Author's Notes: Hear ye hear ye glorious people! I am trying to edit the first story, Word's Unspoken, in this Transformers fanfic sort of trilogy so it is up to my current writing standards! How long that will take? Who knows! But if you are interested, keep an eye out for that. New ideas may be added and explored! That is, if I can figure out how to update preexisting chapters without deleting comments… Does anyone know if that will be a problem? A problem to tackle later! Until then, Please enjoy this latest addition! Also, for any fans of the Transformers Prime novels, there maaay be some talk relating to events and characters there in… probably for no important reason. No big deal.

And with that all being said, please leave a comment, follow if you feel like it, and enjoy!

Date: January 1, 2020 Late Afternoon

Soundwave

He had done well to tune out the Autobot's griping soon after he arrived. He had given them the promised update on Rhea's Cyberformation, but that was all he owed them. His continued presence here was a waste of his time.

Now the two-wheeler was saying something far too close to his faceplates. What was the substance of these hostile words she was hurling at him? Who knows, he had tuned out her griping a while ago. All the while the green Autobot Bulkhead stood a few paces back, looking far too scared to get involved even if things took a violent turn.

Instead of engaging, Soundwave took this time to do some much-needed internal file updates. It was also a better time than any to glance about the Autobots base and note all their new changes. They wouldn't notice his wandering optics behind the safety of his red optic band. He tended to lean a little too heavily on the chassis upgrade most days. This day was no exception. But having something akin to his old visor to retreat behind for a mental break was invaluable, especially on occasions such as these.

The military instalment he found himself in was a newly built human and Bot facility. State of the art, or to Autobot standards, anyway. It also had more human sized equipment for the US branch of the new Concurrence to insert themselves into.

The Concurrence. Soundwave didn't know much more about them other than they were an offshoot of Earth's Defense Command. Some sort of amalgamation of world governments and their collective fire power. They came about after he revealed the Cybertronian secret to the organic world over ten years previous. The organization mostly only bothered the Autobots, so Soundwave gave the group their space. He already had Starscream and multiple colonies to botsit. He didn't need to worry about yet another human government body.

'Primus, she just keeps talking,' Laserbeak noted with utter amazement.

It wasn't meant to be a joke, but Soundwave had a hard time not smirking regardless. He only had his optic band in place at the time, so his mouth plates were there for anybot to see change. He managed to maintain his usual air of stone-faced indifference. If he had smiled in the face of Arcee's rage, he assumed she would punch him.

'She will exhaust herself,' Soundwave promised Laserbeak in their shared mind. Though he didn't know when exactly that time would be coming.

Someone else other than the Autobot Arcee said something, so Soundwave decided to tune back in. It was Arcee's own human partner Jack, still dressed in the base's military uniform and leaned against the upper railing. "Rhea's fine, Arcee. She just texted me. So that confirms she's not dead in a ditch somewhere in Kaon."

The other young adult human, Miko, jolted upright. She had been laying on a human sofa and strumming her instrument, equally tuning out the one-sided fight until this point. "Are you serious? She texted you!? That means she has been ignoring me!" She hurried down the metal steps and out of the hanger, grumbling the whole way. She turned just before rushing out of the human exit, "Bulk! Make sure no fights break out without me being here!"

The Green Autobot, who had spent most of this time just trying to stay out of Arcee's way, stammered in the face of this sudden responsibility. "Um, Miko, I don't really want to get involved-"

And she was gone before he finished the thought. Bulkhead shifted from strut to strut, glancing between Arcee and Soundwave. "Um, no fights." He huffed, absolutely no authority backing up the order.

Once Miko was out of sight, Jack continued, only a little distracted from the interruption, "I mean, it's not like Rhea's stopped being human right this second. Even when they get it right, I'm sure she'll only turn when she's much older."

Arcee's glare softened somewhat when addressing Jack. "There are loads more reasons I'm upset. They are relying on Shockwave to conduct this project. That's the main reason we need to be there!" She turned back to Soundwave with sharpening optics. "The deal we agreed to." she added with a growl.

"I am perfectly capable of supervising the research. Shockwave is the most brilliant Cybertronian mind of our time. Where he falls short in empathy, I shall make up for it." Soundwave assured her.

"You're not exactly Mr. sympathetic either, Soundwave." Arcee said.

"I am when it comes to my Conjunx," he promised sharply. "Our factions clash on almost every other opportunity. I did not want this to be one more instance. Hence why I changed the prescheduled date for the experiment."

Arcee's glare only deepened. "So, you just didn't want to deal with push back? Sounds kind of back strutless to me."

"Ya know Cee…" Bumblebee intoned, rather out of nowhere. Soundwave knew the young Autobot diplomat had been present in the base, but for the whole of this little one-sided conversation he was seemingly preoccupied. The bright yellow bot had been tinkering with something in the corner, and silent. Until now. His bright blue optics gave Soundwave an almost apologetic glance. He appeared almost embarrassed to finish the thought. "I think Soundwave and Rhea are keeping us out of it, because this is sort of an intimate thing between them."

Soundwave blinked behind his optic band at the young Autobot Council member. He was on Soundwave's side in this debate? That was rather refreshing for a change. He was also correct. Seldom was the young warrior so observant. Indeed, this was special to him and Rhea, and he didn't like the thought of the Autobots poking their opinionated olfactory senses into it.

Arcee scoffed. "Because nothing says 'romantic' like Shockwave's laboratory. I'm swooning just thinking about it."

