It was akin to stepping across the threshold of a ballroom and realizing that you are the scandal that is on the mind and lips of all that attend. The same hushed silence, the same surreal stillness that permeates every body in the room, all the while the music plays steadily in the background. All eyes are on you waiting to see what you will do or say. Will whatever you utter captivate, stun or only result in a cruel, soul crushing laughter? And in a fashion as quick and fleeting as such scandals are, the moment passes and everyone returns to what they were occupied with prior to your less than grande entrance.

That was how felt when my feet hit the ground in the middle of their battle, sending a cloud of dust up around me. I held my arms defensively by my side, my gun at the ready, my expressionless, smooth face staring out searching. I felt the silence more than heard it. In all the minds around me I read a muted hush, a curiosity that was afraid to be spoken. Optics watched, mouths unmoving, minds temporarily frozen waiting for something to happen. I couldn't help but smile to myself. It feels good to get such a reaction even if it is just for a moment. Maybe my logic circuits are as twisted as everyone seems to think because as I look around me, I think of how vulnerable they all are. How easy it would be just to... no, I won't even continue that though. I can't. Not to them.

I search and see who is the reason for feeling that I need to be in this place. Out here in the open amongst the battles, the fires, the death and destruction amongst which I am so at ease. I really shouldn't be here. It isn't conducive to my most recent job descriptions. To stand amongst these warriors is almost to pledge my allegiance to a side. Something that as a sworn Bounty Hunter, I am not at liberty to do. Even though, I practically already have.

I see below but ahead of me, a small pink form darting in and out of the cover of rubble, her gun raised, that look of pure menace on her otherwise angelic looking face. I watch the beautiful precision with which she kills her enemy. That look of focused rage contorting her face, one could almost mistaken her for a Decepticon. All the elements needed of a warrior in battle, the focus, the rage, the precision and the enjoyment of it all is a trait for which the Decepticons are known not a former civilian like Arcee. No wonder I like her so much. She's a femme after my own spark.

To sum Arcee up, she's small but mighty.

I don't move forward, I can not join in this fight unless I am threatened. Only in the defense of myself can I raise my weapon to another. Believe me, it pains me to stand back and not have a hand in this. One day, I know I will say frag it all and let loose on a tirade of my own but until that time comes that I can no longer control the urges which are part of my deepest core programming, I will only be allowed to enjoy it all as a spectator. In the meantime, I just pray to all the holies that I don't loose what hard earned skill I have from lack of use.

I don't move from the safety of my observation point above the battle which is fizzling out below me. I see the destruction and it sickens me. I know, I'm a walking contradiction. It's the destruction of our home that pierces my core. We do all this fighting but in the end, what will be left to claim? Nothing. Just a charred pile of rubble with a thinning atmosphere, limping its way through space. I'm surprised that our moons have not abandoned all hope and left orbit to search out a more stable home. Hell, I'm surprised most of us have not done the same.

The love of battle is hard wired in me though. Now that I have something upon which to base my anger, my hatred, the fires of my lust for battle have been given hope again in the form of vengence. Still, I only wish that we will have something to claim when it is all over. When it's all said and done. But even then, how long will that peace last?

"Enigma, what are you doing here?" a surprised voice calls from beside me.

I was so busy contemplating the world below that I failed to realize that not only had the fighting ended but that beside me stood an energon splattered Arcee. The glowing purple stains of spilt energon matching well with the soft pink of her exterior.

"Yours?" I ask wiping a stream of it from her arm. I hope not.

"Nope. Is it ever?" She chuckles and flashes me a smirk that says she knows damn well what she's doing and never to doubt her abilities. I don't. I know her too well. "You didn't answer me. What are you doing here?"

"I came to watch the show." That's only partially true. A panel opens up on my arm and my gun folds back into place. No need to have it. Any threat to me was gone almost a full minute after I landed here.

"That's not a lie or anything," She rolls her eyes disapprovingly at me and puts away her own weapon. "Tell me you weren't checking up on me."

"If I don't watch your back, who will watch mine?" I mutter into the air. She and I are the only two femmes that we know of still on Cybertron. I have spent a lot of time fretting over what could possibly happen to her in this Megatron tailored age. Having a bit of first hand experience, I know that it isn't too nice.

"'E..." she sets her jaw in that manner that says I'm about to get a vocal lashing.

