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Bridge

Razorclaw waited. That’s what he did best in anticipation of the perfect time to strike. He had done so before when biding his time to make a play for leadership of the Decepticons. All of his patience had finally paid off when he bested Starscream in a one-on-one battle that left the Seeker Commander in a barely functioning heap on the floor of the bridge. Skywarp had then stepped in and taken him to the repair bay where Starscream had remained in a CR chamber ever since. It had already seemed like an eternity, but then again the wounds inflicted on the Air Commander had been vicious so it was not surprising that it would take a good amount of time for the repair cycle to complete.

Unfortunately, time is not on our side, the Predacon lord thought to himself as Rampage made mention that they had two of the three capital ships in the sector under their control while the third was the Thanatos, itself, which they knew like the backs of their own hand modules. The Predacons seemed to have everything going for them and as Rampage continued to say, this would be the time when Megatron would finish off his opponent in the gladiatorial arena back in the days of old.

“Soon, Rampage, soon,” Razorclaw said assuredly to his subordinate as Tantrum then left the bridge for the repair bay to hasten things along. In the meantime, the Predacon lord continued to wait, accessing the frigate’s various internal and external monitors in order to see for himself what the many ‘Cons on board were currently doing. Most were trying to get things into working order again, not that the ship was ever in the best shape to begin with, but it had at least seen better cycles than it’s current state.

Turning his attention to the outside monitors, Razorclaw could see the progress that the Stunticons were making on placing the various sensors around the Ultrax. Some were working diligently while others took their sweet time. It was as Motormaster had said, don’t expect a miracle from his boys. Truer words had never been said, especially in regards to that sorry lot. Still, the Stunticons had their usefulness and their support would be pivotal in the coming conflict against Shockwave.

That conflict was unfortunately unavoidable at this point. Shockwave would not simply relinquish his claim to the throne. No, he would have to be usurped from power, and the only way to do that was to unite the Decepticons here on Earth. The specialty teams were already bound together, which had been the first major hurdle crossed. Now, the seekers needed to be brought in, as well, and the key to making that happen was Starscream, the very mech Razorclaw had just beaten almost to death. If the Predacon lord could convince the Seeker Commander to stand with him, if only temporarily, then they could bring Shockwave’s rule to a swift end before moving on to other more important matters.

Of course, with the cycloptic mech out of the way, those matters would likely find Razorclaw and Starscream at odds once again. One obstacle at a time, the Predacon lord thought as he rubbed his chin plate with his right hand. His thoughts then drifted to Lord Thunderwing and where his loyalties would ultimately lay. The carapace-laced scientist was the one wild card in all of this that could shift the balance of power in an instant. He needed to be convinced that Razorclaw was the right choice to lead with the capability of bringing the Decepticons together and ultimately defeating the Autobots once and for all.

Razorclaw was roused from his thoughts at the sound of Rampage’s vocalizer again, this time making mention that “Prince Charming”, as he put it, was finally awake. The lion-former punched up the security feed on the primary view screen ahead, showing Starscream walking out of the repair bay with a pair of Predacon escorts. It was readily apparent that the Seeker Commander was not yet fully repaired and would be unable to challenge Razorclaw to a rematch. This was good news as the Predacon lord sought no further violence between them unless it was absolutely necessary.

“Yes, I see,” Razorclaw remarked with a smirk. “And he appears to still be just as arrogant as ever. Some things never change I suppose.”

The door of the bridge then slid open, but instead of Starscream entering the room, the green Insecticon known as Waspinator stepped across the threshold and offered his services as a flier, talking in a strange buzz-like speech pattern that Razorclaw could barely understand. It didn’t take more than a few astroseconds for the bug to get on the Predacon lord’s nerve receptors. “Waspinator....” Razorclaw growled as he slowly cast a stern glare in the lone Insecticon’s direction. “....I have no idea who you’ve been talking to, but all that I require from you right now is to buzz off! Is that clearly understood?”

Bridge

Divebomb made his way to the bridge with Starscream and Tantrum as he looked back to see the seeker commander smirking. Arrogant as ever, Divebomb hopes that Razorclaw would wipe that smirk off his face, but that was likely impossible. Getting the seekers to their cause was gonna be tremendously difficulty. Its gonna be interesting to see what Razorclaw comes up with to persuade the seeker commander to join him. Divebomb quickly bows his head before Razorclaw.

"As you commanded, I have brought Starscream to the bridge."

Divebomb makes his way to Razorclaw's side as he stood by him like a bodyguard. Eagerly waiting to see what Lord Razorclaw would do to persuade Starscream to join. It's gonna be awkward teaming up with the seekers after the events that had transpired in the bridge. Divebomb suppose that they can put their difference aside when taking down Shockwave.....hopefully.

Repair Bay

Thrust wanted to follow them badly just to see what they will do to lord Starscream. However, he would have to worry about Divebomb and Tantrum getting in the way or may face punishment from Starscream. He stood back with Skywarp and Nightraven as they watch them leave the area. Thrust turned towards Skywarp and Nightraven as Skywarp suggested that with his knowledge of the ships complex, he would be able to warp in and out of the area. This gave Thrust an idea to spy on the predacons without getting caught. Hopefully the plan would work and the predacons won't catch them.

"Skywarp, you think you can warp us to a place to spy on their conversation?"

Bridge

Once the Seeker Commander had exited his CR chamber he made his way, albeit, slowly to the repair bay’s doors, but before stepping through Starscream stopped and cast a fleeting glance at the Seekers present leaving them with only his trade make smirk. Moments later he passed through the doors and out into the corridor beyond with both Tantrum and Divebomb in tow.

The trek did not take nearly as long as he’d expected even with his noticeable slow gait and other injuries. He stood in front of the doors to the bridge, a deep scowl etched on his face. When the doors finally slid apart what was revealed a bridge that was just as active as it had been when he and Razorclaw went through their little tussle, and yet he was here again to speak to the Predacon about the possible future of not only their faction but their futures with-in the ranks…or rather the Seekers’ futures.

“Ah, how nice to see you once again my dear Razorclaw.”

Starscream stepped further onto the bridge and worked his way over to toward the Predacon, however, he was sure to keep his approach as nonthreatening and calculated as possible. After all he couldn’t afford to engage in another losing battle.

The red and silver Seeker offered the new interim Decepticon leader a cocky smile, after all it was in Starscream’s nature to believe he was the mech for the job, and that job was to take the mantle of the faction and lead them to victory followed by total domination of the universe. The thought nearly had the Seeker Commander salivating. He reigned himself in long enough to push forward with the pleasantries.

“I believe we have some business to attend to. Shall we?”

Starscream carefully moved past Razorclaw and headed toward the side room that had served as Motormaster’s make shift office. The Seeker Commander stopped in front of the door and turned to look at the one who he considered his opposite and waited.

Repair Bay

Nightraven stood by Skywarp’s side and watched quietly as Starscream exited his CR chamber. Their Commander remained silent but offered one reassuring gesture to Skywarp by placing his hand on the teleporter’s shoulder…leaving it there for a moment before he moved on and out the Repair bay doors.

From Skywarp’s flank Nightraven gave the black and purple mech a small smile at his suggestion that he could teleport onto the bridge in order to see just what the Predacons planned to do with their Commander.

“Skywarp…”

Nightraven placed her hand on his upper arm in order to get his attention.

“Let Starscream handle it. There’s no need for you to pop in the middle of that bridge and get yourself killed. Starscream knows what he’s doing, he always has. I’m sure when the time is right we’ll hear something.”

She knew she probably sounded like she was giving out a lecture, but she had no desire to lose anyone…especially not him. With her optics locked on him, Nightraven let her hand trail from his upper arm down to his forearm where it remained.

Approaching the Ultrax

Thunderwing skimmed along the ocean surface, staying low to help avoid detection. The trip had been highly uneventful and dull. He had picked up a few surface vessels on the way over and plotted courses around them. Beneath the water surface he could detect myriad organisms, but he had no time to dwell on them. In the future he would have to conduct some studies to see what he could glean of value from this planet’s lifeforms. He was always willing to acquire new information and add it to his arsenal.

