Chapter 11: Rise of Phantom Z
All Transformer characters belong to Hasbro. The halfa, Clockwork, and Ghost Zone idea belong to Butch Hartman. Any real life songs, food brands, etc. do NOT belong to me. I only own this fanfic ideas and my OCs. Don't like, don't read. Everyone else, enjoy.
"Ha"-comm. between Sasha and Zetta
In front of the high school: Third Person Perspective
"Oh boy, what's going on here?" Sasha groaned at the sight before her.
She spotted a familiar sapphire motorcycle with bubblegum pink highlights and golden yellow and black muscle car stationed in front of the school. Jack and Raf were beside them looking worried but mostly tired. No doubt they were not use to getting up early but had willingly come in case things got heated.
"At least Bulkhead isn't with them," Zettabyte tried to reassure his partner though he knew the hesitance in his tone was obvious.
"Well we're not going to let them ruin our day," the Goth said bravely as her guardian parked a few feet away from the two robots in disguise.
Unbuckling herself and making sure Midnight, who was slightly growling as she felt the tension her unofficial owners held for the two vehicles, was safely in her backpack, the raven-haired girl stepped out. She wore a dark violet long-sleeve shirt with black flowers embroidered on the neck. She also had a gray and black plaid skirt and her combat boots. On her wrist was a stylish black bat-shaped watch and a black choker with a satin purple rose. Her hair was up in ponytail, her lips were painted with a dark purple lipstick, and her nails were a grape purple. She coolly strode over to the vehicles.
"Hey Sasha," Jack said with a smile.
"Good morning Sasha," Raf greeted equally in a friendly voice.
"Good morning you two," the nature-lover said with a polite smile of her own.
"How did you and Zetta get M.E.C.H. files?" Arcee asked immediately.
"Arcee," the onyx-haired boy said in a warning tone, obviously disapproving of his guardian's bluntness.
"No it's fine Jack. For your information, Zetta and I used the Decepticon Ground Bridge. They don't know he's my guardian. We had no idea that we would find a M.E.C.H. base. It was empty and a mess. Whatever happened to them, we don't know. We took the files as payback for them attacking Zetta," Sasha finished confidently, answering the unspoken questions in as-a-matter-of fact tone as if she was in a class debate.
"She's telling the truth," the neutral youth had gotten the courage to drive a bit closer. "And by the way, can you ask Agent Fowler if he's gonna tell his superiors where he got the USB from please? I don't want Sasha getting in trouble."
A quick sound of whirrs and buzzes sounded from Bumblebee.
"Bee says they'll ask. And he said thank you for the files," the computer prodigy translated.
"You're welcome," the raven-haired girl and ruby and sapphire mechling responded in unison.
"Sooo….Bulkhead called Miko's house last night pretending to be her tutor and told her about you two," Jack said quickly, ripping off the metaphorical bandage.
1…2…3…
"Are you kidding me?" Sasha asked deadpanned.
"I wish we were," Raf said uncomfortably adjusting his glasses.
"Well this is just fantastic," the Goth sighed as she plopped down on her partner's hood in exasperation and annoyance.
"How do you two even know anyway?" Zettabyte asked.
"Miko called us yesterday after Bulkhead called her. She lied to the Sandersons that she was calling us to confirm that we all had done the same math homework," the onyx-haired boy shrugged.
"She wants to meet Zetta," the preteen brunette said directly to the nature-lover.
"Well I don't!" huffed the halfa angrily. "She'll probably just threaten me like she Bulkhead does. Well frag that! I don't put up with that mech's condescending attitude towards me so I won't put up with his charge who has already shown my partner disrespect."
Bumblebee buzzed in shock by his fellow mechling's outburst. Zettabyte was quite surprised himself. Never once had he had an angry outburst or swore like that. Not even when he was having a terrible day and he wanted to snap at someone.
"It's alright Zetta. Whether you want to meet Miko or not is up to you," Sasha comforted before looking at her watch. "I'm gonna head into class early. I'll see you when you after Earth Club Zee. I love you."
"I love you too Sasha. Have a wonderful day at school," the neutral youth said as his charge got off his hood, gave it a pat, and walked towards the building, Raf and Jack already ahead, having said goodbye to their partners during Zetta's cool down.
It was then that he sensed that, in spite of their lack of optics in their current form, the femme and scout were staring at him.
"What is it now?" he asked trying to keep himself from sounding rude.
"Did you just tell your partner you loved her?" Arcee asked rather astounded.
"Yes, platonically. Don't you guys let your partners know how much you care for them?" the ruby and sapphire mechling asked but didn't stick around for an answer and drove off, leaving the two Autobots to quietly contemplate.
