G1
Arcee sat at the lake in one of Daniel's favorite spots going fishing with Hot Rod and his father. The Ark was just a little too busy for her with the influx of Autobots. She was content waving her servo over the water and watching it sparkle.
"Quite a long way from your friends, aren't you, Arcee?" A raspy voice hissed.
She grew alert in her sitting position on the ground but merely frowned at the notion the Decepticon leader would bug her at this time. "Don't you have enough trouble brewing in that processor of yours than to bother me?"
Megatron sneered, "I could eliminate you easily, dear. Don't you test that."
"As if your bravado scares me," she huffed, bringing out her blaster in warning.
"Intimidate, yes. Scare? Hardly. I am no fool to not recognize your wit and prowess."
"Then why bother me?" Arcee demanded again.
"Can I not appreciate a fine Autobot when I'm not getting blasted by Optimus and his peers?"
"Not when I know you want something out of it. You always do; it's your nature."
Megatron growled a little at being called out. Good, a bruise to the ego would certainly make him reveal a little more about what he wanted, and she could use it against him with Springer and Ultra Magnus in contact now. She let them hear the conversation rather than reply to them.
She stood up and took a formal stance in annoyance ready to fight if need be. Megatron was equally prepared and suddenly pointed a digit at her.
"Soundwave, subdue her!"
"Yes, Lord Megatron," the other Decepticon said, popping out of the tree line and using his concussion blaster to shoot her backwards by aiming at the ground. The blast sent her into the water and stunned her from the proximity of the explosion. She heard the approaching footsteps but couldn't react in time of being taken by the arm and escorted by two Seekers.
"Autobot communication channels: blocked. Attempted contact with Autobots prohibited."
Megatron cackled at her displeasure as they went back to their base. "Nice try, but I actually do need you for a while as bait, dearest Arcee."
She snarled at him but was helpless as she was brought back to the Decepticon base far in the mountains. When they brought her to a cell with energy bars activating, she turned to look at Megatron who crossed his arms amused.
"What use do you have of me? I won't tell you anything!"
Megatron merely replied, "Then it's a good thing I have no need for information at the moment. No, I intend on luring Optimus Prime and the Autobots to us to ambush them using you. They respect you, so they will do everything in their power to save you. It was just convenient you exposed yourself from the boundaries of their base. So, to answer your question accordingly, I came to bother you for fair trade. Their lives for yours."
Arcee watched as the other Decepticons laughed at their plan. With no way to warn the Autobots, she became sorrowful and sat in her cell glaring at her captors. They left her in there as they devised the next step of their plan.
Throughout the day, the Decepticons made some comments on her situation, but no one really interacted with her much. She thought about what Megatron said, and it dawned on her his remark of their lives for hers didn't resonate well with her. She heard Megatron contacting Optimus from afar and displaying her cell surveillance feed to the Autobot leader, boasting how he had captured her.
More like tricked. She should have shot him when she had the chance. Hearing Optimus furious though gave her hope he would swoop in and kick Megatron's skid plate. They went back and forth with petty remarks and threats. The boys' argument almost made her roll her optics. They were acting more like teenagers sometimes, and this time it was over her!
When Megatron returned in the evening, she was against the wall and had her faceplates in on her knees scrunched close to her chestplate with her optics closed. She heard him and waited for him to do something to wake her up abruptly, but he seemed to just stand there. After a while, it became unnerving, and she "awoke" to confront him. He had a rather neutral expression on him and leaned casually against the outside of the cell.
She all but snapped, "What do you want, Megatron? Come to ridicule me?"
"Hardly...just thinking."
"That must hurt," she retorted.
Instead of getting angry, he merely replied, "For others, it hurts them plenty. It hurts me to know I'm mostly surrounded by idiots. You are probably the only intelligent conversation I've had in some time."
Arcee then narrowed her optics and asked, "What did you mean by their lives for mine? I assumed you would just get rid of me and then get rid of them."
Megatron chuckled low and daring, "And sacrifice a talented warrior and beautiful bot? Where would the benefit be in that?"
Arcee froze and shook her head, "You don't mean that."
"I mean it, my dear, every word. Your life is worth a hundred Autobots so luring them here for you would be the ultimate sacrifice...but I never said I would give you up to go back to those human pests of yours or the rest of the Autobots. They will come to save you, they will perish, and you will be a fine addition to the Decepticons."
"N-No, you kill them, you'll have to kill me too."
Megatron wagged a digit, "I'm afraid that will not happen. In time, you will see."
Arcee fumed inwardly at the thought of her friends dying and her being unable to stop this madman from doing as he pleased. She wouldn't join the Decepticons, and she would make him pay. But Megatron had an ego the size of a planet, so maybe that was his downfall.
She refused Energon he eventually brought for her himself. She knew what he was trying to do. She ignored the muttering of "stubborn"; it didn't bother her a bit. When he tried talking to her again, she held her glossa and just made a soft pouting noise crossing her arms with her legs pulled inward. If Megatron expected a proper princess, she was about to rain on his parade.
Finally, her patience paid off as after almost two days of nonstop wooing, Arcee played to his desires. And he fell right into her trap. She was approached again but this time, she praised him when he brought her some more Energon.
"Oh, Lord Megatron, thank you," she said with faux adornment. He paused and grew a smile as her servo brushed over his taking it through the bars. "I think I've been treating you a bit harshly these last few days. I thought about it and maybe the Decepticons are better for me after all."
"Now, that's more like it."
She made sure to drink her Energon slow and at an angle he would enjoy. "Your plan to destroy the Autobots is genius. I don't think they cared about me anyways."
He deactivated the cell bars and offered her a servo which she took gently. "You see, they haven't even come for you, leaving you all alone. They waste your talents and treat you like this for all that effort you put into their cause. I would do no such thing."
Arcee gave a soft smile and said, "Well, the thing about that is..."
"Yes, my dear?" Megatron matched her smile and lifted a servo to pet her cheek.
She suddenly kicked his legs out from under him, watching him with glee as he collapsed on his back. "I don't need saving because the Autobots know I can save myself."
Before Megatron could lunge at her to trap her back in the cell, Arcee sprinted away and shot at any Decepticon who dared to stop her. She caught Starscream by the shoulder and hit Soundwave's arm, leaping over Scrapper and Mixmaster as they stepped in front of her path to freedom. Megatron snarled angrily at being duped as she evaded the mass of Decepticons.
"Arcee to base, need a little assistance out here."
"We have your coordinates, Arcee! Glad to hear you got out!" Perceptor said.
She managed to descend the mountains under the shade of the forest nearby as she fled the area. She saw Megatron flying overhead shouting, "You think you can run from me?! I'll make you pay for this!"
Arcee laughed to herself, "As if."
When she found Optimus Prime and the others running towards her, she felt joyful and hugged Springer and Hot Rod happily. The Autobots were equally grateful as she made it back to them.
"We thought we would never find you!" Springer said.
"Megatron is all talk and no processor sometimes."
However, the explanation was a little more complex than that. Megatron's interest in her didn't resonate well with her one bit. If she caught his attention before, this definitely would make him obsessed. Thankfully, the Autobots were her family through and through. For now on though, she would keep an optic out for her surroundings. She didn't need the tyrant following her. What made her so special to him, she didn't want to know the real answer to.
Energon
Megatron furiously tapped the armrest of his throne while his other servo was perched on the side of his face, optics twitching in his self-centered madness. "If I take over Cybertron, I have no means in securing it as a king. No Council of my own merit, no secure army, and no one I can entrust to keep my legacy alive in my temporary absences to take over the galaxy next. How infuriating."
Starscream and Cyclonus looked at each other but said nothing to the growing impatience of a leader they were starting to think was a bad idea to rejoin.
