Hello, readers! This is a one-shot written in a Bayverse AU in which the events of The Last Knight have yet to take place. It is very soon after the events of Age of Extinction, but Optimus is gone searching for Galvatron/Megatron rather than searching for the Transformers' creators (or Quintessa, whatever). There are some other one-shots and even stories that are related to this one-shot, so I'll post them whenever I get around to editing them.

This is humanized and there is a genderswap for three characters: Crosshairs, Knucklehead, and Ratchet.

I hope you enjoy this story, and review if you like. If you see any grammatical errors, please let me know.

I don't own Transformers.

Texas, Earth - Present

Cade Yeager walked out to his barn. Tessa followed with Shane. The inventor's daughter and her boyfriend were carrying breakfast for the aliens that lived in the barn.

"Pity Joyce couldn't get you a better barn when he got you a nice house," Shane commented, his Irish accent thick due to his sleepiness.

"I like my old barn, thank you very much," Cade said. "And so do the Cybertronians."

"I hope the Cybertronians like eggs, bacon, waffles, and coffee," Tessa interjected before Shane and Cade could begin a full-on argument.

"It's an all-American breakfast – they have to like it!" Cade proclaimed as he opened the barn doors.

"They aren't American," Shane muttered.

Hound was standing the closest. He turned to the three humans, blue eyes suspicious for just a moment before he recognized them. His head was bald, with a camouflage cap pulled down on it, but his brown and gray beard was scruffy and a cigar dangled out of his mouth, even at this early hour in the morning. He wore dark green cargo pants, black combat boots, a camouflage T-shirt, and his dog tags. A few guns were strapped to his sides.

"Morning," he grunted.

Bumblebee walked up beside him. It always unnerved Cade that he looked just a little older than Tessa. He was handsome, but his looks were marred by the horrific scarring on his throat. His blond hair was tussled, like he'd forgotten to brush the cowlicks out of it upon waking. He wore jeans, a black shirt, a yellow jacket, and black running shoes.

Drift walked over, his face as neutral as always. His long, black hair was tied back in a ponytail with gold string. He wore black boots, blue pants, and a blue and black jacket. His two samurai swords were strapped to his back.

Crosshairs was the last to join them. She looked annoyed, and Cade got the feeling she didn't like being disturbed early in the morning. She was wearing black flats, silver tights, and a long, green peacoat, despite that fact it was June in Texas. Her dark brown hair was in a ponytail that curled over her left shoulder, while some of her bangs reached down to her right eye. Her red and blue goggles were pushed up on top of her head. When she moved, her peacoat flashed like it had metallic fiber threaded in it.

"What you want?" she asked gruffly, her British accent slightly different than normal British accents. Cade had always thought it was because she was from a different planet.

"Sweetspark, you forgot a word in that sentence," Drift told her. "I believe the imperative is 'What do you want?'."

Crosshairs glared at him. "I told you not to call me 'Sweetspark' in front of the humans."

"It's okay," Tessa said, setting down the plate of waffles and the plate of bacon. "We already know that you two are together."

Shane nodded as he set down the coffee and the eggs. "It's true."

"Food!" Hound yelled.

"Let's eat," Cade said.

In a short while, they were all settled around a rickety table. Bumblebee and Hound had claimed the ends of the table. Cade, Tessa, and Shane set on one side, while Drift and Crosshairs set on the other. There was an empty seat for Optimus Prime, but the Autobot leader was absent on a mission to track down Galvatron, or Megatron, whatever he called himself these days.

As they ate, Cade kept getting distracted by the glinting of Crosshairs's peacoat. None of the other Cybertronians ever wore anything that shimmered like that green peacoat. Finally, the inventor/alien host couldn't stand it anymore.

"Crosshairs, why does your coat have a metallic sheen?"

She paused and looked him over. Cade got the feeling she might look at a target through the sights of her sniping rifle the same way. After a while, she said, "Because it has special properties that were useful on Cybertron, but not so much here."

"Oh." Cade didn't figure she'd explain those properties (and he wasn't wrong there), so he blurted, "Do you ever take it off?"

