DEFY YOU

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Warning: Depictions of war.

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"Wouldn't let it show,"

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"Megatron no doubt has the Spacebridge repaired, or it is nearing completion," Optimus spoke from his place at the computers, his men facing him. Amongst them were the human commanders, taking their places as they listened in. Agent Fowler stood on the catwalk, his normally stern face pressed into an even more intense glower, his anger noticeably simmering below the surface. The entire room crackled with anticipatory electricity, because they knew this was their stand against Megatron. Something within Optimus Prime had snapped, however he did not seem aware of this change. Regardless, Starscream used caution even with the lack of a Spacebridge; Optimus, on the other hand, found it the perfect time to attack while the Decepticons had limited resources.

"This means it is not long before he begins utilizing Decepticon forces on Cybertron to retaliate against humanity, a mobilization we cannot allow to occur," he continued. "Bulkhead, you will accompany Bumblebee with another human task force on the ground. You are to be the first deployment and infiltrate Darkmount, destroy its core, and cut off all power before Megatron utilizes the fusion cannons. Ultra Magnus, you will take the Iron Will, and Wheeljack the Jackhammer, for an aerial assault on the western flank of Darkmount. I will also take to the air with a human squadron and we will attack from the east, scattering Decepticon forces on both sides. Our distraction should draw the Decepticons away from our ground forces; by the time the fusion cannons have had a chance to charge, Bulkhead should succeed in destroying its core. Finally, Jazz . . ." the mech shifted, already well aware of his assignment, "you are tasked with extracting Mirage from Darkmount.

"Rafael, I trust you will infiltrate Darkmount's technical defenses and keep Soundwave as blind as possible. Use whatever means you are capable of to ensure he does not see our ground units."

The young man nodded stiffly, his cheeks pale and eyes rimmed a deep red. "You got it, sir," he said thickly.

Vince stood next to Miko, his gun of choice - shotgun - strapped across his back. She stood with a hateful look on her face, lips turned down as she grit her teeth and gazed at the bag of explosives at her feet, likely fantasizing about the various kabooms that were going to go off. He did not blame her, well aware that the Jasper doctors were likely filing a complaint with Agent Fowler right now about how he was insisting on deployment; it was time to show those 'cons they meant business.

Vince was not sad that Jack had been brutalized. The pair of them were not friends, despite having spent a majority of their school life together and frequently bumping into one another in this post-apocalyptic bunker. If anything, he was angry, having seen the chaos in the ER from his place in the trauma bed. He heard the screaming, the wails of a mother who could have lost her son. The bully had snuck into the room to see exactly what condition Jack was in, maybe even offer to send Sierra his way.

Vince was lucky he had not thrown up. Though Jack's markings were unique, Vince recognized them - he had seen similar on his mother when his father would have "flare-ups." He remembered wanting to kill the old man, and he still did, yet he found a more appropriate outlet for his feelings.

He did not care about Jack, but he cared about victims, and he would not let Megatron get away with his abuse.

So, there he was, stationed with Miko Nakadai, who looked equally as ready to lay the hate on the Decepticons. He did not care for the part where he had to work with Bulkhead and Bumblebee, but whatever. If they got caught in his crossfire, so be it.

"We're ready, sir," Colonel Lennox gestured to his squadron, some of them wearing a mix of military gear and civilian clothing. Vince had elected for a happy middle ground, not wanting all the weight of armor that would most certainly do nothing against a well-placed shot, but also not crazy enough to run out in just pants and a t-shirt. Miko, on the other hand, was perfectly fine in her military boots, leggings, shorts, and shirt, and leather jacket, a simple .45 handgun at right hip and a small armor of clips circling her waist.

Optimus Prime nodded, displaying a map on the screen. On it were several routes, Vince counting the turns swiftly and absorbing as much of it as humanly possible. Bumblebee twittered confirmation Rafael gazing at his guardian whilst his fingers hovered over the keyboard.

"Be careful, Bee," he said, feeling more tears well up in his eyes.

"I will. And I will come back." His guardian promised, Rafael nodding before pressing the button.

The Groundbridge whirred to life.

"Autobots, roll out!" Optimus commanded, pointing with a clawed servo towards the bridge. Bumblebee went first, his cannons out as Bulkhead charged after him, Lennox signaling to his squadron that it was time.

Vince noted Miko in his peripheral vision as they charged forward with six other members. The bag of explosives was slung over her back, ready to be used whenever they were ready. They leapt through the Groundbridge, arriving on the other side after a brief moment of dizzying, nauseating travel, the young man shaking his head to reorient himself.

