My good e-friend Optimus Bob and I are fans of each other's work on another TF site. So we decided to collaborate for a cute piece that's semi-AU. Bob's Autobots, and my Decepticons, forced to work together. We both post here under Transformers(movie) so if you like what you see, venture on over there for more goodness!!!
I.
The new ship had worked much better than predicted. It sailed easily into the vacuum of space, even with its new payload of Neptunium. Nadya Cherenkov was pleased as she worked the controls of their new ship. She and Philippe Stokes had been given clearance to fly the ship on its maiden voyage to Neptune's largest moon Triton, to mine the new mineral, as they had been some of the only astronauts to have knowledge of their allies. Glancing out of the cockpit window, she gave a small wave. The small yellow Autobot inclined his head in a nod and waved back, he was joined by a much larger black and white mech who cast him a stern look. Bumblebee chastised, returned to escorting the shuttle back to Earth.
"How you holding up back there Philippe?"
"I really wish you didn't call me that."
"It suits you." Nadya laughed lightly at the grumbling from the back of the reverse engineered shuttle. Stokes glided up to join her in the cockpit.
"Shame they couldn't figure out the artificial gravity from the Ark's specs." He sighed as he buckled himself in.
"You should be used to the zero g by now."
"Doesn't mean I have to like it. How's our taxi service doing?"
Nadya glanced once more out of the cockpit. "We have three escorts that I've seen. Bumblebee has already got the glare from Prowl; Ironhide is taking up the rear."
"Man Prowl doesn't relax does he?"
"Not that I've noticed. I like it he gets the job done." Nadya chuckled, as Stokes pulled a face.
Their comm. system filled with static as they left the vicinity of Neptune.
"Optimus to the Intrepid."
"Go ahead Optimus, this is Nadya."
"What is your status?"
"We're on our way back, ahead of schedule and we have enough Neptunium for you guys to work with for at least a couple of decades."
"That's good news Intrepid; the Ark is positioned outside the asteroid belt. We will dock you with you in approximately 30 minutes Optimus out."
"Bet they're pleased." Grinned Stokes. This mission had been planned for just over a year with the help of the Autobots after the first discovery of naturally existing Neptunium was detected by their very own ISS. The President had thought it fitting to provide their new allies with the means to collect energy to sustain themselves and potentially replace their dwindling energy reserves after what they had done to save planet Earth.
****
Blackout's cargo hold recoiled as he fired his main gun. Dead End jumped, his eyes shifting nervously.
"Calm down," Barricade said. He rose to his knees, fixing the attachment points of the booster pack under his fairings. "Means it's about time."
The smaller bot scrambled, grabbing at his own pack, running nervous hands over the pile of carry harness.
"I am calm," he lied.
"Know your job?" Barricade grabbed for a handhold as Blackout swung wide.
"Yeah," Dead End said, hotly. "Know what I'm doing." He lost his footing and fell into the pile of plasmetal straps.
Blackout cut in. "Why we trust you with the explosives, Barricade."
"Thought you were hoping I'd blow myself up," Barricade said dryly.
"That too."
"The love here overwhelms me." Barricade frowned. "Hate these things." He jerked on a lower attachment of the booster pack.
"Think you hate them?" Blackout groused. "Rotors pinned back so tight it's blurring my damn optics. Don't get me started on the heat." Blackout notoriously hated space combat—his rotors could get no lift, and like Barricade and Dead End, had to don an awkward external thruster system. Starscream had thrust in any atmosphere, of course. Bastard could probably get lift in a black hole.
"Done chatting, ladies?" Starscream cut in sourly across the comms. "If you don't mind, we do have a tactical situation that might prove diverting."
"…divert you;" Blackout muttered, cutting his external comm. "Get ready. Taking you in now." The interior chamber filled with the roar of Blackout's added thrusters. The door peeled open. Barricade grabbed the explosive case, slinging the detonators over his shoulder, and jumped out. His light boosters carried him toward the steel-white sides of the human spacecraft. Behind him, Blackout swung around, his guns blazing in suppressive fire. Two of the Autobots came up from Blackout's six. Blackout's move fouled Dead End's exit—the small red bot tumbled, the carry harness falling out of its tidy configuration. Great, Barricade thought: Dead End's in his usual form.
