your people. I gave you my word and I will not go back on it now. "

"It's not him, it can't be. Nexus even gave himself up alongside Optimus, put himself through that kind of torment! He couldn't possibly.."

Landslide observed quietly, then looked up with a nod Yeah.. I'll take care of im'

Umbra looked towards Aurora The technology doesn't exist hm? We could say the same about Nemesis.. or that nano treatment that was used on you. One of Umbra's tentacles raised and flattened out, stretching the membrane along it, his camouflage taking a rectangular pattern showing surprisingly a video of Aurora being surrounded by Landslide, Whitegrazer, and Cheetor, as well as a zoom in showing the blue glow on her wound.

Landslide's optics narrow So you WERE there..

Yeah.. My orders were to watch Zodiac and his men, the objective was to take out Whitegrazer.. but without warning he shot the wrong target instead.. and a child no less.. If you don't want to believe me, that's fine. Other then hacking my data tracks, there's not much else you can do.

Landslide looked towards Umbra, then looked towards the wall. Normally a security system wouldn't shoot through the wall like this. Either way.. Medbay was damaged by Ironclaw when Nexus was inside the CR cham..ber. Landslide tilted his head, that situation also seemed rather screwy. Ug.. I'll let Optimus deal with this mess. Come on! Landslide then started to carry Umbra down the hall into the hanger.

As they made their way down to the hanger, Umbra spoke up I need to make a call.. you can listen in if you want. he then activated his comlink Lieutenant Tarantulas, this is Umbra. What's the status of the sick on the darksyde?

Cheetor observed the group, following them along down to the hanger.

[Mystrea]

As the Maximals split up to head in different directions, Ironclaw took this opportunity to slip through the hole he had created and take a moment to consider his options. This is when he realised that he did not have many. It was not enough that he, himself, knew of his innocence. The rests of the team needed to see it, a difficult task considering the evidence against him and his general characer flaws, or what they considered flaws it seems. The badger was beginning to understand that being the biggest or strongest wouldn't cut it around here. The Maximals need someone who was both strong in mind and body. However, some part of him believed that he and Optimus already possessed these attributes. What really mattered lied within here, Ironclaw placed his hand upon his chest as he came to a halt. His spark is what gave him his emotions and likewise with Optimus. THIS was their leader's weakness. Primal's sense of mercy, ethics or morality, it was a sickness that let him down and therefore compromised this whole operation. Optimus tries so hard to rid himself of his anger or rage, as if to put it in a box labelled "useless or unreliable". The soldier balled the hand on his chest into a fist and reaffirmed his resolve. He walked a different path.

After getting side tracked he came back to reality. Go the hanger with everyone else and the shapeshifter or run. Run? That was not something he would normally consider, he was a Maximal not a coward. He would stand his ground and defy the odds which were stacked against. Though it only just dawned on him that the scanner was still in play. Surely he would be scanned and given the all clear. Ironclaw smirked thinking that the situation will turn in his favour.

He started walking again, getting ever closer to the hanger bay. Knowing he would have to face the music at some point he stood at the door way just waiting to see the demeanour of his comrades.

[Phoenix]

(ooc: For the record I also saw Jurassic World last weekend. Great fun! Best movie out in theater thus far this year. Sorry, Avengers Age Of Ultron, you just didn't live up to my expectations.)

The technology doesn't exist hm? We could say the same about Nemesis.. or that nano treatment that was used on you.

Aurora looked flabbergasted for a moment, bringing her hand up to her chest where a large gaping hole had been not very long ago. Truthfully she couldn't remember most of what had happened that day, but the memories of the pain and shock she had felt all returned at once and left her feeling more than a little nauseas. She honestly had been trying to forget and thus far had been doing a fairly good job of it. That is until Umbra ripped those hidden memories back and they hit her like a wall despite there being large gaps in what she could remember.

