Dinobot watched his 'student' leave, still glaring. He knew Rogue was right. She had caught him by surprise. She learned fast! It made him proud because he saw he accomplished something, which was a rare feeling. Rogue wasn't out to humiliate him whenever he lost a round, though he had always won in the past fights, and she took his advise to heart. He remembered similar sessions in the past, only that these had happened among Predacons and had sometimes ended deadly. Skills had always been tested in cruel ways, determining who was the best and who would be among the best of the best to be chosen for special missions. He had always won. He had been one of the very best. And then the war had ended, his life had suddenly come totally out of control and he had tumbled helplessly around until Megatron had hired him.
Now he was here.
No longer a Predacon, surrounded by Maximals, and teaching one of them how to fight with what she had.
How ironic.
He was teaching his former enemy how to defend and attack. He chuckled softly. His life had taken a 180 degree turn and somehow he didn't even mind any more. He had adjusted to it and to the Maximals, sometimes felt even safer here than among his own kind. At least he didn't have to worry about a blast in the back or poisoned energon -- though he couldn't be so sure about Rattrap. Dinobot grinned dryly. The rodent was always ready to attack him verbally, though he doubted a physical attack would ever follow. That wasn't Rattrap's way and they had co-existed more or less peacefully since he had joined the Maximals.
And now there was Rogue, someone he had evaded like a plague and who only now earned herself his trust. He hated psychologist and she was one. Psychologist had been used to break down warriors during training and then build them back up, like the Predacon High Command commanded. They would assault a person with every nightmare, every single thought, every negative emotion, every weapon, until he or she surrendered, gave up, opened the personality core and let them tinker around. Whatever the warrior became they helped design. Psychologists had analyzed a person, had eradicated whatever was unnecessary in the eyes of the Command and then sent him or her back into the field. They had built their warriors. They had built him, though they had never completely broken him.
When he had heard what the new Maximal had been in the past he had been shocked and slightly afraid. He had expected her to act like those of her profession he knew.
But she hadn't.
Rogue had turned out to be a help for him, getting him to talk about the nightmarish events in the cave, about his experience inside the relic, about the pain, fear and cruel visions, and he had seen that it helped. His nightmares had receded, had turned into nothing but faint bad dreams, and his emotions were under control again. They still met to talk because she was an incredibly open and easy-going person to talk to, giving as much as she took, in his case memories. And she shut up about their sessions. Nothing leaked and though he had not dared to trust her word concerning this, she had kept it, had surprised him and had earned more trust.
Dinobot left the engine room, deep in thought, knowing that maybe he was surrendering too much to this Maximal, but somehow he wasn't even sure whether he hadn't already surrendered too much to the others. He knew Optimus Primal knew him pretty well by now and it frightened him, but maybe this was necessary.
To survive.....

* * *

AirRazor and Optimus Primal sat outside the Axalon. It was a slow day, sunny and peaceful. The Predacons had not shown their faces since the volcano had erupted and though this was reason to worry since they might just plan something, Optimus was trying not to worry now. Well, at least for the present time. The events around the volcano had been hectic enough.
"This is fascinating," AirRazor breathed. "I never knew it existed at all!"
Optimus smiled. "It does. Few know and even fewer have really seen it, but while going through the training I had a chance to peek at it."
AirRazor sighed. "I wish I had had the chance as well, but I never trained at the Hexagon Facilities."
"I'll take you on a tour when we get back to Cybertron," the Maximal commander promised.
"If we get back," the scout muttered darkly, her eyes turning a deeper green.
Optimus shook his head. "Don't think in 'ifs', AirRazor. We will get off this weird planet."
"That you shouldn't promise," AirRazor told him calmly. "We might be stuck here for a very long time....."
The Maximal commander wanted to object, but then he sighed, his optics flickering with worry. "A long time, yes," he finally said softly, "but not forever."
AirRazor looked at the file, a file about Cybertron, her home. She had never spent enough time at home to really get to know it and when she had signed on for the exploration mission she had also accepted that she might not see it for an even longer time. She had woken up in a world that was deadly to her if she was exposed to the energon fields in her robot mode too long; their ship was damaged beyond repair; there was no outside help anywhere on this planet; Predacons had crashed down as well and were now trying to take them out; and she had a new identity.
"I'm not a warrior, Optimus," she said, her voice very level. "I signed on to do deep space exploration, not combat. I can fight, I can defend, but my best abilities are those as a scout."
"None of us are really warriors, AirRazor. Rattrap has a lot of experiences, granted, but except for Dinobot, who doesn't even belong to the original outfit, we are all just explorers cast into a role no one wanted to play. I'm captain of an exploration vessel, not a troop commander."
"You are doing fine," AirRazor told him with conviction.
"For a beginner," Optimus laughed dryly. His eyes fell on the file AirRazor was holding. "We'll get back. Some day."
She simply nodded.

* * *

It was dark.
Pitch-black; no light could stream in.
Still, there was a soft, greenish-blue glow, though it was weak and flickering. Charred rock blocked the sun light and the sand was warm and here and there cracks opened, belching steam.
::Analysis::
The light flickered a bit more and the sand slid off small splinters of a quartz-like crystal.
::Energon non-existent::
::Shields non-existent::
::Data stored::
::Transmitter destroyed::
More sand slithered around and more shards were revealed, most of them scorched and black, some melted by the incredible amount of energy that had been set free only a few days ago.
::Course of action -- find data transmitter::
Some of the splinters' lights faded and died, but others continued glowing.

