The Nemesis hung in low orbit over an Autobot outpost, its guns primed for the strike.

Every mech on the bridge was tense — Starscream pacing like a caged turbofox, Knock Out tapping nervously at the console, Breakdown rolling his optics at him.

Soundwave stood at his usual station, visor locked on incoming comm chatter. Megatron loomed at the helm, giving orders in clipped tones, his presence like a coiled storm ready to break.

“Decepticons — prepare for deployment,” Megatron commanded.

The ground assault began flawlessly — until the Autobot reinforcements hit.

It happened in a blink.

An explosion tore through the left flank, scattering Decepticons and Autobot alike. In the chaos, a beam cannon locked onto Soundwave’s position. The targeting lock’s whine sliced through the noise of battle — and Megatron heard it before anyone else.

“Soundwave!”

He didn’t think. He moved.

Megatron’s massive frame slammed into him, shoving him out of the path of the incoming blast. The cannon fired — striking Megatron full in the side. The impact ripped through his armor with a deafening roar.

The battlefield froze for Soundwave in that moment — not because of the war, but because Megatron had taken a hit meant for him.

Decepticons nearby stared as Soundwave dropped his weapon and caught Megatron before he could hit the ground. The warlord’s weight was heavy against him, vents rasping with damage, energon spilling in dark streaks across silver plating.

“Why?” Soundwave asked, his tone sharper than it had ever been in public.

Megatron’s optics locked on him, fierce even through pain. “Because there is no war without you.”

The words weren’t shouted. They weren’t meant for the crew — but the comms had picked them up, broadcasting across the channel. Every soldier on the field heard it.

Starscream froze mid-strike, Knock Out’s mouth dropped open through the comm link, Breakdown muttered, “Well, that explains a lot.”

Soundwave didn’t release him. Instead, he shifted his stance, bracing his commander’s weight while his own systems burned with adrenaline.

“Command: Fall back. Now.”

It wasn’t a suggestion — it was Soundwave ordering the retreat, something he’d never done in Megatron’s presence before. And Megatron… obeyed.

The Decepticons pulled back to the Nemesis under heavy fire, but not once did Soundwave let Megatron out of his grasp.

When they arrived back on the ship, the crew scattered in stunned silence. No one knew what to say — the image of Soundwave holding Megatron like that was burned into their optics.

Starscream looked like he was about to say something cutting, but one glare from Breakdown shut him up. Knock Out just smirked and muttered, “About time.”

Megatron, still leaning slightly on Soundwave, looked at him with a faint curve of his mouth. “I suspect they’ve noticed.”

Soundwave’s visor glowed brighter. “Irrelevant.”

And without waiting for further comment, Soundwave guided him toward the medbay — openly, without secrecy.

For the first time, their bond wasn’t just theirs. It belonged to the crew’s whispered conversations, to the rumors that would ripple through the Decepticon ranks.

And neither of them cared.

The war had a way of turning whispers into weapons.

Since the battle in the Rust Cliffs, Decepticon ranks had been buzzing. Every soldier aboard the Nemesis had seen the way Soundwave held Megatron. Every one of them had replayed the comm recording of his voice breaking the usual monotone: Why?

It didn’t take long for the Autobots to catch wind of it.

The mission was meant to be a routine strike on an Energon mine.

Megatron insisted on leading — still recovering, but unwilling to appear weak. Soundwave shadowed him like a silent guardian.

When they reached the site, the mine looked abandoned. Too quiet.

That’s when the canyon walls lit up with Autobot fire. Explosives detonated on both flanks, sealing off the retreat. Out from the dust and shrapnel stepped Mirage, flanked by Ironhide and Arcee.

“Megatron,” Mirage’s voice carried over the echoing canyon, dripping smugness. “I hear you’ve grown… sentimental.”

Soundwave’s visor narrowed.

Mirage’s optics glinted. “Let’s see what you’ll sacrifice to keep your pet safe.”

Before anyone could react, a precision charge went off under Soundwave’s position, collapsing the ledge. He slid toward the jagged drop — and Mirage’s sniper fire kept Megatron pinned, unable to rush to him.

Megatron’s fusion cannon roared, forcing Mirage into cover, but every blast cost him precious seconds. Soundwave’s claws bit into the crumbling rock, processor calculating the probability of survival if he fell: 12%.

Megatron’s comm pinged his private channel.

Soundwave: Primary objective: complete mission. Ignore secondary.

Megatron: You are not secondary.

With a guttural roar, Megatron abandoned his firing position and leapt straight into the Autobot crossfire. The blasts hit his armor in quick succession, but he ignored them, carving a path through the fire until his clawed hand closed around Soundwave’s forearm, hauling him up with a force that shook loose the rockslide still falling around them.

They landed in unison.

No commands exchanged. No time wasted.

Megatron moved with violent precision, drawing fire, forcing Ironhide to turn his flank. At the exact moment Mirage reappeared to fire, Soundwave’s tentacles lashed out, disarming him in a single, fluid motion. Arcee lunged for Megatron — and Soundwave was there, intercepting her strike and slamming her into the canyon wall.

Every motion flowed like they shared a single mind.

It was not the picture of a leader distracted by love — it was two weapons tuned to the same frequency.

The Autobots withdrew, Mirage limping and glaring over his shoulder.

The canyon was quiet again, save for the hiss of cooling weapons.

“You broke formation for me,” Soundwave said flatly, scanning Megatron for damage.

“I broke their plan,” Megatron corrected, smirking despite the dent in his armor. “They thought you were my weakness. They learned otherwise.”

Soundwave paused, his visor dimming for a moment, then brightening again. “Observation: Our efficiency increased.”

Megatron stepped closer, lowering his voice so only Soundwave could hear. “And so did my resolve.”

For the first time, Soundwave didn’t look away.