Well, I hate to say this is my summer contribution, but... this is my summer contribution! It kinda took up more time to write than I thought it would, and if you couple that with my incredibly hectic schedule, you get a fic that took quite a while!
Warning: This fic contains death. It's nothing heavy or overly graphic, mind you, but there is a death in here somewhere! If you don't like, don't read por favor! Neither transformers nor this song belongs to me, yadda yadda yadda. Enjoy!
Song lyrics
Story
The small red Autobot writhed and thrashed in an attempt to escape the bonds that kept him tied to a metal chair. This particular warrior had been captured by none other than Megatron himself in the wake of the last heated battle between the Autobots and the Decepticons and was awaiting interrogation in the brig.
The minibot bucked ferociously in an ever-increasing attempt to escape that was only fueled at the sound of the door to the interrogation chamber hissing open. Quiet, ominous steps broke the silence that had permeated the room as the Autobot looked up to see which Decepticon would dare try to break his will.
Soundwave.
The powerful yet stoic Decepticon TiC that also happened to be a telepath. If anybot had a chance of breaking the Autobot it would be him. However, the task would not be a simple one. After all, other than Decepticons, traitors were the only other things in life that Cliffjumper hated, and he refused to become one himself.
Soundwave, for his part, was rather looking forward to breaking the Autobot. He did so enjoy a mental challenge, and nothing was sweeter to him than the emotional pain of a broken mech. And judging by Cliffjumper's angry reputation, he would be a harder challenge than most, but that would make his pain all the more potent when he finally did crumble.
The closer Soundwave crept, the more he relished the fear that was slowly beginning to make itself know alongside the anger blazing in Cliffjumper's optics. The silent mech hesitated before he took the final step that would bring him to tower directly over the Autobot, cocking his head silently as if wondering why the mech wasn't screaming yet, whether it was in fear or anger.
That one movement, the slight angling of the dark helm pushed the imprisoned mech over the edge, finally bringing forth the screams that the Decepticon so enjoyed. "What do you want from me, mech? Do you think I'll tell you anything you wanna know? Honestly, you woulda been better off capturing some other poor Autobot to torture. You won't get a fraggin' thing from me!"
Soundwave straightened his helm and he finally stopped above the prisoner, who was making a decent attempt to yell himself hoarse, which was what Soundwave had been waiting for from the moment he entered the room. With a small smile, the Decepticon decided to answer the Autobot before the fun really began.
"Statement: Soundwave did not expect Autobot Cliffjumper would give up valuable information quite so easily. Soundwave: enjoys it when his prisoners fight back," the mech intoned in a dull voice, laying his servos almost reverently on the red helm before him as he prepared his telepathic mind for the efforts that awaited it. "Their efforts to rebuke him: amusing. Query: does Autobot Cliffjumper truly believe that Soundwave will get no information from him? If so, then Autobot Cliffjumper is sadly mistaken." And with that, Soundwave dove into the captive Autobot's mind and the fun truly began.
Caught up in this madness, too blind to see
Woke animal feelings in me
Took over my sense and I lost control
I'll taste your blood tonight
You know I make you wanna scream
You know I make you wanna run from me, baby
But no, it's too late, you've wasted all your time
Cliffjumper's mind whirled in panic as he rapidly looked around him, trying to keep his gaze on everything at once and failing miserably. Colors, dull yet vibrant at the same time swirled around him, giving him glances of images. And oh, what torturous, horrible images they were. In one swirling blob of red that matched his paintjob exactly, a moving image of a screaming femme clutching a wailing babe played for him. He stared in horror, transfixed, as some monstrous being yanked the sparkling from his terrified mother's servos.
He yelled in horror and reached out to help the defenseless mother… only to have his servos pass right through the blob of color, disbanding the image. Cliffjumper yelled again, this time in defeat. The worst part was that his spark knew all this was just one of Soundwave's mind-tricks, but his processors believed this nightmare was real.
Speaking of the Decepticon, the red minibot spotted him standing nearby, just gazing at him, completely calm amidst all the chaos.
"Cliffjumper: advised against trying to harm Soundwave in this world, and struggling is futile. Autobot: should give information Soundwave wants the easy way." The mech tilted his helm again as if considering something. "Observation: Soundwave would prefer Cliffjumper not take the easy way. Soundwave: enjoys mental challenge."
