Ch. 10

Jack spent the next two weeks healing from his operation and preparing for his trip to Fort Benning in Georgia, while Arcee worked with Bulkhead and Bumblebee in the field searching for Energon deposits and handling the Decepticons whenever and wherever they appeared. It was the night before Jack left for training; Jack and Arcee were at the top of the base looking up at the stars as they spent the night together.

"Any chance you can point out Cybertron from here Cee?" Jack had been curious and eager to learn about Cybertron when he had time to speak to any of the Autobots, some of the more historic stories came from Optimus and Ratchet, while Bulkhead would tell Jack and Miko about his days as a member of the Autobot Wreckers squad.

Bumblebee told them the few stories he knew as he was the youngest member of Team Prime, Jack was actually shocked to learn that Bumblebee was born during the war for Cybertron. Then there was Arcee, she told stories of her exploits with her old partners and how at one time she had even infiltrated the Decepticon capital of Kaon. Arcee looked through the night sky trying to spot her old home and she soon spotted it and pointed upwards.

"See that star between Ursa Major and Minor? That's Cybertron." Jack spotted it quickly, it was not nearly as bright as the other stars in the galaxy, but this made sense to Jack, he remembered how Optimus had told him how the war had left Cybertron a dead and scarred planet. Jack sat up and placed a hand on Arcee's right arm. She looked down at him waiting for what was likely a question about Cybertron or one of her past partners. "What is it Jack?"

Jack suddenly stood up and took a few steps towards the edge of the base when he suddenly asked a question Arcee had not been expecting what so ever. "What can you tell me about the big figures in the Decepticons here on Earth?" Arcee suddenly sat up straight before walking over to Jack. "Why do you want to know about them?" Jack didn't look at Arcee but his eyes took on a distant look as he spoke up.

"If I'm gonna be a part of the team one day then I need to know what I'll be up against when I get back." With that, Arcee brought Jack back into the base and they made their way to the control center where Arcee walked up to a central console and started hitting buttons as she spoke up. "The big names of the Decepticons on Earth belong to veteran warriors, all of them fought on Cybertron during the war."

With that she pulled up an image of a red Decepticon with white plating for the unarmored areas of his chassis. "Knockout, he's the medical officer for the Decepticons; a specialist in interrogation, and a flamboyant egomaniac if ever there was one. He's constantly cleaning himself, making sure that there's not a single scratch on his paint job." Jack gave a smirk at this, egomaniacs were always interesting characters.

Arcee then pulled up another image of a larger bot with a mainly dark blue paint job, a heavy build, and a rust orange face plate. "Breakdown is one of the heavy hitters, he was a member of the wreckers with Bulkhead until the war started, and then he went over to the Decepticons. He's got a fierce temper and can do some serious damage in a one on one fight."

Then she pulled up an image of a slender dark purple Decepticon with a monitor like visor for a face. "Soundwave; he's one of Megatron's most loyal followers, doesn't talk much, usually does scout missions and stays off the scenes unless something big is going on." Jack could see that Soundwave likely used an aerial alt form and so could appear out of nowhere should Jack let his guard down.

The next image Arcee pulled up was an image of a slender bot with long, pointed fingers that could likely pierce hardened steel. He had wings which told Jack he was likely a fighter jet in his alt form, and a slender face that carried a deep sadistic sneer. "Then you've got Starscream; he's the Decepticon Second in Command and has been working with Megatron since the beginning of the war on Cybertron. He's as sadistic as he is ambitious; he's known among the Decepticons for using authority that normally belongs to Megatron himself, he's also fond of torturing prisoners for information when given the opportunity."

Jack could tell that Starscream was one of those troops who always thought he was smarter than everyone else, even when he was completely wrong; but Jack was pulled out of his thoughts when a familiar image was pulled up, an image Jack had only ever seen one other time, in his sleep. And when he saw the large Decepticon, Jack felt his blood boil. "Megatron."

Arcee could hear the rage in Jack's voice, and when she saw his face, it was a glare worthy of an enraged Prime. Arcee hated seeing Jack like this so she spoke up to try and get his mind focused on other aspects about the Decepticon warlord. "He was a gladiator before the war; he named himself after one of the original 13 primes and when things turned sour, he tried to persuade the Cybertron High Council to name him as the next Prime. When they named Optimus as the next Prime instead of him, he and his followers started the war. He's always kept the same alt form as an old Cybertronian Fighter Jet; and he's got a temperament that quite literally kills."

At this Jack leaned forward, analyzing every minute detail about Megatron and after a few seconds he stood up straight and walked up to one of the many overhead catwalks in the base before staring at the ground at the side of the railing. Arcee walked up behind Jack as the catwalk he was on was low enough that she could be nearly face to face with him. "Jack?"

Arcee knew Jack was likely brooding now over what Megatron had done in the past as well as the Decepticon Warlords involvement in Wolf's death. "I'm sorry you have to put up with me when I'm like this…" Arcee heard a great deal of pain in Jack's face, but she also heard a great deal of sincerity that told how much he hated being like this. "Jack, look at me."

Jack was hesitant to turn around but he soon looked at her and he was quickly met with her metallic lips. Jack was caught by surprise but he returned the kiss regardless. As their lips pulled apart, Arcee looked into Jack's eyes and spoke up in a gentle voice. "There's nothing you need to apologize about Jack, you're worth it to me." This brought a smile to Jack's face as he realized just how much each of them cared about each other. With this, they left the control center and went to Arcee's quarters to get a goodnight's sleep.

Ah. More fluff; hehehe. Anywho. Sorry of this was a bit too short a chapter. But i'll get the next chapter up soon. Until next time my friends. :)