Difficult Relationships 2 of 7
by Laserbeak
***
Laserbeak sat at her desktop, her long, slender fingers taping the table in an rhythmic pattern. She couldn't think. Her mind kept returning to Terrorsaur. High-pitch voiced, arrogant...enticing Terrorsaur.
She typed in a code to access Sentinel's files on the Predacon forces: Find files marked as Predacon unit Terrorsaur.
"Searching.." The Maximal computer replied,"One file found Predacon unit Terrorsaur."A hologram of the red and silver flyer appeared, revolving as data scrolled across the screen. She scanned it quickly, afraid someone might catch her and start asking uncomfortable questions.
Name:Terrorsaur
Faction: Predacons
Rank: Aerial combat and recon expert.
Gender: Male
Beast Mode: Pterodactyl
Personality: Scheming, tricky,devious,wily,mischievous,cunning,hostile, bloodthirsty,cowardly, and clever.
Background: Hired by Megatron as a mercenary. Known for treachery and skill with computers. Prefers to fight while air-born, but is likely to flee if the odds turn against him. His greatest weakness, besides his own cowardice, is his arrogance. Believes himself to be the true leader of the Predacons. Has overthrown current leader, Megatron, twice with unsuccessful results.
Preferred Weapon(s): Hand held blaster, missile launcher, and shoulder cannons.
The she-dactyl scowled in disappointment as the information ended there. She had been hoping to learn so much more about her rescuer. Apparently the Maximal didn't think it was important to keep detailed records on their enemies. She stared at the hologram, running one finger along it gently. He was strongly built, muscular in the arms, legs and chest. His coloring was nice too, sleek, shining silver combined with bright red like organic blood. The white face plate was a good finishing touch to the effect.
She sighed, her eyes adopting a dreamy By-Primus-He's-Handsome look as she studied his exostructure, memorizing every detail, but what caught her more than anything else was his eyes. They were alive with mischief and rebellion, further emphasizing the description in the report. Shimmering crimson like burning embers in the darkness. Her reaction was the first in many thoughts that would soon build a barrier between her and her fellow Maximals.
~I bet that bot knows how to impress others. He probably doesn't put up with everyone always watching him like he's a virus waiting to strike.~ She sighed deeply. She was an outsider among her own people, destined to be scrutinized for the rest of her life...
"Hey, Lase! How you getting settled in?" Cheetor asked as the young cat-bot dashed in. She quickly typed in a "save and hide" command before turning to the eager teenager so sharply she almost spun out of her chair.
"Fine, thank you, Cheetor."
The kid was cute to begin with, but his constant chatter and energy got tiresome really fast. Like in a nano-click.
~I wonder if Predacons have to put up with this.~
"You sure?" He glanced around her quarters."Looks a bit bare to me. I have some extra posters I could put up, really prime stuff. Killer bands, the Cybertropolace Amusement Park..anyway, cool posters. Super bright, they'll light up this place in no time. Just ask Dinobot and Rattrap. I decorated their rooms. Of course, now they won't let me back in there..."
"Knock yourself out, Cheetor," she cut him off in annoyance.
His eyes shot wide with amazement,"Really? No way! Prime, I'll be right back." He was gone in a blur of gold and black.
She shook her head, glancing at the fox-like insignia glowing on her left upper arm that marked her as a Maximal. What a pain. She'd only been aboard the Axalon five megacycles and already she was wishing she could join Tigatron and Airazor on patrol. All this tightly enclosed, peace-loving, non-violent Maximal atmosphere was corrupting her battle instincts. She needed advice, she needed someone to understand her, but who? The answer came in a flash. Dinobot! He was a warrior. He would understand her restlessness.
On the way out she bumped into Cheetor who was buried beneath a moutain of rolled up posters and print outs.
"Go ahead and wallpaper the place, but try to do me two favors. #1. No fuzzy animals, they give me the creeps or make me hungry. #2. Try to keep it appropriate. Nothing frilly or sissy, but nothing obscene or stupid,'kay?"
He winked at her."You got it, Dactyl-babe. Nothing fuzzy, frilly, freaky or funky. No problemo."
She groaned,"I know I'm gonna regret this. Oh, and Cheetor, don't touch the computer. It's private."
