Ch. 219

"Where was he last spotted?" Smokescreen rushed to one of the Ark's control panels, "I'm accessing the ship's security logs now."

Bulkhead shook his helm, "I should've stayed with him. What was I thinking letting him go off on his own like that?"

"Don't beat yourself up, Bulk," Wheeljack offered a smile, "Ya did the right thing. Forcing him to do anythin' he didn't want wouldn't have done ya any good. It coulda made things worse."

"But we don't know that," the green mech grumbled, "No one's seen him in a while."

"A couple of hours at the most," Raf piped up from his seat in a Cybertronian-sized chair, "The ship hasn't reported anything. Maybe he's just hiding out somewhere."

Bulkhead began to pace around the command deck, "You guys didn't see him. He was so upset. I could- should have called somebody down to help me talk to him. I didn't. If he does something or he's holed himself up cause I didn't help him-..."

Breakdown came up and set a servo on the green mech's shoulder armor to stop him from starting up again, "C'mon, listen to Jackie. We don't know what's going on. Knowing Screamer, he's probably just sittin' somewhere on his own."

Bulkhead didn't seem convinced. He sighed and rubbed his faceplate with a servo as the rest of the Autobot crew moved about the deck to check logs and security feeds.

"Starscream's prior location: reviewed," Soundwave hummed from his console, "Scanning... scanning... scan- Bulkhead's prior location noted. Following Starscream's location after encounter... Scanning... scanning... scanning..."

Ratchet huffed quietly, "A couple of human hours on his own and we can't even find him?"

"This ship," Ultra Magnus responded, "however Brainstorm used it, was not built with as many cameras as you would think. Only a couple of... very oddly equipped rooms were heavily monitored."

"We're going to have to investigate that at a later date," the medic leaned over to murmur to the larger mech, "For now, I am more concerned with finding the bot that walks around like he's not a potential ticking time bomb."

"Guys!" Smokescreen called out suddenly, Arcee and Knockout rushing to his console to see for themselves, "We just got an alert from the upper levels! The hull's outer alarm just went off; the door's open!"

"What's he doing up there?" Miko asked nervously, "Why is he going outside?"

"We don't have much time to ask questions," Arcee transformed and revved her engine as Jack climbed on, "We'll take the long way around. The rest of you can take the lift in teams."

Arcee and Jack made their way around the far side of the Ark in record time. The vessel was built with lifts closer to front and ramps to other levels at the back. And the femme had very little interest with wasting her time rushing with everyone else into a cramped lift platform when something this urgent needed immediate action. Whatever Starscream was up to she wasn't sure if it was the best course of action, given what he had told her and Ratchet the day before...

Arcee and Jack came to the upper level first, just as the first of at least two lift rides opened and released its first group. The femme turned hard and threw the boy up into the air before transforming, catching Jack into her arms as she ran at the hull door and shoved it open.

"Starscream!" she heard Optimus call out behind her.

But the air was still. The waves of the ocean below and the rolling currents of air greeted the worried group loudly, welcoming them to the outside world that asked them simply to be an audience. Arcee's optics scanned the horizon as quickly as Optimus's did. Jack tapped her arm and she set him down to allow him to run farther out onto the hull with Raf and Miko. The children felt out of place atop the ship with their Cybertronian counterparts scouring the hull carefully for any signs of the flighty seeker. Bumblebee bubbled quietly before whirling loudly to call for Starscream. Breakdown scuttled around to the far side of the Ark's stern with Wheeljack and Bulkhead, their voices echoing as one in their effort to find the silver mech.

Optimus frowned out over the bow, clenching a servo into a fist. He heard Ultra Magnus emerge from the hull door behind him, Ratchet, Soundwave, Knockout and Smokescreen carefully following behind him.

"Sir," the large blue mech addressed the Prime, "Soundwave remains logged into the Ark's controls and is maintaining our current position. He's unable to get a fix on our radar. It's starting to... have fits again."

Optimus took a moment to nod, but turned back towards the new arrivals anyway, "Soundwave. Can you hear anything? Are there any disturbances you can pick up on?"

The mech's faceplate lit up with a smiley face, but he said nothing. Soundwave slowly walked out to the children and sat beside them, aiming his faceplate upwards.

"Did he fly off?" Arcee murmured to the Prime, "Do you think he's nearby or-"

A loud, piercing sound began to scream out over the waves and rolls that had first greeted the Autobot team. The noise must have alerted the Wreckers at the back of the ship because the mechs ran to join everyone at the bow as quick as they could. Everyone was at the front now, staring up in the hopes that the sound was indicating the silver mech's return.

Miko squinted up, shielding her eyes with a hand, then gasped, "Look! Through that cloud!"

Everyone's attention focused as the girl pointed upwards, a speck beginning to form high above as it drew near.

Bulkhead grimaced, "Cloud cover's not helping," he murmured, "if it's not him..."

"Oh, it's him," Knockout's optics widened as he cringed, "Uh, maybe we should find someplace to take- Breakdown!"

The red mech dove behind his companion and Breakdown snickered, "Heh, not this time, Doc," he covered his audials, "Think I'll watch this time around."

Knockout hid himself away, his servos tight against his helm. His behavior began to give the rest of his team an air of anxiety, which only grew when the roaring scream loudened exponentially. The noise was tearing down quickly and blurr of colors twisted down suddenly passed the Ark and down to the water.

