Starscream lied on his berth in the Seeker barn. He hadn't even bothered to get up to go to the race stables. He just wanted to stay in berth and die.
There was a knock at the door. It opened and Nacreous walked in.
"Hey, Starscream. I heard what happened… I'm really sorry." He paused. "I-I was told to tell you to pack your stuff. You're moving inside the mansion." He faintly smiled. "I-I got a room ready for you. Want to see it?"
Starscream rolled over and looked at him. He slowly nodded.
Nacreous helped him pack his few belongings and took him inside the mansion. Starscream didn't bother saying bye to anyone, not even Lightning. He just didn't feel like talking to anyone, and he knew they understood. He needed more time to learn how to live with this pain.
Nacreous took him to the basement and opened the door to one of the rooms. "Ta-da! This is your room, now. I got it all cleaned for you. I got this desk from one of the other rooms. The berth, I mean, it's old but I cleaned it. I made it as nice as possible."
"It is nice… Thank you…" Starscream said softly as he looked around.
"I know you want to be a house Seeker to get away, but…. This place isn't heaven. Out there you guys work all orbital cycle and then are left alone in the evening and night. Here… You're on call all the time. If the masters need you at 3 in the morning you better get up. They have parties, their friends visit, and you have to be present and serving them. Just, keep your head low and focus on cleaning."
"I can't go back to those stables… I can't keep being reminded of him…" Starscream looked up at the hybrid, coolant pooling in his optics.
"I know… You're not that far away from him…"
"I'm not at the stables."
"Well, I was referring to the nanite bank."
"What?"
"The nanite bank. It's just down the hallway here. That's where they keep all the nanites from the studs and brood Seekers." He paused. "Want to see?"
Starscream nodded. He was curious where it all went after they collected it. Nacreous walked past him and down the hallway they went. The hybrid stopped by a large door with a unique doorknob. He pulled the handle down, there was a loud click, and he pulled the door open. He set up a bar to keep the door open, then led Starscream inside.
It was cold, very cold, in this large room. Rows upon rows of shelving units greeted them, all with cylinders and lots of labels with words he couldn't read. Nacreous gestured to it all as he spoke.
"This is where all the nanites are! They got spike and gestation nanites both here. Some of these are super old, like, Rainbow old. And some are new, like… The current studs new. They keep them all in this freezer and use them as desired, sell them, whatever. There's enough nanites down here to breed thousands of Seekers."
"Why do they have so much?" Starscream perked his wings.
"Well, because you need extra. Not every time you use it does a brood Seeker get sparked. They need a lot of extras that won't end up working." He stopped at one shelving unit and pointed to several of the cylinders. "These are Shamelessly Rich's. Alllllll of this is his sparkling juice."
Starscream bit his lower lip plate seeing just how much had been collected. There was definitely enough there to breed well over a hundred Seekers. "Are they ever going to use this?"
"I don't know. When they do remove stuff it's to sell to breeders on other planets. Here on Velocitron you have to have live cover to compete a race Seeker. But there's nothing saying you can't use this to breed a Seeker to become a brood Seeker. So, they might use this to make a Seeker solely to breed grandcreations of Shamelessly Rich. Or to breed Seekers they will just sell to someone on another planet." He shrugged. "I think they just want to hold on to it until they change the rules and can use artificial insemination bred Seekers in racing. It's allowed everywhere else."
Starscream touched the cylinders, biting his lip plate. "What about his spark? They… They collected that, too."
"Oh, that's in the other room. Wanna see?"
Starscream nodded.
Nacreous led him out, closed and locked the door behind them, then walked to another room. They walked inside, seeing more rows of shelving units, each with drawers that all were labeled. Nacreous walked down the path until he came to one shelving unit. He opened a drawer and pointed for Starscream to look.
"This is Shamelessly Rich."
Starscream looked inside the drawer, seeing little devices, almost like dataslugs, all lined up. "This is his spark signature?"
"Yeah, so they plug these into an artificial spark which will replicate the sparkbond and shoot out the spark energy that's inside of these. This is like… Basically copies of his spark. But like, part of his actual spark in them."
Starscream picked one up. "Do they keep track of how many they have?"
"I don't know. There's a lot so… Maybe not."
Starscream subspaced the one he held.
"Stars!" Nacreous' optics widened. "You're going to get in trouble!" He quickly closed the drawer.
"I'll only get in trouble if you snitch."
"I won't snitch, but don't do that when I'm a witness!" He rolled his optics. "We need to teach you how to steal without being seen."
"You'd teach me?"
"I might have some experience." He grumbled, grabbing Starscream by the arm and leading him out of the room.
"Where did you get experience?"
Nacreous locked the door behind them. "Take a shower, Starscream. The masters expect us house slaves to be clean."
Starscream gave him a look before walking back down the hallway. He entered the washroom, vented loudly, and turned on the water. He wouldn't get caught… Ever.
Starscream washed himself, settled in his room, and then followed Nacreous upstairs. Wraith was helping Stardust in the energon room preparing dinner for the masters. Wraith's daughter was in a booster chair eating her energon mush as she watched her carrier work. She giggled and kicked her little legs, so happy to just be there.
Nacreous showed Starscream how to set the table, explaining to him who sat where and who liked what.
"Knock Out always sits by Pulchra on her right side. Pulchra is always to the right of Opulentus who sits at the head of the table." Nacreous explained. "We can't seat Grit across from Knock Out or next to him otherwise the brothers will fight. Grit has to be seated near the other end of the table next to Melius. Melius and Celeritas are always beside each other. Pulchra just gave birth so the newest master, Sledge, he has this crib here so he can recharge in it while Pulchra refuels. Plumeria, Pulchra's carrier, always sits across from Pulchra. She's sick so she sometimes needs help getting into her seat. Then, Offroad sits across from Grit. Can't have Offroad near Knock Out, they will also fight. Conduit is usually across from Knock Out, they like to talk. We have some new people as well…"
Starscream nodded his head as he listened, helping to get the table all set up. Then, he helped carry the energon out of the energon room and to the dining room. He was shown where to place it, and how to serve it as apparently the masters don't even serve themselves. They have to have everything scooped and put on their plates by their slaves, too. And that meant Starscream needed to know who liked what and how much of it to give. He wasn't surprised to learn how picky Grit and Knock Out were.
Soon, the family and other grounders began to file in. They all took their seats and without even saying a word to any of the Seekers, or the hybrid, began to eat and chatter away. Knock Out and his carrier were talking to each other and snickering, while Opulentus held his youngest son against his chestplates, enjoying him while he was still sweet and innocent.
Grit was the last to arrive, looking so smug as a tired Princess followed him. He sat down as the Seeker femme walked by to the energon room and quickly began to drink some energon. Starscream didn't want to think about what happened to that poor femme to leave her so tired and desperate for fuel.
Nacreous pulled Starscream away and the Seekers all had their energon at a small table in the energon room. Starscream kind of liked sitting there with the others, chatting and enjoying a meal together. The outside grunts never really ate together, simply grabbed their energon and ate in their rooms or on the couches while watching TV. He liked watching Wraith's daughter play with her carrier, making him want his own. But then he remembered Shamelessly Rich and had to fight back tears.
Once the masters were done and left, the Seekers emerged and cleaned off the table. Leftovers were stored away, dishes washed, the table cleaned, floor swept, and then the Seekers were allowed to retire to their basement. Wraith took his daughter to their room to recharge, exhausted from working and caring for his creation. Stardust went to her room to watch TV alone, while Nacreous, Starscream, and Princess stayed in the Seeker living room to watch TV on the large vidscreen.
Starscream snuggled against Nacreous, the two sharing a blanket as the basement was cold. Princess had fallen into recharge on the couch beside them wrapped in her own blanket.
Starscream didn't mind how this orbital cycle had gone. He helped in the energon room, he did some cleaning, now he was relaxing with people he liked. It didn't seem that bad. He was sure there would be orbital cycles that were worse than others, but if it was usually like this then being a house slave shouldn't be hard.
Surely it had to be easier than dealing with massive Seekers who bite, scratch, and kick you every orbital cycle, right?
Starscream onlined the next morning to Nacreous shaking him awake. They went upstairs and ate some energon before setting up the table for breakfast as Stardust began to work in the energon room. Wraith was allowed to recharge in as he was caring for his sparkling and had been onlined several times in the night to nurse.
