Author's notes: I continue to update late! I am one massive late updater, procrastinating my way through life. But in my defense, this chapter is a multi-perspective doozy! Battles are taking place, things are exploding, bots are flying, it is a crazy ride. So please forgive my chronic lateness, and instead bare witness to this very long and action-packed chapter. Comment, favorite, and enjoy!


Location: Edge of Iacon City

Arcee

She landed on the other side of Soundwave's provided Groundbridge, blasters up and ready. The rest of her team were only a few paces behind her. She didn't wait for them.

Arcee's peds weren't planted on the ground more than a few seconds before she transformed. Her wheels hit the ground squealing. The friction left a smoke trail as she burned out onto the open planes.

Even from a distance the Insecticon screams were near deafening. Soundwave's portal had spit the Autobots out ahead of the swarm. But the endless torrent of infected would be on them soon. Arcee figured she would have to find and kill Arachnid before they reached Iacon. Communications were still down. Perfect. She could plead ignorance when Bee and the others couldn't tell her to stop. Their yells were already drowned out behind her. For all they had to know, she heard nothing.

Zooming towards Iacon, she saw the ships. Bots were fleeing in droves or squaring up to fight. Distant blaster fire over the hills rang out. The Autobot Elite Guard were already locked in combat with the first wave of Arachnid's swarm. What remained of the New Council must have sent them.

She turned for the chaos of battle and gunned it, rust flying under her wheels. She used everything, optics, sensors, and both mirrors to try and spot the shape of a dark helicopter in the swarm. So far nothing. Either Arachnid was high above the action, or she was using the swarm as a distraction and rushing for Iacon. Knowing the coward as Arcee did, she was sure it was the latter.

She spotted the last of the Elite Guard. Clustered together and overwhelmed as Arachnid's swarm moved in to feed. Driven as Arachnid was to get to Iacon, she was still infected. She wouldn't be able to resist a meal of spilt Energon. That was Arcee's hope anyway. It was only a matter of time before the murderer came screaming out of the sky. She would be ready for that moment.

Laser fire from the sky forced Arcee off course. She spun out, transforming so she could dive for cover under a fallen piece of ancient debris. Her guns came out and she aimed to the sky. Her Spark skipped a pulse. A massive dark hauled ship eclipsed the brightening sky. The Decepticon Emblem proud on its bow. This must have been Tarn's ship, come to defend Arachnids forces, or kill as many Autobots as they could.

Arcee risked a peek out of her hiding spot to try and lay optics on her team. Their own vehicle modes vanished under cover. They were safe for the moment. They still couldn't communicate, thanks to the same ship over their helms.

Arcee grit her denta as she saw the ship turn its laser focus to the Elite Guard on the battlefield. They had no cover, surrounded by a swarm of Insecticons. They were easy targets.

She leapt out to unleash a hail of her own gunfire before transforming. Her blasts against the armored vessel were laughable, but piercing the Peaceful Tyranny wasn't her goal. She was a distraction to draw fire away from the Elite Guard. And so far, mission fragging accomplished.

Laser fire rained down around her, the ship's focus seeming to zero in on her small form. She weaved in all directions, lowering her risk of a direct, or even an indirect hit. Craters exploded into the ground around her. She used them as ramps to fly into the air, trying to be as annoying as possible.

Familiar blaster fire came from the ground. Bee and the others knew what she was doing and were providing cover. Wheeljack's dull white silhouette zoomed out from hiding. He stopped long enough to transform, now in a better position for a direct attack. Even from a distance, Arcee could see the manic smile he wore. He wielded Decepticon weaponry he had taken from Soundwave's vaults. It locked into the ground and then blasted a hail of grenade fire upwards. One of the shots managed to hit a gun turret. The Peaceful Tyranny shuttered, smoke belching from the destroyed gun turret. But it had plenty more to play with. Wheeljack snatched his new favorite weapon and sped off before the laser fire could disintegrate him.

Arcee jumped back into action. She gasped a sharp intake as a blast exploded the ground in her path. She managed to swerve just in time, but the momentum threw her off her wheels. She hit the ground hard as she rolled, pain exploding up her back struts.

"Gotcha Cee!" Bumblebee's voice assured her. Familiar servos scooped her up and rolled them unceremoniously down a hill.

She groaned, every joint protesting as she came out of her transformation on top of Bumblebee in a heap. "Thanks for the save, I think." She grumbled.

He managed a pained chuckle. "Yeah, I could have executed that dive better. Next time."

"Next time." She echoed skeptically. She peeked over the ridge, seeing the rest of their team fighting to keep the Peaceful Tyranny's focus. But the Elite Guard were still being slaughtered. "This won't mean a damn thing if we can't keep that swarm away from Iacon." She zoomed her focus into the sky. "Decepticon fliers." She pointed out. It looked like Soundwave's troops. Blitzwing, Slipstream, Ramjet, and their teams. They were fighting off the Insecticons too. Much like the Elite Guard on the ground, they were losing territory. They were totally overwhelmed.

"We're all scrambling blind if we can't talk to each other." Bumblebee huffed, glaring up at the Peaceful Tyranny. "As long as they are scrambling our coms, we don't stand a chance."

"We played right into Arachnid's trap." Arcee hissed. "This was who knows how long in the making, and we waltzed right into it. She's going to slip right by us and get to Earth. We don't have enough bots to even the odds."

"Arcee…"

She glanced back at him, alarmed by his hesitant tone. His focus was not on her, or even the battlefield. She turned her optics south, where he was staring.

There was, something, coming from the distant hills. "More of Soundwave's forces?" she guessed, though was just as unconvinced as it left her voice box. Soundwave's forces were either here or fighting with him in the Pits of Kaon trying to hold back the Insecticons.

The first wave appeared over the horizon. Wings, tires, and paint jobs of every kind glistening in the early morning light. Some wore the Decepticon emblem, others had the familiar Autobot symbol. Others had nothing but their own plating and homemade weaponry. All they had in common were their numbers. Hundreds of bots came screaming over the hills. They fired at the swarms of Insecticons and the Peaceful Tyranny. "Who are they?" Arcee asked the open air and turned back to see Bumblebee smile with sudden realization. "Bots from the Kaon Capital. All those who Soundwave saved from execution, and Predaking gave safe harbor in the city. Seems Soundwave's speech roused something deep."

At that moment, the ground rumbled. Arcee and Bumblebee grabbed onto each other to remain upright as the tremors became a violent plate splitting quake. Dust rose from the distance behind the hordes of Kaon Capital bots. Something massive was coming their way, the Peaceful Tyranny it's unhindered focus.

