-06-

Choice

"Is he here yet?" Starscream asked both Decepticons with him, namely Thundercracker and Skywarp. The Decepticon commander was getting annoyed as he was waiting for the one 'Con he had a meeting with. He looked around again, still seeing no sign of him.

"Mibbie he teuk a wrong caw at Albuquerque. (Maybe he took a wrong turn at Albuquerque)" The blue Seeker commented. For that part, he got slammed by the red-and-white cybertronian. "Forgoat ah asked. (Forget I asked)" Thundercracker apologized.

Just then the three Seekers heard a loud engine roar. Starscream turned around and finally, after all this time waiting here, in the middle of some ghost town, he noticed a silhouette of some vehicle hiding in a half-torn bar. He smiled wickedly.

"You're finally here." He said before he frowned, letting the newcomer know of his annoyance. "Took you long enough."

The vehicle transformed, and a shadowed Decepticon slammed his fists against each other, as he stepped closer. Though he was still hidden in the shadows, he was clearly taller than the seekers. And his red, blazing optics made even them feel uneasy. No wonder, considering that he was one of the most unstable and aggressive warriors… and a hunter. "Anyway… here's your mission, hunter. The Autobots have damaged our vessel to the point we are without the means to leave this rotten, primitive, energon poor rock. You are to take care of them." Commander ordered. Then he reached out his servo and a hologram appeared, showing a familiar human. "Despite what our 'Lord and Master' says, I believe this human provided the 'Bots with the technical knowledge which allowed them to sabotage the Nemesis. Find him and use him to lure them out. Ravage will assist you. Am I CLEAR?" he growled.

The summoned Decepticon just narrowed his optics. Then he gave a smile which made all three Seekers shiver, fearing he'll attack them. "Barricade is on the hunt." He said, transforming into a dark scarlet-and-silver HMMWV. And he drove off, soon accompanied by a black motorcycle. As the two drove off, the leader of the Seekers smirked.

"Are you sure that Lord Megatron Absolute will not have you ordered dismantled for taking such actions behind his back?" Skywarp asked calmly, as he usually did. Starscream snarled at that.

"Of course not! Barricade is known for his brutality and effectiveness. Once he gets the Autobots gathered, I shall execute them myself. And thus, Megatron will have to congratulate me. That's when I'll take him down…" he whispered the last part to himself. "Anyway, Barricade will do his job." He added, before transforming and blasting off. As the two others followed, Barricade allowed Ravage to take the lead. The Decepticon tracker would lead him to his prey.

The hunt began.

Autobot base

It has been four days since the Nemesis crash. It has been four days since the Autobots got to fight them. While some of them, namely the young ones, Bulk and Ironhide, believed the 'Cons have melt, there was doubt in Optimus's spark about that. He did not believe the volcano could have destroyed their sworn enemies. And there was also sadness. Sadness as he considered the possibility of Megatron's possible demise. However, the wise knew that the warlord's death was a possible outcome. Now the leader of the 'Bots watched the ground bridge, as the Autobot femme drove out of the vortex. The minute she stopped, she switched to her bipedal form, with her neutral expression. However, Prime wasn't fooled. He could tell she was feeling uneasy if not sad.

"Arcee? Are you feeling unwell?" he asked with his concerned voice. Arcee turned to face her leader and merely shrugged.

"Yeah. Just decided to see if the kid is unharmed." She answered plainly.

"You actually go see him a lot, don't you?" Hot Ride asked.

"Cut it out. He left the team on his own. Why bother to have him back? It's not my concern." She commented. As she walked into the corridor, Jazz began to wonder. He knew Arcee best and knew she wasn't honest. He jumped of the catwalk and walked towards the ground bridge.

"Doc. Fire the bridge." He said, getting the CMO a bit confused.

"Jazz? Is something wrong?" Ratchet asked, Getting Optimus's attention.

"Just need to deal with somethin'. Launch the bridge." He asked again, transforming into a pimped Lamborghini Veneno. Optimus watched with some interest as his SIC drove off, disappearing in the vortex. He gave Ratchet an intrigued look, as the ladder looked back in confusion. They shrugged it off, preparing to open the ground bridge for Bulkhead, Bumblebee and their human charges.

