Song: Empire– Beth Crowley

"Okay, Chaar is...different in terms of how we've been playing our tactics so far, Arcee," Bolt said. "Given The Matriarch is a bit high strung and has a similar approach in leadership to Megatron, albeit much more vengeful, the best way to deal with this is just heading into it directly."

Megatron glared at him briefly while Arcee raised a brow. "By 'heading in' do you mean just no appeasing her, just demanding or what?"

"Megatron, you want to explain?"

The warlord rolled his optics but indulged him, turning to Arcee dead serious. "The Decepticons are not fooled by aft-kissing, Arcee. While we've been abnormally nice to the other leaders so far, The Matriarch, and arguably me as well, won't allow that. To get the Decepticons to listen, you're going to have to play by their rules and work your way up more than you have done so already. Any incidents may backfire heavily so be careful what you say and do."

"So, be a Decepticon basically...Cliffjumper would be laughing right about now at this," Arcee sneered.

The Vehicon chuckled, "It'll only be at most a couple days, maybe less if we're lucky."

Although there was plenty of confidence they would win over The Matriarch, she knew as much as they did how unruly the Decepticon leader could be, and that concerned Arcee more than she would admit out loud. The fact that The Matriarch had only tolerated her for this long but didn't trust her to keep relations between Chaar and Cybertron really said how the leader valued her rule. Thankfully, The Matriarch had no intentions of taking her throne, but it wasn't entirely out of the realm of possibilities given the distrust.

Haywire appeared with his sparkmate, Scythe, and gestured at them with a grin. "Perceptor has the Space Bridge Nexus locked onto Chaar. Shockwave knows you are on your way...but The Matriarch doesn't. He wants you to reason with her. Try not to start any fights and get her to realign Chaar with Cybertron as quick as you can. Understand?"

"At this point, I don't think there's any way to argue the plan," the queen said. "But if she starts another civil war because she becomes a bitch, I'm not hesitating in killing everyone this time. I'm no Optimus. I'm not going to put up with this scrap of sovereignty if she can't be peaceful about it. Am I clear?"

The three ex-Decepticons quickly nodded while Haywire made a deadpanned frown. As she walked off towards the ground bridge that was set for Iacon to meet Optimus and the others over in the Nexus, Haywire slowly furrowed his brows in concern. "You had to mate with the one bot who won't hesitate to kill you if you relapse?"

Megatron slowly grew a smile and shrugged, "She keeps me sane. She's doing a better job than Optimus and Soundwave, and that says something. Optimus was too soft, and Soundwave was too obedient; against a personality like mine, that doesn't help my more vicious tendencies."

"Scythe?" Haywire turned to his own sparkmate hoping for a better answer to the riddle of Arcee's attitude and all he got was another shrug.

The green mech simply said, "My servos are tied in this."

"Is everyone mated to insane bots now. Shockwave and The Matriarch. Megatron and Arcee..." He then pointed to Bolt unsure, "Mmmm?"

"I had a fling with a Combiner," Bolt said confidently. "All six individuals."

Haywire facepalmed when Scythe pointed out, "Well, you're technically sparked to a formerly convicted spy and notable killer, so I would be saying anything."

The glare he got made him back off with a mere grunt.

The Space Bridge Nexus pulsed awaiting its cargo. Optimus, Perceptor, and Predaking kept a watchful eye on it as the Nexus was still untrusted given its million-year slumber and with the damages Arcee fixed questionable, that made them precautious of keeping it open for long periods of time.

"I do hope The Matriarch will be reasonable or Arcee is in for an uphill battle," Perceptor said. "And I just got out of communication with the one called Highwind. He's quite proud of Arcee."

"As we all are."

"By the way, those weird signals have been off and on, no idea if it's a hiccup or what but I sense there may be more to this mystery than I thought. At least until you see if it has anything to do with these Metal Heads. Just thought I'd mention that too," the scientist grinned.

"Don't be thanking me yet, guys," Arcee stated. "We've still got more worlds to meet up with."

Predaking peered around. "Where are the others?"

"Somewhere behind me."

On cue, a ground bridge appeared and Arcee gestured with a smirk as Megatron, Bolt, and Moonhunter all came out of the portal with Haywire and Scythe following. Bolt was the one who joked, "Thanks for waiting for us, Arcee. Very considerate of you."

"Well, I'm not very eager to go against the heart of the Decepticon empire but I want to get this done as soon as possible. Also, the thought of her being an ass isn't helping my mood."

Megatron replied, "Yeah, I can see your point. Anyone who has never dealt with The Matriarch in person is subjected to a very stressful encounter. But you'll be meeting her on equal ground, so you have a chance."

Moonhunter yowled in agreement before Haywire said, "Just be careful."

Arcee popped her shoulders, rolling them with a grimace as she faced the Nexus. "Alright, Matriarch, here we come."

The four stepped up to the portal as it hissed with its energy flickering. It was like stepping into the lion's den, and they all knew what it meant. Arcee was the first one in, taking the lead despite everything she harbored against the deathly planet. The portal roared in her audios as she walked inside and followed it to its end.

On the other side, she didn't expect to be faced with a ripped-up nebula of various shades of orange and yellow. It looked as though it was cut into pieces against a virtually blackened night sky. There was only a single sun far away, a distant yellow, but it hardly impacted the planetary atmosphere. It had nearly no difference between its day and night cycles. Among the planet itself, a rugged terrain that looked like nothing but a desolate wasteland aside from the Cybertronian buildings integrated into them. No life was visible; a soulless planet indeed.

As the others came through and the portal closed, Arcee couldn't help but pity the populace that had been banished to such a world…not unlike Megatronus Prime who went insane in his dark exile alone and detested. It looked like the epitome of cruel punishment, and she had to wonder how the Decepticons could stand staying here? But then again, she may have answered her own question as the toll of the war and the Autobots often throwing out the Decepticons as traitors probably led to a majority leaving Cybertron in its quiet years. They had nothing to gain staying on a dying planet that despised them.

"About time you three showed up," a monotone voice said. They grew pleased as Shockwave walked up to them followed by a few of the Decepticons that took residency on Chaar. "I was beginning to think you would grow unnerved by the location."

Megatron laughed, "It's good to be at the home away from home again. It looks the same as when I left it. That's a good sign."

"Since your departure from the Decepticons, Chaar has been quiet...sometimes regrettably. Soundwave has been keeping an eye on it alongside me in making sure Matriarch doesn't kill anyone here unnecessarily in her rage. So far, it is successful."

Upon hearing the mention of Soundwave, Megatron's features grew softer when he realized his best friend was still alive. "I thought Soundwave was trapped in the Shadowzone last I heard of him? Why has he never shown himself on Cybertron?"

