ZOMG this chapter has a flashback! And Action! Haha.
Hopefully I've redeemed myself with a bit of action in this chapter for those of you getting board with this story. Then again, as I proof read I realize there really isn't much action in this chapter either XD haha, I can't write battle scenes.
Elita One: Yeah he's totally got some parental issues he needs to work out XD.
Truth of Barricade: I'm glad you like the character development rather than find it boring. Thanks for the review, hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it.
Narnian Sprite: Aww don't hide from 'hide! Yup yup once a human knows of them they are nothing but fodder for Decepticons and other baddies out there to use against the Autobots!
Blood shifter: Indeed, Sunny just woke everyone up with a very girlish squeal to the sight of a few mice running around XD
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Josh couldn't believe the Topkick was actually allowing him to drive without complaint, in fact there hadn't been a word said between them since they'd pulled away from the garage. "So…what's got you in such a good mood?" From what Josh had gathered, this was as close to giddy as the Autobot came.
"Will Lennox and the others will be joining us here within the week." Came the even reply.
"So…you guys 'll be leaving?" Josh questioned, not bothering to hide his disappointment at that knowledge.
"That has not been decided yet."
"But it's likely." Josh finished the unstated portion of Ironhide's comment.
"It has already been agreed that I will return with Will Lennox and his family to act as guardian and Bumblebee will return with Sam and Mikaela for similar reasons."
"Oh. Well, whatever happens you guys know you'll always have a place to hide out at here." Josh stated, trying to smooth over the awkward conversation as best as possible though Ironhide simply let it drop.
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Back at the garage both Manny and Nick were focusing on their respective work. When the phone rang Manny cursed but took a break, moving to the wall to answer it. Nick didn't bother trying to listen in, she'd only hear half of the conversation anyway and Manny would let her know if it was anything important. "Damn." Was the man's first comment after he hung up the wall mounted phone. "Just got a call, one of the boys drivin' in is stuck, truck couldn't get him here." It wasn't all that rare, several truckers would hold off on repairs until they could reach the Akers Truck Stop, simply because the prices were cheaper among other reasons. Therefore break downs entire to the truck stop weren't unheard of.
"How far out?" Nick questioned, glancing up from her work, when he responded with the approximate distance and location she nodded, "You going to take this one?"
Manny nodded in response, "Yeah I need to get out and stretch my legs." Twenty minutes later the two had loaded Manny's old truck with a variety of tools, everything he might need to get the rig running again, juts long enough to get it to the garage anyway, soon after the older Mechanic had taken off.
Once he was completely out of sight Nick opened one of the garage doors and motioned the Hummer inside. Having been paying attention to the recent activity Ratchet didn't miss the signal, starting his engine just long enough to coast inside while Nick shut the large door behind him. "Manny'll be gone for at least two hours from the sounds of it, figure we can keep each other from being completely bored."
"I thank you for being so thoughtful." Ratchet commented while she moved to lock the human sized doors.
"You can ah…transform if you like, no one can get in without knocking now."
Ratchet did so without complaint, scanning over the three dormant rigs even as Nick went back to work, "If you would like I am perfectly capable of correcting the damage to these vehicles."
Nick smirked glancing over for a moment, "If you're offering to help, by all means." Several more minutes were spent in companionable silence before Nick looked up from her work once more, "Hey Ratchet, mind if I ask you some questions?"
"Of course, I am surprised you haven't been asking them already. Once the battle was over Sam and Mikaela had a never ending supply of questions for us, although we had many for them as well."
"Yeah, what can we say? Us humans are curious as hell." Her comment was met with a light chuckle from the bot, "So you said Sam killed Megatron and destroyed most of the Allspark at once." Ratchet gave a light nod to confirm her statement, "So, you said you can't return life to your planet, does that mean you guys will go extinct?" She hesitated slightly; it seemed to be a touchy subject though the Autobots had proven they didn't really understand tact at times.
"It is possible for any race to go extinct; however the apparent destruction of the Allspark does not directly confirm that." Ratchet chose his words carefully, after all the Allspark had already proven it still had power to create, or rather restore one life already.
"So the Allspark isn't how you guys…made babies?"
