This is a BIG chapter! MASSIVE! MONUMENTAL! And I'm not just meaning word count but also the sheer amount of action and feelings is overflowing from the page as I write. Good golly miss molly! But seriously I've worked hard on this chapter an' though it came out quickly because I've had time to write it was hard to get out the way I wanted it. The POV changes several times and because so much action is happening at once there's some overlap and I just wanted to do it right. But TADA! Here it is another chapter! So remember to Read, Review and Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I own nothing! Nothing I say! Except for Megan and she tells me she wishes it were not so. also plot is mine. Mine! My precious! (wait, sorry wrong fandom) Oh, and this chapter is brought to you by the song The lightning strike by snow patrol.

"Talking"

'thinking'

:Comm links:

The first thing that Barricade became aware of as he came out of stasis was that someone nearby was speaking. Which confused him for several reasons because; it sounded like whoever it was wasn't speaking to him, they sounded upset, and even more strangely sounded female? The ex-Decepticon groaned as he shifted his frame slightly and a bolt of pain ran over his senor array. The voice stopped for a moment before it said one last thing and came a little closer.

"Cade? Hey, are you alright?"

He recognised that voice, so with a great effort he pried opened his crimson optics. A spark of recognition showed once his memory processor came back online and he remembered. Barricade growled as he recalled Crankcase's return with the unconscious human femme and the following journey to the flight pod and from there onto the Nemesis. After that there was nothing, so he must have fallen into stasis. The large black-and-white bot shifted again but fell back with a groan. Concerned, Megan took a step forward with hands outstretched but immediately moved away when Barricade directed a snarl at her.

Megan backed away slightly with her hands up by her shoulders, showing she meant no harm with an unimpressed look on her face. "Nice to see you to 'Cade," she deadpanned but in all honesty she was glad she wasn't alone.

"Stop calling me 'Cade', Meatbag," Barricade rumbled in greeting as he shifted into a more comfortable position. Megan dropped her hands to her sides with a roll of her eyes and sat down against wall opposite the ex-Con, cradling her cell phone in her hands once more.

Now sitting and leaning heavily against the wall of his cell Barricade took the time to look at his surroundings, and groaned. This time not in pain, but in acceptance and misery. He knew these walls. After all he had been Megatron's top Enforcer for thousands of vorns, and part of that duty had been interrogation of prisoners that were kept here in the Nemesis' prison. There was no escape or rescue coming, and they were fragged.

"I know. This isn't exactly the kind of thing you want to wake up to, is it?" Megan smiled weakly but it fell apart far too quickly, leaving an expression of despair behind.

Barricade grunted something that might have been agreement before examining the damage to his chassis. The energon leaks had slowed significantly now that his self-repair systems and shut off valves were beginning to activate, but the damage was still significant. The ex-Decepticon swore in his processor to pay Crowbar back as he prodded the wound. Megan looked up from the useless cell phone in her lap and grimaced as sparks flew from one of his particularly damaged wires.

"I could help you with that if you want," she offered. "Ratchet showed me a thing or two."

Barricade scoffed with thinly veiled distaste, "I'd rather not have an incompetent Meatbag digging around in my wires and energon lines like a scraplet."

"A simple 'no thank you' would have sufficed," Megan snapped back impatiently, but she hadn't the energy to stay angry and went back to staring at her phone. Barricade of course noticed her preoccupation with the device and spoke up.

"Don't bother; such a primitive tool will not be able to summon help. If anything they have only allowed you to keep it so as to mock you."

"Oh I know," Megan said tiredly still turning the phone between her hands. "Crankcase said just as much before he left a minute or two ago before you woke up. There's no signal and the emergency button is useless but all of my original features still work, ironically enough."

Megan really didn't care if Crankcase had only left it as a taunt, she was just grateful that the one part she needed was still working, that was the only part she cared about. Snapping herself from her feelings of depression she brought her focus back to the injured ex-Decepticon in front of her.

"Where's Frenzy?" she asked.

Barricade's servo's paused but continued along their path after a moment of silence. "Hatchet killed him while attempting to capture me."

Megan didn't know what to say, after all she hadn't known the little ex-Con very well and the one time she had met him she couldn't speak to him. All she could say was, "Oh."

There was a heavy silence for several seconds while Barricade attempted repairs with no tools and Megan gathered her courage. "So what's the plan? You used to be a 'Con, so there's got to be a way out of here right?"

Barricade paused the inspection of his injuries again and looked at her with derision. "You creatures really are simple minded aren't you? Do you not fully understand where we are? This is no Autobot brig for Primus' sake. Not only are we on what may be the last Decepticon warship in this quadrant of space and surrounded by Megatron's supporters, but we are in the highest of security cells. These were designed to hold the largest and strongest of prisoners. Optimus Prime himself couldn't escape from this cell, let alone a single human femme and a damaged deserter."

"Well you obviously know nothing about humans." Megan mocked as she sprang to her feet and began inspecting their prison more closely. A part of her wanted to give up, to just lie down and be beaten, but she couldn't. It was in her nature to fight and she had made a promise, one that she intended to keep or die trying.

Barricade laughed darkly as she inspected the energon bars, "There is nothing complicated to know about your species. You're all small and fleshy and weak."

"Dude you really shouldn't be the one bad mouthing my species for being weak, especially since you're not exactly looking like you'd be able to take me on in a fight right now. You were passed out just a few minutes ago too so don't push it."

Barricade snorted disdainfully and looked away grumpily, the temptation to squish her out of annoyance plain in his optics. "I was not 'passed out' I was merely in recharge while waiting for you to regain consciousness."

"Sure you were." Megan rolled her eyes at the former Decepticon causing him to growl at her but of course she ignored him.

"There's got to be a way out." Megan muttered as she turned, scanning the seamless and blank metal walls for a flaw she could exploit.

"Even if you could get us out how exactly do you plan to get off the ship? Have you forgotten that we are currently a few thousand feet up in your planet's atmosphere?" Barricade growled.

Megan shot him a scowl and snapped, "I haven't planned that far ahead yet."

"Obviously," Barricade scoffed as he leaned back against the wall of their prison. Not even pretending to help her look for a possible way out.

Megan had to bite her tongue against the scathing comment that wanted to come out. Why was she trying to help this ungrateful fragger again? She couldn't remember so instead she scanned the walls and glowing bars of their prison once more, hopelessly searching for a way out. But the smooth metal revealed no weaknesses. For a moment, despair threatened to crush her before a wave of depression overwhelmed it, leaving her exhausted and beaten in its wake. Struggling not to give in to the tears that burned behind her eyelids at her own helplessness Megan closed her eyes.

How were they going to get out of here?

However before she could think of a reply her train of thought was loudly interrupted by a booming voice that echoed through the ship.

