"We will play this game again, Airachnid. I will allow you to pretend to control me in front of the others, but in private, you and I are going to have a little talk," Kickback whispered. "Now, look pleased with your success. The others will be watching. If you so much as thinking of behaving in any way out of normal, I will devour you alive in front of them."
The locust released her, and released his mental control over her body. Airachnid quickly transformed into a helicopter, maintaining her position.
"I hate you!" the the femme hissed venomously.
"Good, that's exactly how I want us to start," the locust purred, transforming and shifting back into jet mode. Leading the swarm in a final upward spiral, the locust transformed once again, tossing his head back and uttering his own, unique, piercing war cry. The high pitched harmonic scream pierced the air and carried for miles in all directions, and was echoed by the rest of the swarm, who had accepted him as their Master.
The ebony grasshopper then began his descent. The mass fluttering of wings and heavy bodies followed, landing on the ground in a ring around the Decepticon officers and their new Hive Master, bowing low.
Airachnid had no choice but to play the game.
Landing and transforming, she bowed before Megatron, keeping the seething disgust for the locust behind her in check. "The bonding was successful, Lord Megatron. May I present to your new Hive Master, Kickback."
Megatron looked past Airachnid at his new warrior. "Well done, Airachnid. You have secured a place among the Decepticons once more."
Not that I ever wanted a place among you, she thought to herself, still bowing as the huge silver mech passed her by.
Kickback respectfully dropped to one knee, right arm across his chest, head lowered. "All hail Megatron!" he said emphatically.
"Rise, Kickback," Megatron said, as the locust got back up. He studied the Insecticon, eyes narrowed, searching his memory files.
"I remember you," he said with mild amusement. "Beneath Kaon, during the first rally. . ."
"Your words inspired more than just the miners and low-castes," Kickback replied. "You inspired the lowest and most oppressed to transform and rise up."
Megatron clapped his hand on Kickback's shoulder. "It is good to have one of the original revolutionaries with us once more." Turning back to the others, Megatron addressed Shockwave next. "And what became of Sharpshot?"
"Destroyed by Grimlock," Shockwave answered.
"Mmmn. I see," Megatron mused, sounding genuinely disappointed. He glanced back towards Airachnid. "See to it Kickback is properly fed and allowed to establish a physical hive. I want more Insecticons in production." The Decepticon leader started back towards Darkmount. "Knock Out, assist Shockwave in Kickback's maintenance. Soundwave, Starscream – come with me."
"I have to confess, this is the first time I've been interested in maintenance on a bug."
Knock Out handed Shockwave one of the diagnostic cables from the multitool harness dangling over the medical berth. Spider-like, the device featured dozens of extendable armatures ending in tools, the ends of injector or siphoning hoses, and connector cables for the accessing of neurological modules, actuators and electronic ganglia.
"Kickback is not like the other Insecticons. His CNA was altered to express a greater degree of intelligence and power," Shockwave explained as he connected the diagnostic cable to the side of the stasis-locked Insecticon's head.
"That probably explains why he looks more like a regular Cybertronian than the other bugs crawling around this citadel," Knock Out thought aloud.
Airachnid leaned against the wall of the medical facility, keeping her distance from the two mechs and their patient. There was nothing she wanted to do more than leave, walk out, find a way off this planet. Tormenting Arcee wasn't worth it now that she was once more bound into the suffocating hivemind. She hated Jack even more for destroying her one way off this planet and out of the hands of the Decepticons. That little human had cost her the freedom she'd fought so hard to secure. She looked up only to briefly lock eyes with Knock Out. The hatred in his optics was still brilliantly clear as brows furrowed together and his mouth pulled into a tight line. The femme turned her head away, looking back at the wall.
"So, Airachnid," Knock Out said, deciding to prod at the spider's visible discomfort, "What's the deal between you and the bug over here? You seemed less than enthusiastic about having him around."
"That's none of your business," Airachnid calmly rebuffed, looking coldly back at the red mech.
"Oh, but I think it is." Knock Out moved away from the berth and walked towards the spider with a certain menace to his stride. "You're at the bottom of the food chain now, and if I want answers I can order them out of you."
Airachnid hissed warningly, unfolding her arms and glaring at Knock Out, her legs shifting into the abdomen of a spider, her long, thin extra legs supporting her weight.
Knock Out's arm transformed into a saw. "Oh just try something, femme, I've been fixing things so long that I'm aching to get back to breaking them."
"Altercations in this area are inadvisable," Shockwave stated loudly alongside the sound of a cannon charging up. His left arm was aimed at the both of them, the interior of the cannon's barrel glowing deep inside. "Megatron's orders were explicit. You will both cease this useless display of posturing and aggression and cooperate, or I will be forced to render you both inoperable."