As soon as he was a good mile away, Zettabyte activated a special connection in his comm. link and spoke, "Hey Sasha, is the watch working?"
"Loud and clear Zee. Thanks for making it for me. And the camera choker too," the nature-lover said gratefully into her watch.
"You're welcome Sasha. I'm just glad I have some way to make sure you're safe at school," the halfa said happily before their call ended.
At the Autobot base a few minutes later: Third Person Perspective
"I still say it's suspicious," Bulkhead grumbled as he stared at the console alongside Ratchet.
"Yes, yes you've told me five times in the last hour. Now hush, I'm trying to focus," the Autobot CMO muttered irritably. "Shouldn't you be in your quarters?"
"I'm not a sparkling Doc-bot," huffed the moss-colored mech.
"True, but I don't recall Optimus saying you could leave. Even if he did, you wouldn't deserve it. Not after your behavior on Saturday," the veteran medic growled even more vexed.
"Can you blame me?! We were searching for the punk for days and we find out he's been hanging with the Cons?!" the Wrecker yelled. He regretted it the moment the older orangey red and white mech whirled around and gave him a death glare.
"Need I remind you that he wouldn't have been taken in by the enemy if you hadn't chased him out!" Ratchet roared angrily at the younger but stronger mech. "Your behavior is going to ruin our reputation and Optimus' good name someday if it already hasn't!"
Bulkhead growled as he prepared to retort. But he never got the chance as Optimus, Arcee, and Bumblebee came through the tunnel. The argument would have to continue later. Or disperse entirely, depending on whether either chose to bring it up.
"What have you found in the files Fowler has sent you old friend?" the Prime coolly asked the older mech.
"Just a few facts about our anatomy and weapons, including our transformation system," the Autobot CMO responded as calmly as his leader.
[We saw Zetta and Sasha when we dropped off Raf and Jack. He wants us to ask Agent Fowler if he's gonna tell his superiors that the USB is Sasha's. He doesn't want her to get in trouble,] the scout said, recalling the ruby and sapphire mechling's words.
"Since Sasha and Zetta are not part of Team Prime, it will lead to issues between him and his higher ups, so I doubt Fowler will admit where the USB originated from," Ratchet answered logically.
"Well they're not gonna join anytime soon. When we told those two that Miko knows, they got upset," Arcee spoke up as she glared at her larger team mate. "Why again did you tell Miko about Sasha and Zetta?"
"I wanted her to be aware that her classmate was partners with a Decepticon sympathizer," the brawler grumbled annoyed.
"If anything, Zettabyte should be warned about Miko knowing about his presence," the femme said snidely.
"If you got something to say, say it," Bulkhead hissed threateningly.
"Okay. Everything that Sasha said about Miko couldn't be closer to the truth! She acts like this war is some game that she can just join like there's no consequence! Then when it falls upon Jack or Raf to be the voices of reason, she ignores them. Hence, they have to risk their lives to retrieve her before she meets her end at a Cons' cannon! When she's not jeopardizing her life, the lives of others, or our missions she takes everything and everyone around her for granted! I bet the only reason you don't tell her anything because you were just like her when you were a mechling; irresponsible, self-serving, and reckless!" the Cycle-former shrieked.
"ENOUGH!" Optimus roared angrily.
Everyone stared silently in shock at the Prime.
"Fighting will not improve Miko's behavior. Nor will it bring Zetta and Sasha closer to our team," the Autobot leader said, fixing his two quarreling soldiers with an icy stare that was colder than the glaciers of the Antarctic. Both Wrecker and two-wheeler bowed their helms.
"What's important now is that we focus on our own agenda," the veteran medic put in.
[But what about Zetta and Sasha?] the yellow and black mechling asked worriedly.
Taking a deep intake, Optimus spoke once more, "We can only trust in their determination. And hope that nothing will cause Zettabyte to lose Megatron's good graces."
On the Nemesis in the medbay an hour later; Zettabyte's Perspective
"There, all done kid," Knock Out's voice came to the neutral youth's audios as he slowly regained consciousness.
Blinking slowly, Zettabyte slowly sat up. While he didn't feel any pain, he felt a faint tingling sensation in the back of his helm. He attempted to shake his helm to rid himself of the feeling but was stopped by the vain mech.
"No, no, no. You're okay. You're fine. Your systems are just getting use to the chip. It'll be fully operational in a few hours. Just give it time then you'll be able to create your holoform," the Decepticon CMO explained soothingly.
"Alright. Thank you," the halfa said with a polite smile. Just then, a mining Vehicon came into the medbay.
"Hey Zettabyte, ready to go?" the Vehicon asked in a gruff voice.
