I had a smile on my faceplate, a not-so-uncommon thing anymore. Predaking had brought both Shockwave and I to a mountain top to watch the sun rise. Shockwave made no comment as we went higher and higher into the sky, and soon landed on the slightly snowy tip, over the clouds that hid us from prying human eyes. The scientist slid down from Predaking's back, and offered a servo for me to take hold, sliding down after him. I gave a short shiver to the chilly air that licked at my frame, sending my circuits into a state of panic, but by now I had gotten used to it, the evolved Predacon having taken me up into these heights many times before already.

"How long are you able to withstand these temperatures?" Shockwave asked, and I looked away from the slowly growing colors.

"Long enough wh-when Predaking acts as a b-barrier," I admitted, and the long body of the ancient beast wrapped around us both.

I instantly felt my core warm up to a more bearable temperature, and Shockwave provided an extra heat that helped keep me warmer than usual.

"You like this, sunrise, you speak of?" he questioned, the horizon still not quite gaining the beauty it usually has in the morning, it was still quite early.

"Very much," I smiled, "It's never the same, always unique."

Leaning into him, I felt his canon brush my side while his arm wrapped around my front, holding me close. We watched as the colors started to form. First light blue, then a dark pink turning into a light hue, and soon an orange, transitioning into the bright yellow of the Earth's sun.

"See?" I asked with a soft smile.

"I fail to understand your liking," he answered, "What I do understand is that it makes you smile. That is enough for me."

Shockwave is such a romantic, even if he doesn't realize it.

Ever since my breakdown (no pun intended), he's never left me alone. I'm always within his sight, either by his side, or just in front of him. Megatron has questioned him about the sudden constants of my presence, saying that I'm a liability. That, apparently, was a mistake.

"Lord Megatron I would refrain from calling her a 'liability'." Shockwave stated.

"Watch your tone Shockwave," Megatron growled, he was only there because he was discreetly spying on the both of us, we both found it obvious, but didn't say anything about it, "Sparkmate or not, she is still a vehicon, and below the both of us."

"Vehicon or not, being my sparkmate makes her equal to my own position."

Shockwave stood firm, with no hint that he was going to back down. Megatron's faceplate was blank as he looked to me, and I turned my own down, not being as brave as Shockwave at that moment. The warmonger merely huffed, and left, leaving me to finally release an ex-vent I had not realized I was holding, and my knee joints almost gave out, if it weren't for the metal counter to act as my crutch, I might have fallen to the floor in a painful heap of talc-like armor.

"He's going to watch for any small mistake now," I noted, trying to right myself from leaning on the counter, being helped by the cyclops I was able to call mine.

"Maybe so, but there won't be any if I can help it." He let me lean into him, and I felt my weak spark begin to adopt the beat of his much stronger one, a steady thrum that made my frown disappear into an expression of contentment.

"I'm called your sparkmate," I began, "Yet we share no bond."

There was no further explanation of my statement needed, and I looked up to his singular optic. He made no response for what felt like the longest time a she stroked my cheekplate ever so gently. I felt the rest of my anxieties leave me as my optics closed, welcoming the feeling.

"We should get back to the work at hand," was his response, and I sighed, nodding.

Shockwave always seems to avoid the subject of being a sparkmate. All I have anymore is a blackened, withered remnant of my Carrier's bond to me, and that's all I can remember anymore. My spark has blocked the beautiful memory of our bond, replaced with the nightmare of an empty space, a cold nothingness.

"(Y/D), your core has dropped in temperature again."

I was brought back from my toxic thoughts, and shivered, realizing that I was reverting back to the state I was found in when Shockwave woke me from the death-like recharge.

"You were thinking of your lost bond," he noted, and I nodded solemnly, "So not even your most liked time of day can distract you from it..."

"This was an experiment," I groaned, "I should have known why you came."

"A harmless one," he defended, "but necessary."

I merely shook my helm, rolling my optics as I was warmed by the two mechs protecting me.

