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Walking Into the Darkness
Air Razor flew towards the Axalon. Her wings brushed the clouds, making a snowy trail behind her. Ah, it was good to be on Earth again! She would never take anything for granted now.
Below her, she saw Tigatron running below her, his white coat standing out in contrast to the tan ground underneath him. Both of them were making an unexpected trip to the Axalon, to announce some news that was very dear to each of their hearts.
The falcon used her long range vision to glance down at the Maximal base. She smiled guiltily. She had promised herself she would never leave it..... but the temptation of the wild lands, with their streams and hills and open spaces had just been too much. Air Razor needed to be out in the wilderness. She just felt so much better when she was out there. Soaring amongst the cliffs of the mountains, or perching on old oak trees was so much better than being inside a base. All though, Air Razor had been going there more often, to see what her friends were up to.
Eventually, Air Razor and Tigatron reached the base. Air Razor plummeted into a dive and swooped down onto Tigatron's shoulders. The white tiger did not flinch as he felt her claws gently grab onto his skin. He smiled at Air Razor his green eyes glowing with pride and love.
"Are you sure you want to go through with this, Air Razor?" he asked, his baritone voice filled with concern.
"We have to, Tigatron" the falcon replied
"Very well then, ladies first" Tigatron said, waving a paw at the door. Air Razor accepted his offer, and walked inside.
She glanced at the glaring hard metal of the interior of the Maximal base. Air Razor tossed her head, calming down her nerves. Being in here just felt like a cage to her. She felt Tigatron fidget beside her, and guessed that he felt the same thing as well.
"Hi you two, why are you here today?" asked a voice from the left hallway. It was Nightshade, her serenading voice could never be mistaken for anyone else's. The black raptor bounced out of the hallway and greeted them with a smile on her raptorish face.
"We are here to speak with Optimus Primal," Tigatron said.
"About what?" Nightshade asked, cocking her head to one side in curiosity. The raptor always seemed to have the most expressive body language.
"Sorry Shade, but it's kind of private" Air Razor replied, looking a bit guiltily at the floor. The falcon would have liked to tell, but it would all be out in due time. A very soon time, if everything was all right.
"Oh," Nightshade said, and then said nothing more. Air Razor knew that if something was secret, Nightshade would not dare to pry about it. That just wasn't her personality.
But Rattrap is a different matter, Air Razor thought as he, in beast mode, walked into the room. Air Razor still stared. Matrix, he looked odd in that Transmetal form.
His skin shone brightly in the light of the Axalon, so much that Air Razor closed her eyes for a few seconds. What was it like to have both of your modes, not just your robot mode, in a metallic form? Sure, Air Razor did not mind her robot mode in metal, but her beast mode....... no. It just would not work, being without feathers and scaly feet. And, if she was a Transmetal, she would probably have jets, and not have to flap her wings up and down. That was also another thought that Air Razor did not like about the Transmetals. It was just so unnatural.
But, Rattrap seemed to like his form very much. He had been all metallic back on Cybetron, so having a beast mode must have been odd for him. So, now that he was a Transmetal, this must be a bit more normal to him. Air Razor could not remember a life without being a peregrine falcon. But, she had to interrupt her thoughts when Rattrap began his inquisition.
"Why in de world are you two in de base? Preds out dere or something?" he asked, his neon green eyes narrowing.
"No, there are no Predacons in the jungle, but I have seen a few up north" Tigatron admitted. "They have only been there once or twice, so I did not think it was of any worth to tell you."
"Did you laser relay break down, is that why you're here?" Rattrap asked again.
"No, all the laser relay stations are fully functional," Air Razor said, feeling a bit uncomfortable with all the questions she knew would follow.
"What den, you wanna get married?" Rattrap asked.
"What do you mean married?" Air Razor asked. She had never heard that word used before.
"Eh, it's an Earthling thing, no wonder you guys don't know" Rattrap replied, waving the suggestion away with his paw.
"Are you here because...." Rattrap began, but Nightshade cut him off.
"Rattrap, I think they want it to be private" she said, quietly intervening on behalf of her friends. Thank you guardian angle, Air Razor thought quietly and smiled as well as her beak would allow it. Nightshade winked back at the two of them.
"And you ain't curious?" the Transmetal shot back.