The Decepticon slowed as he approached his destination, at the same time receiving a message from Blackwind. The message was an automated one, programmed to go off should she not be able to stop it. It indicated that she was incapacitated, likely at the hands of Shockwave. She would require assistance, but the message urged caution. It appeared that their fears had been well founded and Shockwave had made his move while she was on the ship, virtually alone.

He repressed his desire to rush up and meet Shockwave in battle immediately. Doing so would give him away and likely end in his defeat. Shockwave was not likely to be lured into a one on one battle for leadership like other Decepticons would be. Honor was not something that mattered to him. He would likely find himself fighting off an entire ship of Shockwave loyalists, not to mention he wasn’t certain if he could take down Shockwave himself. No, he would have to be patient and form a plan to take him down, the first steps to which now lay below him. He could only hope there would be something left of Blackwind when he got to her.

Thunderwing dove beneath the water surface, his engines speeding his decent. He transformed, allowing gravity to do the rest of the work as he relied on his sensors to guide him to his destination. The Ultrax was a long ways down, it was no surprise it had remained undetected. As he approached the vessel he attempted to contact it’s commander. >>”Razorclaw, this is Thunderwing. I request permission to come aboard the Ultrax and meet with you. I come with only peaceful intent and have no wish for further violence.”<<

Bridge

And now he was here.

Rampage's circuits almost instinctively tensed as the notorious Air Commander made his presence known to Razorclaw once again. Rampage's gaze shifted curiously between Starscream and Razorclaw, but curiosity was largely all it was. The Predacon harbored no doubts regarding his commander's abilities. They were formidable and they were many--his almost legendary patience being just one. But Starscream's skills, and certainly his reputation, were also formidable. And so Rampage took no encounter with him lightly. Certainly not when the stakes were so high as they were now.

Despite all of that being true, in Rampage's mind at least, the Predacon remainded silent and did not voice any further concerns or warnings to his commander. This was the strategy that he had chosen to follow, and Rampage would see it done. He was only a small piece of what was going on here, and he knew it. Their fate, the fate of the Predacons. Slag...maybe even the fate of the Decepticons as a whole? It was mostly in Razorclaw's hands now.
___

As Tantrum followed behind Starscream, his optics locked briefly with the other Predacons in the room before the Fueler found his way to his own makeshift station aboard the Stunticon wreck and stood there silently, watching as the other Decepticons, chiefly Starscream, made their presence known to Razorclaw.

Tantrum, like many of the others, said nothing. He was content to watch and see what action Starscream would take now. And, more importantly, how their commander would respond.

Bridge

Razorclaw had been monitoring Starscream’s movements as he made his way from the repair bay to just outside the bridge and thus the Predacon lord was prepared when the doors finally slid apart to reveal the still battered Seeker Commander on the other side. Razorclaw remained motionless even as he caught a glimpse of the scowl on the silver and red mech’s faceplate. That visage revealed his true feelings regardless of the seemingly pleasant manner by which he greeted the lion-former.

“I’m sure you're thrilled to see me again,” Razorclaw responded sarcastically, keeping his optics locked on Starscream as the Air Commander advanced towards him in a non-threatening manner. Even though Starscream was not fully healed yet, he could not be underestimated, not for an astrosecond. Screamer was as cunning as they came and likely wanted revenge for the beating he had endured at the hands of the Predacon lord. The attempt may not come now, but one could never be too careful when dealing with Megatron’s former second in command.

Razorclaw produced a scowl of his own underneath his face shield as Starscream gave his adversary a cocky smile before stating the obvious and moving towards the door of Motormaster’s office. “Your are correct, Starscream. We do have business to discuss,” Razorclaw agreed as he stood from his chair and walked over to where the Seeker Commander now stood. Before entering, the lion-former turned back towards the rest of his squad. “Predacons, remain on the bridge while I have a chat with our compatriot here. Rampage, alert me at once if you detect any signs of trouble from our cycloptic foe.”

Razorclaw then turned back to face Starscream once more, locking optics with his former opponent. “Let’s talk.”

Motormaster’s Office

Razorclaw entered the office of the Stunticon Commander and took a seat behind the desk situated at the far end of the room. He motioned for Starscream to enter and close the door behind him, assuming that the head Seeker would then take a seat opposite his own or perhaps remain standing. The Predacon lord didn’t really care which the aerial warrior chose to do, just as long as he listened to reason.

“Let’s dispense with any more pleasantries and get right down to why we are here, Starscream,” Razorclaw began to speak in a stern, unyielding tone. “We are here to reunite the Decepticons together as they had been under Megatron's rule. The infighting must stop if we are to get back to the real war which is with the Autobots. They are the actual enemy we should be fighting and not each other. The only way to accomplish this is to work together. You and I might not see optic to optic on many things, but we do share a common foe and that is Shockwave!”

Razorclaw leaned forward in his chair as he emphasized his last few words. “Shockwave must be swiftly dealt with before the Autobots decide to mount an attack against us while we’re in the midst of squabbling amongst ourselves. I already have the specialty teams united behind me, but without you and your seekers Shockwave will ultimately win, I fear. He is cold and calculating and has been out of action for as long as the Dinobots have. I’m sure you can agree that he is not fit to lead. We must set aside our differences and do what is necessary for the Empire before it crumbles away into dust.”

The lion-former stopped and sat back again in Motormaster’s chair, allowing his words to the Seeker Commander to sink in. After a few more astroseconds, Razorclaw continued. “Now, I make no pretenses about this precarious situation we find ourselves in, Starscream. I know that you would like nothing more than to battle it out with me again in a rematch, preferably in a setting that is more befitting of your own aerial capabilities. But, I must implore you to set those feelings aside for the time being and help me defeat that one-eyed calculator.”

Razorclaw was about to continue when he was interrupted by a transmission from Thunderwing, who was requesting permission to board the Ultrax in order to talk with no threat of further violence. The Predacon lord was not surprised by his visit as Onslaught had already informed him of the carapace-covered mech’s arrival on Earth. Razorclaw had to be careful here as allowing one as powerful as Thunderwing to join his meeting with Starscream could very well see the two Decepticon fliers teaming up against him. Of course, Razorclaw still had his Predacons to back him up if need be, but that may not be enough especially considering the untested nature of Thunderwing’s weapons and other carapace-enhanced abilities. At the same time, the lion-former could not pass up the chance to possibly convince Thunderwing to join his side and add a very powerful warrior to his growing army.

>>”Permission granted, Lord Thunderwing. You may enter through one of the airlocks. Once inside, please feel free to join me on the bridge in Motormaster’s office where Starscream and I are already discussing the future of the Decepticon Empire.”<<

Cutting his comm link, Razorclaw regarded the Seeker Commander with a curious look. “Well, Starscream, it seems we have a visitor to add to our proceedings. I'm sure you don't mind if Thunderwing joins us, do you?”

Repair Bay

Once Starscream had left with his Predacon escorts, Skywarp let out an angry growl of frustration. His attention was then quickly drawn to Nightraven as she placed a hand on his upper arm. She tried to convince him that it would be a bad idea if he got involved once again. Clearly, Nighty was worried that he would end up getting himself killed in the process, assuring him that the Seeker Commander knew what he was doing.

“I’m sure he does,” the teleporter conceded as he felt the seeker femme’s hand move down to his forearm. “Of course, he didn’t fare too well recently, but he won’t let that happen twice. Screamer’s too smart to fight Razorclaw in such tight quarters again. No, our real leader will wait until he’s out in the open and then he’ll strike!” Skywarp suddenly punched one fist into the palm of his other hand, allowing his emotions to take control for a brief moment. The idea of Starscream’s revenge against the new Predacon “lord” was enough to make any seeker overly excited.

A calmer Skywarp then looked over into Nightraven’s optics. “Don’t worry, I promise not to do anything rash this time. We’ll just have to wait and see what happens next. It shouldn’t take too long, I guess.” The prankster then took Nighty’s hand into his own before smiling at her. “So, you wanna kill some time and get a drink with me? I’m sure this rust bucket has a mess hall of some kind. We just have to find it. Ha ha.”

Bridge

"As commanded," Rampage said, nodding in Razorclaw's direction before he went off with the Seeker leader in to what probably had served as Motormaster's personal "office" aboard the ship. Rampage could only imagine what that looked like.