Another rumble came as the old bot laughed, "Of course not. Just like humans, we do not require the Allspark to continue to exist and create new generations. It was required to restore the planet itself which had suffered greatly from war. If humans continue the depletion of this planet eventually they would require the need of the Allspark to replenish Earth, however that is a long time from now."
"Well that's good, I mean it'd really suck if you guys were the last." She commented, glad that topic had a positive response.
"Indeed it would, I assume that now that the Allspark is gone and Megatron as well, there will be sparklings running around Earth soon enough."
Nick tried not to image baby Autobot's reeking havoc on Earth while throwing a mere temper tantrum. "Alright, next question. What's with Ironhide?"
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Josh returned from the local hardware store with a bag in hand, "One stop down…" He commented; tossing the bag into the Topkick before climbing inside, of course Ironhide was quick to scan the contents of the bag.
"What purpose do those contraptions serve?"
"They are live traps, Mouse Motels." Josh answered; a slightly off rumbling of the engine told him Ironhide wanted further explaining. "You bait the trap with peanut butter or something else mice like and then you leave it, mouse wanders in for a free meal and the little door slides shut when they step on the little pressure plate. Then you release the little guy somewhere away from any buildings."
Ironhide did a bit of searching on the Internet to get a better idea of how the item worked, "It would be simpler to buy a spring trap. The mouse is killed, avoiding any chance of breeding or returning, and avoids a drive to a remote location."
Josh gave the dash a brief look, "Dude you really got it in for these little guys don't you? Look one thing you might want to watch out for, Nick's a very live and let live kinda girl. Those mice are just looking to survive, who are we to kill them?"
"You are the dominate species on your planet." Ironhide responded.
"So? Doesn't that mean we should take care of everything else? Being the 'dominate species' means we should sorta be big brotherish." Josh gave a light shrug as he pulled the Topkick back onto the road, "We've killed off lots of animal species, and a lot more are on the verge of extinction because of humans."
"Mice are not one of them." Ironhide pointed out.
Again Josh shrugged, "Not now, but they never thought the Dodo would die out either. 'sides, Nicks a live and let live, but she's a kill and be killed kinda girl too, just stay on her good side."
Ironhide merely let his engine rumble a bit louder before the issue was dropped.
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"What do you mean?" Ratchet responded, for the first time pausing to glance up from his work.
"Well…I mean, he just doesn't seem to…fit in as well with the rest of you." She shrugged a little, picking her words carefully, "I know there was a lot going on but when they were battling I swore he was grinning, it was a little creepy."
Ratchet gave a soft chuckle, "Ironhide enjoys warfare, and he's a soldier by designation. You are correct however; it took many Earth centuries for most Autobots to accept Ironhide into our ranks. Optimus himself had accepted him early on, though Optimus has been known to be too trusting in the past." Ratchet explained, though his tone showed he wasn't holding it against his leader.
"So how did he end up a good guy?" Ratchet paused still from his work, this tale would need much of his attention, Nick followed suit as she listened.
"After the war broke out, many were quick to choose a side, those few who remained neutral, with no primary designation, were often the targets of Decepticons or the prisoners of Autobots. Ironhide refused to take a primary designation."
Nick shook her head, "Thought you said his designation was warfare?"
Ratchet nodded, "Our designation refers to our entire being, a sort version of your designation would be American, Homo sapiens, Mechanic, Nicole Akers. Your designation includes your allegiance, category of existence, primary function and a self-title, or the title provided to you. My own short designation would be Autobot, autonomous robotic life form, Chief medical officer, Ratchet. That is the best translation."
"I think I get it so what made him pick Autobots?"
Ratchet began his tale, reminding her that he'd use Earth terms as far as their positions and names went, considering she wouldn't understand the names they'd bore while on Cybertron.
-ZOMG Flashback-
Cybertron was nothing but a twisted mess of metal, carnage and destruction. War had ravaged a once peaceful land. High towered buildings stood in ruins, others nothing but a pile of rock and metal rubble. The area two Autobots now journeyed through had seen recent battle, the remains of Autobot and Decepticon covered the area; and death hung in the air.
