Chapter Text
Autobots were much smaller from afar. After a handful of decacycles with the Seekers, Thundercracker had grown used to being around mecha his size. One of the Autobots looked up, their optics going wide. Soon, shots followed as other Autobots emerged from the temporary encampment.
Thundercracker rolled to dodge them. Skywarp rolled with him. Others around them fired back, some breaking formation to slam themselves into the Autobots below. Thundercracker fired at the nearest tent, his spark twinging as it caught aflame and a group of Autobots fled from it.
Not all of them were soldiers. Many were unarmed. Just what were they doing here? Why were they traveling through Seeker territory?
Behind him, Blast peeled off. Na crashed into a particularly large Autobot, wrestling with him. Concern swirled in Thundercracker's spark, knowing how delicate newsparks were, but he continued to fly. His processor drifted.
How were his Autobots? Did Bulkhead finish that painting? Did Sunstreaker and Sideswipe finally beat the level they were stuck on? Did Prowl miss him?
He blasted another tent. A shot seared the edge of his wing, but he was able to right himself. Skywarp drew closer. Thundercracker flew lower. There were only a couple of tents left, and those were soon to go up in flames as well. He was proven correct a few moments later.
With all of the tents aflame, the Autobots had two options: flee or die. The Seekers were brutal, shooting down those who fled with glee. Ramjet launched waz at one of the fleeing Autobots, slamming them down and biting into them like prey. Thundercracker shuddered.
How many of his Autobots went out like that? How many sparklinghood friends that never came home were chased down and slaughtered like petrorabbits? But as a shot rang out and a Seeker spun to the ground never to rise, another question rose in his processor: were the Seekers treating the Autobots any differently than the Autobots treated them?
These Autobots may not have all been combatants, but enough of them carried weapons. How many of the mecha brandishing weapons had raided Seeker camps? How many had killed entire flocks, just like they had done to Skywarp? If it had been them instead of Prowl on the field after a battle, would Thundercracker have lived?
Thundercracker descended, landing on his pedes with a heavy thud. The Autobot before him readied his blaster. In one quick stride, Thundercracker grabbed it and crushed it. He gripped the Autobot's wrist, preventing him from fleeing.
The Autobot, although small, had thick plating. It was a striking red with white and dark blue accents. His optics—an icy blue—stared straight into Thundercracker's as he bared his dentae, his audial fins standing on high alert.
Thundercracker opened his mouth and spoke. "Why are you here?"
The Autobot's mouth fell open. His optics went wide.
"You can speak?" He said.
"Yes," Thundercracker said. "Please answer me."
"You can speak," the Autobot said again.
Thundercracker forced himself not to growl. Skywarp or one of the other Seekers would be here at any moment, and the first thing they would do was kill the Autobot. If he wanted to get any information out of him, the Autobot had to get over it.
"Yes!" Thundercracker said. "Why are you here?"
"You—Seekers—destroyed our town!" The Autobot said. "We were told to follow this route to reach the nearest base."
"Straight through Seeker territory?" Thundercracker said.
The Autobot's audial fins lowered. He scowled.
"Everywhere is Seeker territory, according to your kind," he said. "A mech walks two paces and they find themself with claws at their neck."
Thundercracker couldn't disprove the statement, but he had managed to go vorns taking weekly flights without encountering a single Seeker, so he doubted it. He flicked his wings. The Autobot's optics were drawn to them, but no recognition crossed his face. Why had he expected the Autobot to know what that meant? When had he realized his wing flicks had meaning in the first place?
The roar of a jet engine reached his audials. It wound down as Skywarp landed, waz pedes thudding onto the ground.
"What are you doing?" Wa said, fear coating the air. "You're standing right in the middle of—"
Wa jerked forward with a cry. The stench of melting metal hung in the air, the rang of shed energeon quickly joining it. Skywarp fell forward. Behind wan stood an Autobot, her golden plating gleaming in the sunlight. The edge of the blaster in her hands exuded smoke, still glowing from being fired.
Skywarp wasn't moving. Energeon seeped from a hole in waz back. The Autobot aimed her blaster. The other one jerked in his grip.