"Don't." I hold a hand up to her, stopping her mid sentence. It's rude, I know. But if I don't stop her before she starts she'll drive my audio receptors into a frenzy. "You're the only femme friend I've ever had."

"Through no fault of your own." She bluntly corrects me. She has that hand on her hip that says the fight is still in her. I hate these sort of days.

"They weren't strong enough." I say each word with equal emphasis. Now I am on the defensive even if I am staring at the ground beneath my feet. "I did what..."

"Uh-oh better stop now. Your roots are showing, Decepticon." Her optics are narrowed at me.

That hurt and she knows it. It was an unfair comment but she is right. I am showing myself. The dynamic we have keeps us both grounded. Well, mostly me. If I didn't have her on my side, by my side, Primus knows what sort of mess I would be in right now. Primus knows what sort of mess I could have created by now.

I look over to her and study her from behind the anonymity of my mask. She's angered but confident in her choice of stinging words. Her shoulders are back and her chin up, even more than necessary for our height difference. She has taken the upper hand in this discussion as she usually does when I get like this.

I shake my head and turn away, my wings hanging just a pinch lower. I choose not to respond because the fine collection of scathing words that I have in my arsenal need to be saved for someone I don'tcare about.

"'E, I'm sorry." I feel a small hand on my arm but I don't turn. Her voice sounds a little more welcoming now than it did a minute ago, "Look, sometimes, you just need a reality check."

I look over my shoulder at her, "I know. But I can't help but feel lost, 'Cee."

"I know and I'm just trying to help you find the way."

"And I'm just trying to ensure you can remain doing that."

I flinch a bit as I feel her small hand rest on the back of my wing. She quickly draws it away and instead walks around to face me. I raise my gaze from where it had been resting, by my feet. Even from behind the security of my mask, I avoid her optics and look over her shoulder. I cross my arms protectively in front of me. I know I can trust Arcee but right now I feel as if the whole world is pressing against me.

"'E, you spend every day of your life slaying demons that only you can see. We all know this and I know that you are incredibly conflicted. Your spark is torn and your mind is barely holding itself together. It's okay to be scared. We all are at some point. And I'm afraid no one, no matter how much you try to care for them, is going to fill that void in you. It's up to you to fill it on your own. I'm afraid that if you don't, you're always going to be susceptible to... outer influence." She stands back in a manner that I can only guess means that she is waiting for me to explode in anger. I won't. I've heard this enough from her. She is right. It's finally sinking in now. "This is war, 'E. We live, we die. You know this as a survivor."

No sooner does she say that then does an all to familiar sound travel along the winds from somewhere above the distant the horizon carry to our audio receptors. I know she saw that twitch in my wings. The twitch that says I don't belong. She acts quick to divert my attention.

Arcee grabs my right hand with both of hers and pulls "Enigma, lets go. Lets go back. This is finished here."

I glance skyward, hesitating long enough to warrant a sharper tug on my arm. "Now. " She tells me firmly before adding a more relaxed, "I'll race you."

Appealing to my inner speed demon... I give her credit, she knows how to snap me out of it, "Like you stand a chance..." I answer with enough cockiness to warrant a relieved grin from her.

"Prove me wrong, glitch. Move your aft." She gives my hand a playful shove and then quickly transforms.

I give her a head start before transforming myself and going full throttle as I head skyward. The cool caress of the air on my wings and that sound it makes as I shred each molecule next to it into invisible tatters, helps to sooth any of my inner angst and wash my mind of the shadows that foul it.

I have stared death in the eye. Felt it's cold, merciless grip on my throat, it's tendril like fingers snaking their way into my spark. Trying to steal the very essence that is me. I've heard it's raspy, demonic laughter in my audio receptors, caustic and spreading in the middle of my central processor.

Death is like the tax man. It comes for you and will take what it wants by force if necessary. Even if you run, it will find you. Death is inevitable.

But I laughed at it. Shrugged it off then beat it. I won. Such a survival will infect the mind of the soul that lives on, creating a sense of near immortality.

Cheating death... beating death is sort of a high. Which is possibly why after a bout 3 cycles worth of lectures from Arcee to stop flailing about as if stuck in a loop of self pity, I went out in search of nothing but a chance to feel like me.

