Disclaimer: I do not own transformers in any way. I am only responsible for my two OCs Groundstriker and Nova and the plot line.

A/N: Right now this is rated T. Please let me know later on if you guys think the rating needs to be changed. This isn't really set in any particular universe (i.e the multiple cartooniverses, comics or movie-verse). I'm kind of just combining the bits that work together. I suppose it mostly fits the movies, but not the time frames. Also, forgive me if I start out rough. Like I said, this is my first fic and my writing experience consists of writing excessively long research papers. This chapter will probably be longer than the others as it has a lot to introduce. I'll be introducing each chapter with a song, as music is a major part of my writing process, and I want to be able to share some of my inspiration for each chapter.

Enjoy! (〃

"Don't make me sad, don't make me cry, sometimes love is not enough and the road gets touch I don't know why.

Keep making me laugh, let's go get high the road is long, we carry on, try to have fun in the meantime.

Choose your last works, this is the last time, cause you and I, we were born to die."

Born to die by Lana Del Rey

'Thoughts'

:Speaking through a Bond:

::Comm. Link::

Time intervals I may use:

Nano-klik: 1 second (IWD)

Klik: 1.2 minute (IWD)

Breem: 8.3 minutes (DWC)

Cycles: 1.25 hours (IWD)

Megacycle: 93 hours (IWD) [I'm going to refer to this as a Cybertronian day.]

Rotational cycle: 1 Human day (animated)

Orn: 13 days

Deca-cycle: 3 weeks (IWD)

Quartex: A month or 4 weeks (TFP)

Stellar cycle: 1 year (Animated)

Meta-cycle: 13 months

Vorn: 83 years

Chapter 1: Sparked to Die

Summary: How did this happen? She couldn't lose him; he was the last bond she had. The last bond that kept her here… that kept her grounded. There wasn't anything left without him. But he made her promise. They both knew he wouldn't last without her. So she had to go on for him. Eventual Sunstreaker/OC. (Cause there really is not enough sunny centric stories out there.)

R/R! No flames, this is my first full on fic writing experience, please don't ruin it. Constructive criticism is very welcome.

[Approx. 2 Stellar Cycles Prior to Impact]

They had been coasting forever, headed towards earth at Optimus's request. Nova had taken to starring out of the starboard observation windows in much of her free time. The void of space seemed endless along their travels. The once gorgeous and beautiful spacescapes were almost boring now…almost. At first they had provided a welcome comfort and relief from the long war being waged. But even if Nova couldn't see it, she knew it was still out there. Somewhere out there mechs and femmes were fighting and dying, but there was nothing she could do about it here. So why not enjoy the view for a little while?

That had worked for the first quartex, but as time went on she started to get restless. It just didn't feel right, her being here, safe and sound while her comrades in arms were probably dying out there somewhere, without her, without help. Back up just didn't exist anymore. There were so few of the Autobots left and she hated to admit it, but they were getting crushed. Their numbers were continually diminishing and there wasn't a thing any of them could do about it. Everyone was spread so thin. They were getting picked off one by one. There were so many dead. It was spark-breaking to think about.

'It'll be worth it in the end.' she reminded herself. It had to be. Sure there was a lot of loss on all sides. She lost her creators after all. But as long as the two of them were alive there was still hope. Her brother was still here, more accurately her spark's twin, and that was something incredibly rare back on Cybertron. There was once a mech who made fun of her for being the weaker of the two for having been created as a femme. Needless to say, no one ever made a comment like that again. The corner of her lip plates twisted up at the thought. Now, if they could just make it through to the end, they could rebuild together. She sighed as she looked out into the vastness. Her planet was desolate. It would take millennia to rebuild, and there were so few left to help. She used to be so optimistic in the golden age, before the war. Everything seemed so much easier back then, and so beautiful.

:Don't think about it.: Her twin's voice suddenly muttered over the bond.

:Sorry.: She muttered back. Reminiscing was a luxury she shouldn't have been indulging in, at least not any more. It was dangerous now. It was distracting. With all the time they had on their servos she couldn't help but fall back into memory, but those memories only brought pain now. Groundstriker must have felt the longing feeling over their sibling bond.

