Summary: Megatron's greatest failure was in the hands of the Autobots. Scorned and broken, Starscream vows to have his revenge while the Autobots begin to uncover a dark truth between the Decepticon Warlord and his Second-In-Command.
A/N: I know, I know, it's been a while. It wasn't my intention to take this long but in truth this chapter caused me a bit of trouble, as I hadn't completely considered the 'human children' factor into the whole scheme of things (and it didn't feel right writing them off - though things would've picked up more quickly if I could). So as a heads up, if you feel this chapter is a bit rushed or awkward or not quite right, I know. Also if anyone is reading this note, there has been a summary change. As far as I have planned, the new summary will much better suit the direction I'm heading towards, and boy do I have a crazy thing or two in store!
Chapter Three:
It wasn't much later that day when they had come across a flaw in their plan, the first of many she as well as the others perceived. With Ratchet locked away in his med-bay operating on the seeker, Arcee, Bulkhead and Bumblebee were left to the sole counsel of Optimus who, considering the circumstances, seemed to be handling everything well enough.
By 'everything' of course, that meant their plethora of blunt questions which he skillfully managed to avoid answering at that particular time, for his own reasons.
"Where will he stay?", "Who's going to babysit him?", "How long will this go on?" they'd all asked as they met Optimus in the main control room who judging by the expression on his face, more than expected their synchronised reactions.
And Optimus would reply in a firm but calm tone, "All will be answered in due time" - it was a promise they knew he'd keep his word to. "I intend to explain everything once everyone is here – I do not wish to repeat this on two separate occasions".
"Everyone?" Bulkhead asked, incredulously. "You mean the kids too?".
Optimus gave a brief nod.
Arcee shared an uncertain look with Bumblebee.
"Optimus, with all due respect, wouldn't it be safer if we left Jack, Miko and Raf out of this?" she offered, knowing well enough – as did her team mates – of the humans' unpredictability. The last thing they wanted was an incident on their hands because of a careless action made on their part. All things considered, it was their job as guardians to protect their human charges from danger. No matter how they looked at it, and reluctantly no matter how it was looked at by Agent Fowler and the government, should anything happen to the children, they would be at fault - she wasn't entirely sure if it was worth taking the risk.
Bumblebee nodded in agreement.
"If they knew, I'd bet a week's worth of energon rations that they'd deliberately go and search for trouble".
"Make it double for Miko" Bulkhead added.
Optimus replied after they'd said their piece.
"I understand where you're all coming from" he started, "but considering the amount of time they spend with us, I find it highly unlikely that they would not eventually discover Starscream, either from us or of their own wanderings.
"No, I would prefer it that they know of our situation, if only so that we can place definitive boundaries and rules to prevent any harm from being inflicted upon them. Their own safety under our supervision I can vouch for, but if they were to stumble across Starscream without our knowledge and provoke him in such a way...I believe none of us could rest easy knowing we could have prevented it".
"I wouldn't put it past the kids to do something like that.." Arcee thought out loud.
"Wouldn't Starscream be kept well away from them though, say, shackled to a wall with stasis cuffs, behind bars and everything?" Bumblebee joked.
"I wouldn't put it past Starscream to find a way out of those too" Bulkhead replied and shrugged. "Anything to cause some trouble".
"Regardless of what may or may not happen," Optimus spoke up once more, drowning out the inevitable banter, "We cannot take the risk in not informing them".
"All right, so what do you want us to do?" Bulkhead asked.
"Inform them yourselves as you bring them back to the base. Keep it succinct – I will answer any questions personally when they arrive".
/\/\/\/\
And so it began.
Arcee was parked in her usual spot, waiting for Jack to emerge from the school building's doors. Bumblebee remained silent in his place not too far off from her position, and Bulkhead stayed parked alongside the curb due to his size.
Approximately two minutes until the school bell rang.
"Hey 'Cee?" Bulkhead piped up, with a somewhat inquisitive tone in his voice.
"Hmm?" she responded, letting him know she was listening.
"How are you planning to break the news to Jack?".
"Well," she started, thinking for a moment. "I guess I'm just going to tell him as it is. There's no use in skipping around it".
"Really?".
"Really. I'm certain Jack can handle it" she concluded. After a brief moment of silence she spoke up once more.
"You okay Bulk?".
He exhaled a heavy sigh.
"I don't know, 'Cee".
When he didn't speak again, Arcee inquired further.
"Do..you want to talk about it?".
Arcee wasn't the closest one to Bulkhead out of the group, but it wasn't an entirely new occurrence seeing him in one of his low moods, and perhaps not quite coincidentally, they happened to revolve around his own human charge, Miko. She couldn't speak for Bumblebee on that particular case, but in all honesty Arcee couldn't blame Bulkhead for feeling the way he did – it looked as if he was holding so much back when it came to looking after her.
