Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers, The Owl House or their characters
Smokescreen saw only darkness as he groaned weakly and began to slowly open his eyes. When they were fully opened, he saw Knock Out smirking down at him with Breakdown and Wildrider beside him.
"Wakey wakey." Knock Out teased.
"Hope you had a nice nap, little bot." Wildrider said with a malicious snicker.
"What?" Smokescreen asked in surprise, attempting to attack the Cons.
However, he found himself strapped onto a medical table and he noticed the Phase Shifter wasn't on his wrist.
"If you're looking for your Phase Shifter, finders keepers." Knock Out said mockingly as he revealed the Phase Shifter on his wrist.
"Enough prattling, Knock Out." Megatron ordered, walking up to his followers and captive. "Hand me the final Iacon relic, now."
"Yeah, I can't really help you. That's the only one I was packing." Smokescreen answered.
"You'd better tell us or I'll smash that good face of yours." Breakdown threatened, bringing out his sledgehammer and pounding it onto his palm.
"That is unnecessary, Breakdown." Megatron told him. "Soundwave."
Soundwave, who stood behind his master, started showing a familiar pixelated image on his face as it began to take form.
"You got the wrong guy, chief. Optimus Prime's the one who can decode the Iacon database." Smokescreen proclaimed.
"Ah, but you misunderstand. The final entry has been decoded by us. And according to our fillings, it would appear that I do indeed…have the right guy." Megatron replied as Soundwave displayed Smokescreen's own image on his screen, much to the Autobot rookie's surprise.
"The question is what is it that you are still packing?" Knock Out asked while holding a panel.
The Decepticon doctor scanned Smokescreen's body with the panel and it showed something from within him. It was the final Omega Key.
"Why, hidden treasure, of course!" Knock Out stated with a devious smile.
"And it's ours for the taking!" Wildrider remarked.
(Linebreak)
At the Autobot base, the Autobots were doing their best to try and pinpoint Smokescreen's position, but had very little success.
"Smokescreen must have been taken aboard the Nemesis. Tracing his signal through it's shielding will be impossible." Ratchet admitted.
"Continue monitoring all frequencies, Ratchet. Far more than Smokescreen's fate may be at stake." Optimus said in concern.
"I don't get it. How could Smoke be an Omega Key?" Jazz asked.
"Perhaps he isn't the key, but it's container." Ratchet replied.
"That still doesn't make sense." Wheeljack admitted.
"The other Iacon relics were sent to Earth in pods. Why not this one?" Arcee questioned.
"When the Decepticons stormed Iacon, it may have been too late for Alpha Trion to launch the final Omega Key into space. At least by standard means." Optimus theorised.
"So Smokescreen assumed everything went black because he as hit by Decepticons." Arcee said.
"But Alpha Trion's the one who actually turned out the kid's lights." Cliffjumper finished.
"It stands to reason that my mentor did not want Smokescreen to know what he was carrying, in the event of capture." Optimus said.
"And with a mobile relic, Trion didn't have any way of applying fixed coordinates for us." Wheeljack added.
"So the big A slipped us a clue instead. Smoke's mugshot." Bulkhead realised.
"Yeah, but the Cons managed to get him first. That's gotta mean they've got the same clue from the database." Jazz admitted.
(Linebreak)
Back in the Nemesis, two Vehicons walked down the corridors by themselves in silence, not noticing Skara emerging from a hiding corner on her Witch staff.
"Okay, this place is a lot more harder to sneak around in than I thought." Skara whispered to herself. "At this right, I'll probably find Smokey until the next day. And by the next day, he could be completely tortured to death and I'd have to go home for nothing."
Quickly shaking that thought from her head, Skara looked around the corridor for any clue that could lead her to Smokescreen and she eventually spotted a vent entrance. Skara carefully flew her staff and herself up to the vent entrance and managed to slip through one of the edges, landing onto the surface with her staff in hand.
"Well that worked pretty well. Now, which way to Smokey?" Skara asked quietly as she looked around and then spotted some glowing lights in the right distance. "That way looks promising."
The Bard Witch girl made her way to the lights and soon looked out another vent door, gasping quietly when she saw Smokescreen trapped on the medical table with Megatron, Knock Out, Breakdown and Wildrider still watching over him. Megatron was looking at a terminal screen to get a look at the Omega Key inside of Smokescreen.
"Yet another of these identical relics? Remove it swiftly." Megatron ordered.
"With pleasure." Knock Out replied, shifting his hand into his buzz saw blade. "I do resent a finish flashier than my own."
Knock Out approached Smokescreen and slowly brought his buzz saw closer to his chest, making the Autobot rookie squirm in nervousness. Skara could only cover her eyes in fear, slightly peeking one of them out before Knock Out then retracted his weapon.
"Ha, made you squirm." Knock Out mocked while smirking.
"We're supposed to get that stupid relic out of him, Knocks. Just start cutting already." Wildrider told him impatiently.
