Chapter 7-Sting

A small, yellow VW Bug drove through the barren Texan landscape at high speed. It left huge clouds of dust in its wake as it did doughnuts in the ground and sped through the rocky terrain as fast as it could go. Behind it, an ambulance and a cyan sports car were trying to keep up with it.

"Bumblebee, slow down!" Ratchet called out. "You were just cleared for duty, don't push yourself so hard so fast!"

"Ratchet, I'm fine! Hell, I feel great!" Bumblebee laughed and did another doughnut, throwing up more dust into the air.

Two weeks passed since Gina's mission to Cybertron and the return of Optimus Prime. Both Gina and Optimus were recovering from their respective ordeals, while Prowl filled Prime in on everything that happened since the hate plague incident. During that time, Bumblebee's recover was going smoothly, and just a few hours ago he was declared healthy and fit for duty. All thanks to Ratchet's hard work. The young Autobot was restless and could hardly wait to go back out into the big, wide world with his newly rebuilt legs.

Bumblebee was a bit disappointed that he missed seeing Gina off on her greatest mission yet, but seeing everyone's happy faces at his recovery made it worth the wait. Everyone had been through a lot already, so having their scout back was the final good thing for them after getting Optimus and Gina back.

"Aw, let him race, doc." Jolt said, hovering above. "You'd be hyper too, if you were cooped up inside for so long."

"Honestly." Ratchet sighed.

"Maybe it's a good idea to just let him go." Moonracer said. "He looks finger."

"Moonracer…" Ratchet started, but she cut him off.

"If anything went wrong, Jolt knows to contact the others." She told him. "Isn't that right, Jolt?"

"You got it!"

It was a surprise to everyone that Moonracer, Arcee's supposedly dead sister, had hitched a ride on Skyfire's transwarp wave and followed her sister to Terra, pretty much forcing herself on to the team. It pissed Arcee off something fierce when she realized what Moonracer did, but there was nothing she could do other than teach her sister about Terra and its people. Optimus formally welcomed her to the team and she scanned a terran alt mode to blend in with. Moonracer got used to Terran life fairly quickly, but she was a rather uppity femme who couldn't sit still for more than five minutes.

Ratchet wasn't amused at Moonracer's supposed bleeding heart. All Bumblebee had to do was dish out his Puppy Dog eyes and everyone would cave in to his requests. He shouldn't be driving around so soon after recovering, he should've been making sure his legs were operating correctly. Still, if he let him burn out that extra energy now, it may be easier to check up on him later.

"Fine, Bumblebee, you can stay out." Ratchet said, and quickly added, "But I'm staying to keep an eye on you."

"No problem, Ratchet!"

After the grim events of the hate plague scare, it was refreshing to see someone so full of life run and play for once. Bumblebee was always one of the livelier Autobots, so bright and optimistic, and seeing him in a coma as half a body was disturbing to those who knew him. It was rare to see a mech who was born in the middle of a war go through life with a smile on his face. With so much violence going on around them, a smile was something of a rarity among soldiers.

XXXXXX

Penny wasn't Gina's best friend. They spent most of their relationship at each other's throats since their feud began in Washington. It was on a personal level, though for different reasons; Gina couldn't fathom being beaten in her own game, being outdone in history and science, which she excelled in. Penny's reasons were of the same vein, but it was also a bit more personal for her since Gina had something that she wanted for herself-family (parents that actually made time for their child) and friends (Kevin was sweet, but he was the only other child who connected with her. Made for some pretty lonely lunches when he was absent from school). Gina was also officially the first human to step foot on an alien world. Penny was willing to give that one up, considering the circumstances, but she didn't have to like it.

Gina was one of the first humans to make first contact, to learn alien language, to make energy weapons (how the hell she managed them was beyond Penny) and to go to an alien planet to save what was essentially Robo-Bhudda! So many achievements and she wasn't even in her teens yet! Penny was supremely jealous, but that was tempered by the fact that she was embroiled in an alien civil war that almost led to her cute little behind getting roasted alongside Kevin. At least she got to discover Queen Sheba's tomb, so that was something.

"This is unreal." Penny breathed as she cycled through the photos that Gina took during her time on Cybertron. They downloaded the data onto Gina's laptop and were now looking at the pictures intently. "How big is their planet?"

"Bigger than Terra, that's for sure. High Wire said that the planet was roughly the same size as Saturn." Gina said. "It was an amazing experience, circumstances aside, but…knowing that's what the Autobots' home looks like kind of ruined the mood, you know?"

Penny nodded. She couldn't imagine having her home planet turned into a smoldering husk that was unlivable anymore. Her heart went out to the Bots.

Gina had went into detail about her meeting with the other Autobots, namely Elita-1 and her Valkyrie team, fighting Insecticons and going into space. But she mysteriously avoided talking about Vector Sigma. She thought that Gina just didn't think it was that important to talk about, but as the conversation went on, she realized that Gina was purposefully avoiding the subject and wanted to know why. When she inquired about the "mystical" supercomputer, Gina went quiet and her expression fell.

"What is Vector Sigma, girl? The Bots talk about it like its some god, which makes sense seeing as it created them and all that, but what exactly is it? The details are way too vague." Penny said.

"I don't know, Penny. Jinkies, I wish I knew, but I can't explain it in words." Gina said and sighed. "Vector Sigma isn't just some supercomputer, it's…it's like a quasi-sentient being. A force of some kind with powers that I can't even imagine in my wildest dreams. When I went into that chamber, I barely remember anything other than a bright light and…waking up outside my talos."

Penny unconsciously reached for Gina's hand. The poor girl looked really spooked. "Damn girl, no wonder you don't want to talk about it. You doing okay?"

"I'm doing fine. Ratchet looked me over and said I'm completely healthy. I'm not having any more visions, either. But…Sara found something else."

Gina motioned for Penny to get behind her and moved her blonde hair to reveal the back of her neck. At the base of her spine was a black tattoo etched onto her skin. Penny gaped at the odd symbol, it was curved like a letter written in cursive and definitely alien.

"Sara found it after I go out of the shower a few days ago." Gina said. She didn't sound too concerned about it, but she wasn't very pleased at learning she had an alien tattoo on the back of her neck. "It's cybertronian, but ancient. As in none of the other Autobots could read it if I showed it to them."