Ratchet and Jazz had been doing recon, a battle had ended several vorns ago and survivors had already been moved to their man base of operations. As it was Ratchet was in desperate need of spare parts and getting those from the dead was the only option they had available, Jazz accompanied him as back up. Sparks ignited now and then from the prone forms of Autobot and Decepticon alike, though they were nothing compared to what a true bot's spark would have been. The sparks were nothing but ghosts and figments of the former bots, last bits of energy leaking from their forms. Above fliers crossed the skies friendlies and enemies alike, thankfully the Autobots for the time being controlled this territory so any Decepticon trespasser was effectively dealt with.
"Let's go Hatchet, make with the part collectin'." Jazz commented, neither enjoyed being so exposed even if this was Autobot territory.
The medic nodded and was quick to get to work there was no remorse for the cannibalistic actions he proceeded to begin, the dead would save the living and that was all that mattered. His scanners picked up an unknown signature the medic was quick to focus his attention on one of the many spiking towers that had come crashing down in the midst of the battle. The area was littered with places for crafty bots to hide, though a medic's scanners would pick up any signatures, living or dead, within range. "Jazz."
"I'm on it." The silver bot already had his battle visor down and smaller cannon at the ready, Jazz preferred hands on combat and speed over bulky weapons. "State your primary designation. We have you out numbered." Ratchet gave the other a look, two against on wasn't exactly as 'out numbered' as it seemed, especially considering one was a medic not designed for warfare. "I repeat! Show yourself and state your primary designation you son of a glitch!" Jazz broadcasted the message via the three main networks, aloud, internal communications as well as the most basic binary codes. Ratchet shook his head, the other hadn't ever been known to keep his temper. He still couldn't believe this brash bot had been hand selected by Optimus to act as his second in command. Then again Ratchet couldn't believe he himself had been chosen to act as Optimus' chief medical officer.
The hum of several weapons didn't go unnoticed, a large slab from a fallen building was shoved aside as a brute of a bot appeared, large cannons at the ready. At a glance Ratchet and Jazz both understood, this bot was designated for warfare. "You two lookin' to for a quick trip to the Pit?" The larger black bot questioned.
Despite the threat of battle Ratchet was focusing on other things. The black bot seemed oddly constructed, most of his armor was black in color however his right shoulder armor was slightly more bulky and strictly silver and gray in color. The medic in him wanted to know the reasoning for such odd configurations and several quick scans had his systems humming in shock, "By Primus!" Ratchet sent a quick message to Jazz, relaying the fact that the larger bot had a sparkling in his possession, though the weak signal the sparkling was sending had the medic worried.
--FLASH BACK paused--
Nick frowned a little, "I don't want to be insensitive but you said the whole planet was at war…so why were you so surprised to see a kid, er, sparkling? It wasn't even the thick of battler or anything…"
Ratchet gave a light sigh, "You must understand, Optimus was born to be Prime." At her confusion he continued, "You would call him a King, a leader of our world. Though all previous Primes lacked what you would call a personality. They decided matters based strictly upon logic and reasoning, they were neither good nor evil but the balance of both. When Optimus was created, no one is truly sure how, the spark split, two were created where only one should exist. In my opinion it appears that Optimus has the programming for good while Megatron possessed the programming for evil. Optimus was given the position of Prime over his twin; this led to Megatron's treason. In his first act as Decepticon leader he ordered all sparklings, and those beings you would consider female of our race, be destroyed. It was genocide. Just like human children, sparklings made easy targets and our females were destroyed in an attempt to save them. Very few survived, only a handful out of the thousands that had previously lived."
Nick could barely begin to conceive what it would have been like and couldn't even bring herself to give her condolences, they would mean very little in comparison to the horror the Autobots had witnessed.
--FLASH BACK continued--
Jazz was startled out of his standoff just long enough for the black bot to fire off several rounds, sending the two Autobots scattering in different directions.
"I am Autobot, Chief medical officer, Ratchet. I demand you cease and desist your attack and hand over the sparkling!" There was one thing a bot could not, in a sense, lie about. That was their designation; Ratchet wanted the other to understand just what he wanted. However despite his words the black bot only seemed to increase his attacks. "That sparkling is leaking Energon and if you do not cease and allow me to perform immediate repair-"
Jazz, still avoiding the blasts from the enemy's cannons finished Ratchet's statement, "Then he'll be heading to the Matrix two nanites before I send you to the Pit!"