Mirage paced restlessly on the tarmac while the sound of cursing came drifting out of Wheeljack's hanger. The inventor and medic were close to finishing the final calibrations on the Groundbridge and the N.E.S.T. soldiers were finalizing their preparations and ready to roll out once the command was given. Every bot and able bodied soldier not needed to run the base was going. None of this comforted the crimson spy as he was irrationally tempted to transform and attempt to drive to Yellowstone, I only because he would be moving and getting closer.

"Mirage? You ok?"

Looking up from his peds Mirage's gaze met with the concerned optics of his friend, Hound. However it wasn't only Hound who was watching him cautiously and with concern. A number of the other Autobots and even a few of the human soldiers were shooting him the odd glance or two. Mirage stilled his pacing and cycled his vents heavily, struggling to recover his usual clam demeanor but only achieving a bare minimum.

"I am fine merely… anxious about the coming battle, but thank you for your concern my friend." Mirage spoke smoothly only just managing to avoid a tremor in his voice.

Hound didn't look convinced but there was nothing he could since at that moment Ratchet and Wheeljack came out of the hanger looking triumphant.

"It's as ready as it's ever going to be at this point," Ratchet exclaimed with a serious look in his optics. "Are you sure about this Prime?"

"It seems to be our only choice. At least this way we may have an element of surprise on our side, the Decepticon's do not know that we have a Groundbridge." Optimus said seriously as he turned to his Autobtos and the N.E.S.T. soldiers.

"We will go though in a single file but be sure to pull directly into formation once we reach the other side. We don't know what Megatron has waiting for us once there so use caution." Everyone nodded in understanding of the Prime's words.

Ratchet stepped forward, "For all you humans and bots who haven't traveled by Groundbridge before listen up! Be sure to drive straight, and don't touch the sides of the tunnel or you may find yourself somewhere else or worse! It's likely you'll feel some side effects once on the other side but they should wear off quickly. Remember that Groudbridges are dangerous even at the best of times and this one hasn't been tested yet so don't be an idiot!" The CMO said with an extra glare that foreshadowed the penalty that would await any offending party.

Optimus stepped forward again, his somber expression belaying the gravity of his next few words. "I will think no less of anyone who doesn't wish to take this risk, and respect anyone's decision to stay behind." Optimus said to the gathered soldiers. No one moved, each and every one of them simply stared back with determination in their eyes and optics.

Optimus nodded, "Roll out."

Ironhide pushed the doors of the hanger wide open as Ratchet and Wheeljack put in the coordinates and started the Groundbridge. The large metal ring and towering coils of wire that made up the Groudbridge wined and creaked for several moments before a deep vibrating sound thrummed through the air. Slowly the metal circle shrieked and began to move, quieting as it gathered speed and the deep sound grew louder. The noise grew until it felt like the vibrations might shake the hanger apart and the now speeding metal ring was almost red from heat and friction. In a crackle of energy and a burst of blue light the center of the ring seemed to implode into shimmering reality, creating a glowing tunnel of blue-green power.

Epps muttered something about a television show called Stargate but Mirage wasn't paying him enough attention to listen. The spy was too focused on getting through the tunnel and to the other side. Without hesitation Optimus led the way through the Groundbridge at a run with his Autobots close behind and the jeeps of N.E.S.T. soldiers covering their backs. Mirage shivered as the unpleasant sensation of being Groundbridged ran over his chassis and he stumbled along with the rest into the sun lit forest.

The area was covered in a glorious forest, thick trunks and hiking trails almost as far as the optic could see. The data packet that every Autobot had gotten before rolling out detailed that there were only a few roads coming either in or out of the area and there were even fewer human structures to worry about. The area had been cleared and was being contained by local officials who didn't really know what was going on but at least meant no civilians. A clear sparkling lake could be occasionally glimpsed to the east. However it was none of these things that held every Autobot and human soldier's attention as they stared at the huge dark object hanging in the sky.

Epps was hunched over his knees, valiantly attempting to hold onto his lunch and muttering, "Never again man, never again."

"Epps? We have bigger problems than your stomach right now." Lennox muttered to his friend and gestured to the sky. Epps followed his gaze and the dark skinned man turned several shades lighter at the sight before him.

Even the humans who were trying to not purge their tanks from the Groundbridge and muttering about vibrating bones could not miss the Nemesis where it hovered several thousand feet above the ground. Even at this distance one could tell the spaceship was massive, even by Cybertronian standards. From stem to stern it was as long as a skyscraper was tall and almost a mile in height. It shone like an evil black insect against the gray clouds, all sharp edges and metal plating. Dread filled many of them all as they gazed at the Decepticon warship coming to the realization that this was much worse than they had hoped.

"Frag it all, they're not even trying to touch down here. If anything they're going to hover up there and either send down troops to fight or pick us off one by one with the guns. How the heck are we supposed to fight from down here?" Ironhide swore and looked to Optimus for orders.

The Prime looked to Lennox, "How long until the air force can arrive?"

Lennox was silent for a moment as he did a few quick mental calculations. "Too long. If they really step on it I'd say they could be here in twenty minutes. If we call the nearest military base and request assistance we could have some birds in the air in half that time, maybe."

Optimus opened his mouth to reply but was interrupted by a change in the Decepticon warship. Their arrival apparently hadn't gone unnoticed since in that moment the entire black shipped turned slightly, as if to get a better look at them. The air over the spaceship shimmered for a moment like a heatwave in summer before a see through image of Starscream appeared, enlarged so it appeared as if the flyer had grown a hundred times.

"Greetings, pathetic Autobots," Starscreams voice sneered and boomed from the ship, obviously greatly amplified to deliver his speech. Every bot and human tensed, anxious and unsure what to expect from the Decepticon second in command.

"As you have likely noticed you are currently extremely outgunned and outnumbered, however our gracious leader, Lord Megatron, has kindly decided to accept your surrender. All you need to do is lay down your weapons and submit to being put in stasis cuffs before being brought on board."

"Frag that," Ironhide muttered as his cannons whirled threateningly.

The hologram of Starscream continued to speak, "But just to show that you are also outmatched…" the giant hologram of Starscream grinned and made a motion that was obviously a signal for someone off to the side.

A loud humming sound filled the air over Yellowstone as the bottom of the warship shifted revealing a large hatch which cracked wide open. A blue glow emanated from the hatch as a large crackling sphere of energy was shown, the energy seeming to be contained in a glass-like substance. The light it gave off would have almost been pretty in any other situation, except for the fact the power shifted and snapped in a way that seemed almost unstable. The humans may not have known what the radiant orb was but could tell just by the horrified looks on the Autobots faceplates that whatever it was a very bad thing.