"No."

"Why not?" Tessa asked.

Crosshairs looked at her. "Because it was a gift."

"From who? Can you tell me?" Tessa asked. Cade didn't scold her for asking such questions as he was curious as well.

"It is a story that I will not tell," Crosshairs said. She looked Drift. "I would not protest, however, to having it told."

Drift met her gaze. Then he nodded once. "Very well then, Sweetspark." Ignoring Crosshairs's annoyed snarl, he started his story. "It was sometime near the beginning of the war, but far enough into the war that it was clear what each side stood for and just as clear was the darkness in the Decepticons…"

Cybertron - Past

Deadlock looked up at Lockdown. The tall man was staring him down with bright, green eyes. Lockdown was dressed in all gray and his face was completely shaved, including his hair. His gray shirt had no sleeves, exposing his muscles.

Deadlock, however, wasn't intimidated. While Lockdown was stronger, he knew that he was faster. Plus, his mentor wasn't currently holding his gun and Deadlock still had his samurai swords on his back.

"You need to cut your hair," Lockdown muttered gruffly.

Deadlock subconsciously touched his ponytail. "I like my hair. I keep it tied back out of the way."

"You're wearing blue. It's too bright," his mentor growled.

"The Autobots always wear bright colors and yet they manage a few surprise attacks," Deadlock replied calmly. "It is not the color the soldier wears, but the skill of the soldier, that allows the success of a stealth mission."

Lockdown grunted and then stalked off. Deadlock sensed the arrival of another Decepticon.

"I hate him."

Deadlock turned to the speaker. She had light auburn hair pulled up in a tidy bun and red eyes. She was wearing a green peacoat that flashed metallically and gray pants and boots.

"He is a good mentor, Knucklehead," Deadlock said.

"He is a terrible person," Knucklehead retorted. "A perfect Decepticon, but a terrible person."

"Then are we terrible people as well?" Deadlock asked her.

"Perhaps I am," Knucklehead said thoughtfully. "I have, after all, earned the praise of Lord Megatron himself once. You…you do not crave blood and gore and death like most Decepticons. Your eyes are blue, a trait common among the Autobots. Perhaps you are not so terrible."

"I am a loyal Decepticon," Deadlock insisted.

His friend held up her hands in surrender. "I never said you weren't. I just said you might not be as terrible as most of the other Decepticons."

Deadlock gave her a friendly nudge with his elbow. "Do you have your weapons?"

"Of course," Knucklehead responded.

"How about a duel?"

"You're on!"

"What are our orders?"

Lockdown glared at Knucklehead with his too bright green eyes. "Kill the Autobots that attempt to attack our camp."

"Sounds fun," Knucklehead said. She was holding two daggers that she had claimed as her weapons. "I enjoy cutting them open."

"I bet their medic hates patching them up," Deadlock commented.

"Probably," Knucklehead amended, though she gave Deadlock a funny look.

"Do not show pity to the enemy!" Lockdown spat. "All the Autobots deserve to die, including their medic Ratchet. If I ever get my hands on her, she will die, simply because she keeps the injured Autobots from dying."

"But that is her job, just like your job is to attack," Deadlock protested.

Lockdown glowered at him. "Nothing, not even healing, is as noble as fighting. Our Master, the great Lord Megatron, was a gladiator."

"A noble fighter, like all Decepticons must be," Deadlock finished.

"Now, what are you going to do to any Autobot soldier that shows up?" Lockdown asked harshly, eyes flashing.

"Kill them," Deadlock said, somehow managing to sound upbeat.

"I do hope the great Optimus Prime shows up," Knucklehead said. "I would love to take out Noble Reaper."

Deadlock winced when he heard that name. He actually respected Optimus for his ideals, though he would never say that to any of his fellow Decepticons. He knew that they called Optimus Prime "Noble Reaper" because he was a murderer as much as anyone in this war, but he did it "nobly" because he was a chosen Prime. Deadlock assumed they must have a nickname for Megatron in the Autobot camps.

