Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers.

Author's notes: Yeah, I know. This chapter is mostly about Megatron. I just wanted to get some dimension in Megs, all through this story he has been a little... Two-dimensioned. And I have always been fascinated about his past. I mean, why would someone become so evil? No one is evil from the start. So I thought that something must've happened to him. In this story someone denied him. Someone he loved very much. And he might just need a replacement for that someone...

Best Frenemies

Megatron picked up a rock. It had traces of blue painting, someone had been here before. Megatron cast the rock into the ocean and watched it sink a good hundred meters away from the cliff he was standing on.

He couldn't quite explain why, but his spark longed for one person. It was painful, agonizing torture he felt in his spark. He missed someone. Someone he had lost a long time ago, someone he needed beside him. Someone who loved him. That was real, pure love. No desires, no jealousy, no rivalry. Only love.

"My brother..." He whispered, afraid that someone would hear him.

But it was painfully true. He missed his brother. Not his creators, they didn't deserve it. But his brother... Why did they drift so far away? Why couldn't his brother understand him? Cybertronians were not created to stay on their planet forever, live in peace, as his brother had always wished. Cybertronians were built for war, for conquest. To rule the lesser creatures and the whole universe. Without tyranny, there would never be order. And without order, no peace.

He heard the sound of a truck engine. He didn't need to turn around to know who was coming. He knew in his spark.

A transformation sound.

"Megatron." His voice.

Megatron turned to face him.

"Optimus."

The Autobot leader approached his brother carefully. It hurt Megatron's feelings.

"Why are you so weary? It's me." His voice betrayed his hurt. Optimus stopped beside him.

"That's exactly why I'm so weary." The Autobot explained.

"You think I would call you here and then just blast you? I am your brother, Optimus. How can you trust your troops if you can't trust your own brother?" The silver mech asked and caressed his brother's neck tenderly. Optimus tensed a little.

"Because my troops don't wish me dead." The Autobot answered.

"And you think I do?? It was your own stupid decision to rise against me! If you had ever listened to me, we wouldn't be apart now! It was your fault, not mine!" Megatron snapped and before he knew it himself, his hand had closed around the Autobot's neck. Quickly, he withdrew it, ashamed.

Optimus didn't say anything. Megatron sat down on the ground and picked up a new rock. This rock had traces of black paint. But Megatron couldn't care less.

"Optimus. I miss you." He said, though admitting it was hard. "I always thought you would come to your senses someday, that you would return to my side. And we would rule this universe together, as equals."

Optimus sat beside him.

"I know how you feel. I always thought that you would come to your senses and return to my side. This whole civil war is our fault, Megatron. I know you didn't want this."

Megatron turned to look at his brother.

"Maybe not. But I have no pity for the bots I kill in the battlefield, I feel no remorse. You want to know why?" Megatron didn't wait for an answer. He crushed the rock in his hand. "Because I know I'm right and they are wrong. As long as you Autobots oppose me, there will be no peace. And someday, I will rule the universe. There's only one thing missing. You. So I ask you once more; will you join me, my brother?"

Optimus sighed. He had heard this question numerous times. But the answer would never change. He took the ebony hand into his own and glared deep into the crimson red optics of his beloved brother.

"Freedom is the right of all sentient beings. I will never enslave any race just because I can. I am no better than them in the end. We are not better than them, Megatron. Do you think you're better than that small bird flying over there?"

Megatron raised his gaze up to the skies. He snorted.

"Of course I am better than that brainless oaf!" He snapped. How could Optimus even ask something that stupid?

"Why do you think you're better? I have studied these Earth creatures. They all have a place in this world, predators and preys. If there wasn't prey, the predator would starve, and if there wasn't predator, the prey would starve. They need each other to live in harmony. Do you understand?"

Megatron grinned.

"Sure. There's only one thing wrong in your statement. The prey will die anyway, either by the fangs of the predator, or in hunger."

Optimus chuckled.

"No, you fool! I was talking about the larger scale, not just about two individuals."

Megatron leaned closer to his brother. There was something dangerous in his optics that made Optimus nervous.

"Oh, but I was talking about just two individuals. You and me. Who do you think is the predator in our relationship?"

Optimus slowly let go of his brothers hands. "I guess, you are. But we are not talking about us now."

"Oh yes, we are. And I think you're wrong, my dear brother. I am not the only predator here. We both are predators. And the harmony you were talking about... It already is shattered. I couldn't care less about that bird over there," Megatron turned to look at the sky again.

He pointed out another, bigger bird to his brother. "Or that eagle who's going to eat it. I am talking about the humans."

Optimus sighed and turned his head away as the eagle caught the little bird in it's claws.

"The humans were here before us, Megatron. This is their planet. We have no right to..."

"They were here first? Their planet? Do you know how many humans there are in this planet? Do you know how densely they live? Do you know how far they have spread? I didn't think so. They pollute this planet, Optimus." Megatron made a pause.

"They are going through civil wars as well, I have seen it. A group of humans that come from another land fight against a group of humans that come from somewhere else, neither side realising that they are all humans. Isn't that foolish? At least we know we are all Transformers."

Optimus knew Megatron was right. But he didn't want to admit it. He didn't want to kill anyone. Besides, humans were their allies, allies against... Against their own kind. Against their brothers. Optimus turned to look at the silver mech's optics.

Why were they so passionate, those crimson red optics of his brother? Megatron didn't care about this planet or it's population. Did he?

"The humans were not the first creatures on this planet, brother." Megatron went on. "There were millions of creatures before they came into the picture and ruined it. They were an accident of nature, they should never have been born."

