A/N: Sorry for the long gap between chapters. I'll be perfectly honest, 2014 was not a good year for me productivity-wise. It was one thing after another for me and my family, and family takes priority for me over everything else. I managed to write whenever I found time, but said time was few and far between. However, everything has been hopefully smoothed over and 2015 should be a much better year.

That said, it was never my intention for this chapter to exist. Originally, this chapter and the next one where combined, but as I wrote it became more and more obvious that it wouldn't work, so I split it in two and created this new chapter. This doesn't mean I've started the next chapter yet-but it DOES mean that it (hopefully) won't take me long to finish as I won't have to cover as much as I would have before the split.

Now, for the story matters.

Trailbreaker and Blaster's actions in this chapter are inspired partially by my two-year-old nephew, who is smart for his age and always saying and doing things, as well as understanding things, that you wouldn't expect from a two-year-old. Also the conversation between Optimus and Trailbreaker is inspired by the fourth book in the Underland Chronicles series, Gregor and the Marks of Secret. It does an excellent job of explaining death in a matter a very young child would understand, and I tried to do the same here.

Again, just like the last one, this is not a happy chapter. We're dealing with the aftermath of the horrible events of the last chapter, so that means angst and dealing with grief and loss and the like. You might want tissues.

Dialogue Guide:

"Radio speak"

Comm speak/Thoughts/Flashbacks/Written Words

"Normal speech"

"Cybertronian"

UNICRON'S SPEECH

Feedback is greatly appreciated as it helps me improve.

Enjoy.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Transformers, or any of the song/movie quotes used in this story. However, the idea for this story does, indeed, belong to me.

HERE'S YOUR TRADITIONAL, FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD REMINDER THIS IS NOT A SLASH FIC.

NOTE: DO NOT READ THIS FIC UNLESS YOU HAVE SEEN DARK OF THE MOON! MAJOR SPOILERS ABOUND…YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

Transformers: Day of the Black Sun

Chapter Twenty-Five-Pieces

Rating: T

Words: 20,676

OPTIMUS SAT AT HIS DESK IN THE quarters he shared with Trailbreaker, his Sparkling curled up against him, supported by one arm as the Autobot leader held him close. Exhausted both physically and mentally from the terrible events earlier that day, Trailbreaker had fallen into recharge snuggled up against his caretaker shortly after Optimus had returned to their quarters, and the Prime didn't have the Spark to move him into his own berth after what had happened. Optimus was exhausted himself, but he knew that he would not be able to recharge at the moment.

After the remaining Autobot and human NEST forces had returned to base and the path back to the main hangar had been cleared enough for those trapped on the other side to get through, Optimus had taken it upon himself to inform them of the full depth of the tragedy that had occurred while they had been fighting the Decepticons. The news of the deaths of Red Alert and the human medic Liam had added to demoralized state the Autobots and their allies were in after the confrontation with Galvatron and the resulting battle against the other Decepticons. It had been a rather subdued group that had gone to assist in finishing clearing the remains of the rubble in the hall to the medbay and removing the signs of Red Alert's battle with Galvatron from the walls and floor, while those who had been injured in the fight went to receive treatment for their wounds.

In the medbay, Ratchet had looked over the Autobots' injuries, making sure the treatment Firestorm had given them was satisfactory. Fortunately, none of the wounds had been serious, and the repairs Firestorm had conducted out in the field had held up relatively well, only requiring a few additional adjustments from Ratchet. As usual, only once the other Autobots had all been looked over, had Optimus finally allowed Ratchet to patch up his own injury. By now, all the repairs were complete and most of the Autobots had returned to their own quarters to rest. Prowl had not left the room where he had laid Red Alert's body-Ratchet had needed to leave the medbay to look over his repairs-and, after he had his own injuries treated, a devastated Scattershot had quietly slipped in to join him.

While they were alone in the room with Red Alert's body, Prowl and Scattershot were not the only ones mourning. A cloud of grief and righteous anger had settled on the base and its occupants, and as far as Optimus could see, there would be no dispersing it any time soon.

Going over both encounters with Galvatron in his mind, through the renewed anger and grief he felt over what had happened, Optimus was more and more troubled. Megatron had always been savage; the memories of the aftermath of countless battles with him were proof enough of that. However, the brutal way Galvatron had killed Red Alert showed a new viciousness in the way the reborn Decepticon leader fought. He had purposefully targeted the Sparks of the Autobots he fought before, but not like this. Never before had he actually so utterly destroyed one, not only extinguishing it but shredding the casing and pulling it out of the Spark Chamber once the victim was already offline.

