Thunderstar reached over the berth and sighed as she realized she was alone. Again. Every morning she would wake up alone in the large berth, it was sad honestly. All she wanted was to wake up with Megatron by her side, at least once but no. Thunderstar had been waking up alone every morning since her brother, Dreadwing, had arrived on the Nemesis. She had been demoted and her brother took over as SIC.
Thunderstar thought that since she had found her brother things would be better now but she was so wrong. The only people she had left to turn to was the two mechs on this ship she trusted with her life. Knockout and Breakdown. The two had been there for her all the time and now that she was alone they understood that she needed them both more than ever.
Thunderstar heavily sighed then climbed out of the berth and left the empty room and go get her daily ration of energon. On her way inside she ran into Soundwave, she gave the silent mech a fake smile then went inside the rec room. She didn’t feel like being around anyone, not even her guardian Soundwave.
“Thunderstar is ok ?” Those few words almost broke her, she was far from ok but she couldn’t let anyone see that. Especially Soundwave, he’d tell Megatron in a spark beat and then what, Thunderstar would get into a fight and risk losing the warlord.
“Yeah Sound. I’m ok. I’ll be in the control room after I get my ration of energon,” Thunderstar quickly turned around and walked into the rec room. She grabbed a ration of energon then quickly downed the blue liquid before Steve came into the room and sat down next to Thunderstar. He gently nudged her shoulder then got back up.
“Megatron is sending us to a energon mine. We’re suppose to move the energon today. He’s putting you in charge of me and my group.” Thunderstar rolled her optics then got up and followed Steve to the control room, they made small talk but she never gave him a hint that something might be wrong or she might not feel like herself. Thunderstar gently pushed past Steve as they entered the control room, she took notice of Dreadwing’s absence.
“Thunderstar you and this group of vehicons are to go to a mine in the north and help speed up the mining rate. We need to extract all the energon before the Autobot’s find the signature. You are in charge of them. Send Soundwave a comm when you are done and ready for pick-up.” Thunderstar nodded and swiftly walked through the ground bridge.
Thunderstar waited until Steve and the other vehicons got through the ground bridge before she started giving orders. Thunderstar stood at the entrance of the mine and saw very few vehicons come out to listen to her orders. She looked around her surroundings then chuckled and pointed into the mine itself.
“Steve you and the others go inside and start mining the rest of the energon,” Thunderstar climbed into the tree in front of the mine and found a suitable part to lay against. She put her legs up on the branch and folded arms behind her helm.
“Wha..What about you ?” A lone vehicon asked her in a shy like voice.
“I’m keeping an optic out for the Autobot’s, now get to work,” Thunderstar heard them all walk inside the mine and sighed in relief. She relaxed her frame then closed her optics and let sweet recharge wash over her. It wasn’t like she was actually needed to help mine the energon remaining.
____________________________________________
Wheeljack finished off the last hologram in the training room then walked to the open washrack’s of the base. As he turned the water over to warm he placed both his hands against the wall and closed his optics. He had so much tension in his frame, he hadn’t relaxed in months. Every time he got close to being relaxed something else had to happen.
He hadn’t gotten Thunderstar off his mind since the day she told him who she really was. It was confusing yet frustrating. He spent months sobbing in his berth room over the loss of Crimson, he thought he had lost her. That he had failed her but to find out that she was alive and with the Decepticon’s, it made his spark ache. He knew there would always be a risk of her joining them, he just wished it never happened.
He always compared Thunderstar to her mother, Nightstar, who had been a spy for the Autobots but the longer she stayed with Stormblazer the closer she got to changing sides. Wheeljack had met Nightstar when she joined the Wrecker’s and he knew then that they would always be close friends, which is why it hurt when he found her body. Wheeljack held that grief in his spark for the longest of time but when he met Crimson on Earth, he vowed that he wouldn’t let anything happen to her for Nightstar.
Wheeljack was pulled from his thoughts as he felt hands trace down his back strut, he kept his optics closed in hopes it was a dream but of course he was wrong. He opened his optics and saw small blue hands slide over his chassis. He quickly shut off the water and pushed the femme away but she was persistant and grabbed his arm not letting him go.
“Wheeljack it’s time to move on. Let me help you,” Wheeljack pulled his arm away and started shaking his helm at Arcee.
