The Maximals were running in robot mode through a newly discovered system of tunnels, trying to evade Thrust, Mirage, and their drones...
"Oh, great! Why is it that whenever we find a prime piece of real estate, we get evicted by THESE clowns?!" Rattrap complained as he sped along. Snowstalker rolled her eyes.
"Glad to have you back in charge, Big Bot; I hope you're not sorry you accepted the job!" Cheetor said with a smirk. Primal Prime smirked back.
"Not like I had a choice, is it?" the Maximal leader replied.
Working their way through the tunnels, the Maximals came to a dead end!
"I thought you knew your way around these tunnels!" Blackarachnia complained to Nightscream. The bat frowned. "Oh, right; blame the new guy!" Nightscream retorted.
As the Vehicons caught up, all Thrust could say as he and Mirage transformed was:
"Sweet!"
"Yeah; nowhere to run and no place to hide!" Mirage added.
Cheetor stood in front of Primal Prime.
"We'll take the brunt of the battle," Cheetor advised. "You're still weak from reformatting Nightscream!"
Nightscream rolled his eyes. "So everything's MY fault, now?!" he complained.
Grabbing one of Cheetor's scimitars, Primal Prime gained a willful expression.
"Weakened or not, I don't hide behind ANYONE!" Primal Prime announced, pushing Cheetor out of his way.
As Thrust and Mirage's drones transformed, Thrust himself asked:
"Any last requests?"
Seeing a large coolant container on the wall beside them, Primal Prime smirked...
"Yes... I think you should CHILL out!" he said, throwing Cheetor's scimitar at the coolant container!
As the coolant swept the Vehicons away, Primal and the other Maximals (minus Rattrap) leapt for the overhead pipes!
"Hey! What about ME?!" Rattrap complained as he was submerged in the coolant. Transforming back into beast mode to regain his buoyancy, Rattrap floated to the surface.
"Man! I'm f-f-f-f-FREEZIN'!" the rodent complained.
"Grab on!" Primal Prime told Rattrap, extending his arm to try and help the rodent. A large hunk of metal began floating towards Rattrap, threatening to take him with it!
"Uh... Boss Monkey?!" Rattrap asked, gesturing to the imminent threat.
"I see it; your tail!" Primal Prime told the rat as he realised Rattrap had something he COULD reach. Lifting Rattrap by the tail, Primal Prime saved the rodent... But then he lost his grip.
Blackarachnia intervened by shooting a strand of energy web at Rattrap, managing to snare the rodent! This didn't last long, either...
"The coolant's making it too brittle! It's going to..." Blackarachnia started before the webbing broke off.
As Rattrap fell again, Nightscream flew in to save the rat.
"Gotcha!" the youth announced.
"Oh, m-m-man! Look at me; this body's USELESS!" Rattrap complained. Blackarachnia smirked at him.
"Don't underestimate it, Rattrap; it's UGLY, too!" she teased, making Rattrap snarl.
"Guys! Over here!" Shadow and Aurora announced in unison as their mother went ahead of them to see if the coast was clear.
As the Maximals ascended the pipeline, Primal Prime was the first to comment...
"Looks like we'll have to go topside until we can find tunnels that AREN'T flooded!" the Maximal leader sighed.
"We'll be sitting ducks up there!" Nightscream complained.
"Do you WANT to go back to your solo career?!" Snowstalker asked with a snarl.
"All I'm saying is that until he's FULLY recovered, maybe someone else should take command?" Nightscream suggested.
"I think you've said enough, kid; the last time we followed someone else, it didn't go too smoothly..." Rattrap hissed.
"Besides, now that he's up and about again, we follow Primal Prime's orders, period!" Cheetor stated.
Making it to a horizontal pipe, The Maximals caught their breath before Primal Prime decided upon a plan of action.
"Back to beast mode, everyone; we don't want the Vehicons tracking us here," the Maximal leader announced.
Transforming, Primal punched down a vent leading to the surface, revealing something disturbing...