Adding that savagery to the mental instability Galvatron so obviously had…it was a combination that did not bode well for the Autobots and the humans.

More troubling still was what had happened when Galvatron had been holding Trailbreaker and the other Sparklings hostage. The way he had screamed and clutched at his helm, as if something was tearing his processor apart, before dropping Trailbreaker and fleeing the base. While it had actually worked in the Autobots' favor, with the Sparklings being safe, there was still something about it that disturbed Optimus deeply.

Galvatron had had the advantage. Why did he give it up and flee the base? He had never been one to give up when he had the upper hand, so why did he do it now? And what had caused him the pain he had obviously been in? The Matrix was not providing any insights, except for the still-strong feelings of wrongness that it had first given him during the meeting with Galvatron, so he had to try and figure this out on his own. Unfortunately, it was not an easy task. Optimus vented wearily, no closer to the answers he needed now than he had been when he had first returned to his quarters.

In his protective hold, Trailbreaker stirred slightly, letting out a faint, fearful whimper. Recognizing the signs of a nightmare, Optimus gently readjusted his hold on the Sparkling, taking care to avoid moving the little one's injured left arm. Looking down at Trailbreaker, Optimus felt his Spark ache at both the memory of what had happened to his Sparkling, and the thought of what else could have happened to him if Galvatron hadn't suddenly abandoned his plans. He loved Trailbreaker and knowing just how close he had come to losing his Sparkling truly frightened the Prime. Trailbreaker whimpered pitifully again, curling closer to his caretaker as he instinctively sought comfort in his recharge.

"It is all right, little one," the Prime whispered, shifting his hold a little more so that Trailbreaker was closer to his Spark. "I am here."

The Sparkling settled down as his close proximity to his caretaker's Spark lulled him back into a nightmare-free recharge, and Optimus relaxed back in his chair, relieved that Trailbreaker had calmed without waking. However, the bulk of his thoughts were still troubled and pained.

They had come so close to losing the Sparklings. If it had not been for Red Alert's brave sacrifice and Scattershot's desperate journey to warn the rest of the Autobots of what was happening on the base, they would have lost them. Optimus was relieved that they were safe and knew that he and the others would always remember and be grateful for what Red Alert had done, and Scattershot as well. Still, remembering the look of terror on Trailbreaker's face as Galvatron held him, his whimpers of pain, the sight of the other Sparklings huddling together in fear and the feeling of complete helplessness to do anything to help them without endangering them further, knowing that there was nothing he could do…those memories would haunt Optimus's processor for a long time.

It reminded him too much of what had happened to Elita.

He had been helpless to do anything then, too. He had not been fast enough to save her and had been forced to watch as Shockwave brutally killed her. Optimus had never forgiven himself for that, even though he knew there was nothing he could have done and that Elita would not have blamed him for it at all. The guilt and pain from losing her still existed in his Spark, and today he had come so close to adding to those feelings by losing not only his Sparkling charge, but the other four as well.

The Prime knew he also never would have forgiven himself if the same thing had happened to Trailbreaker or any of the others, and silently thanked Primus that the Sparklings were safe. Thanks to the noble sacrifice of Red Alert, thanks to the amazing speed of Scattershot, they were safe.

Optimus looked back down at his Sparkling, watching as he recharged peacefully; his young faceplate fixed into a solemn expression even in his recharge, he was holding onto one edge of the Prime's armor with his left hand as tightly as his injured arm and the support brace around it would allow. Nothing would ever fill the painful hole in his Spark where Elita used to be, but Trailbreaker's presence helped ease that pain. Every smile, every laugh, and every time the Sparkling's optics lit up and he let out a happy cry of "Opt!" whenever he saw his caretaker, helped bridge a dark chasm that Optimus had once believed he would never be able to cross again.

Elita would have loved you, little one, Optimus thought sorrowfully, feeling the faint echoes of pain from the lost bond in his Spark. She would have loved you.

He watched Trailbreaker recharge for a long moment, before turning his attention back to what the Autobots were going to face soon. Diligently he buried both the old pain from his lost bond with Elita and the new pain he felt from the day's earlier events deep into his mind and Spark, making a mental note to not tell Ratchet about doing so. The last time he had admitting to doing such a thing to his old friend, the medic had whacked him upside the helm and given him a rather biting lecture about how doing so was not healthy in the slightest.

