CHAPTER 14
Hurt
Optimus knew something was wrong when he called Raf to request a GroundBridge back to base. He knew from the tone of his voice as he responded to the request. But he had not expected the sight that met him and Starscream as they came out on the other side of the portal.
On an operating table by the medbay, Bulkhead lay with a lot of cables attached to him. Ratchet scurried around, trying desperately to get the Wrecker stabilized.
"What happened?" Optimus asked concerned, looking around at the other Autobots and humans for answers. All had the same anxious and fearful expressions. Miko so more than the others, understandably, as it was her partner laying hurt on the table. She was sitting with her back against the railings on the upper floor, facing away from Bulkhead. She didn't want to see him this way, but at the same time she didn't want to leave his side.
"He was exposed to Tox-En," Arcee explained, "and then he was attacked by an Insecticon called Hardshell."
"An Insecticon?" Starscream remarked with dread. "That must have been ugly."
"You didn't see how he was like when we came back," Arcee said. "It was horrifying. Especially to Miko."
"Yeah, when we came back, Ratchet was literally trying to shock him back to life," Bumblebee bleeped, remembering the horrible scene that met their return.
As Agent Fowler took a call, Starscream looked from side to side and spotted a table that had something lying on it, seemingly a relic. He went over to it.
"So, it seems we aren't the only ones who were successful in retrieving a relic..." He trailed off and paused as he put down the Apex Armor next to the other relic, which he recognized as a Phase Shifter.
As he put down the relic, his gaze fell onto his servos. His spark skipped a beat. There were no stasis cuffs on his wrists. Not even the ones attached by an energy string. Both sets of stasis cuffs had been torn off by the Apex Armor!
Starscream turned and looked at the other Autobots. It didn't seem like they had heard what he had just said. They were all focused on Bulkhead and his dire situation. None of them knew that the Seeker was right now free and unrestrained - free to escape if he felt like it.
Starscream didn't move. He didn't speak. He just looked from the Autobots to his wrists and back, wondering how long it would take them to realize he wasn't bound any longer. He wondered if he should even wait for them to find out. He looked around, trying to think of a way to get out.
"Yes, sir," Agent Fowler said, ending his phone call. "Turns out highlights of your Big Apple adventure got caught on security tape. The pentagon needs me to run interference with the mayor." The human looked intently at the wounded Bulkhead, still being examined thoroughly by Ratchet. "I tried to stall, but..."
"Go where you are needed, Agent Fowler," Optimus said calmly. "There is nothing more you can do for Bulkhead at this time."
Agent Fowler turned to leave. "Keep me posted, Prime." He went over to the elevator, catching Starscream's attention. "I mean it."
The man went into the elevator, which closed and took him up, probably to the top of the cliff the base was situated on. The action got Starscream thinking.
Of course, the Seeker thought intently. The elevator. I can access it by myself, take me to the top outside. I can leave without anyone noticing.
"Wheeljack's on his way," Arcee informed after Agent Fowler left.
This caught the attention of both Starscream and Miko, the latter standing up and staring at the bots in disbelief.
"I can't believe you're giving up on Bulkhead already!" Miko exclaimed upset.
"All I meant was Wheeljack and Bulkhead are close," Arcee clarified. "I thought he'd wanna be here."
"I know what you meant," Miko snapped and turned around, heading for the human-sized elevator Agent Fowler had gone through.
"Miko, where are you going?" Optimus asked with concern.
"Home," Miko hissed. "While Agent Fowler can still give me a lift."
Miko went into the elevator and glared at the bots before it closed, bringing her up. Arcee was about to go after her when Optimus laid a servo on her shoulder.
"She needs time," Optimus said calmly.
The bots returned to monitoring Bulkhead, still ignoring Starscream. Starscream gazed from the Autobots to the human elevator to the Autobot elevator, just a little distance away from the railings. He remembered it from watching Ratchet going up to get his missiles, knowing it was how they got to the top of the cliff they lived in. It would be the path he had to take to get to the topside, allowing him to take off into flight.
But he hesitated, knowing the Autobots would see the action as betrayal, having told him time after time that they hadn't cleared him for flight yet. There was something else he remembered, though. He remembered the last time he had flown. Back during the time he, Arcee and Jack had gone to rescue Optimus from the Decepticon warship.
After having formed their plan of allowing Starscream to take Jack and Arcee with him to find the warship, they had taken the very same elevator up to the top as Ratchet had when retrieving the Seeker's missiles, Starscream now remembered. As they had made it to the top, they all three walked to the platform in the center of the plateau. Arcee and Jack had stepped back a bit, giving the Seeker some space to transform. With a deep vent, Starscream had assumed jet mode, feeling eager to get back into the air. But before he could leave prematurely, Arcee had jumped onto his back, reminding him not to try to escape. Starscream had then opened his cockpit, hovering a bit over the ground, allowing Jack to go inside. As Jack had seated himself and fastened the seat belt (which had come with the alternate mode when Starscream had scanned his Earth mode), Starscream had closed the cockpit again. Telling the both of them to hang on tight, he had then fired up his thrusters and launched himself into the sky at high speed, almost knocking Arcee off in the process. Both the Autobot and the human had been surprised at the incredible speed Starscream could fly at, though he had told them it wasn't even near his top speed.
It had been fun, aside from his passengers, that is. It had become much less fun as they had entered the warship, even if the mission had been successful. However, what he remembered most clearly from the mission was when they returned to the Autobot base. Despite having proven he had not flown away or tried to gut either of his new comrades, Arcee had put new stasis cuffs on the Seeker's wrists, accusing him of not being trustworthy enough yet. The memory had stuck itself fast into his processor. He knew they would do the same now if they discovered he was currently not restrained.
He could not have that. He could not let such an opportunity alone. He could not find himself free and not do anything about it. He could not let the Autobots take his newfound freedom away so easily again. He had to leave. He had to think. He had to fly.
Taking a deep vent, Starscream gazed once again from the distraught Autobots to the big elevator. He had made his decision.
Keeping an optic on the Autobots to make sure they didn't notice what he was doing, the Seeker carefully and silently tiptoed his way across the floor towards the elevator. As he made it all the way, he looked one last time over his shoulder. The Autobots were still focusing on Bulkhead. Good.
Starscream pushed the button beside the elevator, opening it. The doors retracted with a loud swishing sound. Starscream quickly stepped inside and turned to look at the outside with a beating spark. First now did the Autobots look up and realized what he was doing.
"Starscream?" Arcee remarked, spotting the Seeker in the elevator. "What are you..."
Before he could hear the end of her sentence, Starscream, staring at the Autobots with a blank expression, pressed the button on the inside of the elevator, closing the doors, taking him up.
His spark beat accelerated from the action. He felt his frame tremble, knowing he was in deep trouble. But he couldn't turn back. Not now. The dice had been cast. He had reached the point of no return.
A minute after pushing the button, the elevator doors opened up, and Starscream stepped outside, just in time before the doors closed and the elevator went down again. In two minutes, the Autobots would arrive at his location and try to stop him. He had to get away before then.
Starscream stepped out on the platform and looked up. A helicopter had taken off and was flying away. Agent Fowler, surely, with Miko as a passenger. It was late afternoon, but it wouldn't be long before sunset.
Starscream looked down at the platform in the center of the plateau. There was a jet parked in the left end, also belonging to Agent Fowler, the same jet that had been scanned by Skyquake and Dreadwing. Starscream went over to it and inspected it. It was larger than his own jet mode, naturally. It was a faint bluish gray color and looked robust. Dents and scratches were marked across the plating, having survived several sky battles.
Starscream laid a servo on the jet's frame. Soon, it would be his turn to fly again. He smirked by the thought.
A faint blue glow caught his attention and looked down at his left arm. There was a small Energon stain on his armor. He wiped the stain with his servo. It was still there. He was apparently wounded. Probably got shot by one of those Vehicons in the Antarctic. It had apparently been a small wound, since he first noticed now that he was leaking. He wiped his stained servo off on the jet, not wanting his own servo to get sticky. He would deal with it later.
