Cantabile
Written by iratepirate and Taipan Kiryu
Summary: Soundwave's life takes an unexpected twist when Megatron gives him a female Autobot as his personal slave.
Author's notes: One of the most fascinating things of the Transformers universe is the vast amount of open doors left for fans to dream about. Complex and amazing characters caught our attention since childhood and claimed a unique place among our memories. One of those characters is Soundwave, the mysterious and cold Decepticon Communications Officer.
A universe hides behind that stoic posture and that face mask, a world of patience, reflection and domination. This story was born because of many reasons, and one of them is to explore a certain side of Soundwave's spark that has been barely touched. We hope you will enjoy it as much as we did. Please let us know your opinions. This is our first collaboration fic and we would love to receive your feedback :o)
Chapter 1: Inspired by the night
Outer space was everything.
Authentic creator of worlds, seed of every scent of life. Beauty and death mixed without prejudices, eternal shelter for every source of injustice and ambition. Within the unstoppable dance of the planets, the world of ideas lost all significance, dependent only on the mind caprices of its countless inhabitants. Mighty lords and grand masters, the celestial bodies command with ruthless resolution. The lives of all held in delicate balance, fates entwined like gossamer strings.
On the other hand, the space was the closest thing to absolute absence. It was a prequel to eternal rest, a permanent reminder of the insignificance of existence itself before an overwhelming and still undiscovered universe. Breathing paradox, it was the place for perfect harmony.
And harmony was the word to describe the lonely ship that flew through that same outer space. And it wasn't the stylized shape of the cruiser, neither the red insignia that it proudly showed. It was in its insides where equilibrium found a small but ideal expression.
A slight, barely perceivable sound emanated from the motionless figure of Nocturne. Her dimmed optics didn't show any signal of conscious or acknowledgement, but her calm expression and posture irradiated an aura of peace that harmonized with the black tranquility that surrounded the Autobot space cruiser.
Beside her, her precious charge stood silent and impressive, a magnificent machine designed to detect and decode every kind of sound and frequency of the universe. Nocturne's hand caressed proudly the metallic surface of the object that was the biggest creation of her life, perhaps the reason for her existence itself.
Meteoracer walked through the corridor and stopped when he caught sight of the vision inside the storage unit. He smiled as he felt his body temperature increasing. It was always a delight for him to see Nocturne.
The Autobot officer stood motionless for some seconds, staring at the female scientist. He had been collaborating with her for more than 2 million years but she never ceased to surprise him. There was a fascinating tranquility in her personality, a peaceful energy that opposed the brutal expressions of war and emanated the countless blessings that violence had pushed to oblivion.
Her slim and fragile body shined in harmony with the glimpses that came from the external lights of the ship, making her green and white paintjob even brighter.
"Feel free to enter, Meteoracer," she said suddenly, her optics still dimmed.
The bulky Autobot warrior shook his head; she must have heard his proximity. She was an acoustic scientist after all, her audios infinitely superior to those of most Transformers. Besides, she possessed a mystic sensitivity that didn't have anything to do with circuitry.
"I'm sorry to disturb your meditation, Nocturne," Meteoracer excused himself as he shyly walked inside. "The door was open…"
Her optics activated and her delicate face showed openly a sincere smile. "I dislike close spaces, as you know."
Meteoracer sighed and folded his arms across his chest. "And you have been locked in this ship for fourteen solar cycles now…" he said, a clear apology in his voice.
"It doesn't bother me," she spoke quietly, "I find outer space extremely peaceful, it helps me to concentrate."
The red Autobot officer stopped by one of the circular windows and stared into the exterior darkness of the Universe.
"Yes, it's quite calm out there… In moments like these it's hard to imagine we are in the middle of a war."
War. The word brought a slight shadow of sadness to the blue optics of the female scientist. Meteoracer noticed it immediately.
"It's impossible to get used to it, despite all the millions of years we have been fighting," he continued solemnly.