"What in the Pits is that?" Arcee managed to say.

"Not what." Bumblebee snickered. "Who." She glanced up at him in confusion. He tugged her by the servo. "We'll want to get out of the way. MacCadam tends to make an entrance."

"MacCadam?" Arcee echoed, unconvinced. "That old bar tender in the Kaon slums?"

'Ha! The very same old bar tender!' came the scratched voice of MacCadam in her Auditory.

Arcee jumped, looking over to see Bumblebee grinning. "Coms are back!"

'We're back in business!' Smokescreen's voice chimed in.

Soon the massive form was upon the battlefield. The once hard packed plating of the ground upturned as it was rolled over by the spinning wheel of death Bumblebee had called MacCadam. A terrifyingly massive frame made of whirling gears and copper spewing blue flame tore through the Insecticon swarm. Even accounting for metal compression, the monster was pushing 70 feet tall. The spinning death saw of a bot somehow evaded the scattering Elite Guard. MacCadam's near unstoppable assault flanked by the packs of Kaon refugees had Tarn's crew's focus to say the least. But their resulting turret attacks were slow and disjointed, unlike their previous assault which was pinpoint and deadly. Every motion they made was hesitant. 'Something's wrong on board their ship. What's going on?' Arcee demanded over their newly repaired chatter.

'It was your kids.' MacCadam explained to them all. 'You should all be proud of them; they are giving Tarn's communication network team a run for their shanix!'

Somehow, MacCadam synched their chatter with the Peaceful Tyranny's coms, which he managed to do while in active combat. Though the broadcast was only a few seconds, Miko's unmistakable guitar playing screamed over the radio. Arcee realized she was smiling along with Bumblebee.

'That's my girl!' Bulkhead cheered.

'MacCadam, are you the one behind all these bots coming to help?' Bumblebee guessed.

Arcee found MacCadam's resulting folksy chuckle unfitting the behemoth that tore up the terrain before them. 'Sometimes, all anybot needs to do the right thing is others to support them, and a little push. That's all I did in this case. Everyone here made the right choice, and everyone here will continue to make the right choice. Right, Arcee?'

Arcee pulled back a bit, him directly calling her out catching her off guard.

'Tarn's crew can't talk to each other over Miko's playing, at least until they get back control.' Bumblebee said before Arcee could question MacCadam's previous meaning. 'This will give us time to turn the tides in our favor!'

'What's the word then, chief?' Wheeljack asked.

Bumblebee noticeably hesitated, realizing Wheeljack had been asking him directly. He turned to Arcee, who only questioned him with a raised optic ridge. "Well, we're waiting." She said, offering a hint of a smile at the end of the statement. She decided whatever strange prediction or cryptic message MacCadam threw her way could wait. Her team needed her more.

Bumblebee surveyed the battlefield. He took a deep intake, then stood. 'We give MacCadam and the others back up, keeping our optics to the sky for the Insecticon Arachnid gave Unicron's vessel to. If we get that vessel, we win the fight! Whoever gets it first, protect it until the others arrive. Autobots, roll out!'

He rushed out of their cover, Arcee trailing him. She transformed just as he did, their comrades all doing the same from different points of the battlefield. They sped towards the fight, the guns from the Peaceful Tyranny too slow to catch them.

"Optimus's saying sounded good coming from you." Arcee noted, just a few kliks away from the fight.

Bumblebee chuckled, trying to shield his embarrassment. "Thanks… I've been practicing it."

They both hit a jutting ground plate MacCadam upturned, using like a ramp. The momentum threw Arcee farther into the fray. She transformed, blades out, and landed on the back of an Insecticon. She stabbed into its neck cables, ripping an animalistic shriek from her target. It flew higher, bucking to try and throw her off. She held on. The higher vantage point was exactly what she needed.

Using her blades like reigns to control the thrashing Insecticon, she carried threw the swarm. She scanned every dark chassis in the cloud, trying to catch a glimpse of Unicron's swirling energy container, or Arachnid.

A reflective surface differed from the rest of the chaos. She pushed forward towards it. The Insecticon she rode started to descend fast, it's energy drained. Arcee pulled free, jumping again to another buzzing form before they crashed. Despite her hopping from form to form, she was losing sight of the container. The single Insecticon that held Unicron in its spindly grasp stayed high and in the heart of the swarm.

"Scrap!" she hissed as her ride smashed into another of its kin and spun out towards the ground.

Arcee leapt from the impending crash and felt the pit in her tanks as she failed to snatch the next bug.

Something hard intercepted her before she smashed into the ground. She grabbed on tight before the momentum of the flyer made her tumble off. Beating insect wings didn't surround her. Both her hands clutched to a thick flight frame, a scuffed Decepticon sign her new focus.

"I caught an Autobot, what are the odds?" said the Con cheerfully.

Arcee had to take a moment to compose herself from her near-death collision with the ground before she could respond. "Thanks… Ramjet, right?"

"That's what they call me. Where ya headed up here, two-wheeler?" Ramjet said.

Arcee pointed upward. "That bug, holding the large container! We need to get it!"

"Hold on if ya can, Autobot!" Ramjet warned before he burned his thrusters hard.

Arcee fell against Ramjet's back as low as she could manage to cut down on drag and keep from being flung off. They were halfway there, and Arcee risked releasing one servo to form her blaster. She took aim at the target Insecticon.

"Do you know the Decepticon air Commander, Starscream?" Ramjet asked randomly.

"Unfortunately." She said, cursing again when the Insecticon vanished back into the swarm. "What's he to you?"

"Nothing much to me, but my employer, Ms. Slipstream, owes him a single punch. She doesn't want to do it herself, because she says her punches don't carry that much weight. She also doesn't want to use me because I'd be too obvious a choice. She wants it to catch him totally off guard. Ms. Slipstream is outsourcing the job to any interested party for a good price. If you're interested."

Despite the battle screaming around them and Arcee hanging on for dear life hundreds of feet in the air, she cracked an amused smile. "It's a tempting offer. But if your boss wants a hard hitter, I'd go ask one of the Dinobots. They are always looking for odd jobs."

"I'll pass that along. Thanks." Ramjet said sincerely just before they burst through a large swarm. Arcee had her sights set on her target. She fired a single shot. It hit the mark. The Insecticon's left wing blew out and it screeched, flapping to break its fall as it descended. It was burdened with Unicron's prison, making it fall faster. Arcee crouched, ready to jump once more.

"Thanks for the ride. Try not to get yourself killed!" she said.

