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Starscream stood in front of the groundbridge, illuminated by its bluish glow, arms crossed and foot tapping impatiently. His face was twisted into a deep scowl, and any Vehicon unlucky enough to meet his stare quickly turned their head away. Starscream muttered something under his breath, wondering what was taking Knockout so damn long, when this whole thing had been his idea.
It had all started a couple of weeks earlier, after the unfortunate incident with Cylas and the Terrorcons. Knockout and Starscream had found themselves together in the medbay after the latter’s ‘discussion’ with Megatron. Knockout had been even more chatty than usual, perhaps due to the ordeal they’d been through together. Their conversation was mostly meaningless chit-chat, until Knockout had steered it towards the topic of human horror films and, out of the blue, asked Starscream if he’d want to join him some time. To his own surprise, and perhaps Knockout’s too, Starscream had said yes.
In hindsight, Starscream was absolutely sure he wasn’t to blame for this decision, but rather, the painkillers he’d been on at the time. He was quite certain he could use this argument to escape the whole thing, and had been on the verge of doing so several times, but never followed through. While he would never admit it out loud, a small part of Starscream felt like he owed this to Knockout after trying to pin the whole Terrorcon-incident on him. Besides, this way, he was far less likely to have to do something as lowly as apologize.
Instead, he was stuck standing in front of a glowing groundbridge, looking like a fool. It was still the better alternative.
Finally, the doors swept open, and Knockout sauntered into the room. Starscream immediately saw why he’d taken so long; the medic’s finish was practically sparkling, glossy and buffed to perfection.
“Ah, there you are Commander!” Knockout’s mouth turned into a smirk. “Ready to go?”
“Yes, yes!” Starscream groaned impatiently, rolling his optics and wishing they could just get everything over with. “Lead the way doctor.”
“As you wish.” Knockout turned around and walked into the groundbridge’s glowing vortex, smirk still in place. After quickly thinking it over one last time, Starscream followed him.
They both emerged from the bridge into a rather sparse forest, its thin trees few and far between. After giving their surroundings a once-over, Starscream turned towards Knockout with one eyebrow raised sceptically. His companion was not deterred, however, but simply gestured in one direction, and the two of them began walking.
“So.” Knockout began after a couple of minutes in silence. “Want me to give you the basic run down on how this works?”
“Quite frankly, I couldn’t care less.” Starscream replied, looking the other way.
“Well, if you’d rather sit in your quarters moping, you’re welcome to turn back.” Knockout’s voice had gotten an irritated edge to it. “While I would prefer company, I am fully capable of going alone.”
“I- no, that won’t be necessary.” Starscream quickly amended, shuddering at the thought of being holed up in the Nemesis all alone, with only drones, Soundwave, and an angry Megatron for company. “Please continue, doctor.”
Knockout’s grin was already back as he cleared his vocaliser, clearly excited to begin.
“So, it all began one day when me and Breakdown-” He trailed off, staring into the distance, before quickly snapping back again. “We were scouting for energon, but not having much luck, when we spotted this sign...”
By the time Starscream knew more than he’d ever wanted about human entertainment productions, Knockout was back to his old carefree self. Furthermore, the forest had begun clearing, and beyond the last few trees Starscream could spot a tall fence and a few buildings.
“Here we are then!” Knockout sauntered forward and made a grand gesture towards the fence. “Commander Starscream, your seat awaits.”
Starscream eyed the metal links suspiciously. While the fence wasn’t nearly tall enough to keep a Cybertronian out, there was another concern on his mind.
“While I’m certain you have been planning this for a long time.” Starscream began. “There is a certain detail I’m afraid you have overlooked.”
“Oh?” Knockout asked quizzically. “And what is that?”
“In your thorough explanation of this phenomenon, you’ve made it quite clear that this is a drive-in theatre, meaning it is for cars, which I-” He gestured to himself. “-am not. How am I even supposed to get in without raising suspicion?”
Knockout’s mouth immediately split into a self satisfied grin.
“That has already been taken care of.” He said confidently. “Not only is this location rather remote, it is also situated right next to a hangar for retired government planes. If we’re already at the lot before the first humans arrive, and stay in the back, no one will pay us any mind. As for how we get in, that is even more simple; we just sneak in at the back.”
He chuckled at Starscream’s dumbfound expression.
“What, how do you think I usually get in without any money? Now come on!”
Climbing over the fence landed them in a gravel field, empty save for the large screen set up at the opposite end. Since there were no humans present, Starscream was able to take a closer look before he and Knockout returned to the back of the field and transformed, settling into their vehicle modes.
