Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Councilor.

Gladiator.

Decepticon.

Those were the titles he held over the years, and yet they all felt like completely separate people. Perhaps it’s because of how much he has changed since then. Or maybe he spent too long thinking about it in an attempt to get rid of boredom. Both were equally possible. 

And both were equally headache inducing.

Which, if nothing else, was a serviceable distraction from the aforementioned boredom. Prison wasn’t exactly known for its entertainment. Nor free space, for that matter. Even the Nemesis had that. The current cell offered a seat at the very least, unlike the glorified storage rooms he used to occupy. Although, as far he was concerned, even the stasis pods were better than–

…well.

Adaptability was one of Soundwave’s strong suits–basically a necessity considering what his field of work was. Unfortunately, that often included a plethora of unnecessary roadblocks to consider and deal with, which were as annoying as they were frequent. Especially if said roadblocks threw themselves at you by sheer happenstance, seeing you as one yourself.

In an effort to remedy this, Soundwave spent a lot of time reminiscing. About his victories and losses of varying proportions. About the only surviving minicon he had left having to be among Autobots for a foreseeable future.

About…him. How he lost. How his lifeless body plummeted towards the planet below, sitting at the bottom of the ocean for months, before springing to life and shooting off into the sky. Never to be seen again. All while he was stuck on Earth, unable to do anything for years.

Now? Now it wasn't much better. He was stuck in a transport truck with cuffed arms and a lock on his abdomen, which prevented the data cables from being used. Getting transported to Alchemor to be taken to some station far away where he wouldn’t disturb the ‘peace’ the Autobots established. The ‘peace’ that resulted in him sharing a space with negligent ruffians and criminals alike.

…It was funny, really. How they thought it was over, that is.

Cyclonus wouldn’t be the last. More would try to follow in his footsteps, regardless of what methods they end up using in doing so.

They will do this as many times as necessary.

Thus, he was content to wait, no matter how long it took. Until then, he would just have to keep doing his new favourite hobby.

[~LET IT GOOOOOO, LET IT GOOOOO, CAN’T HOLD IT BACK ANYMOOOOOORE~]

Annoying the everloving hell out of the law enforcement.

“For the love of–WILL YOU SHUT UP!?” yelled one of the officers at the front, banging his fist on the wall behind him for emphasis.

“He’s only trying to rile you up, now you shut up and quit trying to blow out my audials.” said the other, not taking her eyes off of the road.

“Me!? Tell that to the ‘con who keeps blasting the same song for almost two hours!”

“Well that’s not true, he did play different ones at some–”

“THAT DOESN’T NEGATE THE OTHER 22 REPEATS!”

Soundwave displayed a smiley hearing the two bicker, deciding that humans had their uses after all.

“Ugh. Why are we taking this freak to Alchemor anyway? Shouldn’t they put him in some high security underground vault or something?” asked the first one.

“A bit over the top, don’t you think? They already prepared a special chamber for the pod to go in.” said the second.

“Are you kidding me? This is Soundwave we’re talking about. If anything, the current arrangement is too soft.”

His co-worker gave him a quick glance. “He should still get some amount of courtesy, no?”

“Oh, please! I’ve heard all the horror stories about the guy: his little army of creepie-crawlies, the zealousness, knowing everything that happens all the time…not to mention the obvious stuff,” he stated. “Besides, if the roles were switched, I doubt either of us would be gettin’ any semblance of mercy, let alone courtesy.”

“…true, you got me there.”

A moment of reprieve. And only a moment, as a rewinding sound started to awaken another fit of rage inside an already enraged bot.

“NOW LISTEN HERE–!”

A thud on the roof turned the attention away from any further arguments. Confused, the occupants heard it become a scuttle, then a clamp, followed by a loud yelp. A much louder squawk was the last warning before something big collided with the vehicle, shaking it and causing it to crumple under its sheer weight. The thing seemed to grip at the edges and before long, they found themselves in the air, going upwards…

…higher and higher…

…only to dive back down at mach speed, with a screaming duet accompanying the descent.

The transport was dropped and hit the ground hard, cracking and breaking apart as it got hurled across the streets, knocking many drivers off road. After a few excruciatingly long rolls, the poor excuse for a van finally came to a screeching halt, letting out sparks as it struggled to stop.

On the inside, a shaken yet still alive Soundwave tried to pull himself together, though leftover dizziness did not help by any means. There was an upside to this turbulence, however: the lock sustained enough damage that an unauthorized removal was possible, and the remaining doorwing looked like it could fall off its hinges at any moment. Shame how the cuffs were still in a functional condition despite the battered look.

An approaching sound made the Decepticon straighten up, and gathering his remaining strength, hurled himself out of there just as the mass crashed back down and flattened what remained.

He turned around to face the assailant, only to find his suspicions confirmed.

A big avian creature–a Predacon–stood imposingly atop the wreckage. It searched the area, talons clicking and itching for something to grab. Large amber wings reflected the surrounding lights, nicely illuminating the black and gray body it possessed. It turned to look at Soundwave, its piercing red eyes examining him with mild interest.

But before the beast could claim its new target, a sudden torrent of blaster fire caused it to lose focus and shriek in surprise.

Swarms of armed forces surrounded the prehistoric threat, shouting orders and unloading all ammo upon the creature to no avail. If anything, all they did was increase the agitation against them.

Some bots, realizing that attacking an unknown being twice their size wasn’t the greatest idea, tried to do the smart thing and run away to anywhere that wasn’t here.

Unfortunately, the damage had already been done, as they soon found themselves picked up by the Predacon’s claws and slammed into the ground with enough force to crack open their outer plating.

As he tried to get up and away from the ongoing barrage, Soundwave found that his luck only extended so far. 

And that he underestimated the survival instincts of his escorts.

“HEY!” yelled the heavily bruised and ever annoyed officer, his blaster at the ready. “Don’t think–cough–tha-a-at you’ll get away from us!”

The less annoyed officer held her arm with a grunt. ”He–ugh–kinda did already.”

“Primus, can you have my back at least once–AGHH!”

Or maybe not.

Taking this chance, Soundwave smashed open the lock, freed the cables and coiled them around his cuffs; a particularly hard squeeze was enough to make them break apart. Unshackled once more, he transformed and drove away from the storm that raged on, leaving the beast to hunt down its next prey.

Said prey became apparent as he was picked up and thrown in the air, soon to be caught within a hungry toothed beak and enter the past tense. Quickly transforming back, the mech fired the missile pod at its mouth and hit the bullseye, then curled his data cables around the talons so as to not plummet down like a comet.

But even disoriented, the fiend’s rage did not quell. It yanked the Decepticon back to itself and dove back towards the ground.

Knowing full well this was going to hurt, Soundwave thought that Laserbeak’s absence might be a good thing after all.

And hurt it did, as sharp talons grabbed him by the front and slammed down full force. The creature screeched in his face, tightening the grip around the blue Decepticon's body. With a barely suppressed wince, he attempted to hold it off with whatever possible. But it was faster, and bit down against already-torn appendages, sending a surge of electricity throughout them and bringing out a proper cry of pain.

