Author's Note: I heard from a couple of reviewers the last time who had issues with a few things and asked that I answer in the notes. I'd rather do that in a regular message so I'm not taking up a bunch of space, but this time I've put it in a continuation of the notes at the end of the chapter so I don't bore whoever isn't interested. Thanks for reading and commenting. Transformers belongs to Hasbro and Takara, not me.

A Blessing and A Curse
By: Quetzal1

Chapter 24
Out of the Frying Pan

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It was definitely not what he was expecting to hear and Soundwave didn't know what to think about it at first. Rumble told him what took place on the garbage asteroid, including the discussion of Starscream's ghost and the femme's spooky Megatron impression. There was a lot of it that made no sense (ghosts?) but conversely, other equally bizarre things were starting to seem less peculiar. It was a relief, but it raised more questions. That was all right because he finally had a solid place to start in getting to the bottom of what was happening to him.

"What else did you learn?" He asked.

"That's mostly it," Rumble said, uneasily, before glancing over at Frenzy.

"Mostly?" He knew that reluctant manner. What had the two of them gotten into now?

"We found out somethin' else and we don't know what ta do about it," Frenzy said.

"Which is?"

"Did ya know that Stormvolt thought the Autobots were evil?" Rumble asked. "I mean, can ya believe it?"

Though his telepathy didn't work perfectly on another 'bot, it worked extremely well on the primitive brain of an organic. He knew what Erica had been thinking whenever he felt like knowing and was close enough to pick up her thoughts. She had sincerely believed the Autobots were evil, but on rare occasions, there were tiny, nagging doubts caused by one isolated event or another. Sometimes she had pondered her fate if it turned out things were not as they appeared, but it was remarkably easy for her to push those thoughts away. Humans were gifted self deceivers when the truth looked like too much to be dealt with. Of course since no one was allowed to answer her questions back then, there could only be one place she received the misleading information.

"Affirmative. But why does that trouble you?"

"Ya knew? Why didn't ya tell us?"

"Your knowledge of that fact would have been counterproductive."

"Oh. Anyway, she asked us about it, so we told her the truth and she was pretty glitched over it."

"And then what happened?"

"She said she wanted to be by herself."

"Yeah, but we sent Buzzsaw ta watch and make sure she didn't do nothin' crazy," Frenzy added. "And bad as that is, it ain't the worst of it."

Soundwave said nothing, and the small mech took that as his cue to continue.

"That slagger Cyclonus is tryin' ta get cozy with her."

Soundwave was quite surprised to hear that and with such obvious displeasure. Beneath his mask, a rare event took place: he actually grinned a little. Was the small 'bot jealous? Had he been entertaining ideas along the same lines? They would be such an odd looking pair. "What do you care?" He asked, quickly getting control of himself.

"If that freak was normal, I don't guess we would," Rumble said. Frag, no. In fact, if he were normal they would have teased the femme unmercifully. "But you know what he probably is."

The mech nodded once in response. He knew better than they did. Galvatron and his henchmen were harder than average to read. However, he still got a strong sense that, excepting their leader, even they didn't truly know their own origins. It all fit together too neatly to be coincidence. "Did you say anything about that?"

"We tried but she wouldn't let us. Said it was all circumstantial."

"You would be wise not to interfere in affairs of that nature." His life would be easier if these two would develop colder natures and learn to mind their own business. But while it would be easier, it would also be far less interesting.

"Yeah, yeah, we know, but ya can't let a pal go messin' around with a zombie and not say somethin'." Frenzy replied.

"What should we do now?" Rumble asked.

"Nothing. I will speak to her," Soundwave said, impassively. Oh yes. He had many questions for the seeker.

"That's a relief."

"Yeah. Thanks a lot," said Frenzy. In a pinch, Soundwave never let them down. Why couldn't Stormvolt have taken an interest him? The communication expert shared a couple of traits with Cyclonus. He was large and mostly quiet, if that was the kind of thing she went for. However, he had other qualities that the small mech considered superior, the foremost of those being that he was normal. And he was available. Hmmm.

