The Good, the Bad and Starscream

Chapter 12: Flying Mind

Bulkhead's tale of his accidental trespassing of the Decepticon warship lasted only a few minutes.

"And when the Insecticons backed off," Bulkhead said at the end of his tale while clashing his fists together, "I got inspired by my proximity to the power core, and did what I do best."

"You trashed Megatron's ride like a rock star in a hotel room," Miko concluded with pride for her big partner.

"We should hit the 'Cons right now while they're vulnerable," Arcee suggested with eager.

"Megatron's warship may be grounded," Ratchet said, "but let's not forget that we remain vastly outnumbered, especially since he's added the Insecticon hive to his ranks."

"Then maybe it's time for me to call in an airstrike," Agent Fowler volunteered from the railings.

"Or maybe it's time to let me launch an airstrike," Starscream suggested from his corner of the railings. "I can fly too, you know."

"Or perhaps it is time for us to consider more extreme measures," Optimus suggested himself.

"More extreme than allowing Starscream to fly?" Arcee asked intrigued.

Instead of answering her, Optimus and Ratchet went off into the hallways to get something. When they returned, Optimus was holding a disc with gray and black striped markings.

"The Spark Extractor?" Arcee remarked in surprise.

"You mean the relic that Bumblebee retrieved some time ago?" Raf asked. "The one that extracts sparks?"

"Yes," Optimus replied. "It may be our only chance of winning this war once and for all."

"Extreme indeed," Starscream commented, looking intently at the dangerous device. "But perhaps you're right. The only way I can think of for Megatron to go down is with a weapon such as that one. Even if only a small chance of success."

"Even so, using it near the warship will hopefully decrease the Decepticon ranks by a lot," Optimus replied.

"It's worth a try," Bumblebee bleeped. "I'll get it there and get out quickly without getting hit. I'm the fastest one on the team, after all!"

"Very well," Optimus said in agreement. "We will be counting on you, Bumblebee."

"I could get it there faster, by flight," Starscream argued, "and get out of there even quicker. Pit, send me and none of you will need to risk your lives for this!"

"You just want an excuse for running away," Bulkhead accused. "We haven't cleared you for flight yet."

"I thought you needed air support," Starscream countered irritated. "Why can't-"

Suddenly the monitor started beeping, showing the location of the Decepticon warship. The signal of the ship suddenly turned purple, the change seeming very ominous.

"Optimus," Ratchet said, drawing attention away from the arguing boots. "I'm detecting a massive energy spike at the Decepticon crash site. It appears to be Dark Energon."

The information left the room in silence. Even Starscream forgot his own argument. Dark Energon by the Decepticon warship? A massive energy spike? Everyone in the room was able to put two and two together and were thinking the same thing.

The Decepticons had likely decided to use Dark Energon on their own warship, for whatever reason.

The Autobots prepared to leave for battle, and Ratchet activated the GroundBridge. Starscream still tried to convince the Autobots to let him go with them.