Author's Notes: I'm back again, baby! Long time no see, and I very much needed that time off to get my life together! Thanks for waiting around for me to sort it out. Though I would have liked to edit this chapter a little more, (I have been picking at it over the whole month) I figured now would be the best time before I head out of town! So, without further delay, please drop a comment, follow and enjoy!
Soundwave
Maccadam wisely stepped out of the way of the incoming debris. The group at the table was overwhelmed so fast by the storming army of Decepticon troops they didn't even have time to react beyond stumbling backwards, toppling over tables and spilling high-grade.
Mo was snatched up fast enough, Onslaught falling to the floor and Dreadbot snagging a pipe from the wall to use as a makeshift weapon, "Screw the Twisted, we goin' down like Cons!" he laughed in near maniacal valor.
"Nope! Drop it and give up!" Nitro Zeus demanded.
Maccadam, now stood out of the way of the fray. At a better vantage point, he saw the angry, but not confused optics of the mixed group coming to take in the Universe B bots. Some familiar Autobot faceplates were in there, standing behind Soundwave and his high general.
Those who looked the most confused, were Nitro Zeus' crewmembers.
Dreadbot did a double take aimed his leader's way, "What you talking about Nitro?! We gotta get-"
"Shut your trap and give up! You three were stupid enough to vote me head honcho, you now gotta suffer the consequences of that decision! Stand down!" and as proof of that order, he rose his servos above his helm. His gaze locked with Soundwave's, and he gave the smallest, promising nod.
Soundwave mirrored the gesture, and motioned for his team to close in. Confounded, flustered and now angry, Dreadbot threw down the pipe and growled as he was restrained.
Mohawk, who was at first to startled by the turn of events to do much but struggle in the grasp of Thunderblast, caught the gleam of Miko's bubble behind the hoard, safely stationed alongside her Autobot guardians. They had been allowed entry into Kaon for the re arrest, as their intel had led them to the Universe B bots.
"Aw man, the flesh bag snitched!" Mohawk realized.
Miko snorted a laugh, "You snitched on yourself, bro."
"Wait, is that who you were yelling at over comm?" Dreadbot shouted across the bar at Mohawk. "You told them where we were?!"
"I told ya!" Mo snarled back, "Imma kill that human, and this seemed the best time to do it!"
Arcee bumped into Soundwave as she hurried through the fray, though for once the contact appeared to be an accident. She was checking on Maccadam's wellbeing, though the jovial bot seemed cheery as ever. Jazz's much harder shoulder bump was most definitely not a mistake as he followed after Arcee.
"Are you ok?" Arcee asked the older bot quickly.
Despite the mixed party of invading forces storming his establishment, Maccadam had never appeared better. He had already retrieved a broom to start tidying up the rubble on the ground. "Worried as always, Arcee. No need to fuss over me. Stranger things have happened in this bar."
Arcee gave him a 'are you kidding me' kind of glare. "This is the second time in less then two weeks a group of interdimensional beings tried to kidnap you. That doesn't sound fine to me."
"I suppose that is true…" Maccadam caught Soundwave's gaze, and he brightened even more, "Welcome back, Sovereign, and right on time! Though you have always been the punctual type! Arcee brings up a valid point. My unique abilities seem to be a magnet for this otherworldly conflict, it may be best if I take a bit of a holiday in an undisclosed location. If the offer hasn't expired, I would like to take you up on your original suggestion to go into protective custody until those who need my abilities are apprehended," he retrieved what looked to be an old transmitter radio from the bar and stored it away in subspace. Hurrying back, he then offered Nitro Zeus an assuring smile and a pat on the shoulder before adding, "And I would like to offer my testimony in these boy's defense. I think their escape has led to a very interesting discovery about what we need to do moving forward."
Soundwave's hard stance relaxed. "The offer is still good. And I assume, they could use all the help they can get in their defense." He added while flashing Nitro Zeus a far less sympathetic glare.
A new hole blew open in the wall, scattering fresh rubble across the newly swept floor. Grimlock was squeezing himself and his flaming sword inside, "Got here as soon as we got the comm for backup-"
"They surrendered," Arcee informed him flatly.
Grimlock launched his sword across the street with a roar of frustration. The imposing blade stuck into the adjacent building, almost spearing some poor spark who had been minding their own business as they strolled down the road.
"Like the whole damn universe is against me!" Grimlock shouted at nobody as he stormed back out.
With a devious grin, Jazz shouted after him, "Not just this universe that's against ya, it's the whole multiverse now, bud!"
Back in the Northern tower, Soundwave and his fellow lords remained fixed on Nitro Zeus, who had promised an explanation of some kind once they returned.
In the meantime, they had returned the universe B bot Onslaught back to the medical wing for treatment and an Energon transfusion. Since he couldn't walk or feel much below his helm, they utilized his Energon as their means of escaping their cell.
Nitro Zeus fiddled with the buzzing stasis cuffs on either of his servos. "Ok, so the plan wasn't to screw you guys over. It was to find out why Quincy wanted Maccadam. Now we know."
Starscream sneered, "You mean, the plan was to discover how to save your reality at the expense of our own?"
Nitro Zeus held up both cuffed servos in a show of submission, much as he did in the bar, "No! I mean yeah, that was the original game plan… But old man Maccadam said that wouldn't even work, so we gotta move on from that."
Sharpshot crossed their servos, "That explanation isn't exactly reassuring."
The door slid open behind them. Soundwave already knew who was entering thanks to his near constant surveillance of the tower. He wanted to make sure there wasn't another escape, and he had been getting sloppy about his passive monitoring of security in recent weeks.
Maccadam invited himself to sit at the table next to Nitro Zeus, even though the action put him in the direct line of fire for the three glaring bots hovering over the table. "He is telling the truth; I'll vouch for him! Everything I explained on the way back as well. You can't blame our dimension traveling friends, they are just trying to get home."
"Any plans should have been discussed with us first," Soundwave pointed out.
Maccadam grinned, already ready with his retort. "Technically yes, but in their defense, I don't see any timeline where you would have agreed."
In leu of responding to that comment, Soundwave instead deepened his scowl, "Starting now, we will be unified in all efforts regarding the threat still present from your universe. Am I clear?" he looked to Nitro Zeus.
He frowned, his jaw hinge opened, as if ready to respond with crass humor or an insult as usual. Maccadam tapped his side with an elbow joint. Nitro Zeus clicked his mandibles in annoyance, "I gotcha, loud and clear… Sorry for the escape attempt, but we was running out of ideas and time. Now, we could really-" he cut off mid thought. His red optic twitched, his whole chassis seizing as if his toxic insides decided now was the time to eat its way out. Visibly, he already hated what he wanted to say. Maccadam gave him a not-so-subtle double thumbs up under the table. It only made Nitro Zeus groan louder, "- we could really use your help. Both to get home, and to fix it."
Starscream scoffed, "What do you have to offer that could persuade us?"
"It's what this guy said," Nitro Zeus clarified, and motioned a cuffed servo at Maccadam's jovial form. "We didn't think we had any more info to cough up. Apparently, we do. If Quincy and Screen Guy get their way, this universe is gonna have the Twisted from our universe drawn here and run amuck.
If memory served, the given nicknames belonged to Quintessa and the mysterious voice belonging to whoever Quintessa was aligned with over their communication network. They had still yet to apprehend Quintessa from Universe B, and they also had yet to discover the identity of 'Screen Guy', who according to Nitro Zeus' less than reliable intel, was a resident of their own universe.