She closed her portion of the bond. She just needed a moment. He would understand. He might complain later, but he would get over it. He always kept her focused, balanced, and in the game. She doubted she would have lasted as long as she had without him. In fact she knew she wouldn't have. There were so many times in the war that he had arrived just in the nick of time -although she'd never admit that to him-, and although he wasn't doing it intentionally, he also kept her stable.

The loss of their creators had been really hard on the both of them. They had woken up from their recharge in a panic, grasping at their spark chambers. Their sparks felt the wild thrashing of loss and the emptiness from their missing bonds. At first she insisted that maybe their creators were just hurt or captured, but Groundstriker wouldn't even respond. He sat there with hollow optics quietly staring at the floor in front of his berth; they both knew it wasn't true. Their creators were gone. The universe wept at the loss but it didn't stop. There had always been an emptiness somewhere in their sparks ever since... but they still had each other. Nova spent megacycles radiating comfort and reassurance over the bond to Striker before he started to open up again. It was then that she realized just how much they depended on each other. She had been extra careful ever since. After watching him recover, she knew he wouldn't last the loss of their bond. She knew he couldn't live without her anymore. He was never really the same after that. He hated it when he felt her thinking about the past and she understood why.

But it wasn't all like that. They were ultra-competitive but they were also always a team, well… almost always. There was this one time where they got in a fight and fought solo for a couple vorns. Striker wanted to be a wrecker, and Nova just didn't like the reckless ways they worked. Then again, front-lining wasn't much better and it was agonizing being apart, but they had made up when Striker came back. Nova didn't know what made him change his stubborn mind, but they were inseparable after that. The way they were always meant to be and had been before. Two halves to a whole. A team united against any and all other enemies, always on the same page, and always there to support and defend the other. They fought together like a elegantly coordinated work of art. Their fighting technique rivaled a dance… or maybe a beautifully orchestrated symphony, a mix between the devastating base of her bother and the fluid melody of Nova's graceful strikes, opposites that perfectly complimented one another. Although they were similar in height at a decent 19 ft, that was where most of their similarities ended. Striker was bulky but not overly large. He was a well-built mech who used his size and physical strength to dominate the battle field. He championed a deep metallic red paint and a black optical display visor that assisted him during combat, as well as a face plate that reinforced his lower jaw when he was hit. While Striker sported several high powered cannons, both he and Nova had preferred close combat and carried specialized targeting interference software for just those occasions.

Striker was mostly brawn but Nova, she was cunning and she was formidable. Striker could certainly overpower her, but only on the very rare occasion that he could actually get a hold of her. Nova was beyond brilliant in servo-to-servo combat, an expert in predictive programing. She could anticipate her opponent's movement before they made it, create a counter, continue striking in rapid succession, and finish her opponent by transforming her servos into her deadly blades that would extinguish their spark once an opportunity presented. She kept a long range pulse rifle for when her brother got in over his helm and he was in need of cover, but most of the time he served as a most valuable distraction for her. He would keep their enemies busy and she would easily flank them, quietly cut them down with her blades; the remaining enemies never the wiser. She couldn't take the punishment her brother could, and she would be in trouble if there were too many enemies within range of her, but overall it was advantageous to be underestimated. She wasn't as large as Groundstriker, and her slender form usually caught less attention. She sported a bright azure blue paint with dark grey accents as well as her own black optical display visor. These visors had been amazing. They boosted signals that would otherwise have gone completely unnoticed. They made tracking targets a breeze, and they enhanced their other optical abilities at least twofold. Why everyone didn't have one of them, she had no idea.

When Nova reopened the bond she could feel her twin's irritation. :Don't do that.: He scolded.

:Don't do what?: She had always feigned innocence when he scolded her, and on some days he'd even let her get away with it. Though in general, Striker hated not being able to feel her side of the bond.

:Just stop.: He wasn't it a mood to fight today either. It almost bummed her out; he could be so fun to mess with sometimes, but he wasn't playing back lately. It seemed their long travels where starting to ware on her twin's patience.

