Only three Earth months had gone by since he was given the human as a slave. And while, for the most part, everything passed uneventful, it did lead to some rather disturbing circumstances that Thundercracker was at odds at how to process and handle.
"What is your designation?" Hearing himself ask, jolted his system. To even want to know was a warning that he probably shouldn't have ignored. Of course, there was also that he was accustomed to and no longer minded the human femme being around him that was an early alert all on its own.
The girl was polishing some of his tools, one of the odd jobs he had found for her to do. The two alone for a rather lengthy time was not unusual anymore. But the silence Thundercracker interrupted himself was an unorthodox occasion. The human stopped what she was doing for a moment before resuming as if she didn't hear.
"Your name, human. What is your name?" Impatience was evidently marked in his vocals. The Air Commander was unaccustomed to being ignored.
Again, she stopped. Head lifting, then dropping, a soft breath was released. "Does it truly matter?" she replied, there was anger in her tone that had probably been simmering for some time. Their conversations were few. She had a long while to hold the emotion in.
"No. But I tire of calling you human or fleshbag or..."
"Slave?" she interrupted.
"You may look at me while we converse," he permitted. His inflection softened in tone.
"No need. I have nothing to say to you. And I am sure, my Lord, you have far more important things to do." Her tone was low yet subtly aggressive, a hostility beneath her words that she didn't seem to realize she broadcasted until it was through.
He watched her stiffen, and his sensors marked that her heart picked up its pace. TC shifted to get a better view. Her head lowered as she stood on the worktable below, eyes directed forward the human stared.
"Alexis, my name is Alexis," she said. Face lifting, she slowly but cautiously glanced up.
"Alexis," Thundercracker repeated. His optics roamed over her as he tried to merge the name with the femme below him. "That is an unusual designation."
Her eyebrows scrunched at that, and for the first time since he acquired the human her mouth curled upwards as she smiled.
The human wasted no time in her reply, "So is Thundercracker."
Starscream was bored. And boredom for him was not a good thing nor for anyone around him. Once more, he was playing a game of telidaw, once more he had downed more than a few high grades as yet again the conversation became redundant. An idea sprang that came from his off and on observation of humans.
Words flowed out of him, his vocals dull and heavy with languidness. "Have you seen what humans do to pleasure one another?"
There wasn't much of an answer, but as many of his conversations could go it wasn't necessary.
"You, human." Starscream pointed to Barricade's slave.
The male tensed with fear from being spoken to by someone of his obviously ranking stature. The boy stepped forward, bowing low on his knees. He was steadier than Starscream would have expected. But obviously the human had been worked over rather adequately by Barricade, which in all likelihoods gave him a different perspective on fear than most. The Seeker supposed he could appreciate that even as he indirectly saw it as a challenge.
The Air Commander searched for the precise word. Just when he was about to give up, and start making a motion with his hands, the word blasted into his processor, a devious smile building on his angular refined continence.
"Kiss that human." Starscream gesticulated to his slave, a creature whom even then he didn't bother to really glance at.
The male jumped up to his feet, rushing toward the female as he pounced on her. Mouths connected in a disjointed fashion then parted quickly.
"Again," Starscream commanded.
Snickering and laughter began around the game table. Skywarp burst forth with enthusiastic jibing as the male commenced once more. He couldn't tell if they enjoyed it. And it didn't look like anything pleasurable, but appeared rather disgusting and somehow comical.
"Now that one," Barricade said, thrusting his telidaw pieces down on the table.
The game was postponed as the Decepticons had their fun. Starscream pushed the slave toward another female, the contact initiated once more. This time the female chosen lit up on the Seeker's thermal scanners, a spark of heat spreading through her body. The girl's hands wandered up the male's arms. Jerking, he pulled back, a look of disgust appearing on his features before he quickly washed it away with indifference.
"Now that one." Skywarp gestured to the last female slave who was sitting motionlessly between himself and TC.
