Nemesis Rewrite

Nemesis Rewrite: Part 3 By: Iron Vest Yim (A/N: Well, this is really the end of Beast Wars. I hope to write a conclusion of how Ifelt Nemesis could have been done. The Nemesis episodes weren't what I envisioned for the end of Beast Wars but by writing this, I feel like I could gain some experience in writing fanfiction. Enjoy.)

Chapter 3 With the annihilation of Tigerhawk, the main cannon of the Nemesis pointed towards Optimus Primal with every intent on erasing the Maximal leader from existence. "Inferno, fire at Optimus!" cried Megatron. "My queen! I have most unpleasant news. Our primary cannon has been depleted to 30% by the destruction of the winged cat!" replied Inferno. "Hmmm, perhaps then I'll need to find other alternatives to act as your instruments of destruction," mused Megatron as he opened another panel and clicked several switches to activated the ship's turrents. -------------- "No more, Megatron! This ends right here! How many more of my friends will be sacrificed for your insane ambitions?!? I'll have no more of it, you hear me?!?!? NO MORE!!!!" yelled Optimus as he blasted towards the Nemesis. Several turrents and sideguns detected the heat of Optimus and, after getting a lock on the giant Optimal, fired. Flying at full speed, Optimus managed to avoid several missiles until three slammed into him full force, knocking him into the ocean. -------------- As the ultimate battle raged on, another conflict raged on within the spark of a certain transformer. Transmetal 2 Dinobot slowly opened his eyes to a sight he had never before seen. "By the pit, is this where I think it is?" wondered the bewildered Transmetal. "I see you finally figured it out, clone," snorted a strangely familiar voice that sounded like his own, "The Matrix, where all are one." "Who.. What are you?" asked Dinobot as a mysterious spark hovered above him. "I am you.. or to be more precise, you are a soulless duplicate of myself," answered the spark. "You! Megatron told me about you! He told me how you betrayed him and joined the Maximals!" snarled Dinobot. "What he did not tell you was that I had never betrayed the Predacons. It was he who betrayed me! I acted according to the Predacon Code of Honor and challenged him to battle for leadership. Being the treacherous lizard he was, Megatron had one of his minions blast me out of base only to, later on, brand me as a traitor for his own convenience and peace of mind. In essence, it was Megatron who was the traitor for not acting in accordance with Predacon honor." "But he.. never told me.. about what exactly happened or about the Predacon Code of Honor for that matter." said Dinobot meekly. "Exactly, which is why he was able to maintain better control over you. Even when that vermin, Rattrap, inserted my memories into you, you still felt no shame or remorse as you attacked him when he thought that my memories had changed you. Do you know why committed such an act?"(A/N: Dark Glass) "X..." "Precisely! All the evil and hatred spawned from X still resided in your spark. My memories proved to be not strong enough to override his will. The darkness of his spark triumphed that day and you returned to Megatron as the brutal and sadistic killer he wanted you to be." "....." "You feel pain, guilt now.. don't you? Now that Rampage is dead, your spark feels remorse for what you've done in the past, doesn't it? Not only that, it also feels more whole, yes?" "Affirmative..." "I see.. I understand the conflict that is going on within you right now. I believe I can help." "You know?" "Yes, and as for now, I foresee destiny having the greatest test in store for your life as it had with me once. If you wish to fulfill that destiny, I urge you to listen to what I am about to say." Dinobot blinked and stared intently at the spark. ----------------------------------- With a great boost of his jets, Optimus managed to fly out of the ocean. "Optimus to all units! Defensive positions now! Megatron has gained control of the Nemesis and is headed your way! If he reaches you, it will be the end of everything! Tigerhawk has already fallen to the Nemesis! If we don't stop it, it'll be the end of us all!" <What about you, Optimus?!?> came Rhinox's voice from the com-link. "I'll do everything I can to stop the Nemesis! In the meantime, prepare yourselves!" With that being said, Optimus transformed into vehicle mode and streaked towards the Decepticon warship with all guns blazing. --------------------------------- Rhinox looked around the room. Most of the Maximals were preparing for the worst and Waspinator had come out of the CR tank. His latest invention lay next to him. He had created it at Optimus' request with some help from Blackarachnia. It was a spark extractor combined with some of the more ancient Autobot technology from the Ark designed to use extract the original Megatron's spark out of Dragon Megatron with a molecular pull that would stimulate all the electrons of the original Megatron and pull it towards the extractor. Cheetor had also come back as well. Silverbolt, for the time being, was in the CR tank and hopefully, he would be out before the Nemesis arrived. "Slag! Megatron's headed our way! Rattrap, engage the stabilizer thrusters! Blackarachnia, all emergancy power to the Ark now! We're gonna lift this bird!" Blackarachnia quickly grabbed Rattrap's tail spear and slid both sides into the thrusters. Rattrap, in the meantime, was not pleased. "Hey! That's mine, ya emasculatin' femmebot!" "Not now, cheesebreath!" replied Blackarachnia hurridly. "Hey! I don't appreciate