Thank you so much for all the awesome and heartwarming reviews! I sincerely hope you like this next chapter! I'll have the next one up either Wednesday or Thursday! Enjoy!
Since they didn't find any criminal worth using her new arrows on, Artemis and Smokescreen decided to use their usual canyon to christen the new weapons. The rest of Wheeljack's visit was spent telling stories and having a race across the desert. It was quite enjoyable for everyone involved, even Ratchet and Optimus enjoyed hearing the fantastic tales from the war. Smokescreen loved hearing the stories about the Wreckers, and Wheeljack was impressed with Smokescreen's accomplishments thus far. While Artemis was happy that Smokescreen was receiving praise, it did give him a bit of an inflated processor.
After showing Artemis how to make her new Anti-Decepticon Arrows, and promising Miko to return soon, Wheeljack left the base, and everyone went off to do their own thing. Artemis continued to show the others some basic defence moves, and Optimus continued to decode the co-ordinates for the Omega Keys. As the excitement began to die down in the base, everyone noticed Smokescreen's boasting had become unbearable. Artemis, who had spent so much time with Wally 'The Fastest Boy Alive' West and Dick 'The Son of Batman' Grayson, that she was more or less used to excessive bragging.
"You should have seen me Art! I was on fire that day!" He told her one afternoon.
"Strange that you didn't rescue me with burn mark all over then." She said innocently, flipping through a sports magazine.
"Figuratively speaking. Seriously though, I think this might be my destiny!"
"To what, speak figuratively?"
"No! To be a great warrior." He exclaimed happily. Artemis glanced up from her magazine.
"If I've learned anything in my travels, it's that nothing, and I do mean nothing, is set in stone, especially your future. Don't count your chickens before they hatch." She warned.
"…What are chickens?"
The Autobots on the other hand did not have this prior experience.
"All I'm saying is, things happen for a reason."
"We get it Smokescreen, you're special and we're lucky to have you." Arcee said dryly before Optimus announced he had decoded another Key's location.
"Last one to the Key has to clean the Energon tanks for a week!" Smokescreen announced happily. Artemis set down her magazine and poked her head over the top of the couch in curiosity.
"Arcee, Bumblebee, prepare to roll out." Optimus commanded. Smokescreen look extremely put out.
"What about me?" He whined. Bulkhead harrumphed at him and folded his arms. "Err, me and Bulk that is." He said sheepishly.
"The two of you will remain here, in the case I am able to decode a subsequent data base before the others return." The Prime told them.
"Optimus is right." Ratchet agreed. "Considering the entire fate of Cybertron is a stake, response time is critical." He pulled the lever for the Groundbridge, and Artemis raised an eyebrow.
"Remind me again what these Keys are." She asked, though no one answered.
"Keep your engines idling kid. Come on Bee. Destiny awaits." Arcee said with a mocking flourish as she and Bee transformed and drove through the bridge. Smokescreen watched them go longingly.
"We call it a pit stop." Bulk said cheerfully, nearly knocking the rookie off his feet by patting him on the back. "We'll get back in the race."
"But the race for what! Why are those Keys so important?" Artemis demanded, finally gaining some attention.
"The Omega Keys are going to be what regenerates our planet." Ratchet told her. "If we can obtain all four Keys and get them to Cybertron, we will be able to heal our planet and return to it." Artemis took a brief moment to process the information.
"So, if you get those Keys, does that mean you'll leave Earth permanently?" She asked, a slightly worried note in her tone. Smokescreen looked at her and then the others.
"Well, yeah, I guess." He said, not knowing what to tell her. To be honest, he didn't really think he wanted to leave her behind.
"Oh. Okay." She mumbled, slowly picking up her magazine.
"Even if we do leave, you could always… text us." Ratchet tried. He may not have made a special connection with a human here, but it still tugged at his Spark strings to see both Smokescreen and Artemis looking so upset.
"Yeah, there's always that." She smiled. It wasn't a big smile, but it was something. Smokescreen wandered over to her, and the pair started up a video game. While trying to fend off Artemis' Street Fighter, the rookie started telling them again about his destiny to become a great warrior on par with Optimus. About a half hour after Ratchet had sent Arcee and Bumblebee on their way, they called for pick-up. The Groundbridge came alive with green light and two figures hobbled in. Artemis paused the game and looked over. Her eyes widened a fraction in worry as she took in the damage the Bots had appeared to have sustained. Bumblebee had a cracked chest plate, which looked about as painful as breaking ribs. Arcee didn't seem to have any injuries, but the way she was walking was not her usual confident stride.
Ratchet closed the Groundbridge behind them, and rushed to Bumblebee's side. Artemis slid off the couch and slowly walked towards them.
