KNOW YOUR ENEMY – Part Three of Four
Written and posted in 2007 © by SolitaryHawk
Rattrap tried to feel around his general area, his splayed fingers finding nothing solid. It felt like he was walking on firm ground but when he reached down to examine the surface, his fingers found only empty air. His straining optics registered inky blackness not even his infrared imaging could penetrate. It was exactly how Optimus had described the sensation: Being suspended in an unending void. At least he was all right, which was a surprise. Dinobot hadn't underplayed his one word description of the alien attack. Not one bit. The little Maximal felt as if his internal circuits had been frying. But now he was functioning fine. Blind as the proverbial bat, mind you, but just fine and dandy.
And alone.
"Hey! Dinobutt! Do you hear me?" he called out. His words seemed to echo in the stale air, giving the impression that he was in some sort of immense cavern. He tried his comlink and found it inoperable. He went back to shouting. "Yo! You out there lizard lips? Hey-!"
"!!SCANNING: ..." A monotonous voice suddenly blasted at him from all angles at once.
"Agh!" Rattrap clamped his hands down over his audio receptors as the words assaulted him like a physical blow.
"UNIT SERIAL CODE: 4K21A-T4
PERSONAL IDENT: Indigo
CALL SIGNS: Anarchy, Carrion, Dinobot (IDENT: Current), Penance, Wargame.
FACTION: Predacon
GENDER: Male
STATIONED: Battalion I, Charr
DESIGNATION: Infantry Model
SPECIALIZATION: Front Line Combat
REGIMENT: Talon
MILITARY RANK: Beta Class
SECURITY LEVEL: 2
CONJUGAL ALLY: 6B38T-C8 (IDENT: Shade)
PROGENY: 7K38P-C5 (IDENT: Raze)
ASSIGNMENT: A-Class Transwarp Reaper / IDENT: Darkside
COMMANDING OFFICER: 9H45D-J6 (IDENT: Megatron)
MISSION: Classified
CURRENT STATUS???
STATUS???
STATUS STATUS STATUS STATUS STATUS STATUS STATUS STATUS STATUS STATUS STATUS STATUS STATUS STATUS STATUS STA-!!"
"Awright! Awright! Enough already!" Rattrap screamed at the top of his mechanized lungs. "STOP IT RIGHT NOW YOU SONS A BIT-!"
There was a moment of silence then: "SCANNING: ...
RESULT: Unit Dinobot is finally off-line."
Sounds like somebody put up a fight, Rattrap thought with satisfaction, shaking his head to clear the ringing after-effects of the probe's scan. He hoped that chopperface got in some good slashes with his sword before they got him under. Whoever 'they' were, anyway. He didn't know why he was hearing the result's of Dinobot's scan instead of his own but he wasn't complaining. A robot model designed for gathering information, he absorbed the soldier's technical specs with almost greedy interest.
Before he could play back the scan for consideration, he was suddenly assaulted by a blinding white light and he shut his optics off just in case they got flash burned. He wasn't feeling any heat and gradually turned them on again, squinting fiercely against the sudden brilliance. Beside him, a large screen had winked on displaying a screen capture and a date/time stamp in the lower left corner. To his right another came on, then in front and behind him. As if a switch had been turned on, a steady progression of screens snapped on above, beside, and below him in sudden, unsettling rapidity. The images were stacked in steady progression and went further than his optics could reach, even with a zoom lens.
"Fer bootin' up cold..." Rattrap said unsteadily, craning his head around. He was looking at places he didn't recognize, all depicting bots he didn't know. When he looked at one image closer, he saw the Predacon insignia on the other bot's shoulder. That was when he realized that all of the file names and date stamps were written in Predacon code.
"Primus," he whispered, realizing the truth even if he couldn't understand how it was possible.
He was trapped in Dinobot's mainframe surrounded by the soldier's personal datatracks.
Ah, this is just too good an opportunity to pass up! Rattrap thought as he rubbed his hands together with rising excitement. With the nosiness and lack of remorse for which his very model was based on, he set out to see just what made his stubborn rival the insufferable son of a bot that he was. He quickly discovered that Dinobot's memory files were extremely compartmentalized; organized with such rigid precision that the little Maximal figured it small wonder the former Pred was as tightly wound as he was. There wasn't a file out of order, or lacking a date/time stamp, and there were a lot of them.
The information stored here represented over two hundred stellar cycles worth of data. Rattrap sought out a summary node that revealed that the soldier had gone through four other planetary wars requiring the use of his transformation cog. The data display also showed that he had served over seven hundred missions of varying levels of difficulty throughout his lengthy service. "Holy slag," the Maximal murmured in shock as he kept reading. At one point, more than five hundred pounds of armor and weapons had been welded to this superstructure transforming him into a war machine without equal.
For some reason, the summary ended at a point about twenty years back with no further explanation.
Rattrap craned his head around, looking at memory banks that went on further than his eyes could see. He looked up, down, and around, feeling extremely small and vulnerable in this immense labyrinth. He suddenly looked up again, frowning in confusion. As if walking an invisible staircase, he ascended several dozen levels until he reached the site that had caught his interest. This entire level was almost black, the screen images so dark that it was impossible to decipher them.
"What the slag-? Ouch!" He had reached out to tap one of the screens and recoiled from a shock that numbed his arm to the elbow joint.
Dinobot's personal computer immediately came online in response to the intrusion: "//Access denied. Datatracks F4L- 2 through to N9S-98 are encrypted to prevent random retrieval."
Shaking his stinging hand, Rattrap snapped, "Encrypted by who?"
"//The Host unit initiated the action."
That made absolutely no sense to the Maximal. Why the slag would Dinobot deliberately take such a drastic action to block out his own memories? "Look, maybe I just don't unders-"
"OVERRIDE ENCRYPTION."
Rattrap slapped his hands down over his audio receptors again as the probe began to challenge the onboard computer.
"//Ac-access de-denied... data-""OVERRIDE."
There was a mutter of desultory static, and then a long pause before the blackened level of datatracks slowly lit up, one right after another. "//Access granted," the computer said in surrender.
None of this felt right to Rattrap. He should have been pleased to no end to have unlimited admission to all of this forbidden data. It was a spy's dream to come true! Access to an enemy's entire repository of classified information: knowledge of training, bases, military secrets, alliances, maneuvers, missions- The Maximal's head swam with the possibilities of what knowledge might be gained here. It was all intelligence that the Maximal Elders of Cybertron would be drooling to get their claws on and possibly use to neuter the damned Preds once and for all.
The screens were flickering on and then off again as the probe ran through the released datatracks with the detachment of a librarian. Rattrap derived no sense of accomplishment at the sight, or felt the motivation to act on his programming and start downloading the Intel for Optimus to review later. This was Dinobot's mainframe: That overgrown, Bronto-brained, fossil-faced, scaly-assed, untrustworthy Pred-
Just before the probe attacked, Dinobot, wounded, looked over at him and shouted: "Run!"
"But you-!"
"There's no time, rodent! GO!"
His small shoulders slumped in remorse as he recalled the brief memory. While the situation was unique, the soldier's behavior was not; He had behaved selflessly on the behalf of other Maximals before. Rattrap always liked to believe that the action was based on some ulterior motive but, over time, nothing ever reveled itself. Right now, as before, he wasn't quite sure what to make of that...
"ACCESSING DATATRACK F8V-5," the probe announced. "COMMENCING PLAYBACK-"
"Yeah, that's fine. You go do that," Rattrap muttered, his previous enthusiasm gone. He appeared to take a seat on an invisible box and crossed his arms. "I don't want nothin' to do with this slag. I'm just gonna plant my pink hairless butt right here while you go and-"
"-NOW," the alien voice finished.
