Ch. 114
The next few days with Starscream had been a struggle. While he had not disclosed full details to Optimus about what Megatron had done to him, it was clear he had been damaged. Small things would set him off, either sending him into a rage or scurrying deeper into the base to find a quiet place to calm down. It was upsetting the seeker, acting in such a way, but he couldn't help himself. Whatever Megatron had done, it was working.
Optimus had done his best to be helpful as well. He would sit with Starscream, saying nothing at all, and just share the space between them. He would bring the seeker little things to work on: quick reports that needed a look through, even the odd machination that needed the stubborn mech's expertise to tease to life. And it was the Prime who went after Starscream each time his rages flared or his fears sent him hiding away. It had been taxing, but Optimus saw it as worthy nonetheless.
But today was going to be different. Today was the start of the fight back. Optimus sent out a COMM to his team, informing them of a meeting they had to have. Everyone was unceremoniously crammed into the front of the base. Knockout demanded the most amount of room so no one would scratch his finish, and Starscream was the last to arrive as Optimus waited to give his announcement.
"Good news so soon?" the seeker grumbled, not in the mood for pleasantries.
The Prime nodded, "It would appear so. Ratchet?"
The medic stepped forward, a long cable in his servos.
Starscream reflexively flinched back, but Optimus stopped him, patting his shoulder, "Easy, Starscream. Allow Ratchet to explain."
The older mech hummed, "Since we are dealing with the eventuality of any one of us being captured, Soundwave and I have devised some mental tests and training exercises to prevent a cortical psychic patch retrieval. Knockout and I then created the cord to accompany the tests."
"And who is going to use it first?" Starscream spat angrily, "Are you planning on using it on me?"
"Eventually," Ratchet frowned, "Unless you'd like to volunteer as our first participant."
The seeker growled darkly, his claws flexing, but Smokescreen quickly came forward, a servo raised, "I'll do it, doc. I can be the first to try it out."
Starscream glared at the white mech, but said nothing.
The medic nodded, "That's very good of you, Smokescreen. Now, you'll need to be paired with someone who can handle a similar mental stage as you. Bumblebee?"
The yellow mech beeped and nodded, saying that he had done a patch before and it was no problem.
Ratchet tsked, "Yes, but this will be somewhat different. The pair of you will be training, not running around each other's minds looking for medical formulas."
Knockout smirked, "If you haven't guessed already, everyone else will need to pair up as well. Soundwave is off limits. He's like the boss of mental retrieval. Think of him as the final test."
Soundwave leered his visor around the room, playing a deep and grainy vocal clip of an evil laugh.
Arcee smirked, "'Wave, you better not go easy on us after we're done with our training."
"Soundwave: will annihilate the defenses of your minds. Failure of fellow teammates: 100%."
"Which is why," Knockout huffed, "you are paired with no one."
The blue mech shrugged and stepped back.
Ratchet set the cortical cable down and picked up a large bucket, "For the rest of you, you'll pull a scrap of metal from this heap. Find the match, that's your partner. Knockout and I are included in the mix and we'll be calling Wheeljack to even out the numbers since..." he glanced at Soundwave, who replayed his evil laugh clip for emphasis; Ratchet grumbled, "Yes, quite," he held out the bucket, "So, everyone dig in."
Arcee dug her servo into the bucket first, watching eagerly as Bulkhead did the same. Their pieces, though similar, didn't match and the pair watch curiously as everyone began to pull shards. It was Ratchet who saw he had a match first and he scowled as he looked his partner over.
"Bulkhead," he warned, "everything in my helm I need. Don't break anything in there."
The green mech chuckled, "Ratchet, I think everything in your helm is indestructible."
"You?!" Knockout scoffed, "I could've had anyone else traipsing around in my helm! This is going to be boring."
Arcee frowned, "What, you think this is gonna be a picnic for me, Doc Knock?"
The red mech hissed, smiling, "Ooo, I like the villain name. Keep it interesting and we'll make it work."
Breakdown looked at Starscream and Optimus's pieces, shrugging, "Guess I'm with the only mech that isn't here. When are you calling Wheeljack, Ratchet?"
Ratchet set the bucket down, "I can call him now. It's better he's here anyway, we need to debrief him on what's been happening since we last saw him..."
Starscream didn't look up at Optimus. His optics glared down at the piece he was holding. Typical. The Prime must have planned it. The seeker quietly returned his piece to the bucket and turned to the lifts, but Optimus stopped him gently.
"I am guessing you are not happy about being paired for this excercise."
"No," Starscream hissed, "I am not. But I would be upset if any of you had been paired with me. So it doesn't matter. It's not personal."
Optimus smiled softly, "Starscream, would you like me to escort you somewhere outside of the base? Somewhere that will make it easier for you to think?"
"Yes."
The answer was quick and without hesitation. Starscream needed to get out. He needed to get out of everything, not just the base. He wanted out of all the messes. He wanted out of his own helm.
The Prime turned to Ratchet and gestured to the ground bridge, "Ratchet, I am taking Starscream out for a different kind of training session. Can you manage the team while we are away?"
The medic nodded, "Of course. Do you have a set location?"
"I have one in mind," Optimus went to the ground bridge and typed in a set of coordinates, "We will be back soon. How long will each of these tests last for?"
Ratchet shrugged, "That's up to them. Bumblebee and Smokescreen will go first. It may be a couple hours training each per day. After that, I will allow Soundwave to determine who is ready to further their growth. We'll have to switch partners every couple of days as well. This... this is a heavier kind of training."
Optimus smiled, "And yet it is necessary. We have far too much of value here to risk Megatron taking it all. If he does succeed in capturing any of us, we will not allow him an easy interrogation."
The medic smiled back, "Sounds about right, Optimus," he activated the ground bridge, "I'll have the ground bridge up again for you in a couple hours. COMM me if you want it sooner."
The Prime nodded and walked to the portal, "Starscream, are you ready?"
The seeker just shrugged and walked through the ground bridge, Optimus following behind him.