-Chapter 1-

A/N: Well the Shadowplay Era can be qualified as a part of MTMTE, right? But I thought to give it a different name so yeah. Senator Shockwave, Windcharger and Skids :D And if you haven't noticed, yes Skids is my favorite character ha ha, I'll probably spam him with lots of love

Edit: I forgot to give you guys the important units of time and length and those will be listed at the end of this chapter :)

He was completely overcooked for one day, that was for sure as he carefully slipped into his office that was at his academy. The Jhiaxian Academy of Advanced Technology. Its true purpose was to be a safe haven for all the Outliers he was able to recruit and protect, taking them in to hone their abilities to the fullest while they were able to study for whatever occupation that they wished to be granted to, but to him, it was also his safe haven away from the Senate. All his students he had learned to know them all on a personal side, they all got together and hung out, they were just like normal mechs just with a little extra special to them, they were his family, a family he'd gladly drop his Senator status and title just especially for them. He'd drop anything for them, and because of that he wished for them not to be formally addressing him, to him, that was a strange thought, plus he was secretly against Functionism, if he wasn't why could he have bothered to create this for them? It was the sole purpose that he had funded and built the academy in the first place.

Slumping down into the comfy soft padded chair at his desk he drew in a sharp vent, slowly ex-venting before selecting out a datapad from his drawer. It contained a log he had recently purchased, it was a mystery novel and his attention was sometimes plucked away from his duties to sneak away and read it seeing how he had been taken a fondness to it. Though, he just hoped he was up for reading it today, the orbital cycle was still young after all and he might as well make the best of things before he'd have to go back in and work again. Taking the bookmark from his slot he tried his very best to push the meeting's events and outcomes out from his head so he could enjoy his book.

Though luck just didn't appear to not want to be on his side and he felt the need to just face plant his desk or roll over and lay on the floor, anything to get his mind to still and silence itself from priorities. Maybe he should just walk off and go take a nap, maybe go see how well his students are classing and if he could, give them some advice about what they should try next. Possibly he should go around and shop for some new paints, he did have a very fond taste in fashion and plus his paints did only last a couple of deca-cycles anyways if he were lucky. Always changing his style, that was Senator Shockwave for you as they would gladly say about him, but he didn't mind. That wasn't personally his most favorite hobby, changing paint schemes but it sure was fun seeing which paints suit him the best, but so far he like his blue red theme the best, maybe he'll stick to it more often.

Now that was he was thinking about it, Pit he even recalled a time he asked his officer friend Orion Pax what color he should go with next, advice that was approached and was offered with a highly successful good look. Sighing he bookmarked his tab and stuck it right back into the drawer it belong in. Offlining his optics he sat back into a quite comfortable slouch as he attempted his effects once more to relaxing. However the silence as one to be short lived as a soft curious knocking appeared at his literal doorsteps. Swiftly recomposing himself he tried to put on the act of being natural, and oh he silently desperately prayed for it not to be one of his Senate associates, even Dai Atlas' warm and welcoming company was not wished to be presented in the only place he could qualify as his private space.

"Come in." He toned his voice pattern to something casual and the door peeped open in a crack, a pair of blue optics peeking inside before the mech actually stepped on inside seeing as if it were a safe zone to enter or not. Shockwave internally sighed with relief as it happened to be just curious little Windcharger, one of the very first mechs who had joined his academy, though he's mainly only there to hang out and hide from the Functionist that would want his head on a silver platter if they found out his secret. Whatever work life that he desired was so far to be completely unknown, but that was fine, he was still young and mastering his "magical arms" seemed to be his top priority at the moment, though concentrating was still something he was bad at. Levitation was an extraordinary to gift, especially since now he's gotten extremely good to the point he can use it over longer distances, time frames and not to mention different skill units as well. Shockwave smiled at him, a true smile but even that couldn't really hide what he was truly feeling. "Hello." He decided to greet the younger mech who appeared to be just examining over him.

"Is everything, you know, alright?" Windcharger seemed to have just entirely discarded the jet's statement of a greeting all the way down to the corner as he began to bleed out his concern. Honestly, not exactly was he the father figure now was he? Yes in a sense of fatherhood stood high and proud on his shoulders, but more of a best friend and mentor, someone they knew they could trust their secrets with and be safe to know that it'll never stab them in the back. "Well I mean, well yeah that's exactly what I meant actually, we hadn't expected you to come in today, you know with the meeting and all, but you're here instead of shouting out your suggestions and arguments loud and proud about what's right and what's wrong. We got worried, so I came along to see if you were handling well."

And there they were once again by his side and surrounding him, their worry and care for him always seem to be one step ahead from his own. They blanketed him in it as he tried to demonstrate his own for them, though he was clearly outmatched against how much they provided for him and he struggled to even them out, steadying himself to be on equal floors as them to be balanced at a normal rate but obviously that wasn't going to happen, at least if it did not like that was going to happen anytime soon that was for sure. They've always got his back, and he knows that if he falls they'll be there to catch him and bring him back up to ground level, safely on his own pedes. That's what family is for, is it not?

