(Made in January 2022)
Me: Yo, what up, it's WolfKnight30 and The Amazing Ghost Musician back for yet another chapter of Steven Universe: War Of The Beasts.
The Amazing Ghost Musician: What's up, readers? We hope you're ready for today's chapter, because this one is gonna be off the hook.
Me: I know we're ready for it. And it seems Spider-Man, Black Widow, Power Girl and Ben 10 are enjoying their double date. (turns the camera over to them, laughing it up about something they were talking about.) It's nice having them here, right dude?
The Amazing Ghost Musician: Yeah it is, broski! However, I am feeling sad today. I don't know if you've heard, but Rock N Roll Hall of Famer Meat Loaf passed away.
Me: WHAT!? AW DAMMIT!
The Amazing Ghost Musician: Yeah dude, one of the best selling Rock Music artists of all time died at age 74. Meat Loaf's album Bat Out of Hell was one of the best I've ever listened to, he was one of the best singers in music history, and he was one of my dad's favorite musicians.
Me: Also it's not just him that died, so did Louie Anderson, a former host of Family Feud. Plus I'm sure you've read the guy who was supposed to play Midnight Man in Moon Knight Gaspard Ulliel passed away, and he died waaaaay too young.
The Amazing Ghost Musician: DAMN! The entire world weeps as we've lost three more legends. As my dad would tell me, celebrities attend to go out in threes.
Me: Well, there is that, but some also die by the tens.
The Amazing Ghost Musician: Well think about it, it's happened for years. Plus you have to admit, this is a horrible way to start off the year 2022. First we've lost Betty White, Bob Saget and Sidney Poitier, and now we've lost Gaspard Ulliel, Meat Loaf and Louie Anderson.
Me: I guess you're right about that.
The Amazing Ghost Musician: So fellas, do you all wanna pay tribute to these legends that we've lost this year?
Spider-Man: Sure thing.
Black Widow: Anything for these late, great people.
Ben: Amen to that.
Power Girl: I think honoring them is a good cause.
Me: Then come on into the ring and join us.
(They all jumped into the ring and stood hand in hand as they shut their eyes in remembrance.)
The Amazing Ghost Musician: Now before we explain the plot of today's chapter, please join us as we ring the bell 10 times, and have a moment of silence as we honor the memories of Betty White, Bob Saget, Sidney Poitier, Gaspard Ulliel, Meat Loaf and Louie Anderson.
(The bell rings 10 times as the memories of them all flashes through.)
In Loving Memories of…
Betty White
January 17th, 1922 - December 31st, 2021
Sidney Poitier
February 20th, 1927 - January 6th, 2022
Bob Saget
May 17th, 1956 - January 9th, 2022
Gaspard Ulliel
November 25th, 1984 - January 19th, 2022
Marvin 'Meat Loaf' Aday
September 27th, 1947 - January 20th, 2022
And
Louie Anderson
March 24th, 1953 - January 21st, 2022
Me: Thank you for joining us.
Ben: You're welcome, Wolf.
Spider-Man: Glad we could join you.
Black Widow: I feel sad at the loss of these people.
Power Girl: Yeah, me too. (she sniffed as Ben hugged her and Spidey rested his head on Black Widow's shoulder.)
The Amazing Ghost Musician: May all of those great legends Rest In Peace…
[Bat Out of Hell by Meat Loaf]
Me: Anyway, in this new chapter things take a different turn and at the same time, it's inspired by episode 9 of Beast Wars, "A Better Mousetrap". Waspinator, Terrorsaur, Blackarachnia, Jasper, Flamenix and Spinitor plant a sonic emitter right underneath the Maximal base in a hidden cavern and at the same time, Rhinox and Garnet install a security system called Sentinel.
The Amazing Ghost Musician: Unfortunately it all goes haywire when Amethyst pulls a prank on Dinobot, causing the Maximals to get locked out of their base. This causes more tensions between Amethyst and Rattrap, at the same time they both must reboot Sentinel.
Me: Also, Optimus goes with Steven and Garnet to find out what the Predacons are up to in sector 19, and so they contact Tigatron and ask for his help.
The Amazing Ghost Musician: How will all of this go down? We're about to find out.
Me: That's right, so hang onto your hides and gear up for this one!
The Amazing Ghost Musician: This is gonna be a chapter for this story that you really don't wanna miss.
Me: That's for sure!
Both: ENJOY!
Disclaimer: WE do not own Steven Universe or Beast Wars/Transformers in any way. All rights for Steven Universe go to Rebecca Sugar, Ian Jones-Quartey, Cartoon Network and Warner Bros. Inc. All rights for Beast Wars: Transformers go to Hasbro, Larry Ditilio, Bob Forward, YTV, Mainframe Entertainment, Alliance Media and Claster.
Chapter 9: An Amethystically Better Mousetrap!
It was a normal, easy-going morning in Beach City, Garnet was walking around and she saw Steven's bedroom door open, she went inside and saw Steven looking out the window.
"Steven, mind if I come in?" asked Garnet.
He turned around to see her and said, "Not at all, come on in." he said. "I was just lost in thought."
Garnet wondered, "Something on your mind?" she asked again.
Steven let out a sigh, "Yeah, Dad's been feeling sad since losing his hair. But I was able to get his spirits back, I talked him into going with Sadie Killer and the Suspects on their US Tour, but on the bright side, he's feeling better about losing his hair." he said, making Garnet a little bewildered by this.
