"Can't you believe that, Bee? A giant floating island that shoots at anyone firing weapons? I mean, those aliens have gotta want some peace and quiet not letting anyone carrying a small blaster come in to their property."

"Calm your jets Smoke, we hadn't seen who created that island." Ironhide assured.

"I think it must be the same aliens who have created that probe." Bulkhead inquired.

"Oh man, I can't wait to take a vacation in that beauty. I mean, I won't do it without blowing something up!" Warpath claimed sheepishly.

"You'd better not be in that rock kid. I'd hate to be the bot that explains what happened to ya when you're scrap." Ironhide warned Warpath.

"Try me when we get to Earth, grandpa!" Warpath challenged.

"Easy Warpath. We don't know what happened yet with the island." Optimus clarified next. "I hope Airazor and Tigatron can hold out for as much time as possible until reinforcements arrived."

"They'd better. I'd hate to see what Blackarachnia's going to do with that obelisk when she's done with Scorponok." Arcee bluntly stated.

"I'm betting my last two shards that ain't gonna work, Blast Off." Swindle nudged to his comrade.

"If it does, I'm taking them." Both Combaticons agreed with a fist bump.

"That being said and all, Omega Scion, if you may?" Megatron asked to the ancient Cybertronian.

"So be it. Commencing..."

On high ground where nature roams freely as it may, where Tigatron lies in position with a recovering Airazor. There, Tigatron began musing on his thoughts...

"It is as though I have come home. Though my heart is a maximal fluid pump my soul is that of a tiger. And on this strange, flying Island, despite it's weaponry, I at last feel myself at peace."

Then Tigatron glared with ferocity burning in his eyes. "It must not fall into the clutches of the Predacons."

"Hehehe, that sounds familiar." Jetfire spoke. "Like when our best warriors take time to reflect when they're on a job done."

"Yeah..." agreed Silverbolt. "Remember Turnabout? He used to do poetry before."

Air Raid and Jetfire mused on their friend that was the Assault Captain of the Lightning Strike Coalition having led the Coalition to victory against the Seekers in about 10 battles in 90 days. That is before they saw him up meeting his fate at the disintegration cannon, by Vortex, no less. Remembering him at this moment... wasn't the best time.

Meanwhile, Blackarachnia and Scorponok advanced on their own without incident.

"That obelisk seems to be the center of power for this whole place." Blackarachnia mused.

"Then, it is probably guarded." Scorponok suggested.

"Figured that all by yourself, did you?" Blackarachnia teased, then sternly reminded. "Keep your scanners on high res." Then went forward to scan the island for anomalies not native to the island. Until she stops and spots something in the midst.

"Wait! There's something here... some sort of... marking."

The strange symbol eventually glows red, causing the ground underneath Blackarachnia to crumble, and so she fell, but thankfully, the cyberwebbing she quickly made had tethered to the ground and so she pulled up to the surface, to Scorponok's amusement when he caught up to his partner's plight.

Arcee tittered her eyes for a moment.

"Not exactly careful when curiosity eats the cat, does it? I thought so." Knockout commented.

"OR in this instance, the spider getting caught in it's own web." Bulkhead quipped. That was actually amusing.

"Who are you and what have you done with the real Bulkhead?" Wheeljack interrogated.

"Have a nice... trip?" Scorponok mockingly asked while laughing at Blackarachnia.

"There are times it pays to be a spider." Blackarachnia retorted. (Arcee: Yeah, especially when spiders can fall for their own traps as well.)

"That symbol... It seems to mark the trap location." she then rubbed her hindlegs together gleefully. "This could be useful knowledge."

Meanwhile, Tigatron was still looking over an injured Airazor.

"We should move." Tigatron recommended, which Airazor nods. "How are you feeling?" he asked.

"Better." Airazor replied. "Still thrashed. Can't fly." she reminded, unable to lift her wings in a slight flap.

"In that case," Tigatron then lowered his body at seat level where Airazor could reach. "the lady shall ride a tiger." and rode off slowly with her at his back.

Jazz grinned, Smokescreen smirked and Knockout laughed. "Oh, this is quite the comedy."

Prime looked indifferently. Relationships amongst the Autobots were commonplace, as long as it did not interfere with their operations.

Heck, the last time he spent with Elita was before she perished in Kokular. The last time they saw the moon together whilst holding hands before she gave her life to the cause of freedom.

