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* NOTE: this is in an Alternate fanficverse timeline where Sheba is still Starscream's Guardian Force, but didn't teach him how to use Magic. Because this is a "what-if" scenario, there will be LARGE chunks of dialogue taken DIRECTLY from the Combiner Wars Episodes.

***

Windblade’s shot was all lined up. She narrowed her optics as she paused, in preparation of squeezing the trigger. Then suddenly, someone grabbed her arm, trying to wrench the weapon out of her grasp. Her weapon fired, and that’s when everything went to scrap.

“AAAGH!” Starscream shouted, as a blast from a distant weapon struck him in the shoulder.

Immediately a blue teleport field appeared, and a tawny-colored winged mountain lion appeared. She took one look at Starscream and her jaw dropped. “STARSCREAM!” she cried out, in time with Rodimus’ identical exclamation. She looked around for a foe, but saw none. “Who did this?”

“I don’t know,” Starscream gasped. “I’d accuse Megatron, but this isn’t his style.”

“CURAGA!” A wavy green circle appeared around Sheba, and then a series of light-colored orbs tinted in purple and blue encircled Starscream, then were absorbed into him. The damage was now fully repaired.

“Starscream, what is the meaning of this?” Mistress of Flame demanded.

The former Decepticon second-in-command got to his feet. “Mistress of Flame, allow me to introduce my Guardian Force, Sheba. She appears whenever my life is in danger.”

“There’s no time for pleasantries. I have to find whoever fired that shot!” Sheba growled, clealy agitated. She spread her wings, lifting off in a powerful stroke. “Which direction did the shot come from?”

Rodimus pointed. “That way,” he said.

Sheba didn’t hesitate, she flew off in the direction that Rodimus pointed. When she got to the ultimate source of the weapon fire, she found Optimus Prime tussling with an unfamiliar femme. One of the two had to be responsible. Just after Windblade tried jamming her sword right through Optimus Prime, after Optimus said something about the femme’s excuse for becoming a killer, Sheba made her move.

“DIAMOND DUST!”
A ring of red-cored green orbs appeared and spun in a circle around Sheba, then flew off in all directions. The flying puma disappeared, and in her place four beams of ice circled into a single spot on the ground. A chunk of ice erupted from that focal point, containing the barely-clad humanoid Guardian Force Shiva. The ice shattered, and Shiva drew back her right hand as a glowing yellow-white ball of energy formed in it. She then threw the ball forward with both hands, and Optimus Prime and Windblade both found themselves momentarily encased in solid ice. The attack did only moderate damage, and the ice shattered. Then, Sheba reappeared.

“There, that oughtta cool you both off,” Sheba snarled, “Now which one of you took a shot at Starscream?”

“I wasn’t trying to kill Starscream,” Windblade said.

“Sheba. I was wondering whether the attack on Starscream would bring you back,” Optimus Prime stated, “Rest assured, this attack was purely accidental.”

Sheba looked skeptical. But then, the blue teleport field enveloped her again. If she wasn’t immediately needed, she always got automatically returned to where she had been before she’d been summoned. She vanished before Windblade could ask her anything.

“Who was that?” Windblade wanted to know.

“Perhaps it’s best if I explain that later,” Optimus replied, “We have more important things to worry about.”

“Combiners are out of control. They’ve caused nothing but destruction on my homeworld. My people, my friends, they died at their hands! AAAAAAAARGH!” Windblade’s rage began to take over, and she powered up her turbines, whipping up a blast of air that was intended to sweep Prime off his feet. He reacted by retracting his hand in favor of his energy axe. Eventually he was flung into the air, and met Windblade’s sword with his axe blade, blocking the blow. He managed to wrench the sword from the City-Speaker’s grasp, flinging her down to the ground below. She landed in a crouching position. Shaking with emotion, Windblade appealed to Optimus Prime for help, to stop the Combiners. He remained umoved until she mentioned the Enigma of Combination.

“There may be only one who can help us now,” Optimus Prime concluded, staring out into space.

***
Sheba returned to where she’d been level-grinding monsters for the past several years. It was clear to her she needed to return to Cybertron and figure out what was going on. She teleported herself to where she saw Optimus Prime and that strange femme, and got there just in time to see the pair take off. Curious as to where they were going, Sheba changed into her robotic form and followed them at a distance.

Sheba remained undetected when she perched on top of a large buttress at a ruined Coliseum, peering down at the action. She watched as Megatron went a few rounds with Optimus Prime, and then suddenly, after initially refusing Windblade’s request for help, he found himself knocked on his aft by the plucky femme.

