Firefly sauntered into the brig with a smile on her face and an energon cube in her hand. Her crimson optics swept over the Autobots assessingly, judging their worth. Truthfully, she could get far more for them than what she was. What a shame she had been in such a good mood that day.
"Looks like you boys will be going home. Well, most of you."
Kup frowned at her. "What are you talking about?"
Firefly slowly walked over to Hot Rod. The scraplet was restrained by chains from the ceiling, his arms pulled high over his head. His feet were bolted to the floor so there was nowhere he could move.
"I think I'll keep you."
"What's going on, Firefly?"
She turned to face the old mech. "Since when do I dance to your tune?"
"You said you'd release us after an orn."
She shrugged one shoulder. "I say a lot of things, the majority are lies. You should remember that for future reference."
He growled. "You vowed."
"That was only if the Autobots came up with the ransom. Which they haven't, so I get to keep one of you. I choose Hot Stuff."
Silence filled the room as her words sank into their slow Autobot processors. She sipped her energon as she watched blue optics widen in concern and fear.
"Why keep the kid? I know more than he ever will."
"That's probably very true, but he's the greater asset."
"What do you mean?" Hot Rod asked.
It wasn't often that the young Autobot spoke in her presence so she rewarded him with an answer. "They'll pay more for you if I provide proof that you continue to function. If I destroy you, I'll never get what I want."
"What about Blurr? He's the intelligence officer."
Firefly nodded and looked over at the stasis pod. "Yes but he doesn't have Springer's stamp of approval. The mighty green glitch will do what I want for the return of his lover, as will Arcee. Better yet, if they decide to try and rescue you, then I'll have three mechs to sell back to the Autobots." She grinned up at the orange and red mech. "I love it when you all play into my hands."
"You do realize we're going to tell them your plans." Kup said. "Your trap will be useless."
Firefly swung back. "I fully intend on that. Tell them my plans, it will just get me what I want. You can't win with me, Kup, not when I hold all the cards."
"You keep saying that, what do you want?"
She looked over her shoulder. "Oh, Hot Rod, that's a loaded question."
Turning, she draped her arms around his neck and started nibbling up the side of his neck as she pressed her body against his. "I want power. I want control. I want revenge. Most of all, I want to destroy all the Autobots." His frame shivered as she traced her glossa around the outside of his audio. "When you find that you can no longer stand their spirit-crushing morality, come join me. I could use a mech with your skills."
She arched into him and sealed their lips together. Damn, the scraplet tasted good. Reluctantly she released him and chuckled. His optics were dazed and his hands twitched in their bonds.
"That offer will definitely be open in the future."
"I liked you better when you were a memory." Kup said behind her.
Firefly turned. "I bet you did. Too bad I came back, huh."
The buzz of a transmission brought her hand up to her audio. She grinned. "The last of the Autobots has arrived. I'll be back, don't go anywhere."
She left the energon cube on a table and exited the room. Hot Rod looked longingly at the shining source of power. His energy levels were drained. He could still taste the energon from her kiss. He looked over at his mentor.
"She knows what she's doing, doesn't she?"
Kup nodded. "She never does anything without it having a purpose. Carelessness isn't something she's familiar with."
Barricade met her at the main entrance. He didn't look confident but Firefly put that down to the close proximity of the Autobots. She surveyed the rest of her escort, a mix of racers and soldiers. Diesel stood to one side looking cocky. Tracer's bland expression wasn't anything new.
"What are you waiting for? Open those doors!" She barked. They scurried.
Barricade appeared next to her. "Is this such a good idea?"
She looked up at his quizzically. "It's always worked in the past."
He nodded but didn't look convinced. The massive doors parted and she strode forwards, the Decepticons falling in behind her.
*Trip-wire, keep all weapons on the Autobots. If they make a move, fire.* She received an affirmative response.
Ultra Magnus stepped forward as her pack approached. Firefly's optics roved over the transports piled high with the things she had ordered. Each one was enclosed so she couldn't see inside. The Decepticons surrounded the Autobots and took away their weapons.
"Very good, Magnus. Is it all here?" She asked as she inspected one of the transports.
"Just about."
She paused and turned to face the much larger mech. "Just about means it isn't all here. I guess Hot Rod will be my guest a little longer."
Off to the side, Springer growled.
"Don't fret, Springer. I'll take very good care of him. I'll even let him recharge in my quarters." She laughed at his dark expression before turning back to Ultra Magnus. "What couldn't you get?"
"The ionic disruptor. They don't exist anymore."
"You could have had one built."
"Not within an orn, and the only engineer that knows how to build it is on Earth."
Firefly pursed her lips, that was unfortunate. The ionic disruptor would have given her an advantage over Shockwave, not to mention the Autobots. You couldn't attack what you couldn't see. She'd researched the distant planet Megatron and Optimus Prime had landed on. A small organic ball that was full of untapped energy resources. She was surprised Megatron hadn't conquered it yet.
"What else?"