They had left what was left of a colony planet at Optimus's request nearly two quartex ago. They salvaged their midsized carrier they dubbed the Exodus while under heavy fire. The colony had been destroyed that same megacycle. It was a miracle they had even made it off the planet. Unfortunately, the bucket of bolts was barely considered space worthy. Had there been any other option the twins never would have considered boarding the vessel. They soon found their skepticism of the ships capacity to travel to be well founded, as after the first quartex the propulsion systems started to fail. They had managed to get them back online, but the ships parts were old and the systems would still occasionally go offline again. Luckily the problems hadn't carried over to any other essential systems, at least not yet anyways. They were nearly an orn off from reaching communications range with the organic planet, and if they managed to maintain their speed, they would reach their destination in a deca-cycle. They were almost to earth.

:Look, just come to the training room, we need to be prepared for when we land.: Groundstriker had certainly upped the frequency of training since they boarded the empty carrier, but it was only because they weren't on the front lines anymore, and he didn't want their reflexive circuits getting rusty.

Taking a last look into the distance, Nova complied with her brother request. It felt good to work off those helpless feelings.

"Ready?" Groundstriker asked, and Nova nodded.

Her optics narrowed getting ready to anticipate her twin's movements.

"Good."

He was already running at her, but she held her ground. It was best to redirect a charge. As he came within range she quickly ran forward diverting just slightly to the right to narrowly avoid him as she rolled past him just outside of the range of his grasp. She quickly rolled onto her pedes standing in a fighter's position as he swung around with his hidden ax, now raised in his right servo high in the air. He had kept one for close range, but he rarely ever felt the need to forgo his cannons in favor of it. She transformed her servos into their long bladed counterparts. Sparks few as she parried his heavy ax towards her right, shifting its weight and effectively lodging it into the floor. Not missing a beat she launched her left pede into the red mechs main energon cables just below his helm. He stumbled back, hacking as his air intake manifold faltered. As he bent over she moved forward connecting her knee to his tanks causing him to grunt and fold over further, exposing the back of his main processor's circuits (The back of his neck). She grabbed her transformed servos together and slammed them against the back of his exposed circuits effectively stunning him as he fell to the ground. His optics offlined in the haze of disrupted systems signals. He rolled over when he felt them start to re-online only to open them to the view of the end of Nova's blade carefully placed an inch from where he had rolled, ever ready to slice into his main energon line.

"Come on Striker, we both know I'm the better servo fighter," she arrogantly smirked, crouching down while still holding her blade against his main cables. Her twin scowled a scornful glare.

"Two out of three." He mumbled swallowing his embarrassment, his optics softening. He usually lasted a few more kliks in their training sessions, but today she was in the zone. She smiled softly retracting her blades and held her hand out to her lovable twin, which he promptly took. She dominated servo-to-servo, but he had to try. Training with Nova made him a better servo fighter. Now if his cannons were allowed in training exercises, the tables might have been turned. "You know, we can always work on pain tolerance training." He smirked.

Nova's smile faltered as she huffed. "I think not." Her brother bellowed a laugh at his smaller twin who was shuddering at the thought. That was certainly a competition she was sure to lose.

Later on that megacycle, Nova and her brother met together to refuel. After their training exercises, they went on to perform some basic maintenance throughout the ship. There was always something falling apart, and the repairs were never finished. It didn't really bother them too much. It kept them busy and it made the tediously long journey a little less boring. The hard work made the mega-cycle's end feel so much more rewarding. It almost reminded Nova of the golden age.

:Stop.: It had been so natural for him to scold her over the bond now.

:Sorry: Nova hummed, she hadn't even realized she was drifting again.

Groundstriker frowned. Sometimes he felt like he was losing her to the past. :What's gotten into your processor lately, Nova? It's like you're a whole different femme since we boarded.: He was starting to become concerned for the smaller twin.

"We just have so much extra time on our servos." She replied aloud. There was no reason to use the bond. There was no one around and they were in the same room, but then that logic could also carry over to not needing to speak aloud. "I just can't help it. My processor is going to stall out if I don't have something to keep it going with... and I can only recharge for so long."

"Then we'll have to find you something else to think about." Groundstriker paused trying to think of a good distraction, but he really wasn't the philosophical twin, that had always been Nova's forte. He was more of a servos-on kind of bot.

"Well, actually, there has been something on my mind lately." She paused gauging his reaction. He raised a brow plate and she continued, "It's you actually. You seem bothered, what is it that's been on your processor, Striker?" Normally she would have added in some small but well-meant insult about how processing wasn't really his thing, but she was genuinely worried. He had been extra grumpy lately, and some days he just didn't have that spark that made him… him.