“HA HA HA HA HA HA HA! Oh, I like you!” Megatron said, grinning from audio to audio.

“Dirty old mech,” Sheba muttered to herself, “Haven’t changed a bit.”

“Enough!” Windblade said firmly, “He’s telling you the truth. The Council has the Enigma. STARSCREAM has the Enigma. And they’re going to use it!”

Megatron’s demeanor changed. He walked towards Optimus Prime. “You. You I hate with all my heart, Prime. But if there’s one thing I hate more, it’s that idiot Starscream. Heh, I’m in.”

“RAAARRRARRRRRROWRRRROWWWWWWWWWWWWWR!”

A yellow streak flew at Megatron, knocking into him and slamming him into a wall, several yards away. The Decepticon Leader looked up to see a familiar face glaring at him nose-to-nose.

“Well this IS a surprise,” Megatron said, chuckling, “And it’s good to see you again, too, Sheba.”

Sheba uttered one last guttural snarl before getting off Megatron.

“You know her?” Windblade wondered.

“Ha, ha, ha. Know her? Who do you think gave me this scratch?” Megatron brushed himself off, pointedly over his damaged Decepticon Insignia, “The Guardian Force of my former Lieutenant does tend to make, shall we say, a lasting impression. She never was fond of my attempts to discipline Starscream.”

Sheba gazed at Windblade. “You don’t look familiar. Who are you?”

“My name is Windblade. I’m from Caminus,” the City-Speaker replied, “So, you’re Starscream’s Guardian Force?”

“Yes, and by the looks of things, he’s really going to need one now,” Sheba said, side-eying Megatron suspiciously.

“Then maybe you can help us,” Windblade said, “We have to stop the Council from using the Enigma of Combination.”

“Enigma of Combination?” Sheba echoed, questioningly.

“It’s a mystical mysterious artifact,” Windblade explained, “We’re not quite sure what it does.”

Sheba narrowed her eyes at Windblade. “I’ll see what I can do. But no funny stuff. No killing Starscream. This means YOU, Megatron. Especially you.” Sheba cast Teleport, transporting herself to just outside the Council Chambers.

Megatron snorted.

***

Sheba watched as Megatron, Optimus Prime, and Windblade got into position.

“So, what say we just go in, kill everyone in the Council, destroy the Enigma, and call it a day?” Megatron remarked.

“We could probably pull it off,” Windblade said.

“No, we are here to reason with them,” Optimus Prime stated.

“Oh, I LOVE this plan. In no way will it end in bloodshed and tears,” Megatron said sarcastically.

“We have to try,” Optimus Prime said.

“The Enigma MUST be destroyed,” Windblade told him.

“Fine,” Megatron replied, “But I’m still killing Starscream.”

A bolt of electrical energy from the sky hit Megatron just then – a Thundara spell. “OW!” he complained.

“I HEARD THAT!” Sheba called out.

“No killing. Even Starscream,” Optimus Prime said.

The Council spotted the trio of Megatron, Optimus, and Windblade, but not Sheba. She had cast Vanish on herself to avoid detection.

While discussion with the other council members what action to take, Starscream felt confident that if things went awry, Sheba would return to protect him. Then they were confronted.

Sheba watched the argument between Megatron and Starscream. Something felt off about the way Starscream was behaving. This didn’t seem right at all. However, the minute Megatron took a shot at him, Sheba counterattacked with a Firaga spell. She didn’t need to do much more, as Megatron and the others soon found their hands full with Metroplex’s defensive cannons. Sheba rolled her eyes when Megatron took out a cannon that was seconds away from blasting Windblade, with a smirk on his face. She leaped down to see Rodimus helping Starscream up.

“CURA!” The wavy green lights surrounded the invisible Guardian Force, and a blue ring of energy flowed down around Starscream, restoring his hit points.

Suddenly, a hole in the ground formed under Rodimus, and he fell in. Devastator erupted from the chasm, grasping Rodimus and pulling, ripping his arm off, then tossing him towards Starscream and the Mistress of Flame.

“Devastator, what ARE you doing?” Megatron demanded, “Stand down!”

“You no longer give Devastator orders!” the giant green combiner retorted.

“How wrong you are,” Megatron stated firmly, “I am your Master. STAND DOWN.”

Sheba cast Dispel on herself, to negate the Vanish.

“Sheba, you’re here! Help us stop Devastator!” Starscream pleaded.

