Chapter One:
2007
Metal was raining down from the rooftops, all around the alley where the small waif hid. The falling sparks made eerie shadows on the walls, making the graffiti come alive in a grotesque dance. The larger body of the 'bot protecting the child from the falling debris did not move from his position, no matter how heavy the load became.
With a loud clang, a metallic body fell onto the street to the child's right . . . more appropriately, a half of a metallic body. It was the upper half. Perhaps it was still functional? Or, at the very least, maybe it was salvageable.
She hoped so. As quickly as she could, the child ran to the massive being, ducking between Jukes' body and arm. Zigging and zagging around the falling shrapnel, she cautiously approached from her hiding place between two stinking dumpsters, her metal friend following on two legs.
Pausing just long enough to burrow further into the gray hoody and ensure her hair fell across the damaged side of her face, she entered the fallen 'bot's sensor range.
VVVVVBREAKVVVVV
He was dying. He could feel his Spark begin to stutter within him. He had literally been torn in two by the vile Deceptacon. It wouldn't be long before his vital fluids would be drained and he would be nothing more than scrap for his fellow Autobots. Perhaps he could provide the replacement that would finally, decisively, win this long and unnecessary war. He knew that O.P. would mourn. Jazz didn't know of any other leader with a heart as big as his old friend's.
His optical sensors where beginning to fail, but his audio sensors where still just as acute as they ever were. That's how he knew he wasn't alone. The faintest scraping of rubber against the pavement alerted him to the presence of the human. Jazz didn't move. He was sorry the biologic would have to witness his death. But then again, this civilization did not yet have sentient robotic life forms, other than his kind, and they were just visiting.
This person would probably just try to make their way around him, thinking him nothing more than an inanimate mound of scrap. Maybe that was for the best. Witnessing the death of anyone or anything was tough enough. If they didn't know he was alive, perhaps they would not be haunted as he was.
He heard the human stop just behind his head, then the sound of cloth being adjusted as they took a deep breath. They walked around as if to look him in the face.
How could that be? Maybe they were just trying to identify him. Determine if he was going to blow up or something. But no, this person stopped in front of his sensors.
The little input he received from his optics would seem to indicate this person was a female child, a rather small child at that; perhaps no more than seven or eight Earth years. He could not get a clear visual on the features of her face. He didn't know if it was from his failing sensors, or the oversized, hooded sweatshirt she was wearing over her face. A curtain of dark colored hair moved as she stopped and seemed to assess him. He noted she held her left arm a bit awkwardly, the smallest digit spasmodically jumping as if she had nerve damage.
"Primus, save her from watching me die," he silently prayed. Funny, he hadn't prayed in so long, and here he was praying for the sanity of a human girl.
VVVVVBREAKVVVVV
Ellie stopped in front of the face of the being. She knew he was sentient, and also knew that most would not believe her if she told them how. It was irrelevant. She was able to access the parts of the other's memories contained on the chip at will. So, she did that now as she assessed the fallen being's condition. A quick look at Jukes stopped him from approaching further.
"You are dying," she said.
Jazz was certain the surprise was evident on his face. This girl was addressing him as if she knew he was alive. Most humans did not, or would not, believe it possible that a non-biological life form could contain a consciousness. Perhaps she was still childish enough to believe in magic.
"Yes," Jazz answered.
"I can help, if you'll let me."
"Too late.
"Run. Not . . . safe," he tried to warn her.
"Dude, I ain't been safe in a long time," she said in all seriousness.
The sound of the round coming in was unmistakable. With little thought, he summoned his strength and grabbed the girl. Tucking her into his chest, he rolled over until he was sheltering her from the energy blast, using the wall of the building to further protect her. The energy round hit the building next to the one he was against, blowing pieces of concrete and bricks all around them.
When the last of the heavy debris landed, he released her.
"Go. Run," he tried to warn her again.
Ellie looked into the alley to make sure Jukes was alright. He gave her a thumb's up. "Not without you," she told the 'bot.
"Can't. Save . . . self."
"I can save you too, if you'll let me. An' I really don't want to take the choice from you. So choose. Live or die."
It took him mere seconds to run the calculations in his mind. If he allowed her to help him, he might be able to continue to fight the Deceptacons. Just one variable was missing.
"How?" he asked.
"I can remove the essence matrix from your body before the cascade failures have the chance to destabilize it beyond saving. It will mean that you will be without a body for a while, until I can build you a new one. But, at least you'll still be alive."
Wait a minute. How did she know about an essence matrix? And cascade failures? She was talking as if she knew about Cybertronian technology. If she did know something about his tech, maybe she could help.
