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Megatrons optics stare lazily at the roof, frame limp against his berth. He hadn't had a particularly eventful deca-cycle, but lately nothing seemed to interest him. One would call it depression, perhaps. But he convinced himself he was simply recovering, nothing more.
He'd gotten word that Optimus Prime had appeared on the surface, but he didn't so much as flinch. Ever since that horrid Cycle, he couldn't do much of anything. Faced with the choice to fight his ex, he'd normally be ecstatic. He couldn't find it in himself to care much, at this moment.
Starscream, his ever so confusing second in command, remained at his side the entire time. he offficially considered the young Seeker as apart of the elite Trine. The only upside to this was how relaxed he could let himself be while being groomed, even if he only let Starscream do it for now.
Other than that? his frame lay motionless, you could mistake him for being offlined, especially with how dull the lights in his optics were. He knew he had a job to fulfill, a Prime to dismantle- But, he had a more personal goal to fulfill. And until they found the bot responsible for his undoing, he would remain hidden in his chamber.
His optics remained fixed on the ceiling, not sparing a glance towards Starscream as he entered his chambers, Energon cubes in servo. His appetite, not unlike his mood, was almost completely ruined.
"Lord Megatron," began Starscream, making his way into the Berth with Megatron. "I am worried for your wellbeing, as well as your mental fortitude." He said carefully, trying to get Megatron to take the Energon into his servo.
Megatron took the cube, but only held it in the palm of his servo. He curled his intake at the seeker, still not looking at him. "I am fine, Starscream." His voice was steady, but it lacked any actual bite. It almost made Starscream miss the insults.
"Yes, yes. As much as you may say that, your frame still isn't fully healed. Or at least, that's what Knock Out wants to figure out." Starscream snuck in that last part, a bombshell on his already terrible cycle.
Megatron groaned, rolling over onto his side, away from Starscream. "Don't be like that Megs." A tug to his wing, but he didn't budge. He wasn't in the mood to be poked at, looked at, examined. He would much rather rust in his berth for all of eternity, maybe even accept defeat at the hands of Optimus Prime.
Oh. That was a new thought.
"Look- I can get Knock Out to come here instead of you going to him, but this isn't something you can skip out on. You know what he said." Now, Starscream was walking a fine line threatening Megatron with his /own/ condition, but he vented and sat up anyways.
"Must you pester me with this nonsense? I am very aware of the state my frame is in, Starscream." Megatron grunted, subtly pushing the energon onto his berth.
Starscream frowned, standing up. "Are you going to Knock Outs or is he coming here?" He asked, getting his comms ready for either response. Megatron shrugged, "I'd prefer to be here." He mumbled, almost embarrassed at the admission. Starscream gave a curt nod, before walking out of his Quarters.
A few kliks later, Knock Out is walking into his Quarters with equipment in servo. Megatron is eternally thankful he didn't have to tell Starscream to stay out during this, seeing as his Second hand often lacks his critical thinking skills.
"You know the drill, lean on your elbows and spread your legs." Knock Out said as he walked over, placing his things next to Megatrons berth. And while he wasn't enthusiastic about someone other than Starscream being so close to his berth, there was not much place else to do this. And he asked for this.
With slight hesitance, he laid back on his elbows, spreading his legs so his panels were easier to access. Knock out pulled thin pieces of plastic over his servos, not wanting to get the paint on his digits scraped off as he checked Megatron.
He got between Megatrons legs, careful not to startle him. "Open up your Valve panel, please?" Knock out asked, watching as Megatron obeyed.
He leaned down, placing his thumb on the outside of his valve, pulling the lips apart to reveal what's inside. Megatron frowned, but didn't say anything as Knock Out worked.
"Have you experienced any specific pains down here? outside of the initial few tears." Megatron thought for a moment, before shaking his head. "No, fortunately. I suspect I'm healing quite well." It was mostly hope, so all of this invasion of his most private areas could cease- but also fact. It had been two deca-cycles by now.
Knock Out only nodded, continuing to look around surface level. Megatron dreaded what came next.
"I'm quite aware how much you hate this part, but it's necessary to ensure a safe recovery. May i feel around inside and make sure any past dislodged Calipers have regained their place?" Knock Out asked as he sat up, looking Megatron in the Optics.
Megatrons engine growled quietly, but he knew it was needed. He only responded with a nod, not wanting to think about how he's agreed to this. It was humiliating.
Knock Out reached into one of the pouches on his hip, pulling out a bottle of lube. "Tell me at any time if it hurts, I didn't see anything wrong from my check, but I could've missed something." How comforting.
"Do you want me to count down?-" "No." His response instant. Knock Out resumed his previous position, only this time he lay more on his stomach than anything. With one of Megatrons legs placed firmly on his back, so it was out of his way and so Megatron could threaten him- He poured the lube over two of his digits, pushing one in to start.
Megatron vented, closing his optics. The sensation was gentle, and not aiming to harm him. He'd been fragged before, many times in fact. But it had always been gentle. Now, after experiencing something so violent it would dislodge his Calipers- he was afraid any touch in his valve would inflict the same pain.
Knock Out gently fingered him, waiting until the lower Calipers loosened up before adding a second digit. Megatrons helm fell back, intake wobbling. There was a slight sting for a few moments, but it faded away as Knock out continued to work him open.
It took a few more kliks for Megatron to be ready, and a few threats to rip off Knock Outs helm if he ever told anyone about how noisy he had become. Knock Out gave a nervous smile.
"Again, tell me if it hurts at any point."
With that, Knock Out closed his hand into a stinger position, so he could actually feel around once his Servo was all the way in Megatrons valve. He pressed in, being mindful of his hinges.
Megatron had a servo clamped tightly over his intake, refusing to let anything slip past his throat pipes.
