A/N: I got stuck on For the Sake of My Brother. So I figured I'd go ahead and start posting the sequel to Slow Burn. It's almost finished being written, so it should be safe to start posting this. I hope. Lol. Please post your opinions. This one does not have all the mech sex in it. There will be sex towards the end, but for now, not so much. This follows RotF for the most part. I've taken some artistic license in a few places, but otherwise, this story runs in the background of RotF.

Enjoy. Let me know your opinions.

Chapter 1

Cold cement. Salty tears. Distant thunder through the steady rain. Echoing sobs. Emptiness. Aching, piercing, bone deep, lonely emptiness. He promised.

He's gone. Forever. And only the emptiness remains. A deep, sucking vacuum where his smirking dominance once reigned. Emptiness.

And then the lonely closed in, pressing harder than before, brought into sharp relief by the physical definition of the hole he left behind.

I just wanted to die, right there in that hangar. I wanted to go all the way back to the accident and tell Skyfire to just let me go. It would have been so much better if I'd never survived at all. I wanted to lose myself in the depths of insanity so that I would never have to face this loss, but my psyche wouldn't crack that far. It was all unfair. I was never supposed to love this deep. He was never supposed to die. I followed him to Earth, why couldn't I just follow him into his death?

A smooth metal snout pushed against my shoulder as a silver, cat-like body lay down next to me. I turned my head just enough to peer through my tangled hair at Ravage. His large, red optic focused on my face, but he said nothing. He had taken a new form for his mission on earth just like everyone else. We had all received upgrades, even me. Skyfire copied some of the cat's stealth technologies giving me the ability to conceal all of my energy and tracing signals making me completely human to every inquisitive sensor. He'd also given me a holographic imager, I could now make myself appear to be anything or nothing at all. It would be handy, if I ever got up off the floor. But right now, that just wasn't possible.

"I miss him too."

I blinked at the Decepticon's unusual candor. "Rav…" my voice was hoarse from hours of crying. "What do I do now?" If anyone could find a way out of a mess, it was always Ravage. He simply stared back at me. Drawing a shaky breath, I draped one arm over the cat's neck. He flicked his ears at me, but did not make any effort to move. "I had no idea I could hurt this much." Continuing to stare at me, he sighed heavily. "Does… does it ever get any better?"

"No. You just learn to live with it."

I squeezed my eyes close, grimacing with the fresh round of pain brought in by his answer. "Will I ever stop missing him?"

"No."

"I want to die."

"I know."

"Rav. What do I do now?" I asked again.

Staring at me for a moment longer, he finally said, "Barricade has a plan."

"No. No plans, no missions… I can't do this anymore."

"You can do this. Just listen. Barricade says he knows who has Frenzy's head. He has a plan to get it back. Then we can give Zee a proper send off." He paused for effect. "Closure, Natty. But we need your skill set for this mission."

"Why would you need me? What skill could I possibly possess that anyone else doesn't already have in spades?"

"This is a mission of infiltration. We need a human."

"Just use a holoform, then. Leave me out of it."

"Natty, I realize you are trying to prove yourself useless so that you can be taken offline, but that would be a terrible waste. You would disgrace his memory by conceding defeat in that manner. We need a human with Cybertronian tech for this mission."

"Rav… where is he now?" He cocked his head at me, both ears steadily pointed forward. "Humans believe their souls are eternal. When we die we go on to another plane of existence somewhere. Is there something like that for Cybertronians?"

"Yes. We all join with the Matrix in the end."

"Will I go there?"

"I don't know, Natty."

"Do you think I'll ever see him again?"

"Possibly. If you do, he may ask how you honored his death. What will you tell him, Natty?"

I shook my head, offering a weak smile, "I'll tell him that Ravage doesn't play fair."

If there had been any observers, they would have seen a young woman in her middle twenties exit the back of an abandoned hangar and get into the passenger side of a police cruiser. Short, blue jeans, white t-shirt, blonde chunked brown hair dropping down in long braids at either side of her head. The only odd thing about this car was the markings: it bore the emblem of a top notch university's security team located quite some distance from where the vehicle was currently parked. But there were no observers—Barricade never left witnesses.

