Beast Wars Chronicles
Fire in the Sky
By: Eliot Lefebvre (aka Stormcloud)

The waiting was the hardest part.

Once again, Megatron turned his massive, jawed head skyward, 
his tiny arms waving in anticipation.  "Where is that moron?" he 
asked of no-one in paticular.

"I can see him now," said Headlock, his beetle form scurrying 
next to Megatron.  "Up to the left."

Sighing (a very amusing thing to watch a T-Rex do), Megatron 
strained his eyes to see something.  He saw it too.  A fireball, 
growing larger, on the horizon.

*Now,* thought Megatron, *is the time for ceremony.*  Raising 
himself to his full height, he uttered the "battle cry" of the 
Predacons.  "Megatron - TERRORIZE!"

The back of the T-Rex split, and the flanks fell away tko the 
sides.  A torso and head extended upward, and the tail split as 
well, swinging together in a scissor motion.  The torso twisted 
around and bent backwards, and as the legs twisted around, the 
torso slammed into place.  Powerful muscles extended and 
hardened into launchers, and the dark shroud flipped open, 
revealing the cold visage of the Predacon commander, 
Megatron.

The fireball melted away, revealing a large yellowjacket 
screaming towards the ground.  Slamming into the ground, Buzz 
Saw skidded along for dozens of klicks before finally stopping 
and transforming.

"B-B-Buzz Saw, report-ort-orting for duty-ty-ty-ty," stammered 
Buzz Saw, still shaken from the strain of transatmospheric flight.

"Welcome back, Buzz Saw.  What did surveilance of the station 
yield?"  Megatron was quite pleased with the discovery of the 
space station.

"Very-y-y-y little.  I-I-I-I couldn't get insi-i-i-ide, so all I ob-ob-
observed was from outside-ide-ide."

Grabbing the datapad Buzz Saw held out, Megatron skimmed 
over the report.  Just what he had thought.  "How much longer 
until you're ready to fly out again?"

"Fi-fi-five hours."

Megatron nodded.  "When you are ready, I want you and 
Blackarachnia to go up there.  Get inside, and try to figure out a 
way to get us all up there."

Buzz Saw jerkily nodded.

"Aren't you worried about a Maximal attack?" asked Scorponok, 
transforming and standing next to his commander.

Megatron laughed.  "They're still patching up their wounded from 
the attack a couple days ago.  I'm not worried."

Scorponok nodded compliantly.  "Whatever you say, sir."  He 
looked at the other Predacons.  "Why are you still standing 
around?  Go... get ready!"

They nodded, and proceeded to turn and try to follow the cryptic 
orders as best they could.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

"Why did it have to be YOU?" grumbled Buzz Saw as he shot 
through space.

In her spider mode, at the size of a normal spider, Blackarachnia 
crept towards his ear - or at least, what she figured was his ear.  
"I have the most experience with alien artifacts.  I therefore have 
the best chance of getting this thing to work."

"You're more likely to try and overthrow Megatron," growled Buzz 
Saw.  He did *not* like Blackarachnia, and always was half 
expecting her to suddenly shoot him in the back.  Nor was he 
paticularly fond of the concept of her in charge, either.

"Not at all," she said mockingly.  "I don't mix business with 
pleasure."  She thought for a moment.  "On second thought, my 
business IS pleasure."

"Considering that you'd sleep with anyone who asked, I hardly 
doubt that," snapped Buzz Saw in reply.

"Ouch," whined Blackarachnia in mock sadness.  "That hurt."

Ignoring her, Buzz Saw focused his scanners straight ahead.  
"We're almost there.  I trust you to do your part?"

"Of course," she replied, seeing the station.  With a mighty leap, 
she sprang off of Buzz Saw, her spider form growing to a giant 
size.  Turning, she launched a web at the station, then pulled 
herself over to it.

*How incredibly simple,* she thought to herself as she scurried 
over to what looked like an access port.  Transforming, she 
fiddled with the controls on the side of the door, until it finally 
hissed open without resistance.  Smiling, she slipped inside.

Buzz Saw could feel the energon drain from space travel already.  
Glancing over, he could see Blackarachnia open the door to the 
space station.  He drifted towards it, ready for a recharge.

Noticing her casual wave, he looked at the door and saw it was 
closing.  Shocked, he poured energy into his thrusters, rocketing 
forward.  His front leg was caught in the door, and he simply 
continued onward, wincing as his leg was torn out.  Slipping into 
the station before the door closed, he transformed and grabbed 
Blackarachnia.

"You could have killed me!" he shouted.

"And done us all a favor," she replied nonchalantly.  She held out 
a small crystal.  "Energon?"

He lunged for it, but she drew it back.  "Not until you give me your 
gun," she said, still smiling.

Buzz Saw thought for a moment.  It was dangerous to give 
someone like HER his gun, but at the moment, he knew he 
would die if he didn't.  In the end, a gamble of death seemed 
better then a certain death.  He let go of his gun.

"That's better," she said, handing him the crystal.  He eagerly 
took it and devoured it.

"You're welcome," she said sarcastically.  Dropping his gun, she 
walked over to another keyboard.  "Aha!"

"Whut iet?" asked Buzz Saw through a mouthful of energon 
crystal.

"This station has teleportation capabilities," hissed Blackarachnia 
in reply.

"Rue?" replied Buzz Saw.  "Imfoam Meuhshon immiatly."

"Would I do anything else?" asked Blackarachnia with an evil 
grin.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Bandit flipped off the recording, a wide grin on her face.  "Before 
everybody starts praising ME -" she began.

"Hmm," said Primal, musing.  "The Predacons have discovered a 
space station."

"Of unknown origin," added Stratosfire calmly.

"HELLO?" shouted Bandit, waving her arms.  "You can start 
praising me any time now!"

"I'm betting it has something to do with the aliens," said 
Nightpounce.

"What does it matter?" shouted Dinobot.  "We must destroy it, 
now, before it is used to exploit our weaknesses!"

"Hey, people, look at me!" said Bandit, hopping from foot to foot.  
"C'mon, somebody pay attention to me!  Look!  I'm doing stuff!"

"Can you reach the station?" asked Primal of Stratosfire.  "Our 
shuttles can get there, but they're nearly unarmed -"

"Your explanation is unnessecary," interrupted Stratosfire.  "I can 
reach the station... if I don't carry too many others."

"Hey!" shouted Bandit.  "Will somebody -"

"WE KNOW YOU'RE THERE!!!" bellowed Dinobot at her.  Bandit 
shrank back.

"Any ideas who should go up there?" asked Nightpounce.

