3

Soundwave entered the Officers' lounge and looked around. Breakdown, Knockout and Airachnid sat together drinking energon, and Soundwave wasn't surprised to find the femme turn away from him resentfully. Knockout was eying him in a moody way as well, but it was of little consequence to the intelligence officer. Optimus was not here, to his disappointment. He was probably dining with Megatron.

"I bet you're looking for your new toy," Knockout said. "Well I know where he is."

An eradicon approached him with a tray of cubes, and Soundwave took one. He turned to leave, not being one to seem interested in anything even if he was.

"He's not with Lord Megatron, if that's what you're thinking."

Soundwave paused before he could stop himself, which gained him a knowing laugh from the red ground vehicle.

"I knew you were looking for him," Knockout said. "Didn't I know?" Breakdown responded that yes, he knew. "So you must tell me, how is that aft in the berth?"

Soundwave turned to leave, and Breakdown spoke up. "Don't be such a tight joint," he said. "He's in the eradicon mess hall."

Soundwave set down the energon cube and left. He headed to the mess hall, one of the few places in the Nemesis he had never been. The room was bright and large, with long tables and a vast number of eradicons. Some of them were still on a line at the end where energon rations were being distributed.

Soundwave's presence usually invoked fear in those as he entered any room, but almost none of the eradicons even noticed him now. He found the source of their interest, a bright red mech standing out among the silver and purple. Orion was in a seat at one of the long tables, animatedly telling a story. Not wanting to interrupt, Soundwave stepped behind a nearby pillar to listen.

"Megatronus' ideas were revolutionary. And to think now, he has an army in the name of such a noble cause."

Soundwave laughed internally. If only he remembered the direction Megatron had taken before the council. It was far too bold for Orion Pax's sense of morality. But Soundwave knew what would have happened if it were Orion Pax fighting rather than Megatronus. He would have kept peace for far too long, perhaps forever, and nothing would have changed. Megatron's measures were necessary.

"Officer Orion," one of the nearby eradicons said, "The war has been difficult and sometimes I forget why I'm here…"

"Shh, that's treacherous talk," one of the others said.

Orion smiled. "It's fine, please go on."

"I was just going to say, it's good to hear your stories. It reminds me what I'm fighting for." Some of the others nodded in agreement.

Optimus patted him on the shoulder. "The cause is something you can never forget. I'm glad I could be of service to you."

"Officer Orion," another mech said, "Do you have any stories about Starscream's history?"

There was a resounding sound of disgust among them. "Shut up Steve, nobody wants to know about Starscream."

Soundwave slipped out then, not wanting to disturb them.

xxxxx

That evening when he retired to his quarters, he found Optimus sitting on the edge of the berth. He rose, and the two mechs stood there awkwardly. Soundwave nodded in acknowledgement and went to the shelving unit to busy himself with rearranging tools that were already in perfect arrangement.

He glanced over and was surprised to find the other sit back on the edge of the berth, relaxed again more quickly than Soundwave would have expected.

"The soldiers seem so uptight," Orion said. So that was why he wasn't nervous. His ever working processor had settled over something more selfless than their awkward predicament. How very like the autobot leader. "I'm surprised that Megatronus keeps them under such a strict rule. It seems like more than a mech could bear."

"Lord Megatron's structure: flawless," Soundwave responded defensively.

They were both surprised by Soundwave's rare verbal response. But Orion's surprise quickly turned to a smile. "You've always been such a loyal friend to Megatronus."

Soundwave's processor swarmed at the statement. To call Megatron a friend seemed a terrible choice for words. But still, it was pleasant to hear such a fallacy. How could such a powerful mech be so innocent?

Soundwave's frame stiffened slightly as Orion joined him at the shelving unit, optics on the tools. He couldn't look away. "I always thought that I'd be lucky to attain a comrade half as loyal as you are to Megatronus." At this point Soundwave didn't know how he would deal with him anymore. Megatron was not one to bestow many complements, and this was just more than he could handle. Orion turned to him, those devastating optics holding him where he was. "Soundwave, I wish I could remember us. I wish I could make things right, but I just don't remember anything. I apologize for making things difficult for you."

Soundwave wished that Optimus had something to remember. He brushed his fingers against the autobot's wrist joints, and then quickly pulled back self-consciously. He headed out to aimlessly walk about the Nemesis, feeling cowardly for doing so. He'd risk his life any cycle in battle, but facing the mech in his quarters was something altogether impossible.

Tbc…

Oh Soundwave.