Shockwave made a small, unsure gesture. "He hasn't left Chaar since his rescue, obligated to protect it awaiting you. He didn't even come to Cybertron when we overthrew Rockrider. As much as he cares about you, he's not going to go out of his way to track you down if you've been reported dead. He could care less about Cybertron, the same attitude as The Matriarch."

Arcee thought to herself during the exchange. If Soundwave wasn't confident in helping Cybertron, indeed The Matriarch wouldn't be either. If she could boost morale among the Decepticons, especially Soundwave, they would be open to negotiations of reuniting with Cybertron's trade system, and their leader would follow suit if she believed it was a necessity.

"Let's get you set up at my lab for further conversation before my esteemed sparkmate finds out too early of my intervention with the unification of Chaar and Cybertron."

A plan formed and she was eager to carry it out as Shockwave escorted them to his laboratory within the region. It looked like a haunted factory but had Decepticons working under his instruction without pause. Most were the loyal Vehicons but some were familiar faces. They were surprised to see Starscream's brothers and a group of Seeker subordinates working in the higher sections of the laboratory before hearing a set of growls to their right. The Driller grubs slithered and sniffed within their pen next to Shockwave's main desk, an easy way of keeping track of them. They had the ability to go through a small space that Arcee believed led to a sleeping area or a place to eat.

"The Drillers need room to grow as well as learning to dig. It is what they are made to do. The access to the other side of the wall is through that door over there," Shockwave said, pointing to a door in the corner not far from his workplace.

"Aren't you afraid they might tunnel out and get lost?" Bolt asked.

"They are already trained to not leave the vicinity and have trackers on them just in case. Did you think I wouldn't learn from losing Doomsday? Tagging Predacons was one thing; I had such confidence that she would return to me no matter what. That seemed to be a misplaced judgement on my part."

Arcee winced upon hearing the Driller's name and sighed, "I'm sorry for what happened on the isle."

Shockwave stayed neutral in his tone as he replied, "You did what you had to do. As much as I may have disagreed with your handling of the situation, I know exactly what went wrong and was inevitable. Doomsday was trained to hunt Autobots during the war at my command, no one else's. She didn't know the war was over therefore her reaction to you was justified with years of predatory aggression meant to do what it was designed to do. Part of it is my fault for not teaching the boundaries in my isolation but then again, the war still technically wasn't over when she disappeared. I will raise her offspring under different circumstances but still heed my command as needed. Nothing personal."

At this point, the queen knew it was moot to argue against Shockwave because he was...well, Shockwave. The bot was notorious for bending the laws of nature to do whatever and that scared her a little. He turned to face them and gestured to the surrounding laboratory.

"This will be the best place for you to rendezvous with me or each other. For a while, keep Matriarch calm by helping around here. The more you do, the easier it will be for me to get her to warm up to the option of trade for the planet. I can handle her outbursts and other small problems, but I need confirmation that you understand the quieter approach as well. Bolt, you and I will keep a lookout for The Matriarch. The rest of you, be on your guard."

Bolt and Arcee nodded while Megatron was a bit more disappointed, but he eventually expressed his agreement that the best idea was to take it slow. If The Matriarch did find out about their presence on Chaar, there would be precautions that would have to be installed on a moment's notice given her temper.

Bolt and Moonhunter took their place among Shockwave's desk as the former got into the system to monitor the planet under Shockwave's direction. Moonhunter was a bit less pleased and hissed at the grubs that moved to the edge of their pen curiously upon picking up his scent. Arcee tinkered with a few of Shockwave's gadgets and grinned slightly seeing the Nitrotiger move to be under the desk only to lose it for a frown realizing the reason for Moonhunter's behavior was because even as a grub, Drillers could still kill and eat something of his size. He was on high alert, not because of mere dislike. She assumed even though Shockwave clearly fed them as much as he could give since they had gotten bigger than when she first saw them after Rockrider's defeat, they ate as much as they could get ahold of. The thought was a bit scary.

Megatron, on the other hand, was distant as he overlooked the world he had abandoned and all the residents that still acknowledged him with high regard. Arcee saw him staring at his former soldiers, each of whom had carried on with their lives, and she couldn't help but wonder if he felt insecure about his current role in the Decepticon empire, nothing but an ideology than an actual representative and figurehead. But, like everything, they had to move on to survive with or without him, and he knew this for he didn't dare step in to command a single one of them despite being back in their midst.

"It's funny," Megatron muttered more to himself than to her, "they are all here because of me, and they never left."

Arcee gave a small smile and patted his thigh reassuringly, "But maybe for good reason. Why abandon a world that loved them for who they were then go back to one that didn't? You know how Cybertron leaned towards the Autobots' favor. They made this their own, and you helped them. Not everything you did was out of selfishness, was it?"

"I suppose not...I just never looked at it that way until now," he said. "So strange has my place in the universe become, but I'm happy things turned out the way they did even if maybe I didn't deserve such leniency."

"Everything happens for a reason," the blue femme shrugged. Then her mind drifted to the Metal Heads in parallel with the Decepticons and the conversation at hand.

Everything happened for a reason, and the Metal Heads weren't just targeting the worlds they knew just because of their leader. They couldn't be. Their existence, their methods, and their role in current events wasn't random; it was all planned and that's what Silos was warning her about. The Metal Head Leader wasn't poking around to see what world would fall and what wouldn't, they were attacking each world in accordance with what they wanted Silos to know. The link of the virus between hosts was a two-way feed, a hive mind, as Silos stressed twice before so if he knew what the leader had planned, Malismar knew Silos was communicating with her about it. It was clockwork in motion; a ripple effect. The Metal Heads weren't here on Chaar...but they were going to be.

"Everything happens..." Arcee spoke softly in disbelief before turning to a confused Megatron. "We need to be on the offensive. The Metal Heads are going to come here next, and they are going to go to the other worlds no matter what order we go to them. They are going to follow."

"Then shouldn't we be leaving Chaar?"

"No, we can't. And even if we hold off on going to the others, the Metal Heads will go after them regardless. But they know we're searching for a way to stop them now, so there's no going back. I've been a fool in not realizing that sooner. We started this whole chaos by accident, but we're going to finish it too."

Megatron understood loud and clear, nodding before walking off to talk to Shockwave. Arcee held her arms close to her body unnerved how, for a virus, the Horaquan were a lot smarter than she gave them credit for. It meant there was no security in what they did nor what Silos told her, and the ex-Rozarian knew this too.