"Are you guys alright? What happened?" She asked, standing in front of Arcee.
"Knockout. He ambushed us with a sonic resonance blaster." She explained bitterly. Ratchet helped Bumblebee into some sort of machine that Artemis was unfamiliar with, and Arcee slumped into a nearby chair. "I'm sorry Optimus. It appears the Cons have improved their decoding skills."
"And it appears that now no one currently possesses the means to revive Cybertron." Ratchet pointed out gloomily.
"Obtaining the remaining two Keys still seems the most prudent course of action." Optimus murmured. Smokescreen, looked strangely excited.
"Man, it must have been crazy with Knockout going all sonic!" He said wistfully. Artemis raised an eyebrow at him, worried for where this was going. "I wish I was there! I would have-"
"Would have what? Recovered the Key like you did the first time?" Arcee snapped as Smokescreen punched at the air. Ratchet had started to examine the femme and Artemis was curiously peering upwards at them.
"I don't know? Maybe? I just want us to be firing on all cylinders." The blonde archer touched her forehead exasperatedly. She could tell where this was going. She swiped her hand back and forth in front of her throat, trying to get her guardian to shut up. But just like Wally, when his motor mouth was going, Smokescreen also ignored her warning. "You know, now that the Star Saber's gone. And I have a pretty good track record." He grinned cockily, even jutting out his hip and resting a servo on it. Artemis groaned as Arcee's optic's lit up in anger. The blue and pink Autobot made a furious noise in the back of her throat and slowly stood up. Parts creaked and she rose and she glared at the rookie as she limped back to her quarters. Artemis shook her head.
"What'd I say?" Smokescreen asked confusedly.
"Look Kid, Arcee and Bumblebee aren't slouches, and Optimus managed fine without the Saber for eons." Bulkhead began.
"I doubt he would be hailed as a great warrior if he had to depend on a single weapon in a fight." Artemis added.
"Of course, you wouldn't know that. You've been locked in stasis all this time."
"I know, I want to make up for lost time!" Smokescreen insisted.
"When Optimus says you're ready! You've got to be in this for the long haul. Slow and steady wins the race." Smokescreen groaned and his companion strode over to him.
"Relax. You'll get your chance to be the big star." She said as he lowered his hand for her to hop onto. "I had to wait fifteen years before I got my chance."
"Didn't you hear? I've been locked in a stasis pod for eons! I think I've waited long enough!" He grumbled, taking them back to their game.
"Maybe destiny wants you to wait a little while longer." The blonde shrugged, picking up the controller and resuming the game.
"Whatever happened to nothing's set in stone…" Smokescreen griped.
"I have decoded the next set of coordinates." Optimus announced. Ratchet opened the bridge and Smokescreen started eagerly punching the air again.
"I am so going to get that relic!" He proclaimed, before catching Arcee's optic and calming down. Smokescreen walked up to the glowing green portal, drew his blasters and waited.
"Bulk, you forget something?" Arcee called, pulling his attention away from the bridge. Artemis, who had been mulling around their feet dressed in her normal combat gear, saw her chance and snuck over to Smokescreen.
"Quick, hide me in your chest plate!" She whisper yelled.
"What? No! It's too risky! What if M.E.C.H or Luthor finds you?" He responded at the same volume.
"I'll be with two alien robots who have giant blasters, and this time, I'll have a quiver filled with high grade explosive arrows. I think I'll be in more danger of catching a cold, then Bishop and Luthor catching me. Besides, we haven' been able to field test said high grade explosive arrows!" She pointed out. Unable to come up with a viable argument, and wanting to see the new arrows in action, Smokescreen sighed and swept her into his chest cavity quickly.
"Fine. But you have to promise to be careful!" He muttered into his chest while pretending to stretch. Bulkhead walked up to him, and the pair disappeared through the portal.
They emerged on the other side, blasters drawn and carefully surveying the region. It was a beautiful wooded area elegantly displaying the colours of fall. The portal dissipated and Artemis kicked at the doors concealing her from Bulkhead. The larger green Autobot shot Smokescreen an annoyed look.
"Please tell me you didn't sneak Artemis along."
"I didn't sneak Artemis along." Smokescreen said as he opened the compartment shielding his partner. The blonde smile and jumped down. She gave him a friendly wave and loaded her bow. Bulkhead sighed in irritation. "What? You said not to tell you."
"Stay close and stay alert. If you see a Con, call for back-up." He insisted.
"Gotcha!" They said at the same time as they wandered deeper into the forest.
"I mean it."
