XXVI - Keys

Megatron glared down at the Dark Star Saber, that is, what remained of it. "Tell me, Soundwave, how is it that my second's petty little knife managed to do this to my sword!" The warlord's tone shook with rage. All that remained of the once magnificent, violently purple blade was a shard stuck to the hilt. Contrary to what Megatron told Seven, Valor laid innocently next to it, completely intact and unscathed.

Soundwave played a video on his visor. Seven and Megatron were locked in combat, then their swords collided and there was a massive, blinding explosion where the blades had met. The warlord had regained consciousness before any of the Decepticons had ground bridged to the location, however Seven was less fortunate. Megatron remembered pulling himself to his pedes and seeing the Seeker's chassis. Half buried beneath the sand with numerous wounds still trickling energon left the warlord thinking he had expired. All the paint on his front had been stripped away by the force and heat of the blast, and his left arm was contorted at a bad angle beneath him. He looked far from alive, save for the sluggish dripping of energon leaking from his wounds the Dark Star Saber had dealt, proving his pumps still functioned.

Megatron caught himself hoping that was the case. The warlord retrieved his sword, which had been shattered by Valor. The Seeker's scarlet blade, which grants the user significantly enhanced speed, shimmered in the sand a distance away, washed white in the light of the planet's lone moon. He retrieved that as well, a cold fury gripping him.

But when Megatron went over to investigate Seven, he saw the smaller mech's shallow intakes and felt each gentle throb of his spark once he laid two fingers against his neck cables. So he sighed and called for a ground bridge, trying to convince himself that Seven was more valuable to him alive. The warlord's talons dug into his arm but Seven remained like a rag doll, oblivious to his new injury as energon bubbled up around Megatron's fingertips.

After all, the traitorous Seeker knew the location of the Autobot base. And for that alone, he was invaluable.

The video feed cut out with a small burst of static.

"We got Omega Key número uno!" Smokescreen exclaimed, an idiotic, triumphant grin plastered to his faceplates as he held the thing up.

From the platform, Raf was surprised. "¿Puedes hablar en Español?" he asked, adopting an accent.

The young mech's helm swung over to him, "Uh, what?"

The boy shook his head slightly, "Never mind."

Bulkhead ignored them, "But there are still three more we've gotta find."

"And the 'Cons are the only ones with the coordinates," Miko frowned, crossing her arms.

"Hey," Arcee piped up, earning the Autobots' attention, "I should have said this earlier, but I was thinking. Seven cornered me earlier while you were fighting."

"Arcee, are you alright?" Ratchet asked.

"Did he harm you?" Optimus prodded.

"I was worried at first, but no, nothing like that." She answered. "He lunged at me with his sword–faster than what should've been possible, but instead of terminating me, we snuck away from the battle."

"Ooh, romance!" Miko giggled from the platform.

Arcee gave her a patronizing glare, then continued. "My point is that it was an act. All of it. Seven isn't really on Megatron's side—he proved it by saving Optimus, and I made sure he wouldn't do anything to harm us." she added after receiving disbelieving looks. "He won't try anything. So, I told him about the Omega Keys."

"And?" Smokescreen pressed excitedly.

"He's going to get them for us." she stated, "At least, try to."

"Ha! I'd like to see that!" Bulkhead scoffed.

Arcee frowned, "So will I."

"Frag!" I spat. "When is he going to strike?"

Knock Out drummed his fingers on the side of my leg and I kicked at him. "As I said, the Big 'M' wanted me to let him know when you were awake so you could lead it yourself."

Threads of panic wormed their way into my processor, tangling my thoughts. I gagged, but my tank was empty enough that nothing came up. All that high grade, and nothing stayed down. Perhaps, I thought, Knock Out had to siphon the rest of it out. I thought darkly.

My voice was staticky, "Correct me if I am wrong, but Lord Megatron now knows of the Omega Keys' existence," I began to tick them off on my fingers, "the location of the Autobot base, Starscream's demise, and unless if I am mistaken, Valor is shrapnel. Did I miss anything?"

"One would hope so," Knock Out replied dryly. "You fragged up royally."

I huffed, looking away. "If that wretched femme hadn't shot me, neither of us would be here right now."

"Look on the bright side, Seven," Knock Out broke in, trying to sound upbeat, "if she hadn't and we remained with the Autobots, we'd still be at square one. Now, we have access to the Iacon database and the Keys' location, that is, once Soundwave finishes decoding them."