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"What do you mean you haven't learned anything?" Motormaster asked. Considering the way Soundwave's miniature lackeys liked to spy and gossip, Deadend should have all manner of information whether he wanted it or not.

"I keep trying but they never say much about it," Deadend replied. He knew the plan would end with him in trouble as usual. Being in the enclosed space of the guard post/bunker with his increasingly angry team leader wasn't helping his mood, either.

"It's not that hard and I suggest you get some results before you come out here again."

"How much Ranazite do we have so far?" Hopefully a change of topic would ease the tension. He had given up portions of several loads to Vortex. He had no idea where the Combaticon put them or what was being done with them. But then, he was happier that way.

"Not much, but you leave that to me. All you have to really focus on is getting information."

"Right."

"No one has noticed the missing ore, have they?"

"Not that I can tell. No one would know except Shockwave, and he never has much to say either." Deadend did not like the uppity scientist, always going around acting like he was superior to everyone else.

"Make certain you don't go overboard and give away too much. Being found out is the last thing we need. Now get out of here."

Deadend was happy to oblige, although he wondered how he was supposed to keep Vortex from doing whatever he pleased. Of all the Combaticons, he was the nastiest. Brawl was large and seemed to be perpetually angry, but it was a blind anger. Vortex, however, had a focused rage. He was cruel and sadistic and enjoyed hurting others simply because he could. There were stories that circulated about his interrogation methods but since he had to deal with him on a daily basis, Deadend didn't want those thoughts repeating in his processors. He didn't need this aggravation. Life was much too short as it was. If things did go wrong, Motormaster would surely take the side of his fellow Stunticon so there was a scrap of solace. On the other hand, if he didn't provide useful information soon, he would be in a world of hurt, courtesy the same mech. But how? What would make those two little creeps talk? Though he was a pessimist and unstable, as were all Stunticons, he wasn't entirely stupid. An idea began to form as he headed back toward the mine. Even if he hadn't been to deep in thought, he wouldn't have noticed a lone observer.

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The vehicle sure acted like he was in a hurry to get somewhere, the Skuxxoid thought. He had followed the general direction in which Thrust had disappeared earlier, but his progress was hampered by a series of small mountains. Their surface was soft and crumbly and made climbing difficult. Repeatedly he had gotten close to the top of a hill and then the ground gave way beneath him, dumping him back at the bottom. He couldn't see a way around. There was no telling how far the range went and he might walk for days and not find the end or an easier passage through. Going back down the other side was easier but had still led to several mishaps. The alien's scaly hide was battered and scraped. Oh, he was earning his pay on this mission. When he was most of the way to the top of one peak, and hoping it was the last, the sound of another engine came to his filth coated ears. It was shifting through gears, which eliminated it as an aircraft. Peering over the summit revealed Deadend. He quickly removed a spyglass from the pack slung over one shoulder and had a closer look.

Yes, definitely a Decepticon, but why was he way out here in the middle of nowhere? Tracks were visible in the soft ground and he was able to trace them back to a low hill where they abruptly stopped. Pressing a button on the side of the scope zoomed it in further. Upon further inspection, the alien saw that it wasn't a hill at all, but a guard post of some kind. What could these guys have that was worth protecting? He watched it a while and thought he detected a slight movement within. Uh oh. This was not the place to cross down into the narrow valley. He hated the idea of making the upward climb again and cautiously began to move sideways. If he were careful, he could travel this way until he was far enough away from the guard post to avoid being spotted. It was a nice thought. The mercenary had gone about twenty yards before the ground gave way again, spilling him to the bottom, and partially burying him in gravel and dirt. As he sat there in a pile of debris up to his chest, his resolve strengthened. If he found anything good, he was going to make the Quintessons double his payment before he told them about it.