Bolt read over Chaar's cyberbiology database with a servo under his chin bored which caught her attention as odd. Then he said with a tilt of his head, "I wish they would update this. Half the information on here is from previous Decepticons who only dealt with a few of the species in person, the rest was guesswork more so. I'm tempted to go out and fix the rock viper pages because they aren't even close to accurate. In fact, while you're waiting, why don't you do me a favor?"

"Like?"

"Before we came to Earth on the Nemesis, I was so enthralled by the rock vipers and a few other species in Chaar's caverns that I wanted to get a few of them as pets. I remember I had a tank for them in my barracks. My peers found it odd I was devoted to the project, but they eventually encouraged me to continue...until we were shipped off. I'm thinking about redoing my pet project and need a some rock vipers to take care of. Can you get a few for me?"

Arcee scoffed in amusement, "You really are dedicated to your craft. What about The Matriarch though? We need to keep a low profile and I doubt she is blind to the caverns."

Bolt laughed, "As if! Megatron didn't even keep tabs of anything beyond the outpost borders much less the caverns. The Matriarch wouldn't care about some stupid hole in the ground or its occupants. She's a strategist but not paranoid. You should be fine. Take a few of those containers Shockwave keeps astray in his lab, doubt he will miss them."

She grabbed three containers off the desk and placed them in her subspace with a mere nod.

"Oh, and here's some bribery material in case a Decepticon decides to bother you on the way over there," he quickly said, handing over a case of credits. "We're gluttons for goods, murderous even. You know how we are. I doubt anyone on this Primus forsaken rock has changed much."

Sneaking out of the laboratory was a chore as she had to go up instead of through the doors. There was an access on a catwalk above the main area and she took it only to see Chaar from a whole new perspective. The base was massive with a large pad the size of the Nemesis in its center which was now a plaza of sorts given the ship in question had long been damaged on Cybertron. The architecture around the area looked like how the Nemesis was designed with skyscrapers adorning an overall spiky appearance. Shockwave's laboratory sat on a cliff over the base's boundaries and to the left of it just outside the base was the entrance to some of the caverns of Chaar. Despite no vegetation and seldom scenery, the planet had already seemed like a match made for the Decepticon empire.

Arcee shivered with little heat in the atmosphere before expanding her winglets and activating her gliding ability. She soared from the laboratory over the base, blending with the other Seekers in the distance as she rounded a spire indicating the edge of Decepticon land and flew over the border. Diving a few times to lower herself as she approached the caverns, she noted the vast similarities of Chaar and Cybertron in comparison to worlds with richer landscapes.

Velocitron may have been flat but had monstrous canyons that had personality. Earth was the most obvious distinction in difference because comparing it to her world, Cybertron seemed...vacant, now so did Chaar. Earth had mountains, unbeatable views with twists and turns with every mile. All Cybertron had was flat lands with nothing but cities and a single drop off to the unknown aside from the core of Primus inside the planet. She had to wonder if the humans knew how lucky they were to have such a world that had so many extravagant features...

Landing just beside one of the caverns, she shook her wings back into sleep mode. The mouth of the cave already presented itself with stalactites formed along the lip and deeper in. She sucked up any fear that threatened to rise and went in. The last time she went into such a place, Megatron and Starscream were verbally fighting with the former prepared to offline the Seeker. It went quite awry after that. But there still lingered a bit of fear that there could be other Decepticons nearby who didn't know about Shockwave's plan and wouldn't hesitate to fight her.

Hissing echoed in the cavern and Arcee paused. She couldn't tell if it was a rock viper or perhaps a sand-dweller like the one she had killed on the isle. With so many snakes on Chaar, she got the immediate impression that the current state of the planet may not have been what it was in the past if life still found a way in its desolate wastelands.

She whipped to the side when a hiss sounded far too close for comfort. Hidden among a dip in the rocky cavern walls, a rock riper with faint green bio lights and slit optics stared her down, its tail coiling in warning. "There you are."

Using her speed boost, she caught it by the back of its head when it twisted away, barely dodging a strike to her arm. It kept its mouth open angrily despite being immobilized by her grip. She carefully placed it in a container before resuming her search for the other two. It took mere seconds to find the next one raised at eye level and staring at her curiously. She merely juked it by baiting it into striking in the wrong direction. It proved easy to capture.

The last rock viper she needed happened to be in a nest with eggs in a pocket in the wall. It covered all its angles well, snapping at her when she tried to get close to grab it. Sneering after it coiled tighter around the eggs and fearing it would accidentally crush them, Arcee backed off and went to search for another.

"You win this round; I will leave you alone."

There were small pools of water a little farther in and she found her final rock viper drinking which she nabbed quite fast and put away in record time. Once all three were secured in her subspace, she was about to turn back around to go out the way she came when she sensed something was...amiss. Eyes on her, that's what it felt like and hardly was she ever wrong. Slowly, she grew annoyed and alert but played innocent to lure her enemy closer. As soon as the smallest noise of a sword barely tapping armor upon removal caught her audios, she released her arm blades and struck back behind her. Her blades and the one aiming for her head clashed, blue optics meeting blood red as a purple mech with horns kept a neutral demeanor against her aggressive stance. She recognized him; the familiarity appeared mutual as he narrowed his optics at her.

Arcee frowned, keeping his weapon at bay. "Long time, no see, Cyclonus."

Cyclonus pushed off her weapon and attempted to strike her, but she flipped back before jumping on a high boulder, perching with a sneer. He silently debated on pursuing, but she could tell he wasn't up for a game of chase as much as he would normally reward his prey with until killing them. He put his weapon away without any fear of her, a bold move usually but Arcee knew different. He was calculative son of a bitch and a resourceful one at that. If he couldn't take her, he wouldn't have sheathed his weapon.

With a deep voice, the mech said, "If it isn't the one called Arcee...now Queen of Cybertron? A bit far from home, aren't you?"

"Spare me the obvious, Cyclonus, I don't seek any trouble here."

"Really? Because I just had a thief steal something of mine. I tracked them down into the cave system only to come across you. A little coincidental, don't you think? But if you are so innocent, why don't you make yourself useful, Autobot, and get me back my amulet," he growled.

Arcee put her arms up after retracting her blades with a scoff, "I have other things I need to attend to right now-"

"Yes, your so-called important rock viper hunt." Cyclonus shook his head and pointed at her with hidden malice. "Get me back my amulet. I'll give you ten minutes, or I'll hunt you down and cut you in half."

"Always the pleasant one," she muttered.

While Cyclonus took it upon himself to guard the only known exit, Arcee did as she was told and went deeper inside. While she expected it to be darker, she was proven wrong. Energon crystals grew in abundance farther in with bio illuminated specks lining the walls around each crystal. Even the stalactites were enchanted with their mystical glow. Pools of Energon collected beneath hanging crystals and stalactites shedding their moisture. She saw two rock vipers drinking from them.