Knock Out dragged his digits alongside the Calipers, feeling each one to ensure they were in their right places. After a klik, he retracted, removing the thin plastic from his digits. "Well, it seems you've fully healed, surprisingly. It usually takes longer for Calipers to fully regain their place." Knock Out stated, grabbing a wipe and quickly, but softly, wiping down Megatrons valve.
He shut his panels right after that, taking a moment for himself to vent and cool down. "If you're experiencing any pains again, tell me. That goes for everywhere, remember." Knock Out stated, before gathering his materials and taking his leave.
It was an odd thing, being left on the edge like that. But, he had no desire to tip it over. Right now, he wanted to lay in his berth until something important happened.
Which, to his surprise, actually happened. Starscream commed him, sounding as if he was in flight.
"Lord Megatron, we have located the bot! I have him in my servos, where would you like me to bring him?" Though he was trying to maintain his professionalism over the comm, it was very obvious he was angry. He could hear the way his boosters roared, and how his voice was impossibly strained.
Megatron felt his optic twitch. "Bring him to the main hall. I plan to make every bot within the area watch as I tear him limb from limb." He growled, finally paying mind to the energon Starscream had brought earlier. He consumed them before standing up, glossa running over his denta in anticipation.
Megatron was in his throne by the time his Trine arrived, bound and slightly beaten bot in servo. To think this bot had come from Iacon, Optimus had failed as a leader.
He rose to his pedes, walking dangerously slow as he made his way to the bot. He took great pleasure in the absolute fear the pathetic thing had in its eyes, the way it pleaded for mercy. Like he had. His digits twitched as he punched him square in the helm.
He didn't need his cannon for this task, no. He wanted the bot to be alive as long as possible as he tore his plating apart. Klik, after klik, he relished in his pained screams. His joy for getting his revenge on this bot, quickly turned to a pestering anger. One so hot it made coolant pool in his optics.
He slammed a pede on the bots form, grabbing his servo- before ripping it off entirely. His denta bared, venting heavily as he tore the plating off the bots chassis, glaring at the cog in his chest. He didn't deserve so much as a spark, why on Cybertron did Primus grant this /pest/ with such a beautiful gift?
He decided to save that for last. He continued to pull the bots limbs off, not quickly, but slow so he could feel each individual wire under his plating snap.
By the time he was almost done, the bots spark was barely online. But still online enough to feel his digits dig into his chassis, and rip his cog straight from the chamber. He bathed in the sight of the bot going offline, his frame becoming nothing more than an ugly optic sore.
He stared down at the form, his own optics dull with emotion, coolant still clinging to his face. "Get rid of him. I don't want to see a trace of him left." Was all Megatron ordered, throwing the cog at his assaulters mangled body.
Starscream began making plans to dispose of the body with Thundercracker and Skywarp, but Megatron tuned it out as he headed towards the wash racks. He needed the bots blood off his frame at once, that being something even he couldn't stand. He let the assistant there aid him in reaching places he couldn't, the cursed bots blood seemingly all over him.
Still, it was a quick trip. And he returned back to his Quarters soon after, not going straight to his berth just yet. His optics raked over the many other optics he'd taken from bots he offlined. It was sort of his thing, one could say. He had a very specific interest in optics, their functions alluding him in many ways.
Dimming when strong emotions were present, even so much as changing color in conviction. It intrigued him, how the evilest of bots could maintain their blue optics. Sentinel, and that no name bot for example, had strikingly blue optics. As if they didn't think what they were doing to others was bad, though- No doubt they knew. It escaped his logic.
And even bots, one as himself, who once had bright yellow optics, had changed. From that golden color, to the bright red he now had. It reminded him of the seekers around him, how they'd all had red optics long before he ever arrived.
How he'd even met sparklings with red eyes, just made- yet, filled with so much resentment. It had him, at some points, wondering if carrier memories could seep into the protoforms. He was particularly interested in the lesser seen optic colors, such as green and purple. Blue, yellow, orange, and red were all common. They had very clear meanings, too.
But other optic colors were more mysterious. And it delighted him to snuff the spark out of any bot harboring those colors, just as long as they looked at him wrong.
He returned to his berth with a long vent, flopping down on his stomach and stretching out with a grunt. His wings fluttered as his cables were stretched, letting his helm fall flat on the berth. It had been quite some time since he'd felt this calm.
The irony, in finding peace in murder. He supposed not everyone was so accustomed to such a thing, obviously /Orion/ wasn't. But that didn't concern him at this moment.
His Trine entered his Quarters after some groons, the two less seen ones sheepish. "Lord Megatron, if we may?.." It was a big ask, considering Megatron had made it a point to only let Starscream in for the past two deca-cycles, but now? he found himself not minding.
He stay helm down, but gave a nod. He wouldn't speak if it wasn't necessary. He heard Skywarps pedes hit the floor quickly, running in place in excitement before suddenly three heavy forms dropped on top of him.
He grunted, wiggling a bit underneath the other seekers. "Have you no decorum? I am not the berth!" Megatron complained, but he wasn't actually mad. Starscream wrapped his servos around his form, nuzzling his helm into the back of Megatrons. "We're just excited." Thundercracker smiled, pulled Skywarp down as he crushed him under his form.
Megatron rolled his optics, but pulled the two seekers closer to him. Despite the circumstances of them becoming Trine mates, he had found himself growing quite fond of them. A certain comfort, one he's never felt before, lay deep in his spark. It felt... Right, to be apart of a Trine. Like his life finally made sense, even if it absolutely didn't.
Closing his optics with a quiet vent, Megatron let himself drift to charging mode. It had been many, many stellar cycles since he could confidently say he felt just Fine.