Thundercracker couldn't… Skywarp was… but the Autobots…
The only thought in his processor was that his rays would charge faster than her blaster. He raised them and fired. They hit their mark.
A shot straight to the spark chamber. Instant death. It was mercy. The other Autobot screamed. Thundercracker's audials rang. It was mercy. It had to be mercy.
He shoved the other Autobot away. The Autobot staggered backward, still screaming. Thundercracker could only hear the ringing.
"Go!" Thundercracker shouted. "They won't stop until you're all dead! There's no point in staying."
The Autobot ran. Thundercracker didn't watch him leave. It didn't matter where he went. There was only one thing on his mind.
Thundercracker knelt before Skywarp. He gathered wan in his arms, pulling wan into his lap. Wa groaned. Thundercracker's wings rose, relief flooding his spark. Wa was alive. He buried his face in waz neck.
"Skywarp," he whispered.
Wa stirred, hissing quietly as waz shoulders flexed, irritating the wound. Thundercracker pulled wan closer. Waz spark hummed beside his.
"What do I do?"
He didn't know whether he was asking wan or himself. Either way, no answer came. The ringing faded along with the sounds of battle, leaving only the pedesteps and mutters of the other Seekers. The Autobots were gone.
A set of pedesteps grew closer. Thundercracker flared his plating with a growl. The pedesteps stopped.
"I'm not going to hurt you!" The Seeker before him said.
Thundercracker glanced upward. Nacelle held kas wings low. Kas palms were out in a gesture that was steadily becoming familiar. Thundercracker bared his dentae.
"What do you want?" He hissed.
Nacelle took a step back and knelt.
"You need to cauterize waz wound to stop the bleeding," ka said. "Use your thrusters on the severed fuel lines. Or I could do it. I have better reach than you do right now."
Thundercracker's grip tightened around Skywarp. He didn't want to let anyone near wan. But the wound was too big to seal itself, or it would have already. Thundercracker shook his helm and motioned for Nacelle to approach.
The other Seeker scooted closer. Then, ka powered on kas thrusters. With precision, ka pinched each of the severed lines and led the tip of them into the flame. Skywarp chirped, a tinge of pain spreading into the air. Thundercracker stroked the edge of waz wing.
Nacelle backed away.
"That's all I could find," ka said. Ka smiled. "Y'know, normally Sparks already know this stuff."
And normally, Seekers were raised within flocks. Thundercracker was far from normal. Irritation prickled at his plating.
Nacelle fluttered kas wings and trilled anxiously. "Not that it's bad, or anything like that. I just figured you looked like you needed help, and I could provide! So, uh…"
Nacelle opened kas cockpit, digging around in kas storage space. Ka pulled out a small piece of metal. The edges of it were melted, loosely formed into the shape of a petrorabbit. Ka held it in kas palm, offering it to Thundercracker.
Oh. The dots connected. Nacelle was untrined. Thundercracker and Skywarp were a couplet. Ka didn't want to help them, ka wanted to trine them.
"No," Thundercracker said.
Nacelle withdrew the gift. Kas optics widened.
"No?" Ka repeated. "No to the gift, or no to me? You're not exactly giving a clear signal here—"
"No to all of it!" Thundercracker spat, rattling his wings.
Nacelle sprung up and leaped backward. Ka ruffled kas plating.
"Oh," ka said. "Well, uh. Good luck finding a third. You're going to need it."
Ka leaped into the air and took off. Fury boiled in Thundercracker's fuel lines. What was that supposed to be? Not only did Thundercracker not know Nacelle at all, but the other Seeker tried to court him while Skywarp was hurt! Did ka even care at all, or did ka just see an easy way to impress him?
And it had come up again. Whatever Sparks were supposed to be, Thundercracker wasn't a good one. Despite not understanding it at all, it stung. How was he supposed to play the game if he didn't know the rules?
!!!
Thundercracker laid beside Skywarp, who rested waz chin on waz arms. With waz injury, wa couldn't lay on waz back like usual. Sunstorm had applied gel to the wound and placed a temporary patch over it to protect it. Thundercracker's plating still itched at the thought of being forced to let the other mech into their burrow, but he had no other option.
