Dedicated to: Talon and Snowlily, for helping me gather up my life. Thank you.



Remembrance

by: Xavier (jwhelan@utk.edu)



Smoke. Screams. Pain. Memories. A sliver and green transformer sits up shakily. His legs are crushed beneath a fallen beam, and he cries out in pain when he tries to move them. He looks around the smoke-filled room and strains his optics to make out the hazy shapes. An ear-piercing scream splits the heavy air as a female 'bot runs frantically into the room, a terrified look on her face.



She looks at the boy and kneels down beside him, "Taskin, please, please help me! He's trying to kill me!"



Taskin looks at the woman and attempts to rise again, only to fall back in pain. "Sorry," he wheezes out, "can't... get up."



She is about to help, but is stopped by a loud crash. Her head darts up and she screams. She rises and runs around a corner, followed quickly by a huge blue and white blur. Taskin winces at her piercing death-cry.



Her attacker, a huge blue and white 'bot with yellow optics, rounds the corner slowly. His malevolent gaze sweeps the dim room and settles on the crippled form of the young 'bot. The murderer stalks slowly up to Taskin and leans in close. Taskin can smell the female's blood on him, surrounding him like a cloak.



"Hehe... Looks like one got away." laughs the huge 'bot.



Taskin simply stares at him and scowls, his resolve hardening. Then he sees a stylized black viper insignia on the 'bot's broad shoulder. His face goes slack as he gulps, "You... you're a D-D-D-Draconian, aren't you?"



The blue and white 'bot looks at him and smiles sadistically, pointed teeth showing, "Ooooo, got it in one!" He brings his right hand up under the boy's nose. Tasking stares at the claw-studded fingers and shudders, they're still slick with the female's blood. The Draconian slowly licks one of the finger clean, and sick smile plastered on his face. He proffers the remaining fingers to Taskin, "Your turn."



Taskin turns his head away and shuts his eyes tight, refusing to look at the grizzly sight.



"Not hungry, huh?" replies the sick 'bot, "Oh, well. I'll be feasting on your's all too soon!"



Tasking looks up in fright and brings his arms over his head, ready to fight for his life. When no attack comes, he moves his hands and sees a startling sight. A small red and yellow 'bot is dueling with the Draconian with a huge two-handed sword. They fight for a few moments and then the stranger cuts the larger 'bot deeply in the side. The wounded warrior turns tail and runs, bleeding heavily from the wound. The stranger sheathes his sword and walks over to Taskin. He lifts the beams off of the youngster's legs and lifts him off of the ground. Taskin looks at the 'bot and recognition flashes over his face.



"You... you're from the bar." the boy blurts out.



The stranger smiles, "That'd be me. I was just passin' through. Never thought that those terrorists'd pick this mining post for a raid."



"Yeah." the youth manages weakly, his wounds taking their toll, "Klackdor VIII ain't exactly a usual target for terrorists."



The boy's rescuer looks thoughtful of a second and then frowns, "I bet that's exactly what they were counting on." He looks at the boy in his arms and smiles warmly, "By the way, my name's Rifter, what's your's?"



* * *



I start awake with a cry, drawing my sword out of subspace. Nothing, just another dream. I close my eyes and sit up. Why? Why am I reliving it now? When all is on the line? I stand and hold my sword in both hands, gazing at the blade. Its perfection, its cold beauty, its destructive power... I drink all of this in with my senses like an elixir. I sigh and sheath the blade.



"Please, guide me my teacher." I pray to the sword, "I need it now more than ever." Having finished my morning ritual, I walk toward the entrance to my cave and look out. Ah, spring. I breath in the heady scent of budding flowers and pine. I shift into beast mode and buzz my wings, rising off of the ground.



I fly toward the opening, but am stopped by a pain. I crumple to the ground, a burning sensation coming from inside my subspace pocket. I transform and rip out my sword, which burns my hands.



"Argghh!" I scream as I throw the blade away. The six foot blade is glowing an eery, cold blue. I walk tentatively over to it and stop, afraid to touch it. Then a deafening shriek rends the air and a blue light flares around the sword. I cover my eyes for a moment and then look up, and almost faint.



Standing, or rather floating, over the sword is a bluish, glowing figure. My mouth drops in surprise when I see the figure's face.



"R-Rifter?"



* * *



"Rhinox, how's that transwarp cell holding up?"



"Just fine Optimus!" yells the huge transformer back at his commander.



The room of the Darkseid glows hauntingly, illuminated by the huge pulsating portal in the middle. Rhinox is manning a computer terminal and Optimus and Dinobot are standing in front of it. They are wearing strange vests that have wires running to special helmets they're wearing.



Dinobot looks at Optimus, "Tell me again how this works?"



Optimus finishes setting a dial on his vest and turns to Dinobot, "Alright Dinobot, I'll explain it again." He points to a array of dials and buttons, and a small screen, "This set of dials sets your destination, this set of buttons sets your time, and the screen is for a readout of how you're doing in the terms of a time storm." He looks at Dinobot's confused face and smiles half-heartedly, "Well, that's what they're SUPPOSED to do, in theory anyway."



