My Madness, My Saving Sanity

Chapter Nineteen: Infiltration

By: Nightelfcrawler

Author's note: While this is G1 based, I've made Starscream a blend of his G1 and Armada personalities just because I find the dichotomy of it fascinating. It takes place in no particular timeline, following no particular events. Also, please review politely. If you haven't something nice to say, keep it to yourself please. Also, I despise nitpicking, please don't make comments about grammar or single spelling mistakes. Enjoy the story, don't be picky.

Further note: I have officially finished the story, so I'll be posting the chapters quicker now. Once done here, it's on to the How it Will Be story I've been working on. Anyone with ideas they might like to see, feel free to email them to me! I have the plot down, but I would welcome any input for things people might like implemented in the story.

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Thundercracker was worried.

It wasn't often that he felt this feeling as of late, but he had good reason to feel concerned. He was currently crouched low behind some barrels of energon in the hangar of the Decepticon base, watching his own former comrades chat cheerily over some overturned crates, cards spread before them laughing as they over energized on high-grade. Beside him crouched three unlikely allies, his wing mate, Skyfire who was trying his best to hunch over in order to remain hidden, and Mirage who was currently ensuring they weren't spotted. Had he known months ago he'd be sneaking back into his own base with Autobots in order to break into his Commander's private files he would have checked himself in for a tune-up.

Nonetheless, here they were.

"How are we going to get past them?" Whispered Skyfire. "There's no way Mirage can conceal us all."

"No, I can't." The mech confirmed quietly, watching the Constructicons indulging with a few others, laughing raucously. "I could do two runs, if we're careful, and Skywarp can get himself into the hallway on his own, but I only have so much energy. Is there an easier way?"

"Well…" Skywarp said slowly with a smirk. "If we wait long enough they could pass out… or we could walk by them and they wouldn't know it was us since they'd be so fragged up."

"I don't think even they could be that drunk, Warp."

"Sure they could." His wing mate said with a darker grin, pulling out something small from a hidden compartment and holding it up. Everyone stared at it.

"What is that…?"

"Oh, just a little something Wheeljack whipped up for me."

Everyone instinctively took a step back. "Are you NUTS?!" Thundercracker hissed. "And you plan on putting that in their energon?!"

"It won't blow up, he tested it." Skywarp said stiffly. "I watched." The gathered mechs stared at him incredulously. "What? It packs a punch ok? I erm… tried it out."

Thundercraker slapped his face into his hand. "Moron."

"Nothing's done right unless ya do it yourself, isn't that what Screamer'd say?"

"Not when it comes to testing unknown substances created by a mad scientist. Primus, Warp no wonder you're dull on the mental scale if you drink stuff like that without thinking."

"Humph, fine then." Skywarp said moodily. "Don't use it."

"Hey, didn't say we wouldn't."

"Then get over there and put it in their drinks." He shoved the vial at Mirage. "I'll distract them."

"How… exactly?" Mirage asked slowly.

"Easy." Skywarp grinned cheerfully, then vanished.

"Oh Primus… what's he up to now." Thundercracker muttered as everyone watched tensely for some kind of sign as to what Skywarp was about to do. They didn't have to wait long. Out of nowhere, something near the exit exploded, sending cold coolant spraying into the hangar with a hiss of white steam. Instantly the Decepticons were in an uproar as the misty fog began to fill the room.

"Frag it, turn that slaggin' thing off will ya Scrapper?!"

"Why do I gotta do it. You go climb up there and cap it."

"Slag no… I'm not climbin' up some unsteady pile of scrap."

"Fine I'LL do it, slaggers."

While they argued, no one noticed the small distortion of the mist as an invisible figure moved silently through the hangar, slipping the small vial into each of their beverages before slipping back behind the crates to re-join his cohorts. Skywarp was already back and watching with amusement. It didn't take the Decepticons long to stop the small coolant break, and soon they returned to their drinks, downing more mouthfuls as they returned to their conversations. But then, as the gathered mechs watched, one by one the Decepticons began to nod off, going into recharge right at the table, until all of them were silent or snoring, completely unaware that their drinks were still sitting half empty on the table.

"Nice…" Skyfire said, obviously impressed. "What did you say was in that?"

