An awful scream roused Miko from her sleep. She wasn't sure how she could fall asleep with the other screams filling the air, but she was just so tired. She groaned softly as she opened her eyes to see the queen screaming in agony. Many of her children were watching on silently from the ceiling. They seemed to be in pain as they watched her.
"What's going on? Are you hurt?" Miko asked. The other creature, who she had learned was the queen's royal guard, was positioned at the far end of the egg sac.
"Egg is coming….It hurts…,"the queen said before letting loose another ear-splitting shriek.
"Not too loud…Megatron will…come too early…," the royal guard said, looking over at the entrance nervously.
"Hurts….Hurts…It hurts…Too much…," the queen said.
Miko had to help in some way.
"Tell me what you're planning to do with this," she said, hoping to distract the queen from her pain. The queen let out another pained scream before she turned her head to look over at her.
"Will infect…Megatron…He will die and….Starscream…He will free us…He will take us to new home…," the queen said. Her children chittered in agreement. Miko needed to break the news to her that whatever Starscream told her was all bullcrap, but she was sure doing so would put her in danger. She had to know even if there were consequences.
"Your majesty, you can't trust Starscream. He's probably going to stab you in the back first chance he gets," she said. The queen let out a warning growl before it turned to a pained scream.
"Don't stress her out…," the guard said with a low growl.
The sound of approaching footsteps filled the air. Miko looked over and saw Starscream walk in, looking annoyed. He quickly put on a concerned look on his face as he approached the queen.
"Is it here, my queen?" He asked.
"It's coming….Very soon…," the queen replied before crying out again.
"Excellent. I know you can push it out," Starscream crowed.
"Quit acting like you care. She may not realize it, but I know you're probably going to betray the queen and her children," Miko spoke up. The other creatures appeared confused as she looked from Miko to Starscream.
"Do you think this is the right time to making such awful accusations? My poor queen is suffering bringing new life to this wretched world. Shame on you," Starscream growled.
"Shame on you…," one of the soldiers from above said before it dropped down to hiss in Miko's face. Miko shivered softly when she saw those horrible jaws so close to her face.
"Away from…the human…," the queen ordered. The solider automatically stepped away as Starscream chuckled.
"It's good to see you so helpless, Miko. Once Megatron is gone and I've freed the queen the and her children, I'll have you all to myself," he crowed as he bent down to poke her cheek with a single claw. Miko trembled when he pushed a bit and drew blood. He was suddenly grabbed by the queen and pulled away as she hissed.
"Do not….hurt…child….No use for…child…Return to…mother…," the queen ordered. Starscream looked dumbfounded as he looked from Miko to the queen before he let out a dramatic sigh.
"Ah, of course, my dear queen. I'll make sure the girl is returned safely," he said as he stepped away from Miko. Miko could see the fury in his optics when he glanced over at her. Miko smirked and stuck her tongue out at him. She knew that was a lie. As soon as the queen was gone, she knew he would immediately try to kill her first chance he got.
The queen let out another pained shriek as her egg sac began to pulse with life. The egg was almost there. Starscream smiled as he went over to the egg sac and watched as the queen laid a rather large egg. A horrible smell filled the air and Miko held back the urge to gag as it hit her. The soldiers above chittered excitedly as the queen's guard went over to it and picked it up.
"Freedom for us…," she said as it showed it to Starscream and the queen. The queen looked exhausted as her head hung low. She was breathing hard.
"Are you okay, my queen?" Starscream asked as he went closer and rubbed the side of her head. The queen growled softly at him. It was all just an act in Miko's eyes. The queen needed to see the truth somehow.
"Tired…Take egg…Place somewhere…For Megatron…," the queen replied.
"Get some rest, my queen," Starscream said as he picked up the egg and walked off.
Once his footsteps disappeared, Miko looked over at the queen. Her head hung low once again. Her children went about their usual business and went into the opposite chamber.
"Your majesty, you have to believe me. I know Starscream. He's going to betray you. He's threatened me and my friends multiple times and I'm sure he'll harm you once Megatron is gone," she said. The royal guard hissed at her as the queen looked over at her tiredly.
"Starscream promised…to help…Megatron killed…my children…," the queen said. Miko had to think of something else that could work.
"Look, my friends will probably be here to rescue me real soon. They can help you and your children. My friend, Optimus, will listen to you and figure something out. He's a guy you can trust," Miko said.
"Prime…I have heard…of Prime…," the queen said.
"He and the Autobots are the good guys. Not Starscream," Miko replied. The queen became silent as she gazed at the floor as if in thought.
"Starscream is a friend…," the royal guard said.
Before Miko could say another world, the room shook as a distant explosion rattled the Nemesis. Miko smiled. Her friends had come to help.
Starscream was walking down one of the many hallways. He could feel the life-form squirming about in its egg. It was ready to infect its target.
"Soon, little one. We're almost there," he whispered. His plan was almost complete. All he needed was to place it in Megatron's throne room and wait. It was going to be perfect. He couldn't help but laugh to himself. He was so close to being the Decepticon leader! He could almost taste it.
An alarm suddenly went off as the Nemesis shook from a distant explosion. Starscream cried out in surprise as he tried to stay on his feet. The Autobots were on board! He cursed to himself when some grunts ran past him, ready to fight.
"Not now," he grumbled as he tried to figure out what to do next. He was so close to Megatron's throne room. He would probably wait for Optimus there. He could leave the egg close to the throne room and let it hatch there.
"Change of plans, little one," he murmured as he ran for the throne room.
"Starscream! Where are you?!" Megatron's voice bellowed over their online connection.
