woc3


"That is my proposition Primal," said the image of Megatron on the Axalon's computer screen. "Either surrender or these two Maximals," he pointed to the caged Spinestrike and Snarl behind him, "will be terminated!"

"That's not much of a choice," Optimus shook his head sadly.

"I shall give you two hours to make your decision. After that...." Megatron drew his finger across his throat like a blade, then his face disappeared from the screen.

"So, what do we do now?" asked Rhinox, his face full of concern.

Optimus sighed. "I wish I knew."

"Well, we are certainly NOT going to surrender to them?!!" growled Dinobot. "Megatron can not be trusted! He would kill the two Maximals, no matter what we do!"

"I gotta agree with chopperface on this one." Livewire held her head
in her hands, "those two are scrap."

"There must be something we can do!" Silverbolt spoke up.

Tigatron and Airazor exchanged worried looks, while Mad Jackel, for
once in her life, couldn't think of anything to say.

The Maximal leader looked around at his assembled crew. "Prime, where are you when I need you?!*

*****

Rattrap switched off his communicator. It had picked up Megatron's message as it can through and he and Cheetor had heard every word.

"This is bad," Cheetor gulped.

"No, this is beyond bad!!" Rattrap sat down on a rock grumbling.

"So what do we do?" asked the younger Maximal.

"Whata ya mean, whata WE do? We can't do nothing!!" Rattrap shook his head. "The only thing we could do would be completely insane and idiotic and...." he stopped suddenly.

Cheetor looked at him. "And what?"

The rat smiled. "Feel like doing somethin' insane and idiotic?"

*****

Spinestrike's world finally began to lighten. The air around him seemed unusually warm and so thick, he nearly choked. He sat up, his head throbbing with pain. "Oy what a day I'm having!"

"Tell me about it!" said a nearby voice.

The echidna opened his eyes to find himself in a cage dangling over a lava pit, Snarl was in a cage next to him. "What happened?"

"As near as I can figure," Snarl sighed, "We've been kidnaped by a group of unfriendly Predacons."

"Well that's just great."

"Wait, it gets worse. I overheard their commander, we're being held for the surrender of the other Maximals."

"And either way, we're probably toast?"

"Yep, and oh yeah, we've been disarmed."

"Not completely." Spinestrike produced his surgeon's kit from behind
his back, "they forgot something."

Snarled looked at his friend, puzzled. He seemed to be smiling and examining a small scalpel. "What are you smiling about?"

"Simply," Spinestrike began to laugh, "the fact that you can pick a lock with a scalpel, that's all."

*****

When BlackArachnia finally stepped out of the CR tank, Quickstrike was waiting for her.

"How ya feelin' Sugarbot?"

"Better, thank you," BlackArachnia flashed him one of her infamous, fangy smiles, "and I do so appreciate your concern."

Across the room Tarantulas made a hmph' noise. Arachnia ignored him and continued her flirting.

"I don't suppose you'd like to escort me to the command center, would you Quickstrike?" The she-spider ran her claw seductively down his chest.

"Why sure I would widow-gal," said the fuzor, giggling like an idiot.

Meanwhile, Tarantulas was beginning to feel nauseous.

Quickstrike put his snake arm around BlackArachnia's slender waist and the two walked out of the medical lab, but not before the female shot a smirk in Tarantulas's direction.

The transmetal slammed his fist into the computer console angrily. "Ohhhh...that witch!"

Tarantulas sat back in his chair, arms crossed, grumbling. BlackArachnia had been getting on his nerves more then usual lately, especially her flirting with Quickstrike. Funny how that behavior seemed to bother him most when it was directed at someone else. Could it be he was actually jealous? The spider shook this thought out of his head. No, to be jealous he would have to care! That was not an emotion he believed he ever had.

But then again, what right did that fuzor have to her? It was Tarantulas's genius that had created BlackArachnia, if anyone should have her affections it should be him! And he would have her, oh yes he WOULD, one way or another! But first he would have to get rid of Quickstrike.

"Sometimes I swear, that idiot would serve me better as a floor lamp then as a lackey." Tarantulas chuckled to himself, he was beginning to get a few ideas.

*****

"Storming the Pred base to rescue two bots we've never met?" asked Cheetor as he raced through the sky. "I thought you hated suicide missions?!"

"I do!" yelled Rattrap racing below him. "But I'd hate havin' ta surrender and definitely get scrapped even more!"

"The worse of two evils huh?"

"You got it kid! Now shut up and keep flying!"

*****

Snarl and Spinestrike crept through the Predacon corridors as quietly as they could, stepping back into the shadows as they heard a noise coming towards them.

Buzz Saw and Sting Blade came walking down the hall arm in arm. Waspinator followed just behind them.

"So he sayzzz..." Waspinator giggled, barley able to finish his joke, "that wazz no lady, that'zz my wife!

Sting Blade burst out laughing, but Buzz Saw just looked confused. "Buzz Saw no get it."

The three insects walked past them, not noticing a thing. When the cost was clear, the Maximals slipped into the room across the hall.

"This looks like a the storage room," whispered Spinestrike "Probably where they put our weapons, start looking."

Snarled nodded and the two headed off in different directions.

Suddenly the Tasmanian devil stopped, laying on a shelf in front of him was his tailgun and Spinestrike's boomerangs and laser. "Guess the Preds weren't too worried about someone getting to these," he chuckled in a low voice.