Princess also remained in her berth, and Nacreous left her some energon on her desk.
After the table was set up only a few of the masters came downstairs to eat. Nacreous grabbed a tray, filled it with energon, and gestured Starscream to follow him up the back staircase.
"So, mornings are a little different. Grit, Opulentus, all of them online early and go work with the race Seekers. But, Knock Out stays in berth until he has to get up for school. Well, he just graduated so he no longer has school, but he still stays in berth. Pulchra also recharges in, especially now with Sledge, and so does her carrier, Plumeria." Nacreous stopped outside of Knock Out's room, rapped his knuckles on the door twice, then opened the door. "Good morning, master Knock Out."
"Mmmmmm…." Knock Out moaned, pulling the blanket over his faceplates as he still lied on his berth, Deisel, three cybercats, and another cyberdog also recharging in his berth.
Nacreous placed a cube of energon and a bowl of goodies onto the nightstand, then lifted the window blinds, allowing the sunlight in. Knock Out rolled over to face away from the blinding morning sun.
"Is there anything you require of me?" Nacreous perked his wings.
"Go away…" Knock Out groaned.
"Very well." Nacreous smirked as he turned and walked out of the room. He closed the door behind them. "That's Knock Out. Now, we go to Pulchra."
Nacreous walked with Starscream to the other side of the mansion where the master berthroom was located. He knocked on the door before entering.
"Good morning, mistress Pulchra." Nacreous greeted warmly, smiling.
"Morning, Nacreous." Pulchra forced a tired smiled, lying in berth with Sledge.
Nacreous began to place her energon with additives on the nightstand before her. "Is there anything you require?"
"No, just energon and more recharge. Thank you, sweetspark." She took the cube from him.
"I will ensure no one bothers you, ma'am. Does the little master require anything?"
"Yes, could you clean him out for me?"
"Right away, ma'am." Nacreous set his tray down, then carefully picked up Sledge. He gestured for Starscream to follow him into the washroom. "Okay, cleaning out the waste tank for a newborn isn't hard. You open their waste port cover like so." He showed him. "Now, you gotta wipe them clean using these disposable cloths. As they get bigger they will lose more and this gets a lot messier… But for now, just wiping is enough. Hold his legs up like this by the ankles, we wipe and get him clean. Grab another, wipe again, and cover back up. Wash your servos in the sink, most important part." He said as he did so. "And we have a clean sparkling!"
"Do the masters not clean their own sparklings?"
"Rarely… It's always me or Wraith cleaning this one…" Nacreous picked up Sledge. "At least he's cute." He smiled at the newborn who was too tired to do anything but recharge.
"He'll soon be bossing you around."
"Yeah, but… He probably will be nice. Knock Out bosses me around and he's younger than me."
"Don't you find it… Weird how a sparkling commands us…?"
Nacreous shrugged. "I don't ask questions. I have energon, a room, everything I need. I just have to clean the house and serve them energon in exchange."
"Forever…"
"Don't question it, Starscream. We depend on the masters to care for us. The world out there is evil. You know it is."
Starscream felt the need to say that things weren't perfect here, but he bit his glossa. Nacreous carried Sledge back out to Pulchra and handed him to her.
"Is there anything else?" He inquired.
"No, that's all."
"Recharge well, ma'am. I'll come by later with more energon."
"Thank you, Nacreous." Pulchra settled back down, needing more recharge.
Nacreous carried his tray out and closed the door behind them. He walked over to their last destination with Starscream in tow. He knocked on the door before entering.
"Good morning, mistress Plumeria." Nacreous smiled as he approached the femme in her berth. "Is there anything you require, ma'am?" He asked as he set the last of the energon down on the nightstand.
Plumeria weakly tried to sit up. "Yes, I… I need help."
"With what?"
"Oh, you know what it is, mech." She gestured to the washroom.
"Of course, ma'am." Nacreous set the tray down before grabbing her arm and carefully helping her sit up. "Starscream, take her other arm. We need to help her stand."
Starscream hesitated before doing so, helping the sickly femme to her peds. They walked alongside her to the washroom, and helped her to the waste disposal. Starscream felt very uncomfortable, but Nacreous didn't seem to notice. He was use to doing this. The Seeker looked away when Nacreous helped the frail speedster clean herself, feeling that this was even more disgusting than wiping the newborn down. Nacreous washed his servos before helping Plumeria stand back up, and then carefully walk her back to her berth.
"All settled." Nacreous said as he got her sitting up in berth with her energon and the remote for the vidscreen. "Is there anything else?"
"Yes, fill up my bird feeder. I think it's low." She gestured towards the window.
"Yes, ma'am." Nacreous nodded before he walked over to the window, opened the blind, then pulled the window up. He grabbed the bag of feed from the floor and filled the feeder before closing the window again. "Anything else?"
"No, I'm good." She replied as she turned on the TV.
Nacreous grabbed his tray and walked out with Starscream, closing the door behind them. "Now, we throw energon at the cats and dogs."
Nacreous took Starscream back downstairs where they filled up all the bowls for the pets and carried them to a large room across from the energon room. This room was clearly a playroom for the pets, with cat trees, toys, beds, everything for all the dogs and cats. They set the bowls around as the hungry dogs and cats yelled at them, and only once everyone was munching down was there silence.
"And that's everyone fueled. We will have to do it again later. Three times… Every orbital cycle." Nacreous said as he set the tray down in the energon room. "Until the next time, let's find something to clean! Stardust and Wraith clean the main floor, so we can go to the second and clean. If Knock Out is online we can start with his room."
Nacreous handed Starscream some cleaning supplies and they went back upstairs. The hybrid entered Knock Out's room, but the speedster was still recharging. They then walked down the hallway some more until they came to Grit's room. Nacreous gestured Starscream inside, and turned on the lights and opened the window blinds.
It was a disaster. It looked like a hurricane had blown through. Trash was everywhere, the place smelled, and… Things were all over the floor.
"What… Is this…?" Starscream pointed to the things on the floor.
"Wear gloves, please. This room is highly toxic." Nacreous grunted as he held out two gloves for Starscream. "Those are… Interface toys. He does things to Princess. Don't ask what, you don't want to know. We need to collect them and put them in the tub to wash. His washroom is that door on the left. The floor and berth need to be scrubbed, and we have to clean the big guy over there." He pointed.
Starscream looked to see a fully stuffed race Seeker standing in the corner, his mouth open as if he was roaring, his entire body posed as if he was about to attack. On his crotch was a strap on with an unholy large dildo.
Starscream flicked his wings. "Why is he wearing that?"
"I don't know. Grit put that on him stellar cycles ago… That's Cash Back. He was raced by Melius before Opulentus was born. Won a bunch of races, lost a few, was studded. He was euthanized because his engine cracked and couldn't be repaired. Couldn't race him so they killed him. And he wasn't a high enough stud to bother keeping."
"Why not give him to someone else? Why kill him?" Starscream asked as his wings lowered.
"They would just sell him to someone who would kill him. Kill buyers."
"What are these kill buyers I keep hearing about?"
"They buy Seekers to slaughter. They kill the Seekers, melt them down for sheet metal, sell their organs, use their innermost energon… It's a whole industry. Unwanted race Seekers are like the most killed. You see the protestors outside the tracks? On their signs they have those pictures of race Seekers hanging upside down with their throats sliced open… That's them being slaughtered. That's how they kill them. Drain them of their energon, shoot them in the brain module, chop them up. Melt them down and sell them as cheap sheet metal. Probably some things in here originate from them."
Starscream's optics were wide. "That's awful!"
"Yeah. Makes you not hate the stuffing as much." He gestured at Cash Back's body. "We need to clean… I don't want to be in here when Grit returns…"
Starscream swallowed.
They collected the interface toys and tossed them in the tub. Nacreous turned on the hot water and poured a lot of soap in. Starscream scrubbed the floors and berth, not liking how much dried… Something he was finding. Nacreous cleaned the washroom, interface toys, and wiped down Cash Back's body. Nacreous then dusted the shelves, placed the interface toys back into a drawer, and folded towels, tossing the suspiciously stiff ones to the side to be taken to be washed… Or burned.