Laserbeak felt a growing sense of hesitation as she neared Dinobot's door. She hadn't spoken much to the ex-Predacon, but she knew he didn't like to be disturbed. Still, she had to talk to someone. She knocked lightly on the door.
"If that is the Vermin, you can go burglarize cheeze from Megatron for all I care before I allow your stench in my quarters!"
She smirked in spite of herself. ~I could get to like this guy,~ she mused, replying aloud,"It's not Rattrap, it's me, Laserbeak. Can I come in, Dinobot? I have something of importance to discuss..."
The door opened sharply and she found herself beak to snout with the fierce looking Velociraptor. He didn't seem happy to see her.
.."with you," she finished quietly, tensing under his hard, green gaze.
"Enter, but touch nothing," he snarled gruffly.
She nodded slowly, entering the bare room. It was spotless, displaying a warrior's discipline and rigidness. Two weapon racks, one holding a variety of guns, the other swords, hung on the far wall near a pelt identical to that of Dinobot's beast mode. There were signs that someone had once hung posters or decorations up, but she guessed they had been short lived. His bed was a cold steel bunk like her own and there was a desk and computer(which she doubted got much use), but the room was otherwise devoid of embellishment. She sensed she had found a kindred spirit.
"Nice. Much like my own, but Cheetor will probably have that changed by the time I get back."
A faint smile twitched at his lips."The Feline has a habit of sticking his nose where it does not belong. You'll get used to it...or kill him. I have considered the second before."
She laughed softly."Mind if I sit?"
His eyes narrowed cynically but after a cycle he nodded.
She sat in the chair in front of his desk, realizing he was now taller than her in beast mode while she was sitting in robot mode. Somehow it seemed fitting. She admired his raptorian form, thinking how eerily it suited his personality: sleek, lethal, vicious, intelligent, noble, and oddly graceful. Almost attractive.
"The others don't trust me much,do they?"
"Trust must be earned over time," he growled,"If I were you, I would not waste my time concerning myself with what others think. Better to keep ones mind focused on the approaching battles."
She scowled at the floor in frustration, then a deep curiosity replaced the feeling of discouragement. "Was it like this in the Predacon base?"
He stiffened in cold surprise, but quickly masked the expression with one of indifference."How did you know?"
"Cheetor told me. The kid blabs half his hard-drive info in two cycles, including his life story and everyone else's. One simply has to know how to sort out what is useful from what is not."
He nodded in appreciation of her intellect."So now you see me as a former Predacon like everyone else."
"No. I don't judge people. That way, perhaps, they won't judge me."
Dinobot smirked,"For being created by one of the most devious Predacons alive you certainly are naive."
She began to protest but closed her mouth after a cycle. Maybe she was naive. She had, after all,defended an enemy fighter from her commanding officer, then probably violated some law by looking up his classified file, now she was here talking to a former Pred of all people! It certainly didn't imply much of a heroic Maximal image.
~Maybe I should have been a Predacon afterall. I'd probably fit in better.~
"You are a replica of Terrorsaur as far as most of the Maximals are concerned and will continue to be so in their eyes until you prove yourself to be otherwise. Be careful because you are being judged."
"By you or just everyone else?"she asked evenly, feeling some pleasure at being classified with the handsome male dactyl. She knew this sudden rush of emotion was irrational since she didn't even know the bot and he was an opponent. Later this feeling would deepen and not seem mysterious in the least, but she was currently puzzled by it and pushed it away.
"Everyone," he snarled, then looked sensed that was her cue to leave and stood, nodding her thanks.
Dinobot sat alone in his quarters for several megacycles afterward, contemplating several issues. The young female dactyl made him decidedly uncomfortable, not only because she reminded him of his former Predacon comrade, but the look in her eyes. That unsettled him the most. Those eyes. They were glistening green like purest energon and brooding, always appearing to be conceiving some clever plot. Much like a Predacon. In fact, exactly like a Predacon. That startled him, for if a Maximal could seem like a Predacon, then a Predacon could truly become a Maximal. Was that what was happening to him? Had he completely forsaken his heritage for these sentimentally overided automatons?