"Yes I am. I'll join you in a moment T0-B1," the mechling responded with a nod. The purple mech nodded back before leaving as fast as he entered.
"You're with the scouts today?" Knock out asked in surprise.
"Well, yes," Zettabyte admitted.
"Well it wouldn't be my cup of Energon tea, I suppose I can't tell you not to. Just take it easy and be careful," the ruby red racer said in a tone that was akin to concern.
"I will. Thank you," the Cybertronian teen reassured with a smile as he left the medbay, not seeing Knock Out's still worried expression.
Three and a half hours later at the high school; Sasha's Perspective
Sasha sighed as she put away the books from her last class, gave Midnight a reassuring stroke to the head, and got ready to go to lunch. To say that the morning had been tense would be an understatement. The classes that she had with Miko were especially uncomfortable.
She hadn't looked to see but the Goth new the foreign exchange student had been staring at her. Sasha couldn't practically feel those eyes on her the whole time. She never turned around to make sure though. Not because she was scared but because she didn't want to give Miko the satisfaction that the Asian girl had her on edge.
If she thinks she can intimidate me, she seriously needs a reality check, the raven-haired girl thought with a sour frown.
As she shut her locker, she caught a glimpse of a ponytail with pink highlights peeking out from down the hall way. Rolling her eyes, the nature-lover turned the opposite direction and continued walking.
Just ignore her. Maybe she'll be so caught up in stalking you that she'll get caught by the history teacher, Sasha told herself, remembering how the history teacher, Mrs. Hendricks, had a bone to pick with Miko who would constantly ditch detention. Most likely to go bum around with her guardian.
The Goth huffed as she heard the squeak of Miko's own combat boots as she poorly began to follow her quietly. She hoped that whatever treats Addie and Colette had today had chocolate in them. She really needed the sugar boost.
Two hours later in Houston; Zettabyte's Perspective
"What exactly are we looking for?" Zettabyte asked as he followed the small group, sticking close to T0-B1.
"Energon signals, supplies, the works," the Vehicon, V1-K responded in a bored tone. "It's a thankless job but someone has to do it."
"I see," the halfa said carefully.
The continued driving until they arrived at an open clearing. The six mechs and one mechling transformed into their bipedal modes and began looking around. T0-B1 pulled out an Energon Signature Locator and began walking around. The others stood high on alert and stayed close to their fellow drone. Zettabyte, however, wanted to explore.
"Hey, hey! You come back here, Zetta!" one of the younger Vehicons, S0L-0N3 yelled after the group's charge.
"Let him go. Kid's needs to get out," V1-K retorted.
Whatever else they said after was lost to Zetta as his focus was now on his own path and his hearing focused on the sounds of the wildlife around him. He saw a family of badgers shuffling near an old log, two of the young ones play fighting and kicking up dirt and leaves. Two otters cuddled near the bank of a small river as a rabbit gnawed at a blackberry bush a few feet away. Downstream a group of beavers were building their dam carefully but quickly. A fox perched calmly on a sun-warmed rock, cleaning its fur. A doe grazed on a small but lush patch of grass as her twin fawns nursed hungrily themselves.
As Zettabyte took a careful step towards the doe to get a closer look, the beautiful deer's head snapped up. At first the neutral youth thought she was frightened by him when her head snapped to the right, ears flickering. Suddenly, she gave out a bleat and took off, her fawns close behind. Alarmed by the larger woodland creature's sound, the other animals scampered off and hid as well. The Cybertronian teen gasped in surprise as ferrets, raccoons, ground squirrels, chipmunks, minks, and shrews scampered out from somewhere on the right, squealing and chittering, and disappeared into the bushes on the left.
Slowly turning to the right Zettabyte gapped at what he saw.
A large portion number of trees and plants had been violently disturbed. Some were partially torn from the ground and ruffled while others had been knocked down and stomped upon. Looking closer, the halfa saw that some of the trees had large parts of them blown off, the area around the missing parts covered with blackened ashes. Taking a step forward he touched the scorch parts of one tree. It was still warm. Looking down he blinked in utter shock.
Cybertronian-sized footprints littered the firm dirt. They were small and somewhat narrow, yet whatever made them seemed to have some weight as they were just as deep as those of any Cybertronian. And they led straight to a area that was more heavy with trees and foliage.
Zettabyte considered running to get one of the Vehicons but decided against it. If it was an Autobot, he wouldn't want them to go head to head with the scouting group in the midst of the inhabited woods. And he would never forgive himself if some bot lost their life today because he was a bit frightened. Slowly, the mechling followed the steps and ventured towards the darkened part of the forest.
