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Cover Me	By : Huronoryu Category: S through Z > Transformers (Movie Only) > Transformers (Movie Only) Views: 71978 -:- Recommendations : 3 -:- Currently Reading : 9
Disclaimer: I do not own the Transformers movie, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Cover Me
By The Black Dragon Queen
Author's Note: This one got kind of wordy. :P Kallipso looked it over and didn't see anything but that does not mean we missed something. Sorry in advance

Chapter One Hundred Eight: The End Of The Road
Many would call him a paranoid bastard. He preferred to think of himself as a vigilantly pessimistic. Nevertheless, no matter what anyone called him, there was no changing the fact that he could not rid himself of the feeling deep down in the bottom of his tank. That there was just something off about the sycophant that was with them. Unfortunately it seemed as if no one else could see it but him.
The fact that everyone else at least tolerated the interloper didn't make the feeling gnawing at his inner working go away though. That feeling was enough to make him recharge with audios on full alert. He, at least, wasn't going to get a nasty surprise in the middle of the night.
Perhaps he was paranoid but his instincts had saved his aft a time or two and he wasn't about to ignore it. There had been too much in his past, too many stabs in the back that he wasn't about to welcome the newbie with open arms. He was going to keep an optic firmly on the other until there was absolutely no doubt that the other wasn't wielding a knife; or at least not wielding it in his direction. It was everyone for themselves at this point.
But why wasn't anyone else seeing what he was seeing? There was just something… wrong with the others sudden appearance. How he had shown up out of nowhere and just casually inserted himself into their daily life. No one else even questioned his joining them like he had been there the whole time, but he was still an outsider and no one else seemed to see it that way or even notice the danger signs.
He had seemed extremely happy to join them to. Almost too happy to see them and right there, that should have sent up bright, flaming red flares that anyone would be happy to see them. The others sudden appearance and continual presence was suspicious. Not just suspicious but a possible liability and one that he personally didn't like having around himself or his team. He had to make sure that they, if not himself was as safe as he could make them. Not an easy task when it came convincing the commander.
When he had brought his worries to the mechs with actual say in anything, he was brushed aside, which wasn't surprising at all considering everything that was going on at the moment. He hoped though that just mentioning it would at least have the other mech thinking about it. Planting the seed of doubt, as the earthlings would say. He had done what he could and the only thing left for him to do was to ensure that he himself was safe along with his team.
That didn't mean he had to like it though and he kept himself and his team as far the intruder as he could. The confusion on his teammate's part about his actions was maddening and it made keeping them safe even harder but he was determined. He was nothing else if not determined and he refused to allow his team alone with the latest arrival. A move proved difficult, especially given their personalities, but he would prevail. He always did and he would get no thanks for it but for his own piece of mind he would ensure their safety.
Still, if Skywarp complained to him one more time about being cooped up in the stupid cave, Thundercracker was going to hogtie him and chain him to the damn wall. The blue seeker almost wished for the planet to start raining. Then Skywarp wouldn't complain so loudly, although he would still complain. Skywarp's odd condition had been a main contributor however to Thundercracker's resolve to keep the other mech firmly where he could strategically protect him.
Skywarp had stopped falling asleep at the most bizarre of times in recent days and Thundercracker hoped that whatever it was that was messing with his system had past but in the wake of the strange sleeping habits and nauseated tanks, Skywarp had become increasingly temperamental and, oddly enough, territorial over the first cave. He hated it and said so as loudly and as often as possible but should anyone enter it without his expressed permission they would find themselves face to barrel with a null-ray. The others had begun to give Skywarp a wide berth and that was perfect for Thundercracker to keep an optic on him.
Starscream, meanwhile, was about to drive Thundercracker absolutely insane. The leader of the seekers and current lieutenant in command was even harder to nail down and keep away from the newest arrival. Especially since the other mech seemed to be following the red and white seeker almost constantly, whether by physical presence or just tracking the seeker leader with his optics. Starscream, unsurprisingly, hadn't noticed that he was being watched and when Thundercracker brought it to his attention, the other seeker had just scoffed at him and stomped away to yell at the Constructicon's that their tower looked like a stack of soggy pancakes. What "pancakes" even were, he wouldn't explain but it made Thundercracker want to go bang his head against the quarry wall.
