PLOT: Echo crashes on Earth and her memory circuts are scrambled. The femme ends up joining the Maximals though for the freedom and trust. She struggles with fitting in though because she is constantly going off on her own, or disobeying Optimus' orders. An encounter with Rampage sends dreams haunting her, and after a battle with the Predacons memories flood back while she's being repaired. Echo wakes up a different bot than before.

NOTE: This was written a long time ago.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Beast Wars. Echo is my OC.

The silver and sky blue femme looked around at her quarters within the Maximal base. She didn't really know why she had chosen to be a Maximal rather than a Predacon. Echo knew that she couldn't hide the past that she could remember from them forever and the Predacons would be more likely to accept that side of her. Echo's computer screened beeped and came on revealing Optimus' face.

"Echo, report to bridge. I need you to go into Predacon territory." Optimus informed her.

"On my way." She replied before the screen went black. Echo got up off of her bed and walked up to the bridge.

Optimus briefed her on what she was supposed to do.

"You want me to lead in this assignment?" Echo said choosing her words carefully.

"Yes. I want to see how good your skills are."

Echo nodded and turned to a waiting Dinobot and Silverbolt. "C'mon boys."

They followed her down the chute out of the Axalon and headed for the Predacon sector Figma. Echo transformed into her gray dire wolf form and took off running with Dinobot on her tail and Silverbolt in the air above. The group came upon Inferno and Quickstrike putting up a jamming station. All three remained in beast mode as they scouted the vicinity that the Predacons were putting up the station in.

"Since you're leading," Dinobot snorted. "What do you want to do?"

Echo thought a moment. "You boys take out the tower and I'll create a diversion."

"Acknowledged." He replied with Silverbolt standing behind the two silent.

"Position yourself where ya want and wait until I distract them." Echo ordered before stalking off.

Dinobot did as he was told, as did the fuzor, while Echo kept low and waited for the two head to turn his back to her. Then she'd pounce. Quickstrike turned his back to put the finishing touches on the tower when he was struck down and pain shot through his snake arm. He yelled and looked at his arm to see the she-wolf ripping it off with her powerful mouth. Inferno jumped into action firing at the femme, but she was too quick and leaped off of the fuzor who was struck by the shots instead. Echo launched the snake arm at Inferno who dodged it giving her time to transform.

The silver and sky blue femme had very delicate curves for a warrior, and instead of the normal feet like the other bots she had stiletto heels. One would see the heels as a disadvantage, but for her they were perfect in battle if used correctly they could pierce armor.

Inferno yelled, "For the royalty!" The insane ant charged at her firing his gun. Echo quickly dodged and fell back to the rocks.

"Ha! I've gotcha now Maximal! You shall burn!" he laughed.

Echo just grinned and used the enclosed area to her advantage. She jumped at one wall and to the other. She went back and forth avoiding the onslaughts by the ant as best as she could. When she was close enough, Echo launched herself off the rocks towards the ant. She brought her leg out and managed to kick him in the head sending both down. Inferno just fell flat while Echo managed to roll minimizing damage. It was unfortunate for her that the ant had recovered quicker and shot her back sending her flying.

"You'll pay for that one ant!" she hissed getting up.

Before he knew it she had drawn her twin glocks and began firing at him while running to avoid his shots. Echo dove behind a boulder and put a gun away so she could retrieve a det pack that she had gotten from the rat before she left. She liked to go all out even when it wasn't necessary. It was fun. Especially, when there were high explosives involved. Echo jumped out from behind the boulder firing her one gun; then she threw the det pack at the ant who tried avoiding it, but Echo had anticipated he would and hadn't thrown it directly at him. She had thrown it near him and made it detonate in midair taking out the ant. She blew on her gun and twirled it before holstering it.

Dinobot had watched the whole battle in between taking out the tower. "Impressive." He said to himself as he and Silverbolt took out the tower.

Echo walked over to them. "Echo to base."

"Base here. Status report." Optimus asked.

"Mission accomplished." She said with laughter on the edge of her voice.

"Okay, return to base."

"Understood. Echo out." She replied.

As the three headed back to base Dinobot caught up with the femme.