The black bot still refused conversation, or to adhere to the orders Ratchet was giving. It was only upon several weak clicks from the small sparkling that his attacks paused. The sparkling, who had been clinging desperately to the larger bot's shoulder armor began to slip and lose his grip. One cannon retracted just in time to catch the small silver bot and cradled him close while the other arm's cannon remained trained on Jazz who appeared to pose the larger threat.
Optics focused on Ratchet the black bot spoke up, the situation was desperate and he knew there would be little hope for the sparkling save a medic's care, "You so much as twist two wires and I'll pick you apart by nut and bolt." He growled though didn't power down his cannon, letting one Autobot close was one thing, letting two just wasn't going to happen.
Ratchet was far to quick to near the other, clearly fearless of any attack that might be sent his way, ordering the black bot to lay the sparkling down he once more scanned the weak being, the proximity allowing him to pinpoint the worst of the damage. Meanwhile the black bot tried to keep his focus split between Ratchet's actions and Jazz who remained some distance away. "Do not leave us just yet little one, there are many who would wish to meet you." Ratchet commented, his worry over the sparklings dimming optics was evident. The small bot needed parts quickly to preserve the remaining Energon in his system and while there were plenty of dead bots around them their parts were useless. For lack of a better term the parts themselves were dead and would need repair before they could be fitted and installed in a living bot's framework. Considering Jazz was his only back up and he doubted the black bot would agree given the circumstances Ratchet did the only logical thing.
Being a medic he was graced with the programming to shut down his nervous center, effectively eliminating all pain, within a second of doing so the medic had tore into his own leg in order to produce the still functional parts the small sparkling would require. Just as Ratchet was going to announce that he'd made all necessary emergency repairs a blast shook the ground around them. Instinct had Ratchet picking up the small gray sparkling, while Ironhide had all his weapons at the ready. Three unknown Decepticons entered the area blasting away at the four bots. Jazz ducked and dodged until he managed to get close enough to unleash his real talent, melee combat. Meanwhile the black bot remained firmly stationed in front of Ratchet, or more importantly the sparkling Ratchet held. Blow for blow the black bot returned blasts, never budging when a shot would hit despite any damage done to his frame.
Sparkling in one hand Ratchet had his own weapon, a lethal yet medical buzz saw at the ready, taking out one Decepticon who'd managed to by pass the neutral bot. Luckily the odd trio did not have to hold out long, Optimus was soon on his way with another well known Autobot, Prowl. Both were deadly in battle and ended it quickly. Jazz had used a private line to inform Optimus of the current situation, though a most surprising fact had been left out. "Optimus if I do not get him back to the medical bay I can guarantee we will have one less sparkling on Cybertron!"
The large leader nodded, regarding the black bot who now had one cannon trained on Optimus, who proceeded to give his designation. "Autobot, autonomous robotic life form, Prime, Optimus. Brother, I do not want the death of another on my hands, but I will not allow the death of a sparkling because you refuse to allow him the aid he needs!"
There were several tense seconds before the cannons powered down, retracting to form hands once more, slowly the black bot turned to Ratchet and held out his hands for the sparkling. With the damage Ratchet had inflicted to save the sparkling there would be no way for him to travel and carry the precious cargo, "Weapons specialist, Ironhide." Was his only comment, being a medic and a good judge of programming the yellow bot willingly handed over the injured grey sparkling for transport.
Optimus nodded at the results, "Autobots, move out!"
--FLASH BACK paused--
"So he just joined you?" Nick questioned, it sounded far too simple after how standoffish Ironhide appeared to be in the story.
Ratchet responded with a laugh, "Primus no! That stubborn son of a glitch gave us more trouble than Megatron for a while."
--FLASH BACK continued--
Their arrival back at base had been troublesome, Prowl and Jazz were ordered to keep a close eye on Ironhide who had refused to choose a designation. Meanwhile Ratchet had at once taken the sparkling to his ward where he, Wheeljack and several others worked diligently to save the small being. The black bot of course demanded to be close to the medical ward, he'd have rather been inside the med bay though the door had been literally slammed in his face. Jazz and Prowl remained nearby and rather than having to order Ironhide to cease any activity they'd only needed to yell at two smaller bots who seemed as though they'd had just missed being counted in the genocide by a few eons.
