Some orns, it just doesn't pay to get out of recharge.
"Is that…?"
"Starscream's frame." Shockwave answers with his usual calm and lack of emotions, just before he rips out something from the grayed out Cybertronian on the table with a loud shriek of metal. "Unfortunately, it seems there's nothing that can be salvaged."
Unseen by the higher-ranking Decepticon, Acid Storm winces.
Starscream is deactivated, less than half of him on a table of Shockwave's laboratory to be dismantled and thrown into a box.
"Nothing?" He repeats, if just to distract himself from the fact that Starscream is deactivated.
"Nothing. Not even the processor. The energy that destroyed his frame melted it, and the surviving chips are all blank, any and all data deleted by the surge."
The Seeker turns away when the scientist slowly peels open the spark chamber, observing it curiously.
Starscream is—
"Why did you call me here?" He asks, cutting that trail of thought as quickly and ruthlessly as possible.
"I informed you of an ongoing project involving the manufacturing of new soldiers." Despite Shockwave not looking at him, Acid Storm nods.
"You said you had refined the frames but had no way to stabilize a spark. That's why Megatron went after Vector Sigma to get the Stunticons." He answers, tilting his helm curiously.
"Precisely. Fortunately, one of my trials has been successful. Creation of new Decepticons is a very real possibility."
The Seeker shudders.
"Creation? I thought you said—"
"I meant the term in its most basic definition, not as the act of obtaining a new spark from an existing one. The studies of the remnants of Vector Sigma proved extremely useful."
"Oh. Right." He mumbles, hiding a shiver as his confusion is cleared. "And are they going to be… real?"
"Explain yourself." For the first time since he walked through the door, Shockwave looks up at his Air Commander.
"If they aren't Vector Sigma created, or from another spark… Will they be real Cybertronian? Won't they be spark-powered drones?"
"They will not. In fact, the subject has demonstrated a great deal of personality and the spark coding is—"
"Whoa! The subject? You have one already?!"
If Shockwave had a face and real emotions, he would look not amused.
As it is, he just stops to stare at a startled Acid Storm.
"Did you believe I had called you here just to inform you of the advancements of my work?" And if that isn't a deadpanned voice, Shockwave style, the Seeker will eat his wings.
"No, of course not. I just… didn't really expect you had one up and about already. I thought you wanted to conduct some more tests or… something."
"Negative. All tests that could have been conducted have already been taken care of, and the results are satisfactory. The subject is to be integrated in the Decepticon forces to proceed with its development."
"Sure. Alright. I'll talk with Razorclaw about its placement with the grunts, Primus knows we need more firepower and a processor better developed than a drone's."
"You will do no such thing."
"Huh?"
"The subject will be integrated in the Air Forces, directly under your supervision."
"Directly under my—what? You mean to tell me it's a Flier?" Acid Storm almost exclaims, startled, as Shockwave returns to his grisly job.
"Seeker model of the Seeker frame type."
The world stops.
And then, red optics slowly drift to the gray frame under the scientist's busy servo.
"When, exactly, did you say you managed to get that spark?" He asks with his best detached voice, and Shockwave doesn't even twitch.
"Three orns ago." Acid Storm relaxes visibly. "It took some time for the spark to stabilize, so I only managed its transfer to the frame last orn but the integration has been successful. However, there's a glitch in its processor."
The Air Commander groans.
"Of course there is. What am I going to have to deal with?"
"A messenger of Primus."
"A what?!"
"It believes itself to be a gift of Primus, and is an avid follower of the Covenant. I suggest you keep your swearing to a minimum around the subject." Acid Storm covers his faceplate with his servos to muffle another groan.
"Just great. Anything else I should know?"
"It is created to inflict damage to great numbers of enemies at the same time using elevated levels of radiation."
Silence.
"You're giving me a radioactive bomb?!"
"I am doing no such thing. I am ordering you to observe and direct one more soldier." And Shockwave turns to look at him again, single yellow optic shining threateningly from the shadows cast by his own helm. "Understood?"