For the first time since they dragged Nitro Zeus back from the bar, slapped stasis cuffs onto his thick servos and then shoved him into an interrogation room, he risked a grin at the group. "Maccadam here said there is a way to undo the Twisted all together. There goes our shared threat all at once. Problem solved."
"And we undo the Twisted Phenomenon, by finding what went wrong in your Universe in the first place," Sharpshot echoed from their conversation from the bar. "Do you know what that is?"
Nitro Zeus hesitated. "Eh, I don't think we got that far before you blasted a bigger hole in the wall than the one me and the boys managed to make," He admitted, and looked to Maccadam for support. In kind, Soundwave and his fellow lords also scanned over to the bar owner/future seer.
Unconcerned by the sudden attention, Maccadam nodded. "Indeed! A Catalyst from Universe B would pick out those discrepancies quick enough."
"A being that is aware of multiple timelines," Soundwave repeated what Maccadam had explained before, but his tone was still not convinced, "I don't suppose Quintessa brought one of those with her to our Universe along with the others?"
Maccadam rewarded the question with a devious smirk. He was having far too much fun with this. "She wouldn't know if she did. After all, we don't know what makes a Catalyst special. Maybe they are not, and a Catalyst can be created! I would trust in the Universe B boys to pick out the discrepancies on their own. It is their home universe, after all."
Nitro Zeus became the focus again, and he squirmed in his seat a little. "Um… ok? I guess we'll get on that. Will give us something to do at least. What are we trying to think of again?"
"Anything that doesn't sit right in your Spark," Maccadam said encouragingly. "Think back to every instance a split in your timeline could have occurred, and pinpoint it," Maccadam jumped back up, "I'll get the others on the task right now! I haven't had this much fun in millennia! Really gets the Energon flowing!" he rushed out, the door shutting them back into much more sullen silence.
"He always like that?" Nitro Zeus asked them. "His cheer is making me want to purge, and for once, it ain't my toxic ass."
Starscream suddenly huffed, "Word from the Autobots. They want to know what is going on. Not that we know much more, but they are requesting to see this idiot and question him personally."
"They are using the code black system," Sharpshot added in amazement, reading the message from their own HUD. "Who thought they were this worked up about this?"
Soundwave had received the same request. Word of Nitro Zeus' gang's escape had already spread through Iacon like an explosive fire through an Energon depo. They were requesting an audience with all three Lords and at least one of the invaders from another universe. Or they would pull their support from their collective and continued search efforts for the still missing ships in the outer rings. A mild inconvenience, and Soundwave had known it was only a matter of time before they had to bring the Autobots into this whole mess.
Who looked much less thrilled with the idea, was Nitro Zeus. "Nah thanks. I don't talk to Autobots, let alone a whole damn board room full of 'em. I'll skip this one, tell me how it goes."
Soundwave gave him a very pointed look right along with Starscream, and Sharpshot even managed the same aura without an expressive faceplate. "To fix the mess your presence caused, you'll be required."
"So tough. You're going." Starscream added with a growl.
"I ain't expected to do any talking, right?" Nitro Zeus asked, his remaining confidence shrinking.
"Most likely, they will have questions for you," Sharpshot corrected.
He sunk down in his seat with a vent. "Man… Being Con leader sucks. How did Megatron make it look so easy?"
Even regarding two different variants of their fallen Lord Megatron, Soundwave could commiserate with that statement. "We will deal with the Autobot's request later. But first, we need to know everything you may have been plotting, be it another escape attempt, or other information you have neglected to tell us. What is your next plan of action?" Soundwave demanded, and he didn't try hiding his irritation. It was far from the first time he asked that set of questions of their guest/prisoner.
Nitro Zeus leaned heavy into the back of his chair and ex-vented. "Man, I don't even know anymore. I just wanted to save my universe and get drunk, and it didn't have to be in that order. You guys messed up the fun option, so I'll get back to you on the second when I find out."
Rhea
They had a very sturdy partition between themselves and the Universe B bots in their new (third at this point) cell. Half for their protection against the toxic presence, and also because Mohawk had made it clear, in no uncertain terms, he would take every opportunity he had to kill Miko. He only ceased his attempts when he threw everything in the cell, including himself at the glass between himself and Miko and it hadn't budged. All he could now do was pout and glare at the girl who was still making teasing faces at him from behind her glass shield.
Onslaught had been returned, still crippled, but at least no longer Energon starved. Maccadam returned and filled the group in as to what was said in the interrogation room. He explained it twice, but it still didn't make much sense. Mistakes in a timeline. Or things that would make a different scenario branch out from it's intended path. That's what the Universe B Bots had to figure out. How would anyone even know what that looked like? Since they didn't have a Catalyst, someone who would just know these different time lines, the universe B bots had to think over EVERYTHING that felt wrong in the history of forever, at least from their own perspectives. And it wasn't like this lot were a group of geniuses to start with. Even Miko had given up her petty mocking and had started helping the group brainstorm these discrepancies.
Rhea let Miko handle the crazy theories and ramblings, as she had Shawn on the phone, and he was also a handful. There had been an emergency meeting called by the Autobots, and everyone was invited. And she meant everyone. Ultra Magnus and a whole gaggle of Autobot higher ups were on their way to Kaon. Of course Team Prime would be there too. Every member of Soundwave's, Starscream's and Sharpshot's personal generals. Predaking was invited, (he always was, but he never showed up, so Rhea wasn't exactly counting him on the final roster.)
Since this meeting was dealing with Nitro Zeus' gang, Shawn had to be there. Why was that? Because they had attacked Earth, and they wore Decepticon emblems, and he had not had much luck convincing the current world leaders of the whole, different universe thing. In short, he was here to supervise, and record everything, and report back everything said in the best possible light. So, no pressure. Nobot better say anything stupid. But the bot who would be center stage was-
She didn't answer one of Shawn's many questions, because she saw through the glass, Onslaught flop off his berth in an attempt to catch a ball Dreadbot lobed in his general direction. He had apparently forgotten he couldn't walk. He landed right onto his face, the big metal ball slamming down onto his back moments later.
"My bad," Dreadbot said, retrieving his ball and leaving Onslaught on his face.
Yeah, they needed the leader of these guys to not say anything problematic or stupid in front of everyone.
"Um, yeah… I'm still here," Rhea sighed into the receiver when she heard Shawn repeatedly calling to her.
'Ok, good. I'm worried, since the B universe Bots are all in the northern tower where you are.' He admitted.
"Fair enough," Rhea agreed. She had intended to assure him. Remind him they were all locked up. But as they discovered this morning, Nitro Zeus and his friends were very capable of escaping. "Hopefully, we'll come to some sort of permanent solution today at the meeting. Raf and Frankie are coming too, right?" she asked, changing the subject.
'Yes. I requested both of them to make an appearance. Jack too, but he'll be here with the other security, just to be on the safe side. The President wants Special Agent Fowler there to provide back up, and I'm sure we won't be the only government losers. Things have been tense back home with all this bot drama. I've been trying to keep the lid on it, but…'
"I get it. Hard to convince those in high places. Thanks for working overtime on it."
"I know this meeting will be about the B universe bots, but I will also be bringing up the Megatronus problem again.' Shawn admitted with a snicker.
Oh yeah, that problem. A major key in this mystery was the still trapped Megatronus. He was needed to keep out the Twisted, or at the very least, they could keep Quintessa and her allies from gaining his power for the opposite purpose. Also, they needed to contain the ancient Prime to make sure his own nefarious plots did not further complicate things. She already knew Soundwave didn't like the idea, but his personal dislike for the imprisoned Prime was now outweighed by his usefulness to the cause. Like it or not, he and the B boys were all connected.