"No idea. But like I said, they'll sleep like sparklings and wake up with a hell of a headache."

"I gotta hand it to you, 'Warp…" Thundercracker said with a smile. "I think some of Screamer's intelligence wore off on you."

"Primus, I hope not!"

The four mechs slowly snuck out of their hiding place and past the snoozing Decepticons with no trouble. As they paused at the hangar's entrance, Thundercracker scanned his radar. It was obvious that it would be too much trouble for Soundwave to reprogram all of the Decepticons's signals, therefore he was still able to detect where everyone was in the base. "Clear." He whispered quietly. "No one's within several meters of our route… we'll just have to watch out for Soundwave or his cassettes."

"Where are they?" Skyfire asked softly.

"The cassettes aren't on our radars, never were…Soundwave made them that way." Skywarp made a face. "Annoying fraggers…"

"Yeah… but they're also never far from their master unless he sends them on a mission… We're fairly safe as long as we keep our optics peeled. Mirage should lead just in case when we go around corners. Once we're in Starscream's quarters though…" He shook his head. "Soundwave might have had it sealed or bugged, so we'd better be ready for anything, whether it's fighting or defending while we finish getting the data."

"Speaking of the fragger…" Skywarp said in a low voice. "I'm expecting he'll know we're here… so be ready to silence him before he sends out a mental warning."

"If he finds we're here, it'll be too late to do anything about it. He's smart. He'll send out a warning before letting us know he knows we're here."

"And if we run into Megatron?"

Everyone fell silent. "Let's hope we don't." Thundercracker said quietly.

"If we do, run like the pit." Skywarp muttered. "Every mech for themselves."

The group slowly moved down the hallway. They hadn't been sure that Perceptors' dampening signal device would hide them from being detected, but as no alarms had gone off yet, they were fairly sure it was working. But a signal dampener didn't stop them from being physically spotted if they weren't careful. Luckily, choosing to come in late at night was a good idea, as most of the 'cons were in recharge in their private quarters, thus the halls were mostly deserted. Mirage checked the corridors before they made the turns, Thundercracker kept an eye on their radar, while Skywarp and Skyfire kept their guns ready. Skyfire looked decidedly uncomfortable carrying the rifle, but his grip was firm. This mission was important to him after all. It was his closest friend's well-being they were after, and he had an invested interest like the other Seekers. Skywarp on the other hand did have a reputation for being too trigger happy, and was itching to fire off a shot or two. Nonetheless, their journey through the base was flawless as they neared the former Decepticon Air Commanders' quarters. It became even more tense as their sharp optics spotted a more foreboding room across the hall. Megatron's door was thick, pitted and unmarked… nonetheless, they knew behind the double iron layers was sleeping a terribly dangerous giant should they wake him. Thundercracker urged silence as they slipped past, his radar indicating that the Decepticon leader was indeed within his quarters, likely recharging…. But it was hard to tell with him. They moved on silent feet until they arrived at Starsream's door.

Sure enough, a blinking light was red on the pass code panel. Thundercracker glanced to Skyfire, who nodded and carefully began to pry off the panel, and studying the wire connectors to try and hotwire it open without triggering any alarm. They sat there in silence, huddled together terrified what might happen if someone found them there in plain view. But after a few long moments, a light 'bleep' sounded and the door slid open on silent tracks. Quickly they piled inside and the door shut again, after Skyfire replaced the panel. He then input a code into the panel on this side of the door, and the indicator turned red again, locking the door. "Ok… we should be safe." He whispered softly. "Let's just check for any bugs…"

Mirage, who was observant in stealth did a quick analysis. "Was some in here a while ago, but nothing's active… seems Megatron liked watching his Second in Command…"

"He didn't trust him as far as he could throw him." Thundercracker agreed. "But to Starscream's credit, he did know how to re-route Megatron's own bugs against him."

"Intriguing." Skyfire said as he studied one of the hidden cameras that had been secured in a crease between panels. "He mounted a re-route to a display device here… playing a feedback signal."

"Figures. The watched knew he was being so, and rigged a way to teach his superior not to pry." Mirage chuckled. "I never respected how smart Starscream was until now."

"Oh you haven't seen anything yet." Thundercracker muttered, glancing around the room.

"Primus." Mirage said as he finally realized what a complete trashed mess the large chamber was. "What happened here?"

