Optimus Primal: "I don't know who you are, but if it's a fight you're looking for... Optimus, Maximise!"
Optimus Primal gets stuck in mid-transformation for a second and then reverts back to beast mode, with electric sparks around his body.
Optimus Primal: "What's happening to me? Why can't I transform?"
The tankdrones aim their cannons at Optimus Primal.
Optimus Primal's Internal Computer:"System error. System error."
The tankdrones open fire. Optimus jumps up and swings between parallel metal struts. He lands on a small bridge and his eyes glow white. A mysterious voice speaks...
Voice: "The seeds of the future lie buried in the past."
Optimus sees a white light which shows him a passing freight train. The tankdrones fire and Optimus jumps onto the train. Inside one of the cargo carriages, he sees a familiar rodent.
Rattrap: "Hey, get off buddy, this is my hiding spot!"
Optimus Primal: "Rattrap?"
Rattrap: "Optimus?"
Tankdrones open fire and the two Maximals duck.
Rattrap: "You mind telling me what's goin' on here? One minute we're heading home to Cybertron, next minute these yo-yos are using me for target practise!"
Optimus Primal: "You don't remember either? There must be some kind of virus causing a memory glitch."
Optimus' body produces a few sparks.
Rattrap: "Whoa-ho, you wanna see a glitch? Check this out!"
Rattrap tries to transform, but his body just produces a lot of sparks.
Optimus Primal: "I know, I can't transform either. We'll figure it out later, right now we just have to keep moving!"
Rattrap: "Whoa-hoho, no way this rat's deserting this titanium-reinforced ship!"
Optimus Primal peers outside. He sees an entire platoon of tankdrones in tank mode aiming their cannons at them. He grabs Rattrap and bails out just as the train explodes. Rattrap screams.
The two Maximals run with the tanks in hot pursuit.
Rattrap: "Rattrap Maximise, Rattrap Maximise!! Rattrap... PRETTY PLEASE MAXIMISE!!"
Optimus' eyes glow white and the light appears again. It shows him an escape route.
Voice: "This way!"
The Maximals turn left but the tanks are still chasing them. The Maximals are cornered. Rattrap cowers in fear...
Rattrap: (whimpering) "Rattrap... pretty please Maximise?" His body shorts out.

The tank charges its cannon. High above on an overhead bridge, we see Cheetor's silhouette. Cheetor jumps down and covers the tank's optic sensor with his front paws. Like Optimus and Rattrap, Cheetor is also in his pre-Transmetal state. The tank fires and just misses Optimus Primal, punching a large hole in the wall behind him.
Optimus Primal: "Cheetor!"
Rattrap: "Hoo-hoo-hoo! Good timin', Spots!"
Cheetor is wrestling with the tankdrone.
Cheetor: "Uurrgghh... move it or lose it, guys. Gyargh! I can't play Blindman's Bluff forever!"
Cheetor lets out a yelp as he jumps off the tank just another tankdrone (in robot mode) blows it up. Behind it are the rest of the platoon (also in robot mode), standing behind in single file.
Cheetor: "Hey, you just slagged your own guy! That's deep freeze cold!"
The lead tankdrone opens fire. Rattrap nonchalantly strolls up to the lead drone.
Rattrap: "Yo, Tin Man! Yeah, I'm talkin' to you, rust-for-brains!"
Rattrap runs between the legs of the tankdrones. The lead drone looks down. During this distraction, Optimus Primal tackles the lead drone. It falls backwards and knocks over the other drones like dominoes. The Maximals run. They quickly duck into an alley way and watch the rest of the platoon trundle by.

Cheetor: "Did I miss something? This is Cybertron, right? Our home planet? I mean, why would our own kind shoot at us?"
Rattrap: "Heheheh, have you looked in the mirror lately? Our 'own kind' don't recognise us in these lousy fur coats!" His body starts sparking again.
Cheetor: "Not a problem. We just need to get to a Regeneration Chamber and debug this transforming glitch."
Rattrap: "Hellooo? We're int the MIDDLE OF NOWHERE HERE!" Both their bodies short out again.
Optimus Primal: "It's worse than I thought. If we don't transform out of these beast modes soon, our operating systems will shut down. Permanently."
Cheetor: "So you're saying that if the robo-tanks don't get us, the virus will?!"
Rattrap: "Woo, I love having options."
A tankdrone finds them and fires. More tankdrones approach. Optimus' eyes glow white.
Voice: "Optimus Primal."
A white light appears and shows Optimus a big hole in the ground.
Optimus Primal: "Everyone underground, NOW!!"
The Maximals reach the edge of the hole.
Rattrap: "What makes you think it's any better down there?"
A tank destroys the base of a column. The column begins to descend upon them.
Rattrap: "I withdraw the question." Rattrap jumps in. Cheetor follows, then Optimus. The Maximals scream as they fall.