"You might be Prime, but if you keep everything bottled up inside, you're going to stress yourself farther than you can handle," Ratchet had warned with genuine concern.

Optimus knew that Ratchet was right, but the other Autobots, and their human allies, looked to him for leadership, for guidance, for protection. They trusted him to bring them safely through this crisis, and he would not let them down. He could not let his own pain and self-doubts about the recent events, about any events, get in the way of what he knew he needed to do. He looked back at Trailbreaker, who was still soundly recharging. Too many depended on him for that.

Standing up from his chair, Optimus walked over to Trailbreaker's berth, reaching into it and grabbing the Sparkling's blanket. Straightening up, he tucked the blanket around the Sparkling as he returned to his desk, pulling a datapad out of it as he sat back down. He took a moment to make sure Trailbreaker was still held securely with his injured arm in a position where it couldn't be bumped or jarred by accident.

Optimus knew what needed to be done.

Galvatron had issued them a challenge, and the Autobots and their allies would rise to meet it.

The Prime focused his attention on the datapad he held in his right hand and got to work.

It was getting progressively later in the night, he needed to recharge, but Prowl had no intention of leaving his silent vigil over Red Alert's body. Not yet.

Red Alert deserved a guard, after what he had done. He had willingly sacrificed himself to save the Sparklings, and Prowl had every intention of honoring that choice by continuing to keep watch over his fallen friend during the night.

But Primus, it hurt.

It hurt, seeing one of his closest friends lying there, seeing Red Alert offlined in such a brutal way. Paranoid, perpetually anxious Red Alert. But he had been brave, too-doing his best to oversee the security of the base, fighting against the Decepticons, taking on the task of helping a former Decepticon become an Autobot, facing down Galvatron head-on in order to protect the five little Sparklings. He'd been a good friend, a good mentor, a good soldier. He didn't deserve what Galvatron had done to him.

So Prowl would continue to keep watch, honoring his friend's sacrifice by silently staying by his side one last time.

"This was my fault."

Prowl turned his head, momentarily surprised until he focused on Scattershot, who was sitting miserably in one corner. The former Decepticon had been so quiet since he had slipped into the room earlier that Prowl had almost forgotten he was there, until he had heard Scattershot's grief-filled whisper.

"Why would you say that?" Prowl asked quietly.

"I was so scared…" Scattershot wrapped his arms around his legs, staring at the floor. He looked so much like a hurt, lost Youngling that Prowl felt a rush of sympathy for the former Decepticon. "I should have stayed. But I was too scared, so when he told me to go get help, when he pushed me in the direction of that window… I…I ran. But…but… If I had been braver, he wouldn't have told me to go. If I stayed, I could have helped him, and maybe…"

Prowl crossed the distance to where Scattershot was sitting, and knelt next to him, putting a hand on the former Decepticon's shoulder. Scattershot looked up at him, and Prowl could see his own grief and pain over Red Alert's death reflected in the younger mech's optics. The Second-in-Command realized then that Scattershot was in just as much pain as he was. Red Alert had been his mentor, and even though they had only been working together a few short Earth weeks, the two had become good friends. Prowl had become friends with the younger mech as well, having spent a fair amount of time working with him and Red Alert during their various training exercises, and he had seen just how much Scattershot had looked up to his mentor. Losing him had struck a devastating blow to the younger mech, who had only recently started to come out of his nervous attitude around the others thanks to Red Alert's patient mentoring. It had reopened the old mental wounds Scattershot carried from the losses he had dealt with before-both the long-ago loss of his creators and his relatively recent exile from the only home he'd had since Younglinghood. Prowl silently berated himself for not realizing this sooner; he knew that while he preferred to deal with loss and emotional troubles on his own, most of the others did not, and needed help to work through it.

Well, he would provide that help now.

"It was not your fault," Prowl said firmly. "Red Alert didn't tell you to go and get help because you were afraid, he told you to do so because he knew it was the only way Galvatron could be stopped. If you had stayed, Galvatron most likely would have killed you, too. There would have been no one to warn us of what was happening, and the Sparklings would have been lost."

Scattershot's optics widened slightly. It was obvious he had not thought about what the full ramifications could have been if he had stayed to fight Galvatron instead of going to warn the Autobots about what was happening, like Red Alert had ordered him to.

Seeing this, Prowl's voice softened, and he even offered the younger mech a small smile. "Thanks to you, we knew what was going on, and we were able to get back in time to save the Sparklings. You're the reason they're all safe, Scattershot."