Bumblebee cracked a grin, which did not at all make Arcee happy. He continued to fiddle with the device in his clutches. It looked to be something of Raphael's design. "This may be the time to just let it go. I mean, you tried. Rhea has her mind made up. We don't agree with a lot of things Soundwave and the other Con lords do, but after a while, arguing only gets you so far. Predaking breaks the Treaty every other week, and we just sort of ignore that."

"That is lightyears apart from what we're talking about now." Arcee huffed. "Predaking's group just flies over cities outside of his territory with no warning and overhunts Cybertron's recovering wildlife. I don't recall him ever dragging that drama here to Earth or needlessly involving unsuspecting humans."

"If it will bring this discussion to an end," Soundwave intoned. It brought Arcee's glaring focus back onto him. "I will allow you to supervise the next test, and you may point out any and all of my shortcomings regarding Rhea's safety during said testing."

"That was the original deal, if I'm recalling right," Arcee reminded him with a scowl.

Soundwave sent her a ping. "That is a temporary key to the facility where the testing will take place. If you believe we are conducting the testing without your presence, you may let yourself in. But be aware, that key code will only allow you access for ten solar cycles."

She appeared somewhat pacified, finally.

Another ping came across Soundwave's optic band. And it wasn't Arcee responding to his first ping telling him to shove it. One of his high generals, Thunderblast, was behind the message. It was a simple statement and did not come with any type of choice for him to refuse it or even respond.

Hey big S! Just a helms up, me and Clobber are headed to Earth so Code Name: D can get some 'Earthling' time in! I only say anything because I know how that one human is always yelling at Con's who just show up without "sending a formal request" or "land on the first building we see" or some scrap like that. I sent a message to him first. He just responded 'NO.' Sooooooo I may have replied with a little, itty bitty, basically microscopic white lie saying his last message didn't come through and I was landing soon. Let me know If ya need anything while I'm there! ;D

And then her landing coordinates followed the cheery confession.

Soundwave released a long, deep resounding vent. Said 'human that yells at Cons', better known as Agent Fowler, was currently in the same building he occupied. A quick scan with his optic band let him peek into the far wall and see the man typing frantically at his desk, most likely trying to get Thunderblast to respond. Well, that was one more thing for him to defuse later.

"If we are done, I am needed." He stated simply to Arcee, or any other Autobot who may care. She didn't stop him, but Bumblebee did give him a smile and stuck his fist at helm level with a single thumb joint raised. A human gesture signaling silent approval or comradery. He also made sure to flash the code behind Arcee's back. Alright then… He didn't reciprocate the motion.

Soundwave left the hanger and stepped into the open air. Human military scurried about, mostly ignoring him. He much preferred it that way. Human military usually favored the Autobots and talked through them or Rhea when needing to contact the Decepticon faction.

One human did stop by his peds on his way to the building Soundwave had just exited. Raphael carried his open laptop in his lanky arms as he hurried along. Soundwave recalled first seeing the human when they were all enemies, and he had been so different from how he was now. Tiny and so unimposing. He was now tall, for a human, and wore his long hair in a braid. But those eyes were the same. Bright and curious behind boxy frames. Like Bumblebee in human form. Jack was different too. Having built muscle and gained a good amount of fighting experience under his belt. They all had changed in so little time. It was what humans did. Change. Far too quickly in most cases. Rhea was no exception either. He didn't like to think about it in spite of his own observing optics.

But not the human Miko. Aside from a few added inches, she was basically the same. Much like Thunderblast, she was just a constant chaotic force in the universe. When her human life would inevitably expire, he half expected she would simply explode into a supernova, taking out Earth and half its solar system with her.

"Afternoon, Sovereign Soundwave. Hey Laserbeak." Raphael greeted them both with a smile. Soundwave gave Raphael a simple but affirming nod. The young human man was one of the only ones on the Autobot side who used his official title in a legitimately respectful way. Unlike the likes of say, Wheeljack, whose names for Soundwave included but were not limited to: Sovers, Mr. Lords, and Commander in Cons. Disrespectful? Very much so, but it was not even close to the list the ex- Wrecker had concocted for Starscream. Raphael also acknowledged Laserbeak often, which was a nice gesture.

Raphael looked beyond him, smile somewhat fading, "Same to you Arcee… Though, you do look mad."

Soundwave inwardly cringed. He cast a glance over his shoulder. Arcee had indeed followed him outside. And not just her. Jack had shadowed her, maybe to also come to Soundwave's defense as Bumblebee had.

Arcee gave Raphael's observation a shrug. "What else is new? People say I just have that sort of faceplate."

"I ask her all the time why she's yelling. She's not really. It's just her resting intensity." Jack promised.

"Sure… Just try to keep things civil this time," Raphael hummed. He carried on into the base, stopping only to clasp hands with Jack as they passed each other, "Oh, and if you could pass something along to Rhea for me," he said to Soundwave. "I wanted to have her take a look at a strange transmission I'm trying to crack… Whenever she has a free minute." He continued without further explanation, soon addressing the bots inside, "Hey guys. Ratchet is in the other building about to have whatever your equivalent of a stroke is, because apparently Miko used the Groundbridge and left it locked open. It's eaten up a few gallons of Energon so far…"

The door closed, muffling Bumblebee's laughter that followed. Soundwave turned to Arcee again, bracing for more of the same thing he had endured previously. Transforming and flying off at full speed was still technically a viable option. The only thing that stopped him from executing that contingency plan was the shift in her previously mention 'resting intensity.' She looked more tired than upset. As he assured Laserbeak, she had worn herself out.