Keeping an optic on the ship's scanners, Rampage noticed the arrival of new and powerful command figure in the form of Warlord Thunderwing of Valckasta. Razorclaw had already granted the warlord clear entry. Having been a warlord himself once in Cybertron's history--though over a significantly smaller region--Rampage recognized the value of that title. At the same time, he also recognized the threat that Thunderwing presented to Razorclaw's claim--be it direct or indirect. It was only Rampage's loyalty to Razorclaw and very slow-evolving commitment to the Predacon unit as a whole that had secured his own loyalty to Razorclaw's goals. What--if anything--was tethering Thunderwing's?

Rampage supposed he would discover the answer to that question soon enough.

Outside the Ultrax

The thunderous splash in the middle of open water was the only hint of Thundercracker’s decension into the sea and towards the Ultrax. Following orders. That was the one thing that always remained constant with the blue seeker and that was the one thing he couldn‘t help but do when orders came to return to the Ultrax and it‘s location. Starscream was his commander and brother, although why he continued to listen to the arrogant mech was food for thought.

Once under the ocean’s surface, Thundercracker let his sensors stretch out in an effort to locate any potential “surprises”. For several klicks everything seemed to be as it should be. Then he picked up the familiar signature of Thunderwing ahead of him. Curious, Thundercracker slowed his speed and angled away from his comrade to approach the downed ship from the opposite side. The fewer to see him the better, given his actions over the last few cycles.

His decision on taking a wider angle served him well as he picked up a handful of other signatures along the ocean floor. They were easy enough for him to elude and weren't Shockwave's troopers. He never thought his coloring would come in handy anywhere but in the sky. If the mech responsible for his light blue paint still functioned he’d make a note to thank him.

After circling the location a number of times he decided to contact Starscream.

>>Thundercracker to Starscream. Request permission to board Ultrax.<<

Now all he had to do was wait for a response and they could figure out how to deal with Shockwave.

(OOC: Screamer and Nighty tomorrow. I didn't want this post to turn into a monster.)


Outside the Ultrax

The arm load of sensors were secured against his chestplates as the Stunticon terrorist trudged off in the direction that his white and blue teammate should have gone… had he not been spooked by Wildrider’s antics. The mere thought of Breakdown running off with his optics wide in fear and high pitched scream coming from his vocalizer, now that would be music to his audios.

The hike from the air lock to where the scout would have been working hadn’t taken nearly as long as Wildrider expected, which suited the terrorist just fine. After all the sooner he and the others completed this little task the sooner he could get back inside and clean out every one of his transformation seams. The salt in the water was murder on his inner workings.

Upon his arrival Wildrider dumped his burden, save for two and began placing the sensors around the ship. Half a breem into his work Wildrider noticed something approaching and fast. A wide grin formed on his faceplate as he moved closer to the ship so as not to be spotted by whatever, or whoever it was heading his way. Oh, slag, this is gonna be good. His thoughts began to wander to the carnage he could cause with just one well-placed shot.

Wildrider pulled his scattershot gun and took aim at the blurry form that was still steadily approaching.

“I got ya now ya grease stain!”

Wildrider leveled his weapon and took aim at….

“Holy slag!”

Unsure of how to handle the new situation, the terrorist opened a comm. line with Motormaster, but he kept his gun trained on his target.

>>”Yo boss! I got my optics and weapon trained on….you’re not gonna believe this…Thunderwing! You want me to take him out?”<<

-----

Breakdown not only physically relaxed but he also mentally relaxed. He knew Drag Strip was no Dead End, who possibly was the only mech who had no hidden agenda toward him, but sticking with the yellow racer was sure to keep him just slightly saner than he had been.

“Th…thanks Drag. I really appreciate it. I mean I k..kinda hope Rider gets his aft handed to him, but it hasn’t happened so far.”

Drag Strip’s warning concerning protecting the paranoid mech from the likes of Wildrider did not fall on deaf audios. Instead Breakdown simply looked down and stared at his hands.

“S’okay. I…uh don’t expect anyone to do that.”

Breakdown gave his comrade a slight nod answering Drag Strip’s query about where he left his pile of sensors. A cringe caused Breakdown to shiver. The thought of going back and possibly coming across Wildrider…No! If I see that worthless fragger I’m gonna stand up to him. I’ll show him he can’t intimidate me! Not anymore!

The walk back to the sensor pile was a quick one, but when they got there Wildrider was already picking at the pile. Breakdown watched from a position just behind and off to the side of his yellow teammate. The white and blue mech took a quick look at Drag Strip and then turned his attention to where the terrorist was.

“Um..m..maybe you should get ‘em. I don’t wanna have to deal with him and possibly wind up destroying the sensors. Cause you know that’s how it’ll turn out with that sick piece of slag.”

When the scout looked back to where the terrorist was he noticed that Wildrider was already stalking off. That sight brought a wide grin to his face and calmed his demeanor.

“Actually, I think I can take this one.”

That said Breakdown moved past Drag Strip and stopped at the remainder of the sensors where he scooped up an armful.

(OOC: Okay so it's two days late. Just be happy I got it done!)


Bridge

“Oh, but of course I am, Predacon.”

Starscream eyed Razorclaw as the Predacon Commander offered the Air Commander his sarcastic response. It was to be expected after what had transpired not so long ago. Starscream flashed Razorclaw a cocky grin as he took in the mechs present on the bridge. Nothing changed. The lion-former still surrounded himself with his entire team. Compensating? Perhaps.

Starscream moved past Razorclaw and stopped just outside the door to what might have been Motormaster’s office. The Seeker Commander waited patiently as the Predacon ordered his men to alert him to whatever Shockwave might be up to.

With a nod Starscream followed the other mech into the room and watched as the orange and black mech took a seat behind the desk. Starscream gave a small sneer as he simply crossed his arms over his chest. There was no need to sit before ones foe. Remain on your feet and be sure to look down on those inferior to you.

The silver and red Seeker nodded in agreement that they dispense with any formalities and proceed with why they were not where they were. Giving the Predacon the benefit of the doubt the Seeker listened quietly to everything the warrior had to say without so much as a word.

The idea of removing Shockwave was something he had long considered, but to do so he needed power…something he was never capable of acquiring. At least not in the abundance he required. It was at that point Starscream raised a hand and thoughtfully rubbed his chin. It seemed simple enough. Band together…he with his Seekers and Razorclaw with his specialty teams and eliminate their common foe. And once Shockwave was dealt with Starscream and his Seekers could follow up by eliminating Razorclaw and his Predacons. Win, win, no? It was certainly something to consider.

Starscream let out a contemplative sigh as he strolled to one of the windows spanning the wall to the right of the desk. He propped his arm on the wall next to the window and casually leaned in, his free hand coming to rest on his hip. He remained silent as he simply watched the few marine life swim lazily just outside the sunken ship.

His thoughts began to wander and before he even realized it Razorclaw was announcing that they were to have company in the immediate future. Starscream removed his arm from the wall and from his hip and flashed Razorclaw a quizzical expression. But before he could even inquire as to who it was, the orange and black mech revealed a name he had never expected.

Starscream let out a low growl and narrowed his optics.

“Thunderwing. Now there is a mech who cannot be trusted. He has been outside of this war for far too long. But of course hearing him out would provide us enough insight on just who he has decided to follow. I suggest precautions be taken.”

Starscream perked slightly when his internal comm. line was pinged. His blue teammate was requesting permission to come back aboard. He would welcome Thundercracker if only he could respond to the Seeker’s request. As it stood he was no longer in command and there for he was obligated to request clearance on Thundercracker’s behalf.

“It would seem that one of my Seekers is requesting permission to board. What say you call off your Stunticon goons and give my brother clearance?”

Repair Bay

Nightraven gave Skywarp a small nod thankful that he was not going to do anything rash…at least not now. She only hoped it would be never. She was relieved when he finally conceded to her request sending a sense of ease through her frame.

“Starscream will need to tread carefully for the foreseeable future. But I’ve no doubt he’ll accomplish whatever he puts him to.”

The femme Seeker pulled her hand away from Skywarp’s forearm as the flier punched one hand into the palm of his other. She took a slight step back hoping that the one gesture was the end of his expressive tendencies.

Thankfully the black and purple Seeker calmed down rather quickly and resumed his easy going demeanor. Nightraven let out a small sigh and offered Skywarp a warm smile. She gave him a nod of approval at his declaration that he would not pursue any kind of rash actions.

