Disclaimer: I Do Not own anything that's not mine. Chars here included.

A/N: To all of those who have not read Barricade Surprise, it might be a good idea that you do, because this is a sequel. If you like to start on sequels, then have fun :) To all those who have already seen this up, I again want to apologize, but I could not, with all good conscience leave it up there looking like it did. Hopefully this version will make up for it :)

One might think that good news was always, of course, good to hear. However, sometimes too much good news can be overwhelming and not as good as one might hope.

In the middle of the Nevada desert, where few humans went, or could survive alone for very long, were 2 well-hidden bases to beings that could easily survive the desolate land. At each base was a faction. Each faction was sworn enemies of one another… in the beginning. Seeing as time had gone since their arrival, the leader of the supposed 'evil' faction had proven that change can happen and this is what leads us to the current life of the Decepticons and the Autobots.

Up until today, his life had been one to go down in history as the greatest story ever told, but today he was convinced that all of the gods must have plotted a wicked curse upon him. After finding out in the worst possible way that one of his Trine-Mates – more specifically Thundercracker – was of a different gender, his mate gave birth to triplets instead of expected twins. Along with that, a long dead Lieutenant of the Autobots was mysteriously revived and then, to top it off, he found out his Second in Command had also lied about 'his' gender.

Needless to say, Starscream could handle no more 'surprises' and he literally fainted at Soundwave's admittance. After a few minutes, Starscream woke from his utter pass out from this-is-the-craziest-life-EVER. When he came to his senses – or what might have been senses, remembering what had made him faint, he instantly had hoped it was all a really messed up dream. He really hoped it was, because, come on, really… Soundwave a femme? Ha!

To further his vexation, when he onlined his optics, Starscream was optic to visor with Soundwave, who was still towering over him looking down with that ever stoic stare. "Welcome back, Commander." She said evenly.

"Shut up, Soundwave." Just her voice made Starscream twitch and he gave a disgruntled snort to the telepath, making his way to his feet. The Seeker was unable to say a word otherwise, either way, he was far too shocked to form the right words even if he wanted to.

He already knew about Soundwave's game plan of gender-bending-and-lying-to-keep-a-femme-secret with Barricade, but, this little rabbit hole was far more convoluted. Since being on Earth he had learned how to deal with surprises, seeing as they apparently came so often. He swore this planet seemed to be riddled with them. However, he had been rather accepting of the surprises that came at him since he had arrived, even if they were under the strangest of circumstance.

He also felt a bit betrayed that none of them had trusted him with such vital information being he was the leader and all – especially Thundercracker, who had been his friend and Trine-Mate since they had bonded so long ago. He believed he knew his friend but now he wasn't so sure. To say he was hurt was an understatement. He also realized it silly to have assumed that when Seekers bond, there are no secrets that big between them. He certainly felt like a fool. Why hadn't it dawned on him sooner? Perhaps because it was the very last thing he was expecting to come across.

The Decepticon leader was rattled with so many emotions, he didn't know which one was right. Yes, he might have considered it a good thing because there were more femmes than first thought. Right now, after all the recent discoveries, he just wanted them all to disappear for a while.

He had other things he considered far more important. First and foremost, his mind was occupied with the existence of his third and very unexpected Sparkling, Typhoon. Then, there was Jazz, and his somehow coming back to life. In fact, the entire birthing process as a whole was just really messed up. Of course, nothing goes as it's supposed to on this muddy planet.

Ignoring his Second in Command, Starscream proceeded to walk past what he believed until now to be symbiots. He swore they were all wearing shit-eating grins too. The Seeker gave them a dirty look and stomped toward Ratchet's medical bay, mumbling something incoherent to anyone but him. He barely turned his head when he thought he heard them snickering. Little shits.

Soundwave was still standing in the same spot when Thundercracker and Skywarp finally showed up. Starscream turned and saw them and an instant scowl crossed his face. The silver Seeker snorted at them with a pissed off glare and he stopped.

Thundercracker and Skywarp kept a distance from their obviously perturbed Trine-Mate. He'd been broadcasting quite loudly, so of course they wanted to see him and find out if he was all right. Plus, they had something they wanted to tell him. By all accounts, he should have been at least a little happy, though, right? The Youngling seemed quite the opposite, which alarmed them. They wondered if something had gone wrong as what little smiles they had, disappeared and were replaced with concern at his scowl.