"I'm sure you recognise one of these, don't you Prime? After all it was a level one energon explosive much like this one that destroyed what remained of Iacon wasn't it? Even better is what will happen if you resist. Do you realize what exactly you are standing on? Or more precisely, in?"

The Autobots looked at each other, trying to figure out what exactly Starsceam was talking about, however this time it was the humans who understood and were looking horrified. "Oh no," Lennox whispered and gripped his gun tighter.

"You are currently standing in the mouth of this planet's largest super volcano. Obviously at the moment it lies dormant but it didn't take many calculations to discover that an energon explosive would be more than sufficient to wake it. Such an event would send this mud ball into another iceage. The moment you stepped from that Groundbridge you walked straight into a trap." Starscream laughed.

There was a moment of silence as Starscreams words sank in and the Autobots confirmed it with a quick search on the internet.

"Should you refuse to submit to Decepticon rule not only will you be dooming yourself to destruction but you will also be responsible for this planet's obliteration. You have three breems to lay your weapons down and surrender." The hologram of Starscream gave a final dark grin before the massive hologram dissipated.

There was a long silence as everyone let the stark reality of their situation sank in, and it didn't look good. "How long is three breems?" Lennox asked with deep worry line etched into his face, as if the trip through the Groundbridge had aged him.

"They must not have changed over from Cybertronian units of time. One breem is equal to eight point three earth minutes." Ironhide told Lennox.

Lennox blinked several times, "Are you saying we have twenty-five minutes until they drop that bomb thing?"

"It's a level one energon explosive, but yea, that's how long we have until they drop it. But of course Starscream is infamous for being unreliable, and he could drop it sooner even against Megatron's orders if he was feeling really impatient. Not to mention that even if we surrender there's no guarantee that they won't just detonate it anyway. The shields on the ship would be strong enough to protect them from the volcanic heat and debris." Wheeljack said absently, obviously thinking hard about all he knew about energon explosives.

An unexpected grin spread itself across Lennonx's face, "Well at least now we have some time."

"But only three breems! And we're stuck down here! How are we supposed to do anything in that time?" Ironhide demanded to know.

"Well Rome might not have been built in a day but we humans know how to work on a deadline. A lot can change in twenty-five minutes." Lennox stated determinedly while looking up at Optimus.

Optimus nodded and the humans burst into action, Lennox shouting orders and calling the nearest military base for fighter jets.

Mirage clenched his servos unused to feeling useless, and still unnerved by the sensation that something was very wrong, and it wasn't just the fact that they had walked into a Decepticon trap. His optics kept drifting toward the Decepticon warship, as if drawn like a magnet. He was anxious but that did not explain why in the name of Primus he felt in his spark that something was deeply wrong.

Megan swore and almost threw herself bodily at the lethal energon bars separating her from freedom, but she wasn't desperate enough to touch them. Starscream's little speech/gloat had been more than loud enough to echo through the halls of the Decepticon warship. The petite girl had heard every word and knew she couldn't just sit here in despair, she had to do something.

"There has got to be a way out of here!" She shouted uselessly and kicked the nearest wall in frustration.

"I already told you, there is no escape. No bot has ever left here alive once captured, it's useless." Barricade said disinterestedly, still poking and prodding his injuries.

"Well I'm not a bot now am I? There's always a way." But in her head she was wondering to herself if there really was a way this time.

Megan clenched her cell phone in her pocket as she scanned the cell once more. The energon bars were too close together for her to crawl through and would kill her if she so much as touched them, and the walls were seamless and built to withstand even the strongest of bots. It wasn't long before Megan's frustrated energy burned out leaving her feeling empty, except for the expanding feeling of helplessness in her chest. Holding back a sob she abruptly sat and flopped onto her back and stared weakly at the ceiling. It all seemed so useless and hopeless, but she clenched her phone to remind herself of her promise. She couldn't afford to give up, not yet, there was still time, there was still hope.

The pixy haired girl took a deep breath and opened her eyes again as she exhaled, but there was still no way out of this place. A small shadow in the corner of the cell caught Megan's eye for a moment before she dismissed it. However she took a double take at the little bit of darkness and looked a little closer. It was a dent, a small wrinkle in the otherwise smooth walls. Megan shot up from her position on the floor and dashed toward the corner where the impression was in the ceiling, gaping at it in shock.

It shouldn't have been possible but there it was. Megan's mind boggled at the force it must have taken to make even that tiny flaw in these immovable walls. A small part of her wondered how powerful the bot that had made it must have been. Had it been an Autobot? What had his name been? But she shook her head and dismissed them since such thoughts were useless to her right now. All that mattered at the moment was that this could be a possible way out.

"Barricade, can you stand?"

The black-and-white bot looked up from his slightly leaking injuries and glowered, "I would prefer not to. Why?" He said crossly.

Megan pointed up at the dimple in the corner and Barricade's optics widened before he slowly and painfully got to his peds. The ex-Decepticon let out only a single grunt of pain and Megan could tell from that alone that the bot was likely in agony. However she knew better than to ask if he was alright, it would only get her a snarl and a snarky comment. Once on his peds Barricade looked up at the wrinkle in the ceiling with a critical optic.

"I'm not going to be able to reach that, let alone make it bigger with the damage I've already sustained." Barricade groused with irritation.

"No, but if you hold me up there then maybe I can reach it and squeeze through the damage that's already there." Megan explained, hoping against all odds that perhaps a tiny human could do this.

Barricade narrowed his optics at her, "And how does this help me to escape this Primus forsaken place? Or do you plan to abandon me?"

Megan rolled her eyes even though she understood his paranoia, since she would likely think that same had their positions been reversed. "I wasn't awake when we came onto the ship. I hoping however that you know which way to take to get out of here, and I promise I won't leave you behind." She said as an excuse. Barricade wouldn't understand that she couldn't leave him behind, He'd surely just scoff at her 'Autobot-like stupidity'.

Megan was sure that it wasn't her promise but her reasoning that finally got Barricade to lower his servo and allow her to step on. Barricade raised his arms as high as he could and Megan still had to go onto the tips of his claws and her tiptoes to reach the ceiling. She pushed at the dent with all of her paltry strength, only succeeding to jostle the indentation.

"I need more height!"

Barricade grumbled but succeeded in raising Megan a few scant inches. Once again Megan shoved at the metal obstruction and this time successfully managed to raise it enough for her to shove her arm into the small crack it made where the roof met the walls. The metal bit into her arm the moment she stopped pushing against it but with some struggling she managed to get both arms, shoulders and head through the gap. With a final push off from Barricade's servo, a few tears in her shirt and a lot of wiggling she was at last able to pull herself through the crevice.