"No, I'm just respecting their wishes," Nightshade replied.
"Freaking saint," Rattrap mumbled under his breath.
"No, I'm not a saint " Nightshade responded, catching what he had just said. "I jut try to be my best to be good, act really nice to people, don't like fighting, trust in everybody except Predacons..." the black raptor counted off her list of attributes on her three fingered hands. Eventually she ran out of fingers, and began counting on her toes. Rattrap stood there annoyed, but listening.
Air Razor and Tigatron used this distraction to sneak quietly away from Rattrap. Just as they were entering the left hallway though, Optimus came out of it.
"Oh, hello you two, why are you here?" the gorilla asked, surprise evident on his face.
"Dat's just what I was wondering too!" Rattrap said, quieting Nightshade.
"Can I speak to you in private Optimus?" Air Razor asked.
"Why?" Optimus asked.
"Yeah, why is it Razor?" said Cheetor, bounding in the control room.
" Ooh, keeping secrets are we?" said Satin, who walked into the room with Malice behind her.
"Woof!" the hyena barked.
"Come on, please tell us? But wait, on second thought don't, oh! But I really want to know.." babbled Jade.
"It's not like it'll kill you or anything" said Cloud Runner, just coming in from outside.
Even Dinobot entered the room, although he did not speak.
Air Razor gulped. This was about as anti-private as you got!
"Okay, I might as well tell you now! I'm having two kids!" she snapped. She was greeted by silence from all the Maximals, who stared at her with wide eyes.
"Stripes is de father, right?" Rattrap said.
"Yes."
"Good! I was afraid we'd have two more half-Chopper Faces on our hands.... WHAT?!?!" Rattrap cried, seeing Dinobot, Satin and Cloud Runner glare at him evilly. Dinobot and Cloud Runner both kicked him hard. "Oww..." he moaned.
"Oh Air Razor! You and Tigatron must be so happy!" Nightshade said, her eyes smiling in rapture.
"Yeah, two new Maximal kids!" Cheetor said. "Way to go Big Cat!" he said, grinning at Tigatron, who smiled back.
"I have two eggs, they're out in a nest near the base, but it is still pretty far away" Air Razor informed. "We're worried that some Predacons might get them if they're out there. Can we bring them into the base?" Air Razor asked.
"You didn't even need to ask," Optimus said, smiling again. "Of course you can. And I'm glad somebody told us this time" he said, glancing at Satin.
"Well, excuuuuuuuse me!" Satin said, rolling her eyes.
"Thank you very much Primal," Tigatron said. "You have taken a large burden off our shoulders. We are much indebted to you."
"Anything to help," Optimus said.
*****************
Cloud Runner flew through the air, feeling her body cut through the wind, which there was a lot of on this morning. Carefully she flew into neutral territory, looking back to make sure nobody saw her. Her brother might be here! Where else could he be, but in in neutral territory? He could be in Predacon ground.... but the metallic vixen doubted that. Why would Phantom choose to live in such an inhospitable place?
Phantom was on her mind most of the time. Why did Optimus have to exile him? It made her blood burn to think of her brother wandering around in a forest, all by himself. Cloud Runner just felt so different without him around. It was like she was missing half of herself. He had been darkness, she had been light, ever so different, yet they balanced out perfectly.
She looked down, and saw some gray mist that was refusing to dry up with the rapidly rising sun. Through the mist she could see trees like ghostly sentinels, as well as a bit of ground. Cloud Runner looked up to the sky. There was a lot more clouds than sun today. The clouds were thick and a light gray, not the dark kind that suggested rain, but a lighter kind that forecasted a drizzle. All the sun could do was vainly peep out at the world below it, for it could not break it's cloud curtain.
Cloud Runner......I run with the clouds. Where did I come up with that name again? Did I give it to myself, before I got my Transmetal mode? Did I get it after? Or did mom give it to me, when I was very young, before we wandered away from the Maximal base and got lost? No, mom probably didn't. She didn't care about us then, she just wanted to hide us.
The Transmetal tried to wipe away those thoughts. It was wrong to think about Satin like that! She was her mother, for crying out loud! But still, Cloud Runner did have some doubts about whether Satin did really love her. Satin really never liked to communicate with Cloud Runner, and when she did it was always in some sly comment about being a warrior and having honor.
