Disclaimer; I own Shadow Stalker and the plot. That's it.
Warning: Due to language and violence, this series is rated PG.
Of Shadow And Light
Chapter 13
Trial
by Switchblade X
Waspinator watched the sparring match between Shadow Stalker and Dinobot with little interest. He didn't exactly like watching these things, but as of right now, he had nothing better to do. He hummed idly with Korn's Bottled Up Inside, not really following the song, but humming along nonetheless.
Since he had joined the Maximals a week ago, it had rained nonstop. In a way, this was good; it meant he wouldn't have to face his former comrades in battle. But, in a way, it was also bad; it meant he'd have to tolerate the distrust that everyone but Shadow Stalker showed him. Oh, sure the Maximals acted like they trusted him somewhat, but they were far from convincing.
He was beginning to regret his decision. Part of it was because he feared Megatron. Another part of it was because he was a Predacon, not a Maximal. And yet another part of it was because only Shadow Stalker had truly accepted him into the fold. The other Maximals acted like they did, even Dinobot. Dinobot had never liked him, and he knew it; the raptor only tolerated him for Shadow's sake. But, sometimes even Dinobot took up for him when someone was giving him a hard time, especially if Rattrap was involved in the offense.
"I thought I might find you here."
Startled, Waspinator turned to face Silverbolt. "How'd you get here?"
The Fuzor shrugged, "Shadow Stalker talked Optimus into letting me out. …That's another one I owe her."
"Oh." He turned back to the glass.
"I…didn't get a chance to welcome you properly."
Puzzled, he faced Silverbolt again.
Silverbolt held out his hand, "Welcome to the Maximals."
He shook it, "Thank you."
He nodded toward the glass, "Who's winning?"
"I don't know. I haven't really been paying that much attention." Ever since he had gotten away from his old life of constant fear and stress, Waspinator could now think straighter, more logically, more clearly, and more in general. He enjoyed this newfound advantage, and was working diligently on correcting his speech.
Slightly startled at Waspinator's use of correct speech and referring to himself in first person instead of third, Silverbolt glanced at the newcomer for a moment. "Looks like Dinobot's winning."
"Shadow can take him."
He noticed how carefully Waspinator had said Shadow Stalker's name. So, he's working on correcting his speech defect. he thought. Good. He studied the wasp for a long time, noticing the troubled look on his face. "What's wrong, Waspinator?"
Waspinator shook his head.
"You can tell me. I won't tell anyone."
"…Promise?"
"On my honor."
He took a deep breath, "…I'm scared, Silverbolt."
"Of what?"
"Everything. …I'm afraid I made the wrong choice."
"How? Waspinator, you might've saved your own life by coming here."
"I know. But…I'm afraid of what might happen when I have to fight against the people I fought with for all these years. I…I guess Megatron had more of a hold on me than I thought. I'm more scared of him now than I was then."
"…I see."
"Did…did I do the right thing? Really?"
"I think you did."
He sighed, "I'm not so sure. I mean, you know how dumb I am. I might've just made the biggest mistake of my life."
Silverbolt put his hand on Waspinator's shoulder, "Waspinator, you're not stupid."
"Yes I am."
"No, you're not. You obviously know right from wrong, you're making a huge effort to fix your speech defect, and, for Primus' sake, you've been reading a data pad on nuclear physics for the last week! That's not stupid; that's both brilliance and commitment."
"You're just saying that to make me feel better."
"No, I'm not. Waspinator, look at me."
He obeyed.
"We all make mistakes. Only Primus is perfect. Yes, you've made mistakes, yes, you've made some pretty bad choices, and, yes, you're badly damaged. But, you can overcome your handicaps, and you can make things right. When you took Dinobot's hand and came to us that day, you left your old life behind. Now, you're starting over with a clean slate; you can either learn from your mistakes or make them worse. But, always remember your past life. You cannot run from the past, no matter how hard you try. However, you can learn from it. You're a brilliant scientist, Waspinator. Learn from your past. You will go far."
For a long time, Waspinator looked at Silverbolt. What he had just heard had made more sense to him than anything ever had before.