Ever since he was rebuilt, Megatron didn't stop thinking about ways to conquer Cybertron and how to keep it in his possession. He needed all plans ready for action in case his main one failed. If he succeeded, he needed assurance his rule would last and if not by him, by a possible heir or devoted partner.
Demolisher was reading up on a screen when he commented, "Well, if you want a secured throne, just bond with another leader or someone with power. Heh, I wouldn't mind bonding with Arcee, infinite energy and a nice piece of aft."
Megatron paused mid-tap and slowly lifted his head from his over servo. The realization hit him hard. "Arcee of the Omnicons?...The finest makers of Energon-empowered stars and unlimited power."
Demolisher looked up from his screen and frowned, "Um, yeah, she's their leader."
A dark twitch of a smile slowly melted onto Megatron's features as he chuckled, "A valiant and powerful leader. With the ability to harness Energon and turn it into Energon Stars, not only would I have infinite energy but infinite weapons that could crush the Autobots into oblivion! I would be unstoppable with the power boosts it could provide me. But how to obtain her?"
Starscream shrugged, "If the great Megatron can't find her by himself..."
"Silence!" Megatron snapped, "Let us find this Arcee as quick as possible."
Cyclonus and Demolisher went to work searching the records for any link to the femme. To their surprise, they found her...on Earth. When they showed the data to Megatron, he glanced over the file and then grinned. They set their sights on the planet and traveled as soon as possible.
Sneaking onto the planet with so many Autobots there was difficult. If a single person saw him, they would report him to Optimus Prime. He had his bots make distractions as soon as he narrowed down the location of the leader of the Omnicons. When he cornered her whereabouts, he stopped in his tracks and gazed at a small but lovely femme...with a hideous human with her.
The precious white frame with pink, red, and black was a nice color scheme. For a bot so close to Minicon size to be the leader and most powerful Omnicon of all was rather intriguing. He waited until the woman she was with recharged for the night and a calm Arcee was alone.
"Ahem," he coughed, "you must be the one they call Arcee? I've heard much about you."
"I am she," Arcee said suspiciously.
He kneeled and took her servo to kiss it politely, but she was a little taken aback by the close proximity to the Decepticon warlord. "Tell me, my dear, why would a lovely creature like you be helping the Autobots when you could use your power to rule worlds?"
Arcee broke her servo away from his grip and pouted, "And when the price of such a feat is killing and enslaving innocent beings, why would I indeed. I will never make Energon stars for you to misuse!"
Megatron grew peeved and stood up before grabbing her waist and holding her close to him. "Yes, why use your powers the way they were supposed to unless you aren't convinced my way is the right way. I'm offering you a chance to become my queen."
"A captive queen, you mean! A toy to your delusions! The Autobots stopped you once, they'll do it again, and my Omnicons won't obey you!" Arcee yelled as she struggled in his hold.
"No, but they will obey you. They'll do anything for their dear princess. And if their princess is bonded to a king, they won't be defiant forever," Megatron stated. "I am so close to taking back Cybertron and I will have a planet to rule with the power to do so. I'll either take it by force-"
He gave her a warning squeeze, much to the femme's chagrin. "-or you'll give something just as good."
"You're a monster!"
"And you need to learn your place. But nevertheless, we can always work out the kinks in our relationship once I have Cybertron, my queen. Power is not earned, it is taken...," He stroked the underside of her chin which earned him a glare, "...and I intend to take all of it."
She tried assaulting him in defense only for him to capture her fist with a smirk.
"Now, now, that's not how you treat your king. Save the feistiness for a better time."
He took her away from her home and recruited back with the others.
Weeks later, Megatron sat content on his throne as he watched his darling Arcee work. With several Omnicons he captured and tamed, they processed the Energon provided into Energon stars which were harvested and hidden in his newly made "trophy" room. He liked seeing how she could take just as much as she could make.
A cruel smile lay on his features, one of curiosity as he wondered if the stars could be used for other means as a power booster than just battle. Well, he was more than willing to test it if he could get his lovely queen alone again. He was close to achieving his goal both against the Autobots and harnessing the unlimited potential of his partnership. There was time for pause to be more inductive in activities he was savoring for special moments.
"Arcee, my dear, you've been working very hard to supply my warriors with great power. I should reward you for your efforts to the Decepticon empire."
"The greatest gift you can give me...is leaving me alone," she said in a false purr without looking up from her current conversion of Energon.
Starscream snickered as did Cyclonus. Megatron narrowed his optics, his smile faltering and he bit his lip with some tension. Alright, maybe not so well behaved as he thought. The friskiness left him. But he still had plenty of time to fix their odds and ends. As long as he had her in his sights, she was his. And the power she could create and control was his alone.
Live-Action Movies
Arcee turned a corner on the battlefield chasing down the annoyance that was Thunderblast as Optimus helped Bumblebee escape Iacon to chase after the Allspark when suddenly, a body with a spear through it struck the ground in front of her. Her optics widened, looking up as she trailed the spear to who had used it. She was surprised upon seeing the growling, intimidating form of the mighty Megatron.
She backed away when his ruthless red optics went from the body to her. What worried her more was the fact that he rose to full height casting a shadow over her while explosions rained behind him. She heard the cocking of his cannon and quickly made an executive decision to flee.
It wasn't that she was afraid. It was because she had no way of combating him when he was directly aware of her presence. Bots like Megatron had to be taken by surprise. Once his defense was up, he would be impossible to take down by anyone except someone his size, maybe even greater.
She sprinted but stumbled when a blast from his cannon hit to the left of her. Transforming her arm, she fired back. The heavy footsteps chasing her were distant but still loud enough to worry her more. Arcee didn't need him of all Decepticons on her tailpipe. The wheels on her legs shifted down, and she flipped over a ledge to allow them to merge with her pedes so she could skate across the environment. Another blast only pushed her to move faster. He couldn't follow her forever.
"Can't shoot what you can't catch up with, big guy," she muttered to herself.
She weaved through larger bots in conflict with one another, looking back for a second to see if Megatron was still in pursuit when she abruptly fell into a hole missing from the platform. She managed to grab the ledge on the opposite side where she entered but was left dangling over an 800-meter fall that she risked. Surviving that would be harsh and painful. Slowly, she pulled herself up, breathing heavily when a large pede stepped in front of her. She peered up again, now officially scared.
Megatron glared down at her for a second, narrowing his optics but his expression proved unreadable. Before she could deduce his thoughts, the cannon pointed at her. She stared it down until instead, it depowered, and he offered her a servo. She was frightened. Either he was just going to kill her as soon as she was able to defend herself or he would make her fall if she let go to grab his servo. There was no winning.
She took the servo and flinched when she was on her pedes again, only Megatron did nothing. His servo with claws didn't break hers or let go. She looked between him and the servo.
"Thanks."
Megatron growled amused, "Be careful where you step. Next time, I want a fair chase."
...when I hunt you. The words had the hidden dark undertones she expected from someone as cruel as him. He was always a sadistic bastard. What had her spark racing more was the fact that he stroked her servo barely then let it go when he was suddenly shot from behind. In a fury, he turned all his attention to the bot who dared to fire upon him with an animalistic roar that showed off the hint of fangs he often concealed. Arcee took that as her chance to leave.
The encounter had her run nonstop until she reached Autobot territory where no Decepticon could get in a hundred-mile range without being blown to pieces. She met up with Wheeljack and Mirage, her oldest friends, but kept quiet on the unusual circumstance that she had been spared death simply because Megatron wanted to kill her fairly like any other warrior. It was kind but also scary. She pushed it to the back of her mind as soon as she heard Bumblebee had been deployed.