"Gone to go polish your shield, girl?" she would say, then flounce off.
Cloud Runner just never got to talk that much with her mother, or be around her either. The red fox was usually with Rattrap, which was someone who Cloud Runner would not associate with if her life depended on it, or Malice, who always snarled at her for being a half Predacon. Or half ex-Predacon. It was like her mother was in her own little world, a world of alleyways, thieves and money, while Cloud Runner was in a world of tactics, war, and fighting.
So face it. I don't have a good relationship with my mother! the Transmetal snapped to herself mentally. Now, how I deal with it is another matter.
But, do I want to deal with it? Do I want to get to know my mother that well? All I've seen of her are things that I disapprove of, thieving and such, what if I dislike all of her?
"Uh..... hey CR!" called an energetic voice from behind her. Cloud Runner turned and saw Cheetor behind her, his silver form almost blending in with the light clouds. The metallic fox/raptor felt her heart beat faster. She slowed down her jet speed and allowed Cheetor to catch up. He hesitantly pulled up beside her.
Cloud Runner did not know why, but she liked Cheetor's company. He was nice, enthusiastic, and had an almost innocent air about him. He was so much different then all the other men she had known during her short life.
The first had been Phantom, her brother. He was, most of the time, calloused and cruel, with a biting tongue and a cynical mind. He only displayed emotions very rarely, and only on intense occasions. But, Cloud Runner knew there was a different side to her brother, a side that could be nice and charming. He just chose never to show that side very often.
Demi-God was another one of her experiences with men that had not turned out well. He was proud and arrogant to the extreme. His ego was as big as the Maximal base, if not bigger. And his vocabulary..... ugh! That had been the most annoying factor. During their time when they had all been together as a group Cloud Runner had sensed that Demi-God had had sort of a crush on her, which, much to her happiness, he had not displayed publicly. He had always tried to touch her, and to impress her with feats of flying. It had not worked very well.
And the last man she had known through out her life was Guano. His name said his personality. And he did not even know what his name meant. So, Cheetor was quite a welcome change from all the other males she had ever known. A very welcome change.
"Howsit going?" he asked.
"Pretty well," Cloud Runner replied. "And you?"
"The best! Guess what?" Cheetor said, his face alight with happiness.
"What?" Cloud Runner pondered, catching Cheetor's infectious disease of enthusiasm.
"You know that Razor and Big Cat moved the nest and the two eggs into the base today, right?"
"How could I not know? Everybody was there cheering them on. It was like some big welcome home party" Cloud Runner responded.
"Well, I'm gonna be the god father of the two kids!" Cheetor grinned. "Of course, I'm not quite sure what I do," he admitted "but it sounds good, doesn't it?"
"Yeah, that's great" Cloud Runner said, smiling. She could see that having a title was very important to Cheetor. She was happy for her friend.
"What do you think a god father is supposed to do?" Cheetor asked.
"I don't know..... probably baby-sit a lot, and watch over the child and take care of it when the parents are away," Cloud Runner said, using the best of her knowledge to figure out that question.
"That's what I kinda guessed too" the Transmetal cheetah said. "Wanna go in to the ground for a closer view?" he asked suddenly, when the silence had gotten too thick.
"Sure" Cloud Runner said. She realized she had been flying very high up. Letting her thoughts run with the clouds, perhaps?
"Last one to reach the ground is a rotten egg!" Cheetor cried, heading into a nose dive with a cheetah's speed.
"No fair! You got a head start!" cried Cloud Runner, also heading into a dive, although a bit slower than Cheetor.
"Jets, maximum burn!" the two of them cried. Cloud Runner felt her jets light up with ferocity and push the ground up towards her at an alarming rate. She felt dizzy, watching the mist and the trees rush up to meet her like that. A glance over at Cheetor told her that he was ahead of her by a few feet. The metallic vixen glued her ears to the back of her head and scrunched her forelegs and forearms up into a ball, to offer less wind resistance. It worked, and soon she was ahead of Cheetor.
"You ain't gonna get rid of me that easily!" he challenged, and grabbed her by the tail, forcing himself into the lead.