The panel fell flat again as she moved out of the way, sending her into darkness. Thankfully she still had her phone in her pocket and used it as a flashlight as she crawled in the direction of the nearest light. Megan looked through the metal of the grate she came to and smiled to see that she was over the hallway between the cell and the door to freedom. She was just about to call down to Barricade when to her surprise the door whisked open and a tall red armored Decepticon swaggered in.

"Well if it isn't the traitor to the Decepticon cause. I had heard from Crowbar that you had finally been captured but I felt that I needed to see it for myself."

"Knockout," Barricade snarled and tried to look threatening but was too damaged to stand completely straight and energon poured from his injuries if he took his servo away.

"My, my, how the mighty have fallen, and to think how you were once among one of Megatron's most trusted bots." Knockout gloated as he paced slowly in front of the ex-Decpeticon.

Megan tuned out Knockouts ongoing gloating and concentrated on the problem before her. From what she could tell the controls to the energon bars were the red glowing panel beside the door that Knockout had just entered through. The very same door that the red armored Decepticon now had his back to as he bragged and swaggered in front of Barricade's cell. Megan bit her lip and looked around the darkness with her phone acting as a light for something that she could use. The answer came in the shape of a very long cable. It was covered in a flexible metal material and as thick as her arms, but with the help of a sharp corner she was able to cut it and drag its length toward the grate opening.

Thankfully Knockout was longwinded because the Decepticon was still distracted with his boasting to Barricade. Megan quickly tied off the cable around the bars of the grate and after making sure that Knockout's back was still turned toward her and the door tossed the length of cord down. Barricade's optics widened as he saw the cable dangle down from the vent in the ceiling over Knockout's shoulder, but he quickly went back to scowling to keep the red armored 'Con from noticing. Megan only took a moment to think to herself how stupid this idea was before she gripped the cord firmly and squeezed through the bars of the grate.

"-and if only you hadn't been such a coward during the Mission City battle for the Allspark perhaps our gracious leader would have been more willing to spare you." Knockout simpered as he brushed imaginary dirt off his chassis.

"I am not a coward." Barricade sneered in reply, trying to surreptitiously watch Megan's progress down the cable. Megan's grip slipped and she barely held back the squeak of terror that wanted to escape as she slid rapidly down several feet. Getting purchase on the cable was difficult since it was almost too large for her to wrap her hands around, and the nervous sweat she was getting wasn't helping.

"Oh but you are a coward," Knockout said as Megan regained her grip and this time lowered herself more cautiously and slowly.

"In fact you are perhaps the biggest coward that has ever existed within the Decepticon ranks." The red armored Decepticon taunted as Megan judged the distance between her and the panel that would deactivate the energon bars trapping Barricade. "However one does wonder why you would actually choose death and painful disembowelment for betraying Megatron." Knockout said nonchalantly as Megan swung her body weight back and forth, swinging like a pendulum closer and closer toward the panel.

"It isn't about choosing a painful death," Barricade growled as he tensed and readied himself. "It's about finally deciding my own fate on my terms and doing what I believe to be the honorable thing."

With a final lunge and heart stopping swing Megan collided with the panel and the energon bars keeping Barricade contained instantly dissipated. With a roar Barricade threw himself forward, his claws racking a surprised Knockout across the chassis. Even badly damaged Barricade was a force to be reckoned with and with an unforgiving hit to the helm Knockout fell limp and the ex-Con threw the red armored bot into the cell. Megan slid the rest of the way down the cord and reached the floor just as Barricade turned the energon bars on again, locking Knockout in the prison.

"That won't hold him for very long, Knockout is the Decepticon medic and has override codes to every door on this ship. The moment he wakes he'll be out of there in a moment and raise the alarm. We need to get to the flight pods."

Megan nodded and followed closely behind the black-and-white bot, running to keep up with his larger footsteps. The door swished aside and Barricade shifted cautiously to make sure the coast was clear before moving into the hall. The small fight with Knockout had ripped open Barricade's injuries leaving him even weaker as energon dripped from his wounds. The petite brunette hurried after him, understanding that Barricade couldn't afford to carry her if he needed to fight. They rushed through several large hallways and turned numerous corners and by some miracle or will of Primus didn't run into any Cons.

Panting and gasping Megan ran after Barricade, her thoughts whirling in circles. She thought back to what she had heard Starscream say and knew what it meant. The Autobot's were below and had walked right into the Decepticon's trap, there was a level one energon explosive on board the warship, and if her friends didn't surrender they would die anyway, along with a good portion of the rest of the world. There was no doubt in her mind that Mirage was among the Autobots below. She couldn't let him die, or surrender.

Megan was jolted from her thoughts as their luck finally ran out and a loud alarm began blaring and echoing through the ship. Knockout must have woken up and now it wouldn't be long before they were overrun by Decepticon's. Megan reached into her pocket and grabbed her phone as she ran. She pressed and activated the only working feature of her phone that she cared about, the voice recorder.

"I'm so sorry," she gasped into the recorder as she ran. "I will keep my promise Mirage but I can't keep it if they drop that energon bomb and you die. I have to find a way to stop it and I might be the only one who can. Barricade's too damaged and hurt. Just buy me as much time as you can. I'm sorry."

She pressed the button to save the newest recording and added it to the one she had spoken while Barricade had been unconscious. Speaking of the ex-Decepticon the black-and-white bot turned a final corner and rushed toward a door that opened with a touch to the panel beside it. The door opened and Megan could see a small room full of glowing dials and switches and beyond that, a window which showed a green horizon far below. Barricade leaned heavily against the metal chair and began to hesitantly messing with the controls.

"Strap yourself down to something fleshling. I haven't flown one of these before so it will be a difficult landing. It would be easier to launch if someone could override it from the hall but I doubt Knockout will do it for us." Barricade said without looking back at her.

Megan stopped at the threshold of the flight pod and gripped her phone tightly for a moment before speaking.

"Barricade, back at the cell you talked about deciding your own fate and honor. Did you mean what you said?"

"Of course. I might not have anything left as a Decepticon, but even when I had no choice I prided myself in at least having my respect." Barricade replied absently as he flipped several switches in frustration, obviously not knowing what he was doing.

Megan took a deep breath and straightened her back and pulled back her shoulders with a determined look. "Then I call on your debt to me for saving your life by getting you out of that cell."

That got the bots attention as he stopped what he was doing and looked over the back of the chair at where she stood outside the flight pod. Megan held his optics and stooped for a moment and slid her phone across the floor and toward Barricade's seat.

"Make sure Mirage gets that." She ordered, pointing at the phone with a serious look before swiftly stepping several steps back and pulling off her shoe.

For a moment it seemed as if the ex-Decepticon had been shocked into paralysis but after a moment he staggered up from the metal chair with a startled expression.

