#43 - Where Loyalties Lie

He had taken the Golden disks from Megatron nearly a month ago as soon as his growing suspicions were proven true. He had already theorized on what would happen if his old commander were to act upon the power that he held. Dinobot wouldn't let that happen. He would find the truth to the Golden disk's power and decide where he should be standing. All he needed now was to wait for the right moment to make his move.

It wasn't long until that moment had come. While on a scouting mission with Rattrap and Starfeather, they came across Quickstrike, Deltasurge, and Tundra. They didn't exchange shots, but remained in beast mode as they met. Starfeather alighted on a boulder overlooking the space between the rock walls.

"I don't suppose any of you know more than Terrorsaur does," she said. Tundra shook her head.

"Megatron is succeeding at keeping us separated and ignorant to what's going on," she stated. Dinobot snarled softly under his breath, thinking.

"I'll admit Megs ain't always the idiot we like to think he is," Rattrap said, eying Quickstrike with some mistrust. "But there has to be a better way to keep tabs on things."

"We all know he's planning something, right? The only problem is figuring out what it is." Deltasurge tapped the rocky dirt with her fore claws irritably.

"But how?" Starfeather asked. "The only one Megatron trusts is Inferno and he literally has the mind of a soldier ant."

As they tried to conjure up a way to get into the Predacon leader's plans, Dinobot was still silent, thinking. Whatever it was Megatron was planning to do, he couldn't do so without the disks. He was the only one who knew where they were now. And Megatron would have no choice but to trust him to take him to them. This was his chance. As the others began to argue, he quietly slipped away.

-x-

The raptor waited until Quickstrike, Deltasurge, and Tundra came back to the Predacon base. He went inside the base while they weren't paying attention. They had no reason to suspect that he had followed them, they did wonder where he had gotten off to while they had been talking. He didn't show himself until Megatron ventured from his quarters, Inferno and Terrorsaur on either side of him.

Then, he snarled loudly, lunging forward as he transformed into robot mode. Terrorsaur and Inferno reacted by jumping between the raptor and their leader. Terrorsaur was wondering why Dinobot was here and what the slag he was doing. Dinobot knocked them aside, but by the time he turned on Megatron, the chrome saurian had his tail cannon charged and trained on his chest. He chuckled darkly.

"Impressive as always, but ultimately futile," he purred then frowned. "Damage me and you will be scrapped in a nanoklick."

Dinobot glanced on either side to see Inferno and Terrorsaur training their weapons on him. The pteranodon's gaze was hard. What end to their cause would this show of foolishness accomplish? The raptor narrowed his optics.

"As might you be if they open fire," he retorted. "But that would be a waste of two good Predacons."

It was Megatron's turn to narrow his own optics.

"I thought you were with them?" he said. By them, he meant everyone other than himself and Inferno. Dinobot paused before taking the other end of his sword and holding the hilt out to Megatron.

"Times change." He kneeled before The Predacon leader. However, Megatron was not impressed. He gave the raptor a scrutinizing glare. This could be a trap. He watched Terrorsaur's reaction. The red mech lowered his blaster, apparently dumbfounded, but he could be playing the part.

"Why should I believe that this isn't just some transparent ploy?" he demanded. Dinobot looked up.

"You know me better than that," he snarled.

"So I thought!" Megatron snatched up the raptor's sword and pointed it back at him. "Then you skipped off to join Optimus Primal and now Terrorsaur."

"Because I thought you led us to the wrong planet and you betrayed me!" Dinobot growled and stood up, the point of his sword never leaving his chest. Megatron snorted.

"Treachery keeps the wits sharp."

"Indeed, and yours are razor sharp." He dared to take a step nearer, meeting the other's reb optics. "Which is why I believe that victory is in your grasp. I would like to share in that victory."

"What?" Terrorsaur screeched. Megatron silenced him with a backhand to the face. Dinobot then proceeded to change his transformation code. Terrorsaur didn't understand. What was Dinobot trying to do? Was he for real? Something here was off and he was going to find out what. Inferno then cut into his thoughts.

"This proves nothing! Anyone can change their codes on a whim," the fire ant stated. Megatron nodded in agreement.

"Inferno has a point," he said, fingering the tip of Dinobot's sword. He again pointed it again at the raptor's chest. "How do I know that your spark is truly Predacon?"