The halls of Darkmount were poorly lit, their grey coloring making it difficult for his human eyes to adjust properly. Rafael had dropped them off in what appeared to be a hallway, Bumblebee already taking care of two Vehicon soldiers. Vince slung his shotgun around, the weapon settling in his hands as his finger rested against the safety.

Miko glanced around, her eyes eventually working their way up to her partner. "Lead the way, Bulk."

Nodding, the Wrecker signaled to Bumblebee, the pair of Cybertronians moving forward. Colonel Lennox signaled to his own human team, Vince keeping his eyes peeled for any suspicious activity. Though he could not hear anything just yet, he assumed Rafael had already sent in Jazz's team and was currently sending in the air reinforcements. Realizing they could very well see Megatron himself made his skin crawl, however he steeled his nerves.

That mech was the whole reason he decided to go on this suicide mission - so he could never again hurt a living creature.

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Jazz landed on quiet pedes on the metallic floor, aiming his gun and sweeping across the prison hall to clear it of any hostiles while his human allies came through. They assumed this was where the Decepticons would keep Mirage, however Jack's presence had left Jazz with several questions. Optimus had found Ratchet with him, the medic already offlined and Jack clinging to life while Megatron towered over him. Mirage was nowhere to be found.

Did Jack liberate himself? If so, why did he not save Mirage? Had Ratchet rescued him, but not the Autobot? Or did Mirage free Jack, at the cost . . . of his own spark?

Jazz could not afford to believe his protégé was offline, not until he saw it himself. Maybe Mirage was hiding, waiting for an opportunity to escape.

The Autobot saboteur glanced up at the cameras around Darkmount. He trusted Rafael was doing his job, keeping Soundwave blind to their activities; however, he needed to be cautious.

"There is a main terminal here," Jazz informed them, optics scanning the prison block. "It will open all the doors and we can cover more ground. But it will alert Soundwave to our location. We need to make this fast."

"Just tell us what to do, boss," the human commander informed him, the Autobot nodding and signaling for them to wait by the doors.

Jazz turned, finding the terminal near the entrance to the prison, quickly rushing to it and beginning to scan its various buttons and command keys for the one he wanted. The Decepticon characters were positively ugly, however due to his work of choice - sabateuring - he had hundreds of different languages and codes stored in his processor.

Eventually the correct key popped out at him, pausing before he could press the button.

"Raf?" He called across the comlink. "I'm about to release all of the prison cells in Darkmount, and there is most certainly going to be an alarm triggered. Any way you can silence it before we tip off every Decepticon within this galaxy?"

"On it." Came his swift confirmation. There were several moments pause, then his comlink channel opened again. "Alarm is disabled. You're good to go."

"Gracias, amigo," the Autobot ended the call, not daring to hold his breath as he opened the doors.

Everything swished open quickly, each soldier scanning every one swiftly, however one in particular made them gag. Jazz felt his spark swell with concern, preparing himself as he peered into the cell.

Mirage was not there, as he expected, however the mech was greeted with the site of what appeared to be a light massacre. Red blood stained the centre of the floor, tiny chains hanging from the walls, their use obvious. There was also bright blue energon swiped around, like someone had rolled around in it. Had Jazz not known better he would have thought some obscene activity had taken place here, though what actually happened was not much better.

Jack had been tortured here, that much was obvious.

However, if that was the case, then where was Mirage?

"He's not here," the mech said, voicing aloud the obvious and gazing at the carnage with extraordinary distaste, anger simmering beneath his words. "So that begs the question . . . where is Mirage?"

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Megatron snarled as the proximity sensors blared to life, warning the Decepticons of the oncoming boogies from the sky. The master was no fool, he knew exactly what was coming, especially since the traitorous Starscream's life signature popped up on the screen.

"Lord Megatron -" an ignorant drone began, his report interrupted by the command.

"Deploy all Seeker Vehicons!" Megatron snapped, gesturing with his Prime arm. "What is the status of our Spacebridge?"

"It is operational, my lord," a Vehicon reported. "However, we have yet to properly test -"

"I want Dreadwing and his Seekers here, now," Megatron left no room for argument, the murderous look in his optics all the subordinates needed to comply. His EM field pulsed with unbridled anger, the feeling suffocatingly palpable to anyone within a ten foot radius of the dictator. He watched as the massive portal swirled to life, connecting the two bridges and creating a much more stable vortex than what just one would provide.