It had been Hook's rather lack of concern that had startled Thundercracker the most however. He had thought that as the second lieutenant in command, and the medic at that, he would at least hear out the seekers concerns. He had thought that Hook out of anyone would see the same things that he was seeing but the medic had shocked him with a cast off shrug at his misgivings. The flier had then asked what Hook thought on the fact that the other mech didn't seem to grieve for his lost teammate and Thundercracker thought that as a combiner himself, Hook would have been more alarmed at the other mech's blasé attitude towards Brawl's death. Hook and the other Constructicons had been stunned, horrified and saddened by Bonecrusher's death, rare emotions for a Decepticon to show but they had shown them all the same.
The other mech though just shrugged off the news before starting a conversation with Runabout and Runamuck. Hook had stated that everyone grieved differently. Though he and his group didn't particularly hang out with the other combiner teams and therefore didn't know the dynamics of said teams, Brawl's death might not have been necessarily a bad thing for the others on his team. Nevertheless Hook had warned Thundercracker that it was best if they did keep watch on the other mech for signs of instability from the destruction of the combiner bond if he tried to reach for something that was no longer there.
Hook had explained that a combiner bond was as strong as a trine bond of the fliers- even possibly stronger since it was shared between more than three mechs at a time. On the other hand they had to take into account that Brawl had been with Starscream searching for the All Spark and that the bond had been strained already. It could be possible that Brawl's death just hadn't hit the other mech completely. It was a potential reason as to why the other mech was acting so odd.
Thundercracker wasn't taking any chances though and promptly sequestered Skywarp into his own personal hidey-hole dead smack in the middle of their quarry surrounded by everybody. The dugout was safer than the lopsided tower though and even having never heard of "pancakes", let alone seen a soggy one, Thundercracker was apt to agree with Starscream's assessment. It was sad that while the Constructicon's were a force to be reckoned with on Cybertron, it seemed that here on Earth they were completely out of their element. Or was it that they were still grieving for Bonecrusher? Or they may have just been fucking with Starscream; anything was possible.
"Hey Swindle! What do you think of this!"
Thundercracker's head snapped up at Runamuck's call and he watched as Swindle made his way over to where the two chargers were making some sort of gun out of the Constructicon's leftover materials. Swindle smiled as he appraised the weapon and even laughed as Runabout ran a test fire only for the gun to expel smoke. The three started working on the "weapon" and Thundercracker was grateful that Skywarp was in the dugout.
Swindle was not someone that Thundercracker had considered a friend, or even an acquaintance back on Cybertron but he remembered how the other had acted. Setting up a small black market goods line right there in Megatron's base, Swindle had been a cool customer all right. He was a fast talker and even faster cheat. He was not someone any of the 'Cons would trust around their property and whenever Swindle entered a room, prized weapons, treasured trinkets, just about everything would disappear from sight.
Now however, Swindle was suddenly quite the team player. Helping out the Constructicons with anything they may need, assisting the chargers with their little projects to keep busy and also agreeing with every little thing Starscream said. Even as Thundercracker thought it Starscream walked past the small table where the three were huddled over the weapon. Swindle's head didn't rise but observing seeker could see the flash of red as the optics tracked Starscream's path away from not only them but also the following Misfire.
Thundercracker risked looking away from lone Combaticon to his teammate and current leader until Shockwave arrived. Starscream had been in a foul mood, even more so than usual since their return from the white lands the humans called the "Arctic". Horrible place that. They had gone that whole way with nothing to show for it. The Autobots had managed to keep them from the Energon crystals and it was more than likely being guarded vigorously by the dogged mechs while they just sat there arguing over where to try to build their failed tower next. Starscream had stated that it was more than likely tighter security than "Fort Knox", whatever the pit that was, and it would take meticulous planning to steal the Energon right out from under the Autobot's sensors.
Added to the insult of not being able to get the crystals was Soundwave and Barricade's presence on the battlefield. That they had clearly joined with the Autobots had been another sore point in the ranks upon their return. Starscream wouldn't talk about it and had told the other fliers not to speak of their betrayal but Misfire had blown that secret within seconds of their returning.
The shock was nothing short of explosive and the questions had bombarded Starscream on why it was he had said that Barricade was dead when clearly he wasn't and why it was Soundwave, who had always criticized the Autobots on how they did things, had defected. Starscream had shouted, argued and stomped away multiple times and yet he never gave them any answers as to why he thought the two 'Cons had left. Everyone had been stunned and angry at the blatant betrayal of at least one of the most loyal 'Cons to serve under Megatron.
'Though with Megatron dead and Starscream in charge may just be the bottom line as to Soundwave's departure,' Thundercracker thought. He watched as Starscream snapped something at Misfire that had the other mech stammering for a comeback. 'Though why he's with the Autoscum is beyond me.'
