Monday, January 26, 2015

Temporary Slap-Dash Cosplay Post!

I will clean it up later, but someone asked for pics of the helm, and I haven't go time to write a nice how-to at the moment. Here are the wings and missiles how-tos. Basically because Starscream's head, like the rest of him, is so small and compact, I had to do it in 2 parts to get it closely fitted enough. A helm I could just lift off and on over my head would be way too big. His proportions were troublesome.

This is mainly an image dump for now, unfortunately, but it will give some insight.

Tracing the parts and where they go. This a cheap kid's policeman costume helmet that I trimmed down a bit.


Seeing how the parts fit. The shape of the "ears" was really hard to get...

Several modifications later, since I redid the mask and added a neck.

The smirk is very important.


From the inside this mask is so creepy looking...

I ironed the foam into the shape as usual, and created thinker foam cheekbones as well as a plastic mesh panel over my nose. That way it stays in that flat, noseless, Prime shape. There's cloth over the mesh for comfort. I made his teeth inside the mouth, in order to be able to drink through a straw. You can get really dehydrated in costumes.

The inside. Simply a hat.

Top of the helm. Protip: make extra red crests because they will get damaged.

How the face goes on. A ribbon goes over the top of my head, and ribbons in the cheek vents tie tightly behind my head.



Not just for the face: here are some materials. The mesh and foam are the main ones. The floor polish is a tricky finish that I will explain later.



Saturday, March 29, 2014

Starscream Missile Mounts How-To

More cosplay stuff! Whoo!

I've been discussing missile mounts. You have interesting conversations when you cosplay.... especially when you cosplay robutts.

I made them with three things in mind:

  • visual accuracy
  • strength (they stick out and will likely get hit at cons)
  • removability (in case repairs are needed)
Materials needed:

  • PVC pipe and paper clay, or whatever you are making 
  • drill and drill bits - a small one and a big half inch-ish one (pictured below)
  • whatever armor plating you have constructed. Mine is craft foam, ironed into shape and reinforced with plastic mesh)
  • Hardware - bolts, nuts, washers, in appropriate sizes for your armor.



I made the missiles themselves out of PVC pipe, and the arm plating and missile mounts out craft foam (the thickest kind, ironed and glue sealed, as usual). The pointy tips were paper clay (world's best art supply) and the fins were craft foam. But! Before I assembled and painted the missiles, I drilled some holes in the PVC.

To get the position of the holes right, I first made the mounting brackets out of foam. Then I marked the position on the forearm plating with a sharpie, and drilled two holes. I had to be careful drilling the foam armor, because it will crease. Basically, I just let the drill do the work and didn't push on it, and I drilled from the inside. Once I drilled those holes, I cut out sections from a strong poster shipping tube, a little bigger than the mounting brackets. They serve as a big washer to keep the holes from tearing, and they strengthen the armor. I positioned them inside the holes and poked a sharpie through the holes to mark the cardboard, then drilled the cardboard.


I used the same holes to mark the missiles with a sharpie, and drilled the two holes. I also drilled a big hole in between, big enough for the head of a screw to go through. Then I assembled and painted the missiles.

assembled, but not painted. the paperclay was still wet
To attach them, I put the heads of the screws through the big holes, so the screw part was sticking out, then put the brackets, then the armor, then the cardboard, then the hex nuts. I put a couple washes in there somewhere so the screw ends would be flush with the nut and not poke me. I also bought a couple different lengths of screws because I wasn't sure how thick all the armor and stuff would be once it was put together.

Here is a diagram (where I forgot to draw the mounting bracket.... it goes between the PVC and the foam armor).


I can attest to the sturdiness of this design - my cat knocked a bunch of my armor off the table, and it all survived very nicely. And if the missiles had needed repairs, which they did not, they could just be unscrewed and then put back on later.

Here are some views:

Inside:


Outside


With the claw gloves!



Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Starscream Wings!

So over on my tumblr and deviantart, I got a lot of questions on my Starscream cosplay. Later on I will get around to posting better step-by-step pictures for the whole thing, and how to shape the armor, but the first specific question someone asked was about the wings. That, I can do now.

Prep:
I recommend sketching a lot before beginning, since you notice anatomy more when you sketch. The sketches don't have to be works of art, but they will let you see every piece and not forget them. I used Netflix on my iPad, so I could pause it and take screen grabs, enabling me to see every angle. Starscream has a lot of layers in his armor, and they overlap in a very interesting way. It gives him some elegant, flowing lines, even his his silhouette is quite angular. It's a nice design choice, but there are a ton a little pieces. The screen grabs of importance for his wings are these:




Once I figured out the proportions (his wings are a little longer than his torso) I measured myself. My torso is about 24 inches long, so that is how long I made the tops of his wings. I sketched the right shape and measured the angles, then drew a 24 inch straight line on some butcher's paper. I measured my drawing and divided 24" by the length of the same wing part in my drawing, then multiplied all the sketch measurements by that number, giving me the lengths of all the edges in full scale. I used a protractor to match the angles on each corner and get the shape right. Here is how all that looked on my sketch and scratch paper.


I also sketched out the back plate armor, the side armor slats, the jet engine, the small wings, and the rib armor, since they all have to fit with the wings.

Construction:
I made each part in poster board and/or paper first, to get the sizing right. I made myself a dress form out of duct tape (tutorial here) and taped all the mockup parts to it to check the fit.


poster board mockup

poster board mockup with the wrong brackets for the big wings.
Ignore those brackets.
 Once they all fit right, I traced and cut out all the respective parts from foam and foam core, shaped them on my iron, and sealed them with glue.
parts with glue drying. the Xed out parts are for the shoulders

While those coats dried (at least 7 coats, with a mix of 3 parts water to 1 part glue) I traced and cut out the big wings. Make four pieces, since each one is a sandwich of 2 layers with some important structures in between.

I trimmed out a curve on the base so they fit snug against my shoulders and the other armor.
That was one of the final adjustments.