"Does anyone else know about this?"

"Aside from Sara, no. I didn't want to worry anyone about something that might be nothing serious."

"Gina, you don't keep quiet about a freaky alien tattoo that just appears out of nowhere after coming back from a lunch date with a mystical alien god machine." Penny stood over Gina and put her hands on her hips. "Don't hide this from the Bots. This might be serious."

Gina turned around. "Please, Penny don't say anything. It's just a tattoo, and I don't plan on telling anyone unless something actually happens. I only told you because I trust you to keep a secret."

"You trust me?" Penny said with wide eyes. "Me? The girl who you've been trying to outdo for nearly four years and counting?"

"Penny, you're like me. A girl who wants nothing more than to be recognized for making great discoveries. We're a lot alike in that sense. And I trust you because you'd do the same thing in my position and ask me to keep quiet for you."

Penny bit her lip, knowing Gina was right. She would keep this quiet, so long as nothing went wrong. But the potential for disaster was very evident here; that tattoo could either be a harmless brand or the start of something that could be bad. After a few seconds, Penny sighed and nodded her confirmation to keep Gina's secret.

"Fine, I won't say anything to anyone," Penny said. "But the minute that tattoo starts doing somethin' freaky, we're spilling the truth. Okay?"

"I totally understand." Gina said smiling. "Thanks, Penny."

"Anything for a fellow gold digger." Penny grinned.

Gina was happy she finally told someone else other than Sara. She was scared when she saw it for the first time, but after a while, she believed that it wasn't anything to worry about. But what she neglected to tell Penny about was that she had Sara translate the symbol to English. It was another closely guarded feature Sara had, capable of translating cybertronian, even ancient cybertronian to an extent.

According to Sara, the symbol was ancient cybertronian for "Artificer." She had no idea what that meant, but it was probably a title of some kind. What it meant for her in the long run was something she probably wouldn't find out for a long time.

XXXXXX

After managing to convince Optimus to allow him to go out on recon, Bumblebee went out on patrol with Bulkhead for energon. It was nothing that would be too stressful, and shouldn't escalate into anything now that the Cons were keeping quiet. He was happy everyone was concerned about him, but it was getting a bit suffocating.

"Hey, Bee," Bulkhead said over the comm. "I'm getting an energy reading near your position. It might be nothing, but could you check it out? I'm be with you in a few minutes."

"Sure thing, Bulk." Bumblebee replied. He hoped it was some energon; they were starting to run low on the natural stuff and he wasn't a fan of the artificial cubes they made with solar energy.

He drove to the location indicated on his grid scan, a small canyon near the road. He transformed to bipedal mode and walked to the coordinates. When he got there, he saw that it wasn't energon, but some strange looking device that looked like a locator beacon.

"What's this doing here?" He muttered.

When he bent down to inspect it, something hit his chest and his body was violently electrocuted by a strong electrical surge that overloaded his systems. He stumbled back and fell over, falling into unconsciousness.

Mere seconds passed before three helicopters appeared over the edge of the cliff side and landed next to the fallen Autobot. A large group of men in black combat gear exited the copters and moved in on Bumblebee. The last to get out was Aries, Zodiac General of OZ. As the soldiers surrounded the Bumblebee with their assault rifles pointed at him, one of the technicians approached Aries.

"Sir, we have another N.B.E coming this way. ETA: two minutes."

Aries nodded. "Work briskly."

The technician nodded and grabbed a briefcase from one of the other soldiers. He ran over to Bumblebee and knelt over the mech's lower abdomen, opening the case and assembly a high powered, heavy duty power drill. He immediately got started on drilling a hole into the side of Bumblebee's torso, making a hole large enough to him to reach inside.

Aries watched his surroundings like a hawk, his third eye spotting Bulkhead's large form driving down the road just a mile away. "The backup's ahead of schedule."

"As luck would have it," The technician pulled out a large, round spherical device, his arms covered in blue energon. "So am I."

Aries grinned. "Move out!"

The soldiers piled into the helicopters and took off as soon as the last man was inside. They were already gone by the time Bulkhead arrived in his vehicle mode and transformed to check up on his friend.

"Bee! Bee, you okay?" Bulkhead leaned over the scout and roughly patted his face to wake him up. "Come on, Bee, nap time's over."

Bumblebee groaned as he came back online. His head felt fuzzy as he leaned up on his elbows and saw Bulkhead looking down at him. "What happened?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing." Bulkhead said and noticed the hole drilled into the scout's side. "Bee, you're hurt. Were you attacked?"

"I don't know. I got here to investigate the energy reading, and then…nothing." Bumblebee rubbed the back of his head. "Ow, I feel like I got hit by Starscream's null blast."

He stood up unsteadily, refusing Bulkhead's help. He hissed and held a hand to his bleeding abdomen.

"You sure you're okay? You're bleeding." Bulkhead said.

"Don't worry, Bulkhead, I'll live. But we need to catch those chumps that jumped me." Bumblebee said. "I think we can still catch them."

Bulkhead nodded and transformed, driving after the three helicopters he saw leaving the area. Bumblebee ran forward, expecting his bod to convert to vehicle mode…only for nothing to happen. He stopped, confused, and tried to transform again, but nothing happened.

Bulkhead noticed that Bumblebee wasn't driving with him and drove back over to his comrade, changing back to his natural form. "Bee's what's the matter? We rolling or not?"

Bumblebee had a look of intense concentration on his face as he focused on transforming, but still nothing happened. He started to panic and looked at Bulkhead with a frightened expression.

"Bulkhead, something's wrong! I can't transform!"

XXXXXX

The Autobots and children were assembled in the medibay watching Ratchet run a diagnostic scan on Bumblebee. No one said a thing as they let the doctor do his work, but after a while, Moonracer popped the question.

"Find anything, doc?" She asked.

"Not since you asked three minutes ago, Moonracer." Ratchet replied, getting annoyed with the young femme.

"Do you have any idea what's wrong with him, Ratchet?" Gina asked.

"I'm hoping it's nothing serious." Ratchet said. "It might be possible that the electrical surge did some minor damage to your T-cog."