As they were still cleaning Grit suddenly walked into the room yanking Princess by the arm. He barely spared the two a glance before shoving the femme onto the berth and getting on top of her. She whined as he grabbed her throat and began to squeeze, not being gentle at all. His expression was dark, optics narrowed, looking like he wanted to hurt her. Princess grabbed at his servos, whimpering with wide optics, but didn't otherwise fight him.
Nacreous ceased cleaning, grabbed Starscream, and the two silently left with their cleaning supplies and bag of dirty laundry. Starscream looked back at the closed door.
"Shouldn't we help her?"
Nacreous shook his helm. "Nope. She's serving Grit. We clean, she does interface stuff. That's our job."
"He was attacking her."
"He was doing his power kink thing. Starscream, I know you want to protect everyone, but Princess… She was literally bred to have this stuff done to her. He won't kill her."
"The masters also say they won't kill the race Seekers…"
Nacreous gave him a look. "Rough interface isn't the same as being whipped to fly so hard your spark gives out. She's fine."
Starscream looked back at the door before following Nacreous. They returned to Knock Out's room and entered. The speedster was at his desk looking in a mirror as he did his optic liner. He didn't say anything as Nacreous began to empty out his trashcan and then dust around the room. Starscream swept and scrubbed the floors, not sure why Knock Out was spending so much time on his face and buffing himself out.
"Master Knock Out?" Wraith poked his helm in the doorway, holding his recharging daughter in his arms. "Y-your mount is ready."
"Thank you, Wraith!" Knock Out smiled. "I'll be right out."
"Where are you going?" Nacreous inquired.
"I have a date." Knock Out checked over his face in the mirror, opening his mouth to make sure his denta were perfect.
"A date your creators know about or is this a secret date?"
"They know I'm meeting someone, they don't know what we are doing."
"What are you doing?"
"Seeing a movie… But we might also have interface. I'll have to see what the vibes are like with this guy."
Starscream perked his wings. "Is this a different guy from the one I saw you with?"
"Who, Tapout? Yeah, we broke up. I'm now a lone fish looking for another in this vast ocean." Knock Out smiled at the mirror, making sure his visage was absolutely adorable and blemish free before turning away.
"Should I pack you anything extra?" Nacreous gave him a look.
"I have birth control. You know my creators put me on it stellar cycles ago." Knock Out grunted.
"Because you're a whore." Nacreous placed a servo on his hip.
"Um, rude." Knock Out pointed a claw at him. "I could have you flogged for that, slave." He grunted sarcastically. "But, yes, because I'm a whore. But, like, this guy is super cute. Look," He held up his communicator to show a picture of the speedster. "Ain't he a hunk?!"
Nacreous raised and optical ridge, then scooted so Starscream could have a look. "A hunk of metal, sure…"
"Oh, stop it." Knock Out subspaced his communicator. "He's a stellar cycle older than me. He is going to the same school I plan on attending."
"Just, don't get stabbed. Stay safe."
"You know I will. I have Reckless! He'll protect me."
"I question how well he could… He gets distracted by bugs…"
"He also gets spooked by plastic bags."
"That too. He's literally kicked you once because of a bee…"
"Well, if I die and Reckless doesn't protect me, he can at least be a witness." Knock Out shrugged. "I'll see you tonight, or in the morning." He waved them as he walked out the door.
"Don't get murdered!" Nacreous called after him.
"I make no promises!"
Nacreous rolled his optics. "He's going to get murdered…"
"Is that a joke or are you serious…?" Starscream asked slowly.
"I hope it's a joke. Go clean the washroom, I'll finish up out here."
The two cleaned Knock Out's room, then went and cleaned other berthrooms. They only stopped to get the mid orbital cycle energon for the masters, pets, and then themselves, before resuming cleaning. They kept cleaning until it was dinner time, and then they prepared the dinner table as Stardust and Wraith made the meal. And just like the previous night, the master came, ate, and left, leaving the slaves to clean. The slaves ate their energon and fed the pets once more before retiring to their space. Princess was summoned by Opulentus and didn't come back for nearly two joors, exhausted and looking like she had been used quite a few times. She took a shower and went to recharge.
Eventually, Starscream and Nacreous went to their own rooms to recharge, only to online the next morning to do it all again.
And that was pretty much it for Starscream for the next for orbital cycles. Just cleaning, preparing meals, and more cleaning. He didn't see the masters much because they were all working with the race Seekers, taking them to racetracks, or isolated in their rooms. He saw them far less now than he did when living outside. It was kind of odd.
Starscream finished cleaning the dining room and went downstairs where the others were, already done with their chores. Stardust had retired to her room, while Nacreous and Wraith watched TV in their living room. Starscream was walking down the stairs when he heard the TV, then… He heard his name.
He ran down the stairs and stood behind the couch, his wings lowering as the TV displayed the news.
"Yet another death in the Seeker racing world. This time, fan favorite champion Shamelessly Rich suffered a catastrophic breakdown just as he crossed the wire to win what would be his final race." The femme speedster reporter said as the screen changed from showing her to the footage of the race.
Starscream swallowed, watching as Shamelessly Rich crashed from a different angle, the camera above the track, showing far more of the horrific incident.
"Seekers are being bred to be faster and lighter which results in them suffering far more damage when they do crash." A speedster mech who was now shown on the screen spoke.
The femme spoke again as the TV showed the speedster mech looking at charts and race Seeker "skeletons." "Delta, a DVM who specializes in large Seeker care and surgery at the University of Navitas, has long spoken about the genetic issues of the modern race Seeker."
"These Seekers are not like other Seekers." Delta continued as he sat facing the camera, his office behind him. "Most Seekers have light, but sturdy skeletal structures and outer plating to handle crashes from significant heights. This was an evolutionary advantage for them as a flight species. But the racing industry has bred this out of them to make them faster. The crashes we are seeing for the past vorn are catastrophically worse than the previous vorn, and so forth. Many crashes we are seeing now would have been survivable just a few vorns ago."
"Do you believe that an overhaul of the breeding of these Seekers is necessary?" The femme reporter asked off camera.
"Absolutely. The breed cannot be saved in the state that it is in."
The screen changed to show a speedster walking into a stall with a race Seeker and begin to bridle him as the femme's vocalizer continued. "Skidblaze has long been racing Seekers and breeding them, and disagrees with much of the sentiment around the breed."
The screen changed to show Skidblaze leaning back against a fence, race Seekers in the background on a hotwalker just over his shoulder. "It's true that race Seekers have been bred to be faster and have lighter plating, but the breed isn't the issue. Catastrophic breakdowns are rare, and usually occur due to poor vet checkups. If owners would better monitor the health of their racers and stop racing them when they show cracks and other health issues, we would see an end to all these crashes. The bad players in the industry make the rest of us look bad."
The femme's vocalizer continued as the screen now showed another speedster mech. "Burnout, the founder of Coalition for the Protection of Race Seekers, believes there is a better solution."
"Ban it." Burnout replied bluntly. "The only way to prevent these deaths, the rampant cruelty, and doping is to ban the industry. Every racing season in the eastern half of Velocitron averages 2,000 deaths on the tracks. There is an average of 10,000 Seekers being sent to slaughter each season because they are not fast enough, too old, or are injured. Killing is part of this industry and always has been. We can look back for vorns and see that the killing has only gotten worse while the industry touts safer tracks and better breeding. Even ignoring the deaths there is immense cruelty. These Seekers are not even fully developed when they are forced to race. Training often begins at only 10 stellar cycles old, and they are on the track as early as 15 stellar cycles. A seeker is not fully grown until around 24 stellar cycles. These are underdeveloped bodies being literally beaten to fly so hard they suffer internal leakage.
"They are whipped up to 30 times in a single race, they have painful bits yanking their mouths, and many are having multiple surgeries before they even turn 20 stellar cycles!"
As he spoke the screen continued to show images and videos of race Seekers with energon pouring from their mouths, collapsing from exhaustion, struggling to escape the starting gates, crashing, and being led off the track with broken limbs and panic in their optics.
"I post the designations of every Seeker killed on my website and the cause. Most are from breakdowns on the track, with others being breakdowns during training. They can't even train these Seekers without killing them."
"If a ban was implemented, then this breed would cease to exist." The reporter said.
"It's for the best. These Seekers are so inbred that even if they survive the track, or were never raced, they don't live that long. They suffer many chronic diseases. It's simply cruel to continue breeding them only for them to die on the track or from a genetic condition rarely seen in other Seeker breeds."
