AN: My depression is still acting up so expect these two chapters to be just a touch shorter than the last ones, just an FYI.
Mayhem was glad to have finally been able to go on missions again but this was just unfair. They could have been out there, kicking Decepticon tailpipe, living it big, retrieving any type of Cybertronian technology… It would have been awesome.
The sky was clear, the weather was awesome and everything was perfect for some recon. Mayhem had taken the first mission that had become available without really caring for what she'd have to do but, unfortunately, staying outside a cave in lookout was all there was to it for her. No 'Cons, no kicking tailpipe, just… nothing.
Silverbot had also gone with, also wanting to get out of the base, but he seemed to be the only one of the siblings that was uncaring for what they were there for. He'd sat down against a pile of rocks and was gazing upwards at the sky, appreciating the quietness and peace he was being gifted with.
"I was supposed to be giving a rock concert of epic dimensions, like really hitting it on the guitar, you know what I mean." She complained to her brother, pacing from one side to the other. "But all I see are boring rocks."
"And you wonder why mom insisted on you coming along." The triple-changer smiled at the not-too-distant memory.
The mech still remembered when, earlier that day, Mayhem had produced her guitar from seemingly out of nowhere and pronounced it a day to remember as she would give a concert of epic proportions with her own songs plus some out of her favorite bands. It had been amusing to watch the expressions of horror in all of the Autobot's faceplates and their own Carrier's at the sudden announcement and Ratchet swiftly pronounced he had a mission ready for a team willing to undertake it. With their Carrier sanctioning Mayhem's depart from the base, very much supported by Optimus, he also decided to tag along to try and keep his sister out of more trouble.
"From grounded to mandatorily out of the base, that femme has definitely some screws loose! And, worst of all, I'm stuck outside because somehow I could cause the cave to collapse."
"Yeah… somehow. Do you see me complaining about my side of the bargain?"
"That's because you're lame." She offered the though without hesitation
"Ouch, sister, ouch." The comeback was dripping with sarcasm as the mech stood up and stretched his joints.
Arcee and Bulkhead then emerged from the cave entrance, the wrecker holding a scanner that was beeping incessantly. They'd went in not too long ago in search of a faint energon signal but had found the mine to look like it had been cleaned out long ago, just like they'd predicted.
"By all appearances the mine's been stripped." Arcee shrugged to her partner.
"But I'm getting a signal. It's faint, but it's definitely energon." Bulkhead retorted. He knew how to use a scanner and that one told him there was energon somewhere in there.
"Doesn't make sense. This operation's been abandoned four, maybe five years, and Decepticons never leave energon behind."
"Erm, guys…" Silverbot pointed to the side where his sister had been. By that point she was nowhere to be seen at the cave entrance and certainly was on her way to cause what her namesake implied.
Looking to the side to speak to Mayhem the triple-changer had been very surprised to see she was nowhere to be seen. For someone who had the wingspan like a kite and the daintiness of an excavator that femme always managed to be quiet at the worst occasions possible… to everyone else! To her it was like a gift from Solus herself, being able to ninja her way out of or into any situations as she pleased.
"She went in, unbelievable." The blue femme shook her helm in disbelief.
"Really? Have you, you know, met my sister?" The triple-changer smiled ironically. "Silent when she wants to get out of anything she doesn't like."
Bulkhead groaned and initiated pursue of the rouge Maker. "Mayhem, get back here!" It wouldn't do him any good to lose his partner in such a short amount of time.
Left alone, the other two members of the team looked between each other for what to do next. They could remain behind and wait for Bulkhead to drag Mayhem back but that would likely not be happening any time soon and also any struggle between the two heavy-hitters could bury them inside the unstable mine.
Silverbot had to admit it would be good to break the monotony he'd been subjected to while keeping guard at the entrance. "It would be kind interesting to see, you know, if it were-"
"Safe?" Arcee cut him off. "A stripped mine can be very unstable, Silver."
"I promise to step lightly. Besides, you need someone who knows Mayhem's moves when it comes to tracking her down."
Considering the triple-changer's proposal, the two-wheeler gave in too easily for her tastes. "Just- don't tell Solarflare."
"Mayhem? Mayhem?"
Inside the mine, Bulkhead wandered aimlessly for a good few minutes attempting to try and locate the heavy-duty seeker. He knew it should be easy to locate a seeker inside such a tight space because of two reasons: seekers hated closed off spaces such as that mine and the wings didn't help when it came to hiding.
The wrecker wondered what could have caused the femme to be such risk-prone and to put herself in such perilous situations over minimal results. Solarflare and Silverbot seemed to be very reasonable, almost at the same level as Optimus, so why had Mayhem come out like she should belong to Doomsday or even Airachnid?
"Check it out, now this had the perfect acoustics for a true concert!" Speak of the devil and she shall appear from behind a column and looking very much pleased with her actions. "And now, ladybots and gentlemechs, for your entertainment, it's the one and only Mayhem! Whoa, yeah! Let's make some noise!"
