Chapter 23
"I can still give you power. I can give you an empire that would make even the Daleks look upon in envy!" Unicron shouted at Galvatron. Both of them had taken their jet forms and had been circling above a forest in the Scottish highlands. They kept a good distance away from each other as Unicron kept talking to Galvatron in the sick plan that he had created that he would see her former follower returning to be at his side.
"I don't want power! I am not the same Mech that I was many years ago!" Galvatron shouted back at Unicron. He was getting beyond annoyed that Unicron was not taken the hint that he was long past him. He had found his path to the light and he was not going to allow anyone (and that included Unicron) divert him from the path that Primus had put him on and Nightshade had been helping him.
There was also the other Avengers that were helping him and he could not fault them for all the help that they were given him. Wasp at first had been shy but now she was the boldest out of them all when it came to dealing with him. Captain America had gone out of his way to make him feel as comfortable as possible when he joined the ranks of the Avengers, it something that he could see the human doing when Nightshade was in the same room as them. The others they were given him a wide breathe but it was getting smaller with each passing day that they knew that he was not a threat to them.
Edward had been different. He did not welcome him to the ranks at all. In fact he had never spoken to Galvatron at all since he joined the Avengers. The Ghoul had grunted at him and had nodded his head a few times but he had never started a conversation with him at all. Edward may have been Nightshade's right hand man but he had his own thoughts and many of them were experiences with other Gladiators and even the Decepticons of this dimension that was making him think the way that he was thinking towards them.
Galvatron had a better standing with Dalek Sec. Being from a race that was born to only feel hatred Dalek Sec asked a lot of questions that lead him to see much wonder towards life. The two of them were outcasts in the eyes of Thor and Hulk who saw them as being villains who were waiting for the right time to strike. Something that neither of them were planning to do.
The attitude of the other Avengers changed during missions where his jet form and robot form came in handy in their fights that would not have been won. Even his tactics would not be ignored by the other Avengers and he was even allowed to go after the Set Dagger when he got the feeling that no one trusted him enough to allow him and Dalek Sec to go after such an important object in taken down Seth. It may have also been that they did not trust him enough to help them in getting the Book of the Dead from Egypt.
Unicron had sensed his doubtful mind that he had allowed to get carried away, "The humans will never trust you, My Child! They see you as a monster that they need to take out along with many other creatures! They will turn on you at the best chance that they get and then you will have no one to turn to at all!"
Galvatron felt his afterburners stalling for a brief second. How could he deny the fears that linger at the back of his processor every time he is left alone with one other member of the Avengers. He had proven that he was an ally in Sokovia in helping to bring down Ultron before he caused a great number of humans to be slaughtered.
"You know that they will betray you in the end. Everyone has betrayed. Orion Pax at the start of the war and Starscream all the way through the war. You have lived in a life where others will and have used you. It will only carry on until your Spark gives out and you will see that I am telling nothing but the truth!" Unicron spoke up again. He was still using Starscream's voice as he taunted Galvatron.
"Like you have used me Unicorn. You twisted my Spark and caused me to destroy Cybertron. How is that helping me? It was always because of you that people used me! You filled me with so much hatred that I lost my brotherhood with Orion Pax and caused the lives of many innocent Cybertronians in a pointless war that you hoped would kill your brother!" Galvatron shouted back at Unicron.
He kept a good distance away from the Chaos Bringer. He didn't want to get any closer than he needed to him. He had felt many times how intoxicating Unicron's powers were to last him a life time and it was something that he didn't want to feel ever again.
"It's because of Nightshade? Ever since she got involved she has been nothing but a thorn in my side!" Unicron snapped at Galvatron. His engines purred in delight when he heard Galvatron snarling at him. "It would seem that I have hit a sensitive nerve once again!" he purred at Galvatron.
"Nightshade and the other Avengers have been opening to me and that thing that called itself Shadowstalker was nothing like the real Nightshade!" Galvatron shouted back.
"The pair of you would have stayed together. It would not be the same weak love that you two are sharing but are denying to everyone even yourself but it would be better than the weak love that Primus loves so much!" Unicron shouted back at Galvatron.
Galvatron snarled back at Unicron. "I will never join you. So forget about me re-joining you and helping you!"
Unicron was silent. The only noises that he made was the noises that his afterburners were making. He kept a good distance away from Galvatron as he smirked internal at the response that Galvatron had given him. He was not surprised with the response that Galvatron had given him. He had tried many times to get Galvatron to side back with him and get his help in taken Cybertron back from the Prime and his allies. No matter what he said he was not getting the Mech that he had seen so much of Megatronus in.
"What a pity that is then. You could have had everything that you had before and much more. I would have even allowed Nightshade to remain a live for you. But yet again you have chosen to take the path that will see me killing her in front of you!" Unicron shouted towards Galvatron.