"If a ban was implemented tomorrow, what would happen to all these Seekers?"
"The reality is a ban won't be implemented tomorrow. But, more and more people are turning away from this cruel industry as they realize just how awful it is. We have seen over 40 tracks close within the last vorn, and the sparkling crop has more than halved in that same time. The industry is dying, the breeding is lowering, and more and more are turning away from gambling. The only thing keeping this industry afloat are the subsidies."
"Another issue plaguing the industry is rampant doping." The reporter continued as the screen now showed yet another speedster as he was working on the body of a deceased racer.
"I was the one who performed the autopsy on Shamelessly Rich." The new speedster said as words appeared by him, but Starscream couldn't read them. "Two types of circuit boosters were present in his energon. This would have led him to not feel the pain sooner, so by the time he did it was already too late. One of the circuit boosters in his system, which is the most common to use on race Seekers, is often called 'hellfire.' This is a very dangerous circuit booster that prevents the user from feeling tired, can cause spark attacks, and fuel pump damage. It's absolutely sickening to be pumping these into Seekers to win a race."
"What was the ultimate cause of death for Shamelessly Rich?" The reporter inquired.
"His engine ripped in half. Completely split apart. A very painful and inexcusable way to kill one of these magnificent creatures. But sadly, a more common death. The constant racing so hard causes small cracks in their engines. These are very difficult to detect, and often when they are detected they are pretty large. When they are left untreated they can become infected with rust which can then infect the spark and kill the Seeker. Or, in the case of Shamelessly Rich, cause the engine to completely snap in half."
The screen now showed the reporter walking alongside a track with race Seekers being walked around in the background. "Given the discovery of illegal substances in Shamelessly Rich, his owner and breeder, Opulentus of Navitas, has been suspended for seven stellar cycles from every track, and permanently suspended from New Horizon Raceway, the very track that Shamelessly Rich died at.
"When I tried to speak to Opulentus about his suspension and the death of yet another one of his race Seekers, he refused to answer my questions."
The screen now showed the reporter chasing after Opulentus who was walking towards the mansion's front door. Grit walked alongside his sire, both visibly annoyed, while Knock Out could be seen on the porch looking bitterly towards Opulentus.
"Opulentus, do you have anything to say about the illegal substances found in Shamelessly Rich? You have lost twenty-one Seekers in the past five stellar cycles, eleven of them during graded stakes races. What do you have to say about that?"
Opulentus finally turned to face her. "Speak to my lawyer and get the hell off my property!"
"Are you doping all of your Seekers?" She persisted.
Offroad suddenly appeared before the camera and it changed the scene.
"Opulentus is not the only race Seeker owner who refuses to speak to the media." She continued as the screen now showed her back on the track. "Undercover investigations done by People for the Ethical Treatment of Seekers has revealed the widespread use of illegal substances in race Seekers. Many say that the light punishments are not enough of a deterrent to prevent owners from doping their racers."
The screen showed Burnout again. "Trainers will be suspended only a few decaycles or stellar cycles for drugging up these adolescent Seekers and not even from every track. They can continue to make Shanix by racing at other tracks, or breeding and selling their Seekers. They don't lose anything. And when they are caught 'over whipping' a Seeker a jockey is only fined 500 Shanix when they usually make 5,000 per race! They are not being punished for abusing these Seekers. How many Seekers must be beaten and killed before this industry is banned?"
"Burnout says the recent victories against the Seeker racing industry are clear signs of a future without racing." The reporter spoke.
"The tracks shuttering, the loss of trainers, the decline of breeding, the smaller crowds pf spectators at events, gambling being legalized for other sports, and the public outcry against this industry are clear signs that Velocitron is turning its back on Seeker racing. It is dying, and they are holding on to what little they have to not become a dark memory in history."
The reporter's vocalizer spoke as a video of Shamelessly Rich being walked along a platform to be raced played. "While Seeker racing's future is uncertain, what is is that the racing industry lost a magnificent athlete. Shamelessly Rich will long be remembered by his fans, and has secured his position in the racing hall of fame. He has sired several hundred sparklings who will be making their racing debut in the oncoming stellar cycles."
The screen changed to show other reporters in a studio, one of them, a truck, speaking. "Thank you for that. It is an issue we see coming up over and over again. For more information about the Seeker racing industry, check out Coalition for the Protection of Race Seeker's website, on screen below, as well as People for the Ethical Treatment of Seeker's website. There is a documentary called, "The Final Race" which explores the life of race Seekers, made by the son of a prominent race breeder and trainer, Gearshift of Stone Valley. Gearshift is also the founder of one of the largest Seeker rescues, with a special focus on race Seekers and grunts. His website is below. Now, on to the weather!"
Starscream swallowed, coolant in his optics over seeing Shamelessly Rich again, but feeling… Hope. There were people talking about his mate like he mattered. Talking about these race Seekers wanting to help them. He… Felt conflicted. So many masters were cruel, but here were masters saying to stop harming Seekers.
"Mech, Opulentus is going to hate that they aired that." Nacreous chuckled. "If you listen, he might be throwing stuff around upstairs."
"That crash looked awful…" Wraith said softly, hugging his sparkling.
"Oh, yeah, I've seen quite a few of them. They're horrible." Nacreous nodded.
Starscream swallowed as he turned and went to his room. He sat on his berth and cried. He missed Shamelessly Rich… He missed Chandelle…
A few orbital cycles passed, all the same routine. Starscream had settled in and was somewhat enjoying this new life. It was simple, he wasn't yelled at, at least so far, and he enjoyed being around the other house slaves. He did miss Lightning and Silverstorm and his other friends, but he just wasn't ready to speak to them. Seeing them made him think of the race Seekers which made him think of Shamelessly Rich…
Starscream walked into Opulentus' office with cleaning supplies, pausing when he saw his owner sitting behind his desk on a phonecall. The grunt knew to be quiet, and began to dust the stuffed Seekers. As he walked to the back wall, he could see behind the desk. His wings perked, realizing why Opulentus was sitting with his chair to the side. On her knees before him was Princess with Opulentus' spike in her mouth. The speedster continued talking on the communicator, obviously doing his best to not make any sounds that would give away what he was doing to the person on the other line. In his other servo he twirled a long riding whip.
Princess was mouthing and doing her best to please him, having done this hundreds of times. She knew exactly what he liked. She didn't make a sound, no emotions, just business as usual for her.
Starscream swallowed, but continued cleaning. He tried his best to ignore them, but that awful sucking sound wouldn't stop. He flinched when Opulentus gave Princess a lash on the aft with the crop. She didn't make a sound, didn't flinch, didn't pause, nothing. It was as if she was never struck. She continued sucking and pleasuring him, even when she received a few more lashes.
Finally, he overloaded and filled her mouth. Without any hesitation, she removed her mouth, grabbed a bucket that was next to her, and spat in it. She then picked up a towel that had been set by the bucket and cleaned her mouth, then begin to wipe her master's spike.
Opulentus finally finished his call and stood up. He pushed her over the desk, and she opened her codpiece. She leaned over the desk, not moving, not making a single sound as she was penetrated and Opulentus began to thrust very quickly into her. Starscream bit his lip plate noticing how tired she looked. It was all the same routine, no pleasure, nothing new. She just obeyed and allowed them to do what they wanted to her body.
A corpse had more life in it than she did at that moment.
Starscream continued cleaning, getting everything dusted and the floor swept. Opulentus finished with Princess and she cleaned his spike and codpiece for him before she was allowed to leave. She didn't even wince when Opulentus gave her a hard slap on her aft the moment she turned to leave.
"Thank you, master." She forced a smile as she glanced back at him.
She walked out of the room with her towel and bucket, going to the next master to service. Starscream lowered his wings, not use to seeing her like this. She usually was giggling, being snippy, and looked happy. Maybe she was just tired?
Starscream was cleaning a bethroom when he heard a commotion from the front. He walked over and looked over the banister to see two Blazer Seekers being led inside as they each carried the end of a massive box. Flightline held the front end of this rectangular shaped box while Warrior carried the back end. Both Blazers were wearing their halters with Opulentus and Grit leading them, riding whips in their other servos.
"Come on, get it up the stairs." Opulentus ordered the Blazers as he started up the stairs himself.
