This story is to a collection called 'Toying With Reality'

I own none of the characters other than 'Skyfall' and 'Dawnbreaker'

'Com'

"Speech"

"Telepathy"

I'm dead…

Well, Fuck. Skyfall sighed defeated, her wings drooping down as her servos lay useless in her lap. Sky felt as if she was floating in purgatory like the infuriating darkness had swallowed her whole. There was neither up nor down, she couldn't tell which way was what her antenna flicked and her lip raised in a snarl, 'Fuck this place!' Thrashing in the inky shadows snarling profanities Skyfall stopped when she felt ghosting pain radiate from her helm and arm, her interest tickled she flexed her appendages and lightly touched her helm the pain flashed back in a dull ache. Slowly her optics widened, can't feel pain if you're dead…so that means…'Ok, I'm not dead…I'm in forced medical stasis.' Frowning Skyfall crossed her arms and legs just floating around her subconscious, her wings occasionally twitching in annoyance. Then she heard it the crackle of almost indistinguishable noise coming from the abyss around her, Sky's antenna flicked up fully alert and her orange optics scoured the blackness for the source of the sound. Half expecting her conscious to pop up like a little angel with a scroll to read off her sins what she didn't expect was Starscreams voice which began to fill the abyss. Much to Skyfall's displeasure.

"I have been a fool, made mistakes - - monumental ones. I now realize I was never destined to be a leader or even an equal partner, and I'm at peace with that. I have gained a clear understanding of my place in this universe, of who I am, of who I was always meant to be - - Starscream, second in command, humble servant to Lord Megatron… Thank you for listening Soundwave."

'Yep I've been out far too long, its all gone to his glitched processor! Knock knock bitches Skyfall has slept long enough!' Jolting up from where she lay on the medical berth, Skyfall took a quick intake and screamed, "FUCK THAT HURT!"

Her sudden movement and loud announcement nearly made the medical officer drop his datapad, with a quick glance at his CO making sure she wasn't a zombie-con Knockout set down the data pad and tried to look professional. "Welcome back to the land of the online~" Knockout hummed out cheerily walking into the room her medical berth had occupied. "Might I add that your use of human profanity is on a skill level above any other. Even in such a weakened state you never fail to surprise me." Knockout chuckled from where he was shutting off her monitoring systems, his ruby optics giving her a quick once-over. "I will alert Lord Megatron of your status he will be glad that his field medic has survived being tenderized by rocks." Skyfall managed a slight laugh, she felt like she was tenderized that's for sure.

The door to the Medbay whooshed open as Breakdown walked in when he saw that the triple changer had awoken a grin spread across his faceplates, "Well well well Skyfall you're a lot tougher than you look!" The large blue mech gave her a thumbs up as Knockout was scanning her frame. "When I saw Lord Megatron carrying you in here all battered up and covered in your own energon I was sure you were already with Primus." Breakdown clapped her shoulder right next to her wing making Skyfall hiss in pain, "Glad to see you haven't started pushing up lug nuts. Knockout here kept insisting that you'd make it but I had my doubts."

Taking a slow intake and straitening her posture despite her protesting joints raising one brown ridge at the hammer-wielding warrior, Sky pegged the blue mechs yellow optic with an unamused glare, "I find your lack of faith disturbing."

Knockout snorted loudly making both other cons look over at him, Knockout held a servo to his mouth coolant shimmering at his optics, "D-did you just quote a human movie?!" The con medic managed to say between forcing his laughter down.

"Ah familiar with the force you are, an interesting development I see," Skyfall smirked as she shifted in the birth swinging her legs over the edge. "I have a new found respect for you Knockout." Standing on her own with wobbly stabilizers Sky's wings flicked here and there as she fought to get her balance.

"You two and your human movies," Breakdown groaned as he helped the silver femme balance properly, "Skyfall, you need to take it slow, you only just woke up from stasis. You need to boot up properly."

The seeker waved him off with soft grumbles, "Breakdown hush, I'm fine.." Vertigo hit the slender femme making her sit down with a groan clutching her helm. "No not ok. Ugh, Primus kill me now."

"Of course you're not ok Skyfall, you have been out of commission for an Earth week!" Knockout began to scan her and start narrowing the inflicted areas, his clawed servos waving in the air as he began to vent his frustrations. "How can you expect to get up off of this berth and go running amok on this ship after the wounds you sustained? You had us all worried that you wouldn't make it! I spent recharge-less nights making sure you didn't offline! Even Megatron came to check on you twice a damn earth day!" Skyfall looked up at the red mech from where she sat her mouth wide open her wings dropping as coolant began to pool at the corners of her orange optics and run down her plaiting.