"But Nemesis cannot alter her appearance like that," she finally stammered as a protest, almost sounding a little bit offended that the nanogel she had created was put in the same category as anything that sneaky shape shifter has proved capable of. She then paused, her gaze fixated on the odd video stream showing on Umbra's tentacle. It felt surreal watching herself like this, so much so that her optics darted to Whitegrazer next, wondering if the other female cared to shed some light on the matter.

So you WERE there..

Yeah.. My orders were to watch Zodiac and his men, the objective was to take out Whitegrazer.. but without warning he shot the wrong target instead.. and a child no less.. If you don't want to believe me, that's fine. Other then hacking my data tracks, there's not much else you can do.

Hacking this freaky Predacon's data tracks was something Aurora didn't especially want to do, not wanting to see for herself just what deep, dark secrets he hid in there. "Just get him fixed..," she finally asked of Landslide as he and the soldier-for-hire started heading down the hallway. Her head was honestly starting to hurt by all of this.

With a slight sigh she began heading towards the hangar bay like Optimus had ordered. She trusted him and his judgement so if Optimus wanted them all to gather there, he must have a good reason for doing so. Perhaps he wanted to share some information with all of them without using the computer system to do so. As she walked she promised herself to give Sentinel a thorough look over once all this was over. Up ahead she could see Ironclaw heading to the same destination. She smiled briefly at him and nodded as way of greeting, still slightly concerned by the fact that the transmetal badger appeared to be at the center of all of what had been going on. It made her a bit nervous, honestly, since she couldn't tell if this was really Ironclaw or if the shape shifter had simply taken his identity. Either way there were more Maximals gathering so at least she wasn't alone to find out.

Nemesis groaned a little as Rhinox positioned her prone on a transport stretcher, her systems finally starting to come back online after the rough handling she underwent previously. None of her injuries had been life threatening but she had sustained a number of them, so the overall progress of her accelerated healing had been slower than usual.

"I'm just maneuvering you onto some transportation, Nemesis,"

Her optics flicked back online as he said that, but she still felt groggy and more than a little out of it. "Nnnngh..," she moaned as way of response, especially when the end of her broken wing hit the floor as it lay limply over the edge of the stretcher. The nanites continued their repairs, however,and soon enough went on to fix the broken and partially shredded wing as well. They were programmed to deal with the more serious damages first, so her trunk and main limbs took priority.

"I can't leave you alone here, so you'll have to come with us."

By the time Rhinox spoke these words, she had come to enough that she was actually able to process them. Even though she ached all over still, she lifted her head ever so slightly to look at the Maximal mechanic. She was both relieved and saddened to see that he was the one tending to her since he had shown her kindness earlier when all others stood against her and she simply didn't want him to know what had been going on.

"Where.. are we going?," she asked, a bit hesitantly, as she tried finding the strength to push herself up. As soon as she tried to move, however, the pain coming from her shredded wing overwhelmed her, causing her to collapse back down on the stretcher with a moan.

"He's.. here," she continued, face dragged into a grimace from the pain, "Zodiac.. I fought him in the hallway.. he was.. me.."

She paused, realizing just how weird that sounded.

" He.. looked like me," she then corrected herself before adding, "Then he disappeared.. Ironclaw showed up and I went .. through the wall.."

That was all she could remember honestly, since she had gotten knocked out almost immediately after slamming through the hard wall.

Nexus followed Optimus as he made his way to the CR chamber then to the bridge to have a brief discussion with Rattrap there. He maintained a respectful distance even though he kept a keen eye out for anyone or anything that could get in the way of his plans. So far Optimus remained clueless as to his true motives, however, so the pretender admiral remained in the doorway while Optimus looked through the data proving Nexus' innocence in all of this. All the while he could hear the foot steps and low mumbling of passing Maximals all headed toward the hangar bay, and unbeknownst to them.. their grave. Nexus had made sure that not a single one of them would leave that room alive. Well, Optimus and himself excluded, of course, since they would be watching from a safe distance.

[una]

((OOC: Okay, I hope I fix everything. ))

"You're lying," she said quietly,"You are talking about technology that hasn't even been invented yet, about.."

