Part 2

Part 2

It’s been two days and we are still underneath the pacific ocean. Outskirts is avoiding us all, I think his racist tendencies have taken hold and he dislikes us because we are Decepticons. Darkseed seems to be making a connection with him though, but he is still hesitant to speak with any of us. Firefly is getting on my nerves, his former best friend is avoiding him and I get to take his place. Why?

Darkseed is currently working in her laboratory, trying to isolate a way to prevent Vampire Prime’s transportation effect. Neither of us wants to be transported to the magical dimension if we can help it.

Firefly is keeping busy by repairing our damaged ship and making it space-worthy. He is complaining, but what can I expect from a cassette?

There have been several close calls, between these new Destron seacons and several sharkticons; but for the most part it has been quiet. We seem to have found a good hiding spot, but I don’t know how long it can last.

-excerpt from Harbinger's personal log entry.

Outskirts began working on the main computer of the ship, rerouting controls from recently damaged areas and increasing shield strength where it was needed.

"Who’s idea was it to hide at a crack in the Earth’s surface?" asked the piecemeal Autobot as he crouched to get at a key circuit panel.

"Wasn’t it yours?" asked the female Predacon walking up behind him. Outskirts tried to stand up, but hit his head on a pipe, knocking it flying towards Darkseed. She easily avoided the pipe and continued towards the startled, and dented, Autobot.

"What do you..uh..want?" asked Outskirts, rubbing his head with his orange phalanx-converted arm. When he removed it, his dented head casing was as good as new.

"I need to borrow your coilspanner," said the Predacon as she pointed towards his tools on the floor near the main computer’s CPU. "And I’ll make it worth your wild."

"Fine, sure, just leave me be, I must finish my work." Outskirts reached down and tossed the tool to the waiting Pred.

"What are you working on, shiny?"

"Just working on maintenance, I assure you. Leave me to my work."

"Fine, but I’ll come to your quarters later in case you want some company," said Darkseed smiling as she began to turn away.

"Doubtful," responded Outskirts angered at the woman’s gaul.

"Not really. Firefly is a little too small for me and Harbinger did kill by closest and dearest friends."

"Wha...You knew about that?" asked Outskirts grabbing the female by her shoulder.

"Of course, I just figured I’d hang out here until something better came along."

"Smelting female temptress, you are evil and deceiving to unfathomable degrees," said Outskirts as he let go of her.

"Yes, I am. Here," she placed a magnetic box on his chest plate, "This is the protection you need from magic lock. Now we can spend more...time...together." Darkseed turned and walked away latching on to the coilspanner.

"By the pit, what a woman!" said Outskirts as soon as Darkseed was far enough away no to hear. Then he began to work on the computer as his infected arm connected to the main circuitry and began to download all data on the ship’s design into his personal databases.

Outside the ship lava flowed along the ocean floor and bounced of the ship’s shields. A small manta ray landed close to the ship, the tremendous heat having little affect on the purple fish’s metal exterior. "Manta to Soundblaster, I have located the ship."

"Excellent," replied the Destron. "Octor, Bluebeak: converge on Manta’s position. Halfshell, take your pirates and aid them. Fusors you may join them."

"Ah ha! I am going too! Rampage terrorize!" the transmetal crab transformed and dove into the water from the cliff both him and Soundblaster occupied.

"So Eradicate, you were defeated how many times by Vampire Prime?" asked Blackwit.

"None of your business!" replied the Predacon.

"Well, what can you tell us about the beast then?" Freeway asked the angered Predacon.

"Nothing! I can tell you nothing! Now let me get out of this room and hunt that threat instead of playing your games!" yelled Eradicate.

"Fine, just notify us when you find him," said Blackwit.

The Predacon transformed into his takklemaggot mode and crawled out of the interrogation room. "What do you think he’s so upset about?" asked Freeway.

"I don’t know, but I think it has something to do with the insecticons that are missing. He seemed especially jittery as soon as the original insecticons entered the building."

"What do you mean? When did they get here?" asked Freeway.

"Almost two hours ago. We were going to interview them but my internal hookup to the buildings sensors show that the originals just left the waiting area and are perched on the top of the building ready to follow Eradicate."

"Should we join them?" asked Freeway.

"Negative. I will send Rollbar and Chase to follow them. It’ll be easy to divert them from their current missing since no one knows where Vampire Prime can be."

Vampire Prime located his prey entering the dense forest. The transmetal 2 clone sit perched upon a large redwood as he watched Eradicate head straight for his cave. Following the Predacon was the three insecticons, lead by Shrapnel. The robotic insects stealthily navigated through the forest, making little noise and not catching Eradicate’s attention. Even further behind the insecticons were two earth vehicles, probably Autobots thought Vampire Prime, that diverted from their course to follow the giant insects.

The clone leapt from, tree to tree, keeping ahead of the cars but behind the insecticons. He had already found Eradicate’s nest and was waiting patiently to spring a trap. "Fortunately I may not have to do as much as I thought," said the clone to himself.

Injector and Terrorgator, both in their robot mode, settled on the ocean floor in a small trench near the atog ship stolen by Outskirts and his band of rebels. Rampage drove up besides the lesser Predacons and transformed into his sinister robot mode, shocking the who unprepared Fusors.

On the other side of the vessel Halfshell, Scylle, Coelagon, Terrormander, and Seaphantom gathered and met the cassettes Bluebeak, Octo, and Manta. The purple manta readied it’s back mounted missile, aiming it at the ship. Octo and Bluebeak pointed their weapons at the ship as well. A group of four sharkticon bounty hunters also met these Destrons and transformed, pointing impressive laser cannons at the ship’s engines.

"Smelt! We have movement on the sensors!," Harbinger shouted at his crew. "There are at least a dozen transformers in the immediate vicinity. Battle stations!"

"We are surrounded. I can get energy readings on most of them, but no visual readings," said Darkseed from the navigations seat.

"You know if the shields go, we’re hot burning slag," said Firefly from the weapons consul, directly next to the scanning section of the bridge where Harbinger was located.

"If we try an move we loose the protection of the fissure we are located on. No one would dare come close to us here with such heat," said Outskirts standing behind Darkseed, looking at the display of molten rock bouncing off the ship’s shields.

"Yeah, but it won’t be long until they get reinforcements who can withstand the heat, and until then we are sitting ducks for their weapons," said Darkseed.

"We’ve got to move out of here...now!" said Harbinger, as he got up and pushed Outskirts aside, leaned over Darkseed, and initiated the ship’s engines.

"I don’t think so," said Outskirts as he backed away and his left arm revealed a computer panel and pressed a button. The ship’s power was totally cut, only emergency lights and shields were still active.

"What are you doing!?" yelled Harbinger as he turned to face Outskirts.

"What are they waiting for?" asked Injector. "We have them surrounded and have enough firepower to destroy them, why don’t they run?"

"Bwhahahahaha...I don’t care. Let’s do them in right here!" Rampage pulled out his missile launcher and fired three missiles at the ship. Taking the cue., Manta and the other cassettes joined in, as did the sharkticons and Fusors.

"Seacons, form God Neptune!" shouted Halfshell at his band of cut-throats. Then all five gray and white Destrons combinded into their united mode and raised their sword as they began to advance upon the their bounty, the atog vessel.

To Be Continued...