"Your fighting techniques are quite unique, but they are indeed impressive." Dinobot informed her.

"Oh, well thanks." Echo replied.

"Where did you learn such techniques?" he questioned knowing that they were assassin like.

Echo's face turned serious and she made no attempt to hide the fact that she wasn't proud of something. "From a life time ago."

Dinobot decided that was a touchy and subject and shouldn't be pushed. He changed the subject. "So you're a star hopper. Where do you go?"

Echo sighed. "Look 'Claws', I'll tell you this because you're honest. I really don't remember much of anything before here. My circuits were scrambled after crashing, but I did travel a lot to colonies and to Earth."

Dinobot seemed a little surprised by her response. "You don't know who you are?"

"No, I know who I am. I just don't recall what all I did." Echo sniffed the night air. "Sorry, to cut this conversation short Claws, but I got something I gotta do while the nights young."

"Your injuries…"

"Ah, I'll be okay until I get back to base. My energon reserves are at full capacity. I'll check in later." Echo told him trotting off to their right.

Dinobot watched her go as Silverbolt swooped down next to him.

"Where does the lady go?" he asked the raptor.

"I have no idea." Dinobot said shaking his head continuing back to base.

Predacon base.

"Blast! You let the female get the better of you!" Megatron yelled at Quickstrike and Inferno. "She's a weaker target, yesss."

Blackarachnia who happened to be in the room to hear the butt-chewing Megatron was giving his troops rolled her eyes. Sexist pig. she thought.

He turned to the she-spider and said, "I have a job for you. Find out anything and everything on this star hopper. I want to know her weaknesses."

"Yes, Megatron." Blackarachnia replied.

"Go now."

She nodded her head and used a hover board to leave. Slag, she always got the poor assignments. Oh well, at least it got her away from Legs and Quickstrike.

"I will either have you on my team or you will be destroyed." Megatron said speaking to himself while looking at the image of Echo.

The Axalon.

"Where's Echo?" Optimus asked Dinobot.

"She went for a run." Dinobot replied.

Optimus sighed. "I told her to report back to base. Did she sustain any damage?"

"Minimal, but not something her beast mode could repair." The raptor replied.

Echo lie in the middle of a field among a wolf pack that she liked to visit. The pups pounced on her head and she just shrugged them off and gently nipped at them. The alpha watched over his pack and kept a close eye on the rogue female. The other females were happy to have her because she watched the pups.

Suddenly, Echo's com flashed rather than beeped since she had it on stealth mode. Echo slowly got up and walked away from the pack. When the pups tried to follow her she barked at them to stay.

"Echo here." She finally said.

"Echo I told you to report back to base." Optimus said on the other end.

Echo sighed and answered, "Well, you didn't say directly. I assumed it'd be okay to have a night run before returning."

"Yes, well, I'd appreciate it if you came back first for repairs. Then you can go out."

"Alright. I'm on my way back now."

"Good. Optimus out."

Echo sighed. "Some freedom." She let out a cry to announce her departure and ran back to base as the alpha and his pack called after her.

She stepped onto the platform for the chute that raised up into the Axalon. Still in her beast mode she walked out of the chute to only see Rhinox and Optimus.

"Echo, a word." Optimus said noticing her.

"What's up?" she asked sitting down and perking her ears forward.

Optimus sighed and began, "From now on I want you to follow my orders just like everyone else. This is a war not a game. You can't just go and run off when you feel like it. It's a good way to get killed. Okay?"

"Yes, sir." Echo replied and said under her breath, "but I'm a star hopper and can take care of my self."

"Now, go get repairs."

Echo nodded and padded off.

Echo's quarters.

After repairs Echo had gone to recharge and awoke only a few hours later to find dawn. She loved the smell of morning dew and the radiant colors of the sun. She opened the hatch that led to the outside of the Axalon and sat on the roof in her wolf form enjoying the lush green planet.

Echo finally went back in to grab an energon drink so she had enough energy to do what she wanted to do with her hidden ship. Not even the Maximals knew where she had hidden it. Echo had placed it in stealth mode so no one could find it.

When she walked into the lounge Silverbolt along with Rattrap and Cheetor were in there having a drink. Echo made herself a drink and added something from one of her subspace compartments mixing it in.

