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Chapter Text

“Confounded Megatron.” He growled. “Confounded Skywarp!” he hissed. “CONFOUNDED TREES!” with a quick swipe of his null rays, several were taken down as if it were nothing. 

It didn’t need to be said that Starscream wasn’t exactly having the best of days. Though really, by now, it had become a regular occurrence: another mission to collect energy, another intervention via the Autobots, another completely justified complaint and observation of that old fool’s failure to lead them, and subsequently, another beating. 

Just another Manic Monday. He had heard the Earth song once, and even now, it refused to leave his processor.

Though, one may ask, how did the purple and black seeker fit into all of this? Well, it was a simple fact that, had it not been for him going in too early and gave themselves away, perhaps this whole thing wouldn’t have gone awry! And even more, it was HE who gave Megatron leverage to use him as an example of how if the Air Commander couldn’t keep his own trine in check, so what hope would he have in leading the Decepticons as a whole?

Yet that wasn’t it. Oh no.

Then, one of those fragging Lambo twins had to go and land a shot right on one of his thrusters, sending him spiraling downward, crashing right into this dense collection of exotic flora. Where he was exactly, he knew not, yet it was clear that, given that the skies were clear of either Skywarp or Thundercracker, he might be stuck here for a while. Unless he wanted to try and swim. 

It was all so unfair! Every part of this was just…gah! He raised his null rays and released shot after shot of violet, hot energy, slicing through trunks and the tops of trees, whatever they could hit, visualizing the face of Megatron on every single one of them.

She stirred when she heard the first of…whatever was happening nearby. Yet it was only when she felt the vibration of something quite large drawing near her location that she was jostled wide awake. “By the gods, what the- “another vibration nearly dislodged her from her place on the thickened branch of the tree, the only thing saving her from falling being her lower half tightening itself around it. What in the world was going on?! Whatever the case, she was beginning to believe that it’d be in her vest interest that she go and get out of here! 

Though, it was only when the row of trees in front of her fell did she see the one causing all the noise and chaos. As well as seeing a bright, hot light of violet come her direction.

“AHH!!!” Starscream paused in his tirade upon hearing the scream, his anger far from subsiding, yet confusion took ahold of him now. From what he could gauge, said scream was female and assumedly human, though where had it come from? “Ooooh…” the source of the scream now seemed to be moaning in pain, the seeker’s red optics searching for said source, he then looking down and seeing, to his shock, the form of a young woman on the ground. The fact that any humans lived amongst this dense rainforest was bewildering. 

Said young woman appeared to bear hair of dark brown and tanned skin, said hair long and hanging freely. On each side of her head, just above her…pointed ears lay blooming lotus flowers. Pointed ears…last time he checked, that wasn’t exactly a feature many of this planet’s flesh creatures had. And when she looked up at him, he could tell that something else was off about her. Her eyes were a vivid Peridot, the pupil a blackened slit akin to that of one of those domestic cats the humans kept…or a snake. Snake…around the sides of her face and neck appeared to be small speckles of yellowish green. Or…where they small bits of scales? 

“Ow…” she moaned again, trapped underneath the tree she had formerly been resting in. “H-Hey!” she yelled, whether from the pain or shock, she didn’t know, but the words tumbled from her lips. “What do you think you’re doing?!”

Starscream didn’t say a word, his optics focused on something that wriggled and writhed on the other side of the shot down tree. Pushing it upward, he took a step back, seeing this human female for what she truly was. She bore no legs. She bore no legs…in place of them was what appeared a snake’s tail, green stripes and diamond shaped patterns of gold lining it from its tip to the base of her spine, the scales appearing to merge with her skin save for a few here and there around her mid back and shoulder blades, a select few coming to her shoulders themselves. She seemed to bear no clothing or covering of any sort, though she seemed to bear no visible nipples, scales covering that portion of her breasts, the underside of her tail able to star from her pelvis. 

Suffice to say, the Air Commander was taken aback by what he was seeing. 

“Hey!” she spoke again, jostling him from his shock, albeit just a bit. “What do you think you’re doing, going around slicing down trees?! Stop it!” though upon the seeker standing up, the snake woman seemed to realize just how much larger he was compared to her. “Um…please?”

So, she knew how to speak. All the better for him. “And on whose authority do you demand this of me?” he questioned, folding his arms, a smirk coming to his features.

She had just gotten herself killed. She knew it. “Um...m-mine, I guess?” yep. Definitely killed. “Or...rather, the very jungle you’re currently destroying for no reason!”

“Your authority, or your ‘precious’ jungle’s means nothing to me, fleshbag!” the Air Commander retorted, though despite this, he continued to examine her. 

“Who…” she began, clearly fearful of him. “I mean...what are you?”

Starscream smirked. “What a trite question to ask me.” he then gestured his null ray in her direction. “It depends. As of now, I’m heavily considering to be your death.”

“Wh-What?!” she gasped, slithering back up against a tree. “W-Wait! No-” she didn’t get another word out before she felt the tip of his cannon ram into her stomach, knocking the wind out of her before she felt herself being lifted upward, she reflexively clinging on for dear life. Seeing as she was secure on his weapon, Starscream surveyed her closer. 

“Though, that may depend if you satisfy my curiosity. May.” he emphasized. “Though, given we ARE in the midst of introductions, allow me. Air Commander Starscream of the Decepticons, Prince of the Skies, and soon to be conqueror of this revolting planet!” Decepticons, Air Commander, what? What in the world was he talking about? “Now,” he centered his red optics on her. “I’ve answered your question. Now, answer mine. What are YOU?”

“Wh-What am I?” she asked. “But...but what’s a Decepticon-ah!”

“I’m asking the questions here!” Starscream snarled. “Now, answer! What manner of hideous creature are you?”

Hideous?! Well...nevertheless, he was the one with the weapon. A rather...BIG weapon at that. “I…” the snake woman stammered. “Well...it depends.”

“Depends on what?”

“Which version you want.”

“Which version? What nonsense are you talking about?” he brought her closer. “Do NOT try my patience you...thing!”

Hideous, and she was now called a ‘thing’. Such a gentlemen, this one. Still, again, she had little ground to make any reasonable threat against him. “In some lands, I would be called a Lamia, though the legends surrounding her don’t exactly describe me or my kind.” Lamia...the seeker had heard such a term before. A mission regarding a hydroelectric power plant in a distant country in Europe. Greece, he believed it to be called, Laserbeak having gained intel on the location. Needless to say, the country had quite the extensive history, especially that of monsters and gods. For humans to have believed such things surprised him, let alone how they held such a presence, even today. “But…” the snake woman continued. “Here, you reside in the far east. And here, my people are addressed as the Naga.”

Naga...now that he had never heard of. “Tell me then, what is the difference between the former creature and yourself?”

“The Lamia was a tragic woman cursed by a scorned goddess.” she explained. “We Naga, on the other hand, were considered just a level below gods and goddesses ourselves.”

Starscream smirked. “An overgrown worm like you was once considered near divine? Primus, how is it that humans are the dominant species on this planet?”

Another lovely title. Still, she continued. “We were the keepers and guardians of the rivers and streams, of treasures that men would slay their own brothers for.” she went on, as if to counter the seeker’s insult. “We shielded prophets and holy ones from the rain and storms, and, from what I have heard thus far,” she finished, “Unlike you, we are protectors and friends of man.”

Starscream scoffed. “Then you’ll share the same fate as your ‘friends’, as well as their planet.” he tilted his arm, removing her from his canon and taking her in his opposite hand. “It’s just occurred to me that I haven’t gotten your name, my dear.”

“A-Abeesha.” the dark haired naga answered.

The Air Commander continued to survey her. “Curious thing you are. Hideous, but curious.” indeed, a hint of his scientist background was beginning to shine through. He turned her, flipped her over, watched as her tail wound itself around his digits to keep herself from falling. 

“C-Careful!” Abeesha pleaded. “You’re handling me too rough!”

Starscream simply smirked. “Tell me, Abeesha, are there any more of you?”

It was then that he noticed her expression growing solemn, biting her lip. “...barely.”