Starscream looked up and past them, "You," he said to Soundwave, "Back to base. I will deal with you and your…" He paused, glancing at all the 'symbiots', "pets, later." Soundwave nodded a silent reply when she saw the growing irritation in Starscream. The telepath turned slightly when Skorponok attached himself to her. She lifted off the ground, transformed, and headed her way back to the base.

"You alright, 'Screamer?" Skywarp asked. Starscream glanced at the teleporter before shaking his head. Seeing them only reminded him of how he found out about them and the fact they'd lied to him. "I really can't deal with you two right now."

Not even realizing why Starscream would say such a thing, and wondering if everything was okay, the black Seeker asked, "What do you mean? What happened, Youngling?"

"Stop calling me that. Runner is fine. The Sparklings are fine. I am not fine, and some of it's because of you two. I suggest you go back to the base and wait for me there."

"Wait - what about us?" Skywarp asked. "What'd we do?" He glanced at TC who was shaking her head in disbelief at the black Seeker's obliviousness.

Starscream saw TC's headshake and wondered if Skywarp set his mind on stupid today. "Don't hand me 'what', Skywarp." The silver Seeker snorted, "You know damned well what." The desert became eerily silent besides the building they were near. A frown crossed his features, "I'm supposed to be your leader, the one you trust the most, right? Isn't that the reason we became a trine – was trust?" his optics then went to Thundercracker. He gave her just as much of a poignant look.

"Oh," Skywarp nearly whispered as he realized why the youngling was so angry at them.

Starscream became quiet as he stared at the two. There was no noise as if the air stilled, only the barren silence of the desert and wind came and went. No one spoke, however Skywarp was excited to tell his friend about developments and he just didn't want to wait until Starscream was done being a jerk.

The black Seeker went to talk and Starscream quickly put up a hand, "I meant what I said. Not now," he said with a turn for the building.

"But 'Screamer-" Skywarp started.

"-Mute it. For five minutes… just… shut up. Please." The silver Seeker replied quickly, cutting the black mech off. He took another step, hoping Skywarp got the message.

"But 'Sc-" Skywarp tried again.

"-I said I don't care hear it right now. I wanna go see Runner." He had an inkling as to what Skywarp wanted to tell him – he just didn't want those words uttered right now.

"But I wanna tell-"

Starscream growled. "Shut up! Can't you see I'm pissed off? Listening to you will only piss me off more!"

Skywarp frowned at Starscream, "But I thought…" He suddenly beamed, deciding perhaps telling the young Seeker anyway would help his mood. "She's sparked, 'Screamer! We're gonna have a Sparkling!"

Starscream stopped mid-stride and screwed his optics shut, giving himself a moment before he finally opened them and looked to Skywarp. "You just had to, didn't you?"

Skywarp was confused by his leader's statement. He then deflated when Starscream began to walk away again, reasonably hurt his Trine-Mate didn't seem to care, "But… we're gonna have a Sparkling, 'Screamer…"

Starscream stopped and turned, "I'm glad, really I am." He then headed toward the building, speaking over his shoulder, "The fact it's your offspring isn't quite making it to the top of my 'jump-for-joy' list." Starscream hissed sarcastically, "And that also doesn't excuse you keeping this from me. For that, I am allowed to be pissed and throw a temper tantrum. Now, if you'll excuse me," With that, he headed for Barricade.

All of the Autobots who were present, watched the Seeker quietly as he stalked by them, wondering why he had such a twisted scowl on his face. Shouldn't he be happy? Just what was wrong with Decepticons and their ability to stay happy?

In his walk, his attention was temporarily diverted to Ratchet and Wheeljack where Jazz was making comments about the medic's far-too-thorough-to-be-normal exams. The lieutenant was sitting on a makeshift berth, getting a full check from the CMO. Starscream stopped, reasonably curious about the babbling Lieutenant, and stepped toward the two. Ratchet saw the Seeker approach but continued checking over Jazz while the Engineer was running different scans. For a moment, Starscream wanted to smirk at the glare in Jazz' optic. He was momentarily happy that he wasn't the only one who was unhappy – albeit different reasons.

Figuring he'd get an answer about what happened, he glanced up at Ratchet, "Any idea as to what in the Pit is going on yet?"

"All we know is that the Allspark was involved, Starscream. So far, Jazz is perfectly healthy as if nothing had happened." Ratchet told him, not looking away from his work.

"How weird,"

"He does have traces of Allspark radiation, I will check that when I am done with his external scans."

"I'm tellin' ya, he's feelin' me up," Jazz growled to Starscream who gave a thoughtful glance to them all before continuing on his way.