"Great job Knockout you made her cry," Breakdown grumbled and rubbed small circles on Skyfall's back between her wings as she sobbed loudly her claws curled into fists on her knees the coolant plopping onto her armored thighs making soft tings between her ragged intakes. "That's it kid let it out." Breakdown shot Knockout a glare.

The red mech was flabbergasted at the mischievous and often malicious Second in Command's drastic change in behavior, then it dawned on him just how young the femme truly was. Scrap, Skyfall was probably of the Autobot scouts age. And she almost died… "Frag, Skyfall it's alright don't worry you're going to be fine." He placed a servo over hers watching her frame shake.

The door to the Medbay slid open and Megatron stomped in his frown deepening at the sight before him, "What's going on here." Knockout froze from where he was crouched in front of Skyfall holding her servo, and Breakdown looked to his leader in shock servo going still on her back struts Megatron growled annoyed that he received no response, but when Skyfall looked up at the massive gunmetal grey con with her coolant streaked face and unfocused optics their leaders demeanor changed and he walked forward making the two other mechs scurry away he dipped down and collected the small seeker into his arms with a growl he glared at the two subordinates against the wall, "Clean up in here, I will tend to Skyfall." With that, he left the Medbay a shaking Skyfall clutching to his armor as she hiccuped softly, soon the low lighting in the halls and the rhythmic thumping of Megatron's massive pedes on the metal floor lulled Skyfall into peaceful stasis.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

To say that Dawnbreaker was shocked to see Starscream all wrapped up like a Christmas present in the hull of a broken Deception ship would be a colossal understatement. Team Prime had come as soon as the ancient signal had come from the sensors, finding Arachnid in the dusty hull wasn't surprising the spider bitch was a spider after all. But to find Megatron's anger management doll all tied up Fifty Shades of Grey-style was an opportunity for the humiliation that Dawnbreaker wasn't going to pass up. Bumblebee and Dawn grabbed the thrashing Seeker and brought him outside to where Optimus had followed the revenge starved Arcee. "Kinky Screamer didn't know you were into BDSM, what's your safe word?" the Decepticon looked at her horrified as the much shorter sports car leered up at him, "Mine's harder~" She shoved the jet to his knees with a giggle.

"Dawnbreaker…" Optimus warned and the femme stepped away with a raise of her servos. She wasn't keen on pissing off the boss man, she just wanted some comedic relief. Not to mention the rage that has been swirling in the young Autobots mind, it's been a week since Skyfall went dark. Still, no word from her and this piece of shit can go waltzing out of his damn spaceship thinking he's safe from harm hell no! Dawnbreaker wants answers and she wants them now.

"Hey, screamer…may I ask you a question?" Her tone was soft and low, her cerulean optics dimming showing how much she was in pain.

The said glanced at the seemingly unstable Dawnbreaker with cautious ruby optics. "I…I will try to answer to the best of my ability."

"What happened to Skyfall?"

Starscream stiffened his wings twitching uncomfortably, "As far as I am aware, our Second in Command is still in medical stasis after going into full stasis lock after the mine had fallen on her. She is said to be recovering well, but that may be just from our current medical personals fear of our esteemed Lord Megatron's anger, as he is quite protective of our young officer." Starscream nervously looked around at the Autobots as they seemed to ponder his answer.

Bulkhead huffed in annoyance, "He's probably lying! This con cannot be trusted Dawnbreaker…"

The small femme closed her optics and sighed, "I believe Starscream if she was dead I would know…but she's alive I can feel it."

"I want to be on your side," Starscreams breathless admittance rang out in the now deathly quiet forest, all sets of Autobot blue optics narrowed on the seeker. Dawn could see the once proud Decepticon wilt under their suspicious glares, but Starscream never broke optic contact with Optimus Prime. Brave con.

But it was Bulkhead who broke the impregnable silence with his disbelieving scoff, "On our side? Yeah, right. And I've been lobbing with the Fallen."

"You wouldn't betray the Decepticons," Arcee stated unamused.

Starscream looked to the smallest femme with a brow raised, "Wouldn't I? What have they done for me lately besides humiliate me, spy on me, demote me? Megatron tried to extinguish my spark in cold blood then all but replaced me with that traitorous wretch Arachnid. I would have been fine if it were Skyfall she's a seeker after all, alas she's incapacitated so he chose that spider! She abandoned me, left me for scrap! So, what not rat them out." By the time Starscream had finished his little rant his voice was a low angry growl.