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What now? Stormvolt wondered. The majority of her life was based on lies. Okay, sure she had had cause to wonder every once in a great while if things were different than they were presented, but there'd been no way to know for sure and you could make yourself crazy second guessing everything continuously.

Be honest, she thought ironically. Fine. She decided years ago that maybe it was better to not dig too deep. It was far easier to believe what she had been told. And everything happened exactly the way Megatron told her it would, from the war to her becoming a wanted criminal. Aside from the rare odd occurrence there really wasn't a reason not to believe. It hadn't been such a bad life, considering. She hadn't been denied much and the Decepticon leader had treated her pretty well after the initial arrival (certainly much better than many of the others). He was very demanding and expected an awful lot from her, but that was a part of his militaristic nature. Sometimes, if he were in the right mood, he was kind of interesting to hang around with. On the other hand, there was the near total isolation from other humans. Even that hadn't been absolute. Now and then one showed up, like that Shawn Berger creep. He was unaware of her presence but she learned a lot about him. He was only interested in helping for his own personal gain. Unfortunately, she had no idea how that turned out, this being before the days when her assistance with missions became routine. Other aspects of her life were highly controlled like, not being allowed to watch much TV unless it was supervised. The better to keep you from finding out things you shouldn't.

There were other aspects to consider besides the lies, like her friends. Despite the vast differences in their species she had made several, though now only about half of them remained. She tried to imagine walking away from them for good. If her life became a blank slate, what would she do? Where could she go? There would be no one to help if it was needed, and just because Megatron let her go didn't mean the Autobots would. They weren't the evil monsters she'd been led to believe, but they would be perfectly justified in coming after her, especially if they ever found out about that Dart guy. His destruction hadn't been entirely her doing, but it was close enough. And now there were Quintessons to worry about and likely many other things she wasn't even aware of.

Overriding it all was the sneaking feeling that even if somehow she managed to do whatever had to be done to restore Megatron to power, there wasn't any way in hell he'd let her walk. No. Just look at Octane. Being a Decepticon was like being in the mafia. Once you were in, that was it. You were there till you died. And despite the anger and disgust and frustration, she did want to live. Fuck, what a mess. Hours had passed since Rumble and Frenzy left. Cyclonus probably wouldn't be back soon, a good thing because it would allow her the opportunity to compose herself and not arouse his suspicions. There was another sticking point.

Not in a million years would she have guessed that particular development. And it wasn't one sided. The more she was around him and the more she learned, the more she liked him. Finding out that they were on the wrong side didn't change that. It would be stupid (and mean) to continue the relationship if she were going to leave but… the concept of breaking it off made her feel worse. And besides, there were obstacles in her path that looked insurmountable. It was not out of the question that she would fail, so why ruin what she had now for something she might never accomplish? Currently, things were going fine, but if Cyclonus ever found out what she used to be, that would undoubtedly change. She couldn't imagine him being understanding in regards to her pedigree, never mind what Megatron said. But he was right about part of that issue: It was pure luck that she hadn't been outed, either purposely or by accident before now. And someone was curious or else they wouldn't have pounded the snot out of Thrust. Supposedly there were others who were in on this recovery of their old leader. It would be nice to know who, and have a few words with them.

Mentally chasing her tail wasn't going to help the immediate situation. Better get back to work and keep up the appearance of normalcy. The seeker rose from the floor and returned to the cluttered bench. It was remarkably easy to become involved in the task again, but she'd always found it better to remain busy than to sit around brooding. The door to the small building squeaked as it swung inward.

"Hey guys. I'm sorry about earlier and…" Stormvolt said, turning to face Rumble and Frenzy but discovering Soundwave instead. "What brings you here?"

The mech had contacted Buzzsaw for a report and was informed of the seeker's peculiar behavior that bore a strong resemblance to his own. "You and I must discuss recent events."