"T-cog?" Annie wrinkled her nose. "Is that the cybertronian version of a t-bone?"

"It's the organ that allows us to transform and scan new alt modes." Arcee explained.

"And a very important component of our physiology." Ratchet added. When he finished his scan, he checked the results on his wrist panel. His expression turned to one of horrified surprise. "By the Allspark."

"What's wrong?" Bumblebee asked, now extremely worried.

"Bumblebee, you T-cog isn't damaged…it's missing!"

The statement shocked everyone, even Prowl, but Bumblebee was the most surprised and horrified by this.

"What do you mean missing?" Ironhide demanded. "It couldn't have just gotten up and rolled away!"

"I don't know what else to yell you, Ironhide." Ratchet transferred the scans of Bumblebee's body onto the computer and pointed to the body's lower abdomen. "See there? That small spot just under the fuel pump is where the T-cog should be."

"B-But, if I don't have a T-cog, then I can't transform anymore! I can't be a cybertronian that can't transform. It's what we're known for!" Bumblebee grabbed his head as he began to panic. "I can't fight if I can't use my wheels! This is what gets people ostracized from society."

"Calm down, Bee. I'm sure Ratchet or Wheeljack can make you another one given enough time." Darren said, but his words only made Bumblebee groan in despair. "W-What did I say?"

"Darren, a T-cog is a bio mechanism, not a scrapyard find!" Ratchet snapped. "It's no more replaceable than a vocal synthesizer or a brain module! They can't be built, only repaired if damaged."

"You're born with one, you die with one." Prowl said forlornly.

"I'm useless now!" Bumblebee cried. "What good is a scout that can't make a speedy getaway?"

"Don't say that, Bee." Jolt said as he patted his friend's arm. "You're not useless. You still got your hands and feet, and your weapons. You can still fight."

"Even so, we must find out who stole Bumblebee's T-cog if we are to retrieve it." Optimus said.

"Maybe the Cons did it." Bulkhead suggested.

"I don't think the Cons would want an organ they all have, Bulkhead." Darren said. "I don't think even Knockout is into body play."

"So who the hell did it?" Annie growled.

"Was there anything you guys noticed that might give us a hint?" Arcee asked Bulkhead and Bumblebee. The scout looked lost, but Bulkhead remembered something.

"Helicopters!" He snapped his fingers. "I remember hearing helicopter rotors when I found Bee."

"Helicopter blades? Like…" Darren's face darkened. "I think I know who might've done this."

"Who?" Moonracer blinked.

"The ones who cannibalized Lugnut." Bulkhead said darkly.

"And tried to gut me." Arcee hissed.

Optimus was the one to voice everyone's thoughts at once. "OZ."

XXXXXX

"Beginning installation."

Aries watched intently as the technicians carefully installed the T-cog into the life-sized robotic skeleton. It was almost as tall as Optimus Prime, sporting a skeletal frame based on the Autobot leader's body frame and only sported a few pieces of armor. Once the biomechanical organ was implanted into the robot's torso, the head technician entered the activation code and the robot's systems started up one by one.

Project Golem was moving smoothly. This prototype was merely the first step in building a fully functional autonomous mechanoid based off preliminary scans from previous encounters with the Autobots and what information was gained from Lugnut's dissection, as well as the missing arm of the Autobot Jazz (courtesy of Circuit Breaker). It was far from complete, as this was simply the trial run to test if the T-cog was compatible. If everything went according to plan, OZ could have developed the world's first army of high tech drones controlled by the men and women of OZ.

"Scanning."

Two beams of light shot out of the robot's eyes and ran over their chosen alternate mode, the Tumbler, a highly mobile armored truck based off of stolen military blueprints to create a mobile armored support vehicle. When the scanning was complete, a wireframe scan of the vehicle appeared on the computer and was downloaded. Once that was done, all that was left was the final step.

"Initiating transformation sequence."

A pull of the lever and the T-cog spun in its cradle within the robot's torso. However, instead of the robot transforming into another machine, it did nothing. The technician tried again, only to get no results. Aries scowled as he tried again and again but nothing happened.

"What's the problem?" Aries asked.

"We…don't know, sir. The systems are fully functional and no abnormal power readings, but robot isn't responding to our commands."

"Then find the problem and fix it!" Aries yelled. His anger spurred the men into action, not wanting to piss of the man who could literally vaporize them with a blink of his third eye.

"Well, this is embarrassing." Aquarius remarked as she strolled up to her partner in crime. "All that work to get a single organ and this is all we get. Honestly, I'm beginning to think this was a waste of time."

"It was your idea." Aries growled.

"I know, but you didn't say no to it. And for the record, I thought that cybertronian tech would be somewhat compatible with Terran technology." She sighed. "Looks like it was wrong."

All activity was halted when a chilling laugh filled the air. Everyone turned to the large doors of the warehouse they were operating in as they were opened slightly and a glowing eye peeked through the crack. Pushing the doors open, the alien visitor entered the warehouse, not caring about the humans pointing their weapons at her.

She was a cybertronian, a femme with deep green and gold armor but sported no faction symbol on her person. Her head looked like a pharaoh's mask, gold and lacking any features aside from a pair of narrow, deep red eyes that glowed in the darkness of the warehouse. She walked toward the two generals as if she were greeting old friends instead of heavily armed soldiers.

"So you're the humans who turned poor Lugnut into a science experiment." The mysterious stranger laughed, her voice low and sensual. She lightly tapped a helicopter blade as she approached them. "Didn't learn much from the experience, did you?"

Red dots appeared along her body as the multiple talos pointed their weapons at her, ready to fire at a moment's notice. Despite the obvious threats, she didn't look concerned at all.

"Enough to know where the soft spots are, Decepticon." Aquarius said, summoning water around her. The femme snorted and rolled her eyes.

"Please, I'm not affiliated with those Fulcrum fueled band of bastards. I'm a part of something grander in scale." She looked at the talos and sighed. "Put those guns away. If I wanted you dead, you'd all be bloody smears on the floor. I am merely here to provide my assistance."

Aries stared up at her for a moment before motioning his troops to lower their weapons. Aquarius glared at him.