“Good. Because you’re the only one of us we can use as an escape route.”

Nightraven’s smile broadened as she placed her hand back onto Skywarp’s forearm. Her attention remained on the flier as he took her hand in his and suggested they take a trek to the mess hall. Considering the day they all had been trough, and since she hadn’t refueled for too long, a visit to the mess hall sounded like the perfect escape.

“Of course. But I thought you said you knew every part of this ship?”

Nightraven let out a chuckle as she looked too her escort, her smile brightening.

Motormaster’s Office - Bridge

Razorclaw eyed the Seeker Commander carefully as he watched Starscream move over to the nearby portal and gaze out at the murky waters beyond. The silver and red mech seemed to be contemplating the Predacon lord’s proposal to join forces, but had given no answer as of yet. It was to be expected, of course, as Starscream would not simply agree too quickly to any alliance without first considering what was in it for him and his seeker brood. Still, Razorclaw could tell that the Air Commander was scheming even now as he appeared relaxed and complacent with the current situation.

Starscream’s demeanor changed quickly at the mention of Thunderwing’s impending arrival, warning that the carapace-laced mech had been out of the war for far too long and could not be trusted. “Heh, no more than I can trust you, Starscream,” Razorclaw countered. “However, you are still correct in that we must be cautious and determine where his loyalties currently lie. On Cybertron, those loyalties seemed to be with Shockwave as he prevented Commander Onslaught and myself from subduing the logic-driven mech at that point in time. Of course, things may have changed since then as Thunderwing now claims to want no further violence between us. In retrospect, I think the scientist’s actions on our homeworld were more driven by the feeling of being excluded from our plans than any allegiance he has to Shockwave. But, we shall soon determine if that’s the case or not.”

Tapping his clawed actuators on top of the desk, Razorclaw then considered Starscream’s request to allow one of his brethren permission to enter the Ultrax. “Of course. I should probably alert the Stunticons of Thunderwing’s presence, as well.” Opening his comm line, the Predacon lord sent a message to the Stunticon Commander:

>>”Motormaster, we have a pair of visitors on approach. Tell your squad to stand down and grant them entrance to the frigate.”<<

Razorclaw then cut his comm link and returned his attention to Starscream. “You may alert you brother that he can enter the ship without the threat of violence. Now, have you come up with an answer to my proposal yet, or are you still considering your options?”

Repair Bay

Skywarp felt a slight sense of pride as Nightraven called him their only escape route while placing her hand back on his forearm. That pride devolved a bit into a feeling of embarrassment when Nighty reminded him that he was supposed to know every part of the frigate. She said those words in a non serious manner with a chuckle and smile on her faceplate. But the fact still remained that ‘Warp didn’t really know every area of the frigate as his had previously claimed.

“Okay, I know almost every part,” Skywarp admitted as his prior boasting had now come back to haunt him. “I know the parts that matter.” The teleporter sighed before turning towards a nearby terminal and pulling up the frigate’s schematics. “There it is, one level down.” The prankster then looked back at Nighty. “Now, I know every part. Heh. Let’s go.”

Corridor

With her hand still on his forearm, Skywarp led Nightraven out of the repair bay and into the corridor beyond. He walked up to the closest turbo lift and pushed the button to open the doors. When nothing happened, ‘Warp pushed the button again with the same results as before. “Must be broken. What a dump,” the teleporter muttered as he cast a glance at the seeker femme by his side. “I guess we’re climbing down.”

Skywarp then made his way over to one of the jeffries tubes located at the end of the corridor. Opening the hatchway, ‘Warp motioned for Nightraven to enter and climb down the ladder to the next deck beneath them. “Ladies first.”

Outside the Ultrax

“Well, I’m pretty sure Motormaster already handed his aft to him,” Drag Strip responded to Breakdown, who was hoping that Wildrider would get what was coming to him some day. “I don’t think it’s had any lasting affect on him. Once a terrorist, always a terrorist. All you can do, Breaky, is show him that you’re not his personal wrecking toy. Then he’ll likely back off, at least for a while, anyway.”

With Wildrider stalking off with some of the paranoid mech’s sensors, it appeared as though Breakdown wasn’t going to have to face his nemesis just yet. It was only a matter of time, however, before the inevitable happened. “You’re one lucky slagger, you know that, Breaky?” Drag Strip asked rhetorically as his blue and white comrade picked up an armful of sensors once the terrorist was gone. “I guess I’ll grab the rest. Tell you what, we’ll head off towards the back of the frigate in the exact opposite direction that ‘Rider trudged off to. That way you can work on mustering up the courage to face him later. Sound like a decent plan?”

Scooping up the rest of the sensors, Drag Strip walked through the deep muck that surrounded their crashed vessel, heading for the stern section. Once he got there, the former racer began placing the sensors in a grid-like pattern and motioned for Breakdown to follow suit. It was then that Wildrider could be heard off in the distance shouting about something. Sound traveled better through water, but unfortunately the terrorist was still too far away for the yellow Stunticon to make out exactly what he was saying. It didn’t matter as there were more important things to worry about. “Just ignore him, Breakdown. He probably dropped a sensor on his foot. Heh.”

Near the Airlock

Wildrider's transmission truly surprised Motormaster. While he had been waiting for news from his team of looneys, the news he had been expecting would have merely been about them getting their work done. The fact that Wildrider was reporting that Thunderwing was approaching their vessel was something else. Motormaster didn't know Thunderwing all too well. From reputation mostly. Scientist and somekind of statesman. Same was likely true for Thunderwing's feelings about Motormaster and his Stunticons. However, Motormaster had had a series of run-ins with Valckastan police forces before the war and given that Thunderwing had been the sole command figure of the said city-state, for whatever reason Motormaster couldn't tell - nonetheless he did hold Thunderwing responsible for his trouble.

>>"What? Thunderwing? The same Thunderwing who ruined Swindle's smuggling operation in Valckasta and put you Drag, Detour and Hyperdrive behind the bars until I busted your sorry afts out with Blackjack, Dead End and Roadhugger? I thought the slagger was dead."<<

So Thunderwing was alive after all despite of disappearing from the Decepticon command grid for tens of thousands of years? And now with Megatron gone, this arrogant holier than thou Nova Prime wannabe had decided to return? And likely to demand leadership of the Decepticons just like Shockwave, Starscream and Razorclaw. This indeed opened new opportunities. For both vengeance and well... well as if that was going to happen. Wildrider could perhaps be tricked to take a shot at Thunderwing but the likely hood of the terrorist being successful was next to nothing. Eh, not a biggie, Wildrider would get yet another chance to learn from his mistakes and Motormaster - he'd get his kicks from Wildrider being punished by yet another powerful Decepticon.

>>"Tag and bag him. It is either a slaggin' Autobot or a spy of Shockwave's. Yeah. If it really is Thunderwing and he ends up as an accidental victim of a friendly fire incident... well, accidents happen you know." "<<

>>”Motormaster, we have a pair of visitors on approach. Tell your squad to stand down and grant them entrance to the frigate.”<<

Razorclaw's sudden transmission complicated the Stunticon brute's plans. >>"Visitors Razorclaw? Like who?"

So, now he was given the real data? Well, slag that. He was not going to relay that to Wildrider. The little psycho deserved what he was going to get. The others however, well - they were in a bad enough situation without Decepticons turning against Decepticons. Thus, Motormaster contacted the rest of his Stunticons to update them on Razorclaw's message.

>>"According to Razorclaw we have some visitors approaching. Hold your fire and let them approach the airlock."<<

Outside the Ultrax

Dead End had looked up and around, noticing that the popularity level of their little undersea base seemed to be increasing. Dead End knew that know good was going to come from this. The others could chide him for his pessimism all they wanted, but the more Decepticons that knew they were here, especially in such a vulnerable position, didn't bode well for their survival prospects.

Dead End wasn't entirely certain what response would be the best one. As usual, though, it wasn't long before Motormaster butted in--even from a distance--and had made the decision for him. For all of them. Dead End hadn't even bothered to draw his weapon and was now glad he hadn't expended even that miniscule amount of effort.

