DISCLAIMERS: I don't own Transformers. They just came over from Hasbro to visit and be general pains-in-the-aft. All the humans in the story are mine. Rated Mature for coarse language. Mechamorphosis belongs to Fantasy Flight Games.
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This story is a character sketch I wrote to get a feel for some of the NPCs in a Mechamorphosis game I'm creating. All the TFs mentioned in the story are Exiles. They have only been on Earth a few months.
Just to clear a few misconceptions up – Ratchet isn't an ambulance, Jazz isn't a car and is in a pre-Earth mode and we aren't anywhere near Oregon. Feel free to PM me questions, suggestions or critique, as long as it is constructive. I reserve most of my patience for my kids, so don't have a lot to spare. Thanks to Tiontah for the wanting to have Ratchet explain about babies. I wasn't thinking of including that originally but since it was brought up, that bunny has been nibbling at me. I'm going to try to include that in a future chapter. It's bound to be an exercise in frustration… for Ratchet ;D.
Next chapter will probably take a bit longer to write due to having to do some research for it. And providing Real Life doesn't interfere too much. I have to admit, this is turning out to be a longer story than I originally thought. Glad so many people seem to be enjoying it. Thanks for all the reviews
Chapter Four
Sideswipe felt bad. The little femme was hurt and it was all his fault. And now he was stuck guarding the compound, bored on top of it all. He paced a couple circuits around he camp. He wasn't even sure what he was guarding it from. He missed his brother. Something about the little femme reminded him of Sunstreaker. Probably her refusal to just lie down and quit. He hoped she was okay. He really wanted to find out what this unborn baby was and he had a feeling that it would be better to find out from her, rather than Ratchet. He paced some more. He went into the command tent and stared at the communicator but there was no one to call. Just Prowl or Aegis and they had already yelled at him. He was tired of being yelled at; especially for something he didn't understand. Well, he wasn't going to find out anything standing here. He transformed and sped off, tearing down the highway until he had almost caught up to Ratchet. Then he followed him back to the city.
He lost him momentarily when Ratchet made an abrupt left turn off the street they were on and he wasn't in the correct lane to follow. He turned off onto the next one and got lost for a bit on the side streets. Cursing organic drivers and city planners, he managed to find the main street he started on and back tracked to where Ratchet turned off. He turned onto the street and there was Ratchet, parked on the side of the road with a blue colored human nearby in the middle of the road.
Sideswipe cursed again when he realized he was on the wrong side to park and another organic was driving his way from the other end. Ratchet was going to see him for sure. Slag!
Brad cursed himself. Of all the dumb things to forget. He had gotten halfway to the hospital and Andrea started crying for her ducky. The stupid stuffed duck she couldn't live without and he forgot it in his disorganized scramble. He turned onto his front street and first noticed the sweet car coming the other way. One of those new Vipers in a hot shade of red. The kind of car he normally would get a woody over but he didn't have the time right now. Not with a crying kid in the backseat and his wife gone to emergency. As he pulled closer to home he noticed the red Viper seemed to be parked at the far end on the wrong side of the street, blocking all traffic.
Driving slowly down the street, cursing inconsiderate assholes that have attitudes inserted by a proctologist when they buy a fancy sports car, Brad soon noticed the police car still parked on the street, Constable Viton standing in the middle of it and a white minivan with the front drivers door open.
His blood ran cold. Gwen had mumbled something about a white minivan and something like 'they're waiting out front'.
And the constable was standing with his hand on his sidearm, ready to draw it.
He didn't know what to do. He couldn't turn around on this crowded street. Someone was pulling up behind him, so he couldn't backup. (Another asshole from the sound of it, leaning on the horn. Stupid too) He couldn't go forward without encountering the constable and his situation. Not to mention the Viper blocking the other end. And DAMMIT! He needed that duck. Why, why, did the only available parking space have to be IN FRONT of the stupid van?
The honking of the car horn seemed to trigger the chain of events. Brad was leaning out his car door trying to quietly indicate to the inconsiderate jerk that there was a situation in progress. The Constable, realizing he now had civilians in the area, too close for comfort, and tired of the run around he was getting drew his sidearm. Ratchet was startled at the turn of events and didn't react at once to Jazz's requests to be let out to handle this situation before it got any more out of hand. Then it did.
Sideswipe saw the human pull a weapon on Ratchet.
He sped down the street in a flash, transforming and disarming the policeman in one smooth motion and followed with a backhand to his mid-section, which sent the very surprised constable flying backward onto the grassy boulevard. Sideswipe made sure he didn't use his full strength in the slap; he didn't want to kill him, only prevent him from hurting his friend. He stood and slowly turned to regard the now silent tableau as he crushed the tiny gun. He smiled, his trademark grin, "Hi."