From the depths first emerged Dreadwing, his narrowed red optics sliding shut as he bowed to his lord. Behind him came the last of the Seekers: Thundercracker, Skywarp, Ramjet, and Slipstream.

"Lord Megatron," Dreadwing acknowledged, gaze flickering to the flight deck as his audio receptors picked up the chaotic proximity sensors. "An Autobot attack?"

"Likely Optimus Prime seeking out revenge for the offlinement of his supposed friend," Megatron replied, his explanation as clipped as his tone. "Annihilate the humans. Devastate their forces, make them feel the might of our army! Decepticons, transform, and rise up!"

Dreadwing turned to his Seekers, a silent command wafting across his EM field and to their own. They were to do what they did best - seek, and destroy.

Megatron returned his attention to the Vehicons at the controls. "Fire up the fusion cannons, and point them at the nearest major metropolis within their radius. Humanity will come to regret attempting to challenge the champion of Kaon, Megatron!"

The drones complied, pressing several buttons and activating the fusion cannon protocols. The entire base shuddered, each weapon drawing immense power from the Darkmount tower. It would be some time before they were fully operational - several Earth minutes - but Megatron was not worried. They could afford a touch of patience.

"Increase security within Darkmount," he commanded. "I do not want any Autobot insects attempting to infiltrate our base, be it by ground or air."

"Yes, lord Megatron."

Satisfied, he strode towards the flight deck, well aware of the Star Saber strapped to his back. He stopped, gazing straight into the forces which dared to challenge the might of the Decepticons.

The attack was a surprise, for certain, and even unlike Optimus - but not unlike Starscream. He could not fathom how the Autobots managed such a fusion, and he was unable to discern if the concept was incredibly amusing to him, or annoying. Optimus Prime was supposed to die, to rust away alone on the very planet he had tried to take from its rightful ruler. Yet somehow he lived, and Starscream - Starscream - had managed to find this solution.

The neuron refractor was the only explanation, however he doubted Knock Out would be stupid enough to hand over such information to the sleezy Seeker. More than likely Starscream had the science project tucked away in that constantly-ticking head of his, if only so he could still say he was involved in both military and scientific matters.

Regardless, if they both chose to present themselves in one nice, neat little package for Megatron to destroy, he was not about to pass up the offer. Especially in something as reckless as a petty revenge mission.

He could not help but grin scathingly at the idea; Optimus would have never risked such a thing if the former medic had been alive. It was amazing, how death suddenly triggered such consternation, revealing the coveted care that had been denied to Ratchet while he still functioned.

Perhaps part of this retaliation was on Jack's behalf. It would come as a pleasant surprise if the human survived, as it meant he was hardier than Megatron gave him credit for. Then they could resume where they had left off, and he could show the organic what true pain meant.

Spotting Optimus Prime fly towards him, Megatron took off in a sprint, leaping off of the platform and allowing gravity to seize him, falling only briefly before transforming into his vicious Cybertronian jet, following his Seekers into battle.

Optimus barrel-rolled out of the way as a Vehicon model shot past him, well aware of the five higher-ranked Seekers, which split into two groups to take both sides of Darkmount. Two of them - Skywarp and Thundercracker - had taken this side, while the three others took off with a blast of engines towards the Iron Will and Jackhammer group.

Like a tale as old as time, the third party of their group joined them, Megatron's silver armor flashing in the setting sun. His engine purred, rumbling through the air with the Star Saber resting securely on his back half.

"That would be useful," Starscream mused, Optimus firing and taking out another Vehicon drone. "If, of course, we could obtain it without dying."

"We would have to lure Megatron out of the air," Optimus scanned Darkmount, trying to find a weakness amongst the chaos that was the air battle. Flying at high speeds had always been a dizzying process for him, yet Starscream's subconscious took over with ease, gliding through the air with the natural grace of his inheritance.

"Easier said than done, I suspect," laser fire slammed into their wings. "Scrap!"

Two Vehicons circled back around, attacking the Prime from behind with relentless fire. His shielding took a heavy hit, warnings informing him that he could not take much more of this before everything gave out.

Well, well, well. Long time no see, Starscream.

"Is that-?" Optimus questioned as the voice in his head groaned.

"Thundercracker." Stay out of my way.

Y'know, always wondered why the boss defected to the Autobots, Skywarp mused, sounding only minorly distracted, Optimus able to "look" out and see that they too were flying effortlessly. Especially since these insects are so . . . squishy. And grounders. Yet there you are, protecting their planet with the Autobots.

