16. Challenge

Thundercracker accompanied Starscream and me to the command center, but not Skywarp. He didn't strike me as the type who could remain still for long enough.

/Just keep quiet unless I tell you otherwise,/ Starscream advised as we entered. There were already several mechs inside. Soundwave and Shockwave I recognized, but not the others. Starscream pointed them out silently. The first was a mid-sized cycle with burnished gold plating. /Trannis. One of the few competent generals left from Megatron's time./ He pointed out three mechs seated all in a row. One was blue and white, one red and blue, the third orange. /Legonis, Seizer, and Octus. Each lazier and more arrogant than the last. They don't have much power, since they've just elbowed their way in since Axis./ The next mech was a shuttle-type. /Skystalker. Don't listen to a word that he says. He's not to be trusted./

/Are any of them trustworthy?/

/Everyone in this room has put his own interests before the cause at some point. Except perhaps Soundwave./

He went on to introduce the final two. One was a green-and-black Seeker. /Thunderwing, trineless… and Flamewar./ He shot me a sly grin. /That's a femme, not a mech, by the way./

/Shut up! I know she's a femme!/

It was hard to miss. Flamewar's curvy frame was more exaggerated than Apis's.

/Watch out for her. A talented general, but very much… enamored of Megatron./

/So?/

/Just be careful./

He took a seat in the vacant position around the table. Thundercracker and I stood behind him. By now I was used to the curious optics that turned my way and I could detect the underlying emotions in each examination: frightened and greedy, in the case of Skystalker and the three smaller mechs; coolly considering from Thunderwing and Trannis; appreciative from Flamewar.

"Well?" Starscream said. "Report."

"The medical situation is dire, Lord Starscream," Thunderwing spoke up. Starscream didn't even look at him. Since Thunderwing was trineless, he was essentially an outcast from Seeker society. "There are too few mechs with the proper training to repair all of our injured, and we're still short on supplies."

"There's been no word of the Constructicons?" Starscream asked. The question was addressed to Soundwave.

"Negative. Time of escape: two point six five decavorns ago. Current location: unknown."

"Then we need to make do with what we have. We need more soldiers. As it stands, the Autobots could overwhelm us in a direct assault on Kaon. We need to strike first."

"If I may, Lord Starscream?" I recognized Shockwave's clipped accent. "Rebellions have gone as planned in five city-states. More mechs may be expected as soon as they reach Kaon. There is a problem: a massing Autobot force in Tarn has blocked many of our potential reinforcements."

"Then we take Tarn now, while they're still gathering their army."

"Now, when we're still recovering?" Octus objected.

"It's either that or wait until they are fully prepared for an attack," Trannis pointed out. "If we can coordinate with the mechs who have been cut off, we can attack from both sides." He nodded to Starscream. "Particularly if your aerial troops can bring them weapons."

"The factory slaves in Tarn are already in revolt," Flamewar added. "More mechs and more supplies in one stroke."

"How many Autobots are in Tarn?" asked Starscream, optics dimmed in thought.

"Reports indicate close to a thousand, with several hundred expected to arrive each orn."

"And which of ours are on the other side?"

"Groups from Iacon, Simfur, and Polyhex."

Starscream smirked. "Perfect. Retaking Tarn should not be much of a problem."

"Not a problem?" Seizer exclaimed. "Our already-ragged force and some bands of escaped slaves against the Autobots?"

"Some of our best warriors will be with us," Starscream answered.

"Interruption: Regarding rumors surrounding leadership of Autobots in question."

"Report later, Soundwave, I will deal with that personally."

"Affirmative."

I lapped it all up attentively, gaining clues both from what was said and unsaid. By the time we were finished, I knew that Legonis, Octus, and Seizer were harmless, if annoying. Skystalker was similarly irritating, but he could be a threat unless kept on a short leash. Flamewar was a shrewd tactician, and not just where battle was concerned – she maneuvered skillfully through the subtle power struggles that pervaded the conversation. Thunderwing was quiet and unassuming, but I had the feeling that danger lurked somewhere within him. Trannis seemed uninterested in the petty politics surrounding most of the others. Though he was considerably younger than the rest, he had earned their respect on the battlefield.