In the end, they're all going to see I was right. I told you so. Oh...did I ever tell you so, Dead End thought as he entered the airlock chamber once again, at least marginally thankful to be out of those filthy, corrosive terran elements. He was sure he wouldn't be alone for long. He was also sure he wanted to be out of the new arrivals' way, just in case they were the type to do the whole "shooting and not asking any questions at all" tact.

They probably were.

Repair Bay

Thrust watched as the two seekers attached themselves in romance. How cute in a disgusting way, he really didn't have time to watch this, but there was nothing to do. He watched as Skywarp had told them that he almost knew the ship instead of knowing all of it. Figures he did that to impress Nightraven and boost his self-esteem. Nice attempt and it seemed to have work as they left to go to the corridor. Thrust followed behind them as he didn't want to get left behind.

"Hey wait up for a fellow seeker."

Bridge

Divebomb watched as Starscream and Razorclaw left the room to go discuss their matters in private. Divebomb moved over and sat in Razorclaw chair till he returned as Rampage was put in charge of watching Shockwave's movement. Divebomb let out a small sigh as he began watching the monitors of the ship. Flipping through the screens bored him as he stopped changing screens when he saw the seekers still at the repair bay.

"Looks like the seekers don't know what to do without their precious air commander."

After that sentence, his interest were raised as the seekers left the repair bay to go somewhere. Now where are they going at a time like this? Divebomb continued monitoring their movement with interest to see where they would be going.

"Hey Preds, seems like the seekers are trying to do something."

Approaching the Ultrax

Thunderwing continued to sink in the water, drawing steadily closer to the vessel. He was pleased at the reply he received from Razorclaw. At the very least there was still some bit of respect between the two of them. That was something he could build off at least. The Predacon was powerful and violent, but also cunning and patient. He could possibly reach some sort of accord or alliance with him. Once that was done the rest of his team would fall in behind him.

The others on board the Ultrax would be more problematic. They might be following Razorclaw for now, but even after beating Starscream his position had to be a bit precarious. He would have to find out the mindset of the Seekers was in the aftermath of Starscream’s fall, not to mention having to do with the seeker leader himself. Thunderwing doubted that Starscream’s ambitions had been curbed by his defeat. While some would laugh at his failures, Thunderwing was impressed by how he always recovered to fight again.

The Stunticons were the other group that concerned him. While he wasn’t sure how the Seekers would react, the Stunticons were even more unpredictable. They were, perhaps, the least qualified and professional of all of the Decepticons, which was a considerable statement. While Thunderwing could see they had some usefulness, he had often wondered if the drawbacks of deploying them, mainly the excessive carnage and insanity that came in their wake, was worth the advantages. Individually they could each react differently to his arrival. Collectively though, the Stunticons would follow Motormaster or risk his considerable wrath. He suspected some sort of show of power or strength would be necessary to win over Motormaster or, at the very least, get him to back down.

At last the Decepticon neared the Ultrax. A quick scan revealed the nearest airlock. A quick burst from his thrusters sent him gliding towards it.

Bridge

Rampage looked over at Divebomb as he mentioned some sort of activity between the Seekers. He wasn't too surprised. With their commander in such close vicinity to a bunch of Predacons all over again, he kind of expected them to be a little antsy. As long as they didn't try anything stupid, Rampage wasn't going to be the first to act.

He pulled up an image of the video feed that Divebomb was looking at on his own monitor station. Whatever it was, it didn't look like they were suddenly about to storm the bridge or anything.

Weird.

"Whadd'ya suppose they're doing?"

Motormaster’S Office – Bridge

A lopsided smile greeted Razorclaw as the Predacon attempted to turn the conversation full circle. However Starscream simply waved off the Predacon as he proceeded to drone on about everything concerning the arrival of Thunderwing and the mess that had become of the war. Starscream shook his head before letting out a low sigh and to the chair situated in front of the desk.

The Seeker Commander placed a hand on the top of the desk so he could look down on Razorclaw.

“I have given your gracious proposal some thought, however I’m still not convinced that I’ll be benefiting from this deal.”

Starscream leaned down and flashed Razorclaw a slight smirk.

“I want a guarantee that I will hold a favorable seat within this new regime. That I and my Seekers are assured, not only protection, but also elite standing within the ranks.”

The Air Commander removed his hand from the smooth surface of the table and placed his arms behind his back.

>>”Thundercracker. You have been cleared to come aboard the ship, but be cautious. Thunderwing is lurking outside and has also been given permission to board this vessel. He is not to be trusted. The Stunticons are also loitering outside…I have been told they will not engage, but remain on guard. Starscream out.”<<

“Assure me of my requests and I can guarantee the loyalty of my brothers and sisters...”

Starscream slowly made his way around to the rear of Razorclaw’s chair where he placed both hands on the back and leaned down to whisper into the new lord of the Decepticons by proxy.

“...myself included.”

Outside the Ultrax

Wildrider kept his weapon trained on the steadily approaching for of Thunderwing. From his vantage point the Warlord looked a bit different….larger, much more intimidating than all those vorns ago. The last time Wildrider had seen him the Warlord had thrown him and Drag Strip behind bars …but then he was merely a scientist who had acquired the prestigious title giving him the means to fund his own experiments.

No, this Thunderwing was completely different. Wildrider’s aim wavered as he watched the enormous mech rocket through the water. The sight of the white ship and the voice of Motormaster booming through his audios made the decision for the terrorist.

He lowered his weapon and took a single step back and pressed himself against the hall of the Ultrax. Shaking his head vigorously Wildrider silently rejected Motormaster’s order.

>>”Sure whatever ya say boss! There’s just one thing….you want this fragger bagged and tagged then you’re gonna have to get yer fat aft out here and do it yerself!”<<

Wildrider immediately cut the line and picked up the rest of the sensors. He quickly placed them evenly around the ship and opened up an encrypted comm channel with the Stunticons working outside of the ship.

>>”Yeah, what the slagger didn’t mention is that one of our new guests is Thunderwing! Yeah, ya heard me right Draggy…The same Twing that had you and me toss away. He’s headed this way and we’re supposed to welcome him with open arms. Oh, and here’s the kicker….the mech is freakishly enlarged! I don’t know what he did to himself, but he’s probably bigger than our beloved commander. HAHA! I say we make a deal!”<<

Repair Bay

Nightraven gave Skywarp a sideways glance as she noticed a bit of embarrassment creep onto the teleporter’s face. It wasn’t much but that brief moment of uncertainty was a breath of fresh air. The black and purple mech always prided him on being on top of everything….that he was a part of the elite group of Seekers who were always called on first and foremost…gloating at its finest.

But this real life reaction, revealing the mech under the façade, was reassuring. Nightraven looked back up to Skywarp after he had brought up the schematics of the ship and took note of where the mess hall was actually located. With a nod and a small smile Nightraven walked out of the repair bay and into the corridor.

Corridor

The Seeker femme had kept her hand on Skywarp’s forearm and she readily let the teleporter lead her toward their intended destination. Unfortunately, the turbo lift they came to a stop at seemed to be non-functional.

Nodding in agreement at Skywarp’s assessment of the ship’s condition, Nightraven began to look around the immediate area but stopped and looked back up to her escort when he mentioned they would have to climb down to the level they wished to go to.

Nightraven removed her hand from its resting place and followed behind as Skywarp stopped at the nearest entrance tube and opened the hatchway. She flashed him a smile but it soon disappeared as he motioned for her to take the lead. From her position Nightraven crossed her arms over her chest and flashed Skywarp an incredulous look.

“You’re serious.”

Without waiting for an answer, the femme lowered her arms to her sides and sauntered up to the waiting mech. She stopped just outside the hatchway and looked up at him…a delicate smile on her face. She turned around and placed one foot on the ladder’s rung, but before she descended Nightraven reached up and placed her hand on Skywarp’s cheek.

“You owe me. Usually it’s the mech who leads the way.”

The back and purple femme’s smile grew ever so slightly as she gently ran her thumb over Skywarp’s defined cheek. She let her hand linger for a moment longer before she began to lower herself down the ladder to the lower deck.

Nightraven could hear Thrust calling to she and Skywarp as she lowered herself down into the access tube.

