Love Is A Battlefield
Optimus Prime sighed. He turned away, looking off into the hills. Jazz's death had cut him deeply, him and the other Autobots. A gentle hand rested on his leg, and he looked down. The human, Mikaela, was standing there.
"You miss him, don't you?" she asked.
Optimus cocked his head to one side. "I do, Mikaela. But such is the price of war, and Jazz would want us to move on, and continue our efforts." Inwardly, he hadn't moved on. He was still mourning for his first lieutenant's death, and he hadn't shown any signs of stopping. The Autobots-i.e. Ratchet, Bumblebee, and Ironhide- were getting worried. They hadn't seen their leader like this ever.
Not even when they'd found Elita-One's dead body.
Mikaela sadly walked away, thinking about the depression she had sensed in his voice. When she'd first met the Autobots, his voice had been serious, but still not so sad as it was now. She herself was saddened by Jazz's death, wished she could have known him better. Optimus is right, though. We have to accept his death, and continue battling the Decepticons. Every victory is in his name.
'Hey 'Bee? Can you take me home?" Mikaela asked. "My mom will be getting worried," she lied. Her mother didn't even notice if her daughter was home, or out. Once, Mikaela had spent the night at a friend's house, and tried to call her mom.
"Ya," she had said upon picking up the phone.
"Mom? Can I sleep over at Cathy's tonight?" Mikaela had asked hopefully. She was ten.
"'Kae, I don't care. I'm busy." And then her mom had hung up.
That was how Mikaela's life had been: her father in and out of jail, and her mother completely inattentive. She was lucky to have stayed sane through it all. Sam was a good find; maybe he wasn't as strong as most of the guys she'd dated, but he had a good heart, and that was what mattered.
Mikaela lay back down, and snuggled into his side. Sam wrapped his arm around her, only to slip off when Bumblebee gave a shake. He sprawled on the ground, and Mikaela landed in a crouch. She laughed, and stood up.
"Thanks, 'Bee," Sam muttered, getting up, and brushing the dirt off his pants. "Warn me next time, will ya?"
Bumblebee transformed, and pretended to sigh dramatically. "I'm the chauffer, Sam! I've been given a job!" he said, winking at Mikaela.
"Thanks, 'Bee," she said as he transformed back, and opened his door. She hesitated at the driver's seat, as her earlier reluctance to sit there when he was driving still remained.
"You can get in, I'm not actually sitting inside myself," he said gently. She climbed in, and waved goodbye to Sam. As they drove, she thought on Optimus's words. She was worried the Autobot leader was slipping into a slight depression-if that were possible-and worried about him in general.
Later that night, when Mikaela knew that most of the Autobots would be in stasis, she left quickly, gathering a duffel bag of tools from her dad's old shed. She crept outside, to her Vespa. It looked very sad, all things considered, after hanging out with transforming vehicles. But still, it was a mode of transportation, so she climbed on, and took off for the Autobots' base.
The underground building was outside of town, and the entrance was hard to find. Despite that, Mikaela made it in under an hour. She crept inside, down through cavernous rooms and hallways, until she reached the room where Jazz was stored. A few crates, and some other assorted boxes provided uneven steps for her to get up onto the table.
Large tools were scattered around on the table. Some screwdriver-looking ones were stripped beyond repair, and several other unidentifiable tools were also mangled. Ratchet's been working…but he obviously hasn't made any headway. Mikaela's eyes drifted to Jazz's midsection, and she wished they hadn't. Megatron had done a very messy job, to say the least.
Mikaela clambered up onto the lifeless bot's chest, and examined the wires at the split. They hung limply, with no sparks even shooting out. She reached for her bundle of extra wire, and gently attached a small part to a wire. She connected the wire, and watched as it sparked once, then was lifeless once more.
"It's a start," she muttered. She worked on the other wires, getting the same result each time. She noticed, however, that the sparks were getting lengthier, and more pronounced as she worked.
The sun rose into the sky, and the sounds of activity echoed through the base, but still Mikaela worked diligently. She silently thanked Ratchet for having the two halves up against each other, as it made her work much easier. Soon she had all the visible wires connected, and-as far as she could tell-all the ones that she could connect. A large cable was hanging out, and its other side was visible as well, but the material was strange, and Mikaela had no desire to mess anything up.
So she started on the metal.
There were some scattered pieces on the floor, but she needed large sheets. Mikaela found these in a crate, and luckily one close to the top. After much heaving, she had three good-sized sheets up on the table. She pulled out a very large, very menacing tool, used for cutting sheets such as this. Mikaela set to work, fitting pieces onto the large gaps, melding them into place securely.
By mid-afternoon, he was looking like himself.
Mikaela was getting hungry, so she pulled a granola bar out of the duffel, and continued working. She wasn't planning on stopping to eat. Besides, the Autobots will probably make me stop as soon as they find me. I need to get as much done as I can, before I'm stopped, she thought. She worked until the evening, when her cellphone rang for the tenth time. She huffed, and picked it up.
"Hello?"
