Title: Face Your Fraud

Summary: How could he? His hero, his idol, just...gone. He couldn't believe it. His first mission with the Wreckers and they had already lost someone. | I always wondered if there was a specific reason Wheeljack doesn't like commanders. This is my idea. Rated T because I'm paranoid.

Characters: Wreckers; Wheeljack; Roadblock (OC); Kup; Perceptor

Warnings: OC death; fighting; explosions; etc.

Glossary: Cycle = one planetary rotation/day

Notes: set in Scars of Time; Pyro is Wheeljack's little brother; Ultra Magnus is Kup's little brother; Skywarp was Wheeljack's best friend before the war, but he betrayed Wheeljack when he joined the Decepticons; Perceptor is Wheeljack's best friend; Flareup is Wheeljack's BondMate (girlfriend)

How could he? His hero, his idol, just...gone. He couldn't believe it. His first mission with the Wreckers and they had already lost someone.

Wheeljack watched the horizon with hopeful optics, but still could see nothing. Perceptor placed a servo on his shoulder sympathetically, but Wheeljack merely shrugged it off.

"Jackie–"

"Not now, Percy. Please."

Perceptor heaved a sigh of defeat and nodded. "Alright. Just...don't do anything stupid. Flareup would have my helm if she found out I let you get terminated."

Wheeljack nodded, but he wasn't really paying attention to his fellow Wrecker. Perceptor groaned, but finally turned around and left.

Roadblock had been the commander of the Wreckers, at least until now. Kup would soon be taking over as the new leader. Both had fought with the Wreckers in the Second Quintesson War, and Roadblock had taken official command with the start of the Autobot-Decepticon War.

It was going to be Wheeljack, Perceptor, and Pyro's first mission as Wreckers, and they had been ready to fight. Perceptor had even installed a stronger chassis onto his torso to protect him from blaster fire and blade strikes.

Chromia, Wheeljack, and Pyro were the fastest, so they went to scout out the terrain. Soon they had been joined by the other, heavier Wreckers. Roadblock had led the assault, and had brought them to victory.

At least, that's what they thought.

"Get back!" shouted Kup. He grabbed Chromia's servo and threw her back. "Move it! Roadblock can only buy us so much time!" He turned to Wheeljack and grabbed his servo. "Come on!"

Wheeljack resisted at first, but finally he gave in and ran back to safety. Roadblock was inside the building, planting the grenades that would take it out, as well as the numerous Decepticons within. Wheeljack hoped he would make it out before they blew.

Suddenly he saw a bright flash of light – a SpaceBridge! How had the Decepticons gotten that kind of tech? He thought it was lost to the ages!

The Decepticons filed out of the building and threw themselves into the SpaceBridge...right before the building blew. Wheeljack shielded his optics, but Kup was already running towards the scrap heap.

"Roadblock!" he wailed and fell to his knees, digging through the metal in a futile attempt to find his friend. Magnus approached and put a servo on his shoulder, then gently led him away, trying to comfort his older brother.

Wheeljack couldn't believe it. Was this really happening? Had Roadblock really just given his life for nothing?

Apparently.

It was about three cycles after the battle that had claimed Roadbock. The whole team was bummed, but Kup still made them do their duties, if only to keep himself sane.

As they headed out again, Wheeljack cast a glance at Perceptor, who returned the gaze, his optics brimming with confidence. Wheeljack grinned at his friend, then turned back to the front and followed Kup out.

The battle was brutal, but Wheeljack managed to make it out with minor injuries. He was waiting in a rest area with Perceptor when they suddenly both received a comm.

::Kup to Wreckers; Roadblock is alive!::

Wheeljack leapt to his pedes, and he and Perceptor raced down to Kup's location. When they got there, however, they did not see what they had expected.

Roadblock was alive; very much so. But he was on the wrong side. He stood next to Skywarp and Dreadwing with an uncharacteristic smirk on his faceplate. "Greetings, Autobots," he growled maliciously.