"Same to yourself. Never thought I'd say that to an Autobot. Primus, times are strange!" He increased his speed just enough as she jumped to propel her farther towards the single falling Insecticon.

She landed on its back, Ramjet vanishing from her sights in the swarm. With her combined weight, Unicron's vessel and the Insecticons wounded wing it was forced to land.

She jumped just before it crashed into the ground. She landed hard, but otherwise absorbed the impact with no injuries. Unicron's vessel had dislodged from the Insecticon on impact and rolled down hill. Arcee chased after it, snatching it by one of its sides and digging her heel struts in to force it to a stop.

She pressed a shaking finger to her helm. 'I got it! I got Unicron's…' Her mind stalled. The container imprisoning the Destroyer of worlds forgotten before her.

There she was. Across the battlefield, perched on a jutting hill. Observing the chaos as if it were an entertainment drama, was a dark, slim figure Arcee recognized right away.

Arcee's Spark raced. Murder consumed her every thought as she watched Arachnid. She could close the distance between them in no time. This was her only chance.

'Arcee.' Bumblebee's voice said in her mind. It was a desperate pleading tone, and it snapped her focus away from Arachnid. She looked up and saw Bumblebee from a similar distance in the other direction. He knew exactly what she was going to do. Even still, his optics were pleading.

With slow, mechanical movements, she reached up to her auditory. She shut herself off from her team's open chatter.

She saw Bumblebee transform across the expanse of land to race towards her. He would be too late. She adjusted the frequency. She pulled up the personal com number she didn't want to use when she got it but knew in her Spark she would.

'Soundwave.' She said into the private chatter.

There was a long, agonizing pause as she waited, keeping an optic on Bumblebee and Arachnid.

'I am here.' Soundwave's deep inflection answered finally. Though she heard him well enough, his voice was riddled with disjointed pauses and deep intakes. He sounded badly hurt. But he kept to his word and answered her call. 'Do you require a Bridge around your team to get to Arachnid?' he assumed.

She had every intention of saying yes. But as if she had lost control of her voice box, she couldn't force the words out. Panic plucked at her Spark. She saw more Insecticons headed her way, no doubt ready to scoop up Unicron's vessel and continue on in their fallen kin's place.

Even from such a distance, she knew Arachnid saw her too. Arachnid stood slow from her seat on the hill, diseased optics boring through Arcee. No doubt it was the reason the Insecticons knew where to find the vessel. Their queen knew where Arcee was.

Arachnid held out her hands, reaching, desperate for Arcee. She summoned her forward, silently pleading her to come and close the distance between them. As if they were long lost lovers and not deadly foes. No, not pleading. Mocking. If Arcee left to kill her, Unicron's vessel was lost. Arachnid knew that.

Arcee fell to her knees, one hand still on her auditory. Soundwave waited in the silence she abandoned him in as he no doubt fought for his own life with the monster Tarn. She shook, holding herself in a self-soothing embrace. The burning fury, the want to kill that creature on the hill beckoning her was so strong she feared if she didn't move towards her, Arcee's own Spark would snuff out.

Beating wings were drawing close from the sky. Bumblebee was still too far away. Soundwave's silence was deafening. The pain was ripping her in two.

Arcee forced herself to her peds and pressed a digit to her auditory. 'No. I don't need a Bridge.' She whimpered, and felt every syllable lash her insides as she spoke them. 'I've retrieved Unicron's vessel, and we are holding the swarm from Iacon… Here are our coordinates, so you can join us when you are finished with Tarn.' She said simply, utterly defeated.

She was sure Soundwave thought she was insane for the random report, but she felt so hollow she didn't much care.

'Good work.' He said to her surprise. 'I will be there before the end. I promise.'

'I'll hold you to it. So don't die.' She said before their com cut off. It was the second time she told a Con not to die that day. Ramjet was right. Times were strange.

With what little effort she had left in her chassis, she turned away from Arachnid to face her approaching swarm. Her blasters came to life, and she fired with reckless abandonment. She screamed out her frustration, back strut pressed into Unicron's prison as she lost ground, the swarm being to many for even her fury to stave off. Even sealed behind impenetrable Prime created material, she could almost hear the Destroyers voice, feel his tendrils snaking past her armor and piercing her protomesh.

'You missed your chance for vengeance. Now you will die, and Arachnid will live.'

Had what she heard been Unicron's whispers or her own delusions? It didn't matter.

"I know." She said to the monster at her back, and herself. "But it's my own stupid choice. So just shut up so I can concentrate."

Her body's energy ran low as she continued to fire nonstop into the swarm. She needed to stop, rest and recharge before it started to pull energy from her other systems. But she couldn't. The cloud of infected was endless, descending on her. If she stopped, she was scrap. She stood her ground, enduring to either fire until she passed out or she was ripped apart.

Arcee managed a bitter smile. Her vision turned darker and her blasts weakening. "Sorry Tailgate… You can't say I didn't try. At least you had Cliff Jumper with you… I'd apologize for that too, but you both are the chatty type. I'm sure you kept each other company. You both have had plenty to say about me… I guess you can fill me in when I see you both in a minute."

Her blasters clicked empty, and her optics shut off seconds later. She felt the impact of the ground just before the rendering of metal assaulted her senses.

Death didn't feel painful, but it was far from peaceful. In fact, if felt more like someone shaking her back and forth, rattling her processor in her helm while a familiar voice shouted her name. It seemed something Cliff Jumper would do.

"Arcee!"

That was Bumblebee.

She forced her optics open and saw the yellow and silver faceplates of her comrade. His bright blue optics relaxed as she groaned. Either they were all dead, or she had only faceplanted the ground after her blasters sucked her dry. Of course, it was the second. Death would be the simpler way out.

"Unicron's container." She moaned.

"You defended it until MacCadam and I could reach you. You're ok."

Arcee pulled herself back into reality with enormous effort. Bumblebee helped her remain standing. She blinked a few times, her vision clearing enough to make out the whirling death spin taking place just over them.

MacCadam's multi-geared body spun before the same swarm she once defended against, but he had much better control over their numbers. Insecticons were crushed in the massive gears, rendered to scrap metal that rained around them.

"That's… a terrifying thing to wake up to." Arcee admitted.

Bumblebee snickered, gripping her by the shoulder. "Yeah, but at least he's on our side."

Arcee shifted to the side, looking past Bumblebee to the distant hills. Arachnid was gone.

She felt the weight of her original choice crush down on her. Arcee almost fell again, but this time Bumblebee was there to catch her. "I almost left everything, Unicron's container, you guys, the battle… I almost abandoned it all, just for a chance to kill Arachnid."