"Here they come, trying to storm our camp." Lockdown grinned wickedly. Deadlock could see the bloodlust in his eyes. "I must go rally the others." He left, almost disappearing in an unnatural way.

"He's going to kill you, Deadlock," Knucklehead commented.

"I did nothing wrong," Deadlock protested calmly.

"You defended an Autobot," she said. "If you do it again, he's not going to let you get away with just a lecture. Lockdown…Lockdown only respects pain. Those who give it are his friends…and those who don't deserve a painful death in his eyes."

"It's wrong," Deadlock said.

Knucklehead shook her head. "It's the Decepticon thing to believe." She met Deadlock's gaze, red eyes meeting blue eyes. "Promise me that you'll follow his orders, that you'll be a loyal Decepticon. For me, if nothing else."

Deadlock looked at her. She was his closest friend…probably his only friend. Her hair wasn't up, as she'd taken to letting it down now. It fell down to her mid-back in unruly and uncontrolled light auburn curls. She really was beautiful, and Deadlock would do anything to please her.

"I promise, for you."

Knucklehead smiled, her eyes lighting up. Deadlock knew she had gotten his message. He hoped she knew that he was planning on taking things slowly.

Gunfire rang out. Autobot soldiers burst from hiding places, guns blazing. Decepticon troops answered back with gunfire of their own.

"We must fight now," Knucklehead said, grinning and twirling her daggers.

Before Deadlock could say anything, she jumped up and rushed toward the nearest Autobot without a long-distance weapon. He looked startled…and young. Deadlock knew he didn't stand a chance against Knucklehead.

Rounds pounded into the metal ground near Deadlock and he jumped up, moving away before he actually became a target. He was soon face to face with an Autobot. Without thinking, he slashed the Autobot's throat, moving onto his next opponent. In no time at all, his swords were coated in energon and he himself was splattered with energon.

Somehow, though, Deadlock ended up at the edge of the fighting. He looked around, noting the nearby metallic structures sticking up out of the ground. He could circle around them and attack some unsuspecting Autobots in a surprise ambush. It was a plan that Lockdown and Knucklehead, and even Megatron, would approve of.

He found her in a natural clearing in the rock spires. She was mostly hidden behind a rock spire, holding a snipping rifle and looking out over the battle. She was wearing silver cargo pants and a green shirt with thin rope straps. Deadlock realized that she was wearing the same shade of green as Knucklehead's green peacoat.

He was unsure how long he stood there, but she eventually turned to look at him. She had long dark chestnut hair in a ponytail that curled over her left shoulder. Her bangs all swept to the right and reached down to her eye. She was wearing a pair of goggles – one of the lenses was red, and the other was blue.

"If you aren't going to kill me, then you should move on before you blow my position," she snipped.

"Who said I wasn't going to kill you?" Deadlock asked her.

She pushed her goggles up onto her head, adjusting her sniping rifle so it was pointing down at the ground. "If you really intended to kill me, you would have attacked me the first second you saw me rather than standing there and staring."

"I wasn't staring…"

She arched an eyebrow. Her blue eyes sparked with some emotion Deadlock couldn't recognize. "I have some work to do to protect my fellow Autobots from the likes of you. How about you move on? I guess I'll have to find a new position to keep an eye on this camp, unless Optimus gives me new orders."

"And you would follow them?" Deadlock asked.

"Orders are orders. They are meant to be followed, though people don't always follow them," she replied. "Don't you follow the orders of Bucket Head?"

"Bucket Head?" Deadlock asked, confused.

"I mean Lord Megatron," she corrected herself.

So Deadlock had been right when he surmised that the Autobots had a nickname for Megatron. He realized she was still awaiting an answer to her question.

"I do follow orders," he told her. "My orders were to kill any Autobot soldiers that were trying to attack the camp. My orders said nothing about taking out a ghost."

She didn't even blink when he referred to her as a ghost. He figured the Autobots had a similar word for snipers, or maybe even the same word.

"Well, this ghost will not be here come tomorrow."

