Voyagers Saga:

Justice, Bolts, and Gears

Chapter 7: Lessons of the Past, pt 2

Captain Fanzone was not happy. Granted there few times where he was happy, but we was not pleased about giant robots creating collateral damage with their fight downtown...again. That's why he was driving to Sumdac tower to give Optimus a piece of his mind.

He arrived to see a large robot, definitely not a Cybertronian with several of the weird mercenaries and their pets. Their leader (Matt was it?) was talking to the bot. "Look, it's safer here, Serina. Now play nice."

"Matt, I'm a 30 foot mech with all kinds of high tech weapons, I can take care of myself," said 'Serina'.

Matt turned to see Captain Fanzone. "Oh, Captain, what can I do for you?" he said, innocently.

"Oh nothing much," said Captain Fanzone, "I just here because I've gotten reports of a giant robot tearing up town and I thought you'd know most about it."

Matt looked innocent and even the robot gave an air of innocence. "What giant robot?" said Serina

Fanzone glanced up at Serina and said, "Let me guess, another robot brought to life?"

Matt shook his head. "No, just a rogue AI controlling the most advanced war machine in any dimension you care to name, no biggy," he said

"And I suppose that was what tore up downtown?" said Fanzone.

"Not quite," said Matt, "It was her former teammate, same type of mech but total psycho."

"Gee Matt, you ever heard of laying it on lightly?" said Sari.

"Yeah, it was in a training manual. I never read it," said Matt.

Fanzone rubbed his forehead and said, "So you're telling me there are two war machine robots loose in Detroit?"

"Nope, we scrapped the killer one," said Matt.

"And I am not loose," said Serina, "I am right here."

"She's perfectly safe," said Matt.

Fanzone said, "It's got two missile pods on its shoulders. Full ones I see," he said, seeing the warheads poking out the missile pods.

"Erm, oops?" said Serina as she retracted them, "You really shouldn't stare. That's like you have your pants zipper down. Speaking of which, Matt yours is down." Matt glared and looked down briefly. Serina giggled. "Too easy."

Fanzone rolled his eyes. "Even their vehicles are nuts," he muttered

Just then, Matt's communicator rang and WARDEN's voice came out, "Sir, am I interrupting anything?"

Fanzone stared. "More of you?" he said.

Matt waved a hand. "What is it?" he muttered to WARDEN.

"Your sister has informed you of the unidentified aircraft I've spotted, hasn't she?" said WARDEN.

"Nope...do tell," said Matt, glaring as Chloe went by, yelling at Chris and Draco for hiding a grenade in the soup in the canteen in the tower.

"Yes, well, an aircraft of unknown model had appeared in Earth's atmosphere. And now it is over Detroit's airspace. I think you'll be able to see it from the ground in three minutes," said WARDEN.

Matt looked at Fanzone. "Can we finish this later? Alien invasion in progress," he said, before yelling into his comm in splitter.

--

A few minutes later, two thunderbolt starfuries were flying over the clouds, homing in on the target. Captain Alice, a pilot from the trip to NYC, was leading. "Control, we got it, range 1 km," she said, seeing a dot on the horizon.

The starfuries quickly flew towards the target. They saw it was a jet, but of a very unusual craft. The main body was slightly bulky and it had two thin wings on both sides. It has a third pair of wings in the back with thrusters on the back. Another pair of thrusters was on the back of the jet. But the most unusual feature was that the cockpit was in the middle while the nose cone was shaped like a cobra's head. The body was mostly painted grey with the wings, the front part of the rear wings, and the cobra's head being gold.

"Unidentified aircraft, you are trespassing on NSC protectorate territory. Proceed off-planet immediately otherwise we will open fire," said Alice's wingman. The cobra jet apparently ignored them and started heading downwards.

"Knock him down." said Alice, firing a hail of pulse rounds into the wing of the jet. The blasts caused the jet to shudder, but it didn't fall. However, the fronts of the rear wings opened up and several missiles shot out.

The starfuries however were made for this type of combat, apparently dropping in mid air, below the clouds before popping back up in front of the jet and firing at it, blasting it as it had to0 fly between them.

Suddenly, the cobra's head on the nose cone flexed and turned around before firing a purple beam of energy from its mouth. The starfuries were forced to hide again but they didn't need to pursue. Their two attacks had done the damage, one of the engines giving out white smoke that turned black as a fire started.

"Ok, we got it," said Alice, "It's coming down." The cobra jet started losing altitude fast as it headed towards Detroit "Ground units, target's coming down in the abandoned area of town," said Alice.

"Roger that," came Techo's voice, "We'll be there in to intercept it."

"Be careful," said Alice, "I'm pretty sure it's Cybertronian. It'll probably change to robot mode when it lands."

"So? Let's just let Serina stomp it," said Techo.

"Because she's supposed to be keeping a low profile now," said Matt's voice, "You can go and find this, this, what kind of aircraft is it?"

"A jet, alien design, cobra's head for a nose cone, you can't miss it," said Alice.

Back at the tower, Matt and Chloe were both listening. "Sounds simple enough, how hard can...NO...I won't say it!" said Matt.

Chloe turned to look at Techo and said, "Ok, you take some men and pick up his 'cobra jet' thing. If it's a Decepticon, which is likely, it could get violent. Bring Draco and Chip along as well."

--

The area was easy to find, a column of smoke rising from where the jet had landed. Techo and his team walked the last block to it and peered round a corner.

"Ok Matt, we've found the jet," said Chip into the communicator, "But how are we going to transport it to-" Suddenly, the jet altered shape in a series of clicking sounds. "Uh, Matt, we've got a problem," said Chip, "The cobra jet just turned into a scorpion tank."

"How? The NSC didn't have UNSC tech during the war. We used Mammoth Tanks," said Matt.

Chip looked again. "No...I really mean a scorpion tank," he said

"Then go for its treads," said Matt, "Best way to disrupt a tank."

"No, let me show you," said Chip he plugged a wire from his head, allowing Matt a visual of a giant mechanical scorpion matching the jet's colors.

"Oh...ok…" said Matt's voice. He was cut off by Chloe just as he started to giggle.

"Ok, stay calm. We've handled worse than giant robot scorpions," said Chloe.

"Hey, what's up with Techo?" asked Draco.

Techo had jumped into a trash can. "Scorpions...bloody scorpions…" he whimpered, peering out.

"Uh, care to explain?" asked Chip.

"Techo's...had bad experiences with monster scorpions," said Chloe, "I wouldn't ask him about it."

"Oh...like Matt and undead," said Chip and winced as Matt heard and screamed down the mike, "UNDEAD...UNDEAAAD!"

Then the scorpion started heading up one of the nearby streets. "If that thing gets near the populated area, there's gonna be a big panic," said Chip.

"You sure?" asked Draco.

"Draco, it's a giant scorpion, arthropods bigger than stomping size always scare people."

One of the marines pointed out the big problem. "Ok...has anyone got a newspaper the size of Mars then?" the marine said sarcastically.

"Well, we're not gonna let it get anywhere," said Draco before breathing ice all over one of the scorpion's back legs.

The scorpion easily broke the ice as it moved before turning to look at Draco, curiously. "Way to go," said Techo gloomily

The scorpion was about to turn away when one of the marines said, "Ok, let's squash this bug and get it over with." They started firing at the scorpion tank, which relatively minor damage. The scorpion retaliated by swinging its tail at them.

A minute later, Techo peered out of the third story window he'd entered the building by. "Ok...this isn't working," he said.

The scorpion has some trouble moving in the relatively small space, but its pincers and tail proved to be rather effective weapons. Draco watched as another marine was rammed into a wall and rendered out cold. "This guy's wiping the floor with us," he said. Chip however noticed how the tank was paused on a perfect cannon shot on two marine pulling a third to cover.

"Something doesn't seem like a Decepticon attack to me," said Chip, "But I think we need to call in the Autobots."

Techo yelled, "THEN DO IT!"

Chip switched his communication signal to the Autobots' comlink frequency and said, "Optimus, it's Chip. We've got a Cybertronian scorpion tank in the old part of Detroit. No, not like Matt's tank, it's a literal scorpion tank. You better get here before someone could get hurt."

There was a thud and a clang as a marine was tossed into a dumpster that closed on him. A faint voice said, "Too late..."

The scorpion was quickly disposing of the marines. They all ended up being in either trash cans, dumpsters, or dangling from rubble. The scorpion had finished off the last marines and turned to leave only for the Autobots to block the way.