That wasn't to say he was aggressive or anything, quite the opposite actually. It seemed he was just..afraid of hurting Miko's feelings. There was no doubt he cared for his charge as much as any of them did for theirs, but for Bulkhead it seemed to be difficult combating his oddly gentle nature against Miko's own stubbornness. It was evident it had come to the point where Bulkhead held almost no authority over her and Miko was the one who made all the moves.
'Of course, that wouldn't be a problem if it didn't put her in danger half the time..' Arcee thought, but kept that opinion to herself.
After a moment, Bulkhead spoke up with an agitated tone, "I just don't know how Miko's going to react to this".
"Oh?".
"I mean, I know I can tell her, but every time I picture it in my head, she just goes off and does something that'll get herself hurt, or worse!".
"Well you heard what Optimus said," she tried to console, hearing her team mate's voice edge on the point of frustration. "We're doing this to prevent that from happening – have you talked to him about it?".
"..I may have dropped a hint or two".
"Then you know he's got it under control" she stated simply.
"Yeah, like 'Miko' and 'control' could ever go in the same sentence" he laughed nervously, as if trying to shake his mood off. "I don't know, maybe I'm just over thinking it?".
"Hey, don't worry yourself over it," Arcee said reassuringly. "It'll turn out fine in the end. Optimus will make sure of it, and so will we".
Before Bulkhead could reply, the school bell rang and the bustle and yells of thankful teenage students emitted from the grounds. As the front doors flung open, Bulkhead uttered a hushed "I'll talk to you later" before becoming silent once more.
Even with the racket of human children surrounding her, it seemed all too quiet as she waited for Jack to arrive. In all honesty she wanted to get this ordeal over and done with, so that everything could go back to what it was, like nothing ever happened. Give her a mission here and there, scout another location, intercept an energon trail, and Starscream would be forgotten, left to the recesses of her mind if not completely removed from it. After all if she wasn't left at the base to babysit (which she assumed would be Ratchet's job for the most part), Starscream wouldn't be her problem. And as far as she was concerned, as long as she maintained that semblance of normality, then it would rarely have to be her problem.
'If only Cliff was here to see this. Primus, he'd never let us live it down…' she thought.
She could just imagine him, with an incredulous expression on his face, speaking in his 'are you serious?' tone, "Woah woah back up. Let me get this straight: you let that two-faced slagging Deceptiscum Starscream into the base? Alive? And now you're repairing him? ...Are you out of your slagging mind!".
Hearing a familiar patter of footsteps, she brought herself out of her reverie and turned her attention to Jack as he casually walked over to her, reaching for his helmet while uttering a greeting.
"Hey Arcee".
"Hey yourself" she replied. "Busy day?".
"Just the usual" he shrugged as he swung a leg over the seat, reaching over to grab both handlebars. "Anything new with you?".
She replied as she took her usual route to the base.
"Yep, and I can't guarantee you'll like it".
After a brief moment of silence, Jack spoke up again.
"Well, are you going to tell me? Or is it 'need to know' only or..something?".
'If only it were' she thought, while turning onto the highway and driving towards the direction of the base.
"Sure thing, if you can promise me you'll stay calm".
She couldn't see his expression, but could hear the uncertainty in his voice and feel the nervous tension in his grip.
"O..kay? Is it that bad?".
Bad? No, no it wouldn't change much for Jack. If all went according to what Optimus had in mind, Arcee was sure it would be as if she'd said nothing at all.
"You tell me" she started. "We're keeping Starscream captive inside the base for an undetermined period of time" she said without hesitation. "For your safety, we were instructed to tell you so you'd know there'll be certain boundaries put in place from now on".
She was certain Jack had heard her, but didn't know whether he was choosing not to answer or was thinking of something to say.
Finally, after a minute of hearing nothing but the wind whipping past her, Jack uttered a disbelieving "What?".
She let out an airy laugh, relieved she hadn't traumatised him in some way.
"Yeah, tell me about it".
But Jack refused to let the subject matter go.
"Wait wait wait, hold up for a second, I'm being serious!" he insisted. "Let me get this straight. You have who in the base?".
"Starscream" she answered.
"The Decepticon?".
"Is there any other?" she questioned.
"And..there was no fight? No struggle? Anything?" he continued.
Arcee sighed.
"Let's put it this way: by the time we got to him, there wasn't much 'fight' left".
Jack seemed confused at this statement.
"What do you mean?".
"Megatron scrapped him" she said brusquely, in a tone that warned him not to ask about the particulars.
"Sooo..none of you got hurt?".
"No".
"Okay..and you're keeping him for...information? Leverage?".
"The former, as far as we know – if Megatron intended to scrap him for good, he wouldn't have any use for him".
"So he's alive?".
"Only just".