"Now wait a minute! I don't know how to fly this-"

But he was too late Megan had already tossed her shoe at the panel beside the door to the flight pod. With a hiss the door slid shut and sealed itself, and through the small window in the door Megan only caught a glimpse of Barricade's face before there was a loud thump and all she could see through the window was a tiny piece of sky.

Loud footsteps could be heard rapidly approaching the hall of flight pods and Megan quickly retrieved her shoe. She only just barely managed to duck around the nearest corner as what must have been a dozen Decepticons entered the hall with the flight pods followed by Starscream.

"You fools! You Idiots! How could you let them escape?!" The flyer demanded.

Megan cautiously peeked around the corner, hoping that perhaps she could get a hint about where the energon bomb was. Starscream was shouting loudly at Knockout and a large group of 'Cons, his wings flaring in irritation while Knockout just scowled and poked the deep scratches that Barricade had left on his chassis. Megan's breath stuttered as she noticed that the Dreads, including Crankcase was among the crowd of Decepticons.

"Well what are you waiting for?! Get him! Capture him and keep the Autobots busy until they surrender!" Starscream ordered with a violent look in his optics for any who refused.

Within moments the 'Cons scattered into groups and jumped into the flight pods. Megan exhaled in relief as Crankcase and the Dreads got into a pod and it took off. Except for the fact that Mirage was down below and the black armored 'Con would certainly seek out the crimson spy. Unfortunately she hadn't been paying enough attention to those who had yet to enter a pod, which included Knockout.

The Decepticon medic must have heard her because he turned to where she stood and spotted her before she could duck out of sight. Immediately Megan took off down the hall away from the flight pods as Knockout's voice cried behind her.

"There! The human's still on the ship!" Knockout shouted.

"Then get it!" Starscream snapped.

Megan ran with all her might but before she turned another corner she dared to look back over her shoulder and saw Knockout enter the hall and glare at her. "You scratched my paint meatbag,"the red armored Decepticon snarled "You're mine!" Megan just ran faster, heart in her throat and hoping she hadn't just made a very big mistake.

Every human's head and Autobot's helm shot up to look from their tasks in shock at the Decepticon warship as a large sound echoed and a small black piece broke off of the larger hull.

"What's going on?" Lennox questioned but Optimus could only shake his head, not looking away from the small black dot.

"It's a flight pod, but why would-" Wheeljack started to question but was interrupted by several more large sounds as more flight pods broke away from the spaceship and followed after the first.

The first pod was flying erratically but seemed to be coming in the same general direction as the Autobots. The other pods followed and slowly caught up to it. With an earthshaking crash the first pod drove into the earth, creating a large trench in the earth and badly damaging the small flight craft. The Autobots and humans quickly surrounded it but before they could do anything else the other pods landed amongst the trees in the nearby forest. They were almost instantly assaulted by cannon fire and Mirage was hard pressed to fire back while keeping an optic on the door of the shuttle they had managed to surround.

However all thought and reason seemed to drain out of Mirage's head the moment he notice that Crankcase was among the attacking Decepticon's. The leader of the dreads caught the crimson spy's optic and smirked darkly in a way that reminded Mirage of the day the Tower's had fallen. With pale, almost white optics, and a roar of rage Mirage threw himself into the fray, ignoring orders to stay in formation. Crankcase fired one last shot at Sideswpie, forcing the frontliner to duck or lose his helm, before pulling a long blade from his subspace and parrying Mirage's stab.

"Well isn't this just like old times?" Crankcase sneered as he easily dodged Mirage's wild and angry attacks. "Somehow I knew you would show up, you're far too predictable you know Mirage." Said Crankcase as he lashed out with his blade, nicking the paint on Mirage's chassis right above his spark.

Mirage's fury cooled slightly as a sliver of fear cooled his processor, acknowledging that he needed to calm down or he would be the one to lose this fight. The red armored Autobot fainted with his one blade while bringing his other blade snapping forth catching Crankcase off guard. The Decepticon managed to block one sword but took a shallow hit to one side as he dodged away, putting a few steps between himself and his opponent.

Crankcase assessed the minor damage and slowly leaking energon with disinterest before looking at Mirage and grinning once more. The crimson spy's grip on his dual swords tightened at the expression that reminded him all too much of dark days back on Cybertron.

The leader of the Dreads gave him a judging look, "You don't know, do you?" Crankcase asked.

Mirage's optic's narrowed, "Know what?"

Crankcase chuckled, and then began to laugh as if Mirage had just told the funniest joke. "You really don't know. Haven't even noticed!"

"Noticed what!?" Mirage snarled, his swords all but itching in his servos.

Abruptly Crankcase ceased laughing, but his malicious smile remained. "Surely you've been feeling a little off lately, haven't you Mirage? A restless sensation in your spark? A sense that something is wrong?"

Mirage's expression flickered uncertainly for a moment before it became an indifferent mask.

"Ha! So you have!"Crankcase chuckled again before inching back toward the trees and the waiting flight pods. "Don't you worry Mirage. This time I'll make sure to end your pain after your world burns." The Decepticon hissed before disappearing amongst the trees and getting back into a flight pod.

The small black shuttles took off, rattling the forest and taking off back to the warship. Mirage didn't blame them, after all no one would want to stay where an energon bomb could be dropped on their helm at any moment. The skirmish had been brief but fierce leaving a large hole now in the once peaceful woodland and two dead 'Cons, thanks to the twins and Ironhide. Fortunately no Autobot or human had died, not yet at least. They had been preparing and training for the past month and a half to work together and fight Decepticons after all.

"Mirage, you moron! You know better than to break rank like that! Wheeljack lost his fragging left servo again because of you!" Ratchet cursed, and the disappointed look in Optimus' optics was more than enough of a reprimand.

"My apologies, I lost myself to my anger. It will not happen again." Mirage said with a respectfully with a bowed helm, however he was haunted internally by Crankcase's words.

"Don't make promises you can't keep," Ratchet scoffed as he finished tying off Wheeljacks leaking energon lines.

Optimus ignored his irate CMO, "I understand that this is a stressful time for us all, but we cannot afford to act rashly. There is still hope." The Prime said with a contemplative look at the only remaining flight pod, the first one that had landed and was currently very badly damaged. A large pool of energon was leaking from it, and Mirage had doubts it was flight worthy now.

"I wouldn't get your hopes up Optimus." Wheeljack confirmed the spies thoughts with a flinch as he stood up. "The landing knocked the energon fuel lines loose. This thing's not moving anywhere for a long time and there's no way I could get it to work within a few breems."

"First we gotta see if the fragging Decepticons that were flying this thing survived the landing." Ironhide growled as he approached the door with brightly glowing cannons.