“No. I don’t want to move on..I don’t have to move on. So watch your glossa Cee,” Wheeljack turned around and left the room before the femme had time to think of a comeback. He didn’t want to move on, he wanted to just stay in the past, as long as he had the memory of Thunderstar he was okay. Some days Wheeljack wished he could just erase every memory of her but still, the pain of losing Nightstar and Thunderstar helped keep him focused.
“What do we do about it Ratch ?” Agent Fowler asked in a calm tone.
“Do about what ?” Wheeljack leaned against the railing and waited for a reply. Optimus was out on patrol with Bulkhead and Bumblebee so that left the grumpy medical officer in charge.
“I have a lock on a decent amount of energy but there is a Decepticon energy signature close by. Arcee is taking Jack to work today which leaves only you.” Wheeljack chuckled then gave a curt nod to open the ground bridge.
“Comm me when you’re ready to come back and for Primus sake don’t be reckless out there,” Ratchet kept watch on Miko as Wheeljack transformed and ran through the ground bridge. Wheeljack kept quiet as he watched his scanner and got closer to the energy signature, he stopped just as he heard a voice loudly yelling. He got down onto the ground and looked at the mine to see what was going on.
“Thunderstar we’re leaving now. The energon is all mined and Lord Megatron has asked us back,” Thunderstar jumped out of the tree and stretched her frame. She gave Steve a hug then started walking away from the energon mine.
“Tell Lord Megatron I went for a walk,” Thunderstar said in a playful tone as she ran down the hill past Wheeljack and away from the mine.
Wheeljack smiled as he watched her stop running and start walking into the woods, quietly Wheeljack followed behind her. He made sure to stay stealthy as he followed her, he wanted to see what she was planning to do being all alone in the woods. He could see the inner Crimson coming out and it was beautiful to him, he missed her so much.
He leaned against a tree and watched her sit down beside a tree and look at something in the distance. Wheeljack spoke before deciding to walk up beside the powerful femme.
“Mind if I join you ?” It didn’t look like she was ready to attack him so he moved quietly and sat down beside the femme. She pointed to what she was looking at and it didn’t surprise Wheeljack in the slightest. She was watching all the woodland creatures but mainly a family of deer by a small pond. Wheeljack could see the Crimson he thought he had lost and missed all these months.
“So you wanna play a game ?” Thunderstar quickly threw a rock in the pond scaring off the animals so they wouldn’t hurt any of them. She pushed Wheeljack onto his back then ran off into the woods. She laughed as the mech quickly got up and started chasing after her. The two ran past the pond and through thick woods laughing the entire time.
“Come here !” Wheeljack tackled Thunderstar and held the femme down to the ground. He laughed as she fought him the best she could then gave up and looked up at the mech. He looked down into her purple optics and smiled, he could see so much pain but still so much happiness. The longer he looked down at her the more he felt guilty for hating her. Wheeljack climbed off the femme and sat down on the hill over looking a river.
Thunderstar quietly gasped as she saw a large scar on his lower chassis, she sat down next to him and grabbed his hand. She knew she would be executed for what she was doing but right now she didn’t care. For the last two months she’s been ignored by Megatron and she missed Wheeljack. She tried to tell herself that she didn’t care, that when she pierced his armor with his own sword she didn’t feel anything but she was lying to herself.
“I’m sorry,” Thunderstar said as she ran her hand over the scar. She pulled her hand away as Wheeljack’s frame shuddered, she was scared that maybe it had hurt him in some way. She pulled her knee’s to her chassis and sat quietly remembering the day she left the Autobot’s, the way Wheeljack fought against her shield just to keep her from leaving. She missed those days.
“Don’t be..I almost killed your brother,” Just like that she was reminded of the wrong he’s done. He took away her father and sided with her mother, the Autobot’s had done their fair share of wrong but that didn’t mean she had to be completely rude to them and forget what they had done for her in her time of need.
“I almost killed you..Jackie I-..I miss you,” She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. She laid her helm against his chassis and felt the tears forming as Wheeljack tightly hugged her back. The two didn’t speak they just enjoyed the time they had together, both had been through pain and loss and now they were able to apologize and have a moment of peace. Something that was hard to come by these days.
Wheeljack smirked then quickly pushed Thunderstar down onto the ground, she quickly caught his action and started wrestling with him. The two laughed as they went back and forth wrestling with one another until finally Wheeljack gave Thunderstar a good shove and sent her down the hill. Thunderstar was able to pull Wheeljack down with her though.