Arcee didn't encounter him again until they reached a planet called Earth. From what Optimus had gathered, Megatron was kept in the vaults of Sector Seven, a human government facility found by accident by a Witwicky, Archibald Witwicky. After saving the world once with Noah Diaz, Sam Witwicky was a train wreck she avoided to go scouting instead...until the worst happened. Megatron got loose.
The monstrous titan of a mech rampaged on Mission City, defeated briefly when Optimus destroyed the Allspark by shoving it in his spark. It was an awful thing but necessary to keep it out of reach of the Decepticons permanently, at least that's what was intended. Shards of it were scattered across the globe, and she only could speculate through tidbits of info caught by Wheeljack's hacking of radio stations and hidden frequencies he aimed to claim all of them for his nefarious deeds after his revival. And that led to this estranged encounter...
Arcee saw the hellbent crimson, locked onto it with her crystalline blue regrettably. Panic set in as soon as she heard that dangerous growl and being alone, she still couldn't fight him on her own. Grabbing the Allspark shard, she transformed into her Bugatti motorcycle form and sped off, weaving through trees and light rain-covered roads trying to escape him. He wanted to chase her. He was going to kill her.
Arcee was forced to transform when a blast interrupted her driving pattern and entered thicker forest. Being as small as she was, she easily slipped between the trees but the echoes of the damning rumbles of a tyrant freaked her out. This mech wasn't like Scourge and Nightbird; he wasn't Shockwave or Soundwave or even Starscream. He was someone dangerous beyond what any Autobot had and could encounter.
She thought she had lost him and slowed down to listen for him. She was briefly distracted by the droplets dripping from the canopies that felt good but didn't help her situation. Then she heard a dark laugh and prepared her blaster.
"Arcee," the deep baritone voice echoed, "aren't you going to run?"
She didn't respond. He couldn't know where she was, could he? She couldn't see him in any direction...
A cracking noise startled her and Megatron dropped down from above. She was trapped by his servo as he kneeled down on one leg after landing. His claws were deadly close her head and vitals, but she refused to show fear this time. His index claw on the black servo covering her tapped the ground beside her helm before dragging close to her neck. He seemed to laugh as if to taunt her.
She immediately hissed, "Well, was that a satisfying chase for you?"
He contemplated that and raised the claw that made a line in the dirt towards her to gently scrape across her neck, her breath hitching.
"Satisfying? Oh, Arcee, don't you know that it takes more than that to satisfy me. Why kill you now when we still have plenty of time to perfect the chase?"
It dawned on Arcee that Megatron wasn't just cruel, he was a sadistic piece of shit. He wanted to make her run, make her play this game of his until he tired of it in which he would then show a little mercy and end her. She amused him. Arcee was going to amuse him alright when she put a blast or two into that thick helm plating on his.
When he didn't let go, she knew he wanted more and wouldn't do so until she gave him what he wanted. Screw the Allspark apparently; Megatron loved to torture his victims before killing them. And she caught the attention of this monster by accident. Suddenly, he let go and expected her to run. She only sat up and glared at him. She wouldn't indulge his sick fantasy killing.
Megatron all but smirked at her defiance. Arcee growled back at him and pointed her blaster at his head. He was never afraid and only continued his dark grin with his optics narrowed. She didn't care if she didn't leave the forest alive. She refused to run.
"You know, Elita and Chromia were quite the warriors, but you were always my favorite. I won't kill you, but you'll wish I had, my little Autobot."
Arcee sneered before finally sprinting off. Megatron didn't follow but stared her down with a growl. She made sure to keep him in her mirrors when she transformed to get as far away as possible. As soon as she felt safe, she knew she wasn't. Megatron gave chase again. She could only hope she could escape him this time.
Shattered Glass
In war, ideals change. That's how Megatron lost his dear friend, Orion, as madness consumed him into the tyrant known as Optimus. The army he spawned of dark Autobots ravaged Cybertron into a death spiral. So few of the valiant Decepticons, dubbed by Optimus as a cruel moniker, remained to defend Earth from the shadows of their evil. Megatron knew they were outnumbered. There was just the concern of who Optimus had with him left to terrorize the humans Megatron swore to protect.
He knew about one of Optimus' lieutenants, an assassin. As he forced Starscream to take their human allies and hide, he stayed to confront the pursuing demon. Megatron kept hearing laughter, sinister laughter. It echoed everywhere he went. His blue optics searched for the danger with his fusion cannon prepared. He heard the faintest thump and whipped around with his cannon fully charged and prepared to fire.
Arcee rose up slow, her dark grey and purple colors enhanced by the moonlight and the shadows she was fond of. Her red optics narrowed before she sprinted at him. He didn't get a shot off when she tripped him, leapt over and brought a blade to sit tip first against his throat while she glared down at him kneeling by his head.
He got a good look at her, the ruby optics as deadly as the fire they held. However, he was entranced by them even if they had the chance of being the last thing he ever saw.
"Very foolish being out here all alone, Decepticon," Arcee taunted.
"Not so, and you are very confident for an assassin, Autobot," he replied.
He swatted her weapon away and flipped over to catch her wrist before she could successfully finish the job. He threw her through a tree, breaking it in half but it barely stopped her from coming at him again. He kept her at a distance knowing if she got too close, he could lose track of her in an instance being smaller than him. She was nimble, fast, and one wrong move could give her the upper hand. He deflected the weapon again, clashing with her to a standstill. They were nearly face-to-face when she leaned abnormally close to him. He watched as she studied him, looking over his frame and faceplates.
"You seem like you have nothing going on upstairs sometimes, but you have hidden intellect in a secretly submissive personality. I like that in a mech," she purred.
"You don't know me," he warned.
"But I would like to, Megsy."
She nearly pressed her noseplate to his and he grew flustered before pushing her away. "Don't call me that."
Arcee sneered, "Oh, the Decepticon leader has some ball bearings after all. Cute."
He didn't want to deal with this right now and made sure she didn't follow as he backed away. "Go back to your base, Arcee. I will not warn you again."
She gave a fake pout before switching to a cackle, raiding her sword and pointing at him. "We'll see each other again, handsome. Just make sure you're ready for me."
The femme leapt into the canopies and escaped with her laughter echoing once more. Megatron was more perplexed if anything about her. He should have killed her when he had the chance. He had a bad feeling she would show up again to cause some mayhem for him and his team.
Sure enough, she appeared when it was most inconvenient. He ran into her on the outskirts of Selmer. She perked up upon spotting him and got too close too fast, practically in his face in record time like a clingy crush though her sword was pressed against his chestplate just as fast in case he tried anything.
"Lovely seeing you again, boy toy."
Megatron frowned inwardly. A shiver went up his spine feeling her slide a servo up across his red insignia. In a way, his chassis was into it. He, however, was not. He shoved her off which she merely raised a brow to.
"Don't you have fellow Autobots to dismantle? Vicious schemes you want to concoct?"
"And miss out on my new favorite plaything. Absolutely not," she cooed falsely innocent, placing a digit against her lower lip and folding her unoccupied arm around her sternum rocking playfully side to side in place.
Megatron aimed his cannon in warning, "Don't try it."
She grinned and trailed the edge of her sword against his weapon, licking her lips. "Or you'll what, big boy? When the Autobots win this war, I'll see about getting on Optimus' good side to snag you from being offlined."
When she winked at him, he blushed underneath his pride with his mouth twitching. If the Decpeticons won, she was definitely going into an asylum. He didn't want to know the demented thoughts of this femme nor be on the experimental end of them. He was no one's pet. That was what he aimed to make clear.
"You'd be like a pet dog with a pretty collar just for me."
Megatron had nothing to rebuke that with, only silently gulping unsettled. He imagined exactly what that would entail, and he didn't know how to feel about it.
"I'm nobody's pet," he declared.
