Jack and the Greenhorn

by Shade Penn

Co-authored with Rian Moeru! Prime. AU. When the power goes out in the Autobot base, Jack really wished he'd left with Miko and Raf. He didn't expect Airachnid to escape, and he didn't want her 'gift'. When he wakes in a new body, everything is turned upside down. Techno-Organic!Jack, Jack/Smokescreen Pre-Slash

Rian Moeru: Hey! This is a new fic me and Shade drummed up together! Mainly focuses on Jack and Smokescreen and a budding friendship, so expect some fluff!

Shade Penn: It was really fun to write!

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Ratchet yelled another curse as his fingers were zapped for the umpteenth time in the last thirty minutes. He always said that human technology couldn't be relied upon and this further proved his point!

...though it hadn't helped that Bulkhead and the newbie, Smokescreen, had lobbed a ball right into the power supply.

Jack supposed it would have made anyone cranky. And with all the sensitive items on base, it wouldn't take much for the 'Cons to find the Autobots' signal. For those thirty minutes, thankfully only ten were currently being spent with the power shutting down. The other twenty were the generator making rather scary crackling noises and occasionally sparking off electricity.

Besides Ratchet, it was only Jack and Smokescreen still on base. Arcee and Optimus had been out looking for a possible energon signature when the power went off. Bulkhead and Bumblebee took Raf and much complaining Miko home. Jack only got to hang around longer because Smokescreen said he'd drop him off, but Jack was having a hard time finding him.

Which shouldn't have been as difficult as it was. How hard was it to find a giant robot, especially one that could turn into a sportscar? Jack sighed as he turned yet another corner, scratching the back of his head in exasperation. If he didn't get home soon his mom was going to chew him out for being late again, power failure or no.

In fact, Jack betted his mother would be even more hard-pressed he get home if the power was off. It was times like these Jack wished he was better with directions. 'Where was Smokescreen's room again? Maybe he decided to hang out there.' Shining the light from his phone down the hall, Jack kept an eye on the floor to make sure he didn't trip over anything.

'Not likely, what else could be scurrying around?' Jack thought. Rats were a possibility, but Jack assumed the Autobots took better care of their main base of operations than to let rats or mice chew through the wires.

A scuttling sound drew his attention, and Jack whirled around, shining the light into the darkened hall. Chills ran down his spine. "Okay, calm down. Probably just Ratchet dropping something he needed." He chuckled, but it sounded weak to his own ears.

Jack turned back around, and picked up the pace. "Come on, where are you, Smokescreen?" The creeping feeling grew into the outright hair-on-end paranoia that someone was watching him. Goosebumps crawled up his arms, and Jack could hear his heart in his ears. "There's nothing else here, you're psyching yourself out."

His self-assurance did nothing to stall the near heart attack he had when he heard a scrapping noise from behind. He turned around in a flash, eyes wide and flashing the light in the direction of the noise. There was nothing to be seen however.

"C'mon Jack, you're jumping at shadows..." He scolded himself, tightening his grip on the cell phone with clammy hands.

It didn't keep him from not looking over his shoulder every five minutes, nor did his breathing even out. "It's nothing, it's nothing." He muttered to himself, but his flashlight caught something ahead. He frowned as he stepped cautiously closer to a wide door, like from a garage.

Jack recognized it as being one of the doors where the relics were stored in. His stomach dropped when he realized another important detail. 'And Airachnid.' He thought, eyes widening. His gaze turned downward to the thing which caught his attention; the door was lifted up slightly– as though someone had opened it recently.

Shaking his head, Jack lifted it enough to flash his light inside the room. 'It can't be, it can't be-' his thoughts stopped cold, seeing only the stasis pod that was wide open. Jack backed away, cringing as the door fell back down. Adrenaline pumping through his veins, Jack made a break for it; inside he was terrified and didn't know where to go. Tell Ratchet? Still try to find Smokescreen?

Ultimately the choice was taken from him as something sticky knocked him into the ground, his phone slipping from his grasp and spun to illuminate the substance holding him down. Jack's heart leapt into his throat. It was Airachnid's webbing. Jack tensed up, eyes widening as he caught sight of the gleaming purple optics above him, which lowered as the spindly form scuttled from the ceiling to the door.

Airachnid's terrifying face was illuminated by the light as she reached him, and Jack struggled to get out of the webbing. He froze as one of Airachnid's spidery legs slammed into the ground by his head. Jack took in a ragged breath as the spider grinned down at him. "What, no hello?" she mocked hurt as the leg trailed up along Jack's cheek, and he closed his eyes as he heard his blood pumping in his ears.

Any words that Jack might have said in that moment seized in his throat, unable to even swallow in the glow of her optics.

"R-Ratchet-" he tried calling out, his voice cracking when Airachid clamped her hand over his head. The claws that pricked against his neck and back drew blood with frightening ease.

"Now, now, no need to spoil the fun." Airachnid cooed in his ear, and Jack's stomach dropped. His head spun as he could feel the blood dripping down his back.

"What?" he asked, voice muffled as he could say no more with the spider's hand in his way.

Airachnid chuckled sinisterly, as though she understood what he was asking. "You and I have some unfinished business. I'd thought of so many different ways to make you suffer, to pay you back for humiliating me time and again."

Jack groaned as pain radiated as her claws dug in deeper. Slowly, they slid out but she still held him as she raised her other hand. His eyes widened as one claw tip shifted, enlarging with a sickly purple glow at the tip. He struggled even if it was useless, but all he got for his trouble was more pain.

"I decided even if I wasn't here, I'd leave Arcee a little present." Airachnid grinned darkly as she stuck the glowing tip into a gash on Jack's back. At first there was a sting, but nothing after it dulled. Jack didn't think he was okay though, not with Airachnid still looking so pleased with herself. "Since you're going to be dead soon, I don't see the harm in telling you how painful this will be."

Jack's eyes widened further, as underneath the deceptive numbness already he could feel an uncomfortable heat spreading across his back. What did she do to him!?

"You won't get away with this!" He shouted, pushing at her with everything he had. It proved to be a useless effort as she dropped him a moment later. Head and back throbbing with pain, Jack curled up briefly before slowly getting to his feet.

"Well, if you want to make this interesting, then by all means – run." Airachnid chuckled. "Let's see how far you get."

Jack didn't bother to wait for her to finish, holding his back as he stumbled around to grab his cell phone. Blood seeped through his fingers, bile rising in his throat as he tried not to think about it. The discomfort grew, spreading down to his legs as they felt like jelly. It made it harder to move, but he didn't want to spend another second here with her.

"How pathetic." Airachnid's voice cut through the darkness, and Jack grimaced. "You can't even provide adequate entertainment. I hope you enjoy my present, for however long you live."

Jack gritted his teeth. "What are you talking about?"

"I'm a techno-organic." She spoke as though that explained everything. Jack stared blankly at her. "A quite unfortunate accident made me what I am today." Airachnid said, her tone not sullen or resentful. She sounded bored. "It might have set me back a bit, but it gave me such delightful little features. Such as a venom that lets me watch my prey wither away slowly."

Jack's eyes widened, and he pressed against the wound. "You…infected me? Am I going to turn into something like you?"

Airachnid's laughter chilled him. "Oh no. You'll be dead. I've never seen a victim survive this. What a splendid little mess you'll be!"

"You're even sicker than I thought!" Jack snapped.

Airachnid didn't seem offended, she sounded amused. "No, Jack, you're about to get sick. Too bad I can't stick around, I've got a collection to start again."

Jack jumped, stumbling as he tumbled onto his side. His light shined behind him, and it caught the tail end of Airachnid drilling a hole through the metal, screeching as it was torn apart. Jack covered his ears, ducking down to avoid being hit with debris as it went flying. Jack wobbled as he got back to his feet after it was over, and he stared down at the hole. The teen grimaced as he saw the blood coating his fingers, squeezing his eyes as his body began feeling even more numb.

It made the heavy footsteps echoing through the hall ring loudly in his eyes, and Jack shined the light up to see Smokescreen come running around the corner.

The mech skidded to a halt, optics wide as he stared at the hole. "Whoa! What happened here?"

Jack's breathing grew heavy, his head starting to swim. "Where…were you?"

Smokescreen blinked. "I was outside. What caused this though?" he gestured to the hole. Jack gritted his teeth as his body began to heat up, and his leg gave out, sending him to one knee. "Seriously, what happened?!" Smokescreen carefully stepped around the hole, and lifted Jack up. "You're really burning up, is this normal?"

"No, get me to Ratchet." Jack muttered, his head spinning.

Smokescreens optics roved over the area, spotting the unusual damage in the hall, along with the red flecks of human energon dotting the floor. At the sound of Jack beginning to cough and wheeze he moved quickly, not sure of what was happening here. He knew next to nothing of humans. The sticky, rust scented fluid was smearing his plates now.

"Hey doc!" Smokescreen called out as he rushed into the room where Ratchet was working on the power grid. "Something's up with Jack! He's all hot and I think he's leaking energon!"

Ratchet let out a grunt as he jerked back from the power supply. "Smokescreen, I just got it to stop crackling! And humans don't have energ-" he stopped when he turned around, optics growing wide as even in the dark he saw the state Jack was in. "Scrap! Smokescreen, put him on the table- gently!"

Jack winced as Smokescreen almost dropped him in his nervous state. He groaned as his shirt stuck to his back, and he knew it would hurt even more getting it off. "I sure hope you know how to treat human patients, doc." Jack said weakly.

"Now is not the time for jokes." Ratchet muttered, grateful that he had expanded his knowledge of human medicine since the incident with Raf. "How did this happen?" He urged the teen, running a scan toned down for human anatomy, brow creasing at the results.

Jack gritted his teeth as he recalled the spider femme. "It was Airachnid," he said, "she must have gotten out when the power went off."

"Scrap." Smokescreen looked around worriedly. "Is she still here?"

Jack breathed in deeply, closing his eyes. "No. She drilled her way out of the base."

Smokescreen looked sheepish. "Oh, guess that explains the hole."

"Enough, both of you." Ratchet said sharply. "The results of my scans are…troubling."

Jack's eyes widened as he looked up at the medic. It hurt, but so did not knowing what was going on. He theoretically knew what would happen -being dead- but he hoped there was a way to stop it. "What? Did you find out what I got injected with?"

"Airachnid claimed to have injected you with venom?" He asked, optics scanning rapidly through the data.

Jack nodded, neck feeling stiff when he did so. "Yeah. She...she said it causes her victims to wither away before they die."

"As if Airachnid didn't sound nasty enough." Smokescreen grimaced.

"Am...am I really going to die like she said?" Jack asked, his heart rate picking up.

"Not if I have anything to say about it." Ratchet said firmly. He glanced at the generator. "I just got that blasted thing functional again. Power should be back on in a klik or so, but right now I need to clean your wounds."

"Ratchet, what did your scanner say?" Jack asked insistently. Even in the limited light his flashlight provided, he could see Ratchet looked uneasy.

"Honestly I'm not certain at the moment." Ratchet answered without looking at him, grabbing a cloth from his subspace that was originally meant for cleaning oil spills. This would have to suffice in the meantime until June could be contacted. "I'll have to look at it more thoroughly before I can make a clear analysis."

Jack breathed in deep, gritting his teeth as he rolled onto his stomach. He winced as despite the numbness, his back ached. He knew it was about to get a lot worse. His fists clenched, and he closed his eyes as Ratchet stepped up to his side. "Okay, go ahead."

"It would be best if you weren't tense." Ratchet said.

Jack glowered up at him. "I've got that freaky femme's venom in my veins and the clock is ticking. There's not a lot to be relaxed over!"

"Uh, hey, Jack. Remember when we went out together?" Smokescreen quickly stepped up to Jack's other side. "It was rad, right? Had a lot of fun, huh?"

Jack snorted, his body slowly unwinding. "Right up until we got in trouble by going somewhere we weren't supposed to."

"Yeah, that was so not part of the plan." Smokescreen said.

Jack was so engrossed with talking to Smokescreen, he didn't notice Ratchet reaching down. He yelped as the shirt tugged against the skin, the sting sharp as he was sure more blood began seeping. Jack groaned as Ratchet went about tearing the rest of the shirt away, and began wiping down his back and neck. "That was my favorite shirt."

"No wonder you always seem to wear it." Smokescreen said snarkily. Jack glowered at him, but squeezed his eyes shut as a loud hum rang through the walls, followed by the flash of lights coming back on.

"About time." Ratchet said. "Smokescreen, get a hold of June and tell her to get here as soon as possible."

"You're gonna call my mom?" Jack asked. "Why?"