He frowned again, he had been meaning to talk to her, but he didn't really know how to approach the subject. "I've just had a bad feeling since we boarded this ship." Nova watched him intently, trying to decipher his meaning. She didn't like this rusted scrap bucket of a carrier either, but she couldn't help but feel like there was more to this. "Like you said…there's just too much time to process."

She had been hoping for more of an explanation that that. "And?" she prodded, but apparently she had pushed too hard.

"And, never mind." Frowning he stood up preparing to leave, but Nova stood and grabbed his arm.

"What's going on Groundstriker?" She was returning his frown now. It was so rare she would actually use his full name. He looked down at her with something in his optics that she hadn't seen since the beginning of the war. There was fear, genuine fear. Her own returned the emotion, she could feel it over the bond now, and it was permeating her systems. She was afraid to know what it was now. She opened her mouth to question him, half worried the ship would implode, but he grabbed hold of her and sat her back down.

"What if something happened to one of us?" She wasn't even sure she'd heard him right.

"What? What do you mean?" Confusion flowed towards her larger twin.

"I mean, obviously, we are in the middle of a war, on a scrap heap in the middle of nowhere, headed to some organic planet. Anything could happen." He stared down into her optics, willing her to understand.

"Don't talk like that!" She snapped, "I never thought you would be the one to talk about something like that. Not after…you know…" she was clearly referencing their creators.

"I know…it's just… look." He gestured harshly, "once we reach Earth, if Optimus is on that planet, then that is were the war is going to rage. Not like the colonies we fought in. We're talking about Optimus Prime, which means Megatron and his highest officers won't be far. This is serious Nova. If something happened." He paused, heavy emotions fleeting his optics. She was looking away now. She didn't want to think of such a horrible thing, and guilt filled him for dragging her into his darker thoughts. He smiled softly as his words flowed over the bond, completely honest all the while trying to placate her with a touch of humor. :I'd want you to avenge me.:

He had gotten her attention, but she turned to him with an expression that asked if had lost his processor. She almost laughed. "Seriously?!" She shoved him roughly. "That's what this is about? Avenging you? Like that would ever be in question." She was bewildered, "I thought you were going to tell me that the Exodus was going to explode!" She was half yelling at him, but her lip plates were cracking upwards in relief. Her twin chuckled lightly. She was taking it better than he had expected. "Well, then the same goes for you." She demanded, staring him down until he agreed.

"Yeah," he muttered in response. They both lightly chucked.

She couldn't bring herself to accuse him of lying. She just didn't have the spark. Sometime after his temporary rendezvous with the wreckers, Groundstriker had come back changed. He was no longer the carefree, reckless bot that he was before. He'd seen something he shouldn't have, she was sure. The bond had felt different when he showed back up, but at the time she pushed it off, reasoning that she just hadn't felt it in so long she'd forgotten what it was supposed to feel like. Eventually, she realized it really was different. Nova had wanted to ask what had happened but when she tried to approach the subject Striker just shut down completely. She respected him too much to force her way in, and as long as he was functioning and interacting with her then she was doing her job…at least that's what she told herself. But no one came out of a war without at least a few scars, right? She tried to give him his space when he needed it. She was sure he would recover from whatever it was in his own time. But if something happened to her, she didn't know if Striker would make it out, not after seeing his reaction when their creators offlined. Since that day, they had fought for each other. Without each other, they wouldn't have much of a purpose.

"Seriously though," she scoffed, "I'd never forgive you if you didn't wreck the entire Decepticon fleet in my name." She had been smirking but he had visibly flinched at her words, and she frowned again. He obviously didn't want to think about it. However, it confused her when he suddenly looked up and smiled at her.

"I'd never let them get their dirty servos on you in the first place. That you can count on." She smiled back fully, because she knew that was true. He pushed reassuring and warming feelings through the bond, and she returned them as well.