"But you didn't." Bumblebee offered in her own defense.

She shook her helm, glaring off into the distant hills again. "I know I had to. I still regret it. I feel empty. Worthless. What does that make me? Hollow and sparkless, like her?"

"No." Bumblebee muttered. He held her close, Arcee not registering she was returning the embrace until she was all but buried in his chest armor. "You're not like her. I'm sorry Arcee. I'm sorry she's hurt you so deep."

She remained clinging to her teammate, not having the emotional strength to stand on her own.

Their surroundings became somewhat quiet. Both Arcee and Bumblebee glanced upward when the short-lived peace was cut up by the harsh grinding of a massive transformation.

From the endless gears and flaming copper pipes, a somewhat Bot like form appeared. Arcee made out MacCadam's grinning faceplate from the half-transformed mess. A goofy grin and wide saucer shaped optics looking down on them. "Like I said, I knew you would make the right choice, both for yourself, and your teammates."

Arcee felt her own expression fall flat. "I guess that comes with the whole future reading thing?"

"Not entirely." MacCadam admitted. "This confidence came from what Optimus always said about you."

Arcee hadn't been ready at all for that. Her Spark ached somehow more than it had before. Bumblebee rumbled with a chuckle, his own optics somber. "We could really use him now."

Explosions rose from the distant battle, drawing all their focus. The Peaceful Tyranny was adjusting course. It looked ready to abandon the Insecticons that remained and were making their way South. "Make no mistake, he's here." MacCadam assured them. His form started to grow again to resume fighting. With a gargantuan hand MacCadam picked up Unicron's prison from the ground and it vanished into the mass of his body. That was one way to protect it from further Insecticon attack. Anyone who attempted to steal it back would have to be a special kind of suicidal. "But Optimus knows we have things covered here. His Spark is with an old friend of his, who is in dire need of the emotional support."

Arcee glanced Bumblebee, who wore the same confused look she must have. "Who?"

"But speaking of my future sight," MacCadam said before she could finish the thought. "I do think we are needed."

"The Peaceful Tyranny is going to make its final stand?" Arcee assumed, and she managed to break away from Bumblebee to stand on her own.

"Well, that… And Smokescreen will be so busy doing a victory dance over a successful hit he won't see the Insecticon sneak up behind him to bite in exactly twenty kliks." MacCadam admitted.

Arcee jolted out of her stupor with Bumblebee doing the same. She gazed across the battlefield to see the blue shot take down an Insecticon. Then Smokescreen jumped up onto the smoldering form, dancing around like an idiot.

"Smokescreen, damnit! Quit show boating and watch your back!" Arcee hissed out loud and over their com. She transformed to race towards Smokescreen, managing to tackle him out of the way before MacCadam's prediction came true. Arcee landed a lethal slash to the Insecticon before it could burst out of hiding at them.

Bumblebee helped Smokescreen up from the ground, their rookie team member moaning from the hit to his helm and ego. Bulkhead and Wheeljack skirted to a stop by them.

"Big guys are on the move." Wheeljack said, pointing to the Peaceful Tyranny as it soared off to the south. "I guess we put up a harder fight then they were ready for."

"Why are they headed for the Kaon Capital?" Arcee said just as the thought occurred to her.

There was a beat of tense silence between them as that information sank in.

"They may have tracked down where their Communication is being jammed." Bumblebee realized with widened optics. "They are going to attack the Renegade to take back control."

"The kids are on that ship!" Bulkhead snarled. "We need to stop em!"

More gunfire from the sky came to their aid. Large shadows crossed over their helms and drew most optics skyward. Even with a cloud of negativity still buzzing her processor, the sight made Arcee laugh out loud. "Well, there's a sight you don't see every day."

Sharpshot's trooper unit screamed across the sky towards the retreating Peaceful Tyranny, shooting Insecticons along the way. Grimlock and Sludge's bulky form dangled from the Vehicon's magnetic grip, their formation circled by Swoop. Arcee was able to pick Sharpshot out among the similarly painted Cons just by their flashy flying alone. "I don't think we will need to worry about the kids. Whoever is on that ship has to get through Grimlock first."

'Fight on comrades!' Sharpshot shouted over both the Decepticon and Autobot com channels. 'Until all are one!'

"Until all are one!" many cheered to the sky.

Arcee felt her blaster's energy return to full function. She could fight again.

"No offence to Soundwave, but is there any way we can vote for Sharpshot to be the new Con leader?" Smokescreen mused.

Wheeljack laughed. "Yeah, can you imagine the other Cons agreeing to put a Vehicon in charge of the rest of em?"

Arcee caught Bumblebee observing the many eclectic faceplates that made up the new Decepticons, fighting alongside Autobots. Then he smiled. "I can see it happening."


Location: The Peaceful Tyranny

Nickel

"Yeah, frag this." Nickel grumbled from her vantage point perched in one of the port holes. She watched the battle play out below. Hordes of newcomers overwhelmed what was once an overwhelming swarm of Insecticons. "Tarn was going to betray the spider bot anyway. If that filthy organic hadn't fragged with our coms and whatever THAT thing is didn't show up," she jabbed an accusing digit at the spinning gear monster that had appeared halfway through the fight. "We would have turned the Autobots into scrap."

"We'll be back when we have our communications up and running again."

Nickel felt a well-deserved smirk pull her lip plates. She cracked the pistons in her hands. "Oh yeah. I have a date with a bunch of filthy carbon-based lifeforms. After we smash those creatures into nothing, we swing around and pick up Tarn, Kaon, Helex and the rest of the army. I assume they have repainted the Pits of Kaon with Soundwave's Energon by now."

Tesarus snickered as the door to the bridge slid open. Vos sculked in. Their sort of domesticated 'Turbofox' affectionately named The Pet right behind him. Both appeared locked in a competition to look more sullen.

"Where have you been?" Tesarus demanded of Vos.

The lanky bot glared at him beyond his removable faceplates. He muttered something sharp in his dead language before he stationed himself at a terminal.

The Pet growled as it entered, dragging its chain. Its feral optics jumped about the Bridge before it chose to lurk near Nickel. She offered her hand to the beast. It growled, though didn't make a move to snap at her. Progress! The Pet lowered its head, though not far, as they were both relatively the same size. Nickel patted him. "There you go buddy. I knew the obedience training was worth it… what do you say, want to chew on some organic alien life forms?"

"Kaon Capital isn't far now…" Tesarus said out loud to the Bridge. A blip on their sensors came to life, and a dark smile graced his faceplates. "And there is the Renegade on radar despite their sad excuse of a cloaking shield. A little closer and we can engage."