"And that is precisely the problem. Soundwave won't come to us about their location, now will he? Did you think we weren't going to have to steal it? Although that would be nice…" I grumbled, pacing back and forth.

"Back up, what about their base? There won't be any Autobots to bring the Omega Keys to if you blow them sky high!" Knock Out reminded.

"Then what am I supposed to do?" I snapped, "Megatron has me in a corner! Either I join my double at his servo, or terminate my only allies! My friends!" My voice grew shrill.

The door to the bay opened, and a certain warlord stepped through, uninvited. I stiffened, hoping with all my spark he hadn't heard. "I hope I am not intruding," he cocked his helm slightly, implying that he didn't care and had heard everything. My tank suddenly found itself in my pedes.

Knock Out waved a servo, "Not at all, my Lordship. To what do we owe the honor?"

"I merely wanted to check upon our dear Seeker's condition." He replied innocently. The larger mech looked to me with concern in his optics. I couldn't discern if it was genuine or not, and that disturbed me. "How are you?"

I ruffled my wings and swung the arm that was in a sling, making sure he noticed. "Are there not more important matters warranting your attention?

"None that I need deal with at this very second."

"It was a rhetorical question." I replied hotly.

He stepped away and opened a comm, speaking to the air. "Dreadwing, meet Seven and I on the bridge immediately." The warlord cast a sideways, knowing glance at me, "We have a long-awaited victory to seize."

Megatron folded his servos behind his back and turned for face me. I stood up straighter, staring him in the optic with every bit of defiance I could muster. "Seven, Dreadwing has standing orders to terminate you if you even think of joining their ranks once again, am I clear?"

"Like glass, Master."

"Good. Dreadwing," he turned to his first lieutenant, "your presence is merely to watch and monitor Seven's actions."

"With all due respect, my liege, Soundwave is better suited for that task than I." The large Seeker rumbled.

"Soundwave," Megatron began, not even glancing at the silent mech standing behind him at a console, "is better suited decoding the last four relics' coordinates."

"Of course, Ma–"

I broke in, "My Lord, when shall we–"

"Silence! Do not interrupt your superiors!" Megatron roared, stepping up close to me.

I hung my helm, giving the floor between my pedes a death stare. "Yes, apologies, my liege. I merely have yet to grow accustomed to–"

"Silence!" He barked again. "Perhaps, Seven, you should take a cue from Soundwave once in awhile and keep things to yourself."

My wings drooped even further and I muttered a quiet "Yes, Master."

Satisfied, Megatron looked to Dreadwing once again. The blue Seeker wore a smug smirk that I wanted to wash off his faceplates with his energon. My servos balled into fists and I ignored the pain coming from my left.

"When shall we depart?" he asked.

"Immediately. Take a squadron of drones with you, given his incompetence," the silver mech jerked his helm at me. My servos clenched tighter.

Dreadwing gave him a shallow, respectful bow as the warlord turned away, striding over to check Soundwave's progress. "As you wish, my Lord." Together, we walked out into the hall, knowing we were dismissed.

I turned to the larger Seeker, "I shall collect the Vehicons, meet me on the flight deck."

"You do not give the orders here, clone." The larger Seeker growled.

My wings fluttered, "My mistake, Commander." I strode away, cutting off any opportunity for him to speak again. I had other things in mind than getting drones.

My phone suddenly rang, right in the middle of our lab in science class. The familiar opening riffs of "Robot Rock" by Daft Punk sounded out from my backpack, a bit muffled as I hastily tugged off my gloves with my teeth, fairly certain there wasn't any acid on them (OSHA would not approve). I hurried over to silence the ringer.

"Is that urgent?" My teacher asked, leaning over. I started, not having realized she was over here.

I checked the display for the caller ID. Seven's flustered faceplates stared up at me, the picture being the one Miko took in our base awhile ago. I glanced at my teacher to make sure she hadn't seen and answered it, keeping the volume off. "Yeah, can I go take it?" I jerked my thumb at the door, bouncing on the balls of my feet.

"Be quick about it, this lab is worth a large portion of your grade. Make sure to download the worksheet on pH for tomorrow, you'll need to neutralize compounds, remember, that's number seven…"

I closed the door to the classroom, standing in the deserted hallway, looking out a window. I pressed my cell to my ear, "Sev, what's wrong? Everyone at the base is saying you joined the 'Cons again! No one's heard from you in forever! Man, what gives?!"