Galvatron snarled. "I will net let you take away the good few things that I have in the world! This ends with you and me not anyone else. Not with the others! I am the one who had yourself defeated by Optimus Prime and Primus!"
"Very well Galvatron. But I want you to meet an old friend of mine. One that I am sure you will have a good time of getting to know!" Unicron shouted at Galvatron. He fired his afterburners and shot away from Galvatron who had not seen the dark shape flying to the closet clouds for cover.
"You are not getting away that easy! Not this time!" snarled Galvatron firing his own afterburners to shoot after Unicron as fast as he could. His scanners could just see the small blip of Unicron's F-16 form was making just up ahead of him. It was getting closer to the location where the other Avengers where and where the Set Dagger was. He could not allow Unicron to get there and help Stark who had turned his back on them to get the Set Dagger and the Book of the Dead which the Avenger should start making a move to make sure that it was not going to fall into the wrong hands.
A wall purple fire exploded in front of him. Galvatron forced himself to stop before he hit the wall of fire that had appeared out of nowhere. Transforming back into his robot form he hovered in the air as he watched a shape that he knew well.
"Nightshade?" he asked as the shape started to drop towards him. He saw the outlines of wings folding close to the body as whatever it was dropped towards him. The screech that followed was a noise that he had heard on Cybertron when Shadowstalker was helping Unicron with half of his forces of Terracons.
"Wrong Dragonoid!" Shadowstalker laughed as she burst out from the cloud bank where she had been hiding. She kept laughing like a maniac as the Dark Energon that made up her wings kept her hovering in the sky across from Galvatron. "You don't look happy to see me, Galvy! I thought that you would be happy to see me again as I am way better than Nightshade. Yuck, why be Undead like her when you could be a God thanks to Unicron!" she giggled even more at that.
"No. You brought pain to many Cybertronians back on Cybertron. You killed them and then turned them into Terracons that you used to help Unicron to get to the AllSpark!" Galvatron snapped back at her. His red optics were narrowed as he studied Shadowstalker. She had many of the same body features that Nightshade had, but her tail ended with a huge spike rather than the new tail thin that Nightshade had. Another difference was that was between the two Dragonoids was that Shadowstalker's wings were made out of Dark Ocean with a few metal sticks in the wings. Nightshade's wings were actual physical wings like Predaking and the other Predacons.
Shadowstalker kept giggling. Her giggling was like that of a small school girl. The giggling was so annoying that Galvatron snarled at Shadowstalker. He gnashed his teeth against each other and his fisted his hands. The plasma Canon that was mounted on his right arm began to glow red as he prepared to fire at Shadowstalker.
"Would you shut up! I want to speak to Nightshade! Now!" he shouted at her. He aimed his plasma canon at Shadowstalker. The bright red glow of the canon let up Shadowstalker's black snout as he prepared to fire at her.
Shadowstalker stopped giggling and looked series at Galvatron. Her dark purple optics looked from his face to the plasma canon that was being aimed at her. Using her clawed paws she pushed the plasma canon away from her face. "You have hurt my feelings Galvy. I never hurt your feelings before. I might have tried to kill you but I was just angry at everything and you were there and I was connected to Nightshade which I am not now! Yippie!" giggled Shadowstalker. She made her purple optics look bigger than normal and even showed fake emotions to Galvatron.
"Don't give me that fake look. I have seen that many times with Starscream through the years!" he said with such a bored tone. He was so use to seeing the look that Shadowstalker was given him thanks to Starscream.
Once again Shadowstalker became series as she looked right back at Galvatron. "Very well! I can see that you don't love me! But I am better, much better than Nightshade! I am not flawed with all the weaknesses that she is!" Shadowstalker spoke up again as she looked anywhere but at Galvatron.
Both Galvatron and Shadowstalker remained still as best as they could as they hovered above the ground many feet. Galvatron's red optics were narrowed as he watched the little movements that Shadowstalker was making as she hovered a good distance away from him. The evil copy of Nightshade that he had thought was destroyed the last time that he had fought her back on Cybertron. Shadowstalker had been Nightshade and when she was defeated Nightshade was once again herself after he had defeated Shadowstalker. Now that she was back and with no sign that Nightshade was under all the Dark Energon like she had been before that raised the questions on how Shadowstalker was reborn.
"How did Unicron recreate you without using Nightshade?" Galvatron asked the question that was going about his mind.
Again Shadowstalker giggled at him. "My lord and master is more powerful than the pitiful Mech that you warship as your creator. He has create knowledge and power that he used to recreate me but without the good side being attached to me. I am so more better than you. I am a new breed or Predacon. I am the Alpha Predacon and all Beasts shall bow to me!"
