[ti]Ep 3.5[/ti]Question & Answer (Closed)

[Prowl]

Episode 3.5. Week 1, Day 1
Immediately After Captive Audience

It was a new feature to Omega One, something that had been created solely due to Knock Out’s presence in the stronghold. It was a rather spartan affair, consisting of mainly two chairs and a table which sat between them, a couple of additional ceiling lights so that the room was brightly lit without any shadows, and finally a single door which separated the windowless concrete and rock room from the other concrete and rock windowless rooms here in Omega. However, unknown to everyone except Prowl, Sunstreaker, Red Alert, and Optimus Prime, the room was also fitted for video and audio surveillance. Every word spoken, every action moved would be recorded and routed to the main computer in the Control Room for Optimus’ and everyone else's viewing pleasure.

Prowl however had communicated to Optimus that he wanted everyone not involved in interrogating Knock Out to be either confined to barracks or deployed in the field in pairs. He would have much rather had set up a separate viewing room for those involved to watch the interrogation, one that was closer and less public. But they needed to be sparing with resources. Hence it was best to just run the signal through to the Control Room for the present time.

It was to this room, which Prowl had dubbed the “Interview Room”, that he brought Knock Out. The door slid open and Prowl brought his charge inside, closed the door behind them, then guided the Decepticon around the table so that he was sitting in the chair that was on the other side of the desk.

“Sit down.” he ordered as he pushed Knock Out towards the waiting chair, then went around the table to the other side and took the waiting chair on that side of the table.

He was silent then as he proceeded to pull out the datapad he had been reading from before he had been called to the brig to handle the Carbine situation, pulling up the same report he had been reading before he had been interrupted. However this time, he did not read a single word that was on the page. Instead his eyes watched Knock Out from behind the mirrored golden visor for a few moments, waiting to see how the Decepticon would react.

Time to start getting some answers.

[Knock Out]

Knock Out was silent as he made his way from the room that contained his homely little cell, processor racing as he mulled over what was about to come. He knew at some point during his little stay here at… wherever this even was… he would be subject to interrogation, he just didn’t realize it’d be so soon after arriving.

Or that he’d be moved into another room.

To say he was uneasy was an understatement. As the CMO of the Decepticons, he was a valuable target, and while he had perfected the art of a poker face, who knew what methods would be used to try and pry information from him, or how long he would last before spilling things he probably shouldn’t.

What would they even ask? The usual, obvious questions no doubt like where the Nemesis was, or a play-by-play of what Megatron was up to these days.

Ah, but there was no Nemesis, and as he made his way through the concrete lined corridor, he realized that Blackridge and the Autobot base were very similar in terms of gloomy aesthetics. He didn’t know if this place was above or under ground, but it had the same dreary, oppressive feeling as where the Decepticons were currently residing.

He couldn’t tell much else, though. There were no obvious markers that said “Hi! Yes! The location of this base is HERE!”, nor could he see any rooms that stood out to him as containing anything important. All that stuff had to be elsewhere, he assumed - either upstairs, or below them on a second floor.

Aside from Sunstreaker and Carbine walking behind going only who knows where, he couldn’t hear anyone else, either.

Gently rolling his wrists against the manacles, if only to loosely test their strength, he vented sharply inward - as if psyching himself up for whatever was to come. He thought of Breakdown, the conversation they’d had about joining the Autobots, and could only smile gently. If the big blue lug could see how he was being treated, perhaps he would rethink things just a little. He thought of Flatline, and how he must be doing - and the nagging he would receive for being stupid enough to get caught.

He thought of Megatron, and what would happen if he told the Autobots anything.

As he was led into the room - and what a sad little room it was - the smile would fade from his faceplate, especially as the door was closed behind them. That was never a good sign, especially when it came to things like this. As he was pushed toward the chair, he would scoff quietly.

“You could ask nicely. No need to shove.”

That probably set up how things were going to go for him, and for the first time since he’d been captured, he felt nervous. A glance was given around the room itself before he settled to sit down in the chair, looking for signs of cameras or recording devices. It’d be so utterly stupid not to record what went on in this room - after all, important information could be disclosed, or should Prowl decide to power-trip and attack him? Well, while he didn’t think the Autobots would care too much, at least there would be evidence to back up that he hadn’t done anything to provoke - and the fact it was so well lit in here meant every detail would be noted.