"Coming, Master," Starscream replied. He was nearly at the throne room. He made a turn and went down an opposite hallway that was surprisingly quiet. He placed the egg in the shadows. As soon as he placed it on the floor, it opened up like a disgusting flower.
"You're going to have to wait a bit, little one," Starscream murmured when he saw the spider-like creature within. It was much bigger than the others. The perfect size to infect Megatron.
The sound of gunfire and the screams of the xenomorph were getting closer and closer. Starscream watched as the creature crawled out of the egg and skittered off towards the throne room. Starscream followed and went to the throne room.
"Is it the Autobots, Master? Starscream asked breathlessly. Megatron had been pacing back and forth, grumbling to himself.
"Of course it's them, you imbecile! Prepare yourself. Optimus is coming," Megatron growled as he prepared his weapons. Some grunts and soldiers had joined Megatron as they prepared their weapons and pointed them at the doorway. Starscream glanced behind and noticed the spider-like creature crawling along the walls. He smirked as he turned his attention back to the chaos as the doorway suddenly exploded. A grunt fell over, but the others held their ground.
"Make them suffer," Megatron ordered, setting his sights on Optimus Prime.
The creatures surrounding Miko had grown agitated the more the Nemesis shook. Many of them had left, leaving her alone with the queen and her royal guard. The queen appeared distressed as she cried out as if in pain.
"Sweet children…Poor children…In pain…," she said. The guard was busy attending to her mother. She wasn't paying much attention to Miko. Miko tried to move and soon found that her restraints were slowly coming loose. She looked over at the queen and frowned.
"You know, my friends are going to be here any moment now. If you don't want your children to get any more injured, you'll listen to my friends. They'll free you," she said as she moved again. The materials came loose and she managed to get away. She shivered when she realized how filthy she was.
"How do you know?" The royal guard asked, growling when she noticed that Miko was free.
"Did you not see how your friend Starscream treated me? He and the other Decepticons don't care about us organics," Miko replied, pointing to her still bleeding cheek. The queen grew silent for a moment.
"Optimus will explain everything once we get away, your majesty," Miko added, smiling up at the queen despite her nervousness. What would happen if Starscream were to get here before her friends? Would the queen protect her?
The queen suddenly perked up and it looked like she was smiling.
"The child…Has taken Megatron…," she said. She began to move, trying to pull herself away from her egg sac. She yanked on the restraints around her arms and they came off with ease. Miko watched on in disgust and fascination when she saw how the queen screamed in pain as she finally tore herself off and fell to the ground.
"What are you doing?" Miko asked.
"Preparing for freedom…Must talk with…Starscream…," the queen replied as she stood to her full height and turned to face Miko. Miko suddenly felt a twinge of fear when she saw just how big and frightening the queen was. She was about to say something before she heard heavy footsteps quickly approaching. The queen growled softly and turned just as Bulkhead and Bumblebee ran in.
"Miko! Get away from that thing!" Bulkhead cried out, aiming a blaster right at the queen as she and her guard hissed at him.
"It…It's okay, Bulkhead. Don't shoot!" Miko called out as she ran in between Bulkhead and the queen.
"Are you kidding? That's a queen, Miko. One of the most dangerous creatures here. Get over here," Bulkhead ordered. Bumblebee buzzed in agreement. The queen let out a warning growl, but did nothing else.
"I never harmed her…I have…no use for her…Starscream…harmed her…," the queen said. Bumblebee and Bulkhead both looked taken aback when they heard her speak.
"She's okay, you guys. She and her children have been manipulated and treated like crap here. I'm sure Optimus would understand when we meet up with him," Miko said.
"Optimus is busy with Megatron at the moment. We gotta get you out of here now," Bulkhead said as he stepped forward to grab Miko. He was stopped when the queen growled.
"Will stay here…Will wait for Prime…," the queen said.
"Are you crazy? There's too many of Megatron's goons crawling all over the place. We need to make sure Miko is safe!" Bulkhead yelled. Th royal guard hissed softly and got uncomfortably close to Miko. Bumblebee let out a warning buzz that sounded like a growl as he aimed his weapon at the royal guard.
"What's going on here?" A familiar voice asked. Bumblebee and Bulkhead turned to see a disturbed Optimus Prime and Arcee standing in the doorway.
It all happened so fast. Starscream was trying his hardest to fight off Arcee with the help of some soldiers while Megatron and Optimus Prime battled. Megatron had pushed Optimus away when a screech filled the air followed by Megatron's muffled cry. Starscream looked over and saw Megatron fall, the creature latched onto his face. He smiled as the soldiers rushed out of the throne room.
"This was bound to happen when you try to enslave such dangerous creatures," Optimus muttered before he and a shocked Arcee ran out of the room. Starscream was alone with the burning carnage in the throne room. He chuckled and went over to Megatron's limp body, smiling cruelly.
"You had it coming, Master. I can't wait to see what happens next," he crowed as he prodded his shoulder with a foot. He had a lot of explaining to do once the Autobots were gone. Soon, he would be in control.
His wonderful thoughts of being the rightful leader of the Decepticons were interrupted when Megatron suddenly sat up and grabbed the creature and pulled hard, groaning in agony.
"Starscream!" He bellowed as the creature shrieked. He pulled one more time before the creature finally came loose. Megatron growled and threw the creature across the room.
"Disgusting waste of flesh! You can't take me down that easily! I'll kill every last one of you!" He yelled as he blasted the creature repeatedly until it was nothing but a burning hole. He turned his furious gaze on Starscream. Starscream knew he was in for a whole world of hurt and was already on his knees to beg for mercy.
"I had it coming? What else do you know, Starscream?" He asked in a deadly low voice while activating his arm cannon.