Getting out of the base proved as easy as it had been to get in. Soon, Rattrap was outside, his gun held tightly in his hands, firing away at the Predacons who had followed him even outside. Chamelea was nowhere in sight, and it only worried him even more.

He was about to start running back to the base, to see if Cham might have been injured somewhere back there, but never got the chance. Behind him, he heard a sudden step and a weapon charge up.

Rattrap turned, and came face-to-face with Blackarachnia.

"Surprise."

She raised her weapon.

"Noo!"

In a flash, as though coming out of nowhere, Chamelea leapt in front of Rattrap, pushing him back. Where had she come from? It wasn't time to worry about that, however.

Blackarachnia fired.

Predacon missiles have been known to cause severe damage even if fired from a large distance. A shot straight-on was indisputably deadly. With a jolt, Chamelea shrieked and staggered back.

"Cham! No!"

The cry rang from his own throat and lost itself with hers. Chamelea fell back gently against Rattrap, unable to stand, unable to move, unable to do anything but look up at Rattrap with wistful eyes. Her mouth hung open in a silent word, one she might have wanted to say but didn't have a chance.

Trembling from the shock, Rattrap held her, gasping quietly as he saw the huge wound in her chest. Skin and armor had been burned away to nothing, exposed circuitry now useless. A faint, slightly pulsing light was visible from her lower chest: her spark, weakening, dying. Coldly, Rattrap looked up at the Predacon female, tears more of rage than sorrow welling in his eyes.

"You...." was all he could manage to say, his entire body shaking with the grief he fought back.

Blackarachnia merely stood there, weapon by her side, peering curiously at the two Maximals as though wondering why he could possible care that she was dying.

"She'll die," the Predacon said, more disdainfully than anything else. "Why did she try to save you? Risk her own life... for yours?"

Rattrap gasped, the tears he had so fought back streaming down his face. His eyes shot daggers.

"It's called love," he said, his voice ice. "Something you'll never understand."

As though acknowledging that he was right, that she never would and that she couldn't care less, Blackarachnia shrugged and raised her weapon again.

"Pity. Then why don't you join her?"

Right, why don't I? Rattrap thought. He closed his eyes, bent over on Chamelea and prepared for the end.

It never came, however, and all he heard was a loud blast and an angry shriek from Blackarachnia. He opened his eyes and turned to look.

Rhinox stood, some paces away, his gun still hoisted. He saw Rattrap, Chamelea's limp form, and immediately understood, his arm dropping in sudden sorrow. "Cha- Chamelea...?"

Rattrap shook his head, his face twisting in a mask of absolute sadness. Rhinox moved closer, but still kept a respectable distance from the two.

"I'm sorry," Rhinox said. "I'll... I'll come get you later."

Rattrap nodded unsteadily, looked down at Chamelea. She was still looking at him, her optics dimming slowly, her spark clearly fading.

"Cham.... I- I'm so sorry.... I should have...."

She silenced him with a weak wave of her hand. "It's... not your fault. I guess... it was.... my destiny..."

Her last words uttered, Chamelea leaned her head back and closed her eyes. With a final pulsing, her spark extinguished, her body resting limply in Rattrap's arms. Unable to hold back, he buried his face against her neck and let the tears fall down his face.

***

A hollow silence had set on the ship that evening, the grief in the atmosphere practically palpable. Everyone had been quiet, especially Rattrap, who hadn't spoken a word since he had brought back Chamelea to the base.

Chamelea... she was lying, lifeless, on a biobed in the med bay, watched over by Rattrap and Rogue, who stood nearby. Chamelea's usually golden armor had turned a shallow shade of yellow, her green skin had paled and seemed inert. Rogue had repaired her chestplate, hoping to make her appear more presentable before her body was put in stasis.

Rattrap was kneeling down next to her, staring at her in a haze and fighting back tears so badly that his body shook. Rogue approached him quietly and put a comforting hand on his shoulder, squeezing gently.

"I'm so sorry," she said softly, her own voice tear-filled.

Rattrap just shook his head as though trying to wake himself up, to find out that this was all a bad dream and that it would be over in a whisk. But it wasn't, and he knew it; Chamelea was gone.

"I'll... I'll leave you alone with her a while," Rogue continued. "If you need anything, I'll be right outside." She turned slightly to face him. "I'm here for you, okay?"

Rattrap nodded shakily, his eyes focused on the lifeless body in front of him. Rogue gave him one last squeeze on the shoulder, then turned away and exited the med bay, the door swishing quietly behind her.

Hesitantly, Rattrap reached out and took Chamelea's hand, holding it carefully in his own. Tears welled down his cheeks, and this time he made no effort to hold them back. He swallowed hard and forced himself to find the courage to speak.

"Well," Rattrap started softly. "This sure was... unexpected. And I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm sorry this had to happen, I'm sorry it was you and not me, and... and most of all, I'm sorry I never told you what I should have before." He took in a shaky breath. "I love you. More than anything else."

The tears continued to streak down his face.

"Your destiny..." Rattrap said, smiling sadly. "Y'know, I'm starting to think that you're right- that things do happen for a reason. And... and that maybe it was your destiny to end up like this. Or... or maybe your whole point of being here was to save my skin... maybe that was your destiny."

More tears fell.

"But... you know what? Maybe... maybe the reason you came here at all was to change me. I mean, look at everything you've done for me. Before I met you, I never cared for anyone besides myself. I saw other people getting killed to save others, and I couldn't possibly imagine why someone would want to do that. I didn't know what love was, and I frankly didn't care. But now... now that I met you, I understand all that, now."

His voice became shaky. "I know what love is... I know what it's like to really care for someone. And when I think back at what you did- you were willing to die for me, I... I just know I would have done the same for you- for anyone I care for now."

He held her hand tighter. "And I should have... I should have protected you. I should have made sure that nothing would happen to you."

Still holding Chamelea's hand, he gently traced the side of her face.

"Why it had to end like this, I don't know- but, like you would say... it was your destiny."

Slowly, carefully, Rattrap placed her hand on her chest over the other and took one last moment to look at her, to remember her face, her beauty, the one that had taught him to love and to care for someone besides himself.

He turned away from her and hazily walked towards the med bay door. Rogue looked up at him as he came out, and forced herself to give him a comforting smile.

"You okay?" she asked quietly.

Rattrap forced his eyes to meet hers. Sadness played itself between them, melting Rogue's smile away and bringing back the sad expression.

"I'll miss her too," Rogue said, gently taking Rattrap's hand. "We'll help each other get through this, all right?"

Finally, Rattrap managed to speak to her. "Thanks." He smiled slightly. "For once, I actually want your help. I... I never thought this would happen. I mean, not this way..."

Rogue squeezed his hand. "Things never happen the way you expect. That's called life."

"No..." Rattrap said softly, gazing for a while at the med bay door, where his one true love lay, lifeless, destined this way. He turned back to face Rogue.

"No, it's called... destiny."

The End