(Alright, chapter 6 is here. And with that there is only one more chapter left. Things will be coming to an exciting ending at Prime's party in chapter 7….so stay tuned. I hope to have the final chapter posted sometime before the end of next week. Enjoy :)

Skywarp kneeled. On tense, trembling knees, he bowed before the dark God. There was nothing more he could do. He was no match for Unicron and he knew it. He would plead to him and beg for both his and Thundercracker's life. Maybe it would at least buy him some time to think of a way out of this.

"Lord Unicron," Skywarp's voice shook. "There is no reason to do this; you don't have to kill us. Starscream is yours, Thundercracker and I, we get that now. Please, I beg of you, let us go. You won't hear from us again and neither will Starscream."

Unicron's words were soft whispers carved with an icy knife. "You beg of me?" he questioned.

"Yes," the reply stumbled from Skywarp's lips.

"Why would you beg of me when it is not my hand that will deliver your death?" Unicron looked to Starscream, "finish them," he commanded.

Skywarp looked weakly into Starscream's optics. Would pleading to him even do any good? Was he even Starscream anymore? Skywarp began to wonder how Starscream would do it, with his powerful fusion cannon?

The green portal sprung open in the living quarters. Its swirling glow opening as Shockwave and Ratchet stepped through. Unicron hissed, recoiling in anger and pain as he spotted something glowing within Ratchet's grasp.

"Unicron!" Rachet exclaimed.

Shockwave fired, sending three blast rounds from his laser cannon towards Unicron as Unicron vanished.

"I doubt it was those shots that caused him to flee," Shockwave said, looking at the orb in Ratchet's hands that was the matrix of leadership. Stored safely in an airtight, blastproof container, its warm blue glow was calmingly beautiful.

Starscream collapsed, metal colliding against the steel floor.

"Frag!" Skywarp yelled. He couldn't bear to lose both Thundercracker and Starscream. Now they were both unconscious, neither seeming to be in very good health at this point.

"Thank Primus you two came when you did," Skywarp said, "TC and I were both about to be scrap."

"Knockout is on his way too," Ratchet advised, "to help out with Starscream's medical care while Shockwave and I run some tests, looks like he'll have two patients now."

"Unfortunately," Skywarp replied sadly.

"Let's get them to the medical room, we need to scan their vital readings," Ratchet told Skywarp.

"I can't believe He was just here," Skywarp said, "just standing there. He's a God Ratchet, what are we going to do?"

"We're going to defeat him Skywarp," Ratchet growled. "We have to believe that."

Starscream's optics slid open. The room seemed a hazy blur, but he could make out the red figure of Knockout, humming to himself as he busily tidied up a medical counter containing some medical equipment and supplies. To Starscream's right, Thundercracker rested peacefully on a berth, still weak after his ordeal.

"I want to see him." Starscream's audios strained to hear a grumbling femme's voice just outside the door.

"Arcee, please be logical," Shockwave pleaded, "Starscream may not even be awake yet."

"Then wake him," she argued back.

Shockwave sighed, she wasn't going to take no for an answer. "Come on, we can check in on him and see how he's doing."

Starscream sat up in his berth as Arcee entered. The glare she gave to Shockwave was a wordless command that she wanted to speak with Starscream alone. Shockwave got the message, wandering over to Knockout to chat with him about the recent test results.

Starscream was confused, what could Arcee possibly want he wondered, and at a time like this.

"You're not Air Commander Starscream," she spat.

Starscream sat silent, puzzled.

"Well, aren't you going to say anything?" Arcee growled. "Say something slag it, because the Starscream I knew would. The Starscream I knew would tear this whole scrapping place apart if someone tried to make a glitch out of him the way Unicron just did to you. The Starscream I knew wanted to rule, not be ruled. You're not him, you're not the Starscream that had me by the throat that day, telling me how you could make me yours any time you wanted. What happened to you?"

"What happened to you femme?" Starscream scoffed. "Still mad because Knockout can't give it to you like I could have? It's a little late for that, don't you think sweet spark?" Starscream purred, glancing at Knockout.

Arcee smiled. "You don't need Unicron," she told Starscream. "You're the Air Commander of Cybertron. You didn't need Megatron either, that's why you rebelled against him. Why get into that same kind of glitchy relationship with someone else? That's where you're headed if you keep messing with Unicron."

"I'll tell you something else I don't need Arcee, a lecture. If I wasn't so weak right now…"

"If you weren't so weak right now," Arcee finished the sentence for him, "you'd have my aft pinned against the wall so fast for speaking to you like this that I wouldn't even see it coming. That's who you are Starscream, don't forget that," she said as she turned and left.

"So, how's the patient?" Knockout chirped as he walked over to Starscream's berth. "Was it something she said?" Knockout asked, noticing the look on Starscream's face.

"You could say that," Starscream laughed. "She certainly is a little ball of fire. You're a lucky mech Knockout."

"I like to think so," he cooed.

"Is Thundercracker going to be ok?" Starscream asked, glancing at his still sleeping form.

"It looks that way, his vital signs are strong, he's just a little weak that's all."

"Unicron hit him in the head with that light pretty hard," Starscream shook his head sadly.

"Starscream," Knockout got serious, "Arcee's right, Unicron's power isn't going to do anything but turn you into a slave. We need real leaders now and that's what Optimus Prime is. He doesn't care that you're ambitious, that you want to lead your own army; in fact, he'll help you get your own squadron of seekers. He wants to help us all realize our goals, that's what a real leader does."

"Unicron's not going to let go of this, he'll be back, he wants me too much."

"Why do you think that is?" Knockout wondered.

"Because of all the things Arcee said. Because I'm a challenge. Because he wants my power as much as I craved his."

"You have to resist this Starscream; you know this in your spark."

"Yes," Starscream replied, "I know."