The silver Seeker sighed on the other end, sounding weary. "They aren't wrong."

"What!?" I almost dropped my phone.

"It wasn't by entirely choice, I don't know what I was thinking then! But listen!" He snapped, and his tone took on a high note of fear. "Megatron is forcing Dreadwing and I–"

"Who?"

"This toadying blue Seeker, my Lord's new second-in-command." the mech growled, "but Megatron is–is going to make me annihilate the Autobot base. I can't stop it. He knows where it is, Oliver!"

I shoved my fist in my mouth to stifle a gasp. "How do we stop him?"

"Did you not just hear me? We can't! Clear everyone out of the base with everything of importance, but you only have an hour! I'm stalling as it is! Tell the Autobots to go to my half of the Harbinger, and I'll meet them there as soon as I can with the Omega Keys in servo."

"I-I don't know how I'll–"

"I don't care!" He shrieked, incenting me to hold the phone further away. "You have to get them out of there, understand me?!" A student passed me in the hallway giving me a strange look as she twirled an earbud, teal-dyed hair shining in the light from the ceiling.

"Why are you calling me instead of calling the Autobots directly?" I shot back after waiting for her to walk out of earshot. "And why didn't you call earlier!?"

"Do you think that would actually work from the warship? All comm signals, ingoing and outgoing, are tracked from here. It was a huge risk to contact you, and you will have to dispose of your phone or change its number as soon as possible. The Decepticons might have already found your position. And I was… preoccupied." It went without saying that he was hiding something, but there was no time to question him.

"Like they care where I go to school."

"Shut up!" He screeched, "Just go, GO!"

"Alright, alright! I'll be as fast as I can, and I'll tell my mom and Will so they can help–"

"No!"

"What? Why?"

"There isn't time!" The link cut out.

"Seven?" I pressed my phone to my ear, "Seven?" I turned it off, stuffing it into the same pocket. I ran back into the classroom and snagged my backpack, right past the teacher. "I need to go," I said to her.

She looked about to reply, but I was already out the door and sprinting towards Will's classroom. I walked the last few steps, evening out my breaths and straightened my hair so it didn't look like I had been running. I gingerly opened the door and stepped over the threshold, looking to the teacher.

"May I grab Will? He's… uh, needed for the school yearbook." I lied innocently.

"Absolutely," She smiled, stopping in the middle of what looked like a cubic graph. She looked to him, sitting the back of the class, zipping his backpack closed. "Will, you are free to go with—Oliver, is it?"

"Yeah."

"Just be sure to do tonight's homework."

He smirked at her lightly, "Polynomials? It'll be a cinch."

We walked out of the room together and he planted his hands on his hips in a no-nonsense stance. "Spill."

I quickly relayed what Seven had told me, speaking so fast that I tripped over several syllables.

"What! What are you waiting for? We've gotta go!" He gasped, pulling me along as we broke into a run.

I steered us into the boys' bathroom, startling a freshman. He ran out without a backward glance. I turned my phone on again, this time dialing for the Autobot base's main comm.

Ratchet's irritated voice answered after exactly two rings. "Yes? What is it, Oliver?"

"Listen, the 'Cons know your base's location. You all have to clear out of there, now! They're going to blow it sky high within a couple hours! Take everything valuable, like the relics and energon, leave the rest!" I said urgently. "Send a bridge, we can help!"

Ratchet gasped, "Are you certain of this?!"

"More than anything in my life."

"Who is 'we'?"

"Me and Will."

"I am not sending a ground bridge! You will only risk yourselves further when it is unnecessary, and I cannot condone that again!"

"What! Doc, we can help!" Will interjected.

"My answer is final! Contact your mother and the other children, inform them of the situation. I need to reach the others."

"They aren't there with you?" I exclaimed.

"Only Bumblebee," the medic replied, and the scout chirped from somewhere behind him. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to comm Agent Fowler and the others." He hung up.

I shut off my phone, and Will looked to me. "Well, that was rude of him."

I clapped a hand to my head, "I just remembered! Fowler is here today, lecturing kids about joining the armed forces!"

He looked at me, astonished, "You've got to be joking."

"Would I joke about this?" I shot back.

