Dr. Archeville

---

Orbit of a small planet: on board a small interstellar craft

    The small flashing light continued it's irritating flashing.
  --Why have I been brought here.  What could be of interest on this mudball of a planet?--
    The computer's voice answered the unspoken thought, "Planet below, Terrilik, shows broad range energon activity of Cybertronian nature."
    For a brief second your cybernetic eyes flared, "Computer, define range of activity."
    "High yield energy weaponry active."
--A battle?--
    "Scan for Autobots and Decepticons."
    "Two Decepticon signature readable.  No Autobot's in vicinity."
  --Two?  Surely two Decepticon's wouldn't generate enough heat to catch the scanner's attention?--
    "Ten unidentified signature also present."
    "Unidentified?"
    "Forces are Cybertronian in nature.  Several are fading quickly."
    "Computer, lower orbit to investigate."

    As your craft lowers itself through Terrilik's atmosphere, the computer give reports of signatures dying off.  As the ship reaches a safe
distance, you program it for stealth jammers, and low level recording.  You get up and make your way to the small cargo hold where your
hovercraft is stored.
    As you pass through the shiny walls of your ship, your reflection catches your attention.  A steel cyborg, neither man or Cybertronian.  In this
body you've traveled for centuries, learning, storing, but never feeling.  You're perceptions were limited to visual, audible,  and data input.  It
was Starscream and Megatron that put you here.  It was for the sake of humanity that you sacrificed.
    Humanity.  What a cosmic joke.  You now bore the knowledge of a thousand such planets.  Each thought themselves the center of the
universe.  Each plundered and destroyed till they nearly lost what they needed to survive.  Now, their millennia worth of technologies were
yours to command, but still it came without the knowledge to create life.  Without the ability to transfer a soul.  You're self became locked in a
machine and none of these races could find a way to set it free of it's cage of metal struts and wired relays.
    You strode on to the cargo bay, and boarded the landing hovercraft.  It was small, but so were you.  Circular, with grasper arms and
scientific probes folded up underneath.  An impressive bank of computer equipment stood at the helm.  And equally impressive weaponry was
stowed in the side panels of the ship.
    Activating shields, engines, and stealth mirroring, you left your ship and hovered to the planet below.

    The scene was that of destruction.  Robots lay crushed and burning amidst the rubble of an outpost that had once stood here.  The sound of
gunshots is heard from a large central tower.  It's muffled echoes no doubt marking the passing of more Cybertronians.
    Then something caught your eye.
    A robot, sparking and twitching beneath a large support beam.
    Something else though.
    The robot twitched again, and a jet of blood splashed into the air.
    --Blood?!?!?--
    You moved the hovercraft near the downed Cybertronian as you linked into the scanner control of the sled.  Two graspers reached down
and pulled the beam from the robots broken body. A pool of red liquid spread below him, mixed with a darker stain of mech fluids.
    The scanners began to translate.
    It was blood!
    And it was coming from the robot!
    The robots thrashing died suddenly as his frame drained itself of color.
    An explosion in the distance reminded you of where you were.
    The robot's body was dropped with a dead clunk to the ground, and you turned your craft toward the main tower.

    As you approached, four signatures could be read, exiting the tall structure.  Two were Decepticon.  One registered as an older sigil,
Destron.  The last.... unknown.
    You moved behind a small building and watched.
    A tall purple robot stepped out first.  Wings stretched across his back, and the Decepticon sigil was emblazoned on them. "That accounts for
all the Maximals here."
    The next, a shorter robot, blue and white, "Yeah Cyclonus, and we barely took a scratch!"
    "Speak for yourself,  Deluge!"  The third staggered out, smoking, "My skid plates are burned to slag after those last two. Me an' Horri-Bull
were the ones who got hit the hardest!"
    The last trudged out, and if you had eyelids you might have blinked in disbelief.  A large, reddish bull staggered out.  Not a robotic one, but a
flesh and fur one.
    "Yeah, how's come you gotta push me an' AutoCrasher out in front!"
    Cyclonus paused, and held a hand up toward the group.  He began to scan the area.
    "What is it?  Grunted Horri-bull.
    "We are not alone..." 

---

Terrilik: a ruined outpost

    Though you recognized none of the Cybertronians, you knew the insignia they wore, and the danger it represented.  You also were unsure of
their abilities, and of the new 'organic robot' that accompanied them.  It was foolish to engage an enemy you knew nothing of.
    Besides, they may prove useful as of yet.
    You reach down and activate your Intruder Chameleon Skin.  The silver coat of energy coats the surface of the hover vehicle, and of your
own frame.  It causes  a blurring effect that blends you into the ruined buildings behind you.
    You then activated a small stealth button, it uses a large quantity of energy, but they should move on quickly enough for it not to matter.

    Apparently, it works, for the two Decepticons and the two other unknown 'bots take off, presumably towards their base, or perhaps to
pursue these 'Maximals'? When you are certain they're out of scanner range, you move back to the damaged 'organobot' and pick it up.
    It's limp form is gray now, it's spark completely extinguished.  Nonetheless, if you hurried, perhaps you could learn something of it's origins.
    You turn back to your ship, ready to dismantle this new 'find'.

    Back onboard, you place the robot into an examination chamber.  Immediately a set of nanoprobes are launched into the carcass to begin
their scans.  Data was being recorded, but the state of the body was causing problems.
    As the computers worked, you turned your attention back toward the outside, and to the location of the other Cybertronians.  They're
location wasn't too difficult to pinpoint.  A medium sized battle ship was in orbit of the planet.  It no longer made any attempt to cloak it's
presence, assuming that it's enemies had all been eliminated.
    You run a low level scan, and find that the ship would be a challenge if you were to attack. It's cannons were sophisticated, and it's armor
was dense.  Definitely advanced tech. It could feasibly eliminate your science vessel without taking too much damage.
    Of course, you had made a few... alterations.
    The computers behind you beeped and whined in their work.  You turned to look at the data being displayed. The cellular structure of the
creature was already decomposing, even the atomic structure of the metals was turning brittle.  Not surprising.  The deterioration was an old
facet of the Cybertronian tech.  A safeguard against other races 'borrowing' their secrets.
    You begin a download of the robot's data tracks.  The data is scattered and faulty.  A faction name was discerned, Maximal.  Also some
various star charts could be pulled, and some minor scientific data.  Mostly data tracks of exploration and scientific archives.
    Just then, a warning beacon sets off in the ship.
    You spin, and see that the larger Decepticon ship was leaving orbit. 

---

Terrilik: in ship

    "Oh, no you don't..." you mutter to yourself as you set in a pursuit course for the Decepticon ship.  You are determined to learn whatever you can of these new beings.
    Before the Decepticon ship is able to engage its' main drive, you launch a tiny missle-like object which clamps onto the fleeing ship. The projectile splats with a wet thud against the hull and slithers towards the ships communication array.
    Inside the oozing globule of protoplasmic goo, a small beacon chip attached itself to the hull of the ship and began to scan the communications arrays of the ship itself.
    Onboard your ship, a blipping begins as the scanners lock onto a trace signal located inside the small chip.  You could follow the ship easily now.
    Their main drives kick in pushing the ship into hyper space. Immediately your ship reacts and duplicates the Decepticon's power signatures.  You both disappear into an oblivion of light.

    The ship's controls on automatic, you turn your attention back to the flesh bot on the scanning table.  His exoframe had begun to crumble, but the download had already been completed.
    Most of the information was irrelevant.  Data from pain receptors took up a great amount of the current memory synapses.  The longer term memory was pockmarked with damaged tracks and irretrievable data.
   A few minor star charts still were intact.  Mostly local star maps, no doubt the night sky from Terrilik.
    Then an odd star with a rather complex algorithm attached caught your attention.  The computations would keep the planet moving, wandering through the stars. Your mind raced through the computations and placed the planet.
    It would not be in Terrilik's field of vision.
    A rogue planet, drifting through the cosmos, and from the data tracks surrounding it, a vitally important planet to this creature.
    The name was irretrievable data.
    But you knew what it was.
    Cybertron.

    The two ships blurred out of hyperspace, and you felt your engines rapidly pull to a stop, alarm beacon's blaring.
    You moved to the scanners.
    A battle fleet was gathering.
    Seven warships of various sizes were scanned to be in formation, and in their midst was a ship that even here, hundreds of kilometers away, could be seen through your view port.  It was huge, the size of a small moon.  You recall mention of a ship that size, but it had been destroyed near Earth hundreds of years ago.
    Your ship had stopped short of moving too close for your stealth mode to work.  For now, you no doubt appeared on some screens, but were being mistaken for a dead rock, or maybe a sensor ghost.  As long as you didn't move closer, you should be safe.
   You're comm unit crackled into life, "This is battle group 14c reporting success on Terrilik."  You recognized the voice as Cyclonus.
   "Welcome back, Decepticons, awaiting transfer of pass codes."
    "Affirmative, security codes being transferred."
    A squall of numbers rolled across the computer screen.
    "Pull into formation around the Stormcloud. We will await your report on board the Warworld."
    "Affirmative. Cyclonus out."

---

Deep Space: Ship

---Hmmm... I need to follow this group - they will no doubt lead me to Cybertron. But how...? Hmmm... perhaps I could sneak onto this 'WarWorld' and 'piggyback' a ride to their next destination, which will hopefully be Cybertron...---
    "Phil," you mutter out loud to your computer, "scan the large craft ahead for 'blind spots' in its' sensor field, and attach Ship to an the craft..."
    "Scanning..." the quiet voice of the computer responded, "No blind spots detected, but a path of least detection has been computed..."
    "Guess that'll have to do... show course..."
    The view screen displays a large map grid, with with your ship on one side and WarWorld on the other. A path connecting them is outlined.
   "Power down, drift towards the craft via gas vent..."
    "Affirmative..."
    The lights on Ship grow dim, and the engines go off-line. Ship drifts through the void, changing direction via the careful release of stored gasses. Though the going is exceedingly slow, it is the best way.  With only a slight power signature, the Decepticon sensors will believe Ship to be a floating piece of space debris, and will hopefully leave it alone.
    You get up and walk to the weapons closet.  You look around for a few segments until you decide what you may need.  You pull a holobelt, a set of tools, and a Neuro-paralyis weapon.  You run a quick scan of your own internals, over your vision, hearing, and scanners.
   You hear a soft clunk echo through the ship as it bumps into, hopefully, the Warworld.
    You move to Ship's airlock.  A soft hissing sounds as the 'atmosphere of your craft is released into the cold darkness of space. There is a whirring and a loud bang.  Then the airlock doors swung open.

    You activate magnetic pads located in your feet, and step out into the dark cloak of space.
    Swiftly, quietly you make your way around the circumference of the Ship, visually checking the bio-resin that holds your ship fast to the massive bulk of the Warworld.
    Everything appears normal.  So, you begin to search for entrance into the massive planetoid ship.

    For nearly a half hour you make your way stealthfully along the dark hull of the ship.  Finally, a small maintenance hatch is found, and you began to set to unlocking it with your tools.
    A few minutes later, a hiss and a click signifies your success.  You pull the hatch open and lower yourself into the ship's exostructure.
   The maintenance tubes here were depressurized, without an atmosphere.  Not that the Cybertronians needed air.  You moved along the interior looking for the secondary entrance, the one that would lead you to the inside of the ship.
    It didn't take long.  A maintenance airlock sat closely located to the outside hatch.  Of course, this was the harder part.  After you cleared the locks, you still had to worry about the main computer for the ship reading that an airlock was used.  You'd have seconds to get in and move far enough away from it before the security guards made it there.
    You set to work.  The security codes gave in response to your hacks within seconds.  The airlock lights started up, and the inner room was depressurized.
    Already the security would be warned.
    You slid inside and shut the door in one fluid motion.
    The room began to pressurize.
    It was taking too long.  The safety measures were on to prevent too much pressure to be added at once, else a biological life form may take damage.
    You turned to the wall, and ripped free and access panel with blinding speed.  The control circuits were visible, and the safety circuits.
    You leveled the neuroblaster and let loose with a paralytic discharge.  The inner door hissed open, and you were slammed against the outer door by an inrush of air.  Pressure smashed against your frame, and threatened to crush your fibers.
    It only lasted an instant though, and you staggered clear of the lock, resetting broken links and rerouting power process'.
    You looked down the massive hallway.  No sounds of incoming.
    An alarm klaxon blinked noiselessly in the darkness.
    You moved quickly to the left, making your way across the path, and over to an air vent.
    --The oldest tricks....---
    You hoist yourself up and into the vent and turned to watch.
   Minutes passed, but finally the sound of engines came to your receptors.
    An olive green camouflage jet roared around the engine.  It transformed and skidded to a halt in front of the airlock.
   The Cybertronian bore the Decepticon insignia on his wings.
    He looked in and scanned the interior.
    "Clench."
    "Thundercracker, report."
    Thundercracker, that name you knew.  But he had changed so much since you had last seen him.
    "Yeah, it just looks like a bad security board.  The slaggin' thing's fried. Looks like an energy surge went through it."
    "No sign of entry?"
    "Scan's report nothing untoward.  But there is some scratch marks on the far door."
    "Scratch marks?"
    "Yeah, like something slammed against the door."
   "Investigate, I'm sending Skywarp to help."
    "Gotcha.  Thundercracker out."

---

Deep Space: The Warworld

    --ThunderCracker --
    The name was familiar, but the ThunderCracker you knew was dark blue, not camoflauged.  and the face...  A solid faceplate and visor like
eye... Much HAS changed... but so have you...
    However, as discretion is the better part of valor, you decide to continue on through the vents and try and locate a computer terminal linked
with Warworld's main computer, and hopefully gain access to any other data he can on this Decepticon battle fleet and their destinations.
    Besides, even if your Paralysis Beam worked on ThunderCracker, SkyWarp would be here soon, and though you WOULD like to thank
SkyWarp for his
'Warp Chip', that would have to wait for another time...
    You crawl down the air shaft until he rounds a corner, then drops down to the ground, activating his holocloak to appear as a maintenance
'bot.
    You walk through the hallways for some time, seeking a terminal to access.  The only sounds to break the silence were your own footsteps.
  --Why is this battle fortress so empty?  What happened to the great Decepticon Empire that Megatron once commanded?--
    Finally, you come upon an access panel to the computer banks.
    With the help of your tools, you quickly jacked in to the main data banks.
    They were surprisingly empty.  Oh, there were star charts and such data, and a heavily, if very small, encrypted area that you didn't think you
could hack without drawing undo attention.  But the rest was blank.  It was a brand new ship, but even so....
    Then, the sounds of footsteps came to your audio receptors.  They were still far, but you had to pull yourself free of the computer quickly to
try to avoid detection.
    You turned, and looked up and down the hallway to find exit, but nothing presented itself quick enough to avoid the robot that came around
the corner.
    He was the twin in looks of the other jet, but this one was white with a strange tint that made him appear a light purple at certain angles.  His
head and face were yellow, and a silver visor glittered down at your holo-form.
    "What the slag is an old MT-27.5 maintenance droid doing here?"  queried a voice that you recognized from ages past.
    Skywarp. 

---

Deep Space: The Warworld

    Thinking fast you modulate your voice to a highly mechanical sounding pitch, "Maintenance Droid 23-phera will be assigned this station..."
    Skywarp scratches his face plate in confusion, "Hunh?  'Will be assigned?'"
    "Negative... would you like a polish?" You alter the holofield so one of the maintenance droid's arms retracts and is replaced with a rotating
steel brush.
    Skywarp sighs in frustration, "Jeez, I'd better get you to repairs before you wreck something."
    "Wreck....feck....neck....Beck...  I like Beck...."
    Skywarp lifts you over his shoulder.  While your size was not too much more than a human, the robot wa much more compact than he had
been many years before.  You stood just shorter than his knee.
    You soon enter the repair bay.  As you look around, you find the place mostly dark, and there was only about two tables that weren't piled
with scrap parts.  A smaller, but dangerous looking Decepticon look up from a pile as Skywarp enters.
    "What's this?"
    "Something's screwy with this old MT-27.5"
    "Not surprising!  Those droids were scrapped after twenty years!  They were terminally glitchy.  How the slag did one get on board!?"
    In the background, you begin to recite the molecular formula for floor was in a sing-song voice.
    "Maybe he attached to the hull, and came in through the airlock?"
    "What?"
    "Well, there was an alarm klaxon..."
    "Oh, yes, Clench told me.  He could, his tech's inoffensive enough for him to lock onto the hull and wait, but it's not real likely he'd get past
the security doors."
    "So, what do I do with him?"
    "Throw him over there." the green blue Decepticon waved an arm, " I'll scan his core before I melt him down."
    You are thrown carelessly toward a pile of scrap.  You tuck and roll as you hit the table, clattering across it and knocking machinery in all
different directions.
    You keep your momentum and slide off the edge of the table and onto the floor.  You're holo-field switches off and you duck behind the
large table.
    The door outside opens, and you hear Skywarp leaving.  You begin to thank him for his warp chip, but then your attention is arrested by a
glittering row of strange chambers in the repair bay.
    You don't recognize the technology, and suddenly you notice something else strange about the room.  There was a complete lack of repair
equipment in the bay, and one of these chambers was gaping open, with several panels exposed.  Obviously it was malfunctioning.  You quickly
ran a low level scan of the far chamber, and found several units that were comparable to the self repair circuits in the Cybertronian life forms you
had seen.
    But this was far more advanced.
    You activated the cloaking field and walked over and then behind to the row of machines.  You accessed a small control panel and began to
scan the data tracks.
    They were too much for even you to assimilate!
    Then you watched as the Decepticon picked up a charred and broken carcass that had littered a nearby table.  It was a transformer, but
badly damaged.  It's head, legs, and one arm were missing.
    "Well, guess I've kept you in stasis for long enough.  Computer..." there was a beep in response as a recording system shut on, "Decepticon
agent number fifty three, previously known as Sinnertwin  Last known operational date, 2022."
    With that he placed the damaged body into a chamber that hissed open as he approached.
    The chamber switched open and a light turned purple above the clear window front.  Low level light, and a humming noise could be heard
from the unit.  You watched as the window fogged up, and the unit quieted down.  You glanced down the row, and noticed that all the units
were operational, except for the one that was damaged.
    Suddenly, one of the units lights turned green.
    "Ah, let's see what we've baked today!"  The Decepticon walked over and pressed a panel.
    There was a loud hiss, and a smokey fog rolled out from the edges of the chamber's hatch.  The door popped open.
    And out stumbled a Transformer.
    "Welcome back to the land of the living...." The Con doctor looked at a report pad, "Roadblock!"
    The robot that stepped forward looked down at his arms, they were scaled green and black.  Covered with flesh!
    "Hmmm, don't think Roadblock fits me any more." grunted the robot, "Think now I'll be Bonebreaker!"  He flexed a thick, muscled forearm
and chuckled low.
    You sat back into the shadows, your mind racing.
    What was this new technology, what could bring back a robot dead for centuries!?!?
    "Nice job doc!"
    You jumped, until you realized he was speaking to the Decepticon technician.
    "Not me, it was the CR chamber."
    "CR, ay?"
    "Yeah, things have changed in the past two hundred or so years."
    Things had changed indeed... 

---

deep space: The Warworld

    You find yourself nearly delirious with joy at this newfound technology, yet frustrated that you can not directly assimilate it.
    You activate your comlink,  "Phil... do you read me?" you quietly whisper into the link.
    "Loud and clear, Doctor..."
    "Quiet! Listen, I'm re-routing my DataLink device through my comlink, and am going to send a lot of Data your way - it was too much for me
to download to my personal comp..."
    "Acknowledged... Space allocated for Data - ready to receive..."
    You hook some wires from your comlink into the  data probe, and then re-insert the probe into the CR Chamber panel.
    All the data tracks are copied and sent to Phil's storage system, but it takes time...
    You activate the holo cloak to appear as a piece of machinery and sit down for the long haul...
    The download seems to take forever... seconds pass into minutes... minutes to hours.
    You watch as several other robots walk free of the CR chambers, all with brand new bodies. Some were metallic and machine like, others
were flesh and bio-designed.  They were definitely a far better structure than their predecessors.  You watched with interest, but gleaned little
useful knowledge from the short conversations between the med tech and his patients.  It did seem that these were all fallen warriors, and from
the rust spots on the carcasses around you, they fell a long time ago.  But you don't manage to learn anything else new about why they were
being rebuilt.  There was a mention of a new warfront at one point, but you did not know of an end to the old...
    Finally, it is done. You retract you probes.
--Now, I  just has to get back to Ship - but how?--
    "The warp chip."  You accidentally speak out loud, you look to see if the med tech noticed, but he seemed preoccupied with his work.
    --The old warp chip I stole from Skywarp centuries ago...--
    The chip enabled short distance jumps, but used an enormous amount of energy.
    The jump to the ship could prove dangerous with your internal power source.
    You deactivated the holofield, noticing that it's battery charge was running low at any rate.
    You reached up to the data port you had accessed in the CR chamber in front of you, and pulled open the access panel.  The screws
protested for but a second, and then the power connections lay bare before you.
    With a grim smile you reached up and grabbed hold of the bare wires.
    Energon surged through your frame, your systems reacted violently, threatening to lock up, but you activated the Warp chip in your internal
defense grid.
    You felt rather than heard the CR chamber, "Unit Sparkstalker off line, spark drained of all power."
    Then a void washed over you.
    You reappeared just outside of Ship.

    Quickly you scan your data to make sure the process was complete. You only had minutes before that med tech noticed the fried CR access
panel and got suspicious.
    "Phil, get us out of here..."
    "Destination?"
    "Cybertron... but be sure to drift out of their sensor range first!"
    "Affirmative..."
    Ship releases an enzyme to dissolve the bioresin that held it to the Warworld, and drifts away, like a piece of debris...
    Once Phil decides they are out of sensor range, he engages the hyperdrive cells and heads for Cybertron.
    Meanwhile, you go over the data tracks you recovered, gleefully absorbing the basics to the info at a steady rate.
    Quickly you learn several basics to the CR technology.
    Any piece of a cybertronian body could be built with the chambers technology, and the design and process were controlled by a reading of
the patients subconscious, as was an assigning of sigil and allegiance.   This you found odd.  Wouldn't Autobot chambers make Autobots and
Decepticon chambers make 'Cons?
    The chambers could not create 'sparks'.
    A short bit of study revealed that these 'sparks' were what the souls of the Transformers were now called.
    Souls?  You're processors whined and protested at the thought.  There was no soul.  Only the hard coded personality traits found in the data
tracks of your beings.  There was only different processors, whether biological or mechanical.  What had these Cybertronians fooled themselves
into thinking?
    There was certainly no soul left within your body, nothing but the amassed data from a hundred worlds, a hundred lifetimes.  How dare they
believe that there was more!
    Something in your diodes twitched.  A half forgotten memory, a feeling of being torn in two, a feeling of loss...
    You pushed aside the unwanted data.
    According to the tracks you needed a spark for the operation of the Cr chambers.  That meant that you would need something to at least fool
the computers into the belief that you HAD a spark.  What could that be....?

    Two days passed before Phil announced the drop from hyperspace.  You had been mulling over the information, and your knowledge on the
new technology of the Transformers was immense, though without a CR chamber, useless.  The sheer calculations required could only be
created with the masterful pieces of technology, and no matter how hard you tried, there was something eluding your grasp on the power that
these chambers held.
    As space peeled back and smeared into reality, a bright light filled the cockpit of the ship. The windows adjusted instantaneously, darkening
their tinting to visible levels, but still the light caused irritating blurs on your field of vision.  But there, in the middle of that light, a large planet
loomed and spined.  The light moving back as you neared it.  It was immense, and glittered with a life and beauty that boggled the mind.  The
very planet was silver and gold, lit with brilliance and power, and across it's surface, great steel towers rose and neon streets seemed to move
and spin with life and energy.
    Cybertron, the home of the Transformers.
    If you had a soul, it would be quaking at the beauty of the planet.  No longer was it a war torn and ravaged hulk of metal struts.  Cybertron
was filled with life, and the planet itself was complete!  Satellites and small moons orbited at various distances from the planet, and your sensors
read, that Phil had already placed you within the concentric rings of various satellites that orbited Cybertron. Some were small stations, others
as large as your home planet!
    Truly the planet of Cybertron had gone through an incredible change in the past few centuries.
    Not far off your bow, another ship buzzed by, blue and silver, sleek and powerful, it dived past you and veered off to turn toward a small
station.  You're scanners jump to life, finally recalculating themselves after the jump had deadened them.  The air was filled with vehicles, some
warping in, other leaving. Transport ships, battle cruisers, cargo ships, all heading to and from the planetoids.  Cybertron was a busy place.
    "Phil."
    "Yes doctor."
    "Plot us a vector course to follow one of these flows of traffic.  Take us to a main port on that planet."
    "Cloaking fields?"
    "Negative, let's not do anything suspicious.  With this much activity, I don't think they'll even notice if we went in with our loudspeakers
blaring the gospel."
    "Sir?"
    "Never mind, just take us in."
    "Affirmative."

    The port around you bustled with activity, mostly robotic in nature, but some organic and alien forms littered the area.  A lower amount of
atmosphere seemed to limit these forms from extended stays.  The air was thick enough to breath, if such things were necessary, but it was
reminiscent of high altitudes on Earth.  Ships of all shapes and designs moved about the brightly lit landing areas.  The whole scene was
fascinating.  The last time you had seen anything of Cybertron, the streets were a wreck, smoke poured from gaping holes in the planet, and
bodies of scrap lay about, everywhere.
    You had moved Phil to a portable unit, and locked Ship down.  Now, your sled moved smoothly across the metallic grounds with scarcely
any notice from the variety of forms that crowded the streets.
    "What is our plan, Dr?" Phil queried.
    "We find somewhere to set up shop."
    You're hover sled was loaded down with equipment pulled from the ship.  The garage space only cost a few energon units a day, nothing that
you couldn't supply for months yet.  Now you needed a home base.  A place to set up operations and learn about this new landscape.  Time
and time before you had set up shop on worlds to learn about them.  But now, on this planet that had proven to mean so many things to your
past, from destruction to salvation, you felt an odd sense.
    Almost a dark foreboding.
    And there was something else.
    A sense that you were close to something, or someone.
    You weren't sure if you liked it, but you knew that it was time that you faced it.
    It was time you joined your fate to that of this world again...

---

Cybertron: Deep Below the Surface

    The minute, clearish worm hit the flooring with a wet sploosh.  It probes around for a second, seemingly blind to the world around it, before
choosing a direction and inching its way at a surprising speed.
     The worm itself seemed to be comprised of a translucent material, nearly liquid, except for the silver core of mechanics inside the center of
the ooze.
     And, it's seeming blindness was only caused by it's lack of eyes... In actuality, it constantly gave of a low frequency, almost antique styled
scan that was ignored by most of the high powered machinery around it.
     It was a spying agent, and one of your creations.
     It moved silently and steadily toward it's goal.  A place that had been whispered about in the alleyways and in the dark corners of Cybertron.

     A place that you've heard rumors and dark secrets about.
     The Vat.
     It was rumored to be a spark creation pit.  And a spark is what you needed.
     You had been on Cybertron for about five weeks now, and had rapidly set up a name for yourself as a reliable and expert fix it bot.  The
time had been short, but it seemed like the planet was completely off guard.  Secrets were easily uncovered.
     You had learned more about the technology changes.  The abilities to meld flesh with machine, a logical offshoot of the Pretender suit and
Headmaster technologies.  You had found that energon was no longer a problem bot by bot.  The heavier artillery that used the energon
resources were now dismantled, mothballed, and newer, smaller forms had become the standard for the Cybertronian life forms.  The old
Transformers were fuel guzzlers compared to the smaller, stronger, and faster counterparts.
     The planet was under rule by joint councils.  There was the Destron high command.  A grouping of five Destron commanders that held sway
over the ancient legions that spawned the Decepticon elitist group.  There we the Convoy Council, a grouping of those who were 'honored'
enough to bear the title of Convoy throughout the decades.  They led the Cybertron allegiance.  The Maximal Elders commanded the newer,
more animalistic of the Cybertronians.  An offshoot of the Cybertrons and their elitist grouping, the Autobots, the Elders were perhaps the
largest of the groups.  They held sway over most of the goings on of Cybertron, as well as heading the deep space exploration missions that
Cybertron had devoted it's resources to. Finally, there was the Tripredicus Council.  They commanded the Predacon forces.  The Predacons
were also an animalistic grouping.  They were related to the Destrons and the Decepticons.
     What about the Autobots and the Decepticons?  The Decepticons were hunted down after the Pax Cybertronia was signed by the other
allegiances.   Most were given the choice to forswear their allegiance and change sides.  Others were dismantled, or put to death.  The Autobots
disbanded as a show of good faith, but there were rumors of a group that left and took up residence on some planet far away.
     They had almost passed completely into legend, and there has been no mention of your home planet since you came here.  Three hundred
years was a long time to remember, even for you.
     The sensor array inside the worm registers massive power fluctuations.  You activate the VR settings, creating the illusion of the room the
worm is in around you.  You seem small, minute even, compared to the massive dimensions of the room.
     The room was dark and quiet.  You couldn't see where the walls were, except for the ones behind you, which were dark and featureless.  A
low throbbing could be felt through the floor, and the air was hot and humid.
     The worm moved forward, sensors on full.
     Out of the darkness, a huge shape loomed.
     A Guardian.
     His circuitry was off-line from the looks of it, no signs of energon buildup or movement inside of him.  He sat in the path, knees bent and
back hunched.  You move the worm past him , underneath the arch of his great legs.  And into the darkness beyond.  Minutes pass, the
throbbing getting louder all along.
     This place, the Vat, had been a birthplace of sparks.  Now, it was kept quiet, as the number of empty sparks that was needed for the next
century had already been created. However, you needed one.
     In your studies, you had discovered that you needed a spark to use the CR chamber.  It could rebuild a body from almost nothing, but
without a spark, the chamber was useless.  So, you researched where the sparks came from, and that research led you here, to the Vat.
     The pulsing grew stronger and stronger.  The cameras and sensors on the worm quaking and blurring with static as he got nearer.
     There was a loud noise.
     A strange sense of vertigo.
     Energon courses through the circuits, sparking into your body, even through the transmissions!  You rip off the input cables leading to the
sensors as they explode.
     Phil floats into the room, "Are you... operational?"
     You stand up, dusting your cybernetic skeleton off, "Indeed, it seems our worm had been terminated.  And in a most peculiar way..."
     "Meaning?"
     "The energy coursed through our broadcast channels.  It wasn't merely electricity, electricity wouldn't have traveled that far, that fast, or
without conductors."
     "Indeed."
     "You were receiving the data download?"
     "Yes."
     "But were unaffected."
     "Correct."
     "Fascinating.  You were storing every ounce of data that was passing through the feed.  Why were you not affected as well?"
     "My firewalls may have protected me."
     "Doubtful, I put the same corresponding safetymeasures on most of my machines."
     "Then what?"
     "I'm not sure...." 