sneaky spiders takin' my bot'hood, sist'ah! Now if you would kindly---" "Shut up, Rattrap!" everyone yelled. "Alright.. alright..." muttered the Maximal rodent. "All power to engines!" commanded Rhinox. Blackarachnia turned all the switches as did Rhinox and Rattrap in their respective posts. The power flared up as did the engines but soon, after the noise died down, the engines gave way and went kaput. "Slag!" exclaimed Rhinox, "I was afraid this would happen!" "So.. what're we gonna do now?" asked Cheetor. "I really hate to say this.. but, we're all gonna die.." said Rattrap quietly. This time, noboy moved their lips to silence the rodent. After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, Rhinox slapped his own head and said, "OF COURSE! Why didn't I think of this sooner? We may have a chance after all! Come quickly!" The rest of the Maximals looked confusingly at each other and followed the big green robot --------------------------------- "Forgive my asking, Royalty! But may I ask what our goal is after the annihilation of our enemies!" asked Inferno. "We shall sail the Nemesis back to Cybertron. There, we shall give an ultimatum to the Maximal Elders! They, along with the Maximal race, shall submit to my rule. If not... well... let us just say that I've mapped out the areas of our planet that are inhabited solely by Maximals. We shall unleash the full fury of this warship upon the hapless Maximals and they shall learn that neither segregation nor inequality will prevent the Predacons from grasping our destiny!" replied Megatron. "What about Dinobot? Shall I try to wake him?" "Very well," replied Megatron absently. "Our main goal, however, is the destruction of the Ark..." he said to himself. The bridge suddenly rocked a bit. "Blast! Inferno, what was that?" asked Megatron. "That was Optimus, Royalty! He has managed to destroy one of our main turrents!" cried Inferno. "Slag him! No matter... Optimus will soon find that his efforts are futile. ---------------------------------- On another side of the universe, Dinobot's core conscious gazed at the shining spark in front of him. "And so, I believed Megatron to be my friend at one point, even. However, his cowardice and lack of honor soon emerged before I knew it. I even asked myself if it was worth it to be on the trip that took us to Earth. Soon, we crash-landed and that was the time, as I have told you before, Megatron had me shot out of the Predacons. Ever since that moment, my hatred grew so strong that I even joined the Maximals and changed my activation code. However, things did not go according to my plans. I did not take over the Maximals. I did not even conquer Megatron and the Predacon base for my own to return to Cybertron. Something else took place that changed my spark forever." "You... grew close with the Maximals," finished the Transmetal 2 clone. "Precisely! I did so reluctantly. It was a slow and steady process but soon, I found myself attached to these Maximals. Sure they did not care for conquest or battle but their courage and bravery shone every waking moment whenever Megatron attacked us. I soon grew to admire their bravery... and their honor. Optimus Primal, although he could have saved himself and let me die in our first battle, clung to me and saved my life from the Predacons firepower. I saved his life later on, in another battle and at that time, I only did so because I believed that it would make us even. However, my spark was changed by his act of compassion. As time passed, he stood up for me and saved my life several times. Even when I betrayed the Maximals, he, along with Rattrap, allowed me back on side of the Maximals as if nothing had happened. Rarely will you see such a bot, be he Maximal or Predacon, so considerate, accepting, and full of compassion." "I...." muttered TMII Dinobot as he remembered how he blasted Optimus just to get at a feral TMII Cheetor. "As for the vermin... I remember him well. At first when I joined the Maximals, he and I despised each other intensely. But over time, a strange bond formed between the two of us. Although we still attacked and belittled each other, there was, underneath the currents of insults, a mutual respect and friendship we shared. Although neither of us would admit it, we did not what to do if one of us fell in battle. I nearly destroyed that friendship with my betrayal of the Maximals and handing the golden disc to Megatron. The guilt I felt was unimagineable! However, in my final hour, he clutched my hand and in that moment, our bond returned and the friendship we had developed grew to its strongest!" TM2 Dinobot shut his eyes and lowered his head, remembering how he attacked and wounded Rattrap after the diminutive Maximal thought that the original Dinobot had returned. "And the other Maximals, they were also the most courageous group I had ever seen. Tigatron, although I considered his pacifism to be a fool's belief, was the noblest individual I have ever met. Cheetor, although I insulted him just as much as I insulted Rattrap, had great potential and is destined for greatness someday. Then there was Rhinox. I admired his abilities and even though he had great patience, there came a time that I knew not to push that patience. Airrazor, although I knew her not as well as the other Maximals, was also one of strong conviction and along with Tigatron, was someone I respected highly." The bodiless spark paused as if he was recalling every single one of his former comrades. "After staying with the Maximals for this long and watching Megatron's ambitions unfold, I