He could only wonder just who was watching on the other side. Red Alert had been mentioned, perhaps him. Maybe Optimus Prime himself.

Oh how he should be so lucky!

Resting his arms on the table, his attention would then shift to the mech who sat opposite him. He let the stillness of the room linger a moment before speaking - he’d never been one for silence, and if Prowl intended to break him via awkward quiet? Well, he could talk enough for the both of them, even if it wasn’t a wordvomit of useful information.

“So!” he started, that smile coming back. “Table for two, mm? That’s pretty romantic. You really didn’t have to go to all this effort just for little old me. Will Optimus be arriving shortly with a menu?”

[Prowl]

Knock Out’s question was met with silence for a moment as Prowl continued to stare at the datapad, occasionally flicking a button or two in order to make it seem like he was actually reading what was on it instead of what he was actually doing. It was important early on for an interrogator to set the pace of the interrogation themselves instead of allowing the suspect to set the tempo themselves, very similar to how it was better to have the initiative in battle than to be caught unawares by the enemy.

It was all a game of moves and countermoves.

So Prowl would remain silent, allowing Knock Out the opportunity to continue speaking without interruption for a few moments as he continued to read, then suddenly he closed the file he was reading and opened up a new document, then set it aside and looked directly at Knock Out, fingers interlaced together and placed in front of him on the table.

“So, who was it who laid the truck tracks at the site of Patch’s abduction? Was it Breakdown?”

It was a desperate shot in the dark, but Prowl played it like he knew it to be true, counting on the idea that if it seemed to Knock Out that he knew the whole truth for a certainty he could get him to spill things that Prowl had no idea about. But as he said, it was a shot in the dark with nothing but Prowl’s processor to back it up. 

[Knock Out]

The lack of reply from Prowl was expected. During their little run-in on the road he’d kept up the tough silent guy act, and so it only made sense that he’d continue it now that they were alone in this adorable little room.

Primus, it was bright in here. It made him realize just how scuffed up he was, though his attention was - for the most part, anyway - on Prowl and what he was doing. Was he reading some sort of file about him? Hopefully it was all nice things, he was sure after the few encounters he’d had with Autobots on Earth thus far, there would be a bit of a rap sheet with all the details.

“I take that as a no, then. Shame. Is he at least watching? Sorry I’m not looking my best.”

He couldn't stand the quiet, and would vent out a gentle sigh as he leaned back in the chair - keeping his arms resting on the table where they could be seen.

“Nice place you have here. The light brings out your mm… well, I’d say optics but…”

Okay, this was just awkward. He was perfectly content filling the silence with his own voice, however to receive absolutely nothing in return - not even a smile? It was insulting!

But ah, movement then - and about time, too. He watched curiously as Prowl set the datapad down, though wouldn’t lean forward to make it obvious that he was trying to see the contents of the screen. The momentary quiet was broken by a question which was met with an almost double-take.

Seriously? Of all the things to ask first. Here he was, the Decepticon CMO - access to boundless information regarding the enemy faction, even Megatron himself! And Prowl’s first question was about tracks at… Patch’s abduction.

“Uh… I'm sorry, whose abduction? If Breakdown were involved with anything he would've told me. Interesting first question there, Prowly. I would've thought you'd start with something juicy to make me sweat a little!" He laughed, gently easing his wrists against the shackles once more - though certainly not enough to make it look like he was trying anything suspicious. Even though the enforcer had been kind in their application, they were uncomfortable enough to be a constant presence in his processor.

He knew who Patch was. Sort of. He’d managed to piece together that something had happened, and could only assume it was she who was involved. Windshield had done some sort of elaborate scheme to separate her from the Autobots, ending with his own part in the play; cutting up a Vehicon and giving it a dashing new coat of paint.

Carbine had mentioned they were down both medics, and so he supposed it made sense that they wanted to get at least one of them back.