It looked like it was about to tear his head off, or peck out his spark chamber, but then it just…stopped. The grip released and the fury all but left its eyes, looking more irritated than anything. It begrudgingly jumped off of him, backing off with an annoyed squawk before taking to the sky. 

Soundwave carefully stood up and stared in confusion. 

(The ground starts slightly shaking)

The thing–it was a Predacon no doubt, if the general demeanor was anything to go by, but something about the creature felt off.

(The wind–wind?–picks up)

Its body had an almost iridescent shine to it. The metal looked strange, having something akin to a smooth liquid-like texture, but still remained solid and inflexible.

(The sky darkened as unnatural lightning crackles from above)

The red-ish optics remained fixated on him even from so high up, glowing with fervor and purpose. But there was something else there–both familiar and alien.

(A smaller figure leaves her hiding spot, looking conflicted as she watches the chaos unfold)

He disregarded the various questions flowing across his processor, about to take this as a chance to escape from here.

And then something…glitched.

He can’t explain it–or even truly understand–but it felt like his processor short circuited. Like his visuals were on the fritz. Because the imagery around him changed, and it was dark and gray and  dead again. The Predacon was still there, but now there were at least four more–or was it seven? Eight? And then there were other figures around, (familiar ones) smaller ones, and some of them stayed while the others hurried to (stop them) somewhere. But it was no surprise he couldn’t think, not when several different voices suddenly cried out in his mind, threatening to split his head open from the inside much like his body became different–kept changing into what he was–is–will be–and her’s–SHE–

“Hold on!”

A voice cut through the madness, briefly relieving him of this torment as something attached itself to his arm.

And so it– 

(ends) 

(continues)

-begins.

Chapter Text

It felt like a rush.

A hazy, disorienting rush that seemed to have no beginning or end. Like different pieces started coming together, culminating in a discordant but mostly complete picture.

Then everything slows.

At first, Soundwave can only experience a vague feeling of existence, of being present in the moment. Hollow as it may feel, it beats the pain of being a Predacon’s source of ire any day. His processor–which miraculously remains unfried–slowly boots up again, with other faculties not far behind.

Sensations start to have meaning again, which became apparent by a splitting headache, courtesy of the sensory overload he experienced just now. Though notably, a pair of small presences also made themselves known, offering a way to ground himself in this unfortunate situation. And as sensory inputs continue rebooting, it allows a rough, rocky surface to provide literal grounding beneath.

Soon enough, his vision returns, greeting him with a large canyon that stretches far and wide. Gusts of wind carried the sand across the valley, and the sun shone brightly across its surface.

He doesn’t get to perceive anything else as something starts thrashing on his chest area, a familiar signal echoing through the Con’s mind.

Laserbeak–Laserbeak?–continues whirring and buzzing, frantically trying to dispatch from his old docking spot; certainly a way to find out that the audio receptors came back online. Soundwave waited a few more moments before letting the little one out, only to grab him before he could fly away. The bigger mech struggled to hold the minicon, barely succeeding as it kept trying to wriggle away from his grasp. A grasp with…his old hands? From his old form?

Something else dispatches from his arm, falling down with a thud and a groan. He  looks down to the noise, seeing another minicon on the ground, much brighter and just as loud. That one will have to wait.

Soundwave turned his attention to the now slightly-less-wriggly deployer, trying to calm him in any way he could.

Said deployer quieted down, staring at the larger Con for a moment. Then the buzzing continued, panic now replaced with a mixture of confusion, excitement and a hint of agitation. Soundwave sagged, finally letting go in a small hope that he’ll tire himself out.

Now, the other one.

He picked up the stranger by the tail to get a better look at them.

The minicon resembled what the humans identified as a ‘scorpion’, with eight legs and a stinger at the tail's end. The gold and black plating shone brightly in the sunlight, reflecting the strange looking screen on the back. It appeared to display something, but all it showed now was flickers of light that fluctuated between glyphs, or perhaps some numerals.

The scorpion onlined her bright pink optics, looking sluggishly up at the one holding her.

“Ugh, sorry abo–OH! Oh, you look a little–uh–a little different now, huh? Hope that didn’t add to your discomfort during our…travel, I guess?” She nervously tapped her claws against one another. “I don’t…Sorry, I don’t really do these things often. Not to this extent at least.”

Soundwave tilted his head to the side in confusion. So he has reverted to his previous frame, and his systems weren’t on a fritz of some kind. That still didn’t explain the actual reasoning, though.

[–travel–huh?–]

“Um…oh, our travel in time, I mean!”

Suddenly, a blur of dark green ascends from the bottom of the canyon with a roaring engine, because the universe forbids him getting one second to actually comprehend what is happening.

The green mass flew overhead, followed by another aircraft carrying a yellow figure that followed after the…

…well this was worrying.

The spymaster quickly looked down the canyon, only to have his fear confirmed.

There at the bottom stood none other than Optimus Prime, with no upgrades or jetpacks in sight. Then, it was only right to assume that the masses of Bumblebee and Skyquake in the sky would soon descend back towards the ground, one of which would make this location his permanent resting place.

But worse than that, Starscream was now at the broken space bridge unsupervised, all alone with only Megatron’s broken body there to–

Soundwave clutched his head, struggling to stand as the world spun all around him. Prime’s visage sparked and twitched, only to disperse alongside the aerial crafts above. He managed to gain balance with the use of cables, yet dropped the scorpion in the process.

Moments passed, and outside of some mild audial buzz, the dizzy spell was gone, leaving a confused ‘con in its wake. Laserbeak was now floating nearby, letting out concerned trills for its master; the other one was groaning on the ground.

“Ow. Really? Again?” she said. “You’re pretty slippery.”

Soundwave looked towards where Optimus has been, finding only an empty space with no sign of combat ever being there. The skies were clear as well. Whatever that had been, it was clearly over.

The minicons approached, with Laserbeak carrying the other by the tail. It set her down gently, then with an unspoken command went back to rest on the bigger bot’s chest. 

Said bot checked the coordinates for both the Autobots and Skyquake. Both were nonexistent.

He checked the coordinates for his lord’s body.

Nonexistent.

The Nemesis wasn’t giving off any signals, though the recent chain of events was enough to convince Soundwave that the seeker had nothing to do with this. Probably.

“Hey, are you okay?” said the little one, starting to notice a slight tremble on her new companion. Her pincer split apart into a claw-like appendage, as there was no need for aggression of any kind.

The Decepticon kneeled and reached out after a moment, encouraging her to come closer. She cautiously obliged, letting herself get picked up and carried.

“I know this is a lot to take in; it’s understandable if you’re feeling a little woooOAAA–!” 

The arachnid screamed in shock, getting interrupted with an unceremonious throw into the wide crevice below. Soundwave jumped not a second after. He transformed, flew down towards the falling speck of gold and transformed again, just in time to catch her and land safely on his feet.

As the dust settled, Soundwave glanced around the area before settling a sight on the shivering mess in his hands. Her face gave off something between anger and astonishment.

“…what…is wrong with you…?”

The visor displayed ‘payback’.

