Chapter Text
3.3 BU
Click, whir. Suddenly, an ancient subroutine fires up in the Ark’s main computer, spured by the restored backup power flowing through the system. A chance eruption sent rocks crashing into the Ark, shifting it such that the backup power cells were reconnected. “Explore! Explore!” Teletraan I announces, sending Probe Charlie, one of the Ark’s reconnaissance platforms out. Teletraan I's internal targeting system cycled, targeting all mechs aboard indiscriminately. It locked first onto one of the badly damaged A – Frames, Skywarp. The Ark’s internal scanner pivots and repairs commenced, scanning Skywarp’s damaged frame. As manipulators began to piece the A – Frame together, Charlie arrives at an Airbase, scanning an F-15 Jet, and the alt form is subsequently uploaded onto Skywarp’s systems, transformation triggered via Teletraan I’s debug connection, so further repairs could be completed. Slowly, Skywarp assumed his main form, joints stiff from disuse. Teletraan 1’s targeting system cycles onto Cliffjumper, and the scanner begins to pivot, locking up before it could reach its target. Nonetheless the beam became active, the recovery subroutine stalling until Skywarp dragged Megatron’s form into the scanner’s beam, sending Charlie into action again. With the scanner thoughly jammed, one by one the Decepticons pull their stasis-locked comrades into the scanner’s beam, each being repaired and brought back online.
A tremor rumbled through the mountain, and Optimus Prime fell right into the scanner beam, Charlie speeding off again.
3.28 BU
“Lord Megatron!” Starscream pestered. “Reports indicate early signs of mechswasting among the ranks. The Spacebridge project must be moved up!” “Nonsense”, Megatron dismissed. “We have important work to do."
3 BU
Three F-15 jets descend steeply toward a metallic platform surrounded by oceanwater. Before the inevitable crash and destruction of the oil rig, the lead jet explodes into a flurry of parts, wings, engines, intakes and more rotating, sliding and swinging into a new arrangement, the jet emerging into the form of a robot that towers over the workers as they turn, startled. Behind it, the other jets make to nosedive into the platform before shifting into similar robots in a flurry of motion, a pistol and a tapedeck falling from the flanking pair just to unfurl impossibly into towering robots, grey and purple respectively, each even bigger than the three that were jets moments ago.
Megatron steps forward, observing the humans who seemed to be rallying themselves rather than surrendering like sensible creatures. Miniscule pipes and chunks of metal impacted against his legs harmlessly, the humans’ attacks wholly ineffective. All it took was a pipe rolled toward them to cast the nuisances into the water below. “Rumble”, Soundwave’s modulated voice announced “Eject. Operation: Cleanup”, as the purple Decepticon pressed a button on his own shoulder. The large blue cassette ejected, and unfolded into the diminutive yet dangerous Decepticon, Rumble. He quickly rounded upon the remaining humans. They were almost as tall as him, but fell easily, helpless to the blue menance’s beatdown. It didn’t take long before he was bored of them, tossing them into the water and standing to attention, awaiting further instruction.
“Starscream!” Megatron called, once the humans had been dealt with. “Disable the pumps. The pressure is too high to tap safely.” Starscream turned toward a mass of primitive equipment, humming with energy. A single blast of his null-ray brought it to a halt, ice forming upon the equipment’s surface. “Soundwave, prepare the Energon Cubes” he continued, empty purple frames extruding from Soundwave’s chest one at a time, ready to be filled with oil. Moments later, Frenzy was ejected and sent to work with Rumble to get the oil flowing. Soon, Starscream, Thundercracker and Skywarp were filling cubes with oil, which was compacted and converted into low-grade a cube at a time. Eventually the oil rig ran dry, and the massive pile of low-grade Energon had been refined down, into four standard units of volatile high-grade, ready to be sent back home. “You’ve done well, my Seekers.”
Just then, A troop of Autobots arrived, and inevitably Megatron blasted them, and the oil rig with his cannon. The pitiful raid went from a 4 unit scavenge into a 300 unit deficit, at least. Starscream bristled, nothing showing outwardly but a twitch of his left optic.
2.8 BU
Like clockwork, the trine of seekers arrived at a hydroelectric dam, carrying Soundwave with them.
As usual, Megatron tagged along. Rumble was set to work, a calm river raged and Energon was collected. Again, Optimus Prime and his sycophants charged in against the operation, and Megatron’s scraplust cost them orders of magnitude more Energon than they secured that day. It came to a head when a battle broke out immediately after draining the reactor dry.