realized that if allowed to succeed in his plans, great suffering on both Maximals and Predacons would result. Megatron may put on a facade of caring to fighting for the rights of all Predacons but the truth is, he only cares about how he gains power for himself and if he can take over Cybertron. All this and more I realized after I handed the golden disc back to him. From that moment on, I knew that Megatron must now be allowed to win. I did everything in my power to stop him. And finally, it came down to making one of the biggest decisions in my life. I gave my life that fateful day, fighting with everything I had to protect the early humans of Earth to stop his madness. The reason we fight is not only to end what is perhaps the most dangerous threat to the universe in all Transformer history... it is to defend the future of the weak, the innocent, and those who are yet to come. Destiny has a great test in store for us all and your time has come to face up to that test. I hope that you'll make the right decision. The choice is yours...." The Transmetal 2 clone grabbed his head as all the memories he had ever experienced as the original Dinobot came rushing back at full force. ---------------------------------------------------- After twitching his laser eye uncomfortably for a nano-klik, Dinobot woke from stasis lock. "Ah, Dinobot! I see that you are back online!" exclaimed Megatron, "If you would, help Inferno power up the cannon that we shall use against the Maximals!" Dinobot shifted his frame uncomfortably but before he could respond, a missile crashed through the main window and struck the ground where Megatron stood, knocking the giant dragon off his feet. The next thing he knew, Optimus Primal crashed through the window completely and transformed into robot mode. "One way or another, Megatron, your madness ends now!" cried the Maximal leader who used one giant fist to backhand Inferno into the wall. Megatron got back on his feet. "Well, Primal. Let's have it then, the usual honor and glory speech!" he responded patronizingly. "Speech this," replied Optimus and slammed his fist into the tyrant's face. Before Megatron knew it, Optimus was pummeling him with all he had. "This is for Tigatron!" he said with an uppercut. "This is for Airrazor!" he cried as he punched Megatron in the stomuch. "And this is for Dinobot!" he screamed as he sent another punch towards the Predacon leader only to have it caught in mid-air by the dragon head. "Tsk, tsk, Primal. I thought you would know by now that our beloved Dinobot is alive and well!" exclaimed Megatron as he flew up and kneed Optimus in the face, knocking the huge Maximal down. Optimus slowly got up and groggily realized that one hit from Megatron had knocked out one of his teeth. Still, he did not give up the fight and tackled Megatron to the floor again. Grabbing Megatron's neck with both his hands, Optimus squeezed with all his might. "Even if I have to kill you, I'll make sure your evil ends here!" screamed Optimus. Megatron grabbed both Optimus's hands and pried them off. Using both his feet, he kicked Optimus into the wall. Optimus got up slowly and painfully. However, Dinobot noticed that there was still a fierce and grim determination in the Maximal leader's eyes. Optimus glared at Megatron and fired two missiles from his shoulder cannons. Megatron swiftly averted both missiles and transformed into beast mode, blasting fire in Optimus' direction. Optimus blocked the powerful heat of the flames by using one of his shoulder wings to shield himself. Soon, the flames stopped and when Optimus lowered his shield, he was abruptly punched in the face and knocked across the floor. Optimus got up again and rolled away, narrowly avoided an ice blast from Megatron's dragon cannon. Before he knew it, Megatron was in front of him again. "Well now, Primal! I should think that you would be capable of better than this!" exclaimed Megatron as he grabbed Optimus by the neck and lifted him up. Desperately, Optimus punched Megatron across the face three times. By the third time, Megatron's grip loosened and Optimus fell to the floor gasping for air. Before he could catch his breath, he was kneed down once again by the Predacon leader. Optimus wheezed and coughed up mech fluid. However, he remembered that the sake of the universe was at stake and painfully got up once again. <Warning! Power 55% depleted. Any further engagements with unit Megatron will result in stasis lock and possible loss of spark!> "Override!" yelled Optimus as he launched himself towards Megatron once more The two giant transformers grappled in the air as they tried to overpower each other. Soon, it seemed as if Megatron was gaining the upper hand on Optimus. "Face it, Optimus! You're simply no match for the fury of BOTH Megatron!" declared Megatron as he used his dragon hand to grind and crunch into Optimus's hand, crushing and shorting out its circuitry. "Aaaaahhh!" screamed Optimus at the pain. His other hand could not do anything as the crazed tyrant had a tight grip on that one as well. In a final act of desperation, Optimus jerked his head back and brought it forward with all his might, slamming it into Megatron's chin, knocking the Predacon leader down. Megatron slowly got up. "I must say, you deserve more credit than I originally gave you!" he exclaimed as he flew towards a weakened Optimus and gave him one of the biggest uppercuts Dinobot had ever seen. <Warning, Power depleted 85% and falling! Stasis lock now or loss of spark will result!