Transformers Regenerated: Scavengers, Chapter Eleven

Epilogue will be published later today or tomorrow. 

CHAPTER ELEVEN

--Metroplex--

    If Spacewarp had been told to put what she was seeing to words, she would've failed miserably.

    Just moments ago, she and Devcon had come to Metroplex's spark chamber to find the Hunter standing before the Titan's spark, a dead mech at his feet and a Mini-Con in his hands. Before anything could happen, that was when everything went spinning.

    Once Spacewarp had gotten back to her feet, she saw the Hunter on his back and Metroplex's spark gone... and in its place, a glowing portal.

    A space bridge.

    The Hunter was getting back to his feet, his optics wide with surprise and... panic? Spacewarp had difficulty in getting a read of his expression, but quickly decided it was irrelevant. As she reattached Foldspace to her arm, the Hunter started murmuring incessantly to himself.

    "Where is it? Where is it?! The spark, I need the spark, where is the spark?"

    "I've got your spark right here," Spacewarp said as she fired at the Hunter. He quickly turned around and absorbed the blast, now staring hungrily at the Decepticon.

    "Your spark, yes, I will take your spark." He made a horrible sound with his mouth. "I shall enjoy taking your spark."

    Ugh, and I thought the creeps on Lovetopia were bad. Spacewarp took aim again and fired at the Hunter. He failed to deflect it in time and it struck him in the head, knocking him to the ground.

    At that point, Devcon came back to her side. "I just called Dai Atlas. He and the others should be here soon."

    "Did you tell him about the...?" Spacewarp asked, gesturing at the portal.

    "No. I figured it was something they needed to see for themselves."

    Nodding slightly, Spacewarp looked back at the Hunter. The monstrous mech seemed to be taking the blow to the head well, groaning as he held his cranium in pain.

    Looking at Devcon, she said, "Can I trust you with him?"

    Devcon blinked. "Wait, you're leaving?"

    "I've got an artifact to collect, and I didn't go through all of this not to retrieve it. This is your problem now, not mine."

    Devcon scowled. "You know you're still our prisoner."

    Spacewarp took a step forward and leaned into him, bearing into his optics with a mix of slyness and menace. "Fine, go ahead and chase me. But when he gets back up, who's going to be held responsible?"

    Devcon opened his mouth but could not muster a response. Instead, he simply gave her a grudging nod of farewell. Satisfied, Spacewarp turned and transformed to her alt mode, taking off into the corridor outside.

--Outside--

    "Did I... do good?"

    Crankcase gave Misfire an incredibly rude hand gesture.

    "Oh, hush!" the other Scavenger said, getting up from the ground. "At least I hit something!"

    "Were you aiming for the Titan?" Krok asked, standing with his arms crossed.

    "Well.... no. But I would have gotten those other guys if they hadn't run away like a bunch of pansies!"

    "Um, guys?" Fulcrum pointed down below. All of the Star Seekers and the Circle of Light were migrating towards the Titan, for the hole the Requiem Blaster had made in it. "Should we... go after them?"

    "Are you kidding?" Crankcase asked. "This is our chance to get as far away from them as possible."

    "But we lost the W.A.P. in the crash. We may be stranded on this junk planet forever."

    "Hey," Spinister said, directing everyone's attention to the sky, where a gray and violet spaceship was approaching them. "Who the slag is that?"

    Krok saw the ship and his optics narrowed. "This day just keeps getting better."

    The vessel started to transform, taking the shape of a blocky femme baring the Decepticon insignia. She landed in front of the Scavengers and looked upon them with a smug expression.

    "I see you have assembled quite the motley crew, Krok," she said. "I imagine you've gotten far with them."

    "What do you want, Spacewarp?" Krok asked bitterly.

    "You have something I want. The transformation cog of Amalgamous Prime."

    "Oh, so that's what that thing was?" Misfire asked. "I think I lost it near the Harbinger. You can have it if you want -- I've already got a cooler toy."