All to soon we had to leave, the duties given to us calling our designations. Predaking landed on the open launch pad of the Nemesis, and I giggled as he let me slide down his massive wing, being thrown in the air slightly as he curved the tip of his wing. I tripped as I landed, and was caught by Shockwave. I was still laughing, so he was put at ease.

"Thank you, Predaking," Shockwave said to the now transformed beast.

"You are most welcome," Predaking smiled, "I very much enjoy my mornings with (Y/D)."

"Indeed." Shockwave commented, and I gave Predaking one last smile before we traveled deep into the Nemesis, our destination being the lab that was our home. Taking one last turn, we noted a group of vehicons gathered near the door of our lab, and I took a step back.

"Vehicons, what is your business here?" Shockwave demanded, and they merely looked to us, leaving just a klik later.

"Well... at least they're gone." I mumbled, still planted firmly behind him.

"I do not trust their timing," Shockwave stated, "Stay behind me."

I nodded, though he did not see, and shuffled as he moved forward, opening the door with an amount of caution, only for nothing to happen. He walked in before me, and checked the lab, and the joined office before motioning that it was safe to come in.

"I guess we worried for nothing..." I shrugged.

"It is not worry that naws at my spark," Shockwave admitted, "it is caution."

"They're about the same in my book," I sighed, looking around to see if there was anything amiss. I knew this lab like the back of my servo, if something was missing, or new, I would know about it.

As we worked, I noted that there was no evidence of anyone even entering the lab, so I assumed that the group of vehicons may have just stopped to chat at the wrong time. At one point I had dropped the last of our protoform solution, cursing as some of the shards split the armor of my pedes. I apologized, picking up the pieces, and throwing them away. Shockwave merely shook his helm, and said that we would go to acquire some more after he entered the last bit of data into a file. When he was finished, we exited the lab.

"It's a little... eerie..." I commented, "Don't you think?"

Shockwave was quiet for a moment, listening to the lack of sound within the war ship.

"Suspicious, I will admit," he responded, "Let's continue, but with caution."

Caution. I appreciate the safety, but to be honest, the excess of caution is kinda making me restless.

We traveled to one of the supply closets of the Nemesis that held more of the protoform solution, but there was none in stock. I grumbled at the fact that we may need to make more at this rate, and we went to find the only other storage that had the solution, at least, we hoped that it had the solution. Turning one last corner, Shockwave stopped, and I almost ran into him.

"What's wrong?" I questioned, and looked over his shoulder. There was nothing.

"I heard something," he stated.

"Isn't that a good thing considering how quiet it-"

"Energon---."

I jumped at the raspy voice behind me, and shrieked as the vehicon attacked, Shockwave blasting it to bits before it could even come arms length to us. I looked over his shoulder, shaking, expecting to see a pool of energon on the floor... but there was none.

"Wh-what is that thing?" I asked shakily, now thankful that Shockwave was using so much caution. I guess I should be careful for what I wish for...

"Terror-con," Shockwave stated, kicking a servo away, "Artificially made... I suspect Knockout's doing."

"I OBJECT!"

I jumped at the sudden outburst and looked to the medic as he slunk back into the supply closet we were going to look in just minutes ago.

"What is the meaning of this illogical experiment?" the older scientist questioned, anger a definite factor in his tone, and it through the Decepticon medic off guard.

"Uh... well... you see-"

"He was experimenting with a Synth-En and Dark Energon concoction on the puppet of Silas, a human fused with his old partner Breakdown," Starscream came out of the storage room, and I guessed that they were both hiding.

"You have endangered the safety of the entire ship," Shockwave stated, "I certainly hope that you have a solutio-"

"Energon---"

Another came from the hallway ahead of us, and I jumped at the silent touch from one behind me, kicking at it as it tried to syphon what life I had in me. Shockwave made a swift turn to offline the vehicon behind us, then shot at the other one, of which he missed. Knockout and Starscream had already scattered, leaving us to fend for ourselves. I clung to Shockwave's servo as he backed away from the approaching terror-con.

"(Y/D) I want you to run."

