Epilogue

Bulkhead, Arcee, and Bumblebee ran through the corridors of the Decepticon warship, checking each room for their lost friend, and blasting any Vehicons they saw.

"Where in Primus could he be?" Bulkhead asked worriedly as he saw nothing in the next room. "Just keep looking!" Arcee shouted as she continued forward, blasters aimed at the ready.

Suddenly, a device held in Bumblebee's servo began to beep rapidly, pointing them in a direction.

"His tracking device came back on! He's this way!" Bumblebee exclaimed, pointing down the hall.

A few minutes later they came upon a ruined, broken door, barely covering the doorway it was attached to, pieces of it strewn in random places. Bumblebee's device pointed to the room, and Arcee instantly ran into it, blasters out.

"Kickback, we... Oh no" Bumblee stuttered as he looked in for himself, seeing the dreadful sight he feared. Lying in the middle of the floor, in a large, sticky puddle of dark green energon, was a pale, green, torn up body, laying in two distinct halves, clearly belonging to Kickback.

"We were... Too late..." Arcee groaned, turning around, and kicking a nearby desk in rage as Bumblebee, curious, leaned in for a closer look.

Bulkhead, standing just outside of the room, lowered his head in sorrow and turned away, as he started to walk down the hall.

"Hey... Arcee, I think you should come see this" Bumblebee said as he inspected the body. "What is it? What did you find?" She asked. "Look at the inside of his body" He motioned. "Last I checked, both Insecticons, and normal bots had inside parts, and didn't look hollowed-out. He doesn't even have a single wire in there!"

"You're right..." Arcee agreed as she got a good look at one of the empty halves. "It's like... An empty shell."

"Remember when Ratchet and Knock Out said that he was going to mutate again?" Bumblebee asked. "I think that might have been what happened here."

"Uh... Guys?" Bulkhead shouted from the hall. "What is it?" Arcee asked as she ran out to him. "More Cons?"

"I'm... Not sure you could say that, exactly..." Bulkhead replied, scratching his head. In front of him lied the large, purple-and-green mass of what he and Arcee soon recognized as Lugnut. He was on his back, completely motionless, save for the occasional twitch, and his singular optic was wide open, staring blankly at the ceiling.

"Is he... Deactivated?" Arcee began. "No, I don't think so" Bulkhead said as Bumblebee joined up with them. "Who did this?" Bulkhead asked, lifting up, and dropping Lugnut's paralyzed arm.

"Your guess is as good as mine, but whoever did, probably used whatever it took to to make that" Arcee said, pointing to a small, deep hole in his chest.

"Wow, that's small" Bulkhead said, noting its size. "It looks like it was made by something needle-sharp, like a spear, or a syringe, or a... A..."

"...Or a stinger" Bumblebee finished. "Guys, I think Kickback did this" he said again.

"Wait, you think Kickback did this? Really?" Bulkhead asked. "Who else could've done it" Bumblebee countered. "He might have mutated into something that could do it."

"Should we try to pursue him?" Bulkhead asked. "No... It would be too dangerous" Arcee said, looking down the hall. "There will no doubt be more Decepticons the further we continue in, and considering Kickback is out and running around, he could be anywhere on this ship right now. It would take pure luck to find him on this giant flying maze."

"Do you think he'll be okay?" Bumblebee asked, worriedly. "I think he will" Arcee replied. "If he took down Lugnut here, he can probably defend himself enough to get off the ship in one piece."

"I'll get ahold of Ratchet" Bumblebee said as he pressed his servo to his intercom.

A large, green, wasp-like robot flew threw the air, departing the Decepticon ship in a clumsy haste. It continued to fly through the blue sky, as if it didn't know where it was going.

"Why Wazpinator not remember anything?" It asked itself. "All Wazpinator remember iz blue fembot... Wazpinator know there were others! Why Wazpinator not remember!"

He began to scratch and knock at his head with his two main arms in frustrated fashion, until a voice came on in his head.

"Waspinator, can you hear me?" It asked him. "Wha-? Who... Who talk to Wazpinator?" he asked, looking around wildly. "Calm yourself, brother. I am talking to you from inside your head" the voice said.

"I am Sharpshot. Do you remember me?" the voice asked again. "N-no, Wazpinator think name sound familiar, but Wazpinator not know you" Waspinator replied.

"I am a brother of yours... A friend" Sharpshot continued. "One you have not met in... A long time."

"Where are you?" Waspinator asked, eagerly. "I'll tell you" Sharpshot replied. "I'm inside of a cave, a few hundred miles from here..."