~No. I am still the bot I have always been.~ he convinced himself.~Neither Predacon nor Maximal, but a combination of both. And of that I am proud. I am a warrior of the highest degree, born and raised on war. Despite what others believe.~
The last thought was referring to Rattrap. Dinobot and the rodent had always hated one another from the first, but other time it had became an odd (and this is stretching the word to all possible bounds) friendship. They traded insults, jeers and other rude comments for amusement, rarely taking the ether's seriously any more. But lately things had gotten tense between them again.
Dinobot, of course, couldn't be expected to understand what was going on in Rattrap's would only worsen during the next few months, for soon Dinobot would be forced to make a decision, one that would affect them both greatly.
***
Several weeks passed. Things didn't improve much for the she-dactyl, nor between the rat and the raptor.
Laserbeak grew more and more restless over time, requesting to be put on solo patrol as often as, and Optimus,while confused by the female's reclusive behavior, agreed. It seemed as if Dinobot's cold attitude had somehow been partially transferred into her, and in a way it had. She had officially taken his place as the outcast of the group, or at least it felt so to her.
Laserbeak soared through the air, feeling the thermals lift her as they rustled against the leathery flaps of her was a grand release for her. She didn't get along well with her new Maximal comrades. Optimus Primal was a capable leader, but slightly uneasy around her, no doubt because of her beast mode and origin. The cat-embodied constant bundle of energy, Cheetor,was an annoyance, as were the benevolent Airazor, Rhinox, and Tigatron. She could get into nature as much as the next bot, but not 24 megacycles a solar cycle! She needed action and had a thrist for battle, something that she occasionally wonder if it was just her personality or perhaps she had absorbed some of Terrorsaur for Dinobot and Rattrap, those two didn't trust her in the least.
Suddenly an ear-piercing screech caught her attention and drew it to a massive eagle gracefully gliding below her. Her stomach growled and she allowed herself a soft, mildly evil chuckle, diving low, talons ready. She should have felt guilty devouring a creature so close to the beast mode of a comrade, but a girl had to eat. She closed the distance between herself and her prey quickly, only to be startled out of her concentration as a hunting cry almost identical to her own cut through the air.
Too late the two reptiles saw what was happening and when the eagle veered up the pterodactyls had the same thought the moment before they collided:Oh SLAG!!
Shrieking, they tumbled from the sky. Laserbeak flapped wildly to slow her decent, sighing in relief as the wind lifted her back into the air. She glanced around warily but saw no sight of Terrorsaur. Fear shot through her system. What if he hadn't been as lucky as she? Even a Pred didn't deserve to die like that.
She circled once, then dove down among the tree tops, searching for him. Without warning, in a flash red he was there, directly in front of her. She squawked in surprise, eyeing him distrustfully. He was her enemy. But then, he was also her savior as well. She was confused. Apparently the feeling was mutual because neither gave their battle cries or showed any sign of attacking.
"Are you alright?" he asked at length.
She nodded in shock."You?"
"Besides missing a snack, I'm no worse off," he replied, shrugging lean, muscular shoulders as he flapped his wings occasionally to keep himself hovering. Silence. A tense one.
"I don't want to fight you,"she started bluntly at last,"You're my nemisis, but you're..."
"The only one like me," he finished for her, his beady green eyes dancing with excitement."You understand."
She nodded again, her own eyes coming to life. At last someone to relate to! "Is there somewhere we can talk? Neutral ground?"she persisted, disturbed by the urgency that had crept into her voice. But she was so close to the answers she sought.
His expression was rather cynical but that evaporated after instantly as he replied,"Some place away from Maximal and Predacon scanners. Yeah, I know a place where the enegon interference is too strong for them to detect us...and we do need to talk. Follow me."
He surprised her more than a bit by ducking inside a crack in a cliffwall. They were in Grid Sigma, the place of her birth. She felt a shudder of excitement pass through her as she followed him into the crevice. It was like coming home.
They flew through a maze of enegon weaving up into the mountains and finally landed in the heart of a huge opening like a cavern. Terrorsaur smirked a he leaned against an outcropping of rock and gestured around him."My hideout. I come here sometimes when I'm supposed to be on patrol."
"To do what?"
He scrunched up his beak and replied,"To think."