Scattershot looked down, obviously thinking over what the older Autobot had said for a minute, then looked back up at Prowl. It was plain to see that the former Decepticon was still visibly upset about the events, but at least he no longer seemed to be blaming himself for what had happened to Red Alert. "I know I didn't know him for very long, sir, but he helped me a lot since he became my mentor and…I miss him."

"I know. So do I. It is all right to grieve over what happened," Prowl told the younger mech quietly. "But Red Alert sacrificed himself to save the Sparklings. He knew it would happen, yet he did it anyway. He was very brave, and we should honor his memory by remembering why he did what he did."

Scattershot raised his head, a determination present in his expression that hadn't been there before. "I will, sir. I always will."

Silence fell in the room for a minute as both mechs returned to thinking over the recent events.

Prowl wasn't sure exactly why he decided to say what he did then without asking Optimus Prime for permission first. However, he knew it was the right thing to do, and he had a feeling that Red Alert would approve of it whole-heartedly. Something told him that Optimus would also agree with what he was about to do and say. "I know Red Alert was a good mentor to you, and you learned a great deal from him. I also know he would not want you to be left on your own now." He looked back at Scattershot with an uncharacteristic hesitance. "I haven't been a mentor for quite some time, though."

Scattershot's head shot up. He looked at Prowl, the faint hope surfacing in his optics amid the pain and grief he was still feeling over the loss of his first mentor more than enough to show Prowl that the younger mech had been afraid of being left alone, with no mentor, even if he had not realized that until Prowl had mentioned it. "Really, sir? You…you would do that?"

"If you would like, yes," Prowl said with a small nod.

"Yes! I…I mean…I would, sir," Scattershot replied gratefully. "Thank you."

Prowl inclined his head respectfully towards the younger mech, and then returned his attention to his silent vigil over Red Alert, aware of Scattershot getting to his feet and coming to stand by his new mentor, so that he could do the same.

Even though the atmosphere in the room was still one of subdued grief and pain, Prowl felt that, at least for now, steps had been taken to begin patching the hole the loss of Red Alert had driven through the Autobots and their human allies. Not just for him, but for Scattershot as well.

They would grieve for him, but they would also remember his sacrifice, they would respect his choice, and they would honor him for what he had done.

And Prowl knew that was just what Red Alert would want.

Sideswipe was still awake. His left arm was still somewhat sore from where the blade weapon integrated into it had been shorn off, the day's events were still too fresh in his processor for him to even try to attempt to recharge, and, most importantly, he wanted, needed to keep watch over Fireflight. He couldn't exactly do that if he was recharging, now could he?

Lying on his side with his head propped up on his uninjured arm, the silver-armored mech watched Fireflight recharge. The Sparkling was curled up next to him, covered by a thermal blanket, arms wrapped tightly around his stuffed owl as he recharged soundly. He looked peaceful enough, but Sideswipe knew that what had happened with Galvatron had scared Fireflight just as much as it had the other Sparklings, even though he hadn't acted like it at the time.

Yes, he hadn't been crying once Galvatron had fled and Sideswipe had gotten to him, and he'd only let out a few whines of protest when Ratchet had fixed the dents in his arm. The fact that Galvatron was gone and his caretaker was there seemed to be more than enough to calm him down then, but once everything had more or less settled down and Sideswipe had taken Fireflight back to their quarters for the night, the Sparkling's actual terror over what had happened became apparent. He'd already woken from recharge three times, sobbing and crying out in fear.

Each time, Sideswipe was there, gently soothing the Sparkling back into recharge with soft words of reassurance and a comforting hand on his tiny helm. He hated seeing Fireflight so upset. It made his Spark ache, seeing his Sparkling terrified like that. Combined with the memory of what had happened, what had nearly happened, it all made him even more reluctant to leave the Sparkling, even by doing something as necessary as recharging himself.

As he watched Fireflight recharge, Sideswipe's thoughts drifted back to the night that Blaster had been taken by the Decepticons. He remembered the sickening fear he had felt at the thought of Fireflight being taken too, how desperate he had been to insure that never happened.

Yet it had almost happened today.

He'd almost lost him. Primus, he'd almost lost Fireflight. The thought of what could have happened if things had turned out differently haunted him. But Scattershot had gotten to them in time to warn them of what was going on back at the base. Then Red Alert had willingly sacrificed himself to protect the Sparklings, buying the time the other Autobots had needed to be able to get back to the base in time to stop Galvatron from taking the Sparklings away. The loss of the red-armored mech hurt, but Sideswipe knew that he, like the other Autobots that were Sparkling caretakers, would always be grateful to Red Alert for his choice.