Knock Out growled in frustration, shifting his arm back to normal. "This is not over between us," he whispered harshly, pointing at the spider.
"Oh but I think it is, Knock Out. Megatron's orders. We have to play nice and pretend that Breakdown never happened. Not that it was a tragic loss to the Decepticon cause," Airachnid tormented behind a smug smile.
Knock Out suddenly roared and shoved over a crash cart of tools that went clattering loudly across the floor. "Do you have any idea what you cost me – what you cost us?!" he snarled. "Breakdown was a Combiner! The Decepticons lost Menasor the day you snuffed his spark – not to mention the fact that you allowed that technology to fall into the hands of the grease spot little natives!"
"Then why don't you take that up with Megatron?!" Airachnid yelled back. "He ordered Breakdown and Dreadwing to execute me, what was I supposed to do, lay down and die?!"
"You were insubordinate and tried to take control of the Decepticons the moment the opportunity presented itself!" Knock Out shouted back, whirling back to face Airachnid.
"Should you really be throwing that stone, Knock Out? I don't recall you being blameless in that particular charge – and don't even get me started on Starscream. How many times has he tried to stab Megatron in the back only to come sniveling back and still be allowed to live? I made one tactical, logical decision and I was thrown to the scraplets!" Airachnid protested.
Shockwave's antenna raised a few degrees, listening intently to the argument while keeping his weapon trained on the both of them. He continued to run diagnostics all the while – multitasking was never a problem for him. What processes should have been devoted to emotional capacity had been rerouted to other systems. It allowed him to sift through information and assess the probability of thousands of outcomes at blinding speed.
This was new information for Knock Out. While he had seen Airachnid's failed attempt to take control – losing in a humiliating fashion to Soundwave – the reason for Breakdown and Dreadwing's mission with Airachnid had never been divulged. Only the outcome. He hated to admit it, but she had a point. His siding with Starscream had been forgiven, perhaps by the simple saving grace that he had been the only medic present among the Decepticons. But now, with Shockwave back among their ranks, he was, as Megatron had put it, "no longer indispensable". Knock Out opened his vents, taking in a sharp breath of air and gusting it back out, a sigh of acceptance.
"I guess nobody's perfect," he grudgingly admitted, and looked down at the scattered tools as his anger began to cool. He'd have to let it go; he would have killed to survive the same as she had. The need to survive was understood.
Airachnid watched the tenseness melt out of him as he mulled over what she had to say; she, too, relaxed, if only a little. She couldn't be completely at ease with Shockwave still pointing his arm cannon at the both of them.
Knock Out looked at the floor and reached up to rub the back of his neck. "I don't suppose you'd give me a hand with these," he asked, offering an olive branch as he looked at her with an apologetic mien.
Airachnid shifted back out of spider mode and touched down on her feet. She was satisfied with her point being made, and she was going to need all the allies and sympathy she could get. "Sure, I have few I can spare," she lightly joked, offering a little smile of acceptance in return.
Knock Out barked a short laugh as Airachnid approached him, gathering spilled components with her regular arms as well as the claw-tipped arachnoid limbs. They knelt down together, keeping close by one another.
"So really," he asked her quietly, gesturing towards Kickback with his eyes, "what is he, ex-boyfriend?"
"No. Worse," Airachnid murmured in reply.
Satisfied with the resolution he was witnessing, Shockwave powered down his weapon and returned silently to his work. Knock Out and Airachnid felt a wave of relief; the scientist's arm cannon was rumored to have been improved considerably since the war. Potentially it was as strong as – or even stronger – than Megatron's own.
"Do you think one-eye is going to narc on us to the boss? What we said isn't exactly promotion-worthy," Knock Out whispered to Airachnid as quietly as he possibly could.
"Shockwave is almost as good at keeping his vocoder off as Soundwave. When it comes to him, the only thing that matters is logic and outcomes – if he thinks a handful of disgruntled outbursts every so often keeps the Decepticons working together, he'll keep it to himself," Airachnid answered, equally hushed.
"Then there's always Soundwave. We may have to watch our backs from now on," Knock Out grimaced, quailing at the realization that he'd forgotten how thoroughly monitored Darkmount was.
"You should always be watching your back," Airachnid admonished.
"Perhaps we should watch each other's?" Knock Out offered, reaching over to turn the crash cart upright.
"Are you sure you can trust me, Knock Out? You know my reputation," Airachnid said with a disarming smile.
"And you have no guarantees that I'm not setting you up for a fall," Knock Out stated smoothly, a dangerous look in his eye.
"Mutually assured destruction it is," Airachnid agreed, standing up with an armload of tools.
"My favorite kind," the red mech said.
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