Author's note: Here's Chapter 28. So that you can get down to business right away, I've put the rest of this note at the end. Animation inconsistencies would suggest a Skuxxoid could be anywhere from the size of Bumblebee to a human. I think of them as being the size of a really big person, like an NFL offensive lineman. Enjoy. Transformers belongs to Hasbro and Takara, not me.

A Blessing and A Curse
By: Quetzal

Chapter 28
A Brief Respite

xxx

"Alright, I guess I can see what you're sayin', but so what?" Said Rumble. The pair had gone back to the mine headquarters in an attempt to continue working on the refining device, but upon discovering they were alone, sat down to let the overenergizing run its course. Frenzy had taken the opportunity to lay out the plan he'd been mulling over concerning the replacement of the second in command with Soundwave. Initially, Rumble hadn't been receptive, as being overenergized tended to make him more argumentative but eventually he was forced to admit his twin was on to something.

"Don't ya get it?" Frenzy responded. "All we gotta do is point out how Soundwave is similar only better and maybe we can get Stormvolt to ditch that zombie Cyclonus."

"Yeah!" Rumble said enthusiastically, but then paused, frowning the way he did when he encountered a problem. "It's a great idea…but…"

"But what?"

"What if it works?"

"How is that bad?"

"Well, ya don't think he'll start ignorin' us do ya?" Both of the mechs had seen the bizarre personality changes that sometimes took place when a pair of machines first became interested in one another. Often the 'bots in question lost interest in everything but the company of their significant other. It was usually temporary, but annoying nonetheless.

"Soundwave? No way."

"Alright, what do you think Cyclonus is gonna do about it? I don't see that creep just givin' up."

"Hey, ya can't force somebody to like ya that way."

"No, but that doesn't stop 'em from makin' your life miserable as revenge."

"True. Nobody needs that, but let's worry about it if it happens. First we gotta get Stormvolt thinkin' about Soundwave."

"Sure, but I think ya missed somethin' else," Rumble said, as he leaned forward to rest his head on the table.

"What now?" Frenzy hated when his schemes were poked full of holes. It was supposed to be his job to do that to Rumble, not vice versa.

"What if Soundwave doesn't go for it? In all the years we've known him, has he ever acted the least bit interested in anybody?" It didn't occur to them that Stormvolt might also decline the offer. Why should she? This was Soundwave they were talking about. He had enough similarities to Cyclonus that she ought to see it, plus he was simply better than that big, weird, purple fragger. Once they called attention to the obvious, the rest should take care of itself.

"No, but how could ya tell?" The mech's inscrutability severely aggravated them now and then, but they were also proud of the way it bothered the others too.

"Yeah. I dunno. I guess we try it and see what happens." With the matter more or less settled, the pair slowly went offline into recharge, unaware that they were being observed.

xxx

Deadend could see through a series of large cracks in the haphazardly erected wall, but the constant noise made it hard to eavesdrop. Vortex was somewhere around, the heavy thump of rotors faintly audible and then a low roar nearer as Thrust continued his patrolling. He was very glad that he thought to check for occupants before he went inside. Those two little glitches were gradually becoming the bane of his existence. It would have been nice to get closer but it was still possible to get a good view of the refining apparatus. For something made of scavenged parts, it wasn't a bad looking device, not that he knew much about it. There were obvious parts removed but it still appeared to be nearing completion. He stood there a while before moving toward the entrance. If those two were off line, he would poke his head in the door and see what else was going on that wasn't visible from his present location.

As the Stunticon began to creep toward the door, he heard the racket Vortex was making suddenly stop but then the shriek of jet engines took its place and began to get louder. From the sound it was more than one aircraft. Best to get out of sight. He quickly went around to the side of the structure and pressed himself against the wall. Hopefully this would be good enough. Given his luck it was unlikely, but there wasn't much else to be done. The roar was close enough to feel as a vibration in the wall behind him. The mech risked a peek around the corner of the building and saw the femme do a graceful roll down and away from the side of the second in command. They didn't appear to be in any hurry and once the seeker was transformed and on the ground, Deadend saw why.

He didn't see her that often but he had enough to know someone had beaten the slag out of her since the last time. With that big wing patch, she probably really had to watch the speed, hence the slow flight. Motormaster might be interested in this. Now that Vortex had gotten quiet and Cyclonus was rapidly going away, perhaps he could hear the conversation.