Jack purposely cleared his throat. Arcee scowled but didn't move beyond crossing her servos. Jack bumped her in the ped with his elbow. Arcee relented with an optic roll, "I have been informed, our conversation was not productive and was more along the lines of 'nagging.' I acknowledge you aren't forcing Rhea into this. She's decided she wants to be with you for some reason that defies all reason. I trust her judgment, and I trust your feelings for her… But remember, this was supposed to be the time she was going to experience being a human before she settled into a totally new life. But she's done very little 'human' living over this past decade. She's been entrenched in Cybertronian business and colony work. When she's not doing that, she's running interference between Earth and the Cons. And during her free time, she's with you. The only humans she reliably interacts with are the humans here. You know, the other Cybertronian entrenched humans. I just want you to at least consider that."

Soundwave had paid attention to her this time, but ironically enough, he was more confused than annoyed by the continued lecture. "I'm not following. Are you suggesting I not be around her?"

"Really? That's what you took from that?" Arcee huffed. Jack elbowed her again. She vented loudly, "I mean, there's a lot she gives to you that you just can't reciprocate." Arcee said bluntly. "I'm not even trying to be mean. I'm just being honest."

Arcee had said she wasn't trying to offend, but she had successfully done so. "I can't reciprocate. What exactly do you mean?"

Jack's phone buzzed, breaking apart the sudden tension. Both Soundwave and Arcee watched the young man fumble for his phone. "Sorry, hold on," He muttered, pressing the device to his ear. "Hey Jenny… Yeah sorry, some of the bots were fighting so I stayed late to make sure everyone went home without killing each other… I know, I'm that much of a galaxy saving hero. I'm still able to pick you up for our date though. I should be there in an hour…" He glanced up at both bots, "I need to take this. Arcee, be nice." He wandered away, smiling at whatever the human on the other line was saying.

"Couldn't imagine at all what Rhea is missing." Arcee hummed sarcastically. "For context, that was Jack's girlfriend. Human girlfriend. I'm not attached to Jack's hip every waking moment. Miko ditches Bulkhead all the time to hang out with her bandmates. And Raf… well, I'm sure he tunes out Bumblebee when he's doing, Raf things. Rhea is always with you, either here, or on Cybertron. She hasn't had a chance to just be human."

'Silly Autobot," Laserbeak huffed. He sounded equally offended. 'Rhea is not with us at this very moment! There for, her argument is irrelevant.'

An incoming comm from Rhea interrupted Soundwave's intended response to Arcee. 'Soundwave. I've just got a transmission from a deep space colony. We're going to need either you or all three of the Lords to head over and stop these idiots from blowing each other up along with the Treaty. You're still at the Western Autobot base, right? I'm headed over now to fill you in.'

Arcee crossed her servos and raised a brow ridge expectantly. Going by her smug mannerisms alone, she could probably guess Rhea was on his commlink. 'Send me the communication and continue resting. You were in pain. I don't want you pushing yourself.' He insisted.

'Eh, life goes on, pain or not. Plus, I'm already stepping into the portal now. I still have other transmissions to sift through anyway. See you in a sec.' Rhea hung up, leaving him in the dreaded silence between him and the expectant Autobot.

"Your opinion, is noted." Soundwave told the Autobot flatly and walked away from her. Thankfully, she didn't follow this time.

Laserbeak buzzed against his chest in the way he only did when jittery. 'We do not take advantage of Rhea. Is that what the Autobot was insinuating? We give her lots of things. All the codes to Kaon Command, for example. She has full and unhindered access to the Decepticon Data Net… She has a whole Cybertronian life coming up that we are giving her. And what's so wrong with being attached to those you care for? I am attached to you most of the time. What if the human Jack gets damaged because Arcee is carelessly far away from him? Seems a foolish decision on her part if you ask me.'

'I believe that was the point Arcee was making. That list you provided was all Cybertronian related. Nothing, human.'

'Well, that is logical. We are not human. Thankfully so. It looks uncomfortable.' Laserbeak noted with a shutter.

Soundwave pursed his lip plates. 'You are well meaning, but I fear this may be proving the Autobot Arcee's point.' He had never considered this perspective before. Rhea never brought it up. Was this a massive oversight on his part? Was Rhea missing out on an important part of herself that he was just unable to understand?

'Does that matter?' Laserbeak pointed out, having felt everything Soundwave internally thought at that moment. 'She will cease being human sooner rather than later, if Shockwave gets around to perfecting her Cyberformation. Then there will be nothing but Cybertronian activities to indulge in together!' he said while buzzing with excitement.

That perspective did not make Soundwave feel any better about the situation. Laserbeak's mood dropped due to his own. 'If it is that troubling, I suppose I could research the topic. I delved my claws into 'human customs' once before when Rhea was younger. When our dear departed Lord Megatron was still among the living and you went out to find him on the dwarf world a few worlds from Earth. It was a fascinating topic in a way. I was in a 'morbidly curious' mood back then… Allow me to delve into it again for you Master.'

He almost told him not to bother. Laserbeak tended to hyper fixate on personal projects if he was left to his own devices. But he thought better of it. Laserbeak had been noticeably dependent during the past few months. It was his own anxiety about the subpar results of Rhea's transformation. He needed something to occupy him.

'Very well. You have my permission to investigate the topic to your Spark's content. I am interested in whatever you discover.'

He felt a rush of Laserbeak's excitement, and that alone did wonders to improve his own sour mood.

Date: Present Day, September 21st, 2021 early morning

Steven

He was frozen, gazing down at the letter written to himself in total disbelief. Was he dreaming? He continued to scan the words, trying to make sense of the silent threat that manifested during an already horrible time. What was after him and why? Was it serious enough he was going to have to fight for his life? He found himself strapping his gun back to his belt.

