A Class Of My Own
"We need you, Jazz."
Four words. Three words if he didn't count his name. That was all it had taken to turn his life into one huge circus. Not that it hadn't been a circus before, but this one took the proverbial oil-cake. One moment he had been enjoying the sights and sounds of Paris – including the famous Paris Opera – the next moment, he was answering a call from Optimus Prime, with the Eiffel Tower as his backdrop.
At first, Jazz had been reluctant to even answer the call, as this was his first real vacation ever since the Autobots had joined forces with the Earth Defense Command (EDC) to combat the second, and deadlier, outbreak of Cosmic Rust. Still, he knew they wouldn't have called him unless the situation was such that only Jazz, and Jazz alone, was capable of handling it. So he answered the call, and he hadn't been disappointed.
"We have reason to believe that the EDC was infiltrated by human spies in league with the Decepticons," Prime told him. "No one has been able to find out who they are, but the trouble they've created has been grave. The Decepticons now know of the Binaltech Project."
Ah yes, the Binaltech Project. The reason the Autobots had allied themselves with the EDC in the first place. Megatron had found a way to enhance the destructive properties of the virus that made it resistant to Perceptor's old Corrostop cure. The two Decepticon combiner groups – the Stunticons and Combaticons – had ambushed and attacked a small Autobot shuttle carrying five Autobots in it, returning from an outer-space mission, and unleashed the virus, but not without two of their number sustaining considerable damage first.
The infected Autobots had returned to Earth and imposed a quarantine on themselves so as not to infect any of the other Autobots. Yet Sunstreaker had managed to find them holed up in a cave somewhere in the middle of the desert – since one of the infected mechs had been his twin brother Sideswipe – low on energy and slowly being eaten away by the rust. On learning of the condition of the five mechs, Chip Chase, a long-time friend of the Autobots, had pulled some strings at the EDC and initiated the Binaltech Project.
Since the Cosmic Rust only affected Cybertronian metal, Chip and the other EDC scientists, with some help and guidance from Perceptor, Wheeljack and Ratchet, had been able to come up with a suitable Earth metal alloy – just as thick and strong as the Cybertronian metal – that they used to build new, transformable bodies for the injured Autobots. At this point, several Earth car manufacturers had come forward with sponsorship deals and blueprints to car models that they felt would best suit a particular Autobot. All this was then adapted to Transformer technology by Teletran 1.
Not wanting to lose five of his best soldiers, not to mention close friends, Optimus Prime had given the Binaltech team the green light to go through with the project. The human scientists, under the close supervision and care of Chip, managed to transfer each wounded Autobot's personality component and life-spark into his new body, after which, the old bodies were completely destroyed to eradicate any remaining traces of Cosmic Rust. The project was kept secret to prevent any Decepticons obtaining the information.
"I'm terribly sorry Jazz," Prime said. "I know how much you had been looking forward to touring Europe, and I truly regret having to cut your holiday short, but I would not have called you in if I didn't think you were the only mech for the job."
Everything had been progressing so smoothly that Jazz had put in for leave, intending to take a nice, long vacation to rest and recharge after all the months of work and worry he'd put in, in an effort to help save his friends' lives. And for a while it had turned out to be a nice vacation. He'd toured Britain and the south of France, he was currently in Paris, and he'd planned to head to Italy in a couple of days. It'd all been too good to be true.
"We need you, Jazz."
Jazz sighed. "Alright, I'll be there." It was not like he had much of a choice anyway. "Tell Skyfire to pick me up from the Eiffel Tower tomorrow morning."
Prime looked relieved. "Thank you Jazz. You're the best agent we've got."
"No kidding, I'm the only agent you've got," Jazz replied with a little grin. "I'll see ya tomorrow. Jazz out."
The black and white mech cut the connection, then looked at the rosy, twilight sky. 'I'm the only agent you've got'. The thought was somewhat sobering. The Autobots had numbers when it came to warriors, medics, scientists, engineers, spies, etc, but they had only one Special Operations Agent and Jazz was it. He wondered what would happen the day he bit the dust and they didn't have him anymore.
'Maybe I should start training a couple of the guys, just in case,' he thought, and then immediately dismissed the idea.
It was impossible. The skills he possessed had not been taught to him, they'd come naturally. There was no way another mech could get them unless he'd been cloned from Jazz himself and shared part of his spark. He shook his head. It was wishful thinking. For now, he was all the Autobots had, and he had to go stick his neck on the line again.
He transformed to his Porsche mode and drove off, intending to squeeze in as much sight-seeing he could that evening before he had to go back again. There was another reason Jazz restrained himself from recruiting anyone else for the job, and that was because most of the missions he undertook were dangerous, where one wrong move could get you slagged. Because of his cool, laid-back nature, and his calm, adaptive mind, Jazz made it look fairly easy, but there had been a few times he'd barely escaped death, and numerous times, especially in his early years, he'd been badly hurt.