"How about a Predacon challenge," Terrorsaur suggested. This could be his chance. "Him against me... to the death."

"Do you accept, Dinobot?" Perhaps this was not a ploy after all. Megatron smirked.

"I hardly call it a challenge but I accept," he snarled. Terrorsaur narrowed his optics.

-x-

The two mecha circled one another in their respective beast modes. Terrorsaur had a sense of déjà vu, but shook it off. This was no time to think about Starscream. All of the Predacons were gathered around the crater and all just as baffled as the pteranodon. They whispered to each other as they watched and waited to see what would happen.

Dinobot held Terrorsaur's gaze. He could read the confusion and growing sense of betrayal on his face. He understood the red mech's feelings about this situation, but he had to do this. It might be the only way to get to Megatron before he did something extremely damaging, even irreversible.

The rules of the game were simple: survivor wins. Dinobot knew that Terrorsaur was someone to be reckoned with, but he was stronger and more skilled than the pteranodon. So, being the nice warrior he was, he allowed the red mech to go first.

"Your move," he growled.

Terrorsaur screeched in fury and lunged forward, but Dinobot sidestepped and knocked the other off balance with his tail. Terrorsaur scrambled back to his feet and leaped again, this time barreling squarely into the raptor's side. They tumbled in a heap, Dinobot ending up on top. Acting quickly, he caught Terrorsaur's head crest between his teeth, earning a shrill cry from the red mech, and tossed him into a rock face. Terrorsaur lay stunned as Dinobot stalked closer, but Terrorsaur managed to haul himself on all fours.

"Nobody... bites my crest... and gets away with it!" he panted.

"Whoa!" Quickstrike whooped as he watched. He nudged Tundra's side. "Think I could beat the winner, sugar-bot?"

"Call me that again and I'll bite both your heads off," the white wolf growled, flattening her ears irritably. Their attention was turned back to the battle as both Dinobot and Terrorsaur had transformed into robot and both shot their optical lazars. The beams met in the middle and both mechs pushed against each other. Terrorsaur gritted his teeth painfully and took a step forward, forcing Dinobot back a step. Dinobot roared and, with all the energy he could muster, stepped forward and blasted Terrorsaur back. The red mech collapsed to the ground, sufficiently blinded. Almost everyone gasped.

-x-

Starfeather collapsed to her knees with a sharp cry, optics squeezed shut and arms wrapped around her waist, feeling her mate's pain. Bluesprite had been walking with her. She knelt beside her.

"Star? What's wrong?"

It took a few moments for the raven to regain herself. With Bluesprite's help, she stood back up.

"Terrorsaur is fighting and losing," she muttered.

"Megatron?"

"No." Starfeather shook her head. "Dinobot."

"Dinobot!?"

-x-

Dinobot looked down on his fallen opponent. He never intended to kill Terrorsaur and wouldn't do so now. He took a breath.

"It's over," he murmured and turned to walk away. He stopped when his sword was slung into the ground at his feet. He glanced back in Megatron's direction.

"Finish him," the Predacon leader ordered. The raptor looked again at Terrorsaur. He was dragging himself unsteadily to his feet. Energon and optical fluid trickled down his face. Sparking openings bordered by shards of glass were all that was left of his optics. Killing him now would be dishonorable.

"He is an excellent fighter," Dinobot argued. "Though he has wronged you, he may yet be turned back."

Megatron considered this. He doubted that Terrorsaur ever would be beaten back down unless he was killed all together, but there was always a chance. He loved a good gamble. Relenting, he looked to Inferno.

"Get him to a CR tank," he ordered.

"Yes, my Queen," Inferno replied with a gracious bow before moving to hoist Terrorsaur to his feet and guide him into the base. Dinobot smirked.

"I was not aware that you have given yourself a new title," he chided.

"Inferno has some faulty programming, but his loyalty is without question," Megatron explained a little too quickly. He then became more serious. "Now that you are one of us again, there is the matter of the golden discs that I know you stole from me. I assume you still have them?"

"I gave the alien disk to Rhinox and I have not retrieved it," Dinobot replied.

"Unfortunate. And the other one?" Megatron frowned. The raptor paused before answering.

"...I have hidden it from both sides."

"Where exactly?" The Predacon leader eyed him critically.

"Maximal ground. I'll get it for you," Dinobot assured him, then turned to follow the others back into the base. "Tomorrow."