"Someone's bitter," Dawnbreaker mumbled then shifted on her pedes. When most of the members of Team Prime walked away to have a group chat about flyboy, Dawn and Bee stayed back with the prisoner looking over the Con with a frown she nudged his wing to get Starscream's attention. "Haven't you ever heard the human saying 'snitches get stitches', not that I'm complaining about this new information we could obtain but are you aware of the risks to you?"

"What's a snitch?"

"Oy vey" Dawnbreaker sighed with a servo to her helm.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

When Skyfall woke up again she was laying comfortably against plush pillows her helm ached something fierce and she shuttered out an outtake. Her dim optics catching movement to her left, letting out a short gasp Skyfall watch silver backed clouds passing under the Nemesis's hull like an ocean of moonlight, the moon itself was at its fullest making the stars look so dim compared to its full glory. Pulling her optics from the sight she recognized the room instantly. Megatrons private viewing chambers. "How?"

"Relax Skyfall you're safe, you were having a…you were unable to processes the event of this last week and ended up in a panic." It was unnatural to hear her esteemed leaders voice so low as if any change in tone and she would break.

"Forgive me, my lord, your soldiers should not show such weakness." Skyfall felt so broken, Megatron was going to kill her. She was weak.

"No, they should not," Megatron stated his voice heavy with an unknown emotion. Skyfall wings sagged further into the soft pillows and she felt her spark clench with fear. "But my soldiers are drones programmed for war, or they have already seen devastation seen their fellow Decepticons fall on the field and have had their fair share of close calls with death. But not you Skyfall your spark was too pure, and you too young to come that close to death." The massive warrior was slouched in a chair the weight of all those that have died for his cause and those who will continue to die sat heavily on his massive shoulders. Skyfall was looking at the leader of the Decepticons not as a warmongering brute but as a gladiator seeking to right those who had been wronged. "In the pit, I saw many young bots like you with blades or cannons to their sparks, they lost a lot of things in their time as fighters. You come out of that carnage pit worse off than when you came in. That is…if you survived at all." Megatron sighed heavily and looked out at the expanse of black, "Death changes a bot, and coming close to your own death is a reminder of how easily our sparks are snuffed." Blood red optics turned to her and softened, "You do not show weakness from knowing you almost died, but from how you choose to carry on. Will you suffer in fear of death? Or will you fight to keep your spark lit?"

The world seemed to stop and Skyfall felt her soul shift and spark brighten with determination. Looking Megatron boldly in the optics without an ounce of fear Skyfall spoke without hesitation, "I will fight."

Approval passed through his optics and Skyfall knew she had passed another test.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

The drive through the dreary dessert made Dawnbreaker hiss in annoyance, she hated the sand and the rocks. But it also reminded her of when she and Sky first came to this dimension. Dawnbreaker hit a bump and cursed, falling back into the formation around Optimus's trailer that held Starscream. The poor con that must suck this terrain wasn't gonna be a smooth haul. Coming to a stop at the fallen ship Dawn transformed and looked around for any con's, this could still be a trap after all.

"What do you know." Bulkhead breathed out in surprise.

"Could still be a trap," Arcee warned. Dawn rolled her optics it's always a trap with cons involved.

Optimus transformed and walked up to his team, "Starscreams loyalty to Megatron had always been questionable. If he has truly split from the Decepticons, our prisoner's knowledge of their agendas could make him a valuable ally."

"You don't mean permanently, as in keys to the base and everything?" Bulkhead was looking at his leader in worry.

"However unlikely that scenario, every sentient being deserves an opportunity for redemption," Optimus stated without hesitation.

Dawnbreaker was almost in tears, preach Prime preach! Arcee stepped up and Dawn looked at her worried. "Even Bot-killers? Even Arachnid?" Oh shit, he hit a tender spot….

Looking unfazed by Arcee's venomous comment Optimus gave her a stern look, "Without that hope, we may never achieve lasting peace."

Dawnbreaker opened the doors of Optimus's trailer, moving aside Bulkhead reached in to get Starscream out. "Rise and shine, Screamy." Dragging the con out by his legs till the Seeker fell painfully on his wings with a puff of dust and a screech of metal.

"We're here" Dawnbreaker chimed in. "Where is the ship?"

Sitting himself up, Starscream looked around, "It's through the arch, among the stones."

Optimus nodded, "Bulkhead, Bumblebee you're with me. Arcee and Dawnbreaker will remain with our prisoner."

Dawnbreaker almost whistled, this was not going to bode well for the two-wheeler. Arcee was wanting another shot at Arachnid. Sure enough, the smaller bot stepped towards the red and blue bot, "Sir, please. For Tailgate."

Optimus turned towards his smallest member, "Your desire to avenge Tailgate will only continue to cloud your judgment."