"I'm sure it will come up. Better to rip the bandage off fast and get it all over with." She sighed.
He laughed. 'We need a vacation after all this. Or at the very least, I need one. I see why Fowler is always yelling. Hope I don't end up like that, I already have extraordinary anger issues.'
Rhea snorted, "Seriously? You are the most levelheaded guy I think I have ever met, human wise that is."
'Oh, trust me, it's all a very well-rehearsed act. I take a lot of pride in it," his joking tone faded, and Rhea was worried they had disconnected before he spoke again, this time far more somber. 'Just, promise me you'll stay safe. I worry about you whenever you're on Cybertron. Now especially with those bots there causing trouble.'
"No need to worry. I'm used to Cybertronian shenanigans," she promised.
He heaved a heavy sigh. 'You shouldn't have to. Just, keep safe.'
She let him go, staring down at the phone long after he hung up. When even Shawn was down in the dumps, that meant things were serious. She finally pocketed the phone and looked away from the glass partition to instead survey the room she was in.
Arcee was leaned against the archway behind them that led into the hall. Jazz had to scram earlier, as he was still not welcome in Soundwave's tower. That left her alone to be the single Autobot presence as witness, and also the lone caretaker of Miko. Rhea couldn't decide what was a more monumental task. Going by her far-off gaze, it was all weighing heavy on her.
"Jack is headed over too soon," Rhea said to her.
Arcee sort of startled but settled back against the wall just as fast. "Good… I'll tag him in to watch Miko."
"You ok?"
Arcee shrugged, not meeting Rhea's eyes. She didn't push it any further.
Miko had finally stopped making faces at the bots within. She had been spending most of Rhea's phone call making mocking faces at Mohawk and licking the glass. But now, she was cross-legged with a pad of paper she procured from somewhere and appeared deep in thought. A glance over her shoulder informed Rhea Miko was actually hard at work, actually helping the bots within their enclosure think of these 'discrepancies' Maccadam explained. Miko was fairly well informed regarding the recent history of Universe B. She had read over all she could about it to get more ammo against Mohawk for their stupid universe points game.
Miko chewed on the tip of her pen, looking over the scratch she had written down. Rhea continued to snoop at her notes from above. Her notes were even more incoherent than Shockwave's but for totally different reasons.
"How is it going?" Rhea asked, observing the odd group both behind the glass and in front of it. As Miko was writing, Mohawk was across from her on the other side, back to the glass and slowly banging his helm against it. It was a good visual representation of 'how it was going.'
Miko circled something on her pad of paper, but Rhea couldn't make out the chosen word, "Terrible. Other then their Optimus going crazy, nothing else noteworthy sticks out. I mean, Maccadam said the Twisted was born because to many crazy things happened, and these guys should be able to figure it out just by thinking about it. Stuff that sticks out, or doesn't make sense, but like, what does that even mean? What does it look like if things are wrong on a cosmic level?"
"Maccadam ran off again?" Rhea asked, looking around both rooms. She had hoped he would stick around to elaborate or help in this task.
"He said he was decorating his temporary room here in the tower," Miko snorted, "I guess interior decorating is more important than the end of the freaking multiverse," she tapped her chewed up pen on the glass to reclaim the attention of the adjacent room. "Ok, from the top you guys! You had the war in the bag when you landed on Earth. Autobots on the run and outnumbered. What the heck happened for you to mess it up and lose the first time?"
Dreadbot huffed from his place on the floor. He laid on his back, tossing up and down the lob ball he was given to pacify them. As if they were stray cats in need of constant distraction so they didn't scratch the furniture or pee on the floor. "I don't know. They just gave us the slip. They got the damn Cube first, used it against Megatron… It was all downhill from that first flop. I don't see anything wrong with how we handled it. Rotten luck, I guess."
Miko squinted at her own notes. "Remind me. To get the info that would lead you guys to the Cube and ultimately win the war, you needed these special glasses the info was sort of etched onto, right?"
Mohawk slapped the glass, irritated when Miko didn't even jump, "We's already been over this a million times, stupid!"
Miko carried on, still chewing the pen cap, "And you knew this random high school kid had the glasses, and it was only a matter of time before he became associated with the Autobots."
"Yeah!" Mohawk snapped.
"And he was selling the glasses online?" Miko repeated.
Mohawk threw up his tiny servos in frustration, "Again, yeah!"
Miko looked at him with a pensive stare, "And at this time, you had access to Universe B Soundwave, who could, and had already hacked into the human satellite system, giving you guys an infinite number of human resources, like money?"
"Man, I don't get what this human isn't gettin' about this," Mohawk snorted to his associates. "Seems simple to me."
Miko fully put down her pen and paper, "Why didn't you guys just buy the glasses off eBay and have him literally ship them to you?"
Mohawk's snicker cut off. Dreadbot caught the lob ball and didn't throw it back up again as he glared at the ceiling. "…Shit." He said thoughtfully.
Wordlessly, Miko added the "Glasses Drama" to the list they had created.
"Speakin' of that annoying human always clinging to Bumblebee… what was his name again?" Onslaught intoned from his place still laid out on the floor.
Mohawk hummed. "No clue. Didn't he like, die?"
"Did he? I don't remember," Onslaught retorted.
"Yeah, what the hell happened to him?" now Dreadbot said, sitting up with the lob ball tucked under his servo. "Ya think that's another thing? Him vanishin' with no explanation?"
Mohawk pointed at him with triumph, "Hell yeah! Write that down, fleshy!"
Miko quickly jotted down 'loser no-name kid' to her notepad.
"He coulda been in one of the banks I blew up." Dreadbot added as an afterthought.
Mohawk shook his helm, "Nah, couldn't be. If he was in any bank, that woulda implied he wasn't a loser with no money."
Dreadbot snorted a laugh, "Yeah, good point. Woulda still blown it up, even without him in it. Money or not." And he got back to throwing his ball.
"Dude, what is with you and that bank?" Miko finally.
Dreadbot snarled at her, "Not just that bank. ALL banks. It's like, an authority thing I got issue with."
Miko snorted in amusement, "Whatever, dude. Just saying, your low key obsessed with it."
"Or, maybe I just haven't blown up enough of em yet! That's probably another rift timeline thing. Not enough banks on fire."
"I'm all about sticking it to the man, but you gotta reign it in dude. If for nothing else but your own sanity." Miko offered.
He only snorted, ready to carry on ignoring her. Miko rolled her eyes before turning around on her butt to face Rhea. "Any word from the nerds?"
"Should be arriving shortly," Rhea offered as she glanced at her phone's time. "I feel kind of worthless. No access to my avatar, and you already did my job of finding these guys with a single phone call. I should either go home, or help Maccadam pick out a wall color for his room upstairs."
"Well, look at the bright side," Miko offered, and she multitasked by sticking a few puffy stickers on her notes to make their "findings" look more impressive, "Once they have Megatronus locked up, you can use your avatar again. No more interrupting you and Soundwave's robot dates."
"Gross," Mohawk sounded like he was trying hard not to puke. "Our own Soundwave woulda never been slobberin' all over no human. No other Cybertronian either, but especially not a flesh bag."
Miko looked at him with a smirk, "Well, unlike our Soundwave, you're Soundwave is dead. More points go to us."
Mohawk slammed another fist against the unyielding glass. Rhea tried shaking off the way the sound of the warping reinforced surface made her teeth feel. She looked at the short list in Miko's hands. "I wonder, if our universe has any discrepancies as well. Things that weren't really supposed to happen but did anyway."
Miko paused her scribbling. Biting her lip, she thought hard, "No clue. If we did, it wasn't enough to cause any problems. Yay us, right?"
