Chapter 35: "Therion"

"I forgot this area meant bloody cold snow," Caitlin shivered uncontrollably as she huddled as best she could inside her own skin. While she did not mind the cold, she had not been born in a place where snow was commonplace. Australia may have had snow in certain areas, but mostly it went without the white wonderland that had fascinated her as a child. She was used to heat and humidity and hated feeling cold and since Dinobot's beast mode was a reptile: he required more heat than the others. So, both were shivering and cursing Optimus with every kiss of the frosty wind on their skin.

Dinobot had to be amused by her expansive command of language. She liked to mix things together to create a rather… vivid image. One that even Megatron could never hope to replicate. It was actually rather impressive. If the war was to be fought only by insults: he would consider putting her at the forefront. His former leader would be blasted away by a tirade of words with no hope of getting a word in. It must be the cold getting to him, because he out rightly chuckled at the thought.

So startled by the fact he was laughing, she fell face first into the snow. "SHIT, THAT'S COLD!" she cried out, finding her feet quicker than lightning, rubbing her skin in an attempt to warm up. "Why on ear—oh, now I got some down my shirt! What fresh hell is this?! What asshole thought hot needed an opposite that burned just as harshly?! I mean, honestly? Which does one prefer out of two evils? Burning, scalding hot or burning, scalding cold? It is madness!"

Then, the worst thing that could have happened – happened. A storm came. A very big one.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me!" she cried out in indignant shock as she glared up at the skies that laughed at her misfortunes.

Dinobot echoed the disdain for the weather before they started running to find shelter. They found it, but in a structure that was definitely not of Predacon or Maximal origin. "An entrance!" the raptor exclaimed as they came to a stop. He was glad to have found any sort of shelter from the blasted cold and would have gone straight in, but Caitlin was suddenly in front of him and blocking his view. "What are you doing, woman?" he demanding, looking down his nose at her. "We have shelter and a way in!"

She shot him a look that suggested he needed to have his brain examined. "Uhuh... and all past experiences indicate it will be that easy!" she scoffed, even rolling her eyes at him. "Rule of thumb, Dinobot. If something is for free, you're bound to pay for it with something you're not willing to sell." Folding her arms, she straightened her spine and gained a few inches to impress her point. It was not much compared to him, but the attitude in that gaze succeeded in quelling the urge to race forward into the promising shelter. She looked over her shoulder at it with a frown. "With our luck, Sir Dino-lot, they'll have the funeral bouquet all nice and ready for us. And I'm pretty sure you'll get all the pink flowers."

He huffed a heavy sigh her way. "Alright then, woman," he stressed the word as he shot her a droll stare. "What would you do?"

Her brow quirked at the new nickname he had been calling her recently. She had become accustomed to hearing 'girl' slip past his and Rattrap's lips. She couldn't say she preferred it, but she could consider herself lucky he wasn't calling her 'babe' or something like that. Or worse, a nickname of her own name – she rarely if ever accepted any shortened, abbreviated version of her name. Caitlin was her name. It was the name given to her upon her birth and the name she would be called. It was who she was. C.A.I.T.L.I.N. Not Catie. Not Cate. Definitely not Cat. Caitlin.

Only her youngest siblings had gotten away with calling her Catie, because they were cute. Only her mother could call her Cate because well, duh: she was her mother.

Rattrap and Dinobot had a penchant for rather descriptive nicknames for people they knew. And as a sister to siblings, she was a rather avid contender in the insults department. It made it easy to retaliate. That being said: her family were a rollercoaster of crazy, stubborn stirrers of the pot. A quiet, peaceful day had always seemed... strange. An insult a day kept the drama at play, had probably been the motto of the family. A quiet one. Buried very deep under her mother's demand they all get along.

Now that she was almost twenty, perhaps she could get used to being called 'woman'. That would give her ample enough reason to feel justified calling him a 'pre-evolved, degenerative birdbrain'.

Shaking her head to bring her back to the present, she focused on the opening and slowly approached. She had seen far too many Indiana Jones movies to even think of just waltzing inside a construct she had no idea was hidden within. She was no archaeologist and she could bet her normal eye she would be like Evie: and read from the Book of the Dead to bring Imotep back from the dead. And bring about the next apocalypse. Yay!

Oh how, she missed watching movies! It was such a good thing her memory was as deep as the metaphorical ocean – or she'd trip down the Rabbit Hole into a darker, twisted Wonderland.

Oh, wait... she already had.