"What?! NO!"

"Do it."

His tone left no room for argument, and I released his servo, running as far as I could. I was originally heading for the lab, back to a safe place... but I had taken a wrong turn, and found that I had run into another, bigger storage unit... this one held the relics Megatron has acquired... There was a low rumble from outside, and I hid behind the stasis pod that held the traitor Arachnid. Sitting down, I tried to control my heavy, panicked breathing that was making my cooling fans run on overdrive, and my spark pained me as it reached for a source of comfort. I was scared, no, terrified. I didn't want to die.

Suddenly the stasis pod burst, and I scrambled away, trying to stay out of the sight of the long dead Breakdown, but the very much alive Silas. I had read about how much of a nuisance he was, only now do I completely comprehend what they meant when it was said that he refused to give up. The sudden clicking of slender points to the floor, made me realize that a certain femme was now out of her stasis pod, and very much awake as she fumbled to find her bearings. The attention of the terror-conned Breakdown/Silas was transitioned from my hiding place behind a pillar to the spider-like femme, and he attacked her. It was to my dismay that he missed, and she hopped up onto the ceiling, seeing my terrified self, and soon making the terror-con fall to his back.

"How many times do I have to kill the SAME mech?" she seethed, and pierced where Breakdown's spark once was.

I heard the mumblings of Silas, and Arachnid's 'humph' of disinterest. I then remembered that she saw me, and her attention slowly came to my hiding place.

"I know you're there, maskless drone." she chuckled, and I felt fear take hold of my spark, making it's every beat a painful jab in my chassis, "Oh come now, we're just a couple of femmes." she chided, but I stayed firmly planted in my spot, "Suit yourself."

I heard the clicks of her spindly legs go by, and the door open, then shut. I held in the breath that my frame desperately needed, afraid she might still be there. The tears fell silently as my fear grew with every creak and bump the Nemesis made. Finally, after a long moment, perhaps it had only been a few minutes really, I looked past my hiding place.

"You're not like the others, are you?"

I shrieked at how close she had become in such a short time, and so noiseless that I had assumed she had left. I slipped on the floor as I tried to get up, resulting in several dents in my backplates and arms.

"So jumpy," she chuckled, "Come now I won't hurt you, if I deem you useful."

"I-I-I hold nothing that y-y-you may w-want." I cursed myself for stuttering.

"Is that so?" she chuckled, and brought a sharpened digit close to my faceplate.

I slowly scrambled back as I slipped across the metal floor, and Arachnid continued to advance. I hit the wall, and had no where else to go. I felt her sharp digit dig into my delicate faceplate, and she drew a thin line that stung with her added venom residue. There was no venom on her digit, just the lingering, thin coat that usually would prove harmless...

"Fragile one aren't you," she smiled, "You'll be wonderful vehicon pet for me and my army of Insecticons."

Sh-Shockwave... Help...

She cackled, and picked me up with her spindly spider legs so I could not reach the floor. I was to scared to fight back, not when my cheekplate still stung and the possibility of death looming over me like a lead cloud. She called for her Insecticons and I heard their screeching cries that rattled inside my processor. I cried, and let the tears fall but I made no sound. I just want Shockwave. Arachnid started down the halls of the Nemesis, and I was carried behind her. We rounded a corner... and there was Soundwave. Seeing my chance, I fought against her surprisingly strong hold, resulting in the bending and almost snapping of one of her legs, and I was dropped. I rolled to the side of the hall and squished myself as far as I could into it, avoiding the slowly disappearing army. When it became silent, I made the mistake of moving, realizing just how horribly sharp an Insecticon's armor can be when rushing by.

I made short whimpers as I gently touched the oozing blue substance the Terror-cons were after not to long ago. I began to cry from the pain, and looked up, seeing the blank visor of Soundwave. I quickly looked away, knowing him to be my superior, and I was not qualified to even be near him. I was surprised when he picked me up, as gently as Shockwave, and brought me to the medical bay, but I was already unconscious before we even arrived.