To say that Megatron was shocked would be an understatement. Normally, someone’s reaction to the Kingpin of Kaon threatening them wasn’t glee. Much less did his cannon in their face ever inspire joyous, thankful rambling. The proper response should have been begging, or at least panic. This was… new.
Soundwave was similarly flabbergasted, though it was impossible to tell apart from a small tilt to his helm. He looked from the minibot to his Boss, but that didn’t help matters; Megatron was staring too. Soundwave took a step forward, images flashing on his screen, of Blindside and the footprints he’d found. The mech had just plainly admitted to being the one who’d been tracking them, clearly he needed to be disposed of… Megatron, however,
broke into a laugh, hearty and loud over the absurdity of it all.“You… Haha, you’re somethin’ else!” His cannon powered down as he used that hand to brace himself against the wall, continuing to laugh. Soundwave kept staring. This was a serious matter, but he also hadn’t heard the Boss laugh like that in years. Finally, he began to calm down, straightening his tie before straightening up again. “Somethin’ else… You know I have kept every cyberhound-nosed cop an’ conspiracy theorist off my tracks for ages, and the one to find me is the Primus-slaggin’ minibot newsy?! Give this mini a medal…” Soundwave had no medals, and was still not laughing.
“Look, I can answer your questions sure, but I’ve gotta protect myself an’ my business here, so you’re gonna have to answer a few’a mine first. Did you really only follow me all this way to thank me?” His optics returned to Soundwave for a moment, his lieutenant verifying the mini had no recording equipment on him. “You know you could be slagged at any given moment, and you still came out here? Why?”
Well, ‘cause…
(His hands flex in front of him as he struggles with the words.) I dunno. I dunno, just, here you is, some stranger walkin’ up in the dead of night blasting holes in the bridge and pushin’ a wad of shanix into the hands of a lowly little newsmech. I ask questions sometimes, but I didn’t have the energy to follow through ‘til I ate!
(Bee points.) And you’s the mech what fed me! You! Here’s my employer tryin’ to take down your whole empire and whackin’ me in the head when I don’t sell it right, while you’re the Most Wanted Mech in Kaon and you’re bein’ nice to me!
Me!
You know I almost went to Blindside with what I knew? I wanted him to look at me and tell me I knew somethin’, that I was right just for a little bit and you know what he does? He runs me out of the room! Who else in the world was gonna appreciate all the hard work I did just to look you in the optic again?
… (Bee’s appropriately cowed when the answer finally came out.) I supposed you was the only mech who would.
Megatron’s optics never left the mini, studying him as he spoke. He remembered what it was like to have no one care where you got your next refueling, for no one to listen. To be hit until he figured out that he could hit back. It wasn’t all that long ago, all things considered. Wasn’t that what had led him to treat the poor mech in the first place?
Reaching into his jacket, Megatron pulled out a cygar and lit it on the end of his cannon. He drew a deep cycle of the thick smoke before letting it out in a deep sigh. He grinned as the tendrils framed his helm. Behind their guest, Soundwave nodded once, and turned to leave them. “Alright, then. In order.”
“That filthy ring was rigged. I fought to win, finally made a name and decent livin’ and then they told me to take a dive, an’ a hike while I was at it. That night there was an unfortunate ‘gas leak’, an’ I decided to start my own business, instead.” He took another drag from the cygar, leaning back against the wall.
“Soundwave didn’t go nowhere. He’s the one who dragged you in here, came with me after the fire. The mech who owned the ring suggested that I crawl back underground where I belonged, so I suggested he take a field trip downstairs, himself.” With another smirk, Megatron tapped the barrel of his cannon. “This was his. Confiscated from some titan tryin’ to smuggle it into a fight an’ always bragged about it. Gotta admit, he had good taste.”
“I didn’t wreck the place myself, you can’t be doin’ that with a recognizable mug like mine. But, it does my spark good to piss off that nosy sleaze. Seems like you didn’t lose any sleep over it either, huh? So that brings it to you.” Another vent of smoke. He took a few steps towards the newsy, towering over him. “A minibot who sniffed out my trail better than mechs whose job it is to sniff, all to find a mech who might hear you.” Megatron lowered himself to one knee, offering his servo.
“Congratulations, I’m all audials. How’d you like to work for me, ‘stead of that fragged excuse for a paper?”
Megatron's back up 