"Your condition is stable, and it looks like you'll pull through" Ratchet told Mirage as he lowered his sensor, in the confinement of the lab. "The damage isn't too bad, but I do recommend a serious look at repainting if you you want your finish to survive" Knock Out chuckled as he looked through his tools nearby.

"Heh... Th-thanks, you guys" Mirage answered back, wearily, looking at the two doctors. "That ambush... The Decepticons came out of nowhere... They killed the crew, took me hostage... I tried to defend myself..."

"Listen, it's okay, you're safe now" Ratchet said calmly. "It's not your fault."

Knock Out reached down on a nearby table and looked at the two swords that rested on it. "What are these, exactly?" He asked as he picked one up and examined its blade. "They came off of you when you arrived here. They look master-crafted... Finer than any other swords I've seen... Even Wheeljack's."

Wheeljack snapped his gaze across the room and glared at Knock Out. "Hmph" He huffed. "Just cause they look pretty, doesn't mean that makes them more efficient."

Mirage looked at Wheeljack, blue optics partially closed, in a sly way. "Those "blades" were hand-crafted by Bludgeon... My teacher, and master" he said, smiling.

Ratchet and Wheeljack blinked. "Wait..." Wheeljack began. "Do you mean THE Bludgeon? One of the greatest sword masters and sword makers of Cybertron?"

"The creator and master of the art of Metallikato?" Ratchet gasped "THAT Bludgeon?" "The one and only" Mirage answered, smiling.

"Eh... Who's Bludgeon?" Knock Out asked, placing the sword back down gently, and rubbing his head. "I'll tell you all about him!" Wheeljack replied, jovially, as he placed his servo on his shoulder.

"Have you ever heard of the martial arts of Circuit-Su, Tekkaido, or Crystalocution?" He asked as they went out the door. "Metallikato is like them, but centered around blades, and extremely potent to your enemies. It was Master Bludgeon's claim to fame when he created the art in..."

The door closed behind them as Wheeljack gave his history lesson to Knock Out. Ratchet chuckled lightly and Mirage kept smiling, shaking his his head as it happened. "Are those two always like that?" Mirage asked, curiously.

"Not really, no" Ratchet replied, looking through his items as his laughter died down. "Wheeljack normally acts like that around Bulkhead, but I guess he can't resist an opportunity to tell a history lesson about something he likes."

"What are you looking for?" Mirage asked again. "My vibro-drill. I haven't used it in quite a few months, but I know it couldn't have gone far" he said, looking through cupboards. "Maybe it's near the groundbridge... I'll be right back" he said as he headed to the door.

"Hey... Ratchet, can I ask you something before you go?" Mirage asked, making Ratchet stop. "What is it?" Ratchet said in return, turning to Mirage.

"Who was that small green bot that traded himself for me? Was he a Decepticon?" Mirage asked. "He was, once. But he switched sides, and was a good friend, if not... If not a brave one at that" Ratchet replied, lowering his head.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a drill to find" he said again, straightening himself out, and heading out the door, leaving Mirage alone.

After sitting quietly for a few seconds, Mirage looked around the silent room for any potential listeners, and lifted his servo up and pressed down on the intercom on the side of his head.

"Phase-Out to Starscream, come in Starscream" he whispered into it. "Phase-Out? Is that you?" The static-filled voice of Starscream answered. "Yes, it's me" Mirage replied. "Are you in their base?" Starscream asked again. "I am" Mirage said. "And the Autobots don't suspect a thing."

"Ah... Best news I've heard today" Starscream hissed on his end. "For our final debriefing, remember this: Spend a while attempting to earn their trust. Don't tell me where their base is yet, we have... Some soldiers who are a lot more zealous than we can control. They could give away our plans."

"Anything else, my lord?" Mirage asked again. "There are two things" Starscream said again. "First, you can't use this line again, the Autobots may track it, so try using Ratchet's computer to contact me."

"And the other thing?" Mirage asked once again. "The other thing... Learn about the Autobot's plans, and only then, report to me when no-one is looking. They won't see what traps we'll have waiting for them."

"Is that all?" Mirage asked again.

"Just remember to stick to the plan, and don't be afraid to execute anyone who you think has found out about you" Starscream said one last time.

"With pleasure" Mirage replied with a smirk for the final time before the communication ended.

Author's notes: And so ends the tale of Kickback, leaving quite a bit more questions than answers. Do not be disappointed, however, for another story to continue this saga is already in the making. Stay tuned, my friends, for story four!