When the door opened, it revealed Barricade lying in the same spot she was when he had left. His optics looked over them all as he took in his new family. Their three newborns were still curled up with her and Blacklight. He stood a long moment, watching them, taking in what detail he could of the three new Sparklings, and watching Barricade. She had an arm protectively around the newborns while Blacklight was sprawled over said arm, getting as close as he could to them. He didn't care what anyone said, she was an excellent femme creator and caretaker as far as he was concerned.

Starscream then gave a moment to think about the more dreadful side. He already knew the medics were going to be up his aft because of the whole birthing process and Typhoon. Yup, certainly, he was going to be insane by the time all was said and done.

His optics trailed to Typhoon as he considered that. What exactly was she? The one thing she was not was normal by any means. Considering the implications since the Allspark had been involved as well, he got to wondering how he was going to deal with it all. He could see the trouble now. Autobots… Everywhere.

The Seeker steppe closer, not wishing to disturb the scene while they recharged, Starscream could tell that Barricade was absolutely spent from her ordeal and probably would remain in recharge for at least 24 hours if not more. Deciding he wasn't going to leave them to rest here, he figured fling them back to his base so they could settle there… peacefully… was the better option.

Ha! Peacefully! What was he thinking… he would just send everyone to the Autobot base.

The mech stepped closer, reached down and grabbed for Blacklight gently. If Thundercracker and Skywarp were still outside, he would have one of them take him back to base. Of course, the sudden movement woke the little black and silver mech in the process. The Sparkling looked up at his mech creator curiously, mumbled at him and went limp as he fell back into recharge. "You need to be awake, little one," Starscream set Blacklight on his shoulder before kneeling down to Barricade. Blacklight slowly onlined his optics and moved into a more comfortable position, debating on going back into recharge.

The young leader lightly ran a hand over her head, tracing her chevron with a digit. He then next went to move her and she growled, curling up more. He defiantly moved her again, getting her attention enough that her optics went on and she looked up at him. "Go away," came her gruff response.

"Come on, 'Run, wake up. It's time to go,"

"Huh?" The femme woke slightly, glaring tiredly up at Starscream, "What do you want?"

"Wake up," Starscream frowned at the dazed look to her. Reaching for Radar, he offered the Sparkling to the groggy femme who complied by her holds automatically opening. Lightly he set the Sparkling into her hold, repeating the process with the other two. "We're going back to base."

Hearing that, the femme went to stand. The silver Seeker watched her struggle. Barricade grunted, moving slightly and went back down. Nope, she was done. "I don't think I can drive that far," She said, gazing at the floor, "nor do I want to. Go without me." All she wanted to do was recharge and he was pestering her. But, then again, she wanted to go back to her quarters. Why such hard decisions at such times?

"Never mind, I'll fly you." Reaching down, he picked Barricade up in a cradle hold and stood erect. As he pivoted for the door, he stopped short seeing Ratchet, who had apparently slipped into the room and was now standing there with his arms folded and an angry scowl across his features. "What do you want?"

Ratchet grew annoyed when Starscream had gone back into the med bay and he wanted to see what was going on. Jazz could be heard cheering because he'd gotten away from his tests. He still had internals to go and he was done with it. So now, the grumpy medic stood between Starscream and his only exit. "What do you think you are doing, Starscream?"

"What's it look like I'm doing, you old coot? I'm kidnapping them, you mind?"

"They're still under Autobot jurisdiction. As such, I want to see them before they leave this base."

Starscream hiked an optic ridge then shook his head. "Not now, Ratchet." He began walking past the medic so he could leave.

Realizing Starscream was going to ignore him, Ratchet tried a higher calling, stepping in his way. Starscream gave an offended huff, stopping.

If anything, the 'old coot' just wanted to make sure they were still doing all right. "As a Chief Medical Officer, I demand they are all seen by me now or I will have to see about quarantining you all to make sure you're healthy." Starscream looked up seeing Ironhide and Sideswipe, then looked back at the medic wondering how much more time he was going to make him waste. Ratchet already knew about the audience, but chose to ignore them, "I do not have full files on any of you, and as such, now is as good a time as any. Seeing that you are on an alien planet, my say goes over leadership in rank."

By now, they had acquired quite a crowd. When someone got into a pissing match with Ratchet, it was always awesome to see who would win out. Often it was Ironhide vs. Ratchet, but it being Starscream and Ratchet, it gave hope to being far more exciting.

