"Welcome to camp loser."
Behind her, Starscream made a noise in the back of his throat that would have been a laugh, if only the dust and dirt settling around Mikaela's hadn't clogged his intakes.
What? She had a right to say whatever she wanted about the new Decepticon "HQ." If you could define a headquarters as a bunch of scattered, makeshift tents, a few crates filled with energon salvaged from old mines, and, of course, Igor.
Mikaela didn't know what he was. All she saw was a starving head scampering around like a rabid Chihuahua, producing strange noises that weren't anything close to a written language.
Real nice company.
After the Brotherhood stunt, most of the Decepticon's had scattered. Megatron still had tabs on each and every one of them, but he refused to call them back and assemble them all in the same place. Why? Mikaela could not fathom over the idea that fewer numbers meant less attacks, but still, when Megatron was being Megatron, you did not argue.
So, Mikaela's little "sector" consisted of Soundwave, who was always so avidly seated at Megatron's side, Laserbeak, the one bird in the universe that didn't crap on Mikaela's hood, Igor, Starscream, and Megatron.
Some group. Mikaela was sure that Laserbeak and Soundwave already hated her, but she didn't care, for they stayed their distance and Mikaela was grateful for that.
The Nevada sun was hot, and now that she wasn't moving, the wind not buffeting her frame, she felt the heat, tenfold.
Behind her, Starscream's wings bristled. Megatron was sitting with his back to them, Soundwave just off to the left, silent. Laserbeak was nowhere in sight, but she could hear Igor raving loudly to himself.
"I love this place," Mikaela said loudly, sending up a puff of dirt as she took a seat beside Megatron's rigid frame. The massive mech titled his head to the side, a smirk playing across his lips.
"Sarcasm, I presume?"
"You're getting better," Mikaela replied, glancing up. "Next you'll learn when to take a hint."
Megatron rolled his eyes, and with a heavy sigh, pushed himself off the ground and sauntered away from Mikaela. The femme let her head rest against the one small patch of grass in sight, hearing Megatron behind her as he rummaged around for some energon.
"Get, like, a professional decorator or something…." She murmured. "We could patch this place up, you know? Make it presentable."
"Presentable for whom? Optimus Prime?" Starscream's sheer weight was nearly crushing the crate he sat upon, but he didn't seem to care. His gaze was focused solely on Mikaela, and it did not waver, even when she rolled over. "Sooner or later, they will find us."
"And do what? Launch an attack?" Megatron barked a laugh. "You know that Prime only fights when necessary. Attacking at random has never been his play."
"Not until our little 'incident' with Fisher," Mikaela said, letting out a puff of air.
"Excuse me? Our incident?" Megatron spun, his talons cupped around an energon cube. He said, "If I may remind you, you were the one who ran off, heedless, after the human. You were the one who caused Barricade to–"
"Yeah, yeah," Mikaela waved a hand. "I admit, I went a little overboard."
Megatron was silent, and then, he tossed Mikaela the energon cube. She caught it with nimble fingers, examined the blue substance for a minute, and then handed it to Soundwave, who gladly obliged.
Megatron glanced at her curiously.
"Not in the mood."
"Ah. Is something on your mind?"
Mikaela shook her head. "No. Not yet."
Off to the side, from his seat atop the energon crates, Starscream cackled loudly. He was shaking so hard that his chassis rose and fell with each beat, and Mikaela resisted the urge to stand up and slap him.
"What?" She said venomously.
"You miss him, you little glitch," Starscream's voice dropped, and silence fell over the camp.
"Starscream…." Megatron warned.
"Come now," he said, waving a talon. "We're all friends. We're all here to help," his sardonic expression did not match his words the least. "Tell me, has he been haunting you? You rejected the poor mech, after all. You must carry some guilt."
Each individual word was like a slap in the face. Mikaela opened her mouth, but her glossa felt as if it had been coated with hot, Nevada dirt.
"Or are you like her? A heartless beast?"
Mikaela didn't see Megatron move. He was just a blur, a streak in the air, and then, the explosion.
