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((Oh, you know it. ;d))

Unfortunately for Tech, the Autobot did see her but only after the brick nearly slammed into his face. He watched Tech running off then quickly glanced at Starscream, glad to see that he was still occupied with the destruction of one of his fellow Autobots, the quickly took after the tiny bot. She would be a much easier target than the great air commander of the Decepticons. Following her down into the alley, he grinned triumphantly when it turned out to be a dead end. The bot questioned the stability of the Decepticon forces if they were sending cassetticons to attack the Autobots on their own. He moved in on Tech and grabbed her, completely unfazed by the pipe she wielded.

Starscream managed to finish gloating to himself and remember the other Autobot he hadn't quite slagged just in time to turn and see him fleeing into the alley, "Aw, is the little Autobot afraid to play with the big, bad Starscream?" He quietly slipped over to the alley, preparing to finish off this nuisance once and for all.

The Autobot instantly dropped Tech and clutched at his shattered optic while shouting curses at her. Starscream was rather surprised to see the little white robot dropped from his enemy's paws and suddenly the very distracted Autobots made much more sense. He quickly put the anger at her disobedience behind him and focused on the bumbling Autobot who was now searching for Tech furiously.

Starscream quickly circled around behind the bot, keeping out of his range of sight and slowly snuck up behind him. Just as the Autobot located Tech, scowling at her in rage, the Seeker jumped on his back and slammed the barrel of his ray his enemy's head, "I don't appreciate the way you're handling my friend, Autobot." With that he turned the bot's head into a melted mass of metal then turned to Tech, a less than pleased look.

"There was a reason I said to stay put..."

Starscream listened to Tech trying to cover her a**, his face as unchanging as a stone. He didn't appreciate being disobeyed, regardless of what the reasons behind it were. Of course...he had to admit she did a rather good job of providing some support in his fight. Obviously her small size made her difficult to spot, which was quite useful for ambushing and causing confusion. As much as he wanted to be angry with her, he couldn't help feeling grateful for her aid. With a sigh he crouched down to her level, softening his gaze into a flat stare, "I should hope not. Otherwise I might have to reconsider you as my ally."

Turning to the fallen Autobot he considered what to do now. If he continued the attack the Autobots it was possible that both himself and Tech, because he had no intention of leaving her to return to the lab on her own, would be damaged or completely shut down at this point. However, if he were to leave the battle without any Energon-bearing troops behind him Megatron would surely slag him, considering the leader's current mood. After much deliberation he decided to return to the lab, hopefully unnoticed, and there he would decide what to do about Megatron and the Energon situation.

"Well then, back to the lab with you." He returned his optics to her and held out a paw.

Her small stature was only emphasized by the fact that she could hug his thumb. Rather than spawning more doubt in his mind about her usefulness, it only added to the growing number of reasons to keep her as an ally. He set her on his shoulder and looked around cautiously before starting through the streets. He wouldn't risk flying just yet, it was likely an Autobot would shoot him down again, and the less he had to fly the less he would have to repair his already damaged wing.

"Yes, they're Autobots. Megatron ordered us to retrieve their Energon, like the fool he is...I'd be surprised if any other Decepticons managed to return to the base without serious damage." Skirting around the debris of the ruined city, Starscream kept his optics on the look out for any threats. He wasn't interested in receiving any more damage. That would be Megatron's job once he decided to return to the base. If he decided to ever return...

((That's a fantastic way of describing him XD))

Speaking in a low voice in case of nearby enemies, Starscream replied to her questions, "Because most Decepticons are just as foolhardy. They can't think for themselves and see how terrible he is so they assume he's a great leader and follow his every command..." Grumbling to himself about their idiocy for a moment, he checked around a corner before turning. He glanced back at the damaged wing, flexing it slightly which produced a very unpleasant sound.

"Normally a medic would repair us but...even if I intended to return to the base any time soon, which I don't, we have no medic to conduct repairs. The best we manage is.....salvaging parts from others. Functioning or not. Many Decepticons are made in a similar model as my own so finding spare parts is rather simple. It's a matter of retrieving them from the other bot that tends to give the most trouble." He didn't like slinking around in this Autobot territory, it made him nervous. They couldn't get back to Decepticon lands soon enough as far as Starscream was concerned.

Listening to her, Starscream was rather impressed she was able to formulate such an elaborate, and rather effective, solution to the Decepticons' repair issue. Unfortunately there was always something standing in the way of such a plan. That thing was Megatron, "That plan would be quite perfect, if Megatron hadn't seen it fit to change essentially every Decepticon into a warrior. We don't have the mechanics and required to make and attach those parts. There are few around who know how and those that do are too scared Megatron will blast them for spending their time "tinkering" rather than fighting." The Seeker thought about how smart it was of him to get out of science when he did. He would have been forced onto the field eventually anyways.

Sighing, he came to a deep and wide chasm, stopping at its edge and staring down into its depths. This was the barrier between Autobot and Decepticon territory and the only ways across were bridges, all of which were now nothing more than ruble sitting in the belly of the chasm, or flying. Starscream cringed at the thought of flying with his damaged wing. He looked across to the other side and prayed to Primus he would be able to make it all the way across.

Listening to Tech rant about how well Megatron was failing as a leader made Starscream realize a strong similarity between himself and the femme. She hardly knew the Decepticon leader and already hated him nearly as much as he did. A very similar passion seemed to be fueling her as the one that fueled him. Thankfully they were on the edge of the Autobots' territory so he wasn't concerned with whispering any more, so her raised voice wasn't a worry, "As I said, most Decepticons are fools who can't think for themselves."

He stood up straight and gave his wings a cautious flex. The damaged one gave another painful grating sound but it seemed to be functioning enough to fly with, "I'll be fine. Nothing to worry about." Of course, there was also a little bit of pride that wouldn't let him admit he was worried about not making it across to Decepticon land. Trying to hide this completely nonexistent lack of faith in himself. Quickly, Starscream rose from the ground and and started across the gap, struggling not to wince at effort it was taking to stay airborne. At the moment it seemed like the only thing keeping him from plummeting to the ground so far below was pure determination and, possibly, a slight desire to show Tech that he wasn't weak.

Trying to put her nervous banter in the back of his mind, Starscream focused solely on reaching the other side. All he saw was that ledge that would finally bring him back to Decepticon land and nothing else. No pit of death below, no terribly damaged wing that made that horrible sound with every flap, no slightly panicking Tech latched onto his collar. Only the other side. Realizing that he was causing more damage to his wing the more he moved it he tried to mostly soar across the canyon, moving his wings only when he fell below the line of the other side.

"Almost there..." He was unintentionally speaking out loud, trying to reassure himself that he had enough strength in his wing to make it. Soon enough he was at the canyon's edge and had managed to land safely on the other side, a bit to his surprise honestly. With a quiet sigh he turned back to the Autobot-controlled land and smirked triumphantly at it, "Try all you want, foolish Autobots, but you'll never take Starscream, lord of the skies!" He had to disperse all that nervous energy somehow, and what better way than to shout to an enemy that wasn't there?

He turned his back to the enemy-infested lands, head held high in...somewhat of a victory, and sauntered off towards the lab. Unfortunately, though he chose to ignore it at the moment, the flight had horribly maimed his wing and there was no doubt he wouldn't be able to fly again until it was repaired or replaced.