* * *

"Are you sure?"
Rhinox nodded. "I have analyzed all our data and there is no doubt about it. That's why I'd like to go out and take a closer look at the area, maybe even dig for some energon crystal remains."
Optimus Primal frowned, drawn between advising caution and letting Rhinox go. A lot had happened in the last weeks, most of it rather unpleasant. Letting Rhinox go back into a volcanic area was not the main worry; Rhinox was a responsible scientist who would not put himself into danger. Having him enter an area known to contain alien artifacts was. Maybe the relic in the cave had been the only one, but they had no idea whether or not it still existed -- and was functional. It could do to anyone of them what it had done to Dinobot.
That brought back more worrisome memories of the former Predacon who was only now finding back to what could be called his old self. Whatever had happened to him in the cave, it had left him touchy and volatile. Optimus was glad that he was at least responding to Rogue, who was spending considerable time talking to Dinobot. No one would ever openly confess that he knew this because Dinobot tried to keep it a secret, but it was an open one. Optimus was glad he was at least letting someone try to help and as
it seemed, Rogue was succeeding step by step.
And now Rhinox wanted to go back in exactly that area.
"Rhinox, this could be dangerous," he told his friend.
The massive scientist nodded. "I know. But nature has quieted down and prolonged scans have not revealed any alien signatures."
"We didn't detect their presence in the area before," Optimus pointed out.
"Because I didn't know what to look for. Optimus, the relic is destroyed, but there might still be energon crystals. If these readings are correct....the energon is stable and we could use it! It might be a break-through. We are an exploration vessel! It is our duty to dig deeper."
Optimus sighed and nodded slowly. That was what it came down to. Exploration. Discovery of knowledge and the secrets behind a world. Optimus didn't know if he really wanted to know all this world's secrets.
"All right, but you will take back-up along."
Rhinox smiled. "Of course. And I already have a volunteer. Rogue."
Optimus' mouth dropped open and he quickly closed it again. "Rogue?!"
"Yes. She is the most likely candidate. She knows the area, she has been in the cave, and she knows about my research. Optimus, she might not be the best warrior, but her expertise is as good as mine. We have done this research together and I wouldn't want to miss her insight."
The Maximal leader nodded slowly again. Rogue truly wasn't a warrior, but who os them really was. They had had some fighting experience but a lot was made up as they went along. Neither had been built or bred as a warrior, except Dinobot and he was a former Predacon. But she had started to train -- with exactly aforementioned former Predacon. The first time Optimus had walked in on such a battle session he had first thought Dinobot was about to kill the female medic. They had fought fiercely and Rogue had been visibly outpowered. He had been ready to intervene when Dinobot had eased of and given Rogue an unfriendly lecture about her weak spots. Astounded Optimus had realized that Dinobot was giving her lessons in battle.
 "Okay," he now said. "Just keep an extra eye open for Predacon activity. Megatron might want to dig around a bit as well."
"Will do."
With that Rhinox left the bridge and went to collect his team partner.
Optimus watched him leave, a worried expression still hovering over his features. Of course Rhinox was right! They were here to explore, even though they had come here quite involuntarily. But he didn't have to like it.

* * *

Scorponok could have thought of a better partner for this exploration mission than Tarantulas. Personally he didn't trust the arachnid any further than he could throw a stasis pod. Tarantulas was treacherous, scheming and ambiguous in his motives, as well as opposing to Megatron, their leader. Scorponok was a loyal servant and he was also Megatron's second-in-command, though this seemed to have little meaning with the others who generally ignored him. He had come to accept it, though it bothered him sometimes. What he couldn't accept was all the scheming going on behind his leader's back, though Megatron seemed to be aware of it. Maybe he even nurtured it, keeping the power struggle going and enjoying the outcomes. None of the want-to-be-usurpers worked with the others, thus weakening his own position and making room for the other to attack him. Terrorsaur, Black Arachnia and Tarantulas were the most dangerous schemers of them all, but neither trusted anyone else and through it had no real base of power.
Scorponok knew that Megatron was grossly underestimated by many, even those who had been on his team for some time now. The Predacon leader understood how to keep rivalries cooking and secure his position more and more, always granting a little victory for the rival, then striking back -- totally unexpected. Scorponok shook his head as he walked through the volcanic landscape toward the spot Terrorsaur and Waspinator had described: a cave with an alien relic in it. He believed they wouldn't find a lot of remains, but Megatron wanted this all checked out nevertheless. Alien artifacts were always of interest to him.
"We are here," he now said and stopped, looking over the valley.
This had once been a forest, but now it was nothing but dead tree trunks littering a burned and charred ground. Here and there small fires smoked and sizzled. Ahead of them, several more miles to the North, was the mountain, the volcano. Most of it had slid down when the magma had exploded, but it was still an impressive sight, maybe even more so now that it had shed its load of deadly fire. Scorponok knew that there was still activity inside and the streams of cooling lava told the story. It would take a few more weeks for this landscape to quiet down completely but Megatron had not been implied to wait that long.
"From what Terrorsaur reported, the cave should be over there," he went on and gestured to a collection of rocks about a mile away, rising into the twilightish sky. "Let's check it and then report to Megatron."
Tarantulas didn't say a word, simply followed him. This was even more worrying than open rejection of following an order. But he didn't have time for this now.

* * *

Things had quieted down considerably in the last few days and only a few more microquakes registered on the seismometers. Rhinox was pleased to see that nature had calmed down and that there were no more chances that the volcano would erupt once more. It had also given him the chance to finally get the permission to go and take a closer look at the area, especially after what he had found out about the energon. There had been stable energon deposits in the area around the cave an alien relic had been found in and they had not blown at the first instability around them or the rising heat. They had gone up eventually, but that had had nothing to do with any of the aforementioned triggers, as far as Rhinox was concerned. But he needed to know more.
Rogue caught up with him and lightly jumped on a rock, peering over the ruined, black landscape. The mountain, the volcano, loomed over them and it looked even more threatening now that it was quiet than it had before. Most of the northern slope was missing and hardened lava was forming a new one now. Here and there steam rose out of cracks, lava flowed lazily under a thin crust and broke through sometimes, or a small lake of lava cooled down. Activity like this would continue for some more time, but at least the quakes had stopped.
"Impressive," she muttered, craning her neck to look all the way up.
Rhinox nodded. "Very. Mother nature at work."
Rogue had to smile. Rhinox was truly in love with the nature of a planet, which was amazing for a creature coming from a planet made of metal. He liked to spend his time outside the Axalon, if possible, and log the flora.
"Now, we need to scan the area for possible energon remains." Rhinox transformed and took his scanner, starting to slowly cover the area.
Rogue watched him. She knew as much about the energon crystals as he did. She had been sitting with him -- when she wasn't caught up in hovering unobstrusively around Dinobot -- and doing some research of her own. It had been Rogue who had stumbled over one of the many anomalies to follow. Not only was this particular energon crystal incredibly stable on a molecular level, it also seemed to be a storage tank. Rhinox had spent two days testing the results, running them against everything, but they stayed the same. The structure of the crystal was like a brain: a living brain of crystalline matter. It had energon to draw on because it stored it naturally and it also seemed to store data. Their readings were incomplete, but it might explain a few things. The deposits had sat around the mountain with the cave, not quite far enough away from the volcano to be safe, but close enough to still draw in energy from the magma and steam veins below the surface. Those crystals had been made to withstand high temperatures because they used the heat to power themselves. Rogue had felt heat inside the cave as well, and since there hadn't been any magma lines beneath this particular mountain, Rhinox theorized that the energon collected in the crystals had somehow been transferred to the cave, to power the relic on the wall.
They had spent another day going over the meaning of the strange eye on the wall. It wasn't a weapon, Rhinox had finally said. It could have killed Dinobot and be done with it -- but it hadn't. Rogue was not forthcoming with any information gained from the former Predacon in their private session, but Rhinox had a good enough guess as to what might have gone on. They had had their encounters with alien technology before, at least Optimus, and Optimus had been scanned. So he concluded the same had happened to Dinobot -- just on a much more violent level.
Rogue transformed as well and activated her own set of highly sensible scanners. She went over to where the entrance to the cave had been and studied the heap of rocks. Around her, cracks had opened, the ground had heaved up and generally speaking, the landscape had changed tremendously. Concentrating on the cave, she scanned deeply.
Nothing.
No alien signatures, no energy readings ..... nothing. The relic had to be dead. Well, she truly hoped it was. She didn't want to see that thing ever again, not even as fragments. Rogue was fascinated by the alien technology, but it also frightened her. She had read all there was to read and she had talked to those who had had personal experience with alien technology, mostly Optimus, but it left her none the wiser. Everything was a mystery, a puzzle, and all they had were more mysteries to help solve the bigger one.
Sighing she started to scan the area, mapping it out and assissting Rinox.