He knew he'd never be able to live with the guilt if some young mech went and got himself killed because Jazz hadn't taught him enough, or because he just wasn't the right mech for the job. No, Jazz would rather do the mission himself than get an innocent Autobot killed.
Skyfire picked him up the next day, as planned, and Jazz gazed wistfully at the beautiful city below him as it grew smaller and smaller as Skyfire rose. He sighed.
"You alright Jazz?" Skyfire's kindly voice sounded around him.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just peachy."
"You don't sound fine."
"I just really wanted to see the rest of Europe y'know, from the inside. Get to know more of the cultures and such."
"But you already know so much."
"People change Skyfire. And when people change, cultures tend to shift as well."
"That's interesting, I didn't know that."
"Well you're a scientist, so you wouldn't necessarily come across cultural shifts in your line of work. Don't sweat it, we all gotta do what we're good at."
"I agree, but there's no reason why I should not foray out of the world of Science once in a while, to learn of something completely different."
"I guess not."
"So tell me of some of the things you have seen in your travels."
Jazz complied and proceeded to tell him about all that he'd seen – Stonehenge, the Tower of London, Galway Bay, Loch Ness, L'Arc de Triumph – if for nothing else than just to while away the time till they reached their destination.
"So how exactly DID the Decepticons get to know about the Binaltech Project?" Jazz asked. "If the whole thing was supposed to be a top secret project."
"They had someone on the inside, a spy within the EDC ranks, or so we've been told. I don't have many details for you Jazz, but I'm sure you'll be given all the information you need at Autobot City, and you wont have to wait long either, we're here."
Skyfire dropped Jazz off at the landing docks, then rose and flew off again. Jazz strolled across the open ground and headed to a door that would take him inside Autobot City. As Jazz neared, the doors parted down the middle with a soft hiss, and he went in. At a guess he surmised that Optimus Prime would be waiting for him at the Command Center, so he made his way there.
On the way he passed the gym, where Sideswipe was just coming out. For a split-second he did a double-take to make sure it really WAS Sideswipe. He was still trying to get used to seeing his friends with new bodies. Sideswipe, though still red, had sacrificed his old Lamborghini model for a newer Dodge Viper convertible alt mode. The red mech smiled when he saw Jazz.
"Hey Jazz, what are you doing back here? Weren't you on vacation or something?" he asked.
"I was. Then Prime called," Jazz replied.
"Ah, the whole 'duty to Autobots more important than personal sanity' thing huh?"
"Something like that. How're you doin' though man?"
Sideswipe fidgeted. "I'm okay. Still trying to get used to this new body and all, and accept the fact that Sunny and I don't look like twins anymore."
"Hey man, you're still brothers at spark, it doesn't matter what each of you looks like on the outside."
"Heh, try telling that to Sunstreaker."
"Good point." They reached the Command Center. "Well I gotta leave you here ol' buddy. Time to hear the boss."
"Good luck on that," Sideswipe said. "Later Jazz."
"Y'take care Sides."
Jazz stepped inside. Prowl was there and he acknowledged Jazz's presence with a nod, then went back to his work. Jazz knew from experience that was as close a greeting he was going to get from the tactician, so he grinned and headed to Prime's private office. He knocked out a rhythm on the door.
"Come in Jazz," Prime called.
Jazz went in. "How'd you know it was me?"
"Normally people just barge inside, and the few who do knock barely waste time with a rhythm."
"Ah well, y'know me, always the unique one."
"Precisely why I had no other choice but to call you back. You're the only one with the unique talent to handle a situation like this. We did think of using another Autobot, but I …."
"You didn't trust him not to get himself killed," Jazz finished for him. "I get ya. So what's my mission? You only said the Alliance has been infiltrated and the Decepticons found out about the Binaltech Project. How did all this happen? Everything was just fine when I left, after we kicked the 'Cons off the planet with the help of our new Binaltech boys."
"Someone planted spies amongst the EDC to cause suspicion and confusion within its ranks, particularly those involved with Binaltech. Amidst all the distrust and confusion about who was loyal and who was not, several blueprints went missing. The blueprints contained valuable information regarding the models of both present and future Binaltech Autobots. If those blueprints fall into Decepticon hands, and we already think they might have, the results could be disastrous for the Alliance."
Jazz crossed his arms. "I'll get right on it. What do you want me to do?"
Prime shook his head. "Nothing at the moment. The Alliance has called a meeting at the EDC headquarters tomorrow morning. I want you to attend it with Prowl and myself. We will discuss the next course of action there. For now though, take some time to rest and prepare yourself. After tomorrow I have a feeling none of us will be having much time to ourselves. Dismissed."
Jazz gave his leader a half-hearted salute, then went back outside. There, he leaned back against a wall with a sigh. Prowl looked up at him.
"Something the matter?" he asked.
"I just don't see why y'all couldn't have finished all the debatin' and politickin' and then called me in," Jazz replied. "Y'know I hate sittin' through that whole mess."
"The EDC specifically requested that you be there."
"Huh? Why?"
"You'll find out tomorrow I suppose." Prowl turned back to his work.