---

Cybertron : The Laboratory

    "Hmmm... perhaps there was some sort of 'energon trap' that affects only Cybertronian life. And, as advanced as you are, Phil..."
    "I am not Cybertronian..."
    "Correct. However, my neural energies must have been close enough to
that of a Cybertronians to trip the sensors..."
     "High probability of the Cybertronian tech incorporated into your body had something to do with it as well..."
    "Hmmm... you're probably right, Phil. Ah, well... Recall the other Worms and we'll try again tomorrow. I'll be working on some of these
'Repair Orders' we've got  backed up..."

   --The darkness whispered to you, as if a million silent voices beckoned you to continue.  You crept, ever cautious, forward, wary
against the dark emptiness that surrounded you.
    One, single cyclopean light lit up.  An orange glow that stared down on you from on high.  A thundering boom shook the room.  You
stumbled, and looked down.  You're cybernetic body was gone, replaced by a lattice of hollow, empty bone.   You held up your fleshless
hands before your face as another rumbling boom shakes the ground.
     "You seek that which you cannot attain. Leave here now."
     "Who are you?"
     "Guardian of secrets you are not allowed."
     "You dare dictate terms to me, I am..."
     "You are a shell.  Nothing, and automaton."
     "I am a GOD!"
     "You are ash."
     Another thunderous boom, and you see a spiral shape of light splay across the floor, it's light drawing your attention into it, as if it
was physically pulling you toward it.
     The orange glowing eye flares up in the darkness and you sense movement.
     White, hot, flame blasts down on you, and you feel your skeletal bones swell and burst.-

     You bolt awake, looking around wildly at the room.  The red light from your eye reflecting off the familiar equipment.  It was the first dream
you have had since... Since you had become cybernetic.
     You unhook yourself and walk toward the replay of the data the Phil had recorded.  The room, distorted in size from the small Worm's
camera angles.  The darkness, the guardian, the light.
     Then, in the seconds before the worm fell, the recording showed the strange spiral on the floor, widening and expanding in a spiraling pattern.

     The elements of the dream were easy to see, but in three hundred years you had never had dreams...
     You sit back to contemplate it.  You knew that you had to use a spark to activate the CR properly, but how to get one?  You could capture
a Cybertronian, but that had many risks in itself, plus then you may take risk of implanting another personality over your own.
     The data banks for the spark must be empty, ready to be imprinted with your own personality.  That meant either learning to format a spark,
or getting a new one.
     You sit in the dark staring at the screen, and the Vat's bluish glow.

---

Cybertron : The Laboratory

    Phil hovers in to find you sitting at a monitor, watching and re-watching the Worm's footage from The Vat.
    "All Worms have been retrieved, Doctor. Is there anything else I may do?"
    "Hmmm... tell me what you see on the tape at this interval..." with that, you play the short interval where the worm sees the spiral pattern,
before it shorted out.
    Phil hovers for a few moments, "I see a spiral pattern engraved upon the floor, approximately 10 meters in diameter..."
    You cut him off,  "Hmmm... do you get any... sensations... from observing it?"
    The silver sphere hovers, spinning in contemplation, "No, Doctor..."
    "Hmmm..."
    Phil's movement stops abruptly, "Something troubling you?"
    You lean forward, looking closely at the monitor, "A dream..."
    You proceed to tell Phil in as much detail as possible about your dream.
    "Intriguing..."
    "Yesss... analysis? Recommendations?"
    "High probability it was an 'aftershock' from whatever trap the Worm triggered in the Vat earlier..."
    "Perhaps... but I feel there is something... more..." you ponder, turning inward and loosing yourself in your thoughts.
    "Doctor?"
    You snap your head up, red eyes glittering in the dim light, "I've made up my mind, Phil - I'm going to The Vat. Tonight."
    "An unwise decision. Probability of the presence of more traps..."
     "Is worth the risk... I want you to stay here, and be my 'backup sensors'. Besides, if anyone shows up with some repair work, someone has
to be here to deal with them..."
    "Very well, Doctor... be careful."
    "I always am..."
    With that you head towards your personal vault.  You pull some appropriate weapons from the locker.  A stun pistol, plasma rifle, the holo
belt, and a container you have created to hold a spark for a limited amount of time.
     You check your own internal devices, EM Spectrum vision, infrasonic and ultrasonic hearing, a variety of tools embedded in your fingers or
held in your leg compartments, and your comm unit.
    Satisfied that all was in working order, you hop aboard the hover sled and head out into the cold Cybertronian night, towards the Vat...

     The vat lay several miles beneath the surface, deep in the substrata of layers of the metallic world.  When Optimus Prime had created the
Vat, he had placed it in a very dangerous area of the world.  Apparently, those who were originally created in the Vat were challenged to fight
and find their way to the surface of Cybertron.  Those that made it were improved and rebuilt over the time.  They updated themselves in order
to survive.  There had been many ways to reach the surface, and the path chosen decided that robot's fate. There were easy ones, hard ones,
ones that required stealth, ones that required brute force.  The new warriors were never given a direction or instructions, they were just set free.
     It was a violent fate, but at the time, the wars had escalated to terrible heights, and there had to be some stop put to them.
     There were also shipments of blank sparks made just before the Vat was shut down permanently.  At that time, a passageway was cleared
directly to the chamber.  Guarded shipments were taken from the vault and held in the Cybertronian Joint Council's Vault, where hundreds if not
thousands of sparks still lay in stasis.
     Now, you used the same passageway to reach the chambers.  It was collapsed afterwards, but clearing an entrance proved no true difficulty.

     The tunnel around you echoes with a stagnant silence that had shrouded it for centuries. You're sensors were stretched to the limit, but
something about these tunnels hampered their effectiveness.
     "Phil?"
     "Yes Doctor." Came the reply.  Static crackled in the background.
     "Can your sensors read the area down here?"
     "Negative, the layers seem to have some dampening factors that are blocking most transmissions.  I do not recall the Worms having this
problem."
     "Hmmm, but then, one of the Worms was never returned.  Is there a danger to communications?"
     "Negative.  I can sustain transmission, and can scan what your sensors are reading.  Beyond that I can do little more."
     "Understood."
     You pushed the hover sled forward. Your vision showed piles of garbage and scrap metal that had fallen from the ceiling, or seemingly been
pushed out from the floors and walls.
     You audio picked up something.
     Just a slight noise.  A creak, or a strain of metal.  But something.
     You pull the sled to a halt, and bring your plasma rifle to bear.
     Your sensors strain, but still nothing is seen in the pitch darkness.
     A breath of wind drifts across your frame, almost like a sigh.
     You slowly move forward.  The stillness of the tunnel seems to mock you.
     Then the ground explodes upward in a shower of metallic fragments.
     A metallic skeleton figure seemed to rise up from the ground, its parts shaping and forming from the metallic fragments as it rose up and
struck.
     The sled is knocked over, sending you flying backwards.  You roll as you hit the ground, and bring the weapon to bare on the creature.
     The tunnel is lit with a shocking blast of light as you squeeze the trigger.  Your vision flares with the bright lance of death and for a moment
you are blinded.
     As the spots marring your sight clear, you see the monstrous figure gaping at you.  A large, smoldering hole is charred through it's chest
where your blast connected with it.
     Once again, as quickly and suddenly as it started, the tunnel was silent.
     You stood, and moved to examine the sled.  It was only minorly damaged.  Nothing that would impede your progress.
     Curiosity overtook you and you moved toward the creature.  It stood as if frozen, all signs of life gone from it’s body.
     You reach up and pull aside some of the metallic wires and struts that make it’s chest.
     They bend with a screech, but when pulled aside, only revealed more disjointed pieces of metal.
     Nothing was connected, nothing made sense…
     "Phil, scan and download the creature in front of me."
     "Sir?"
     "The automaton in front of me.  Scan it’s internal circuitry and give me a schematic."
     "Scanners are reading no robotic life near you.  Neither are they registering any form or pattern of circuitry that would be used to link an
automaton's circuitry."
    "Did you get the visual from the past five seconds?"
     "Yes, I see the creature you speak of, but unless his neural patterns were contained within the section of his stomach you incinerated…"
     "Understood."
     --Well, not really…--

---

Cybertron : Underground

    You stand silent, analyzing the being once more.  Unable to come to any conclusions, you set about repairing the HoverSled. After a few
minutes of work, you are airborne again, going deeper and deeper into the Vat...
    "Phil? Do you still read?"
    "Affirmative." though the static hiss seemed to now be worse.
    "I am continuing towards the Vat proper... What are your thoughts on the being I just  encountered?"
    Phil is silent as he computes, "Remember the dominant life forms encountered on K'jhon Prime?"
    "The highly unstable planet in the Lambda 39 System? The dominant lifeforms were once humanoid, but transformed themselves centuries ago
into energy beings to survive on their harsh world... I see what you're getting at!"
    "Yes. Those beings could 'possess' inanimate matter and form crude bodies for themselves, in order to interact with other beings..."
    "And you believe this creature I encountered was a K'jhonian? Or something similar?"
    "Something similar, yes. Perhaps a 'mutant' Spark of some sort, left to guard the Vat from intruders. Or..." the static level increases sharply.
    "Phil? Phil, come in!!!" The communications channel shuts off.  The signal was dead.
    --Great, I hope he is still recording…--
    You look up, and notice a faint swirling light from somewhere ahead.  The colors seem to shift through both the visible and the invisible
spectrums, making you uncertain if it isn’t just a trick of your mind.
    But the processors linked to your optics were registering it.
    In the faint background, you see a shape.  Far ahead, something was standing in the center of the tunnel.
    You try to filter and process the image, but the whirlwind of lights were confusing your sensors.
    You hover the craft to the ground, here, where it won’t come to damage.  Unshouldering the plasma rifle again, you make your way toward
the shadowed form.
    This one was small, your size.  And looked more humanoid than the last.
    And it is waiting.
    "Hello?  Name yourself!"
    --You—
    You take another step forward.  The shape is better definable now.  It is solid and appears to be moving toward you at a slow pace.
    "Hold, come no further without announcing yourself!"
    Two pinpoints of red light can suddenly be seen where it’s eyes are…
    --Me—
    It’s progress is unfaltering.
    The faint clicking of metal on metal can be heard as it raises and lowers it’s feet in a purposeful stride.
    You raise the plasma rifle towards it, "I’m warnin…"
    You stop in mid sentence as it’s features come into view and it stops at the edge of your clear vision.
    It… is you.
    It raises it’s arms out to the side, as wanting to flap them to fly.
    You hear a sharp snap and hiss as filaments shoot from unseen sources and pierce the hands and feet of the Dr Archeville clone.
    He is hoisted into the air by the almost invisible strands of wire, and begins to jerk in an odd motion as the filaments move him around as
though a puppet.
    For seconds he does an odd dance, suspended slightly above the ground, all the while, his cyber-skull head the only part that remains
perfectly still, it’s red eyes coldly staring at you, and it’s gaping jaw seeming to laugh at you.
    Then the movement stops.
    The head and torso slump forward on the wires, hanging limp.
    --We are dead—
    The plate that holds locked access to the last remaining part of your human makeup, your brain, pops off and drops to the ground, unlatching
the back of his skull.  It falls forward, and out falls something.  You look down at your feet….he’s closer than you remember letting him get…to
find a dried husk of a human brain lying at your feet.  As you look down at it, it seems to shrivel up and decay, maggots eating their way out
from the inside and flies buzzing away from it.
    You step back and lower your rifle in reaction.  A searing blast burns the brain matter into nothing.
    The cyborg drops to the ground with the clatter of a pile of tin pots.
    You spin and walk back to the HoverSled…
    The one fact that burns over and over in your mind…
    The brain matter registered as real… Cellular, DNA sturcture, even the heat from decomposition, and the flies themselves….  They were
real.
    You stop walking.
    You passed the sled.
    You turn and walk back.
    You pass where the sled WAS.
--Great.  Something is really out to get me.—
    "Sled remote activate."
    A soft bleep confirms it’s operation.
    "Sled homing signal.  Automatic return."
    A ugly beep confirms an error.
    "Sled, automatic return!"
    --Bluerp.--
    You reshoulder the rifle and begin the walk down the tunnel.  It shouldn’t be far from here, at least.

    The tunnel ended.  Suddenly and abruptly, the tunnel ended at a regular sized door (for a forty foot Cybertronian).  Nothing amazing.  A steel
door with no writing.
    As you stepped up to inspect it, it slid noiselessly open.
    You stepped through into a small chamber.  The same entry chamber the Worm had dropped into from the ceiling.
    You stepped cautiously into the next chamber.  The massive one that stretched away on either side.  Even you could not see the walls
surrounding it.
    You’re sensors, however immediately picked up the Guardian robot that sat prone in the chamber.
    You hefted the rifle and moved towards the gargantuan corpse.
    The robot was deactivated, and bore no signs of a spark signature.  But that seemed to have meant little as of late.
    You pass by it without the obvious attack, though.
    As you move cautiously forward, the darkness seems to whisper around around you.  You increase your audio receptors, but nothing
registers to them.
    Still, the echoes of voices seems to crowd around you as you move forward.  Heroic statements, cries of fear, last words, and laughter all
seem to shimmer in the palpable darkness.
    Then you feel the floor move.
    A spiral opens on the floor beneath you, and you realize that it is a floor covering that is moving away.
    You crouch and spring upward to get off of the pattern, but find yourself grasped by worker arms that seem to encroach from the darkness.
    You struggle, but their grip was unbreakable.
    "Biological matter detected.  Removal for destructuring process necessary."
    --SHIT—
    The removal of your brain will turn you into an automaton.
    You feel one claw grasp your skull with intense pressure.  There is a screech and a pop as you feel the latches snap and fall.
    Pain racks through your body as you feel the cerebrum that had remained intact for three centuries, the sum makeup of your knowledge and
personality pull free from its housing.
    "Program cancel." Came a voice you recognized.
    You feel yourself drop to the ground.  You lay there awaiting the imminent shut down of your personality, logic, and memory retainers.
    Nothing happens.
    "You can get up, you know." Came the voice again.
    You stand up shakily, ready for the shutdown process to begin.
    But only minor damage readings seem to flash across your optics, and the clanging of the loose panels on your skull rings loudly through you
head.
    You reach back to still them, feeling a bit of a shock as your hand closes over the empty cranium.
    "What… Who… How…"
    Lights shut on, illuminating the massive chamber.  In the center there was the massive Vat, sitting like a squat melting chamber.  Leading to it
were paths covered with Cybertronian     writings, and on the ground you stood on was an obvious pit opening in a spiral toothed shape.
    "You shouldn’t go bumping around in the darkness like that.  The smelting pit is still quite active, Dr Archeville."
    You turn to see a Cybertronian, in a purplish cloak, crouching over something not to far from you.
    "Who… are you."
    "You can call me… Alpha Trion."

---

Cybertron : The Vat

    You look up at Alpha Trion, your mind boiling with confusion.  For the first time in centuries, you felt horror.  A horror that stemmed from you inability to grasp the situation in which you now found yourself thrust.
     "Who…are you?"  you ask feebily, again reaching back toward the cavernous hole in your skull.
     "You really don’t listen well.  I am Alpha Trion."
     That got you to stand up, affronted at the inference that you were slow, " I meant, who are you in the sense of what is your function in this place… and for that matter, what is this place?"
     "What is this place?  Aren’t you the one who came here?  Oh dear, I thought everyone knew what this place was."
     Anger started pushing the shock of the moment from your mind.
     "There, there, my dear Dr Archeville.  Please forgive my impertinence toward you, but you really needed something to keep you from dropping into full blown shock."
     You reach back, "How am I alive?"
     "What is life?"
     "Am I alive." You amended the question.
     "You live now as you have for the past three centuries.  A man who managed to transpose his essence in a way that has never been done before by a mortal man."
     "But I did so with my brain."
     "Ah, but there lies a fallacy that you have based your work upon."
     "But the download of the memories and emotions from a human brain to a mechanical one…"
     "Is quite impossible."
     "Wait, you just said…"
     "You can download the memories.  That is easy, well, relatively. You see, the synapses in the body you have built have grown as you have inhabited it.  They’ve moved themselves strengthening their bonds, just as an organic brain does to retain what it perceives."
     "But, the direct download…."
     "How direct do you want.  Granted, it takes time, a few centuries, but the electronic synapses you built to retain the upper cybernetic functions of your body are now identical to the synaptic paths of your old, organic brain."
     "But earlier you said it was impossible."
     "No, I said to download the memories and emotions was impossible. The emotions are not contained within the brain."
     "Then where?"
     "Where indeed?  For a transformer they come from the spark."
     "My studies leave me to believe that the spark is a complex programming shell that contains the algorithms to simulate…"
     "Algorithms? Simulation?  That’s my soul your talking about."
     "Soul?  I think not…."
     "Doctor, do you really still believe that your race is the only to posses spirits?"
     "Well, I, that is…."
     "A spark is the connection between a Cybertronian and the Universe."
     "…"
     "It is what defines a transformer, his attitudes, his emotions, his… spirituality.  Without a spark, there IS no Transformer."
     "I see…"
     "Oh, I’m not so sure, but tell me good Doctor, this place has been closed off from the upper world for centuries.  Why come here now?"
     "I want a body, and I want flesh."
     "Surely you could use the newer CR technologies?  Why come to a chamber that hasn’t been used for three hundred ears?"
     "I need a spark."
     "Ohhhh… and what would you do with this spark."
     "Transfer my memories…"
     "AH!  But memories do not reside in the spark."
     "Transfer…."
     "The spark is not a program Doctor.  You can not transfer to or from it in the manner you desire."
     "But I need one to create my body!"
     "Well, by all means!  Take one.  But I quite assure you that it will not aid you in your cause."
     You shake your head in frustration, regrouping your thoughts.
     "Back to the original question then.  Who are you, the caretaker of this place?"
     "I… am an old man.  Yes… yes, I guess you could say I am the caretaker of the Vat."
     "And you’ve been down here for how many centuries?  By yourself?"
     "I have been down here for more years than even I can remember. And not by myself.  Not truly by myself."
     "Who else?  The guardian?"
     "Him?  No, he was left down here in case of emergency.  He’s the protector of this place in case of intruders."
     "He’s doing a great job."
     "Oh, you?" Alpha Trion chuckles, "You’re not an intruder.  We quite knew you would be coming."
     "Who is we."
     "To explain that would take countless centuries.  Now, you have a much more important purpose to fufill."
     "What?"
     "You are to become a player in a great board game.  Yet another piece in an already complex puzzle of order and chaos."
     "And which side’s piece am I."
     "There are no sides.  Everyone is everything.  It is up to you to choose for yourself which direction you will travel."
     "Then I need a body."
     "You’re very stubborn.  Well, you are correct.  You will need a new body, but it is up to you to fill that body, and as you said, without a spark, you can not complete it."
     "And what do I do to get a spark."
     "I can not answer that for you.  It is a puzzle you must solve yourself."
     "Then, can I see the controls?"
     Alpha Trion waves to a doorway on the far side of the chamber, "Through there, up the stairway and you will reach that control booth."
     You turn to look at the control booth he waved at, it was about fifty stories in the air.  You turn back toward him, " I…."
     He was gone.

---

Cybertron: The Vat

    You head toward the doorway that Alpha Trion had signified.
     "Gone. Typical... Ah, well... at least I now know how I'm still functioning without a brain in my head... though it does nothing to ease the
discomfort I feel about it.
    "Ah, what irony! One of the main goals in my life - to find a way to transfer my mind from my organic brain to an artificial one, be it
electromechanical or a 'clone brain',
was with me all this time!!!"
    You chuckle to yourself and look up at the dimly lit stairs, "Well, might as well start climbing..."
    As you begin your ascent, you go over the events that have transpired since you came down here...
     "Now, Alpha Trion said a set of memories and emotions could not be transferred to an electronic medium, correction, he stated that
memories COULD be transferred, the process just took time.
    He then reveals that my own artificial body has, somehow, over the centuries, altered its' internal neural wiring to mimic that of my organic
brain, and thus I retain my memories and cerebral functions even after my organic brain’s removal.
    "But what of my emotions? The fact that I felt terror at the realization of what occurred, anger at Trion, then elation at the discovery and hope
for a new body, plus indignation at being a 'chess piece', proves I still retain my memories.
    "But how?
    "Emotions are exceedingly complex and even today I've yet to encounter a civilization advanced enough to grant even the simplest of
emotions to an artificial lifeform, much less the wide spectrum of emotions I've experienced since my brain's removal...
    "Perhaps there truly is something to the spirituality Trion spoke of - after all, nearly every world I've visited had some sort of spiritual beliefs
and pantheon of spirit-beings... But every world I've seen shows that technology and spirituality/'magic' are inversely proportional,  As one
increases, the other decreases in a like amount.
Cybertronians are perhaps the MOST advanced for of technological life there is, and so beliefs such as these should be nearly non-existent, yet
the evidence... Hmmm....
"And what of those 2 beings I met before entering here? The thing made of pieces and parts from my surroundings, and my 'clone'? I wish I'd
had the chance to ask Alpha  Trion - perhaps they were part of the "we" he mentioned so vaguely..."
    "At any rate, I now have a slightly different problem before me: my quest for a way to transfer my mind out of my organic brain was to be one
of the final pieces in one of my ultimate projects - to be able to transfer my mind between bodies of my own  invention, be they robotic or
organic. Now that I've learned the process of 'transference' takes approximately 3 centuries, this severely limits my options. UNLESS I can find
a much faster method, such as transferring my mind into a Spark, an energy construct. I would then be a being of energy, and could 'possess'
robotic bodies and organic bodies alike. But Alpha Trion said that memories do not reside in the Spark; yet he also said
my new body will require a Spark to fill and complete it... seemingly contradictory statements. Unless...."
     You start climbing at the top of the stairs.  A plain door closed in front of you.
    "...he means I am to BECOME a Spark..."
     You reach forward and the door slides noiselessly open.
     The control room inside was dark, the air stale.  The light from the hallway filtered past you to shine on rows of control panels.  All were
dark and lifeless.  You stepped into the room and looked around.  Wires hung down, panels lay exposed and cracked.  Blast holes could be
seen in the control panels themselves.  A chair sat smashed into a video monitor…
     The room was destroyed.
     Suddenly, a light appeared on a monitor off in the corner.  You stepped over to it and looked down.  On the monitor scrolled a log.  It stated
that the control room was trashed to keep anyone from using the room to mass create life again without extensive repair work that could not go
unnoticed.  The monitor stopped and scrolled back, the date changing in the lower right hand.  You watched as it scrolled back to an earlier
date, and an entry log signed by Optimus Prime, the legendary leader of the Autobots.  The date was several centuries back, when this chamber
was being built.
     The log stated that the chamber was christened in memory of his one-time trainer, Alpha Trion.  It also stated that it was in memory of Alpha
Trion.
     The screen went black.
     You leaned over and looked under the screen to see if it was a loose wire or something.
     All the cables attached to the monitor hung limp, and unconnected.
     A voice seems to whisper to you.
   --You can not become a spark, nor can you create that which already exists.  What is a spark truly?  Seek an answer in the flame’s
core of lost memories.—
     The flame’s core of lost memories….  the reference sounded familiar.  As if you had heard of something similar before.
     "Doctor?"  Phil’s voice nearly made you jump out of your metal.

---

Cybertron: The Vat control room

    "PHIL! I do believe I've never been happier to hear your voice!!!" you chuckle.
    "Why, thank you, Doctor... I've just now been able to re-establish contact with you. Have you returned 'topside'?"
    "No, Phil. In fact, I'm within the very core of the Vat, though at a higher elevation."
     "Doing a scan… You actually are at a lower depth than previous position. But the jamming appears to have stopped.  My scanner readings
on you are still a bit scrambled, though, but I detect severe comprimisation of your outer hull and extensive damage to your organic brain."
    "Well, that would be because my brain has been torn out of my skull..."
    "Indeed… Yet, you function..."
    "Precisely!"
    You proceed to tell Phil everything that has happened since he last talked to him
    Phil is silent for many moments, "Fascinating..."
    "Indeed, Phil. But though I realize this is a lot of data to assimilate, I need you to focus on something else for me - the 'flame's core of lost
memories'..."
    "Processing... perhaps 'flame's core' is a reference to a Spark - electrical sparks can start fires..."
    "True, but I somehow doubt it..."
    "The Pit, the 'birthplace' of Predacon Sparks?"
    "Possibly... but I doubt it.  Most references that I have found lead me to believe that the Pit and the Vat were one and the same."
     "The Inferno, then 'Cybertronian Hell'..."
    "So you're suggesting I journey, like Dante, into 'Hell'???"
     "I do not see how that could be possible, but there is one final literal reference."
     "And that is?"
     "It is only a remote one, but there are many memorials to sparks on Cybertron."
     " Hmm…  Try to get me a list on the largest ones.  Meanwhile I’ll try things my way.  You've done well, Phil. I'm going to see if I can get
some answers here; keep your sensor-link with me open, and continue maintaining the shop. Archeville out."
     You sit in darkness, closer to, and yet farther from your goal than ever before. Since it appears you are on a 'vision quest' of sorts, your next
action is logical in its' illogicality.  You meditates...

   --Seconds shift and pass as hours.  The darkness the only constant in this world of cold silence.  You feel your mind transcend and
pass from the steel cage that holds it entrapped.
     If any description could be given to this place… it would be death.
     Icey numbness spreads through your self, and the world seems to be gripped in a hard, clear grip.  Darkness seems to etch out
shapes of everything around you as never before.
     The very walls of the control room drop away and seem to breath.  A thought floats by about the room size and Cybertronians.
    Your essence pours through the very floor, and you feel it spread throughout the whole of the room and beyond.
     For a brief second, you feel as one with the very planet.  And in that second you are bombarded with a myriad of sensations.
     In your thoughts one image burns it’s way through the rest.  A column of flame stretching down into your very heart…. No into the
planet’s very heart.
     You are filled with vertigo as you try to grasp the sensation.—

     You awake.  You find yourself in the hallway, and next to you is your sled.
     --Fascinating.—
     You board the sled and look back down the tunnel, shinning a beam of light down into the darkness.
     A huge landslide covered the path.  Boulders of steel and beams of metal criss crossed in a fashion that hadn’t been disturbed for eons.
     "Phil."
     "Yes Doctor?"
     "Where am I."
     "At the same location as previously scanned."
     "Mark coordinates. I’ll be back in the lab soon."
     "Affirmative."
     You turn and hover the sled back up the tunnel, past the first encounter, who still stood, immobile and lifeless, and past the rubble that you
cleared to gain entry.

---

Cybertron: The Laboratory

    Phil turns from his current task to see you enter the Shop via his secret back entrance, "Good to see your return, Doctor."
    "It's good to be back amidst familiar surrounding, old friend... have you gotten the list I asked for?"
    "The list of all memorials to expired Cybertronians on the planet. I just finished it..."
    "Excellent, Phil. Now, your next task - obtain a subterranean map of Cybertron, showing all it's access tunnels, power conduits, et cetera. Then, cross reference that map with the
locations of all the memorials..."
    "To see if any of the Memorials hide a secret tunnel."
    "As always, Phil, you seem to have read my mind..."you chuckle as you run your hand across the back of your still-split skull.
    The silvery sphere floats around to closer scan of the damaged area, "Should I not patch that up first, Doctor?"
    "After you obtain the maps... I can study them as you repair me..."
    "As you wish, Doctor..."