"About Cybertron?" she asked eagerly, eyes alight,"Tell me, Terrorsaur! Please, please tell me. I can't remember anything about my home. My memory was partially erased when I was put into stasis lock. But you remember everything!"
He couldn't help but chuckle at the look of hope and excitement on her face, like a sparkling. "I don't remember that much. The Predacons weren't on your side of Cybertron that long before I sighed up with Megatron to steal the Golden Disk. It was sorta peaceful before that, quiet, boring. Lots of Maximals." His voice trailed off in thought.
"Why did you join Megatron?"
He shrugged."I liked what he was advertising, power, prestige, action. Besides," he sighed, his green gaze sorrowful,"I had nothing to lose."
"What about your family?"
"Don't have one. Never have."
"Friends? Girlfriend?" she persisted, surprising herself with the hope in her heart. She was hoping with all her being he didn't have one.
He snorted a laugh,"What femme in her right mind would go out with me?" This was one of those weird moments his ego wasn't present and he spoke truthfully.
She took a deep breath and whispered,"I would."
He turned to her in amazement,"W..what?"
She smiled softly, flushing from her own forwardness. By Primus, he was unlike any male she'd ever known or at least recalled. "I would have gone out with you if we were back on Cybertron and you ask me. I think you're Prime. You're honest, or pretty much for a Pred, you speak your mind, you don't care what out people think. In fact..I'd be honored if you'd consider me your friend."
"Preds don't have friends, Laserbeak. And even if we did we can't be friends with Maximals. We're at war here remember?"
"Well, you can take that attitude if you want, but I still consider you to be my best friend. Wouldn't be hard to reach that rank. I don't have any others."
"I thought Maxies were all comradeship and trust and junk."
"They..we are,"she mumbled, not looking at him,"But.."
"You don't feel like you fit in," he finished for her.
She shook her head at met his gaze sadly. "Not really. It's my beast mode. It makes them all jumpy because it's not mammalian or noble like the rest of them. But I wouldn't change it even if I could."
"You...you wouldn't," he stuttered. "You really like my..our..your beast mode?"
"I like where it came from," she replied smiling up at him. His fluid pump fluttered in his chest. She was the most lovely creature in the universe as far as he was concerned.
"You saved my life, Terror. I think you're the most amazingly brave bot I know, and the greatest Pred ever."
Every circuit in his exostructure sang with joy. At last someone recognized his greatness, and to top it off she was the most spectacular female he'd ever encountered!
"You're the only one who's ever said that."
"I meant every word."
His eyes shone with adoration. Flattery was the way to Terrosaur's heart if anything was. He puffed out his narrow chest with pride. "Well then, I guess I could at least give you the honor of calling you my friend,"he stated smugly. To his shock she wrapped her wings around him and hugged him. He lifted his wings but couldn't bring himself to hug her back. That was soooo Maximal mushy. His face flushed a deeper crimson than it already was. This was totally unPredacon like but....awww, what the heck. He let his wings fall and hugged her back tenderly.
***
"You sure you can't make it out tonight?" Laserbeak asked disappointedly as she stared into the face of her comlink. She and Terrorsaur had been meeting secretly for the past three weeks, usually at his cave, but sometimes nearer to his base or hers.
But tonight was his shift at monitor was taking a break, the spiders and the locust were in there labs, Waspinator and Scorponok were on patrol and Inferno was stationed at the ship's com system. He hated not being able to see her but what's a Pred to do?
"Sorry, L.B. I can't tomorrow for sure though."
"Alright. Miss you. Bye Terror."
"See ya, Laser."
She sighed and shut down her com. This was going to be a long 24 megacycles. She wanted to be with Terrorsaur, but he couldn't desert his post. Maybe he wouldn't have to. A slightly cunning, unMaximal smile tugged at her Terrorsaur couldn't come out maybe she'd just have to pay the Pred base a visit.
***
Author's Note: I warned you there would be mush! I'm horribly reminded of Wayward's artwork featuring Terrorsaur stating "Attention Femme Fans: I am NOT your Bish." Well you couldn't tell it the way I used to write. They became infatuated with each other far too easily, btu then I have always believed in love at first sight. let me know what you think and review, PLEAAAAAASE? Or I'll sick Cheetor on you!!