"Whoa!" The surrounding screens all disappeared as Rattrap wasn't so much as pulled directly into the selected datatrack as forcibly thrown. When he fell, it was on cold, barren ground, devoid of any traces of vegetation. Ancient pillars of rock and what looked like abandoned alien ruins stretched off into the bleak horizon line, to be lost in far-off dust storms. Lightening crackled overhead but there was no concussion of sound that usually followed such displays. The overhead clouds were a sickly churning green. Rattrap recognized the place even though the latest pictures he'd seen had to have been at least hundreds of stellar cycles out of date.
He was standing on Charr; the ancient refuge of the outcast Decepticons.
A couple of klicks off in the distance he caught sight of a sprawling base flanked by strategically placed emplacements. Spotlights swept back and forth across the ruined sky and it looked like weapons testing were being conducted off in one deserted field. Over in another, there was a mobilized regiment of soldiers, at least one hundred strong, practicing maneuvers. Shuttles and transports came and went with unsettling regularity in the nearby spaceport. Rattrap knew that Galvatron had once made Charr his base of operations, rallying the outcast Decepticon forces together while scheming over a way to take back Cybertron. What the Maximal was seeing now was not some overhauled relic from the past made serviceable by a battalion of soldiers. He was witnessing a state-of-the-art military base that appeared to be centered on providing intense battle training. The fact that they were doing this so far from Cybertron meant only one thing:
The Predacons were mobilizing their forces in preparation for war.
"Rust me silly," he whispered under his breath. Getting slowly to his feet, he tested his footing and couldn't understand how he was feeling actual substance beneath him. Or how he could taste the ash in the air with each breath he took. Hell, he could even feel the low vibrations of approaching footfalls -
Wait a minute. Approaching footfalls? "Aw no-!" He threw himself to one side as a body slammed through one of the rock piles to his left, pulverizing it into smaller rubble. A tall Predacon stirred in the debris and got slowly to its feet, displaying a lithe form designed for stealth and swift action. Its color scheme was black and dark red and from the forehead to the small of its back radiated sharp ebony spikes, all erect in agitation. Before Rattrap's stunned eyes, the bot turned in his general direction, gray optics glaring with rage, and suddenly reached behind for several of its spikes.
"Hey, now wait a minute-!" Rattrap was quickly backing up, hands outstretched in surrender. "I ain't interested in a rumble, buddy-"
The bot pulled two spikes free, transforming them into daggers and, with a scream that was distinctly female, threw them as hard as she could. Rattrap flinched as they passed harmlessly through his body and he looked down as his undamaged torso in surprise and relief.
"Nice toss," taunted a voice behind him and the Maximal whirled around in surprise, recognizing that strained growl.
Dinobot was standing there, casually holding onto the weapons with a slanted smile on his blue features. Rattrap recognized him right away even though his structure now lacked the organic components he had gained when they had all crashed on the planet together. Even so, his chest and arms were about the only things different now; being full robot-mode. His chassis was blue, broken up by the silver 'ribs' that added to his armor plating, and his arms were silver chrome with forearms that were elaborate gauntlets matching the unique coverings on his lower legs. His hands had five fingers and an opposable thumb, and all were tipped with a razor-sharp claw.
"Not good enough, obviously," the female snarled in response to the huge Predacon's comment. "You're still standing!" with that she leapt at him, flying through Rattrap who squawked again, flinching in reaction.
The two antagonists collided and went rolling down a nearby hill in a flurry of growls, disturbed dirt, and sparks as their claws raked against each other. Rattrap followed their frenzied course without moving and that was when he finally realized that he was only a spectator inside of Dinobot's memory, watching these events along with the alien probe. Why he wasn't seeing things chiefly from the soldier's viewpoint escaped him and he sensed that it had to do with technology far beyond his reckoning. Whatever the case, it certainly made for one hell of a movie-!
The pair rolled to a stop and parted, circling each other warily. The female drew weapons first, pulling out two more spikes from her back and transforming them into twin katanas. Dinobot reached behind his back and pulled out his broadsword just as she pounced in, and he blocked the attack with the larger weapon easily. Sparks flew from the force of the blow.
Glaring at one another over the deadlock, they snarled like two beasts, moving their faces in so close that their noses were almost touching. Teeth were bared in challenge-
They abruptly kissed.
The confrontation was over as weapons were thrown aside and they coupled roughly. Trying to offer them a modicum of privacy, a completely flustered Rattrap lowered the volume on his audios and kept his back to them (although, every once in a while, he did throw the odd glance over his shoulder in their general way). He couldn't figure out why the probe was dead set on accessing this particular datatrack, or –perhaps even more perplexing- why Dinobot had gone through all the hassle of encrypting these memories in the first place. From the looks of things, to say the soldier was enjoying himself was a vast understatement.
When they were finally through, Dinobot got to his feet with a weary grunt. "Time is short," he said brusquely. "We have less than a mega-cycle before reporting back to duty. What's my itinerary, Shade?"
Rattrap shook his head in annoyance. As far as he was concerned, this only justified his opinion that Predacons were a crazy, unstable breed: One second it had looked like a battle to the death, and the next the pair were carrying on like crazy lover-bots. Now they acted like casual business partners. Rattrap recalled Dinobot's specs in a hurry, trying to make sense of this. The name, Shade, came back to him: Conjugal ally.
"Holy frag," Rattrap muttered in disbelief, realizing what that meant.
Dinobot's mate smoothened down her spikes with a flourish, transforming them into a raven mane that reached down to the back of her knees. She consulted her memory banks and began to read aloud the day's agenda; "Epsilon2H7 scheduled a meeting with you. Likely to protest his transfer to Battalion V-"
"Tough. What else?"
"Routine drills. Unarmed combat training with Talon Company commences at-"
While the two talked, Rattrap saw a pile of earth behind them slowly begin to stir. At first he could only blink helplessly at this new sight, having reached the threshold of absorbing anymore input. The dirt parted to reveal a helmet where yellow optics glowed with acute interest. Slowly, silently, a medium-sized Predacon pulled itself out of its hiding spot-
"Uh, hey! Look out!" Rattrap called over to where the two Predacons were still conversing, apparently oblivious to this new threat. "Look behind you!"
They couldn't hear him of course. He was merely a spectator, not a participant in these events and he watched helplessly as the bot pulled itself to its full height, revealing a heavily armored form of dark red and yellow construction. He was holding an armed laserblade in his left fist and crept silently up behind the pair. When he reached a reasonable striking distance, he released an impatient scream and suddenly attacked.
Dinobot whirled, dropping down just as the laser sliced through the air above his head. Lashing out with a swift sidekick, he knocked the legs out from his would-be assailant. The soldier dropped to the ground with a dismayed shout and lost hold of his weapon. Plucking the blade easily out of the air, the larger soldier slammed it down through the hand of the young Predacon, impaling the appendage to the ground.
"Stealth first," Dinobot growled, placing one foot directly on the soldier's chassis and pinning him down with all of his considerable weight. "Then speed, then strength. You know better, Zeta7K3."
"Sir! I-I only thought-"
"I don't train you to think!" Dinobot shouted directly into his face. "I train you to obey orders! Such impulsiveness will only get you scrapped in a battle!" He let the younger Predacon up and pulled the laserblade out of his hand, freeing him. "Report to the infirmary. We will discuss your punishment later."