Soundwave and Shockwave I'd encountered before. They held true power – the others all tread carefully around them, even Starscream. He saw them as a potential threat, but recognized their value.

After the meeting was adjourned, Starscream and Thundercracker remained in the command center. I left, planning to go to the Hall of Memory and watch Megatron during his vorns as a gladiator. It would be an asset in battle, whether I was fighting Autobots or sparring with my comrades.

I noticed an energy signature following me and turned to see Flamewar close at hand.

"Was there something you needed, General?"

She smiled, slinking closer – there was no other way to describe her graceful movements. "Perhaps." I wasn't entirely comfortable with the way that she was looking at me, as though she was trying to get into my circuitry with her optics. I wasn't so naïve that I didn't recognize exactly what she wanted. "You look familiar. Have we met somewhere before?"

I would certainly have remembered someone like this. "No, General."

"Please, just Flamewar… to you." Her optics dimmed slightly. "You bear a striking resemblance to… someone I used to know."

"Who?"

"Hmm." She pretended to ponder – I knew she was pretending because Starscream acted this way all the time. "I can't quite put my finger on it."

Flamewar moved even closer and I shied away. In everything that Ramrod had taught me about the Decepticon way, he'd never mentioned what to do when an officer was flirting with me. "So," she purred. "Are you doing anything later?"

"What? I, ah…"

Not a moment too soon, a red-plated arm slung around my shoulders, dragging me closer to Ramrod.

"Yes, actually, he is," the groundbound mech answered for me, staring back at Flamewar as though daring her to argue with him. "Why do you ask?"

"No reason." Annoyance flitted across her face, but it was gone in a moment. She smiled at me again. "Well, Nova, I'm sure I'll be seeing you soon, hmm?"

I made a vague sound of agreement and she brushed past, vanishing around the next corner.

"How do you do it?" I asked, prying Ramrod's arm from my shoulders.

"Do what?"

"Every time I'm in trouble, you always show up."

"I told you, I'm your knight in shining armor."

"What does that even mean?"

"It's a human phrase," he answered with a lopsided grin. "It means I'll always be around when you need me."

Heat rose in my faceplates. "You realize who that was, don't you?"

"General Flamewar. General or not, the only one who gets to flirt with you is me, understand?"

"Right," I laughed, trying to slide past him. With ease born from vorns of fighting, he grabbed me and slammed me into the wall, positioning his hands firmly on my wings to effectively pin me there.

"You think I'm joking?" I stared at him, all-too-conscious of the tingles through my sensory network. "I'm not."

"Ramrod—"

"I wasn't finished."

He shifted closer and I tried to draw back into the wall. "This isn't funny."

"I told you, I'm not joking," he answered quietly.

"Ramrod—"

"Don't you ever shut up?" Ramrod snarled in annoyance, right before he renewed his weight on my wings and leaned in to press his mouthplates against mine.

I didn't short out this time, though for a klik I felt like I was going to. Instead my energy field went berserk, flaring and spiking. Only after he pulled away did I demand an explanation.

"What was that?"

"It's called a kiss."

"I know what a kiss is, slagger. Why?"

"Because I felt like it." Ramrod grinned in a way that made my fuel pump stutter. "I know you liked it, or was your energy field going nuts for some other reason just now?" His fingers traced idle glyphs on my wings.

"I… There's not much I can offer you," I said. After all, I had a small orange cyclefemme waiting for me in a dusty Neutral town.

"Lifetime companionship isn't the Decepticon style. That's too much commitment for a mech like me. It doesn't have to change anything between us, Nova. We'd just be… a little closer."

I had to be careful about getting into any sort of relationship with a Decepticon. We weren't exactly known for loyalty. Besides, we were in a war. Why get close to anyone when we could be separated in an orn?

"There's a war going," Ramrod said, echoing my thoughts. "Either of us could be terminated anytime." He grinned, bumping our olfactory ridges together. "And I'd hate for you to die a virgin."

"Sometimes I think the Pit's too good for you," I laughed, shoving him.

"I don't hear you disagreeing," he purred.

"Yeah, fine," I said, trying to sound offhand. It was painfully obvious that each of us was more nervous than we showed. "If you're that desperate."