The silence, now broken, was filled with squealing of tires as the car that had been honking, now speeded back down the street in reverse. A slightly muffled wail filled the air as the startled child shrieked in terror from the back seat of her father' car.
Brad blinked, "HOLY SHIT!!"
Constable Viton wheezed, not believing his eyes and trying to catch his breath. That slap had knocked the wind out of him.
Ratchet roundly cursed in three languages. He opened his back doors and let Jazz out. Jazz promptly transformed and gave Sideswipe a stern look. Sideswipe continued to grin as Ratchet transformed. Ratchet stalked over and glared at Sideswipe straight in the optics, "You stupid glitch! You were supposed to guard the camp!"
Jazz had been about to say something and looked momentarily annoyed, then shrugged and let Ratchet rant at Sideswipe and turned to the two human men staring up at them with a mixture of horror, fear, amazement and curiosity.
"Hey dudes! How's it hanging?"
Constable Viton struggled gasping to his feet and made his way over to Brad, who was alternating between trying to comfort his daughter verbally, staring at the three giant metal monsters and looking at him both asking if he was okay and pleading for him to DO SOMETHING.
Jazz tried to smile reassuringly and crouched down on one knee, "I'm Jazz, the other white dude is Ratchet and the red one is Sideswipe. We don't mean you any harm. Ol' Siders just gets carried away sometimes but he's good people. Sorry about the smack down there Constable, he was just worried about the Doc. Didn't want you to hurt him."
The constable quietly suggested to Brad that he take the now frantic Andrea out of the car before she hurts herself. Now that he could actually see who was talking, he felt enormously better about the situation. He was still cautious but he didn't think that these giants actually meant them harm. They could have easily done so and even being clobbered by the red one, Sideswipe, well, he could tell a pulled punch when he felt one and he could have run him over instead without any problems.
Jazz watched curiously as Brad went and took his frantic child out of the car and walked towards one of the houses. He entered with her.
Constable Viton studied Jazz as he watched Brad and Andrea. If he was reading him right, he could see a sad longing in what passed for his eyes. One of his hands alternately lay on his chest and clenched into a fist. An air of grief seemed to surround him, as if the child reminded him of a recent loss.
He turned to the still arguing pair, Ratchet and Sideswipe. Ratchet was the obvious senior of the two and even if he didn't understand the language they were using, he recognized the riot act being read by a parental figure when he saw it and Sideswipe had all the body language of a sulky teen in trouble.
He looked around the street. People were looking out their front doors and windows; a couple bolder ones had come outside. All were staring at the metal giants. He needed to do something before a panic set it.
"No cause for alarm folks. Everything is under control." He addressed the bold ones outside.
"But we saw the red one attack you…" someone blurted out.
"A simple misunderstanding in the process of being cleared up." He looked directly at Jazz who smiled and nodded hopefully. He hoped he wasn't making a big mistake but he had to get them off the street NOW. He approached Jazz.
"Mr. Jazz – " he began.
"Just Jazz please."
"Uhm, yes, alright. Jazz, we need to get you and your companions off the street before a riot starts. And we need to discuss your involvement with Mrs. Killem's disappearance as well as the incident that just occurred."
Jazz nodded again. "I hear you dude. I can go with you to give you the low down and send Ratchet and Side there back to the camp. Someone can pick me up later.
Constable Viton started to explain that he really needed all three of them along, while racking his brains on someplace he could take them. It was that moment Brad came back out with Andrea. The little girl had a bright yellow toy clutched tightly in her hands. She was still sobbing and buried her face in her father's shoulder, trying to hide.
Sideswipe and Ratchet had stopped arguing when he started speaking (he suspected it was an ongoing 'discussion'). They had been watching him speak with Jazz but when Brad came back out, all eyes turned towards him and Andrea in his arms. He stopped, center of attention and clearly uncomfortable with it. The alarm in his eyes spoke volumes. The constable quickly saw that he had lost his audience. Jazz's eyes were locked on the little girl, who was peeking up now and them.
"She's like a miniature Gwen," Jazz whispered in awe.
"Really?" I gotta see!" Sideswipe took a couple steps towards them. Brad backed up a few steps, ready to bolt. Andrea shrieked and buried her face into his shoulder again. Constable Viton grabbed for his gun, forgetting the moment that it wasn't there. Sideswipe stopped, disappointed and unsure of what to do. He looked questioningly at Ratchet and Jazz, searching for directions.
