A/N: Hey guys, guess who's still alive. Me, that's who. I feel terrible for not giving any more Chapters of Daughters of Jasper or really, any stories at all. So, in order to remedy that, I bring you my very first One-Shot. I got inspiration for this from CherryOreos, who drew a picture of Red Alert and Inferno, titled "Startled" on Deviantart. I saw it and immediately knew I had to write a one-shot for it. Again, the inspiration for this was "Startled", by CherryOreos on Deviantart.
Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers, and really, I don't even own the inspiration for this one-shot. That once again goes to the wonderful CherryOreos on Deviantart. I only own what is written below.
:Blah:=Comm.
The transport flies low, wind buffering at the thick plating. The only occupants inside were the pilots and a single, lone passenger.
Inferno looks down at the DataPad as the shuttle around him groans, slowing down in order to land. He'd been assigned to the main Iacon base, though he didn't understand why. He was a Rescue Mech for Primus' sake! He knew almost nothing about combat. And they were expecting him to work with a bunch of soldiers in the field?
The shuttle jolts as it lands, Inferno getting up once it settles. The red Mech walks down the ramp, surprise filling him as he's not only greeted by Optimus Prime himself, but also the Prime's Second and Third in Command. He comes to a stop in front of the large red Mech, saluting.
"At ease. You must be Inferno." Optimus says, optics glittering as he smiles.
Inferno lowers his arm, only to lift the other, holding out the DataPad.
"Yeah, and I uh…I was told to give this tah yah when I landed."
Optimus nods, taking the DataPad and looking through it. He hums slightly, before turning it off and returning it to Inferno.
"My Medic would like to give you a physical first thing, then you will be shown around."
Inferno nods.
"Understood, Prahm–uh…Sir."
Optimus's optics shine in amusement at the fumble, before he turns to the smaller black-and-white Mech standing on his left.
"Jazz. I'm putting Inferno in your care. Make sure he knows where everything is."
The Polyhexian grins.
"No problem, OP. I'll give the newbie the grand tour and everythin'."
Inferno blinks as the regal Prime lets out a chuckle, placing a servo on the smaller Mech's shoulder.
"I know you will, Jazz."
Jazz turns to Inferno.
"Alright, Inferno. Let the tour begin."
After a somewhat hectic MedBay visit, with the CMO snarling threats and throwing equipment at other unfortunate souls, Inferno follows Jazz around the Base, taking in everything he can.
MedBay…Rec Room…Command Center…Supply Hangar…Offices…Officer's Quarters…Soldier's Quarters…Laboratory…Training Room…
Inferno's helm is spinning as he tries to take all of it in, not noticing Jazz has stopped until he almost runs into him. Jazz shoots him an amused grin, before brandishing a DataPad with more flair then needed.
"This has all the stuff yah need for yer first few weeks here. Map o' the base, schedule, etc.. Use it wisely, my Mech. Now, yer gonna get the opportunity to settle in 'n meet a few o' us, but yah still need to meet our Head o' Security, Red Alert. Now, be warned, the Mech's a little paranoid and suspicious of newcomers, but don't let 'im phase yah. It's just how he is."
Inferno nods, looking at the door the other had stopped in front of, not seeing Jazz slink away with a two-digit salute and a grin.
Inferno stares at the door in front of him, debating the best course of action. Should he knock? Send a quick databurst to the occupant inside the room? Just walk in? Taking a deep vent, Inferno lifts his servo and knocks gently, hoping not to startle the one inside. He jumps as the door opens with a swish, showing the room it protected.
Hesitating slightly, Inferno walks inside, taking in the room. The lights were dimmed, most of the light coming from the multitude of screens around him. The wall in front of him was completely covered by a large console, screens spanning the entire wall. The other two walls were the same, the only difference being the size of the control consoles.
It was a Security Officer's dream.
Inferno steps farther into the room, glancing around at all the screens flickering through different parts of the Base, and he found himself impressed. This was…actually kind of cool.
"Who are you?"
The sudden voice right behind him makes him jump out of his plating with a swear. Inferno whips around, only to let out a startled shout as he comes face-to-face with a pair of narrowed, ice-blue optics inches away from him. The red Mech backpedals, tripping over his peds and crashing into the console behind him as his siren blares, emergency lights flashing. Inferno stares wide-optic at the smaller, red-and-white Mech who was upside down, his legs hooked around a thick pipe on the ceiling. There was a hole in the metal above him, suggesting he had been fixing something inside the hole when Inferno showed up. But all Inferno could think about was the fact he hadn't heard anything. There should have been the sound of shifting metal, power tools, something.