Jasper, Nevada, Jack's workshop

Jack opened the garage door widely and sight. He was a bit annoyed. He could tell Arcee was observing him these past four days, but tried to ignore her. Today, however, he was especially annoyed. Luckily today was his day off from work in K/O Burger. Boy, he was in such a bad mood. And should he learn a certain bike is stalking him again, he would dismantle it.

He recalled how Miko and Raf were telling him about the Autobots. Their missions, how they would beat up the 'Cons, even what were they doing along with the humans. He found some of it interesting, but he wouldn't say he was jealous. And every time school would end, they would try convincing him to tag along with them. He shook his head. He helped them, sure. He told them the reactor core was so vulnerable. But he was just cleaning up his mess. He wasn't about to come back to them. He sighed as he started working on a TV. He looked over the parts, when he heard an engine. He fought at first it was Arcee again. But as it got closer, he knew it wasn't her. It was a car engine. He looked outside to find a white car, which stopped before the garage.

"So this is where you hang out spot, huh?" Jazz asked, as he turned off his engine. "Suh-weet."

Jack was simply giving the Autobot lieutenant a hard and annoyed look, before he turned back to the TV he was working on. "Look, um… Jazz, was it? If Arcee asked you to talk to me because she was too embarrassed to, my answer is still no." he said, expecting the Autobot's visit to be about the matter.

To his surprise, the Lamborghini chuckled. "Relax, 'Cee didn't ask me a favor. I came on my own." He said.

"L-look, Jazz. I'm sorry, but this whole thing of yours… It's just too much for me." Jack said. Jazz noticed the boy seemed to sound tired. Yet, there was something. Fear, of course. And the cyber-ninja could understand it. But there was also something else. Something that looked like… a chance.

Jazz opened his door, getting the teen's attention. "Jacky, get in. I wanna show you somethin'." He said with more serious tone.

"I said I don't'…"

"We're not going to the base." Jazz interrupted him. "Not unless you'll want to. And don't worry. I'm Optimus's second-in-command for a good reason."

Jack was a bit hesitant. He thought for a long while about the offer. Should he go? What was it that Jazz wanted to show him? Would he leave should he ignore him? then he felt irritation when he recalled the fact Arcee kept watching him. Maybe if he'll go with Jazz and see whatever he wanted to show him, the alien robots would finally leave him alone. Then he wouldn't have to worry about his sister getting involved or being targeted.

He took a deep breath, glancing at Jazz. That bot must've been super patient just standing there for so long. He finally put down his tools. "Hope this isn't some kind of prank of yours." He murmured.

"Sorry. Autobot recruitment program doesn't include pranking, joking, one-liners or any other form of comedy. Sucks, huh?" Jazz joked, actually getting Jack to chuckle. "Looks like we'll get along." He said warmly, driving off… and tuning one of the classic rock'n'roll tracks.

After a few minutes of driving, the stylish Autobot was finally about to pass an old factory building. Wherever Jazz was taking him, Jack didn't know what to think. Had had to admit it, Jazz was okay. The bot actually could make him laugh. Then there was something he didn't want to talk about. And that would be…

"If we can get along that well, you should be able to get Arcee to open up more." Jazz said. Yup, this was something Jack didn't want to talk about.

"You kidding me?" Jack questioned, though not with such a hostile tone as one would expect. "She doesn't even like me. I can relate- she lost someone close to her. But when I tried to comfort her, she nearly went ballistic."

"Don't take it personally. She really is a sweet gal on the inside. She's just, well… y'know, what's that term aga… sensitive. And she tends to feel insecure."

"You forgot she's also prideful and a stalker." Jack added.

"She just doesn't want anyone to see her as weak. And she has a hard time admitting she's feelin' down because of what happened to you when the 'Cons snatched ya." Jack didn't reply. He just looked at the wheel with a curious expression.

"You seem to know her very well." The young human finally spoke. "You brother and sister or something?"