"Not _her_," snarled Dinobot, glaring at Bandit.  Bandit flipped 
him the middle finger.

"I'll say that's volunteering yourself, Dino," said Nightpounce with 
a grin.  "Anyone else?"

"Me!  Me!  Me!" shouted Cheetor, waving frantically.

"Obviously, me," said Stratosfire.

"And myself," added Nightpounce.  "Okay, three of us.  Any more 
room, Strat?"

"For one more," he replied.

"Any volunteers for that slot?"

"Me," said Vixen silently.

Everyone turned to look at her, somewhat suprised at this 
development.  "Vixen -" began Stormcloud.

"What?" she asked.  "I'm a perfectly normal Maximal.  Just 
because I'm a medic doesn't mean I don't occasionally want 
some excitement."

Nightpounce said nothing for a moment, then shrugged.  "All 
right, then.  Primal, when do you want us to take off?"

"As soon as you're ready," replied Primal.

"In other words, now."

"Bingo."

Stratosfire stood, and followed after Nightpounce.  Dinobot drew 
his rotor and sword out of subspace, then cautiously followed 
them.  Cheetor bounced out of his seat, bounding after them.  
Vixen began to leave, but Stormcloud stopped her.

"You'd better not die on me up there," he said with a slight grin.

"I won't.  I promise," she replied.  "But I'm getting sick of helping 
wounded Maximals.  You know the feeling."

Stormcloud thought of some of the experience he'd gotten on the 
field lately, and nodded.  "Just don't get yourself killed."

She kissed him.  "I don't intend to," she said as she walked after 
Nightpounce and the others.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

"I am pleased you decided to take my advice, mighty Megatron," 
said Blackarachnia into the comm, glancing at the small force 
she had beamed aboard.  "If the whole army were up here, the 
Maximals would have us as -"

~You explained the ratifications to me earlier, Blackarachnia,~ 
snapped Megatron.  ~Just get me what I want.~

The communication snapped off.  Blackarachnia clenched her 
claw tight.

"What does the Royalty wish us to do now?" asked Inferno, his 
rotor twirling in an agitated manner.

"Examine the station."  She glanced over the force.  "Drill Bit, you 
and I will try to get the computer working.  Buzz Saw, Insecticon, 
Snapper, you go try to get the power working.  Headlock, you try 
to find out as much as you can about this station.  And Inferno, 
you stand point."

Inferno saluted, then paced back and forth in front of the door.  "I 
will do as the Royalty commands!"

"You do that, moron," muttered Blackarachnia to herself.  "Let's 
get moving!"

The Predacons split up.  Headlock began to turn down a corridor, 
then turned back.  "Inferno.  Come here."

Inferno glanced over at Headlock.  "I thought that Blackarachnia 
was speaking for the Royalty -"

"Use a little logic, Inferno.  The only people you would be 
gaurding against would be the Maximals, and they're still in 
traction.  Why not do something useful?"

Inferno tried to think for a moment.  It was not an action he was 
accustomed to.  Finally, he turned to face Headlock.  "You are 
right.  The Royalty would be more pleased if I could acomplish 
their goals!"

"Whatever," said Headlock, turning down the hallway.  Inferno 
stomped after him, rotor twirling.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Buzz Saw grinned at the wreckage of the door.  "Told you I had a 
passcard," he said to Snapper and Insecticon.

Unfortunately for him, his companions were not easily amused.  
"Whatever," said Snapper, walking in.  Insecticon walked close 
behind.  Buzz Saw followed rather emotionlessly.

"Give me some light, will you?" asked Snapper.  "I can't see 
anything."

A port on Insecticon's head slid open, and soft red light poured 
out.  "Is better?" he asked in his scratchy, halting voice.

"Not much, but it will do," replied Snapper.  Reaching down, he 
grabbed a panel with his large claws, then ripped it away in a 
swift motion.  Leaning closer, the claws rearranged themselves, 
becoming less joined, more independent.

"Okay, I think I see the problem," he said, leaning over.  
"Insecticon, could you hand me some wires?"

Nodding compliantly, Insecticon handed over the wires.  Snapper 
took them, then fused them to an existing panel.

"Almost finished..." he said.

Without warning, Snapper erupted across the room, smoke 
pouring from the left shoulder.  Sparking all over, he slowly rose 
to his feet, his left arm sheared off.

Buzz Saw suddenly felt... different.  Something had changed 
about him.  Snapper... a teammate, yes... but now an enemy.

Unthinkingly, Buzz Saw's arm snapped up, and he blasted 
Snapper repeatedly.  Snapper's jaw dropped as the missiles 
pummeled him.  His limbs flew off in random directions, and his 
body was sheared in half.  The sparking stopped.

Buzz Saw's eyes flared red.

"Buzz Saw... all right?" asked Insecticon cautiously.

*Clear... now... YES!  I see!  They are the enemy, as well as the 
Maximals!  Snapper would have been the messenger, but he 
was weak.  I am the chosen one!  I will destroy them ALL!*

"Buzz Saw?" asked Insecticon again, drawing his crossbow.

"I'm fine," he replied, his voice a deeper growl then before.  He 
turned to face Insecticon, launcher poised.  "Better then ever, in 
fact."

Before Insecticon even had the time to react, the missiles were 
loosed.  Explosions burst through his body, knocking him 
backwards and into the massive generator.  His body blasted 
apart as it struck the walls, parts flying loose.  His body finally 
landed on the floor, his mind wracked with pain.

Barely, he had the strength to look up and see Buzz Saw leaping 
down.  Gun at the ready.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

"Blackarachnia?" said Drill Bit.  "I have something that you might 
want to -"

"SLAG IT!" she shouted, slamming her claw into the keyboard.  
"Why haven't the others finished with the generator?"

She flipped on her comm.  "Blackarachnia to Snapper."

No response.  She looked at Drill Bit.  He shrugged.  
"Blackarachnia to Insecticon."

Again, no response.  "What is going on down there?" she thought 
aloud.  "Blackarachnia to Buzz Saw!  Come in, damn it!"

A hideous cackle emerged from the other end of the comm.  
~Oh, Blackarachnia, how good to hear from you!~

"Buzz Saw!  What is going on?"

~It's very simple, Blackarachnia.  Hunter and prey.  You're the 
prey.  And if you just leave your comm on a little longer, then I'll 
be right there to kill you and -~

Blackarachnia shut off the communication.  "What the frag..." she 
hissed.

She jumped into action.  "Drill Bit!  Can you tunnel out of here?"