"Us too." Artemis called innocently. She moved silently among the trees and her Autobot counterparts make only slightly more noise. The archer was tempted to sigh in contentment. It had been so long since she had been on a real mission with a real team. She missed her old Team greatly at that moment, but she pushed the longing thoughts to the back of her mind and focused on the task at hand. Suddenly, there was a beeping noise, and all three heroes whipped their heads around. "What was that?" She demanded in a low voice. The trees shook as a large blue and gold robot emerged from the bushes.
"One of the last sounds you will ever hear." He smirked. Artemis pulled up her bow and aimed for his right optic.
"Dreadwing." Bulkhead growled. The beeping noise sounded again as the Decepticon transformed into a fighter jet and flew towards the trio. Artemis kept her weapon trained on him as the Bots dropped to the ground. As Artemis turned, she noticed where the beeping was coming from.
"Oh hell." She muttered as Bulkhead stood up and also discovered the source of the mysterious beeping noise.
"We've got to move!" Bulkhead shouted, snatching up Artemis and Smokescreen and sprinting away from the multiple bombs around them. One by one, the explosives went off, deafening the archer slightly. As the heroes ran, the forest started coming down around their heads. Smokescreen cursed as he ran, continuously glancing over at the former Wrecker to make sure Artemis was still securely in his servo. It was due to these constant side glances that the Autobot didn't notice they were fast approaching a cliff. As the final bombs lit up the sky, both robot went tumbling over the side. The landed at the bottom on their fronts, and the blonde went sailing from Bulkhead's servo once he hit the ground. She rolled and stood up, her newest type of arrow still notched in the bow.
"Well that was fun." She hissed as Dreadwing landed with a thud in front of them. The Decepticon sneered at them as Artemis took a few steps towards Smokescreen.
"How pitiful that the Autobots have fallen so far as to need assistance from the human pests." He said condescendingly. He pulled out his blasters and aimed them at the two bigger threats. Artemis smirked at him cockily and let her newest type of arrow fly. It met its target and exploded with enough force to send Dreadwing stumbling backwards.
"Maybe you should considering getting a human of your own." She smirked. Smokescreen turned to where Dreadwing was blown away from and moved to engage.
"Smoke. Take Arty and find the relic! I'll distract Dreadwing." Bulkhead ordered, tossing him the tracker.
"You got it!"
"But I can help!" Artemis protested as Smokescreen picked her up and ran. Dreadwing made to follow them, but the heroine lined another high explosive arrow up and shot it towards him. This time, he was smart enough to move out of its way, though Bulkhead used the distraction wisely and took over. Meanwhile, Smokescreen and Artemis followed the signal to a pile of rocks.
"Better get digging huh?" He asked, gently dropping her to the ground and sinking to his own knees. They moved the heavy stone out of the way until they could see the top of an ornate looking pot.
"That's what's holding the key to reviving Cybertron? A pot? That's it? I was expecting something far cooler." Artemis complained. Smokescreen removed the stones trapping it, accidently blocking Artemis from his view. "Hey!" She cried, trying to get a good look at it as Smokescreen took off the lid, revealing an ancient looking key.
"Destiny." He murmured, completely ignoring Artemis' comments. All of a sudden, there was a rush of wind, and Smokescreen was knocked out cold.
"Hotshot?" Heavy footsteps fell as the blonde ran around the heavy rocks. "Whoever you are, don't move!" She insisted, looking up at the sinister looking robot with feet that reminded Artemis of a pair of heels that Jade used to wear. He looked down at her as she aimed one of her new arrows at him. The red accented robot gave a deep, low laugh that was similar to the one that the cornier super villains had, though it was still slightly terrifying.
"Do you really thing your little toys can stop me, vermin?" He goaded. Artemis narrowed her eyes at him and fired, aiming for his right optic. The blast threw her backwards, dropping her a few feet behind her Autobot protector. The Cybertronian cried out in pain, and disappeared with a rush of air. The archer groaned as she picked herself up off the rock she had landed on and she trudged over to Smokescreen just as Bulkhead arrived.
"Artemis! Are you alright?" He asked concernedly.
"Fine. What about Hotshot?" She asked, looking him over.
"Smokescreen! Wake up!" Bulkhead yelled, making Artemis wince slightly. Her head was starting to pound a little.
"Urgh. What happened?" He groaned as Bulkhead offered him a hand up.
"That's what I want to know." They both looked at Artemis.
"The Omega Key!" Smokescreen cried suddenly. "I had it! Until something hit me from behind."
"Super speedy Con, I think. Found of battle stilettoes."
"Dreadwing must have had back-up." Bulkhead sighed. "Ratchet. We need a Groundbridge."
"I-I told Optimus I'd return with that key." Smokescreen stuttered.
"Sometimes things don't work out the way we want them to. The important thing is learn and move on." Artemis tried, as the portal opened up in front of them.