Leave the humans alone, both of you! Starscream snapped, Optimus having no idea how they were capable of this kind of communication. Whatever it was, all three of the squabbling beings were far from sidetracked, their external appearances as if none of it was occuring. I care not if you engage Autobots. But this quarrel is not with the humans, despite their involvement.

Honestly? Thank the Allspark, Thundercracker groaned. It's such an unnecessary waste of life - and bullets. What is with this massacre? What are you doing, Starscream?

Defeating Megatron, and properly restoring what is rightfully ours. I will not allow Vos to be desecrated more than it already has, Starscream replied with conviction, spinning to avoid more shots and cursing.

You know what? Boss is right. Screw Megatron! He's been nothing but a pain in my aft! Skywarp agreed. I say we revolt! Viva la revolution, or whatever it is you keep saying, 'cracker.

Viva la revolución, the large Seeker said with a terrible French accent, and a sigh. I concur. This senseless violence must come to an end. We followed Megatron because we trusted you, Starscream. And I trust your decisions now.

That's great. Now could you plea- Starscream's request was interrupted as one of the Vehicons unceremoniously exploded, a human fighter jet bursting through the smoke and spinning, righting itself as it glided around.

Optimus felt his spark stutter as the rescue jet plunged right back into the thick of battle, expertly weaving through wings and tails and blaster fire, arriving on the other side unscathed, taking out more Vehicons in its wake.

"Sierra." Starscream recognized the unnatural grace anywhere, his own teachings brought to life before his very optics. "I thought I told her she was to stay at base! Her injuries are too vast-"

"I am sure you have come to find that our human friends have a . . . difficult time listening to directions," Optimus sounded amused. "We must focus on our battle, Starscream. How are you . . . 'speaking' to the other Seekers?"

"Trine," came the single-word explanation, then Optimus' processor was filled with relevant information.

Seekers were fantastic fliers, that was for certain, however they were much stronger as a team than individuals; three was considered the magic number, just enough members to create a group, but not so many that they overwhelmed each other. Throughout training at the Academy they interacted with their three assigned trinemates, practicing combat techniques and formations they were expected to perform flawlessly. Throughout this the Seekers were to keep their EM fields open, transferring their thoughts and intentions through the subtleties of the EM changes, informing their trine without the slowness of comlinks or revealing knowledge to the enemy. With time, the intermingling of fields lead to what could only be described as a bond, and with it the development of their unique language.

Optimus realized he only understood the conversation because Starscream had been unconsciously translating everything. In the millions of years they fought alongside each other, Starscream, Thundercracker, and Skywarp had fine-tuned their EM fields to the point where they could hold entire conversations with one another. It explained how - and why - the "noisy" second-in-command had kept his EM field so widespread, only pulling it in when in the presence of his Decepticon master. Being so separated from his trinemates, brothers-in-arms, made him attempt to find them using their bond; as superficial as it truly was.

All of this information passed through Optimus in the span of a few seconds, snapping him back to reality as Starscream took down another Vehicon. They spun through the air again, Optimus searching for Megatron through the fray. The warlord's silver armor flashed in the sunlight, incessantly pursuing a particularly troublesome pilot.

"No!" Starscream threw data at Optimus, the Prime nearly falling out of the air as he was assaulted by commands, desperation, memories.

Throughout the three years of leading the Autobots, Starscream had been faced with many obstacles. Building trust amongst a faction he had killed members of was more difficult than almost anything else he had ever done. He did not miss any of the hateful remarks or gazes thrown his way by the humans either, finding that his involvement in the war was the only thing slowly giving him any sort of credibility. Jack, and his maternal unit June, tolerated him much better than any of their companions - he had rescued them after all. Yet another had risen above them, forging a relationship with Starscream by doing what he loved most - flying.

Sierra becoming a pilot was apparently a surprise, as she had informed him during one of their recon missions together that she had never envisioned herself being in the air. Yet the Seeker could see her mind was designed for it, taking in information with incredible speed and reacting within a singular moment faster than anyone else he had ever seen. She was willing to learn from him, becoming more of a Seeker than even the best of Cybertronians.

Optimus banked without another word, his wing tips scraping past another Vehicon as he pursued the Cybertronian jet who was opening fire on one of Starscream's few friends.

