Plenoptic

All things considered, I love Megatron.

"Papa."

Angelbane looked down upon hearing the soft, sad squeak, hushing the sparkling in low tones and glancing nervously at the armed guards who flanked her on both sides. Upon landing in Kaon, she had been ushered into a transport with darkened windows and, clutching little Stormbane close, had been taken to the immense fortress from which Megatron waged his long war. A company of eight mechs had been there to greet her when she disembarked, all massive and ghoulish in appearance, sporting a medley of horrific scars and old wounds.

The former empress glanced up from the sparkling, watching Soundwave warily. Silent and stoic as ever, he led the company through the fortress, ignoring the soldiers who bowed or saluted as he passed. Angelbane didn't ask where they were going; she already knew.

"Dismissed," Soundwave said coolly to the guards when they approached a lift, stepping back from the door and looking pointedly at Angelbane. Holding Storm a little tighter, she stepped past him and onto the lift, repressing a shiver when the communications officer and Decepticon third-in-command stepped in after her, the doors swishing closed behind him. They ascended for what could have been an eternity; Stormbane made another inquiry after her father, and Angelbane cringed when Soundwave looked down at the sparkling, expression unreadable behind his mask and visor.

They arrived, as Angelbane knew they would, at Megatron's private quarters within a breem. Soundwave bowed his head and departed as soon as she stepped from the lift; apparently she was to be left to her own devices until Megatron confronted her. Shifting Storm in her arms, the older femme took a cautious look around. Her younger son's rooms were a good deal more comfortable-looking than she would have thought; she supposed she had half expected to see nothing but weapons and trophies from battle on the walls, but they were surprisingly blank. He had a fully stocked energon storage unit, as she'd known he would, and a single large chair that overlooked the balcony. She took a seat, cradling Storm in her lap and rocking the sparkling when she began to sniffle again.

"I won't let him hurt you," Angelbane murmured down to her, brushing her mouth over Storm's head. "I promise. I promise."

"Papa."

"I know, sweetling, I know…I miss him, too."

The doors opened behind her, and Angelbane got to her feet, taking a moment to steel herself before turning around. The bot who entered the room, however, was not her son. A femme with armor darker than pitch stepped cautiously toward her, looking her up and down with what could only be described as awe.

"Primus," the femme said weakly, stopping behind the chair, still staring. "Primus. It's you. You're the one who made him."

"Who are you?" Angelbane asked uncomfortably, tucking Storm's face into her shoulder and taking a step back, away from the stranger. Megatron she could deal with- not knowing who she had encountered, with a precious sparkling cradled in her arms, was threatening.

"Onyxstar." The femme spoke plainly, quietly. "I'm Megatron's sparkmate and empress."

Angelbane balked at that, blinking several times in shock. "You...you're...Megatron is sparkbound? When?"

"Some time ago. Before Optimus and Elita One, to be sure." Onyxstar took a step closer, and Angelbane retreated again. "I'm not going to hurt you, or that sparkling. Quite the opposite. I'll make sure you both stay safe."

"How did he know where I'd be?" Angelbane demanded shakily.

Onyx shrugged one shoulder. "He monitors you, of course. Did you think you could leave the neutral zone without his knowledge? You are his mother, after all. Do you want energon? I'm sure the little one does." Angelbane stayed silent, attempting to process, and ignored the other femme as Onyx almost drifted over to the energon storage and removed three cubes.

Megatron was sparkbound. He had a mate. She hadn't felt anything, and to her knowledge, Optimus hadn't, either. Was Megatron so well shielded from them? Had he figured out how to close his spark completely? How could he be so selective, to block his brother and mother but not his mate? Unless Onyxstar, too, had been evicted from his spark, their link shut down?"

"Are you connected to him?" Angelbane asked, seating herself slowly but tracking Onyx's movements as she puttered about their quarters.

"To Megatron? Oh yes. He dims the link when he's on the field, of course, but for the most part he lets it stay open, so long as I don't bother him."

"Bother him?"

Onyx laughed dryly. There was little humor in it. "He took a mate to produce heirs and stabilize his claim. When I'm not with sparkling, he doesn't have much patience for me." Unless he was feeling lustful, of course, but she neglected to mention that.

"Have you borne sparklings for him?" Angelbane asked, trying to keep the eagerness from her voice. She had long since given up hope that she would see little ones by Megatron. The possibility that she had been wrong…

Onyxstar was silent for a time, debating, and then she nodded. "I have," she replied quietly. "Twins." She picked up the warmed energon cubes and turned to the older femme, offering one to her. "Sunstreaker and Sideswipe were their names."

Angelbane froze with one hand extended, optics lifting slowly to lock with those of her reluctant companion. "Sunny and Sides," she said faintly, trembling. "They're yours?"

"The irony isn't lost on me either," Onyxstar sighed, pressing the cube into Angelbane's hands and nodding toward Storm. "You should feed her. Megatron will become irate if she cries while he's here."

Still shaking, Angel did as she was told, getting Storm to drink after a few coaxing murmurs. The sparkling barely touched it before curling back into the femme's shoulder, shuttering her optics, apparently determined to let all of what was happening pass her by. Angelbane couldn't say that she blamed her.

A joor passed before the doors opened again, and this time it was Megatron who entered, in all of his horror and glory. Angelbane stood once more, cradling Storm close, refusing to let her fear show on her face.

