It was a warzone.
Smoke and smog overwhelmed her olfactory sensors and her optics kept glitching, unable to tell the difference between an object and the unmoving husk of a once living functioning being. Everything hurt- both physically and mentally and it was a true wonder she was even online at this point.
She opened her mouth and tried to speak. Not a sound was produced from her voicebox, not even static. Shakily, she pushed herself up to her elbows and slowly turned her helm around, trying to locate her friends through the smoke.
The smoke cleared and the only thing she found herself seeing was a pair of red optics gazing at her. They were so blank and apathetic, as though they were gazing down on dirt on the bottom of their pedes.
She felt her entire body stop functioning. Joints froze as though they were rusted and weren't oiled for stellar cycles; circuits refusing to function and systems pausing as though they were shut down.
A blade was raised high. The metallic weapon gleamed menacingly and then it turned into a blurred arc as it came down, down, down-
'No....no.....no...NOOOOOOO-'
^^*************^^
"NOOOO!!!!" Mantis screeched, voice raw as she shot up her berth. Her chasis rose and fell like waves, her spark banging against her spark chamber like a drum.
Her helm whipped side to side, optics darting everywhere. She was....in her room. Her succulents were still sitting there daintily where she had arranged them, her anime posters were hung up on her walls and the fairy lights gazed down from above the rafters.
'Not again......' she thought with a groan, massaging her temples where she felt a processor ache forming. She's been having these darn nightmares for 4 days straight! At this point, she was tempted to ask Ratchet to actually rewire her core programming in her processor.
"It's just a stupid nightmare." She muttered to herself as she tied her disheveled dreads back into her usual style. 'I blame Sari for telling me.....that. It's probably why I have these nightmares.' She told herself.
As Mantis gazed outside the window however, she couldn't help but look back on it. Usually she'd forget these kind of nightmares by now- that's just how they worked. They'd swoop in, scare the lubricant out of you then you'd wake up and go all hysterical or in shock but then it'd slowly fade away until you can barely recall fragments of it.
But no. Instead it was still fresh in her processor.
'Is it some kinda vision? Some kinda sign? A.....what was the word? Precognitive dream? What am I, a psychic?' Mantis asked herself as she walked down the corridors to the main room.
"Morning, sister." Prowl greeted.
"Morning." She said distractedly. Then she decided that maybe telling someone else might get it off her chassis.
"Brother, do you believe in precognitive dreams?" she blurted out.
Prowl paused then turned around to look at her, slightly puzzled.
"Pardon?" he asked.
"You know...." Mantis said, suddenly feeling stupid for asking something as ridiculous as this. "Dreams that....tell you something. Like something bad's gonna happen in the future or something."
"......did you have a nightmare?" Prowl asked. He once again mentally cursed at himself. He should've considered the possibility that Mantis might suffer from some form of PTSD, even if they are just nightmares.
"Yeah. And get this. I've been having it for like, the past 4 days. But this time it felt so much more........real." she said.
"What did you see?" he asked.
Mantis paused as she tried to remember it all correctly. "It was vague." She admitted. "I was in a warzone and then I saw a pair of red optics loom over me. I think it was a Decepticon but.....scarier than the others we've ever faced somehow.
"Then the maybe-Decepticon raised his blade and brought it down and then I woke up." She finished.
Prowl didn't say anything. He just had that pensive look on his faceplate. If Mantis hadn't known him as well as she did, she wouldn't have noticed it.
"You know what, nevermind." She said, waving it off. "Forget it. It's just a bad dream." She walked past him, only for Prowl to grab her wrist, stopping her.
"I.....think you may be onto something." Prowl said, surprising her.
"Say what now?" she said, surprised he accepted this so easily. "You think I actually saw some kinda sign for the future?"
Prowl nodded, dead serious. "Sometimes, instincts and intuition are the sharpest warning signals we could ever have." He said.
".........this is like some cheesy calm before the storm thing." Mantis said.
"I fear this cheesy thing might be true." He said.
^^*************^^
Sometimes, Prowl hates it when he's right and he's pretty sure his sister agrees.
Currently the alarms in the base were blaring, speaking of bad news in volumes.
"Security sensors are picking up increased Decepticon activity signals. Activity levels are higher than anything we've seen on Earth." Prowl reported to Optimus.
"I hate it when you're right." Mantis groaned as she caught wind of it.
"Could mean they're getting ready for an invasion." Optimus said as the news sunk in.
"You mean they're bringing a whole aft army here?" Mantis asked, trying to not panic. Was her nightmare really about to come true?