Silverbolt was also soaking in everything that he had just said. For once, he had made sense. …Perhaps he should take his own advice; it might help him in the long run as well as put his personal demons to rest.
"Thank you, Silverbolt." Waspinator whispered after another moment, putting his hand over the Fuzor's. "You have no idea what you've just done for me."
"Any time, my friend. Any time."
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Cheetor hated being on monitor duty alone. He didn't used to hate it; he used to slack off and sleep when he was on monitor duty alone. Now, though, he was afraid to be anywhere on his own.
Shadow Stalker would kill him. When, where, and how, he didn't know, but he did know that his death was inevitable. Shadow Stalker was not known to go against her own word. She'd have her revenge. Eventually.
Hell hath no fury like woman scorned.
Silverbolt was also out for his blood. But, Cheetor knew that he had a better chance at beating Silverbolt than he did at beating Shadow Stalker. Silverbolt was, at times, too honorable for his own good; this could be used to an advantage. Shadow Stalker, on the other hand, also had a sense of honor, but it didn't involve going easy on a kid that wasn't even half her age, much less her size.
And what if Dinobot ever found out about his little false accusations? There would be no evil looks like he got from Silverbolt. There would be no constant terror, no jumping at every little sound, no avoiding the shadows like there was with Shadow Stalker. No, Dinobot would kill him outright. There would be no mercy.
What a fine mess I've gotten myself into! Cheetor thought miserably, looking at the pistol that he now kept with him while he was on monitor duty alone. I'm screwed either way I go! --sigh-- Me 'n my big mouth.
Something moved in the shadows of the main hallway.
Cheetor spun around, gun drawn. If it was Shadow Stalker, there would be no way that he could get a decent shot off before she had him. But, at least he would go down fighting. If it was Silverbolt, he might stand a better chance…
"Geez, jumpy, ain't we?" Rattrap asked, entering the command center with his hands raised.
Cheetor sighed in relief, and put the gun back down. "You had me scared there, Ratface."
"Eh, it don' take much ta scare you nowadays." Rattrap sat down beside him. "Makin' Shadow Stalker mad was prob'ly da dumbest ting you've done in a while. Not ta mention tickin' Bolt off."
"Tell me about it. I'm so paranoid, I can't sleep!"
The rat shrugged, "Hell hath no fury like woman scorned, I guess."
Thunder roared outside, making the cheetah jump.
Rattrap laughed.
"Don't laugh at me, Rattrap! I'm really scared now! Shadow Stalker's gonna kill me if it's the last thing she ever does!"
"You ain't worried 'bout Bolt?"
"Not really. I have more of a chance at beating Silverbolt than I do at beating Shadow Stalker."
He shook his head, "Man, when you screw up, you do it real good. …Your shift's over, kid. Get some sleep, okay?"
"That's easy for you to say; you don't have one of the Four Horsemen out to get you." He stood with a sigh, "G'night, Rattrap."
"'Night, kid. An' don' worry; Lady S won't kill ya if she knows witnesses are present." He nodded toward the security camera that was positioned in the doorway.
"How do you know?"
He shrugged, "I don't."
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"It's been a week, Megatron. He's not coming back." Blackarachnia said.
"I don't understand!" Megatron lamented. "Waspinator was one of the most loyal Predacons I've ever met! What made him defect?"
"Shadow Stalker." Tarantulas answered. "That miserable mutt has been nothing but trouble to us ever since she got here!"
"Yess, the half-breed." He rubbed his chest at the memory of her most recent attack on him, "Hmmm…"
"It's Rampage's fault." Blackarachnia continued. "If he hadn't 've had his 'fun' with Shadow Stalker, we might not have lost Waspinator."
"Now wait just a-" Rampage started, but was interrupted by Megatron squeezing the box that held part of his spark.
"The spider is right, Rampage." Megatron smoothly said. "You cost us a warrior."
"Oh, please! Waspinator was cannon fodder!"
"But he was useful cannon fodder! Waspinator made perfect bait! And, because of you and your ridiculous urges, we have lost him, yesss."