Dinobot throws his arms up in the air, "Oh, WONDERFUL! They're SUPPOSED to work!"



"Hey," cuts in Rhinox, "It's the best I could do on such short notice and limited resources!"



"We'd better shove off," interrupts Optimus, "Megatron will wonder what we're up to."



Dinobot snarls and curls his hand into a fist, "I HATE bowing down to HIM!"



Optimus begins walking toward the portal, "We had to, Dinobot. If we wanted to survive long enough to help our friends."



Dinobot looks down and follows Optimus to the portal, "I know, but that doesn't mean that I have to like it!"



Optimus turns back to Rhinox, "Keep the fort here, and make sure that this portal stays open!" He plunges head-first into the waving energy and disappears.



Dinobot turns to the rhino and nods his head. He places the helmet on his head and sets the dial on his chest to exactly one month ago. He follows Optimus into the swirling mass and is gone.



"Primus speed, friends." mutters Rhinox as he begins barricading the door with debris.



* * *



I stare at the apparition in front of me and my beast mode begins to sweat, "What...? How...?"



The Rifter-spirit looks up at me and its gaze turns my mech fluid to ice. "Taskin..." it moans in a hollow voice.



"Who, who are you?" I ask, my muscles turning to jelly. All my years of combat training and experience desert me as I am confronted by this horror.



"Do you not know me?" it asks softly, "The one who taught you to fight, and to survive?"



"But, you..." I gape in denial, not wanting to believe. "You... you're dead!"



The specter smiles humorlessly, "Is it really that obvious?"



"No," I return, "I mean that you can't be here, because you were killed!"



"But I am here, am I not?" it asks.



"I... I..." I stop and grab my head, pain filling my mind. "NO!" I scream, "You will not force me to believe! It did not happen like that!"



The ghost reaches out a hand and lifts me off of the ground with an invisible force, my body going slack, "You WILL face the truth! You are stronger than that!"



I stare into the being's eyes and go pale with fright. Those eyes! It's... it has to be him! He's the only one who can paralyze me with a look!



"How?"



"Ah, I see that you admit it. Good." He sets me down and turns his back to me, still floating over the sword. "I have much to tell you, Taskin."



"I go by Xavier now." I reply coolly, testing him.



I hear him chuckle, "You used to hate it when I called you by your code-name."



Pass. I smile, "So, you really ARE Rifter!"



He turns around and smirks, "Yes I am."



I look at him, my heart hoping that this is all a dream, "So that means..."



He grows grave, "You died as well."



My heart drops. "And that means, I'm..."



"A clone." the figure finishes for me.



* * *



Dinobot screams in pain as he contacts with the energy of the portal. His world goes black as his optics short out, and he hits something hard. He stands as his sight returns, and gapes at the scene before him.



Thousands of 'bots, all struggling to survive, all fighting. He notices two distinct sides, Maximal, and Predacon. This is definitely NOT one month ago!



"No..." mutters the raptor in denial as he recognizes the terrain. He hurriedly scans the combatants from his perch above the field of battle on a ridge. He scans the Predacon ranks and finds what he is searching for.



"This cannot be happening!" he screams, holding his head in pain, "The vest must be malfunctioning!" He looks frantically around for Optimus, and sees that the Maximal leader is nowhere to be found. He looks back to the battlefield.



His eyes lock onto a tall 'bot in the middle of the field, fighting with a strangely familiar sword and a laser rifle. He is tearing a path through the Maximal ranks, a small 'bot fighting at his side.



"Shadowstorm..." he mutters quietly. He is caught in a trance as familiar events unfold before him.



The tall 'bot has a familiar blue face, angular nose, pointed teeth, and red optics. He slashes a small Maximal in half as he blows a hole in the forehead of another with the rifle. The small, black 'bot at his side smiles as she runs a Maximal through with he rapier. She dodges a rifle blast and bumps into the larger 'bot's thigh, falling to her hands knees. The large 'bot turns and shields her body with his as a Maximal attempts to pick her off. He shrugs off the blasts and beheads the soldier. The femme picks herself up and addresses the tall one angrily, but he silences her with a passionate kiss. She melts in his arms and expertly shoots a Maximal who is sneaking up behind them. They break off and begin fighting back to back.



"No..." whispers Dinobot, "turn around! She can't take the next one on her own!"



Shadowstorm engages a huge Maximal with the crest of an elite guard. She breaks off from the tall 'bot's back, and rushes her opponent. He parries her sword stroke and expertly impales her on his own. She gasps in surprise and clutches at the blade berried in her chest, not believing that it is there. She slumps to the ground with a surprised look on her face, and her spark joins the hundreds of others traveling to the Matrix on this blood-filled day.