Since the film wasn’t due to start in another two hours, the two of them passed the time with some conversation. Though a little stilted at first, and largely consisting of sarcasm and quips, Starscream found that he rather enjoyed talking with Knockout about something that wasn’t his own problems or their mutual dislike of Shockwave.
As the time passed, creeping ever closer towards the film’s scheduled start, Starscream expected them to be interrupted any minute by the first of undoubtedly many loud and obnoxious humans. Twenty minutes later, however, they were still the only ones there, and the screen stayed completely blank. Clearly annoyed by the delay, Knockout fired up his engine and sped towards the entrance to check what was taking so long.
The only way in or out from the field was a large gate on the opposite side, to the right of the large screen, and it didn’t take long before Knockout returned, albeit with much less enthusiasm.
“Call for a bridge.” He said when Starscream was within earshot. “We’re leaving.”
“Why?” Starscream asked, transforming out of his jet-mode. “Change of plans?”
“Yes.” Knockout’s reply was short, and when he transformed as well, Starscream could see the unhappy frown on his face. “The screening was cancelled, and I don’t see any point in getting more gravel and dust marring my paint.”
“So?” Starscream stayed put, stubbornly crossing his arms. “We can just find another one, can we not?”
“There is no other one!” Knockout exclaimed, turning around with a wide gesture. Arms crossing over his chest, his next words were quieter.
“It was all supposed to be so perfect. A horror film I had not seen, a really remote location, and a neighbouring air hangar so you could blend right in. But, of course, it didn’t matter.”
Knockout must have already called in for a groundbridge, because at that moment, the swirling vortex opened some distance away. The two of them entered the portal, neither saying anything more, and soon they were both back aboard the Decepticon warship.
Out in the corridor and away from any prying audials inside the groundbridge control room, Knockout finally spoke again.
“Well then. I shouldn’t be keeping you any longer. Good night, Commander.”
While he tried to sound like his usual self, Starscream knew Knockout well enough to hear his disappointment. As Knockout turned and began walking away, something in Starscream’s spark stirred. Perhaps it was his stubborn unwillingness to accept defeat. At least, that was what he told himself.
“Knockout, wait!” He called out and, as the medic turned around, continued before he could change his mind. “I have a bottle of high grade in my quarters. Perhaps we could share that instead? I also have an old holoprojector somewhere, if you’d care for some pre-war classics.”
Knockout nodded along with his words, optics focused on something in the far distance, until he suddenly snapped back to reality.
“Wait- did you just say holoprojector?”
“Yes.” Starscream crossed his arms impatiently. “Don’t tell me your audials are malfunctioning now.”
“Is it portable?” Knockout continued eagerly, completely ignoring the other’s tone.
“Of course it is!” Starscream scoffed. “What do you take me for, low-caste rabble?”
He expected a quip back, but Knockout was already taking off down the corridor.
“Meet me in my quarters in fifteen minutes!” He called over his shoulder as he ran. “And bring that holoprojector!”
Since it was already late into the evening shift, and with nothing better to do, Starscream found himself doing just that. The holoprojector, a light but rather bulky thing, was easy enough for him to carry across the hallway on the upper deck that housed all the officers’ quarters.
Starscream set the projector down just outside Knockout’s door before debating on whether he should knock and wait, or simply use his override codes to let himself in. The decision was ultimately taken from his hands, however, as Knockout arrived moments later, practically skipping down the corridor towards his quarters. Starscream gave him a look as Knockout entered the access code, but chose to shift his focus to the room as he was let in.
Despite holding one of the higher positions on the Nemesis, and a more than generous streak of vanity, Knockout’s quarters were rather modest. The berth was standard grade, and stood against the back wall of the room. There was also a small desk that, by the looks of it, hadn’t seen use for a long time. Except for a door presumably leading to the washracks, the only other thing of note was a large mirror, the purpose of which was not hard to guess.
Knockout left Starscream to inspect his accommodations while he picked up the holoprojector his companion had left behind. He set it down at the foot of his berth, pointing the lens at the opposite wall. Having apparently decided he was done looking around, Starscream watched him work.
“So, care to share your newly revised master plan?” He asked as Knockout made some final adjustments.
“Of course!”
Satisfied with the results, Knockout rose and shot Starscream a grin before reaching into his subspace and triumphantly pulling out a small data slug.
“I figured if we weren’t able to go see the film, the film would simply have to come to us.” He explained as he plugged the slug into the holoprojector. “So I did the only thing left; I asked Soundwave for a favour.”
Starscream stared at him, unsure what was more unbelievable; Knockout being willing to owe Soundwave a favour for something like this, or Soundwave actually agreeing to it.