“Wh–excuse me!? For what!?”

[—e-e-e-e-e-excuse–e d—]

He put her back on the ground and continued towards where Skyquake’s crate should have been.

“I–I didn’t cause any of this, okay!? I was just trying to help!” yelled the scorpion. She tried to scuttle after the bigger bot, yet eight little legs were no match for a pair of long ones.

“You weren’t even meant to be here, I was supposed to bring–!”

Soundwave stopped and turned to look at her with a sliver of intrigue. He tilted his head again, wondering why she cut off the sentence.

She went rigid. “Actually, nevermind. Don’t worry about it.”

Not convinced whatsoever, he continued onward regardless, deciding there were more important things to worry about.

They arrived at where the crate was supposed to be. Yet after confirming its presence, there were still no life signals coming from within. The warrior was gone, leaving behind an empty box.

The little companion had caught up by now, though her rigidness only increased. “Everything alright? Don’t tell me there’s something out of place that was fine before. Don’t tell me the reversal wasn’t succesful…was it?”

Reversal? So the minicon did somehow contribute to all of this.

Before more panic could ensue, Soundwave pointed towards her while visualizing a question mark.

“Huh?” she asked, eyes widening upon realization. “Oh, scrap! I completely forgot!”

With a straightened posture and a slightly steadier voice, the scorpion finally introduced herself.

“I’m Scorpia, a kronoformer sent to deal with temporal disturbances which threaten reality as we know it. Sorry for no earlier introductions, got pretty drained by…well, everything up to now.”

An answer that opened up many more questions, which was still better than nothing. In turn, the ‘con displayed a staticky name on his visor, each glyph unloading one by one.

Scorpia squinted, trying to place the name’s familiarity. Then it hit her.

“Ah! The warlord’s lieutenant!"

A nod.

“Wait, that lieutenant?"

A nod.

“Oh. Goodie.”

Soundwave’s sensors began to detect a pair of energy signatures across the country: a life signature northeast from here in upper Idaho, and a far larger reading all the way from the East Coast. The latter rivaled that of the Nemesis, but the leftover buzz and unclear details made pursuing this option much more risky. That meant he’d have to settle for individual questioning.

The kronoformer gave a nervous chuckle as the larger bot motioned for her to latch back on, complying out of clear worry as to where refusal would get her.

Having set the coordinates and gained a new asset, Soundwave took off towards the mountain range, hoping that whoever he encounters might hold answers that actually matter.

If not? Then today will not be their day.

Chapter Text

38 kilometers left until they reached their destination.

The coordinates have begun to fluctuate, though fortunately not by much. Curiously enough, they seemed to follow a pattern of sorts, never straying too far from a designated area. A patrol perhaps?

“...great.”

The little stopwatch continued to mope long after they had set off. He had to commend her stamina if nothing else. Or he would have had she not been so noisy.

“Just great. Could’ve just hidden better, or asked for directions, or–Primus, just ditched the secrecy to maybe get to him quicker,” she rambled. “At least the alternative wouldn’t include getting stuck with a faceless weirdo while not knowing where I even am!”

Expectedly, no response came her way.

With an audible engine, Soundwave descended upon a clearing and came down with a thud. He soon began to scan for any nearby traces of the figure, moving along while doing so.

“...I’m sorry. That was mean,” Scorpia said with a sigh. “It’s all just so frustrating! None of this went according to plan! If it did, I might have gotten to–”

A sudden deployment caught and cut her off, with Soundwave signaling for her to remain nearby. The kronoformer grumbled, yet knew that lacking in alternatives meant more complying.

The sounds of clattering rocks and snapping twigs were heard as they walked to their destination, with an occasional rustle of leaves from the shrubbery. It was a bit steep, which made it unlikely for the stranger to remain here. Laserbeak flew higher, beginning to search the other lakes and cliffs in the vicinity. 

Unlike her large companion, Scorpia admired the views of this terrain. The tall green trees, shiny water and rough stones were are foreign to her, only seen through glimpses on her quest. Cautiously, she approached the second lake they encountered, tapping the surface with her claw. The tap became a splash, then two splashes; even a giggle almost escaped her.

A faraway rumble made her pause, briefly averting her attention away from the present. It was close enough to be heard, if only barely. That meant the stranger was still around, roaming the area for whatever reason. A thought about their allegiance occurred, to which the minicon ceased her frolicking and continued to keep watch.

Laserbeak came up next to her, producing trills of confusion and concern.

“Oh, um–I–I’m fine,” Scorpia said. “Well, not really, but any outcome that doesn’t involve me dying is a win, right?”

More concerned trills.

“I know, I know. Still, can’t afford to get picky at times like this. If our lights aren’t out, then the battle isn’t over.”

Laserbeak’s wings twitched as he sent out a series of complimentary noises.

“Aw, shucks! There are better battle cries out there. This one just stuck ‘cause no one else had a good idea.”

As the conversation went on, Scorpia bumped into something metal. Upon seeing the culprit, she imitated a gulping sound.

Soundwave stood over the two and stared them down. Even without a face, his displeasement was evident.

With a quick apology towards its new teammate, Laserbeak took to the skies once more and continued observing the area from up above.

Satisfied, the spymaster continued onwards, expecting the second minicon to follow along.

Follow along she did. At least at first, before skittering off into the woods while Soundwave wasn’t looking.

He was, but did nothing. With eyes in the sky and lacking the element of surprise in broad daylight, there was no imperative to hunt for the arachnid at this moment.

Not while there was a conversation to eavesdrop on, at least.

《My lord?》

《What are you doing? You’re supposed to be behind enemy lines, not speak trough ours!》

《Appologies, lord. I got enough distance from the cloaking shield to speak freely, at least for a short while.》

《…well? What was so important that would compel you to risk blowing your cover?》

《We detected a life signature advancing here. Decepticon in origin. I managed to convince the others to let me remain here and identify the ‘threat’.》

《A lone Decepticon? This far from the city? It couldn’t be one of ours unless…who’s signal is this?》

《Don’t know. But seeing as two smaller ones were detected alongside it recently, I can take a guess.》

《…》

《Sir?》

《Ugh. As much as it pains me to admit, his contribution will undoubtedly improve our chances at victory. Keep looking and stop at nothing to find him.》

《I will see to it. Over and out.》

Scorpia was screwed.

The idea was to get lost while her new companion wasn’t looking, search for the figure on her own and go back on track with her mission. Instead, she ended up literally getting lost, with no way to know where, or who the mystery figure is, or why this was even considered a good idea in the first place. If Soundwave and Laserbeak weren’t pursuing her right now, it means luck is real and has favourites.

After passing by a familiar stump too many times for comfort, Scorpia gave up. She began pacing around in frustration, cursing at the chain of events that led her to this moment.

Realistically, she knew it wasn’t her fault. There was no way that anyone could predict that a giant creature of unknown origin would emerge from nowhere and ruin everything. There would have certainly been a warning about that at least.

…and yet…

All further thoughts she might have had were shattered upon hearing big footsteps behind her. What stepped out was a bright red cybertronian with black and white accents, who stumbled to a stop upon seeing the small scorpion.

