Ch. 13

Was there no way to stop this? Was she going to outlive them all? Why the frag couldn't she just die?

Starscream walked the halls just behind Megatron, the warlord and his second on their way to check on Airachnid as Knockout and Breakdown made repairs to her in the med bay.

"I am actually surprised to see that she is not in better condition," Megatron spoke down to Starscream; the seeker stayed silent, letting the larger mech continue, "But Knockout has dealt with far worse and under harsher circumstances."

Starscream sighed, "Yes, I've seen his handiwork on the battlefield eons ago," the seeker blinked up at the warlord, "Tell me, my lord, how did Airachnid find our ship? Did we lose our cloaking shield momentarily? I would have thought the femme would have remained rogue since she did not contact us after her arrival."

Megatron sneered, "It seems a small pocket of energon drew her out of hiding. But the energon was enough to register on our scanning radar. I sent a team to extract it and they engaged in battle with her. It would appear her injuries allowed for an easy capture."

Starscream growled lowly, hissing as he spoke, "My lord, we cannot trust her intentions. She has had problems with authority, your authority, in the past! She is here for repairs and energon; I can hardly say she is here for anything more!"

The warlord almost chuckled, "Your insistence amuses me, Starscream, and I remember her faults as well as you do. But for now, she must prove her value to our cause. I will be sure to find a use for her or she will find herself welcome to die in the incinerator."

The seeker scowled, not satisfied. Their plan had backfired, again! And now she was aboard the ship, like she was before!

As they approached the med bay, Starscream hoped that Knockout would have the best news ever; the surgery was a failure.

"The surgery," Knockout growled through gritted dentals, "was a perfect success."

The seeker and the mech locked optics, but only for a moment as the red mech continued, "Unfortunately, too much damage was sustained to save her optic. But I gave her a patch to keep the hole closed."

It was immediately apparent to Starscream why the surgery went over so well. Soundwave's dark and looming form was watching from the corner, observing everything. Even a fake slip of the wrist joint would have been noticed. Breakdown was off in the corner at the sink, cleaning tools, probably put there by Knockout to stop him from pummeling the femme to death himself. They had to have another chance soon. Or else Knockout and Breakdown would be alone with her on the ship without Starscream. The time table moved fast.

Megatron walked up to Airachnid's form, his servos behind his back, "And is the patient awake?"

The spider chuckled quietly, "Of course, my lord. I am honored to have the leader of the Decepticons," she purred, then paused, "and his second in command, visit me while I recover from my previous state."

Starscream growled at her, but he was ignored as Megatron gestured to Soundwave, "My communications officer will be observing your recovery and will make a record of your experiences on this planet since your arrival."

"I understand, my lord. I will be sure to divulge anything Soundwave needs to him," Airachnid murmured, bowing her helm, "I am at his, and your, service."

Starscream couldn't believe how easily she was lying. Almost as good as he was. The seeker twitched his wings. Knockout saw the irritation in the other mech but only crossed his arms. Starscream knew he wanted him to get it together; if he could, so could the seeker.

Megatron looked down at his second with a piercing glare, "Starscream, I will speak with you again on the command deck. You are dismissed until further notice."

For once, the seeker didn't want to be dismissed. He wanted to stay and make sure Airachnid suddenly took a dive. He wanted to jump across the room, wrap his claws around the spider's throat and choke the life out of her. But he couldn't risk everything he, Knockout and Breakdown had worked for so far.

So he bowed with a soft growl and tried his best not to spit out the words, "As you command, Lord Megatron."

Starscream turned and left the med bay, almost running as the door closed behind him. He was rushing to the lift to get back to his room. He had to check his datapads and perhaps even find a way to talk with Knockout and Breakdown before anything happened. They would be busy for a while he was sure, and as soon as the lift opened he found himself sprinting to his berth room, almost scraping his wings as he slipped through the door.

The seeker shuffled through notes and datapads sprawled out all over the place. The event they thought they had circumvented had actually come to pass; Airachnid was now among them. Starscream growled loudly. Trying to kill her was just making things worse. Setting aside one datapad in favor of another made him cringe inwardly. The next event would be Megatron's attempt at killing him in an old Decepticon mine. And it was coming up quick. Twelve hours ago, Airachnid had been brought aboard the ship. It wouldn't be much longer until Megatron began to reassess Starscream's value.

"I am not something he can just throw away," the seeker snarled, tossing the datapad aside, "I wasn't then and I'm certainly not now."

Starscream knew that must have been what the meeting on the deck was all about. They would talk briefly there before leaving for the mine. Before, he had been COMMed to meet the warlord on the outer deck and from there he was simply told to follow as Megatron took off into the sky. At least he was prepared this time.

The seeker grumbled and laid back painfully on the floor, staring up into the ceiling. If he could just survive a few more days, just a handful, he could start collecting relics and preparing for an alliance, or realliance depending on circumstances, with either faction.

"As long as 'DEAD' doesn't happen," Starscream sighed, "... Forget everything else, as long as 'DEAD' doesn't happen, you just do what you have to."

A ping on his COMM startled him and the seeker shot up, optics wide as he answered it, "This is Starscream."

"Starscream, I expect to see you on the command deck in five minutes," came Megatron's voice, "and prepare for a flight. You and I will be looking into something."

So vague, so unassuming. But Starscream knew where it was leading.

"Understood, my lord."

The seeker stood and took quick, deep intakes, shaking out his arms and servos, clenching and unclenching his claws. He was ready. He was nervous, but sure of that much at least. And he wasn't afraid this time. If Airachnid hadn't died yet, then he knew he still had time to save himself, too.