Author's Note: This story is about Beast Wars II. If you are looking for Armada Starscream, turn back. If you are looking for Animated Starscream, turn back. If you are looking for G1 Starscream, turn back and read my sister's fic. It's pretty awesome, and I'm not just saying that! It's called "The More Things Change", and frankly rocks out loud.

---

Starscream stared at the new mech. A head taller than him at a conservative guess, the newcomer had been roughly shoved in by the guards. They didn't even bother telling Starscream his new cellmate's name. Oh well, the mech was standing in front of him. In fact, he hadn't moved. Maybe he'd heard what had happened to his previous cellmates, although in his favor it had all been self-defense. Well, that and he didn't like being touched. At all.

This mech seemed disinclined to touch him, or even move. He was still standing in place, gazing at Starscream. Oh well, nothing for it.

"Hello, friend," Starscream said. "I don't suppose you have a name, do you?"

The mech merely stared back.

"Hmm. I assure you, any rumors you may have heard are mostly unfounded."

A pause, then, "Roger."

"Ah, you can talk. I was a little worried I had a mute mech for a cellmate. My name is Starscream, as you probably guessed. Who are you?"

The big mech looked at him for a bit, and then turned to face the wall. Starscream waited for a little bit before deciding an answer was not forthcoming.

"You're right, names are unimportant. You're shaping up to be the best cellmate I've ever had," Starscream said as he got on his berth. "Probably the best thing is not touching me; I'm not very fond of it. Is there anything you wouldn't like me to do? If I slag another cellmate they might put me in solitary and…" Starscream stopped as he saw the big mech visibly tense. "Did you come from solitary?"

There was another lengthy pause before the nameless mech replied with, "Roger."

"Mm. Well, you don't have to worry about that as long as I'm around and trust me; I plan on being around for a long time. See you in the morning," Starscream said as he lay on the berth.

He had almost slipped into recharge when he heard a faint, "Roger," in reply.

---

The next morning was very quiet. Starscream didn't feel the need to make small talk and 'Roger' still wasn't saying anything. It bothered Starscream that he didn't have a name for his new cellmate, but the mech wasn't telling and it wasn't like he was going to ask the guards or anything.

His curiosity was to be sated that very day. They were led to the common area for rations where Starscream was immediately grabbed by Dirge and Thrust, the two mechs in the facility that he could sort of stand.

"Hey Starscream, who's the bruiser?" one of them asked. Starscream never bothered to learn the difference between them, they were never apart.

"Hmm? Oh, he's my new cellmate," Starscream said as he looked around. It seemed Roger had wandered off. How could he have lost sight of such a big mech?

"Heh, looks like you'll need a new one then," the other one said, pointing to a corner. Starscream could just make out Roger and another mech. Did he have six arms?

"What do you mean?" Starscream asked.

"Don't tell me you haven't seen the new guy."

"Yeah, he's real manipulative. Your new pal is going to melt like butter in his hands."

"Well, we can't have that," Starscream said as he walked toward the pair.

"Hey, what are you doing!?"

"Yeah, don't stick your neck out for that hunk of metal!"

Starscream ignored them and made his way over to the corner. What did they know? They had each other, not a never-ending parade of nothings trying to boost their reputation by taking him out or turning him into a dumb lackey. Roger was the best company he'd had in vorns and he wasn't about to let some no-name newcomer take that away.

As he approached the corner, he noticed that Roger seemed to be shying away from the six-armed mech. Starscream wondered what was going on. He hadn't provoked that reaction; Roger just turned away if he didn't want to talk. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all…

Of course, it was at this time that Roger noticed him. The bigger mech turned to him with an almost hopeful expression on his faceplate. No-name turned with a scowl, which made Starscream grin. Good thing his mask hid his expression…

"What's so funny?" No-name said.

Oops. The multi-armed mech must have seen his eyes crinkle from the grin. Oh well.

"Forgive me, I wasn't laughing at you. I'm just glad to see my friend meeting new people." Roger visibly perked at being called a friend. Well, it was true. Getting along for a day counted, right? "My name is Starscream. Who do I have the pleasure of speaking to?" Being polite never hurt anything, and he really didn't need any more enemies. Several of his previous cellmates had had connections who were displeased at their sudden termination.

"Starscream, huh? I've heard of you. You're some big shot who can't get along with anymech," No-name said as he stepped closer to Starscream.

"Well, I wouldn't say I'm a big shot," Starscream replied modestly. No-name was a little closer than was comfortable for him, but he'd be slagged before showing weakness to No-name.

The mech snorted. "Of course you wouldn't. The name's Octus. I was just talking to your buddy here about forming a partnership. What do you say?" Octus said, smirking.

