Back again, with another exciting chapter of my Tranformers fanfiction story! So, want to know exactly what happens in this chapter? Read on to find out!

DISCLAIMER: Do not own Transformers Animated. Just my fancharacters and nothing else.

Transformers: Animated

Finding One of Their Own

Ch. 3 – An Unexpected Discovery

Later that solar cycle, at the Autobot base made out of an old abandoned car factory, Rachet was hard at work, making the list of possible Autobots that were missing from Cybertron that could match the specfications of the motorcycle he examined earlier at the crash site. After a few long megacycles later, getting as far as he could, Optimus came in, being followed by Prowl, to see how much progress had been made since returing home.

"Okay, what exactly did you find out?," the youngbot leader inquired, coming up behind the war veteran and examining the results.

"Well, after combing file after file after file, I was only able to find five bots that meet the qualifications and description of the motorcycle," the medibot explained. Leaning back to let Optimus look through the details, he added, "I just then have to sift through these and narrow them down to at least one to two possible choices."

"And have you?," the red and blue mech asked.

"To answer your question, I've already elimnated one mech named Longdrive because his vehicle mode was too big to match the bike's size," Rachet almost half-snapped. "That means one of these four bots is here on this planet."

Giving a short nod, Optimus began looking through the remaining files, studying each one carefully to see if he could simplify the list down himself.

During this time, Prowl had been watching close behind, wondering how far this was going to go when the name of one femmebot caught his attention. He moved closer and read the details of the file, his optics filling up with memories of a fellow ninja-bot that he thought was lost along with his beloved mentor so long ago. Could it even be possible that she was here the entire time, safe and sound and not off-line on some distant planet? Lost in his thoughts, he didn't realize that both Optimus and Rachet were looking at him while he was reading. Sensing their optics on him, he looked up, stared for a nanoklik, cleared his audial sensor, leaned up, and looked up in the opposite direction. The other two bots looked at each other for a klik, wondering what was going on with the ninja-bot. After that awkward moment had passed, they returned to their project, and not a cycle later, Optimus's comm link clicked, in which he answered, "Optimus here. Anything to report?"

"Well, all we could determine was that something of this size is either alien or something a 'Con would pilot," Bumblebee answered. "It would really be helpful if we had the docbot here, ya know, since with all the knowledge he has on them, he could clarify what we can't."

"Alright, we'll be right there," the commanding mech sighing, signing off. "We'd better head back. Sounds like they need some help deciphering some parts."

With nods from the other two, they all transformed and headed back to the scene of the crash, never knowing what kind of evil they were about to discover had landed on the planet.

By the time they had arrived, night had fallen, which would have made it a bit harder for the bots to examine the wreckage, but with some of the police force that were still on the scene, had set up a few giant spotlights, suprisingly thanks to Bumblebee somehow. After the other three had transformed into their alt modes, all five mechs gathered around the busted-up ship, hoping to figure out its origins from simply the debris. As Rachet examined the hull, he came across its crest and had to do a double-take. It looked like the brand of the Decepticons, but it was somehow modified, like it was made to confuse others as to what it really was. Staring at it for a few megacycles, he tried to remember where he saw this same symbol, then it came back to him when he was in the Great War when news had circulated of a project the Decepticons led by Megatron himself of creating a branch of 'Cons that would be sent across the galaxy to other planets home to other Cybertronians and turn them over to the Decepticon cause, but was disbanded when the small team was sent into space for turning on their great leader and were sentenced to remain where they were sent for all of time. But now, he never thought that he come face to face with what his foe had created.

Seeing that Rachet was focused on something, Bumblebee went over to see what might be troubling the docbot. Getting over to him, the minibot saw the brand and asked, "Odd-looking Decepticon brand. Did one of their glitch-heads make this as some sort of joke between them?"

"Well, if you think Megatron is that kind of glitch-head that can make this kind of joke, then go right on ahead and see how he feels about it," the medibot snapped, being pulled back to reality unexpectedly.

Instantly, the the black and yellow mech's expression changed from comedic hilarity to horrific dread and shock flashing across his optics. Seeing how terrified the youngbot got, Rachet sighed and said, "Look, sorry for scaring you, but this is something that could be worse than the worst Decepticon in Cybertronian history. I'm not saying that it is here on the this planet, but there is a good possibility that it will be."

"Uh, what exactly are you talking about, docbot?,"

Bulkhead asked, very confused.

"What I'm talking about is something Megatron created during the War that could've been the end of both us and the Decepticons altogether," the red and white mech explained.

"Rachet, what in Primus exactly are we dealing with here?," Optimus asked, his irritation clearly being heard.

"What we are dealing with here," the medibot answered, a dark expression crossing his optics. "Is possibly the Vampiricons."

Oh, boy, here we go. Something more evil than Megatron himself on Earth now? What are the Autobots to do? Catch the next chapter to find out!