Over the first month I really got close with most of the Autobots. I learned a lot about them all. For instance, never play hide-and-seek with Mirage and Hound. Mirage always turns invisible and Hound fakes you out with holograms. I learned that Jazz is a great break dancer and that he and Blaster love music, especially Owl City. I also learned that I shouldn't be surprised if I hear explosions. You get used to it if you have Wheeljack as your inventor.
I got close enough that Wheeljack thought I should be armed. "She can't go on being defenseless!" pleaded Wheeljack to Prime. "I'm not so sure that we should hand a 14 year old girl a gun." said Prime. "I agree. That could be bad if she left it behind somewhere or didn't have a place to carry it; she can't exactly be seen walking through the mall with an alien gun." "I take it you have an idea?" "Yup! We make her a choker, but it's not really a choker. It looks innocent, but when she pulls it off, it splits in half. One half is a null ray that can take away power from any machine. It could immobilize a Decepticon for 1 minute or turn off an alarm. It would be a great way to finally be able to use null ray technology in combat, as opposed to the old trip-wire booby trap. Because, in case you forgot, if we use a null ray the Decepticon will go down, but we will too! The other half is a regular blaster for kicking Decepticon skid-plate. As for the trigger, it's a button. All she'd have to do was flip up the cover. And once she's done, it clips back together." "I like the idea, but we'll have to see if it's actually possible, and get it approved by Hailey and her parents." "On it."
Of course I didn't know about this conversation until later. Wheeljack asked my parents and they gave their approval, but it would have to be completely safe, especially since it was going around my neck. When he came to ask me, I of course agreed, because, seriously, what kid wouldn't? So he took my neck measurements and brought out some scrap metal, and got to work. It took a lot of tries. How do I know? Well, let's just say there were lots of explosions that day.
He'd gotten permission that morning around 6:00am, and that night at 11:00pm he contacted me on my new com link chip saying he was coming to pick me up. I got dressed groggily and walked out to the garage. By that time I wasn't groggy anymore so I asked for an explanation on the way to the base. I didn't need to tell my parents anymore because they got accustomed to these midnight Autobot calls. I just left a note on my pillow. It simply read "I'm at Ark. Wheeljack came around midnight. Be back soon. -Hailey"
He wouldn't tell me but just said "It's a surprise." When we showed up he took me straight to his lab. Then he presented me with a shiny silver ring. I knew what it was immediately, so I took it from his fingers and turned it over in my hands. "I finished." he said proudly. "How does it work?" I asked politely. "See the gray button back here? That's how you unlock it, hit it and it will come apart in your hands. When you wear this put this in the back so it's hidden." "Ok." I said pushing the button. It did exactly as he said; it split into 2 perfect halves. "Ok. Now, see those 2 small cracks?" "Yeah." "Put your fingernail in that and pull up, that will open the cover to you trigger buttons." I did as he said and a little cover flipped up on a dainty hinge to reveal a thumb-sized button on each half. One was purple and one was orange. "The purple one is the null ray, and orange is your blaster." Wheeljack explained. "To put them back together, hit the button again and the 2 halves will automatically snap in place." "I want to try these out so bad!" I said gleefully. "Then hit this." he said picking up a lamp. "Use your null ray." He held it out way to his left and I shot, I missed and it hit a light on the roof. "You definitely need practice," said Wheeljack setting the lamp back down again. "You can practice with Cliffjumper; he's our best sharpshooter." He said while I snapped the covers shut and clicked the necklace in place.
For the next week, I practiced with Cliffjumper with my gun outside all day. Whenever a hiker came by he'd just transform. We got lots of weird looks but that's all. On the third day of the week, I finally hit the rock I was aiming for. It just went up-hill from there. By the end of the second week, I was just as good as any Autobot.