"I don't believe it..." Cheetor gasped as he took in the sight: numerous robot parts, all strewn about what appeared to either be a scrap heap or... A graveyard...
"Believe it, spots; this isn't even one of the bigger ones..." Nightscream sighed.
Sniffing a torso, Rattrap noticed that the Spark chamber was empty. "No residual carbon scoring! Man, these Sparks didn't go offline... They were removed!" he realised.
"Then they're still alive?" Aurora asked hopefully. Primal Prime nodded. "Somewhere, they are..."
Blackarachnia and Shadow began tearing up, thinking of their lost partners...
"Is this what happened to you?" Shadow and Blackarachnia thought to themselves, seeing the visages of their loved ones before their eyes.
"We'll either find or avenge them..." Aurora told the pair, her empathic powers telling her their emotions.
A blast overhead diverted the "Beast Machines's" attention, revealing that Jetstorm, Megabolt, and the Aero and Astro Drones were closing in!
"Everybody, back into the tunnel!" Cheetor ordered.
As the other Maximals made for the tunnel, Cheetor noticed Primal Prime wasn't moving...
"Primal, what're you doing?!" Cheetor gasped. Primal Prime growled.
"I'm THROUGH hiding from Tarantulas! This is OUR planet, NOT his!" the Maximal leader announced. "I am transformed!" he roared, converting into his robot mode.
"Tankor, PULVERIZE!"
"Blastcharge, ANNIHILATE!"
"Scavenger, EVISCERATE!"
Tankor, Blastcharge, and Scavenger charged into the scene, transforming into their robot modes...
"Beast Bots will NOT leave!" Tankor declared.
"I am transformed!" Blackarachnia and Rattrap announced, transforming into their robot modes.
"Which way do we go?!" Blackarachnia asked. Jetstorm snickered.
"Oh, like it matters, baby-cakes?! After all... They're ALL dead-ends!" he sneered.
"SCATTER!" Primal Prime ordered as Megabolt and Scavenger arrived.
Cheetor and his family all transformed to aid in the battle as Blackarachnia used a webline to evade the Aero Drones' firepower!
"Did you miss us?" Mirage and Thrust asked in unison as they also arrived.
"Guys?! A little help?!" Rattrap asked as he sped clear of Tankor, Blastcharge, and Scavenger's shots.
"Like *I* don't have problems of my own?!" Nightscream complained in beast mode as he flew to evade Megabolt's firepower.
Blackarachnia swung around upon her webline, losing her grip and falling as she unexpectedly converted back into beast mode! Looking behind her, the spider noticed the racing Vehicons were still on her tail!
"They're STILL following me?! What do I need, a restraining order?!" she hissed. Blackarachnia erected an energy web to stop the pair in their tracks... That's when Jetstorm began blasting at her!
Thrown over a ledge by the firepower, Blackarachnia transformed into robot mode again, seemingly against her will! Upon landing, the spider was blasted at by more Aero Drones! Before the blasts could impact, Mirage T-Boned her, knocking her out of harm's way!
The blasts impacted a large tower nearby, separating Blackarachnia and Mirage from their respective teams... Together.
Nightscream wrenched his wing free from some rubble, noticing a hole in it.
"I'm grounded?! Ugh, that is SO weak!" He complained. He was caught off guard by Tankor and Blastcharge emerging from the debris.
"Tankor, PULVERIZE!"
"Blastcharge, ANNIHILATE!"
The pair transformed into their vehicle modes as Nightscream ran off.
"Tankor and Blastcharge SLAG bird-bot!" Tankor announced. Blastcharge was confused.
"Blastcharge thought he was a rat-bot!" Blastcharge replied.
"Hello?! I'm a BAT!" Nightscream said indignantly. "I am transformed!"
Converting into his robot mode, Nightscream continued to run...
Rattrap, meanwhile, emerged from another section of the rubble. "Hang on, kiddo; Rattrap's comin'!" he announced, speeding off.