Outside the Ultrax

>>”Thundercracker. You have been cleared to come aboard the ship, but be cautious. Thunderwing is lurking outside and has also been given permission to board this vessel. He is not to be trusted. The Stunticons are also loitering outside…I have been told they will not engage, but remain on guard. Starscream out.”<<


Thundercracker acknowledged Starscream’s instructions and was pleased to have identification signatures to put with the signals he picked up outside the Ultrax during his approach. Even gathered into a group, the Stunticons didn’t bother the light blue flyer. He was more curious as to why Thunderwing was there. It pleased him to note both he and his commander shared the same opinion of the former overlord.

Still, being cautious by nature had served Thundercracker well over the milenia. He needed to know what had happened on the Ultrax since Shockwave’s announcement of taking command of the Decepticons and the best place to begin was with one of the few mechs he could trust.

Keeping his comm on the seeker’s private frequency, Thundercracker began his search. He hoped Skywarp was paying attention and wouldn’t broadcast his message on a standard channel.

>>Thundercracker to Skywarp. I’m approaching the starboard airlock. What’s your position?<<

With a burst from his engines, Thundercracker approached an airlock near the one Thunderwing chose. While not a spy by any stretch, Thundercracker would at least keep the overlord within optic range for the time being.

Bridge - Motormaster’s Office

>>”Our guests, Motormaster, are Lord Thunderwing, who has requested a meeting with me, and one of Starscream’s seeker brothers.”<<

With his simple reply given to the Stunticon Commander, Razorclaw terminated his comm link once more and returned his attention to Starscream, who had a few concerns regarding the proposition that the Predacon lord had just given him. The Air Commander was no fool. He wanted guarantees that his seekers along with himself would hold a high ranking within the Decepticon Empire under Razorclaw’s leadership. The lion-former chuckled as he crossed his actuators in front of his chestplate. He then watched as the Seeker leader rounded the desk and stood behind him, promising the loyalty of his brothers and sisters along with his own if his demands were met.

“Of course, Starscream,” Razorclaw responded as he stood from his seat and turned to face the silver and red mech. In all actuality, Starscream was in no condition to be making demands. However, for the sake of the Empire and of removing Shockwave from the equation, the lion-former was willing to grant the seeker’s wishes...for now. “You would be my right hand mech, much like the position you held under Megatron. As for your seekers, they would be the elite aerial fighting force that they have always been, respected and ruling the skies just as my Predacons and the other specialty squads would control the grounds. This I can assure you, Starscream. Our forces would compliment each other nicely, don’t you agree?”

Moving away from the Seeker Commander, Razorclaw approached the portal and gazed out into the blackness of the sea. “Of course, there is Thunderwing to consider in all this. As you have already stated, he is not to be trusted. When he finally arrives to speak with us, we must be ready for any eventuality.” The Predacon lord turned towards Starscream again, his hands interlaced behind his back. “The scientist has enhanced himself. He is powerful, but to what extent is still unknown. We must be prepared just in case our conversation with him turns ugly.”

Corridors

“I’m afraid so,” Skywarp responded to Nightraven’s question of whether he was really serious about climbing down to the next deck. She then mentioned that he owed her for this, to which ‘Warp seemed a bit perplexed. “But, I’m only trying to be a gentlemech,” the prankster said as a smile crept onto his faceplate. “Heh. Don’t worry, Nighty, I’ll be right behind you.” With his assurances given, the teleporter watched as the seeker femme of his desires entered the jeffries tube and began her descent. At the same time, Thrust’s vocal processor could be heard just down the hallway. Skywarp glanced over at the approaching crimson mech as the prankster's smile faded.

“If you want to join us, Thrust, then you’ll have to keep up on your own,” Skywarp responded with a scowl before turning back to Nightraven’s sinking form. Once she was far enough down the ladder, ‘Warp stepped into the jeffries tube and began his own climb down. It didn’t take long to reach the next level and once they were on solid footing again, the teleporter regarded Nighty with a compassionate look.

“See, that wasn’t so bad, now was it?” Skywarp asked Nightraven as he managed to crack another smile again even though he knew that Thrust was lurking not far behind them. Brushing his forearm against the seeker femme’s hand in the hopes that she would once again take hold of him, ‘Warp started down the corridor towards the mess hall. It was then that he received a communique from his old wayward blue friend.

>>”Thundercracker! You old cyber-dog you! Where have you been, buddy? Nightraven and I are on Deck 4 nearing the mess hall. Thrust is somewhere close behind us, as well. Why don’t you come on inside and have a drink with us. We can catch up.”<<

Skywarp then cut the comm line to his long-time seeker friend and glanced hesitantly over at Nightraven. “Well, Nighty, seems we’re going to have even more company now. ‘Cracker has returned. Heh.” The teleporter tried to seem happy about this unexpected turn of events. It had been many cycles since he had last seen his old friend, but things were somewhat different now, especially where Nightraven was concerned. ‘Warp could only hope that feelings for her old crush wouldn’t resurface and ultimately ruin things for the prankster now.

Outside the Ultrax

Drag Strip glanced up after he received Motormaster’s message regarding a pair of visitors who were close by. It had been very difficult if not near impossible to see anything or anyone approaching the crashed frigate through the thick, murky waters that surrounded them. The former racer finally took notice of a dark shadow that was moving down from above and towards one of the airlocks farther up along the hull. As ordered, he did not draw his weapon, and he made sure that Breakdown did the same. The last thing they needed was for the paranoid mech to shoot at and therefore tick off someone more powerful than themselves.

“Don’t freak out, Breaky,” Drag Strip instructed his blue and white comrade, keeping a close optic on him. “Whoever they are mean us no harm.” The yellow Stunticon then flashed a devilish smile. “Unless, of course, they only mean you harm and not the rest of us. Ha ha! Just kidding, BD.” Drag gave the scout a firm pat on the shoulder to show him that he was just having some fun. The former racer’s smile and jovial feeling quickly disappeared once he received Wildrider’s transmission. The revelation that one of the visitors was Lord Thunderwing both surprised him and made Drag Strip a little nervous. As the terrorist reminded him, their last encounter with the scientist had not exactly gone their way. Still, ‘Rider was open to making a deal with the newly-enhanced ‘Con, a prospect that Drag found to be lacking.

>>”Yeah, I remember ol’ Thunder-aft, Wildrider. I didn’t like him much back then when he was smaller and threw us behind bars, and I still don’t now. Not sure where he’s been all this time, but if you want to go against Motormaster and try to make a deal with the Warlord then you go right on ahead. Let me know how that works out for you. Just leave me the slag out of it!”<<

Cutting the link with the terrorist, Drag Strip glanced back at Breakdown. “Can you believe that idiot, Breaks? ‘Rider actually wants to make a deal with Thunderwing! Well, he can have at it, I say. Let him try to leave the Stunticons for another commander. Motormaster will rip him apart and use his terroristic aft for spare parts before allowing that to happen. At least you wouldn’t have anything more to worry about then, huh BD?”

Ultrax corridors

Motormaster had been about to reply back to Wildrider when Razorclaw's reply to the Stunticon Commander's own earlier query reached him.

>>”Our guests, Motormaster, are Lord Thunderwing, who has requested a meeting with me, and one of Starscream’s seeker brothers.”<<

Razorclaw's message was quick to alter Motormaster's current priorities despite that likely had not been in the Predacon's agenda. With Wildrider's wild sounding claim of Thunderwing approaching their position being confirmed as the real identity of the incoming mechanoid - everything turned far more interesting for the Stunticon thug. He was going to take part in that meeting, whether or not anyone wanted him there.

>>"From under what slagging cybertonium slate did Thunderwing crawl out from? Fraggin' long lost, fancier than you techheads are appearing out of nothing way too often for my tastes. I'm gonna attend this meeting and I ain't taking 'no' as answer."<< Motormaster quickly replied back to Razorclaw and began making his way towards the bridge but not without thinking something to mess with Wildrider.

>>"I am busy with Razorclaw and Starscream, 'rider. Seems though that your ball bearings are getting tad soft."<< Motormaster finally replied back to the terrorist with his tone clearly mocking. But Motormaster was hardly finished with his baiting of Wildrider to do something the terrorist would regret at least for a moment. What Motormaster said next was partly a lie - Wildrider had been stopped plenty of times by size alone. But with the head games Motormaster played with his Stunticons, it was most rewarding to make them forget their limitations for a short moment before they'd receive their reality checks in form of a bitch slap from the reality.