The two landed in the river laughing as they stood up, drenched. Thunderstar pushed Wheeljack down then started splashing the mech with water. She got out of the river and waited for Wheeljack, the two smiled and let their mouthplates slide over their lips before they started fighting.
“Ah, Thunderstar it’s good to see you’re back. Did everything get mined ?” Megatron turned around once he finished his question and noticed that Thunderstar was no where to be seen. He was part worried that something happened to her but after seeing the vehicons untouched he ruled the possibility out. Which meant she had left on her own.
“Where is Thunderstar ?” With Dreadwing still gone Megatron needed Thunderstar here to command the troops. Her brother is Megatron’s SIC but Thunderstar is his replacement should something ever happen to the seeker. Megatron looked directly at Steve and waited for a answer.
“She left the energon mine, she said she was going for a walk,” Steve mumbled the last part but still Megatron caught it. The warlord angrily waved his hand and let the vehicons leave the room before he took his anger out on them. Megatron turned back to Soundwave and heavily sighed.
“Get a ground bridge to that femme’s location,” he was angry that she would leave in the blink of an optic. Granted it was nothing new for Thunderstar but still it bothered Megatron. He was doing his best to be there for her and yet she was still running away, it was something Megatron would personally discuss with Thunderstar.
“Megatron: Thunderstar is moving. Cannot acquire coordinates,” Megatron lowly growled then opened a ground bridge to the energon mine. He would track her down, it wouldn’t be to hard with how sloppy she’s been for the past two months. It’s like she doesn’t care about anything anymore, Megatron wanted the old Thunderstar, the one who wasn’t afraid to hurt anyone and was smart about everything she did.
“Megatron: Don’t harm Thunderstar,” Soundwave didn’t show his face but Megatron knew if he did he’d have a very serious look on it. Megatron knew how close Soundwave had gotten to the femme, he had taken being her guardian personal. The two would spend their free-time training together and even though Soundwave didn’t speak much Megatron knew that Soundwave spoke to her.
“Arg,” Wheeljack’s back collided with a tree and he was dazed for just a few moments. He looked up as he felt her hands slide onto his chassis, a small smile crossed his face as she brushed her hand down the side of his faceplate. Wheeljack wanted to kiss her, to tell her how much he still loved her even if she was a Decepticon. It didn’t matter to him, she would always be Crimson to him.
“Let me help you up,” Thunderstar stood up then grabbed his hand and pulled. She let out a short giggle as Wheeljack wrapped his arms around her and asked her to dance. She laid her helm on his shoulder as he started playing music and they slowly started dancing. She closed her optics and remembered the day on the beach, the way he held her and kissed her. It was in the past, she had Megatron now but still she missed Wheeljack.
“Thunderstar ?!” Thunderstar pulled away as she heard Megatron in the distance. Thunderstar shoved Wheeljack but still the mech didn’t budge.
“Go, now. I’ll comm you when I get outta base again just please go…Please Jackie,” Wheeljack melted under the broken tone Thunderstar used. He heavily sighed then turned and left the area leaving Thunderstar all by herself to deal with a very upset Megatron.
Thunderstar watched Wheeljack leave then started walking back towards where she heard Megatron yell her name. She knew this wouldn’t be a nice conversation, she’d get yelled at and possibly hit but she’d take the fall. She didn’t care, for the first time in the past two months she had fun. Something she’d forgotten about.
“Where have you been ?” Megatron looked the femme up and down and rolled his optics. Thunderstar was covered in dirt and had dents all over her frame. Megatron grabbed her arm then pulled her through the ground bridge behind him, he was angry and didn’t want to speak to her. He knew if he opened his mouth now he would say something he didn’t mean and hurt the femme.
“Just go,” Megatron kept his back to Thunderstar as he spoke. A part of him wanted to tell her that he missed her but he had other things to worry about right now. Thunderstar was the least of his worries as of now. He heard her gasp then turn and leave the room, Soundwave looked like he was going to follow her but Megatron quickly put a stop to that and gave the silent mech a new set of orders.
Thunderstar wiped the tears forming and went straight to the med-bay, she wasn’t staying in the room alone anymore. She was sick and tired of always being alone in a big room, she was sick of being ignored and being replaced and feeling like she didn’t matter to him anymore. Thunderstar was just done with everything at this point.
“There you are, I’ve been worried si-.” Knockout stopped as he looked over and saw Thunderstar standing there. He quickly finished up on the vehicon then had Thunderstar sit down on the berth so he could get the dents out of her frame. Knockout was humored by how many dents he found on her.
