Welcome to this long fanfiction. There will be art for it available on Deviantart under the account EmperorKumquat, and more to be posted in the future.

This is a story of changing hearts (sparks) and redemption. Not just for Starscream, though the story happens through his eyes. After Transformers Prime and RiD 2015, the fates of many characters were left open, so I wanted to explain possible fates for them and develop them within a crisis. This includes characters such as Megatron, Shockwave, Soundwave and Laserbeak, Slipstream, Airachnid, Predaking, Darksteel, Skylynx, and Knockout.

Starscream will rise, and others will rise with him. Together, Autobots and Decepticons must become allies to save the world from destruction.

This is mercy, but more importantly, it will be justice.

We begin with Starscream's end in RiD 2015.

The powerful being strained and growled, but the angel encased in mystic armour was caught in the claws of turmoil. For now, he was still grey and streaked by lines of luminous blue, furthermore adorned with multiple wings stretching out from his back. A strength he had never possessed before overwhelmed him, yet his surge of rapture plunged downwards as he dropped through the open air. The sky retreated, and he, stiff and shaking, gradually became aware of the end.

Red, startled eyes shot open with narrowed pupils, but his sight changed to the colours of a fantasy in his mind. All he saw then was a single hope of a future that would never be. He rolled his gaze upwards, then squeezed his eyes shut to concentrate on obtaining it. If it weren't for the ensemble of hands and bodies clinging to his legs, he could have achieved that dream of freedom and control he desired. He could have flown anywhere with the will of his mind and smote any who dared oppose him. Yet his omnipotence was built upon the suffering of others, and his chosen path had been to slaughter and conquer. Thus together, his created-enemies had successfully strategized his finale.

Such a stubbornly hubristic creature was he; all who had known him believed he would never stray from this self-destructive pattern, and he himself had never found fault in his character. Even now, he still did not grasp the reality that he had brought this debacle upon himself.

He had cawed at a sudden drop, eyes flashing open again, and wings faltering as the sky grew ever-further. With the groaning of the two bots aspiring to pull him down, he released a moan of denial and slammed his eyes shut once more.

"No!" The crest on his forehead tipped back as he held his chin high. "I will have my revenge!"

The red eyes had creaked open again with his mouth as he hollered. Soon after, the sound transformed into a squawk. More bodies had latched onto the others in the collective objective to vanquish him. His shoulders and wings dropped down in stark determination, but his face tilted back further, refusing to see who was snatching his vague future from him. He yelled once more in the thrall of intensifying blue light, knowing that this beauty would end him.

He looked ever-beseechingly at the distant sky, still not understanding how he had ended up here when he had had all the possible power he desired. The groans of his prevailing enemies heightened, though over them all, he called to the fantasy that he had lost.

From his throat erupted the vain shout, "I will have my victory!"

From one bot dangling from his leg, came the confident retort, "Not today, Starscream!"

"Not ever!" Punctuated a noble voice attached to his other leg.

But the micro-trembles of the god-like being continued, rigid and struggling until the end. His final words were repeated in his mind like a promise, until the blue light enhanced to a blinding white that devoured him. Those words were then left as mere dead echoes. With eyes shutting and beholding an emptiness deeper than black, control slipped away from him. One ultimate shudder of his body and a twitch of his clawed fingers, then the dark sword slithered through his grasp, descending through the hole below and puncturing machinery with its razor, amethyst tip.

There was a brief reaction of electricity and fire that crackled below. However, he was beyond being conscious of his surroundings, and once he had been stripped of his extra wings and armour, his severely damaged body collapsed backwards and dropped. The limp form tilted upside-down, head prepared to strike the ground while his hands uselessly opened themselves to the sky. With indifference, multiple faces inclined to peer after him as he dropped into the hole they now ringed.

For a moment, he was destined to crash into the machinery where his ominous weapon had fallen. Then, at the last second, a large hand shot out to catch him by the ankle. It was not done out of care, however, but in the following of bare morals. The immobile body was as alone as it had ever been before, since only justice was the intention in curtailing his descent.

Mouth parted and arms now dangling, he swayed slightly like a fresh corpse. Raised from the hole and placed onto the callous metal by their feet, he crumpled with one arm curved over the edge. Rendered a completely defeated and powerless being though he was, from this moment in a different and unforeseen way, the fallen angel had truly been lifted.

Here as well, it was not done out of care. In the beginning, it was different, and their mercy was compelled, procedural- something done for organisation's sake.

The body of the Decepticon's former second-in-command was straightened up over a medical berth, wings pressed flat against cold metal with his arms and legs neatly lined up at his sides. Due to its habit of collapsing to the side, even Starscream's head was stabilized with a firm clamp. Likewise, each limb was clasped into place, as well as his chest and middle. The result was that the long-since immobile Decepticon was restrained.

Optimus's old companion passed a device over the undesirable patient. Ratchet sighed at the results that he had double-checked on more than one occasion. He glanced at the energy readings once again that, although faint in appearance, were foreign to him. Shaking his head in temporary defeat, he turned back to the ever-patient Optimus remaining just out of his work space.

