Frozen in Prime

Crossfire

"If it pleases you, Lord Megatron, once Soundwave discovers a means of decoding the remainder of the Iacon Database, as we know he will, I would suggest the deployment of an underutilized asset." Airachnid said.

"And what asset would that be, Airachnid?" Megatron asked. "I believe that my superior tracking skills would expedite your quest to recover the remaining Relics." Airachnid said. "Noted." Megatron said. "You are a gracious audience, my lord." Airachnid said. "Soundwave." She said to Soundwave.

"Remind me of her trustworthiness." Megatron said. "I believe we must consider the possibility of a future without Megatron." Soundwave repeated Airachnid's words from the chaos of Unicron rising.

Dreadwing examined a table of weapons, and Megatron appeared on the screen behind him. "Dreadwing." He said. "I am at your beck and call, Lord Megatron." Dreadwing said. "I wish to entrust you with a task I would normally reserve for myself. That is, if you wish to prove yourself worthy of becoming my first lieutenant." Megatron said.

"That post belongs to Airachnid." Dreadwing said. "She will be missed, and I suggest you bring backup. She can be a handful, especially when cornered." Megatron said.

Airachnid, Breakdown, and Dreadwing walked through the forest at night. "Am I the only one here who considers this to be overkill on Lord Megatron's part? I mean, dispatching two of his most proficient warriord to track down one unconfirmed Energon spike." Airachnid said.

"Megatron knows me, and Dreadwing here will get the job done." Breakdown said. "Actually, I was referring to Dreadwing and myself." Airachnid said. Breakdown growled. "Breakdown, remain on task. This must be a unified effort." Dreadwing stopped him.

"Indeed, Breakdown. I know we've never seen eyes to eye, but that doesn't mean we can't patch things up." Airachnid said while boldly saying 'patch'. "That's it!" Breakdown yelled. "Don't!" Dreadwing warned. Airachnid used her spider legs to climb onto a tree and launch a web at Breakdown's face-plate. He grabbed it, but his servo got stuck, and he fell down.

Dreadwing started shooting at her, and Airachnid dodged and climbed on trees, then threw more webs at Dreadwing, but he dodged them but was hit and got stuck to a tree. The shot caused the tree Airachnid was on to collapse. She fell on branches and landed on the ground. She noticed one of her spider limbs was missing, and it landed in front of her.

Breakdown ripped the web off his face-plate, readied his shoulder cannon, and shot Airachnid, then chased her. "Breakdown, don't be a fool! Release me!" Dreadwing ordered. Breakdown chased Airachnid through the forest, then came across a pool of spilled Energon. He followed the trail and found Airachnid struggling to get up.

"Easy prey." He snickered and raised his sledge hammer, but a web shot from Airachnid, restraining his arm. He tried to pull it free but failed. Airachnid smiled maliciously as Breakdown growled. Airachnid slowly raised a fully intact spider leg, then swung it at Breakdown. His screams filled the forest.

Dreadwing continued trying to pry the webs off. "Breakdown, what is your status?" He asked but got no response. "Breakdown?!" He said again.

A flashlight shined onto Breakdown's sledge hammer arm, then his body, which was literally torn to pieces. M.E.C.H. soldiers surrounded the corpse. "M.E.C.H. 1 to Silas: Our maneuvers have yielded unexpected results and a familiar face." A soldier said as his eyes landed on Breakdown's severed helm.

Deep in the bowels of an abandoned Energon mine, Starscream climbed a rocky wall. "How is it that I have been reduced to seeking Energon scraps merely to survive?" He wondered as he grabbed a tiny shard of Energon. His pede slipped, and he fell down. He picked up the shard, then heard heavy footsteps, and a shadow.