"Ahh, while your offer is generous, we couldn't possibly form a partnership right now. Perhaps some other time," Starscream said. It was best to leave this Octus character with some hope. It wouldn't do to have this erupt into violence. "Come on," he said as he turned to Roger. "They're waiting for us over there."

"Did I say you could leave, flyboy?" Octus said with a scowl.

"No, but -" Starscream was abruptly cut off as Octus grabbed his throat and both arms.

He panicked. This was bad, this was really bad. Starscream thrashed in Octus' grip, but couldn't get enough leverage to do anything. He tried kicking out at his opponent and got his leg caught by another arm for his trouble. Slag, why wasn't he letting go? This was too much, he couldn't concentrate and Octus still had two arms free…

Suddenly Roger was there, his hand engulfing Octus' head. When Octus didn't immediately let go, he started squeezing.

"I would let go if I were you," Starscream managed to get out. As things started creaking in Octus' head he reluctantly complied.

Roger released his head as Starscream backed away. It was during this tense pause that several guards ran up. Honestly, couldn't they have come when they would have been useful?

"Here now, what's going on?" one of the guards asked. "You're not causing trouble again, are you BB?" he continued, glaring at the mech previously known as Roger.

"Of course not, sir," Starscream said before Octus could open his mouth. "We were just having a discussion with Octus here."

"A discussion, huh?"

"Yes, isn't that right?" asked Starscream as he looked meaningfully at Octus. It was a surprise when BB answered.

"Roger," he said firmly, almost glaring at Octus. Under the weight of those stares, Octus reluctantly nodded in agreement.

The guards still seemed suspicious, but were willing to let it go. It's not like they were being paid enough to care or anything.

"This isn't over," Octus hissed as the guards walked away. "Next time -"

"Next time you won't find us so forgiving, understand?" Starscream said coldly. "If you want to keep functioning, stay out of our way." Starscream abruptly turned and said, "Come on BB, Dirge and Thrust might not be the best company, but they're certainly better than any over here."

"Roger."
Starscream could practically hear Octus fuming as they walked over to the table secured by Dirge and Thrust.

"Impressive, very impressive," the nearest one said.

"I'll say. I haven't seen anything like that since the last time someone jumped Starscream."

All the attention seemed to fluster BB, so Starscream drew it back to himself. "Yes, BB is shaping up to be much better than the last cellmate. Anyway, tell me more about this Octus character."

As Dirge and Thrust started in on the newest gossip, Starscream leaned back and relaxed. This was looking like the best thing that had happened to him in this Pit-forsaken place.

---

As time passed, Starscream learned to "speak BB" as Dirge and Thrust put it. He wasn't quite sure why no one else seemed to understand it. BB only said one word, but he put so much inflection in it that his meaning was impossible to miss. Maybe it was because he spent so much time with the mech. Dirge and Thrust seemed to have developed their own language…

Oh well, those were thoughts for another time. So far Octus had left them alone, but Starscream and BB hadn't given him a chance to catch them off guard. It was only a matter of time before Octus would make his move.

Today was the day their luck ran out. They had been walking around the exercise yard when Octus stepped in front of them.

"Well, isn't it nice to see you two again," Octus said smirking nastily.

"Hmm, I suppose," Starscream replied. "Did you need something? Because we would rather be anywhere but here."

BB chimed in with and emphatic, "Roger."

Octus' smirk widened. "What are you going to do, move me with the power of friendship?"

"What are you talking about?" Starscream asked.

Octus snorted. "That buddy-buddy act you two have. It's disgusting."

Starscream felt his temper rising. "What about Dirge and Thrust. I don't see you complaining about them."

"Of course you don't. I already had a little 'chat' with them. Weren't you wondering where they were?" Octus' smirk had returned full force.

Starscream had been wondering, but he assumed one of the pair's pranks had backfired on them. He hadn't considered that Octus would go after them to get to him and BB.

"What do you want?" Starscream asked angrily. Beside him, he felt BB gearing up for a fight.

Octus leaned forward slightly and said, "Nothing."

"Then get out of our way."

Octus' smirk grew even bigger as he said, "Make me."

"Fine."

Starscream stepped up and punched Octus in the face. This put him off balance, and BB's kick set him skidding across the yard.

"Nice work," Starscream said as he turned to BB. "Hopefully that will convince him to leave us alone for a while."

"Roger."

Before they could walk on their way, a guard ran up to them and yelled, "Halt! I saw what you did there!"

The pair turned to the guard. "Hmm? What are you talking about?" Starscream asked. This didn't usually happen. Most of the time, the guards didn't care unless you tried to kill someone directly in front of them. What was going on?

"That unprovoked attack on Octus! You two've always been troublemakers. Now put your hands where I can see them and stay still!" the guard replied.