"Alright, that's enough rough-housing," said Optimus, "Now please stop before someone gets hurt." The

scorpion stared at Optimus with interest and a voice came from its mandibles, "Are you Optimus Prime?"

"Erm, yes, I am Optimus Prime," said Optimus.

"Good," said the scorpion. Suddenly, the sides of its body separated to form larger legs as the scorpion legs folded up. As it stood up on the larger legs, the tail repositioned as the upper body spun around at the waist. The scorpion's head split in half to form shoulder guards as the pincers separated into fingers. Then a robotic head with a somewhat snakelike face popped up with a visor above the slit-pupiled eyes. "I am Scorponok Minor of the Elite Guard. I have come to join your group," said the former scorpion, the Elite Guard symbol on his chest.

Techo muttered to chip. "Lynch is not going to like this. The Guard have warrants on him."

"Wait a minute," said Bulkhead, "Since when have they had a Triple Changer in the Elite Guard?"

"I'm guessing he's the latest production of the Science Division like the Jet Twins," said Prowl.

"More like he's actually a Decepticon," said Ratchet, pointing at a small scratched out symbol higher up on Scorponok's chest.

"Ok then, so the Elite Guard's decided to come after Matt personal?" said Techo.

"After who?" asked Scorponok.

"Uh, never mind. But if you're an Autobot, why'd you attack us?"

"It was self-defense," said Scorponok, "You attacked first."

"Bullshit, you were warned," said Techo, pointing.

"I'm afraid I didn't receive your warning," said Scorponok, "I haven't adjusted my comlink for lower wave frequencies yet."

"And why didn't you reveal who you were in the first place?" asked Optimus.

"I did not want to startle the population here, so I kept to my alternate modes to avoid attention," said Scorponok.

"A cobra-headed jet and a giant mechanical scorpion doesn't draw attention?" said Techo incredulously.

"Technorganic actually. You mean the scorpions here are not this large?"

"No, we rarely find scorpions the size of assault APC's," said Techo, in an annoyed voice.

"That still doesn't explain what a member of the Elite Guard is doing here in the first place," said Prowl.

"You mean a Decepticon," said Ratchet.

Scorponok gave Ratchet a stern look and said, "Ex-Decepticon. I've switched over to the Autobots. As for my being here, well, it's a rather personal matter. Is there somewhere less open we can speak?"

Techo shrugged. "We got to find out where everyone landed anyway," he said, grabbing Chip and dragging him along.

--

Meanwhile, Lockdown had landed on an asteroid and was repairing the damages Karnak had done. The mech had caused more damage then had first appeared, the wall he'd exited from had contained critical circuitry.

"Well this is terrific," said Lockdown, "All this mess and I haven't gotten one credit for my troubles."

It hadn't helped that the NSC destroyer he'd almost been shot down by had probably called for backup. The last thing he needed was a fleet combing the sector for him.

"It won't be easy to get that ghost pilot now," said Lockdown, "Getting bounty is one thing, but risking my head for the bounty on is another."

Scalpel scuttled out of a vent, holding a burnt-out conduit. "Vy not call for backup. Surely you are knowing people," he said.

"Last time I teamed up with a partner, I nearly got blown up by a pair of Starscream clones," said Lockdown.

"Zat vas Autobot partner," said Scalpel, "Surely zere are Decepticons to vork vith."

Lockdown looked thoughtful. "There was one person a few years ago...I wonder..." he said, before going over to a comm pod. Using the main signals was out of the question as any NSC ship would home in on him and blast him.

He typed in a message and then the delivery point. The pod then shot out into space. "In a way, I both hoping it'll work and it won't," said Lockdown.

"Vy is zat?" asked Scalpel.

"Let's just say that this whole mess is going be rubbed all over my face," said Lockdown.

--

Luckily there wasn't too many problems, apart from a small near-disaster when they passed a school. Luckily, the only person it panicked was the principal. This was kids we were talking about though.

"You just had to choose the form of a giant scorpion," said Bumblebee.

"It was not a matter of choice," said Scorponok, "It's not like I can change alt modes that easily."

"By the way, how is it that a Triple Changer like you is also a technorganic?" asked Optimus.

Scorponok looked at Bumblebee. "I only talk about that to people close to me. You are not one of those people," he said.

"Uh, I'd leave that subject alone if I were you," said Matt, "He does not look like the type with a testable temper."

Serina came out of the base just as the gang arrived. "Lynch, did you catch those..." she said and stopped.

Scorponok seemed to tense and raise his tail in scorpion instinct. "Scorponok, it's ok, she's friendly," said Matt.

"Like hell, I remember this guy from Cheyanne spaceport," said Serina icily, raising her blaster arm.

"What? You know this guy?" asked Matt.

"Probably back from when I used to be totally technological," said Scorponok as he changed into his robot mode.

"I never forget a murdering tincan," said Serina.

Matt realized he did partially recognize the robot form. "Oh great, next it'll be that weird German bot with the spinning head."

"You are not the only one who's done things that you've regretted ever since," said Scorponok simply before walking past.

Serina glared and grabbed him before punching him. "Now we're even...for Paul and Viper," she said.

Scorponok got up and said, "Fair enough."

"Um, perhaps now's not a good time to ask why you've come here," said Optimus.

"No, no, I'm fine," said Scorponok, "I'm ready to talk. Well, it may assure you to know that Sentinel Prime's safely made it to Cybertron with his prisoners."

Optimus nodded. "That's good to hear. I am also happy to report that the NSC ambassador is here."

Scorponok glanced down at Matt and said, "The ghost pilot, I assume? I had expected a more solidly-built human."

"Bite me, scorpion boy!" yelled Matt, before transforming to full dragon, bringing himself eye to eye. "So there."

Scorponok sighed and hit Matt on the head. Chloe sighed. "That was kinda inevitable."

Scorponok said, "Sentinel Prime will not be happy with the choice of ambassador."

"Speaking of which, how is doing as temporary Magnus?" asked Optimus.

"Well, to tell you the truth, I was rather hoping that Rodimus Minor would be the temp Magnus," said Scorponok, "We were friends at the Elite Guard Academy and he showed much promise. If it weren't for that Cosmic Rust attack by that lowlife Oil Slick..."

Matt stopped. "What...THE Sentinel prime is the boss? The same Sentinel prime command codenamed 'Glitchhead'?"

"Indeed," said Scorponok, "That's the reason why I'm here. Sentinel's bureaucracy is too strict for me. Not to mention me being part organic and a former Deception will mean he might eventually find some excuse to have me arrested."

"Oh great, the peace talks are toast and I'm not even there yet," said Matt gloomily.

"So, you're saying you ran away from Cybertron?" asked Prowl.

"Well, that is a way you could phrase it," said Scorponok, "I had heard about how your team lives among organics and I thought I would be able to fit in here."

Matt and company went silent. "Yeaaah..." Matt said.

"Well... we aren't actually recruiting at the moment," said Optimus, "and we don't really know you. Perhaps we should put you on a trial run, let us see how good an Autobot you are."

"But he used to work for evil...EVIL, I TELL YOU!" said Matt, in a paranoid voice.

Scorponok gave Matt an annoyed look and said, "I'm willing to show that I have indeed switched sides. Perhaps there's some charity I could do for you."

"Not PR duty," said Bumblebee, "He'll scare all the humans away."

"And he is not touching my tanks, they're new," said Matt, sulkily.

"Actually, I did briefly served as drill sergeant for boot camp, especially regarding the Jet Twins' flight training," said Scorponok, "Perhaps there's a group I could train?"

The groups both looked thoughtful. In Matt's brain the following process could have been heard by a psychic. 'Those Dinobots need training. If they learn not to blow crap up, maybe my tanks won't spend so long in the repair shop? And if he gets fried, no biggy...IT'S BRILLIANT.' Sadly all ideas sound brilliant when filtered via paranoia.

"Now that you mentioned it, there is a group of Autobots with beast modes that could use some workout," said Matt.

The others looked at him suspiciously. Matt's ideas rarely went to plan. "They're on an island in the bay. You can't miss it. It's got a huge section missing," said Matt, grinning evilly.

"Excellent," said Scorponok, "Would you care to show me this island?"

Matt grinned even more evilly. "Let me give you the directions," he said, darkly, before giggling evilly.