‘Well, they’re about to lose another.’ he was about to tell her, yet stopped himself. True, her life mattered not to him, yet what difference did it make if she lived or died? Besides, it’d just be more fuel he’d waste, and should he even attempt to try and get back to the Nemesis, he was going to need as much as he could manage to save. Assuming that Skywarp and Thundercracker weren’t going to show up sooner or later. By the Pit, where were they?!

It was then that he felt Abeesha’s tail lightly curl around his wrist, she having adjusted herself to a more comfortable position in his hand. “You know…” he was puzzled. Even if it wasn’t by much, she sounded a bit more...confident than before. “It seems that you’ve had quite the day.” she told him. “A rather bad one.”

Starscream huffed. “And what business is that of yours?”

“None. But I am right, yes?” she leaned on his index finger, lightly rubbing it. “The stress and tension is just radiating off of you.” it was then he noticed a small smile come to her face. She was planning something...but what? Really, what could she do against him? Either she was bluffing or was outright mad. “Given you’re studying me, there IS one thing that we Naga are also known for.”

Again, what was she doing? Still...what was he cautious for? “Fine. Enlighten me then. What ARE your kind known for?”

“Oh, it’s not much.” she closed her green eyes. “Just…” then, she opened them. “This.”

Then, to the seeker’s bewilderment, something about the once terrified naga changed. Or rather...only one aspect of her changed, yet in that, it seemed she herself had undergone a transformation. What once held green eyes with slit pupils now contained a series of intricate, circular patterns emerging from where a barely visible pupil rested. Mainly composed of pastel colors, patterns pulsated and waved, never staying the same for more than a few seconds at most, and whilst the colors perhaps repeated, as well as the patterns, they were doing so at a steady enough rhythm to where each transition was seamless. The patterns were formed in such a way to where a small sight Starscream had caught in the corner of his optics came to mind. He had seen such a thing before, something from a nation called India he believed. Mandela, they were called. Regardless, whatever they resembled, let alone her ability to produce them, wasn’t natural. “What in Primus’ name?” he questioned, stepping back a little, though after the sudden shock, he began to observe her eyes curiously. “What are you doing?”

Abeesha mentally sighed. She possibly had one chance to get this right. “Helping you.” she answered him calmly, though she was anything but internally. “And giving you a demonstration on one of the talents we naga are capable of.”

It was then, as he continued to watch, that Starscream became aware that, his previous trepidation had begun to decrease. Dare say, it was nearly eroded completely, his intrigue of what he was seeing increasing. Dare say, it actually was growing into a desire to observe them closer. “It…” he began, all the while continuing to watch the ever flowing, ever changing mandelas. “There’s more to it than that, and  you know it. You…” he found himself pausing again, puzzled as to words seemed to be slowly evading him. Speaking of which, why was his processor becoming so fuzzy? “What are you...doing?”

Ok, she had him a bit. Though only a bit. She needed to keep playing her part. “I’m also providing you a service.” the dark haired snake woman assured, resting her upper half on his thumb. “All the trees that have suffered from your rampage is more than indicative that you’re QUITE frustrated.”

Frustrated? What was she...well...now that he thought about it...yes. Yes, he had been. The fury that he had experienced before hadn’t come back to him, as if it weren’t allowed to, yet...it couldn’t have something to do with the patterns...her eyes. But...he was aware of just how bad a day he was having. Again though, nothing to do with the patterns...or her eyes. It was then that Starscream began to become aware that something was wrong. Whatever was going on...whether it was her eyes or not, there were alterations occurring in his processor. Alterations that were forgien, yet all the same, his sense of danger hadn’t been fully heightened. “That’s…” still, he was still aware enough to protest. “That’s none of your concern.”

“No, it’s not.” Abeesha admitted, maintaining her balance as she felt herself being brought closer. “But it’s true, is it not?” she questioned. “You’re overcome with terrible stresses brought on by unbearable hardship.” it was faint, just barely there, yet she was seeing the beginnings of her patterns reflecting in his large, red optics, said optics widening as if to better absorb her own eyes. “In fact, if I may be so bold, it seems you’re no stranger to these things, yes?”

“N-No…” Starscream found himself admitting freely. Wait...had he just said that? “What...what are you doing...to me?”

“As I said, helping you.” the naga assured, her voice suddenly very, very tantalizing to hear. He wanted more. He needed more. A part of him still alerted him that this wasn’t natural, yet that part was being clouded and hushed by the incoming waves of warmth that came his way. He felt his legs beneath him begin to weaken, as if everything felt as if it held an immeasurable amount of weight. “Bring me closer.” she urged gently. “Your arm looks like it’s getting heavy.” Heavy...yes. Heavy. Steadily setting himself down to a sitting position, Starscream brought Abeesha closer to where she was able to slither onto the top of his neckline, right above his windshield centered on his chest, she then drawing closer to his face, her gaze inescapable now. “There now. Isn’t that better?” she cooed, taking her hand and lightly rubbing the underside of the seeker’s jaw, he shuddering a bit at her touch.

“...yes…” he answered, voice low and little more than a satisfied sigh. 

“Good. You realize now that I’m here to help you, yes? You know that now, don’t you, Starscream?”

“...yes...yes, I...do. Now…” the way he spread and spoke his words didn’t exactly flow, yet he couldn’t care less. Anything that was outside of Abeesha, he couldn’t care less about. He felt himself leaning back, the thickened trunks of the trees behind him supporting his form, letting him slip further and further away.

“Yes, you do. Good to know.” Abeesha smiled. “Much better than knocking down all those trees, right?”

“Y-Yes. Much...better.”

Well, as long as he was so agreeable…”Speaking of, you gave everybody here quite a scare not too long ago. And all those poor trees…” she gave her voice a saddened tone.

“I...apologize.” Starscream moaned, completely out of it. 

“You’re forgiven.” Abeesha assured him, taking a moment to survey the enraptured seeker she had in her thrall. Despite everything that had occurred earlier, she couldn’t deny that seeing him in such a dazed stupor was...actually kind of adorable, a satisfied smile on his lips. Still, she wasn’t doing this simply out of any sense of enjoyment...no matter the strange stirrings that came over her at the moment. If anything, it was a miracle she had gotten this far. She needed to amscray as soon as possible. “Everything is all right now. None of that matters. Nothing matters but being rid of all that nasty tension.” she drew closer to his lips, lining them with her hands. It felt amazing to Starscream. She felt amazing. Everything about her was amazing. “Ease up.” she urged him. “Let it flow from you...let it ALL leave you.” 

“Mmm...yesss….” Starscream moaned, leaning back further, slipping further and further to the ground.

“Good…” her voice echoed in his head. “Relax, dearest Starscream. Relax. Relax for me...relax...relax…”

How long she continued to whisper such lovely messages to him, let alone remain in his presence, he knew not, yet even if she had left hours later or in a mere moment, the seeker would’ve never known. Abeesha was his universe, his light, his reason his very spark beat. All that had driven him mad before was but a distant memory. Skywarp...no, that didn’t matter anymore. He was over it. Megatron...eh, since when did he EVER care about what that old fool thought? And while he was at it, frag Prime too. Frag all the Autobots. Frag everyone and everything that didn’t have to do with her and the euphoria she had so graciously given him. 

“Relax…”

Her voice continued to echo her gentle command in his mind, the sky above him, along with the sight of her steadily blurring and meshing together, the colors and blackness becoming one until all that composed of the outside word escaped him, sealing him in a realm of tranquility and stillness.

Bliss. Pure, unadulterated bliss.

“...hey…”

But wait…

“...is he…”

Voices...but...from who?

“Hey!” wait a moment. That sounded...familiar. “Hey, c’mon!”

Where had he- “OOF!” a sharp kick to his side jolted the red and blue seeker from his blackened haven, the world outside coming back to him, along with the sight of two bearing a frame akin to his own standing above him. One bore armor of black and violet whilst the other bore black and deep blue. They also held lighter colored faces compared to his, yet they all shared the same, reddened  optics. 

“See?” the purple seeker chuckled, looking to the blue one. “Just took a little nudge.” the blue one simply shook his head. 

“Sk-Skywarp?” Starscream began, finding words able to roll off his tongue more easily. “Thundercracker…” yes. He...he had crashed here. And he had been…”Well…” he began to rise. “It’s about time you got here! Do you know how long I’ve-” though just as he got to his feet, he felt his legs give way, Thundercracker rushing in to catch him. 