In her mind the femme was transported back onto Cybertron and pictured herself on stage in front of all her friends and family, all those familiar smiles sparkling only for her and her songs alone. She didn't have to share the stage with anyone else to get all the cheers, all she needed was her guitar and her confidence to get all she wanted. The attention would be only on her and she would succeed without having to support herself on her Carrier's accomplishments or be hindered due to her Sire's doings. She would only be herself and all the bots in the Maker district would love her because of it.
Bulkhead was ready to drag the femme away when the scanner he was holding began to pick up a faint signal. He knew it was only a matter of a few missteps before a collapse could occur but he also trusted Mayhem not to do much damage while he worked. Deciding they had to make the trip count for something, he put away the piece of equipment and
"Arcee found something." The green mech spoke into his comm.
"Bulk-ead, do – rea-?" Static interference came in-between Arcee's side of the conversation. "- mineral com-tion down he- must be –ausi- -terfe-."
"Scrap, I can't make out what she's trying to say."
"Ok, maybe the acoustics aren't perfect." Mayhem shrugged with a sympathetic smile.
"Well, we're here, Ratchet's gonna want a sample."
Taking out his wrecking ball, Bulkhead went closer to one of the walls that seemed more structurally stable and began digging his way in, hoping to find something. He doubted he'd find anything any time soon but for the sake of the trip he had to at least try to maybe even bring back to base a tiny sliver of energon.
Outside of the mine the Autobots and Makers had went into karma was not being nice for them.
Within a few minutes of Arcee and Silverbot entering the dug-out cave two Decepticons landed without hesitation and, unfortunately, they were the ones that occupied the top two positions of the hierarchy.
Starscream was definitely feeling the chill down to his very spark. Every plan of his so far had failed and this one was one he'd had on reserve for a while now, just in case things ever went south and he was forced to rely on himself alone for survival. He did not want to believe it but it was almost impossible for them to be there, on that exact location, and to not be about his 'backup plan'.
"Erm, Lord Megatron, far be it from me to question your intentions, but I do not understand why we've returned here after all this time. Alone." The SIC cowered, even with his master's back towards him, as Megatron began walking forward with every intention of going inside. "Every last trace of energon was extracted from this mine, there's nothing left."
"Indulge me Starscream, won't you?" Replied the Lord of all Decepticons without ever looking back, only going ahead without ever stopping, knowing fully well his underling would follow suit.
Along the way their positions remained the same, the meek, smaller seeker taking the rear and the bigger ex-gladiator walking in the front, fully aware of what they'd likely find and what would happen when they did. He'd wanted to do this for a while now but held himself steady, knowing the time was coming to end something that should have ceased a long time ago.
The two Decepticons did not have to walk long, unaware they were not the only ones paying a visit to the mine. Three Cybertronian-built drills came into sight under a skylight and Megatron paused, causing Starscream to do the same. They were seeing the same, but their perspectives wildly varied- to one was proof of treason while to the other was insurance of survival in case of treason.
"How intriguing." Megatron said to his Second in Command, but he already knew what they'd find.
Suppressing a shudder of fear, Starscream immediately called upon his acting abilities to try and disguise the situation as he stepped forward. "Incompetent fools! This mining equipment should have been relocated, why is it still here?!" Anger towards the drones always managed to hide his own treachery against the Decepticon cause and it was his only way to save more than his paintjob.
"A most valid question."
"My apologies, master, I believe Soundwave was in charge of coordinating transport." The seeker attempted at shifting the blame, his second best tactic but it also failed, if the growl from the bigger mech was anything to go by. Looking at his master while stepping backwards he put his servos upfront in a show of fear. "But, in fairness, during your interstellar travels, we all had to assume additional responsibilities. Clearly, mistakes were made."
"Yes, clearly." Unimpressed by the theatrics of his underling, Megatron punched the nearest wall and out came an impressive cluster of energon crystals clutched in his servo. Just as he suspected. "Every last trace of energon extracted?"
"Lord Megatron, I can explain…"
"Explain what?! That you've been hoarding a supply of energon for your personal use?"
"No! Not exactly…"
"Do not take me for a fool, Starscream!" The warlord dropped the cluster and crushed it beneath his pede, effectively intimidating the smaller seeker, and began walking forward. "I have been wise to your transgressions since the beginning, not only did you pluck the dark energon from my chest in a failed attempt to snuff my spark, but you tried to rise your undead warrior with it. It is no secret you lost an arm in the process, which you since had replaced."
"You know about that?!" Starscream began receding, taking fearful steps backwards while looking up at what he assumed to be his doom.
"Soundwave is quite competent at surveillance, I can assure you. The fact is, Starscream, despite your treachery, I've allowed you to carry on because I took a certain delight in your string of failures, but you've finally become tiresome, predictable." Taking aim with his canon, Megatron took delight in his SIC's fear clearly shown in those red wide optics. "You've hit rock bottom."