"Yes, Sir." He answers with as much calm as he can manage, standing at attention, and earns himself a gesture towards the back of the lab.
"The subject is waiting for you. It has been informed of your position and its role in our war. See that you keep it in line."
"Yes, Sir." As soon as he has his back to the scientist, already walking away, Acid Storm scowls. "I'll try…"
With such a big room and as much machinery as Shockwave has in his main lab, it's easy to identify different sections, some easily hidden from the entrance and the main area.
The Seeker finds his new charge in one of them, seemingly examining one of the consoles, though, with his back to the Air Commander, it's hard to tell.
The first thing he notices is the glaring yellow color, forearms, servos, thighs and pedes white and the helm black, as well as a red and white stripe on his wings.
And the Decepticon insignias, of course.
He has the same model of shoulder-mounted guns as almost every other Seeker, but that's not something to look at too much. A lot of mechs with specialized weaponry model them after common guns if it's possible to avoid attracting too much attention and preserving the element of surprise.
Taking into account what Shockwave has said, he's sure those aren't normal plasma cannons.
"Are you going to introduce yourself?" The rich voice startles him, but, fortunately, the strange Flier doesn't turn around to see his surprise. "I've known you were there ever since before you walked around the wavelength modulator." His tone is dripping with almost disgust, and Acid Storm has to take a look around before realizing that he has no idea what kind of machine a wavelength modulator is. "Pathetic."
And the Seeker turns around.
The faceplate is white and the optics are a burning yellow, but the proud stance, the mightier-than-thou scowl and the way he's staring at him with half lit optics, as if he could see everything that's going through his processor…
"Starscream?"
"No. The designation is Sunstorm." The yellow mech replies, and how low his opinion of Acid Storm has fallen is easy to see in how he tilts his helm back to look down at the slightly taller Flier. "You must be the Air Commander. It's a miracle how the Decepticons have managed to survive as long as they have with the likes of you in charge. You should be grateful Primus decided to send me to aid you."
"Shockwave designed you."
"And who put my blueprints in his processor? Surely you don't believe someone like him could've managed to build someone like me."
Covenant mech. Oh, the fun.
"I'm Acid Storm, Air Commander of the Cybertron Forces and Sub-Commander of Air Force. You are under my command and supervision, and so you will defer to me for anything, and I mean any single thing, and follow my instructions to the letter. Understood?"
"I have a functioning processor." The yellow Flier deadpans, and the older Seeker almost twitches.
The glitch, implying the rest of the universe are stupid…
He may not be Starscream, but he certainly has the attitude.
"Smart-afts get thrown into the brig. Since this is your first offense, I'll let it slide. Do not expect it to happen again. So, understood?"
"Yes, Sir." The yellow mech drawls, leaning against the computer at his back as he crosses his arms against his dark cockpit.
"Don't get cocky with me." He hisses, stepping forward to loom over the unimpressed Flier.
"Or what?"
"I can have you dismantled as easily as you were put together, experiment." Yellow optics flash pale amber with an enraged scowl, and the smaller Seeker straightens to glare into his red ones.
"I am Primus' messenger, created by His will and power. You will respect me."
"You will have to earn that respect first."
And something… changes.
Amber optics flash with surprise, and the yellow Flier takes a step back, looking… confused?
It takes a lot of effort, but Acid Storm manages to keep his no-nonsense tall and powerful stance.
"You… are giving me a chance to prove myself?"
That… doesn't sound like the offense it would've probably been for someone with such an ego. It is disbelief in that voice, yes, but not because his abilities and 'Primus given position' are being questioned, but because someone is… well, giving him a chance to prove himself, really.
The thing is, the mech in front of the Air Commander isn't a mightier-than-thou embodiment of Primus himself, or whatever, but a newspark.
A newspark.
Shockwave has done it, he has managed to recreate Vector Sigma, to find a way to create sparks without need of another.
Because that is not a highly intelligent and extensively developed AI or drone, but a real Cybertronian.
Unable to stop himself, Acid Storm relaxes his posture, so that he's not looming over the other Seeker anymore.
