(no subject)
Whoops, I realized that according to the cartoon continuity, Starscream is a lot older than I first thought.
He's... actually somewhere around Nine million three hundred and twenty five, with a margin of error of a few hundred thousand years. Granted, since he was still in stasis lock for four million of these, he's still only around five million three hundred something margin of error a few hundred thousand years, but STILL.
So, here's a more concrete version of his history, based on a Transformers Wiki binge. If there is ever a timeswitch event again, it will be the PREWAR version of Starscream that I use.
Starscream was protoformed sometime before the Third Cybertronian War. Though he bore a war-configuration and therefore a Decepticon, he was initially a scientist and an explorer, since this was the Golden Age of Cybertron and there was no war.
INTERESTINGLY, Starscream has an alternate mode at this time, which suggests that he may actually have been an Autobot at this time, since transformation was an Autobot invention later adopted in secret by the Decepticons. Basically, G1 had GIANT EFFING PLOT HOLES and god even knows why this is so.
He and his best friend and fellow scientist Skyfire were sent out in search of planets to either colonize or mine for Energon. Eventually, they discovered a world in the Sol system which would later be called by its inhabitants Earth. The world was so rich in energon as to be outright dangerous, so the two stuck to a cursory atmospheric survey. Over the southern pole, Skyfire encountered a terrible storm, and he and Starscream became separated. Once the storm cleared, Starscream searched for his friend, but to no avail. Eventually he was forced to return to Cybertron without Skyfire.
Once on Cybertron, Starscream abandoned his scientific pursuits and enrolled in the Cybertron War Academy, where (according to him, anyway) he was the top student.
It was at this time that another Decepticon, Megatron, began to rise to power, at first pretending to be a noble rebel asking for change in Cybertron's government before revealing his true intentions as a conqueror. Starscream, long dissatisfied and wanting more in his life, eagerly pledged his services to Megatron's cause. The war raged for nearly five million years while Starscream fought his way up through the Decepticon ranks. Megatron encouraged brutality and treachery. To survive and prosper, one betrayed, murdered, and schemed one's way to the top, all the while keeping a healthy sense of paranoia so that one didn't fall pray to that fate. Over the course of those five million years Starscream proved himself to be the consummate betrayer, each one of his schemes and plans executing flawlessly (YES, REALLY), until through a combination of deceit and true battle prowess he proved himself worthy of becoming Megatron's second in command.
And then he hit the glass ceiling.
For so long had Starscream been working his way to the top that he could not stand the thought of being second any longer. By now, Megatron was old and soft (far older than he). The war had raged for millions of years with no conclusion, Cybertron was drained completely of energy and Starscream felt that it was his time to lead.
Then Megatron showed the full extent of his failure by losing the Nemesis and getting both the leaders of the Autobot AND Decepticon forces crashed onto a strange planet. With no energy, both sides fell into stasis lock for four million years.
He's... actually somewhere around Nine million three hundred and twenty five, with a margin of error of a few hundred thousand years. Granted, since he was still in stasis lock for four million of these, he's still only around five million three hundred something margin of error a few hundred thousand years, but STILL.
So, here's a more concrete version of his history, based on a Transformers Wiki binge. If there is ever a timeswitch event again, it will be the PREWAR version of Starscream that I use.
Starscream was protoformed sometime before the Third Cybertronian War. Though he bore a war-configuration and therefore a Decepticon, he was initially a scientist and an explorer, since this was the Golden Age of Cybertron and there was no war.
INTERESTINGLY, Starscream has an alternate mode at this time, which suggests that he may actually have been an Autobot at this time, since transformation was an Autobot invention later adopted in secret by the Decepticons. Basically, G1 had GIANT EFFING PLOT HOLES and god even knows why this is so.
He and his best friend and fellow scientist Skyfire were sent out in search of planets to either colonize or mine for Energon. Eventually, they discovered a world in the Sol system which would later be called by its inhabitants Earth. The world was so rich in energon as to be outright dangerous, so the two stuck to a cursory atmospheric survey. Over the southern pole, Skyfire encountered a terrible storm, and he and Starscream became separated. Once the storm cleared, Starscream searched for his friend, but to no avail. Eventually he was forced to return to Cybertron without Skyfire.
Once on Cybertron, Starscream abandoned his scientific pursuits and enrolled in the Cybertron War Academy, where (according to him, anyway) he was the top student.
It was at this time that another Decepticon, Megatron, began to rise to power, at first pretending to be a noble rebel asking for change in Cybertron's government before revealing his true intentions as a conqueror. Starscream, long dissatisfied and wanting more in his life, eagerly pledged his services to Megatron's cause. The war raged for nearly five million years while Starscream fought his way up through the Decepticon ranks. Megatron encouraged brutality and treachery. To survive and prosper, one betrayed, murdered, and schemed one's way to the top, all the while keeping a healthy sense of paranoia so that one didn't fall pray to that fate. Over the course of those five million years Starscream proved himself to be the consummate betrayer, each one of his schemes and plans executing flawlessly (YES, REALLY), until through a combination of deceit and true battle prowess he proved himself worthy of becoming Megatron's second in command.
And then he hit the glass ceiling.
For so long had Starscream been working his way to the top that he could not stand the thought of being second any longer. By now, Megatron was old and soft (far older than he). The war had raged for millions of years with no conclusion, Cybertron was drained completely of energy and Starscream felt that it was his time to lead.
Then Megatron showed the full extent of his failure by losing the Nemesis and getting both the leaders of the Autobot AND Decepticon forces crashed onto a strange planet. With no energy, both sides fell into stasis lock for four million years.