Disclaimer- All references to existing copyrights are used without permission. Don't bother suing me; your lawyer would cost more than I'd be able to pay when you won.

Nightshade's mine, but I'm willing to share if you tell me why you need him.

-Personal Log: Entry #001-

After two lunar cycles of searching, I have located the alien transmission's time and planet of origin. I believe I can confirm our initial speculation that the planet in question is none other than Earth. The planetary coordinates and orbital path leave no other possibility. However, there are many inconsistencies between the Earth of this time and the Earth that I expected to find.

The most prominent is a second moon, which holds a geosynchronous orbit. A thorough scan reveals it to be hollow, (See Attached for full scan results) but I can find no way inside. This suggests artificial construction. There is another artificial structure on the planet's surface, directly below the hollow moon. I believe it may be a shrine or temple, but no life-forms are nearby. As it currently has no relevance to this investigation, I will not give it another thought.

Several small pods (See Attached) also orbit the planet, in a single-file line. Initial count yields fourteen, but their relative positions suggest that there may have been more of them at one time. Each is equipped with a long-term life support system, and each seems to have been built for life-forms of about my size. An exception to this is the pod at the trailing end, which is roughly twice the size of the others, and marked with a large "X".

My radar shows two ships on the planet's surface, both functional. I have transmitted Perceptor's scrambler program to both computer networks, and am now preparing the viral relay to hide myself from their scanners.

It may be a coincidence, but one of the ships carries an energy signature very similar to that of my own ship, Alpha Seven. That is the ship I will approach, as soon as I find a nearby clear zone to touch down on. Normally, I'd pick somewhere away from prying eyes, but the large Energon deposits worry me.

I will keep my recording device handy. If all goes well, I will update as often as I can with new information. If all does not go well, I will likely be terminated for attempting to infiltrate this ancient society.

It was in the dark of the night that the robot, as black as a living shadow, walked up to the belly of the Axalon. There was no trace of doubt on his cat-like face; whoever was in that fortress, they had to know he was there. He only hoped they wouldn't turn him away, because if they did, then those lunar cycles of searching would mean nothing.

Besides, even with his field dampers at full power, the raw Energon was starting to get to him. He needed shelter, and if this kept up, he'd need repairs before long.

Rhinox frowned. He prided himself on being a master of computers, but he was having a hard time processing this encryption algorithm. It had hit the computer console without warning, just after sundown. And in only a few cycles, it had completely knocked out the scanners. Now, in the middle of the night, Rhinox was still going in circles, trying to get rid of the program, and get the scanners back online. Whoever had set this up had known what they were doing.

Then he stopped. Early warning was picking up an unidentified unit, directly beneath the ship. And--this could be bad--he had no beast shell to protect him against the Energon radiation.

Rhinox switched on the radio, setting it to broadcast two-way with the outside. "Unknown, state your name, function, and CPU ID."

The reply was swift. The speaker's voice was deep like his own, but had a purring sort of growl to it--like Dinobot's, but smoother, gentler. "My name is Nightshade, and I'm a scout unit. My CPU ID is RVG, version three point one."

"Tarantulas, report. What progress have you made?"

The spider flinched slightly at Megatron's words. "I'm trying, Megatron, but whatever it is that's knocked out the scanners, it's very different from anything else I have seen. It could take all night just to learn where it came from, and I still wouldn't know how to get past it."

"I will not accept excuses, Tarantulas. No. The scanners must be repaired, or the Maximals will regain control of the remaining stasis pods. Yes. Fix it! Now!"

Nightshade had barely finished talking before Rhinox checked the info against the ship's database. One word caught his eye. "It says here that you're also an infiltration unit. Why didn't you mention that?"

"What kind of infiltration unit would I be if I admitted to it left and right?"

He had a point there. But still... "What proof is there that this isn't a sneak attack?"

"The raw Energon is wreaking havoc with my systems. I'm in no condition to attack anyone, sneak or otherwise."

"I'll have to tell my superior about this, and see what--"

"Please," Nightshade said. "Let me in. I'm suffering. I don't want to die like this."

That did it. If Rhinox woke Optimus up first, the discussion that would follow would take time this new robot didn't have. And whatever else was said or done now, Optimus would make sure it led to only one conclusion anyway.

With a resigned sigh, Rhinox lowered the boarding platform.

-End Chapter One-