"I may have expanded my knowledge of human medicine but I have been unable to acquire the equipment necessary to preform the proper procedures, should they be needed." Ratchet informed him, a part of him cursing Fowler for being slow about their acquisition. "And I believe a smaller set of hands would be more helpful considering your size."

"I thought you were working on a holoform?" Smokescreens attention diverted from Jack for a moment, giving the medic a confused glance.

"It is far from perfected Smokescreen, and attempting to operate on human for the first time in a body I can barely maintain is a recipe for disaster!"

"Y-you can't call my mom!" Jack said hastily. "She'll want to take me to the hospital, and you can't know what's going on with what Airachnid did to me if I'm there. If you're going to get a human medic, can't you call Fowler and tell him to send someone?"

"I understand your concern, but if you don't receive proper medical care right away-" He began, only to be interrupted when Jack started coughing, wheezing raggedly. Flecks of blood dotted his lips and each cough seemed to cause him extreme pain.

Jack squeezed his eyes shut. His stomach rolled, and he felt like he was going to be sicker. "Call both my mom and Fowler then," he coughed again, grimacing as he wiped his mouth and saw the blood on his hand, "but I can't go to a hospital. We don't know what will happen. I could be infectious."

"It can't be that bad, right Ratchet?" Smokescreen asked him hopefully. "Just...do your stuff and fix him up."

"Smokescreen, it isn't that simple! Now go contact Agent Fowler and Ms. Darby at once!" He snapped impatiently, fed up with his naivety for one day.

Smokescreen jerked back, optics widening. His gaze drifted to Jack, and the state he was in before he nodded and hurried over to the console. He hesitated over who to call first, but Jack's coughing had him calling Fowler. The screen lit up and he put in the number as the quiet ringing rang in his audios.

"What is it now? I usually get called by the higher ups when you bots screw something up." Fowler said, appearing tired and grumpy on the screen.

"It's bad news; the power kinda got," Smokescreen winced, "knocked out, and Airachnid escaped. She infected Jack with something that's making him cough up that red energon-"

"It's called blood!" Ratchet called tersely back, but his optics were focused on Jack as he finished cleaning the blood away.

Smokescreen nodded. "Yeah, that! He needs a medic stat but he can't go to a human hospital!"

Fowler's eyes shot to where Jack laid on a table. His expression betrayed little emotion, other than the slight narrowing of eyes as he nodded. "I'll see what I can do. Have Ratchet spring up a groundbridge for me when we're ready." The vid cut off then, leaving the room quiet except for the sounds of Jack's coughing and Ratchet's cursing.

Jack could feel it getting worse and worse, even as Ratchet tried to stabilize him. His arms were beginning to shake, eyes rolling into the back of his head and Jack felt like he was choking on his own tongue.

Jack's senses were overwhelmed by the pain spreading through him, and rolled his head to the side, coughing as his tongue lolled out. It didn't help, and he closed his eyes as the bright lights hurt his eyes, and he clenched his fists. His hearing dulled as it felt like his ears were stuffed with cotton, and he could only hear muffled voices around him. His skin prickled, and he felt as though he were being jostled despite his limbs being still.

Soon, Jack heard his name being called, the haze over his hearing dissipating despite what was left being as though his body was on fire. Jack groaned as his head rolled to the other side, and he flinched as he saw his mother standing by his side, her expression worried as she wiped down his forehead with a cool cloth. "Mom?" his voice cracked, hoarse and raspy.

June still looked relieved. "You-you really scared me." she sniffled, tears prickling at her eyes. "I thought we weren't going to be able to get you stable."

Jack furrowed his brow, but saw with his limited movement, his hand had an I.V. drip attached and bandages wrapped around his waist and he could feel it around his neck. "We?"

"I got here after Smokescreen called me, and sent a groundbridge for me. The medical team Fowler sent were already here, and I don't think they liked me butting in, but since you needed help, we put it aside." June explained.

"What...happened? Why...am I burning...up." Jack asked.

"Tentative theory at this point is that spider-witch's," June's expression darkened, like she wanted to substitute another word in, "venom caused a fever-like reaction. We managed to cool you down, but since there's no definite answer to what this will do, it's all speculation."

Jack narrowed his eyes. Speculation. He breathed in deeply. So this meant no one likely told her what Airachnid said would happen to him. "Where's...everyone?" From his spot, he couldn't see anyone milling about.

"Ratchet is running tests along with the other doctors and Smokescreen is in the other room." She had to restrain the crack in her voice as well as forcing back the tears that threatened to overflow. "Optimus and the others should be back at base by now too."

Jack took in a slow, deep breath on his own, coming more easily now. Likely due to the drugs they were pumping into him. It was...relieving to know that the others were here. But he was scared. Terrified of the fact that he could...would die from this.

Jack was on borrowed time. He had no idea how long he was going to live for. It could have been minutes, hours...he squeezed his eyes shut. I don't wanna die... he thought, but he sucked in a breath as his chest ached. It steadily grew worse, his muscles burning, his whole body burning. Sweat dripped down his forehead, and his mother's voice was like it was from a greater distance.

Beyond that, he picked up the footsteps of the returning Autobots. Jack grimaced as he was overcome with a greater pain. It slithered through his veins, the venom kicking in higher as he could feel his flesh and bone beginning to wither inside. Jack screamed, unable to keep it back. His mother called for the doctors, while the Autobots' steps sped up.

More yelling, barely comprehensible in his disintegrating eardrums. He was faintly aware of movement, something cool pressing against his heated flesh and the tremendous pain the touch brought despite how gentle it had been.

Jack's body began to feel strange, the burning taking on a different take. The burning wasn't hot anymore, it was like a biting cold began to cover him. The yelling around him turned confused, and he was in a weird state of being aware of everyone backing away, but not understanding what they were saying. Something not right? What wasn't right?! This can't be happening? What, what can't! Jack wanted to demand answers, but a great burst of pain seized his chest, squeezing his heart as he screamed. The sound he made was otherworldly, like a screech, but more...as though there were nails being dragged over a chalkboard.

And all at once, his body slumped. His heart began beating at a steadily, and his breathing evened out. A spasm of pain made his joints ache, but everything felt...okay, otherwise. It was weird. Was this some kind of deceptive calmness before the venom overtook him? Jack's arm stung, and he grimaced as he reached over to scratch. He flinched as he realized too late it was the I.V. It slipped off his arm, and he saw it lying on the floor, a mix of red blood and blue energon on the tip.

Jack furrowed his brow, and he noticed his mother standing a few feet away, her eyes wide as dinner plates. Another medic had been holding her back, but that same doctor was staring at him like he just grew two heads. Jack frowned; everyone he looked at seemed just as surprised, confused...or scared? "What...hap-" he stopped abruptly, because hearing his own voice, he didn't want to believe it. It had a metallic echo to it, just like the...Autobots.

Maybe he had been ignoring it since he opened his eyes, but now he couldn't. His gaze finally drifted down to his body, and took in the expanse of the metal body that lied where his had been. Jack lifted his hand to his face, and in the reflective surface, he saw his own wide blue eyes-optics!-staring back, the white ring in the 'iris' cycling wide.

His breath caught, insides squirming. This was too weird, and Jack freaked. "WHAT HAPPENED TO ME?"

"Jackson, calm yourself-"

"Calm down? How the hell do you expect me to calm down when my arm is fragging metal?!" He demanded angrily, beginning to hyperventilate now, chest rising and falling rapidly. Metal hands ripped away the blanket that had been covering his legs, his panic rising when he saw that they too were metallic now. "Scratch that, everything is metal!" Jack snapped. "Someone better give me an explanation about what just happened before I lose it!"

June moved to get closer to him but was prevented from doing so by Ratchet's hand.

"Stop!" He urged, noticing something odd going around Jack, to which the medical staff was quick to catch on. Around the youth's hands was a dark, flaking substance. When Jack's sudden movements caused it to fall off as he jumped out of the bed, the patch was revealed to have a glistening surface it certainly didn't have beforehand.

"Everyone, get back." One of the medical personnel said.

Jack frowned. "What is it?" his voice rose frantically. "Why is it so hard to get any answers!"

"Look at the floor." Ratchet said. Jack's frown deepened, and his breath hitched as he found the flaking substance had spiked out, and Jack's stomach dropped as his hand moved and the substance moved in the same spot. "Please, calm down and we'll explain what happened."

Jack collapsed back on the bed, the panic drained and replaced with numbing fear. The bed creaked under the weight. "Okay."

"You were going critical," Ratchet said calmly, "you were burning up and I grabbed you, but...something happened. It was as though my metal was being absorbed from my hands." he held up said hands, which were fine for all appearances. "It's strange, I'll admit, and I've never seen anything like it."

"Airachnid was sure I'd die, and yet...I'm this instead." Jack touched his arm, flinching as he wasn't used to the metal flesh. "What am I?" he touched his chest. "I can still feel my heart beating, I can still feel the air in my lungs, my stomach is churning, and I still have blood." he nodded down to the I.V. lying on the floor.

Unbidden, Jack thought of what Airachnid called herself, and grimaced. "Airachnid, she said she was a techno-organic. Could...could I be one now?"

"Normally I'd say such a thing is impossible, but given what just happened..." He muttered, carefully bending down to scan the mixture of blood and energon from the I.V., taking care not to touch the substance himself. When an antsy medic was overly eager in retrieving said samples he snapped at them harshly. "Step back! You have no idea what that could do to you!"

It didn't seem to deter the man though, and he kept his almost urgent pace and before anyone could stop him he was right next to the spill, pulling out a swab and dabbing at the purple substance with little regard to his own safety.

"Finding out an answer is well worth the risk, don't you think?" the man asked.

"No, I certainly do not!" Ratchet snapped.

"You're way out of line!" June stepped in, though kept her distance. Working in a hospital for a good portion of her life left her very well aware of the dangers of bacteria and viruses that could spread if one wasn't careful. Unlike this idiot who proclaimed to be a doctor!

"Do not presume to tell me whether I am over a line, nurse Darby." The man retorted.

June scowled. "Look you, I don't care if you have some fancy M.D., this stuff could kill you for all we know."

From his spot, Jack stiffened. If Airachnid had been so sure it would kill him, was the cast off the same to everything else?

"Get away from that." Jack demanded of the man, standing up threateningly from the bed once more. He didn't want to hurt anyone, but if this man caused his mother to be infected with whatever Airachnid had injected into him then this doctor would be stopped one way or the other.

The man ignored it as he put the sample into a beaker and placed it in the pocket of his lab coat. He pulled out a tiny flashlight and stepped closer to Jack. Everyone's shouts for him to stay back were ignored as he flashed the light in Jack's eyes. The teen flinched from the sudden light and the man's sheer idiocy. Did he not get that this was not a casual everyday thing?

"How do you feel? Any discomfort or pain?" The man asked.

Jack scowled. "Yes, it's right in front of me." The man looked affronted by the jab, but more footsteps echoed in the room.

"What in the Sam Hill is going on in here!?" Fowler's shouted bounced off the walls, and Jack stepped back to point at the doctor.

"Get him away from me!" he snapped. Fowler's eyes widened when he likely recognized the voice, sputtering even as the other Autobots came in, and Arcee's optics widened as well.

"Jack? Is that you?" she asked, voice low and incredulous.

"Yes, it's me, something freaky is going on." Jack said, and gestured to the doctor. "And he doesn't seem to get that I could be contagious or-or-something!"

Fowler's eyes narrowed. "Doctor, get away from him now before you're written up on breaking protocol."

The doctor frowned, but stepped away reluctantly. "Well, I already got a sample from it. We should be able to determine what caused this."

June stiffened, looking ready to clock the man. "My son is not an it!"

The man waved it off, unperturbed. "At the moment it's an anomaly."

June's face reddened, and her fists clenched. "I really don't like you."

"And I think it's best for you to leave." Optimus cut in. He'd been quiet through the conversation as he decided the best course of action to take. "Given there is no certainty as to whether Jack's condition could unintentionally harm anyone, it's best not to take a chance. You may work on base and send your findings to Ratchet in the laboratory, but no human will be allowed back in here."

The doctor looked incredulous. "What? But you can't-"

"It's the safest option." Optimus said sternly. It was the type of finality that no one argued with, and the doctor grumbled as he quieted his objection.

"Right, let's pack it up then." Fowler said, and the medics picked up their equipment, taking care to steer clear of Jack. "Everything and everyone needs to take a decontamination shower." He paused and glanced at June. "Ms. Darby, that includes you as well."

June crossed her arms. "I'm not leaving my son."

"Mom," Jack said quietly as he sat back on the bed, "you should go. I'd never forgive myself if something happened to you because of me."