Then I taped my mockup back together and gradually replaced each part with foam. I painted the peices before assembly.

replacing the mockup parts with finished foam

mostly painted but not all glued

I assembled the back armor and jet engine, glueing the wire that supports the small wings into the curve of the engine housing. The winglets remain slightly adjustable. I cut slots in the top of the back base plating around where my shoulder blades are. These will be about 2/3 of the way up the base of the big wings. After several failed attempts to support the wings, I found a metal bar from at Home Depot. They are near the lumber and drywall usually. I placed it on my steps outside and stood on it to make it bend how I wanted. I gave the middle a curve so it fits comfortably on my back. I still need to secure the bar into the slot with washers, bolts (pointed away from me) and some layers of reinforcing material, such as plastic, duct tape, and cardboard. But that all has to happen after I measure where it goes compared to the side armor.

the metal bar, shaped to angle I want

getting the angle right

Once I had this set up, I held the big wing against the metal bar to see the angle I liked, and traced it onto the foam core. I cut some lengths of yard sticks or wood rulers and laid them just touching the lines I drew, with a slot in between. I glued the heck out of it. Don't get any glue in between the two rulers. I did, and I had to cut the excess off with an exacto knife...The metal bar needs to slide in easily. I neglected to take pictures of that, but here is a sketch:


Then I sandwiched the other foam core on to complete the wing. I cut out the shape of the control surfaces from the leading and trailing edges of the wings, and put just one layer of what I cut out back, to give a little dimension. I put paper clay around all the edges, and sanded them down so it doesn't look like two layers.

paperclay. the greatest craft supply of them all

Then I coated the whole thing in tons of white glue mix, and painted it. I used a black plastic primer (I usually start all my painting with plastic primer) and them I used a matte spray, since the foam core is a totally different texture from the foam on the rest of the outfit - it's too smooth. Then I followed up with my usual gray and silver, two different washes (one dark, one light) and future floor polish.

matte spray

the control surfaces are different washes of gray

When they are put together, it looks like this:


More to come, including the other armor and how to iron craft foam!

Monday, January 27, 2014

Fanfiction part 8 a.k.a. Transformers Prime: Friendship is Magic

STOP!!! This isn't the beginning! This is!

SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If you haven't seen all of Transformers Prime and Predacons Rising, and read Transformers: Exodus, go no further! I refer to major plot developments that will give spoilers, and also half of this story won't make any sense if you don't read the novel. You really ought to play Fall of Cybertron and/ or read the Rage of the Dinobots and Beast Hunters comics as well. Everyone should, just because they are so awesome. 

Legal stuff: I don't own any of these characters or settings and this is just a fan work.

Last time, Starscream had started training the young Seekers to fly better. One of them, Solarflare, looked up to him a great deal. Starscream realized that Solarflare and the others did not know he was a Decepticon, and wondered if the Autobots were up to something by withholding the information. He confronts them about it and finally learns what happened to Optimus. They assured him they were really giving him a chance, and it kind of freaked him out, since he is not used to that kind of responsibility.


>>>Soon afterwards, Jetfire shows up from space. He lands at Kaon, since that’s where they put the space port, and calls the Autobots. They tell him to come to Iacon.<<<

*A note of Jetfire: I kept him big like he was in G1 (maybe not that big) and kept his fighting style the same. They don't really describe him in the books, and in the games he is normal size, but I like him being bigger than other Seekers, and having a combination of common sense, kindness, and being a bruiser. It was so cool in Exodus when he became a Wrecker! I have not yet read Retribution, since it comes out tomorrow - I know it tells about the Wreckers and if anything happens to Jetfire I'll cry! anyway, moving on...

“All right!” Wheeljack said, “another Wrecker’s back on the planet! Can’t wait till he flies into Iacon.”
“Oh yeah,” said Bulkhead. “I heard Jetfire joined the Wreckers.”
“Right when the Ark was leaving Cybertron, he joined up on the spot and went head to head with Trypticon!” Wheeljack smacked his fist into his palm. “I wonder what kind of trouble we can get into now that he’s back.”
Ultra Magnus almost smiled. “Now there’s a Wrecker I understood. Cybertron Air Command taught their bots military discipline. Some of them, anyway.”
He and Arcee looked at each other. She smiled.
“My thoughts exactly. Now that another Seeker is here, we don’t have to take Starscream’s static anymore.”
“Boring!” said Wheeljack. “You’re gonna make him babysit those fledglings?”
“It is the best arrangement,” said Ultra Magnus. “For everyone.”
Knockout made a skeptical sound. Everyone turned and looked at him, surprised. He held up a crate of carnauba wax and smiled.
“I deliver,” he said, passing the crate to Smokescreen, who took it, then sidled sheepishly out of the room. Knockout looked around.
“Look, I don’t want to do Starscream any favors, but has it occurred to any of you that he doesn’t like to have his toys taken away?”
“Meaning?” Ultra Magnus asked.
“Meaning he’s having a grand old time as Air Commander, but the whole being a role model and helping others thing is way outside his comfort zone. You can bet he thinks it’s too good to last. Do you really want to hand him an excuse to turn on you?”
The Autobots all looked at each other.
“Who says we give him the chance?” said Arcee. “We do have a perfectly good prison.”
Bulkhead shifted uneasily. “But, he hasn’t done anything – ” Everyone looked at him. “Well, lately. Is it fair to just throw him back in prison once we’re done with him?”
“Yes!” Knockout and Arcee said in unison.
“We should see what Jetfire wants to do,” said Wheeljack. “He might not even want his old pal’s job.”
“Old pal?” asked Knockout.
Arcee chuckled. “You just want to work on some weird science with Jetfire.”
Wheeljack shrugged. “Great minds…”

>>>Jetfire arrives and is surprised to learn that Starscream is loose and in charge of people, but he’s encouraged by it, since he hopes Starscream will change. He doesn’t want to command the seekers per se, but he’s willing to help. He meets them, and it’s tense between him and Starscream. Starscream refuses his help, and Jetfire mostly hangs out with Wheeljack and Ultra Magnus for a couple days.<<<