He suddenly heard Bumblebee's loudmouth cursing nearby which Arcee just smirked more at, not taking her optics off Megatron. "Not yet."
Knowing he needed to either leave or get his Decepticons over to Selmer quickly, it didn't give him a lot of room for improvisation on what to do. He backed away looking between her and the direction of the voices becoming louder. Calling a bridge, he ran through it without another word ignoring Arcee's sinister, taunting wave and laughter.
The comfort on the opposite side at base had him sigh heavily. Starscream was with two human operatives that resided in harmony with the Decepticons when he asked, "Are you okay there, boss?"
Megatron rubbed his blue optics and faintly nodded, "Yes, just...just caught off guard. Thank you though."
"If you need anything, just holler."
He took the offer to spark but his mind was still hung up on the encounter as well as the previous one. Arcee being infatuated with him enough to compare him as a mere play toy was getting under his armor. Out of all the bots he had fought or met throughout his lifetime, Arcee scared him the most. As he retreated to his quarters to try and quell the growing headache, he was ultimately at a loss as to how he was supposed to deal with this femme for the remainder of the war.
"Primus, help me."
Animated
"Oh, come now, my dear, don't you see the Autobots left you in that coma on purpose. They only saw you as a code carrier, not an individual," Megatron said suavely.
Arcee crossed her arms and kept her back to him. "I don't believe it. Ratchet induced the coma to protect me. I chose to do it."
Megatron sent Shockwave a look of frustration before regaining his composure. "Surely, the codes are useless now anyways."
"You think that stupid gimmick is going to work on me, Megatron, then you are solely mistaken."
The Decepticon leader narrowed his optics. Nobody refused his commands for long. It was just a matter of coaxing the information from her. Torture and pain were only reserved for the most irritable and stupid, neither of which Arcee was. At most, she was just highly defensive. But what would break her down?
"Very well then, I guess if that's what you desire. I cannot force you to do anything. I suppose we can never be in harmony after all."
The comment struck Arcee with confusion and suspicion, but Megatron left it ambiguous to give her time to think. As he retreated into the captain's deck of Omega Supreme, Shockwave tailed him just as perplexed.
"My liege, you realize that this will only delay us more."
Megatron grinned, "Exactly, a false sense of security. The Autobots don't know we are on Earth's moon, and we do in fact have time to get the Autobot to trust us before the three Omega clones are complete. Autobots are highly sentimental and as a teacher, she recognizes the potential of a truce...even if it won't happen."
Shockwave got what his leader was saying and his optic glowed bright with a dark chuckle. "You always have a way with enemies, Lord Megatron."
Letting Arcee think of his words, he reappeared later on when the moon was aligned over Asia. Lugnut was casually watching from afar so the prisoner couldn't run but Megatron approached her as she was looking out the window at Earth and its nighttime lights. She seemed to be studying the planet through educated guesses of what was on it.
"This world is a strange one," he said to make a decent conversation not so intimidating. "Unusual creatures not too different from our species in its beginning seem to roam with a sense of arrogance yet creativity. Humankind is a conundrum."
Arcee raised a brow and asked, "That's what lies down there? Fascinating."
"Well, I could take you to see them maybe, but they are a bit scared of us as we are machines to them without an inventor. Technology is treated as lesser than them and the Autobots defend their beliefs. Can you imagine that?"
"Ultra Magnus used to say, 'Freedom is the right of all sentient life' though he did find organics a little disgusting. But that doesn't sound like something he would tolerate."
At the mention of his greatest enemy's name, Megatron's optic twitched. "Yes, I'm sure he did. Trust me, my dear, those humans are destructive, even more than me."
"I don't believe you."
He went to her side and sneered, "Of course, because the Autobot word is more honorable than a Decepticon's and yet, it was the Autobots who never awoke you even though they had the technology to do so. They are the ones defending a species so xenophobic, it's disgusting. Are those the bots you align yourself with? Uncaring? Hateful deep down while on the outside, they appear friendly and considerate? You would be better off neutral."
Arcee frowned, "You're just saying that to get the codes."
"Forget the codes. What do you want out of all of this, to wait and be forgotten again? That, my dear, sounds like a very pitiful and cruel life even I cannot fathom."
He resisted a smirk as the words hit her hard. She placed her arms on the windowsill and rested her chin on them with a single tear rolling down her cheek. She knew exactly what he meant, and he knew she agreed. Playing sympathetic, he placed a delicate servo on her shoulder and gestured to Earth.
"I may be the leader of the Decepticons, Arcee, but even I am not that cruel. I believe everyone has a place in the faction. The Autobots don't see anyone as anything but fodder for maintaining their so-called commonwealth caste system. Now, tell me, even if I have done plenty of wrong in my time, am I wrong when it comes to your health? After all, I did what they didn't want to: I revived you with a simple procedure a youngling could figure out. And you still think they are coming for you when they never did before?"
He watched her features twist, more tears streaking down. While he aimed to eventually have her give the codes up as planned, even he found it a little wrong how right he was. It almost wanted to make him laugh. Ultra Magnus was never a kindred mech to his people, and that made it easy to break them down and remold them to Megatron's liking. A poor, vulnerable teacher-turned-informant had no one except him.
With false comfort, Megatron kneeled to give her the rare ability to look into his optics on her level, another level of security and trust. "I understand you won't take my word, but I offer at least the ability to be who you want to be and be respected for what you do. We might be difficult to get along with, Lugnut especially, but I can offer something Ultra Magnus can't. I can offer you a choice."
Arcee seemed to show the assumption she was already supposed to have the ability to choose but upon reflecting on how her choice of how long she stayed in that coma was robbed from her, she found herself lost. Megatron utilized that lack of security by offering his servo with a kind smile, one that he had to muster to keep looking sincere. Broken minds would seek anything for a sliver of comfort and when she slowly reached out to take his servo, Megatron knew he had won.
He stayed by her to let her know he wasn't going to leave her. As for the codes, he was already ahead of schedule. The second phase was strengthening the trust by giving her familiarity with himself and his underlings so she wouldn't be estranged. If all went well, he would have the codes and a new Decepticon by his side, one that knew plenty of Cybertron's other defense codes to exploit.
The pieces were falling into place, and Megatron had Arcee in his grasp.
WFC/FOC
Kaon was hell, the prison even worse. Many Autobots had been captured by the Decepticons and placed there as Optimus and his allies continued to fight Megatron's forces. Well, Arcee was no damsel in distress. In fact, she had quite the reputation as a prisoner.
"Cell 19-B is vacant...again!"
Soundwave, a bot normally known for keeping his cool, slammed a data pad down in frustration and deployed Ravage and Laserbeak. "Find her!"
Little did they know Arcee had gotten into the vents this time. It was another attempt of many in under two weeks and alongside the humorous, annoying chatter she drummed up just to piss them off and leave her alone, she could figure they were getting mighty tired of her by now. But what was a girl to do than blow this popsicle stand. The other prisoners were cheering upon hearing that. She was like an icon to them of complete lack of respect to the Decepticon cause.
As she was nearly to the end of the vents in the processing sector of the prison, she paused upon hearing the dreaded call.
"Lord Megatron, the prisoner Arcee escaped again. We can't find her!"
"How difficult is it to keep a pin-up girl under lock and key?! Fine, I'll find her myself!"
Ah, that wasn't good. Arcee hurried through the vents to her exit and made sure the coast was clear before popping out in a roll and standing upright in a fashionable pose. She was in the outside courtyard at last. Now, she just needed to get away from Kaon and reunite with Optimus and the Autobots.