"Maybe. But I'm pretty sure a dozen or so of them can get the job done either way." Optimus replied.
BBRRRRRRZZZZZZZZZM.
Two remote controlled toy aeroplanes soared through, their propellers spinning fast enough to produce a vibrating drone like a mosquito.
One of which came swooping down towards them.
"Incoming!" Ratchet warned before using his magnets to crush it, the pressure causing it to explode into scrap with a small BOOM!
Then Bee and Sari came in, each holding a respective remote controlled in hand. As one of the planes landed, it was then they all noticed the AllSpark key in one of them.
"Hey! You made me lose the dogfight!" Bee said.
"We might lose an even bigger fight soon." Mantis couldn't help but snap at him.
"What'd ja do that for?" Sari asked. That was quite the overreaction. And it wasn't like Mantis to be so....snappish.
"We're a little on edge right now, Sari. It appears the Decepticons are mobilizing for a full-scale assault." Optimus replied.
"And we're supposed to defend the entire planet how? I hate to be a downer here but, six of us against all of them? The odds aren't exactly in our favor." Bee said.
"Uh, hello? What am I, invisible? I make seven." Sari pointed out.
................well at least optimism is still around.
Then an idea struck Bulkhead. "Hey! Maybe the Dinobots could help!" he said.
Mantis's optics widened and she realized it was too late. The words were already spoken and heard.
"Huh?" Optimus said, confused. The Dinobots? How? They've already gotten destroyed....right? Then again there was that footage from last time.........
"The Dinobots were destroyed....weren't they?" Optimus asked.
He looked at Prowl subtly, the question lingering in the air.
"You told me you were gonna tell him." Bulkhead whisper-yelled to Prowl. "He told me he was gonna tell ya."
"Tell me what?" Optimus asked again, his patience wearing thin. They didn't have time for sneaking behind the back secrets!
Prowl and Mantis shared a glance. The older ninjabot was trying to think of the most tactful way of putting this out into words.
"Go on, it's Prime." Bulkhead encouraged from behind. "He'll understand." Then he shuffled off.
^^*************^^
"YOU STOLE THE DINOBOTS AND TOOK THEM TO AN ISLAND?!?!" Optimus roared so loud, Mantis swore to Primus the whole base seemed to shake and outside, the birds were startled off their perches.
Optimus's chassis heaved up and down, his boiling rage barely contained, his thin patience fraying to a hair thin line, his denta gritted and his optics furious.
It was the first time Mantis has ever seen him that pissed.....and frankly she found it unsettling. Once again, she was unknowingly twirling and playing with one of her dreads.
"I think that went well." Bulkhead said.
"Bulk.....shut up." Mantis said with a facepalm. "Please, just shut up." She added. No need to poke the already angry sleeping bear any further.
"Technically, we rescued the Dinobots. I sensed a spark in them. We're programmed to protect life, not destroy it." Prowl pointed out.
Mantis nodded in agreement. "And besides, they just want to be left alone and live in peace." She added.
"The fate of Earth and Cybertron hang in the balance and all I've got to command are a bunch of undisciplined, insubordinate malfunctions!" Optimus snapped.
Ratchet couldn't blame Optimus for spitting out such harsh words. He knew that the young Prime didn't mean any of them. He was stressed and worried for the battle- one even he had to accept they might lose- to come. Stress and pressure lead to short temper and paranoia which leads to lashing out at those close to you, have it be physical or verbal.
And right now, it was obvious Optimus was doing the latter.
"You might wanna go a little easier on the young bots." Ratchet tried to reason.
"Well, maybe it's not a bad thing......what Prowl did. We could use it to our advantage. I mean, they kinda owe us." Bulkhead said.
Mantis agreed on that. "They're strong and pack one helluva firepower on par with Lugnut and Bulk. With powerhouses like those with us, the cons won't know what'll hit them." She said.
"Bulkhead, sister and I can go to the Dinobots and ask for their help against the Decepticons." Prowl added.
"Fine, but I'm coming with you! To make sure the job's done right this time." Optimus said.
"But they don't know you. They aren't fond of strangers, trust me. You might just antagonize them." Mantis pointed out.
"Now's not the time to go soft. They're not pets, Mantis. You can't coddle them." He said.
Mantis bristled at that. "I never said they were pets!" she snapped. Then composed herself. "I'm just saying you going there might just cause more trouble."
"Trouble no thanks to the three of you. You knew about this but kept it from me, you're at fault too. I trusted you, Mantis and I expected better of you." Optimus said.
Frag, if he was trying to guilt trip her, it was working.
"And what if I had told you? What would you have done, huh?" she challenged.