Sierra swore as purple energon bolts flew past her head, attempting to focus on what was in front of her while also avoiding the attacks coming from behind. She managed to tear a significant hole in the Vehicon forces, which was probably why Megatron was making it his personal mission to destroy her jet.

Her entire body felt as if it was locking up as she gripped her joystick, remembering it was not that long ago when she had been in a similar situation. Except this time, Megatron was not going to rip apart her jet gently - he was going to annihilate it swiftly.

Heart hammering in her chest, she scrambled to figure out a solution. It was only a matter of time before he was able to close in, and she needed to decide what she wanted to do. The idea of ejecting again scared her, terrified her, but the feeling was numbed by the anger in her chest when she remembered why she was here.

Revenge.

Miko had told her what happened. How they found Jack. The state of Ratchet - though she did not know him personally. What Megatron did to him.

With a scream she jerked her plane, the nose forced up at dizzying speeds that made her want to vomit. Her head spun, yet she kept a tight grip on her plane, and a keen eye on the many meters which helped her orient herself in space. Green eyes zeroed in on the jet which was now in front of her, opening fire with another yell of frustration.

Megatron spun, avoiding the bullets which he knew would pierce his armor once it cut through his shielding, snarling. The pest was clearly a trained pilot, one he thought he could easily deal with before engaging Optimus Prime. It would have served as a good warm-up, and lessened the casualties of his men, however they were proving to be more than just a quick elimination. The turn radius was impressive, but not nearly as good as his own.

Sierra gasped as the massive Cybertronian seemed to turn on a dime, his massive gun aimed directly at her. Without even a second thought she ejected, reacting so fast she did not realized she had been launched into the air until the cold air greeted her face.

Her plane shot forward, Megatron destroying it in a fiery blast that made her own burns itch, his silver body flying through it. Now that she was nothing more than a floating body in the air - at this point she realized her parachute had deployed - everything was moving at dizzying speeds.

An involuntary scream escaped her as a hand wrapped around her, drawing her close and nearly giving her whiplash as metal formed around her. She thrashed at first, feeling the strings of her parachute tug and then snap off of her back, landing in what appeared to be an F-15 Eagle, however it was . . . rather bulky.

"Who- what-" she was unsure what to say, trying to make sense of it. She spotted the Decepticon symbol on his steering mechanism. "You're not Starscream!"

"Affirmative, designation's Thundercracker," the Decepticon confirmed, his voice briefly staticy as he adapted to the English language. His alternate mode jered to the side as he avoided blaster fire. "I was instructed by him to get you to safety - not sure what the big deal is, but I'm stuck with you."

She raised an eyebrow, then frowned. "We need to get back to the battle!"

"Sorry, Starscream's instructions were clear, and I'm not in the mood to take orders from an organic. I'll put you back on the ground, where you belong, then-"

"No, I belong in this fight," she hissed, and without warning grabbed his controls. Thundercracker snarled, but she did not hesitate to jerk him to the other side, forcing him into a spin. She felt the belts around her chest tighten, trying to choke her out, but she refused to give in so easily. Leaning forward, she focused on the Vehicons in her line of sight, opening fire.

"Hey!" Thundercracker cursed at her, making to turn off his weapon's systems. Yet he paused, bewildered, as she blew apart Vehicons with relative ease. Even more unnerving was her ability to mimic Seeker dodging and attack maneuvers, the motions familiar to him even as he did not perform them, his jet mode flying without his permission and yet . . . he did not need to be in control. "How are you doing that?"

Her eyes narrowed slightly, not allowing her concentration to be broken. "I've learned a few things. Besides, you're the one keeping us in the air. Just let me go."

Thundercracker was almost tempted to, however after her failed stint with Megatron, he was more inclined to make sure she did not get them both killed.

"Fine, fine," he hissed, less angry than he was letting on. "We stay. Now take your grubby hands off. This is my alternate mode, I'm doing the steering. And the flying. And the shooting."

She took her hands off, holding them up and then crossing her arms.

"Fine," she parroted back to him, but quickly uncrossed her arms to grab something as he moved, needing to maintain at least some center of balance. Thundercracker dove back into the fray.

I thought I said-

I know exactly what you said, he told the annoyed Starscream, who he could not see, but they were close enough to sense. She said different. Rather persistent organic, reminds me of someone.

Keep her safe.

You got it boss. Just let me do my job.

Plunging back into battle, Thundercracker resumed what he was doing, unable to help a slight chuckle. Now he saw why Starscream had screamed at him to take her out of the air. She probably was not half bad.