My Second Life
By: Thundergryphon
A/N So I know this concept is a bit cliché, but I had fun writing the story. As always, comments and suggestions are greatly appreciated. =)
Pairings: Kitty!Prowl/Jazz, slight Hound/Mirage (and a few other pairings) hints
Disclaimer: Not mine…probably a good thing too ;)
Archieved: FF (dot) net-Thundergryphon Y!Gallery-ChaosToGlory
Joor – One Earth Day Orn - About Two Earth Weeks Vorn - About 83 Earth years
The day you died I lost my way
The day you died I lost my mind
-Forsaken (VNV Nation)
Prowl felt out of sorts, to say the least. Something wasn't quite right, but no matter how much he thought about it, he just couldn't put his finger on it. For one thing the immense pain he was in just moments before had subsided. Also, he felt the pull of gravity weaken and he felt strangely relaxed.
He tried to think back to what happened before he blacked out. The plan he and Jazz had come up with was fresh in his mind, and he remembered leaving with Hound and Mirage to carry out the recon mission. But it went wrong, didn't it?
He remembered being ambushed by a large group of angry Decepticons. Apparently their mission had unknowingly put them right in the middle of a Decepticon operation. There was gun and laser fire all around them, and Hound was shouting at him, then the most intense pain he had ever felt hit him from behind and his mind faded into darkness.
The tactician was now beginning to piece things together. His pain was gone, he felt truly relaxed for the first time in vorns, and he was experiencing a sensation that could only be described as 'floaty'. Prowl wondered if he was-
"Dead. Yes."
-
Prowl spun around, or tried to at least. Having no body greatly limited his movements. However, he was able to make out a figure in the darkness. The other mech was a little taller than Prowl, but there was an aura of sadness around him. He was golden in color, but his paint was dull and chipped. His optics were black and when Prowl tried to look directly into them, he felt his very essence being sucked into a darkness from which he could not escape.
Prowl quickly looked away, still a little confused.
"So, I'm really dead? I guess it makes sense. I don't suppose anyone would have been able to survive that hit. But who are you? You don't look like the kind of 'bot who guides lost sparks to Primus-"
Prowl felt a moment of panic. "Does that mean you're taking me to the Pit? But why? I've done nothing but work hard for the betterment of-"
The figure held up a hand, gesturing for silence.
"The living's beliefs of the afterlife greatly vary, and very few are accurate. Therefore, you should not assume where I will be taking you," he replied in a deep voice that chilled Prowl to his spark. Or it would have if he still had a spark.
-
Prowl was silent for a moment, still trying to grasp what had happened. It was hard to accept that he was dead, especially after everything he had been through with the Autobots.
"Wait," he exclaimed. "Hound! And Mirage! Are they alright?"
The figured smiled, looking slightly amused. "I could show you, if you'd like. Or we can skip right to our journey. We do have a long ways to be going."
"Please show me," pleaded Prowl. "I need to know that they're alright. I don't think I could forgive myself if anything happened to them."
The darkness around Prowl faded away and was replaced with familiar surroundings. The tactician recognized the inside of med bay. But it was empty, save for one dark figure in a corner.
"An orn has passed since your death," the figure commented. "Time passes slowly in the land of the living. As you can see, your two friends are not here, and therefore are fine. Come. It is time to being out journey."
"Wait," said Prowl. He was straining to see who was hunched up over in the dark corner. Soft sobs emanated through the silence.
-
Prowl's guide glided over towards the corner, Prowl following in his wake. What he saw moved the Autobot in a way nothing else ever had. Jazz was curled up in a chair next to Prowl's empty shell, openly crying. The saboteur had laced his black fingers into Prowl's white ones and had his head resting against the tactician's cheek. Trails of pink energon tricked out from under his visor and the usually upbeat third in command looked like he hadn't recharged in joors.