Without warning the weapons specialist fired off a powerful shot, blowing back the door and revealing the interior in a cloud of billowing smoke. Weapons primed to shoot at a moment's notice cooled slightly in surprise. There was only one occupant, a familiar black-and-white Enforcer that was lying on the floor but quickly coming online from the crash landing.

"Frag that little… Primus my helm…" Barricade groaned as he sat up and glared at the staring group of Autobots. "Take a image shot, it'll last longer." Barricade snarled as he stood up, leaning heavily against the wall and holding a servo to the leaking damages on his chassis.

The twins and Bumblebee bristled at his tone and almost made to attack as the bot moved, but stood down with a wave from Optimus.

"Barricade, it is unexpected to see you here. I assume that you were captured," asked the Prime.

Barricade snorted at Optimus' words almost earning himself a swift hit for the disrespect in his tone, "Brilliant deduction, couldn't have done better myself. Yes I was captured and brought in on charges of treason and betrayal to the Decepticon cause, but don't go thinking I'm one of you slagging Autobots now. I'm a neutral if anything. I want nothing to do with this fragging war anymore."

Optimus nodded in understanding, "If you like Ratchet could treat your wounds before you go."

There were some grumbles of discontent at that, especially from Bumblebee and Ratchet, but Barricade shook his helm.

"There's nowhere to go at the moment, I might be a neutral now but that doesn't mean that Megatron will stop hunting me. Never mind the fact that I doubt I'd be able to get out of range if they drop that bomb, so for now it looks like I'm working with you. And besides I have a debt to pay before I can leave."

"A debt?" Optimus questioned.

Barricade nodded and looked at Mirage. The spy was surprised for a moment before confusion took its place. "Your obligation to me has already been paid, if you recall."

It was Barricade's turn to look surprised before something like anger flickered across his faceplates. "You don't know?" The ex-Con asked.

"Do not know what?" Growled Mirage, frustration building at whatever it was he wasn't aware of.

Barricade's optics narrowed at the crimson spy, "My debt isn't to you, it's to your charge Megan. What? Did you really think I could have escape the prison holds of the Nemesis on my own? She was captured by Crankcase last night and helped me to escape. For some reason she stayed on the ship, but insisted that I find you and give you this." The black-and-white bot held out his servo and showed the tiny phone nestled within it.

Mirage stared horrified as all the pieces clicked together to create a picture of a nightmare. Megan's desire to leave base, the feeling in his spark, his charge not showing up for breakfast, Crankcase's taunts, and the familiar phone in Barricade's servo. Several of the other surrounding autobots and humans were equally shocked to hear that Megan was on the Nemesis. Optimus seemed sad while Ratchet cursed violently though others like the twins and Ironhide Growled and gripped their weapons tighter. Ignoring them Mirage carefully took the tiny device from the ex-Con as if it were made of the most precious of crystal.

"Is she alright? Is she hurt?" The now slightly frantic Guardian asked, though he tried valiantly not to show it.

Barricade shrugged, "I'm not a medic bot but she seemed functional. A few bruises and scrapes but nothing that she was going to let stop her. I think she left a message on that communication device while I was in stasis," the black-and-white bot said with a point at the phone. "She was adamant that you get it."

Mirage looked down at the tiny gadget and scanned it, a single voice recording labeled 'To Mirage' standing out amongst the phones' saved files. With a sinking spark and a deep cycle of his vents Mirage opened the file.

The recording started with a slight crackle, there were several moments of silence before a sigh filtered through the mouth piece. Even though her voice sounded electronic and tinny Mirage had never heard Megan sound so tired and his spark tightened even further at the sound of her voice, so close yet so far away. Mirage's servo constricted reflexively in frustration. He forced himself not to crush the phone and listened closely, hoping for some kind of explanation as to why she wasn't here safe with him.

"I-I really don't know how to start." Megan stuttered, pausing to clear her throat. "I suppose that the first thing I should say is that I'm sorry. It was stupid of me to leave base like that and that I should have listened to you Mirage. Surprise, you were right but don't get used to me saying it." Her voice wavered shakily, and she took a shuddering breath before continuing.

"I don't know why I'm doing this, it's pretty much impossible that you'll ever get this message. Then again it's even more unlikely that I'll ever get off this ship alive. Crankcase has made that much clear." Mirage snarled at the mention of Crankcase's name and the tremor of fear in his charge's voice. The feral growl earned him several cautious looks from his comrades that went largely ignored. His grip tightened dangerously on the phone again, making the plastic case creak in protest but again he refrained from reducing it to scrap in his servos. If only because right now it was the only link he had to his charge.

"Even so, as unlikely as it is you'll ever hear this Mirage I feel like I should at least try to leave something behind. You of all people deserve to hear the whole truth. I wish now that I had been more open with you, told you more about myself and my past. It's a little late for regrets now isn't it? I've been hiding some pretty big secrets from you. Do you remember what I told you about Felix? About the fire that took my family? What I didn't tell you was that while I was in the hospital after that the doctors discovered something wrong in my blood. They did a few extra tests to confirm, and they discovered that I had an incurable lung cancer."

Mirage froze in shock and many of the bots who knew Megan exclaimed in surprise, all except for Ratchet. The CMO simply looked sad. Megan's voice continued on under the clamor, sounding choked up with tightly reined in emotion. Mirage was now gripping the phone with anxiety instead of anger. How could she have kept this from him? How had he not noticed?

"I-I tried to tell you, I really did. So many times I almost had the words out but then something would happen, or it wouldn't be the right time. Galloway and Ratchet were the only ones to figure it out." Mirage's head snapped a look of betrayal at the medic before it became a deathly angry and cold glare. Ratchet couldn't hold his gaze and instead looked at Optimus. The two obviously began a discussion over a private comm link. Mirage was tempted to vent his fury on the CMO but couldn't for fear of missing Megan's voice. It was the only thing keeping him grounded in the present. The only thing keeping him from going on a murderous rage was the hope that she was still alive.

"Please, please don't be mad at Ratchet. He wanted to tell you but I all but begged him not to, he was always pushing me to tell you. All those trips to the med bay were because he wanted to keep an eye on my condition. I don't think an entire hospital of doctors could have tried harder or done better than he did. I-I can't remember if I even got the chance to thank him for it." There was a pause as Megan seemed to get lot in her own thoughts and Ratchet looked mournful.

Megan's voice sighed again out of the tiny phone speakers, "Jeez, this is all so messed up. I never meant for any of this to happen. All I can say is I'm sorry. I worried that you would leave me, break the bond and spare yourself the pain, and if you wish that you had then I don't blame you. However even then I don't think I could ever regret the time we got to spend together. Yes, there will always be things that I wish I could go back and change. There are so many things that I would do differently but there is no time in my life where I would change that fact that I met you Mirage."

