Author's Note: In this story I use the characters Sunstorm and Mudflap as OCs- of a sort. Neither really appeared in G1 (as far as I can tell), so their appearances are based on their IDW and Cybertron incarnations respectively. Enjoy!

Shockwave looked out at the skyline of Cybertron. He had made a habit out of visiting this tower and examining the domain over which he had been trusted to guard. This had been the 4444th time he had done so since Megatron had left. Just as he had the previous 4443 times, he pondered why Megatron had chosen him to stay behind. He thought, If I'm his most trusted servant, wouldn't he want me by his side as he crushes the Autobots?

He used his most prized tool, logic, to formulate an answer he found satisfying. I'm the only one he feels comfortoable leaving behind, he reasoned.He had always suspected that Megatron had promoted Starscream so that he would focus his treasonous efforts on Megatron and not the other lieutenants. As for Soundwave, Megatron used him to monitor the other soldiers, so he had to stay with him. In fact, I'm the only one free from Soundwave's surveillance. Only I could keep Megatron's empire safe and clean while he is away!

Unfortunately, this truly honorable job was not as stimulating as Shockwave would have liked. Apart from occasional raids by Autobots, there wasn't too much to keep track of. Initially, Shockwave used some of his free time to further his scientific research. Shockwave loved science, the purest expression of logic, but he had o abandon it to support Megatron's revolution. For the first several millennia of his position, he briefly engaged in several experiments.

Shockwave quickly realized that there was no time for his experiments. Although the work could be monotonous, it required his constant attention. While preoccupied with a project, he had let down his guard to a raid, something he never quite forgave himself for. So he put aside his personal interests to serve Megatron's will. He settled into a routine, which struck him as a logical way to increase his efficiency.

While walking back down a hallway, Shockwave observed a maintenance worker removing the circuitry on a wall. Shockwave boiled with anger.

"Just what do you think you're doing?" he asked.

The smaller Decepticon replied, "The circuits in this wall are faulty. They have probably been corrupted, and need to be replaced."

"Unacceptable." said Shockwave. "I specifically told Lord Megatron that Cybertron would remain as he left it. Does it not strike you as illogical to alter the structure of his headquarters?"

The workers stammered, "Well, no. This is strictly a standard procedure. Sir."

"Insubordination will not be tolerated!" said Shockwave, raising his voice. He aimed his arm cannon at the worker and fired four times, blowing his body to pieces. He gathered the remains into a neat little pile.

You never can rely on anyone but yourself, he thought. This became especially clear to him during his recent assignment. It wasn't until the Decepticons left that he realized what a glitch band of misfits and psychopaths they all were. Although Megatron showed the path to truth, he tended to attract some… unusual followers.

Nobody was a better reflection of this fact than Sunstorm, whose fanatical religious devotion and pyromania didn't keep him from being an incredibly useful lieutenant. Shockwave entered Sunstorm's domicile, which had been converted into a small chapel. Although Shockwave found this idolatry to be the height of illogical activity, he permitted it to keep Sunstorm pacified. "What can I do for you, child of Primus?" asked the Seeker.

"Please address me as Sir, if you don't mind. I need your natural talents for a moment." said Shockwave.

"What needs to be incinerated?" said Sunstorm. "Sir."

"I had to terminate an uncooperative unit in the hallway. Eliminate his remains in the cleanest way possible."

"I'll get my flamethrower."

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The next few solar cycles were fairly uneventful, which worried Shockwave. The purple Decepticon knew that Autobot raids came in patterns, with long resting periods between attacks. It was intended to lower the morale and attention span of the target. So every four solar cycles Shockwave made sure to test his security team. Unsurprisingly, the Autobots eventually launched an attack.

Shockwave checked his monitor and counted no less than six intruders in the main generator room.
Surely they planned to shut down the base's power, crippling their security. He calmly addressed the intercom, "Alpha squadron, we have a code blue in the generator chamber." Within astroseconds, a team of drones led by Sunstorm was on its way to deal with the attack.

Sunstorm burst into the room, guns blazing while he cackled like the maniac that he was. "In the name of Primus and the Decepticon cause, I will smite you heathens with my holy wrath!"

"You need to chill out." said a light blue Autobot who appeared to be the leader. "I'm Mudflap, and I have no intention of backing down. So cut it out with the Messiah complex shtick, you don't impress anyone. "

"Blasphemy!" yelled Sunstorm as he unleashed a barrage of flame.

"You Decepticons all get too worked up. That's your problem. If you all could just relax a little, this war would be over in no time."

Mudflap squirted a brown, oily fluid from a cannon on his shoulder. It quickly doused the flames. He chuckled, "Watch your step, your holiness." He squirted another jet of liquid at the ground near the Seeker's feet, causing him to slip. He laughed as he sprayed the entire room with the fluid. He approached the generator and punched it, finding the large machine was protected by a force field. His troops didn't have the resources to penetrate it at this time.

"Come on, roll out!" he shouted to his troops. They left and transformed to their vehicle modes, and barreled down the hallway. Shockwave emerged and opened fire. He shot two of the troops, who both spun out of control and crashed into a flaming wreck. The rest of them broke out a window and tumbled into the city below, beyond Shockwave's reach.

####

Shockwave entered the generator room to survey the damage. He felt a wave of horror come over him when he saw the filth that had been spewed all over the room. This would take ages to clean up, and the electronics would probably never work the same way again. He didn't even know where to begin. So he just stood, there motionless.

"Are you alright, sir?" asked Sunstorm.

"No, I'm not. This entire room has been contaminated by those wretched Autobots. Do you know how hard cleaning this place will be?" answered Shockwave, his tone becoming uncharacteristically frantic.

"It's not that big a deal…" began Sunstorm.

Shockwave cut him off, "Of course it its! What would Megatron think? He could come back any day now. If he sees I failed to maintain his beautiful empire he'll never trust me again. I've failed. He trudged back up to his tower, his head held low.

To Be Continued…