“Know your masters! You ordered us to rip ourselves apart so you feel safe!” Devastator bellowed, “Now, it’s my turn to rip YOU apart!”

“You can try,” Optimus Prime said.

“Autobots, Decepticons, small and weak!” Devastator shouted, as he was attacked by all sides.

Sheba cast Thundaga on him. “I may be small, but you should remember I’m NOT weak!” she stated.

Then, Victorion joined the party. “Where is the Enigma?” she demanded.

“It’s MINE!” Devastator retorted.

“The future of our people, in YOUR hands? I think not,” Victorion replied. She and Devastator charged at each other.

“This has to stop. Victorion and Devastator will tear the city apart.” Optimus Prime said.

“We should destroy the Enigma. Now!” Windblade said urgently.

***

“We have to use the Enigma,” Rodimus said, “I don’t think even Sheba can take out two Combiners quickly enough to avoid having the City destroyed.”

Sheba was busy trying to get in between Victorion and Devastator. “HEY! Cut it out! I’m not fooling around here. If you don’t stop, I’m going to have to make you!”

Devastator and Victorion both ignored her.

“OK, that’s it, don’t say I didn’t warn you. RUNAWAY TRAIN!” The ring of green and red orbs spun around Sheba, and she vanished. Both Victorion and Devastator found themselves caught in a railway crossing, the gates lowering to keep them trapped. Flames sprouted up to indicate the edges of an otherwise invisible track, and a train with a hideous toothed face barreled towards them. It struck them, doing moderate damage and putting them in Berserk, Blind, Zombie, and Poison.

“Starscream?” the Mistress of Flame wondered.

“You’re right. We have no choice now,” Starscream replied. All three council members activated the device containing the Enigma. The swirling patterns on the artifact changed, to a purple hued orb with a double-triangular formation on the top and bottom. It lowered itself down into reach.

When Rodimus attempted to touch the Enigma, it repelled his touch with a shock that zapped through the open joint of his missing left arm. “Sorry,” he said, “Looks like I’m out of this fight.”

“Mistress?” Starscream asked.

“I’m Camian. Our physiology is wrong. It has to be you. You have to order the Combiners to stop,” the Mistress replied.

“You’ve earned my trust, Starscream,” Rodimus said, “Do the right thing. End this war.”

“Oh, I will,” Starscream said, as he took hold of the relic.

Sheba turned to look at what was happening. “NO! WAIT! Starscream, what are you doing?!” she shouted. Her protest was too late, however. A powerful pink energy blast emanated from the Enigma as soon as Starscream touched it. Sheba was knocked backward, dazed. She came to momentarily, just in time to see Starscream absorb the Combiners.

“What’s happening?” Windblade wondered, as she pulled Megatron and Optimus high enough for them to see what was going on.

Megatron laughed. “Well done, Starscream, well done. Now I understand.”

“Understand what?” Windblade wanted to know.

“I should have killed you ages ago,” Megatron told his former second-in-command. Another Thundara spell struck him. “OW!”

“But you didn’t,” Starscream replied.

“So much more the fool, I,” Megatron stated, “How long have you been planning this?”

“A very long time,” Starscream answered, “But I had no idea all this power would be so…satisfying.”

“Stars will bloom and die before I’m done killing you,” Megatron growled. A third Thundara struck him. “OW! STOP DOING THAT!” he shouted at Sheba.

“NOBODY IS KILLING STARSCREAM!” Sheba shouted insistently.

“Megatron, you’ll never change, while I have evolved,” Starscream said in a voice that seemed abnormally calm. He finished pulling the Combiners into him, which triggered another blast of energy.

“What is he doing with all those Combiners and the Enigma of Combination?” Optimus Prime wondered.

“Exactly what I would have done. Make himself the most powerful being in the Universe,” Megatron replied, “The Ultimate Combiner.”

“Starscream, you shouldn’t be channeling so much power! It could destroy you!” Sheba said.

“All those wasted years,” Starscream began.

“Starscream, this isn’t what the Enigma was created for!” Optimus Prime shouted.

“Fighting sanctimonious Autobots. Fighting Decepticon madness,” Starscream continued, as Megatron flew at him, firing in vain as the beams glanced off the forcefield that contained Starscream. He crashed into the forcefield itself, and it repelled him with a blast of yellow energy. The former Decepticon Leader was flung into a nearby skyscraper.

“MEGATRON!” Optimus Prime called out.

“Serves him right,” Sheba snorted.