The silver mech turned to his brother once more.

"There are too many humans here, Optimus. And no predator to decrease their population. This is where we come in."

Optimus shook his head. "No, Megatron. I know what you're trying to do. You're trying to justify your purposes."

"Yes, that's exactly what I'm trying to do. I am trying to make you understand me again. We are better than these filthy humans and you know it. We have every right to kill them. And at the same time we would save this planet. Don't you see this?"

Optimus sighed. "No. There's no reasoning in your excuses. You hunger for power and will stop at nothing to get it. We are no gods, brother. We don't have the right to decide who's going to live and who's going to die." Megatron grabbed the Autobot leader's arm.

"That's where you're wrong. We are not gods, I admit that. But Primus didn't create us to be this powerful for nothing. We have a purpose. And that purpose is to guard the universe, to rule it. Decide what creatures are too dangerous to keep alive. Primus gave us a sword. And I am going to use it. Will you fight your god's will? Your own kind?" Megatron made a serious pause. He leaned closer again.

"Your own brother?" He whispered. The silver mech stood up and walked to the edge of the cliff.

"I am not like you, Optimus. I have no sympathy for the humans. In fact, I pretty much hate them."

Optimus got up and went to his brother. He placed his hand on Megatron's shoulder.

"We are different. That is true. But I still remember the times when we agreed on almost everything, when we were young. Remember that one time, when we broke into that library and messed it up completely? And how we got caught?"

Optimus saw how Megatron grinned.

"Yes, I remember that. We tried to protect each other. I said that I did it alone, and you said that I had nothing to do with it."

Optimus chuckled. "And we ended up in the same cell." Megatron laughed. It was genuine, happy, heartfelt laugh that got tears into Optimus' optics. He missed Megatron too. But he knew that it was over. They would never be the same again.

"Megatron, I love you. But I have seen the light that your optics have missed. We will never be there again. Our childhood is long gone. We have drifted too far away, we both have changed. And as time goes by, all our memories will die. I am no longer the brother you knew then."

Megatron nodded, determined and serious. "I know. I just had to try one more time. But I was fighting a losing battle. Now it's time to retreat and give up."

Optimus couldn't help it. He chuckled. "I thought you had grown use to that already." Megatron turned to him. With a smile on his face, he gently punched his brother on the shoulder. "You slagger, Optimus." He chuckled.

For a while they looked at each other. Then Optimus pulled the silver mech into his arms. "I hope you'll someday find peace and someone to love, brother." The hug was long, Optimus didn't want to let go. Tears running freely down his face, he finally pulled back.

"This is it, Megatron." He said. "We lost the game. We will never have that unbreakable brotherhood again."

The silver mech nodded. "Yes. It's time for the last goodbye."

Optimus grasped the ebony hand once more. "Whatever happens, my brother... No matter which one of us has to die... Remember this: I will never forget you. Your smile, your laugh, your optics... They are all here," Optimus signalled for his chest, "in my spark."

Megatron smiled to his brother, perhaps for the last time. He felt tears on his cheeks and saw the same pain in Optimus' face. "And I won't forget you." He promised. Optimus let go of his hand, his spark and his love.

"Farewell, brother." Optimus said, voice broken. Then he turned on his heels, transformed and drove away.

The Decepticon leader stared after the Autobot leader for a long time. It started to rain but he hardly noticed.

"Farewell, brother. My worst, my dearest enemy."

XXX

Starscream hummed happily to himself as he cleaned his desk. He always made a mess when he examined something. He had a huge bowl filled with fishes and water on his desk. He wondered what was the matter with the fishes, they all opened and closed their mouths repeatedly.

He had given them all they needed; enough water and lots of friends. He rubbed his nose. Maybe he had given them too much friends? The bowl looked kind of tight now that he thought about it. The fishes couldn't move around. He started to feel claustrophobic for the tiny creatures.

Maybe he should give them a bigger home? The bowl was quite small.

'I'll just dump some of them back in the ocean and then continue with the studying.' He shrugged it off.

Then suddenly he had a strange feeling upon his mind. Like someone was... Messing with it. Making him somehow... Weaker. He felt diminished. He looked around himself but soon noticed he was alone.

'What's going on in here?'

'What's going on, is that I will now take control.'

"Hellscream!" Starscream yelled out loud.

'Oh, so you do remember me. I was sure you had already forgotten your real master's name.'

'How can you be here? I suppressed you, I drove you away!'

'You didn't succeed in driving me away, darling. You left me dimished but alive. And I got my strength back.'

"No! Megatron, save me!"

Hellscream laughed.

'Your knight is nowhere near. Do you know what it means, little Starling? Unfortunately, it means that you will die. You betrayed me, you defied me. It's time you received your punishment!'

"No! Please, somebody, help me!"

On the other side of the door, Soundwave blocked out Starscream's screams. No matter how much he hated the Seeker, he didn't want to hear him screaming.

Especially when he knew what was happening.

Dying on the battlefield was honorable, one shouldn't be scared of that. But Hellscream was killing Starscream's mind, not his body. Soundwave knew how it felt. He himself, had killed many Autobots that way, feeling no remorse. But Starscream was not an Autobot.

Soundwave had never thought he would be doing something like that to a Decepticon brother.

'It is done. He casted this upon himself, now he must pay the consequences.' Soundwave reminded himself.

He turned away from the door and headed back to his quarters, where his creations already awaited for him.

"I'm sorry you didn't leave him alone, Starscream."