Then a firm servo planted on her shoulder and squeezed slightly, signalling her to stop.
"That's enough. We can blame who's at fault for mistakes later." Prowl said.
Mantis took a deep vent and deflated. He was right. Now wasn't the time for petty squabbles.
"Mistakes are something we can't afford! Too much hangs in the balance. Which is why we need tighter security measures on every level...." He internally steeled himself for what he had to say next. A part of him felt guilty for doing this but....desperate times call for desperate measures. There was too much at stake and if a few bridges had to be burned then......he'll deal with it after the fire is dealt with.
The last time he didn't put his foot down, he lost two of his most loved ones. He won't make the same mistake again.
"Starting with the key." He said.
"What?!" Sari said, shocked. What did they mean 'tighter security measures' on her key?
"It's not safe in Sari's care anymore. And Sari's not safe either." They all gazed at her in sympathy, knowing Optimus was sadly right. "We need to guard it from here on out. After all it's...not a toy."
"That's not fair! It's mine! The AllSpark chose me! And I've done a pretty good job protecting it so far!" she protested.
She took the key out of the plane, only for it to go haywire and crash on top of Ratchet's helm. The usually cranky medic was honestly too emotionally drained at this point to even bother.
"Oops. My bad." Sari said apologetically.
"I think that proves my point." Optimus said, his voice firm. He told himself to calm down. Shouting at Sari would only make things harder and he wanted to get this part over as painlessly as possible.
"Sari, the situation is getting too dangerous." He reasoned with a softer tone. Then it hardened once more. "Besides this isn't about you. It's about our future!"
He knelt down and stretched his servo out, asking her to hand the key over before they had to forcefully take it away from her.
"No!" she said, stubbornly hiding it behind her back. "I'm in charge of the key. It's my job, not yours!"
Primus, why did she have to be so stubborn? Optimus closed his optics and prayed Sari would one day forgive him for this.
"Take it." He said to Ratchet curtly.
Ok, stress leads to panic and that leads to making rash decisions. This was one of them.
"Prime...maybe we could-" the medic tried to reason.
"That's an order!" Optimus snapped.
Ratchet paused then gazed down sadly. "Yes sir." He said sadly and reluctantly used his magnets to snatch the key away from Sari.
Mantis felt guilt and shame rear its ugly head within her. A part of her wanted to snatch the key from Ratchet and give it back to Sari but she didn't want to believe in false hope. The Decepticons were coming to slag them, they're coming for the AllSpark key and if it was with Sari, they won't hesitate to kill her to get it.
Sari stared at them, betrayal rattling her to the core. After everything they've done....everything they've been through.....they were pushing her away just like that? She felt tears spring to the corner of her eyes.
"Why don't you trust me?" she looked down and soon that grief at betrayal turned to anger. "I trusted you!" she choked out before running off, tears spilling down her cheeks and sobs tearing out of her throat.
"Sari!" Bee shouted after her but she ignored him and ran off. He glared at Optimus. How could he?! Yeah, they're about to get slagged and yes, this calls for desperate measures but to cast away their friend's feelings and stomp on them just like that?!
"What's your damage, Prime? Sari's been helping us since the day we got here! She's a part of this team!" Bee said.
"Considering your own history of mistakes, Bumblebee. I wouldn't call you a great character witness." Optimus pointed back.
Mantis's mouth dropped open in shock. Okay, ow, that.....that was just.......ouch.
Optimus's words only added more fuel to the fire.
"Is that right? Well lemme tell you something, Bossbot! Considering the fact that we're stuck on this planet, outnumbered with no idea on how we're gonna beat an army of Decepticons ready to fry our circuits at any second, I wouldn't exactly call you a great leader!" he snapped, glaring at him.
Oh, burn.
"I'm gonna go find Sari." Bee said before stomping off. Prime or leader be damned!
"Bumblebee, get back here!" Optimus ordered.
The minibot ignored him and resolutely kept going.
Mantis took a deep vent and went after him, ignoring Optimus's protests and Prowl's trying to talk her out of it.
"Bee! Wait!" she called, jogging after him.
He glared at her. "What?" he snapped. "If Prime sent you to-"
"I'm coming with you." She said. "Two optics are better than one."
A silent message passed between them. For once, without a word, the two of them transformed and drove off in search of their human friend.
^^************^^
"Sari? Where are you?" Bee called as he and Mantis drove side by side, optics peeled for Sari.
"Sari? Please, answer us! We're sorry!" Mantis called.
Still nothing.
"Bumblebee, Mantis, return to the plant immediately. We have more important things to deal with!" Optimus's voice came through their comms.