"Yes," he replied.  He thrust his drill into the wall, and the metal 
seemed almost to jump away from it.  A few seconds later, there 
was a small tunnel, big enough for Blackarachnia and Drill Bit to 
fit through.

Dashing into the tunnel, Blackarachnia placed a small timed 
charge on one edge of it, then ran out the other side.  "Run!" she 
shouted.

The two Predacons sprinted away from the tunnel.  Seconds 
later, it exploded outward, debris hitting the other side of the wall.

"Oh shit, what are we going to do now?" asked Drill Bit.

Blackarachnia was already figuring that out.  "Blackarachnia to 
Headlock.  Come in."

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

The door fell away with perfect percision.  "We're in," said Vixen, 
leaping inside.

"Cool!" exclaimed Cheetor.  "Where'd you learn to cut like that?  
Rattrap isn't even that precise!"

"I'm a surgeon, among other things," replied Vixen.  "Precision is 
in my job description."

"Enough," said Dinobot, looking around somewhat nervously.  
"Where are the Predacons?"

"They heard you were coming, so they organized a 'welcome 
back' party," replied Cheetor sharply.

Nightpounce stepped in between the pair of them quickly.  "We 
don't need any infighting.  Dinobot, you're with me.  Cheetor and 
Vixen, you take the rightmost corridor.  Stratosfire, you take the 
corridor directly ahead."

The Maximals nodded, then head in their assigned directions.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Headlock gave the panel a slight shove, then stood up again.  "I 
think my beetle mode can get in the duct.  Not to mention, play a 
mean set of drums."

Inferno looked at him blankly.  Headlock shrugged, then 
transformed and slipped into the duct.

Looking up, Inferno barely had time to avoid the cannon blast as 
Stratosfire rocketed down the hallway, cannon lashing out.  
Although Inferno did dodge the first blast, he didn't dodge 
Stratosfire steamrolling head-on into him.

The two robots were locked in a grapple, blasting through a large 
door as they flew.  Finally shoving Inferno away, Stratosfire tried 
to set down, only to find that he could not.  He examined the 
room.  *Completely spherical,* he thought.  *Some sort of Zero-G 
training room, I'd guess.*

The analytical portion of his brain was shoved back onto the shelf 
as Inferno rocketed towards him, launcher blasting.  Stratosfire 
fired the rockets in his feet, then blasted forward, pulling away 
from Inferno's desperate charge.  Strategems were hurtling 
through his mind, trying to find one that would be most effective 
against his powerful opponent.

"By order of the Royalty, Maximal, you will 
BUUUUUUUUURRRRRN!!!" shouted Inferno, twisting around 
and rocketing at Stratosfire again.  Pulling himself into a ball, 
Stratosfire tried to use a little zero-gravity trick he had learned 
from Kup.  Suddenly seeming to explode out from his tucked up 
ball, he was sent spiraling madly away from Inferno.  Training his 
cannon on Inferno, he fired twice, then fired his thrusters again, 
bringing himself back under control.

Inferno suddenly went into a mad roll, startled by the loss of 
control from his rotor.  Glancing back, he saw that his main relay 
to it was snapped.  Roaring, he lunged at Stratosfire, but 
Stratosfire was prepared for such a maneuver and rolled to one 
side, then extended his crushing coils, trying to wrap them 
around Inferno.  Inferno snarled, and yanked on the coils, then 
twisted around and hurled Stratosfire into a wall, tearing out 
some of the coils.  Ripping open one of his panels, Inferno 
reconnected his rotor with one of the coils, then rocketed towards 
Stratosfire again, howling.

Stratosfire shook his head, trying to regain awareness, then 
barely had time to bring his shield in front of him as Inferno 
smashed into it.  Shoving Inferno back, he dived forward, then 
spun around to face Inferno again, bringing his cannon to bear.  
Before he could fire, Inferno blasted at him relentlessly, sending 
Stratosfire rocketing away from where he had been moments 
before.  Stratosfire twisted, aimed again, and fired, slamming into 
Inferno.  Inferno yelped in pain as the shot found its mark, then 
looked at Stratosfire, rage burning in his eyes.  Stratosfire 
suddenly had a sinking feeling as he watched Inferno cock back 
his head and roar.

"BUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRNNNNNNNN
NNNNN!!!!" Inferno bellowed as he shot madly towards 
Stratosfire, all trace of sanity gone in his voice.  Stratosfire 
started to move away, but before he could fire his rockets, 
Inferno had slammed into him, red light burning in his eyes.  
Stratosfire went limp, letting Inferno slam him into the wall.  
Inferno looked at him suspiciously, then was knocked back as 
Stratosfire blasted his cannon at point-blank range.  Inferno 
tumbled backwards, but despite the damage, he aimed at 
Stratosfire again and sent a hail of blasts his way.

Curiosity was getting the better of Stratosfire as he wondered 
what was happening to Inferno.  Before, Inferno had at least 
been logical, but now, he was simply obsessed with destroying 
Stratosfire.  *Hate plague?* thought Stratosfire, and he glanced 
at Inferno.  *Nope - he has all the symptoms, but he's not 
glowing.*  As he dove away from another blast, he aimed his 
cannon, and fired at Inferno again, trying to knock Inferno's 
cannon out of his claw.

The expression of anger on Inferno's face and the red glow of his 
eyes did not change as his cannon was knocked away from him.  
Turning, he rocketed towards Stratosfire, bellowing something 
indecipherable.  Stratosfire brought up his shield, and Inferno 
slammed into it, strained for a moment, then shattered the shield 
and smashed into Stratosfire, driving him into the wall.  
Stratosfire winced as he hit the wall, then fell completely limp as 
Inferno slashed viciously at his body.

Finally, Inferno let go of Stratosfire's body, watching it drift in the 
room helplessly.  The exhiliration of killing a Maximal did not rush 
through his body.  Not a thought went through his mind as he 
grabbed his cannon, then blew the door to the zero-G room 
away.  He rocketed out of the room, bloodlust in his eyes but not 
a thought in his mind.

Stratosfire tried to lift an arm, then ceased to move at all.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Nightpounce, in panther mode, crept slowly and silently down the 
hall, the velociraptor-mode Dinobot silently waiting on her back.  
"You see anything?" asked Dinobot, somewhat apprehensively.


Nightpounce chuckled slightly.  "Don't tell me you're afraid of the 
dark."

"I am not afraid of the dark," snapped Dinobot.  "I'm afraid of 
what I can't see that the dark is hiding from me."

Laughing softly, Nightpounce replied, "No, there's nothing yet."

Dinobot snarled.  "Then why are we still wandering through this 
hallway?"