"Yes, everything's just fine, just got a little overstressed from the meeting, that's all." Shockwave concluded with a small smile, a white lie like this one wasn't going to hurt anyone, besides he doesn't need for his students to be worrying over him for a pressing issue that wasn't that big of a deal anyways. However according to the expression that the Levitator was giving he knew damned well that the kid could see right through his little act like glass and he heaved out a long sigh. "Nah, I'm being serious here-Okay, not just a little stressed, maybe a bit over that marker but, yeah that's pretty much it. Its not that I don't adore your company and that I'm trying to get rid of you 'Charger, its just, I'm tired..." The red black mech nodded, understanding the statements and thinking about just how difficult of a job it must be to be a Senator anyways. The thinking alone just gave him a headache so he shifted onto a different much easier topic to wrap his head around, but not to mention one of a fine distraction.

"Hey, I got an idea. Ever had the feeling of redecorating your office? I can Glitch to help out, he's around or we could get you know, Mr. Forcefield Trailbreaker." The Outlier suggested happily looking around the office. It was yes a bit cluttered, but at the academy, nobody was exactly the neat freak and going to judge them on how they should organize their stuff, so it was normal even for Shockwave. It was best to have a place he could feel and call home. And that was exactly the ticket. The thought of redecoration seemed to have pinged the jet's interest, a distraction that had seemingly come easy to him all because it had been spoken from another's mind entirely. Someone that was outside of his own CPU's processing, and it helped that he couldn't control the situation with power, no, he'd like to be on equal groundings he remembered that well. Grinning to him he have a nod and the shorter mech clapped his servos together in accomplishment and confirming that they should get started.

"Well, aren't you suppose to be like, I dunno, the mech who's suppose to know everything? And when I say everything I mean that to." Windcharger commented as he and Skids walked down the long corridors of the academy's hallways. The trainee Theoretician glanced at him with a questioning look of what he had meant exactly by that. And normally as a super learner he should've taken that as a compliment of the sorts, but the slightly shorter mech didn't seem to have thought so about it, and he almost seemed intimidating to the Levitator. He was the one who could virtually master any skill set in he wished faster than anyone could teach him, but he guessed knowledge could also fall under the wing of that category as well, but he like his theories better than most of them anyways, it was why he was training to become a Theoretician anyways. As they strolled on by they gave waves, simple short greetings and smiles to their fellow Outlier classmates and friends who returned the favor. Taking a sharp left turn Skids finally made response to the red black mech's remark.

"That's...Not exactly what I do or specialize in you know..." Skids claimed as they continued their walk to the recreation room. "But anyways enough of the corrections on my account and what I tend to specialize in anyways and continue on our general topic on the Senator. His visits here have become more recent to very much well be put as of everyday and its become quite the concerning matter for us. And our very limited attempts to distract him and try to cheer him up are futile and only happen to last a mere few hours." They both gave a frown at the indication of their friend and mentor being troubled by a situation that seemed like it couldn't go away and was progressively worsening by every passing breem.

"Look, I'm just the mech with the magic arms, okay? You're the Theoretician who can portray more to the emotional level of advice for an action on what we should do you know that right?" He was quick to put up his defenses as Skids was somewhat criticizing him. Sighing he wished there was an easier resolution that could pop up from what they were undergoing right now, that'd be the trick. But he honestly didn't think Mr. In Kind Theoretician was going to come up with any real good ideas without there being many theories behind him to back up his conclusion.

"I've got an idea." Skids proclaimed out of nowhere and Windcharger was quick to look at his with much curiosity. "Come on you're going to help. Get everyone to keep this a secret and down low, its going to be a surprise, but we're gonna-" The rest was whispered to him softly and the red black mech grinned at the idea. Oh he liked the sounds of that. That plan was definitely going to work, he knew it.

"Hey no problem, now, let's get started!" He roared and rushed off faster than Skids could run as he was in a way, cheating by using his abilities, but, hey, spreading the news had to go by quick, and it'd spread like wildfire, but it'd be kindled to be low and secretive. Burning gently and the fires were small but soon it'd explode into a blaze of heat. Because Skids had his theories and ideas but they were always completely, genius.

IDW Units of Time

Astrosecond = .498 seconds

Breem = 8.3 minutes

Cycles - 1.25 hours

Deca-Cycle = Roughly 3 weeks

Joor = Idiomatic hour

Klik = 1.2 minutes

Mega-Cycle = 93 hours

Meta-Cycle = 13 months

Oribtal Cycle= 1 day

Stellar Cycle = 7.5 months

Vorn = 83 years

Units of Length

Klik* = 1 kilometer

Mechanometer = 1 meter

Vun = 1 hectometer(100 meters)