Author's Notes: I wanted to finish this chapter before the weekend ended, but I didn't quite make it. I've had a proofreading job as well as my new novel to work on, but for some reason this story is the one that's really capturing my imagination now. Thank you guys for your reviews and for continuing to read this story! It really means a lot :)
Chapter 10
You Had To Ask
Bumblebee wished Starscream had come up with another plan besides this one. Why did it have to be Skywarp? He'd rather go to the Combaticons than Skywarp! That guy made everyone around him miserable with his practical jokes and crude remarks. Of course Bumblebee could've lived with that. The memory of being interrogated by the black and purple Seeker, however, would probably haunt his processor until the day he died.
He found himself wishing it had been Thundercracker that had been blessed with the gift of teleportation. That was an odd thought, but he couldn't help but feel that it might be easier to talk to Thundercracker than to Skywarp. He didn't know why, but his opinion of the blue and grey Seeker had changed since living on this ship. He had seen that flying braggart engage in petty schoolyard pranks, try to avoid being the center of attention, and even save a few humans' lives! There was clearly more to the Decepticon than met the optics. In another universe they might have even been friends.
Bumblebee knocked on Skywarp's quarters. He did this for a few minutes before giving up and coming to terms with the fact that he wasn't there. Bumblebee would have to search the ship.
He traveled the hallways and corridors until he heard the sound of laughter in cargo room 3. He figured if there was something 'fun' going on, then Skywarp had to be there; if not directly involved.
He walked in to find a crowd gathered around Drag Strip and Wildrider, who were in the process of forming large black donuts all over the cargo room floor! The crowd was cheering and the two Stunticons were exchanging colorful insults at each other. Bumblebee found Skywarp in the fringes of the crowd cheering like the rest of the carnage hungry 'Cons.
"Skywarp!" Bumblebee had to yell over the crowd.
"Huh?" Skywarp absentmindedly turned toward Bumblebee, "Oh, hey 'Screamer! I put 50 credits on Drag Strip to kick that Wildrider's tailpipes! If you wanna place a bet Swindle is over there at the end of the room!"
"You're gambling?" Bumblebee couldn't hide his distaste; Autobots would never stage such barbaric street fighting matches and then bet on them!
"Yeah!" Skywarp replied; oblivious to Bumblebee's judgment.
Bumblebee took in a deep intake of air and tried to gather his thoughts before talking to Skywarp again. The noise in the room was making his helm hurt, and his thoughts kept bringing him back to the fact that he'd left Starscream alone in a Decepticon brig with no way to protect himself if another 'Con showed up.
"Skywarp! I can see you're busy, but I need to talk to you!" Bumblebee shouted over the crowd.
"Later, 'Screamer!" Skywarp dismissed him, "After the fights!"
Unwilling to provoke the dim-witted Seeker, Bumblebee sighed and said "Alright. I'll be in the brig. Come see me right after the fight is over! I mean it! Immediately after the fight is over, I need to see you!"
"Yeah, sure!" Skywarp replied distractedly.
Bumblebee didn't know if Skywarp would show up or not. He hoped so. Starscream made it very clear that they needed him in order to evade the cameras.
He looked back at the savagery in the center of the room. Wildrider looked like he had the upper hand and Drag Strip was already losing energon. Bumblebee hated himself for thinking this way, but he was pleased with the way the fight was turning out. At least Skywarp wouldn't profit from the injury of the Stunticons.
Two earth hours later, and Skywarp still hadn't showed up. Bumblebee was getting worried. He would have to report something to Megatron soon, but he didn't want to leave without at least giving Starscream the equipment they needed.
Starscream had been surprisingly quiet for most of their wait time. He mentioned once or twice that Skywarp wouldn't show up and would probably pass out due to overcharging on high grade, but otherwise was quiet.
Bumblebee paced around the room like a trapped animal. One would think he was in the cage instead of Starscream. Starscream just watched the now-taller mech pace; tracing each step with his optics with a bored expression on his face. He never left his spot on the back wall. No sense looking too comfortable with the cameras watching. Still, the monotony was starting to get to him as well.
"Call him," Starscream suddenly said amid the quiet; his voice coming through like an intrusion.
"What?" Bumblebee asked as he stopped pacing.
"Call Skywarp on your comm system," Starscream elaborated, "You do know how, don't you?"
"Actually...No," Bumblebee admitted sheepishly, "I never needed to use it, so I never learned the Decepticon frequencies."
"Not even during combat training?" Starscream asked skeptically.
"No," Bumblebee replied ruefully, "I only know how to answer; not transmit."
"Get in here," Starscream demanded, "I'll show you how to contact Skywarp and/or Thundercracker. We have a private trine frequency. Megatron won't be able to trace the call if he inspects your comm history; not that it matters. I suppose there's nothing suspicious about calling your own trine mates, but better to be cautious than dead."
