Title: Azure Droplets, Crimson Optics

Summary: Shattered Glass. He will keep you, he will never kill you. He will torture you, he will violate you, he will humiliate you, but he will never, ever kill you. Maybe that is the edge we need, maybe you are his weak spot. Starscream begs to differ.

Genre: Angst/Romance

Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers characters, robots, environments etc, etc. Any OC, robot or location not recognisable is mine.

Rating and Warning: M for abuse, torture, violence, gore. Sadism. OOCness through the roof, OCs here and there, beware.

A/N: Edited! A lot of things fixed.

…- Azure Droplets, Crimson Optics -…

They would start with the biting rains at their side.

On Earth the soft droplets of water have long ago been replaced by acidic poison, corrosive if left to linger on anything, flesh, stone or metallic. On the touch nothing will happen, but damage always shows after several hours. Normally, no one would venture out of they didn't need to. The heavy downpours are a strong setback, turning the dry, thirsty ground in a slippery mud that will creep into crevices too deep for anyone's pleasure.

It is why they will attack now. And it begins with a simple command over a crowded communication link.

The clouds are green and grey, thick and heavy with rain. If one would look at the sky now, they would see the deep purple missiles splitting the clouds. They accompany the droplets of rain, dropping down with a vengeful thirst. Their targets are integrated in their little minds, they are nothing but drones ready for deactivation at the command of their overlord. Several slam into the ground itself, throwing up rocks and junk along with their colourful explosions. Anyone close enough would be blinded by the flash they release, temporarily disabling optics that dare follow their trek to their final destination. Twelve of them impact with the large towers of the stronghold. On impact hundreds perish, the building collapsing on itself and taking hundreds more.

The grounders aren't very lucky. Many of the enemy forces have intercepted them as they try to flee the onslaught. They are torn to pieces by sheer numbers. The Decepticons were outnumbered even before the missiles were dropped, now their enemy has nothing better to do then pick them off one by one. Make a game out of it.

Those who manage to flee through the sky, they are even less lucky. So many flyers, so many to target. It doesn't let off though, their enemy targets them from the ground with missiles themselves. The flyers, from the smallest fighter jets to the greatest carriers are shot down at random. Far beneath them their enemy laughs and jokes and celebrates, congratulating their own when another one is shot to pieces. If they dare survive being shot, they will not survive colliding into the ground. And if they do survive the fall…

"I saw him first! He's mine!"

"Fat chance! Let go!"

"No!"

"It. Is. Mine!"

They fight over the survivors like dogs over a bone. Though dogs would be much less hostile. The fallen flyer is already damaged beyond repair, barely clinging to life as it is. His left leg comes loose with a crunching of cables and shattering armour. The seeker can't even scream in agony anymore when the other pulls at a wing, dragging him over the jagged ground. Rocks bury themselves into the mech's chassis through cuts. They sever a few vital lines, and as the enemy bot pulls him away from his 'comrade' the upper half of his body comes loose. Half of the fading body is dragged, fuel lines, cables, circuit boards, a pile of critically damaged spare parts is left in the body's wake. He dies somewhere along the way, lucky mech.

"Give me a wing!"

"They're mine! Get your own!"

Another flyer impacts the Earth not too far away. The femme was lucky enough to off line on the impact of the missile. She won't feel the two mechs fight over her parts, or what are left of those.

If they manage to get behind enemy borders, the Decepticons will have a much bigger chance of getting out of the slaughter alive. The harsh lands are filled with enemy troops, a mountain range with great rocks and deep crevices where the 'bots can hide and await their incoming target.

Flying amongst some of the flyers, the Decepticon SiC is one of the few who is attacking the Autobots. Others try to flee in a panic, and he is one of the few fighting back who is yet to be shot down. That's because they want you alive. He stubbornly ignores the little voice in the back of his CPU whispering foul promises. He doesn't want to hear it. He manoeuvres himself down closer to Earth still, pelting a pair of unsuspecting Autobots with his null-rays. They quit their bickering over a couple of corpses and fall to the ground, both motionless.

The seeker pulls up and circles a cliffside, growing desperate in finding any of his comrades. He doesn't know if his wingmates are all right. Or one of their other officers for that matter. He hasn't seen Megatron for a very long time as well. Rumour has it he fell by the hands of the Prime, but Starscream refuses to believe that.