Nocturne didn't reply. Instead she fixated her gaze on some undefined spot within the space.
"What's our approximate time of arrival?" she asked, her voice sounded absent.
"We will enter terrestrial atmosphere in less than a quarter of a cycle," her companion replied. "Commander Optimus Prime is already waiting for us in the meeting point. Your frequency decoder will be an invaluable addition to Teletran I."
Nocturne nodded. Outside the window, nothing more than some asteroids and the flickering glimpse of the distant stars adorned the space specter. One of them caught her attention, one that wasn't flickering.
It was then that she could hear it, the unknown and barely perceivable frequency, almost impossible even for her advanced audio sensors. She got up and immediately activated the big machine beside her.
"That's strange… is that a comet?" asked Meteoracer, following the gaze of Nocturne toward the small bright light.
Nocturne's optics expanded in terror as she read the screed that the monitor of the frequency decoder displayed.
"Decepticons!" she cried.
"What? Impossible! We are protected by our energy signal nullifiers," Meteoracer exclaimed defiantly. "Besides, our radars would've detected them!"
"Not if they jammed our computers, Meteoracer!" Nocturne countered, "And by the readings I'm receiving that's just what they did. They must have a frequency decoder as powerful as mine!"
"Stay here, Nocturne!" shouted the red Autobot as he ran to the threshold of the open door. Outside, the familiar and deadly figure of Astrotrain was already perceivable.
The door closed behind Meteoracer and Nocturne got to her knees and huddled against her invention. As she did, the one and only sound she couldn't tolerate drilled her audios: the unmistakable and irritating shriek of the alarms, the sound that contained all danger and death that war had taught her to fear.
She restrained her urgency to shout. Within the space, nobody would've listened, after all.
Astrotrain crashed against the Autobot space cruiser with immense brutality, penetrating it easily.
His hatch opened and from the smoke and the debris emerged the most feared figure to any Autobot. Conqueror crimson optics stared out at the sight before them and dimmed with delight, anticipating the battle to come. It didn't matter that he was welcomed by enemy fire; his hunger for destruction and victory was already taking over. He raised his right arm and his imposing fusion cannon aimed dangerously toward the defenders of the cruiser.
"Decepticons, attack!" roared Megatron as he fired. A yellow Autobot, who was hiding behind a pile of debris, exploded in pieces when he was impacted by the Decepticon's furious shot.
Starscream, Thrust, Dirge, Ramjet and Soundwave entered the ship with lustful vigor, fighting back the incoming laser shots that scorched the air as they streaked towards them.
"Destroy them all! No Autobot will survive today!" cried Starscream as he submerged into the carnage before him with killer fury.
Hungrily, his fellow seekers followed behind, firing indiscriminately, slaughtering mercilessly. Vicious shrieks of delight and howls of pain formed discordant symphony as a descant of malicious laughter rang out across the battle. A perverted requiem for the fallen.
Starscream stood triumphantly over the disfigured carcass of a once brave Autobot, the still-sparking circuitry clenched between his fingers, the final remains of his nameless victim's life. A cruel smile tugged at his lips as he watched the battle encircling him; Decepticons and Autobots entangled in a deadly waltz, twisting and turning with chaotic elegance.
Ducking to avoid a stray laser blast, his narrowed optics scanned the anarchy before him, his sadistic gaze falling upon the trembling figure of a young Autobot scientist.
"Death paves the way to victory," the Seeker called venomously to him. "Now die like the scum you are and when Decepticons reign, you will be remembered."
Lifting his null ray, Starscream waited menacingly as the Autobot, weak and unarmed, lunged valiantly towards him, his outstretched arms exposing his chest to the blinding laser fire that extinguished his spark in an instant.
"Conquest will be mine!" Starscream cried maniacally, basking in the beauty that was the macabre glow of energon-spattered walls, glittering like the stars beyond.