Jetfire looked up as a smaller jet approached, angling steeply toward the rooftop where he sat. He considered moving out of the way as it overshot its landing and transformed a little too late, but instead he held out his hand to steady the young Seeker. The bot – Jetfire thought his name was Solarflare - tripped and grabbed his outstretched arm, barely managing to stay on his feet.
“Ah, bolts!” he muttered. “I’m never gonna get it.” He let go of Jetfire. “Um, thanks.”
“Landings are the hardest thing,” Jetfire said. “Even harder than night flying. What are you doing out here in the dark?”
“I was trying to land on each tower, and time how long it takes me to make it across the city and back.”
Jetfire looked him over. They were less than a quarter of the way from the edge of the city, and Solarflare already had paint scraped off of his knees and the armor along his forearms. He looked at the next tower, rubbing his arm where a lot of metal showed through his paint, and then sat down beside Jetfire.
“Why are you up here?” he asked.
Jetfire didn’t respond right away. “I was just admiring the stars. It’s so dark tonight.”
“It’s dark every night when the moons are down.”
“It’s strange - for centuries I saw the stars of other worlds, and learned alien constellations, but these stars still look like home after all this time. And yet, when I think of Cybertron this isn’t how I remember it. It’s so still and clear.”
Solarflare didn’t say anything for a while, but he was clearly curious. Finally he spoke.
“You mean not like during the war?”
Jetfire nodded. “During the war, you could barely tell night from day. The smoke and ash over most of the planet was so thick, we fought in a kind of twilight. And at night the laser fire and explosions reflecting off the haze lit the battles below. There must have been hundreds of years when no Cybertronian saw the stars, except those of us who were in space.”
Solarflare leaned closer in undisguised wonder. “You fought in space?”
“I didn’t fight there, though some did. I was a researcher on a space station with Starscream, before I defected. After that, fighting for the Autobots kept me planetside, supporting ground missions and doing R&D on alt-modes to scrape together some semblance of air power.”
“Wait,” said Solarflare, the concern that had appeared on his face at Jetfire’s mention of defecting now turning to confusion. “You defected… to the Autobots?”
Jetfire looked at him sadly. “It was a hard time to be a Seeker, when the entire Air Command declared for the Decepticons. Not everyone felt that way, but we tend to stick together. I’m glad that hasn’t changed, but it has its dangers.” He put his hand on the young bot’s shoulders, but Solarflare didn’t move or respond. Jetfire sighed. “I couldn’t do it though. I’d done the research and suspected what Dark Energon was, and I couldn’t be a part of it.”
Solarflare stood up. “I have to go.” Jetfire started to get up too, but Solarflare had already transformed mid-backflip and blasted away. The flashy takeoff seemed strangely familiar.

Starscream was in a foul mood as he stared out at the moonless night. He had gotten nowhere with finding out where Grimlock was or how to contact him. The Autobots were all for attacking Shockwave, they said, but they were reluctant to involve the Dinobots. They didn’t want to make it about revenge, which was ridiculous. That was the whole point. Grimlock deserved revenge, and he, Starscream, deserved revenge, and that made them allies. Grimlock would surely agree, if he could just ask him. He really wouldn’t even need to agree – all Starscream had to do was point him in Shockwave’s direction and let him go. That was even better. He would just as soon not help Grimlock with the actual combat, since Dinobots were far better suited to battling Predacons. And Insecticons. And the Forged. It was a perfect, simple plan, but the longer it took to find Grimlock, the more chances Shockwave would have to move. He looked around, an uneasy tingle creeping through his circuits. He never felt alone now, with the possibility that Soundwave was watching from the Shadowzone. He had had plenty of time to repair Laserbeak too. If there were only some way to draw one of them out…
The roar of a jet startled him, and it took effort to control the reflex to ready his Null Rays. The plating on his arms clicked back into place as Solarflare transformed over the balcony outside and dropped into a swift walk towards him.
“Nice landing,” he said as Solarflare came inside. The young bot looked surprised and glanced back at where he’d touched down, then shook his head.
“It doesn’t matter.”
“Of course it matters,” Starscream said. “Your landing is your first impression. It should be imposing.”
Solarflare looked down, saying nothing for a long time, then, “How do you know Jetfire?”
Starscream considered. “We were colleagues. He did scientific research for me.”
“Were you friends?”
Starscream hesitated before answering. “Once. A long time ago.”
Solarflare’s voice was soft, almost a whisper, when he asked, “Why aren’t you friends now?”
“Because he…” Starscream began, then stopped. He didn’t like where the conversation was going.
“Commander Starscream?” Solarflare said, finally meeting his gaze. “were you a Decepticon?”
Starscream was taken aback by the hurt in his voice, and he reacted the only way he knew how. He got angry.
“Did that traitor Jetfire tell you that?”
“No! I figured it out. He said something while he was reminiscing.”
“The war hero telling war stories, eh?” Starscream sneered. “What did he say?”
“Just that he knew you and he defected to the Autobots. Did all the Seekers join the Decepticons…because they followed you?” He fell silent, almost shaking as the enormity of the accusation sunk in. Starscream leaned close to him.
“It’s true. I was a Decepticon. Happy?”
Solarflare looked less happy than any bot he’d ever seen. He looked Spark-broken. All he said was, “Why?”
Starscream straightened up. “I had my reasons. I’m not giving you a history lesson.”
“No, I mean, why didn’t you tell us?”
“Ask the Autobots. It was their idea. Would you have wanted me to train you, had you known?”
Solarflare looked away. “I don’t know.”
“There, you see? Somehow Knockout’s good enough to shine you up after all your so-called landings -“ He jabbed the scuffed finish on Solarflare’s arm. “and Megatron gets to walk around like he owns the place. You’re content to race against what’s-their-names – those two Vehicons - but if I was a Decepticon, it’s a calamity!”
Solarflare covered his scratched paint with his other hand. “They’re not the Air Commander,” he said almost too softly to hear.
“Don’t mumble!” Starscream snapped.
“They didn’t lie about it!” Solarflare said, anger finally creeping into his voice.
“Nor did I! I never said I was an Autobot.”
“You said you killed Decepticons during the war.”
“And I did. Loads of them. My relationship with the Decepticons was…complicated. I don’t have to explain myself. I suppose you want Jetfire to train you now? Fine.” He stepped back. “Don’t follow me, Solarflare. I really don’t want to have to shoot you down.”
The words were barely out of his mouth before he transformed and blasted out of the room. A few moments later, Solarflare leapt from the balcony and alt-moded in midair.