"Yes, Beta4K2," the youth said humbly. He saluted them both, passing the female Predacon standing off to the side an embarrassed, plaintive look, and then turned and trotted quickly towards the immense base.
Once he was out of earshot, Dinobot suddenly rounded on his associate and snapped; "He gets that foolishness from your side of the spark!"
Crossing her arms, the female said coolly, "Raze was just trying to impress you."
"Then he should quit while he's ahead! I swear, Shade, sometimes I don't know why we ever-" He suddenly flinched as there was a resounding explosion from directly overhead.
"Thunder," she muttered, holding out her hand. "We'd best get indoors before the acid rains start. Those damned showers always ruin my enamel."
"That wasn't thunder," he told her and just as she was about to question him, an enormous spacecraft burst from the gas clouds and did a low flyby past the pair as it headed for the spaceport. Its long, angular hull was unmarked obsidian and it had two fins that looked like claws tapering towards the back of the craft.
She gasped. "That sounds like an A-Class Reaper!"
Resorting to his zoom lens, he examined it as best he could. "It appears to have a Transwarp refit. There's only one craft in the fleet that has that particular adaptation."
She turned towards him in surprise. "The Darkside?"
"Yes."
"That's Megatron's ship!"
"Megatron..." Dinobot's face tightened up in disgust. "Only an egotistical sadist would deliberately change his personal ident to that designation."
"And that thought never crossed your mind, Indigo?"
He made a sound like he had been kicked below the waist.
She started laughing at his reaction. "Oh, come on! It's a cute name."
He made that sound again and grumbled, "For such a highly honored Combaticon as my sire was, he has absolutely no imagination. Named for a color. Gah."
"It could have been worse," she said with a grin. "He could have named you Sapphire."
He fixed her with a sullen glare but made no comment. He went back to studying the Darkside as it made preparations for landing. Judging by the way the ground forces were scurrying around trying to make space for the craft, Rattrap figured that this visit was far from expected. When he looked over at Dinobot, he caught sight of that usual tension in the Predacon's face. For some reason, the appearance of the ship seemed to be bothering him. "Gamma6B3."
"Back on the clock," she sighed, but there was no malice in her tone. "What are your orders, sir?"
"Alert Talon Company to prepare for a possible surprise inspection. I want full armor, all adaptations if possible, and complete armaments at the ready."
"Yes sir!" she turned and began running towards the base when he suddenly called her back with: "Keep this on the downside. Talon personnel only. If the other three Betas can't figure out what this visit means then scrap them. I want our unit to shine. Go!"
As Shade sped off with her orders, already calling the soldiers one by one on an encrypted channel reserved for their Company, Dinobot hung back and went back to staring at Megatron's craft. After a long, contemplative pause, he gave his head an irritated shake and headed quickly back to base
Less than an hour later his prediction came true when the base commander, Alpha1K0, called for all four infantry companies that made up the base's Battalion to assemble for inspection on the parade grounds. Rattrap was shocked to realize that Dinobot was the officer in charge of his particular unit with Shade acting as his second-in-command. He had at his disposal over one hundred soldiers; all young recruits armed to the teeth and wearing their battle armor, just as he had ordered. Three other battalions commanded an equal share of Predacons, making the total number almost five hundred strong. Rattrap couldn't believe his optics. All of them looked to be new models still in their first form, fresh from protoform encoding and development. They weren't clones, or drones, or autonomous droids; they were young, eager soldiers, all with unique, varied forms and functions and personalities of their own. Rattrap, like all Maximals, knew that Cybertron deliberately curtailed Predacon propagation in order to avoid exactly this scenario. Somehow, in some unknown fashion, their savage cousins had found a way around that interference and now their numbers were thriving.
"Frag me," Rattrap whispered, suppressing a chill in his fluids. He watched helplessly as Dinobot walked up the line, armor shining from the quick oil spray that had washed off the dirt and scratches from his earlier coupling. He inspected the recruits thoroughly before settling into attention beside Shade at the front of the unit. Compared to all of their highly polished armaments and tight formation, the other three companies; Fang, Spur, and Claw, came across as a disorganized jumble of incompetents.
Dinobot was almost chuckling as Megatron, flanked by the commander and a few lackeys, barely looked over the rival Companies before approaching his. Shade had to elbow him to stop his gloating and whispered, "Don't get cocky."
"Me? Never," he shot back with a grin, making her roll her optics in dismay.
"-and this is Talon Company under the direction of Beta4K2," the base commander was overheard saying as they approached. The Alpha was an immense weathered blue and gray model with faded yellow highlights and beginning to show the signs of his great age in the wear-and-tear of his bulky armor. The twin cannons on his back were irreparably pockmarked from long-ago battles. Rattrap thought that he looked familiar but couldn't put his finger on the name. Whatever the case, it was clear that the huge bot was a Decepticon, an indication that the old guard was still active and placed in positions of authority by Tripredacus Council where their age and battle experience could best be utilized.
For all of his size, the base commander still couldn't overshadow the purple-colored officer standing on his left. By Predacon standards, Megatron was considered an intimidating model in terms of both height and mass. He was well proportioned, his great weight fairly distributed throughout his structure allowing for both speed and strength. His design was unique, a clear representation of the new generation of Predacons currently infiltrating the military and swiftly rising through the ranks with their superior intellect and skills.
There was only one other soldier in this entire base that dared come close to him.
"Alpha9H4," Dinobot acknowledged, getting down to one knee in the formal military salute. Shade mimicked the stance and behind them, all of the soldiers followed suit with identical precision.
"On your feet, Beta4K2," Megatron ordered, deliberately sizing him up as he did so. In height Dinobot came up to his chin, which was no small feat, and easily matched his probing stare with no trace of discomfort or intimidation. The larger Predacon's smile broadened. "Very impressive, yes," he commented absently.
Dinobot wasn't sure if the Alpha was referring to him personally, or to his unit. "Thank you, sir."
And that was it. Megatron passed the Company an absent glance, nodded politely to Dinobot (ignoring Shade entirely), and then walked away with the Decepticon officer in tow, chatting idly about the base. Everyone remained in position until the commander finally passed the order over their comlinks: "The inspection is over. Everyone stand down."
There was a muttered undercurrent as soldiers began milling around, discussing the inspection in desultory tones. Shade made a wry face and looked up at her mate, commenting, "Is it just me or was that just damned peculiar?"
Looking equally baffled, Dinobot passed her a rare shrug.
"Well! Thanks again, Indigo!" the Beta officer of Spur Company came stomping over to where they were standing. "You made me and my soldiers look like total idiots! Why didn't you warn us there was going to be an inspection?"
Dinobot snorted. "As if you would have done the same were our positions reversed. Don't make me laugh."
A green and orange Flyer suddenly dropped down directly beside Dinobot and poked him in the shoulder. Hard. "Armorgator's right! You should have given all of the Betas a heads-up about an inspection."
"Spacecase, it was merely a calculated guess," the soldier said stiffly, "One that your obviously Afterburn-addled little mainframe didn't anticipate on its own."
"Was that an insult? Huh? I think that was an insult!"
"That was definitely an insult," the other Beta rumbled.
"Take it as you will," Dinobot said aloofly, crossing his arms and leveling them both with one of his patented condescending stares.
The aerial Beta assumed an exaggerated boxer's stance and began dancing around him while Armorgator clenched his fists and moved in threateningly. "Aw slag, here we go," Rattrap grumbled in dismay as the pair looked like they were readying a coordinated attack against the lone soldier. It seemed that Dinobot had the same penchant for ticking bots off here as he did on the Axalon. For some reason, though, he didn't seem to be reacting to the perceived threat.
