Prompt: 70-Storm
Rating: PG/K+
Characters: Sideswipe, Optimus Prime, Ratchet, Various Others
Word Count: 3,133
Disclaimer: Transformers is not mine.
Author's Note: This one follows directly after Sunset, so it's also movieverse. Thanks to yoong, Blood Shifter2, OPlover, Starfire201, Fallen Oblivion Angel, Scaramouch81, IchigoNekoKun, Lambor Terror Lep, Gatekat, LamboGirl666, Aeternial, CrimsonLaurana, and Pheonix813 for the reviews, faves, and alerts. I really appreciate it!

He hit the atmosphere hard, shuddering as the forces tore at his metal frame. He didn't have the energy to struggle to stay on his course and let the gravity of his descent take him where it would. He broke through the upper layers with a bright flash of flame and was instantly hit with raging winds that pushed him further from his destination.

Electricity flared around him, attracted to the friction his pod made as it sliced through the air. Systems scrambled from the influx, leaving him careening through the sky without a way to guide his landing. He momentarily blacked out as the extra energy surged through him.

He quickly came back to consciousness as the warmth of his body was pulled out suddenly. He felt the liquid close around him and transformed as fast as his damaged parts would allow. The currents yanked at him, and his solid metal weight only made it harder to resist being dragged down. He flailed, kicking with his legs and pulling with his arms until he finally found which direction was up and broke the surface of the salty water.

He gasped through his mouth, trying to pull air in without getting more water in his intakes. His optics focused and refocused, trying to find anything that wasn't water. Waves pushed at him, forcing him in whatever direction it went. He went under several more times and warnings raced through his processors, telling him of the strain his body was in and couldn't take much more of.

Finally, after what felt like vorns of being tossed around like a piece of scrap, he felt shifting solids under his pedes. He fought, dragging his frame into shallower waters and then out of it completely. His weak scans showed that it wasn't a big patch of land, but it was enough for him at the moment. He pulled himself close to a cluster of large rocks, coughing water out of his intakes and collapsing as the storm raged on around him. His spark pulsed, exhausted but warmer than he had felt it in many, many vorns.

With a sigh, his slipped offline, confident he was as close to his goal as he had ever been.

The storm was still going strong by midnight. Several of the Autobots had left their quarters to huddle in the command center. A couple of them had slipped back into recharge there in the presence of others, but most were finding other ways of passing the time. The few humans on duty simply tried to avoid close contact with any of the Cybertronians. They weren't too keen on being near metal lightning rods, even though they were inside and safe from the storm. They just weren't going to chance it.

Optimus Prime sat at his terminal, one optic on the multiple screens and the other watching his crew. He was amused to watch their antics, even if they kept them low key while trying not to disturb the others who were resting. One mech who was sitting in a darkened corner, neither in recharge or talking with the others, caught his gaze.

Sideswipe had one knee pulled up and rested his crossed arms on it, with his chin propped up on them. His optics were dim, telling of his lack of recharge to all who looked at him. He sat quietly, gaze half shuttered as he observed his comrades. His lips quirked in tiny smiles every once in a while at the activities of the others.

Optimus looked away and turned his attention to his companion when footsteps stopped next to him.

"I should just tranq him and force him into recharge right there," Ratchet grumbled, frowning at the mech.

Optimus chuckled. "He would be very displeased with you should you attempt it."

"I'd gladly take any retaliation from him if I knew that I had helped him in some way, whether he wanted the help or not," the medic sighed. He leaned his hip against the console, crossing his arms. "Bet I could hit him from here."

The Prime smiled and nodded. "It would be an easy shot, compared to ones you've pulled off against both him and his brother before."

Ratchet nodded as Sideswipe suddenly looked up and over at the door. His optics flared brightly for a moment and dimmed back to their previous level. The silver warrior slowly rose, skating over to open the door a bit and watch the weather outside. Lightning made his armor glitter and the play of shadows reminded the medic of just how dangerous he still was. "What is he doing now?" He narrowed his optics as one silver hand was raised to rest over the bot's spark.

The flame painted commander hummed. "Maybe he had another pulse."

"Probably. At his last check up he said they were coming closer together."

They watched the mech as he stood at the hanger door. After several breems, a look of excitement graced his features and his frame began to shake. His other hand gripped the metal doorframe hard enough to leave finger shaped dents. He started mumbling softly, growing more agitated as time went on.

The Autobot leader and his Chief Medical Officer weren't the only ones to notice the frontliner's change in behavior. Bluestreak walked over to stand next to Sideswipe, trying to get the other's attention. When the fighter looked at the Praxian, his whole face had transformed. They could see more of his former self in his delighted expression. Other mechs stopped their conversations to see what was going on.

"What's wrong, Sideswipe?" Bluestreak asked, reaching out to place a hand on a silver plated arm.

"Nothing's wrong. It's okay. He's here," Sideswipe looked around at them all, his optics shining nearly too bright. "It's okay! He's here! I can feel him! We have to go find him!"

"Sideswipe?" Optimus stood and took a few steps forward. "Who, Sideswipe?"