* * *

Scorponok stopped as he climbed over another hill of hardened lava over rock and crouched down. "Maximals!"
Tarantulas stopped beside him. "They have come for the same reason we have," he said thoughtfully.
"Megatron won't like it," Scorponok muttered.
Tarantulas transformed. "Then let's not disappoint him." He pulled his gun and aimed at the nearest Maximal, in this case Rhinox.

* * *

::Sensors working::
::Specimen in range::
::Specimen scanned::
::Acknowledged::
::Initiate transfer::

* * *

A shot rang through quiet of the day but it missed Rhinox who was diving quickly for cover.
"Predacons!" he exclaimed as he whipped out a gun.
Tarantulas lost three more blasts his way, then got behind cover as well as Rhinox' chain gun spewed deadly fire his way and chipped several layers of rock away from the boulder he had chosen.
Rogue had her own weapon in hand and took aim. Two arrow-head bullets shot toward the attackers and Scorponok was lucky enough not to get hit, though it was close.
"Where did they come from?" she asked, puzzled. "We didn't pick them up!"
"Probably developed a new signature damper," Rhinox rumbled and shot at Tarantulas again, who had decided to test his luck and make another attack. The arachnid quickly scrambled for cover again.
A shot came from the other side of the rock formation they were hiding behind and Rhinox felt a burning pain in his left shoulder.  Sparks erupted from the wound, blood leaked out of the burst veins of his artificial skin. His arm went numb and he lost the hold on his weapon. Rogue whirled around and discovered a new attacker. Inferno.
"Slag!" she hissed and fired at him, but he was hardly impressed by it. "Rhinox!"
"I'm fine!" he growled and rubbed his burned shoulder.
Rogue shot him a quick look and took in the damage, which was mostly burned-to-crisp synthetic skin but also damaged circuits beneath the metal skin.
"We need back-up," she growled and opened a line to the Axalon.
Rhinox was busy keeping Inferno away from them and neither saw Scorponok and Tarantulas moving in.
And neither noticed the sudden glow coming from the cracks between the rock and cooled lava when Scorponok took position on the hill where the cave had once been.
No one saw a thin stream of light, a mere finger of it, touch the Predacons' second-in-command.

*

It was the strangest feeling.
First there was an inquiry, then a confirmation and then ....nothing.
From one second to another he was floating in a void, surrounded by nothing but darkness and the occasional flicker of greenish-blue light.
Scorponok was puzzled.
What had happened? Where was he? What was going on?
Had he been able to access his video unit he might have found out.
Tarantulas tumbling to the ground, badly shot up and his skin nothing but crisp flakes, would have been a first clue. The weapon who had done this, Scorponok's own missile launchers, would have been another. Had there been a mirror he could have seen himself in, he might have noticed a strange, green-blue light in his visor optics, flashing on and off.
But he couldn't see it because he was no longer inside his own mind. He was ...somewhere.
 

The thing that had once been Scorponok now turned and took in the damage around it, the changed landscape, and it registered the absence of stable energon. It accessed the memory banks of its vessel and came to a conclusion.
It turned and left.

*

"What the .....?!" Rogue exclaimed and stared at the smoking husk of Tarantulas. She had seen Scorponok turn on his own comrade and blast him down!
Scorponok!
Someone  as loyal to Megatron that it was almost a physical pain to see him grovel in front of the Predacon leader, backing him up and aking the punishment as well. And now he had nearly turned Tarantulas into a sieve!
Then she remembered the faint glow coming from inside the pile of stones Scorponok had stood on and how the Predacon's eyes had briefly reflected it. Something had happened ......
"I don't know, but I know we still have trouble!" Rhinox growled, trying to pin down Inferno who was evading his shots.
The fire ant whipped out his flame thrower, laughing madly. "I will make you buuurn!" he yelled and aimed.
Rogue jumped out of the way, sliding over the slick surface of cooled lava and nearly bumped into the unconscious Tarantulas. The Predacon looked really bad and her medically trained mind presented her with all the damage she could diagnose from the outside. He needed extensive repair time. A tongue of flame licking at her fur got her quickly back to the situation at hand. Inferno was developing into a major problem! Rhinox had trouble moving his right arm and he was also running out of ammo. The fox jumped up and got out her staff, taking aim. She knew she was no match for the much larger and much more powerful Predacon, but she knew a trick or two to at least slow him down. She was fast, the was agile and she was armed. Dinobot had taught her how to use these advantages and she was grateful she had taken him up on his 'offer' to show her a few more warriors skills, though she was no warrior at heart.
"Rhinox, give me a boost!" she yelled, running towards him.
Rhinox got he idea immediately and dropped his gun. She jumped, he pushed his functioning hand under her feet and gave her a powerful boost. Rogue sailed through the air, airborne for a few seconds, and --
surprised Inferno by landing on his back. The Predacon gave a scream of annoyance and tried to toss her off.
Rogue used her legs to hold herself on his back and rammed down her staff into the area where the rotator connected to the body. Sparks erupted from the injury. Inferno screamed and fell to one side, swatting at her. Rogue gave a gasp as she slid off and then fell. They weren't high above the ground, but the impact still jarred her body and she nearly blacked out. One hand twisted under her and she moaned, but at least it didn't tear off.
Rhinox had watched the whole maneuver with a mixture of surprise and amazement. When Rogue fell off he used the chance and punctured Inferno with several rounds from his chain gun. The Predacon was slammed back against the mountain side and slid down, but he was still not out. He already made moves to get back to his feet. Rhinox cursed.
Inferno staggered to his feet and growled as he discovered the faintly moving form of Rogue and the still standing Rhinox.
"You will, burn, Maximal!" he vowed and targeted Rhinox.
"Not today!" a new voice called from the sky and two missiles slammed into the Predacon's chest.
This time the Predacon stayed down, smoke belching from his chest and his limbs twitching faintly.
"Optimus!" Rhinox breathed in relief.
The Maximal leader touched down and looked over the battle field. He saw Rogue, struggling to her feet, one hand pretty chafed and bent at an odd angle; and Rhinox, his shoulder burned and opened by a shot.
"What's going on?" he asked.

* * *

It walked. It had a pretty good idea where to go, but when the first energon flashes hit its host body it was surprised.
"Warning," a voice said in its head. "Energon overload imminent. Transform back to beast mode."
It had thought it had taken what knowledge it needed out of the memory of its transport vessel, but maybe this had been the wrong assumption. It stopped and scanned the files, then transformed the body into the scorpion alternate form it held. The energon flashes stopped, just like the warning voice.
Intriguing. A second mode, immune to the energon.
It made a note and filed it away for later. This needed to be transmitted as well, just in case. Information was always necessary.
It continued its way, set in its tracks, knowing it needed to find a transmitter. It knew the power station was most likely still functional, but since its body had been destroyed it had no way to communicate with it and there was also no longer a relay to transmit data from its own storage files to the signal array.
It needed something to help it fulfill its orders. And it knew where to get it.