Bumblebee slowly entered the cell. He knew what this would entail, and he wasn't looking forward to it. Starscream would have to open an access port in the back of his helm and manually type in the frequency for him. The idea of letting that Decepticon play around in his head was not a pleasant thought, but he supposed it was his right to do so. After all, it was technically Starscream's helm.
Starscream opened the port and inserted a connector from the back of his hand. He was efficient and surprisingly gentle. Bumblebee squirmed where he sat and tried not to think too hard about what was happening.
"Alright, I found the code," Starscream announced softly; still aware of the recording devices, "I'm going to activate the frequency. Just remember what I told you to say to Skywarp."
"Okay," Bumblebee wanted to nod, but the wire was still protruding from his helm.
Starscream took the wire out and closed up the helm as Bumblebee waited for Skywarp to answer his call.
"Hey, 'Screamer!" He heard Skywarp's voice over the comm.
Oh great...He really did sound over-energized!
"Skywarp!" Bumblebee didn't have to fake his angry tone this time, "You were supposed to meet with me after the fights! Where are you?"
"Huh?" Skywarp was having trouble understanding anything due to his pickled processor, "Oh! Right! I remember now! What did you want?"
Bumblebee was grateful Starscream couldn't hear this call. If Skywarp was too wasted to teleport then their whole plan would crumble to dust!
"I need you to teleport a few supplies from my quarters to the brig!" Bumblebee demanded and hoped Skywarp didn't teleport into a wall.
"Oh, yeah?" Skywarp slurred, "And why should I help you?"
"Um, Iacon, 46,000 vorns ago," Bumblebee repeated verbatim.
"What?" Skywarp didn't seem to understand, but then, "Oh, come on, 'Screamer! It was an accident! Please don't tell on me! That's ancient history! You wouldn't tell on me, right 'Screamer? My wing mate...my buddy. We're friends, right? Friends cover for each other, right, pal?"
"Yes, friends cover for each other," Bumblebee said icily, "And that's why you're going to help me. I just need a few supplies. I'll even give you a list of what I need and tell you where to find everything. I just need you to teleport them to the brig and avoid the cameras. Do you understand?"
"Oh...Sure thing, 'Screamer!" Skywarp breathed heavily as he spoke; his systems trying to keep up with the high grade in his fuel lines, "I'll help you, buddy! I love ya, mech!"
Bumblebee grimaced as the transmission was cut. He hated trying to work with a drunken colleague. A drunken Decepticon colleague...That was much worse.
"Well?" Starscream asked.
Bumblebee fished around in his subspace looking for something to write down the instructions on. Finally he came across a data pad and handed it to Starscream to write down the list.
Bumblebee walked out of the cell and tried to look like he was actually guarding the place instead of conspiring with the prisoner. If Skywarp teleported in while he was talking to Starscream that would be very bad.
Starscream informed Bumblebee that he had the list, and Bumblebee deactivated the energy bars just long enough to take it from him. Sure enough, the list actually was a series of pictures showing Skywarp where to go and what he was looking for. Bumblebee thought Starscream was only kidding about that!
It took a few minutes for Skywarp to actually teleport into the room.
"Oh, heyyyy!" Skywarp exclaimed as he stumbled over to Bumblebee, "This is the right place this time! I've been trying for almost a breem to find the right room!"
Geez, even Trailbreaker isn't this much of an etholholic! Bumblebee thought as he looked as Skywarp's slumping frame.
"Here is the list," Bumblebee handed him the data pad, "Make sure you get everything!"
"Yes, sir! I'm on it!" Skywarp gave an exaggerated salute to his commander as he teleported away.
When Skywarp was gone, Starscream muttered "If that brainless dolt breaks my equipment I'll rip out his wings and make a kite with them…"
It took several trips for Skywarp to bring everything back they needed. He was still overcharged, but at least he had moved around enough to work off some of that extra energy. He was almost coherent again.
"So…'Screamer…" Skywarp tried to gather his thoughts, but they seemed to want to run away from him, "...What's all this geeky equipment for?"
"It's for a new interrogation technique I plan to test on the prisoner," Bumblebee quoted their cover story.
"Really? Hey, can I see? Can I watch?" Skywarp asked excitedly, "I heard the Autobot is scared to death of you! I wanna see him squirm!"
"No!" Bumblebee replied too quickly, "I mean, I need privacy for this to work. Isolation is part of the interrogation."
"Really? I always like having an audience to watch me rip into those Autobots!" Skywarp announced proudly, "Hey, as I recall...As I recall, you always liked having an audience, too! What changed, 'Screamer? You used to be cool…"
"You're crashed, Skywarp," Bumblebee replied dryly, "Go back to your room and get some rest."
Skywarp gave him one last smarmy smile before warping away. Bumblebee's mind was hundreds of vorns away from that brig and their current situation. Yes, he remembered. Skywarp did indeed prefer an audience…
"Hey!" Starscream hissed, "Are you going to bring the equipment or not?"
