//------------------------------// // Purple Is Better Than Red // Story: Top Of The List // by dudenotactive //------------------------------// Blitzwing silently worked on a little project. His hands moved and tinkered with a device of unknown purpose. His tools clanked loudly as he discarded them onto the table just to pick up another. Hours would pass, he was in complete silence. No words were said as time went on. But then he became still. His face, frozen into a demonic smile, his optics under his visor shifted to the left.  "You have not moved since you entered," Blitzwing whispered.  "Never thought you knew I was here." A voice came from behind Blitzwing.  "Vell I vas busy, vorking with a little project that vill help us in ze near future." "Alright, but I'm curious about who I'm talking to." The voice sounded as if they were moving closer, it was apparent when the sounds of pedes against steel reached Blitzwing's audio sensors.  "Ze original." The triple-changer answered.  "Right, still not used to it, Blitz." "I'm not used to having an Autobot not dying around me, Vheeljack." Wheeljack chuckled as he was now out of the shadows and next to the Decepticon. "There's a first time for everything." "Vhy are you here, Autobot?" "Just bored, there's nothing to do around here but mess with Miss Thunderthighs." "Right, she complained about those silly and ridiculous pranks you did to her. I vill ask you to cease! I grow tired of her vhining! So could you please refrain from doing it again." "Eh," Wheeljack shrugged his shoulders. "I'm bored of it anyway. She just can't take a joke." "Thank you. I vill give you a lollipop as a revard!" "Heh, I appreciate that, Decepticreep. Just remember our deal." And much to Blitzwing's disappointment, the screen nearby came to life and greeted the two mechs with a sobbing Thunderblast. Blitzwing's much more aggressive side had let out a tired yet loud groan. "Vhat is it now you useless vaste of spare parts! Zat is a bit harsh, ve should be nicer. I don't care, now tell us vhat is wrong or I vill- Give everyone a big hug!" "Blitzwing!" Thunderblast whined. "Warpath is trying to throw me out an airlock!" "Ah am not!" A red mech with a large cannon protruding out of his chest entered the screen. "Ah'm just showing this pretty lil' lady how we real Autobots deal with seekers!" "See! He's so mean! Can we please just scrap him?" "Go ahead sugarcube! Do it, and Ah'll show you the one-two punch, and the kapow!" Warpath was extremely loud, so much that Flamewar struck the tank out of the screen.  "I'll show you something Autotrash!" She hissed. "Steve, get the buzz saws! We're having tanks for dinner!" "Ah like to see you try two-wheeler! Ah'm gonna enjoy shooting you out of an airlock!" With that, the larger bot tackled Flamewar to the ground, both crashing into Thunderblast in the process.  "Warpath, Warpath..." Wheeljack tried to call out to his current partner and the new addition to the Wreckers. But the grounder couldn't stop laughing. The tank returned to the screen when he heard his name being called. "What's that!? Speak louder, Ah can't hear you!" He tried to listen to Wheeljack but was pulled away by Flamewar.  "We ain't done yet two tons! I'm gonna make myself some stew out of your treads!" Wheeljack who had finally recovered from his fits of laughter started to leave the room so he could go and break the fight off. Blitzwing simply shut off the screen, creating a moment of silence in the room. Then he returned to his work, the sounds of his tools clicked when they came into contact with the device. It was great to have some silence, and hopefully, they will stop with the noises. But that hope faded away when the sounds of gunfire filled the halls of the Nemesis. Blitzwing could only sigh as he continued with his work.  Unbeknownst to the triple-changer, the screen behind him started to show static. This continued until it revealed a live feed of an oncoming ship before going black.  Dash marched through the forest with haste. Her friends followed behind the athlete. They walked on the path that led towards the clearing Dash had previously discovered. It was also the place they had originally planned to make camp on. The teens kept their eyes peeled for any danger that could come out of the thicket.  "I wish that we'd have waited for Arcee instead of walking to who knows where!" Rarity complained. "I am just happy that we made a stop at my place, or else I would have ruined my shoes!" "And because of you, we wasted time!" Dash pointed out.  "Unlike you, I was wearing my expensive heels! So I was forced to wear something proper for forest trekking!" Rarity countered.  "Girls, stop fighting!" Applejack cuts in before it could get ugly. "Besides, we are here to make sure that you don't hurt yourself RD. We are talkin' about some big giant robots! They can crush yer skull like a blueberry." "Ha!" Dash laughed. "I'd like to see his lordship try! With you girls on my side, we can scare him straight!" "I don't think we can do such a thing." Twilight voiced her opinion. Before Dash could even correct the girl in glasses, something in the corner of her eye had caught her attention. The rest followed her gaze, and they all felt their blood run cold. There in the distance, was a gigantic creature of sorts hidden beneath a cloak of shadows. Two crimson eyes glared back at them with a burning passion.  Before any word could be said, the large figure started running. Dash gave chase much to the sake of her friends.  "Dash!" Twilight tried to grab the athlete by her arm but it was too late. There was only one thing left to do in the situation, and it was to follow after Dash. "That's him!" Dash claimed as they sped through the thicket. "That's the jerk!" "If that's him," Rarity huffed and gasped, she struggled to keep up and was lagging behind. After all, she was the least athletic one in the group. "Then it would be wiser to seek out this Smokescreen fellow since he is far more friendly!" "I already told you, we don't have to be afraid when we're together!" Dash reassured the fashionista. "I have a bad feeling about this!" Rarity cried out as they continued their pursuit.  Soon enough, the group would enter a clearing. And that was it. Their big bad robot was nowhere to be seen, they were hot on his trail but he had vanished from sight. Dash and the others couldn't help but feel confused. It is honestly impossible to lose a giant such as Starscream, and yet, the scheming Decepticon was nowhere to be seen. Dash tried to listen for the roaring engines of a jet, but the forest was deathly quiet as normally as it does. But there was something else, the ground shook under their feet. It wasn't noticeable at first, but when they all stood still they felt the small tremors. None spoke, only waited. Their patience was paid generously when a tree just next to them had fallen with a loud thud. Fluttershy yelped in surprise when the tree crashed down, the rest took a stance, preparing themselves for what's to come.  Something big, something loud. A large creature emerged from the forest, every eye in the vicinity widened in shock. It was a machine, just like Arcee. The only thing different is, none could recognize who this one was.  When the Cybertronian glanced over to them, his eyes flashed purple. "Oh..." He said aloud. "This is awkward." He raised his arm towards them, he did not question them or anything, he only opted to just blast them with his cannon.  The girls saw this, Dash and Applejack were about to jump into action, but then Twilight took the initiative. "Wait! We're friends with Arcee!" The machine faltered, his weapon pointed away from the teens. "Are you now?" He doubted her.  "Yes! So please understand, we are not a threat." There was a short second of silence before the bot shrugged his shoulders. "Honestly, I don't see the appeal of having humans for pets. You guys are gross." "We are not pets!" Rarity was offended the most.  "Yeah tell yourselves that." He huffed before turning away.  "Wait! Hold on a second!" Dash called out, thankfully the titan was kind enough, or at least he was right now, to give her some of his time. "Starscream, where is he!?" "Starscream?" He eyed her confusedly. "He's not here..." "You're lying! We saw him!" Dash pointed an accusing finger at the bot.  This was a bad move on Dash's part, the bot's eyes shifted into a glare. "And I'm telling you now that he isn't here, and that's the truth humie. He's back in the airfield the last time I saw him. Which is an hour ago." "But..." Fluttershy spoke up as she shuffled towards the titan, strangely uncharacteristically of her. "We all saw him, then we all chased him over here." The bot stared at her for a minute, then a small smile cracked on him. And much to everyone's surprise, he laughed. It was an honest laugh with no trace of ill intent in his voice. Once he was done, he walked closer to the group just to squat in front of them. "I get it now!" The titan boomed. "That wasn't Starscream you saw, that was a hologram!" "Hologram?" The group repeated, but Twilight was more excited to hear about it.  