Megatron's Human Pet

Chapter Twenty-One: Evolution

I don't know if we're in more trouble or if we're going somewhere important but Megatron has taken us to an abandoned mine. Not the same one as the first time but whatever is happening, I don't know if I'll like the outcome. We walked inside where Starscream seemed to have been thinking the same thing.

"My liege, who could have foreseen that my alternative supersoldier experiment would encounter technical difficulties?" Starscream chuckled nervously.

"Resulting in the loss of the Insecticon hive and over half our remaining troops!" Megatron reminded him. 

Starscream fell to his knees, "Forgive me, Master! My intentions were true! Please, please reconsider my termination!"

Megatron groaned and rolled his eyes. He walked away and we finally looked in front of Megatron to see Shockwave's off-sight laboratory. Starscream stood up and continued to walk behind Megatron. Well, I'm happy we're not being executed. 

"The Predacon clones have almost fully evolved and will be combat-ready within three solar cycles," Shockwave explained

"Well done, Shockwave. Knockout, I'm waiting," Megatron told him over the comms.

"On my way, Lord Megatron," Knockout said

Knockout arrived with the Synthetic Energon and told Shockwave the troops will deliver the rest soon. Shockwave said he would use it when the Predacon clones were ready. Speaking of, our Predacon has decided to roam free and casually walked in here. Before I could do anything, Starscream went up to it and hit it with a pole. The Predacon roared at him making him cower back and fall over. He prepared for a beating when the beast transformed! I didn't know it could do that! 

"What?" Starscream asked looking up

"Strike me again, and I will bury that rod in your spark!" The Predacon told him. 

"I-I didn't know that the beast could transform," I said quickly

"Nor did I," Megatron said looking at Shockwave. 

"I am no beast," the Predacon said walking over to one of the clones. 

"The ability to transform is a fundamental part of Cybertronian biology. We simply possessed no evidence that the Predacon species ever reached that evolutionary stage, since they became extinct in the great cataclysm," Shockwave explained

"And now we know," Starscream said

"So the rumors are true. I will no longer be alone," The Predacon said

"And I see you've been keeping secrets," I said walking over with Megatron

"It was not my intention to deceive you or Lord Megatron, my Lady. I only recently became aware of my abilities. All I remember of my beginning is hunting... and battle... and the wounding of my pride. Thus I began to burn with questions. Who am I? Where did I come from? The Warship's databanks provided historical fact, but still, I possessed no memory of my own past. So I began to reconsider my place in the present and wondered, 'could I be like the others?' And now I know."

"Yet you are unique, a miracle of science cloned by Shockwave from Cyber-Nucleic Acid recovered from the remains of your mighty ancestors," Megatron said

I'm not so sure about the Predacon's new abilities. As far as I'm aware, Predacons were just creatures from human mythology and they didn't transform. As Shockwave explained, there was no evidence that the Predacons figured out how to transform. We returned to the Warship where we walked and talked with the Predacon who was now calling himself Predaking. He wanted to lead the Predacon clones as their king. In other words, taking away Megatron and I's command of them which is what Shockwave was making them for. I don't like this. Megatron had me, Shockwave, Starscream, and Knockout meet in the Energon Storage Vault for a secret meeting.

"Our former beast may fully believe himself to be a loyal servant today, but trust me... the moment our royal highness realizes that his army possesses greater might than what currently remains of the Decepticons--"

"Evolution will give way to revolution," I interrupted Megatron

"I am left with no choice but to eradicate the Predacon clones before they are provided the opportunity to eradicate us."

"Lord Megatron, you're not saying you intend to pull the plug on Shockwave's beloved Project Predacon?" Knockout asked almost seeming smug about it

"Your conclusion is most logical, my liege," Shockwave admitted

"But what happens if that fire-breathing brute discovers our treachery?" I asked 

Starscream got our attention, "Why assume that we will be the ones to perform the deed? After all, if the Predaking were to discover that, say, the Autobots were responsible for wiping out his comrades, our resident beast might, in turn, destroy our hated enemies for us... or, they, him."

Starscream may have an idea. He made a plan to destroy the Autobots or the Predacons or both. We would make out like that the laboratory was really one of our mines. Troops would be outside with some Energon to attract the Autobots there. If we're lucky, they will venture further into the mine and find our little project and, hopefully, blow it up. Starscream will tell Megatron and Predaking what would be happening and Predaking will go and either kill the Autobots or the Autobots will kill him. We'll figure that out when the time comes.

So, just as Starscream described, we put the plan in motion. I assumed that it worked except for one thing. Starscream never told Shockwave, who was there collecting whatever he needed, that the plan was in motion. Starscream defended that he didn't tell him to make sure the whole thing didn't look staged. It was no secret that Starscream did that on purpose. Shockwave arrived back safely and Starscream told Megatron and Predaking what was happening. Predaking did leave to defend his future army but came back explaining that the clones had been destroyed and the Autobots live.

Well, at least we solved the clone problem. Shockwave had gone back to look over the damage and to see if anything could be recovered. He hasn't been able to find any form of Predacon left from the explosion but he found something that he thinks we should go there and have a look at. So, we went with Starscream to see, what looked like to me, was a metal cage or art piece that had been built into the cave but I was told otherwise.

"What is this?" Starscream asked

"Pure Cybertronian cyber-matter, not unlike that which once existed upon our primeval homeworld," Shockwave explained

"Or that which engendered my Citadel here on Earth. The result of the explosion?" Megatron asked

"Indeed, yet the Cyber-Nucleic Acid alone cannot account for these Cyberforms. All possible logic points to the presence of one unexpected variable: Synthetic Energon."