"Because there are probably Predacons here somewhere."

A few feet up the hallway, one of the aforementioned Predacons 
nervously scuttled forward.  "There are Maximals here!" he 
hissed.

"I know that, Drill Bit," sighed Blackarachnia as she transformed.  
"And I am going to do the only logical thing I can."

"But the other Predacons will be beaming aboard shortly -"

"Exactly.  So we might have several maniacs chasing us instead 
of one."  Blackarachnia stood her ground as Dinobot and 
Nightpounce skidded to a halt, then transformed and aimed at 
her.

"Maximals," she said, "while I would love to tear you apart right 
now, I'm afraid that we may have a larger problem on our hands."

Nightpounce scowled.  "And just what would that be?"

"One of my troops has gone berserk.  I do not know why, but I 
know that he has killed two other troops and that he may be 
contagious."

"Are you proposing a truce?" asked Dinobot suspicously.

"Temporarily," she replied.

Dinobot and Nightpounce both sighed at once.  "Where did this 
take place?" asked Nightpounce, her weapons still trained on 
Blackarachnia.

"In the engineering area," replied Drill Bit.

"That's where Cheetor and Vixen are headed.  I'll notify them," 
said Dinobot, flipping out his comm.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Cheetor glanced around.  "On the up side," he said, glancing at 
the lights flickering and hanging on their fixtures, "at least it's 
light."

"Granted," replied Vixen, brushing one of the dangling fixtures 
away.  Glancing over, she saw the body of Snapper.  Gasping 
slightly, she pulled her medkit out of subspace and walked over 
to him, inspecting the damage.

"Vixen!" shouted Cheetor.  "That's a Predacon!  Keep away from 
him!"

"What's he going to do to me, Cheetor?  Stare me to pieces?"  
She sighed and shook her head.  "My duty is to protect the living 
- even if they are the enemy."

As she fused a wire, Snapper's head suddenly jerked up.  "Buzz 
Saw... no... Predacons... generator..."

He shook his head, and looked at Vixen.  "Maximal... did you... 
fix me?"

"Obviously," she replied.

Tilting his head back, Snapper laughed somewhat maniacally.  
"Then you're not only a loser, you're a STUPID loser, to boot."

"We need information!" snapped Vixen.  "Who did this to you?"

"Buzz Saw," replied Snapper, head twitching slightly.  "Would you 
mind... reattaching my limbs?"

"I'm helpful, but not a moron," replied Vixen.  "But... why would 
your own teammate blow you apart?  That's stupid, even for a 
Predacon."

"You reparing me was pretty stupid too," replied Snapper.

Cheetor shut off his comm.  "I've been informed by Chopperface 
that there's a temporary truce due to whatever happened to Buzz 
Saw.  Guess that means you did the right thing by reparing him."

Snapper sighed.  "Great.  Now I have to kiss up to you morons?  
This day really sucks."

Vixen sighed, then got up and walked towards the generator.  
"Should I stay here to gaurd him?" asked Cheetor, with the usual 
entusiasm that accompanied his statements.

"Against doing what?" asked Vixen.  Cheetor thought for a 
moment, then shrugged and followed her.

Vixen inspected the generator carefully.  *Not too badly 
damaged,* she thought.  *Although having a full-fledged engineer 
here would help, I think that I can repair it all by my lonesome.*

She glanced down the power column.  *Must be one of the older 
external-laser generators - hey, what's that?*

She glanced down to see a small body.  Slinging her crossbow 
onto her back, Vixen shoved her medkit into subspace and 
began to climb down the framework.  Cheetor followed close 
behind.

Much to her credit, Vixen made no sound when she saw 
Insecticon's bodyy.  The limbs were scattered, and the body was 
sheared in two - but apparently he had been halfway to beast 
mode, and his parts had become organic.  The splattered 
material on the walls Vixen forewent analyzing, having a pretty 
good idea of what it was already.

"Is something wrong, Vix - OH MY GOD!" said Cheetor, 
descending to the bottom of the column.  "Damn.  I'd hate to be 
him right now."

Vixen gathered up Insecticon's part.  "I think I'll leave him like this 
for a little while."

Cheetor nodded, then hurried back up to the top.  Vixen sighed, 
then followed after him, lugging the disembodied Predacon 
behind her.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

As he materialized, Terrorsaur quickly did a check of his limbs.  
Of course, most transporter systems were designed to avoid 
unpleasent mishaps, but there was still the occasional story 
about two people teleporting, then each winding up with the 
other's limbs.

*Good.  Everything is still there,* thought Terrorsaur, glancing 
behind himself at his companions.  "Alright, people, listen up!" he 
said, raising his rifle.  I'm the highest ranked officer here, so I'M 
in charge!"

"No way, squirt!" said Bloodclot, glaring in Terrorsaur's face.  "I'M 
bigger than you, so I take charge!"

"You and what army?" asked Powerpinch in his hissing voice as 
he split and began producing the clones that all Insecticons could 
produce.  "'Cuz I've got MY army primed and ready to fight!"

"Silence!" snapped Jetstorm.  "Megatron ordered us to follow 
Terrorsaur, so we must follow Terrorsaur.  No matter HOW 
repulsive the concept is."

"Or what?  Megs will come up here and hit us all?" said one of 
the Powerpinches mockingly.

~You bet I will,~ said Megatron from Jetstorm's comm.  ~Get out 
of hand, and I will come up there and PERSONALLY smash 
you.~

The comm winked off, but no-one really thought it was off.  "How 
does he do that?" wondered another one of the Powerpinches 
aloud.

"Do what?" asked Terrorsaur.

"Keep watch on us, no matter what," replied a third Powerpinch.

Bloodclot sighed, reached over, and picked up one of the 
Powerpinches.  "CUT THAT OUT!!!" he bellowed at its face.

The clones, including the one Bloodclot was holding, 
disentegrated.  Only one Powerpinch remained.  "That better?" 
he asked harshly.

"Marginally," muttered Terrorsaur, glancing down the hallway.  
"Where is Blackarachnia, anyways?"

"We'd better split up," said Jetstorm.

Powerpinch grinned and duplicated himself twice.  "That's what I 
do best," said the three Powerpinches in union.  Bloodclot glared 
at them.

"All right," said Terrorsaur.  "Everyone, pick your own direction.  
When you find the others, radio us so that we can home in on 
your location."

Jetstorm, Bloodclot, and Powerpinch nodded, then went off in 
their different directions.  The Powerpinch clones stood there, 
unmoving.  Sighing, Terrorsaur blasted the clones, then flew off 
in another direction.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Headlock continued to inspect the utility tube.  "Fascinating," he 
hissed.

