Jack was at a lost for words when he rushed into the command room after hearing of possible intruders, fearing that Bulkhead had ended up being caught anyway despite the distraction he had offered. But to try to take on Megatron by himself...Bulkhead wasn't the brightest but Jack knew he had more sense than that. At least he thought he did. Either way, he couldn't let Bulkhead get himself killed in a foolish attempt to snuff Megatrons spark. So to say he was surprised by what lay behind the door was an understatement when he saw Megatron standing at the center of the room, surrounded on four sides by Starscream.

There was little to ponder this revelation as his sudden entrance startled the four duplicates who were previously arguing among themselves as he was bombarded by a barrage of rockets left and right, forcing him to the ground and rolling to the side to avoid the brunt of the attack. He wasn't fast enough it seemed, as one collided with his shoulder and exploded on impact, sending him crashing into the wall and falling to the floor where he stayed as he heard fighting ensue among the multitude of Starscreams and Megatron, who was swift to take advantage of the distraction that he had provided while Starscream fought to regain control of the situation.

Jack was struggled to get off his front when he noticed it; his left arm, dangling precariously by a few wires and cables as it sparked maliciously, shooting up pulses of pain into the wreck that had been his shoulder. Despite that, Jack used his remaining arm to force himself off his knees as another clone, for that's what it must have been, fell lifelessly at Megatrons hand, the remaining two giving each other a nervous glance as both arms were raised in defense, these two still retaining rocket on their arms, one looking more indecisive than the other. Megatron raised his cannon again as another rocket was fired off, missing it's target as a blast shot through a clone's chest.

Jack had forced himself to stand as the last Starscream was readying to flee, too far away for him to catch on foot, and unable to use his gun as it required the use of both his hands. But he'd be damned before he allow that fragger to escape.

With only one option left to him, Jack braced himself for the pain and tore his useless arm from its socket completely and threw it at the cowardly seekers back with everything he had, a shout coming from the clone when it met its mark. Jack was already running towards him before Starscream had even touched the ground, ignoring Megatron entirely as he stomped onto the seekers back, pinning him down while his large, clawed hand reached for his head, tightening around it with a crushing grip, pulling back.

"Wait! Wait!" Starscreams clone hastily begged him as his neck began straining, his cries falling on deaf ears. "I'll tell you anything-"

A satisfying shriek of metal run through the room as Starscreams head left his body, which was then crushed in Jacks hand before being tossed to the side as he removed himself from the body beneath his foot, glaring spitefully glaring at the mech, then at the other bodies in the room and finally resting on Megatrons form. A hand touched the socket where his arm had been, coming back after being laced with energon. Huh. He hadn't even noticed in all the excitement...now that it was over he felt himself a touch lightheaded all of a sudden.

"I believe that I require a medic Lord Megatron." He said softly as he reached down to grab his limb. Could it even be reattached now? The rocket had done significant damage to both the arm and his shoulder, made worse by his actions.

"Yes, it would appear so." Megatron said as he examined the clones scattered about, kicking one over the edge and down onto the floor below. "I must say, your timing was impeccable."

"I was already on my way here when the alarms sounded." Jack noted that Megatrons optics held a touch of suspicion. "I had already killed Starscream outside the medbay- I was on my way to inform you when I came. I must admit, I hadn't expected Starscream to clone himself Master."

"Nor did I, but Starscream has always proven to be unpredictable." Megatron mused, while Jack moved to put some space between himself and the bodies. Megatron was watching him closely, feeling those optics bearing down into his back.

"Were any of among these clones the real Starscream?" Jack asked, a touch hopeful that a dangerous threat to either side had been eliminated.

"Highly doubtful. Starscream is many things, but a coward is chief among them. No, he sent these clones to terminate me while he remains safely out of reach." Megatron concluded, but Jack still had some questions. "As gratifying as it is to kill Starscream repeatedly, it will not compare to the fate that awaits the real Starscream once I have him in my grasp."

"As it should be for any who betray our cause." Jack said in agreement, grimly wondering what sort of torture would await him should Megatron ever discover his own treachery, that he was not the 'real' Skyqauke. He resisted the urge to shudder at the very thought. "Lord Megatron, how did Starscream create the clones to begin with-"

The Nemesis shook without warning, sending Jack tumbling while Megatron struggled to keep his balance. "What is it now?!" The warlord shouted angrily as he left the room to find the source of the problem. Jack groaned as he smacked into the floor once again, the bodies sliding across as the ship continued to shake and throw him off his already terrible balance due to a chunk of his weight missing. He had just gotten back to his feet when another violent lurch tore through the ship and Jack had no time to ready himself as he fell to the floor below, head thumping loudly against one of the Vehicons consoles.

"Ugh..." Jack murmured, having had enough of being smacked down, blow up and shot at for one life time. Surely it would be alright if he rested his eyes for a moment. Just...a moment...

When Jack regained consciousness, it was to the surprising sensation of feeling...normal. There was no pain to speak of, he could feel his left arm again. Knockout must have reattached while he was out, Jack deduced as he realized he was laying down on his back. A berth probably. He was getting sick of this medbay, Jack thought glumly as he brought his arm up to see how well it functioned.