There was perhaps fifteen seconds of building tension before all three burst out laughing. Rattrap looked to his huge rival in surprise, having never heard him laugh before. In the background, Shade rolled her optics at the display of male bravado and shook her head with a knowing little smile. "Males... give me strength," she muttered to herself.
"It's alright," Armorgator said, punching the soldier's shoulder hard enough to create sparks. "I would have done the exact same thing myself."
"Damned odd, though... this whole thing," Spacecase remarked, looking off towards the far section of the base that made up the main offices. It was where Alpha1K0 had led Megatron after their short-lived inspection. "Something doesn't feel right about it. Alphas don't just appear out of space like that. Especially not important ones like Megatron."
"Important?" commented a Gamma coming up to the trio. "Don't make me laugh! That purple prick only thinks he's important."
"As ever, Boomslang, you speak the truth," Dinobot said in a low voice.
"You know him, don't you?" Armorgator asked shrewdly.
"I know of him," the solder corrected. "He's a notorious loose cannon. Not even the Tripredacus Council can keep him on their leash for very long. Officers assigned to his crew have a nasty habit of getting scrapped."
"Well, well," commented a low, sultry voice in the background. "That certainly doesn't bode very well for you, does it Indigo?"
Dinobot stared at the new arrival with disdain. "What do you mean by that?"
"You didn't hear about it?" the last Beta officer said, sauntering over to them. The voice, and those distinctly svelte curves, were obviously female. Standing off to the side, Rattrap was coming to the conclusion that Predacon females were just about the sexiest things in armor he had ever seen. "My, my... will the wonders never cease?"
"What are you talking about, Fatality?" he snapped impatiently. Beside him, Shade's mane of spikes ruffled in agitation as the Beta came near. Rattrap could actually hear her growling deep in her throat and Dinobot discreetly kicked her in the shin to get her to shut up.
"Megatron is on a recruitment drive, Big Blue. He's searching for a worthy second-in-command," she explained, batting her green eyes at him and deriving another possessive growl from Shade. "Of all of us, you're the only one he talked to. I guess even you must know what that means."
Dinobot and Shade looked at one another with dawning realization while the others muttered amongst themselves in the background. Just then, the soldier's personal comlink snapped on: "Beta4K2, report to my office immediately," the base commander ordered.
"...Yes sir," he responded with a marked lack of enthusiasm.
Shade slapped a hand to her forehead. "Flak!"
"It was nice knowing you, handsome," Fatality said sweetly. "Don't forget to write."
The Alpha commander's office was on the far side of the base and Dinobot took his time walking over. Shade wanted to come with him but he ordered her to oversee the training drills of their unit. Further complicating the matter, Raze had overheard enough of the conversation to make a nuisance of himself. He was stationed with Fang Company, Fatality's regiment, and the damn Beta was enjoying every second as she made the situation that much worse for the young soldier with her thinly veiled innuendos. Rattrap sensed that there was some unresolved issue between Dinobot and the female Beta, if Shade's jealous reaction to her was any indication, but when the large soldier finally shouted at her to knock it off, Fatality relented and returned to her Company, with Raze reluctantly in tow.
Right now, the soldier approached the main office and wasn't even bothering to respond to the general hails of other soldiers. Rattrap knew from experience that when the Predacon 'shut down' emotionally, it meant that he was engrossed in deep thought and the end result was never a good one. When Dinobot finally reached his superior's door, he paused, straining his audio receptors to maximum so that he could listen in.
"-Including numerous commendations from the Tripredacus Council," came Megatron's unmistakable bass voice. "Impressive service record, his combat mission experience is extensive, far beyond even my expectations. All ending with successful outcomes and little to no losses. This pleases me, yes." There was a long pause and then, "His outdated honor code, however, is a concern."
Alpha1K0 responded with, "It's deeply imbedded in his core programming. Has been since the moment he came online. Is that going to be a problem?"
"I won't know until I speak with him," Megatron said and suddenly called out in a louder rumble; "Why don't you come in, Beta4K2, so that we can begin?"
Dinobot backed up a step in surprise and grumbled under his breath before opening the door. Once inside, he cast Megatron a veiled glance before focusing his gaze solely on his base commander. "You requested my presence, sir?"
"Yes. Have a seat."
Dinobot changed his rigid posture to a more casual stance as he ignored the proffered chair. "I'd prefer to stand, sir."
"As you will," sighed the old Decepticon, giving up on the matter and nodding at the other Alpha to proceed.
"We have not been formally introduced, no. My rank is Alpha9H4 but I would prefer it if we could just become friends. You may call me Megatron," the huge Predacon said, smiling.
"Thank you," Dinobot responded and added, almost as an afterthought, "Alpha9H4."
Rattrap burst out laughing.
Megatron's optics narrowed in irritation to the deliberate rebuff. Seated at the desk, the old Alpha shook his head and began to get engrossed in some datawork, trying to appear invisible.
"Let me rephrase that, Indigo," he tried again. "I insist that we dispense with the formalities here."
Dinobot's mouth twitched. "Very well... Megatron."
"Excellent," his smile was back, as broad and false as ever. "I won't waste our valuable time with mundane small talk. To put things simply: I've come to Charr in search of a second-in-command. More specifically, I've come here for you." He pulled out a datapad and handed it over as he explained further, "Your transfer orders come straight from the Tripredacus Council. Everything has been arranged."
Dinobot nodded mutely as he read the data. He took his time, so long a time, in fact, that Megatron began getting restless. In exasperation, he finally turned to the other Alpha and rudely asked; "Is he slow?"
The base commander knowingly shook his head. "Just extremely thorough. It can get damned bothersome at times."
Dinobot spared them both a resentful glance and went back to reviewing the information. When he was finally done, he said bluntly, "These orders are not legitimate."
Megatron whirled around in anger. "Explain!"
"The source code lacks the imbedded sigil of the Council. This is a forgery," he threw the datapad back to Megatron who fumbled with it, almost dropping the device in his shock.
"How dare you!" the purple Alpha sputtered. "I've told you these orders are genuine-"
"Then you won't object to an expert inspection." Dinobot slapped his chestplate and called, "Gamma7X4, your presence-"
Megatron abruptly crushed the datapad to pieces in his fist.
"Come back, Beta4K2? I didn't get the rest," came the response.
"False alarm. As you were," Dinobot said, severing the connection. He favored the larger Predacon with a spiteful glare; "I am not some inexperienced Beta you can fool easily with your tricks. I deserve an explanation."
"You are a subordinate and I am still Alpha," Megatron said slowly, on the edge of serious anger. "Whether I have approval of the Council or not is irrelevant. I only thought it would make the transition that much smoother out of consideration for the diversions you have here."
"...My 'diversions'," Dinobot repeated guardedly. He crossed his arms and began tapping his bicep with an errant finger. "Is that what you call them?" he snarled with clear menace.
"Watch your tone, Beta4K2," the base commander cautioned.
Taking note of the defensiveness, the larger Predacon decided to switch tactics. "Your decision to remain on Charr is costing our breed a valuable resource. You are a Front Line Combat Specialist-"
"I know what I am, Megatron!"
"Do you? You've settled for training novices on some miserable scrap of rock! You are designed for battle and conquest, Indigo. You're meant for more than..." he motioned at the view port to the base lying beyond it, "...that." He spared the old Alpha a glance, "No offense."
The base commander offered him a distracted wave. "None taken."
"And I'm to assume that working for you would be an improvement?" Dinobot growled, his words dripping with sarcasm. "I rather doubt it."