"Master, please, give me one more chance! I beg of you!" Bringing his whole frame to a kneeling stance, Starscream began begging for his life in a shrill of his voice. He did not want to die, his house of cards falling around him ever since his master had returned ending with a demise inside a mine he'd carefully hid away, his frame melted into an indistinguishable puddle under the fire of the iconic fusion canon.
"You have ceased to be of use to me Starscream, so you shall simply cease to be."
On one of the sides of the skylight Arcee and Silverbot had been walking calmly when they came into view of Starscream from one of the entrances to the main room. They felt their whole frames freeze and optics widen, more at who they'd be facing than at the scene, but the outcome of the situation was sealed. There would be a fight.
Noticing his target looking away to a specific side instead of at the floor, Megatron looked away to see one of the wretched Autobots and a familiar triple-changer looking like a couple of deer in the headlights. He too was caught off-guard for a moment before deciding that eliminating them took priority and turned his canon on them with a war cry, taking shots at his enemies without much care for the integrity of the mine.
"Scrap!" Silverbot pulled Arcee along with him to hide behind a sturdy pillar while they deployed their blasters.
"Cover me!" Arcee shouted, a plan already forming in her mind.
While the fight began one certain seeker decide to take advantage of the Decepticon's leader distraction. Starscream took off in a run to the opposite side of the battle zone towards the exit in hopes of surviving, knowing the odds were stacked against him. If Megatron didn't finish him off the other two would be more than glad to do the job for him.
Noticing the retreating mech, Megatron snarled as he looked sideways. "Starscream, you dare abandon me?!" Changing his target he pointed his canon the other way and began aiming at the coward of a seeker that dared to disobey his master and shot with clear intent on snuffing out that traitorous spark once and for all.
Seeing that the warlord was distracted, Arcee steadied herself and came out of hiding to shoot at Megatron's back to get his attention and, when she garnered it and the mech attempted to take aim at her, kept shooting at the arm with the fusion canon until it accidentally shot up and hit a stalactite several times.
The heavy rock could not take all the strain and fell on top of Megatron but it also had the side effect of triggering a collapse of the whole mine. The floor began to fall as the cracks widened throughout and nothing could be made to avoid the impending disintegration of the rest of the structure of the cave.
"Scrap!" Arcee swore and began running back to her partner.
"Arcee, quick!" Silverbot held out a servo, unwilling to risk weighting down the already collapsing floor.
They both hoped for the best but just as they were about to touch the femme fell down, followed swiftly by the mech into the depths of the cave.
On another side of the mine Bulkhead and Mayhem began seeing the rocks cracking and collapsing around them, the ceiling and walls rumbling and giving in easily due to already having been stripped of energon.
"Was that either of us?" Mayhem asked in a panicked state.
A rock fell down, hitting Bulkhead on the helm and sending him crashing into the ground along with the rubble. The wrecker felt his processor spin as he lost as sense of balance and landed on his back, unable to immediately get himself back up and defend himself against the onslaught of debris falling down around him.
Mayhem saw this and rushed to protect her friend from more falling rocks, taking the brunt of the impacts on her back, groaning with each contact made with the rubble. She felt herself begin to give but persevered though, only to end up supporting a large boulder from falling onto and crushing her best friend.
It took a while for the tremors to finally cease but when they did both Cybertronians let out sighs of relief, but the ordeal was far from over. Now they would have to find a way out of the cave and out of all the rubble they were surrounded with.
"You ok, Bulk?" Asked a concerned Mayhem.
Taking a moment to assess his state, the wrecker hesitantly responded. "I feel real dizzy. You?"
"I've been better. There's this tugging sensation in my chest but I think it's because of me being supporting all this weight."
It was only then that Bulkhead noticed Mayhem holding up a boulder bigger than both of them combined from falling on top of them, a boulder that seemed to be the pillar holding up all the rubble walls around them. If the femme was to move from her current position the ceiling would collapse and crush them both.
"Whoa, let me get up and-"
"No! Don't do it if you can't or else you risk making whatever you might be suffering from worse."
With a sigh Bulkhead gave up and surrendered himself to laying there on the rocky ground. "Fine."
Looking around them the seeker made a face and began wondering why the ordeal had happened. She had fulfilled her promise to not touch anything she wasn't supposed to and Bulkhead's attempt at getting a sample to bring back to Ratchet hadn't seemed serious enough to bring the whole thing down on them. Could it really have been just bad timing coupled with compromised structural integrity?
"What do you think caused the cave-in?" She asked, attempting to shift the mech's attentions from the giant boulder literally over their helms.
"Who knows? I just hope Arcee and Silver are ok, because we really need an assist."
"You can say that again."
Mayhem just hoped any sort of assistance didn't take long because she didn't know for how long she'd be able to hold up that boulder with just sheer confidence and a smile.