He missed her every day for it. And was willing to live to keep her memory alive.

Meanwhile, Rattrap and Primal flew off, and are underway to the island Tigatron mentioned.

"Man! I still don't see why I gotta be the one to get carried like a sack of rusty nuts!" Rattrap whined.

"Oh bolt up, you whiny cheese-eater!" Arcee barked.

"Because you're the only one I can fly this whole distance!" Optimus inquired while flying. "Besides, Tigatron's message said the flying Island was booby-trapped and no-one knows traps like Rattrap!"

"Yea, the curse of a great reputation." Rattrap snarked sardonically "Eh, say, we get beverage cart service on this flight?"

"Just make sure your seats belts are securely fastened" Primal snarked back, accelerating at a distance that Rattrap's moaning can be heard from afar.

"The say the Aerialbots would do... when they had humans in their cockpits!" Perceptor commented.

"He's not wrong, Air Raid." Silverbolt spoke defensively to an objecting Air Raid.

"That's far fetched from the looks of it." Jetfire spoke next.

At the Axalon, Rhinox pressed a few buttons where the map began to triangulate Primal's coordinates.

"Launching laser probe... now!" Rhinox barked.

A laser from the ship launched forth and onto Primal's chest.

"This is Maximal Base, calling Optimus. Come in, Optimus." Rhinox hailed via communications."

"This is Optimus Primal. Sounds like the laser link is working fine."

"It's lined of sight transmission, but at least it's free of energon interference. And the infrared beams should go right trough that cover-cloud without trouble." Rhinox clarified.

"Hmm, if we can develop communications like that, we wouldn't need to worry about interference at all." Perceptor then tallied up plans to make a laser-based communication link.

"Laser-linked communication link, Lord Megatron?"

"That will help in case regular communications are hindered by any interference. I approve of it, Soundwave."

Now Soundwave was silently contemplating for such a communication means.

"Hey speaking of trouble, Waspinator and Terrorsaur just took off from Predacon central!" Cheetor notified, walking towards Rhinox's back. "They must be back online."

"For a rabble of lowlifes, they sure recover fast." Predaking notified.

"They do have those restoration chambers they frequently use when injured." Perceptor reminded. And so he started going off and on to make plans for restoration chambers, earning the frowns from Ratchet.

"You hear that Optimus?"

"More than hear it, Rhinox!" Primal replied.

"We're livin' it live!" just as both airborne Predacons eventually transform into the air.

"Terrorize!" Terrorsaur transformed, and fired from his shoulder cannons, prompting Primal to manuever away from the blasts as they explode on close proximity.

"Oh no!" Rattrap screamed when Waspinator began closing in on them fast. Later joined by Terrorsaur, Primal struggled to maintain flight while under fire.

"With Rattrap riding him, any maneuvers that he can try would be impossible." Jetfire notified.

"This isn't gonna end well for both of them." Vortex commented.

"I can't maneuver with a passenger!" Primal groaned, a close blast nearly grazed his leg.

"Well excuse me!" Rattrap went into Primal's face. "I'm the one hang on by their little pink toes here! I can't even transform like this!" until another blast knocked them out of flight, sending both screaming as they fall.

Arcee facepalmed. "You idiot..."

Back in the island, both Scorponok and Blackarachnia were advancing to the island, until the latter notices another strange symbol by the tree.

"Hold it, Shell-head!" Blackarachnia pulled Scorponok away from the tree by throwing him over her. "We'd want to avoid this area."

"Why?" Scorponok asked confused upon getting up.

"Call it... intuition."

Far away, Airazor monitors their movements. "Blackarachnia freaked by that mark on a tree."

"A mark?" Tigatron questioned "Like that one?" referring to the symbol nearby. "What does it mean?" The symbol glowed red.

"You just had to set off another trap, did you, kitty?" Breakdown commented.

The trap caused two giant boulders to fall on opposite directions of the path, cutting off their way as the enviromental trap began to close in towards Tigatron and Airazor, as if it was about to crush them both slowly. Along with the two rock formations between them both that seemed to move quickly.

"I think we've just found out!" Airazor quipped.

"Get out of there!" Sideswipe shouted.

"She can't. She's still hurt, remember?" Ironhide notified.