He saw that the damage done to the wildness was almost minimal but still large. It had been done by some bot taller but less muscular. He sniffed the air and was surprised by the hints of jet exhaust he detected. It had to be a flier or a triple-changer at best. A few gray flecks of paint were found on the ground. He stopped at the edge of where the tracks ended and stared into the dark and dense vastness of the enclosed area. Gulping, he prepared to take his first step into it.
When a slim arm with a null ray powered and ready emerged from the darkness and pointed at his faceplates.
Zettabyte gasped and took a step back. He met the angry, hateful gaze of two bright scarlet optics. The face was hidden but he had no doubt the owner was snarling at him.
"Unless you want a hole in where your faceplates should be, leave," a high-pitched male voice came in a low growly tone. "I won't repeat myself."
Holding his servos up in surrender, the neutral youth walked backwards carefully. Before turning and running full-speed. He had no idea who the mech was or what he was capable of. But he wasn't too keen on finding out. Not while there were bots like the scout group here who could get hurt.
It took less time than he thought to meet back up with the group.
"See S0L-ON3, he came right back," V1-K said in a snobby I-told-you-so tone.
"Hey Zetta. Back so soon?" T0-B1 asked in a friendly voice.
"Er, yes," the halfa confirmed as he tried to look as calm as possible.
"Find anything interesting?" the group leader inquired.
"Uh, no. Nothing what so ever," the mechling lied, hoping he sounded convincing.
He hoped they didn't hear his sigh of relief when T0-B1 responded, "That's too bad. It gets boring out here."
At the high school three hours later; Sasha's Perspective
Sasha gathered her books that she needed for homework, trying to hurry so she could get to the safety of the Earth Club room. All through the day, Miko had tried to get her attention. She attempted to sit by her in Math class until the teacher ordered the Asian girl to retreat to her own assigned seat. The punkish girl then attempted to pass a note to the Goth in History but had been caught and sent to the office. And between Spanish and Health, the foreign exchange student ran to keep up with her, only to run into another student so hard that their water bottle spilled onto the Hall Monitor. Needless to say, Miko would be in detention for the next three days.
The raven-haired girl had been thankful that her friends and club members sensed her distress and did everything possible to keep the troublemaker away. They hogged up one lunch table at lunch, forcing the rebellious teen to sit with Jack and Raf as always. Alan faked a huge sneeze to draw the English teacher's attention when Miko attempted to talk to her, causing the teacher to give the punkish girl a short reprimand. And Amanda had nearly beaned the foreign exchange student with the volleyball when she sensed that the Asian girl invading the raven-haired girl's personal space.
The nature-lover was grateful for her friend's understanding but felt terribly guilty for the fact that she couldn't tell them why she wanted to avoid Miko or why the troublemaker was attempting to talk to her. How do you tell your friends that you were hanging out with a giant alien robot when you weren't with them? Even if they believed her, she knew that it would be a huge risk letting them get involved. What if the Autobots found out and made Zetta out to be the bad guy when they explained the Decepticons' intentions? No, as much as she hated it, she had to keep her friends in the dark.
She was torn from her thoughts when a hand grabbed her shoulder and spun her around. To her dismay, it was very person she had been avoiding all day.
"So, wanna tell me why you've been avoiding me all day?" the foreign exchange student asked with a smile but in a tone that meant she was annoyed.
"I know your guardian told you about who I'm with. I think you can put two-and-two together," Sasha snarled as she began to turn away but was once again torn back around.
"What does that mean?" the Asian girl asked, a frown plastered on her face.
"It means that I'm aware that your thug partner talked trash about my friend when he called you. And don't lie, I know he said something terrible," the Goth folded her arms and glowered.
"Well, that's what I was trying to talk to you about. I want you to prove to me whether Bulk was exaggerating or not," Miko said in a-matter-of-fact tone.
"I don't have to prove anything to you. Neither does Zetta. Not to a bias Cybertronian-lover like you. The only other reason why Zetta is with the Cons is because your green bully decided that my friend wasn't good enough for the oh-so mighty Team Prime," the nature-lover growled.
"What?" the punkish teen was confused.
"Apparently, my partner acknowledging the fact that the Cons became who they are because of the caste system of the so-called Golden Age and having an optic that's the same color as the enemy's optics warrants physical and verbal violence," Sasha snapped. "Oh? You didn't know that? Why am I not surprised?"
The troublemaker stood staring at her.
"You might want to get to detention before you get slapped with another day of it and a phone call home," the raven-haired girl sniffed as she walked away. "Oh, and by the way, you may want to start changing your attitude towards the Sandersons. Hate to see Jack and Raf lose a friend, no matter how much of the fact I myself don't feel inclined to call you mine anytime soon."
And with that, she left the rebel standing there.
