Hostile Territory

Written by: Okami

Chapter 2- Brotherly Bond

~

When something is lost, something else replaces it

The memory of your parting smile gives me strength to live
A message from you

Surely we will meet again
And from a distance will recognize each other in a glance

Lyrics: Yubiwa- Yuuho Iwasato

~

Authors Note: I do not own Robots in Disguise. I do however own Alana and Suzuki, therefore they can not be used anywhere other than this fanfic without my permission.

Helpful Hints: ****** - Means a change in scenery, or from Autobots to Decepticons

~~~ - Means a change in point of view but the same scenery

* * - Indicates a comlink conversation

"NOOO!" Prowl and Sideburn screamed in unison as they watched their older brother take the assault. They had just emerged from the Global SpaceBridge when the Predacons let loose their attacks. The two siblings watched helplessly as the force of the impact sent the eldest Autobot brother flying through the air and over the cliff, down into the ragging river below.

"You will pay for that," Sideburn growled through clenched teeth. Powering up his gun, he fired upon the Predacons with full force.

Prowl and Sideburn took on the four enemy robots by themselves, driving their actions. By the time Optimus Prime emerged from the Global SpaceBridge the two remaining Autobot brothers stood watching the limping Predacons retreat back to base.

~~~

"X-Brawn! Can you hear me! Where are you?" Prowl called urgently, leaning over the cliff, searching earnestly for his friend and sibling. The only thing visible was a rapidly flowing river, rushing over rocks and crashing into the cliff wall.

"I don't see him anywhere," Sideburn mumbled, looking down-river in hopes of seeing his brother.

Optimus stood silently behind his comrades, not sure of the right thing to say. Regrets plagued his mind as the Autobot leader thought about his failure as a commander: Why hadn't he been there sooner? Why didn't he send someone else since X-Brawn was taking a much-needed break from fighting? What kind of a leader would send a member of his team into battle against four Predacons, alone, with no backup standing by?

He was so caught up in his thoughts that he did not notice Prowl and Sideburn skidding down the cliff side. Their shouting and calling did eventually snap him out of the trance so he joined in the search, yelling from atop the cliff and looking down river for any sign of the eldest Autobot brother, but to no avail.

******

X-Brawn snapped back online as he felt his metal frame hitting something large and hard, then being swept away by a rough current. He fought the pull of the water, wrestled with sharp rocks protruding from the rapids, and resisted the urge to go offline once more; all with an injured arm hanging limply by his side.

The eldest Autobot brother tried with all the energon left in him to swim to shore, but the vicious waves bore down upon him and swept his further down stream, away from land. X-Brawn half-listened to the constant roaring in his audio receptors, again fighting the urge to go offline. The sound persisted burrowed into his mind, nagging at something. I've heard that before. But where… X-Brawn trailed off as the nagging sensation revealed a memory—of a waterfall.

"Waterfall?!" he cried, turning his body so he was facing down river. The water splashed and crashed for a little further down then disappeared over the horizon.

X-Brawn clawed frantically at the water with his one good arm, grabbing at any rocks or tree branches for support, but eventually ended up heading for the waterfall. The roaring grew louder and he knew his time was almost up, but he wouldn't go down without a fight. Using his towline, the Autobot roped a nearby tree and began pulling himself to shore. He was merely inches from the sandy shore when his support line pulled up from the roots and crashed into him, sending him reeling backwards.

"Well, I guess this is it," he muttered, letting the current pull him towards his end. "So long little brothers. I'll miss ya." X-Brawn powered down for the last time as he felt his heavy frame following the rushing water over the cliff and down into the mist below.

******

Tai hovered over the computer keyboard, hurriedly pressing buttons and glancing at the main screen.

"Can't you go any faster?" Sideburn asked impatiently, stopping his pacing for a moment.

The hologram spared him a quick glare before returning her attention to the task before her, locating X-Brawn. "I'm working at fast as I can," she replied calmly, a hint of frustration in her tone.

"Just calm down you two," Optimus suggested, watching Prowl join his brother in pacing the length of the room.

A circle of glowing light appeared at the end of a long tunnel, grabbing the attention of the Autobot leader. He let out a heavy sigh when Team Bullet Train emerged from the Global SpaceBridge, transforming into their robot mode as they approached their commander.

"What's goin' on with them?" RapidRun asked, thumbing towards the still pacing Sideburn and Prowl. The two Autobot brothers had not skipped a beat in their striding to acknowledge their teammates.

"Well-" Tai began but was cut off by a frantic, "TAI!"

"All right, all right," she grumbled, returning to her search before Sideburn blew a fuse.

"X-Brawn is missing," Optimus explained. "Tai is working hard at trying to locate him, but…" he trailed off, glancing at the main screen.

"You haven't had any luck," RailSpike finished, his optics dimming in sadness.

"That's just terrible. I wish we could do something," Midnight Express mumbled, shacking his head.

*So long little brothers. I'll miss ya.*

Prowl and Sideburn lurched to a halt, their optics focusing on the floor before locking with each other.

Did you hear…" Prowl began.

"X-Brawn," Sideburn mumbled, glancing at the main screen. "Brother…"

Fluid leaked from their optics, trickling down their faceplates. The two brothers stood in shock as they somehow heard X-Brawn's voice in their minds, saying goodbye.

"Skybyte," Sideburn growled, clenching his fists. "You're going to pay dearly for this."

"This is unacceptable," Prowl snarled as fluid continued to flow down his faceplate. "They must be punished to the fullest extent of the law." His optics flashed a bright gold as he thought of how to dispose of the Predacons responsible to X-Brawn's demise.