Redemption is a butterfly

By Princess Thil Galel

I DO NOT OWN

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A random act of kindness

I had a dream about this and it just stuck with me so well I decided to write it all down. This first chapter will be short because it takes part slightly before the story itself but it is important!

Shockwave stood huntched over, his hands and head trapped in the metal grip of the pillory that stood off to the side Iacon's town square. He'd stood there for days now, his joints groaning in protest of his immobile position and his empty tank demanded sustenance. Many passed him by with little more than a glare, while others threw things in hopes of hitting the defenseless Decepticon. It had gone on for a short time every day, but this day was the day things changed.

Instead of the normal group of younglings throwing empty cans and broken pieces plastic that would be shooed away after a while by his constant gaurd, three young adult mechs cast their shadows over his still form carrying weapons. Menacing grins donned their faceplates as they moved closer, but Shockwave's own remained emotionless. He had no reason to worry about anything, his ever present gaurds weren't allowed to let him come to bodily harm. A hand roughly grabbed his chin, forcing his head up at an extremely uncomfortable angle to meet one mech's cold, smirking blue optics "Well, well, well," he said "Now what do we have here boys?"

"Looks like some Decepticon filth Sureshot," said another before turning the third, who was sipping a cube of energon "What do you think Gridlaunch?"

"Seems like it to me."

Shockwave cast a glance at the gaurd as he waited for them to send the lunatics on their way, but to his horror they both turned their backs. He managed to maintain his composer even while his prossesor raced, they were going to leave him to whatever fate these three had in store for him and he was at their complete mercy. By the way the mech holding his chin was branishing the sword in his free hand they would most likely kill him.

The mech, Sureshot he guessed, released him and took a step back, the one called Gridlaunch tossed the remainder of his energon and Shockwave flinch as it splashed into his optic, successfully blinding him. He managed to blink it away just enough to see a blurr and the gleam of steel. His line of sight was suddenly blocked, a clash of metal on metal and a spray of pinkish-purple energon filled the air.

Stars.

The night sky filled his view as the blurr faded. He blinked, staring straight ahead in confusion. How in Cybertron was he suddenly looking at the stars in the middle of a city filled with bright lights, especially when he couldn't lift his head high enough to see the sky over the buildings? He was even more puzzled when the stars folded together, each glittering point meeting a twin before they all disappeared, and Shockwave found himself staring at the pale blue back of a femme.

"Gaurds, arrest them!" she yelled, the three mechs were gone in a sparkbeat with his blind-opticed protectors mere steps behind. As she turned to face him he realized the 'night sky' he'd seen were really tiny silvery spots on glittering dark midnight blue wings like that of the organic creature called a 'butterfly', he had never seen an Autobot with wings-save for the Jet Twins but they were very young while this femme looked only a few stellar cycles his junior-but it was her optics that truly stunned him. They glittered with a trance of every color he could ever hope to name.

But he didn't allow her to faze him, instead he glared fiercly at her "I did not ask to be saved!" he growled "Especially by an Autobot femme!" Her white faceplates didn't take on harsh lines nor did her rainbow optics fill with tears, she smiled softly as she took a rag from her subspace and wiped away the energon that was beginning to dry on his face "I know that," she said, her voice as soft as the gentle caress of a warm breeze "But no one deserves to be treated like this, Decepticon or not."

She tucked the rag away only to take out a bottle of joint lubricant "You say that, yet you don't know even half the things I've done." he insisted as she coated the chaffing areas on his wrists and neck "Like how you killed Blurr?" she countered, his optic widened in surprise "Or how you offlined Intel director Highbrow to obtain your former position as the head of Cybertron Intelligence? I know that too, and more." The bottle disappeared just as quickly as the rag, Who IS this femme? he thought "Then if you know so much about my past deeds then why save me?" he demanded "Why not just let them kill me, and be rid of one less Decepticon?"

The femme leaned closer, her lips curved into a soft smile "Because I believe in second chances, in redemption that is still in reach if you only choose to grasp it." she said, the movement of her fingers drew his optic to the ground before him and there lay a pool of fresh energon, but not from the cube the mech had tossed. His gaze fell to her hands, they were nearly cut in half and bleeding heavily. Her right hand was only still attached by the thicker plating in the back but her fingers hung limp, the left wasn't nearly as bad for she could use her fingers on that hand still.

"You...caught the blade with your bare hands?" he asked incredulously, he stared at her with a mixture of awe and disbelief. Was she insane? He was a Decepticon! She should hate him, wish the worst death possible on his head and then dance on his ashes-not nearly lose both her hands to protect him. That's it, he thought One of us MUST be crazy. The only question is, is it me or her?

As he watched the femme dipped the tip of her finger in the energon and drew three letters.

A...R...K

"A Random act of Kindness, ARK." she stated "It can change everything, make the difference between life and death even. I believe in it, and I believe in you as well-that you'll make the right choice in the end."

With out another word she stood, turned on her heels, and left. Disappearing into the darkness, the last thing to vanish was those glittering wings upon her back, the silver spots winking out in the gloom of the shadows.

Shockwave stared into the night long after the mysterious femme was gone, her words echoing in his prossesor. His optic looked back to the letters painted with her energon, he scans the unique signature and stored it in his mermory banks. If he met this femme again he would have a few things to say.

The gaurds that had run after the mechs had sent replacements to watch him, as them approached he spoke "Gaurds, take me to Ultra Magnus." he demeanded "I must speak with him on an important matter."

"What's so important you need to see the Magnus Con?" sneered a gaurd, the other simply pulled out a pair of Stasis cuffs as he released Shockwave from the pillory's hold, he vented in relief as he straightened for the first time in days and turned the questioning gaurd.

"It is a matter of redemption, my friend."