>>"Size alone never stopped you before. You're losing your edge 'rider, I am thinking you could use some tempering in good ol' laser fire."<<

Having send the transmission, Motormaster entered his so called office, gruffly acknowledging the presence of both Razorclaw and Starscream while making no attempt of joining the discussion between the two.

Bridge – Motormaster’s Office

The Predecon conceded readily, something the Air Commander had already anticipated. If Razorclaw hadn’t taken the opportunity to offline him during their impromptu engagement then it stood to reason he, the new self-proclaimed lord of the Decepticons…just the thought of the Predacon's newly appointed title left a foul taste in his mouth…was to be utilized in order to aid Razorclaw in his campaign to take out the head of the other serpent stationed above this mudball. Shockwave.

He wanted nothing more than to remove Megatron’s little one eyed strategist from the game board, that sentiment went for Razorclaw as well, but he also had to play his cards right in the aftermath of the victory over Shockwave.

Starscream listened, half interested, while Razorclaw droned on about concerns that Starsceram himself had already contemplated. Had he the ability the Seeker Commander would have rolled his optics in annoyance.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity to the former second, Razorclaw got to the meat of the matter. Outwardly Starscream put on his customary show…arms crossed loosely over the cockpit adorning his chest, one hand thoughtfully rubbing his chin weighing heavily his options.

The Seeker lowered his hand and watched Razorclaw closely as the Predacon moved away from him and stopped at the portal he had previously stood before. Starscream turned fully to face the mech as he was told of the changes the soon to arrive Thunderwing had made to his own body. He lowered his optics and focused on nothing in particular after Razorclaw had finished speaking.

“Enhanced himself.”

The statement was intriguing. In fact most knew of the scientist’s penchant for enhancements. Therefore it wans't hard to believe that Thunderwing would resort to defiling his own body. The question Starscream wanted answered was just how the Warlord was enhanced.

The Seeker Commander’s musings were interrupted when he sensed Razorclaw turn from the portal to look at him. Although he was tempted to meet the Predacon’s gaze, Starscream refrained….certainly not out of fear, but to simply conceal from the Predacon his expressions.

“I concur. Thunderwing has had an affinity for fiddling with things he should not. There were rumors. None of which had ever been founded.”

After a moment the red and white Seeker finally did look up, but he still refused to meet Razorclaw’s optics.

“If those rumors are true then…”

Starscream shook his head slowly to clear the thoughts swimming around in his processor. Rumors had a tendency to become warped, therefore they could never be trusted. He returned to Razorclaw’s original question.

“You wish for an alliance. You wish for me and my Seekers to join you and your subordinates in the overthrowing of Shockwave.”

With a deep fire burning in his optics Starscream finally turned them on the Predacon. His lips pressed tight in an expressionless line that painted the distinct picture of determination. An astrosecond passed before his lips finally parted and he spoke one simple word…

“Agreed.”

Corridors

Nightraven began to descend the ladder leading down to the next deck when she heard Skywarp quip that she needn’t worry because he’d be right behind her. She let out a lighthearted laugh as she raised her head to look up at the mech.

“I’m not worried about what’s behind me. I’m much more concerned about what’s ahead.”

She looked back down and continued on until she was able to touch solid ground. She deftly laid her right foot down on the deck plating followed quickly be her left. At least the corridor was lit. Riddled with garbage, but bright.

Nightraven looked back to the ladder when she saw Skywarp’s leg lower out of the tube followed the other. Another typical quip and Nightraven flashed him a sweet smirk before she shook her head.

“No, it wasn’t that bad.”

The femme took a much more detailed look around but stopped when she felt Skywarp’s forearm brush against her hand. Without even hesitating Nightraven took hold of the black and purple seeker’s arm. As the two Seekers made their way down the corridor Nightraven readjusted her hand by slipping it from Skywarp’s forearm and letting it come to rest at his hand.

The black and purple femme kept her pace steady as she and the teleporter made their way toward the mess hall. They hadn’t gotten far when Skywarp addressed her. His announcement was a complete surprise. Confusion set in quickly.

“Thundercracker?”

She stared at him for a moment, her features unsure. The femme looked away from Skywarp and began to study the floor. The announcement was almost like a slap to the face. It was a complete and utter surprise and it stung briefly.

“How long will it be before he gets here?”

Her voice was low…nothing more than a whisper… and laced with uncertainty.

Outside the Ultrax

After Motormater sent his message Breakdaown sent an uneasy glance to Drag Strip as the former racer drew his weapon. The scout let out a low whimper as he too drew his side arm and took aim at whoever was approaching.

“I..I’m not gonna freak out! But i…if they mean us no harm, then why’re we…”

Breakdown shook his hand jostling his gun trying to get his point across. But before Drag Strip even gave him an answer to his question the former racer turned things around. Even though he had been joking the scout still took Drag Strip’s statement to heart. Wait. What if he’s right and they want to…oh Primus…I can’t even imagine.

The pat to his shoulder only served to make Breakdown jump in surprise. He tried desperately to calm his overworked systems, not even paying mind to the transmission he received from Wildrider. He couldn't even follow anything Drag Strip was saying. His only response...

“Huh? Oh, yeah, yeah. Nothing to worry about. Sounds great.”
____

Wildrider lowered his weapon as he waited for a response from Motormaster however what he received was hardly what he wanted to hear. Getting soft, huh? I’ll show him.

The terrorist let out a deep growl at the tone that came across the link from Motormaster. He could easily tell he was being mocked. Something Wildrider did not take lightly. If he wanted the respect he deserved then he needed to take initiative. And if initiative meant doing what Motormaster so mockingly suggested then that’s what he was going to do…and he was going to succeed.

With a low grunt Wildrider raised his weapon and took aim at the slow growing form of Thunderwing. He hesitated for a moment before he opened a link with Motormaster. Busy or not, that slagger’s gonna hear this.

>>”Yo, M! This one’s for you! Still think my ball bearings are getting soft you fraggin’ aft kisser?! ”<<

Wildrider let out a feral cry as he opened fire on the approaching Thunderwing.

Bridge

Waspinator's cheeks burned as if he had been slapped. He had been raised up to a point taller than the mountains, only to have his feet ripped from beneath him and had lubricant spit on him.

The room felt cold and uncomfortable, and Waspinator needed to make an exit.

"Yezz Lord Cat-Bot..." Waspinator said with a sobbing sigh.

And, with a half-hearted salute, he exited the room and fell into a brown depression. His arms drooped from their formal position down to his thighs. He passed Starscream on the way back to his quarters, but he didn't acknowledge his presence or even looked at the Air Commander.

He didn't even flinch when he stubbed his toe on one of the crates littering the hallway.

Why Univerzze hate Wazzpinator...? Waspinator thought with a depressed sigh as he entered his quarters, then flopped down upon the tattered couch.

Outside the Ultrax

Thunderwing was closing in on the hatch when he was struck by a smattering of gunfire. While it was not a particularly powerful attack it was clearly directed at him. A quick scan revealed the source, the Stunticon Wildrider standing on the ship’s hull. It came as no surprise that it was a Stunticon, they were as brave as they were reckless and foolish. The real question is had he opened fire on orders or simply because he was crazy? Either way such threats needed to be dealt with quickly and harshly. He had no doubt that other Decepticons were watching for his reaction.

A full power burst from his thrusters sent Thunderwing hurtling towards Wildrider. An uppercut propelled in part by that boost knocked the smaller Stunticon off his feet. Seizing him by his gun armor the Decepticon bent the limb at the joint in the opposite direction. There was a loud snap as the joint was broken, rendering the limb useless. The Stunticon shrieked in pain and released his weapon. Thunderwing grabbed him by the head and looked him in the optics. “What I did here was self defense Stunticon. It is a waste of valuable time and energy to do more then that, but rest assured I am quite capable of doing much more harm to you then this.”

The Decepticon reached down and scooped up the Stunticon’s weapon before moving back to the hatch, Wildrider still in his grip. The door swung up and he climbed in, waiting patiently inside the airlock as the water was pumped out. Finally he left the room, the Stunticon still in tow. He quickly navigated the corridors towards the bridge.