"More like master and student, bor. I was the one to train her to be a cyber-ninja. And while she's good, she's still green." Jazz answered after a short chuckle. Then he took a sharp turn. Jack was confused and a little startled, wondering what happened. That's when he saw it, a familiar, black racer bike.

"Is that…?" Jack never managed to ask.

"Ravage. Decepticons' tracker." Jazz answered, accelerating. "And the one rule you need to know is: Where's Ravage, there's always a hunter."

"W-what hunter?" young Darby asked, just as a scarlet-and-silver HMMWV came into view. It nearly hit Jazz, who swiftly managed to avoid collision and drove into the factory. Once inside, Jazz found a hiding spot and opened the door.

"I know this is how they got you, Jacky." Jazz started to explain. "But I need to you out for safety." Jack was hesitant, but complied. Once he was out, the Autobot switched to his robot form, towering above the earthling. He gently took Jack into his hand and jumped onto the massive tank, trying to be stealthy. Once on the high ground, he observed the Decepticons drive in and transforming. The military car transformed into a tall, well build robot, with four spike-like formations coming just from behind his shoulder. Unlike the rest of his body, his face was gold and had aggressive features. "Thought it's him." Jazz whispered loudly enough only for Jack to hear.

"Who is that?" the boy asked.

"Barricade." The Autobot answered whispering. "A dangerous kind of 'Con. Lives more for the hunt and fight than actual killing." He placed Jack on top of the tank and got ready to move. "If anythin' comes up, run and call." Jazz looked around again and leaped down, silently. Barricade seemed to flinch then. And turned around, ready to blast anyone behind him. But there was no one there. The hunter was, however, cautious. He'd be a fool to let his guard down and become the prey. However, he could find nothing. He walked slowly around the huge tanks, seeking for the prey. Whenever there was an opening, Jack would manage to use the catwalk to sneak away. Barricade once nearly found him, but luckily, he didn't give the human enough credit for hiding. But Jack, on the other hand, wasn't so aware of his surroundings. He heard a growl. He could feel his heart in his throat the minute he heard in. he hoped for it to be a bad dream. A really, really bad dream. But the minute he turned around, he saw a pair of black optics and a large, black, saber-tooth tiger-like robot. The feline approached the human a bit closer, revealing its blades coming out from its elbows and its claws. Jack started to back off, hoping Jazz was around.

Who was he kidding? Jazz was probably far away. Just like Arcee, the white-and-black Autobot forgot all about him the minute he laid his optics… er, visor on the Decepticon. Jack looked to his left, to find he was no longer hidden from the sight of Barricade, who gave him a sadistic smile. The hunter was about to grab him… when Jazz caught him from behind and threw him onto a stack of crates. Then Jazz turned towards Jack, transforming his hand into a grabbling hook and shot it at Ravage. The feline was sent flying into an empty tanker. The Autobot took the human into his hand and raced off deeper into the factory.

"You okay, Jack?" Jazz asked him, careful not to drop him.

"Y-yeah, I'm fine." Jack informed, overcoming his fear.

"Good to hear. And sorry I was so late. Got lost on the path of life." He joked at the end. Finally, Jazz reached some booth and set Jack down. Then he looked back, as if picking up the Decepticons incoming.

"I'll deal with them. Hide." The stylish and care-free cybertronian instructed. Jack entered the booth, as Jazz pulled out his knife, extending its blade to a sword length. He smiled as Barricade leaped onto him, drawing his weapon- a double sword. The two crossed their weapons and started their dual. Jazz was far more swift, yet Barricade was greatly durable. Finally, the Autobot caught him by the wrist-joint and tossed him across the building. He followed.

Jack looked through the window to see Jazz following the Decepticon hunter. He had to admit it, despite seeing Arcee fight for a short while, he could tell that Jazz was far better. His train of thoughts paused when he heard an engine roar. Now he remembered that Ravage was with that 'Con. He looked around the room, to find the backdoor. As he noticed Ravage approach, he exited the booth and ran towards the tall assembly machines. He turned around to see the 'Con tracker jump onto the booth and staring at him. Jack gulped, sweating bullets.