* * *

Optimus Primal watched the door of the CR chamber close and the display light up. Rhinox wasn't too badly hurt, but it was still a deep wound that needed treatment through the chamber, especially since the skin on his upper arm and collar bone area had been burned to crisp. Replacement was in order.
The Maximal leader turned and looked at the assembled Maximals. Not all were present because of scouting missions. AirRazor and Cheetor, as well as Tigatron, were too far away to be called back and arrive within an hour. Dinobot stood behind the plotting table, face set in his usual dark scowl, Rattrap not far away, arms crossed in front of his chest, brows drawn together. Rogue, who had repaired herself with a few tools, restoring her busted wrist's flexibility, leaned against a station, looking as worried as Optimus felt.
"So you think something has survived?" he now asked.
Rogue sighed, shrugging. "I'm not sure. I didn't see anything in the debris, but since a whole mountain came down, the remnants of the relic might be buried deep down inside. There's tons of rock to go through. I didn't pick anything up on the scanners, though."
"But Scorponok was infected with something," Optimus said slowly.
"I saw something greenish-blue, like a worm of light, and then his optics changed color as well," Rogue reported. Dinobot winced almost impreceptibly. "He attacked Tarantulas and shot him down. Then he simply walked away. I read your file on Scorponok and I've seen him in battle once. He doesn't strike me as a treacherous person, someone to shoot his comrades in the back in the middle of a battle field."
"He's a coward," Dinobot snarled. "A sniveling coward! He's loyal to Megatron and he worships the ground he walks on." Dinobot's voice was dripping with acidy contempt.
Rogue smiled slightly at his remarks and nodded. "Exactly."
Dinobot growled something.
"So something took him over?" Rattrap asked.
"Something connected to the relic...." Optimus said slowly.
"Something that might be the relic," Rogue added.
Dinobot's eyes flashed in remembrance of what had happened to him in the cave. No one except Rogue knew the full extent of what he had gone through, but from the expression that fleetingly appeared in his optics, Optimus knew it was nothing pleasant.
"But it wasn't alive!" Rattrap protested.
"How do you know?" Rogue asked. "Rhinox and I studied what we could of the remaining energon crystals and we found that they were unlike anything we found before. They store information like a brain -- electrical impulses. That's why they are stable. It's not random energy, it's concentrated information, filed and ready to be read by whoever or whatever built this storage device. Maybe the relic was some kind of control."
"It was destroyed when the volcano blew," Rattrap said. "There is nothing left!"
"There is always something or other left."
Optimus looked thoughtfully at her. "Granted. The question is, how sentient is this control device?"
"Not much if it choose Scorponok," Rattrap quipped.
Rogue lifted a corner of her mouth into a smile. "Maybe it reacted on instinct, attacking or possessing the first person it met."
"So the next question would be," Dinobot growled, "what does it need Scorponok for?"
"It gathered information," Rogue muttered, almost to herself.
"And it lost the information the moment the energon blew," Optimus went on.
"But what if not all is lost?" Rogue asked, looking at him.
"And what if it tries to save this information somewhere...." Optimus' eyes widened.
"Maybe not save....maybe transmit," the female medic whispered.
They stared at one another.
"No......" he said slowly.
Dinobot frowned. "Possible," he muttered, following the line of thought. "The mysterious probe gathered information as well."
"Yeah, and disappeared," Rattrap nodded. "Probably to get this gathered information back to its masters."
"But this one can't transmit information anymore!" Optimus shook his head. "It's looking for a way to get its saved information back to whoever built it!"
"The Pred ship!" Rattrap finally caught up with where this was leading.
"So let Megatron deal with this thing," Dinobot hissed.
"What if he can't?" Rogue asked quietly.
Dinobot's mouth curled into an evil smile. "Then I will mark the day of his death a victory day in my personal log!"
"If he can't stop it, it will transmit its data," Optimus said. "I'm not sure I like it. This ... thing ... was not benevolent."
Dinobot's eyes flashed again.
"It was totally different from the probe," the Maximal leader went on, "and now it possessed Scorponok, blasted Tarantulas, though he wasn't a threat to it as far as we can tell, and currently makes its way to the Predacon base."
"Yeah, well, might as well scrap the whole base," Rattrap shrugged with a smile. "Why not wait for it to do so and then stop it if its still functioning?"
"That's not the plan, Rattrap. And it might already be too late by then. It could transmit the data before it destroys anything else."
"Then what is your plan?"
"We'll watch the base. Rattrap, you and Dinobot get over there and keep an eye on things. You will not, I repeat, not engage the Predacons unless you are fired at first. Keep a low profile and monitor the base. I want to know what happens. Megatron won't just stand back and let this alien relic do what it wants. And the way it acts it is not trying to fit in and work undercover."
The two Maximals nodded and left the ship, for once not even arguing, though Dinobot's expression was far from happy. Then again, when was he ever happy about anything?
Optimus turned to Rogue. "Do we have anything on the relic at all? Except for the few shards of energon crystal?"
She shook her head. "No. It's all buried."
"Prime," he muttered.
"Maybe if I start digging....?"
"No. Too dangerous. Give me all the files you and Rhinox have on this."
Rogue nodded and went to the science station. Optimus shot a look at the display for the CR chamber. Rhinox would need a few more hours.
Did they have that long?

* * *

It walked into the Predacon base, unhindered, unstopped. It moved purposefully and without hesitation, its destination one of the many rooms inside the tilted space ship. It had grown used to its host body and was slowly starting to identify with it for better communication purposes between its mind the motor controls.
"Ah, Scorponok," a pleasant voice let it stop. It turned and was faced a tall, massive, purple form of what its memory circuits, or those adapted from the former shell owner, was a dinosaur. Small, red eyes regarded it with cold alertness. "Back from patrol already?"
It searched quickly through the memory files and found the name of the saurian. "Yes, Megatron," it answered.
The t-rex drew back his head, eyes slightly narrowing. It couldn't read whether or not it was of suspicion or something else. It couldn't read expressions very well, especially subtle ones.
"Where are Inferno and Tarantulas?"
Another memory check revealed who the names belonged to. "They stayed in the area."
"Very well," Megatron told it. "We will wait for their return, yes."
It turned the body shell and proceeded further into the ship. It could have obliterated the robot dinosaur but hadn't seen the necessesity. He might be useful later on. Now it only needed to find the transmitter and contact its masters.

*

Megatron watched his second-in.command walk down the corridor and then disappear. Something was strange. He was getting an increasingly bad feeling but he had no idea what about. Scorponok's reponses were wrong. There was nothing of his normal nervousness, his stumbling speech pattern, his always present awe and fear. There had been a curious neutrality there, almost puzzlement, when Megatron had asked his questions. He frowned and decided to have an eye on his lieutenant.