That, out of all the things he had seen and heard so far, was what broke Cliffjumper. The fact that the Decepticon was playing a game with him, and the mech hated to be made a fool of, finally snapped something deep inside the minibot. He felt something rumble deep inside of him, something almost animalistic in its rage.
Cliffjumper's vocalizer popped and snapped audibly as he struggled to contain the sound of pure hatred that fought to escape from him. Suddenly, the anger abated as quickly as it had come as a thought occurred to him. Why was Cliffjumper trying to control his anger? He was being tortured for information by the Decepticon third in command, for Primus' sake! There was no need to hold back!
With no further qualms to keep him under control, the red Autobot sprang at Soundwave with a cry. It was a scream of pure, unadulterated vehemence, and, even if Cliffjumper would never admit it to himself, fear. With the bloodcurdling cry bubbling from him, the warrior unsubspaced a small blade and thrust it through the abdomen of the motionless Decepticon.
Cliffjumper never even stopped to consider how he had been able to produce a weapon in a world of Soundwave's making, let alone the fact that the mech hadn't even attempted to dodge of fight back. Even now the indifferent telepath stood there watching as Cliffjumper twisted the dagger inside him, digging ever deeper in search of something vital. With a cry of triumph, the red mech felt his weapon tear through a vital pump in Soundwave's body and he pulled the blade out as energon began to pour from the wound, and the tall mech collapsed at last.
Not even thinking about how easy it had been to take Soundwave down, Cliffjumper crouched down next to his fallen adversary to make sure the last thing the rapidly offlining Decepticon saw was the face of his killer. However, as he looked into the downed mech's facemask to crow his victory, the mask pulled back to reveal quite a different sight then what he had been expecting. It was the face of a femme, and a familiar face at that.
Cliffjumper could do nothing but stare in growing horror as he stared at the face of the sadly smiling femme beneath him.
"No! What've I done? Soundwave, what did you make me do?!"
Said mech's voice floated to him as if on a breeze, though there was no wind to be felt, "Cliffjumper: thought he could kill Soundwave in Soundwave's own interrogation? Soundwave: happy he could prove Autobot scum wrong."
Cliffjumper could do nothing but stare at the graying body in front of him and cradle her in his arms as he watched her life fade ever so slowly. He hugged the femme closer to his chest and murmured quietly to her.
"I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry. I didn't mean to, Arcee!"
Relax while you're closing your eyes to me
So warm as I'm setting you free
With your arms by your side there's no struggling
Pleasure's all mine this time
Ooh, you know I make you wanna scream
You know I make you wanna run from me, baby
But no, it's too late, you've wasted all your time
In the real world outside the twisted fantasy Cliffjumper was being subjected to, back onboard the torture chambers of the Nemesis, Soundwave sat quietly in front of the unconscious, twitching form of Cliffjumper. The mech would be smiling if he allowed himself to display such emotion. The interrogation was going rather well, and it was time to implement a new twist to try and break the captive Autobot.
With all the precision of a surgeon, Soundwave silently searched through the red mech's processors until he found what he was looking for. Making sure he handled it as delicately as possible, the Decepticon gently pried one of Cliffjumper's darker emotions to the surface, and emotion that the minibot felt every time he went into battle. Raw, undiluted bloodlust.
The dark mech caught himself wanting to smile in pleasure again. The fun was about to start, after all, the interrogation was about to reach a new level.
"Soundwave: does hope that Autobot Cliffjumper will not keep screams to himself this time," the mech quietly brooded to himself.
The red mech gently rocked Arcee, her helm cradled in his lap. He whispered quiet words of apology, sorrow, and even love to the downed femme, pushing the anger that he knew was coming deep down inside him for now. Cliffjumper should have know Soundwave would try something like this, he should have expected a trick, just not one as cruel as this.
Pressing his lips gently to her helm, Cliffjumper locked optics with Arcee as he locked optics with her, indifferent to the darkness that swirled around them. Strangely enough, although the minibot had been constantly apologizing and begging her not to go, the femme had not uttered a word, and the poor mech assumed she was punishing him for bringing about her death.
