A/N: Had a blast with this chapter! If you're a fan of my aerial battle scenes, then this chapter is for you guys! I thought ya'll could use a little action after all the dialogue I've been dragging you thru! XD! Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Chapter 12: Back in the Saddle Again

"You have your orders."

"Yes, Lord Galvatron."

"The entirety of our attack rests of the successfulness of this endeavor." Beat. "You know the penalty for failure."

"Yes, Lord Galvatron," the two Seekers chorused in unison.

"Then get out of my sight."

They needed no further encouragement.


Once that cursed meeting was over with Starscream slowly withdrew from the room and waited in a dark and quiet alcove near the exit Alexis would be using. He was surprised. Very surprised and more than a little suspicious. She had stuck up for him, defended him as if he were one of her own. But to what effect? Stupid, stupid human! She stood to lose everything she had worked for within her own military—to defend HIM! Starscream! How ridiculously noble! It defied logic. Why put yourself in danger to lose everything you worked for? Granted it had been his suggestion to go to her superior in the first place, but he had been fully prepared for her to turn on him, to defend her own interests and ambitions—not the other way around. It seemed her word was as firm as her resolve.

But what was even more surprising to Starscream than the human's continued defense of him, was how he felt about it. It was a strange, tingling sensation that seemed to enliven every circuit, every relay, every mecano-inch of his being. He felt…dare he say…relieved? Even the tiniest iota of gratefulness? It was so strange, so foreign, even alien to feel such an…emotion. Never, never had anyone or anything dared to side with him on any issue. Most had just mocked his ambitions or were too fearful of Megatron's wrath to even appear to listen to his goals for them, the Decepticons—for Cybertron. Even his wingmates had their limits as to their loyalty to him…

His wingmates…

A sharp pang hit him deep within his spark, reminding him of just how alone he had been these past several decacycles. He never thought he'd miss their company—Skywarp's maddening chatter, Thundercracker's stony silence. They had been the closest soldiers to accepting his grandiose ideals of capturing the leadership of the Decepticons. But neither would show their support blatantly and after the defeat at Autobot City, when he, Starscream, finally had the chance to seize power…their dubiousness had cost them their lives…there would be no doubt, no wavering as to his reign. By wallowing in indecision, they had sealed their own fate. He did not betray them; they betrayed him! Or so he had always told himself.

Just then the door slammed open with great force, rebounded off the back wall and slammed shut with jarring finality. Alexis stalked out, her face set in a terrible temper, her green eyes dancing with Irish fire. She didn't even notice Starscream standing within the shadows, so deep and determined were her stormy strides. His brow furrowed in puzzlement before he strode after.

"Alexis." Her pace did not lessen.

"Alexis," he tried again with the same result.

"Alexis!" he snarled fiercely, grabbing her roughly by the elbow and spinning her around. "I will not be ignored! Not by you! Not by anyone!" She was forced to stop at that point, the grip on her elbow was excruciating. Where her eyes were filled with fiery anger, his possessed the same wintry qualities as an Arctic blizzard—pure, cold fury. "Now then, do you care to explain to me what is your malfunction?"

She only narrowed her eyes and looked away. Clearly her anger wasn't directed at him, and he had a fairly good idea of what had set her off.

"Answer me, you silly-headed femme!" he said, giving her a shake. For a moment, he thought she was going to try and strike him, not that it would have done any good. He watched as she took a deep breath and then began to speak.

"He grounded me," she said flatly. "That son of a bitch grounded me, on grounds of 'mental instability."

"For how long?" Starscream asked, even though he very well knew the answer.

"Until I'm cleared. Your guess is as good as mine when that will happen," she replied bitterly.

"Do you think your superior will agree to my terms?" he asked, skillfully changing the subject.

"I don't know, but truthfully we should expect the worse," she said softly, her anger slowly ebbing away.

Suddenly the base erupted into a cacophony of sound, the klaxons blared and the sirens wailed. The captain glanced around her taking in the frightening sight. Starscream stood rigidly, his eyes also scanning the crowds, trying to determine what the state of the emergency was. Men poured from the buildings like a swarm of ants abandoning their nest, shouts filled the air and vehicle engines roared to life. Something was happening, something dire and Alexis knew immediately that this was not a drill. After their recent encounter, it could mean only one thing.

She felt Starscream's grip tighten a little more. "It appears that the worst has already come," he hissed, looking after all the personnel running for their stations. Across the loudspeaker, directions were being given; officers were shouting orders and air crews were struggling to get to their planes and make ready for take-off. A horrible gut-wrenching feeling ripped through the pilot. This could mean only one thing: they were being attacked. Whether it was the base directly, or an area near-by she did not know and there wasn't a damn thing she could do about it! Or could she?

