Transformers Fan Fiction ❯ Silence ❯ Silence Shattered ( Chapter 2 )

Silence Chapter 2 - Silence Shattered

Soundwave sat silently at his computer, hacking into the Autobot database. It was very difficult work, as the system continued to reset and change the password every fifteen minutes. And it took a short while for the espionage expert to crack the codes, so he found himself with very little time left before it would reset again. Under normal circumstances it was difficult, but by no means impossible for one with his expertise. However recently it has been harder for Soundwave to concentrate. He really couldn't identify exactly what was causing this, but he couldn't seem to control his thoughts. The decepticon could swear that he saw the shadows moving towards him, as if they wished to grasp him in their vice-like grip and pull him into nothingness. Soundwave shook his head to clear his thoughts. There was no one here, what he saw were phantoms of his own imagination. That was what scared him the most; his imagination never played tricks on him up until now.

After his failed attempt at espionage at the Insecticon fortress, Megatron ultimately decided to wait a little while before trying again. So instead he assigned Soundwave to hack into the Autobot's system files, a task that is usually moderately difficult to begin with, but for some reason now it was almost impossible. He couldn't remember why exactly he had failed. Soundwave remembered that he couldn't hear what the Insecticons were saying, and that he did something, but his memory was nothing but a blur. He could have gone to the infirmary and have a brain scan done, but he detested such things. The navy blue transformer knew first-hand how much damage a gifted neurotechnician could perform if given the opportunity. While none of the other decepticons were as talented at neurocircuitry as he was, nevertheless he was uncomfortable with the thought of anyone looking into his cranial cavity.

Finally, he finished copying and documenting all of the Autobot's most important files. Suddenly, a wave of nausea and panic gripped him. The world appeared to be spinning around him, as if to devour him. He stood up and looked around frantically. The shadows were surrounding him, he was under attack! Had the Autobots somehow snuck into his room? Or were they Insecticons?! He couldn't make out their features, but either way they were here to get him. Soundwave wasn't concerned as much for his own life as he was for his cassettes and Megatron. If these mysterious things killed him, they may very well go after them next!

Soundwave wasn't going to let that happen. The decepticon reached for his gun, and upon grasping it fired everywhere. He blew the shadows into oblivion! Every shot hit its mark, and yet they did not fall. Instead they laughed mockingly. Their horrid voices ringing in the air.

There was no escape.

Ravage and Frenzy were walking down the hallway.

"Do you guys notice somethin's wrong wit' Soundwave?" Frenzy asked quietly. Ravage nodded. "I mean, ev'r since he wen' to dat Insecticon place…he's been different. I can't put my finger on it…"

"Did you asked Laserbeak about it?" Ravage growled. All of the cassettes had the ability to communicate with each other and Soundwave, whether they could speak vocally or not.

"Yeah, Laserbeak said nuttin' happened. But somethin' must have happened!" Frenzy shook his head with frustration. "I know somethin's wrong, I can feel it…" Suddenly, a loud crash came from Soundwave's room. The two cassettes looked at each other before racing to the room…

Suddenly, the shadows faded into nonexistence as the door to his room creaked open. Soundwave whirled around to see who the intruder was, and relief washed over him as he saw that it was Ravage and Frenzy.

The two cassettes looked around the room in alarm. The entire room was a mess, chairs and tables overturned, the computer on the floor. Yet there were no signs of battle.

"What…what happened, Soundwave? Are you alright?!" Frenzy asked in genuine concern as he and Ravage ran to him. The navy blue decepticon leaned back against the wall and sank down to a sitting position.

"Status normal. No damage sustained," Soundwave answered slowly. "Intruders located and terminated."

"There were no intruders…" Ravage growled softly. Frenzy scratched his head; he didn't know what to make of it. There were no signs of battle, but if Soundwave said there had been intruders…

"What intruders? Do you know who dey were?" Frenzy asked.

"Negative," Soundwave replied warily. "Identification attempt failed," Frenzy and Ravage looked at each other again. None of this made any sense.

"Should I report this to Megatron for you-" Frenzy offered.

"No!" Soundwave suddenly raised his head. His visor flashed brightly, then dimmed back down to its normal glow. "No. Report unnecessary… the intruders are taken care of…" This sudden outburst alarmed the two cassettes.

"I'll stay here, you go tell the other cassettes what just happened," Ravage growled softly into Frenzy's audio receptors. The small decepticon nodded. "Maybe they'll know what to do…"

"Ok, well-uh. I'm gonna go and-uh, finish my work…" Frenzy stammered as he walked out of the room.

Soundwave didn't want him to go. Their appearance had chased the shadows away and he hoped that maybe their presence would keep them away. However, there was no way he could explain that to his young cassettes without causing them unnecessary worry. So he remained silent as the younger version of Rumble left the room. Fortunately, Ravage stayed. The panther-type transformer watched Frenzy leave, and then turned back around to face his creator.

"Would you like me to fix the room back up for you?" Ravage growled softly. It would give him something to do while keeping an eye on his object of his concern.

"Negative… I'll…I'll fix it later. Come here, Ravage," Soundwave commanded. The oldest of the cassettes walked over to him and sat back on his haunches. He wasn't sure what he expected his creator to do or say, but he did know that he didn't expect what came next. The larger decepticon reached one hand forward and rested it on top of the smaller's head and began to pet him. This even further confused the cassette. It wasn't rare for Soundwave to show affection to his 'children,' but under the circumstances it was the last response Ravage had expected. However at least for the moment Soundwave had the air of calm and collectiveness that Ravage recognized. So he laid down and purred softly as his master pet him.