Should he lock his door? He had left it open for Rhea in case she returned while he slept but now that seemed a foolish decision.

He read over the note once more. 'You are not safe. They are trying to get to you. You must fight them back with everything you have.' He hadn't imagined it. But that didn't make it make sense.

Was this something he should show the base police when they would come to the house in a few hours? He decided against that. The letter wasn't written by some stranger, and it also didn't address Rhea at all. His own distinct handwriting made the warning.

He folded the letter and shoved it into his pocket. Now he had no intention of sleeping. With Rhea's disappearance, his nightmares, and now this, rest was out of the question. Technically, he didn't have to. General Bragg did give him the next day off. Now, he would just take advantage of that.

He remained in his living room until the sun rose, watching the door and his phone and drinking coffee to chase the fatigue away. The gun on his belt never wafted out of the forefront of his subconscious.

His mind was now split between two drastically different mysteries. Both spilling into the other in a blend of inconsistent unease and missing context. The darting shadows in the corners of his vision didn't help his growing paranoia either.

When the sharp knock on the door he had been waiting for finally came, he still jumped.

Date: January 2, 2020 (Earth date)

Planet Prion

Soundwave

"I swear, this world isn't worth the Energon it took to warp, and then fly here," Starscream grumbled not to subtly between the three of them. It was seldom all three Decepticon Lords were in one place at once. So Starscream was taking advantage of that to talk right over Soundwave's once peaceful internal dialogue. It didn't help that he was already distracted from the Autobot's comments. But as Rhea said so eloquently, life goes on. And so did duty. "Really. If this were an elaborate assassination attempt, all three Decepticon Lords would be gone in an instant! What if we were kidnapped? Who would that leave the Decepticons to? General's Thunderblast, Crossflare, and Dirge. I cringe for our people at the very thought." He continued to gripe.

"Could our mystery Relic perhaps make it worth the risk?" The youngest member of their band snickered. Sharpshot exited their ship just after Starscream and Soundwave, radiating a 'smiling' energy despite their lack of an expressive faceplate. "Could be a good one." They added. They also thankfully kept Starscream distracted for most of the tedious trip. Prion didn't have a reliable Space Bridge hub, and the Colony world was just out of Cybertron's own warping radius. So, they had to warp as far as the Bridge would take them and fly the rest of the way. Tedious was an understatement.

Starscream, ever the sponge for the dramatics, fluttered his optics tiredly with a vent of pure exhaustion. He placed a servo around Sharpshot's shoulders and walked them the rest of the way off the ship's ramp. "Oh, my dear young study… You should thank your lucky star every cycle you missed most of the grueling grind that the war had to offer. Unless this relic is one of the original Primes, I'll be hard to impress."

Soundwave followed the two, keeping his own comments to himself. Starscream's superior tone with the former Vehicon trooper turned Lord would have been patronizing if it weren't actually from a place of legitimate caring. And that fact alone still surprised Soundwave. When Soundwave brought the spunky and optimistic Decepticon clone onto their team to rule over their faction, he assumed Starscream would only just tolerate Sharpshot. And for a few cycles that was what happened. But to Soundwave's surprise, Starscream had almost taken Sharpshot under his wing, finding a soft spot in his rigid Spark for them. For as long as Soundwave had known Starscream, he never would have guessed that would happen. Starscream had either grown fond of the Vehicon because they were one of the few who humored his dramatics, or he was merely getting sentimental in his middle age.

"You could of course ask Soundwave," Starscream hummed, "What our dearly departed Lord Megatron used to put us through. It was criminal." He turned back, seeking validation. Sharpshot looked back too. They had to. Starscream still had a servo draped over the shorter Con's whole chassis.

So apparently, Soundwave was supposed to comment after all. He wasn't sure if he would rather be still on Earth taking Arcee's verbal lashing or endure more of Starscream. "It was a long war. The fight over relics included." Soundwave finally agreed to appease him.

Starscream's vindicated smile faded as he took in the dreary sight before them. "Ug. This place is even more miserable than I remember it, and that was before the population was eradicated by organic zealots… I'm surprised we're indulging this."

For once, Soundwave agreed with that assessment. Prion had always been a wasteland. If there were any organic lifeforms, they remained underground and far from the Cybertronian visitors that showed up from time to time over the eons. The barren rocky world had unstable tectonic activity that made Cyberforming attempts difficult. And as Starscream had mentioned in passing, the original Cybertronian colonists were eradicated. Save for one.

The empty expanse allowed all three of them to notice the dust cloud moving fast on the horizon. Soundwave's red optic band slid down over his optics and he scanned the lifeform. Cybertronian, as he assumed, and transmitting the Decepticon life signal frequency. Their small ally was rolled into a ball and careening towards them at full speed.

They unfurled right at their feet, kicking up dust Starscream swatted at indignantly. A small (even for a minicon) Cybertronian stood just at their heel struts, gazing up at them with reverence. "I am Lord Doomitron, great Masters, at your service! Megatron praise you for enduring the journey to assist our cause!"

Starscream scoffed. "I am dying to know what kind of cosmic devastation has emerged on this unsuspecting world that would require all three of us."

As Lord Doomitron bowed, Sharpshot knelt on one knee joint to close the massive distance between them, "Take us to the problem, and we'll sort it out."

Lord Doomitron jolted upright with a tiny murderous grin. "Excellent! Let us get right to the Energon shed! Follow me to our forces and the sight of our soon to be victory!" He rolled back up and bumped along the rocky terrain. Soundwave secured the ship with a mental command before they followed at a walking pace. Lord Doomitron couldn't roll very fast without the risk of flinging himself into a ditch.