Shifting his position, he tried to get more comfortable, or at least as comfortable as he could while sitting on a rock while he guarded the dugout. 'Maybe that's why no one's questioning Swindle's arrival,' he considered as his gaze flicked back to the mech with the soldering rod as he and Runamuck worked on the weapon. 'Perhaps in the wake of Barricade's and Soundwave's betrayal, they think his arrival is like a Primus-sent miracle.' He frowned and his gaze narrowed as Swindle's optics flicked up again to watch Starscream. 'Or just really good timing.'
Thundercracker's musing was suddenly cut short as a cloud of dust suddenly wafted out of the cave behind him. Turning in surprise, he found Skywarp beating at the ground with a rather large tree branch. "This place is absolutely disgusting!" Skywarp huffed as he tried to sweep out the dirt. Considering the whole cave was made from dirt, it was fruitless effort.
"What in the world has gotten into you?" Thundercracker asked bemused by his mate's antics.
Skywarp whirled about, wielding the branch like a sword. "You! You're the one who banished me into this horrible place!"
"I didn't banish you-"
"Yes you did!" Skywarp snapped, stomping his foot for emphasis, the tree branch in his hand shaking violently. "You're the one who stuck me in here and won't even let me out to talk to the others!" His infuriated expression turned into a sad frown momentarily. "The three of us haven't even gone flying since we got back."
"That's Starscream's decision, not mine," Thundercracker argued.
The infuriated expression was back. "We haven't even flown alone together!" Thundercracker made to reply when the branch was suddenly shoved in his face. "You've had me cooped up in here and it's not even sanitary! It's horrifyingly disgusting and filthy! This place is worse than the oil pits!"
The blue mech sighed. "You're exaggerating."
"No I'm not!"
"Skywarp-"
"You're not even helping!"
"If you want me to help then I'll-"
"No, don't bother," Skywarp sighed, halting Thundercracker's attempted to get up off his rock. Instead Skywarp whacked his mate's with the branch and Thundercracker scooted over to allow Skywarp to sit down. "What are you doing anyway?"
"Nothing."
He received a sharp frown. "You're never doing 'nothing'."
Thundercracker let out a loud sigh. "Cloud watching then."
Skywarp startled as his gaze instantly snapped towards the sky. "There aren't any rain clouds, are there?"
"Not yet." Thundercracker made a nod towards the distance where darker clouds were approaching them at a brisk pace.
The purple and black seeker scowled before he looked over at the others. "Well if we're all going to be squashed in the caves again, I'd better clean them out faster."
"Why bother?" the other asked before he could think about the question. The glare that was shot his way had Thundercracker's mouth snapping shut and he looked back out towards the others milling around. His gaze instantly went to Swindle and seeing that the other mech's gaze was firmly on another, he turned towards Starscream who was now yelling at Scrapper who was shouting back just as agitated, Scavenger backing him up.
Misfire was gone- 'Oh there he is,' he spotted the other red flier chatting rapidly with, or rather at, Mixmaster. The mixer did not look happy but said nothing as he hefted another I-beam, Misfire following him the whole way. Misfire wasn't of their trine but he was a flier so Thundercracker had added him on the list of mechs to be watched closely while in Swindle's close proximity. Being with Mixmaster lessened the probability of anything happening to him though so Thundercracker turned his gaze back to his own trine leader.
"Starscream does listen to us you know," Skywarp suddenly spoke up and Thundercracker was startled to realize the other mech hadn't moved from the rock.
"What?" he asked rather stupidly.
Skywarp turned to him, a serious expression on his face and the tree branch across his lap. "Starscream," he said again, playing a bit with the smaller branches, plucking them off the larger one almost nervously. "He did listen to what you said about Swindle but…" Skywarp trailed off with a shrug.
"He doesn't act like he listened," Thundercracker countered with a frown.
"He did though," Skywarp insisted firmly. "Starscream…" he paused again, staring out at their trinemate with a thoughtful frown pulling at his mouth. "Star just sees things differently." Thundercracker sent him a questioning look and he shrugged again. "He was a scientist. They see everything differently."
Thundercracker absorbed that statement and mulled over it briefly. "If you say so," he finally replied. "You've known him longer."
And it was true. Thundercracker had joined Megatron's ranks later in the war and Skywarp and Starscream had already been firmly ensconced in Megatron's tight circle of elites. Even as an incomplete trine, Megatron had known the advantages of having fliers in his ranks. Thundercracker's arrival had only strengthened Megatron's advances.