Starscream stepped to the center of the platform and stared into the sky, his spark beating in a fast pace in anticipation. He took a deep vent and exhaled.
Suddenly the elevator door opened, and out stepped Arcee and Optimus.
"Starscream!" one of them shouted, Starscream was unsure who.
Starscream made a quick decision and transformed to jet mode, firing up his thrusters as Arcee and Optimus began running towards him. Just as they reached him, he blasted off, launching himself into the sky at full speed, leaving behind the two shocked Autobots.
As Starscream soared through the sky, he let out shrieks of first disbelief, then relief, then joy.
"I did it!" Starscream exclaimed to himself as he slowed down, knowing he had escaped the Autobots. "I did it! I'm free!"
The Seeker expressed his joy of being in the sky again by spinning, making loops and other aerial tricks, going all out of not having flown like that for months now. He ascended higher into the sky, above the clouds, feeling the water washing away dirt and Energon from his missions today. As he reached the top, watching the sun beginning to set, he switched to robot mode and initiated a free fall.
Free falls were his favorite part of flying. Letting himself fall, knowing he had the ability to get himself back up before hitting the ground, that was a thrill a Grounder would never understand. He closed his optics and felt the wind blow beneath him. He turned to face against the ground and felt the wind enter his ventilation system, cooling his interior. He spread out his arms and legs, feeling how it slowed his fall slightly. This was life. This was what he had longed for all these months while trapped in the Autobot base, trapped in robot mode.
He opened his optics in slits and saw he was nearing the ground. Just two hundred meters before hitting the ground, he initiated jet mode, turned upwards and fired his thrusters, having been two meters from hitting the ground, and launched back into the air.
Starscream loved free falls. He even liked initiaing one when simply switching from robot mode to jet mode. He liked transforming with style. He hadn't been the Air Commander of the Energon Seekers for nothing, after all. His aerial skills was one of the many reasons the other Seekers had admired and idolized Starscream, hereamong Jetfire. That Seeker could fly like a boss, that's what they used to say while Red Wing was still in command.
Starscream could fly faster than all the other Energon Seekers, he had complete control over his flight mode, he could do all sorts of impressive tricks in the air, he had been powerful, very intelligent, and he was able to keep his head cool in situations most other flight frames couldn't. Not to mention that he was very good with words, having the diplomatic skills worthy of even a Prime. Even in battle he had had great firepower and a pair of one-handed Energon swords he was very skilled in using. All these were reasons for Red Wing to hand over the post of Air Commander to Starscream. No one had been against his choice. Starscream had been a prodigy, excelling in almost every part that made him a Seeker. Considering he was a mere Cold Construct, his prowess and power was amazing.
Thinking about his own power, Starscream suddenly Sunstorm came to mind. Sunstorm was also a very powerful and dangerous Seeker, due to his strange ability to burn anyone he touched and destroy any machinery around him. He had been created with this ability, perhaps due to a defect upon spark insertion or frame construction. Sunstorm had meant differently, however. He believed he had been blessed by Primus himself with an ability so powerful that he was practically invulnerable and impossible to beat in battle. The yellow Flier had devoted himself entirely to Primus and his beliefs, not having any problem in leaving Cybertron as he was shunned by pretty much everyone, even Starscream himself.
Starscream hadn't been entirely voluntary in the banishing of Sunstorm from the Energon Seekers, though. He had a special relationship with Sunstorm that few Cold Constructs had in similarity.
Sunstorm was Starscream's brother.
The two of them were Spark Twins, much like Skyquake and Dreadwing. Upon creation of a Branched Spark, it split into two sparks, one going into the body that became Starscream, the other going into the one that became Sunstorm. They were created in the same production line, along with Thundercracker, Skywarp and many other Seekers. Nobody knew the two of them were twins, no one but themselves. After all, they all looked alike, so no one would suspect any of them to be related.
But because of their binary bond, Starscream and Sunstorm knew they were part of the same spark. They couldn't exactly feel each other's pain, but they could feel if one of them was in mortal danger, as well as if - hypothetically - one of them had his spark extinguished. Starscream had not felt his brother's spark for many eons, but he knew he was still alive. He had not seen his brother for many eons either, even before the war started, and assumed Sunstorm had no idea of the war waged on Cybertron. Starscream wondered if Sunstorm knew Starscream had switched bodies, as he was unsure if the binary bond was still as strong when his spark had transfered from his old body to this new Vehicon-based body.
Starscream mentally shook his head and decided to land on a plateau far from the Autobot base. What was he aiming for here? While it had felt good to get out of the cliff and into the sky, it couldn't have been the sole reason for him to have escaped the Autobots. He had to rethink his situation. He had to remember why he was doing this.
After a long moment of thinking, he remembered why he had wanted so badly to get back into the sky. He was still missing his belongings on the Nemesis. He looked down at himself. With his transformation back in his possession, he could once again access his lasers, giving him a more efficient way of defending himself. He also still had his missiles attached to his arms. And, of course, if it came to close combat, he had his extremely long claws, recently sharpened from letting out his frustrations on a metal dummy in the training room. He would probably manage himself in a fight.
But he knew it wouldn't be so easy. There was an army of Vehicons onboard the warship, as well as an armada of Insecticons, which he had seen himself were also roaming the inside of the ship. The Vehicons were easy prey, the Insecticons, not so much.
"If I am to reach my quarters, I will need to sneak onboard," he said to himself, crossing his arms. "But how to use stealth with the increase in staff...?"
Suddenly, his comm. pinged, startling him. His comm. had not pinged for several months now. He put a digit to his audio receptor and answered the comm.
"Who is this?" Starscream asked suspiciously.
"Ah, Starscream, so good to hear your voice again!" a small, familiar voice sounded through the comm. "I thought I'd never get in touch with you again!"
"Swindle?!" Starscream exclaimed, recognizing the voice. "How did you get on my frequency?"
"I placed a little 'friend' on your back when last we met," Swindle explained. "I have heard everything you've said since, and if I am not mistaken, you are currently free and flying, am I right?"
Starscream stiffened by the information and instinctively reached a servo behind his back and felt it. He felt a small bump at the small of his back and pulled at it. As he got it off, he brought the servo to his front to examine the thing. It seemed to be some sort of tiny tracking device and his spark skipped a beat.
"You've been tracking my position all this time?!" Starscream exclaimed in fright, knowing the Autobot base location may be in the possession of Swindle.
"No, not your locaiton, just your audio," Swindle said in what was supposed to be a reassuring tone. "I have no idea where your little Autobot friends live. I've been trying to contact you several times, but it seems Decepticons can't just call someone in the Autobot base without an invite, can they?"
"Perhaps not," Starscream said, relieved he hadn't compromised the Autobot base after all. "Anyway, what do you want from me, Swindle?"
"I want you to bring an Energon crystal to my current coordinates, and I will give you something in return, something that will help you reach your quarters without being seen by the Decepticons."
Starscream flinched again. "Oh, you heard that, did you?" he said lowly. "Fine, what size do you want?"
"As long as I can carry it and I can't swallow it whole, any size will do," Swindle replied joyfully through the comm. "Do we have a deal?"
Starscream looked up and gazed at the horizon. "I believe we do."
As the comm. ended and Starscream received the coordinates to Swindle's current location, he leapt off the cliff, let himself fall a bit before turning upwards and transformed to jet mode, blasting into the sky and set off in a random direction.
His ability to find Energon wasn't as good as it used to, having switched to a Vehicon body and everything, but he was still pretty good at locating it. Memories and programmings from Starscream's old body's processor had been copied into his spark, thus how he only needed to have his spark transplanted into his new body when his old one had become a total wreck during the fall of Cybertron. He shuddered a bit by the memory.