"I am, as long as you are willing to follow the rules." He finally answers, and the yellow mech looks down for some nanokliks, processing those words.
"Alright." He whispers before straightening, standing at attention with only determination on his faceplate and burning optics. "I understand, Sir."
Acid Storm's not willing to say it out loud, but that tiny pulse in his spark may have been pride.
"Wheeljack, how are you feeling?" Optimus asks as soon as he enters the Repair Bay and sees the inventor chatting happily with Perceptor.
He's sitting up, and even though his servos and forearms are resting on his lap instead of gesturing, he seems as excited and happy as normal.
"Far better, Prime. Ratchet said he just needs to do some more tinkering in my servos and then he'll reactivate the sensors. Mech, I can't believe how much of my sensor net the surge managed to fry. Guess I'm lucky!"
"Thankfully so." The Autobot leader answers with an unseen smile, though he knows his optics betray it.
"So… do we have any news on the 'Cons?" The Lancia asks almost innocently, and Optimus hesitates.
They do, because Mirage has come back.
"Well?" Ratchet asks, walking to be at the Prime's side, and he finally nods.
"We do. Starscream is deactivated." For a very uncomfortable moment, tense silence fills the Repair Bay. "His Trinemates seem to be the most affected, but apparently all Decepticons are more… subdued. Megatron included."
"Then we should use the chance to strike." Perceptor suggests, tilting his head curiously. "If they are grief-struck they will be easily distracted. Perhaps we could—"
"No. We will do no such thing. They are affected, yes, but their wounds are festering. According to what Mirage observed, they may be far more vicious and ruthless now than they were before."
"Megatron's plans still suck slag." Wheeljack points out without actually pointing, servos still on his lap.
"But he has a focus now. And so do the rest. The Combaticons seem to have moved permanently back into the ship, and we know Onslaught used to be a tactician to be wary of."
"How about getting Mirage and Jazz to install some bombs? If their base of operations is damaged we could do some serious harm."
"It's an option we are—"
The alarms go off.
Without a second look, Optimus almost runs out of the Repair Bay, Ratchet following with a string of curses.
"Red Alert, what is it?"
"The Decepticons are back at the Space Bridge, Sir. Apparently they're going to finish the transport of Energon cubes to Cybertron that was interrupted before."
"Understood. Jazz—"
"Just waiting for you, Boss Bot. I have the team assembling. You sure you want to try that?"
"We cannot allow the Decepticons to supply Shockwave with the Energon. Ultra Magnus reported an increase in activity a groon ago, and it's obvious the energy is needed if Megatron is willing to try to continue with this plan without Starscream."
"Or maybe he's getting a replacement. We're ready either way, Prime."
And, as he steps outside the Ark, Optimus can see that they are, the strike team assembled and transformed, only waiting for him, Ratchet and a running Bluestreak to join them and roll out.
The scorch marks of Starscream's crash site are still there, and no Decepticon is giving them even the briefest of glances.
Though that may be because they've spotted the Autobots.
Their viciousness is unparalleled, attacking without following any apparent order, delighting in every shot that lands on their targets, on every hit of metal against metal.
And all the while, Megatron is just standing there, by the Space Bridge, smoldering optics fixed on Optimus, but arms crossed against his chest.
Simply observing his troops mangling the Prime's.
When the first Decepticon gets shot into stasis, they snap.
Devastator and Bruticus join together to shoot Superion from the sky, and Menasor pounces on him almost gleefully if it wasn't for all the rage, the Aerialbots quickly separating to make themselves smaller targets, and, all the while, the rest of Autobots have to dodge fire from the non-combined Decepticons, keeping them back while drones come in and out of the Space Bridge, carrying away glittering Energon cubes.
And Megatron just observes.
Only when the Space Bridge closes does he roar and join the fight, and Optimus immediately calls for a retreat. The coordinated assaults from the three combiners and the Decepticons flanking his forces are bad enough.