She turned her back on Deadlock, a sign of pure confidence, slipping her goggles back on. Unsure what else to do, Deadlock rejoined the battle.

She hadn't lied.

Deadlock returned to the metallic spires where he had found her, but the ghost was gone.

He wasn't sure why he was slightly disappointed.

Knucklehead set down beside Deadlock, breathing hard after her training. Lockdown had brought in three new, young Decepticon troops to teach. Deadlock assumed that meant he was mostly done with teaching Knucklehead and himself.

"Those three will be tough someday," she said, laying her head on Deadlock's shoulder. He didn't complain.

"If they survive their first battle," he responded.

"Why must you be so pessimistic?" she sighed.

"I am not being pessimistic. I am being truthful," Deadlock said. "You know as well as I do that the first battle is the deadliest for an inexperienced soldier – Decepticon or Autobot."

"The inexperienced are the easiest to fall in fights," Knucklehead relented. "Though I fear that those three will not be killed in battle."

"Oh, what do you think will happen to them?"

"There's a ghost around this camp."

"I know that," Deadlock said. "Every Decepticon knows that." What he didn't say was that he had met the ghost once…and let her escape without any injury.

"The ghost is setting traps and snipping alone and unsuspecting troops," Knucklehead said. "The inexperienced are the easiest targets. They are the ones who fall victim to the ghost."

"Perhaps we should look for h – the ghost," Deadlock said.

Knucklehead didn't appear to have noticed that he almost said her. "Maybe someday, but Lockdown says a new mission came in for us."

"Us as in the Decepticons at this camp, or us as in you and me?" Deadlock asked.

"Us as in you, me, Lockdown, and our three new troops," Knucklehead said. "We're supposed to leave the camp tonight and scout out toward Kaon for Autobot spies. Megatron says that Starscream and his Seeker regiment spotted suspicious behavior between here and the capital."

"An Autobot spy that close to the Decepticon capital? Doesn't that seem a little farfetched?"

Knucklehead shrugged. "Yes, but so would a ghost managing to continue taking out our troops at this camp. I mean, we are the biggest Decepticon gathering other than Kaon." She tapped Deadlock's knee. "For now, though, I'm going to enjoy spending time with you."

Deadlock laughed. He touched a strand of her curly hair. "I can live with that."

That night, as they were stealthily making their way from the camp, Lockdown put them in positions that Deadlock wasn't fond of. Deadlock and one of the new troops were running point, while Lockdown and another new troop ran wide on the flanks. Knucklehead and the last new troop brought up the rear, in case there really was an Autobot spy and they tried to attack once they realized the Decepticons were closing in.

They were walking through a valley that led from the camp, with high walls made from the metals that made up all of Cybertron. There were plenty of caves and ledges and spires to hide behind, though Deadlock doubted that would be necessary. He drew his swords, a sudden feeling of unease creeping through him.

A gunshot rang out. The bullet clanged off his sword. Deadlock stopped, looking around for the shooter.

Lockdown was approaching from the left, green eyes betraying his hunger for battle. From the right, and much closer, came the inexperienced trooper. Deadlock heard Knucklehead yell from farther back.

"It's the ghost!"

The trooper that had been running point with Deadlock rushed forward…and right into a trap. Razor wire sliced him to pieces. Deadlock jumped back, suddenly sickened by the sight of the diced up Decepticon.

"Stop moving! Traps are everywhere!" he called. He wasn't sure that was true, but it most likely was. They didn't travel down this valley much.

Lockdown heeded his warning. Deadlock could see him using his sword to cut through some razor wire that had been in his path. The trooper coming from the right did not. Seeing his slaughtered friend, he wailed in grief and rushed toward him.

"No!" Deadlock yelled at him.

Too late. He fell to the same trap his friend had.

Deadlock looked around, trying to find his teammates in the darkness. Lockdown was slowly making his way toward him, using his sword to test for traps. Deadlock spotted the faint metallic glinting of Knucklehead's peacoat and a darkness next to her that was the last trooper.