Dinobot watches the only love of his life fade away before him a second time, not able to do a thing to save her. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" he screams in unison with the tall 'bot as his past self rips the Maximal apart with his bare hands. Two Dinobots from two different times weep together as another glowing portal opens up on the rise next to the Dinobot wearing the vest...



* * *



"What the slag?!?!?" exclaims Optimus as takes in his surroundings, "This can't be right!" He looks hurriedly around for Dinobot, and doesn't see the former Predacon anywhere. He only sees a dark alley, with brick buildings rising up on either side.



"Great, just great!" snarls the gorilla, "I was hoping that we would get just a little farther!" He is about to hit a small red button on the front of his vest when a familiar voice reaches his ears.



"But..."



"NO!" yells a stern voice, "You cannot go visit the Ark's landing site!"



"But the tours are still going on!"



"I said no, and I mean NO!"



"Aw, you're no fun Stratusfire!" whines a high-pitched voice.



"STRATUSFIRE?" mutters Optimus in alarm. He switches to beast mode, moves to the edge of the alley, and peers out. He sees a pair of small 'bots walking down the street, one is red and silver, the other is black and gold. The black and red 'bot is hoping along the side of the other, a female.



Stratusfire looks down at her younger brother and smiles warmly, "Shut up Tank."



"Ooooooo!" wails the small 'bot in mock surprise, "She said 'shut up'!" He begins running around, a comical expression painted on his young face.



Stratusfire laughs at Tank's antics and grabs her brother as he runs by, "I'm glad mom and dad let me take you here, to Earth."





"Yeah!" agrees Tank eagerly, "I like it here!" The siblings laugh together as they walk down the street.



"Yes, with the conflict between the Maximals and Pedacons dying down, travel is much safer." agrees the femme.



Tank runs ahead , laughing something about running away to join the army. Stratusfire runs after him, and they rush past Optimus's hiding place. The transmetal gorilla slides farther into the shadows and then pokes his head out to watch them.



"Earth..." whispers the Maximal to himself, "Tank... Stratusfire... All of these things link to my past..." Optimus rushes out of the alley, a warning ready on his lips. But he is too late.



Standing in the middle of the street are two powerful 'bots with Predacon symbols on their shoulders. One is perched on the still body of Stratusfire, the other is holding the kicking and screaming form of Tank. The first rips a hand away, throwing some kind of vital tubing into the air. Optimus hears Stratusfire's scream of pain and he quickly rushes into action.



He transforms into robot mode and pulls out his fusion cannon, firing it into the air. The two attackers look up in surprise. The one over Stratusfire pulls out a knife and quickly slices the blade across the femme's throat, while the other pulls a rusty sword out of his subspace pocket.



"STRATUSFIRE! NOOO!" screams Optimus as he fires his cannon at the knife-wielding 'bot. The blast tears the hapless Preadcon in half, showering mech fluid all over the street. His partner drops Tank and turns to run, only to be gunned down from behind by Optimus. His lifeless body hits the street as the Maximal leader rushes over to the still form fo Stratusfire.



"No..." he cries quietly as he kneels beside his sisters body. "I knew it was coming, but I still couldn't stop it."





"Mister?" venture's a frightened voice from behind him. Optimus turns to look his past self in the eyes.



"She's dead." he states simply, tears welling up in his eyes.



"What?" cries the youngster, "But... I... why?"



"I don't know." replies the gorilla as he hugs the boy close, "After all these years, I still don't know."



Tank sobs into Optimus's shoulder as he tries to handle his sister's death. Optimus is about to ask the boy a question, when a glowing portal opens up beside him.



He disentangles the boy from him and stands up. "Wha... where are you going?" asks Tank.



"I must depart." replies Optimus. When the boy begins to protest, he hands him a small holocube, "When ever you need reassurance, just look at this."



The boy activates the holocube and sees a picture of Stratusfire's face, a smile on her lips. The boy looks up, only to see the stranger fade into the glowing portal in a flash of light.



~Good-bye, Tank.~ thinks Optimus as he slides into the portal. He palms a small holocube, edges rounded by time. A holocube that had been given to him by a mysterious stranger, on the night of his sister's death.



* * *



*WHAM!*



"OW!" screams Bane in protest, "Don't hit me!"



"Well," snarls Bazil, "next time pay attention and I won't have to!"



Bane grumbles for a moment then returns his attention to his father. Bazil had been explaining the exact nature of the anomaly he had detected in the Predacon base. "It seems to be a temporal space anomaly." states the fox.



"Which means...?" asks his son.



"A time portal." he replies.



"A WHAT?" yells Bane.



"You heard me, a time portal. The Maximals are obviously going to try and reverse our destruction of the Axalon."



"Yeah, we destroyed their base, along with half of the Maxi crew!" snickers Bane.



Bazil ignores his son and continues, "We are going to follow them."



"Yeah," continues Bane, "We're gonna... Huh?"



Bazil wacks the wolf on the back of the head, "We're going to follow them and stop them from changing the past!"