"About fragging time!" Nickel snarled. She half climbed up Tesarus to get a better view of the radar screen. "Countdown to blasting holes into that organic infested ship."

If not for Tesarus snatching her around the waist, Nickel would have been thrown to the floor. The cause was the sudden violent shaking of their ship. As suddenly as it happened the shimmy stopped. The Bridge crew were left staring confused at each other. "Um, what the frag was that?" Nickel demanded of the silent bots around her.

Vos typed fast into his terminal, scanning the ship for damage. "Upper…haul…" He managed to rumble in modern dialect.

Tesarus crossed his servos, taking in the screen. "You're right. Something landed up top. But I didn't see any of those Con traitors following us from the fight."

"It could be our troops." Nickel said with a shrug. "Not like anyone can call for a Bridge like normal with that scrap playing over the com system."

"Most of our troops should be almost to the Pits of Kaon to help out Tarn." Tesarus pointed out. He glared at the sealed door to the Bridge.

"Now you're making me nervous, Tess." Nickel admitted. The Pet had stood from its semi relaxed state to glare at the door, auditory receptors laid flat to its helm. The Pet growled, crouching down in preparation to attack.

"Whatever it is, I'll take care of it." Tesarus said. The blades sprang from their housing along his servos and outer peds as he made his way to the door.

"Tess," Nickel protested from her place behind the Pet. "There are guards in the halls for a reason. We haven't heard anything. It may already be taken care of."

Tesarus scoffed at her without slowing his pace for the door. "You worry too much Nickel. You've seen how big I am right? Only Tarn could take me down on a bad day… or a big fiery explosion, I guess. And so far, I haven't heard either."

The door slid out of Tesarus's way, and the massive roaring flame knocked him backwards into the far wall. Nickel jumped back in alarm. The stream of fire died down and three giant shadows storming in. Nickel had to strain her neck joints backwards to look up into the piercing yellow optics of the monsters. "Frag Primus to the Pits… It's Grimlock." She realized in horror.

The monstrous bot roared a thunderous laugh that shook his thick plated chassis. "Good to see you freaks again too!" Grimlock cackled. He reeled back and unleashed another blast of fire into the controls. Nickel dove out of the way, dodging fire and the resulting exploding equipment.

"Um, boss, didn't we need some of that working?" the winged monster she remembered was called Swoop asked Grimlock.

Grimlock hesitated. "Ah scrap, that's right… Hey Shots, can you still work with this?" he asked towards the door at their backs.

Nickel saw much smaller forms race through. A unit of identical flight mode Vehicons ran in, surveying the damage to the Bridge. She heard the Vehicon towards the front release an exasperated vent. "Well… The good news is you probably couldn't have done more damage even if you wanted to on the first go around."

The winged Dinobot Swoop snickered. "That sounded like a challenge."

"Keep them distracted. We can get the ship to the ground at the very least." The leading Vehicon said.

Vos hissed from the remaining controls. His deadly hooks sprung to life from his hands as he prepared to stand his ground. The Pet snarled at the three Dinobots, ready to charge despite the massive size disparity.

"Aw, a Turbofox. Can we keep it boss?" the long necked Dinobot asked in a stupid inflection.

"No!" Tesarus managed to snap. He stumbled out of the flames and pointed to Nickel. "Pet, protect Nickel!" He hurled himself at Grimlock despite his noticeable injuries.

Grimlock huffed smoke at Tesarus's approach. "Swoop, Sludge, clear a path for Sharpshot's gang to get to the controls. I'll take care of the big one."

Nickel was to stunned to move. She could only watch helpless from the corner. Somewhere beyond her fear, she felt the spiked plating of The Pet poke her. It hid her against the wall and itself.

Every spinning blade in Tesarus's chassis came to life, his sights set on Grimlock. "Haven't seen you abominations around for a while. I see you still have Shockwave's little affliction. Never found a cure?" He slashed at Grimlock but managed to only open a superficial wound in his plating.

Grimlock swung around, knocking Tesarus backwards with his tail. "Yeah, no scrap. But I've found use for it." He slammed into Tesarus again, smashing him into a sparking control panel. "Right now, for example. Any other bot wouldn't stand much of a chance against your little gang I figure. It would have been more fun if most of your army wasn't headed South after your boss. We got to Iacon ready to go down swingin' against the big bug's swarm. But then somethin' unexpected happened, especially in this thankless line of work. A bunch of unaligned and ex-Cons came runnin' to help fight alongside the Autobots. Made us idiots useless. So, I asked where we could find the biggest fight, and everybot pointed us to your ship. Though I see your boss isn't here like I was hopin'… please don't make me regret comin' here."

Tesarus frowned. "Well, sorry to disappoint. But we weren't stupid enough to send our whole army away."

Nickel pressed harder against the wall as more of their own forces poured in. Voss dodged blows from the Dinobot lackies. Tesarus was busy holding back Grimlock. A fire fight broke out between their guards and the Vehicon unit, adding to the chaos.

Nickel forced her wheeled peds to move. The Pet shielded her as she snuck against the wall. She needed to get to a terminal. Even with their main com systems down, she could send a decrypted message. Kaon would get it and figure out something was wrong… Tarn would come and help.

More fire sprayed across the room, forcing her to dive away from her goal. Even deterred, this could work. Their forces continued to pour in. Even if they couldn't terminate the Dinobots, at least they could outgun the Vehicons. They had to keep them from taking over the ship. If they crash landed, they were fragged.

"More are coming!" reported one of their troops.

Tesarus gasped an intake, weary optics aimed for the door.

Grimlock chuckled. "I was wondering when the rest of the crew would feel like showing up."

"The door!" Tesarus hissed, unable to break off from Grimlock. Nickel glanced swiftly around the room. Vos was trying to tear his way past the other two Dinobots to get to the Vehicons. All their remaining forces not manning turrets fought with Grimlock alongside Tesarus. It was up to Nickel. She pushed her way through the chaos, The Pet right by her. They managed to get to the door panel without being blown to the Pits. "Give me a boost!" she said to The Pet. It knelt on all fours so she could climb onto its back. Once in place it stood, and she was able to reach the Bridge door's main control panel. She hastily typed in the emergency lock. Lumbering shadows of more Dinobots came around the corner of the outside hall. The door slammed shut just in time, giving an assuring click.

Nickel slid off The Pet's back, pressing against the locked door with a vent of relief. With at least that problem taken care of, she fumbled in her subspace. They had run out of options. She pulled Tarn's recorded voice from its compartment. She tried to catch Tesarus's optics, so he had warning. He was too busy wrestling a mad cackling Grimlock to notice.