He slung his explosive case against the side of the shuttle, hearing its magnets clang on. With one last look behind him, he got to work. Simple job: Blow the cargo hold free of the rest of the ship. Get the Neptunium; bring it back to the Nemesis. Secondary orders, according to Soundwave (muttered in Barricade's private comm.) were to blow the Neptunium. Deny the asset to the enemy if nothing else works.
Dead End squealed, recoiling back from the ship, his boosters sending him spinning wildly. Barricade cursed and shot off after him. He grabbed the smaller bot roughly by the ankle and thrust him back toward the cargo hold. "Squishy!" Dead End said. "In the ship!"
"Squeamish?" Barricade taunted. "Do your damn job."
"Haste would be appreciated," Starscream cut in. He was really overusing the all-comms channel. Apparently thought his every utterance was worth wide broadcast. "The actual fighters here are outnumbered. And they have called for reinforcements."
"On it," Barricade said, with one last glare at Dead End, and turned back to the shuttle.
****
Nadya noticed a little bit of commotion flash in front of the cockpit. "Whoa!" She gasped; Stokes glanced up, "What is it?" Without warning the shuttle was rocked violently, alarms sounded from the control panel. Smoke hissed above their heads.
"Fire! We got fire!" Stokes unbuckled himself and grabbed the nearest extinguisher. Another violent motion knocked the defenseless shuttle, sending it careering off course.
"I can't hold position! Navigation is shot!"
"Take us back, reverse course it's programmed into the autopilot!" Stokes yelled as he was thrown into the nearest bulkhead. Nadya struggled with the violently bucking ship. She could see the Autobots frantically yelling to each other outside. They were firing at someone. She saw Bumblebee take a hit and go spinning across her vision, barely missing the cockpit.
"We're being attacked!"
"What?!" Stokes managed to crawl back into his seat and buckle in.
He stared incredulously outside the window, Prowl was firing rapidly after managing to grab a hold of Bumblebee to stabilize him. Ironhide's canons could be heard over the din of the alarms.
"Send out the distress beacon. Let's hope they don't blow it up."
Nadya punched a red button in response. With expert dexterity she managed to punch in the ship's Autopilot and the ship bucked to the right sharply in response.
****
Blackout dodged another of Ironhide's cannon bursts. He let loose with one of his own missiles. Went wide, of course, as the recoil wobbled against his forward thrust. With these damn thrusters, he couldn't shake his vehicle mode.
Next to him, Starscream spun agilely, swiping at Bumblebee as he zipped past. Ironhide rippled a salvo of shots after him, almost hitting his fellow Autobot. Even the Decepticons could hear Bumblebee's squeal of outrage.
Where was the third? There were three. Blackout swung his thrusters, dropping below the shuttle. Unlikely the Autobots would assign a coward to escort duty. The third Autobot was around here somewhere. Where?
There. Crawling up the dark side of the ship, trying to flank Barricade. Barricade was engrossed in the delicate work of laying the detonating cord in the explosive gel, measuring the timing fuses against a calibration on his wrist. A light flow of the thrusters pressed him against the ship. Behind Barricade, Dead End scrambled with lengths of the carry harness; oblivious to everything except the mess he was unsnarling. Needing, of course, an actual warrior to save their baseplates.
Blackout roared his thrusters, swooping to snatch the Autobot off the ship. Before he could reach him, the Autobot made his move, firing at Barricade. The Decepticon leapt back, on pure instinct, the thrusters turning his leap into a spinning loop in the null g. Barricade flailed, detonators flying. Prowl launched himself bodily at Barricade. He pounded on Barricade's head and face, the Decepticon unable to block his blows—his arms pinned against his torso. Prowl growled in Barricade's audio's as he forcibly tried to remove him from the ship; his voice was eerily calm and controlled. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to disembark."
Beyond them, Starscream and Ironhide had engaged. The smaller Autobot had somehow managed to get in close with Starscream, bodily forcing his right arm upwards, out of the way. Starscream pounded him in the head with his free hand, knocking him off, closer to the body of the ship. As Ironhide stabilized his spin, he spotted Blackout, rising up over the shuttle, aiming his reticle at Prowl, waiting for the two bots to stabilize until he got a clear shot.
Ironhide fired, as Starscream laid into him from the side with his chain gun. The pulse cannon's blast zipped harmlessly past the two struggling bots, and straight into the explosives case.
Blackout had time for one thought, and that, obscene, before the black of space went white, roaring into silence.