After getting labelled as a fugitive by Megatron, Starscream had been in hiding, fighting both Autobots and Decepticons from a neutral line. The Seeker had been on his own during the time, but he had managed to offline many 'Bots and 'Cons in the process. Eventually he had found an opportunity in the captured Grimlock, held in one of Shockwave's Space Bridge towers. Starscream had broken into the tower, taken out Shockwave's underlings and freed the Dinobot. Grimlock, however, had not been very eager to help Starscream fight the Decepticons, and the big brute had grabbed the Seeker and thrown him into the control panel, freeing the Dinobot and knocking the Seeker unconscious.
When Starscream had then regained consciousness, he felt a rumbling everywhere around him. He looked up and found the entire tower collapsing on top of him. Before he could get up and out of there, he had been buried underneath the debris and lost consciousness again.
Next time Starscream regained consciousness, his entire body was shattered, broken and wrecked. He could barely move, and he could feel that even if he tried, he would have probably fallen apart. Despite the fact he had still been a fugitive, a traitor and a war criminal, he had screamed out for help, for he knew he would not be able to survive by himself.
After many cycles, someone answered his call. It had been Shockwave himself who found the wrecked Starscream, the Cyclops having lost his right arm. The two mechs had then made a deal. Shockwave would save Starscream's chassis if Starscream helped replace Shockwave's arm, as he only had his cannon arm left, leaving him unable to do scientific work anymore. Starscream had agreed to the deal, and Shockwave had then lifted the Seeker out from the debris.
Shockwave had proceeded to bring Starscream to one of his offsite laboratories nearby. In there, he had placed Starscream on an operating table but found his body too shambled to save. So instead, Shockwave had brought out a blank Vehicon Protoform, opened it and removed its own spark. He then put Starscream in stasis and removed the Seeker's spark, carefully transplanting it into the blank Protoform. Afterwards, he had added a cube of Energon to the Protoform, which then proceeded to take the shape of a smaller, weaker and less competent Starscream, similar to his old form yet more similar to a Vehicon. His coding allowed him to become bigger than normal Vehicons, however, as well as changing his color scheme to his basic silver color, unlike the Vehicons' mostly dark purple color scheme.
When Starscream had woken up again, he had been glad to find himself still alive, though not so glad to find himself in another body, as well as his own body completely in ruin. He had been surprised he was still alive, considering the condition the body had been in.
As promised, Starscream had then proceeded to help Shockwave replace his right arm, allowing him to continue his scientific work. Shockwave had then commented on how it was too bad Starscream had retired from his scientific career to work in the military field. Too bad for the Seeker, that is.
Afterwards, Starscream stayed with Shockwave for a bit, until Shockwave ended up calling Megatron and telling him about Starscream's return. As Starscream then returned to Megatron's side as the Decepticon warship ventured into the cosmos, chasing after the Autobot ship, steering towards Planet Earth, the Seeker swore eternal allegiance to Megatron, and the warlord allowed him to live. Before they had reached the Earth, however, Shockwave had called Starscream and requested him to return to Cybertron to assist him in working on the new Space Bridge. Starscream had done so, leaving his Trine Mates, Megatron and the other Decepticons behind on the Nemesis, not to see them again until he arrived on Earth more than a decade later. By that time, the Combaticons, Stunticons and his Trine Mates had left the war and were roaming the Earth somewhere.
Starscream snapped out of his thoughts when something beeped on his radar. An Energon signal, and a strong one at that. He followed the signal to a mine accessible from the sky, with a large hole in the ceiling. He transformed and landed by the edge of the entrance and gazed down. There were several Vehicons wandering around, mining Energon, converting it, putting the liquid form into cubes, stacking the cubes, keeping lookout and patrolling.
"There must be tons of Energon down there," Starscream said quietly to himself, making a plan in his head. "Surely they wouldn't mind if I took a single crystal...or even a cube..."
Starscream was about to descend when an explosion sounded below him. He yelped and jumped backwards, away from the cavern. Gunfire sounded as well as more tiny explosions and shouting, all from the cavern below. He dared peek over the edge into the mine. He gasped as he saw Wheeljack running around, slicing up Vehicons and bashing against Energon cubes and crystals. He saw Vehicons carelessly shooting after the invading Autobot.
"Idiots," Starscream hissed. "You'll blow up the mine if you continue attacking like that."
It was risky, but Energon was on shortage on the planet, and Starscream doubted he would find Energon this easy again so quickly. He had to enter the mine, no matter if to get a crystal or a cube. He just had to get in and get out again.
Taking a deep vent, he made his decision and jumped into the mine. He found himself in the crossfire of the clumsy Vehicons and sought cover behind a stalagmite, scanning the area for an opening. He saw Wheeljack just a little distance ahead, having a field day with the Vehicons. He looked to his left and saw a large stack of Energon cubes, ready to get packed. A cube would be easier to get than a crystal, as well as easier to carry in his cockpit.
Noting the Vehicons all had their attention on Wheeljack, Starscream rushed out of his hiding place over to the Energon cubes. He didn't dwell on which to pick, he just grabbed the one closest to him and stepped out in the open. He needed to be under the hole in the ceiling if he wanted to get out again quickly.
"Starscream?" he heard a small, squeaky familiar voice sound below him and stiffened.
Starscream saw in the corner of his optic the tiny form of Miko, scurrying around among the Energon cubes. What was she doing here, of all places?!
"Miko?!" Starscream exclaimed but silenced as Wheeljack caught sight of the Seeker.
Starting to panic, Starscream initiated jet mode, tucking the Energon cube safely in his cockpit and aimed upwards, towards the ceiling hole.
"Starscream, no, wait!" Miko exclaimed, but the Seeker ignored her.
Starscream fired up his thrusters and blasted off out of the cavern, into the sky, hurrying up away from the human and Autobot. So Miko had not gone with Agent Fowler after all, but instead snuck onboard Wheeljack's own ship, the Jackhammer, and gone with him on a mission to...what? Raid an Energon mine? Send a message to Megatron? Lure someone out? He remembered the human and Autobot were partners with Bulkhead. Given the condition the Wrecker was currently in, it seemed his friends had decided to avenge him, in whatever way this served as revenge for the big brute.
Starscream couldn't care less what they were up to. He had his own problems to attend to. He had taken care of his first stop, getting an Energon cube.
Now it was time for the second stop: trading with Swindle.
Starscream followed the trail leading to Swindle's coordinates, his spark still racing from his encounter with Wheeljack and Miko. Had they been aware of the fact he had escaped from the Autobot base? If not then, then certainly they did now. And Starscream had no doubt they would inform the Autobots where he was, or at least where he had been seen. Of course, Starscream wasn't worried. The Autobots couldn't fly, and even if Wheeljack's ship could, it couldn't match up to Starscream's speed. Even if he wasn't as fast in this body as in his old one, he could still fly pretty fast. His many escapes and running away had proven that. If there was one Megatron commended the Seeker on, it was his ability to quickly disappear when he got scared. This was always meant as an insult to Starscream, however, referring to his cowardice. He was still a coward, apparently.
Twilight had fallen when Starscream found the coordinates of Swindle, a small forest. He transformed to robot mode, grabbed the Energon cube midair and landed gracefully on both pedes. The Seeker stepped forward, looking from side to side, scanning for anything yellow or purple.
"Swindle," Starscream called out. "I have arrived, and I have an Energon cube with me. Now step forward!"
The Seeker stopped and kept his audio receptors sharp to the smallest noise. He heard a branch crack and turned to the direction of the noise. There was no one there, at least no one he could see.
"I know you're there," Starscream hissed and aimed his right arm at the direction. "Show yourself or I'll make you!"
A few nano-cycles later, he heard a faint click and saw the small form of Swindle appear in front of him, his large purple optics bright and his smirk wide as always.
"No need to use threats," Swindle said with his annoyingly joyful voice. "I was just waiting to see if you kept your part of the deal. It appears you do."