'Mic drop' Dawnbreaker felt bad for Arcee but this will be good for her. It took not but three minutes for Arcee to start pacing like a caged leopard. 'Lord have mercy…' Dawnbreaker leaned against the trailer and watched for movement.

"I'm not really so bad, you know. Megatron- -he's the evil one." Starscream took the chance to make some small talk amongst the two femmes.

"Tell it to someone who cares." Arcee snapped. Dawnbreaker huffed in agreement.

"Like whom, Arachnid? What I wouldn't do to get my hands on her wretched throat." Starscreams claws made little slicing noises when he flexed them angrily.

"Calm down there scissor hands," Dawn mumbled to herself knowing the other two would not get the reference.

Arcee looked amused, "So, we can agree on one thing."

"Oh, you have no idea. She showed up one day, and the next thing you know, she's acting like she runs the whispered lies into Megatron's ear, maneuvered to rob me of my rightful place."

Dawnbreaker gasped to herself, "And they were roommates."

"Well, she terminated my partner."

"What?! She's taking credit for scrapping him now too? That was my doing!"

Arcee quickly turned to face the cuffed seeker. "What?"

"It was as this moment Starscream knew, that he had fucked up." Starscream looked at Dawnbreaker in horror and back to Arcee.

"You weren't there."

"Ahh, of course, I wasn't. I don't know what I was thinking."

Arcee stalked up to the downed seeker her finger pointed at him in anger, "Who are you talking about?"

"No one. Who are you talking about?" Starscreams nervous smile was only digging himself deeper into the shit pit.
"Tailgate."

"Uh, who's Tailgate."

Realization passed through Arcee right as she registered his words. "You were the one. You extinguished Cliffjumper."

"Cliffjumper?!" Arcee went to punch Starscream dead in the faceplates when he started to beg, "No! No, no, no. You misunderstand. It wasn't like you think. The troopers mortally wounded him, I was trying to help Cliffjumper- - put him out of his misery. He begged me to." Snarling Arcee kicked Starscream to the floor, her arms ready to attack she stood over the sniveling con with hate in her optics. "Okay, okay, it was a mistake! I've made many but I've changed. You wouldn't terminate a defenseless prisoner, would you?" Arcee pulled out the key to both his stasis cuffs flinging it to the ground like a dagger. "What—What is that?"

Dawnbreakers optics widened and she pushed off of the trailer standing up straight her optics hard on the key, "Arcee…"

"Stay out of this Dawnbreaker, this is between me and Starscream." Her fellow Autobot snapped. "That is the key to your cuffs."

Now severely panicked Starscream yelped out, "What for?"

"Cliff would have given you a fighting chance."

"No, please! I-I don't want to! What's past is past. I'm one of you now." Starscream begged looking at the two Autobot femmes. But Arcee charged both her cannons hate blazing in her optics.

"Arcee this is going too far." Dawnbreaker was ready to step in between them. She could tell Starscream was up to something… he was pathetic but not this pathetic. He was almost too extra.

"No! No! Please! No!" Starscream squealed curling in on himself as best as he could do with his servos cuffs together.

"Take it!" Arcee roared. When Starscream fumbled with the key lamely she stooped down to grab the key.

"Arcee no!" Dawnbreaker went to dive for her fellow Autobot but she was too late the deep gashes in her side leaked energon and Starscream picked up the key with a twisted grin. Holding Arcee's wound closed Dawnbreaker charged her cannon at Starscream. "Big mistake Screamer.." Dawnbreaker snarled and charged the con. Using her full weight she shoved the Seeker to the dirt, rolling to the side she crouched at fired at the down con. His squeals echoed on the cannon and Arcee rushed at him her blades out. Dawnbreaker fought to keep her friend safe, and Arcee fought to kill the Con.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

Skyfall watched nestled in her pillow bed in Megatron's viewing room, as Soundwave activated one of Megatron's many terminal screens playing the live feed of Arachnids debriefing. The communications officer was called in to watch her as their leader went to personally debrief the shady con.

"You left Starscream with the Autobots? Do you have any notion of the consequences of your blunder?!" Megatron roared down at the much smaller Con. His voice wavering with rage.

"But, My Lordship, it was Starscream's incompetence that cost us the immobilizer" Arachnid tried to shift the blame.

"Dishonesty will not win her any favors," Skyfall growled and watched as Soundwave gave a nod.

Beyond furious Megatron stormed to her level and glared down at the spider. "I don't care about some trinket. My previous second in command is a prisoner of the enemy…which means all Decepticon intelligence could be at the fingertips of the Autobots!"

I'm not dead! I'm so very sorry about the late update I'm doing my best to keep writting. I love this story and want to keep it going till the end!