"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA... I can only imagine my old friend's reaction to seeing such chaos on the planet he swore to protect." Megatron laughed maliciously, unable to help but show his sharp teeth as he imagined Optimus in a desperate crisis, unable to protect the humans.
Megatron watched the chaos unfold in the human world over the Internet, and even though he'd been recovering from the damage to his body for the past few hours, it was fun to see humanity in a crisis it couldn't handle on its own.
"Humanity is truly fragile, a rather depressing fact given that it is made of flesh." Megatron looked down at his arm, seeing a small scar on his armor. "The next time I encounter Airachnid, I will see to it that she does not survive."
Knock Out entered the command center with a worried look and fearing for his life, he looked ahead and saw Megatron gloating over the crisis humanity was going through due to the mystical forest that had appeared out of nowhere.
"Lord Megatron, why are you standing? You should be resting. I haven't completed all the repairs I wanted to make to you." Knock Out said, assuming his role as a doctor rather than the Decepticon he was.
"I'm already feeling much better Knock Out, I'll be even better when I get my original Dark Energon shard back that Starscream stole from me." Megatron looked at his doctor, making it clear he didn't want to hear any reprimands. "So, Knock Out, have you made any progress with the mysterious fragment we have on board?"
"As I have informed Lord Megatron, since it is a fragment of an element completely new to me, it will take me much more time to understand its basis. The elements of it are completely different from the common Energon, or the results of the Singular Energon I had when you had it in your veins, it is a new area of science that I must learn to master." Knock Out replied, showing quite obvious professionalism. A reflex when he has the motivation not to get beaten up like Starscream.
"We Decepticons need a new tactical resource to turn the war in our favor, right now we are all stagnant, at the mercy of the events of the metal forest." Megatron explained, eager to gain more power in his hands.
"Fortunately, Lord Megatron, Optimus and the Autobots cannot enter the forest, the amount of Energon in that place is practically fatal to any Cybertronian." Knock Out tried to lighten his master's mood.
"You forget, Knock Out, these animals can enter and leave this barrier as they please, their biology is adapted to an environment practically rich in Energon without suffering reprimands." Megatron envied the forest animals for their immunity for a moment, but it also gave him a subtle idea that might be worth his time. "These animals alone are stronger than the base of my ordinary Decepticons, and with them under my command, I will have an army of animals capable of destroying any Autobot or adversary that dares get in my way."
Knock Out decided to agree with Megatron, but a small doubt crossed his mind as he remembered the unlikely friend he had made when he arrived on this planet. "Lord Megatron, I have a small doubt, what happened to Lux? I mean, the human who managed to be worthy of your attention."
Megatron glanced at his doctor out of the corner of his eye, showing no obvious emotion other than resentment toward a certain female spider who was standing next to the human. "The human is with Airachnid somewhere on this planet, most likely Airachnid is up to something for her own benefit."
"Lord Megatron, is there any danger of Airachnid joining the Autobots?" Knock Out asked, since it was rare for a Decepticon to leave the faction, especially alive.
"It is unlikely that she would do so, for Airachnid has killed dozens of Autobots in my name in the past, and her personality is too proud to stoop to being an ally of Optimus Prime." Megatron stated logically, secretly respecting how Airachnid acted like a true Decepticon.
"And Lux... I mean, what about the human? Do you intend to capture him?"
"What I have learned throughout my life is that knowledge is power, no matter what form it takes. Even though the boy is human, I can't let him get to Optimus Prime, it would certainly be disastrous for me and my plans." Megatron looked behind Knock Out and saw Soundwave approaching silently as he always did. "Soundwave, I assume you have something to show me."
Soundwave nodded and began to transmit a video call from outer space, hundreds of kilometers in light years from planet Earth.
The video in question began to show the Decepticon symbol with military stripes around the edge, referring to the highest rank a Decepticon could attain by winning Megatron's approval, causing him to smile in anticipation.
[[Lord Megatron, this is Barricade, I am honored that you have called upon me to lend my skills to help you defeat the Autobots.]] Barricade said, showing his appearance in his Cybertronian humanoid form, over 8 meters tall, with robust arms and legs, and a very prominent scar on his chest, which proudly bore the Decepticon symbol on a badge. [[Since you are the true leader of Cybertron, I would like to present you with a worthy gift.]] Barricade took a few steps back, revealing a chained Autobot with obvious damage to his body, almost on the verge of certain death.
Megatron flashed a psychopathic smile, pleased at the clear effectiveness of Barricade's skills even after so much time. "It is satisfying to see an elite Decepticon working toward Decepticon victory."
[[Master Megatron, I may be slow to arrive on planet Earth, but I promise that my priority is to serve the Decepticon cause. LONG LIVE MEGATRON!]] The transmission ends, and Soundwave returns to his usual enigmatic and silent composure.