"But-"
"Silence!" he roared, squeezing the spark box again.
Rampage fell to his knees, clutching his chest.
"There will be no more 'playing' with the half-breed. Understand?"
Struggling to breathe, he nodded.
"Good. And as for the rest of you, there will be no more defections, no."
"Of course not!" Blackarachnia acted as though she was repulsed by the idea of rebellion.
"Yes, yes, of course not!" Tarantulas agreed.
"Good. Now, call Quickstrike and Inferno in from patrol. As amusing as it would be, we can no longer afford to have one of them get struck by lightning, no."
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Dinobot awoke with a small gasp. Quickly, he glanced around his room, making sure that he was alone.
He wasn't.
Two blood red optics stared up at him.
Involuntarily, he jumped.
"Are you okay?"
He relaxed, finally coming to his senses. "I'm fine." he replied, kissing her forehead.
"Nightmare?"
"Unfortunately."
"Are you okay?"
"You asked that already."
"I know. I'm just asking again to be sure."
He smiled, "I'm fine, love."
"You don't sound fine. What's wrong, D?"
"Excuse the Star Wars reference, but, I sense a disturbance in the Force."
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Waspinator sat alone on the roof of the Axalon, pondering his current situation instead of taking his shift at the monitors like he was supposed to. Not that there was anything to monitor other than the storm.
He ignored the rain that hit him so hard it hurt, ignored the wind that threatened to blow him off of the ship at any given moment, ignored the thunder that roared so loud overhead it shook the Earth herself, and ignored the lightning that was beginning to dance too close for comfort.
He was thinking about his decision now more than ever. If he returned to the Predacons now, during this storm, he might not be missed here for quite some time. …But, that would break Shadow Stalker's heart, and hurting her in any way was the absolute last thing he wanted to do. Shadow and Dinobot had risked their lives to save his! He couldn't just up and leave them!
…But…what would happen when he had to fight the Predacons? How could he open fire on the people who he had once fought with? …Had he not opened fire on Rampage a week ago? Wasn't that qualified as betrayal?
Rampage deserved it, though! He had raped Shadow, for Primus' sake! Did that not merit at least a little vengeance? …Rampage had been his comrade, however. The fact that he and Rampage had once fought side by side, and the fact that he had fired the first round automatically made his "vengeance" a betrayal.
"Is nothing ever simple?" he asked the storm.
"When you look at the grand scheme of things, no."
Waspinator gulped, and spun around to face his former commander. "M-megatron! What bringzz you here?" At once he mentally cursed himself for letting his old form of speech resurface.
"Why, I was looking for you."
"You were looking for Wazzpinator? Why?" No, damnit! Don't let your nerves get the best of you! Control yourself! he thought, trying desperately to stop shaking.
"Ah, my dear Waspinator. Do you not understand how important you are to us?"
"Important? How?"
"Um…" Megatron hadn't been expecting that question. "Why, your warrior skills, of course!"
"Warrior skillzz? Wazzpinator izz cannon fodder, and you know it! Megatron doezz not want Wazzpinator back! Megatron juzzt wantzz zztrategic advantage over Maximalzz!" Unbeknownst to Megatron, Waspnator had activated a signal that he and Shadow Stalker had installed into their commlinks. In a few moments, reinforcements should arrive. He hoped.
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"D? D, wake up!"
"Mmmm…what?"
"Remember that disturbance you sensed?"
"Of course. What about it?"
"I think I just found out what it was."
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Megatron sensed a presence behind him. However, when he glanced backward, he saw nothing. …Still, though, someone was there.
The half-breed! he suddenly realized, spinning around.
The presence was gone.
"What's wrong, Megatron? You act as though you've seen a ghost."
The Predacon turned back to face Waspinator, who now had two sets of red optics hovering in the air beside him. "What the…"
"Aren't electro-disruptors marvelous little devices?" Shadow Stalker asked, as she and Dinobot melted into existence on either side of Waspinator.
"You!" Megatron exclaimed.
"What do you want, Megatron?" Dinobot demanded.