"Now, now, there's less messier ways to extract something out of an Autobot." Knock Out replied as he showed the activated Phase Shifter on his wrist and repeatedly phased his hand through his arm. "Trippy."
He then stomped his foot onto the floor, which didn't phase through.
"And intuitive." Knock Out commented. "Proper grounding ensures that it's user won't phase through the floor."
"I said swiftly." Megatron reminded firmly.
Knock Out quickly complied by phasing his hand straight into Smokescreen's chest, making the Autobot rookie wriggle about as Skara looked on in shock.
"Leave him alone, you metal psychos." Skara whispered.
"Get your stinking hand out of my gears!" Smokescreen grunted.
"And…gotcha." Knock Out said before he pulled the Omega Key out of Smokescreen.
"Smokey had that inside this whole time?" Skara asked in disbelief. "This keeps getting crazier."
"Tell me the function of these relics." Megatron ordered Smokescreen.
"Door stops, shavers, bling. Beats me." Smokescreen answered.
"A funny Bot, huh? Let's see how funny you are when I rip your brain module out of your head." Breakdown scowled threateningly, marching straight up to Smokescreen.
"Unfortunately, that would just end up causing his neural net to get damaged." Knock Out replied before looking at the Phase Shifter. "Hmm, a pity this little gadget won't allow me to just reach into his brain pad and pluck out the info."
"Fortunately, we possess a device that can." Megatron proclaimed, making Skara gain a very nervous look from her hiding spot.
(Linebreak)
Meanwhile at the Harbinger, Lockdown, Exhaust and Soundblaster were busy salvaging any items of worth while Starscream was in the laboratory with the Omega Key Lockdown stole from the Autobots. After hearing what the key is capable of doing from the Cybertronian bounty hunter, Starscream was very intrigued to hear he has one of four items that can revive Cybertron.
"Individually, each of these so-called Omega Keys is useless. Yet, possessing even a single one grants me tremendous negotiating power with either Autobots or Decepticons." Starscream said to himself as he held the Omega Key and walked forward a bit. "Still, imagine if I managed to acquire the other three."
The former air commander began imagining a fully-healed Cybertron in the far reaches of space with him towering over the entire planet as it's new ruler.
"I could revive Cybertron, and seize the throne as Starscream the First, supreme overlord and emperor of destruction!" Starscream stated ambitiously as he let out a maniacal laugh, only to them calm down at a realisation. "Oh, but unlike Megatron, I lack the necessary infrastructure to enforce such a reign. No warship, no army…Only my meagre laboratory finds, a Ground Bridge remote control, a single remaining dose of Red Energon, Lockdown and his two Mercenary followers, and you, old friend."
As it turns out, Starscream had actually been speaking to the hanged lifeless body of Thrust.
"But, I would all too gladly trade this, simply to be restored to my former glory." Starscream admitted.
"We figured you'd go running back to your old team, one day." A familiar voice said as Starscream quickly turned around to see Lockdown and his Mercenary teammates standing at the open door.
"Eh…how long were you three standing there for?" Starscream asked sheepishly.
"Long enough to hear you wanna go back to working for Megatron so you can be his popular Second in Command again." Exhaust replied.
"And that it's so you can eventually sneak through the ranks and eventually become the new ruler of Cybertron after these Omega Keys restore it." Lockdown added with his arms crossed. "If you wanna leave us to go back to the Cons…then fine. Our crew has been surviving without you for years, anyway."
"I…understand. Are you sure you wouldn't rather come with me so that Megatron may offer you a great reward for helping him obtain the other Keys from the Autobots?" Starscream questioned.
"Not really." Soundblaster said. "There's always better clients with bigger coins. Besides, what's Cybertron ever done for Bots like us?"
"Soundblaster's got a point. Cybertron is only one planet, and there's a whole lot more out there we can make some great value from." Lockdown commented. "You just do what you've gotta do, Screamer. It's all buisness, right?"
"Yes, buisness. While it may not have been perfect, our partnership to each other has been good while it lasted." Starscream commented. "But now, it seems this is where we all go our separate ways."
"Looks that way." Exhaust said simply.
"A piece of advice, Starscream, you're going to need a lot more than just one Omega Key to win back Megatron's trust. You're gonna need to pull off a much greater achievement." Lockdown admitted.
"Yes, you have a very good point. I will need to put some thought into what I must do next." Starscream said with a thoughtful expression.
"You do that, and we'll just get in our ship and find somewhere else that's worth salvaging on this planet." Soundblaster replied.
"Make sure you always survive, Starscream. It's one of the universe's most important rules." Lockdown said before he and his Mercenaries walked away, leaving Starscream by himself once again.
"I always survive, my bounty hunter friend. No matter what." Starscream snickered.
(Linebreak)
The scene changed to show the time when Optimus is explaining the origin of the Omega Keys to Team Prime.
"While I am unfamiliar with the lore of these Omega Keys, Alpha Trion knew many secrets. And the Ancients possesses technology that has long been lost to what we consider modern science." Optimus explained. "Whatever their function, this much is certain. We cannot restore Cybertron without all four Omega Keys in our possession. The future of our home world depends on it."