"Great!" he answered, momentarily relieved. Then he regained his cool demeanor, moving to trail a hand suggestively across my canopy.

"So," he purred. "You doing anything later?"

We ended up sprawled out on his recharge berth (I didn't want to risk any of the trine walking in on us, they'd rib me mercilessly for orbits), draped gracelessly on and around each other.

Ramrod's engine purred in content as he shifted to run a finger down the seam going from my optic to my jaw. I smiled weakly, exhausted.

"Tired you out," he teased. "And for a Seeker, that's saying something. I mean, I knew I was good, but…" I smacked him. "So, what do you think? Worth repeating?"

"Hmm, definitely." Oh, definitely. My entire sensory network still tingled.

"That's good to hear. I wouldn't mind an encore either."

The Decepticon army moved out to Tarn. Hurricane and I were among the fliers who would assist the escaped slaves on the other side of the Autobot force. This time, the Autobots were organized and more numerous, and though our initial strike took them by surprise, they were ready for us by the time I arrived.

/I will take you out of the battle again if you do anything rash,/ I warned my wingmate.

/I believe you. We'll attack alongside Crosswind's trine. Be on the lookout for Autobot cannons./

These Autobots were far better-prepared for an aerial assault than those in Kaon had been. I picked up some tricks on the fly, some from potentially painful near-experiences, others from watching the rest of the fliers.

But even all the skill in the world isn't enough, at times. I followed Hurricane, who followed Crosswind, and we ended up under heavy fire.

/Pull out and regroup,/ came Crosswind's call, and I moved to obey.

The shot struck me with the force of a charging truck, punching through my left wing and knocking me clear out of formation. Hurricane transformed and dove to catch me, but a second shot sent him reeling back and I plummeted towards the unforgiving ground, struggling to even out or regain altitude.

I transformed just before hitting the ground, landing awkwardly. I heard something crack as I struck metal, rolling and bouncing with my momentum until I finally settled, propped partially off the ground by one horribly bent wing.

The pain hit a moment later and I screamed, arching and twisting to get my weight off of the damaged wing. Agony seared through my leg and I fell back into my previous position, keening. I couldn't escape, couldn't sit up, couldn't even turn over.

A heavy foot came down on my torso, shattering my canopy and pressing me down to the ground. The metal of my wing screeched as it was bent further out of shape. I moaned and focused on the Autobot standing on me. The glare of his wicked-looking energon lance, which was positioned just above my chest, washed out his features but for his glowing blue optics. He had a chuckle at my helplessness, wedging his lance into the seam of my chestplates and levering sideways, prying them apart. I made a strangled sound, trying to reach up as the glow of my Spark appeared, but the glowing tip of his lance pressed against my transparent Spark chamber and my arm clanged back to the ground.

"Any last words?" he asked, triumph in his voice and optics as he leaned down, grinning. I could only stare, terror making my Spark pulse madly. The Autobot could see it, if the widening of his grin was any indication. "Enjoy the Pit, and I'll have your wings mounted on my wall tonight."

He lifted the lance, readying for the final blow – an energon lance would shatter my Spark chamber and go right through with the strength he would put into it – and I couldn't even shutter my optics.

I think my life should have flashed before my optics at this point. What actually did flash before my optics was large and purple and successfully knocked the Autobot off me. There was a gurgling scream. I whined softly and shifted, but that only sent agony through my entire system. And then a single red optic appeared above me and clumsy hands moved beneath me, thick pincers picking me up without exacerbating anything. A burst of garbled static gave me the last clue.

"Lug…nut?" I croaked. He made another indistinct sound, then took off… no, he didn't take off, only leapt out of immediate danger. I didn't need him to tell me to shut down; my system had already plunged me into stasis lock.

I was surprised not to see the medbay when I onlined – pleasantly surprised. I didn't relish the idea of undergoing repairs in the mess of a medbay. I was on my own berth, safe in my quarters. I looked around for an explanation and found Starscream.

"Don't even think about sitting up," he said. "Give it another orn or so. I repaired you… much better than those morons in the repair bay would have, I have to say."

"How long was I offline? What happened?"