If someone did have the amulet, she suspected they may have already found a way out, but her idea was immediately called into question when shadows above swung past her, startling her. Mallibi, the ape-like creature with multiple arms she had encountered in the Primal Jungle on the isle, navigated through the forest of stalactites with ease. Two...no, three of them moved in tandem before coming to rest on an alcove in the wall and one of them gave a brief holler. She grinned as they peered down at her, not with any ill intentions but with sheer curiosity, the same behavioral trait as the one she met prior demonstrated.

One of them swung down and landed in front of her, poking her gently with a grunt. Arcee blindly asked, "Don't suppose you would know where an amulet is?"

The Mallibi didn't answer her and grabbed her arm to bring it horizontally. Then she remembered what Bolt had said long before. The Decepticons had trained the Mallibi to recognize trade, one item for another. Sometimes, they got good deals out of it with the apes bringing everything at random. If there was an amulet laying around where a mischievous Mallibi might have taken it, all she needed to do was play along.

Taking out the credits for bribery, initially for the Decepticons, she handed the ape a few to see what it would do. It studied the credits before sounding off in delight. The two other Mallibi made equally excited noises before the one in front of her climbed up to its burrow she just noticed. She could hear the clinking of objects being moved within, some falling out of the hole like misplaced weapons and empty crates. It finally came back with a gem, not what she needed but it was pretty. When it jumped down, a few items were pushed out…including a Decepticon amulet of chrome black and purple bio lights. She took the gem before offering some more but eyed the amulet wordlessly. The Mallibi seemed to trail her line of sight and didn't hesitate to grab it, offering it with pride.

Arcee grinned as she took it. "Thank you, now promise me you won't be stealing anything else from Cyclonus. The guy isn't easy to negotiate with even when you're innocent."

"But when proven so, I am far more lenient." The Mallibi gave a soft sound as they both looked towards Cyclonus leaning against the wall. He then continued, "I was on my way to hunt you but it seems it's not necessary. I should have known the Mallibi were behind it..."

"But it's easier to blame an Autobot than a mere animal," she finished.

Cyclonus gave a rare smile, "Perhaps so."

She handed the amulet to him and he stored it in his subspace, not before thumbing it delicately in thought. She noticed and asked, "What's so special about that anyway?"

"You wouldn't understand-"

"Try me. I know of loss, heartbreak, and death...we all do. Think I won't know?"

Cyclonus sighed, "It was a gift from an associate who is no longer with us. She made stuff like this in her spare time, gave this to me more as a joke but I kept it close because she was my teammate, one of the few I respected. Since she died, I've went solo as you've seen when I fought in the war. She was my best friend, and I lost her. Keep your friends close, as they say. She was to me like what Blackarachnia was to Megatron, a true friend."

Hearing Airachnid's sister's name surprised her but she knew the history. Blackarachnia was best friends with Megatron in the early war though he was still her superior. The mess that occurred on Archa Seven was nothing but a freak accident, but she blamed Megatron thinking he set her up. It was proven false but the damage had already been done by the time Arcee had met her on the isle reborn from the Allspark's power. It was funny how Megatron merely tolerated Airachnid in her place; no one could ever replace Blackarachnia's natural leadership of the Insecticons nor her unrivaled mind. Arcee thought that if she had ever encountered Blackarachnia on the battlefield prior to her incident, she wouldn't have been able to take her like she could Airachnid.

"I'm sorry for your loss."

"Like you said, we've all been there. I have no doubts the Decepticons took someone close to you too. The price of war always changes you. Would you believe I wasn't always a recluse?"

Arcee then laughed, "Not really, I thought the stoic bravado was natural."

Cyclonus tilted his head briefly with a mocking scoff of amusement. "Things change. So tell me, Queen Arcee, why are you here?"

"I need to convince The Matriarch to open trade with Cybertron again. On Cybertron, she's difficult but manageable enough to work with. Here..."

"The Matriarch is a good leader for a Vehicon, proved a lot of us wrong though her demeanor is often aggressive. She only wants what's best for us without Megatron and personally, I think she may be right to keep us separate from Cybertron."

"How so?" Arcee asked, crossing her arms as the Mallibi started picking at the ground for loose Energon fragments.

"Now, don't twist my words here, Arcee. Cybertron is our home, however...we helped in its destruction once, that makes us enemies regardless of the current inhabitants' opinions. You won't harm us, true, no need to as long as we're here but if someone else were to get into power somewhere down the line and didn't share your mindset, open trade could equal the ability to harm us with the wrong intentions and proper planning. We can't monitor every parcel that comes through. That can hurt us. Keeping in communication, we can do that. Trade is more than just exchanging items and you know what the damage is if something goes wrong. How can we have assurance things will be good for both sides and not end in disaster given the past relations of Autobots and Decepticons?"

She didn't know how to answer that. If opening trade and reconnecting Chaar with Cybertron risked more harm than good, would someone else grant the same mercy once the opportunity to reunite came into fruition? She couldn't speak for everyone on Cybertron, and Cyclonus knew her uncertainty with a small expression of disappointment.

"I know you mean well, Arcee...but you need to heed The Matriarch's demands and go home. Chaar isn't a place for Autobots and will never be. Maybe that's how it should stay."

As he walked away, he left Arcee to ponder that cold comment. Even as the Mallibi beside her gently tapped her arm, she couldn't help but frown. She wasn't one to give up and had no intention on doing so. There had to be a medium between what she wanted and what The Matriarch desired against her personal opinions. Something had to give but now, it was only a matter of who caved first for what reason.

Her commlink went off and she heard Shockwave say, "Bolt told me where you ran off to. While I do not condone such disregard for my commands even for his pet project, while you're out there, I need a few ingredients for my experiments. Pink and Orange Energon crystals grow not far from your location. I'll send you the coordinates. If you can bring me some, I'll consider giving you a bit of an insight on how Matriarch might be willing to listen to you."

"Why are you going against The Matriarch's belief?"

"Because I think you are right. Chaar was heavily at a disadvantage during the war with little resources to be spared. Even though we are surviving, I think to merge us as one would not just help the Decepticons rekindle their relationship with Cybertron but give them a reason to finally come home. I may like my isolation but the others don't. We are all Cybertronians, Arcee, how long can we be separated from the world we were born on?"

Arcee scowled, "It can backfire-"

"All the more reason to do it. Anything worth fighting for is often riddled with the danger of unfathomable consequences. Our whole war was one," Shockwave said. "That's how you know it's the right thing to do."