"What the hell are you doing?" She hissed.

"Let's hear what she has to say. This may be the opportunity we've been waiting for." Aries said and looked back at the femme. "Speak, stranger."

The femme nodded and casually walked up to the robot. "You see, humans, a T-cog is not technology, but biology. It's evolved to work only with cybertronian biology, so stuffing it inside a drone won't get it to work." She said. Seeing she had the generals' attention, she continued. "And you'll also need energon for it to work if it was possible. It's the fuel, ammunition and very lifeblood of our race."

She raised an arm and sliced into her forearm with a sharp fingertip. Blue liquid welled up from the cut and dripped to the floor.

"Fascinating." Aquarius whispered.

"We appreciate your advice, but we still do not know why you're here, talking to us." Aries said. "I imagine that you just walk up to aliens and offer your assistance on a whim."

"Nothing of the sort. It's just that our goals mesh." She said. "My comrades off world have taken notice of your noble crusade and wish to aid your organization in realizing its goals. If you want further proof, then feel free to talk to your leader, Ophiuchus."

Aries and Aquarius traded surprised glances with each other. Few outside the organization knew of their leader's name. This femme knew more than she was letting on, things that could get her killed. It raised some warning flags, but this might be their chance to gain an upper hand against the Autobots and Decepticons.

"Very well, we'll work with you." Aries said.

"Excellent, we can share resources to make both our jobs easier." The femme said in a chipper tone. "You won't regret this."

"Also, could you give us your name?" Aquarius requested. "We can't simply call you alien, can we?"

"No, that'd be incredibly rude." She laughed, red eyes flashing like two rubies. "I am Thornment, proud member of the Order."

XXXXXX

After a few days of searching, the Autobots were no closer to finding any signs of OZ activity than they were when they started. It was harder to find OZ than Decepticons because they didn't know what to look for. OZ has resources all over the world, hiding in plain sight, and the Zodiac weren't so confident that they'd just walk out into the open. And with each passing day, Bumblebee's mood got worse to the point that even his armor looked duller in color. He was getting more impatient each day and it was driving Ratchet up the wall.

"Hey, Ratchet! Did you-"

"No, Bumblebee. There hasn't been any update since you asked me an hour ago. And the hour before that as well." Ratchet grumbled. "I will let you know if something turns up."

Bumblebee sighed. "Okay."

Thirty minutes later, Bumblebee was hovering over his shoulder again.

"Did you find anything now?" He asked again.

Ratchet spun around to give the scout a piece of his mind. "I swear to all that is holy-"

"Bee, you wanna play a game with us?" Sonar called out form the hallway.

"Sure!" Bumblebee followed the Minicon out of the storage room, leaving Ratchet to his blissful silence, and narrowly avoided getting knocked out by a wrench to the head.

He followed Sonar to the west wing where the kids were going against the Air Defense team in a two player video game. Desperately in need of a distraction, Bumblebee sat down next to the kids to see what game they were playing. To his utter dismay, he saw that they were playing a racing game.

"Oh man." Bumblebee groaned. Annie saw him sitting there and quickly shut the game off, interrupting Darren and Jetstorm's race.

"Oh come on!" Jetstorm complained.

"Shut it!" Annie hissed and pushed him off the couch. "Hey, Bee, how about we watch some TV? That should make you feel better."

"Sure, I need a distraction." Bumblebee sighed.

She changed the channel to cable, and to her horror, she just happened to switch it to a program showing a Nascar race going on. As if to add insult to injury, the commercial shown right after was an advertisement of a shiny new sports car speeding down a highway with its engine roaring. The twins both winced in unison.

"Bad call, sis." Darren muttered. Gina shook her head at the display and patted Bumblebee's large foot.

"Bee, look at me." She said, gaining his attention. "It's okay if you can't transform. Your alt mode doesn't define who you are. It's your skills as a scout and soldier that matter on the team. You're fully capable of bringing the hurt without your wheels."

Bumblebee smiled and nodded (though his smile didn't reach his eyes). "Yeah…thanks, Gina. I'm going to check up on the guys downstairs."

"Bee…" Gina sighed as she watched him leave, but stayed behind.

Bumblebee took the lift down to the lower deck and toward the shuttle bay where Prowl was manning the ground bridge waiting for the recon team to return. The tactician offered him a short nod before returning to his work. Typical Prowl behavior, but it was to be expected. Bumblebee didn't want everyone acting like he lost his voice box or something.

The landing hatch opened up and two cars sped out of the forest, one pink and one green. Arcee and Moonracer completed their race around the mounting and were having the time of their lives as they returned to the ship.

"What a rush!" Arcee breathed, smiling.

"That was great, big sis!" Moonracer giggled. "You broke 120 easy…"

They quieted down when they saw a fuming Bumblebee standing there glaring at them and the sisters winced. "Oh…"

"That's it! I can't take anymore!" Bumblebee yelled and marched down the landing hatch.

"Where are you going?" Prowl asked.

"Out for a walk, what else?" Bumblebee grumbled as he made his way outside, but Prowl got in his way.

"You can't just go for a walk! We are robots in disguise and without the ability to transform, you'll risk being seen, even out here." Prowl told him and grabbed his arm. "You'll just have to remain in the Ark until-"

"Until what?!" Bumblebee threw Prowl's hand off and glared at him. "Until you can fix me?"

Bumblebee marched away back inside the ship, leaving Prowl and the two sisters alone. Prowl watched him go and sighed.

"Yes, Bumblebee. Until we can fix you." He muttered.

XXXXXX

Gina, still hung up over Bumblebee's little breakdown earlier, didn't know what else to do other than seek help from someone else in how to help her friend. She went to the medibay, where Ratchet was at his desk reading a datapad that had a digitized version of a medical book on human maladies. Ratchet noticed her and beckoned her forward.

"Gina, is something wrong?" He asked.

"No…yes. It's Bumblebee. Seeing him act like this, it's…unsettling, and I'm afraid of what he might do to get his T-cog back." Gina sighed. Ratchet nodded and lifted her onto the desk so they could talk better. "Ratchet, have you ever dealt with patients that've lost their T-cogs?"

