Author's Notes: I was going to make this chapter longer, but decided instead to break it up into two parts so I could get this part out faster. I'm working on a beta reading gig at the moment but didn't want to leave you guys with nothing to read. Thank you for checking out Meritocracy, and I hope you enjoy and review this chapter :)

Chapter 5

Persuasion Part I

The next few orns were rough on Thrust. Ever since the death of his uncle he was withdrawn and quiet. His trine mates had never seen him depressed before, and they didn't exactly know how to deal with it. Ramjet tried yelling at Thrust to do his job and move on with his life. That made Thrust get up and go to work, but it didn't change his behavior, and that bothered Ramjet. Dirge actually preferred Thrust this way since they had a similar temperament now, so he did nothing to change it at all.

One orn as Thrust watched the prisoners work he thought back to his uncle once again. Could he have captured Turbine? Forced him to work like these ground pounders? Could have have pretended to not know the seeker and saved his life? Chances are nothing would have saved Turbine, but Thrust still felt guilty about letting Ramjet kill him.

Thrust sighed when he thought about it, and then noticed that his chronometer was about to hit 53:00 joors. Lunch time.

"Alright you sacks of scrap!" Thrust yelled out at the prisoners, "Line up single file for your energon rations! You have a quarter joor to refuel and get back to work!"

Thrust took his own cube first and then allowed the other prisoners their cubes. The cubes were kept in a storage bin off to the side of the quarry, and were guarded by another Decepticon; today it was Outburst.

Thrust sat alone to refuel just as he did every shift. He wished his brothers worked with him guarding prisoners, but they each had their own assignments, so Thrust was left alone to deal with his thoughts.

Meanwhile, where the prisoners refueled, Comet and Prisma sat together as they usually did and enjoyed each other's company. They weren't given a lot of time with no supervision, so they cherished every moment together.

"So, who's your guard been during off hours?" Comet asked Prisma.

"Trigger," Prisma replied casually, "And you?"

"Last orn I was sent to solitary," Comet replied calmly, but then in a lower tone of voice said, "I think Ramjet suspects I know about the new energy storage units in Iacon. Don't worry, they haven't called me in yet, and if they do I promise I won't talk."

"I don't like this," Prisma whispered worriedly, "Dirge doesn't play around. I know this is just a backwater unit, but the Decepticons placed a very capable interrogator here. I don't want you to be killed, or worse. Please Comet, if you are cornered just tell them what you know. You're not a soldier. You don't have to endure this."

"Yes, I do," Comet replied resolutely, "Prisma, these Decepticons are a blight on our planet. We might just be messengers for the Autobots, and neither of us fight worth a slag I know, but we have to stay strong for the future of Cybertron. We will get out of this together. I promise."

"Actually, I've been thinking about that," Prisma told him hesitantly, "Thrust, the current taskmaster, is a member of Dirge's trine. Maybe I could talk to him, feel him out, see if he knows about the storage units. If he mentions it, then I'll know you're in trouble and we can prepare, but if he doesn't then we'll know you're safe."

"Don't," Comet replied sternly, "Don't go near him. Reminding a Decepticon guard you exist is just asking to be raped, beaten, and killed. Thrust's trine commander is in charge of this whole facility. Thrust knows he can do whatever he wants to us and no one will say anything. Just forget about it."

"But Comet, he could be useful-" Prisma tried to argue.

"No!" Comet snapped, "Look, he's alone. Every day he refuels alone. He obviously doesn't want anyone else around. He's just like every other Decepticon: antisocial and cruel. Please, just stay here."

Prisma thought about her older brother's words. He made several good points. She would risk a lot to gain very little information. The problem was he had been protecting her every step of the way since the war began. He was only captured because she got caught and he surrendered so they wouldn't be separated. Prisma knew she had done little to nothing to contribute to the Autobot cause. She was dead weight, and she wanted to do something, anything, to make a difference. Besides, no one else trusted her after she saved Thrust's life. She had to prove she was still a real Autobot.

"I'll be back in a few breems," Prisma said quickly before getting up and walking over to Thrust's table.

