Disclaimer: I do not own any of the following characters or universe. I'm just messing with it.

~Chapter 10~

"Are you sure that this is going to work?" asked Optimus looking suspiciously at a black box they were fiddling with, "we can't afford to lose another bot."

"We're not completely sure Prime," replied Skyfire sighing as he watched Wheeljack screw something and Perceptor do the last calculations, "we can't be, it's all just a theory until Skywarp gives it a shot."

"How are they doing?" asked the Prime concerned.

"Not any better, without Starscream here, their trine bond is suffering," replied the shuttle sadly, "without their leader, they're losing focus."

Prime sighed and remembered how the last few cycles were like without Starscream around.

"Prime," stated Prowl walking into the leaders office, "may I have a word?"

"Of course, sit," Optimus paused in his paper work and set it aside, there seemed to be more than usual since the disappearance of Starscream, "give me a report about the science team."

"They're working on alternate theories about where Starscream could be and have stopped studying Skywarp, the results were not leading to anything new. They have found out why Wheeljack's invention reacted the way it did though and said it has provided much direction and head way to their plans."

"Excellent," the Prime said leaning back in his seat, it was unspoken, but it was like a dark cloud had settled around the base ever since the seeker had disappeared. The science team were scattered trying to figure how to get him back, but lacked the harmony they usually did it in. What was worst were his two wing mates though, they have never been the same since the disappearance. "What did you want to discuss?"

"It's Thundercracker and Skywarp sir, I need permission to take them off the patrol roster and monitor duties."

"Has it gotten that bad?" asked the leader with a wince.

The police bot nodded. Ever since Starscream disappeared, the two have been acting differently, more distant, confused and lost. It took longer to get the attention of the two seekers, they looked like they were lost in their own worlds half the time, giving them commands for them to do something was even harder, it took them longer how to recall how things worked. Half the time they were walking back and forth, when asked what they were after, they just responded with a soft 'dunno' before walking off again only to turn back up with a confused look.

Thundercracker held out longer then Skywarp but soon it was evident that he was getting more quiet and distant, he was starting to avoid everyone who wasn't his wing mate and the Dinobots and Ariel team haven't seen him in cycles. Skywarp, at first, was fiercely angry at the disappearance at his leader nearly irrationally so, but that soon faded and all was left was a confused seeker, he was quickly taken off Jazz's team because of this, he acted almost sparkling like, short attention spanned and with a soft curiosity; nothing like his usual boisterous personality. It was also noted that the two never separated from each other now, where one was the other was close behind, it looked like Thundercracker was the leader, walking places with Skywarp quietly and softly trotting behind him, but Thundercracker didn't have any means to his actions, so the two just wondered around the base a lot.

"Thundercracker has moved into a storage room on the other side of the base and Skywarp has joined him," Prowl shook his helm, but he did not have the circuits to say no to the seeker when he sent in the form for it, "Skywarp is practically a sparkling now and Thundercracker is almost like a drone. Without Starscream's leadership in their trine, they have no focus and almost no meaning to their lives, if we do not get him back soon, Skyfire says they will both fade to drones."

"Are the science team close?" worried Optimus, it was a crime to let the two fade away like that merely because of an accident.

"They're building a device right now and testing it," Prowl read over a data pad, "they say they should have it completed tomorrow and will then be ready for use."

"How did this all start?"

"Wheeljack plugged the device in Teletran while Redalert was doing a complete system flush, the energy surge was enough to finally power the device, that lacked the amount before, and activated it. It was just a case of bad timing, though why Wheeljack plugged it in the main generator at all is a question I want answered." Prowl scowled thinking about it, "until then, I have Ratchet preparing the med bay and the engineer team on standby just in case."

"Hopefully the two seekers can hold it together till then," Optimus rubbed his helm thinking about it, "what are our chances Prowl?"

"…Not good Prime," was the only response he got from the police bot.

"How will this work?" asked Prime turning to the science team seeing how they were doing a quick review of the math's for it.

"The problem before was my device needed an energy surge to activated because it needed much more then we could provide it," informed Wheeljack, "this is almost a replica of it only this time it will not be linked into the main generators, this second one here will act like beacon so when transported, there's a homing beacon to tell the transporter where we are so the bot can bring Starscream back here."

"If we're not linking it to Teletran then how are we going to get enough power?"

"Skywarp," replied Perceptor seeing the seeker trotting in with Thundercracker leading him in by the servo, "Skywarp can produce an un-measureable amount of power when he warps and only when he warps, we hope that it will be enough that he can follow Starscream."

"Wait only Skywarp? What about Thundercracker?," Optimus turned to the two seekers; seeing the confused and scared look of Skywarp and the firm determination of Thundercracker's. "We cannot separate them, not now, their bond is fragile enough."

"I will be fine Prime," stated Thundercracker patting Skywarp's wing who let out a whimper understanding the danger of leaving his wing mate behind while he went to find Starscream, Thundercracker could completely shatter without him and vise-versa, "Ratchet will sedate me to slow down the rate of the deteriorating bond and give Skywarp a boost to strengthen his. Skywarp will have enough time to go find Starscream and bring him back."

"But if he doesn't-…"

"He will," stated Thundercracker firmly continuing to pat his distressed wing mate, "I trust my trine Prime, they will not leave me behind."

"Can't I bring Thundercracker?" asked Skywarp shakily, "couldn't we go together?"

"No Skywarp," said Skyfire softly taking the seekers servo and leading him over to the table, "even you cannot produce that much power to take both of you. So you need to go alone to find Starscream, with Starscream's bond reawakened you should be strong enough to find him and get him back here, in time for Thundercracker to reactivate his bond with both of you."