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Vortex delighted in terrorizing anyone, but small, weak creatures were the most enjoyable. The Skuxxoid was cowering and cringing away from him. When he encountered the interloper and it realized the fix it was in, momentary paralysis set in. Vortex had leaned over to make a grab for it, but the paralysis broke and it was off and running. The Combaticon watched for several seconds, allowing a substantial lead before leaping skyward and transforming.

It would have been easy (and safer for him) to use antigravity but the amount of noise he generated inspired more fear. He knew the mine wasn't that far. If someone got curious and investigated he would simply lie about what he was doing out here or threaten them into silence. If anyone who mattered caught him, he could say he'd been passing by and look what I found, although he didn't have any intentions of turning over his prisoner. No chance, there was too much fun to be had. The din his alt mode made was considerable, but the massive rotors were wonderfully effective tools for terror. The helicopter slowed and leaned forward, tail in the air, so that the slashing blades were angled down close enough to hit the fleeing alien. Catching his quarry would not be any challenge.

The Skuxxoid was in a panic. Logic told him he would never be able to outrun the mech but it was his only possible defense. He ran as fast as his squat body would allow and initially didn't hear any big pounding steps behind him. He also glanced overhead to see nothing. Was it going to let him go? But then that tiny shred of hope was destroyed when the engines and rotors started again. They were loud and then became deafening. Daring to spare a glance behind him, his heart nearly froze at the sight of the blur that was the giant blades only a couple of feet behind him. Shrieking, the alien dove to the side.

Vortex chuckled as he transformed again. He quickly snatched the horrified organic from the ground before it had a chance to run again. It was practically vibrating as it trembled with fear and the Combaticon shook it cruelly.

"What are you doing here?" Vortex demanded.

"I-I-I…"

"STOP THAT AND ANSWER ME!"

"Listen, p-please don't hurt me! I–I got a wife and kids…"

"You say that as though I should care." Vortex opened his hand and grabbed the alien by one arm then dangled it in the open air, bouncing it slightly like a cat toy. He watched the creature suffer, now in pain in addition to being scared. As much fun as this was, it would be better with an audience. Motormaster always enjoyed his recounting of past successes in this area, he'd certainly be impressed to see it in person. He gave up the bouncing for swinging the alien back and forth like a hypnotist's watch.

The Skuxxoid was trying not to squirm because it hurt more and he was also afraid his captor would lose his grip and drop him. It was a long way down. Suddenly he was launched into the air and began screaming before he landed with a smack in the palm of a giant metal hand. The collision knocked the breath out of him and then his shoulder began to throb. He didn't think it was dislocated, but it had come close.

"Quit whining. That was nothing," Vortex sneered.

"What do you want from me?"

"First we're going to see a friend and then you're going to tell us what we want to know or else."

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"What in the pit happened to you?" Rumble asked. He hadn't gone that far into recharge when he heard furtive noises near the workbench. It wasn't Frenzy, because he'd crash around the same as always. His optics came on-line and he saw the femme leaning against the bench and trying to quietly stuff filter material into a canister. She was dented and spotted with corrosion inhibitor and had a big shiny patch on one wing.

"Hello to you too," she said. "I'll give you one guess."

"Galvatron?"

"Bingo."

Frenzy began to stir and raised his head from the table. "Wow, you look fragged," he said to Stormvolt as soon as he got a glimpse of her.

"So I hear." Something seemed off about the two of them, but it was difficult to tell what it was. That they were overenergized didn't occur to the seeker, what with the rationing and poor quality of fuel available.

"Galvatron strikes again," Rumble said.

"I shoulda known. What set him off this time?"

"He knows."

"What?"

"Galvatron figured it out. I don't know how, but… Did you guys hear that?" As she was about to tell them what had transpired, she thought she heard Scourge.

xxx

Deadend was creeping away from the ragged structure as fast and as quietly as he possible. Of all the times for Scourge to call him. And how stupid of him to have left his communicator on the audible setting.

"Where are you?" The tracker demanded.

"I'm on the way back right now."

"Well, move it! There's Ranazite piling up and you need to get it out of here."

"As you command," Deadend said, not totally able to get the resignation out of his voice. What was his problem? Usually he was mostly indifferent. And why would the element be piling up so quickly? Perhaps it had to do with whatever Galvatron had figured out. Then an unsettling thought lodged itself in his processor: What if Galvatron was at the mine right now? The Stunticon cursed his luck as he did at some point on an almost daily basis, while engaging the anti gravity. He needed to get further away before transforming. He didn't know what their maniac leader had discovered but he did have new information for Motormaster. Hopefully, it would be enough to keep him happy, or as close as he got. Yeah, right. As though that ever happened.

xxx

"I don't hear nothin'. And never mind that, what does Galvatron know?" Rumble asked.