The two stared at each other, no one saying a word.

“Um…hello?” Scorpia tentatively said, breaking the awkward silence. She eyed the insignia on the stranger’s chassis, growing more optimistic by the second.

The bot still said nothing.

“You’re an Autobot, aren’t you? I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to show up here

unannounced, I just…got lost for a bit, heh.”

That got her a head tilt, but still nothing.

Her eyes widened in realization. “Wait! If you’re here, then…you can take me with you! Your leader–Optimus Prime–I need to see him. It’s very urgent.”

The Autobot seemed to be in thought for a moment before suddenly straightening with an unrecognizable expression. “Prime, you say.”

“Yes. There was a mixup with…something, and we’ve already lost too much time. If you could take us to where your base is, we can start to get back on track.”

Scorpia looked cautiously at the advancing Autobot, holding onto a flicker of hope that she could somehow salvage this mess, that there was any chance that the universe could let her fix this blunder.

Sadly, the universe was not feeling merciful today, the flicker extinguishing as she was forcefully grabbed by the head and held at an arm’s length. The arachnid struggled in the tight grasp, trying desperately to escape in any way. Through the grip, she could just barely see the face in front of her; a sense of amusement could be seen from what little there was.

She couldn’t die now, not like this. Not when this was her chance of getting in.

Scorpia, in a spur of the moment, pinched the hand with both pincers as hard as she could, leading to her release; the yelping Autobot narrowly avoided getting stung in her neck cables. She jumped on the assailant and crawled all over, snipping and biting any spot she could. Her tail wooshed around, ripe for getting grabbed and tossed into the nearest tree.

Dazed, the minicon struggled to get up, left to watch through blurry vision as the figure calmly approached. Realizing she wouldn’t be able to dodge in time, Scorpia waited for the bot to get closer, looking for the right time to strike. 

When the bot reached out for a grab once more, she was unexpectedly stung and froze near instantly. Scorpia observed her, then rushed in the opposite direction. This would only buy her a few minutes at best, especially after spending so much energy already.

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the creek from before, then beelined for it. It was the only reliable thing around, leading her over the steep mountain range, noticing many places to lie low in.

The little scorpion scuttled as fast as possible towards the nearest hiding spot, almost getting there–

–only to get thrown backwards by a missile shot–where did a missile come from!?–and stepped on by her attacker.

Having much more limited movement this time, the minicon could only spare a glance above herself.

“S-So, what now? Are you going to kill me? Or bring me to someone who will?”

The soldier did give an answer this time, though her voice became much raspier than before.

“Oh, no. Quite the contrary.”

The Autobot squatted down, increasing the pressure on the minicon. “You mentioned Prime earlier, alongside this urgent mission of sorts. What was that all about?”

“Ngh–Nothing! Nothing you need to worry about!” she spoke with a strained voice.

“Oh? So you don’t need to see Optimus as soon as possible?”

“T–That’s not wha–achk!”

Scorpia tried to wiggle her tail free, but it was pinned down just as quickly. The claw twitched under the weight.

“Tell you what, snippy.” The weight shifted. “I stay true to my word and keep you alive, and in turn, you promise to never do that thing with your stinger on me again. Understood?”

A moment of silence passed before a frustrated sigh broke it.

“Good. Now, before I back off, there’s a few questions I’d like answered. For starters: who are you?”

Before she could get an answer, a sudden droning noise made her look up at the sky, only to see a flying shape rapidly approaching. It began to shoot lasers, causing the Autobot to cry out in pain. It also gave Scorpia enough of an opening to break free and continue fighting back harder than before.

Despite their small size, the bigger bot struggled to properly land a hit, mostly focused on avoiding any more stings. But just as she managed to temporarily  shake them off, a pair of data cables wrapped around her torso and lifted her up to dangle over the creek.

The cables coiled around the body tightly, threatening to squeeze the life out of her. The Autobot’s eyes refused to stay shut, if only to know who would be the one to snuff out her spark.

She would not have to wait long as the ‘con in question emerged from the trees, calmly approaching. Before the deed could be done, the red bot managed to cough out one last word.

“…S–Soundwave?”

The data cables suddenly loosened as he recognized the voice, lowering the would–be–corpse on the ground and retracting soon after.

“Well, this is a surprise.” A cough. “Didn’t think you were still alive.”

The spymaster pondered the implications of those words. Whatever this ‘reset’ was, it did much more than just bring him back to the past.

He tapped the insignia on her chest in curiosity.

A smirk crept up. “All you need to know is that the Autobot Mayday survived the crash landing with very little physical damage. That, and the others in this perimeter will show up if we take too long.” Her voice fluctuated during the sentence, loosing the rasp in the middle.

The minicons ceased their onslaught by now, and Laserbeak even began to circle his previous target. Scrorpia was much less enthused.

“That’s…not an Autobot, then.”

Soundwave nodded.

“So, who are you?”

“Makeshift. I would say it’s a pleasure, but seeing as we're already off to a bad start I’d rather hold off on lying.”

She covered face with her claws, muttering something you could call a swear. “This just keeps getting better, doesn’t it?”

“And that reminds me,” he began. “What was your name again?”

“I only promised not to freeze you, not give you my name. I can’t afford to reveal myself any more than I already–”

[––I’m Scorpia, a kronoformer sent to deal with temporal disturbances which threaten reality as we know it.—]

“…well screw you!”

Makeshift let out a curious hum. “That’s question number one. Number two: what’s that got to do with Prime?”

She contemplated something internally, then groaned. “Fine. Not like I have much of a choice.”

The three other bots listened closely.

“Soundwave, remember how I said that you weren’t meant to be here? That’s because…I was supposed to bring someone else: Optimus Prime, the last of the lineage of Primes. And I might have succeeded if that thing didn’t show up and try to eat me!”

“ ‘Thing’.”

“Some kind of Predacon, maybe? It looked too glossy to be a regular one–too persistent. Whatever it did to Soundwave caused him to unravel amidst all the chaos, and without a different option, we linked up and travelled to a stable point in the timeline. Or so I thought.”

The shifter turned to his fellow Decepticon, who confirmed the validity of that statement. “...well then. Explains why you disappeared from the face of the earth."

“Bringing you here was…really more an accident than anything. One I only mildly regret,” she said.

“Alright, number three: who sent you here?”

“Would you believe me if I said Vector Prime?”

“No.”

“Then don’t worry about it.”

A period of silence fell over the quartet, only broken by Makeshift’s hum.

“Final question: why should you continue to live?”

Her face went pale. “What?”

She yelped as a pair of cables encircled her like snakes, crackling with electricity. There was no way out that didn’t involve fried circuits and charred internals.

“You said I’d be kept alive!” The cables tightened. “You promised!”

“I did. He didn’t.”

Scorpia wracked her brain for something–anything to use to her advantage. It was really hard to do with enclosing static and constant shrilling causing distractions. She shut her eyes tight, deciding it was all or nothing.

“You’ll disappear!"

The crackling stopped. As did Laserbeak’s shrills. This was as good a chance as any.