Gunshot. The darkness next to Knucklehead dropped and Knucklehead screamed in outrage. Deadlock spotted a glint up in the walls of the valley. The ghost…but she was leaving. She wasn't sticking around to finish the rest of them off. Perhaps she thought that three out of six was good enough for one night.

Lockdown made it to Deadlock. "Let's get to Knucklehead and get back to base. Stick to cover. The ghost might try to take another shot."

So Lockdown hadn't seen the ghost leaving.

Deadlock frowned. The ghost had taken out the trooper next to Knucklehead with one shot.

The shot she'd fired at Deadlock had hit his sword and not him.

He found her the next day in a cave in the valley walls. She'd moved closer to the camp than she had been last night.

And she'd changed her outfit since Deadlock had last seen her. She was now wearing a sleeve-less lacy green dress with a silver slip underneath. The green lace was the same shade of green she had been wearing earlier. Her hair was the same as it had been last time and her goggles were up on top her head.

She looked at him, unnerved. Her sniper rifle was sitting on the ground beside her. "You have orders to kill a ghost this time?"

"I came to talk," Deadlock told her. "You saved my life last night."

"I don't know what you're talking about," she said.

"The bullet that hit my sword last night. You did that to warn me about the razor wire just in front of me."

"How do you know I'm not just a bad shot?" the ghost asked.

"I do not know Optimus Prime personally, but I do know that he is a good strategist. He would not send any ghost to keep an eye on this camp, but only his best," Deadlock said. "I know you could have taken me out, but you saved me. Why?"

"A favor for the fact you didn't kill me," she replied. "Now we're even."

"So…that's it? I saved you, you saved me?"

"Loyalty is important to the Autobots," she said. "Maybe not to the Decepticons with Screamer always trying to kill Megatron all the time and whatnot, but…The Autobots preach loyalty."

"I will make no comments on the relationship between Commander Starscream and Lord Megatron," Deadlock said. "I will, however, say that loyalty is important to Decepticons as well. But…saving me was a sign of compassion, and does Optimus Prime not preach compassion and mercy?"

The ghost blinked. "Well, yes. So, I guess I'm an honorable Autobot showing mercy to her enemies." Her easy-going expression morphed into a sly expression that slightly unnerved Deadlock. "You showed me compassion, 'Con. Perhaps you are drifting over to the Autobot cause."

Deadlock looked at her. "I must go." He turned to leave, then turned back to face her. "I assume you will find a new position."

She shrugged. "I highly doubt you'll turn me in."

Deadlock just turned and walked off.

He went back the next day.

She had moved. She hadn't trusted him.

And for some reason, that made him feel hurt.

Eventually, Deadlock stumbled across her again. She'd changed yet again, though she'd kept her hair the same way. She now wore a green long-sleeve shirt and silver pants and green flats.

"You found me," she said, unsurprised. "Still drifting toward the Autobot cause?"

"Decepticons can show mercy," Deadlock protested.

She looked like she didn't believe him. Deadlock wasn't surprised. "Decepticons are ruthless on the battle field," the ghost said. "And they do even worse things to Autobot prisoners. Have you seen the way Shockwave returns our prisoners of war to us?"

"No," Deadlock answered. "But I have heard stories."

"Dead, most of the time – and those are the lucky ones," she said sadly. "Some are butchered and some are never the same. Ratchet treats Decepticon prisoners with as much respect as she can. She heals them. Don't tell me that Decepticons are just as capable of mercy as Autobots."

"I have shown mercy," Deadlock pointed out.

"Then maybe you're not a true Decepticon," she said, glancing at Deadlock. Blue eyes met blue eyes.

Deadlock looked away. "If I was a loyal Decepticon, I would take you to our camp as a prisoner."

Then he walked away, making no move toward the ghost.

After that, the ghost stopped moving. Deadlock met with her regularly, making sure that his fellow Decepticons didn't find out about her.

She had taken to calling him Drift, since he was drifting toward becoming an Autobot. Deadlock denied it, but he didn't protest when she called him Drift.

"What is your name?" he asked her.