"You are a dirty little sneak!" she snarled with a good natured grin. Suddenly, she thought of something. The vixen grabbed Cheetor's tail in her mouth. The cat tried to shake her loose, but it did not work. Cloud Runner glanced at the ground and saw that in a few more minutes they would hit it with a big splat. She hoped Cheetor realized this too.
Indeed he did, for he began to straighten himself out of his nose dive, and into a position where he could land on four feet when he hit the ground.
A few seconds before he hit the ground, Cloud Runner used his tail like a rope, and slipped underneath him and flew forwards, her front feet hitting the ground hard and her back paws less so.
Cheetor, on the other hand, was so surprised by that maneuver that he smashed head first into the forest floor, his head getting buried in dirt.
Cloud Runner gasped. "Cheetor!" she cried, and ran towards him. She saw him try to force his head out of the ground with his front and back feet, in an almost cartoonish gesture. Had it not been for her worry, Cloud Runner would have laughed.
But, she didn't. Instead she grabbed Cheetor's tail and tugged him out of the ground. The cat rolled over onto his back, gasping wildly for breath. Eventually, his breathing slowed down and evened out. The cat closed his eyes for a few minutes, then opened them again and blinked in a rapidly.
"Can you speak?" Cloud Runner asked, concern still nipping at her with razor sharp teeth.
"But I didn't like Pulp Fiction.... what? Whosere? CR? Zat you?" Cheetor mumbled like a drunk.
"I'm sorry, Cheetor. I never should have volunteered for your race, it just got you hurt" Cloud Runner said, feeling shame well up inside her.
"No, no, it's okay" Cheetor pleaded. "It was my fault. I started it. Besides, I'm not hurt. See?" He got up on shaky legs. Cloud Runner saw him wobble a bit, but other than that he looked fine.
"I can walk too," he said taking a few steps towards her. "See, perfectly fine!" he concluded, jumping up in the air.
Unfortunately, he fell down on his butt, which increased Cloud Runner's worry. "Well, you're certainly not going to make the judges choice of "Most Perfect Cat" this year Cheetor. Let's get you back to base, to let you lie down."
"Oh fine" Cheetor grumbled. "It's funny isn't it? Instead of ending up a rotten egg I end up a broken egg."
Cloud Runner chuckled. Even though Cheetor was wounded, he still knew how to make a girl laugh.
**************
Cheetor smiled at that memory. He had been more wounded then he had thought. He could still feel the bump on his head. The wound had it's good side though. Through out the whole entire day Cloud Runner had been by his side, wondering how he was feeling. That had been an unexpected bonus, but not unwelcome at all.
He didn't know why he was flying here again. Maybe he just wanted to see his face print in the dirt?
It was a better day than yesterday. The sun had free control, without any restricting clouds. There was no mist, for it was in the afternoon. The forest below him was a symphony of greens. Light greens for the grass, dark greens of the pines, brown green of the dead leaves, silvery green of the moss.... it was just a lot of green. The sky was a pale blue that deepened as you got to the center of the sky, so much that it was a sapphire color.
A sudden booming sound caught Cheetor's attention. Was it the Preds?
Looking down at the ground, Cheetor spotted a herd of deer. He relaxed and watched the scene below him with partial interest.
Bulls were bellowing, their antlers displayed like trophies of their magnificence. Does walked around with uninterested eyes, pretending to ignore the males, who were stamping and snorting for attention. Many fights broke out, males charging like two vicious soldiers at each other and clashing antlers, like swords. The deer around the two fighting males would always stand still, and behold the fight in silent admiration. The loser would walk away in defeat, and the winner would prance around like he was on top of the world. Some young bucks occasionally challenged the older males, but they were dispatched of shortly. The young bucks then went off and sharpened their antlers against a tree, reminding themselves that next year they would get a doe.
Suddenly, the whole entire herd scattered. Cheetor would have paid it no mind, because he thought it was just merely a wolf pack getting it's meal. Hey, these things happened in nature. So, when one of the old males fell down dead, Cheetor did not really care. He only began to care when he saw who the deer's killer was.
Phantom. The black fox/raptor lay on the ground, snacking away at his fresh killed venison, ripping out big hunks of flesh and swallowing them, without hardly chewing.