"But what if I can't?" whimpered Skywarp sitting down and allowing the scientists to attach the box to his back, just below his wings. "What happens if I can't find him?"

"You can Skywarp," cooed Thundercracker laying on a berth while the medic team moved around him, ready to sedate him, "your bond with him will guide you, his spark calling you will be stronger then the loss of mine temporarily. Also you can warp anywhere you choose so nothing can stand in your way."

"…" Skywarp watched silently as the medics began to prepare Thundercracker while Ratchet was injecting stimulants into his system. "I'll bring him home TC," muttered Skywarp, his optics brightening to its original luster, "I promise, I'll bring Starscream back to us."

"I know you will," affirmed Thundercracker nodding and giving a last strong burst of energy from his spark to the warpers.

"Systems are ready," confirmed Wheeljack, "Skywarp, when you're ready."

"Ready," confirmed the black and purple seeker without hesitation.

"Activating the device," droned Perceptor reading the screen as the information ran pass. Skywarp activated his warp generator, the energy was directed to the device to his back and back into his body, concentrating on the programs that were running through his processors, the warpers processors quickly made sense of the data and rewrote some for his ability to work. The science team watched, gaping at the data that was streaming on the screen, some of the new equations and programs looked almost impossible. The device then let out a click and a whirl and the once distinct purple halo that use to cover the seeker changed into an almost blinding white with steaks of purple running through it.

"May Primus guide you," muttered Prime watching as the seeker nod, "bring him back home."

With that, the white completely covered the seeker and he was gone in a large flash that caused the other bots to cover their optics. The medics then instantly pounced and injected the sedative into the blue seekers systems, Ratchet watched over as the red optics faded and the machines show read outs for the sleeping seeker. "That bot better hurry up, the bond will deteriorate even when he's sleeping," stated Ratchet waving his servo for his two assistants to move him to the med bay, "knowing Starscream and Skywarp though, they wouldn't let that happen."

A tri colored seeker warily made his way down the hall using the walls for support until he got to the longue to get himself a cube of energon. Nodding at the police bot, the seeker slumped down into his seat and began to gulp down his beverage, "are you alright Starscream?" asked Prowl, that was something he never thought he'd say.

"You care for me!" cooed the seeker clutching his cube and batting his optics at the black bot that was cringing and leaning back, "I knew you love and adored me, I'm irresistible!"

"Forget I asked," muttered Prowl watching as Ratchet entered the room.

Ratchet got his own cube and sat down across from the seeker staring at him, seeing the seeker wiggle his brows at him, the medic adopted his own cringe. "Stop that, it's too early in the morning to be perverted," Ratchet shot his servo up to stop the comment the seeker was going to make, the leering look he adopted was enough to tell the bots that it was something they did not want to hear, "…Its getting worst isn't it?"

Starscream dropped his expression and stared into his cube, both bots stared at the seeker who was contemplating the situation, taking another sip of energon the seeker sighed and nodded. "My program blocks are deteriorating faster now. I can't distract my instincts as they call out for my trine mates anymore, I'm trying to write more but their being solved faster than I can make them," Starscream rubbed his helm, "I estimate I have about a cycle left before I snap."

"Is there anything we can do?" asked Prowl, Ratchet just shook his head, Starscream had explained to him how his bond works and there was nothing they could do. "We will try to help you as much as we can afterwards."

"Yeah…About that," Starscream cleared his vocals and looked around to make sure that they were all alone, "I need you to do something if it does come to that, I need you to swear to do it, I know only you two would see the logic and understand it's need." Both bots glanced at each other and leaned in to hear what the seeker had to say, "…I need you to deactivate me when I lose it."

"WHAT!" Shouted Ratchet while Prowl reared back and shock and the seeker waved his servos to stop the medic from blurting it out, "WHAT THE SLAG STARSCREAM! NO! I WILL NOT- DO THAT!"

"Hush! You need to hear my explanation first before you say no!" hissed the seeker making sure no one was going to come running in, "a seekers bond breaking will not result me turning into a drone because I am alone, if there were two of us here, then yes, but because there is only one of me it's not the case. Case studies of seekers who have lost both of their trine mates had all gone insane, I'm not talking about the sitting and drooling insane also, I mean destroy everything in our path until we are destroyed ourselves insane."

"There must be another way! Sedating you-"

"Will not work!" huffed the seeker, "it might at first but then with all the programs and energy we get from the agony of no trine mates, it will ware off in a cycle. You don't understand, I will become so violent that I will attack, kill and destroy everything I see, I cannot be talked to or reasoned with. This is why I need you both to swear to do the right thing then it happens."

"…If there is no other choice then," stated Prowl after a long silence ignoring the squawk from the medic, "I will make it painless."

"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND!" Shouted the medic at Prowl, "I will not allow it! Even If I have to hold you down with my magnets for the next stellar cycle! Aren't you afraid of dying at all?"

"Pit! Of course I'm scared!" hissed the seeker, "I don't want to die, I have a healthy want to live and frolic! But I am rational Medic, I know that this can happen and no amount of whining and whimpering will change the facts. But I also know that my trine back at home will not just let me to insane and die here, however, I know that miracles are hard to perform and I am prepared for the consequences."

"Stuck. To. The. Wall. With magnets," growled the medic no longer looking at the seeker and drinking his cube.

"Stubborn mech," the seeker turned to Prowl, "you'll do it right?"

"…I like Ratchet's idea," stated the police bot sipping his own cube, "it will give more time to your comrades to find you a way back home."

"It's surrounded with impossible meches!" Shouted the seeker throwing his servos in the air. A small inner part of him though was glad that they trusted him and wanted him to survive.

And they acted like he was the pit master.