Jazz kicked his opponent back into a strange construction. The Decepticon shook his head and snarled. He took his stance again and started to circle the Autobot, looking for the right time to strike. Jazz just stood there, relaxed, yet ready to fight.

"Y'know it's gonna end bad for ya, right?" the care-free Autobot asked. Barricade merely chuckled.

"Barricade doubts that. After all, Ravage is about to get the human friend of yours." He commented.

"I'm more concerned about Ravage then." Jazz commented. "The poor pussy cat can't even get close to him."

"It's enough he won't lose sight of him!" the hunter sneered, prepared to strike back. "And once Barricade's done with you, Barricade's going to enjoy the human's screams and cries!"

Jazz let out an rage filled roar. "Over my cold, offline CHESSIS!" he pushed his blade, trying to stab the 'Con. However, he missed. Worse, he gave the enemy an opening. Barricade caught him by the servo and started to beat Jazz mercilessly. Then he punched the Autobot into a wall, which collapsed on him. Barricade scanned his prey, finding he was in stasis.

"Barricade will let you go for now. Stay under that debris like a good Autobot until Barricade gets back." Barricade commented and left. He was right now more focused on catching the human. And he would deliver him to his Lord, Megatron.

As he left, Jazz lifted his head and observed the hunter walk away. He quietly got out of the debris and walked away.

Ravage was chasing him between the production lines. Luckily for Jack, it was narrow in here. Ravage had problems following him. finally, the boy managed to find something useful, as the feline 'Con was struggling to get through the exit. The boy was very tired and wanted to blame Jazz for getting him into this mess. Unfortunately, he wasn't around. Still, he focused of what he saw. He approached the control panel and saw it was operational. That's when he heard a loud slam. Ravage finally got into view, growling and snarling. Jack could have sworn he saw it drooling or whatever. The tracker transformed and raced towards the boy. Jack waited for a while. He was getting nervous. He wanted to run, but he would run out of stamina eventually. Ravage didn't seem to be minded by fatigue. So he needed to do something if he couldn't count on the Autobot.

Finally, he pulled the lever. And some a mechanical arm caught the bike. Ravage was about to transform, but another arm reached him and started to weld it in some areas. Jack ensured the arms would keep Ravage from moving while he smirked. He would ensure it wouldn't follow him anytime soon.

After some time, Jack finally returned to the booth. However, he was so tired that instead of hiding, he just sat down, leaning against its wall. He took a few deep breaths. He was so exhausted. He just wanted this little adventure of his to end. Then he heard footsteps. He looked from behind the booth, hoping it was Jazz. Unluckily for him, it was a Decepticon. Jack hid back and crawled towards the barrels nearby, hoping the hunter would leave eventually. Just as he was passing by, Jack's phone beeped. Because of the text message, Barricade got a fix on him. the teen tried to run, but he was quickly caught by the cybertronian.

"Barricade caught you, human." He congratulated himself. "Now, Barricade shall take you to Lord Megatron and get rewarded." He increased the pressure of his servo a bit, causing the teens to grunt. But Jack refused to cry in pain. "Yes, scream. Let Barricade hear the song of your screams and agony, boy. Let Barricade be enchanted with the music of your suffering."

"Hey, toaster-face!" a call caught the attention of the two. Barricade noticed Jazz on top of some tanker, with the grabbling hook attached to the valve. On the tanker Jack could read 'Danger! Liquid nitrogen'. Then Jazz made a one-handed gesture followed by the famous words: "Surfs up, dude."

It was going so slow in Jack's mind. First, Jazz pulled his cable, opening the valve. The cold liquid was pouring all over the place. He knew that if he came in contact with this, he would freeze in an instead. The Autobot lieutenant ripped off a part of the catwalk behind him and jumped down into the pouring substance, placing the metallic construction under his feet. Then Jazz started surfing, to Jack's awe. As Barricade was about to run, Jazz managed to reach him and take Jack away from him while knocking him down. Using his grabbling hook again, the Autobot pulled himself upwards, onto the other tank, where he and Jack were safe. And the two watched the liquid nitrogen freezing Barricade, turning him into an 'ice statue'.