However, this was all revealed to be a memory when Megatron himself stepped up to hear Optimus explaining the keys. Knock Out, Breakdown and Wildrider were shown to be watching the memory on a monitor as they then turned their attention to Smokescreen.
"This is a whole lot better than I thought it'd be." Wildrider commented.
"That's a wrap." Knock Out said as he approached Smokescreen and pulled out a Cortical Psychic Patch cable from his head, making the Autobot rookie gasp awake.
"Thanks for the info, Auto-newbie." Breakdown told him smugly.
Knock Out then approached Megatron and removed the cable from his head, waking the Decepticon leader from his memory-searching nap.
"The power to remake Cybertron, as I see fit." Megatron said ambitiously as he stood up from his table. "I will pry the other two keys from Optimus Prime's lifeless fingers. We must find the exact location of the Autobot base. Patch in and tear apart Smokescreen's mind if you must, Knock Out. Breakdown, Wildrider, assemble our forces for a full-frontal attack on the base."
"Sure thing, master." Wildrider replied before he and Breakdown walked out of the room.
"Looks like we're finally going to win the war." Breakdown said.
"Me?" Knock Out asked, not liking the fact he's stuck torturing Smokescreen while his teammates get to plan an invasion.
"Who else? Do you think I would entrust you to see this key safely to the vault containing the other one?" Megatron asked rhetorically before he walked out of the room with the key in his hand.
As Smokescreen looked around to think of a way to escape, his eyes soon landed on Skara in the vent door, who waved at the Autobot rookie as a way to signal she was gonna help. Smokescreen smiled nodded to Skara before turning to Knock Out, who let out a sigh of defeat.
"Once more, into the brain pan." Knock Out muttered as he approached Smokescreen.
"No, not again! Stay out of my head!" Smokescreen begged, causing Knock Out to chuckle.
"No, no, you'll only make things worse for yourself." Knock Out said with a smirk.
"Not before I make your day a bad one!" Skara's voice called out.
Knock Out quickly turned around to see Skara jumping down from the vent door and she brought out her mini harp for battle, causing the Decepticon doctor to smile deviously at her.
"I don't know how you boarded this warship, but I'll make sure you won't get off it alive, little one." Knock Out declared before switching his hand for his surgeon drill.
"No thanks. I prefer to stay alive." Skara replied.
She rolled out of the way before Knock Out could strike her with his drill and the Bard Witch girl fired a bunch of musical energy arrows from her harp, making Knock Out stumble back nervously in an attempt to keep his paint job from being scratched.
"Hey, hey! Watch the finish! I just got it buffed yesterday!" Knock Out exclaimed as he tripped back to the table Smokescreen was trapped on.
"Now, Smokey!" Skara yelled as her Autobot friend then grabbed the Phase Shifter on Knock Out's wrist and activate it.
"Did you seriously forget I'm still here?" Smokescreen questioned with a sly smile before using the Phase Shifter to phase out of his restraints.
Smokescreen and Knock Out struggled against each other for the Phase Shifter, until Skara jumped on her Autobot friend's arm and used his staff to repeatedly smack Knock Out in the face. The three of them kept on fighting until Skara made a gesture to Smokescreen that he immediately understood, pulling Knock Out back towards the nearby wall. The Phase Shifter made Smokescreen and Skara phase straight through the wall with the relic now in their possession as they both landed on the floor, seeing Knock Out was stuck in the walls with half his body poking out.
"Well, aren't you two a clever pair." Knock Out scowled angrily as he tried to free himself, with little success.
"It's called strategy, Con." Skara replied with a proud smile as she and Smokescreen stood up.
"This ship is miles in the sky and swarming with Decepticons! Do you two really think you can escape?" Knock Out questioned.
"We're not planning to escape yet. Right, Smokey?" Skara asked her Autobot friend.
"Uh…sure." Smokescreen answered awkwardly as he put the Phase Shifter on his wrist. "Let's get going, Skara."
Skara quickly flew onto Smokescreen's shoulder and they both headed down the Nemesis' corridors, while Knock Out let out a shout of frustration.
Pretty soon, Smokescreen and Skara managed to find a good hiding spot and the Bard Witch girl jumped down to the floor.
"Okay, now that you're free, you and I can grab the Omega Keys on this giant ship and then find a way back to the base." Skara said with a confident smile. "Does that sound like a plan, Smokey?"
"Actually, Skara, I'm just gonna get those Omega Keys and bring them back to base. It's better for you to fly back to Luz's house on your staff." Smokescreen admitted, much to Skara's shock.
"What?! Are you kidding me?!" Skara asked in disbelief. "I nearly risked my life to rescue you and this is the thanks I get?!"
"Hey, I'm just trying to make sure you're not put in danger like the last time. Besides, I'm supposed to bring back the Omega Keys for Optimus and the others." Smokescreen said defensively. "It's meant to be my destiny."