"He knows who I was."

"Oh, wow. Is that why you're all…" Frenzy said, gesturing toward her rather than finishing the sentence. The femme nodded. "How?"

"I'm not sure," she said. The story wasn't lengthy and it was almost funny the way the two small mech were staring at her with matching shocked expressions.

"So then Cyclonus knows too?" Rumble asked. That particular tidbit of information may have solved the problem for them.

"Yup."

"And then the two of them decided to rearrange your sheet metal?" Frenzy asked.

"No, it was all Galvatron. In fact, Cyclonus tried to talk him out of it. The really crazy thing was that he wasn't even that mad about my hiding the human thing. He was flipping out about all kinds of crap that had nothing to do with me."

"That sounds about right."

"And at one point it was so bad he thought I was Starscream."

"Really?"

"Yes. That's when he did that," she said, angling her head toward the damaged wing. "And it gets better. Before he went nuts… okay, more nuts, he claimed me as 'one of his own,' whatever that is. Can you believe that shit?"

"No way." Rumble said.

"I don't know if I should be more scared by that than the rest of it."

"Did he finally get tired of whalin' on ya or what?"

"Nah. He had some kind of … I don't know…malfunction right before he put my lights out. When I came back on line he was gone."

"Are ya positive you're okay?" asked Frenzy.

"Other than that rip on my wing and a few dents, I feel fine."

"Maybe somebody oughtta check it out anyway."

"Mmmm… I don't think so. Cyclonus did a good job. It's all covered with the patch and there's corrosion inhibitor too. Besides, who would I get? Hook? No thank you."

"Wait a minute. Cyclonus fixed you up? What got into him, wasn't he mad about your bein' a human before?"

"Hey, I was as shocked as anyone. I thought for sure that he'd beat the snot out of me at the absolute least, but I told him the whole story and he was okay with it more or less."

"You have gotta be the luckiest 'bot ever. I can't believe he'd take it that well."

"But does that mean he's not interested in ya anymore?" Rumble asked, trying unsuccessfully to keep the hopefulness out of his vocalizer.

"No. Everything there is fine. Sorry," the femme said wryly. "And you were right about what he and Scourge and the others are."

"Zombies?"

"No! They were reformatted from the others who were with Megatron, but they aren't zombies. They have sparks just like the rest of us."

"Yeah, zombie sparks," Rumble muttered.

"What?"

"Nothin'."

"Doesn't that freak you out a little?" Frenzy asked.

The seeker considered the question for several seconds. "Yes and no. I'd kind of like to know who he was, but there's been a lot of time to think about it so I wasn't really surprised."

"He didn't tell ya?"

"He doesn't know. No one except Galvatron knows who's who and he hasn't said."

"Any guesses?"

"Going by what I've seen of his sense of humor so far, I think we can rule out Skywarp."

"Heh! I think you're right."

"Here's an idea: what if that's Kickback tryin' to get in good with ya?" Asked Rumble.

"Ohhh… or Bombshell," Frenzy added.

"Or Shrapnel!"

"Or Thundercracker," Stormvolt said, ending their attempts to be disgusting. "Reformatting is supposed to create someone entirely new, with Galvatron being the exception, apparently. And what if Cyclonus was an Insecticon? You guys have to admit there's been a huge improvement."

"Maybe," Rumble agreed grudgingly.

"Besides, it's like he said: 'none of us are what we used to be.' "

"Speak for yourself," Frenzy said indignantly.

I guess someone's got to be normal around here. I'm glad you guys are still you and didn't get turned into someone else or all dumb like the others. That's not my imagination is it?"

"That the others are dumb or that we ain't?" asked Rumble.

"You know what I mean."

"We don't know what their problem is. Ever since we lost the war, they've all been goin' downhill,"

"Depression?"

"No, I don't think so. Some of 'em still try but they're just stupid." He considered then corrected himself. "Stupider."

Frenzy nodded. "There was this one day, we saw the Constructicons messin' around and they didn't know we was there. It was like none of 'em knew what they was doin'. If you'd told the Stunticons to go build somethin' the results woulda been the same. They didn't seem ta know the first thing about it."

"What they've been doing in the mine lately seems like their old selves," said Stormvolt. "Could it be leftover damage from a battle causing intermittent problems?"

"I dunno about that, but it's like it's effected everybody but us cassettes, you, and maybe Shockwave. Oh, and Galvatron's crew, not countin' Galvatron himself of course."