> "No.... must... fight............ON!" moaned a highly weakened Optimus, who painfully got back to his feet despite the heavy damaged he received. His right hand was almost completely destroyed by Megatron and gears all over his body were shorting out and losing energy. "By the Pit! What are you?!?!?" cried Megatron as he smashed Optimus with his fists again and again. Using his left hand, Optimus clung to Megatron's leg as his helmet was smashed and dented by the rogue Predacon. Dinobot watched in admiration as Optimus Primal, leader of the Maximals, fought on despite being outclassed by the red dragon. "Such a noble warrior does not deserve this..." he muttered. ------------------------------------------ It turned out to the surprise of all the Maximals that there was a smaller ship hidden within the Ark. Rhinox had found it originally a few months ago but forgot about it until recently. Silverbolt had come out of the chamber by now. Rhinox was now briefing everyone on their next course of action. "Rattrap and I will fly the shuttle to the Nemesis in hopes of taking Megatron down once and for all. We have the spark extractor ready to use on him to regain the spark of the original Megatron. The rest of you will stay back and defend the Ark. Megatron must not be allowed to destroy it! Now let's go!" commanded Rhinox. "Wait! Waspinator want to come too! Waspinator help Maximals defeat Dragon-bot after all Dragon-bot do to humiliate Waspinator!" stated the ex-Predacon. Rhinox thought about it for a brief second. "All right!" he said, "Come on! We can't afford to lose anymore friends like we did with Tigerhawk!" "What?!?" exclaimed Cheetor, "Tigerhawk is.... gone? Cheetor fell to his knees and started sobbing quietly. Rhinox put a hand on Cheetor's shoulder. "I'm sorry," he said softly. Eventually, Cheetor got up and there was a cold, dark look in his eyes. "Let me go with you," he said softly but angrily. "Cheetor! Rattrap and I are going there with Waspinator. We need you here to guard the base!" exclaimed Rhinox. "Yeah, I know you're upset now, Cheetor," said Blackarachnia, "But.." "YOU! WHAT DO YOU CARE YOU STINKING PREDACON?!?!? The last time you cared about Tigatron or Airrazor was when you were trying to shoot them with cybervenom," growled Cheetor, "They were like family to me and now they're gone..." Cheetor tried to hold back his sobs. Normally, Blackarachnia would have countered insults with a smart-aleck comment of her own. This time, she lowered her head in shame. Silverbolt glared at Cheetor. "You'd better watch what you say around my beloved, Cheetor..." Before Cheetor could snap at Silverbolt, Rhinox got between the two. "This is NOT the time for this, now BACK DOWN, BOTH OF YOU!" commanded Rhinox. "NO!" replied Silverbolt, "Cheetor has insulted she who is dearest to my heart. I will NOT stand for such audacity!" Silverbolt found himself shoved to the floor by a furious Rhinox who had had enough. "I TOLD YOU THAT'S ENOUGH! THE UNIVERSE IS ABOUT TO BE DESTROYED AND ALL YOU CAN THINK ABOUT IS HOW SOMEONE INSULTED YOUR STUPID EGO! AS I RECALL, YOU ALMOST ALLOWED THE UNIVERSE TO BE DESTROYED JUST BECAUSE OF YOUR SELF-RIGHTEOUSNESS AND OBSESSION FOR BLACKARACHNIA! WE'RE IN A BATTLE FOR THE FATE OF ALL TRANSFORMER KIND SO SHUT THE PIT UP AND STAY AND GUARD THE BASE!" yelled Rhinox. Silverbolt looked down and said nothing. "Sheesh, the things I put up with hanging out with this pack'a animals.." muttered Rattrap before Rhinox grabbed him and took off towards the vessel without having to say, "Let's go!" Waspinator followed. As soon as they boarded the ship, Rhinox flipped on all the controls and had Rattrap and Waspinator do the same. "We're taking this ship to liftoff. Let's hope that we'll be on time!" said Rhinox. Waspinator and Rattrap looked onward with Rhinox. Soon, the ship blasted off towards the location of the Nemesis. -------------------------------------- Optimus Primal was beaten and battered from his battle with Megatron. Electricity crackled all over his body from the damage he had taken. Now he was on the ground and unable to move his legs anymore. His right hand was destroyed completely and his computer was going crazy. <Warning! Power depleted by 95%. Shut down now or loss of spark will commence> "No....." moaned Optimus weakly. He raised his right hand but Megatron stomped on it and grinded his foot into it slowly and methodically. "Aaaarrgggghhhhh!!!!" screamed Optimus as his hand was crushed. "My, my, Optimus," gloated Megatron, "Nothing to say for yourself? Anything heroic or Maximal you wish to express before I destroy you completely?" Optimus said nothing. Perhaps it was all over for him. Perhaps it was the end of everything he had ever come to know and experience in the universe. All the friends he had made over the years, all the heroic individuals who had sacrificed themselves for the future would now be gone forever and their presence vanquished from the universe. But then, he remembered something that was said in the past by the original Optimus Prime. "Megatron must be stopped, no matter the cost..." was what he remembered. And in his final battle with the original Megatron, Optimus Prime sacrificed himself to save everyone in Autobot City and Planet Earth. As the archives stated, even at the point of death, Prime fought on and with every nanite in his body, defeated Megatron, saving the Earth from Decepticon conquest. Optimus realized his purpose now. He had a destiny and a duty far greater than even he sometimes understood. He would have to fight on for the sake of all life itself. Looking towards Megatron, he chuckled