Nickel fished around in the same compartment. She had to have something to cover The Pet's auditory receptors with... It wasn't Tarn's deadly pitch. This would hurt, but it wouldn't kill them. She hoped her crew could forgive her for having to use it on them. But with everyone unconscious, could she manage to keep the ship flying by herself-

"AH!" She yelped when something hit her hard from behind, knocking her to the floor. She only had enough time to register the door had blown off. She did not have enough heads up to avoid it smashing down on her and The Pet, pinning them down.

Despite the pain in her back struts, she made out Grimlock's laugh. "Slag, Snarl, took ye'r sweet time."

Nickel tried to pull herself free from under the door. Her measly servos couldn't even almost get the job done. This wasn't helped by the fact the two Dinobots responsible for her predicament were still standing on the door on top of her. The shorter of the monsters noticed her struggling. Nickel half expected it to bite her helm off when it leaned over to her. "Excuse me." He said instead. He transformed back into a bot, kneeling over to snatch something from in front of Nickel. "NO!" She cried. It was Tarn's voice recording, now hopelessly out of her reach. The same bot pulled her and an unconscious Pet from under the door. Nickel struggled in his grasp. It was no use. "Hey boss, this would have been bad." Her captor snickered, waving Tarn's voice recording about. Nickel watched helpless as the other Dinobot rushed forward to join the fight.

Tesarus could only manage to hold them back. His spinning blades made snatching him impossible without evisceration. Grimlock circled him, taking casual inventory of his opponent. Tesarus took the chance to do the same. Nickel's teammate sneered at the circling beast. "Tarn'll be back."

"Oh, I'm counting on it." Grimlock agreed. "I intend to do more damage to his faceplates this time. Maybe take a servo while I'm at it."

Tesarus slashed, Grimlock taking the score in his shoulder without flinching.

"You'll regret this, freak! I may not be Tarn, but I can handle one monster."

Another massive tremor rocked the ship. Nickel paused her struggling to look up towards the upper haul. Even Tesarus and the others paused their attacks. There were only five Dinobots… weren't there?

Grimlock's massive snout stretched into a fanged grin. "Ah oh, didn't Arachnid warn ya about the other monsters we have been sharing the new planet with?"

"What other monsters?" Tesarus demanded.

The side of the Bridge exploded open, air whooshing in. A primal roar shook Nickel's frame. Through the jagged hole, yellow optics glared them down. More of the ship's haul tore away, rendered by deadly claws. The nightmarish beast forced their way through.

"Is that a Predacon?!" Nickel managed to yelp.

"I forgot to mention," the Vehicon said to Grimlock. "I contacted Predaking about the plan of attack on behalf of Lord Soundwave. It is good to see you, King! Thanks for coming!"

The monster only nodded once in the Vehicon's direction. Then its whole focus returned to Tesarus, who was frozen in a state of shocked disbelieve.

Grimlock snorted a laugh. "You convinced the big guy to help? Damn, Shots, you really are good at the whole 'diplomacy' thing. Between us and the Predacons we got ourselves here a Shockwave's freaks of science reunion!"

It was a short reprieve as the ship trembled again, then again. More roars from the outside echoed. From behind the impossible form of the Predacon, more of its winged kin appeared. Swarms of them tore into their ship's haul and yanked turrets free.

Nickel felt herself drain of any sort of hope. She watched, feeling worthless as her team was overwhelmed within moments. Tesarus's blades didn't manage to scratch the Predacon. A flick of its tail sent Vos into the controls he once defended.

Nickel could only fumble to touch her auditory at the side of her helm. Noise still permeated their com systems. She tried screaming into the void anyway. "Tarn! Tarn, we need help! Arachnid drew us into a trap. There are Predacons on the Autobot's side! Can you hear me? You have to come back!"


Location: Pits of Kaon

Soundwave

"Boss, something bad is happening back on the ship!" Kaon said. Both of their teams were still polarized, unmoving towards the other. Tarn had not yet broken his glare with Megatron across the arena.

Even when Kaon spoke, he didn't flinch, though he did acknowledge it. "What are they reporting?" Tarn said, voice still shaky from his injury.

Kaon closed his optics and listened hard. He winced against the human made distraction screeching across their communication systems. "Nickel… I hear her. She's asking for help." His optics flew open, and he spun around to the distant sky with worry. Helex visibly shared his concern, but he remained silent, staring uncomfortably at Tarn.

"Our forces will arrive soon." Tarn whispered. He finally looked away from Megatron. His burning hateful glare encompassed Soundwave. He couldn't tell, but Soundwave could almost see accusation in his optics. Tarn appeared convinced Soundwave somehow turned Megatron's personality. As if Soundwave ever had that sort of power.

"Nickel and The Pet need us, boss!" Kaon shouted at Tarn's back. "We need to retreat, meet up with our forces and help take back the ship!"

"Is that your professional opinion, Kaon?" Tarn wondered with a glint of genuine curiosity.

"Yes!" Kaon insisted.

Tarn huffed a vent. He stood from his crouched position to face his men, ready to compel them with some lengthy speech. Tarn snatched Kaon by the back of his helm and slammed it down onto the ground. Energon and pieces of Kaon's cranial casing splattered Tarn and a shocked Helex. What remained of Kaon didn't move, and Tarn stood again. "Decepticons are not weak. We do not ask for help or give it." Tarn explained to the silence his actions created. "We do not rely on such things. It is what separates us from the sniveling Autobot wretches. If those on the ship cannot take care of themselves, they deserve whatever fate awaits them."

Soundwave felt Megatron's shoulders slump by his side. "I truly twisted you, didn't I?" he asked Tarn.

Something in the apologetic tone Megatron spoke in made Tarn snap. He roared, charging at the ex-gladiator.

Before Soundwave could stop him, Megatron jumped up, drawing Tarn away from the others. He blocked Tarn's vicious blows, catching many in his helm and chest as he did not return the blows.

"Fight back!" Tarn demanded. Megatron continued to evade, thrown back with a well-placed punch from Tarn. "Be the bot the Decepticons need! Attack me! Do something!" He blasted Megatron, punching him when his mounted gun had to charge.

Megatron stumbled back, knelt, but still focused. He spit Energon into the dirt. "By stepping down, I am being the bot the Decepticons need."

Tarn screamed, and the pain hit Soundwave square in his chest. Megatron was forced down, everyone hit with the same audio attack. Even at half strength, Tarn's voice was devastating. His weaponized voice box was recovering. It wouldn't be long before he could kill them all with another shout.