During the brief lapse of peace while both sides were recouping from the latest of battles Optimus joined the others in waiting for word on the sparkling. As it was many of his close companions now had never known each other prior to the war, it was a large planet though it seemed wherever Optimus went knew Autobots appeared for their cause. "You understand," He began, addressing the neutral, "that you will not be able to provide for that sparkling much longer."
Ironhide crossed his arms over his broad chest plate, "You think you can do much better? Autobots are nothing but medics, spies and scientists. Megatron rules the soldiers." It was a true statement; most Autobots were not specifically designed for warfare.
"That is true, but we can offer the lives of every Autobot here to protect that sparkling."
The rest of the wait had been spent in silence, when Ratchet appeared it seemed as if some of the damage he'd inflicted to his leg had been repaired considering he was now walking of his own accord. "He is in stasis; he'll need several doses of the lowest grade Energon we can find, as long as his systems do not seize up in response he should recover." The medic gave a sigh, "That sparkling shouldn't be out of his pod."
--FLASH BACK paused--
Ratchet paused long enough to explain that a pod was similar to a womb, very young sparks were prone to irregularities. Or, in terms she could better understand, a heart that beat at an uneven pace, good for neither heart nor spark. Pods kept sparklings in a state of stasis while their sparks grew strong enough to regulate their energy. While inside a pod the equivalent of sustenance came in the form of raw energy. Sparklings did not have the systems to consume or convert Energon into the necessary form needed to continue functioning. Much as a human baby needed milk or formula and couldn't survive off of solid foods.
--FLASH BACK continued—
Several optics focused on Ironhide at that point, as if expecting an explanation for just how the soldier had come across the sparkling. Understanding that he probably wouldn't be left alone until he explained the black bot spoke up, "That sparkling's gonna be the best slaggin' spy this side of the galaxies." He began the brief tale, he wasn't one for much detail or explanation, "Stumbled across him hidin' in a pod facility every single pod had been destroyed." The unsaid statement was clear, every sparkling inside had also been destroyed, "Killed two Decepticons who had stuck around. Didn't even pick up his signal till he'd run straight into me. Little spark's been clinging to me ever since."
Optimus nodded at the brief but informative tale, "Brother I would welcome both you and your young companion into our ranks. I have already promised protection for the sparkling. I offer you comrades in arms."
--FLASH BACK end--
"So then he joined you guys?" Nick asked, she knew the Topkick was stubborn but clearly she'd under estimated.
"Primus no," Ratchet paused; he seemed to be saying that a lot throughout this tale. "It wasn't until I'd provided that sparkling his first upgrade of armor, at that point his systems had strengthened enough for him to chose a designation, it was only logical that he join the ones who had saved his life. Refusing to separate from the sparkling Ironhide grudgingly joined as well."
"I knew he was a softie." She commented with a light smile.
Ratchet nodded in response, "I questioned his reason for joining us some time ago. His answer was…a twisted use of logic. Ironhide loves battle, it is written in his programming to fight. He had concluded that by joining the Autobot's he would be able to see far more interesting battles. Or rather, in his own words, there wasn't an Autobot out there that could beat him in battle, so he joined the side that would provide the most challenge and the strongest enemies to fight and defeat."
Nick smiled lightly with a shake of her head at Ironhide's reasoning, "Yeah I can sorta see why he'd say that… So what ever happened to that sparkling?"
Ratchet seemed to beam with pride then, after all he'd had a close hand in saving the sparkling's life and there after protecting and raising him. "He became the best scout and spy the Autobots have, and Ironhide never did leave his side."
"Bumblebee." She guessed after several seconds, the medic confirmed her statement with a nod.
Glancing back to his work now that the detailed story had been told he scanned the vehicle for damages once more. Registering the problem with the rig and already formulating a procedure to correct the damage the medic proceeded to rip out half the engine. Only to be met with a very loud human shout in response.
"WHAT THE FU-"