"Besides, we need all four keys! As long as we hold on to the one we have now, we can always find a way to get them back from Megatron!" Bulkhead added, as they filed through the bridge.
"He was sucker punched. It could have happened to anyone!" Bulkhead explained back at the base to an irate Arcee.
"But it didn't. I was the one who lost the key. Some great warrior I'm turning out to be." Artemis sighed and rolled her eyes as she replenished her stock of arrows, having already received the 'you shouldn't be going on missions' lecture.
"You still don't get it do you?" Arcee asked. "A couple of victories aren't going to make you a legend." She told him harshly.
"Besides, not every mission will end in a success. Do you know how many times my team and I have royally screwed up? Pit, the freaking Justice League gets beaten once in a while!" Artemis pointed out, leaning on Smokescreen's leg.
"We've gained relics and we've lost some. We've also lost friends. We've even lost a world! But we're getting a second chance. Everyone in this room needs to be in sync. This isn't about you, or your destiny!" Artemis grimaced at the pained expression her guardian was wearing and shot Arcee an annoyed look. The blue Autobot was almost worse than Batman about giving out the 'reasons you suck speeches.'
"You have made your point." Optimus said in his deep comforting baritone. Artemis nodded in agreement, and tried to give the rookie's leg a comforting pat, though she doubted he felt it.
"Optimus, he needs to hear this!" Arcee turned back to Smokescreen. "You may become a great warrior one day, and I sincerely hope that you do. But you need to be a team player first!"
"There's nothing I wouldn't do for this team!" Smokescreen growled.
"Then stop trying to be a hero and start being an Autobot."
"Oh, back off will you? So what if he made a mistake?" Artemis hissed. She put on her most fearsome Bat-glare and aimed at Arcee.
"His mistake may have cost us the chance to revive our home!" Arcee snapped, not fazed at all by the human's glare. Smokescreen glared at the ground before speaking.
"You know, maybe I'm just not good enough." And with that, he turned around, took a small jump, knocking Artemis away from him, transformed and went speeding out of the silo.
"Hotshot! Wait!" Artemis yelled, immediately sprinting after him. She knew she would never be able to catch up with him, so she whipped out her cell and phoned him.
"I don't feel like talking." He barked when he picked up. Artemis rolled her eyes and kept running.
"Then don't talk and come pick me up outside the base before someone comes and kidnaps me." She heard him mutter some curses directed at her manipulation, but he came for her just the same. She got in quickly, and they drove in silence while Artemis wished someone had taught her how to comfort a friend in need.
LexCorp was a reputable and trusted company, despite its many criminal connections. As such, it was ridiculously easy for its owner and CEO to get into contact with the President and set up a meeting. Having a charismatic and sneaky CEO meant that once the meeting was set-up, meant there was little that Lex Luthor couldn't achieve.
"Lex! How are you?"
"Fine, thank-you Mr. President. Thank you for seeing me on such short notice." Luthor smiled, offering the leader of the United States a drink.
"No trouble at all, at least not for you! So, what I can do for you?"
"I would like to request a meeting with one of your special agents. A special Agent William Fowler, to be exact." He said with a charming smile.
The desert flew by quickly, while Artemis tried to think of something helpful to say. Nothing was coming to her, so she had texted Robin, M'gann, Zatanna and Kaldur asking for advice, though none had answered her yet. As they passed another cactus, she took a deep breath and opened her mouth to speak, only to be cut off by laser fire. Instead of saying, 'Arcee was wrong you know,' a completely different phrase came out of the blonde's mouth.
"Holy scrap!" She shrieked. Smokescreen transformed and gently tossed Artemis to the side, just like he had earlier that morning.
"You picked the wrong day to mess with me Decepticon." He snarled. He pulled out his blasters, but before he could get out even one shot, several purple circles of energy slammed into and sent him sprawling into the dirt.
"SMOKESCREEN!" Artemis screamed, reaching behind her only to feel awkwardly naked once again. A Decepticon who didn't have any facial features, only a strange blank slate walked slowly over the fallen Autobot. At the same time, the archer ran full tilt towards him. Despite his slower speed, the Con still reached Smokescreen before she did, and the villain grabbed him by the ankles. "GET AWAY FROM HIM!" Artemis screeched, picking up some rocks and hurling them at the faceless Con. He paid them no mind however, and simply dragged her partner towards a Groundbridge. Another Groundbridge opened, and the Autobots raced out of it, running towards the kidnapper.
"Smokescreen! No!" Optimus yelled, reaching the other bridge just as it shut. Artemis' eyes widened in shock as she realized that her newest best friend was gone.
Hope you enjoyed! :D Please tell me what you thought! :D Have an awesome weekend everybody!