"Megatron threw a temper tantrum, looks like." Skywarp said cheerfully, leaning down to turn the recharge berth back upright.

"He trashed anything useful…" Skyfire muttered, taking in the dented walls, the smashed equipment and shattered data pads. "Probably read it all first… I'm not sure we'll find what we've come for…"

"No, if I knew Starscream as a young scientist, he would have taken precautious to protect the more important data somehow…" Skyfire murmured, staring around at the trashed room. He knelt down and began to sort through the broken glass and metal, looking for something. The others tried to look, but came up empty. There wasn't a single piece of equipment that was intact in this place, nothing whole, nothing unmarred. Even the walls had deep gouges and dents….

Gouges and dents… "Hey, Skyfire." Thundercracker suddenly said as a thought came to him. He approached the wall by Starscream's recharge berth and ran his fingers in some of the grooves cut there. They were cut in very specific patterns, he realized… these grooves weren't created by Megatron's wrath, but slender fingers… Seeker's fingers, spread wide. He opened his palm and pressed it into the grooves. It was of course a perfect fit, as he was the same model as his Air commander. There was a distant click of something unhitching, and Skyfire turned in time to see part of the wall panel near his elbow push out. He blinked at the seeker who simply grinned and shrugged. "Work with him long enough, you learn how he thinks too."

Skyfire smiled thinly, then with Skywarp's help pulled the panel off careful not to let it drop and cause a loud ruckus. They placed it aside then stepped back.

Sure enough, hidden behind several pipes and carefully constructed diversions, was a small lab tucked back hidden in the spare wall space between Starscream's room, and what appeared to be one of the fan circulation centers. Air flowed freely in the duct, and the small lab was rather noisy as a result, but the computer consoles that had been constructed there were hidden not only by the vibrations from the fan's movement, but the energy output from the generators nearby. No one would have known if a little extra power were going to the fans. The four moved into the room, replacing the panel to carefully cover their tracks, and crowded inside the small room. "Primus… he built this himself?" Mirage asked obviously even more impressed.

"He always was brilliant." Skyfire murmured. "I was confused when I found out he'd gone towards war rather than science… you can't just suppress a mind like his… it seemed he found a way to still have an output for his interests at least."

"Help me hook this up." Mirage said, pulling the small portable hard-drive from Skyfire's compartment as the large mech knelt next to the console, powering it up. The screens lit as Mirage connected the cables, but stopped at a prompt.

"Slag… what kind of password would he use?"

They sat there for what seemed like cycles trying different combinations. The screen blinked blithely at them at every wrong entry, making no sound as they expected from a hidden device. But it did irritate them to no end. "Ok… I'm run dry." Thundercracker said with a sigh, leaning back as his latest attempt failed. "I have no idea…"

"Come on, you shared his consciousness for a while you must have SOME idea…"

"Nope… tried 'em all."

"Let me try a few…" Skyfire said, giving it his best try. Unfortunately, his entries were no more accepted than Thundercracker's. "Iacon… no… Science… no… Gamma-142… no…"

"Have you tried Skyfire?"

"What the frag does it look like I'm doing?" The scientist sighed, giving Skywarp a long look that said he was trying to keep his patience.

"No…" The purple seeker said calmly, crossing his arms. "Try 'Skyfire' as a password."

The scientist blinked. "What?" he said blankly.

"Yeah, 'Warp might be on to something…" Thundercraker said, immediately intrigued. "This would be before he knew you were alive… you were important to him, reminded him of the scientist he wanted to be… Try it."

Skyfire shook his head bemused, but turned back to the console and carefully typed in his own name. They waited with baited breath, and then the console lit up with text. "Primus…. Starscream you sentimental sparkling…" He smiled lightly. "All right… let's see if we find what we're looking for." He began to go through the files. There were all kinds of logs, diagnostics, and files and files of musings and data. Rants, that were slightly amusing as they read the first few words mostly about Starscream's commander. However after many piles of data, Skyfire paused at a particular file and whistled low. "Well I'll be…"

"What?" Skywarp leaned in, optics wide. "Did you find it?"

"No… but I think we might want to download this." He pulled up the file and stared at what was displayed. "I do believe these are the schematics for his infamous null-rays."