BB followed Starscream's lead and slowly put his hands up. Starscream was still trying to understand what was happening. Why did the guard care? Unless…

By this time, four more guards and the warden had joined them. "What's the problem?" the warden asked.

"Starscream and BB causing trouble again, sir," the guard said as he saluted. "This time their target was Octus."

"Oh really. It looks like his complaint was genuine then," the warden said. He turned to Starscream and said, "This is the last time you'll be causing trouble. Guards, take them to solitary."

"Wait, you can't do that!" Starscream yelled. "We didn't permanently hurt him; we just wanted him out of the way!" In the background he could hear BB struggling with the guards.

"Quiet, convict! I don't care what happened. All I know is that you and that walking malfunction have been nothing but trouble since you met each other! The obvious solution is to permanently separate you."

Starscream was struggling not to panic in the guards' grip. "Wait! Don't put BB in solitary, it's not his fault. I-I forced him to go along with my plots! Just leave him alone!"

"That's not going to work, convict. He's an accomplice; he'll get the same punishment as you."

BB was still struggling with the guards, and several more had been called over. This couldn't be happening. Starscream glanced around the courtyard, and his optics fell on Octus. Octus, who was standing and smirking. Starscream struggled harder as he realized what had happened. Octus had set them up. This couldn't be happening! No one got the upper hand on them! It wasn't fair! Wait what was that guard bringing out? No. Nononono…

The last thing Starscream saw before he blacked out was Octus' smirk as they dragged BB away.

---

Alarms blared as Starscream ran down the corridor, a stolen hand-cannon on his back and a gun in his hands. It had taken ages of careful planning and 'good behavior', but he had finally pulled of the jailbreak of the century. Dirge and Thrust had already made it out, so there were just a few more things to take care of.

He stopped at the correct door and pulled the cannon around. One shot and the door was blasted to smithereens. Starscream carefully peered around the door frame and said, "Hello BB. Did you miss me?"

He was greeted with an enthusiastic, "Roger!"

"Come on. We still need to visit someone else."

"Roger?"

"Of course I got Dirge and Thrust out. They're clearing a path for us."

"Roger."

After a bit more running they reached their destination. Starscream shot the door out again and waited for the occupants to emerge. A small hovercraft darted out, but Starscream and BB let him pass. He wasn't who they were here for.

"Hmm. I'm getting tired of waiting BB. It's rude not to greet the mechs who are here to free you."

"Roger."

Starscream smiled. "Indeed, it seems like someone is a little ungrate -"

"Shut up!" Octus yelled. He practically flew out of the doorway and tried to latch himself onto Starscream. BB was ready for him though. Octus found himself in a crushing grip and couldn't move.

"How nice of you to join us, Octus," Starscream said smoothly. "We've missed you."

Octus started to say something, but BB squeezed and he shut his mouth.

"Be patient, Octus," Starscream said, pacing in front of their captive. "What you did wasn't nice at all. We really can't let you get away with that sort of thing."

Octus twitched.

"Hmm? Was there something you wanted to say?"

Octus looked straight at Starscream and said, "You said something about freeing me. Did you mean it?"

"Of course I did Octus. Let him go BB."

"Roger."

Octus hit the floor hard. As he stood up he said, "What are -"

Starscream's shot hit him right in the spark case.

Starscream stood back and stared at the dead mech. "I'm freeing your spark from its casing Octus. The ultimate freedom, you might say. Come on BB, let's not keep Dirge and Thrust waiting."

"Roger."

---

Starscream didn't know how long it had been since the escape. Everything was sort of blurring together. They were running low on energon, and the police weren't far behind.

"We can't go any farther," Dirge said. Starscream had finally learned to tell them apart. Unfortunately it didn't look like it would matter for much longer.

Starscream looked around. "Well, at least it's not a bad place to die."

BB sat down heavily. "Roger."

A few moments later they were surrounded by mechs. Starscream gathered his energy for one last offensive.

Suddenly two mechs jumped into the fray. Starscream thought they would be two more enemies to fight, but the newcomers attacked the police instead. The larger stranger tore through the police force with ease, while the other's tank mode took out their transports.

The large mech turned toward them and said, "I am Galvatron and this is my brother, Megastorm. I am looking for soldiers to rise up against our oppressors. Will you join us?"

Starscream glanced around him at the fallen mechs and Dirge, Thrust, and BB. The choice was easy.

"Why, we would be honored to join your army, mighty Galvatron," he said, bowing down.

---

PS: So, what did you think? Also, I'm proud to say that there were no OCs in this story. In fact, only Octus was from a different continuity. He's an obscure comic character. :)

If you came from BlackMarketTrombone's fic, I just want to say thank you, and that I hope it lived up to your expectations. Until next time.

~SuperMoose