Disclaimer: Beast Wars not mine.

A/N: Duh-duh-duh-duuuuun! Sorry guys, I know I said I'd post this fast and it got kind of delayed but today I finally managed to kick my own skidplate and get some studying doen so the delay was for a good cause. It also took a while because choosing what to put and not to put in this chapter was kind of hard. I know a certain storyline has been on a slow burn but don't worry, it ties up to everything else so it will pop up again and gather speed when I need it.

Oh, I forgot! A trailer for Dalgaroth;s fic has been posted on youtube, check it out:

http://www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=RCfiTN0LrfM

Replace the (dot) with actual dots, obviously.

Right, now on to the chapter.

Chapter nine

Optimus was becoming really desperate. He kept reminding himself that there was a chance he might be overreacting. Silverbolt and Blackarachnia might just be hiding somewhere waiting for the storm to pass. The Predacons might have come to Maximal territory for some other reason than to attack and they might not have even met the couple. Might, might, might. Except he couldn't imagine what other reason Megatron would have to come here. If they had been coming to surrender, which was highly implausible to begin with, they wouldn't have turned and gone back to their own base.

He was having no luck in his search so far and on top of that, he had lost contact with Rhinox. The rhino must be really worried by now but going back to base was out of the question. He couldn't do it. He would just have to keep looking until he found them. And if he didn't, that would mean they were probably taken prisoners.

Optimus' spark sank as he suddenly realized that this was probably exactly what had happened. How could he have been so foolish and reckless? Megatron was an enemy not to be underestimated; the Maximal commander should have known he would try to take hostages to use as a bargaining chip.

If that was the case, they had screwed up big time. Megatron would want Rampage's spark back and Optimus would have to give it to him. There was no question of risking Silverbolt and Blackarachnia's lives.

With these dark thoughts he continued to fly and scan the ground, desperately hoping for a glimpse of his friends.

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Blackarachnia woke up to a faint smell of sulfur, half-forgotten but still familiar.

"Aww, great." She murmured, rubbing her head.

"Oh, my dear Widow! How nice of you to join us, yesss." She heard and her optics immediately located Megatron, sitting on his throne.

Evidently, he had just been hanging around waiting for her to wake up so he could say that one malicious line because now he got up and headed out, giving her a gloating look as he passed her cage.

"With your unwilling help the Predacons will once again have the upper hand in this war. And this time I will make sure to destroy all of you… you miserable insects!"

His voice dropped to a hateful hiss as he said those last words and Blackarachnia was tempted to recoil. Never had she heard her former boss sound so serious in his threats.

But she refused to be fazed and returned his look with a mocking smile.

"With what half of your crew consist of right now, I find that expression funny."

Uncharacteristically, he growled at her lowly and she fought to keep her smile from freezing as her fluids did.

"All three of you morons, guard her!" The Predacon leader barked to his small team who had been waiting on the other side of the room. "If anything, ANYTHING, goes wrong with this plan, I'll rip you slowly to pieces!"

All three of them flinched. Even Inferno.

Four 'bots sighed in relief when the T-Rex left the room.

"So, Sugar-bot, what have you been up to?" Quickstrike ventured flirtatiously.

Blackarachnia rolled her optics.

"Oh, joy. As if I wasn't getting enough of this from the kitten."

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Depth Charge was finding out that carrying a huge transmetal murderer was not really as hard as he had expected. This surprised him. But then again, the only other time Rampage had flown on his back, the crab had been trying to tear him apart, which had interfered considerably with the flight. Without that, it was a bit like the backpacks of equipment he had occasionally had to carry on exercise missions during his Guardian training.

Why did he keep going back to that time lately?

But yeah, the comparison wasn't that far-fetched since Rampage was playing the role of a big scanner right now. Except that in the Academy he was rarely worried the equipment he was carrying might try to kill him. Well, there had been one case with a homicidal folding shed which had always attempted to trap him inside every time he started setting it up…

He almost chuckled fondly at the memory before he forced his brain to get back to the situation at hand.

"All right, we've reached the forest. Where to now?"

"Go west." Rampage shouted above the wind. "The fuzor's there."

"What about Blackarachnia?" Cheetor asked as he came to their level from a quick circle at lower altitude.

"She must be quite far away. I can't sense her anywhere near." Rampage answered with a frown.

"That's not good news." Depth Charge murmured to himself

The crab was thinking the same. If Megatron had taken the widow, would the Maximals give up a big strategic advantage to ensure she remained unharmed? Of course they would. The Maximals were always so… keen on preserving lives.

That was the most important thing, wasn't it? Being alive. Screw everything else, he was alive, what more did he want, right? Slag them. If this was indeed a hostage situation, that meant he would be handed back to Megatron. And he did not even want to think of that possibility. The tyrant would sit on his spark and not get up for days…

Rampage considered his options as he absently told the ray fly lower. He could attack his companions and escape… And after a little while Rhinox would do pretty much the same as Megatron. And he was just as heavy.

He was helpless. Again. He was helpless and at the mercy of Maximals who didn't give a slag about how much pain they might cause him as long as they got what they wanted.