The Maximal didn't notice a large shadow creeping up behind him.

"Man, talk about dumb Preda..." he stopped short as he glanced over his shoulder "...cons?"

Snarl turned completely around and found himself looking up at a very large red robot with a wicked grin plastered across his face.

"Your just in time for your death Maximal fool!" Inferno laughed maniacally as he reached back for his flamethrower to finish off his victim.

Poor Snarl was too petrified to move a muscle, let alone see the figure standing behind Inferno.

Luckily for him, that was when the fire ant realized something was missing, namely his weapon. Inferno tensed at hear the familiar click of a gun being brought online next to the back of his head.

"Loss something blender-butt?"

He spun around only to find himself looking down the barrel on his own flamethrower with Spinestrike slowly pressing the trigger....

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!"

*****

"Did you hear something?" asked Cheetor as he and Rattrap prepared to literally storm the Predacon base.

"Ya, I think dat's our signal to move!" shouted Rattrap.

They charged.

*****

"Woah," gasped Snarl, looking at the charred Predacon at his feet. He was amazed.

Spinestrike, on the other hand, looked more remorseful then anything. He dropped the flamethrower, "I think his screaming just woke up every Pred in the place."

Almost on cue, sirens began going off.

"Yep, we're gonna die."

Snarl tosses the echidna his weapons. "Not without a fight we're not! Come on, I have a plan this time!"

His plan was a simple one, smash through every Predacon in their way and try to get out before getting killed. Never said it was a very good plan. They did, however, manage to get as far as the next corridor before being pinned down by enemy fire.

"Foolish Maximals," sneered Megatron, "did you really think we would let you escape?"

"Well, no actually," said a quite damaged Spinestrike, sarcastic to the very last, "but hey, it was worth a shot right?"

Megatron aimed his cannon at the echidna's head.

"Guess that's a no."

The Pred commander was about to fire when the wall next to him exploded. In walked two battle ready Maximals.

"Ok, all good guys out!" yelled Rattrap.

He and Cheetor held off the bit dazed Predacons, while Snarl grabbed his damaged companion and leaped out the newly made door. The others quickly followed suit.

"Don't just stand there you idiots!" growled Megatron. "After them!"

"I can't believe that worked!" laughed Cheetor.

"Yeah," shouted Snarl, "nice timing!"

Spinestrike, who was still being half dragged along by Snarl, wasn't so optimistic. "We're all gonna die!"

"Hey, that's my line!" Rattrap yelled from behind them. "But I think you're right!"

Just then came the familiar sound of a Predacon's scream as chaingun bullets ripped into them. And there, in front of them, stood Rhinox and all the other Maximals, already for battle.

"What happened?" asked Optimus Primal as the fleeing Maximals joined them.

"I'll tell ya later," Rattrap caught his breath. "What are you guys doin' here?"

"Came to do what I think you just did," said Rhinox. "In which case I'd say it's time to go."

Optimus nodded. "Maximals fallback!"

"Ahh!" screamed Megatron in frustration. He grabbed the nearest Pred, which happened to be Buzz Saw, and slammed him into a tree.

The unfortunate yellow jacket rubbed his head. "Buzz Saw need to find new line of work."

*****

"So you and Cheetor decided to storm the base alone?" asked Optimus, he did not look happy.

"Yeah and it worked, so what ya gettin' so mad about...ouch!" Rattrap jerked as Spinestrike worked on his damaged circuitry. "Dat hurts!"

"If you'd sit still, it wouldn't," growled Spinestrike finishing his work, closing the panel on the transmetal's chest.

"Ok, can I go now doc?"

"Yeah," sighed the new medic, "but don't call me 'doc'. "

Rattrap began to walk out of the med lab but Optimus grabbed his shoulder. "If you EVER pull a stunt like that again...."

"Trust me, I won't." The rat smirked as he left the room.

Spinestrike shook his head. "Well, I can see working here is gonna be a real experience."

Rhinox sighed. "You don't know the half of it!"

*****

Rattrap hadn't expected anyone wanted to really talk to him right now, especially her. But there, leaning next to his door as he came around the corner, was Livewire. He wasn't sure whether to be glad to see her or not.

"Hey Ratbreath, where ya been?"

"Around. Why, was ya looking for me or somethin''?"

"No."

A weird smile crossed the rat's face. "Come on, admit it. You was worried about me."

"Ya well..." Livewire bit her lip. "What's it to ya?"

"I just wanted to know if ya'd miss me."

"Why of course," her voice dripped with sarcasm, "without you, I'd be da shortest Maximal around here."

"Oh very funny." He wasn't amused.

The female just smirked and walked passed him, letting the tip of her wing brush playfully against his face.

"Sheesh, women. Ya can't live with em..." Rattrap watched Livewire walk down the hall, "but life wouldn' be nearly as much fun without em!"

*****

It had taken him awhile, partly due to the interruption caused by the Maximals, but Lazorbeak finally creaked the security code on the computer.

"Looks like this Terrorsaur guy had some major plans," he chuckled.

Inside the computer he had found file upon file of information on the bases, local energon deposits, and everything else a would-be conspirator could need. And by now, it seemed obvious to him that Megatron was an incompetent leader. So why shouldn't HE lead?

"Hmmm..." The pterodactyl grinned wickedly, "this has some definite possibilities, yesss...."

The End