* * - soundtrack timestamps

" "- thoughts

It was nighttime on a colony Cybertronian planet, allowing the stars to appear and decorate the blackness with their glow. Not a single spark dared to go out during the late hour, fearing the things that hid in the shadows. However, one dared to challenge the odds.

A tall mech with aerial wings stood in front of an enormous castle-like mansion, hungry for adventure. As the mech carefully looked around for passersby, he could feel that someone was watching him. Looking up at one of the windows, he nearly caught a glimpse of a pair of glowing red optics that noticed him before disappearing. It must have been his red and black armor, which was unsuitable for stealth. However, he waved it off as simple paranoia.

As he walked toward the entrance, he could feel that the double entry doors were getting big with every step he took. To him, it was like trespassing into the lair of a mythological creature. He felt unsure about the risk, but he knew there was no going back. As he was about to use one of his built-in tools, they opened inward on their own. The mech stared in confusion. How could it be opening at a time like this? Were they expecting him?

*St Estes Reform School - by Marco Beltrami (0:00)*

Cautiously, he gently parted the doors, not wanting to make a sound. As he made his way into the mansion, all he could see was darkness. No light illuminated the room, leaving an empty husk devoid of anything hopeful.

*0:08*

Before he could think, the doors slammed shut on their own, thundering against his audio receptors. Jumping at the sound, he could feel his spark beating rapidly. He knew someone or something closed the doors. He wished he could look behind him, but it would be all for naught if some mysterious creature or Cybertronian killed him. It was like something was haunting the mansion. Or possibly, something was trying to corner him. Regaining his composure again, he switched to night vision. Feeling the blackness disappear, the only view he could see was in green. He sighed in relief, thanking Primus for lending him courage.

As his sight adjusted, he could see that he was currently in the living room. While the true colors of the room were vague because of his night vision, he could imagine they were beautiful. He saw that there was a couch, table, empty glass cases, and bookcases. Each was ornate in design, seemingly sculpted to perfection and originality. Before he could comment on them, he heard ringing from his comms in his audio receptor. Knowing something must be important, he answered the call. The intruder moved out of the way to reveal a pair of sparklings standing silently in front of the doors and still behind him, the glow of their blood-red/dark purple optics nearly illuminating their presence.

*0:26*

They were undeniably twins, their appearances practically the same. Upward curving spikes adorned their armor, giving them the royal-like visage of princes. However, their vague coloration differed from one another. The first was white and black while the second was black and yellow. The symbols on their chests resembled a unique seven-pointed star atop a combined Alpha and Omega symbol. They stood still silently, not wanting to alert him of their presence.

"Hello, sir. It's Skyslip," the mech named Skyslip spoke with the caller. "Yes, I have entered the mansion as you instructed me. But I thought we were doing surveillance. So, are we stealing valuables now?"

While he continued the conversation with his employer, the children turned slowly and stared at Skyslip with monotonous expressions. As he unknowingly passed them, they watched him curiously, trying to determine his movements. They could hear him argue with his caller that stealing from them may have consequences. Not caring for the conversation, the sparklings carefully moved toward the trespasser.

As the twins stalked Skyslip from the shadows thirteen feet behind him, they slowly stepped, not making a single sound. They crept up toward the tall mech, following his movements. Continuing to follow him, they could make out from the conversation that he was trying his best to keep quiet, not wanting to alert any potential inhabitants within the dark dwelling. Hearing a sigh of frustration, they could tell that the conversation was over.

*pause*

Skyslip was looking for any valuables around the living room, but none of them were in his sights. He looked under the couch, opened the glass cabinet cases, and checked to see if the bookshelves contained hidden switches. Unfortunately for him, no trinkets were out in the open. It was almost as if the owners packed up and left. Aside from the lack of precious items, the vast size of the interior made him feel small. While he was aware of the rumors, he never knew the residents were large enough to require this amount of space. What unnerved him the most was that it could allow anyone to watch him from anywhere.

*0:54*

Wanting to make sure no bot was following him, he turned to see if someone was behind him, but when he looked down, twin sparklings were looking up at him. They had a curious air to them, one of the many traits younglings would experience during their years of growth. From what he could determine, they were about half his size, around 10 feet.

"Oh. Hello, little ones," Skyslip greeted first, attempting to communicate with them. He got no response from the young twins. There was only silence and a motionless gaze. "Where are your parents?"

*1:08*

Again, there was no response. The twin sparklings only stared passively without a sense of care in the world. The mech was beginning to feel a sense of dread for the children before him. He had a tempting wish to be fodder for whoever was residing within the mansion, but the children's lack of supervision concerned him. How could someone leave their offspring behind when they could be defenseless?

"Do you need something?" Skyslip asked, hoping they needed some care. While the mission was to acquire belongings with bidding potential, their well-being comes first. "Would you like something to eat?"

Surprisingly, the twins nodded quickly, and their expressions changed from stoicism to eagerness. Skyslip sighed in relief, no longer worried about their silence.

"Do you know where the kitchen is?" Skyslip inquired. "I could make something for you."

*1:33*

The second twin made a gesture to follow him and his brother. The twins walked away from him together. However, the manner in their strides was eerily synchronous, almost as if they were sharing a spark. Not wanting to ask them about it, he followed the brothers. As he walked behind them, he took note of the architecture. Columns decorated with unknown symbols supported the ceiling above him. The way they towered over Cybertronian made him feel small. When he looked at the brothers, a thought hit him.

*1:44*

"If their mother and father were monumental enough to live here, would that mean the brothers could grow like them?!" Skyslip thought, dreading the idea that they would be like their parents. They could be the size of Predacons had they reached maturity!