"There!" Cheetor shouted.

They were now quite low, just above the trees. And at the edge of a clearing below, a drenched grey mess of fur and feathers was barely visible trough the rain clouding their optics.

Rampage left the excitement to the cat as he continued his train of thought while Depth Charge prepared to land. There was of course the slight chance that the spider might be dead. He couldn't be sure from such a distance if she was among the sparks he felt. Her spark could have been extinguished…

But not with his luck.

That last thought was quickly confirmed when the first weak whimper that came out of Silverbolt's mouth was: "They took her!"

"We'll get her back!" Cheetor assured the fuzor with grim determination.

Rampage hung back as the two Maximals fussed over their friend, trying to asses how damaged he was.

Internal repairs had already kicked in and he was more shocked than anything. It wouldn't have been so bad if it hadn't been such an unexpected attack. But as it was, they couldn't get him to stop repeating over and over that it was his fault Blackarachnia was gone and that he should have protected his lady. His two comrades finally gave up on trying to calm him in favor of figuring out what to do. Silverbolt was slightly heavy for Cheetor to carry and Depth Charge still had Rampage to think about.

"Optimus is nearby, try to contact him." Rampage said automatically without any permission from his brain. Said brain was preoccupied with frantically trying to come up with any option that would not land him in a lot of pain. The rest of him though still seemed to be operating on the 'Help the Maximals' frequency.

"Thanks Rampage!" Cheetor tossed over his shoulder and tried his radio again. "Cheetor to Optimus, do you copy Big Bot?"

"Cheetor!" Optimus' voice came from the other side, with a little interference but clear enough. "Where are you?"

As Cheetor proceeded to inform his leader of the situation and give him their coordinates, Rampage walked away into the forest. He wasn't trying to escape. He wasn't even going fast. He just wanted to get away from the others at least while he tried to think.

Back on the clearing Optimus landed and immediately ran over to Silverbolt who was now trying to stand, supported by Depth Charge.

"How did you find him?"

"It was actually Rampage who located him! You know, Big Bot, with his empathic senses and all that…" Cheetor answered.

Optimus' optic ridges shot up.

"Did I hear this right? Rampage? He could sense the exact coordinates from as far away as the base?"

"No, we actually had to take him. He's right…" Depth Charge started to say but stopped as he scanned the crab-free clearing. "Now where did that creep go?"

He quickly handed Silverbolt to Primal and stalked into the forest.

He wasn't particularly alarmed, just surprised at his enemy's stupidity. What was he hoping to achieve? His spark was still with Rhinox.

He spotted him not far away, leaning on a tree trunk and staring at the little rivers running on the forest floor. The wind had decreased somewhat but it was still raining heavily.

"Hey!" Depth Charge called, causing the crab to whirl around in his direction. "Where do you think you're going?"

Rampage scowled.

"Does it look like I'm going anywhere, Fish Face? I would if I could."

The ray rolled his optics.

"Well, poor you, you're breaking my spark. Come on, we're about to get going."

Rampage stared stubbornly at the ground. It was childish and wouldn't achieve anything but right now he just wanted to defy the Guardian's dismissive tone.

Depth Charge regarded him carefully, torn between wondering what was going on and just getting angry.

"All right, what's all the sulking about?" he asked finally.

Rampage's optics flashed in disbelief as the killer turned to look at him.

"What's the sulking about?! Do you have a toaster for a processor? I don't care how dumb you are, you MUST have figured out what Megatron's gonna use the spider for! He wants me back and he's gonna get me back in exchange for the fuzor's precious Widow! And you ask what I'm sulking about?"

"Oh..."

Depth Charge felt a little stunned. He had registered the facts somewhere in the back of his mind, but he hadn't really realized what they meant.

"You really don't want to go back to the Predacons…"

"Fins, seeing how I beat Megatron to a pulp last time we met, there are very few things I want less than him getting anywhere near my spark."

"Well, it's not like he's gonna ki –"

Depth Charge caught himself a little too late, after the sentence had started leaving his mouth.

Honestly, it had been a dumb thing to say. He was ready to admit that.

Rampaged was staring him directly in the optics, looking absolutely livid now. Thunder cracked above them and lightening flashed in the falling dusk. And there stood the image from Depth Charge's nightmares. In the pouring rain, against the quickly darkening sky, green optics brilliant with rage.

"You still don't get it, do you?" the killer gritted out. "Let me tell you, old friend, you don't get used to pain. It doesn't get easier to deal with as time goes by, it gets more difficult! Like with every other thing, when you get fed up with it, it becomes harder and harder to cram more in. And everyone has a limit… but I don't so it just keeps getting worse! And you have no idea… You… Have no… After what I showed you…"

The crab stuttered, rendered speechless by helpless rage and the pure inability to express what he was feeling.

And in the Guardian's optics the image of the demon was suddenly washed away. He blinked in surprise and what stood before him now was more similar to a wild animal cornered by a gang of hunters.

And he decided he had to put the metaphorical gun away. His own emotions leveled out as he took a deep breath and offered the other transformer a steady look.