On the Houston freeway; Zettabyte's Perspective
"All that scouting and nothing to show for it," V1-K grumbled irritably.
"Better safe than sorry. Don't want those Auto-scum buckets getting any possible Energon deposits before we do," T0-B1 said.
Zettabyte wasn't listening to the conversation. He was thinking about the incident that took place between him and the mystery mech. Was the mech a neutral or a rogue? Rogue were more serious than neutrals. They weren't just unaligned bots, they were faction haters. Marauders in the eyes of Autobot and Decepticons. They were the ones who were most likely to become bounty hunters and vicious assassins, sometimes screwing both factions by order of another species. It was concerning.
"Hey kid! You with us?" V1-K asked, sensing the younger Cybertronian's wandering mind.
"Huh? Oh yes! I was just calculating plans for what to do next for my projects," the halfa lied again.
"Well wait until we get back to the ship. You'll crash if you're not focusing on the road," the Vehicon slightly scolded.
Suddenly, S0L-0N3 shouted, "Incoming!"
In his rearview mirrors, Zettabyte saw the cause for alarm. In their vehicle modes, Arcee, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead were closely tailing the group.
"Burn rubber mechs!" T0-B1 shouted as he sped ahead. Zetta and the others did likewise.
Luckily the road wasn't busy. However, a crew of construction workers were busy at the underpass that the Cybertronians were driving on. One of them saw the oncoming vehicles and began shouting to his crew members. A few got out of the way while others screamed at the robots in disguise to turn around or go around. Zettabyte and the Vehicons obliged to the workers' commands and switched lanes. The Autobots attempted to do the same. Their outcome was not so fortunate.
Bumblebee managed to screech to halt after plowing through cones and tape. Arcee attempted to jump the obstacles but found herself in a pit of wet cement. Bulkhead tried to make a U-turn but skidded on uneven gravel and slammed into one of the pillars supporting the overpass. Now normally a car slamming into a large, heavy concrete pillar would create only a small dent on the structure. However, with the hard metal that made up Bulkhead's body and the compacted mass of his full stature in his car mode, slamming into things made a lot more damage. Along with a large dent that looked liked it was created by a small explosion, cracks began to form and started to creep up the pillar like vines. Small bits of debris fell from where the cracks met the underside of the overpass and began to shake as they began to crack and crumble.
Zettabyte, in his vehicle form, saw the destruction and felt fear creep into his spark as the workers scattered away. The neutral youth took notice of oncoming cars in the distance and knew what would happen if the chaos continued. The Vehicons had called for a bridge and were waiting a safe distance. They were so panicked that they didn't notice their charge slip away from them.
Zettabyte hid behind a more stable pillar as he took out the dark green visor and transformed.
The freeway; Autobot Perspective
Bulkhead swore as he transformed, not caring about whether or not the humans saw him. Panic set into his spark as the workers scrambled to get away and the structure began to crumble like dried mud. Bumblebee grunted as he pulled Arcee out of the concrete as quick as he could, which was a serious chore in itself. The femme groaned as she transformed, the concrete already starting to harden and stiffen her joints.
The Autobots knew that they had to think fast and act quick but what with Bulkhead's dazed state from the crash, Bumblebee's lack of experience in this situation, and the drying cement that was sure to slow Arcee down, none of them knew what to do.
"One side Autobots!" a voice called out harshly and determined.
The trio turned around to see a porcelain white and ebony mechling with a dark green visor running towards them. Or more specifically, towards the unstable structure.
The unknown Cybertronian youth threw himself into the falling bits of rubble and dust. Grabbing a servo full of metal pipes and rails, the newcomer began to twist them as fast as he could, his servo giving off a strange green hue which seemed to help mold and meld the material together. When he was satisfied, he began to press and wrap the pieces around the pillar and even added a few metal strips to the upper parts that were giving away. He held them against the structure until the cars driving on the overpass had either stopped or made it safely to the other side. Even when the noise of automobiles stopped, the mysterious mechling continued to hold up the structure, his arms almost buckling once or twice.
The trio had taken a step towards to help but stopped when he growled. Literally growled. It sounded like a twist between roaring engine and a primal snarl. He even bared his denta at them for good measure. It didn't take a Cybertronian science scholar to know that he wanted them to stay the frag away from him. After a few moments, the Cybertronian youth stepped away from the structure but kept his arms at the ready if it began to collapse again. When a minute passed with no sign of the crudely made supports shaking, he breathed a sigh of relief and grabbed some of the tape and cones scattered around him. He threw them onto the upper road area so that future drivers would know not to cross. He then proceeded to place two fingers to the side of his helm.