"You're seriously still going on about that?! It's always gotta be about you, doesn't it?!" Skara argued. "That's one of the things I hated about myself in the past! But I learned to stop being to high and mighty about myself!"
"Wait, what're you talking about?" Smokescreen asked in confusion.
"You wanted to know why I stopped being friends with Boscha, right? Well, I'll tell you." Skara told him with a frown, having flashbacks to that very moment.
(Flashback)
It was another normal day at Hexside and Skara was seen walking her way down the halls with some books in her arms. The Bard Witch girl happily hummed to herself, but then she looked ahead and saw a certain dark-pink haired triclops Witch was hiding behind a corner to look at something.
"Boscha?" Skara asked, earning the triclops' attention. "What're you doing? The next class starts in just a few minutes."
"I know that. I just wanna have a little fun before that." Boscha replied with a sly smile, not taking her eyes off whatever she was spying.
Skara curiously looked over Boscha and saw that her friend's eyes were fixated on Luz, Amity and Willow as the three girls had a nice conversation with each other.
"You're spying on Amity, Willow and the human?" Skara questioned.
"I'm not just spying on those three, Skara, I'm planning a perfect payback trap for them." Boscha told her.
"Wait, you are? Why?" Skara asked, not liking where this was going.
"That stupid human and half-a-Witch have been showing me up a lot after that little petrification incident at the castle. Plus, Amity's joined them and changed her hair colour." Boscha said, scowling at the thought. "Well now, I'm gonna settle the score with those three."
"Uh…okay. And how are you supposed to do that?" Skara asked in concern.
"Oh, nothing much. I'll just toss this little potion full of flaming liquid at them and they'll get covered in flames that'll most likely not kill them." Boscha explained with a smirk, tossing a potion bottle in her hand.
"That sounds a bit extreme." Skara admitted worriedly.
"Hey, you're supposed to be my friend and always agree with everything I say." Boscha retorted. "Plus, think of this as a way for both of us to get back in the spotlight. Don't you want to have a life of respect and greatness again? You and I were best in this school before that human showed up."
"I know, but I just think it's better to sometimes live normally and respect others." Skara replied. "I learned that after our little Grudgby match."
"You shouldn't be learning anything from that day. Now, bring out your Scroll and start filming." Boscha ordered, turning her attention back to Luz and her two friends.
Skara dropped her books on the floor and looked on with a very conflicted look on her face. A part of her was saying to do what Boscha says since they've been friends for years. However, the nicer part of herself was saying that she should stop Boscha from pulling this mean prank on the three girls she was starting to like. Skara soon snapped out of her thoughts when she saw that Luz, Amity and Willow were walking down towards where she and Boscha were hiding.
"Alright, Half-a-Witch Willow, let's see how amazing you, your human friend and that traitor are when your hair goes up in flames." Boscha snickered, smirking deviously at her targets.
The triclops reeled her arm back and prepared to toss her fiery potion at the three girls, only for a hand to suddenly grab her by the wrist and make her drop the potion onto the floor. The glass bottle shattered apart upon falling and the liquid contents let out small flames before fading away. Boscha looked on in shock to see that it was Skara who stopped her with a stern frown.
"Skara, what are you-" Boscha was silenced when Skara immediately slapped her hand over her mouth and pulled her and herself behind a brick edge of the halls.
When Luz, Amity and Willow walked by, they didn't hear any of the commotion or Boscha's angry muffles as they kept on walking and talking with each other. Once they were gone, Skara removed her restraining hands from Boscha and the triclops angrily shoved herself away from her.
"What the heck, Skara?! Why did you stop me?!" Boscha asked in anger.
"Because I couldn't just let you do that to Amity and the other two! It's not right!" Skara stated.
"Since when have you ever cared about what we do to all the low-lives in this school?!" Boscha demanded. "You've always wanted to stay popular with me and help put all those inferior witches in their places, just like we always did!"
"That was before I learned making others feel lower than myself is wrong! And so is always looking out for yourself!" Skara replied with a glare.
"Who taught you that?! The human?! That half-a-witch?! Amity?!" Boscha questioned.
"All three of them! They helped me realise that it's better to be respectful and caring for others instead of just looking out for yourself!" Skara proclaimed.
"Then I guess you're just as weak and empty-headed as they are!" Boscha insulted.
"You're wrong! Yesterday, I had fun being around Luz and she had helped me see that I can be better!" Skara said in anger. "Just like she did with Amity! In fact, I don't even need you anymore!"
Hearing this, Boscha let out an offended gasp as she stared at her former friend in disbelief.
"What was that?" Boscha asked, gritting her teeth furiously.
"You heard me, Boscha. You and I are done. Starting tomorrow at the club fair, I'm gonna find some new friends and start a new chapter in my life. One that doesn't involve a jerk like you." Skara announced firmly, turning away from the triclops and picking up her books. "Goodbye forever, Boscha."
With all said and done, Skara walked away to make it to her upcoming Bard lesson. Boscha could only watch her former friend leave her in pure anger, feeling the same betrayal Amity left her with.