"Sunny! I can feel him again!" The silver bot raced forward, gripping his commander's arms tightly. "We have to go out and get him!"

"Sideswipe…the scanners aren't picking up any signals," Prime shook his head, bring his own hands up to hold on to the younger mech. "He's not…"

"Yes he is! Come on!" Sideswipe tugged on the larger frame, urging the other to follow. "We have to hurry!" He stumbled in his haste to get back to the door.

Optimus caught him more firmly and Ratchet stepped closer, gripping the crested helm in both of his hands. "Sideswipe. Focus. Look at me."

His plating was vibrating with whatever emotions were rushing through him. After an astrosecond, he pulled his gaze to meet the medic's. "Ratch, we have to go!"

"Sunstreaker is dead, Sideswipe," Ratchet said softly, forcibly keeping their gazes locked. "He's not here."

"But…I-I felt him," he tried to jerk back, denial in his pale optics. "He's so close…"

"No Sideswipe," the search and rescue hummer sighed. "He's gone."

For a long moment complete silence fell over the room, only broken by the sound of the storm raging outside. The other mechs crowded closer to each other, seeking comfort as they watched the mech struggle with himself. Slowly, the soft clatter of metal plates hitting together became audible. Tremors wracked the slender frame as his optics fritzed with lines of white static.

"No," Sideswipe shook his helm, the movement becoming more rapid with each turn. "No!" he yelled, writhing against the two captors. The rest of the crew shifted, watching for a cue from their leader to assist with holding onto him. "No!"

Optimus grunted as Sideswipe's struggling increased. He tightened his hold around him, pulling him flush against his larger frame. "Ratchet!"

The medic nodded and pulled a syringe from his subspace. He had taken to carrying a dose of sedatives with him in case something like this happened. The moment the silver bot saw it he renewed his battle to escape. "Easy Sideswipe," Ratchet cooed. "It's going to be okay. You just need to rest." He stepped closer, reaching out to hold the helm still. "Easy now…"

Sideswipe whimpered, giving pleading looks to anyone he could make optic contact with. Ratchet raised the syringe, lining it up with an energon line in his neck. At the last moment Sideswipe kicked out, slamming a foot against the medic's tight and pushing him back. He used the momentum of the push to ram back against the Prime. He twisted, growling as he clawed at the restraining arms. With all of his wiggling, he managed to slip free from the grip. The moment his pedes touched the ground he was off, his wheeled feet taking him quickly from the room.

"After him! Don't let him get away!" Ratchet shouted, worry evident in his voice.

Mechs raced after the silver bot, splitting into groups to try and surround him. A pair stayed in the command center, using the terminals to track the fighter through the buildings. They called directions out over the comm. lines and curses drifted back to them as others caught sight of the runaway bot just in time for him to lose them again.

"Outside! He's outside, heading west!" one of the humans directed, watching a fuzzy security feed. "Looks like he's got his jet pack!"

"Hurry! We can't let him leave!" Optimus' urgent voice made everyone put on a burst of speed to try and catch up with Sideswipe. Autobots rushed from the buildings, converging on the spot the silver mech was racing towards. The storm buffeted them with rain and wind, limiting their vision and attempting to push them off course. The silver frame blended with the darkened environment, only lit by the flashes of lightning.

"There!" Ironhide bellowed after one such flash illuminated their target. "He's heading for the rock patch!" The rock patch was on top of a rise, and the height of the boulders had proved to be an excellent launching pad for mechs with the use of a jet pack. Sideswipe jumped, landing crouched on top of the large rocks. He glanced over his shoulder at the Cybertronians chasing him one last time and jumped again, igniting his jet pack at the peak of his leap and shooting higher up into the cloudy skies.

"Sideswipe!" Optimus shouted after the fleeing mech, but it was too late. The crash of waves and thunder drowned out his voice. Lightning struck, too close to comfort, and they hurried back inside. "All mechs to stations!" the Prime barked to his soldiers. "Get all of our systems up and running. Track him down." Mechs hastily complied, some running to wake the few still recharging in their quarters as they went after equipment.

Ratchet leaned against a wall, one hand covering his face and his optics shuttered. "Primus," he muttered.

"Ratchet?" Prime asked quietly.

"We can't go after him, not in this weather."

Optimus sighed. "I know, but we'll be ready for the moment it clears enough." He glanced over at Mirage when the spy called his name. "What is it?"

"The storm is causing too much interference. We can't track him."

"Primus," Optimus seemed to deflate. "Keep trying. We have to find him somehow." The Noble nodded and turned back to his monitor.

Ratchet onlined his optics. "I just hope there's something to find." The look in his gaze said what he didn't: Sideswipe was fading too fast now to last long enough for them to get there.

Trying to steer proved useless.

Sideswipe found himself flying through the air, swept away in the fierce winds. He struggled just to keep high enough to not crash into the waves below. Lightning danced among the boiling clouds above, causing him to duck and swoop lower than he would like. He had no idea just where he needed to go, but he went anyway, hoping he came to the next island in the chain before the storm got the better of him.