"Come on!" she shouted, turning to run in the direction of the airfield. It was a good mile off, but she could get there in time if she pushed herself.

"And where do you think you're going?" Starscream snapped, keeping his grip on her arm and preventing her from running off.

"We've got to do something!" she replied, trying to jerk her arm from him, but it was clear he wasn't going anywhere, and by default, she wasn't either.

"We?" he said mockingly, "I do not have to do anything! We gave them warning and it is their own stupidity for not heeding my advice. Let them face the consequences of their decisions."

"Look. This might be our only chance to prove you are telling the truth. I don't think my government is going to come back and give you an apology," her voice then took on a mocking, sarcastic tone," 'Oh, we're terribly sorry, Mr. Starscream, for not believing you; can you please forgive us?' No! If we don't intervene and make your intentions clear, they're going to try and pin this on us, not to mention several good men may die needlessly! And I'll be damned before that happens!"

"If it comes down to that, I seriously doubt your government could pin me to anything," he smirked.

Alexis huffed impatiently; she didn't have time for this! People were going to die, her people were going to die unless they were informed of the potential circumstances. "I refuse to stand by and watch my wingmates fly into a situation in which I'm the only one that knows the truth! You know as well as I do why those klaxons are blaring! The Decepticons could be attacking and none of our flight-capable pilots know who they're going up against!"

"And why should they matter to you?" Starscream snapped with equal anger. "They didn't come to your aide in the desert. I did. Why even bother?"

"Because, Starscream, they are my brothers. My wingmates. It's my duty. I know that you had wingmates as well. Would you not do the same for them if they were flying to face an unknown enemy? An enemy in which only you knew how dangerous they really were?"

That silenced him, but not for the same reason Alexis had intended. His wingmates had never left his side in battle, but he had left theirs numerously. They had given him cover in countless battles, while he had left their flanks open to attack. And he had had no regrets doing it…until now. Why was that? Why did he feel this…this pain? This emptiness? As he looked into Alexis's eyes, her expectant eyes, he felt something else, a feeling he had come to know quite well these past few years.

Jealousy.

He was jealous because he had no wingmates that would come to his aide, like Alexis was striving to do for hers. He was jealous because he had no one that cared about his well-being or welfare like she did for her men. When he had, he never appreciated just how much TC and Skywarp had mattered to him. The closest thing he had to what used to be was this human. This one, solitary female organic who was willing to stake her life and career on a pathological liar and enemy to her people. Oh, such bitter, bitter irony. And she was right in one respect. Her government would turn on them once the true nature of this circumstance was revealed. He scoffed to himself. Let them try and take him! Galvatron couldn't succeed in killing him and neither would the puny government of the humans…but Alexis? If he wanted to keep her close, he would have to prove the sincerity of his intentions, as she had said, and help those pilots who were already pre-flighting their birds. To remain stubborn was to put her at risk with her own government and he wasn't about to lose the one ally that truly supported him. The one being who was still willing to give him a second chance, human or not.

"All right," he finally conceded, "But you must hurry and not be caught. I'll meet you out on the tarmac, but do not expect me to be in this form." With that he vanished like a shimmering mirage. Alexis wasted no time in rushing to the pilots' locker.


She ran fiercely through the crowd, fighting and shoving her way through the mass of bodies also trying to get to where they needed to be. She burst into the room only to find it mostly empty of both bodies and equipment. In the distance she could hear the muted roar of jet engines firing up and taking-off. Not five minutes had passed and already three-quarters of the squadron was in the air—not bad for an untested team. Alexis knew she had to hurry; someone would be looking for her to ensure that she was still indeed on the ground, that and it wouldn't take Starscream long to reach the tarmac. She donned her G-suit and grabbed her helmet, slamming the locker door shut. Let the party begin.


Crowbar ran from one end of the building to the other making sure his men were following orders and ensuring the accuracy of their work. A fine sweat had built upon his brow. And his stomach felt tight with nervousness. But it wasn't an anxious sort of nervousness; no, this was an excited type of nervousness. This was what he was trained for, had been training for and he was ready. Too bad Spades was grounded for this mission. Word had arrived from up top not to let her anywhere near her bird and being crew chief, it was his job to inform her. She may have been an officer, but the crew chief had ultimate say over whether the bird flew or not. He didn't look forward to telling her, but judging from the nearly empty hangar she may have already known. If he knew Spades, she would have been the first pilot strapped in ready to rock and roll but she had yet to appear and her bird sat forlornly in its spot, quiet and still.