"I'm so sorry, 'Cee. I didn't mea-," The mech froze mid-sentence as he felt a shadowy presence creeping through his processor, departing as quickly as it had come but leaving a familiar feeling behind that began to consume him. The emotion was one of intense anger and hatred, something he normally only felt to this degree when he was going into battle.
However, with no Decepticon around for the rage to target, Cliffjumper found his attention turning towards the slowly dying femme he still cradled. Feeling a malicious smile creep onto his faceplates, he hesitated as violent thoughts started racing through his processor. His subconsciousness seemed to settle onto one particular idea and his body slowly, haltingly began to move Arcee's helm from his lap.
'No! No,' his mind silently screamed even as he watched his body move against his will, helpless to stop himself from what he was about to do. Cliffjumper sat roughly on Arcee, legs on either side of her body, and retrieved a dagger from his subspace. It was the same blade that he had used to attack her not too long ago.
"Relax," the possessed Cliffjumper whispered, "Pretend this is aaall a dream, dear Arcee. Just close your eyes and relax as I end your suffering. Don't struggle, just accept the final darkness."
With another fiendish grin, Cliffjumper, or the rage-fueled shell of Cliffjumper, brought the weapon down on the original wound that it had made not long ago. This time, however, it was not a clean wound. Instead of plunging in and out, the blade tore in and was cruelly twisted as if to cause as much pain as possible before ending Arcee, who, although she was writhing and thrashing, made not a sound.
Finally, unable to take the pain of having to watch as his own body tortured the helpless femme, Cliffjumper threw away the rage that had possessed him with a cry of triumph, although the victory was short lived.
Looking down at the newly ravished body beneath him, Cliffjumper knew that her already shortened life would end in mere moments, and it especially pained him to know that he had been the cause.
"Arcee, it wasn't me! I didn't do this to you, that fragging Decepticon Soundwave did something to my head," the mech whispered on the verge of tears, "At least speak to me one last time. Let me know you don't hate me!"
Comprehension dawned in the flickering optics of the Autobot femme, and she weakly raised a servo and placed it on Cliffjumper's face. The mech leaned into the touch, desperation written clearly on his faceplates, and with a hiss of static, Arcee cleared her vocalizer.
She opened her mouth to speak, but as she did, a strange look came into her optics, a look that was every bit as dark as the one that Cliffjumper's had been a moment ago. The small warrior, too lost in the anticipation of hearing Arcee's final words, didn't notice the change that had come over her, but he certainly didn't miss hearing the change in her voice when she did finally speak.
"Cliffjumper," she said in a sing-song manner, "Look at what you did to me, Cliff."
Cliffjumper twitched with surprise and leaned away from her ever so slightly. Arcee's voice still held a familiar ring, but at the same time it was infinitely different. The voice still had the smooth and deceptively gentle quality that he admired, but it was interlaced with a rumbling growl. In addition, there seemed to be more than one voice speaking, instead there was a multitude of echoes repeating the same words as the main voice, but at higher and lower pitches. But, all the echoes harmonized into one chaotic yet still melodic voice. It was surreal, unique and darkly menacing. It was not the voice of Cliffjumper's femme.
"Cliffjumper," Arcee's still-dying frame said. "If you want forgiveness, there is one thing you can do for me. Just one small favor. Tell me everything you know about the other Autobots. Supplies, hidden bases, rosters, everything! Maybe then I can… rest in peace," the barely living shell told him.
He hesitated, practically on the verge of telling her everything she wanted to know without even thinking twice. But, for the first time since the interrogation had begun, he remembered that it was just that, an interrogation. Realization finally dawned on him. He had been manipulated into attacking the false Arcee from the beginning! So her request was just a clever attempt on Soundwave's part to gather information from him!
Without any inhibitions to stop him, Cliffjumper once again withdrew a blade, this one longer and sturdier than the one that he had previously used against the projection he had assumed to be Arcee. This weapon was designed to deal out more damage than the comparatively weaker dagger. The red warrior twirled his weapon skillfully as he glared at the Arcee-creature.
"Well, Soundwave, I have'ta admit you really had me going for a klik there. But if you wanna get any info from me, then you'll need'ta do much better than that." With taunting the unseen Decepticon out of the way, Cliffjumper brandished his weapon and charged at the silently watching projection of Arcee.