“Fighting to convince a frightened Empire to trust me. It was worth it,” Starscream added, “I can see…I know…everything. I AM EVERYTHING.”

“Uh-oh, this isn’t good,” Sheba said, “I can feel it. The power is too great, it’s about to overwhelm his processor! He’s going to overload!” She used the Guardian Force Defend ability, and none too soon. Suddenly there was a massive explosion, followed by several smaller ones. Megatron, Optimus, and Windblade were thrown clear.

Sheba watched as Starscream’s form changed to a disorganized pink field with a floating outline of his head, as well as random Combiner parts. She felt an overwhelming pain, as the link she shared with Starscream flooded wide open. She hoped to use the Link to siphon off some of the energy, but it wasn’t enough. Starscream hollered in agony, and then what looked like four groups of blue missiles formed on each side of the floating rectangular forcefield he was contained in. Two pulses like blue laser blasts erupted from him – looking exactly like the Enemy Skill Matra Magic. Sheba realized that he was instinctively trying to release the energy that threatened to rip him apart.

“STOP IT!” Windblade shouted.

Starscream suddenly released a bright orange beam from his mouth that looked a lot like Sheba’s Light Pillar limit break. He fired several more in rapid succession, managing to bury Megatron under a heap of rubble that Optimus had to dig him out of.

Starscream began laughing maniacally now, while Windblade deflected the beams with her sword.

“Well, Sheba, still think he should remain functional?” Megatron asked.

“He does need to be stopped, but I’m not killing him,” Sheba replied, “All right, let’s do this. I’m not sure Fire or Thunder magic will have the effect we want –it might make things worse. I’m going to have to use Water and Ice magic instead. Hopefully that’ll slow him down and drain the power. BLIZZAGA!”

Yellow and pink sparkles rose up around Sheba, and there was a brief whistling noise. A huge spear of ice appeared, thrusting upwards and into the forcefield Starscream was encased in. This wasn’t her usual stocked Blizzaga, nor was it the Magitek version. It was pure Black Mage magic. The spell did maximum damage, and Starscream cried out, but didn’t cease his attacks. Sheba cast Blizzaga a few more times. Then she spread her wings, flying high above, before summoning Leviathan. The water-based Tidal Wave attack did as much damage as the Blizzaga had.

“Can’t you reach him?” Optimus wondered.

“No, his mind’s too clouded with all that power. He can’t think straight, and he can’t hear me,” Sheba replied.

Windblade was still parrying Starscream’s beam attacks, when suddenly yellow electricity emanated from the missile ports on Starscream. It struck Windblade, overloading her.

“WINDBLADE!” Optimus cried out.

She fell to the ground, and didn’t move.

“Windblade,” Optimus said softly.

“Optimus, it’s over,” Megatron stated.

“No it’s not!” Sheba called out. She landed near Windblade. “FULL-LIFE!” Wavy green energy surrounded her, and a glowing feather floated down over Windblade, then touched her. But she didn’t get up right away.

“It didn’t work?” Optimus Prime wondered.

Suddenly the entire city lit up. Windblade began groaning, as a pink energy field enveloped her.

“It didn’t work because she wasn’t dead,” Sheba replied.

The crazed, mutated form of Starscream was now wailing, looking about furtively, and then firing another energy beam.

“Metroplex,” Windblade said. The city-mech’s arm raised up and halted the beam from Starscream’s mouth. “Crush him.”

The giant fist of Metroplex crashed down upon Starscream’s shapeless form, then grasped him. A large pink orb started forming and growing within Starscream’s core.

“He’s about to blow!” Sheba shouted, “If you guys are going to do anything, you’d better do it NOW.”

“We have a clear shot!” Optimus Prime stated. He and Megatron got into position.

Meanwhile Sheba summoned Shiva a few more times, hoping to slow down the imminent explosion, or perhaps knock Starscream out before that could happen.

Megatron leaped into the air and transformed into his gun mode, while Optimus also leaped, and caught him. Megatron’s barrel opening lit up as energy built, waiting to be released. Optimus pulled the trigger and a powerful pink-and-blue tinged energy pulse shot out towards Starscream. It hit the rapidly expanding pink core, and Starscream lived up to his name, shrieking in agony until there was an explosion. Then all was quiet.

“Congratulations Prime, you actually pulled the trigger,” Megatron said, gloating.

