Warning: This chapter will be sad.
"Ok, here's the plan," Ironhide said, as he and Starscream made their way back to the base, "I'll stay and help Jolt while you go meet up with everyone is Vegas."
"But, don't they expect the three of us, not a former Decepticon?" Starscream asked, shifting Speedboost on his shoulders to avoid crushing his wings, "I sense the majority of the Autobots still don't trust me."
"They may not, but I do," Ironhide said, "and I know Optimus does as well. He knew there was something different about you. You're not like the other Decepticons, and I'm starting to see that now Starscream," Starscream was surprised. He and Ironhide had shared a hatred for each ever since the war broke out, but to here him speak of how he was trusting him was unusual. Ironhide looked at him, "You seem...surprised."
"I am. You Autobots have been kind to me ever since I arrived, and I thank you for that."
"Don't thank me, thank Optimus. He let you stay, and...I'm glad he did. I owe you my spark Starscream," Ironhide said, punching in the code at the gate.
"Don't go saying that or I might take it," Starscream joked, and Ironhide chuckled, and lightly punched him in the shoulders. A yellow corvette drove up to meet them, then transformed.
"IRONHIDE! YOU'RE ALIVE!" Sunstreaker yelled, and jumped the weapons' specialist. Ironhide grunted, and pushed him off. Sunstreaker looked at Starscream, "You!" he snarled, and made a jump for him, but Ironhide stopped him.
"He saved mine and Speeds' life, and many others at that matter. I'm staying here to help Jolt, and Starscream is meeting everyone in Vegas," Sunstreaker looked at Starscream, and took Speedboost from him. Starscream nodded, and flew off, "I know you're still skeptical, but at least be nice Sunny."
"Your name sir?" the receptionist asked. Starscream scratched his head, "Do you have a reservation here at this hotel?"
"Uh, I'm supposed to meet some friends here? They might have checked in already. Can I just go look for them?" The receptionist looked at him, then at the computer.
"Hey! Sta..." Starscream turned around and saw Sam and Mikeala. Mikeala smiled when she saw him, "He's with us," The receptionist rolled her eyes, and continued her work. Starscream walked over to them, "Where's Ironhide?"
"He's back with Jolt and Sunstreaker. The Decepticons attacked and hurt Jolt, so they decided to stay back to help him," Starscream said, following them to the back of the hotel, "Wow."
There was a pool, a jacuzzi, a tennis court, a volleyball court, a basketball court, and a bar. Starscream looked around, "This...is nice," Mikeala placed a hand on his shoulder, and led him to where the Autobots were, in holoform of course.
Optimus lifted his sunglasses, and smiled, "About time," He sat up, "How did it go Starscream?"
"It went well. Megatron forgot he made the Decepticons drink anti-freeze," The twins looked at each other, "Don't ask. Really," A holoform next to Optimus looked over at Starscream, "Ironhide staying back to help Jolt and Sunstreaker. Bumblebee's alright. Stable," Optimus nodded, and leaned back down. The holoform next to Optimus smiled.
"Well, sit back and relax Starscream," he said, leaning back, "It's nice actually, not to have any bots to fix. We get to relax and..."
"CANNON BALL!" Skids yelled, and ran and jumped off the diving board. The water splashed up and landed on Ratchet.
"Ugh! TWINS!" Ratchet yelled, grabbing a towel. Starscream chuckled, and sat down. A waiter came over and handed him a towel.
"Thank you," Starscream took out sunglasses and leaned back, "So, where is NEST?"
"Out doing some sight seeing I think," Sam said, grabbing his lemonade, "Hitting the casinos and hot spots of Vegas. I'd rather be relaxing actually. I plan on hitting the town tonight with the twins," Ratchet looked over.
"Remember the curfew Sam," he warned, and leaned back down. Sam rolled his eyes, and got up. Mikeala sighed, causing Starscream to look over.
"Are you alright?"
"He was supposed to come see my mother with me, but he obviously forgot," she said, crossing her arms.
"I'll go with you," Starscream said, and he stood up. Mikeala smiled, and took his hand. Starscream was shocked a bit, but relaxed and they left the hotel. Ratchet looked over at Optimus. His leader was sat up, a frown on his face.