I may not be able to join the battle, but I can find a fight. I'll admit though, this was not the fight I was expecting.To be honest with you, I wasn't expecting to fight anyone. I was out minding my own business. Okay, not entirely, I was following someone who has a tendency to pop up as a job every now and then. Just a 'Con underling with a tendency to push the limits. But having thrown caution to the wind, I wandered into rare questionable subterritory within the neutral regions and attracted that attention of someone entirely unintended.

I'm face to face with my old wingmate, Sunstorm and being as I still have a grudge against him, I have a score to settle. The only problem is, I can only act in self defense unless I want to end up marked.

I guess I should add that I know exactly how to crawl under his armor enough to trigger his rage and maybe have to protect myself against one of his radiating hugs. This ought to be fun.

"What are you doing here, bounty hunter?" He's just so damned smarmy. I watch as the brightly colored splotch of Seeker before me saunters my way with the arrogance that curse or blesses our kind, depending upon whom you ask.

"What do you think?" I'll keep it simple and biting, as to not confuse him. "Go away, Sunstorm. Do not interfere with my work."

He takes a step closer to me, staring in a manner that says he's trying his hardest to figure out who or what I am and whether or not I'm worthy of a challenge. I don't step back. I'm feeling a little invincible today so I dare myself and step forwards, toward him.

"Feeling brave?" He says in a tone that just makes me want to shove a plasma gun down his throat and see how much energy he can swallow before vital components start to liquify themselves.

I roll my optics and groan quietly trying to not do that exact act. I really don't care for him. I Never did. He's overly philosophical in a condescending way, feeling that he's on a mission from the higher powers. I'm not afraid to admit we Seekers tend to think they are a bit above everyone else, the ability of flight will do that to you, but Sunstorm takes it to all new levels. His delusions of grandeur are up there somewhere near a god. He honestly believes, with all of his being, that he is on a mission from Primus. I believe that he needs to be brought back down from the upper atmosphere and reintroduced to reality. Sometimes I wish Lord Primus would appear and reclaim his aft in a fiery glory just so no one will have to hear his quasi-religious diatribe anymore.

Oh, and he's not the brightest bulb either, even if he is the brightest painted Seeker. There is supposedly a holy text that states, "And the sun and its brother shall storm over the new world to reveal the beast and destroy it." Sunstorm believes that this text is speaking of not only himself, but Starscream as well. Hahaha. Right. If he and Starscream are prophets, Primus take me now because this world is fragged.

"Sunstorm, If you try anything, I will end you quicker than..."

"You'll what? Arrest me? Relax, bounty hunter." He throws that arrogance at me that we all seem to be hardwired with and it makes me want to slap him silly while slowly strangling the life out of him. " I'm just curious. You're a mystery. You appear out of nowhere. All new. No one has ever seen the likes of you before but you seem so knowledgeable about how things work. You have to admit, that's... strange. And there is no prophecy of a dark one."

See what I mean? He's nuts. If there was a prophecy that would speak of me, it would probably say ,"And the dark one shall wash the world of tyrants, specially delusional ones, and unite the world in light." Nope. Doesn't exist. I should shove his Holy Writ up his tailpipe.

I watch carefully though as he paces around me like a hunter stalking their prey. I'm really not feeling good about this but I don't want to pull out a gun as it is too blatant a move. I can't pull out a sword because that would be a dead giveaway and give an answer to his curiosity. Instead a release both of the knives in my inner wrist panel, their hilts being hidden by my cupped palms. It's easier to explain this as self defense if I need to.

"Well, I guess a mystery is how I'll remain." I watch as he passes in front of me, still studying me. Still not seeing the knives in my hands. Thank Primus.

He stops beside me and glances over to with an entertained smile on his bright face. "Oh really?"

"Yes. Really. You are well aware that my identity can not be compromised. If you even try, you'll be dead before you even have a chance to register who I am." In a battle of wits, I'm going to win hands down every time against old Sunny both physically and psychologically. He suffers from short spurts of power. I mean short. Real short. In a battle of speed, I win. His best tactic is the element of surprise. He'll hit you when you least expect it.

He steps to the side, now standing in front of me, and opens his mouth to speak but something catches his attention, silencing him. Uh oh, here comes that surprise. I notice that he is watching something over my shoulder, something or someone behind me with the most intense stare. I grab the knives but turn and follow his gaze to see something I'd rather not see behind me.

A pink bot...Arcee.

In my head I hear her unmistakeable female voice say, "Sorry, 'E." and a slight giggle follows. Now whos the crazy one?