Prowl was honored that his best friend was keeping vigil over his empty shell, but at the same time he also felt regret. Jazz had become very important to the tactician over the vorns, and he regrettably had left many things unsaid to the saboteur. He longed for the chance to tell Jazz how much the smaller bot meant to him.
A stray thought crossed his mind. "You said that I've been dead for an orn?"
"That is correct."
"So Jazz has been here like this the entire time?"
"That is also correct."
"I don't understand this. I could understand if he was grieving for a few joors, but an entire orn? We weren't that close."
-
The sound of an opening door interrupted the tactician's thoughts. He watched as Ratchet crossed the room and headed towards Jazz. The medic put a hand on the other mech's shoulder.
"Jazz, please get some rest. We're all worried about you."
"Dun wanna," came the mumbled reply.
"Jazz, I know he was your best friend, and this has been hard on all of us too. But we need you to pull yourself together. You're still third in command and you have a responsibility to all the bots on this ship."
Jazz reluctantly lifted up his head and looked at the medic. "I know Ratchet," he whispered. "But- I never got to tell him."
Ratchet smiled. "He's in a better place now. I'm sure he knows. Here." The medic handed Jazz a cube of energon. "Drink this and go have a nice long recharge. Prowl would have your aft if he knew you were moping around instead of doing your duties."
Jazz smiled slightly and untangled his hand from Prowl's before accepting the energon and heading out the door. Ratchet gave a sad look towards Prowl's shell before heading out.
-
Naturally Prowl was confused by the whole exchange.
"So Jazz has been clinging to and crying over my empty shell for an entire orn, all because there was something he didn't get to tell me?"
"It would appear so," the figure smiled.
"What is it?" Prowl inquired. The figure continued to smile.
"You know, don't you?"
"We see all that goes on everywhere, we know all that has happened, and some of what will happen."
"And I suppose you're not going to enlighten me?"
"I cannot."
-
Prowl growled with frustration. Not only was he extremely curious by this point, he was also concerned for Jazz. The third in command looked like he'd been to the Pit and back and Prowl would be damned if his friend died from grief.
"Listen, death-guardian mech-"
"Mu."
"Pardon me?"
"You may call me Mu. And before you ask, you cannot go back."
"But I need to go back. If Jazz is suffering this much because there's something he needs to tell me, then I think I have a right know what it is." Prowl's voice turned desperate. "I need to make sure he's okay. He's already lost so many friends. I want to at least let him know that I'm okay and that I lo-miss him."
Mu was silent and appeared to be thinking. "Normally no being who has died can be sent back to the life which they left. However, like all rules there are exceptions."
-
"Please, I'll do it," begged Prowl. He tried to make his optics look sad and vulnerable, the way the twins did to try to avoid punishment. He had no idea if it was working, because quite frankly, he had no idea if he was just a lonely consciousness, or a "ghost", as humans called them.
"Very well. This procedure has only been done a handful of times in the past, and there are several rules. The most important rule is the time limit. If you cannot discover what your friend wanted to tell you within the limit, you will come back here. However, if you do managed to find out what you want to know, you will be allowed to return to your life."
"That's fine. Just please send me back."
"Patience. There is another important rule you must keep in mind. This is a one time occurrence. Regardless if you get to return or not, this particular offer will not be available again, and you will go straight to your after life destination the next time you see me."
"That's fine," insisted Prowl. "I have to at least try."
-
"As I'm sure you understand, I cannot send you back to your original body, as it will undoubtedly cause problems. You will be assigned a temporary body in which you will be able to gain access to your friend without him knowing it's you. Allowing anyone to know who you are is against the rules. It has caused so much chaos in the past. And the time limit is one orn. That's it. If you do not manage to discover what your friend wants to tell you, you will be seeing me again."
"I got it. One orn, temporary body, no one knows who I am."
"Well then. I wish you luck. And I will be seeing you again, maybe sooner that you wish."
Prowl felt the darkness surround him again, then everything faded away.
-
~~Just in case you're interested, Mu means "nothing" in Japanese (roughly translated).