The Third Brother of Cybertron {TFP Fanfiction}

Chapter 6

. . .

Currently...I was hanging by my arms by chains connected to both the ceiling and floor of the room, holding me suspended in the air unable to do naught. 

My optics were barely open, the natural glow gone and dimmed by the agonising pain.

My frame was covered in gashes and tears, the worst being the long horizontal slashes across my chassis, such wound still leaking energon.

My systems were weak form the energon loss, even the pain was hazy as I hung weakly.

My helm ached from hanging down at such an angle and my wrist joints pained me from the chains.

Megatron, my once older brother that cared and loved me, was standing but a few metres to my front communicating with Soundwave after having just beaten me for several earth hours on end.

Regrettably, I had lost my will to fight back and after the hit to my spark, Megatron had broken me.

After eons of the same torture and beatings, I'd given up.

Now Megatron was preparing for the next process, converting me into an effective Decepticon, the very thing our brother Optimus disliked.

Megatron's dismissive wave to Soundwave brought me back to the present, the large mech turning to me with a sadistic grin.

"You've held on for a very long time, Andromeda" He spoke, his tone still rough and sharp as ever.

I stayed silent and stock still, too weak to put up any sort of a fight or even move for that fact.

Megatron grinned even wider as he began to circle me, a taloned digit scratching the chains holding me every now and then.

"Excellent. Now...Who is your Master?" He questioned, stopping in front of me.

"You..." I murmured, my voice weak and glitchy from being unused besides unfortunate screaming in agony.

Megatron snarled in anger before striking the side of my helm with his taloned digits, a large gouge forming where he struck.

"Who is your Master?!" He yelled, effectively making me wince in pain from both the new injury and the sheer volume.

"You...Sir" I muttered louder this time.

He smirked in accomplishment as my helm hung lower in defeat.

"We'll be starting your training tomorrow" Megatron grinned before leaving the torture room with a calculated stride.

. . .

I jolted awake with a terrifying start and a silent cry of pain.

Placing a hand on my chest, my own scar residing underneath the fabric of my clothing, a ghost pain began to slowly ebb at my mind.

Eventually, I realised that my breathing was heavy and laboured.

I warily examined the room, coming to remember the previous events before I fell asleep.

With an almost silent groan, I pulled my phone from my pocket and realised it was only 3:57am.

I sighed and stood from the abhorrent excuse for a couch, my neck thanking me as I cracked it.

Stretching with a relieved sigh, my joints all popping with relief, I began to look around in both awe and boredom.

"What to do?" I muttered to myself as I continued looking around the base.

I was pulled from my thoughts when I heard some quiet talking and turned towards Ratchet's workstation, noticing the bot himself standing there watching the monitor as it played an animation of himself and Andromeda.

I watched for few more minutes, not really knowing how to announce myself as the Medic played another animation of similar context.

Silently, I walked over to his foot and decided to finally announce my presence.

"He really liked you" I spoke softly, watching calmly as Ratchet cursed in cybertronian and almost fell to his butt in surprise.

He vented, glaring at me harshly before quickly replacing it with a scold.

I shrugged and turned to the monitor as he did.

"How would you know that?" He questioned, his voice almost a sneer.

"The visions...Specifically ones where he is with you, you are all he can think about" I answered, watching plainly as Ratchet went from an almost elated expression to a darkened one.

"Well, it doesn't matter now. He's a Decepticon" Ratchet murmured heartbrokenly.

I sighed and without permission, began to scale his leg.

He groaned in a strained effort to not just grab me and throw me across the base, allowing me to finish at his shoulder and then climb to the workstation.

He glared at me making me offer a sheepish smile which seemed to calm him somewhat.

Sighing again, I watched his face take on the previous look at he looked at the happy expression of Andromeda on the monitor.

"You know...Even though he was a Decepticon, he never stooped" I told him hopefully.

Ratchet shared the look for a few long seconds before venting in broken anger.

"Then why'd he give up? Why didn't he continue to fight back?" He growled, only working himself by the second.

"Because he wanted to protect you! And what better way than from the inside?" I said louder, feeling the urge to make Ratchet understand that.

"Ratchet..." I began, taking a calming breath, "He'd been beaten, starved and left for dead by his own brother, the only reason he had to fight back was that he needed to return, to you.

"He knew Optimus wouldn't be able to get to him, so, he switched sides with the plan to keep Megatron and his lackeys  off your backs for a while" I stated with a bit of a smile, the situation reminding me of my own with my good friends.

"Then why didn't he ever come back?" Ratchet murmured barely above a whisper.

"He couldn't... Megatron did something to him" I spoke sadly, remembering the young bot's pain from being knocked around and then waking with only memories of what would happen if he disobeyed Megatron, his Leader.

I shut my eyes, focussing on the now and carefully pushing the lingering visions of Andromeda back into their own area in the back of my mind.

During this, I had failed to notice Ratchet observing with a worried but soft expression.

Opening my indigo eyes with relief, the ghost pain leaving me as I breathed.

"Andrew" Ratchet's voice called me making me look up at the giant.

"Have any of your 'visions' of Andromeda been on Earth?" He asked, and even without my observational skills, it was easy to hear the trace of hope and desperation in his tone.

I thought back, shifting through each vision before nodding confidently.

Ratchet's face brightened before it dropped again.

"Although, we have had many run ins with him involved here" He muttered.

I nodded as I quickly ran through the visions, "Nearly all of the Earth-based ones are with him either in battle, observing or on the...Nemesis?" I spoke, confused on the name of the Decepticon ship.

Ratchet nodded at the name before we both spun at the sound of a bot entering the area.