"A femme?" Sunstorm sounds pleasantly surprised and blood thirsty. I know that sound in his voice and it is anything but good. I turn back towards him and recognize that look on his face. I'm not about to let that happen.

"No." I shout just as he successfully shoves me out of his way and takes off after Arcee. I put the knives back and reach for my gun. They both disappear behind a wall between two crumbling buildings. There's too much in the way here to take to the skies so I know he's going after her on foot.

Arcee, Arcee, Arcee, what are you doing here? What were you thinking? I cry out in my mind. I know she can't hear me but I ask the questions into the nothingness of time and space in some hope that maybe some freak rip in the fabric of reality allows her to. I open my mind up searching for them both, allowing their thoughts to lead me to them both like a beacon in the darkness.

Arcee remains mentally silent as I have taught her. I'm impressed with how well she has learned how to hide herself considering she has no psychic abilities. Sunstorm on the other hand might as well be talking aloud. I reach around behind me and pull out a sword with my left hand. Best to not take any chances, I will remained armed with both a blade and a gun but if I need to rely on instinct, well, my sword is my best weapon.

I slink in and out of the countless tunnels of rubble and through the canyons of dilapidated buildings in the now neutral area. I hope silently that Arcee has just left and that this fight will be between Sunstorm and me only. Knowing the precocious femme, that means this is not the case. She's probably enjoying the hunt as much as I would like too. She's probably hoping for a chance to drive her gun right up Sunstorm's tailpipe.

I pick up something, that slimy hunter instinct of his. Now I know I'm close. I follow his thoughts as they swim towards me. I must be right behind him. I turn a corner and see him just ahead of me, looking very much the bit of a radioactive disaster about to occur. He's in rare form today. Must be the fact that he found a femme to destroy.

Fragging Megatron and that useless decree. It was nothing more than psychological warfare through a show of physical power and some of his minions won't just let it go. Even if almost everyone agreed that the decree was a bad idea. Simply amazing.

As if something otherworldly has alerted him to my presence behind him, Sunstorm turns as if on an invisible bearing. What the..? He was never that fast before. I pray to Primus that I manage to hit him. Somewhere in the blur that is Sunstorm coming at me and my sword arching I see a flash of metal hitting metal. I catch a beat of my spark timed with the pump in my chest. I half expect to look down and see myself run through by something. Anything. Instead the blur stops just a hand's distance from my face.

Sunstorm's face registers utter surprise and shock. I'm sure mine does the same. I feel a soft vibration in the hilt and I look down and see my sword buried deep, into his chest and through his spark casing. Purple sparks flick and trail out of the wound, crackling and snapping at the end of the hilt. He falls, very stiffly, backwards into the ground like a toppling statue.

How?

I've never been strong enough to do that. I didn't even think I was capable of anything like that after being made stronger. How?

I lean down over him, searching for any sign that he's not as dead as the vengeful part of me hopes he is. His optics are dark. I put my weight into pulling the sword out only to see the gaping hole it had been filling a moment before grow brighter and brighter. A pool of energon starts to spread underneath of him. A dull fizzling sound marks the end of my former wing mate. I can barely move. I'm too shocked.

Primus, Lord Primus. I just killed my former wing mate and I shudder with a flash of panic, whether or not he deserved it. I look down at the sword in my hand, a single drop of energon hanging onto the tip. I fling it aside as if it is infected with hate and pull out a plasma ring to clean it before sheathing it. I have to leave. I pray that no one witnessed that. I pray that if they did, that they obviously saw it as self defense because a whole world of slag is about to be dropped on my head if it seems otherwise. I'm neutral by duty and I just killed a Decepticon.

Frag. Frag. Frag. Frag. Come on, E. Get a grip. Get a grip.

I gotta go. I search mentally for Arcee and still sense nothing. Not even an emotion. Dammit. I head back the way I came. Coming to where I last saw her, I still find nothing. No time to search.

Even the feeling of the wind along the edge of my wings does nothing to relax my racing mind.

"And so it begins..." I mumble emotionlessly into a cube of highgrade. I'm sorry, but my sensors are out of whack. I need something to take the edge off. I haven't even bothered to ask Arcee what the hell she was doing there. I have bigger things to occupy the dark recesses of my mind right now.

I couldn't shake the feeling that I had just made myself a target. Sooner or later someone would go looking for Sunstorm and find him. Well, what was left of him. I want to believe that no one saw. That no one knows. Thankfully, there shouldn't be too much evidence that would point towards me.