Starscream stared at Ratchet a long moment, deciding he was done with the medic's rambling. Did he honestly expect him to have to listen to that? He wasn't Ironhide. The Seeker then moved Barricade to one arm and pointed up to the ceiling with his free hand, "You see that up there?" he asked, watching Ratchet nod. His hand transformed into his missile launchers, "I'm going to put a really big hole up there to complete this already disaster-ridden medical bay, if you wish. Hook will check them over and report back to you." Starscream challenged back, his smirk apparent, yet he meant what he said.

Ratchet looked as if he were sizing Starscream up and didn't move for a long moment. After a few more seconds, Ratchet's glare faded slightly, "Only under the terms that all files under this are accessible at my leisure."

"I'll see to it myself if I must," with that, Starscream stepped past the medic and around the spectators, some of which were hoping to see that hole in the ceiling. Inside he was grinning but no one else needed to see that. He made his way to the main doors and saw Skywarp not far off. He looked for Thundercracker and walked to her and offered her Blacklight. "Take him,"

Thundercracker put a hand out and took the older Sparkling. "He awake?"

Starscream gave Thundercracker a 'you're kidding' look, "Hardly," and he lifted off. "I'll see you two back at base,"

Some Autobots peeked their heads out to watch Starscream leave. One of them was Jazz, who was confused yet curious of the Seeker. "What reality did I wake up to, exactly? 'Ole 'Screamer, bein' tolerable. Who'da thunk it?"

"He's changed, Jazz. A lot," Prowl replied, also being one of the ones to go look. The tactician then stood straight, "I'll bring Miles and Mikaela back to the base. You stay put," he nodded to Jazz to emphasize that he meant him.

Deciding he would probably have every Autobot on him if he even attempted such a feat, he only nodded back. "Oh yeah, before ya go," Jazz grinned and jabbed the tactician in the side rather hard with an elbow joint, " I hear that black an' white bitch-Con is ya sista." The silver mech began sniggering at Prowl's increasing annoyance, "That's gotta be one of the funniest things I have ever heard. Hilarious."

The SiC elbowed the lieutenant back before leaving, "Yet, I seem to remember Runner," He paused when Jazz took a moment to think about what Prowl was saying before his jaw dropped in surprise, to which Prowl nodded with a smile, "…a.k.a. 'that black and white bitch-Con wiping your aft back on Cybertron – a couple of times, even – don't you?"

Jazz gave an irritated gaze at Prowl as he began to transform, realizing he was beaten severely by a femme, and one-upped so badly just after this coming back to life thing. "That just makes her a whole lot worse, ya know."

Back at base, Starscream set Barricade down on the berth in her quarters, letting her rest. The leader left Barricade's quarters. He was met with Mikaela first, and then Miles and stole a quick peek to see Prowl already leaving. Good riddance. He nodded to them and proceeded on his way to his office.

Soundwave waited until Starscream had entered his office and alone and she snagged him. Starscream looked up and frowned at her as she stood in his doorway, "You again… I'm still really pissed off at you, too."

Soundwave stayed silent. She knew why he was angry. Starscream growled at the telepath, "You have a lot of explaining to do…"

"What would you have me explain?"

The young leader's optic ridges furrowed even more when he knew she was going to play stupid. Of course, she would. Because that was Soundwave. "After eons of lying to me about this, you expect me to just accept all this and be happy about it? I'm not. This just complicates things for me." His anger seemed to melt away, revealing a much more sinister glare, "Just you wait 'til Runner finds out."

"I expected nothing, Commander. You found out by… accident." Unfortunately, she was right – about both of them even if she might not have been aware of it.

"Ha, yeah, go figure," He argued, "I snuck up on you. Do you need a medical exam, Soundwave?"

"I was distracted," the CO replied. Starscream frowned at the words. Likely story.

Having entered through the smaller door, both stopped, hearing what sounded like displeased voices. Starscream glanced down at them, as did Soundwave. Mikaela wondered if they'd entered at the wrong time and made movement with her arms about leaving. Starscream only shook his head at them. It wasn't necessary, as they were sure to find out later. Continuing his ranting, he said, "Now, I know damn well you can lie better than that. You obviously lied rather well to everyone."

Miles and Mikaela both watched between the two, wondering what they had missed. They didn't know about what had gone on outside of the Autobot's building, since they were with Barricade at the time, so they were really confused.

Thundercracker and Skywarp both stepped in a few seconds later, hearing their trine-mate's voice. Blacklight had woken, anyway, so TC decided to deliver him to Starscream. Blacklight took one looked around and decided to go find Rumble instead of listen to more talking.