[Prowl]

Knock Out did have a point. Prowl could have started with the strategically heavier questions. Things like where the new Decepticon base was, where the Nemesis had gone down, current layout of Decepticon forces, Megatron’s current plans and a litany of other questions. But there was a method to his madness here. Get Knock Out to start spilling the dirt on something minor, and it would be relatively easier to get him to start spilling other more important secrets.

“I suppose you’re right. After all, something tells me Breakdown is so stupid that he couldn’t keep a secret even if he wanted to.”

There was a faint chuckle as Prowl seemed to let that slip, waving a hand dismissively as he watched for a reaction. Would Knock Out jump to his partners’ defense or stay silent? Intelligence seemed to indicate these two were more than just partners...would that prove true?

“I’ll admit I was pretty impressed though with the thought behind the plan. You played your part pretty well in executing that forensic fraud.”

That was another reach. While Knock Out was the only named Decepticon medic they knew about, Red Alert had mentioned something in a report about running into a much older Decepticon medic. They didn’t have a name on who it was, all they knew was that he was about as old as Kup and pretty skilled in the field of Cybertronian medicine. There was a chance that he was still online, but if he was, Prowl was willing to bet that he did not leave the base too much. Such an individual would be vulnerable without an escort, and Prowl figured that the processor behind Patch’s kidnapping would favor smaller numbers to keep operational security intact. Plus, Prowl was willing to bet Knock Out worked faster than the mystery medic given his younger age, something the planners would desire as time spent outside was time they could be discovered.

“How is Windshield doing?”

[Knock Out]

"-something tells me Breakdown is so stupid that he couldn’t keep a secret even if he wanted to.”

“Well, yes - those brutes in the soldier class aren’t exactly known for their intelligence, how else do you think we can get them on the front lines.” his tone was nonchalant, and if it weren’t for the shackles on his wrists he probably would’ve added a gesture as if to emphasize his point. He did, however, smile at the comment.

Should this have not been an interrogation, he probably would’ve throttled the other mech for the insult. Breakdown may have been seen as a big lug, but he was anything but stupid. Despite this, Knock Out remained calm - with a poker face to match. He wasn’t about to be riled up by a statement that he knew wasn’t true, and was quick to agree with Prowl’s assumption.

His smile would fade at the next comment, and his optics would narrow just slightly.

“Forensic fraud? Primus, I’m the CMO of the Decepticons - I’m busy enough as is without adding that to my resume. Pray do tell what you’re even talking about, though, just so I can get on the same page of whatever this is.”

He knew damn well what it was, but it was curious how the other mech was approaching it so directly without filling in any hints or extra details. It was almost as if he knew without a doubt that he specifically had been there.

It had to be a reach, grasping at straws, looking for answers in their desperation to find whoever Patch was. He didn’t blame him. He was sure the Decepticons - or Breakdown at least - were looking for him just as hard.

Leaning back some in the chair - albeit momentarily - he would ease forward again, shifting his arms so his elbows were propped up on the desk. It was so hard to get comfortable with his servos bound, so used to sitting and having the freedom of movement.

“Windshield? You know, Carbine brought that name up too. Called him a half-faced rat bastard - I’ll tell you the same thing I told him, I have no idea who that is and that MECH probably got ahold of him. I’m sure the camera in the brig picked up the conversation. Feel free to play it back, if you’d like.” he hummed smugly, attention and focus on Prowl as he spoke.

“Sounds like he isn’t very well liked, whoever he is.”

[Prowl]

“I suppose.”

Interesting. Knock Out had said that Breakdown would have told him if he were involved in anything like an abduction. But then he had just agreed with Prowl’s inference that Breakdown was not exactly intelligent. Just because they had a known history of working together in the past didn’t necessarily mean that there was any romantic history between the two of them. Though it could be indicative of the power dynamic that existed between the two of them. Prowl almost wished that he had Breakdown in another interrogation room so that he could play the two off each other. But that wasn’t the purpose of this interrogation, so he set it aside for the moment.

“Patch’s abduction and Windshield’s ‘death’. For a Chief Medical Officer you sure are slow on the uptake.”