“Yeah! Thanks to my abilities, we don’t have to worry about any more sudden kerfuffles related to our situation, heh.”

The appendages haven’t budged.

“I–If you destroy me now, there will be nothing keeping you stable,” she continued. “You’ll go back to being a glitchy, splintered mess barely clinging to existence.”

Soundwave knew it was a bluff. It had to be a bluff.

“Do you really wanna risk it?”

He did not.

The cables returned to their sockets, letting the kronoformer breathe a huge sigh of relief. The deployer quieted down as well, though traces of distress were still present.

“Congrats, you proved you’re still useful,” Makeshift said. “Let’s see how long it lasts.”

The scorpion frowned. “I don’t like you.”

The shifter grinned. “Feeling’s mutual.”

A map was displayed on Soundwave’s visor, detailing a large energy signature coming from the East Coast.

Makeshift raised an eyebrow. “The Leviathan, right? I’m sure Lord Starscream will be thrilled to see you again.”

“…Lord Starscream?” Scorpia asked. “That can’t be right. Shouldn’t he be the second-in-command at this point in time?”

He began to fidget uncomfortably. “Things…happened. See for yourself when you get there.”

While Soundwave began typing out the coordinates, Makeshift observed the scorpion more closely. He thought something over, then held out a hand.

“Link up.”

The demand startled her. “W–Why should I?”

“A bright thing like you will stick out too much on him. If you want to blend in, you’ll need a palette swap.”

The sentence bounced in her head a couple times before she could oblige. If Laserbeak was anything to go off of, this would be a necessary sacrifice to make. Scorpia could not afford selfishness, not when too much went wrong already.

She transformed and connected with Makeshift. His eyes started glowing white, as did Scorpia’s screen. Soon enough, radiant gold dulled into darkened indigo, while the screen finally settled on purple.

“That’s better,” he said. “Now you’ll fit right in.”

The connection broke and she jumped down, admiring her new color scheme. Her pincers and abdomen gained a purple hue and pink eyes became red. “A little moody, but not bad.”

As the ground bridge finally opened, Soundwave collected the minicons and prepared to leave, catching a final glance at the shifter.

“If you ever come back here, be sure to do so at sunset. The view is pretty nice,” Makeshift spoke, his voice changing back to match his look with each word. “And watch out for the Terrorcons. They get pretty active at this hour.”

The spymaster stood for a bit longer, taking in all the information up until now. Once the footsteps of Makeshift–now Mayday–became distant, he took a step forward and passed through.

It was time to visit their new base.

Chapter Text

Soundwave never knew what walking through a proper graveyard felt like.

He had no reason for it, really. Loss of sparks included loss of processing power, an act which offered less than desirable data in the end. That didn’t stop the various related rumours which had practically no ground to stand on outside of, from what he could gather, looks and ‘vibes’ to manifest. As disappointing as that sounded, they lasted well into the war before petering out, and as such he would always look fondly on those times and the advantages they gave. But it still didn’t change his lacking knowledge on actual graveyards.

As he walked through the ruined streets of what was once Central City, however, Soundwave believed he might have an idea of what it didn’t feel like.

Makeshift wasn’t lying–the streets were filled with Terrorcons of all shapes and sizes, stumbling around aimlessly; groans, wails and moans could be heard from afar, giving the surroundings a haunting background noise. They moved slowly for now, but it was far from the fastest speed they could muster. 

The city itself has seen better days. Ruined buildings and broken signs littered the ground so much so that certain roads became invisible underneath all the rubble. The damages varied by the area, but it was pretty clear that no living thing passed through here in a while.

(If any similarities to Cybertron came to mind, he discarded them as fast as they formed.)

It was difficult to imagine such chaos and depravity in a place where those that passed could rest in peace. So he didn’t, and instead continued to carefully maneuver around the blocks, trying not to attract too much attention. When it became clear that the fallen debris and unstable terrain would be an obstacle in that regard, he opened a ground bridge to one of the higher buildings in the area.

He bridged from one building to another, observing the areas below with mild interest as to how such hordes managed to rise in the first place. Different scenarios crossed his mind before a giant shape in the sky made him pause.

It was here, on an abandoned roof with nothing but wandering birds spooked into flying away, where he was finally able to see it.

The Decepticon starship Leviathan, floating in the air with as much of a presence and power as Soundwave remembered it.

The same starship that was destroyed by Autobot saboteurs eons ago, never leaving the hangar it was being constructed in. To think that the finished product would only come to be in this very peculiar situation was as close to a silver lining as they could currently get.

But that was enough reminiscing for now–Soundwave needed an in. Sensing restlessness from the minicons, he deployed Laserbeak and Scorpia to scout ahead and provide visuals; the latter took longer to leave, side eyeing the bigger bot before scaling down the building. Then came scanning for any life signals nearby. Being so close to the vessel, it would make sense that patrols would occur, even if by a small amount. No matter how easy the actual entry would be, every possible factor had to be ensured, even if it did nothing more than add information to his ever-expanding trove.

Other than the expected guards, three signals popped up not too far from here. Two of them behaved as usual, yet the third was…strange. It popped in and out of range, and the energy levels couldn't be properly articulated. It resembled the readings one would receive from–

A loud clang was heard from the same direction, followed by a series of crashes that got louder and louder until the building Soundwave was standing on began to crumble. He leapt onto different roofs, then jumped back to the ground as those too got destroyed by the crashes.

Dust spread throughout the block, making it hard to see the aftermath of the architectural dominoes. In turn, the spymaster performed another scan to check if any Terrorcons were on the way. Readings showed several of them advancing towards him, yet the approaching sounds made that very clear regardless.

A small noise came from the wreck, becoming less muffled as it dug through the pile of rubble. A mangled shape with purple biolights emerged, lunging at the nearest bot it saw with a shriek.

Soundwave dodged the attack, sprinting away from the Terrorcon and onto the messy and uneven terrain. The small group from earlier caught up quicker than expected, leaving trails of their sickly lights as they streaked through the dust cloud. One of them tackled the ‘con from the side to the ground and rolled around, only to be kicked off into a nearby building. Another tried to use this opportunity and sink its claws into him, but Soundwave swiftly dodged and sent the corpse back at the others.

He kept running, jumping and tripping  over whatever stood between him and the approaching sight of a cleaner, more open environment ahead. Once that accursed cloud was a thing of the past, the aerial took flight in an instant, locked on the enclosing spacecraft.

One that turned blurry as one of the husks grabbed onto his thruster, bringing them back down just in time for something blunt to collide with his body, sending him flying sideways into a dirt pit filled with broken down ship parts. When he came to, a Terrorcon bigger than its peers stood over him, whose hammer-arm swung limply as it stalked forward. The rest of them were closing in, ready to strike at any moment.

It was then that a series of blasts cleared the smaller creatures in one fell swoop, tearing their bodies apart alongside any wreckage close by. Soundwave didn’t get much time to watch as the goliath brought down its hammer, causing him to move out of the way and book it towards the flimsy tunnel-like ship piece.