    A short while later, you find yourself scanning through the maps on a notepad computer.
     Phil hovers behind you, a series of small extension arms working steadily on the empty cavern in your skull.
     The maps are complex and cross-referenced, like most of the planet, there are any number of entryways into any certain area.
     As you look through it, you ponder bemusedly how you can develop a headache without a brain.
     Then something catches your eye.
     "Phil, take a look at this…" you punch a key and the display transfers to a larger overhead screen.
     The temple displayed was called the Hall of the Lost, and in the center there ran a shaft that shot through most of the havoc of the cities below.
     "This shaft here, it runs straighter and deeper than anything on these other maps."
     Phil pauses, "Further analysis shows that no other tunnels connect with the shaft."
     "Find out where it leads, or what it is."
     "Affirmative." Phil seems to close in on himself for several minutes. Meanwhile, you tap in some commands into the notepad.  A small blurb of information about the temple itself
scrolls across the pad’s screen.
     --Hall of the Lost.  One of the memorials to those who died in the Second Great War.  The temple was built by an unknown benefactor and is home to the flames of
memories.  These flames consist of a large column of flame that resides in the center of a prayer circle of memorials.  After walking through the circle and centering oneself,
it is said that one may see and touch the sparks of those who have passed away I the wars.—
     "Analysis complete."  Phil announces.
     "And?"
     "And the shaft seems to continue down to an indeterminate depth.  It’s origins are unknown to the archive computer."
     "Any entry hatches?"
     "None."
     "Any form of security on this temple?"
     "None, it is listed as just a memorial."
     Some of the similarities to Alpha Trion’s statement were too close to dismiss.  Perhaps a sight seeing trip was in order?
     "Phil, finish the repair work."

---

Cybertron : The Laboratory

    Phil soon finishes the repair work to your breached skull, and so, you quickly leap to action.
    "I assume, then, that you are going to explore this 'Hall of the Lost'?" Phil queries as you rummage through the weapons cabinets.
    "But of course..." you select the holobelt and a simple stun pistol just in case.
    "Then I shall ready your hoversled..." he moves toward the small hangar area.
    You double-check your internal sensors and then make your way to the hangar.
     "You know the routine..." you tell Phil as you step onto the hover sled.

     You make your way to the Hall of the Lost... memories of what Alpha Trion had said about "flames core of memory" flood your mind, as well as the images and sensations you
received while 'meditating'.  Anxiety, wonder, and even fear wash over you, but, soon, you reach the monument.
     The Hall of the Lost was impressive, Crystal columns stretched up in front of them, shadows seemed to flicker and dance in their depths.  The starlight above sparked off the silvery
etchings that scrawled across the walls of the monument.  The very temple seemed alive with a force of it’s own.
     You activate your holo-belt, selecting the form of a small Cybertronian.  You step out from the alley where you had parked and move toward the temple.  The wall underneath the
columns was carved with figures of the ancient leaders.  Optimus Prime, Megatron, Galvatron, Scorpinok, Rodimus Prime, and others.  all of them in silent stances of peaceful rest. They
seemed to be almost living in the detail that they were carved.
     The sounds of Cybertron seemed strangely muted here, as if heard from a long distance.  It gives the starry lit area a surreal look.
     You made your way up the large steps, steps that were made for Cybertronian breadth.   They would have been an impressive entry if scaled to your size, but they were made for feet
that were far larger, and legs that stretched farther than yours, making them overwhelming in their immensity.
     The doors stood eternally open to the cold Cybertronian air.  You stepped across the threshold in awed silence.  Beyond, a spiral maze of monuments began, as you walked past
different scenes of battles and sacrifices, villains and heroes.  You find the effect very calming, much like the prayer wheels that many religions used.  As you followed the path in a long
spiral, your fears and apprehensions were replaced with a feeling of solemn calm.
     Time seemed to be suspended.  It could have been hours, days, or even weeks that you walked.  The rational side of your mind told you that it was maybe forty minutes, but
something about this place seemed to defy rationality.
     Voices seemed to whisper from the shadows, cries of battle, screams of pain, laughter, and rejoicing.   You feel a sense of pride and a sense of loss that surges through your…
--My what?  That’s the question.  I have no heart, I have no brain, I have no sou…--
     You thought trails off as a towering column of flame rises up in front of you.  It rises up as a pillar in the center of the great temple.  You had been so focused that you hadn’t even
noticed it until you reached it’s base.
     A few steps lead up to the base of the pillar.  With some trepidation you move up to the column.
     No heat radiates from the swirling, hazy column of odd blue flame.
    --So, what now?—
  --Now, join your spirit with all.—
     Alpha Trion’s voice.
     You look around in frustration, "I HAVE no spirit!"
     A wave of warm air washes over you from the column, as if in response to your outburst.
     Your back arches as you feel a wash of energy course through your frame.  You’re eyes strain as you watch a ghostly apparition of yourself lurch forward and out of your body.
     The column of flames shift color, a deep red, almost like a fountain of blood.  Whispy strains of flame lick out and wrap around the hazy image of yourself in front of you, threading
through the ghostly apparition.  You watch in mute fascination as the image seems to collapse in on itself, shrinking ever smaller.  Until, as it is as small as a grain of sand, and then,
suddenly it explodes in a pulse of light that changes the column to a brilliant white that blinds you.
     As your eyes adjust, you become aware of a throb… no a pulse… a heartbeat?
     You look up and see a glowing sphere of energy, molecules of light and energy swirl through its incandescent surface in a spiral dance….
     A spark.
     A spirit.
  --They are the same—
     Your spark floats forward, and you become aware of being outside of yourself as distance is gained.  It moves into the column of fire, and for a moment you panic.
     Then the universe seems to explode in a cacaphony of sights, sounds, feelings, emotions…
     You feel your mind and spark expand for the briefest of moments.  You feel every molecule of the planet below you and beyond, you feel every spark and spirit that surrounds it.
Only a faintest blink of time passes, and yet your mind nearly shatters from the overload of inputs.
     Then it is over, and your mind dulls the experience and begins immediately to forget, leaving you with only a faint memory of the enormity of the universe.
     The column in front of you swirls again, a mixture of colors.  Red, purple, yellow, green, fusia…  In the center you see the two leaders of old.
    Megatron appears, and his familiar silver form is shifted and chenged, a purple robot, a green tank-like robot, and other forms pass by.  Finally, it ends with a slate colored robot with
the wings and canopy of a jet denoting his transformation.  His eyes were youthful and powerful, but behind him floats two spirits.
    One you recognize immediately, Starscream.  The other, a Predacon of some sort.  A mechanical wasp of some sort.
     Optimus Prime changes as well. He starts as the leader on Earth so many centuries ago, and finally ends up as another youthful looking robot.  This one with the Autobot symbol
emblazoned on his chest, with wings arching up from behind the design.
     Behind them, you see a triad of animalistic, Predacon forms.  The three Predacons merge into a monstrous robot that swoops in to swallow the two leaders, stopping afterward to
cackle in madness.
     And then something white floats up casually behind the monster.  White wings stretch up and spread out across the image, wings that are made of bone. The slim, white robot spreads
out and changes, becoming heavy and demonic, and finally becoming something that even you recognize
     Unicron.
    The devourer.
     Then, it is over.
    Your ‘spark’ floats back and sinks into your chest.  The column returns to blue and you are left… alone.

---

Cybertron: The Hall of Lost Sparks

    "Whoah..."
    That seems to be the only word that can sum up your feelings so succinctly. You stagger weakly to your feet and make your way out to the HoverSled.
    Shortly, you returns to the Laboratory. Phil greets you, "That took less time than I anticipated, Doctor... Did everything work out alright?"
    "I... I'm not entirely sure, Phil... I saw... things... while at the Hall..."

    "Doctor?"
    "Yes Phil? what is it?"
    "You momentarily blacked out for approximately 5 minutes..."
    "I did?! Intriguing... must be an 'after-affect' of my experience..."
    "Yes... I believe you were about to tell me of what happened..."
    "Yes, yes, of course..." You tell Phil of the spiral path you followed within the Hall, of the column of flame, and of your vision of Megatron, Optimus Prime, the Predacons, and of
Unicron...
    "Highly illogical, Doctor..."
    "I would tend to agree with you, old friend... and yet, something about all of this makes an... an eerie sort of sense to me..." you rise and begin walking toward your 'sleeping chamber'
a modified pseudo-CR Tank of your design that could perform minor repairs to your body, polish it, and monitor him while you 'slept'.
    "I'm going to need some time alone to think about this all, Phil... I must ask you to continue monitoring the Shop..."
    "No problem, doctor - it's been a slow night, anyway..."

    And so, you retire to your chambers to meditate upon the events of the past few hours. Of the removal of your brain and the subsequent discovery of it's uselessness. The discovery of
what a Spark is… The images of Megatron, Optimus Prime, the TriPredicus Council, and Unicron, and how those images related to you...

    You awaken sometime later with the words ringing through your head, "You are a player…. For what side… is your choice."
    You look down at your skeletal metallic hands.  For the first time in centuries you feel the weight of true decision upon you.  Something dark was awakening in the universe.  You were
obviously a part of the game that was unfolding, but what part?
    The only thing you were certain of… it was time for you to get a body.
    You get out of the chamber.
    "Phil."
    "Yes doctor?"
    "I’m going back to the Pit."
    "Doctor?"
    "It’s time for me to get a new body."
    "Shall I set up another set of sensors?"
    "No, close the shop.  You’re coming with me."

    You pace back down the tunnel.  Phil floating solemnly behind you, his lights shining across the dark and scarred walls.
    You know that the tunnel was blocked before, but now, you pace past the point where the rubble had stood, and as you suspected, the path was clear and free.
    "Strange, the readings here are not what I expected." Commented Phil.
    "Don’t bother.  You’re being fed data.  Whatever is down here is in complete control of the environment."
    "And what is down here?"
    "Everything."
    The door slides open and the massive chamber of the Vat sits before you.  Your footsteps echo loudly on the floor.
    "Phil, the control room is up there.  Let’s get this machinery operational."
    "Yes, doctor."
    Minutes turn to hours, hours into days.  The mass of ruined wired were as complicated as they were damaged.  You and Phil work constantly to push them into operable condition.
    A full week passes.  Short trips up to the surface were made every few days for recharging your reserves.  This body was energy efficient, but you did not have the time to rest and
replenish your reserves.  Direct infusions of energon were required to keep you moving at a steady pace.
    More days pass, and then.
    "It is finished, Doctor."
    Your head swooned with equations and wire mappings, "Finally.  Prepare to activate the machine."  You turn and stride out of the control room.
     You make your way down to the main hall and step up the long set of stairs onto the ledge of the Vat itself.
     "Are we sure of this, Doctor?"  Queried Phil from the loudspeakers.
     "Positive.  Activate the Matrix Vat, Phil."

     As if a million souls sigh relief, a wave of light and energy filled the room.  Your sensors threatened overload as the doors swiveled out and revealed the swirling mass of power below
you.
     You open your mind to the call of those unborn lives that pulsed with a chaotic beat below you.
     And out from the edge you stepped.
     But not you…
     No, your body collapsed where it was.  Just your soul floated out… your spark.
     It joined in the rush of life that filled the chamber, it swam in a dance of joy and jubilation as it was buffeted by the hopes of a thousand lives awaiting birth.
     You feel your spark lifted as it is drawn into the center of the vortex.  For a moment you know that it is possible to be kept here for eternity, and for a moment you don’t care.
     Then, the light and noise reaches a crescendo, you reel with the enormity of the wait and a voice speaks out.
   --It is time for you to leave your past behind.  Join now in the struggle for existence.  Join now in the fight for all that is and all that ever was.—

     Steam hisses around you and wisps of smoke curl off.  A blue, energy laced liquid rolls off of you and the platform as it rises free from the Vat.
     You eyes shift and adjust as they open, blurry at first, then lines of code in a language that was long since lost even unto this world scroll across your field of vision.  A readout of
adjustments.
     You suck in a deep breath of life as the steaming, warm liquid trickles off your body.
     Sensation cascades across you as the chill of the air clashes through the heat of the Vat.
     Two wings stretch out behind you with a flap of air, stirring the steam gusts into a swirling storm and lifting you off the platform.
     You stretch with a roar as you reach out and stretch a taloned hand.  You look down to see metal and flesh mixed together in a smooth combination.   You marvel momentarily at the
feelings that wash around you, the cold, the heat, the joy of stretch muscles.
     You are alive!!
     "Doctor."
     You look up at a small window above you.  A silver sphere floats there, operating the machinery behind it.  Something seems familiar about it.
     "Doctor, is that you?"
--Doctor…--
     The title sounds familiar, but you are not sure from where.
     "Access data banks."
--Databanks empty, memory counters started five cycles previous.— 

---

New Wars... New Gods

Cybertron: The Vat

--New life…--
     You float back down and land with a resounding clunk onto the steel floor of the massive room.
     "Doctor!!"
     You look up at the room, "Who… who are you?"
     "Fascinating, the effects of the regeneration seems to have caused some form of amnesia."
     "There is no amnesia.  My mental matrices are well intact.  All systems appear fully functional.  However, you do seem… familiar."
--Your mind has been rebuilt—
  --That voice!  It too seems familiar.—
     "Who are you?" you call out to the disembodied voice.
     "My designation is Phil."
     Your head jerks back toward the control room and the silver sphere… Phil… it seems familiar, as if he was your… creation?
     "Come down here."
     "I am afraid I am unable to comply Doctor.  The access way to the room has been shut off."
--Your friend will not be allowed to help you at this time.—
     "Help me?  What do you mean… ‘help me?"
     "Doctor?"
     "Quiet Phil." You snap, "There is another here."
  --You have been granted a new life.  But with every new life there must be a period of learning.  Your new body was chosen by your subconscious, as will be your path
from here out.—
     "My body?"  You look down.  Great bat wings spread from behind you, tentacles hang down at your  waist, and your hands were sharp, thick talons.
     "Where are my memories…"
     Suddenly you feel your mind aswirl with images and feelings.  You see mighty leaders, their names ring out from a stock archive of databanks.  Optimus Prime, Megatron… you see
the images of a dream pass in front of you… The Tripredicus Council, a white angel of bone, Unicron…
   --Memories are not quite as you perceive.  They are not a collection of data tracks, but rather a collection of feelings… a collection of those times your spark has crossed
the path of another.  The raw data that is stored is lost to you, but these images will remain.—
     "Then my past knowledge is lost to me?"
--Data can be restored.  The past must be felt.—
     "Hmm… Then where do I start?"
  --You must choose your destiny.—
     "What?  I can’t even remember my own name and I am to choose my destiny?"
--When better?  There is nothing to sway you from the path your heart will follow. No memories, no teachings… It is up to you as to where your life shall lead.  Good,
Evil… Order, Chaos… these are learned concepts.  Now, you have been given a chance to forge your own path.—
     "I… do not understand."  You do not like having to say that.
--Your first step is simple.  Centuries ago, the robots that were forged in this place were released to fight their way to the surface.  It was a test of survival, and a test of
their metal.  Only those that found their path made their way free of the underworlds of Cybertron.—
     "Then, only the warriors survived?"
   --There are many ways to survive.  It is up to each to find how they are best adapted.—
     "And Phil?"
     --He will return to your Laboratory.  There he will await your survival.--
     "Charming.  Phil, return to the… Laboratory.  I will join you, soon."
     "Affirmative, Doctor."
     The lighting in the control room goes dark, and the Vat’s massive doors shut in on it’s blue glow.
    --Then let the test… begin.—
     The room goes dark and silent, as if everything around you suddenly returned to a past that had long since died.
     Coldness and the smell of rusted metal seemed to fill the dark.  A haze of dust drifted past the small sphere of light that was shed by your optics.
     "Computers, analyze room, and locate exits."
     You internal systems beeped acquiescence and a flashing indicator appeared on your viewscreen.
     You turn to walk toward the door.
     As you make your way across the distance, you slowly become aware of a red glow that begins to fill the room.
     Something shifted behind you.
     Something heavy!
     "INTRUDER DETECTED.  SYSTEMS ACTIVE."
     You spin to see a dark shape outlined only by the soft red glow of it’s massive face visor.
     It was immense.
     "Wait… I’m…"
     "You are nothing.  You are dead…"
     You sense something heavy shifting upward on the shadow.

---

Cybertron: The Vat

    "I think not!" You make a dash toward the door as a bolt of flame and energy rips out toward you.  You tumble sideways and regain your feet, but the massive Guardian's claw-arm
slams into the floor between you and the exit, blocking your way.
    "THERE IS NO ESCAPE." the Guardian shifts it's cannon-arm and fires another bolt of plasma at you.
    Instinctively, you dodge the blast by leaping into the sky.  Your massive wings again lift you up and out of harms way.  For the first time you really notice their usefulness as you flap the
leathery appendages.
    "Fascinating... Flight will definitely become a useful aspect…"you are momentarily lost in the momentary thrill of this new ability, as your wings beat rhythmically through the air.
    However the spattering of cannon fire from several gun ports on the Guardians body brings you back to current battle, "Now to do something about this guy..." you concentrates a
moment, and your talons extend to roughly twice their length as you begin flying circles around the Guardian robot.
    Though the Guardian is much larger, tougher and stronger, you prove more agile and quicker than it, and are easily able to avoid its attempts at grabbing you.
    You land on the behemoth's back, near its neck, and begin slashing at the back of its head.
    However, the creature’s tough armor proves highly resistant even to the razor sharpness of your claws.
    "Slag!  It’ll take a heavier impact to slice this thing open."
    The guardian reaches back and snags one of your wings, tossing you like a rag into the far wall.
    "This isn’t going well, there’s got to be something…" you spot a computer terminal on the far side.
    "Hmm, I need him slowed down."  You look up at the roof.
    Another plasma blast lurches toward you, but your wings lift you up and clear again.  You float for a second in the air getting a bearing.
    Then, the lower chest panels on your body slide inward.  You arch your back as a blast of plasma energy smashes out and into the ceiling above the robot.  Rubble falls downward
onto your attacker, giving you precious few seconds of freedom.
    "That won’t hold him for long," You quickly swoop down toward the far console and plug yourself in, "C'mon, c'mon... I know something important is in here..."
--Downloading Guardian statistical information.  Downloading Guardian schematics.—
--BINGO!!—
    You pull the plug and jump clear just as the gout of flame melts the console into a puddle of slag.
    Using your wings you dart toward the hulking robot you duck under and around to the backside again.  You land down and extend you claws again.
    "You have a switch about… HERE!"
    You plunge your claws through a weak spot in the Guardians armor.  It reaches back and goes ridged.
--Destruct sequence active.  Five minutes until shell destruction.—
    You jump clear as the robot drops to the ground with a resounding thud.
     You look as the dust settles to see that the Guardian's body is now completely blocking the door through which you had originally entered.
     "Great, the clock is ticking, and there’s no way out."
     You look around, there appeared to be no other exits… but then again…
--They fought their way to the surface……but after the wars… a new tunnel was built so that the sparks could be taken out by bulk…--
     The memory seemed to float from nowhere, but you were quickly able to discern its possible meaning.
     "I came through the newer tunnels, presumably.  It would be the clearest cut and most accessible. So where was the OLD tunnel?"
     You looked around at the far stretching walls.
     "Computer, scan wall area for age difference.  Date structures between four to three centuries old."
--One wall section identified—
     You turned to where the computer signified.  A new panel was outlined, standing about twice your height, a solid sheet of metal had been welded into shape.
     Behind you, the Guardian’s quiet countdown continued.
--Three minutes until shell destruction—
     You lift a taloned arm, and from your forearm, a blast cannon slid out.  A missile locks into place and fires into the newer paneling.
     A wash of heat and energy fly back, causing you to shield your eyes from the impact, but as it dies down, you look to see a neat hole, just large enough for you to crawl through,
burned through the thick panel.
     You turn back to the Guardian, "Guard this place well… oh, and it looks like, YOU are dead."
     You jump through into the darkness beyond.

---

Cybertron: deep underground

     You move quickly into the tunnel, all the while aware that you were still too close to the blast area for the Guardian.  You ran as fast as possible, your wings boosting your speed, but
it was too narrow to fly in this mode…
--In this mode?—
     You skid to a stop, instinct seems to grip a part of your processors and you yell into the darkness, "Archeville, BEAST MODE!!!"  A part of you marvels at the fluid shift of
mechanics within your body, the swift click and snap of joints and gears as you transform for the first time.
     Your body becomes a compact form, squid-like tentacles hanging down over slathering jaws, great bat wings with sharp, dark talons stretching into the air. Your body bristled with
fur, flesh, and bone as you stretch your muscles, thrilling in the feel of blood rushing through your body.
     With a shattering screech, you launch yourself into the air, your new form small enough to take wing in the confines of the tunnel.  You feel the wind bristle through over the carapace
and the flesh that comprises your exterior.
     Behind you, a deafening roar begins to swell, and heat tumbles up through the tunnel threatening to swallow you.  Your wings beat rapidly, but the fiery waves kept washing up ever
nearer.
     You give a last thrust as the flames engulf you, waves of scalding pain flash through your body as you feel the heat burn and blister your skin.  Holes melt open in the flesh of your
wings and you begin to tumble forward, carried on the impact wave of the explosion.
     You black out.

  --Systems nominal.  Regeneration complete.—
     You blink.  Only darkness, and the stale stench of smoke filling the air.
     "Trans…form."
     You shift shape again into your robotic mode.  You quickly scan your internals, and find that you seemed to be in optimal shape.  You stretch a wing up, and find it whole and
complete.
     Then the thought occurs that the ground around you is no longer warm.
     You’re internal chronometer showed that days had passed!
     "Great." You stand up, but feel a bit woozy. "System check on internal balances."
--Internal balances are standard—
     "Then why do I feel like shit?"
--Energon levels are at 24%--
     "Great."
--Nothing else to do but get back to the surface.—
     "Remove power reserves from main weapons and regeneration systems."
--Affirmative—
     You begin your journey, in the dark.

--Power levels at 20%--
     "Piss off."
     You had been stumbling through the dark interior of the planet for hours.  Every tunnel you took that seemed to lead up, only ended in drawing you farther down into the darkness.
     You smash your fist into the wall in anger.  There is a splintering noise as the wall begins to crack and shatter.
     You stared at it’s metallic surface in curiosity as it continued to crack, only realizing too late that it was cracking under your feet as well.
     You fall.
     The cramped tunnel slides past you, and a great chamber stretches out around you.  You fall a hundred meters before you remember that you could fly, and catch yourself.
     As you hang, suspended in the air by your massive wings, you marvel at the great vista below you.
     An almost orange haze seems to hang over this level.  Light flickered from failing sources all over, illuminating the ruins of an ancient city. A pyramidal structure sat squat and crumbling
nearby, dwarfing the other buildings with it’s sheer mass.
     You move down and light near the top of the pyramid, on the set of large stairs that led up it’s side.
     "Where in the Vat am I?"
     A groaning croak makes you turn to look down the side of the temple.
     Something was shambling at the bottom.  Your optics adjusted and zoomed in to see many forms beginning to scrabble their way up the steps.  Dust rolled off the masses as their
mindless charge made it’s way up to you.
     You raise an arm, activating your cannon.
--Weapon systems offline.—
     "Pit.  Then I’ll do this the old fashioned way."
     You stretch your hand, and the talons extend out.  Glittering deadly ebon green in the dusty swirl of the air.
     As the shambling forms near you, you make out that they seem to be twisted, decrepit, and mindless.  They were a collection of bipedal as well as shapes that shambled on multiple
appendages.
     They were about half as large as you, and the wave that approached numbered in the hundreds.
     "Hmm, overbearing could be a problem."  You look up and see that some kind of temple sat at the top of the pyramid.
     "Perhaps a tactical retreat is in order until I can ascertain their intentions and weaknesses."
     You reach down and rip up a large piece of the stone temple.
--Why the hell's it stone?—
     You toss the rock over your head and into the oncoming creatures.
     The rock shatters on one of them, but it barely pauses in it’s rush.
     You spin and tromp you way to the top of the pyramid.  A large temple, surrounded by columns, sat crumbling into dust.  The creatures were near, you could hear their shuffling and
moaning close on your heels.  You duck under a crumbled column to see a thick, ebony door leading into the main structure.
     You quickly slam yourself into it, pushing it open.  As you turn and pull it closed, you see the first of the slathering creature’s heads appear above the side of the pyramid.  Two empty
eye sockets that were covered with a webbing of parchment like skin stared back at you as the crooked tooth mouth leered with the drawn back grin of a mummified human.
     A shudder passes through you as you heave the heavy door shut.
  --human?—
     The word sounded strange.  You accessed your databanks and only came up with a vague reference to the Great Wars.
     You toss off the thought and took in the room around you.
     Flashing lights flickered weakly, with the white glow of florescent light. The air in here was clear of the thick orange dust from outside, and as you moved forward, you note that the
only dust on the floor was what flaked off of you from the short time you were outside.
     "What is this place?"
     Something about it seemed… familiar.
     You made your way inward toward a lowered floor of smooth marble.  Your metallic feet clicked across the surface with an echoing effect that reverberated off the wide open space.
     In the center, there was… a basin?  A hole?  Something gaping open on the floor.  As you made your way to it, you notice the intricate etchings that scrolled across the marble.  The
flickering light showed that they were red, crystal you think, giving them an almost liquid appearance, as if the floor was etched with blood.
     You peer over the edge of the opening.
     Darkness stretched down deep into the pyramid’s core.
     You reach back and pull out a glow stick from a compartment in your back.  You drop the glowing filament down into the darkness.  As you watch it, you see the tunnel walls are
smooth and seamless.  You watch as the light fades and finally disappears from sight.  You ponder for a few seconds.
     Then, a wash of light begins to shine up from the hole.
     You fall back as an eruption of flame spews forth from the lip of the tunnel. The flame tongue splits across the ceiling of the temple, shattering into strings of fire that spread across the
ceiling with a white brilliance that swirled and illuminated a great scene that was painted above.
     You stare in wonderment at the rolling flames as they light a tableau of a heavenly battle between a god of light and a god of darkness.
     --THIS IS THE STORY OF WHAT WE ARE—