"Why, I want nothing but Waspinator, yess. You see, I am afraid that he is confused; he thinks he's on your side. Poor thing. You know how he is. Now, if no one objects, I'll just take my soldier back." He took a step forward, but stopped when Shadow Stalker and Dinobot moved in front of Waspinator.
"Waspy's not confused, Megatron. He's one of us now, whether you like it or not. Now, you can either leave in one piece or several; your choice." Shadow Stalker said, cocking her pistol.
Megatron sighed, "Nothing is ever easy with you two, is it?" And with that, he attacked.
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As one, the remainder of the Maximal crew awoke at the sound of gunfire and a body hitting the roof. Scrambling up, they headed to the command center, where the most of the noise was coming from.
"What the slag is goin' on?" Cheetor asked. "And where the heck is Waspinator?"
"He's on da roof!" Rattrap exclaimed, pointing to the monitor's screen. "So's Lady S, Chopperface, an' Megatron!"
"What?" Optimus demanded.
"Should I try ta get da auto guns online?"
"No. We can't risk hitting one of our own."
"What're we gonna do, den?"
At that moment, Megatron swiped at Shadow Stalker, knocking her gun from her hand and knocking her off balance. She disappeared over the side of the ship.
Dinobot rushed Megatron from behind, but the tyrant knew he was coming. Before he could stop on the rain-slicked metal, the Maximal was blown backward by a blast from Megatron's tail gun. He landed dangerously close to the edge.
"And now," Megatron growled, turning to Waspinator, who was huddling near the place where Shadow Stalker had disappeared, "for you."
Waspinator was trembling violently. He knew what torment would await him if Megatron ever got his hands on him. Desperately, he looked around, trying to find something that he could defend himself with. His optics fell on Shadow's gun. Quickly, he grabbed it and leaped to his feet.
Megatron watched this desperate attempt with amusement. Did Waspinator really think that he stood a chance at victory?
Shakily, Waspinator leveled the pistol at Megatron's chest. It was then he noticed that this gun had no stun setting. It didn't have any settings! Well, it had one setting; kill. That would have to do, even though he didn't want to kill his former leader.
Megatron laughed. "Do you honestly think that you can hit me, Waspinator?"
He didn't answer.
"You're weak. Powerless. Inferior. You don't even have enough control over yourself to hold that gun straight. You always were a coward. And now, I intend to rid the universe of your pestilence." He leveled his tail gun at Waspinator's head, "Goodbye, you treacherous little insect."
"NOOO!" Waspinator screamed, squeezing the trigger for all he was worth.
The blast hit Megatron with enough force to knock him out of sight.
Trembling, Waspinator sunk to his knees.
Regaining consciousness, Dinobot scrambled to his feet and rushed over to where he had last seen Shadow Stalker. "Shadow!" he called.
"Down here!"
He looked down to see her clinging to the side of the Axalon, her claws buried deep within the ship's metal hull.
"A little help would be nice." she said, struggling to hold on.
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Waspinator walked slowly toward his quarters, having just come from Optimus' office. He couldn't remember a time when he had felt more like crap. He had almost cost the entire Maximal team their base! And he was fairly sure that he would be hearing about it for quite some time.
Something growled behind him.
Before he had a chance to react, Waspinator found himself pinned against a wall face to face with Dinobot. The raptor's hand was clenched tightly around his neck.
"What the hell were you thinking?!" Dinobot demanded.
Waspinator tried to answer, but couldn't even manage a squeak of pain around the other 'bot's crushing grip.
"If you ever pull a stunt like that again, I'll kill you myself! You might be Shadow Stalker's friend, but that does not make you my friend. I have spared you thus far only for her sake." He dropped his captive, a look of disgust on his face.
Unable to stand, Waspinator collapsed to his knees, clutching his throat and struggling to draw a full breath.
Dinobot started down the hallway, but stopped and turned to face Waspinator once more. "And one more thing."
Weakly, Waspinator looked up at him.
"Shadow Stalker is mine."
Author's Note; Thanks to Libero H for the review! It is very much appreciated! More to come!