"It won't hold him forever, but it'll be a few days at least before he breaks free." Jazz enlightened the boy. Seeing the boy's eyes, he got a bit more serious. "I'm sorry you had to go through all that again."

"Were you trying to prove me something? You got me into one of your actions to prove me you were going to take that whole 'guardian stuff more seriously?" Jack asked with an angry tone.

"No… this was somethin' I wasn't honestly expectin'." Jazz excused himself, his servo raised in a protective manner. "I wanted to show you somethin' else. That is… if you're still willin' to come."

Jack wondered for a while. Should he go with him? well, he definitely did do a better job than Arcee. This guy was really good, unlike Arcee. Sure, he shouldn't have left him, like she did. But, Jazz did not allow the fight to make him forget about him. Plus, Jazz was much friendlier. He could do at least that much. "Just make it quick. I need a rest."

"You got it." Jazz answered, taking Jack into his servo and leaping out through the window. As they landed, Jazz was already transforming, so they immediately drove off. Then a question hit his mind. "Say, haven't you seen Ravage somewhere, by the way?"

"I don't think he'll be bothering us for a while." Jack smirk.

Later, outside Jasper

Jack saw they were on a plateau. He wasn't sure as to what Jazz wanted to show him, but had to admit it, the view was beautiful. The sun was about to touch the horizon and meld with it. The land scape seemed to turn red. As the teen left the car, he was met with a soft breeze in the face. And it felt nice. Jazz, now in his robot mode, knelt beside Jack and caught the human's attention.

"So… why did you ask me to come along with you here?" Jack asked uneasily.

"Take a look." The Autobot said, pointing at a small debris at the edge. As Jack took a closer look at it, he found it to look somewhat unnatural. "That's Cliffjumper's memorial stone." Jazz said, getting Jack shocked and saddened. "We… never had a chance to recover his body. Never found it."

"I'm sorry." Jack said quietly.

"It's not your fault, Jacky. But thanks for the good will." Jazz replied. "Arcee comes here every night, mourning the cowboy's death. He wasn't her first partner. But sadly, like them, he was killed by the Decepticons." That got Jack's interest. "Arcee is unlikely to admit it, but even if she doesn't see you as a partner, she's just not ready to say goodbye yet."

Jack looked at him for a while. Jack couldn't get his words to be silent. And to his surprise, there was also wisdom that seemed to force him to think about it. But then the sad memories and thoughts of his invaded his mind. It pained him, though he tried hard not to show it.

"Jazz. Do you believe… that two broken souls… that lost something dear, can ease each other's pain?" Jack asked, trying to fight off the tears. Jazz guessed that Jack must've recalled some painful memories. He wondered about the question.

"I'm afraid I can't answer that question, Jack. I don't think even the wisest has an actual answer." He replied. Jack's head fell down, as Jazz laid his servo on the teen's back, trying to comfort him.

Autobot base

Ratchet was in the middle of calibration, when sparks started flying. He stepped back, shielding his eyes for a while, as Optimus and Ironhide observed him. Raf and Miko decided to pause their game, much to Bumblebee and Hot Ride's disappointment, and check on Ratchet's grumbling. Arcee was just leaning against the wall, refusing to enter the command room, as always. She did that ever since Cliffjumper's death. She just wanted to be left alone. And refused to enter the command room unless there was a mission or needed to talk to someone- Jazz in particular. He was the only one she would open up to, even if not always. But today he was just nowhere around.

"What's wrong, Ratchet?" Raf asked the medic. "Didn't we fix this computer's programming just yesterday?"

"Yes, we did. But your technology is made of such poor resources it's barely holding." Ratchet complained. Then he heard Ironhide confirm something. He figured the Prime must be talking through the comm-link. He turned around as he saw Jazz drive out of the vortex. "Jazz. Are you alright? You're whole beaten up."

