Chapter 999: At the Mercy of Others

Megatron was naturally very clear about Starscream's little schemes.

He had calculated that he currently lacked a reliable helper, so he deliberately used the excuse of needing to consume vast amounts of rare metals to build a New Body for him, delaying his replacement of the New Body and his escape from this Life Support Device to gain freedom.

At the very beginning, although Megatron had not anticipated that he would one day lose his body.

He had indeed laid out contingencies in advance for what might happen after his faked death.

Megatron's most important reliance was his confidant Soundwave, as well as Shockwave.

Megatron felt very assured regarding both Soundwave and Shockwave.

Soundwave had always been loyal to Megatron, though he, like Starscream, harbored some complex ambitions.

But Soundwave's strength was evident, and he centered himself around Megatron, so Megatron had always been exceptionally tolerant of Soundwave.

As for Shockwave, it would be more appropriate to describe him as an ally rather than a subordinate of Megatron.

During the era of the Cybertronian Elder Council, the decadent lives of the nobles and their blind struggle for power led that society, which possessed unprecedented technological advancement, to become the darkest period in the entire history of Cybertronian civilization.

Slavery was still maintained, and the rigid social hierarchy allowed the nobles to occupy the vast majority of the massive resources of the entire Cybertronian civilization.

And they, without any desire for progress, instead squandered and wasted various resources, inciting widespread dissatisfaction across all levels of society.

Shockwave, who came from a scholarly background and was a great Scientist, was one of the strongest voices among the populace criticizing the Cybertronian nobles and the corrupt system of the Elder Council.

Facing such a wise man, the nobles, who had already rotted to the bone, did not have a shred of respect, but were instead both angry and resentful toward him.

Finally, one day, they concocted a trumped-up charge, arrested Shockwave, and cruelly tortured and abused him, hoping he would submit.

Unfortunately, they had greatly underestimated the persistence of a scholar with a conscience and ideals regarding his philosophy.

Shockwave stubbornly endured round after round of torture by the nobles; not only did he refuse to accept their terms, but during his punishment, he continued to revile the corrupt rule of the nobles, and even exposed the inhuman abuse he suffered through the hands of friends who were supporting and trying to rescue him from the outside.

Without a doubt, his various actions brought enormous pressure upon the Elder Council and the nobles.

And under that pressure, some nobles who were accustomed to throwing their weight around finally began to lose their patience.

Thus, the most cruel and inhumane torture of the Cybertronian Elder Council era was used on Shockwave!

The Five Tortures and the Shadow Play!

The so-called Five Tortures meant using technological means to artificially alter the physical appearance of Cybertronian criminals.

Shockwave was cold-bloodedly dismembered of his four limbs and had one eye cruelly gouged out.

And the Shadow Play was likewise using technological means to cruelly destroy the criminal's Brain, causing them to lose their reason, lose the ability to think, or become a madman, just like the clowns in the shadow plays that the Cybertronian nobles loved.

The former Shockwave was upright, kind, fair, and selfless; he loved art and respected all beautiful things and life.

Yet the corrupt Cybertronian nobles destroyed him!

They used lasers to cruelly destroy Shockwave's Brain, causing him to permanently lose the ability to express emotions, becoming a thinking logic machine with nothing left but reason and conviction.

Because of this encounter, Shockwave began to transform from his original pacifist self into an out-and-out consequentialist.

As long as the result aligned with the convictions he held, the means and the process were secondary.

Megatron liked dealing with such people, so after Shockwave was released by the Elder Council and had just begun to show some changes, he, who was already cooperating with Sentinel Prime and beginning to seize military command of Cybertron, personally sought him out and easily turned Shockwave into his ally.

In the millions of years that followed, Shockwave never failed his expectations.

But this time, it was clear that neither of them had calculated the existence of Frenzy.

"Frenzy!"

In Megatron's mind, murderous intent began to boil over once again.

Before executing the faked-death plan, he thought the difficulties he would encounter would all come from The Fallen, Starscream, and the Autobots, so the contingencies he left behind were all aimed at them.

But Megatron never imagined that a rebellion by an inconspicuous Decepticon under Soundwave's Cassette Corps would lead to a serious change in the original plan.

Soundwave had actually died, and died at the hands of Frenzy.

Soundwave might not have been particularly strong in combat, but purely in terms of means and status, as long as he was around, Megatron believed Starscream would never dare to manipulate him.

What he didn't expect didn't stop there; there was also a problem on Shockwave's side.

As one of the most powerful Triple Changers in the Decepticon Legion, Megatron knew the strength of his subordinate Astrotrain.

Even for Megatron in his prime, wanting to take down Astrotrain would require spending quite a bit of time, and he might even have to pay the price of a minor injury to do so.

From this, one could see just how terrifying Astrotrain, one of Shockwave's most satisfying creations, had become under the constant experimentation of that mad modifier.

Yet such a powerful Triple Changer had actually died at the hands of Frenzy along with Soundwave.

Whenever Megatron thought of this, he couldn't help but want to curse out loud.

"Fool!"

Soundwave had not been stupid before, but this time, because of Starscream's instigation, he thought he had grasped the full extent of the strength of Frenzy, who dared to betray him, and so he couldn't wait to deliver himself to his death.

Although Megatron also knew that Soundwave would not die so easily—he must have left behind a life-saving contingency just like himself.

But because of Soundwave's impulsiveness, he not only got himself killed but also dragged Astrotrain into it.

That led to Megatron's current predicament of being at the mercy of others.

Once he thought of this, he felt his anger was completely uncontrollable.

Under the influence of his rage, Megatron cursed out loud once again.

"Useless trash, Starscream, how much longer will it take for you to build my New Body? Do you want to trap me here and then take my place?"

Hearing this, Starscream immediately bowed respectfully.

"My supreme Lord Megatron, your loyal slave is working day and night, striving to build a New Body for you."

He lowered his head, not letting Megatron see the smile on his hideous face that was somewhat twisted with triumph.

"My Lord, the resources here in the Solar System are even more scarce than we previously anticipated. The materials required for your New Body are all of the highest quality. However, please rest assured, I have already cultivated more clone Warriors to follow Blitzwing's command and search for resources for you."

"I believe it won't be long before your New Body can be built."

"And before that day arrives, please, my Lord, be sure to have a little more patience and wait!"