--

A few minutes later, Scorponok and Matt arrived on Dinobot Island. Matt rode in Dune Runner. Scorponok transformed from his jet mode to his robot mode and looked around. "This island seems so tranquil."

"Wait for it," giggled Matt evilly before running for cover, laughing madly.

"Eh, Scorp, ya do know dat Matt is tryin' ta set ya up, right?" said Dune Runner.

"Of course," said Scorponok, "I'm a former Decepticon, I know evil laughter when I hear it."

"TRAITOR!" yelled Matt from cover, peering out., He'd got a helmet from somewhere. "HEY, DINO-DUFUS'S, INTRUDER ALERT! MAKE WITH THE BLASTING...FWEEEEE!" he called.

Scorponok looked at Dune Runner and asked, "So, what kind of bots are these?"

"Uh, very territorial ones," said Dune Runner.

Matt was about to give up when he saw a stone vibrate across the ground. "About time," he said.

Suddenly, Grimlock came charging out of the forest. "Intruder!" yelled Grimlock, "Dinobots destroy!" Snarl and the pterodactyl also came out of the forest.

"THERE! GET HIM! OUCH!" yelled Matt, cut off as Grimlock trampled him. "Victory...is mine!" he winced.

Grimlock roared and charged Scorponok. "Wait a minute!" called Scorponok, "I'm not here to fight you."

"Yes he is...make with the fireballs," said Matt, climbing out the footprint he had been in.

Grimlock roared and charged the two bots. Scorponok jumped out of the way before Grimlock knocked Dune Runer over. "Ok, maybe a display of force is necessary," said Scorponok as his arms opened up into pincers before shooting out several missiles.

Matt laughed insanely as they fought...until a missile hit him in the face. "Winning feels alot like losing," he said before falling over.

The Dinobots were pushed backwards by the missile assault, but they changed into their robot modes and charged again. Scorponok sighed and said, "Looks we're going to have to do this the hard way." He waited until Grimlock was within grabbing distance before grabbing him and judo flipping him into a tree. Snarl tried to grab Scorponok only to be karate chopped on both sides of the neck, knocking him down.

The pterodactyl bot swung his mace at Scorponok, but Scorponok caught it. He then started swinging the mace, with the Dinobot still clinging to it. Once he got enough momentum, he let the mace go. Matt got up in time to see the Dinobot about to land on him. "Oh shit," he muttered and pulled his helmet over his eyes.

The pteranodon landed right on top of Matt. "Ow...please move prehistoric bumper..." moaned Matt. The pteranodon looked down and pulled Matt out from under before flicking him into the lake. "Well...it's an improvement," he said, surfacing.

Scorponok walked over to the lakeside and said, "You were right, Matt. These three are powerful warriors, but completely unrefined. I believe I can whip them into proper fighter shape. Oh, and by the way, the next time you try to set someone up, don't let your feelings get above the surface."

"Bite me, scorpion boy!" yelled Matt.

Scorponok frowned and said, "You really ought to get out of that water."

"Or what? I'm gonna catch pneumonia?" asked Matt.

"If by pneumonia, you mean that odd aquatic creatures than yes," said Scorponok.

Mat turned to see a dozen strange eel things staring at him. "Oh hell," he said before they lunged at him. Scorponok watched before watching Matt literally run across the water, screaming with one of the eels sucking at the back of his head.

"This is a very strange planet," commented Scorponok.

"GETITOFF!" Screamed Matt before running into a rock and knocking himself out

"I better fish him out before he drowns," said Scorponok as he began wading into the water.

--

Lockdown was waiting with finite patience. "C'mon, how long does it take for a messenger pod to get there?" he muttered.

Finally his comm came to life of a stealthed frequency and a Cybertronian appeared. "Lockdown...and why would the 'master hunter' call little old me?"

Lockdown glared. "Hello, Nightbird."

During his brief times on Earth, Lockdown had learned that the humans on the eastern side of the continent known as Asia had their own martial arts, including ninjitsu. Now that he thought about it, Nightbird did remind him of Earth ninjas, thought he wasn't sure they had female ninjas. Her head, the only part he could see on the comm or wanted to, had a helmet somewhat like a samurai's with a three-pronged shape on the forehead. Her lower face was covered by a face guard leaving only a pair of red eyes in the darkness beneath the helmet to be seen.

"So...what can I do for you Lockdown?" said Nightbird, her tone of voice making Lockdown sure she was smirking behind her mask.

"Well, uh, you remember that competition we had regarding the ghost pilots?" said Lockdown.

"Oh, I heard that. I also saw that the contract was re-activated. You got him?" said Nightbird, sounding disbelieving.

"Er, I almost got him," said Lockdown, "Only this last pilot had a lot of backup, NSC and Autobot. And it's too many for me to handle by myself."

Nightbird burst out laughing. "I always knew your 'guns blazing' attitude would get you into trouble one day," she said

Lockdown gritted his teeth and said, "I do not go in 'guns blazing'. But my usual style is not going to cope with these conditions. That is why I am asking for your...help." He looked like he just downed some crackshaft oil.

"Hah, you think I'm stupid enough to take on the NSC navy? I ran recon contracts during Megatron's run in with them and have no wish to be in stasis lock," said Nightbird.

"Well, it's not just Megatron's bounty I'm after," said Lockdown, "Another client promised me a very large reward if I can capture several ghost mechs and the command codes to control them. If you help me out, I'll split the reward."

"Are the words 'retirement fund' programmed into your processor?" said Lockdown.

Nightbird said, "I'll be there as soon as I can...partner," before she cut the comm.

"Vell, zat vasn't so bad," said Scalpel.

"Not yet," said Lockdown, "I've practically signed away all gloating rights."

"Not to be mentioning that she iz probably as trustvorthy as the original Starscream," added Scalpel sagely.

"I know she won't try anything until after we've got the prize," said Lockdown, "It's not my life on the line here, it's my pride."

"Look on ze bright side, maybe ze NSC vill kill her before you must be payink her," said Scalpel.

"Unfortunately, I think that's just a pipe dream," moaned Lockdown.

--

Draco, Chip and NegaMorph had gone to Dinobot island to check on Scorponok and Matt. They got a bit of a shock to see Matt, almost black with soot and his hat host to a small candle flame. "DON'T ask," he said angrily.

"So, how did the Dinobots react to Scorpio?" asked Chip.

Matt turned to look at Chip who stepped back. Here was the gaze of somebody who had handglided over hell. "Fine...I was another story," said Matt, his eye twitching violently.

"Hmm, so asides from greetings, has he done any training yet?" asked NegaMorph.

Matt grabbed NegaMorph, in his stress not noticing the weight. "WHAT DO YOU THINK?" he yelled before sobbing on NegaMorph's shoulder. "They only shot meeeee…" he wailed.

Draco looked around and said, "Hey, where are giant transforming robot buddies?"

Matt turned to look at Draco. "Follow the smoke," he said before cackling insanely.

"Ok, we'll let you sit here and, uh, simmer," said Draco, "We'll be back to tell you how much progress Scorponok's getting done."

Matt had still not let go of NegaMorph, despite the experiment's best efforts. "Erm...guys? I got a clinger here," he said as Draco and Chip walked off.

"Don't worry, he lets go if he's been dragged through dirt for about 30 feet," said Chip.

NegaMorph glared looking down at how Matt was holding him off the ground. "I hate you guys," he muttered.

As Draco and Chip were walking, Draco said, "You'd think finding giant robotic animals would be easy."

"I'm betting when we find Dune Runner, we'll find the rest," said Chip, "He should be even easier to find."

Just then, they heard a sound like an engine stalling. They both looked to see a rather battered-looking dune buggy roll over to them before transforming. "Hey guys," said Dune Runner, his right lower arm falling off, "Dem Dinobots don't like too many robots on deir turf."

Draco said weakly, "I can see that."

"So, you think they would mind small alien creatures?" asked Chip.

"I don't know," said Dune Runner as he plugged his arm back in, "But I t'ink you might not want dem spottin' you. Try hidin' in de trees."

A fireball on that note blew the whole top off a tree. "Only not right now..." said Dune Runner.

"Uh, you think that means their lessons are going well?" asked Draco.

"Only one way to find out," said Chip, "Let's...stick to the shadows."

The group crept along until they found where the fireball had come from. Scorponok was in a clearing with the Dinobots. They were all currently in robot mode. "Um, ok," said Scorponok, "Your firepower's excellent. We just need to work on your aim."