The Maximals continue falling and land on cyber web. Blackarachnia, in her pre-Transmetal 2 beast mode, approaches them.
Blackarachnia: (disappointed) "Oh. It's you. Too bad. I was hoping to take some robo-tanks off line with me."
Cheetor: "Blackarachnia? Hahaha, boy am I glad to see you."
Blackarachnia: (sarcastically delighted) "Yeah! Now we can all deactivate together!"
Optimus stands up.
Optimus Primal: "Noone's deactivating on my watch."
Blackarachnia: (her body is shorting out as she speaks) "Impressive rebuttle, primate. But unless I've missed my guess, you three can't transform out of beast mode... any more than I can. I give us three cycles before we all go offline."
Rattrap: "Oh, you sure know how to paint a pretty picture."
Optimus' eyes glow white. He sees the light again which shows him a nearby tunnel.
Voice: "The seeds of the future lie buried in the past."
Optimus Primal: "This way."
As the Maximals follow their intrepid leader, Rattrap lowers his head and shakes it. The Maximals go into the tunnel. On the other side, there is a sharp drop.
Rattrap: "Isn't it a little late for spelunking?"
Optimus Primal: "It's no coincidence that we found each other. Something's been drawing me to each of you. And whatever it is, it's down there."

We see Blackarachnia lowering herself down with her webbing. Optimus Primal is right behind her with Cheetor on his shoulders. Rattrap is climbing down right above him. As they proceed deeper into the depths of Cybertron, they pass through different layers built at different stages of Cybertron's past. The first level they pass through resembles Cybertron as it was during the war between the Autobots and Decepticons.
Rattrap: "Whoa, what is all this?"
The second layer resembles the Golden Age of Cybertron, before the Great War began.
Optimus Primal: "This must be what's left of the earlier Cybertronian civilisations."
The Maximals are now beyond any real light source. They are surrounded by darkness. Their bodies' condition has deteriorated severely.
Blackarachnia: "Oh, how much further? My webbing's drying up."
Cheetor: "My servos are stiffening."
Rattrap: "My circuits are fusin'."
Optimus Primal: "Just... hang in a little longer."
Blackarachnia: "Oohh... Aaargghhh!"
Her webbing is exhausted and she falls.
Optimus Primal: "Blackarachnia!"
The other Maximals fall.
Rattrap: "End of the LLIIIINNE!!"

The Maximals awaken in total darkness.
Cheetor: "Where are we?"
Blackarachnia: "Nowhere. Thanks to our fearless leader."
Optimus' eyes glow white.
Optimus Primal: "Nowhere... and everywhere."
Rattrap: "Ground Control to Major Optimus, give it up. There's nothin' here."
Optimus picks up a brick.
Optimus Primal: "I will not give up!!"
He throws the brick into the darkness. The brick shatters the darkness and light pours in. Rattrap gasps.
Cheetor: "Wha--?"
Flames spew forth and the Maximals find themselves standing on an ancient bridge and a giant hallway. Optimus walks towards the flames.
Cheetor: "Optimus... NO!"
Optimus reaches into the flames. His eyes glow white. The flames disappear and a giant sphere appears. Inside this sphere is an image of the Cybertron in space. Liquid blobs drift through the air.
Blackarachnia: "A hologram."
Optimus Primal: "The Oracle. The Oracle Computer that foretold the coming of the first Transformers to Cybertron! That's what's been calling me!"
Rattrap: "But... that's just a legend. Isn't it?"
A huge collection of hundreds of Sparks appears inside the sphere.
Oracle: "At long last, a receptive Spark."
A white beam connects with Optimus. His entire body glows white.
Cheetor: "Optimus!"
Oracle/Optimus Primal: "Initiating download sequence."
Optimus Primal sees himself flying through space. There are hundreds of Sparks surrounding him.
Oracle: "You are now interfacing with the Matrix. The All-Spark that links everyone and everything that ever lived. Or ever will live."
Optimus plunges through a bright light. He sees an organic planet. Time is accelerated and he watches it change into a mechanical world.
Oracle: "The great transformation awaits, Optimus Primal. Prepare to be reformatted. Remember this: the seeds of the future lie buried in the past. To unleash the warrior within, you must tame the beast without. Seek balance, Optimus Primal. Transform your destiny. Transform and transcend."
Optimus Primal walks out of the white light. His body has become Technorganic.
Cheetor: "Whoa....."
Rattrap: "What in the name of Guda happened to you?"
Optimus Primal: "If you want to survive, you must allow the Oracle to reformat you."
Rattrap and Cheetor walk out of the light. They admire their Technorganic bodies.
Cheetor: "Slick!"
Two legs stab in front of them. Blackarachnia stands above them, she too has been reformatted. She gives an impressed, "hmm..."
Optimus looks at his Maximals. As they approach him, the Oracle shrivels up and vanishes.
Rattrap turns around.
Rattrap: "Aye! Wh-where'd the Oracle go?"