    As he said this, he held up the Requiem Blaster. Spacewarp's eyes went wide at the sight of it.

    "Where... did you get that?"

    Misfire held his chin up smugly. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

    Spacewarp strode forward and grabbed Misfire by the neck, lifting him up. "Where -- did -- you -- get it?" 

    "We found it on the Harbinger," Krok said. "Why do you want to know?"

    Spacewarp looked at him incredulously. "Do you know nothing about these relics? Do you have any idea of what they're worth?"

    "If I were to wager, I'd say a lot," Crankcase said. "But why should we give them to you? What do we get in return?"

    Spacewarp said nothing at first, looking from one Scavenger to the next. Then, she released Misfire and squared her shoulders.

    "How does anything you could ever ask for sound to you?"

--Metroplex--

    "You'd better make this quick, Devcon," Dai Atlas said, rushing into the spark chamber with Ginrai, Flareup, and Axe. "The Star Seekers are on our tail, and Star Saber and the others can't hold them for--"

    He trailed off when he saw the space bridge. His mouth fell agape as he and the others stared in awe.

    "By Primus," Ginrai murmured. "I've never see something so... extraordinary."

    "But where's his spark?" Flareup asked. "Is Metroplex... gone?"

    "Your guess is as good as mine," Devcon said grimly. "But if he is, he won't be the only one in a few minutes."

    He then held up his arms to show the severely injured form of Beta Maxx, his optics glowing dimly.

    Flareup gasped while Axe and Ginrai bowed their hands. Dai Atlas frowned in concern. "Is there anything we can do for him?"

    Devcon shook his head. "I'm afraid not. That... beast over there messed him up bad."

    "Beast?" Dai Atlas looked around the room. "Where?"

    Devcon glanced over his shoulder and got a puzzled look on his face. "Strange. He was just--"

    Suddenly, emerging from the shadows of the rafters, the Hunter descended upon the group, tacking Devcon and Beta Maxx to the floor. Dai Atlas and the others moved to attack him but he held them back with a blast from his arm cannon.

    Wresting Beta Maxx free from Devcon's grasp, the Hunter held the Mini-Con over his head. "If I can't have what I want," he snared, "then no one can."

    Then, with both hands, he pulled on Beta Maxx's body. Flareup cried out before charging towards the Hunter, but she was immediately lifted up in the air as he started to pull at her spark. Before he could remove it, Ginrai ran into the Hunter as well, colliding into him and tumbling with him to the ground, taking Flareup and Devcon with them.

    What happened next went all too quickly for Dai Atlas and Axe to react. As the four got closer to the space bridge, the portal suddenly glowed brighter than a star as it seemed to consume them. Then, it immediately evaporated, leaving behind nothing but thin air.

    A dead silence fell over the chamber. Dai Atlas and Axe stood alone over the bodies of Beta Maxx and a Star Seeker who had already been dead when they had arrived. Outside the room, the sounds of battle were growing closer.

    Axe turned to his leader. "What now?" he asked quietly.

    Dai Atlas said nothing, allowing the silence to hold its grip.

--Outside--

    Wreck-Gar was getting a headache. Or at least he thought he was at first. Then he remembered robots couldn't get headaches. So he was left frustrated instead.

    Today was not going well. Two parties he could have profited from were now fighting over a silly gun. He'd seen Mecannibals have tamer spats over who got the last part of a meal. He had half the mind to put these rude fellows in a time-out.

    "Chief, chief!"

    "Not now, Arclight," Wreck-Gar said bitterly. "I'm brooding."

    "But chief!" the younger Junkion said. "Someone's leaving!"

    At this, Wreck-Gar looked up to see a space shuttle taking off into the sky, with a capsule of some sorts being towed behind.

    Normally Wreck-Gar would have been mad at the fact they had left without paying. Then he decided he felt better knowing he had one less thing to worry about.