Disclaimers: I do not own Beast Wars or Transformers, if I did, there'd probably be a yaoi anime made and I'd hire all of the wonderful writers on this site~ XD
Chapter 1: Falling Stars
Space has always been known as the final frontier. It was vast, no one truly knew how vast. It was silent, not even a scream of pain or a shout of joy could shatter it. And it was mysterious; so many things waiting to be discovered: planets, stars, galaxies…beings. Beings with sentience.
Many humans believe in life in other worlds, that they are not alone. Others refuse to believe in what they cannot see. Life is precious and can exist anywhere and at any time, you just have to know where to look for it.
Space has also been known to be peaceful, the slow orbiting of its planets and asteroids being the only things that could change it, until know.
At the inner part of the Milky Way galaxy, in the planetary system circling the star known as Sol, the peace in its vast area is shattered by a strange rippling, almost like the ripples in a pond when a rock is thrown within. It is not a normal occurrence, as normal as it can be in such an unknown place. But what was more unusual, were the two clearly alien ships that came zooming out of this ripple. And they were shooting one another.
The first of the ship's was shaped like a trident and had an overall dark aura, an almost palatable evil and the second was pear-shaped, with oar-like wing protrusions all around what appeared to be the main body of it. And, whether the beings within noticed or not, they were heading to the third planet closest to Sol, the only planet with sentient life within this star system and all others close to it.
Its inhabitants simply called her Earth.
Inside the Darksyde…
"Megatron, syzztem'zz reading red all over conzzzole!" The distressed and buzzing cry came from the main flight control console, the strange, humanoid looking creature buzzing in obvious fear and distress. "Maximal ship clozzing in fazzt!"
A low growl traveled from what appeared to be the captain's chair and the rather huge being that sat there, its eyes narrowing dangerously.
"I know that, you simpering fool! What I need to know is if we are at the right coordinates. And if not, can we make another jump, yes?" It wasn't so much a question as a threat if the answer was 'no'.
The being at the controls, and with a flash of sparking wires we see a flash of green and yellow plating, starts buzzing in even greater distress. "Um, uh, well…" he couldn't even form proper sentences.
"What he's trying to say is that we lost our warp-gate generator and our navigation systems the second we left the gate." The answer came from a slightly screechy voiced, red creature that was sitting next to the green one. "We'd been hit before entering the gate and as soon as we exited, the generator finally gave out. We're stuck, Megatron, and we can't pin-point where we are!"
The giant at the captain's seat, now known to be named Megatron, snarled in frustration. "NO! Not when we were so close!" He slammed down angrily on the chair's arms, leaving a pair of angry dents in the shape of his fists. "What about our weapons? You better tell me they work…" The threat was left hanging, sure that his subordinates would understand the unsaid 'or else'.
Gulping nervously, the red screechy one answered, "Y-yes, they work, but…" he really didn't want to finish his sentence…
Megatron glared dangerously at him. " 'But' what?" His voice a deadly hiss.
Gulping once more and cringing in anticipatory fear for the lashing he knew he would receive. "B-but our e-engines are g-giving out….we'll be sitting turbo-foxes soon…" he managed to stutter out.
His glare intensified. "No, we will not. You will land the ship before that happens, yes."
"B-but Megatron, sir, the only planet with the right atmosphere and conditions is too far! By the time we get there, the engines won't be able to slow down our descent, we'll—"
"THEN WE'LL TAKE THE MAXIMALS WITH US!"
Inside the Axalon…
"Ugh, Optimus, our shields our down and our guidance systems are none existent!" A young voice shouted over the sounds of alarms and system warnings resounding all over the ship. "If we take another hit, we're slagged!"
"Oh, man! I knew dis was a suicide mission da second we got dat transmission!" whined a slightly nasally, but heavily accented voice. "We're an exploration ship, not a battle cruisah!"
"Everyone calm down, we can still make it through!" Was the calm answer from the ship's captain, Optimus. "And you know we were the only ship in the vicinity of the Predacons' flight path that could also follow their warp signature!"
"Yeah, well, dat don't make it any bettah, you—" But he was cut off by the sudden violent shaking of the ship.
"Optimus, they're changing course! They're heading for that blue and green planet!" The young voice shouted once more once the ship stopped shaking, although the alarms continued and seemed to have multiplied and grown louder. More insistent.
"Optimus, I just ran a scan of the planet; it contains sentient life." The deep, solemn bass voice of a rather large crew member, announced. His presence, though immense, was a soothing one and wasn't at all terrifying like the monstrosity that was Megatron.
"Primus," The captain uttered the oath silently, and then continued in a louder voice "Get closer and ready the weapons! We have to stop them before they reach that planet!"