"That's good to hear, glad he's feeling better," said Garnet. "How did that happen anyway?"
Steven then replied, "Well it turns out that ever since he lost his hair, he had been in a funk. So, I had to find a way to make him feel better. So, I took him to see Sadie Killer and the Suspects. He liked their music and when they saw him playing his instrument, they were amazed. So, they decided to let him join them on their tour of the United States of America."
"Really?" asked Garnet.
Steven nodded, "Also it turns out at one of their concerts, an executive for a big record company came out here to have a meeting with them about being their manager."
"Interesting!" Garnet said.
"I'll say!" Steven replied to her.
Then Garnet wondered something else, "Any word on Connie?"
Steven nodded to her, "Her school work is going great and she'll be here for a visit in a few weeks."
"Excellent news." she said. "Let's head over to the Axalon. Rhinox and I have been working on a new defense grid, we call it Sentinel."
"Sentinel? Good name." said Steven.
In the Caverns beneath the Axalon there is an area with several steam spouts and it is here that we see Waspinator, Terrorsaur, Jasper, Flamenix, Spinotor and Blackarachnia, putting something inside a hole that was left behind by a mining team a while back, but the mining team forgot to seal it back up.
Waspinator struggled to get the device into the hole and shoved at it with all his might. "Wazzzpinator is tired of this!" he complained. "Bomb fits hole! See?"
"It's not a bomb you bug, it's a Sonic Emitter." Blackarachnia corrected him. "And when we've placed it correctly, it will blow a sweet little door right in the bottom of the Maximal Base."
"Yes, Lord Megatron will be quite pleased with this plan." said Flamenix.
"However, there is one problem." added Spinotor.
"We have to widen the tunnel." Terrorsaur stated, concluding Spinotor's theorem.
"So widen it." said Blackarachnia, ordering them to do so. "I'm spoiled enough already just being around all of you."
Waspinator reacted in anger, "Humph, Spider can dig her OWN holes!" he buzzed. Blackarachnia leans to one side as Waspinator buzzes past her and away.
"Lord Megatron said dig, so start digging." Terrorsaur commanded, transforming to robot mode.
"I'm the brains of this group, not the brawn." Blackarachnia complained.
Terrorsaur panicked a little bit, but then Jasper intervened, "Out of the way, I'll do it!" she stomped over to the hole, and began examining the hole and pounded at it a little bit while Blackarachnia laughed it off.
Inside the Axalon, a holographic display of Megatron could be seen in the main console and he was being bombarded by some yellow things and then blasted by something.
"So how does it work?" asked Steven.
Rhinox explained it to him, "Tangler guns target intruders with plasteen coils." The holo-Megatron then got zapped by the beams, causing him to fall and get surrounded by yellow light. "That gives the stun guns and cyclotron rays time to set up for the knockout punch," he concluded.
"That is correct." Pearl agreed, "And so far, not a single hiccup in the system."
Rattrap chuckled, "Hehe, Beast or Bot, ol' Sentinel here takes it down." he said.
Rhinox then added, "You said, make the base impregnable." saying it to Optimus.
"Wow!" Steven replied. "That is very impressive!"
"Well done!" Optimus grins, closes down the display. "How long before Sentinel's fully operational?"
"An hour or two, depending on.." Rhinox was cut off as the alarm went and blared.
Cheetor was at the computer, "Yo, Big Bot, there's a Predacon making a scene in sector 19." he said. "Looks like Waspinator."
Optimus hits the control pad and shows that it was true.
"That's the third Predacon we've spotted in that sector in the last three days." Garnet said
"I wonder what's he buzzing about now?" Steven wondered.
"Cheetor, contact Tigatron and have him meet us at coordinates 4-5-8!" said Optimus, instructing him to do so. "Steven, Garnet, you're with me."
"You've got it, Optimus!" said Steven, as he saluted Optimus and then went right over to Sector 19, which was out in the middle of the woods.
"Let's do this!" said Garnet.
In the sky, we see Waspinator buzzing around and complaining about his life.
"Wazzzpinator sees Maximal, but not bother." he said, as he continued complaining. "Wazzzpinator sick of taking orderzzz." he groaned. "Wazzzpinator…is the greatest of Predaconzz. Zzzomeday, Lord Megatron will be pleased with Wazzzpinator… Wazzzpinator Rulezzz!
However, on the ground, from behind a jungle bush steps a magnificent tiger, looking upward toward the Predacon. He growls softly. It is Tigatron, or as Rattrap has been calling him 'Tigatron The Barbarian' as he whirls, startled as Optimus, Steven and Garnet drop into frame from above. "Not many can creep up on me like that." he said to them.
"You can learn a lot from Rattrap. If you can stand him." said Optimus, as he looked upward. Steven and Garnet also looked on.
"Looks like Waspinator has been on a sugar binge," said Steven. "Glad I'm not like that. Not anymore."
"I agree," said Garnet.
Optimus nodded, as Waspinator was still buzzing in a circle and muttering to himself, "So how long has he been doing that?"
Tigatron shakes his head in annoyance, "Long enough to make my head spin." he said. "Shall I bring him down?" he asked.
"No." said Steven, urging him not to do so yet. "Let's shake him up a little, see where he runs. You follow on the ground in case we lose him."