Jetstorm and Megabolt were taking potshots at Primal Prime, Cheetor, and his family...
"Hey! I got one Maximal; do I hear two, maybe three, four, FIVE Maximals?!" Jetstorm asked in an auctioneer's tone. Primal Prime launched an energy shuriken from his chest at the Vehicon.
"I'm sorry; victims CANNOT make a bid!" Megabolt announced as the star missed its' mark. "FIVE Maximals, SOLD to the handsome silver-winged devil... ME!" Jetstorm laughed before gas from a nearby vent sent him AND Megabolt soaring overhead!
"See those vents?" Primal Prime pointed out to Cheetor and family. "The coolant we used to flood the tunnels was intended to chill the factory!" he explained. Cheetor gulped.
"In a matter of Cycles, this whole place will blow!" Shadow realised. Aurora nodded.
"Yep... It'll go sky-high!" Snowstalker said with a shiver.
"Blackarachnia's buried under that! We've got to reach her, and fast!" Primal Prime reasoned.
"What did you get us into, Bubbles?" Shadow whispered harshly.
As Blackarachnia extracted herself from the rubble, she saw what she thought was an eagle's silhouette... It turned out to be Mirage.
"Why'd you save me?" Blackarachnia asked hesitantly. Mirage shrugged. "My mistake... It won't happen again," he replied.
Tankor and Blastcharge, now joined by Thrust and Scavenger, were in hot pursuit of Nightscream, who was limping because of the hole in his leg wing. They blasted left, right, and centre at him, making him hobble even more!
A blast sailed overhead of Nightscream and impacted some scrapped body parts, leading to a remark from the youth.
"It's bad enough you stole their Sparks, now you've gotta blow 'em up?!" he snarled.
Two Aero Drones were pursuing Rattrap. One more came up before him, giving him little time to think! As he looked around, the rodent got an idea!
Jumping and pirouetting, Rattrap confused the Drones' internal computers into making them collide and explode!
Landing with a thump, Rattrap looked over himself.
"Okay... Maybe this body DOES have some uses, after all!" he commented. A scraping sound nearby caught Rattrap's attention. A cart of some kind was grinding along upon a rail system...
"What in the name of Gouda?" Rattrap asked himself.
Three Aero Drones swooped in on Cheetor and his family, blasting at them!
As Cheetor and his family deflected the shots, Shadow noticed Primal Prime running towards the fallen structures!
"Where's Diddy Kong going?!" the panther asked.
"Big Bot, shouldn't we be looking for a way out?!" Cheetor questioned his leader.
"NO! Blackarachnia's still trapped inside!" Primal told the family. "We do NOT leave our teammates behind!"
Continuing to run through the Vehicon Drones' firepower, Primal Prime was astounding Cheetor with his speed!
"Prime?!" Cheetor gasped.
Back with Blackarachnia and Mirage, a door opened near the spider as a rail car sped along, almost taking Blackarachnia down! Fortunately, Mirage tackled her out of harm's way again!
As the door sealed itself behind them, Blackarachnia could only wonder if Mirage was who she THOUGHT he was...
"Saving me again?! What is your defect?!" she asked. Mirage looked around...
"There's something about this place... And you! It's like I remember something... But I can't quite reach it!"
Blackarachnia quirked an eyebrow. Could he be?
"Yeah? Well... You had better watch yourself, okay?" she advised.
Proceeding into the factory, Blackarachnia and Mirage were dumbfounded by their surroundings...
"What IS this place?!" Blackarachnia asked.
Overhead lights illuminated the pair, revealing a vast machine...
"Two Sparks detected... Initialising extraction sequence Omega," the machine announced, grabbing the pair with claw-like mechanisms...
"Preparing to extract Sparks..." the machine stated as Blackarchnia's jaw went slack.
"No, not MY Spark!" Blackarachnia protested, struggling to free herself. Mirage looked to his temporary companion and felt... Empathy for her! He knew what he had to do...