Ratchet's gaze turned dark and he looked at his hands. After a minute, he answered her question. "Though rare, you will find people who have willingly sacrificed their T-cogs for various purposes. Before the war, there was an activist group called the Militant Monoform Movement, Triple M; they rejected the existence of Adaptus, one of our chief gods, by removing their T-cogs and having only one base form."

"That's extreme." Gina said.

"Those were extreme times." He replied. "A T-cog is an important part of cybertronian physiology. It allows us to transform, something that's within our very nature and biology. To lose that would be to lose a part of one's self, some would say. If properly remove, it won't do any damage physically, but there are social consequences, such as isolation and discrimination. Back in the day, it was called Shapism."

Gina wondered what kind of world Cybertron was before the war after hearing so many not-so-good things about how things were run in those days. She could hardly imagine such a life, being a cybertronian who couldn't transform in a society where such an ability was a part of everyday life. The discrimination, the taunts, the jeers, the general stigma that spawns from such deformities.

"Will Bumblebee be alright?" Gina asked.

"He'll be fine. OZ was surprisingly gentle when they removed his T-cog. If they had torn it out, he would've suffered some physiological effects caused by the removal of his organ. It's due to a medical theory called Rossum's Trinity. Psychologically, he's still stable, though that could change the longer this search goes on." Ratchet explained. "I once treated a patient like Bumblebee, a Seeker who suffered from a minor case of Gold Plastic Syndrome that spread from her fuel pump to her T-cog. It crippled her ability to transform and left her unable to get a transplant, grounding her for life. When I told her the bad news, she had a violent breakdown and started clawing and tearing at her wings and face, nearly ripping them off. She killed herself a day later."

Gina put a hand to her mouth. "Gaia…"

"While I like to think that Bumblebee knows better than to commit suicide, his morale isn't getting any better the longer this situation is dragged out. He just got out of an operation and now he's taken off duty again not too long after." Ratchet sighed. "If we don't hit a breakthrough soon, I fear that Bumblebee might do something drastic to get his T-cog back…with fatal consequences."

XXXXXX

When Optimus returned to the Ark with Ironhide, he found Ratchet waiting for him in the shuttle bay. Ironhide knew when he wasn't needed and waved the two off as they walked down the hall past Bumblebee's quarters, where the scout had been holed up in his room for the past few hours. He hadn't spoken to anyone, not even Jolt.

"Bumblebee's right to have little faith. We have no leads as to OZ's location, and we still haven't gotten any reports from Skyfire." Ratchet said. "We can't act without a solid lead, and the chances of finding his T-cog are lowering the more we wait."

"I know." Optimus nodded. "OZ has been at this game longer than we have and they know how to hide in plain sight."

"Yes, and playing their game will only waste time." Ratchet agreed. "Which is why I propose another solution."

"A transplant," Optimus sighed. "But that would require a donor. And we can't afford to have any more Autobots off the field, right now."

Ratchet contemplated his next words before he spoke them. "You need look no further than the one standing before you."

Optimus looked at Ratchet with an unreadable expression. The medic was dead serious about his decision in a way only a mech of his profession could be.

"Ratchet, your offer is generous, but you would only be trading one Autobot's handicap for another." Optimus said.

"Optimus, I am a doctor, not a warrior. I spend most of my days here, with my tools and my hands." He held up his hands, old and word with age, but still capable of saving lives. "Hands trained to save lives, not take them. My alt mode is wasted here. So long as I have my tools, I'm fine here. But we can't afford to lose even one warrior on the field."

"You make a compelling argument, my friend." Prime stated and placed a hand on Ratchet's shoulder. "But we will find Bumblebee's T-cog."

"Optimus, OZ are savages! You've seen what they've done to Lugnut. What they tried to do to Arcee, Darren and Annie. Primus knows how much damage they've done to Bumblebee's T-cog…or if I can repair it."

"Ratchet…" Optimus paused. Though he tried hard to be practical and emotionally detached from his job, Ratchet couldn't help but take it personally if he couldn't help someone in his care.

"As a medic, it's my job to go above and beyond for my patients…and my friends." Ratchet said strongly. "Please, let me do this."

Optimus was silent for a moment before he gave a resigned sigh and nodded his consent to Ratchet's plan. It was no substitute for Bumblebee's real T-cog, but at least it will give the scout a crunch until they could get his real organ back. He just hoped they weren't too late.

XXXXXX

A little while later, Ratchet assembled some Autobot personnel into the medibay after prepping his operation. As Longarm set up the medical equipment with Bumblebee, Ratchet looked at his chosen line-up of Bots who could help at this time-Arcee, Moonracer, and Bulkhead. The children were there for moral support.

"As I will be one of the patients involved, one of you must act as my proxy to perform the surgery." Ratchet said to them, looking like an Army sergeant. "Now, I am well aware of your lack of medical knowledge, so Longarm will be guiding you through the operation."

He went down the line to inspect the candidates, starting with Bulkhead. Ratchet didn't need to ponder having him for the job. "Nope. Better at breaking things."

Bulkhead breathed a sig. He was the last person who wanted to get involved with handling someone's innards. Ratchet moved onto Moonracer, who was practically bouncing in place waiting to be picked.

"I'm not even going to entertain the idea." Ratchet said.

Moonracer pouted as he moved onto Arcee, who was desperately praying that he didn't choose her. But when Ratchet didn't give her any immediate criticism, she knew she was fragged.

"Arcee…"

"Optimus has steadier hands." She quickly said.

"Steady, and much too large to be rooting around under my hood." Ratchet said.

Arcee groaned as Ratchet went to prepare the medical tools. "Primus help me."

"Come on, Cee. You're as brave as they come." Darren said.

"On a battlefield," Arcee said. "Not an operating theatre."

"So long as you're using the knife, Arcee, not under it." He said. She gave him a little smile.

Bumblebee and Ratchet got onto the medical slabs as Arcee set everything up under Longarm's direction. She attached some cables to the backs of their heads to induce artificial stasis.

"Inducing stasis." Announced Longarm. Bumblebee turned to Ratchet.

"Ratchet, thanks a lot for doing this." He said. "I mean it."