Maintaining the position he had claimed upon his entrance, Megatron fired blast after unrelenting blast into the barrage of Autobot guards making their way towards him. To his right, Soundwave tore the vocalizer from his opponent without emotion, his every movement cold and calculated.
"Soundwave, proceed to the objective," commanded Megatron as he crashed the head of an Autobot with his bare hand, making his optics explode. The coldness of his voice contrasted with the sadism of his attack.
The Decepticon Communications Officer nodded and penetrated the chaos ahead of him, firing his way in with his concussion blaster and his shoulder cannon.
The sudden jolt that had sent Meteoracer crashing to the floor; the scream of steel ripped open, the deafening explosion echoing like thunder. Each sound a harbinger of news; a stirring proclamation. He was too late. Despite his best efforts his bulky frame lacked of speed and Meteoracer found himself a mere corridor away from the bridge; agonizingly close to the warning that could have saved the lives of so many already lost. His thoughts turned to Nocturne as two Autobot gunners pushed past him, the ethereal femme sitting alone and unguarded at the stern of the ship; yet the cries and screams of his fellow Autobots pulled the battle-hardened mech in the opposite direction. Internal conflict reflected the external as he stood in that corridor, uncertainty pulsing through him like energon. Watching the thick black smoke curl gracefully towards him, he turned on his heal and ran. Not to the storage unit in which Nocturne was hiding, nor to the battle ensuing, but to the one remaining place where help could be reached: the acoustics lab. Approaching the vast computer adorning the left side of the room, Meteoracer began searching through the communication channels, desperately seeking an open frequency. Warning lights blinked frantically as he worked, it appeared the Decepticons had left nothing to chance, blocking every possible route. Undeterred, Meteoracer continued his labor; even if he had to do it manually, he would reach the Autobots on Earth. He just had to. Strong, steady footsteps echoed throughout the corridor beyond as the small amber light flickered slowly into life, indicating that a signal had been established. Listening to the steps grow ever closer, a resigned smile graced the lips of the red Autobot as he watched the light brighten, waiting for that precise moment when it would shimmer to green and a mayday call could finally be sent.
The door to the lab hissed open; his demise was certain. Meteoracer turned his head slowly.
"YOU!" he bellowed as the footsteps stopped silent; his voice resounding. From the corner of his optics he could see the glittering stars, peering through a small round window; infinity itself, never more beautiful.
In the blinding flash of purple that followed, the tiny flicker of a green light was lost from sight, borne to insignificance.
Blinking red lights created ghostly shines on the green and white structure of Nocturne. Still huddled against her invention, the Autobot scientist was shivering. In a matter of astro seconds, the entire work of her life and her spark itself were endangered. Life was full of cruel jokes. The abrupt collapse of equilibrium was one of them.
Brutal sounds of laser fire perforated her audios. There were screams too; explosions, agonic howls coming from fellow Autobots that were being savagely destroyed in that precise moment…
Nocturne covered her audios with her hands, uselessly trying to fool them enough to allow ignorance to provide her a fake sense of safety. But to play the deaf was futile. The fate waiting for her was the same. Death was a certainty.
Panic rising uncontrollably, Nocturne pressed her fragile body hard against her creation, seeking from it refuge beyond her grasp. Subtle vibrations met her fingertips as they slid slowly over it's cold, smooth exterior, their normally relaxing presence the only indication of activation of an otherwise sleeping machine. She listened to it intently; the gentle song of the space beyond resonating through the object's structure as it went about its work. Analyzing and decoding, unlocking the secrets of the universe held to ransom by the stars themselves. A stark contrast to the tortured threnody clawing mercilessly at her audio sensors.
She didn't hear the steps in the corridor. Her probable killer didn't announce himself by making the door explode, but by making it hiss open as if he were in a perfectly normal situation. Whoever was about to enter was somebody who didn't lack of patience.
Nevertheless, Nocturne's fear didn't decrease, but quite the opposite when, through the grey smoke and the darkness of the corridor, emerged a red visor, cold and penetrating.
