Chapter 5

Starscream awoke to find himself in a darkened chamber. He felt weak, as if someone had drained the very energy out of him and he was barely hanging on to life by a thread. He tried to move, but realized that he had been secured to a raised platform, restraints holding him down. As he regained his visual function, he noticed that the chamber looked like a laboratory. He tried to think of where he might be, and then the memory of Jhiaxus suddenly returned to him. If the Liege's second in command had brought him back to Kolkular, he was in dire trouble, and he had to find a way to escape and return to Iacon before he was deactivated, or worse. But he couldn't see any way out of his current predicament.

He noticed movement to his right, and realized with dread that he was inside the Doctor's laboratory, deep underground within Kolkular. The Doctor practically lived down here; he was a Destron who had sworn loyalty to the Liege long ago, and who revelled in all sorts of cruel and callous experiments upon other Transformers – experiments that were too horrific to even bring to mind.

"Ah, Starscream. I'm glad to see that you are awake," the Doctor suddenly said. He was quietly spoken, yet his tone was filled with all manner of sinister intentions.

The seeker was too weak to respond, yet that did not stop him from trying. "What… have you done?"

The evil scientist moved closer until his face appeared before the Air Commander, the details of his features obscured by the semi-darkness. Only his red optics could be seen clearly. "That's not the question you should be asking. Rather, what I am about to do should be of far more concern to you."

It took Starscream every last ounce of strength not to call out for help, or beg the scientist to spare him, but he knew that none of that would help and, if he started to head down that path and give in to his panic, he would surely be done for.

"Let me speak to the Liege… please…" Starscream pleaded. It was his only hope; given no other options, he would much rather have the slag beaten out of him by the war lord, than to be forced to undergo one of the Doctor's experiments.

"It's too late for that now. It appears that you have crossed him one too many times. The Liege has graciously bestowed upon me the privilege of carrying out your punishment." The scientist spoke slowly, deliberately, enjoying every moment of his work.

As the Doctor began to prepare various tools and equipment, Starscream slowly began to resign to the fact that if he did not find a way out of here within the next five minutes, he might never again be able to experience freedom, or help Megatron and the other Destrons survive through the upcoming conflicts. He had truly failed them, and it felt like he was in hell; a fate much worse than death could ever offer him. "Deactivate me… please," he begged, his options fast running out.

"Oh, no, no, no… that's simply out of the question," the Doctor answered him. "I need you awake, or it might not work." Finally, the scientist completed his preparations; everything had been set up just the way he wanted. "Are we ready to begin?" he said, and reached across to an access port underneath Starscream's helm.

"What… are you doing… stop…" Starscream protested, but his desperate pleas went unnoticed. He could sense the scientist making a connection with his neural circuitry.

"Try to remain quiet. This isn't a particularly painful procedure, necessarily," the Doctor said, as he proceeded to upload a new instruction set into the seeker's main control module. "If anything, you should be grateful."

Starscream struggled against his restraints, but his weakness was making it too difficult to even think. His frame was trembling involuntarily, and he wasn't sure whether it was due to his fear, or to his low energy levels. "What… are you… doing?" he managed to ask. He did not want to hear the answer, but part of him needed to know what was happening.

The Doctor enjoyed talking to his victims; the more frightened or in pain they were, the better. He had no qualms about explaining his procedures in detail, to whoever would care to listen. In fact, he gained quite a bit of pleasure from it. "I'm sabotaging your autonomous responses in connection with some of your most significant memories," he explained delightedly. "I've not yet had the opportunity to test my program on a live subject before; you'll be the first, but I'm sure it will work. It's not a very complicated procedure. It just requires some fine adjustment to your control circuitry…" He trailed off, focusing intently on his work. "A most fitting punishment for a very treacherous Air Commander, wouldn't you agree?"

Starscream ignored his last comment, and tried to resist the core programming that was being forced into his neural center. Suddenly, his memories were activated, and a barrage of super enhanced images and sounds threatened to overload his processor. He could see himself in Tarn, alongside his fellow researchers, working with Skyfire on an interstellar database; his first encounter with Megatron, and how they had engaged in a lively debate until his mentor had finally proven him wrong. Then the rising conflicts with the Autobots, and how his Destron origins had interfered with his partnerships at the research facility. He saw himself leaving Tarn behind and joining the growing legion under Liege Maximus' command. The first time he had suffered the Liege's wrath, and then the countless number of times that he had endured his abuse afterwards.

But the most prevalent, and his most important, memory – the one that repeated itself over and over in his mind as the Doctor quietly carried out his task – was of his recent reunion with Megatron, and the hopes and aspirations that they had recently shared; his willingness and determination to work with his mentor once again, along with his unspoken need to prove his worth.

Starscream was so absorbed in his memories and in such a weakened state, that he was not aware he had fallen into unconsciousness.

When Megatron returned to the agreed meeting place at Iacon's border, he discovered that the Destron jet was nowhere to be seen. He was about to head towards Kaon in search of him, when he saw a space shuttle approaching in the distance. It landed close by, and two Destrons disembarked before the shuttle transformed into its robot mode.