The machinery surrounding him was, indeed, fascinating.  
Touch-screen computers... voice recoginition and analysis... 
teleportation... it was unusual.  But what was even more 
interesting was the odd language, one of the few he did not 
immediately recognize.

"Computer!" he said, hoping the machine could understand 
Trinary.  "Convert all text and output messages to..."  He stopped 
for a moment.  What language might this computer understand 
that he knew as well? "...to English."

The computer emitted a slight beep, and the lettering on the 
panels suddenly split and twisted to form English.  Not good 
English... but English.

He inspected the comission panel.  "Tirac-Rom, eh?"  The name 
meant nothing to him.  "Odd.  Perhaps more is hidden deeper 
within the system."

Headlock began typing at the computer panels.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

"WHAT?!?!?" hissed Blackarachnia, trying to shout while 
whispering.

"I heard it myself," said Drill Bit indignantly.  "Headlock is working 
for Megatron, trying to leach everything he could out of your 
group before destroying you."  He grinned.  "You know... this 
could be worth something."

Blackarachnia slammed him into the wall.  "Like your miserable 
life?"

"That'll do it, all right," stammered Drill Bit, nodding frenetically.

"I'll have to get rid of him, then," mused Blackarachnia, 
continuing to creep down the corridor.  Without warning, blasts 
suddenly exploded around her.  "Get down!" she shouted, diving 
to the ground and grabbing her launcher out of subspace.

Drill Bit's drill powered up, and he lanced out with a blast from it, 
then dropped back down.

"Did you get an ID on our assailant?" asked Blackarachnia.

"It's Buzz Saw," replied Drill Bit.  "Jetstorm is behind him, though.  
Just keep Buzzy distracted."

"No problem," said Blackarachnia with an evil grin.  Loading a 
web-bolt, she launched it at Buzz Saw's wings.  The thin thread 
whipped its way around Buzz Saw's wings, and Buzz Saw tried to 
snap it as he lost control of his flight.  Seeing his opportunity, 
Jetstorm blasted Buzz Saw with his missile launcher.  Buzz Saw 
winced as the missiles hit his back, then began to turn towards 
Jetstorm.  He was cut short as Jetstorm leaped towards him with 
a flying kick.  The kick smashed through Buzz Saw, and he fell 
limply against the wall.

"Nice work, Jetstorm," said Drill Bit, standing up.  "Are you all 
right?"

Jetstorm's gaze slowly shifted towards Drill Bit, his eyes 
smouldering red.  Blackarachnia grabbed Drill Bit and yanked 
him to the ground as Jetstorm whipped up his launcher and fired 
at Drill Bit.

"What's wrong with him?!?" asked Drill Bit, aghast.

"Maybe Vixen knows," said Blackarachnia, flipping her comm 
open.  "Vixen!  We need some advice!"

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Vixen nodded as she listened to Blackarachnia.  "That doesn't 
suprise me.  From what it looks like, this isn't a disease at all."

~How do you figure that?~ asked Blackarachnia on the other 
end.

"From what it looks like," replied Vixen, "some sort of entity was 
stuck in the power core.  When Snapper was repairing the core, 
he accidentally let it loose."

~Demonic possesion?~

"I suppose that's ONE terminology.  I think that it's going to try 
and find the most powerful among us to sort of act as its avatar.  
If it had a corporeal body, then I think it would have shown up by 
now."

~All right, but... what do we DO about it?~

"Whatever you do, DON'T destroy Jetstorm.  Incapacitate him... 
but don't kill him, or you'll be possessed.  We'll have to get rid of 
those possessed by indirect means."

~You mean I have to sit here and get shot at?~

The mental picture of that came to Vixen's mind, and she 
grinned.  "Yes, that's pretty much what I'm saying.  Shoot back... 
but don't shoot to kill."

~You bumbling, incompotent, half-witted, sorry excuse for a -~

Vixen shut off her comm, although she assumed that 
Blackarachnia would keep rambling on for several minutes more.  
With a wry grin, she continued to try and repair the power core.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Blackarachnia heard the click as Vixen's comm link shut down, 
and she stopped talking.  "We can't destroy him," she said 
angrily.

"Then use your energy web!" said Drill Bit, dodging a stream of 
acid.

Nodding, Blackarachnia flipped the web at Jetstorm.  The web 
expanded around him, and Jetstorm growled as he struggled to 
free himself.  The sudden loss of flight control caused him to 
smash into the wall, and the web finally finished encasing him.  
He dropped to the ground, unconcious.

"Let's try to get rid of the rest," said Blackarachnia, running down 
the corridor.  Drill Bit leaped up and followed her.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Headlock slipped out of a duct, then transformed into robot 
mode.  "Truly fascinating," he said, shaking his head.

Glancing behind him, he saw Inferno, his eyes smouldering red.  
"Inferno - how did you find me?"

Inferno did not reply, simply whipped up his cannon and blasted 
at Headlock.  With lightning-fast reflexes, Headlock dove away 
from the blast, then skidded away as Inferno blasted at him 
again.  Bringing his fusion cannons on-line, Headlock flipped 
backwards, away from another blast, and then lanced out with 
twin fusion cannon blasts.  The blasts hit Inferno in the shoulder, 
blowing his arm clean off.

Inferno did not even give his now-armless shoulder a side 
glance.  Grabbing the arm, his rotor roared to life, and he 
rocketed into Headlock.  Slamming his arm back into place, 
Inferno flexed it once before he and Headlock hit the bulkhead.  
Headlock winced, but Inferno didn't even blink.  With a guttural 
growl, he pulled back his arm and then shot it forward, trying to 
punch through Headlock.  Firing his cannons, Headlock 
produced a small thrust, but that was enought to throw Inferno 
off-target.  Headlock did not make a noise as the punch 
shattered his shoulder, simply kicked Inferno off him and flipped 
away.

Skidding to a halt, Headlock spotted Blackarachnia and Drill Bit 
running up behind Inferno.  "I could honestly use a little help 
here, guys," said Headlock, examining the wound to his shoulder.  
It wasn't too bad, but it would require a stint in the CR chamber.

"Don't destroy him!" shouted Drill Bit, diving back around the 
corner.  "You'll be infected!"

Blackarachnia flipped her comm back on.  "Vixen, we have 
Inferno and Headlock pinned down at -" she glanced at a nearby 
panel "- sector H12J.  Can you detonate it from there?"