He nudged Skywarp. Wa stirred with a sleepy trill.
"Do you need fuel?" Thundercracker asked.
Skywarp squinted up at him. "Fuel?"
"Food," he corrected.
"Oh!" Skywarp said, pushing waz onto waz elbows. Wa hissed as the action pulled at waz injury. "Yeah. I could use some."
Thundercracker supported wan as wa sat up. Unable to lean against the wall due to waz injury, wa leaned forward. Thundercracker longed to stay beside wan, holding wan close until the injury healed, but he had to go.
"I'll go hunting," Thundercracker said, heading toward the entrance.
He slipped out of the burrow, taking off quickly to avoid any potential confrontations. The hunt was quick, but it was difficult to haul multiple carcasses at once. They couldn't fit in his cockpit, so he had to sling them over his shoulders and fly back in root mode.
He laid the first before Blast. The older Seeker fluttered nas wings. Thundercracker turned away, not wanting to draw attention, but the sound of tearing plating told him that Blast was already making quick work of his prey. Thundercracker went back into his burrow.
Skywarp was still sitting when he entered. Waz wings raised as wa saw him. He raised his wings back before placing the petrorabbit on the floor. As Skywarp tore into the creature, Thundercracker's fuel gauge complained, but he paid it no mind. It was more important that Blast and Skywarp got their shares. He could go out and catch another if he had to.
Skywarp moved to take another scute from the petrorabbit and paused.
"Are you gonna have any of this?" Wa asked.
Thundercracker shrugged. Wa stared blankly at him.
"Only if you have anything left," Thundercracker said.
When they hunted together, they shared each kill. If they were still hungry, they would just catch more. But with Skywarp unable to fly—or even transform—until the wound healed, wa couldn't come along. So, if Thundercracker ate, there was no guarantee Skywarp would get enough. He would rather just go out again if he had to.
Skywarp pulled a scute from the petrorabbit and pushed it toward him.
"Take it," wa said. "You need to eat too."
Thundercracker pushed it back toward wan, but wa just pushed it toward him again. With a sigh, Thundercracker took the scute. If he ate slowly, maybe wa wouldn't force him to take more. Wa needed it more than him.
Silence passed between them as they ate. Skywarp attempted to sit up straighter, groaning quietly as the change in position pulled on waz injury. Thundercracker scooted toward wan. Wa leaned on him.
"You're the only one hunting for us right now," Skywarp said quietly. "Do you think it might be time to find a third member?"
Thundercracker couldn't care less. He was doing just fine.
"Who would it be?" He asked.
"Nacelle is nice," Skywarp said.
Thundercracker's plating bristled before he could stop it. "Nacelle?"
"Do you not like kan?" Skywarp said.
"Ka tried to court me while you were injured!" Thundercracker hissed. "Ka came over to help, but only because ka wanted to impress me!"
Skywarp scrunched waz olfactory ridge. "Why else would kan help?"
Why else? Thundercracker stared at Skywarp. Why else?
"Ka isn't related to you," Skywarp said meekly. "And ka isn't your trinemate. So why else would ka help?"
The pieces began sliding into place. Why no one helped Starscream—why no one except Nacelle helped them—why no one helped Blast—why Thrust's trine didn't just ask for the ferrowolf—
It was because that wasn't typical for a Seeker. Sunstorm was an exception, not the rule. But that meant…
"Those first couple of nights," Thundercracker said, bracing himself. "Why did you approach me?"
Anxiety hung on the air. Skywarp's wings lowered.
"I saw Dirge pin you and realized you were probably a Spark," Skywarp said. "You're the only unbonded Spark my age here besides—well… you're the only one. I had to try."
Thundercracker ignored the slip, disbelief growing in his spark. That entire time, Skywarp wasn't being friendly. Wa was just trying to trine him.
Anger rose within Thundercracker, but it was doused by a cold realization: he planned to do the same to Starscream, only in reverse. He wanted to court the Seeker purely to get close to kan. But if kindness indicated intent to court, Starscream would be expecting it, wouldn't ka? Would it be wrong if that was what ka anticipated?