"You are the greatest Guardian that I could ever ask for and even if I had a choice I'd choose you; in a hundred lifetimes, in a hundred worlds, in any version of reality, I'd find you and I'd choose you. So… I'm not going to say goodbye, ok? Because not even Primus himself is going to be able to keep me from finding you again."

There was another moment of silence in the recording as a groan that sounded a lot like Barricade echoed in the background.

"It looks like Barricade's waking up. I have to go, but remember that promise Mirage. I'm not giving up and I'm not saying goodbye, just… promise you'll wait for me."

There was a small click before the recording ended and Mirage became aware of the complete sad silence surrounding him. Every face held a look of sad denial, and Mirage was sure that he had the same expression. Unexpectedly the second part of the clip started, startling the crimson spy.

"I'm so sorry," Megan gasped into the recorder as the sound of footsteps could be heard behind her voice. "I will keep my promise Mirage but I can't keep it if they drop that energon bomb and you die. I have to find a way to stop it and I might be the only one who can. Barricade's too damaged and hurt. Just buy me as much time as you can. I'm sorry."

With a final click the phone fell silent and Mirage looked from the phone to the floating Decepticon warship, his spark feeling like it was shattering.

Lennox was the first to break the silence, "Do you really think she can stop the bomb?"

Optimus closed his optics for a long moment before opening them and replying. "I do not know. But at the moment she is likely our best hope to stop them, and unlike Megatron I have learned to not underestimate humans."

"She knows some things about energon explosives," Wheeljack added. "She might figure out how to detonate it before they release it. The ships own shields would then contain the blast and slag the entire ship instead of us."

"But if she does that and doesn't have a way out in time…" Ironhide muttered loudly, earning himself a whack on the back of the helm by Jazz. It was a horribly stark realization that Megan was on a suicide mission, but no one could deny it.

"Then that is our mission, we must find a way to distract the Decepticons and buy Megan as much time as we can. How much longer until the air force arrives?" The Prime questioned.

"E.T.A. is five minutes," shouted Epps from the radio he was speaking into.

"Then we will hold our ground here. We only have a breem and a half left, there is little time." Optimus said gravely, but Mirage's focus was on the Decepticon warship.

Megan's voice echoed in his processor, 'Just… promise that you'll wait for me.' But Mirage found that he couldn't promise, not yet. There was still time, still hope that she could get off that ship alive. Until then he would wait to make that promise, because he wasn't waiting, he was going to find her first.

Behind the crimson spy Epps' eyes widened as a new report came flooding in over the frequency. "Guys we got a problem!" The black man shouted the tone of his voice panicked and immediately getting everyone's attention.

'What else could go wrong?' Mirage wondered in dread.

Megan had no idea what she was going to do.

Knockout was toying with her, she was sure of it, but it wouldn't be long before he caught her and finished her off. The red armored Decepticon was practically walking leisurely along behind her as she ran for her life. Soon he'd get bored and… she really didn't want to know what he'd do then. The hallways were large with nowhere to hide, so all she could do was run.

She was fast approaching a T intersection and Knockout was only moments away from catching her. On a whim she chose the left hand turn and prayed it went toward the bomb. Megan rounded the corner and abruptly skidded to a halt, immediately realizing that this was the wrong turn to choose, due to the fact a different Decepticon was now in her path. At first she was confused by this Decepticons smaller size and shape, but the single angry red optic and the dangerous snarls coming from its vocalizer made its violent intentions very clear.

She swallowed nervously and raised her arms a little in the universal mean-no-harm sign. "Nice kittycat," Megan said weakly to the panther-like Decepticon, its only reply was to snarl at her and tense to attack.

Apparently it did not appreciate its new nickname.

The petite girl could feel the vibrations of Knockout's steps getting closer and knew she had little to no chance of out running both 'Cons, but perhaps with a lot of luck she could out maneuver them. With a burst of speed born from desperation she turned on her heel and bolted for the second hallway that was straight-ahead of her. Megan heard a hiss from the cat-like Decepticon as it pounced, just as Knockout came around the corner and she ducked through his legs. Megan didn't look back as she heard the crash of metal and cat-like snarls mixed with cybertronian cursing behind her.

"GET BACK HERE YOU FRAGGING LITTLE MEATWAD!" Knockout roared in fury as he detangled himself from the panther-like Decepticon, enraged from having his precious paint disfigured even more.

'Man, if he wasn't a Con he would get along great with Sunstreaker.' Megan thought sardonically to herself as she ignored the burning in her lungs and did her best to run faster.

Megan knew she couldn't keep running like this for much longer as her lungs felt like they might just implode. She needed a hiding place. Her prayer was answered as she ducked into the next hallway and spotted a tiny grate in the metal walls. It was a very small when compared to cybertronians, but for a small, skinny, flat chested human it was the perfect fit. Megan dived for cover and despite the lack of light quickly crawled into the depths of the wall. She stilled for a moment and held her breath as she saw Knockout's peds and the cat-like Decepticon run past her hiding place. Knockout was shouting about his paint job and the many ways he was going to extinguish her spark as his footsteps slowly faded around the corner.

She waited with bated breath in frightened silence for several moments before she dared to exhale quietly in relief, and cautiously inch forward to see if the coast was clear. Megan only barely managed to swallow the scream that worked its way up her throat as the catbot suddenly appeared at the mouth of her hiding place with a roar. Still, she gasped and scrambled away from it as it tried to reach her with one massive paw, only to find that she was too far away. Megan shrank back as it changed tactics and tried to fit its massive bulk into the too small gap, clawing and snarling menacingly. She was, quite literally, cornered like a mouse in a hole.

Well, not entirely cornered. The grate that Megan found herself in extended off into the bowels of the ship. It was dark and dimly lit and the last thing she wanted was to have to go down the narrow passageway, but with the cat-like Decepticon blocking the only other way out Megan had little choice. Still panting and gasping for breath Megan scrambled to her feet on shaking legs and stumbled as fast as she could down the narrow chute of the grate leaving the still growling catbot behind. It was completely dark and she almost wished she still had her cell phone for a light.

'There's no time to stop and catch my breath,' Megan reminded herself through the burn of her lungs. 'I've got to find and disarm that bomb before time runs out.'

It wasn't long before Megan was completely turned around in the faintly lit corridors of the vent shafts. She could feel the thrumming of the massive ship engine through the hand that she kept pressed against the wall, but couldn't tell by that alone if she was getting closer or further away from the explosive. She couldn't tell for how long she was lost within the dark tunnels, and yet was hyperaware of each second that passed was more time slipping through her fingers. It was so dark within the small space that Megan didn't notice the end of the shaft until her foot stepped over empty air. With a gasp she fell, fortunately the drop wasn't far, but it was far enough that landing on her side knocked the air from her already struggling lungs, leaving her wheezing at the bottom of the chute.