"It took me a few orns to make the repairs. We're making headway in Tarn. Lugnut brought you back here." He pulled a face. "Now I owe him. It took some convincing to get him out of here – he was fretting over you and making a general nuisance of himself."

"He seems quite taken with me."

"You have no idea." He stood. "Rest and be back on your landing struts by tomorrow. The Autobots will attack and try to push us back, but luckily I now have a more competent general to work with."

Starscream's repairs had me active when he'd promised. I was pleased when he invited me back to the command center to attend another meeting. I'd thought everyone was present when a huge shape pressed in through the door and approached with heavy footsteps. The new mech was easily as large as Steelcrusher, perhaps even larger.

"Lord Starscream," it said in a heavily accented voice through an unmoving mask of a face. The voice startled me. This monster was a femme?! "It vas my understanding that a seat vould be held for me upon my return."

"So it has been," Starscream answered. He waved towards Legonis, Octus, and Seizer. "If you would kindly eject the present occupants, we can get started."

The three smaller mechs sputtered in outrage.

"We belong here!" Seizer protested.

"You think so? I can't think of one useful contribution that the three of you have made to the Decepticon cause…" Starscream paused, a claw tapping on the table. "…unless you consider endless complaints and cowardice as useful."

"Gentlemechs, if you vould?" the femme said, a tone of definite menace underscoring her words. The three mechs scrambled up and made their retreat. Legonis paused at the door.

"You'll regret this, Starscream! Just wait and see, you'll—"

There was the sound of firing lasers and he crumpled, the remnants of his face twisted, the rest smoking.

"I do not suffer fools," Starscream hissed, lowering his arm. "And it's Lord Starscream."

The moment the other two had dragged Legonis's frame out, things proceeded as if nothing had happened.

"General Stryka, welcome back. Soundwave, report."

The capture of Tarn took another two orbits. The Autobots tried pushing us back, but not before we'd had time to shore up our defenses. We could now afford to defend the perimeter, with more mechs trickling in from around the planet each orn.

Starscream was planning to take Polyhex, then Simfur. Iacon was still too ambitious a target. In Polyhex, we encountered real trouble for the first time: an Autobot force that could take some time to defeat.

Hurricane and I picked up an impromptu third: Lugnut shadowed me during each battle. We endured his presence, since he didn't interfere with our maneuvers, and he was useful besides – a group of Autobots that would have taken us breems to wipe out could be destroyed in mere kliks by Lugnut's powerful missiles.

"He's so protective of you," Hurricane mentioned.

"I noticed," I answered dryly, glancing over my shoulder to see Lugnut following several astrometers behind us.

Hurricane laughed (an unusual occurrence, for him). "It must be because you look so much like Megatron. Lugnut was obsessed with him."

I stopped. "What?"

"What, you never noticed how everyone stares at you?"

"Of course I noticed. What do you mean, I look like Megatron?"

"The color scheme, the face… if you weren't a Seeker you'd be his spitting image. Didn't anyone ever tell you?"

"No," I said quietly, thinking of Starscream. "No, they didn't."

In the skies over Polyhex, Hurricane first commed me with a soon-familiar order: /Nova, take point./

It was easier to reign in Hurricane's suicidal tendencies when he followed my lead. The shift in power did not go unnoticed; Starscream mentioned it when Hurricane and I returned to Kaon for a few orns' leave. Only then did I realize the significance of the order: I'd gotten my first command position, even if it was only over two mechs.

"Some mechs just aren't programmed to lead," Starscream said, giving me a smirk that I recognized as proud. "He's used to being a third, after all. Congratulations, Trineleader."

Among my least favorite assignments was what we called "clean-up." After battle, we combed each sector for survivors, Decepticon or Autobot. The savage actions of my comrades when they discovered a straggling Autobot were distasteful to me. I could take no satisfaction in terminating a mech who was no longer a threat. I preferred to capture the defeated Autobots rather than destroy them.

I had been trineleader for four decacycles when the Decepticons captured Polyhex's sixth sector. I made my way through a half-demolished tower floor by floor, finding only empty rooms and deactivated shells. I found an energon store and commed to inform General Trannis, under whose command my trine had been placed. That was good—he was a mech who rewarded success on the battlefield. The effectiveness of my non-standard trine would see me moving up the ranks in no time.