a little bit. "What the--?" said a bewildered Megatron, "You are about to face extermination and yet, you have the gall to laugh at me?" "I do have something to say, Megatron," said Optimus, "Give my regards to the Cybertron!" With that, Optimus opened up both his shoulder cannons, aimed at the controls that powered the main cannon and fired. The missiles exploded on contact and destroyed the panels completely. "NOOOOO!!!!" screamed Megatron who used all his strength to stomp down on Optimus' head and smash it completely. "Stasis lock is now not an option for you, Primal!" he declared as he ripped open Optimus' spark chamber. Revealing how he had another box like the one he contained Rampage's spark in, Megatron tore out Optimus' spark and placed it in the box. "You haven't quite ruined my plans for galactic conquest yet, Optimus.. " cooed Megatron pleasantly, "But for nearly succeeding, I will keep your spark and torture it for all eternity!" He laughed and put pressure on the spark, contorting and hurting it in every way imagineable as he did with Rampage. Inferno got up and laughed along with Megatron on the torture. Dinobot shuddered and looked away, unable to bear the horrible cruelty his commander was inflicting on another living spark anymore. Out of nowhere, a part of the rooftop exploded. From the hole, Dinobot could see a small vessel floating there. Then, three Maximals leaped out and landed on the floor. They gasped as soon as they saw the body of their leader. "NOOOO!!! What have you done?" shouted Rhinox. "Hahaha! Optimus was merely being a nuisance, my dear Rhinox! I did what any self-respecting Predacon would have done under the circumstances," replied Megatron calmly. "Waspinator! What are you doing by associating yourself with the Maximals?" cried Inferno, "You have become a traitor to our queen and colony!" "Waspinator not care! Waspinator sick and tired of following orders of Subcommander Kissbutt and Dragonbot! Waspinator tired of being ordered around, abused, and blown to scrap all the time! Waspinator is no longer a Predacon from this day forward." And with that, Waspinator angrily flew towards Inferno and tackled him in mid-air. This was all too much for both Rhinox and Rattrap. Both of them grabbed their guns and opened fire on Megatron. Megatron grunted in pain as he was pelted with bullets and energy blasts. However, he flew up and dove towards Rattrap and Rhinox, knocking both of them down. Transforming into dragon mode, he blasted fire in their direction in hopes of catching them both. Rhinox and Rattrap split up and ran in different directions. "Rhinox, cover me! I think I gotta plan!" Without hesitating, Rhinox whipped out both chain guns and sent rapid-fire lead into the back of Megatron. Megatron roared in pain and turned to face Rhinox and sent an ice blast streaking towards his direction, freezing one of Rhinox's guns. "You'll pay for that, Maximal!" screamed Megatron furiously as he turned his attention to the green 'bot. "Yo, Mega-butt! Catch this!" cried Rattrap as he threw one of his bombs in Megatron's direction. Without much time to react, Megatron immediately fired a blast in its direction, only to hit it directly and cause a massive chain-reactive explosion that engulfed the red dragon and threw him into the wall, hard. Megatron slowly raised his head but Rhinox and Rattrap, seeing the blast had wounded the tyrant rushed towards him and attacked. Rhinox leaped onto Megatron's dragon neck and held on, squeezing with all his might. Rattrap took careful aim and fired into the wounds that Megatron had sustained from the small explosion. Megatron roared in further pain only to have Rhinox squeeze his neck even harder, causing the Predacon to gasp for air. Finally, using his vice-like tail, Megatron grabbed Rhinox and threw him right into Rattrap, knocking the small Maximal out. Rhinox got up slowly and reached for his cannon. Megatron, however, had transformed back to robot mode and stomped towards Rhinox. Before Rhinox could reach his weapon, Megatron flew in front of him and drove his fist into the belly of the stalwart Maximal scientist. Rhinox groaned in pain and fell to the floor unconscious as well. Inferno, finally, had overpowered Waspinator. Twisting Waspinator's arm behind him and holding him down, he turned towards Megatron. "What now, Royalty?" inquired Inferno, who drove his knee into Waspinator's back to prevent him from moving. "We may have lost our primary cannon, Inferno, but do not forget that the Nemesis is loaded with enough missiles and firepower to rain destruction down upon the Ark. Besides, I believe a slow and methodic approach to the Ark's destruction would be more entertaining. Now let us continue with our work, shall we?" replied Megatron, who was not about to let a few Maximals ruin his day. Dinobot looked on and could not believe what Megatron was doing. If he interpreted the spark of the original Dinobot correctly, his moment of destiny might have passed. He might have failed himself forever, whatever it was that destiny wanted him to do. Ashamed, Dinobot looked at his own reflection on the metal floor and to his surprise, saw the face of the original Dinobot staring back at him. ---------------------------------- Depthcharge still sat in his same spot in reverie. He did not know what to do or say from this moment on, with the destruction of Protoform X. Before he could think any further, something miraculous happened. Not one, but two sparks, floated from out the water. Feeling their presence, Depthcharge could tell that they belonged