Jaggid and Grey stumbled when the second quake hit, then quickened their pace. Once they reached Grid Epsilon, they were disturbed by the sight that met them when they arrived. Scorch marks littered the landscape; a battle had definitely taken place.

Jag sniffed the air and the ground, trying to ascertain which scent was which. There were some familiar smells, though it was difficult to tell thanks to the blaster marks. Her sensor readings were sketchy; she suspected it had something to do with the mysterious interference from earlier. She therefore had to rely on sight. She spotted a half crushed mini spider bot some distance away and went to investigate.

In beast mode, Greyback's wolf senses were heightened, so he decided to investigate a collection of strange scents coming from around the corner. He came upon a large pile of rocks and boulders. He soon picked up a familiar smell, but it was hard to discern whose it was; friend or foe? It did not take him long to find an arm sticking out from under the rubble. His spark jumped into his throat. "Tigatron!" He Maximised and began frantically digging, with little to no results. "Jag! Get over here, quick!"

She sprinted over to him and started lifting the heavier rocks on top while Grey continued to dig. "How long do you think he's been under here?" she asked, worried.

"I don't know, but however long it's been, it's too long," he answered. "Don't worry buddy, we got you..." he assured the buried Tigatron. Once enough of the pile was loose, the top half of the tiger became visible. Apart from a few scrapes and gashes, he looked reasonable, but he was in stasis lock. Greyback tried to pull him out, but his legs were still trapped. Then, dread coarsed through him as he felt the ground beneath them start to rumble.

Jaggid felt it too. "If we don't get him out now, he'll be crushed beyond saving," she said urgently, her face lined with worry.

They continued work, and after a little more coaxing, they made enough room for Grey to wriggle the downed Maximal out from underneath the heavier rocks and free his legs. Just as he was about to pull him to safety however, the ground shook. Fully expecting to be crushed, Grey instinctively covered his and Tigatron's heads with his arms. A few seconds passed, and he dared to open one optic. He was still three dimensional, not flattened. He looked up and to his horror, Jaggid was bracing an enormous boulder with her back and arms, holding up the rest of the rockslide.

"Jag!"

"Get him out of here," she said with difficulty, through gritted teeth.

"Not without you," he replied sternly. "Drop the boulder and run!"

"I can't, it's load bearing..." Her voice was strained with the effort of holding up what felt like a mountain. "If I let it go now it'll bury all three of us." He suddenly heard a loud creaking sound; her arms were starting to give. She continued with a grunt, "Take Tigatron and go, I've got this."

"You can't expect me to..."

"I said go! I'll be right behind you," she gasped, with feigned reassurance. When he hesitated, she snarled, "GO!"

The ferocity of her command compelled him to obey, so he hoisted Tigatron over his shoulders and ran. As he reached an unscorched patch of land beyond the battlefield, another tremor shook the ground. He lost his footing, but kept going. Then there was a thunderous crash and a shockwave of dust followed, knocking him off his feet. He and Tigatron fell to the ground and rolled. He rose, coughing.

He spun on his heel and he felt his spark stop. The rubble pile was gone; in its place a web of tectonic fissures sprawled across the landscape. There was no sign of Jaggid. He called her name several times, but he heard no answer. He clutched his head in his hands. It couldn't be, it couldn't be, he kept telling himself.

After a few moments of silence, he heard movement coming from below him. He scrambled to the precipice of the nearest fissure and looked down. "Jag?" he called again, hopefully.

Miraculously, he heard movement and coughing. Her voice was muffled and distant, but strong. "I'm fine, I've ended up in a cavern of some sort!"

At the same moment, a groan came from behind him; Tigatron was coming to. "Ugh, what hit me?" he asked groggily.

Greyback exhaled loudly and shakily, slumping onto the floor. "You two will be the death of me," he said breathily, clutching his hand to his spark. He called down into the fissure, "I'm coming down."

"I told you, I'm fine," her reply echoed. "I'll be up in a minute. See to Tigatron."

He complied and helped Tigatron into a seated position. He was very dazed and disoriented. Grey pulled out a medi-scanner. "Could be worse, bud," he said to him.

Tigatron managed a pained chuckle. "You don't say?"

"What happened?" Grey asked earnestly. Tigatron shook his head rigorously, trying to get his bearings. Everything was a blur. Just then, Jaggid crawled out of a different fissure right next to them, looking haggard but otherwise undamaged.

"How are you, Stripes?" she asked as she dusted herself off.

"Feeling a little flat, to be honest," he answered with an amused grunt. His smile suddenly faded, his expression now one of horror. "Cheetor and Softpaw! Where are they?" He attempted to stand, but doubled over in pain.

"Woah there big guy!" Greyback warned, trying to support him. "What are you talking about, what happened?"

Tigatron explained what happened to the pair; arriving to find Cheetor and Softpaw engaged with the Predacon fliers, their disappearance into a mysterious cavern, and the strange and powerful tremors.

After absorbing the information for a few seconds, Jaggid said decisively. "We need to get Tigatron to a CR chamber."

"But we also have to find Cheetor and Softpaw," Grey interjected.

Tigatron nodded and attempted to stand. "I will help you..."

Jaggid shook her head. "You're hurt. You're going back to base with Grey."

They both stared at her.

"But you're hurt, too," Grey protested.

"Rubbish, I'm right as rain," she retorted huffily. "And even if I were hurt, you're at full strength. It's only logical that you be the one to get Tigatron to base and come back again as quickly as you can. The coms are still down, and Optimus needs to know what's happened."

"And say we need to contact you?" he asked, getting slightly agitated.

She smiled gently at him. "Then run fast."

This calmed him down slightly, and he reluctantly agreed. He picked up Tigatron, getting ready to run back to base. Jaggid gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"What, nothing for me?" Tigatron asked jokingly.

Grey raised a brow ridge. "If you insist." He planted one on the side of Tigatron's head, and they all chuckled. "I'll be back soon," he assured her.

"Be careful," Tigatron said to Jaggid before they left. She nodded and watched them disappear around a corner, then turned back to the open fissure.

"Alley-oop."