It was over. He could tell by the tone in which he said his name.

"Megatron!" That was all he needed, but it didn't surprise him any less.

"Ahh… Optimus…" The sinister silk of Megatron's voice never wavering, "Do tell me who I'll be dismantling in honor of your miraculous recovery."

"You know I don't condone the harming of any life form, if avoidable; even if it is a Decepticon." Megatron smirked, "Humor me, think of it as a last request. You know we both can't walk out of here alive."

Optimus backed into the control panel of the archive room. Swiftly, he ran his fingers over a few keys, effectively severing any feed entering or leaving the room, and then slowly raised his fist, transforming it to his trademark cannon in precaution. Megatron only lifted his chin, staring straight into the newly reformed Autobot's optics.

"You told me you trusted me completely; however I have found evidence to the contrary."

"How…"

"I hacked Soundwave while he recharged.

"Really. Did your humans teach you that?" The amusement and curiosity made clear in his growing smirk and folded arms.

"I'm not proud of it, but yes."

"Still… well done. But what I don't understand is what would warrant such an investigation in the first place."

"I realized I was being watched and my access to certain areas was restricted."

"Oh? Like where?" The Decepticon leader inquired only to fish out a section chief to blame.

Optimus shifted his jaw. He didn't know what his ex-friend now warlord was playing at. Was he biding his time for someone to come? Or was he setting up for something else? The small talk made him uneasy.

"What does it matter, I've already ruined your plans."

"Like I said… Humor me."

"Fine! Most recently I was denied access to the last door to the left in the second corridor from the central command room."

Megatron scoffed, his face contorting into a mixture of confusion, amusement, and irritation. "Wait, what?" Prime charged his cannon in response to the shift in his demeanor.

"I don't know what secrets are in that room but…" Megatron couldn't even hear the rest of the prime's statement. His optics seemed to glaze over, as they darted about as if looking for something and his mouth sat a bit slacked.

"Son of a rust-spewing scraplet queen…"

"Excuse me!" Prime squared his shoulders ready to fight, but the other just stood there. His brow furled, eyes dazed and blinking.

"I can't slagging believe it! I don't…" The Decepticon continued more to himself than anyone. "There are no words to describe how I feel right… baffled! Maybe amazed! I just…"

Optimus now felt almost as confused as Megatron. In fact, he hadn't seen his so incoherent since the first had high-grade. Then, as if remembering someone else was in the room, Megatron turned back to Optimus.

"You are the most insufferable, goody-two shoes, lawful stupid mech I have ever met! And I can't, for the life of me, understand how THAT set you off! Maybe you're just built that way." Prime gave him a look that could only say 'the frag are you on about?', but Megatron just kept going. "Did you really just go 'I can't get into this door… MUST INVESTIGATE!'" He roared the end, raising his fist into the air while clenching. "You know WHY you couldn't get passed that door… Because it's a FEMME LAVATORY! I can't believe all my carefully laid plans have been thwarted; I… have been bested by a waste hatch. Primus help me!"

The room fell silent, both bots seemingly stunned. After an eternity, Optimus was shaken back to reality with a near whisper. "Get out." Optimus didn't really know how to respond to the finger pointed towards the door but he powered down his cannon anyway, having forgotten it was on during the shocking display. Megatron just stood in the same spot when 15 minutes later when Optimus finally walked cautiously past him and out the door. An hour later, he was jolted from his thoughts by the frantic shrill of a bewildered femme.

*Lord Megatron, Pri… I mean Orion Pax has left the base unescorted-*

*Yes, Gamma Burst. I know let him go.* He turned and walked out the door. *Pull all files accessed by Prime in the last three days. See if there are any accompanying out-going transmissions as well.*

*Sir?*

Glaring into the dark hall in front of him, he growled, *Now!*

*Of course, my liege.*