Ch. 152

Hardshell growled as C.Y.L.A.S. came up behind him, the black mech scowling, "Still nothing? You would think we would have found even a shred of evidence..."

The Insecticon gruffly jumped from his perch atop a pile of rubble among the scattered remnants of the Autobot base, shaking out his shoulders, "Our master has ordered us to keep searching. Their lifeless frames will be here."

"And if not?" C.Y.L.A.S. frowned.

Hardshell turned on the mech angrily, his visor flashing, "You will not doubt our master! If he says they will be here, then they will be here!"

The black mech snarled back and raised his spider legs high, "I doubt," he roared, "because we've been at this for hours and we've still found nothing! If Lord Megatron is so insistent that they're here, then where are they?!"

Hardshell growled softer. He didn't answer at first, using his peds to kick away dust and debris from the floor.

"There," he hissed, "You see? The sigil of the Autobots. This is their base."

C.Y.L.A.S. huffed as he knelt down to examine the scuffed mark on the floor, "That may very well be but they're not here. They got out. Probably due to Starscream providing a fail safe for them. His premonitions have saved them before and Megatron continues to risk losing more by keeping him around-"

"Surely, C.Y.L.A.S.," came Shockwave's firm voice as he drew closer to the pair, his pedfalls shaking the ground, "you are not daring to follow the same thoughts and path as Dreadwing. His manner against Starscream and Megatron's use for him is what brought him to his logical... conclusion."

The black mech glared, "What a mild way to put it. Thank you, Shockwave."

Shockwave's single red optic glowed as he nodded and stepped between the seeker and Insecticon, "Reports from the far side of this ruin are not promising."

Hardshell rumbled but C.Y.L.A.S. cut him off, "Then you'll be disappointed to learn that they're not promising over here, either. We've found nothing. Not a chassis, not a scrap, not a puddle of energon that indicates a wounded warrior. They escaped, Shockwave. Megatron may be lying to keep Starscream in check, but he shouldn't lie to us."

Shockwave stared out over the rubble and stepped on a smoldering pile of rock, crushing it under his ped, "He does not lie to us so that we may find ourselves misinformed. Those who need to know, know. And those who do not will then be less likely to wrongly mention our ongoing fight towards Decepticon rule near our leader's prize. As far as Starscream is concerned, they are dead. It shall be proven tonight. Lord Megatron intends to regain Starscream's loyalty through physical artifacts that will prove their demise. But there will be no reveal should we have nothing to support our leader's claims."

Hardshell clacked his mandibles together excitedly, "Then what must we do to aid our master?"

"Simple. Find what he seeks," the purple mech said deeply, continuing to walk on, "We will either find their corpses or burn the planet searching for them. Their fight against us will end on this world and Lord Megatron will begin an age of conquer wherever he deems fit."

C.Y.L.A.S. held in a growl and instead shoved Hardshell forward, "Fine, then get moving! The faster we get this done, the faster we can move on from this fantasy!"

Hardshell hissed, raising an arm up as though to strike the smaller mech. But his claws never came down. The Insecticon shrieked in upset and scuttled forward, diving into towering piles of rock to move them. C.Y.L.A.S. looked on with a scowl and followed after the brute, his servos neatly folded behind his back as he brooded quietly.

Shockwave observed the two as they parted from him. He was not at all oblivious to the transgressions the disfigured mech was worried about. He understood why his leader was pressing so hard to insist that the Autobots were dead. Weakness. That was all it boiled down to. Creating a more evident weakness in Starscream, a more ready willingness to give up. A more ready willingness to surrender himself and his power to Megatron's whim. Believing their enemies to be dead was only a part of that plan. And Shockwave was already prepared with his own gift for his leader, one that would ensure this 'fantasy', as C.Y.L.A.S. had put it, to become real.