Until now.

A man was removing the chocks from the wheels as well as the red "Remove Before Flight" flags. He was in a pilot suit but his face was unrecognizable to Crow. Just who did this son of a bitch think he was!? That was his bird! And no one touched his bird without coming through him first!

"Hey you! Hey you, Jackass! What the fuck do you think you're doing!?" he shouted angrily, breaking into a jog as the pilot removed the last of the markers.

"What's it look like I'm doing, fool?" the stranger snapped angrily. "I'm leaving."

"On whose authority!?" Crowbar demanded. As the unfamiliar pilot turned, a strange sensation coursed down the sergeant's spine. Something didn't feel right here. Something felt wrong. Really wrong. There was something off about this guy.

The pilot looked him dead in the eye and smirked, "My own."

He suddenly vanished as if made of smoke and then the building was deafened by noise as the two powerful Pratt & Whitney engines roared to life. Crowbar leaped out of the way as the jet rolled forward on its own accord, quite pilot-less by all appearances. He lay on the floor, oblivious to helping hands and excited curses, completely and utterly shell-shocked. No one had ever mentioned that in the training manuals or the lectures. He stumbled to his feet and watched as the autonomous jet disappeared around the corner, golden canopy glinting in the high sunlight.

"Well I'll be a sonavabitch!" he whispered, before commandeering a hand-held radio. "Get me Colonel Brandingson! STAT!"


Alexis' lungs burned as she pushed herself harder and harder towards the tarmac. Her hair whipped back and forth from its place in a ponytail. She pumped her arms fiercely, flight helmet tucked tightly against her ribs. Almost there! Almost there! She chanted over and over to herself. The tempo of her boots striking the ground encouraged her—faster and faster, like a deer bounding across an open field.

Her eyes scanned the ever-approaching tarmac for her ride. She heard shouts and yells, some directed at her, some not. She even heard a rifle snap off a few rounds, but she ignored everything. She had one goal and one goal only: meet up with Starscream. She suddenly caught a sharp movement from the corner of her eye; she was being followed. A quick glance over her shoulder confirmed it. Several MPs, all of them gaining on her and shouting for her to halt. Not today, boys, she thought grimly. She was going to be in world of hurt if she made it back to base. But she'd deal with that when the time came.

An ear-splitting roar filled the air as a matte grey Eagle quickly turned a corner from the hangars and began barreling down one of the taxi ways. It was him. Alexis quickly veered so that she was parallel to the taxiway he was on and continued running. Behind her the MPs did likewise, cutting into her lead by several yards and gaining rapidly.

I can't get caught now! I can't! My squadron needs to know! Taking a deep breath, Capt. Alexis O'Conner lunged forward in a last burst of speed. The roar from the engines made her ears ring, her heart felt as if it were going to explode, and her breaths were coming in deep, ragged gasps. She looked left and saw that the jet was mere yards away, canopy slid back, the cockpit waiting for her.

But there was no way to reach it! The ladders were back in the hangars!

"Fuck!" she cursed, risking another glance over her shoulder. They were almost on her!

When she faced forward a bright smile split her lips, for there leaning over the edge of cockpit was Starscream's hologram.

"Jump!" he shouted, as she and the jet drew abreast of each other for a split second. With a mighty shout of defiance, Alexis leaped at the jet's cockpit, her body slamming against the hard metal alloy with a vicious thud. She felt herself slip just a tad before an iron tight grip around her left wrist kept her from falling to the tarmac. A sharp yank upward sent a spiking pain through her left arm and into her shoulder; she grit her teeth to keep from shouting out. The sharp pull of air from the intake whipped across her flight suit with viciousness, leaving no doubt as to what would happen if Starscream let go: she'd either be sucked into his turbines or she'd fall to her death and be crushed under his wheels.

"Toss me your helmet!"

She did so without hesitation, watching as the tarmac sped under her feet with frightening speed. Alexis guessed she was only a couple of feet from becoming road kill. He stood standing with one foot on the lip of the cockpit, body crouched. He caught the helmet deftly by the hoses and tossed it within. Now with her other arm free, Alexis swung and reached up with her right arm, feeling relief wash over her as Starscream grabbed her by both arms and hauled her up as easily as a mother lifts a child; he dissipated quickly after. As soon as she was seated, the cockpit hissed closed and the jet rocketed forward. The landscape became a blurred mush of color and before long a sharp jerk backward told her that they were airborne. The seat harness strapped around her of its own accord and the jet began to barrel roll rapidly as it ascended straight up, white vortices trailing in elegant spirals of vapor in their wake.