She cut communications, blowing air in frustration on how she should go about the issue. She left the cave, much to the sadness of the Mallibi who made soft hollers after her, and wandered the rocky wasteland that was Chaar's surface. The Decepticon base got smaller as she ventured cautious of any sand-dwellers or direfangs that could be lurking around. Her well-known stealth came in handy when she finally did encounter a sand-dweller. It dug in the softer grains of a blackened sand pit with the movements of its body, basking in the limited sunlit of the planet with its head and spine only unearthed as it fell into slumber. Seeing it at peace, there was beauty to the creature she had never considered due to the only instance of her meeting one was under hostile intentions.

Over the hills of the terrain, Arcee paused when she saw the most astounding sight. Various colors of Energon ranging from vibrant pink to even an unusual shade of green lay in a small valley. For a planet dead, it was best never to judge a book by its cover after all as she would have never believed Chaar could carry so many variants of color nor Energon. The reflections of the crystals' lights made it appear like a sea of rainbows. If Red Energon could give one super speed briefly, she had to wonder what the others could do. All Shockwave needed was a few crystals of Pink and Orange Energon, the rest was best left alone in case any species needed it besides them.

"Admiring the view?"

She whipped around, blaster at the ready but Silos remained unfazed and peered down amused more than anything. When she realized it was him, she snarled, "Don't sneak up on me like that!"

The Metal Head captain shrugged with a smirk, "It's funny though. So, this is the infamous Chaar. A dark planet for traitors and destructive monsters."

Even though she may have agreed somewhat with that statement during the war, it didn't sit right with her now to accuse the Decepticons as such knowing what she knew now. Arcee didn't correct him in favor of pointing out the obvious.

"What are you doing here, Silos?"

"Looking at the pretty crystals...what do you think? The Metal Head Leader is not going to let you slip through the midst of their plans without a little trouble. Now that I know you might have the capability of stopping them, it gives me more incentive to help out. I will not let Tigressa's legacy be tainted by anyone."

Arcee replied, "That's a bit self-righteous."

"Call it payback. Now, this Matriarch character; I've heard the rumors, a soldier damned to the brink of insanity. I'll stay back and let you deal with her. I, for one, have no intentions on disrupting whatever hellspawn your spouse, Megatron, had created to protect this forsaken planet and this empire alone."

"How do you know about The Matriarch?" Arcee frowned.

"I'm not stupid to enter a world blindly," Silos retorted. "What do you take me for? An idiot?"

"Could've fooled me," she answered crassly.

He shook his head and growled, "Just do what you need to do."

When Silos walked off, Arcee expected him to disappear over the ridge. Instead, she grew alert when a direfang jumped him. The sound he made in surprise was laughable, suddenly beheading the snake with ease was less so and more unexpected. His large blades he kept sheathed on his back did quick work of the creature. He was far faster than she thought given his structure but one did not become captain of the Kanjian Royal Guard for mere intelligence. He grinned down at its corpse twisting in agony at the loss of its head before giving a roar of dominance.

"Wow, you are scary!" She yelled, "How many years were you in the Guard?!"

"Plenty of years, I assure you! Just because I defected doesn't mean I didn't keep up with my training!"

This time he left with his swords at the ready and Arcee waited to listen if any other predators were around before grabbing the necessary Energon Shockwave required. "Bolt...er, Shockwave, my bad, I need a ground bridge."

"Sounds unusual, doesn't it? Don't worry, it is like that on my end too. Hold on a moment and I'll have Bolt open a bridge for you back to my laboratory."

The portal sounded behind her and she was quick to jump in. The wasteland of Chaar may have held more mysteries among its desolation...but she wasn't that willing to go exploring for them any more than need be. Appearing back in the laboratory, Bolt and Shockwave both awaited her with Moonhunter purring as he was pet by Megatron.

"Did you get those rock vipers?" Bolt immediately asked as she set down the Energon crystals.

"Give a bot a moment to reel in the fascinating beauty of Chaar," she said sarcastically. She set three containers with the vipers hissing and the Vehicon giddily looked over each of them.

Megatron chuckled, "It's not much but it has served us well for years. Unfortunately, the predators of this world make it a bit hard to coexist here, but I've been assured no catastrophic setbacks have ever occurred because of them."

"Aw yeah, I've always wanted to have these guys as pets! Thank you, Arcee! Now I can finish up my terrarium."

Arcee raised a brow. "Bolt, before you do that, I have to ask...who's going to take care of them when you leave? You can't just get a pet and abandon it."

Bolt merely stated, "Shockwave agreed to take them for the time being."

Both Arcee and Megatron glared at the scientist before the latter snarled, "No more pets, Shockwave! And that's me telling you as your peer!"

"It will only be temporary and with my extensive knowledge of caring for creatures regardless of upbringing, I think I'm the only one in this facility who is responsible enough to take care of them. Unless you want the likes of Skywarp taking them under his wing?"

It was common knowledge that Starscream's brother, though quite powerful with his teleportation abilities, was a wuss when it came to vicious-natured opponents and animals. He would be too afraid to feed the vipers, much less care for them in any other way. Arcee had heard most of all his kills were in self-defense and given how powerful he was, there were probably plenty of accidental deaths that followed. He was kind soul for the most part, better at scouting than fighting.

"I would ask kindly of you not to mock anyone in my armada with petty insults, Shockwave. You hid behind your experiments much throughout the war," a voice said.

The four bots aside from Shockwave grew unnerved all for different reasons as Starscream and Soundwave appeared. The spymaster seemed to merely tolerate the Seeker but perked up a little upon making eye contact with his friend and former master. However, Megatron was currently focused on the annoying of the two out of spite, not that Arcee could blame him.

Starscream saw Megatron's decorated chest plates and sneered, "I see you traded one throne for another. Betraying your own after all this time?"

"Careful, Starscream, just because I am no longer a Decepticon in name doesn't mean I won't hurt you if you overstep your boundaries. And believe me, I doubt anyone here is going to stop me," the warlord growled back.

On cue, Bolt walked backwards with his servos up on his sides while Arcee was neutral among the exchange. Starscream lost much of his bravado, wings drooping when he realized Shockwave was not coming to his aid. Soundwave passed him and gave a gestured bow in silence to which Megatron lightened up a bit at.

"Soundwave, how good it is to see you again."

When Soundwave looked at Arcee, she waved awkwardly at the spymaster but the mech didn't find her a threat so merely nodded at her respectfully. Always the silent type.

When she saw Starscream was still on edge about Megatron's comment, Arcee finally remarked, "You just don't learn, Screamer."

Starscream grew agitated and rolled his optics with a growl. "Easy for you to say. I wonder how long will Megatron last with you considering your history of partnerships?"

Shockwave immediately stepped in before Arcee could rush the Seeker while Megatron grabbed her like a doll. He pointed in a random direction in warning. "Starscream, it would be wise to get back to work. I require some more Energon and it will either be the crystals that grow here or from your corpse."