Starscream cruised high over the most remote territory he could see, heading west, chasing the cover of darkness. Hanging around the Autobots had lasted about as long as it could have, and it was too bad he wouldn’t have Seekers to back him up, but now he could concentrate on his main plan. Finding Grimlock would mean revenge, and wherever the Dinobots were, that was also the most likely Predacon-free area.
He detected something flying behind him, and it filled him with dismay. Could Solarflare really have been stupid enough to follow him? Maybe he could scare him off – the young Seeker had never seen combat, and seemed to have a greater fear of falling than most. That might explain why he always transformed too close to the ground and overshot his landings. Why was he still thinking about that? It surprised him a little how much he didn’t want to kill Solarflare. A warning shot would likely send him hightailing back to Iacon. He slowed down a little.
As the thing caught up he saw that it wasn’t Solarflare – it was much bigger. He thought for a tense moment that it was another jet-equipped Predacon, maybe a small, defective one that hadn’t grown very large in Shockwave’s tank, but then it got closer. Jetfire! What was he doing coming after him? No matter. He was itching for a fight with anyone except Solarflare. He pulled up into a half loop and dove toward the traitor, waiting until he was close to fire his ion cannons. Jetfire easily rolled out of the way, not surprisingly. He was no slouch. Starscream would see what tricks he’d picked up over the last few thousand years.
He swooped around and shot again, and Jetfire turned into the attack, but did not return fire.
“Starscream, stop!” he said over comms, following Starscream through his next turn. “I don’t want to fight you.”
“Too bad!” Starscream was more maneuverable, and he was back on Jetfire’s tail in moments, unleashing a burst of ion bolts. They hit, barely, as Jetfire rolled again. Starscream stayed on his tail, his contrails etching a tight spiral inside the larger spiral from Jetfire’s maneuver.
"You asked for it!" Jetfire said as he accelerated and pulled up into a loop. "We both know I'm a match for you."
It was true. Throughout their long friendship Jetfire had been Starscream's favorite sparring partner, one of the only Seekers who could give him a challenge. 
"Not with turns like that," Starscream retorted, easily climbing inside Jetfire's loop and firing across his nose. Jetfire's engine shut off and he fell. Starscream didn't think he'd hit him.
"That's it?" he said, but an instant later he had to dodge a barrage of ion bolts, followed by Jetfire himself, who had steered his fall so he ended up on top of Starscream. Starscream swooped away and Jetfire fired his engine and followed him through his next two turns, shooting at him, but missing. Both jets sped up, circling madly to get on each other's tail, and Starscream soon gained the advantage. 
Jetfire was above him, turning wider than Starscream, who had a clear shot at his flank. He took it, and Jetfire rolled to get out of the way, but sparks still sprayed from his side. He wobbled but kept flying, turning tighter into Starscream's attack, but still too wide to return fire. He'd always been tough. 
Starscream aimed again, at Jetfire's underside. He could finish the fight right here. Except Jetfire suddenly flung himself into a flat spin, firing wildly in all directions as he lost altitude. Ion bolts stung Starscream's wing and nose as he tried to climb away from the insane maneuver. 
"It'll take more than that to take down a Wrecker!" Jetfire said as he swooped out of the spin and onto Starscream's tail.
"Why do Wreckers always make that speech?" Starscream growled as he turned around. "As if your betrayal wasn't bad enough, you went and joined the most irritating of all Autobot units?"
He fired, and Jetfire fired straight back without bothering to dodge.
"Betrayal, Starscream?" Jetfire asked as both Seekers took hits. "Was I supposed to stay by your side while you sold out our entire planet?" He adjusted the direction of his head to head charge and rolled upside down, slamming his tail across Starscream's back and causing him to tumble. His unusually large size may have put him at a disadvantage using normal dogfighting tactics, but he had found ways to make it work for him.
Starscream regained his balance but Jetfire had already turned and dove onto his tail, firing relentlessly. There wasn't time to turn, so Starscream transformed, cartwheeling into his proto-form and losing a tiny bit of speed, then transformed again, this time facing Jetfire. He opened up his engine and guns at the same instant. The sudden change of direction was painful, but not as painful as the shower of sparks and shrapnel that blew off of Jetfire's wing and through his tail.
"Nice one," Jetfire said, his voice strained, "but you forget, Starscream, I can transform, too!"
“Can you?” Starscream scoffed, as Jetfire only transformed partway. “Did I hit your T-cog or something?”
Jetfire’s arms unfolded from the bottom of his jet mode, and an instant later he tackled Starscream out of the air. He aimed at the ground and sped up.
“I should have knocked some sense into you back when you were hatching your plans for Sentinel Prime, and using Trypticon station as a bargaining chip.”
Starscream tried to shoot his way free, but his cannons weren’t pointed at Jetfire, and he was held too tightly to transform and use his Null Rays.
“I used the station to keep Dark Energon out of Megatron’s hands!” The ground was getting alarmingly close. Jetfire leveled off slightly, but not enough to avoid a crash.
“How’d that work out?” He let go of Starscream an instant before they both hit the ground. Jetfire finished transforming and landed hard, and Starscream slammed into the ground, proto-forming on the second bounce, and finally sliding to a stop at the end of a long furrow of loose metal plating.
He lay stunned for a moment, then his systems came back online and he clattered to his feet.
“You weren’t there!” he yelled, his voice harsh with anger and static as non-vital systems like talking came back online slowly.  He wiped a trickle of Energon from his mouth. “If you hadn’t left, we could have held Trypticon!”
“Not likely,” Jetfire said as he walked down the crash trail toward Starscream. “You of all people should know by now how hard it is beat Megatron.”
Enraged, Starscream rushed him, landing several punches before Jetfire countered with a powerful left hook that knocked him sideways. The smaller Seeker slipped inside Jetfire’s next swing and delivered a combo of spinning kicks that put him behind his opponent. He transformed and blasted off against Jetfire’s back, sending him sprawling, then looped up for a strafing run.
A huge chunk of Cybertron’s surface came at him, and he rolled out of the way just as Jetfire threw another metal plate. This one knocked him into a spin, too low to maneuver out of, so he transformed. His feet touched the ground and Jetfire was on him. They traded a flurry of blows, as fast and tricky on the ground as they were in the air, too fast for any bot who wasn’t a Seeker to follow. Jetfire landed a powerful kick and Starscream leapt backwards to absorb the force of it.
“You see?” he said, almost smiling. “That’s what I mean! You and I are pretty impressive.”
Jetfire wiped away some Energon that was leaking over his eye. “Maybe our combined strength could have kept the station. But you just would have followed the same path as Megatron.”
“Megatron was a fool!” Starscream spat. “My plan – “
“Would have played right into Unicron’s will. Dark Energon twists bots towards it own goal. That’s what I learned, studying on Trypticon all those centuries.”
“Which is why I never allowed any of the researchers to show it to me.”
Jetfire shook his head. “You wouldn’t have become curious, sitting on something that powerful?”
Starscream shrugged. “Who can say? What’s done is done.”
“Don’t take it so lightly,” Jetfire said, advancing. “I went into Cybertron’s Core when it was corrupted by Dark Energon. I saw what it did. I don’t know if I can ever forgive you for that.”
Starscream waved his concern away. “Megatron turned the Plasma Energy Chamber around. I planned to – “
Jetfire’s punch nearly knocked him off his feet. “Your plan! You had what? Dozens? Hundreds of plans? None of them worked!”
He hit him again before Starscream countered, and they began another round, this time with Starscream on the defensive against Jetfire’s fury.
“You have no conviction. Maybe you’re as smart as you think you are, but that doesn’t matter if you hold back. If you’re always looking for a better advantage, you lose out on the advantage you have.”
Starscream got in a series of punches that forced Jetfire back. “If you wanted my plans to work out so badly, you had a funny way of showing it. Traitor.”
“I wanted you to take a stand!” Jetfire backed off, watching for the next attack. “Against Megatron. I didn’t care if you weren’t an Autobot. The Seekers were with you. But you waited and schemed for so long you let him take everything!”
“Shut up!” Starscream shrieked. He attacked in a blind rage, carving four gashes into Jetfire’s side with his claws, and staggering him with an uppercut. That left him completely open, and Jetfire’s body blow stopped him in his tracks, and an elbow between the wings knocked him on his face.
Before he could even get his feet under him, Jetfire sat on him, pressing him flat against the ground.
“You need to hear this,” Jetfire said. “When I’m done you can fly wherever you want.”
Starscream struggled until he was exhausted. He tried to shut out what Jetfire was saying. Megatron had taken everything from him, and there was nothing he could have done! Jetfire kept talking, finally cutting through Starscream’s ability to ignore him.
“…Vos was the first blow to their confidence in you. That demanded swift retaliation, not more plotting. And now the Seekers are scattered and flying is practically synonymous with Decepticons. It’s a disgrace. You had a chance to redeem the Air Command with those young Seekers, and now this? You may think you’re flying off to position yourself for greater advantage, but all you’re doing is burning another bridge.”
Jetfire finally shut up but Starscream said nothing until he was sure he was finished. He tried to look up at him but he couldn’t turn his head far enough. All he could see were his feet.
“Go back then,” Starscream said at last. “You train them. They don’t want a Decepticon anyway.”
Jetfire stood up and reached his hand down.
“I’m not the Air Commander.”
Starscream looked up at him, astonished. After a moment he grabbed his hand. Jetfire pulled him up.
“Did you think it was just luck that I knew where to find you? Solarflare didn’t know what to do when you left, so he found me. He asked me to bring you back. No, they don’t want a Decepticon. But they want you.”