The male turned around, his eyes finding the object of his next contact. It was the boy who heated up this time. He made his way to the female as he stood above her.
"Stand up," the human said, suddenly enjoying his delegated task.
The girl shook her head firmly.
"Use force, fleshbag," Barricade commanded of his slave, and the male did not need any urging from there.
The girl was forced up, the male holding her arms tight as he started the supposed pleasurable proceeding once more. It was the shortest out of them all. The male yelped out, a hand going to his mouth where small droplets off blood were escaping. With a speed he didn't know humans capable of the finale female bunched up her fist, smashing it against the male's nose.
"Don't touch me!" she shrieked as she backed up, her head shifting back and forth as if looking for cover. Finding none, the female sat back down where she had been. Head lowering, her hand moved forward as she wiped off her mouth.
There were roars of laughter this time, everyone finding amusement except for one.
Thundercracker.
He just sat there with his hands tight around a mug of high grade, optics seared onto the metal container. That is until Barricade moved, his digit tapping against TC's slave. Then Thundercracker's optics drifted sharply as he followed the line of movement. His digits unwrapped from the mug to flatten heavily upon the table.
"You've obtained quite a lively specimen, Thundercracker. What do you say you add the human to your last bet? I wouldn't mind winning it. She promises a couple of moments of interest," Barricade said, his tone lively with several depths of malevolent intent.
Right before his digit was to make contact with the female again, the blue Seeker came to life, swiping it aside as he pushed the organic back and out of the way.
"I believe not," Thundercracker replied, using a tone of voice that Starscream knew well. One that outwardly was devoid of all emotions even as there was danger simmering underneath.
"Favoring a human over a fellow Con?" Barricade asked, his attention now even more firmly placed on the object he coveted. "Oh, I see... you want a flat out payment. How many credits do you want for it?"
"More than you could possibly afford," TC said, a dangerous undertone marking his words that the Decepticon scout was little aware of.
"How much for just a cycle?" Barricade continued, an optic ridge rising as the two negotiating Decepticons locked optics.
"And have her come back to me broken after all the time it took me to train her? Break your own slaves. This one is mine."
"Fine, keep the vermin," the hunter relented. "But when you're ready to dispose of it, let me. I always do enjoy a little sport before a termination."
Starscream observed Thundercracker, knowing that if Barricade kept hassling his fellow Seeker, that soon enough things would turn to violence. And while he was never against a good beat down that too seemed rather dull.
So he interrupted, his words bursting forth with an air of finality, "Enough of this slag. TC, Warp, you're with me. It's time for us to find some real entertainment."
"What about us?" Demolisher piped up, grabbing his credits off the table he stood. "We like entertainment as much as the next Con."
"Return to your stations," Starscream ordered, "this outing is for Seekers only." He nodded toward Skywarp. His wingmate grinned wide, knowing exactly what was in store.
With a flash and a sudden feeling of displacement, they were whisked away from the dull base. The three transformed as the jets cut through the sky. Aerial entertainment commenced until they broke free of Earth's atmosphere. Skywarp warped them farther and farther away until running low on energy, they finished the rest of the trip on their own thrusters.
Landing on the planet, Rendarm, they followed familiar telemetry until soon enough they stood before a large building. Light glittered bright on its board, a name flashing above their heads that was blatantly obvious and openly broadcasting its function. Walking inside many an optic turned Starscream's way. The thrill and fear at his very presence spread through the atmosphere. Whispers and murmurings started, the establishment clearing of some of the weak-sparked as with all due haste and expected consideration, they were each led to their own private chamber.
Soon enough Starscream was joined by a saucer opticed femme, his greatness obviously widespread and awe inspiring. When he was through with her, she would be left praying to Primus, thanking him for his attention upon her unworthy self.
Sometimes a Seeker being bored could be a good thing. It just depended on one's perspective.
Thundercracker took her outside, as he allowed Alexis liberties. Never, not once, did he suspect that she would take the privilege given to her and use it as a means to escape.