"I guess," Rhea hummed, thoughtfully. Though her nose wrinkled with a scowl, "But I mean, what is 'right and wrong'? Doesn't that kind of spit on the whole concept of free will? Or worse, is everything just set in stone from the start? The Autobot and Decepticon war? My parents drying? How far does this go?"
"Or, you're thinking way to much about it," Miko offered with a shrug.
Probably, but now Rhea felt the existential crisis starting to take root. The last thing they needed was to mess up some vast cosmic plan without even meaning to. And now that she was thinking about it, a bit of rebellious indignation started scratching at the back of her mind. What if she wasn't 'meant' to become Cybertronian, or be with Soundwave? Says who? Until God, or the vast universe actually told her to her face, she fully intended to carry on with her own life. And if she did hear to the contrary, she would bring up every point previously mentioned, because there was no way any higher being or universe approved story line was worth listening to if it was planned for her parents to die.
'Rhea,' Soundwave's voice said softly in her ear, 'We've come to a decision regarding moving forward. Once our guests arrive, we'll reconvene in the war room.'
"Copy that," she said, though she hesitated, "Am I really needed for the meeting? Not like I can contribute much."
'I would very much appreciate your input,' he insisted. A pause on his own end as well before he snickered, 'and if nothing else, seeing something so lovely will be a welcome distraction from impending doom.'
Ok, existential life crisis over, Soundwave had managed to cheer her up without even knowing she needed cheering up. It was one more fact that confirmed in her mind they were right to be together. She didn't need anything telling her otherwise.
Arcee stirred, still looking a little lost but she hid it well under a renewed expression of annoyance, "Comm came through. Apparently, the official Autobot presence is needed in the Con war room," she grumbled, pointing at herself as she headed for the door. "Let's roll Miko. I can't trust you to not further antagonize the B Boys…" she caught Miko smiling at her and she smirked, "What? The nick name grew on me."
"Because I'm awesome at naming things," Miko reminded them as she rushed for the steps leading down from the elevated partition. "You guys keep thinking about your messed up universe, I'm needed at some big important meeting!" she announced over her shoulder.
Mohawk offered a half-sparked wave without even turning, "Have fun! Hope a bomb goes off in the war room and ya all kick it!"
Onslaught grumbled from the floor, "if they all blow up, then nobot will be here to let us out, or bring us Energon."
Mohawk blew off his concern with a scoff, "No biggie. We'll just bust out again. I plan to either way. Still gotta stab that fleshy."
Miko stopped short of the first steps. Oh boy. She was sure Miko was ready to turn about face and further poke Mohawk's ego with a sharp stick with some biting comment. He had just said so himself. Big bot proof shield aside, eventually she would push him too far and he would find a way out just to rip her apart. Rhea was ready to drag her away if she had to just to keep that from happening.
But when Miko turned back around to face the transparent wall, her face wasn't antagonistic. In fact, she was sporting a sort of awkward smile as she headed back. "Ok, so I can admit, even from the clearly superior universe, we all may have gotten off on the wrong ped. That being said," she ruffled in her handbag and procured a little plastic rectangular box. "I got you guys something to pass the time while you're locked in here. Call it a peace offering," she said, looking to Mohawk, who was still scowling at her. She glanced at Dreadbot with a more teasing grin, "and maybe it can fix your authority problem. Sort of a way to get the aggression out. You guys can interface with basic Earth tech, right?"
"Duh," Dreadbot grumbled, and he stood up from the ground to trudge over to the partition. Even Mohawk focused in to see what Miko was sliding into the compartment meant to deliver rations to them from a safe distance.
"What is it?" Mohawk demanded when Dreadbot took it in his claws.
"I wanna see! Bring it over!" Onslaught demanded, sort of flailing a few of his limbs as best he could.
"It's a video game," Dreadbot said with a bit of an amused snort. "I've played a few, mostly in prison. Human crap to distract. Don't remember this one."
Miko pointed to the monitor on the wall with a grin, "I asked if you guys could use that to play it, and they said sure! Let me know if you need help setting it up!" She skipped away from the glass and hurried down the steps. Rhea left after her, noting the confused expression on the universe B bot's faces.
Once out of the room and down the hall, Arcee beat Rhea to the punchline and asked first, "What in the world kind of video game could entertain a bunch of violent, scheming lunatics?"
Miko was walking ahead of their group, a renewed pep in her step, "It's Grand Theft Auto. I think it'll fit their whole aesthetic."
Bumblebee
Being in Kaon was never not weird. But they had been approved. All of them, which was amazing, so here they were. Soundwave's tower, which was common, and in a very large sparsely furnished room save for the long table in the middle with a holoprojector at the ready. It was also kind of dim. Most Con places were. He often wondered if it was an aesthetic choice, or they were just really serious about energy preservation. He never had the nerve to ask.
He settled in between Arcee and Ultra Magnus at the long table. They were joined by the head of the Autobot Military Tacticians committee, an intelligence and spy agent who wasn't Jazz, and a few other higher ups Bumblebee never had much use in talking to. He left that to Magnus mostly.
The only other Committee member he sort of recognized was the head of the Ethic's Committee, Outlook, and another member Bumblebee recalled Arcee complaining about. Freegail was her name. They were assumingly there just to spectate; sort of like Bumblebee was. But their presence was making Arcee angry. But she didn't do anything beyond caste not so subtle glares their way.
/Those the jokers who voted totally against Cyberformation?/ he commd to Arcee.
He watched her face fall lower, /Yep. But I guess I can't blame them. They think it's the right thing to do./
/Is it?/
Her optics flicked over to him, /In most cases? Probably. But for every single case? No./
He shrugged, /We'll change their minds./
She just rolled her optics and cut the commlink.
He had to try very hard not to reopen their connection and ask Arcee how she was holding up. He was mostly here as Ultra Magnus' backup. No real need to share any thoughts… But Primus, did he have about a million questions he would have to hold back. Sure, the meeting was called because the B Boys pulled an escape attempt, but there were so many other issues that had piled up within the past few weeks. Were they finally going after the Star Seekers and retrieve Optimus' stolen Servo and sword? Or maybe they were going to start the hunt for Quintessa and her still unknown allies? Was there any news of the missing from their many search teams in the outer rings?
One thing at a time… He shifted his focus from his own side of the table to the other. Soundwave was at the head of the meeting. That made sense, this was his tower. His fellow lords sat on either side of him, and their respective Generals were all present as always. Shockwave was also there, seated farthest from Starscream but otherwise unfocused on anything other than the data readouts on his servo.
Infront of the Autobot section and seated on chairs set on the table itself were their human company, mostly so their presence wasn't invisible amongst the giants surrounding them. There was Shawn and a few other military reps, Agent Fowler, who looked a few seconds away from a stroke, and of course Raf and Doctor Frankie. Then Jack, standing at attention behind the human table with three other soldiers. And finally, there was Miko, who was sandwiched awkwardly between Frankie and Raf, having no place else to be put. Was she sort of the mascot of the human table? Bumblebee kind of felt that way for his side too. He also made sure to send a subtle wave Raf's way when they entered.
The only human not at the 'human table' was Rhea. Under normal circumstances, she would have been seated by Soundwave's side in her Cybertronian form. But as that wasn't possible right now, she sat on the table in front of him, a small station of her own for her laptop and other devices to sit. She was serious, as was her much larger partner behind her. But Bumblebee still noticed one of Soundwave's servos rested on the table, just so one of his thin fingers could caress her leg. Bumblebee also noticed Shawn trying very hard not to look at the display, his ears staying a semi-permanent shade of red. Poor guy. They still hadn't really smoothed that situation over. Bumblebee had a hard time not feeling bad for him.