>>>Then they go eat some energon…. The next morning, they both show up for flying practice. The young Seekers and Bumblebee are there, and no one was sure if there would even be practice or who would be teaching. It’s surprisingly unawkward, even though Starscream tries to play it off like nothing happened. Really, Solarflare was the only one who was super shocked that Starscream had been a Decepticon, not that that means much to any of them - they know several bots who were. Solarflare was really disappointed since he looked up to Starscream. He still does, mostly. In the evening they go get shined up by Knockout. Jetfire goes first.<<<  

“Starscream really did a number on you,” Knockout said, putting a sanding wheel on his rotary buffer.
“You should see him,” Jetfire said.
“Oh, I will!” Knockout smiled as he began to grind the scratch marks off Jetfire’s arm. “Too bad I’ll have to fix him up though.” After a moment he turned the buffer off. “Sorry. I know you two were friends.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“I gotta ask - how did that even work?”
Jetfire shrugged. “It wasn’t always easy. He can be pretty abrasive.”
“Literally,” Knockout said. “These scratches are pretty deep.”
“When he really got going I would just tune out half of what he said, though I can be hot headed myself. There was a lot of give and take, and arguing. It’s different when you’re around mostly Seekers. A lot of us have… intense personalities.” Jetfire smiled. “There was an old joke about why they had Vos built on the opposite side of the planet from Iacon – to be as far as possible from an entire city of Seekers.”
Knockout could see that, but he thought it was a joke you should only laugh at if you were a Seeker, especially considering what happened to Vos. He only said, “How did you become friends? Was he ever…nice?”
“We rose through the ranks together, and we were sparring partners. I also saw him as a kindred spirit. We were both curious and ambitious, and students of history besides our shared scientific background. We dreamed about space, and I know it frustrated Starscream that the Cybertron we were born into was no longer interested in reaching beyond our orbit. He never was good about having his ambitions thwarted.”
“You can say that again.”
Jetfire shook his head. “I hope, now that the space bridges are restored, there’s a way to start over.”
“Why are you still bothering with him after everything he’s done?”
Jetfire said nothing for a long time, and Knockout began to think he wasn’t going to. It had probably been a rude question, but Jetfire finally said, “It’s been a long war, fighting alongside friends to defend Cybertron, until there was nothing left to defend, only to take the war with us across the stars. Most of them didn’t make it home.”
“I know how that goes,” Knockout  said quietly.
“Some of them deserved it more than me, but since I’m the one who made it back to Cybertron, I want to fight for every friend I have left. Even if it means literally fighting in order to knock some sense into him.” He smiled a little, but he looked tired. “And fighting with myself to find a way to forgive him.”
Knockout shook his head in amazement. “You Autobots really are something else.”
“Well, I hear you’re an Autobot now, for something of the same reasons I am.”
“I suppose that’s true,” Knockout said, moving to Jetfire’s back to buff off the scorch marks between his wings. “Hmm, a way to start over...”
 …