"Hello? I need the police, paramedics, and some construction workers. There's been an incident at the freeway and the workers need help and the area needs to be secured and cleared out. The structure's been stabilized but I don't know for how long. Hurry," the white and ebony mechling said quickly in a lowered tone before he hung up, not waiting for the operator to ask who he was.
Bulkhead was the first to try approaching again, smiling as he held out a servo, "Hey that was a great-!"
Bad move.
The newcomer delivered a sudden uppercut to the Wrecker, almost sending him flying into his fellow Autobots. The scout and two-wheeler backed up in shock as the mechling cracked his knuckle struts. They tensed up when he placed a pede on the moss-colored mech's chassis and pressed down.
"If you ever endanger human lives while you're trying to chase Decepticons, I'll hunt you down, find you, and make you sorry. Do you understand?" the mechling growled at the dazed mech.
All Bulkhead could utter was a groan but they all knew he had heard the threat.
Stepping off the large mech, the newcomer looked at the two standing Autobots and said in a cool voice, "Tell everyone that your friend got his aft kicked by a phantom. Adios."
With that, he transformed into his vehicle mode and sped off.
Arcee slowly activated her comm. and spoke, "Ratchet, contact Optimus and Fowler. You'll never believe what just happened."
On the steps of the high school; Jack's Perspective
"Why didn't you guys tell me?!" Miko asked her two friends angrily.
Jack wanted to scoff and roll his eyes in annoyance. No sooner had the punkish teen had stepped out of the doors and began telling them what Sasha told her. Then she started yelling at them when they confirmed what the Goth had said.
"Oh like you would have believed us instantly. Over Bulkhead," the onyx-haired boy snapped, recalling all the times the rebellious girl had disobeyed the Autobots' commands and waved off his and Raf's reasoning. The only one she listened to, almost most of the time, was her guardian.
"Jack's right, Miko. You do have the tendency to believe whatever Bulkhead says and take his side almost always," the computer prodigy added nervously.
"So what if I do? You guys do the same with your partners!" she retorted, though the male junior could see she was wavering.
"That doesn't mean you and him are always right. Arcee and I aren't always right either but at least we admit it. So do Raf and Bee," Jack snapped. "And I agree with Sasha! Zetta is good bot. So he's with the Cons. So what? What would you do when confronted with the people that your parent mistreated? And the fact that Bulk makes him feel like it IS his fault that Megatron became who he is now doesn't help! It only makes him believe that he owes Megatron even more."
The Asian girl looked ready to rebuttal when the Sandersons' car appeared. Not saying another word to either male, she grabbed her bag and stomped off.
Jack just shook his head. As mean as it sounded, he couldn't have been more happy at the fact that she wouldn't be at the base until late September.
At the Nemesis; Zettabyte's Perspective
"Are you alright?!"
"Do you need anything?"
"Where were you?!"
"What were you thinking?!"
Zettabyte winced at the yells of worry and anger that besieged his audios. The Vehicons and Eradicons crowded him, probing him with questions faster than he could answer.
"SILENCE!" came a familiar voice.
The drones froze and parted to look at their lord and superiors. Megatron stood and glowered at his soldiers. Breakdown and Knock Out looked curious but more concern than anything. Airachnid and Soundwave showed absolutely no emotion.
"What pray tell are all of you arguing about?" the former Gladiator inquired.
"My Lord, Zettabyte strayed from the group when we were escaping the Autobots. We thought he had been captured or-or killed!" S0L-0N3 answered in an attempt to prevent their lord's anger.
Zettabyte bowed his helm, afraid that if he looked up, he would meet the angry or disapproving gaze of the warlord.
"Zettabyte, why did you stray from the group?" came Megatron's voice, holding a tone that demanded an answer.
"Yes sir," he confirmed shamefully.
"Whatever for?" probed the silver mech.
"I thought I saw a M.E.C.H. vehicle and I guess…in the heat of the moment…I wanted to confront them…," the halfa lied, hoping they all bought it.
"Was it a M.E.C.H. vehicle?" Breakdown's asked.
"No. I just thought it was in the chaos," the mechling announced in an embarrassed tone. "And I'm sorry."
Megatron paused for a moment before speaking sternly, "I understand your need to confront and retaliate against those who have done you wrong. But that is no excuse for leaving the group without your group leader's permission. You are confined to the Nemesis for the rest of this Earth Orn young mech."
The Cybertronian teen looked up at the former gladiator in surprise. Megatron, the mech who had slaughtered thousands of enemies, had, as the humans said, grounded him. It was surreal as the idea of Alpha Trion getting drunk
"Do you understand me Zettabyte?" the warlord asked in a cool tone that expected obedience.
"Of course sir. I'm sorry," the neutral youth stated as he looked at the crimson optics. They were firm but not as angry as he anticipated.