"Good idea, Steven." said Optimus, agreeing with the plan. Tigatron nods and leaps away, as Steven gears up and does his thing. "Optimus Primal, Maximize!" It was at that moment Optimus transformed into robot mode and activated his jets, zooming up to the sky with Steven in tow.
Garnet then turned to Tigatron, "If I may ride you?" she asked.
"Gladly, Garnet." Tigatron agreed.
And so, Garnet got on Tigatrons back and they rode off.
Optimus and Steven close in on Waspinator as he continues his circling, "One day Lord Megatron see Wazzzpinator izzz truly worthy of being his second in command. Than….OOWWWWW!" Waspinator bumps into Optimus's chestplate.
The Predacon's head is hit as it bounces off the hovering Optimus. He turns around and sees Steven hovering there, "Zzzzteven Univerzzze, what are you doing here?" asked Waspinator.
"Oh, just wandering about, but then I spotted you." Steven taunted. "Are you just minding your own bees-ness?" he joked.
"I rezzzent that! I'm not a bee, I'm A WASP! THERE'S A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE!" the Predacon yelled back at him. But then, he was tapped on the back of the head, turned around and saw that it was Optimus taunting him. "OPTIMUS PRIMAL!" he panicked and darted away from them both.
"Nobody darts out on us!" said Steven
Meanwhile, high above the Earth, Black Diamond and his minions were watching the whole thing.
"What's this?" asked Tanzanite, wanting to know what this was. "Blackarachnia plants a sonic emitter underneath the Axalon while the Maximals set up this defense grid they call Sentinel?"
"Sure looks that way, my dear." said Black Diamond, denoting it.
"I think it should be rectified." said Tanzanite, thinking of a way to get rid of it.
"You're right, milady." said a soldier, agreeing with the queen. "Only, how should it be rectified?"
The lot of them began to think of a way it can be rectified. Just then, a beeping sound could be heard, and it showed that a button was flashing.
"Incoming message!" said the soldier.
"Where's it from?" asked Black Diamond.
"It's from our outpost in the Alpha Centauri galaxy, sir!" replied the soldier.
Black Diamond and Tanzanite looked at each other. "On screen!" he said, ordering the soldier to press the button and on the monitor came the image of one of Black Diamond's commanders. "Ah, Commander Shade, how are things at the outpost?"
"So far, things are dull, sir." replied the one called Commander Shade. "We ran into a snag upgrading our security here, so we're looking for a way to pass the time."
Black Diamond sighed and then made a suggestion, "How about you and your men play a round of an Earth game they call 'Poker'?"
"Thank you, sir!" said Commander Shade, agreeing to this. "I hope to contact you soon, Commander Shade, out!" he logged off and the message ended.
Back at the Axalon, Dinobot is viewing the computer simulation of Sentinel's operation. Rhinox was looking by, like a proud parent, Rattrap and Pearl were both working on Sentinel's keyboards. Amethyst was psyched about the new security system.
"WOW!" Amethyst smirked, "Nice work on this. What's the name of it?"
"Rhinox and Garnet called it, Sentinel." Pearl answered.
"Yeah, I told you that you would like this." Rattrap said to her.
Dinobot on the other hand snarled at this, "Tanglers, Stun Guns." he moved away from the console, "What sort of defense grid is this?" he asked.
"What's gummin' your gears?" Rhinox asked.
"This security system is a good idea." Dinobot answered. "However, those toys won't stop the Predacons in battle mode! Lethal threats demand lethal response."
Amethyst rolled her eyes, "Oh, and I suppose you would be the expert on that?" she asked.
"Possibly, yes. That is something a Gem like you wouldn't comprehend. Especially not one who is reckless as yourself." Dinobot turned around and walked away.
As he did so, Amethyst had a mischievous look on her face, "Oh yeah? Well respond to this, Dino-But!" Amethyst said, typing in a few things, causing the tangler gun to activate.
Amethyst laughs gleefully as Dinobot flails in the coils. Rhinox is aghast and already working with the computer console.
"Well it looks like the Tanglers work on him. Maybe Preds are not as lethal as they think."
"Amethyst, was that really necessary?" Pearl asked, not liking this.
"Hey, that's what Dino-brain gets for doubting Sentinel's capabilities." Amethyst grinned, "What's he gonna do about it?"
Rattrap could see Dinobot struggling to get untangled.
"Uh, you might wanna ask him that yourself?" Rattrap said, in a panic.
Pearl and Rattrap backed away, as Dinobot broke free and roared in a rage, holding his sword out and activating his Rotary Blade. He charges at Amethyst, with the blade spinning.
"OH MAN! INCOMING!" Amethyst shouted, as she shoved Rhinox to one side and got him out of the way as Dinobot's blade plunged right into the console. The panel shorts out, Dinobot goes flying backfirst to the wall, and landing on his butt.
The electricity surges from the blade and the alarm goes off, making everyone in the main hold gasp in shock. |WARNING! INTRUDER ALERT!| said Sentinel, as it scanned all of them. |SENTINEL ONLINE, ACQUIRING TARGETS!| A computer display shows wire frames of all of them, from Rhinox down to Amethyst and so on and so forth.
Pearl and Rattrap were shocked by this. "OH NO!" Rattrap panicked again.
"This is bad!" said Pearl. "This is very bad."
(A/N: What Pearl just said was a reference to the main character from Mainframe Entertainment's other show, ReBoot. Most notably, Bob.)