June eyed him stubbornly, but her features softened as she sighed. She glared up at Ratchet. "You'd better take care of my son while I'm gone."

"Jack is in good hands with me, Ms. Darby." Ratchet assured her as the humans were taken outside the room.

Jack backed up once they left, the panic beginning to set in again now that he didn't have to keep up a front. He slid down against the bed rail, staring at his metal hands as a shortness of breath assaulted him.

That strange dust had returned, now pouring from his palm and finger tips from nothing at all it seemed, increasing in volume with his growing panic attack. What was this?!

"What's going on, what's wrong with me! Why won't it stop!" Jack screeched, his hands shaking as he stared down at the flakes which fell to the floor, eyes wide as the dust rustled unevenly.

"Jack!" Ratchet said sharply, and the teen looked up at him. Ratchet's optics were stern, and steady. "You need to calm down. Panicking won't solve anything."

"How am I supposed to be calm for any of this?" Jack retorted. "Airachnid infected me and left me to die."

Arcee jolted, her optics flashing with surprise. Hadn't she been told the situation? 'Bee and Bulkhead looked just as shocked. Optimus didn't, which Jack surmised he had been told. Was it not to cause them to panic either?"

"You're not dead though." Ratchet said firmly. He gestured somewhat haphazardly at Jack. "Whether the venom caused this or not, I can't help you if you don't calm down."

Jack gritted his teeth, brow creasing as he could feel they were sturdier than before. When he gnashed them together, it sounded like faint screeching. The teen closed his eyes, clenching his fists as he tried to calm down. 'I'm alive; I don't look like I used too, but I'm alive,' he told himself. It was by no means a sure fire thing, but it calmed his racing heart, and he breathed in deep.

When he opened his eyes, the only evidence of the flakes was the dust lying harmlessly on the ground. Jack really doubted they were harmless, but he didn't want to freak out again. He had to have better control now, if…wait. "These reacted to my panic," he said quietly, creeping unease going up his spine, "what if it's tied to that? What if it's connected to this…techno-organic thing? I know it sounds crazy, but…look at Airachnid's webs. That definitely isn't metallic in anyway."

"Its possible. Airachnid is unlike any Cybertronian I've seen before, bot or con." Ratchet concluded.

"Is there a way to make him normal again?" Bulkhead asked.

Arcees first smacked into the wall before Ratchet even had a chance to respond, scowling deeply. "I should have been here! If I had none of this would have happened!"

"If you'd been here, Airachnid would have killed me outright." Jack said. Arcee's stricken expression didn't change as she looked at him. "We both know she would have done it to hurt you."

"I could have stopped it." Arcee repeated, but her anger turned on Ratchet and Smokescreen. "Why didn't either of you try to stop her!"

Ratchet scowled at Arcee. "I was a little busy fixing the generator that Smokescreen and Bulkhead broke."

The green mech had the grace to look sheepish, while Smokescreen cringed under Arcee's glare. "I," the blue mech stalled, "I can't think of anything to say."

"That's a first." Arcee muttered. "This is twice now Jack's gotten hurt and you didn't do anything."

"Hey! I didn't even know he was hurt." Smokescreen said defensively. "And when I saw he was bleeding I brought him to Ratchet."

"Which reminds me, go clean yourself up. I'm not willing to take a chance that this venom could be harmful to us either." Ratchet said. Smokescreen grumbled as he stalked out of the room, but sent Jack a sympathetic look before he left.

"So how are you gonna help me, Ratchet?" Jack asked morosely. He glanced at his hands again. Well, he could probably kiss a normal life goodbye now.

"By running some tests first of all." He proclaimed, extracting the dust from the floor via a suction device. "See if there's anyway to reverse this."

"What am I supposed to do while you're doing that? Give you samples?" His tone sardonic, but his face paled a little when Ratchet nodded.

"It would improve my chances of finding a cure if you were willing to give blood samples, metal shavings and the dust if you can."

"Ratchet, is that really necessary?" Arcee asked.

Ratchet looked at her in disbelief. "Of course it is, and it's not as though as I'm suggesting something as barbaric as cutting him up."

Jack froze, flakes starting to appear on his hands again. He breathed in deep, telling himself that Ratchet was only joking. "You can take all the dust." He said shaking his hands loose of it. "You can even take the blood, but I'm more than a little leery of how much will come off if you take shavings from my skin."

"Given you bear resemblance to a Cybertronian, there is nothing to suggest it would hurt more than a scratch." Ratchet said.

"And if it doesn't, it's going to hurt a lot more than that." Jack grumbled.

Ratchet vented heavily. "Very well, I'll hold off on the shavings until you do not doubt my medical skills." He said acerbically, and Jack grimaced.

"We'll take our leave," Optimus said, and Arcee looked ready to protest, "for I think it would be a good use of our time to prioritize finding Airachnid." Arcee's mouth shut, teeth gritting.

When they left, Jack felt more than a little nervous around Ratchet. He and the doc were never very close, and the recent stunt with the other doctor left him more than a little wary of what could happen. Jack had no desire to become anyone's test subject.

"Be sure to keep your needles where I can see them." Jack warned him.

"Don't panic and there won't be a problem." Ratchet retorted.

Jack snorted. "Don't tell me not to panic. It's taking years of self-control not to fly off the handle again." He warily eyed Ratchet as the medic held out his finger, and the end shifted to let a small needle slide out. Ratchet knelt, and held it close to Jack to let him see the comparative size. "How much are you going to take?"

"I don't need much, I can get a lot from even a prick." Ratchet said.

Jack grimaced, and rubbed his arm. "Yeah, I'm not down for you jabbing me with that thing."

"Well, the only sample of your blood was taken with the medical equipment to be decontaminated, so this is all we got." Ratchet said.

"Can't I just spit on something and you can look at that?" Jack asked.

Ratchet looked considering, and he nodded. "Yes, I'll to take a sample of that as well."

Jack groaned, and eyed the needle once more.

Surprisingly he barely felt the needle when it pricked his vein, hardly more than a light poke. Just as quickly Ratchet pulled away, satisfied with the sample as he handed Jack a wad of cotton.

"Put it in your mouth and let your saliva soak into it. Place the sample on here," He pointed to a little slider. Jack eyed the cotton ball in mild disgust, his stomach churning uncomfortably when pushed it in, shoving the thing against the inside of his cheek. It was as uncomfortable as it looked.

It was still his body, but it wasn't in a way. The outside was shiny and metallic, but he could still feel the metal in his mouth, along with what almost felt like the flesh he used to have. Along with the previously stated examples of feeling his heart beat and breathing air, his stomach rang hollow, hungry as a new problem presented itself.

Jack made sure to get all the cotton out once he was done, grimacing as he placed it on the slider. "What am I supposed to eat? Do I need energon, or can I still have food if I'm a techno-organic?"

The medic looked at him, seeming conflicted at this new conundrum

"I...don't know." He admitted, carefully picking up the soaked cotton ball. "I would suggest eating a small amount of food first. There's no telling if ingesting energon would be poisonous to you."

Jack grimaced. "Is there even food here?"

Ratchet vented, and he set the samples on the console before calling up Fowler on the console, who appeared on the screen elsewhere in the base. "Is June ready to come back yet? And send some food with her, preferably something soft for Jack to eat."

Fowler looked incredulous. "Can he eat food?"

"That's what we're going to find out." Ratchet replied.

Fowler rubbed his brow. "Fine, she'll be ready to go back in a few minutes. Fowler out." He said before cutting the connection.

Jack looked up at the footsteps that entered the room, blinking when he saw Smokescreen. "What are you doing back here?"

"Well I wasn't going to leave you alone with Ratchet for company." Smokescreen grinned.

"Ep-ep!" Ratchet halted Smokescreen from getting closer. "Stay where you are, I don't need to know if Jack's contagious because you got careless."

Smokescreen crossed his arms. "What about you? You touched him. Pit, you're why he's like this now."

"Don't you think I know that?" Ratchet retorted, guilt on his features before they hardened. "Which is why finding out how this happened is important. Besides, I already disinfected myself after touching Jack." He explained before the door opened again.

Jack's stomach twisted when his mother stepped in. She was carrying a medium sized box, and when she tried to step closer to Jack, he couldn't help stepping back. June's expression creased in hurt, but she sighed.

"I get why you wouldn't want me near you." She admitted quietly, and set the box on the bed. "Just don't eat it all at once."

'If I can eat it at all', Jack thought, but just nodded. He tried to smile, but it felt more like a grimace. "Thanks."

"I'll be back with more if you need it. Don't be afraid to ask." She said, keeping her distance. She looked to Ratchet, who already had the groundbridge ready for her to leave.

"I'm sorry Ms. Darby, but I can't risk having a contagion on my hand." He said regrettably.

"And him?" She pointed to Smokescreen accusingly, the mech feigning a hurt expression.

"About to be kicked out of the medbay as well." Ratchet glared at the new recruit, who really did flinch this time, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"Come on, Ratch, you can't really blame me for wanting to make sure Jack's okay, can you?" Smokescreen asked.

Ratchet glowered at the mech. "Perhaps not, but I can think it was completely reckless of you to come back here. Now get!"

Smokescreen frowned, expression indignant as he grumbled while he left the room. June watched him go, and looked back at Jack.

"I'll be okay mom. Promise." He said before she too, left, looking troubled and conflicted. He certainly couldn't blame her- he was on the verge of another panic attack and had to remind himself that he could hurt someone if he lost control of his emotions again.

The only faint silver lining was that Jack now knew his panic could get this dust to fall, but that didn't mean much if he kept almost freaking out. Jack breathed in deeply. 'Okay, calm down, Jack', he told himself. He carefully reached into the box and pulled out a jello cup and spoon. Jack grimaced; his fingers ripped the top off, plastic edges and all. Jack sighed and scooped up a small bites worth.

Closing his eyes, Jack gulped it down. He blinked as he could feel it sliding down his throat more acutely than in his human body. He found Ratchet peering down at him, and Jack could almost guess he was waiting for something to happen. Aside from his stomach grumbling, nothing did. Jack took another two bites, and set the cup down.

"I guess this means I can still eat food." He said.

"I do not recommend trying to eat solid yet." Ratchet replied.

Jack snorted. He watched Ratchet put the slides into a machine, and text he couldn't understand began to glide across it. "What is this?"

"It's the information regarding the samples provided." Ratchet said. "The material is being broken down and processed. There should at least be a comprehensive list in…" he paused thoughtfully, "perhaps in two hours. I will see about finding you a spot you may rest in."

Jack barely stuttered out his 'okay' before the medic left. The room seemed more oppressive than it had before, and he sat down on the bed. Jack gritted his teeth as despite the hum of machinery, he couldn't hear any other sound. Panic creeped up his spine, and Jack hopped off the bed, pacing as he rubbed his arms. "No, calm down, you have to keep calm."

"Calm..." he muttered again, much lower this time. 'What if I'm stuck like this forever?' He wondered, mood sinking. 'What if I have to stay away from people and live the rest of my life in a box?!"

Jack's thoughts grew progressively worse as the minutes rolled by in the empty room. Thoughts running rampant as they were he almost didn't notice when the door opened again.

"Ratchet-" he said on reflex, expecting the medic to have returned with early results when he came face with the barrel of a gun. His eyes crossed, mind taking a moment to process what was happening when followed the barrel to its owner; the doctor that had been so adamant on retrieving his 'samples'.

"Scream and I'll shoot." He threatened, voice low and dangerous. When Jack said nothing he continued speaking. "Here's how this is going to go. You're going to come with me, we're going to leave this base and I'm going to call in pick up once we're out of range."

"Where are the others?" Jack dared to ask, hands clenching.

"Asleep, courtesy of a little knock out gas while the Autobots are off base. Now move." Jack didn't though. He had no idea who this was or even if he were telling the truth. Optimus could be outside the door for all he knew. His refusal to obey angered the 'doctor' it seemed, who brought out a small square device with a single button. "I suggest you move or quite a few people are going to be in several pieces very soon. Your mother included."

He couldn't hear after that, his insides filling with icy dread that sunk into his stomach.

It happened in an instant. The gun went off when Jack smacked it out of his hand and landed harmlessly on the ground. Then Jack was on top of him, his weight pinning the double crosser to the floor with metal hands wrapped around his throat.

On some level Jack was aware of the dust seeping from his fingers and into his would be kidnapper's jugular. He could sense it when it spread into his skin, then his veins and soon throughout his entire body, aware of the gradual shift from organic to techno organic. But Jack didn't stop there- he forced it to go further, deeper.

Slowly the struggles stopped. The doctors skin darkened into a metallic hue, as did his hair, body gradually becoming rigid.