to Tigerhawk. <<Depthcharge, you are now freed from your bonds, as are we. With our sacrifice, we hope that you will find a new meaning to life and a reason to carry on with a strong of a will as ever, just like you did when your spark was consumed by hatred for Rampage. This time, however, let not your spark be consumed by rage but let it step out into the light after all those years of darkness. These are our final words to you before we ascend to the Matrix. Farewell, Depthcharge and please watch over Little Cat for us. >> Finally, both sparks rose to sky and flew towards the Matrix. Depthcharge could hardly believe what he had seen. Finally, he rose. "They're right," he muttered, "I can't carry on like this. X is dead but the threat of Megatron still remains. I have a duty to carry out.. not just for myself.. but for the sake Tigerhawk, the Maximals, and the universe. There must have been a reason why I survived against Rampage when I clearly wished to die and I think I know that reason now." With that, he transformed into flight mode and flew off towards the direction of the Nemesis. ------------------------------------------- "Royalty, we shall be within range of the Ark in 5 par-secs" said Inferno excitedly. "Excellent, yeeesss!" exclaimed Megatron, "Soon, Optimus, you shall be forced to witness the destruction of your friends and your precious Ark, along with your entire race!" With that, he squeezed the spark down even harder, causing even more pain to the spark of Optimus Primal. "Royalty, I've always wondered what fire would do to a spark," grinned Inferno sadistically. "Oh, I suppose we have some time to kill before we reach the Ark so therefore, Inferno, I think you can be afforded some leisure," responded Megatron. "WAIT!" cried a voice. Megatron and Inferno turned around to see Transmetal 2 Dinobot standing there angrily. "You would dare torture a helpless and weakened spark?!?! Tell me, Megatron! Where is the honor in THAT?" growled Dinobot. "You DARE use the 'H' word around me?" glared Megatron at Dinobot. Dinobot clenched his teeth and glared back at Megatron. Soon, however, he backed off. "Forgive me.. I only believed.. that our enemies should be destroyed quickly and swiftly" Dinobot replied meekly. "Like what I'm about to do to you?" said another voice. All three Predacons turned around to see Cheetor standing there at the destroyed rooftop. Cheetor quickly opened fire, knocking down Dinobot and Inferno. "Now it's just you and me, Mega-jerk! It's time you paid for what you did to Tigatron and Airrazor!" said Cheetor darkly. "Aren't you forgetting one more person?" asked Megatron pleasantly. He pointed towards the nearly-destroyed body of Optimus Primal and flaunted the spark he held in his hand. "Of course, Optimus isn't finished yet but he will be once I'm through with him," stated Megatron who squeezed down upon the spark again. This was too much for Cheetor to bear. With his savage feral instincts and rage overpowering his logic circuits, he transformed to beast mode and blasted towards Megatron, slamming into him at full force. The spark fell out of Megatron's hand to the floor as Cheetor sank his teeth into Megatron's neck. Megatron cried in pain and grabbed Cheetor, throwing him off. As Megatron got up however, Cheetor flew towards him again. Megatron avoided Cheetor's full-on assault but the Transmetal 2 cheetah's claws slashed open his arm. Megatron roared in pain again and transformed to beast mode. Lounging himself towards Cheetor, Megatron let loose several blasts of fire. Cheetor managed to avoid all the flames and flipped through the air onto Megatron's back. He then buried his claws deep into Megatron and sank his teeth into Megatron's neck. The pain was agonizing for the Predacon leader. He thrashed around wildly, trying to break loose of the smaller Maximal. Finally, he used his tail to grab onto Cheetor and smashed the feral creature into the ground. Not letting go of Cheetor, Megatron continually smashed Cheetor into the ground until he was sure that the Transmetal 2 was out. He then threw Cheetor's near-limp body alongside Rhinox, Rattrap, and Waspinator. "Three Maximals and a turncoat Predacon," snorted Megatron, "I can't say that I'm terribly impressed." "Royalty," said Inferno who recovered from Cheetor's blast, "We are within range of the Maximal base!" "Good! Dinobot, prepare to fire all secondary weapons. Target-lock the Ark and wait for my signal!" commanded Megatron. "Megatron.. Nooo," moaned a weakened Rhinox who was still on the floor. "Silence, Maximal scum!" cried Megatron, "Dinobot, do it!" It was in that moment that Dinobot turned around and stared Megatron deep into the optics. Rattrap opened his eyes and could hardly believe his eyes at what he was seeing. "Negative!" replied Dinobot. "WHAT!?!?" Megatron reared back in surprise and anger. "I am your MASTER! I.. am your creator! What possible reason could you have for betraying ME?!?!?!" "And I," declared Dinobot, with more conviction than ever before, "Have my HONOR!" Before Megatron could react, Dinobot leaped up and kicked Megatron several times before the tyrant fell to the floor in pain and shock. Dinobot then slashed Megatron's chest several times before delivering a spin kick to Megatron's face that sent him reeling back. He then blasted Megatron with his eye laser, knocking him down again. "I finally see you for the insane monster you are! Truth and honor mean nothing to you so long as you have power! I now know that great suffering will reign should you accomplish your goals!" snarled