She received identical mistrustful glares, but allowed the incredulous silence to extend until Sunstreaker said, "You're joking."
There was enough space for the twins to stand a comfortable distance away from the strange femme and they did so, silently bouncing theories and information across their bond.
"But… Verasuvius has been in charge of the Tagan Heights for vorns." Sideswipe objected.
"Yes, she has. And if you will recall, the Sonic Canyon community has been around for the same amount of time. This… was the best I could do, after we lost Optimus." She explained quietly. "Jazz and I protect them as well as we can, and we've been siphoning a percentage of the Tagan Heights production ever since it began." She smiled. "I can happily report that the Sonic Canyon community is the best supplied community of Autobots on the planet, not that it's saying very much." She shrugged. "We gather intelligence, too, and Jazz passes it on to Hot Spot who gets it to Prowl any way he can."
The twins continued to stare. "You're joking." Sunstreaker deadpanned again.
"Nope. Not at all, my friend."
"But… what about your reputation? What about, you know, 'Bots like us?"
"You mean the 'Bots I keep back?" Sideswipe nodded and she shrugged. "I've had Jazz to talk to for a good portion of my time here, but it does get kind of lonely, being the only two Autobots around, and I like hearing what's going on from an individual's point of view, especially now that we have a Prime again."
Both mechs scowled. "He's not our Prime." Sunstreaker growled.
Star smiled gently. "He's my Prime. The Matrix chose him to be. And frankly, you guys, we need him and if we don't unite under him we'll never get anywhere."
The twins scowled deeper, the blue lights running down the elevator shaft glinting off their faces.
The rest of the trip was silent, but it was only a few more seconds before the floor slowed to a stop and the wall on one side slid open.
Beyond it there was an entire city, thriving beneath the Decepticon city above. There were Autobots, so many Autobots, moving around and going about their business. It was almost a real, actual base. Sideswipe and Sunstreaker had obviously heard of the place, but nothing could have prepared them for the reality of it. It was just like the good old days, in the early war, when they had been an army. When they'd actually had a hope of winning.
"Stay close to me, you still need to go through orientation." Star ordered. It was a little redundant, since they had laser cables around their wrists, but they didn't protest. There was a red and white mech waiting for her when they stepped out of the elevator, falling into step with them while the twins craned their necks to take in the sights. Sunstreaker eyed the mech's paint job. He had obviously been here for a while, to have a paint job like that. He handed the femme a datapad and Star accepted it with a smile.
"Ah, Red Alert, good to see you. I imagine everything is going well, as usual." She greeted as she perused the contents of the pad. Red Alert nodded, glancing over the larger mechs following her as they walked, and then he turned his attention back on the femme.
"Star." He said.
"Yeah?" she answered, and then abruptly stopped and turned around to stare at the mech. Sideswipe stopped short and backed up a step, frowning. Red Alert didn't seem bothered by the odd look she was giving him.
"I wish to join the Prime in Iacon." The mech said quietly, almost drowned out by the constant noise of the nearby canyon. His voice was rough from disuse.
Star nodded, starting to smile. "I'm glad to hear it, and I'm sure he and the others will welcome you. I'll have Hot Spot pass the message on that you're coming. I admit, though, we'll miss you here."
Red Alert tilted his helm. "Streetwise is trained to handle the security network. I believe he will suffice in my absence."
Star was grinning now. "I believe you are correct. When are you heading out?"
"As soon as I can. Most likely within the decacycle."
"Alright, thanks for the warning. Good luck, if I don't get to see you again."
Red Alert nodded, and then went his way. Star watched him go for several kliks, shaking her helm, before she turned to quickly stride away, tugging the twins after her. They entered a large structure near the elevator, which turned out to be a real, stationary med-bay, and Star hurried all the way to the back and into an operating room where a boxy white and red medic with a black chevron was intently working on a mech's arm.
"Ratchet, guess what just happened!" Star demanded excitedly.
Ratchet gave her an irritated glance as she bounced over and reached into his patient's open panel to start moving wires out of his way.
"Red Alert just spoke to me." She announced, and the medic looked up again, this time with surprise.
"He spoke?"
"Yeah, five whole sentences. He's heading out to Iacon to help the Prime."
Ratchet hummed, returning to his work. "Good for him. I need to be heading out soon, as well. There are reports of open conflict now."
"Yes, I just received them. With two excellent medics here, they must be lacking, and we don't really need both of you." Star admitted.
"No, we don't. When will Red be leaving?" Ratchet asked absently as he moved to get a better angle.
"Within the decacycle, he said."
The medic grunted and withdrew, along with Star, to close up the panel. "Good as new. Don't slag it up again, got it?"
"Yes, Ratchet." The mech mumbled as he tested the repair. Star snatched Sideswipe out of the way when the stocky mech nearly ran into him as he left.
"What the frag?" Sideswipe snapped, pulling out of her grip.
"He can't see you." Star explained. "Nobody who doesn't know about Verasuvius can. I wouldn't be a very good secret keeper if I traipsed around the base with you, would I?" she smirked, and then gestured to the medic. "Anyway, Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, this is Ratchet, our senior medic and CMO, though we're apparently going to be losing him soon. Red Alert is our security director, he's been here since the Community was a little group of ten mecha, and he hasn't spoken more than ten words since Prime died, until now. It's kind of a miracle. We were starting to think he was permanently damaged by the event." She mused while Ratchet cleaned up his operating tools.
"Alright, you two, get on the berth." The medic ordered when he turned back around, a different set of tools in hand. The laser cords finally disappeared from their wrists and Star put the anchor in subspace. The twins grudgingly complied, under threat of the medic's glare of death.
"So how this usually goes is I borrow a 'Bot or two from the lineup and bring them down myself so we can talk for a while, but you understand that my position is a closely held secret and I need your silence and your assistance in keeping my cover good. Agreed?" Star asked the brothers as Ratchet began their check-up.
"What if we say no?" Sunstreaker asked, unimpressed.
"I secure your silence by other means." Star grinned pleasantly at him. "A missing memory almost speaks louder than any story you agree upon." The surly twin turned away after a moment, not sure if she was joking or not. "After we've talked you get to stay in the med-bay overnight and in the morning I drop a couple dummies down the Hole, which Hot Spot rushes to the med-bay before you two magically emerge in pristine condition, courtesy of Ratchet's handiwork, with whatever horror story you concoct. Verasuvius gets her reputation, I get to talk to some newcomers, and you two don't get slagged. Everybody wins."
The twins were silent for a few seconds as Ratchet scanned them both thoroughly.
"So… we don't get to do the drop?" Sideswipe asked after a moment.
Star cocked her helm. "I suppose… if you want to do the drop, we can arrange it. Most mecha want to avoid it if they can."
Sideswipe grinned at her. "We were kind of looking forward to it."
Star returned the smile. "Well then, I guess you'll come back up with me when I'm done talking to Hot Spot and the rest of your group, which gives us all night. I'll be off then. I don't get to come down often or for very long, so the more time I have the better. See you boys later. Bye, Ratchet."
The medic grunted in return, but the femme was gone by then.
"She's kinda weird, isn't she." Sideswipe said speculatively.
"To do what she has to do and make it work for as long as she has? She has to be. It's a miracle she's not completely insane." Ratchet retorted. "So just be grateful for it. You probably wouldn't be alive right now if it were any other way."