We raced off to the gym, where he was speaking. But he wasn't there. He was in a staff lounge, sipping at a cappuccino with disinterest while scrolling through the news on a computer.

"Agent Fowler, Agent Fowler!" I panted, charging into the room with Will at my heels. Thankfully, no one else, least of all teachers, were in there with us.

"What is it? I am busy–Oliver? Will?"

"That's Mr. President to you," Will crossed his arms.

The man stood up abruptly, "What is it? Why are you here? I can't be bothered, I'm getting ready to give my next lecture–"

"Yes, we know." I broke in. "We go to school here…" I told him the same thing I told Will: Seven's frantic doomsday message.

He nodded somberly, "I need to get a hold of the doc." He flipped open his phone—an honest-to-goodness flip phone, and put it to his ear. "Ratchet? This is an emergency! Send a ground bridge, now!" One opened a few steps in front of us.

"You've got to be kidding me," Will huffed, walking through it. Agent Fowler and I followed.

My engine screamed over the wind as I shot down towards the distant Autobot base, the flat tip of the missile silo protruding from the top of the butte like a little silver cap. True to his word, Knock Out's sling did the trick. Flying felt no different than normal. Dreadwing followed a short distance behind me with a small fleet of drones fanned out behind him. Save for us and the wind, all was quiet. Too quiet. The sun was setting on the horizon to our backs, washing the burnt-orange landscape in a darker hue of red. I adjusted my flaps as a sudden gust tried to buffet me downwards. My engine sputtered in irritation.

"What is it?" Dreadwing asked. Our proximity was such that he had no need for the comm.

"Turbulence, Commander." I replied stiffly.

"See to it that you stay the course, we do not want to disappoint our master."

"Of course, sir."

We were coming very close to their base indeed, I could make out the lines signifying the separations of metal plates on the flat door atop the butte. I remembered the first and last time I had stood atop it, hungry, fatigued, cold, and ailing from the shadow zone's effects to boot. But inside was a different story. The base I had come to think of as "home," and all the bots, even humans inside of it were, for lack of a better word, my friends. And I was about to blow it all to smithereens.

I did a barrel roll to the left, wanting the feeling of the air around my fuselage and wings to vanish. I straightened back on course and neither Dreadwing nor the drones made any comment of it. We flew closer and closer to the base, and I flew slower and slower, wanting to stop circumstances as much as possible. I hoped and prayed with all my spark that everyone had gotten out of there. I hadn't been able to contact anyone, not even Oliver, to make sure they were safe before Dreadwing came to see why I wasn't fetching the Vehicons. It was nauseating to think about.

"Why are you slowing?" Dreadwing growled, "The longer we fly, the more time the wretched Autobots have to escape."

"As I am well aware," I hissed beneath my vocalizer.

"Then be swift, unless you wish to earn an even swifter termination."

I halted in midair, "I can't… I can't do this! I can't terminate them!" Dreadwing looped around in a sharp arc, halting meters in front of me.

"You will. That is an order from Megatron, and mark my words, it is one you shall follow through with. They have brainwashed you into believing they were your allies–"

"No, you are the one here who's brainwashed!" I snapped. "Can't you see that this war will never end, not unless Megatron is finished?! We must unite against him, or risk exterminating our race, along with our dead planet! There are two sides to every war, and you are on the wrong one! Skyquake learned the hard way," I hissed quietly.

"There are also two sides to every coin, and it seems you got the tail end of Starscream's, clone." He rumbled, making the word a derogatory slur. "Destroy the Autobots' base, or face execution."

"Go ahead," I snarled, taking him aback, "terminate me. Here and now. I'm sure the Autobots are watching. So go on, what are you waiting for? Make me a martyr." A morbid grin twisted my faceplates, albeit he couldn't see in my jet mode.

He snarled quietly to himself, "Do not think we are finished," the blue jet swung around and took up his position directly behind me, "or that I will not shoot you out of the sky if you dare hesitate again."

I remained silent, a grim determination settling over me. We descended upon the base's roof, casting slanting shadows over its angular surface. I readied my missiles, hating myself with every circuit in my chassis as I fired. The drones joined in and I killed my engine right in front of Dreadwing, falling into the plume of fire erupting from what used to be their base. He would have to be mad to dive after me. Anyone would have had to have been, and who knew? Maybe I had a couple screws loose after all.

But that was fine by me.