“Hm.” the blue seeker noted, looking to the setting sun. “Rather convenient location. Considering you could’ve sunk into the sea.

“Hey, I’D like my own little corner of paradise than dragging a bunch of cubes back to the Nemesis!” Skywarp added in, this earning him a glare from both of them. “Hey, just trying to get you to see the bright side!” and this earned him a punch to his shoulder. “Hey!”

“What’s wrong? It’s just a ‘little nudge’.” Starscream huffed, feeling his legs regaining strength again. “Besides, NOTHING on this planet could be considered paradise.” his optics then turned to the sky above, the sight of it brought several questions to his processor. The horizon above was awash in shades of orange, violet, and magenta, the colors only being exemplified by the bright glow of the setting sun. Well...nothing on land was paradise at least. 

“Still,” Thundercracker spoke. “What were you doing before we arrived?”

“What are you talking about?” Starscream questioned.

“It didn’t take THAT long to find you, especially with me,” Skywarp clarified. “But when we DID find you, you seemed kind of...out of it.”

“Out of it? In what way?”

“I don’t know. Just...not all there. Like, you were in recharge, but not entirely. Kinda like some sort of weird dream state.”

Dream state...their commander pondered this. Indeed, much of what had occurred before now completely escaped him. Just what HAD happened the last couple hours? His hand then rose to his temple.

“Are you all right?” THundercaker asked, puzzled and, despite the usual coldness in his voice, concerned. “You haven’t had any damage to your cerebral chamber on the way down, have you?” 

“I’m fine!” Starscream snapped. Really, why couldn’t he remember anything?! It frustrated him! 

‘Relax…’

He froze. 

“Starscream?” THundercracker’s voice broke through the small bit of calm that came over him. 

“It…it’s nothing.” The air commander assured. “Just…get me out of here.”

Skywarp grinned. “And I just so happen to know a shortcut!” Starscream didn’t even get a chance to protest, he taking the other Seeker by his shoulders and flying upward.

“N-No! No shortcuts! NO SHORTCUTS!!!” Starscream shouted as the two flew off in the distance.

Thundercracker sighed, knowing full well that whatever the other Seeker had in mind, it’d get them all in trouble, assuming Starscream didn’t have a ‘session’ with Megatron awaiting him when they got back. He then took off, leaving the dense collection of flora.

Abeesha peeked her head out from the treetops, watching the three go off into the sky. There was more of them? Lovely. Still, at least they were leaving now. And despite the trouble that Starscream caused before, he and the others looked rather…majestic as they flew. Though, if she were asked, she’d prefer to not have to deal with him or anyone else like him in the near future. But…with that said, actually putting her powers to use was…somewhat empowering. To hold power over a larger, assumedly more powerful being…a blush came to the Naga’s cheeks. 

Maybe…maybe she wouldn’t mind the jet paying another visit.

Albeit, one where not as many trees were taken out.

Chapter Text

It's a somewhat random time for me to remember this story, but it seems that it's garnered some comments and kudos.

Thank you so much for this!

But I'm pondering on doing another chapter to this story. I don't intend for this to be a continuous thing, but I'm sort of pondering a scenario involving Optimus Prime and Abeesha. Or maybe one with one of the other Seekers.

Honestly, I don't know, but if you're curious about seeing more of this (at least some extra chapters), then please give your input.

If yes, leave a comment. And if you want to be more specific, tell me what you would like to see.

Thank you all!

Chapter Text

Even after all these weeks, the sight of his sleeping face hadn’t left her mind. There had been nothing of note that had happened in the dense jungle of the small island, but Abeesha found that perhaps a little excitement would be just what this place needed. True, she didn’t want any carnage, but something to disrupt the quiet, and perhaps distract her from her thinking. 

Ever since that being, that “Starscream” had come across her (or rather, nearly killed her), the nagini (female naga) found herself thinking about him quite often as of late. Why she had no idea, but when she had turned the tables on him and managed to slither her way out of trouble, she found that particular part of the ordeal was more pleasant than what happened before. 

The metallic being’s eyes growing wide and being clouded with the own ever-shifting, colorful patterns in her eyes, the serene smile that came to his lips as she eased him further and further down into trance…needless to say, she felt her cheeks grow hot the more she thought about it. One moment, the towering, winged creature (Abeesha had little idea what else to call him) was seconds away from blinding her with the strange fire he held in those strange instruments on his arms, the next, he was little more than a purring kitten. Putty in her hands, hers to shape and form however she wanted. It wouldn’t last forever, no, and those that had been put under by her abilities always woke within a few hours, but in that period of time, their mind was completely open to anything she said. But Abeesha, even if she found herself enjoying the sense of power she had over Starscream, she had no way to permanently change someone’s mind. As in, she couldn’t bend someone to her will and make them her possession. 

Yet the nagini had no desire for such things. All she wanted was just to live her life in this jungle,

BOOM!

The ground shook and Abeesha coiled around the branch she was on. Her green eyes stared wide at what she had just noticed taking place but a few miles away from her. A barrage of bright blasts of energy were being shot back and forth between two parties in the distance, and from the vibrations and sounds, the nagini sensed that perhaps she should’ve been careful for what she wished for.

Well, this wasn’t exactly what he had in mind for today.

When Optimus Prime had been alerted that the Decepticons had gone off with an energy converter with the intention to draw out more Energon, the Autobots were called to retrieve it, for anything of that sort in Decepticon hands meant trouble. Thus, they went to retrieve it. 

Teletraan 1 managed to catch sight of the Decepticons transporting the device across the oceanic border between India and Sri Lanka (an island off the coast of the country, as Teletraan 1 informed the Autobots), and Optimus immediately sent Powerglide and Skyfire in to deal with the Seekers, who were transporting the device. 

Starscream had the energy converter held up on the underside of the jet, Thundercracker and Skywarp on either side of him ready to defend the converter. Megatron had made sure to tell the SIC’s trine members that the converter was not to be scratched or dented in any way, but he then casually mentions that should the Autobots shoot Starscream down, then one of them would take it and continue. Anyone that couldn’t keep up, they were on their own. 

Once Powerglide and Skyfire were seen, the two other Seekers went away from Starscream and made their way towards the two flying Autobots. Immediately, fire was exchanged between the four Cybertronians, the red plane, and the shuttle flying to the side to avoid the blasts, or rather the blasts from Powerglide and Prime. Optimus had elected to ride in the shuttle to provide better fire. Powerglide transformed and immediately went for Starscream, shooting at the red and blue jet. The trine leader had to dodge the blasts, but he also had to be careful in his movements, lest he jostles the converter and potentially damage it. As much as he hated carrying this thing, it was better than anything Megatron could dish out. 

“Skywarp! Thundercracker! Get this fool off me!” Starscream screeched, Powerglide’s fire coming dangerously close to hitting him, the Seeker momentarily forgetting that Megatron would be the one blasting him if anything happened to the converter. 

“Oh, quit your whining! I’m coming!” Skywarp shouted, warping out of the range of Skyfire, who was still in his shuttle form. Optimus Prime kept firing from his own weapon, aiming at the Seeker, who was quickly dodging his attacks. Having had enough of this, Skywarp teleported right beside the Autobot commander, his weapon at the ready to shoot. “I can’t believe Megatron has a hard time taking you out!” Skywarp chuckled. “You’re way too easy!”

“Don’t get your hopes up yet!” Optimus answered, ducking underneath the shot the Seeker had fired. Prime then leaped forward and clutched onto the Seeker, Skyfire transforming and joining Powerglide in the battle. 

“H-Hey! Get off me, old man!” Skywarp demanded, flying around erratically to try and shake Prime off. “Hey, Cracker! Take care of this geezer for me, would ya?!” 

Prime was tempted to blast the Seeker himself for those comments, but he calmed himself. The main objective was to protect and retrieve the converter. Grabbing Skywarp, Prime “steered” him forward, the Seeker not bothering to teleport, knowing the Prime would just teleport with him wherever he went.  Thundercracker was unable to aid Skywarp as he was busy trying to keep Powerglide away from Starscream. 

“Watch where you’re shooting, slagging fool!” Starscream bellowed, though whether he was addressing Powerglide or Thundercracker was unknown. Or he could’ve been addressing both of them, one never knew with Starscream. 