Just as he turned to properly face the opponent, a being of grey and purple phased into existence, rushing past him to counter the next swing with another large hammer. With a shout, the mystery bot pushed the creature away, then swung with such force that split apart its plating, taking it down for good.

Everything was still for a moment; the lack of noise indicated that Terrorcons will no longer pose a problem. The second hammer wielder turned around and Soundwave flinched in surprise.

The bot in front of him was a Decepticon, a strong one at that. Grounder, judging by the tires. His clawed hand grasped the weapon tightly, only loosening the grip for a split second. Circular biolights pulsed warmly, accompanying Soundwave’s in lighting up the shaded spot they both stood in.

The ‘con’s purple eyes were fixed on the spymaster, flicking to different parts of his frame as if looking for something. It reminded the slimmer bot how he no longer felt any ache from the previous hit, despite there being no room for even a quick patch up. Curious.

The other’s gaze landed behind him, growing more and more perplexed by the minute. After not finding what was supposedly meant to be there, he looked at Soundwave’s empty face and cocked his head. Soundwave copied him.

This behaviour was unusual, but not unexpected. Not if the Decepticon in front of him truly was–

“Flatline!” 

A familiar voice rang out, followed by a pair of approaching engines. Two vehicles–blue and red–pulled up to the pit and transformed near the edge. They stomped up to their comrade displeased, one much more so than the other.

“Can’t you at least sound off before leaving us in the literal dust? Now that would be unexpected, seeing as you’re allergic to any ounce of–”

The second familiar voice halted in surprise, finally noticing who was standing behind Flatline. So did Soundwave step forward–still being observed–to properly see some old faces.

To see Knock Out and Breakdown, staring at him with wide wide eyes and gaping mouths, bearing different features than last time.

“Is that…?”

“Soundwave!”

Breakdown was the first to budge, coming up to him in an awkward yet speedy fashion, face still covered in disbelief. The obvious new thing about him was the giant shoulder cannons that shot harpoons from the looks of it. The alt. mode seemed different as well.

“Where have you been? Your signal’s been offline for over a year now! We thought you kicked it or something!”

“Or he did the smart thing and scrambled his comms to enjoy a private vacation. Not everyone has that luxury.”

Outside of muted tones and more golden accents, Knock Out hasn’t changed all that much. The vehicle mode was similar enough, the movements, the posturing…the lackadaisical attitude towards his job.

“Not everyone likes burning fuel on races and drive-ins either, doc,” Breakdown said.

“I know. Tragic," said Knock Out as he got closer to the other three. “So, what made you hit the road? Doesn’t seem like your style these days.”

Soundwave pointed at his former vantage point, causing Breakdown to grimace in shame.

“Oooh, my bad,” he said. “I got a little carried away with knocking that thing out, didn’t I?”

“You think? This is going to take hours to clean out, you know! What with all the mud and grime and–heugh.” The racer made motions with his arms, his faceplates scrunching up in disgust. “Not to mention this joker over here hitting the gas and leaving us to eat it.”

Flatline hummed, not paying much attention to his fellow medic’s words.

“…who’s also being unusually quiet today.” Knock Out clapped his hands. “Hey!”

That got him to snap out of it, finally turning to face the other bot. “Yes?”

“You can ogle our communications chief later, there’s still samples to collect.”

As he was passing by, Knock Out noticed a missing element from Soundwave’s chest.

“Say, did you come alone or…?”

On cue, a droning noise accompanied Laserbeak’s descent from the sky, flying around two of the grounders before settling back on Soundwave’s chest.

“Laserbeak sure is zippier than before.” Breakdown noted with squinted eyes. A tiny skimper distracted him from thinking much of it, turning around to see another minicon stumble to a stop with wide eyes.

“And who’s this little guy?”

The others turned around to see Breakdown kneeling in front of a dark metallic scorpion, whose eyes drifted back and forth between him and the spymaster. Knockout and Flatline exchanged glances, and Soundwave prepared to play the recording again. 

But before he got to do that, she let out a series of beeps and pulses, detailing a different story than before. One that conveniently left out any traces of their little trip and replaced them with events that, admittedly, served as fine enough alternatives to what actually happened that Soundwave found himself faintly impressed with Scorpia's continued craftiness.

The brusier blinked, internally going over the contents before looking at the little one for confirmation, then back at her host.

“’Zori’?”

The minicon piped an affirmative, then squinted at the spymaster, daring him to try and play anything. After a second of staring, Soundwave gave a begrudging nod.

“In that case, welcome to the ‘cons, bud.” He lowered his arm for the scorpion to climb on. “Keep that stinger sharp, ok? You never know when a good poke is needed.”

“Nowhere near my finish, obviously.” He turned to leave, motioning with his hand. “Come on, Soundwave.”

“What?” Flatline asked. “Leaving so soon?”

“To get this gunk buffed out, yes. Besides, someone needs to play tour guide for our disappearing act runner-up. Why not kill two birds with one stone, as the locals say?”

“You’ll come back later…right?”

He waved his partner off. “I’ll try to remember. Now get to it.”

Breakdown sighed, setting down their new member. “At least we got some lying around here. Come on, help me with the big guy.”

Flatline gave one last glance at Soundwave before joining the other bot in sample-collecting.

Knock Out eyed him too. “Never took you for a looker. Shall we?”

The two Decepticons made their way towards the city center, passing through the much-less-damaged park. The stark contrast between the near intact and empty space of it and everything else Soundwave came across was almost night and day.

“You got lucky no Reckoners showed up today. Took forever to kick the last one’s tailpipe back to where it came from. The one time Flatline gets held up on a mission…anyway, if we look to our left, we’d see hangar uplinks scattered about the nearby sector, which help us transfer back the loot faster. Up there is a small ramp that helped land Deadheat in the medbay for a few days, and right ahead is the entrance to the main attraction.”

The medic’s voice was as enthusiastic as a stormy sky was clear. They went up a busted staircase and came upon two mobile Vehicons standing guard next to a ground portal. The soldiers gave a salute, moving out of the way for them to pass. Knock Out stepped in right away, while Soundwave took a moment to stare at it before following suit.

In an instant, the scenery changed from an open sky and abandoned buildings to a circular enclosed room, with red lights embedded in the support beams for better visibility. Upon exit, the duo were greeted with a spacious hub area with two other rooms on each side of the platform, as well as several overhead walkways connected to the upper floor. The right led to the hangar, while a different yellow portal was locked behind a field to the left. 

On the opposite side lay a sharp, tunnel-like space bridge, elevated and much more elaborately designed than a simple circle they usually appeared as. A staticky purplish-yellow hologram of a continent flickered right in front of it; several locations came and went by.

Soundwave took in the atmosphere of the place; the red, purple and yellow lights that lit up the dark metal walls; the hum of the ship’s engines that echoed all the way here. He noted every detail because, unlike his brief trip to the cluster of lakes and mountains, this was something he didn’t consider useless.

“Welcome aboard, Soundwave,” Knock Out said, standing to the side with one hand on his hip. “If you think this is riveting, you’ve yet to see the rest.”

He motioned to one of the lifts on each side of the chamber they exited and led them to the next floor, where the tour truly kicked off.