"Ah, well I suppose a mental vacation isn't the worst use of our time," Starscream hummed, red optics scanning the lacking sights. "I'm just curious to see what has our small friends so wound up?"

"Odd that the Autobots would engage in a fire fight, let alone multiple," Sharpshot noted out loud. "They are usually so rule abiding, to an almost manic degree."

It was odd indeed. Under almost every circumstance, whenever there was an Autobot and Decepticon spat, Soundwave had to admit it was his own side that dredged up the problem. Overstepping treaty parameters, or overmining, looting, or simply poking the adjacent Autobot side with a stick until they snapped back. Lord Doomitron appeared the type to exaggerate. When he claimed the Autobots started the violence, there was a very real possibility that was debatable.

"Ug, my peds will need to be buffed after we endure this rustic little outing," Starscream grumbled to himself. When he wasn't glaring at the ground and the dust they kicked up he was cursing the very planet beneath them.

That was nothing new, so Soundwave found his thoughts wandering. Of course, his own mind would trouble him with the Autobot Arcee's words. Over the course of this outing with his fellow Lords, he unfortunately had plenty of time to ponder what she said. And he didn't even have Laserbeak here to distract him. His minicon insisted on staying on Earth with Rhea to begin his 'human research'. Worrisome, but at least Laserbeak was being proactive. The more he lingered on the topic, the deeper into doubt he slipped.

For all her ignorance, Arcee was right. Soundwave knew very little about human customs, even after an Earth decade conducting business with them. When it came to human related issues, he mostly worked through Rhea, or the Autobot's handled it.

What did Rhea do when she wasn't with him? He knew she slept far more than Cybertronian's needed recharge… She ate more then he refueled. When she wasn't doing that or talking to Earth officials on his behalf… she was on Cybertron with him, confined to certain buildings with airlocks like his personal chambers, or now, Shockwave's laboratory. When it wasn't Cybertron, they traveled to colony worlds on democratic missions. Of course, she was limited by the ship, but she always loved going with him. That had always been something they shared. But, it wasn't 'Earth' related.

A sizable realization hit him at that moment. He didn't really think of Rhea, the love of his life, as a human. She was just, Rhea, but not in a Cybertronian body yet. That wasn't good. He never had a reason to consider this angle because Rhea never brought it up. Did it bother her? He didn't have the chance to ask before he had to come to Prion for this relic fiasco. And he had left Laserbeak with her, his dear minicon who was practically counting down the nano-kliks until Rhea shed her humanity. And Laserbeak was seldom not talkative about that fact. Scrap.

The series of increasingly troublesome thoughts ground to a halt when Soundwave felt one of his fellow Lords looking at him with an expectant smile. And it unfortunately wasn't Sharpshot, who couldn't physically smile.

He cocked an optic ridge at Starscream, the gesture question enough.

"How is our small Communication Officer's Cyberformation going?" Starscream asked in a conversational kind of tone.

Soundwave was instantly suspicious. Never, not once in ten orbital cycles, had Starscream asked how Rhea was or how the progress of her Cyberformation was going. He wasn't convinced Starscream even knew her name. Starscream wanted something, clearly.

As if sensing the tension between them, which Starscream had brought about, he raised both hands in a form of mock pacification. "What? I'm not allowed to ask about my old friend's organic Conjunx? I was just thinking of all the things that your and Shockwave's little passion project could do to benefit our race! Consider the war. Recall how we almost lost the Well? Could it happen again I worry? If that is the case, how else would we continue our race? It would be unfortunate to stoop down to using organic sources, but desperate times could require it."

Soundwave just continued to glare at him, waiting for the actual reason behind this one-way conversation to tumble out. The look he was sporting alone usually did the trick to break down Starscream's shenanigans.

Starscream scoffed, his smile dropping. "Ok, fine. I only ask because Autoclave wanted me to find out more about it for him. For reasons beyond my understanding, the old fool is endlessly fascinated by the concept, and I refuse to allow him anywhere near that murderous scientist Shockwave to find out in person."

Autoclave. One of Starscream's only remaining friends from before the war. The one Shockwave, under Megatron's orders, terminated Autoclave's science team and ripped out his voice box once his usefulness had been retired. That was eons ago, but Starscream never intended to have the two share a room again for the rest of time. Soundwave didn't exactly blame him.

"The experiments are going, fine," He began, though his obvious hesitation wasn't hidden well enough. Now it was Starscream who arched a brow ridge in hopes of gleaning more. "The original deadline for the project's completion has been extended. It is proving to be a challenge."

Starscream gasped, greatly amused. "A challenge? For the great Shockwave? I can hardly believe that… Tell me, is his frustration showing?" He seemed less amused by the experiments intended meaning being put at risk, but rather he was excited this was something he could later mock Shockwave about. The venom wasn't directed towards Soundwave, but it still irritated him.

"We are technically on the same team," Sharpshot intoned, delving into their conversation while also trying not to trip over Lord Doomitron.

Starscream snorted, "Technically. But Shockwave would jump to any side that is most convenient. If his scientific exploits would be suddenly restricted, I doubt he would even stick around to say goodbye."

Sharpshot snickered, "Then it's a good thing us Cons don't like regulations, even if it's probably the smarter option. Can't count the number of time's I almost blew myself up in the weapon's vault or just walking down Kaon-"

"Behold!" Lord Doomitron bellowed. He burst out of his ball form and startled Sharpshot to a sudden stop. "Our formidable fortress and the place we shall make our final stand!"