"I'm afraid that won't do." Megatron's words stopped him in his tracks. "I went through a lot of trouble to steal that Maximal relic and I want it back. Now."

Dinobot never intended to give the disc back to Megatron at all. Doing so might prove to be a deadly mistake for everyone. However, if he was going to find the answers he wanted, he would have to take some risks. He only hoped that he didn't have to pay the ultimate price to get them.

-x-

As soon as Bluesprite got as much information as she could out of Starfeather, the hummingbird zipped off to find Dinobot and get the whole story from him. What was he doing fighting Terrorsaur? What was he doing on Pred territory to begin with? She was going to hunt him down, even if she had to break into the Predacon base, and demand if he had gone out of his processor. She did hope that he was alright. She felt like she'd been breaking through his hard exterior and reaching the misunderstood mech on the inside. Maybe she really had been, maybe she hadn't, but she considered Dinobot her friend and Bluesprite never abandoned her friends.

She flew straight to the border, zipping here and there, searching high and low. She was beginning to think that he might have been captured until she heard a rumble. She hid behind a rock formation, but scanned the skies with night vision. She didn't find anything until she finally spotted a strange figure. Her optics widened when she realized what it was.

Megatron had Dinobot!

Bluesprite transformed into robot mode, ready to spring into action, until she saw them land on a hill, the top encircled by natural stone spires. Silently, she climbed the naturally formed stares to get close enough to hear what was being said.

"Ah..." That was Megatron. "With this disc, we shall rewrite the history of our race."

"Or destroy it." That was Dinobot. Her mind was burning with questions. She chanced a peek. Her green optics widened at what she saw

"Oh, I assure you," Megatron said. "All will happen as I have calculated." He then raised his tail weapon, poised to strike. He had no intention of letting Dinobot come back alive and risk the chance of him turning again. Dinobot had his back to him.

"Not that it will be any concern of yours-"

He got no further. Bluesprite barreled into his waist, knocking them both to the ground. "I got him, Dinobot! Get out of here!" she yelled, struggling against the larger mech. Dinobot stared down at her, an unreadable expression on his face. Bluesprite stared back at him then at the Predacon leader below her, confused. Megatron wasn't fighting back.

"Wha-?"

"You are mistaken Bluesprite. It is you that must vacate the premises." Dinobot finally spoke. He then fired his optical lasers, hitting her square in the chest. She collided against a stone, dazed and hurt physically and emotionally. She gasped in pain. What was Dinobot doing? Why had he shot her? Megatron grinned as he stood up.

"Welcome home, Dinobot," he praised. Then, turning to the fallen femme, he charged his tail weapon.

"Bluesprite might have backup," the raptor advised, stepping forward. "We should go." He hadn't intended anyone to die for his purpose, especially not the energetic Bluesprite. Though he found her just as annoying, if not more so, than Rattrap on a good day, he tolerated her company. She was over enthusiastic, but willing to be taught. She had learned much from him and, in turn, he had learned a little bit from her. He didn't want her to die.

"Yes," Megatron seemed to purr. "After you exterminate this pest."

"She is defeated," Dinobot insisted. "It is unnecessary."

"Call it a final test of loyalty." Megatron narrowed an optic suspiciously. He wanted to make sure that Dinobot had no more ties with the Maximals or Terrorsaur's rebellion. If he killed Bluesprite, it would prove his loyalty. Dinobot's shoulders stiffened. He didn't want to do this, but... he very well may have to. He drew his sword and came forward. Megatron stepped back. Dinobot pointed the tip of his sword at her neck. Bluesprite looked up at him, sparkbroken. He could see it in her optics. What she said next cut him deeply for a reason he couldn't even begin to comprehend.

"I thought we were friends... Aren't we?" She was breathless, but her voice didn't waver. Dinobot paused, now poised to strike. His red optics were locked with her green ones. She was so innocent. He couldn't make himself thrust his blade and end it. It would be dishonorable.

Bluesprite got it now. Dinobot had thrown his lot back in with Megatron. And she happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was going to kill her to prove he was loyal to Megatron now. She readied herself for the final blow.

But it never came. Gradually, the sword dropped to his side. Megatron was most displeased. He moved to strike, but Dinobot whirled around and met him. They glared at each other, baring their teeth like feral animals.