"Careful, take your time." Melius spoke as he walked beside the Blazers.
Flightline stepped onto the steps, taking it slow, snorting loudly. Warrior was more careful, not able to look down and see his peds. Grit did his best to guide his peds so that the Seeker wouldn't trip.
Starscream wasn't sure what they were doing. Maybe they had furniture in that box? He was sure the masters were always bringing home weird slag. He watched them climb up the stairs, then go down the hallway. He turned and went back to cleaning, not thinking much of it.
It was a couple of orbital cycles later when Starscream grabbed the mail and went back inside the mansion with it. He couldn't read, but Nacreous told him which letters to look for so he knew which mail went to who. It took him a while, and he had to check his notes on his datapad, but he figured out the recipients. He took a package to Grit's room, one to Knock Out's room, another to Offroad, and some to a few other residents of the house. The last package he had was a little heavier and was for Pulchra.
He went to Pulchra's room, knocked, then opened the door. He lowered his wings.
"What is it?" Opulentus grunted as he stood by his berthside, thrusting into a moaning Pulchra.
"I apologize, master." Starscream said quickly. "I am just delivering the mail.
"Set it on the nightstand."
Starscream inclined his helm and walked over to the nightstand. He set the package down, then turned away from them so he didn't have to see his two owners doing the nasty. As he did so, he saw it.
His optics widened, wings dropped, his knees felt weak, and it felt like someone had stabbed his spark with hot irons. His neck cables tightened so much he couldn't cycle air, and his entire body began to tremble.
He managed to take three steps closer before he collapsed to his knees.
"AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" He covered his mouth in absolute horror as he let out the loudest shriek of shock and pain, his optics filling with coolant.
There, before him, was the stuffed body of Shamelessly Rich. The racer stood with his legs apart, arms bent and claws out, and his mouth wide open as if in the middle of a deafening roar. His mouth and optics had been shaped to appear he was snarling with narrowed optics, like a vicious beast about to attack and kill their opponent. He looked nothing like the happily smiling Skycutter Starscream knew and loved.
His frame was clean, freshly painted, waxed, and buffed, looking so pristine and perfect. Not a single sign of his horrific crash or the autopsy performed on him. He stood on a square shaped base, a little podium like section protruding from the front and center of it between the racer's peds, and upon it was the plaque with his designation that was taken from the stall.
The little podium had other letters on it, information about his creators, grandcreators, how many offspring he sired, how many races he won, and how much Shanix he had made for his owners. The designations of his owners, listed as his trainers and breeders, were also present. Forever marking him as merely an object they owned and profited from.
But what was the most disturbing was that wires had been installed to light small LEDs in his optics so they appeared glowing and alive. Alive, and yet so dead, emotionless, nothing inside of them.
This was Shamelessly Rich's body, but it didn't look like him. Not with that ferocious snarl, those furious optics, those wings flared like they were. This was him… But not his spark… Not who he actually was in life.
Opulentus rolled his optics as he grumbled. "Get over yourself, Starscream." He snapped. "Get out and close the door behind you."
Starscream looked back, trembling as coolant poured from his optics. "You…. Why…. Why?! Has he not done enough for you?! Why can't he have peace in death!?"
Opulentus glared at him. "Get out before I give you a flogging."
"Be nice, my love." Pulchra spoke up. "Starscream, we can talk about this later. Go find Nacreous and see if he needs any help."
Starscream looked back up at his lover, sobbing harder now. He slowly rose to his peds and reached out, touching the amber Seeker's chestplates, knowing that beneath them there was no longer a flickering spark. The coldness of the plates startled him, and how he heard the metal echo instead of a rumbling engine made him feel like he was about to vomit.
He couldn't take it.
He turned and ran out the room, bawling as he escaped. He ran up the stairs and down the hallway, stopping outside of Rain's room. He opened the door, but she was not there. The grunt sat on her berth and cried, hugging himself.
What had they done to his mate? Why? WHY?! Why do this to the gentlest, kindest, most amazing Seeker?! He shouldn't have been raced to death! He shouldn't have been shot! He shouldn't have been stuffed to be a trophy for Opulentus!
He shook as his optics narrowed, an unholy fury filling his being. He remembered Opulentus holding the gun and shooting his beloved. How that monster forced Shamelessly Rich to keep racing despite the pain, drugging him constantly, and threatening him to win. Opulentus killed him. Opulentus did this. Opulentus didn't care. Opulentus tortured and killed the racers all for his stupid Shanix that he had plenty of! Opulentus was the reason for all of this pain!
Opulentus needed to die.
It was the middle of the night when Starscream went up the stairs to the energon room and grabbed the biggest knife he could find. He went to the second floor, walking slowly, quietly, as he made his way down the hallway. He stopped outside Opulentus' room, intook deeply, then opened the door.
Opulentus was recharging on his side of the berth while Pulchra was on her side, Sledge's crib next to her. The sparkling was recharging deeply as his carrier's arm draped over the edge of her berth and rested by her youngest creation. Opulentus had his back to his mate as he recharged close to the edge on his side, his engine quietly rumbling.
Starscream approached, circling around the berth, careful to not make a sound. He stood before Opulentus, trembling with his fury, his hatred for this mech. He raised the knife up, pointing downward, above his head. His arm trembled harder, he felt coolant in his optics, he gritted his denta, wanting nothing more than to see this speedster dead!
He looked up at Shamelessly Rich, his optics dark, his face twisted into that snarl, the husk of what was once the most amazing Seeker to ever live. He swallowed, lowering the blade.
If he stabbed Opulentus… He would be found out, he would be tortured, and he would be killed. And Skycutter wouldn't want that… He would not want Starscream to be killed by the masters as he was. He would want him to keep going…
Starscream took a step back, swallowing as he looked down at the monster who owned him, who killed his lover. He would get revenge, but not this way. He had another way.
Starscream silently walked out of the room and returned the knife to its drawer. He went to his room and hugged himself as he cried.
The next few orbital cycles Starscream bid his time, waiting and scheming for the opportune moment to strike. Opulentus wouldn't see it coming…
Then, it came.
"I think I found an apartment." Knock Out spoke up at the table.
"Oh?" Opulentus didn't look up as he ate his energon.
"Yeah, it's pretty close to campus. I'd still have to drive or ride a Seeker to get to it, but it's in a nice area of town, it's not ridiculously expensive, and it looks nice. The owner said I could see tomorrow."
"I'll accompany you. I would like to see this apartment and make sure the owner doesn't abduct you."
"He won't abduct me."
"I'd abduct you…" Opulentus grunted before sipping from his glass.
"Lies. You'd be selling me."
"No, I'd sell him." He pointed at Grit.
Knock Out giggled. "Sell him for some crumbled wrappers."
Opulentus smirked. "That's still too high of a price."
"Oh, be nice." Pulchra chastised the both of them. "You should take Grit with you. Make it a sire son adventure."
"I work with Grit. I have plenty of adventures with him." Opulentus looked at his Conjunx Endura.
"We can take him to throw at whoever tries to abduct me." Knock Out nodded sagely.
Opulentus chuckled. "Fine, I'll take both of them. What time you want to leave?"
"Noon works."
Starscream perked his wings.
Once the masters had finished their dinner, the energon room was clean, and all the chores finished, Starscream stepped out of the mansion. He walked to the horse barn and went to the second level. He walked to Opulentus' saddle, that Flatline wore, and unplugged the charging cable. The saddles were charged when not in use as they used electric magnets to stay attached to the Seekers, and also needed electricity to transform with the jet's body. They could do other tasks, such as give basic readings about the Seeker being ridden, take calls, and had a GPS.
Without a charge, the magnet would fail… And slip off the Seeker, plunging the rider to their death. That was why they had the safety girth. But should that be sabotaged as well….
Starscream messed with the buckle of the girth, hoping it wouldn't be able to be tightened all the way. If it was even a little bit loose and the magnets failed…
He left the barn, his spark racing, but hopefully that his plan would work.
"Easy, easy. That's a good, big guy." Vertigo said as he held the reins for Flightline, the Blazer chewing the bit and tossing his head from the discomfort of the stabbing metal in his mouth.
Reckless and Warrior were held in place by Rainfall, the former Blazer annoying the femme by trying to bite her wing, and giggling when she flicked it away.