One of the Dinobots turned and said, "Grimlock no be told how to fight. Grimlock know how to fight."

"True, but you do not know how to fight with full potential," said Scorponok, "You cannot just barrel straight through everything. It may work well on Autobots, but Decepticons are tougher."

"Scorpion bot all talk. Grimlock think scorpion bot weak," said Grimlock.

Scorponok's eye ridge raised up slightly and said, "You're saying you want a demonstration?"

"Grimlock beat scorpion bot easy," said Grimlock before switching to dinosaur mode.

Scorponok looked at the other two and asked, "Do you share his opinion?" The two of them transformed to dinosaur mode and let out challenging cries. "Very well, I suppose I shall have to demonstrate," said Scorponok before switching to scorpion mode.

Snarl stepped forward first and snorted, pawing the ground. Scorponok's mandibles chittered as he raised up his tail. Draco and Chip were watching from the safety of a nearby tree limb. "I hope NegaMorph gets here," said Chip, "He's gonna miss all the action."

"That and we need him to change into Kernel to pop this popcorn we brought," said Draco.

Just then, there was the sound of a yell growing louder before NegaMorph landed on a nearby branch. "Matt's having a...little moment," said NegaMorph.

"Oh, you got here just in time," said Draco.

Scorponok waited as Snarl charged him before moving aside. Snarl, unable to stop hit the tree the experiments were in. The experiments just nearly fell out. "Ok, maybe we should move to a different tree," said Chip.

Snarl snorted and charged Scorponok again. This time, Scorponok grabbed Snarl's horns with his pincers. The two of them got into a pushing match before Scorponok twisted his arms and flipped Snarl onto his back. He brought his stinger down to his exposed belly, but stopped just before striking.

Grimlock said, "Scorpion bot lucky. Grimlock destroy lucky scorpion bot!" before charging at Scorponok. But then the pteranodon bot squawked and Grimlock paused. "Ok, you fight scorpion bot, me Grimlock save best for last."

"Agreed," said Scorponok before jumping up into the air and flipping over. His legs folded and connected to form thin wings while his pincers closed and his arms angled so that the thrusters on the elbows were pointing backwards. The spots where his eyes were flipped to reveal extra thrusters and the two poison sacs on his tail flipped forward and connected at the tip to form a cobra's head, completing his transformation to cobra jet mode.

The experiments clapped. "Impressive," said NegaMorph before looking down to see Matt, happily wandering into the clearing, still on planet insanity.

"Uh, shouldn't we warn him?" asked Chip.

NegaMorph plucked a pinecone from the branch he was in and muttered, "Matt, watch out," before dropping the pinecone onto Matt's head.

Matt just wandered forward until he bumped into Grimlock. He looked up and said, "Hello, giant lizard." Grimlock looked at him before sitting down on top of him.

The experiments winced in sympathy, even NegaMorph. "Ooooh...he'll feel that when he wakes up," said Chip.

Meanwhile, Scorponok and the pteranodon were fighting up in the sky. As the experiments watched, Draco asked, "Did that guy ever give us his name?"

"I don't think he's spoken at all," said Chip.

The two robots made swipes past each other, trying to knock their opponent from the sky. The pteranodon opened his beak and spat out flames. Scorponok barrel-rolled aside and dived downwards. Then he went straight up underneath the pteranodon and blasted him with a venom blast from his cobra mouth straight to his chest. The pteranodon screeched before spiraling down to land on the ground, out cold. Scorponok landed neatly in front of him.

Grimlock grunted and said, "Them weaker, but me Grimlock strong." He stood up and transformed to robot mode, wielding his flaming sword.

Matt could be seen underneath in an imprint. Luckily the ground had been soft. "What hit me?" he moaned.

"A mechanical T-Rex's backside," said Draco.

"Ok...coulda...been worse," said Matt before falling unconscious.

Grimlock roared angrily before charging at Scorponok. Scorponok returned to robot mode and shook his head. "Such lousy form," he said. Scorponok easily parried or dodged blows from the frustrated Dinobot. "You are too obvious in your attacks: too much offence and not enough defense," he commented, "Brute strength can only get you so far. A Decepticon would easily be able to get around your offense and take you out. Like this!" Scorponok swung his tail and struck Grimlock in the chest, throwing him backwards.

Matt had just got out his hole when Grimlock landed an inch from him. "Nnnngh," Matt managed as Grimlock roared and charged Scorponok again.

Scorponok sighed before lifting his leg up. As he predicted, Grimlock ran right into it, his foot making contact with his gut. Grimlock groaned in pain before Scorponok said, "You are a powerful warrior, but still an amateur." He judo-flipped his opponent and made Grimlock land hard on his back, causing the Dinobot leader to let out a low moan of pain.

Matt was still staring straight ahead when Scorponok saw him. "Ah...Captain...captain?" he said when Matt failed to respond.

"Niii...niii..." sputtered Matt.

"Uh, great job, Scorponok," said Draco, "You really showed him who's boss."

NegaMorph had wandered over to Matt. "And I think you broke Matt."

"Oh, I hope I haven't scared him too much," said Scorponok, "I was only trying to give a demonstration."

NegaMorph poked Matt once more then took his wallet. "What? He shouldn't have thrown me," he said to the others.

--

Lockdown had moved his ship back to Earth's orbit. He stayed on the dark side of the moon. The NSC were still there and they were probably still looking for him. Lockdown watched as another two starfuries flew by, obviously looking for him. "Where is she?" he muttered, once he was sure the starfuries had not seen him.

"I am sure she vill show up when least expected," said Scalpel, "Incidentally, vill you still require me to remove ze ghost pilot's brain, because Strika vill be wantink me back."

"Collecting brains now? Isn't that a bit messy? Plus the noise when it's being taken out." said Nightbird from behind them, making the two Cybertronians jump.

Lockdown turned and glared at the purple, grey, and black femme. "I hate it when you do that," said Lockdown.

"What? I thought you couldn't be snuck up on," said Nightbird, "Are you losing your touch?"

"Cut the jokes. I'm having enough trouble as it is." said Lockdown, pointing as another trio of starfuries flew over the crater Lockdowns ship was in, one shining a searchlight in briefly before moving on.

Nightbird looked up at the starfuries and said, "So those are the watchdogs you have to get around?"

"Yeah...them and a destroyer class sitting on the other side of the moon." said Lockdown.

"Hmm, so you need little old me to disable to their sensors long enough for us to get to that planet?" said Nightbird.

"I doubt you'd get aboard. The ship's one of these fighter boats," said Lockdown.

"Hmm, well, it's not the first time I've had to pass an orbital fence like this," said Nightbird. She opened a compartment on her side and pulled out some metal balls that were relatively the size of marbles. "Once detonated, they'll create a smokescreen and shut down nearby sensors. Perfect for a quick escape," said Nightbird.

"Should be simple," said Lockdown.

--

When Draco, Chip, and NegaMorph brought Matt back, Chloe could barely believe their story. "That guy took down all three Dinobots by himself?" she said incredulously.

"Not exactly 'took down'," said Chip, "He just gave them some discipline to show them who's boss."

"It's true. I saw it," said Matt, wincing as his ribs ached.

"But those guys are the toughest Autobots on this planet," said Chloe.

"Not anymore," said Draco, "I think Scorponok's taken that title."

"Has anyone seen my spleen?" said Matt vaguely, sadly ignored.

Chloe however turned on her comm. "WARDEN. You found that bounty hunter yet?" she asked.

"I believe so, ma'am," said WARDEN, "We just got a signal that-" WARDEN's voice suddenly cut off and was replaced by static.

"WARDEN? Come in," she said, tapping her comm, which displayed the message 'Source jammed'. Chloe swore in splitter and said, "That probably means he's invading right now."

Matt said, "Great...didn't he learn last time?" before trying to call the Autobots. Unfortunately, he got static there too.

"Oh come on," said Draco, "How could he be jamming our comlink down here?"

"There might be one still open," said Matt before entering in a code. Serina's voice came on. "Uh...what is it? I was having a pleasant sleep mode."

"Serina, remember the guy who's kept you in storage for the last century or so?" asked Matt.

"That overgrown jumped-up Lego set?" said Serina's tone, gaining a nasty edge.

"Good, you do remember, I think he's coming back for round 2," said Matt.

"I'LL KILL HIM!" yelled Serina before the call ended.

"Well, we got Serina's help," said Matt, "Now if we got a little help from the others."