* * *

[Dinobot and Rattrap scene]

* * *

Rhinox came out of the CR chamber and was greeted by Rogue who was working at the science station. No one else seemed to be around.
"Welcome back," she called and smiled.
Rhinox walked over to the station and glanced at the screen, taking in the data displayed there.
"You are research the crystals?"
"Yes." She filled him in on what had happened since he had entered the chamber and that they were watching the Pred base.
"Where is Optimus?"
"Checking on the remnants of the relic and the energon crystals." She grimaced. "First he told me to stay put and not go back there and now he is on his way there himself."
Rhinox chuckled. "That is Optimus." He sat down beside her. "So, what did you find?"

* * *

Optimus Prime stood in the devastated landscape, scanning on all frequencies but picking up nothing out of the ordinary. He went over the site where Scorponok had been infected and the result was likewise nil. He looked around, trying to see something abnormal, but the whole area was so wrecked and charred that whatever had once been visible. And he didn't believe that the target of the thing inside Scorponok was around here anyway. It had to be further away.
But where?
The Maximal leader mentally went through a map of the alien artefacts they had discovered so far and tried to think a likely spot. Somehow, there was none -- at least an obvious one. With a sigh he transformed again and ignited his jets. It was time to go back and check on Rogue's progress. And he wanted to know if Rattrap or Dinobot had checked in.

* * *

[Megatron discovers Scorponok stealing a transmitter and shooting Terrorsaur; he and Waspinator follow Scorponok; Scorponok leaves through Tarantulas' underground tunnels and so Dino and Rattrap don't see him]

* * *

"Ask," Rogue said, her voice soft and quiet.
"What?" Rhinox asked, feeling kind of embarrassed and also surprised. He hadn't been aware of his staring at her while his mind was going through half a dozen theories concerning the crystals and the function of the relic.
"You've been watching me since....oh, I don't know how long. Maybe a few weeks after I came from the Stasis Pod," the dark colored fox told him and looked up. "I thought it was because I was friends with a Predacon, but this behavior pattern fits more into Rattrap's or even Dinobot's box. Now you are looking at me again -- with this expression. Ask what you want to ask."
Rhinox shook his head. "I won't pester you."
Rogue smiled a bit. "If not you, it's someone else. How long do you think Optimus will hold back his own curiosity? Don't you think I know he's been trying to figure out whether or not there is more to my file ....me.....?"
"And is there?"
She sighed softly, a sad smile tugging at her lips.
"Are you a Predacon?"
Rogue shot him a surprised look, then chuckled. "No. If only it were that easy, Rhinox."
"You are a Maximal then?"
Again a smile and she sat down on her haunches. "Tell me, Rhinox, what do you see when you look at me?"
He shot her a quizzical look, noting she hadn't answered the other question, but when there was nothing else forthcoming, he wrinkled his heavy brow. "I'm not sure. I know there is more to you. Sometimes you are ... not yourself. You appear older. Wiser might take it a bit too far, but your optics.... they look ancient. As if you've seen a lot."
She nodded, her expression taking on a far-away look. "In a way I have. Maybe too much. I'm not what my file says I am -- which doesn't mean it's false. I was, once. A long time ago I was a psychologist; I did my share of consulting and helping people. I also saw enough fighting to last me a life time." She shook her head. "I wanted to be myself again, Rhinox. I couldn't stand what had become of me, of the role I had been forced into."
Rhinox listened, growing more and more confused, though a small part of him was already piecing together the puzzle and the picture emerging was frightening.
"My friends ..... those I would call friends..... they tried to stop me when I made the decision to leave and go back to what I call my roots. They said I couldn't. Because of what I was. But it wasn't me, Rhinox!" Her green eyes flared with anger. "I had let it happen to me, I had adopted the habit of sitting back and watching! My abilities withered away and whenever I felt I wanted to act, I was restrained by my duties." The last she spat out. "Those duties were laughable. It wasn't me there! It was an image! When I was ...born .... I didn't know about long life. I didn't know what time can do to you. I was born in a war and I was raised seeing death. I hated it but had no strength to do anything but sit back and watch. Later I had the chance to become something new and I took it. Had I known that it would make into the same passive person, I'd rather have chosen to continue as I had been and eventually die as it."
Sighing, Rogue stared at the computer screen. Rhinox was listening intently to her, more pieces coming together.
"I finally left my friends and associates. It was in the middle of the war as well. They told me repercussions would follow, but anything was better than impassive spectator-ship. I went out and helped. I applied my skills and learned new ones from those I met." She smiled again at the memory. "I lived again. After the war I still stayed away from what had been my home for hundreds of years and that's when I met Waspinator."
Rhinox nodded. He knew she had met him at one of the hospitals dealing with those mentally affected by the war.
"When I first met him I knew he would take up all my time. I could feel it. He was badly stressed by whatever had made him like this and his personality, the Waspinator one, was deeply lodged into his circuits. I made it my personal quest to help him. And I succeeded." Pride spoke out of her. "He was slowly coming back. Many wondered why I was so interested in helping Predacons. I always told them that for me, there was no difference, but they didn't understand. They saw factions -- I saw people in need. You see, when I was born into what I am today... there were no factions. There was only...." She bit her lip.
Rhinox frowned more as further puzzle pieces fell into place.
"Then things happened," Rogue went on "Waspinator was gone from the hospital. I didn't know what had gone on until I met him again -- here. He had disappeared. I think Megatron hired him. Waspinator had always hung out with old friends, one of them Terrorsaur, and they were using him, taking advantage of his injured soul and mind. It hit me hard to see him give in to their tempting and leave."
Rogue inhaled deeply, sighing. Rhinox saw sadness wash over her and how she battled it. She had truly made it her quest, taking a lot of personal interest in helping someone who needed it, disregarding the fact who he was: a former enemy.
"And then the Axalon was prepared. I couldn't go back to the hospital. I didn't want to. I wanted to get away from it all, put as much distance between me and everyone else, so I signed on. I still had connections to get me a place." She shrugged and looked wryly at him. "You might have wondered why someone with my qualifications was in your pods."
"It crossed my mind," Rhinox admitted.
"And Optimus Primal's," she added.
He nodded. Rhinox looked at the fox, working through a still cloudy theory and seeing more and more light.
"I hope this doesn't mean what I think it means," he finally said.
Rogue smiled sadly. "I guess you made the correct leaps and it does."
Rhinox had to hold on to himself not to step back, staring even more. He didn't know whether to be frightened, aghast or honored by this.
"Why didn't it register on my medical scanners?" he blurted.
"Because we are not so different from you. And I had some ...alterations made before I joined. I was prepared for injuries." Rogue chewed on her lower lip. "I hate deception, Rhinox, but if you had known right from the start..... Even now this knowledge makes you react in a preprogrammed way! I hate it! I always did! What makes us so different?"
"You .... you were the first," Rhinox stuttered.
"And? We were experimental, Rhinox! We were not made to be gods!" Anger spoke through her and her eyes glowed from inside. "For centuries we were improved and changed! We were not perfect and we were an experiment! A necessary one, but an experiment nevertheless!" Rogue clenched her hands into fists. "My old friends understood it. Hell, all those born into the new bodies first did. For them it meant survival! But those born later didn't. They only saw power and then the war came. Compared to the Civil War, it was small. We all still called it 'great'. It was a petty squabble and the others.... the former Autobots and Decepticons .... they left us to it. I know how angry I was at the time, but I also understood. Cybertron had just been rebuilt, factions had flown together to create an alliance and now we came, the new generation, starting it all over again. That's why the war never encompassed the whole planet, only the region where we had chosen to live, where our bodies were produced."
Rhinox heard the bitterness and felt it himself. Yes, the war had affected only parts of Cybertron and the older races had not interfered. They had stepped back, taken a position of total neutrality, and neither of them had given any advice to the new and younger group on what to do. They had let them battle it out and maybe, looking back, it had been the best. It could have been an all-out new war again otherwise.
He knew about the Civil War -- at least that it had happened, but no details. This knowledge had been kept from all, including knowledge about the main figures in it. The ghost of Starscream who had visited this planet a few months earlier had been proof of their missing knowledge. Some knew the name, but no one knew the story behind it. The Elders had kept this knowledge locked away -- for whatever reason.
Rhinox looked at Rogue. "Why were we never told the complete truth? Why was knowledge kept from us?" he asked quietly.
She sighed. "It hadn't always been like that, Rhinox. The first of us had the knowledge. Of course they had because most had lived through the war, had been with the alliance and had later battled side-by-side with the older races in the Tji Wars or had seen the Grand Finale. There weren't many of us in the beginning because it was all just experimental. Then we had to hurry up because the survivors were dying and needed new bodies." She hesitated, trying to decide whether or not to tell more. Finally she asked, "Do you know Vector Sigma?"
Rhinox frowned. "I have heard of it -- somewhere. It is a computer, right?"
"A super computer. Getting too deep into what it really was and where it came from would go to far." Rogue looked out over the barren landscape as she went on. "The Tji wars ended with Vector Sigma destroyed and the personality components inside it in danger of dying without its protection. Those were put into the new row of bodies."
"I see. So there was no Matrix and no Pit?"
"Not in the beginning. There was a Matrix of course, the Autobot Matrix of Leadership, but we, the younger race, were soon developing on our own, away from the older races, forming out own society. Those born first kept in touch with the Council, but we were still separate. As time went by, knowledge faded, new knowledge was gained."
"And you encouraged fading?"
Rogue shot him a pained look. "Those now in charge did. They thought the old knowledge was dangerous, that it might call up a new war. The knowledge didn't ..... people did. People who had not been educated about the past." She sounded angry again. "People who decided what should be told and what shouldn't. Mistakes were made. Hiding knowledge is not the way!"
Rhinox studied the slender form, shaking with rage, green optics aflame.
"The older races let us develop. Many of the first never joined when the race differences became too obvious. They were attached to their past among the old Cybertronian race. I saw my friends leave."
"Why did you never leave with them?" Rhinox asked gently.
She smiled. "Because I thought I could make a difference. Because I had hopes. Because I was stupid to believe that one voice would change a principle!"
He nodded slowly. He understood. Perfectly. He had his own experiences in that matter, though not as bad ones as Rogue. "And then you left."
She nodded.
"Will you tell all this to the others?" he now asked.
Rogue shot him an amused look. "Why? What do you think will come out of it? What should I tell them? Even mentioning my past would either shock or anger them. Optimus suspects, I know, and I guess he should hear this. He is the commander and in time, he would find out." A small smiled played over her lips. "But the others: no. My past is my past. I don't live it anymore and I never will! That's why I came here."
Rhinox thought he understood, battling his own shock and the growing awe. Rogue was right about the effect the knowledge had. It had been programmed into them and it took a lot to fight the program.
"I understand," he finally said, struggling down the urge to address her formally. He knew all this would pass in time but until then, it would be a bother. "One last question, though...."
"Yes?"
"What was your identity prior to Rogue?"
She gave him strange look. "I had many." Rhinox tilted his head. "You don't even know half of what my past was like! Ignore it, please! I can't be what I was, I am Rogue!" She looked at him. "Rogue," she repeated. "No one else. I went away to leave everything behind and I won't go back for anyone."
With that she turned and walked away.
Rhinox stared after her, slightly dumbfound, then nodded to himself. "Yes, you are Rogue," he only said.

