Somewhere above the heavy rain clouds that blanketed the skies of Central Africa, the massive Decepticon flagship Nemesis makes its way toward an abandoned diamond mine, which had recently been discovered to be the resting place of a lone Camien Energon Probe.

"Sir, why are we headed to that abandoned human mine?" asked Demolishor, one of Megatron's top soldiers. "The scanners aren't picking up any Energon there."

"I am more interested in the signal that has just faded away. It was a beacon from a Camien Energon Probe."

"And what, pray tell, would you want with such a thing, my liege?" Knock Out asked while polishing his armor.

"Wasn't Caminus wiped out eons ago by the Rust Plague?" Demolishor asked a bit nervously. "That thing might be contaminated."

"Indeed," the Decepticon leader replied with a sly smirk as he summoned a group of Vehicon drones.

"You're not thinking of bringing that thing on board, are you?" inquired Knockout, shuddering at the thought of having to possibly examine or even work on the Probe.

"I am, but we need not worry about some antiquated contagion."

"There's no cure."

Megatron chuckled. "That is where you are wrong, Knockout. We have a cure, but the Autobots do not." He walked over to one of the secure storage vaults that lined the south wall of the Nemesis' command center. "Shortly before we seized full control of Cybertron, Shockwave had developed an antivirus," he explained before punching the vault's access code into a keypad, causing it to open and reveal several vials of a glowing orange liquid. He then proceeded to remove one of the vials and inject its contents into his shoulder, his devious smile not leaving his lips.

"Not the biggest fan of needles, sir, but, given the situation, it might be preferable."

"To losing your luster, yes?" Megatron wearily commented while injecting the antivirus into his narcissistic medical officer's arm.

"That, and I'm not quite ready to join the Allspark yet."

"Good," the Decepticon leader replied. "I will need you to get that Probe up and running."

"That I can do. Fixing up drones is Protoforms' play compared to working on fully-Sparked bots. I still wonder, though. How exactly do you plan to use this Probe as a bioweapon delivery system?"

"If it made its way to this planet all the way from Caminus, it must have been operating for quite some time without a system reset. It would've had sufficient time to undergo Emergence," Megatron explained. "Given the recent presence of a familiar Autobot Synth in this vicinity, I suspect that to be the case."

"Hmm...I think I see where you're going now, and it sounds absolutely brilliant."

While Megatron and Knockout discussed the former's plans for his new companion, Skybolt made his way toward the spot in the diamond mine where she laid. "Pathfinder, I have returned," he announced, though he knew she wouldn't hear him. His optics widened when he reached her resting place to find his new companion gone. "Pathfinder!" There was no way she could've left on her own. Her damaged motor relays and propulsion systems effectively paralyzed her. His optics narrowed as the Nemesis tracker Starscream had built into him alerted him to the warship's presence. "Megatron," he growled as he transformed to UAV mode and jetted out of the mine. He already lost one friend to the Decepticon leader. He was not ready to lose another.

Meanwhile, in the Nemesis' med-bay, Knockout worked diligently to repair the damaged Energon Probe, his usual arrogant smirk on display as he did so. "You are a lovely piece of work," he commented, complimenting himself more than the Probe. "How could any Emergent Synth resist such a pretty face?"

Barricade spat before giving the vain doctor a disgusted look. "Enough with the flirting. Just get her online before Megatron comes in."

"I have every intention of doing so, Barricade," he replied, giving the thuggish enforcer a dismissive hand-wave. "In fact, I'd say she's ready to go now." The red-hued Decepticon proceeded to give the Probe a fresh Energon infusion, causing her eyes to glow bright green once more as she reactivated.

"Where am I?" she asked as she examined her new surroundings. "What happened? Where's Skybolt?"

"He probably ran off to refuel...or he could've gotten bored with an inactive bot he couldn't fix. He's a warrior after all, not a medic."

"I know he was built for combat. He said so himself. I don't think he got bored with me though."

"You Synths never did have a sense of humor," Knockout sighed.

"When you've been alone as long as I have, you don't get the chance to really experience humor."

"I suppose that's true," Knockout replied aquiescingly. "You needn't be alone anymore though," he smiled, giving off an air of insincere flirtatiousness. "Now that you've been restored to full functionality, you could explore the stars again...or explore this warship."