Dinobot. He did not notice Inferno with a gun pointed towards his back. "Another traitor to our colony! You have betrayed our Queen and for that, you shall BURN!" declared Inferno. He never got to fire upon Dinobot however, as an energy disc whizzed through the air and knocked the gun out of his hand. Depthcharge flew through the broken window and transformed into robot mode in mid-air, taking out his spear. Using that spear, he thrust it straight through Inferno's chest plate as he landed. The giant ant cried in pain as he the spear penetrated his body from his chest through his back. Waspinator had also gotten up and quickly aimed at Inferno and fired, knocking down the masochistic Predacon with one shot. As Dinobot turned his attention back towards Megatron, he was immediately back-handed aside. "Stand aside, traitor and watch as I fulfill my destiny!" declared Megatron who flew towards the controls. Depthcharge would not have that however and slammed into Megatron, taking down the giant Predacon. "You're even worse than X, you monster!" growled Depthcharge who grappled with Megatron. "Oh really?" asked Megatron who slowly began to overpower the giant Manta Ray. Before he could throw Depthcharge aside, however, Rhinox leaped onto Megatron's back and held his neck with a choke-hold. Soon, Dinobot leaped into the fray and grabbed Megatron's tail and held it with all his might. Rattrap and Waspinator did the same, both grabbing on to Megatron's arms in hopes of holding the dragon back. Cheetor held on to Megatron's feet. Depthcharge slammed into Megatron's chest and finally, the force of all the Maximals managed to force Megatron down. "Surrender, Megatron! You're finished!" yelled Rhinox as he squeezed his neck even harder. Little did any of them realize that Optimus' spark had escaped the box and was slowly moving towards Megatron. "NEVER!" roared Megatron who, through a huge surge of power, threw all the Maximals, including the two Predacons, off him. "Now for the destruction of the Ark!" he declared as he transformed back into robot mode and flew towards the secondary controls. Without warning, the spark of Optimus Primal struck him and entered his body. Soon, he found that his entire frame was immobilized. "Noooo!!!" screamed Megatron, "What have you done?!?!" <<Just a little trick I learned from the Matrix, Megatron>> said the voice. "Optimus, is that you?" asked Rhinox. <<Yes, but hurry! Use your spark extractor on him, quickly!>> "Got it," said Rhinox who quickly took out the machine and turned on the extractor's molecular pull. "NOOOO!!!!" screamed Megatron as he felt most of his great strength leave his body, soon culminating into the spark of the original Megatron floating out and entering Rhinox's extractor. Rhinox quickly put away the extractor and stared at Megatron's paralyzed body, unsure of what to do next. <<Maximals! Listen carefully! I don't know how much longer I can hold on to Megatron's spark much longer so here is my final command to all of you. Open fire on Megatron immediately!>> "But Optimus! You'll be destroyed!" cried Cheetor. <<I realize that, Cheetor, but this is bigger than me right now! If Megatron is allowed to live on, there will only be more suffering and deaths. We need to put a stop to his evil at once! I realize how much this decision weighs upon your sparks right now but I want you to know that even if I go today, you're the finest group of individuals I've ever had the honor of calling friends. Cheetor.. you've been like a son to me all these years.. you've grown into the finest 'bot I've ever seen. Take care of yourself... Aaarrggghhh!!! Hurry! I'm losing control!>> Megatron was slowly regaining control of his body but Rhinox was the first to raise his guns. "This is for everything that ever was, Megatron," he declared and fired. Soon, the Maximals including Waspinator and Dinobot opened fire. Megatron howled in agony as he was blasted continuously from all sides. Soon, his body was charred and slagged, with both his wings blasted off along with his arm but the Maximals did not stop their assault. "Inferno!" Megatron managed to blurt out, "Operation: Nihilism, NOW! If I lose, then.. you all go with me!" After saying that, his vocal cords were blasted to pieces by a shot from Dinobot. "As you command, MY QUEEN!" screamed Inferno who managed to get back on his feet despite the fact that his chest had a giant spear sticking out of it. He took out a remote and pressed the button. Laughing maniacally, Inferno watched as controls all around them exploded. Dinobot stared at Megatron. The tyrant looked back at Dinobot with something akin to smugness in his eyes. "Not this time, Megatron!" declared Dinobot. Aiming his laser at the open wound exposing Megatron's spark, he fired, blasting straight through the spark and extinguishing it completely. Megatron's lifeless body fell to the ground. "Quickly, we gotta get outta here!" yelled Depthcharge. He transformed into vehicle mode and Rhinox climbed on. Waspinator lifted Rattrap up and Cheetor quickly transformed into beast mode. "Dinobot, get on!" urged Cheetor. Dinobot looked back towards Megatron and the wounded Inferno. He then looked at the Maximals and climbed on top of the Transmetal 2 cheetah. With that, the six of them flew out of the control tower. Inferno dragged himself towards the lifeless body of Megatron. He fell on his knees, laughing and crying maniacally at the same time. "My Queen! I have failed you! If there were only some way I could have helped you gain the power and glory which was rightfully yours! Your wish