The inventor held that breath of air from before as he eyed his teammates' reaction; waiting for an answer. For a full minute, the laboratory was eerily quiet; the tension so thick, you could cut it with a knife. A few mouths hung open, others tried to find words, but couldn't. Instead, everyone's eyes and optics stared wildly in shock; glancing to each other, then back at the scientist, as if he just proclaimed he turned water into wine. Finally, it was Sideswipe, of all people, who first sputtered out, "Uh…y-you're joking…right?"
Wheeljack gave him a stare that could bore through stone, "Do I look like I'm jokin'?"
The Lamborgini would only admit to himself that either his friend had really gone off the deep end, or he was playing the best prank that surpassed even the Twins' standards. But when the Lancia neither flinched, nor batted an optic to what he just spoke, the red Lambo's hands fell limply at his sides as he muttered, "Dear Primus…"
Suddenly, the room went from being as quiet as a library, to getting caught in a huge explosion of excited questions and mumbles. Amid all of this was Ratchet, who shouted over the sea of voices, "Wait a nanoclick! Can you repeat that?! Did you just say you invented a device that turns HUMANS into AUTOBOTS?!"
The inventor's chest puffed out with pride, "Yep! I call it…uh…well, actually, I don't got a name for it yet. Any ideas?"
"Yeah; "insane". Like YOU!" the ambulance was all too quick to spit out. He pointed an accusing finger in his associate's face as he ranted, "Have you lost your CPU?! This is how you play Primus! Turning organics into Cybertronians?! It's…it's impossible!"
For once, the scientist stood his ground against the raving medic, and his head fins flashed a reddish tint, "It is NOT! And I can prove it!"
But Ratchet would have none of it. He whirled around to face his leader; trying everything in his power not to lose what was left of his temper, "Optimus! I seriously suggest you talk some sense into your insane engineer right now!"
Wheeljack started to bark something back about how he wasn't crazy, but it became difficult to hear the argument, for the entire room was now in an uproar. Every Autobot present seemed to have something to say about the matter, and mumbles soon escalated into shouts. But suddenly, a deep, powerful voice ripped through the riot like a clap of thunder.
"EVERYONE, QUIET!"
Optimus Prime. The silence was deafening, and all heads turned to the 18-wheeler truck in a bit of shock.
The Kenworth, for his part, just sighed and shook his head, as if he were commanding a kindergarten class. He then raised a hand as he scolded, "You're all acting like a bunch of sparklings. Before we go jumping to conclusions, let Wheeljack finish his presentation first." He then turned to the scientist in question, "Now…what you've just told us is nothing short of amazing. But could you please explain how you intend for this device to work?"
The Lancia crossed his arms and sighed, "THANK you." Bringing his attention back to his fellow 'Bots, he continued, "As I was TRYIN' to say…our human allies can only do so much when it comes to helpin' us on the battlefield. So, usin' a subspace pocket and some borrowed tech from Hound's holograms, I made this."
He waved a hand at the monitor, and the image of the device shrunk until it was inside the outline of a human body. The screen then flashed, and soon, the human outline was inside the outline of a Cybertronian. All during this rough demonstration, the scientist explained, "When activated, the device will access a subspace pocket, much like we use for storing our weapons, or Prime's trailer-that kind of stuff. A Cybertronian shell will then form around the human body, giving the wearer the look and capabilities of an Autobot."
On the screen, the robotic outline faded away, with only the human picture remaining as Wheeljack finished, "Then, when the person's finished, they just go back to bein' human again. Simple as that."
His tone may have sounded hopeful, but not one person in the room looked convinced. Least of all, Prowl, who merely shook his head, "…'simple', huh?"
'Jack merely chuckled and rubbed the back of his head, "Well, I still got a little ways to go on it. But trust me, this baby's gonna' work-I just know it."
Meanwhile, Bumblebee glanced down to eye his human charges sitting next to him; trying to gauge their reaction to all this. Carly simply looked amazed, but it was Spike and Sparkplug he was more worried about, considering the…"incident" that happened with them a few years ago. The father's face was filled with nothing but concern. However, his son appeared to be absolutely horrified. So, it was no surprise when Spike's voice stuttered a bit as he timidly raised his hand and mumbled, "Um…and just…w-who's going to be…testing this thing when it's ready?"
All optics were now on the boy, and Wheeljack gave him an all knowing "well, who do you think" look. Within seconds, Spike was vemently shaking his head; eyes wide, "Oh no…not again…never again."
The scientist's optic widened-the equivalent of raising a brow, "Aww, come on, kid; that first time was different."
"Different how?" Ratchet asked as he stared at his comrade with optics that could melt steel, "Jack, how could you possibly forget what happened with Autobot X? Don't make him have to live through that nightmare again."
The inventor folded his arms, trying to keep his temper in check, "That's funny…considerin' it was YOU who built the thing."
The medic's face flushed, "Don't remind me."
Back with Jazz, Kayla leaned in and whispered, "…Autobot X…?"
"Long story", the saboteur muttered, "Tell ya' later…"
Suddenly, Sparkplug stood up; raising a hand, "Well, when you DO get this thing runnin' properly, I'LL be your guinea pig."
Spike stifled a gasp, "Dad…"
But his father gave him a wave of reassurance, "Son, the Autobot X disaster was my fault too, 'cause I agreed to the whole thing. And I don't want you and Carly gettin' hurt. Consider it a payback for the huge mistake I made."