---

Cybertron: A lost Temple

    "Fascinating." Is the only word that you can manage as the tableau of light and noise begins to dance across the ceiling.  The very images that were painted on the high ceilings began to
move as if alive, dust and paint chipping away into clouds that rained down on you far below.
   --BEFORE TIME, AS IT NOW EXISTS, BEGAN, THE UNIVERSE EXISTED AND THRIVED AS A REALM OF ENERGY AND LIFE. --
     The ceilings burst into a kaleidoscope of brilliance and colors.
  --BUT IN THIS REALM, A CANCEROUS GROWTH BEGAN.
    IT FED ON THE LIGHT, IT FED ON THE ENERGY, AND IT FED ON THE VERY LIFE ESSENCES THAT EXISTED THERE.
    AS IT FED IT GREW—
     A dark spot seemed to swell in the light, a piece of impenetrable nothingness that seemed to suck in everything around it.
--THIS IS HOW THE ENDING BEGAN.
    THE DEVOURER CONTINUED, UNOPPOSED UNTIL THE LIGHT WAS GONE.  LEAVING ONLY THE VOID BEHIND.
     IN ITS INSATIABLE APPETITE, THE GREAT DEVOURER HAD TAKEN ALL THAT WAS AND INGESTED IT FOR IT’S OWN GLUTTONY.
    STILL, THE ENERGY EXISTED, AND THE COMBINED MIGHT OF THE UNIVERSE, THE ALL-SPARK THAT CONNECTS US ALL, STILL CHURNED AND
PULSED  WITHIN THE DEVOURERS BEING.—
     By now, the ceiling, walls and even the floor had been covered with the shifting nothingness of the void.  The flame column, and its tongues had begun to pulse with a steady, rhythmic
beating, as if they were pounding against the void for freedom.
     --THE ENERGY FED THE DEVOURER AND SO HE CONTINUED.
    BUT ALL WATCHED, AND LEARNED.
    LEARNED THAT TO FIND FREEDOM THERE MUST BE CHANGE.
    AND SO THE ALL-SPARK ALLOWED THEM TO CHOOSE, AND WITH THEIR CHOICE CAME CHANGE, AND WITH CHANGE CAME THE END TO THE DARK
GODS MEAL.—
     The flame column shifted, the separate tongues changing into veins of metal, rock, water, gas, even blood, they became a network of interconnecting lines that crossed and merged
into planets and creatures.  Filling the very void that had been created.
--THE VOID LOST IT’S POWER AND WAS SHATTERED IN AN EXPLOSION OF LIGHT AND POWER.
    BEHIND, ALL THAT WAS LEFT WAS WHAT THE ALL-SPARK HAD CREATED, AND TO GUARD THIS NEW EXISTENCE, THE GODS OF LIGHT STEPPED
FORTH.—
     Out of the column of flame floated a collection of sparks.  These sparks were far brighter than any that you had ever seen, and as the images floated around and past you, you could
see collections of mini-sparks writhing within each.
--EACH GOD FORMED IT’S OWN EXISTENCE, AND EACH ONE WAITED.  WAITED AGAINST THE DAY THAT THE DARK GOD WOULD AGAIN RISE.—
     The large sparks floated off into the darkness and among the masses of planets that now seemed to float in the endless reaches of the room.
     --TIME BEGAN, AS EACH BEING NOW WATCHED THE OTHERS PASS, THE EXISTENCE THAT YOU NOW KNOW BEGAN.—
     Planets began to revolve around stars of light and energy, you became aware of the shift and change within all the planets and the constellations.  You were aware of civilizations that
grew and collapsed, of eons of history and glory that shine and fade across the sea of life before you.
     --THEN, DID HE RETURN.—
     A swirling mass appeared, swallowing the planets and consuming the energies that fueled them.
     --THE DARK ONE, TOO, HAD LEARNED TO ADAPT.—
     The darkness swirled, until a bright star began to move into its path.  The star swelled and grew in size and power.
    --AND SO THE FIRST OF THE GODS SOUGHT TO INTERVENE.  THEIR FIGHT BECAME APOCALYPTIC.--
     The two forces clashed and fought, tearing great gashes of liquid energy from each other, spewing the planets and the space around them.  It was the moving image of the original
tableau on the ceiling!
     --THEIR FEET STIRRED UP MOTES OF ENERGY, THEIR BLOWS SHATTERED THE VERY FABRIC OF SPACE, ENERGY AND EVEN TIME.
     THE GOD OF LIGHT SAW THIS, AND FEARED FOR THE REALM THEY THREATENED TO DESTROY.
     AND SO A CHOICE WAS MADE, AND THE CHOICE WAS SACRIFICE.  THE GOD OF LIGHT PULLED THE DARK GOD INTO ANOTHER EXISTENCE, WHERE
THEIR BATTLE CONTINUED.
     THE GOD OF LIGHT WAS WEAKENED, AND KNEW THAT THE BATTLE WOULD SOON BE LOST.
     BUT ITS SACRIFICE WAS NOT YET FINISHED.  WITH THE LAST OF ITS WANING POWER, IT PULLED BOTH ITSELF AND THE DARK GOD BACK TO THIS
PLANE.
     AND SO WAS THE SACRIFICE UNVEILED.
    FOR THE GOD OF LIGHT FORCED BOTH OF THEM TO RETURN INTO DEAD ROCK, TRAPPING THEM THERE FOR AN ETERNITY.
     You watched as their battle shifted to and from, and finally as the dark void seemed to scream out in anger as it was pulled into a hunk of dead rock.
    --AND AGAIN, ALL WAS SAFE—
     Then, the rock began to change, and turn green.  Life sprung up as eons passed.  You watched as lights began to dot the land masses.
    --LIFE TOOK ROOT ON THE ROCK.  AND THIS LIFE REACHED A FORM OF CIVILIZATION.  THIS CIVILIZATION GAVE A NAME TO THE TERROR THAT
HAD PLAGUED THE GALAXY.  FOR THEY BEGAN TO FEAR A DARK GOD NAMED UNICRON—
     Visions of tribal rituals and sacrifices danced across the ceilings.  Shadows of a race that had long since crumbled to dust.
     UNICRON WAS NOT THE ONLY GOD NAMED OR WORSHIPPED.  FOR THE RACE KNEW OF A GOD OF LIGHT THAT WOULD ALWAYS PROTECT
THEM     FROM UNICRON’S HUNGER.
    PRIMUS WAS CELEBRATED AND REVERED.
     BUT AS TIME PASSED, THEIR FEARS FADED, AND THEIR REVERENCE DIED, REPLACED WITH THE COLD EDGE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE.  BUT
UNICRON STILL EXISTED.  UNICRON BEGAN TO ADAPT, AND UNICRON ONCE AGAIN BECAME…AWARE.
     WITH THE NEW AWARENESS CAME A NEW ADAPTATION.  NO LONGER SUPPLIED WITH THE ENERGY THAT IT HAD USED ONCE AS FUEL, THE DARK
GOD BEGAN TO FEED OFF OF A NEW SOURCE.
    HE TAINTED THE WILLS OF THOSE THAT LIVED ON THE SURFACE, AND BEGAN TO BEND THEIR HEARTS AND MINDS TOWARD CHAOS.
     WARS ERUPTED IN NEVER BEFORE SEEN SCALES.  CIVILIZATION AFTER CIVILIZATION CRUMBLED AND FELL ON THE SURFACE.
    OFF OF THE CHAOS HE FEASTED.
    BUT STILL, PRIMUS WAS MINGLED WITH HIS DARK ESSENCE, AND KEPT REIGN ON THE DARK GOD AS BEST HE COULD.
    THE WARS CONTINUED, AND ESCALATED AS CENTURIES PASSED.  UNTIL, ONE DAY, IN A BLIND FURY OF RAGE AND CHAOS, THE PLANET WAS
DEALT A DEADLY BLOW--
    You watch as the surface of the blue green world cracked and splintered shattering into space in and explosion of raw destructiveness.
--AND SO WERE THE GODS SEPARATED—
    Two massive chunks of rock and dirt are flung across the galaxy.  They continue on separate paths, unhindered for a great passage of time.  As they spin, they become again round,
other asteroids crash into them, increasing their size, but eventually, they both disappear into the depths of space.
    The walls faded back into the marble painted surface that originally covered them.  The flame column burned in the middle, but no longer did it split into tongues across the high arch of
the temple.
--AS BEFORE, ADAPTATION OCCURRED. –
    The walls around you seemed to turn crystal clear, and the city around you appeared new and seemed to move with life.  As you watched, the buildings grew, changed and the skyline
was replaced with more buildings, more pipelines, more technologies.
--PRIMUS REBUILT THOSE THAT HAD ONCE LIVED HERE, DRAWING THEIR SPARKS BACK INTO HIMSELF AND FORMING A NEW FORM OF LIFE TO
POPULATE THIS WORLD.
    THEY GREW AND PROSPERED.
    BUT HE KNEW, AS HE HAD ADAPTED AND GROWN INTO A NEW FORM, SO WOULD UNICRON.
    AND SO THE TESTING BEGAN.--
    You watch as the cities begin to burst into destruction, the life that had been built began to fight each other, cities fell to destruction, but new cities were built.
    Then, the tableau once again fades.  The flames fall back and the column dies out.
    "Then, Primus is the one that started the wars?"
    "Correct."
    You spin toward the source of the voice.  An old robot with a thick purple robe around his shoulders stood in a far corner of the temple.  He looked… familiar.
    "Who are you."
    "A shadow. A lost memory.  It isn’t important.  What is, is that you understand why you’ve seen all this."
    "You’re asking a lot."
    "Oh, I think not, Dr Archeville.  I think you will learn and… adapt?" the robot says the last with a hint of a smile crossing behind his long white goatee.
    "So, why did he do it, why cause all the wars."
    "You have to realize, the creatures that were here before had been dead for eons.  He pulled their sparks back to help safeguard the future.  But for them to truly be a force against the
Dark God, they would have to know how to protect themselves."
    "But all the suffering…"
    "All the suffering?  Yes, that was a side effect, but originally, it was only the sparks that had been brought to this world that suffered.  Unfortunately, they finally ventured out into the
stars."
    "Surely the thought that they would spread had occurred…"
    "No, not really, think about it.  For millennia, the strongest craft that was made was a simple orbital craft.  After all, when you boil down to it, we are machines, and therefore were
fairly predictable.  Not to mention programmable."
    "But if it was in the programming to stay put…"
    "Change, Archeville.  Change happened.  It took several millennia, but it did happen."
    "And so they took to the stars."
    "And even this did Primus use to expand."
    "What do you mean?"
    "Look at yourself, something was brought back that didn’t exist on a hunk of dead rock.  Biology was returned to Cybertron.  Oh, it’s still not perfect, but adaptation takes time."
    "So, it wants to revert the Transformers… into fleshlings?  But why?  The human form is weaker, easier to corrupt…"
    "No, no, no… it’s not about reverting anything.  It’s about the adaptation and evolution of superior crossbreeds.  You  maintain the power and strength of the Autobots you once
knew, but you now are smaller, more compact, more fluid."
    "I… knew… the Autobots?"
    "Yes, you fought against them, nearly destroyed your own planet."
    "Earth…?"
    The vague image of a blue green sphere teeming with life passes through your processors.
    "Yes, Earth.  Where all these changes came from."
    "Why Earth?"
    "Why indeed.  Why are these planets so inexorably linked through space and time?"
    Suddenly, the realization of what he was saying coalesced in your mind.
    "But that’s impossible.  Unicron already came and was destroyed."
    "No, a part of him did.  There are many parts, but only one center still remains."
    "Then Earth is…"
    "No, Earth CONTAINS.  He has lain there during the entire progress of your civilization.  It was he that brought the Ark to the planet, he that started the Beast Wars."
    "The Beast Wars?"
    "Never mind, you may learn about those all too soon as it is."
    "Then what is it I’m supposed to do."
    "You are the free chess piece.  Don’t you see, you were created under Unicron’s influence, but you have now been recreated with Primus’ help!  You are an enigma, a free wheel!
You hold within you the essence of both of these beings!"
    You look at yourself, raising a talon and flexing it, feeling the blood and sinew mesh with the smooth joints of metal.
    "You, Dr Archville will be one of the few that may survive the oncoming ordeal."
    "Unicron is returning."
    "Part of him already HAS."
    You look up sharply at the robot, but find yourself alone.  The column of flame was gone, and once again, the room looked as it had when you entered.
    A soft bleep comes from your systems, you look down to find that your energy reservoirs were now at fifty percent!
    --Where the slag did I GET energy?!?—
    --With time there comes adaptation.—
    You spin, expecting to see the robot again.  But nothing moves in the darkness of the hall.
    "Well, this much I know.  With increased energy levels comes the power of flight. Dr Archeville, BEAST MODE!!"
    For a second the monstrous form that you had chosen floats above the center of the temple, a flickering light from above shining down on the massive wings that you stretched back in
exultation.
    You float casually toward the door, your tentacles flicking over the heavy bar that holds the door in place.   You flick it aside, and push the doors open.  Silently floating out into the
dusty air.

---

Cybertron: Underground

    You ponder the recent events over in his mind as you fly out of the temple in beast mode. Images of both Earth and Cybertron flicker in your mind, both as separate planets and as
one, merged planet.
    Images of Unicron and Primus also flickered about, as did Autobots, Decepticons, Maximals, and Predacons. None of the images seemed to make sense, and yet, as you think about
the mysterious robot’s words, the images seem to calm and settle their endless dance.
     --I am a free piece, unique in the Universe, a product of both Unicron and Primus, and yet also of neither—
    The thought kept running through your processors.
    "This'd be easier if I had my original memories", you grunt, "since I'm supposedly from Earth..."
    You slowly descended to the ground, too weak to fly much longer. "I've GOT to find some energon... but where???"
    The dust around this cavern was infuriating.  Your filters had shut down to conserve energy, and you find yourself coughing as the dust chokes your siphon units.
    You lean against a stone column, and hear the scrabble of gravel off in the shadows of the oddly lit area.
    --Slag, natives.—
    You move back further into the darkness, bringing your wings to wrap around your body.
    The shape lumbers out into the open.  It’s huge and shuffling on three of its four appendages.  The other pulls it over the rubble and rock that litters the ruined city.
  --And what exactly are you?  What would remain in these ancient caverns?—
    --THEY GREW AND ADAPTED—
    The thought floats casually through your mind.
    --Adapted.  Evolved.  Surely these can’t be…--
    The creature stopped, it’s back was broad and thick with muscles.  It raised a face that was dry and cracking, perhaps it once animal like, but now, the skin on it clung to the structure
underneath, tight and leather-like, giving it the appearance of some lumbering dead thing.  Something glinted as it did so.
    Your optics zoomed in to get a closer look.  Near the eye socket, there was a jagged rip in the flesh.  It was cracked away enough to reveal the silvery glint of metal underneath.
--Metal?  If there’s metal, there’s energy.  But what good does that do me?—
--Adaptation—
    The creature’s head swung sharply in your direction.  As if scenting your presence, it sniffed the air.
    Dropping to all fours it leapt in your direction.  Quickly, you sidestep it and let it crash past you into the column.
    There is a splintering crunch as it hits the heavy stone, but it swings around, seeming unaffected by the blow.
  --Energy levels at thirty five percent—
    Not enough for weapons.
    The monster turns toward you.  A silver skull leers out of the now torn skin.  Rust spots dotted the metal, and wires hung loosely, sparking with energy.
    The creature lunged forward again.
    But for some reason you didn’t move, rather, you take the charge full on.  Something seemed to keep you from reacting, some instict…
      The creature bore you to the ground, and phrases seemed to swirl in your head.
--Adaptation—
      Tentacles flicked out from your face, licking out toward the creature above you.
      A crunching noise is heard… Whether from your body, or the tentacles that now penetrated the monster’s skull, you didn’t know.
      A jolt of energy rushed into you, powering your systems and sending a reeling sensation of joining through you.  You could, for an instant, see and feel as the creature did.  Primitive,
with a heavy hunger, you could see yourself, and could see the ichorous green energy smoking around your eyes.
      Then it was over.  You stood up, hefting the weakened creature.
  --Energy levels at seventy-four percent—
      "Weapons systems, on-line." 

---

Cybertron: Underground

    Thoughts race through your mind. Half-remembered superstitions from your past concerning creatures that drain the energy from others to prolong their own unnatural existence... and
somehow, bats fitted into the equation...
    "What... what has happened to me?!"
    A lone, clear voice cuts through your mind as if in answer.
--Adaptation--
    "Riiight... well, no one said this would be easy..." you glance at the weakened beast and give it a cursory examination.
    It struggled pitifully in the dust as it tried to push itself up to its feet.
  --Pathetic, the creature no longer even has the strength to back it’s lack of intelligence.  But what is the reason behind such a creature?  What is its makeup, it’s function?
If only I could see more…--
    Suddenly, your circuitry shifts and a beam of light fans out from your optics, The light shifts across the struggling form and data began to scroll quickly across your optics.
    As it rolls across you try to read it, but the grasp of its mechanics slips past you.
    After a few moments you spit out, "Well, that was helpful! I know I can learn something from this creature, but I don't know HOW!!! Graaa!" To vent your frustration, you kick the
beast in the side, punting it a few feet away.
    The creature lands on its thick legs and shuffles off into the darkness.
    "Well, I had best keep going... Beast Mode!" gears whir, plates slide, and flesh and muscle stretch as you transform into your squid/bat fuzor beast mode.
    You check your internal gyroscope and take wing upward, toward the ceiling of the dusty city.

    As you wing through the dark tunnels above, you steadily find that your proximity to the surface is increasing.  Your scanners now picked up on more details and the choices in turns
were narrowed as you flew through the tunnels.
    With a screech, you burst out of the confining tunnels and into the velvety night air of Cybertron.
    You float for a moment, flapping your wings and staring out at the myriad of lights that twinkle in the skies above.
    As the shock of the openness faded, you became aware of more.
    The smell and feel of heat suddenly seems to close in on you, explosions sound off in the distance, and a thick black cloud rolls over the dark sky.
    Below you, a stream of metal slag rolls along and drips down into the tunnel you just flew out of.
    Your internals register you as being in the outskirts of Iacon, the capital of Cybertron.  Moreover, you have the vague feeling that the area you were in was familiar.
   --The laboratory!!—
    A building beside you groans and falls downward, instinctively you flapped out of its way and dodged down a side alley.
    Within segments you found yourself outside of a wrecked building.  Markings on the front register as a repair shop.  A certainty grips you as you move inward.  A keypad flashed
hesitantly as its circuits decided whether or not to work.  Without thinking, you’re talons tapped out a code that slid the door aside.
    Certainty gripped you as you stepped inside.  Whatever else this place may be, it must be the Laboratory that Phil had mentioned.
    Inside, robotic parts lay burning and broken across the floor.  You moved inward looking at the remains with a detached interest.  The seen was in ruins, but something about it was
definitely familiar.  You moved toward the back area, and into another room.  There, a door lay ripped opened and bared…
  --This wasn’t caused by the artillery outside … This was torn open from in here!—
    An explosion from beyond the shielded doorway made you jump forward to see what was happening.
    You step through, just as a large, green and black jet roared off through a gaping hole that was blasted in the ceiling, oblivious to your presence.
    Far more advance techno-gadgets lay around the room.
    And in the center, a large bomb sat on the ground…

---

Cybertron: The Laboratory

    "Ah, SLAG!" you spit out, "Gotta think, gotta think... No way I can disarm that thing... Guess the only thing for me to do is..."
    You lift the bomb high above your head and begin flapping your wings, rising slowly into the air.
     "...is to get it as far from here as possible!"
    You fly out the hole in the Lab's roof, Making it about three meters above the roof before a high pitched beep notifies you of detonation.

--Systems reactivated.  Safe mode only.  Operability levels, twenty-four percent.--
    A dullness covered your body.  Large pieces were still completely inoperable after the explosions.
    "O…opti..cs"  you croak, your throat burned as you forced the words out.
    At first, only static blared across your optic nerves, but slowly, it began to resolve into a blurred, twitchy picture.  Colors were removed and everything seemed to
have a flat appearance.
    "Great." You struggled feebly, upsetting some rubble that covered your body.  The fact that you were still alive was a testament to the strength of this new
technology.  The lab was covered in rubble, the roof almost completely collapsed.  Smoke wafted through the roof, filtering in from outside it looked like.
    "At least the lab didn’t catch fire…" you mumble.  Looking down, you noticed that about half of your chest was missing.  You could detect microscopic
movements on the ends of wires, nerves, plates, and skin as repairs were being attempted.
    You stand up, hesitantly, and steady yourself on a protruding chunk of wrecked computer equipment.  Your internal chronometer showed that two days had
passed!!
    "Hate to have seen myself before…" you shuffle over to the side, looking around the chamber.   A few things appeared to have survived destruction, but not
much.
    "Phil?"
    No answer and scanners were too weak to operate.
     The cold metallic air was stifling with smoke, even after two solar cycles had passed.  And your voice echoed hollowly, as you realize that your audio sensors
must still be malfunctioning as well.
    You shuffle around looking at the larger pieces of things that still operated.  One was an odd chamber, across the front there was writing signifying it as a Critical
Repair Chamber.
    --CR, eh… well, I could definitely use that.—
    You check behind it and find that the leads still connected to the wall.  Apparently you had built the lab fairly solidly.
    "Now, if there’s still energy coming in…" you reach up to a rear panel, hitting a reboot switch on the unit.
    A hum of energy greets you… although it sounds like it is miles away.
    There is a kachunk noise and a hissing as the CR Chamber opens up.
    You step inside hesitantly, turning and pushing back against a set of braces that clicked around your back and waste.
    The door shut with a thud, and the inside of the chamber turned blue as it began to fill with a warm, thick gas.
    Then an odd bleep sounded, and the lights turned white.
    "CR chamber unable to deactivate patient."
    "What?   Explain."
    "For critical regeneration, a patient must be deactivated."
    "Completely deactivated?"
    "Core consciousness may remain active. But response system will be slowed."
    "Then I can do a system shutdown."
    "Negative.  Unknown repair process already active on patient.  Outcome of Critical Regeneration unknown."
    "What?"
    "…Uknown repa…"
    "Yeah, yeah, yeah, I got that.  Don’t all droids have internal repair?"
    "Yes, but current patients systems not fully recognized by computers."
    "So you can’t work on me."
    "Processing…  Modifications to the systems response may enable a speeding of current repair process."
    "So… modify."
    "Negative, modifications must be done by your local technician."
    "Oh, great, that’s me… or it was…" You think for a moment, if it was still the same Doctor Archeville inside of you, and you had the ability to fix these things
before…
    "Computer, download statistical files and schematics of Critical Regeneration Chamber."
    "Affirmative."

    Ten megacycles later, the modifications were complete… you think.  You had dug around in the lab until you located the proper tools, and cleared out an area
where you could work.  Most of the job was done in programming.  You downloaded three different programming languages and accessed the statements as you
went along.  With time, you would be able to do the job in cycles, but as it stood, you had to make due.  There were also areas you neglected to research as you
went.  But to research them all would have tripled the time required to complete the project.
    The hardware’s modifications were easier.  The schematics, while complex were fairly easy to understand.   You’re hands moved through the modifications as if
guided by some lost memory.
    Now, you stand in front of the modified CR.  It’s door open and beckoning.
    You slide again inside.
    "Systems current operability?" you inquire.
    -- Thirty percent operability—
    You push yourself against the braces of the chamber as the door again swung closed.
    The lights, now colored a green, flickered on, coloring the gas a ghastly color.  You leaned back and observed for a second.  You had disabled the absolute
necessity for shutdown, but before long, your pain receptors would reactivate… It would be better if you were out for that part.
    You watch as several armatures reach out from the chamber walls.  A silvery liquid metal is sprayed out in the zero gravity field that the chamber generated.  It
hovered in place above the gap in your torso as other arms formed it into a solid piece.  That piece would be placed with a nanometer of space between in and your
current structure.  The nanites that apparently conducted your internal rebuilding would then finish the job, connecting the newly build addition onto the structure they
were completing.
The nannites themselves were a questionable part to the process.  The computer recognized them, but was unsure how to operate around them.  Apparently most
common regeneration  was done with rerouting and minor materialization of extra pieces from a ‘holding’ space and matter converter.  The nannites were somehow
‘knitting’ the repairs as if from thin air. Apparently it was very efficient, but the severity of the damage would take days yet to complete.
    Satisfied that it wasn’t about to turn you into a hippopotamus, or something equally as awkward, you shut down your consciousness, lapsing into a sleep state.

   --Systems reactivated.—
    You open your eyes as the chamber doors unsealed with a rasping hiss.  The warm gas slid out as cold metallic air rushed inward.
    You run a quick system scan and find yourself at optimum operability.  The chamber even recharged your systems completely.
    You stepped out and flexed your talons and wings.  Blood raced through the flesh, and energy through the metallic.  For the first time since being created, you felt
the thrill of life coursing through your body.
    "Excellent… Scanners, locate unit Phil."
    There was a humming as a sensor sweep crossed the room.
--Unit Phil is not present within a one kilometer radius.—
    "What?  Scan for deactivated components."
   --Scan includes deactivated components, and residual signatures of energon output.—
     --Then he’s not here…--
     You pace the floor debating what to do.
     After a short while you begin to clean up the lab, locating what equipment did survive.
     Some of the computer banks were fried, but there were still a large amount of the networked libraries still active on the planet.  You had three terminals still
activated and linked to those archives, one of which you had located earlier during the repair of the CR.
    Apparently, only about one one-hundredth of the files that you maintained locally remained intact.  Still, that represented a large quantity of data. One of the local
computers had remained active all through the explosions and attack, and contained some recorded data on the occurrences.
    There were also several weapons left.  A hoversled in the back of the lab was junked, as well as a set of VR equipment that spanned the center of the lab.
Nothing left but spare parts.
    Some logs of previous research were among the data tracks that were stored, and contained some recorded data on the recent events.
    You noted everything, resisting the temptation to delve into them, at least until you had your bearings and could make judgment on what course to take.  Then, you
came across a data track labeled Phil, and dated around the time of your return.
    Activating the file, an image of the floating unit appeared on the screen.
    "Dr Archeville.  I am still unsure of what has or is transpiring with your new form, but the planet of Cybertron is now under siege.  I leave this recording in case I
am terminated.  Hopefully, the computer banks of this computer are shielded enough to survive."
   --Just barely, the unit that had survived was charred black on the outside, and several of it’s components were fried from the heat.—
    "The data tracks that contained your previous knowledge are contained on the main banks of the computers here.  In case they did not survive, there are two
backup copies.  One is archived within me, the other is on the computers onboard Ship.  You kept Ship located on the outskirts of Cybertropolis itself. The
coordinates are coded into this data file.  Unfortunately, I doubt that a direct download of the data will be possible without considerable work.  I only gained a
preliminary scan of your new form, but it apparently has some sever differences from both your cybernetic body and the common Cybertronian form.
    "The attack outside has commenced since this message was relayed across all of Cybertron…"
    With that, the recording of the shadowy figure and its proclamation announcing the arrival of the Decepticons played back for you.
    "There is apparently an armada orbiting Cybertron, and along with it is a ship that designates as the Decepticon Warworld.  An ancient moon sized warship that
was used by the    Decepticon leader, Bludgeon, nearly three centuries in the past.
    "I’m afraid that is the most I can give you.  I hope that you receive this data and are able to use it.  Farewell Doctor."
    With that, the image blinked out.

---

Cybertron: The Laboratory

    Quickly you pull the coordinates from the data track.  There was little else to do here, still, you cleared up the mess and logged in what you could of the supplies
that were left.  This may yet be useful as a staging ground for whatever you will end up planning.
    You deactivate the power, so as not to draw any undo attention and leave the Lab behind.
    As you wing into the night sky, you look down on the destruction done to the inner city of Iacon.  Buildings were melted to slag, nothing was left standing.  The
spot that your data tracks registered as the Council Chambers was nothing more than a lake of metal that still steamed as it cooled off.
    Winds blew across, hot and heavy from the city below.  You swoop down into the streets of the great Cybertropolis, moving out of the open.
    As you flew further away from the center of destruction, still no life could be seen or heard.  Normally brightly-lit streets were dark and empty; buildings were
silent and cold.  Apparently, the entirety of the city evacuated during the attack, but why hadn’t anyone returned?
    The silence was oppressive and unnatural.
    But it helped you to hear the whine of engines behind you.
    You jerk yourself into an alleyway, moving into the darkness as the form flashed passed in the streets.  It was some kind of technological Transformer.  Your
scanners reach out and register the energy patterns of a Decepticon.
    There’s the sound of gears sliding in transformation and the screech of the robot’s feet as he slides to a halt several streets down.
    You peer out carefully, stabbing your wing claws deep into the building’s sidewalls.
    The Decepticon was purple and khaki, and was peering down an alley, not too far from where you were.
    "Come out, come out whatever you are, Maximal scum!"  he leers.
    Nothing can be heard from where you are.
    "Like I’m gonna play dumb after what you did to Vulcan.  Blitzwing, ground attack!" The robot shifts mode again, changing into a heavily armored hover tank.
Two panels slide on the sides of the tank, and racks of missiles flip out.
    The alley explodes in a torrent of fire, the missiles tearing up the sides of the buildings they hit.  In the flash of light, you see a blueish simian form leap out and on
top of the tank, pushing off and jumping away down the street.
    The tank spins and moves after him.  Heavy cannon blaring reports and ripping up the road behind the retreating Maximal.
    Your sensors read that Maximal, as well as one other and a Cybertron’s signals racing in the nearby area.  The monkey leaped up as one of the signals, the
Cybertron’s, swooped in and grabbed him.  The Cybertron was a black and blue triangular fighter of some kind, and roared over the tank at blinding speed.
    The tank tranformed into it’s flight mode and tore off after the others, leaving you once again, alone.
--But why didn’t he see me, obviously he was scanning the streets, and I don’t have any jammers on…--
    You lurch off the building and back into the air, choosing a different path from the one you had been following…

    After time, you once again fall into the listlessness caused by the silence of the city streets.  You had been traveling for a mega cycle.  By now, you had thought for
sure you would have seen more signs of life.
    The wharehouse district was at an end, left behind for the suburbs of the Cybertropolis.  You registered that the area where the ship was left was a spaceport.
Ahead, you could see the massive tower that housed the spaceport itself.
    It was ominously silent.  No ships flew around it, and no lights lit it’s bulk.
    "Well, here we go…"

---

Cybertron: The Spaceport of Cybertropolis

    You fly up to the massive arched entryway to the spaceport.  Silence seemed to stir with the echoes of the life that once thrived in the great tower. You transform
and land with a soft click of your talons.
     Quickly, silently, you sweep yourself into the shadows of the tower.  Your ship was kept on one of the lower, more permanent holding facilities of the spaceport.
Stealthily, you make your way to the right bay, all the while keeping your eyes open for danger.
     Blast marks char the walls as you travel inward, obviously there had been some fighting here, but still, no bodies littered the floors.
     You find the bay where Ship was held.  Quickly, your hands fly through a subconscious set of key codes.  The door slides open silently on its tracks, and you
step into the hangar beyond.
     The Ship still sat there, but large portions had been removed!  Strips of metal had been pulled off of the ship, and pieces of the engines and hull were missing…
     As you stood staring at the hulled out starship, the high whine of engines began to grow loudly in your ears.
     You spin toward the door to hear, "Cyclonus, battle mode!!",  a screeching noise,  and see a shower of sparks as a robot landed and skidded to a halt in the
entryway.
     The purple jet-bot pulled a rifle and leered at you, "I don’t know who… or what you are, but if you’re not Decepticon, you’re scrap!"