"Prisma! No!" Comet hissed as he helplessly watched her walk over to the Decepticon.

Thrust sighed again as he swirled the remaining contents of his energon cube and watched the sparks that fizzled on top of the liquid. The cube was almost empty. That was how he felt; as if someone had drained him and there wasn't much left. He wasn't as sad about his uncle as he had been. Now he was just...empty.

"Excuse me?" He suddenly heard a feminine voice, and looked up to see Prisma standing over him holding her cube of energon and looking down at him, "Um, may I sit here, sir?"

Thrust couldn't believe this was really happening! He had watched Prisma from afar for 10 orns, but had never actually spoken to her since the first time they met, and yet here she was; talking to him and asking to refuel with him! It was like a dream, and that was enough to make him temporarily forget his pain.

"Y-yes, please sit," Thrust stammered as he gestured to the place next to him on the ground, "So, um...I'm surprised you're here, actually. I know you usually like to dine with your brother."

"You keep track of that!?" Prisma asked nervously as her optics grew wide with fear.

"Not on purpose!" Thrust quickly exclaimed; feeling exposed for almost telling her he watched her, "I just, uh, observe things. I'm a very observant guy. I know everyone thinks I'm stupid, but I'm very observant when I want to be. That's how I got this job. By being...observant." Thrust trailed off quietly; feeling flustered.

Prisma listened to his words carefully, and noticed he was acting almost bashful in her presence. That gave her good news and bad news. The bad news was that he was attracted to her, which could lead to trouble. The good news was that he wasn't forceful when he was attracted to someone...at least not yet. She had to remind herself she was there for a reason, and she had to stay focused.

"I can imagine you are quite observant," Prisma replied agreeably, "I'll bet you know everything that goes on around the gulag, don't you sir?"

Thrust giggled at the comment; loving the attention and praise from his crush.

"I'll bet you also know the status of every prisoner here, don't you?" Prisma added; trying to flatter him in an attempt to get his guard down.

"Of course I do," Thrust preened as he spoke, "I am in charge of all of you, after all."

"Do you know anything about my brother?" Prisma asked conspiratorially, "Don't worry sir, I won't tell. You see, I uh, I had a fight with my brother. Yeah that's it, a fight. I would love to know if he has ever been trouble or will be in trouble in the future. It's something I can use against him. As a cunning Decepticon warrior, I'm sure you can understand the need for an edge, right?"

Thrust's smile suddenly fell. He didn't like this at all. Comet was her brother. He would never want to use blackmail material against his brothers unless it was something minor like an embarrassing snapshot or teasing them about a thing they couldn't hide. What she was talking about though was potentially harmful information on the only relative she had in here with her. After losing his uncle, Thrust couldn't look at that the same way again.

"Prisma, if I hear you talk like that again, the only edge you're gonna have is the edge of a blade to your neck cables," Thrust growled low; his infatuation replaced with anger, "Now, because I like you, I'm giving you one chance to change the subject without reprisal. I suggest you think of something quick."

Prisma thought his anger was from her trying to get information out of him. She was sure she had been caught, and was fearful of what Thrust would tell his superiors. She didn't want to be killed or sent to Dirge, so she thought quickly for something else to say to ease the tension.

"Um...I notice the rations are getting smaller," Prisma pointed out, but then winced as she realized she had just complained to the one providing her energon in the first place, "No, what I mean is, they are, uh…I'm sorry!"

Prisma closed her optics and made herself as small as she could. Thrust saw her curl up into a fetal position, and suddenly he felt bad for her all over again. She kind of reminded him of himself given he was also the coward and the screw-up of his group. He wanted so much to impress her that he forgot about how terrified she would be of her Decepticon taskmaster. Slowly, carefully, Thrust put his servo on her back. She flinched, but he didn't move his servo.

"Shh...it's okay, sweet spark," Thrust whispered softly to Prisma, "I'm not mad at you anymore. Come on, you still have a little energon left. Come on, talk to me. Look at me. I won't hurt you. Promise."