~I think so.  Are both of them infected?~

"No, just Inferno," said Blackarachnia, instantly regretting it.  Here 
was the PERFECT chance to do away with Headlock, and she 
wasted it.  *Another chance will arise...* she thought to herself.

~Gotcha.  I'll leave one of the doors open; you can close it after 
Headlock is out.~

There was a brief silence.  Then, behind Headlock, a grey door 
slammed down, blocking the corridor.  Headlock glanced at it 
once, then dashed past Inferno towards Blackarachnia.

Blackarachnia stood up, a malicious grin on her face.  "The timer 
says you have two minutes to regret betraying me," she said, 
reaching over to the computer panel.  "Use it well."

The door in front of Headlock slammed down.  Headlock stared 
at it blankly.

With fear rapidly growing inside him, Headlock turned to face 
Inferno.  For a moment, Inferno seemed confused.  Then, he 
stood up straight, and vanished in a glow of light.

Panic consumed him.  He turned back to the door and began 
pounding on it with his good arm.  "BLACKARACHNIA!!!  OPEN 
THE DOOR!!!"

No response came from the other side.  He checked the timer.  
1.45.

"Blackarachnia, for Primus's sake, let me out of here!"

Nothing.  1.40.

"Don't do this, Blackarachnia!  I can still be useful to you!  I didn't 
betray you!"

Nothing.  1.33.

"Blackarachnia, I didn't want to do it!  I had no choice!  It was 
either that or my life!  You can understand that!"

Nothing.  1.24.

"Look, Blackarachnia, I know that I was not your ideal soldier.  
But give me a chance!  Megatron still trusts me to inform him 
about your cabal!  I could feed him false information and help you 
come into power!"

Nothing.  1.13.

Headlock sank to the ground, almost sobbing.

1.10.

He stood again, pounding furiously.  "Dammit, open the door!"

Nothing.  1.02.

"I swear, Blackarachnia, if you don't let me out of here, I will 
survive.  And I will devote my life to your destruction.  You, and 
Tarantulas, and Juliet, and all of your other little anarchist 
bastards.  I'll destroy each of you, one by one, without mercy.  Do 
you want to risk that fate, Blackarachnia?  Are you that much of 
an idiot?"

Nothing.  0.33.

"PLEASE, Blackarachnia.  Don't do this.  I know you.  You won't 
kill a teammate.  That much Maximal is still in you."

0.24.  The door slid up, and Blackarachnia was standing there, 
smiling.

"Thank god, you reconsidered.  Inferno got out, so we have to 
stop the countdown."

"The look on your face is just priceless.  I'll have to remember it," 
said Blackarachnia as she slid the door back down.  Headlock 
gaped.

0.09.

"BLACKARACHNIA!!!"

0.05.

"DON'T DO THIS TO ME!!!"

0.01.

"STOP THE -"

Headlock's world shattered.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Drill Bit saw Blackarachnia coming down the hall, sauntering.  
She wore a grin like that of a cat who just ate several canaries.

"What happened to Headlock?" he asked her.

She smiled even wider.  "He died in a glorious battle with Inferno, 
who escaped at the last moment.  And Megatron will give him a 
full funeral."

Drill Bit and Blackarachnia both laughed.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Nightpounce fired on the roof above three of the Powerpinches.  
The metal swung loose, and smashed into them, sweeping them 
backwards and into the wall.

"I despise this indirect method of dealing with our opponents," 
said Dinobot as he lanced out with his eye beams.  The blast 
sent a Powerpinch slamming into Terrorsaur, who tumbled 
backwards, consumed by flames.

"So do I," replied Nightpounce, darting behind a corner.  "But 
Vixen was quite explicit as to our course of action."

"Then this is where we die?  Fitting."

"How so?" asked Nightpounce, shoving a large wheeled table in 
between Dinobot and several Powerpinches.  Dinobot seized the 
opportunity and sprang backwards, landing neard Nightpounce.

"The coldest members of the Maximals die in the cold blackness 
of space," said Dinobot, slashing off the legs of a Powerpinch.

"I suppose it is fitting, in a poetic sense," replied Nightpounce.  
"Any reports from the others?"

"Bloodclot and Insecticon clones have Vixen, Cheetor, and 
Snapper pinned down.  Drill Bit and Blackarachnia are on the 
other end of this group of Powerpinches."  Dinobot picked up two 
of the Powerpinches, then hurled them back into the masses.  
"Let's face it, we aren't getting back-up this time."

"And Stratosfire?"

"Who knows?  This is a losing battle, Nightpounce," said Dinobot 
as he backed further down the corridor, firing his eye beams into 
the crowd.  "We can only hope our loss is dignified."

Nightpounce grinned bitterly.  "You remind me of Primus Trion."

"You really miss him, don't you?"

"Is this really the time to discuss it?" she asked as she kicked 
one of the Powerpinches into another.

"I suppose not," he replied.  "But... it is a pity you are not over 
him."

Nightpounce looked at him, slightly suprised.  "Are you 
suggesting that if I was -"

"That is a moot point.  You are not."

"Dinobot, if I am going to die, I at least deserve this question 
answered.  If you thought I was over Primus Trion, would you 
want to get involved with me?"

For a moment, Dinobot said nothing, simply threw away several 
Powerpinches.  Then, finally, he said something.  "Yes."

Nightpounce's jaw dropped.  "But - you never showed it -"

"Do you think I want to display any affections publicly?" snarled 
Dinobot.  "No-one would respect me in the slightest.  My image 
would be utterly destroyed."  He growled.  "And that damn rat 
would certainly take the opportunity to mock me."

Nightpounce looked at him.  "Then... if we live... perhaps it is time 
for us to pursue a relationship."

Dinobot looked at her, then kissed her.  Nightpounce tensed, 
then relaxed, and returned the kiss.

As suddenly as he had kissed her, he stopped.  "Of course, _if_ 
is rapidly becoming the operative word."

"I agree," she replied, blasting a pair of Powerpinches away from 
her.  "A little backup would certainly make survival seem... well, 
plausible."

"Ask and ye shall receive," said Stratosfire, stumbling out from 
behind them.  A pair of his coils whipped out, wrapped around a 
Powerpinch, and used it to bat away the others.

"You're alive!" exclaimed Nightpounce.

"Sort of," replied Stratosfire.  "We've got to keep moving 
backwards.  If we can reach the power core, we can team up 
with the others and have a fighting chance."

"No, we can team up with the others and give the entity one 
target instead of three," replied Dinobot.

Nightpounce's comm beeped.  "Nightpounce here," she said into 
it.  "What's wrong?"