She heard Starscream cackle loudly with glee, the harsh sound surrounding her from every angle. But now she no longer feared it. With a loud victory whoop of her own, Alexis shouted and laughed along with him, even as they quickly left the base behind and disappeared into the thick, cumulus cloud cover.


The city of Caldera lay in shambles. Innumerable plumes of thick, black smoke had turned the pleasant afternoon into a black, seething Hell filled with flames, screams, and agony. Above the city, two jets, Su-27 Flankers, darted this way and that, easily avoiding the stream of missiles targeted in their direction. Bright red stars adorned their tailfins, leaving no doubt to the pilots as to whom they were facing.

The battle had long since started and of the 13 jets that comprised the 42nd Fighter Squadron only seven remained airborne and backup was several minutes away. In the dogfighting arena, it might as well have been a lifetime.

"I CAN'T GET A FUCKING LOCK!" DOTAL cursed over the airwaves. "Goddammit! I've never heard of the Russians being able to fly like this! They've got to have a jammer somewhere!"

"Negative. These are the only two bogies in a 500 mile radius. Windjammer confirms. Over," another voice, EVAC stated.

"Where's our FUCKING BACKUP!?" Coldcock shouted, whipping his Eagle to the left as a foreign missile narrowly missed clipping his wing.

"He's on your six! EVADE! EVADE! GODDAMMIT, LOBO! BREAK RIGHT! BREAK RIGHT!!" A brilliant flash illuminated the sky as the jet exploded into pieces, another black smudge in an ever darkening sky.

A piece of debris glanced off one of the Eagle's canopies and plummeted to the earth. "He didn't make it! Lobo didn't make! We gotta get outta here! They're gonna pick us off like fucking ducks in a shooting gallery!" Ragweed shouted, panic lacing every word.

"Shut the fuck up, Rags! We're not going anywhere! We're the only ones keeping these guys from leveling the city further," Tomcat said. Her bird streaked across the sky barrel-rolling as she went, one of the Flankers hot on her six. She executed a neat Immelman turn, came in from behind and unleashed her 20mm cannon on the Russian jet. But to her surprise, not one bullet penetrated the jet's outer skin.

"Sonavabitch!" she cursed, diving sharply and breaking off her attack.

"Why are they attacking us in the first place!?" DOTAL asked. He took a quick look over his shoulder before banking to the right sharply.

"Shut-up and fight, DOTAL! We can ask questions later. Watch it! Bogie approaching from your seven o'clock!" EVAC supplied, while simultaneously banking to help cover his wingman.

"I'm running low on ammo!"

"Me too!"

"I've only got ten minutes worth of fuel left!"

All the pilots knew then that their backup would never make it. And since their ammo was worthless against this strange and new Russian fighter, they could only hope to keep them at bay just long enough. But time was running out and experience was against them. These fighters knew exactly what they were doing and it was painfully evident to the US pilots that they were out-classed, being played with like mice before two hungry cats. Suddenly, a new voice broke over the airwaves, one that Tomcat knew all too well.

"Cease your attack! I repeat cease your attack! Break away and return to base; that is an order!" Spades voice announced over the radio.

"Spades! Where the fuck have you been!? So glad you could join the party!" Tomcat cheered. From a distance she watched as the small speck that was Alexis's jet quickly grow larger and larger.

"Tomcat! I want you and the guys out of here, STAT!"

"What about you?"

"Don't worry about me! NOW GET OUT OF HERE! NOW!!"

A brief silence ensued before her friend confirmed the order. "Roger that. I sure hope you know what you're doing Spades. Out."

Like a swarm of migrating starlings, the Eagles all broke off from the engagement and made a break for it. Two were smoking from one engine and another had a flame out. It seemed as if Alexis had made it just in time. Ahead of her she watched as the two Flankers banked into each other and headed straight towards them.

"This may get a little rough," she heard Starscream mutter.

"Do what you need to do. I've done what I needed to," she replied with more calm than she felt. The last time she faced these jets, they had nearly killed her.

"I may need to transform," he growled, rolling to dodge a stream of bullets. "If that should occur, don't fret. You'll be safe within my cockpit."

"And if they defeat you?" she squeaked as he took another high g-turn.