Putting the thoughts aside, he stopped when he realized that the twins had led him to the kitchen. The walls were iridescent black and purple with midnight blue and bronze yellow panels decorating them like paintings in an art gallery. There were cabinets lining the top and bottom of the walls, drawers accompanying them, a countertop shining with obsidian, an oven resting far from the sink, and racks holding wet dishes for them to dry. Even though his priority was to acquire anything valuable, he was mesmerized by the beauty of the kitchen. It was almost as if an artist had created it. Snapping out of his astonishment, he set his sights on providing the brothers with something to eat.

*2:03/pause*

Analyzing the kitchen, he searched for something that may store meats, vegetables, or bread. When his head turned left, his gaze met a large container that touched the ceiling. As he walked toward the container, he felt as if someone or something was missing. Turning around, he saw the twins reappeared, standing atop the countertop, still staring at him. He was confused at how they got there in a matter of moments without making a sound. However, he caught a glimpse of something strange at the front of their shoulders. The twins possessed symbols of their own, not unlike the Autobots and Decepticons. The first was an archaic blood-red compass, while the second was a demonic dark blue skull. The last thing he noticed was the symbols on their chests. He recognized the shapes earlier, although he could see that the top was dark purple while the bottom was Amazon green.

"What a quiet bunch," Skyslip mused to himself in his thoughts before turning back to the container. When he reached it, he saw multiple handles to the left, ranging from big to medium to small. He could imagine the construction was for anyone who wished to use it. Knowing what he must do, he grabbed one of the closest handles and opened it. He was surprised that even though the container dwarfed him, the door was light enough for him to use. Grabbing it, he moved it away until his optics met a treasure trove of rations abundant to feed four families.

There were cured meats wrapped and hanging from hooks, raw vegetables resting on racks, and confectioneries covered by glass casings. Skyslip was amazed at the collection the supposed family amassed. Looking at the potential ingredients carefully, he tried to remember a recipe that would most likely suit the brothers.

Unbeknownst to him, the twins were patiently watching him with serenity. Turning to look at each other, they nodded in unison, almost as if they already understood the signal. Looking at the left rack that held knives of different sizes, the white and black twin grabbed one of them. As he pulled it out quietly, it revealed itself to be a large knife. The black and yellow twin looked toward the right rack and grabbed a handle. Like his brother, he pulled it out quietly, revealing a large meat cleaver. Unlike his sibling, he grabbed another item, which happened to be a file. Turning back to the oblivious mech, the brothers stood perfectly still, waiting for the right moment.

After deciding on a recipe, Skyslip chose a few ingredients closest to him and began gathering the smallest ones first. Turning back toward the countertop, he saw that the twins were still present but close to the edge. However, he noticed something in their servos. He approached them cautiously, still holding the ingredients. After reaching the countertop, he set them down and faced them. He saw that each of them was holding a sharp kitchen utensil respectively. The nearly monochromatic twin held a large knife, while the opposite brother held a large meat cleaver.

*2:04*

"Children, why are you holding them?" Skyslip addressed. "You do realize that you cannot be around something dangerous?"

*2:08*

In the blink of an optic, the white and black twin swung the knife at his throat, leaving a deep gash. The wound was so deep that it sprayed Energon onto the twins' faces. The moment he felt the wound, Skyslip grabbed his throat, attempting to stop the bleeding. Feeling pain surging through his frame, he collapsed onto the floor, writhing and choking in agony. While he tried to halt the bleeding with his left servo, he weakly crawled away with his right. Unbeknownst to him, the twins jumped from the countertop without a thump. They slowly stalked toward him, silently relishing in his struggles. While the white and black sparkling kept a stoic visage, the black and golden yellow sparkling suddenly grinned giddily, revealing sharp triangular teeth. Licking the spilled Energon on his faceplate, he lowered the cleaver onto the floor, dragging it to create a scraping sound that would pierce the audio receptors of a Cybertronian cat. His brother followed his act, silently relishing in inducing trepidation.

*2:36*

As Skyslip attempted to crawl away from the twins, a million thoughts ran through his processor.

"What kind of sparklings are they?!" Skyslip thought. "Why are they doing this?!"

As the twins closed in on their prey, the white and black sparkling stabbed the knife into his upper leg, pinning him to the floor. It allowed his smiling brother to raise the cleaver and swing it down, severing the leg from his pelvis. The sudden pain from the hacking forced Skyslip to bite his glossa, not wanting to give them satisfaction. However, he accidentally bit it too hard, severing it from his intake. The organ flopped onto the metal surface, spilling a bit of Energon.

*2:52*

Releasing the knife from the severed leg, the white and black twin leaped onto the back of Skyslip and stabbed through his torso with enough force to pin him onto the floor again. After feeling the kitchen utensil piercing his frame, he stopped in fear and struggled to get up, but he felt the knife leaving him and brought down upon him multiple times. The stabs missed his spark chamber, leaving him to wonder if it was intentional or not. As he felt Energon leaking from his wounds, his movements slowed. He could feel his strength leaving him, draining his will to fight the sparklings. Feeling the weight on his back removed, he looked up to see the brothers in front of him, staring into his optics with such coldness that it made him stop in his tracks.

While the white and black sparkling stared at him impassively, his black and golden yellow sibling looked at him with malice in his optics, seemingly grinning with anticipation. Raising the kitchen utensils in his small servos, he slowly rubbed the blade against the file until it neared the tip, causing a glint of sparks to erupt from the contact. He looked at what he was doing, almost as if he was mesmerized by the display. Looking back at the victim again, he quickly slid the blade off the file before bringing it down onto his head, allowing blackness to consume his sight.

St. Estes Reform School (by Marco Beltrami) - /iJTp3eAxkVk