"Don't thank…me until this is…" Ratchet's voice droned out as he fell into stasis.

Once Ratchet was fully put under, Longarm moved to work on Bumblebee, but the intercom switched on and Sparkplug's face appeared on the monitor. "Guys, can you hear me?"

"We're here, Sparkplug. What's the problem?" Arcee asked.

"Teletran-1 just picked up a Minicon signal in Anea. Prime wants some Autobots in the shuttle bay on the double."

"On my way." Arcee dropped her tools, mentally thanking the gods, and ran out of the room. "Moon, Bulkhead, you're with me. Kids, don't touch anything!"

"Whoa, whoa, what about me?" Bumblebee sat up. "What should I do?"

"We'll continue operation when we get back, but right now, wait for Ratchet to wake up and tell him what happened." She told him and was gone before he could get a word in.

Bumblebee sighed and looked at the children. With nothing to do, surely they were sympathetic enough to let him get some fresh air. "You guys wouldn't mind-"

"No." They shot him down without pause. There went that idea.

"Scrap." He sighed.

XXXXXX

A three man team of Codarls walked through the deep canyon in the state of Kokomo, following a signal with a scanner that was programmed into their mecha's OS. Seeing the indicator hit the red zone, the team leader moved forward with his two subordinates and with three mining type Orion talos rolling behind them. At the rear was Thornment and Aquarius, who walked at a more leisurely pace.

"I admit, I was skeptical about your proposal, but you seem trustworthy." Aquarius said. "I'm certainly excited to see what treasures we can uncover with your help."

"Yes, energon has a way of uniting even organics if used correctly." Thornment said. "With the right application, you'll be able to create weapons that would make even Megatron run to the hills."

"That would be a sight. I'm sure even Aries will be excited at the notion." She said and looked up at the femme. "But I'm curious, why are you helping us? The Autobots and Decepticons move heaven and earth to make sure that we don't have access to their technology, and here you are, just giving us all kinds of secrets to benefit from. Are you not concerned with what happens if our experiment fails? What if we lose that T-cog and decide that yours might be perfect compensation for our troubles?"

Thornment wasn't too concerned about the implications of that state, just waving Aquarius off with a thin, spindly hand. "Please, general. Do you think I'd approach you for an alliance without having my own set of contingency plans? I'm powerful, but I didn't get to where I am today by being reckless. I've heard of your little misadventures with Flamewar, and I'm not gung-ho fool like Megatron."

"So long as we have an understanding." Aquarius sniffed. It was foolish of her to egg the femme on, but Aquarius wanted to see how much she could push before making her snap. Apparently a lot, since Thornment wasn't perturbed at all at being subtly threatened. Probably because she had a plan in case something did go wrong. "You said that you came here on behalf of your comrades…what comrades are those."

"The type who seek salvation in the stars. Like you, we have assembled to salvage our race and achieve a new form of evolution that will take us to great heights. A goal now possible thanks to the assistance of beings you call gods. The Order's main task is to evolve the cybertronian race into an enlightened society, but we can't do that with those pompous fools playing their war games and killing thousands of our people every day." Thornment looked down at her human companion. "My leader, Ember, has told me of you. The thirteen general born from the womb of Her Grace to usher in a new era for mankind, no different from us, in fact. As people who were also touched by the gods, it's on her behalf that I come to you to provide my assistance, to show that your goals can be achieved."

As cryptic as that explanation was, Aquarius believed Thornment's statement. The White Queen, the supreme commander of OZ, had indeed confirmed having made contact with like-minded beings off world, seeking a true path to evolution for their kind as well. It was by the will of the Shapings that man and machine unite to save two worlds and evolve into species no longer limited by the chains of mortality. OZ and the Order were being aided by divine benefactors who sponsored their crusade and harnessed the power behind Creation. Aquarius knew they were far from their endgame, but with some help from the stars, OZ's chances of success just went up exponentially.

The strike team led the way deeper into the canyon, following the signal to a large cluster of crystals growing from the ground in a small cave at the base of the cliff. A snake-like smile spread across Aquarius' features.

"Energon," She whispered, looking upon the mineral as if it was pure gold. "Ready to be harvested."

"And processed," Thornment said, smiling. "To give us the edge."

XXXXXX

"What great timing." Annie sighed. "You think Bee will actually get this transplat or is this going to be a running gag."

"I certainly hope not. Bumblebee's morale is already at an all-time low." Sureshock said. "For our race, not being able to transform permanently is akin to a death sentence."

"Right after we just got him back from Death's door too, damn life sucks." Grindor said.

"That's why it's called life." Darren said.

"Guys, could you not be so depressing? We need to be strong for Bee, because he needs all the support he can get." Gina said, giving them all stern glares. "And he's not going to feel any better if we treat him like he's got only two days to live. Pity is the last thing he needs."

"Yeah, but at this point the only thing that'll get him out of that funk is finding those OZ bastards," Annie said, balancing her chair on the back of its legs. "And the chances of finding them is about a thousand to on-"

"YO!" Skyfire's face appeared on the monitor with a loud yell.

"Ah!" Annie screamed and her chair fell back, sending her to the floor. "What the fuck!"

"Skyfire, what's up?" Sparkplug asked.

"I just got wind of an energon signal from orbit and tracked it to this warehouse in Nebrask." Skyfire said. "And there's a lot of talos parked outside."

"Talos? Are they green and black?" High Wire asked.

"Yup."

The kids looked at each other with wide eyes, knowing what this meant. "Skyfire, does this mean you actually found…"

"OZ, and a lot of them. The place is seriously guarded-too guarded for a small installation like this." Skyfire said.

"WHAT?!"

The group turned to see Bumblebee marching towards them. "What are we waiting for? Let's go!"

"Hold your horses, Bee," Sparkplug said. "Optimus specifically ordered you to remain here for the time being. We should call the others back."

"Optimus is busy fighting a dolem in Anea and Arcee's team is retrieving a stasis panel." Darren said. "Everyone's too busy right now."

"Except us." Annie pointed out. Bumblebee's expression brightened.

"Does that mean…?"

"Against our better judgment, we'll go on ahead and help you get your T-cog back." Gina said, smiling up at him. "Our Talos are more than enough to fight OZ's talos, and we have Skyfire on our side."