Amethyst then turned her head over to Rhinox. "YO! Rhinox, shut the system down?"
"HOW? The Console's junk, thanks to you and Dinobot." Rhinox shouted at Amethyst.
She then had a worried look on her face. "Oh Damn!" Amethyst then melted in a way, causing herself to turn into a puddle.
"Nice going, Amethyst!" Rattrap added on to it.
Cheetor rushes in as Dinobot twists his head back to the right position, "Hey, what's going on?" he asked.
"Sentinel thinks we're intruders!" said Rhinox, slamming his fist on the console.
"We have to get out of here!" Pearl said. "Cheetor, help Dinobot!" she added, prompting Cheetor to do so.
"What about the 'Friend or Foe' programming that Garnet had set," asked Rattrap.
"That's what I was installing when Amethyst pulled this stunt." Rhinox shot back.
Amethyst gulped, "Oops." she said, feeling worried.
|DEFENSE GRID ARMED AND READY!|
"Let's move it, everyone!" said Rhinox. "Quickly!"
Everybody scrambles for the exit, except for Rattrap and Amethyst. She transforms back into herself, while Rattrap moves to an access panel and rips it off, as Sentinel fires and makes stun beams rip through the room.
"Rattrap, what are you doing with Amethyst?" Pearl asked, wanting to know.
Rattrap then blocked a blast that was about to hit him with a makeshift shield. "We can't abandon the base like this," he said.
"Oh really? And what do you suggest we do? Huh?" Amethyst asked.
"I'll tell you what I'm doing, since you're the one who started this mess by turning it on," Rattrap said, transforming to beast mode. "I've gotta be the one to turn it off."
Amethyst then felt her remorse come onto her. "I don't think so, I'm coming with you!" she told him, wanting to make up for it.
"Man, I'm starting to sound like Optimus," said Rattrap.
"Yeah no kidding, and I thought he was an uptight leader." Amethyst remarked.
"Oh, shut up!" Rattrap snapped.
"RATTRAP!" Rhinox shouted to him, but it was no good.
"We have to go!" Pearl said to Rhinox.
Tigatron, Garnet, Steven and Optimus are still in pursuit of the fast moving, tricky Waspinator, as he peers back toward his pursuers.
"Wazzzpinator muzzzt warn otherzzz!" he said in a fright.
Optimus and Steven were a little confused, "Others?" Steven asked himself, 'What could he mean by that.' he thought.
And at the same time, they were chasing him, little did they know, Flamenix was watching the whole thing.
As Garnet and Tigatron continued to pursue on the ground, Flamenix got ready to take a shot at the two in the sky.
Garnet detects this as Tigatron leaps over a gully, still following Waspinator on the ground. Waspinator suddenly banks sharply and wings down and then Flamenix fires his shot at Optimus, making him veer sharply up.
"AAAAAAAGGHHH!" he cried out, as the shot hit him.
"OPTIMUS!" Tigatron and Garnet said in unison.
Steven spotted where the shot came from, he then saw the one there. "Flamenix, he's over there!" he darted after Flamenix and punched him right in the jaw.
The impact sent Flamenix whirling across the mountains. "I better get away from here!" he said to himself. "Beast mode!" he transforms back to beast mode and blazes out of the area.
Optimus regains his composure and Steven flies over to him, "Optimus, you damaged?" he asked.
"No, I'll live," said Optimus, as they resumed the chase. But, as the two of them fly back around the mountain and Optimus scans the area through a robotic pov we see sky in all directions. But Waspinator is nowhere in sight. They slow their flight and backtrack, scanning below. "No place to hide. So where is he?" he asked.
Suddenly, the streaks of an Energon surge play over his body. "Warning. Energon surge." said a computerized voice.
"Not good!" said Steven, as he dives down while Optimus flies downward and in mid-air to Beast Mode and lands right in front of Tigatron and Garnet.
"Did you see them?" asked Optimus.
"No. But I can still smell him." said Tigatron, sniffing the air. "He's here somewhere and so is Flamenix."
Suddenly, there is an alert beep on Garnet's wrist device.
"Oh my." said Garnet, feeling startled by this.
"What is it, Garnet?" Steven asked her.
Then a voice could be heard. "Maximal alert! Intruders have infiltrated the base! Sentinel now at Level One." They recognized the voice as Sentinel.
"Sentinel?" Optimus asked, feeling stunned.
"Who is Sentinel?" Tigatron asked, as he felt confused.
"Our new defense grid. But it shouldn't be online yet." replied Optimus.
Garnet then felt worried about this whole thing. "Something's wrong, I'm not getting any response from anyone at the base."
Steven then agreed, "Oh boy, first Flamenix ambushed Optimus as we chased Waspinator and now this." he said.
"It would be wise for you to return," said Tigatron. "I'll hunt down Flamenix and Waspinator."
"Yeah, something's going on in this sector and I want to know what it is." said Optimus, feeling inquired.
Steven then spoke to Tigatron, "Let us know if the situation gets too hard." he said.
"I appreciate your help, my friends," Tigatron replied, "I'll let you know if I find anything. Even though I prefer to prowl alone. Good luck!" he said to them.
And with that, Tigatron leaps away and continues following the trail. After that, Optimus transformed back into robot mode. "Optimus, your computer is also telling you something," said Steven.
"Field dampeners at 15 percent, suggest transformation back to beast mode." said the computer.