"Crosshairs," she responded.

"Perfect name for a sniper," he commented.

"Deadlock is a perfect name for a ruthless Decepticon," she responded. "Drift…Drift is a name for an Autobot."

She knew his real name. It didn't surprise Deadlock, but it made him wonder what all else she knew about him. Did she know about Knucklehead?

He never asked, fearful of the answer.

Knucklehead laughed and leaned toward Deadlock. He gave her a hug, pulling her close. Her wild mane of curls whipped in the wind screeching through the Decepticon camp.

"I love this shade of green. It complements you so nicely," Deadlock said, touching Knucklehead's pea coat.

"Thank you," she said, smiling happily.

Deadlock felt panic course through him. He hadn't been thinking of red-eyed woman with curly, light auburn hair, but a blue-eyed woman with straight, dark chestnut hair. Deadlock pulled away from Knucklehead.

She frowned, questioning.

"I've got to go," he said.

"Why?"

He didn't answer her. He just left.

He couldn't tell if he was upset with that move or not.

Deadlock realized that Crosshairs was basically the Autobot version of Knucklehead. She was tidier and slightly friendlier (barely), but the two women both loved to fight. Knucklehead, however, liked to throw punches and jab with daggers, while Crosshairs liked to stay in the shadows and take out enemy soldiers before they even realized she was there.

But Crosshairs had beliefs that were more similar to Deadlock's than Knucklehead's. He assumed that was why he felt so drawn to her. He supposed her natural beauty didn't hurt his attraction.

"Drift, would you consider joining the Autobots?" she asked one day.

"That would mean leaving the Decepticons," he said.

"Yes – Megatron, Starscream, Lockdown."

"Knucklehead," Deadlock said.

"Ah, her," Crosshairs said coldly. "What would you do if one of your fellow Decepticons found me?"

"They won't," Deadlock said.

They did. Knucklehead did.

She dragged Crosshairs into the camp. Crosshairs was unhurt, aside from a knot on the side of her head were Knucklehead had hit her. Crosshairs was wearing a long-sleeve green shirt, silver pants, and green flats. Her goggles were still on her head, and Knucklehead was holding her sniping rifle. Crosshairs's wrists were bound together.

"I present the ghost that has been terrorizing our camp!" Knucklehead pushed Crosshairs down, resulting in the jeering of the Decepticons.

"This is worthy of praise from Lord Megatron himself," Starscream said, moving forward. "Unfortunately, he is…busy. I will be sure to tell him of this development when I return to Kaon."

"You don't even know her name, Screamer," Crosshairs spat. "You won't give her any credit."

"Silence, Autobot!" Starscream kicked her, and then jerked her up. "I do, however, know who you are, Crosshairs. Optimus Prime's best sniper. He'll pay nicely for you…maybe hand over Iacon or some other important city."

"He's more likely to recruit Unicron to the Autobot cause," Crosshairs growled out.

Starscream pushed her back down. "Lockdown, guard her. Lord Megatron will want to see her personally. Now, I must be going to Kaon."

He left with his regiment of Seekers, while Lockdown drug Crosshairs into the nearest prison cell. Knucklehead ran over to Deadlock.

"I caught her!" she said. "Now you can be proud of me again."

"No…no, I can't," Deadlock whispered, looking at her.

She took a step back. "You…you really are more of an Autobot than a Decepticon, aren't you?"

"I'm…I'm a drifter," Deadlock told her.

Knucklehead's eyes blazed. "Well, then, Drifter, you better figure out which side you're drifting to. I can be friends with Decepticons only!"

She turned and stormed off. Deadlock sighed. He had to choose between Crosshairs and Knucklehead.

No. Knucklehead represented Decepticon morals and Crosshairs represented Autobot morals.

He had to choose which morals he believed in the most.

He managed to get Crosshairs to the edge of the camp before Lockdown caught up to them. The green-eyed Decepticon ran his sword through Crosshairs's stomach. She cried out and collapsed on her hands and knees.

"No!" Deadlock managed to drive Lockdown back with his samurai swords.