Jetfire passed Starscream on the way out, giving a warning look that meant he was to behave himself. Starscream rolled his eyes and went in.
 “I’m sorry, Knockout,” he said, bursting into the workshop. Knockout turned and looked at him in surprise. Those were three words he never thought he would hear from Starcscream. “Jetfire ruined all the hard work you did when you fixed me up before. Just look at all this!”
Never mind. Still, it was an acknowledgement of sorts, and it was true. Starscream had certainly come off worse from their battle. Knockout walked all around the disgruntled Seeker.
“What happened?” he asked. “It looks as though he dragged you across the ground and sat on you?”
Starscream scoffed. “He did not drag me!” He watched Knockout pry a piece of Cybertron’s crust out of a gouge in his shoulder armor. “He threw me, and I’d rather not talk about it.”
Knockout shrugged and waved Starscream over to a bench while he gathered his tools. He began working in silence, which went unbroken by either bot for the many cycles it took Knockout to sand down all the abrasions on Starscream’s paint. At times one or the other started to say something, but both held back. Ordinarily, Starscream was able to relax and enjoy getting his finish touched up, but he sat tensely hunched, not meeting Knockout’s eye as he painted. By the time Knockout was ready to apply polish, all the things unsaid hung between them in a cloud of oppressive awkwardness.
Finally, Knockout turned to put his containers of paint away, leaving Starscream to look at his finish. He ran his fingers along the smooth paint on his arms, and the Decepticon brand on his chest. Knockout had even remembered to paint it red instead of purple. Still…
“Knockout!” he said after looking down at it for a moment, “You missed a spot.”
Knockout whirled around and glared at him. “I don’t miss spots, Starscream!”
Starscream picked at his Decepticon emblem and said quietly. “There’s… a rough edge right here that needs to be ground down.”
Knockout leaned close and examined it. It was flawless. “It’s perfectly polished. I really don’t see where… oh. Well, now that you mention it…” He straightened up. “Starscream, I – “
“Get on with it.” He said it almost gently, and one corner of his mouth slid into a smile.
Knockout just nodded as he snapped on an abrasive wheel attachment in place of his saw. He sanded Starscream’s chest to a uniform silver finish, then buffed it the soft sheen he preferred.

>>>I don't really know how to actually wrap this scene up.... but yeah... That's my fanfiction so far.<<<

Fanfiction part 7

STOP!!! This isn't the beginning! This is!

SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If you haven't seen all of Transformers Prime and Predacons Rising, and read Transformers: Exodus, go no further! I refer to major plot developments that will give spoilers, and also half of this story won't make any sense if you don't read the novel. You really ought to play Fall of Cybertron and/ or read the Rage of the Dinobots and Beast Hunters comics as well. Everyone should, just because they are so awesome. 

Legal stuff: I don't own any of these characters or settings and this is just a fan work.

Last time Starscream escaped from prison and found himself in the odd position of impulsively distracting an angry Predacon to rescue another Seeker. He used the opportunity to claim the position of Air Commander, to the delight of the impressionable young Seekers and the dismay of the Autobots. They do consider the possibility of letting him do it temporarily because the new Seekers are so bad at flying.

>>>Sooo, yeah, they let him train the new Seekers, but insist that he starts actually cooperating and providing intel. He’s fine with that, since he wants Shockwave taken down, and he likes the feeling of being indispensable. Megatron was totally right about his ego.<<<

After flying in formation all morning the young Seekers were glad to get out and race. Every single one of them could beat Smokescreen now, even through courses with tight turns. It still made Starscream cringe that that had ever not been the case. But what mattered was that they were fast now. The line of them blasted between the towers of Iacon, following the hardest course he had devised for them yet. Up front, he took his time, swooping wide through the turns to get a better view behind him.
What he saw pleased him. Behind the two purple Vehicons, the other seven Seekers were keeping up, hitting every turn exactly right, their altitude changes and hesitation rolls precise. A couple had gotten good at overtaking each other during turns, and the middle of the line was full of varied alt modes waiting for their moment. It was always tense when they did that among the towers, and the Autobots had warned him not to make them do it. They could handle it though.
He rolled over and dove for the final obstacle of the race, a new bridge that was not quite finished. Had he picked it just to show off to the crews working on it? He sure had! Everyone liked to watched his Seekers racing. He slipped under it and pulled up, went upside down, let his nose drop, and swooped under it again, keeping his loop a perfect circle. Then he slowed down and watched.
The Vehicons came in together and nosed downward, with Solarflare right behind them. As the purple jets slowed and lined up on the space under the bridge's widest span, Solarflare flipped onto his back, steepened his dive and accelerated. He rolled a quarter turn and slipped between the Vehicons on his side, then rolled right way up and looped the bridge before they had even crossed under it.
Impressed, Starscream climbed and headed back toward the tower they used as an airfield. He landed on top of it, transforming at the same time, and Solarflare touched down a few moments later, hovering for a couple of kliks before transforming, and wobbling when his feet hit the ground. His landings were still terrible. He looked around, seeming surprised that he and Starscream were the only ones there, and jumped when the Vehicons landed right after him in their usual aggressive poses.
"Whoa! Seriously?" Solarflare cried. "I finally beat you guys! Commander Starscream, you saw that, right?"
"Indeed," Starscream said. "Most impressive. I particularly liked how you passed them with flair." He tilted his hand, imitating the maneuver Solarflare had pulled off, then turned to the Vehicons. "Step it up, you two."
"Jeez, the tyrant of the firmament," one of them muttered.
"Don't worry about it," said Solarflare. "I know you guys have been going easy on us. But you can go all out now that you have some competition."
One by one the other Seekers touched down, making Starscream wince. Tomorrow they would be practicing landings all morning. So said the “tyrant of the firmament”, apparently. Starscream had to admit he liked the name. It was much better than Emperor of Destruction. What had he been thinking? He gave them a moment to rest and marvel at Solarflare's win, then he gathered them back in.
"Next we will discuss armaments and do some target practice, in alt-mode and proto-form." A couple of the Seekers looked excited. "Shooting uses nearly as much Energon as flying, and we will be doing both. Everyone go fill up, then meet back here."
They wandered off, only a couple by air, and Starscream was about to go get some target drones, when he thought of something.
"Solarflare," he said. "A word."
The kid turned around and trotted back to Starscream.
"What is it, Commander?"
"Were you unaware that you stayed in the lead after you looped the bridge? You seemed surprised."
"Well, I just couldn't believe it. I'm not that good at flying."
Starscream thought he was getting there, but there was a problem.
"Did you look behind you? They were right there. You were focused forward, on your route and your speed, and in a battle they would have shot you down."
Solarflare's face fell. "Sorry, Commander Starscream."
"Just stay aware of what is on all sides of you. Obviously in a race it is acceptable to stay in front of an opponent, but you must still know where that opponent is. It will at least make it harder for them to pass you. Hmm, come to think of it, the Vehicons did not seem to know you were behind them either. They should know better."
Solarflare considered that, his wings still drooping. Starscream clapped him on the shoulder.
"Don’t let that stop you from celebrating your victory. Your hesitation rolls are quite precise, and using one to slip between the leaders was just what I would have done."
"Really?" Solarflare's wings perked up, and he followed Starscream toward the elevator to drone storage together. "I’ve been working on them. What else should I practice harder at?"
Starscream smiled. The fact that he asked that question spoke volumes about the young Seeker's dedication. "Landings, Solarflare. Practice landings. Now go get some Energon."
As Starscream watched him fly away, he considered if he should have said anything. Maybe he didn't have to tell them every single thing he'd ever learned about aerial combat all at once. Maybe it was too much pressure. But if he didn't prepare them, they would be in danger. From what? He sighed. Why couldn’t he bring himself to trust the new peace? He certainly didn’t intend to break it, but he needed to be ready to make his move when someone did, and he needed the Seekers to be ready too.