“Hold on!” Thundercracker shouted, going over to fire at the red Autobot. But he never got the chance as Optimus crashed into the other jet using Skywarp as a means of transportation. Skyfire flew underneath the two Seekers and caught Prime when he leaped down to the larger Autobot, Prime then setting his sights on Starscream. 

“Heads up, Screamer!” Skywarp called out to his trine leader, but his warning was in vain as Optimus sprung forward and grabbed Starscream. 

“Skyfire!” Prime shouted, immediately going to work on disconnecting the converter from Starscream. “Take this!” 

But just when the converter was about to be detached, Starscream dove downward, taking Optimus and the converter with him dangerously close to the ocean. Not wanting to risk the chance of the device falling into the water, Optimus grabbed the device and managed to detach it at just the right moment. He then tossed it to Powerglide, who quickly caught it. 

“Oh, no you don’t!” Starscream performed a spin and whirled around to fire at the plane. Optimus pulled the jet upward, and Powerglide took the opportunity to shoot at one of the jet’s fuel tanks. “GAHH!!!” Starscream lived up to his name as he howled in pain. 

Unable to stay aloft, the Seeker, with Optimus, went spiraling down. “PRIME!!!” Powerglide shouted as he and Skyfire flew towards him.

“No! Take care of the converter! Don’t worry about me!” Prime told them as he and Starscream continued to plummet towards an island below. 

The Autobot leader and Decepticon SIC crashed down into the dense foliage below, rocking the area from their collective impacts. The landing had sent Optimus off of Starscream and onto his back, the Seeker wasting no time in transforming into his true form. 

Could it be? 

Abeesha found herself wondering, but whether or not she should be pleased about this new turn of events ate up at her. Though that soon became the least of her worries as nearly half a tree was sent in her direction. She managed to duck and have the large object fly over her head, but before she could question anything, a very familiar, high-pitched voice met her ears.

“Is that the best you can do?!” Starscream laughed, firing back at the red and blue Autobot, who had taken to using a nearby tree for cover. “Have your optics gone dim with age?”

Prime fired at that, seeing no further reason to hold back. He managed to hit the Seeker in the chest, sending him flying back and knocking down a few trees in the process. Abeesha wrapped herself tightly around the thick branch to keep herself from falling from the tree, yet she suspected that, no matter what she did, she would end up in the middle of whatever was going on. 

Yet why was that winged, red-eyed fiend back? Was there a reason, or was it just as before, by happenstance? Regardless, Abeesha had little time to dwell on this, as she saw a larger figure tackle the winged one, the two metallic titans wrestling with each other until the masked one gained the upper hand. The blue and red giant removed the canons on the sides of Starscream’s shoulders and held him in a headlock. 

“L-Let go!” Starscream shouted, not willing to dare beg to Prime. At least not yet. “Let go of me!”

“Yield!” Prime commanded the Seeker, tightening his hold. “Yield!” he bellowed, keeping Starscream from reaching for his weapons. 

Abeesha felt her chest vibrate when the masked titan spoke, his voice deep and powerful. But at the same time, she sensed that he was perhaps the one she should be rooting for. After all, from what little she knew of Starscream, he wasn’t exactly a savory character.

“Never!” the Seeker cried out, trying to reach for one of his canons. Then Optimus slammed him down on his back, pinning his arms down and rendering the Decepticon immobile. Starscream immediately grew timider underneath the Prime’s intense, blue gaze. “W-Wait!” the jet pleaded. “Wait! I yield! I-”

“Wait!” 

Prime turned to see a tan-skinned woman with long, brown hair and flowers nestled behind her ears in the trees, her lower half-hidden behind the thick collection of leaves. It wasn’t the fact that she appeared to have no clothes on and patches of her skin looked like scales, Optimus was more surprised by the fact that anyone was here. Especially a human, at least, he assumed. 

“What the…oof!”

This momentary distraction allowed Starscream to knee Prime in the chest, getting the larger Autobot off of him, and scrambled to one of his canons, hoping to deliver a blast of his null ray right to that fragger’s chest! 

“Watch out!” 

Wait a moment, he had heard that voice before. But from where? Starscream’s red optics then spotted her watching a short distance away. Immediately, he aimed. “Y-You! It’s you!” he shouted. “You vile creature!” 

Abeesha got no time to either freeze or flee in terror, for a large, blue hand seized her and held her tight. The red arm the hand belonged to brought her close to the Autobot’s chest as he shielded her from enemy fire. 

“I’d suggest you let me end that creature if I were you, Prime,” Starscream said, aiming at the nagini. “That thing is a witch!”

“Witch?!” Abeesha shouted, offended. “All right, first you call me a ‘thing’ and ‘hideous’, but now I’m a witch?!” 

Starscream noticed her green eyes and immediately, he shielded his optics. “Don’t you look at me! I’m wise to your tricks, serpentine filth!” 

Well, that’s ironic, coming from you. Prime thought. Though he could dwell on Starscream’s hypocrisy and lack of foresight, he was under fire by the Seeker again, ducking behind a tree. “Stay here!” he commanded the brunette snake woman, going back to fighting against the Decepticon. 

Abeesha watched as the two metal giants battled back and forth, Starscream making sure to keep his distance while trying to hit Optimus from afar. This pattern went on for some time before the Seeker aimed and fired again, only instead of violet energy, what appeared to be a shot of concentrated electricity blasted forward and hit Prime in the chest. The nagini gasped as she saw the red and blue Autobot hit the ground hard, shaking up the jungle and nearly making her fall out of the tree.

Starscream stood triumphantly over Optimus, his thruster heel grinding into the leader. “Ha! And Megatron has trouble dealing with you!” he scoffed. “Well,” he then aimed his weapon at Prime’s cerebral chamber. “Unlike him, I won’t miss.”

“Starscream!” the Seeker turned to see the snake woman up in the trees, but even more, he noticed that her eyes had once again bloomed into a series of colorful patterns. He covered his optics, yet Abeesha continued. “Look at me.” Suddenly, to his shock, Starscream found his arm moving away from covering his face, his optics catching sight of her eyes once again. “Look at me.” Abeesha repeated. To both the Autobot and Decepticon’s surprise, the Seeker began to obey her. One of his optics shut off as now one of them was locked with the snake woman’s ever-changing eyes. “Both eyes, if you please.” 

Then both of his optics activated, the action completely involuntary on his part. “Wh-What the-” he stammered, now unable to tear away from Abeesha’s gaze, even if he wanted to. And that was steadily fading fast. “What have you…done to me?” he strained to say as he felt his mind becoming cloudy. 

“Well, let’s just say that I took some precautions with you, seeing as you’re a little too eager to use those things. You could call it a trigger of sorts.” the snake woman gestured to the Seeker’s blasters. “Speaking of, why don’t you put those down? You’re causing all sorts of noise.” Optimus watched in awe as Starscream slowly lowered his canons. He suddenly began to move forward, yet he completely ignored Prime. Starscream knew he shouldn’t be going to her, that this was a trap, yet he wanted those eyes. He NEEDED those eyes. “Yes, you remember some of what happened last time, don’t you?” she questioned, the Seeker’s optics wide and reflecting her own patterns. “Remember how your confusion soon melted into warmth and calm,” she told the Seeker gently. “And joy.”

Optimus saw Starscream’s body grow relaxed and stiff, having completely forgotten that the Autobot existed. Prime moved closer to observe what was going on, feeling very much like Perceptor at this moment. He saw Starscream staring at the snake woman, mouth agape and completely transfixed by what was before him. “What is this?” he said aloud, but Starscream didn’t even register him. 

“I…I can’t…”

“Can’t what, Starscream?” Abeesha questioned. “Can’t look away?” she then shook her head, Optimus watching as, while it was as much as hers, Starscream followed her motions. “Though, you don’t really want to, do you?” again, she shook her head, yet this time, Starscream answered her.

“No…” he sighed, Optimus seeing that the corners of his mouth were beginning to curl into a smile. 

“Then, what do you want?” she asked. 

“I…I want…” he began, trying to string together a sentence. What was going on? He hadn’t been affected this quickly last time! He didn’t have much time to question it as Abeesha questioned him again. 

“Yes? You want…?”