"WHAT? Are ya outta yer processors? Didn't ya hear the kid? 'One more hit'!" was the heated, and demanding, answer "Do ya wanna get us all offlined?"
"I said," he was deadly calm and even "Get closer and ready the weapons. We are not letting some unknowing alien species become a third party in this. Not when we can do something about it." It was said with a determination that should've ended the argument. Should have.
"Fragging crazy, goody-goody, hero-complexed…" The other muttered, but he stopped arguing.
"All right, Big Bot, plasma cannons charged and ready!" The younger being excitedly replied; he was obviously enjoying this a little too much, regardless of the danger of their current situation.
"Alright, let's bring down some Preds."
"Megatron, the Maximals have entered firing range." A rasping, growling voice from an intimidating blue and bronze being, stated "We should destroy them now!"
"No, not just yet. Let them come, I want to be close enough to hear their pitiful screams, yesss…" Was the sadistically pleased order, a viciously victorious smirk placed on Megatron's face.
And they didn't have to wait long, as the Axalon came up along side of the Darksyde.
"SIDE CANONNS, FIRE!"
"AAAAGHHH!"
"The stasis hold," The panicked cry cut through the alarms "IT'S FAILING!"
"We're going down." Was the large, green crew member's deep-voiced, yet eerily calm, statement.
"Launch the pods! Get them into safe orbit!" Optimus ordered firmly "I am NOT losing any mechs today!"
As they started falling into the planet's surface, the ship's cargo hold opened and the stasis pods containing the Axalon's crew were launched, their emergency propulsion systems kicking in and keeping them out of harm's way. The same could not be said for the Axalon as it plummeted to the Earth.
But not without shooting one final plasma blast at the Darksyde; bringing it down as well.
New York City, 9:35 pm…
It was a rare, but beautifully clear winter night in New York City, the smog level low enough that the sky and its treasures could be fully enjoyed without the use of telescopes. And it was certainly being enjoyed by a young woman, who was sitting at the edge of her window sill, in a small brownstone apartment she shared with her friend in the lower East Side.
And it was with single minded fervor that she drew each and every star she could see in her 8"x12" sketch pad, making sure to add the slight color variations and shades that were natural to the stars or that were created when their light passed through the planet's atmosphere. She even took time to trace out the constellations and start sketching out the outlines of the creatures or people that each one represented.
It was still early winter, mid-January to be precise, but the night was unusually warm (well, cold but not enough to freeze your fingers off), thus she could enjoy the night sky without much trouble, only needing a light jacket.
Her name was Ashley Hunter, a small town girl from West Virginia that had been lucky enough, though everyone kept telling her it was because of her gift for art, to be accepted into Manhattan's School of Visual Arts. She'd been given a full scholarship and was now in the final year of her undergraduate studies. And she was loving every minute of it.
But it wasn't all peaches and roses for her. Although she loved art and being able to express herself through her drawings, whether they were portraits of people she knew or saw randomly on the streets, to her silly cartoons and comics, that ranged from traditional American styled newspaper comics to the popular Japanese "manga" style, her social life was pretty much non-existent. Why? Because she was good, too good and it rubbed all of her classmates the wrong way.
She sighed sadly as her thoughts went to the whispers of her classmates. She knew they were just jealous, and that she shouldn't let it get to her, but it didn't stop hurting any less.
"I just don't get it…" She muttered softly to herself "So what if the professors like my projects more than theirs, if they paid more attention and actually did their work instead of oogling the nude models, they might just be able to graduate…But, of course, I'm the 'teacher's pet'." She snorted in disgust at their shallowness; their need to assign blame to someone. Honestly, some people…
"Oy, are ya talking to y'self, again?" Her mini-rant was interrupted by the teasing, and heavily Hispanic accented, voice of another young woman. "People are gonna start thinkin' yer loca, y'know~" She gave Ahsley a teasing grin.
"Hmph, so what? I'd rather be crazy than the snob and suck up my classmates make me out to be." She shot back, with a dry grin.
The Latina girl sighed in exasperation at her friend's tone and rolled her eyes. "What have I told ya about them cabrones? Ignore 'em, their just jealous." She marched right up to Ashley and poked her firmly on the nose. "You are talented, not them, and you shouldn't be giving a damn about what they say, especially when it starts making you have second thoughts."
"I'm not having second thoughts; I'm just starting to wonder if I should fail at least one class just so I can seem more human." she said, half-joking, half-serious "I mean, maybe if I can show them that I'm 'normal' too, people wouldn't hate me…" She even air-quoted as she said the word 'normal'.
"Oh, please! Don't ya dare say ya don't like proving those snobby idiotas just what a real artist is supposed to be like." She stated with a small annoyed scowl. "And ya can't tell me you don't love being a good-no, scratch that-an incredible artist."