~Actually, good news this time.  I did some research on Snapper, 
and it seems like the Maximal brain structure has a few critical 
differences in its programming and construction.  Therefore, I 
have a feeling that the entity can't qute possess our minds.~

"So you're saying we can let loose on these guys?"

~In short.~

Nightpounce shut her comm off happily.  "Time to let loose."

Dinobot and Stratosfire needed no more provocation.  Dinobot let 
out a battle cry as he raked the swarming mass of Powerpinches 
with eye beams.  Stratosfire's coils crushed Powerpinch after 
Powerpinch as his cannon lashed out again and again, cutting a 
swath of destruction.  Nightpounce popped all of her weapons 
into place, then lashed out, grinning as the Powerpinch clones 
exploded.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Vixen was, for the most part, a cheerful robot.  On the other 
hand, under extreme stress, even the best-natured people can 
be reduced to anger, depression, and other emotions.  In most 
situations, this process can take weeks.  Under pressure, 
however, the process can speed up immensely.

"DIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIE!!!!!" screamed Vixen 
as she lanced out with crossbow bolts.  "GO TO INFERNO!!!"

Cheetor was shocked.  "Vixen, this isn't like you," he said as he 
picked off a pair of Insecticons.

"Oh, what's the point?" she said, drooping.  "We can't win.  We're 
going to die."

She snapped up.  "But we can't give up!" she shouted.  Grabbing 
a crossbow bolt out of subspace, Vixen loaded and raised the 
sight.  Aiming at Bloodclot, she fired, then grabbed Cheetor and 
dived down further into the power column.

"Why did you do that?" asked Cheetor.

"To shield you from the flash," she replied.  Sure enough, 
seconds later, a blinding white flash exploded overhead.  Even 
though they were out of range, they still had to blink the flash out 
of their eyes.

"What was that?" shouted Snapper from the bottom of the power 
column.

"Experimental weaponry," replied Vixen.  "Stormcloud was 
working on it.  It's supposed to be used against clones.  The bolt 
basically is designed to destroy all immediately active 
subroutines.  Normal Transformers have it automatically stored 
in the backup memory cells, but clones don't have those, so 
they're left as hollow shells."

"Vixen, what are you doing?" asked hissed Cheetor.  "Why are 
you giving away military secrets?"

"Because it's not enough information to try and counteract the 
technology," replied Vixen.  "He has no idea HOW the files are 
deleted, or how the flash affects things.  In fact, Transformers 
don't even HAVE backup memory cells."

Cheetor nodded, then popped back up.  A few Insecticons were 
still standing, but most had fallen over and were sparking.  
Bloodclot was still shaking his head from the flash.  The *real* 
Insecticon was drawing his crossbow, his eyes still smouldering 
red.  Cheetor blasted him in the chest with his quasar cannon.  
Insecticon flew backwards and hit the wall, then slumped to the 
bottom, unmoving.

Cheetor was about to leap up, but a blast from Inferno's cannon 
knocked him down.  His body slammed into the rim, then 
bounced downward, his chest smoking from the blast.  Vixen let 
go of the girder she was holding, and grabbed Cheetor as she 
dropped.  With a quick, fluid motion, she grabbed the girder 
again, and began to descend to the bottom.  Bloodclot's shoulder 
missiles peppered the column's sides, and Vixen sped up her 
descent.

Snapper looked up as Vixen landed.  "What's happening?" he 
asked.  "I've almost finished the modifications, but I still need 
more time."

"Cheetor's down," she replied.  "And I have a feeling we're still 
losing the battle."

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Drill Bit fell back.  His left arm was missing, and his left leg was
barely functional.  All over his body were marks of damage.  His left
optic was shattered, and his head was dented and blackened.  With a
wheeze, he began to fall forward.

Blackarachnia grabbed him.  "I am not letting you out of this THAT
easily," she said, helping him back to his feet.

"Face it, Blackarachnia," said Drill Bit.  "What in the world is going
to keep us alive?"

"Me," replied a voice from the crowd.  Two Powerpinches 
exploded into a mist of flame and metal, and a pair of coils 
crushed the head of another.  The coils then wrapped around 
Blackarachnia and Drill Bit, lifting them over the masses.

Drill Bit laughed maniacally.  "He's going to kill us," he said in an 
oddly calm voice.  "Oh Danny Boooooooy, the pipes are 
caaaaaalling..." he sang softly.

"Will you SHUT UP?!?!?" bellowed Blackarachnia as she glanced 
below herself.  Standing there was Stratosfire.

"Vixen and Snapper are working on something to get rid of these 
drones," he said as he waded through the crowd, still carrying 
Drill Bit and Blackarachnia over his head.  "We're going to meet 
them at the generator."

Drill Bit continued to sing.  "But you'll be baaaaaack, when 
suuuuumer's in the meeeaaadow..."

"Why are you killing them, though?" asked Blackarachnia.  
"Won't you be infected?"  She did not much favor the idea of 
being held by someone likely to go insane and crush her at any 
moment.

"Not according to what Vixen has learned," replied Stratosfire.  "It 
looks like the entity isn't going to bother trying to possess the 
Maximals.  As usual, the bad guys are inferior to the heroes."

"Oh, I think you've got your factions a little mixed up," said 
Blackarachnia, shaking her head.  "WE'RE the heroes."

"Backstabbing teammates is heroic?  The rulebook must have 
changed since the last time I checked."

"And you're MUCH better!  You've held back Cybertronian culture 
by thousands of years, with your desire to hold us on our own 
planet instead of EXPANDING!  Meanwhile, the Predacons and 
Decepticons have been out, exploring new planets, discovering 
new cultures, ADVANCING our species!  Maybe we're ruthless, 
yes, but we ARE PROGRESSING!  And that is MORE than I can 
say for ANY member of your faction!"

Stratosfire looked up at Blackarachnia and Drill Bit.  At the 
moment, held in his coils, they both made VERY tempting 
targets.  But at the moment, he knew that they needed every 
living soldier available.  So he set them down as he exited the 
mass of Powerpinch clones.

"We'd better get to the generator," he said.  "We might not have 
much time."

Dinobot looked at Nightpounce.  "Are you ready?"

She nodded.  "Always."

The five of them ran down the corridor, Drill Bit still singing 
"Danny Boy".

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

Cheetor shook his head.  *Ouch,* he thought, remembering the 
blast he had recently endured.  "Umm, I don't mean to nag, but... 
could somebody please fill me in here?"

"I'm finished," said Snapper.  "You almost got killed.  And Inferno 
and Bloodclot are up there trying to kill us."