Jack's eyes widened as he backed away up. He stared down at his hands, the dust falling onto the floor. What…what did I just do?

His breathing was sluggish, feeling as though he had tried to outrun Bumblebee in his alt. Hunger gnawed at his insides, famished from...whatever that was.

The doctor didn't move from where he lay on the floor, light glistening off his form, fixed into place. It was almost like he was...he was...

Jack vomited off to the side as realization dawned him.

I killed someone, I killed someone! Jack repeated to himself, horrified. His stomach cramped, and his hands shook he collapsed to his knees. That man was trying to kidnap him and threatened to kill his mother, but Jack had just killed someone.

Jack stared down at his hands, his stomach churning further at the sight of the dust spilling on the ground from his hands. It won't stop, why won't it stop?! he coughed, hunching over as he spat out the disgusting taste of vomit in his mouth. The panic didn't go away. What am I going to do?

It had to stop, or more people would end up hurt, would die because of him!

Nothing he did could subside the shaking though or how mines of infectious grey dust were forming on the ground. Occasionally it would move in sync with his hands or fingers, jerking upward, then down and to the sides.

It terrified him of just what he could do. He was willing to stick it out until Ratchet could determine if this was reversible, but now…Jack wrapped his arms around himself. He'd suspected the dust wouldn't affect him, and saw how it harmlessly fell from his metallic skin. He hugged himself tightly. 'It was self-defence', he told himself. Though it did not lessen the guilt, it made the dust stay on his hands than continuing forming a pile around him.

'I need to find someone, I need to make sure the bots are okay,' Jack didn't know how he was supposed to do that without leaving the room, but he glanced at the console still running. He held his hands in front of him. Just for a moment, he needed to calm down long enough to use it to comm. someone.

"Is anyone there?" He asked as he skimmed through the video feed, hoping to be heard on any of them. The room full of unconscious medics and Fowler proved that at least some of what his assailant said was true. He needed to find someone awake, inform them of the possibility of there being a live bomb on the base and the...mess behind him.

"Hey!" he shouted into the feed. "Wake up! Someone, please wake up!" his voice cracked on the last word, and he brought his arms back as the dust began to appear on his hands again. He stifled his panic as best he could, just enough to get the dust to disappear.

"Huh? Wha-what happened?" A medic's groggy voice asked, a form moving just near the screen. A hand came onto the console, and a tired medic pulled herself up. Her eyes widened into awareness when she saw him.

Jack couldn't be more relieved. "Wake Fowler up! Someone put a bomb in the base!" Her eyes widened further. "And-" Jack's heart seized, "someone has to check on my mom. I think she might be in danger. Please, hurry!"

The medic nodded as she pulled herself up right to stand on her feet. She tried to look authoritative despite how uneasy she carried herself. "Alright, just calm down. I'm doing what you said, okay?" she wobbled, probably an effect of the gas, and knelt beside Fowler to shove his shoulder. "Get up, sir! There's an emergency, a bomb is on base!"

Fowler mumbled something as he came back to awareness slowly. Suddenly, his eyes shot open as he woke up. "What did you just say?!"

"A bomb sir-" The woman said again as Fowler jumped up with speed Jack hadn't known him to be capable of.

"What?!" Fowler shouted, clutching his head as the dizziness got to him. "A bomb? How?"

"You had a double agent with you." Jack said, catching Fowlers attention. The man snapped his head in the direction of his voice.

"Jack. How did you-"

"He came in here with a freaking gun and tried to kidnap me." Jack said. "He said there was a bomb planted here and threatened my mom. I-I got so angry that-that…" Jack's hands shook, and he clenched his fists. "Just sweep the base for it." He hesitated in adding about the dead body, and told himself the Autobots might be more equipped to deal with it. "And check on my mom."

"What about the traitor-" The medic tried to ask, but Jack cut her off with a bleak, "It's taken care of it."

Both the medic and Fowler looked at each other, and Fowler rubbed his brow. "You sure you can get a hold of the bots?"

Jack glanced down at the console, not showing how relieved he was Fowler didn't pry- for now at least. "Yes. I'm sure I can get in touch with one of them."

"Then do it." Fowler said.

Jack nodded, and let the connection die before trying to get in contact with an Autobot.

Jack attempted contact with Ratchet first, as the medic had said he was going to be looking over the samples before he left roughly an hour ago now. To his great disappointment Ratchet did not answer.

"C'mon, where are you?! You never leave the base!"

Jack would be pulling his hair if he had any. "Of all the times for you to take a break!" he switched over to Arcee, but his heart thudded as she didn't answer either. Jack gritted his teeth. "If she's not answering, then no one else out looking for Airachnid might either." His stomach dropped as he called Smokescreen. "This is pretty much a long shot, but I've got no options left." He muttered as he waited to see if the rookie would answer.

"Smokescreen here. Whatcha need Ratchet-" The bot answered jovially. His slightly smirking expression turned to one of confusion when he saw Jack on the screen.

"Jack? Where's Ratchet? Why isn't he there?" Smokescreen asked, confusion growing.

"I don't know where he is, but you need get back here right now!" Jack said. "Or try and find him or-or-" Jack clutched the side of his head, heart thudding even more in his chest as panic rose. "I just don't know what to do! I'm tired of having to be calm all the time!"

"Maybe you should calm-" Smokescreen cut off when Jack glared at him. "Or maybe I won't finish that. Just…breathe?" he asked more tentatively. "You can still do that, right? Just breathe, and tell me what's going on."

"I..." He was shaking now, hand clutching his other arm anxiously. "I killed someone Smokescreen." He whispered, barely able to say the words.

Smokescreen's optics widened, but he nodded slowly. "Okay." He said calmly.

Jack glared at him. "How can you just say 'okay'!"

"I'm not saying it's not a big deal, just…you're talking to someone whose been in a war." Smokescreen replied. "I've killed bots, it's something no one on this team can say they haven't done."

"You're a rookie though, how can you be so…calm about this?" Jack whispered. "I got so mad-and he threatened my mom and everyone-and-and-"

"Jack," Smokescreen cut in, his expression unusually serious, "you need to keep it together. I felt the same way-I almost broke down right in the middle of it. You can deal with it later, but not right now. Right now, you can't panic."

Jack opened his mouth, where it hung for a moment before closing it with a metallic click. Smokescreen was right. He couldn't fall to pieces now.

"Now what happened?" Smokescreen insisted. A security breach in the base meant their location was compromised, putting them all at risk.

Jack's panic was drowned out with irritation. It wasn't a good coping mechanism right now, but he'd rather be angry than scared. "One of those doctors that examined me was a traitor. They tried to kidnap me and planted a bomb on base somewhere. Fowler and the others were hit with a knock out gas and I got them to wake up and are now sweeping the base for it. I need you to get back here ASAP. Ratchet's not answering, and neither are the other Autobots."

"What? Where did they go?" Smokescreen asked incredulously.

Jack furrowed his brow, but remembered why Smokescreen had been the last option. "Everyone else went after Airachnid."

"Oh, that explains why they'd want radio silence." Smokescreen muttered. "No distractions."

"Can you please just get back here?" Jack pressed.

Smokescreen nodded. "Alright, I'll be back in no time."

Just a little, Jack found himself relieved. "Okay."

Communications cut off then, Jack letting out a weary sigh. His eyes turned to the mess of metal behind him, causing him to scowl in anger.

"Who were you working for?" He asked aloud, receiving no answer from the corpse. Jack rubbed the palm of his hand against his head. This had been a long day.

Could it be MECH? There hadn't been any activity from them since Silas disappeared, and Jack had hoped it meant that organization was gone for good. Could it be some unknown? Jack thought that was worse, at least with MECH they knew what they'd be dealing with.

"Jack!" Fowler's voice cut through the air, just outside the door but it didn't open. That was for the best.

Jack climbed down from the console and hurried over to the door. "What?"

"We found the bomb, and I got a squad going over to your mother's house!" Fowler shouted back.

"Thank god." Jack breathed out, some of the stress ebbing away. "Was anyone else hurt?"

"No. Everyone is a-okay other than some lingering sluggishness." Fowler informed. "I'll let you know as soon as we get word out about your mother. Stay there and sit tight alright?"

"Not like I can go anywhere." Jack muttered to himself, but raised his voice, "Alright!"

Fowler's steps echoed as he walked away, voices overheard. Likely the rest of the personnel talking over the situation with him. Jack glanced at the door, but walked away as well and began pacing. His feet clanged loudly against the floor, but pacing did help keep his stress down. It didn't stop him from feeling useless, despite how untrue that was.

Didn't stop the feelings from surfacing though.

He glanced down at his hands, mind going over what had happened. The exact details were a little hard to grasp, angry and fearful as he had been, but it made him wonder what more he could do. The dust had done more than leak out as a reaction to his own panic when he had attacked the man. It seemed almost instinctual in the way it responded.

Jack wondered if he should be worried about that too, but he supposed it was a moot point. He needed to control it, and the quicker the better. He didn't want this, and glanced at the metal corpse lying on the floor, again.

He would get better at this, no matter what. Or those around him would suffer the consequences.

---

After what felt like days, and for all he knew it could have been, Jack stared at his hands. He furrowed his brow as he concentrated on making the dust flakes appear. His mind was distracted by the mess that happened earlier. He was left with a sense of relief though, because his mother was safe. Ratchet had gone to see her about what Jack could eat, and just missed the squad sent to kidnap her. Fowler's agents rushed the house and managed to capture them, but so far there was no word about who they worked for.

The big thing was that once the dust settled, Fowler had reluctantly relayed that due to his...dust being confirmed as deadly, it made the government higher ups nervous. So nervous that for the time being Jack was labelled a walking biohazard. Jack was to be quarantined to the Autobot base, unable to leave or see anyone. Or anyone coming to see him. Jack's stomach twisted; he hadn't even been able to see his mother was safe with his own eyes.

The rest of the Autobots were still out hunting for Airachnid when this happened, so it was a very awkward time explaining what went down as they got back to rest before heading out.

Not as suffocating as being locked up in the base. Ratchet was still trying to decipher what his apparent CNA meant, but there was something harried and twitchy about him whenever Jack was around. Arcee always looked guilty when she saw him, while Bulkhead and Bumblebee didn't seem to know how to interact with him now. Optimus seemed even more reserved, almost distant.

Jack tried not to think about how this had to do with his transformation, or that he was lethal. Either reason was enough to make him guilty and uncomfortable. It was why right now he was trying his best to control this dust that appeared during stressful or angry moments. He never wanted to freak out so badly that the flakes didn't stop.

It was not coming along though. Not well, anyway. Getting the dust to appear was harder when he wanted it to appear, it seemed. Jack sighed, and slumped to the floor, glowering down at his hands.

"Argh! Why is this so hard?!" He shouted out into the empty room, throwing his hands to the side. If he ever wanted to leave this room again he needed to have complete control over this...whatever it was! To prove to others that he wasn't going to be a biological threat to the rest of the population.

It didn't help that he grew anxious when thinking about what Miko and Raf were up to. If they were even still hanging out with the bots, futilely trying to ignore how desperately he wanted to talk to another human being. Hell, he'd take Vince at this point.

'Am I ever going to be able to leave at all? Jack thought. Being around the Autobots had lost its charm a while ago, and now he as only left with the rising realization that everything was messed up. The option of Ratchet even being able to find a cure to this becoming slimmer and slimmer with each passing day.

Jack slammed his fists against the wall, hunching over as he breathed heavily. His heart was pounding, and his teeth gritted as he noticed the flakes sliding from his hands to the wall. Jack stepped back, focusing on his anger as he tried to get it to stay flat. It didn't work, and the dust spiked and ebbed to his mood.

"Why can't I just get this one thing going for me!" Jack shouted. He flinched as the dust expanded further along the wall, and it showed no signs of stopping. "No-no-nononono!" he rushed up to the wall, and began patting it down. His panic only increased as the dust refused to settle. He could feel frustration and terror. "Come on, come on, go down!"

"Jack? You okay in there?" Smokescreen's voice sound muffled just outside the door.

"Uh, I'm-I'm fine!" Jack replied, his voice cracking.

"You don't sound fine, I can come in if you want-"

"No!" Jack snapped. "It's not safe-" he cut himself off, wincing as it did nothing to sooth his panic. "I just-I just-can't deal with anything right now."

Smokescreen was silent for a minute. "Wanna talk? I know I'm not the best person, but, I haven't seen you in almost two days. It can get pretty lonely being by yourself."