“Hello, are we going to start or what?” Knockout called, snapping him out of his musings.
Knockout was already sitting on the edge of his berth, and after a moment, Starscream joined him.
It took some fiddling, but eventually the holoprojector sparked to life, projecting a clear image onto the wall. With everything taken care of, and the lights in the room shut off, it was finally time to begin. Knockout practically bounced as he hit the play button, and the image of an old dark castle appeared on the wall.
Despite the film being made by humans, Starscream could not deny that the first scene was rather unsettling, if not outright scary. The dark corridors of the castle, the unseen threat looming in the darkness, and the fearful desperation of the two human characters all came together to create an overhanging sense of dread. Starscream had to fight the urge to glance over his shoulder several times.
Fortunately, after that first scene, the film became a little less intense, introducing the main characters and having them try to solve the mystery of their dead brethren. There were a couple more creepy scenes sprinkled throughout the middle of the film, but none of them came close to the first one. Starscream also found an easier way to deal with them: whenever something unsettling began happening, he’d simply look at Knockout instead of the screen. Unlike his companion, Knockout was fully focused on the film, and seemed wholly unaware that he was being watched.
As Starscream continued spending the film stealing glances at the bot beside him, the more he felt like he was seeing him in a new light.
Everyone on the Nemesis knew Knockout as the sassy, vain, dangerously skilled medic, and he never failed to play that part. But here, Starscream was witnessing an entirely new side of him. Knockout’s optics were huge as he leaned towards the projected screen, completely entranced by the film playing. Hands that were usually buried in some unfortunate soul’s body and covered in energon now rested easily in his lap, and while his mouth was still curved with a smile, it was not the usual calculated smirk; it was a genuine one that reached his optics and made his whole face beam. Starscream found that, while he liked the usual Knockout more than he’d admit, he might just like this one a little bit more.
As the film neared its finale, the horror elements began ramping up again, and this time, Starscream found it harder to look away. Everything, from the visuals to the music, demanded the viewers’ full attention and made it impossible to do otherwise. With the conflicting desires to see what happened while simultaneously not getting scared, Starscream did the only thing he could think of; subtly shifting closer to Knockout, who still didn’t seem bothered at all.
This worked for a while, but by the time the final battle began, Starscream was shaking and hyperventilating, his spark spinning in its chamber at record speed. He tried to hold out a little longer, but finally, his resolve snapped. With any semblance of dignity dumped out the airlock, Starscream threw himself at Knockout, hugging him tightly, optics still glued to the screen. After a moment, a hand landed on his shoulder and gave a reassuring squeeze.
Five minutes later, the film was over, abruptly cutting off just after the credits had begun scrolling. Evidently, Soundwave hadn’t bothered to include them.
After a moment of silence, Starscream quickly let go of Knockout and hastily scooted back to his side of their makeshift couch. He silently hoped things wouldn’t become awkward between them after this. Fortunately, he didn’t need to worry.
“So, what did you think?” Knockout asked, still smiling. “Not bad for your first horror film, eh?”
“It was- an interesting experience.” Starscream answered truthfully. “Though I could have done without all the screaming.”
“Yes, that is an unfortunate part in most of these.” Knockout agreed. “Still, this is one of the better films I’ve seen in a while. Apparently, it’s part of a whole line that takes place in the same universe. Perhaps we could watch another one sometime?”
After a moment, Starscream replied, “Yes, I would like that.”
Knockout looked ready to leap through the celling, but settled for some light bounces on the berth before composing himself, getting up to shut of the projector.
“That’s wonderful to hear, Commander.” He said happily. “Now, since we both have duties in the morning, I won’t keep you any longer. Though I will say, thank you for a great night.”
“You too, Knockout.” Starscream nodded, rising off the berth.
He pressed the access panel to let himself out, while Knockout was busying himself with hefting the holoprojector into a corner. The door slid open and revealed the corridor outside. The long, quiet, dark corridor that led to his own quarters. The quarters that were located quite far away, Starscream suddenly realised. In theory, the walk wouldn’t take long, but what if someone – or something – was hiding in the shadows, waiting to pounce? What if there was a leftover Terrorcon somewhere, or a Unicron-spawned demon?
With a quick motion, Starscream closed the door again and turned back to face a surprised Knockout.
“On second thought.” Starscream began, using confidence to mask his other emotions, which definitely didn’t include fear. “It would be rather unnecessary to disturb the ship in this late hour. Would you mind if I stayed the night?”
“Of course not!” Knockout said, as his surprised expression transmuted into a knowing smile. “You can stay as long as you want, Starscream.”