Shadowstalker lunged towards Galvatron. Dark Energon claws slashed towards his face but Galvatron transformed into his jet form and blasted away from the insane Dragonoid. Shadowstalker snarled when the heat from his afterburners blasted into her face. Using her wings she slowed right down as she chased after Galvatron.
"You will pay for the crimes that you have committed against my Master!" Shadowstalker shouted at him as he blasted towards UNIT Stirling. She fired a blast of Dark Energon at Galvatron but the Mech barrel rolled and avoided the blast that she had fired at him. She snarled at him that he had manged to avoid her attacks. She fired another blast of Dark Energon fire at him again and once again he moved out of its way last minute. She continued to fire at him as they got closer to his destination.
UNIT Stirling was appearing in his sensors when he suddenly felt pain in his left wing. His pain receptors were quick to notify him that he had series damage to the wing that would require repairs that Ratchet or Shockwave or even Knockout would have to repair him. He could just make it to UNIT Stirling and hope that there was a mechanic who could repair his wing enough so he could make the trip to the Nemesis. He could also comm. the Nemesis to have reinforcements to help him take out Shadowstalker. Dreadwing was also not far away and he could offer him aerial support in the fight against Shadowstalker.
He kept hearing Shadowstalker laughing behind him. She kept firing the blast of Dark Energon at him. That was followed by more blasts with a few more hiding him. He snarled with every blast that blasted against his plating and also the growing desire to have the Dark Energon became so much to bare that he almost wanted to join Shadowstalker to get more of the Dark Energon.
"Don't even think about it, Galv! That is what Shadowstalker wants you to do. You are better than that!" came Nightshade's voice through their Spark Bond. They may not have been in a relationship but due to Nightshade using her Curse Breaker to aid Primus's work on his Spark they had found quickly that there was a connection between them that allowed them to communicate over long distances apart
"Nightshade? Where are you?" he asked over the bond. He snarled when the under plating of his jet form smashed into the top branches of the large trees that formed a part of the forest that hid UNIT Stirling from the city that was only a few miles away from the base that was ran not only by humans but by other creatures that helped UNIT.
They had agreed to call this a Spark Bond but it was not the same Spark bond that Optimus Prime and Elita-One where it was one of romance unlike the one that had formed between Galvatron and Nightshade. They only used it to help plan out attacks and plans of actions.
"Dealing with Unicron! He just appeared out of nowhere!" came Nightshade's response through the Bond after a moment of silence. "Do not fall for what Shadowstalker is trying do to you! She wants you to go back to Unicron so he use you like he did before!" she kept talking to him.
Galvatron blocked the Bond when he suddenly crashed onto the ground. The force of the crash was so hard it forced him to transform back into his robot mode. He slowly got back to his feet as Shadowstalker landed across him. He snarled and powered his plasma cannon once again as he listened to her laughing.
"Would you stop laughing! Its annoying!" he ordered Shadowstalker. He aimed his plasma canon at her. The low whining of the plasma canon slowly got louder as he got ready to fire at Shadowstalker.
Shadowstalker giggled again. She avoided the plasma canon as she took a step closer to Galvatron. With her claws of Dark Energon she touched Galvatron's arms. She giggled even more when she heard Galvatron hissing as he became so much closer to Dark Energon. "You like me? Don't you?" she asked. She was still giggling away.
"Hardly!"
She kept giggling even when Galvatron pushed her away. A blast from the plasma canon that destroyed a close by tree only had her giggling even more. "Someone has a temper!" she sang as she walked around Galvatron.
Galvatron followed Shadowstalker with his optics. He always kept her within his sight. He couldn't allow her to get the best of him and find an opening where she could claw at him with those claws that were made out Dark Energon. He kept moving and so did she, but it suddenly stopped and she lunged at him with the Dark Energon claws that glowed dark purple extended towards him.
He stepped to the side just in time before he avoided the claws from scrapping his sides and causing untold damage to his systems. He watched as Shadowstalker moved much like a wolf rather than a cat like Nightshade did as she landed back on her feet. She then turned around to face him and snarled at him. Again he moved out of the way of her claws as she leapt at his faceplate this time. Again and again he avoided her clawing his optics out and causing him series repairs needing to be done.
Shadowstalker snarled when she saw that she was not getting anywhere with fighting Galvatron on the ground. She had thought that she could fight him on the ground with speed but he was proven to be much more faster than he looked. She saw the large junk of damage on his side that had been caused by her firing at his wing. He also bore the marks of the ground after he was forced to crash land all of a sudden. She looked back at those red optics that were narrowed on her and got an idea. She was not getting anywhere on the ground and with the damage that he had sustained Galvatron would not do well on a fight when someone was in the air.
She winked at him before she took to the air above.