"Fine! Just turn your back on me! You'll just be as lame as that human and her friends!" Boscha shouted, with Skara simply ignoring her. "I still have Cat and Amelia to hangout with!"
(End Flashback)
"And that's how it all happened." Skara said, crossing her arms and looking away from Smokescreen.
"Wow. That…sounds pretty rough." Smokescreen admitted, feeling a bit speechless.
"It wasn't that hurtful, really. I always felt like Boscha was a bad influence on my life." Skara muttered. "On that day, I learned to stop being all high and mighty about myself and start being respectful to other people. It's not always about yourself, Smokey. It's about doing better for other people. Luz told me that."
"Okay, but what does that have to do with me?" Smokescreen asked, not really understanding as Skara let out an annoyed sigh.
"To put it simple, start putting your friends before your ego." Skara said as she then began to walk away. "Have fun with your destiny."
As Skara continued to walk away to find a way off the Nemesis, Smokescreen looked down and thought about what his Witch friend said to him. After putting in some thought about how he's been acting the past few days, Smokescreen let out a soft sigh and looked towards Skara.
"Skara, wait a minute." Smokescreen said, causing the Bard Witch girl to stop and look at him. "Okay, I'll admit it. I've been a little bit of an egomaniac."
"A little bit?" Skara repeated.
"Okay, I've been a really big egomaniac lately. But, is letting you help me get those Omega Keys back from Megatron enough to make up for it?" Smokescreen asked, putting on a slight smile.
Skara remained silent for a bit as she processed what her Autobot friend was proposing. Just then, the Bard Witch girl smiled at Smokescreen and approached him.
"It sure is." Skara said.
"Great. Let's go grab ourselves some Omega Keys." Smokescreen replied determinedly, picking up Skara and placing her on his shoulder.
Smokescreen ran his way through the Nemesis' corridors again until he and Skara eventually spotted Megatron after phasing out of a wall. They noticed he was walking towards a door, which obviously led to the vault that kept the other Omega Key.
"I've got a plan to get that key. But first, you might wanna cover your robot ears." Skara whispered.
"Got it. Turning down my audio receptors." Smokescreen replied as he pressed a function on the side of his head.
The Autobot rookie then rushed out of the wall and Skara let out a high-pitched sonic whistle, which made Megatron cover his ears from the loud sonic waves and Smokescreen was able to grab the Omega Key when it fell from his hand.
"Thanks, mega-jerk!" Skara shouted before she and Smokescreen phased through the door in front of them.
"What?!" Megatron asked in shock, angrily typing some codes on a nearby panel.
When the door opened up, Smokescreen and Skara were nowhere to be seen and the two Omega Keys were gone with them. Approaching the table the Omega Key was on, Megatron slammed his fist onto it and shouted out in pure anger. Smokescreen and Skara were then seen rushing down the corridors with the two Omega Keys in the Autobot rookie's hand.
"I can't believe that actually worked!" Skara admitted, slightly laughing to herself.
"We've still gotta get off this ship!" Smokescreen reminded.
The two of them kept on running before they came to a halt when seeing three Vehicons getting in their way. Three more Vehicons showed up to trap Smokescreen and Skara.
"Oh, this isn't the way out?" Smokescreen asked jokingly.
"Could any of you show us the exit?" Skara questioned.
In response, the Vehicons fired their blasters and Skara strummed her harp, creating a sound-powered shield around her and Smokescreen and causing the shots to bounce off. As the shield faded away, Smokescreen and Skara saw the Vehicons had been destroyed by their own blaster shots.
"Musical barrier. One of the more defensive techniques of Bard magic." Skara explained.
"It's definitely handy." Smokescreen commented before he used the Phase Shifter to phase himself and the Bard Witch girl through the walls.
While running straight through the walls, Smokescreen and Skara also phased through a passing Insecticon, which tilted it's head in confusion.
(Linebreak)
On the roof of the Nemesis, Smokescreen and Skara finally managed to make it out of the ship and they looked around for an escape, only to see Megatron approach them with five Vehicons by his side.
"The keys." Megatron demanded as his soldiers aimed their blasters.
As Skara hopped off of Smokescreen, the two of them began backing away a bit before turning back to see they were just over the edge of the Nemesis.
"A pity the two of you are incapable of flight." Megatron said.
Thinking of the same idea, Smokescreen and Skara nodded at each other as the Bard Witch girl brought out her staff.
"Yeah, like we're gonna let that stop us." Smokescreen said to Megatron.
"We're just gonna leave with our new keys, now. Byeee!" Skara called out playfully before she and Smokescreen jumped off the Nemesis while avoiding the Vehicons' blaster shots.
Megatron looked over the edge to see Smokescreen free-falling his way down to the surface while Skara flew beside him on her staff.
"You know I'm not gonna be able to carry you in the air, right?!" Skara questioned loudly.
"Don't worry! I'll call for a transport back home!" Smokescreen assured, activating his com-link.
(Linebreak)
At the Autobot base, Team Prime noticed that Smokescreen's signal was now on the main console's screen due to him now being off the Nemesis.