Jack's eyes widened a touch, realizing that he'd missed a bot in his assessment. Despite everyone else treating him differently, Smokescreen had been the only one trying to reach out. His brow furrowed as the dust began settling, and he didn't understand why talking to Smokescreen helped him, but at this point just to get the dust to decrease he'd take it.

"I...alright..." He said, still feeling a little unsure about Smokescreen being here, but unwilling to turn down an actual conversation with another living being that wasn't about data and Airachnid. "So, uh...how's the outside world been? Miko still up to her usual antics?"

"Like you wouldn't believe." Smokescreen replied. "She keeps trying to sneak around the base to look for you." his voice faltered, and Jack frowned. "She and Raf know what the situation is...which was really awkward to explain."

"I bet." Jack muttered. He breathed in deep. He was glad Miko actually seemed to care about him, but he didn't think it would be a good thing if she actually managed to find him. He couldn't leave until he had his dust under control. "How did they react?"

"Miko thought it was cool. No one had the spark to burst her bubble." Smokescreen said. "Raf was worried."

"I...bet." Jack repeated, softer this time. "And...did anyone say what excuse the government gave to explain my disappearance?"

"That you caught some sort of deadly, highly contagious disease and needed to be quarantined until further notice." Smokescreen's mouth then twitched into a small smile. "At least that's what they're telling me. Miko and Raf are apparently reaffirming the story to anyone who asks in town."

Jack was a bit surprised that people would ask about his disappearance, but he supposed as it was a small town it made sense. It still caught him off guard though. His panic settled, and the dust stopped behaving erratically at least. "Don't I feel popular." he drawled.

"So, if you won't let me come in, how are you doing in there?" Smokescreen asked.

Jack frowned as he thought of his answer, eying the dust that was deceptively calm.

"...bored. And that's putting it mildly." He sat down, crossing his legs and tapping the metal. "There's not much to do here besides surfing though the web and that gets old after awhile."

"...there's a computer in there?" Smokescreen asked incredulously.

Jack smiled slightly to himself. "No, I found out my body is more tech than just my appearance. It was weird at first, seeing the internet from inside my head." he sighed deeply. "It's unfair, really. I can pick up on using the internet like this but I can't get this dust under control."

"Maybe you're just used to the internet more?" Smokescreen asked, sounding more like he was throwing it out there, if his confusion was anything to go by.

"Maybe." Jack said dubiously. "I know there's no instant expertise to anything, but I thought I could have gotten this dust to turn off by command. Turns out getting it turned on is just as hard to do."

Smokescreen was silent for a moment, but snickered. "Turned on." he repeated, his snickering turning into laughter.

Jack's face heated, grimacing. "You're so immature. Seriously, how old are you?"

"Thousands of years old." Smokescreen retorted.

"Well you act more like a teenager." Jack huffed.

"Hey, if you're referring to those pranks, you had just as much fun as I did." Smokescreen replied.

"Right up until I nearly got blasted into atoms by an Insecticon." Jack retorted dryly.

"Hey, we held our own out there." Smokescreen said.

Jack snorted. "Which life-threatening scenario are referring too? I seem to recall the both of us running away and trying not to get shot or stomped on."

"Like I said, we held our own." Smokescreen repeated, a more teasing edge in his voice.

Jack shook his head, smiling despite himself. If only for a moment, he could pretend that nothing was wrong. All it took was looking down and seeing his hand to change that, however. Sighing deeply, Jack frowned. "I don't know how much more of this I can take."

Smokescreen frowned on the other side.

"I can't imagine being stuck in there all day. You can't leave at all?"

"Well..." Jack trailed off. "It's...complicated. I'm not allowed to leave the base, but I can't stand the thought of hurting anyone by accident so I just...decided it was better to lock myself in here until I learned how to control this dust."

"And you haven't left since...?" Smokescreen trailed off as well, leaving it open for Jack to fill it.

Honestly though, Jack had lost track of time. "I'm not sure." he admitted. He couldn't deny that being treated differently by the Autobots was part of the reason for his self-imposed exile. "I just want this dust to finally give and I can..." he got quiet, because he wasn't sure what to do after that. "I can...what's the point? What if I can't be human again? What if I can't control this dust and I'm always scared of hurting someone?!"

It was something that hadn't crossed his mind before now- even if he got this under control, what left was there for him? He couldn't ever lead a normal life again, couldn't go to school, have a job or meet someone...Was his whole life going up in smoke? 'What life?' Jack thought despairingly.

"Jack?" Smokescreen called for him, worried when the teen fell silent. Jack stared at the wall, frowning as he slumped over. "If you don't answer, I'm coming in." Smokescreen said.

Jack almost jumped. "What?!" he shouted. "Don't you dare!"

"Well you got quiet, and I was getting worried." Smokescreen said, his voice concerned.

Jack blinked slowly. "I was silent for a minute."

"Still worried out here." Smokescreen retorted.

Jack rubbed his brow. "Well, I'm just...thinking how messed up my life is."

"Oh." Was Smokescreens simple reply, the mech rubbing the back of his neck cables.

"Yeah. I just...what am I supposed to do now when I can't even pretend that I'm still human?" Jack sighed heavily, shoulders drooping. "Unless I'm covered from head to toe there's no way I could even go back into town."

"Well, maybe that wouldn't work," Smokescreen said, an idea forming in his mind, "but you could still go out. Like...maybe when its dark out? And you're...covered up?" he said, feeling somewhat foolish for bringing it up, but didn't want to stop just yet until he got it all out. "It probably wouldn't hold up in town, but you could still go out and enjoy it? Like...maybe to a drive-in? Do people here do that? I-I see those parking lots around, but I've never actually been to one before so I wouldn't know-uh, yeah." he stopped, feeling even more awkward.

Jack didn't dismiss it out of hand, because he didn't want to think there was nothing for him anymore. "I can't exactly become my own car." he drawled. "And I think everyone else is still too weird around me to do it."

"Well, when you get your dust under control...maybe I could take you there?" Smokescreen offered.

Jack stared at the door, a bit stunned.

"I...what?" Jack stammered, bewildered by the offer. "You'd do that?"

"Sure I would!" Smokescreen said. "I get that you're going through some stuff, and I just thought you'd like to take off for a night, just to- I don't know, not worry about anything?"

Jack smiled slightly. It hadn't gone unnoticed that to him Smokescreen said 'when' he could control his dust. "You...really are something."

"I hope that's not a bad thing." Smokescreen replied.

"Nah. It's not." Jack chuckled. "It's...refreshing. Thanks for coming to talk to me Smokescreen."

"No big deal. Had some free time, thought you might want someone to talk too." He replied casually. "Talking through this door has been a better conversation than I've had with the others lately. They're all 'Track down Airachnid' and Arcee's all 'I'm going to be the one to take her down'. It's gotten pretty old."

Despite how inappropriate it was to laugh at the current situation, Jack couldn't help snickering at the inflections Smokescreen's voice took on. He was still immensely angry at Airachnid though, and would very much like her to be taken down again. "Maybe so, but just think; once she's caught things can get back to..." he reconsidered using 'normal'. "Things will just settle down."

"Then do you want me to let you get back to your training?" Smokescreen asked.

"Yeah," Jack said, "but at least now I've got some incentive to get it right."

"Well don't I feel special then." Smokescreen said with a smirk.

"Yeah, yeah. Don't let it get to your head, rookie." Jack stood up, stretching out his limbs to get out any tension that was there. Could he still get that? 'No, not the time,' he scolded himself, 'I will get this down!'

"I guess I'll see you around then." Smokescreen paused. "For real, next time."

"Yeah." Jack called back, and he could hear the bot's footsteps growing fainter as he walked away. Jack breathed in deep, and looked down at his hands, then to the dust still on the wall. A determined glint appeared in his eyes. 'I will get this down, no matter how much longer it takes,' he repeated, a renewed energy filling him.

Goal in mind and determined to see it through, Jack worked tirelessly that night and many to come until the day finally came that he was able to manipulate the dust with a gesture of his hand. It was small, minute even, but it was progress. With great concentration he was even able to leak the metallic grey substance from his hands at will in small amounts.

He wouldn't deny being immensely proud of this admittedly small, but important, accomplishment. He knew there was still making it settle down to work on, but soon enough he would get there. He only applied that same concentration to making the dust settle, without expanding or moving. Making it disappear all-together proved to be a challenge. It could be controlled though, and he discovered to his surprise that to make the dust disappear, he needed to reabsorb it.

It was eerie to watch the dust settle onto his metallic skin, and sink back into his hands and arms like it was never there. Perhaps he could recall it doing the same in the beginning, but that was when he had no control. Now he was starting too, and he hoped it wouldn't be long before he finally felt confident enough to step foot outside this room.

Then the slow and arduous task of taking back all of the dust came, which in the duration he had been here, had taken over most of the room. Jack felt a bit embarrassed by this and wondered how bad of an outbreak this stuff would have caused had he been outside at the time of its release. Probably enough to infect the whole of Jasper if it spread like a regular virus or if the victims released the substance after being infected.

"I guess hiding myself in here was good for something." he said to himself.

"Now, let's see what I can do..." He said to himself, placing a hand against a particularly large mound of metallic dust. Nothing happened for the first few seconds

Jack's brow furrowed deeply as he concentrated, willing the substance to pull back into his body. The sweet satisfaction when it began drawing into his body left Jack feeling ecstatic with the accomplishment.

Using this as leverage, Jack quickly moved on to another part of the room. He laid his hand against the floor, concentrating once more as the dust slid back up his arm and faded into his skin. He began to feel tired by the end of it, and on instinct he wiped his brow, even though he knew there was nothing there. He did eat more of the jello cups he still had, and it gave him a boost to finish clearing out the last of the dust.

The room looked as though nothing had ever been amiss, which was exactly how Jack wanted it.

He looked at the door, and knew it was time to stop hiding from everyone.

Jack's hands curled and relaxed anxiously, teaching deep, slow breaths as he approached the door. Pressing in the code, it opened for the first time in weeks.

On first glance, no one was around, but he didn't expect there to be. Jack nervously stepped outside, breathing deeply as he shifted, feeling awkward. If he found anyone, what was he going to say? I was scared, sorry for disappearing? Logically, Jack knew if they thought he'd disappeared there would be a bigger fuss, and given Smokescreen knew where to find him, the others were probably giving him space. Though from how they were treating him too, they likely wanted just as much time to process what happened.

He couldn't blame them but he a small, selfish part of him did. It wasn't like who he was had changed. Just…everything else.

Jack almost wished that everyone was out of the base, but he wouldn't be that lucky. And really, it was better to deal with whatever awkwardness this caused now rather than later. With that in mind, Jack made his way down the hall, taking in the wideness and height of the walls. It was amazing that a few weeks locked away could make him miss even the walls.

He came to the command room, and peered around at the empty space until he found Ratchet standing at the console. The medic was looking at the screen, completely oblivious to anything else. 'Might as well get this over with.' Jack thought. "Ratchet?"

The medic had a start, pressing in multiple keys and causing the console to blare loudly. "Jack?" He exclaimed once he turned around and saw the teen clasping his hands over his ears from the alarm that was still ongoing. Ratchet whipped around, typing in a code to shut it down.

Jack slowly removed his hands once the piercing wail ceased. He smiled awkwardly. "Uh...long time no see?"

"Long time no-that's all you can say?" Ratchet asked incredulously. "You've been holding yourself up in that room for weeks!"

"Well it's not like any one tried to talk to me." Jack muttered. He held himself together though. "Okay, so we all sort of messed that up. It is nice to see you again."

Ratchet narrowed his optics, but vented heavily. "I suppose it is." He said eventually. "How have you been feeling? Have you relapsed?"

"I've gotten it under control actually." Jack felt a little insulted by the brow Ratchet rose. "Seriously." Jack insisted. He held out his hand, and concentrated on making the dust appear on his palm.

"Jack!" Ratchet jerked back. "What do you think you're-"

"It's fine." Jack cut him off, and focused on making the dust fade back into his skin. "See?"

Ratchets expression was a mix of shock and incredulity, but also a bit impressed.

"And you have this...ability...mastered?"

Jack rubbed the back of his neck. "I can control it." He said evasively. "I don't know about mastered, but I'm kinda hoping I have." Ratchet didn't seem to like the sound of that. One untimely outburst... "Anyway, I was kind of hoping to see the others." Jack persisted, looking to the groundbridge. "Are they out on a mission?"

"Yes." Ratchet replied. "Most, anyway. They have managed to locate Airachnid's signal and are out currently tracking her location."

Jack nodded. "Good. I hope they catch her so she doesn't do this to anyone else."

"About that, while looking over your CNA, I have found that without the metallic contribution…you…wouldn't have survived." Ratchet said.