Wheeljack scowled at him. Perceptor narrowed his optics and called up his blaster. "Traitor. Coward!" he shouted. Kup looked stricken that his friend would betray him. "How...How could you?" he asked weakly. Roadblock rolled his optics. "The Autobots never suited me. That's why 'Commander' Crossfire assigned me to the Wreckers; 'cause he knew that's where I would function best."

Wheeljack snarled and engaged his battle mask. "You coward! How dare you leave us!" Withdrawing his katanas, he charged the former Wrecker, but Skywarp knocked him aside. "Sorry, Jackie, but I can't have you harming Roadblock. You can fight me, though!" he laughed with sick humor. Wheeljack pushed himself to his pedes. "Gladly."

He leapt toward Skywarp, but the Decepticon blocked his first katana. Unfortunately for him, he didn't see Wheeljack's other blade coming, and he got a slash across his torso.

Meanwhile, Kup was busy with Roadblock. "Why–" he grunted, blocking a blow from his former friend, "did you do it?" Roadblock stopped and pretended to consider the question for a moment, before continuing his assault. "I never liked my place in the Autobots. They care too much about honor, moralities. They didn't let me have the freedom I need. Megatron does. I was given the perfect opportunity when that SpaceBridge opened, and I rushed through."

"How did you even get your servos on that kind of tech?"

"Shockwave can perform miracles. Unfortunately, the computer blew up as soon as the 'Bridge closed. It's unusable now."

"Good," Kup growled, but was then struck down by Dreadwing, who had managed to catch him in the back. "It ends now, Autobot."

Perceptor darted forward, though, and managed to knock Dreadwing's blaster from his servos. "Not today, 'Con!" Kup managed to stand and beckoned to Perceptor and Wheeljack. "Come on! We have no chance of winning this battle!" It pained him to admit it, but it was better to retreat and live to fight another day, than to die and ultimately fail.

Wheeljack did and backflip and transformed, soon followed by Kup. Perceptor glanced up and noticed a small Energon leak in one of the pipes. "Get out!" he shouted to his fellow Wreckers, just before he shot the Energon and leapt out of the building. It exploded in a giant mass of blue smoke and sparks. Luckily, Wheeljack managed to haul Perceptor out of the way before he was caught in the blast.

What the three Wreckers didn't notice, however, were two shapes running from the fire, dragging a third, limp figure behind them. It took more than that to terminate Dreadwing and Skywarp.

Wheeljack sat alone in his quarters, thinking. Pyro sat next to him, helm in servos, staring at the floor. Flareup sat on his other side, rubbing her servo in small circles on his back comfortingly.

But he didn't feel any better.

Roadblock had deliberately abandoned him. Wheeljack remembered all the propaganda, when the Autobots had been advertising the strength and loyalty of their leaders. How they said things like "they'll never let you down" and "you can always rely on them".

Lies. All of it.

Some commander. Wheeljack snorted at the thought. Roadblock had been a coward. He had abandoned the Wreckers because they "didn't follow his morales". What, did he like to torture bots? Wheeljack wouldn't have been surprised.

It was then and there he decided on something. No matter how much they played it up, when you broke every bot down to their core, nobody wanted to die. No sane bot would give their life just to save someone else, when they could just as well save their own skin. He had been foolish to believe that Roadblock would willingly give his life to blow up some 'Cons. He should have expected this!

It was survival of the fittest. If you wanted to stay alive, you had to look after yourself. Rely on no one else, even those closest to you, because in the end, it was every bot for themselves.

Never put your life in someone's servos. They're bound to steal it away.

He could only sigh, shrug it off, and continue on. Suddenly he remembered something Perceptor had said when they were younger.

"War brings out the worst in us, it's true, but it also determines where loyalties lie and and how trustworthy your so-called 'friends' truly are."

Thanks for reading! If you have any comments, questions, compliments, or criticism, please feel free to review. Flames will be used to melt Pharma. ^^

This chapter was inspired by the song "Line in the Sand" by Linkin Park. Check it out, it's a good song (in my opinion)!

Oh, and if someone can identify which quote from a song by Three Days Grace I used in this story, I'lll give you an Energon cookie. XD

If you want to read more about Wheeljack and the Wreckers, or you want to read about Ratchet as a Seeker, please check out my story called Scars of Time. Thank you!