* * *

[Waspinator is discovered by Scorponok and shot down]
 

The missile hit Megatron right in the hip and smashed it. Surprise and disbelief were written over the saurian face as his leg gave way and he crashed. A roar of pain followed as disbelief was swamped by the incredible agony throbbing through his body. Damage reports scrolled down, telling him every detail about the damage that he didn't want to know. Mech fluid bled copiously from the ripped and torn skin.
Scorponok turned away from the felled Predacon leader, not even bothering to finish him off, and picked up the transmitter, walking away. Megatron struggled to either get up or transform, but he had no success with either maneuver. With a hiss of pain he fell back, nearly blacking out. No missile of Scorponok's had ever had this effect on anything! Granted, they were nasty, but they only inflicted minor damage! Not this! Craning his neck he looked at the hip wound, grimaced and then watched his second-in-command. Scorponok moved like a machine, his movements controlled and lacking a certain fluidity.
"You won't get away with this, no!" Megatron hissed, struggling again.
Scorponok turned back to him once more and the visor, like before, flashed a strange greenish-blue. Without a word he raised his claws again and fired another missile. This time it didn't hit Megatron but the ground before him and the shockwave sent the Predacon leader several feet over the rocky ground. He connected hard with a giant bolder and his systems finally crashed.
He lost consciousness.
 

[.....]
 