"Last warning, Beta4K2," the old Alpha said harshly.
Megatron slammed his hands down on the desk, creating cracks across the stone surface. He leaned over until the two of them were directly face-to-face. "If trying to reach your sense of duty will have no effect, then how about your vanity? I have an inexperienced crew who need your expertise. I've no patience to indulge them. You are uniquely experienced, intelligent, and specifically skilled for my particular employ." Megatron took a deep breath and gritted his teeth as he forced himself to say; "I need you onboard my ship."
The tension in Dinobot's face eased as he silently considered the larger Predacon's words. This time, Megatron wisely waited him out. "For how long?" he asked at last.
"Four stellar cycles."
"Brief tenure," the soldier mused. "This isn't a permanent placement, then. A mission posting? What are the details?"
"They're classified," Megatron said, and made the mistake of smiling again. "I'll be more than happy to fill you in when you accept the position. What do you say, Indigo?" He graciously extended his hand towards the other.
"Don't do it," Rattrap said beside him, knowing that he was wasting his time. These events had already been put into motion and the final result had stranded them all, Maximal and Predacon alike, on an alien world. He had to remind himself that this was just a memory; there was no changing its course, and the Maximal cringed in expectation of the next words to come out of his ally's mouth. "Ah, you dead-head Pred, stupid stupid stu-"
"No." Dinobot surprised all of them by saying, "My answer is no, Alpha9H4. I'm staying right here."
Rattrap started clapping.
Megatron lost it.
All along, Alpha1K0 had been acting like he was expecting Dinobot to be the problem. He was completely unprepared when Megatron threw over the heavy slab desk in his haste to get at the defiant soldier. He grabbed Dinobot by the throat and their momentum carried them both through the cinderblock wall and out onto the base grounds. Several soldiers had to get quickly out of the way to avoid getting smashed by the hail of debris.
Megatron managed to keep his balance and nailed the downed soldier with a precise kick in the right side that shattered two of the chrome ribs. Dinobot gripped his wounded side and tried to keep from screaming. When the Alpha moved in again, Dinobot rolled away just as the larger bot stamped down on the asphalt, the foot actually disappearing into the dirt. He leapt to his feet and the two locked arms and their brawl took them through another wall, this time landing in the middle of a debriefing. Two-dozen soldiers of various ranks had to scramble out of their way as the pair wrestled amid the rows of chairs, desks, and equipment.
Rattrap had seen the pair scrap before but what he had seen on the planet was nothing to match the savagery of the combat he was witnessing right now. The pair were so lost to their battle rage that they hadn't even thought to utilize their weapons yet. It was just down to rough and dirty hand-to-hand combat. Fists crashed into each other with the force of concessive shells and their usual bluster was lost to growls of rage and hatred.
Grabbing onto a pillar that was part of the roof support structure, Megatron hauled it free from its rivets and used it as a club to knock Dinobot to the ground. As the larger Predacon moved in for a more personal attack, the soldier managed to knock the feet out from under him. He grabbed Megatron's left foot and stomped his armored heel directly down on the knee joint while wrenching the rest of the leg upwards. There was the grinding of pistons, and several struts audibly snapped and Megatron gripped his mutilated leg and released an agonized bellow that echoed all over the base.
Dinobot was finally reaching for his sword when gray arms encircled his upper body, holding him with surprising strength. The base commander was pressed up behind him, growling into his helmet; "Stand down! That's an order!"
The grounds were full of soldiers still lingering around after the short-lived inspection, and a crowd was beginning to gather around the trio with astonishing speed. Brawls among soldiers with a Delta rank and below were fairly common, but there was nobody on the entire base that had ever seen one that involved an Alpha. Let alone two and a Beta! Because of this fact there was very little conversation among the assembled Predacons, and certainly no cheers. Everyone seemed to be in the thrall of dumbfounded shock. Optics of varying colors were trained on the scene with astonished interest.
Megatron wrenched his leg back into place with a pained shout and stumbled backwards, almost falling when he tried to place his great weight on the damaged limb. Several soldiers moved in to help support him. He pointed at Dinobot and roared; "Seize him! He just attacked a superior officer!"
"You attacked me first!" Dinobot shot back, cradling his wounded side. "Alpha1K0 will attest to that!" he turned expectantly towards his commander.
"I didn't see anything," the old Alpha told him. There was a muttered undercurrent among the gathered crowd at his declaration.
"You-" Dinobot was at a complete loss for words. Unable to face the betrayal etched in the younger Predacon's eyes, the commander had to turn away from him.
"I demand reparations," Megatron snarled. "I want him racked. Fifty lashes!"
Alpha1K0 looked at him as if he were crazy. "A rack-? We don't have one of those here!"
Megatron was absolutely dumbfounded. "It's standard issue to deal with deserters-"
"This is Charr!" the commander shouted back. "Where else can they go?" This was joined in by a few affirmatives from the anxious audience.
Snarling in fury, the huge Predacon turned to the assembled soldiers and demanded; "One of you must have a laser whip. Hand it over!"
Nobody moved. Watching the situation as it steadily deteriorated, Rattrap noticed that many of the soldiers were exchanging glances, obviously torn between alliances. Dinobot was a Beta, and clearly held in quite high regard by peers and subordinates alike, but Megatron was an Alpha. As soldiers, they had no choice but to obey the rank.
Several whips came to the front of the group and were placed on the ground but no one claimed ownership. If anything, those standing closest to the weapons actually backed away from them. Megatron selected the first one he saw and turned it on. A rope of white light snaked out of the tip and scorched the ground it touched. He deliberately snapped it in the air and rounded on the soldier with a grin of pure evil etched on his face.
"Aw no," Rattrap moaned, knowing where this was going. In vain, he reached for his gun purely out of instinct and found his weapon was gone. He was being forced to watch this play out just like everyone else.
The base commander also knew what was coming and turned to his soldiers, shouting; "I want everyone to withdraw immediately! That's an or-"
"No!" Megatron overrode him. "I want you all to watch what happens to officers who are insubordinate! You need to learn that there are consequences-" he was interrupted by a hand falling on his shoulder.
He turned just in time to receive a chrome fist directly in the face. The sound of the blow reverberated throughout the grounds and Megatron was knocked completely off of his feet and sent skidding along the ground in a spray of sparks.
Dinobot shook his aching hand and declared, "If I'm to wear the title of 'insubordinate' then I'd best make it count." He pulled his sword free of its sheathe and started moving in for the kill when the Alpha commander grabbed hold of him again, trying to restrain him. Armorgator fought his way through the astonished crowd and rushed to help the Alpha. That broke the general paralysis of the main group and several soldiers of varying ranks split up; one side keeping the irate soldier contained and the others running over to help the fallen Alpha.
With a shout of rage, Megatron bowled over his would-be assistants and got to his feet, spitting out two broken teeth. Armorgator, a Predacon that was about as wide as he was tall, had managed to use his greater weight to pin Dinobot against the wall of the building but he was having a hard time keeping him there. The soldier almost managed to get free of that greater weight, thrashing in fury.
Clearing the distance between them, Megatron moved in until their noses were almost touching. "I'm going to flay the metal right off of your frame," he promised, brandishing the whip.
"Do your worst," Dinobot snarled back.
And he did.
When it was finally over, the base commander wanted to send him straight to the regeneration chamber but Megatron, completely out of breath from his efforts, would hear none of it. "Do you... at least have a Pit on this pathetic base?" he panted.
"Yes Megatron, but-!"