Ashley's shoulders slumped, fixing her stare to her drawing of the night sky, "Of course I love it, Rosie, I just…" She gave a deep, sad sigh "I just wish a few of them weren't so judgmental, y'know? Just one person, even. I know I sound childish, but it hurts… " Her voice wobbled slightly and she quickly looked away, into the sky, trying to hide her tears.
But Rosie, Rosario Rodríguez, had seen. She immediately went over to her friend and wrapped her arms comfortingly around her. "Oh, Ash. Don't cry, it's ok…"
Ash turned to her friend's comforting embrace and let the tears come. It wasn't the first time, so she was beyond being ashamed of this.
She'd met Rosario when she'd first come to New York, by answering an ad in the newspaper for a roommate. At first, Ashley was leery, like any other person meeting a stranger would be, especially if you might end up sharing an apartment with said stranger.
But her fear slowly melted away as she started talking to Rosie, she'd insisted on being called Rosie or Rose, she hates her normal name with a vengeance, and saw they had many things in common. They liked the same music, they both loved to cook (though Rosie was the better cook) and they both had problems with their parents. They'd both been alone before they met one another.
Even though she never had any trouble with her parents and had had a very happy childhood, Ashley's parents had wanted her to stay and learn the family business, which was horse training, and had told her, many times, that under no terms did they support her "easy-way" choice.
They'd never supported her endless hours just sitting on their porch drawing the land surrounding the ranch, the horses she loved to ride, even the neighboring buildings. They just didn't understand; didn't see her gift for art or the love she had for it. So, it was safe to say, her goodbye had been nearly final and very painful; she hadn't seen or spoken to her parents since she'd left some 3 years ago.
Rosie's parents, though, were another case; they didn't want her. Period. They'd only kept her because of the family plan benefits they were getting. She was just a means to an end. An annoyance that they would get rid of the second they could. As such, no sooner had she turned eighteen, they kicked her out. It was only a few weeks after that had happened that Ash had met Rose.
Few days later, they were moving their stuff into the small, two bedroom apartment and picking out colors for the rooms over Chinese take-out.
Ashley slowly calmed down and the tears finally stopped. Pulling herself gently from her friend's embrace, she gave her grateful smile. "Thanks, Rosie. You always listen to me when I need to let it out."
"Of course I do. " Rosie smiled fondly, then grinned teasingly at her "I am the oldest, it's my job"
Ash sniggered, her sadness cleared like the clouds in the night sky. "Oh, please~ By, like, a few days~!" Then she grinned deviously. "Besides, I'm still taller than you~"
That got a response, a low mock-growl. "Why you-!" And without further warning, she pounced on Ash and proceeded to tickle the life out of her. "What've I told ya about my height~?"
Ash shrieked in laughter at the sudden onslaught and tried to vainly bat and push her friend away. "Stop! Hahaha, s-stop! M-mercy~! P-pleeeaaasee~! Hahahaha!"
Rose smirked evilly. "Not till ya apologize~" She did slow down her "attack" a little, though.
"Alright! Alright~! Hahaha, I-I'm so-sorry~! Hahaha, I'm sorree-hehehe~!
As sudden as she'd started, Rose immediately backed off, smirk still in place. "See~? That wasn't so hard, verdad~?"
"Yeah, yeah, whatever~" Sticking her tongue out, Ash sat back on the sill. Now that she was out of her funk, she could continue drawing.
But as soon as she looked back at the sky, she couldn't help but gasp in delight. "Rosie, look! Shooting stars!"
Rosie quickly made her way over to the window and saw the two, bright streams of light sailing through the horizon, she whispered in awe. "Dios mio, que bonito…"
"Let's make a wish!" Ash declared, sounding very much like a little girl.
Rose looked at her incredulously. "A wish? What are we, eight?" She asked, grinning lopsidedly.
"You're never too old to wish on a star!" She declared proudly. "Come on, on the count of three."
"Oh, alright."
"Ok! 1…2…3!"
And both girls closed their eyes and made a wish. Rosie was only playing along to humor her friend; she already had everything she could want: a job, a home and a family. What more could she want?
"So, what did ya wish for?"
"If I told you, the wish wouldn't come true~" Ash replied cheekily, giggling when her friend merely stuck her tongue out at her.
When she looked out the window again, the stars were gone. She would've happily continued her drawing, but when she yawned long and loud, she realized it was probably late and she did have class tomorrow. Oh well, the drawing could wait.
With one last look at the stars, she closed the window, pulled the curtains closed and went straight to bed.
A/N: Here's a Spanish-English translation for you guys, just in case. X3 Like before, please review and help a fellow fan-girl out~
Loca – Crazy
Cabrones – Assholes
Idiotas – Idiots
Verdad? – Right?
Dios mío, que bonito – My God, how pretty