"Don't forget Soundwave," Rumble added, trying to be helpful. "He's totally normal. You oughtta talk to him about it." Frenzy wanted to kick his twin beneath the table but didn't. One day soon he needed to have a discussion with him about subtlety.

"I'll have to do that sometime, but right now, let's get these filters done and back in place. We still have to test them and I don't want to be the one holding things up whenever we finally get the word that the Ranazite is acceptable."

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It was the most terrifying experience of the Skuxxoid's life. He was at the mercy of two of the killer machines and it didn't appear to be a concept either one was familiar with.

"Are you going to tell us why you're here or do we have to get more persuasive?" Motormaster asked. He had been bored out of this processor until Vortex showed up with his sniveling prisoner. The Stunticon had seen one of these things before but they were all alike to him and he didn't know if it was the same one or not.

"I wasn't doin' nothin' bad, I was just lookin' around." It was hard to breathe while in the grip of a giant hand. Motormaster was no gentler than Vortex.

"Don't lie to us, organic scum. If you were merely taking in the scenery what are you doing with this?" Vortex said, holding up the pilfered Ranazite.

"I found it lying around, honest."

" 'Honest' he says. Ha! You've been out at the mine spying haven't you?" Asked Motormaster.

"N-No! You got it all wrong!"

"Liar!" And then he was hurled into the bunker as the two Decepticons discussed what to do next.

They were far enough away so that the battered alien couldn't hear them. Eavesdropping was the last thing on his mind. He had bounced off the center column and hit the floor. He felt himself come close to unconsciousness but panic snapped him back. Fortunately, his scaly hide kept him from serious harm and he was able to squirm his way up against a wall out of sight. There was only one hope now. His hands slapped at the belt cinched around his rotund torso before finding the communicator. Oh, please don't let the thing be broken, he thought as he pulled it loose and hit the power button. The screen began to glow dimly. There was only static but he prayed that it would quickly change when he sent his message.

"Come in! Come in! I need help!" He hissed as quietly as he could. Nothing happened. "C'mon you guys, it's an emergency. I'm in big trouble," he whined, his voice going higher and higher in pitch.

Slowly the static was replaced by the image of a wide metallic face topped with an orange five-pointed ornament.

"Is there a problem?" It said.

"You gotta get me out of here!"

"We do not have to do anything of the sort. Your failure is not our responsibility."

"Pleeeeaaaaase? These things are gonna tear me apart!"

"So you managed to get yourself captured. How unfortunate."

"If you don't save me you'll never know about what I discovered."

"How do we know it is worth the bother?" This time the question came from a different face, this one gaunt with a clump of spikes on top.

"But it is! I swear! Promise you'll come and get me, and I'll tell you all about it!"

"You realize that our direct involvement in what was supposed to be your task, and yours alone, renders any contract between us null and void."

The Skuxxoid stared at the screen not certain of what that meant but not liking the gist at all.

The Quintesson surmised this and clarified. "We are no longer obligated to provide compensation. You get nothing except your pathetic life."

"What?! You dirty…. That's not fair!"

The faces spun again. The next one that spoke was surrounded in red and sporting fangs.

"Your sense of justice does not concern us. Decide. Forfeiture or abandonment to your captors."

All his dreams of Monacus collapsed in ruin. "Alright. You win. I get nothin', just get me outta here."

xxx

"You found him out wandering around, huh?" Motormaster asked.

"He was probably lost… and wishes he still were now." Vortex replied.

"What do you think we should do with him?"

"Do you even need to ask?"

"Everyone knows Chaar is a dump and that it's our dump. Why would that thing come here on it's own?"

"Good point. Was he sent here? But by who and for what reason?"

"I don't know, but he was definitely going to tell them about the mine. We can't have someone causing trouble there. We still need it."

"But who could possibly care about what we're doing here? The Autobots, I guess, but they wouldn't send a loser like that."

"Let's have some fun and see if we can get it out of him. Any ideas?" Motormaster asked with a sly grin.

"Always."

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Author's note continued: I've been working on this series of stories for, by my standards, quite a while now. I get comments from the regulars (thanks guys) and a PM now and then from some other folks (always nice to hear from you) but really, I don't know much about the majority of you. In an attempt to remedy this, I'm going to start posting polls in my profile section. I'll change it with each new chapter. There's a question there now that's been there for over a month so don't answer if you're one of the four who have found it already. The results stay hidden but when I change the question, I'll post the results for the old one in the profile in case anyone besides me is interested.