"The result remains the same." Ratchet set the tool back among the assortment of others on a silver table. Behind him, the medical profile that Ratchet had created filled the largest monitor. Optimus and Ratchet turned to it now, re-examining the stable image of Starscream's processor that was corrupted by streaks of fluorescent blue. The largest blemish observed formed a shell around much of the memory storage compartment of his mind, a bright spot that blurred the inner workings.
"I must confess, Optimus," Ratchet continued after a pause. "I may be able to remove this energy, but I do not know what effect it would have on him, considering…"

He bent forward and flicked the image to the next slide of the profile. They viewed a generated line image of Starscream's nervous system equally streaked by the blue in broken strings, then an image of his internal organs also spotted with the energy.
"…the extent of its reach," he finished.

Optimus gazed over the ever-still face of the comatose patient. He acknowledged that the expertise of the seasoned medic surpassed his in this situation, yet his own plans for a solution were already churning in his mind and had been ever since he had apprehended Starscream.

"I could seek the advice of other medical staff before taking further steps. To wake him without harming him." Catching Optimus's eyes again, Ratchet continued, "But, in the case that our hypothesis is correct, that he should awaken with damage to his memory drives…"

"Then there will be no trial," Optimus affirmed with each word calmly calculated. "If Starscream is to awaken with no recollection of his war crimes, then he cannot be accountable for them. He must then be treated as any other new form of life that emerges from the Well and be educated and given the opportunity to pursue whatever career he so desires."

Ratchet huffed and gestured in the direction of the body. "I already understand this, but consider his appearance!"

They didn't look this time in mentioning the recognizable, older body type that Starscream had readopted. There was no mistaking such a black head, red torso, and blue forearms. Had he been silver and thin, it still would have been an issue. These two bodies had been present in the first and second halves of the war; they were equally famous.

Optimus needed only to say, "We both are aware of reformatting procedures."

"A Decepticon science that I have limited experience with." Though understanding that they were already holding secrets, Ratchet complied, "But, I suppose it wouldn't be anywhere near my most difficult project…"

"But you informed me that you had already decided to seek the help of others with medical expertise, did you not?"

Ratchet sighed, "I had preferred not to get any sort of Decepticon involved, in the case that Starscream is restored as an amnesiac and we need to maintain such a secret of this magnitude. It only invites blackmail, to include Decepticons into any secret."

Optimus passed his optics over the limpness of Starscream's form, which seemed so harmless now under the light of the room and the dire results on the screen. Looking at him, he was sure that the damage was deep. Perhaps he would never be able to walk again, and there was even the possibility that his organs would not be able to function well once he was taken out of this peculiar stasis lock. The blue of his optics met the blue of the diagrams, then drifted to the smaller, adjacent monitors. The wires attached to Starscream allowed for the slightest brain wave activity to appear on one of those screens. Somewhere in this being was a flicker of consciousness, some form of potential life. What it would turn out to be remained to be seen, if it would even survive. Like the dim orange glow in an ash flake, it was something that could burn out from the huff of a breeze.

"But that is what you are hoping for, am I correct, Optimus?" Ratchet cast his optics upward to hold Optimus' gaze. "You want him to forget who he is."

There was no escaping his friend's attentive observation. Optimus replied, "I fear that even with therapeutic treatment, he would never change his ways. In such a case, he would have to remain in Trypticon Prison for as long as he functions."

"Something that excuse for a bot probably deserves," Rachet muttered to himself. After a shake of his head, he raised his voice back to conversational. "I see. You would rather produce new life than imprison another in misery forever."

Optimus went on, "I would recommend maintaining his flight capabilities, in the event that he could use them to aid us. It is also possible that he would retain muscle memory, even in the absence of his true memories."

"Optimus…" In his normal, exasperated tone, the name was dragged out. "Out of all things, you want to keep Starscream airborne? It is precisely what made him dangerous during the war, and it is the foremost reason Megatron kept him as his first lieutenant. With it, Starscream is better equipped to threaten innocent civilians."

"I am sure that you understand that this would only occur if he regained his memories." Then, with a falling tone, Optimus said, "If he is instead found guilty at trial, then we shall remove this capability."

Ratchet nodded slowly. It seemed an appropriate decision to him, one that he preferred as a course of justice. But then, he sighed, "As for a possible surgery to modify his appearance, I'm sure that you had a name in mind. Let me guess, it was Knockout, wasn't it? I understand that he certified himself just recently, but to just go to him and ask… Are you certain that he could be trusted with such a secret?"

"I doubt that there would be any advantage for him to disclose it."

Ratchet's continuously disgruntled hand flicked out sideways. "There is still nothing that can be done about his voice box. As it is an organ, it cannot be modified like the rest of him can be."

"Starscream's education would include a focus on correcting certain speech patterns particular to him. Any other similarities will be dealt with by firm media confirmation of Starscream's termination. Even if something is to be recognized, this should be enough to cease all suspicions."