'Formidable' was not the word Soundwave would have used as he took in Doomitron's colony. Ramshackle shacks and scrap piles all sitting in the shadow of a somewhat humbly sized space faring vessel spread out across the dusty ground. Soundwave didn't think he would fit into even the tallest 'building' without having to crouch. Not surprisingly, the whole crew and population who called the place home were minicons. Their ship had the Decepticon emblem painted on both dorsal fins, and the purple symbol was similarly graffitied on many shacks or metal roofs. Starscream's pursed expression alone voiced his dissatisfaction.

"Um… The place looks great," Sharpshot complemented. Even they struggled to mask their disappointment.

Lord Doomitron may as well have been looking at a totally different planet as he beamed with inflated pride. "Indeed! Can you believe it only took us three short solar cycles to complete?"

"I can believe it," Starscream spat.

"Where is the Autobot faction you have come into conflict with?" Soundwave asked, determined to conclude this problem quickly so he may return to Earth and fix his own, much more pressing issue.

Doomitron's prideful smirk turned sour in an instant. He stabbed a single claw past his tiny empire. At the far edge where most of the scrap and other junk was piled, stood a wall cut from local rock formations. It stretched out in both directions beyond the little hovel town. Not endlessly by any means, but it would be irritating to walk around. One who was flightless or had small minicon peds would find the task annoying at best. "We managed to erect a barrier to keep them from engaging in open warfare whenever they saw fit! I have dubbed it, the Looming Wall of Doom! But alas, only after the wall was erected did we discover the enemy had a better vantage point for locating the relic on their side." Doomitron reported.

Starscream turned down from glaring at the wall to instead glare daggers at Doomitron. "Wait. Are you telling me the relic has not even been recovered, OR identified?"

"Correct my Lord," Doomitron said with a snarl aimed the walls direction, totally oblivious to the fact Starscream appeared moments from punting him down the small hill they stood on.

"We'll handle it." Soundwave only vented, already run out of patience for this little 'mental vacation.' He started forward, sidestepping the many minicons who scurried about. His fellow Lords followed, Starscream grumbling the whole short trek to the wall. Doomitron and many of his other followers also tagged along, clearly eager for a showcase of violence. Many were already tossing scrap and rocks over the barrier from the closest roof to taunt those on the other side. Occasionally, something was hurled back.

He considered activating his visor to scan through the pitiful construct, but as he approached, he realized that was entirely unnecessary. The wall came up to his chest, so he just glanced over it. He also had no idea what he had been expecting. Maybe a mining expedition burrowing deep underground where the Autobots were in hot pursuit of this mystery relic, occasionally having to swat away Doomitron's rolling forces.

There was a hole in the ground, but it wasn't much deeper than the doom wall was tall. And Lord Doomitron's Autobot neighbors had more in common with them then not. He found another small, cobbled together minicon colony, in the shadow of their own Autobot ship constructed on the other side. The two groups practically mirrored each other, but one side of the wall was colored purple and the other red.

Starscream peeked over next to him, "You've got to be kidding me!"

Sharpshot, who was Wall Doom's first victim in an abstract sense due to their shorter stature, had to scramble up the ridged edges to get a look. When they peered over the top, they finally could not hold back the laughter that had been building in their voice box this whole time. "This day just keeps getting more ridiculous."

"An utter waste of time," Starscream corrected with a scowl aimed down onto the Autobot minicons. "This was reported as a Code Black! A Treaty ending emergency! Yet here we are. I somehow feel more confident in the Treaty's standing now than I did before we landed here!"

The Autobots had come up with the Code system. Though cliché and overdramatic, they did end up sticking. It helped to categorize different emergencies, usually involving faction squabbles or open hostility. The higher the code, the higher representatives were sent out to defuse the situation. They only had one Code Black before this one, and it was actually worthy of the title.

It was one of the many assassination attempts on the Autobot government head, Ultra Magnus. It wouldn't have been so bad if it had just been some rogue Con being an overall disgruntled idiot who couldn't hit the broad side of a ship with his own blaster. That was how most of the assassination attempts had played out aimed at both sides. This assassin had been one of Starscream's higher generals, and his attempt had gotten dangerously close to being successful.

Starscream swore up and down he had nothing to do with the plot. It was within his abilities, but Soundwave did believe him in this instance. He had seen Starscream scheme behind Megatron's back for the whole duration of the war. He knew what a lying Starscream looked like, and moments after the assassination attempt was not it. No glint in his optics or knowing, yet still noticeable smirk. He was just as shocked as everybot else. Soundwave managed to convey that, and it was Bumblebee who agreed to stall any possibility of retaliation. The young and naive representative member did come through for the Decepticons, even when it was against his better judgment too. Not advisable, but Soundwave didn't complain.

This incident was also when the Decepticon's started taking the code system seriously. In the time Bumblebee had bought, the highest members of both parties had to come together and determine what had happened, and if one or all the Decepticon Lords had ordered the attempt on Magnus's life. Their defense was built on the foundation of proving if Starscream was a liar or not. It was not ideal for the Decepticon side to say the least.

But Starscream had even surprised Soundwave when he offered over to the Autobot's a total archive of all his personal records. Many contained degrading things about the Autobots reading them, so it didn't paint him in the most flattering light. But nowhere in the files was there correspondence to kill Magnus. Not even encoded or scrubbed. Soundwave scanned for any tell tail sign of the records being sanitized. The Autobots had their own specialist come in to do the same. It was clean, as was Starscream's redeemed reputation. They still ended up having to hand over, very wearily, the files of all remaining generals under each of the Lords and their personal records.