Back below, Rattrap was still screaming as he was falling too fast from the sky. IN contrast, Primal regained his flight pattern and readied his wrist guns, firing at the intercepting airborne Predacons, enough to temporarily ward them off.

"Rattrap, I'm on my way!" Primal shouted, but a precise blast from Waspinator knocked him out of flight again.

The Aerialbots shook their heads.

"Always keep your focus on the enemy. Especially when you're fighting them." Silverbolt reminded.

"Well, to be fair, Silverbolt, these guys were explorers, not warriors." Bumblebee reminded.

"Still doesn't mean we have to keep our guard down, Bee."

"Slag Heap City, I'm gonna die!" Rattrap moaned. "I'm falling, pitiful and helpless!"

"A scared little mousie!" Terrorsaur taunted "This is just too good to be true!"

"Why do I have a feeling he's going to pull some kind of trick with this?" Arcee wondered aloud.

"You know, Beak-face..." Rattrap quipped back transforming "You're right!" aiming his weapon at him and firing, knocking them out of pattern.

Terrorsaur screeched "Beast Mode!" but Rattrap mounted him holding him by his neck.

"Just had to get you close enough to hitch a ride." Rattrap spoke cockily.

Arcee looked shock. Seems Rattrap was much more cunning than he seems.

"Now FLY, ya featherless freak, or I'll toast your tachyons." Rattrap demanded, emphasizing his demand by pistol-whipping his head and shoving the gun in his ventral port.

Coerced, Terrorsaur conceeded.

Now the Aerialbots and airborne ex-Decepticons were having a mirth of laughter.

"What Rattrap doesn't have in courage, he has in cunning. I respect that." Prime spoke wistfully.

"Still, imagine having organic beast forms that give us quite a weakness in our rears." Smokescreen blabbed.

The Dinobots and Predacons (except Predaking) cringed.

"Smokescreen... for the love of Primus, please don't." Grimlock warned politlely.

"Finally..." Primal regained his flight bearings again after blasting Waspinator out of flight. "Now for Rattrap." only to find him riding Terrorsaur in surprise.

"Thanks, but I got it handled." Rattrap quipped. "So, what are we hanging around here for?"

They were on the way flying to the island until the rat Maximal got a complimentary slap to the shoulder by Primal.

"You're a real piece of work, Rattrap." Primal gloated.

"Yeah, ain't it the truth." Rattrap added to self-boasting.

"The truth?! Brother, you've done what any ground-running Autobot would do!" Warpath boasted.

Meanwhile...

"We've activated another of this Island's traps!" Tigatron beckoned to Airazor. "Can you fly yet?"

"You think I haven't been trying?" Airazor replied, apparently still too injured to take flight.

"Then we have but one dangerous option. Tigatron, maximize!" and transformed. He brandished his gun and blasted at the boulder to smithereens then ran out of the trap taking Airazor with him just as the obelisk was about to fire it's laser on them, barely avoiding the beam, but not before he yelled "Now we must run!"

From afar, the Predacons being closer to the obelisk saw the beam's trajectory.

"The Maximals! It fired on them!" Scorponok piped up.

"Then quickly, before it can recharge!" Blackarachnia pressed on, prompting her and the scorpion Predacon to reach the obelisk faster.

"Oh boy! The Preds are getting closer! This ain't good!" Warpath panicked, worried.

"Calm down, Warpath. They were meant to stay for backup, not intercept the Preds taking the island." Ultra Magnus reminded.

"Still, shouldn't they do that to ensure the Predacons do not seize control of the island for themselves?" Perceptor reminded.

When Rattrap and Primal arrived, they saw Tigatron running to the obelisk with Airazor riding him.

"There! About time, too!" Primal notified as Energon oversaturation began to take him and Rattrap too.

But eventually, Rattrap screamed "Heads up!" as Terrorsaur flew him to a tree, knocking him off him by flying underneath a branch. Rattrap regained his bearings and yelled "Beast mode!" converting him back to his beast form.

"Man, you talk about your bumpy flights!" he groused approaching Tigatron and Airazor.

"Ironic, for someone who had a bumpy flight with Terrorsaur." quipped Jazz.

"It is good that you have come." Tigatron turned to Primal. "The Predacons have almost reached the obelisk. We must stop them! But we must be careful to avoid the traps. Watch for that symbol. That marks the trap location."

