(Please see previous disclaimers)
Aquaformer had been forced out of the icy sea, as she knew if she stayed too long, her developing little ones would suffer and she could possibly lose them. And so, though reluctant to leave the relative safety of the icy waters, she once again went to the ice cave that she had been using as a safety shelter. She sensed danger, but since the icy water had caused a few glitches, she didn't know if that "danger" she sensed was Decepticons or Autobots, as she felt threatened by both, and unknowingly, she sent that fear over the spark bond to Optimus. Little did Aquaformer realize at first that the danger she sensed was true danger, as Starscream was in the area.
Meanwhile, Optimus got the pulses and he didn't like feeling them. Not because they were from his mate, but because she felt this way. He and his troops had acted in such a manner that she no longer felt she could trust them, any of them including Optimus. That hurt, that hurt badly, but Optimus kept going, knowing that if he didn't get to the femme first, Megatron would destroy her and the Prime along with her. Optimus moved his semi form as fast as he could, holding out hope that he could find the femme first, but he got a bad feeling that he wasn't going to be the first to find her, and that scared him.
Back in the Icy waters that Aquaformer was trying to call home, Starscream sensed a presence in the area, but wasn't quite sure, as the icy air could have fouled up his radar and such a bit. Still, he thought he would check it out, as Megatron had ordered the seeker to find the femme who was on the run. Starscream, smarter than most gave him credit for, went in search of the signal he had detected. He didn't realize at first that if he had detected the signal, something at the signal may have detected him.
Starscream flew as silently as he could towards the area where he detected the signal. It grew stronger as he closed in. Something about it was familiar, and it only took Starscream a couple astroseconds to realize who this signal was coming from – the femme Aquaformer herself. Starscream had a wicked smile on his face as he closed in on the signal. He was bound and determined to get the femme and return to good standing with Megatron.
In the ice cave, Aquaformer felt the presence come closer, and the closer it got, the more evil she felt. She knew them it had to be a con, but which one. She ruled out most of the cons who were not likely to be assigned such duty to find her, and that left her with one of four options, none of them good. She ruled out Megatron quickly, as he wouldn't bother and would send out his minions to find her. She also ruled out Skywarp as he was too loud. That left only two possibilities in her mind – Thundercracker and Starscream, as both were stealthy bots and both had reason to slaughter her on sight. She knew she was a sitting duck, as her developing sparklings would not allow her to submerge into the icy waters just yet, as they were still trying to warm back up. She prepared for a fight the only way she knew how and then she waited.
Starscream, flying near the ice cave that he sensed the presence remained silent. He knew if he even tried to contact Megatron to tell the bot the news, he would lose the element of surprise. Starscream knew Aquaformer would put up a fight and that the cold would hurt both their systems, but he knew all he had to do was outlast her. Starscream flew down towards the ice cave where Aquaformer lay in wait. She was ready for him and any trick he might try to pull, the question was – was he ready for her and to fight her in one on one combat?