Cheetor shuddered. Hunting had never been a recommended practice among the Maximal fleet, although Cheetor had done it once to impress Satin, to show how strong and fast he was. Neither Satin, nor himself had been impressed.
Cheetor had been hunting an impala, in his pre-Transmetal mode. The running had been fine, and all the madly dashing antelope had added an extra thrill of danger to it. Then, he had jumped on the back of an impala, and dug his teeth into the back of it's neck, breaking nerves and sinews. The blood had tasted funny in his mouth, like old oil mixed with radium and some toxins. He had not liked it.
The impala had gone down, it's breath haggard. Cheetor had never been able to forget the look of pure terror that the antelope had given him. The impala's legs struggled in vain to get away from the terror, and it's sides heaved heavily. Sweat rushed down it's flanks. The cheetah bit his quarry's throat, to make the death swift. It was the least he could have done for the poor thing. After that, he had never even thought about killing, or death.
Suddenly, he saw Phantom look up, in his direction. Cheetor gulped. He had been hovering there like an idiot, in plain view! His trip down Memory Lane had been so pleasant that while he stopped to take photographs of it's many attractions, he was unaware of the pickpocket stealing his money. He would rather be facing the Predacons right now. At least he could escape from them.
Cheetor ordered himself to stay calm. Maybe Phantom has forgiven me? he thought, trying to steel his nerves. He saw Phantom stand up, and stare at him some more. Phantom flew up into the air, his jets on maximum speed.
Stay calm, stay calm stay calm, stay calm..... Cheetor said. His paws began to tremble, and his throat felt dry. The black bot came closer and closer to Cheetor, until finally, he could see his face in full detail.
That face did not look happy.
"I saw you with my sister yesterday, Cheetor" Phantom said casually, as if talking about the weather. Of course to the cat it felt like a thunderstorm.
"Oh, you did.... well..... you're observant then" the Transmetal cheetah said, feeling himself shake at the look Phantom gave him.
"I hoped you would have remembered my demands" Phantom said with a sigh. "Alas, you did not. I am afraid I will have to teach you a more...... forceful reminder. GRRROWWWRRRR..." he started up a orchestra of growls, showing his white teeth, which looked very sharp to Cheetor.
Even though he was terrified, a burst of anger flowed through him. "You have no right to do this to me Phantom!" he said, recalling everything he had ever learned from those "Violence Is Very Bad" videos. "This just shows how pathetic you are, and how..... insecure you have become and... umm... how mean you are!" Why didn't I pay more attention to those? he thought regretfully. "It's just wrong!"
"You and I have different versions of that word then!" Phantom snarled. Without any further fanfare, Phantom bit one of the metal rods that supported Cheetor's jets. Cheetor felt Phantom's teeth sink in hard, and he tried to shake him off, but the dog held on with a grim determination. Even though Phantom had a dog like jaw, he seemed to have his father's strength. Didn't he read some where that raptors had the third strongest jaws in all of the animal kingdom? Or was that sharks?
Putting his scholarly mind aside, Cheetor used his front paw and hit Phantom at least ten times in the back, throwing his off his jet. Unfortunately, the dog counter-attacked by sinking one of his killer claws into Cheetor's lower back. The cat cried in pain, and thrashed around.
A part of him wanted to fight back, to kick the head off of this little attacker. Was that his beast mode talking, or was it simply a violent side of him he had not known about? Cheetor did not know, but he did not want to use it. He had to keep a cool head if he wanted to get away from here with a minimal damage as possible.
He felt Phantom's other claw dig into his upper back, near his shoulder blade. The Transmetal cat spun upside down in mid air, so that Phantom and his back were facing the ground. Then, he dropped like a stone.
It was an odd feeling, falling without seeing the ground. It seemed as if the sky was getting smaller. Just as he hoped, Phantom jumped off his back to avoid being crushed by the ground and Cheetor's back. Unfortunately, the cat himself fell back first on to the ground. He felt pain in all his back. When he tried to get up, his shoulder cried out in protest.
"Come on, fight" Phantom barked, landing on the ground beside him, with a smug smile on his face. "You wuss, get up! Move! Do something. Do you want to just give up without a fight? I don't think my sister would appreciate that."
Cheetor growled. The little voice in his head which had been shouting "kill, kill, kill" was now more persistent, but Cheetor still ignored it.