The technology doesn't exist hm? We could say the same about Nemesis.. or that nano treatment that was used on you.

"But Nemesis cannot alter her appearance like that,"

"There has always been technology created behind closed doors for unethical reasons," Whitegrazer shook her head sadly. "If the shapeshifter has nanomachines, and by what we dealt with for the past two days, it would be safe to assume that what Umbra has said the truth. And if he could mimic and manipulate appearances that well, there is no telling what he could create or be."

She wondered how far the shapeshifter could go? Could he fake injuries as well? And if he could... what about Nexus' They looked so real, though. Could he really do that or was this just a wild assumption from a mind becoming paranoid? She never was paranoid. But she was unnerved. Technology like this seemed fascinating, but from the eyes of a person who has been around the world, they were usually build under the maimed, used bodies of victims forced to deal with the technology's... side effects. Fascinating yet vile at the same time.

Yeah.. My orders were to watch Zodiac and his men, the objective was to take out Whitegrazer.. but without warning he shot the wrong target instead.. and a child no less.. If you don't want to believe me, that's fine. Other then hacking my data tracks, there's not much else you can do.

"It's not him, it can't be. Nexus even gave himself up alongside Optimus, put himself through that kind of torment! He couldn't possibly.."

Whitegrazer watched the video along with Aurora. Was she still his target? Or was that changed? He didn't make one move against her after that. Did he tried to kill Aurora to throw her off? It would make sense since it would be a logical conclusion for them to make when Optimus didn't believe the shapeshifter's stunt. She thought about this before, but she wondered if she was missing something here. What was she missing? Aurora wasn't really taking this all well. Poor girl. Being shot, being told that Nexus may be the shapeshifter, the one who shot her and watched her bleed out. Horrific. "Aurora, with that gel, you saved yourself. You did beat him." She knelt down, staring at the young girl, "I take full responsibility for what happened out there. If I hadn't gone out there, you wouldn't had been there. I'm sorry. I hope you can forgive me. "

She turned her attention to Umbra, "I believe you, Umbra. But you must understand how hard it is for the others to take in. Proof would be needed. Nexus... Zodiac... he will slip up eventually."

"Uh, nope," Rattrap returned to Whitegrazer over their transmission. "He didn't say nothin' about it."

Odd... Why did he want them to go to the hangar bay for? Surely they should be trying to fix Sentinel. "Thank you, Rattrap, if he does, can you tell me once me and the others come in the hangar bay?"

"I'm going to find out,"

She could hear the bluntness, the coldness in his voice as he spoke to her. She tried to reach out towards their connection, but he seemed to have cut her off. He shouldn't be up and about like this. Was Rattrap still in command or was Optimus back? She trusted Optimus. She did, but as of now, she didn't believe he should be commanding yet. He needed time to rest and heal. He needed time to assess what has happened.

"It can wait. I want everyone in the hangar. I'll be there shortly,"

"I don't think this can, Optimus. Listen to me..." she stopped herself, not realizing that Optimus wouldn't be able to hear her anyway. Should she really tell him over the com-link? That his mentor, his friend, was a shapeshifter? From the way he was speaking and actions, Optimus wouldn't take well such an accusation. Which she would understand. And this was confirmed by a Predacon. Optimus might not want to hear or listen to the words of an enemy, especially ones associated with his pain. She would have to need proof. More than words. Yet, she believed Umbra. What did Umbra have to lose? Megatron and the Predacons needed the cure. The shapeshifter betrayed them. They had no fealty to him as he had none to them. Why not rat him out?

But she guessed she was alone in such thoughts.

She had no choice but go to the hangar bay. She was uneasy, though. Especially with Sentinel being so strange. As they came to the hangar bay, she saw Ironclaw. Despite everything, she was concerned about him. Being used as a scapegoat for the shapeshifter, accused by his comrades of something he didn't commit. She shook her head. Entering the hangar bay to see Nemesis' state, "Nemesis, what happened?" She examined the shredded wing. The other injuries were glowing blue, so they were being healed, but the state had her in horror and then deepness sadness. She felt responsible for Nemesis. She then looked up at Rhinox then at everyone crowding around the hangar bay and said with a low voice, "I don't like this..."