---

Cybertron: The Spaceport of Cybertropolis

    Thinking quickly, you turn and salute Cyclonus, "Decepticon Unit Phobos, Sir!"
    The purple Decepticon’s eyes narrow, "I don’t recognize you, or your make, beast bot."
    "Uhm, perhaps we’ve just never run into each other.  After all there are hundreds of Decepticons."
    Cyclonus’ eyes narrowed, "Really, and just what battalion are you from?"
    "I, err, the ninth legion under, uhm, Soundwave…"
    "Liar." The Decepticon draws his weapon up and fires.
    You raise your arm in defense, the blast hitting your arm with a whining shriek.
    Pain arcs up your arm from the inside as you feel your metallic innards rust up underneath the flesh.
    You jump away, ducking behind a large piece of scrap metal that hands loose from the Ship.
    "Ok, we’ll do this your way.  Weapon’s systems activate!"
    You hear the sound of several hover engines.  You look out to see about five Drones floating around Cyclonus.  They were roundish robots with short, straight
wings jutting backwards and thick arms made for lifting. Beneath their solitary eyes were small mounted blaster cannons.
    "Crap."  You fire at the group, but they scatter, and send a hail of blasts cascading off your cover.  The steel whines and spits off carbon charring in protest.
    Then, a large explosion sounds from their direction.
    You look out to see a fireball sizzling out of existence from where Cyclonus and his drones had stood.
    The purple Decepticon was on the ground, and his attention was diverted up and over the ship, where he was firing at something else.  Two of the droids lay in
pieces from where the blast had hit them.
    Cyclonus was backing towards the doorway, as another powerful blast destroys another done.
    You fire a few blasts from your cannons, hitting yet another drone and sending it careening into the doorway above Cyclonus’ head.
    "Cyclonus, flight mode!!"  The purple Decepticon transforms and roars out of the hangar doors, the remaining drones following him.
    You turn and look up at the top of the ship.   A form jumps down in a silver blur of movement.
    There is a heavy thud as the large robot lands.
    He stands up to his full height, well over three or four times your size.  Silver scales seem to plate his body in heavy armor plating.  A large dragon head was in
place of his right hand, and silver horns crowned his head.
    "Who are YOU?!?"  you ask, a little stunned at the robot’s appearance.
    Purple eyes look at you dispassionately, "My name is Gigano.  And you seem to be something of an oddity."
    "Where did you come from?"
    "I saw you during the initial attack.  I watched as the Decepticons took a marked interest in your labs. I followed one called EagleEye there.  I must admit, I’m
surprised that you survived the blast from the bomb he left."
    "So, you’ve been watching me?"
    "Not expressly, I’ve been watching most of Iacon, or what’s left of it.  I’ve been trying to figure out the Decepticon’s game.  That means I watch and learn from
whatever they seem to take interest in."
    "But why would they take interest in me?"
    "Not in you per say, but rather your labs.  What kind of work were you doing there?  Obviously not simple repair work…"
    You mind was racing, no, there wasn’t simple repair work being done there.  There was all kind of advanced technologies in you lab, but it hadn’t looked like
much of that was taken.  So what could the Decepticon’s have been after?
    "I don’t know.  What would they be interested in?"
    "Too be sure, anything that would advance their rather limited resources."
    "Limited?!?"
    "Limited.  Surely you’ve noticed the lack in numbers of actual Decepticon’s on the surface.  Unless I miss my guess, they seem to be holding onto Cybertron with
the rather tenuous grasp of bravado.  I do not believe they have the sheer numbers to hold up under a true attempt to remove them from control."
    "What makes you believe that?"
    "Their work in the city seems to be to convert a number of warehouses into factories.  Factories that are equipped to create battle drone, possibly a more advance
version of these upgraded worker drones."  He picks up one of the shattered drone carcasses.
    "An army of drones?"
    "Yes, they could control the streets and spread their influence with a fairly limited number of actual Decepticons."
    "What’s your stake in all this?"   You look up at the large Cybertronian.
    "Let’s just say that I don’t like being rousted from my… nesting grounds.   I want the Decepticon’s removed from here."
    "Then why save me?"
    "If you hold knowledge that they are interested in, then you may hold knowledge that could help me."
--Great, if only I could remember anything…—
    "So, I ask you again," rumbles the silver Cybertronian, "what were you working on?"

---

Cybertron: The Spaceport of Cybertrolis

    You look up at Gigano,  "I... I'm not sure..."
     "What do you mean, you're not sure? You're not sure what you were working on in your own Lab? "
     "Something like that..."
     A sudden burst of incongruous images and sounds rampages through your consciousness.  The last and only lingering image is a small, silver sphere.
    "I DO know I had a friend named Phil there..."
    "Hmmm… I saw no others in the lab…  If he was like you, maybe…"
    You shake your head and cut him off, "No, no... Not like me... different..."
    "Different… The only thing that Eagle Eye seemed to be interested in was a computer module, a small silver orb…
    Your head snaps up, "That’s him!"
    Gigano’s eyes narrow, "Fascinating, a free floating computer module that you consider your… friend?  He must have been very advanced indeed…"
    "Where would they have taken him?"
    "Possibly to the Warworld.  Their command ship.  It is in orbit around the planet…"
    You begin to search the derelict Ship for any signs of active circuitry.
    Gigano watches and ponders what you’ve told him, "If your ‘friend’ was with you for your experiments, then it may have a record of what you have done.  If that
were the case, then perhaps it would be worthwhile to recover."
    The computer banks were missing or shattered, their data tracks scrapped and slagged.
    "Perhaps we could get onboard the War…"
    "Slag!!!" you slam a taloned fist into one of Ship's walls, leaving a large fist-shaped imprint.
    "Problem?" Gigano raises an eyebrow and looks at you out of the corner of his eye.
    "I came here looking for some memories... but apparently the Decepticons stole them... Now, my only chance of getting them back is with Phil..."  You growl with
frustration, "We go back to my Lab, now..." You stomp past Gigano, but the silver robot reaches out and stops you.
    "For now, I believe that your goals coincide with my own, but be cautious about your temper.  You may find that stomping around and slamming into things will
not lead you on the path to a fruitful life."
    You glare at the larger robot, but he reaches out and activates a hologram from the eyes of his dragon-head.  A picture of the outside of the massive tower can be
seen.
    Outside the entryway a battalion of tanks could be seen.  All of them were identical and moving in a tight formation.  There were around twenty-five of them.
    "You see, one of the factories has managed to finish some units this solar cycle.  As soon as Cyclonus saw… you, he requested that the tanks reroute toward our
position."
     You grimace, "Then we’re trapped."
     "Hardly, we can fly, they can not, but if you had not known of their presence, you would have been caught head on by those gun turrets."
     You transform to beast mode, "Then it’s up and over their heads before they can take a shot."
     You notice the instant fade of momentary surprise register on Gigano’s face.  Whether it was from your statement, or your transformation, you couldn’t be sure.
     "Indeed, Gigano, Beast mode."  The large silver body seems to almost unzip, the plates unlinking and spreading out sideways, then curling around to take the form
of a long snake-like serpent dragon.
    You spin and fly out into the hallways, heading toward the elevator shafts,  Gigano uncurls from behind you and begins to weave through the air in a wingless flight.

    "You haven’t told me your name…"
    "Archeville..." you barely register the question, or the response you give, your mind focused on retrieving Phil and thus yourself.

    The tanks below you were silver and steel in color.  They each bore yellow stripping and had large, three pronged cannons set slightly to the side of a cockpit unit.
Red lights flashed side to side on the cockpits, like visor-optics.
     "Ugly." You twitch a tentacle as you peer over the edge.
     "But powerful." Remarks Gigano.  He stood in robot mode next to you.  "There."  He points, "It’s that simpering fool, Cyclonus."
     You look and see the purple robot walk out from the entryway and begin to bark orders at the tanks.
     You strain to hear what is conspiring.  By instinct, your audio sensors adjust themselves to pinpoint the area where Cyclonus was standing.
     "… and I want units five through ten on top of the building.  They’re still inside, let’s keep them there."
     You look at Gigano, "It’ll take those tanks forever to get up the elevators, only one, maybe two will fit at a time."
     Gigano glances at you then looks back down, "Wait, look!!"
     You look back down, and watch as the tanks transform into heavy robots.  Their arms end in clamps, and the cannon turrets are on their shoulders.  Heavy
treads are on their feet, and the cockpit units became their heads.
     "Primus!"you gasp.
     They clamped onto the walls and began to haul themselves up, using their treads for friction and leverage.
     "It’s time to leave!" you mutter and lurch out into the skies over the towers.  Gigano was on your tail, once again in the serpent form.
     The air filled with a heavy humming noise and then a powerful rush of energy as blasts ripped apart the air beside you.
     Gigano turned his head as one of the blasts slammed into his body.  Smoke charred away, but he seemed otherwise unperturbed, the massive jaws of the dragon
opened and a bolt of flame slammed into the building.  Steel and wire melted and ran down the side from the heat of the blast, but the tank-bots didn’t seem to care,
they kept firing, their blasts filling the skies with deadly accuracy.
     "This way!" you yell as you dive low into the cityscape of Cybertropolis.

     Soon, the tank drones are left far behind. You felt a little charred, even though none of the blasts hit you directly.  You could see black burns on your wings, and
one or two spots on your body revealed a red fleshy wetness where the surface had been ripped.
     Gigano had several char marks, but not once did you see him react more than from the sheer weight of impact.
     --They seemed to be aiming directly at him…--
    You ponder the implications.
     The Lab is silent when the two of you return.  You transform, landing on the ground.  Gigano floats in, eyeing you oddly again as he coils down his massive body.
     "What?"
     "Where did you come by that body?"
     "Why, what’s so damn important about it.  Why does everyone seem so slaggin’ interested in it!?!?"
     "You tell me."
     "I DON’T KNOW!!"
     "Have you ever… seen your transformed mode?"
     "What, the squid thing?  It’s something from some old …"
     "No, I don’t mean WHAT you are, have you ever really looked at yourself."
     "No.  I guess not, not really."
     Gigano stands up and walks over to a fallen panel that you had moved into a pile of junk when you cleaned, "Transform."
     You ponder it for a second and then change to the beast mode, grappling onto a low hanging pole, and hanging upside down from it.  You craned your neck
nearly one hundred and eighty degrees from it’s natural position and watch Gigano.
     He had refolded himself into robot mode, zipping up the plates and scales to form a rather solid body.  His dragon arm was blowing a heated blast of air slowly
onto the panel he had picked up, polishing its surface to sheen.
     He holds it up to reflect your body.
     "Yeah, so…" then he steps back to show you the wings that were spread out in annoyance.  Your mind snapped instantly to the point he was making.
     "I’m… small!"
     The wing to body ration was easily doubled in it’s gulf from your robot mode!
     "Exactly.  Watch this."  Once again he holds his arm up, projecting a hologram.  This time it was of you, transforming.
     It was unlike any transformation you had ever seen…

     Pieces folded out, unlocking from the sides and top, levers pulled and switched positions so your head moved around, your wings swept back and up.
But all the while, there was an odd glow that emanated from underneath the solid plates of your body.
     In that odd glow, an almost amorphous look could be barely seen.  Much like what you had read about the protoform units while you studied the files
on the CR chamber.
     Pieces seemed to swell and form heavy structures there, filling out the pieces of your body that would otherwise be missing.

     You stare at the looped transformation for several minutes before speaking.
     "There is cellular alteration on a nano scale.  Cellular growth is created and collapsed…"
     You mind worked feverishly, piecing together the problem with the CR chamber with what you now watched.
     "…The nannites that repair my body also seem to be responsible for a massive reconstructing underneath the more solid pieces of my body.  It is instantaneous
recreation of the body.  A transformation hybrid of gears and nano technology…  Fascinating!"
     "Indeed." Gigano’s purple eyes regarded you with cold dispassion, "You are not like anything I have ever witnessed.  You… are not from Cybertron."

---

Cybertron : the Lab

    "Yes, well, I have always considered myself... unique..." you state as you continue looking at yourself in the makeshift mirror.
    "I'm sure you have..." Gigano says nonchalantly. "But that still doesn't answer my question - where did you come by that body?"
    You flip off of the pipe that you had been clinging to, transforming back into robot mode while in midair, and landing on his feet in a crouched position. "I do not
know..." You stand, and stare Gigano in the eye, to prove your sincerity.
    "My first concrete memory is of awakening in a huge chamber far beneath Cybertron, and I had to fight my way out. I do not know how I got there, nor how I
acquired this body... but I do know I NEED to retrieve Phil!"
    "You... are a strange one, Archeville..." Gigano says after some time. "But, as I said earlier, our goals coincide, so let us plan a way to get onto Warworld. Now, I
can attain escape velocity and enter orbit under my own power, and I can probably evade their sensors, as their numbers are spread out thin enough as is. The
question is: can you?"
    "Well, I'm sure I could evade any sensors - this body seems very agile, and swift to boot. But... I do not know if I could survive outer space..."
    Gigano cocks his head. "What do you mean?"
    "Simply put, I am not sure if this body requires an atmosphere to survive. I'm fine here on Cybertron, in its' cool metallic air, but outer space is another thing. Then
there's the freezing temperatures and the rather messy problem of explosive decompression..."
    "Wonderful!" Gigano shouts as he throws his arms up in quasi-disgust. "I'm teamed up with a fleshy-bot!!!"
    "I do appear partially 'fleshy', yes... but I believe I've a way around any possible limitations. After all, we ARE in a Laboratory..."

     The two of you begin work on plans to help you survive in the space.  Gigano seems under the impression that you should be fine, but knowledge of what you are
causes you to stay on the safe side of things.
     You are surprised to find that Gigano’s mind was very agile, his mind leaping to conclusions almost as quickly as your own.
     Between the two of you, it does not take a long time to create a small, agile landing pod.  Mostly rigged together of energy shielding and a seat, the pod would
enable you in either mode to fly out into the vacuum above.
     You rig the seat and harness onto yourself and activate the shield bubble.  With a whine, it shuts on, covering you in s softly shimmering sphere of energy.
     Gigano looks at it dubiously, "It will protect you from space, and even bounce off a few blasts aimed in your direction, but…  It cuts down your agility, and they
will undoubtedly pick you up on scanners."
     "It’s the best we can do, though.  At least with limited time and resource."
     "Perhaps… transform."
     "What?"
     "Transform, I noticed a… side effect of your transformation earlier.  I didn’t have time to truly check on it then, but it may just help us."
     You shrug and transform into beast mode.
     "Yessss…"  Gigano smiles.
     "What?"
     "Your Beast mode seems to have some natural jamming systems set into it.  You do not appear on any of my scanners."
     "So I’m invisible in beast mode?"
     "Nearly invisible, I can still pick up some traces of you, and scanning for a biologic would show your presence, but a general scan should show nothing.  The
machinery we used shouldn’t be enough to alert anyone until it is too late."
     "Then we’re set?"
     "I believe so.  First, perhaps we should have a… plan.  After all, neither of us has ever been on the Warworld before…"
     Your mind drifts, and you see images of a massive war station.  Its hallways are empty and silent, but you seem to look up at them from a mouse’s perspective.
     "I think I may know a few things about it…"you find yourself saying.
     "What?"
     "Never mind, let’s just say it seems to trigger some memories.  I think I might be able to help us once we get on board.  But first, perhaps we should consider
some… personal upgrades…"  You begin to rummage through your lab, looking for extra weapons and gadgets that might help out…

---

As the two of you rummage through the technological piles in the Lab, you pick up a collection of parts and start assembling them together.

Gigano looks over at you in curiosity, "What ARE you doing now, Archeville?"

You shake your head, "I've a nagging feeling that I've been to WarWorld before... I can't quite explain it, but I do know we can’t be too prepared before going..."

 You jury-rig the components into a short-range holo-module, "This may come in handy. Hook it to your core processor..." You say as you toss it to Gigano.

                "WHAT?! Why would I want to hook this piece of junk up to my brain?" the giant grimaces as he looks at the item dubiously.

"It's a holo-module, set to work in conjunction with that small one in your arm,  and once hooked to your core processor, will allow you to project most any image you can think of."

Archeville continues to rummage as Gigano shrugs and makes the few connections needed.

You pick up a holo rifle, but toss it aside, “Too subtle.”  Then begin to rummage through the other weaponry that litters a small stockpile you created.

About an hour later, you and Gigano stand ready, armed with your new 'toys'. Gigano has the holo-module connected, and you had upgraded his sensors.  You had looked at his weapon systems, but found that the power output was already easily a match if not better than anything that you could give him.

Now, you sat down into your landing pod, in beast mode, with a satchel of high-tech tools and thieving equipment slung over your form.

You had also worked on your own internal weaponry – advancing your eye weapons and switching the heavy missiles in your forearm for a powerful and compact forearm-mounted fusion cannon.

Both you and Gigano had fueled up on Energon beforehand. Now you both look to each other, Warrior and Scientist, and nod silently as you blast out through a hole in the Laboratory and make your ways toward Warworld...

The massive fortress floated silent and deadly in the upper atmosphere of Cybertron.  Like a deadly moon it glimmered, yellow and steel, with it’s horrible decoration stretching out before the great battleship.

The low-level scanners on your rig lit up across the energy bubble’s curved surface.  There were several satellites that floated around, but most were a good distance off.

You move carefully up to the hull of the warship, where Gigano was already curled up close against the hull.  His head unlooped and nodded toward a access hatch.

“Can you open it?” His voice is a sibilant whisper beneath the hum of the ships enormous engines.

You activate a switch, and two, long, extending tentacles protrude from the pack you have on you.  They pierce through the shielding and manipulate the controls on the hatch.

Within seconds, your entry into the Warworld was secured.

The two of you silently made your way down the hallways.  Still, you stayed in Beast mode, however, Gigano was in robot mode, weapons at the ready.

Moving through the hallways was reminiscent of try to make your way through a great maze from the scraps of some forgotten dreams.  Areas look vaguely familiar, but only as if you had seen them once, at a glance.

Still, you move down the corridors.

Gigano grabs your tail and pulls you back suddenly.   As you flap to regain your balance, he puts a finger to his mouth for silence.

Then you hear it, a roar of engines, and a car speeds across the hall, far down the cooridor from you.  A bluish helicopter, a black and gold set of twin planes, and finally a large bird of some kind closely follow it.

They speed across the hallway and off into a corridor that leads horizontal from you.

The report of gunfire follows closely on their heels as two jets follow behind them.

After they passed Gigano leaned closer to you, “The ones in front were Autobots, the two jets behind were Decepticons.”

“Then we’re not the only ones causing problems up here?”

“There’s more, did you get a good look at the jets?”

“No, they were moving kind of fast…”

Gigano hoists his dragon arm and projects another holo.  This one crystal clear and rotating. One of the jets appeared on it.  It was green with brown camouflage on it.  As the hologram rotated, it showed massive damage to the jet’s structure.  Some of the gaping holes even went all the way through the jet.

                You shake your head, “No way.  They couldn’t possible even fly with that much damage!”

                “I agree, however the proof is moving through the hallways now.  Also, the Autobots seemed to have very few weapon readings among them.  And even stranger, the sensors you enhanced in me read that their engines weren’t even at full throttle.”

                “Hmmm… Then the question would be why not just catch up to the Autobots and terminate them.”

                “Yes, the jets were just seeming to follow them, playing with them almost.”

                You flick a tentacle in the negative, “Or herding them…”

---

The Warworld: Somewhere over Cybertron
                “Use your holoprjectors, multiply our numbers!” With that, you lurch out into the cooridor, transforming into bot mode.

                “Archeville!  Wait!” yells Gigano, but your quarry was already diving down a turbo-lift shaft.  You leap forward, and down, following then as they dodge into a horizontal shaft.

                You hear and explosion and see the jets collide and tumble for a second through an inferno of shrapnel and fire.

                You activate your chest plasma cannons, muscle and sinew separating as the heavy plates of your chest swung aside to reveal the barrels of two powerful weapons.

                There is a hiss and a crack as a ball of fiery plasma jets down, slamming into the jet on the left.

                Pieces scatter as he is torn into shreds of metal.  The other jet, a white-purple one, is knocked again sideways into the wall, leaving a dent.

                Somehow he was already transforming, pulling a weapon to bear.

                A ball of fire sped over your shoulder, down the hallway, nailing him mid-center.  The lower half of his body melts as he drops to the ground in a sizzling puddle of slag.

                You land next to them, but as the smoke clears, only the faint sound of the Autobot’s retreating can be heard.

                You notice a flicker of light as Gigano lands next to you.  Images of warriors disappeared from the cramped tunnel.

                “Impulsive, and dangerous.”  Admonishes Gigano.

                “They seemed like they needed help.” You shrug.

                The torso on the floor twitches and begins to right itself.

                “He’s still functioning!” Gigano warns.

                Quickly, you set a jamming field around the section, blocking him from sending any transmissions for assistance.

                The dragon transforms with a slurred hiss and snatches the torso’s arm up into the air as it reached for a weapon.

                “Not so fast, Decepticon.”  He hisses.

                “Wait, don’t slag him, yet!”  you twist the squirming torso around, wires dripped hot metal down onto the floor, and you had to be cautious not to burn your skins.

                Most of the helmet armoring was blown off, making it easy to access his CPU through the metallic skull.

                Access: Computer Unit Phil.

                Query: Location.

                A schematic scrolls out pinpointing a central ‘nervous system’ area of the Warworld.  Phil’s location seemed to be buried in the thick webbing of wires that ran through the ship.  More specifically, he seemed to be located somewhere near the top, near an epicenter of structural activity in the column.

                The robot’s knowledge of the area was limited, extremely limited.  But his database of passcodes would come in handy later.

                After a few nanocycles you disengage.

                “Ok, now scrap him.”

                Gigano slams the bot into the wall, smashing the metallic torso like a grape.

                He drops to the ground, his pulsing spark exposed.

                “Let us be on our way…”

                “Wait!” you interrupt the silver robot, “Look!”

                You were crouched down over the torso, looking at where the spark crystal was exposed. It’s blue light shone up as it pulsed with life.  Wires and energy feeds still led to it, and more than likely this robot would drop into stasis and survive.

                But that wasn’t what had attracted your attention.

                The odd unit attached to his spark was what you were staring at.

                Spiked and dark the metal seemed to pulse and almost shift shape while you watched.  It was like a bar that was attached across the spark.  Lights and circuitry shimmered across its surface.  You reached toward it, but drew back as a thorny protrusion reached out to snap at you.

                “What in Primus is it?” growls Gigano.

                “That’s just the problem, I don’t think Primus has much to do with this.  Look at these energy lines…” you point to an icorous orange line that was thin enough to be invisible if you looked at the wrong angle.  The lines spread out from the unit and to all parts that were still attached.  You grabbed up a disembodied hand and looked.  There were still lines, but they were fading… no, as you watched they were retracting!

                You drop the pieces and stand, “I don’t know what the slag that thing is, or where it came from, but it looks like it’s feeding power to all the pieces.”

                “Could it be the cause of their remaining animate, even when half vaporized?”

                “Possibly.  I’d need a live subject and a massive lab to even begin to guess.”

                “We don’t that kind of time.  What did you learn from him?”

                “Where Phil was, and a few passcodes.”

                “Excellent, then the next move is up to you, Dr. Archeville.”

---

 The Warworld
                 "Simple - we head for where Phil, and myself, are..." You transform into beast mode and begin to fly in the direction of the Autobots, "But first, we get reinforcements..."

"Are you completely mad, Archeville?!" Gigano hisses, "What do you mean, 'find yourself'? And how do we know those Autobots will help us?"

"I... have a feeling... you coming or not?"

Gigano returns to his dragon form, and flies after you, muttering something under his breath.
                You follow the shaft, following scratch marks and tire marks through the interconnecting turbo shafts.  Finally, you find where one leads out.  You pry open the doors and jump out, transforming.

                As you land, and Gigano coils down next to you, you are greeted by the sight of a Decepticon.

                He was heavy, about three quarters the size of Gigano, and he had massive damage.  There was a cannon and some faceplates tied to his shoulder with a bundle of loose wiring.  One arm hung limply, and obviously had originally housed the gun that now hung over his shoulder.  The other arm appeared functional, and had a cannon still attached to it.  There where huge holes in his armor, and you could see the cyber-skeletal jaw underneath his torn faceplate.

                You snarl at him, “What did you do with the Autobot’s, Decepticon.”

                He returns the snarl, “What are you!”.

                You had already started a jamming field in the area, and with good reason.  You could tell he was trying to get a message out.  Gigano transformed and added, “I believe he asked you first.”

                “I scrapped them, SCRAPPED THEM ALL!!!”

                He hoist his good arm up, but Gigano moved forward with lightning speed to snatch the arm back, pinning it harmlessly away

                The squeal of bending metal echoes as Gigano continued, “I do believe we’ll have no foolish heroics.  Answer the question and we may just flush you into space instead of melting you into slag.”

                “I did answer!” He looks at you with an odd look of total revulsion.

                “I meant answer truthfully.” Gigono sighs, “There is signs of a fight, but I do not see any sign of their carcasses.”

                “I flushed them into space!”

                “In your condition, hardly.”

                You moved over to an area that had several gunshot holes in the ground.  Bending over you find that the deck was still warm. “They’ve left.  The deck is still warm, they musta stolen a shuttle.”

                “So much for your ‘Autobot help’.” spits Gigano.

                “Still… I have a feeling…” you pause for a moment and shake off the thought.  Then turn to get up and walk back towards the other two.

                “That leaves us with what to do with him…”

---

The Warworld: a hangar bay

            “Well,” the ruined robot grunted out, “there's no need to get rough, since it looks like we're after the same thing. Hmm, time, I assume, is of the essence so why don't you just go and find  your self a nice little shuttle and take off after them? There's no need to waste it by trying to destroy me.”
Gigano shakes him with a rattle that jars several bolts free. You just look at the sniveling Decepticon with disgust, “I know what I need to know.  I know where Phil is.  Do what you want with him.”

Gigano grimaces as he drops him to the ground. The arm that was the dragon head raises toward him and you can see the rippled wave of heat as he prepares to incinerate the Decepticon.

Then another voice calls from across the Warworld’s landing bay, “I think that will be quite enough, Gigano.”

You spin to see a dark robot at the top of a landing across the bay.

 “Clench.” Gigano rumbles in a low, dangerous voice.

You look back and forth between the two, unsure of what to do.

The tall black Decepticon stepped down from an entry platform on the far wall.  Around him floated five drones equipped with blaster pistols.

“You know him?” you ask Gigano.

Clench continues to step down the short staircase, his cannon was in hand, and an evil glint sparkled in his optics, “Oh, yes, he knows me.  You see, I’ve been around for many centuries, enough to watch as he rose to power… and that is what you did, wasn’t it Gigano.  Rose to power over the forgotten sparks of those ‘elite’ that you and yours sacrificed.”

Gigano turned at this, heat radiating from him like a palpable cloak of anger, “What we did was regain our place in this world, Megatron had led your ‘Elite’ forces astray.  No longer was the political conquest an alternative, rather he had pushed us back into a full fledge war of genocidal proportions!”

“What you did, was free us from the chains of the political morass that you and your council found yourselves in…”

You struggle to keep up,  “Councils?”

Clench looked over, “Oh, didn’t he tell you who he was, what he stood for?  Stupid robot, before you stands Gigano!  One of the mysterious Destron Generals! One of the bastard robots that signed the very Pax Cybertronia that sent the Decepticons, his elite army, scrambling away from the combined forces of it’s enemies and their parental branch of Cybertronian hierarchy.”

“You had gone too far!!” roars Gigano, “Look at yourself, look at this place!!!  What have you done here Clench!?!?!  What sickness infests your warriors??  Why do they bear the markings of some other form of technology!   Why do they walk and fight like the living dead!!!???!!???”

Silence, than a low chuckle that echoes eerily off of the hangar walls.

“I have brought us back to glory, back to our rightful place.  We control Cybertron, We control Iacon.  Even as we speak, people are returning to their city, returning to their homes.  They have meekly excepted their place in our new order.  WE HAVE BROUGHT PEACE ON OUR OWN TERMS!!!!!  You and the Councils signed a piece of paper, we have forged the iron bonds of conquest.”

“And by what means…  The horn, the technology, the animated warriors…  What are you up to?  What are you planning?  You can’t rule a planet on sheer bluff.  You don’t have the forces to hold it for long!”

“That is where you are wrong.”  Clenchs voice was low, a harsh whisper that seemed tinged with… insanity? “I have built our army, I have created our forces from the refuse of the planet.  Scrap metal, blank circuits.  I have created a force that will follow my every command, a force that will be controlled by the elite!!!”

“A drone army?” Gigano guffaws, “You can’t tell me your little sphere workers can hold a planet?!?  You’ve gone mad!!!”

“No, not the workers.  Meet the first examples of my air forces…”

With that, a humming noise can be heard from just outside the hangar force field.  You turn with Gigano and the other robot to look out at three blue and silver robots.

All of them were identical.

They hovered on a jutting winglike leg, and arms ending thick claws hung loosely at their sides.  Their eyes glittered red, but something in them seemed empty and distant.

Gigano gasped, “A drone army…”  he looks back at you, and the look you recognized.  Things were bad, but his path and destiny were determined.

“Go little one, find your friend and leave this station.  I will deal with Clench.”

“What…?  You…”

“GO!  He’s far more powerful than you realize.  If you want to help, get those drones to follow you!!!  NOW MOVE!!!!”

With that he transformed and lunged toward Clench in a fluid movement, the black robot missed the chance to shoot, and was caught in his coils, but you could see as sparks flew from where Clench’s powerful hands ripped into Gigano’s armor.

You spin, reactively fireing a shot at the three robots outside.  But you were too shocked to do any damage.You instinctively transformed and bolted back inward toward the center of the Warworld, and towards where Phil was being held.

 Clench’s voice grates as he yells, “Aerodrones, dismantle that robot!!!”