The number of casualties is drastically increasing.

Unbeknownst to the flyer he's being watched from the murky skies by the few Autobot flyers, the treacherous cliff edge and the harsh lands below. He does notice when his sensors pick up a red signal trailing his tail. With a sharp turn away from the cliff the seeker dives towards the ground, evading the laser bullets coming from the Autobot sniper. But the sniper is the least of his problems when fire from below strikes the left wingtip and his right thrusters. More impacts follow like dull thuds to the metal of his body when he loses momentum and begins spinning towards the earth. He endures several more impacts before the firing stops, but there is no time left to think about it as he transforms out of his jet mode. The landing is messy, causing more damage to his white chassis which he really can't use right now. He comes to a stop against a very jagged rock against his chest. The impact is more painful then deadly. That would be the most luck he will receive ever again.

The holler of several Autobot soldiers reaches his audios, terrifying the Decepticon SiC. With a grunt he tries to get onto his pedes, one of his thrusters heels shot to scrap, the other slightly burnt. His right wing is busted up. Bent and broken in an unnatural and very painful position. Energon is almost pouring from one of the freed, snapped cables on his back, causing agony that makes him falter. His left hand has sustained severe damage, he can't move his fingers well and the wrist has locked up. He misses two fingers of the other hand. One of his knees keeps locking up when he puts too much weight on it, not good at all. His left side lies bare, the armour scraped off when he had landed. His cockpit glass is shattered, exposing inner wiring and even that is damaged. Eternal damage is at a minimum, though that will make no difference. There is a steady pounding drumming inside his head, and one of his optics isn't working anymore.

With a clear limp in his step the seeker makes his way towards… somewhere. Just not here…

Anywhere but here.

Primus isn't finished with him. Out of any of the Autobots to find him, it has to be them. "Would you look at that?" Sunstreaker gives the Decepticon his most charming smile.

"Pretty as always." Sideswipe steps up besides his brother, the same, horrible smile splitting his face. His yellow and black brother steps up next to him, giving the seeker enough space to flee. They hope he tries to run, it will be so much fun to chase him. It's not often Starscream is grounded, not during battle, and to have the seeker this close now is a wonderful treat to the Terror Twins. But the flyer can't escape, and he knows it. He cannot run, and he won't be flying for a while either. Starscream presses his sore back into the rock formation behind himself, feeling energon beginning to drip from a slowly parting injury that opens itself as he pushes against the rocky surface.

The twins are a head smaller, but much heavier then he is, and on the ground they are a formidable opponent. More so then in the skies. They are formidable opponents when the SiC isn't injured. They prove themselves when they move to attack the nearly defenceless seeker. They target his null-rays first. Sideswipe attacks head on, grab for a slender arm and twisting it down. The smaller bot may not really look like it, but he packs power. Starscream snarls and throws a claw at him, hooking it in vital fuel lines in the smaller bot's neck. They don't cut through the thick cables, instead hook and now he's stuck. With the seeker having his hands full with him the other twin had groped the ray on his left arm and tears it off, pulling a long cable with it that Starscream feels being pulled out of his arm all the way from his elbow. Starscream struggles to prevent the other from being taken, but Sideswipe is as relentless as the acidic rain still pouring from the skies and it's lost before the seeker can register it.

Suddenly the twins back away simultaneously, but as Starscream focuses his one working optic on the red one, the yellow one dives forward again. Pain crashes through the flyer's CPU when he lands on his back, causing a short fallout of systems and in a split second he feels blissfully numb. He uses the gained momentum of the tackle to roll over, pinning the smaller Autobot beneath him. Even without his claws the seeker is not helpless. Black lips pull back over sharp dentas and he bites down, clamping his jaws around the cables he was unable to damage before. Energon lines rupture and energon fills his mouth faster then he can swallow.

Another strong body collides with his side. While the yellow twin tries to stop the bleeding the red fighter has tackled the larger flyer to the ground, slamming him down and forcing his bent and broken winds to scrape over the rocky surface. Starscream's cockpit glass had shattered upon the impact against earth, now its leftovers are being torn away, Sideswipe going ballistic over the minor injuries his brother sustained. He reaches inside the exposed chest to grab a fist full of wiring and cables, pulling them along when the flyer throws him off with a screech of agony.

