Chapter Text
Megatron first noticed the cube of energon on his desk and quickly disposed of it assuming it was poisoned. Then he noticed all the backlogged reports he’d been trying to chip away at were completed, and organized by date. All that was missing from them was his signature. He spent some time meticulously checking each one for mistakes but found none. Whoever had broken into his office was either trying to suck up to him or make him drop his guard down. Megatron knew exactly which outcome was more likely.
The appearance of the cubes had been going on for some time now, and Megatron had yet to catch who was placing them. It was beginning to be more frustrating rather than a small annoyance as energon supplies were slimming and not getting replenished. The section of deep space they were in had no sign of energy sources and Soundwave predicted that it’d be another half-cycle until a decent planet was located.
It was decided that rations would be cut as much as they could, and Megatron decided to decrease his substantially. He could go a long time without refueling, a trick he learned long before the war when he was still working in the mines. A downside was moving slowly and a lack of motivation to work, but this was all temporary.
So whoever noticed his sudden change was now leaving him energon and doing his work. He knew it wasn’t Soundwave, as Rumble and Frenzy would boast about it loudly. It had to be Starscream, as the seeker knew the code to his office and would have the motive. Megatron could easily imagine Starscream's plot involving luring him into a false sense of safety before striking.
So he waited, not changing his routine, knowing Starscream would slip up at some point. It didn’t take long, as after a few more shift rotations Megatron keyed in the code to his office and came face to face with Skywarp.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Megatron couldn’t help how loud his voice was. Skywarp jumped, looking terrified as he was in mid-motion of setting an energon cube down on the desk. The seeker set it down with a click and backed away with the intention of teleporting, but Megatron was ready. He took hold of the flier’s arm, then kliks later released it upon seeing how startled Skywarp was. Megatron wanted to prevent Skywarp from escaping but also didn’t want to have a knife in his back again from mishandling the seeker.
“What are you doing?” Megatron asked again, quieter.
“You’re not refueling,” Skywarp answered timidly, wings hidden and pinned behind him.
“Of course I am,” Megatron argued. Skywarp glanced at the cube.
“None of us has seen you refuel,” The seeker’s wings slowly lifted.
“I’ve learned to run on little supply. Others need it more than me.”
“Yeah, but if you, like, go into stasis, then Starscream’s in charge and he’d be one klik away from tossing you into deep space.”
Megatron glanced at the cube, grimacing, “Is it poisoned?”
Skywarp snorted, wings popping up slightly, “No. That’d do the opposite of why I brought it.”
“And I don’t suppose you did all the reports,” The leader pointed to the new stack of finished datapads.
“I wouldn’t have the patience,” Skywarp hesitantly grinned, “Thundercracker did.”
Megatron continued to stare down the seeker, waiting for him to crack and reveal the trineleader’s true plan. Skywarp continued to nervously grin, wings jerking upward as if he was trying to prevent them from lowering. If Thundercracker were here, he’d break easier.
“What is Starscream planning?” Megatron demanded.
“Nothing! We wanted to-,” Skywarp sputtered.
“So he came up with the idea?” Megatron cut him off.
Skywarp stared, wings pitching up in a way that was similar to when Starscream was about to screech a monologue, “We’re just trying to be nice.”
“I don’t believe you,” Megatron pointed to the door, “Make this your last time. The assistance is appreciated but unnecessary. Return to your post and tell your trine the same. If I learn of ulterior motives then there will be harsh repercussions.”
Megatron stepped aside to allow Skywarp to leave. The seeker hesitated, wings dropping low again before he slipped past Megatron and out of sight. Once alone, Megatron picked up the cube, checking over its clarity. He gave it a small taste, before drinking it all. It had been a while since his last refuel, and he’ll just have to see if it offlines him.
The leader’s suspicions were beginning to be proven right when he later caught Starscream speaking to Soundwave privately. His second and third were tucked away in one of the storage bays looking over a datapad. Soundwave kept nodding his head whereas Starscream looked agitated. It was never a good sign to see the two working together without his input. Megatron considered approaching them, but he knew it would result in both of them putting their defenses up. He’d just have to wait a little longer to see what Starscream was planning.
The discovery of a close by planet with an energon source distracted Megatron enough for him to forget about the discovered meeting. With the now replenished supply, the random cube and finished reports ceased to appear. Megatron barely noticed, as he was back to his normal level of production. He nearly forgot about the potential sabotage from Starscream until there was a knock on his office, said seeker walking in without waiting for a reply. Megatron began to stand to prepare for an attack but stopped when Starscream dropped a stone on his desk.
It was roughly polished, but shades of blue and purple shone through. Megatron picked it up, impressed that it nearly was the size of his palm and had decent weight to it. He’d seen minerals like this in the mines that were sent to crafters to create intricate jewelry. It still needed to be reshaped, but the cuts were clean and the potential for more cracks was minimal. Megatron looked up to see Starscream still staring at him blankly.
“What’s this?”
“A gem,” Starscream said plainly.
“I know that. Why?” Megatron set the stone down gently, seeing that at a new angle, the gem had shades of red as well.
Starscream seemed to bristle as if annoyed that he had to explain. “Since you seem to have nothing going on under that bucket head. And failed to even recognize what me and my trine were doing. I had to stoop to your level and ask Soundwave what grounders do to court.” He points at the rock. “This is me asking, as well as on behalf of my trine, to court you, you dumb aft.”
Megatron looked at the stone again, feeling somewhat puzzled but also having a moment of clarity.
“So you weren’t plotting to poison me,” Megatron stated.
“I’m highly considering it now,” Starscream shot back, “but no. It was their idea to bring you energon since you decided to play martyr and nearly fall into stasis.”
“That wasn’t the case,” Megatron argued.
“Whatever,” Starscream’s wings puffed out, “Soundwave said grounders talk instead of giving gifts. I’m very plainly speaking to you. So do you accept?”
The two stared each other down, the only movement being the erratic jerk of Starscream’s wings. Finally, after enough pause, the seeker turned with a huff.
“Fine. Either tell me later or don’t. Your silence is telling enough.” With that he left, leaving the silence to linger again. Megatron picked up the stone, turning it and watching as blues, purples, and reds faded in and out. Sighing, he realized what he needed to do. Starscream was at least a little right, communication is key.