Once the stars had faded from her vision Megan realized that she could now see her hands and some of the vent shaft. Getting back to her feet was a struggle but she managed it by leaning against the wall. Another grate opening was the source of the light; however Megan could hear a number of loud voices on the other side. She needed to orient herself with where she was on the ship, and where the energon bomb was, so with little other choice Megan quietly inched forward and peered into the room beyond the bars of the grate.

The room was large and vaguely circular with large forward facing windows that Megan could see a small piece of the view of the forest far below. However it wasn't the view that held Megan's attention. Megatron stood facing the window; she couldn't see his face since his back was to her, but Megan was willing to bet from his body language alone that he wasn't pleased. One look at the Decepticon leader's impatiently tapping claws had her heart leaping to her throat in fear. Megan jumped and shrank back when a loud hissing noise suddenly sounded close by, and a door right next to her hiding place slid open. Starscream entered the room and against her better judgement Megan leaned closer to listen to their conversation.

"Lord Megatron," Starscream simpered as he sarcastically bowed at Megatron's back. "The time nears for those Autobot fools to either surrender or suffer the consequences."

"Excellent," Megatron growled. "How much longer do they have to submit to my rule?"

"Less than a breem and a half my liege," Starscream said with a half contained sneer. "They'll have no time to find shelter let alone mount any kind of counter attack within that time, especially with the second wave of drones we have bearing down on them."

"And the traitor, Barricade? Who somehow managed to escape on your watch, Starscream?" Megatron snarled dangerously as he turned to face his second in command.

Megan shrank back into the deeper shadows as she caught sight of those blood red eyes. Her mouth went dry at the mere thought of what would happen to her if Megatron caught sight of her, but she remained where she was. If this was the control room maybe she could find a way to stop the energon bomb from here.

Starscream shrunk back from his leader stuttering excuses, "I-I assure you, your greatne- akk!" Starscream's cowering was choked off as Megatron grabbed him by his throat.

"You swore on your spark to me there would be no mistakes this time! I wanted that traitor's head on my wall, and instead I'm told he manages to escape and that now there is a human somehow loose on my ship?!"

Megan shrank back once more as she was mentioned, still fearing discovery.

"The traitor's f-fate is sealed my Lord!," Starscream yelled with fear tinging his voice as Megatron raised one clawed hand threateningly. "H-he'll be killed when the energon explosive drops, just like the rest of your enemies. A-as for the human it cannot possibly stop us, and it will only be a matter of time before it caught and incinerated."

"Then find it!" Megatron growled threateningly as he released his hold on Starscream, "One human meatbag can't possibly stop us now."

'Ya because that type of thinking didn't get you killed the first time.' Megan mentally scorned but Megatron went on.

"I will make this entire planet pay for my death, and for the destruction of the Allspark." The Decepticon leader declared with a wave of one clawed hand at one of the walls that was mostly out of Megan's line of sight.

Cautiously and quietly Megan shifted in the mouth of the grate until she could see what exactly Megatron was gesturing at. She had to stuff her fist in her mouth to stop the gasp of surprise that surfaced when she spotted the missing shard of the Allspark that was displayed on a small pedestal against the wall. It was hardly longer than Megan's forearm with one side dotted with broken cybertronian symbols and illuminated by an unknown source of light. Some device in the stand must have been levitating it, because it hung and slowly turned slowly in the air without anything touching it.

"That is why it brought me back from the Well of Allsparks," Megatron muttered as he approached the Allspark shard with a mad gleam in his optics. "It revived my extinguished spark so I could seek revenge for it on those detestable humans. Once the energon explosive drops it will destroy the Autobots and waken the super volcano slumbering under the surface, turning the very planet itself against the humans."

Had she been able to do so without being caught, Megan would have given a low whistle at the sheer madness of the Decepticon leader. The worst part was it was intelligent insanity, which somehow made it even worse. She had known of course what Megatron had planned but it still sickened her to hear of it from his mouth plates, she had to stop him, somehow. Megatron reached out one claw as if to gently stroke the Allspark shard, only for it to send out a shock of energy strong enough to make him rear back with a roar of pain. Megatron shook his now sparking arm as Starscream piped up.

"I would be more careful if I were you, your Greatness. While it may only have a fragment of its former power, the shard still has an abundance of pure energy. It's a pity that power is far too volatile to utilize or harness," Starscream tisked as if in lament for the wasted potential of the Allspark shard.

Something tickled at the back of Megan's mind as she listened to Starscream talk about unstable energy. More specifically a conversation that she had had with Wheeljack not too long ago.

Her mind went back to that conversation in the rec room only a day ago, "That's the difficulty with making an energon explosive. They have to be kept in a secure environment because if they come into contact with another insecure energy source- boom!" Wheeljack said with a disturbing amount of glee. Yet again she had to smother a gasp of surprise as she made the connections.

"Silence!" Megatron roared and swung a clawed fist at Starscream's head, which Megan paid little attention to.

Her attention was now focused completely on the fragment of Allspark that spun slowly in the air as the pieces in her head fell into place. There was only one way that she could potentially stop them from dropping the explosive, and that was by detonating it while it was still on the ship. However, in order to do that she needed that Allspark shard to destabilize it. If she could get the shard and have it connect with the unstable energy of the bomb…

But how was she going to get the Allspark fragment out from under Megatron's faceplates? She needed a diversion, a very good one if she was going to have any hope of succeeding. Megan fixed her attention back to the fighting Decepticons, but knew that beating up Starscream likely wasn't enough of a distraction for Megatron to not notice her stealing the Allspark shard. The Decepticon leader tossed Starscream to the floor and pinned one of his wings to the floor with one large ped.

"There better not be any more surprises Starscream, or you will pay. Understand?"

"U-understood, my Lord. They only have a breem left to surrender, nothing could stop your brilliant plan now."

It was obvious to Megan that Starscream had a talent for putting his ped in his mouth, because at that moment the entire ship rocked with a small explosion. Megan's surprised shout was drowned out by the scream of the ship's alarm, and the walls shuddered so violently she nearly bashed her head on the bars of the grate. Megatron voiced the very question that Megan herself was wondering at that moment.

"What is happening?!"

Megan didn't know, she just hoped whatever it was it was a good distraction.

*Panting* There! Done another chapter! Sorry if it seems choppy I really did try hard to make it how I envisioned it. I've had this ending rattling around in my head almost since the beginning so it's kinda fun to finally write the scene I've been waiting awhile to write now. Tell me your thoughts!(because I'm not a mind reader) Good? Bad? Critiques? Do you wish I would just give up and become a lonely hermit with no internet? Let me know!