Already, the atmosphere couldn’t be more different than outside. These halls held life, from the faint scratches and scorch marks scattered about, to the rumbunctious laughter and commanding yells which could be heard from nearby sectors.

The ship’s crew they encountered were by no means strangers: every one of them had been a useful contribution to the cause, one way or another. Destructive, efficient, and ruthless, they served their purposes well enough and were rewarded with lack of deactivation. Though that mattered little considering the startled looks with varying levels of concealment sent Soundwave’s way; he might as well have killed them right then and there.

Each chamber they passed and each glimpse of a bot they caught made the drab, almost clinical feel of what the Nemesis became pale in comparison. Old warriors and new Vehicons alike walked around with an energy not seen in ages.

The Leviathan thrived and it showed.

As the tour was coming to a close, the two bots entered a quiet period. The hallway they were in matched them in volume, with only the echo of their footsteps as exceptions. 

“Where did you disappear off to?” Knock Out asked, finally breaking the silence. “One would think that out of everyone, you’d be the first to get back in contact with the ship.”

Soundwave remained quiet. The little stopwatch managed to render his previous recordings useless with her last-minute thinking, and Makeshift’s involvement only complicated things further. Still, despite having the means to shift things back in his favour, a strong part of him remained curious as to how long they could keep this ruse going before the truth came out. A stronger part of him that dreaded how her bluff might not be a bluff at all was also present.

That, and hardly anyone would believe it anyway. Not everyone was willing to roll with the idea of a time-traveling minicon like the shifter was. Breakdown might, but clueing him in would bring very little advantages.

“Hm. Worth a try.”

The two Decepticons stopped in front of a large door, thick only in looks if the muffled shouting was anything to go by. The medic let out an exasperated sigh, seemingly recognizing the source of the voices.

“I suppose it’s that time again,” Knock Out said, already turning to leave. “Enjoy the filtered experience. It only gets worse from here.”

Soundwave briefly watched the medic leave, his gait getting faster and faster the farther he went. With a peaked curiosity, he turned his attention to the room ahead, stepped forward into the unknown and stopped almost immediately.

“I implore you, my fellow compatriot, to think about something other than yourself for once in your life.”

The fairly large space contained a small seating area, accompanied by an insignia-bearing table at the center. It was split apart from the middle, displaying various locations and symbols, which indicated that the intended use was for planning and operations–a war room, if he were to guess. In front of it stood the arguing figures, whom Soundwave recognized immediately.

“And I, my dear associate, ask of you to cease the hypocrisy and accept the pointlessness of your plan.”

Firstly, there was Starscream, looking like he might strangle the closest thing around. Apart from dashes of red, blue and black, the air commander’s form was nigh identical, differing only in slight details and parts. The bot next to him however, was what stole Soundwave’s attention.

“Pointless? You call having the Autobots outnumbered pointless!?”

A taller, bulkier figure clad in blues, golds, greys and a touch of red stared imposingly at his colleague with clenched fists. This was Switchblade, the captain of the Leviathan and a fearsome commander of his own armada. Just like his ship, the captain’s fate was sealed within the ambush too, never to conquer the stars nor take flight ever again.

“We already overpower them, and getting rid of weak links won’t change that. Not with dark energon and an operational vessel at our side.”

Soundwave diverted his attention to the four other bots sitting at the table.

Swindle: a reliable supplier and the right leg of the combiner Bruticus. Gold with some purple patterns and a shiny visor. The Combaticon was leaning on his elbow, reading a datapad that most likely detailed shipments and other such reports.

“‘Operational’? Ha! Maybe if you hadn’t damaged your own ship in the fray, we would still be able to traverse the skies instead of floating above this infested corpse of a city!”

Flamewar: the wildcard go-getter with a wide array of skills who currently looked bored out of her mind. Black with fire decals and two wheels attached to her back. She rested her chin in her hands and vented out sighs.

“Need I remind you that it was my armada that rendered the Arclight asunder? Furthermore, the energon stockpile within this soil gives us a massive advantage when it comes to fuel, not even taking its dark variant into account.”

Mismatch: a notorious scavenger and an undertaker’s worst nightmare. Black and green with a somewhat uneven looking frame. He was leaning on the table, picking at loose seams in his plating.

“…well, need I remind you that the overuse of that sickening substance could do our troops more harm than good? I was there during its first trials, Switchblade, I know exactly how that would look like!”

Astraea: a destructive risk taker with a penchant for explosives, composed even in the face of a botched meeting. Blue and cyan, broad shouldered. She drummed her fingers against the cold surface, posture straight and gaze sharp.

Sharp enough to be the first to notice the spymaster’s presence in the room, her composure breaking for but a split second. The drumming stopped, making Flamewar turn and follow her line of sight, straightening up with wide eyes upon her fellow general’s reason for staring. She swatted at Swindle, whose annoyance turned to surprise at the new appearance. Same with Mismatch, who got distracted at the clanging to his side.

“As do I–a culling of the weak. Fortunately, my crew is composed of only the most suitable Decepticons to handle such a force.”

“Your crew!?”

“Acting Commander.”

Starscream whipped around to face the voice. “What!?”

Astraea pointed behind him. The squabbling seekers both turned around and finally noticed Soundwave standing by the entrance. Starscream jumped with a yelp, while Switchblade simply stared in shock; the former quickly composed himself and cleared his throat.

“So it was your signal we picked up earlier.” He gave a nervous laugh. “Um, how long have you been standing there, exactly?”

[—I implore you, my fellow compatriot, to think about something other than–]

“Alright, yes, I understand!” Starscream spoke fast before composing himself again. “Not long, then.”

“You sure?” Flamewar asked. Her posture gained back some kick, but traces of boredom lingered still. “Felt like a whole mega-cycle.”

Starscream scowled at her, but gave no response.

“My apologies, Soundwave,” Switchblade carried on. “We were a tad preoccupied and couldn’t properly escort you inside. I do hope your entry was not a hassle in any way.”

Soundwave lightly shook his head.

“Good. Assuming it was indeed Makeshift that directed you here, I will get straight to the point.” He walked over to the table and pressed a button, causing the surface of it to glow and the displayed graphs to change. A map of Earth was projected in bright red, showcasing various little dots scattering towards the planet’s surface.

“While the Arclight lives only in memory and broken pieces, its passengers were not as unlucky. A worthy number of drop pods entered the atmosphere, some of which failed to retain their signals after touchdown. A perfect opportunity for us to smuggle in one of our own.”

The image flicked and changed to a photo of a broken pod cracked against a rock wall, surrounded by fallen trees and burnt grass. It zoomed in closer to reveal a lifeless body of an Autobot, whose red and grey plating became charred and broken down. The damage was nowhere near as bad as for it to be unrecognizable, but the ‘bot was most certainly deceased. Then it cut to a data log; her skillset, alt-mode and personality were displayed in great detail, with the name Mayday spelled next to a profile picture.

“Luckier landing than certain others, if you’d believe it.” Starscream said. “Her data banks managed to survive both the crash and the extraction with only little damage overall. More than enough to secure Makeshift’s cover for as long as necessary without raising suspicion."

