Hey peeps! Great to be back! And not before time, geez! I am never taking a break this long again! I very nearly lost my muse for a while, and with this being the busiest January I've ever known, I just couldn't seem to be able to get the time of day: until today. Anyway, I present for your enjoyment, the 6th chapter of the Tomorrow is Forever Coming saga: like I mentioned in my earlier update, updates may be few and far between as I have other projects going on, but rest assured I will be making time to sit down and type. It's just a question of fitting it all in. So to get you hooked on our next leg of the adventure, enjoy the prologue. cheers! :D

Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers: just my OC's & the plot.

SMALL MERCIES

Prologue

Washington DC, 24 hours ago:

The night was cold as the autumn winds whipped around the city, chilling and nipping the flesh of all who'd been careless enough to not wrap up warmly enough. A good night to spend by the fire, or snuggled up in a nice cosy bed: away from winter's bitter opening salvo.

But the city carried on as it had always done, regardless of the season: up and down the metropolis the bars and restaurants were busy as usual: for most, a time to unwind and enjoy the night out...

But for others, a chance to drown out their troubles and sorrows...

In a little bar, not far from the city center, hidden at the far end of a small courtyard, Ian Beller was one such unfortunate soul, as he downed his sixth whiskey of the evening: he called to the bartender "Another". The young man discreetly filled his glass, though he was tempted to cut him off, as Beller was now struggling to remain upright on his stool. His drinking buddy on the other hand, was still only half-way through his first bourbon, and still very much sober, as he listened to Beller complain: ", And just like that, they voted me out! ME! The fucking CEO!"

"Well? Given the circumstances, can you really blame them?" Galloway threw in as he took a sip from his glass.

Beller downed his whiskey in one gulp, and ran his fingers through his hair as his stress levels piqued, "...My grandfather built Caerus Global from the ground up: he poured every last drop of blood, sweat and tear its making it what is today: and my old man was no different. Even with Lockheed and Boeing fighting tooth and claw he kept us in the lead; I tried to expand on that success, to take the company to a whole new level. And now? One man cons me out of the money I invested in that expansion, and I get the blame for not knowing about it sooner?! They can all go to hell for all I give a shit! And that back-stabbing low-life Berger can go fuck himself!"

"It's never nice when things don't go your way..." Galloway sighed as he contemplated his own frustrations: "I'm in a serious bind; and if I don't do something to gain the President's favor, I'll be in serious trouble"

"You're not the only one," Beller sighed, as he thought back to the events that unfolded just over an hour ago...

:Flashback:

The atmosphere in the room was tense; all eyes were upon Beller as he stood before the gathering. First the troubles with his company, and now this...

"What do you mean I'm 'out'?" he exclaimed in disbelief.

"You're out: simple as that" Senator Waineright shrugged casually.

"The fact is Beller, you've become somewhat of a deadweight;" general Hallo stated frankly, "While your company's resources have provided us with the tools we need. Prometheus is not in the business of seeking revenge for perceived slights: what we do, we do for a greater purpose. And you're machinations and delusions of grandeur don't fit in with that purpose. Ergo, you are no longer a member of the outer circle"

Though the fury in his eyes was hard to miss, inside, Beller's temper was reaching its boiling point. But he still had enough self-restraint to keep his composure, and his line of thinking, as something suddenly came to mind. "...The embezzlement of Caerus Global's shares: was that you too?" he asked

A moment of uneasy silence filled the room, before his business partner, Berger spoke up: "We've got our hands in a lot of things Ian, you seriously think we'd go out of our way to push you out of your own company? Just because we voted you out of Prometheus?"

"I don't know?" Beller smiled sarcastically, "You've had your hands in my company for years now; my old man was your favorite, was he not? You made it clear that Caerus was a vital asset to your endeavors: so why not do away with me and keep Caerus for yourself?"

"Now you see, you hit the nail on the head there," Senator Waineright smiled, "Your father was our favorite, and the only reason we kept you around at all was because he convinced us that you'd be of some use to us. And for a while you were..." the smile dropped from her face, "...But after Mission city, you were never the same; It's bad enough you felt cheated out of never having a male hair, but to lose your only hair took a toll on you. And ever since then your petty line of thinking has clouded your out-look on the bigger picture"

"Only the strongest have any chance of living to see the new world order come to power. And we can't achieve that, with small-minded individuals such as yourself weighing us down. However, as a courtesy to your late father; if you have any respect and dignity: you'll leave this circle, and never breathe a word of our existence to anyone" another gentleman stated coldly.

"...You know what happens if you do..." the senator smiled with that cat-like stare of her's.

:Present:

He hated them,

He hated every single one of them: not least the senator. Countless were the times he'd daydreamed of his bare hands around her throat, throttling her to death and wiping that smug contempt smile off that well-preened face of her's; while the thought of shooting the rest of them up with a machine gun made the corner of his mouth curl into a half smile. He only stayed with them because it's what his father wanted, and because he wanted to stick it to the old man, and show him he wasn't the failure he always said he was.

But now, no longer the CEO of Caerus Global, and no longer a member of Prometheus: nothing else mattered. He had nothing...

Nothing, but wanting the satisfaction of revenge, regardless of what he had to do...

Glancing up at Galloway, an idea began to formulate: amid the uncoordinated and scattered thoughts brought on by the whiskey, and the more he thought about it, the more his inflated ego told him it will work. Being a member of Prometheus, he'd known about Galloway's involvement with the Autobots, and how general Hallo managed to appeal to his narrow-minded view of NEST being surplus to requirement. With the Autobots keeping their heads down, Galloway had no politically acceptable excuse to shut down NEST and detain them.

