Chapter Twenty-Six
When the men of the bots left the base Arcee had gone to check on Starscream.
Starscream was dreaming again. She was dreaming of a time lost. A time she remembered that wasn't as bad as it got after the war started.
Starscream's dream ~ Flashback
Starscream was in mourning. She was in a bar drinking a cube of low-grade. Her trinemates had just gotten her out of prison and were trying to cheer her up by going to a bar in Koan. Her trial was rigged and all she could think of was her Skyfire.
A large silver mech came and sat beside her ordering a cube of high grade.
Starscream didn't notice him until he spoke to her as she was just staring at her half drunk cube.
"Something on your mind seeker?"
Starscream jolted slightly in her seat before turning to the voice glaring. "What's it to you?"
The mech chuckled smirking. "Curiosity. " He drank a sip from his cube. "I have heard Seekers are perfect fliers, and that they keep to themselves. So little seeker, why are you here?"
Starscream frowned and drank a sip of her low grade before responding. "I'm not like other seekers. I'm better."
The mech chuckled. "You intrigue me seeker. What is your designation?"
Starscream glared. "What's yours?"
The mech smirked. "Ah! A mech after my spark! You amuse me, so I might as well. My designation is Megatronus."
Starscream's optics widened a bit. "The gladiator? I've heard about you." Starscream scoffed as she turned away and drank another sip of low grade. She turned her gaze to the dance floor where mechs and femmes danced. She frowned at her two trinemates. She vented before standing from her seat. "Goodbye Megatronus. I'd say it was nice to meet you, but I'd be lying." She went to walk away when Megatronus grabbed her wrist. She turned her helm at him glaring.
He was quick to speak. "I never caught your designation."
Starscream pulled her servo away from him. "Starscream."
He smiled. "It was a pleasure to meet you, Starscream." He watched as Starscream left with her trinemates.
~Timeskip~
Starscream's trinemates had dragged her to Kaon again to see the gladiator fights and hear Megatronus speak. Starscream and her trinemates sat in the back hidden from view.
Skywarp turned to Starscream. "Hey Scream? Do you think we'll get to see Megatronus and get to meet him?" He was bouncing in his seat with wide optics.
Thundercracker snorted. "Warp. There's no way in the pits are we going to meet THE Megatronus. He's a gladiator!"
Starscream frowned. "I don't need to meet the slagger. I could care less of these pitiful fights. The air here is suffocatingly disgusting. We should just go back to Vos and roam the skies."
Thundercracker vented. "Starscream, we brought you here to get away from all the stares and glares. This is the only place where you can enjoy yourself. "
Starscream growled softly. "I don't want to enjoy myself by watching barbaric brutes smash each other into scraps!"
Skywarp pouted. "But Scream!" He whined. "We don't want to watch you drink away your sorrows. You have to move on. Skyfire's gone."
Starscream glared. "Don't you dare say that!" She got up to leave the stadium. "I'm leaving this Primus forsaken pit." She didn't even turn around to see the sad and disappointed looks on their faceplates.
On Starscream's way out, she didn't even pay attention to where she was going. It was only a few minutes before she ran right into someone. Starscream faceplated into the mech and almost fell backward with a small yelp if it weren't for the mech grabbing her waist.
"Starscream?" The mech asked sounding stunned to see the seeker there.
Starscream shuttered her optics for a second and looked up at the mech's faceplates while still being held up to his chassis. Her optics widened. "You!"
The mech chuckled. "It is nice to see you again Starscream. Are you here to see me fight today? Or for my speech?"
Starscream glared. "Neither if you must know Megatronus. My trine thought it best to come to this filthy place to let me suffocate."
Megatronus chuckled. "Ah! What thoughtful trinemates you must have then." He paused. "Pray tell do they always leave you alone?"
Starscream growled slightly. "Only when I wish to be alone. Now... will you let me go or will I have to force your servos off me?"
Megatronus looked almost saddened when he let go. "Forgive me. I had no idea I was still holding you up from your fall."
Starscream took a few steps back. "I do not forgive easily. Now if you'll excuse me, I must get going." She went to move around him.
He moved in front of her, stopping her from moving further. "Wait! Will you at least stay for the speech?"
Starscream frowned. "No." She stated bluntly.
Megatronus vented. "Then perhaps afterwards little seeker?"
Starscream ducked under Megatronus' arm and started to walk away. She replied without looking back at him. "I'm not interested in warfare, gladiator, nor politics. I'm a scientist, not a warrior." She moved her arms behind her back, clasping her servos together as she walked. "I wish you luck in your endeavors. Fare thee well, Megatronus." All she heard as she walked away was him saying farewell to her.
~Timeskip~
"RUN! TC! WARP! Let's go! We can't save everyone! GO!" Starscream yelled at her trinemates as they ran from their burning city. Their people being shot down from the skies. Starscream decided they had to run and stay in the shadows to keep them safe. A building collapsed next to Starscream sending her flying into her trine and getting them thrown into a building that was on fire.
Thundercracker groaned as he sat up with Skywarp, Starscream laying on their laps wincing in pain as her left wing was bent slightly from crashing into her trinemates.