The damage has been done, and the only thought racing through Starscream's processor was to get up. He doesn't get any farther then rolling over on his stomach. The red twin is still at a small distance away, so the weight slamming down on his back is the yellow bot. Any leftover fight is leaving the seeker's exhausted frame. Too much energon lost. Too many injuries. Too many systems falling offline one by one. If he's lucky, the Terror Twins will kill him. They are quiet for a few moment, exchanging glances and wicket smiles.

"Think it will come off?"

"Let's try."

He releases another deafening screech of anguish, but his enemies are only delighted by the pained cries and they begin to work on his already broken wing. While one is holding him down, a job made easy with his weight alone, the other is pulling at the base of his left wing. Cables are torn out, metal is bending and breaking, energon is pouring out of the injury in an increasing stream and sparks crackle from an electric line. The seeker barely has strength to struggle but he tries while screaming his vocaliser out. What else is left to do?

Though they have the order to capture him alive, it seems the twins want him dead.

The flyer is grounded, maybe even permanently considering the damage to his wing. That much he knows as he feels unconsciousness trying to take him away. Stay awake. Don't fall asleep. The mantra repeats itself over and over, on auto cue.

Starscream doesn't know if he should count himself lucky or not when another Autobot appears upon the scene.

He recognises the gruff voice, shouting at the twin Autobots. They talk back at him, resulting in the sudden weight lifting from the seeker's chassis. He groans in relief, startling when one of the twins lands a few feet away. They stand down anyway, not wanting to pick a fight with this particular old Autobot. Black pedes cross the flyer's line of vision, the mech snarling at the twins some more.

Starscream knows he is picked up, but is also aware that he blacks out. He doesn't know for how long, his chronometer is removed from his chassis when he wakes again. All he can tell is that they are airborne, that he is being transferred through the skies. Voices surround him, some of them from enemies he knows, some of them from comrades. He grieves for them already, knowing full well prisoners never last long in Autobot clutches.

Another black out, this time shorter. Starscream wakes again when someone pulls him up by his right arm. "On your feet!" Easier said then done. The larger black mech pulls again, his grip crumbling the already brittle armour of the seeker's upper arm. His hands are bound by cuffs. Not that he could do anything right now.

A painful knock to the head, and his single optic is online again. He still hisses, which earns him a punch in the lower stomach, right beneath the remains of his cockpit. Pain flares up in full throttle and he whimpers, nearly losing his footing at a harsh slap to his face. "Quiet yourself." The order is clear, and he really should lest he wants to be hit again. he lifts his gaze to the other mech, realising one of his optics is cracked. Ironhide. The name finally comes to mind. Not a mech he would be happy to have him escorting into a stronghold littered with Autobot emblems. The veteran leads him out of a plane, probably a large transporter and into a stronghold. Enormous walls, all encrypted with the Autobot insignia, a prison for any Decepticon. The flyer glances behind him, seeing the large black and white mech transform into an all familiar face. Pain, from his very spark itself floods him now, pain and betrayal. Jetfire glances at him, his optics cold and faceplates emotionless.

"Keep walking." He does so as fast as his damaged legs can carry him, but it seems Ironhide is doing all of the dragging for him. The streets themselves are bustling with Autobots who have returned from this day's slaughter. Many bloody red optics turn their way, and Starscream has trouble ignoring some of the comments and promises shouted their way. Most of them promise torture, pain of many different shapes and sizes. They scream foul language, curse him, throw vulgar threats. None of them act to it, not daring to get in the black bot's way, though one is brave enough to touch him. "I would bed you right, pretty flyer." The poisonous green mech hisses through sharp dentas, hand dancing along the jaw line of the terrified seeker. The daring Autobot is shot through the head from a short distance, energon and tiny parts splattering over the seeker's face who stands shocked, though it wasn't Ironhide to react.

More Autobots part, some of them scattering upon hearing the angered voice of the Autobot Sub-Commander curse at every direction. "Get back, all of you! He belongs to the Prime!" Though Starscream has never met the vicious black and white mech, he knows about his reputation. It is whispered Jazz might have a few disconnected wires. Then again, do not all Autobots have a few screws loose? When it comes to loyalty, there is no follower like the nasty mech, but even loyalty can become too much can it not?