Ok, that was one voice they did not want to hear.
"More important than our friend?" both of them shot back.
"Bumblebee, Mantis, get back here now. That's not a request, that's an order!" Optimus repeated.
"Order denied." Mantis said before shutting off the comm link.
The two of them paused at the traffic lights. The streets were virtually empty with the harsh cold climate so they didn't really have to but they needed time to think.
"Where could she be?" Bee asked, worried for the girl he's grown close to.
"Let's split up. You go check out the park. I'll try the bazaar." Mantis said.
"The bazaar?! Hello, now is not the time for a shopping spree!" Bee snapped.
"Sari and I went there, she might be there. And I have a friend nearby that needs to be warned of the cons coming! She might've seen Sari even." Mantis said.
".....ok." Bee said and said no more.
"Stay safe and sharp." Mantis told Bee before they split up.
^^*************^^
The sudden harsh knock on her door, startled Argent, causing her to almost drop her cup of tea. Setting the cup down, she pulled her coat and beanie on as she made her way to the door.
She opened it and her eyebrows rose in surprise when she saw Mantis kneeling there in front of her house in her Cybertronian bi-pedal form out in the open.
"Mantis? What are you doing here?" Was this another one of her surprise visits?
"Sorry to drop in unannounced but I need to tell you something, Argent." Mantis said, getting straight to the point. "Right now, I think it's safer if you leave Detroit for a while."
"What? Why?" Argent asked, flabbergasted. Then it clicked and her blue eyes widened in clarity. "It's those tin cans again, isn't it?"
Mantis nodded. "More of them are gonna show up. We could be looking at a full scale invasion."
"But what about you?" Argent asked. Then she realized how pointless it was when the answer was already obvious.
"I'm staying with the others to fight." Mantis mentally congratulated herself for not wavering. "Please, Argent. I'll fight a lot better knowing you're safe." Yup, Mantis was using the emotional sympathy card so sue her.
".....................okay." Argent said reluctantly. "But you better come back here in one piece, you hear me?" she scolded with mock ferocity, jabbing a finger at Mantis.
"I'll try my best." Mantis said with what she hoped was a reassuring smile. Then she remembered the other reason she was here.
"Argent, did you see Sari?" she asked.
"Sari? The girl who was with you at the bazaar?" Argent inquired.
Mantis nodded. "Red hair in pigtails, orange clothes, tanned skin, any sign of her?"
Argent shook her head. "I'm afraid not."
Mantis cursed under her breath. "It's ok. Thanks. Sorry, gotta roll now. I'm a little pressed for time."
Then she stood up and dusted the snow off her knees.
"You.....better start packing." She gave her one last smile. "Take care, Argent." Then she transformed and rode off.
Argent watched as the femme slowly became a mere speck in the distance.
"You too, hun......you too." She whispered.
^^*************^^
It didn't take too long for her to rendezvous with Bee.
"Any sign of her?" Bee asked.
"Nada, sorry." Mantis replied.
"We'll head to Sumdac Tower. It's her home, she has to be there." Bee said. Mantis didn't miss the panic in his voice or the slight desperation under it.
"Don't wo- what the frag happened?!" Mantis asked as she and Bee drove closer and saw the smoking hole on top of Sumdac Tower.
They transformed into their bi-pedal forms and skidded to a halt.
"That's not a chimney." Mantis said.
"Uh, ya think?" Bee said.
"Wait, someone's there!" Mantis said.
They both felt their sparks drop when they recognized the magenta plating and smug attitude of Starscream.
"Oh, you've gotta be kidding me." Mantis said.
"Autobot alert! Autobot alert! Anybody out there?!" Bee commed.
"Autobot alert! Autobot alert! Respond!" Mantis commed too.
"Bumblebee, Mantis, it's Prime. What's your status?" Optimus asked.
"Not good. We've spotted a Decepticreep at Sumdac Tower." Mantis said.
"The trouble begins with a star and ends with a scream." Bee added.
"More like a shriek." Mantis snorted.
"This day keeps getting better and better." Optimus muttered sarcastically. "Do not engage. Wait for backup."
"But Sari could be in danger!" Bee said. Already he and Mantis were skating down the corridors.
"We won't engage in direct combat with the cons." Mantis said. "But we can't just do nothing. We'll observe, save the innocents and report back."
"Yeah! What she said." Bee said.
"Fine. But do not engage in any direct combat on your own, is that clear?" Optimus asked.
"Gotcha Bossbot./ Crystal." They replied before ending the call.