He made a note on the document that he had opened on his datapad, then closed the document and opened up a folder on the datapad showing a series of pictures that he had taken at the site of the abduction. He selected one and spun the datapad around for Knock Out to see, showing him the remains of ‘Windshield’ where they had been found on the desert floor.

“As I said, you did a decent job. I’m guessing this body here is a dead Vehicon that accidently upset Megatron and that you mocked up to look like Windshield, minus the head as you can see here as that would be impossible to fabricate in such a short amount of time. In fact, if that was all we had to go on...your work might have been enough to fool us.”

He swiped left on the photograph, pulling up a photo of a tire track in the sand.

“But you got sloppy. You used Breakdown or someone of a similar size to lay a false trail, supposedly belonging to a MECH truck that would have carted away a stasis locked Patch. However, after analyzing the tire tracks we were able to recover at the scene we determined the tire tracks left couldn’t belong to a vehicle that could have carried off Patch in her root mode. Our human allies kindly provided us access to a very extensive database of tires and we were able to match up the tire based on the size and tread pattern to a type of tire commonly used on vehicles similar to what Breakdown chose as his alternate form. We even managed to have the humans make casts of the imprints of the tread and could tie it directly to whoever made the tread if they were here.”

Prowl had done some research since arriving on Earth in order to become better acquainted with human forensics. While he was by no means a forensic technician back on Cybertron, he found that having a basic understanding of evidence collection methods and the various types of evidence could be useful in solving cases. So it was only natural that when he was tasked with helping fight MECH that he would become acquainted with the basics on human forensics. Despite being somewhat rust aged in many respects...he had to admit that they did have a good grasp on forensics for their species.

And all the while he talked, he kept his face towards the datapad but his eyes up towards Knock Out, hiding them behind his mirrored visor as he watched for a reaction.

[Knock Out]

“Slow on the uptake or I genuinely have no idea who or what you’re talking about.”

He knew from Carbine a general idea of what’d happened, and the role Patch played among the Autobots, and while he had been present and participated in the great coverup to reveal the fate of the traitor, no details about the missing medic had been given to him. He had no idea who that was, or where they even were - including if they were even still alive at present.

If they were a medic, they were probably being kept somewhere safe to be used as a bargaining chip - probably like he was, if he had to guess. Medics were a scarcity in war, even more so in recent years with their dwindling numbers - and if what Carbine had said about Ratchet was true? She was all the more valuable. Granted, the Decepticons probably had no clue about the Autobot's CMO and his current condition, however a prisoner was a prisoner - and an enemy medic would be an asset indeed.

Scoffing quietly as Prowl continued, his attention drifted then to the datapad. Ah, there was his handiwork - something he was proud of. He hadn’t had a lot of time to make things look nice, but the Eradicon corpse looked close enough to Windshield that to someone not well versed in that kind of thing it may have been believable enough to be a pass. The helm was mangled beyond all recognition with the processor barbarically removed, though still given enough care to at least hold the same elements as Windshield’s own features - namely the color scheme.

Quirking a brow as Prowl swiped to show a single tire track, he leaned back in the chair once more as he listened, only to lean forward again as he replied, half gesturing with both servos to the image on the screen.

"I got sloppy?" he tsk’d "There's more to the Decepticons than just me, you know. What makes you think I had anything to do with this ridiculous plan, if that's what even happened." grasping at straws much? How did he make up this entire story just from looking at a single corpse and some supposed tire tracks? Both sides - and MECH, no doubt - had fliers that were probably more than capable of carrying away a Cybertronian, yet it was the tracks that were being focused upon.

"Do you see my frame?" he paused, glancing down at himself and the scuff marks. "Okay, not right now in my current condition, it's an inaccurate representation!" he laughed. "But in general. Pristine. Polished. Immaculate. I take great care and pride in my work. If I had a hand in this, you'd better damn well know it'd be a much cleaner job. I would've at least put in a modicum of effort compared to whatever that is." he gestured again, rolling his optics.

A database of tires? He wasn’t even aware such a thing existed. It did however explain so much… How ridiculously boring and borderline neurotic - which was saying a lot coming from him. Was that what the Autobots did with their free time? Perused pictures of tread patterns, or was it just Prowl?