"What's wrong Optimus?"
"I sense the Decepticons are getting closer. They need to be careful."
"Ok, this is the place," Mikeala said, as they stopped in front of the house. It was a split entry home, with blue siding and a garden in the front. A motorcycle was parked in the driveway, the helmet left on the handle bars. Mikeala walked past the bike, Starscream behind her, "I never thought I'd actually meet her," she said quietly, running her fingers over the helmet. She looked down at the helmet, and saw the Autobot insignia on the helmet. She stopped, and traced it. Starscream came up behind her, "I don't understand..."
There was a bark, and a border collie came around the corner. She stopped, and sniffed Starscream's feet. Starscream backed up, confused. Mikeala smiled, and bent down, petting the dog, "There there. It's alright," the dog barked, and licked her hand. Starscream looked up, and saw a young woman came out from behind the house. She had curly, long black hair that was held back by a purple bandana. Her dark skin suggested she had been out in the sun a lot. Her deep blue eyes stared at Mikeala. Her red t-shirt had dirt on it, and so did the knees of her jeans. Her white shoes were no longer white, but brown as well. Mikeala looked up, "Mom," she whispered, and ran to her, throwing her arms around her mom's neck. Her mom hugged her back, tears running down her face. Starscream crossed his arms, feeling a bit uneasy.
"Mikeala," she whispered, "I can't believe it. After all these years, you found me," she spotted the necklace on her daughter's neck, "And I see why. Come inside, there is much to know about it," She led them around the back of the house, and into the house.
Mikeala looked around, and saw a picture of her and her mother when she was two. Starscream sat down on the couch, and looked around as well, "I'm sorry but all I have is water right now," her mother came out, and placed the three glasses down. Her mother sat down across from them, and took a sip of her water, "So, Mikeala, who is your boyfriend?"
"Oh uh, Shane? Oh he's just a friend mom."
"Yes , I'm just a friend," Mrs. Banes smiled.
"Call me Jamielynn Shane," Jamielynn looked at the necklace, "Gosh I haven't seen that thing in years. I forgot I left it to you actually."
"Mom, it's important that you activate it now. It's a life or death situation right now. Mom, how do you know about the Autobots?" Jamielynn stiffened.
"How do you know about them?" Mikeala looked over at Starscream, "Mikeala, it's not safe for you to be here."
"Mom, please activate this for us. It is necessary," Jamielynn stood up, and turned towards the window, "Mom, is there something you're not telling us?"
"Mikeala, please understand. I'm doing this for your own good, and same with Starscream," Starscream looked over at Mikeala.
"How did you know?" Her mom turned around, "Mom?"
"Give me the necklace now," Mikeala took it off, and gave it to her. Her mom took off her bandana, and Starscream gasped.
"Cybertronian! But...how?" Jamielynn placed the necklace against her forehead, and soon it began to glow. Starscream gasped, "Not possible," She took it off her forehead, and the necklace was glowing.
"There. Now, you have to go now!"
"But...mom!" Jamielynn began pushing them out, "What is going on?" There was a loud bang, and she stopped.
"He's here."
"Who?" The roof came off the house, and Megatron leaned down, a smile on his face.
"Me."
"Mikeala, get down!" Starscream yelled, and his holoform disappeared. The F-22 crashed into Megatron, flinging him across the yard. Mikeala and Jamielynn ran out of the house. Starscream stood up, and Megatron jumped on his back, pulling him down to the ground. Mikeala jumped out of the way, concrete flying up. Megatron transformed, and grabbed Starscream, flying off. Mikeala stood up.
"Starscream!" she screamed, and began running after him.
"Mikeala!" She turned, and saw the silver corvette screech to a stop, "Get in," Mikeala climbed in.
"Sideswipe? I thought..."
"Yeah well, apparently when you activated that necklace, it activated me," the corvette said, speeding up, "but I got a bad feeling about this Mikeala, I really do. I feel it in my spark."
"What kind of feeling?"