They were unable to question the assassin or his motivations. Arcee had assured his silence purely reflexively with a perfectly aimed blaster shot through the helm right after the Decepticon General shot Magnus. It had come out of nowhere, and nothing more came of it. The tense meetings waned back into everyday normalcy. Starscream issued a public apology to a recovering Ultra Magnus, and it was remarkably sincere for Starscream.

Simply put, two small gaggles of opposing minicons cursing and hurling rocks at each other over a chest high wall was not worthy to be called a Code Black scenario.

The Autobots digging their hole startled when they finally noticed the three massive Decepticon's looming over the wall. Starscream's grumblings probably had a big part to do with it. They scattered in all directions, shouting out battle stations and arming themselves with tiny, tiny blasters.

Hearing the chaos, Doomitron tried and failed to scramble up his own cobbled together barrier, the wall of Doom taking its second victim that day, "What is happening my Lords? Are we being attacked!?"

Soundwave vented. Starscream was right. They didn't have time for this.

He pushed a hand down onto the top of the wall, making sure it would not crumble under his full weight. Somewhat assured by the stone's integrity, he pushed himself up and over the wall. He was in no mood to trek all the way around, and transforming to fly not even three paces in front of him seemed a waste of effort.

"The time's now boys! To glory!" Doomitron bellowed. A quick glance back over the partition to the Con side showed the determined minicon and his small hoard charging down the length of the wall, screaming valiantly all the way. He hoped to have this handled before they made it all the way around and then back down to this side.

A huddle of scared but determined Autobot minicons stood at the ready, weapons sparking as they faced Soundwave's looming form. He in turn retracted his visor back into his helm and held up his hands in surrender. "We are not here to fight. Please calm down so we may pacify this conflict."

Starscream followed his example and leapt over the wall to land at his side. Sharpshot climbed up the rest of the way and sat on the edge to observe. "Plucky little things, aren't they?" Starscream snickered.

One Autobot swiped forward, catching Starscream's heel strut with a little spark.

Starscream jerked his ped back, "Ouch! Why you little-"

"We surrender," Soundwave assured them while Sharpshot went to keep Starscream from stepping on them in retaliation. "Now tell us what's going on? We have been informed there was a faction fight over a relic."

Before he knew it, the many little Autobots started frantically squabbling amongst themselves.

"They're lying!" one little voice trembled.

"They'll use it to bring Cybertron to ruin again!" Another pointed out.

One brave little bot, possibly the leader amongst them, pointed his sparking weapon up at Soundwave. "We're not giving you anything! Not after you hunted us out of the outer rings!"

"We did what now?" Sharpshot asked, just as dumbfounded as Soundwave was.

The minicon who made the accusation came forward. He wielded a sparking little stinger and a deep frown. "It's how we ended up here. We were archiving natural Energon deposits in deep space. Then we're almost blown out of the sky by a massive Cybertronian vessel! And I know for sure it wasn't ours!"

Soundwave exchanged a look with his team. Starscream was still annoyed, and Sharpshot just shrugged. He turned back to the leader minicon, "No Decepticon vessels are authorized to attack an Autobot vessel unless in retaliation."

"Could be bounty hunters," Sharpshot offered. "Or Pirates. Both are plentiful in the outer territories. Odd they would attack a random minicon ship. But stranger things have happened."

"And they had the Decepticon emblem?" Soundwave quizzed the bot.

For the first time, the little bot's confidence wavered. "Not, that we saw… But, who else would it be?"

"Bounty hunters or pirates?" Sharpshot tried again.

"It isn't the first time we have heard reports of scavengers," Starscream added while rubbing away the little scuff the minicon's attack left on his ped. "And it is not the first time we have had first servo experience with them. Tarn's group never successfully hunted down the pirate Thundertron. The crusty old captain could still be terrorizing poor unsuspecting wanderers just off our radar."

As if they didn't have enough to deal with. Soundwave added 'deal with pirates' to his endless mental to do list. "The attack wasn't us. We will convene with your side to decide how to neutralize any threats in the region you were attacked. Now then-"

"Not just that!" Another one shouted, stepping all over his transition that was meant to carry them back to the matter at hand. "You Con's are still up to your old tricks! Just look at Destructor for proof!"

The Autobot huddle murmured in sudden fear when the name was uttered. One that was admittedly familiar, but Soundwave had a hard time placing. He must have heard it in passing. Oddly enough, the minicon's appeared to have more fear of the mysterious Con they named then for the notorious pirate Starscream had mentioned.

"Who?" Sharpshot asked, humoring them.

"A ruthless Decepticon risen up from the lowest depths of the Pits…" Whispered a minicon who was fully trembling.

"Destructor was spotted in the outer rings too… We high tailed it the moment we got the report from the other units."

"How haven't the leaders of the Con's heard of him?" came a gasp. "He's only the most feared Decepticon in recent cycles!"

"Appeared from the void like a fragging specter of death!"

Soundwave tried reigning in the babbling as they all started talking over each other. "Describe him."

He was bombarded with more excited chatter. "No one's gotten close enough to see him and live to tell about it!"

"All I've heard is he's a size changer. He can be a looming monster or smaller than us! You never would know he was there until bam! He tears your Spark out with his fanged denta!"

"I hear he only fights in his smallest mode, just for the challenge. Anything else is over to quick for the sick fragger!"

"I hear he's worse than Tarn! So monstrous he doesn't even look Cybertronian anymore!"

Soundwave had in fact heard none of what they were reporting. No Decepticon on file even almost fit that description. "And you are sure this is a Decepticon?"

