Chapter Text
It’s been centuries since the war between the Autobots and Decepticons began after defeating the Quintessons.
While working together to defeat their enemy, B127 really believed that Optimus Prime and Megatron would go back to being the best friends they were before they all found out the truth about Sentinel Prime.
He thought that he would be able to go back to talking nonstop about the most comedic or wildest things he had in his mind. He would be able to boast about his interests while getting to know everyone else’s and of course telling them that his nickname was “Badassatron.”
But that didn’t happen. It will never happen again even if the two sides made a truce.
He’s been exposed to too many unfortunate, tragic things from this cruel war. From losing new friends he made by witnessing them being killed in the most violent ways to witnessing his beloved home being destroyed by the animosities of battle, B127 felt like he was losing his sense of… happiness? Or his motivation to keep a grin or a smile on his face?
But he had to hold on even though it was getting tougher from losing more Autobots each day.
He had to believe—needed to believe—that there will be something that can change this routine. This hardship he’s feeling. He will believe.
++
He had just come back from a mission to destroy two of the Decepticons’ largest energon blasters.
Optimus Prime ordered both he and Ironhide to lead their squads of Autobots to knock them down. The blasters were protected by only one squadron of Decepticons so it was suppose to be an easy win. If they succeed, then the Autobots would have a bigger advantage against the Decepticons.
But they failed the mission.
When they arrived, they expected to be faced with that one squad of Decepticons. Instead, they were attacked by seekers all over the area. Above, they rained down on them like a meteor shower making them have to fall for cover.
Ironhide and his squad survived with both minor or critical injuries but all came were alive thankfully. It couldn’t be said the same for B127 though.
He was the only one who survived his squad.
Because what happened was his fault.
He made a mistake of telling his squad to find cover when they were being shot at by the many Decepticons ahead. However, when they went for cover, seekers located them quite quickly. Before he could take back his word and say something else, they all had holes through their spark chambers.
He only survived because Ironhide was there to kill the one seeker flying down at him.
Now, he was sitting with his face down to the floor not wanting to exist anymore. He failed those Autobots. He should’ve known better.
A familiar hand rest on his shoulder plate. Then, a recognizable voice that anyone would knew who it belonged to spoke to him.
Optimus said gently, “Ironhide told me what happened.”
B127 didn't look up, “It was all my fault.”
“It wasn’t your fault, my friend—”
The guilt grew in B127’s spark when Optimus said that simple statement. He didn’t want to hear comforting words right now. He didn’t deserve it not after failing their Autobots. His squad!
He moved himself away from Optimus, lifting his head, “Don’t—don’t tell me it wasn’t my fault, Optimus! I gave an order that killed 15 Autobots in one sweep from the Decepticons! They were mine to protect and lead and look what happened to them!”
B127’s optics were glowing strongly from the emotions he was feeling. His angered optics looked up at Optimus with wanting his leader, his friend, to reprimand him for his mistake.
But as always, only Optimus’s kind optics stared down at him sympathetically. Optimus just never had the heart to be frustrated or angry even when it should be needed.
Optimus lightly shook his head before taking a light breath, “You did what you thought was right at the moment. You were a leader protecting your squad. If anything, I should’ve been aware that the Decepticons would grow their numbers. And I should have known that the old High Guard seekers would be there. The fault is all mine.”
B127 stood up from sitting on the crate. He scoffed at the floor.
Optimus always took the blame whenever any of them came back with a failed mission. He never wanted any of them to feel guilty. Optimus wanted them to be rid of that entirely every single time.
For some reason, that angered B127 more. It wasn’t just this failed mission getting to him.
He thought about the very beginning of the war. He thought about all of the other times he failed their fellow Autobots in past missions. He thought about the moments he failed Optimus. But finally, he thought about how truly unfit he was to be… a leader like everyone else he knew.
B127 made a shaky exhale. His bottom lip slightly trembled with his optics nearly pooling.
“Bee?” Optimus’s usual leadership voice turned into his real self.