The three Destrons looked about, as if searching for something. Then, having spotted Megatron, they approached him. One of them, a blue Destron, took a moment to scan the area, and then focused his sensor beam on the silver and black Destron, who did not try to stop him.

When Soundwave had completed his scan, Megatron addressed him. "Did Starscream send you?"

The Destron seemed to hesitate, but then replied simply, "Yes."

Megatron nodded. "He should have returned by now."

Soundwave attempted to establish his usual communications channel with the seeker, but when he was unable to do so, he informed the others. "The situation is unsatisfactory. There is a high probability that Starscream is in peril."

Megatron looked around them. The day had transitioned into night, and the outskirts of Iacon seemed deserted. If Starscream had left of his own free will, he would have done so for a very good reason, yet he would also have exercised precaution and informed them about his intentions. However, if he was in danger, he had to consider the very real possibility that they may already be too late to help him. He looked back at the three of them, not allowing himself to entertain the latter thought. "He was probably followed. If he's been captured, he'll most likely be in Kaon."

Soundwave nodded, and Astrotrain transformed again into his shuttle mode. Then, once the three Destrons were inside, he took off into the air once more, the late evening shrouding them in darkness.

Thundercracker and his team mate, Skywarp, had just returned from the North Tower in search of their trine leader; he had seemingly disappeared, and was nowhere to be found.

As they entered one of Kolkular's many enclosed courtyards, Jhiaxus awaited them; he stood with arms crossed, and a self satisfied smirk was upon his face. Beside him, two of his personal guards supported Starscream between them, holding him upright; the seeker appeared to be off-line.

"Ah, just the imbeciles I wanted to see. I do believe this piece of slag belongs to you?" he said, leering at them as he gestured casually towards Starscream.

Thundercracker feared the worst, as he glanced nervously towards the Air Commander. He sensed that something had gone seriously wrong, and that whatever misfortune had befallen his comrade, the Liege's second in command was largely responsible.

Skywarp, a black and purple jet-former, asked the difficult question, his voice wavering with uncertainty. "What's happened to him?"

Jhiaxus looked over at his guards and gave a nod of his head, indicating for them to release the unconscious seeker. They immediately complied with the unspoken command, and roughly pushed Starscream into the direction of his trine mates, who managed to catch him between them, preventing him from falling forwards into the wall behind them. "He's undergone a minor… corrective procedure, nothing to worry about," Jhiaxus informed them in a mocking tone. "He'll still be able to function, I'm sure."

Thundercracker examined their leader, prodding him gently to see if he was responsive, but Starscream gave no indication that he would regain consciousness. His red optics showed very little life in them. "What kind of corrective procedure?" the blue jet asked with growing concern. "What have you done to him?"

Jhiaxus laughed, his contempt obvious. "Just let it be a warning to the both of you, or to any other Destron who dares even think he can betray the Liege," Jhiaxus replied, before turning away and exiting the courtyard, his guards following behind.

The two jet-formers looked at one another in an unspoken exchange, each imagining the worst for their off-lined comrade.

"We need to find him help," Thundercracker said finally, in a low voice.

Skywarp shook his head. "We won't find any here," he replied, then added with hesitation, "His only chance is in Iacon."

"He won't be too happy about that," his team mate replied. Taking Starscream to Iacon posed a risk, not just to their trine leader, but to their own safety as well. Still, the seriousness of his condition demanded immediate expert attention, or they might end up losing him.

"Well, he doesn't have much of a say right now, does he? Come on, let's get him out of here," Skywarp finally decided, and the two jets took off into the air, taking Starscream with them.

As the Destron space shuttle approached the Kolkular fortress, Soundwave suddenly spoke up. "Three Destron signatures have been detected."

Blitzwing, who had been seated on the floor of the shuttle, got up, suddenly alert. He walked over to Astrotrain's short-range sensor display, and watched as the image of three seekers moved across the screen, heading towards Iacon. Megatron, watching the same display, turned to the Destron triple changer. "Can you intercept them?"

"Sure," Blitzwing replied, and then moved quickly towards the exit hatch. "Open up, Astrotrain," he called, but the door had already opened for him. Blitzwing leaped off the shuttle, transforming into his jet mode, and shot forward into the night sky as he activated his rocket boosters.

It didn't take long for him to return. Two of the seekers carried a third on board as they followed Blitzwing into the shuttle. Once they were all inside, the two seekers placed their leader gently down against the wall of the shuttle, and then stepped back, turning to the other Destrons.

"Can you help him?" Thundercracker asked them.

Megatron kneeled close to the fallen jet-former, examining him carefully. His expression slowly changed to a grimace. "His control circuitry has been compromised. We must find a way to bring him back online, before he suffers a complete systems failure," he said, looking up towards the other Destrons.

They remained quiet, and for many moments it seemed that none of them knew how to help him, but then Soundwave moved closer to the off-lined seeker, kneeling beside him. He gently moved the seeker's head to the side, and accessed a small port just underneath the helm. The other Destrons watched intently as the blue Transformer probed his neural center. After a few moments, Soundwave spoke. "I can bring him back, but the result will be unpredictable." He seemed unsure about proceeding, as if he required some kind of reassurance, or permission, to perform the procedure.