She heard a space bridge and flinched, hiding in the shadows before a booming "WHAT?!" rattled the prison. That was her cue to go. She ran and climbed over the inner gates finally free and transformed. But she only got so far as the outer when a blast made her legs go up and over her head. She collapsed onto the ground distastefully until she heard the roar of a fusion cannon.
"So, Prime's showgirl is a fighter after all," Megatron hissed.
She looked back and found the cannon right in her faceplates. More Decepticons appeared including Soundwave, all of whom pointed their blasters at her. She was quick to remark, "The gun show doesn't look as great from this angle, not going to lie."
Megatron was somewhat amused by her prattle. Arcee found herself being escorted with almost every Decepticon in the prison around her with Megatron leading. She was pushed back in her cell that was being upgraded with new security features. She sat on the ground and pouted, muttering under her breath.
Soundwave announced, "This is the seventh attempt. We are running out of options, Lord Megatron."
"So, a serial escapist. Impressive," he grinned. Arcee refused to meet his optics until he then said, "Change of plans. Bring her to the prison complex offices. I will personally monitor her there."
Arcee was taken aback by the decree, flattered but worried. Megatron was no picnic to be around, and she doubted he was going to leave her alone. A caged pet was basically what he was insinuating. Sure enough, the office of the prison had two cells meant to process prisoners before sending them down to the public rows. She was placed in and felt like a copperbird in an Energon mine. The other Decepticons left Megatron and her alone once she was settled within.
"Like your new cell? It's said to be inescapable, but I'll let you test that," Megatron sneered.
Arcee stuck her glossa out and huffed, "Yeah, you would, wouldn't you? Get off to bots that give you a hard time or something? You want me to escape now so it gives you a means to act on any perverse sense of control you crave."
The callout had the mech muse at that. "Well, I never thought of it like that...but if you really want to prod my temperament, go ahead."
She didn't like how confident he was about that. She was going to escape; she just needed to wait for the opportunity. At first, Megatron watched her like a hawk, then she began noticing he was becoming bored and trying to look at the progress of his takeover in Iacon. The problem with being a leader was he had to be attentive. He was called out to look over a problem, and that's when Arcee made her move.
She determined the cell was weak on the left side with a room next to it. Certain panels were thinner, and she went to work popping them out piece by piece. By the time she had a clear shot to walk straight through, the cell opened, and her shoulder was caught. She was dragged back to be pinned on the wall with Megatron looming over her.
"You think I'm a fool to not have surveillance active for you. I knew you would try even through all those smartass comments of yours. It's quite humbling to know how you think I am to bots who test my patience, using them to please myself with their attitudes."
"I doubt it actually," she mumbled.
"Then behave and I might not have to go that far to make an example of you."
Within the hour, the wall was patched up and Arcee had her arms chained together. Her urge to keep escaping was high, even more so when Megatron couldn't stay for days on end. She used the chains to break through the bars and aimed to flee only for Soundwave to call the alarm again. Megatron was there in an instant, new wounds on his chassis from whatever battle he was a part of. He caught her neck and dragged her back; this time her legs were restrained to the floor and her arms were chained up over her helm.
It didn't last. With some flexibility and manipulation, she broke loose...to the Decepticons' chagrin. Again and again, there was no way to keep her down. It wasn't until her tenth escape that every restraint possible was on her. Even Megatron was amazed and grew fond of her attempts. They became like a game to him. Arcee was less than thrilled. Finally, she admitted she was stuck indefinitely. For days, she was stuck in a cell she couldn't even move in. Megatron came back a few times to check on her, but she ignored him. Finally, he gave a hearty laugh.
"The incredible Arcee is finally broken. Don't you get it, my dear? Escaping this prison is impossible. The sooner you realize it, the better it will be. Now, I would take you up on that interesting description of my preferences, but I am very busy with those wretched Autobots. Be a good girl and try not to disturb me from what I need to do any longer. Soundwave, send her to the dungeons where she will be heavily monitored."
As the spymaster undid her restraints, her chin was lifted up and she snarled at Megatron's smug smile.
"Don't worry, I'll come back for you once I win this war which should be very soon once I get ahold of Iacon."
She growled back, "I won't be here."
Megatron tilted his head with a sneer, "We shall see."
Prime
"We can't not go through..."
Arcee heard Jack loud and clear. She knew it was wrong whatever lied on the other side. But she had to take a leap of faith in taking on whoever had silenced her friends. When she sped through that portal, she saw the warlord over Optimus and tackled him without a second thought. The distraction she provided was enough for Optimus to regain his memories, but not enough for Megatron to forget her even after their escape back to base.
Then she happened to save his hide twice in one day. Stopping Airachnid caused the Insecticons to obey him and before that, also provoking her to make the Insecticon assault on Megatron saved him from assassination from Starscream as well. The double-edged sword of chaos was a fickle blade.
So, how did she get in her current dilemma? Well...
"Arcee, come out, come out, wherever you are," Megatron taunted. He then whistled like she was a lost cat. "Here, femme, femme, femme."
Arcee slipped past behind him between cave pillars with a witty, whispered taunt herself. "No, dummy, dummy, dummy."
Unfortunately, she forgot Megatron had heightened senses even for a regular Cybertronian due to being a miner, hearing and smell being two big ones. The grunt and flash of fangs in a deadly smile as he partially turned around to glare at her spooked her frozen mid-stride.
"...I didn't mean that."
Megatron growled and lunged as she sprinted away. She stumbled when he slid into the wall on the sharp turn to pursue her. Good thing about her size was it was easy to maneuver into smaller sections or into tunnels too small for Megatron to fit in. However, she chose wrong and crawled into a tunnel with a dead end and a few Energon crystals growing out. She immediately turned to face him and pressed her back against the end as he stopped in front of her tunnel.
With an irate roar, he kneeled and shot his arm into the small space, claws barely unable to reach her before furiously slamming in the ground and leaving marks as he drew it back. She kind of didn't plan this far ahead. It was only supposed to be an Energon scouting mission, not a race to find the exit with a peeved warlord on her tailpipe.
"Well, I find this a little ironic," hissed the mech as he peered in. "If I recall correctly, you dropped the ceiling on me the last time we were in a cave together. Not so funny when you're the one being trapped, is it?"
Arcee sat down when he suddenly tried to reach again. The claws were only a foot away from her legs and that was being firmly placed against the rock wall of the dead end. It scared her a little seeing claws of the mech this close. He retreated back and shook his head irritably.
"You can't stay in there forever."
"Watch me," she challenged.
Megatron replied by taking his own seat near the tunnel. Arcee made sure not to slouch, not to catch herself off guard, and not to fall into recharge as her energy levels were low. The day went by and neither party dared to move. The cave began getting cold, and she shivered in the hopes that her team would come and distract Megatron for her to escape. No one came.
At some point, Arcee had fallen asleep, only realizing it after a few hours where she jostled awake and nearly banged her helm on the ceiling of the tunnel. She saw Megatron's crossed legs still, and the elbows were perched on them so his arms and servos could meet to cradle his jaw. It was hard to tell from her angle whether or not he was actually resting though. Did she dare come forward to test that?
"I know you're not resting," she said confidently.
She saw his posture change with a dark chuckle. "So observant and wise. There's no fooling you, is there?"
"Don't you have anything better to do like track down Starscream and kick his aft? Step on a puppy? Terrorize a village or what?"
"No, I don't go terrorizing villages at night. I like to see my victims active before I scare them," he joked.
Arcee pondered that, leaning back and crossing her arms in thought. "Sounds like you enjoy being the boogeyman in tales. Why won't you leave me alone? I have nothing worth your time."
Megatron snarled back, "And yet, you've taken a lot from me. Orion, if that rings a bell. Though I do admit I appreciate you taking care of Airachnid, I don't like being shown up by an Autobot. When I get ahold of you, I am going to kill you."