Bumblebee didn't answer him. He just continued to stare, and Starscream was starting to get very annoyed at the young Autobot.
"Bumblebee! Come on! We don't have all orn!" Starscream prodded.
Bumblebee snapped back to reality then, but the pained look on his face never left as he carefully set up the scanners according to Starscream's instructions. Starscream watched the Autobot carefully to ensure everything was being set up correctly. After a few minutes everything was set up and they were ready for the first scan.
Starscream placed three suction cups on Bumblebee's helm, and then the other three on his own. The machine turned on, and both bots grunted in pain as the electric current bored its way through their plating and into their processors!
After a few minutes of pain and gritting their teeth plates, the scan was complete, and all they had to do was wait a few minutes for the results to load. Millions of years of technological advancement, and yet they still hadn't eradicated load time…
Starscream and Bumblebee sat there in boredom for a few minutes, but finally Starscream's curiosity got the better of him and he had to ask Bumblebee something.
"Say Autobot, I noticed you got a thousand yard stare before setting up the scanner," Starscream said lightly, "Did scanners kill your pet or something? What gives?"
Bumblebee hated the way Starscream joked about something as serious as PTSD, but at the same time he couldn't fault the Seeker. War was fun for this guy. He didn't understand or really care about the pain his kind had inflicted on Autobots for countless millennia. Bumblebee almost didn't want to answer him. In fact, it would be better if he didn't. Then again, maybe talking about it would make it easier to let this go before it distracted him during a more dire moment…
"It wasn't the scanners that bothered me," Bumblebee said after a minute of silent thought, "It was the way Skywarp was looking at you...Well, more specifically, the way he was looking at you in my body. Thousands of vorns ago I was assigned to spy on the city of Altihex. The Decepticons had seized it and were holding several Autobot citizens within its walls, and Optimus Prime was working on a plan to save those people. I kept to the shadows and searched every building still standing for survivors. I still remember I was on Alpha Street when I saw it…"
Bumblebee's eyes were staring straight ahead. He no longer saw or cared about Starscream. His processor was locked on the memories that had been nagging at him since arriving in this new body on the Nemesis. There was no stopping those horrid thoughts now.
"...It was a purple flash. At first, I thought the light had come from an explosion. I thought maybe I had been shot by a Decepticon, but no. There was someone behind me. It was Skywarp. I was a new cadet then. I had seen Skywarp in battle before, but I didn't really think much of him beyond 'he's a Decepticon'. I didn't even remember his name, and I couldn't even tell him apart from you or Thundercracker. He held his mounted cannon to my face and ordered me to grab his hand. Looking back on it, I'm surprised he didn't say 'pull my finger'.
"He teleported us to a dark room with nothing but a few rows of tools and a table with chains on it. It was an interrogation room deep underground, but I wouldn't learn where it was until much later. Honestly, I'm surprised anyone ever found it. Skywarp forced me onto the table and chained me down...Up until that point, I had been prepared to die, but I didn't think about...being forced to stay alive. I still remember the punches to my face, and the electric probe being forced under my plating, and the way he smiled down at me as I struggled like a trapped animal! He kept asking me where Optimus Prime was. I wouldn't give away our position no matter what he did. I knew my life meant nothing compared to the survival of tens of thousands of Autobots and stopping Megatron from enslaving the universe.
"I also remember the other Decepticons. I could barely see them in the darkness, but I knew they were there. Skywarp invited them to watch. After several joors I finally offlined. The next thing I remember is being in the repair bay in an Autobot stronghold and being asked questions about my motor functions. It turned out Prowl found out where I was being held and organized a rescue party to save me. They defeated the Decepticons and took several of them prisoner, but Skywarp got away. Of course he did...He can teleport."
Bumblebee said this last line with such defeat and disgust that it made Starscream actually look at him for a minute. Up to that point Starscream had mostly tuned out the story and had been instead watching the monitor load the results. It was still loading, with about 73% completed.
"Hm...I do remember that interrogation," Starscream said after a minute to think about it, "I wasn't there personally of course. I was leading the attack on the Crystal City. Still, I do remember Skywarp bragging about it when you were still in custody. Of course Megatron wasn't happy when he found out you got away alive," Starscream chuckled after that line, "He broke Skywarp's nose cone for that one!"
Despite hating Skywarp, Bumblebee couldn't laugh at that. He knew firsthand what Megatron's fury looked like. He didn't wish that on anyone; not even Skywarp or Starscream.
"May I ask you something?" Bumblebee inquired, "If Megatron treats everyone around him like scrap and you no longer consider him a fit leader, then why are you still with him? Everyone knows you want to replace him as leader, so why did you ever agree to join him if you could see how badly he treats his subordinates?"
Starscream thought about that one for a minute. He thought about the beatings and the humiliation and the constant demands of perfection. He thought about the insults and the insistence of constant blind obedience.
Finally, with a wry expression on his face, Starscream replied "Because he's like a father to me…"