"Lord Megatron, don't you think that is a bit much. It was just a misunderstanding," Knock Out spoke up. Clearly the idea of being stuck on the Nemesis was still too much of a harsh punishment in the ruby mech's opinion.
"Misunderstandings can be deadly in times of war, as you should know Doctor. Especially for the young," the silver mech rebuked. "My decision stands."
By this time, Zettabyte was already nearing his room feeling grateful for Megatron's subtle mercy but ashamed. He had never gotten in trouble before. Heck, he never even got in trouble at school when other younglings tried to start fights with him. Then again, it was probably due to Sentinel's influence than his or Theta's reasoning that he had not started the fight nor fought back.
However, the thing he felt most terrible about was the fact that he would not be with Sasha for the rest of the week. How would she take it? And how would she take finding out that he had been seen by the Autobots in his ghost mode.
"Well, better get this over with," the halfa said as he opened the comm. that would connect him to his friend.
At the high school; Sasha's Perspective
Sasha stared as Joaquin showed everyone his phone. They had all been planting seeds into the egg shells that they each brought when he got an urgent call from his older brother telling him to look check out the news in Houston. Li Mei, one of the other female members of the club, took out her tablet and turned to the news. Everyone, even Ms. Kissaryn, watched the clip of a severely damaged but surprisingly still standing overpass with construction workers, paramedics, and police officers flocking around it.
The moment Sasha saw the words 'Workers claim damage was caused by giant robots', she asked to be excused to the bathroom which Ms. Kissaryn allowed. No sooner had she stepped out of the classroom did her watch go off.
Answering, the Goth asked worriedly, "Zee, are you okay? I saw the news. Are you hurt?"
"I'm okay, don't worry. But you're gonna need to ask Sawyer for rides home for the rest of the week or use your bike. I'm grounded," came the mechling calm response.
"What? What do you mean? What happened?" the raven-haired girl asked.
"I was with a scouting group when the Autobots started chasing us. We didn't do anything, we just fled. Bulkhead accidentally damaged one of the pillars supporting the overpass. Arcee, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead saw me in my ghost mode. I changed to help support the overpass. I didn't have a choice. I lied to Megatron that I went after what I thought was an M.E.C.H. vehicle and now I'm stuck on the Nemesis for the rest of the week. Please don't be angry!" the neutral youth begged.
"Well I'm glad you stabilized the overpass. You saved lives. But do the bots know who you really are?" she asked, trying not to shriek in fear.
"No. I transformed where they didn't see me and transformer back when I left and they no longer saw me. The only good thing is that I landed a punch on Bulkhead," Zettabyte stated proudly.
That piece of information made Sasha laugh as she asked, "What else happened?"
"I told him I would hand him his aft if her endangered human lives again and then I told Bee and Arcee to tell the other that Bulkhead got owned by a phantom," Zettabyte continued nonchalantly.
"Phantom? Zettabyte? Hmmm….I got it! Phantom Z! That should be your alias!" the nature-lover crowed happily.
"Phantom Z? You know what? I love it! It's got a nice ring to it!" the Cybertronian teen complimented. "We better hang up now. I don't want us to get caught. Bye Sasha. I love you. Give Midnight a scratch behind the ears for me. I'll see you in a few days."
"Bye Zee. I love you too. And I will," Sasha replied as they mutually hung up.
"Mew!" Midnight mewled as she stuck her head out of Sasha's backpack.
Bending down, the raven-haired girl scratched the feline behind the ears and said, "Zetta's not gonna be home for a few days."
Suddenly, Sasha felt angry. Her guardian had saved lives today and was now stuck on the Nemesis, unable to admit his real reason for leaving the scout group. Not without endangering her or himself.She saw red as remembered how her partner confirmed that the overpass incident had been the moss colored mech's doing. She didn't care if it was an accident. The big oaf had made his mark on her bad side and that is where he would remain alongside his charge.
Unable to keep down the viciousness she felt bubbling in her stomach like a gallon of lava, she grabbed her phone before dialing a number she had input into it not too long ago, bringing it to her ear as her call was answered, "Hello, Ms. Darby? It's Sasha."
At the Autobot base; Third Person Perspective
"So Prime, let me get this straight; you're telling me that you have no idea who this new bot is or how he even arrived on Earth without being detected?" the government official asked with a scowl.
"That is unfortunately correct Agent Fowler," Optimus confirmed with a bit of a grave tone.
"How is that possible?" the middle-aged man asked, looking hard at the Prime.
"We are very dumbfounded ourselves," Ratchet responded from where he was examining a still unconscious Bulkhead. "I can't even identify him in any of the Cybertronian records on the console."