Leaning back once more, it was then that his optics met the visor of the other mech - and he would smile.

"Well don't keep me in suspense, then! After going through your exciting database, what did you find out? Was it MECH? Was it Breakdown?”

[Prowl]

Either Prowl was charging down a path with no end because Knock Out didn’t know anything about what he was talking about...or Knock Out was going to stonewall him into oblivion. He had assumed the CMO would crack immediately as soon as you threw him a mean look. His belief had been wrong, and would need reassessment in the future.

He remained silent as Knock Out went on his tirade about how perfect he was. That part of his assessment tracked with his predictions and with the intelligence that they had gathered from previous interactions. He filed it away for further use.

“It indicated a vehicle similar to Breakdown was present in the area.”

It was hardly a smoking gun, but it had been enough to trip Prowl’s suspicions. Something had just felt off about the whole thing.

But he could come back to this later.

Time to deliver a shock to Knock Out.

“We’ll come back to this later. How about instead you tell me what part of Earth’s oceans the Nemesis crashed in?”

He folded his fingers together and placed them on the table in front of him, watching the medic closely.

[Knock Out]

Given the emphasis on the tire tracks, and the big reveal that they had a database of vehicles and their corresponding tread patterns? Knock Out had thought for sure that Prowl had caught him in the act. While he hadn’t been the one to personally drive away from the scene of the crime, knowing that they had a log of whoever it was? Well, that couldn’t end well.

Did they have a list of known Decepticons on Earth? They’d had many newcomers in recent weeks, and while some had no doubt interacted with the Autobots, there were plenty who opted to play it safe, remaining within Blackridge as they had no need to venture out.

Would they be able to put a face to the tracks? Or would it simply be a case of Flux’s altmode being called out and put on some watch list from here on out?

The answer that came was disappointing, as it wasn’t really an answer at all - and the smile would fade just slightly from his faceplate, brow quirking as he tsk’d softly, rolling his optics.

"Oooh~” he purred. “All that lead-up and suspense only to let me down? Reminds me of my ex, you tease." he smirked, leaning forward to place both arms on the table again. His optics did not leave the other mech, wrists flexing ever so slightly against the shackles that bound him - even though Prowl had been gracious in not tightening them to the point they hurt, they were a constant presence - and an uncomfortable one at that.

The next words - and the rather abrupt topic shift - were met with a gasp. Oh how badly he wanted to splay one servo across his scratched chassis for dramatic effect, though instead Prowl would be met with a look of what was probably genuine shock.

“It crashed?! Why didn’t anybody tell me!” he squawked.

He’d been there on the Nemesis when it’d fallen. Lived through every terrifying second of its downfall into the depths. That night had been a complete mess from start to finish, now that he thought about it - but as far as he knew the Autobots had no idea it’d even been downed. Despite the lack of Nemesis, they’d gone undetected under the radar with no obvious signs that anything had gone amiss. Soundwave had seen to that promptly and efficiently as only he knew how.

Carbine had asked about the Nemesis as well - noting rumors with a weirdly strong emphasis that it hadn’t exactly crashed onto land. It made sense that Prowl was going to bring it up in a more official capacity if there was talk among the Autobots regarding its undoing.

His answer to the helicopter mech had been casual, waving it off as if he didn’t know anything and denying that it’d gone missing at all - even going so far as to state that it was exactly where it was supposed to be, which was thousands of feet above. But here was the mech before him, not only asking where it’d crashed, but which part of the ocean it’d crashed into. That was specific indeed, and while his answer may have been a lie - there was some panic behind the shocked look.

[Prowl]

He didn’t rise to the bait that Knock Out threw out at him, instead merely filing away the mention that the Chief Medical Officer made to a possible ex-lover for later inclusion in Knock Out’s file in case someone came up claiming to have been in a relationship with the Decepticon. However such a promising lead would need to be tempered if it was indeed true, given how little was known about Knock Out’s personal life before the war. There was always the possibility that someone would make such a claim in the belief that it might win them great favor with either side.

So it would be noted and filed away for later investigation should it come up again.