Ratchet looked annoyed. "You, 'pointing at Sideswipe', are scaring them. And you, 'pointing at Jazz', get a grip, this isn't the time. And stop giving him ideas."
Brad was distraught, "I really need to get to the hospital. Gwen needs me there."
Andrea looked up at the sound of her father's voice, much to Sideswipe's delight. "Hey she really does look like a miniature Gwen." Andrea ducked back down into Brad's shoulder, this time peeking out of the grinning red and white giants.
Ratchet looked more annoyed when he realized he was being ignored. He turned to the equally upset constable. "I apologize for my companions. This is very new to them. We'll be happy to accompany you anywhere you wish to straighten this mess out. Just let me kick a couple cans and we can all be on our way."
"Good luck with that." The constable replied. Sideswipe had lain down on the ground to look at the child from another angle. He smiled disarmingly at her, blue eyes glowing as he introduced himself. It was amazing. This was the same creature that had smacked him onto the ground and here he was coaxing the little girl out of being shy. Jazz had lain down as well and was chatting at her, speaking softly and gently. The really amazing thing was that it was working. Andrea had abandoned hiding and taken up smiling and giggling at them.
Brad, on the other hand, had not forgotten and one could see him mentally calculating his chances of bolting for the house or car and successfully getting in and coming up short.
"Daddy down," Andrea squirmed in Brad's arms, wanting to go play with her new friends.
"No, you're not getting down, we have to go see mommy." Brad tightened his hold on the squirming kid.
"Mr. Killem, Brad, it's alright. Just go. Be with your wife. I'll handle things here," Constable Viton figured everything would move along once the cute little distraction was on her way.
Brad nodded and slowly walked towards his car, not taking his eyes off the two metal giants on his front lawn. He ignored his daughter's protests to be put down.
Ratchet and the constable resumed speaking, coming to an agreement on a location where they could all talk without causing any more commotion. If only they could get there.
"ANDREA!!!" Brad yelled. "GET BACK HERE!!!" He had put her down for a moment to open the car and get her seat ready. She immediately ran back towards her new friends.
He chased after her but balked when she ran right up to the nearest one, Jazz, who picked her up to get a better look at her. She squealed with delight, showing him her toy duck…
"ANDREA!!!" He yelled, panicking.
Sideswipe leaned over Jazz's shoulder for a better look. "She's cute. Never seen a femme that small."
Jazz noted Brad's distress. "Dude, I'm not gonna hurt her. She reminds me of a couple of my own." He gently placed her back on the ground and gave her a soft shove towards her father. The sad look came back into his eyes.
"Daddy, daddy! Did you see? He pick me up daddy. He very nice." Andrea excitedly chattered to her father.
Brad stared at Jazz, panic replaced by shock and gratitude at getting his child back in one piece. He scooped her up and admonished her for running from him. Her face fell, her lips quivered and she wailed and sobbed again under his disapproval.
"Hey, that's kinda harsh," Sideswipe protested on the child's behalf." Jazz wouldn't hurt her.
Ratchet had a brief moment to speculate on Sideswipe's amazing talent for saying the wrong thing at the wrong time.
Brad had had enough by then. "And I'm just suppose to BELIEVE you after you've attacked a cop?! You monsters took my wife and did something to her and NOW you are after my daughter too? No fucking way! You stay the HELL away from us!" He held his sobbing child tightly as he almost ran for his car. He strapped her in, in record time, and jumped into the driver's seat.
Sideswipe's optics narrowed dangerously. He was really tired of being yelled at, especially for no reason like this. He took a couple menacing steps towards the dirty burgundy car, before being blocked by Ratchet and grabbed from behind by Jazz.
"Calm down Sides, dude is just a little stressed, that's all." Jazz tried to soothe the red warrior.
Brad thought he'd wet himself when the red one's face darkened. Underneath the playful grin and goofy behavior lurked something dark and dangerous. His throat went dry and he froze for a moment until the constable banged on his window and told him to get moving. He quickly checked to see if he had actually wet himself and shot off down the street while the white ones detained the red psycho.
Constable Viton looked around and sighed in relief. The rest of the residents had vanished back into their homes and contented themselves with peeking from behind the curtains. Now he just had to get the three giants moving to the arranged area.
This proved easy now, with Ratchet yelling at and threatening Sideswipe who changed into a red sports car. Jazz changed back into the strange electronic equipment and was loaded into Sideswipe by Ratchet. Ratchet told him they were ready and changed back into the white minivan. Constable Viton checked the street quickly grabbed his crushed handgun and climbed into his squad car. He drove off, leading his strange entourage to their agreed meeting point. He radioed in while he drove, requesting backup. This he knew went right over his head.