Out of habit, I snapped the seatbelt into place as soon as I hit the seat. On a second thought, I was glad for the habit. Barricade is quite the show off, having been a drag racer long before the war, he was known for his reckless roadwise antics. Sighing and mentally questioning why I was even here, I said, "Alright, let's have it."

"I will not tolerate any poor behavior such as before."

"Right. Well, the shock has ebbed a bit, so…" I shrugged.

"You will be taken offline at the first sign of-"

"Do it!" I hissed, leaning forward toward the dash board. "Please! Put me out of my misery. I… have… nothing… left, Barricade."

"You have revenge. I have a plan that will give you just that."

I slumped back into the seat. I was never really the vengeful kind, but the idea of obtaining all the pieces of Frenzy's body so that we could give him a proper send off was very appealing. "I'm listening."

The black and white mech explained my part in the mission as he weaved down an interstate at excessive speeds. The windshield displayed names, faces, and locations while he broke down the details for me. A teenager I had never met before, named Samuel Witwicky, was attending Princeton University at the government's expense. According to Barricade, this boy was in possession of the tape's missing remains. My part was simple. I needed to get close to him and bring him out to a prearranged location where Megatron and Starscream would be waiting with sadistic Decepticon medic named Doctor. They had some unfinished business with the boy, something to do with an Allspark shard. Along the way, I was free to ascertain the location of any other Cybertronian tech—incliduing Frenzy—by any means necessary. Barricade had already enrolled me into the same classes and placed me, as a new Freshman, in the dorm room next door to Sam's. Meanwhile, he would be in disguise as campus police for back up and support. Skyfire and Blackout would be stationed nearby on call.

It had not been lost on me the forces at work here. As soon as I had called him a liar, I knew that Barricade was mentally scheduling my termination—my death—at his earliest convienence. And I was okay with that. The fact that I was here, riding along with him, still part of his "plan," spoke volumes of the command level intervention asserted on my behalf. Furthermore, Decepticons do not associate with those marked for termination, not even remotely, lest they be terminated them selves for the sake of the association. Although I appreciated Ravage's pep talk, he had not come as a friend to console a friend. He was sent in to motivate me. Why all this effort on my behalf? Skyfire.

It would suffice to say that my termination would be a staggeringly painful experience for him. A portion of his own spark would be extinguished and recovering from that would certainly take time. Not to mention the fact that a true human intelligence was necessary on this current mission. Undoubtedly it took significant convincing to sway Barricade's decision on my termination, but not on my necessity to his plan. In truth, however, the Seeker had grown fond of me since the accident. He had obviously exerted considerable rescources to pull me off the floor of the abandoned hangar. And although he was currently a wall of indifferent silence through our spark borne connection, that was more an avoidance of dealing with my agonized sorrow seeping across then anything else. In short, my big brother was looking out for me.

To repay him, I would need to be an obedient little minion for Barricade. That grated against my nature on the best of days, but as it stood now, I really didn't have much fight left in me. I listened to Barricade's mission brief intently, careful to ask appropriate questions to show I was attentive. My intention was to perform as best I could, and then disappear. If that would be possible. Of course, if I failed, I would likely be terminated immediately, and at the moment, that offered an appealing alternative. Except that it would hurt Sky.

"You want me to what?" The suggestion made just now snapped me back into a defensive posture.

"It will likely be necessary to engage in carnal acts in order to lure the target to the objective as well as uncover necessary information regarding the location of our collegue's missing remains."

"You want me to fuck him," it was rhetorical, but he answered anyway.

"Yes."

"Of all the sick, twisted, stupid, God damn, mother fucking, half formed ideas…! You've really crossed the line, Barricade! That is not happening!" I slammed my metal fist onto the dashboard in front of me and the cruiser fishtailed through heavy traffic in angry response. "When did I become the designated Decepticon whore?"