You could here the shifting of transformations and the whir of jet engines echo behind you, following into the tunnel that you had reached…

As you race down the tunnel, the walls behind you were shredded by the blast marks of the following aerodrones.  You kept the path swerving to keep their speed down, but they were good, dangerously good.

Phil was being held in the center of the planet, and you had scanned a signal frequency off of that Decepticon jet that should lead you right to him.

The chase was definitely on, and there was no longer a reason to stay hidden.  You activate the scan signal.

Immediately a pulse blips to life on your internal circuitry.   Then another… and another…  Fifteen pulses from different sections along the verticle shaft that was marked as the Warworld’s inner computer core!!!

They all bore different strength amounts from each other, and most of them seemed stationary…

Except for the largest.  It registered near a set of labs near the very center of the Warworld, and seemed to be slowly moving around, perhaps around a room…

--or a cell!!—

You push your wings into a burst of speed and race down the tunnel as another echoing volley of blasts tear the wall behind you…

---

The Warworld

            The race was fast and furious.  You twisted and turned through the corridors, using your maneuverability to your advantage as best as possible.
The aerodrones kept pace with your turns, however their speed was cut down due to the confines of the tunnel.

You began to make some distance, as you wind your way through the Warworld’s innards.

You realize that if your going to get anywhere, you’ve got to get the drones off your tail.

Quickly you access the scan you took of the Warworld’s inner workings.  A diagnostic pointed to a quick way of lossing them, at least temporarily.

You send out a quick pulse transmission to the Warworld’s computers, hoping that there wasn’t an encryption on the turbo lifts.

You flapped spastically to change directions, shooting down a hallway, then slowing a bit, to let the aerodrones catch up to you.

The whine of their jets filled the hallway, and the three whipped around the cooridor.

Spotting you, they transform, shifting shape up to the legless hover-bots.  Shoulder blasters start firing down the hallway as you jump for cover, into an open turbo-shaft.

You here their engines kick in, as they fly in pursuit.

Quickly you generate another pulse, activating the lift.  From one story up, the car bolts down, and you are gratified to hear the slamming of several robotic bodies as they pile into the car.

One final pulse transmission gives the car instructions to take the group to the highest level on the Warworld, and to stay locked all the way there.

They’d probably get out pretty quickly, but it’ll give you a few seconds start.  You transform again and flap off, making a beeline toward the largest ‘Phil’ signal.

The door you come to is a laboratory door.

--Figures..—

You stood just outside in robot mode, your wings folded back, an your arm blasters extended.

So far, so good, no sign of the pursuing aerodrones for nearly five cycles, but your luck wasn’t likely to hold out for very long.

You try the access pad on the door, but it was locked.  Quickly, you pry the keypad off, and begin to splice the wires.  Your movements were dictated almost subliminally, matching wire to wire as if you knew exactly where each should go.

In segments, a soft bleep sounded from the door, and it slid open.

The lab was dark, and no other energy signatures could be detected.  You step inside, eyes adjusting to the low lighting.

The lab appeared to be a circular set of adjoining rooms, the center wall of each was clear, and showed a huge concotion of wires running up from the floor and off into the ceiling.  The massive column was meters wide!  And there was something about the way it was wound together… almost as if it were a human neural netting wound around the spinal…

--A human?  Neural netting?--

You stepped into the darkness, the door hissing shut behind you.

You stepped toward the far wall, or the center of the circular chambers.  The column flickered and sparked with…

--synaptic storms—

You shook yourself, energon pulses that contained the information to run the massive chamber.

Then you noticed, as it sent the pulse through it, the wires would move, slide as if they had a life of their own.

“Quite impressive, is it not?”  a familiar voice broke the silence of the chamber.

“Phil!?!?”  you spin, looking around the room, but see nothing.

“That is the neuro-control center of the entire Warworld.  Through it, Lord Clench is able to control not only this ship, but also the entire drone army that will soon be built.”

“Where are you?”

“Who are you?”

You’re mouth drops, you are certain that it is Phil’s voice…

“It’s me, Dr. Archeville!!”

“Ah, the creator unit of the original unit.”

A cold feeling passes over you.

“Where are you?” you say again in a smaller voice.

You see a shape move in the darkness, a hovering orb, but one that is the size of the worker drones that were used on Cybertron.

A light shuts on, spotlighting the orb…  It was spherical, with one eye, and tow long arms that ended in robotic graspers.  Two sort wings extended from behind it, enabling it increased maneuverability.

“Phil… what did they do…?”

“Phil?  Yes, Phil, the original unit.  I am the first Diagnostic droid unit that has been successfully completed based on the mappings of your computers rather advanced CPU.”

“What did you do with PHIL!?!?”

“Really, I did nothing.  He is still there.”  With a wave of one clawed arm, the droid activated another spotlight, across the room, right beside you.

On the lit table, there were neatly arrayed a series of computer components.  Something told you immediately what they were…

“AHHHHHRRRRR!!!!!” You roar, firing in rage at the diagnostic drone.  There was an explosion around it, but as the smoke cleared in puff of heat, the drone stood, shaken, but unharmed.

“Outbursts are really quite unnecessary.  The drone computer has been evolved into a far better species.  The technology that he has given us has allowed us to use the neural net there to begin construction on several new units.  Of course, I am the only one completed.”

In a horse whisper you croak, “What about my memories…”

“Ah, the catalogued information of thousands of civilization.  Yes, those too were implemented into our memories.  We have complete access to…”

“GIVE IT TO ME!!!!” You leap forward, grabbing the robot’s arms.

“Quite impossible, it is no longer in a downloadable format.  Once it was downloaded from the host it becomes and ingrained databank that can no longer be transferable!”

“What about them!” you point to the column, “They are getting the download!!”

“They are directly downloading the information from the original CPU.  I…  Hey!!”

You had spun the droid off and jumped over to the table.

--CPU…? CPU…? Here!!—

You snatch up a crystal sliver that seemed to be shifting and changing as structures were built and unbuilt.  You remember the ghost of the technology that had been used on the small unit, one that had allowed for storage to evolve on a constant pace, actually altering the physical form of the chip.  It had been nearly impossible to force it to limit itself so it didn’t expand beyond the shell’s boundaries…

“Put that down, you are not allowed access…”

“Stuff it, in fact, stuff this!” you spin toward the glass in the center.  Your chest plastrons slide open and out roared a blast of volatile energy, lancing into the heavy shielding that surrounded the central core.

You were gratified with a cracking noise, as some of the energy slid past the shielding and tore into the core.  Lights shut down, and emergency lights opened up.  You snatched up the remaining pieces of Phil and placed them in a holding chamber in your back.

The diagnostic droid was spastically spraying out fires, and trying to minimize the damage, giving you the perfect chance for escape.

You bolt for the doors, but as they slide open, your greeted by the three aerodrones, hovering menacingly in the hallway.

--Good thing I still got my cannons set n’ ready!—

Another blast of white hot energy lances out from your chest and into the middle member of the drone squad.  He explodes, sending a wave of heat and energy washing over you and the other two drones.  You ignore it and transform, flying straight through and back out into the hallway.

--Time to get back to Gigano and get off this slaghole!!--

So the chase continues…

Segments later, you burst out into the landing bay.  Until now, the noise from the aerodrones had been loud on your tail.  Now, there was an ominous silence that hung over the bay.

“Gigano?”

“Gigano will not be joining us.” Clench’s voice echoed off the walls of the bay.

You transform, landing quietly on the ground.  There was an inflection of movement, and then a thud not far from you. “I’m afraid that he left rather quickly.”

You spin to see where the head of the silver dragon lay, charred and smoking.  Dents covered the skull, and wires lay bare and exposed.  There was a wet noise that accompanied it’s landing, caused by the dark liquids that still oozed out of the remnant.

“Really Dr. Archeville, he used you to gain access to my battlestation.  His only interest was in the power that he had lost.”

“And is your interest different?”

“Oh, most certaintly…” you could now see him.  He stood on top of a nearby shuttle, looking down at you as he spoke, no weapons were in his hands and he was injured, but still something told you that it would be best not to try anything.

“You see, I am merely looking for order and advancement of our race.  What is done is done.  The Autobot’s are legends, the Maximals, Predicons, Destrons, and Cybertrons are deposed.  And the Decepticons have taken their place, from where they can lead a revolution in the spheres of science and structure.”

“Why tell me all this?”

“We are not enemies.  All you want is the return of your computer.  Very well, done.  We were merely interested in the technologies that you had at your disposal.  But now, we need more…”

“More?”

“We need someone of your capabilities, of your intelligence!  We have the knowledge, but the practical application of that knowledge is still yours to command.  Data is only data, we can not manipulate it the way that one who lived that data can!”

--They don’t know I don’t have that knowledge anymore!!—

“What I am offering you is a chance for exploration of the very technologies which you yourself brought to Cybertron.  With the nannite technologies combined with our superior armoring, we shall bring about a new age of prosperity for this palnet!!!”

“And if I refuse?”

The sound of hoverjets hums in your ears, and you turn to see the two aerodrones float in from the passageway.  Outside there was more noise, and two more from earlier floated in through the shield bubble from outside.

“Then I’m afraid we would have to dispense with the niceties…”

As he had talked, you had mapped out the room, noting several things that could have been used to your advantage, a giant claw arm used for loading ships, some hoversleds, a rollercart, the gas valves… If they ran on the same frequency as the turbo-lift, then you could use a transmission to send them remote orders.  All you had to do was to get onto that shuttle Clench was standing on, and you could get out of here.

Of course, their resources were possibly unlimited, the proposal had its good points, but it sounded too easy to turn into slavery…

---

The Warworld

--Clench has a good proposal. Too bad I don't have the experience he thinks I do. On the other hand...—

"Very well, Clench, I accept your offer - with one modification..."

The other’s face was unreadable, but there was a hesitation, "Oh? And what would that be?"

"Allow me to restore Phil, my computer, back to full operational capacity. You said you already have everything you need from him, right?"

The black Decepticon thought about it for a moment and then gave a nod, “Very well. Bring your assistant to full capacity. My diagnostic drone will provide you with any assistance required.”

"Of course, Sir..." You bow a bit, your mind racing with ideas.

You place the last bit of plating back on Phil, the final reparation on his systems.

The hardest part was connecting Phil's CPU to his power core and voice chips - after that, Phil was able to tell you where the various parts went, though your "instincts" were becoming better and better, almost as if the memory of the circuit boards and wiring were etched in your spark. The diagnostic drone had been a help, but you had kept him busy on other projects rather than use his help exclusively. You didn’t want to arouse any suspiciouns that your memories might not be intact.

The crack in the shielding of the main computer cord column was repaired before you ever returned, and now the macabe mass of wires glistened and pulsed with an angry movement as you watched and worked.

As you worked, you found your patience ebbing. Constantly you would glare back at the aboniation feeling the urge to blast it again and again. Images of pounding it into a pulp using the diagnostic drones body were commonplace while you finished your work.

All in all, your violent reaction to the situation surprised you.

You turned Phil over, checking him one last time before giving him his fourth cold reboot.

The lights in his optic circuit flared up and the silvery sphere floated quickly off the table.

“All systems in check Doctor. It is good to be whole again.”

You turn to the diagnostic drone, “The CR chambers all almost finished with Vulcan. Go and make sure that he does not require any further assistance.”

Vulcan was the name of the bot that you and Gigano nearly scrapped out on deck earlier. He had returned and set into the CR chamber a rather interesting set of instructions. He had decided on a complete rebuild, using a new set of technology that the Warworld apparently possessed.

The room with the CR’s was attached to this one, and the drone new he could easily see you from there. So, he floated off without a worry about your attempting an escape.

You turn back to Phil and told him about what had transpired since his abduction.

"... and that's how I was able to repair you."

"Fascinating, Doctor." the sphere floated over tot he 'neural net column' and examined it, "and this 'brain' is quite impressive, considering the ones who built it only had my raw data …” The sphere paused.

“What’s wrong?”

“I believe your assumption was incorrect, Doctor.”

“What do you mean?”

“This was not patterned after me, rather, it appears to be using my data only to build the diagnostic drone bodies that lay dormant within the column.”

“Drone bodies? You mean there are more of that Diagnostic class available to be made?”

“No, the bodies are… aborting at the moment. When you took my CPU away the data could no longer be fed directly into the column, and it’s structure was unable to retain the raw amount that was there without sacrificing a great deal of it’s mobility.”

“Then what is the system’s origin?”

“It’s old, several centuries old. Its construction seems to match some of the older pieces of the battlestation. I did learn a few things about the system from my time connected to it. The ship appears to have been made by a war commander by the name of Bludgeon, and it was used as a birthing place for new warriors.”

“Birthing place?”

“Yes, around the year 2000 of your homeworld, the Warworld came to earth with a newly created set of warriors, whose technology surpassed that of the older generation of robots. Of course, even that technology has long since become passé. “

“So did they have a storage vault of sparks then?”

“No, it seems that Bludgeon used the Matrix of Creation itself to imbue the world with the ability to create life.”

“The Matrix was used here!?”

“Yes, but the Warworld was nearly scrapped by a swarm of metal eating… Well, truthfully what they were is still a mystery, but they destroyed will over eighty percent of the ship. The Decepticon’s, under the instruction of the newly rebuilt Megatron, removed the Warworld and hid it. After the Pax Cybertronia it was passed on to the renegade Decepticons who took the time to rebuild it while they searched for Megatron’s body.”

“And why did it resurface now?”

“Apparently, the Decepticons believe that Megatron has been found and that he will soon return to Cybertron to lead them.”

You digested this information a bit and with a glance across the clear crystal sheets of the core confirmed that the Diagnostic was still busy with Vulcan.

“Ok, all that aside, you and the diagnostic are the only ones with your data, right?”

“No. There is one other.”

“Great, then who is that?”

“My processing was quite limited with only the CPU chip. I could only read where the data was heading, not what it was being used for.”

The orb floated back across to look at the core again, “It is quite impressive, especially considering it’s age.”

“Yes, it is, Phil. But we must destroy it, along with Clench's WarWorld..."

Phil spins around to face you, "But... why, Doctor? I am restored, and it would be fairly simple for me to bypass the security codes and locking mechanisms of this ship and allow us to..."

You cut him off. "No, Phil. I can't quite explain it, but somehow... all this, all these events, have lead me here, and I know I HAVE to stop Clench. Besides, you know as well as I that the Decepticon
form of peace is in actuality iron-fisted tyranny. And how long before Clench sets his sites on other worlds?"

"You... are correct, Doctor. I will, of course, do all I can to assist you."

"Excellent. Now, I've managed to spare us some time - if, or when, Clench calls to check on my progress, I've set up a worktable full of spare 'computer drone' parts for me to work on. I'll just say his
techies did an awful job dismantling you, and it'll take longer than anticipated to fully repair you. In the meantime, we've got to find a way to get my memories from your CPU back into my head..."

At that moment the Diagnostic Drone floated back into the room, “Doctor, there is something I believe you may be interested in.”

You turn, irritation edging your voice, “What?”

You hear Phil’s optics rotate in surprise at your reaction. In truth you had a sudden urge to bat him out of air, just for interrupting you.

The Diagnostic’s optic merely rotated once as if blinking, “When Vulcan exited his CR chamber he found something odd.”

He floated over and activated a viewscreen. Immediately a DNA pattern filled the screen, in the background of a three-dimensional picture of the chain itself, the actual pattern scrolled past. You watched it, you brain instantly absorbing the information.

“It’s a bio-nanite chain. Molecular structure signifies… that it’s metallic? Metal doesn’t have DNA.”

“Exactly.” The drone managed to sound as if it were teaching an inferior.

Your eyes narrow, “Where did you find this?”

“Vulcan. Apparently this is running like veins across him and the other Decepticon units here on the Warworld.”

There were still two in CR. Thundercracker and Skywarp. They had been… worse off than Vulcan. In fact, you had looked in earlier and couldn’t understand why they were still even salvageable.

“Let’s take a look.”

The drone was more than compliant to deactivate a CR and help you hoist the Decepticon carcass out onto a worktable.

“Phil, take care of the diagnostic modules.” The silvery sphere hooked into the table itself, activating a myriad of mobile screens and diagnostic readout panels that swiveled into place above the Decepticon.

The outside armoring looked like the only thing that remained to be regenerated on the bot. His skeletal structure was complete, and there were some under lapping plates that were used for added stability to the transformation structures.

You pry one of these plates aside to look underneath.

There, glistening dully in the light were odd orange… ‘veins’ that criss-crossed the entire underlying structure.

“What the slag are these things?”

“Unknown, there stucture is independent of the Cybertronic organization. It is a different breed from the technology here, but connects entirely to every system, sensor, led… that is in the infected robot’s body.”

“Why hasn’t anyone noticed?”

“The CR chambers do not pick them up, neither do any personal scanners. I had to use the main computer to analyze it.”

Quickly you activated your own sensor array and scanned it…

Roaring darkness enveloped you in a tidal wave of pain.

You writhed in a pit filled with unspeakable creatures. Twisted and deformed they screamed around you in pain, agony, and anger. You swam through them, through a sea of black blood that threatened to choke you. Hands, claws, tentacles grabbed at you and pulled you down farther, battering you against what felt like rock on either side.

You screamed and fired your weapons. A wave of laughter seems to swirl around you, incongruous with the agony and smells of death.

You transform and try to use your wings to pull yourself up. You tentacles rip through flesh that bars your way and your fangs sink deep into the bloody pulp that is left behind…

You look around wildly as the scene resolves back into the lab, but things had changed. You ‘sat’ on the table, with hot, melted metal around you and in beast mode. In your tentacles was the feebly pulsing spark of the robot that had been removed from CR. It’s force was fading as you drained it’s essence away. Smoke filled the room and both Phil and the Diagnostic drone were hiding behind computer units across the room.

You transform, dropping the spark back down into it’s ‘housing’, “What… what happened?!?”

Both drones took this as an ‘all clear’ sign and floated up from their hiding places.

“You systems activated a scan.” Phil answered, “The next thing we saw was you screaming and firing off every weapon you had.”

The Diagnostic floated over and brought up a scan on the robot below you, “He will survive, but he must be replaced into CR, immediately!”

You help him hoist up the smashed frame and replace for an entirely restarted repair cycle.

While working you describe the vision to the two spheres.

“An allergic reaction?” offers the Diagnostic Drone sarcastically.

“No… then again. It was almost like that!” You answer, the drone looking at you like you were crazy.

Phil floats over, “Regardless, I think it’s best we not repeat the scan, not with your systems.”

“But why would it affect my systems, and no one elses…?”

“You aren’t Cybertronian.” The drone answered matter of factly, “At least, you aren’t by common standards.”

“My body came from Cybertron.”

“Impossible, there is no technology on the planet to support that fact.”

Once again it was stated as the obvious, almost as if the drone had already dismissed it.

Phil floated up, “Incorrect, the body did come from the planet, and if you check data record 34.231.231.4.23.123.4.2.12.4 you will find your proof.”

The drone seemed to think about that for a while.

Phil turned back to you, “Doctor. Something is terribly wrong here, and there is something else…”

“What is that?”

“When you had gone mad, your eyes… they changed color.”

“Changed color?”

“Yes, they glowed a rather brilliant orange. The same hue as the veins…”

You stepped back at this, and at its possible connotations. The flash reminded you of something, something dark and ancient. It was horrible, and you could still feel the pain in your body despite there being no physical proof of damage.

Worse of all, there was a part of you, albeit a small part of you, that felt that it was where you belonged

---

 The Warworld: The Lab

Your mind was awhirl with the recent happenings.

You rise up off the table, only to find yourself a bit wobbly, almost as if your body was not your own.

“Easy, Doctor...” Phil flew under your arm in an attempt to support his Maker, and soon after you were in fully functioning order.

--So why do I feel the urge to swat Phil away? --

You whirl and face the Drone, a sneer coming to your face,* “You! Examine those two ‘infected’ Warriors, and find out what those orange...THINGS are!!!”

“But, Sir, you’ve already been informed my scanners and the CR Chambers internal sensors cannot detect...”*

You cut him off, “I KNOW that, you arrogant piece of beta-ware!”A sharply clawed hand whipped out and slapped the Drone, knocking it back, spinning “Use the WarWorld’s main computers to do an in-depth scan and analysis, or are you not up to the task?”

“Yes sir…” the drone drolls as it turns and floats off casually.

Phil hovered near you, * “Doctor, I must say, I have never seen you so... agitated...”

You slump down, suddenly feeling very drained, physically and ‘spiritually’, “I... I don’t know what’s happening to me, Phil... When I was connected to Thundercracker’s body, I saw images of darkness, and of strange bestial creatures... I don’t know what those orange ‘veins’ are, but they are clearly an infection that must be purged, and they must be dealt with NOW...”

“And what of the Decepticons? They do not seem to be as berserk as you were... well, no more than usual...”

“True... perhaps a Decepticons ‘warrior essence’ helps ameliorate the infection... at any rate, it must be stopped, and stopped soon...”

“Suggestions?”

“Well, there seems to be some sort of quasi-organic nature to them, hence the ‘DNA’ chain... if it IS some sort of virus, it might be cured with gene therapy, or radiation...”

“Gene Therapy would not work on a Cybertronian, Doctor, since a Cybertronian has no ‘native’ DNA...”

“Right... So radiation seems to be the way to go... Of course, since it IS metallic, radiation may also be completely ineffective against it... hmmm.” The thought of merely ripping every infected ‘Con apart circuit by circuit with your bare hands and throwing them into the heart of a star also crossed your mind, but you do not mention it to Phil.

You *YouYou are broken from your reverie by the approaching Drone* “Sir, I...”

“What? Have you found something???” *YouYou You bellow.*

“No, Sir, not yet...” the Drone stated annoyingly patiently, “it’s just that, Lord Clench wishes to see you...” *the Drone flew back off to it’s duties.*

You rise from the table* “Well, Phil, perhaps I can get some answers from Clench... you stay here and work with... that...”

You flick a facial tentacle in the direction of the Drone, then took to beast mode and flew off to the Warworld’s main bridge.

            --Well, there’s at least one good thing from me having been hooked up to that infected ‘Con - I now know the ‘energy signature’ of the infection, and I should be able to detect whether or not anyone is infected. If Clench is infected, it would explain how the other ‘Cons got the virus, and why he’s brought Warworld to Cybertron... but if he’s not...—

You flew in silence to the bridge.

You transform, landing outside the massive doors that led to the main control room for the battle planet. On the door was emblazoned a massive Decepticon sigil, done in a transmetal covering. The surface seemed to swirl and sparkle with a life of it’s own as you reached forward to push the doors inward.

The bridge itself was mainly a circular room, with windows on most of the walls. In it’s center, facing directly toward the door was Clench’s command chair, and on it sat Clench, hooked to a massive control unit that covered his shoulders. Lines ran up from it and pumped steadily away as data was processed and passed up into the massive central wire column that was the core of the Warworld itself. The column moved and shifted, but now, you could see why. The wires responded to the harness that Clench had, as if he was directly controlling the operations of the ship directly, as an extension of his own body…

You control the awe that you felt at this massive command complex, giving a short bow, “Chief Scientist Archeville reporting as ordered, Lord...”

Clench’s eyes snap open, “Archeville.” His voice echoed dully, not very noticeable, but your receptors picked up on it immediately, “Excellent, I have need of your services. We need a new piece of equipment to be utilized on this ship. “

--Scanners activate…--

As he spoke, the wires pumped incessantly up and down, it seemed as if he were only paying partial attention to you. From somewhere you swore you could here the sounds of battle…

“Equipment?”

“Yes… one of the items we gathered before coming here was an energon cannon. We need its final lines to be hooked into the Warworld’s main systems.”

“Energon cannon?”

“Yes, it was a remnant prototype that was left in a museum after the Great Wars, but our scientists have figured out a way to make it work full scale. It operates on the same principle as an EMC pulse, but on a far higher degree of efficiency.”

“But wouldn’t that be useless? All Cybertronian systems are shielded against Electro…”

“Yes, but this isn’t an EMC pulse, rather it is a wave of pure energon. An energon overload. It will be able to shut systems down, overloading circuits and…”

“And put sparks into stasis.”

“Yes. We were unable to finish the hookups before our hand was forced and we returned to Cybertron. Now, we must prepare it for the return of the Cybertronian armada.”

“The Armada? Are they returning?”

--Scanners, report!!—

--Scan not complete.--

“Not yet, but soon. My sources inform me that over half of their fleet has assembled. They bide their time, not realizing that we were limited on forces. Already, our numbers have tripled with the drones, and soon, they will be far too late. But best be sure that we have a trump card for the game, agreed?”

“As you wish.”

You pause, looking for something else, just to give your scanners the time they apparently needed to finish their scan.

“Is there something… else?” Clench’s eyes hazily regarded you.

The scanners were taking too long! What was wrong with them?!

“No… I…”

“You were wondering about this?”

“I… yes, Lord Clench. What is it’s purpose?”

Three of the massive wall to ceiling window panels blacked out and images appeared on them, segmented into separate monitor sections. Through it you could see a battle going on, linking the sounds you thought you had heard before.

“This is but a few of the drones that I am controlling.”

“Controlling?”

But yes, it started making sense, the different angles, the different viewpoints. All were seen through separate optic receptors. Through one of the screens you recognize some of the Autobots that had escaped the Warworld earlier.

“Yes, through this harness I have direct control of all the drones across Cybertron. With it, I can orchestrate their movements into a seamless, fluid machine of war.

--Scan complete, displaying data.—

Nothing changed.

“Fascinating, so through this you feed data to and from each drone, processing them?”

--Where’s the display!—

--Please wait…--

“Yes, with the help of the control harness’ main computers in conjunction with the Warworld itself. With it I will control the surface and the space around Cybertron with a seemless, flawless precision that will be unsurpassed in its devastation!!”

--Where’s the…--

--Displaying overlay of infected areas.—

Suddenly, the entire room turned a vivid orange. Lines and streams of the organic fluid could be seem pumpling through the walls, the ceiling, Clench, and especially through the spinal core of the Warworld itself…

---

The Warworld: Clench’s bridge

Your optics grow wide with shock, seeing that apparently everything onboard the WarWorld was 'infected' with... whatever that orange stuff was...

You quickly compose yourself, though, and bowed before Clench before the warlord noticed anything.

"A most lofty goal, my Liege; however, if you will I have work to do on the Energon Cannon. May your perfect glory shine forevermore..." You say, nearly choking on the words, as you back out of the room, still bowing in 'respect' to Clench.

You make your way as quickly as possible to the Laboratory, running into the Drone on your way in.

"Dolt!" you scream as you bat the drone out of his way. "Where is Phil?!"

The drone seemed unaffected, "The Primary Unit designate Phil is in the back, running scans on Thundercracker."

You push aside the Diagnostic Drone again as you walk over to the CR Chamber Phil was at. "Bad news, Phil..." you quickly inform Phil of the near-total infestation of the ship, along with Clench's plan for the Energon Cannon.

"Bad news, indeed." Phil states matter-of-factly. "But might these 2 problems solve one another?"

You look at the orb quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"The energon cannon emits a pulse of energon radiation which acts upon Cybertronian circuitry as an electromagnetic pulse acts upon Terran electronics, correct?"

"Yes, essentially, but..." an idea hit you like a ton of bricks, "... if I can channel the pulse into the Warworld, instead of out and towards Cybertron..."

"... then the radiation may purge the viral infection AND leave the Decepticons in stasis lock!" Phil said, finishing your sentence.

"Yes, yes, it just might work!" you look about nervously, fearful that the Drone had overheard. "While I go work on the energon cannon, you stay here and keep the Drone distracted, and see if you can throw a few 'monkey-wrenches in the works', so to speak."

"Affirmative, Doctor!" Phil replied cheerfully, he had no love of the Drone either.

"Also, I want you to establish a secured, direct communications link with my systems - I may need to contact you while I work in case something unexpected happens. After all, you still have most of my memories..."

"An excellent precaution, Doctor." Phil was silent for a bit as it activated its own internal communications and established a link on a private channel to you. "Link established."

You leave Phil and exit the Lab, swatting at the Drone again before leaving.

Walking through the Warworld was akin to walking through some chaotic maze. It took some time, and several stops to ask the computer for directions before you finally reached your destination.

--Just a few connections?!?—

The cannon was in shambles. It had been set there, and not to gently from the look of several dented panels, and half-heartedly plugged into a few diagnostic machines.

Five or six worker drones hung dumbly in the air as you walked around assessing the extent of the work to be done.

The reparations were doable, but it would take time… and parts.

Parts that it looked like you didn’t have. Micro generators, crystal paneling, carbon gas filter units…

The lab had equipment enough to repair Cybertronians, but not enough to do this job. An extra pair of hands would help too...

You look back at the drones.

They would be useful, but the finer work could not be done well by their clumsy grasper claws. And Phil needed to concentrate on covering for you.

You lean back and sigh, “This isn’t going to be easy.”

“I thought you were a great scientist.” Came a cold, metallic voice from the shadows.

You spin to see a Decepticon step from the shadows. He was tall, taller than Clench. You maybe came up to his stomach area!

He was gray with purplish camouflage. A huge ICBM-like missile sat on one shoulder, tilted back. The other shoulder had a small radar dish that seemed to rotate incessantly.

