We want to apologize for delaying in updating this story, but we were reaching a critical point in our other joint fic, "Cantabile", that required our attention. But now that we solved it, we present you this chapter, the one that will show the next twist in this story.
We also want to thank all of you for the support we have received for this fic. We are so happy that you are enjoying it as much as we do. And believe us, we have plenty of juicy things planned for the adventures of human Starscream ;o)
Alright now, let's proceed, shall we?
Chapter 9
Of dogs and mechs
Starscream stood before the closed doors of the Command Centre, his mind lost somewhere between humiliation and desolation. He could feel his fleshling heart buzzing with the intensity of a dozen overloaded processors, whilst beads of cold sweat pooled on his forehead, making his flesh clammy.
This was it, the end of his free life... no matter what Megatron had in store for him there was no hope left for him; he was destined to lose it all.
The shards of his shattered dignity...
His rank...
And in all probability, his life.
Suddenly he couldn't feel his feet touching the floor anymore, numbness gripped his limbs, making his flesh tingle. He felt strange, like his body was somehow removed from the tangible world and instead existed as a spectre, floating through time. A hush fell upon his surroundings, all sound curiously muffled as if in a dream... even the rhythm of his own heartbeat sounded distant.
The human licked his lips; they were so dry, the skin puckered and peeling, burning with an unnatural heat.
Perhaps this was what true fear felt like...the kind of fear his victims had felt in the instant before their termination.
Was this supposed to be some kind of test, then? Something to challenge his ideology, something to teach him a lesson?
Or was simply the effect of the human fuel "whisky" taking hold...
"You ok, Starscream?" a familiar voice spoke from behind. Thundercracker. Probably the closest thing he had left to being a friend. "Starscream...?"
The human shook his head slightly, drawing himself out of the darkness of his thoughts and back into the equally dark embrace of reality. "Mmm? Did you say something, Thundercracker?" he muttered weakly.
"I asked if you're ok," the Seeker replied gently. "Do you want me to go in with you?"
Starscream looked down at the dull metal beneath his bare feet, his shoulders slumping in defeat. "No," he replied evenly, "this is something I need to face on my own."
"You sure about that?"
"Yeah. Besides, I don't want you to witness my termination. I want to be remembered for my greatness, not for the pool of blood and broken flesh I am destined to become."
"Understood," Thundercracker replied solemnly.
Starscream stepped forward, a defeated sigh escaping his lips. "Thank you, Thundercracker," he said with the ghost of a voice, not daring to look back at his comrade. The last thing the human wanted in that moment was to see the look of pity now contorting the flier's face; it was too humiliating.
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The Command Center was unusually dark. Starscream entered with the same level of trust he would have done had he known it was a trap. He was expecting the worst, but still, he couldn't avoid feeling the unmistakable bite of fear.
"Megatron?" he cautiously asked.
The answer didn't come in the shape of words. He heard a noise cutting the air and suddenly something thin, hard and cold trapped his neck. Instinct made him grab with his hands whatever it was that was now suffocating him. He knew it was useless, though. His head could roll in any moment, and there was nothing he could do to avoid it. One astro second later, a violent pull on his improvised leash threw him to the floor.
The lights turned on at the same time his chin was welcomed by the cold metal beneath.
"M…Megatron…" Starscream muttered, staring at the imposing figure standing before him. The Decepticon leader's face seemed rougher than ever as he held the other extreme of the chain with his right hand.
"You fulfil the role of a pet with perfection, Starscream," Megatron spoke. "Who would have thought it? So many vorns spent plotting against me to take over the Decepticons' leadership, and you end like this… like a human dog."
Megatron pulled the chain again, making Starscream almost crash against his foot. The young human was astonished that his head remained attached to his body after such a violent yank.
"So, dog," Megatron continued, his voice more cruel than ever. "In consideration of the mediocre service you have given to the Decepticon cause over so many vorns, I will allow you the grace of deciding the method of your deactivation. Although, you only have two options: either I crush you right now, or I vaporize you with my fusion cannon without leaving any trace of your existence. Which will it be?"
"No!! Wait!!" Starscream cried as he hurried to stand up and struggled with the chain around his neck. "You can't do this to me, Megatron! I am your Second in Command!"
"No human worm will ever be my Second in Command!"
"You have to give me a chance, leader, please! You can't just kill me off! I have served you loyally all this time…"
"Oh, spare me the irony, Starscream! You have spent more time thinking about how to dispose of me than about the glory of the Decepticon Empire!"
"No! That's not true!"
Megatron dropped the chain as if he were touching something repulsive and calmly walked to his throne. Starscream watched him sitting as he removed as best he could the chain from his sore neck. He knew that a moment of tranquillity didn't mean his life had been spared; it could be the preamble of the ultimate suffering.
"What would you do in my place, Starscream?" Megatron asked. "What would you do if I were the one turned into a human?"
"I… I would help you, of course."