Tarn's arm gun charged again, and he took aim at Megatron's helm.

Soundwave shoved himself from Thunderblast and Jetfire's grasp and crashed into Tarn. It made him miss, but he paid for it with Tarn's backhanded blow.

Megatron broke his fall, shouldering both of their weight. "you're to hurt to fight." Megatron told him.

Soundwave managed to give him a cross look through the pain. "And you refuse to fight."

Megatron rewarded him with a defeated grin. "True. I guess I am disappointing everyone this cycle."

Tarn growled, snatching both their attention. Helex arrived by his boss's side. He was hesitant and still shaken, but otherwise ready to fight alongside him.

'Master, there are more than five hundred bots approaching the Pit's rim.' Laserbeak reported.

Tarn's army. Soundwave considered everything they had left. He surveyed the arena, glancing past the smoldering Tarn. Starscream, to Soundwave's surprise, had not retreated. He was making himself useful, snatching Decimus from under the pillar to drag him back to the others. Soundwave noted the still sparking belt shield around Decimus's waist. It still had power, and he had an idea.

"Can you hold him off without dying?" Soundwave asked.

"With help I'm sure I could manage." Megatron said with a shrug.

"Starscream, Jetfire!" Soundwave snapped. He managed to limp back to their small group. His own team was in bad shape, but the Seekers were still fit to fight. "Give Megatron air support. That is, if you still care to help the Decepticon cause." The comment was directed to Jetfire.

The red and silver Seeker grinned. "For old times' sake."

Starscream seemed less thrilled with the idea. But he didn't protest beyond a moan before he transformed and took to the air. Together with Laserbeak, they rained down gunfire. It kept Helex distracted and slowed Tarn's attacks on Megatron down.

Soundwave got to work. He tried to pry the shield belt from Decimus's waist. It was somehow locked in place, linked into his unique energy signature. Frustration mounting, he roughly manipulated the old bot to get to the device's inner electronics. Decimus groaned, optics fluttering open. He locked onto Soundwave, and he saw the horror strike Decimus in real time.

"S-Soundwave! You…" he hesitated. Glancing around himself to see he was no longer pinned under debris in the upper seating. "You spared me?"

"Only because your belt shield will stop functioning if you are not alive." Soundwave explained to him flatly. "So don't move or I'll start breaking limbs."

Decimus, optics wide, only nodded in compliance. Still working to hack the defensive tech, Soundwave opened a Com. 'Rivet. Activate every engine at full power. Move the ship into the upper atmosphere over the Pits of Kaon and triangulate on my position.'

He turned from his work to Thunderblast. "In the east panel of the arena wall there is a trap door leading to a reinforced tunnel. Wake Demolisher and Clobber up and get them there."

"What are we doing?" Thunderblast asked.

"I've decided it is finally a good time to test the Renegade's prototype fusion canon." He explained.

Thunderblast blinked, her expression deadpan and far from convinced. "Now?"

"Now." He confirmed.

"For real?"

"For real." He echoed.

Thunderblast's chassis shook with a sudden rush of energy. She squealed with pure delight, rushing to rouse Clobber and Demolisher. "Firecracker!" she said out loud to her private commlink. "Remember how I taught you to fire the fusion canon? It is about to be our time to use that info!"

"Y-you're going to do what?!" Decimus demanded. "The devastation of that blast will be a massive radius around Tarn. We will be caught up in it!" Soundwave ignored his griping. He snatched the old bot from the ground and hurled him over his shoulder, every piston in his servos screaming at the effort.

As he assumed, his com to Rhea opened. 'You want us to fire on you?' Rhea's voice demanded of him.

'That is what I suggested, seeing as I don't have Tarn's army's exact location. We will fire when they are upon us.'

'And you'll Bridge away in time?'

'No.' Soundwave said as he made his way to the arena wall. Thunderblast yanked the panel off, revealing the old, reinforced tunnels. This was where they would keep Bot eating creatures to sic on gladiators if a fight was getting dull. He tossed Decimus into the hole alongside Clobber. He rushed to assist Thunderblast in yanking Demolisher in. 'In fact, I need you to go into the Renegade's weapon systems right now. Activate a high frequency scrambler pulse to keep all Groundbridges inactive in this location. If we can Bridge, Tarn will be able to as well.'

'I'm not going to let them fire a death blast on you, Soundwave!' Rhea informed him. 'I am perfectly capable of tackling Miko away from those controls.'

'Trust me, Rhea. I have a plan. We'll make it.'

Silence.

Laserbeak entered the conversation with a trilling snicker. 'It is a foolhardy plan, but he has survived much worse. I can attest to it.'

'The Renegade is in position.' Rivet reported. 'And one of the humans, the crazy one, has the weapon systems open. You want her to do that, right?'

Soundwave could feel Rhea's hesitation, her pounding heart echoing over their connection. 'We are a team.' He reminded her. 'Do you trust me?'

'I do.' She finally agreed. 'Scrambler pulse is active.'

'I'll see you soon.' He promised her, rushing towards Megatron and the others in the center of the arena. He caught movement around the rim above them. Bots transformed, chanting death and Tarn's name. They jumped down into the stands, rushing towards Tarn.

Soundwave ignored the cascading army. He blasted Tarn away from Megatron, grabbing his former leader. "Retreat!" He yelled. Megatron stumbled to follow him back towards the opening in the arena. Laserbeak herded Jetfire and Starscream right behind them. Despite the screaming pain in his chassis Soundwave raced for cover. Tarn screamed to his army, ordering them forward, demanding them to rip Soundwave and his followers apart.

'Fire the Fusion Canon!' he said into the comlink.

The angry chants of Tarn's army and their stomping peds surrounded them. Soundwave only focused on the twinkle in the sky. Its dim glow grew in intensity until it was more blinding than the sun.

Chaos erupted around them, Tarn's army gazing skyward. Soundwave dove into cover next to Thunderblast and the others. He snatched Decimus again as the others crashed in. With a final protesting spark and a jolt from his own data cables, the shield belt activated with its rushed modifications.

"What is going on-Gah!" Starscream was silenced as Megatron shoved him and Jetfire closer to the others away from the entrance. Laserbeak flew into Soundwave's awaiting arms. All crushed together in the small space, the belt activating around their huddled forms. Soundwave looked up through the opening and saw Tarn. He rushed forward despite the growing light above him. "Megatron!"