Starscream lowered his arm and returned his grip to the Energon cube. Swindle stepped out from between the trees and approached the Seeker. Had it been any other Decepticon, Starscream would have told him to back off, keep his distance or even attacked him. But Swindle, despite his annoying sides, also had a curious side that for some reason prevented Starscream from attacking him. No wonder the small mech didn't need to bring along any weapons, like, ever.
"I have your cube," Starscream informed and showed forth his luggage. "I do hope you intend to keep your part of the deal."
"I did ask for a crystal," Swindle reminded him and took something from his waist, "but that was only because I didn't think you would be able to snatch a cube right under Megatron's nose. Or the Autobots' noses for that matter. Seems I underestimated you. I apologize for that."
Starscream huffed in annoyance. "Uh, yes, well, you better remember that for next time," he muttered. "What do you have for me in return for this highly valuable Energon cube?"
"This," Swindle said and showed what he had taken from his waist. The device looked familiar to Starscream. "The Invisibility Device, one of many practical devices crafted by the finest Decepticon engineers on Cybertron. This little baby has helped me out of many troublesome situations. But my time as a rogue is nearing its end, so I thought it would be more useful in your hands, old friend." He added a mischievous smirk at the end, making Starscream annoyed for some reason.
Starscream shifted the Energon cube so he held it in his right servo, allowing him to receive the Invisibility Device from Swindle in his left servo. He then handed over the cube to Swindle, who now had both servos free. He watched as the small Decepticon seemed to be having difficulty holding up the cube, though not so much that it affected the Grounder himself.
"Pleasure doing business with you," Swindle said joyfully and gave a wide smile. "Until next time, Screamer."
Swindle transformed, placing the Energon cube inside his cabin and drove off in the opposite direction. Starscream watched the olive jeep get smaller and smaller, until it disappeared completely from his sight among the trees and darkness. The Seeker looked down at the small device in his left servo. It was oval-shaped with a single button on one end, the other end having a set of hooks to hang onto a bot's armor. It was also silver-colored, blending in nicely with Starscream's own color scheme.
Deciding it was time to go, Starscream switched to jet mode, placed the Invisibility Device inside his cockpit and took off into the sky once again. The sun had completely set, and the sky was transcending into a dark blue shade, with a light blue and yellowish tint by the horizon, indicating where the sun had been. The ground below was slowly turning darker and less visible to creatures who did not have night vision, such as humans. But Starscream did not care about the ground. What he was looking for was located somewhere in the sky.
Starscream had flown for almost an hour, scanning the sky around him for anything that resembled the Nemesis or a Vehicon Flier. He intended to use the same trick he used last time he had flown onto the Nemesis, by using the cover of returning Vehicons to sneak onboard the ship. It was a risky and bold move to use the same trick twice, but he doubted the Vehicons had grown any wiser since two months ago.
Starscream's spark skipped a beat as he found the Nemesis flying right in front of him, above a forest to the north. He kept his distance while scanning the sky for Vehicons. It would be too suspicious if a single Vehicon signal appeared on the ship's radar to return. It was safer to be in numbers, and in numbers there was less risk of his signal being identified as non-Vehicon.
After waiting around, slowly following the ship for a few cycles, he spotted a group of Vehicons flying by on the other side of the ship. Starscream boosted ahead, around the ship, trying to avoid both the ship and the Vehicons' radars, until he arrived behind the Vehicons. They hadn't spotted him yet. Good.
He followed the Vehicons close, but not too close, behind and entered the ship's hangar, transforming seconds after they had transformed. He quickly attached the Invisibility Device to his waist and pressed the button. A Vehicon turned around, this time apparently checking out if there was anyone behind them this time. But it didn't seem to find anything, so it simply shrugged and followed the others into the ship.
Starscream looked down at himself, seeing nothing. He chuckled lowly. He was completely invisible! The trade with Swindle had been worthwhile after all.
Keeping quiet, Starscream calmly wandered through the hallways, keeping an optic out for anyone behind or in front of him. He encountered only a few Vehicons and Insecticons on the way, but thanks to his current invisibility, they didn't see him right away. To avoid bumping into them, he swiftly but quietly stepped to the side and laid himself flat against the wall, keeping silent until the Decepticons had passed him. As he saw the coast was clear, he stepped out again and continued his travelling.
Eventually he made it to his quarters. He looked from side to side and behind him, making sure no one was nearby. As everything was clear, he pressed his servo onto a panel on the wall next to the door, opening it. As he stepped inside, he looked from side to side to again make sure no one was watching, before closing the door by the panel on the inside of the room. As he was clear, he pressed the button on the Invisibility Device on his hip and returned to visibility.
Starscream looked around in his old room. Everything was exactly the way he had left it a few months ago. He noticed how much this room resembled the one he had back in the Autobot base. In the far end of the room stood a recharging table; to the right of the door from where he stood was a desk with a chair by it, though the desk wasn't filled with puzzles and silly stuff like that, instead having a strategy board game on it, which he used to plan out his schemes or battle formations with his troops. He had a piece which he often imagined being Megatron, and another piece he imagined as himself, the Megatron piece being one he had to take down. In those times, it wasn't so much strategy as it was wishful thinking though.
To the left of the entrance from which he stood, there was a shelf, similarly filled with various datapads, though many more than in the Autobot base, and none of those contained silly stories like Cinderella or Challenge of the GoBots. They were history books, notes on Dark Energon, flight frames, various kinds of Energon and other scientific things. After joining the Decepticons, Starscream had become fully committed to the military field, pretty much leaving behind his scientific career. He sort of missed it, but found joy in battling and slaughtering Autobots as well as commanding an army to do his bidding. The Decepticons had changed much, though not all of Starscream's former self.
There was something in this room that his room in the Autobot base did not have, however. A secret safe.
Starscream walked over by the recharging table and knelt down by the free space to the left end of the room. The floor was completely flat, no one would have expected there to be a secret safe. If Starscream hadn't known about it, he would never have been able to find it, either. As such, he hadn't been worried about anyone finding the safe and the items inside. Especially since a password was needed, one which only Starscream knew.
"Skyfire," Starscream said quietly to the floor.
There was a click, and suddenly a small section of the floor next to the recharging table slid aside into the wall, revealing a small cache below. Starscream sighed in nostalgia as he took the items out.
The first thing he took out was a cape. A big cape, in a bright violet color. Next he picked up a pair of large, lavender shoulder pads, as well as a golden crown with a red gemstone adorning the middle spike. They were all part of a set, originally planned for when Starscream would rule Cybertron, which sadly probably wouldn't happen anytime soon. So instead, he had used it as a carnival costume when festivities were in play before the war. The cape was made of some organic fabric, bought in a trade with one of the organic empires Cybertron once used to be in contact with. Cybertron's contact empires and colonies got kind of out of touch with them just before the war, though, making Space Bridge technology pretty much obsolete, and organic goods like this fabric became pretty expensive.
The set had actually belonged to Red Wing, who claimed it was a costume to be worn by the Air Commander of the Energon Seekers for special occasions. Starscream didn't know if Red Wing had bought the set himself or if he had also 'inherited' it from someone. He didn't care either, it was a cool costume, and he had worn it often, even outside of 'special occasions'.
Starscream smiled by the memory and put the things aside for now to look at the other items. He took out three jars, each containing an organ from the first Cybertronian he had dissected, an Autobot Vehicon. One jar contained his Transformation Cog, another contained his brain module, and the last jar contained his spark.
The spark consisted of two parts: a solid body and a plasma soul. The solid spark was connected to the rest of the Transformer body, pumping Energon around through the veins, allowing the Transformer to move its body parts and allowing the organs to function. But the solid part was useless without the plasma spark, which was actual spark. It was the plasma part which was created or summoned from Vector Sigma, and which returned to the AllSpark when extinguished. The plasma spark was the heart, mind and soul of a Transformer's being, the thing that made an individual who he or she was. If transfered to a new body, the plasma spark brought with it all the former frame's memories and experiences, allowing the bot to live on.