Was that a hint of panic in Knock Out’s expression? Or was the medic such a good actor that he was able to fully project believability in his lies? He was a Decepticon after all.

“Perhaps you were too busy racing instead of doing your actual job?”

Much like some Autobots who misused the personal time that had been allotted to them by Optimus, much to Prowl’s objections when he had arrived here.

“We managed to recover some interesting equipment from a MECH base that we raided while we were looking for our missing medic, Patch. While the computers were trashed and data extraction is impossible for the moment, we did find that MECH had been stockpiling underwater salvage equipment. That combined with some interesting comments that were carelessly dropped by some of your former associates...”

Prowl tilted his head slightly to the side, as if studying Knock Out in a new light. That first part had been a complete lie, but the second part was a partial truth based on information that Optimus had shared with Prowl.

“Well...it just lines up.”

[Knock Out]

“Perhaps you were too busy racing instead of doing your actual job?”

"Well, you know me!" he laughed. "Work hard, play harder. Just because I enjoy the occasional race it doesn't mean I neglect my responsibilities. I'll have you know the Decepticons are all fighting fit thanks to my tireless efforts. I'm allowed a break! …Even if those breaks have rather unfortunate timing, I suppose."

Given how hard it was to leave Blackridge Hold these days, what with Soundwave manning the Control Panel and bridge access the majority of the time, his little excursions had become fewer and far between. Go figure it was one of these rare outings that he’d run into trouble, though he supposed it was only a matter of time before everything caught up to him.

Breakdown had warned him about being careful, and while he hadn’t been nagged - as the bigger mech knew far better than that - there had been gentle worry behind those sterner words. Worry that he probably should’ve taken heed of, because now he was here in the world's most boring room with the world's most boring mech, with no sign of getting out of here anytime soon.

Quirking a brow at the mention of MECH, any signs of amusement from Knock Out’s faceplate would fade, and he’d gently frown. Underwater salvage? Did those human pests work out what’d happened to the Nemesis as well? Ghn, if only there was some way to get ahold of anyone within the Decepticons to warn them…

Hopefully Soundwave - ever watching and attentive to detail as he was - had already put them two steps ahead of whatever MECH could do.

“Former associates? As in, those that’ve defected?” he hummed, glancing up at the ceiling a moment before peering back at Prowl. “As far as I know, nobody has been stupid enough to do that, let alone divulge any secrets… Care to name names?”

He couldn't think of any former Decepticons, unless Prowl was hinting that he was somehow an Autobot now, which ha - oh, if only Breakdown could see this. The thought made him smile, and he’d shake his helm in absent thought.

“Any sign of that… what’s his name, Windpipe? During your search around the MECH facility? Since you’re blaming him for everything, I’d so love to prove you wrong.”

[Prowl]

“Depends on how you look at it.”

It was always when people went out on their own. That’s when they got into the most trouble. Prowl was certainly guilty of it too, but in his case it had led to the capture of Knock Out. But perhaps this combined with the other events of the past few weeks had driven a point home for him. No more solo adventures for anyone.

“No one has been smart enough to defect.” Prowl replied evenly. “What I mean by ‘former associates’ is that you will never be seeing them again.”

He let that last statement hang in the air for a few moments before continuing, his voice continuing to maintain that matter of fact tone about it.

“Because what is going to happen is that when this conversation is over, you’re going to go back into your cell. And because Carbine broke the cell door trying to escape, he’s going to be moved into a different cell far away from you. Not that it matters too much. After all, he’s probably going to be found guilty of desertion and shot. So, what that means for you is that you’re going to be staying in that tiny cell for the rest of the war, unless I feel the need to talk to you, then you’ll come back here for a cycle or so before returning to your cell. That means the next time you’ll see your so-called friends it will be in a courtroom when we try the lot of you for war crimes. And tell me, do you really believe that those you call your friends won’t try to sell you out in order to escape execution for their crimes?”

It was an old Enforcement tactic, playing the mind games that made a suspect realize just how deep they were in and how much deeper things could get.

“Why would we find signs of Windshield in a MECH base?"

[Knock Out]

”Depends on how you look at it.”