Prisma slowly sat back up and watched Thrust with wary optics. She knew most Decepticon soldiers had nasty and unpredictable tempers. It seemed Thrust was no different. She had no idea of the torment his processor had been putting him through, and he had no idea of how worried she was for her brother's life. All they knew was that he had been angry, and she had been deceitful. Neither one knew why, and therefore could do nothing except pretend it didn't happen.

Three orns later Ramjet got a comm from a superior in Kaon about a mission he and his trine was assigned to. He read over the specifics of the mission, and could barely believe this was what they were assigned to. This mission was an insult to Decepticons everywhere! Then again, if they succeeded then they might be able to get out of this dead-end prison gig.

He called his brothers in immediately. Thrust came running and was there within a breem. Dirge, of course, took longer. It wasn't that Dirge was lazy; he simply had more responsibility around the gulag than he could handle. Ramjet had been hollering for deca-orns that he needed more staff in this joint, but no one was willing to send him anybody, so his mechs all had to pull multiple duties (except Thrust who was incompetent).

Dirge finally arrived after 20 breems, and Ramjet was seeing red when his right brother came strolling in with a bored look on his face plate as if he weren't late at all.

"Glad to see you could finally join us," Ramjet growled sarcastically, "Will you need anything before we start the briefing, your majesty?"

"Very funny," Dirge deadpanned, "What is this about?"

"Our mission is to go to the outer edges of Nuon and find this mech," Ramjet said as he pulled up a picture of an orange construction minibot that transformed into a crane, "He's one of the Autobots' best constructors. He's been seen around an ancient temple outside Nuon for the past 8 orns making repairs."

"Is our job to assassinate this minibot?" Dirge asked impassively.

"No, that's the worst part," Ramjet grumbled dejectedly, "Our job is to find him and convince him to join our side."

"Wait a breem!" Thrust exclaimed, "Why would we want to recruit a minibot? Who ever heard of a Decepticon minibot? They're weak!"

"Normally, yes," Ramjet replied, "But apparently this guy's got an armor hide that would make Devastator jealous, and skills that would make the individual Constructicons green and purple with envy. Commander Blitzwing sent me an information packet on the guy, but admittedly there isn't much here beyond his armor's specs."

"Is there anything useful at all?" Dirge asked longsufferingly.

"Hm...It says he's quiet, and has never been seen firing a weapon," Ramjet read off, "Slaggit all! This stupid chart doesn't even give the mech's name!"

"So when do we leave?" Thrust asked in an effort to refocus Ramjet's attention away from his anger.

"Now," Ramjet said with authority, "I don't wanna take any longer than necessary. Just remember, by any means necessary we have to convince this guy he wants to be a 'Con."

"Any means, you say?" Dirge asked with a glint in his optic, "I can work with that."

The trio left the briefing room and transformed so they could take to the skies. Nuon was 3 joors away from their current location, and they were all eager to get there. Thrust wanted to go because it was a real mission, Dirge wanted to go to test out different persuasion techniques (most of them painful), and Ramjet just wanted to finish this quickly so he could get on with his life.

They made it to the temple to see the orange and silver minibot polishing a statue of Maximus Prime. He hummed to himself and didn't even notice when the three Decepticons landed and approached him. His comm link had been broken for a few deca-orns, but the minibot didn't mind. He enjoyed being alone among the relics without the intrusion of others.

"Hey, minibot!" Ramjet shouted; causing the mech to jump straight into the air before turning around to face them, "Hey there, short stuff. The name's Ramjet, and these are my trinemates Thrust and Dirge. Hey, don't look so scared. We don't wanna kill you just yet. We just wanna talk."

The minibot eyed them skeptically, but nonetheless subspaced his cleaning rag and looked up at Ramjet to wait for him to continue speaking.

"So mini, you got a name?" Ramjet asked casually.

"...Yes," The minibot replied evasively.

They waited for the crane-former to continue, but he never did. He just stared at them with wide blue optics and wrung his servos together nervously.

"Let me ask you something," Dirge spoke up next, "What are you doing out here all alone?"

"Um...The fighting got pretty close to the ancient Memorial of The Primes," The minibot explained in a timid voice; a voice that did not match the bulky armored mech, "I was worried the building had been damaged. Soldiers can be so careless with our planet's historical artifacts. Um, no offense of course."