While the storm raged all around him on the outside, inside his spark was twisting and bursting, too full of conflicting emotions. Sunstreaker was here! But Sunstreaker was dead. Pain erupted in his spark, tearing him apart. He knew Mirage, Prime, and Ratchet wouldn't lie about his brother being gone, but the pulse he had felt was too real for him to not believe in it. He had to see if it was true. In the back of his CPU, he briefly wondered if it was just his twin calling him to join him in the Matrix.

Many harrowing breems later he was forced to land because of the intensity of the storm. He pulled himself through the shallow waters to the shore, ignoring the rain that lashed around him. Waves rushed up behind him, pushing and dragging at his frame. The sandy bottom sucked at his feet, making it a battle to just get onto more solid ground. He ducked down when lightning struck too close for his liking. Ratchet would tear him apart if he got his systems fried with this stunt.

He could feel little tendrils of warmth in his spark, something he hadn't felt for a long time. He followed their pull, upping the power of his optics, trying to get as much vision as he could for his search. When that, combined with the extra light from his headlights, did nothing to help, he switched his vision to infrared, looking for any significant heat source. Taking a big drag of air into his intakes, he started forward. Again, he faintly wondered if he was just going crazy and would finally fade away out here.

There wasn't much on the island that could be used for cover. It was one of the smaller islands in the chain. He could have made a single lap around it in less than two breems on a good day. But with the storm, it was taking entirely too long to look over the one spit of land.

He made his way painstakingly slow around the area. He tred as lightly as he could so his pedes wouldn't get stuck in the mushy sand. He flat out rejected any idea of trying to move faster with his wheeled feet. With his scans and infrared turning up nothing, he took to digging through any pile of sand that seemed large enough to be hidden under. The only result that yielded him was sand sticking in his joints.

The whole search took longer and more energy than he thought it would. He sank to his knees at the other end of the small island, giving up when he found nothing, not really wanting to consider checking the other nearby islands. He rubbed a hand over his empty spark, staring dejectedly out over the wild ocean. He had found no sign to explain the pull on his bond. Weariness tugged at his consciousness. They had been right.

Sunstreaker really was gone.

He let himself fold completely to the ground with a sigh. His spark gave a faint pulse and he muttered at it to be still. Warnings had started popping up on his internal display, telling him of his need to refuel and recharge before his systems forced him into it. He brushed the warnings aside, thinking in the back of his processor that if he slipped into stasis now, maybe he wouldn't wake back up. He decided that was really a depressing thought if he let himself think about it too much.

He didn't watch his chronometer to see how long he laid there. The only way he could tell that time was passing was through the slow dissipating of the storm around him. His vision faded in and out, leaving him drifting in a state somewhere between wakefulness and recharge. He curled his frame into a loose ball, relaxing with the sound of hydraulics depressurizing as he rested.

He was nearly in recharge when an out of place sound drug him back into reality. Blinking his optics blearily, he looked around, searching for the source of the noise. Light from the moon was beginning to break through the clouds, aiding him in his new quest. A flash of blue sparks from behind a nearby pile of rocks drew his attention.

Cautiously, he rose back to his pedes, his swords extending in readiness. The scraping sound came again and he eased forward, keeping some distance between himself and the rocks. A grin formed on his face plates as a sudden idea struck him. He knew he wasn't in optimal conditions for a fight, so the best thing for him to try was a surprise attack.

Sideswipe ran towards the rocks, jumping up on top of them and crouching. He slammed the tip of one blade into the ground on the other side, just missing the heap of twisted metal as it jerked away. Pale and flickering blue optics met his and his cocky smirk faded. He let the air out of his intakes slowly, carefully retracting the blade that had come oh-so-close to running through an unprotected shoulder.

Never breaking optic contact, he dropped from his perch on the rocks to crouch over the other mech. The light protoform armor was torn and completely missing in some places. Sparks were cascading from damaged wires and circuits that were exposed to the elements around them. With a shaking servo he reached out and cupped a sand crusted cheek arch. The other's optics dimmed more at the touch, the helm tilting further into his hand. Sluggish systems gave a soft rev and a sigh was released. The silver mech smiled softly, his spark spinning rapidly in his chest. The warm tendrils were back, spreading through his frame and reaching out to the other spark so close to his.

Sideswipe moved and sat heavily on the ground, the strength gone out of his body. Slowly, the other moved, curling the damaged frame against his side. He idly stroked a hand over the battered helm, wrapping the bot into his embrace. His own optics flickered, his vision fading to black with the sound of the other's over taxed systems shutting down. His scanners registered it was safe to power down, that the last traces of the storm were leaving.

Unable to resist any longer, Sideswipe let go of his wavering reality and fell down into the welcoming darkness.

Skyfire launched as soon as the conditions were adequate for him to fly in. The search and rescue team he carried watched out of his windows as he flew low over the group of islands that surrounded Diego Garcia, hoping to catch a glint of silver metal in his search lights or a spark signature on their scanners. Just maybe they weren't too late…

A/N: Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think about it!