"Your intel better be correct Drone. The Royalty has little tolerance for those that fail to deliver on their promises. Nor is he one to tolerate those that seek to deceive him".

Though knowing that his reply would undoubtedly upset the mentally unbalanced Transformer, the boy couldn't help himself from smirking as he made his rather accurate observation.

"Considering that Lord Megatron continues to allow both the Spiders and the buzzing scrapheap to function despite years of incompetence and treachery, you'll have to forgive me Inferno if I don't take your threat all that seriously".

Fighting the urge to laugh at the Predacon's infuriated expression, the boy quickly decided to extend an olive branch as he noticed the red colored mech reach for the space that held his weapon.

"However, since he has entrusted his most loyal subject to supervise my efforts, I have no doubt that we shall succeed where the others would fail".

Releasing a small sigh of relief as he watched the bug adopt a less hostile stance, the villainous advisor had to keep himself from scowling as Inferno commented on his current relationship with the purple colored tyrant.

"Indeed. Perhaps if your visions of the future hadn't upset the Royalty, you would have had the honor of having the Royalty accompany you on this mission instead of myself

Though he wish he could do otherwise, the Boy had to admit that Inferno had a point regarding Megatron's less than positive feelings toward him.

Orginally, the Predacon leader had been estaic at the knowledge that he would win the Beast Wars. But when pressed for details to explain how this would be occur, Megatron had been less than pleased to discover the path to his temporary victory.

Yes he hadn't exactly shed a tear, or at least the Cybertronian equivalent of one, when he learned that his quest for power would result in the complete loss of his crew.

Nor had he been overly concerned at the potential damage to this universe's timeline his actions would cause.

No, what pissed him off was the fact that he had learned that in the end, all his struggles, all his treacherous schemes, would eventually prove futile.

Considering that the ego of Beast Wars Megatron was larger than most villains he had dealt with, the villainous advisor should have realized that the transmetal Predacon would not be less than thrilled at learning that he was not the perfect being he thought he was.

In fact, if it hadn't been for his quick thinking in pointing out that the future could still be altered, the boy had a strong suspicion that he would have suffered the fate of the Scorponock and Terrorsaur.

Which explained why he was currently in the wild of prehistoric earth trying to ensure that his purple armored client had a greater chance of destroying his enemies in the past rather than waiting to confront them in the distant future.

And considering that he lacked the power to serve as another solider in the Predacon ranks, that left only one terrifying option.

"So tell me Drone. Will this new solider make a valuable addition to the Colony? Or will it prove to be as great a disappoint as the Wasp and Fuzor"?

Doing his best to adopt a contrite expression, if only to ensure that he didn't have to put up with another rant about disloyalty, the boy shook his head.

"I assure you Inferno, that the bot we're searching for will be a valuable….asset to the cause. For his strength exceeds that of Quickstrike, and his….recovery time is far more impressive than Waspinator".

This only earned a snort of derision from the insect berserk

"But will he remain loyal to the Royalty"?

Choosing his words carefully, the boy gave his answer.

"If properly…motivated then yes".

Earning a nod from Inferno, the boy was left to the rather nerve racking task of how he would survive the upcoming encounter without suffering the fate of the buzzing Predacon.

He had already left Bartok back at the base since he was pretty sure that his voice would irritate both Inferno and the currently deactivated transformer. And, as a back up plan for his overall mission, he had seen fit to grab and hide one of the numerous spidercams that scurried within the Predacon base.

Not because he believed that Tarantulas would come to his aid. But because if his backup plan was to work, he needed to ensure that his new client was aware of his new status from the get go.

And since the transmetal spider was a more effective schemer when he had advanced notice of an upcoming plan, the longer he had to prepare for his arrival, the better.

"Hmmm. It appears that you're information was correct Drone. According to my scanners, the Royalty's prize is up ahead".

Nodding his head in acknowledgment, the villainous advisor took a deep breath as he prepared himself for an encounter that would hopefully end in a less gruesome way than what had happened on the show.

…

Though it was impossible for the majority of cybertronians to be aware of their surroundings when their frames were in stasis lock, he had already proven that his abilities far outclassed those of the common transformer.

Yes his current state limited the range and depth of his ability to sense the emotions of sentient creatures, but it was still better, at least from a security standpoint, than having one's mind succumb to a deep slumber.

And considering what he had sensed ever since those pitiful Maximals had forced him into stasis after he had his fun on Omicron, he had to admit that such an ability had its uses.