Grabbing a handful of snow, she formed it into a ball and threw it. There was an electrical hum and the pair watched it melt immediately upon impact. She turned, brow cocking pointedly. "You were saying?" she asked, folding her arms and cocking her hip. "See? If it seems to be free, it means you're about to sell something you weren't prepared on giving. Like your life. Now," she clucked her tongue, turning back to the shelter. "Why is something like this here? It doesn't feel like a spider's cave. It doesn't even strike me as a Predacon Haunt. This..." she stopped and closed her eyes, feeling their air and shuddered, stepping back. "This feels like ghosts dancing on my grave, doing the cha-cha. This is alien."

"We should find an alternate route."

"I was thinking of just walking right on in here. See if I burn extra crispy. I'd definitely be warmer than I am now."

"Your sass is unappreciated, woman."

"Frankly, my dear... I don't give a damn."

This time, his brow rose as he stepped up beside her and tried to recall all of her abilities. He knew she could wield the elements and that her DNA had been changed as well. Perhaps if she created some kind of barrier, they may be able to just walk on through. His core temperatures were just a few degrees from freezing his mech fluid, and that was not an outcome the warrior would accept. It would be a triumphant passage or nothing in his opinion. Death from something as minor as the weather was not something he wished to be remembered by.

"Can you create a barrier to get us through? I have no intention of dying out here in the cold."

"Neither do I. Death by becoming an ice statue doesn't appeal to me," she replied as she stared at the entrance. She was not sure if she could or could not make a barrier, but there was only one way to try. But to make a big enough area around the both of them was going to take some concentration, and when pressure was added, it would get difficult. She bit her lip and caught Dinobot's optics. "You're gonna have to hold me up so I can put the barrier around us. Less area to cover. Unless you rather prefer to be barbecued. The heat would be nice though..." she trailed off with a plotting grin his way.

Dinobot rolled his optics and picked her up with her back pressed against his chest plate. She was as light as a feather and delicate. With even the barest of efforts, he could crush her to death as easily as squishing an ant between his claws. Her fragility and his current power over her made his circuits hum in appreciation whilst she continued to concentrate, her heart beating steady in his hold. Her trust in him stopped the niggling urge to test just how much he could squeeze her before she panicked.

"You do know I could crush you and no one would know?" he felt compelled to ask.

"Awwww a squeeze hug? From you? I'm touched." Before he could say anything to that, he felt her aura wrap around him and then they she pointed forward. "Move your butt, Dino-butt."

He quickly marched forward and she began to convulse in his arms, a cry ripping from her throat. He almost stopped to turn back but then her head fell forward and a growl vibrated from her chest. Her hands reached up and grabbed the arm holding him, fingers turning into claws to try and tear herself away as her body began to convulse again until she suddenly stopped. Concerned, he kept marching forward until he finally stepped inside and gently lowered her down.

He was at a loss on what to do...

"Bring her inside, Dinobot," a new voice said, and whirling around with his lasers ready to fire: he saw a silver light – a Vok.

"Who are you?!" was the raptor's instantly demand, unconsciously shielding Caitlin from the newcomer's gaze.

Amusement flickered in silver eyes before suddenly – the light pulsed and an effeminate male stood before him. He was dressed in a white robe with silver tassels and slivery-white hair. For a moment, the shock of watching such a change startled the raptor enough that he could not move. A smile appeared on that face as he said, "I am Theríon. I hear you already know Sam and Gaia. Come inside, Dinobot. I take it you'd prefer to be warm than at risk of freezing to death."

Freezing to death was not on his agenda, and so he regathered Caitlin in his arms and hurried after the stranger.

Shadow yawned, his green eyes watching the older (but still immature) cat as Cheetor approached a small group of cheetahs. He was trying to egg them into racing, but with very little success. They were more inclined to lie down in the sun that the moment; rather than wanting to humour the Maximal. Shadow's ears twitched in rising amusement Cheetor's persistence, idly wondering why he wasn't joining in but his circumstances were... unique. He was not a normal creature. His fate, his life, his own mind and body had changed the day Caitlin had found him. He could not find it in himself to hate her for accidentally killing his mother – she held enough guilt over it for the both of them. He would often find her sitting in the still-charred circle where she had buried his mother.

Sometimes, Shadow would join her. He remembered only a little of his mother. She had been affectionate as any mother. He'd had siblings for a time, but he remembered even less of them. His new life revolved around his new mother and her family – his family. His position was a rather... delicate matter. His existence had not been discovered by the Predacons and the Maximals – even Dinobot – took great pains to keep it that way. Because he was different, he would be of particular interest to both Megatron and Tarantulas and he did not want them to pay him any attention.

Although, should they find themselves lost in the shadows of the woods... far be it for him to ignore the opportunity to kill them.