"Mother," Megatron rumbled. His voice had become every bit as deep as his brother's, but there was no warmth in it. It sent chills down Angel's spinal relays. "It has been a long time."

"Since your father died," Angel replied coolly, fighting the impulse to approach the mech, to hold the son she had thought lost to her forever. No matter what Megatron did, what terrors he unleashed, how much she still grieved for the loss of her beloved mate, he was still her child. She would never be able to delete maternal programming, any more than she could delete the link between them.

Megatron stepped up to her, and this time she didn't back away, tightening her grip on Storm and keeping the little femme nestled close to her spark. The Decepticon warlord was silent, looking her up and down, his expression unreadable.

"Optimus's?" He queried at length. There was no mistaking what he was talking about.

"No," Angelbane said at once, giving her head a small shake. "An orphan."

Red optics narrowed. "You never were a good liar, Mother." He backed away, giving her room, and stepped toward his mate, drawing a claw down the side of her face. The touch was unexpectedly tender. "It was Onyx who surmised my brother may have created a child. It is the most logical explanation for his...irrational behavior over the last few vorns."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Angelbane replied stiffly. Storm sniffled. The tension in the room was getting to her.

"It's Prime's," Onyx said to her mate, looking at the little femme with distaste. "She looks like him."

Megatron hummed to himself. He was in a uniquely fortuitous position; he'd have to act carefully if he didn't want it to slip away.

"I"ll tell you now, Mother, that I don't want to see any harm come to that sparkling," he stated, turning on his heel to face the femme who had raised and loved him. "The Prime's lineage is valuable no matter which side possesses it. She'll be of use to me, I'm sure. We are family, after all."

Angelbane glanced toward the door. Useless. Even if she could somehow avoid Megatron, she was stuck in the most heavily guarded fortress in Kaon. There would be no running, no escape. For now, she had to play Megatron's game, even if his very tone was like ice in her spark.

"However," he went on, taking a step toward her. It was with iron will that she held her ground. "In the event that the sparkling turns out anything like her sire, her usefulness to me will be negated. I don't want to terminate her, but neither do I want a clone of Prime usurping me at every turn. I am going to have Shockwave modify her memories, and you are not going to tell her who created her."

The ice grew thicker and colder. All Optimus had wanted was for his daughter to know him, however distantly, to know that he loved her. It was all Optimus had ever asked of his mother since Sentinel died.

"Please," she said weakly, but Megatron overrode her.

"She will be told that I am her sire. You and Onyx take responsibility for her rearing and schooling. When she is of age, I will train her in battle myself. You shall remain in Kaon as well, of course. I won't separate you and the sparkling, and so long as you maintain our little fabrication, no harm shall come to her."

"You can't," Angelbane pleaded, stepping toward him, arms trembling around Stormbane's small form. "Send her back to Iacon. Please. I'll stay, I don't care, but-"

"Did Onyx tell you?" Megatron cut in, optics narrowing dangerously. "Did she tell you that Prime has raised my sons?"

"He rescued them from the burning ruins of the dorms," Angelbane shot back, drawing herself up to her full height. "If you abandoned them, what was to stop him from taking them in?"

"Had they survived in the pits, I would gladly have acknowledged them," Megatron said dismissively. "Optimus took that opportunity from me."

"The Autobots didn't bomb-"

"I will not discuss this further," the warlord snapped, optics blazing, and Angelbane fell silent. "What is the sparkling's name?" When she didn't speak, he stepped toward her and latched a hand around the sparkling's back, wrenching her from the femme's arms. "Her name!"

"Stormbane!" Angel cried, reaching for the sparkling when she burst into tears, writhing, struggling to get free of Megatron's grasp. "Please- Megatron-"

Megatron turned away from her, placing the sobbing sparkling in Onyx's arms with distaste. "Take her to Shockwave. Have him block her memory core, but remain to supervise. Make sure he doesn't get out of hand."

"At once, my lord," Onyx replied, and accepted a hard kiss to her mouthplates before departing, glancing at Angelbane over her shoulder. Storm's cries persisted even after the door slid shut.

"You remain here," Megatron said sharply, looking down at his mother. She had sunk to her knees, both hands clasped over her mouthplates, too shocked or too frightened to cry. "We will speak at length later. We have much to discuss."

Three long strides carried him from his quarters, and he departed without so much as a look back. Angelbane didn't move from where she'd fallen, arms aching with absence, spark on fire.

Lost. A few stuttered gasps escaped her, and she rocked back and forth, wrapping both arms around her chassis, trying to suppress a sob. She'd lost Storm. Megatron had her. Optimus's beloved little daughter was in the all-consuming grip of his twisted brother, and she, his mother, had allowed it to happen. But what could she have done? Fought off Starscream and his Seekers, piloted the ship to the spacebridge herself?

She had to contact Optimus somehow, had to tell him what had happened- but could she? Surely Soundwave monitored all outgoing transmissions, and she was too far to convey it through their sparklink, which had already been depleted by war and by time. Reaching out to Optimus would mean risking Storm's life, and even if she did contact him, what would he do? If he laid siege to Iacon, Storm would be the first sacrifice. Megatron had all the power now, all the leverage he could ever want.

The question remained, however, as to what he might do with it.

Probably should have been the ending to the previous chapter, but it wasn't done yet. Eh. Short chapters are short. Reviews are always, always appreciated!