This time, they all nodded, totally sure of themselves. "He wears a golden Decepticon emblem proudly on his neck cables… It's the last thing you see before he kills you. That, and his empty black optics and his fanged smile…"

"A new member of the DJD perhaps?" Starscream offered. "They do seldom let us in on their inner goings on."

It was a likely scenario. Since Tarn's death, (At Soundwave's own hands) the Decepticon Justice Division and its crew passed to Tesarus, one of Tarn's original higher ups. He was just as brutal, but he leaned more towards the apathetic. In Soundwave's opinion, he was a vast improvement over the zealot Tarn.

They had lost communication with the Peaceful Tyranny on their last patrol, but that was hardly unusual for them. As Starscream had mentioned, they tended to do their own thing. If they came back into communication range, Soundwave would ask them about this new ruthless Con.

It was actually somewhat ironic their conversation had landed on the DJD. The world they currently stood on was once the home of a DJD member before she joined their ranks. After the world was purged, leaving her the only survivor. Nickle, the fowl mouth plated mechanic of the Peaceful Tyranny. And much like the talkative bunch at his peds, she too was a minicon. He hadn't seen her in person since Megatron's funeral almost ten solar cycles ago. Whatever Tesarus was doing out of communication range, she would be keeping him in check. As long as she didn't have to deal with any organics, she was totally level helmed. She hated everything carbon based, hence why the DJD's patrols were ordered far from Earth.

But for now, they still had a job to do, and it was not related to whatever strange goings on were happening in the outer rings. "I'll run a scan and find the relic," Soundwave vented. He walked forward, many little minicon servos failing to hold him back by the peds. His visor band slipped back over his optics. The wavelength flashed over his vision in an instant. The scanner almost overloaded from the pulsing power source under their peds. "Primus," He muttered, legitimately surprised.

"What's up?" Sharpshot must have noted Soundwave startle ever so slightly.

Before confirming anything, Soundwave ran the scan again. It wasn't an anomaly or a glitch. Now he understood why the Autobot minicons were so worried. "The energy feedback is off the charts. I've only ever seen this in a relic that originated from the Primes."

Starscream's lasting annoyance melted away. His original parody of the relic situation had become a reality. "Which one is this?"

"There is no way of knowing until we unearth it," Soundwave said.

Sharpshot hurried over, their own collection of minicons hanging from them. "We can narrow it down. The Star Saber is in Optimus Prime's memorial under lock and key… What else… The Cog was absorbed by the Well… Alpha Trion destroyed the Covenant and the Quill. There are still loads more still unaccounted for. I wonder if it will be like the Star Saber and need a Prime to power it… because if so, we are all out of those."

"Why guess?" Starscream shooed away the few slashing minicons in his way. "We'll know when we dig it up."

"It was hidden purposely," Soundwave added as he carried on a secondary ground scan. Through 50 mechanometers of rock, he saw the relic, or at least its energy wavelength. He still couldn't make out what it was.

"When?" Sharpshot asked, kicking at the dirt.

Soundwave's optic band ran a quick calculation. "Recently. This area was disturbed a million orbital cycles ago."

Sharpshot snickered. "So, recently, but only depending on who you ask."

"Not all relics need a Prime to power them," Starscream reminded them. He was sporting his worrying smile again. "The Requiem Blaster could be utilized by anybot, Autobot, Decepticon or filthy space buccaneer. And here we were speaking of pirates… Ironic."

Starscream was right. This was a day of nostalgia indeed. But now, Soundwave fully understood the conflict among the small Cybertronians here on Prion. Something with this magnitude of power would be very devastating in the hands of an enemy. The minicons were right to be weary. The Autobots would be at a massive disadvantage if the three Decepticon Lords let the war nostalgia get the better of them and rekindle the fighting. Luckily for those pawing at the peds of the three Cons, they didn't intend that.

According to his scans, there was nothing in the way of the relic other than the ground. Soundwave unfurled one of his data cables from their housing at his waist. A few quick calculations later he knew exactly where to start drilling. He activated the spinning blade tips and sent one tendril down through the rock to retrieve the relic.

Something sharp bit into the first connection points of his data cable. He exclaimed in surprise pain and yanked the cable back up to the surface.

"You ok?" Sharpshot asked worriedly, all previous jokes suddenly irrelevant.

Soundwave winced as he examined the end of the cable. It fazed between numbness and throbbing heat. "No damage, besides to my pride," he retracted the sensitive cable carefully back into himself. "Something beyond my scanner's abilities is down there protecting the relic. Excavating it will need to be done with utmost care." With a hand holding his side tenderly, he looked down at the Autobot minicons. "Has your group come into contact with any resistance while digging?"

"We refuse to work with you Cons!" The lead minicon spat, still trembling. "We'll… Fight you off you rusted Con fraggers!"

Starscream gasped in mock shock, claws poised over his Spark. He was more amused than actually offended. "So terrifying… What will we ever do?"

Soundwave pursed his lip plates, taking in the determined little minicons as they glared up at them. Great.

"For Megatron!" Doomitron cheered. He had finally arrived on the other side of the wall with his screaming band of tiny warriors. The Autobots mirrored their aggression, rolling forward to meet them head on. Sharpshot stumbled between them. They threw a servo out to separate the two parties to keep them from clashing. "Guys, guys! Stop! Ouch! Watch it!"

"Now what?" Starscream grumbled, his original amusement expired.

With his side still throbbing, and the beginnings of a processor ache forming, Soundwave vented in defeat. "We go to Earth, then come all the way back with the Autobots in tow just so we can put an end to this madness."