Just as I turned to leave the storeroom and continue my search, I heard something and paused, scanning the room again. Mass quantities of energon had a way of interfering with a mech's energy signature; if I picked a place to hide, it would be here, among the energon cubes.

Keeping my audios tuned to their finest, I moved into the storage room. The sound came again – not much, just a shift of metal on metal, but enough for my sensitive audios.

I rounded the last corner, arm-guns aimed and ready… but I found not a battle-ready enemy, only a small femme, the Autobot insignia blatant on her chest. She held a tiny sparkling that couldn't have been older than five vorns or so. She clutched it closer to her, trying to shield it, but said nothing. Although her optics were full of fear, she didn't attempt to beg.

I hesitated, lowering my arms. I couldn't do this.

"I won't hurt you," I said. "There's a team coming to get this energon soon. You won't be safe here. Get out now, while you still can."

I turned to check the door.

"Why are you doing this?" the Autobot asked suspiciously. "You're a Decepticon."

"Yes," I answered. "I know."

I left her to ponder that and continued my sweep of the area.

Through experience and hard practice, I improved my performance on the battlefield. I flew with Lugnut and Hurricane every day, tightening our maneuvers and testing our aim. When I wasn't in battle or training with the trine, I was back in the training grounds in Kaon. I pushed myself to become faster, stronger, tougher.

Growing into a better fighter was the best way to distract myself from the reality of the war. Were we really fighting to free the Decepticons from slavery, or were we fighting to destroy the Autobots? Megatron had started with the best intentions, too.

Trannis was so pleased by my achievements in Polyhex that he gave me command of several trines besides my own, promoting me to Wingleader. Starscream continued to bring me to the command meetings, and though I had not yet been asked for my opinion, I continued to absorb the goings-on.

Polyhex was not easy to take. Every time it seemed that the Decepticons had made progress, the Autobots would push back. As a result, it took several vorns to break through the Autobot defenses. With Polyhex came captured energon mines, somewhat easing the strain on our supplies.

"According to Soundwave's information network," Starscream told me, "Simfur is weak. It won't be like Polyhex."

The command staff met a few decacycles into Simfur to plan. Halfway through Skystalker's report, however, Starscream interrupted.

"Skystalker… get out."

"M-my lord?" the shuttle stammered.

"I'm tired of your incompetence. Do you wish to end up like Legonis? Be grateful that I, unlike Megatron, am willing to be merciful."

Skystalker left as quickly as his landing struts would carry him. There was a moment's silence.

Flamewar broke it. "Finally. If you hadn't done it, one of us would have."

"There is still the question of Skystalker's replacement," Shockwave began.

"Commander," Trannis said. "It seems a convenient moment to nominate Wingleader Nova as my lieutenant."

"Convenient indeed," Starscream said, like he'd been planning this.

I had to process it for a few kliks. As a lieutenant, I had the right to speak in the command meeting, without the full powers of a true General. I expected someone to argue, but no one did—they all knew Trannis never promoted anyone without merit.

I eyed Skystalker's empty chair. If I held this course, that seat could be mine soon, and I would have real power. I could finally take control of the war I had helped Starscream to unleash, and make sure that we were fighting for the right reasons.

I was with Starscream in the temporary forward command center when the Emirate of Simfur appeared on the holoscreen.

"Commander Starscream," he said. "I am Rimspin, Emirate of—"

"I know who you are," Starscream said. "All I want from you is unconditional surrender, or this city and all of its Autobot inhabitants will be destroyed."

"We… we will surrender," Rimspin croaked, obviously terrified. "But Simfur is a place of learning and study… there is nothing of value to you here. All we ask is to continue our work… we'll promise neutrality, anything you want, but we won't become slaves."

"Didn't I say unconditional?" Starscream hissed. The Autobot's blue optics paled.

"But our schools, our nurseries! What of our sparklings?"

"And what of ours?" Starscream snapped. "The protoforms destroyed after Axis, when the Autobots made their glorious return to Cybertron?" He laughed bitterly. "You should have surrendered when you had the chance."