"Your ambition has made you insane, Megatron," Dinobot growled. "You will destroy both Maximal and Predacon and all who came before!"

"Then return to your Maximals if they will suffer a traitor like you in their midst," Megatron shot back, flinging their weapons apart. Quickly, he transformed into beast mode and took flight. He had what he wanted. He didn't need Dinobot. He didn't need anyone. Dinobot and Bluesprite were left alone. He helped her to her feet but said nothing, not even meeting her gaze. She stared at him, completely baffled.

"I don't get it," she murmured. "First, you're an outcast of the Predacons... and then you go crawling back to Megatron, only to leave him again?"

He took the verbal abuse. He knew he deserved it.

"How could you? Your honor-"

Here was where he drew the line. He faced her fully.

"My honor is not what Maximals consider honor," he said forcefully. "It is Predacon honor. No matter how much you wish to forget this fact, I am a Predacon. You couldn't possibly understand." With that, he turned to leave. Bluesprite kept her sights on him.

"But I want to," she said. He stopped, though didn't turn around. Convinced she had his attention, she continued. "I was born a Predacon with Terrorsaur, but I was raised as a Maximal after my parents were killed... I never could figure out just how I fit in with the Maximals until I finally figured out that I just had to let myself fit in."

Dinobot remained still, listening. He still didn't turn around.

"I realized that the Maximals accepted me for who I was, not what I was." Bluesprite limped slightly as she came toward him. "I've tried to help you see that, but... you won't let me in. You don't let anybody in."

He could feel her close behind him. So close... too close. He almost flinched when she touched his shoulder.

"Don't push me away," she pleaded. "I want to be your friend... as a Predacon and a Maximal."

After what seemed like hours, he finally turned toward her. The single moon made her pale face glow. She looked so much like Terrorsaur yet so different. They were both headstrong and foolish. However, they were both also learning. And teaching, whether they meant to or not. Bluesprite was right. Dinobot pushed everyone away because he thought that they could never understand his plight. He took a deep breath.

"I... have misjudged you, Bluesprite." Still, his expression was unreadable, but his optics reflected something that she couldn't quite read. "Can you forgive me?"

After a moment, Bluesprite smiled. Not like she usually did, goofy and carefree. She smiled genuinely, from one friend to another.

"Yup," she replied. Her smile did turn into a silly one when Dinobot also allowed a small smile to crease his features. Unable to control herself, Bluesprite flung her arms around him, pressing her face into the crook of his neck. She flinched at the stab of pain from her burnt chest, but didn't care otherwise. Dinobot is, and still was, her friend.

Her action caught him by surprise. His first impulse was to shove her away and snap at her indignantly but, for more reasons that he couldn't possibly explain, he hesitated then let her stay. He soon relaxed and, tentatively, returned the hug. Though he wasn't used to such contact, he found that he tolerated… No, he liked it.

They stayed that way for a very long time before finally returning back to base. Neither spoke of anything to anyone concerning that night.

-x-

Terrorsaur paced the clearing, almost visibly fuming. In contrast, Dinobot stood tall and emotionless. They had met by chance while on scouting patrols and Terrorsaur was giving him a piece of his mind.

"Were you out of your fraggin' mind?" the red mech demanded. "You could've killed me! And you could've screwed up our chance to get to Megatron!"

Dinobot took the abuse. He had known full well what he was doing at the time was dangerous and risky, but he had need answers.

"I do not have to explain myself to you," he growled. Terrorsaur stopped and whirled around to face him, repaired optics blazing.

"News flash! Technically, I'm your leader so yes, technically, you do."

A forceful snarl from the raptor made him back off. He grudgingly relented.

"Fine, keep your secrets. It's not like you ever told me anything anyway." With that, he transformed into beast mode and, with an angry screech, took off for the skies. Dinobot snorted and he too shifted to beast mode.

"You're right, I never tell you anything." He began walking again. "One day, you'll understand. One day..."

-x-

Megatron was greatly disturbed by Dinobot's treachery. He wanted to whack his head against a wall. He should've seen a stunt like that coming. He knew that he couldn't trust anyone here on this lonely planet.

However, some good had come from this latest fiasco. Megatron had the disc he had stolen again and he was having a breakthrough in deciphering it. If all went according to plan, the Decepticons and Predacons would have their rightful place on Cybertron, free from Autobot and Maximal rule.