Many times Thundercracker had asked again and again on how it was that Skywarp and Starscream had met and recognized their trine bond. If waiting for him and not knowing if they would ever find their third was as painful for them as it had been for him to think himself trineless. As time had gone on and he had past his adolescent stages, when most trines were formed, incomplete the anguish Thundercracker had felt had only increased tenfold.
But any time he tried to bring up their past both Skywarp and Starscream would fall silent and changed the subject to something entirely different. Thundercracker had thought that not knowing all about the two was why there was still some dissatisfaction in their bond. Even after Aligning with Skywarp he still knew nothing about the prior to the war.
Skywarp had said it didn't matter who they were before the war, all that mattered was the here and now and right then he had been rather affectionate and Thundercracker stopped thinking for an entire three shifts while the inquiry of their past flew completely out of his head. Still, not knowing everything about the other two had been a sore point for Thundercracker. He felt that even though he was of their trine, he was an outsider.
There was defiantly something in Starscream's past that was a sore point but what in the pit did that have to do with Skywarp? It was as if Skywarp wasn't talking about his own past in deferment to Starscream's decision to erase his own past altogether. How closely were their pasts connected?
'Not that it matters as his future is linked to mine,' Thundercracker thought with a slight smile only to realize that Skywarp was speaking again. Indeed the road to the future looked bright.
"You're leering," Skywarp snickered and Thundercracker was surprised to realize he was.
"So I am…" Thundercracker's leer became more open.
They grinned at one another and Skywarp hopped to his feet with a playful smile when there was a sudden snarl beside them and Starscream approached them. A quick glance showed Thundercracker that Swindle was being distracted by Runabout and Runamuck and had apparently not noticed Starscream's movement. With a sigh, Thundercracker realized the mood had quite firmly been ruined and he turned towards the other flier to find out what he wanted.
"They're all a bunch of raving lunatics!" he huffed as he whirled about and leaned against the quarry wall next to the main dugout's entrance.
Skywarp made a snorting sound. "If you say so," he replied and smacking Starscream in the arm with his branch as he past, stomped back into the makeshift shelter.
Starscream picked out the few branches and leaves out of his seams as he glanced at Thundercracker with a baffled frown. "What is with him? He's been the craziest of the all these past few months!"
Thundercracker leaned back on his arms, sunning himself on his rock lazily now that Skywarp had retreated back into the dugout. "You tell me," he replied with a small sigh. "You're the scientist."
"Former," Starscream huffed before he shot Thundercracker a glare. "And you're his husband. Didn't he say anything to you?" The other flyer just shrugged and Starscream's frown deepened. "You're an annoying prick, you know that."
Thundercracker frowned at the strange word but before he could say anything two more mechs joined them, both grinning broadly as one of them hefted the item in his hands. "Check it out guys!"
Starscream frowned at Runabout and the blaster in his hands. "It's a gun. Whoopee."
The two shared a look at the strange word before they shrugged. "It's a modified blaster cannon. We were trying to make a smaller one for easier handling."
"It looks good," Thundercracker mused absently.
"You didn't even look at it!" Runamuck accused. Thundercracker shrugged absently again.
"Couldn't you two have done anything more productively? Like scouting the area or something?" Starscream sneered.
"From what? The rabbits?" Runabout snarled back.
"We already shot a few deer this morning. There can't be anything else for miles," Runamuck agreed.
"I wasn't talking about the slagging wildlife," Starscream snapped.
"There's nothing else out there!" Runamuck argued and Thundercracker tuned out the other Decepticons.
It wasn't an easy task however as their shouting continually got louder. Seriously, couldn't they go argue somewhere else, preferable before the rain finally fell as the clouds now hung dangerously above them. Trying his best to ignore them before he suddenly sat straight up, his optics searching the entirety of the quarry. "Where's Swindle?" he demanded of the two chargers.
"Eh?" Runamuck cut off his arguing with Starscream to tilt his head in askance. "Oh, he's around somewhere."
"But anyway, our blaster is nearly done!" Runabout announced gleefully. "All we need now is-"
But fliers didn't hear what it was that the two needed as there was a sudden loud humming sound and a bright light engulfed the entire quarry. Thundercracker would have gasped if he could but he couldn't move. The strange light seemed to have caught them like a gravitation beam, pressing them down like the weight of an entire planet on their shoulders and locking them down in their positions. They were helpless.
