-1First off, I'd like to thank IjuinTekka of for this little twist.
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The Decepticons obliged the lot of them days later as the same six jets came roaring over the horizon. The laser cannon turrets Sarah had made were shooting up a storm, picking shots with enough accuracy to set the attackers dodging and weaving even before the actual fight began. Looking at each other and nodding with a pair of the most devilish grins ever seen in the universe at large, Megatron and Sarah took off running side by side, almost completely synchronized as they took all their momentum into upward leaps, transformed and raced upward to attack the Decepticons head on. They hadn't really been expecting two jets to come up to meet them, and that gave the duo the upper hand long enough for them to unload on their enemies with everything they had. Dirge didn't even get a chance to fire back before a shot to his afterburners sent him packing in a hurry.
"Goodbye, slag-for-brains!" The coal-black aircraft trailed laughter behind it as it banked and sought another target. Megatron busied himself with chasing Thrust and Backfire while Sarah transformed into her normal form, extended her whip and began to let Ramjet have it repeatedly. "One! Two! Three! Four!" Downburst tried to take her from behind, but she stopped beating the absolute heck out of Ramjet long enough to blast him straight in the chest and send him flying straight into Megatron's line of fire. "Nice shot," he called over to her. Returning to the task at hand, she lashed out with her whip, letting it coil around Ramjet's arm. "Come here, you!" A moment later she'd yanked him close enough to get a good grip on him. Wasting no time, she started slapping him around. Behind her, Megatron caught up to Backfire and blasted him halfway into next week, sending him packing as well. Now all he had to do was do the same to Thrust.
Sarah was about to deliver the grand finisher when a laser blast came from behind her and arced over her shoulder, drawing her attention. The shooter could have easily shot her in the back, but he hadn't. That had been a warning shot; nothing more. Releasing Ramjet, who immediately fled the scene, she turned to behold Starscream. "You again?" There was no surprise or fear in her voice, only annoyance, as if the Decepticon were no more than a nuisance to be dealt with rather than an enemy to be fought. "Don't you remember what happened last time?" The look of absolute hatred that took shape on his face when she said that was enough of an answer for her. She smiled. "Do I have to do this again?" She wasted no time, concentrating as her highlights came to life to lick at him… only to start in shock as the pale blue tendril she sent his way broke against him like a wisp of smoke drifting into a wall. "What in…?" He was smirking as she tried a second time only to fail again. "You're not the only one," he said smugly as their gazes met, a sudden surge of blue lightning pulsing through the fiery red of his eyes… and she knew. "Impossible," she gasped. "Yours was not the only Shard!" Shock froze her in place and time seemed to slow down to an agonizing crawl as he raised his gun, took aim at her chest and fired.
Megatron finished dealing with Thrust in time to see Sarah fall from the sky, a smoking, burning hole in her chest… and to see the smoking gun Starscream held. To say that the sight enraged him would be the severest of understatements. Literally out to kill, he didn't bother with weapons. Instead, he hit top speed, banked sharply and rammed Starscream. Nearly thrown from the sky, Starscream took severe damage and fled the scene just as his cohorts did, cackling evilly all the while. "I know fatal shots when I deal them, Megatron. You beat me, but not in time to save her!" The other Decepticon's words rattled him so badly that he didn't even bother to pursue. "No! Sarah!" Starscream's retreat went unopposed as Megatron pulled into a steep dive, almost sending himself into an uncontrolled freefall in his haste to get to the ground. It was only then that he realized that ramming Starscream had damaged him severely as well, since instead of landing on his feet he just about landed on his face. Having just barely avoided a crash, it took some effort for him to transform, but he managed. Stumbling to his feet, in agony but not noticing it, he struggled toward where Ratchet now had his work cut out for him in trying to repair her.
"Sarah…" She was all that mattered in that moment, and he fought with everything he had to get to her, at least until his legs gave out beneath him. He would have ended up on hands and knees, if not face down on the ground, had someone not caught him. More surprised by the fact that someone had caught him than by his collapsing in the first place, he looked up and met the concerned gaze of his brother. "…Optimus?" He was about to say something in reply when a groan drew everyone's attention, followed by Ratchet calling out to them. "Megatron, I need your help over here!" Trying to pull free of his brother's supporting grasp, he wavered again and nearly fell. Optimus ignored his attempt to push him away and helped him anyway. Soon he was kneeling beside Sarah's fallen form and staring in numb disgust at the hole in her chest. Starscream's shot had nearly cleaved her spark in two. On her other side, Rumble had her shoulder in a death grip embrace and was squealing incoherently, all vestiges of composure long gone. Just then, Ratchet spoke up. "Megatron, you've got to keep her awake. If she loses consciousness she'll revert to human form and I won't be able to help her then. Talk to her, distract her, I don't care what you do, just keep her awake!" Giving a silent nod, not trusting himself to speak a reply lest he flip out and lose it completely, he reached out and gently took her hand in his own. Opening her eyes, she looked up at him and gave a weak smile. "Hello there," she whispered, as if they had merely crossed paths in a hallway. He returned her smile reassuringly, trying to project a confidence he didn't feel. "The Shard I found wasn't the only one… Starscream found a second." He cringed mentally at the shock and utter disbelief in her eyes. "Megatron, the All Spark touched him too… He's immune to my power. He's immune to me." That explained everything. "I'm sorry, Megatron… I let him get me. I let everybody down…" Latching on to that statement, he shook his head vehemently. "No you didn't, Sarah. Who took out Dirge, Downburst and Ramjet, huh?" She went quiet. "…I did," she said as though she had just remembered doing so.
Ratchet was able to stabilize her enough for Ironhide and Jazz to move her to the repair bay, and Optimus helped Megatron follow. Refusing repair until he knew she would be all right, he merely sat and watched the medic at work, Rumble clinging to his leg the whole time. If Megatron was troubled, the little red Autobot was traumatized. "…Rumble fail," he abruptly whimpered, earning him a look from the silvery Decepticon. He'd never seen Rumble this depressed before. "Rumble su-su-supposed protect human girl. That why Rumble become alive. But Rumble no-no-not protect human girl, and human girl get hurt." The little Autobot was shivering as he pressed up closer. "Rumble fail…"
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Poor little guy, he's really taking it hard…