“I…” B127 gulped to push down the coolant tears pricking, “… I’m sorry, Optimus.”
Before Optimus could say anything, B127 ran away at lightning speed. He heard Optimus call his designation but by that moment, it was an echo far away.
He ran through the hall towards the entry doors of the outside. He ran past his fellow Autobots. He ran past Sideswipe and Sunstreaker. Jazz was with them.
“Bee, where’re you going!” Jazz called out.
He was gone from their sight already. He continued running to the closest exit door.
He can’t be a leader. He thought he could do this but he can’t do it. He shouldn’t be one of Optimus’s trusted Autobots. Not after what happened today. Not anymore. His pedes felt the ground of Iacon City.
Before any of his coolant tears fell, B127 transformed into his vehicle mode. He drove away from base, uncaring of the turmoil outside.
He didn’t know where he was going. All he wanted right now was to be by himself.
~•~
B127 ended up at a smaller city that was a little ways far from Iacon City.
This city he was walking through had long since been abandoned. Every structure was destroyed from the amount of battles that took place. It was dark and gray compared to Iacon City that was still brightened up from energon. For sure, there was no bot here that could bother or attack him.
He stopped to glance at a run-down sign to read:
‘Come dance the night away with your sparkmate!’
Sparkmate, huh?
B127 moved his optics down at the entrance of the karaoke bar.
He stepped inside cautiously but had already broken a glass shard underneath his pede. Quickly, he turned his head right and left, forming his arm into a cannon. It seemed like the coast was clear. He put his cannon away before fully stepping in.
The entire place was ruined. It was pitch dark with no color bestowed anywhere. He examined the torn down bar with broken glass cups shattered on the floor. The whole shelf that would have held different types of energon displayed was completely cut in half.
To his right, what he saw was what looked like a dance floor. It was heavily damaged as well. The floor looked like it would collapse completely if you placed a pede on it.
He tilted his head when he noticed speakers embedded in the ceiling. Hm? Those were the only things not destroyed. Then, he also noticed a huge machine hooked up against the wall.
He walked right up to it. And he gave the power button a push. Click.
Nothing.
“Psh, ‘course,” He shrugged to himself, “It needs energon.”
He lifted his left forearm, opening the part that held three small energon cubes. He picked one up to slide it right inside a finely cubed-shape slot. Once he put it in, the machine made a whirring sound before lighting up with blue.
Suddenly, the machine played music making B127 flinch from the unexpecting sound. He threw his hands up defensively as the upbeat music played harmlessly. When he saw that the machine wasn’t some bomb, he made a grin.
“Woah-ho, this is neat.”
B127 lowered his defenses down to start bumping a little to the rhythm.
Oh, he would’ve loved this place. He would’ve loved the sight of many bots in the building dancing with their partner or friends having the time of their life. Or–or maybe he himself is dancing with his partner here. He was about to gasp at the image playing in his head.
But the very thought made him feel somber. The bombs being heard far away made the atmosphere grimmer.
B127 placed both his servos onto the huge machine longingly. One day… one day he will get to put its purpose to use.
His daydreaming ended when he heard a whirring sound of a gun bumping the back of his head. He froze in place widening his optics at the voice speaking down at him.
“Not very wise to expose your location, autobot.”
B127 widened his optics at the high-pitched voice of Starscream.
Oh frag.
Every Autobot knew Starscream’s capabilities. He was the leader of the once honored High Guard centuries ago before Megatron named them won his place as their leader. They were warriors or soldiers before the war so they had way more experience than the Autobots. They were the reason why they were struggling in this war. The reason his squad was dead now.
And now he’s under Starscream’s weapon.
B127 grunted when Starscream bumped the barrel of his small canon against his head again. It was rougher this time.
“Turn around.”
B127 closed his mouth putting up a tougher face when he did what Starscream said. When he turned around, he at first was faced with the seeker’s small waist. Oops–
B127 finally lifted his optics up to look eye to eye with the second-in-commander. Slag…
B127 had to gulp, ‘I always forget how tall he is.’