“Who…?”

“My name is Soundwave. Clench requested that I assist you in procedural repair and linkage of the Energon Wave amplification cannon.”

--Soundwave… Soundwave… something about that name…--

“Well… good, but you look a little large for finite work…”

“My skill rating is the highest in the Decepticon Legion. I can create connections on sub-nanite levels to the fourth degree, I am fully versed in technical repair, both robot and ship, as well as circuitry…”

“Ok, ok. I get the point. Very well, if you’re so well versed, what is YOUR assessment of the situation.”

“Equipment substandard. Higher processing materials were stripped from the Warworld in an attempt to process the warehouse district into a workable drone-manufacturing suburb. Job is possible, but time frame will be increased tenfold due to lack of equipment.”

“Exactly. Without proper equipment the repairs will take weeks.”

“One week and four solar cycles.”

You frown at the larger robot, considering the fact that you were more than willing to strike a larger opponent.

Shaking off the thought you looked out near the firing port for the gun. Cybertron glittered far below the cannon as the massive ship orbitted…

--Cybertron… The Lab! There was plenty of scrap equipment, and repairing it would take far less time than trying to repair the cannon by hand!—

“Your lab?”

You look up, startled, “How do…”

“The laboratory where Eagle Eye kidnapped the unit Phil was more than adequate for equipment salvage. Perhaps there is enough there to rebuild the necessary parts?”

“Yes… yes I do believe that might be the best choice…”

Meanwhile in the Warworlds main lab…

“When the sub-atomic bombardment scan finishes, we will need a cross reference of the bimolecular radial structure and the DNA encoding suppositions. “ Phil retracted a worker arm into his silvery shell.

The larger diagnostic drone looked from where he was blasting a small vial of orange liquid with fifteen hundred different forms of radiation… one at a time.

“Might I ask what exactly is the purpose of cross-linking two million theories with an observation?”

“No, you may not.”

The drone looked at Phil for a second, it’s eye rotating in and out as it seemed lost at what to reply.

“I also want a full physical done when Skywarp is released from the CR chamber. I want a system map of exactly where every strand of that juice is veined through his circuits.”

“Wouldn’t it be more efficient to work on the partial pieces of Thundercracker? With a scan of the arm and a leg we could bit map…”

“No, I don’t want guess work, I want proof.”

“But then why the comparison of… OW!”

Phil floated up, retracting a syringe tainted slightly orange with the leftover liquids.

The larger diagnostic drone spun on him, “You injected that slime into ME?”

“I told you, I wanted proof, not theories.”

“But out scans were negative! We were still…”

“Exactly, so how was it created, how did it enter the system?”

“So you INJECTED it INTO ME?!?”

“Stop whining and get on the table.”

The drone floats over and settles on the scan-bed, “This is severely delaying the work I was doin…”

The drone’s lights went out and Phil floated away from the computer panel he had used to shut down the Diagnostic’s power systems.

“Night night sweet prince…”

---

The Warworld: preparing to leave

Soundwave worked with you to formulate a compiled list of all equipment that would be necessary to expediate the process of rebuilding the cannon.

Then, you both head to the ship bay to where apparently there was already a shuttle awaiting your arrival.

Outside the shuttle waited three robots. Two were tank drones, but the third was different. He had some similarities, but stood on normal legs, and had a gattling cannon over his shoulder. His head was smaller, and his arms were… thicker. He was black and red… just like the bot Gigano almost scrapped…

The robot saluted Soundwave as he approached, “Vulcan reporting for escort.”

--He IS the bot Gigano almost scrapped… looks like the CR chambers hooked him up with a new body…--

Soundwave walks past the newly rebuilt Decepticon and up into the ship.

Vulcan glares at you, but says nothing as you walk past.

Soundwave was silent, eerily so, on the way down, and Vulcan was preoccupied with piloting the shuttle. Beside the two tank drones, there were five worker drones to help with the lifting and moving of supplies.

All in all, a quiet crowd, which gave you time to think…

The foremost question in your mind is; what IS this orange 'stuff' that has infected almost all the Decepticons?

--Its regenerative properties are phenomenal, and definitely warrant further study, but the 'berserker rage' it sends its 'host' into is definitely not worth it… Unless you're a Decepticon, in which case you're already a tad bit on the berserk side to begin with...—

From what you’d found so far, nearly every Decepticon was infected with it. You yourself may be infected with it, after your contact with Thundercracker.

--In addition, though metallic in substance, it is structured like a DNA chain, giving way to believe that it is a virus, perhaps a techno-organic virus…--

Hopefully, the Energon Pulse from the energon cannon will purge everyone of it, but an energon pulse may have no effect whatsoever...

--IF ONLY I HAD MY MEMORIES AND SKILLS!!!—

Soundwave tilts his head toward you, perhaps sensing your distress. You quickly calm yourself, and turn your thoughts inward again...

--SoundWave... why is that name SO familiar???—

The body structure didn’t see familiar, but his voice, and that name… and Thundercracker and Skywarp… THEIR names are also familiar... –

Somehow, an odd sense of deja vu washes over you, as if you knew those 3 Decepticons, but from before, before the new body, before your memories were erased...

--GRAH!—

You felt like screaming out and bashing everything around him, SoundWave included, but you soon realized that would be unwise for a number of reasons.

--No, for now, I must act calm, and hold a tight rein over whatever this 'dark beast' was that urges me so...—

Vulcan spoke up, “We have arrived at your Laboratory, Doctor.”

You had asked the others to refer to you as ‘Doctor’, acting as your title as their Chief Scientist.

“Landing Complete.”

“Fine, fine… this way…” as you began to disembark, you focused on both Soundwave and Vulcan, scanning them for any signs of the ‘Virus.’

Meanwhile, you start barking orders at the drones, pointing to the different pieces of equipment to move into the shuttle.

Within minutes, your scans confirm the ‘virus’ in both of them. However, here, it took on a new form. As you’re scanners did another overlay, you could see that the outer areas of the virus were sharp, jagged… as if they had crystallized. Also, they appeared to be slowly breaking off, molecule by molecule, floating up and away like embers from a fire.

--Fascinating, it appears to be disintegrating, but at an almost imperceptible rate! It would perhaps disburse after several solar cycles of this. But why now… Because we left the Warworld?—

And thinking of it, you didn’t feel nearly as violent since setting down. Though you still were a little on the bossy side to the drones.

But then, they were incompetent. You flicked your wings in annoyance as one of them almost dropped the last of the computer modules.

Spinning on your heel, you walk back over to where Soundwave and Vulcan stood watching.

“Ok, that’s all, now, let us return…”

“Negative.” Soundwave countermands.

Startled, you looked up at the gray and purple robot, but he merely stared at you with his blue optic.

“What he means,” Vulcan starts in, “is that we have another mission while we are here.”

“Another mission?!? What about the Energon Cannon?!”

Soundwave answers, “Its repairs will wait. We must locate one of our numbers.”

“WHAT?!? Dammit Soundwave, I’m a Doctor not a bloodhound!!”

--Why did that sound so… familiar…--

“Nonetheless, we are here, and I believe you may have knowledge of where the Decepticon went.”

Nonplussed you stare at him, “… Why would I have any idea? Who is this Decepticon?”

            Vulcan shrugs, “His name is Scourge. He was newly created, apparently using the knowledge contained in… a friend of yours?”

“Phil.” You state, and remember the drone saying something about one other containing Phil’s knowledge.

Soundwave nodded, “The unit Phil’s archived memories were used as a basis for the new database’s matrices.”

“Ok, then how would I know…”

Vulcan points at you with a thick, vice like claw, “This ‘Phil’ is your friend, right? I think the boss believes that you might have some ideal of where Phil would go if he were put down here. Or of what Phil might know of that would be of interest to Scourge.”

You shake your head, “That would be of interest… How do I know of what would be of interest?”

You look from face to face, but find no sympathy in either.

Sighing, you give in, “Ok, tell me something about this Scourge.”

                Soundwave answers, “Scourge, created on the Warworld to be the new forerunner of the Decepticon army. Technologies included were Vehicon, Transmetal, and Transmetal II. Primary function, germ warfare and lethal chemical developement."

Vulcan adds, “He came down with me and a group of drones to route out a grouping of Autobots. Afterwards, he left, saying that he wanted more time to ‘observe’.”

--Created on the Warworld… How? The machinery, sure, but he wouldn’t have a spark, not without the Matrix Vat or a…--

“His spark, it came from a stasis pod?”

“Negative.” Answers Soundwave.

“Then where?”

--No stasis pod, then from an old warrior? Or something else…--

“Data classified, and irrelevant.”

--Maybe, maybe not…--

“Great,” you frown, “Then we only have all of Cybertron to search…”

---

Cybertron : The Lab

--Classified and irrelevant, eh? Then it’s probably something VERY interesting.—

You shrug, “Well, let’s start looking, then… You said his database matrices are based on Phil’s memories…”

--And possibly my own…--

Vulcan interrupted, apparently impatient with standing around, “Ok, so do we have any idea where around here would be the best observation area? I mean, can this bug plug into the central data net? It seems to me that would be the best place to gather the most data in the shortest amount of time…”

You give the Decepticon a dirty look, more the so because it was similar to your own thoughts, “…Sooo, we must ask ourselves where Phil would go if set free on Cybertron.”

“We?…” spat Vulcan.

You ignore the behemoth, “He would probably go somewhere where there WAS easy access, similar to your central data net idea.”

Vulcan folds his arms in satisfaction.

“Then he would probably head to the nearest depositories of scientific information and assimilate them into his neural net…”

Soundwave looked at you impassively, “The Warworld’s computer banks could be used just as effectively. Why would he do such a thing?”

“Classified and irrelevant.” You quipped back, “Now, we go to the nearest ‘net’ where Scourge was last seen. From there to the nearest scientific laboratories and libraries or archives, and additionally, since his specialty is germ warfare and chemical weapons, we should concentrate on labs that would specialize in such things.”

Vulcan spoke up, “Hey, he has to give off some kind of signature, either bio or electrical. Can’t we use some orbiting satellites and some drones to track him down?”

Both you and Soundwave glare at the warrior, “Yes, that would narrow it down… to every transformer that happens to have a similar signature… there are probably only a few thousand now entering Cybertroplolis again.”

Soundwave adds, “Seven thousand four hundred and seventy three have so far registered for reentry… not including our forces or the drones.”

Vulcan shrugs, “It was just a thought.”

You transform into your Beast mode and hover, waiting for Soundwave and Vulcan to show you where Scourge was last seen.

--Why would a Decepticon specialize in Germ Warfare? It must also include virus… I wonder if Scourge knows about the ‘Virus’ that infects the Decepticons… Perhaps he seeks to escape it, or maybe he is it’s creator?—

That wasn’t the least of your questions. Where did his spark come from? If it wasn’t a spark, maybe it’s another Decepticon, a fallen warrior… But why would that be ‘classified?

Could Scourge be seeking asnwer to his own identity, much like you did… Much like you had been doing… Something twitched in the back of your mind… or CPU, whatever. Something that it seemed you weren’t considering…

And it was making you very, very uneasy.

“He was here.” Soundwave detached from the computer booth, “It was several mega cycles ago, though.”

“Any indication where he was headed?” sniffs Vulcan.

“He accessed several database listings for archives.”

“Just as I suspected…” you ponder, “What files did he drill the farthest down.”

“Unsure, the searches are expired, and the database is too active with people reentering the system. However, I can tell where the greatest activity is.”

“And if we go there?”

“I will be able to delineate the overlying traffic thereby processing and tracking his search, as well as the physical search trail he may have left when he went there.”

Vulcan shakes his head, “But why would he go there? Couldn’t he just find what he needed here?”

You turn, “Unless he doesn’t want to be traced or followed. The city is becoming less and less deserted…”

As if to punctuate your statement, a set of flyers zoomed by to the side, streaking off and down into the lower levels of the cityscape.

“This booth is fairly visible, after all , we are on an overpass…” you wave to the wide open expanses all around you. Buildings with glittering lights shot up from unseen depths in places, and here, you almost reached out of the city line altogether.

The booth wasn’t the first that you had tried, but rather the fifth. It seems that he came straight up from the underground area to alight here and begin his search.

“So he goes to the archives? He’d have to sign in, there are hall cameras… Why all the cloak and dagger?” Vulcan huffs.

Behind him, two tank drones stood impassively. They were brought along, just in case. It seemed that Clench didn’t want to take the chance that his little bug didn’t try to sting you.

“Why indeed… We won’t know really until we are certain as to what he is researching. “

The three tanks folded down, and then Vulcan transfomed again, shifting into a heavy, double bladed helicopter mode, “Then it’s to the library we go…”

You and Soundwave transform as well. You into your beast mode, and Soundwave into a heavy treaded missile truck. Together you make tracks toward the archive center.

The center was massive, a towering building that glittered from circuit panels that created it’s very walls. Shiny crystal covered them, but otherwise the electricity, light, energon, and whatever else glittered exposed to the city. No windows shone, and only one large doorway allowed entry to the front of the building. You moved up the the doors, which were inscribed in ancient Cybertronia, “The roads to future learning are built from the footpaths of our past.”

The doors swung open as you approached, and a feeble looking, hunchback bot stood in the center. As he saw your sparkling Decepticon sigils, he appeared startled, but immediately waved you past him.

“Excuse me, excuse me… I did not mean to block your paths, sirs. My name is Archangel, and I am at your service.”

The old bot wore long robes and had drooping mustaches and a pointed beard. His mannerisms and calm façade reminded you of Alpha Trion…

--Who?!?—

Soundwave turned to the old bot, “There was a Decepticon here earlier.”

“Was there? I do not recall anyone being here…”

“Yes, you do.”

The old robot seemed taken aback at this, “I… No, I…”

Soundwave pulled a gun and hoisted the feeble robot off the ground, “Yes, you do.”

“He… he told me he’d deactivate me if…”

You put your hand on Soundwave’s arm, lowering the old robot down a bit, “Just tell us what he was researching.”

“He had looked into some ancient database, as well as several modern studies.”

Vulcan seemed to loose his patience, he stepped forward menacingly, “To what, old fool!”

The old man was terribly flustered, “The modern studies all had to do with energon flow, conductivity calculations, and some capacity measurements for sparks and Cybertronian systems!”

--Something there…--

“What were the archaic studies on?”

Soundwave had placed Archangel on the floor, deciding that he was shaken enough to get whatever we wanted.

“Here, I can show you the files he was accessing…” He turned, quickly, his golden robes swishing across the steel floor.

You strode past the others, wave of annoyance at the brashness of their methods seething off of you.

Archangel took you to a secluded corner of the library, and tapped up a reference for you. You sat at the proffered stoop and began to scan the archives. They seemed centered around several large scale events, the Creation Mythos, The Matrix…

As you scanned them, you absent mindedly kept Archangel talking, “What could the modern studies be used for?”

“What could be gleaned from them? I’m not sure, the stresses and makeup of energon… the makeup of a spark… most were based off of studies of adaptation and change…”

--Adaptation…--

You sat bolt upright for a second… That voice… from several days previous… from the Vat…

At that moment you had scrolled to a new entry, the entry of the days when the Vat was created from the Matrix of Creation… when the sparks were built and kept there.

Archangel kept talking, oblivious, “I suppose perhaps he may have been learning the makeup and limitations of energy and stress on sparks… he seems just the nasty sort of insect that might be interested in such…”

But his words were already fading out to you…

And a path was starting to be made clear…

---

Cybertron : An archivist library

    Vulcan places a claw on your shoulder, "Well, it looks like you've remembered something!"

    The mocking voice snaps you out of your shock.  Your face had remained controlled, but you felt the muscles in your wings slacken as you came back from you reverie.

    "Well, spit it out of great Doctor.  Don't keep us wondering!"

    You spin, glaring at the bulky black and red bot, "I forgot to turn off my coffee machine."

    He snorts, "I doubt it... Does it have something to do with Scourge creating new life... or rebuilding and reprogramming old forms?  Or perhaps something more insidious than that?"

    You shake your head, not caring for the Decepticons casual prying, "I'm no closer to knowing what the insect's plans are than you are.  I am merely able to process the possibilities faster than you."

    Soundwave steps closer, "Enough, these findings only tell us that he is still researching, for something.  I do not see where he may be going from these findings.  I suggest we separate.  Dr Archeville, you will continue searching out this line of thinking.   Vulcan, you will take several aerodrones and begin a street sweep.  I will return to the shuttle, take it into the lower atmosphere and begin blanketing the city with higher level scans."

    That fit in fine with your own plans, you hunched back over the monitor and began to download as much of the studies as possible.

    The other two took that as compliance and motioned for Archangel to lead them out.

    You scrambled to download all pertinent data that had been used by Scourge during his short visit.  Time was wasting, and you were sure you knew where he was heading.

    As you poured through the data, you found several strands that unraveled from the main stream of research.  First, there seemed to be some research done into the Warworld itself.  Specifically during its first appearance and use by the then leader, Bludgeon.  Apparently it seems that Bludgeon was killed by Megatron, shortly after the Warworld appeared above Earth. Then Megatron used the Warworld to create new warriors with new powers to aid him in his conquests...

    There was where the connection was.  The Matrix of Creation and Leadership was connected to the Warworld at that point... connected and merged with it!  Megatron had ripped the Matrix from Optimus Prime's chest and then left the leader for dead.  However, Prime recovered and somehow regained the Matrix, saving them from something referred to as 'The Swarm'.

    That was where that line of research had ended.

    There was another that explored a scientist's research from several centuries past.  His name had been Exodus, and according to the records, he did a large amount of weapons research for the Cybertron army.  However, he disappeared shortly after the signing of the Pax Cybertronia.  The records gave no clue to his whereabouts, but they did list a progeny named Streetfire, and another bot, and Autobot, who apparently helped test run a lot for the scientists inventions.  His name was Altima Stratus.  Streetfire was apparently still around, but not many records were available on Altima Stratus for the past two hundred years.

    There was also a listing of Exodus' last line of research.  He apparently was attempting to recreate and perfect the technology surrounding fusion energy usage.  It seems like he was experimenting with recreating one of the most powerful weapons ever know to Cybertron!  The massive fusion cannon that was mounted at one time on the legendary Decepticon leader, Megatron.  It was not recorded whether he was successful in his research, only that he was now missing.

    You shook your head.  The three strands seemed relatively unrelated.  On one side, there was research on sparks and energon patterns.  Then there was the histories on the Warworld.  Finally, there was the fusion weapon technology. 

    You complete the download as Archangel reappears.

    "Have you found what you needed?"  The old robot questioned.

    "Perhaps..." again the name Alpha Trion floated through your head, "Tell me..." you stopped the old robot as he began to shut down the terminal, "have you ever heard of a robot name Alpha Trion?"

    "Alpha Trion?  Indeed.  It was said to be him that rebuilt Optimus Prime into a leader suitable to use the Matrix of Leadership."

    "Rebuild?"

    "The Matrix would only react to a certain archetype of robot.  Not any ol' bot could pick it up and unleash it's power.  For millennia, the Matrix chose it's own person, but with the uprising of the Decepticons, the demand for a new leader was immediate.  A Prime had to be chosen.  Alpha Trion was said to have unlocked the codes that were needed to use this matrix, and it was he that rebuilt Optimus Prime to become the perfect leader."

    "What happened to him?"

    "He died eons  ago.  During the last Great War."

    You think about this for a second before nodding, "Very well, thank you for your assistance."

    You head for the entrance.

    --It's time to head back down to the Vat...--

---

Cybertron: The Archives

    Before you had turned, you had erased all evidence of yours and Scourge's data searches.  A 'worm virus' downloaded from your own cpu did the trick.  After all, you needed to follow Scourge, but you sure didn't need anyone following you.

    The odd thing was... you weren't exactly sure how you did it.  You just instinctually reached out, and energy leapt from your body... a black, necorouse power that shot into the computer and melded with it.

    --Yet another oddity of this new body...--

    Transforming, you left the Archives.

    As your beast mode, you leapt into the cool, metallic Cybertronian air.  As you winged your way to the point where you emerged from the catacombs that led to your birthplace, your mind raced with ideas.

--Scourge was an expert in 'Chemical Warfare', so he could be the one who created the virus... Or, he could have seen it coming, and escaped before it infected him.

     Scourge had been studying Creation Myths, myths involving the Matrix, but what if he hadn't been studying creation at all... what if he was studying the Matrix itself?  The matrix had always been wielded by Autobots, and you had yet to encounter an Autobot infected with the 'Virus'... for that matter you hadn't really checked any Autobot's either... but what if the Autobots were immune?  Possibly their 'link' to the Matrix somehow could protect them...

    Then there was Exodus, Streetfire, and Altima Stratus.  Exodus' name seemed somehow familiar... how, you were not sure, but you were certain you had heard of him.  The others did not sound familiar at all.

    Why would Scourge be studying Fusion Cannons... what use could they have in 'Germ Warfare?'

    Two possibilities... One, Scourge may need large amounts of energy for his plan, and for the energy to be expelled quickly, similar to a fusion cannon's powerful kick. Two, he had heard that the Warworld was using Fusion-Based weaponry, and he wanted to find a way to defend against it, lest the Warworld destroy Cybertron before he could finish his research.  That was a bit far fetched, and the fusion weaponry wasn't even the most devastating among the Warworld's effects...

    And who was this Alpha Trion... the one who rebuilt a 'Bot into a Matrix-bearer...  could Scourge be seeking out that information, perhaps to modify himself into a Matrix bearer... maybe to combat the 'virus?'--

    You really wished you had been able to download your memories from Phil... but this was no time for pity.  Besides, the past can't be change. 

    Finally, up ahead, you see the place from where you first emerged from the catacombs...

    Cautiously, you fluttered past the struts of metal that had been closed off before...

    As the dark tunnels flittered past you in the gloom, you became keenly aware that you were not alone.  At first, the feeling seemed to be no more than the 'someone over your shoulder' psychosis... but then, you became aware of a presence, an intelligence that seemed to loom in the darkness.

    You pulled to a stop as you neared what appeared to be a tight passageway.

    You wings flapping as you surveyed the narrow passage was a repetitive echo that seemed to roar in the engulfing silence around you.

    Then, you heard another, almost answering echo.  Transforming, you landed on the ground to listen...

    It wasn't an answering echo... rather it was an echo of its own. 

    Footsteps. 

    Definitely the sound of metal feet striking the cold, hard ground from somewhere ahead,  and it was getting nearer.

    You activated the missiles on your arms... awaiting what would step free from that shadow.

    Then, into the radius of your vision, stepped out a small, skeletal being.  Not a Transformer, not Cybertronian.  The technology was humanoid in shape, but gaunt, more robotic.  Something about it seemed terribly familiar.

    "STOP!"  It's voice too sounded odd, but familiar, "You must go no further."

    "Who are you?!"

    "Do you not recognize your own past?"

    A flash soared through your head... and with it the being in front of you became all too familiar.  It was you... or was you... The voice, it's resonance's were similar to your own, yet colder... more mechanized.  The skeletal body would hold the remnants of a biological brain... one that was centuries old.

    "You can't be me..."

    "Can't I?  Have you looked at yourself lately?"

    "I..."

    "Poor Doctor Archeville, even now, you falter in the face of this unknown... even now you do not understand the true nature of what you are... of what this body was..."

    It reached behind its head, unlatching something... With a sickeningly wet, squishing noise... the Cyborg pulled free a lump of organic material, it's brain, and held it out for you to see.

    "Isn't this what you have sought?  The sum of all that you are... the sum of all that you were?"

    "I... No.  You can't be me!"

    "But I am!  I am as much you as this body and useless lump of organic matter ever made you!"

    "I don't understand..."

    "Of course not... you've spent all your time flittering and fighting to get back what you had lost... to achieve the re-insemination of this... gray matter!"

    "Why do you come to me now... what is your purpose!"

    The cyborgs eyes glittered red, "You, Doctor Archeville, bring doom on your heels.  You come here, looking for what?  You do not know.  You do not even understand the very nature of the quest you began with!!!"

    The voice echoes chillingly off the walls.

    "What quest... What are you talking about!?"

    "What is your purpose... what have you been seeking..."

    "My memories."

    "Have you?  Go back further... go back to what brought you to this Pitt in the first..."

    "I don't remember back that..."  But you did.  You remembered the coldness of the body in front of you, the empty feeling of numbness that had plagued you for centuries.  You remember the hope flaring up in you hen you found the organic body of the Maximal on some far planet. "I searched for life... for the recreation of life!"

    "You searched for rebirth..."

    "Yes..." you were swamped with memories, of galaxies and universes you had visited, "But this is impossible!"

    "Impossible!  Was it impossible that you rebuilt your computer... that you rebuilt a healing chamber from scrap!?  That you reconfigured it into something that could operate on a technology that has never been seen before?!  Was it impossible that you could track down deleted files, files that were hidden from a search just like the one you performed?! That you could send a virus into a computer without even blinking... that you sent one without even knowing how to access the terminal?!"

    "It was the body..."

    "NO!  It was NOT the body.  It was YOU!  All of it was YOU DOCTOR ARCHEVILLE!"

    You're mind races back to a lost conversation... a conversation about the spirit...

    "Memory was not kept in the brain... or rather... it was duplicated elsewhere.  It was etched into... into my spark?"

    "But what is a spark to a human?!"

    "A spark is a spirit..."

    "And on a spirit is etched the accumulation of a life!  The memories, and more, imprinted on it, formatted throughout it to color one's own soul... to format one's own spark!"

    "Why though... why wait until now to tell me this... Why not tell me before I ever left?!"

    You look up, to find the cyborg gone, instead, sitting off to the side, is a purple robed Cybertronian, Alpha Trion.

    "Because, you had to learn for yourself."

    "What.. where?"

    "He was merely a reflection of your inner self, an echo of what you were that was trying its best to free itself."

    "And what about you?  Are you merely an 'echo'?"

    "Oh, no... neither am I quite real."

    You shake your head, which was starting to throb...

    "Don't worry Archeville.  I have no doubt that you will piece it all together when the time is right."

    "So my quest for rebirth is over."

    "No!  Quite on the contrary, only now, your focus must shift.  You have always experimented and set your hypothesis by modeling yourself.  Now, you have begun to learn a greater truth.  A truth that must lead you to now explore your theories of birth on a far, far greater scale!"

    "Greater scale?"

    "Yes... Don't you see... something else is being born, and you are one of the few elements in this universe that is set to do something about it."

    "You mean to stop it?"

    "Stop it, help it... that is up to you to decide."

    "What is being born... the virus?"

    "What you call virus, you could almost call brother!"

    "What?!"

    "You were born an enigma... a free piece in the titanic battle between Order and Chaos, between Primus and Unicron, Good and Evil... You were cross bred between to of these forces... part of you is now a child of Primus... a Cybertronian.  However, part of you is a piece of Chaos' offspring."

    "Humanity?  How are..."

    "They are what was grew after Unicron left one of the great chunks of rock that Primus had entrapped them both in! So throughout their history, they have been tainted by his lingering power!"

    "The wars... the unrest..."

    "Yes.  All inexplicable by other races.  Always were the humans at each others throats."

    "But all races have wars... the Cybertronians..."

    "Fought as part of a different plan.  They fought to hone themselves against the time when Unicron would return."

    "And he did.  Centuries ago, and was beaten!"

    "Twice, as a matter of a fact.  Yes, Unicron was shattered, and soon after Primus too was eliminated from the equation."

    "But their offspring remain."

    "And a new... more direct one is now on the rise."

    "I'm not sure I understand."

    "You will, in time... until then think of what birth is, rather than a joining of two sets of matter to come up with a hybrid. Also, know that you are not alone in bearing the cross of decisions that will soon come.  All around, there are others spreading... servants of ancient powers that have long since been forgotten.  Even as we speak, the children of Unicron are returning en masse to this planet."

    "Humans?  Coming here?"

    "Yes, but such is not your concern, not yet.  Your first enigma is learning what is plaguing you now.  The 'Virus' as you call it.  This 'Virus' gestates on hate, anger, fear... and in return gives these emotions fuel to burn.  To know its nature, you need to only search in the heart of the one force in the universe that has time and again infused the principles of Law and Order with the bloody mane of Chaos."

    With that, Alpha Trion stepped back, down the tunnel, into the shadows.

    "Wait!  The other me said I brought doom on my heels!?"

    "Yes..." the voice was growing fainter, "For you have already set into motion a future phase of the cycle.  The histories are already being set upon their inevitable course!  The spawn of dead Gods is  stepping into the light, but they will not stand unchallenged.  Choose your path well, Doctor...."

    With that the presence faded.  Before you stood an open tunnel.  The path on to the Vat itself.

    You move forward, carefully, until you reach the small, unmarked doorway.  It slides open, and through it you step.

    The chamber was blasted, burned.  Parts of the massive guardian robot lay heaped about.  But from the center, the pit itself still appeared whole.

    As you stared up at the massive Vat, your thoughts raced.  You could feel the pulsing energies above you, and you couldn't help but feel an intimidation at an unknown future.

    A voice from behind broke your reverie, suddenly, and with cold disdain, "Very good, Doctor Archeville."

    You spin, taking in the source of the voice.  There stood a tall Decepticon, his body an amalgamation of transmetals and biological matters.  An insectoid frame that combined with robotic horrors.  There was no doubt who the purple and red insect-bot was.