There was one less familiar faceplate among their mixed company, and that was Nitro Zeus. Aura still invisible and silent, but his discomfort was easy enough to spot. There was an empty chair by his side, but no other members of his own team were there. And wow, did he look uncomfortable. The way the table was set, he was center focus, and he clearly hated it. His red optic occasionally glanced at the empty chair at his right, and when he wasn't tapping his claws against the table, he was fiddling with his stasis cuffs.
The door to the war room slid open, announcing the meeting's final participant. Maccadam patted Bumblebee's shoulder as he walked along the table, offering a quick nod to Ultra Magnus and then to each Con Lord. But he didn't stop and sit on the Autobot side. He carried on around the whole table, humming in the tense silence until he arrived next to Nitro Zeus. Then he took that empty chair, patting the strange bot much the same as he had Bumblebee, "How are you holding up?" he asked quietly, but it was heard by everyone, considering the silence.
Nitro Zeus glared at him, "I'm slowly dying from the inside out, my home universe is rotting and I'm a prisoner in a different dimension. How do ya think I am?"
Maccadam grinned, patting him once more for good measure, "that's the good thing about being at rock bottom! You can't go any farther down!"
"Thank you all for making it to this assembly in such a timely fashion," Soundwave intoned, his deep inflection carried through the large room without the use of any voice enhancements. It was always odd hearing him use his more commanding 'Con leader' voice, considering how naturally quiet he was. Bumblebee also noticed Nitro Zeus slump in relief once most of the focus left him in favor of Soundwave.
"I am sure the Autobots of the room have noticed the presence of Maccadam," and Maccadam waved cheerily from his chair at Bumblebee and the others before Soundwave continued, "As we have determined he, or more specifically, his unique abilities to see future outcomes, make him a target of potential capture from those who we are working to expose. He has been taken into our protective custody until a time it is deemed safe for him to leave."
"And the Autobots thank you for that generosity," Ultra Magnus began seriously, "But we would be more than willing to escort Maccadam back to Iacon where he could be under our watch. Considering he was aligned with our side during the war. In fact, we would insist upon it."
Soundwave was unmoved, "You're concern in noted. I assure you, Maccadam is not a prisoner, though we will not relinquish custody of his persons until further notice, as he appears to be at the epicenter of this conflict, and we are more assured of our own defenses."
"No need to worry about me Magnus," Maccadam insisted. "I'm fine. We should focus on more important things."
Ultra Magnus paused, glaze flicking between Soundwave and Maccadam, two starkly different expressions. One a mask of cold focus and the other sustaining a big goofy grin. "I insist we have at least unhindered contact with him via commlink."
"That is acceptable," Soundwave agreed right away. "With that settled, is there anything else that needs discussing before we continue?"
Bumblebee had about a million things to ask or say or shout, but he decided it could all wait. He remained silence along with the room. Though he noted Freegail from the Ethic's Committee whisper something to Ultra Magnus. He scowled, shook his head at them and nodded to Soundwave as a sign they had nothing else. What was that all about? It made Bumblebee nervous despite not really knowing why.
The sound of Miko's head slamming the table in front of her echoed in the large once silent room. "How is a meeting about the end of the freaking multiverse so boring already?" She complained to Raf and Frankie. She wasn't being as loud as she could be, but she was in a room full of Cybertronians who, comparatively to the human company, had super hearing. She might as well have stood up on her chair and shouted it.
Sweating as every pair of optics found their little table, Raf slapped her in the arm. She slapped him back harder. "No, seriously," Miko whispered. And again, she wasn't quiet enough, "Couldn't we have at least invited Jazz so he could pick a fight with Soundwave? That would be entertaining!"
Even under body armor and a dark helmet among other soldiers, Jake shook his head and sighed.
Rhea pulled out her cell phone and quickly tapped out a text. Miko looked down when her own phone buzzed. Bumblebee was on their group chat, so he also received the 'SHUT. UP.' Text from Rhea's name in the chat.
Miko glared at her from across the table, then typed back. 'I AM being quite. I'm also board. Tell Soundwave to declare war or something.'
Fowler growled and retrieved his own phone to add, 'Girl! So help me, if you're inability to keep your mouth shut ends the universe we will be having a VERY serious discussion!'
Miko grinned like some kind of villain then sent back a repeating gif of a rock star headbanging in a room that was on fire.
'Never change Firecracker,' Thunderblast joined in the chat, her own smirk leaking out from her place behind Soundwave.
Rhea quickly added, 'I'll give you twenty bucks if we make it through this meeting without another word.'
Miko rose a brow at the offer. 'Fifty,' she counter offered.
Rhea's eye twitched as she read the message. But with a defeated sigh she agreed with a nod. Miko seemed satisfied, leaned back in her chair and motioned that her mouth was zipped shut.
"As I was saying," Soundwave said flatly, but quickly moved on when he turned to Nitro Zeus, who at once stiffened again. "We will address the reason for this meeting of factions. The representative of Universe B has a statement."
Every head, helm and optic left Miko and found Niro Zeus. He quickly recalibrated his voice box, making a sound akin to when a human nervously cleared their throat. "Yeah, I guess that's what I am. No freaking pressure. Um, hi. I- wait…" he stood up, maybe thinking he was meant to. "So, I'm Nitro Zeus, I'm-" he paused again to give Maccadam a weary glance.
Maccadam smiled, nodding along approvingly. From the few interactions Bumblebee had with this otherworldly bot, how he was acting now was a total personality change. Instead of his usual pompous, arrogant, loudmouthed persona, he looked like he was praying his toxin Energon would melt him through the floor so he could escape. Were bots from Universe B just like this, or had something happened in the short amount of time they had been here?
Nitro Zeus finally continued, "I'm… leader of the Decepticons. Well, MY Decepticons, not these guys," he pointed at Soundwave and the other Lords before continuing. "I'm sure loads of ya noticed when me and the boys attacked a few weeks ago. You were there… Well, it was under orders from this crazy freak on our side of existence named Quintessa, and a few equally crazy bastards on your side who we don't know. When we was captured, we shared everything, swore up and down it was all we had. Well, big shock, we was lying. I mean, it kinda comes with the territory with this-" He tapped his Decepticon insignia and continued, "But in recent um, hours, we have more to say. And I'm oh so happy to share it, but first, I have a request. And know that it will hurt every fiberoptic in me to ask it."
His voice box recalibrated again, and he surveyed the room's occupants. "You all know by now. Probably, ya seem like the chatty type," he gave the humans who had a recent texting war a passing glance, "The universe melting phenomenon that came about in my universe we call the Twisted. Big scary thing you can't fight? Yeah, that thing. Welp, Quintessa wanted to send it here, cuz those unseen people she's working with think they can control it. What fer? I really don't know. All I know is, there ain't no way they can. You all don't want this. It sucks, and that's an understatement. But, um, that brings us to this topic…
"I already gave up everything I know, and this time, I mean it. But, as promto leader of the Cons back home, I need your help to save my home," He had been right. Saying that simple sentence seemed to physically pain him, and he was very quick to further explain himself, "Now, I get what yer all probably thinking. Why would you help us? We have been attacking ya on all fronts, here and on Earth, and we was totally fine with bringing our Twisted problem down on you. I… Don't have a real reason why you should help. But, I'm kinda begging you to anyway. I can't punch or blast my way out of this one… and I got my people to look after. And I apparently gone soft in my middle age, because I don't really want to see our Earth go down like Cybertron did. I have all my stuff there."