Upon facing the red optics, B127 watched the way Starscream’s optics narrowed a bit at him. It looked like Starscream had recognized him by the way his eyebrow ridges raised with amusement. Starscream pushed the barrel of his gun on the side of B127’s head with a snicker.
“B127.”
B127 gritted his teeth, “Starscream.”
“I thought you looked familiar from your yellow color,” Starscream took a step forward, “I can’t help but feel something knowing I get to kill one of Optimus Prime’s trusted Autobots.”
B127 took a step back when Starscream stepped towards him. The taller mech wasn’t stopping too. Starscream’s looming figure casted a whole shadow over him.
B127 made a more meaner expression up at the Decepticon. If he didn’t catch him off guard, he would’ve sliced this cannon off of Starscream’s arm like it was a daily thing. It would’ve been satisfying knowing how many Autobots he and his seekers killed each battle.
But B127 began to wonder. Starscream had him under his gun–why didn’t he just shoot him dead on the spot? Starscream had a chance and he still does.
That’s when he noticed a skidding mark on Starscream’s left chestplate. It was a huge one that looked like it came from a weapon at close-range. Or probably a peer.
The impact of the shot held a dark, dusty matter on the pretty red color. But his optics saw the edge of Starscream’ wing. It appeared that someone grabbed it and crushed it in a cruel grip.
B127 almost frowned but the tip of Starscream’s cannon lifted his chin back up.
Starscream’s voice that was ruined from Megatron ages ago growled, “Optics up here, Autobot! Or else I decide to make your death slowly painful–”
“Alright do it then, you won’t! You would’ve by now–oof!”
Starscream had just kicked him down. B127 fell flat against the destroyed dance floor. But the floor shook underneath him. The broken parts of the floor cracked. He raised his eyebrows but before he could even sit up with his elbows, Starscream planted his pede right on top of his stomach.
“Urgh!” B127 grabbed at Starscream’s ankle and heel.
The air was knocked out of B127’s throat when Starscream pushed his pede further into his stomach. The weight of the Decepticon was crushing his smaller body.
Starscream hooked a hand on B127’s chestplate bringing him up to his face. There was anger present in Starscream’s red glowing optics while his teeth were clenched together.
“With pleasure.”
Finally, B127 was faced with Starscream’s canon revving up. The purple glow inside the canon grew more and more as it was charging up its blast in a dramatic, theatrical sense. He had to think of something quick to get the Decepticon off.
But suddenly, B127 felt the floor shake underneath them. Then the dreadful sounds.
Snap!—snap!—crrkkkk!
B127 reached out, “W-wait!”
The floor underneath them both broke apart right away. He heard Starscream’s surprised yelp.
The weight B127 felt lifted off him as they both separated from each other. The Decepticon must’ve just turned on his thrusters to fly away. Lucky Decepti—
“Ahh!” He yelled out.
He scrambled to grab onto anything to hold onto. But all he grabbed was air as he continued to fall deeper into wherever he was going into. His servos and pedes kept hitting against the walls of minerals until he flat out bounced against a dead energon boulder.
“Ow, ow—ugh!”
He landed face first onto the ground with a loud metal thud.
“Urghhh…”
He got up on his hands and knees groggily with a short cough of dust. The joints of his servos and pedes felt like they were going to snap off from the amount of times they smacked against jagged edges on his way down. Luckily though, with a roll of each joint, they were back in its normal place.
B127 lifted his face up to look at where he was.
He huffed in dismay at what he was seeing. It was nothing but Cybertron’s earthly walls and ground. He couldn’t have fell too deep in the lower levels. B127 moved his optics up where he fell from.
Nevermind, maybe he was with how far the hole was on top of him. He could climb but the idea of even climbing such a height would be crazy for any bot. But not for him. B127 cracked his knuckles as he prepared to jump on the wall.
“You insolent Autobot!”
B127 flinched from the frustrated high-pitched voice of Starscream. He turned around quickly before the Decepticon could get the drop on him again.