"Primus… Ratchet would LOVE those…" Mirage murmured.

"He'll need them if he's going to rebuild them for him." Skyfire murmured, and marked the file for transfer before continuing. They didn't find anything else of immediate interest, until finally he paused and stared intently at the screen. "I think I found it." He pulled up the file, which was encrypted and seemed to take up most of the database. "It's big…. But I think it'll fit. This has to be it." He studied it carefully. "It's marked only as 'backup'. It could just be data he's backed up from his research, but considering that there doesn't seem to be much else here, I'm guessing this is what we're looking for."

"Let's do it then."

They gathered the data and carefully slipped back out of Starscream's hidden lab, closing it tightly back up in order to preserve anything they could from Megatron's clutches. Likely if he'd known they were in here, Starscream would have ordered them to trash the computer to keep it safe, but somehow doing that seemed like sacrilege to the 3 wing mates of their fallen commander, and Mirage wasn't about to do it himself. So far, it had been a smooth operation.

Unfortunately, their sparks nearly leapt out of their chambers when the four of them opened the door preparing to leave, only to find Soundwave standing right in the doorway, waiting for them.

"Oh frag." Skywarp whimpered.

Thundercracker tensed, knowing that right now they were in deep slag. There was NOTHING they could do to stop Soundwave from knowing exactly why they were here, with two Autobots nonetheless, and nothing stopping him from sounding the alarm.

Yet… it was eerily quiet.

No one moved for a time, until finally Thundercracker spoke up warily. "What are you doing here, Soundwave?"

"Question: illogical. Correct query: What are YOU doing here?" Was the monotone response, flat and expressionless as always.

"Um… reminiscing about old times?" Skywarp asked with nervous cheeriness. Soundwave didn't appear to acknowledge his attempt at humor.

"You haven't triggered the alarm." Thundercracker pointed out, glancing nervously over to Skyfire and Mirage, both who had death grips on their guns, pointed right at the Communications Officer. "Why?"

There was a long pause as the glowing red visor seemed to regard him more intently than the others, though it was nearly impossible to distinguish Soundwave's optics behind the glass. When he spoke, it might have been the Seeker's imagination, but it sounded as if he was being wary about his words. "Megatron's psyche: questionable. Leadership Ability: disqualified."

That floored them all. "Dude… you're telling us!" Skywarp said with an expunge from his vents, slapping a hand to his head. "He's sacked nearly half his troops! I'm surprised YOU'RE still around."

"Probably the only mech he trusts…" Thundercracker muttered. "He should trust you least, now that I think of it."

"Assumption: correct."

Everyone turned to stare at Soundwave again. "You're… ok now I'm confused." Skywarp muttered. "Are you HELPING us? Last I knew you're the one that fragged up our wing mate in the first place!"

Soundwave actually shifted on his feet in a rather uncomfortable pose. "Megatron's Leadership: unsuitable. Starscream's leadership: preferable. Initial assumption: incorrect."

"What about YOU leading?" Mirage asked suspiciously. "We always speculated you might be next in line. You or Shockwave."

"Shockwave: cut off from Decepticon forces. Soundwave: illogical."

"Interesting." Skyfire commented with an amused tone. "So you would rather follow than lead. I suppose I can understand that. Whatever your underlying goals, we appreciate your assistance in this matter."

"Dude, Skyfire… thanking Soundwave is a waste of air." Skywarp whispered. "He couldn't give a frag."

"Gratitude: unnecessary."

"See what I mean?"

"So what do YOU get out of this, Soundwave?" Mirage asked slowly. "Why help Starscream best Megatron? I thought you were loyal to him."

"Megatron: unstable. Decepticons: disorganized. Starscream: superior option."

"Now that's something I NEVER thought I'd hear from anyone, claiming Screamer was superior to anyone other than himself…"

"There's a first for everything."

"So what do you want from us then, if you're not going to turn us in?"

Soundwave regarded them stoically. "Suggestion: repair Starscream, replace Megatron."

"And you're going to help us with this?"

"Correct."

The four glanced at each other. Well… never look a gift horse in the mouth, as the humans put it. It was strange how you found unlikely allies in the most unusual places. With Soundwave's help they went completely undetected in and out of the Decepticon base without firing a single shot.