Bane looks at his father for a moment, murder glinting in his yellow eyes. "Yes, sir." he growls and stalks away to get ready.



Bazil sighs and brings his wrist to his face, "Bazil to Rampage and Flare, come in."



"I am here Master," replies the dragon, "and the crab is with me."



Bazil smirks under his faceplate, "Alright, you two, I think it's time we payed the Preds a visit."



* * *



I watch the large form of Rhinox continue working at a large table, like he has been doing for the past hour. I want to kill him, but I am also intrigued as to what the Maximals were doing when they went through the portal. I shift around slightly on my perch in the rafters of the room. I decide on a course of action and slide my sword out of its sheath.



~Don't.~ echos the ghosts voice in my head.



~Oh? And why not?~ I shoot back.



~Because Taskin, you are better than that.~ it replies.



"I am not Taskin!" I scream out loud and launch myself from the rafters. Rhinox looks up just in time to be cut down by my blade. His body falls to the ground as the spirit drains his spark energy.



I look up, a wild look in my eyes. I am not Taskin! I am not but a clone! I grab my head and sink to my knees. I am not who I am? How? But I have all of his memories! But they're not mine! NOT MINE! I HAVE no past! I am NOTHING!



"AAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!" I swing my sword in a mighty forehand and cleave the steel table in half. "I am not anything! I am a clone! A copy!"



~Stop.~ pleads the spirit.



"NO! I will not stop! Hehehehehehehehahahahahahahahahaha!" my slim grip on sanity finally lets go and I fly into the abyss. "I am not what I am? Or is that I am what I am not? Hmmmm..." I pull the sword up to my face and stare into the blade, "Or do you know what the hell I'm talking about?"



The blade glows brightly for a moment and I am suddenly enveloped in memories. I see myself and Rifter fighting a large number of Maximal soldiers.



"We've gotten ourselves into a stick wicket this time, haven't we Xavier?" exclaims Rifter with a smile as he decapitates a Maximal with a two-handed sword.



"That we have!" my former self replies while using a pair of two-sided spears to impale a Maximal.



Rifter and I fight long and hard for a while longer, before we are finally take down by the scores of Maximals. They swarm all over us and hack Rifter's body to pieces.



"NOOOOOOOO!!!" I cry as one of them stabs me in the chest with a sword. I gasp and double up, my life-blood spilling all over the street. I look up and see a scientist-like 'bot walking toward me with a syringe. He had the symbol of the Tripedicus council on his shoulder.



I burst back into the present. I stare at my hands. I'm a clone, yes. I've accepted that. But I am Xavier! I have his memories, his skill, his personality, everything. I straighten with renewed determination. I have simply been given a second chance. Another life with which to achieve my goal. I smile. And another chance to kill that bastard that cloned me!



I pull the sword up and look at the blade, "This was your weapon wasn't it?



"Yes." the spirit replies.



I sheath my sword and look at the portal. A time portal? How? I walk toward it. What ever it is, the Maximals are going to use it for their own evil goals, and I must stop them!



* * *



Megatron is jerked from his slumber as the Darkside shakes violently. "What in Smelter's name?" he exclaims as he is thrown to the ground.



"It's that big lizard and the crab-cakes Boss!" yells Quickstrike from the scanner, "They's gone and attacked the base!"



"Well," snarls the T-Rex, "Send out the troops to repel them!"



"You got it Boss!" salutes the fuzor.



* * *



Rampage laughs maniacally as he blows yet another hole in the side of the Predacon base. His mirth is cut short however, when he is blown back a step by a cybervenom bolt. He looks up to see Black Arachnia running towards him, her blaster firing. The insane crab leaps to one side and fires three shots at the widow, hitting her with each. Rampage gets to his feet in time to get hit in the chest with her smoking head. He reloads his launcher and lets out a battle cry that is all his own, "AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGUUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!"



Flare looks up from Inferno's body to see the crab dismember the she-spider. The energon dragon smiles and lets Waspinator's stinger bolts bounce off of his scales. He jerks his head up and spews a cloud of radiation at the wasp, putting him in stasis lock. The remaining Preds look at each other and run back to the base, calling for the auto guns to be brought online.



Rampage begins to give chase but Flare stops him with a shout, "Stop! We have done our job! Return to the predetermined rendevous point!" The crab grumbles but follows the dragon as he takes to the air.



* * *



"I don't believe it!" exclaims Bazil as he gazes at the portal. He and Bane had used the distraction caused by Flare and Rampage's attack to sneak into the base, and into the room with the portal. The fox merc had never thought that the Maximals could ever have recreated the complicated scientific instrument. He inspected the wiring and components of the machine and came upon a startling discovery.





"Those FOOLS!" exclaims the merc with glee.



"What? What did I do now?" yells Bane as he looks up from poking Rhinox's still body with his claws.



"Not you, you idiot! The Maximals!" replies Bazil.



"Oh, well... what did THEY do?" Bane asks.