"I want to court Starscream," Thundercracker said.
Skywarp's optics went wide. Waz wings shot upward. Surprise and fear mingled in the air.
"Starscream?" Wa said. "Are you sure?"
"As sure as I can be," Thundercracker said.
Skywarp's wings lowered. Wa slumped. Closing waz optics, wa sighed.
"It's your trine," wa said. "You choose who is in it. And ka is a good hunter…"
"My trine?"
"You're the Spark," Skywarp said, as if it explained anything at all.
"You should have a say, too!" Thundercracker said. "Do you not want to trine Starscream?"
Skywarp clicked. "More like ka doesn't want to trine me."
With that context, waz remarks toward Starscream before made a lot more sense. Sunstorm had said Starscream rejected all of kaz other options. Skywarp must've been one of them.
"Well, if ka trines me, ka will have to," Thundercracker said.
"I guess so," Skywarp said quietly.
The conversation died after that. They continued to eat, with Skywarp insistently pushing food toward Thundercracker whenever he finished a piece. Eventually, the petrorabbit was gone. Skywarp shifted forward, hissing as wa lowered waz back into a laying position.
"Scrap," wa mumbled. "That hurts. I've never actually been shot before."
Thundercracker's spark twinged. It wasn't quite his fault Skywarp was in that Autobot's direct line of fire, but… no, it was. He was too busy talking to that other Autobot to realize he was in danger, and Skywarp was too distracted trying to retrieve him. He opened his cockpit.
The crack from the fight with Dirge and Ramjet was deepened by his spat with Megatron, but luckily, none of the glass was missing. It would heal eventually. But more important was that the pain patches and energeon candies were safe. He considered taking out a pain patch, but they wouldn't do much for raw wounds, and Sunstorm hadn't given any, anyway. Thundercracker had no idea what dose would be safe for Skywarp, as they were made for him, and he was larger than wan.
So, he pulled out the energeon candies instead. Skywarp's wings twitched as he opened the box. Wa turned toward him.
"What's that?" Wa asked.
Thundercracker pulled out one of the candies. He laid it in his palm, then offered it to Skywarp.
"An energeon candy. My…" Thundercracker hesitated. Prowl never liked it when he called him 'creator,' but Prowl wasn't here to stop him. "My creator used to give me these when I was hurt. Try it."
Skywarp took the candy and popped it in waz mouth. Wa hummed.
"This can't be medicine," wa said. "Medicine doesn't taste this good."
"It's not," Thundercracker said.
Skywarp purred, the candy crunching beneath waz dentae. "But it makes me feel better anyway."
!!!
Thundercracker sat beside Blast as the older Seeker ate nas share. He was lucky to have stumbled across an old cybercat that morning. It likely wouldn't have survived much longer even if he hadn't killed it, based on how brittle its plating was. It crunched beneath Blast's dentae with ease.
When Blast finally opened the abdomen, na pulled out the solvent tank and handed it to Thundercracker. As na turned, it gave Thundercracker a good view of the newspark. It was still a bubble, but the outlines of panels had formed. There was color to it now—silver and gold mixed with Blast's black.
"Do you know what you're going to name them?" Thundercracker asked.
"No," Blast said. "I don't want to name them too soon."
"Too soon?"
Blast's gaze fell to the cybercat.
"Don't name a seekerling unless you know they're going to survive," na said.
"Oh," Thundercracker said.
But the newspark was going to live, weren't they? Blast was getting enough fuel now, and na hadn't been forced to fight for orns! Surely, the newspark was healthy!
But Thundercracker didn't voice his thoughts as Blast continued to eat. Since he'd fought with Dirge and Ramjet in the camp, the other two Seekers hadn't tried to steal from him again. So, Thundercracker felt safe enough leaving Blast to finish nas meal alone as he picked up the solvent tank and headed for Sunstorm's burrow.
Sunstorm greeted him warmly, sandwiched between Bitstream and Hotlink. The other two Seekers stirred, glancing at him, but didn't rise. Sunstorm pushed naz to naz knees. Thundercracker offered nam the solvent tank.
"Here," he said.
"What animal?" Sunstorm asked.
"Cybercat."