"You wouldn't dare harm a fellow commander!" Starscream squealed.

"Try me," Shockwave said in a dark tone. "You don't have Megatron's protection for your strategic cunning anymore. The Matriarch won't hesitate to get rid of you at a moment's notice. Now, get moving."

Starscream was wise for once and left without another word as Shockwave turned back to see Megatron keeping Arcee close to his chest despite her struggles to go after her enemy.

"You better run, Starscream, or I'm going to put holes in that sparkless husk of yours!" The queen yelled, shaking her fist, her optics burning bright. "It doesn't end here!"

Bolt waved her down and got into her line of sight. "Easy, Arcee! He's no trouble, not anymore. Shockwave's right. Without Megatron's aid, he can't back up anything without getting hurt."

"I wasn't protecting him," the warlord sneered.

"How many times, despite his treachery, did you save him from annihilation when he clearly deserved it then?"

Arcee glared at her sparkmate as he failed to produce an answer which the Vehicon gestured at as a point taken. Once he set her down again, she brushed herself off with a snarl, "Personally, I can't believe any of you let Starscream live as long as he has. Why does The Matriarch keep him? I thought she hated him dearly?"

Shockwave sighed, "It's mostly so she can berate and torture him as payback for how he treated her and the troops. Even Bolt can vouch for his behavior."

"Certainly," Bolt muttered.

"But it is only temporary...as Matriarch plans to be getting rid of him very soon once her fun is over. Admittedly, I allowed this to continue under my own amusement too. And by the way, here's a reward for your efforts. It is useless in my field."

Arcee snickered at her peers as she took the Radiant Core offered to her. "Everyone hates Starscream."

The one-eyed mech was about to say something else when the doors on the other side of the laboratory burst open. Shockwave grew instantly panicked and shoved Megatron, Arcee, and Moonhunter into a storage door. Though neither were happy with the action, they preferred it when they saw through the vents who stormed through. Bolt was spared as he knew to act like every other Vehicon in the building.

"GET OUT OF MY WAY!" The Matriarch nearly punched a soldier instead of pushing him and shoved past another with a dark growl of a voice. "SHOCKWAVE!"

Pharma and another medic tried to keep up with her as the former said, "Matriarch, your system pressure-"

"I DON'T CARE!" She then harshly whispered, "Where is that scientist when I need him?! Shockwave!"

Her sparkmate came to her as quick as he could, his servo hovering over hers but afraid to touch her in case she snapped any more that could risk injury to himself or to others. "What is wrong?"

"My supply vessel is gone! The supplies we got through Swindle have been destroyed and somebody better tell me where or else heads will roll!"

Shockwave and the Decepticons all grew nervous upon hearing that as did Megatron who whispered, "This is not good."

Arcee frowned, "What do you mean?"

"Our presence and the timing of all this will reflect very badly on you, Arcee. The Matriarch isn't like the other leaders. She's not going to give you the chance to investigate if angry. She might just get it in her head to kill you even if she helped you regain your throne. That was always one of my worries having her in my empire. She's too deranged and ruthless to control...a result unfortunately of the experiment which turned her into who you've come to known."

As The Matriarch ranted about her lost supply ship, Arcee grew disheartened and weakly asked, "What happened to her? I know the rumors; I've heard the parts of her place in the war but when you created the Vehicon clones...when did it change?"

In the corner of her optic, she saw Bolt slightly turn his head as he stood beside the storage door to show he could hear them but said nothing to stop Megatron as the latter sighed, pressing his back against the wall in rare shame.

"When I wanted an army to show my prowess among the turning of opinions before Orion Pax became Optimus Prime, I turned to a mech named Machina Minor who was a scientist and CNA expert, the same one...who passed his knowledge on to Shockwave on how to rejuvenate and change one's CNA. He cloned himself thrice, the Old Three we called them, as tests. Once proven successful, he spent much of the beginning of the war using his CNA to create a vast army until he perished protecting his data files and sequence required for more clones from the Autobots and in his final moments, he sent all his work to Soundwave and Shockwave for safe keeping. We were left an army and the Old Three who became the very few commanders. CC-950, the mechanic who maintained Trypticon and then the Nemesis, AC-800, the captain of the Nemesis who fulfilled all operations regarding my vessel as well as the coordinator of all the supply and military ships under the Decepticon empire..."

"And The Matriarch?"

"MO-337, the commander of the ground forces. In my arrogance, I wanted a super soldier so badly that I took one of my commanders in the hope of creating something not even a Prime could be able to stop. Physically, I managed to alter her physique perfectly but mentally...I pushed too far. I was so desperate that I let the experiments go for longer than the limit prescribed. The consequences were horrifying. The birth of The Matriarch was a testimony of the restrictions of creation itself, and I cursed her into madness. Her mind warped into pure rage and with it, her bloodlust grew too fast to take control of."

Arcee stared completely immobile with a feeling even she couldn't describe as he recalled more.

Megatron shook his helm sadly. "I got what I wanted; it was a mistake knowing I robbed her of her ability of choice the moment I ordered that to happen. She will never know peace, never obey and never give up until she dies. Her rage will never simmer, her lust for destruction will never cease, and she will never be a sane leader. She's basically fighting her own mind to death all because of me. That's why you are in danger, Arcee. She doesn't mean to...it's her nature to destroy even her friends who get in her way. She was made to be a monster."

They both locked optics, one with utmost sorrow and regret while the other was mortified. But both snapped to attention when they heard something crashing. The Matriarch flipped a table that was embedded on the floor, pieces of its legs flying everywhere.

"Find my supply vessel by any means necessary! Go! NOW!"

Several of the Vehicons and other Decepticons immediately fled out from the laboratory to heed her demands as she stood there breathing hard. There was practically smoke pouring from the vent in her faceplate that acted as her mouth. She was so enraged, she was shaking with a hiss before bringing her servo up to look at it quivering before her. Everyone feared her, all except Soundwave and Shockwave.

Shockwave stood unmoving as she shook until she looked down slightly. Then he approached without fear but still cautious. He gently ghosted his servo over hers and whispered softly, "Matriarch..."

He didn't rush to touch her servo. He waited deathly still before she gravitated her servo to his and he gently squeezed it. Her breathing calmed but she didn't look back up at him, only basked in the warmth he offered her. Shockwave was fine with that and remained patient as The Matriarch slowly drifted from her unbridled fury. Arcee and Megatron both watched his method of coping with her tantrums; it was hypnotic.

"Matriarch, I'm here. Breath, calm, collect."