"You traitor!" Lockdown snarled.

"No. I am a drifter," Deadlock retorted. "And I drifted to the side I truly belong to."

"Optimus won't take you!" Lockdown growled. "You've killed Autobots. And saving this sorry ghost isn't going to make up for that."

He slashed Deadlock's arm and the blue-clad Decepticon-turned-Autobot dropped his sword. Lockdown grinned, tasting victory. A dagger hilt slammed down on the top of his head and Lockdown collapsed. Standing over him was Knucklehead.

"I…you mean too much to me for me to just let you die," she said. "I'll help you get her out of here. For you, not her."

Deadlock smiled. "Thanks, Knucklehead. You're a good friend."

She frowned. "Yeah, friend." She stepped over Lockdown. "Let's go."

Lockdown surged up. With his gun, he swept Deadlock off his feet. At the same time, he drove his sword through Knucklehead's back. She cried out and collapsed next to Deadlock. Lockdown sneered down at them.

"I will kill you two, and then I'll finish off the ghost," he snarled.

A gunshot rang out. Lockdown looked down at the wound in his abdomen. Deadlock turned to see Crosshairs holding a handgun that no one knew she had. She was aiming at Lockdown.

Lockdown growled. "I will kill you all someday." He retreated.

Crosshairs collapsed and Deadlock turned to Knucklehead. She was gasping for breath, energon pooling around her.

"Knuckles…"

"Take my peacoat," Knucklehead said. "Give it to her. It's…it's her color. A piece of me for her. You'll be able to have both of us."

Deadlock helped her remove the peacoat. She smiled up at him, asking him with her eyes to never forget her. He closed her eyelids when her eyes stopped seeing. Deadlock ran over to Crosshairs. She looked hurt, but not in danger of dying in the next few moments.

"Deadlock…"

"No," he said. "If anyone asks, my name is Drift."

"I'm cold," she muttered, shivering.

"I've…I've got a coat," Drift said. He wrapped her up in the coat, smiling when he realized it was a perfect fit. "How do we get to the Autobots?"

"Head toward Iacon," she murmured, closing her eyes. "You'll see some eventually."

Drift picked her up, and carried her to his new life.

He met Optimus Prime and told his story. Someone came and took Crosshairs to Ratchet. Never once did the Prime snarl or threaten like Lockdown and Megatron had. Optimus said that Drift was safe in the Autobot ranks for now and gave him permission to check up on Crosshairs.

Drift's first impression of Ratchet was that she was intensely serious when it came to medical things. She wore a chartreuse long-sleeve shirt, jeans, black flats, and red earrings. Her black, wavy hair was pulled up in a messy bun.

"She's sleeping," Ratchet said. "She wouldn't let me take off her peacoat."

"It was a gift," Drift told the medic.

Ratchet nodded. "I'll get it patched up and cleaned before she wakes and put it back on her. She won't even know it's off."

"Will I be allowed to be an Autobot now?" Drift asked.

"That is not for me to decide," Ratchet said. "But Crosshairs did tell me that you saved her life….more than once. Tell me, Drift, why did you decide to betray your fellow Decepticons?"

"Because I didn't like the merciless and blood-lusting morals," Drift said. "Killing…killing for the fun of it is just wrong."

Ratchet looked at his face, and Drift got the feeling she was somehow searching his very spark for the truth. Finally, she nodded.

"I'll let you know when she wakes," she said.

Drift was assigned as Crosshair's partner. This was his "punishment" for being a Decepticon-turned-Autobot. He was to always be with a loyal Autobot so he didn't get any ideas about betraying the Autobots to the Decepticons.

It wasn't much of a punishment.

And Crosshairs loved it as much as Drift did.

Texas, Earth - Present

"And that's the story," Drift finished.

"That's…that's an interesting story," Shane said.

"So, you guys fought together. Wasn't Optimus worried that you'd worry about each other more so than your other teammates?" Tessa asked.

Crosshairs shook her head. "Optimus is understanding of conjunx endurae caring for each other on the battlefield. He had his own conjunx endura, after all."