"How? We're closer to Dinobot Island when we are to the tower." said Chloe.

"Uh, what are the chances of Scorponok of having finished training those terrible lizards?" asked Matt.

"I think we should practice the age old saying. 'Don't turn down help where it can be found'," said Chloe.

"Uh, but what if they won't help?" asked Chip, "They turned down Optimus and he was a 20 foot robot."

"If Scorponok can wipe the floor with them, he can get them to help. NOW GET MOVING!" yelled Chloe at the group, making them all jump.

"Ok, ok, uh, can we take a boat this time?" asked Matt, "My ribs are still sore from being sat on by T-Wrecks."

"Don't you mean Rex?" asked Draco.

Matt said darkly, "I know what I meant."

--

Scorponok was taking a short rest from training when he saw a speedboat, apparently dragging part of a docking bollard behind it, heading for shore. An argument could be made out. "...said that you hadn't unchained it properly, NegaMorph," said Matt's voice.

Scorponok stood up and said, "What are you doing back here? I thought Matt you said that Matt needed first aid."

"Actually, what I said is 'We better get Matt out of here or those Dinobots are going to need first aid', easy mistake," said Chip.

Matt said, "Where are the little fire hazards, by the way?" looking around nervously

"They're doing exercises right now," said Scorponok.

"Well, we kinda got company coming. The murdering and kidnapping kind," said Matt, innocently.

Scorponok frowned and said, "Decepticons?"

"Not quite, but just as bad," said Matt.

"Bounty hunters." said Scorponok in the same way someone might say 'cockroach'.

"Mhm," said Matt, "One by the name of Lockdown. You heard of him?"

"Only by reputation," said Scorponok, "And not a very nice one at that."

"He's screwed up the comm. Some help is coming but we need backup fast," said Matt

"I see," said Scorponok, "Well, since it's one of him, I suppose I can handle it myself. I'm not quite sure the Dinobots are ready for combat yet."

Matt sighed. "Ok...I suppose, sincve you're helping...I should apologise for trying to get the dinobots to eat you." he said.

"Out of curiosity, why was that?" asked Scorponok, "Was it because of this?" He poked the scratched out Decepticon insignia on his chest.

"Yes...plus the fact your kind murdered the other ghosts." said Matt.

Scorponok glared at Matt and said, "This didn't get scratched out by some battle. I did it myself. You're in no more a position to question what side I'm on than I you."

"I'm on my side." said Matt coldly. Scorponox returned the glare and said "So am I."

"Uh, can we leave off the macho posturing?" said Chloe, "We've got an evil muscle car to deal with."

Matt nodded. "Has Lockdown ever done signal jamming before?" he asked.

"I don't know," said Scorponok, "I never met him myself."

Chloe said "Did this Lockdown ever work with anyone in the past? Anyone he might have called to help?"

"Hmm, well, I did hear he had an old rival," said Scorponok, "Some kinda ninja bot."

"Oh, you mean Prowl?" asked Lilo.

"No, no," said Matt, "I think he meant an older- WAH!!! What are you doing here?"

Megan and Gary came out from behind a tree. "She wanted to come exploring," said Megan.

Matt jumped "Gah...what part of 'stay on the ship?' was not understood?"

"What? And mess the exciting stuff?" asked Megan.

"Wait, wasn't Jumba supposed to be teaching you guys?" asked Chloe.

"Er, he's in the can," said Gary.

"Well, he can't have to use the bathroom that long," said Chip.

"Er, not quite," said Lilo.

--

Jumba banged on the inside of the tin can he was in. "This is not how we treated teachers back at Evil Genius University! We placed them inside glass jars!"

--

Matt stopped. "Ooookay...I don't think I want to know the details now."

"You are not joining us in battle, now go do your homework!" snapped Chloe.

"Why do I get the feeling you're going to be telling that to your kids someday?" asked Draco.

Chloe turned on Draco who managed to say "I DIDN'T MEAN..." before Chloe kicked him a good 12 feet out into the lake.

"Are females always like this on this planet?" asked Scorponok.

Matt was about to give a smart comment when he caught Chloe's eye. "No comment," he said neutrally.

Scorponok decided not to dive into the matter and said, "I think we should remain on this island. There will be fewer chances for civilian lives to be endangered if Lockdown comes here."

"That's a good plan. People freak out over the smallest things," said Matt

"Not to mention we have a field advantage here," said Chloe, "I don't think Lockdown will be able to drive around on this island very well."

"Erm...does anyone hear that?" said Matt, cocking his head. The faint whine of jet engines could be heard getting louder by the second. The group looked upwards to see a small triangular-shaped jet coming towards them, its primary colors were purple, grey, and black. Matt shielded his eyes and said, "Looks like a Nighthawk stealth fighter."

Scorponok lowered his visor over his eyes and looked. "Then why does it have a black and green muscle car strapped to its roof?" he asked.

Matt looked again, changing his eyes to his draconic ones to see better. "Oh, hell no," he said, recognizing the car.

Suddenly, the muscle car detached and fell down to the ground. It shifted as it fell and landed in robot mode. "Remember me, kid?" said Lockdown, his hook glinting in the sunlight.

"Sadly yes," said Matt rudely.

Then the Nighthawk flew close to the ground. The front half of it split into four pieces. The bottom quarters swiveled down and twisted to form legs while the upper half moved to the sides to form arms, with the wings on the shoulders and the cockpit halves forming daggers. The middle section unfolded into a feminine form while a head with a samurai's helmet popped out. When it landed, it was now a femme with a distinctive ninja look to her.

"Oh goody, two morons for the price of one," said Matt.

Scorponok's eyes widened in disbelief. "I don't believe it," he said, "It's Nightbird."

"Who?" asked Chloe.

"One of the most feared assassins on the Decepticon side," said Scorponok.

"Oh...look, about that 'moron' comment..." began Matt.

Nightbird glanced down at Matt and said, "This is the ghost pilot? He's a skinny twig, even for a human."

"Oi!" yelled Matt, angrily

"Without his mech, he should be easy to bag," said Lockdown.

Matt smirked. Sometimes life handed you wonderful cues. "Now I wouldn't say that..." said Matt before going dragon.

"Hmm, this should be interesting," said Nightbird as the cockpit kibble snicked into place to form daggers.

"Matt, I wouldn't challenge her so-" started Scorponok.

"Stay back," said Matt, "I'm dealing with her myself." Then Matt growled, plasma flames flickering out his mouth. "Back off, I'm not some easy contract," he said.

"You better not be," said Nightbird, "I'd hate to find out that I was dragged to this backwater planet for something trivial."

Matt snarled and spat a cluster of blasts at the cocky fembot To his surprise, Nightbird was able to deflect the blasts with her daggers. "Can't you shoot straighter than that?" she said. Matt spat another that seemingly went wide. Nightbird gave Matt an odd look and said, "Is this supposed to be a joke?"

Matt seemed to not be listening, his eyes glowing strongly. A second later the 'wild shot' hit Nightbird in the back, exploding violently Nightbird staggered forward with the hit.

"I told you he wasn't that easy," said Lockdown.

"Indeed," said Nightbird, "Perhaps a different tactic then." She pressed a part on her belt which caused the panel to open. She pulled out several throwing stars and started flinging them at Matt.

Matt raised a plasma field while taking off to avoid the shots. "You have to try harder," he taunted. Just then, one of the throwing stars sliced through Matt's side. Matt winced in pain and surprise. He didn't think they'd be sharp enough to get through his thick scaly skin. "So you CAN shoot straight," he said, trying to hide the fact that the star had hurt so much.

Nightbird seemed to smirk and said, "Oh, I can do more than that," she said. She pulled out a pair of metal handles from her side satchels. She clicked them on, causing energy sais to appear. Matt growled again, backwinging to get some space.

Then he felt a twinge of pain from his side that seemed to be spreading. "Oh, did I forget to mention I lace my throwing stars with poison?" said Nightbird, "Don't worry, it wasn't my lethal brand, it'll just slow you down. Might take out a few of your powers too."

Matt snarled, his eyes flickering solid white. "It takes more than that," he said before spitting a column of plasma at her.

Nightbird rolled out of the way before saying, "Perhaps not, but the more your spark is beating, the quicker the poison spreads and the weaker you'll get."

Matt growled, circling Nightbird before swooping at her, his claws raking deep furrows in her armor before he spun for another pass. As he flew close to her again, one of her sais cut a jagged tear in his right wing membrane. Matt roared in pain before crashing into the ground, out cold.