"I'll make sure that doesn't happen." He said as calmly as he could manage, considering how his spark skipped a beat and his common sense screamed in alarm at what he was promising.

"What?" Rampage asked, certain that he had misheard.

"I'll make sure Megatron doesn't get your spark back." Depth Charge repeated. "You have my word. We'll have to come up with another plan to rescue Blackarachnia. Now let's get back to the others. It's getting dark and I'm sure Rhinox is worried sick."

With that he turned and strode back towards the clearing. Rampage stared at his back for a few nanos before following uncertainly, his rage suddenly draining away replaced by disbelief and a very cautious little spark of hope.

"Primal will have your head." He observed quietly when he had caught up.

Unexpectedly, the ray burst out laughing.

"Oh, that worries me so much!"

Rampage threw him a sideways glance and a thin smile crept to his mouth as well.

"I guess not…"

And, unexpectedly, he did feel reassured. Depth Charge was not the type to give his word but he was even less the type to break it if he did.

"I could kiss you right now, you know." The crab muttered, shaking his head.

"Don't." Depth Charge replied flatly but still with a trace of humor in his voice.

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"They should've been back by now, buddy." Rattrap said nervously as he watched Rhinox pace the length of the control room. "I told ya it was a bad idea!"

"Rampage isn't stupid; he knows he can't get away with attacking someone."

"Oh, yeah? He got away with murdering a whole colony."

"He didn't precisely get away, he was caught and…"

"And dumped on our ship to cause more trouble! And then he got away again and he almost ate us! And we've let him run free among our friends!"

Rhinox stopped in the middle of the room with the intention to say something to counter Rattrap but his own spark was pulsing with worry. He was the one who had agreed to this, he had taken the initiative and the responsibility and it would be his fault if something went wrong.

The Ark suddenly felt frighteningly empty with just him and Rattrap there. The rest had disappeared one by one and none of them had come back. It was already dark outside. They had been gone for megacycles. It was like some kind of horror story.

What if this was some scheme of Megatron's? What if he and Rampage were actually working together? What if the killer was murdering their friends right now?

He checked the time again. It had been a long time but was it too long? What if he was wrong and they were just taking care of someone injured?

That shouldn't take that long either. If someone was injured, they would be in a hurry to get them to a CR…

The spark was sitting on the control room table. He looked at it uncertainly.

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Optimus gave the crab and ray a questioning look as they reappeared but decided to save it for later. What mattered now was getting their injured friend a proper treatment.

"All right, Depth Charge, you take Silverbolt, he's lighter. I'll take care of Rampage. Cheetor, fly ahead and alert Rhinox that we're coming back."

"I'll be there before you can say energon! And we'll have a CR ready!"

The cheetah zoomed away at top speed.

Depth Charge hesitated for a nano but transformed to his flight mode and took Silverbolt from Optimus.

"Just hold on, I can't keep worrying you'll fall off." He warned the fuzor.

A miserable nod the ray could not even see was the only response.

Rampage wasn't exactly happy with the arrangement. Riding with the Maximal commander seemed strange and alien. But once again, he couldn't argue with the logic. Optimus was bigger and it would be easier for him to carry him. But the crab was definitely going on his back. He wasn't gonna be carried around like a damsel in distress.

The rain and wind slapped them in the faces again as they gained altitude but the ride seemed a little easier on the way back. The storm was subsiding little by little. They flew in silence for some time, neither feeling particularly chatty in this situation or very keen to shout to be heard.

About half way towards the base, Rampage suddenly screamed and nearly fell off, startling Optimus, who maneuvered in midair and caught his passenger in his hands to keep him from plummeting to the ground.

"What's going on?" he shouted, wrestling with the writhing crab.

"Rhinox!" Depth Charge shouted back. "We've been gone a while, he probably freaked out and Cheetor hasn't reached him yet!"

Optimus tried to contact the base, attempting to speak over Rampage's screams but there was no answer.

"Can't we knock him out?" Silverbolt shouted from Depth Charge's back, deeply disturbed.

"It wouldn't matter if we did." Depth Charge replied. "It's not an injury to his body; it's his spark that's in pain."

It would help Optimus carry him, passed trough his mind.

But the ray wasn't keen on supporting that idea right now. Rampage's earlier comparison about being nothing but a spark, unable to even voice its pain, was still fresh in his mind as well as his own strangely silent dream. If someone was in pain they at least had the right to cause the rest of the world a little difficulty, he decided.

"I'll just try to get back to base as soon as possible then, in case something caused Cheetor to get delayed." Optimus shouted and sped ahead.

Depth Charge continued to fly at a lower speed, aware that his own cargo did not have all of his strength to hold on.

Silverbolt shifted uncomfortably on his back.

"He just helped us. That's not how we should have thanked him."

"Yeah…" the ray trailed. "Well, he was acting on his own behalf as well."

"Doesn't matter."

"Yeah, I know…"

What was I after? It seems like he's been paying for his actions all along.

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A/N: Yay, another chapter done. Er, well, "yay" is probably not what I should be saying considering what I just did to those poor guys… Send your hugs for them in a review!