Starscream stepped out of the front door and walked over to them, forcing a smile. "Hey," He greeted Vertigo.
"Hey." Vertigo perked his wings. "Haven't seen you in a while."
"Yeah… Sorry for disappearing… I just…"
"It's okay. Take your time. But I still wish you said goodbye first."
"I will. I'll come out to visit you guys. I just need my space for now."
"Don't be having too much fun in there."
"It's actually pretty boring." Starscream stepped forward, grabbed Flightline's reins, and pulled his head down. He petted the Blazer on the top of the helm, listening to the massive creature chewing the bit and snorting loudly.
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. Just a lot of cleaning." Starscream stepped to the side, lowering his wings so they blocked off Vertigo from seeing what he was doing. "Nothing fun at all. Clean, wash dishes, clean other slag, watch TV, recharge. Same routine." He messed with the girth where it was buckled together, very carefully loosening it.
"Well, if you ever want to come back outside, the racers miss you. Chattering Gambler, Freedom Prince, Discreet Romance, Risk the Moon, Super Rich, all of them miss you."
"How you know they miss me?" Starscream looked at him, still holding Flightline's reins as the Blazer kept flicking his glossa out to relieve the bit pressure.
Vertigo shrugged. "I just do. I know them." He smiled.
Starscream was about to say something when Opulentus and his eldest sons walked out of the house. Reckless whined loudly as his wings fluttered, so happy to see Knock Out. The red speedster trotted over and took the reins just as Reckless began to nuzzle his faceplates against Knock Out's and purr.
Knock Out giggled. "Hey, silly! I missed you, too! Who's my good Seeker? Is it you? Yes, it is!" He spoke in a baby voice, hugging Reckless as the Blazer continued to nuzzle and purr.
Flightline did not greet Opulentus at all, simply lowered himself when his rider took the reins from Vertigo. Opulentus climbed onto the saddle and tied his legs to the stirrups as Flightline stood up. Grit also received no love from Warrior, the Blazer even stepping back from him with an anxious head toss before capitulating and lowering himself. Grit climbed on, tied his legs to the stirrups, and gave the reins too hard of a tug to turn Warrior around.
"Here, one for the road." Knock Out snickered as he gave Reckless energon goodies, which he quickly devoured. "Okay, down."
Reckless did so, lowering himself far more than the other two Blazers had done, which allowed Knock Out to simply walk onto the saddle and sit down without any effort. He strapped himself in, adjusted the reins, and turned Reckless around.
"Ready?" Opulentus asked as he held out his riding whip.
"Yuppers!" Knock Out nodded.
"Alright, let's go." He clicked his glossa as he gave Flightline a tap on the wing with the whip.
Flightline snorted as he leaped up, transformed, and took off. Warrior followed after him, then Reckless, the three soon flying away.
Starscream watched… And smiled to himself.
Opulentus and his sons rode their Seekers for about half a joor, nothing unusual transpiring. Knock Out kept petting Reckless and praising him for being so good, while the other two speedsters didn't acknowledge their mounts much.
"Wanna do tricks? Yeah? You seem bored. Come on!" Knock Out pulled the reins and turned Reckless away.
Opulentus watched him fly around, the Blazer performing loops, aileron rolls, and other tricks. He vented, then patted Flightline on the fuselage. "Don't worry, we will not participate in that."
Flightline snorted.
"Well, maybe they will tire out each other." Grit grunted. "We should leave him behind!"
Opulentus rolled his optics. "Not too far behind."
Grit chuckled as he kicked his spurs into Warrior's side, making the jet fly faster. Opulentus gave Flightline a light lash, causing him to also increase his speed.
As they flew, Opulentus' saddle suddenly began to display a warning. He looked down, not sure why the battery would be low. Maybe it was bad? Well, the safety strap was on so the saddle wouldn't go anywhere.
The saddle turned off, not enough energy to sustain the magnet and everything else it did. Opulentus wasn't worried, because of that good ol' safety girth!
Then, it slipped.
The saddle began to move from the high wind, and Opulentus grabbed the handlebars. He tried to balance in the center, but the wind was too much. The saddle suddenly lopsided before sliding all the way, causing the speedster to hang upside down. His legs were still strapped in, but if the girth gave way….
"GRIT!" He screamed, his optics wide with panic as he yanked the reins, trying to stop Flightline.
The Blazer whined, slowing down, but confused why his rider was beneath him now. He began to spin around in tight circles, shrieking and panicking himself. Opulentus held onto the handlebars, trying to not be thrown around by the centrifugal force, but also trying to pull the reins to make Flightline stop.
Grit looked back, his optics widening. "SLAG!"
He yanked the reins, ignoring Warrior's yelp, and kicked him hard. Warrior flew over, crying out when the bit was brutally pulled into his mouth, crushing his glossa and tearing into his lips. He flew alongside the panicking Flightline as Grit grabbed the other Blazer's reins, pulled them, and managed to get him to stop spinning.
"Hang on, sire!" Grit called out, beginning to panic. He tried to reach for Opulentus, but loosening his grip on Flightline's reins caused the Blazer to begin to spin again. "Slaggit! Where's Knock Out?!" He placed Warrior's reins into his mouth then unsubspaced his communicator.
Knock Out was in the middle of doing a barrel roll when his communicator went off. He pulled the reins, making Reckless fly straight, then answered the call.
"What is it?" He asked, not sure why his brother was calling him.
"SIRE'S FALLING! GET OVER HERE!"
Knock Out's optics widened. He subspaced the communicator, then lashed Reckless far too hard on the aft. Reckless loudly yelped from the pain and shock that Knock Out hit him so hard. He powered his thrusters and flew quickly, yelping when he received another hard lash.
Knock Out quickly spotted the two Blazers, and pulled the reins, ignoring Reckless' shriek of pain from the bit tearing into his mouth. He flew under Flightline, tied the reins to the handlebars, and reached up to his sire.
"Untie your legs!" Knock Out called up.
"Take my servo!" Opulentus held it out, which Knock Out grabbed with both of his.
With his free servo, Opulentus reached up and began to unfasten his legs from the saddle. Knock Out's spark pulsated faster as his sire dropped down onto Reckless' back, the Blazer starting to go faster, but Knock Out ordered him to stop.
Opulentus, still being held onto by Knock Out, scooted over and sat on the saddle behind his son, taking a moment to concentrate on his cycling.
"A-are you okay?" Knock Out asked frantically, still holding his sire's arm.
"I am now." Opulentus hugged his son. "You did good. Thank you."
"Here, I-I can share some leg straps."
Grit tied Flightline's reins to the handlebars of his saddle, then made the two Blazers approach Reckless.
"The frag just happened?!" He demanded.
"The saddle lost power. I don't know why the safety girth didn't keep it in place." Opulentus said as he tied his legs in. "Knock Out, don't cry. I'm fine."
Knock Out wiped at his optics, the thought of his sire almost dying beginning to fill him now that the adrenaline was wearing off.
"Do we need to get a new one?" Grit asked, reaching over and putting the saddle back on Flightline's back. He then pulled the girth tight and fastened it.
"They are old saddles. I'll have them looked at."
"Should we go home…?" Knock Out looked back at his sire.
"No, let's go see the apartment. I'm fine, sweetie."
Knock Out slowly nodded, then turned Reckless in the right direction.
Starscream perked his wings when he heard people returning that evening. He was excited, hoping to see Opulentus' mangled corpse and his head split open, but when he looked over the banister he was greatly disappointed. Opulentus walked inside with his sons, the three of them talking and laughing about something. Starscream flicked his wings as his optics narrowed. He would need to figure something else out…
"Well?" Opulentus asked one of the speedsters he employed as the other mech looked over the Blazer saddles.
"There's nothing wrong with any of them. They are all fully functional, the batteries are fine, the batteries aren't even that old because I replaced them only twenty stellar cycles ago and they are supposed to last three vorns. There's nothing at all to indicate anything is malfunctioning." He set down the saddle he was looking at.
Opulentus raised an optical ridge. "Absolutely nothing?"
"Nope! The girth on your saddle was a little loose so I replaced it, but yeah…" He shrugged. "Nothing wrong at all." He paused as he set the saddle he held back on its charging stand. "I did notice that the charger for your saddle was unplugged. Could have just been knocked over when someone took the saddle off, or maybe one of the cybercats got up here and was playing."