When transferring, the plasma spark could stay in its solid body or, through more extreme means, get removed and transferred to a new solid body, though this included a high risk of death or impaired memory. Starscream was uncertain whether Shockwave had transferred the Seeker's spark to his current body with or without his own spark's solid body. If not, then that could explain why he seemed to be remembering many things lately he had previously forgotten about. He didn't dwell much on this subject, mostly because it only made him anxious for the condition of his spark.
Starscream gazed from the extinguished spark to the brain module. The brain module recorded all information and experiences made by the bot through its senses, whether by sight, sound, smell, taste or feeling. This information was then copied into the spark as memories. This was the same for both Forged bots and Cold Constructed bots, only Cold Constructs had the basic information downloaded into their brain modules already during creation. By transferring the information from the brain module to the spark, it allowed bots to obtain new bodies without having to relearn everything they had to upon creation nor having to transfer both the spark and the brain module. Because of this less necessity of the brain module, a Transformer could survive getting his head blown off or seperated from the rest of his body, though most of the motion controls took place in the brain module, making them unable to do anything without a brain module. If seperated from a brain module for too long, though, the frame's organs would eventually stop receiving Energon, and without Energon, the spark would extinguish. If regaining a brain module in time, however, the Transformer would live on, and because the memories were stored in the spark, he wouldn't lose his character. Transformers certainly were beings of survival, unlike those fragile little fleshlings who only had one life.
Putting the jars onto the costume, Starscream reached in the safe picked up three datapads. He opened one. It was a list of recipes for Energon which were popularly used before the war. During wartime, Energon was simply consumed from cubes or raw crystals, as there was no time for luxuries such as Energon paste, Energon cakes or even Energon goodies. Starscream had often snacked on Energon goodies when he was with the Energon Seekers before the war began. Now though, there was no time or place for cooking, but Starscream still believed there could be, at some point in time. So he had gathered his favorite recipes and taken them with him, hoping to try some when the war ended, hopefully with him still being alive.
Starscream put the datapad down and opened another one. It was his notes of the Synthetic Energon formula, he recognized. It was a bunch of equations, as well as descriptions of what to do with the ingredients at what point. It was a very complicated formula, but Starscream had peeked at it during most of his scientific career in Crystal City, where the Energon Seekers previously were occupied before working full time on Trypticon Station. Only the top alchemists had been allowed to read the formula to create caches of Synthetic Energon to be used for emergencies. But Starscream had occasionally sneaked in and 'borrowed' the canister to study it in his quarters. The canister had been designed so if it came in contact with alien life forms, it would shoot the recipe into the cosmos. This defense mechanism was originally used to protect the Synthetic Energon formula from Cybertron's ancient enemies, the Quintessons. If these beings had gained their filthy techno-organic hands on that formula, the galaxy would certainly be doomed.
But when in contact with Cybertronians, the canister did nothing. One could open it and take the recipe out to read it. It was presented like a scroll, though in a holographic matter rather than organic paper or metal. The Ancients had created it for Cybertron's children to use in self-defense from the Quintessons, among other dangerous aliens. But the Ancients had not anticipated that Cybertron's own children would wage war against one another. Which made the formula extremely dangerous, in case it fell into the Decepticons' servos. Which naturally prompted Jetfire to launch it into space, until someone hopefully would have found it. Darn idiot hadn't considered the fact that aliens could have had their filthy organic hands on it and caused the recipe to be lost to the stars, never again giving them a chance in the war. Starscream had scolded him for this, but it seemed it hadn't had an effect on the big Seeker.
Starscream huffed by the memory and put down the recipe among the other things. As long as it was incomplete, it was as virtually useless as Ratchet's own apparent recipe of the stuff. The Energon in the end would still yield the same results as a few months ago.
Starscream opened the last datapad. It contained a list of names, most of them belonging to Seekers, as well as a description of each. Starscream chuckled. He remembered having difficulty in remembering everyone's names when he first joined the Energon Seekers and prompted to write them down on his small datapad as well as describing the mechs. He didn't want to be rude to his new comrades and forget their names, after all, so he tried to remember them his own way. He skimmed through the names, realizing there had been many more Seekers than he remembered.
Acid Storm: As green as the Toxic Wastes.
Ion Storm: Bright solid blue.
Nova Storm: Bright solid yellow.
Nacelle: Red face, frame dark blue, red and white.
Hotlink: Lavender, has a flamethrower.
Bitstream: Teal, slightly more greenish than Thundercracker.
Thundercracker: Blue, has a darker and less green tone than Bitstream.
Skywarp: Black and purple, can warp across the dimensional plane.
Red Wing: Red and black, looks a bit like me.
Sandstorm: Sand-colored with brown speckles.
Slipstream: Femmebot, purple and teal.
Skyquake: Green, big, gloomy.
Dreadwing: Dark blue, big, gloomy.
Starscream stiffened as he saw Skyquake and Dreadwing's names on the list. So they had been part of the Energon Seekers after all. Probably not for long while Starscream was there, though. He kept reading, lost in thought on the names.
Dirge: Blue Conehead.
Thrust: Red Conehead.
Ramjet: White Conehead.
Sideways: Orange and black, has purple optics.
Wheezing Arrow: Dark gray Conehead.
Contrail: Orange and gray, seemingly wingless. Council member. Do not approach.
Jetfire: Big, white, has blue optics.
Starscream looked down at the two last names. He had almost entirely forgotten about Contrail. He had been a powerful Seeker, part of the former High Council, as described on the datapad. Contrail was almost never present during Starscream's time, though he had encountered him on occasion, to which Thundercracker and Skywarp had warned him to not speak to the Seeker. Shortly before the war began, there were suspicions that Contrail was working with Megatron, which later turned out to be true. He and another senator called Ratbat left the Council to join Megatron's forces, well before Megatron launched his attack on Trypticon Station and conquered the rest of the Seekers. Starscream didn't know what happened to Contrail, but believed he had perished during the war along with many other Decepticons and Seekers.
Starscream skimmed through more names until he came across one particular name.
Snowstorm.
There was no description of the Seeker. Starscream scratched his helm in confusion. Why place a name on a list without describing the bot? Did he think he did not need a description, that he would recognize the name and know what to look for in any case? He imagined the Seeker being white, given the name, but he couldn't think of anyone other than Jetfire with that description. He sighed and put the datapad down among the other things. Maybe it would come to him later.
The secret vault was almost empty, aside from one thing. The thing that Starscream had wanted the most to get back, the main reason for him wanting to return to the Nemesis.
He reached down into the vault and picked it up. It was a necklace. A green gemstone was adorning a golden socket, connected to a black string.
It had been a gift from Jetfire, when Starscream had been promoted to Air Commander of the Energon Seekers. He had called it a 'good luck necklace'.
Starscream valued the item more than any other item in his possession, even more than the Synthetic Energon formula. He was supposed to wear it around his neck cables, but it had kept getting in the way when he transformed, so he had decided to wear it around his right wrist instead like a bracelet, which had worked just fine. Jetfire told him that whenever the Seeker missed him, he just had to look at the necklace and it would make him feel good again. Which was exactly what Starscream had done.
Despite Jetfire's betrayal at Trypticon Station, Starscream had kept the necklace with him, even as he was living as a fugitive. When he had woken up in his new body, he had inspected his wrecked body and found to his relief that the necklace was still there, and took it from his old body's wrist. When he then arrived on the Nemesis and gained his new quarters, he found all his belongings already in it, and decided to put them in this secret vault that only he knew of. He had placed the necklace inside with the rest, not wanting to lose it in a battle.
Now, though, he had it back and he could take it with him to his new home. Autobot Outpost Omega One.
Starscream had no more reason to stay behind on the Nemesis. He had what he came for. It was now time to go home.