It was then that another whining sound echoed loudly in the quarry over the low hum and suddenly it felt as if his entire frame had been struck by a hundred lightning bolts, sparks engulfing his frame as he jerked and twitched, tumbling off his rock and convulsed on the hard ground. Alarms sounded through his systems and warnings flashed across his optics. His entire frame was shutting down.
A brief moment of sight as his optics flickered on and off showed Starscream and the others in the same predicament. Whatever it was that they had been shot with had taken them all by surprise. There was a distraught cry suddenly sounding in his head and Thundercracker sent a thought with all his strength. ":Don't move!:"
":What?:" Skywarp's shocked answer was still clear as day through the Link, thank Primus as Thundercracker thought his audios had surly blown. Skywarp's voice was the only thing he heard.
":I said 'don't move'! You're still in the dugout right? They didn't hit you, did they?:"
":No, but-:"
":They can't have realize that they missed anyone yet! You can still move, right?:"
There was another gasp. ":Thundercracker? What-?:"
":We're completely immobile! Whatever that thing that hit us is, it's powerful. I'm going to fall into stasis in a few seconds.:" A keening cry followed that announcement. ":Is it the Autobots?:" Thundercracker asked with some apprehension. If the Autobots had a weapon this powerful-
":No,:" Skywarp practically moaned. ":We're surrounded by humans.:" There was a sharp gasp. ":Swindle is talking to them!:"
":Slag!:" Thundercracker growled. ": I knew it! It was just too strange!:" he tried his best to take a deep breath and calm down so he could focus.
":Can you get to the air?:"
":No,:" Skywarp moaned. ":There's some sort of force field surrounding us.:"
'The light,' Thundercracker realized. ":But you can still warp.:"
":Yeah,:" Skywarp confirmed quickly. It sounded like he was focusing on something. ":I can get behind them and-:"
":NO!:"
":What?:" This time, Skywarp's voice was sharp in his mind. ":I can do it! If you would just trust me-:"
":No, listen. You have to get out of here before they realized they missed one! You have to get help! You're the only one who can do it!:"
":Help?:" Skywarp yelped. ":Who's here to help us? It's their planet!:"
":Soundwave and Barricade,:" Thundercracker told him firmly and there was another gasp.
":But they're with-:"
":-the Autobots,:" he confirmed grimly. ":If anyone's going to help us, it's going to be them.:"
":But what if these humans are with the Autobots?:" Skywarp demanded angrily.
":They're not,:" a new voice joined them and if Thundercracker wasn't already on the ground, he would have fallen down. Very rarely were all three of them connected at one time. Starscream very rarely participated in their silent conversations and only then when he had to. Apparently their current situation constituted as an emergency. ":These are the same kind of humans as the ones who imprisoned Megatron and attacked Optimus and his team.:"
":Starscream- What are you saying?:" Skywarp asked the question Thundercracker was dying to know. Possibly quite literally dying.
":A group of humans that want any and all of our kind to be 'studied',:" Starscream sneered and Thundercracker couldn't keep the small laugh out of the mental bond at the irony of that. ":Sector four or eight or something.:" There was a growl. Starscream had heard him. ":Optimus and the Autobots don't like them as much as they don't like us.:"
":You're saying that the Autobots are going to help us?:" Skywarp yelped.
":Not them,:" Thundercracker countered quickly. ":Barricade and Soundwave. Find them!:"
":But…but where do I even start?:"
Thundercracker was at a loss when Starscream spoke again through their trine bond. ":Tranquility City, California.:"
":What?:"
":Tranquility. Start there. That's where the human they joined forces with lives. The Autobots cannot be far away. Sam Witwicky. Find him, you'll find the Autobots. Find the Autobots, you'll find Soundwave and the traitor.:"
":But where in Tranquility?:"
There was a snarl. ":I don't know.:"
":I can't just leave you two here!:"
":Skywarp!:" Thundercracker snapped and Skywarp fell silent. ":Go!:" and miraculously, he did. He couldn't hear the crack of Skywarp warping out but he knew he had as their bond was suddenly felt at a distance. Skywarp had gotten out, that was all that mattered.
Thundercracker let out a relived sigh as the final warning flashed across his vision and his optics went dark while the rain finally fell from the sky.
- To Be Continued

Author's Note: /RUNS/ :D Okay folks. This is where I leave off for another 6 month hiatus! ... ... ... ... ... ... or at least until the wedding is over! Actually, I may be able to write, it depends on how crazy it gets. ... ... ... ... ... Lets just say don't expect regular updates from me. :P Sorry everyone!
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