"There was a reason." The telepath then stated.

"I'm sure there was, Soundwave." Done with it all, and relaxing somewhat when his Trine entered, he tried to pass it off until later.

However, Soundwave suddenly decided she didn't want to shut up. "Now that you know, do you want to know the reason?" Since when did she become so giving of information?

"Not right now." Starscream replied. He didn't want to go there at the moment. Maybe later. "I have this feeling it's going to take a while to explain and right now I don't care to hear it. I am still trying to figure out what happened at the Autobot's base. Your story can wait."

Curious with what was being said, Skywarp asked, "What's Soundwave going on about, anyway? And what about the Autobot base? What happened, 'Screamer?"

"Oh, you didn't know?" Starscream asked with sudden sarcastic amusement. He eyed Soundwave then nodded to his Trine-Mates and the humans, "Since we are all here minus my mate, why don't you tell them about your little secret, too, hmm?"

"Tell us what?" Mikaela asked. This would answer their question about what they'd walked in to.

Well, the 'cat was out of the bag', per se. "I am a femme." Soundwave left it at that.

At this news, it wasn't anyone else who was as shocked as Thundercracker. The blue Seeker's optics suddenly grew wide in surprise, then narrowed as memories flooded her of what Soundwave had done. Her shocked look turned into one of confusion and building anger. She stepped closer to Soundwave, "You…? You're a femme? I heard that right?"

Soundwave didn't move. She knew the Seeker had heard just as everyone else did and she knew this would happen if she ever found out.

Hearing Thundercracker, Miles and Mikaela stepped back in apprehension. "And your 'symbiots', Soundwave?" Miles could see the sudden spike in tension. But asked, as if to confirm it, "They're… they're not symbiots, are they? They're Sparklings."

"You…" TC watched the humans step back and shook her head before looking back at Soundwave, not wanting to remember past events. "How… how could you…?"

Soundwave didn't look away from Thundercracker, "Affirmative, Miles."

Thundercracker only glared at the telepath. Soundwave silently waited to see if Thundercracker would advance on her. It wouldn't take much to stop her, and she knew it. For now, she'd watch.

"Well that sure explains why Blacklight and they play so much," Skywarp noted, unsure why TC was acting so weird, yet attempting humor to hopefully calm her. "I thought they were just amusing him."

Starscream had also felt the hostilities rise in Thundercracker and glanced at her, quite interested as to what she was upset about. "What are you two talking about?"

Thundercracker's glare turned from Soundwave to her Trine-Mate. "Nothing," She spat. Her glare went back to Soundwave. After another look to the red mirrored gaze, she did well to control how much she wanted to blow that dull stare right off of the CO.

The teens remained silent, backing to the wall and away from possibly hostile-not-watching-for-the-humans feet. After all this time, they knew better than to get between something like this. They had been around long enough to know the signs of high tension and knew the 'Cons weren't as careful as they could be.

"That sure doesn't sound like nothing, TC. What's going on?" Starscream put his hands on his hips, waiting for an answer.

"Leave it alone." Soundwave warned. She could tell that Thundercracker was a hair's breadth from leaping at her, so she did not move; only watching the blue femme with her stoic visor. The two remained this way for a short time until Thundercracker finally broke the stare and turned for the door.

Skywarp was about to say something more when Thundercracker shook her head at him and stalked off. The black mech was reasonably bothered by what was going on, so he followed. He could ask later on when they were alone.

Starscream watched his Trine leave and glanced to Soundwave when the femme looked over at him, "Something else I might need to know about?"

Soundwave turned and walked for the door without a word. Things would work out and he would find out, and besides, he said he didn't have the mindset for long stories, so she would oblige him and remain quiet.

The teens watched the CO leave and stepped away from the wall, feeling safe they wouldn't get trampled or landed on. Miles could tell Starscream was rattled. "What's going on big guy?" he asked, curious why his friend was acting so edgy.

Starscream looked down at the human and shook his head in defeat, "As of right now, I don't even know, Miles." His gaze went back to the CO who was disappearing into the Wreck Room. How did he end up in situations like this?

"How about starting where you do know?" Mikaela offered. And Starscream told them all about it and then some, getting everything off his chest plates that were currently weighing him down.

Having already listened to Starscream, Mikaela and Miles took their leave from the Seeker's office, giving him a moment of silence to think to himself – something he seemed to have been deprived of since this day had even started. Poor guy… they actually felt bad for him – but happy too. It was hard to understand happiness, hurt and anger all at the same time.