"Do you at least know if he's friend or foe?" the liaison asked impatiently.
"While his intentions were to protect and save those humans from harm, he seems to have a abhorrence for Autobots," the Autobot leader claimed.
"So, this mystery Cybertronian wants to protect humans but hates Autobots?" Jack asked, a bit astounded.
Bumblebee whirred and clicked.
"Bee says that he thinks the bot might be a rogue Con," Raf translated.
"Even if that were true, that doesn't explain why he was trying to help humans, where he came from, or why Megatron hasn't sent out a bounty on his helm," the veteran medic replied.
Suddenly, Jack turned to his guardian and asked, "Arcee, you okay? You've been quiet."
The normally opinionated and sarcastic femme hadn't said anything during the whole conversation. She seemed to be lost in thought. The onyx-haired boy had seen that far-off expression before when she was thinking about her personal conflicts. However, her optics seemed darker than usual until she snapped her helm up.
"Hmm? Oh, I'm fine Jack. It's just, I feel like I'm familiar with that kid," the two-wheeler stated slowly.
The team scout buzzed and chirped.
"Bee says that he called himself "a phantom." Maybe he's someone from the past that you guys forgot about," the computer prodigy offered.
"That's one plausible theory. It's hard to keep track of each bot we come in contact with during the war," Arcee agreed.
"But why save human lives? What could be gained?" the Autobot CMO asked.
Jack was about to answer when his phone rang. Taking it out of his pocket, he looked and saw that it was his mother. He gave the group a gesture which meant he had to answer it before doing so.
"Hey Mom, what's up?...Whoa, whoa! Slow down!...What?! When did this happen?" the junior asked into the phone as his voice became more concerned.
The bots, Raf, and Fowler stared as the male teen continued to have a conversation with his mother.
"Oh boy. How is Sasha taking it?...You're right, I can't blame her. Is Zetta alright at least?" Jack questioned.
Arcee stiffened at the mention of the neutral youth's name being involved in the seemingly serious conversation. She looked and saw that the other two mechs and mechling had tensed bodies and worried looks as well.
"Well I'll tell him but he's passed out right now.., Alright, alright. I'll tell Arcee to take me home now. And I'll tell Bee to do the same for Raf…Okay, I'll see you soon. Love you too Mom," the onyx-haired teen finished as he hung up.
"What happened?" the pre-teen asked, a bit more than frightened.
"It's Zetta. Sasha called my Mom and told her that Zetta's been grounded," the older boy stated uncomfortably. "Apparently, he went after what he thought was a M.E.C.H. vehicle and got separated from the scouting group when they called for a Groundbridge. He's not allowed to leave the ship for the rest of the week."
The golden yellow and black mechling whistled shrilly in protest.
"Bee says that it's not fair," Raf translated. "And I agree with him."
At that moment, Bulkhead woke up with a groan. He rubbed his helm and looked around in confusion.
"What did I miss?" he moaned as he rubbed his helm.
No one answered him.
Arcee whirled towards Optimus and began, "Optimus we have to get Zetta off the ship."
"Arcee, I believe Sasha or Ms. Darby would have alerted of if true harm came to Zettabyte," the larger mech said as he tried to calm his soldier.
"Quite frankly, if Bee drove off without warning while we were trying to evade the enemy, I'd make sure he wouldn't leave the base for a week either," Ratchet added gruffly, eliciting an indignant beep from Bee. "And considering what Megatron usually does to those who make mistakes, I'd say Zettabyte is getting off easy."
"I don't want him stuck with the Cons for an entire week!" the sapphire and bubblegum pink femme insisted angrily.
"I understand your concern Arcee. And rest assured that if any physical harm befalls Zettabyte, we'll bring him here and make sure he doesn't leave again," the Prime promised firmly. "But until that happens, we cannot attack the enemy without definite provocation. I am sorry."
Huffing irritably, Arcee mumbled, "Fine."
She then transformed and said in a less lowered tone, "Let's go Jack. Bee, Raf, you too."
Both human boys and mechling obeyed as Jack got on while Bee transformed and allowed Raf into his passenger seat. Not another word was spoken as the two-wheeler and muscle car drove out of the base.
"I better get back. I got paper work to finish," Fowler said as he walked away, unable to bear the uncomfortable awkwardness.
All Optimus could do was give a nod before he turned to go to his own quarters to think.
"Seriously, what did I miss?" the Wrecker complained.
Ratchet just sighed and whacked the mech with his wrench.
Here is another chapter. Chapter 12 will be the final chapter of the story. But don't fret. This AU has a lot more ahead. Once again, haters will be ignored and flamers will be flamed.
Everyone else, Happy Reading!