Bazil turns to his son, a twisted smile playing out under his faceplate, "Well, while the Maximals were able to recreate the portal, they made a serious clerical error in the dimensional relay system!"



Bane just stares at his father with a blank look on his face.



Bazil rolls his good eye and sighs, "What that means is that the portal doesn't take directions like they intended!"



Stare.



"AARRGGHH!!!" screams the merc, "Don't you know anything?" When Bane doesn't answer, Bazil continues, "What I mean, is that the Maximals aren't going where they want! The machine is using their memories as relay points to determine their destinations!"



An understanding look comes on in Bane's eyes, "Oh! So you mean that they are going to their own pasts?"



"Yes."



"Well," Bane gets a nervous look, "uh... won't it send us to our past?"



Bazil shakes his head, "No, it only uses the first few that enter to dictate the portal destinations. All we have to do is follow the trail."



Bane grins sadistically and extends his claws, "So you mean that we're huntin' them?"



Bazil smiles and pulls out his acid blaster, "To put it simply for you, yup."



* * *



Rhinox's optics flutter online and he groans, the wound on his chest throbbing terribly. ~Why am I not dead?~ he thinks to himself.



~Because I have a job for you my son.~ replies an echoing voice in the rhino's head.



~What? Wh-who are you?~ he asks frantically.



~Do not fear my son, I am not an enemy.~ soothes the voice.



The strange thing, is that against his better judgement, Rhinox feels at ease, and safe. ~A-a-are y-you... HIM?~ asks the still slightly wonderstruck Maximal.



~Yes.~



Rhinox's spark flutters and he feels his faith returning. Ever since the Axalon had been destroyed, the once extremely religious rhino had almost stopped believing. He took a deep breath and hoped for the best, ~What do you wish of me, my Lord Primus?~



* * *



The two dark hunters drop silently into the dark alley, weapons drawn.



"Where in the Pitt are we?" whispers Bane to his father.



Bazil's single eye sweeps the deserted street, and he starts, his rapier falling from his nerveless grasp. The energon blade strikes the metallic ground of the alley with a clatter.



"What? What is it?" asks Bane hurriedly as his father stands there, staring. He looks past the shorter 'bot, to see another small 'bot walking down the street, carrying a brief case. Bane smirks at Bazil, "Hey, does that guy look familiar to you?"



Bazil simply stares, his eye filled with the one emotion that Bane would have never thought to see there, fear. Or, more appropriately, terror.



Suddenly, Bane gasps, fear filling his face as well, "Is that...?"



The small 'bot, with sea green optics, a helicopter for a vehicle mode, and the badge of a diplomat, continues along his way down the street. The two mercs walk out into the street, following him, not truly willing themselves, but being called by some demonic siren. They tail him instinctually, keeping to the shadows, their eyes locked on him the entire time.



He reaches a strikingly familiar house, and grows cautious, the smell of mech blood in the air. He pulls out a hold-out blaster and peeks into the window, only to slump back down a moment later and sit there, his face slack.



"No... not again..." whispers Bazil, falling to his knees, clutching his head, "No..."



Bane looks on at the small 'bot, transfixed as he steals silently into the darkened house. He walks up to the window, and gazes in, seeing something that has haunted his dreams for years.



The small 'bot suddenly burst around a corner and takes a large 'bot out with a single shot to the head, felling him like an ancient oak. He stares on is horror, watching his father being transformed right before his eyes, from a caring man, into a blood-thirsty monster.



Bane turns away as the battle rages on, having seen enough. He walks over to his cowering father, and glares down at him, "Let's go." The transmetal fox nods weakly and stumbles after his partner toward the portal. The arrive at the swirling mass, and step through, Bane throwing one last glance at his former life.



* * *



Dinobot awakes from his second drop more quickly, staggering to his feet and looking around. Crumbled buildings and rusting floors surround him, emanating a strange sense of "home." A few meters away, is the still form of a large blue and silver gorilla.



"Optimus?" groans the raptor weakly while stumbling over to his fallen comrade.



* * *



Optimus comes into the world of the living, his vision a swirling mass of color, the browns and blues running together. Browns and blues? Why did the world suddenly consist of only brown and blue?



He suddenly jerks and arm up and strikes something solid, his vision coming into an uneasy focus, revealing Dinobot.



"D-Dinobot?" whispers the downed leader.



"Yes." grunts the warrior, rubbing his face. "Normally one does not strike one's comrades... especially if they are meaning only aid."



"Oh come now, did it hurt that much?" chuckles Optimus while raising himself to an elbow.



The raptor's face breaks into a rare grin and he proffers a hand and pulls his commander to his feet.



Optimus smiles back and then his face grows grave, "Where have we landed this time?"



Dinobot looks around and shrugs, "I have not had time to scout the area as of yet, would you like...?"



"No, that's alright." cuts in Optimus, "We'll go out together."