"Fragging right." She chuckled. It was rare for Striker to ever openly display any of his darker thoughts, but she was happy that they were able to confront this one, even if it was ridiculous, it was a step. She didn't much like the topic but she could feel his spark lift over the bond. He really was getting better. "Hold on a nano-klik," She popped up out of her seat and ran over the energon storage sub-room. It was mostly low grade, but there were a few higher graded cubes hidden in the stores. They planned on using the few high-grade reserves before they launched to the surface of the organic planet they were headed to. The boosted charge to their systems would be a good preparation for combat, but sometimes they just needed to let loose. She grabbed a couple cubes of the high grade and ran back to the table. Striker looked at her skeptically, but she pulled her best sparkling pout. "Just this once!" She begged, and he just couldn't resist.

"Just this once." He repeated feigning annoyance. They knocked their cubes together before downing the energizing liquid. Their conversation remained light and happy after that. They talked about what kind of disguises Optimus message spoke of. About how Prime had talked about an earth information hub, some kind of earth vehicles, and they sat there speculating on what they'd choose and how they would look.

"As long as it's fast you'll be fine." Striker reassured her, practical and straightforward as always.

She shrugged in response. "Yeah, well, it still needs to be stylish, you know. A femme's gotta keep those mechs on their wheels." She smirked when Striker groaned. There were several times where he had to fend off some battle worn mechs with his ax, but Nova didn't need to know that. If her ego got any bigger she would burst.

"I doubt you could live with anything that wasn't." She outright laughed at his response.

"Well, I gotta make my twin look good, right?" Nova gave Striker the most innocent smile she could manage.

"Yeah, cause that's the reason…" Sarcasm was dripping from his mouth plates and his baritone chuckles echoed in the room. Her spark sung from the sounds as she shared his glee over the bond, but she had a part to play. She playfully huffed and knocked her elbow into his chassis causing him to cough from the decompression of his air pressure regulators. Returning the sibling nature, he scowled at her, to which she responded by putting on her kicked sparkling face again.

"Come on, don't be like that." She whined with wide optics. Striker swung his arm around her shoulders. He pulled her close and squished her as hard as he thought she could handle. She made some over exaggerated noises of discomfort before he finally let go.

"Come on, we have a long megacycle of maintenance in the morning." He order. He pulled Nova up and dragged her from the refueling station. She grumbled some Cybertronian curses but compliantly followed. They walked down the long dark corridors to their shared room. They hated being separated. It felt wrong, and their distaste for it was only reinforced when their creators were offlined and after Striker had come back from the wreckers. Plus, war was unpredictable and the closer they were in proximity, the faster they could defend one another if the need arose. It was a habit they had no intention of braking.

They walked to their separate berths and laid down to a peaceful recharge. Or so they had thought.

It was the middle of the night cycle when they felt a horrible shake throughout the carrier. The alarms soon began to blare, signaling a hull breach. Groundstriker was quick to react, but Nova remained sitting on her berth trying to think over what could have happened.

"STOP!" Nova yelled as Striker walked over to the door, pressing the access panel, but it was too late, the room decompressed and Striker was nearly sucked out. He had managed to grab onto the door frame effectively denting it with his weight, and as Nova felt herself fly towards him, he grabbed her too. Once the air had completely dispersed they magnetized their pedes and were once again able to make their way -relatively safely- throughout the ship.

They hadn't been too worried. There was definitely damage to the ship, but they had managed to strike an asteroid or some minor space debris a time or two in the past. This wasn't the first hull breach they had suffered. The Exodus definitely wasn't a war ship, and had no serious armor or shielding to prove it. They made their way through the main corridor towards the command center to assess the damages. Striker looked down at Nova with a sheepish smile and a quiet voice, "Sorry." Nova couldn't bring herself to be mad at him, but she could sure as pit be annoyed.

She glared at him, lightly muttering her response. "You have to be more careful next time." She scolded.

Striker smirked, looking forward "Me, careful? You wouldn't know what to do with me."

"Primus! Isn't that the truth?" She huffed and almost smiled, but Striker threw his arm up towards her, blocking her from moving forward any further. His visor suddenly flew down around his optics as he silently shushed her with a servo digit over his mouth plates.

:There's someone in there.: He frowned, diligently watching the control rooms large doors :I can see several reading on my thermal optics.: Nova quickly engaged her own visor, confirming what he had just told her.