He put the necklace down beside the other items, pulled out the cape and spread it out on the floor in its full width. He then proceeded to place each item in the center of the fabric, until all items were accounted for and secure. He then started to fold the cape until making sure none of the items would fall out from the smallest misbalance. He ended with tying a knot at the top, securing his luggage. He closed the secret vault, and watched as it became one with the floor once again, as if it had never existed.
Starscream stood up and lifted the bundle. It was heavy and big, but probably small enough for him to carry in his cockpit. Now was the time for the hard part: getting out again.
Starscream pressed the button on the Invisibility Device and watched with dread that the bundle was not turned invisible. Apparently it only worked on the bot the device was attached to, as well as whatever may be inside of him. This could be a problem. Starscream couldn't afford to make experiments in his quarters, though, not with the possibility of patrols roaming outside. Which got him thinking to how to get out without being noticed by any patrols. He laid his audio receptor to the door and sharpened it to listen to the smallest sound outside the room. He heard faint footsteps which soon faded out. He decided to take the chance.
He opened the door and looked outside from side to side. The coast was clear. He walked out and closed the door behind him, making sure to make it look like no one had been in there. Now he just had to return to the hangar and fly back to base. No problem. No problem at all...
He carefully walked through the hallways, following the path he had come from, keeping his audio receptors sharp. If he got spotted, this entire journey would have been for nothing. Through the first two hallways, he encountered no one, though in the second corner he saw a pair of Vehicons walking to another hallway. Things were going well so far.
Until he reached the last hallway before the hangar. As he turned the corner Knock Out appeared out of nowhere, accompanied by a Vehicon Grounder.
"And then I said...what?" Knock Out said, gaze set forward.
Starscream stood completely still. Knock Out hadn't seen him, but he had seen the purple bundle, seemingly floating in the open air. Knock Out and the Vehicon didn't know what they were looking at, but they would certainly find out soon.
"You're seeing this too, right?" Knock Out asked the Vehicon, who nodded. "Strange..."
Knock Out tried to poke the bundle, but Starscream decided that was close enough and stepped to the side, ready to run. As a response to the fleeing object, Knock Out reached out to grab it, but instead grabbed Starscream's arm, which lashed out at the doctor. Suddenly, he noticed his own arm as it lashed out. He was visible again. He glanced down at his hip. The Invisibility Device had fallen off during the lash.
"Scrap," Starscream swore and ran off.
"What? Starscream?" Knock Out said in confusion. He glared at the Vehicon next to him. "What are you standing around for? After him!"
The Vehicon snapped out of the confusion and turned the corner to chase after Starscream. "Halt, intruder!"
Starscream raced down the hallway, knowing he was screwed now. A single Vehicon was nothing, but if any of the Insecticons were to find his position...
He finally reached the hangar when a patrol of Vehicons and Insecticons came after him from the other hallway. It seemed the entire ship was on alert!
As Starscream entered the hangar, he quickly transformed, securing his cargo in his cockpit and blasted out of the ship at full speed.
But Starscream was far from safe yet. Unlike the Autobots, the Decepticons could fly, and the Vehicons and Insecticons wasted no time in transforming and chasing after him. He started shooting at him, which he dodged the best he could.
He was suddenly reminded of his nightmare earlier that day. The one in which he was chased through a canyon, much like this one, by a flock of Vehicons, until he was chased and dismembered by Megatron himself. He screamed inwardly of the memory, not intending to let that happen.
It had become evening as the chase after Starscream was set in motion. Starscream would fire back if it wasn't for the fact that he was hopelessly outnumbered, outgunned and outstrengthed, as well as carrying his personally valuable cargo. The only thing he could do at the moment was flee, and flee swiftly.
Wheeljack and Miko were on their way back to base, having successfully slain Hardshell and avenged Bulkhead. Well, Miko had, Wheeljack just tired the beast out. Yet, despite their victory, Miko didn't feel any different. Bulkhead was still in trouble, and they couldn't be sure if he was even going to survive. Wheeljack was impressed that she was able to take down an Insecticon by herself, though, not to mention the assumingly fiercest and strongest of the Insecticons.
Their gloomy mood quickly changed, however, as several energy signals appeared on the Jackhammer's radar. They looked to the right. Some distance away, a group of Vehicons and Insecticons were chasing after something. Or, rather, someone. It was difficult making out the colors due to the evening sky, but it didn't take long for the pair to recognize who they were chasing after.
"It's Starscream," Wheeljack informed. "So it was him we saw back in the mine. Seems he's being chased by the 'Cons."
"We gotta help him," Miko said. "He won't make it by himself!"
"Really?" Wheeljack asked as they were beginning to approach the chase. "Do you really wanna help that guy? After everything he's done?"
"He's one of us now," Miko explained. "And I like him. He needs our help."
Wheeljack sighed and shrugged. "Fine, don't make me regret doing this!"
Starscream continued dodging, though got brushed several times by laser shots, feeling the burns on his thrusters or wings. He was still far from the Autobot base, which he then remembered as being his destination in his dream as well. But he never made it to his destination in the dream. Perhaps he wouldn't in the real world, either.
Suddenly, Starscream felt the laser shots stopping around him and heard a different set of lasers being shot from his left. He ascended further into the sky and saw Wheeljack's ship, the Jackhammer, shooting after the Vehicons and Insecticons, and these had apparently lost interest in Starscream, for they were now only firing at the Autobot ship.
Starscream considered letting the two sides simply destroy each other. He didn't care for Wheeljack or his stupid winglets. But he remembered seeing Miko with him in the Energon mine and realized she might be inside the ship with him. He had nothing against the girl other than being about as talkative as himself. He didn't care for her destruction.
"I'm gonna regret this," Starscream said to himself as he turned around, descended and started firing back at the Vehicons and Insecticons, joining the sky battle.
Now having the advantage of allies in the battle, Starscream was able to use his firepower to take down two Vehicons with a few shots as well as damaging an Insecticon. He zoomed past his enemies as they started firing back at him, and as he turned back around, he launched both of his missiles, aiming at the Insecticons. The missiles hit, taking down one Insecticon and badly hurting another.
The Jackhammer continued covering for Starscream while the two air forces launched their attacks upon the Decepticons. There were only two Vehicons and a single Insecticon left. They were going to win this battle.
Suddenly, as Starscream was turning to launch another attack, the remaining Insecticon shot his wing, causing the Seeker to spin out of control.
"SCRAP!" Starscream exclaimed as he saw smoke coming from his left wing, unable to stop spinning.
"He's hit!" Miko remarked, as the remaining Insecticon blasted Starscream's left wing and caused him to spin out of control.
"Scrap," Wheeljack swore and took down the two last Vehicons before ramming into the Insecticon, causing it to crash as well. The Jackhammer was tough enough to withstand the impact. The Insecticon wasn't.
As the remaining Decepticons had been dealt with, Wheeljack steered the Jackhammer after Starscream as the Seeker continued spinning, headed towards the ground with smoke emitting from his wing. It didn't seem like he was able to stop.
"Starscream, come in," Wheeljack called over the short-distance comm. "Switch to robot mode and I'll catch you!"
"I can't," Starscream exclaimed through the comm. "I can't stop! I can't transform!"
"What do you mean you can't transform?!"
"I just can't! I'm going to crash!"
"Not on my watch," Wheeljack said through gritted teeth. "Just hang in there!"
"What are we gonna do, Wheeljack?" Miko asked anxiously, concerned for the Seeker.
"We'll comm. the base and ask for a GroundBridge."
Wheeljack did as self-instructed and called the base.
"Wheeljack to base, we got a situation," Wheeljack said through the comm. link. "Requesting ground bridge approximately two hundred meters north of my location."
"What's going on?" Ratchet said through the comm.
"Starscream's crashing and he'll be scrap if you don't open that GroundBridge now!" Wheeljack replied annoyed.