But what he found instead at a distance was Starscream underneath a pile of rubble. B127 couldn’t help but raise his eyebrows at the rare sight of the intimidating seeker being down.
‘He didn’t fly away?’ B127 thought.
Starscream tried to push himself out of the rubble but to no avail. His red optics glowed more brightly expressing clear anger when he didn’t move even a centimeter. B127 observed the way Starscream’s dentas clenched together when he tried again.
This time, Starscream was full on trying to pull himself out even harder. But by doing this, B127 watched the seeker’s wings scratch and scrape against the rubble in a not so great way. It was for sure going to leave ugly scratches on the pure white wing.
The spark in B127 moved him to lift his hand up in a caring manner, “I don’t think that’s a good idea—”
Starscream’s optics pointedly looked up at B127, “When I get out of this rubble, I’m going to tear off every limb and make sure you feel each and every cord rip apart! Then, I’m going to tear out your spark and blast it all the way to Iacon City!”
B127 muttered to the side, “You had your chance up there.”
“What did you say?!”
B127 held in a sigh. Why was he wasting time talking to Megatron’s second-in-command? This was his opportunity to get out of here and leave their greatest enemy to turn to dust down here.
He turned around to start climbing on the wall, “Um bye.”
“You—grrr!”
He heard Starscream struggling behind him as he took his first step of climbing. The sound of the rubble made crinkling sounds along with metal scraping against them. As B127 continued to climb, he began to hear tired pants coming out of Starscream’s throat.
He stopped climbing.
The tired pants turned into short wheezes of disbelief. There was no more struggling or attempts to escape anymore. B127 turned his head slightly to glance down.
Starscream was looking down at the ground with his shoulders moving up and down. Now, the Decepticon looked hopeless from his perspective. He made no more movements except when he lowered himself down to where his cockpit touched the dirt ground. His shoulders dropped even. What was this?
Slag it.
B127 pursed his lips, ‘I’m going to regret this.’
He landed back down perfectly making Starscream snap his head back up. B127 only took one step before Starscream started as he always did.
“Did you come back to finish me off so you can bring my head to your soft leader? Or did you realize that you could gain more power if you captured me alive? I’m sure your ranking would grow—”
As Starscream continued, B127 was regretting this already in his head. He rolled his optics at Starscream’s assumptions. Especially towards his ruined voice. The guy always had to say something huh?
“No and no” B127 made a half-attempted grin, “I came back because I want to help you.”
Starscream made an offended face. It surprised B127 that he had no direct response right away. He opened his mouth once more.
“I don’t really feel right leaving you stuck even though—”
“I am not stuck!”
There he goes.
“Your wings say otherwise.”
Starscream parted his lips when he took a glance back at his messed up wings that were the main reason why he was stuck. He went back to gritting his teeth again. Probably from fuming even more that they were getting messed up by the second.
B127 was now at an arm’s length when he went to examine how much rubble was on top of Starscream. He unknowingly reached his hand toward the edge of Starscream’s wing.
He pulled his hand away from Starscream’s loud voice.
“Don’t touch me, dirty Autobot!”
“I’m not going to touch you. I’m going to pull some of this off you!”
“I don’t want your help!”
‘Ughhh this guy,’ B127 shook his head.
He raised both his servos up, “Look, yell at me all you want. I’m gonna just ignore you the entire time.”
“You dare to—”
Starscream’s rant went through one audio to the other in B127’s processor.
B127 started to pull or throw aside the heavier boulders easily while Starscream continued to yell at him. Eventually, the beautiful seeker quieted down realizing the yellow Autobot was truly ignoring him. B127 was too focused to see that Starscream was watching him closely work from below.
It seemed like the rubble’s weight was dying down when Starscream was able to move more than before. B127 took this as a good sign especially when he noticed Starscream sort of starting to wiggle himself out.