Something just felt... off. Cold. She then gazed up at the small room above. She knew Optimus was up there. She expressed her concern and then bowed her head.

[Optimal Optimus Primal]

"Nnnngh..,"

Rhinox glanced down at Nemesis as he pushed her along toward the hangar bay following the others.

"Where.. are we going?,"

"To the hangar," he told the Predacon. Watching her trying to sit up only to collapse back on the hovering stretcher and hearing her painful moan, Rhinox added, "Hold still, Nemesis. Try to relax so your nanobots can work more efficiently on your wounds."

"He's.. here,"

They already knew that, if she was talking about the shape shifter, so Rhinox nearly thought she was still out of it and speaking from past memory. Until she said...

"Zodiac.. I fought him in the hallway.. he was.. me.." "He.. looked like me," "Then he disappeared.. Ironclaw showed up and I went .. through the wall.."

"Disappeared...? Or turned into Ironclaw? And how do I know you're not Zodiac now?" the engineer inquired with great curiosity, wanting to get as much detail as possible. Was Ironclaw really being impersonated now, or had he always been the shape shifter after all, or was the shape shifter now impersonating someone else, like Nemesis, to make it seem like Ironclaw had done these recent attacks? He wanted the answers so badly. He wanted an end to this chaos and confusion. As they approached the hangar, Rhinox's crimson optics scanned over everyone who was already gathering there, a hint of suspicion behind them. He looked to Whitegrazer who walked over with some concern on her already wary face.

"Nemesis, what happened?"

"Zodiac happened," Rhinox answered the mare. "Assuming this isn't him right here," he said, pointing at Nemesis. He left the rest of the explanation to her.

"Thank you, Rattrap, if he does, can you tell me once me and the others come in the hangar bay?"

"I don't think this can, Optimus. Listen to me..."

But Whitegrazer's messages never reached either of them. With Nexus Prime in tow, Optimus and Rattrap rounded the corner and headed toward the entrance of the hangar bay. Rattrap kept glancing over his shoulder at the Admiral, uncertain and irritated as to why he was following Optimus everywhere, and hoping that his constant looking over his shoulder at him was bothering him as much as his tailgating was. Maybe it was just because the boss monkey was still so beaten and battered that he wanted to make sure he didn't fall over dead somewhere.

Seeing the faces he cared so much for suddenly crumbled his block toward Whitegrazer causing Primal to falter with an emotional choke in his throat and a gasp which expanded his horribly compressed chest from the energy bonds the Predacons had used to torture him. He coughed and caught himself on the wall with his hand to prevent himself from falling.

"Optimus, what's wrong?" Rattrap surprisingly instinctively hurried to the leader's side with foreign concern, ready to help him in case he was going to fall.

Primal held out the palm of his hand as a motion to stop Rattrap in his tracks, to not touch him and let him be. Everything from Whitegrazer came flooding in from the time he spent unconscious when they had all rescued him and Nexus. All of her positive energy and encouraging words, it was overwhelming for him and gripped his spark. And seeing Aurora just ahead, so fortunate to be alive as he recalled them letting him know when she had been shot. There she was, so strong and skillful by creating the antidote. With an arm wrapped around his chest that was somehow supposed to help cope with the pain, he fought back the tears and his coughing subsided. "I'm... alright," he managed to say, hunched over for a moment longer.

Rattrap stopped and frowned, watching him and glancing at Nexus with worry. "You oughta be resting," the rat recommended.

"No." Anger filtered back into Primal's mind. He had to stay focused. This was too important. He blocked Whitegrazer again after temporarily losing his control over their bond. "I'm putting an end to this." Primal stood up straight and continued into the hangar. Rattrap, unconvinced by the monkey's denial, had no choice but to follow.