The other thing she mentioned, a new body? Did the humans have the technology to create their own transformers? He didn't find data to support the probability. So, he wouldn't be able to transform. But, he could still think for himself, and thereby aid his friends in some way. Praying again that this child might actually know how to repair him, or at least get him to someone who could, he made his decision.
"Do it," he said as his optics finally failed. Jazz only hoped that she was in time.
Ellie quickly took the glove off her left hand; the metal of the fingers glinting from the light of his spark. Accessing the memories from the chip, she concentrated on moving her hand in the precise sequence. The essence matrix retracted its connections from the body, and fell easily into her biological hand. The spark of light in the center, which had been flickering, regained a steady glow.
The whole thing was between the size of a softball and a small cantaloupe. Thankful again that she was able to find such an oversized shirt, she put her new prized possession in the pocket and climbed over the remains of the mighty metallic warrior.
As she landed, she heard the approach of metallic feet. She wasn't about to stick around and find out who they were.
"Jukes! Let's get out of here!" She cried as she ran back into the alley. Mounting Jukes' minibike form, they ran into the street, Ellie was able to follow the crowd as they raced away from the battle. Turning into an alley when the rest of the crowd remained on the main street, she cut across to the parallel street. She stopped short when she saw the teen run into the front of a Cadillac Escalade. She felt, more than saw the jolt of living energy wave out of the cube he held in his hands. Within a matter of moments, the teen ran on without realizing he left three new lives behind him.
Taking in the scene, she saw a man in a hat holding what started its existence as a microwave, its new arms flailing blindly through the box. There was also a soda machine using its product as ammunition to fire against everyone it saw. Hearing screams coming from the street, Ellie saw a group of teen girls jumping from the now alive Escalade. The girls abandoning him, the Escalade transformed into a robotic form, armaments sprouting from his shoulders, arms and torso.
"This is going to be really bad," Ellie said to her companion.
"Then let's leave while we can," suggested Jukes. He already knew they would be staying to try and help.
The new robot swung around to acquire a target, fortunately, everyone in the area had run off, the man with the microwave-bot dropping it and joining them.
Ellie dismounted and stepped out into the field of view of the soda machine and the car, raising her hand in a show of surrender. Jukes reassumed his 'bot form and armed with throwing knives as he assumed a protective posture.
"Hey guys!" she called to them.
Immediately, they leveled their weapons at the two. The new 'bots didn't fire. Cautiously, so as not to startle them, she squatted down and helped the microwave remove the box he was in. As the box fell off him, he jumped free and immediately started to track potential targets. When he saw the girl, he paused and assessed her. He remembered she helped him get out of the box. He disarmed.
Chattering among themselves, they appeared to come to a collective agreement. They chattered at Ellie.
"I don't understand that language. Speak English?" she asked them.
They chattered at each other again. The Escalade was the first to speak to Ellie.
"You help little one. You no scare?"
"Yes, I'm a little scared. You guys have weapons, I don't. That's hardly fair, now isn't it?" she asked them.
The three chattered at each other again. The microwave deciding he liked Ellie, walked over to her on crablike legs and hugged her around the calf, making a cooing sound as he did.
The girl smiled down at her new friend. Hearing the sound of mechanical components being ratcheted into position, she looked up to see the other two disarming. Jukes gave them each one last look, and then disarmed as well.
"No more weapons. You still scared?" asked the Escalade. His English was getting more correct as he spoke to her.
"Yes, a little."
"Of us?" the car asked, incredulous.
"Not so much. I'm trying to run away from a bad man who wants to hurt me. Can you guys help me?"
The trio chattered at each other. Immediately, the microwave-bot jumped away from Ellie and armed, looking for the man who wanted to hurt her.
"We help. Keep you safe," the soda machine said.
"What do you need us to do?" asked the Escalade.
"Can you turn back into a car?" asked Ellie.
Thinking about it for a minute, the robot reassumed his form as a Cadillac Escalade. Opening his doors to the group, he revved his engine.
Ellie reached down and picked up the little robot. "Maybe you should get into the back where you'll have more room," she told the soda machine as she climbed in to the front passenger seat. Jukes got in the back seat directly behind her. Snapping her seatbelt into place, the Escalade closed his doors and began to drive out of town toward the interstate.
"Where are we going?" he asked.
"Head toward Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania," she said.
Shortly out of town, they found the remains of another 'bot, its human like form still twitching as it died.
"Stop!" Ellie cried. She jumped out of the front seat and ran to the being. She looked into his torso and saw the essence matrix light was still sparking, the living energy reluctantly leaving his body.
Making the decision for him, she reached into his chest and removed his essence matrix as well, the sound of sirens cutting off her chance to retrieve any more from him.