There's an ominous buzz in the distance.
Cheetor: "I dunno. Is anyone else getting that buzzing?"
The Maximals see headlights in the distance. Optimus squints his eyes and sees a flotilla of cycledrones.
Rattrap: "Uh... sadly, YES!!"
Cheetor: "Whaddaya say we give these new bods a test drive?"
The Maximals line up, poised for action. The first three cycledrones transform to robot modes and continue approaching at breakneck speed.
Optimus/Rattrap/Cheetor/Blackarachnia: "MAXIMALS, MAXIMISE!!!"
Nothing happens to the Maximals, but the cycledrones continue their advance.
Rattrap: "Uuhh... boss, do these upgrades come with a warranty?"
The cycledrones are still coming. The stop and open fire. The Maximals run!!
Blackarachnia: "You mean after all that, we still can't transform?!"
Optimus Primal: "The seeds of the future lie buried in the past."
Cheetor: "What's that supposed to mean?"
Three cycledrones pounce down and continue shooting at them.
Rattrap: "I'll tell you what it means, it means RRUUUNN!!"
The Maximals run. The cycledrones transform to bike mode and pursue. The Maximals reach a wide gorge.
Optimus Primal: "Jump!"
The Maximals jump and land on a small ledge sticking out of the side just a few metres below the cliff edge.
The cycledrones jump across the gorge. The last cycledrone doesn't make it and smashes into the side of the opposite cliff face and falls into the gorge.

The Maximals climb back up.
Cheetor: "Look, we bought some time, but we're still toast if we can't transform!"
Optimus Primal: "The seeds of the future lie buried in the past."
Rattrap: "Why do you keep sayin' that?!"
Optimus Primal: "According to legend, the first robots who came to Cybertron had to learn how to transform. It took discipline, purity of Spark and years of practise."
The cycledrones are back.
Rattrap: "Got a news flash for ya, monkey-boy... WE AIN'T GOT YEARS!"
Blackarachnia: "We'll just have to split up and fight with what we have."
Four cycledrones charge, using another four elevated drones as ramps.  Optimus stands his ground as the others run. One cycledrone transforms and tackles Optimus as the others pursue the remaining Maximals.
Blackarachnia, Cheetor and Rattrap split up, each heading down different tunnels. The three cycledrones in pursuit do the same. Blackarachnia is cornered. Cheetor runs very fast. He then pounces from wall to wall until he appears to be just a yellow blur zipping back and forth. He lands on the confused cycledrone and tackles it. He jumps off just before it explodes.
Rattrap climbs up an arch. As his pursuing cycledrone drives past, he jumps on, chomping his teeth onto the rear tyre. The cycle spins wildly out of control and Rattrap jumps off just before it smashes into a wall and explodes.
Blackarachnia is pinned to a wall with a cycledrone revving its engine loudly. It does a burnout and charges at Blackarachnia. She produces a web wall which catches the cycledrone.
Outside the tunnels, Optimus Primal tosses aside the cycledrone who tackled him before. Three more charge at him but he punches two of them away. The third one transforms to robot mode and begins wrestling with Optimus. Four more cycledrones on the opposite side of the gorge shoot the cliff edge just below where Optimus is standing. The vibrations cause Optimus to lose his balance and he just manages to hang on to the edge of the cliff with one hand. The cycledrone that he was wrestling with knocks him off the cliff. Optimus screams as he falls.
Suddenly, he hears a voice in his head...
Oracle: "To unleash the warrior within, you must tame the beast without..... you must tame the beast without..."
Optimus Primal closes his eyes and concentrates. His spark in his chest glows blue. Soon his entire body is glowing and begins to transform! It is a Technorganic transformation, combining organic morphing with mechanical twists, flips and turns.
Optimus Primal: "I am transformed!"
Two jets on his back activate and he flies up, uppercutting the cycledrone who knocked him off into pieces.
The other cycledrones open fire. His body absorbs the blasts. Optimus raises his hands. An energy ball forms between his palms. He unleashes the energy ball which destroys two of the cycledrones and knocks the other two down.
Optimus lands, picks up the remaining drones and flies up into the air again.
The other Maximals emerge from the tunnels.
Blackarachnia: "Whoa, you can teach an old ape new tricks!"
Optimus Primal begins interrogating the cycledrones.
Optimus Primal: "Who sent you?! Why are we being targetted?!"
The drones rev their engines. Their spinning wheels causes Optimus to let them go (and they crash to the ground). Optimus loses his concentration...
Optimus Primal: "No, not now..."
His body metamorphs back to beast mode and he lands on the ground again.
Cheetor: "Awesome transformation, Bigbot!"
Rattrap: "So, uh, what's your secret?"
Optimus Primal: "I -- understand..."
Blackarachnia: "Great, that makes one of us."
Optimus Primal: "We all have much to learn. Our training will commence at once!"
The Maximals walk off.
Rattrap: "Training?"

Elsewhere, a monitor shows a grid pattern of Optimus Primal in robot and beast modes. The Spark's location is clearly indicated in either mode. A computer voice speaks as the camera pans away from the screen.
Computer: "Maximal Sparks detected. Transformation capability still functional."
The camera changes to a shot of Megatron from behind. He is shrouded in darkness. Around him is a large metallic cloak. On his head and shoulders is a large Control Harness with countless moving parts.
Megatron: "So, Optimus Primal and his Maximals have survived after all. See how they contaminate the perfection of Cybertron with their mongrel beast forms. So wretched. So mis-shapened. So..... organic."
The camera zooms right into and through his eyes as he says.....
Megatron: "I will destroy them."