Starfire is insistent upon meeting with Silverbolt, so Optimus arranges that the two can get together on neutral ground later in the day. For now, Thundercat carries Dinobot's sword, and the Maximals return to base. The unfortunate Klatuu is given the duty of going to ground and scouring the spider-carved tunnels of drones with his electromagnetic pulse. Blackarachania and Pantora are sent as his backup. Charger and Thundercat are set to work in a pair of submersible vehicles; as there is one more Maximal in the ocean, they have orders to find him. Luckily for the Maximals, all of the Predacons are currently back at base, where Upgrade and Epitaph now work to repair their commander's lost memory. Epitaph is somewhat surprised to see only one spark in Swiftsting's chest; he was expecting two. Oblivion also manages to restore the ship's cloaking abilities...shields and engines are next on the list, but he hopes to have Upgrade's help. Starfire returns to base, as well, where he gives Angel her long sought-after prize. After returning the information disk and her other toy, as well, he inquires as to what she finds so interesting about Megatron. She is all too happy to allow him to watch some of the trial footage…however, before he can get a grasp on what exactly intrigues her, he receives a transmission from Silverbolt. They set up a time and place for their meeting, and Angel is stunned. She offers to come with Starfire if he wants to set an ambush, but Starfire insists that this is a peaceful meeting and he must decline. After he is gone, Angel reports of his suspected treachery to the other Predacons. Stalker is interested in watching the turn of events, as well, and Angel takes her and Krakken to the vector Silverbolt mentioned. Silverbolt is waiting, alone, and Starfire questions him, not on Maximal policy, but on his ability to win and keep the love of a female. Silverbolt begins to explain as he understands, but senses something unusual on the wind. Scenting the other Predacons nearby he accuses Starfire of being false and bringing backup. But seeing only Angel present, Starfire simply climbs down the cliffside to speak with her. As Silverbolt watches, hoping for good news, he smells something else…unusual, yet, somehow familiar. Stalker taunts him from the safety of her invisibility, then decloaks and reveals her new form. Silverbolt is startled, and as he stammers in fear and confusion she takes the upper hand, freezing him in ice. Starfire is upfront with Angel, as Silverbolt suggested. However, she turns him down, hard, and Starfire snaps. He flies into a frenzy and combat breaks out between him, Angel, and Krakken. Stalker ignores the downed Silverbolt to aid her Predacon comrades... Beneath the oceans, Thundercat and Charger scan again the empty stasis pod, and narrow down the target animal: an anglerfish. They need to reach deeper water to locate their target, and along the way, they encounter a remarkably territorial giant squid. Their vehicles are weaponless, and Thundercat rams the creature several times while Charger continues to explore. Thundercat gives the squid a good shot to the eye, and it retreats. The Maximals eventually find their target, the Maximal Searchlight. They are stunned to find that he is aware of his origins, and has been waiting for their arrival. The difficulty, however, is that he refuses to surface; he is too frightened by the surface and the thought of the bright lights. Thundercat also inquires if any Vok artifacts are in the area, suspecting that there may be one placed underwater, but Searchlight knows of no such building as Thundercat describes. The undermanned Maximal base receives warning that Silverbolt has been disabled, and Darkwave and Daybreak speed to the scene. Starfire snaps out of his rage when he detects Maximals incoming, and the Predacons attempt to flee. However, Darkwave spots and snatches Stalker, demanding to interrogate Tarantulas. The spider promises to call his drones off, if the Maximals require it. He is also fully willing to admit that he indeed has origins with Unicron, as the Maximals already know and suspect, but tells Darkwave little else. Darkwave batters the female body to unconsciousness; the Maximals take Stalker back to their base. Thundercat and Charger take Searchlight back to base after the sun has gone down. The new Maximal is introduced to Optimus, and led into the ship where he is more comfortable in a darkened room. However, the situation becomes more interesting when Stalker/Tarantulas arrives. Optimus and Darkwave take hold of Stalker, and Cheetor heals her wounds. Blackarachnia is stunned to see the change in Stalker. She says that Tarantulas was telling the truth on one account: many caves worth of drones were deactivated already upon the Maximals' arrival. However, she suspects that he may have left a few drones active; they would be difficult to spot, but could reactivate the entire swarm, given time. The Maximals decide to jail Stalker until they can find a way to separate her two personalities.
Upgrade is furious with Starfire upon his arrival at the Predacon base, and accuses him of conspiring with Maximals and jeopardizing Predacon interest. He orders him to the barracks, but he attempts to escape, and he, also, is beaten and imprisoned.
Blackarachnia converses with Tarantulas in the middle of the long night. She feels that he has tricked Stalker into working with him, and claims that she will destroy him as soon as she finds a way. She gets no new information, but Tarantulas begins to suspect that she, Darkwave, and even Cheetor have ulterior interests to protect. He converses with Stalker on a new angle for the situation...