The two humans both tiptoed their way into Barricade's quarters, deciding they wanted to see the new Sparklings and Barricade at rest. It was a pleasant sight. There were hardly any lights on so they couldn't see the femme well. Starscream must have dimmed them for her comfort while she rested. Yet, it was lit enough that they could see movement on her torso. They both headed for the side of the berth, which had been modified with a ladder.

They climbed to where Barricade's feet currently were – even if they were unceremoniously splayed. Making their way to the previous movement, which seemed to stop at their presence, Miles pointed in the direction, "You think the batteries are included, Mika?"

The new Sparklings had no idea who or what was currently making their way to them, they just knew something was coming and to be wary. Instinctively they had frozen to watch the creatures come closer, letting out small chirps. Mikaela stopped near Barricade's legs to watch the beady optics for a moment, "Dunno, maybe," she shrugged, knowing the reference.

Typhoon, Sonar and Radar continued to watch, unsure of what they should do. They wanted to know what was coming, but instinct told them to stay in their spots. Their femme creator's holds were right under them and they could escape in an instant. Radar raised his head higher to get a better look. After watching him and deciding it was safe, Typhoon and Sonar followed suit.

Moving around a large, recharging robot body isn't as easy as one might think. Just because they are robots, doesn't mean they don't move in their sleep. Mikaela could remember a time Miles nearly fell because of a giant fist that just about landed on him. However, there was a trick to this that they had found that worked rather well and the Decepticons didn't seem to mind it either. All it took was a tap to places on their armor to let them know they were close by. The mech – or femme in this case – would move slightly, showing awareness of their presence. The girl only hoped Barricade wasn't too out of it to not have felt it when she tapped hard on the femme's leg struts because she didn't move.

The Sparklings became more curious as these new creatures approached. Sonar was leaning out to get a better look while Typhoon remained reserved. Radar had already climbed over Barricade's arm and was now standing on her would-be headlight – curiosity kicking in over safety.

Mikaela stumbled and all three Sparklings darted back near their holds. It took her a moment to realize that they had no idea what she or Miles was, so of course, they'd be afraid. She then remembered how Blacklight was when he first met her and she sat down next to Barricade's side. This time, the femme was asleep, so the Sparklings had no one to guide them.

Finally, in the Wreck room, Starscream sat down. He'd given himself a little time to rest, and now it was time to sit down with the other Decepticons and explain things. They'd been bugging on and off while he was in his office. All of them were still curious as to what had happened at the Autobot base – only hearing things here and there – and he was finally ready to talk, and it is why he had gathered them.

"So, how did everything go?" Dirge started, eager to hear about the new Sparklings.

"That is the question of the millennia." Starscream replied in mock bewilderment. "We're all still alive, so that's a plus. However, there were some rather interesting turn of events," The tattooed Seeker replied, shifting into his seat. He frowned. "Some of those to which I find myself questioning some on loyalty," His voice trailed as his optics stopped on Thundercracker and his frown deepened.

Thrust, being a Trine leader as well, recognized the look that Starscream had blatantly given the two. It was as if he wanted everyone to know that he'd been betrayed. "Like what, 'Screamer?"

"First off, there are some concerns with the birth," Starscream replied, ignoring the knowing look from Thrust.

"Did something happen?"

"Well I'd say…" The silver Seeker's optics went to Soundwave, another who got a blatant glare. He then dramatically threw up his hands in the air with a frustrated sigh. "Triplets, Thrust." He said with a confused tone, "I wanna know how in Primus Barricade Spark-birthed triplets."

"What do you mean triplets?" Hook perked. "I thought she was carrying twins? – No, I knew she was carrying twins."

"That's the thing! She was." He leaned forward and put his elbow joints on the table and rested on his hands in thought. He was thankful everyone else had shut up to listen.

"Well that is interesting." The Constructicon replied, also in thought.

"Sure is. The Allspark was involved, it seems." The silver Seeker muttered, aware the medic's mind was already hard at work.

"Thought it was destroyed?" Dirge tilted his head in question. "You said Ladiesman217 used it to kill Megatron,"

"The majority of it was, yes. However," Starscream replied with a nod and then gave Dirge a defeated look, "in a strange twist of fate, it seems, those idiotic Autobots failed to tell me that they still had a small shard of it left." His voice became annoyed at how messed up it all was, "It was in Ratchet's desk, which happened to be in the medical bay, in which Runner decided to give birth."