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Though painful, the blast wasn't enough to permanently damage his superior armor. Sky Lynx was facing off against Galvatron on his own. Rodimus, Blur, Perceptor and Ultra Magnus had gotten pulled through the quadrant lock in the wake of the Quintesson ship along with Cyclonus. Although gifted with magnificent powers of reasoning and observation, there wasn't an absolute way to know what had happened or if his friends survived. They'd been gone for quite some time and he couldn't follow to rescue them with the crazed Decepticon blocking the way.

"Stand aside Galvatron. You cannot keep this up forever. You'll run out of charge if you aren't destroyed first."

"Destroyed? Destroyed!? I'll show you destruction, you Autobot freak!" Galvatron raved before unleashing another explosion from his cannon and making a direct hit.

It was more than he expected, but it was a simple matter to correct his course after the shot sent him spinning. "Nice try, but you'll have to do better than that," the Autobot said, in a superior tone that gave no indication of how much that last hit had hurt or the damage it had done.

"Don't worry. I don't intend to stop until your internal components are scattered around like so many asteroids!"

How crude, although he would expect nothing less. He hated having to sink to their level, but Autobots were in danger. Brute force was the only thing Decepticons understood so he would provide it. His dignity would recover. Sky Lynx fired his boosters and rushed his opponent, transforming at the last second to grab him in his claws and violently shake him before tossing him away.

Galvatron's vision blacked out momentarily from the force of the collision and the shaking. The enemy had hit him hard. Diagnostic systems flashed warnings and he discovered that his left arm was no longer operational and the leg on that side would only work at partial capacity. Autobot fool! As long as he still functioned, Galvatron would continue to fight. The strike hadn't damaged his cannon in the least.

The Autobot thought he had possibly deactivated the tyrant, though with his amazing skill notwithstanding it should have been more difficult. He transformed back to his shuttle mode and moved in for a closer view. The Decepticon wasn't moving. It was difficult to scan for life signs because the last shot was extremely lucky and had damaged part of his sensor array. Deactivation could be highly likely after all. How could anyone this undisciplined stand against his outstanding strategizing? It came as a shock when Galvatron suddenly righted himself and unleashed a massive volley of shots.

Sky Lynx rolled hard to port but sustained several hits before getting clear. He didn't waste any words but instead returned fire. Galvatron was knocked back from his position in front of the quadrant lock and was unmoving once again, but the Autobot wasn't going anywhere near him, and why should he? He was successful in obtaining the objective. The way was clear for him to once again rescue his comrades.

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Cyclonus was sicker of Quintessons than he'd been earlier, something he would have thought impossible. He didn't know why they had chosen to lock the inferior beings and their primitive planet away behind the quadrant lock nor did he care. The point was they had blown a wonderful opportunity to destroy the enemy's leader and one of their best warriors. Then, to top it all off, the five faced vermin tried to strand him there. He immediately launched himself in pursuit of the departing ship. If they couldn't destroy the Autobots, perhaps they could imprison them at the least. Sadly, this wasn't the case. The quadrant lock was failing and he was certain that Sky Lynx had passed them going in the opposite direction through the portal. The Quintesson ship didn't hesitate in fleeing once it was back in normal space. The mech was livid! Why did they allow those double crossing abominations to exist? His anger was short lived when his primary concern asserted itself: Where was Galvatron?

He scanned the area and found his target almost immediately. His great and powerful leader was adrift and appeared injured. As he raced to the spot he reasoned that Sky Lynx must be the one responsible, as unbelievable as it seemed. Had others shown up to assist him? That scenario made more sense. Regardless, it was unimportant right now.

"Mighty Galvatron, are you still functioning?" There was no response at first and Cyclonus was becoming concerned and then he saw the mech's optics burn slightly brighter.

"Of course I still function, you idiot! I merely need a few repairs and then I will have my revenge. I will make them all pay!" His promise of vengeance was normal, but it was obvious he could hardly move."

"Let me help you."