"Why did you repair me? Won't you rust?"

"Don't worry about me, my dear. This finish won't be rusting away any time soon."

The medic's reply, with all its overt vanity, earned a small giggle from the Camien Synth.

"Who told you I'd rust for fixing you anyway?"

"Another medic...an ally of Skybolt," she replied.

"Ratchet, no doubt. That old fool is full of slag if you ask me. He probably didn't want to waste his time on a Synth."

Pathfinder looked down, thinking over what the crafty medic's words.

"By the way, my name's Knockout," he introduced, resisting the urge to add a 'because that's exactly what I am' to the end of his sentence.

"I'm Pathfinder. It's what Skybolt calls me, and I like it."

"I suppose that's a fitting name, and if you like it, I don't see any reason to change it."

"How is the patient?" Megatron asked as he entered.

"Fit as a fiddle, as the humans would say, sir."

"Um...Hello," Pathfinder greeted nervously, being a bit intimidated by Megatron's imposing figure.

"No need to be alarmed," The Decepticon leader said, giving off an air of false reassurance. "When one leads the life I have been forced to lead, it is common to appear intimidating, but looks can be deceiving."

"I guess so..."

"All my life has been a battle, from the Energon mines to the pits of Kaon."

"Pits?" she repeated, her eyes widening in shock. "You engaged in gladiatorial combat?"

"I did," he confirmed. "It was the only way for a denizen of Kaon to rise through the social hierarchy. In Kaon, one was either a champion in the pits or a mere laborer, only marginally more valued by society than a mindless drone."

"That...sounds unfortunate. I was programmed with a database containing the basics of Camien society. Gladiatorial combat is viewed as uncivilized bloodsport."

"The social elite of Cybertron took the same view. However, they would do nothing to rectify the circumstances that brought it about," Megatron explained. "They would prefer to remain in their lofty towers in Iacon, smugly sipping the Energon we toiled to extract for them. The society of Cybertron was as broken as your body was when we found you. Unfortunately, it would appear that the latter was far easier to fix."

"I thank you for that."

"It is the least we could do for one such as yourself," Megatron said deceitfully. "On Cybertron, I was a champion of equal rights for Synths, following in the footsteps of the late Cogitus Ambus."

Pathfinder hung her head, remembering some of the things she could faintly hear Ratchet say as he and the other Autobots approached her resting place and Energon cache.

"It's probably just another drone like him."

"One Synth is enough!"

"It would appear that you have borne personal witness to the typical treatment of Synths," Megatron observed.

"I think I have," Pathfinder confirmed with a sigh. "I faintly heard some of the things the one called Ratchet said as he approached me. He didn't seem too interested in me."

"So he made up an excuse, correct? He claimed you were contaminated with the Red Rust Virus."

"He did. Was that a lie?"

"It was a half-truth at best," the former gladiator replied. "He probably told you that there was no cure. That is the lie. A cure was developed just as the civil unrest on Cybertron reached its tipping point. Even if you are contaminated, Red Rust is no longer the dreaded plague it once was."

"Ratchet was the only one to really look down on me. The others argued against leaving me behind, but fear of the Plague compelled them to do so. The one they call Optimus...appeared the most hesitant. He looked at me before leaving, and I could see sadness and regret in his optics. He promised he would return when a cure was found."

Megatron huffed in disgust. "Optimus...He thinks himself a Prime, but he is nothing but a charlatan. He can put on a very convincing act, but he is no better than any other Cybertronian elitist. He is the embodiment of the Iacon mentality. Those who are forged to think rise. Those who are forged to work or battle fall. Those with no Spark deserve no rights, regardless of their sentience." Megatron spat. "Such elitist nonsense!"

"What about Skybolt?"

"He is the only one among them whose compassion for you was genuine. He related to you as a fellow Synth. Perhaps, in the ideal society, you two would have forged a life-bond."

Pathfinder's face turned a deeper aqua-green.

"No need to be embarrassed regarding your feelings, my dear Synth. I could think of no better companion for you. He is a pariah among those he believes to be his allies."

"He did choose to isolate himself from them."

"I cannot say that I blame him. They did not mourn with him when his closest friend passed away."