"Smokescreen's signal is back online." Ratchet said with a smile.
"The kid escaped the Nemesis." Bulkhead remarked.
"I knew he could do it." Jazz said proudly.
"Smokescreen to base, we could really use a Ground Bridge!" Smokescreen stated on the communicator.
"Wait, did he say 'we'?" Cliffjumper asked.
"And make it fast! I can't catch a giant robot by myself!" Skara's voice shouted.
"Skara?" Bumblebee questioned in surprise.
"She must've snuck on the Nemesis somewhere and helped Smoke escape." Wheeljack theorised.
(Linebreak)
"Retrieve the Omega Keys! Quickly!" Megatron ordered before he suddenly tossed two Vehicons off his ship.
As the two Vehicons fell, one of them transformed into his aerial vehicle form and he flew after Smokescreen and Skara. But the second one transformed into a car and fell down to the floor while screaming.
"Flyers! I need flyers!" Megatron yelled, causing his other two flyer Vehicons to transform and pursue their targets.
(Linebreak)
Meanwhile, Ratchet was trying to get a fix on Smokescreen and Skara's positions to send them a Ground Bridge.
"Setting coordinates. Strange." Ratchet said as he noticed something on the screen.
"What's the problem?" Arcee asked.
"Smokescreen and Skara's telemetry data doesn't make sense. I can't lock onto their location." Ratchet answered.
"Maybe they're moving too fast?" Jazz guessed.
(Linebreak)
As Smokescreen and Skara kept descending down, the Vehicon flyers behind them started shouting and Smokescreen placed the Omega Keys on his back, picking up his skydiving speed with Skara keeping up.
"How do we shake those metal-heads?!" Skara asked worriedly.
"I've got an idea!" Smokescreen replied as he then activated the Phase Shifter.
Spreading his arms out to slow down, Smokescreen phased through a Vehicon flyer and blasted him to pieces from behind before skydiving through the smoke.
"That was a good one!" Skara remarked.
(Linebreak)
Ratchet soon managed to get a precise fix on Smokescreen and Skara's position and realised what they were doing.
"I've isolated the problem. Smokescreen and Skara are in free-fall." Ratchet informed, quickly patching into Smokescreen's com-link. "Smokescreen, I'm opening the Ground Bridge directly below you and Skara."
(Linebreak)
Back with Smokescreen and Skara, they both saw the Ground Bridge appear a few feet below them as the Autobot rookie deactivated the Phase Shifter.
"Brace yourselves! We're gonna make an entrance!" Smokescreen stated.
"Uh, Smokey?" Skara asked worriedly, looking at the Autobot rookie's side.
Smokescreen looked to his right and saw Megatron flying near him in his jet form before the Decepticon leader rammed Smokescreen away from the Ground Bridge.
"No!" Skara shouted as she quickly flew towards her Autobot friend.
(Linebreak)
The Autobots saw that Smokescreen signal moved away from the Ground Bridge and Skara's signal followed suite.
"They're…off course!" Ratchet exclaimed.
"You missed missed?!" Arcee asked in disbelief.
"Open another one! Fast!" Cliffjumper urged.
(Linebreak)
Smokescreen and Skara saw they were getting close to the ground, meaning there wasn't enough time for another Ground Bridge.
"Smokey, I don't know what to do! This was definitely a bad idea!" Skara called out.
"I've still got a solution! Come closer!" Smokescreen instructed.
Skara didn't know what he was planning, but she decided to oblige by flying very close to Smokescreen and grabbing his arm. The Autobot rookie then activated his Phase Shifter again.
"I hope proper grounding on this thing doesn't apply to actual ground." Smokescreen admitted, facing straight to the surface. "Brace yourself, Skara!"
"What do you think I'm doing, right now?!" Skara asked rhetorically.
As the two Vehicon flyers kept pursuing them from behind, Smokescreen and Skara soon reached the ground and they both surprisingly phased straight into the ground once they reached it. The two Vehicon flyers had no time to pull up and they exploded once they made contact with the ground, along with the screaming land-based Vehicon that Megatron tossed off the Nemesis. Speaking of Megatron, he was the only one able to pull up from the ground.
(Linebreak)
At the base, Team Prime saw that the two signals reached the surface and they all feared that Smokescreen and Skara were truly gone.
"No." Ratchet whispered remorsefully.
"Poor kids." Wheeljack sighed.
(Linebreak)
Megatron transformed and landed in front of the flaming crater, while two other Vehicons landed beside him.
"Scourer the wreckage!" Megatron ordered as the Vehicons started searching the crater. "I want those keys!"
Unknown to them, Smokescreen and Skara emerged out of a stone wall that was far away and below the Decepticons.
"Hey, Ratchet? We could still really use that Ground Bridge." Smokescreen whispered on his com-link.
"And quickly before those Cons find us." Skara added as the Autobots heard them and smiled in relief.
(Linebreak)
Once they were back at base, Smokescreen and Skara sat on a crate with the two Omega Keys they brought with them.