Primal notices a strange gateway formed strangely with the same symbol. He tested it by throwing a rock underneath the arch, which activated the trap of falling rocks.

"So I see." Primal spoke insightfully.

"And don't use energy weapons." Airazor reminded next. "This place gets strict if you do Boom!"

Warpath groused in embarassment of having his catchphrase taken by someone, earning chuckles and teases from his comrades.

"Wait a minute, wait a minute! You mean that whoever build this place went to all the trouble of making traps and then marked them and it wont let you use energy weapons?" Rattrap tried to collect, unsure to believe what he was informed.

"You'd think it'd be the aliens who made that probe, Commander?"

"If it was, they would have good reason to invent such devices." Prime replied to his second in command.

"What are you getting at, Rattrap?" Primal inquired.

"I'm saying that this ain't no paradise. It's a puzzle!" Rattrap piped up. "This whole place is designed to attract intelligent species and then test them!"

"Test them? Test them for what?" Airazor spoke, not following Rattrap was saying.

"I don't know, bird lady, but I'll tell you this: Generally speakin', being a guinea pig ain't exactly a long-term career gig, ya know what I'm sayin'?" Rattrap said, prompting nods from the Dinobots.

"I did agree. It wasn't like I asked Shockwave to turn me to a freak!" Grimlock shouted.

"I say we get off of this flying sod farm." Rattrap suggested.

"NO! This is a land of peace, I WILL protect it!" Tigatron protested.

"It wont be a land of peace much longer. Look!" Primal pointed at the horizon to see both Scorponok and Blackarachnia now at the obelisk. They transformed to their robot forms.

"At last!" Blackarachnia gleefully spoke up "The power center must be inside! We'll have to blast in."

"We can't!" Scorponok reminded "If we use energy weapons, it will blast us!"

"Then we need a diversion..." from afar, they saw both Terrorsaur and Waspinator flying at the distance at their location.

"I had the feeling that Blackarachnia would use them for her schemes." Onslaught commented.

"The flyers will try to take our triumph for their own." Blackarachnia groused.

"Just like Airachnid." Arcee bitterly spouted.

"They must be stopped! I will billow them from the sky!" Blackarachnia brandished her weapon at the both of them.

"Back-stabbing bug!" Terrorsaur hissed, perceiving Blackarachnia's 'betrayal.'

"I'll vape you first! Terrorize!" then transformed to robot form firing his weapons at them, prompting both to dodge. But this activates the obelisk to again fire it's laser at both airborne Predacons.

"Pterodactyl idiot!" Waspinator spat out.

Megatron was amused. "Oh, how much like Starscream in his idiotic schemes."

Onslaught groused. He still didn't forgive Starscream for that botched assault back when they attacked that Energon transport the Autobots were using.

"Now, before it recharges!" she fired a hole into the obelisk's chamber.

"Success! This flying Island, and all its power will soon be mine to control!" Blackarachnia gloated upon approaching the interior, which was composed of a strange bio-mechanical core lined to the brim with vents and wires, with an odd organism beating like a human heart maintained by three synthetic heat coils.

"What... was that?" Sideswipe asked.

"From the looks of it, that obelisk is powered by some kind of core that draws energies on both machine and organics." Perceptor theorized.

"It must be from the aliens who made that probe." Prime surmised.

Meanwhile, the Maximals charge towards the obelisk.

"They've breached the monument!" Primal spoke up.

"My wings have recovered!" Airazor notified, now being able to fly. She rode on Tigatron the entire time, sticking her wings wide in the hopes that she would fly again. She apparently succeeded.

"Oh man, I hate these glory charges!" Rattrap squeaked in fear. "What say, gorilla guy, any chance of a... negotiated settlement?"

"No." Primal rejected. "Battle already, team! Maximize!" and activated Robot Mode, catching up to Airazor in flight.

Back inside, Blackarachnia gloated...

"It's mine! This Island's weapons will give me the power to defeat even Megatron!I will destroy the Maximals and rule the Predacons!"

Soundwave, while faceless, elicited an innate frown. He had remembered Airachnid attempting to wrest command of the Decepticons while Megatron was seemingly gone.

The latter by far deepened his frown in contrast to his stoic behavior. Airachnid had once tried to have him killed by sending a mutant pet after him. Were it not for the skills he honed in the pits of Kaon, Megatron would