Megatron dropped Starscream, and the Seeker went crashing down to the ground. He landed on his back, his wings taking most of the impact. Starscream winced, and pulled himself up. Megatron landed on the ground, and kicked him, causing his to fly into a tree, "You used to be so strong, Starscream. What happened?" Starscream pulled himself up, amd Megatron grabbed him by the throat, and slammed him into a tree. Starscream looked around.
They definately weren't in Vegas anymore.
"Hanging around those Autobots made you weak," he sneered, crushing his vocal processor. Starscream coughed, and grabbed at Megatron's arm, his claws digging into his wires. Megatron roared, and threw him down. Starscream skidded across the dirt, slamming his helm into the tree. Starscream rubbed his helm, his auditory recepticors ringing. He looked up, and Megatron stepped down on his chest cavity. Starscream grabbed his foot, "Why did you do this to yourself Starscream? Why not come back to us?"
"No," Starscream gasped, and fired his cannon into Megatron's face. Megatron stumbled backwards, and landed against a tree. Starscream pulled himself up, and ramed helm first into Megatron. Megatron reached around him, and grabbed his wings, squeezing them. Starscream flinched, but kept pushing. He slammed Megatron into another tree, and reached up and clawed his left optics. Megatron roared, and struck Starscream across his face. Starscream stumbled backwards, and into the arms of Terrorshriek. Terrorshriek pulled his arms behind his back.
"Foolish Starscream," Megatron said, standing up, his optic flickering.
"You're the one who's foolish Megatron," Starscream snapped, lunging foward, "You're the one who's weak, cowering behind all your Decepticon minions, letting them fight your battle for you while you just sit around and plan the next assault. And guess what? They never work! Oh how I regret not offlining you when I had the chance. You're a coward Megatron, and you always will be," Megatron stood up tall, and walked over to his former second-in-command. He grabbed his face in his hand, his claws graizing his face.
"I'm a coward Starscream? Who's the one who ran away all the time? You."
"At least I had the spark to come back and fight again," Starscream spat. Megatron growled, "You never did. I feel sorry for you. You couldn't offline me even if you tried," Megatron grabbed Starscream by his wings.
"We will see about that Starscream."
"There!" Mikeala shouted, and she jumped out of the car, Sideswipe behind her. She watched as Megatron drew his sword and sliced Starscream's arm, energon flowing, "MEGATRON STOP!" she screamed, running towards them.
"Mikeala it's too dangerous stop!" Sideswipe yelled, skating towards them, his sword drawn. Mikeala ran between Starscream and Megatron.
"Megatron stop!" she held up her hands. Megatron stopped his sword, "I'll give you the necklace, ok?" Starscream's optics went wide, so did Sideswipe's. Megatron smiled, and held out his hand. Mikeala dropped the necklace in his claw, and turned to Starscream, "How are you?"
"Mikeala what did you just do?"
"Starscream you have to get up before he realizes it's fake," Sideswipe skated over to them, "Sideswipe help him up," Sideswipe grabbed Starscream's arm, and eased him up.
"At last Terrorshriek, we have the final piece to the puzzle. My dream will become a reality, and soon our army will be complete and we can rule this planet and return Cybertron to its original state!" Megatron said, holding the necklace in the air. Sideswipe brought Starscream to a tree, and placed him down.
"You alright?"
"Yeah I'm fine. I'm used to that treatment anyways," he said, checking his wings, "Mikeala, it's fake?" Mikeala smiled, and pulled the real one out of her pocket.
"I picked that up in Vegas at a corner store. I figured it would come in handy sometime."
"How long befor..."
"GIRL! YOU TRICKED ME!" they heard the roar across the forest.
"That's not good," Sideswipe said, and helped Starscream up. Megatron came crashing down, seperating Starscream from Sideswipe and Mikeala. Terrorshriek landed in front of them, and drew his swords. Megatron threw the necklace down.
"This is the last time you will ever trick me, Starscream," Megatron snapped, turning to Terrorshriek, "And just became of that, your friends are going to pay the price. Terrorshriek! Kill them," Terrorshriek smiled, and aimed his sword at Mikeala and...
"NO!" Starscream yelled, pulling himself up, "Let them go," Megatron held up his hand, and Terrorshriek stopped.