"Wow, what a gentleman," she remarked in a stale tone.
He didn't reply and that made Arcee unnerved by what he could be planning.
"You know," he abruptly said, "you and I aren't that different. I know you don't like being shown up either. We both have our pride, our guilt, and what we will do to destroy it. I'm not afraid to take a life, and you aren't either. But if either of us leave this cave tonight, you and I both know one of us is not going to be leaving. I know you want to kill me just as much as I loathe you."
"Poetic...but what happens if both of us die?"
Megatron laughed a little, "Then so be it."
She let herself rest again, and she could hear Megatron realigning to lean against a pillar still sitting the same way she continued to keep herself against the dead end. He faced her and, dare she believe, was meditating. Not wanting to piss him off any more than he already had been, she lowered herself to lay on her front to observe him.
He had his optics closed, not asleep, but in a tranquil state. All she had ever seen of him was unbridled rage and a deadly attitude. He was calm, a sight she kind of didn't think was real. Arcee held no illusions of how he was still just as dangerous as ever, but for him to trust her enough to not pull the trigger on him while he rested his optics was a ballsy move if she ever saw one. And what amused her most was she was the same way. He was right about them being similar. He was just a darker version of herself had she lost her way in all her struggles in life and where she wanted to go.
Eventually, Arcee fell asleep again. When she awoke, she was scared to not see him anymore and realized he could have grabbed her out of the tunnel from her position. He did not...the same as she could have shot him. She never took the shot.
Waiting anxiously, Arcee didn't dare breathe wrong wondering where he had gone. The silence was deafening. Finally, another hour passed and Arcee took a chance. Megatron wasn't even in the cave anymore. Her steps echoed, not any sign of a warlord of shiny grey anywhere. She called his bluff.
Sprinting out, Arcee reached the outside cautiously. The tiniest reverberation of claws slowly touching rock was barely picked up, and she knew what she had to do. The race was like a lion hunting a gazelle. She outflanked his ambushed and dared him to follow. He was always so cruel, but it didn't faze her, especially when she managed to get a signal out to her Autobots and sprinted into a ground bridge. It closed before he could follow. She never looked back to see him.
It scared Arcee how collected he could really be. That was the beauty of his danger; he was very unpredictable. A part of her liked the thrill, the other feared him greatly. She wondered what he thought of her truly. If she mattered enough for him to stick around, make her life worth killing in a way he desired to make it meaningful, there was something he saw in her ever since she challenged him in the caves, the space bridge, and gave him a reason to fear her by taking out Airachnid. He respected her, that's why.
Arcee was uncertain if the attention she had built for herself was smart. Megatron never let down a challenge, especially one he liked. If he couldn't get her then, he would continue trying until he got the satisfaction he wanted from her...whatever that entailed. Ironic, as he had claimed, that Arcee also was just as intrigued deep down.
IDW
"What the hell happened to you?"
Megatron frowned at the blasphemous question. Arcee had always been a little too harsh, especially when he first knew her before her change. He shot her a brief glare before responding, "I chose the side I needed to."
Arcee studied him with pursed lips before commenting back, "I think you chickened out is what you did. I mean the Lost Light?"
"It's a decent star vessel."
"Yeah, in who's opinion? I would think the mighty warlord, Megatron the freaking Decepticon leader, would have a better retirement plan than that. I'm just saying-"
Megatron grew irate. "And your opinion is noted among silent audios. Now, if you don't have anything better to remark on at a crew you don't seem to understand, please leave. The decision was for the best and while it may not be a perfect crew in your opinion...they definitely have become bots better than those who I have been among for eons like you."
Arcee paused and looked to the side before growing sorrowful. "I'm...I'm sorry. I didn't think they meant that much to you."
"Considering they are the only few who are currently keeping me from being terminated if I ever go back into the public eye of Cybertron, I owe them that much. It is easier to believe with them I can change because of this..."
Arcee grew sympathetic, even for a moment. "I kind of know how you feel. When I was reborn...I thought of myself as a monster. I acted like one, but I'm slowly learning who I am though I still feel out of place even among the Autobots...among Cybertron and all that."
Megatron pondered that with a huff. "So, you do. But if you had a chance to feel less dependent on who everyone sees you as compared to who you want to be, would an opportunity like that of the Lost Light seem like that chance?"
She had no answer. Megatron kept from smirking a little at the lack of response from her. While the Lost Light was not smooth sailing, it grounded him enough to enjoy a lot more of the little things he took for granted and never understood in his rage and warmongering. Old habits remained but he could tell Arcee wanted something like what the Lost Light gave him deep down.
As she thought about it, he continued, "You could join me."
That snapped Arcee out of her conundrum and to his surprise, she replied, "But I don't think I would be who you think I would become. We're enemies, Megatron. I'm not a good bot deep down either...and I don't want to ruin any chance you have to try and chase my own with what the Lost Light might offer."
He couldn't force Arcee to take a leap of faith. If she didn't want to, there was nothing he could do to help her. In a way, he understood her plight in it. It was poetic kind of how similar they were but while he now had an escape, even if there was a chance it wouldn't be permanent, it was an Autobot who refused the calling and was prepared to succumb to whatever awaited her. And he was supposed to be the tyrant, they said.
As she turned away, shaking her head, he then asked, "Why are you being so selfish, Arcee?"
The question wasn't asked in a rude tone, at least not what he intended. Thankfully, Arcee knew that. She chuckled to herself, "Selfish indeed."
And with that, Arcee didn't even say goodbye. She was gone as quickly as she came upon accidentally running into him. Megatron was a bit perplexed at just how deep her demons dived. Part of him didn't want to see the destruction she would soon reap. She was more than capable of it. But if someone didn't want to be saved, why save them?
The response left him stunned because that wasn't what most Autobots would tell him. He expected some type of rant, some great speech, or maybe a better question. Arcee just let the question answer itself mostly. There was no reason for her to fight it.
It made him wonder what she would have done as a Decepticon. What would have made the great Arcee tick in the realm of the tyranny he possessed at the time? Megatron was a little scared to deduce any answer to that.
He watched her walk off, never daring to stop her before and certainly couldn't bring himself to do so now. It was probably going to be the last time he ever saw her. It was funny though. She had the last word.
"So, it would seem," Megatron said to himself.
Cyberverse
Arcee rose up quietly from a crevice hidden in the steel boulders of the landscape eyeing the distant battlefield as she held the item the Decepticons were currently after, the Immobilizer. The stupid thing didn't seem to want to work though. Megatron wanted it for one reason, Optimus wanted to stow it far from his reach, and she was tasked in transporting it to the safe zone of deep Autobot territory. Easier said than done, in her opinion.
"Hmm." She drummed her digits over the device's base in thought. So far, no one seemed to know she had it.
Arcee watched several Autobots and Decepticons battling, optics searching left and right in caution and curiosity. It was silent…too silent. With a hum, she took her chances. She was supposed to have an escort but that would have been too obvious for Decepticons to target her. She had been using her stealth to the maximum to get through Decepticon territory where she was so close to reaching the border. It was time to make it or break it.
She sprinted through the edge of the cyberwoods that bordered Kaon's southern edge with determination until she heard footfalls following her from above. She looked back and was surprised to see Megatron jump down from the boulder formations she was trailing. It startled her but as soon as he was giving chase on her level, she grinned.
"Coming after the Immobilizer, Megatron? I'd like to see you take it from my cold, dead servos."
Megatron fired at her and snarled back, "That's a statement you shall regret!"
Running above uneven ground and dipping through small valleys in the land, Arcee was as fleet-footed as a Singlehorn. She dodged his blasts by using trees and other vertical surfaces to bounce and flip off of.
"Are you even trying?"