Ultra Magnus held out a datapad, she took it and scrolled through the list.
"The artworks you wanted recovered have all disappeared. There is no trail, they just vanished over the years."
Firefly frowned, once again it was unfortunate. The treasures that had once graced the galleries of her citadel were now lost. Damn Shockwave! It was because of him that her entire collection was sold to finance his war against the Autobot rebels. The very same rebels she was making deals with now.
"Is that it or have you failed some more?"
"Everything else you requested is here." He replied stiffly.
"Good." She turned and walked back to where her Decepticons ringed the Autobots. "Pair up, grab an Autobot and go through the transports. Make sure everything is there. If anything is missing let me know."
They split and did as she ordered, only Barricade stayed at her side. A smirk played across her face as she watched the Decepticons manhandling the Autobots. Luckily it was Tracer holding onto Arcee's arm, any other mech would have done something to warrant their deactivation by now. As it was, the Autobots kept close optics on Arcee and Wheelie. One by one the Decepticons reported back the results of their searches.
Firefly looked up at Ultra Magnus, his expression as stony as ever. "You've done well. I'll consider overlooking the minor lapse. Your Autobots will be brought out momentarily."
She sent three of the Decepticons inside to retrieve the prisoners while the rest moved the transports into the main hall.
The Autobots remained tense as they waited. It amused Firefly to watch their reactions whenever a mech appeared on the slope. She was tempted to get a couple of Decepticons to walk past the main entry intermittently just to extend her entertainment.
Eventually two mechs appeared guiding a stasis pod down the slope. They stopped in front of Firefly, she sent them back for the next one.
"As you can see, Blurr is still functional but not operational." She rested a hand on the transparent covering while gazing down at the immobile face. It was bizarre to see the mech that was constantly in motion so still. "I've had him repaired as well as possible. I haven't risked reactivating him, I thought I'd leave that for you."
"Roadbuster, Hot Shot, get Blurr back to base." Ultra Magnus commanded. "I trust we have your protection until we're beyond Polyhex's boundaries."
Firefly nodded. "Of course, when haven't I taken care of you during our exchanges."
The leader nodded and the pair moved forward and took control of the hovering pod.
Kup was next out. He was restrained between two Decepticons with a third holding a gun to the back of his head.
"Causing problems again, Kup?" Springer called.
"No more than usual."
Firefly de-energized the stasis cuffs and the older mech rubbed at his wrists.
"That boy had better be right behind me."
She smirked. "I'm missing a few pieces, so he probably won't."
Arcee glared. "You're going to keep him because of a single disruptor and a handful of paintings?"
"Of course. You're now going bring me another two hundred energon cubes before you get him back."
The Autobots glared at her, Arcee clutching at Springer's arm. It never ceased to amuse Firefly, the Autobots were such easily controlled creatures. Especially when you had the right leverage.
She made a show of thinking. "I suppose you could have him back today…for a price."
"What is it?" Springer demanded.
She watched them for a moment, prolonging the tension. "The location of Elita-1."
They reeled back in horror even as a few processors raced. "That's not an option." Ultra Magnus said finally.
"Is that right? I would have thought parting with information was easier than parting with energon. It's always my choice." She waited for them to think about it. "How big are you energon stores? Can you afford to give me that many energon cubes?"
His serious face was tense. "Elita-1 wasn't part of the deal."
"The disruptor was. Elita-1's location is a fair trade. Actually I could do less damage with the information than I could with the disruptor."
When they continued not to give her the answer she wanted she started getting frustrated, not that she would let them know that.
"Come on, Magnus." She said enticingly. "Just tell me where to find her and you can have Hot Rod back today. Isn't that better than handing over the energon cubes and potentially starving?"
"She's right, Ultra Magnus, we don't have a choice." Kup said reluctantly.
Silence stretched for several clicks and Firefly wasn't sure if the big Autobot was going to cooperate, if he didn't she would have to start torturing the scraplet. Torture wasn't her strong suit, she was better at interrogations. Maybe she could use it as a chance to see what her new recruits could do.
Preoccupied as she was with her thoughts, Firefly didn't see Springer pull a weapon from some hidden compartment on his body.
"Not the wisest move, Autobot." Barricade's rough voice brought her back.
She looked up, Barricade was in front of her and Springer's gun was pointed at his chest. It would have been pointed at Firefly's head if Barricade hadn't moved. "What are you doing?"
"Release Hot Rod now or I shoot."
Firefly raised a brow and shrugged. "Go ahead. He can be replaced."
The Autobots stared at her, her cavalier attitude towards the serious threat surprised them.
"You don't care if I deactivate your second in command?"
"I doubt you'll deactivate him, he's a lot harder to kill than you think. The thing is, as soon as you pull that trigger there's going to be a nice hole where you're standing."
Sharp optics searched the fortress behind her.
"Put it down, Springer." Firefly smiled. "You have three seconds before I have you destroyed. Three…Two…"
"Tyger Pax."
Ultra Magnus' voice drew her away from Springer. "Again?"