Dinobot nods and looks into Optimus's eyes, and sees a look much like his own. They have both suffered much from their past, and this re-enactment has driven it home.



Optimus breaks the strange eye contact and clears his throat, "Well, let's move out." Dinobot nods in agreement and transforms to beast mode, following his leader over a hill of rubble.



* * *



I watch the two Maximals traverse the deserted streets of past Cybertron with intense interest. They are after some greater piece of the puzzle, and I follow them cautiously, my presence still a mystery to them. I smile and almost laugh as they near the fate of our time... and the past of it as well.



* * *



A small black fox and a wolf of great size slip into an alley and flatten themselves against the wall to escape detection.



"Shit! How are we supposed to get to the ship now?" curses Bane as the squad of Maximal security runs past with weapons out.



Bazil growls under his faceplate, motioning to his son. "I want you to climb this building, and ambush the Maximals. There are only five, can you take them out without any noise?"



Bane extends the blue claws on his fingertips and smiles, "Only five? Would you like me to do it without my hands?" Bazil's eye narrows at the joke and he points to the roof. Bane grumbles something about totalitarian fathers and climbs the wall, and surmounts the roof.



Bazil shakes his head after his son's departure and pulls out his rapier and steals quickly across the dark street, and up to the high, barbed-wire fence surrounding the space port. He smiles evilly and cuts a hole in the obstruction easily with his blade, stepping in and quickly killing the guard inside with a stab to the base of the skull. His small frame is seen darting over to a somewhat old exploration ship and steal quietly inside. The name Axalon is emblazoned proudly on the side.



* * *



"You say you are Optimus Primal, eh?" asks the guard at the gate to the Cybertronian Spaceport.



"That's right." nods the transmetal gorilla, "I'm here to check my ship before the expedition."



"Can I see some identification please?" responds the guard.



Optimus nods and digs in his subspace pocket, thanking Primus that he keeps almost everything and pulls out his old Captian's ID. He hands the guard the worn and somewhat bloody ID. He takes it and looks over it critically, then looks back at Optimus's face, then looks back.



"Umm... I'm going to need to scan you 'Optimus'." comments the guard skeptically and holds up a small device. Optimus allows him to take a code sample from his CPU to confirm it's him. "Well," says the guard after he returns to the gate, "they're a little different, but it's you. How long ago did you get these readings taken?"



"About, a solarcycle ago." lies the Maximal leader while taking the ID back. In actuality, he had taken the test before he had left on the Axalon for Earth, over three solarcycles ago. He walks past the guard at the gate, and sighs in relief when no one else stops him. Dinobot is waiting outside, because he would never be able to get past security under the guise of a Maximal. They figured out that they were on Cybertron just a few hours before the Axalon was scheduled to take off for it's exploration mission. Optimus knows that Bazil and Bane are on the ship as protoforms, and intends to do something that will forever change time. Though it is against his very spark to kill, Optimus is willing to make an exception in Bazil's case. He is going to go in there and turn off Bazil's life support on the pod. Causing the merc to die shortly after take off.



The gorilla reaches the Axalon after a few nanoclicks and smiles slightly, running his hand down the proud stern as he walks along side of it. ~She's just as beautiful as I remember.~ thinks the Maximal as he gazes at his ship. He reaches the boarding ramp, and his spark sinks when he see's it's open.



~Slag!~ he thinks to himself, ~The last thing I need is some innocent to be in there! I'll have to get them out somehow.~ He walks up the ramp and speaks loudly, "Hello? Is anyone in here? I'm Optimus Primal, Captain of this ship. Please come out."



Optimus's spark freezes when he hears the cold voice from behind him, and sees the single sea-green optic reflected in a bulkhead, "Hello, Captain."



* * *



Bane smiles and leaps at another of the guards, driving his clawed hand deep into his abdomen. He wrenches his hand out and crushes the weakly pulsing spark with a smirk.



"Four down.... One to go." he laughs sadistically and turns to the last of the patrol. The small female is crouched down in the corner of the alley, her blaster rifle scattered across the ground in may pieces.



Bane walks up and grabs the femme by the throat and lifts her to his eye level, thirteen feet off the ground. He smiles sickly and stares into her soft blue optics with his mad yellow ones and whispers to her, "Scream for me..."



* * *



Bazil's head jerks up as a piercing female scream rends the still night air. "Slag! That IDIOT!" he curses and lets Optimus's sparkless body slump to the deck of the ship, his mutilated face and limbs still twitching in their death throes. "I'm going to rip his spark out if he get's us caught!"



He dashes out of the ship and looks around quickly before dashing back inside the ship and continuing his dark task. He flips off the life support of yet another stasis pod and moves on to the next, bypassing two. One with a short protoform, and one with a gigantic protoform, both with the image of a small stylized viper under the left side.



* * *



I see this violent and bloody game of temporal chess unfold in front of me, smiling at my opponents' follies. They are all so convinced that they are in control, especially Bazil. He believes himself to be a god. I smile and chuckle to myself. I will show him his mistake soon enough.