"And then, Smokey used that Phase Shifter thing to make us go straight through the ground to avoid that Megatron creep." Skara told the Bots with a smile. "It was really great."
"Not as great as you using that loud whistle move to make Megatron drop the key that was in me." Smokescreen commented, smiling back at the Bard Witch girl. "That was even better."
"I'd say we both did a great job." Skara said, while Arcee let out a sigh of defeat.
"Nice work, you two." Arcee complemented.
"Maybe you were both destined to be on Earth." Cliffjumper quipped.
"Actually, I think it was just good luck." Skara replied.
"Hold on. One, two…you guys only brought back two keys." Bumblebee said, using his fingers to count.
"It was the only key in Megatron's vault." Smokescreen answered.
"We didn't have time to search everywhere else." Skara added.
"Then three keys are accounted for." Optimus said, picking up the two Omega Keys.
"Then the third is still somewhere on the Nemesis." Bulkhead muttered.
"Unless…Megatron never had it to begin with?" Arcee asked in realisation.
"If bucket-head doesn't have the last key, then who does?" Wheeljack questioned.
Just then, the main console started to display an incoming message from a certain defected Decepticon.
"A high frequency signal…with an embedded message." Ratchet said, quite unpleased by who the messenger was.
"Starscream." Bulkhead scowled.
"I have obtained something of interest to you which seems to be of no practical use to me." Ratchet read. "Also, Lockdown and I have chosen to go our separate ways."
"It's gotta be the Omega Key." Cliffjumper proclaimed.
"He's the one who blindsided me!" Smokescreen stated, not knowing it was Lockdown who actually did it.
"What else could Scream be referring to?" Arcee asked.
"And it was obvious Lockdown was gonna turn his back on him." Wheeljack muttered.
"Yep, yep, there's more." Ratchet told them. "Bring medical kit. I only ask for the surgical replacement of my T-Cog in return."
"Hah! Like we're gonna give Scream back his wings." Bulkhead said with a scoff.
"He's obviously setting up a trap." Skara commented, crossing her arms.
"Without the missing key, Cybertron will remain devoid of life." Ratchet reminded.
"Broken record, I know. But, it could be a trick." Arcee admitted.
"Scream's tricked us once before. What's stopping him from doing it again?" Jazz asked rhetorically.
"It is possible that Starscream does not yet realise the significance of what he holds." Optimus said.
"And we do know that he has been incapable of flight for some time." Ratchet added. "And with the Mercenaries no longer associated with him, we have the advantage in numbers."
"The stakes are too too great for us not to consider Starscream's proposal. However, we will take precautions." Optimus proclaimed.
"If you're gonna go through with this deal, can you all at least send me back to Luz's house?" Skara asked politely.
"Sure thing, Skara." Smokescreen answered.
(Linebreak)
After sending Skara to the Noceda residence so she could tell her friends about the Omega Key situation, a Ground Bridge appeared in a forest and emerging from it was Optimus, Ratchet, Bulkhead and Wheeljack. Arcee, Bumblebee, Cliffjumper, Jazz and Smokescreen remained back at base to guard the other side. Optimus, Bulkhead and Wheeljack had their blasters out and looked around for Starscream.
"There." Bulkhead said, looking directly ahead.
Optimus, Wheeljack and Ratchet followed his gaze and they saw a red-coloured Starscream laying motionlessly against a boulder.
"Starscream, show us the Omega Key." Optimus ordered.
However, 'Starscream' didn't say anything in response and the four Autobots approached him with their weapons aimed at the former air commander.
"Give it up, Screamy. You're all alone." Wheeljack said as he tapped his blaster on 'Starscream', causing him to fall down in a deactivated state and leave the Autobots surprised.
"We're too late. That T-Cog won't help him now." Ratchet said, noticing the large hole and blade wounds on 'Starscream'.
As the Autobot medic kneeled down for an inspection, a speedy blur moved past the Autobots and entered the Ground Bridge without them noticing.
(Linebreak)
At the base, the blur moved straight past Arcee, Bumblebee, Cliffjumper, Jazz and Smokescreen and everything began to slow down. The real Starscream, who used the body of Thrust as a decoy, looked around the base and knew the Red Energon worked like a charm.
"It would seem I have the run of the place." Starscream said, smirking sinisterly.
The former air commander turned to Arcee and approached her, seeing how slow she was moving as he was moving at such a fast rate before pointing his finger closely at the female Autobot's eye.
"Oh, how easy it would be to get you." Starscream commented, walking away from Arcee to approach the other four Autobots. "To gut all of you. But, first thing's first. Where does Optimus keep his key ring?"
Starscream walked away from the main room and into the vault area, where he began rapidly looking in each room for the other three Omega Keys.
"Not here. Nope. No." Starscream said before he looked into the room that contained the still stasis-frozen Airachnid. "Ugh. I was wondering what happened to that wretch."
When he came across another empty room, Starscream let out a growl of annoyance.
"Do they think I have all day?" Starscream questioned impatiently as he moved to the next door, finally spotting the Omega Keys inside an energy container. "Ah, there you are."