Thank you, Red Alert, Sideswipe thought, silently honoring the fallen Autobot. Thank you.

Next to him, Fireflight clicked a few times, hugging his owl plush tighter and burying his faceplate against it. Sideswipe watched him attentively, but the Sparkling didn't come out of recharge, and the silver mech relaxed. Not a nightmare this time, then. That was good. It was a sign that Fireflight was finally calming down, the earlier events of that day held back by his Caretaker's comforting presence.

"Don't worry, little Fireball," Sideswipe murmured quietly. "I'm not going to let anything like that happen to you ever again."

On the other side of the room, Sunstreaker groggily looked up from his berth, having been awakened from his own recharge by Sideswipe's voice, despite his twin's attempt to be quiet. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing, Sunny. Go back to recharge," Sideswipe replied, reaching over and carefully readjusting the blanket around Fireflight, feeling flash of guilt-he hadn't meant to wake his brother up.

Sunstreaker continued looking over at him, a look of concern on his faceplate. "Is Fire okay?"

"He's fine, at least right now. He's recharging, finally."

"That's good." Sunstreaker tilted his head to one side, considering his twin carefully. "You should get some recharge, too, Sideswipe. You're exhausted."

Sideswipe shook his head. "I can't." His voice was rough with emotion, and he looked back down at Fireflight. "You know I can't."

Sunstreaker partially sat up, mirroring his brother's posture by resting his head in one hand. "Yes, I know why you think you can't. But, Sides, you know you can better protect him if you're rested. You told me that Prime said a battle's coming-our last stand. What good will you be if you're too tired to fight, how will you protect Fireflight then? You need to recharge."

The silver-armored mech let out a weary, frustrated vent. He knew Sunstreaker was right. He was exhausted, and the idea of recharging was appealing, but still…

"Don't worry." Sunstreaker was looking at him, his optics warm with understanding. "I won't let anything happen to Fireflight, either. You know that. Besides, even if they were to break into the base again tonight, no 'con is stupid enough to try anything with the two of us in here. Get some rest, Sides."

Feeling grateful at his brother's promise, Sideswipe smiled tiredly, holding up a hand as he teasingly held off any further 'commands' from his brother. "Alright, Alright. Point taken, Sunny. I'll recharge."

"Good," Sunstreaker said with satisfaction, flopping back down onto his berth with a grunt. "See you in the morning."

"Technically, it is morning," Sideswipe said, feeling a tiny bit of his normal humor return as he lowered himself down onto his berth.

"I mean proper morning, when the sun is up." Sunstreaker waved a hand half-heartedly in his brother's direction. "Good night."

"Good night." Sideswipe protectively draped an arm around Fireflight, smiling slightly as the Sparkling let out a few more clicks and snuggled closer to him in his recharge. Feeling more at ease at last, the silver mech shuttered his optics and allowed himself to finally drift into a recharge of his own.

Ratchet put the datapad he had been working with on his desk. Venting wearily, he shuttered his optics, rubbing his forehelm in frustration. He was no closer to finding a way to heal the damage to Chromia's Spark now than he had been back when he had first started trying to find one. It was looking more and more like there was truly nothing he could do to help her.

But Pit if I'm going to just give up, Ratchet thought fiercely, unshuttering his optics and glaring at the datapad for a moment before he leaned back in his chair. He was exhausted; the trying events of the day had finally seemed to have caught up with him, despite his attempts to hold them back as he worked. Maybe I'll be able to find a solution after I get some more recharge.

The medic picked the datapad back up, turned it off, then put it in one of the drawers in his desk. He groaned softly as he got to his feet, taking a moment to stretch out the stiffness in his frame; he'd been sitting in that chair for hours, something that was not comfortable in the least, even for an Autobot like him who spent most of his time working.

Taking care to be quiet, Ratchet looked into the Sparkling berth he had pulled closer to his desk. A faint, tired smile came to the medic's faceplate when he saw Beachcomber and First Aid curled up together, both Sparklings soundly in recharge.

After everything had settled down as far as it could after what had happened and the medbay had emptied out-Firestorm had finally been given a quarters of his own, and Arcee and Chromia had as well, so it was back to being just him and his Sparklings in here-Ratchet had immediately begun to comfort Beachcomber and First Aid, sitting at his desk and holding both Sparklings close. He took care to keep them close to his Spark, quietly reassuring them that everything was fine, and that they were safe.