"That will never happen," he replied smugly, before entering a vicious dive. All Alexis could do was hold on for the ride and watch, both a relief and a source of constant trepidation. The ground rocketed toward them with dazzling speed before Starscream broke right, wingtips feet from brushing several of the still-standing concrete buildings. He whipped in and out between the skyscrapers with such speed and agility that it took her breath away. There was no way a human could even hope to mimic Starscream's every move and yet one of the jets behind them followed turn -for-turn, bank-for-bank. They ripped through the downtown area, tall sheets of mirrored glass shattered on either side of them as Starscream broke Mach 1 less than 50 feet off of the ground. Glass shards rained down behind them in a deadly shower, bouncing off their pursuer like pea-sized hailstones. A second boom was heard as the Flanker also broke the sound barrier.

But what concerned Alexis the most was the jet she couldn't see. Where was he? Starscream whipped around another towering office building, completely circling it in one fluid move. The turn was so powerful that even with Alexis' training her vision blurred and blackness threatened to consume her. She shook her head and when her vision had cleared she saw that they were directly behind their enemy. Starscream fired a few rounds over the Flanker's canopy before peeling off down a narrow side-alley and out into open air.

Immediately he was intercepted by the second jet, but a quick flip of his ailerons and they shot by with only inches to spare. Alexis snapped her head around to see the two enemy jets nearly collide with one another, but Starscream's voice quickly recaptured her attention.

"I think it is about time to end this charade. Do you not agree, Alexis?" he questioned amiably, as if it were a discussion over cakes and coffee.

"You're the one in charge, Commander," she replied easily, finding it somewhat anomalous how easily his title rolled off her tongue.

"Very well." Soon afterwards a series of sharp clicks, buzzes, and chirrups filled the air. She felt Starscream slow his acceleration and then flip backward over his longitudinal axis. She caught a brief glimpse of the ground as she hung suspended and inverted in his cockpit, before she felt the jet right itself and face the two attackers. It was so bizarre, "hovering" there in mid-air, knowing full-well that F-15 Eagles possessed no hovering capabilities whatsoever. Bizarre and more than thrilling.

But what happened next would forever be burned deep within Alexis' memory. Less than 500 feet away, the two Flankers seemed to fall apart, pieces shifting, moving of their own accord, and then a familiar, yet alien shape—a leg, two legs, two arms and a large, cone-shaped head crowned each body. Even from this distance, Alexis could tell they were massive. Two monstrous, and lethally elegant cannons were mounted to each forearm, forearms aimed directly at Starscream's nosecone. Blazing, ruby-red eyes stared impassively at them and the air erupted with that strange, electronic buzzing.

A brief silence ensued. Suddenly, the cockpit lurched downward. Alexis gasped in surprise at the sudden movement and had not the harness held her firm, only the inch-thick glass of the canopy would have been between her nose and the ground 25,000 feet below. An alien noise accompanied the sharp movement and loud, cacophonous noises erupted all around. It felt and sounded as if Starscream was falling apart around her and then she realized—perhaps he was.

Next, she felt as well as heard his loud, ear-splitting laughter, the cockpit vibrating with the intensity of his mirth. His voice sounded so much louder, so much more powerful when he was in his true form. She looked out the glass at that point and even from this distance, she could easily see the signs of shock on the two other robots' faces.

Sharp movement drew her eyes upward and Alexis stared in awe at the two, equally massive cannons mounted on Starscream's arms. The sunlight glinted with deadly intent off the brilliant, white and blue metal and the young officer even distinguished a faint, purplish glow at the tips of the cannons' mouths. It was then Alexis felt with stone-cold clarity, just how dangerous Starscream really was—seeing the fear in the other two alien's faces only confirmed it. It was two against one and yet those two acted as if a great multitude were behind the Air Commander.

Starscream grinned with delight as Thrust and Dirge quaked before him. Such sweet revenge! Their fear tasted better than the sweetest high grade, nectar so sweet that it only continued to whet his appetite for more.

"Starscream!" both cried in unison and shocked beyond all comprehension.

"How!?"

"But you were--!"

"It's not possible!"

Their voices babbled simultaneously, logic cortexes struggling to comprehend this enigma before them, but Starscream wasted little time on explanations.

"I see you're surprised to see me," he spoke in English for Alexis' benefit. He directed his hellish gaze to Dirge. "Give my regards to Galvatron!"

A brilliant, purple flash filled the air, temporarily blinding Alexis. She shielded her eyes from the blast, but she could not shield her ears from the agonizing scream. One of the robots took the full brunt of Starscream's attack. He seemed to hover briefly in the air, before plummeting to the earth below, an ugly, charred hole straight through his upper canopy. The last thing Alexis glimpsed was the robot's darkened eyes.

The second robot stared in horror for the briefest of seconds before transforming and blasting away as fast as his engines could take him. Alexis heard a distant, double-sounding gunshot as the other robot broke the sound barrier twice over in quick succession. Seconds later he was gone.