Even as they drive away, they find themselves assaulted by the remaining Seekers, but, fortunately, the arrival of the Dinobots makes them turn tail.
Ratchet doesn't even bother cursing as they make their way back to the Ark.
Glitch as he is, Sunstorm isn't too much of an aft.
Not because of his glitch, at least.
Oh, he's too fond of introducing himself as a messenger of Primus and all that, and takes it real bad when someone laughs at his face because of that, but he doesn't hammer them with Covenant quotes and that kind of thing all the time.
No, he's an aft because that's just the way he is.
Mightier-than-thou attitude, looking down at everyone and prone to insulting with a bright smile on his faceplate, much like Starscream is—was.
But he respects Acid Storm enough to not act like that to him.
Not with the same degree of obnoxiousness, that is.
He would have been tolerable but for the fact that he's always following the green Seeker around.
As per Shockwave's orders, of course, but still.
He. Is. Annoying.
But the time has finally come to see just how good his fighting skills are.
They've located an Autobot base, and they're going in.
It's not the same as when the war was on full swing, but, from time to time, they get to have some fun.
Find a base, send the drones and ground troops in to flush the Autoscum out, and then the Fliers can hone their aim on moving targets.
Until Acid Storm flies in.
Then, all Decepticons retreat far away from his reach while his Fliers bomb the place from above his acid rain clouds.
His range has decreased enormously since Hailstorm was deactivated, but Acid Storm is the real Rainmaker of what once was his Trine. The mods Shockwave upgraded him with help him concentrate enough moisture to create rainclouds, and the gas mixture he carries on himself is so acidic that it can eat through Cybertanium faster than a mech can reboot their optics. When mixed with rain it loses a lot of its power, yes, but it's still strong enough to deal some damage to the armor, weakening it to allow low-powered plasma shots to breach it.
Or cluster bombs to completely eliminate them.
It may be a bit of an overkill with just how little Autobots are in each base, but taking into account they're the commanding officers and the specialists, overkill is now called 'playing it safe'.
Acid Storm's delight at the growing cloud cover over him is smothered when he catches a bright yellow flash.
Sunstorm.
Hovering in root mode, staring at the clouds over his helm with the curiosity of a newspark.
… He is a newspark.
Slag.
"Hey!" The yellow Seeker startles, quickly turning to look at his commanding officer with innocent optics. "Didn't you get the message? Out of the clouds!"
The younger Flier opens his mouth to answer—and the rain starts to fall.
The sizzling as the drops fall to the ground is barely audible at the altitude they are at, but the Autobots' curses are more than enough to tell him that they're reaching it.
And that slagging yellow glitch is still hovering under the rain as if Shockwave wouldn't deactivate Acid Storm if he so much as scratches the scrap-heap—
Arms spread wide with the servos looking up, Sunstorm tilts his head back to let the acid rain wash over his faceplate and his black optics—and smiles.
Midway through his speed burst to tackle the idiot out of the cloud cover, Acid Storm stops.
The yellow Seeker looks… content. Peaceful. As if the acid falling down his plating on rivulets was high quality solvent in luxurious wash-racks, as if he wasn't hovering midair over the ruins of Polyhex with a bunch of Autobots running and driving as fast as they can to get away from the rain and the Decepticons waiting to blast their weakened armor.
And, as he watches bright yellow coloring stay in place, the nanites undamaged by the corrosive rain, Acid Storm finds himself relaxing too.
Resistant. Of course. He should've known Shockwave's new Decepticons would be better than the current ones.
"I suggest you fly out of the cloud cover." Sunstorm's voice catches his attention, but doesn't startle him as before. "Really, Primus' punishment is not for you."
"Primus' punishment?" He repeats, staying where he is despite the younger Flier's words.
Electricity crackles all over yellow plating, and Acid Storm's optics pale in realization before he bolts.
Only when he's safely out of the falling rain does he turn back and stares.
Sunstorm is a star under the curtain graying the world, the energy crawling over his frame as bright yellow as his own coloring, and growing stronger by the nanoklik.