"What was that?" Cheetor asked.

"Alcohol." She replied after taking a drink.

"Alcohol?" Rattrap said questioningly.

"Yeah, it gives me an extra boost. Like the wasp on a sugar high. It works, you should try it sometime." Echo said slamming half of it. She turned to Silverbolt, "Ah, just the bot I wanted to see. Ya got morning duty today?"

"No, my lady. Why?"

"I was hoping ya could gimme a lift to sector Orion."

"Orion? That's real far away. What's out there?" Rattrap asked.

"Nunya." Echo snapped.

"Nunya? What in the pit is that?"

"Nun ya damn business. Ya know when I get back." Echo fibbed.

Sector Orion.

"Here you go my lady." Silverbolt said letting the femme slide off of his back.

"Thanks Bolt. Ya can tell Optimus I'll be back in a few megacycles. I'll be reachable by com." Echo said transforming into her beast mode.

Silverbolt took flight back to base and Echo turned to go to the next sector, Sector Sirius. It would take her awhile, but that was okay because she didn't want them to find her ship. No one ever came out this far which was lucky for her crash landing she did.

Echo made it to her ship and boarded it.

"Voice, activate auxiliary power for lights and computers only."

"Acknowledged." The computer said complying to her order.

Echo began to run through the computers history tracks to see if she could find anything that might tell her about who she was and what she did.

Elsewhere.

"Rampage," Megatron bellowed over the com.

"What?" the crab snapped.

"I want you to head over to Sector Orion and intercept the star hopper. She's in that sector. Inferno and Quickstrike will meet you there. Oh, and Rampage, I want her back here alive."

The crab grumbled in response and moved along in his tank mode. Rampage had yet to actually see this femme in person and was looking forward to torturing someone new. Femmes were a lot more fun with their high pitched screams and such.

He stopped where Megatron had transmitted the coordinates, but knew that she was in the next sector by feeling her spark. Rampage was about to converge on her spot when the ant and fuzor arrived.

"I don't why the boss bot says she's out here. I can't pick up her signature." Quickstrike complained.

"Don't question the royalty!" Inferno hissed.

Just then an energy signature bleeped on the screen. It was moving quickly towards them, but it was in the other sector. They couldn't understand why she just all of sudden appeared in the next sector. No matter, the stupid femme was heading straight for them. They positioned themselves for an ambush.

Echo ran right into the middle of them and didn't realize that she was in trouble until she was fired on. She had endured three direct hits. Lucky for her Rampage was using his small gun and not his missiles. The wolf rolled behind some cover and transformed.

"Slag!" she yelled before cursing. "Echo to base."

"…"

"Echo to base, come in slag you!"

"..Ec..o,…is…s..bas…er."

"If ya'll can hear me on the other end, I'm in Sector Orion under heavy Pred fire. Back up would be nice."

"We're…our…ay."

"Great. They'll be here just in time to see the Preds throwing my parts around." Echo mused.

Inferno shot at her cover. "Give up Maximal! For the colony!" he cackled manically.

Echo pulled out her twin glocks and readied going out into the open. She took a deep breath before jumping out into the open and firing at them.

Inferno got trigger happy and didn't aim, so he just missed her completely. Quickstrike took most of her shots and he yelled as he fell back. Rampage just laughed at her desperate attempts to take them out.

"Hey, blender butt, we've got incomin' Maxies." Quickstrike told Inferno.

"Drone!" Inferno yelled at Rampage. "Go keep the other Maximals busy."

Rampage grumbled because he wanted to have fun with the femme.

Predacon base.

"No, no, NO! You incompetent fools!" Megatron bellowed slamming his fists down causing everyone, but Rampage in the room to duck. "You had plenty of time before the Maximals got there."

"Forgive us royalty." Inferno said bowing.

Megatron waved his hand. "However, I can set my other plan in motion in the meantime. Now go repair yourselves."

Rampage walked out of the room grateful Megatron hadn't decided to squeeze his spark. Rampage began to let his mind drift on his way to the tanks. The femme's spark seemed very familiar to him, but he couldn't place his finger on it. No matter, he would see the femme later anyway. Then he would find out who she was.