"Alright, I'm on it," Ratchet replied.
A few seconds later, about two hundred meters from their position opened a small green GroundBridge portal. It was still several hundred meters below them, but at the Seeker's current speed, his chances were decreasing.
"Starscream," Wheeljack said through the short-distance comm. "I need you to steer towards the portal on the ground. Do you think you can do that?"
"I'll...I'll try," Starscream said with a strained voice. "But it's hard with all this spinning!"
"Just make sure to hit the target," Wheeljack said, "or you're scrap. Ratchet," he added through the comm. to the base, "just a heads-up, get everyone ready in front of the GroundBridge. Scream's gonna come in hard."
"Got it," Ratchet replied.
"Scream, how are you holding up?" Wheeljack asked through the short-distance comm.
"I...I think I've got it," Starscream said. "I'm coming in!"
"Well," Wheeljack said and glanced at Miko, "all we can do now is cross our fingers and hope his aim is right."
Miko looked on anxiously as the Seeker continued falling towards the ground, smoke fuming from his wing, still spinning out of control.
"Come on, Starscream," Miko cheered quietly. "You can do it..."
Starscream had experienced many crashes during his life. Crashing was part of a Flier's existence. It was expected that wings or rotors or motors would get damaged during aerial combat and would stop the Flier's ability to fly for a while. Because of this, most Fliers' bodies were built to withstand crashes. Starscream had been able to survive several crashes in robot and jet mode in his old body, as well as a few times in this new Vehicon body.
This body was not as tough as his old body though, and he still wasn't completely sure of its limitations. This was a pretty high altitude to crash from, higher than he was used to. Normally if a crashing Flier could see the fall would cause too much damage, the Flier in question would switch to robot mode to decrease damage caused, as damage could be much more severe if keeping in flight mode. Starscream couldn't afford to switch to robot mode, however. He was carrying his most valuable belongings which he would never forgive himself for losing, which could easily happen if he transformed at this speed. He'd rather risk having to replace his entire body again than losing Jetfire's good luck necklace.
Luckily, it seemed Wheeljack was keen on helping him. He had the Autobots open a GroundBridge some hundred meters below him to allow him a somewhat safe landing back in base. But in order to do that, Starscream had to aim for the portal, which was incredibly difficult with him spinning out of control.
Despite this, he tried, and when he thought he was aiming right, seeing the green glowing dot right below him, he simply kept his aim straight and let himself fall.
"Please don't miss," he said into the air.
A few seconds later, his spark stopped as he reached the ground.
In the Autobot base, Optimus, Bumblebee and Ratchet all stood in front of the GroundBridge as per Wheeljack's request at the information of Starscream crashing towards the ground. Ratchet knew very well they had to block the entrance. If a jet Starscream's size and speed were to crash into the base, everything would be destroyed, Bulkhead and the others would probably get badly if not fatally wounded, and the kids would definitely not survive.
Everything depended on whether the Autobots were able to catch Starscream before that happened. And everything depended on Starscream whether he actually reached the GroundBridge or not. They couldn't see his energy signal on the monitor for some reason - probably because they hadn't registered him in the computer, as he still wasn't an Autobot yet - and it was highly inconvenient, this being one of the reasons. They couldn't see if he was hitting the portal or hitting the ground, they didn't know if they had placed the portal the right way. They could only see Wheeljack's energy signal, slowly hovering above the ground, watching the Seeker's fate.
Suddenly, they heard a woosh, and the next second, Starscream appeared from the portal, burning in the wing, coming at the Autobots at high speed, though at least had stopped spinning.
Even though they had been prepared, they were still taken by surprise how fast everything went. One moment, there was nothing, the next second, suddenly a jet flew into the base with a loud roar, smoke coming from the wing.
Despite their surprise, they had been prepared. Optimus, Bumblebee and Ratchet all had their arms held out and managed to catch the jet, breaking off the majority of the speed, but were still pushed a great distance backwards and probably had received some serious scratches on their frames. Before they hit the wall behind them, though, the jet stopped, and was instead simply held in the air by the three mechs. Arcee closed the GroundBridge behind the Seeker. They had caught him just in time.
"Starscream," Optimus said with concern as the three mechs placed the jet onto the ground, still smoking from his wing. "Are you alright?"
Starscream didn't respond right away. After a few seconds, they heard his venting and groaning.
"Uuugggghhhh..." Starscream said and opened his cockpit, revealing a violet bundle. "Can you take this out, please?"
With a surprised look on their faces, Ratchet carefully grabbed the bundle and put it down on a table nearby.
"Can you transform?" Ratchet asked.
Starscream closed his cockpit again and initiated transformation to bot mode. He sat on the floor and vented heavily. He noticed his wing was still smoking and started to bat at it in panic to try to stop the burn. Ratchet turned his servo into a fire extinguisher and shot the foam on the Seeker's wing. The smoke soon stopped and Starscream started to relax.
"Thank you," Starscream said and vented heavily again, holding a servo against his chest. "I thought I was going to die..."
He looked up and saw the mixed expressions on the Autobots' faces. Some showed concern and relief, others showed anger and disappointment. No surprise there, though Starscream was still filled with dread by their faces.
"Uh..." he said and smiled nervously. "I can explain..."
"Explain to us why you left," Optimus said with a calm yet dark voice, clearly not happy. "Why you took off without informing us."
"I...I had some stuff to get back..." Starscream said and started crawling backwards against the now deactivated GroundBridge, not comfortable with the situation, "...on the Nemesis. I just had to get them back, I'm sure you can understand...or not, but that's fine, because, that was the last time I was planning to go back there. I'm not gonna return there anymore, I swear!"
"While I am glad you made it back safe and sound," Optimus said and slowly walked towards the Seeker as he backed off, "and willingly, I hope, I am still disappointed you did not trust us enough to tell us what you were planning to do."
Starscream eventually hit the far back of the GroundBridge, now having no place to escape. He let out small whimpers of anxiety.
"You wouldn't have listened to me," Starscream accused and slowly got onto his legs, lowering his wings in submission, uncomfortable about being cornered. "You would have just put new restraints on me, and I would be reduced to yet a prisoner again."
"It was also wrong of you not to inform us of your missing-"
"I just wanted my freedom back!" Starscream interrupted, his wings hiking in defense, his servos spread out. "I don't feel like anything but a prisoner when you put those things on me. You say you want me to become an Autobot, yet you don't trust me enough to allow me freedom! And you know what? I don't feel like an Autobot at all when I'm in those things. I don't even feel like a Decepticon. I feel humiliated. You all treat me like some beast, you treat me the same way Megatron did."
"We do not-"
"I know you don't abuse me like Megatron does," Starscream interrupted again, getting bold. "That's his way of keeping this 'beast' in check. You may not abuse me, but you still treat me like a monster. Someone who needs to be restrained, or else he might go rampant and destroy the whole place! Yeah, you're no different from Megatron on that page. You use different methods, but the end result is the same. I'm just a monster to you. I've always been."
Starscream's face seemed to be about to choke up, as he began realizing what he was saying was true. That was all he had been treated like his whole life. He was never trusted, even before he gained his deceptive side which allowed him a spot among the Decepticons. Only the Seekers treated him like a true mech with a spark, feelings, a mech who had common sense, a mech that could be trusted. Granted, he made it hard for others to trust him, but he only deceived others in order to keep himself alive and with his dignity in check. Sometimes his plans just backfired and he ended up getting humiliated anyway.
But no more. He would tolerate this treatment no longer.
"I am a Cybertronian," Starscream declared. "I have rights. I have the right to fly when I need to. I have the right to express my feelings when I am upset. I have the right to assist you on missions when I want, and I have the right to not be restrained every time I am in the base. I have the right to be able to defend myself in battle. I have the right for freedom. That's what you always say, isn't it, Prime? 'Freedom is the right of all sentient beings.' But apparently I don't count as a sentient being, do I? Well, I've had enough of this. Give me my freedom back, and I shall give you air support, military strategies and scientific information as a fully fledged Autobot. Refuse my freedom, and I shall leave at the first opportunity and assume the life of a rogue. Choose wisely."
