Inside the lab, Starscream strode toward Scalpel, his gaze fixing on the motionless form of T-18 sprawled across the deck. He didn't waste time with pleasantries. "Scalpel. T-18's activation failed. Was the Synthetic Core rejected, or did the internal modules fail to sync?"
Starscream wasn't just a pilot; he was an officer who understood the anatomy of a war machine. He knew the variables that could turn a new soldier into a pile of static.
"Don't be so impatient, Starscream. I'm running the diagnostics," Scalpel buzzed, his many eyes swiveling as he poked at the chassis with his metallic probes. "The Tentacle-Bot is already inside the internal bus. We'll have the data shortly."
Scalpel's tone was dismissive, almost bored, as if he weren't speaking to the second-highest-ranking officer in the empire.
From his place in the line, Nathan watched the exchange with calculated interest. Starscream hadn't issued a new command, so Nathan remained a statue, but his processors were whirring. He noticed that Scalpel's status was far higher than his diminutive size suggested. He addressed Starscream by name, showing a blatant lack of deference that the Air Commander simply... tolerated.
Is Scalpel more than just a medic? Nathan wondered. Does he have some leverage I don't see yet? In this universe, size was a deceptive metric. Scalpel was barely larger than a human hand, yet he commanded the room. Nathan brainstormed the possibilities, wondering if Scalpel was a "Headmaster" or an ancient scientist whose knowledge was too valuable to lose. Without data, all he could do was speculate.
Starscream began to pace the lab, his restless energy causing his wing-flaps to twitch. He inspected the various instruments and display screens, his red optics flickering with a frantic frequency. As Starscream turned, Nathan caught a brief glimpse of a small crimson light on the upper left of the Commander's chest plate—flashing with an erratic, high-speed pulse.
Before he could analyze the signal, Scalpel barked out the results.
"Starscream! It's settled!"
A small, scorpion-like drone—the Tentacle-Bot—crawled out from a seam in T-18's neck plating, scuttling back to its master.
"The unit is no longer worth the effort of surgery!" Scalpel declared, tilting his head. "The diagnostic shows a massive surge during the initial data upload. The logic chip's protocols conflicted with the localized hardware. The cerebral module is fried, along with most of the primary sensory arrays."
Nathan felt a cold jolt through his circuits. He wasn't a technician, but "fried cerebral module" was easy enough to translate: brain dead.
"If the mind is broken, then strip the frame," Starscream replied, his voice a cold, jagged rasp. A cruel smirk played across his faceplates. "I spent too much effort scavenging these alloys from this planet. We don't waste resources."
Scalpel let out a manic, buzzing laugh. "Agreed! I specialize in brain surgery, but I am equally proficient at a butcher's work."
Dismantle him?
Nathan felt a sickening wave of revulsion. He was looking at a creature that—conceptually, at least—was his brother. He had been activated only minutes after T-18. If his own Energy Core had spiked just a few kilowatts higher during his birth, he would be the one on the slab.
The "Energy Core" technology seemed like a brilliant workaround for the lack of the AllSpark, but now Nathan saw the hidden cost. It wasn't 100% stable. He realized that in this world, even existence was a gamble.
"T-19, T-20. Get over here. Break him down."
"Understood, Lord Starscream."
Two drones from the line stepped forward, their heavy steps echoing.
"Careful, you idiots!" Scalpel shrieked. "Don't damage the structural components! Cut here—keep the T-Cog and the weapon modules intact. We might need them for the next batch..."
Scalpel hovered over the drones, shouting instructions as they began the violent work of deconstruction. Under his guidance, the two mindless soldiers set to work with industrial cutters and saws. Sparks showered the floor as they carved into their fallen counterpart with zero hesitation.
Starscream watched in silence. He didn't need to get his hands dirty for such a minor task.
As he watched T-18 being systematically reduced to a pile of scrap and wire, Nathan felt his resolve harden. The Decepticons weren't just "the bad guys"; they were a hierarchy of absolute, cold-blooded utility. In the span of an hour, he had witnessed the true face of the faction: chaos, violence, and a complete disregard for life.
If I want to avoid ending up as a pile of parts on a lab floor, I have to change my strategy, Nathan thought.
He took a moment to mentally mourn T-18—not out of grief, but as a warning. He needed to be more than a drone. He needed power.
The AllSpark... it's hidden at the Hoover Dam.
The thought took root in his processors. According to the movie timeline, the AllSpark was currently locked away in Section 7's underground vault, right next to the frozen body of Megatron.
Nathan had been listening to Starscream's complaints. He had filtered two critical pieces of intel from the Seeker's rambling:
Megatron had not been found yet.Starscream was currently operating with almost no subordinates.
This meant the story hadn't truly begun. Barricade, Blackout, and Bonecrusher hadn't arrived on Earth yet—or if they had, they weren't in contact with Starscream. This was the calm before the storm.
If I can get to Hoover Dam and touch the AllSpark, I could force an evolution, Nathan calculated. But how do I get in without triggering every sensor in North America?
If he made too much noise, the humans would hunt him, and Starscream would likely execute him for knowing things a "T-series drone" shouldn't know.
But if the AllSpark can upgrade my frame... if it can push me past Mid-tier... Nathan watched T-19 and T-20. They were pulling the T-Cog from the ruined chest of T-18, their movements almost rhythmic. They seemed to enjoy the destruction, a corrupted feedback loop in their programming that rewarded violence.
Nathan looked away, his red optics focusing on the desert heat shimmering outside the lab's entrance.
When I have that power, he promised himself, I won't be following anyone's orders.
30+ chapters are available now and daily updates! @patreon.com/AgentTwilight