She heard Megatron shout something but was too preoccupied with focusing on her escape. As the forest started becoming denser, she quickly noted some of them had cable vines. Smiling to herself, she immediately fled where the most cable vines were and used her agility to ascend up the trees to them to kick them down into Megatron's path. One snagged his cannon arm and forced him to a complete stop. He was surrounded by others, and Arcee was about to leave when she got a wicked idea.
Running up to him still stuck in the vine, Arcee grabbed another and did a flying kick to his chest before he could defend himself and wrapped a vine around his other arm to then tie it to an adjacent tree. She kicked up a third to catch his leg and sweep him off his feet, a forth to suspend him above the ground, and a fifth to wrap around his neck without explicitly hurting him. He looked like a puppet and she stopped to admire the artistic vision she had made to her humor. Megatron didn't share it.
"Ragh! Get me out of this at once!"
Arcee pressed a digit to her mouth in consideration, smirking widely with a giggle. She was close enough to try and kill him, but she refrained. Instead, she poked his forehead, to his bewilderment, and watched him sway back and forth slightly.
"No, I don't think I will," she said with a teasing tone.
Megatron narrowed his optics, "You are incredibly infuriating."
"I have a name, Buckethead, it's Arcee," she said, leaning close with a grin as he struggled. She then whispered, "Remember it. Later."
The warlord pulled at his restraints as the femme hightailed it out of there with the Immobilizer secure. She heard him shouted, "When I get out of this, you'll pay, femme!"
She just laughed at him, disappearing over the waving structures of Cybertron's forest.
But…that wasn't the last she saw him. Oh no, the day came when Arcee found herself in her own predicament.
Arcee kicked up her gun from the ground after it had been knocked from her grip and immediately fired on the Decepticon Seekers circling with the other Autobots aiming to keep them away. They were defending a crucial base on the edge of the Argon Sea. They couldn't afford to lose it, but the Decepticons were squeezing their forces left and right. With Grimlock and Clobber, she held her ground until a blast blew her back and made her roll.
She shook off the hit peeved but then spotted a familiar grey tank running over the hill, the tracks up in the air for a moment before slamming down onto the ground. The cannon targeted her dead on. She flipped up with a spin and bolted with cannon fire flying past her. Several blasts trailed her as Megatron drove after her.
Using the buildings, Arcee wall-jumped to escape on the rooftops. She couldn't believe Buckethead was still pissed about the incident previously. It was his fault after all. Had he not pursued, everything would have been less embarrassing for him. Suddenly, the rooftop became unstable when several blasts, not just Megatron's, eroded the structure's stability. She went falling through and got caught in several cables, three of which coiled around all four of her limbs binding them together and leaving her awkwardly facing the ceiling bound and immobile.
Her servos and pedes wouldn't budge from each other under the tight cables, and it dawned on her the circumstances of her predicament as she muttered to herself, "Oh scrap."
"'Oh scrap,' indeed," a familiar voice hissed.
She looked upside down around until Megatron stood in front of her. While she remained calm on the outside, she was panicking on the inside. "Look...can we talk about this? Cut me down and I'll play nice, I promise."
Like a bit of cruel irony, Megatron simply poked her forehead to watch her rock back and forth as he sneered, "No, I don't think I will, Arcee."
Arcee cowered with a forced laugh, "Funny...but I really don't want to be trapped here."
"Don't worry, you won't be. Consider yourself a prisoner of war," Megatron said smugly as Decepticons began to surround her. "You and I are going to have plenty of time for a chat or two on how not to be a pain in my aft."
She could only gulp as her arrogance left her. She got cocky and paid the price. Now, she wondered just what Megatron aimed to do with her.
Earthspark
Megatron saw her on the hill gazing up at the night sky. He had seen her leave the Malto residence several times a week to sneak off but never found out where until now. He had always respected her, especially her means to go off on her own, but something felt different this time. So, he pursued her.
On a hill under a barrage of trees, Arcee sat peacefully tapping her thigh and biting the interior of her cheek a little peeved. Megatron was hesitant to approach to not disturb her, but he could feel her frustration. He knew what it was like for no one to recognize such emotions and even though he pretended he was fine, he often wasn't. Between Starscream constantly trying to upstage him to Autobots getting in the way back in the war, there was too much to handle and not many solutions to them. He couldn't trust anyone to listen but Arcee might need him, and he was willing to do it for her.
He made sure she had an idea he was near her to not spook her unintentionally. The moon's rays reflected off her pink and white armor with the faintest blue glow that made her shine. He was enamored by it and couldn't look away. Arcee peered to the side to acknowledge him but didn't look completely over her shoulder.
"I see you found my little hideaway. No Decepticons, no G.H.O.S.T., no problems," she smirked a bit painfully.
Megatron sat beside her with crossed legs, his elbows resting on both knees respectively. "I take it…something is bothering you?"
"Little home sickness and the fact that it bothers me how much we have sacrificed for the human race and they…they just turn on us so easy. I-I get if we hurt loved ones by accident but Mandroid and G.H.O.S.T. did so much that I can't forgive them for, and lying to Dot and the kids? That's terrible. It bothers me that the humans are so vicious sometimes, and certain ones are willing to endanger others for technology they don't even understand. Makes me want to just go back to Cybertron…"
Megatron frowned, "I didn't expect all humans to be good, but I agree they went too far. But as long as we stick together, we'll be okay."
Arcee snickered, "Do you know how much you sound like Optimus?"
"Well, when you're constantly around him, his rousing speeches tend to get to you. It's infectious I heard," he smiled back.
The femme leaned more upright and stretched her arms that had been resting in her lap. "I'll say."
"But, in all seriousness, we are aliens to them. I kind of expect the treatment in a way. We'll always be a part of the Maltos' lives but there will also always be little conflicts somewhere with our presence here on Earth. Nothing is ever simple. We just have to choose our battles wisely. Just remember that you will never be alone on this, Arcee."
Megatron lent his servo to her and Arcee was a little surprised but slowly placed hers on top of his. They met optics with Arcee showing off a much happier, cuter expression that made him feel sparkleflies fluttering around in his interior. He had to look away for a second to bring back his resolve.
He coughed awkwardly, "Yes, well, anyways...do you still want to be alone? I can leave if you want some privacy."
Arcee hummed, "If you leave, you'll tell them where I go."
"I would certainly not. This is our place-your place, sorry."
She peered up at him laughing to herself before remarking, "I think I can share...just with you."
His mouth twitched with a wobbly smile to the side looking away from her when he suddenly felt her climbing onto his lap. She sat in the space between his crossed legs nestled with her back against his abdomen and lower chest. He didn't dare move, only lowered his arms to rest on each side of her on his knees. She placed her servo over his and made herself comfortable like she was sitting on a throne.
Megatron found the irony in all of it. He debated whether to move but having Arcee right there, he didn't dare ruin the moment. He found comfort in her presence, delight even. Maybe they were once enemies but he was content with the feeling of not being alone. Even though Optimus and the others accepted him, he had brief emotions regarding being out of place. Arcee made him feel safe as he did her.
They sat in the moonlight unmoving, both with their optics closed at peace. Even when Optimus tried to call him, he ignored it to not disturb his dear muse who he believed had fallen into recharge from the steady heat from her vents. He looked down at her for a moment. She was beautiful.
Not long after, he fell into recharge too still in the same spot. They stayed that way safe with each other until the sun rose on the horizon.
One
RC-187 wasn't watching where she was going when she suddenly tripped on another mech's pede. They both were sent spiraling down a slope in the mines, toppling over one another until RC settled on top of the bot she accidentally took down with her. She groaned and shook off the hit until she heard him groan too.