Bridge

The doors opened and Thunderwing stepped inside. He scanned the room, seeing only various Predacons manning the bridge. He deposited Wildrider on the floor with his weapon. “The Stunticon attacked me, so I disabled him. He will likely need medical attention.” He refrained from giving orders or making any aggressive moves. Despite what had happened outside the ship he had no desire for further violence. He walked towards the office just off the bridge.

Motormaster’s Office – Bridge

Thunderwing entered the office, the door sliding shut behind him. He looked from Razorclaw to Starscream before settling his gaze on the Predacon. “Pardon my late arrival. One of the Stunticons opened fire on me as I arrived. I assure you my actions in disabling him were purely in self defense. I left him on the bridge where the other Predacons can deal with his injuries. I assume his attack was some sort of miscommunication.” He looked questioningly at Razorclaw.

Motormaster’s Office – Bridge

"You could say that." Motormaster, who had made his way into his so called office sometime before Thunderwing - spoke out in response to the scientist's query regarding Wildrider. The large Stunticon was casually leaning against the wall left of the doorway, his arms crossed over his chest and that all so familiar evil smirk etched on his face.

The thuggish black and grey Decepticon was clearly testing both Razorclaw and Thunderwing. It was not that he didn't have respect for their power, particularly to that of Razorclaw's but old habits died slow. And Motormaster was hardly going to start groveling in front of anyone. Particularly before Thunderwing whom he shared no love towards.

"I baited the moron to do so." Motormaster chuckled. "Consider a test passed and justice served. Wildrider was in need of a reminder of his mortality."

"But do go on Commander Razorclaw." Motormaster added, nodding towards the Predacon. "The show is yours."

Outside the Ultrax

Hearing Wildrider’s battle cry through the murky depths of the ocean sent a chill up Drag Strip’s central nerve cord. The subsequent laser fire that erupted in the distance only served to reinforce the former racer’s belief that the terrorist was truly insane and would never learn his lesson no matter how many times Motormaster beat the slag out of him. Looking over at Breakdown, who had managed to remain somewhat calm through the duration of all this, Drag offered the scout a shake of his head. “Unbelievable. Just when you think ‘Rider couldn’t get any crazier, he goes ahead and surprises us again. Well, I hope he gets smashed into scrap so we don’t have to deal with his taunts anymore. Would serve him right. Now, let’s get back to work, shall we?”

The screams of the terrorist caused Drag Strip to pause for a brief moment before he ignored it and continued on with the placement of the sensors around the stern of the crashed frigate. “Let’s hurry this along, Breaky. I can feel the slaggin’ salt water eating away at my servos. I want to get back inside within the next breem and take a long oil bath before Motormaster finds another reason to berate us.” Once the last of the sensors was placed accordingly, the yellow Stunticon motioned for his paranoid comrade to follow him. “All right, back to the airlock. With any luck, we’ll catch of glimpse of whatever’s left of Wildrider! I may even take a picture for posterity and hang it up in my personal quarters. Ha ha!”

The former racer, who was better than everyone else, then headed off towards the airlock where he hoped to see the terrorist’s mutilated corpse or maybe even a few severed limbs laying around in the muck. Instead, when he finally got there, Drag Strip saw absolutely nothing. There was no a trace of Wildrider anywhere and barely even a sign of a confrontation. “Hey, where’s the fraggin’ body?” Drag scratched his cranial unit for a moment before coming to the most probable conclusion. “Mmmm, maybe he was.... Hey, Breakdown! I think ol’ Thunder-aft may have vaporized Wildrider! I can't find him anywhere, not even a small piece!”

Of course, there was always the chance that the Warlord took the defeated terrorist back inside the ship, but a vaporized ‘Rider was so much more fun to think about.

Bridge - Motormaster’s Office

Razorclaw watched carefully as Starscream pondered everything he had said, especially where Lord Thunderwing was concerned. The silver and red seeker was certainly taking his time, perhaps on purpose, perhaps not. It didn’t matter just as long as the Air Commander used the processor that Primus gave him to make the right decision in the end. Thankfully, that was the case as Starscream agreed to the union of their respective forces.

“Excellent!” Razorclaw replied, clearly pleased that this little hurdle was finally over, at least for now. The next obstacle would be the meeting with Thunderwing, and it appeared as though Motormaster wanted in on the discussion, as well. This was fine with the Predacon lord as the more supporters he had around him the less likely Thunderwing would attempt any kind of action against him. The enhanced scientist had to know that he was surrounded by those that were not his friends and therefore it would be foolish for him, even with his powerful carapace and weapons, to attempt a take over in Shockwave’s name or even in his own.

With a nod directed towards the newly arrived Motormaster, Razorclaw returned his full attention to the Seeker Commander. “You’ve made the right decision, Starscream. Together we will end Shockwave’s claim to the throne, but first we have a visitor to contend with.” As the lion-former’s words ended, the doors to Motormaster’s office slid open, revealing the carapace-laced form of Thunderwing. The large mech then entered and quickly apologized for his lateness, citing that he was attacked by one of the Stunticons and was forced to subdue him. Motormaster then interjected with his own explanation, one that the Predacon lord found to be a bit humorous if not befitting of the way the Stunticons were handled by their belligerent master.

“You need not apologize, Thunderwing,” Razorclaw began to say as he slowly approached the scientist that he was once at odds with. “It seems Motormaster was just disciplining one of his own with your unknowing assistance. I assume you were not damaged in the assault? Your carapace appears no worse for wear.” Stopping a few feet in front of Thunderwing, the Predacon lord extended his hand to the scientist. “Welcome aboard the Ultrax. As you can see the ship has seen better cycles, but we are managing to put her back together enough for the frigate to serve as a temporary base of operations until the main one is completed in the Yellow Sea. Of course, much has already changed around here since my Predacons and I first arrived.”

Once the initial pleasantries were dispensed with, Razorclaw moved back across the room to the front of the desk, all the while keeping his optics on the Warlord. “To keep things simple, I have taken command here, having beaten Starscream in battle for control of the Earth-bound Decepticons. While our fight was brutal, both of us having suffered our fair share of damage, we have now set aside our differences and joined forces against Shockwave. Our intention is to reunite the Decepticons under one banner again, returning our focus to attacking and defeating the Autobots instead of battling with each other.” The lion-former paused for a moment to allow what he had just said to register with the carapace-covered mech. “I know that you and I have had our differences in the past. You prevented Onslaught and I from taking Shockwave into custody back on Cybertron. I’m still not entirely certain if your actions were out of loyalty to the Military Operations Commander or if it was because we had left you out of our plans and you felt disrespected. I can assure you that was not our intention.”

Razorclaw pushed off from the desk, taking up a strong stance in the center of the room. “I guess what we all want to know right now is where do your loyalties really lie, Thunderwing? Are you here to enforce Shockwave’s will or are you open to a possible alliance with us? We could certainly use a mech of your intelligence and capabilities on our side. Perhaps we can come to some kind of arrangement that would be beneficial for all of us.”

Corridor

Skywarp felt Nightraven’s hand take his arm once more before it slid down and intertwined with his own actuators. The teleporter let out a slight smile at her mere touch. It was invigorating to him, almost as good as ingesting a tall glass of high grade energon. Of course, there was no high grade on board the dilapidated Stunticon frigate. The best they could hope for was a good glass of low grade substitute, but even that may not be enough to ease the slight anxiety that was already beginning to form at Thundercracker’s impending arrival.

“Not long,” Skywarp responded to Nightraven, glancing over at the femme who appeared uncertain that she even wanted to see the blue seeker again. “He’s right outside the airlock now and should be entering the ship at any moment. I told him where we were heading. I hope that was okay.” The teleporter tightened his grip on Nighty’s hand and gave her a reassuring look. The fact that she appeared less than excited about Thundercracker’s return was a good indication that she was just as worried about seeing her old crush again as the prankster was. Maybe she didn’t trust herself around ‘Cracker, afraid that those feelings were still there waiting to come back. It was a concern for both of them as it could strain their already precarious relationship.

Although, Skywarp had to keep in mind that Thundercracker never showed any past interest in Nightraven. All of the sparks had been from her side only with no reciprocation from the blue seeker whatsoever. This would work in the teleporter's favor because even if old feelings welled up inside Nighty again they would quickly be dashed away by Thundercracker’s disinterest. That left the prankster as her only option once more. Of course, regardless of what ultimately happened, the tension would still be there even if the blue mech was oblivious to it.