"Throw him down there," he ordered. He threw away the whip and began rubbing his aching shoulder. "Let his pain be his companion for the next few hours. I'm sure he'll be much more docile when we talk later. Yes," with that, the huge Alpha limbed slowly back to his ship for repairs of his own. He didn't have to fight through a crowd because, by now, there hardly was one. When the lashings began, the recruits began to disperse on their own and quietly drifted away in disturbed clusters, not wanting any part of this particular brand of discipline. By the end of it, only the Betas remained to play witness, protecting of their own, and they immediately went to their fallen comrade's side when Megatron walked away.
"You heard him," Alpha1K0 said wearily. "Take him to the Pit."
Darkness again. Rattrap would have liked to believe that the playback of the datatrack was over and he was once more back in Dinobot's mainframe but he knew that just wasn't so. When he reached out, he could feel smooth, cold stone and he could hear the labored breathing of the holding cell's main occupant. The Pit was precisely just that: a holding cell scraped out of rock twenty feet beneath the ground and accessible only by a narrow shaft and a lift.
Every once in a while, red optics flashed on, evaluated the surroundings, and went dim again. Dinobot was badly injured from Megatron's assault. It wasn't severe enough to go into a stasis lock or permit him the luxury of being able to pass out from the pain, but it wasn't hard to tell that he was suffering. Rattrap knew that the laser whip had left cauterized lash marks across his rival's chest and back, impossible to see now in the dark. He had lost count how many lashings the soldier had endured.
Hunkering down beside him, Rattrap tried to touch him but his hand went through, just as he expected. Strange that he could interact with the environment but not the occupants; some side effect of the probe's interference, he figured. "Look, I didn't know," he said helplessly, knowing he couldn't be heard but the words spilled out anyway. "I always thought that you and Megs and the rest of the goon squad were all one big happy gang. I-I had no idea things were... y'know, like this. I mean, really, how could I? Why the slag didn't you-"
"Indigo," spoke a voice over his left shoulder.
"Agh!" Rattrap recoiled in shock.
There was a scrape of metal and a light came on as Shade transformed one of her spikes into a torch. She slammed it into the ground and knelt down beside her mate, running her fingers gently along the lash marks. "Flak! Too many to count. Can you hear me?"
His optics slowly winked on, widening in recognition. "You should... not... be here-"
"Don't tell me what I can and can't do," she said crisply, helping him sit up. She unscrewed a bottle she had with her and held it up to his mouth. "Drink this. It should help restore some of your power loss."
He pulled his head back, actually trying to argue, "...Your energon ration-"
"Drink!" she shouted.
Meekly, he submitted and drank the contents. After a few minutes, he was able to sit up on his own and he briefly consulted his onboard computer for a diagnostic. "Half power now. At least when Megatron returns I'll be able to face him on my feet instead of my knees."
She was not amused at the poor attempt at levity. "Why? So you can start another fight?" she asked bitterly.
"I didn't start this conflict, Shade," he said and told her what had happened in the base commander's office.
She absorbed this and suddenly growled, "Alpha1K0 betrayed you. That coward! And to think he's-"
"I'll deal with him, eventually. Right now, Megatron is the greater threat."
The anger left her as quickly it had come. She touched his face with the tips of her fingers, the contact lingering. "It's only for four years... I can wait. That's not such a long time-"
Dinobot shook his head. "It was a clear lie. Once I step onboard that ship, I'll never be permitted to return. I'll be considered on active duty once more. You know what that means as well as I do."
"Back to the front line, back to territory expansion," she nodded slowly, regretfully. They fell into troubled silence for a long while. Observing the scene, Rattrap wished desperately that there was something he could do or say, anything to try and ease the pain that the pair were feeling, and not just from the physical injuries, either. But there was nothing he could do. In a way, he was just as helpless in this situation as they were. And almost as miserable.
Eventually, she said, "You are only a Beta. You have no choice but to obey the orders of an Alpha superior. We both knew that this day would come sooner or later."
He blinked in astonishment. "You would let me go?"
"Indigo, I have no choice-"
"We are free-thinking Predacons!" he suddenly yelled at her. "The days of being slaves ended with the Quintessons! Of course we have a choice!"
"We are also soldiers," she reminded him sorrowfully. "And we follow our orders."
"Not this one. Not this time," he snarled through clenched teeth. "The only way I'm leaving Charr is in a recycling bin!"
She suddenly punched him across the face, the sound of her knuckles hitting his helmet with a clear Clang! in the small space. His head swung with the blow, and when he looked back, the expression in his face was frankly astonished, "What -?"
"How the flak is your termination supposed to help me? Or Raze?" she yelled at him. "How are we supposed to bear the burden of your disgrace? Better you go out and serve your duty with us at least knowing you're functioning to your true potential!"
He poked her deliberately in the chest. "Don't you dare sermonize to me about serving my duty, female," he said in a low, dangerous tone. "You have absolutely no idea what it is like to be used as a weapon day after day with nothing to look forward to but more never-ending combat. I endured two full centuries of that miserable existence. I'm staying right here!"
She got to her feet with an exasperated exhale of breath and stood with her back to him, her arms crossed in anger and frustration. The spikes along her back were rustling in agitation, hitting against each other with small metallic clicks. "Megatron is an Alpha, but he is also a diplomat," she considered out loud. "Since violence clearly won't sway him, perhaps it's time to engage him in a straight-forward discussion."
"Never," Dinobot growled.
She passed him a glance over her shoulder. "I wasn't talking about you."
He opened his mouth in surprise and managed to get out, "...No. No! You stay away from him!" He got slowly to his feet with a pained groan and reached out for her arm, turning her around. "Megatron called you a diversion. He knows you're one of the reasons I won't leave here. He-"
"Perhaps I can convince him that it would be for the best if I came along with you," she said hopefully. "I'm not without skills. Raze can fend for himself now. We spoil him too much anyway, and-"
"Gamma6B3, I am ordering you not to pursue this insanity."
She pulled her arm free with a hard yank. "Your rank was suspended the instant you struck Megatron. You have no authority over me now."
"Shade-!"
"I have to try!" she cried miserably, her voice breaking with emotion. "Don't you understand that? I can't just stand on the sidelines watching you suffer like this and do nothing! I have to try something to help!" She backed up against the wall and her form adopted the attributes of the stone until only her optics were visible. "I'll come back, I promise," she told him and closed her eyes, becoming virtually invisible as she engaged some sort of innate cloaking field. There was a clatter of claws raking against the stone tunnel that reached the surface, a brief spill of light as the trap door was slid aside, and then silence.
"SHADE!" he screamed after her. He became frantic and tried to follow her up the shaft, his claws and feet digging into the rock for purchase. He managed to make it halfway up when several of the whip burns along his back tore apart from the strain. Screaming in pain, he fell to the bottom with a crash, landing on his wounded side where Megatron had shattered the decorative 'ribs' of his armor. When he managed to get back on his feet again, he began to pace back and forth in the confined space like a rabid animal, his words lost to intelligible snarls and growls of inarticulate fury.
Trying to keep out of his way, Rattrap had no choice but to wait things out right along with him and he was scared to death. Had he really thought that he'd seen the Pred pissed off when they bickered? There was nothing to compare against what he was seeing right now. Dinobot was in pure battle mode, his optics blazing red fire and his teeth bared to expose a mouthful of tiny silver daggers. He slashed mindlessly at the walls, breaking off claws and not even noticing. He screamed up at the trap door until his voicebox overloaded.