Standing in front of everyone, his body still heavily damaged and missing quite a few pieces along with a lot of paint, his face still beaten with the gash across his mouth, his chest crimped and distorted, scraped, scratches, cuts, dents covering his body, Optimus addressed his Maximals. "Everyone is accounted for," he concluded, glancing at Ironclaw and Umbra with a neutral expression. "Rattrap," he called for the rodent's attention and with his hand, motioned him to shut the door. The shorter Maximal did so and joined the group, standing next to Aurora and giving her a momentarily reassuring smile. "Everyone is getting scanned the same way Nexus did earlier. No exceptions. We're going to find this shape shifter once and for all," Primal told everyone firmly. And before anyone else could object or tell him otherwise, he headed up to the observatory room where the controls were. Despite the situation, he wanted to tell them how great they were for how far they've come. He wanted to tell them how thankful he was for being rescued and them risking their lives to do it. And how proud he was of them, his Maximals, some of which had been with him since the beginning. He wanted to, but he was an emotional and mental wreck. He was cold, distant and intolerant. He was broken, in more ways than one.

Optimus started adjusting the settings in order for the machine to scan the entire room and everyone occupying it, and added commands to filter the data as each Maximal would be scanned so he could see the individual results. Once it was all set up, he punched in the code to activate it to and warm up the machine. It would only take a few moments to get it running accurately and acquiring the power it would need.

Both Rhinox and Rattrap frowned, watching him walk away and up to the room above. "Now I kinda miss his speeches," the rodent teased just slightly.

[DarkSpark]

Tarantulas backed away bit by bit as Megatron slowly advanced on him, the spider having unconsciously drawn his weapon but not firing it just yet, uncertain if he could still salvage this situation or if his cybervenom would be effective against a berserker Megatron, memories of the time Optimus Primal went full on "guerrilla" & went on a rampage in the Darksyde filling his head. His unieye widened in dread at the sight of Terrorsaur's snapped neck, the transmetal flyer clearly in stasis lock or worse.

"Megatron, come now, surely you don't think I'm in league with the likes of Cryotek? I betrayed him in favor of you ages ago!" Tarantulas explained calmly, fighting back the urge to panic and fire at the mad tyrant blindly.

"Ah yes, because a history of betrayal encourages faith in one's loyalty" Megatron replied coldly, shoving aside Inferno's poisoned form as he stomped ever closer to the spider, shooting at his feet, startling the arachnid and making him jump back even further.

"I would not be here on this miserable planet alongside you and the others others if I were still in his service! I'd be lightyears away back on Cybertron, where Cryotek remains rotting in prison for his crimes, assuming he hasn't been executed or assassinated yet!" Tarantulas argued back, resisting the urge to point out Megatron's own treacherous history.

Megatron merely smiled and threw his head back, laughing maniacally, more so than usual, as he replied "Do you take me for a fool, spider? Are you so blinded by fear that you honestly believe I cannot see your master Cryotek cowering behind you? You shall both die together, a fitting end for those who would stand in the way of my rise to power, to the glorious return of the Megatron dynasty!"

Tarantulas cursed inwardly and audibly as he realized Megatron was too far gone for him to reason with, or perhaps because he was not one of his few brainless devotees he lacked the clout necessary to break Megatron free of his delusions....The spider had never dreamt for an instant that he'd regret incapacitating Inferno of all bots. He would have to fight back now or risk death or infection at this rate, he had no devotion to Megatron of course but he was not in his weight class when it came to fighting and the hazmat suit he wore would limit his abilities even more, and removing it would increase his odds of infection, what a choice. However, it was then that Primus, Unicron, or whoever out there was watching over him and gave a damn threw him a bone so to speak.

Umbra was calling home.

NaitoKage wrote: As they made their way down to the hanger, Umbra spoke up I need to make a call.. you can listen in if you want. he then activated his comlink Lieutenant Tarantulas, this is Umbra. What's the status of the sick on the darksyde?