The Matriarch had an edge in her tone but otherwise stayed as collected as possible. "When I find the person who did this, I will kill them."

"I know you will," Shockwave said without a beat, "but perhaps we need to address something else. If I could bring in exterior help, will you play nice?"

"What do you think?" She scoffed a bit playfully. It was somewhat a relief to hear the old sass of The Matriarch back in place.

"I think it's a good idea. Arcee and Megatron could help if you just-"

"I don't need their help."

"You need to have someone with fresh optics investigating this unfortunate event. The Decepticons will only see what they want to see to give you an answer to escape your wrath but perhaps not the right answer."

She grew annoyed, "You don't trust my troops?"

"Do you not trust my judgement?" Shockwave retorted.

The Matriarch wanted to snarl but she refrained when Shockwave muttered "calm" and sighed dramatically, "Fine. You want to bring them in, you do it. I'm still not letting Chaar rejoin Cybertron no matter how much that princess begs."

The scientist exchanged glances with Soundwave who merely tilted his head before sighing, "I'll...try not to have them mention it."

The large Vehicon leaned close to Shockwave for a solid minute then slowly slid away from his hold to leave without another word. A rarity that she would not cause another ruckus or a shouting match on the way out but both the bots in the storage room and the others out in the open had a lot to ponder about the previous scene. Once she was gone, Bolt opened the door to let Arcee and Megatron out.

"You should be thankful Shockwave has a lot of leeway with her or you would be scrap metal if she got wind of your presence here," the Vehicon said.

Arcee stared in the direction The Matriarch went and asked, "Is everything Megatron said-?"

"True? Yes, she was altered out of consent and it decimated her. As he described it, her mind is fighting itself slowly, painfully. It's not just her personality. Shockwave knew it as soon as he first met her, she wasn't in her right mind, and you may think he's being shanghaied into being her mate but he chose to stay with her even as she began growing far more psychotic over these past years. As you heard Pharma say, her system pressure isn't meant to take the strain either."

Shockwave stood by Bolt's side with a brief nod. "I refuse to let her live alone with her tendencies. I care for her, more than I even will admit out loud. I'm the only bot she has capable of keeping her to see reason, and I intend on doing so until the end. No one deserves to be alone in their time of need."

"She's dying?"

"No," he replied bluntly. "Rather, one day, she knows as well as I that her mind will recess into a permanently violent personality and she won't have any shred of her sanity left. It won't be for some time, say the next million years or so, but it will happen gradually and either I or a bot of our choosing will take the Decepticon leadership depending on what changes in that timeframe when we both believe it is best for her to step down. For the time being, everyone here knows she is only hostile when things get out of hand like the supply vessel you overheard."

Arcee paused for a second before asking, "You know CNA alteration. Can't you just fix her?"

"And do what? Her mind is already shattered. At most, I can delay it but if I make the slightest misjudgment, it will only progress faster. I refuse to put her in that position." He sighed, "You simply can't fix people to your liking, Arcee. Granted, I have done so numerous times without regard for their lives. You've seen some of the damage I have inflicted like Grimlock and Predaking. I'm guilty of such mass harm but even more reason I would know it isn't a good idea. They are who they are and if you try to alter them, especially in such a delicate state...the mind can only take so much before it implodes. I won't hurt her any more. We will work it out together when that time comes. In the meantime, it would serve her mental state best by looking into that supply vessel."

Megatron then stepped in. "Arcee, you and I will find and investigate the supply vessel wreckage and report to The Matriarch with our findings. If we can determine what brought it down was not of Cybertronian error, we can shift her opinion of Cybertron and Chaar."

Arcee nodded, "Let's get to it."

"Bolt, Soundwave and I will keep The Matriarch at bay. We can try and triangulate the supply vessel's last known coordinates before its fall via any signals that were sent prior," Shockwave said. "Please, hurry."

The two bots plus Moonhunter took off without a moment to lose. The wastelands of Chaar were not kind to their fast pace but they had both been through worse. Leaping over rocks and natural spires that made the landscape look deadly, they knew they had only a window of time to find the supply vessel before one of the Decepticons did. Thankfully, Soundwave was always reliable with tracking.

"Soundwave says the last location was several miles north of here. We're going more to the east than the coordinates supplied."

Arcee grinned, "Did Soundwave actually say that or...?"

Megatron sneered back, "He still prefers his silence. I can read the specs on the planet's mapped surface so I know exactly what he wants to say. It's nice to be in touch with my oldest friend again."

They readjusted their course to head north, passing a few resting sand-dwellers basking in the afternoon sun as much as they could. A few woke up but didn't pursue them, merely sticking their tongues out to sense if they were just passing or attacking. Moonhunter hissed but kept alongside his master, jumping from higher ledges with excitement. A few times, Arcee did the same, using her gliding ability just to make the journey more fun for her as the starry day showed off the nebulas surrounding the solar system Chaar resided in.

Megatron laughed a little as did a small roll midair before landing again and running in unison with him. "Nice to just stretch your legs occasionally? I certainly think so. I won't ever take it for granted again, not after spending a few years in Trypticon Prison. That will slow your functionality in no time in there."

"Try getting stuck in Polyhex's criminal encampment for three!" Arcee laughed, "They have no mercy over there. My sisters and I got arrested for Energon smuggling during our third mission with the Autobots before the war started to pick up. They would not treat us with dignity and I swear my legs nearly ceased functioning from the lack of use. It was terrible but we broke out, had to spend another year retraining to get all our movement back."

"Sounds brutal," he scowled.

They slowed when over a ridge, they caught sight of a smoking wreckage but with no gases like oxygen or nitrogen present, the fumes barely made it past the actual framework and slowly died from the lack of fuel remaining.

"Looks like a crash alright."

Moonhunter sniffed the air but giving a concerned rumble. Arcee scoped out as much as she could at her distance to make sure it was safe to approach. When she signaled them, all three ventured down to the ship ruins. As far as they could tell, no survivors as they carefully looked over the exterior with missing and collapsed parts.

Arcee stroked the vessel's plating but flinched back when her servo almost touched a blackened substance barely breaching the hull. At first, she believed it was oil but upon it slowly oozing to meet the dim light, it reflected a faint purple.

"Either that's Dark Energon or the Metal Head virus," she muttered, pulling back her servo. "Megatron?"

The warlord shook his head, "It's not Dark Energon. I can't feel anything."

"Oh no. Wha-what do we take back? If we take the infected stuff and someone accidentally handles it wrong, that could start a whole new outbreak. We obviously can't store it among ourselves without risk of infection too."

"I'll have Soundwave copy what we see through an isolated transmission. He can download the visuals onto a secure console and prepare it for The Matriarch to look at without tampering." He then addressed his former third-in-command, "Soundwave, sending visuals now."