After a while, they had both calmed down enough to start to fall into recharge, and Ratchet had pulled one of their berths closer to his desk, sitting both of them inside, tucking them into their blankets. He would have continued to hold them, but it was getting more and more difficult to hold both of them at once-Beachcomber, like Trailbreaker, seemed to be getting bigger every day-and he would not hold one and not the other when they were both so upset; that would not help the matter at all. By moving the berth closer to his desk, he could keep an optic on them while he worked, but more importantly, he would be close enough that his presence would still make them feel safe. He also knew that letting them recharge in the same berth would comfort them. They were brothers, after all, and they had always been close, even back when he had first taken them in as tiny Hatchlings.

The two Sparklings had remained in the berth while Ratchet had worked. Beachcomber and First Aid's close proximity to each other combined with the knowledge that their caretaker was nearby allowed them to recharge on their own, just as Ratchet had hoped. They'd woken up a few times from nightmares, yes, but Ratchet had expertly soothed them back into recharge each time, and they were both now in what seemed to be a thankfully nightmare-free recharge.

Ratchet stood there, watching his Sparklings recharge for a moment. The medic knew how close he had come to losing them, just like he had lost Jolt, and it shook him deeply. He remembered the terror and helplessness he had felt when he had been locked in the medbay and come to the realization that the Sparklings were in danger. Galvatron could have taken them all, and he would have been able to do nothing to stop him, trapped in the medbay with his only way out being the time-consuming task of cutting through the door.

But it had not happened. Scattershot had warned Optimus and Red Alert had bought the Autobot leader and those with him the time they needed to get back to save the Sparklings. Even though it had cost the red mech his life, his Spark.

One of the medic's hands clenched into a fist. He had seen the damage done to Red Alert, had seen what Galvatron had done to his Spark chamber, and the sight had filled him with a mixture of sorrow, horror, disgust, and anger, and those emotions came back now as he thought about what had happened. He had seen plenty of terrible things during the war, but nothing like this. Sparks were lost, faded out, extinguished. As terrible as it was, it happened and was an unavoidable fact of life, especially during a war. However, complete mutilation of the Spark and Spark chamber, especially after the Spark had been extinguished, had never happened before, not in this way.

Well, yes, Optimus had destroyed the Spark of the Fallen; he had crushed it, but he had had no other choice and had been haunted by what he had done long after that despite the fact it had needed to be done to save the planet.

But this was different, vastly different. Purposefully doing it, with the intention of causing the victim as much pain as possible, then further mutilating their body once they were gone…

It was unthinkable. Inexcusable. Even the Decepticons, who valued no lives save their own, had never physically touched the Spark chambers of the Autobots they killed at any time during the war. Shot at or otherwise targeted with other ranged weaponry, yes, but never physically touched. It was an instinctive taboo so ingrained into Cybertronians as a whole that it had never happened, despite the Decepticons' lack of anything resembling morals. Once the Spark was extinguished, the offline had been left alone.

Now, things had changed, and it was horrifying. If this was what Galvatron was capable of, what he was willing to do to get what he wanted…

Shaking his head slightly, Ratchet let out a soft vent, focusing his thoughts away from what had been done and onto what could be done to at least try to right the wrong that had occurred.

He would see to it that the damage done to Red Alert's frame would be repaired, even though there was nothing that could be done for his Spark chamber or casing. He had done the same for every fallen Autobot, so that they could be laid to rest relatively whole. It was his way of paying respect to those he could not save.

Red Alert deserved it. He had died so that the Sparklings would be safe, and Ratchet would honor him by repairing his body so that he would not be put to rest bearing the scars of what had offlined him.

Reaching down into the berth, Ratchet gently picked up first Beachcomber, then First Aid, taking care to keep them both wrapped up in their blankets. Beachcomber, ever the sound recharger, didn't even stir, remaining in a deep recharge, but First Aid let out a few quiet clicks, unshuttering his optics and looking up at his caretaker sleepily as the medic went through the doorway next to his desk that led to the one-time storage closet that, being just large enough for a desk, chair, his berth, and two Sparkling berths with a small amount of walking space between- had been converted into his part-office-part-berthroom.

"Go back to recharge, First Aid," Ratchet soothed gently as he sat down on his berth, shifting his hold on the two Sparklings so they were secure against him, picking a few Sparkling toys off his berth and tossing them to one side before reaching over and flicking on the light next to his berth. He set it to a slight dimness that would prevent it from interfering with both his recharge and the Sparklings' but allowed for him to see easily enough without having to adjust his optics, just in case he needed to get up for any reason. "I'm right here."