"The status of the sick is that our beloved leader is about to murder me for allying with Cryotek, a criminal we left for dead back home to side against him...Perhaps you could be so kind as to speak on behalf and convince our "lord" that his doctor is better kept alive?" Tarantulas spoke to Umbra, quickly opening communications on the ship to Umbra's comm link so Megatron could hear what the octopus had to say.

"Delay my execution a moment longer Mighty Megatron and I promise it will be worth your while! Your loyal agent Umbra is calling home with important intel for you!" Tarantulas explained quickly, hand outreached to stay Megatron wrath, the tyrant's gaze never wavering, nor did his tail cannon power down.

"Speak whoever you are, I have traitors to execute" Megatron snarled, not convinced of the spider's words completely, but his curiosity peaked, the virus' delusions failing to take away his natural desire for anything that could give him an edge.

[NaitoKage]

"The status of the sick is that our beloved leader is about to murder me for allying with Cryotek, a criminal we left for dead back home to side against him...Perhaps you could be so kind as to speak on behalf and convince our "lord" that his doctor is better kept alive?" "Delay my execution a moment longer Mighty Megatron and I promise it will be worth your while! Your loyal agent Umbra is calling home with important intel for you!"

"Speak whoever you are, I have traitors to execute"

Umbra nearly facepalmed with one of his tentacles as he overheard the conversation. This is Umbra. Lord Megatron, I have acquired the cure for the virus, however there wont be enough to cure you're entire crew. Unless you want to be a pawn in Zodiac's twisted game and lose everything you've strive for, you need Tarantulas alive to produce more of the cure for your men. I'll try to get the cure to you as soon as possible.

Umbra looked towards Whitegrazer and Landslide As you've heard.. the situation there is rather grim. I'd hate to ask but do you..

Landslide had a frown on his face There's a Cyber bee around.. I can probably get it working and have it carry the cure to the Predacon base..

Umbra gave a nod That should work fine, thank you Sir.. Landslide I believe it was?

Landslide gave a gruff sound, even if Umbra's information was correct.. he didn't see why he needed to follow their end of the bargain. It'd of been better off to just let the Predacons slag themselves and mop up whatever psychotic mess was left in a hailstorm of bullets.

He then continued on his way into the hanger, setting Umbra down by his work station.

Optimus then spoke up as the others had entered the room.

"Everyone is accounted for," "Rattrap," "Everyone is getting scanned the same way Nexus did earlier. No exceptions. We're going to find this shape shifter once and for all,"

"Now I kinda miss his speeches,"

Umbra looked towards Nemesis on the floor with a neutral expression, Landslide looked towards Rattrap No kiddin' lad. Not to mention the scans may not be accurate anyway, least from we've heard from Whitegrazer's new buddy here..

Umbra leaned up slightly with a few sparks of electricity seen shooting up from some of his bullet wounds, and waved to Rattrap Good evening.

[Phoenix]

"To the hangar,"

Nemesis pondered that answer, wondering why they were relocating there. And from the looks of it they weren't alone in doing so. Maximals appeared from all parts of the ship to join them there. A few sent her some rather distrustful looks, obviously less than happy with having Predacons roaming the ship. She paid them no heed, merely staring blankly ahead. Through the corner of her optic she caught sight of Umbra, who certainly seemed to have taken his fair share of beating.

"Hold still, Nemesis. Try to relax so your nanobots can work more efficiently on your wounds."

Even as the engineer spoke up again, her repairs were almost complete. With the rest of her wounds already taken care of, the nanites were free to devote all their attention to the wing thus their speed picked up rapidly. She didn't respond, instead she sat up and started moving her wing to test the strength of it. She felt like stretching them out but given their crowded surroundings she decided not to.

"Disappeared...? Or turned into Ironclaw? And how do I know you're not Zodiac now?"

Piercing red optics settled on the engineer as she attempted to figure out if he'd been serious or not.

"Paranoia doesn't really suit you," she responded in a low voice, finding little amusement in such pondering. "Ask yourself why I would put myself through such discomfort and embarrassment if I had the ability to become anyone. I would have nothing to gain by choosing the form of the likeliest of suspects."