His breath seized in his chest when he saw that it was a human hand held out in front of him- his human hand! Said appendage went to his face and sure enough there was no hard metal, no pointed chin or helmet. A hard tug proved that he had actual hair again and tears of joy pricked the corners of his eyes. He was himself again. As he stood up though, he noticed that not all was right- a strange landscape spread out before him, an unusual mixture of a metal city with tall, alien buildings and structures that would have been more at home at earth, organic and metal coexisting as one. It was like someone had been throwing darts at paint balloons and letting the mess mix where it pleased when they popped.

"Where am I?" Jack asked and his voice echoed out, staring out into the hazy distance. He touched his chest, trying to feel for a heartbeat and when he felt none his stomach sank. "Am I...am I dead? Is this the afterlife?"

"No, on either account." Chuckled a deep voice from behind him and Jack whipped around, his hand reaching for a sword he no longer possessed as he came face to face with someone that couldn't possibly be here. Not ever since Jack had assumed his role.

Skyquake appeared amused by his shock and moved to lay on the ground, a knee brought up which he then rested his hand on. "Sit with me, will you?" He asked, and Jack could only stare dumbly as he obliged the mech, sitting down as he stared at the mech.

"You...you're..." Jack tried to say, feeling his mouth go dry. "But you died-"

"I died once, that is true. But if you consider 'living' as the functionality of the body, then it is I who is alive while you are the one whom perished." Skyquake said, causing Jack to clamp his mouth shut as his cheeks flamed. Was he actually speaking to the Skyquake, or was this all some weird dream? Seeing no other way to tell, Jack promptly pinched himself on the cheek, snapping his hand back when it hurt.

"Ow!" He hissed, rubbing at the cheek while the mech beside him chuckled in amusement. Glaring at him, Jack looked out to the scenery before them once again, burning with questions. He spoke softly, a little afraid. "Do you know where we are?"

"An interesting question." Skyquake said, shifting a little so that he now sat with his legs crossed. Jack shuffled out of the way to avoid being hit. "Where is it would you say we are?"

"It...looks like Cybertron but not like when I saw it in ruins. It look like a war never took place here." Jack answered, observing the polished buildings, his eyes shifting elsewhere. "But it also looks like Jasper in some places." He received a nod from the Seeker.

"This is Cybertron how I remember it, back before the war for Cybertron." He explained, gesture to the metal structures, smiling gently as he reached out, as trying to grasp it in his hands. "And it would seem that the other half is how you view your own world."

"So...what, this is all in my head?"

"In a manner." He said vaguely, offering no real answer for the teen, who scowled and tapped his fingers on a leg irritably. "I see you have become quite familiar with my body and become an accomplished actor at that. What do you intend to do with it?" He peered down at the human, and before Jack would have flinched, but now, after practically living under Megatrons thumb for the past few months, it didn't even phase him.

"I'm going to help my friends. Even if they don't see me as such anymore." Jack replied without hesitation.

"An admirable goal, wanting to protect those you care about." Skyquake said, nodding in approval. "Is that all you intend to do?"

"Well what else is there? It's not like I take down Megatron by myself!" Jack shouted in desperation, standing up abruptly. "I barely know what I'm doing half the time, I'm struggling to make it through each day without being caught! Who are you to judge my choices?!"

"You misunderstand me, boy." Skyquake answered in a slightly cold, distant voice. "But to answer your question; no, I am not here to question your decisions. Your choices are your own, as are mine." Skyquake said vaguely as he looked out into the distance, Jack doing the same when he noticed something different out of the corner of his eye. He noticed that it was getting blurrier now, like an unfocused photograph with all the details smeared messily around. A sigh left the green giant beside him. "It seems it is time for you to leave." Jack jerked back around to the mech as the world was beginning to fade in his vision. Even Skyquake seemed less tangible now.

"Wait!" Jack shouted, hand reaching forward to grasp onto the mech as everything seemed to move farther and farther away, even as he ran. "There's still so much I need to ask-!"

Jack jerked up sharply, forcing an intake of air through his systems as he was suddenly jarred into consciousness. A hand slowly came to rest on his face, shaking his head in confusion. Had that been just a dream or did h really speak to Skyquake? Jack frowned, unable to make hide or tail of it when he noticed something strange. He was in the medbay, as he expected to be, but it was far to quiet. Usually Knockout and Breakdown spent most of their time here, the former almost always fussing over his paiint job and yet there was nothing but the constant hum of the ship. Jack pushed himself off the berth, taking note that his arm had been reattached, though apparently not fully repaired yet.

Seeing as there was no one in here, he left the medbay in favor of searching the halls, which were just as strangely quiet So focused was he that he didn't even noticed the Vehicon in front of him until he had bumped into the poor mech.

"My apologies-" Jack went to say as the Vehicon fell, noticing the most peculiar thing. None of his limbs moved as he fell, nor did any sound of escape him save for the clang when he hit the floor, still as a statue. Optics widened in shock, Jack knelt down quickly to examine him for a pulse. Relief washed through him when he found one, but still there was no movement from the mech. Stasis lock perhaps?

"But what could have caused this?" Jack mused aloud, standing back up and observing the scene before him when he heard a cold, mechanical voice.

"ALL THREATS WILL BE NEUTRALIZED."