He waited until First Aid had shuttered his optics and obviously gone back to recharge, before lying partially down and settling Beachcomber and First Aid next to him, pointedly ignoring the fact that their berths were against the opposite wall of the small room. Ratchet watched them for a minute, then he laid fully back onto the berth, activating his own recharge cycle so that he could be fully rested for what the next day would bring.

Bumblebee was used to getting up in the middle of the night. It was a frequent occurrence when raising a Sparkling, even when said Sparkling normally recharged through the night now. There were the occasional nightmares and blankets kicked off-resulting in a cold Sparkling and therefore an awake and cranky Sparkling-and nighttime Energon feedings, though those very rarely happened now.

So when he once again came out of recharge to the sound of Blaster whimpering fearfully, the young Autobot unhesitatingly sat up, ignoring his own exhaustion as he gently adjusted his hold on the Sparkling, making sure Blaster was still wrapped in his blankets. Bumblebee had decided to let Blaster recharge with him that night, owing to the fact that Blaster was still badly scared from what had happened earlier and his full-fledged separation anxiety had returned as a result. He had flat-out refused to let Bumblebee sit him in his own berth once it was his recharge time, crying pitifully and clinging to his caretaker desperately when the scout had gotten near it. Bumblebee didn't blame the Sparkling for that. Not in the slightest. He had been pretty badly shaken by what Galvatron had done himself and wanted to keep Blaster close. It comforted both of them.

When he had entered the Sparkling room with the others and had seen Galvatron standing there, in-between the Autobots and their Sparkling charges, it had scared him. A lot. He had been terrified that he was going to lose Blaster again, only this time it would have been much worse, not only because he had been there and been unable to do anything to prevent it, but because Galvatron had been threatening all of the Sparklings, not just his. Fortunately, the Sparklings had been spared this time. Bumblebee didn't know what had made Galvatron suddenly turn and run, but he was grateful he had.

Blaster whimpered again, unshuttering his optics and looking up at Bumblebee blearily. Bumblebee made soft shushing sounds as he got up from his berth, hiding a faint wince as he did so. He might not have been badly injured, but he had still been knocked around a lot in the fight with the Decepticons. His entire frame ached, and the patched injury on his right side was still sore. At least he hadn't fought with Howlback again. He had a feeling he would have been more injured if he had-she seemed to really have it in for him for what he had done to Soundwave. He pushed the thoughts of the battle from his processor as he paced back and forth in front of his berth, continuing to soothe Blaster, gently rubbing small circles on the Sparkling's back with one hand. Usually, he would play music through his radio to calm Blaster down, but he couldn't right now. He was taking care to remain relatively quiet so he wouldn't disturb the other occupants of the room.

The room he was currently in was a different one than the quarters he'd had the last time he'd stayed on the base for a few days. As he and Blaster weren't the only ones staying in it this time, the room was bigger, with enough space for all its occupants. Bumblebee's berth was on the far right wall, close to the door, Blaster's Sparkling berth next to it. Next to the desk, two smaller berths had been set up for Wheelie and Brains; both former Decepticons were still soundly recharging. On the left side of the room, on the other side of the desk, Sam and Carly slept on another berth, which had been modified to serve as a human bed, complete with human-made pillows and blankets. Buster was curled up on a rug next to the berth, the large dog asleep like all of the other occupants of the room except for Bumblebee and Blaster.

Bumblebee paused in his pacing and looked over at Sam and Carly. After the fear of what had nearly happened to the Sparklings had died down, he had been hit-full force by worry for the other members of his family. He had been utterly relieved when the rubble in the medbay hall had finally been cleared and Sam, closely followed by Carly, Wheelie, and Brains, had run though to him. He had been immensely grateful that they hadn't been hurt, though he had felt bad about not trying to get through to them sooner and had tried to apologize for it. Sam, however, had had none of that.

"Blaster was upset and you had to comfort him, and see to him first. Don't you apologize for that, Bee," Sam had told him firmly.

He was relieved that Sam wasn't upset with him for not trying to get through the rubble to the other side of the base on his own, but remembering his friend's understanding made Bumblebee feel more than a little guilty. He hadn't spent much time with Sam lately, with what was going on with the Decepticons combined with the fact that he needed to spend most of his free time taking care of Blaster- though he and Sam had already talked about that and Bumblebee knew that Sam was perfectly fine with the fact that the scout needed to give more attention to the Sparkling due to his very young age. All in all, both Bumblebee and Sam had been too busy working in their own particular jobs at NEST to just spend some time together as friends and family.