"He didn't tell me that. He just spoke about how the grief consumed him."

"Strong emotions can easily consume a Synth in Emergence such as Skybolt. Starscream, ever the opportunist, exploited that to set him against me."

"You're...Megatron? You're the one who killed his friend. I was starting to trust you."

"That is what he has been led to believe. Starscream planted false information into his processor in a bid to use him against me. He has long sought to replace me as leader of the Decepticon Resistance. Skybolt is as much a victim of deception as you, Pathfinder, was it?"

"Yes," the femme replied, unsure of who to really trust.

"I tried to restore his memories," Megatron lied. "Unfortunately, the Autobots, who had formed an alliance with Starscream, interfered. They captured him and reinstated the false memories, even reinforcing them with some of their own. Their influence on him is still quite strong I'm afraid."

As Megatron and Pathfinder spoke, weaponsfire and the clashing of metal could be heard in the distance, indicating that someone had infiltrated the warship.

"Do you hear that? That is the sound of the false memories exerting their full influence on the poor Synth's mind."

"What do we do?" Pathfinder asked. "What can I do?"

"You could confront the Autobots about their deception. You could tell them that you know the truth. That will be sufficient. Trust me. They will suffer for their treachery."

"If I make any physical contact, I'll be infected," echoed Ratchet in Pathfinder's mind. "Alive or not, we cannot risk any physical contact with her. Infection would be a death sentence for all of us." She then flashed back to the ghost planet that was her homeworld. "Are you sure?" she asked apprehensively.

"It is what they deserve," replied Megatron. "The cure was available. They could've sent it to Caminus. They could've saved your people, but they chose not to. They chose their elitist friends, leaving a whole society to rust to nothingness. This is vengeance."

"I...don't know..."

"You would be avenging your people, Pathfinder. The elite of Cybertron, and their Autobot protectors, left your people to die to preserve themselves. Is it not fitting that they suffer the plague they let loose upon your world?"

A familiar scream could be heard outside the door, followed by a loud crash as a drone's head was slammed against the wall outside the med-bay.

"I...don't know...It doesn't feel right."

"Skybolt is not above vengeance. More often than not, vengeance is justified. What do you think he would do in this situation?"

A loud explosion caused Pathfinder to recoil as Skybolt blasted his way into the room.

She thought back to what Skybolt told her about confronting Megatron. He sought vengeance, only to nearly lose himself in the process. At least, that's what he believed. Megatron told a different story though, one that seemed logical enough to be equally believable. She placed her hands over her temples. Never before had she been forced to make such a difficult decision. She devoted every bit of processing power she had to this conundrum. Both stories seemed plausible. Either one was true, and both Megatron and Skybolt had been kind to her, making them seem less likely to be deceitful.

"We can't just leave it here," echoed the voice of Jazz.

"Won't you just run out of power and shut down out here alone?" Bumblebee's voice repeated.

"The presence of a Spark is not the only indication of life, my friend. You are alive by virtue of your sentience. Alpha Trion once said that life manifests in many forms, and its spark is not always tangible. That appears to be the case with you, as well as Skybolt. Someday, we will find a cure. When that day comes, we shall return."

"Pathfinder, are you alright?" Skybolt asked, snapping the femme Synth back to reality.

"Physically, I am. Mentally...I'm not so sure. I don't know what to believe right now. You were so kind to me, but so was the one called Knockout. He repaired me."

Megatron's optics narrowed. His patience was beginning to wear thin. Why was this Synth taking so long to make the desired choice? He was hoping he could convince Pathfinder to infect the Autobots willingly. He was tempted to simply reprogram the Synth himself and implant his own false memories into her, but it was too risky to do so with Skybolt ready to lash out at any moment. At the moment, only his concern for Pathfinder was tempering his rage.

"You are not rusting," Skybolt observed. "You have made physical contact, correct?"

"I did not, and even if I did..."

The angry Synth cut him off by placing the barrel of his launcher inches away from the Decepticon leader's chest. "Knockout did. What is his condition?"

"He gave up his Spark to save her...as any true medic would," Megatron hastily replied, still trying to keep his deception going.

"I do not believe that. Knockout is too narcissistic to risk even cosmetic damage to his person. You have a cure."