"Kids this is the most reckless thing that you're planning!" Sparkplug said. "I can't let you all go alone into the lion's den like this."

"I'm sorry, Sparkplug, but we're going. This is our only chance of catching OZ off guard and getting Bee's T-cog back in one piece." Darren said. "We can't wait any longer."

Sparkplug rubbed the bridge of his nose in annoyance. Why did he even bother trying? "Fine, but be careful. If things get too dangerous-"

"You're pulling us back, got it." Annie said, already making her way to the armory. "Let's go people!"

As the kids went to get their mecha, Bumblebee took a deep breath and prepared himself. He was going to get those bastards back for attacking him, and he wasn't going to stop until he got his T-cog back.

XXXXXX

"What do you mean the T-cog is useless?"

'And here we go.' Aquarius thought as she stood between Thornment and Aries at their field base. After a successful energon hunt, the soldiers were transporting large crates of raw energon to their secret airship landing site for processing. During the transition, Thornment dropped the bombshell of the futility of their efforts.

"You heard me. Trying to build a Terran machine that uses a cybertronian T-cog won't work." Thornment said. "It will only operate with cybertronian biology, and considering how long it took for you to capture Lugnut and Arcee, I doubt you can capture enough Cybertronians for your rather…significant demands."

"We risked a lot trapping an Autobot to get this thing and now you're telling me that it's useless?" Aries was on the verge of losing his composure.

"I never said that your efforts were for naught." Thornment said. "You have a fully intact T-cog at your disposal, as well as the resources of a small country. If you plan on mass producing some robot army, then you need to mass produce your very own T-cog."

"…As in build one of our own?" Aquarius deduced.

Thornment nodded. "Exactly. Just run some diagnostic scans on the T-cog and I'll guide you through the construction process. I do recall you humans being rather skilled at reverse-engineering technology."

Aries and Aquarius shared a grin at that. Finally, they were getting somewhere!

Their triumph was cut short, however, when they heard a loud boom go off outside. The generals were immediately on alert when they started getting reports from the guards outside.

"Sir, we're under attack! Three unknown talos and two Autobots are storming the base!" The squad leader exclaimed. "They're mowing us down!"

"Don't let them get past you, you fools! Kill them all!" Aquarius yelled.

The large doors were suddenly blasted apart, and the humans near it were barely able to get out of the way of the metal pieces flying off. Stepping into the warehouse was Bumblebee, who looked furious.

"The scout." Aries grinned.

"Welcome to the party, little one!" Thornment greeted, eyes shining with mirth. "But you'll have to show your invitation first."

Bumblebee hardly acknowledge the unknown cybertronian as he pointed his stingers at the generals. "Here's my invitation!"

He fired two electrostatic blasts at the Zodiac. The generals jumped apart to dodge the blasts and the soldiers open fire on Bumblebee, though the Autobot fought back just as hard. He tore apart the catwalk on the second level and slammed it into the floor, forcing the soldiers to back off. Aquarius summoned her water, but Bumblebee jumped back and threw a grenade at her.

"Shit!" Aquarius formed an ice shield around her as the grenade exploded, shattering her icy barrier and sending her crashing into a wall. She pushed herself up and popped her dislocated shoulder back in. "I thought you said the yellow one was the weakest!"

"I did." Aries said dryly.

He ran forward and fired a heat beam from his eye, hitting Bumblebee in the shoulder. Bumblebee stumbled back but collapsed into his vehicle mode in one smooth motion, speeding straight toward Aries. He slammed into the general at full speed and sent the man tumbling over his hood and crashing to the ground. Unsurprisingly, the general survived, but he was severely bruised and had many cracked bones from the hit and run alone.

"Where is my T-cog!" Bumblebee roared as he switched back to bipedal mode. His answer came in the form of a glowing red whip covered in thorns that slammed into his chest and knocked him into the computer terminal. The red hot thorns dug into his armor and painfully tore through his metal skin.

The whips came from Thornment's arms, slithering back into her forearms as she walked toward the scout. "Attacking humans with little to no restraint? How savage of you." Thornment laughed. "I thought Autobots enjoyed playing fair."

"Only when they're not pissed off." Bumblebee growled. "Who the hell are you?"

"I am Thornment. Proud member of the Order and your executioner!"

Thornment lunged at Bumblebee, throwing her whips at his face. Bumblebee ducked under them and leapt at her, his left arm splitting apart to unsheathe a vibro-blade. He slashed at her chest, but took a kick to the chest. Thornment punched him in the face and tried to wrap her whips around his neck, but he dodged her and landed a punch of his own.

Aries groaned and pushed himself to his feet, wincing at the aches in his bones and spat out a wad of blood before scowling at the Autobot. "All units…we're making a tactical retreat."

"What?!" Aquarius screamed, still feeling pain in her shoulder.

"Our location and prototype have been compromised. We're not equipped to fight three talos and two angry Autobots." He said. "Take whatever data we can and fall back to another facility."

Aquarius growled, but agreed with his reasons. She and Aries got up and ran for the rear exit at the back of the warehouse, making it through the door just as Thornment crashed into the doorway.

Bumblebee ran over to the robot in the hangar and tore its chest panels open. He saw his T-cog in its lower abdomen and quickly pulled it out of the robot's torso.

"I got it!" He said, smiling.

At that moment, the kids, having already finished with the talos outside, ran into the warehouse. But before anyone could reach Bumblebee, two heat rods hit Bumblebee in the chest and threw him to the ground. He lost his hold on his T-cog and it flew right into the grasp of Thornment.

"I don't think this belongs to you anymore." She laughed.

XXXXXX

Ratchet was rarely the one put under induced stasis lock, and though he was no stranger to it, it still felt a bit strange.

'Ratchet.'

Who was calling his name?

'Ratchet…'

It took Ratchet a moment to completely wake up. Images started to slowly take shape as his optics came back online and when he fully regained consciousness, he found himself back in the Ark's medibay. Longarm was standing next to his medical slab.

"How are you feeling, Ratchet?" Longarm asked.