* * *



Bane pokes his head out of the blood-smeared alley after he is done with the last guard. She cried and screamed as he ravaged her and then ripped out her spark. He laughs to himself and steals silently down the street toward the spaceport, skipping almost like a child, humming a few snatches of an old Cybertronian song.



He nears the gate and sees the guard leaning against the guardhouse, dozing.



~Fool.~ thinks Bane as he leaps over the high fence and lands next to the guard with a resounding BOOM.



"What the sla- urk!" exclaims the guard as he starts awake as is immediately impaled on Bane's claw. The wolf throws the still-thrashing body down in a puddle of his own mech fluid, and bounds on, dealing with every guard as he comes to them. He sprints across the dark tarmac and skids to a halt in front of the Axalon, and pears inside the open hatch and is greeted with the point of Bazil's rapier. Bane sneers and walks past his father and into the ship, eyeing the corpse of Optimus Primal as he steps past.



"Finally got the ol' monkey, huh?" comments the huge merc as he looks at the cargo hold full of now dying protoforms.



Bazil nods and actually grins behind his faceplate, "I sure did... I sure did."



Bane smiles and motions to the stasis pods, "Well... looks like we win."



"I don't think so."



They both spin around.



* * *



I confront them both at the same time, a tactic Rifter would have told me was ludicrous. I smile as my sword swings freely in my hands, my own death and the death of my religion before me. After all, Rifter and I were the last of a dying religion that worshiped the Prime Spirit of Fire. That is why they hunted us so, they feared us. We meant no harm, but they had to wipe us out. I am the last, and I will die a Templar's death.



My reverie is broken by the howling and charging form of Bane, Bazil's son. He lunges at me with his claws, striking horizontally at my stomach. I jump back slightly and feel the tips barely scrape across my stomach, drawing three little rivulets of blood. I don't even notice the flesh wound and strike back with a forehand of my own. The giant throws his body to the ground with astounding speed, avoiding my attack and counterattacking with a kick. I catch his foot with my free hand, and twist it sharply, rewarding myself with a snapping bone and broken flesh. He winces and pulls away, amazingly standing again, as if not noticing the pain... or something else. I gape as his foot reforms in front of my eyes, garnishing a laugh from Bazil at his vantage point a few meters away. Bane tests the new foot out and then grins that mad smile of his, and leaps at me again.



* * *



Dinobot fidgets nervously in the alley Optimus had left him in. He had seen his leader enter the spaceport, but not come out again. Despite his warrior nature, he was worried. Not only for his safty, as this much of a delay had to mean that something went wrong, but for his commander... and his friend. Optimus had always been there for him. Always the kind word, or the encouraging look, or the... the ANYTHING! The warmhearted Maximal, though Dinobot denounced him for such, is one of the only really positive things in Dinobot's life. He is stable and dependable, and was actually doing a darn good job of winning the Beast Wars... until Bazil had come along. That damn fox had ruined everything, and killed almost all of the Maximals.



Dinobot snarls at the memory of his anguish at losing everything, and everyone he cared about. Though he portrays a stone cold exterior, he is actually a rather caring person, once one earns his trust, and almost all of the Maximals had. They were good soldiers, and even some of them... good friends. A memory of Rattrap flashes across the raptor's mind, and he bites back a sob and hardens his features.



~I will get that damn fox for all he had done.~ vows the raptor as he leaves the alley, convinced something has gone terribly wrong, and then knows so when he sees the dead gate guard.



* * *



I stagger back for a third time, the huge form of Bane looming over me, my own sword in his grasp.



"Hehehehehehe..." he laughs, "It seems that I'll beat you with your own toy!"



His incessant grinning stops as I kick my foot out and catch his groin, causing him to drop my sword so I can grab it. I dance to my feet and spin around as he falls to a knee, already recovering from the blow, and lash out with my sword. His still grinning head arcs away with a trail of mech blood following it and bounces off of a wall to fall rolling at my feet. I stand slowly, my many deep wounds speaking clearly of me not surviving after this fight concludes. I face Bazil, who's single eye has hardened, and his rapier has found it's way to his hand.



I strike an offensive stance, gripping the pommel of my sword with both hands. He mimics me and pulls out a dagger and grips it in his other hand. I feel the sweat mingling with mech blood run down between my eyes from a vicious head wound Bane had inflicted on me. My vision blurs slightly and my hands waver... and then we meet with a crash of steal, and a rending of souls.



* * *



Dinobot follows the trail of dead guards, all killed in the same way... being ripped in half.



~Only one 'bot could do that.~ thinks the ex-Predacon, ~And that means that somehow the Draconians beat us here!~



His worry mounts as he hears the sounds of vicious fighting drifting form the still form of the Axalon.