Jazz shook his head and left the Command Center, deciding to head down to his quarters and 'unpack' of sorts. The nice thing about being a senior Autobot was that he got to have a slightly larger room compared to most of the others, which was good for all his clutter.
An impressive entertainment system stood in one corner, in front of a floor-to-ceiling shelf containing CDs, DVDs and games. Next to that was his desk, on which sat his entire computer system. Here and there, on the walls, hung framed gold and platinum records of some of his favorite musicians, all personally autographed to him – from Stevie Wonder, to Aerosmith, to Pavarotti. There were also framed, original movie posters, again autographed by the directors and some of the cast – The Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Gladiator, among others. In between all the popular culture, there were plenty of authentic souvenirs from some of the countries he'd visited.
A lot of 'Bots had said that stepping into Jazz's room was like stepping into an Arts gallery. Jazz didn't mind, he liked his room, eventhough he was now finding it a bit hard to find space for all his stuff. After unsubspacing various items, that he left on his desk, he slipped in a CD of Vivaldi's compositions, then lay down in his recharge berth and tried to relax, trying not to think too much of what could possibly go down at that meeting tomorrow, and why the heck they wanted him there.
Jazz was woken from a deep sleep by the door chime going off. He sat up and realized that he must have slipped into recharge without meaning to. He went to the door and hit a button. The door slid open revealing a frowning Sunstreaker, arms crossed in front of his chest.
"So its true then?" he asked. "Prime really did cut your vacation short just to bring you back for some slagged-up meeting?"
"Relax Sunny, I got a feeling its going to be a little more than 'some slagged-up meeting'. He would have never called me back otherwise," Jazz assured him.
Sunstreaker muttered something nasty about the Autobot leader, then stepped into Jazz's room and went over to the desk to see what the other mech had brought back. He looked up for a moment and glanced at the CD player.
"Don't you have any Sinatra in that collection of yours?" he asked
Jazz grinned. "Ol' Blue Eyes coming up."
As Jazz changed the music, Sunstreaker picked up a miniature guillotine and gave Jazz a questioning look.
"From the Tower of London," Jazz said. "You and Sideswipe should go. I think you'd like the place."
Sunstreaker snorted. "I'd be lucky if I can get Sideswipe to go to the market with me." He sighed and sat down on the chair in front of Jazz's desk.
"Something going on between you two?" Jazz asked.
"I wish. At least that way I'd know he's still Sideswipe, but these days he hasn't been himself. He's been... I don't know, too quiet. He doesn't talk to me anymore. I don't know if he's still my brother."
"Of course he's your bro man, Swipe loves ya."
"Its not a question of love. Its a matter of communication. The slag-head wont talk to me. He's got something on his mind that he's not telling me about."
"Maybe he just doesn't want to talk about it."
"We always talk, about everything. I want to know why he's so sad."
"Sad?" Jazz frowned. "I talked to him a while ago and he seemed perfectly happy to me."
"Its in his optics. I can tell. They've lost their spirit. I just wish he would tell me what's wrong." He looked at the other mech leaning on the desk beside him, almost pleadingly. "He likes you, he'll talk to you. Please Jazz, find out what's got him so down."
Jazz was troubled. It wasn't every day that the yellow mech would willingly ask anyone for help, and even after the worst of their fights, the Twins never felt this distant from each other. It was hurting them both.
"I'll do my best Sunny, I promise," he said.
… He found Sideswipe later, wandering down one of the hallways and fell into step beside the red mech.
"Sides, we need to talk," he said.
"What about?"
"About you." Jazz looked him right in the optics, through his visor. Sunstreaker was right. The sparkle of mirth that seemed to live in Sideswipe's optics was gone, replaced by a sort of haunted sadness. "Your brother's worried about you."
"I'm fine Jazz, really."
"Are you? Really? Doesn't feel that way ta me. You ain't yourself, and I don't mean physically."
Sideswipe stopped walking and looked at Jazz. "I know you told me we'd always be twins at spark, but it just doesn't feel like that. We don't look the same anymore and I just feel really bad about it. I feel bad about getting the upgrade while he still looks, well, like that. If anyone deserves a makeover, its him."
"You were dying Sides. They did this to save you. Sunny doesn't hold it against you, he's the one who insisted they do it. He's just glad you're still alive, that you're still with him, but he misses you."
"He never told me that."
"From what I gather, you've never been around long enough for him to tell you. Don't you think you owe it to him to try and make things better between the two of you again? He loves you Sides, and he'll always be your brother no matter what either of you look like."
Sideswipe winced. "Where's Sunny now?"
"Shuttle docks I think. He wanted to get some fresh air."
"Thanks Jazz." Sideswipe ran for broke.
By the time Jazz reached the docks and peeped out, the brothers stood facing each other, foreheads touching, hands on each others shoulders, speaking words Jazz couldn't, and wouldn't, hear. The black and white smiled and went back inside. Mission accomplished.
Coming Next: Why do the EDC want Jazz?