(Linebreak)
Back at the forest, Ratchet used a scanner devise to inspect Thrust's body and discovered something unusual.
"Curious. Starscream has been deceased for quite some time." Ratchet said suspiciously.
"Well how's that possible if he just sent us a message?" Bulkhead asked, until he finally noticed the red colour on the body. "Wait, he looks a bit more red than usual. Kinda like that Starscream lookalike I saw on the Nemesis a few days ago."
"If this is a just a non-functioning copy, then that means…" Wheeljack started to say.
"We have been deceived." Optimus realised.
(Linebreak)
Taking a few steps back, Starscream fired a missile and the door slowly exploded open. Arcee, Bumblebee, Cliffjumper, Jazz and Smokescreen felt this from the main room.
"Woah!" Arcee said surprisingly.
"What was that?" Smokescreen asked.
"No clue." Jazz replied.
"What's going on?" Bumblebee questioned.
"I think that was an explosion." Cliffjumper admitted.
The sprinklers suddenly turned on and showed the Autobots in water, much to their surprise.
"Arcee, close the Ground Bridge now." Optimus ordered on the com-link.
Arcs began pulling on the Ground Bridge lever, but everything slowed down again as Starscream walked out of the vault room while carrying all three Omega Keys. Starscream approached the slow-moving Autobots.
"Now that I have your trinkets, I'm free to enjoy slitting your…" Starscream said, only to gasp when he saw Arcee attempting to shut down the Ground Bridge. "But, as I appear to be pressed for time."
Starscream began casually walking into the Ground Bridge and Arcee was able to full pull the lever up, but the former air commander was able to get into the green portal. Arcee, Bumblebee, Cliffjumper, Jazz and Smokescreen looked on in confusion, wondering what had just happened.
(Linebreak)
On the other side of the Ground Bridge, Starscream made it out and the portal closed up behind him. However, Starscream gasped surprisingly when he saw Optimus, Bulkhead, Wheeljack and Ratchet in front of him.
"Autobots, maintain positions." Optimus ordered in a very slow way.
"I'm sorry, what was that?" Starscream questioned smugly, making strange mumbling noises and walking past the Autobots. "You Autobots think you're so superior. But do you know what you really are? SLOW!"
Optimus began slowly turning around to Starscream, until he and the other three Autobots suddenly moved at normal speed and aimed their weapons at Starscream, causing him to lightly laugh in nervousness.
"The Red Energon wore off, didn't it?" Starscream asked timidly.
"He has the Omega Keys!" Ratchet stated, noticing the keys in Starscream's possession.
With a loud yelp, Starscream quickly fired a missile and the Autobots jumped away from it. Starscream started to run away and this caused the Autobots to immediately pursue him.
"Get back here, coward!" Wheeljack shouted.
Starscream ran as fast as he could and pulled out his Ground Bridge remote control in a panic.
"Come on!" Starscream urged, trying to open a Ground Bridge.
Optimus, Bulkhead and Wheeljack started rapidly firing their blasters at Starscream and a Ground Bridge appeared in front of him. Optimus tried his best to grab Starscream, but the former air commander made it into the Ground Bridge and it closed up before the Autobots could follow. Seeing that Starscream escaped with all the Omega Keys, Optimus let out a cry of despair that could be heard around the entire forest. The other three Autobots exchanged concerned looks before turning back to Optimus.
"We'll get them back." Bulkhead assured.
"There's not much Starscream can do with the keys, anyway. He can't transform, he's got no army and doesn't have any way of getting to Cybertron." Wheeljack reminded.
"Wheeljack is right. The keys can be of no use to Starscream while he scrounges in the wild like some Scraplet." Ratchet proclaimed. "There must be something that we can offer him in exchange."
"The fate of Cybertron now rests in Starscream's hands. Whatever his intentions." Optimus said, turning around to show his narrowed eyes.
(Linebreak)
Meanwhile on the Nemesis, Megatron and Dreadwing were staring at Knock Out, who was still stuck in the walls.
"I beg you, my liege. Release from this absurd predicament." Knock Out pleaded.
"No. You shall serve as a constant reminder to those who dare fail me." Megatron declared with a hard glare.
The Decepticon leader walked away to leave Knock Out in his situation and Dreadwing followed him, soon arriving in the main deck.
"I cannot allow Optimus Prime to be the one to restore Cybertron. We will locate the Autobot base, invade it and retrieve the Omega Keys." Megatron announced firmly.
"Been there…" A familiar voice said as Megatron looked to his side and saw Starscream casually leaning on the control terminal. "Done that."
Megatron shot a mad glare at his former air commander, who stood tall and surprisingly bowed to him.
"Please pardon my unannounced visit, Lord Megatron." Starscream said.
Dreadwing brought out his cannon and prepared to fire at Starscream, only for Megatron to stop him by placing a hand on his shoulder.
"But I have come baring a peace offering." Starscream snickered evilly, showing all four Omega Keys in his hand.
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