Red Alert stares unimpressed at the red form below him, the truck having not moved an inch, lights still flashing and siren still blaring, though it was somewhat muted now. The red-and-white Security officer notices out of the corner of his optic, the big oaf's servo was on the center console, crushing the edge. His optics narrow even more as he lifts a servo. Not taking his optics off of the Mech who'd intruded into his domain, Red Alert reaches for the center console, where a wrench was resting. He grabs it, before swinging back up to the ceiling, his top half disappearing into the hole.
As Red Alert continues to fix the holder for his camera, he could hear the strange Mech recover, the lights and siren shutting off, silence permeating the room.
"Uh…h-hello?"
Red Alert lets out a quiet growl. Why was he still here?
Inferno stares at the ceiling, only seeing the smaller Mech's lower half as he disappears into the ceiling to fix whatever it was. Realizing his lights and siren were still going off, he deactivates them, silence reigning.
"Uh…h-hello?" Inferno says, not moving from his spot at first.
He gets up from where he was sprawled on the floor, noticing that his servo gripping the edge of the console hard enough to dent and warp the metal. He quickly releases it, before staring once again at the hole, only to yelp as the Mech reappears, swinging down to face him, optics still narrow.
"Again, who are you? What are you doing in my Security hub?"
"Y-Your…?"Inferno's optics widen in understanding. "Oh, yah must be Red Alert."
If looks could kill…
"Yes, I'm Red Alert. What's it to you?" the smaller Mech asks, his voice getting defensive as he crosses his arms.
Inferno blinks. Okay, the Paranoia was starting to show now. And it was making him a little uneasy.
"Uh, I-I-"
If Red Alert's optics narrowed anymore, they would be closed. A threatening rumble emerges from his chest, spurring Inferno to speak.
"My name's Inferno. I'm a new transfer here, and was told by Jazz to come and see yah 'bout any secur'ty programmin' required."
Red Alert lifts an optic ridge at the rushed statement, quickly Comm.-ing the aforementioned Mech.
:Yeah?:
:Do you know anyone named Inferno?:
:…Primus, Mech. Wha' did yah do?:
:I did nothing! He's the one who waltzed right into my Security Hub!:
Red Alert could hear the other getting angry.
:Red, what did you do?:
Red Alert huffs, ignoring the curious stare of his current…visitor. He was still here.
:I simply scared him. Nothing damaging in any way.:
:Alright. Just run 'im through the Spark Scanner so he's in the system and give 'im the proper codin' like weh do fer all the newbies. Got it?:
Red Alert says nothing, simply closing his Comm. and gripping the pipe his legs were gripping. In one swift movement, he unhooks his legs and swings down, landing solidly. Quickly turning to face the bewildered faceplate of the Mech still in his domain, Red Alert points to a chair.
"Sit."
Surprisingly, this Mech, Inferno, does so without question, no doubt still in shock from the earlier events.
Inferno fidgeted in place as Mech he now knew as Red Alert goes quiet, and he was getting uneasy. Again. The Mech says nothing for a few minutes, before letting out a huff. Inferno focuses back on the smaller Mech in time to see him swing off of the pipe and land solidly on the ground.
"Sit."
Inferno immediately goes over to the chair being pointed at, sitting down on it. He didn't want to anger this Mech, or be in here any longer than he needed to be. The Security Hub was starting to lose its impressive flair from before.
He watches as Red Alert goes over to the center console, pressing a few buttons, but keeping Inferno in his line of sight. Almost as if thinking he was going to pull a gun out and begin shooting. A beep comes from the console, a section of plating sliding back and a small scanner-like piece of equipment emerging. The light at the top is red, but after a beam of light appears, scanning him from helm to ped, the light turns green and the scanner disappears.
Inferno blinks away the spots in his vision from the sudden brightness of the scanner.
"What-"
"Spark Scanner. Mandatory for all new recruits so you're in the system and the enemy can't infiltrate our base."
Red Alert turns back to Inferno, sending a Data-Packet of different Autobot codes to the Mech.
"Autobot codes. Memorize them. Now get out."
It takes a few seconds for Inferno to register what was said, his helm reeling slightly from the sheer amount of codes. But apparently, that was a few seconds too many.
Red Alert grabs Inferno's arm, hauling the red Mech to the door with surprising strength. He opens the door, firmly shoving Inferno outside. Inferno stumbles slightly from the force, coming back to his senses as the door slides shut.
Inferno blinks at the solid wall of metal, before finding himself chuckling.
This was going to be interesting.