"Or…. Someone sabotaged it?" Opulentus crossed his arms.
The other mech gave him a look. "Why would anyone do that? We all like you. The Seekers like you."
"Was Rain in this area?"
"Rain isn't going to kill you. She doesn't even fit through the door."
Opulentus thought, not trusting any of these Seekers.
"You wanted to see me, sir?" Vertigo asked as he stepped into the office.
"Yes, take a seat." Opulentus gestured to the chair before his desk.
Vertigo walked over and sat down, glancing around at all the stuffed Seekers and their remains. His wings perked when Opulentus spoke.
"You saddled Flightline yesterday, correct?" Opulentus wrestled his elbows on the desk as his claw tips touched to form a steeple.
"Yes, sir."
"Did you notice anything odd in the barn?"
"Odd? Like how?"
"Anything unusual with the saddle?"
"No." Vertigo shook his helm. "I went in, I grabbed the saddle and the bridle, and walked out. Just as I always do."
"You didn't see anyone else around?"
"No. Well, Hailstorm was feeding the equinoids and zap ponies. And Hurricane was helping to clean out stalls, but… They weren't in the loft."
"Why was Hurricane in the horse barn?"
"I don't know. I don't talk to him much because of… You know why." He pointed to his helm.
"But you saw nothing else that was unusual or off?"
"Nope!"
"Has anyone said anything… Negative about me lately?"
"Negative how?"
"Such as… Wanting to harm me?"
"No, sir. Why would we want to harm you? You saved us all from cruel masters. I mean, yeah, we can get frustrated with you at times and be angry, but… No one has ever said they wanted to kill you."
"Hmm," Opulentus thought. "Very well, I believe you. You are excused."
"Yes, master." Vertigo stood up.
"Tell Hurricane to come to my office. I wish to speak to him."
"On it!"
Opulentus waited until the other requested grunt Seeker arrived. The Seeker stood in the doorway, wings perked, a smile on his faceplates.
"Mastah!" He walked in without being asked. "I… a-a-a-a-a-am here!" He stuttered, still keeping his smile.
"Hello, Hurricane. Please, take a seat." Opulentus gestured him to.
Hurricane did so, twitching a little. "I g-g-g-g-glad to s-see you." He beamed.
Opulentus smiled at him. "I'm glad to see you, Hurricane. How is my favorite brain damaged Seeker doing?"
"I-I am g-g-good." He giggled.
"I wanted to ask you some questions. If you don't remember that's all right. I know it's hard for you. Yesterday you were helping Hailstorm in the equinoid barn. Do you remember this?"
"Yes!" He nodded quickly, his mouth hanging open some.
"Why were you there and not helping with the brood Seekers?"
"H-H-H-Hypers-s-s-sonic said S-S-Snowstorm w-was cle-eaning for me. I… I want…. To help."
"Was she cleaning for you, or did you have another breakdown?"
He grinned like a child who was proud of being naughty. "Yas."
Opulentus raised an optical ridge. "Hurricane, didn't I say not to lie? You were helping Hailstorm because you were acting up, again, and Hypersonic wanted you gone. Correct?"
"Yash." He nodded.
"That's better. While you were helping Hailstorm, did you see anyone go into the barn that wasn't Hailstorm?"
"Yash."
"Who?"
"Bortigo."
"Vertigo? Alright, who else?"
"Rainfall."
"Okay, anyone else?"
He thought. "No."
"No one?"
"N-no one." He giggled.
"Hmm, well, I appreciate your honesty. You're the only one I can trust."
Hurricane beamed, smiling so proudly. "I know."
"Well, that was all I needed from you. You may go back outside."
Hurricane got up and started for the door just as Grit walked in holding a datapad.
"Whoa! Hurricane, what are you up to, dum-dum?" He smirked.
Hurricane smiled back, not fully understanding the insult. "I g-g-g-g-go outside!"
"Alright, you do that. Don't get hit by another speeding vehicle! There's not enough brain module left to scrape off the street for a second time."
"Grit, be nice. Hurricane is an obedient slave." Opulentus admonished.
"I know, just messing with him." Grit patted the Seeker on the helm. "Yup, hollow as ever up there!" He chuckled as he walked by the disabled Seeker.
Hurricane didn't understand Grit, and walked away. Grit sat across from his sire and set the datapad down.
"I went through the security camera. The only Seeker I see heading towards the barn that wasn't scheduled to care for the horses is the night before yesterday. See?" Grit pointed. "That scrawny figure is Starscream."
"So, he is the only one?"
"Yes, I replayed a lot and went through the entire orbital cycle and night. The only people who went towards the barn were Hailstorm, Vertigo, Rainfall, Hurricane, Nebula, Ignition, and the Seekerlets. The usual visitors of the barn. Starscream is the only one who is the odd one."
"Hmm," Opulentus mused. "Call him in."
Starscream was helping Nacreous clean the pet room when Grit barged in.
"Hey, stupid. Not you, the other idiot, Starscream." He grunted. "Sire wants to see you."
Starscream swallowed, and followed Grit up stairs and to Opulentus' office. He sat across the desk, his wings low.
"Yes, sir?" He asked.
"Did you tamper with my saddle?" Opulentus asked, his claws forming a steeple before him.
"What? No. I haven't touched a saddle ever since I became a house Seeker." He replied smoothly despite his spark pulsating faster on the inside.
"You hate me, don't you?" Opulentus replied bluntly.
"Why would you say that?"
"Because of what happened with Shamelessly Rich."
"No, sir. You saved me from the auction."
"I did. And so, you trying to kill me would be quite the betrayal to your savior."
"I didn't try to kill you, sir. I never would."
"If you hate me, you can just say it."
"I don't hate you."
"You understand that I never wanted Shamelessly Rich to die, right?"
"I do."
"So why do you hate me?"
"I don't."
Opulentus eyed him. "Well, I can't say I believe you. But I don't have the evidence that you did tamper with my saddle."
"I can just give him a beating to be on the safe side." Grit grunted.
"No, I will not punish a Seeker unless there's hard evidence to." He turned back to the Seeker. "Starscream, I know you're upset over what happened to Rich. We all are. My spark is also hurting. But if you are trying to, or thinking about, harming me, it will only end badly for you." He paused. "You're dismissed."
Starscream stood up and quickly walked away, his body beginning to tremble. He was so lucky the horse barn had no cameras! He had to be more careful… They were onto him!
Starscream stayed low for the next few orbital cycles, focusing on just cleaning and helping Nacreous. He was thinking of new ways to kill Opulentus, but they always ended up with him being caught somehow. He needed to get by the cameras, and the other Seekers, and all the masters!
He thought about poisoning his energon but… Where would he get poison?
Maybe something would come up…
A media outlet came to the mansion one orbital cycle and set up in the living room. Opulentus was being interviewed concerning Shamelessly Rich, the drugging, his suspension, and about the industry. Starscream and Nacreous poked their helms from the corner, curious about this.
The reporter asked Opulentus a bunch of questions as some other speedsters operated cameras and stood by with their datapads. Most of the questions and Opulentus' answers were things he heard before. Denying drugging Seekers, claiming the crash was a freak accident, and more nonsense. Starscream rolled his optics through much of it until Opulentus said it…
"It's unfortunate what happened." Opulentus spoke about the crash. "These Seekers love to race and Shamelessly Rich was no different. He died doing what he loved."
Starscream felt like a volcano about to erupt, only with pure rage. He stomped over without even thinking.
"No, he didn't."
Opulentus looked back from the chair he sat on. "Starscream…"
"He did not like to race! He hated it! H-he would fight not to go into the starting gate! He whined and cried when he was forced into the trailer! He told me he hated racing! All you did was threaten him and hurt those he cared about to make him race!"
Opulentus glared at Starscream, holding himself back, wanting nothing more than to murder that Seeker. But, he didn't have to do anything as Offroad was standing nearby. The truck walked over, grabbed Starscream by the arm, and dragged him away.
Opulentus turned back to the interviewer with a forced smile. "I apologize for that. Some of these rescue Seekers suffer head trauma."
Offroad dragged a struggling Starscream outside and towards the fence for the equinoids. He pulled Starscream's arm over, the Seeker kicking now in his desperation to get away. Offroad managed to chain the Seeker's wrists to the fence, then stepped back as he unsubspaced his whip. Starscream kept struggling, panicking now as coolant filled his optics.