Optimus sighed a little bit. "I'll have to risk it." he said. "Jets online, maximum burn!" he jumped into the air and bolted off. Steven and Garnet then take to the sky themselves and follow him back to headquarters.
Outside the Maximal Base, Rhinox, Pearl, Cheetor and Dinobot scramble out. The base glows green as a shield appears and expands around them.
|UNAUTHORIZED PERSONNEL DETECTED!| said Sentinel, as it activated something. |PERIMETER SHIELD ACTIVATED!| and thus, the shield formed around the base.
"Giga-bummer! Sentinel's locked us out!" Cheetor complained.
Pearl attempts to contact Amethyst and Rattrap on her communicator. "Amethyst, Rattrap, come in!" she said, but no answer. She shook it and tried again. "Amethyst, Rattrap, do you read me?!" she tried but all that was heard was static.
"Slag, the shield's jammed our comlinks." Rhinox said.
Dinobot then said, "Apparently you've built a better mousetrap."
Rhinox just stood there and grunted at him, as they looked on, feeling defeated.
Back inside the base, Sentinel was looking for the 'unauthorized personnel' in the hallway, while inside the vents, Rattrap and Amethyst saw what was going on. Suddenly, the hallway was now filled with a liquid-like substance.
"What is that stuff?" asked Amethyst.
"Zero friction fluid," he said. "C'mon Rhinox, that stuff is strictly for amateurs." he then grabbed the trap door, dropped it into the fluid, then Rattrap jumped onto the platform, Amethyst grabbed one of her own and dropped it down too.
"Let me show you how it's done." said Amethyst, as she got ready to surf.
The two of them surf through fluid and they compete with each other as the fluid also gets to the sides of the walls. "You've done this before, haven't ya?" asked Rattrap.
"Oh yeah!" said Amethyst, as she teased him while they spoke. "Can you keep up?"
"Yeah I can!" said Rattrap, "Watch this!"
They both see the energy grid-net and the two of them surf all the way to the energy grid-net then hops it like a hurdle.
"This ain't a security grid. It's a gym just for spy guys like me." he chuckled.
Amethyst face-palmed herself. "Oh good freakin grief." she muttered to herself.
"What's the matter?" Rattrap teased, "Can't keep up with me?"
"Oh, you did NOT just say that!" Amethyst said, as she flipped over the grid net and landed on both her feet with ease. "How's THAT for a landing?" she shot back at him.
Rattrap was about to fire a snarky remark at her, but then, he heard a buzzing sound. "Watch out!" he called out.
Amethyst turned around and saw that several scorch saucers were coming in their direction.
"Scorch Saucers!?" said Amethyst, as she panicked.
Rattrap drops into a pushup position on his fingertips and toes, as red hot GLOWING SCORCH SAUCERS ZIP past him, above and below, SCORCHING anything they touch. "A One and two and stretch... now bend. Now lift. Feel the burn. Yeah!" he said in a cocky way, as it impacted on the wall, prompting them to escape the area.
"Did you really have to taunt the computer?" Amethyst said, feeling a little annoyed. "But other than that, you made a way out. Impressive."
"Taunt nothing, I have him baffled." said Rattrap, jesting at her, as they both teased the camera.
Meanwhile, Tigatron moves slowly around a different part of Beach City and catches a whiff of where it was at. "The scent and the trail lead here," he said. He sniffed again, "But something's not right."
He lifts his right front paw to touch the rock face but his paw goes through the wall. He jerks his paw back in surprise. Then he gets a look of realization! And with that Tigatron steps boldly through the rock face.
As he comes through the rocky surface as he surveys the cave. His gaze comes to rest on a small hologram projector, a green light blinking beneath its lens. It's wedged into a cave Wall, "A holo projector. Clever." he said.
Tigatron moves past it and through the cave to see a walking light coming his way and he saw that there were two, one big and one small.
Back outside the Maximal Base, Rhinox blasts the shield with his laser gun, Cheetor with his quasar cannon while Pearl uses her energy blasts and Dinobot with his eye beams. The shield absorbs the energy.
"No good!" Pearl said.
"Well we can't blast our way through it." Rhinox added.
Energon surges start playing about their robotic bodies, "Oh no, the Energon fields are starting to mess with our circuits."
"Transform to Beast Mode." Rhinox instructed, as the three of them transformed back into theri beast modes.
No sooner are they in beast form, then they hear a whooshing sound, and it was like the sound of jets. Optimus, Steven and Garnet drop into the area, Energon surge playing around his body. He reverts back to beast mode again.
"What's going on, Rhinox?" asked Optimus. "We got a message from Sentinel about intruders in the base.
Garnet wondered what it was. "What happened?" she asked.
"It's talking about Rattrap and Amethyst," Rhinox elaborated, rendering the three of them shocked. "They're both trapped inside."
"And if we don't figure a way to detect Sentinel soon, they're both done for." Pearl said.
Steven was a little bewildered, "What brought that about?" he asked. "Lemme guess, Amethyst pulled a prank on one of you?"
Cheetor nodded, "Yeah, it was Dinobot she pulled it on."
Steven face-palmed himself, "Dammit, of all the insane things she's done, this one absolutely tops them all." he said, feeling frustrated. "Garnet, is there a chance you could locate them inside the base?" Steven asked.
Garnet then tried but to no avail, "No good. I can't find them." she sighed. "The shield has jammed my scanner." she added.