"But we do surrend—"

Starscream cut the communication link and the holoscreen went blank. "Soundwave, have all Decepticons fall back. We're going to obliterate this entire miserable city. It's worth nothing to us."

"Starscream!" I burst out, unable to keep my silence any longer. "He said that they will surrender. There's no need for this!"

"You wouldn't understand what the Autobots have done to deserve this," my creator hissed back.

"What's the point? This won't help the Decepticons gain their freedom!"

"It will teach the Autobots a lesson," he snarled. "Don't question my orders."

I stood and watched as Simfur vanished in a ball of flame.

"Iacon is still too well-defended for us to take."

The command team had met to discuss our next move. Thunderwing had expressed his concern over the bombing of Simfur, as had Stryka, but Starscream had ignored them. Skywarp was here, for once, fidgeting alongside Thundercracker.

"In that case," Starscream continued, "we should turn our sights to another nearby city-state. Altihex is relatively undefended, since the Autobots anticipated our northward press to culminate in Iacon." He smiled. "And if they do put up a fight… well, one more like Simfur would be an effective demonstration."

The full meaning of his words hit me and after a moment of staring at him, checking that my audios hadn't malfunctioned, I asserted myself. "No… no, we can't do that. There's no garrison in Altihex, only civilians."

"They're Autobots," Starscream said, looking at me strangely. That irked me.

"We can't attack civilians," I repeated. "It will give the Autobots strength. They will have the moral advantage as they did in the old war. Right now our slavery makes us sympathetic. We can't lose that."

"Let them come. We will meet them and we will crush them."

"Or this war will drag on for astrocycles," I said. "Repeating the past won't work."

"It will. This time—"

"This time what, Starscream?" I was pushing my luck. I wasn't his trine, I wasn't a General. I had no right to speak to our Commander this way. But apparently I was the only one who would speak for the innocent Autobots of Altihex. "How is this time any different? Because you're in charge? Because all you need to win the Decepticons is a figurehead?" I laughed humorlessly, irony heavy on my glossa as I echoed Prime. "I won't let you make me into another Megatron."

He smirked. "You were Sparked that way."

Something snapped within me. Uncaring of the consequences, I seized Starscream's throat, pulling him halfway across the table. "I am not Megatron," I snarled. "You may think I am, you may have intended me to be that way, but I'm not. I understand that you are the commander. But you have to understand that what worked once, what worked for Megatron, won't work now. You can't pretend that the last two centivorns didn't happen."

I released him, gaining some satisfaction from the clang he made as he fell back. "When you're ready to let go of the past, let me know."

I'd made it as far as the arena when Skywarp popped into existence at my elbow.

"You really fragged off Screamer back there," he said, a trace of a laugh evident in his voice, as usual. "If looks could kill, Nova, you'd be so slagged."

"I don't know how to make him understand," I muttered, slumping against the wall with crossed arms. Passing 'cons nodded at me respectfully.

"To make it around here, most people just do as they're told."

"But what we're being told is wrong."

Skywarp shrugged. "Well, then, I suggest you make yourself happy with what Starscream says."

There was a brief silence. I glowered into space, disliking this option. I wanted the Decepticons to be free, but not at the cost of civilian lives. Starscream was wrong. He had to see it!

Skywarp's voice broke the silence. He wasn't looking at me, apparently absorbed in a spar halfway across the room. "Or… you can make Starscream happy with what you say."

I glanced at him, but he kept his gaze averted. If he'd just suggested what I'd thought he'd suggested…

There was Starscream, sweeping in with a stormy face, Thundercracker right behind him. Wise mechs gave him a wide berth.

I had to make a decision. I couldn't lose Starscream's support… he knew things, had information, fought like one possessed, was my creator. But if it came down to losing Starscream against losing the war…

I decided.

My comrades moved aside for me as readily as they did for the other irate Seeker. I approached my creator, Skywarp following curiously in my wake.

"Starscream," I said, loud enough that the mechs around us looked up from their sparring. Good. The more witnesses, the better. I matched Starscream's frosty glare with a cool stare of my own, injecting more confidence into my voice than I actually felt.

"I challenge you to a duel for leadership of the Decepticons."