    "Scourge."

---

Cybertron: The Vat

    "So, You're the Decepticon everyone's been looking for, eh?  So, tell me, why is a Chemical Weapons and Germ Warfare specialist researching Fusion Cannon technology?"

    The insect walked past you, toward the vat itself, scarcely looking sideways at you, "My, my Doctor, you're every bit as resourceful as I'd hoped.  A better question now, however, would be why did you go to all the trouble of following me... alone?"

    You shrug nonchalantly, walking across the room as well, taking in all that you saw, and at the same time sizing up this 'newcomer' to the equation.  "Who said I was alone? I could have Decepticons taking positions around here now, taking up sniping positions..."

    Scourge laughed, a most unsettling sound, "On the contrary, you yourself were being followed.  That clout Vulcan is even now closing in on our position.  I dispatched the two aerodrones that he was using to spy on you."

    This did come as a shock to you... You had thought you had been careful, but then, those aerodrones were fast, and nearly as maneuverable as you were. Regaining you composure you countered, "True, but for now, let's just say I'm here out of 'Scientific curiosity.' Now, why are you here?"

    "Oh come now, Doctor, haven't you figured that out by now?"
    "I've got a few theories, but I'd much rather hear the tale from you..."  In truth your mind was racing with your newly-unlocked memories and the knowledge that came with them.  Especially Alpha Trion's words about 'the spawn of dead Gods,'  'Birth, and 'choosing your path carefully...'

    Pieces slowly slid into place.

    Birth... in many species it involved combining of two progenitors.  Two progenitors...

    The Matix was linked to the Warworld.

    The horn of Unicron  was linked to the Warworld.

    --The Spawn of dead gods is stepping into the light...--

The Warworld!!!!

    But even this didn't explain Scourge's business here.

    Or did it... Scourge was made by the Warworld. Soundwave was reticent to say where they had procured a spark for him.  Could it be that the vestige of whatever was on the world could have given life to him?

    Already your scanners were searching his frame for the 'Virus.'  Surely, if he was made by the Warworld he had traces of it in him.

    But the scan came up negative.  He was free of it.

    Already he had turned and pulled a heavy lever on far wall.  The doors made a 'cachung' noise and began to swirl backward, opening up the massive, glowing pit in the floor.

    "I need experiment subjects.  Even that dolt Clench isn't so far gone as to allow me to experiment on the very sparks that feed their race."

    --Their race?!--

    You hold your tongue though.

    "What will you do to them?"

    Fusion... fusion... energy of sparks... how did they tie together.  Your mind was missing a link somewhere.  Missing a vital clue.

    "Experiment.  I will spread a plague to free the Universe of their tainted corpses!"

    Already, sparks floated above the Vat,  the eye on the insectoid head which sat on Scourge's shoulder rotated aside and revealed a glowing crystal.  An sickly orange glimmer began in it's center and spread out tentacles of pure energy to enfold several sparks that were hovering above the vat.

    You stood, mesmerized.  The Decepticon had some sort of ability to hold the sparks with this odd energy... an energy that was an all too familiar color.

    Then, a loud crash from behind announced a new arrival.

    The doorway collapsed as Vulcan ripped through it with a primordial roar of anger. 

    His eyes glittered a fiery orange...

---

Cybertron: The Vat   

    You thought quickly.

    --Evidently, Scourge himself is the source of the 'Virus', and Vulcan is infected... not to mention who knows how many other Decepticons!  Now, Scourge was holding other Sparks and infecting them, even though they have no body...--

    You looked down at your own claws.  Were you yourself not 'kin' to this Virus then?  Both were products of Unicron and Primus, and both had the potential to change the entire Universe... for good or ill.

    --Shouldn't I be the one one in command of this 'Virus', this new fusion of Unicronian and Primian life?!  Shouldn't I be in possession and control of such power?!--

    After all, you had the wisdom and memories of three centuries as seen through the calculating, objective eyes of a Scientist.

    --Would it not be better than in the war-mongering hands of some genocidal Decepticon!--

    When you had first emerged from your 'rebirth'... you had drained the energy from some sort of creature down below... and with it had come images from it's mind.

    Perhaps now you could use this same technique to drain the 'Virus' from Scourge, along with the necessary mental abilities to command and direct it!

    You HAD to try!

    Vulcan had turned, and Scourge was preoccupied with securing the sparks into some container.  You ran at him, hoping he was distracted enough to allow you to tackle him...

    And tackle him you did, at the last second he spun towards you, dropping the canister.

    Your tentacles flared from your face, slicing deep into his face, burying into his CPU.

    And your world exploded.

Again, the pit echoed of screams and torment... amorphous beings flittered and crawled on the walls, reaching out to snatch at you from their purchases.

    Anger swelled and flew about you in a maelstrom, but this time, the chaos was different.

    This time, you could see the infinite patterns that the chaos could bring, the infinite possibilities of it's randomness.

    Also, you could see the strongest of these possibilities.

    Suddenly, you knew what it was to be a god.

    Touching these thick possibilities, your mind deciphered them, seeing them for what they were, ropes of intertwined destinies that could be pulled or cut with the ease of breaking the wispy webbing of a small spider.

    As you marveled, you understood a destiny as it twisted in your hands.

    You knew what Scourge was up to...

    The destiny cord was not his, but it's meanings were clear...  it's possibilities tied to something that even you could not see.

    The sparks were the key.  In them were the true knowledge, a knowledge older and spanning incalculable time and space.  Suddenly, your thoughts of 'wisdom' and 'knowledge' seemed silly and foolish.

    Those sparks held energy and thought from the beginning of all.  With them was born the light and the darkness, the essence of every being.

    And they all belonged as one.

    And as one... they formed...

    That was his plan, to create a god.

    Fusion, the sparks... Fusing them into one perfect being...

    The world erupted in pain, sending you sprawling backward in a flare of light.

    A deep gash erupted on your arm... mech fluids and grayish 'blood' oozing from it in a hot spray.

    You hit the ground hard, bewildered as you looked around.

    Something had attacked you...

    There.  Thrown to the floor. Another bot, unlike any other that you had seen.

    --Not unlike ANY other...--

    You realized with a start, that whoever this newcomer was, his technology was closer to yours than any you had seen before!  His body was composed of bone instead of metal, great, skeletal wings stretching from his back.  Ancient runic writings were inscribed on him in blood red.  You translated them in a flash.  They marked him as a herald... a herald of Unicron!!

    Your CPU raced, realizing that there were new storage bans of knowledge within you... not as much as you would like... Most were just shadows of what you had seen, but you did know that no longer would the Virus plague you...

    Scourge hadn't been it's source, but he was immune, and now you understood how to bend it's influence away from you... or how to channel it through you!

    You began to stagger to your feet, but already, the massive Vulcan was on his.  With a thick arm, he pointed at you and scourge, "Enough of this.  Lord Clench has commanded that you be taken into Decepticon custody.  Stand down, or be slagged.... I don't care which anymore!"

    His gattling gun began to spin in anticipation...

---

Cybertron: The Vat

    You looked at the cannon and swiftly decided on the only logical course of action.

    Up went the hands in surrender.

    Unfortunately, that didn't seem enough.  The cannons still spun, and soon, burning hot rounds were being issued forth.

    You moved with all your speed out of the way as a cascade of bullets and rockets slammed across the floor and walls.

    --Slag!  Not the Vat!!!--

    You spin to survey the damage, ready to dodge again, but the forthcoming attack did not come.  You glance over and see that two Autobots had entered the room.  One was a small orange and yellow streetbike that was rolling with all due haste at the Vat, the other was a large silver and blue jet-bot that had decided to try and test the thick armoring on Vulcan's back.

    Vulcan apparently didn't like being shot from behind, and proceeded to attack this newcomer.

    This gave you the chance you needed. You landed next to the pit nanosegments before the streetbike showed and transformed.  You had your arm weapons ready for him though.

    "Outta the way, Decepticon." growled the Autobot, but you had him dead to rights.  His weapon wasn't even in hand.

    "Not so fast, what exactly are you planning."

    He blinked confused, "What?"

    "What do you want with the Vat?"

    "None of your busin..."

    He was cut off as you spring forward, tentacles grabbing him around the head.  This time, however, you controlled the energy flow, only tapping into his consciousness.

    His friend needed a spark... a spark for the weapon he brandished.

    A Targetmaster!

    You had seen such technology long ago, with the Transformers on Earth.  No doubt his binary bonded partner had long since died, and now the Autobot wanted a replacement.

    You looked back.   Vulcan would have the Autobot in defeat soon, and you had no doubt that the Decepticon could rip through this Autobot as well.  Leaving you open to his wrath.  That was not a situation you found warranted.

    To add to the problem, your scanners were registering the signatures of multiple Decepticon drones, as well as... more Autobots outside!

    Quickly your mind worked, if you could delay Vulcan long enough to get past him, you might make it to the Warworld again in one piece, but the only way to do that was if these Autobot's served as your shields.  And to do that... they needed more weaponry.

    You release him, jumping back to your former position.  He staggers, grabbing his head, "What... what did you do Decepticon?!?"

    "Merely accessed your purpose.  I don't have time to explain, but you must listen to me now!"

    He looked up, apparently weighing the options.  You plunged into it.

    "There's something major being cooked up on the Warworld, even Clench doesn't understand it, and he certainly can't control it.  I have to return to see what can be done about it, but I need your help.  Otherwise Vulcan will ship me back to the Warworld in a few thousand pieces."

    "Why should I trust you,  Con."

    "Two reasons. One, I'm not a Decepticon.  Two, I can install your friends Targetmaster with a spark that will triple the weapons power."

    Consideration flashed in his eyes, "Let's do it."

    You both set to work, configuring the Vat to pull what you needed for the operation.

    Meanwhile, Vulcan still chased the other Autobot, and you could tell that the Autobot was leading his firepower away from the critical systems of the Vat.

   Just then, there was a loud explosion from above.   The sound of tearing metal filled the large chamber, and the ceiling above the central pit, collapsed in a thunderous onslaught.

    You duck, covering yourself as fragments of rubble, mixed with energy sparks from the Vat, flew around the chamber.

    As the smoke settled,   you find that rubble had collapsed onto the Vat, partially covering the wide, glowing blue hole in the center of the room. 

    Instantly, the rooms lights flickered and died, and emergency klaxons began to sound.  Red emergency lights flashed around the room, and an odd sense of urgency mixed with a timeless pause of all activity, as if something had reached into your spark and frozen you to the spot.

    You felt your whole frame go cold, your CPU reeling with a sense of vertigo that tore through you.

    The blue energy that shined up from the vat gave an odd shadow wash to the rubble that was situated above the back half of the pit.

    Then, a distinct red glare shown up from the interior of the vat. So intense it was visible through even the shimmering blue radiance of the energy from below.

    Unable to move, you watched as an arm reached up from the pit.  It was bonelike, with shimmering red and blue 'veins' running up the skeletal structure.  Steel claws extended as it slammed down on the lip of the Vat.  Two bone wings appeared, stretching up with a noise not unlike the cracking of bones.  A dark form hoisted itself up with a haunting, echoing roar.  It's head, cyclopean and made of skeletal matter.  It's arms also bone, and bone ran across the thick black armor that covered it's body, shoulder and legs.  A black and red cockpit sat atop it's shoulder, and red and blue veins seemed to pump a glittering liquid across the whole of it.

    You felt the cold of death emanate from the creature as it looked around the room in the flashing red lights from the sirens.  It's one, large red eye taking in each of the transformers that stood around.

    The Decepticon that Vulcan had pressed into service, and then forgotten, took a step forward.  He also looked as though he was made of bone, but his was smooth, and covered with the red, archaic writing.  The robot reached forward hesitantly toward the hideous apparition, recognition flashing in the black depths of his eyes.

    "Bladewing....?"

    The skull-bot looked down on his with a crack of his neck, his jaw twisted into a skeletal grin of hideous aspect as he answered in the same, haunting echo, "Bladewing has gone to hell. We remain."

---

Cybertron: The Vat

--Slag, slag, SLAG!!!--

    You looked at this new monstrosity.  Was it allied with the Decepticons?  You weren't sure, but it seemed likely.

    Things did NOT look well, but if you wanted to get out alive, you had to act NOW!

    You looked down at the control panels, they were flashing red.  Something was wrong with the Vat.  Your hands began to fly over the controls trying to stabilize it.  Everything else became background noise.  You soon realized that the red and orange Autobot was gone, but it didn't matter.  A shuddering thud of an explosion shook the chamber as another set of warning lights flared on the panel, "It's going to go critical in a matter of cycles!"  You yell out.  You did, however manage to configure a spark for acceptance.  As much as you hated to admit it, you needed these Autobots.  Even if it was just to serve as a shield from Vulcan, Scourge, and this new... thing.

    You leapt at the Vat, reaching down into the depths of it's swirling fields of energy. You could hear frightened whispers swell up from below you.  You stretch a clawed hand down into the warm static of the swirling forces.  They were ephemeral and slid about your hand, brushing it with the crackling of a soft cadence of static.  Your arm tingled, but nothing seemed to be there to grasp onto.

    You look back to see that the bone robot was fighting the other Silver and Blue autobot, the yellow and orange one was dead, you could see his carcass, where it had been sliced in half and now lay loosing it's brilliant colors.

    Then, something warm brushed your hand.  You snatched at it, your claws closing over a soft bubble of energy.

    You pulled it out of the vortex, it's crackling energy giving a fuzzy feeling to your hand.

    The Autobots targetmaster was there.  Streetfire had previously called it over to proceed with the transfer.  You scuttled over to the body and pushed it down, opening it's chestplate.  Quickly you began to make the connections.

    Looking up you see the Autobot loosing his fight, "AUTOBOT!!!" you yell out, trying to get his attention, he would have to be the one to activate the Targetmaster.

    Then the chestplates shut, automatically over the spark, you leaned back in surprise.

    The autobot's arm was skittering across the floor, the bone-bot had sliced it clean off, but now he held the other arm out, "Shatterblast!  TRANSFORM!" he yelled.  And the robot leapt up, transforming into a gold and red raven and swooping to help it's master.

    It clawed at the bone-bot's face sending him staggering back.   

    Then,  a heavy blast struck the skeletal robot from behind.  He staggered forward, spinning to keep the Autobot in his optic range, as well as taking in his new adversaries.

    You decided that it was time, you transform, winging your way out the hole in the ceiling...

---

Cybertron: The Vat

    You dodge through the hole in the ceiling, before anyone can take the time to notice.  Below you, the sound of a heavy blast rips through the air.  You transform, landing amidst the wires and rubble above the chamber, in what appears to be a crawlspace in the ceiling.

    You look down to see the Bone creature transform and bolt upward toward the ceiling.  Ducking back in the shadows, you see him rip past you, smoke trailing from his body.  Directly behind him came the other bone-bot that had been down below.  He was transformed into a jet mode of some sort.

    Looking down, you see the tall blue and silver Autobot, with the golden targetmaster in raven form, on his shoulder.  With him now were two more Autobots, a badly injured black one and a tall, powerful looking Dinosaur-like one.  He was russet brown, with a Tyrannosaurus head as one arm, and a tail as the other. 

    You watched them for a segment, as your internal chronometer counted the remaining time until the chamber went critical.  You couldn't hear what they said over the alarm of the klaxons, but within segments they had vacated the room...

    Leaving the Autobot's body behind.

    You transform and swoop down, snagging the brittle-gray body halves up in your tentacles.  It's decomposition had not begun to destroy the allows.. yet, but soon it would be useless.

    "I may have need of another... 'shield'... so you're coming with me."  you mutters as you heft the pieces up.  You frantically turn, counting the nanosegments remaining until the chamber went nova.

    You reached the ceiling, just as a deep rumble began.  You pour on the speed as waves of heat blast out of the hole, singing you in your retreat.

    A nightmarish flight of chaos, pain and heat ensued as you made your way to the surface, barely escaping being engulfed by the flames.

    Soon, you were nearing the outskirts of Iacon, nearing the charred remnants of your laboratory.

    But outside sat two thick tank drones.

    --Pit..--

    You change, landing with a thud on a rooftop not too far from it.  Looking down at the robot, you noticed that his armor was beginning to degrade.  It would only be a few cycles until he was useless.

    From below,  you see Soundwave step out of the lab, looking around with his pale blue optic.  His thick purple and gray armor glinted evilly as he tossed some piece from your labs on the ground at the drone's feet.

    "He is not here."  you hear faintly, "but I'm sure he shall return soon..."

    You think quickly, jumping down into the shadows.  Looking at your frame, you realized that there was actually a lot of charred flesh on your legs and wings from the Vat's explosion.  You promptly staggered out of the alleyway.

    "Halt!  Archeville!"

    You stumble and fall in a heap, halfway across the ruined street.

    You shut your vocal units off completely, remember something about Soundwave's ability.  You move your mouth faintly, "Ambush..."

    "Archeville, speak up.  Where have you been?"

    You shudder, silently repeating yourself, "Ambush...."

    Your bet paid off, the giant Transformer moved toward you, leaning over with a thick arm, reaching to pick you up.  His hand could engulf a quarter of your body, and if it got hold of you, it may be able to crush your frame...

    "What did you say, Doctor...?"

    "I... said..."  and you altered your vocals to 700 percent normal output, sending a thundering cry across the streets of Cybertron, "...AMBUSH!!!!!"

    Soundwave staggered, his delicate audio receptors momentarily overloaded... he would regroup quickly, but it would give you enough time to siphon enough energy from him to rebuild you and render him unconscious.

    You lashed out, the tentacles that hung from your face wrapping around the giant robot's head as you sprung up...

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    You opened your eyes, sore and weakened, not sure of what had just happened.  A quick check on the chronometer told you that only segments had passed... a fact that was further proven by the sounds of heavy treads making their way from the door of your lab.

    --The tank drones!!--

    You stood, feeling as if something had drained your energy.

    Where Soundwave had stood, was not just a pile of nuts and bolts, somehow you had managed to completely slag him!

    --Well, I guess that's one less bot to worry about!--

The tank drones didn't seem overly happy about that fact though.  The humming noise of their rotary cannons preceded a heavy blast that ripped the street up below you.  You jumped away, barely in time.

    "I don't have the time, nor energy to deal with you."

    You pull a grenade from a compartment and dropped it on the nearest of the two.  There was a flashing explosion and a small shockwave ripping through the air, sending you drifting back as you fluttered your wings to stay in the air.

    As the air began to clear, two more blasts fired out of the smoke.

    Both drones were still standing...

--This wouldn't be an issue if I could fire MY weapons!--

    You were relatively uninjured, but your power levels were too low to even activate your main defensive systems!

    The drones began to lock, quickly you transformed...

    Both blasts went errant... as if some confusion hit the drones at the last second.

""Target lost."" you hear the drone's monotone voices speak.

    You hovered, uncertain for a segment.

    Both drones turned and looked down at the remnants of their leader.

    You continued to hover, amazed at this newfound ability... something about your beast mode cloaked you from the drone's sensory equipments!

    Just then, a low, sliding noise was heard from the scrappile that was Soundwave.  It was followed by a hissing, guttural growl and a sudden flurry of activity as something lunged out at one of the drones.  You see green reptilian skin and the flash of white teeth as one of the drones falls back with a screeching thud.  The long-bodied creature which sat on top closely resembled an alligator.  It roared and snapped downward with it's massive jaws, ripping the thick armor of the drone apart.

    There is an explosion of fire and shrapnel, causing you to fall back, transforming again to catch yourself as you land on the ground.

    You look up to see something brown and green fly from the smoke cloud of the drone's detonation.  There is a screech, and another blinding explosion as a blast of powerful sound waves smashes into the second drone.

    You cover your face, as bits and pieces of superheated drone-scrap go flying about.

    As the smoke clears a bit, and your audio receptors recover from the chaos of the sudden battle... there is nothing left but two smoldering piles of scrap metal.

    You step toward them, looking for any sign of your rescuer, but he was gone... left without a scan or a trace.

    "Well, my thanks then..."   You transform, flying to the roof to collect Streetfire's carcass.  You needed to work quickly...

    Transforming and landing outside your door, you step forward into the darkness of your lab...

    Only to be greeted in the dark, by a low... guttural warning hiss...

---

Cybertron: The Lab

    Your mind raced. 

    This creature which now confronted you, the same one that had just slagged one of the Tank drones, the same one the had emerged from the remnants of Soundwave....

    --Could it be Soundwave?--

    The Vat had 'reformatted' your own mechanical form into this techno-organic hybrid you now possessed....

    "Calm yourself, Soundwave... I know you're confused, but try and focus on the sound of my voice..."

    The gator creature lashed out at you, snapping at you with metal rending teeth and jaws!

    Though sluggish due to low energy reserves, you were able to ascend and fly out of this new creatures reach... 

    Or so you thought.

    With a flash of bluish light, and an oddly wet, whirring sound, the gator-creature actually transformed into a large bat-creature! 

    It leapt into the air after you!

    Surprised at this development, you were caught offguard as the bat's giant mouth opened and released a wave of sound, disrupting your equilibrium, and damaging some of your more delicate 'components.'

    You crash unceremoniously to the ground.

    The bat hovered for a moment, as if toying with you.

    You reached under your chest plate as you rose, "Nice trick, beastie... but I am not about to be beaten by... by... by whatever the slag you are!"

    You pull out an oblong spheroid and toss it at the bat creature. On impact, the tangler grenade explodes into hundreds of sticky, blue strands, wrapping the bat creature up, helplessly pinning it's wings.  It was forced to the ground where it struggled, only making the tangler strands tighten about it.

    You quickly get to your feet and snap some of the tanger strands around the creatures mouth, preventing it from using the sonic scream again.

    "Don't go anywhere."  you smirk as you flapped your wings and rose tot he roof where you had left the decaying Autobot.  More of the alloy had begun decomposition, but you could still do something with him.  You slap some power cells onto the two halves of the Autobot, slowing the process, and then carry him back to your lab.

    You set him down on the opposite side of the room from the creature.

    "I do want to see what you are beastie, but first, we need something to insure us some privacy."  As you spoke, you cannibalize a few components left in the Lab, along with some gadgets from your own internal storage.  Quickly you cobble together a combination signal distorter/holoprojector. 

    As you worked the creature continued to struggle, though it seemed to be settling down a bit.

    "This should buy us at least a few hours... though I'll only know for sure when it's first 'tested."  You activate the device.   

    A hologram is quickly patch-generated around the outside of the lab.  It turned even more into an abandoned, smoking gutted out ruin.

    "Now my newfound friend..." you said as you slowly approach the bound bat-creature, "You are going to tell me everything about yourself..."

    There is a popping snap as the a blue strand around the creature's mouth breaks.  You notice a sharp fang that had been cutting on it.

    Stepping back, you prepared to dodge the oncoming attack, but instead of the sonic blast, the creature simply spoke.

    "Release me.  My circuits have equalized."

    "Equalized?"

    "Your reformatting scrambled many things.  But I believe I can control my animalistic natures now." 

    You look warily at it, "How about answering a few questions first."

    It simply looked at you in silence, you decided to take it for acquiescence, "What is your name?"

    "You referred to me as Soundwave, that is acceptable."

    "Acceptable?  You do not have a prior name?"

    "I have only been online for fifteen cycles."

    --That puts him about the time I slagged the old Soundwave.--

     "But you said I 'reformatted' you.  If that is true, then there must be a prior format in archive?"

    "True, but what does it matter, I am what I am... what you have made me." There was a little venom in that last statement.

    "And what is that?"

    "Tied up."

    You frown, "Ok, then I will free you, but no more rampages."

    It sat in silence.

--Talkative bastard.--

    You clicked a button on your forearm and the tangler vines puffed out in a haze of smoke.

    Immediately there was a glowing and the bat reverted to his gator mode.  It had immense, webbed foreclaws, and was covered in golden green scales.

    "Why don't you shift to robot mode?"

    The gator looked uncertain.

    "You appear to have reptilian and mammalian modes, so you are likely either Predacon or Maximallian in nature.  Let's start with the Maximal codes, say Soundwave, Maximized."

    "Soundwave, Maximize."  the gator murmured.

    Immediately there was another whirring, and this time a ochre-green light surrounded him.  He shifted, and converted up. You could see the bat mode begin to emerge, and then it's jaws pried open to reveal a robotic face.  But then the transformation noise became sickish, and he gave a scream of pain. Immediately he dropped back to gator form, panting.

    "What happened?!"  you picked up a scanner and held it up to him.

    "I... I... can not transform!"

    The scanner read nothing.  As if he wasn't even there, "I can not get a signal or a scan on you..."

    You remembered the cloaking ability of your beast modes on scanning devices, "Slag, it must be the techno-organic properties of your beast mode."

    The robot growled, "You created me without a robot mode?!"

    "I'm not sure how I created you in the first place!"

    You think for a moment, this power was new... since your second contact with the Vat, of that much you were almost certain... 

    --No, wait, not my second contact with the Vat... rather, my contact with whatever Scourge was part  of!--

    You vaguely remember something powerful in that contact... something... godlike!

    Then you remembered more... remembered something you saw inside of Scourge's spark.

--Wargod... some part of... of Unicron?  And something... a hate plague... no he was spreading a hatred, feeding off of it... using it to control the Decepticons, and to twist destiny.--

    And more... inside you was the knowledge of what Scourge had been up to.  He wanted to use fusion technology to amass together sparks... to create a complete soul for this Wargod...  But first he had to get the sparks... he had to...  create a virus, a virus that would shut down a normal transformer!

    With that came more information, dredging out of your memory reserves...

    "What is it?"

    "Perhaps everything...  Tell me, do you know or remember anything during the reformatting... are there any special codes that are within your matrix?"

    The gator looked wary, and seemed to look inward for a moment, "I know I can sense you... and others...  A small robot, a dark monster...   I can feel their sparks.  I could also see... see the drones.... something about them made me determined to destroy them... I could feel the putrid rot of something controlling them.  Hatred rose off of them like a stink."

    "Did it affect you?"

    "No. It is what I was made for.  That I do know."

--Perhaps then I passed on my own immunity of Wargod to him them...  a small robot, the Targetmaster?  A dark monster...  perhaps the other one like myself...  the monster that rose fromt he Vat.--

    But still many questions remained.  You were reformatted for a purpose.  You were beginning to see that more and more, but what purpose was it... and why... how you  could now pass that format on to others...?

    "So... you want the drones destroyed then?"  you looked at the gator.

    "It would seem our paths coincide...  for the moment."  he agreed.

---

Cybertropolis: The Lab

    You hoist the Autobot's carcass up to the work table.  It was in bad shape.  the two halves had been completely seperated by that creatures weapon.  What was stranger was that as you examine, there was no residue left from his spark.  It was almost as if the spark had simply dissapated when he died.  Most sparks show a considerable release of energy upon death, nearly buring their way our of the contacts that hold them.

    How you knew this?  You weren't quite sure.  Only that you did.  There was limited work in your past on Transformers and their anatomy, but little amount had to do with sparks directly.  Those were secrets guarded carefully by the Cybertronian race.

    You pull power into the armor's alloy, stabilizing it again, and bringing it back to lusterous life.  You watch as the colors slowly spread across the shell's surface, turning it yellow, then coloring in the flames on it.  As it worked, you reconnected the two halves, carefully working them together, and replacing the pieces that were to severed to reliably weld together.

    The whole process was taking some time.  You would have to fasion some form of brain unit, as this body had no controlling intelligence.

    --But if the Decepticons could do it, then I can do it!--

    After a while, you look around, to see that Soundwave was no where in the lab to be seen.

   --Bah... the overgrown reptile probably went out to munch on more Tank drones!!--

    Still, you had best make sure that he didn't do anything that might attract more attention to your lab...

    Outside, all was quiet.  There wasn't sign nor sound of the reptilian mutant as you transformed into your bat-squid form.  Taking wing into the cool nighttime skies, you quickly find your target.  He was on a rooftop, not far from the Lab itself.

    Swooping down, you land next to him.

    "What are you doing? We needent attract any undoe..."

    "Don't you hear it?"  Soundwave had a far-off look in his bat-eyes as he stared off into space.

    "Hear...it?"

    "Something stirs.  Something... out there..."

    You turn to follow his eyes, to where a glittering orb hovered high in the night sky.  You realize that this small silvery nighttime object must be none other than the Warworld, hovering far above the Cybertropolis skylines.

    You see several other moving objects around it.  Other ships!

    Automatically your optics zoom in, giving you a better view.  Indeed there were ships.  the other Decepticon warships...  but why had they gathered around the Warworld?  Unless...

    The stars around the ships seemed to bend and twist for a segment... and following that segment the skies became filled with an all new battlefleet!

    "The Cybertronian Armada?!"  You can see the outlines of a massive flagship, one side was festooned in the Autobot sigil, the other in the Decepticon sigil!

    "Their hate is palpable.  It feeds the one."

    "The one?  The one I sensed when I was connected to the Vat.This... Wargod."

    "Perhaps...  Yes...  But he has not yet come to birth yet.  Still he waits... waits for one final push."

    You look back at the shapes in the dark skies above Cybertron, "And if he feeds off of hate, then those ships may just give him exactly what he needs..."

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End of NWNG: General Statement

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