"And he's just going to give you information?" Jack asked with a disbelieving tone.
"I don't know".
"How can you guarantee he won't lie to you?".
"I don't know" she stated more firmly.
"Well how do you know this isn't just some sort of trap-".
"Jack, listen to me" she finally spoke above him, raising her voice. Jack immediately quietened, but she could hear his heart beating slightly faster from his momentary rush. "We don't know anything for certain, but Optimus has decided to take this chance and see where it goes. There are no guarantees we'll get anything out of this, but if there's one thing we can be sure of, it's ensuring your safety".
"But-".
"'But' nothing" she interjected. "Optimus promised he'd answer any of your questions when you arrive at the base, and I've said too much already. You'll just have to wait for a bit longer if you want to take it up with him".
'And maybe then we can all get some answers ourselves' she added to herself.
As she arrived at the base and passed the hidden door obscuring the ground entrance, she realised she may have been just a bit too harsh in getting her point across, because Jack had not uttered a single word since then.
She sighed, continuing her drive towards the base's headquarters.
"Look kiddo," she started. "I'd be more than happy to tell you what you want, but the fact is none of us know the details ourselves – we know little more than you do about it".
Her honest admission seemed to bring him out of his mood.
"No, look, it's..it's not your fault. I was getting ahead of myself. I'm – I'm just worried, okay?" he admitted hesitantly. "I guess I don't like not knowing what's going to happen next".
Arcee smiled to herself.
"You and me both, Jack" she said softly. "So, are we okay?".
She could practically hear Jack's smile in his voice as he replied, "Yeah, we're okay".
Making a full stop near the centre of the base's headquarters where Bumblebee and Raf were waiting, she waited for Jack to climb off before she transformed into her bipedal mode.
Bumblebee bleeped a greeting, and Raf smiled up at her.
"Hey 'Bee. Where's Bulkhead?" she asked, smiling back at Raf.
Bumblebee shrugged, "He said he was on the way-".
He stopped as they all heard the distinct sound of an engine echoing from the entrance.
"That must be him now".
Not three seconds later, Bulkhead appeared from the large doorway, letting Miko step out to join Jack and Raf. But it wasn't Bulkhead's mood that surprised them as much as Miko's did.
Smiling widely, her eyes wild, she shouted out loud to no one in particular, "Woohoo! So, who's ready to kick some Decepticon butt?".
As she made her way to Jack and Raf, Bulkhead shook his head in temporary forfeit.
"Well at least she's doing okay..right?" Bumblebee asked rhetorically to Arcee, while they met Bulkhead halfway as he walked towards them.
"So, how'd it go Bulk?" Arcee asked, curious to know exactly what he'd said to induce this mood from her.
"Well..it didn't go the way I thought it would?" he offered, somewhat avoiding the matter. "I mean when I told her and she didn't react for a second, I thought everything was going good..." he trailed off, reaching around to grasp the back of his neck nervously.
"And..?" Bumblebee edged on.
"And..." Bulkhead continued, shaking his head. "It went good. Too good. She wouldn't stop going on about how she was gunna get back at him".
"What, for what happened in the mine?" Arcee asked.
"Yeah".
"'Cause that'll go well" Bumblebee commented. "I guess we'll have to keep an optic on them, boundaries or no boundaries".
"Like we didn't before?" Bulkhead replied, playfully nudging Bumblebee on his shoulder, causing him to protest.
"Hey!".
The sound of heavy feet clanging against the floor made them stop and straighten up, as they turned simultaneously to see Optimus walking towards them, his face passive as he greeted them.
Not one to miss an opportunity, Miko waved enthusiastically as she ran forward towards him, catching his attention.
"Hey Optimus?" she shouted, though he could've heard her just as well had she used a quieter voice.
He was patient as he replied, "Yes, Miko?".
Without missing a beat she pleaded, "Can we see him? Please please please? I promise we won't touch anything!".
Jack and Raf widened their eyes, Raf shifting his eyes to the floor nervously as Jack shook his head in objection.
"Woah, wait a minute Miko. 'We'? 'We' didn't agree on anything" he said, before quickly turning to Optimus with his hands open in front of him defensively. "Raf and I had no part in this".
Miko whined, "Aww, come on? Besides," she said, turning to Optimus while flipping out her phone, "It'll make one hell of an awesome memory, huh?".
Optimus sighed after a moment, "I'm afraid not, Miko. Not this time".
"Aww, why not?" she insisted.
Oh, so she was in one of those moods, the kind of mood where it was hard to reason with her in any way – and Optimus could see it too. But his resolve was final, putting his foot down, so to speak, on this affair.
"It is simply a matter of privacy, and Decepticon or not, I cannot allow you to take advantage of his state of well-being".
"Bu-".
"I'm sorry Miko, but this time especially, no means no" he said sternly, but not harshly.