Jack's eyes widened. He knew Ratchet wasn't the most adept at a bedside manner, but seriously? "Really? You just thought dropping that on me right when I came out here was the best option?"

"Perhaps not, but it did gauge your reactionary functions." Ratchet nodded to the teen's hands. "You remained calm enough that no dust appeared. I needed to be sure you were stable."

Jack rubbed his hand down his face. "I don't believe this." He muttered, irritated with the medics attitude. Jack kept it cool though, not allowing his temper to get the better of him. "Well is there anyone else here then? Maybe they won't try and provoke me."

"I believe Smokescreen's hanging about the base, or is out driving. He's been assigned curbside duty to ensure Miko and Raf remain safe while they're not at base." He informed, watching Jack carefully now.

Jack wasn't sure why, but suspected he might not have been entirely convinced Jack could control himself. Frankly, Jack was even more insulted by that. "Thanks, I'll leave you be." He said, thinking of whether Smokescreen would be around right now.

"You do that." Ratchet said quietly, turning back to his work as Jack left. Heaving out a sigh, Jack went on to find Smokescreen.

'Well that was awkward.' Jack thought. He made his way down the hall, and stopped when he came across a crudely filled in hole. His heart thudded as he remembered all too well just where this came from. His fists clenched as he gritted his teeth, but he kept his head on straight. He side-stepped the hole, and continued marching on down the hall. If he was uncomfortable passing by this, he couldn't imagine no one else wasn't.

Soon enough, he came to the entrance hangar.

In it was Smokescreen practicing shadowboxing in the center of the room, unaware that Jack had walked in on him. With a growing grin he noted that the new recruit was rather enthusiastic about it, being unnecessarily flamboyant about the way he moved and attacked the invisible target.

Jack snickered quietly, and Smokescreen whirled around. His eyes widened on seeing Jack, and he flushed as his arms slacked to his side.

"How long have you been standing there?" he asked.

Jack shrugged. "Long enough."

Smokescreen looked distinctly embarrassed. "So you saw all that then, huh?"

"It wasn't bad," Jack said, "you actually looked like you were doing pretty good." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Uh huh." Smokescreen said skeptically. "Finally got tired of that room huh?"

"Like you wouldn't believe." Jack groaned. "But the good news is I finally managed to get that dust down so is not as risky for me to be out now."

Smokescreen's expression lit up, and he knelt down in front of Jack. "Really? That's awesome! Can you show me?"

Jack flushed, because honestly this was the reaction he hoped Ratchet would have. 'At least someone thinks I'm not a danger.' Although, Smokescreen hadn't said anything about that, but he was certainly reacting better than the medic had. "Sure, I guess."

Holding out his hands he produced the dust, a little be trickling out of his hands as there was a bit of an overflow. Before it had even touched the floor Jack was reabsorbing it back into his skin. Smokescreen's grin widened.

"Man that's awesome!" Smokescreen praised excitedly. "Looks like you don't have to hide around the base anymore. The others are gonna be thrilled with this!"

Jack's tentative grin turned into a frown. "Actually, I showed Ratchet and he wasn't exactly happy. I think it's because he's worried I might accidentally lose control." His voice lowered. "I…I did kill…someone." He whispered.

"In self-defence. Plus you saved a lot of lives." Smokescreen countered, causing Jack to look up.

"Well...yeah. I guess." Jack murmured.

"Besides, Ratchet's a medic. It's kind of his job to be overly paranoid, ain't it?"

Jack rubbed the back of his neck. "I suppose it is. It's just I thought he wouldn't be as…suspicious of me." He looked down at his hands. "Then again, I've been gone for so long even I feel awkward." He rubbed his arm next. "I can't imagine how everyone else is going to react to me being out and about now."

Smokescreen tilted his head. "Well in any case, you got me in your corner." He leaned his fist down, and Jack stared incredulously at him.

"Are you…asking for a fist-bump?" he asked.

Smokescreen shrugged sheepishly. "Yes?"

Jack blinked, but then he chuckled and shook his head. "This is so corny." He snickered, but his face flushed as he realized Smokescreen was trusting him to touch him-that he believed Jack really did have his power under control. There was a moment of hesitation before Jack touched his fist against Smokescreens, the teen grinning as he did so. He was more than relieved when nothing happened, and Smokescreen grinned back. "So how's guard duty been?" Jack asked.

"You mean babysitting, right?" Smokescreen retorted. "Not bad, actually. Miko's kind of wild for sure, but Raf is so nice."

"That sounds about right." Jack said. "Though be glad you don't have hair. I was almost tearing mine out when she'd get into trouble." He flinched as he realized he no longer had hair, no longer had much of anything outside. Jack quickly switched the subject. "What color are my eyes?"

Smokescreen looked a bit startled by the out of nowhere question. He still went along with it though, if a bit bemused. "They're blue."

"So they're the same?" He stared down at his arms and legs, noting how pretty much nothing was the same as it had been. It was good to know that at least one thing had been retained.

Smokescreen nodded. "Yeah."

"That's a relief." Jack muttered. He placed a hand on his chest. For all he knew, the beat of his heart could be a deceptively active spark. Then again, his blood had energon in it too. His outside was totally metallic, but his insides had to be partially organic at least.

"Hey, you okay? You look kind of…moody now." Smokescreen said.

Jack raised a brow. "My whole life has just completely changed, I think I get a free pass."

"Well I guess it wouldn't help for me to say 'cheer up, you're alive!'" Smokescreen said awkwardly. It didn't make Jack feel any better, but even with such a feeble attempt to make him feel better was something to be grateful for. It meant he cared at least.

"Not really." Jack admitted. "Though I wouldn't say no to going out later," his face flushed, "hang out, I meant hang." He rubbed his neck. "Now I'm the awkward one here."

Smokescreen looked amused, but thankfully didn't comment on it. "I'm up for whatever you wanna call it."

"How about a drive?" Jack suggested. "You're probably pretty fast right? Could maybe even go for a race..."

The rookie's face broke out into another grin. "Now you're talking. I'm the fastest bot here, and I can leave every challenger in the dust!"

Jack snickered. "Wow, and so humble too." he said lightly. "I'll just need something to cover up with."

"And probably getting around Ratchet." Smokescreen said. "Think he'd notice we were both gone for a few hours?"

"How long did you say you were going to train?"

"Few hours. Been going at it for an hour now." Smokescreen said.

"Then we can have an hour before he gets suspicious. Hour and a half at most."

Smokescreen clapped his hands together. "Then we better find you a sheet or something."

"A sheet?" Jack asked in disbelief.

Smokescreen gestured to him. "Well it's not like your old clothes might have fit you. And they're kind shreds at this point. Or your plating would have done that-the point is, you willing to go out covered in a sheet?"

"And what, look like a ghost with two eye-holes poked through it?" Jack asked.

"I have no idea what that is." Smokescreen retorted blithely.

Jack was about to explain, but knew it would take too long. "Okay, lets find a sheet or something."

"Alright, let's get going then!" Smokescreen scooped Jack up, much to his surprise, and started toward the human quarters to acquire said sheet.

Jack gripped Smokescreen's hand, his face heated by how trusting the rookie was. It sent a warm feeling through him, and he wondered on some level if it was just because he'd lacked contact with anyone during his self-imposed exile. He bit his lip as he thought of getting caught. "We are in so much trouble if Ratchet catches us. I'm not supposed to leave the base."

"Can't get in trouble if you're being watched, right?" Smokescreen asked. "Well, I'll get in trouble, but what else is new?" he shrugged. "You just-" he paused, and seemed a bit tentative to continue, "you just looked like you needed to get out of here for a little while. What's wrong with that?"

Jack smiled slightly. "Nothing at all."

"Yeah. So no more of this 'we're getting caught' talk." Smokescreen told him, setting Jack down to retrieve the item from the human rooms. Jack couldn't help but feel ridiculous when he tore the sheet off and wrapped it around himself.

"Oh yeah...this is foolproof..." He groaned, tightening the folds around his body.

Smokescreen huffed as he reached down to pull the top of the sheet over Jack's head. "Now it is." He said cheekily. Jack shook his head, dislodging the sheet.

"I hope no one does see me for my sake." He wobbled as he was picked up again.

"Come on, it looks…nice." Smokescreen seemed to try and be sincere, but a smile threatened to break out. "You pull it off better than I could."

"Probably because the only sheet that could fit you would be a fumigation tent." Jack drawled.

Smokescreen shifted Jack to one hand so he could place the other hand on his chest. "Oh, right in the spark."

"Alright drama queen, lets get going before Ratchet catches us for real." Jack nudged the mechs hand, rolling his optics at the display.

Smokescreen chuckled, and hurried back to the entrance. He set Jack down carefully before transforming into vehicle mode. "Hop in." he said popping open the driver's side door.

Jack grinned and slid into the seat. The door closed, but Smokescreen wasn't going anywhere. "Uh, you forget how to start up?"

"No." Smokescreen said offended. "I'm waiting for you to put on your seatbelt."

Jack blinked, incredulous. "Are you serious? I'm made of metal!" he said, but Smokescreen's silence said enough. Jack sighed and pulled the seatbelt over him. "There, happy now-" he was cut off when Smokescreen zoomed out of the hangar.

"Whoa!" Jack yelped, thrown backwards into his seat at Smokescreen's sudden take off. "Warn a guy next time!" Jack snapped.

"Come on, Jack, where'd your sense of fun go?" Smokescreen asked.

"I think we left it back at the hangar along with my common sense." Jack said sardonically.

"Too late to turn back now." Smokescreen said.

Jack groaned. This so wasn't a good idea... Still, as the base got further and further, Jack found himself trying to get used to it. The setting sun was across the horizon, and he raised his hand to shield his eyes. "As least tell me you got a destination in mind. I don't want to get in trouble for no reason."

"Oh, I got one in mind." Smokescreen said.

"Really? I didn't know that you knew any places around here yet."

"Well when you're doing curb duty it tends to get pretty dull. Sometimes I go for a drive around town when I'm bored."

Jack narrowed his eyes, a sinking suspicion in his gut. "And where did you find a good place to race?"

"This outskirts of town, bunch of hot-headed teenagers joying riding. Didn't even notice anything off about me." Smokescreen said.

Jack almost choked. "You talked to them? What if they saw you didn't have a driver?"

"I tinted my windows." Smokescreen said smugly.

Jack rolled his eyes. "That's so not post." He grumbled loudly. "You take a lot of risks, you know that?"

"It's all a part of living." Smokescreen said. "Think of it as a plus. If I can get away with it, you can too!"

Jack slapped a hand over his face. "Unbelievable."

"It's going to be a blast! We're gonna show all those teens up!" Smokescreen said in a cocky tone, engine revving.

Jack still thought it was a bit reckless, but then again, taking the moment for freedom was reckless too. He smiled to himself, and decided just for now he would forget about the consequences. He just wanted to have fun, to feel normal again in some way. "Yeah, this is gonna be so much fun!"

"Now you're getting it!" Smokescreen shouted.

Jack grinned at the sensation of high speed, something he had sorely missed while stuck inside the base. "Faster Smokescreen!" He laughed, feeling ecstatic at seeing something as simple as the night sky and the road beneath them.

"You want it you got it!" Smokescreen whooped and Jack laughed as the rookie sped up.

The landscape around them was a blur, only the faintest traces of sunlight on the horizon before it winked out completely. The stars lit up the sky, but what became brighter in the distance was the lights of the cars for the street races.

"Okay, save your speed for the race, hot shot." Jack said.

Smokescreen huffed. "I can take 'em, no problem."

Jack smirked. "You say that now. Don't blame me if you get too cocky and they leave you in the dust."

"Uh, we're here together, remember?" Smokescreen retorted. "I lose, which means you lose too."

"I'm here with you, that's not a loss." Jack said. He blinked when Smokescreen got quiet, the vehicle slowing.

Almost timid, Smokescreen's voice grew self-conscious. "You really mean that? I know I can be…well, me all the time."

"Of course. Why wouldn't I?" Jack blinked, a tad confused. "You're just...a little more energetic than the other bots. Probably 'cause you're way younger."

"That's why though. Bumblebee acts so much more mature than I do, everyone thinks I'm even more of a kid though." Smokescreen said.

Jack blinked, but chuckled. "You think Bumblebee's mature. You have no idea how he behaved in the beginning. I got him to break the rules too, and just so happens we went to a race too." He rubbed the back of his neck. "That was-kinda my fault though."

Smokescreen was silent, as if stunned. "Seriously?" He said, sounding a touch impressed. "I'll have to ask him about that when we get back. What else did you do?"

