When We Seared The Sky

Chapter 23

Chapter Twenty-Three

To the Death

Sideways slammed into Starscream with brutal force, a blade spinning from his wrist to slash at Starscream’s dusty brown armour. The jet retaliated by bringing a fist up to block the blow and smashing his free hand into Sideways’s face, sending the Decepticon sprawling.

“I’ll kill her for that,” Sideways threatened as he hit the ground, turning his head completely around to glare at Starscream with his one, blood-red optic. “By Primus, you lecherous flesh lover, I will make her scream!”

“Not whilst I stand,” Starscream snarled in response, his Vulcan cannon extending from one arm.

The smaller robot’s mouth curled into a sneer of pure hatred as he sprung forward, clasping his long fingers around his enemy’s neck. Though he staggered under the weight, Starscream tore Sideways viciously from him and grasped the remaining horn on his head; he clenched his fists around the projection and began to tear it free, making the violet trickster roar in agony.

“I offered you – arrrgh! – a chance of – glory, Starscream!” he bellowed, bringing his head up and butting Starscream forcefully in the cranium, wrenching the crooked horn free of his fist. “And you threw it all – back at me!”

Starscream wavered unsteadily after the cranial blow, but managed to glare at Sideways. “I want nothing more to do with you, Sideways!” he sneered disdainfully. “Your pathetic life has no meaning, and I tire of playing these games with you. Now get out of my way so I can get to the one that is actually worth killing.”

There was little choice in the matter for Sideways when he was seized around the torso by Barricade, who struggled to hold him as he flailed and kicked in his tight, unyielding embrace. Sparks flew and metal scraped harshly against metal as Sideways hooked a short-chain mace around Barricade and the two of them fell to the ground, wrestling to the death.

“You are referring to me, I assume, Starscream?” Thrust’s voice said then, and Starscream spun around, raising his weapon. “I am honoured that you believe I am worth the effort of murder,” he added silkily, his piggy eyes sizing up his foe like a piece of meat.

Starscream snorted dismissively, his gun trained on Thrust’s spark covering. “Not particularly,” he scoffed, “But more so than that turncoat.”

Thrust laughed stridently, his cackle full of malice as they began to circle around each other like hawks over a decaying carcass. “That’s rich coming from you, Starscream,” he pointed out spitefully, the hatred crackling between the two like an electric storm. “If I am not mistaken, I believe that you have betrayed every single being in this room at one time or another.” He pointed a finger aggressively at Alexis. “And much as you confess your love for that unattractive bitch, I see that you have hurt her twice.”

“How dare you slight her?” Starscream hissed, the mouth of the gun filling with amber light. “She is more beautiful than any femme you could ever hope to have, you repellent fraghead.”

Alexis flushed deeply from where she stood, the necklace clutched tightly in her hand – she was more than aware of what a true compliment that was, given his passion for the stars of the night. Bloodbringer stood next to her, his newly repaired optics fixed anxiously on Barricade as the black-and-white robot roared angrily, his hands locked around Sideways. Her hand strayed comfortingly to the drone’s rusty arm and he whined, the silvery fluid still dripping down his face.

Thrust sneered, disgusted. “Your optic sensors are damaged beyond repair, then.”

Starscream spun around and slammed the gun’s mouth into Thrust’s head, but the Decepticon ducked the blow and brought a long, silver cleaver of some sort up to slice Starscream’s arm from the wrist to the elbow. An agonised shriek tore from the jet’s vocal processors as he stumbled backwards, cursing, and Alexis gasped, grabbing Bloodbringer’s arm and looking from Thrust to Starscream with dread in her emerald eyes. Around her neck, the necklace hummed softly, a tiny light sparking within it.