They both skidded to a halt and waited for their respective lifts. Miraculously, they can squeeze into the lifts here and they can hold their weight.
"So, what's the plan?" Bee asked, one pede impatiently tapping on the ground.
"Make sure Sari and Professor Sumdac are safe and keep an eye on what Starshriek's planning. There's something bigger at hand here." Mantis said. Her sixth sense was blaring like an alarm system at this point.
Bee nodded. "And that is?"
Mantis shrugged. "We're about to find out. I do know it means we're possibly screw though." She said.
"Well nothing new there." Bee said.
Before he entered the lift, Mantis grabbed his servo and stopped.
"I meant what I said to OP." she told him. "We're going to spy on Starshriek, not fight him head on like last time. We won't be lucky twice. I need you to listen to me to make this work."
Bee nodded seriously. "Yes ma'am. Enough chit chat, we have to go."
Mantis nodded and squeezed herself into one of the lifts while Bee did the same in the other.
"Looks like it's you, me and Mantis again, Starscream." Bee said to himself.
The ride up seemed to take hours and at the same time, came to an abrupt halt all too soon as they reached the top floor.
They warily made their way towards the room Starscream was in, trying to make each step as quiet as possible. As they got closer and closer, his voice became clearer.
"Another monologue again?" Bee said.
"No I....." Mantis listened in to the slightly muffled voice behind the doors. "I think he's talking to someone."
That piqued both of their curiosity. Another Decepticon? An inside human ally?
"......so do we knock and go in through the front door?" Bee asked, keeping his voice as low as possible.
"I've got an idea. C'mere." Mantis gestured.
Bee came closer until he almost stood behind her joined at the hip. Then Mantis activated her holographic projector and made both of them blend into their surroundings.
"Cool." Bee remarked.
"Can't keep it up forever though." Mantis told him. "Stay close to me."
Bee nodded. He took a deep vent and opened the door.
"Who's there?!" they froze as Starscream showed up, optics scanning the area for the intruders.
Mantis and Bee stood as still as statues, bodies tensed as a coiled spring and- holy scrap, Starscream was staring straight at them-
"Tch, stupid human technology glitches." He muttered before turning away.
They both sagged in relief before they followed him, making sure there was a safe enough distance between them.
"Can't hold this much longer." Mantis whispered to Bee.
"I don't think you'll have to." He said as they entered another room. The two of them quickly darted for cover and hid behind a wall just as the holographic cover wore off.
They peeked past the wall and their sparks seemed to drop out of their bodies when they laid their optics on something or rather someone they never thought they'd see.
Right there, on a slightly raised platform, damaged but still functioning with wires and cables plugged in to keep him stable was the head of Megatron.
Megatron.
The Megatron.
The slagging leader of the Decepticons.
A servo covered Mantis's mouth in shock while Bee stood there, optics wide with shock and horror.
"Is....is that......" Bee couldn't say it. It just....it just couldn't be possible, he was there, he fragging saw him crash and burn.
"I thought you said he went kerblooey somewhere over Cleveland." Mantis hissed.
"He did!" Bee hissed back. "Turns out he just didn't survive in one piece." He muttered.
No kidding.
"Is this why Starshriek's here?" Mantis asked, finding it in herself to sneak another peek. Both of them inched forward as much as they dared to spy on them.
Starscream sat down a few feet away from Megatron casually as though they were talking about the weather.
"What a pity, my liege, to see you in such a...helpless and unprotected state." Starscream said, the undertone of mockery and false worry all too clear in his voice. "Why practically anyone could walk right in here and terminate you."
"If he wants to kill him, why not get it over with?" Mantis whispered to Bee. It didn't take a genius to know Starscream would jump at any opportunity to get rid of Megatron and now was a huge one served on a silver plating.
"I don't know but I do know we need to let the others know ASAP." Bee hissed. "Prime! Prime, come in!"
"Bumblebee, wha-"
"We've got a problem. A huge massive larger than Bulkhead problem that spells we are all so fragging slagged." Bee blurted.
"Bumblebee, what's going on?" Optimus asked.
"It's not just Starscream, Lugnut and Blitzwing we have to deal with anymore." Mantis said. "Megatron is-!"
Before she could even finish her sentence, she and Bee were thrown back by a blast that demolished the wall. The comm link promptly cut off with a cry of pain.
"Mantis? Bumblebee? What Megatron? Status report! Hello?!"
The two minibots groaned and gazed up to find the muzzle of a null ray aimed at them.
"Well well, what do we have here? Two insects crawling to be crushed under my heel!" Starscream said, his null rays charging up.
Oh scrap.