Sunstorm turned the tank in nas hands. Its contents sloshed. Na smiled.
"Good," na said, handing it back. "Can you put it on the shelf for now?"
Thundercracker nodded. He placed it on the aforementioned shelf. But as he turned toward the exit, Sunstorm spoke again.
"Get some rest!" Na said. "And perhaps some food. Your plating looks a bit dull."
"I'm fine," Thundercracker said.
His fuel gauge was complaining more often than not, but that didn't matter. Skywarp was on the mend, however slowly. Wa wasn't ready to hunt just yet, so it was up to him to hunt for both wan and Blast.
He left the burrow before Sunstorm could speak again.
!!!
Thundercracker was tired. He was willing to admit that. His fuel gauge was low, but he still hadn't caught anything for Blast and Skywarp. They came first. So, he stalked through the forest, listening for the scurry of small mechanimals.
Then, there! He followed the sound. The gleam of plating caught his optics. He pounced. The turborat never saw him coming. It shrieked as he killed it.
Solvent flooded his mouth at the taste of metal beneath his dentae, but he forced himself to withdraw. Turborats were smaller than petrorabbits. It would only be able to feed one of them. He had to catch something else as well. Carefully, he shoved the turborat into his cockpit. The creature could just barely fit.
He continued his hunt, listening again. The pedesteps he heard were louder. They were heading straight for him. A turbofox burst through the surrounding shrubs. Without thinking, Thundercracker pounced and snapped its dorsal strut.
He froze as a growl reached his audials. Slowly, he released the turbofox. A very familiar Seeker glared at him, irritation searing the air.
"That was mine!" Starscream hissed.
Thundercracker growled back on impulse. He was hungry, and so were Skywarp and Blast! But he forced himself to lower his wings.
"I didn't mean to steal from you," Thundercracker said, closing his optics.
"Yet that's exactly what you've just done!" Starscream spat. Kas wings flared behind kan.
Scrap. Thundercracker needed to deescalate this. But a thought crept into the back of his processor: if Starscream wanted to take it back, wouldn't ka have attacked him by now? Either way, he didn't want to make an enemy out of Starscream.
Thundercracker knelt, parting the plating that protected the turbofox's internals. He dug his hand in, searching for the solvent tank. Pulling it out, he presented it to Starscream. The other Seeker's wings shot up, kas optics widening.
"Do you comprehend the significance of what you're doing?" Ka said.
"I do," Thundercracker said.
Kas claws twitched. Ka stepped back with a growl, swinging kas helm. In a quick motion, ka stepped forward, kas claws flying toward Thundercracker's face. Thundercracker flinched.
But the hit never came. Starscream's claws traced the thin scar Megatron's strike had left behind. Then, ka withdrew.
"You're the only other Seeker that has tried to challenge him," Starscream said.
It wasn't intended to be a challenge, but Thundercracker didn't correct kan. Starscream tapped kas pede, optics flicking toward the sky. Then, ka turned away.
"I will trine on my own terms or not at all," ka said.
Ka leaped into the air. Before Thundercracker could attempt to call kan back, ka was already a magenta streak across the sky. Thundercracker sighed. That didn't seem like a rejection, but it definitely wasn't acceptance, either. He would have to ask Skywarp what it meant later.
For now, he had a carcass to haul home. Unlike Starscream, the split in the canopy wasn't large enough for him to fit through. So, he walked, heading for the edge of the forest. Heavy pedesteps reached his audials. He froze.
"Drop the turbofox and no one has to get hurt," a familiar voice said sweetly.
Thundercracker turned, baring his dentae, as Ramjet and Dirge emerged from the surrounding foliage. A large grin split Ramjet's face. Dirge stood beside wan with a scowl.
Thundercracker placed the turbofox on the ground and stood over it. He rattled his wings and hissed. Ramjet laughed.
"The Winglord isn't here to break things up now," wa said, stepping closer.
Thundercracker growled. He summoned the part of his engine that roared. It hummed to life, but quickly sputtered out. Pain bloomed beneath his plating. His spark spun faster as Ramjet continued waz approach, laughing again.
"What's wrong?" Wa said mockingly.