"Well, that's just prime!" Optimus huffed a little.
Inside the Axalon, Rattrap and Amethyst were now in one of the lower levels of the ship in the vertical access shaft. They both jump across to the ladder and they nearly slip, only for Rattrap to grab a bar on the ladder.
|INTRUDERS, YOU ARE REQUIRED TO STAND DOWN!| said Sentinel, as it aimed at them.
Rattrap and Amethyst look up as a mechanical crossbow-like device, which was a Bolt Caster, rotates into place above them and fires a bolt. Below them, a bristling ball of energy creeps slowly up towards them.
"YOW!" said Rattrap, as he felt a little pain as Amethyst held onto his tail. They both looked down to see the area below turning into ice and rising up at them.
"Cryo fields and disruptor bolts!" Amethyst said, "I think Rhinox and Garnet both went a little overboard with this."
"You know we wouldn't be in this mess if you hadn't pulled that prank on Dinobot!" Rattrap said, stating that she was to blame for all this.
"Well, he shouldn't have doubted the work of Garnet and Rhinox!" she shot back at him.
Rattrap then said, "Yeah, well the way you act, it makes me wonder how Garnet and Pearl put up with you and let you stay with them!"
Amethyst didn't like that remark one bit, "That is typical roommate stuff! You wouldn't understand!"
"Oh, how would you even understand, anyway?" Rattrap yelled back at her. "I've had to put up with Cheetor for a while before we ended up on Earth!"
"You know, Rattrap! You're such a pain in my ass, just like Pearl was!" Amethyst yelled, making him gasp.
Rattrap was really getting annoyed, "What was that? What do you mean she was a pain to you?" he asked.
"She was annoying to me before." Amethyst told him. "And I admit, if it wasn't for Steven and Garnet, we wouldn't have been able to get along."
"Yeah, well maybe if you never acted as reckless and irresponsible as you were, maybe Pearl wouldn't have to be so rough on you!" he shot back again.
"Excuse me, what did you just say?" Amethyst demanded, as she was getting really angry.
"You heard me, reckless gemchild!" Rattrap shouted, "I said you are reckless and irresponsible!"
Amethyst raged. "You stupid verminite!" she punched him.
"Why I ought to…" he started off. But, before Rattrap could come to blows with Amethyst, the crossbow fired an energy bolt at them.
|TARGET REQUARTED!| said Sentinel.
But then, Rattrap transformed to robot mode and skidded in the vertical hatch. "Give it up, Sentinel!" he said. "You don't have a chance, cause I'm a stealth fighter, a master marksman and…" he then opened up something on his forearm. "...A demolition expert!"
Amethyst was stunned, "You carry explosives in your arms?" she asked.
"Yeah, that's right!" Rattrap said. "Jealous much!"
Amethyst nodded a little bit as she saw Rattrap throw the charge at the crossbow and it exploded, but the cryo field still was rising. |RESISTANCE PERSISTS! UPGRADING PROGRAM!| Just then, a whole bunch of crossbows came out of the walls.
"Oh man, there won't be enough of us left to fill a teaspoon." said Rattrap, in fear.
"You're telling me!" Amethyst replied.
Rattrap and Amethyst look down. The bolt casters fire and knock him off his ladder. He grabs a vent just in time and scrambles in just as the cryofield passes. And with that he transforms back to beast mode. "Now to get to the core and show this hunk of junk what it means to mess with us!" Rattrap said, as he and Amethyst both crawled through a different ventilator.
Meanwhile, in the dark of the hidden cavern, Tigatron is seen prowling around and he spotted Jasper, Spinotor, Flamenix, Blackarachnia, Terrorsaur and Waspinator all in the same area.
"Wazzpinator says that we must deal with Optimuzzz firzzzt!" buzzed Waspinator.
It was then that Tigatron had an idea, "Tigatron, Maximize. Stealth Mode!" he transformed into robot mode and no one could hear him. He moves forward cautiously to the end of the tunnel, until he sees Blackarachnia is setting the sonic emitter. Terrorsaur, Flamenix, Spinotor, Jasper and Waspinator are all in their designated spots while the fliers hover nearby. They are in a high-ceilinged cavern. Their argument continues. He sneaks through the stalagmites as a spout of steam blows past Tigatron's face.
"Optimus will never find us here." said Terrorsaur.
"And even if he does, he'll be too late." said Blackarachnia, as she made some final adjustments.
"So, what next, Widow?" asked Jasper.
After pressing a few buttons, Blackarachnia got it working. "The emitter is ready. In 15 cycles we'll be right inside the Maximal Base." she said.
Then, they all heard a snarling sound. "THE ONLY PLACE YOU WILL ALL BE GOING IS TO SLAG-HEAP!" said a male voice. The Predacons turn around as Tigatron steps forward and opens up with his cannon. Waspinator, Flamenix and Terrosaur fly out of the way and Blackarachnia leaps aside as his blasts shatter stalagmites and rocks.
"Is that this Tigatron we've been hearing about?" Spinotor asked.
"Yeah!" said Terrorsaur.
Flamenix said, "I thought he would be orange!"
"How did he get down here?" Jasper demanded.
"I don't know!" replied Spinotor.
It was at that moment that Tigatron jumped over to the hole in the wall, grabbed the sonic emitter and pulled it all the way out of the hole.