It was nearly noon when all the Seekers stood lined up atop their tower again.
"You have all learned to make weapons, correct?"
"Yes, Air Commander," they said in unison.
"Show me."
With a mishmash of ratcheting sounds, each Seeker went through the partial transformation of turning his arms into weapons. Starscream walked down the line noting each bot's choice.
"Mostly ion cannons," he said. "A good choice, especially for an alt-mode weapon. They are very accurate and pack a lot of destructive punch. They can shoot someone's arm clean off."
A murmur went through the Seekers, who looked at their weapons with newfound respect. The two Vehicons nudged each other until Starscream gave them a look. He held up the portable Grid node he had brought with him.
"This has designs for a few other options you can scan and practice with. I am partial to Null Rays myself." He transformed his arm to show them. "They disrupt electrical systems, including neural nets. Even a glancing shot will often stun an adversary, giving you time and options during a fight. Repeated hits, or an accurate shot to the Spark, are quite deadly. It is a weapon with idiosyncrasies, but I find it to be extremely effective."
He handed the Grid node off and the Seekers gathered around it, flipping through the different options.
Solarflare looked at the Null Ray. "How many Decepticons did you kill during the war, Commander?"
Starscream thought for moment and counted on his fingers, changing his arm back to start a second hand. Megatron counted, even though his demise had been temporary. He lost track somewhere among all the Vehicons and random soldiers.
"Hmm, quite a few it seems." Suddenly he stopped. Why would Solarflare ask that? His treachery wasn't that legendary was it? Which side did they think he had been on? He wondered about it as the Seekers put the Grid node away. Most of them stuck with ion cannons, but Solarflare and one other switched to Null Rays, and one picked (?).
"You two," Starscream said. The Vehicons approached him. "Get the drones powered up and set them for random motion. And get in some practice yourselves. You know what they say about Vehicon trooper aim."
"Wait, no," one of them said. "What do they say?"
"It isn't good," Starscream replied. "Now get going."
"Wait," the other Vehicon said as they walked away, "did he mean what they say isn't good, or our aim isn't good?"
"Same thing," said the other one.
"It's suppressive fire! It's not about accuracy!"
"I'll let you explain that to Starscream."
"I guess it wouldn't hurt to practice..."
Starscream only half paid attention to the target practice, distracted as he was by Solarflare's question. He had assumed that everyone knew that he, like the Vehicons, had been a Decepticon. The only possible reason they would not know was if the Autobots had deliberately withheld the information, since they controlled all the information at the moment. But why would they do that? Were they waiting for him to slip up and reveal something that would drive a wedge between him and his Seekers? He would scarcely have credited them with such a Soundwaveish scheme.