They met optics, blue to yellow, and RC blushed awkwardly as she had her servos on his chest laying on top of him. She recognized D-16, a mech who was on time and respectful except that he was friends with Orion Pax who always got in trouble. As D-16 blinked and shook his head from his daze, she darted to sit up on his abdomen in embarrassment.
"Oh, oh, I'm so sorry! I-I didn't mean to make you fall...with me..."
D-16 slowly smiled and gently sat up. "You're okay. Apology accepted."
The problem was it led her to lean back against his legs and she essentially was in his lap to further her flushed expression. She tried to get off but tripped again and fell forward, making D-16 freeze with her face so close. He awkwardly understood what she meant to do and tried to help her up...but the slope they had descended and resided next to made everything worse.
"Um, let me just-"
"I didn't that. I'm sorry-"
"Move your right leg over my-ah!"
"Wait, wait, wait, if I can just get this-"
RC ended up sitting sideways on his lap with his servo supporting her neck. With a servo on his chest and his other arm under her knees, they sat there unable to say anything for a solid minute.
D-16 gave a sparkfelt smile and a cough finally, "Well, we can't say we didn't try to make things go a little smoother."
"Y-Yeah," RC said quickly, "we're terrible."
"You two, get back to work!" Darkwing yelled, pointing down at them angrily.
They both looked at each other but instead of letting her go, D-16 surprised her by standing up with her held in his arms. She blushed even harder and instinctively pressed into his chest to try and hide it as he brought them both back up the slope. From there, he let her down and most everyone didn't really notice the whole ordeal, only Darkwing who hated them and Orion Pax who was snickering.
RC rubbed the back of her helm, "I...um...thank you, you know, for doing that. Again, I am so sorry."
D-16 laughed, "It's fine. If you want to repay me though, maybe meet me for Energon and a glass of oil at Maccadam's?"
A date. Well, that's not what RC was expecting, but she nodded without a second thought. D-16 looked just as shy about once he realized what he said, but RC began twisting back and forth on her heels kind of entranced by the mech's kindred personality. He was just as starstruck as she was.
That was the D-16 she knew. That was the D-16 she met. That was the D-16...that she missed.
From there, dates turned into a relationship which got put on hold when Sentinel reported D-16 and Orion Pax dead from their injuries in the race. When D-16 came back, all hell broke loose. The mech turned into a monster, a tragic example of what a failed, false system could create when it didn't care. He wasn't a monster because of what happened to him. The exact opposite but tearing apart Sentinel and then turning on them claiming they were followers who must be destroyed by all means necessary, that scared even her away.
After Optimus Prime, formerly Orion Pax, defeated and banished him from Iacon, Arcee's spark broke...but she couldn't go with him. She was too afraid of what he had become. The Autobot and Decepticon factions became staples in Cybertron; she chose the former. He must have known because he never did come back for her.
There were fleeting moments when they crossed paths. D-16...no, Megatron paused to glance at her. Arcee saw he wanted to say something, always following close but never close enough for her to ask him to come back. She couldn't. It was too painful. He knew this too because he didn't bother her as a former friend; she was his enemy, and that's what she was treated as with bloodlust and anger.
Their battle was ferocious, intimate almost. Arcee aimed to kill; Megatron saw to destroy. The problem was that it put them at an impasse on the field. They would always clash but never were they able to get the upper hand on each other.
The only time she got close was when she grabbed his cannon and swung off it to nail him with her pede in the helm. He caught her servos holding the blade that came so close to impaling his chest in his brief stun that his red optics flared bright. Arcee then aimed to trip him on the side of a slope from the landscape of Cybertron's surface they were on only for Megatron to drag her down with him.
Arcee lost her sword somewhere in the tumble. They each hit the slope almost evenly in their uncontrollable fall but stayed intertwined in a death roll, grunting and crying out from slight pain until they came to a halt in a crevice that had slopes around them.
She shook off the hits and shook her helm irate until she noticed she was on Megatron's chest like the first time they met, and he was looking at her in sudden awe. Blue met red. Arcee laid on him unmoving, breathing hard and never breaking eye contact. Megatron seemed unable to move too.
After a while, they tried to separate only for the surface of Cybertron to be a little tricky at first to get good footing. Arcee tried to stand up but slipped while Megatron did the same, pushing her body by accident against his front with her chin just below his collar armor.
"Megatron, move your-"
"Go over my right, my right!"
"I'm sorry! I'm not getting a good grip here-"
"Move into the motion-"
She muttered an apology and tried again but fell on her back with Megatron stumbling forward to slip unceremoniously on all fours over her and...between her legs. They stared at one another for a second completely awkward when Arcee panicked in an attempt to turn around, which made things worse by her sliding where her aft nearly touched his pelvis. They both struggled to get away until finally, Arcee found herself back on top of him. Megatron was embarrassed more than her this time.
She took the initiative and slowly sat up with a hint of sadness on her features. Megatron showed frustration but calmed upon seeing her. Arcee then asked, "What are we doing, Megatron? What are we now?"
The warlord opened his mouth like he was going to chastise her, but he found no words. Even he didn't know. He peered to the side despondently. "I-I don't know..."
She suddenly beat his chest. "Why couldn't you just-just stay?! Why couldn't I see D-16 again?! Why couldn't you just-?!"
Megatron caught her wrists and struggled with her briefly to keep her from hitting him. Arcee's anger simmered once she was at a stalemate with her lack of plan. She let him hold her arms, peering down at him with uncertainty. He rose to sit up. Arcee just sunk onto his lap as he sighed.
"I did what I had to do," he said as he caressed her servos still tense.
"You didn't have to try destroying Iacon..."
Megatron huffed, "I did because it's too painful to look at. The only thing I would preserve from it...is you."
Arcee was taken aback by that and even more so when he kissed her. She wanted to reciprocate it but was held back but the horrid feeling he would make good on trying to attack Iacon again. She let him take what he wanted in this moment, all except her innocence as that was a stage they had never gotten to, and she refused to. When he noticed her lack of enticement, Arcee grew worried internally, but she was once again bewildered by him.
"Don't worry, Arcee, we can rebuild Iacon in our image, and I promise I'll make everything right again."
Arcee was silent. The darkness in his optics couldn't be ignored, and she grew regretful of ever engaging them. While she didn't regret meeting him in the mines that faithful day, there was a sense of dread about what she had failed to see out of the interest she had in him.
She suddenly kicked off him and managed to get to stable ground to their left, balancing unevenly as she stood upright. It was becoming too much, and the expression of shock, growing aggression and slight lust was prominent on Megatron's faceplates. It became apparent to her that he was trying to kill her all those times because he figured if he couldn't have her the same as wanting to destroy Iacon, then no one could.
Arcee knew D-16 was gone. That mech in the mines she met was a distant memory. As Megatron stood to dwarf her with his red bio lights reflecting off the slopes of the landscape turning it into a pit of flames, Arcee grabbed her sword and backed away. Her features twisted into fear and then vengeance. Pointing the blade at Megatron, Arcee watched him narrow his optics and cock his gun in response.
"Megatron...I cannot allow that to happen."
If he could aim to kill out of obsession, she planned to take him out in honor of her lost D-16. A hypocrite she would be in response to his killing of Sentinel, and she seemed content on making the choice to do the same against him if it was necessary. For all she was starting to see was red, even if in her spark she wanted him back. She couldn't let him burn down their home for something that no longer was the case of simple lies and pain.
No matter the memories she had, there was no room for monsters on Cybertron.
AN: Half of these were speculation because they don't interact in the media proper but I went by whether or not they were present in the universes themselves. For instance, the reason there is no Beast Wars or Robots in Disguise 2001 is because Arcee isn't in those physically but Megatron is so there's nothing to go on between them. Also, I kind of made One a spinoff of The Hardest Fall.