"This guy's still intense." Knock Out said after seeing the captured Autobot nearly destroyed, a crueler beating than Starscream had received at the hands of Megatron. "He took a good beating, probably tortured to reveal the location of hidden Autobots."
"It gives me great satisfaction that we will soon have another elite Decepticon joining us here on Earth. With Barricade's abilities, I will surely have this human under my control and be able to discover the secrets he holds within his mind." Megatron admitted, mostly curious as to how the human knew about Megatronus Prime and Dark Energon.
A Decepticon in charge of security approached and saluted his leader, bowing his head in respect to Megatron. "Master Megatron, Starscream has awakened and is sneaking around the ship."
"Why do all my patients have a habit of disobeying doctor's orders?" Knock Out whispered, unaware that Megatron heard him.
"Soundwave, let's talk in an hour. I'm going to arrange a talk between myself and Starscream first." Megatron walked away, leaving Soundwave to manage his ship. "Knock Out, come with me. I'll need a medic for the meeting."
"Yes Lord Megatron." Knock Out replied quickly, walking alongside the Decepticon leader towards Starscream.
***
"Ahhhrrrrrgggg... Damn, Megatron ruined my body... That brute." Starscream whispered, walking down the corridor with difficulty and exhaustion. He leaned against the wall for support or sometimes to catch his breath. "This is humiliating, how can I suffer this... If Megatron had died in that damn explosion, I would be in my rightful place as leader of the Decepticons.
Starscream looked around the halls, making sure he wasn't being watched by any prying eyes. He continued to sneak, until he came to a particular wall where there was a small claw mark of his own making. He reached into a hole behind the pillar and grabbed an object, revealing the original fragment of Dark Energon that Megatron used in his debut to seek mystical and unknown powers.
"Cough... Cough... Cough... If I am to survive, or to stand out as the true leader of the Decepticons, I must harness this power as well." Starscream admired the fragment of Unicron's blood in his hands with fascination. "If Megatron was able to obtain this power and control it to create an army of undead, then logically I can also take advantage of it."
Before Starscream could even think of putting Dark Energon into his Spark, a powerful blast of Energon shot toward his right arm, causing the Energon shard to fall to the metallic floor and roll toward its true owner, Megatron.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! BY ALLSPARK!!!" Starscream screamed, kneeling on the ground from the immense pain that shook his senses.
"Lord Megatron, Starscream is already on his last legs, he will not survive the treatment you gave him before." Knock Out said, feeling a little, just a little pity for Starscream, who had been so unlucky.
Starscream's eyes widened to their maximum size when he heard the name Megatron, and he quickly realized what had just happened, or who had just ripped his arm off so suddenly. He quickly looked into Megatron's eyes and felt the greatest fear of his life, then crawled like a worm to Megatron's feet to beg for mercy.
"Lord Megatron, please have mercy on me, I am but a servant! Please have mercy on me and do not kill me! I promise to be loyal and do anything for you." Starscream grabbed Megatron's leg, careful not to use his claws in his humiliation.
"It's pathetic, Starscream, how you now grovel at my feet after trying to KILL ME!" Megatron kicked Starscream in the face, sending him flying into the wall and causing his circuits to explode in pain. "You think you can just replace me? I will always be the leader of the Decepticons, even after my death, you insolent bastard!"
Knock Out carefully took the dark Energon fragment in his fingers, feeling slightly dizzy from the strong dark presence of the object, and held it only with his fingertips, waiting for Megatron to use this power again, as he obviously wanted to.
Megatron continues to crush Starscream with his foot, slamming him against the wall and gritting his teeth in anger. "What were you thinking when you tried to replace me? Did you really think my Decepticons would be loyal to someone as weak as you? Your true place is crawling under my feet like a worm! You are pathetic, stupid, and weak! I only tolerated your presence because you entertained me, because you always had some crazy plan that ended up going wrong, but you had a certain fun tone. But now you are predictable, and even more so because you think you can just become a leader like me! My mistake, Starscream, my biggest mistake is giving you the impression that you can be my equal."
Starscream was completely terrified, if he could, he would pee his pants right now. Never in his life had he seen Megatron so angry, not even when Optimus Prime managed to ruin his plans had he made him as furious as he was now.
"Let me be very clear from now on, Starscream! I will only keep you alive because your abilities are still useful to me, but if you ever dare to disobey me again, or think you can lead the Decepticons in my place, I will make sure that not even the Allspark can save your spark as I dismember your body piece by piece!" Megatron roared, letting everyone nearby hear his deadly ultimatum.
For a moment, an almost imperceptible moment, as he heard Megatron's roar, Starscream saw his eyes turn completely black with a purple tint, as if he were looking directly at a chaotic monster.