"…Tyger Pax."
"Oh, Ultra Magnus, no." Arcee gasped.
A triumphant smile lit up Firefly's face. Finally a lead! Now that bitch's days were numbered.
"Thank you, Ultra Magnus. You can have your reward now. Barricade, remove Springer's weapon and bring out our young guest."
Barricade glared at the green mech as he pulled the gun away and departed.
"You know this information is conditional."
Springer looked ready to argue but Ultra Magnus cut him off before he could begin. "What are your terms?"
"If this information is incorrect, there will be no negotiation for the next Autobot I capture."
"Meaning you'll destroy them straight away." Kup guessed.
"That depends on whether they have anything I want, but yes. You won't get the chance to buy them back."
"That's only if the information is false."
"If you're telling the truth, we continue with our regular business."
"You sicken me." Arcee declared.
Firefly shrugged. "I'll console myself with the memories of how I made Hot Rod writhe."
Barricade chose that moment to bring the Autobot within hearing distance. His optics widened and his electrical field filled with embarrassed waves. Arcee and Springer turned to him in shock.
Firefly didn't stop the slight chuckle that bubbled in her chest, now that was a conversation she wanted to hear!
Now that business was over, she had to start formulating her plan for capturing Elita-1. "Get out of here, Autobots, before I change my mind."
Hot Rod walked between Springer and Arcee. It was tense as they made their way quickly out of the Decepticon stronghold. He could tell they were both angry but he didn't think it had much to do about Firefly's comment. Arcee kept shooting Ultra Magnus dirty looks and Springer just growled, his hand almost crushing Hot Rod's fingers.
"Arcee, stop. He's beating himself up as it is." Kup said.
"So he should." She hissed. "He betrayed Elita."
"It was the only way. We couldn't afford to give her that much energon and we couldn't leave Hot Rod there. No, Springer, we couldn't've attacked. Ultra Magnus did the right thing."
"No, I did the only thing. But I will correct it."
Hot Rod heard the buzz as he contacted Autobot Headquarters.
*Roadbuster, what's Blurr's condition?*
*First Aid is working on him. He should be on his feet in cycles.*
*Excellent. As soon as he is functional, prepare him for a trip to Tyger Pax.* They heard Roadbuster's affirmative reply.
Arcee smiled. "You're going to warn Elita-1."
"That's my boy." Kup crowed.
Hot Rod smiled, Firefly should have known they wouldn't give up Optimus Prime's spark-mate so easily.
Firefly had to wait until the Autobots had disappeared completely before Barricade spoke.
"Go ahead. He can be replaced. Is that the only thing you could think of to say?"
Firefly rolled her optics and smiled. "I did say you were hard to kill."
"Ultra Magnus is hard to kill but you don't see the Autobots painting a target on his head."
She turned towards Darkmount. "You know what the problem is here?"
"You want to use me for smelting materials?"
"I treat you too well."
"Hah!"
"If our relationship was anything like Megatron's and Starscream's, I probably would have beaten you twice today already." She predicated as they climbed the slope.
Barricade snorted. "I think telling Springer to pull the trigger counts towards that."
"You could try and assassinate me if you feel hard done by."
The dark head shook. "I prefer to be the shadow-master and control you from the background."
Firefly snickered and entered the main hall. The transports were uncovered and her optics roved over the extensive collection of equipment. During her mental perusal she locked optics with a familiar face.
"Misfire, good to see you functioning properly."'
He nodded. "I have some information you might be interested in."
"Today must be my lucky day. What have you got?"
"Stormcloud."
Her optics narrowed. "Where?"
"Here in Polyhex."
Firefly's mind raced. If Stormcloud was in Polyhex and she hadn't seen him yet, there was only one place he could be. "Slag."
Barricade grunted an agreement.
"How long has he been there?"
"There's no way to know. I thought you'd want to be told since he was one of your personal guards."
Firefly nodded. It would explain why none of her trackers had been able to locate him, they'd been searching outside the city. "If he's in the Dead End, Why didn't he leave once I reclaimed Polyhex?"
Both bots shrugged. "Could be any number of reasons." Barricade said. "I doubt news travels fast through the Dead End, he might not know you're back."
"He could be so deep in debt that he's embarrassed to come forward." Misfire offered.
Firefly scowled. "One way or the other. I want him found. His administration experience in invaluable. No one else knows how to run my empire."
"The scrapling won't like that." Barricade chuckled. "Demotions shouldn't be this funny."
"Then he shouldn't have gotten himself caught in the Dead End. He knows I hate that place." She sighed. It would serve him right if she let him rust there. Too bad a punishment wasn't effective unless the mech knew he was being punished.
"Send someone down there and find me some rust-infected vagrants. Some that know their way around. I want to spend as little time there as possible."
"You're going to the Dead End?" Misfire asked with a shudder.
"Yes, I'm going to kick Stormcloud's aft myself."
She stalked from the main Hall, leaving Barricade to distribute the cargo.
Sincerely,
TammyCat