"No shoot!"
Optimus Primal just barely caught himself from pulling the trigger anyway as he watched the Predacon raise his hands and stare at him. Waspinator looked terrible, his skin chafed off and one wing looking cracked, as if something had hit him with the force of a missile and slammed him into a rock face -- which was probably what had happened.
"What do you want?" he asked warily.
"Scorponok shoot Megatron. Wazzzpinator able to get away," the Predacon flyer said, voice shaky, his optics glancing toward Rogue several times.
"He shot Megatron?" Optimus echoed, disbelief audible in his voice.
Waspinator nodded. "Shot down. Wazzzpinator fly away, Scorponok shot at him as well."
"Where is Scorponok now?" Rogue asked gently. Optimus noted the tone of voice and made anote.
"Leave for monolith."
"Monolith?"
Waspinator nodded again. "Big, black monolith. Like on island." He shuddered. "No eye though."
The two Maximals exchanged a look. Rogue had heard about the flying island and its strange alien constructions, Optimus had actually been there.
"Where is this monolith?"
"Wazzzpinator saw when flying to help Megatron." He gestured at the valley before them. "Down there."
"Can you show us?" Rogue wanted to know.
Optimus shot her a surprised look.
"Show, yes. No shoot Waspinator?" the Predacon asked carefully.
Rogue raised an eyebrow and Optimus sighed softly. "He is a Predacon," he told Rogue in a barely-above-whisper voice.
"And one of the few still functional enough to help," she said. "We don't know where Rattrap and Dinobot are because we lost communication and the others are too far away. This thing is loose and taking out Maximals and Predacons as if they were nothing but cardboard cut outs! Waspinator won't betray us."
"How do you know?"
She smiled. "I just know."
"Then you will be the one to keep an eye on him."
"My pleasure."
Optimus turned back to Waspinator, who was watching them fearfully. "All right, show us the way. I won't shoot you."
Waspinator nodded and launched himself into the air. Besides his injury he was still able to fly. Optimus grabbed Rogue, who was small and light enough for him to carry longer stretches, and then followed.

* * *

[.....]

Rogue knew she was in danger but she didn't care about it right now. All she cared about was the injured robot in front of her. Mech fluid had pooled on the ground, sticking to the sand, forming puddles. Torn skin and circuits greeted her as she examined the missile wound and she knew this was more than just painful. The hip was nearly smashed and the skin couldn't be easily replaced or repaired. This needed a CR chamber.
Optimus stepped to her and looked at his enemy's wounds. There was no doubt about it -- Megatron was out cold and in a pretty bad condition. He watched Rogue work and he noticed how willingly and without question Waspinator assisted. Burned circuits and wires littered the floor, all stained with blood, and the wound was now cleaned and wide open. Rogue was industriously working, never hesitating, just like Waspinator never hesitated to give her something she needed. Of course, Optimus knew that those two had a common past and that he had saved her life, had even activated her Protoform, but the ease he showed around her was unusual.
 

Megatron was only half aware of his surroundings. His body was throbbing with pain and his hip sent out flashes of agony that threatened to drown out all other thoughts. He knew he wasn't alone. Someone was close by. Instinct told him this. He sensed the other presence, smelled it even, but he couldn't put a name to it. His audio sensors finally struggled back on-line.
".....Energon loss."
"How bad is it?" That was a voice he knew. Optimus Primal! Megatron's pain-filled mind was confused, but also alerted. Obviously he was in the clutches of his enemy, though he dimly wondered why he was stil alive. Then again, Primal was a Maximal. He didn't kill in cold blood.
"He probably won't be able to transform," a female voice answered and he attached the name 'Rogue' to it. "I'm also not very sure how far he can walk."
"Can we leave him?" Optimus wanted to know.
"His artificial skin will keep his energon level in check, but he needs a CR chamber."
There was a short silence. "The Predacons will find him when this is over," the Maximal leader then said. "We need to stop Scorponok or that thing inside of him."
"But we don't know where he is going," Rogue said slowly.
Megatron smiled coldly. They had no clue.
"True, but we know the general direction he is taking and we can follow the trail he leaves," Primal answered.
"And probably be too late," she sighed. "This thing's after something and it doesn't hesitate to mow down what gets into its way."
"Finish whatever you are doing," Primal decided. "We'll leave and go after him. We have to stop him from transmitting whatever data is inside him."
Steps faded and Megatron waited a bit more.
"You can stop pretending you are unconscious."
He opened an eye. He was lying on the ground, on his side. Pain was still racing along his nervous system and every small movement hurt. He rolled his eye to look around and discovered the small, female Maximal Rogue. She was covered in mech fluid and there were a lot of his innards littering the floor. Rogue's emerald optics met his.
"Why am I still alive?" he asked.
"Because I don't kill in cold blood," was the reply.
"Oh, how dumb of me to forget. You are a Maximal, yes." He smiled coldly.
Rogue reflected the smile. "Among other things, yes, I am. But I am also a medic and we don't kill our patients." She cleaned her hands. "And speaking of patient, you won't be able to move much with this leg. I will leave you here. Your wounds are repaired as best as field medicine can do."
"So I seem to owe you my life, Maximal."
Her optics didn't change a degree. "No. You owe your life to the thing inside Scorponok. It is not out to kill, only to stop opponents." She turned and walked away.
Megatron watched her, a strange expression on his features. He accessed his repair programs and activated them. He would soon be mobile, though it might be a rather limited mobility indeed. The Maximals had no idea what they were up against and what was going on. Their rudimentary knowledge might let them stumble over the truth sooner or later, but until then it might be too late.

* * *
 

Optimus didn't feel very secure with Waspinator on their team, but right now they didn't have a lot of choice. The other Maximals had been informed, but except for AirRazor, the only other airborne Maximal, none had any even so remote chance of reaching them in time. It was up to him, Rogue -- and Waspinator. It was strange how easily the Predacon accepted this team-up and Optimus suspected there was more behind this old friendship between Rogue and Waspinator. He might trust her more because of it but the trust he showed her here was incredible. Optimus puzzled what was behind this friendship.

[.....]

The clearing was large and completely bare of anything except for four medium-sized crystal-like stones. All had different colors and they sat on small pedestals. Forgetting all about the danger he was in Optimus moved closer, fascinated by the stones. The pedestals were exquisitely ornated by carvings of various symbols and figures. The stones in themselves held a different symbol each as well. Optimus wondered what it meant.
Suddenly he felt the presence of another being. He whirled round and discovered Scorponok, no, the Thing, standing only a few feet away from him, just staring. The Maximal leader moved away from the possessed Predacon, trying to get the four stones between himself and the Thing. As he did so Scorponok moved, too, but he stopped when Optimus was behind the first crystal.
Then, without any prior signs of even thinking about, it opened its claw and the missile shot out, hitting the surprised Optimus in the shoulder, whirling him around and slamming him against a pedestal. He slid down with a moan, clutching his injury. Scorponok simply ignored him now and walked over to the nearest of the stones, touching it. The light inside the stone started to swirl and the symbol glowed in a soft light. The Predacon's optics were fixed on the stone as he followed the swirls with his index finger. He looked like hypnotized.
The ground beneath him broke. Large chunks heaved upward and then exploded into the sky. Primal stared at the debris flying upwards, as if sucked away, instead of caving back in on him. More tremors wrecked the ground and something broke through the surface. He stared. A small monolith, made out of glass and covered in black writing, shot into the sky, glowing in mad colors. The ground shook even more and then the obelisk began to glow. It pulsated first, then began to glow steadily, its light a greenish blue.
And among the wreckage and chaos stood Scorponok.
Suddenly a finger of light struck out of the monolith, almost caressing Optimus as it wandered over his form.
The world he knew ceased to exist.

* * *

[.....]
 

Optimus felt like he was wandering through a dreamscape.... his dreamscape ..... almost a nightmare. He saw fleeting images of experiences of the past, his failures and victories, his sorrow and joy. Most prominent were the bad memories though. They almost completely overpowered the good ones.