This got Arcee's attention. The one bot she wanted to talk to was finally here. However, she was not in the rush to talk to him. she could wait till he was attended to by Ratchet.

"I'm fine, Doctor Grumpystein." Jazz answered. "Nothin' a li'l oil bath won't fix. What about you guys? Havin' some trouble with equipment, again?" He motioned at the panel.

Ratchet turned around to see it starting to smoke. He quickly ran towards it and opened it up, analyzing the wiring. "This blasted earth-tech is making my processor downgrade." He complained. "Let's see… the fusses are in places and aren't fried. Power is going through the green cable to the… the cooling system's… Then where could the cause be?"

"Have you considered a simple overload due to having too much power directed to the hard-drive?" a voice got Ratchet's attention. The white-and-red/orange Autobot looked down to find a raven haired teen looking through the cabling. The other kids were at shock, even when running down the stairs from their section. As they were on the ground floor, they ran towards him with smiles.

"Jack!" the two cheered, giving him a big hug. The name caught a certain blue femme's attention by surprise. She looked into the command room, to find her charge returning Miko and Raf's hug. She smiled and finally entered the room. Jack looked up to find her approaching. Arcee put her servo on her hip, looking at him curiously.

"I see you decided to comeback, kid." She commented with a raised brow-plate.

"Well, someone wise gave me a good insight." Jack said, looking at Jazz, in his bipedal form, who just smiled back. "Besides, you were too embarrassed to let me get near you." He joked/ mocked her.

"Excuse me? You were just too focused on playing mister mechanical genius. I wasn't going to be rude and interrupt you?" Arcee said with an annoyed tone.

"Yeah, right. Then why were you so ineffectively hiding and watching me for few hours, miss ninja-wanna-be."

"You callin' me…? That's it, kid. Don't make me go ninja on you."

"Watch it or I'll dismantle you while you're trying to even touch me."

The two continued their argument. Ratchet believed for a minute they were going to hurt each other. Luckily, judging from Prime and Jazz's expressions, these two weren't going to hurt one another. They were just trying to find their language.

"You did a great thing today, Jazz." Optimus praised his second-in-command. "With the return of Jackson, Arcee appears to be more relaxed. How did you manage to convince him to return?"

"I didn't." Jazz answered, getting Optimus's confused expression. "He chose." As Optimus was about to ask him something again, Jazz remembered something. "Hey, Jacky. You still didn't answer me. What did you do to Ravage?"

"Well…" Jack started with a smirk.

Few days later, Decepticon Island

"Ravage hasn't reported back in DAYS!" Megatron said out loud, pacing around his throne. he looked at the monitor, seeing as Barricade was being attended to by Knockout. He was found a while ago, and to find him frozen was something unexpected. He would be mad at the situation, but he was furious. Thanks to Soundwave's surveillance, the warlord knew that Starscream had Barricade go on the hunt. He would not bother greatly about it, but the fact the hunter failed, got him in the 'bad mood'. However, there was still Ravage to be found. And he was nowhere to be found. "Where could it be?"

"Megatron! I believe to have managed to found Ravage's present location." Skywarp said, getting his attention. The holographic monitor switched view to that on the Seeker's screen, showing the photo of a familiar, though damaged, motorcycle in some kind of a garage. Megatron read the name of the 'website' as the humans called it.

"eBay?"

"What? Am I to understand that that incompetent feline and his partner failed to catch one puny human and while one of them ended on ice, the other is being sold like some kind of scrap?" Starscream, who was standing over the blue Seeker, asked with his loud, grating tone of voice. "Megatron? You really don't know how to care for your own soldiers."

That earned the commander a crushing grip to the head, followed by lightening from the same servo. Megatron was electrocuting him for a long while, before he finally let the Seeker go, snarling in fury.

"Trust me, Starscream. The Autobots will pay for this transgression." Megatron said, leaning down towards him, ready to deliver more pain. "They… WILL!"

End

A.N.: Oh, yeah. Jack's back. What? You honestly thought he would be gone?

My cast:

Barricade- Ron Pearlman