"None taken," Thrust replied with a lopsided grin before he was punched in the arm by Ramjet, "Ow!"

"So, you like old stuff, huh?" Ramjet asked.

"Yes," The minibot replied simply, "Um, are you going to destroy the temple?"

"We might," Dirge said with a malicious smirk, "Of course, you can prevent that…"

"I don't want to fight you," The minibot replied quickly, "I'm a pacifist. I just repair things. That's all."

"You'll change your mind," Ramjet said coolly, "They always do. Listen shorty, the deal is this: you join the Decepticons, and we don't blow your precious memorial to smithereens. What do you say?"

"You don't want me," The minibot shook his helm, "Trust me, your unit would be the laughing stock of the Decepticons. My unit already has issues with me. That's why I'm allowed so much time to myself."

"Issues?" Thrust asked, "What kind of issues?"

"I'm an embarrassment to the Autobots," The minibot replied shamefully, "I can't help the way I was programmed though. I was sparked by vector sigma to a mean mech that enjoyed degrading his employees. My sister has it even worse than I do. She can't even carry a gun without someone mentioning it."

"Mentioning what?" Thrust asked; his curiosity eating away at him.

Before he could get his answer, a grey truck-former came rolling in and transformed in front of the minibot, standing over him protectively. The larger Autobot aimed his cannons at the Decepticons and looked down to make sure the minibot wasn't hurt.

"Yo Erector, these guys givin' you trouble?" The grey truck asked.

"No, I'm fine," Erector replied; though his tone was one of defeat.

Ramjet started snickering, and before long they were all laughing their helms off! A mech named Erector? That was too priceless!

"Yeah, keep laughin' 'Cons!" The truck-former snapped, "You won't laugh when I shoot your helms right off your neck cables!"

"Don't bother," Erector sighed, "Let's just leave while they're distracted. As usual."

"Hey..." Thrust managed to say between laughs, "...If it's...any consolation, I know how you feel. Try going to the military academy with a name like Thrust."

"Eh, it beats Erector," Erector shrugged, "Can we go now? I still have to tend to a statue in Iacon. Then I need to take my sister Discharge to the target range."

Ramjet scowled at Erector's blasé attitude even as his brothers burst out laughing again, but ultimately decided to allow the little mech to go free. He would've killed him, but decided having the designation Erector was punishment enough. The trine flew off without the minibot, but raided an energon plant on the way home so the evening wouldn't be a total loss.

Several orns later Thrust was finally allowed to transfer to a different assignment. He was given the duty of nighttime patrol around the compound; a job that usually went to Powerdown. Thrust was excited to prove his worth, but also a bit disappointed that he wasn't a taskmaster anymore. It meant no more underlings to push around, and more importantly no more Prisma. She didn't talk to him after what happened last time, but he had still hoped she would. Now he only saw her when she slept in the outdoor cell with the other prisoners.

On this particular orn Thrust was flying over the compound for a few breems in between walking patrols. He was supposed to walk since it used less energon, but flying was so much faster. Besides, when Thrust flew he could see everything.

He was high above the gulag when he saw two of the guards on patrol wrangling two prisoners out of their cell. Thrust was curious as to what was so important that it couldn't wait until morning, so he dove down and transformed to land.

By the time he flew down the guards were already gone with their prisoners. Dirge was walking out of his quarters looking tired and annoyed. Thrust put two and two together and figured out Dirge was being called on to either repair or interrogate prisoners.

"Hey Dirge, what's going on?" Thrust asked curiously.

"If I knew who to blame I would shoot them," Dirge muttered irritably as he trudged toward his 'office', otherwise known as the examination room, "Trigger woke me up to tell me one of our prisoners has coordinates to an Autobot controlled energon warehouse. I have to make him talk. Ugh, this is going to take all night! I do everything around here! Why won't they let me recharge in peace?"

Thrust was listening to his brother's complaining, but he was also counting the prisoners to determine which ones were taken. His tanks dropped when he quickly figured out which two were gone...Prisma and Comet!