"Nothing compared to what Miko does...she ran into a cave once and forced us to chase after her. Lucky us met Megatron and Starscream inside."

"Really? How'd you all manage to get out of that?" Smokescreen asked.

"A cave-in." Jack drawled. "We managed to all meet up, and left Megatron and Starscream in the dust. Unfortunately, they lived, as we all can see."

"That's a real shame, probably would have ended the war." Smokescreen said.

Jack's insides churned, and his palms prickled. He could see specks of dust appearing, and he closed his eyes to force it back under the skin. 'No, I won't let this control me.' He thought, and the dust disappeared. Smokescreen didn't know what he was saying, that the person he was unintentionally insulting was right here. "I thought that too…when I found Megatron buried under the rock."

Smokescreen swerved in surprise, and his tone was self-conscious in a more sheepish way. "Oh, really? Well, I'm sure you must have had a good reason."

"It's...I just thought...it wasn't something Optimus would do. Killing someone who has no way of defending themselves." Jack spoke softly, sounding almost ashamed of himself.

"Hey, I'm not saying I wish you would have done it. I'm just making a general complaint." Smokescreen said, and Jack thought rather cynically that he was back tracking. Still, it wasn't like he had wished the same thing. "And...well, it's not easy to kill someone. No matter what, you feel like scrap."

"Unless it's someone nasty?" Jack asked quietly.

"Unless it's someone nasty." Smokescreen replied. "Then you just feel sorry for yourself."

"Yeah...guess I can relate." Jack propped one hand under his chin, a little put out now.

There was a lull in the cabin, which was broken by the laughter and car engines that were coming in as they got closer to the designated race area. Jack couldn't stop himself from leaning back in the seat, shrinking into himself as these were kids he recognized from school. 'Well, it is a small town.' he thought, but realized how screwed he was if anyone recognized his voice. "Ah, crud. What am I supposed to say? Do I sound any different that they won't know its me?"

"Well...there's a bit of a twinge in your voice now if that's helps..." Smokescreen said.

Jack groaned, slapping a hand to his forehead. "Great." he muttered. "Think we can still pull this off? Your windows get dark enough that no one sees in, right?"

"Yeah, they do. Shouldn't be a problem really long as you don't roll down the windows or peek your head out or anything."

"Well, at least there's that." Jack replied. He glanced through the glass, his stomach twisting as he saw specific kids from his classes, and he breathed in heavily as he felt the twinge of despair again. He shook his head. 'No, don't lose it now. My life is not over, just...changed.' he thought, almost wryly.

"Hey, you okay?" Smokescreen asked, concerned. "You're a little stiff..."

"Huh? Oh, I'm..." Jack trailed off, thinking of how to phrase it. "Just really nervous about seeing everyone here."

"We can just go back to the base." Smokescreen offered. "I don't want you to be here if it makes you feel uncomfortable."

Jack blinked, but smiled as he relaxed slightly. It was amazing how not only Smokescreen could still act like himself around Jack even now, but how he was willing to help him so easily. "No, I wanted this too."

"If you're sure, just tell me if you change your mind."

Jack nodded, but said nothing more as they drove up to the 'track' where the other drivers were waiting. He heard a few catcalls and whistles.

Jack raised a brow, and wondered just how well-known Smokescreen was. His breath hitched as he spotted Vince storming up to Smokescreen, expression tight and cocky. Jack's palms itched, but he tried to keep himself calm.

"Ready to lose, loser?" he taunted.

Smokescreen's voice was remarkably level-headed, and Jack glanced around as the voice was centered in the cabin. "The day that happens is the day you come up with a good taunt." Jack bit his lip to prevent himself from snickering.

"What was that?" Vince said loudly, starting the attention of the other drivers.

"What, you deaf to? I thought you were just stupid."

Jack covered his mouth, cursing himself as well as stifling his snickering as Smokescreen's comebacks were beginning to make him crack up. He was screwed if they found him.

"Think you're so funny? You're the one pathetic enough to laugh at your own joke!" Vince snapped, face flushed in anger.

"I don't need to laugh, I know I'm funny." Smokescreen retorted.

"Hey, Vince, knock it off." Another racer called out. "Save it for after the race!"

Vince scowled, and poked the glass harshly. "You are so losing this race, got it?"

"You can say it, but I ain't gonna do it." Smokescreen retorted. "Now run along to your kiddie car."

Jack was grinning ear to ear by the time Vince walked away, so much so that his face was beginning to ache.

"Smokescreen, you're terrible." He cracked up, unable to stifle his laughter any longer.

"I know." Smokescreen said smugly. "Though might wanna pipe down before anyone gets suspicious."

Jack stifled his laughter, but the grin didn't fade. "I'm feeling better already. You know just how to cheer me up."

"Guess I'm lucky you like me so much." Smokescreen said.

"Sure sure." He patted the dashboard affectionately. "Now, are you ready to show these guys up at their own game?"

"Don't have to tell me twice." Smokescreen said. He pulled up into the driver's lane with the other cars all lined up. Jack took the time to look over each car, and grabbed the steering wheel.

"I know it's going to be you doing all the work, but I hope you don't mind me vicariously living through you." He said.

Smokescreen snickered. "Just buy me dinner, and we'll call it even." He said, and Jack blinked.

"Did you just hit on-"

"Uh, no! Not at all." Smokescreen said, his voice unusually flustered. "I was just teasing, you know? Too far?"

Jack narrowed his eyes, and smirked as he played along. "Just doesn't make sense. I can't exactly buy you anything."

"W-well it wasn't like I meant it that way-"

"Oh really?" Jack asked, keeping his tone carefully blank. "It's not like I haven't already lamented my 'lack of dating life'." He drawled.

"Uh..." Smokescreen stammered, mind drawing a blank.

"Ah, why are we even talking about this?" Jack reclined deeply of the seat. He forced a smile. "We're supposed to be having a good time here! Now wouldn't be the time or the place for it!"

"Y-yeah!" Smokescreen sounded relived this awkward conversation was ending.

The race was about to start, and Jack carefully wrapped his hands around his knees, or what passed for knees now, to avoid accidentally getting any dust on Smokescreen. He didn't want it to happen, but he wasn't sure if being excited was also a trigger.

For show, Smokescreen gunned his engine along with the other racers, and Jack couldn't help shaking his head. It's not like he wouldn't have done the same thing.

And then they were off, Jack's heart racing as the adrenaline hit him. The brief feeling of weightlessness when they hit the curve sent thrills through him.

He missed this, the thought came swift and so startling he had to consciously maintain his emotions. But it was true; the thrill, the speed, seeing the other cars left in the dust… "Is this how you always race?" Jack asked hoarsely. "I thought someone might have given you a challenge."

"Keeping them left in the dust is a challenge." Smokescreen said.

"Really?" Jack smirked. "Then why aren't you losing down?"

"It's a race." Smokescreen didn't add 'duh', but Jack could still hear it, and he snickered.

"So, this is you being a good sportsman?" Jack asked, looking at the side mirrors to see the other racers lagging behind.

"Yeah, what else would it be?" Smokescreen asked.

Jack snorted. "Glad to know you're so gracious."

"Hey when you're as great as I am it's good to have dinner humility!" He exclaimed, engine revving as he kicked it up a notch.

Jack laughed, falling against his seat as the rookie sped up, the vehicle kicking up dust. "How many races have you been in? Forget that, how have you never been caught? I'm honestly impressed."

"Impressed about which? Avoiding everyone back at base, or everyone here?" Smokescreen asked, his voice rising above his own engine.

Jack grinned. "Both."

"Takes some skill, but once you learn everyone's schedule it makes it a little easier." Smokescreen admitted without an ounce of shame. "As for these humans...well, they're not exactly up to speed if you catch my drift."

"Clearly, since you pull off the ventriloquist act so well." Jack said. He hunched into himself so absorb the shock when Smokescreen went over a hill, the vehicle bouncing on the tires. "I can already see the lights again."

"Aw, it's over already." Smokescreen said. "Still, it's been real fun hanging out with you, Jack."

"Likewise. Maybe we can do this again sometime?"

"That'd be awesome." Smokescreen replied. "I think everyone else might be out next week, how about then?"

"Sounds perfect." Jack smiled genuinely, patting the wheel. "You sure you can sneak out again?"

"Can I sneak out again?" Smokescreen repeated. "You bet I can!"

"I know I shouldn't be happy about undermining everyone at base, but they've just been treating me so differently." Jack sighed. "I'd like to think it's just this capturing Airachnid that has them on edge, but…" he trailed off, his mind torn between being happy Smokescreen won the race, but also on the other things which weren't going away.

"Well, capturing Airachnid will definitely take the edge off everyone." Smokescreen replied. "Though I don't think I can help you if it's not that; look at how they don't like me."

Jack opened his mouth to refute, to say he hadn't exactly endeared himself to anyone, but decided it was too petty. That kind of ribbing was saved for when they knew each other a little better. "I guess we can be outcasts together, huh? Or is that too corny?"

"Partners in crime! We're pretty much stuck with each other now." Smokescreen chuckled.

"I like the sound of that." Jack said, his smile returning. He looked back behind them to see the other racers, grin growing as he saw an enraged Vince slam his car door shut.

Vince stormed up to Smokescreen, slamming his fist against the window. "That's it, get out here now!" he snapped.

"Hey, man, what's your problem?" Another driver called out.

"There's no way this guy isn't cheating!" Vince shouted.

"Back off, I got nothing else to say to a sore loser!" Smokescreen retorted.

"Step out and say that to my face, cheat!" Vince demanded, grasping the door handle and pulling as hard as he could. Jack instinctive grabbed the door handle, but remembered that Smokescreen wouldn't have let someone break into his cabin. He let out a breath, but froze as Vince narrowed his eyes. "Is there someone else in there with you? I knew you had to be cheating!"

"How is cheating if I have a passenger?" Smokescreen asked in disbelief. "If anything, with the extra weight it's even more sad you couldn't beat me."

"You could have installed some illegal part to the car!" Vince insisted, hitting the glass again.

"To win some street level race?" Smokescreen asked. "I don't need illegal parts, I got raw talent. Maybe your problem is you customize your ride too much!"

Jack snickered as Vince's face went as red as his hair.

"Get out here and prove it then!" Vince snapped. "Or are you scared of being found out."

"Scared?" Smokescreen replied mockingly. Jack was startled as the hood came up. "Take a look, I got nothing to hide."

"What are you doing?" Jack asked, keeping his voice low enough so not to let anyone recognize him.

Smokescreen didn't answer him though, due to the other's presence.

Vince's scowl lightened to a smirk as he went over to the hood, lifting it all the way up to look at Smokescreens parts, his grungy hands clasped on the front of the car.

Jack could see just through the darkened windshield as Vince looked over the engine. He didn't know what Smokescreen was doing, but this was certainly a bold if reckless way of proving he wasn't a cheater. It was a tense few minutes before Vince slammed the hood down, scowling.

"Well?" Smokescreen prompted.

"This still doesn't prove anything." Vince retorted.

"Now you're just being petty." Smokescreen said. "Quit while you've still got what, a shred of dignity left?"

"Next time you won't be so lucky, cheat." Vince threatened, walking off back to his car in a fury.

Jack waited until Smokescreen had driven out of the racing area before cracking up. His chest heaved, holding his sides as he wheezed with laughter. "Oh man, that was awesome! You're like a Grade-A trash-talker."

"Gotta be, I can't get out of the car, so I gotta be able to back up my boasting." Smokescreen replied.

"So you trash talk someone at every race you've been?" Jack queried, raising a brow at the bot.

"No, but more often or not you get a sore loser like that last human. Got my window cracked more than once by a really angry human once. Took a lot of explaining to Ratchet to get out of that one..."

"I bet." Jack said. "It's surprising you haven't been busted."

"What can I say, I've got luck on my side." Smokescreen retorted.

Jack rolled his eyes, shaking his head. Smokescreen was just too much.

Still, he couldn't deny that this had been a nice time out. It was nice to leave the base, to not be cooped up and suffocating under the weight of everything that happened. To just for a little while feel...normal again. Jack wouldn't deny that he hoped there was a cure, that Airachnid's venom could be counteracted and Jack turned back into a regular human. But...if it didn't... it was too early to say he'd be happy about it, but...it was not the end of the world. He couldn't let those thoughts overtake him, no matter how much they threatened too.

Not when he knew doing so would hurt someone, if he lost control for a moment...Jack grimaced. He should be lucky he wasn't taken away and dissected like that rogue doctor tried to do.

He had it better than he might have had otherwise. The bots trusted him...at least a little...and the fact that the government had left him with the bots proved that they had some trust in the bots to keep him safe and safe from others.