"Rumble! Rumble!" Frenzy cried as he ran into the energon storage room. The elder twin turned to see the other running towards him. Buzzsaw, who was perched in the rafters, swooped down and landed on the ground next to Rumble.

"What's wrong? What's going on?" Rumble asked as he placed his stack of energon cubes on the ground. "It's Soundwave isn't it?"

"He…I don't know wha's wrong wit' him, Rumble!" Frenzy cried.

"What did he do? What happened, Frenzy?" the elder cassette asked. The younger frantically explained the situation. Buzzsaw and Rumble looked at each other.

"We should tell Megatron," Rumble finally decided. Buzzsaw nodded in agreement. "C'mon, lets all go and talk to Megatron, he'll know what to do."

Ravage purred softly as his creator silently continued to pet him. Silence was never rare around Soundwave, as he had always been a transformer of few words. However now it was eerie. He didn't know what to make of any of it. Soundwave had always been so calm and rational…the source of stability amongst the war. It never crossed any of the cassettes that something could happen to their creator. Although they knew through first-hand experience that any day, any moment could be their last. That one of them may not return from the next battle. That they would likely not last forever. They had to be prepared for anything, it was just the nature of war. But for reasons none of the cassettes could not explain, they always thought that Soundwave would be there for them. That somehow he was immortal, always there to give advice, protection and stability. But now…

Soundwave silently watched his eldest cassette purr. It had a calming effect on him, and seemed to chase the shadows away. He had no idea what was happening to him, and that was more terrifying than anything. It was highly doubtful that his cassettes bought his lie, for verbal skills of any kind were difficult for him. He didn't even know himself what had happened, for he could have sworn that he had been under attack, but when he surveyed the damage, it was all his own. Talking to Megatron about it was a forbidden concept. If a decepticon were to lose his mind and no longer provide for the team, then he would immediately be destroyed. Soundwave worried about what would happen to his cassettes if he was ever destroyed. He knew Megatron would be good to them, he was always a good leader to them. It was the rest of the team he worried about, Starscream particularly. The jet decepticon would not hesitate to show the cassettes who the new boss was now that their creator and protector had been deactivated. The mere thought of it sent a wave of red-hot anger through him.

Soundwave was surprised by the sheer magnitude of his newfound rage. Had Starscream stood before him that instant, the tape deck transformer would have blown him away. He raised one hand up before him and clenched it into a fist. It was then he noticed with surprise that his hand was shaking Soundwave shook his head to clear his muddled thoughts. He wasn't like this. He wasn't a fighter by nature, and had never felt such hatred. While the worry that Starscream would take advantage of his cassettes had always been on his mind, he had always rationalized that it could never happen because he would always protect them. But the way he was thinking now, he felt as if he was already fading away. That he had to stop Starscream now before he vanished completely. Soundwave then noticed that his other hand was also shaking. Ravage looked up at him with concern. He too had noticed it.

"Masta' Megatron!" Frenzy cried as he, Rumble and Buzzsaw raced into their leader's throne room. Megatron had been discussing battle strategies with Starscream when the trio ran in, and was going nowhere with his stubborn subordinate. He turned to regard the cassettes with alarm. The frightened tone Frenzy had used immediately got his attention.

"What's wrong?" Megatron asked.

"Um…" Rumble felt uncomfortable telling Megatron about the previous events with Starscream present. If Starscream knew something was wrong with their creator, he would be the first one to take advantage of it. "Could we talk to you alone for a minute. Please, Lord Megatron…?"

Megatron turned to glare at Starscream. The smaller decepticon raised his hands up.

"Hey! If there's something going on, I should hear it too. Don't you agree, Megatron?"
"Get out, Starscream," Megatron ordered.

"But…" Megatron raised his canon, "Ok point taken, I'm going!" Starscream swiftly exited the room.

"Alright, what's wrong?" Megatron asked warily as he turned to face the three.

"It's Soundwave…" Rumble began. "He's been acting so strange lately… I think…we think something's wrong with him…" Megatron raised one hand to silence him.

"Did this begin after his Insecticon espionage assignment?" Megatron asked.

The trio looked at each other. Finally, Frenzy answered, "Yeah, it did."

Megatron stood in thought for a moment. He too had noticed the change. But he wasn't sure what exactly it was, for Soundwave's demeanor had remained unchanged. It was the air about him, it just -felt- different. It was as if Megatron could sense his subordinate's distress, but just couldn't put his finger on it. But now it was beginning to make sense. "I think I know what it is. I bet those stupid Insecticons planted a cerebral shell in him."

"That's what we thought at first…" Rumble noted. Suddenly, the room shook. "What the heck was that?"

"Are we under attack?" Megatron looked around. Abruptly, Ravage ran in. He was mildly damaged.

Frenzy regarded the elder cassette with surprise. "Ravage! What happened?!"
Ravage roared. The three cassettes gasped. Megatron, unable to decipher the panther's attempts at verbal communication, looked to his three brethren for a translation.

"Soundwave went crazy!" Frenzy cried in panic.

"He blew half of the wall down and ran away," Rumble explained, trying to keep calm. However it was easier said than done. "Ravage…Ravage tried to follow him, but Soundwave shot at him! Soundwave would never hurt us, but he shot at Ravage!" his voice cracked and bordered on hysterical.

"What?!" Megatron exclaimed. "Where is he going?!" Ravage shook his head and whimpered. The decepticon leader didn't need a translation - Ravage didn't know.

None of them knew.