"Prime is waiting!" The angered statement is thrown at Ironhide, but the older mech is unfazed.

"Don't get your wires in a twist. This glitch isn't going anywhere." He tugs at the upper arm of their captive again, dragging the seeker towards the heavily guarded entrance of the stronghold. At least the calling has subsided now that Jazz is here to ensure that what belongs to Prime is not touched by anyone else.

The halls are mostly empty. Here, inside this part of the stronghold only higher ranking Autobots dwell. Some of the nastier, some of the meaner. Some of the more cruel ones.

They round corners, climb a staircase, venture through corridors, pass more doors then Starscream would care to remember. This fortress is solid, there is no way in.

No way out.

They reach their destination. Starscream doesn't need to know who is on the other side of the double doors to feel the aura of power cascading down on him. He has felt it several times before, never were the encounters with the Prime pleasant.

It will be much worse from now on. He will be able to touch you now. He has a lot of trouble silencing the menacing voice. You will belong to him.

A large throne room, decorated with weapons and body parts of Decepticons killed long ago. With a gasp Starscream recognises the most recent trophy, the fusion cannon of his Commander… ex-Commander now… is perched against the wall well above the throne of the Prime. It's true then. "No…" Please no. The seeker's optic falls on the mech occupying the very throne. The very mech that has been haunting him for millennia.

"Ratchet is waiting, but I thought you'd like to see to the seeker yourself first." Always the loyal friend, Ironhide is. Optimus chuckles deeply, his red optics burning up with glee. The imposing mech is even more intimidating when he stands. If Starscream hadn't been this exhausted, he would have struggled against Ironhide and Jazz to stay as far away from this overlord as possible. They are dead set on dragging him to their lord though.

With just a few steps between them Starscream's captors suddenly stop walking. Not a tick to spare on it when they both push the seeker into their Commander. The seeker throws his bound hands up to lessen the impact, but it still forces a grunt out of him. Pain throbs through his head again, but that is not as bad as the agony flaring up when the Prime circles his waist with one arm, keeping him prisoner. "Was this… necessary?" The terrified flyer feels the voice of the overlord rumble through his very being, feels anger brewing. The other strokes a deep gash with his free hand, crossing it over the devastated wing, making Starscream whimper when the feeling travels through his very core. "He put the twins in bad shape, so they returned the favour." Well… at least Jazz is annoyed by this. To damage something that belongs to their Prime is an outrage.

"I see…" The anger dies down slightly. The crimson optics stare back down at the trapped seeker. With reawakened strength Starscream begins to struggle again, no longer caring if he manages to damage himself more then the bastard holding him. Prime doesn't seem fazed though. "Leave us." He commands, his voice unnaturally soft and even gentle. His warriors salute to him and retreat immediately. Their lord watches them go, until the double doors are closed behind their backs and resealed once more.

Optimus looks down then, optics flaring up. The flyer struggles more, managing to scratch his paintjob with his remaining claws.

How bothersome.

"Calm yourself pretty one." Starscream manages a sort of kick against his captor's leg, scraping more paint. His energon is already staining a great deal of the overlord's chassis. The hand recently tracing his wing moves to his head and rests under his chin, snapping his head back painfully. The Decepticon finally stops struggling, or whatever he would call it. All that there is left for him to do is vent air through ragged vents and air ducts. They are badly damaged from his messy landing. They rattle with broken parts and fluids. If it weren't for the other mech holding him up he would have fallen.

"Much better." The overlord muses softly, brushing a thumb over the black jaw line of the smaller mech, painting it a soft blue due to the azure energon dripping down the seeker's lips. No longer caring if he will be allowed to survive the night Starscream snaps at the thumb with razor teeth, trying to bite it but losing against the other's quick reflexes.

Starscream thought he would be slapped again for something like that, had hoped the other mech would slap him. The action draws a humoured laugh from the Prime instead. Not good at all. The words that follow soon after make the energon still running though his wiring run cold with dread.

"So feisty. We can't have any of that now can we? I will tame you soon enough pretty one. For now, welcome to your new home."