His deadly voice evaporated when the blinding blast crashed down. It devoured Tarn and everything around it. Even shielded, they were blown back deeper into the tunnels. The shield warped. Heat threatened to melt through it to smelt them all into nothing. Soundwave forced more charge into the device, keeping it alive. He felt the device struggle against the devastating blast. He refused to let go. He held Laserbeak tight to his chest and pressed harder against the force. Megatron's powerful grasp held him in place, shouldering what Soundwave couldn't. He held fast; optics shut against the blinding light that poured over them.

Darkness overtook them, and all at once, everything was quiet.

Soundwave hesitated before he allowed his optics to open. The shield shorted out. There was only the normal day light from down dark path. The sides of the tunnel were glowing red hot, but it hadn't collapsed. They were all still alive.

'Soundwave?' Rhea asked in his auditory.

'Still online. We all are, as I promised.' He assured her.

He caught Laserbeak looking up at him and managed to unlock his joints to run an assuring hand over his wings. 'Mission achieved: Ravage, avenged.' Laserbeak reported quietly. He managed a sad grin in answer before releasing Laserbeak to hover. The rest of his band stirred, Starscream's groan the loudest amongst them.

Jetfire chuckled from the pile of chassis's he was under. "Oh right. That's why I left the Cons. You are all insane."

"An intelligent move on your part." Megatron agreed as he stumbled to his peds. He helped Soundwave stand, then gave a similar offer to Starscream.

Starscream observed his offering hand. He was hesitant, and more than a little weary. Without making optic contact, he accepted the help.

"Can you, ug, imagine that weapon just sitting in storage this whole time? What a waste." Demolisher managed to groan.

"Um, I, I can't see." Clobber whimpered. The light from her broken optic had finally dimmed completely.

Thunderblast hurried to help her. "Don't worry, we'll get that fixed back home. Don't touch the walls, they're still hot enough to meld your hand to it."

Megatron shouldered Clobber and Demolisher. They all limped out into the light of day, save for Decimus, who remained cowering in the tunnels. Soundwave let him. He was hardly worth dragging out.

Laserbeak swooped over the remnants of the Pits of Kaon. What wasn't reduced to rubble was only piles of molten metal. Fire danced on almost every surface. There was no hint of Tarn's army that once encompassed them. A mound of rubble was all that remained where the mighty Tarn once stood.

Thunderblast started to weep. Despite her optics shedding an alarming amount of lubricant, she was overjoyed. She spun around in the destruction of the fusion cannon in blissful joy.

Megatron set Demolisher and Clobber down. He wandered into the ruins of the arena, stalling before Tarn's rubble pile.

"He, has changed." Starscream mumbled, observing Megatron from a safe distance. "I'm not used to seeing him like this… I wonder if this is permanent?"

"Bots change." Jetfire said with a shrug. "I did. The whole Decepticon cause did. Though not you so much." He added and gave Starscream a playful shove in the side. Starscream only rolled his optics, shoving him away. "I do hear Autoclave has been keeping an auditory open for ya still. So, he still is holding out hope for you."

Starscream didn't say anything to that.

Soundwave limped away from the banter and stopped at Megatron's side. "Thank you, for coming back." He said. It was the first opportunity he had to convey the feeling.

"It wasn't your burden to bear." Megatron vented. "This was my battle. I brought this on."

"It was all our burden." Soundwave corrected.

Megatron could only shake his helm in shame. "This downfall of our cause. What Tarn became. It was my fault."

"I could have stopped you." Soundwave said. Megatron glanced away from Tarn's grave. He questioned Soundwave with a raised optic ridge. "But I didn't. No one did. I was like Tarn in that regard. I worshipped you, and not the cause. When you left, it forced me to think. It made us all face what we had been running from."

"At least I did something right." Megatron said with a shrug.

"You did. Now don't leave again." Soundwave said.

"It would be for the best if I did. My being here challenges your rule, throws our cause back into question."

"This isn't about the cause." Soundwave stated. "This is about you. This is your world too. You don't have to do a damn thing for us. At least stay to see Cybertron change for the better."

Megatron pursed his scarred lip plates. He huffed a small laugh. "I… Will think it over. I may stay long enough to get a decent canister of Energon. Plus, I am in desperate need of some high-grade. At least enough to make me recharge this cycle off like a bad Energon hang over."

For the first time in what felt like an eternity, Soundwave saw in Megatron his long-lost friend. "Deal. But let me buy it for you."

Laserbeak swooped down to land prideful on the pile of rubble before them. 'That will give you plenty of time to convince him to stay, Master. It has been a very long time since I have seen you wear that look.'

Soundwave nodded, observing the others a distance away. Thunderblast described to Miko over comlink and to the blinded Clobber the destruction the canon caused. Starscream yanked Decimus from his hiding place in the tunnels.

"I also wouldn't mind meeting the human who has managed to enchant the infamously emotionless Soundwave." Megatron snickered.

Soundwave felt his Spark jolt in its chamber. "I promised the Autobots I would help finish Arachnid. But once that is dealt with, I will introduce you." He hesitated, almost embarrassed to meet Megatron's inquiring gaze. "You told me, to do what I wanted for my own benefit. I have decided, that is her."

Megatron's firm grip found Soundwave's shoulder. "Then even before meeting her, I know she is an individual worthy of the task of making you happy. She has already done the impossible. She unearthed that fiery personality in you I haven't seen since before the war."

Soundwave found himself smiling again. "Here's hoping she can tolerate me in the long run."

'Of course, she will.' Laserbeak assured him. 'You can be charming, Sometimes. You could use more practice though. Even more reason to convince Megatron to stay. You can study his charismatic charm.'

'Do I even want to know what you guys are talking about down there?' Rhea wondered, only audience to his and Laserbeak's side of the conversation.

'Only my supposedly loyal minicon and my previous Lord joking at my expense.' He assured her. He tapped back into the Renegade's Spacebridge systems, the effort making his processor spin. He couldn't rest. They had to finish what they started and stop Arachnid. He typed in the coordinates Arcee had provided.

Rubble exploded in front of them. Soundwave stumbled backwards, managing to stay on his peds despite his wobble. Laserbeak's alarmed squawk snatched his focus to the plume of dust. He had lost sight of his Minicon, only feeling his panic through their connection.

Burning red optics cut through the cloud of dust.

Laserbeak struggled in the grasp of a bot, emerging from the pile of debris. Plating melted, guns and tank tires dripping molten. His Decepticon shaped mask burned away to reveal a scarred and hateful face plate.

Tarn stood impossibly before them, gasping intakes and sheer spite keeping him alive. Before Soundwave or Megatron could thaw from the shock, Tarn gripped the struggling Laserbeak firm and tore his wings from his chassis.