Bumblebee buzzed and whirled loudly, asking if that had been Starscream.

Knockout grumbled, calling out over the lingering sound, "Well, he's not called 'Starscream' for nothing!"

The colored jet skimmed at the breaking waves of mist off the ocean water, then shot up into the air again, climbing hard and fast.

The red mech smiled under a scoff, "This must be a lot of slag he's working through if he's flying that rough!"

"Rough?" Smokescreen asked in awe, "It's so smooth! He's timing it all perfectly!"

Breakdown laughed, "It's not the moves, it's the push on his engine! Haven't seen one of these in a long while; this should be fun!"

Starscream continued to climb back up into a passing cloud and transformed, intaking deeply as he let himself fall. He reached out to see the metallic blue that dressed his arms and servos. He smirked as he continued to plummet, allowing his descent to increase as he pointed himself downward. His optics shuttered and he allowed his audials to focus, listening for whatever sound struck his fancy over the coursing winds flying passed his helm. The panicked shriek of one of his audience members, most likely Knockout, perked the seeker up and he allowed his wings to suddenly open wide on either side of him, slowing his fall and giving him a chance to transform, rocketing back up into the sky.

Knockout panted as Breakdown patted his backplates, "Oooh, he's making me sick. Why does he have to push the risk factor here? He's gonna end up smacked down into the water!"

Miko squealed excitedly as Starscream transformed mid-flight to change directions, his engine shrieking loudly as he took off, "Look at him go! When he comes down, I'm gonna ask him to take me around the ocean a few times!"

Arcee gave the girl a gentle frown, "At the speed he's going? You'd be turned into mush, Miko."

Miko gasped, "Then I would be the happiest mush-Miko! Best thrill ride ever!"

Ultra Magnus leaned in towards Optimus, "Sir? Shall I order him to come down?"

The Prime smiled warmly, his optics staying on Starscream, "Negative, Magnus. Give him a little more time. I sense that he will come down shortly, when he is ready."

The seeker rounded himself around a cloud and transformed as his chassis fell through it, pulling the mist of the cloud around himself. He transformed again but let his engine die down, letting gravity pull him back to Earth. He was rather high up, the Ark and the ocean just below that many handfuls of seconds away. Starscream focused on the wind hitting against him, the air cooling his frame as it pulled the condensation off. He listened to its roar and let the sound reverberate through his very core until he could take no more. Starscream snarled as he transformed and pushed his engine into a screaming banshee. The Ark was nearing in close and he growled deeper, his frame shaking with sparking gold static. His engine let loose a shrill shriek and he stopped just above the ship's hull, letting himself land on the end of the bow.

The seeker didn't look behind him. He instead held his wings out wide and dug deep within himself, screaming as loud as he could out over the ocean. He had flown beautifully, perfectly, as fast as he could, and away from all the pain he had endured only days and hours before. The sound that came out of him was not something born out of that pain but out of his defiance to let it hold him down. When his intake left him, he pulled in another and his following scream was joined by another, smaller voice.

Miko ran to stand by his peds, adding her scream to his own. Raf and Jack joined them and others began to follow, each adding their own war cry over the roll of the ocean waves and powerful currents of the wind.

Optimus and Magnus watched from a distance, the Prime chuckling when his team could take no more and they began to investigate Starscream's new colors, "You see, Magnus? He came down on his own."

Magnus grumbled quietly, but the pair were interrupted by a huff from Ratchet as the older mech stepped to stand beside them, having stayed out of the group war cry to observe at a distance, "Did you see as he slowed his descent?" he murmured, "Gold sparks. Did he manage that consciously or did he hope it would aid him?"

"A fair question," Magnus agreed, "and this should be something brought up sooner rather than later."

"... Agreed," Optimus said gently, "but it does not have to be immediate. Preparations can be made beforehand. Ratchet, make whatever arrangements you need to begin helping Starscream understand what it is that gives him such capabilities."

"Optimus, he is far more dangerous than-"

"And I hope you will respect," the Prime said more firmly, "what he has been through and what he has done for us despite your concerns. He is just as confused as you are and wishes to know just as much. Remember that..."

The three quieted down as Starscream began walking towards them and the hull door, Jack smiling wide, "Nice new colors, Scream. You take any inspiration from someone we know?"

The seeker glanced at Optimus and rolled his optics, chuckling, "It's not as though Optimus owns these colors," he gestured to himself, to the red, blue and white now adorning his chassis, "I can't tell you who was sparked first but this palate was very fashionable at the time. I felt a change was due that was a little more... classic."

Arcee smirked, "It's going to be hard telling you two apart. But I guess your wings would be a dead giveaway, wouldn't they?"

"That, and my winning personality."

"Only prize it's ever won you is the Revolving Med Bay Door record."

Starscream snorted a surprised laugh, "Ah yes, I must stop entering into that competition."

Miko hopped excitedly ahead and stopped to look up at the group, "Wow, we were so loud together! We'd make the best, most rocking-est band ever! We were like a pack of dragons!"

Starscream began to smile lightly at the thought as he followed the rest of his team back through the hull door until another memory pricked at the back of his helm. He paused just inside, his optical brows furling in confusion, and Ratchet stopped too, his faceplate tight with worry.

"... Starscream, what is it?" the medic asked.

The seeker went to answer as the thought began to form then gasped loudly and covered his faceplates when Optimus closed the hull door behind him.

"Oh Primus, oh holy- I forgot about Predaking!"