"Did I not warn you at the outset that poor behavior will result in your immediate termination?"

One hand rubbed at my eyes while the other clutched at the seat to keep from getting thrown around inside the cab of the wildly careening mech. When Barricade drives angry, everybody pays. "Yeah, you did. I have nothing to lose, remember? Put me down right here and now if it suits you. I don't care."

"Consider this your final warning. Next time I will simply take you offline."

I blinked at the uncharacteristic mercy shown. Something more was going on here that I was clearly not aware of. Deciding to play nice, I offered, "I'm not fucking a teenager just to get information. There's bound to be better ways. Something more productive and less demeaning."

"Secure the information by any means necessary and bring the target to the objective. Whatever the personal cost, make it happen."

I glared out the passenger side window, not wanting to discuss this any further, and remained that way for the rest of the trip.

As we pulled off the freeway, taking the exit marked for the University, Barricade broke the silence once more. "Livewire, I defer to your human nature to cover the minor details for maintaining your cover. It is imperative that you do not break cover during the course of your mission here. NEST teams have been hunting us using Cybertronian technologies borrowed from the Autobots. If your cover is blown, if you become a NEST target, no one will assist you."

I smirked, "Good to know." I gazed out the window at a yellow "M" as the mech turned onto a main road, accelerating with mild recklessness, relying on his police cruiser markings to excuse himself. Suddenly I really wanted a cheeseburger. Up until now, I had maintained the continuity of my flesh side by drinking horrible tasting protien shakes concocted by Skyfire. I had a large stash of them stored in a bag on the floor next to my feet. Was it possible for me to consume a cheeseburger? Even if I couldn't actually eat it, I could atleast enjoy the flavors and smells if I spit it out rather than swallowing. Right? Pondering the tastes of home, it occurred to me that before we arrived at the school, there were some things I needed to pick up to aid the ruse. Behind the infamous burger joint was an equally infamous super store. "Barricade, pull in here."

"I fail to see how a diver—"

"Just do it!" I snapped. "You said you deferred to my human nature to cover the minor details. There's a few things I'm gonna need to make this look real." I paused realizing the mech hadn't slowed or even changed lanes. "Trust me on this one."

With an unitelligible grumble, the cruiser cut across two lanes of traffic and veered into the parkinglot causing many slamming brakes and swerving vehicles in his wake.

Glancing out the back window, I snickered, "So much for cover!"

"My cover is intact. Mind your own," he growled. He stopped at the far end of the parking lot taking up several spaces.

I sprang out of the vehicle, grateful to be on my own two feet for a change and bounced off in the direction of the store without so much as a backward glare. Walking past an inattentive shopper placing groceries inside her car, I swiped the wallet from her purse still sitting inside the cart. I would need the plastic cards, but not the actual moneys they represented. Stealing from the store was no better than stealing from the individual, I chided myself, but I couldn't think of a better option at the moment. It's not like I had a bank account anymore. Pulling a card from the wallet, I dropped the leather piece on the ground as I walked along, assuming a holographic image identical to the woman from whom I had pilfered the card.

My shopping spree satisfied, I piled my college dorm essentials onto the belt in the checkout lan and proceeded to swipe the card, placing my mechanoid right hand on the reader to interrupt the encoding and program the transaction to be accepted without actually contacting the bank. After restacking my cart with my ill-gotten gains, I dropped the stolen card nonchalently next to the card reader and strolled off quickly, ignoring the calls of the cashier and changing my hologram back to that of a young blond college student as I passed through the doors. Astonishingly, no one noticed the abrupt change in my appearance. Shaking my head, I shrugged it off and pushed the squeaky buggy all the way to the back of the parkinglot where Barricade was playing smash the pigeons.

The mech squealed to a halt nearly on top of me, pushing me back a step with the momentum. "Open your trunk," I demanded, smacking the back of the cruiser. He sat still and silent. I rolled my eyes, acquiescing, "Please, open your trunk… Mission Commander Barricade."