An unknown time later, the trap door opened and the lift descended into the holding cell. Backing up until he was flush against the wall, Dinobot got down into a defensive crouch and his eyes went green as he powered up his lasers. His breath was whistling through his clenched teeth and his entire frame was shuddering with rage.
The lift reached the bottom and Fatality was standing there. The usual haughtiness was gone from her face and she could barely make eye contact with the soldier. "Indigo... I-I have bad news-"
His lasers winked off. "...no-"
Rattrap recoiled as the image suddenly shattered into a thousand fragments and he found himself back in Dinobot's mainframe surrounded by all of the orderly datatrack screens. The row in front of him had gone black again.
Dinobot's onboard computer insisted: "//Datatracks F4L- 2 through to N9S-98 have been re-encrypted to prevent unauthorized retrieval."
"OVERRIDE ENCRYPTION."
"//Neg-negat-tive. Access d-de-denied-""Aw, c'mon! Leave him alone!" the Maximal shouted in dismay. "Ain't it clear to you that he doesn't want to go through this? Just leave him the slag alone awreddy!"
"YOU MUST KNOW."
Rattrap recoiled in shock. He craned his head up to look around. "I- what?"
"SO YOU WILL UNDERSTAND."
"Me? Understand what? What th' slag are you talking about, you crazy son of a-"
"OVERRIDE. ACCESSING DATATRACK M1F-17," the probe announced. "COMMENCING PLAYBACK. NOW."
"Slag!" He experienced that sensation of being thrown again and protectively wrapped his arms around his head as he slammed into onto the unrelenting surface of a stone floor. When he dared to look around he saw that he was now in some sort of lab, probably the base infirmary judging by the CR chambers set along the far wall. The huge room was brightly lit and sterile, smelling of servo fluids and welded metal, and over to one side were a group of Predacons milling uncomfortably around. Fatality and Armorgator, and several of the Gamma-ranked soldiers were standing together in an anxious, distraught cluster talking in hushed tones. Rattrap wondered how he was seeing this memory if Dinobot was immersed in one of the repair tanks. He got to his feet and slowly approached the small group, his audios straining to hear what was going on;
"-No, Delta9A1 found her near the loading bay-"
"- talked to the medic, he thinks the damage is irreparable-"
"Then he's not much of a medic! She's strong, she'll get-"
"How is he?" Fatality said, looking anxiously over to the corner.
"Don't go near him," Armorgator cautioned. "I tried to pull him over to a tank and look-" He held up his arm and showed her the half moons of tiny punctures all along his wrist. "Those teeth aren't just for show. Just... leave him alone."
Looking over to where they were staring, Rattrap shouldn't have been surprised to see the soldier standing in the corner, but he was all the same.
Dinobot was a wreck. In this bright light, the full impact of his injuries from Megatron's lashings was horrific. Both sides of his armor were crisscrossed with dark black gashes from his knees all the way up to his neck. The whip had left a burn across his face and helmet right across the bridge of his nose, barely missing his optics. He was also bearing the dents from his earlier clash with Megatron, and had his right arm tightly pressed against his wounded side. When one of the technicians dared to approach him offering a patch, he rounded on the smaller Predacon with a livid snarl, driving him backwards.
"This isn't going to end well," Armorgator said sadly. "For either of them."
I don't wanna be here, Rattrap thought forcefully at the probe, hoping it could hear him. He squeezed his eyes shut on the sight of his wounded, inconsolable rival and shouted with his mind: I don't wanna see this! Make it stop!
Look, just make it stop...?
But the datatrack played on.
An alarm sounded from the nearby CR chamber and the ramp began to rise. Three senior techs consulted the readout, conversed briefly and then dispersed. One went to the nearby console, entering commands, while another walked over to the group of assembled Predacon officers and began explaining the situation. The last one gathered his courage and cautiously approached Dinobot. "Beta4K2-?"
"Tell me," he rasped, his voice was painfully hoarse.
"As you know, Gamma6B3 was found in stasis lock with a projectile penetration that went completely through the shielding of her helmet. We discovered that the damage was centered in her intellect sub-routines, affecting all memory protocols. In attempting a reboot, we found her receptive. My associates and I were successful in repairing the damaged core, but-"
"Flak!" Shade said in exasperation once the lift ascended to the top of the tank and she had a chance to get her bearings. Her spikes radiated outwards and were shaking off the regen fluids in a fine spray of glowing blue droplets. "What the slag happened?!"
Dinobot roughly shoved the medic aside and approached her. "Rank, designation, and ident. Now!" he ordered.
"Gamma6B3, Infiltration, Shade," she responded automatically, and then cast the soldier a bewildered, frustrated look. "And you are-?" She reached out to touch his chest and he recoiled away before her fingers could feel the damage.
"Beta4K2, Infantry, Indigo," he said and waited for the reaction.
She automatically saluted and announced. "I'm ready for duty, sir!"
Fatality and Armorgator were back to talking again in their concerned, hushed voices. Trying desperately to keep his emotions under control, Dinobot asked her bluntly, "Are the rank and name familiar?"
"No sir." Her face grew puzzled. "Should they be?"
His face tightened up. He tried to answer her but couldn't form the words.
After a long bout of strained silence, Shade shouted to the room. "Well, could someone tell me what's going on? Everything's a blank. The last thing I remember is taking a shuttle to Asteroid 24 and then- Zip!" She was quickly joined by the band of Gammas, her peers, who moved in to assure her that everything was all right.
It wasn't, though. Nothing was all right. Even Rattrap could tell that much.
Dinobot turned away from her and began heading quickly for the exit. The medic tried to keep up with his long strides, trying to tell him; "All of her memory banks of the last twenty stellar cycles were lost to the damage but her intelligence is intact. You don't have to worry about that, Beta4K2, if that's a concern. Her skills and her service to her duty are unimpaired. It's just a memory gap-"
Dinobot stopped short and grabbed the front of the shocked medic's armor and glared down at him. "Just a memory gap?" he snarled in disbelief. "She's my-!" He choked on the word and glanced urgently over at Shade again. The Gammas were all speaking at once in a disorganized jumble of conflicting information and she finally screamed out; "One at a time! I can't process what you're telling me!"
"You were attacked, Shade," commented a fellow officer.
The severity of the situation was beginning to finally dawn on her. "Attacked? By who?"
"Nobody knows-"
"The flak nobody knows!" Boomslang hissed resentfully. "It could only be Megatron-"
One of the other Gamma's shouldered him roughly, hissing, and the pair cast a guilty, anxious glance over in Dinobot's direction.
The soldier's eyes had transformed to green slits when he heard the hateful name. He pulled his sword free with a strained snarl and suddenly turned and bolted for the door.
"Stop him!" Armorgator shouted. "He's going to try and attack Megatron again!"
Fatality watched the soldier run past her and did nothing. She turned to the other Beta and spat out, "Let him."
Armorgator was a huge behemoth of a soldier. In many ways, he reminded Rattrap of Rhinox, and not just in his build, but also his long-suffering patience. With a muttered curse, the dark brown Predacon pulled free an enormous MFG Assault gun from his subspace pocket and gamely tied to give chase. He knew that he would never catch the younger, faster Beta but he meant to at least try-!
Outside, right in front of the infirmary doors, Dinobot had come to a complete stop and the soldier almost plowed into him in his surprise. The twin cannons of a Cybertronian missile truck were pressed up against his whip-lashed chestplate and were fully armed and ready to fire.
"Armorgator," the vehicle commanded, "Go back inside."
The Beta hesitated, clearly torn between alliances. "Alpha1K0... Sir, I really don't think-"
"Now!"
The soldier relented, leaving the two to their peculiar standoff.