Thundercracker hissed and rattled his wings again, but they were undeterred. Grabbing him by the shoulder, Ramjet swung him out of the way. Claws out, Thundercracker leaped at wan, but was torn away by Dirge.
As Thundercracker clawed and squirmed, Ramjet hoisted the turbofox over waz shoulders. With one final grin, wa took off. Dirge shoved Thundercracker to the ground. By the time he rose to his pedes, both of them were gone.
Thundercracker backed into the forest. He slumped against a nearby tree. Anger rose within him, but it was quashed by a wave of tiredness. He'd just caught it. Now he had to go catch something else.
He was so, so tired.
!!!
As Thundercracker approached with Skywarp leaning against him, something gave him pause. Blast was curled, wings shielding nam from sight. Slowly, Thundercracker deposited the petrorabbits he caught before the older Seeker and settled beside nam.
"Are you okay?" He asked quietly.
Blast moved, uncovering naz just enough to expose nas cockpit to Thundercracker.
"Va is hatching," na whispered. "I wanted you to see."
The little bubble the newspark started off as had grown into something that more vaguely resembled an egg or capsule. A small part of it remained attached to the wall of Blast's storage space, but it was slowly coming undone. The egg rolled as it detached completely.
Then, it began to shift. Bits and pieces of it cracked apart, the substance that held the panels together dissolving. Slowly, a seekerling assembled itself from the shell, covered in a thin layer of fluid. Its optics were closed, it claws dull, and its wings barely recognizable. It peeped quietly.
With a click, Blast's secondary locks disengaged. Na leaned forward as nas cockpit opened. The newspark tumbled out with a surprised squeak. Blast brought it to nas face and nuzzled it, a purr rumbling from nas engine.
Eventually, na pulled away, still purring. A pale pink smear was left across nas face from the newspark's fluids. Thundercracker fought not to cringe. Was Blast not bothered at all?
Na held the seekerling out toward Thundercracker. Thundercracker forced himself to stay still.
"Hold vam," Blast said.
Thundercracker held out his hands. Gently, Blast laid the seekerling in his palms. Va was so small he could've held vam in a single hand. Blind and deaf, va peeped in confusion at the sudden shift.
Shifting vam to one of his palms, Thundercracker used his other hand to rub vas tiny helm. The seekerling kept peeping. Va brought up one of vas hands, pawing at his fingers. Except…
There was no hand. The seekerling's arm ended in a stump. Its other arm stopped at the elbow.
"Huh," Thundercracker said quietly, rubbing the little stump.
Blast's optics widened. Na snatched the seekerling back, ignoring vas surprised squeak. Na felt the malformed arms, nas face falling. The air crackled with despair.
Na held up the seekerling, resting nas claws against vas tiny chestplates. The seekerling peeped. Closing nas optics, na pressed nas claws down. The peeping quickly turned to shrieking.
Thundercracker's spark froze. He reached over and tore the seekerling from Blast's claws. Vas shrieks fell to terrified peeps. Vas thin plating rattled as he pulled vam close to his chest.
"What are you doing?" He hissed.
Blast fought so hard to keep this seekerling alive. Why was na trying to kill vam now?
"Va is… wrong."
Blast's voice was weak and drenched with sorrow. It hung heavy on the air.
"Wrong?" Thundercracker said.
"Vas hands," Blast said. "Vas arms. Va will never be able to fly or hunt…"
Thundercracker stared down at the seekerling. Even if that was true, did that justify killing vam? But even more persistent in his mind was the fact that it wasn't.
"Vas arms will be tucked in when they transform," Thundercracker said. "And va will have teeth."
Thundercracker glanced at Skywarp. Waz wings were low. Waz optics focused only on the seekerling.
"They didn't come out wrong," Thundercracker said. "Just different."
Blast stared at him. Nas optics were distant.
"Do you want this seekerling?" Thundercracker asked.
"I do," Blast said.
"Will you care for vam?" Thundercracker said.
"I will," Blast whispered.
Thundercracker offered the seekerling to Blast. "Then va deserves a chance to live."
Blast took the seekerling and held vam to nas chest.
"You're right."