Phantom had no right to bring his sister into this! Then, he realized that this whole fight was about Cloud Runner. It was like two deer, both wanting the same doe, and battling each other for her affections.
Except, deer did not try to kill each other.
Cheetor snarled, and stood up. Ignoring the pain in his back and shoulder, he rushed at Phantom, who had not expected that attack, and was caught off guard. The cat and dog tumbled on the ground, until Phantom was on his back, and the Cheetor stood over him. Cheetor bit him in his chest and throat, snarling and growling like a rabid animal.
Animal..... that's what he was. His beast mode, who had been urging him to fight for his female, had finally taken over. Although Tigatron had told him to work with his beast mode, Cheetor had forgotten that teaching. So, Cheetor was not the one fighting any more. It was his beast mode, which was considerably more dangerous.
It was more dangerous because he had no conscious.
Phantom fought back by biting and slashing with his killer claws. Cheetor clamped down hard on Phantom's neck, and tightened his grip. The fox/raptor ripped a big gash in Cheetor's chest, and Cheetor dropped him with a snarl of pain. Phantom ran underneath the cat and snapped at his stomach, trying to pierce the flesh and expose vital organs.
It worked.
The Transmetal cat snarled and jumped away from his attacker, feeling a pain in his gut as he did so. He looked down, and saw his metallic intestine writhing, without any flesh to hold them or protection whatsoever. Maddened by the pain, Cheetor dove at Phantom, ripping some metallic flesh off of his back, and chewing up his tail with a vengeance.
The dog turned around with the intent of attacking Cheetor's face, but the cat beat him to it and grabbed the top of the fox's head in his jaws. Phantom thrashed around and scratched some more at Cheetor's chest and stomach.
The next few minutes were filled with scratches, cuts, scars, growls, snarls, wounds and pain.
A bite here, dodge back, avoid the opponent's jaws, then attack his back.
Get the opponent on the ground, then try to rip open his chest.
Bloodlust and a killing rage was in Cheetor's mind and body. Pure adrenaline coursed through his veins, as well as pain, but that was hardly felt. Just to kill, to kill, to kill...... that was all that they could think of.
Finally, Cheetor began to get light headed. Mech-fluid was dripping like rivers out of all his wounds, and he could not stand any more. He collapsed on the ground. Eventually, he felt his eyes close, and then, it was blackness.
*****************
Killshandra growled softly to herself at the thought of approaching battle. She had not had the chance for a decent fight in ages. And now, she was finally getting it.
It all started when Megatron had said "Gee, I'm feeling pretty happy today, let's go attack the Maximal base as a bonding exercise for my troops." He had not actually said that, of course, but it had sounded something like that. He said he was going to give Killshandra and Tabitha a chance to use their new weapons.
Then, before she knew it, she was flying over a green jungle with the whole entire Predacon fleet except for Terrorsaur and Scorpinok. Killshandra was relieved. The two of them had been separated from each other, but they still had control over each other's minds and bodies. It was scary and odd. She did not like either of them, Terrorsaur because he was a coward, and Scorpinok because he was mindlessly loyal.
Then again, she hardly liked anyone on the Predacon fleet. They were either mindless or too crafty for their own good. The only person who even matched up to her assassination skills was Serpentess, and Killshandra regarded her as competition. Tabitha was the only person who she semi-liked, because she did not try to over throw her leader, but she was not stupid. But, Killshandra did not like the rumors that circulated about Megatron and Tabitha, which were not very pleasant to the ears.
The flying raptor took a deep breath. The air up here was fresh and clear and..... tainted with mech-fluid? Had a battle already started here? Had she missed it?
Don't be silly, she hissed to herself, there would have been bullet shots if there had been a battle! Use some sense.
"Boss Bot!" called Quickstrike from down below.
"What is it now?" Killshandra heard Megatron grumble.
"Whatever it is, you can be sure it's important and worth your valuable time!" Tabitha answered sarcastically.
"Of course" Megatron grumbled back in an equally sarcastic manner.
"Suck up" Killshandra muttered in Tabitha's ear as the flyers went down for a closer look.
"Warrior" Tabitha shot back. Killshandra blinked. Yes, she was a warrior, as well as an assassin. Was that supposed to be an insult?
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