* * *



Bazil ducks under yet another wild attack from the normally professional Xavier. The fuzor's many fatal wounds are finally taking their toll as he staggers back, another thrust in the chest from Bazil's rapier sending him down at last. The mouse has over a dozen stabs in his chest, and more internally damaging crushing wounds than Bazil cares to count. He stays down this time and slumps back against a wall, his once vibrant blue optics dimming in death, his hansom features sporting a strangely serine look as his powerful hand falls open limply, and lets the great sword that has claimed so many fall to the deck with a clang. The High Templar of the Church of the Prime Spirit of Fire, is no more.



* * *



Bazil kneels down next to his most hated adversary and gently closes his eyes and places the terrible sword in his lap, and almost relevantly slits his throat, just to make sure.



The fox stands and begins to leave the ship, when hurried footsteps and heavy breathing greet his ears. He suddenly flattens himself against the wall right next to the door and waits, bloody rapier in hand.



* * *



Dinobot stops at the base of the loading ramp and bends over, placing his hands on his knees and breathing heavily. He takes a few deep breaths and then draws his sword, smelling the pungent aroma of mech blood as is wafts past on the light breeze. He grimaces and walks slowly up the ramp, a little voice in his head telling him he's walking into a trap.



He walks into the ship and his spark sinks when he sees Optimus's long-dead form. He then sees the newly dead bodies of the headless Bane and an almost ritualistically placed Xavier.



"What in the Pitt happened here...?" mutters the raptor under his breath, his optics wide with astonishment.



"I did." snarls a cold voice from behind him as a flashing blue blade sprouts from his chest like a demonic tree of perfection. It withdraws, and his own sword, a true warrior's weapon, falls from his nerveless grasp to a clattering landing on the deck of the Axalon. He falls to his knees, his chest fountaining a stream of bright blue mech fluid, then collapses next to his commander and friend in oblivion.



His optics dim, and he slides offline, his final thoughts echoing in his soul, ~At last... my soul rests at peace...~



* * *



Bazil steps into the light finally, covered in the blood of many. He begins dragging the dead away from the ship, and hides them in a shed, so they wont be found until long after the ship takes off. He scrubs the blood away as best he can, and then reenters the ship, smiling at his handiwork.



~When Bane and I are activated during the Beast Wars, it will only be us against eight. Only the original crews of the two ships. I deactivated the life support of all the stasis pods but ours. They will have no reinforcements and will surely fall to us!~ he thinks. Bazil turns to leave, but runs right into the broad, green chest of a figure he never expected to see again.



"RHINOX!" snarls the merc, drawing his rapier and a concussion grenade, "How in Smelter's Name did you get here?!"



The Rhinox only looks at him with strangely penetrating eyes, "I came with the device that I built."



Bazil stares at him in disbelief, "But... you're DEAD! We saw your body!"



Rhinox chuckles and points at him, "WAS dead my friend. I was brought back by my faith, and I'm here to stop you! You've disrupted the main time stream itself! You're going to tear this universe apart at the seams!"



Bazil laughs maniacally, "You just don't get it do you? I WANT that! I want to destroy all of you! ALL!" He punctuates the last word by pulling the pin and lobbing the concussion grenade at the green giant, not caring about his proximity to him.



"No more!" screams Rhinox as he reacts with unusual speed and backhands the grenade away, sending it flying into the middle of the stasis pods in the cargo hold.



"Hahahahahahahahaha!" laughs Bazil, "You've just quickened the demise of your own comrades Rhinox!"



"Look again, buddy." growls the rhino as he motions to the stasis pods. Bazil follows his gaze, and it falls on the grenade, which is resting right next to two pods with stylized vipers on the left sides.



"NOOOOOOOO!" screams Bazil as he lunges for the grenade, but too late.



*BOOM!*



Bazil is thrown back by the explosion, and slumps against the wall. He looks up to see Rhinox standing tall against it, a look of simple satisfaction on his face. The two pods that contained Bazil and his son, now stand open, ripped apart by the explosion. The two protoforms lay twitching on the floor, their sparks fading.



Bazil attempts to stand, to shoot, to attack, to run, to do anything, anything to escape this fate.



~Not like this...~ he thinks sadly, ~Not like this.~



He watches his past self die on the floor of the cold, proud ship. The ship that has brought him so much pain. He sighs and looks up, his soul seeming to seep out of every pour in his body. He is ceasing to exist. He is dead in the past, so cannot exist now. He brings his hand up to his face, narrowing his eye, and looks right through it as it fades away. He lays his head back and closes his eye for the last time. His mind, body, and twisted, tortured soul finally at rest.



~I'm coming... Xanthra.~



















Epilogue





Rhinox looks over his beloved computer station, and breaths in deeply. Everything is back to normal, and he thanks Primus every day for that fact. So many had died, and many tears shed, all for the mad revenge of one 'bot. That 'bot is dead now, erased from existence, and along with him, all of his deeds in the Beast Wars.



Optimus walks in and smiles at his old friend, "So, another quite day on the Predacon side of the fence old friend?"



"It sure is, Optimus." replies the gentle giant, "It sure is."