:They must be responsible for the impact.: Nova started to pull her bother back towards where they had come from. They had to get to the escape vessels. Hopefully they could get there before they were found. :Autobots wouldn't fire on a carrier vessel.:

:That only leaves Decepticons.: Nova nodded, but Striker pulled her to a stop. :We can't just give them another ship.: He glared at her, challenging her silent command to escape.

She returned his gaze with a fire in her optics. :Who knows how many of them there are. This isn't strategic Striker. We need to escape. Plus, this ship isn't exactly a prize to be won.: She did her best to reason with him, and when his optics softened she let out a sigh of relief. :Switch on your signal dampener. With any luck, they think this hunk of scrap is deserted.: She could feel a defiant push over the bond, her brother's fond but silent attempt at defending their ship mixed with a distaste for Decepticon trespassers. She pushed back with a silent reminder to stay focused.

They quickly retreated to the carrier's refueling station, doing their best to remain unseen. They had seen a few groups of the Decepticons exploring the halls. The fact that they had made it to the bridge unnoticed only went to show how absolutely inattentive this crew must have been. Once they arrived, they shoved as much energon they could carry into their subspaces, preparing themselves for the remainder of their journey in their respective escape pods. Once Striker's larger form was well stocked, he looked to his sister. She silently nodded. As they exited to the main pods they found them already under Decepticon guard.

:Scrap.: Nova frowned. :We can engage, or we can check the secondary contingency pods.:

:I say we engage.: Striker always was a headstrong fighter. Nova's frown deepened as she vented a sigh. She liked to include him in her reasoning, hoping beyond hope that her spark's twin would pick up some common sense.

:No.: She stated. Striker's irritated glace fell on her, waiting for her answer. He had wanted to argue, but he knew she was the better strategist. :Whether or not the contingencies are under guard, it is likely they would have posted fewer guards on the ships backup feature. If we are forced to engage we can likely remain undetected longer.: She moved to turn the corner, her twin on her heels.

They stealthily made their way back through the carrier they once claimed as their own, employing the maintenance hatches more than once to avoid unwanted attention. While hiding in one of them they could hear a group of Decepticons patrolling the hallway talking about a lone spark signal. That wasn't good. That meant they had scanned the ship and they knew somebot was on board.

:So much for remaining unnoticed.: Nova sighed. That really didn't bode well. If they did manage to get off the ship, the Con's cruiser would most likely notice and pursue them. An escape pod really stood no chance against any ship, let alone a Decepticon battle grade cruiser.

:They thought there was only one of us.: Her brother looked her in her optics.

:I know.: Nova paused, thinking over their options. :I'll need to find some way to mask the signature of the pods. I might be able to link them to our signal dampeners. It should be enough to hide us...in theory.: She added, distinctly trying to hide her unease from their bond.

Striker looked at Nova skeptically. :Won't that take time?:

Nova continued moving down the maintenance hatch. :Yes.:

:Do we even have that kind of time?: Striker quickly began following after her.

:We'll have to make it.: She had a million ideas running through her processor, but it depended on if they could even make it to the shuttles.

When they were nearing the final hallway their luck ran out. She had turned the corner, but she could hear the heavy footsteps of the ship's intruders behind her. "Stop!" an unknown vocalizer called out. She could hear the static of a public comm link opening "We have found the source of the spark signal." This was bad!

:Slag!: She flew around the corner only to be greeted by the sight of Groundstriker pounding one of the two Decepticons into the ground. The other was about to hit him but Nova pulled out her rifle and opened fire. Once the Con under her twin was sufficiently incapacitated Striker stood up and blew the second Con away with this high powered cannons and tore off one of the offenders comm links. It was a good idea. They could listen in on their attackers. They hurried as their audio receptors began to pick up the echoing sounds that undoubtedly came from their soon to be pursuers. After proceeding to the end of the hall they entered the engineering bay. Nova ran to the sub-room that contained the additional pods, but when Striker didn't follow she ran back out to grab him.

He stood his ground as confusion filled her. :Head to the shuttles, I'll follow after you!: He commanded.

:No! Let's go! I'm not leaving you.: She didn't want him facing down their enemy alone.

"Go! Get the shuttles ready. We'll never have enough time if I don't slow them down." He yelled back but his optics were pleading. She winced, knowing he was right. His brute force would buy them time and this was their only chance. It didn't mean she had to like it.