"Ahhh! He's stolen my invention!" Blackarachnia shrieked in terror.
"PREDACONS TERRORIZE!" Terrorsaur shouted, as all the Predacons transformed into robot mode.
Blackarachnia jumps down from the wall and goes into robot mode and fires blasters from her spider legs. Tigatron races down the tunnel as the Predacons all shoot at him, they chase him down the tunnel and Jasper crashes into a stalagmite. Blackarachnia helped him up and resumed the chase. Flamenix, Terrorsaur and Waspinator all flew down the tunnel, with Terrorsaur in the lead as they fired at Tigatron.
When they lost sight of him, they all stopped in a different section of the cavern. They all looked around and couldn't find him. "He's gone!?"
"Where did he go?" asked Blackarachnia.
Just then, he spoke up, "Right here, Predacons!" he said, shooting at Terrorsaur, Waspinator, Flamenix and Blackarachnia. "I normally do not enjoy shooting female Predacons, but I'll make an exception!"
"Oh really?" Blackarachnia taunted. "You can't win, cat!" she taunted. "The emitter will explode and take you with it."
"In that case, allow me to return it." Tigatron shot back, throwing the emitter at Blackarachnia.
The emitter bounces out onto the cavern floor and gives Blackarachnia a dent in her leg. "NOOOOOOOOOO!" she yelled in pain, horror and frustration.
"Let's get the hell out of here!" yelled Terrorsaur and Jasper in unison.
And so, they all darted their way out of the cavern as the emitter began waving around. Tigatron jumped down and transformed back to beast mode and jumped out of the way as the emitter finally exploded.
The explosion was so intense it rocked the ground outside of the Axalon and Steven's house.
"Jumpin Gyros!" said Cheetor.
"What on Earth was that?" Steven asked.
"Let's find out, battle mode!" Optimus said, as the Maximals all transformed to robot mode and ran right to the spot where the explosion hit.
Steven, Garnet and Pearl all raced over there too. "Yikes, what could have caused this?" asked Pearl.
"Not sure, but let's defend ourselves, just in case." said Garnet, as she, Pearl and Steven defended themselves.
As the Maximals and Gems gathered around it, and they saw the ground moving, Optimus pointed his blaster at the ground but then out of it came Tigatron all covered in dirt.
"Tigatron?" Optimus asked, in surprise.
"What the!?" asked Steven. "What happened to you!?"
"It's a long and very ugly story!" he replied.
"My goodness!" Garnet exclaimed.
"I want to hear it, as soon as we deal with our other problem." Optimus said, as Tigatron jumped out of the hole.
"Problem?" asked Tigatron.
"Yeah!" Steven said. "Amethyst pulled a prank on Dinobot and it caused Sentinel to go haywire!"
"And now, Amethyst and Rattrap are trapped inside!" said Rhinox. "If they don't deactivate Sentinel soon, they're goners!"
Inside the Axalon, Rattrap and Amethyst managed to make it to the central core and Amethyst was in awe of it. She looked around and saw the energy field at the bottom of the platform. "I have checked inches of this ship and not once did I stop by the central core." she whispered to herself.
"Well, now you have." said Rattrap, showing it to her.
It's a stunning array of compact electronics, displays, and some obviously kluged repairs. They both enter and jump up onto one of the many pillars that circle the room.
|UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO COMPUTER CORE!| said Sentinel. It began aiming at them.
"Aw great! How are we gonna get out of this!?" asked Amethyst. Sentinel starts firing. Rattrap and Amethyst both swing on a rope, land on a grate, slips and saves themselves with Rattrap wrapping his tail around the barrier.
"Cool your gems, kid." Rattrap replied, "It's just the exterminators, her to blow a few bugs outta your system!" he said to Sentinel.
Rattrap dashes to an input screen and transforms into robot mode, using the control pads, he begins frantic operations. Just then, a particularly nasty looking array, it looked just like a solar collector panel, and junted from the wall, swung towards him and came to life.
"Friend or Foe identification codes." he pressed a few buttons here and there. He got angry and said, "Where did Rhinox and Garnet put 'em?" he asked himself. He slammed the console and it showed a red circle switch on it. "YES!" he said triumphantly.
But then, Amethyst heard some whirring. "Uh oh, I don't like the sound of that." she said, looking over her shoulder.
|SHATTER FIELD, ONLINE!| said Sentinel. It fired at them, but the shot ricocheted and hit a girder that caused Rattrap to get pinned to the ground while Amethyst backflipped out of the way.
"Not good!" said Amethyst, as she panicked.
"Amethyst, you got your whip on ya?" Rattrap asked.
"Yeah, why?" Amethyst said.
"Use your whip to block any blasts or even get this offa me!" said Rattrap, telling her what she should do.
"Okay!" said Amethyst.
Sentinel starts to fire and Rattrap jumps out of the way just before he gets scrapped. A huge beam falls on his legs pinning him to the ground just inches out of reach of the big red button that will turn Sentinel off. He stretches to reach the button in time. Amethyst uses her whip to block the shots Sentinel was going to take.
|TARGET LOCKED… PREPARING TO TERMINATE!|
"Come on, dude! Hurry!" said Amethyst.
Outside the Axalon, Steven, Garnet, Pearl, Optimus, Rhinox, Tigatron, Cheetor and Dinobot all turned their heads to see the shield deactivated.
"What the?" said Steven.