She was of course referring to her little tumble through the wall. As for the current identity of the shape shifter, she couldn't be sure. It may very well be Ironclaw just like it could be any of them.

"There has always been technology created behind closed doors for unethical reasons,"

Aurora quieted down her protests, letting Whitegrazer's words sink in. For a moment her mind drifted to the experiments she had conducted on this nanotech and she found herself wondering if doing so could be put in the unethical category as well. She had mainly done it out of curiosity to see if she could, but also to see if there were any benefits to having such technology available. Well, obviously there were benefits but did they outweigh the negative aspects of tinkering with technology they didn't truly understand? What were the long term effects of this technology? Were the nanobots that were being kept artificially alive in the gel compound ever going to as sufficient and self-sustained as they were in the symbiotic relationship they existed in with Nemesis and the shapeshifter? And what kind of consequences would that development yield?

"If the shapeshifter has nanomachines, and by what we dealt with for the past two days, it would be safe to assume that what Umbra has said the truth. And if he could mimic and manipulate appearances that well, there is no telling what he could create or be."

The fuzor sighed at that notion, finding herself wondering not only if such near perfect technology was truly possible but also who would devote the time and resources to create such a weapon and why..

"We'll find out soon enough, I guess," she said a bit sullenly. She could only hope this is why Optimus had summoned them all in the hangar.

"Aurora, with that gel, you saved yourself. You did beat him." She knelt down, staring at the young girl, "I take full responsibility for what happened out there. If I hadn't gone out there, you wouldn't had been there. I'm sorry. I hope you can forgive me. "

Aurora smiled a bit at the sweet gesture, even if she had never blamed Whitegrazer for what happened that day. Slowly she reached out a hand and placed it on Whitegrazer's shoulder, something she wouldn't be able to do had the taller female not bent down to be on eye level with her. "Thanks..," she said, if a bit hesitantly, "But I'm still not sure his intention was to kill me.. He could easily have shot me again if that was the case."

Her green optics flickered for a moment before she let them settle on Whitegrazer.

"I was just an easy way to get to you."

It had not been a question.

"So I have to disagree. The shape shifter got exactly what he wanted."

She smiled again, ever so slightly, before her gaze drifted to the floor. Whitegrazer had sounded so saddened.. so truthful in her apology, yet her only fault in all of this was believing that everyone had an inkling of benevolence within them. Time and time again Aurora had seen quite the opposite, to be honest, that evil was very much so real and as big of a threat as ever. Optimus had been on the brink of death when he had returned to them. Even now he was.. different somehow. He hadn't even come to say hello when he woke up, instead he called them all to the hangar. Well.. at least she was surrounded by her team mates so even if the shape shifter was among them, there were more than enough of them to bring him down.

"Nemesis, what happened?"

The avian Predacon let out an annoyed grunt upon hearing the white mare's concerned voice. Would she have to explain this rather embarrassing situation to everyone in great detail? If anything she wished that she had the gift of invisibility right now but no such luck so she ended up shifting her weight rather uncomfortably on the stretcher. She didn't need it anymore but avoided making even more of a scene by jumping off. Of course Rhinox' blunt response didn't make matters any better.

"Zodiac happened," Rhinox answered the mare. "Assuming this isn't him right here,"

She shot him an angry glare and a grimace at that remark. "Check your security cameras if you don't believe me. I'm sure at least one of them must have picked up my little squabbles in the hallway."

Just then Optimus entered the hangar bay with Nexus and Rattrap in tow. And he certainly did not look healthy, that's for sure. In fact Nemesis could have sworn she heard the trail of gasps as the Maximals eyed their commander and chief, with numerous gashes, open wounds and missing flakes of paint clearly visible on his armor. The fact that he was still able to stand despite his serious injuries almost demanded respect.