"Get away from me, I need no assistance!" Galvatron said, attempting to punch the other mech but lacking the strength to move fast enough to be successful. Cyclonus easily dodged the attack. "Very well. If it will stop your constant whining, I guess you can help," he continued, shifting the contempt to his second in command.

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The femme was not the first to find a conversation with Soundwave to be mildly disconcerting. There was no way to tell what he was feeling or if he felt anything at all. He must not be totally heartless because Rumble and Frenzy wouldn't be as loyal as they were and he'd have to be tolerant to put up with those two on a daily basis for millions of years. Did telepathy help? It would have been bizarre if he'd been there to console her, but it was quickly established that he was not. A few things remained normal, it seemed.

Without being too specific, Stormvolt told him about the dreams but left out how the voice talked to her and took over occasionally.

"Why do you want to know all this?" His questions suggested he knew about it already, but she hadn't told anyone. Was he reading her mind?

"I have been experiencing a similar phenomenon. Your information correlates with that," he said, not excited in the least on the outside. It didn't take long to tell his story. Soundwave was not a long-winded individual.

"What do you think it means?"

"I don't know." He could sense her unease and experience gave him a good idea of what was causing it. "What are you omitting?"

"Huh?"

"You are concealing more information." He didn't sound angry or threatening as he stared at her impassively.

"If I tell, can you keep it quiet?"

"Yes."

"If you blab, I will deny everything." Could she trust him? He certainly wasn't talky. She never saw him say much, even to the cassettes. In private, though, who knew? But then he was also having the same issues which strongly suggested that he was at least one of the "others" she'd been told about. The chance would have to be taken at some point, why not now?

"It all started right after I …changed," she began.

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Chaar tasted nasty, a fact the Skuxxoid would have preferred remained unproven. He spat out another mouthful of dirt and gravel as he got to his feet. There had better be a way to get back to where he'd stashed the shuttlecraft, other than the one that got him here, because he was not doing that again. After putting enough distance between himself and the guard post it was time for one more steep climb. The tops of the small mountains had larger, sturdier chunks of rock and were fairly stable. Unfortunately he was exposed there and didn't want to stay too long. A quick glance around verified that no one else was about, so he quickly began the descent. The alien leaned sideways and sort of hopped his way along. It worked okay at first, but then he built up too much momentum and the ground slid out from under him again. He fought to stay upright, but wound up on his belly, body surfing on a small avalanche of rock and dirt. The mountainside made a minor effort to kill him, but he was able to thrash his way out of the suffocating pile of filth. There were rocks and dusty soil in his ears, eyes, nose and mouth and it was several minutes before he could continue on his way, swearing in his native language as he did it. The only good to come out of it was that he was heavily camouflaged now.

The going was much easier on solid ground, and he made much better progress though he stopped often to check around for additional outposts. Once, he had to hide when he heard another aircraft coming. It never came into view, but the sound was headed back toward the area he'd recently left. Interesting. There was a pattern. That and the guard post told him he was on the right path and eventually a large structure came into view. It looked like a roof with no walls. The alien stared through the small telescope but couldn't figure it out. Why would anyone want to protect a ditch? It didn't rain here. There didn't appear to be anyone around at first, but then two figures emerged onto the surface. One was the Decepticon he saw earlier and the other was a Constructicon. The first transformed back to his vehicle mode and then waited as the other loaded several small objects into the passenger compartment. Despite the scope, he was too far away to make out exactly what it was but it resembled rocks. What could they possibly be doing with rocks? Maybe it was something else. A sample was required and it should be enough to keep his employers happy. The hard part would be getting it.

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"Does this make me as crazy as Galvatron or crazier?" Stormvolt asked. It was a relief to finally tell someone about the voice and what it was maybe doing. Soundwave wouldn't have been her first choice but she could be certain he wouldn't laugh at her. He might be more devoid of humor than Cyclonus, which was no small feat.

