The bushes rustled. Rumble turned to see who was there, but he saw no one.
"Don't tell me I got static in my rectifiers again," he muttered to himself. The bushes rustled again.
"Hey! What's goin' on???" he exclaimed and jumped into the bushes after whatever was in there. He found a wild cat, cowering slightly and staring at him with huge eyes.
"Shoo, beast!" Rumble kicked at the cat, who hissed at him, then to his utter surprise, transformed into a human female. She was stunning, even to his optics, and was tall and athletic. Rumble froze, transfixed on the organic that stood before him.
"Cat got your tongue?" the human jokingly asked him, giggling.
"That's NOT funny," Rumble protested. "Who ARE you...WHAT are you?"
"I am Andelyn," she responded. "I am a shape-shifter. And you are?"
"Designation Rumble," he answered. "Why were you following me?"
"I am sympathetic to the Decepticon cause. I wish to join your faction."
"We don't want squishies..." Rumble began, then stopped. "But..."
"But, what?" Andelyn raised an eyebrow at him, puzzled.
Rumble stared at her, trying to figure out why he seemed to be drawn to this organic. He distrusted organics, but THIS one was different, and he didn't know why.
"Come with me," he said at last. "You can talk to Soundwave. He's more tolerant of squishies."
"Let's fly," Andelyn said and morphed into an eagle. Rumble transformed into a cassette and allowed her to take him in her talons. They headed for the Decepticon headquarters, where Soundwave was waiting for Rumble and his new find.
"Rumble, why did you bring this organic?" Soundwave inquired, annoyed at the presence of the eagle. Rumble quickly transformed.
"This one's different," he said, somewhat excited, then turned to Andelyn. "Show him what you can do!"
To Soundwave's amazement, the eagle transformed into a human female.
Andelyn stood quietly, nervous and wondering if she would be accepted or killed.
Soundwave studied her for a bit.
"Why do you wish to join the Decepticons?" he asked her.
"Sir, I am a skilled espionage agent and can provide you with ways to infiltrate the human world," Andelyn answered, hopefully to Soundwave's approval. " I can shape-shift into any animal or plant to avoid detection."
"I must inform Megatron," Soundwave said.
Rumble and Andelyn exchanged looks. Rumble knew this was the ultimate deciding factor, and Megatron could easily eliminate Andelyn, and for some reason, he felt concerned. Scrap... Megatron could eliminate HIM for bringing her here.
The two followed Soundwave to Megatron's quarters. Andelyn could feel her heart pounding in her chest. Few things frightened her, but this was Megatron, and he was someone to be fearful of.
"Lord Megatron," Soundwave greeted his leader.
"Ahh, Soundwave," Megatron said, looking oddly at Rumble, who appeared to be quite sheepish. He had a scorpion sitting on his shoulder, and Megatron found the sight quite strange.
"Rumble, what the slag is that?" Megatron pointed at the scorpion.
Rumble stared blankly, confused, and unaware that in her nervousness, Andelyn had morphed into the creature. Rumble looked around and saw that Andelyn was nowhere. He gulped nervously, then saw the scorpion on his shoulder. He looked at Megatron and laughed nervously.
"What are you up to, Rumble?" Megatron asked, becoming annoyed with the cassetticon.
Soundwave, becoming embarrassed at Rumble's behavior, explained the situation the best he could to Megatron, who continued to glare at Rumble.
"What? THIS puny creature???" Megatron pointed his fusion cannon at the scorpion. Andelyn had half the mind to just scurry out of sight, but joining the Decepticons meant a lot to her. She transformed back into her human form.
Megatron was amused. "An organic transformer? Interesting," he said. He turned to Soundwave.
"And WHY do we need this flesh creature, Soundwave?" he calmly asked the communications officer.
"Infiltration," was the reply.
Megatron thought quietly for a minute. He didn't like flesh creatures, they were nothing more than pests. But they also controlled resources that could be taken for the Decepticon cause, and this organic could be their key to getting ahold of those resources.
"I will make an exception for THIS organic," Megatron decided. "But she needs to be initiated. And if she survives the initiation, then I will accept her as a Decepticon."
"As you wish, Lord Megatron," Soundwave replied.
Rumble looked at Andelyn, who was trying to look stoic. For sure she would perish, he thought, as the initiation was brutal, even for a robot. He felt regret over bringing her in, even though he knew he shouldn't be concerned over a flesh creature's fate.
"Andelyn, you should leave now and not look back," Rumble whispered.
"No," she protested. "I am staying. I have nothing to lose."
"Your life...," Rumble said, trailing off.
Later, at an undisclosed location, the Decepticons gathered for the very first initiation of a flesh creature. Most of the Decepticons had bet that Andelyn would not make it through. The Constructicons had built a maze with perils at every turn, meant to test the reflexes of robots and not an organic. This was to be the first rite of passage. Andelyn surveyed the imposing structure, and tried to psych herself up to the task. She had been through intense training in martial arts and hoped that it would pay off today. And she was only allowed to pick one alternate form that she could morph into if she needed to, so she submitted a jaguar. If she deviated, she would be exterminated on the spot.
Andelyn took a couple of deep breaths, and to the mostly jeers from the Decepticon audience, began her way through the maze. It was very difficult and a couple of times she was knocked down or stabbed, but she forced herself to finish. She emerged from the maze, bruised and bleeding, but alive. And she only used her jaguar form once. She fell to her knees before Megatron and Starscream, awaiting their judgement, and holding her bleeding shoulder.
"You are strong, flesh creature," Starscream sneered. "But will you kill your own kind?"
Skywarp brought out a human that had been captured. It was clear to Andelyn he was being tortured and although it pained the side of her that had a bit of humanity, she rationalized to herself that killing him would definitely end his misery.
Megatron handed her a weapon, but Starscream took it away.
"With your bare hands, flesh creature," he ordered, pointing a null ray rifle at her. The Decepticon audience taunted her, thinking she would not be able to commit the act. Andelyn approached the man, and under her breath, asked for his forgiveness. She grabbed the man's throat in her hands and looked around at the Decepticons. She met Rumble's gaze. He had a look of utter shock on his face.
"What are you waiting for?" Starscream said impatiently, and turned to Megatron. "She can't do it. Can I kill her now?"
Before Megatron could answer, Andelyn tightened her grip on the man's throat, slowly cutting off his oxygen. The man began choking, and with a final snap, Andelyn fractured his trachea. She let go, and the man fell to the ground in a lifeless heap. She looked toward the sky, and part of her hoped he had found peace.
"You underestimate me, Starscream, " she said, turning towards he and Megatron. Starscream was speechless, and it was Megatron who spoke.
"Well, you have proven yourself worthy," he told her. "But we are not finished with you yet." Megatron motioned to the seekers, who grabbed Andelyn. "Take her back to headquarters."
"No, Megatron," Rumble pleaded. "Not that. She can't take that!"
"No, Rumble?" Megatron smirked. "Then YOU will do it to her. And I'LL watch."