It sounded like an explosion, the way he hit Starscream. Knocked him clear off the crate he was sitting on, sending him tumbling over the back, landing on his wings.
Mikaela heard something snap, and Starscream howled in pain.
"Megatron!" She barked.
Megatron's crimson optics settled on Mikaela, and that was when she froze.
She had never seen so much emotion in his optics. But it was there, clear as day, and she knew that he would regret meeting her eyes later.
"Get up, you little maggot," he snarled, his expression transforming into something different altogether. Rage. "Get up and go fly."
Starscream had to grasp the crates for a handhold, but in a flash, he was gone. Hobbling away on an injured foot, his wings twitching uncontrollably, as if the had been shocked.
Mikaela let her head lay against the dirt, hearing him transform, and then blast away, his form blocking out the harsh glare of the sun for just one moment.
Megatron came to her late at night, when everyone was in recharge.
"Starscream has yet to return," he said, sighing heavily and sitting down next to her form. "I haven't admitted it to anyone else, but the little bug does have me worried."
"Don't let him be. He'll pout for a while and then come crying back," Mikaela waved a hand, refusing to look at him. In the darkness, his optics were the only thing visible, the rest of his frame concealed by the darkness. But Mikaela could feel him, though, could hear the constant thrum of his spark.
There was always a strange tug in her own spark when she was next to him. She had always regarded it as Roadrunner attempt to manipulate her emotions – the Decepticon was still at large in her mind, spinning away in there like a spider, snip, snip, snip – but she had never given any thought to whether or not it had nothing to do with Roadrunner, but her.
Mikaela. In love with Megatron. It just didn't work out that way.
Sure, it was an attraction. But it wasn't her attraction. Whether or not Roadrunner still loved her, or Prime, or both, she didn't care. Mikaela loved only one mech, and that was how she wanted it to be.
"You didn't have to do that, you know," she murmured, thinking back to the shock and agony on Starscream's face.
"I did what was necessary."
"One day, he's going to run and never come back."
"Like Barricade?" Megatron sneered. "I know Starscream. No matter how snobbish or proud he may be, he will never join the Brotherhood."
"That's not what I meant," Mikaela murmured.
Red optics locked onto her face with the speed and precision of a homing missile.
"What do you mean by that?"
Of course he was wondering. The secret was bound to come out sooner or later, but Mikaela had hoped that Starscream would be the one to make the move.
Revolution. That had been the word he had used. Mikaela hadn't really paid attention to his "mutiny" speech, but she remembered darn good well that it involved lying, stealing, and much backstabbing.
But Megatron didn't let her answer. The way Mikaela held herself, her slouched position, Megatron seemed to get the message.
"Pah!" He barked, loud enough to cause Soundwave and Igor to both stir. "He wants to betray me, doesn't he? Build his own army!"
"Eventually, yes," Mikaela said with as much subtly as possible. "You knew?"
"I've always know," Megatron lowered his voice to a whisper.
"Then why did you make him your–"
"Second-in-command?" The mech beside her leaned back against the stacked crates, lacing long talons together. "Seeker trines were rare, even on Cybertron. I needed an air-commander, and he was the only one available. He worked his way up."
"And you just caught on?"
"I'm an intelligent mech," Megatron replied. "As is Soundwave. We both have a knack for spotting the….firebrands in our ranks. I wasn't surprised by what I found."
Megatron was silent, as if contemplating over his next words. Then, he opened his mouth and gave a long sigh.
"But Starscream had made the mistake of letting himself get too acquainted with me. I knew him, inside out," Megatron grinned. "Starscream is keen and cunning. Courageous, at times. But courageous enough to stab me in the back while I'm occupied? Never in a millennia."
"Courageous?" Mikaela raised an optic ridge.
"Like I said, he worked his way up. Deeds were carried out. And in the end, I was pleased. ," Megatron's shoulder brushed against Mikaela's, almost intentionally, as if he were hinting something. In the back of her mind, Mikaela could feel Roadrunner, the sly little femme practically begging for more.
"You should try it sometime," Megatron said softly, letting his head rest against the crate, offlining his optics.
"I already have, Megatron. I already have."