“I suppose so.” he chuckled, leaning back in the chair, though made a point of keeping his arms outstretched on the table.

Prowl seemed like a stickler for hard work and no fun - and he doubted the little jaunt that’d ended with his own capture had been the other mech going out for any sort of recreational drive. Just simply a case of being in the right place at the right time, which was very unfortunate indeed. If it’d been Bumblebee perhaps he would’ve gotten away with it, but alas…

He could only hope the Decepticons were closing in on where he was.

Breakdown wouldn’t give up on him, that much he knew.

Narrowing his optics as Prowl continued, he wouldn’t try to butt in - letting the other mech say what he needed to. In some ways, he was glad Carbine hadn’t managed to get as far as letting him out during his own little escape attempt - as if that was the attitude they had toward supposed deserters, he probably would’ve been shot the moment he stepped foot out of that cell.

Not that the Decepticons wouldn’t do the same, but he thought the Autobots were supposed to be the nice ones!

“Those are some big dreams, Prowly.” he laughed. “You’d be doing me a favor, keeping me locked up? Sure, I’ll be bored out of my processor but hey - it beats doing any work! By the time any of this happens the way you hope, they’ll have long forgotten me I’m sure - so no selling out needed.”

He’d seen Carbine break out of his cell. Watched how it’d been done, even if he hadn’t had a decent viewpoint to see exactly how it’d been achieved step by step. Should he be trapped down here for an eternity as Prowl was suggesting? He’d surely have time to work it out. Either that or plead his case to one of the more easily manipulated Autobots to let him out. He did have a way with words, it was just a matter of biding his time and playing the game.

Though maybe he was delusional. Thinking it wouldn’t really be that long. Eventually, something would happen to get him out of there, be it his own hand or the Decepticons striking some sort of deal. He was valuable enough to be bargained for.

Or so he hoped.

“Though, you are down two medics…” he smiled then, leaning forwards, dragging his arms toward himself so his elbows were resting on the table. “Could put me to work, I could help! With supervision, of course. That wound I gave you? Naaaasty. That patch job won’t last.”

He tsk’d softly, optics looking around the room. He still hadn’t spotted the cameras that were no doubt dotted around the room, though knew they were almost certainly being watched.

His gaze only resettled on the other mech at the question, and he’d give a half-shrug. Oh, right… Uh, whoops.

“Well you said it yourself, that dead body wasn’t him - and it certainly wasn’t my handiwork. Hand on spark, he is not among the Decepticons, at least not to my knowledge. Perhaps he is working with our common enemy. Though, maybe they got to him first and it was their little ploy to try and fool all of us for whatever reason.”

Gently clearing his throat, he continued.

“It was just a thought. I’m sure there are Cybertronians out there who would strike a deal with them, and it sure lines up with your missing medic, no?”

[Prowl]

“You might not think it’s so great when we put you on half rations during your stay. After all, if you’re not doing any work, then you don’t require a full ration of energon, right?”

Prowl kept his voice level and calm despite the growing irritation inside of him at Knock Out’s continuing flippant attitude, like he was discussing a fact of life. Because in reality he was. There were some among them who might think such an action was cruel, but Knock Out wouldn’t have to do hard labor or some of the other things that the Decepticons did to their prisoners. And since he wasn’t doing any work, and those at Omega were working on a daily basis, he was certain that he could justify it to anyone who asked.

Optimus might have some concerns but Prowl could handle them.

“So you’re saying that there’s someone at Decepticon base who could step into your role as Chief Medical Officer?”

Keep them talking and try to catch them in a lie. Catch them in a lie and you have leverage over them.

Prowl actually let out a laugh when Knock Out suggested working for the Autobots, but there was no trace of humor in it.

“As if I would allow a Decepticon anywhere near a wounded Autobot. I would sooner trust a horde of scraplets than you.”

Scraplets were at least predictable. Unlike a Decepticon.

“There might be plenty who would work with MECH. Plenty on your side perhaps? Backstabbing and treachery seems to be the Decepticon way. I’m sure Starscream and plenty of others would sell out their own motherboard to get ahead.”