Arcee backed away to see if anything else stood out and spotted blast marks higher up. "The Metal Heads didn't just board the vessel, they looted it. I don't think there's anything left-"

A sudden roar as a monstrous figure leapt down prompted Arcee to transform her arms into blasters and aim right where it landed. The skull gem was partially burnt along with half its face but the creature seemed determined to go after them regardless of its painful disfiguration. She didn't let it get within ten feet of her, blasting it until the holes could almost give her a glimpse of the ship in the background behind it. Another alien snarl made her realize there were more.

"It's an ambush!"

Several Metal Grunts and Centurions jumped down, some heavily burnt while others had only scrapes and bruises from the crash. Megatron and Moonhunter posed battle-ready beside her, arm cannon and side turrets at the ready. However, just as the Horaquan lunged, rockets lit them up as the ground suffered deep impacts. Both bots peered skyward to see Seekers inbound and turning around overhead. The few Metal Heads that survived growled but Arcee stomped on one's head while another was blown to smithereens by a madly-grinning Megatron. Moonhunter shot up two, killing one of the creatures before lunging at the second and ripping out its throat. It collapsed with a muffled groan from its blood gathering among its torn vocal cords.

The Seekers transformed with Starscream, Sunstorm, Thundercracker, and Novastorm all aiming their weapons at the corpses slowly catching fire from being so close to the burning wreckage. The blood proved a bit unstable and made small bursts upon being heated to the disgust of all.

Novastorm kneeled once she deemed the cost clear and whistled at the damage. "Those are some cooked cretins. What even are these things?"

Megatron powered down his cannon with a growl. "The Metal Heads are getting bolder. We need to alert the rest of Chaar to be on guard and prepare for anything that may come. I won't let them anywhere near my base."

Starscream sent him a dark look, "Your base? I believe you relinquished it when you gave up your position to that cannon fodder you call a commander."

Arcee quickly bit back, "At least she knows how to actually command the Decepticons. How effective were they with you in charge again? We didn't see you for over three years until Megatron returned. The only thing you were good for was being referee and playing to whatever side did your bidding the best."

Thundercracker stepped forward but immediately paused seeing his former leader glare at him when he did so. If there was one thing the Decepticons feared, it would be Megatron himself and they all knew it was best to not poke the only mech capable of beating them down. Even Novastorm didn't dare take Starscream's side despite outmatching the couple four to two...plus the Nitrotiger equally as peeved. Sunstorm, however, seemed more impressed than anything, smirking to himself as Arcee berated his leading commander.

A ground bridge opened and they all froze as Shockwave and The Matriarch both stepped through. The Seekers backed away as the scar-heavy, large Vehicon stomped forward until she laid her optic visor on the sight of the vessel in ruins and the decayed bodies of the Metal Heads. Wordlessly, she glanced at both sides awaiting an explanation. Arcee could tell she was trying to restrain herself from getting mad but the fuse was nearly lit when no one spoke.

Arcee took the initiative and said, "Matriarch, the ship was brought down by invaders. Metal Heads, aliens meant for destruction by an ancient virus engineered by a maniac. We found evidence on both Velocitron and Caminus of their existence and it seems they want to hit Chaar as well."

The Matriarch twitched when Shockwave put a servo on her shoulder and kept her voice low. "You're telling me Chaar will be under attack? You led those monsters right to us?!"

Megatron quickly intervened, "Hardly. They are after all of us, every planet of cybernetic make unless we stop their so-called leader but to do that, we must hit them as they come forth. Prepare Chaar for the worst and we will fight by you to the death."

"You better or I'll kill you myself," she snarled, pulled her shoulder out of Shockwave's grasp. "And if I don't get the chance to do that, I'll make your existence a living hell in the Well of the Allspark. I knew this was a bad idea...letting you on Chaar. And how did you get here so fast?!"

Staring down Shockwave, he could only defend himself from her growing ire by saying, "It was in the Decepticons' best interest to get them here as quick as possible."

"You son of a-!"

"Hey, Matriarch," Arcee said, "he was only trying to help! We all are!"

The Matriarch's fuse was burning down as she quickly grew hostile. "I don't need your help! Everything was fine until you showed up!"

"Alright then, we'll fix it if you give us a chance!"

"Give you a chance-you hearing this, Shockwave?" She berated them with no hesitance, much to Arcee's displeasure. "Yes, because the last time anybody gave me a chance to do something, all I got was a war inside and out! Why would I trust you?! Just because you're the queen of Cybertron doesn't mean you get to call the shots! This is my world, my home, and you don't understand the pain it has endured for so long to make it into what it is now! We didn't have your help then and we don't need it now!"

Shockwave huffed, "Matriarch, don't-"

"Don't 'Matriarch' me!" The Matriarch pointed at Arcee, walking up to her uncaring how angry Arcee looked at her belittlement. "You are not in charge here! You are not a Decepticon, and we...don't...need...YOU."

Fuming, the queen nearly grinded her dentae while hissing, "Get your servo out of my face."

Megatron had to force himself between the two holding both servos outstretched as they stared down each other like territorial dogs. "Matriarch, enough! Both of you!"

"She won't back down and let us do our job! What am I supposed to do?!" Arcee yelled.

"Go home, idiot," The Matriarch said.

"Not helping," Shockwave replied.

"I don't give a damn! She's not one of us! Why did you bring her?! She has her planet and we have ours!"

"And are we so foolish to restart a war just after finding peace, Matriarch? We don't have the resources nor the ability to withstand another conflict," he argued. "Arcee is trying to prevent all of this including against opponents we do not understand and if we don't accept her help, we may all be dead!"

The last comment hit the Decepticon leader like a brick wall and she rapidly glanced between everyone she could before shaking in her rage. But instead of exploding any more, she merely stomped her pede twice and forced herself to relax.

"You know what? Fine! You want to play hero? That's on you. You want to kill yourself? Be my guest," she huffed at Arcee. "But if you do anything stupid that jeopardizes my home, you better make it right or die trying and I'll finish it on my own just as I always have. Just don't expect me to come to your aid when you find this world is not your friend."

With that final word, Arcee and Megatron were left watching The Matriarch go back into the ground bridge even without Shockwave. The Seekers didn't have anything to say as Arcee breathed angrily. She knew why The Matriarch was so defensive, but it pissed her off regardless. If she had to, she would do exactly as she needed to. The Matriarch won't get in her way of helping the rest of Decepticons survive something they didn't know how to fight yet. It was going to be an uphill battle indeed.

AN: We're back, baby! I got everything fixed, took a break and we are ready to get back into a regular posting cycle again! What do you think of Chaar, quite the nightmare, huh?