And then, the rain seems to catch fire as a wave of that yellow radiation spreads from the Seeker, each and every droplet charging to the point they are doses of concentrated radioactive plasma that burn trough the ruins below with the same strength of the green Flier's undiluted acid.
A couple of Autobots, one carrying his injured comrade, are unlucky enough to be hit by the irradiated rain, and their agonized cries as they are melted while still functional wash over the sizzling of the ruins and the Decepticons' systems.
Some are far enough to receive just mild burns, but those two…
Acid Storm can't look away, morbidly fascinated as he watches them dissolve, their cries turning to static, their wires sparking madly as they are exposed and cut, and their spark chambers—
The spark chambers crackle almost with the same intensity of the energy coursing over Sunstorm's plating before they explode—
Bolts of lightning erupt from them upwards, up up up—
And slam into the yellow Seeker.
The wave of radiation turning the acid rain into a nightmarish liquid stops with a chocked scream, and Acid Storm finds himself flying through the once more mildly corrosive rain as he hurries to catch the newspark, turbines spluttering before they fail—
Green and black arms close around yellow plating with a softness that doesn't befit the strength of their grip.
Sunstorm's optics flicker before they come back online, and when he sees the Air Commander, his pompous smirk is once more in place.
"Well?"
Acid Storm can only laugh, breathless and slightly chocked as the sound is, as he feels relief course through his wires.
"Slag it, that was… that was amazing, Seekerling."
"I am not a Seekerling." The yellow Flier scoffs, but, despite the scowl, his optics stay half lit and he makes no move to get the older mech to release him.
He's exhausted, and maybe even a bit damaged by the unexpected reaction of the exploding sparks, but he's still a Decepticon, and a really prideful one at that.
Acid Storm doesn't care. He's just glad he has his Trinemate in his arms, making sure he doesn't fall and get himself more—
Wait.
Wait.
Trinemate?!
"Air Commander? Sir, are you alright?" Sunstorm's rich voice brings him back to the present, and, absentmindedly, he notices the rain isn't falling anymore.
Worried amber optics stare up at him.
"I'm fine. I'm fine." He whispers, clearing his processor, before clutching the younger Seeker closer while still making sure he's comfortable, turbines flaring with more power as he turns his attention back to Darkmount. "Just thinking."
"About?"
"Your placement in this army."
"You mean… I'm not supposed to be with you?" And oh, the horror in that sentence…
Acid Storm stops in midair once more and looks down at the scared newspark in his arms.
"Of course you are." He answers without hesitation, voice strong and without the barest possibility of protest. "From now until the day we deactivate." And the yellow Flier relaxes, letting out a huff of air he most likely hadn't noticed he'd been keeping in. "You're my Trinemate, Sunstorm. And nothing's going to change that."
"Uhm. What… What does that mean?"
His flight is interrupted once more, but this time he looks down in shock.
"What?"
"That. Trinemate. What does that mean?"
"You don't have the data? The protocols?" Sunstorm just shakes his helm, and Acid Storm has to remind himself there's a mech in his grip to stop himself from clenching his fists hard enough to bend Cybertonium. "I'm going to deactivate that emotionless glitch!"
If he wasn't seething with rage, he would have probably noticed the baffled look on the yellow Seeker's faceplate as he flies to Darkmount the fastest he's ever gone.
As it is, though, he just dismisses the patting on his chest plates and how soothing the feeling is.
He'll have time to let his Trinemate soothe him later.
Now, he has a scientist that needs his armor forcefully removed very slowly.
AN: I'm having Acid Storm be Trine-less 'cause Sunstorm has just been created and I have no idea who the blue Rainmaker is, and I didn't really like the idea of him existing in this story. Also, my take on the rain-making is that the blue creates the clouds, Acid Storm adds the acid and Sunstorm just burns mechs to a crisp. Obviously, that's not how things are going to work in this fic, with Shockwave's modifications on Acid Storm allowing him to both create and acidify the clouds and Sunstorm adding his own 'touch'. Things are going to be very different here... you'll get to see just how much as the story goes on.