But somewhere deep inside of me there is a prickle of alarm that just says, they're gonna know. Dammit do I have to spend the rest of my existence paranoid? I just hope no one contracts me to go looking for him. Talk about awkward.

"You don't look too good."

I really need to learn how to lock the door. I remain silent as Arcee walks into the room.

"Lock the door." I say flatly, a look that doesn't get me the return of a raised optic ridge like I expect to see from her.

"High grade? Where'd you get that?" Pleasant surprise coats her question.

"It pays to know who has it and who doesn't." I smirk, looking down at the multicolored liquid that I'm swishing in the cube. "They want extra work, they have to pay extra."

"Black market dealing. I guess you're an old ace at that." She sits down in a chair across from mine and pulls her legs up towards her. I can tell by her body language that she is sensitive to mine right now. I seem to be relaxed but only in a manner that is perched perilously on a hair trigger that is set to pull. I guess she is so guarded because I'm radiating nothing but negative energy right now.

"Look, I'm sorry about earlier. I wasn't following... really. I knew you weren't doing anything in particular except getting away from everything, so I figured I'd join you." I knew this was the explanation she'd give me.

I take another sip from the cube and set it down on the table. Something about how I move makes her flinch. I can't help but let out an evil little snicker when she does so. "Relax." Well, that came out coldly. I can't help it. I'm just not feeling all warm and sunshiny right now.

I look over to where she sits, incredibly guarded and read her. I don't even try to hide it. I'm angry. I shouldn't be so cold but I can't help it. "Now that you told me why you were there, where did you go after he spotted you?"

She looks uneasy. I know that I can still put off an air of menace if I need to or am not careful and feeling prickly like I am today. She hesitates to answer and I breathe in a harsh rush of air through my intakes. The resulting whirring sound seems to break her concentration and change her demeanor a bit. I try to smile but judging by the grimace she just gave me, it didn't work.

"I didn't leave if that's what you're trying to get to. You know me better than that. I just figured, I'd make it damn hard for him to get me." The cockiness with which she answered leaves me quite impressed. On ground, neither Sunstorm nor myself stood a chance against Arcee. She really is that fast and maneuverable.

"Not quite but that will suffice." Who the hell do I think I am? Primus, I sound like Starscream. Ick. I pick the cube of highgrade up and take a healthy swig of it. I have issues. I don't deny this.

Arcee gets up from her chair and walks over to me, leans against my chair and speaks in a very low voice, almost too low to hear. "I saw."

My right hand balls up into a fist in my lap. I rest my chin in my other hand and do not speak.

She rests her hand on my shoulder before speaking a little bit louder, "I'm sorry. I know you don't care about him. You're more worried of what may come of it all. But you were protecting me and yourself. Thank you."

I nod slightly and reach for what love liquid is left in the cube.

"I can only expect that you'll be back out tomorrow wreaking havoc?" I can hear the slight amusement in her voice. She's right. I will be.

"Yeah, I'm going to go check out what's live on the ether later and maybe take on a mission or two. "I might as well throw myself back into my normal routine. Anything else will look out of place. I mean, lets face it. I'm not grieving because I feel no remorse. He had it coming and I owed him as much. What I'm sitting here silently harping on is that the entire situation has caught me off guard and frankly, I just don't feel like dealing with any of the fall out from this should it find it's way back to me. "

"No point in driving yourself nuts over it. What's done is done." She says as she passes through the door and out into the hall. I stare down at the empty cube in my hand and laugh to myself. Again, she's right. That happens waaay too often anymore.

A/N: The term "Holy Writ" and the text "And the sun and its brother shall storm over the new world to reveal the beast and destroy it." were taken from a little research on Teletraan-1 the Transformers Wiki. It's from the Dreamwave Comics Continuity. Sunstorm is a religious extremist of sorts and I just wanted a reason to throw that link back to Screamer in there. ;-)

In case you can't tell, I'm a closet Arcee fan. I guess I sort of see her as more of a Claire Bennet (Heroes) heroic cheerleader type more than the groupie with a gun that hangs on Hot Rod and the other guys type. I think her more optimistic and less serious way of dealing with the war works well in contrast to Enigma's cold, brooding and angry view of it all. Sort of like if Selene from Underworld was teamed up with Claire.