From Skywarp's extracted memories, Skygnaw confirmed one critical fact: Starscream was indeed currently aboard The Fallen's warship. Although Skywarp hadn't personally looked upon the face of the ancient master, the interior decor of the vessel matched the descriptions from the historical archives perfectly.
Skygnaw now understood why Skywarp had been sent to the frozen wastes. After the Battle of Konnas Canyon, Skygnaw, Nightbird, and Scalpel had vanished just as the Autobots arrived. This had planted a seed of suspicion in Starscream's spark; he believed Skygnaw might have defected to Nightbird's rogue faction. This raid was a test of loyalty—one Skywarp failed to survive.
"Master, Brawl has arrived."
Skygnaw looked up as Pestilence led the tank-former into the lab.
"Lord Skygnaw, you..." Upon seeing the titan standing before him, Brawl's optics widened in sheer shock. The excuses he had spent the journey preparing evaporated instantly.
In a single earth-year, Skygnaw had evolved from a Mid-Class grunt to a Commander-Class juggernaut. In any era of Cybertronian history, this would be deemed a tactical anomaly. Brawl felt a primal urge to lower his servos. If High-Class was the rank of an officer, Commander-Class was the rank of a general. And one did not question a general.
"Brawl. You know why I called for you," Skygnaw rumbled.
"I do, Lord Skygnaw," Brawl replied, his voice lacking its usual gruff defiance. "When I arrived, I did report my location to Onslaught. But I swear, I never revealed your specific projects or your—"
"Where is Onslaught now?" Skygnaw interrupted.
Brawl hesitated but answered quickly. "He is currently in a nation called Japan."
"Japan?" Skygnaw's mouth-plate quirked. "Interesting. Contact him. Tell him I require a formal explanation for the Seeker raid, or he can consider his position in this faction—and his spark—forfeited."
"Yes, Lord Skygnaw."
Brawl retreated as quickly as his heavy treads allowed. Skygnaw then turned his gaze toward Acid Storm and Sunstorm, who were standing like statues in the corner.
"You two will report to Carnage for the time being. You are now part of my vanguard."
The two Seekers looked at each other, stunned. They were alive. They had transitioned from executioners to subordinates in the blink of an optic.
With the immediate threats handled, Skygnaw pulled up his new status HUD:
[TYPE: Combat-Heavy Decepticon]
[ARMOR: Orion Live-Metal (High Density)]
[WEAPONS: Photon Autocannon (L), EMP Cannon (R), Black Hell Blade (Hip), Heat-Seeking Missiles (Shoulder), Fusion Cannon (Chest)]
[SPARK: 100% (Augmented)]
[CLASS: Commander-Class Warrior]
He had named his new sword the Black Hell Blade, for its edge shimmered with a dark, necrotic red light. His chassis was now a masterpiece of engineering, balancing kinetic energy weapons with high-output energy modules.
As he calibrated his new servos, a priority signal flashed on his HUD. It was Soundwave.
The spymaster in orbit had witnessed the battle on the Alaskan tundra. In the transmission, Soundwave expressed a rare mix of clinical astonishment and strategic satisfaction. A new Commander on Earth strengthened the Decepticon hand significantly. However, Soundwave's follow-up order was borderline delusional.
Soundwave demanded that Skygnaw immediately lead his forces to wipe out the NEST headquarters and the Autobot contingent to "shatter the human-alien alliance."
Skygnaw stared at the message. Does he think I'm a miracle worker? He didn't even bother coming up with a formal excuse.
[REPLY: Lord Soundwave. I cannot execute this command at this time. My forces are consolidating. Forceful engagement with the Prime is currently a 98% probability of failure.]
Power brought leverage. As one of the few active Commanders in the galaxy, Skygnaw could now say "no" to the high command without fear of immediate summary execution. Soundwave didn't reply—likely recalculating his own data.
Skygnaw waited for the news of his ascension to ripple through the cosmos. He wanted Starscream and The Fallen to know that the hierarchy on Earth had shifted.
Eventually, Onslaught arrived. Pestilence led the tactical leader of the Combaticons into Base One. Onslaught was visibly sweating hydraulic fluid. He knew he had made a catastrophic error in sending the Seekers after a man who had now surpassed him in rank.
"Lord Skygnaw, Onslaught reporting for duty," he said, bowing low.
"You made a wise choice coming here, Onslaught," Skygnaw said, his voice deceptively warm. He knew Onslaught was a brilliant tactician—a specialist he could use. "I have a task for you."
"Command me, my Lord."
"You lost the Decepticon Transport to the Autobots at the Canyon," Skygnaw stated flatly.
Onslaught lowered his head in shame. "A tactical failure I regret deeply."
"Don't regret it. Fix it. I intend to take that ship back."
Skygnaw had his eyes on the stars. To reach the Iacon Relic coordinates he'd stolen from Skywarp—located over 200,000 light-years away—he needed a trans-warp capable vessel. Building one from scratch would take decades. Stealing the one parked at Diego Garcia was the only logical path.
"But Lord... the Autobots and the human military are guarding it with everything they have," Onslaught noted.
"I know," Skygnaw replied, his optics glowing with a cold, strategic light. "That's why we aren't going to break in. We're going to lure the snake out of its hole."
As Onslaught began refining the tactical details of the ambush, Secretary Clarice was already fulfilling her side of the bargain.
The Northern District was officially declared a "Military Exclusion Zone." US Army units were stationed along the borders, supposedly to "protect" the area, but Skygnaw knew they were also there to monitor him. He didn't care. With his Horsemen and the new Seeker recruits, nothing in Alaska moved without his permission.
He was no longer a hidden drone. He was a warlord in his own kingdom, and the pieces were finally moving toward the endgame.
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