Soundwave’s tape deck jammed, and Starscream just knew that the mechswasting was getting worse.
They were raiding every day, but it was too slow. Starscream knew they could generate Energon far faster.. but he was missing something.
2.65 BU
Despite Megatron dragging his feet on the entire project, the spacebridge was built, and transport to and from Cybertron was established. They needed to send a shipment of Cybertronium to earth asap. Of course, Megatron wasn’t going to listen. The entire Decepticon army was on the brink of mechswasting and he decided now was the time to obsess all over again. “Starscream.” He scolded “we will focus on sending Energon back to Cybertron, not on curing an epidemic you’ve dreamt up. Once we relight reactor Alpha, we can move ahead as planned.” Relighting the reactors under Darkmount was a noble goal, but pointless when they were slowly falling apart.
2.5 BU
Spent Energon began to hit the fan at a substation. After simply dumping their last raid of Energon Megatron had lead not only the head trine, but Blitzwing, the cone-heads and a veritable number of grounders to an electrical substation and set about turning electrical power straight into high-grade. They should have been doing this in the first place, but that was besides the point. “Perhaps we’ve been affected by a bad batch of Energon”, Megatron mused, indirectly insulting his Second in Command, for Energon acquisition was one of his many responsibilities. Shortly after, they took off, bringing their spoils back to the downed Victory, entering through a spire that was once the Victory’s docking port, heavily modified to act as a retractable entrance as the rest of the downed vessel turned base of operations sat at the ocean floor. Heading straight back out to set up a secondary base of operations at an airport, all of Starscream’s mounting concerns came to fruition. In mid-flight, Soundwave’s tape mechanism malfunctioned and Ravage was ejected uncommanded. Starscream’s gyroscopes span down of their own accord, and the wind put him into a tailspin, tumbling head first to the ground, the other Decepticons suffering similar fates. Autobots arrived, likewise in the disabling grip of mechswasting. Ironhide’s multi-tool jammed, and he managed to freeze himself solid. Wheeljack got stuck in his alt form, and Warpath’s cannon misfired, taking himself out of the fight. The Decepticons were fairing no better. Megatron’s vocal coprocessor quit working, Frenzy glitched and assumed his cassette form mid-brawl. Starscream knew retreat was their only option at this point. “Too bad! He’s blown his vocal components!” he crowed. “I guess that makes me the new leader” he goaded, counting on Megatron’s wrath to get him and the rest of the deceptions on his tail. He transformed and took off. As his thrusters spooled up, the power load on his systems increased. He took to the air.. and browned out. Starscream booted up completely disoriented sprawled in the pile of Energon they’d raided from the airport. At last, Megatron acknowledges the mechswasting, and a shipment of Cybertronium is sent. A sizable portion slips into Autobot hands, but who’s looking.
2 BU
5 units in a day was about normal at this point, 10 would be lucky.. but for whatever reason, Starsccream was sure they could collect an order of magnitude more. The IoE had made a breakthrough in just that.. before..
380 BU
Starscream was working away in the Energon Technology lab, Skyfire and Dirge assisting him. Ramjet had all but begged for lab time.. but as of yesteroctet, Ramjet was banned from the lab for an octon at least. They’d…
Starscream couldn’t quite remember, but it was controversial enough to get Iacon’s attention, which is never good. The IoE woke up the following octet to heavy ordinance shaking the entire facility. The institute, being neither a defensible position nor militarily equipped was evacuated. Less than 128 A-Frames made it out alive, with a mix of other Seekers and non-aviatory scientists escaping the pitsfire, numbering fewer than 512 in all.
Starscream had discovered Something that octet all those vorns ago. Sighing, he activated his comms. “Dirge, report to my office, now”. Dirge arrived, looking confused. “Commander?” he asked, noticing that his Air Commander was deep in thought. “Starscream will do, this isn’t an official affair.” he admitted. “What do you remember from the last days of the IoE? We were lab partners on that fateful octet” Starscream recalled. Dirge looked at him, optic ridge furrowing in concentration “We were in the lab.” he started. “Working on.. I.. I can’t quite remember.”
Starscream could feel the ragged edges in his memory banks, the references torn loose. At this point he was tempted to simply demand Soundwave to root around in his head for the missing files, it was important.