As his sword plunged forward, Cliffjumper readied himself for a fight, expecting the apparition to put up a fight, only to find his blade tore through her already-damaged torso. But this time was different. This time there was a wailing screech from the being, followed by an unearthly laughter as what had once appeared to be Arcee crumpled to the ground, the glow of life finally leaving her grey frame.
Scream 'til there's silence
Scream while there's life left vanishing
Scream from the pleasure
Unmask your desire, perishing
We've all had a time where we've lost control
We've all had our time to grow
I'm hoping I'm wrong but I know I'm right
I'll hunt again one night
Cliffjumper knew he should have felt something from killing the thing that looked so like his beloved Arcee. He knew he should have felt disgusted with himself. But he felt none of those things; instead, his circuits sparked with… joy.
But besides feeling an unsettling happiness, there was another emotion that Cliffjumper didn't want to put a name to. It almost a feeling of familiarity, of remembrance. The minibot had the strangest feeling that he had killed in cold energon before.
But that can't be right, the mech thought frantically. He had never killed a mech outside of a fight, even though he hated Decepticons with all his spark. The Autobot in him kept him from committing an act of murder, even on his worst enemies. But try as he might, the mech couldn't shake the feeling that he had done something like this before, but no memories came to his processor.
As he searched within himself, searching for an answer, he found something, but it was not the solution he had been hoping for. It was a feeling that shook him to his core, worse than anything he had felt in his long existence as a warrior. Cliffjumper, finally beginning to feel a chill of fear creeping over his circuits, knew with utter certainty that if he survived being held by the Decepticons he would kill again.
The mech collapsed to his knees, completely numb to his surroundings, even when the voice of his torturer boomed out of nowhere.
"Soundwave: on the verge of breaking Cliffjumper's mind. Soundwave: highly suggests Autobot give Soundwave what he wants."
The Autobot simply shuddered and didn't respond to the Decepticon. It wasn't clear if the mech had even understood his dark tormentor, let alone considered his request for information. At this point, Cliffjumper was too close to the edge to comprehend anymore.
Onboard the Nemesis, outside of the twisted dreamscape of Cliffjumper's mind, Soundwave sighed internally to himself. He did so hate when his interrogation efforts proved fruitless, even if he enjoyed having his fun with prisoners afterward. Now he would have to find a new Autobots to subdue, and that was not as easy as it seemed. The tall mech sighed again and ruminated quietly on what he would do.
Scream! Scream! Scream!
The way you would if I ravaged your body
Scream! Scream! Scream!
The way you would if I ravaged your mind
Soundwave had decided that enough was enough. He knew he would get no information out of Cliffjumper. That meant the Decepticon TiC was free to dispose of the Autobot however he pleased, and the dark mech had several twisted fantasies he had wanted to try out. However, Cliffjumper had at least earned a merciful death, even if merciful to Soundwave would still count as torture to any other mech, even Megatron.
Turning his formidable processor to the task of shutting down Cliffjumper was an easy task for a mech like him, and he did so with an easy familiarity. But, rather than shutting the Autobot down all at once, Soundwave took his time and slowly offlined bits of his prisoner's processor at a time, just so the mech would know what was coming.
One of the last sounds that the doomed Autobot heard was the muffled, mirthless laughter of his tormentor. Cliffjumper screamed aloud as the darkness closed in on all sides. But even as he faded, his consciousness replayed that feeling of pleasure he had felt while murdering Arcee. With that feeling bouncing around in his processor, the mech did the only thing left for him to do. Cliffjumper screamed.
Far away from the dark, Decepticon filled halls, deep in the Autobot stronghold, Arcee twitched as she felt a tearing in her spark, felt the physical and emotional pain that was a sparkbond breaking. She screamed, unknowingly matching the cries of her dying partner in his final moments, and collapsed on her berth, aware of nothing but pain in that brief moment. As the her spark made one final attempt to reach for the void where a sliver of Cliffjumper's essence once resided, her pain reached new heights, and she screamed again; but her screams did nothing to alleviate the pain. So she screamed louder.
If Cliffjumper seemed kinda hateful to anybody, it's because I used his G1 personality, which is much more volatile and, well, hateful. Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed reading just as much as I enjoyed writing it! Feel free to leave a review! Heck, you can even feel free to flame if you'd like; I see it as constructive criticism.