Chapter 3: Nome After Dark.

The cop car and ambulance created quite a scene. Ten human survivors clad in armor made of garbage and scrap metal came shambling out. At the head of the group, trying to stop their advance, was a Wolfen Aerospace Fafnir assault mech, a modified version of the Poleepkwa powersuit designed with a lupine appearance meant to instill fear in the enemy. It stood just under 12 feet tall. The "convoy" came to a stop and exited their vehicles. The mech stood back, ready to kill the survivors in case anything got out of hand. Ketra took out his MP7 and had it ready. One of the survivors came forward.

"You have to help me. I was attacked by some crazy animal. I don't feel very good." Alira looked shocked. The survivor was clutching the bite wound.

"Let me see the wound." Alira ordered. The survivor removed his garbage armor and Alira could see the wound. It was consistent with a lycans bite. "Do you have any unusual feelings?"

"It feels like something's… growing inside me. Like there's something ready to tear through my flesh." Said the survivor. He was obviously in pain.

"There's nothing I can do for you. I'm sorry." Alira said. The survivor had a heavy pain shoot through him.

"What's happening to me!!!?" he shouted. The other survivors had the same experience. They were turning. Their armor was strained against their bodies and snapped off. Faces stretched out into muzzles. Fur covered their bodies, leg structure changed and sanity was stripped away. Ketra was in the worst place to be. He fired as many shots at them as he could. He downed three. Ledra ran in head on, his talon-tipped wings out and ready. He took out 6 of them by slicing and stabbing with his wings. Just as the last lycan was about to bite Alira, Ketra turned and knocked the last one to the ground. In the wrestling match that followed, Ketra, still clad in his clothes, shoved his opponent into the air, where he exploded after a solid hit from the mechs Arc Gun. Ketra quickly shifted back to his human form. Nobody saw him in his wolven state.

"Ethan, help me." Alira was clutching her side. Her jacket was off and she was bleeding profusely. To Ketra's relief, she was only scratched. She was close to passing out. She had to get to a hospital. Ketra needed to get here there fast. Barricade had much more horsepower.

"John, Load her in my car. My ride's faster." John complied and loaded her up. Ketra got in and sped off to the Hospital. They made it just in time. She was in a lot of pain, but was almost unconscious.

"Don't worry." Ketra said to her. He didn't think she could hear him. He picked her up and walked her into the Hospital. As soon as he got in, he had to ensure she would get treatment. What did I do last time? Ketra thought. He quickly shouted, "Emergency. I've got a bear victim!" The doctors came and rushed her to surgery. Ketra oversaw her treatment. She appeared to be okay, but they had to get out of Nome. After hours in surgery, she came out with bandages on her side. They weren't visible beneath her tank top, but the strap was.

"Are you okay?" Ketra asked.

"I'm fine. It's just a scratch." Alira said. Her phone rang. She set it to Speaker.

"Alira here."

"Alira, it's Ledra. I've got some good news." Ketra heard everything.

"Ketra here. What's going on?"

"Hey, Ethan. Well, of the 62 Poleepkwa that escaped from MNU, only 2 died. 9 of them received minor injuries." Ledra answered. Ketra was happy to some extent. Alira was almost ecstatic.

"That's great. Give me your location." Alira said. Still connected, Ledra's location was shown on her navigational system in the phone. "Got it. We can be there in ten minutes." Suddenly, Ketra got the sense that somebody was listening in. He caught a scent that he had smelled before. Whatever it was, it reeked of fresh energon. Megatron had mentioned once that the sun of a planet called Calastan had been successfully harvested. Ketra dismissed it as Barricade just venting excess energon gas. Only lycans could detect it as they've been around it for so long. He was blissfully unaware of a Decepticon lurking in the shadows. He and Alira walked out and got into Ketra's "Mustang". They took a few minutes before heading off.

They were indeed being watched. The Decepticon in question had a very Lupine appearance. He hovered in the air and alerted Megatron that Ketra had been found. "Megatron, this is Cyclonus. I've found them. I'm beginning pursuit." Cyclonus spoke with a thick Russian accent. With that, Cyclonus quickly transformed into his altmode. He became an SU-47 Berkut fighter. Under his left wing were the bold white letters MNU. His right wing had no markings except the Decepticon emblem. He tried to stay as slow as he could. He didn't want to be detected. In the cockpit was Lucian, with no armor. Only his brown trench coat, clawed up shirt, and paramilitary camos were worn. I have you now. Lucian thought.

In ten minutes, Ketra and Alira met with Ledra to treat the surviving Poleepkwa who had injuries. Cyclonus stealthily descended behind the forest growth. Lucien got out before Cyclonus transformed. The treatments went smoothly enough. A few cracked plates and cuts in the skin beneath, and the occasional broken leg. Ratchet was hooked up to a trailer loaded with clothing tailored for Poleepkwa. After the treatments, the Poleepkwa were given warm clothing to keep them alive in the harsh Alaskan winter.

"That's the last of them." Alira said. In the sky above them, the Aurora Borealis shone in the night. "Alira, look. It's the Aurora." Ethan said. Alira quickly looked up. She watched it wave and flicker.

