-_-xXx-_-
(Soundwave's memory: 1000 vorns old)
"It's finally time. I am going to fight somebot the Council picked for me. I assumed it would be Cipher, so I pretended to be so much weaker than I was. No need for him to know my strength when we fight. Shame, I'm going to fight some mech who calls himself Megatronous. He must feel like he needs to make up for something to name himself after one of the original Thirteen. This will be as easy as stealing an Energon treat from a youngling.
Especially after these upgrades I just got. Tentacles that can shock and help me hack, more sensitive sensors, a visor to read the data, and a... useful data packet. I can't wait to try to make a few... symbiotes."
Soundwave was in a small room, made of metal that was cracked and had some dried Energon on the walls and ground. The door Soundwave used to enter was sealed, leaving the only exit to be a cell door that lead to the Pit where he would fight. Outside, up in stands, were hundreds of spectators eager to see somebot scrapped. A voice was heard, most likely the announcer.
"This next match will pit the top gladiator, Megatronous, against the latest candidate from our mysterious benefactors, Soundwave!" A loud cheer went up as the aforementioned mechs walked out of the rooms and entered the arena. After some more rambling by the announcer, Soundwave and Megatronous got into ready positions, both with a arm transformed into a blade. At an unspoken cue, they rushed each other.
XxXxXxXx
(Soundwave's memory: 1000 vorns old)
We rushed each other, our swords clashing. I jumped away, looking for an opening. Before I could do much, Megatronous came running at me with swing. Twirling, I dodged and got behind him. Sending out my tentacles, I lifted him up and sent him a shock. He flailed around wildly before I threw him at the nearby wall.
Before he could get up I ran back at him and aimed my sword at his helm. Before it connected, Megatronous blocked and pushed my sword away. He leapt up and attempted to dehelm me. I ducked and swung my sword at his leg. Megatronous was sent off balance because he had put all of his weight behind the swing. My sword connected, and Megatronous used his sword to push mine away.
We parted, taking the other in once more. Megatronous was bleeding from the damage I inflicted to his left leg, and seemed slightly out of it. So far, he had yet to hit me, which just goes to show how much better I am. I spoke in the way I perfected when among those I did not trust with all of my spark, telling him the bare facts while also hoping to infuriate him and cause him to not think through his actions.
"Soundwave: superior; Megatronous: inferior. Megatronous: spawn of scraplet"
Megatronous snarled and ran at me. I had barely enough time to block his sword, but it still sent me stumbling. Realizing I really shouldn't have done that, I transformed my sword back into my servo. The crowd watching groaned, thinking I was gonna surrender. Not likely.
I made myself look helpless, waiting for Megatronous to try to kill me. I wasn't disappointed. He swung his sword at me, rage clear in his optics. I used both of my arms to block, also sending out my tentacles. I attempted to get him, but he grabbed them both with one servo. I then tried to retract them, but Megatronous jerked them, sending pain shooting up both. He pulled me close and got behind me. He put his arm around my neck, and stood there like that for a while. Everything started going black because the Energon couldn't get to my processor. The crowd started yelling and screaming their excitement while I tried to struggle, but everything got blacker and blacker...
All of a sudden, Megatronous eased up slightly and started whispering in my audio.
"If I let you go, will you agree that I won this fight?" That... was not what I was expecting. Why wouldn't Megatronous want to kill me?
"Soundwave: complies. Soundwave: confused." I answered in a hushed voice. Megatronous let go of me and shouted so all of the spectators could hear him.
"I have beaten Soundwave! He almost beat me, the champion of the Pits of Kaon, and for that I name him my equal! However, due to his skill I will not offline him. He may keep his life, and any who disagree will go through me!" The crowd quieted, before cheering. Megatronous turned back to me and smiled.
"Now go back to your master. Remember, I will always welcome you here." He turned and walked away, and a moment later I did the same. In the room I went to was Cipher. He looked like somebot just told him he could no longer have high-grade, and it showed on his faceplates. The room felt colder than the dead of space, and I couldn't help but flinch when he took a step towards me and spoke.
"I am disappointed in you. I trusted you could beat a simple gladiator. Yet you lost!" He screeched "Now the Council will want to silence you, and will have me do it. You have been like my own youngling all this time, I will not be able to do it…" Cypher turned around and started pacing, lost in deep thought. After an eternity, he spoke in a low voice, clearly not enjoying what he had to say.
"...but there may be a way out of this. Have you ever heard of the Vow of Silence? Those who take it vow to never speak again. They promise to undergone a procedure that prevents them from ever speaking again. They are never the same again, losing much of what makes them them. It is a rather invasive and painful procedure, but it can only be conducted on a willing mech. Most who do it perish, or are slowly driven insane from the effects. The exact instructions have long been forgotten by most, but I am old enough to remember when it was first done. I have done it myself to many mechs, most older and stronger than you.
"If you take it, I will be able to let you live. Here, let me comm you what you need to say."
Once I got it, I paused for a moment before saying what I needed to. I would certainly not enjoy whatever this procedure entailed, but this would be better than living the rest of my life fearing what lurks in the shadows. I may be strong, but nothing lasts forever. After a brief moment of hesitation and confusion at the apparent randomness of the wording, I recited the the Vow that would save my life, and begin a whole new chapter.