Nightbird sheathed her sais and said, "That was easy. I can't believe you had so much trouble."

Lockdown frowned and said, "I had a strategic disadvantage. Let's just bag him and go."

Scorponok walked forward. "He is going nowhere with you." he said, readying his weapons

Lockdown looked at Scorponok before noticed the insignias on him. "Well, well, a Decepticon deserter," said Lockdown, "And here I thought Decepticons didn't have the gears to quit on Megatron."

"I choose my own path," said Scorponok before pointing at Matt, "And his path is not to follow you."

"How noble," said Lockdown, "But not smart. It's two-to-one against you."

"Make dat two-to-two," said Dune Runner.

Lockdown barely looked at him. "Beat it, shrimp. I've got bigger game to deal with." Dune Runner settled for shooting Lockdown's foot. Lockdown yelped and clutched his foot.

"Chloe, take your brother and hide him the forest," said Scorponok, "We'll keep these two busy."

Chloe looked at Matt who was about twice her size at the moment. "Might be hard," she said.

"That's why you've got us," said Draco as he held up Matt's lower end. Chloe turned to dragon to help haul her brother to safety. Chip, NegaMorph, Lilo, Megan, and Gary also pitched in.

Lockdown saw the group hauling Matt away, but Scorponok and Dune Runner were in his way. "Not this time," he muttered. The car roof on his chest opened up and a microscope flew out of it. The microscope changed as it fell until Scalpel landed on the ground. The Decepticon field medic spotted the group disappearing into the forest and scuttled after them.

The spiderbots meanwhile had hitched a ride on the boat the gang had used to reach Dinobot Island, curious about what the big deal was. They were surprised when the gang came out hauling their boss in his alternate form. Deciding to find out what the trouble was (as well as have some fun) the spiderbots started scuttling towards the forest after them.

--

Scalpel, however, was not far behind, now taking a few potshots at the group with darts full of unknown substances.

Draco ducked his head as a dart nearly hit his ear. "What the heck was that?" he asked.

"I dunno...keep moving," said Chloe.

The spiderbots however could see exactly who was doing such things, having gotten up a tree. This was uncalled for. If anyone was gonna zap Draco, it was going to be THEM!

NegaMorph suddenly paused and said, "Did you guys hear that?"

"Hear what?" asked Chip.

Suddenly, Scalpel landed on top of Matt and shouted, "Surrender ze ghost pilot."

The spiderbots, still watching, thought for a second that it was another spiderbot. However they then remembered that they had no audio units for English...especially English in didgy German accents.

However, the experiments didn't know that. "AH! SPIDERBOT! DECEPTICON SPIDERBOT!" shouted Draco.

The spiderbots snorted at this. They would show Draco the difference between the Decepticon and a spiderbot. With that they jumped down, landing lightly around Scalpel. "Huh? Vat is zis?" said Scalpel as he was ambushed by what looked like several smaller and less sophisticated versions of himself.

The spiderbots all got glowing optics. At the same time the tree canopy lit up with the rest of the spiderbots. The lead unit connected to Scalpel's mind, sending a text message. 'Who the hell do you think you are, impersonating US?'

"Vat are you talking about? Who are you?" demanded Scalpel.

'We are your worst nightmare. You're touching the boss without permission' was the sent message.

Scalpel gave the glowing optics an annoyed look. "Bug off. Zis dragon creature is going to Megatron," he snapped.

'Bye' was the sent message and a small muzzle folded out of a hatch on the top of the lead bot. Scalpel laughed before seeing that Matt's gang had all dived for nearby cover. A second later a pulse blast sent Scalpel flying back into a tree trunk hard enough to be embedded. The rest of the spiderbots slowly advanced on the luckless Decepticon.

As Scalpel's processor was trying to reboot itself, it picked a long-forgotten file about the rare Cybertronian animal species that lived on Cybertron. In particular, the spiderbot, which inspired his design, which were said to be surprisingly dangerous because of their near indestructibility and are generally considered insane.

"Oh crap," he muttered as the spiderbots began climbing up or in the case of the bots already in the tree, down towards him. Several of them had folded out cutting tools or more of the lasers. However, Scalpel wasn't planning on going down without some success. So he activated his emergency subfrequency comlink and sent a message to Strika, regarding payback against the mercenary band that had defeated her team.

A second later a beam sliced his uplink off. Another spiderbot scanned his audio unit. Another message said, 'Now what should we do with you?'

"Er, you vouldn't hurt me," said Scalpel, "Ve are practically cousins."

'No, you're more fun online' was the message. If Scalpel weren't a robot, he probably would have broken out in a sweat as the spiderbots converged on him.

The gang watched as the spiderbots went to town on Scalpel, removing various mobility systems. "Damn...they're worse than Matt on a bad day," said Chloe.

"Speaking of which," said NegaMorph, "I don't think Matt's having a good time right now." Matt was still unconscious, but the cuts from his wing and side was still bleeding.

The spiderbots pulled the decapitated Scalpel out of the tree and sent a simple message 'Cure the poison or we get the can opener'

"It is not mien," said Scalpel, "Ask Nightbird, she vas ze vun who poisoned him."

'We know you are lying. Decepticons are famous for it. Do something that impresses us or die,' was the cold message.

"I do not vork vith organics," said Scalpel, "My talents are purely mechanical."

'Wrong answer...bye bye,' said the message and one of the spiderbots started cutting towards Scalpel's spark chamber.

"VAIT! I know something that might help," said Scalpel.

The spiderbot stopped cutting before backing up. 'Make it REALLY good,' was the message sent.

"Nightbird commissioned me to make zat poison. She wanted to batches, vun for catching and vun for killing. I could create something that vill help him recover," said Scalpel.

'Then get to work...be happy...now we'll post you back with your spark attached,' was the message.

Scalpel groaned and thought to himself, 'I hope Team Charr got my message. I really vish to make zem pay for zis.'

--

Meanwhile, Dune Runner and Scorponok were trying their best to hold Lockdown and Nightbird back. However, the two bounty hunters were good and Scorponok had several injuries while Dune Runner was becoming very tired.

"Want to give up yet?" said Lockdown, cockily.

"Not...yet..." groaned Dune Runner. The Allspark shard inside healed his injuries, but his stamina was something completely different.

"Fine, kid, have it your own way," said Lockdown, charging Dune Runner and punching him in the chest. Dune Runner was sent bowling backwards and landed on his chest with a groan. Lockdown put his foot on Dune Runner's back and said, "You know, kid, I was pretty impressed by your hoverboard last time. I think I've the perfect spot for it on my trophy wall."

Just then the sound of more jet engines could be heard. "Nightbird, your sparkdamned jammer wore off," said Lockdown, thinking the sounds were incoming starfuries.

Nightbird looked up and said, "Nope, I think we've finally got the backup to get past these two." A purple Cybertronian jet was flying towards the island, followed by a large dark green military helicopter carrying a maroon and orange Cybertronian wheeled tank. The three vehicles landed on the shore and transformed into Cyclonus, Blackout, and Strika.

Scorponok turned to see the newcomers and glared. "YOU!" he said

"Scalpel's signal came from here," said Strika, "He better not be lying or he vill-" She was cut off when Scorponok knocked Nightbird out of his way and charged into Blackout, causing the titan to fall over.

"What in the Milky Way is that?" asked Cyclonus.

Scorponok turned to glare at him and said, "Don't you recognize me? But then again, you guys always did turn me down, until Megatron ordered you to get rid of me."

Strika's optics widened in surprise. "Sandstorm?" she said.

"It's Scorponok now, Strika," snapped Scorponok, "Thanks to you lot."

Cyclonus also looked surprised. "How were you able to survive?" he asked.

"Not easily, I can tell you that," said Scorponok, "But I did get a souvenir." He transformed into scorpion mode and clacked his pincers menacingly.

"Techno-organic...one was almost too much," said Cyclonus.

"I thought something seemed odd about him," said Nightbird. Then she remembered why she was on this island. "Time to collect that bounty."

There was the sound of more jet engines. "Now what?" said Lockdown, his temper starting to fray before a pair of cluster missiles hit the group.

Serina landed on the shore and said, "Oh, don't tell me you've started the fun without me."

Lockdown backed up. "Great,,, ghost mech."

Strika turned to Blackout who was getting back up and said, "Blackout, get rid of that thing."