Megatron seemed to provide it. "Do it," he said with determination, and the Destrons watched nervously as Soundwave sent a calibrated pulse into the seeker's control circuitry.

There was a jolt as a surge of power was transferred, and Starscream's entire frame suddenly reacted, as if a shock of electricity had shot right through him. Soundwave supported him with one hand, so that he wouldn't fall to the floor. The reaction slowly subsided, and for a long minute it seemed as though nothing had happened. But then the seeker's optics gradually regained their brightness, and his head moved slightly towards Soundwave.

"It worked," Thundercracker said, almost whispering the words. He had been hoping against the odds that they had not lost their trine leader, and he knew that Skywarp felt the same.

Another minute passed by in silence until, finally, Starscream stirred. He murmured something, but his words were unclear.

As Soundwave gave the seeker time to readjust, Megatron addressed Astrotrain, speaking towards the shuttle's flight deck. "Take us back to Iacon," he said, with such confidence and authority that no one thought to question him. Once Astrotrain had readjusted his flight path and changed course, Megatron returned his attention to Starscream, kneeling by his side. "Starscream," he pressed, looking for a positive response.

The seeker struggled to focus upon his voice, his gaze searching for its owner. Finally, he seemed to lock on, and his optics fixed upon him in recognition. "Megatron…" he whispered, and began to push himself up against the wall. It took him a few more moments before he was able to finally make sense of his surroundings. "What… where am I? What happened?" he asked in confusion.

"You're aboard Astrotrain," Blitzwing offered. "We're not sure what happened to you."

"Astro… train," Starscream repeated, still in a weakened state, though his strength was slowly starting to pick up. Then, he noticed the communications expert by his side, and tried to remember how they'd all happened to be here. He couldn't recall. He attempted to stand, and Soundwave helped him up. "Jhiaxus–" He said suddenly in panic, as the memory of his capture entered his mind, and of the blast which had rendered him unconscious. He looked about him, as if the Liege's second in command might be waiting for him just outside the shuttle. "Jhiaxus!" he repeated, and looked towards his trine mates.

"He did this to you?" Thundercracker asked him.

Starscream hesitated. "Yes," he replied, and then looked towards Megatron, his optics fixated on him once more. He shook his head slowly, as if he was trying hard to comprehend something, but the more he focused upon the silver and black Destron, the more difficulty he seemed to experience. He faltered, and almost fell back into the wall, had Soundwave not caught hold of his arm. "What's… happening… to me?" he demanded, panic evident in his voice.

"Starscream," Megatron said his name, trying to reassure him, but then, in a moment that no one aboard the shuttle expected, Starscream turned on him. He pulled away from Soundwave's grip and stepped back in defence, pointing his arm mounted null ray directly towards his mentor.

"You… you double-crossed me!" he said, his voice wavering in anger and resentment. "I… I trusted you!" His optics were accusatory, yet almost pleading, and showed the signs of a terrible mental struggle that threatened to overwhelm him.

His trine mates looked on in shock and confusion, and Skywarp stepped towards him, attempting to intervene before the situation got any worse. "Starscream, try to calm down," he said, but Starscream wouldn't listen.

"Calm down? Don't tell me to calm down, Skywarp!" He kept his weapon pointed at his mentor, his arm trembling from the emotion. "He wanted Jhiaxus to find me! He set me up!" He looked back towards Megatron, who had not spoken a word since his close friend had turned against him.

"Starscream, you're not yourself. Please, let us help you," he finally said, and took a step forwards, but Starscream wouldn't allow him.

"Don't come any closer!" The seeker was becoming increasingly frantic, uncontrollable. "I trusted you!"

Megatron slowly stepped back, and then glanced towards Soundwave. The communications expert had been watching the two of them intently, and knew what he had to do without having to be told.

Before Starscream realized what was happening, Soundwave adjusted his sonic blaster to the required setting and released a well aimed pulse in his direction – and he was instantly deactivated. The blue Destron moved quickly, catching the seeker before he crashed to the floor, and gently laid him down. When he stood up again, the other seekers were looking at one another, wondering what in the hell had happened to have caused their leader to act in such a way, and finally looked towards the silver and black Transformer for answers.

Megatron hesitated, the look of regret and disappointment on his face unmistakeable. "This is my fault," he said, finally. "I should have never left him alone." He fully expected the seeker's trine mates to blame him for what had befallen their leader, and was fully prepared for it, but his expectations were never realized; they seemed to empathize, their only concern being how they might be able to help their trine mate. Obviously, Starscream could not continue to function in his current state.

"What are we going to do?" Thundercracker finally asked, to nobody in particular. "I've never seen him act this way before."

"I have a friend in Iacon who might be able to reverse the damage," Megatron replied. He was visibly tense, his hands clenched into tight fists. He paused, deep in thought, before he spoke again. "And then, when I find those responsible, I will make them pay for what they've done."

No one spoke another word. The other Destrons may not have known Megatron as well as Starscream did, but something about his presence and the conviction in his voice told them that he was deadly serious, and more than capable of carrying out his promise.