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Flying across the skies of Chicago, the air was full of smoke and chaos as the city was turned into a warzone. Daybreaker's sharp gaze scanned the Autobots and soldiers below, looking for her next point of attack.
The battle had been going on for hours, and Megatron's orders were clear: kill all humans and their Autobot protectors. Daybreaker revelled in this. The sounds of chaos reaching her audials, explosions causing the stench of heavy smoke, it made her feel the rush of battle in her wires. Yet something was wrong. Starscream wasn't in the sky.
Usually, his mode of attack was simple: quick fire and retreat. It was a good tactic for Seekers like them but she couldn't see Starscream anywhere. Why would she worry about her commander?
They were more than just soldier and commander. For a long time, the two had been at odds with each other. Daybreaker was unruly, disrespectful, and hard to control, making Starscream's life harder. Many times did he want to kill her and get it over with, many times did she love the rush of getting him to that point, but as the years went on the two became closer. It started as regular bantering, fighting, only for the two to almost enjoy the feeling of the fight. It wasn't long until Starscream had realized Daybreaker only did her teasing and hard to control attitude to get his attention. It was the only way to do it in a war like this. While usually he'd be angry, furious even, something about that revelation made him go a bit softer on her. He had grown fond of her. It made Daybreaker able to fight less for his attention when he actively gave her it. Soon enough the two became more than just war allies, they became conjunx.
This was completely unheard of. Megatron wouldn't allow any of it. A conjunx would only distract Decepticon soldiers from the real goal. But Daybreaker and Starscream kept it secret; to the side where no one would find it out. It gave Daybreaker a reason to keep fighting in this war, as before that, she had begun to grow tired of it.
Now here she was, circling the city looking for him. Her comms crackled, cutting through the chaotic noises to reach his comm. "Starscream, report your position!" she barked out in Cybertronian.
What followed was no response. Instead static answered her back. She tried again, this time louder, but still nothing. A series of explosions sounded in the distance. Which, while Daybreaker would've ignored, something about it made her feel uneasy. Her optics narrow towards the direction of Starscream's last known position. Without hesitation she shot towards the sound, engines at full blast.
As she approached, the scene came into view, which made her spark sink. Starscream was in a panic. The human, Sam Witwicky, had him latched with a grappling hook, long enough to get him distracted. Long enough for her to witness the gruesome sight of his head being blown off his body. His frame collapsed lifelessly. Starscream, one of the most skilled and cunning Decepticons she ever fought beside, was bested by a puny human.
"NO!" Daybreaker cried out in shock as she transformed midair, landing next to his body, her talons digging into the ground causing it to crackle beneath her. Time seemed to slow down for her. There was nothing she could do. He was destroyed. He was offline. His optics were completely dim, his energon spilling onto the ground soaking her talons, It made Daybreakers spark rush not with excitement this time, but with deep anger.
Flames ignited within her optics, her gaze shifting to the humans. Her flames began to grow into a frenzy as she roared out. "YOU FILTHY INSECTS!" Unleashing a torrent of fire, she activated her propulsion, charging forward, razor sharp claws outstretched aiming towards Sam himself. Sam stumbled backward, a look of terror and determination on his face.
Before Daybreaker could slice into him, a rush of blue and red charged against her, causing her to crash into one of the buildings. Rubble came down on top of her from the force of the impact. Her optics flicker as she glared to see Optimus standing in front Of Sam protectively.
"Stand down, Daybreaker." He spoke deep, a warning against her.
But she couldn't stop. Her anguished spark beat fast causing her body to heat up to scorching temperatures as she pushed herself up "NEVER."
She lunged at Optimus, ready to tear him limb from limb without thinking of the power he held. Being so focused on him she failed to see his lead scout, Bumblebee, bash into her side, flanking her and causing her to stumble back. She sent eruptions of flames towards them, her maw opening and letting out devastating bellows of fire, but being so blinded by rage, Optimus was easily able to land a blow to her head, causing her throat-mounted flamethrower to spark and break off, sending her falling backward once more.
She tried to fight them off, but the combined power of Optimus, Bumblebee, and the human soldiers were starting to slow her down and fast. Bullets were piercing through her armor, the impact of each hit caused more of her shell to break off. Finally. Being pinned down she came to a sudden terrifying realization: she couldn't fight them. She couldn't win. Starscream was gone, offline, and if she stayed she'd meet the same fate.
Her optics flickered one last time to Starscream's lifeless body, an unbearable pain clawing at her spark. With a final, ear-shattering scream, she used her final burst of energy to cause a wall of fire to erupt around body, making the Autobots fall back to avoid it. Using the distraction she quickly transformed into her Alt form, shooting off to the sky disappearing into the clouds.
The city became a speck behind her. She could hear the explosions begin to fade only for her comms to crackle to life with the enraged voice of Megatron.
"Daybreaker! Explain your retreat!"
She didn't answer, she couldn't go back. She didn't have the strength. If she did it would be suicide.
"RETURN TO THE BATTLE IMMEDIATELY DAYBREAKER-"
Daybreaker turned off her comms, continuing to fly far away, as far as she could manage with her injuries.
Soon enough her energy began to fade as she started to lose altitude. Her body felt weak, she couldn't fly like this anymore. Lowering down and landing herself in a desolate forest she skid onto the dirt ground, the mud and dirt getting into the seams of her talons and legs as she couldn't stand up. Energon seeped from her wounds, her wings were bent and out of shape making it a miracle she could've even escaped this far.
Daybreaker took the time to process what had happened. Starscream was dead, her conjunx destroyed, and she fled battle. She deserted the Decepticons like a coward. Her spark beat fast, feeling like it was crawling up her intake. Her flames began to dull, her wings lowered and optics widened as she replayed the scene in her head. She couldn't get to him fast enough, she failed. As a soldier and as conjunx.
Gripping the earth below her, her claws sank into the dirt and her body began shaking. With sudden despair, she let out another spark wrenching scream that echoed miles, causing the birds to fly out of the trees. Flames exploded from her vicinity burning the nature and ground that were near her. After all of it, she collapsed on the ground, sobbing out as the area around her burned down. The flames simmered, as they were extinguished by the moistness of the plants and trees. She gripped her head sobbing into the ground. She felt, for the first time in her existence, completely and utterly alone.
"Star.. I'm so sorry.."