Both Skywarp and Thundercracker intaked at their trine leader's bent wing. They were unable to say anything as the burning building was collapsing on them.
Thundercracker grabbed Skywarps wrist and picked up Starscream, throwing her over one shoulder before running.
The three coughed from intaking smoke in their ventilation fans. They just barely escaped the flaming debris falling onto their helms.
Starscream saw someone approaching them with a blaster ready to fire. "TC! WARP! Watch out!" She warned her brothers but the green mech was too close.
A shot went off. The green mech went down. A silver mech covered in soot came running over with a slim dark colored mech close to him. He was yelling orders.
"Soundwave! Find survivors and get them to safety. Check every building for injured mechs or femmes under the rubble. Get everyone out of here!"
Starscream recognized that voice. "Megatronus?" She mumbled.
Thundercracker put Starscream down as the three tried to clear their vents from the suffocating smoke.
Megatronus shot another mech with a blaster pointed at them. He looked to the three. "I suggest if you want to live then you'd better fight."
Starscream walked up to him. "I'm not going to risk the lives of my trine. I know not everyone can be saved."
Megatronus frowned. "Then will you avenge them?"
Starscream didn't answer. She wouldn't answer a question he knew would be a yes.
Thundercracker spoke up. "Star, we have to get out of here. Our vents can't take much more of this smoke." He coughed as Skywarp wheezed, while Starscream was doing both.
Starscream nodded coughing. "Help us get to safety, Megatronus."
Megatronus nodded. "Let's go then." He turned to leave the area when they heard it.
The sound of a missile.
Starscream's optics widened. She quickly turned around and seen it coming their way. She grabbed her brothers and pushed them out of the way.
Megatronus seen this and was about to grab her too when the missile touched down on the ground. It sent the three mechs flying.
Starscream caught the brunt of the attack. She screamed in pain as her wings and back were attacked by the missiles remains and burning fire. It was damaging her wings. It sent her to the ground surrounded by debris. Her right arm was bent at an odd angle as well as her left leg.
All the three mechs heard was her wailing cries of pain and agony.
Thundercracker and Skywarp grunted as they stood up. They were both equally scuffed up. They both ran over to go save their sister.
Megatronus got up himself and ran over. He wasn't hurt but his armour did take a beating.
Starscream was on the ground not moving besides her wings twitching. When she saw her brothers, she tried to move her non-broken arm to them. The fire around her grew.
Starscream's brothers yelled. "Starscream!" They tried to get closer but couldn't stop coughing.
Megatronus ran through the fire and to her side. "Hang on Starscream." He gently scooped her up into his arms as she whimpered and cried out in pain as she was moved. Her small frame trembled in his arms. He could hear Starscream's hiccuping sobs and coughing wheezes as she struggled to stay online. He ran through the fire huddled around Starscream's body to keep her from becoming even more injured.
Thundercracker and Skywarp ran over clicking and chirping in worry and comfort to thier little sister.
Starscream chirped back to her brothers.
Megatronus held Starscream as he spoke. "Let's get you three to a medic. Follow me you two." He ran carefully so as not to jar the small seeker in his arms.
~Dream end~
Starscream woke up gasping in air panicking. She bolted upright trembling and whimpering.
Arcee seen this and ran over. "Starscream?" She gently grabbed Starscream's shoulder feeling the seeker flinch under her servo.
Starscream broke down crying as Arcee hugged her while rubbing circles on her wings. After she cried her spark out, calming down, she looked up some staring at the wall. "I... I'm sorry Arcee. I'm so sorry."
Arcee nodded. "It's okay Starscream. Whatever it was. It was just a dream. Your okay now."
Starscream looked deep into Arcee's optics. "But it wasn't. It wasn't a dream. It was a memory flux."
Arcee's optics widened. "A bad one?" She mumbled.
Starscream nodded looking away. "V... Vos was... on fire." She said softly. "My people... we were being killed. My trine... we were running... Then he... he showed up..."
Arcee looked confused. "Who's he, Starscream?"
"M...Megatronus..." She replied. "A... a missile h... hurt me... he... he car..carried me to safety...and ...and to a medic. We... we couldn't breathe... there was... too much... smoke. It hurt... it hurt so much Arcee." She whimpered as she curled into herself.
Arcee bit her glossa for a second before responding. "Your okay now though Starscream. Are you hungry? You haven't ate since yesterday."
Starscream welcomed the change of subject. "Please?" She looked up at Arcee with hopeful optics. She was getting hungry.
Arcee let her go and went to get a cube of energon. She came back and gave it to her.
Starscream drank slowly. "Thank you Arcee."
Arcee smiled slightly. "After you finish do you want to watch some human tv? If not I can let you rest again."
Starscream smiled weakly. "That sounds good." She finished her cube and let Arcee help her walk to the living room area by the ground bridge and the children's play room. She sat on the ground as Arcee turned the tv on and let Starscream change it to anything she'd like to watch. Starscream kept her blanket wrapped around her to keep her warm as the two sat in silence.
Then all of the sudden, that's when the call for a ground bridge came.