"'Kae?! Oh my God! Where were you today? We've all been out searching for you, and nobody's seen you, and-"
"Sam! Calm down, ok?" Mikaela pleaded. "I'm fine, I've just been busy. I'll call you later, bye!" She hung up before he had a chance to protest. The young woman picked her wrench back up, and continued working on fixing the two halves together. The big cord was still bothering her, but she couldn't worry about that.
That was, until she saw a cord just like it, buried in the metal sheet box. She yanked it out excitedly, and set it aside. She calmed herself down, and continued work. By now, it was 11:00, and she was getting sleepy after working for over twelve hours straight. She checked her watch, and saw it had been about twenty-three hours since she had started.
"Oh God, I'm so dead. I can't believe I haven't been caught yet," Mikaela moaned. She started cosmetic work, although upset that she didn't have paint to match his. A thought entered her head, but it would have to wait until tomorrow.
A faint warmth came from the bot, and so she snuggled up closer to his side as she worked. Mikaela finally finished with the cosmetics, and checked her watch. Another all-nighter, she thought blandly. She connected the last, strange wire, and sighed deeply. Mikaela slipped out, and, after collecting her Vespa, drove to the nearest mechanic. After getting an appointment, she drove back hurriedly.
Somehow, she slipped inside, and clambered up the makeshift steps carrying buckets of paint. "C'mon, Jazz, how do you transform? I know Ratchet has some way to make you all transform," she murmured. She felt around on his head, and stifled a yelp as he transformed beneath her. Grinning madly, she drove him down the unwieldy ramp she'd made from the spare metal parts, happy it supported his weight.
Mikaela took back ways, and, by some miracle, got outside. Once she'd cleared the base, she put the pedal to the metal-literally-and zoomed off. She reached the mechanic quickly, and told him the color scheme she wanted for the thoroughly messed-up Solstice. The guy laughed, and told her how bland silver was.
"Alright then, how about something with a racing edge to it? No flames, though," she countered, thinking of Optimus's chosen form. The man grinned. "Now you're talking! Come back this afternoon, and it'll be all fixed up for ya," he announced.
Mikaela poked her head inside, and called, "Hello?"
"Ah, 'ey there, ma'am! Your friend's car is all fixed up," the mechanic said.
"My friend?" she asked in confusion.
"Well yeah! He came by a little bit ago, asking about who brought the car in. Real nervous fella. Well, I told him, and he relaxed right away. Said it was 'is car, and you'd gone and fixed it up for 'im. You mus' be some fiiine mechanic of a gal," he said with a laugh.
"Mmmm hmmm, now, if you don't mind, I'd like to get the car," Mikaela said impatiently.
"'M sure ya can, ma'am. Jus' sign here, and you'll be free ta take it." He held out a sheet of paper, and the teen hurriedly signed it. She climbed inside the car, surprised to find the keys in the ignition. Still somewhat dazed, she turned them, and backed out.
The wheel moved under her hands, and she relaxed her grip, letting the Solstice drive itself. "Jazz?" she whispered nervously.
"Yep," he answered, not bothering to conceal his elation.
"Oh God, I did it! Jazz, you're alive!" Mikaela shrieked. She leaned back into the seat, and Jazz played some soft music. Slowly but surely, she fell asleep.
Jazz drove her back to the base, and carefully woke her up before they could be seen. "I want a good entrance," he whispered.
Mikaela rubbed her eyes, and took hold of the wheel. "How 'bout I get all the Autobots out here?" she asked devilishly.
"Sure."
Mikaela clambered out of the car, and stretched. Sam came running up, and hugged her tightly. "Sam! Get off, I'm fine!" she laughed, peeling her boyfriend off.
"'Kae, where were you?" he cried, somewhat hysterical.
"Get the Autobots out here, and I'll tell everybody."
Loud footstep shook the ground, and Ratchet came out, followed closely by Bumblebee.
"He's gone!" the medicalbot yelped.
"Who?" Sam and Mikaela asked in unison.
"Jazz!"
Optimus and Ironhide followed, with the weapons' specialist grumbling about being jolted out of stasis.
"Uh, guys? Guys!" Mikaela cried, trying to get their attention. Once she had it, she continued, "You're probably wondering where I've been, right? Well…" She glanced back at the Pontiac, which shuddered in silent laughter.
Jazz suddenly sprang up, transforming on his way. "She was working on me," he announced. He lifted Mikaela up to his shoulder, and said, "Thanks, by the way."
"No problem."
"How did this happen?" Ratchet asked, recovered from his earlier panic. The other Autobots were too shocked for words.
"I dunno, I just…did it," the teen answered truthfully. "I started a night ago, and worked straight through the night, and the next day and night. I found supplies in the room, and those, along with the tools I brought from home, were what I used." She shrugged. "It just flowed out of my head, as if it was just like repairing a normal car."
"I've never heard of a case like that," he murmured.
"You'd better not even be thinking about performing tests on me," Mikaela warned. Jazz laughed, and patted her gently.
Just a little bit away from the base, watching the happy reunion, was a black-and-white Mustang police car.