The femme recognized the owner of the visor immediately. Soundwave; the mysterious Decepticon Communication Officer.
Countless millennia of war between Autobots and Decepticons had created an infinite number of prejudices and myths between both rival factions. One of the most remarkable was the fear that preceded the navy blue communicator's fame.
Many rumors circulated about Soundwave. Autobots used to say he could read minds, manipulate behaviors and create insane hallucinations. His totally unexpressive face, his monotonic voice and the fact that he rarely spoke, only added a darker side to his legend. Definitely, the Decepticon Communications Officer was a foe no Autobot wanted to face alone.
All these thoughts assailed Nocturne's mind as she dragged backwards until her back hit the wall. She was sure her spark had reached the end of its existence. She didn't have any weapons and lacked of any military training. And even if she had had any knowledge on the matter, Soundwave's presence was too imposing to try anything. She had no doubt it was him who had jammed the ship's radars.
Calling for help was also a waste of time. Cybertron was too far away to send reinforcements and the Autobots on Earth wouldn't make it in time.
Hopeless. Equipoise caught in a maelstrom of disorder; the hand of fear casting aside all hope and reason, sealing fates with ruthless impunity. Nocturne's blue optics surveyed the burning crimson visor of death incarnate, the dark vale of smoke caressing Soundwave's body a ghostly cloak obscuring it from view. She huddled ever closer to her charge.
Soundwave walked in, his steps calm but firm. His concussion blaster was still smoking. Nocturne could never have imagined the cannon of that weapon had been the last thing Meteoracer had seen in his life, right before the deadly shot trespassed his head.
Soundwave glanced at Nocturne. He had felt her presence long before he entered the storage unit and performed a fast but complete scan of her. He knew of the existence of the Autobot scientist specialized in acoustics. A complete record of her technical and neural specifications was displayed in his data banks. Soundwave's conclusion was clear: she represented no danger and she would probably be of use to the Decepticon cause. His weapon did not aim against her.
To Nocturne, that quick glance was the only signal the Decepticon gave of having acknowledged her presence. After that, he seemed to ignore her as he walked directly toward her frequency decoder. He placed one of his hands on the console and with the other he opened his chest compartment and connected himself to the device's board.
Nocturne watched the commanding figure as he interfaced with her creation, her optics wide with terror, her body seemingly paralyzed with fear. Yet, in a fleeting moment of confusion, a warm wave pride pulsed through her. It was her creation, her life's work; and it had drawn the master of harmony himself like a moth to a flame. But as quickly as the pride had surfaced it was shattered like glass, the hellish scream of a dying spark bringing the femme back to reality in an instant.
Her creation had killed them all. It was irony at it's stunning best.
Nocturne's terror oscillated among confusing swings; Soundwave's coldness was as scary as it was enigmatic. She was so frightened by the proximity of the Communications Officer that she didn't notice that the laser firing and explosions had stopped.
The hurried steps on the corridor were more than notorious, nevertheless. This time the door didn't hiss open, but exploded courtesy of a brutal purple shot.
New pairs of crimson optics appeared behind the smoke, though they belonged to mechanoids that lacked the cold serenity of their predecessor. Killer glances and sadistic smirks announced the victory of the invaders like the shrill cry of klaxons. Yet it was the sight of their leader that proclaimed with resonant truth the fate of her colleagues. In his hand, Megatron carried the severed head of an Autobot gunner.
Nocturne repressed her need to scream when the head rolled close to her. All the glances, except Soundwave's, fixated on her fallen figure, hungry optics scrutinizing every curve of her fragile body. Fear held her still like a specimen trapped under glass.
Inescapable examination.
There was no probability of escape, not physical nor mental; reality poised on the brink of absolute destruction. Nocturne dragged instinctively, looking for any sense of safety. She huddled against Soundwave's leg, her terrified mind totally lost from logic and harmony.
To be continued.
We hope you enjoyed this first chapter. Please give us your reviews, we´d love to know your opinions :o)