As he finished his speech, Starscream relaxed his wings and held out his arms in a surrendering gesture. He lowered his head in submission and closed his optics, letting the Autobots decide.
Optimus looked intently at the Seeker, contemplating his words. The other Autobots looked from Starscream to Optimus, awaiting the big bot's decision. They could practically hear the gears turning in the mighty mech's head. Considering the pros and cons for either choice he had to make. Considering whether to take the pros or the cons' side. Considering if he should give Starscream his freedom or not.
The Seeker had many valid points. The Autobots would never fully accept him among their ranks as long as they kept treating him like a prisoner. And Starscream would keep resisting, however subtly, as long as they continued doing so. Being accused of treating him the same as Megatron fell ill in his audio receptors, but perhaps the Seeker was right. They would never get anywhere if they continued treating him like a dangerous beast, however much he may be like one.
"Very well, Starscream," Optimus finally said to everyone's surprise. "We will not restrain you any longer. You are free to fly as you see fit."
Starscream blinked and lifted his head to look the Autobot leader in the optics.
"Uh...really?" Starscream replied. "Are you serious? You're not playing a trick on me, are you?"
"You have proven yourself enough times by now to show us that you have no intention to leave our side," Optimus explained, not just to Starscream, but to all the Autobots in the command center. "And we have...I have been blind to that. For too long, we have ignored you, and I apologize for that. But you are right. You are not a prisoner in this base. You are a comrade." Optimus stepped out of the GroundBridge, to allow Starscream to step outside. "You are a most valuable ally."
While listening to Optimus' speech, Starscream slowly made his way out of the GroundBridge, his anxiety decreasing little by little. Eventually he was completely out of the tunnel and stepped into the middle of the room, glancing around at the various Autobots.
"You have the right to be free," Optimus continued calmly. "And we shall respect that. From now on, you are a Decepticon no longer. You are an Autobot. You are one of us. And to make sure we all remember that..." Optimus stepped aside and put a servo on Ratchet's shoulder, the other servo pointing to the medbay. "...Ratchet will replace that Decepticon insignia with our Autobot. It is time."
Starscream didn't say anything, he just stared at the big bot, Ratchet and the medbay. It felt so unreal, there was no way they were going to give him the Autobot brand. They were going to put him in stasis and lock him up in his cell again, for that was what it was, a cell, a place to keep him locked up in, like a monster...
Ratchet, despite his obvious surprise, kept his face in a blank expression and gestured Starscream to come with him. Starscream was reluctant to follow, perhaps only due to his own paranoid thoughts.
"No tricks, right?" Starscream asked unsure as he started walking forward. "I get to keep my wings, and I work for you. That's the deal, right?"
"That is correct," Optimus assured. "You have no reason to worry. We will try our best to make you feel like one of us."
Starscream gulped as he passed Optimus, his wings involuntarily dropping out of fear of being double-crossed. He went over to Ratchet by the medbay and sat down, wings still downcast.
"Loose the wings," Ratchet said, "I'm not going to hurt you or anything. Just lay down here so I can get to work."
"Should you be spending time on Scream right now, though?" Arcee asked concerned. "What about Bulkhead?"
"He's stable for now," Ratchet replied. "There's nothing more I can do for him now. It's up to him to wake up. I may as well tend to our new Autobot here."
Starscream flinched by the new addressing. An Autobot. He was going to become an Autobot now. He was going to wear the Autobot brand.
He was going to become the newest member of Team Prime.
An Autobot Seeker.
A few hours earlier...
Miko had just left through the elevator to catch up with Agent Fowler for a lift home when Arcee felt something was odd. She felt like they had forgotten something, but she wasn't sure what.
Until she heard the elevator open. Not the human-sized elevator, no, the Autobot elevator they occasionally used to get to the top of the plateau, on which the grave of Cliffjumper was situated. She heard it open and looked up from the monitors of Bulkhead. Her spark skipped a beat.
She watched as Starscream walked into the elevator and turned around, apparently without restraints on. Now she remembered what they had forgotten. They had forgotten to check Starscream's stasis cuffs.
"Starscream?" Arcee called out, still uncertain what was about to happen. "What are you..."
Before she could finish, Starscream had his servo on the elevator button, and the door shut down. He was going up the elevator!
"Scrap!" she exclaimed and ran out from the monitors. "Starscream's escaping!"
"What?!" Ratchet exclaimed himself, looking up from his work on Bulkhead.
"He took the elevator," Arcee said and stood, staring at the elevator as she pushed the button to go down. "He must be trying to fly away!"
"But he's restrained," Bumblebee bleeped, "isn't he?"
"I forgot to check him," Optimus admitted regrettably. "And he took the opportunity of our focus on Bulkhead's situation to escape on our watch."
"There, it's back!" Arcee said as the elevator door opened again. "It might not be too late."
"I will go with you," Optimus informed and hurried over to the elevator. As he made it inside, Arcee pushed the button to go up and the doors closed, zooming upwards.
"I saw him," Arcee said and face-palmed. "I saw him go in, but I didn't stop him. Why did I just stand there and watch him go?!"
"You were taken by surprise, Arcee," Optimus said and laid a servo on her small shoulder. "We all were. But we will try to stop him. Hopefully we are not too late."
But as the door to the elevator opened to the outside, they saw Starscream standing in the middle of the platform, staring into the sky.
"Starscream!" Arcee exclaimed and jumped out of the elevator.
"Arcee," Optimus said, apparently not agreeing with her rash approach to the Seeker.
And he was right in his thinking. As Starscream realized they were there, he immediately transformed to jet mode and took off, before they could even manage to touch him. He was gone in seconds.
"No..." Optimus said and gazed after him. "We are too late."
Arcee stared at the disappearing dot and let out a roar and slammed her fist into Agent Fowler's jet right next to her.
"I should have stopped him," Arcee said again. "I should have stopped him, and I didn't. I let him go. And now our base is compromised. He's gonna return to the 'Cons and spill the beans on us. He's..."
"Arcee, calm down," Optimus said and laid a servo on her shoulder again, turning her to face him. "We do not yet know Starscream's reason for leaving us. He may simply have gone out for a flight, or maybe he is looking for something. Yes, he may as well be returning to Megatron's side, and in that case, there is nothing we can do about it. He is gone. The fate of our base lies in his hands now."
Arcee seemed to calm down, but Optimus could tell she was still mad at herself for letting the Seeker go.
"I know," she said and started walking back to the elevator, gaze still fixed on the direction in which Starscream had flown. "But I hate feeling helpless."
"So do I," Optimus admitted and followed her to the elevator.
"He better not tell on us," Arcee snarled. "If he does, I'll scrap him."
"We will see when he returns," Optimus said calmly as they entered the elevator. "If he returns."
As the doors to the elevator closed, silence once returned to the top of the plateau. The sun was beginning to set, and the day was coming to an end. It had been a long day, but it was finally reaching its end.
Though, if Arcee and Optimus had stayed behind just a little longer, they may have seen the strange scene that took place just cycles after they returned underground.
The Energon stains on Agent Fowler's jet had seemingly disappeared. Furthermore, its once dull bluish gray color had changed to a brighter, ocean-blue tone, and all the previous dents and scratches had disappeared.
In the next second, the jet seemed to fall apart, then rearranged itself until the figure of a large blue Seeker stood on the top of the Autobot base, gazing out over the landscape, optics fixed on the direction in which a smaller Seeker had taken off to.
"Starscream..." the Seeker said with a hoarse voice, not having been used for over a decade. "I will see you soon."
The blue Seeker transformed back to jet mode and took off into the setting sun, course set for the Decepticon warship.
"Today is the return of Thundercracker!"