Serina shot an ion blast into Blackout's face without turning before aiming a missile at Cyclonus. "Amateurs," she said

Scorponok let out an angry hiss and said, "Back off, death shell. They're mind."

"Really? You look like you fought a wrecking ball and lost," said Serina.

Scorponok growled and said, "You don't understand. This is personal."

"Will it count as personal when they've torn out your CPU?" said Serina

Just then, Blackbird snuck up behind Serina and stabbed her engines with her daggers. "A ghost mech in the hand is worth a ghost pilot in the bush," said Nightbird.

"Oh, shut up," said Serina before grabbing Nightbird and punching her in the face. A panel on Lockdown's arm opened up and started spraying foam at Serina. Serina didn't pay any attention to it until it started hardening. "HEY!" she yelled, "Riot foam is cheating!"

"Fair play isn't one of my interests," said Lockdown. Serina glared and started to struggle with the foam.

Scorponok was about to go help her when Cyclonus kicked him onto his back. He placed one foot on his belly and readied his swords. "This time, I'll make sure I watch your Spark extinguish," said Cyclonus as he raised his swords.

Serina was just about to get free when she said, "Is that an earthquake?" The ground was indeed shaking

Suddenly, the Dinobots charged out of the forest. Grimlock looked around and shouted, "Decepticons! Dinobots attack!"

Serina and Scorponok watched with minor interest as the Dinobots started trying to fry the Decepticons and mercenaries with minor success.

"Get lost, I got enough trophies here," said Lockdown as he tried to shoot Snarl. The triceratops dodged the blasts before he butted into Lockdown.

Serina, in a very Matt-like manner said, "It brings a tear of joy to the sensor."

Lockdown got back up and said, "I'll teach you to mess with me." He grabbed Snarl's horns and prepared to toss him, but Snarl reared up and threw Lockdown backwards.

Serina smirked as Lockdown landed at her feet. "Having trouble?" she asked cheekily.

Cyclonus watched the action for a minute before sticking one of his swords through Scorponok's tail, pinning it to the ground. "I'll deal with you later," he said before turning to jet mode and flying towards the Dinobots.

Serina by now had started to crack the foam holding her. "You know, I heard the Dinobots had as much discipline as well...me. Whoever taught them was a pro," she said

Dune Runner was starting to get back on his feet. "Yep," he said, "Scorponok sure knows what he's doin' when it comes ta trainin'."

Serina turned to look at the pinned Autobot. "Yeah, he should lose the tail though, too much of a liability," she said before finally breaking loose. The first thing she did was pull the blade out. "You still wanna do this by your lonesome?" she asked.

Scorponok switched back to robot mode and said, "I could use some backup." His vital functions were still working, but the mechanisms in his tail were offline. Serina nodded before firing a hail of pulse blasts at the Decepticons and turning on her stealth system.

Blackout was on his feet again and was looking for the ghost mech. "Where did that thing go?" he asked. Serina popped up behind him, grabbing his head in a lock and twisting. It wouldn't kill the Cybertronian but it would be harder to aim when you can only look behind you. "Hey? What's going on?" yelled Blackout as he started firing his guns at random.

Serina kicked him over before firing a dart-like device into Lockdown's arm, which then exploded.

Cyclonus, meanwhile, was fighting with the pterodactyl. "This ought to take care of you, you prehistoric freak," he said as he started firing at the Dinobot. But the pterodactyl dived downwards before coming up beneath Cyclonus and bathed his underside with flames. Cyclonus glared, rolling to out the fire. "You'll pay for that," he said simply.

The pterodactyl transformed to robot mode and landed on top of Cyclonus. Then he used his mace to whack at one of Cyclonus' engines. "Gah...get off you vandal," said Cyclonus, rolling to try and shake him off. The Dinobot hung for a good while before letting go. Cyclonus was about to turn around and blast the primitive when his sensors picked up that he was about to crash into a tree. "Oh slag," he said before plowing into the trees. "...ow."

Meanwhile, Strika had turned his attentions to Grimlock. "You're not match for me, you prehistoric scrapheap," she said.

Grimlock transformed to robot mode and said, "Tank bot not tough. Me Grimlock can beat you easy."

Strika laughed. "You have no idea who you are dealing with," she said.

"Me Grimlock know you ugly," said Grimlock, drawing his sword. Strika glared and charged the Dinobot, confident of a quick finish. However, Grimlock blocked her fist with his forearm. Her next punch was deflected with his sword. "You ugly and slow," said Grimlock.

Strika glared before headbutting the Dinobot. Grimlock was knocked a few paces. "Ha, you call that headbutt? Me Grimlock has much thicker head than you." To prove it, Grimlock lowered his head and rammed her.

Strika was sent flying back to land at the feet of Serina and Scorponok. Serina said, "Boo."

Strika got back up and said, "I've had with you." She aimed the cannons on her back at Serina. Serina sighed and stealthed again. Strika looked around and yelled, "Come out and fight like a real robot! Oh wait, you're not a real robot, just a human's puppet."

"Wrong, I don't need a pilot anymore. Scorpy, can I tear her head off?" said Serina.

Scorponok growled and said, "No, I'd rather deal with her myself."

Serina stood back. "Fine, the bitch is all yours."

He pointed his left arm at Strika and opened it up. Then he fired a trio of missiles at point blank range. Strika was thrown backwards by the missile explosion. As she was getting back up, something small pinged off her head. She looked down to see Scalpel crumpled and welded into a ball.

"Don't...ask," he said in a muffled voice

Then Blackout reached up and put his head back in the right position. "Oh, now I'm mad," he said as he pointed his guns. However, this attracted the Dinobots' attention and they blasted him with their fire breath.

Serina watched with minor interest as Blackout was pummeled by the Dinobots before going over to where Cyclonus was getting up and putting her pulse blaster into the side of his head. "Here's a plan: knock off early," she said threateningly.

To Cyclonus' credit, he didn't show any fear at all towards Serina. However, he turned towards Strika and said, "Ma'am, may I recommend a strategic retreat?"

"Good boy, now piss off before I tear out your spark chamber," said Serina quietly

Strika hated to admit another defeat, but she, Cyclonus, and Blackout had been damaged greatly during their fights. And with their field medic in his current state, he wouldn't be much use in repairing them. "Decepticons, fall back!" she called, grabbing Scalpel and changing into a six-wheeled battle tank.

"Bye bye," said Serina, waving.

Cyclonus transformed and flew off while Blackout changed back into a helicopter and flew over to Strika. He strapped himself to the tank before taking off. "You have not see ze last of us!" called Strika as Blackout carried her away.

"Good, I wanna shoot you some more," retorted Serina rudely

Lockdown could see the situation was deteriorating. Scorponok and Dune Runner had been weakened, but Serina and the Dinobots looked like they still had plenty of fight left in them. "Erm, maybe we should try this another time," he said.

Serina shook her head. "I don;t think so, car boy," she said, firing her own version of riot foam at the bounty hunter.

Nightbird looked at Lockdown and said, "I could just leave you here..." She glanced at Serina and the Dinbots and said, "But I think I still need you." She reached into her pouch and pulled out a smokescreen orb before smashing on the ground and creating a large cloud of sensor-deadening smoke.

Serina glared and began shooting into the smoke. However once it had cleared it was clear the two merc bots were gone. Serina put away her weapons and said, "Next time, they won't be leaving in one piece."

Suddenly there was a sound like someone crumpling tin foil and dozens of spiderbots swarmed out the treeline, followed by the gang. Matt seemed to look better, his wound finally scabbing over. But he still looked a little weak and had to be supported by Chloe and Draco.

"Ow..." he said faintly. Scorponok however was looking a bit nervous around the spiderbots who were looking at him suspiciously. Like Scalpel, he knew their reputation.

Lilo looked around asked, "Hey, where did the bad guys go?"

Serina said, "We kicked their metal asses," cockily before looking at the others, "Erm...they helped."

Matt looked at the Dinobots and said, "The Dinobots fought the Decepticons?"

"Dey did a pretty good job too," said Dune Runner, "Scorponok's a pretty good trainer."

"Couldn't have done a better job myself," confirmed Serina.

Matt and Chloe gave Scorponok astonished looks. "You molded those brutes into an organized fighting force in one afternoon?" asked Chloe.

"Well, they still have some ways to go," said Scorponok modestly, "But once you're able to learn their personalities, they're not so difficult. Now training Jetfire and Jetstorm, that was patience-taxing."

