Cascade hovered over the dense foliage as the ground team moved below her. While this area was more mountainous, it was still covered with thick flora. She wasn't about to get her wings tangled up in the foliage so instead she used her position above to spot out possible issues. So far they had avoided a mud slide, several rockslides, two geysers and a few of the larger ground beasts. If the mechs below were taking a beating, she wasn't doing much better. This area seemed to have quickly changing weather conditions probably stemming from the nearby mountains. At first there was rain and lightning, then there was a tornado and then the rain turned to large hail. Cascade was finally forced to take cover below with the others as the canopy provided some protection otherwise it was likely she would have been knocked from the air by either the turbulent air currents or the fist sized hail.

When she cautiously returned to the sky, she watched a burning meteor streak from above and crash to the ground in the distance. The atmosphere reduced, but did not completely eliminate the burning meteor. Even though she hadn't been to many, this probably counted as one of the most dangerous planets she'd ever encountered. There was danger coming in from all sides. Luckily so far her team led by Ultra Magnus hadn't taken any serious damage. Cascade entered the canopy again as large flocks of flying animals took flight as the sun started to wane. It was obviously feeding hour for them and Cascade didn't want to crash if the flock ended up flying into her.

"How much longer are we going be out here?" asked Shell Shock, one of the Elite Guards as he picked a leaf out of his armor.

"As long as need be soldier," responded Ultra Magnus. "However perhaps we should halt till the light returns." It was getting dark and though they could see just fine. It would only make the trip more dangerous.

"Or we could call for pickup," suggested Cliffjumper. "We haven't found any sign of the pillar."

Ultra Magnus ignored him and simply watched as Cascade wandered toward a nearby cave. Her sensors weren't detecting anything inside, but that didn't mean there wasn't. She armed herself, but before she even got close a large head with a gigantic eye and a mouth full of teeth stuck its head out. Cascade heard the startled cries behind her, but her full attention was on the creature in front of her. She studied it as she began to slowly back away. It looked like it had a metal exoskeleton, but somehow she simply knew that it wasn't. This wasn't a mechanical creature with a spark. This was simply a biological creature that excreted the minerals it ate into its outer layers. A warning shot went past her and hit the side of the cave and the animal quickly retreated back into the cave. Cascade vented and turned to Ultra Magnus. "We can leave," she said sadly. "I know where the pillar is and it's not here."

Ultra Magnus raised in eye ridge in question.

"I'll explain back on the ship," said Cascade shaking her head.

The flyers were called in to carry them out. Hyperfall and his team were perplexed when they were suddenly pulled out without an explanation.

Cascade sat silently in the conference room while they waited on Ratchet to arrive. Jazz, Prowl, Optimus, Hyperfall and Ultra Magnus were all in attendance. Finally Ratchet walked in the door. "This better be good," he said.

"Cascade, if you will please explain why we just recalled all the search teams at your say so," said Ultra Magnus.

"I know where the pillar is," said Cascade. "I didn't realize it until just a little while ago in the forest, but we no longer need to search for it."

"Was it on Trisen?" asked Hyperfall. "You think one of us would have seen it if it was."

"It was there," said Cascade nodding in agreement. "And you did see it, but you wouldn't recognize it in its current form."

"Where is it?" asked Optimus.

"You're looking at it," said Cascade gesturing to herself. "I'm the last pillar."

There was shocked silence in the room. Cascade could feel Ratchet's scan run over her and Jazz put a steadying hand on Prowl's shoulder, but he remained online despite the declaration.

"Impossible," started Ultra Magnus. "The pillar was the same size as the others. You do not have enough mass."

"You forget the amount of parts I have subspaced," said Cascade calmly. "I'm not talking about the parts I scavenged, but the carrying chambers, the sustaining equipment, my battle computer, the medical computer and the other systems that I can connect to. Disregarding my over armor which is simply protection, my scans indicate that 86% of my base form is from the pillar and that merely represents a fourth of its total mass."

"Ratchet?" asked Optimus looking at him for confirmation

Ratchet looked over his scan and nodded his head. "Her systems were very different from ours which is why I never noticed that she had the same energy profile as the other pillars. I should have realized earlier. She was able to keep five sparks and her own separated and online without forming bonds between them. A task impossible for all save the Allspark."

"How did you know?" asked Hyperfall looking at Cascade in curiosity.

"There was a creature on the planet below that extruded metal out of its pores to make a protective layer," said Cascade. "It had no spark and I could tell that even without scanning it. As you know, the scans were compromised with atmosphere. How would I know it didn't have a spark unless I was the pillar. After we returned, I confirmed it with a subspace scan."

Hyperfall nodded his head in understanding. "That also answers my original question as well. I always wondered how you were embedded in both the beginning of my memories and later on when I met you. This is how. I sensed or knew you as the pillar and then later as Cascade. Spark deep I must have known you were one and the same."

"It also explains why your creators put the protective code in you," said Ratchet looking over at Hyperfall. "You weren't merely protecting your medic, but a source of life."

"So she's the pillar," said Jazz crossing his arms. "What do we do now?"

"We return to Cybertron," said Cascade logically. "We return the pillar to the Allspark."

"You said that 86% of your form is constructed from the pillar," said Prowl. "What will happen if you return to the Allspark?"

"I'll offline," said Cascade casually. "All that will be left will be my memory chip, a small pile of metals and my spark for a moment before it goes out. Everything else will be lost to the reconstruction of the pillar."

"My condolences," said Hyperfall immediately.