Licking his chops, Shadow could almost imagine the taste of mech fluid on his tongue and as he stretched, his claws flicked out to dig into the dirt. He imagined them ripping, tearing and cutting into their fake flesh. Make no mistake – just because he had mentally risen above the rest of his kind, he was still a predator. His instincts ran to claim territory, hunt, feed and protect what was his. It was just the natural order despite the fact his growth had accelerated at an unnatural rate.

Like... overnight within a few minutes of his new mother being Spark-Mated to Dinobot and Rattrap.

He still did not know what that meant, but he remembered how hard Caitlin had taken it. He could sense her emotions. She could not hide from him like she could Dinobot or Rattrap. Her concern for him prevented that, it seemed. There was always a 'line' that was kept open and connected them together as tightly as an anaconda's death grip. Because of their bond, he found he could also sense Rattrap and Dinobot, but for some reason he connected more to the raptor than the rat.

A sudden sound interrupted Shadow and he had to laugh a little at Cheetor's persistence. "Hey Shadow, these cat's don't want to play. Do you want to go for a swim with me?"

Shadow was grateful for the distraction. So he stretched to his feet and shot the cheetah his version of a grin, remarkably similar to Caitlin's. "Race you to the river!" he yelled out, already shooting off into the distance. He was as large as Cheetor, and definitely stronger than your average panther. Caitlin had once told him she had a hunch he was a hybrid between a jaguar and a tiger making him a Jauger. She also mentioned that cross-species were… very rare to non-existent in the wild. So, she was surprised by her own hypothesis. But, she was firm on her stance on 'it's just a hypothesis'. One that seemed much more likely then… the crystal she had interacting with her powers, which impacted his DNA in some way, forcing a mutation.

Yup. It was much easier to believe in. Less pain for his brain.

Cheetor won, of course. He was the fastest cat there was. Shadow was just more awesome.

Later, the pair drifted off as Shadow's stomach urged him to seek food whilst Cheetor had been called back to the Axalon. Alone, Shadow stalked his homeland with the confidence of an alpha predator. He had survived many encounters with many potential threats to his domain – and all had ended with him victorious. His hunting abilities were on par with Dinobot's, who had secretly taught him everything he knew. Why the raptor had decided to do so, the black cat was sure he would never know and he never asked.

As Dinobot was partly his father in a rather strange way, Shadow had found himself wanting to prove himself to the raptor. This was no easy feat as the former Predacon was not fond of 'caring', though Shadow knew that deep down he did care for Caitlin. It was very hard to hate his adoptive mother. She grew on you to a point it was very hard to hate her. Get annoyed by and frustrated by? Definitely. But hate was a strong feeling – its antithesis was love and there was a very, very thin line between the two. Or so Caitlin had told him. He was not quite sure what it meant.

Human and Transformers were rather alike and vastly different to the animals that naturally dwelt here. Though, he amended silently, humans would one day roam the Earth. Caitlin had been adamant that no one was to know that fact and Shadow had obeyed, not questioning why. He was naturally curious, but he had learned that curiosity combined with knowledge could become a dangerous combination. As the saying went: Curiosity killed the cat...

He rather disliked that saying.

"Shadow!" a familiar voice called out, drawing the black cat away from his thoughts and to the surprising sight of Sam and Gaia.

"Sam? Gaia? What are you doing here?" he asked, hunger forgotten in his shock and with cat-grin, raced towards the pair.

Gaia smiled down at her 'grandson' and crouched down to give him a hug and he purred against her quite happily. "We are here, little one, because we have to get into the Dark Syde."

Shadow frowned at that, immediately curious. It would be nothing small that brought the Vok to aid the Maximals outright, but it meant something really, really bad was going to happen. He could feel it. And it was making his fur tingle with nervous energy that made his teeth reflexively bare themselves. "Why do you need to go there?" he asked, backing up to stare up at her, head tilted to the side.

The two Vok glanced at each other, then Sam folded his arms. "We have to destroy something that would wreck havoc on this world."

Shadow did not have to think twice. This was his home and he wanted a chance to protect it, not be the protected. He was a hunter in his own right and was something more than your average big cat. He had a human mother who had been touched by the Vok, changed to suit their needs. It had influenced his own DNA, changing him as well. His sentience enabled him to talk and learn things he would not have as a normal feline. He had been taught by machines with beast forms, two being his 'fathers', though he considered a reptile beast machine to be the most influential on his development. So, he sat down before the two Vok and his head tilted back to lean forward, suggesting his readiness for a hunt.

"What do you want me to do?"