"Be safe," she implored him, quickly wrapped her arm around him in a half hug and ran across the bay to the shuttles in the sub-rooms. She programmed them as quickly as she could but her focus was stretched when she heard the sounds of cannon fire and clashing from the next room. Striker was definitely losing ground. She directed the pods destination to the organic planet but didn't bother to finish sequencing the location. As long as they were in the right general direction they should be fine…hopefully. She then set the control modules to link with their dampeners. It beeped back in confirmation.

:We're good!: She yelled through the bond. :Let's go!:

:Get in and launch, I'm right behind you!: Striker replied. It sounded strained. Fear struck her spark. He was definitely pinned down and she was scared he was trying to do something stupid. The Cons knew at least one of them was on board and if they saw them launch and were in visual range then the cons would undoubtedly try to shoot them down.

:Not until I see you!: She stopped to think, they couldn't let the Decepticons hit the shuttles at launch, who knew what could happen. They would probably get spaced and out there they were done for, armor or not. :I'll hack the door!: She received confusion through their bond but returned it with unbridled optimism and more than a hint of desperation. She ran over to the large plated door, running a sequence to jam it shut on her mark. It would give them those few precious moments they needed to exit the con's cannon range... she hoped. Once they were able to make it out of optical sight, she was fairly confident that their ships' systems wouldn't be able to relocate the tiny vessels, but then hiding propulsion energy was no small feat. :Get in!: She could hear her twin grunt an acknowledgment. She took cover behind the wall and counted to three through their bond. As she opened to door her twin flew through the separating door plating. She slammed them shut and quickly activated her jammer.

She almost gave a breath of relief when she felt her twin grab her. He held her close in a tight grip. She was about to tell him to get his aft moving, but then he quite roughly tossed her into one of the pods and slammed the launch controls. Her optics where beyond widened. The doors began to seal her in.

"What are you doing!?" She yelled, slamming her body against the window of the pod for a better view.

"Find Optimus!" Was all he said. Through the glass of the preparing pod she could see that he had continued typing into the computers for a long moment. It almost looked as though he was talking to someone.

But then the pod began to detach from its hold on the ship. "NO!" she screamed banging clenched servos against the door, her vocalizer unable to penetrate the prison she was now encased in. He had to get out too. He was wasting time on that terminal. She could feel the vacuum pulling out the pod as she locked her optics with her only remaining loved one. Fear coursed through her being, from her spark to her optics, paralyzing her as she watched what was to become of her other half. As the pod dislodged from the main ship the residual spin turned the vessel and she could see her brother no longer, there was only the bond left. A flash of black and a hideous mech's face passed thought the bond with the inkling of anger and a thought attached. 'Target'.

:Only one of us was going to make it out of here, and we both knew it wasn't going to be me: There was a pause, and her disbelieving optics threatened to spill unshed tears. :You'll be fine Nova. You will survive. You're strong.: He let another pause go by. The silence, -broken only by the muted sounds of propulsion and her venting- had become maddening, until finally there was what felt like a feint whisper among the overwhelming feelings of remorse. :Till all are one.:

Those were the last words she heard when the bond severed like a burning knife piecing through her spark chamber. She banged and bashed at the door, yelling unheard words as the pod soundproofed her piecing screams for all other receptors. It was her job to keep him functioning wasn't it? And she failed him. She failed her own twin. Her spark's other half.

He was all she had left... and now, there was nothing.

A/N: Aw primus, I made myself cry. T_T I'm still editing this, because I don't have a beta.

For the color reference for Groundstriker you can check the link on my profile page.

I'll put all of these references in my profile, listed by chapter so they're easier to get to.

You can check out Nova's eventual alt form and colors from the next chapter at youtube dot com /fe4Qoy_UZ6Q?t=1m51 , link's on my profile too.

Does anyone else have any songs that fit these kinds of situations? Also, if you love long stories like I do and want to read more Sunstreaker stuff I highly recommend "Golden Gods" by Goldstreak. For a Twin fic, another good one is "What Once Was Lost" by J. . If anyone else has some suggestions I'd love to read them!

Feedback would be greatly appreciated!

What do you guys like? Anything you don't like? Suggestions? Predictions? I want to hear them all. :)