He was hit.
He tumbled out of control.
The ground came up to meet him.
Circuits tore.
His body screamed in pain and his circuits were sending out agonizing impulses.

Silence.

Pain.
He was alone.

Silence.

Something inside of him convulsed.
He screamed.

Someone was with him.
Optimus blinked, fighting down the urge to moan. All memories were incredibly real, like he was going through it all again. Every hit he had taken by enemy weapons, every crash his body had to go through, every regeneration session.
What was doing this?
And why?

* * *

[......]
 
 

"She's what?!"
Optimus Primal stared at Rhinox, his mouth hanging open, his body reacting to the news with a tremor. He couldn't believe it! Okay, he had had his suspicions as to what Rogue might be, but this was beyond his wildest imagination. Optimus had taken her ancient eyes into consideration as to what she might be, but he would never have thought her to be that old!
Rhinox gave his friend and leader an understanding look. He had been just as shocked and still was.
"Are you sure?" Optimus finally asked.
"I haven't checked her body structure again, but I believe her."
He shook his head. "What now?"
Rhinox shrugged. "Go on as normal?"
"With ..... with her aboard? Rhinox, you can't be serious!" Optimus exclaimed.
"Why not? She didn't come here to rule, to take over, she came here to get away from her past and I will honor this. I won't treat her any different than before and so should you. I know it's difficult, Optimus," the scientist added, "but we can do it. Rogue trusted me with this and she trusts you with the knowledge as well. She is aware that her status evokes a certain reaction inside of us, but we can battle this program."
Optimus nodded slowly. He knew he would get over it in time, but while he was battling his 'reaction' he would have to do some heavy covering work. The others were not to know about it.
"I think," the young leader said slowly, but determinedly, "that Rogue and I need to have a talk."
Rhinox only nodded.

* * *

Rogue looked around, a sad expression on her face. This shouldn't have happened. She had never wanted it to come to this. She had gambled, she had lost and everything had suddenly collapsed around her. A dark shadow crossed her features and she stared up into the sky. Rain was beginning to fall, but it didn't bother her. It ran off her fur and the exposed metal skin.
Rhinox and Optimus Primal knew. Optimus had given her this strange look when she had come back from a short walk outside. He was, like Rhinox before, drawn between shock and respect. She hoped that the respect would fade. She had hated it in the past and she still hated it.
The dark brown fox sighed deeply. And then she heard steps.
 

Dinobot found Rogue sitting in her favorite spot, looking out over the plains below, rain running down her body, soaking her fur. She was transformed into her robot mode, tempting an energon overload, but since Rhinox had developed the blocking chip further, they could stay in robot mode longer. Dinobot stayed in beast mode as he approached her, his feet sinking into the slowly soaking ground. He didn't know why he had come here. Well, he tried to convince himself that he had come past this spot by accident, but the truth was, he had come here with the intention to find Rogue.
"So there you are," he rumbled unkindly.
She looked at him and raised one corner of her mouth into what might go as a smile. "Here I am. Something wrong?"
He snorted. "I don't need any more evaluation session, if you mean that."
Rogue smiled again. "I never evaluated you. I listened."
Dinobot gave a soft hiss. "You missed your appointment."
She shrugged.
He looked indecisive as to how to get to where he wanted. Finally he went the direct way.
"What is wrong?" he asked her.
Rogue's eyes suddenly held an infinitely sad look. The rain running down her face looked like tears. "Something."
His eyes narrowed. "Something specific?"
She nodded, clasping her hands. "Something I didn't want to happen."
Dinobot frowned. This was harder than he had thought. He considered Rogue a friend, someone he trusted to a certain degree -- like Optimus Primal. In the last days his trust had been fortified deeply. Rogue's open nature and her persistence had done the trick. She was quite unobstrusive, but she always succeeded, as it seemed. She had somehow appeared in his life and she had helped him come to terms with what had happened in the cave. Dinobot had yet to get over it but he was at least no longer plagued by violent day dreams and the nightmares had gone back.
"Yes?" he asked.
Rogue shook her head, looking desperate. "I can't tell you. Not now. You wouldn't understand."
He regarded her critically. "Try me."
The female Maximal smiled dimly. "No. I'm not what I seem to be, Dinobot. You wouldn't understand what I was even if I gave you all the right reasons."
"What you were or what you are?"
"What I was and -- by definition of many -- still am. But my past is my past. I tried to make them understand, but they are .... preoccupied with my past. Too much to see me as what I was deep down inside."
Dinobot's eyes narrowed again. He knew Rogue was no Predacon by birth. She was truly a Maximal, so it couldn't be that. Something had happened in her past that had driven her away from friends, he deducted. She had come here as Rogue and now someone, apparently Rhinox and maybe Primal, had discovered the truth. There had been no obvious repercussions, but he might not have been aware of it.
"We all have secrets," he then said calmly.
Rogue's look frightened him. "Yes, but not mine."
Dinobot looked at her, quizzical, but she didn't go on. Finally Rogue transformed into her fox form.
"I need a walk," she whispered and then trotted away.
Dinobot growled softly as he watched her disappear between the tall grass blades. He respected her and he wouldn't force her to talk, but he could take other ways -- more subtle ways, even for him. There were files and there was having an open ear.
The former Predacon turned and walked back to the Axalon. He would get behind this -- one way or another one day!
 

[.....]
 

Suddenly her skin tingled and she stopped, her fur rising a bit. Tensely she scanned the area and then stiffened.
Predacon.
A soft buzz made her relax again, though not completely. "Waspinator?" she whispered. The Predacon hesitantly stepped around one corner. "You have to leave!" she told him urgently. "I have company!"
"Wazzzpinator know."
She transformed and approached him, gently touching his forearm. "Then leave. I don't want to see you get hurt!"
"Wazzzpinator get hurt all the tiiime. Wazzzpinator used to it."
Rogue shook her head. "No, Waspinator, no. You won't get hurt. Why have you come here? Why risk all this?"
"Wazzzpinator miss talking with Fox-bot," he mumbled.
She smiled. "I was caught up lately, I'm sorry. But I would have come to our usual place tomorrow..... Or is something wrong?" She gave him a close look. Waspinator did look kind of depressed.
"Make fun of Waspinator," the flyer said softly, sounding so incredibly sad that she felt it deeply inside.
"Who?"
"Terrorsaur."
"I told you to ignore him, all of them, if they make comments like that," Rogue told him calmly.
"I know," he sighed and Rogue noted that he didn't use the third person just now. "Still bothers me."
She closed her hand around his forearm, squeezing it a bit. "Trust yourself. You are good, you are very talented as a flyer and a very good warrior."
Waspinator buzzed uncertainly. "Come tomorrow?" he then asked.
Rogue nodded. "You know I will."
Waspinator transformed and flew off. Rogue watched him go, unaware of Rhinox watching her with a strange expression on his features. As she transformed and turned back, Rhinox was already working again.