"Uh, Jack?" Smokescreen called, breaking Jack out of his thoughts, and the teen blinked. "You got quiet again."

"Oh, it's nothing, just...thinking again." Jack waved it off, smiling to show it really was nothing to get worked up over. "Comes and goes, no big deal."

"I guess..." Smokescreen trailed off, likely unsure of how to respond. "Well, tonight was great, can't wait for next week."

Jack nodded, and saw the base coming up in the distance. "Let's hope we haven't been gone too long after all, or Ratchet's going blow a gasket if he sees we're both gone."

"Too true. Guy must have lost a screw or two after all his time in the war. Old guy is a little nuts, y'know?"

Jack shrugged noncommittally. He was about to answer, but they had already arrived back at the base. "Remember, if Ratchet thinks anything suspicious went on, you were training and as far as you know I went back in my room."

"...how would I know that?" Smokescreen asked.

"You wouldn't, just say you did. We gotta cover our tracks." Jack said, and climbed out of the cabin.

"So none of this ever happened."

"Right. Keep it that way." Jack nodded, shutting the driver's door quietly as he could.

They both parted ways, and Jack scurried back to his room. He made sure to keep his footsteps light, which was even harder because of the metal. He opened the door to his room and closed it behind him, just in time to hear the voices outside. It sounded like he and Smokescreen got back just in time before everyone else did.

Jack opened the door, acting timid and weary. "Hey-" he stopped, his voice cracking as he didn't have to pretend when he saw the state Arcee, Bumblebee and Bulkhead were in. "What happened to you!" The three were covered in scraps, deep scratches, and looked like more than few pieces of armor were missing.

Bulkhead though smirked and smashed his fist into his palm. "You should see Airachnid."

Jack's heart leaped into his throat, chest tightening. "What? Do you mean...did you catch her?"

"She didn't make it easy." Arcee explained, a smirk on her lips. "But we took her down eventually."

"You mean...she's...she's dead?" Jack asked, heart hammering in his chest.

With a single nod from Arcee, Jack's beating heart raced, unsure if the rush he felt inside was relief, euphoria or something else. Maybe it was just a mish-mash of everything bubbling inside of him. "So...she can't hurt anyone ever again, right?'

"You could ask her yourself but she's kind of in pieces right now. Not sure now is the best time." Bulkhead answered with a satisfied smirk.

Jack nodded, but paused. "Where's Optimus? Did he get hurt? What happened out there exactly?"

"Optimus is just getting checked by Ratchet." Bulkhead said, and then Arcee took over explaining.

"We tracked Airachnid to a forest, ironic huh? She wasn't expecting us, but that surprise didn't last long." she said. "Optimus wanted to bring her in alive but...well, once she tried to infect 'Bee here, let's just say 'capture' turned to 'terminate' out of necessity."

Jack's heart beat faster. He wouldn't wish this situation on anyone. "Are you okay, Bee?" he asked, but belated worried if 'Bee answered, would Jack even under his whirls and beeps at all?

And to his surprise that while he could clearly hear the beeps and bleeps and buzzing, he could also make some sense of it despite how alien it felt to his ears.

"Yeah. Didn't even touch me!" 'Bee exclaimed enthusiastically, gesturing to his mostly undamaged plating.

"Glad to hear it!" Jack couldn't help but grin, and he saw the moment when the meaning hit the three Autobots too.

"You...you could understand Bumblebee?" Bulkhead asked in disbelief. "How?"

Jack shrugged. "I'm not sure, just that his beeps and clicks all began to work itself out in my head." he smiled a bit more weakly. "Guess my brain's good for something than just surfing the net." he rubbed his arm. "Though, I am glad you're all...relatively okay."

"Me too." Bulkhead rumbled out, looking worse off compared to the other three. "Airachnid nearly took my head off it wasn't for 'Bee here." He slammed the scout on the back with a friendly pat, ribbing him 'gently'.

"At least now it's over." Jack said. "Do you think Ratchet can be able to see if this is," he gestured to himself, "reversible?"

"Probably already getting his samples as we speak." Bumblebee looked to where ratchet was tinkering away.

Jack nodded absently, his mind still whirling. "More good news, I learned how to control my dust." he held up his hand, letting the dust appear before it faded into his skin again.

The reaction was not what he was expecting; Bumblebee stepped back, Bulkhead froze up, and Arcee looked unhappy.

"What's wrong? This is a good thing, isn't it?" Jack pressed. "It means no one has to worry about me losing control."

"How do you know the certain that you have it under control?" Bulkhead watched him cautiously.

Jack's stomach twisted instinctively. He reminded himself that they didn't know how to deal with this either, but it left a bitter taste in his mouth all the same. "I...I know I do." he said, more confident than he said before to Ratchet. He got through going out and seeing Vince without losing his control. "I have it under control."

"Don't you think you should take it slow Jack?" Arcee put in, sounding more concerned than anything.

Jack was relieved by that, strengthening his conviction that it was only the circumstances that made everyone uneasy. 'At least, that's what I need to keep believing,' he thought. "I am."

"Well swing by Ratchet's later and have him take a look at you alright? We don't want to be taking any chances here." Arcee insisted and Jack would be lying if he said he wasn't at least a little bit hurt by the lack of faith. 'She's probably just tired from that battle.' Jack insisted to himself. They did look a little on the weary side...

"I'll...I'll talk to you later then." Jack said, and gave a quick goodbye before ducking back into his room. He let the door close, clicking in place. Jack listened to the sound of the Autobots' footsteps fading away, and sighed. 'And here I was hoping things were getting better.' he thought, but tried to tell himself again that it was probably just the Autobots' tiredness.

---

"So, Jack is making good progress?" Arcee asked Ratchet, who was examining a piece of dark purple metal.

"Good enough, his control gets more and more refined." Ratchet said absently, but vented deeply. "Though I've spent weeks studying Airachnid's venom, and the techno-organic CNA she possessed. I haven't been able to come up with anything to reverse it."

Arcee's spark dropped. "Jack can't be stuck like this, there has to be something. Maybe you missed-"

"I didn't miss anything!" Ratchet snapped, but rubbed his brow. "I apologize. This has just all been very frustrating. The only thing I can say is going well is that Optimus has been making progress in having Jack not be considered a biological threat anymore."

Arcee narrowed her optics. "You still think he could lose control?"

"It would just take a moment of being overwhelmed." Ratchet said grimly.

"So you don't trust in his ability to control himself." Arcee surmised.

Ratchet vented again. "I wish I could have faith in his abilities, but there's still too many variables." he shook his head. "Perhaps I'm simply paranoid, given everything that's been happening."

"Hey, give the kid a break. He's workin' hard!" Smokescreen butted in, taking a break from practicing with 'Bee.

Ratchet looked over at the rookie, frowning and a bit startled at the vehemence. "I have no doubt he is, I am just trying to be realistic." he said. "And since when have you become so defensive about Jackson?"

Smokescreen crossed his arms. "Uh, since I'm the only one whose been talking to him."

"That isn't true. I talk to him everyday!" Arcee spoke up hotly, crossing her arms.

Smokescreen narrowed his eyes. "About what?"

"Just...things in passing. We talk about Miko and Raf, how his day was-"

"Which includes what, sitting around in a room day after day?" Arcee shifted, glaring at the mech now. "Why not take him out for a change? He'd love a breath of fresh air!"

"He can't leave the base yet!" Arcee retorted. "He still hasn't been cleared by the government."

"So what, Jack is just supposed to stay out of the way and isolated?" Smokescreen asked. "Have you even asked him if he maybe wanted to go out? If you're so worried about his threat potential still-" here Arcee scowled at him-"then why not just take him to the top of the silo? He'd get plenty of fresh air there."

Arcee turned to the medic. "What do you think Ratchet?"

"Well...I suppose that wouldn't be too big of a risk..." Ratchet considered.

"Yes!" Smokescreen pumped his fist into the air, and both Arcee and Ratchet stared at him.

"Why are you so happy? You barely know him!" Arcee said.

Smokescreen scowled, crossing his arms defensively. "I've gotten to know him plenty!" he paused. "Talking to him through a door isn't the best way, but I know him better now." he turned away. "And I know my opinion doesn't mean much, but I think if you want a chance of Jack thinking things are okay you'd better take the chance to take him topside."

Arcee huffed. "There isn't anything wrong. Jack knows everything's fine." she paused as Smokescreen didn't answer, and frowned to herself. "Well, this hasn't been easy on anyone."

"We're not the ones who got turned practically into another species!" Smokescreen said.

"We're doing everything in our power to help him through this." Ratchet moved away from his work to look down on Smokescreen.

"He never gets to hang out with the other kids, or go out on missions while everyone is trying to keep him in the dark!"

"We don't even know if his powers could be controlled out on a mission." Ratchet retorted.

"How can you be sure?" Smokescreen challenged him. "No one's even tried to see what else he can do. It's like you just showed him how to use the internet and left it at that!"

"And what do you expect us to do, put him through training?"

"Well, would it be so bad?" Smokescreen asked. "It'd give Jack something to do, and for all of you to see once and for all that's he's not gonna freak out on anyone."

"I'll have to run it by Optimus before we decide on anything." Ratchet sighed.

"Fine. But cut the guy some slack, will ya? Stop acting like he's a bomb about to go off."

Arcee shook her head, and made her way out of the room and away from their back and forth arguing. Her spark twisted, because she couldn't believe that Smokescreen had gotten to her. Still, she didn't dismiss that his idea had merit. With that in mind, Arcee knocked on the door to Jack's room. "Can we talk?"

"Uh, we do nothing but talk." Jack said dryly.

Arcee paused. "Talk...outside. I can't take you far, but how about the top of the silo?"

"Oh. Uh, really?" Arcee felt a pang of guilt at that, his voice turning hopeful.

"Yeah. We can...chat, look around..." She suggested, hating how feeble she sounded.

Jack's voice lacked any uncertainty, turning cheerful almost too quickly. "That sounds great!" he opened the door and smiled up at her.

Arcee smiled back, but it was weaker than she would have liked. "Let's go then." Jack nodded, and the two of them made their way up to the top. She glanced down at Jack, but hated how she couldn't tell if he was actually happy, or just putting on a show. 'I could have been able to tell right off the bat before. Have things changed so much?' she thought to herself.

Jack breathed in deep, staring out at the expanse of the desert like he'd never seen it before. "So, what did you wanna talk about? Just stuff, or...something specific?"

"Well uh...Miko still up to her usual antics." Arcee tried to make light. Jack laughed.

"Yeah, heard about that from Smokescreen."

"You talk to Smokescreen a lot, don't you?" Arcee questioned.

Jack blinked, but shrugged. "Well it's not like I have much else to do. He's the only ones who hasn't treated me different," he paused, hurrying to say, "no offence."

Arcee grimaced. "No, we kind of deserve that. Things have just been...stressful, lately. And we didn't take into account how you felt." A determined glint lit her optics. "That's going to change though."

"Really?" Jack looked up at her hopefully.

"Yeah. You don't need to be stuck in this room all time and I trust you to control your dust around the others. You have been getting a lot better at that lately." She complimented, and Jack gave her a real smile this time.

"I've been doing nothing but working on controlling that. And uh, checking stuff out on the web now and again. Even switched out another photo of 'Bee online."

Arcee shook her head, smiling despite herself. It was amazing how they hadn't been caught yet. "Good, that's very good." she paused. "We need to run it by Optimus, but there's a chance you could have some...formal training, if you want." she glanced at him with a serious look. "Just to have the know-how if you ever want to..." she couldn't help but be hesitant, but reminded herself that Jack was capable of making his own decisions, "to come on missions."

"I can do that?" Arcee felt herself laughing a little at how the teen's eyes became wide and mouth slack jawed.

"If you want to." Arced stressed. "That's the important part. We shouldn't have treated you so differently." she said remorsefully. "I'm sorry."

Jack blinked, but smiled softly. "It sucked, but I get why. It's been a shock, just seeing me do these things, and not know why."

"It didn't excuse how we acted. I'm sorry Jack." Arcee said softly.

Jack breathed softly, his gaze considering. Finally, he closed his eyes and nodded. "It's in the past." he smiled, managing to make it look genuine. There was something implicit there though: 'I'm willing to put this behind us, and try again if you are' type of thing.

Arcee wasn't going to waste this chance. "Right. In the past."

"So, about another trip to the top of the silo..." Jack persisted, moving to the door. He knew it was time to go back to his room, but he wanted another outing soon.

Arcee chuckled, shaking her head. "Whatever you need...partner."

Jack paused, but his smile was more genuine. "Back at ya, partner."