“I’m sorry for that, I thought you were Breakdown. He’s been gone all day and Megatron won’t tell me anything,” Knockout said in a soft tone.
“Mind if I jump in the washrack’s ? I don’t feel like going back to that empty berthroom.” Knockout could tell just by Thunderstar’s voice how lonely she really was, the red medic nodded and let go of Thunderstar’s hand so she could go get cleaned off. Knockout decided to go and get some high grade for when Thunderstar got out, he’d get her to talk to him about what went on today.
Thunderstar was enjoying the warm shower and small piece of relaxation, she always liked being near water. It always seemed to help her calm down and give her things to think about, like now she was thinking about Wheeljack. She was scared that maybe today had given him hope she would come back to the Autobots. She felt bad for giving off the wrong vibe but still today was fun and she wouldn’t trade it for the world.
Thunderstar finished scrubbing her frame and started washing off her frame. She was taking everything slow and enjoying the shower until she heard the sound of glass shattering in the med-bay. She quickly shut off the water and ran out to see Knockout on the ground clenching his spark chamber and groaning in pain. Thunderstar knew what was wrong, she didn’t need to ask, Knockout had told her of what it feels like and what it looks like.
Thunderstar used her strength to pick up Knockout and lay him on the berth in the med-bay. She put her hands on top of his and hugged the medic before running out of the room and down to the control room. Breakdown was everything to her and she’d be damned if he was hurt and she wasn’t allowed to help him. When she got into the control room she was surprised to see that Megatron was missing.
“Soundwave where is Breakdown ?” When he didn’t respond she got angry and yelled at her guardian. “Soundwave, tell me !” She could feel hot tears forming as she felt stings of pain from Breakdown since they were so close to one another she could feel his pain.
“Find him,” Soundwave said as he opened a ground bridge. Thunderstar hugged the mech tightly before turning around and getting ready to run through the ground bridge.
“Don’t tell Megatron..The only way he is to know is if I don’t comm you in thirty minutes.” Thunderstar quickly ran through the ground bridge and kept quiet so she could hear Breakdown. She had no idea where she was going or where she was, all she knew was her task at hand. Find Breakdown. Thunderstar followed a dirt trail into the woods then reached out to Breakdown.
“Breakdown..If you hear this please help me find you..please,” Thunderstar stayed quiet until she heard a soft groan come from the left. She ran to where she heard the groan, tears rolling down her faceplate as she saw a trail of energon on the ground. She followed it through thick tree’s then found what she was looking for. She fell to her knee’s as she saw Breakdown laying on the ground, motionless.
“Break ?” He gave a soft groan and Thunderstar quickly propped the bulky mech up against a tree. She started crying as she saw large cuts in multiple places on his chassis, she was surprised the mech wasn’t offline yet. Thunderstar cried his name and shocked the mech just enough to jolt him awake but she knew her time with him was limited.
“Break I-..I’m sorry. If I was quicker..I-.” She covered her face as she started sobbing, the guilt took over her. She was to late and this was her punishment. To watch Breakdown offline in front of her. Thunderstar’s hands were pulled away and she felt his cold hand run down the right side of her faceplate.
“Knockout will keep ya safe..Just tell him I love him..I love the both of ya..and Thunder..”
“What Break ?” He gave a short smile then spoke again.
“Promise me..You’ll stay strong..” Thunderstar felt his hand wipe away the tears as she nodded and promised him. His hand slid down her faceplate and landed in her lap just as his optics offlined and he took his last breath. Thunderstar screamed ‘no’ as she looked up at the night sky. She let her helm fall to the ground as she stopped screaming and felt a hand on her shoulder.
She felt a sharp pain in her neck and looked to see a syringe with a green liquid inside. She was held in place until all of the liquid had been injected into her neck, then she was let go of. She stood up but quickly fell back down onto her hands and knee’s, she looked up and saw Dreadwing standing in front of her.
“D-Dreadwing ?” She stuttered as she felt fatigue taking over, soon she would be in recharge. She widened her optics as the body before her shifted and formed into a smaller sized mech. She keeled over and fell into recharge after that.
“Well done Makeshift. Time to go,” Airachnid giggled as Makeshift threw Thunderstar over his shoulder and the two walked back to the cave hidden in the woods not far from where Breakdown met his demise.