He had been able to feel his jailer's fear and anger as their ship went into battle against an adversary that amusingly enough possessed the ever so delightful feeling of hope.

He had felt a sense of helpless rage as something forced his prison to abandon its orbiting solitude and crash into a planet that teemed with life. Though sadly he could tell that the population of sentient creatures was on the low side. Which meant that he wouldn't have much opportunity to test out the new power that coursed through his frame.

And now, he could sense the warring emotions of two beings that were now slowly approaching his currently offline shell.

The one with the spark was rather easy to figure out, though it still brought him great delight due to its originality.

He was well acquainted with the emotions of pride and anger, but what caught his interest was the fact that the spark that was pulsing with these emotions had been unnaturally corrupted.

It was not uncommon for the occasional Maximal to experience the same range of emotions that were more common with the Predacons. But such a process was not instantaneous. In order for a Maximal spark to become as violent and dark as their rivals, time was needed.

But for the spark that was approaching, not only had it's corruption happened all at once, but it also been tricked to believe that it had always been that way.

The other one however, now that one was interesting for a multitude of reasons.

For one, it lacked a spark, but possessed a higher degree of sentience than the usual organic life forms that were rightfully spooked by his temporary prison.

For another, it's fear was intertwined with something that reminded him of the one responsible for his reimprisonment.

Determination.

But this being lacked the understandable, and quite amusing murderous feelings that existed within Depth Charge's spark. In fact, if his senses weren't playing a trick on him, he could almost swear that there was a hint of excitement beneath the fear.

Sadly however, his current circumstances prevented him from doing more than basking in their emotions.

For despite possessing an immortal spark, even he required a certain level of energon in order to function.

….

"THIS is the prize you intend to take back the Royalty? This empty shell of an oversized drone? Oooh I will truly enjoy watching you endure your punishment for wasting the Royalty's time".

Doing his best to ignore the ant's less than pleasant prediction, for if he didn't play this right his latest introduction would probably resemble what had happened to Tarantulas after his introduction with the semi-immortal crab, the villainous advisor approached the hopefully unconscious body of the transmetal crustacean in what he hoped was a respectful manner.

For despite his current offlined state, the boy suspected that Protoform X still possessed some sort of awareness for his surroundings.

Judging that his plan to wake the giant transformer could only work if one was willing to get within arms reach of his chest plate, the boy took a deep breath before he turned towards the red eyed Predacon.

"Then it is a good thing that I know how to wake him up. However, since you enjoy a much higher position in the Colony's hierarchy than myself, I believe that the honor of reactivating our lord's newest drone should fall to you".

In truth, the boy was still uncertain if this would work. For while he knew energon had been responsible for the reactivation of Protoform X, he was uncertain if a single shard would be sufficient for his intended purposes.

Essentially, he was hoping that his plan would turn out like the second Michael Bay movie, where a single shard of the All Spark had been enough to revive a destroyed Megatron. But since he lacked any other means to quickly revive the giant transformer, he could only hope that this would work.

Luckily, Inferno was completely oblivious to[DB1] his reservations. And quickly grabbed the dagger sized chunk of energon.

"It does my spark good to see that you recognize your designated place in the colony. Let us hope that our new comrade is the same".

Turning away from the skeptical looking human, the red eyed Predacon opened the large pod. And with only the briefest of looks at the face of the offlined giant, stabbed his glowing weapon into the transformer's chest.

…..

Annnnnnnnnd think I will leave it here XD

I do apologize for the shortness of this chapter, but since I needed something to set up the last chapter, think its sufficient XD.

Now to explain the change in direction. Orginally, was going to do my usual, having Megatron win after learning about his failures. But then I realized….Megatron isn't exactly one that likes admitting that he's wrong. And after remembering the lines "A madness is growing inside Megatron/he seeks to continue this strain of madness) decided to go with plan B.

Believe I gave enough hints in this chapter, but basically, its going to be a teamup between a transformer that wants to destroy both factions that rest in the ark, and a transformer that enjoys killing. Always got the sense that Rampage doesn't fear his own death (look at final duel between him and Deph Charge) and is only prevented from killing megatron because the stabbing of his spark is too painful to even try to raise his weapon. Of course this might not happen if he keeps his spark intact, but I think that Rampage wouldn't mind dying if it means he gets to kill those that created him.

Anyways, once next chapter is done, this story will be completed. And then I will return to Disney, which as of this moment includes the Simpsons, so the potential is there for Marge and Lisa bashing XD. Cause we all know they deserve it XD.

Plz review, no flames.

Til next time