The girl heaved out a low "Fine", before crossing her arms and pouting with attitude.
"And that goes to all of you" Optimus elaborated, looking at both Jack and Raf, and finally at his soldiers, who were listening attentively. "To whoever disregards this warning, whether it be human or Autobot, the consequences will be severe.
"I understand it may be difficult in this case, but for the mean time I need all of you to cooperate to ensure everything goes smoothly. We cannot afford to make a mistake" he continued, before turning to address the humans. "As such, the repair bay is temporarily off limits to the three of you in particular, unless you are accompanied by one of us – who, I should add, do not have a reason to be there unless otherwise instructed" he further specified as he looked to Bulkhead, Arcee and Bumblebee.
"You don't need to tell us twice" Bumblebee reassured.
Optimus nodded curtly.
"Until Ratchet can repair Starscream to a functional state, we cannot determine his motives for certain".
"He seemed pretty upset when we tried to help him" Arcee shrugged. "It was obvious he didn't want our help then – I doubt he'd want it now".
"We cannot make that judgement based on his vulnerability" Optimus countered.
"What about on his body count?" Bulkhead dared to suggest, at which Miko widened her eyes in curiosity.
"Bulkhead.." Optimus warned.
"What? It's not like you can just forget about it. Besides, I knew a number of 'Bots who would've loved to get their hands on him" he said, while cracking his knuckles.
"Be that as it may, we must try to put that behind us for now. I will deal with it when the time comes, that I can assure you of".
"Well, what about our energon rations? We're running thin as it is with just the five of us" Arcee said with a hint of concern in her voice, despite her attempt to conceal it.
"I am well aware of that. At the moment, finding enough energon to sustain an extra individual as well as ourselves is, and will be our top priority for the following weeks".
"Weeks, as in more than one?" Bulkhead questioned, his optics widening.
"As long as it takes to get what we need" Optimus replied.
"And if we don't?" Bumblebee asked.
Both Autobots and humans looked to Optimus, waiting for his answer, the base completely devoid of noise which made the moment seem to stretch even longer.
Finally, Optimus replied.
"We'll deal with it, if the situation arises".
/\/\/\/\
'"If the situation arises". He must have something in mind to be so sure it won't happen' Arcee thought, standing by the monument to her fallen partner.
Optimus had dismissed them to speak to Jack, Miko and Raf privately not too soon afterwards, so they had no choice but to part ways for a short while. She didn't really know she would end up where she did, but what mattered was that she could spend some time to herself in peace, alone, without being disturbed or hassled.
And so there she was, wondering when it would all fall apart – and she was so certain, so adamant that it would.
She didn't know how anyone could imply the whole thing was under control, that every possible outcome had been considered and dealt with. She for one could think of a dozen different outcomes, and more.
But it wasn't up to them to decide that. And so became the overall consensus: if Optimus deemed it necessary, then they would deem it as necessary. No matter how much they hated it. No matter how much they could suffer for it.
If they were so blinded by their own prejudice that they could not make a rational and fair decision, enough so that Optimus had to choose for them, then so be it. And she was fine with that, really, she would not argue. They could not "afford to make a mistake" after all.
But the scariest thing about it? - Not that she'd ever admit that to anyone – was that she wasn't even sure what she wanted any more. Not on the basic level, no, that was too easy. She could easily say she wanted their own side to win the war. She could easily say that she didn't want Starscream with them, hell, any of the others could and would say the same things! But curse that thought at the back of her processor asking her, 'At what cost? At what cost should this war be won?'.
'Risking everything on a Decepticon, that's the slagging cost'.
And to top it off, she knew there was no turning back now. What was done was done, and that was the end of it. Starscream was stuck with them, and they were stuck with Starscream. Optimus wouldn't dare think of going back on it, not when they were seemingly so close to the ever-hoped-for victory they needed now more than ever.
Moving a hand to rest on the only remaining memento of Cliffjumper, she spoke quietly out loud, "Jack was right, you know. It's never easy not knowing what's going to happen next".
She brushed her fingertips over the broken horn.
"But we'll manage, just like we always have.." she paused, turning her head to look out at the dimming landscape.
"And we'll do what we have to do, to make sure we finish this, once and for all. Whatever it takes".
'Whatever it takes' she reflected, hugging her arms loosely around her waist, dreading the possibility of having to lose any more than they'd already lost.
She hoped it didn't have to come to that.
End Chapter Three:
So that's that for chapter 3. Again, if it weren't for the 'children' factor, Starscream would've certainly made an appearance. But with that said, the next chapter will definitely feature him and, gasp! An advancement in the plot, hurrah! Thank you to all who've read and reviewed so far, you guys are super-duper awesome! Finally, I hope y'all are enjoying your holidays and have a spectacular New Year :) Stay tuned for the next installment!