He waited, scanning the length of the table with clear anxiety and two outstretched and still cuffed servos. Then, seemingly as an afterthought to better relay his sincerity, he offered his audience a truly unsettling sideways smile.
"I have a query," Ultra Magnus asked, and his focus left Nitro Zeus and found Soundwave instead. "What have the Decepticon Lords decided regarding offering Universe B aid?"
"We have discussed it," Soundwave confirmed. "We have decided to answer their request and offer help if we are able." Sharpshot nodded in agreement, and Starscream only scoffed. Going by his bitter body language, he was probably outvoted again.
"That is understandable, considering the shared faction," Ultra Magnus said.
"It's more than them being Decepticon," Sharpshot insisted. "We have considered every angle regarding this 'Twisted' phenomenon. The risk of allowing such a thing to exist in any capacity will always be a threat to our own universe, no matter where it currently dwells. And we have learned there is always the potential of another event coming into being in any universe. If aiding Universe B and all life within allows us to understand how to destroy such a threat in the future, that knowledge is invaluable."
Shawn stood up from his own chair and straightened his tie as he did so. He fixed Nitro Zeus a sharp look before continuing. "We really shouldn't forget the risk these bots pose to us now, even while in custody. Whether under duress or not, they attacked Earth. It's my job as Earth's representative to be cautious joining any alliance with a group who have be openly hostile and have admitted to lying to us."
Nitro Zeus blinked at him, "I was assumin' the humans were a center piece. Are they actually part of the meeting too?"
Bumblebee could have cringed right out of his armor, and he could not fathom how Soundwave and Sharpshot were feeling from the comment. Starscream was the only one openly amused.
Maybe Miko too, because she snorted a loud laugh, seeming to already forget her promise to Rhea in exchange for a generous bribe, "Seriously dude? Not a good look for the cause." Raf nudged her hard again. She nudged him back harder.
Miko's own commentary aside, it wasn't enough to distract this time. Shawn's expression darkened at Nitro Zeus, "Yes, we are indeed part of the meeting."
"Wow," Nitro Zeus pondered out loud. "That's dumb as hell. Humans are tiny and annoyin', but they're also scheming little freaks. The humans back home double-crossed all of us, Autobots included."
Shawn's ears reddened. "Well, we aren't in your version of Earth or Cybertron. And according to your intel about its current state, we should count ourselves lucky we are not. It sounds like it's not going to last much longer. And in the interest of a decent universe, that could be a good thing."
Nitro Zeus snorted indignantly, "Well shorty! I-"
Maccadam nudged him hard in the side, "Leader's do what's best for who they lead." He mumbled not so subtly.
Nitro Zeus pulled away, visibly annoyed by the unsolicited advice. Soundwave was still straight faced, even as the meeting quickly devolved. But Bumblebee caught Rhea shift in her seat. And she was sort of like a peek into Soundwave's true inner thoughts. That wasn't good, considering she now had her face buried in her hands.
Nitro Zeus groaned even louder. "Ok, fine! Humans are part of the gig… Autobots too. Primus sake… Back on track! Sorry about the whole, attacking ya thing. We feel real bad about it, promise it won't happen again. Moving right along! If ya don't like the idea of helpin' cuz we're Cons. We also have Autobots back where we're from. And humans," he said the second part towards Shawn. "They all gonna die if the Twisted stays there… I mean, I'm wondering if there are any humans left at this point, just going by how bad off we are…" he stopped himself when he noticed Shawn raising an unconvinced brow. Nitro Zeus wasn't helping his case, so he quickly backtracked. "I mean, you humans are scrappy right? I'm sure they're fine. Definitely worth saving."
"Before we commit to any decision," Ultra Magnus said, "What other information regarding your Universe's Autobots did you not originally disclose? Where they brought here with you? If so, we would like to communicate with them."
Nitro Zeus' mandibles clicked, "Um, here's the thing, Shoudlerpads… I think I may have seen some Autobots in Quintessa's ship too, but…"
"You think you saw them?" Magnus echoed skeptically.
Nitro Zeus shrugged, "Totally honest? I wasn't really paying that much attention. Unlike you guys here, us and the Autobots back home are far from what you would call 'tight.' We are still at war. Shoot first and ask questions never kind of war."
Soundwave jumped back in, "We are moving forward under the assumption Nitro Zeus's group and Quintessa are the only entities from Universe B who are here. If more bots from Universe B are located in our continued search of the outer rings, we will fold them into our plan."
"And that plan is?" Magnus asked quickly.
They didn't get that far, because Maccadam suddenly interrupted this time.
"Before we carry on, I think not all of us were on time to this meeting after all," Maccadam suddenly intoned. He had that far off look. He was seeing an event of the near future change. And he looked surprised. That probably wasn't good. "We will have a final arrival soon."
Sharpshot turned to Soundwave and Starscream, comming something to them in private. Starscream whispered back a very harsh protest, but it was too late. The rumble of the room gave away who their tardy guest would be, and Bumblebee caught the confidence in Starscream's optics faulter. Even through thick walls and many floors, the sound of a massive transformation rocked them again. Then the thunderous ped steps arrived at the door to the war room.
The door rolled out of the way just in time before Predaking could consider ripping it off its track. He ducked to make his way inside, glaring yellow gaze scanning over each shocked individual present.
"Sweet lady liberty, it's that big fella again," Fowler gasped.
"Oh, NOW it's going to be interesting," Miko said with a victorious grin.
Bumblebee was just as shocked as everyone else. Predaking never came to meetings. True, he was invited, but that was done as a passive plea for his kind not to break the treaty and start hunting Cybertronians again.
But after the moment of stunned silence wore out its welcome, Predaking standing in the two small door expectantly, all three Lords and Ultra Magnus rose. Every leader of every faction rose when another leader of a different faction entered a room. It was just a thing they did. A sort of, all are equal, kind of gesture. But they could be standing on each other's shoulders and still not be an equal height to the Predacon King as he stomped slowly around the table. He also didn't give much focus to the leaders of any faction. Not even Starscream, who he usually loved antagonizing. No, today his sights were set on Nitro Zeus, the only leader not standing.
Silverwing was bringing up the rear, and she made sure to run a claw along Sharpshot's shoulder on her way past them. Her flirtations went ignored when Predaking sat hard in the only place available for him. The spot on Nitro Zeus' other side.
Nitro Zeus for once, was speechless. He managed to not totally crumble under the piercing gaze looming over him, but that didn't mean he was his usual cocky self. His optic opened as wide as it physically could with his fangs exposed in a slaw jawed expression.
Predaking huffed from his vents, hints of his fire breath crackling under the surface. He released Nitro Zeus from his ire to glance at Shockwave in passing, "Doctor," he acknowledged in that casual way he did whenever he and his creator were in the same vicinity. No real emotion connecting him to the gesture, just something he may feel passively obligated to do.
Shockwave nodded, being one of the few present not radiating fear. Another member of the not scared group, was surprisingly among the human company. Frankie smiled when he looked to her next. "Dr. Green. Are you well?" he asked, actually invested in the pleasantries.
"Quite well. Thanks for coming your majesty." Frankie said warmly. Right. The residents of Griffin Rock had an unlikely friendship with the Predacon people. Bumblebee wasn't sure, but he had heard one of Predaking's righthand men Darksteel liked to roost on the top of the island's mountain when he heard the land under foot was named for the mythical beast his beast mode was based after.
After acknowledging Frankie, Predaking whirled back around to continue his attempts to melt Nitro Zeus into the floor with his glare alone. "I felt it was my right, to see for myself one of the interlopers who have taken every opportunity to invade my lands and steel from the archives under Dark Mount."