is forever my command. For the ROYALTY!!!!" With his last words, a final explosion consumed both Inferno and Megatron, destroying the control tower completely. The Nemesis, with its enormous loss of power finally fell and crash-landed into parts, unknown. The six transformers finally landed near the Ark. Blackarachnia and Silverbolt joined them. "It's finally over," said Rhinox ruefully. ----------------------------------- That night, the Maximals held a funeral in honor of those who had given their lives in the Beast Wars. "And so," concluded Rhinox, "Let us not forget those who sacrificed their lives in order to save the past, present, and future of countless generations. Dinobot looked at the monuments made to honor Optimus, Tigatron, and Airrazor. Turning to Rattrap, he said, "Why was there not a monument erected in honor of the original Dinobot?" "Well, Chopperface, we got you back wit' us so there's nothin' to mourn over anymore," replied Rattrap. "I... am not Dinobot," said Dinobot after a long moment of silence, "I may contain his memories and his beliefs now due to the death of Rampage but yet, my spark is not the same as his. I..... am nothing more than a clone. That bot died off a long time ago. I do not deserve your trust... nor your friendship." With that, he turned away and walked off. Depthcharge looked at Dinobot walking off. He really did sympathize with him now. He had never met the original Dinobot but seeing how the Transmetal 2 was now, he knew for sure that the spark was no longer of Protoform X. Cheetor stood there the whole time with a dark expression on his face. Rhinox glanced at the young Maximal and realized that things may never be the same for him again. The closest people to him on the planet were taken away from him just because of the insane ambitions of a tyrant. Before he could go down to try to comfort Cheetor, he saw Depthcharge walking up to the young bot. "Cheetor," started Depthcharge. Cheetor turned around to face him. The manta ray continued, "I know how much like family they were to you... I know what it's like to have family torn away from me and if it might be of any comfort to you.. I'm sorry. I know that if anything right now.... Optimus, Tigatron, and Airrazor would want you to be happy." With that, he put his hand on Cheetor's shoulder. Unable to bear it anymore, Cheetor hugged Depthcharge and began sobbing quietly. ------------------------------ Waspinator sat there, trying to process it all through his mind. He was no longer a Predacon now and the Maximals had accepted him. He no longer knew what to do when they returned to Cybertron. Suddenly, a someone tapped him on the shoulder. Turning around, he faced Blackarachnia and Silverbolt. "Why aren't you with us?" asked Blackarachnia. "Ooohhhh, Waspinator unsure about own future now!" buzzed Waspinator uncertainly. "Well, whatever it is, my friend, rest assured that we shall face it together for you are one of us now," declared Silverbolt. "Yeah, we're in this together," urged Blackarachnia as she put out her hand for Waspinator as a symbolic gesture. Waspinator hesitated for a second but then, took her hand and walked off with the Maximals. ------------------------------- Dinobot walked through the woods and finally sat down upon a fallen log. He heard the sound of the early humans celebrating in a distance. Sitting down, he began contemplating his own life. He was brought online was a killing machine. And now, he was something completely different because of Rattrap and the death of Protoform X. Before he could go any further, he heard rustling and turned around to see Rattrap walking out of the undergrowth. "Seriously, Chopperface! That's what's been getting you down the whole time?" asked Rattrap "Affirmative," said Dinobot softly. "Well, no matter, Dinobutt, you'll always be MY slag-sucking saurian," declared Rattrap and he took Dinobot's hand, "So cheer up!" More of Dinobot's memories returned to him. <i>You may be a slag-sucking saurian but... it's nice ta know where ya stand......</i> <i>Upwind of you, for preference, vermin........</i> Finally, Dinobot returned Rattrap's smile. Suddenly, both transformers heard further rustling in the bushes. From the leaves, emerged the Anthropoid who branded the battle-hammer along with his two children, Una and Jack. "Hey, hey! It's Una and her family!" exclaimed Rattrap happily. The two children happily leaped onto Rattrap's lap as if they knew Rattrap and the others were going to leave tomorrow and so, came to say a final goodbye. The male Anthropoid looked at Dinobot directly into the eyes. With that, he raised his hammer and offered Dinobot the hammer as if he knew him from another lifetime. More memories flooded back as Dinobot realized that this was the one who first who picked up the hammer to defend the weak and helpless in his tribe from the snake. His eyes and throat choked with emotion, Dinbot took the hammer from the Anthropoid gently. Raising the hammer, he roared into the night sky a mighty roar of atonement and self-realization. ------------------------------------ Rhinox looked up into the night sky and felt a familiar presence. "Thank you, my friends," he said, "Thanks to your courage and strength, the fate of everything there will be is now safe. May you go down in the Chronicles of Cybertron as heroes and legends for all generations who are yet to come." He then looked up at the sky again and felt the faces of Optimus, Tigatron, Airrazor, and Dinobot smiling down upon him. That night, four stars in the sky shined brighter than ever... The End.