Shooting the claw holding Blackarachnia, he freed her from the Spark extractor! Blackarachnia was now almost positive of who Mirage's Spark belonged to...
"It can't be... SILVERBOLT?!" she gasped.
"GO! Save yourself!" Mirage told the she-spider as his Spark was extracted.
"Not a chance!" Blackarachnia told the racecar.
"No... Not again!" Mirage gasped as his Spark entered the Spark extractor's chamber...
"NO!" Blackarachnia yelled in dismay as she forcibly reverted to beast mode.
"Lock upon secondary target disrupted... Scanning... Scanning... Scanning..." the Spark extracting machine repeated to itself, attempting to locate Blackarachnia.
"It can't see me? Of course, I'm in beast mode!" she whispered.
Making her way to the machine's control panel, Blackarachnia enacted her plan...
"I am transformed!" she announced, converting to robot mode.
"Secondary target located!" the machine announced, locking onto Blackarachnia's Maximal energy signature. Just as it was about to grab her, Blackarachnia sent an Electro-Web current into the machine's interface, causing it to short out!
Blackarachnia was thrown back a few metres as the machine powered down, allowing Mirage's Spark to float towards its' host body...
Nightscream was being held at blaster-point by the remaining ground Vehicons, who were powering up their respective weapons... Just then, Rattrap sped in!
"ALL ABOARD!" the rat announced, colliding with the bat and making their escape. As Rattrap carried Nightscream out of harm's way, the youth formulated a plan...
"Split up! I've got an idea!" Nightscream told Rattrap as he hopped out of the rodent's arms.
"Let me guess: You get away while *I* get my rump roasted?!" Rattrap complained. Nightscream shook his head.
"As if!" he remarked, activating his sonic emitter. Pitching his voice to the correct frequency, Nightscream used a subharmonic that put the Vehicon Generals into stasis lock!
Smirking, Nightscream then launched his fangs into Tankor, draining the power he needed to heal himself.
"Nice thinkin', Wings!" Rattrap complimented. "But we're not out of the woods yet! There's somethin' weird goin' on in there..." he told his comrade, pointing to the factory.
Back with Primal Prime, Jetstorm and Megabolt came soaring in, transforming into their robot modes. They began blasting at the Maximal leader, who decided enough was enough! Rising on his flight pack, Primal Prime landed upon an overhead structure, where he started absorbing the firepower to redirect it at the Vehicons!
"Missed!" Jetstorm commented as a blast sailed by him.
"Missed again!" Megabolt also stated, as a blast nearly got him.
"One more time!" they announced in unison.
"Oh, wait; here's an easy one... FOR US!" Jetstorm taunted as he and Megabolt transformed into their alternate modes.
"Prime!" Cheetor and his family exclaimed.
Leaping into action, Cheetor, Snowstalker, Aurora, and Shadow simultaneously tackled the Maximal leader out of harm's way!
Upon descending, the Maximal leader and the Cat Clan were greeted by Rattrap and Nightscream.
"Hey guys, nice of you to DROP in!" Rattrap commented. Primal Prime gained a look of resolve.
"We've got to find Blackarachnia!" he ordered.
"Look at him! He's in no condition to be commanding!" Nightscream whispered harshly to Cheetor.
"Can we argue about it later?!" Cheetor whispered back.
"If we keep following him, there won't BE a later!" Nightscream whispered again.
Just then, Jetstorm and Megabolt soared in!
"Well, well, well; we just need a spider, and we'll have the whole set!" Megabolt commented. Jetstorm smirked.
"Gotta catch 'em all!" he said, quoting an old TV show.
The Vehicon flyers were quickly dispatched by another coolant vent that sent them sailing away!
"The clock is ticking, Maximals!" Primal Prime announced, running towards the factory.
As the other Maximals followed their leader, Nightscream continued his argument.
"I'm telling you; he's gonna get us blown to Kingdom Come!" Nightscream panted as he tried to keep up.
"If you want to leave, then leave!" Shadow growled.
"But as long as you're with us, you follow Primal Prime, got it?!" Snowstalker snarled.