Sheba shot Megatron a withering glance, before rushing off to find what was left of Starscream. She reached a smoking form that except for a great deal of scorching, appeared to be mostly intact. “FULL-LIFE!” she shouted, and a floating feather made its way down, touching Starscream. In a split second, the Decepticon Lieutenant regained his color, sat up, and began looking around. “Sheba, what happened? Last thing I remember, my processor was being overloaded.”

Sheba pointed at all the devastation surrounding them. “You did this, and you did it because you didn’t listen to me when I told you not to fiddle around with mystical artifacts that you don’t know anything about,” she said crossly. “Now, I understand wanting to have all that power, but WHY? I’m your Guardian; if you needed my help, it was there for the asking.”

“That’s exactly why I wanted it,” Starscream replied, hanging his head. “I didn’t want to be dependent on you or your power. I wanted to be able to protect myself. I-…I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cause all of this random destruction. Can you forgive me?”

“Of course,” Sheba said, nuzzling him, “Just remember to listen to me from now on, OK?”

“I didn’t think you had it in you,” Megatron continued, as he held the Enigma. It began glowing in his grasp.

“Megatron. You and I know the Enigma of Combination must be locked away, forever.”

The Enigma suddenly assumed its normal state, that of a swirling, patchwork mechanical orb. “Relax, Prime,” Megatron said, “Here, CitySpeaker.” He tossed the Enigma to Windblade. “I’m sure you’ll know what to do with this.”

“Megatron, you’re not what I thought you were,” Windblade said.

“Hmph. I have always been more than meets the eye,” Megatron said. He walked over to Sheba and Starscream.

“M-Megatron,” Starscream said nervously. Even with Sheba at his side, he was worried what punishment the Decepticon Leader would dole out for his misdeeds. For her part, Sheba’s tail fluffed out, her ears pinned back, and she started growling.

“And you can relax, too,” Megatron replied. He turned to Sheba. “So, I see you revived him. I knew you would. I think you need to keep him on a leash. And a tight one, at that. I hope you’ve learned your lesson, Starscream. Never fool with things you don’t understand.”

“Soooo, you’re not going to try to kill him again?” Sheba asked, warily.

“No. I know you never would have allowed it, but I always did enjoy teasing you with that threat. Riling you up was just too easy.” Megatron chuckled, then reached out and patted Sheba’s head. “Make sure he doesn’t get into any more trouble, will you?”

“Of course,” Sheba answered.

Megatron started to walk away. “Don’t bother me again,” he announced, “I prefer to be left alone.” He paused and pointed at Sheba. “Except you. The others annoy me, but I do enjoy your company from time to time. Don’t be a stranger.” He winked, then continued on his way.

Starscream got up and faced Optimus Prime, Windblade, and the rest of the Council. “I’ve acted recklessly, and endangered everyone. I exploited your trust for my own selfish purposes. I am not fit to sit on the Council. I formally tender my resignation.”

“As well you should,” the Mistress of Flame stated crossly.

“What you did, disappointed us all,” Rodimus said, clutching at his armless left side with his right hand, “But now I think I understand why you did what you did.”

“Oh here, let me fix that,” Sheba said, picking up Rodimus’s arm, and giving it to him, “It’s the least I can do after this whole mess.” The Autobot held his arm to his shoulder while Sheba cast the Guardian Force ability Recover. Now it was as good as new.

“I still have a lot to learn,” Starscream added, “But Sheba can teach me. I will go with her, into exile, like Optimus and Megatron. Perhaps, one day, I will return.” He turned to his Guardian Force. “Ready to go?”

Sheba nodded, and a blue teleport field enveloped them both.

“Good luck,” Optimus Prime stated, as the pair vanished.

Sheba and Starscream appeared on a vast grassy plain. “Where have you taken us?” Starscream wondered.

“Where I should have taken you a long time ago,” Sheba said, “I didn’t want to let you learn magic, in case something like this ever happened. But maybe it’s because I didn’t let you learn, that this happened. Maybe now I can show you how to control increasingly large amounts of power, so it doesn’t overwhelm you ever again. But you still have to promise not to touch mysterious or magical artifacts without my supervision. It's not worth risking your life.”

“Agreed,” Starscream replied.

“Alright then, here we go,” Sheba said, as she transferred the Guardian Force Quezalcoatl to him, as well as some stocked magic spells for junctioning.

“That’s interesting,” Starscream remarked, “I feel a little bit stronger, but the power isn’t overwhelming. But I will get stronger than this, though, won’t I?”

Sheba laughed. “Baby steps, Starscream. Baby steps.”



THE END!