Megatron punched the armrests of his throne furiously. "If you want to remain functional you will speak with the truth for once in your filthy life!"
Starscream sighed and bowed his head. "I would kill you… and not without mocking you first."
Megatron smirked. "Ah, now we are talking."
"My leader, please… I beg you to help me. I don't want to die as a human… I am a Cybertronian, a Decepticon, a Seeker… the best of the Seekers… I was called 'prince of the skies' by Seekers who were far older and more experienced than me… And now I have lost my wings, I have lost my honour… I can't stand it anymore. Help me, Megatron…"
"Help you? Interesting choice of words, Starscream. And how exactly do you expect me to, I quote, help you?"
"Find the missing element to recreate the water of the Well of Transformation… It can't be unique… The universe is infinite and the Decepticon Empire has the resources to find it."
"Resources that I don't plan on wasting to assist a treacherous piece of filth like you."
"Megatron, I implore you…"
"I said no! You surprise me, Starscream. You know perfectly well that I'm not the type that risks major goals for a simple soldier. The benefit of all Decepticons cannot be disregarded to favour one."
"I'm not a simple soldier!"
"True. You are not even an individual."
Hurt by Megatron's words, Starscream bit his lips with impotence. His leader was right and he knew it. What did his potential and intelligence matter if he was trapped inside an infinitely weak and perishable body? But still, he refused to accept reality. He had fought all his life to reach the top, and surrendering wasn't his style. It would never be, even if the entire Universe were plotting against him.
"I am an individual, I am a Cybertronian, and I am a Decepticon, Megatron! And I won't accept anything you have to say against that fact. I don't care if you made me come here to satisfy your sick sense of humour, but you know as well as I do that you need me! You can't afford to lose your Second in Command and Air Commander! This Empire needs me!"
"As always, you overestimate yourself, buffoon. No soldier is irreplaceable, even less a crawling vermin like you. You got yourself into this mess because of your own stupidity, now you have to deal with the consequences. If you were a true Decepticon as you claim to be, you would face this problem with bravery instead of barking like the weakling dog you are."
Starscream stared at his leader with infinite hate. It didn't matter that Megatron could kill him with a single finger. Starscream was beyond all fear in that moment.
"Don't you dare underestimate my predicament, Megatron!! You have no idea what it is like to be a slagging human being!! Do you know how humiliating it was to have to stand for more than a breem holding this fragging genital thing I have between my legs before I could urinate for the first time in my life?! Do you?!!"
Megatron grimaced in disgust. "Please, spare me the details about the functioning of your intimate circuitry. I am pleased to see that you have at least covered it."
The strange sensation of weightlessness returned, this time accompanied by a horrible feeling of sickness deep within the pit of his stomach. Desperation guided Starscream's next movement. He felt as if his organic brain was in chaos, a battle of erratic and contradictory thoughts. He had always been volatile but now things were just too extreme to try to control them.
He fell on his knees and leaned his forehead on the floor beneath his leader. "Megatron… I beg you… I can't tolerate being trapped inside this body anymore, I can't… Please… I'll do anything… anything!"
A cruel smirk appeared on the harsh face of the Decepticon leader as he rubbed his chin with sick satisfaction. It wasn't strange for Starscream to kneel before him, but for the first time since a young cadet did it to swear his eternal loyalty, he was doing it with honest desperation. Watching Starscream humiliating himself was gratifying, but also disturbing. Megatron had never seen him so helpless and panicked.
"Lift your head, dog."
The shivering human obeyed.
"Is that optic fluid that's coming out of your eyes, Starscream?" Megatron asked, feeling a bizarre mixture of disgust and disappointment as he witnessed the extremes his normally arrogant Second in Command was reaching.
"No… no… I…" Starscream stammered as he hurried to rub his wet eyes.
"So now you cry? Is there a limit to your pathetic spectacle of self-humiliation? Where is your pride?!"
"It's this body… this accursed body… I… I can't control my emotions… I just can't."
Megatron got up from his throne and slowly walked toward the console of the computer, turning his back on Starscream.
"So, you ask for my help… Brave words coming from the useless creature you are now. In the case I decide to help you, what would you give me in return?"
"Anything… anything! I'll be your most loyal servant, your guardian, your slave…"
"I am not in the mood for stupid jokes, Starscream! If you really want to recover your body, you better be ready to do what it takes to win the right to have it back."
"What do you mean?"
"If you had at least the average intelligence of a warrior, you would've already found the way to make good use of your situation instead of wasting time whimpering like a cowardly whelp. Think, you stupid idiot, think! What advantage do you have now, one that no one else has?"
Starscream didn't have to force his brain too much to find the answer. The clouds of his mind were dissipating before Megatron's words. "The Autobots… they don't know that I…"
"Exactly!" Megatron interrupted him. "Don't take my words as an order, but as an ultimatum. In exactly three terrestrial hours you will be taken to the closest civilian area to the Autobots' base. You are to infiltrate the Ark and gain Prime's trust. If you succeed, you have my word that I will do everything in my power to obtain the missing element needed to recreate the water from the Well of Transformation. If you fail, you will remain as a fleshling for the rest of your life, as short as it may be."