“I want…your eyes,” he told her. “They…I’m…”

“Yes, yes, I know.” the nagini said. “What would you do for them? What would you do to feel like this?”

Starscream sighed. “Anything…” 

“Then be a good boy and stand right there for me, would you?” 

Instantly, the Seeker stood up straight, arms by his side and legs together, as if he were a soldier standing at attention. Ironic, Prime thought. As he got closer to Starscream, he could see that the Decepticon SIC had a content grin plastered on his features, his optics endlessly reflecting the patterns that once reflected in the snake woman’s eyes. Optimus was tempted to wave a hand in front of Starscream’s face but thought better of it.

“Um, pardon me,” Optimus turned his attention to the hybrid creature that had just entranced the Seeker. “Please get me away from here,” she said. “He won’t be going anywhere for a while, but I’d like to be as far as I can. And, well, seeing as you can cover ground faster than I can.”

“Certainly.” Prime held out his hand and allowed her to slither on, the Cybertronian’s optics widening as he saw just how “long” she was. “Now, does it matter where you wish to go?” 

“Oh no,” the snake woman assured him. “I know this whole place like the back of my hand, we just need to get out of here before he snaps out of it.” 

“Indeed.” With that, Prime ran off into the dense foliage, Starscream still standing there, staring into the void and seeing nothing but colors and patterns in his mind’s eye.

How far he was going, Prime didn’t know. He just kept running to what he would hope would be a safe distance for the strange creature he now found himself carrying. 

“You can set me down here.” he heard the snake woman tell him. “That winged beast won’t be able to see us through all of this.” she gestured to the dense collection of branches and leaves above. “When he comes to his senses that is.” Optimus then placed the hybrid creature on a branch he could reach, the brunette serpent woman wound her lower half around it, thankful to feel the familiar sensation of wood on her scales. “I owe you my life, Mister…?”

“Prime.” the Autobot introduced himself. “Optimus Prime.” he then extended his index finger to her. “And may I inquire what your name might be?”

It took her a few moments to register the mechanical being was talking to her as she was distracted by just how large he was. Yet seeing the blue glow of his optics, she found herself more willing to accept this “Prime’s” shake. 

“Abeesha.” the snake woman answered. “And again, I owe you a great debt, Prime.” she spoke as if she thought “Prime” was a grand title of some sort. 

In a sense, perhaps it was, yet Optimus always disliked the formality the title brought with it at times. “Treat me as your equal, that’s all I ask of you,” he told her. “That said, given we are in less hazardous conditions, I…” he looked her over, all over. In fact, a lot of her had already disappeared up in the branches above. “Well…may I be blunt?”

Abeesha nodded. “Might as well be.”

“Just what ARE you?” Prime asked, genuinely curious, though Abeesha was more receptive of his optics gazing upon her than Starscream’s. 

“Well, given where you are in the world, I may be called by different names,” she explained. “But to make it simple, I am what is called a naga, a figure with the upper body of a man, but the lower body of a serpent,” she explained. “Or, in my case, woman. Hence, I’m technically a nagini.” 

Nagini…now Prime was wishing that Perceptor was here to try and explain to him what he had just heard. “I…see,” nevertheless, he wanted to move onto another topic, mainly because the current one confused him so much. “Well, I shall notify your people to my fellow Autobots-”

“Please don’t!” the nagini pleaded. She fell forward off of the branch and came plummeting down. Thankfully, Prime caught her, her tail instinctively wrapping around his arm. “Please, don’t tell anyone!”

“I only meant to inform them that you and your people are under our protection as much as the other forms of life on this planet are,” Optimus explained, not understanding the snake woman’s panic. Then he realized. “Ah, that’s right,” he remembered. “Humans…they have a…habit of hunting down rare species, don’t they?” she seemed surprised by his knowledge of this but nodded in response. “No word of your existence shall reach the outside,” he assured her. “And if Starscream happens to take this information back with him, then we shall step in and defend your kind accordingly.” 

Abeesha was moved. “Thank you, dear sir, but you don’t have to worry about Starscream,” she said. “He and I had a run-in some time back. And during that time, I was forced to make use of my…talents, as you saw back there.” 

“Ah, yes, that.” Optimus looked back in the direction he had come from, wondering whether or not the Seeker was still standing there in a mindless daze. “Just what did you do to him?” 

“Oh, it’s nothing much. Just a little something I picked up from my dad.” Abeesha said. “Every naga or nagini has at least some form of it, so it’s nothing really special to us.” 

“What is?” Optimus questioned. 

It was then that he saw it. It was for just a moment, a brief flash, but in just a second, his vision spotted a spirling array of colors and patterns. All coming from the snake woman’s eyes. Whatever she had done was so short-lived, yet even in that time, Optimus found himself drawn to her. As if he wanted to see her closer.

Her eyes closer.

“Hypnosis.”

Chapter Text

"Hypnosis?" Prime asked, puzzled and stunned by what he had just seen, if not for a split second. Would she perhaps do it again?

"Yes," Abeesha answered. "It's just one of the gods' talents bestowed upon my people," she explained. "Although, given where you are in the world, tales of us might not be all that savory," she said. "We're the subject of many a story where travelers or treasure hunters came upon us and met their end." she then eyed the larger, metal giant. "Thankfully, you're much too big for me to digest."

Despite her assessment being true, Optimus now regarded the snake-woman with caution. "Do you devour humans?" he asked.

"No, of course not! Not me!" Abeesha assured him. "Yes, I eat, but I only take what I need. Besides, the animals in these parts are much better. Besides, I've heard man-flesh is bad for a naga's digestion."

Well, at least he wasn't having to worry about talking to a man-eater. Still, despite all this other fascinating information, Optimus Prime couldn't help but think back to the few seconds he had seen Abeesha's eyes bloom into colors. As well as the brief but unmistakable wave of calm that fell over him. Why though? For what reason was he so fascinated by them? "Your abilities," he then spoke. "I trust that is what you performed on Starscream?"

"Yes, that's right," Abeesha confirmed. "Don't worry, though; he won't be going anywhere for a few hours. Although," she continued. "Why were you two fighting in the first place?" she then pointed to the Autobot symbol on his shoulder. "He bore a marking similar to that. What does it mean?"

Prime looked back in the direction he had come from. So far, there was no sign of Starscream or any other Decepticons. "I'm afraid I won't be able to relay all of the details," the larger being told the nagini. "But the one I was battling was a Decepticon officer, a rival faction."

"Decepticon?" Abeesha asked. "Yes, Starscream said something about that. Though he never explained what it meant."

"Well, he, along with Megatron and the rest of his men, mean ill for your planet," Optimus explained. "But we Autobots have sworn to defend this planet from their tyranny." he went on. "We originally came from the planet Cybertron..."

A Distance Away

"This had better not become a routine." Thundercracker groaned, landing in a small open area among the towering trees.

"Hey, Cracker," Skywarp said. "Does this place look a little, well, familiar to you?"

The black and blue Seeker looked around, noting how the flora of this small piece of land looked quite similar to someplace they had gone not too long prior. Then, as if to confirm to Thundercracker that he wasn't just imagining it, he saw a familiar figure in the distance. "Well, that didn't take long," he silently thanked Primus that they didn't have to search far and wide for the trine leader like last time. "Hey, Starscream! Stop taking in the scenery! We've got to get back in the air!"

Starscream said nothing.

"Uh, Screamer? Hello?" Skywarp asked, approaching his trine leader. "Hey, I'm talking to you here!" But again, he said nothing. Skywarp went up to the blue and red Seeker, baffled at what he found. "Hey, TC! Get a look at this!"

Thundercracker came over and saw what had garnered Skywarp's reaction. Starscream stood perfectly still, lips curled into a content, happy smile while he stared out into the void, completely oblivious to everything around him.

"Whoa, look at that," Skywarp said, pointing at Starscream's optics. And indeed, they were quite off. What were once red had blossomed into an ever-continuing pattern of varying colors. Skywarp waved a hand in front of his trine leader's face, then snapped his servos. But he received no reaction. "What's wrong with him?"

"It's almost like he's in a trance of some kind," Thundercracker observed, placing a hand on Starscream's shoulder, but the other Seeker didn't respond. "Starscream? Hey, Starscream!" Again, Thundercracker was rewarded with silence. "Hmm...say, wasn't he sort of out of it the last time we found him?"