"Hah!" Dirge snickered, "What are the chances..." The blue-reflective Seeker then busted out laughing at the irony, unable to contain it any longer. This in turn got everyone else snickering and laughing. Starscream only scowled at them all before flipping them off.

All fun aside, Hook still wanted to know more about the birth. The implications of the extra Sparkling as a result of the Allspark during a birth were phenomenal. "I want to fully check all of them and you when they are rested."

Starscream only looked to him, but didn't respond. It begins…

"So there's another one in there?" Ramjet asked, looking toward the closed doors to Barricade's quarters.

"Yes. But this story just doesn't end with a third Sparkling. It gets a whole hell of a lot better."

"What? What do you mean? There's more?" Thrust asked. He actually wanted to know why the tension between him and his Trine, and was hoping Starscream would tell him.

"Yeah," Starscream admitted with another nod. He didn't miss the look that crossed Thrust's face. "The Autobot's Lieutenant and Second in Command, Jazz, was being given a full external exam by Ratchet-"

"-He's dead, right?"

"…Actually, quite the contrary," Starscream muttered lowly, "he's alive… somehow."

Everyone perked, wanting to know only one thing, and Thrust asked before anyone else, "But… how exactly?"

At that, Starscream shrugged, still unsure himself, "That's what I'd like to know… Something with the Allspark as well, I imagine. I didn't get much of a response from Ratchet when I asked. He said Jazz was healthy, but I didn't stick around to find out more."

Thrust then pointed, uneasy by the idea, "That, right there, my friend, would send me running the other way,"

Starscream chuffed, "Ha! Are you kidding me? I was in there when it all happened! Imagine what was going through my processors when he started talking and flailing like an idiot under the sheets! And to top it off, I still had to try to help Runner with my sanity intact!"

"Anyone else would have probably lost it, Screamer," Skywarp chuckled. "Weird things do seem to happen around you a lot, don't they? Are you sure you're not a weird magnet, or something?"

Starscream's optics narrowed at his Trine-Mate, the same look he had given Thundercracker earlier had crossed his features only for a moment. "I suppose, I am…" the leader replied, his voice harsh, "I am Trined with you, aren't I, Skywarp?"

Thrust noticed the look between the silver Seeker and the black one, but said nothing, being it wasn't his affair. He'd deduced from that that they both had betrayed their leader. It was a look of an emotion he wasn't sure he'd ever seen between them before.

"Well, when you say it like that…" Skywarp gave a mock pout, not missing the look, only passing it until later. He and Thundercracker would explain everything to the Youngling. He technically wasn't as guilty as Thundercracker, since he'd recently found out himself and, well, things went on from there.

"Speaking of weird…" The leader mumbled as his optics returned to his other men, this time coupled with a snide grin. "Get this, everyone! The Decepticons will be welcoming yet another Sparkling soon as well, it would seem." His optics went around confused glances until they fell upon the guilty, deep red optics of Skywarp once again, letting him know he wasn't off the hook.

"Wow, really? Barricade can't possibly be sparked again." Runamuck suddenly piped with a laugh, completely oblivious to Starscream's obvious distress. "Your luck can't possibly be that bad."

"No femme can reproduce that fast, Runamuck," Hook corrected.

"No… It's not Runner," Starscream answered aloofly, an optic going to Thundercracker, who was in his peripheral vision. Shaking his head in disappointment at her, he looked back to the one who spoke. "Why don't you do the honors, Skywarp?"

"Ha! Skywarp is sparked?" One of the twins suddenly called with a laugh, although deep down he was hoping he was wrong. He thought about it, "No, no, that can't be right… He's a femme?"

Skywarp snorted at the twin, a little confused by his questions himself, "What's wrong with you? Not me, you idiot. I'm not sparked nor a femme-"

Cutting the black Seeker off, Astrotrain muttered, "Thank Primus for that,"

The teleporter glanced at Astrotrain with mock offense, then looked to his blue Trine mate, "It's TC, bolt brain."

Of course, questioning stares returned him and everyone then looked to Starscream for confirmation. Starscream immediately nodded, "Yes, it would seem that Thundercracker is apparently a femme. And has been all this time…" The tattooed Seeker paused and gave another cold glare in Skywarp's direction and he pointed with a claw, "and she's sparked by you."

Skywarp looked away. He felt the lash – both of them did – and they knew how hurt he was. Thrust was shocked and realized right then what had happened between them and why Starscream was being so callous towards them.