"I, Soundwave, vow to never speak again. I vow to live the rest of my life in silence, accepting the changes that I will undergo so that my life may be spared. I understand that this means I will never again be the same, and I will embrace my future wholesparkedly, even though that means I must never recall the past. Never again will any hear my voice, and never will any learn my story. I will fade from memory, being remembered only as little more than a drone, lacking of opinions and personality. May Primus forgive me and the Unmaker spare me. Crystal cities shall fall, the Darkness shall return, and the Chosen will reign supreme. All shall be reunited in the Well of Allsparks, forever changed and mended."
As I finished the oath, my vision started to blur and a message surrounded by code appeared. It said "Emergency Override accepted. Shutdown Code Oath-Maker initiated. Begin Procedures now." The last thing I saw was Cypher rushing towards me, telling me to trust Megatronous, before all went black.
-_-xXx-_-
Zane jolted out of Soundwave's memories and stared at him. The unsuspecting body of Soundwave, stuck in stasis... it pulled at Zane's few heartstrings. Zane decided to bring him back online, but first to take a page out of GLaDOS' book and make Soundwave relieve some moments of those who he had killed, so as to make him more sympathetic towards Zane's Chosen. Who knows, maybe Soundwave would even be slightly angry at Megatron for causing the offlining of so many. After Zane set that into motion, he looked at Two-Head and Boss.
"You two, I think it is about time we communicate with the Autobots. You go kidnap the Autobots' human friends and talk to the Autobots once you bring the kids here. Set a meeting somewhere far from here. But, do not bring the kids to the Autobots. I need to go fix something. I am starting to miss that voice in my head."
"But Zane, how will we care for the kids? We do not know the first thing when it comes to human care." Said Two-Head. Zane smile and answered.
"I am certain that you will be able to figure it out. Ever heard of the World Wide Web? Please be kind to the kids, I want to tell them of my plight. They are sure to understand. Oh yes, and one more thing. DO NOT HARM THE AUTOBOTS! They need to survive, and be whole. If they aren't, they will not want to listen to me. I know you would find using them as punching bags to be enjoyable, as would I. Sadly, that would prove detrimental to my end game. And to allay any fears you may have, I am sane. The voice is only Unicron. I may be slightly crazy -not that I have enough data to support any conclusions- but I have yet to hear a voice generated by my own mind. ¡Nos venos!"
Zane vanished in a purple flash, leaving Boss and Two-Head behind, very confused.
"Did Zane just speak in Spanish?" Asked Two-Head. Boss nodded and walked off. Two-Head followed him, wanting to see what he was doing. Boss went to the Communications Hub and started looking at government files. Two-Head watched on in confusion, wondering why Boss wasn't following orders. Boss scrolled through a few pages before turning towards Two-Head and grabbing his arm. A predatory smile played along Boss' derma and he then spoke in a low voice, much different than when he spoke to Megatron.
"Time to go kidnap the kids. I commed Stinger so we can get all three at once. You get Miko, I'll get Jack, and Stinger will get Rafael. The sooner this is completed the sooner the Autobots can retaliate, but only if we do it correctly. Do you find this to be an acceptable arrangement?"
"Yes, I do. Not that I have much of a choice, Zane himself ordered it... Although can I take Vector with me? From the little I know of Miko, she will not make this simple, right?"
"You are correct, thank you for that idea. I'll take Rogue with me, and I'll send Spectre with Stinger, he may require some backup. Now, let us go follow through with our plans."
XxXxXxXx
Zane stood before a wall with a spherical bump. It was a faint purple, and Zane knew automatically what it was. His feet were surrounded by a deep purple as he floated up and touched the bump. It refused to do anything. Growing slightly irate, as he had hoped this would be over quickly, he sent a small trickle of his power into the wall and watched in satisfaction as it opened. This room was dark, the only source of light being a small purple sphere that could easily fit in a hand.
Zane walked in and inspected it. He clicked his tongue in disapproval, before he started giggling. The giggle soon became a full-blown laugh as he bent over and grabbed his stomach. Immediately he straightened up and schooled his features.
"Really, Unicron?" Zane asked, a look of 'I thought you were better than that' on his face. "No wonder you needed my help. Not that I'm complaining, rarely will you hear that. Next time, however, don't leave this room unguarded. That's just asking for someone to defeat you. Please, keep that in mind for next time. Anyway, I guess I should help you now, huh?"
Zane started rubbing bracelet that he made, before taking it off. He looked at it in mock sadness before he continued to speak.
"Well, I was saving this for an emergency. Ya know, like if the Autobots and Decepticons were beating me. But, I guess this counts as an emergency. Just remember... I expect you to make it up to me somehow!" Zane said the last sentence in a sing-song voice before throwing the bracelet at Unicron's feeble spark. He watched in half awe and half horror as it hit the spark and froze in midair. The Dark Energon glowed a deep purple before the entire bracelet was destroyed and the spark disappeared.
A long moment later, the whole room filled with a blinding bright purple and Zane was forced to shut his eyes as tightly as he could. When he opened them a minute later, a large purple spark, larger than it was in the show, was in front of him. Zane felt slightly terrified at the consequences this could bring but shrugged them off, deciding to worry about that later.
"I HAVE AWAKENED!"
-_-xXx-_-
Sorry for the late update. I have been trying to write a chapter that felt right. I hope you all enjoy.