Without a word, the trunk snicked open and I neatly stacked my acquisitions inside, wondering how this was going to look when I arrived and pulled all my dorm stuff out of the back of a Campus Security Vehicle. Hopefully we were arriving early enough that there would be few witnesses and fewer questions. Well, I could always play the sultry evasion card. I'd better make this a very quick mission. The longer I stuck around, the more vulnerable I would become.

My dorm room appropriately decorated in nauseating pinks and sunny yellows, cute kittens and sexy guy posters, I surveyed the appearance with satisfaction and a simultaneous replusion. I had never been a girly girl. Pink grated on my nerves. Sighing heavily, I selected a light blue baby doll dress and brushed out my newly bleached blond hair. The only hologram I needed to maintain was to cover my considerable metal alloys, but otherwise, I would not be expending much energy on disguise. A knock on my door was followed by a nervously cheerful male voice calling hello. Dropping the brush, I peered through the peep hole spying an average sized young man with a mop of curly, black hair and a somewhat arabic ethnicity. Blowing my breath out through puffed cheeks I answered, "What?"

"Hi! M-my name is Leo. I'm… um… I'm going to be your next door neighbor for the next year. I thought maybe we could meet up and discuss stereo volumes and maybe I could help you set up your computer or whatever…" His voice trailed off and I almost felt sorry for him. His awkwardness was indicative of a severely socially inept computer nerd with not the slightest idea what to do with a girl if she'd landed in his lap begging for it.

"Nah, I'm good." I turned away from the door, but he knocked again.

"Hey, we're ordering pizza—me and my friends. Would you like some?"

Alright, I thought, time to set the stage here. If this kid was Sam Witwicky's future roommate, he could be useful, but I needed to subdue him right away. I cracked the door open, striking a pose against the frame and flashing a bright smile. "Yeah! That sounds great! Listen," I traced my finger over the buttons on his shirt, "I have a bit more decorating to do in here, so… " tilting my head forward and gazing lusciously up through thick lashes, "why don't you go ahead and order it and let me know when it gets here. Okay?" I started to close the door as his jaw dropped open and before he could begin to drool, but paused reopening it to add, "Oh, and no meats. Veggies only!" It wouldn't do not making difficult demands to complete the manipulation. I snapped the door shut with my final words and stood back smiling grandly. Player in her element. This was all too easy.

When the pizzas arrived, I walked out into the hallway, grabbed the entire thing and slammed my dorm room door behind me, giggling at the shocked expressions on all three nerds' faces. Dominance asserted, check. The smell of the pizzas was tantilizing, but my current hunger was centered on a cheeseburger. Dropping the pizza out the window, I pondered once again the likelihood of actually being able to eat one. Sitting at the small desk and staring blankly at the new laptop and it's dancing screensaver, I picked up the pay as you go phone I had "aquired" along with all the other acquisitions and began activating it while simultaneously opening a direct comm link to my Decepticon superior.

"Barricade, this is N—Livewire," I corrected. "Checking in."

"Go ahead, Livewire." Was there a slight amusement in his tone at my slip, or was I imagining it?

Dismissing the thought, "I am settled in the dorm, and have made contact with Samuel Witwicky's roommates. No sign of the boy yet." I paused, really there wasn't anything more to say. "I guess that's it."

"Acknowleged. I expect your next status report at the beginning of the following solar cycle."

"Right. I really don't think anything's gonna change overnight, Barricade. This is college life, not an Autobot outpost."

"You will report at the start of the next solar cycle," came the stern reply.

I checked out the window, noting no sign of the mech in the visible vicinity. Smirking wickedly, I added, "You know, I really want a cheeseburger right about now."

"What?! Huh… Enough Livewire! Clear this channel now," came the irritated reply.

I giggled, allowing my amusement to seep through the comm before terminating the link. I could feel Skyfire's laughter through my spark connection, quickly followed by forced disapproval. So how about it, Sky? Can I eat human food?

I felt a shrug in response. If you try it and cause catastrophic system failures, there's not a lot I can do planet-side.

Catastrophic…? Really? I queried sardonically. Whatever.