Starscream felt the blood inside his body freeze. The idea of being abandoned in human society and being surrounded by flesh creatures was terrifying. But getting into the Autobots' circle of trust was too much… a mission too hard even for a consummate liar like him.
"But… how do you expect the Autobots to trust me?"
"Your problem entirely. Make good use of Prime's kindness and ingenuousness. He will never expect of one of his beloved flesh creatures to become his perdition."
"But… but… I can't just blend in with the human society… I'm a Decepticon… There is no way…"
A furious punch on the computer's console showed just how frayed Megatron's patience was in that moment.
"Slag it, Starscream! Are you going to stop whining for a fragging moment?! How difficult can human society be? Didn't you manage to survive in Kaon before the war?"
"Yes, but…"
"I highly doubt that the peaceful human communities can be compared with what Cybertron was before our insurrection. Consider this mission as a test, as the last opportunity I'm giving you not only to recover your former self, but to continue functioning. If you want to remain as my Second in Command, you will have to prove you deserve it."
Starscream frowned, his scar aching as he considered Megatron's words. As always, it was very difficult to comprehend his leader's true intentions. Megatron was as impossible to read as he was despicable. Many things could hide behind the unique mission he had just been assigned to: a real espionage and sabotage strategy against the Autobots, a sick display of Megatron's sense of humour sending him to a certain death, or authentic proof that his leader trusted in him to overcome the challenge and recover his honour.
"What will be my backup? What about weapons and espionage equipment?"
"You will carry nothing more than the human garments you are wearing. In case the Autobots discover you, I don't want anything that will link you to us. As soon as you leave this base, you will be an ordinary human being, so you better hurry to choose a new denomination and identity. Time is running."
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Starscream was surprised to find Thundercracker standing in the dimly-lit corridor outside the Command Centre, waiting for him. He had expected his wingmate to abandon him as soon as he had crossed the threshold into Megatron's throne room, never to see him again, but there he was; leaning against the wall, head bowed and arms folded, his dark form caressed by the shadows. He lifted his gaze when he heard the human approaching.
"So he let you live, then?" the Seeker said darkly. "But not without a price, I suppose?"
"Your supposition is correct," Starscream replied as he continued forward, his movements somewhat unsteady.
"And? What did he ask you to do?"
Starscream staggered slightly, his hands reaching out for the wall in an effort to steady himself.
"Oh, just a simple task," he replied once he had regained his balance. "I am to infiltrate The Ark, win Prime's trust and act as a spy."
Thundercracker's optics widened in response to the human's words; to Starscream's drunken mind it seemed that they were close to exploding. "That's not going to be easy, Screamer."
"Maybe not, but I don't have any other choice. It's that, or die as a human."
"Tough decision. I honestly don't know what I'd prefer, if I were unlucky enough to find myself in your position. At least if I were dead the humiliation would be over. The thought of living in amongst the squishies, and the Autobots...brrr."
"Lucky for you you're not in my position," Starscream hissed acidly. "You couldn't possibly understand how unbearable this is, so don't even try."
"You're right, I'm sorry."
"Don't bother with apologies, there is no point to them. As long as there is some hope of reclaiming my true form I will keep fighting, no matter what it takes. I don't know what Megatron is planning, I don't know if he is truly willing to help me or if this is all part of some sick game, but I am going to prove myself worthy of this challenge. He has given me a chance, and I am not willing to waste it. My pride depends on it."
"Is there anything I can do?"
Leaning back heavily against the wall, the human sank down to the floor and drew his knees to his chest. He was certain now that it was more than fear or humiliation messing with his systems; it seemed alcohol was as intoxicating for humans as high grade was for Cybertronians.
"I've got three terrestrial hours," Starscream responded after a moment of silence. "Three hours in which to acquaint myself with the basic concepts of human society so that I don't give myself away with my ignorance the second I step foot amongst them. It's not like me to ask for help, but..."
"You got it, Starscream." Thundercracker interrupted, "Just let me know what you need and I'll do my best to help you."
Starscream looked up at the mech towering over him, his face suddenly losing all colour. The cold sweat returned, as did his feeling of sickness...but this time it was different; this time it wasn't caused by terror.
"You...you can help me find a name... And help me learn something about the city called "Portland"...I think that's what it's called..." Starscream paused, desperately fighting against the horrible sensation clawing at his insides. "But first...I need you to find a cure for being over energised..."
And with that the human turned away, purging his system of his first meal, and the accursed liquid known as whisky...
To be continued.
So time has come to Starscream to be thrown into the human society and into the Autobots. Will he succeed in his mission?
We hope you enjoyed this chapter, please let us know. Expect fast updates for both of our joint fics.