There was a very long pause as everyone else came to realize about how Starscream might be feeling right about now. Most of them knew how tight a Seeker Trine was. Ouch.

Cyclonus folded his arms, breaking the awkward silence, "Wow… Well this day is just getting more and more screwed up, isn't it?" He then smirked at the leader, getting his attention to him and not on his Trine. "Anything else you wanna pile on top, there, while you're at it, 'Screamer?"

Starscream gave an obviously fake smile as he thought about the other one who had betrayed him and wouldn't they all be shocked to know… "Oh yes! I almost forgot!" he looked directly at Soundwave with annoyance, "Soundwave… since we are all listening now, why don't you give it up as well. Tell them all that TC isn't the only fake here…"

Questioning and surprised stares then turned to Soundwave who refused to move or answer.

"Oh?" The Seeker faked a shrug aloofly, "you don't want to tell them?" his voice then became oddly calm before he stated, "Then I will." The young leader looked to everyone else, and a big, fake smile appeared on his face, "Did all of you know that my Second in Command, the one who I am supposed to trust, is really a femme under all that creepiness?" Then again, he never entirely trusted her to begin with…

Questioning gazes turned to shock, horror and more questioning looks. "You serious, 'Screamer?"

"Oh, did you think even I could come up with a lie like that? No, I'm not lying. I'm not sure I entirely believe it myself." His gaze shifted to Soundwave, "Ain't that right, Soundwave?" Her refusal to answer was all he really needed he surmise that she wasn't lying as well. But then again, who really knew, with her.

Once again, Runamuck chuckled, "Well, they did always say that it was the silent types to watch out for, right?"

Soundwave knew damned well Starscream was being this way deliberately, but she didn't care to say anything. He was so mature sometimes that one might forget that he was still a Youngling under all that armor. The telepath figured she'd take her more common approach of not answering would be sufficient enough confirmation that he was telling the truth. Unbeknownst to him, her optics remained on him the entire time, even if he was staring right back at her. Vindictive brat…

There was a pause in complete silence once again, and then Runabout cried out, "You mean Soundwave is a femme, too?" A nod from Starscream was what he got in return. "That's just wrong, ya know." He stated with a shake of his head, then he stopped as another realization hit him, "That means we've been taking orders from a femme! What's the universe coming to? What?"

Breakdown chuffed with a smirk, unable to keep a straight face at the irony of that one. With a shake of his head, he asked, "Why am I not surprised?" The blue mech heard agreeing around after he'd said that. It seemed like not many of them were genuinely surprised she was a femme, but that it was Soundwave who was the femme. "Really, it could have been any other one than you." He then said to her.

"Wait a minute…" Astrotrain then said, "Don't you think it's just a little strange that the evil Decepticons got all the femmes and the good Autobots have none? What's wrong with this picture, or am I missing something?"

"What about this entire situation since I got here do you consider normal, Astro? You should know better by now." Starscream's once folded arms untangled and he reached down with one hand and threw a piece of metal that he found on the floor at the triple-changer.

"Hey, that makes us superior and stuff." Blitzwing grinned, "Think we should go rub it in the Autobots' faces?"

"They'll think that it's some stupid Decepticon conspiracy like they always do," Starscream muttered.

"Hey, what's Barricade think about all this?"

"Ha, she doesn't even know yet!" Starscream replied with heavy sarcasm. He then considered how Barricade would handle it when she did find out. Not well, he was sure about that. "In fact, I will be the one to tell her,"

As others thought about the ramifications of that, there was a round of sounds in displeasure, however, it was Dirge who spoke, "Wow 'Screamer. Do me the kindness of telling me when you plan to do that, I won't wanna be around."

"Take her back to Cybertron, there's barely anything for her to destroy in her fit of rage." Blitzwing suddenly said.

She wasn't that bad, really. "Come on! She's not Unicron, for Pit's sake!" Starscream defended.

Skywarp eyed Starscream with hopeful playfulness, "So, now there's an even more mysterious little you running around than the first surprise, eh?"

Starscream's optics furrowed slightly as he glanced at Skywarp. He was trying real hard to be angry after thinking about the result of his Trine's betrayal. "A little you still weirds me out – probably even more."

"You? Weirded out by a Sparkling from me?" Skywarp laughed nervously. "I would have figured everything else would have beaten me to it."

The leader put up a finger, he seemed calmer than before. "I assure you they all come in a close second," He then looked around, "Now you all know my life in one Earth day. Imagine what tomorrow will bring…"

Okay, so yeah it's a little longer.