"It's beautiful." She said. Ketra's hand moved tentatively close to Alira's. Alira returned the Favor. Their hands were interlocked. They looked down at each other and took their hands apart from one another. Ketra decided to take Barricade and go somewhere more private. Alira was left behind. They drove through the woods until such a spot was found. Ketra exited Barricade and leaned against him.

"Just admit that you love her." Barricade said.

"I can't do it so soon. I have to wait for the right time." Ketra replied.

"You were holding hands. Isn't that a sign of this love thing in you organics?"

"I can't believe I'm taking love advice from a Decepticon. Let's head back." Ketra answered.

Suddenly, He heard a scream in the distance. It was Alira. A howl accompanied it. Ketra ran as Barricade followed him in vehicle mode. Alira was being held down by Cyclonus. Ledra was busy against Lucian.

"Ethan, Help." Alira shouted. Lucien knocked Ledra to the ground and proceeded to finally get his teeth on Alira. Ethan wanted be anywhere but here. He quickly turned. His legs shifting to a lupine form, fur covered his body, face stretched out, ears changed shape and position, and claws burst forth from his fingertips. Alira saw it all. Ethan leapt after Lucian and wrestled him to the ground. Lucian pushed him back up and got on his feet again. Ethan slashed Lucian in the face. His blood dripped onto the ground. Cyclonus couldn't step in, he only fought after he learned his opponents technique. As Lucian wiped off the blood, Ketra leapt toward him with his mouth wide open. Lucian dodged and Ethan quickly sank his teeth into Aliras shoulder. His hands grabbed her as Cyclonus released her. Ethan regained his composure and let her go, releasing his teeth and returning to human form. It's been 50 years since he last tasted human blood. Alira was in pain. She saw the Lycan clad in Ethan's clothing with its coat and shirt drenched in blood… her blood. She had a genuine look of shock on her face. Her blood drenched her shirt. "No…" she said softly.

"Alira, it's not what it looks like." Ethan said frantically, her blood still

staining his teeth and dripping from his mouth. He quickly wiped it up. As a gesture of submission among lycans, he hung his head in shame.

"How is it not what it looks like? I watched you turn. Sure, you showed Lucian he wasn't as good as he thought, but you… bit me. Is there anything else you're hiding?" Almost on cue, Barricade quickly transformed into his robot form and stood before Alira.

"Yes. Me." he said. Alira couldn't take it anymore.

Ratchet transformed to robot mode. "Barricade? I thought you died." Alira stepped in.

"I thought I could trust you, Ethan. I guess I was wrong." Alira clutched the bite wound. Ethan moved closer. Alira backed away quickly. "Don't come any closer! You've done enough damage!"

"Alira, listen" said Ethan "I didn't plan for any of this. I just wanted to defect to NEST and Barricade wanted to come and leave the Decepticons behind."

"A likely story. It seems more reasonable to assume that this Lycan wanted to defect to infiltrate NEST and assassinate our chain of command." Ratchet pointed out. Alira grew increasingly hurt. The pain was unbearable. John got off the ground and tended to Alira's wound. He managed to stop the bleeding, but the venom from Ethan's bite was already coursing through her system. John bandaged the wound and let Alira back to her feet.

"We really need to get back to the airbase. If we leave now, it'll be morning there when we arrive." John said.

"What about Ketra and Barricade? We can't leave them here." said Ratchet. He knew the strategic value of having Lucians best soldier as a prisoner and keeping Barricade under lock and key. John had answers to almost all of Ratchet's questions.

"We'll take them with us. Barricade will face the judgment of Optimus Prime." Alira jumped back in.

"What about Ketra. Who will decide his fate?" she asked.

Ratchet had the answer. "Selene will determine his intentions. If he is telling the truth, he can stay. Otherwise, Corvin will put him down like the dog we see him to be."

Ketra cooperated and Barricade took him back to the municipal airfield where they would leave for the NEST base. Barricade and Ratchet transformed into their alternate modes and got into the plane. Ledra walked up to the cockpit. Ketra and Alira boarded next. The bite wound was acting up again. Ethan handed her a flask. "Drink this. It helps with the pain." Alira took the flask and took a sip. Almost instantly, the pain went away.

"Thanks. What is this?" she said. Her voice was still soft from weakness and the emotional pain.

"Wolfsbane tea. My mother used to make it for me when I was sick." Ethan explained. Once everyone was loaded up, the cargo jet took off for the airbase. Alira knew all too well that she had seen the last of her humanity. This was only the first full moon of the month. She would turn tomorrow night. She couldn't help but think Lucian did this intentionally to ensure that NEST would be destroyed from within by a lycan with no control. Alira was scared. She started to cry. She took another sip of Ethan's tea. "At this rate, I'll lose it all."

"Don't worry. Selene grows the stuff. She actually has way too much of it. Thinks it keeps the Lycans away, but I don't believe it." Alira said. Alira chuckled a little. She was still weak from the blood loss. The plane was nearing the NEST airbase and was beginning its descent.