"Just another day on the job," said Vixen, pulling a concussion 
grenade out of subspace.  Yanking out the pin, she tossed it 
skyward, and it exploded.  There was the sound of crashing 
metal, and Vixen hoped that it was the sound of severe damage 
to the Predacons in wait.

"Cheetor, we need somebody to meet up with the others," said 
Vixen as she descended into the small chamber that Snapper 
had created.  "Can you get to them?"

Cheetor tossed her a cocky smile.  "_CAN_ I?  Babe, you're 
talking to Cheetor, the golden rocket!  I'll have them down here 
so fast that you won't be able to -"

"Quit posturing and do it!" snapped Snapper.

Shrugging, Cheetor raced up the girder, then shoved off and into 
a wall.  Bloodclot, still recovering from the damage of the 
grenade, took a couple moments to aim, but by that point 
Cheetor was somewhere else entirely.  Inferno tried to trace 
Cheetor's path, but Cheetor spun out of the way, then blasted 
Inferno with his quasar cannon.  It barely even seemed to dent 
the large robot, but it disoriented him, and that was enough for 
Cheetor.  Sprinting across the room, Cheetor sprang forward and 
slid out of the door, stopping in the hallway.

"C'mon, guys, we've gotta get out of the open!" exclaimed 
Cheetor, ushering the others into the generator room.  Drill Bit 
continued to sing "Danny Boy".

"Is he infected?" asked Cheetor.

"No, just an idiot," replied Blackarachnia, hurrying into the room.  
Following close behind, Nightpounce lashed out at Inferno, and 
Dinobot and Stratosfire hit Bloodclot.  It was not enough to bring 
the robots down, but it was enough to knock them out of the way.  
The six of them dove down the column as the Powerpinch clones 
burst into the room, Terrorsaur and Jetstorm flying overhead.

Cheetor reached the bottom first.  Close behind were Dinobot 
and Nightpounce.  After them came Stratosfire, and finally 
Blackarachnia, lugging along with her Drill Bit, who was now 
singing "Shennandoah".

"Into the safety chamber!" said Vixen, shoving them into the 
small chamber.  Turning, she swung out a keyboard.  "Are you 
SURE you set this up right?  We only have one shot at this."

Snapper nodded.  "Now activate it!"

Vixen nodded, and typed furiously at the keyboard.  At first, 
nothing happened.

All of a sudden, the power column roared to life.  The main 
generator lashed out with a pure white beam, striking the bottom 
of the column.  Reflecting off the walls, the beam continued to 
increase in power, pouring it into the central funnel.

Sparks began to play across the possessed bodies.  Falling over, 
they began to let out guttural yells as the power levels increased.  
They fell to the ground as the entity inside of them was forced 
out, unable to maintain his hold on the minds of his victims.

The power beam shattered.  Vixen felt an intense pain moments 
before she blacked out.

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

"Now THAT was fun."

Nightpounce recognized the voice before she even lifted her 
head to see who it was.  *Please, not him,* she thought.  
*Primus, if there ever was a time for you to prove me wrong, it 
would be NOW...*

She raised her head.  Hovering in front of her was Mercutio.

"I mean, you didn't even FIGURE this one out.  I laid out ALL the 
clues, and you STILL only figured out half of the puzzle."  He 
shook his head.  "Quite depressing results, especially 
considering I nearly got killed to save your life."

"Who in the world is HE?!?" asked Dinobot angrily.

"A problem," replied Nightpounce, getting up.  "But let me hazard 
a guess - you were the 'entity' we were dealing with, weren't 
you?"

"Well, it's nice to see you can read the answer after it's spelled 
out for you," said Mercutio.  "Seeing as how our little Arena 
experiment was - well, a failure - we decided to try another test."

"Do you have NO shame?" asked Nightpounce.  "Look at all the 
people you've killed!"

Mercutio glanced around.  "Oh, no no no.  They're still very much 
alive.  Just get them some medical attention and they'll be all 
right."

"But... where is Headlock?" asked Snapper as the others raised 
themselves off the ground.

"He... died in combat with Inferno," replied Blackarachnia.  "How 
are we going to get home?"

Mercutio thought for a moment.  "Well, considering I'm going to 
destroy the station in forty seconds, it would probably be 
convenient.  Tell you what.  I'll teleport you back to your 
respective headquarters, free of charge.  Just 'cause I'm such a 
nice guy."

"I have trouble seeing you and the word 'nice' being used in direct 
conjunction," snarled Nightpounce.  "You tried to kill us."

"I tried to kill you before, too, and you didn't complain about it 
THEN."

"Yes, I did."

"Hmmm.  That's right, you did."

"Does EVERYONE around here ramble on?!?" snarled Dinobot.  
Blackarachnia held him back.

"Err..." said Blackarachnia, "...what Dinobot MEANT... in his 
paranoid, belligerent, and downright STUPID way... is that it 
WOULD be nice if you would finish your monologue and telelport 
us home."

"I suppose I ought to," sighed Mercutio.  "Very well.  But, a 
warning: this is not the last test.  And it is NOT the end.  It will be 
a LONG, LONG time before you can stop worrying about us.  
Remember... we're always watching."

The Transformers dissappeared.  Only Mercutio remained on the 
station.

"Your efforts are failing," said Lawrence, appearing next to 
Mercutio.  "They still do not consider either us or the ancients a 
threat."

"I know," replied Mercutio dejectedly.  "I suppose the whole 
'Dominion-Empire-Tiamat' sort of 'effortless evil' is just _not_ 
projecting.  I don't know why - I took all the acting courses.  I 
even mailed away for an 'Impersonate Mao Tse Tung' book."

"But we _have_ to make them prepare," said Lawrence.  "Even if 
we must do what we have tried to avoid."

"You mean kill them?"

"Yes."

	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*	*

By definition, sound requires a medium through which to travel.  
Space does not provide this nessecary medium for sound, and 
therefore soundwaves do not transmit.  Condensed, this basically 
means that "in space, no-one can hear you scream".

But there is some debris floating through the blackness of space.  
And let us assume that this debris has air left around it.  Not 
much air, perhaps, but enough to allow sound to travel through 
and be heard by the casual observer.  (Granted, a casual 
observer drifting through space is an uncommon thing, but let's 
suspend our disbelief on that one.)

So, if we could bend the laws of nature as we know them for just 
a moment... to hear what came from those few shards of 
debris...

...we would hear laughter.

Not cheerful, happy laughter.  The laughter of a madman.

It is the laughter of Headlock.  And the laughter is the last vestige 
of his sanity, torn away by a burning inferno and a black spider.

Headlock drifts.  And waits.

For revenge...