"Fine…more than fine, actually." Ratchet said as he sat up and rolled his shoulders. Stasis lock was not kind to old mechs like him. "I feel no different than I did before. Maybe I should have Arcee fill in for me again in the future." He looked over to the adjacent slab and noticed a certain scout was missing. "Where's Bumblebee?"

Longarm looked away nervously. "He's…out."

"Out? Bumblebee's recovering from surgery, he shouldn't even be moving!" Ratchet exclaimed.

Longarm looked very uncomfortable now. "Yeah, about that…"

XXXXXX

Bumblebee glared at Thornment as she held his T-cog hostage. The children had their weapons pointed at her as well, but didn't fire. They didn't want to accidentally hit the organ she was holding.

"Put the T-cog down!" Darren commanded.

"Or you'll do what? Shoot me?" Thornment said, a grin in her voice. "You're not in any position to make demands of me."

Another explosion came from outside-Skyfire had probably ran into the Zodiac generals.

"Why are you helping them?" Bumblebee asked. "Don't you know what those people are capable of?"

"I'm well aware of OZ's actions and it's the reason I'm working with them." Thornment said. "I'm no Decepticon, if that's what you're thinking. The goal I share with my comrades in the stars are greater than this petty squabble you call a war. These generals are kindred spirits, mortals touched by gods like myself."

"You're insane." Annie growled.

"Insanity and ingenuity go hand in hand. If you want to excel in something, then you must lose something in return." She replied and squeezed the T-cog in her hand. "If you fools know what's good for you, you'd back off. Or you'll be walking home for the rest of your life!"

"Here's another option!" Darren yelled.

He telekinetically lifted and threw a steel beam into her back, knocking her over. The T-cog was thrown from her grasp and Bumblebee immediately jumped to catch it. Time seemed to slow down for Bumblebee. He was almost there, and his fingertips grazed the rigid surface of his T-cog. He almost had it…

BANG!

The children watched in horror as an energy bolt hit his T-cog and it crashed to the ground in a smoky, blackened heap. Thornment's palm was smoking from her recent attack and she grinned.

"First rule of warfare: never let the enemy have the spoils."

Thornment cackled and transformed into her alt mode, an odd looking slender aircraft similar to a cybertronian drone flyer. Powering up her jet engines, she flew past the children and outside, slamming into Skyfire as she disappeared into the forest.

No one chased after her. They were more concerned with Bumblebee, who say on his knees cradling his smoking T-cog. He looked absolutely devastated.

"No…" He whispered.

"Bee..." Gina cursed. She jumped when her comm switched on and Ratchet's angry voice rang in her ear.

"Gina! Damn it, Gina answer me. What the hell are you and Bumblebee-"

"Ratchet, we've got Bumblebee's T-cog but…we need some help here. It's not looking very good." She said.

XXXXXX

A few tense hours later, Bumblebee was back in the medibay recovering from the operation to reinstall his T-cog while Ratchet ran some final diagnostic scans over his patient to make sure everything went alright. His T-cog had suffered some serious damage from Thornment's cheap shot and Ratchet was afraid that he'd be able to repair it. The medic was still winning to donate his cog to Bumblebee, but the young scout refused, saying that he could not and would not accept the offer. After finishing his scans, he switched it off and turned to the rest of the team.

"I…did what I could." Ratchet said.

Optimus walked up and put a consoling hand on Ratchet's shoulder. "Bumblebee could not have been in better hands."

When the stasis finally wore off, Bumblebee groaned and sat up. "Ugh, I thought I wouldn't have to go through that again." He said groggily, lightly rubbing the spot where Ratchet had inserted his T-cog.

"Easy, Bumblebee." Ratchet cautioned. "Recovery takes time, and you're still sore."

Bumblebee slowly stood up and stretched his limbs before immediately focusing on transforming. He willed his T-cog to spin, but all he heard was a clicking noise before nothing happened. He shot Ratchet a worried glance.

"The damage was…severe. I did the best I could, but…" Ratchet trailed off, unable to look Bumblebee in the eye.

But Bumblebee didn't give up, he continued pushing and pushing, hoping that he'd be able to transform again. As if in answers to his prayers, Bumblebee felt his T-cog spin and then felt the familiar experience of his body folding and rearranging into his vehicle mode.

"It works!" He cried out.

The whole room erupted into cheers of joy and relief from everyone present. Bumblebee transformed back into his robot mode and ran over to Ratchet to hug him.

"Ratchet, I got my wheels back!"

"I can see that!" Ratchet laughed.

"Unbelievable," Prowl muttered. "I thought Bumblebee's T-cog was scrap. The damage done to it was extreme and the chances of it being repaired were almost in the single digits."

"Never underestimate Ratchet's expertise, Prowl. As much as skill factors into saving lives for a living, faith must also be present for miracles to be made." Optimus said. "And Ratchet has faith in himself, as much as his abilities."

No matter the reason, everyone was just glad to have their scout back, and that Bumblebee was whole again.

XXXXXX

Thornment led Aries and Aquarius through a forest at an undisclosed location. Despite having been chased off earlier, the femme looked rather calm.

"If you want our alliance to continue, Thornment, then I suggest that you find a way to replace our missing T-cog," Aries demanded, stilling sporting the wounds he gained from Bumblebee's hit and run on him. Had he not have a superhuman physiology, he would've been in the hospital for a long time. "Or we'll help yourselves to yours!"

"Of course. Because your track record in fighting Cybertronians is spotless. That performance you gave with the scout was riveting." Thornment said, rolling her eyes. She tilted her head to dodge the beam fired at her head. "Relax, Aries, I have another gift that'll solve your problems."

"Oh really?" Aquarius sneered.

Thornment led the pair to a cave deep in the forest, where they came upon an unexpected discovery-Insecticons. Two dozen Insecticon soldiers were moving in and out of the cave like worker bees. They all had black and purple armor, but one of them, a golden brown alpha, was different than the rest. He looked up and saw Thornment and her little companions.

"Thornment, what is this?" The Insecticon known as Venom growled.

A wicked gleam appeared in Thornment's eyes. "Insecticons, I am in need of your assistance. These humans require a valuable item that can fully cement our alliance."

"And what would that be?" Venom asked, his wings fluttering in agitation.

"Your bodies."