"What? The coward isn't running away?" Starscream looked him in the optics.
"Let them go. Now," Megatron looked towards them, then back at Starscream.
"I don't take people tricking me lightly."
"Take me instead," Mikeala gasped. Megatron bent down, "Let them go, but take me instead," Megatron stroked his chin.
"Terrorshriek, never mind," The Decepticon sulked, and drew his swords back in, "but watch them closely. I need to teach this traitor a lesson," Megatron turned to Starscream, "When I'm done with you, you'll wish you'd never been sparked."
Megatron punched Starscream in his stomach, causing the Seeker to double over. He grabbed his helm, and slammed it into the tree, causing energon to start to flow. Megatron grabbed both of his wings, and gripped them, and began digging his claws in them. Sideswipe winced, knowing that the wings are sensitive. Starscream winced. Megatron threw him into a tree, his wings bent out of shape. Starscream was on his knees, and Megatron stepped on his back, causing Starscream to fall on his helm.
"Why doesn't he fight back?" Mikeala whispered, tears in her eyes. Sideswipe didn't answer, just watching what was happening. His swords came out, but Terrorshriek blocked his way.
"No interefering Autobot, or I'll tear both of you apart," Sideswipe stepped back.
"We can't do anything Mikeala."
Megatron grabbed Starscream's left wing, and began tearing it. Starscream screamed, energon falling out of the wing. Megatron turned him over, the wing hanging on by wires, and pried open his chest cavity. Starscream's spark pulsed, and Megatron dug his claw into it.
The pain was something Starscream had never felt before. Megatron had never tortured him this much before. The pain was in every wire, ever bolt, every joint of his frame. His optics sparked, flashing on and off, his vision blurring. He drifted between offline and online, it was so hard to tell what was happening. He heard Mikeala screaming his name, and heard Sideswipe's voice as well, but the loudest was Megatron's laughter. He felt the Decepticon Lord grab his loose wing, the pain enormous in that area, but then, nothing.
Megatron withdrew his claw, and Starscream slumped down to the ground, his optics very faint. Megatron looked over at Terrorshriek, "Let's fly," The two Decepticons flew off, and Mikeala ran over, and slid down next to him.
"Starscream, talk to me. Say anything!" Sideswipe skated over, and picked Starscream up and Mikeala as well.
"We have to get back to the base," He said, and opened a link with Optimus, "Prime, it's Sideswipe. I'll explain how I'm still online later but right now we need Ratchet to have the medbay ready for surgery as soon as possible. We got ourselves a bot who is shifting between online and offline," he said, skating down the freeway. Mikeala was looking into Starscream's optics.
"Please, stay with me," she whispered, tears falling down her face, "Starscream!"
"Out of my way!" Sideswipe said, skating into the base. Optimus turned around, and gasped, "Where's Ratchet to?"
"I'm here," Ratchet and Jolt pushed their way through. Ratchet grabbed Starscream, the Seeker groaning in pain, "Jolt, we're going to need lots of energon," Jolt nodded, following Ratchet back to the medbay. Mikeala leaned against the wall, and sank down. Lennox came over next to her, and placed an arm around her. Sideswipe was leaning against his twin.
"I...I couldn't believe it," he whispered, "He just took it."
Optimus turned to Quickstart, "I think, we have a lot to discuss right now QS," Quickstart nodded slowly, and they made their way to the meeting room.
"Optimus, this is getting very extreme," Quickstart said, running his hand over his helm, "If the Decepticons can be this cruel to one of their own, who knows what they'll do to us?" Optimus looked at the map, staring down, "Optimus, what do we do?"
"I...I don't know QS," Optimus said quietly, "We need to figure out the damage done to Starscream, and then figure out how we can counter attack them. We have the necklace activated, but...how long can we hold it off?" He turned to Quickstart, "Is there any other Autobots out in space still?"
"I don't know Optimus, I don't know. The only way to know, is to go up and investigate," Optimus pinched his nasal plasting.
"Then you go. Please QS it is necessary," Quickstart nodded, and left. Optimus leaned down on the table, resting his helm.
He didn't know what to do anymore.