"No! Ratchet lied to you!"

"You killed Dashlane," Skybolt growled.

"Those false memories..."

"Enough deception!" he screamed before firing. "I want the truth, and Pathfinder deserves it," the mech Synth hissed as the smoke cleared away, revealing a large wound that created an indent in Megatron's chest and obscured his Decepticon badge in blackness.

"Terminate me, and you will not get what you seek," Megatron threatened.

Skybolt vented heavily as he tried to restrain himself while his anger boiled over.

"You may be frightening off the one you seek to save. I doubt she handles violence well."

Skybolt looked over to see Pathfinder looking at him nervously. "He's...right, Skybolt. I...never saw this side of you. I never imagined..."

"Rage can still consume me. I thought I had moved on, but when you were taken while I was refueling, and I detected the Nemesis...The wound was reopened. I lost Dashlane to Megatron. I did not want to lose you."

"Megatron did nothing to my programming. We talked long enough that...I grew to trust him...What he said seemed plausible. At the same time, though, I remembered the concern some of your friends showed toward me. It seemed so genuine, but Megatron would say otherwise."

"I understand. Starscream was equally convincing when he offered to upgrade me. I do not know if he intended for me to be reprogrammed, but, in hindsight, it would have been wiser not to have trusted him. In times of desperation...it seems that deception becomes...more palatable...more plausible...easier to accept. That is something Optimus told me, and it is true."

"Is he...really a Prime...or just a charlatan?"

"I do not understand the full implications of the Prime title, but I believe it requires traits that Optimus truly possesses. He always had faith in me...even when others, like Ratchet, did not. I remember...he tried his best to console me when Dashlane was killed. I was too consumed by grief to listen to him."

Megatron, his patience having run out, grabbed Pathfinder by the neck and held her in front of him while pointing his Fusion Cannon at her head. "Now, Skybolt, you have only one opportunity to save her. Destroy the contents of the open vault in the command center!"

"What's in..." Pathfinder's optics widened when the most logical answer to her question came to mind. "Don't. Take whatever's in there. Take whatever's in there and go."

"It is the cure..."

"It must be. Whatever happens to me...doesn't matter. It never did." She began to tear up, thinking about the people of Caminus again. Now, though, something else came to mind. It was an old Camien proverb stored in her cultural database.

"Revenge is a plague upon he who seeks it as well as he who invites it. To move forward is the cure."

As she recited the proverb, Skybolt made his way to the vault.

"Whatever happens to me doesn't matter. Move forward." The words looped in his mind as he grabbed one of the vials and placed it in a compartment in his left forearm. He then vented deeply before blasting the vault and rushing back to the med-bay.

Hearing the explosion, Megatron chuckled triumphantly while charging up his Fusion Cannon. "You're right about one thing. Your fate doesn't matter. In fact, I would not need you functional to complete my plan."

"Let her go, Megatron," Skybolt commanded as he skidded into the room. "Please."

Megatron laughed as he nudged the femme with the barrel of his cannon. "What does it matter whether she continues to function or not? She would be useless to the Autobots. After all, she is not built for combat, and she's just a Synth."

"That is irrelevant, Megatron, and you know it. Optimus Prime would respect her wishes if she does not wish to fight, unlike you. You wanted to use her as a bioweapon delivery system."

"Skybolt is correct, Megatron," came Prime's voice from behind Skybolt.

Megatron fired, reducing Pathfinder's head to a lump of molten slag before tossing her aside. Both Prime and Skybolt glanced over at what once was an innocent being caught in the crossfire of a brutal war. Their optics narrowed as anger welled up within them. Skybolt was the first to vent deeply before remembering the Camien proverb that constituted Pathfinder's last words.

"Revenge is a plague upon he who seeks it as well as he who invites it. To move forward is the cure," Skybolt repeated as he opened up his compartment to reveal the vial of antivirus he saved. "I-It is time to move forward."

Optimus hummed as he took the vial. "It appears that that Camien Energon Probe was indeed a Pathfinder, marking the path to greater wisdom...and the future."

Remembering the promise he made before leaving to refuel, Skybolt scooped up Pathfinder's deactivated body before following Prime through a GroundBridge back to base.