"Who are those?" asked Matt, wincing as his head ached. "Should horns ache?" he asked.

"The Elite Guard's newest recruits and the first flying Autobots," said Scorponok, "Excluding Omega Supreme and my pupil, I believe those are more special cases."

"Your pupil?" said Chloe, curious.

Scorponok nodded his head towards the pterodactyl. "I can't quite seem to get his name. But he takes commands well enough."

Matt looked over. "Oh...the flying toaster," he said grinning aimlessly.

"Don't mind him. It's the poison talking," said Chloe quickly.

Scorponok looked at Matt and said, "Hmm, we ought to take him back to your, what do you humans call them? Doctors?"

Chloe looked at her brother who was gabbling away in draconic to a rock. "Ah, he's fine."

"Though you guys look like you could use repairs yourself," said Megan.

Chloe said, "And you look like you should be back getting taught stuff."

"But this is more interesting," said Gary.

"And good luck trying to find a teacher who could keep us under control," said Lilo.

Chloe was about to give the three of them a piece of her mind when they heard the sound of a hovercraft. They looked to see Sari landing, wearing her jetpack. "Hey guys, I was coming to see how the Dinobots..." She looked around and asked, "What happened here?"

"Absolute mayhem," said Chloe, simply

"Lockdown came back with a partner and tried to kidnap Matt. And then Team Charr came and attacked us. But Scorponok, Serina, and the Dinobots fended them off," said Chip.

"Aw, man," said Sari, "I wish I could have been here to see it, but the stupid Tutor Bot won't let me out."

"Tutor bot?" said Chloe and NegaMorph together. Sadly, all Matt could do was 'giggle at the pretty lights' before passing out. Apparently, Scalpel's temporary antidote was a hallucinogen.

"Yeah, my dad built him since I can't really go to school with other kids," said Sari, "It's stupid lessons wouldn't be so bad if Dad hadn't upgraded it to be able to withstand my Cybertronian powers."

Chloe looked thoughtful. "You don't say..." she said evilly.

"I think we might want to talk to your father about this interesting machine," said NegaMorph with an evil grin.

"I do not like the tone of their voices," said Gary.

"I am the mighty spoon," said Matt randomly.

"But first, someone call Contrinus," said Chloe in a tired voice.

--

Sometime later, Lilo, Megan, and Gary were in a specially designated room at the base, one that was set up like a classroom. They were sitting at desks while Matt, Chloe, and NegaMorph were standing by the chalkboard with (to their consternation) Jumba and Professor Sumdac.

"Erm...ok...I don't know why I'm here. I only know how to blow things up," said Matt confused. The others had taken advantage of his drunken status to get him to agree to help.

"Well, Matt, you know how we've been having so much trouble finding a way to school these kids?" asked Chloe, nodding her head to the three children sitting at the desks.

Matt turned. "Yes...why not just have the spiderbots watch em?" he said

"Well, it is not good enough for arachnid droids to be vatching," said Jumba, "Little girls and gargoyle boy have powers too much simple teaching persons, even evil geninus Jumba cannot manage them."

"Of course, that was before we heard about Prof. Sumdac's marvelous Tutor Bot," said NegaMorph.

Matt looked confused as Chloe said evilly, "He's almost as unkillable as the spiderbots. They tested him."

"Of course, it had to specifically designed," said Professor Sumdac, "I enhanced the exostructural durability to the same standards as Sari's upgraded Tutor Bot."

"And I upgraded processor for 476.5% more memory content, processing power, and personality recognition," said Jumba.

"Not to mention adding a bit more additional armor to withstand stronger attacks and magic-proofing it," said Chloe.

"You didn't let the spiderbots help, did you?" said Matt urgently.

"Only to see how effective it was," said NegaMorph.

"And now with further delay," said Isaac.

"Allowing us to be introducing... Tutor Bot Version 3.0," said Jumba, taking a tarp off a large object that was in the corner.

The unveiled robot looked, to Matt, more like a security droid than a teaching unit. It was at least 7 feet tall and heavily armored. It had four pairs of arms, which Matt could tell had weapons built into them. It had a viewing screen on its chest while its head relatively small and had a sweep-scan optic. It looked like a mix of technology from Lost in Space, Battlestar Galactica, and RoboCop, with a graduation cap being relatively the only sign that it was built for tutoring.

"Has someone been going into my Z-Bay account?" he said suspiciously.

"Mostly through the spare parts," said Chloe before muttering quickly, "and your personal armory."

"What?" asked Matt.

"Let us be seeing how it works," said Jumba as he flipped a switch.

The robot's optic lit up as it turned to face Lilo, Megan, and Gary. "Greetings class," said the robot in a contrastingly friendly tone, "I am Tutor Bot 3.0 and I will be your mentor this semester."

"Can I test it?" said Matt, twitching before throwing a plasma ball at the tutor bot.

An energy shield immediately appeared and the plasma ball was neutralized. "Now, now, no fighting in class," said Tutor Bot 3.0. It picked up Matt and sat him on a stool before putting a dunce cap on Matt's head. "Maybe now you'll learn not to roughhouse so much," said Tutor Bot 3.0.

"Hmm, it appears personality chips require more modern tuning," said Jumba.

Matt's eyes blazed and the hat burst into flames. "Not amused," he said.

"We're going to be stuck with this thing all day?" asked Lilo.

"Not all day," said Chloe, "You'll have the afternoons and weekends off, provided you do your homework and studying. Of course, it'd let you go if someone excuses you or there's an emergency."

Megan muttered to Lilo, "I vote we make a project of working out what the emergency code is."

"This is cruel and unusual punishment," moaned Gary.

"Wrong," said NegaMorph, "THIS is cruel and unusual." He walked over to the door and opened it. The spiderbots were outside, wearing orange sashes. "Meet your new hall monitors/truant officers," said NegaMorph.

Gary actually climbed on the desk. "That's a breach of the Geneva Convention," he said.

"Mr. Lesog, please sit down or I'll have to call your mother," said Tutor Bot 3.0.

Gary gave the robot an incredulous look and said, "My mother died over 200 years ago."

"Don't take that tone with me, young man," said Tutor Bot 3.0.

Matt said, "Ok...how do you turn off the robot headteacher?"

"Hmm, it would appear that it requires some fine-tuning before it's ready to teach," said Prof. Sumdac, "I guess we'll have to hold off on the lesson plans until it's fully operational."

Matt wandered over and found a switch, flicking it to off. "There. All fixed," he said.

"Er, we still need to get it fixed so it can teach properly," said Chloe, "I guess class is canceled until we get it working properly."

The robot twitched before grabbing Matt by the neck, explaining 'DANGER! DANGER, WILL ROBINSON!' and bashing him against the wall before powering down.

"Uh, how about you kids go out and play for a while?" asked Prof. Sumdac.

"Shouldn't be hard to repair," said Jumba as he started tightening some of the screws, "Just a small adjustment and..."

The robot sprang to life again and got Jumba in a headlock before giving him a noogie with another arm while saying, "Who's your daddy?"

Chloe watched. "Should we help?" she said distantly.

"I think we better," said NegaMorph, "We need his head in one piece."

Megan turned to the others and said, "All in favor of leaving before Brainiac gives us detention say 'aye'."

"AYE!" was the resounding cry, except for Matt who said "Ow…" from where he was laying on the floor.

They started sneaking out the door as Tutor Bot 3.0 said, "Who's your daddy?" Jumba managed to get his head down far enough to bite the robot's arm, which caused it to say "Ouch."

The spiderbots suddenly lunged out and pointed to a sign they had lasered into the wall that said 'All people without hall passes will be stunned...alot."

Matt groaned and said, "I almost miss Lockdown."


There's another chapter. And this one introduces new characters. I realize some fans would be annoyed with Scorponok being an Autobot instead of a Decepticon, but this Scorponok's based on Energon Scorponok and has a much different personality than the rest. Nightbird is based of the same character from G1, only with an alternate mode and transformation scheme like that of ROTF Mindwipe. Anyhow, the Dinobots appear and fight Team Charr, which I'm sure is something very exciting for fans. Of course, we threw in some craziness with the spiderbots and Tutor Bot 3.0, which I thought was pretty funny. And if you think there was excitement in this chapter, wait till the next one. It may take a while to get written, but it will be so worth it. Also, Scorponok and Nightbird are both on my deviantART gallery, check them out. Please review.