Aurora had been in the middle of correcting Whitegrazer's earlier proclamation when the last group of Maximals joined them, her optics widening upon seeing how damaged Optimus truly was. And even worse he wasn't acting like himself, instead he seemed cold and distant.. with a determination that could not be budged. The fuzor stepped closer to Whitegrazer, almost a bit frightened by the stranger in Optimus' body. What were they all doing here..?

"I don't like this..."

Neither did Aurora..

Moments later the rodent shut the door after receiving the cue to do so by their leader, the one she trusted more than anything.. the one that wasn't himself right now. Part of her wanted to run up to him, to hug him, but it was clear that he had other priorities right now. So she stayed her ground, watching as Optimus addressed them all with a sense of authority that was uncommon for the monkey.

"Everyone is getting scanned the same way Nexus did earlier. No exceptions. We're going to find this shape shifter once and for all,

Nexus glanced over at Optimus as he informed his crew of what was about to happen, a neutral expression on his face. Nemesis, on the other hand, cringed slightly upon hearing why they had all gathered there. After all a body scan would do nothing to prove she wasn't the shape shifter, not when her systems contained the same technology that Zodiac's did. But at the very least this scan would be able to determine who else had nanotechnology implemented into their system so if Zodiac was hiding among them he was about to be exposed..

As Optimus headed up the stairs to the other room that contained the control unit along with the large view screen overlooking the hangar, Nexus followed right behind him. Aurora shouted out for Optimus at this point, at least wanting him to turn around, but her voice mostly drowned in the mumbling that now filled the hangar. Nexus ignored them all, his attention purely on Optimus. Once inside the room, the admiral closed the door behind them and went up to the window overlooking all the Maximals below.

"They will understand soon enough," Nexus told Optimus in a reassuring tone. "You are only doing what you have to in order to keep them all safe."

He finished the sentence with a slight but soothing smile, visible through his reflection in the window. The smile grew a little wider as the machine started powering on.

Only a few more nanoclicks to go..

[starshadow]

Banshee made her way towards the hangar bay as Optimus ordered but felt slightly uncomfortable with Ironclaw unrestrained. There was no telling when he would go about in his violent spree again. She stood beside Whitegrazer as soon as she reached the room, overhearing what she muttered.

"I don't like this..."

"Neither do I...But I'm sure things will get better either way," said the ghost bat femme. Her ears perked up to what the boss monkey has to say.

"Everyone is getting scanned the same way Nexus did earlier. No exceptions. We're going to find this shape shifter once and for all,"

well finally to put an end to the unnecessary party in the base.

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Meanwhile, Starshadow's mental torture pushed her into the depths of an endless violent frenzy. Tons of slash marks, bullet holes were made everywhere in the room, several hover boards were heavily damaged. Wounds of self-harming such as bite marks, large gashes made from her claws were seen on her body. Letting one last final scream of pain, she bolted to the vents and made her way to the bridge, bursting out of it and lands on the ground on her feet, "FOR VENGEANCE! FOR HELLFANG!" she roared before firing off electricity bolts in random directions.

[Mystrea]

Ironclaw was still just outside the door way into the hanger when Aurora came past him. She gave him a pleasant smile and then went into the hanger bay. He was not quite sure what was going through her head at the time. Maybe she was unaware of what was really going on, he wouldn't be surprised. The badger returned a neutral expression only to see that Whitegrazer was following her. He scowled at her as she past. He kept his mind shut to her, unsure of what mystic abilities she had access to. She was not trust worthy, naive and for some reason sought to delude Optimus Primal. He would have none of her.

Now that all the Maximals were present, Ironclaw finally stepped into hanger bay. Optimus and Nexus had just arrived and made there way to a separate room. The solider knew what he had to do and was ready to face it. He stepped out from the edge of the room and closer to the centre. There was a lot mumbling and whispering which came to a stop when drew the attention to himself. His presence brought silence. The badger stood taller than most in that room, fists by his sides and prepared himself. He that there was a lot of tension surrounding him but he didn't shy away from it. Changes had to be made for the greater good.

Though he had to start with clearing his name.