"Insanity unlikely," the mech replied. There was far more going on here. He did not experience the anomalies with recharging until after the femme arrived. Furthermore, why would it afflict him out everyone? Well, not only him. Whatever it was had used the seeker's energy to temporarily seize control of Galvatron. This bizarreness had to have a logical explanation. So far, he knew that Megatron had done something to the human that rendered her a machine and now she could communicate with him despite his being reformatted. He or it had also gotten stronger after arriving on Chaar, sometimes taking control of the femme when the situation was necessary to ensure survival. It had shown no interest in controlling Soundwave it only demanded his assistance. This was not a delusion. There were other things he needed to know, but as he was about to ask, he noticed the flier scowl.

"Stormvolt here," she said. Communicators were the worst when it came to interrupting. It was Cyclonus and incredibly, he sounded rattled.

Soundwave watched as her scowl turned to surprise.

"Acknowledged. Departing now." It figured. About the time she finally made some progress with this mess, the center of it all goes off and gets wounded. "I gotta go," she said to the mech as she ran for the door, not explaining nor waiting for a response.

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Author's notes continued: As I said, I was presented with the perspectives of some readers last time who didn't really agree with how I was going about some of this and requested I reply. We've all got opinions. I am not a total purist and think if you make everyone so totally evil or good that there's no room for anything else at all, the characters become one dimensional. Evil has as many variations and subtleties as anything else and it is very good at disguising itself.

First, it's thought that I'm making the 'Cons too emotional and sympathetic.

I think that if you have emotions, you have all of them, though these guys would tend to openly express the bad ones more than any others. However, there would have to be cooperation to some degree or they would have wiped themselves out a long time ago. There's treachery and infighting going on just like always. But at the same time, I couldn't imagine hanging around the same individuals for millions of years without there being friendships. I picture Soundwave and the cassettes as the closest thing to a family and being used to that kind of relationship would make Rumble and Frenzy more accepting of someone new if they were non-hostile. Also, they kind of seem like kids in some ways and would be interested in things that are new and weird and possibly gross. I see Thrust as less of a jerk because of formerly being the only seeker and taking a lot of abuse from the others. Keep in mind too that they have hit very hard times and this would change some attitudes.

There is a reason why most of the rest of them are subdued and kind of dumb on Chaar. That will be explained in the story eventually.

Second is a concern that I'm making Megatron too nice. He's one evil bastard for sure but there's more to being evil than force and overt nastiness. He's smart and patient. He'd know when to lie and manipulate and sweet talk someone, especially when his own position was extremely precarious and he was forced to be reliant upon another, the way he is right now. Particularly if that was his only option. And I don't feel he's totally incapable of liking someone, however that like wouldn't be enough to save them if it came down to his life or theirs. He wouldn't flinch or hesitate to toss them to the wolves. There might even be a little regret afterwards but it would be extremely short lived.

It's also been suggested that Erica/Stormvolt is a bit dopey. I don't know if the reviewer read Come Around or not. She's not dumb, just in an overwhelming situation. You have to imagine being a human and randomly grabbed and forced to live amongst a bunch of hostile, giant machines. You are cut off from everything and everyone. You have one source for answers and no idea that he's lying to you for fun. He always seems to be right about everything so why wouldn't you believe what you were told? What would be the purpose in lying to you? It isn't as though you have some magic power that would tip events in anyone's favor. Besides, there are other concerns. There's not much free time and a lot to learn. You have to adapt and survive in your new home. In doing so, you manage to make a few friends who would mean a lot because they'd be the only ones you have. Humans can't seem to not form emotional attachments. After a while this would be normal and you'd stop asking so many questions. Things might happen that would suggest other possibilities but it wouldn't be enough to convince you. And then one day you're a machine yourself and totally alone. These developments bring an entirely new set of obstacles and one just leads to another.

As for what happens regarding the Headmaster/Targetmaster story line…nothing. I hated that entire concept and I'm not going to use it.