The bot took a second to go through his compartments before producing a strange-looking drone. It was circular, like a disc. Painted green to blend with their surroundings, a red bulb acting as its eye. "Yep, a hologram projected by this drone here! And to be specific, that wasn't Starscream you saw, but just a basic seeker build that is common on Vos. You all must've confused it with the ol' red baron." "Amazing!" Twilight quickly coveted the gap just so she could get a closer look at the drone. "A drone from another world! May I see?" "Eh, this is an older model anyway." The bot lowered it for Twilight to reach, but when she held it in her hands, the drone crashed down just in front of her feet. It was far too big and far too heavy for the human to hold. "The name Swindle! Don't let that confuse you though, my products and items are as legit as my license!" "Well, nice to meet you, Mr.Swindle, I'm Fluttershy." The shy girl introduced herself. On cue, the rest would do the same in their own unique way. Swindle waited until the introductions were over, he smiled at them and proceeded to lightly pat Fluttershy on the head. "I gotta say, those names are kinda cute!" He chuckled. "Maybe I should keep one of you." "I don't think Arcee would agree with that." Applejack shot down the idea before Swindle could act upon it.  "Yeah, you're right." The Con sighed. "Autobots are always about that hipster stuff. 'All life is precious and should be free to choose' they say." "Well, since we're done here. Mind telling us what are you doing all the way out here?" Twilight asked curiously.  "Me? Well, I was actually testing the drone, as you've all seen. Other than that, I am also collecting water from a nearby lake." Swindle explained himself.  "Water?" Rarity arched a brow. "Water!" Swindle smiled as he rose back to his height. "Water, my disgusting human, is the rarest thing on Cybertron! You would barely find a single drop on the planet! So that's why they cost so much Shanix on the market! Best of all, it is also known to cure Cosmic Rust! Before you ask, it's a plague that consumes all sorts of metals." "Fascinating!" Twilight practically had starry-eyed. Learning something new was just amazing from her point of view.  "Whatever!" Dash stepped between Twilight and the titan. She was getting irritated with the lack of Starscream being punished. "Listen! We don't have much time, so can you just take us to Starscream! I got a bone to pick with him." "Woah, I like this one!" Swindle crouched and leaned over to Twilight. "Hey, how much do you want for that blue one? I got some trading cards to trade if you like." "Hey!" Dash whined.  "Sir, my friend is not for sale." Twilight informed him.  "Your lost." The titan straightened himself before facing towards the forest. In one quick motion, the Decepticon transformed to his disguise, impressing the teens in the process.  "Woah!" Dash exclaimed. "That is awesome!" "I know, I picked the best just for me!" Swindle chuckled. "I don't do this much since I kinda find organics gross, but I'll let it slide just this once. Hop in!" "Cool!" Faster than Swindle could process, Dash was already on the driver seat. "This is fricken rad!"  "Hey AJ, could you help me with this?" Twilight requested, a hand pointed at the drone.  "Sure thing sugarcube." Applejack accepted before grabbing the drone on the edges. Thanks to her inhuman strength, the drone was lifted off the ground with ease.  "Well, you humans are just full of surprises!" Swindle praised their abilities.  "You haven't seen anything just yet!" Pinkie claimed.  "We'll see." One by one, the girls entered the Humvee. Twilight sat on the passenger side while the rest sat on the back. Pinkie on the other hand had perched herself in the gunner's place, the cannon just within her reach. Once they were comfortable, the engine would roar like a beast, catching the teens off guard. With everything set, Swindle proceeded to drive back into the forest and towards Starscream's location.  Possibly, the biggest mistake they would ever make yet. Or perhaps it'll turn out great for them. Only time could tell.