"Yeah, he was," Skywarp said, looking at Starscream's ever-changing optics. "Do you think this is the same place?" He asked. "What could've caused him to be like, well, this?"

"I'm not sure, but whatever the case, we can't just sit here and wait. We have to get back on the Autobots' tail!" Thundercracker said.

"But how are we going to get Screamer here to snap out of it?" Skywarp questioned.

Thundercracker pondered this, wondering just how either of them could wrench Starscream from this state. Then, the blue and black Seeker thought of something. "Because if we don't reach the Autobots, I can guarantee Megatron will NOT be happy."

Despite still standing in place, a small part of Starscream's consciousness registered the name of his leader. Me...ga...tron?

"Oh, hell no," Skywarp added. "In fact, it wouldn't surprise me if he pinned most of the blame on Screamer. After all, wasn't he the one that insisted he go on this mission?"

Wait. But...he...and I...

"Indeed," Thundercracker folded his arms. "Looks like we'll just have to leave Starscream here and tell Megatron there's something wrong with him. Of course," Thundercracker said. "Megatron always has ways of getting Starscream's attention. Isn't that right?" He asked his trine leader, spotting that the smile he wore on his face was beginning to falter.

Suddenly, Starscream's optics began to flash in and out, the patterns replaced by a glowing red as his mind began to return to him. "M-Megatron?!" The Seeker blurted out. "Where?!" He then realized that he was in the middle of a dense collection of trees, his two trine mates staring at him. "What? What's...going on?" He asked, trying to collect his thoughts, which he had just begun to have again. "What...happened?"

"Whatever happened the last time happened again," Skywarp said, snapping his servos in front of Starscream's face. Upon seeing him react, the warper knew that he was fully conscious again. "Speaking of, you looked like you were enjoying yourself."

"What do you mean?" Starscream asked, genuinely confused. "Explain."

"It seems you were in some kind of trance," Thundercracker said. "And you didn't have a care in the world."

"Yeah, you were grinning like an idiot." Skywarp chuckled.

Starscream tried to process all of this information, unsure of what to make of it. He had been in a trance? For how long? What time was it? Where were Prime and the other Autobots? Then Starscream's Energon ran cold.

"The Autobots!" The sound of the Seeker's infamously shrill voice alerted Thundercracker and Skywarp that their trine leader was wide awake. "What are you waiting for?! We've got to catch up to them before they get the device to its destination!"

He then transformed and took off, the other two jets following after.

Abeesha could scarcely believe what she had just heard. "By the gods," she said. "You've had to endure so much violence."

Optimus nodded. "And we have unfortunately brought our war to your planet," he lowered his head. "Thankfully, human casualties have been kept at a minimum. Although,"

"You can't save everyone." Abeesha finished for him.

"Unfortunately," Optimus confirmed. "Yet rest assured, the Decepticons shall not have your world."

The nagini smiled. "And I trust that you'll keep your word," despite her words, they seemed only to affect the towering giant so much. "Anyway," Abeesha said. "What'll you do now?"

"I have no means to get off this island without a means of transportation," Optimus told her. "And even then, Skyfire is surely busy fending off the Decepticons. So, it seems that I'm quite literally stranded here." Despite his earlier assessment, the Autobot Commander tried contacting the shuttle. "Skyfire? Skyfire, do you read me?" He received no answer. Either the reception here was poor, or the former Decepticon was busy. Or perhaps it was both. Either way, it looked like he was stuck here.

"Well, seeing as you now have nothing to do," Abeesha grinned. "Do you want to see it again?"

"See what?" Optimus asked. Though he knew what the nagini meant. And even more, the thought of seeing her eyes again compelled him to ask.

"Oh, just my little talent," she then let her eyes bloom into colorful patterns. She allowed her magic to go on for a few moments longer, noticing how Prime's optics widened, drawn in by the snake-woman's eyes. "That's right," she said soothingly, beckoning Optimus closer. "Come to me."

Despite being one in charge and used to giving orders, the Prime found himself not only obeying her command but wanting to do so. He drew towards Abeesha; the nagini then spotted her patterns beginning to bloom from the center of the Autobot's optics.

But as soon as they appeared, they vanished, Optimus suddenly remembering where he was. He shook his head to dispel the lingering (and pleasurable) effects, his mind returning to him. "I..." he sighed. "I cannot." He told her.

"Why not?" Abeesha asked. "You obviously want it. I can see it in your eyes," She activated her hypnosis again, only for Prime to turn his gaze away. "Does worry for your soldiers impede your ability to accept my gift?"

"No, it's not that," Optimus told her. "Well, I suppose it is," he confessed. He then looked up at the sky, the sun now beginning to set. If only he could find a way to get out of here. Then, he received a call. "This is Optimus," he said over the com-link. "Report."

"Prime, we've managed to beat back the Decepticons. They've retreated just a few Earth minutes ago." Skyfire said.

Prime was thankful he heard the shuttle was all right. "And the device?" He asked.

"It's been delivered safely," Skyfire confirmed. "But are you all right? You took quite a fall."

"I'm all right; I'm just a little...stuck," Optimus confessed, a little embarrassed. "I'll need someone to pick me up."

"No problem, Prime," Skyfire said. "Ratchet insists that I go in for repairs, so it may be a while. You know how he is."

"Do I ever," Optimus answered. "I am in no present danger, so do not fly if you are seriously damaged. Tend to your wounds first. I'll be all right."

"All right, I'll be there as soon as I can. Skyfire out."

The call ended. "So, what was that?" Abeesha asked.

"My men are fine, but the one that can come and collect me is in the med bay. And I doubt he'll be released until he's fully repaired." Optimus said.

"So, does that mean you have nothing else you need to do?"

Optimus shrugged. "Until I get off this island, I can't do much of anything."

Abeesha smiled. "Well, if that's the case, then would you want to experience what I have to offer?" She asked. "You can't hide. You want to feel the power of my eyes," she said. "It'll be quite enjoyable for you, and you're clearly in need of it, so why deny yourself?"

Optimus was silent for a short while, pondering on just what he should do. "Could..." he began. "Could I see it again? Just for a moment?"

Abeesha smiled. "Sure thing!" Her eyes then bloomed in a display of patterns and colors. Her smile grew wider when she saw Optimus' optics widen, her abilities drawing him closer and closer to her. "That's right, get a good look now," she gently urged the metal giant; the nagini lowered herself onto a lower branch to better be at Prime's height. "Take in as much as you want."

As much as he wanted. That stood out to the Autobot leader. He could take in as much as he wanted? He began to process this as color and blooming, flowering shapes overcame his vision, soon reflected in his optics. Abeesha watched the display, impressed by how her patterns gave off a bright glow from her thrall's eyes. True, she was immune to her own powers, but she very rarely got a good look at what they looked like from the other side.

"You enjoying yourself, Prime?" The nagini questioned, tilting her head slightly. She then noticed that Optimus was following her movements, all in an effort to keep eye contact with her. Wow, Abeesha thought. I haven't seen someone want it this bad for a while.

She couldn't have been more right. The first moment he had seen Starscream fall to the snake-woman's command, he was baffled as to what she had done, let alone how she did it. But when she gave him the smallest of tastes, he understood why Starscream had fallen so hard and quickly. The colors provided him with an immediate and overwhelming wave of calm that he hadn't felt in eons. From the display in Abeesha's eyes, his cerebral chamber was flooded with euphoria and a great deal of desire to focus solely on the snake-woman. Nothing else mattered; he was clay to be molded by her hands.

"Hm, I'll take that as a yes," Abeesha said, Prime mere inches away from her face. "Such a strong, fine specimen you are," she said, bringing a hand up to touch his face mask. "It's no wonder all your people look up to you."

His people? Who were his...! Of course! The Autobots! The device! What was he doing?! He had to get back and make sure everything was all right! The patterns and colors fought to stay reflected in his optics, one his signature blue while the other was still flowing with vibrant shades of all of the spectrum.

"Optimus?" Abeesha asked, concerned. "Optimus, are you all right?"

Optimus Prime's mind finally returned to him, his optics flashing in and out until they were their normal blue color. "Y-Yes. I'm fine," he said. He kept his back to her. "I'm sorry if I startled you."