"You already have an entire plan, I wager." Ratchet rolled his eyes but sagged his posture in the way that revealed that he would cooperate. "Fine. We'll do it your way, although I'll never understand how you could forgive him to the point that you would put so much thought into his well-being."

With that said, Ratchet restarted. "If there is a choice, to remove the energy and restore all functions and his memory, or have him handicapped and an amnesiac… which would you prefer?"

Optimus paused. He had considered this before, but now came the time to reach a decision. He first asked, "Do you believe that there is no chance of physical recovery?"

"I believe that he would eventually regain his abilities, though I am not certain. Yet if he were to be able to regain full range of motion, then he would hypothetically be able to regain his memory as well. That is another risk."

"Then he shall be monitored," Optimus said. "And, you may decide when he is a risk based on your readings."

"I understand. But… to wake him from this state without removing the energy… I do have one idea of how to do it." Ratchet would not pretend to be incapable of fulfilling Optimus's wish. "If you recall the time when you were infected by the rust plague, when Bumblebee entered Megatron's mind via the cortical physic patch to obtain the cure, Megatron was stirred from his comatose state once he became self-aware."

"That is a fine idea." He blinked down to his reliable companion. "Then you will assemble a team to examine Starscream. If you believe that he will survive his awakening and be an amnesiac, then seek Knockout's aid in remodeling him. If all this is done, then I will contact our High Council, the former members of Team Prime, and others in high-ranking positions to notify them of his reconfiguration. We will change the reading of his life signal and create a false profile for him."

Ratchet finished his thought with a grumble, "So you can try to guide him to the path of good."

Then Ratchet turned to the touchpad, ready to perform immediately as he was expected. But he could not avoid putting in a final input. "You seem to have a lot of confidence that this will work, but try as you might, I doubt Starscream's nature can be changed. As a Cybertronian who was never oppressed, who joined the Decepticons at the height of his career out of pure ambition for even greater power… the mind of Starscream is clearly predisposed to narcissism and sadism, among over qualities. It may work, but I will not be astonished if he returns to his old habits of selfish ambition."

Ratchet pounded in his password and nodded once to himself.

"Yes, the only thing truly predictable about Starscream is his unpredictability. You should advise everyone you speak with to take caution when dealing with him, lest your plan lead to the unfortunate harm of others."

Optimus assured him, "To ensure that no one is harmed by this decision, he will always be kept under surveillance. His location and actions will be recorded and known. I will take the responsibility for it."

As Optimus was indeed not a current leader of Cybertron, Ratchet knew that he had the time to do all this. Yet the amount of effort required was so baffling that Ratchet could not grasp it himself.

"My concern is more than that his nature is unchangeable." Ratchet aimed to re-express himself in a more direct manner. "The issue is that the new life that you want to create, that blank slate, will be overwritten. My honest belief is that it is in fact inevitable that Starscream will regain both his physical abilities and his memories."

The reply that came was simply, "I am aware."

"If that was the case, then what do you hope to gain from all this? You made it clear that if he reattained his memories, he would be imprisoned. Why not just have us remove the energy and bring him back to himself as soon as possible? With a team, I can likely accomplish it. It would certainly save us the time and grief."

"My words were that he would only be imprisoned if he were found guilty at the final trial."

Ratchet guffawed, "So you do believe in the possibility that Starscream could deemed innocent."

"Any bot who is shown to regret their actions serves no sentence," Optimus stated. "So, in the limited time we have, if we are able to imprint in him a personality that would contradict his original psyche, then perhaps it can override it. If Starscream convinces himself to change before the time of the trial, then he will regret his actions and be allowed to re-enter our society and provide us with his services."

"Even if your hope becomes reality, the dangers are endless, Optimus. One that I haven't mentioned, for example, is that before or after the trial, some revenge-crazed bot may learn the truth. The justice you oppose may occur, where Starscream is terminated instead of at least being protected in the confines of prison. Are you willing to face this risk as well?"

"All risks will be reduced with the strictness of our surveillance and the addition of guards to protect him," he replied. "Extra precaution will be taken, as I am cognizant of how he is viewed."

Ratchet knew that no matter what else he said as warning, to try to make Optimus fully see his concerns, would be lost on him. The noble Autobot was confident that they had a chance to do the impossible, and that it was a risk that was worth the consequences. Ratchet respected it- how could he not, but the sigh of exasperation that he gave was tainted with his reluctance.

Ratchet stared back at the immobilized Starscream. "Alright, Optimus," he said, finally bringing up a list of contacts on screen, "let us start enacting this mad plan."

Notes:

I am not going to use the Transformers words for body parts in the narration, but I will use them in dialogue.

The standard Cybertronian language is genderless, so whenever he or she is used, the speakers are actually using a single word (like the Finnish hän). She will be a pronoun determined based on voice and not always body type (RiD 2015 showed a variety). Unless specified, assume that Cybertronian is the language being spoken.

All chapters will be edited by CastingWhiteShadows.