Ch. 80

"Do you think you will be able to walk?"

"... You know, I really don't want to think about walking right now."

"Starscream," Optimus sighed gently, "I am sorry I had to seal your wound."

The seeker grumbled and settled his side into the snow, shuddering at the feeling of the ice against the newly scorched plasma mark, "You did what you had to. Enough with the apologies."

The Prime watched with guilt as Starscream scooped up a small pile of snow and pressed it against his helm, "Did you hit your helm in the crash?"

The seeker shook his helm and winced, "Something's wrong with my COMM. It created some sort of noise- no, don't try using your COMM after what happened to me!" Starscream snarled, "Just wait until one of your Autobots calls you."

Optimus lowered his servo away from his helm's COMM unit and nodded, "If that is what you think is best."

"Yes," the seeker grunted, "I do think it's best," he sighed as he tried to sit up, "How far away from the human compound are we?"

"Not too far," the Prime answered, offering his servo to help Starscream to his peds, "You can still see most of the buildings from here."

The silver mech took Optimus's offer of help and had to hide a hiss of pain under a scoff, "Well... better than nothing... So we really have no cover from whomever attacked me."

Optimus transformed out his blaster, "I do not think hiding will change our predicament. Whoever this bot is, it seemed they very much aimed to have you killed."

"And I'm guessing in your rush to make sure I hadn't perished prematurely," Starscream scowled, "you didn't exactly cover your tracks."

The Prime's glowing blue optics narrowed as the sound of pedfalls on the delicate snow reached him, "No. I did not."

Starscream's wings pitched down quickly and he transformed out a single blaster as he pressed his other servo hard into his side, "You were followed."

The pedfalls became more audible and Optimus stepped in front of the seeker as he rumbled gently, "Yes."

The crushing of snow under large Cybertronian peds drew nearer until the offender finally emerged from behind a large embankment of snow, a scowl on his golden yellow faceplates as he unsheathed his sword from his back, "Starscream," the large blue seeker scowled, "it is a shame for you that you survived your crash."

Optimus gave the silver mech no choice in hiding as he nudged Starscream gently back, aiming his blaster carefully, "Dreadwing, stand down!" he ordered loudly, "Cease this attack before I am forced to act accordingly!"

"Do as you will, Optimus Prime!" Dreadwing yelled back, "My quarry is none other than the traitor that you protect! Stand aside and I shall allow you the honor of fighting me once he has been slain!"

Starscream growled, grumbling quietly, "Fat chance-"

Optimus didn't move, "Were these the orders given to you by Megatron? To continue to pursue a mech who has seen an end to this war? Starscream has done you no harm other than to escape his ruthless former leader!"

"You are wrong!" the blue seeker roared, "He has turned our great leader into a mech obsessed! For the sake of Lord Megatron, I must do what he is now incapable of doing himself!"

Dreadwing lunged hard at Optimus and drove his sword down swiftly against one of the Prime's blasters. The red mech shoved him back and transformed out a blade, shoving Starscream behind him and into the snow as he blocked a steady assault from Dreadwing.

"Starscream!" Optimus ordered, "Get back to the human facility and use their radio station to call Agent Fowler! Get a bridge back to base, NOW!"

The seeker stumbled and ducked when Dreadwing made to reach for him, flinching when the Prime pulled the Decepticon back and threw him against a glacier side.

"GO!" Optimus yelled, receiving a hard punch that pushed him aside.

Starscream felt his wings go flat as Dreadwing then turned on him and the smaller mech scrambled quickly to create some distance between them. With a running jump, the silver mech attempted to transform and shrieked loudly in pain when he felt his cauterized wound tear slightly, stopping his transformation sequence.

"A seeker whose wings are useless," Dreadwing snarled, "You will not escape this justice, Starscream. For my Lord Megatron and the Decepticon cause, I will not allow you to live a moment longer!"

The blue mech raised his sword and cried out when Optimus tackled into him, pinning him down.

"Run, Starscream!" the Prime ordered, grabbing for Dreadwing's weapon to keep it away from the Decepticon, "Get back to the base, now!"

Dreadwing elbowed Optimus off him roughly and turned to grab his weapon, but Starscream didn't wait to see what was going to happen next. He knew very well the strengths and weaknesses of the Prime, though he rarely saw a weakness exhibited at all. As he ran as quick as he could back into the white on white landscape towards the little buildings far, yet not so far, ahead, he knew he didn't have to worry about Optimus. For Starscream also knew the strengths and weaknesses when it came to his own person. And he knew, deep within the depths of his spark, that if Dreadwing did get a hold of him there was little doubt that he stood a chance.