"No, you didn't," Abeesha said. "I was worried that I had, well, done something to make you react like that."

"No, you did no such thing," Optimus said. "I just remembered my comrades back at Mt. St. Hilary, and I, well, I became concerned."

"I understand," Abeesha said. "You don't have time to do anything else besides fight, do you?"

Whether it be the lingering effects of her hypnosis or his own will, at that moment, Optimus felt compelled to be honest with her. "It is necessary; I am the one that must keep everyone together. We've already lost so many of our own on Cybertron as it is. It's a miracle there have been no casualties yet."

The snake-woman pet one of his helmet fins with her tail. "But did you not say that everything was all right? That someone would eventually come and pick you up?"

"Well, yes. But Skyfire may still be in the med bay. I don't know the extent of his injuries." Optimus replied.

"So, that leaves you with free time, so why not enjoy it?" Abeesha questioned. The second Optimus got in her line of sight; she let her eyes bloom again, only long enough to get his attention. "Why not allow yourself to be free of all your burdens for just one night?"

Prime almost begged for Abeesha to show him the colors again, only this time, he found himself struck with another dilemma. "It...it's not as if you could harm me," The blue and red Autobot said. "And it's not as if I don't trust you."

"Then what is it?" Abeesha asked.

"Perhaps it's a bit foolish, but I suppose allowing myself to be in such a vulnerable position is, well, unusual for me." True, he knew she couldn't hurt him, but to willingly surrender himself to her, beautiful as her eyes were, was something he was hesitant to do. It was just something so...un-leaderish thing to do.

"I see," Abeesha said. "It's fine. I won't force you if you don't want me to."

"Well, no, it's not that. It's just-"

"Just what?"

Optimus was quiet for a short time, contemplating his answer. "I..." despite his deeply-toned voice, he sounded rather shy. Almost vulnerable. It was actually rather adorable, Abeesha thought. "I will not lie. I want to see the colors. Now, I want nothing more than to get lost in them. But," he paused. "If I do that, will you promise me one thing?"

"That I don't tell anybody?" Abeesha asked.

"No, not that. Just," he sighed. "If I...say anything, then please, pay it no mind."

Abeesha didn't entirely get what he was saying, but she had a feeling that it related to something personal. "All right, I won't," she answered. "So, does that mean you want me to...?"

Optimus was silent and still, the snake-woman wondering if he would ever answer. Then finally, he spoke. "Yes," he told her. "I...I am ready."

"All right then. Now," she reached out to touch his face. "If you would be so kind as to give me your undivided attention?" She asked. Even if he said he was ready, Optimus was still a little nervous. "I'll take good care of you, I promise." The Autobot leader averted his gaze at first but then eased himself into being able to maintain eye contact with the nagini. "Behold my power, dearest Prime."

The second her eyes bloomed into ever-continuing patterns and colors, Optimus' optics were immediately flooded with the same display, his mind traveling back to the same state it had been when he shook off the hypnosis. But now, there was no reason to hold back. Not technically. But still, the parts of Prime's mind that weren't taken over by mindless bliss were of familiar doubts and worries.

"That's right, eyes on me, ears hearing only my voice," she began to sway slightly, Optimus' head bobbing along to keep up. "Focus solely on me. And what my eyes provide."

Optimus found himself struggling to speak, his vocals not cooperating with him. "Fo...cus..." he breathed out, voice reflecting his exhaustion. "But, but I-"

"Shhhh," Abeesha cooed, putting a finger to his face mask. "No buts. No need for any fears or worries," she assured him, noticing that Prime's posture was becoming loose and relaxed. "You look like you need to sit down."

Optimus found that to be a very good idea, the Autobot leader sitting himself down on the ground, reclining against a tree sturdy enough to support him. Abeesha slithered down, resuming eye contact with Optimus when she slithered from the tree up on his shoulder. The closer proximity made looking away impossible for Prime now, the nagini's wonderful eyes being in the center of his world. She began to wind her tail around the Cybertronian's neck; the sensation of her scales again his metal made him shudder. Primus, he felt so good. He felt so, SO good.

"Such heaviness you have on your shoulders," Abeesha said softly, the mechanical giant relaxing his shoulders as if they were being weighed down. "Wouldn't it be nice to be relieved from your burdens? Even if for a short time?"

Optimus's vent let out some air; the leader sighed in contentment as he was pulled further down. Everything felt like it was sinking, sinking down into a heavenly euphoria that he had never known until now. There was nothing outside of Abeesha's eyes and her voice; she was the only thing he cared about. The Prime's optics was full of her patterns and colors, but a part of his consciousness still urging him to resist. He then began narrowing his optics until they shut down.

But they didn't stay offline for long. For they soon reactivated, Abeesha then saw that Optimus' eyes were beginning to turn blue, but the patterns fought to stay blooming in his vision. "Truly, why do you hesitate?" The nagini asked. She was convinced that Optimus had the willpower to look away, yet even when he could still resist, he didn't entirely go through with it. "Is the big strong man afraid to rest with little ol' me?"

If he had the ability to, Prime's cheeks would've been red, though they still generated heat, so at least he was figuratively red hot. "N-No," he managed to respond, his vocals becoming hard to control. "I...I just..." he stopped, the patterns in Abeesha's eyes increasing their speed. This made his optics widen, and a low moan escaped him, unprepared for the wave of elation that came over him. "A-Ahhh..." he sighed. Why was he still trying to resist her again?

"It's all right. To let yourself be vulnerable for a moment," Abeesha told Optimus, her charms finally beginning to overcome his will. "You can cast all those burdens and baggage away," she soothingly told him, beginning to sway her head, the Autobot leader following her movements. "You carry so many responsibilities; no time for any sort of peace, is there?"

His earlier inhibitions dissolving into nothingness, Optimus answered her honesty. "No...not since we..." he found it difficult even to speak the simplest of words. Everything had shown down, the world still a beautiful display of colors. "I...I don't want..."

"Don't want what?" Abeesha asked.

"This planet..." Optimus said slowly. "Suffer the same fate...as ours..."

"And it will not," she assured him. "I trust in you and your men to protect this world."

Optimus moaned, still trying to speak. "But...but..."

"Shhhh," Abeesha hushed him, bringing a finger to his face mask. "But all of that will come later. Now is the time to be free of all that," she smiled. "Now is the time for you to rest."

Rest. Yes, she was right. He needed rest. But still, he clung to the last bit of consciousness he had left. "I..." Prime sighed. "I want...to..."

"Yes, I know. You want to let go," the nagini said. "But to do that, you've got to trust me, ok?"

Trust. Yes, he had to trust her. There was no reason not to. The only thing getting in the way was his pride.

"You do trust me, don't you?" She asked him.

Optimus struggled to speak, unsure of what to say. He knew what he wanted, but could he do it? Could he really surrender control to someone else?

"Optimus?"

"...yes." He sighed.

"What?" Abeesha asked.

"Trust...you."

She smiled. Finally, at long last, he was willing to let his guard down. "Well, in that case," she then touched him right between his optics. "When you hear the ping, everything will be bliss, ok?"

"Y-Yes," Prime said dreamily. "Please...I-"

"Ping."

She had spoken the word, but from the deepest parts of Prime's mind, a resounding, echoing PING! was all that could be heard, the sound momentarily overpowering Abeesha's voice. But with that sound came Optimus' complete and total surrender. His mind was gone and in the hands of the nagini, and he trusted that she would take care of it.

Finally, Abeesha stopped the colors and patterns in her eyes, but Optimus' optics were still reflecting the effects of her power. "Now, isn't that much better?" She cooed, stroking the side of the Autobot's face.

"...yes..." Prime answered, completely subjugated by the hypnosis.

"To be free of all your troubles for just a short while. That can't be a bad thing, right?" She asked him.

"...no. A-Ahhhhh..." Optimus couldn't even form complete sentences anymore. All he could do was give the most basic of answers. But it seemed that was all Abeesha needed from him.

The nagini slithered around his neck until she could recline on his shoulder, which was surprisingly warm. She soon felt quite relaxed herself. "How do you feel, Optimus?" She asked.