But when the sight of both Starscream’s wings were half exposed, B127 made a sizzling sound out of his tongue. He thought the edge of them was bad but he was wrong to see the rest of it. Starscream was going to have to get some new plating or maybe new wings.
When he lift another rock off, he was thrown back with a sheer force of wind.
“Woah!”
B127 stumbled, quickly recovering to be on guard. He lift his chin up to watch Starscream fly off the ground with a flip. He landed on his heels but not without his thrusters dying out making the seeker’s balance off a bit.
He heard Starscream whisper to himself.
“Curses…”
B127 realized the seeker was trying to get his foot thrusters to work. But the things weren’t turning on completely. It only continued to spit and sputter each time Starscream tried to use them. And B127 knew Starscream wouldn’t be able to fly in his jet mode.
‘Maybe he needs energon?’
In a different world maybe, the sight of a seeker, especially Starscream, would be mesmerizing to B127. The way they would flip upside down to transform into their jet form or alt mode was pure art.
Seekers were always beautiful compared to other boys. But the way Starscream was built was of a true, elegant seeker. B127 was jealous a little. Even though he was clearly staring long at Starscream’s figure with a genuine gaze.
Next, he looked at the injuries and huge skid marks on Starscream’s chassis again like before. It was clear signs of being attacked. It made B127 grow curious. And now that he was able to observe longer, B127 saw a dent on Starscream’s cheek. Whoever did all of this had punched him square right there.
B127 lowered his chin, ‘Did… you come here to escape from what happened to you too?’
Starscream’s still glowing optics curtly turned to the small Autobot when the sound of an energon cube skipped at his feet. The seeker glanced at it for a moment.
“What is this?” Starscream asked slowly with caution.
“An energon cube.” B127 replied with sarcasm.
“Why are you giving this to me?”
“Do I really have to explain?”
Starscream leaned toward him from where he stood.
“You could’ve done something to it.”
B127 scoffed, “Okay first of all, do I look like a mech who knows how to do something to energon cubes? I mean, should I eat my last one to prove it to you?”
Without a second wasted, B127 popped his last energon cube into his mouth. He chewed and gulped feeling his body refresh from the surge of the energon. Finally, he crossed his arms waiting for Starscream’s reaction.
The seeker watched a little longer before pursing his lips. B127 lift his chin watching Starscream pick the cube up with his digits. With one bite, Starscream’s wings made a twitch. It made an expressive motion along with his red optics glowing again.
The scarlet red optics shined making B127 stare at them longer than he anticipated. He swore he also caught a glimpse of Starscream’s stark face… beaming from refreshment?
When gazing at the taller mech’s face, he now remembered the hours he spent reading all the archives about Starscream and his High Guard.
Each archive he read always talked about Starscream’s unique red optics and beautiful red frame. Each archive spoke in great detail about his capability in combat. B127 felt like himself again. Just completely fawning over the great Starscream standing a few feet from him.
As if they weren’t on opposing sides, B127 spread his arms apart casually. Welcoming and just wanting more interaction that didn’t involve hostility.
“See? It’s just an energon cube—”
He was thrown off his stance when Starscream flew out of the compacted space jet speed. Packs of dust rose up all over the place making B127 cough and sneeze.
When the dust settled, the seeker was gone. B127 looked up at the far hole they both fell from.
Now that the seeker was gone, B127 was able to think clearly. He grabbed his helm in disbelief at what he was feeling and thinking the entire time.
He shook his head, ‘His old High Guard killed my squad earlier. He’s a Decepticon. He’s Megatron’s second-in-command.’
Starscream shouldn’t be beautiful to him. He shouldn’t be at all. He shouldn’t show sympathy or concern seeing the signs of abuse on the seeker. He shouldn’t even have helped him out of the rubble!
Why was he glad he did though? He… was glad he did.
B127’s spark skipped a beat. He placed his servo on his chassis to let out a breath.
It was fine. This was going to be the first and last time he helped a Decepticon anyway.
B127 hopped back on the wall to start climbing. He needed to get back to duty and fast. Optimus and the others must be worried about him.