"Hey the shield went down!" Cheetor added, as he saw this.
Garnet and Rhinox both sighed. "NO!"
"What is it, Garnet?" Optimus asked her.
"Sentinel wouldn't drop the shield if an intruder was…Still active." Garnet replied.
"You don't suppose that?" Pearl gasped, feeling horrified.
Rhinox was in shock, "We might have to face the fact."
Steven was silent and hung his head down.
"Rattrap and Amethyst, Gone?" Cheetor said, as if he was sad. "No way….I…I don't believe it!"
Steven then stood next to Cheetor. "I know that Amethyst wasn't an easy Gem to be with. But she was one of the ones who made me laugh." he said, in mourning.
Optimus swallowed hard and said his words. "He was a difficult Maximal to deal with. At times, impossible! But, I'll remember him with honor."
Garnet nodded, "As will I. I will remember both Amethyst and Rattrap with honor."
Pearl sniffed and began crying. "Goodbye, Amethyst! We'll never forget you." she said. "Goodbye Rattrap, you may have been difficult, but you were the best spy I've ever met."
Dinobot then spoke a few words of his own, about both Amethyst and Rattrap. "I won't disgrace their memory with lies!" he started off. "Amethyst was a conniving, miscalculated tricky Gem! And Rattrap, he was a stinking, omnivorous pestilence!" he added. But then, he said something positive. "But still, in some perverse way, I will miss them both."
Rhinox spoke up last, "Amethyst was hard to understand, but she was the odd one out. And Rattrap, sure he smelled bad. He was a rat….But he was my best friend." They hang their heads in silence, then suddenly they hear a familiar sound. The sound of the base's hatch opening up. They all gasped in shock.
"Oh boo, boo-hoo. Don't stop now! You motorheads are killing me." a familiar voice spoke
They turn and their eyes widen as both Amethyst and Rattrap are revealed to be alive.
"Thanks for the memoriam by the way." Amethyst said, "But, I'm not planning on dying so soon."
"Rattrap, Amethyst!" Steven ran up and hugged them both. "How did you both…"
"Avoid getting scrapped?" Rattrap continued with the question. "Well it was no oil bath but let's face it, ain't a defense system made I can't get around. Right Sentinel?" he asked.
To their astonishment, Sentinel replies, "Acknowledged!"
"You just gotta know how to talk to 'em." said Amethyst.
The Maximals and Gems all exchange glances. And then Optimus bursts out laughing. And soon, all of them laughed while Dinobot just chuckled a little bit.
To Be Continued…
[Bat Out of Hell by Meat Loaf continues]
Me: Well, another chapter in the bag. And we got it done in just under a few weeks. Right?
The Amazing Ghost Musician: You've got that right, broski! This has got to be the best chapter we've done so far.
Me: Yeah, amen to that. And also, chapter 3 of Kamen Rider Crimzone is ready to go. And I owe it to my Discord friend, Shadowriter, for helping me perfect it.
The Amazing Ghost Musician: Also to our friends here who've joined us for this special chapter, we just wanna thank you guys for joining us today, and paying respects to the memories of Betty White, Bob Seget, Sidney Poitier, Gaspard Ulliel, Meat Loaf and Louie Anderson. And also, thank you for joining us in these two chapters so far, Spidey, Widow, Ben and Power Girl.
Ben: Glad you could have us here, WOLF. I hope you can get back to our stories soon. You still have to finish chapter 3 of The Vengeance Of Enoch. And the next chapter of What A Strange Web We Weave as well as Infinity Crisis War. I wonder how the next Spider-Man game from Insomniac will be.
Power Girl: I hear they got Tony Todd playing the voice of Venom in it. Peter it looks like you and Miles will be in for the fight of your lives.
Spider-Man: Yeah. And I just can't believe that the Venom in the new game is Harry Osborn and not Eddie Brock. I mean that sucks.
Black Widow: Don't worry, my darling. At least you won't be the only Marvel Hero that Insomniac has.
Me: Yeah, I hear that Insomniac is also making a Wolverine game.
The Amazing Ghost Musician: I wonder how this will all go down when the games come out?
Me: Not sure. But, I really would like to see an English Dubbed Kamen Rider game here in the States.
The Amazing Ghost Musician: I just hope that they don't turn out as horrible as WWE 2K20 was in 2019.
Me: Don't remind me. But, I did like one arena that the New Day revealed. The arena that had the ring over a swimming pool. That arena gave me inspiration for a wrestling promotion I am working on for a fanfic of mine in the future. Only, I'm doing it my way.
The Amazing Ghost Musician: That's gonna be interesting! Well anyway, we hope that you all enjoyed this chapter. Make sure you all follow our story, and please don't forget to leave a review. NO FLAMES!
Me: And also, don't miss chapter 10! We're basing it a little bit on the Beast Wars Episode "Gorilla Warfare!"
The Amazing Ghost Musician: Oh yeah, for any of you who don't know what episode. It's where Scorponok launches one of his Cyber Bee's on Optimus, and it raises his aggression. Now it'll be up to Steven, Garnet, Cheetor and the others to find a way to save Optimus, and retrieve an Anti-Virus from the Predacons before it's too late.
Me: Can they do it? Find out next time!
The Amazing Ghost Musician: Make sure you all stay tuned for Chapter 10: Viral Gorilla Warfare. Until we meet again!
All: SEE YA NEXT TIME!