"I will have my vengeance," Dinobot stated, fearlessly looking down into the two armed barrels of the huge tank. "I will kill Megatron for what he has done and then-" he deliberately whacked one of the cannons with his sword, "I'll come back to exact my revenge for your earlier betrayal. Now move aside!"
There was the sound of the cannons powering up and then they reluctantly whined back down. The vehicle pulled back and, with a wretched squeal of ancient metal, transformed into the more recognizable form of the base commander. He had apparently come prepared for this encounter and now had his sonic stun gun deliberately aimed at the furious Beta.
Rattrap watched the confrontation with shocked wonder, momentarily forgetting about what had happened in the infirmary. The transformation of the old Decepticon had jarred a memory loose and the Maximal remembered something Dinobot had said earlier when Shade had teased him about his person ident. Something about a Combaticon...
"Oh, holy slag," he said in an amazed voice, staring at them both in disbelief. The base commander, Alpha1K0... he was-was-!
Onslaught said evenly, "Believe me when tell you that this gives me absolutely no pleasure."
"Old fool. Even with the shape I'm in, you're no match for me and we both know it-"
"You have no proof that Megatron scrapped Gamma6B3!"
"Your defense of him is all the proof I need!" Dinobot snarled spitefully
"I am not in league with that pontificating tyrant," the old commander sneered, slightly lowering his weapon. "But I do know that killing Megatron will only incur the wrath of the Tripredacus Council. They will send forces here and wipe this base off the map in retaliation; that includes Shade, your friends, your Company! Everyone you know! How can your honor allow that to happen?"
"How dare you appeal to my honor?" the soldier hissed, but he was slowly lowering his sword as the words penetrated his rage. His battered form was shaking with restrained violence. "How-how dare you-!"
"Beta4K2, it is done," the senior officer told him roughly as he reintegrated the stun gun back into his forearm. "You have no choice but to comply. Megatron is waiting for you," he gestured over to the spaceport where the hulking form of the Darkside was readying for take-off. Ground forces were running back and forth beneath the immense craft, inspecting it one last time.
Dinobot remained right where he was. "No!" he said, shaking his head. "There's nothing that can make me leave here!"
"Actually, there is one thing," his superior said solemnly, his face rigid and lined with anger and despair. "And right now... Megatron has him."
Snapping his head up, the soldier stared at his commander with confusion. That emotion was quickly replaced with dawning realization and then became outright panic. Without another word, he sprinted across the tarmac towards the Military cruiser as fast as he could run. Watching him go, Onslaught; that battered veteran who had endured more than his own share battles against a superior officer named Megatron in a totally different time and age, could only hang his head in surrender knowing what the future held in store for his soldier.
"I'm truly sorry, Indigo," Rattrap heard him whisper.
The engines of the Darkside were starting to power up with a grinding roar that sounded like a snarling beast. Megatron was standing at the end of the ship's boarding ramp, casually chatting with one of the engineers of the base and he looked up expectantly when Dinobot came charging over to them. So did the smaller figure standing next to him.
"Ah, Indigo!" the purple Alpha greeted cordially, as if they were old friends who had known one another for years. "How wonderful for you to come and see us off!"
Dinobot flashed Megatron a glare that was full of livid hate before dropping his gaze to the young Predacon beside him. His optics softened. "It is past your curfew, Zeta7K3. Return to barracks."
Raze didn't appear to know what was going on. He craned his head to look up to the huge Alpha, "I don't understand, sir? I thought you said my transfer to your crew was all in order."
"A slight oversight, yes," Megatron lied smoothly. He flashed a grin at Dinobot as he placed a possessive hand on the young recruit's shoulder. "As you can see, I have just what I came for-"
"No, you don't," Dinobot interrupted and suddenly readied his lasers.
"Whoa-! Here we go again!" Rattrap cried and threw himself away from Megatron.
To his shock, the twin green blasts smashed into Raze instead and knocked the youth the length of the landing bay until he smashed against the far wall, hitting it so hard that he left a dent in the metal resembling his shape. He slumped to the floor unconscious, but not before flashing his Beta a miserable look of confused betrayal before succumbing to his injuries.
Appearing not to have noticed that condemning glare, Dinobot turned to Megatron and said evenly, "You can wait half a day for his repair cycle to be completed or you can take me in his stead. What do you want to do-" he almost choked on the next word and finally managed to get it out between clenched teeth, "-sir?"
Initially trying to look irritated, a gloating smile of triumph slowly spread across Megatron's dark features. On the sidelines, Rattrap found himself reaching for his pistol again. He wanted nothing more than to blow that slagging smirk off of the Predacon's face at point blank range but, as before, his weapon was gone.
"I've wasted enough time on this miserable base. Let's go," the Alpha said shortly and stomped up into the ship. Reluctantly, Dinobot followed after him. When he turned one last time to spare a glance to Raze, Megatron deliberately slammed his fist on the nearby console and the ramp retracted to let the bay doors close, hiding the soldier from his view. Dinobot continued to stare at the dark metal without expression.
The huge Alpha stared down at him, apparently savoring in the victory. At last, he remarked, "Your appearance is disgusting. Report for duty after you have competed a repair cycle."
The response was little more than a weary sigh, "Yes, sir."
"Have you already forgotten what I told you earlier about my disdain with formalities?"
There was another strained pause, then: "No, Megatron. I... apologize for the lapse."
"Very good, yess," Megatron's cocky smile broadened. With a curt nod, he turned on his heel and walked briskly down the corridor towards the command center. Rattrap could actually hear the son of a bot humming to himself.
Dinobot watched him go until he was out of sight and then turned to look at the closed bay doors again. Dropping his head, he rubbed his eyes with a weary hand and his chest gave one compulsive hitch before he managed to rein the emotion in under tight control. It was a long time before he straightened with difficulty, visibly gathering his composure, and finally turned and headed in the opposite direction from where his new commander had gone, intent on a repair cycle before officially reporting to duty. The look on his face was of someone who had given up living and was now just going through the motions.
By the time he reached the repair room and entered the settings for the regeneration cycle, he was becoming agitated again and pressed a shaking hand to his forehead. "Computer..."
"//Online," came the immediate response of his onboard system.
"Encrypt datatracks F4L- 2 through to N9S-98," he said harshly.
"//Reason for encryption?"
"I won't be able to function to my fullest capacity as long as they're accessible. Encrypt the datatracks now to prevent any possible retrieval."
There was a short pause before the computer offered the prompt: "//A text description is required to effectively label this omission in place of playback."
Dinobot considered his response very seriously. Finally, he closed his eyes and ordered the computer to enter: "//Voluntarily returned to active duty under the command of Alpha9H4 / Ident: Megatron. Posting: Darkside. Duration of mission: Four years. Mission specifics: Classified. Conjugal ally conceded to action-" his voice suddenly hoarsened and he lapsed back into pained silence, waiting for the computer to initiate the action.
"//Text entered for record," his system assured him. "//Action completed. Encryption enabled-"
The image went dark and Rattrap found himself back in Dinobot's mainframe again, surrounded by the glowing screens of the hacked datatracks. It had only taken eight megacycles for this selected passage of encrypted memory files to play out from start to finish. Eight hours for Dinobot's life to go from total contentment among family and friends, to be reduced to little more than a dishonored slave. If Rattrap hadn't seen it all with his own optics, he would never have believed it.
"NOW YOU KNOW," the probe told him.
Yeah, Rattrap nodded to himself sadly.
Yeah, I sure do.
Part Four: Megatron launches his assault on the Axalon.