"Oh crap," Nitro Zeus finally managed to say, "That place was yours? Oh, screw you Quincy for sending us there."
Predaking growled at the non-answer, and Nitro Zeus shrunk farther down. "You're scent reeks of decay... From what cursed lands do you hail from, interloper?" Predaking drew very close when asking that, and no one was tripping over themselves to defend him. Or at least no one except Maccadam.
The bar owner smiled, fully placing both hands firmly on both Nitro Zeus' shoulders. "He is from beyond our own reality if you can believe that your highness! From a universe dying under the corruption of a twisted tragedy. That is why he is here, as a matter of fact!"
Predaking's gaze narrowed, "How does your dying world bring you to invading my lands?"
Nitro Zeus let out an involuntary whimpering laugh. "Hey, nah, your boy didn't know that big spiky castle was yours! Swear it, I would have told Quincy to shove it if I did, and I'm sure all the other bots she sent would have said the same thing. I'm sure they told ya this when you captured them sneaking around your turf."
"There were no words," Predaking clarified. "Only screams. Predacons do not take prisoners." He snatched Nitro Zeus by the face, pulling him out of his chair and closer.
Nitro Zeus yelped while he struggled in vein to get away. "Frag me, Maccadam you old bastard! You said you didn't see me dying!"
"I still don't," Maccadam assured him with a retained smile, "This is just how the big fellow says hello. Just roll with it."
"You speak for this unnatural creature, future seer?" Predaking demanded of Maccadam. "What is he to you?"
"Important to our cause." Maccadam assured him. "And his own as well. He has much to still do."
Predaking considered that, though he didn't lose his deep-set scowl. His optics scrolled back over to Nitro Zeus. "I know your rotten smell," He dragged the bot in his clutches even closer. "You were there in my kingdom personally… and you managed to get away. What did you take from my lands?"
"Nothin!" Nitro Zeus offered as quickly as he could. "Didn't take anything at all! It was just a download. You want it back? kinda hard to offer that back but I can figure it out if that's what you need! Anything to get you and me on good terms!"
Predaking paused, optics narrowing to slits. He ran a clawed thumb along Nitro Zeus' face. Almost carefully, until he applied pressure to break the plating of his faceplates. The scattered warnings and protests around the table went ignored, as did Nitro Zeus' pained exclamation. But Predaking held him steady, running that same caressing claw over the wound he caused. He released Nitro Zeus with a shove back into his chair, Maccadam there to offer an assuring pat to the horrified bot.
"More than fowl…" Predaking mused as he examined the dark green Energon on his claw. It was starting to burn his own thick platting, but he wasn't flinching. "What is this?"
"Proof he is telling the truth about his crumbling reality," Maccadam said. "And he meant no disrespect to the Predacon's lands. He was sent there by force under the orders of one who is our shared enemy."
Nitro Zeus quickly nodded along with that explanation. Predaking was even harder to read then Soundwave was, so it was impossible to tell if he was buying any of this. He was ruminating now but still glaring at Nitro Zeus as he did so.
"It may help your case though, if you explained what you took from Dark Mount," Frankie offered to Nitro Zeus. Coming to his defense even after the terrible human comment he made.
"An excellent suggestion, Dr. Green," Predaking hissed. He wiped the fowl Energon from his claw onto the table in front of him where it began to eat away at the finish.
"Um, right! I can do that. It's one of the things I didn't cough up yet… I was getting around to it, I swear." He fumbled with his subspace until he procured a small drive. With shaking claws, he offered it up to Predaking, who instantly swiped it away from him.
The monstrous king examined the small drive between his claw tips, unsure how to proceed with decoding it.
"If I may," Soundwave offered evenly to pacify further frustration on the king's part. "I can open it."
Predaking dropped the drive into Silverwing's own clutches. She delivered it down the table to Soundwave. A data cable emerged from Soundwave's side and the finer feelers wrapped around the data stick. The table lit up and soon files unlocked in front of everyone.
Bumblebee tried keeping up with the fast-scrolling text. He managed to pick out a few things he recognized. It was mostly a list of the ranks of active and non-active Decepticon names, though the list was a little out of date. It had come from Dark Mount after all, and Predaking wasn't one for the latest tech upgrades.
"What is this?" Predaking demanded.
"It is a detailed but no longer accurate Decepticon designation log," Soundwave said, confirming what Bumblebee had gleaned. And as he said that Bumblebee saw Soundwave's own name and old Communication officer title scroll by. Starscream's was also there. And finally, Megatron at the top before the information ended and the hologram faded back into the table. He unfurled his data cable from the device and handed it back to Silverwing, who dutifully returned it to Predaking. "Whoever has this list, now has the names, ranks, and life signals of every Decepticon in our database." He turned to Nitro Zeus, "Does Quintessa have this?"
"Afraid so, chief." Nitro Zeus confirmed, having forced Maccadam to switch places with him so he wasn't immediately next to Predaking. "And I guess since I'm sharing, we downloaded somethin' similar from the fancy pants place up north too." He said to Ultra Magnus.
Bumblebee's Spark dropped. Quintessa had the Autobot conscription list too? And theirs was updated often, so that was even worse.
/She's looking for somebot in particular. On both sides, apparently./ Arcee noted on the Autobot frequency.
/But they already knew about Steeljaw when this was taken/ Bumblebee added, looking down the row of other members of his faction. /Who else could she be looking for?/
Ultra Magnus' frown deepened. He didn't contribute to the open chatter, but that didn't mean he wasn't ruminating over what they had discovered.
Predaking looked somewhat at ease since he had arrived. He considered the drive for a moment more before crushing it in his claws. "Does this Quintessa, or her alleys intend to bring more of their forces onto the Predacon's lands?"
Nitro Zeus stammered, "Um, I don't think so? She wasn't exactly yappy to use low lives. She and Screen Guy were always chummy though. I'm sure that'll last until one of em stabs the other in the back. I'm only sad I won't see it happen."
Predaking huffed out another thoughtful vent. But once he crossed his servos, he fell silent, ready to observe the remainder of the meeting. Nitro Zeus wiped at his bleeding cheek bitterly, trying to save face a little with a renewed sense of tough guy attitude.
"He's a real softy when you win him over," Maccadam assured Nitro Zeus, the latter of whom just snarled.
Ultra Magnus stood to address the table now that Predaking's active threat was temporarily capped. "So, we can assume the ships that have gone missing in the past, were Quintessa and her allies attempts to find these bots of interest before they had a better means of discovering their identities?" It was the most obvious and terrible conclusion for most everyone to come to. Their enemy had their targets in their sights, but said targets didn't know they had a bullseye on their backs. It would explain why more ships had not gone missing recently. There was no need to keep looking. They knew who they were looking for. "What is the plan?"
"Action!" Starscream said with a proud and almost thunderous inflection. "Now we know they are an even greater threat to both factions! And Nitro Zeus has disclosed locations of interest in deep space, potentially places Quintessa and the other hostiles are hiding. We can assume, all those who have gone missing could be held in these locations as well. It is time to strike."
To Bumblebee's surprise, Magnus didn't instantly shut down that idea. As he pondered, Starscream added with a careful, almost sympathetic expression, "And I am sure we are bound to locate the Pirates responsible for the defacing of our leader's resting place. That is still a priority, but we cannot do it alone." He sounded sincere, but this was Starscream after all. He always had at least three ulterior motives behind whatever he was saying.
"Any frontal assault is a risk, especially in this uncharted region of space where we have already lost communication with so many," Ultra Magnus pointed out.