Not unless, something were to happen that forced them to react; force them into a desperate situation, and could lead them to make a mistake...

And in the process, throw off the balance of Prometheus's carefully laid plans. The idea of those pompous fools running around in a panic like headless chickens brought a sense of satisfaction to mind; the consequences be damned, he had nothing left to loose, if he was going to get revenge on all of them, he may as well do it with a bang. As a satisfactory smile crossed his face, he beckoned Galloway to come closer, as he quietly suggested, "...But I have an idea that could work for us both"

"How'd you mean?" Galloway asked, curious as to where he was going with this.

"You need an excuse, and I need to get pay-back..." Beller replied as he whispered his plan as quietly as possible.

However, Beller's plan hadn't completely gone unnoticed, as another gentleman further along the bar listened in, and took note of what was being said. As he listened, he discreetly slipped his cell-phone from out of his pocket and texted a message to his associates waiting in the parking lot down the other end of the street.

Waiting in a black Mercedes at the far end of the parking lot, the driver heard his cell-phone beep: glancing at the message, he sighed as he let his associate in the passenger seat look at it.

: They voted Beller out, he wants to get them back:

The driver texted back, : how?

: Project circuit breaker

The two men glanced at one another in concern, : srsly?

: srsly. Could get ugly

"...What now?" the passenger asked worryingly.

The driver dialed a number into the cell-phone: he didn't have to wait long before he got a reply. "...Yeah it's me: listen, I need to get a message to the boss. Her old man's up to something; this could be the opportunity she's been waiting for..."

At the same time, in California:

The view from the mountainside was breathtaking: to the east, the desert ran all the way to Nevada, while to the west, the green fringes of the fertile lands surrounding Tranquility lined the horizon, amid the city lights of Tranquility herself. The rest of the mountain range obscured the north and south. And to the south-west, NEST base laid snugly in the gorge that concealed its presence from prying eyes, not least those of other military spy satellites.

As he steadily reached the peak, the old man leaned on his staff as he took a moment to catch his breath: his lungs weren't what they used to be, nor were his legs.

"You're getting tired in your old age" the old woman in the white dress smirked as she admired the view from her perch atop a flat bolder.

"Your one to talk," he smiled as he straightened up, "Your even older than me"

"True, but then, you're older than everyone on this world combined" she pointed out.

"Don't remind me..." he stated flatly as he approached the edge of the rock face, and gazed down at the base, "...I take it your here to watch the opening salvo too?"

"I take no pleasure in this" she stated seriously

"I know you don't..." he sighed ruefully, "...It's funny, there was time once I would've given anything to see them burn; and now, here I am hoping and praying they'll make it out alive"

"Everything is in place: the chronicle is back where it belongs, and all the players are set to make their moves; the game is ready to begin"

"You make it sound so trivial," he glanced up at her with a disapproving look, "You know better than to treat this lightly. Lives are on the line, and even I can't do anything to stop what's coming..."

"Nor can I..." she dropped her head in regret, "My machinations are but of small significance: compared to the grand scheme of things. I can assure you, I am as powerless as you are..."

"Considering everything that's happened: I'll believe that when I see it" he replied sceptically, as he sat down on a nearby rock, and waited...

The Laurentian Abyss, 3.7 miles down:

The dive down had been hard, but avoiding the submarine's sonar was even harder; even with the electronic dampener's absorbing the sonar pings, the slightest noise would alert the humans to their presence. The military presence here was nothing short of troublesome: and to even make planet-fall without being detected had been a miracle in itself.

After traversing their way down the walls of the abyssal valley, and finally reaching the bottom: their leader jumped down onto the flat ocean floor, throwing up a cloud of milky grey sediment. As his cohorts joined him, they switched on their headlights, and scanned all around for the object of their search.

: Spread out and begin searching: according to the scanners he should be here somewhere...: Shockwave ordered as she strode out across the barren featureless submarine landscape.

While the other Decepticons searched for their target: Shockwave walked some distance across the abyssal floor; as he searched with his scanners, he noticed the various deep sea organisms swimming around. Out of the blackness, a giant squid gracefully glided by, staring at him with its huge dinner-plate sized eyes. Stopping to let the beast pass, he took a moment to admire its morphology, and its predatory nature as it attacked and consumed a large shark. Regardless of whatever one might think of him, he was not a scientist who didn't look to nature for ideas.

As the squid wrapped it's tentacles around its dying prey: Shockwave noticed something out the corner of his one optic, a glint of silver sticking out of the sediment. Walking over for a closer look, the scientist realized it was a piece of an arm; an arm, that ended with a hand full of razor-sharp claws.

: Master, I think we found him...: one of the other Decepticons commed him.

Walking over to where the comm originated from, Shockwave found the other cons gathered around the remains of a HUGE cybertronian body; the silver and gunmetal gray told the scientist who it was right away, and the remains of the helm and it's blood red optics confirmed it was Megatron.

: Looks like someone took him to the smelting pit: one of the cons grimaced. : And then some: another concurred.

: I know he had the Allspark shoved into his spark, but surely it couldn't blown him apart like this? : Another con observed as she looked over the remains.

: No, something must have occurred between now and when he was disposed of: Shockwave replied. : But it is of little consequence; the important thing is that his CPU is largely intact, as is his spark chamber:

: We also found Blackout and Brawn, their largely in one piece: wouldn't they be better subjects for the procedure? :

: In terms of their bodies remaining intact, yes they would: but Megatron was the leader of the Decepticons, for my plan to work it must be him: Shockwave stated, as he gazed over at the remains of Brawn and Blackout. : However, having spare parts readily available is always convenient. Gather them up and be ready to move out within fifteen minutes:

Don't forget to R&R :)