VVVVVBREAKVVVVV
Barricade was incensed at the message he received from Soundwave; extraction impossible? Implement Omega protocol?
No way in Hell, as the humans would say, would he self-destruct. He would bide his time and wait for either a Deceptacon or a human insect to come along and put him back on his wheels. Then, he would pick his time carefully and make Soundwave pay.
He knew what this was about; Soundwave was jealous. Barricade was second in line behind Megatron, so if he was gone, Soundwave would get his place. Let him have it, for the moment. He would survive and disappear, and quietly gather the ever growing factions of dissolutioned Deceptacons under his leadership.
Even Megatron didn't realize how out of touch he was becoming. The ideals of the 'bots he would lead were changing, they were starting to embrace an ideology that was somewhere between the Autobots' naïve absolute self-determination belief, and Megatron's self-delusional grandiose belief in peace through tyranny.
The sound of tires approaching interrupted his self-contained rant. A quick scan of the approaching beings baffled him; he was picking up four distinct Energon life forms that he didn't recognize, and a definite human profile . . . with a cybernetic signature? How was this possible? Three of the Energon beings carried a Deceptacon designation, and he knew every Deceptacon that made the trip to this planet. Was it possible these were recent hatchlings?
It seemed unlikely; there wasn't enough Energon around here to nourish a microcon. Unless, and this was a very real possibility, the humans had used the Allspark to create their own robotic life forms. If that was the case, it was highly probable the humans didn't know what they had done.
VVVVVBREAKVVVVV
Ellie had the Escalade, whom she christened, "Clyde," pull over when she saw the cop car on its roof over an embankment. It was hidden from public view by a building and a row of overgrown hedges along the street. If they had not made the detour through the construction zone, she doubted they would have seen it as well.
"Hey guys. That's a 'bot down there," she said. Accepting the energy signature her optic picked up as true.
"He in trouble," the soda machine, now named, "Soto," agreed.
"Shall we help?" asked Clyde.
"We need all the friends we can make. I say we help," Ellie decided.
The microwave 'bot, Mike, chattered.
"He no like stopping," Soto translated.
"A 'bot after my own spark," muttered Jukes.
"Ordinarily, I would agree. However, we can't afford to leave him here where the government will turn him into an experiment."
The group climbed out of the Escalade and started down the embankment, the car reassuming his 'bot form and following.
Jukes headed the group off. "We can't afford to stop, Ellie. Have you forgotten it's only a matter of time before he sends someone after you?"
"I have to help him. I can't let them get him.
"Besides, maybe he can help us stay hidden."
"This is a really bad idea," Jukes counseled as he turned around and led the way down the hill. He armed with a spiked club and a throwing knife.
VVVVVBREAKVVVVV
"I would ask if you're alright, but you probably wouldn't be here if you were," Ellie said by way of greeting as she neared the police car.
"So, instead, how about if I ask you this; can you still roll if you're on your wheels?"
"Yes, I can still function in my alt form.
"Put me back on my wheels and I'll show you how well, you human insect!" Barricade bellowed.
How dare she address him as an equal? He was a warrior; a great leader of the Deceptacons. He was the one, if the truth were to ever be known, who gave Megatron the idea to change Cybertronian society.
The sound of the three other 'bots arming themselves stopped his train of thought. What were they doing? His sensors pinging at him as targeting locks engaged him as their enemy.
The smallest 'bot scolding him in his chattering language, "You're rude!" he said.
"We stop to help you out of a most delicate situation, and you repay our kindness with names and threats."
"Easy guys," the girl said. "Put the weapons away. You too Jukes."
After a few brief moments, the 'bots complied, the smallest 'bot chattering a foul opinion of the idea.
"Clyde?" the girl asked the largest 'bot. "Can you lift me to see his underside please?"
Clyde complied.
"Oh!" she exclaimed.
"You were really messed up in your 'bot form, weren't you?"
"Why would you say that?" Barricade asked.
"Because these damages aren't consistent with any damages you could have gotten while in your car form.
"My guess is that you were injured when you were a 'bot, then transformed into your car form and got stuck."
Barricade was begrudgingly impressed with her assessment. He did not feel the need to answer her statement, and when she continued, knew that he was correct in his judgment.
"So, here's the deal; we'll get you back on your wheels if you are willing to come with us for a while. Then, when we find a safe place to hide for any length of time, I'll repair you and you can go about your business.
"Does that sound fair?"
"Agreed! Now please get me out of this undignified position."
"Clyde, Soto, Jukes. Please put him back on his wheels."
The three made little work of putting him upright. They were not overly gentle about it either.
Once the group made its way onto the street, they got on their way towards Pittsburgh.