Chapter 16

Isis was thoughtful. "You do realize that you'll be dealing with one of the most powerful and dangerous criminal on Cybertron," she nodded, "and if there is a need for you to execute the second part of your orders, chances are you won't come back alive."

She looked up. "I understand that perfectly, sir, but there's no need to worry; X won't become loose."

"Keep up that attitude," Prowl approved. "One last thing: the vessel on which you'll be traveling is called the Axalon and is commanded by Optimus Primal."

"Optimus…Primal?" Isis raised an eyebrow. "The bot who's descendant from Prime?! Oh great! Do I have the best luck with commanding officers, or what?" she muttered sarcastically.

"Anyway," Prowl ignored her last statement. "He also knows about X, but that's all. Aside from Primal, you are not to discus this with anyone."

"Yes, sir."

"Then I believe that'll be all. You're dismissed, Isis."

She thanked him and got up to leave, but when she got to the door, Isis stooped. "Commander…"

"Yes?" he looked up.

"You said you haven't heard from Taratron?"

"No, I'm sorry. I know that you're worried, but I honestly think he'll be okay. He's one of the best worriers I've ever met. In fact, I almost feel sorry for any Predacon that crosses paths with him. Don't worry."

Isis sighed. She was, of course, was still very worried, but instead of showing it, she nodded and walked out.

* * * * * * * * * *

Back in her apartment, Isis packed together a few very personal possessions. All electronic equipment and weapons she needed would be provided for her once she reached the Axalon. There was only one weapon she took with her: a modified and very advanced version of a crossbow. It was one of her favorites. The crossbow came with many attachments, such as a zip line, a short harp-like dagger that could do a considerable mount of damage when fired at a high speed, and poisoned darts.

After a few minutes of shifting papers on her desk, Isis finally found all three books in The Lord of the Rings trilogy that she received from Anárion. Perhaps, if everything went well with X, she would have some spare time to read them, so she placed them in the backpack along with her crossbow. She took one last look around her living room to see if she forgot anything. Then, deciding that she hadn't, Isis returned to her bedroom.

After changing, she opened her closet to put away her armor. Isis was about to close the closet doors, when something on the shelf caught her attention. She picked it up and smiled to herself. The brandy brown eyes of the old teddy bear stared back into her scarlet optics. Isis hugged the stuffed animal and sat down on her bed, running her hands through its soft fur. This was, perhaps, the greatest gift she ever received from Taratron.

Suddenly she felt like crying. "Taratron, brother, where are you?" Holding the stuffed animal tighter, Isis buried her face in its fur. "The last remnant of my childhood,' she whispered through unshed tears. 'Dear Primus, where has my innocence gone?"

* * * * * * * * * *

The central space port was as crowded as ever. There were bots rushing everywhere, checking passes, filling out forms, saying goodbye to friends and family, and boarding the ships. At the time, there were close to forty interplanetary vessels, but only three deep space ships. The first was an enormous luxury cruiser that traveled all over the space colonies belonging to the Maximals. Anyone who wished to take a vacation in space or visit the colonies would most likely be traveling on that ship. The second was smaller and much less impressive than the cruiser. It only accommodated two to five passengers and traveled no further than Cybertron's moon. The last one was smaller than the first, but larger and more advanced than the second. It was colored mostly gray, with the Maximal symbol on the side, and its name, the Axalon, written next to it.

This is it, Isis thought. She pulled out her papers, swung the backpack over one shoulder, and headed for the ship. At the main entrance, a whole group of Maximals prepared to board the ship. Isis eyed them with skepticism. None looked like the fighting type to her. It was no wonder the Elders wanted her on the ship to guard X. Isis had a strong feeling that she would have more trouble with the crew than with X himself.

Her optics searched for Optimus Primal, but she had no idea what he looked like. Isis noticed a young bot next to her, who had to be at least seven or eight stellar cycles younger than herself. He was a yellow-gold color all over, paint, optics, and all.

"Hey, kid," she called to him. The bot turned, and Isis winced when she saw a sparkle in his optic that she so often associated with other males that have lusted after her. But this one was young, and Isis knew it was just a male reaction. The kid didn't mean any harm.

"Uh…can I help you?" he grinned nervously.

"Yes, you can. I'm looking for Optimus Primal, commander of this vessel. Do you know where I would be able to find him?"

"Uh…yeah. Yeah! He's right over there," the young bot pointed to his left at two older transformers standing closer to the ship.

"Thanks, kid," she replied and started in the direction of the ship.

One was about a head shorter than the other, with a green and brown paint job and red optics. The taller bot was gray and blue and, as Isis guessed it, was indeed Optimus Primal. When he saw her approach, he excused himself and his companion went back inside the ship.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything important," she said politely.

"Not at all," Optimus smiled and shook her hand. "I was just running over some last minute details with my senior repair and science officer. How can I help you, Miss Khmer?"

"Please, call me Isis, and my commander, Prowl, told me to talk to you before I boarded."

"That's correct," Optimus nodded. "As I understand it, Prowl briefed you on our situation, right?"

"Yes."

"Then here's the last thing you need to know," he reached into a containment unit and pulled out a blue print of the ship. "This is an exploration mission, Isis, and in every exploration mission there are stasis pods and protoforms."

Isis went pale. "S…stasis pods?"