Perhaps he should have never taken her from the vicinity of the base. Because then, she most certainly wouldn't have been able to get away. The Seeker's headquarters rested on the top of a large Cybertronian-made mountain, no human access whatsoever unless assisted. Yet he wanted to get away and wanted to take the human along.
It shouldn't have angered him so much at what she tried to do, and yet there it was burning beneath the surface. Thundercracker's calm manner throttled as emotional spillage commenced. Throwing a human into his placid existence turned everything upside down and sideways.
She made a good effort, even he would have had to agree on that point. But he still caught her quickly enough. Thrusting her inside his cockpit, he shot into the sky, a disturbance pushing his anger to an almost surreal state that his actions took over, processors becoming garbled with data. Until Alexis started to scream, fingers digging deep into the seat then straying over his console. She started to gasp and claw, eyes widening before they rolled backwards, eyelids lowering as her body stilled.
He killed her. TC was certain of it. The thumping of her heart pulled him away from that conclusion as he rapidly descended. Landing, he pulled the human out, placing her on the grassy mound beneath his pediforms. It was some time before Alexis stirred. Pulling her body upright, she breathed noisily, drawing the oxygen in as if a rare gift.
Thundercracker spoke, "You ran." His voice boomed. The femme flinched noticeably, small shoulders jerking at the words.
"Of course I ran," she wheezed out, her words gathering strength, "what did you expect?"
TC got down on the ground. So many things wanting to be said, but he was still far too irate to articulate anything definite. She was a glitch in his system that needed to be corrected.
"You should be grateful. I..."
"Grateful?" she dared to interrupt. A sharp huff pushed out of her before it died into a cough. But her weakened vocals did not stop Alexis from what she needed to say. "Of what? Destroying my world? Taking my family away from me? Killing so many that I knew and loved? I am not grateful!" the human female shrieked, eyes widening with blame and sorrow before welling with liquid. Hands lifting and curling into fists, she pounded the grass-covered ground beside her body, enunciated her emotion filled words.
His digit reacted as he pushed the human back and down. "No one takes advantage of me. Especially not an organic," he stated with subdued ferocity.
"You should have just finished it. Just killed me. Because I will never stop trying to get away." She squirmed under his digit, strange curves brushing firmly against it as she tried to shift away. And then she looked at him straight on and unwavering. Thundercracker found himself looking at her as well, no longer prohibiting himself from the action. Her hair had come loose from the restraint it was in, and now it was sprayed behind her head. Lifting his digit he saw she had holes and tears in her clothing. Shirt falling off her right shoulder, more flesh was revealed. Optics going back to the girl's face, they drifted to her mouth down her neck then back up to the force that was her eyes.
He should have paid more attention to what her eyes were saying, but something strange made itself known then. Why the human had become provocative to him out of all the distractions out there was no longer the issue. The point was that he wanted to touch her again.
So he did.
This time when his digit wandered down he paid attention to the way her body curved and flesh gave underneath the delicate pressure. She struggled, trying to kick him away, but his processor was still clouded until with a volume and sheer pitch he didn't expect, she screamed.
"Stop that!" Alexis dragged herself away, hands folding over her body, she paled dramatically.
Thundercracker said what came into his processor, an untruth forming so quickly as he tried to hide what he almost revealed, "I was just checking for injuries, human. And now we are leaving."
She wouldn't stop staring at him, distrust so apparent even as she seemed assured. "Not yet," she said, a plea beneath her words that perhaps should have appealed to him but only aggravated.
TC huffed at her impudence, "You try to escape. You almost forced me to terminate you, and now you have the audacity to command me? Did you forget who is the master here?"
She pulled her eyes away from the sky where her attention was, looking at Thundercracker and then beyond as she stared above him once more, bewitched by the very air beyond.
Thundercracker grabbed her, not allowing her the safety of the cockpit his thrusters activated. By the time they returned to base he would make sure that she was put out and equally warned. He was not to be trifled with.