As evening approached, Starscream followed the Seekers to their construction shift. They had the night shift, but they always showed up bright and early to fly. Such things were possible now that there was finally enough Energon to keep them going. Two construction bots whose shift was ending ran up to Solarflare, towering over him and telling him how great he’d been at the bridge. They nearly knocked him over in their enthusiasm.
Starscream looked around and finally saw an Autobot, though it was the last one he’d want to talk to.
"Arcee," he said, sidling up to where she was helping load girders onto the crane alt-mode of a huge new bot who would have fit right in with the Constructicons.
"Make yourself useful," she said, dumping a girder into his arms. "Stack these up."
He set the girder down on the crane, and turned around in time to nearly get hit with the next one.
"Keep up," Arcee said, handing it to him..
"I need to ask you something." He set the girder on the pile.
"Talk and work." She shoved another one into his arms.
“Ugh! Fine!” He set it down and took another one, reluctantly settling into the rhythm of the work. “Look, have any of the new bots learned any history?”
“Only the gist of the war and a little ancient mythology. The archives appear to be intact inside Vector Sigma and Teletraan, but bringing them online is taking forever.”
Starscream hesitated. “Specifically, what did you tell them about me?”
“Not enough. I completely disagree with Bumblebee’s call on this one.”
“Which is?”
“To let the new Seekers form their own conclusions about you, and see how you do.”
“Ah. I can’t say that’s wise, if I’m honest.”
She glared at him. “That’s probably the most honest you’ve ever been.”
“It explains why Solarflare thought I must have killed a lot of Decepticons. It turns out I have.” He chuckled. “He thinks I was some kind of hero.”
He reached for the next girder, but Arcee crashed it into him, pinning him against the side of the crane.
“So help me, Starscream, if you do anything to disappoint them, you’ll wish we had banished you into the heart of Predaking’s territory!”
“Please!” He shoved her away. “I don’t mind basking in a little hero worship, deserved or otherwise. I’m not going to screw it up.”
“The way you run your mouth,” Arcee said, “Some of us are taking bets.”
Starscream glared at her. “And what does Optimus Prime think of this little…omission? Where is he, anyway? The library?”
He took a step back. Why did she look so angry?
“Are you guys done?” a deep voice rumbled from above them. “This is my last load before my shift’s over, and I have stuff to do.”
“Sorry, Dirtlift.” Arcee set her girder on the pile and Starscream did the same, keeping one eye on her. The huge bot swung the load up to where the construction crew, now including a few Seekers, stood ready to receive it.
“Come with me,” Arcee said, and walked quickly away.
Starscream followed her nervously. “By the library, I meant restoring the databases. Not relaxing with a good book now that the hard part of the war is over, not that he doesn’t deserve to.”
“Starscream,” she growled. “Not another word.”
Something in her demeanor made him think she meant it, and he followed her in silence, all the way back to the command center. It was quieter now, with no bots bustling around the halls. They entered a room with several maps displayed on screens, that looked to Starscream like a war room. Bumblebee was there, staring at the maps, marking up the progress of construction. Apparently he never needed a shutdown. Ratchet stood nearer the door, with Megatron. Starscream froze.
“You guys talk to him,” Arcee said. “I’m done.” She left him there and Bumblebee looked up from the maps.
“Well, she’s a delight,” Starscream said. “All I did was ask what you’re all playing at, and she hit me with a girder and dragged me in here.”
“You look all right to me,” Ratchet said without turning around.
“Starscream, what are you talking about?” Bumblebee asked.
“I discovered that you neglected to tell my Seekers who I am-” he glanced at Megatron. “or, was. And I wanted to know if Optimus Prime approved of whatever game you’re all playing.” He turned back to Bumblebee. “Arcee doesn’t seem very happy with you at the moment.”
Bumblebee looked at him. “She may yet be proved right.”
“So?” Starscream pressed his question. “Was it Optimus Prime’s idea to give me a chance to behave myself or something? Or were you hoping I’d slip up and shake my Seekers’ trust? Where is he, anyway?”
“You haven’t told him?” Megatron said, stepping away from Ratchet.
“Told me what?” Starscream snapped, bristling. He didn’t like that Megatron and the Autobots were so chummy, and keeping secrets.
“Optimus - ” Megatron began, but Starscream held up his hand.
“Quiet. I want to hear it from him.” He pointed at Bumblebee.
“And you deserve to.” The Autobot came around the table and stood face to face with Starscream. “Optimus Prime has joined the AllSpark.”
“What? You mean he’s dead?” Starscream couldn’t process what that meant, and it surprised him that he felt nothing, one way or the other. “But he defeated Unicron. What happened?”
“That was how he defeated Unicron. He hid the AllSpark inside the Matrix of Leadership. When he returned it to the Core, he went with it. He sacrificed himself so new Cybertronians could be born.”
Starscream considered that that was a typical Optimus Prime move. Was what he felt resentment? Perhaps. Yes. Because he himself wouldn’t have done it. He would have kept it, and ruled a planet of old bots living out their days with no future. He wanted a future, and it seemed Optimus Prime had delivered it. He didn’t like the debt, or the acknowledgement of the kind of leader Optimus Prime was. After a while he said, “Why was I not told?”
“Honestly, we thought you’d be happy, and we couldn’t take it.”
“Happy about being kept in the dark?” Starscream cried.
Bumblebee and Megatron looked at each other, and Bumblebee shook his head. “Happy that Optimus is gone. No one wanted to hear that from you, and we just put it off. It was a mistake.”
So that was what they thought. Not a bad guess, but it turned out he wasn’t happy. He wasn’t sad either. Everything had changed, and he had to think about his next move.
“I am Cybertronian, am I not? I have a right to know about the passing of a Prime.”
Ratchet snorted. “Why do you care? The job’s not open.”
“What? I -” Starscream gasped. Ratchet looked skeptical. “The thought never crossed my mind. So, who did he pass the Matrix to?” Starscream’s eyes widened and he looked at Bumblebee. “You?”
Bumblebee shook his head. “Don’t look at me. Optimus relinquished the Matrix. It can’t be passed down.”
Starscream frowned. That complicated matters.
“But the Autobots look to you, it seems.”
“We’re just trying to figure out how to rebuild right now. It’s a team effort.”
Starscream rolled his eyes.
“Bumblebee is being a bit humble,” Ratchet said. “His accomplishments have earned him a great deal of respect.”
“Well, if temporarily killing Megatron is all it takes, I can offer a few pointers.” He grinned at his former leader and gave a mock salute.
“Don’t push it, Starscream,” Megatron said. “Your liberty is still not guaranteed.”
Starscream stared venomously at him. He still did not know at whose sufferance he was being allowed to command Seekers. If it was Autobots, he could take it until he could command them in his own right, but if it was Megatron – if he was still under Megatron’s thumb – he would rather be in prison. He chuckled, then laughed out loud.
“Oh, now I see what you’re doing – maneuvering into the Autobots’ good graces so you can whisper in their audio receptors and keep your old rivals from getting the same deal. And they must have been eager to believe it. I bet you even fooled Optimus Pr-“
Megatron’s punch staggered him, and he grabbed the wall to stay on his feet. Oddly, he hadn’t expected him to do that. He put his fingers to his mouth and looked at them. He wasn’t even leaking.
“Maybe you really have gone soft,” he growled. “Your punch certainly has.”
Megatron pulled his fist back again, but Bumble stepped between them and pushed Megatron back.
“Starscream, stop!” Bumblebee said. “What are you trying to prove? Look, you were right about being the best bot to take care of the new Seekers. In a way, Optimus did give you this chance to prove yourself, by allowing them to be born. What they think of you is entirely in your hands. You have their trust, and only you can break it, not me or the Autobots, and not Megatron. No one is hoping for that to happen. It would be a tragedy.”
The Seeker backed up slowly, not sure what Bumblebee was up to, and not liking it. He ducked out of the room and left the building, onto a quiet street. The night was cool and most of the city lights were still out. It was into that night that he launched himself, soaring up until he could see the curvature of Cybertron, glowing blue and alive below him. He could fly anywhere. Kaon was also being rebuilt, having been the least damaged of any city. How many Predacons could there really be? Far to the southwest, his sharp eyes could just make out the gleam of the Well of AllSparks.
New bots were being born right now. Maybe Seekers. He thought of Solarflare and his good flying and terrible landings. What would it prove to leave him and the others behind? It would prove Megatron right, that’s what it would prove. He could keep flying. He was his own bot. And as such, he turned around and headed back down to Iacon, casting a last look back at the Well. Tomorrow they would move landing practice to the afternoon. In the morning he would take them in formation over the Well of AllSparks, a salute to Optimus Prime for giving him a chance. He had all the time in world to figure out how to take advantage of it later.

To be continued...