"...good." Prime dreamily said. Abeesha wasn't sure if he possessed one, but she could imagine a content grin hidden beneath his mask. "So...so...good."

"I see," the snake-woman said. "But you know," she yawned. "It's getting late, and I think you of all people, er, metal creatures need their sleep."

"Sleep?" Prime asked.

"Yes, sleep," she then began rubbing and stroking the sides of his helmet. "Deep, restful sleep."

Restful sleep. Yes, that sounded great. Just at the mere suggestion, Prime found himself slowly slipping into recharge.

"Yes, that's it," Abeesha softly whispered. "Close your eyes," she urged. "And rest."

"...rest..." Optimus said, voice barely above a rumbling whisper.

"Yes," she said. "Rest with me."

"Rest...with...you..."

She then leaned in close, whispering into the receptor on his helmet. "Sleep."

That did it. Optimus was plunged into soothing darkness, his consciousness leaving him as his systems steadily slipped into recharge. Abeesha saw that he had just fallen asleep, yet the snake-woman didn't want his slumber to be light. Oh no, she needed him deeply asleep. Thus, she kept whispering softly to him.

"That's it," she said, her voice guiding the now wonderfully mindless Autobot further into his already deep trance. "Yes, nice and sleeping."

After some time, Abeesha went to work giving Prime the same treatment as she had given Starscream. She had taken precautions and input a few triggers in the Decepticon, but for Prime, she was motivated by something different. True, it would have the same effect and was done in the same method, but it wasn't motivated by self-preservation. Rather, it was more like a gift she was giving him.

A gift that he would surely need in the coming future.

Chapter Text

PING!

When he heard that sound, his body grew completely still, his entire body relaxed, and everything became a distant hum. All that Prime heard was Abeesha's command to sleep, the gentle voice sending into deep recharge, the deepest he could go into. The Autobot leader had, at least, allowed the nagini to lead him to the most euphoric state of being he had ever experienced, and all he had to do was go to sleep. Earth minutes stretched into hours, and then he lost track of time entirely. And when he had finally fallen completely into recharge, everything faded into mindless nirvana.

"Prime?" He never wanted to wake up. He wanted to stay like this forever. "Hey, Prime," Trance so deep that he'd remember it forever.

"Ratchet, what's wrong with him?" Outside of Optimus' melted mind, Skyfire and Ratchet stood before the slumbering Prime, puzzled as to why their efforts to wake him had failed. "So, he's not usually a deep sleeper?"

"Oh, absolutely not," the Autobot medic told the shuttle. "Prime's the definition of an insomniac," he then began looking the Autobot Commander over, checking for any signs of damage. "I've never seen him go into recharge this deep."

"Is there something wrong with him?" Skyfire asked, growing concerned.

"From the looks of it, no," Ratchet said, looking over Prime's head. "But whatever did get him like this, I hope never to meet it."

"...huh?" Optimus began to stir. "Mmm...w-what?" His optics went online, presenting the Doctor with confirmation that he was all right. "Ratchet? Skyfire? Where...?" the Prime began to survey his surroundings. "Where did I...?"

"Can you stand?" Ratchet asked his Commander.

"I think so," Optimus rose, albeit unsteadily at first. It was as if he had been separated from his body and was now getting used to using his limbs again. "Ohhhh..." Prime sighed, a sudden wave of sleepiness overtaking him.

"Prime, what's wrong?" Skyfire asked. "Ratchet, let's get him back, now."

"Agreed," Skyfire then transformed into his shuttle form. "Easy there." Ratchet said, helping Optimus get in. "Try to make the trip as easy as possible," the medic told the shuttle. "Primus knows we don't want him throwing up."

Later

The Ark

Even after all this time, Optimus Prime still couldn't recall the events of the day before. Ratchet went over him and repaired all physical damage, but when his systems were scanned, it was shown that a good portion of information was absent from his memory banks. The medic had Preceptor analyze the empty space, yet the memory loss was not caused by the input of a virus or the result of any kind of head injury.

"Then what is it?" Ratchet asked the Autobot scientist and sniper. "What could've caused such a large empty space?" Both were going over Optimus' cerebral chamber scans taken earlier.

"Aside from the theories I just presented, either Starscream did something to him, or Prime deleted the information himself," Preceptor answered. "Yet I cannot reason either would do such a thing."

"Starscream would've done more than erase just a few Earth hours of memory from his databank." Ratchet said.

"And Prime has no reason to forget what happened during that time," Preceptor added. "But that's not all I found."

"There's more?" Ratchet questioned, growing concerned.

"There's a small command deeply embedded in the core of his processor," the red Autobot scientist explained. "It's so deeply buried, it'd take hacking into Prime's systems to remove it."

"Is it dangerous?" Ratchet asked.

"It's completely harmless," Preceptor said. "Although, it has a rather interesting message."

It had happened again. That was all Starscream pondered as he went to his chambers to turn in. The first time was paid no mind, but the second time it happened warranted some investigation. Soundwave scanned the Seeker's mind (without his consent) and found a sizable portion of memory gone. It befuddled Megatron, but he ultimately brushed it off, seeing as it was the only alteration that had been done to Starscream's systems.

Megatron might be done looking into it, but I am not. The SIC thought to himself. He laid down on his berth, reviewing what had happened before and after the memory gap.

And it just so happened that, aboard the Ark, Prime was doing the same thing. As he turned in, he couldn't help but think of the large chunk of missing data. Aside from that, everything was fine. Prime had never felt more relaxed and at peace before being disturbed by Skyfire and Ratchet. He wouldn't tell them, but Optimus was annoyed that he had been roused from the state he was in.

But just what was it? Perhaps he would never know, but that could wait until tomorrow. If he could get into recharge on time.

On the other hand, Starscream did nothing but contemplate what had happened. He remembered that he was fighting Prime, and then he was standing in the middle of a jungle, unaware of anything or anyone around him. Not to mention Skywarp said he was grinning like an idiot and standing like an obedient soldier. But that wasn't all. That wasn't the most interesting thing about it.

Skywarp and Thundercracker had told him (and Soundwave during the mind scan) that his optics were overtaken by a vivid display of patterns and colors that seemed to loop endlessly. Some tests were done to try and replicate the patterns to see the effects, but nothing came of it. Starscream didn't slip into the same state, thus, it was concluded that the colorful display itself wasn't the answer. But if that was the case, just what did cause Starscream to slip into that state? He couldn't remember anything, and it frustrated him greatly.

Optimus found it once again impossible to sleep. This wasn't anything new to him, seeing as he had insomnia even in his days as Orion Pax, but ever since the Autobots and Decepticons crashed on Earth, it had been getting worse. He found that he could stay online for days, only slipping into recharge when he was about to collapse from exhaustion. Ratchet eventually noticed this and put Prime on a strict sleep schedule. He was to turn in at midnight at the latest, and as his medic, he had the final word.

Optimus didn't argue, but he didn't have an easy time keeping up with it. Thus, he tried to find ways to occupy his mind in hopes that he could eventually slip into recharge. Still, it did him little good, so he began doing some exploring in his systems. Ratchet had advised against it, yet Prime heard Preceptor say that something was embedded deep in his processor during the scanning procedure. The medic told the scientist to be quiet, but Prime had heard everything.

He began to do some digging and found that, indeed, there was a message input into his hardware.

Starscream was puzzled upon finding the foreign piece of information stored in his systems. Immediately, he began investigating and found that, oddly enough, it was an audio recording.

What in Primus' name?

Optimus was unsure of what action to take, yet despite his hesitation, an overwhelming sense of curiosity pushed him forward. He activated the audio recording and found himself greeted with the voice of a young woman uttering a single word.

Sleep.

Upon hearing that simple command, both Autobot Commander and Decepticon Second-in-Command's optics bloomed into a familiar display of colors and patterns, a content grin explicitly seen on the Seeker's face. Then, after a few moments, both sets of optics shut down, deep, restful recharge overwhelming their senses and plunging both Transformers into darkness and hypnotic bliss.

Chapter Text

Remembered Prime died twice so code was probably terminated along with his body.

Perceptor is one of the few survivors of the movie. 

Prime’s just been revived and having sleep problems again, Perceptor remembers the state he was found in, along with the island he landed on. 

Perhaps it’s time for a revisit, although who’s to say what’s changed.