Shawn stood up again, "That could be where my organization comes into this. We may recall the Concurrence has developed a primitive yet effective cloaking shield that many of the Cybertronian search ships have been utilizing while searching for the missing. The goal was to disguise the ship's Energon signatures for something more human, and as we suspected, the ships equipped with our tech have been left alone. We could mass produce the tech, and anything else needed for the mission for our ships to remain under the radar."
"This is an offer we appreciate," Magnus said, nodding to Shawn. "We will utilize the tech you are offering, thank you."
"A rather worthless offer, if the Autobots decline the mission," Starscream huffed. He leaned back in his own chair and vented hard, not masking his flamboyant disappointment. "I assume we will have to wait for a few cycles for the Autobot government to come to a decision?"
Ultra Magnus frowned at him, but Starscream's theatrics didn't remain his focus for long. He looked to the many present. "A decision has already been reached before this meeting was called. Considering all the evidence, and the threat we face, the Autobot military will advance beyond our collective searches."
"Very well," Soundwave said, neutral compared to Starscream, but he appeared pleased. "In light of these events, our military technicians will be in contact with whatever branch of your government is required to begin preparations."
"Really?" Nitro Zeus interrupted. He looked totally stunned, single optic blinking a few times between the two groups. "Just like that, you decide to work together? What if one of ya blow up the other one when you ain't looking? What am I missing here?"
"A risk we all must take, in the hope for lasting peace," Maccadam offered with a grin. "Once we find a way to get your Universe on the mend, you guys should try it too."
That idea did not sit well with him, but he didn't interrupt further, beyond a disgusted grimace.
"Speaking of the threat to and from Universe B," Soundwave continued, "In addition to thwarting whatever plans our common enemy has, we will also cut them off from their remaining goals. Shockwave?"
The scientist stood in one fluid motion. "I have been tasked with tracking the unique energy signatures of the individuals from the Merger event, as it is believed they could help disrupt any attempts to utilize the Twisted Phenomenon against our universal plane."
Frankie stood, her face less sure, "We've been helping with that."
"Unnecessarily, but that is technically correct," Shockwave said with a nod. Frankie rolled her eyes but let him continue, "I have determined any scans for these individuals will be unreliable unless they're location is in a closer proximity. That will require further scans to take place nearer to the original energy output, or other places of interest."
"And let's not forget Megatronus," Shawn insisted. And he wasn't talking to anyone else but Soundwave at that moment. His usually happy go lucky attitude now deadly serious. "They need his power, and that isn't even considering the ancient Prime's threat. He needs to be released from this half dimension he is hiding in so we can secure him permanently."
Rhea looked up from her laptop to Soundwave, trying to gage his reaction. Bumblebee was doing the exact same thing, but utilizing fields instead. He couldn't get a good read on it, hoping Rhea was having better luck with his blank expression. "I agree," Soundwave said to Shawn with a single nod. "We will be preoccupied with the mission in the outer rings, so I entrust this task to you."
Shawn's hard frowned broke into a sighing smile. "We won't let you down. And the second we figure out a means of busting him out, you'll be the first to know."
"So, Operation: Prime jail break is back on?" Raf asked Shawn, assured with the Concurrence leader's confidant nod. "We were almost there when we stopped a year ago. It won't take much longer. The last thing we'll need however, is a relic of the past that is powerful enough to open the dimensional fabric and get to him."
"Steeljaw has that relic," Rhea said, speaking at last. She typed quickly, then rose her eyes to Raf across the table, "According to our records, Steeljaw was headed to the Cybertronian colony Caminus. But that was before we lost contact with the vessel he was aboard, the Dark Marvel. During our more aggressive scans of the outer rings, we will find his life signal and locate the needed relic."
"And, we're sure they can't pick ya all off like they was?" Nitro Zeus asked with a grumble, "The reason all your ships went missing in that part of space in the first place was Quincy-Quintessa. She's lookin' for particular bots here but can't get an important enough figure to have the info she needs. Like she's looking for a needle in a haystack…" he took in the many Cybertronians who looked a bit confused by his words. Bumblebee got it, as did every human in the room, and that fact clearly annoyed him. "Sorry, human saying. I have spent so much time on Earth back home it's sickening."
"So, we have this all figured out?" asked Arcee Ultra Magnus. "We're moving forward, we actually have a plan of action?"
Many nodded, scattered murmurs of assurance and final details being tightened up. Bumblebee finally caught her gaze. She offered him a very Arcee kind of indifferent shrug, as if everything were business as usual. It settled his Spark.
Ultra Magnus now stood. His frame exuding authority as usual. "For the information provided by our extra universal guest, we will offer limited, but affirmative support to the cause."
"Wait, what does that mean?" Nitro Zeus asked. He looked between Maccadam and Ultra Magnus, the latter of whom was now frowning for being interrupted. "He talkin' about the attacking Quincy in space thing, or helping us thing?"
"Both," Maccadam assured him.
Nitro Zeus still didn't look convinced. "But you're an Autobot. Why back us up for some crap I coulda made up?"
"Are you making it up?" Ultra Magnus posed with an eyebrow ridge twitch.
Nitro Zeus stammered, "I mean, no. For once. But I could be?"
Ultra Magnus wasn't swayed, "A risk that is outweigh by our shared goal to preserve our reality and thwart whatever plot our enemies have. If a means of preserving your universe is found, we will work towards that goal."
Nitro Zeus was flabbergasted, almost beyond words. Almost.
"You people are freakin' nuts. Every one of ya are dumber than Onslaught…"
"I would be interested to hear where you stand on the matter, Predaking," Ultra Magnus said, ignoring the last comment.
The king rose his gaze, to then once again narrow his optics at Nitro Zeus. "We are not involved in the affairs of others beyond our lands and hunting grounds. That includes the lives of those beyond our reality. But-" He snorted smoke from his vents, and his fangs were just a bit more prominent. "This Quintessa, and her allies invaded our lands. We will do whatever is necessary to crush all those who disrespect our people! If our attack is an indirect benefit to this one-" he jabbed a claw Nitro Zeus' way, who instinctively backed away in his chair, "then so be it. The might of the Predacons are with you."
"Thanks?" Nitro Zeus said, but it was posed more like a question. In the silence that remained on him, he looked down to the Lords, then to Magnus. "T-thanks. I don't know what-" he was more confused then emotional. Their willingness to help seemed such a foreign concept to him he appeared unsure how to proceed with gratitude. Bumblebee felt sorry for him. His universe must have been a bleak place, even before the Twisted was born there.
"If we could address one more thing."
Bumblebee was startled somewhat when of all bots, it was the leader of the Ethics Committee Outlook who spoke. The other member, Freegail was nodding right alongside him.
Arcee just rolled her optics as Ultra Magnus motioned for them to continue. "We are unified in this effort to preserve our reality and our factions. And am I correct in understanding from this moment forward, all secrets should be put aside for the betterment of this alliance?"
"I would assume that is the truth of our collective effort," Soundwave offered, though he seemed not exactly interested in whatever was on the passive Autobot's mind. They hadn't contributed anything to the meeting thus far, and basically, everything that needed an explanation was said. And Predaking had already scared all the truth out of poor Nitro Zeus. Not like he could spit out any more info, the guy looked tapped out.
But Nitro Zeus wasn't Outlook's focus. Instead, he looked down their own row at Arcee. "In that case, it has come to our attention a member of our own faction is considering changing their affiliations to the Decepticons. Such a controversial event should be handled now, as her continued service to the Autobot cause would be questionable at best in such turbulent times. A peaceful transferring of her person to the Decepticon's custody would be best done now, correct?"