"He did?" Cade asked.

"He didn't broadcast it publicly, and the only people who knew worked for NEST, but his conjunx endura came to Earth with him to hunt down Sam Witwicky," Hound said. Then he burped. Bumblebee rolled his eyes.

"Who was she?" Shane asked.

"Ratchet," Drift answered.

"Wait…so in Chicago…"

Drift figured out what Cade was trying to ask. "Optimus was not grieving for the loss of a good friend, but the loss of a – what's the human word? – wife."

Tessa looked at Crosshairs. "You and Drift arrived on Earth at different times, right?" When Crosshairs nodded, she asked, "What was your meeting like?"

Crosshairs looked at Drift. "Go ahead and continue with the story telling, then."

NEST Base, Earth - Past

Drift looked around the base. Optimus was standing beside him, along with a human named Lennox. Ratchet walked over. Unlike Optimus, with his black hair and blue eyes, jeans, and red and blue shirt, she'd changed her looks.

She was wearing a chartreuse halter-top with a low-cut back, jeans, and black wedges. She had on red bracelets, earrings, and a red gemstone on a black cord. Her black hair was up in a high ponytail.

Optimus explained about the Autobots' new way of working with humans. Drift found it interesting and he wondered about their cultures. A green sports car of some sort pulled up and Drift smiled. It was a shade of green that made him think of sniper he had not seen in many years…since the exodus of Cybertron.

Then he gasped when that said sniper stepped out of the car. Ratchet and Optimus moved off, with Lennox following. Drift grinned as Crosshairs ran to him and gave him a hug. He pulled back and looked her.

She'd changed her looks. Her hair was the same, with her goggles on top of her head. She was wearing Knucklehead's peacoat and silver tights with black flats.

"You haven't changed at all," she said, looking Drift over. "Expect for maybe the fact that your hair might be longer."

"You have changed," Drift told her, "but in a good way. You're still wearing the peacoat."

"I wear it to remind me of impossibilities that may become possibilities," she said. "A Decepticon dying to help her friend become an Autobot. The two of us meeting up here on this planet."

"What impossibility do you wear it for now?"

"I'll let you know when I figure it out," she said. She glanced around, and Drift realized she's been doing that all along.

"What's wrong?" he asked her.

"I don't trust these humans, no matter what Optimus says," she said quietly. "I think they will turn against us."

"That's just the paranoia," Drift told her with a smile.

Earth - Past

It wasn't. The humans did turn against them. Optimus ordered them into hiding and Drift and Crosshairs stayed together.

They were running from town to town, staying hidden until someone recognized from the government messages and they had to flee. They fled into the dessert, where reports were coming in that Bumblebee and Hound were hiding out.

"I hate humans," Crosshairs spat. "I will kill the next human I see."

Monument Valley, Earth - Past

And she tried. When three humans jumped out of Optimus's semi, she pointed her sniper rifle at them and snarled insults and threats. Hound soon joined her.

"Enough! Stand down!" Optimus ordered.

Crosshairs did as he asked. She grumped and grumped…but in the end she came through. They all did. They saved the world (again) and found a home in Cade Yeager's barn, away from the majority of humanity. Cemetery Wind was no longer hunting them and they were safe for now (until Galvatron/Megatron showed his face again).

Texas, Earth - Present

After that story, Drift and Crosshairs decided they were done telling stories. Bumblebee and Hound seemed just as ready to do something else.

Later that afternoon, Cade came across Crosshairs. She must have left Drift while he was doing his meditation. The British-accented Cybertronian was not into meditation.

"Crosshairs, if you don't mind me asking, what impossibility do you wear your coat for now?"

She studied him before giving her answer. Her blue eyes glowed with an intensity Cade had never seen in her before.

"A little secret about war, Cade Yeager. The people you care most about never make it through. Ask Optimus. And if they do…you happen to be the luckiest person in the universe." She leaned forward, the intensity in her eyes almost unnerving.

"I wear this peacoat for the impossibility it will make me the luckiest person in the universe."