Cascade merely shrugged in response.

"Wait a minute," said Jazz looking between them. "Isn't there something we can do?"

"Cascade, you do not have to give your life for this," said Optimus. "We will find a way."

"Be realistic," said Hyperfall standing suddenly. "Whether by your order or not Optimus, some council somewhere will make it an order. The Allspark needs to be whole for life to continue on Cybertron. Better that she gets the choice to accept her fate rather than get dragged in by some bounty hunter and forced. You're not hearing what she said. She's going to lose everything and I mean everything. All the systems that she's relied on from the beginning will be stripped from her. She'll have nothing left. If I was told that I'd lose everything I was, I'd choose to offline as well."

"That would be your personal choice," snapped Jazz. "Autobots don't abandon our own."

Cascade smirked and it caught Prowl's attention. "She never declared herself an Autobot," said Prowl frowning as Cascade's smile got wider. "Therefore she is within her right to choose without interference from the Autobots. That is her plan," stated Prowl.

Jazz gaped at Prowl and then turned to Cascade.

"I'll be useful one last time," said Cascade rising to her feet. "I'll make your Allspark whole. If you'll excuse me, I need to remove the debris I got covered in from this planet from my frame." She promptly headed out the door without looking back.

Hyperfall moved to follow when he was called back by Optimus. "I need to understand this," said Optimus.

"What's to understand?" asked Hyperfall in confusion.

"Why is she not upset?" asked Optimus.

"The defense forces came online with a single purpose," said Hyperfall sitting back down. "We were meant to protect Trisen. We were built as weapons. Cascade was the same, but she was also meant to repair and heal. Those were our purposes. When the Autobots came along, our purpose stayed the same. It was merely the setting that changed. Some of us made friends outside of our group and tried different things, but Cascade had to stay detached as the medic. Before you even arrived, we had already lost two of our own and with the arrival of the war it was likely that more would follow. Except for a few, despite how we may appear, we weren't that close knit of a group. Not returning the pillar is something we can't afford to do and we accept this, but by doing so it will take everything away from Cascade. She wouldn't be able to perform the procedures of a medic anymore, she would lose the ability to strategize and she would lose the ability to fight that she's gained so far. It would take all purpose from her. She most likely believes that once the pillar is returned, she would no longer be useful even if a way for her to survive was found."

"She doesn't need to do any of that stuff," protested Jazz. "There's no need for her to fight anymore. She's done enough."

"Are you saying that simply because she saved you?" asked Hyperfall leaning back in his chair. "Because she still has no purpose and that's all that will matter to her. She doesn't want to become a burden for the sake of past deeds."

"She could relearn what she's lost," added Ratchet.

"Ratchet, after you get discharged, you can go into regular medical practice on Cybertron if you want," said Hyperfall. "Cascade would have to learn from scratch. While she might retain some memory of procedures, she would essentially be a trainee starting at the beginning with a stellar reputation haunting her. Imagine how frustrating that would be if you had access to all medical knowledge and then you had it stripped from you. It'd destroy her from the start."

"You're not offering any suggestions," stated Ultra Magnus blandly. "It's almost as if you want her to offline."

"Of course not, but I want to stress to you how she thinks," said Hyperfall. "Pushing your feelings and wants on her won't do anything for her. For her this is the end of her usefulness and the end of her purpose. There is nothing else beyond this for her. If she can't be useful to you, then she might as well not be here."

"We do not view her as a tool," said Optimus sternly. "A comrade, a healer and a friend."

"Alone," said Hyperfall breaking in. "She was always alone whether in the simulations, among the defense forces or with the Autobots. She was always trying to reach one goal or another, but never got personally involved. She doesn't view any of you as friends. She most likely saw you as collaborators, backup and patients. The only one she ever acknowledged as a friend was Jolt. I suppose he was the only one that took the time to get to know her even a little outside of the battlefield. Even I only saw her as the reliable medic I needed to protect. If you do choose to save her, you better have a really good support plan or she'll likely offline soon after."

Ratchet had spilled what he'd learned to Jolt and First Aid. Jolt had quickly located Cascade and found her in her room. She let him in after the chime notified her of his presence. "I'm glad to see you're in one piece," said Cascade smiling. "That planet was a little extreme."

"I can't disagree with that," said Jolt. "So when we get back to Cybertron, I want to show you some of my favorite places."

"I don't think that's such a good idea," said Cascade frowning. "I don't want to accumulate more regrets."

"I know," began Jolt haltingly.

"You're here right now because you've heard from Ratchet," said Cascade. "About me being the pillar and what's going to happen."

"I wanted to thank you," said Jolt softly.

"For what?" asked Cascade in confusion.

"For your sacrifices," said Jolt sincerely. "For the sacrifice to come and the ones in the past. You didn't want to leave Trisen, but you did to protect us from Switch. You sacrificed all your over armor to gain victory over the Cons. You sacrificed your systems every time you carried a spark that was not yours so another could live. You sacrificed your safety when you saved me and countless others on the battlefield. Thank you for that. As your friend, I am truly grateful."

Cascade had no idea how to respond. She felt flustered, slightly embarrassed and somewhat sad.

"I was wondering if you'd make one more sacrifice," said Jolt holding her gaze. "Would you allow us to try and save you?"

Cascade looked down and vented.

"I don't know if we'll be successful and I don't know if you really want us to, but I really want to try," said Jolt. "It's extremely selfish of me, but I don't want to lose my best friend so soon."

Cascade looked up and Jolt had his answer.