Arriving at the factory door, Primal Prime gasped for air.
"This is... Where Blackarachnia was... When I lost sight of her..." the Maximal leader panted.
Watching Mirage's Spark float above its' body, Blackarachnia began putting what she thought was correct together...
"Now it all makes sense; the way you kept helping me... Somewhere, deep inside, you remember!" she reasoned, watching the Spark re-enter its' host.
As Mirage awoke, he had something to say...
"Do you need your positronic brain defragmented?! Why'd you save me?!" he gasped.
"Don't you get it?! This place is where Tarantulas stole EVERY Spark on Cybertron, including yours!" Blackarachnia told him.
"You're saying... I used to be one of you?! Like what Spy Streak was?!" Mirage said in disbelief.
Blackarachnia nodded. "Not just anyone... Don't you remember?" she asked. Mirage held up a Spark extractor.
"No, you don't know what you're talking about! STAY BACK!" he barked. Blackarachnia continued to press the issue.
"Think back! Remember the Maximal you used to be! Remember what we shared, Silverb-"
Just then, Rattrap dropped in!
"FREEZE, ZIPPY!" he yelled.
As Primal Prime and the others also descended, Blackarachnia gained a look of exasperation.
"NO, YOU IDIOTS!" she exclaimed.
Looking around in panic, Mirage transformed into his racecar mode and sped off.
"What'd you yell at us for?! We could've HAD him!" Rattrap yelled.
"YOU RUINED EVERYTHING!" Blackarachnia shrieked.
"Guys, let's get out of here..." Cheetor hinted.
"Wait! This place... The atrocities committed on the Maximals here... This is all my fault," Primal Prime said in a melancholy tone.
"Prime, there's no time for this!" Snowstalker said, trying to snap the Maximal leader out of it.
"Tarantulas stole their Sparks and used their bodies to create mindless Vehicons because *I* couldn't stop him from getting here before us... Because *I* failed!" Primal Prime said through gritted teeth.
"FORGET TARANTULAS! Everybody out, NOW! THAT'S AN ORDER, PRIME!" Cheetor yelled as the factory began shaking.
As the Maximals ran, they were followed by Jetstorm and Megabolt...
"We hope you don't mind, but we brought a few friends along!" Jetstorm quipped as several Aero and Astro Drones followed the pair. Just then, the factory exploded!
A massive fireball engulfed the area, sending Jetstorm, Megabolt, and their Drones off-kilter!
Transforming back into beast mode, the Maximals outran the shockwave, getting to safety!
Primal Prime was still in shock at what had just transpired...
"Back in that plant... You... REMOVED me from command!" the Maximals leader told Cheetor angrily. The cheetah looked hurt...
"You weren't thinking clearly, Prime! You... HAVEN'T been since resuming command..." Cheetor said, a look of disappointment washing over him. "I wanted you back in charge because I believe in you... But you've left me no choice; I'm taking over..." he said, frowning.
Nightscream was still freaking out about the dismembered remains of his fellow Cybertronians...
"Destroyed... ALL destroyed!" he whimpered in mourning.
"They were nothin' but empty shells, right? We can always build new bodies... Assuming we ever find the Sparks," Rattrap reasoned.
"We already DID!" Blackarachnia hissed. "Mirage, the Vehicon you just chased away?! He was... He was a Maximal, too. Not just Spy Streak... And I'd almost brought him back until YOU all chased him away!" she shrieked.
Snowstalker gained a look of realisation.
"Then... Tankor, Jetstorm, Megabolt, Scavenger, and even Thrust, were also..." Primal Prime reasoned. "We can't destroy them!" he realised.
"Not without fraggin' our guys!" Rattrap reasoned. "Man, Tarantulas doesn't miss a trick..." he hissed.
"If Tarantulas HAS turned the rest of the crew into Vehicons..." Cheetor started.
"Then it's up to US to free them," Snowstalker finished for her beloved.
TO BE CONTINUED...