Just then, Wheeljack let out a sigh; his face showing a bit of hurt, "Okay, so we made a mistake. But I learned from it, and now this'll be better." He threw his arms open, "I still don't get why you guys are so edgy. You're all actin' like this thing ain't gonna' work-why won't you guys give it a chance?"
It pained Optimus to see his friend having to defend himself so fiercely, especially to his own teammates. And he truly wanted to believe this idea could be successful, considering that 90 percent of the Lancia's inventions brought them victory over their enemies. But there was still that lingering worry that a pendant of such capabilities could go wrong on so many levels, both strategically and ethically…
Knowing what his spark told him was best, the leader finally stepped forward and gave voice to his concerns, "Because it's human lives you're purposely risking this time, and that's something I cannot tolerate."
'Jack's eyes widened, "But…"
The Kenworth raised his hand, signaling to give him the floor, "Our Earth allies battle alongside us because they chose to, not because we recruited them."
The inventor's optics fell to the floor, and he clenched his fists; agast that his commander would think he had a mindset as so. To put everyone's thoughts at ease, his voice took on a lilt of genuine care, "Well, it WOULD be their choice…I'm not forcin' them to do this."
Nearly everyone could hear the huge sigh of relief come from Spike, as well as his father and girlfriend. But Prime shook his head; he knew his scientist far too well. Inquisitive minds like Wheeljack would never be able to resist the allure of something like a device that turned humans into Autobots-it was too amazing to ignore. If their own friends wouldn't do it, 'Jack would find someone else…and the possible repercussions of that would be too great. Plus, there was another set of Cybertronians that wouldn't resist temptation either…
"Never the less, it's still too risky", Prime reasoned, "It wouldn't take long for the Decepticons to discover this technology. They could steal it; use it for their own ends."
Ratchet nodded in agreement, "Face it, it's not a good idea, and it's not a SAFE one either."
The inventor's shoulders couldn't help but sag; feeling like a huge weight was suddenly dropped on top of him. He was so sure his plan would work, he hadn't expected the large negative reaction. It was very rare that any one of his ideas was outright rejected, but when it did, it hurt-badly. His optics then shifted to his human friends, all of whom were staring up at him wide-eyed with fearful anticipation…they were actually AFRAID of one of his creations…maybe even afraid of HIM; of what he thought of doing to them. It was then that his frustration melted away to guilt. He swore to protect these Earth people, and they trusted him with their lives…the last thing he ever wanted was for them to be afraid of him.
With an extremely heavy sigh, Wheeljack looked his leader straight in the optics, "I'm not gonna' lie; I don't wanna' give up on this idea-not completely. If not for combat, then at the very least, our human pals can use 'em for extra protection." He then plucked the device from the table and held it up, "Right now, this thing's only in the testin' phase-it still ain't completely ready…but when it is, you KNOW that I would never, EVER force a person to change. It's entirely their decision."
Prime rubbed his chin, "We would give them a choice, but the Decepticons wouldn't."
Everyone solemnly nodded their heads in agreement. The Lancia looked to the floor, dejected, so the 18-wheeler put a hand on his friend's shoulder, "We all appreciate you showing us this…but this is one invention that will have to stay on the shelf for a long time."
Trying to stay hopeful, the scientist also gave a nod, "I understand…"
Optimus could hear the pain behind those two little words, but it was something 'Jack would just have to accept. The leader then turned to his fellow Autobots and waved a hand, "Dismissed."
With nothing more to see, the robotic soldiers all filed out of the room one by one; each mumbling to the other about everything that had just transpired. The last to leave were Spike, Sparkplug, and Carly-all of whom gave the Lancia one more worried glance, before making a hasty exit. The only two who remained were Jazz and Kayla, who was still perched on his shoulder. Knowing he had to give the 'Bot some kind of reassurance, the saboteur patted him on the back, "Sorry 'bout the presentation, man."
The inventor gave a limp shrug, "Eh, it ain't yer' fault. Everyone was right-it was dumb of me to think that a human would wanna' go through somethin' like that." He blinked, exposing his shame, "And did ya' see how Spike and the gang was lookin' at me? I must be goin' outta' my CPU."
Kayla laughed, "You always sound like you're goin' out of your mind."
But her chuckles died down when he didn't laugh along, to which she sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. The Porsche jumped in again, "Don't give up on your ideas yet. Ya' never know when we might need 'em."
The red head nodded, folding her arms, "And I don't care what anyone says; I think this invention sounds really cool. I'd give anything to try it…too bad my eyes don't exactly work."
Wheeljack couldn't help but be moved by his comrades' words. Standing a little straighter, he muttered an earnest, "thank you."
"No problem, 'Jack", Jazz smiled.
With that, the Lancia, the Porsche, and the musician left the science lab together; the scientist still holding onto and examining his new creation…
…completely unaware that in a far off, dusty, dark corner, a dark blue tape deck was recording the entire time.
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AN: Needless to say, Wheeljack's presentation didn't go as planned. And Kayla better be careful what she wishes for... And yes, that was Soundwave in the end there. He's infiltrated Autobot Headquarters before, so now shouldn't be much different. How he got in, I leave to your imaginations, 'cause it's kind of irrelevant. He got in, and that's all that matters. I also realize the story hasn't really focused on Kayla too much as of yet (and it's her story... ) , but there was alot of set up I had to do first. Now that we got it out of the way, the stage is all hers now.