He screamed when the first lash struck him on the backplates, followed by a second over his wings. He began to bawl between his shrieks of pain, never ceasing in his attempt at freedom.
He heard the roar of a jet engine, then the sound of someone transforming.
"Stop hitting him! Stop it!"
"Go away, Knock Out." Offroad snapped as the red speedster hopped off Reckless and got between the truck and grunt.
"Stop hitting him, you fragger!" Knock Out shoved at him.
Offroad glared down at the little speedster. "How about I tie you to the fence and give you a flogging?! You certainly deserve it, you little brat!"
"Do it! My sire will fire your aft so fast!"
"Move aside!" He grabbed Knock Out's wrist and roughly yanked him away.
Knock Out kicked and bit the servo, causing Offroad to quickly release him. "Leave him alone, you tiny prick bully!"
"Come here, slagger!" Offroad grabbed him by the wrist as the other grasped Knock Out's throat.
"Reckless! Bite him!" Knock Out frantically ordered.
As if a light switch had been flipped, Reckless immediately ceased his calm standing and lunged at Offroad with a horrible shriek. He grabbed the truck, threw him to the ground, and bit his arm hard enough to cause energon to leak out. Offroad punched the Blazer in the face, but Reckless simply picked him up and tossed him.
Knock Out quickly grabbed Reckless' reins and pulled him over to him, ending the attack. "Want more of that?!" He shouted as he threw his servos up.
Offroad stood up and glared at them. "One orbital cycle you won't have your pet to protect you."
"Yeah?! Is that a threat?! Be a mech and go through with it, then! Or are you a little glitch?!"
Offroad grumbled under his breath as he trudged back to the mansion, not wanting to deal with the teenager anymore. Knock Out quickly began to untie Starscream.
"You alright? It's okay, I got you." He said soothingly as he grabbed the grunt's arm and helped him step away from the fence. "What happened?"
Starscream wiped at his optics. "I-I… I shouted at Opulentus."
"Over what?"
"Shamelessly Rich…"
Knock Out rolled his optics. "Come on." He grabbed Starscream's wrist with one servo as the other held Reckless' reins and led them both to the mansion. He walked inside, pulling the Seekers in, and stormed over to Opulentus. "You're such a slagheap. Whipping a Seeker for talking back?!"
Opulentus vented loudly, his interview interrupted once again. "Knock Out, go to your room."
"I am going to my room! I have to take care of the Seeker you had beaten!" He turned to the camera. "My sire has Seekers beaten for speaking their minds, and he also jacks off racer studs without gloves."
"KNOCK OUT!"
"Put that in your interview!" Knock Out then turned and pulled the two Seekers along.
"Why is Reckless inside?! Put him outside, now!"
"NO!" Knock Out walked to the grand staircase and led the Seekers upstairs with him. He took them to his room and closed the door. "Ugh! Why is he such a bastard?!" He handed Reckless a bowl of energon goodies. "Don't piss on the floor…" He then pulled Starscream into his washroom and turned on the water. "Get in there."
Starscream did so, the warm water felt so good. Knock Out grabbed a sponge and began to carefully clean the Seeker's injured backplates. He helped Starscream wash the rest of him before turning off the water. Starscream dried himself with a towel and Knock Out set him up in the closet. The young speedster sealed up the wounds, buffed them, painted over them, and waxed them.
"There you go!" He smiled as he held a mirror up for Starscream to see. "All better."
"Thank you, sir…" Starscream said softly.
"You don't have to call me that. And you're welcome."
Starscream looked at the door, not wanting to go out there and be around Opulentus. He swallowed, feeling so anxious.
"You can stay here." Knock Out replied as if reading his thoughts. "Reckless and I need to go, but feel free to chill here for a while." He grabbed Reckless' reins, the Blazer busy shifting through a drawer.
Starscream nodded. "Thank you."
Knock Out smiled. "You're welcome." He then pulled Reckless out and closed the door.
Starscream lied down on the futon, hoping no one came in and bothered him. He just wanted to be alone and to cry.
It was a few joors later when Knock Out returned. He opened the door carrying a large bowl of energon goodies, a couple of cubes, and a couple of slices of cake in one servo, tucked against his chest, while his other arm carried a cybercat. Behind him was an entire train consisting of Deisel, two other cyberdogs, and five cybercats. Opulentus was heard shouting down the hallway, obviously marching over, but Knock Out ignored it. He waited for all the animals to walk into his room before locking the door behind them. He paused when he saw Starscream.
"You're still here?"
Starscream swallowed. "Should I leave?"
"Nah, you're fine." Knock Out handed him a cube. "We're going to be chilling."
Starscream watched as Knock Out got onto his berth, all the animals quickly climbing up and sitting around him. The speedster turned on the TV, settled down, and began to eat, while also giving each of the dogs and cats some of the energon goodies and cake. Starscream was impressed at how efficient Knock Out was in ensuring everyone got some, in the same order, as he also fed himself. It was like a nightly ritual. He wasn't too surprised when Knock Out unsubspaced more energon goodies to give to the animals once they had finished off everything else.
How was this speedster an infinite fountain of energon goodies?
Once the animals had eaten all the energon, they settled down on the berth around the grounder. He watched TV for a couple of more joors before turning it off and settling down for the night.
"Night Diesel, night Chainsaw, night Blaze, night Destiny, night Shadow, night Smokey…" He went on with wishing a goodnight to all the animals before he turned to Starscream. "Night, Starscream."
Starscream looked over, not expecting a master to say that to him. "Night, Knock Out."
Knock Out smiled, turned off the light, and offlined his optics. Starscream offlined his own, feeling safe with this kind master.
Oh, come on, you KNEW I was gonna have Shamelessly Rich get stuffed. Don't act all surprised! He's just a trophy for his slavers, after all. You know how many champion racehorses, animal heroes, etc. were stuffed for their "service?" You all have seen Balto, right? The dog who helped get medicine delivered to sick children? For him saving lives he was STUFFED and put in a museum! Humans suck.
I also forgot to mention previous chapter, that after I wrote Shamelessly Rich's death I looked at the real Shamelessly Rich's stats. He was raced and killed at a casino in West Virginia, so not terribly far away from me (at the time of me writing this), and he was raced against horses with the names of Native Knock Out and Texas Grit. So, that's some coincidence! You can search his name and see his stats if you want. He was murdered in 2014.
racing/form-profiles/horse/587438/shamelessly-rich-usa
The brainwashing, making them fear pain, and the learned helplessness is something humans do to animals, like horses, bears, etc. to make these otherwise strong and intimidating animals obey. Same way humans control each other. And so the comparison of these healthy slaves caring for the babies and sickly masters but not doing anything is evidence of this brainwashing and learned helplessness. They COULD easily kill the babies, the sickly masters, etc and gang up to kill the healthy masters. But they don't because of the brainwashing and fear they live in.
Coalition for the Protection of Seekers of course is inspired from Coalition for the Protection of Race Horses which is an Australian organization fighting to end horseracing in Australia and New Zealand. They document all horses killed in those countries. Which, at this time at least (1/21/24) in Australia there is a Rich and Shameless being raced. Not sure how long until he's murdered...
And PETA, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, the largest and first animal rights group, of course is inspiration for the People for the Ethical Treatment of Seekers. PETA did do a huge undercover investigation in 2013 in US horseracing concerning the doping. You can find that on youtube or my website, The Vegan Dragon dot com. "The Final Race" is another real documentary on Australian horseracing which is on youtube and my website. Look at the documentary section on my site, I have everything listed there.
Everything about their bodies not being strong enough due to inbreeding, the stats on tracks closing, etc is, as usual, based off real horseracing. In the US alone in the last 20 years about 40 tracks have closed, trainers have more than halved, there's about the same amount of horses being bred as there were decades ago, etc. The industry is dying. I have a lot of info on my site or visit the animal rights groups I have mentioned before, Horseracing Wrongs, Coalition for the Protection of Race Horses, and Animal Aid.
But race horses have been bred to have skinnier legs, so more broken legs, and raced when still developing babies so bones are easy to crack and break...
You guys know by now I'm just copy and pasting everything from the real world!
Do you guys like Hurricane?
Starscream needs to get better about killing people. Too bad this version of him never learned how to fight or kill! Or commit tax evasion...