“Little damage is still damage,” Mismatch spoke with a hiss, leisurely draping himself over the table. His claw traced the profile, circling the head, neck, and shoulders separately. “Even one little cut can unthread the whole thing.”

“Can’t always keep everything pristine,” Swindle said, leaning back with crossed arms. “As long as the essentials are bolted tight, we can afford to cut corners and focus on the main task at hand.”

“For once, we agree on something,” Starscream said reluctantly. “The Autobots are at a heavy disadvantage. At this moment, the tides of war have turned in our favour.” He held out his hand as the words came, clenching it into a fist at the end. His now-huffy expression turned to Switchblade. “Of course, extra firepower is always appreciated in case something goes awry.”

The taller jet’s eyes narrowed. “That would imply something does go ‘awry’. Which it will not.”

Starscream bristled, but forced himself to remain rational and pulled Switchblade aside.

“I understand your god-complex impairs the function of your logic circuits, but I strongly suggest to grab onto what little common sense you have left and listen,” he said quietly enough for only the two of them to hear. “This is not about strength. It is about control.”

The general raised his eyebrow. “Oh?”

“Brute force will only get you so far. A soldier will easily do one’s bidding if one holds enough power over them. But to command a warrior? That requires a slightly different method, wouldn’t you say?”

“…go on.”

The shorter jet allowed himself a low chuckle. “There are many ways to hold power over someone. Torture, killing–all effective in their own right…but not many are clever enough to pull the strings attached to the backs of others.”

“Would me pulling yours help you cut to the point?”

“I am getting there. As of now, eight of our own are missing with no way to locate them. A small number in the grand scheme of things, but that is not how the rest of the crew will see it. To them, it’s a sign that we do not acknowledge relations as something valuable, and instead encourage disposing of those that have outlived their use. Now, pray tell, how would that reflect on our relations as their superiors?”

“We would be inviting a coup to our doorstep.” Switchblade said with both eyebrows furrowed.

“Indeed. Those Decepticons have…connections with some troops here. A morale boost plus an increase of firepower, together with a grateful legion that owes you for your generosity? You would be a fool to miss out on that opportunity, Switchblade.”

Switchblade didn’t reply or meet his gaze.

“A leader is nothing without those compliant enough to obey.” Starscream spoke in a low tone. His expression was stern for a bit, until a dark smile crept up his face. “You wish to achieve ascendency? Then start gathering worshipers for if that day comes.”

Neither said anything for a while. Starscream simply walked back to the table with a barely concealed smugness on his face, waiting for the spaced out jet to return.

“Switchblade? Don’t tell me you made up just as we were starting a betting pool.”

Ignoring Flamewar’s remark, Switchblade turned back to the others. “I was simply considering the right approach to take regarding our missing troops."

The other generals all perked up at that. “So you are in support of this plan after all?” Astraea questioned.

“I am,” he said. “But my sudden change of mind won’t matter if only one of us agrees to it.”

One exchange of looks later, three pairs of eyes and a visor were on the flyer duo.

“I can see the logic in it,” Swindle started, though he couldn’t help but glance at the data pad every few seconds. “More of us means less chances of excess cargo. Not unlike what this son of a…”

“We could always make do, Swindle,” Mismatch drawled. “But yes, I don’t see why not. Our lost allies can still be of use…alive or not.”

“Am I the only one who sees this for the Starscream ego-trip that it is?” Flamewar asked. “Also, isn’t Contagion on that list? I don’t want him taking back the seat from my new bestie Astraea!” She raised a hand to high five the grounder, who just side-eyed her judgementally.

“I refuse to indulge you. My time would be better spent spilling energon than listening to you prattle on about Arcee for an eternity.”

“…nevermind, you suck actually. Go bring Connie back.”

Astraea turned her attention back on track. “However, I do assent. No matter the motivation, such a task is sure to bring a decent set of challenges.”

“Excellent!” Starscream exclaimed happily. “We shall begin the search soon enough. Soundwave, can I entrust you with the bulk of this endeavor? Consider it an exercise to help you settle in better.”

Soundwave nodded, causing the generals–who forgot he was even present–to flinch in surprise.

“Now, with that taken care of–”

“–time to rise up!” Flamewar exclaimed as she got up from her seat and started to walk away from the table.

“Whe–You–Wha–Where do you think you’re going!? This meeting is not yet over!” Starscream sputtered.

“Those target ranges aren’t gonna shoot themselves,” came a casual reply.

“As your leader, I order you to–!”

“Yeah, yeah, call me when our true master re-appears from the aether. Until then, I shall excuse myself, o’ glorious emperor of destruction.” She gave a mock bow, then properly left the room.

Starscream growled. “I swear, if she wasn’t so competent in the field…”

“Well, if we’re really done here, I won’t bore you much longer,” Swindle said, beginning to leave as well. “There’s some hiccups with our recent shipment; I need to have a chat with Hotwire about his contacts.”

The Combaticon’s irritated jog only made the Seeker’s equally irritated face gain a scowl. “Did I not just say that–what–Mismatch!?”

“Irritated a seam. I’ll have it patched up,” the scavenger hissed and left.

Starscream bowed his head with a frustrated sigh, then slowly turned to look at the last seated general. She had made no move to stand up, calmly watching her commander with one hand clasped over the other.

“…you’re not accompanying them?”

“I am not one to disobey my superiors so easily.” Despite Astraea’s tone, a small smirk began to creep up her lips. “But I fail to see the point in continuing the meeting if half of us are not present.”

The Seeker groaned and wordlessly pointed at the exit. Astraea got up and walked away, brimming with satisfaction.

“At least nothing broke this time,” he mumbled.

Switchblade’s side glance was equally as judgy as it was cocky. “One of our better meetings, I must say.”

“Will you just leave already!?”

The taller jet huffed but obliged, bowing his head to Soundwave in respect on the way out.

And so, there were two; left and right hands of a warlord whose lack of a presence could be felt the entire meeting. The air stiffened around them, like it lost whatever was keeping it fresh and pleasant. This only made Starscream’s tension stand out even more than it already did.

“As you can see, their trust in my capabilities is still a work in progress. Something that will be resolved in due time, I assure you.” He turned to face Soundwave, spotting a new addition on his arm. “It appears you haven’t come empty handed either. A chance encounter, or did Laserbeak’s services prove unsatisfying?”

The minicon fidgeted on Soundwave's chest once or twice before stopping. Starscream seemed surprised, but decided not to comment. Instead, he turned away with arms folded behind his back.

“Regardless, I am sure you have many questions,” he said. “But let us address the most glaring one first.”

He began to pace around.

“We lost contact with the Nemesis sometime before our arrival here. There was no warning…only radio silence. I was sent away for a time, and thus escaped the fate that ensnared the rest of its crew…except you–the only passenger that returned from whatever oblivion our master found himself in.”

The spymaster stiffened, already bracing for what the next words of the former second-in-command would be as he turned back around.

“Yes. Megatron has disappeared…and so has the old Decepticon regime.”