It wasn't like the last time he'd been on duty at NEST, though. At least this time, he was living with his human family, and he still saw Sam, and the other members of his family, on a daily basis, and spent time with them, however little amount of time that was. The young Autobot knew Sam understood why things were different, and he did too. Right now they needed to focus on beating the Decepticons and taking down Unicron, even though that meant they didn't see each other much aside from mornings and evenings. They didn't have to say anything to each other about it; they just knew that was how it needed to be.

Bumblebee knew he was lucky to have Sam for a best friend and brother. The human understood him better than he did himself, sometimes. Once things calmed back down, maybe they could spend some time together then, hanging out and driving around, just like they used to do.

But he would talk to Sam about the possibility of doing that later. Right now, Blaster needed him.

Blaster let out another quiet whine, burying his face against his caretaker's armor, and Bumblebee looked back down at the Sparkling, letting out another series of soft shushing noises. He gently maneuvered him closer to his Spark as he adjusted the blankets around him, then looked over his shoulder towards the door.

Maybe a walk outside in the hall would help settle Blaster. And, if he went to the main hangar, he would be able to play music for him without worrying about waking anyone up. His mind made up, Bumblebee turned and walked towards the door, opening it and closing it behind him after he walked through, taking care to be quiet. Although he had a feeling that he might not be the only Autobot awake at this hour, he didn't want to disturb those who were recharging. He looked from one end of the hall to the other, then set off in the direction of the main hangar. Blaster's whimpers faded as the young Autobot headed towards the main hangar, replaced by soft clicks, showing a relieved Bumblebee that a walk had been just what the Sparkling had needed.

The first thing he noticed when he entered the main hangar was that it was much colder in there than it usually was. He immediately wrapped Blaster tighter in his blankets to keep him warm, though he couldn't help looking around curiously to find out where the cold air was coming from. It didn't take him long to discover the source-the gaping hole in the ceiling of the hall leading to the medbay and Sparkling room. It had been covered as much as it could be, with a large tarp, but that wasn't enough to keep the cold air from outside the base from coming in anyway. At least it was keeping out the rain.

As he looked over the damage done to the ceiling, Bumblebee was suddenly and unexpectedly hit full-force by what had happened in that hallway. His antennae flattened and his doorwings drooped as pain at the loss cut through his Spark. Red Alert was gone. He was gone. He had been one of the Autobots that Bumblebee had known since he had been very small, and the loss stung deeply. It wasn't the same kind of pained loss that he had felt when Ironhide had died, but still, Red Alert had been his friend. Bumblebee remembered the patrols he had gone on with Red Alert and Prowl, back when he and his family had just moved to Ohio, and how Red Alert had been kind, helpful, and encouraging on those patrols, albeit in his unique, anxious way. And now he was dead, his Spark torn out by Galvatron.

He'd been too caught up in the comforting of Blaster and his worry for the safety of his family to process it earlier, but now, he was hit with the reality of what had happened, and hit hard. Bumblebee just barely suppressed a pained whine at the memory of seeing Red Alert laying there, his Spark gone.

The feeling of a tiny hand on his chassis brought his attention back to Blaster. The little Sparkling was looking up at him, an expression of innocent concern on his faceplate. He could sense that Bumblebee was upset and hurting about something, and he was worried. He didn't like seeing his caretaker so sad.

"Bee?" Blaster asked hesitantly. The Sparkling's voice was timid and unsure, as he was still upset himself, but the innocent worry he was feeling for his caretaker was audible as well.

With a soft, comforting chirp, Bumblebee lifted Blaster a little higher in his arms, holding him close. Blaster let out a faint squeak, followed by a few contented clicks as he snuggled closer to his caretaker in response to the hug, affectionately rubbing a cheek against the scout's shoulder armor before resting his head against it. Bumblebee watched him, the loving smile he could not show with his faceplates visible in his optics. He hadn't meant to make Blaster worry-he was upset enough as it was-but still, the tiny Sparkling's concern for him had warmed his Spark, cutting through the pain and grief he had been feeling, allowing him to start to come to terms with what had happened. His grief was still there, of course, but it had lost most of its sharp, painful edge. Blaster had shown him what he had needed to see in order for that to happen.

This was what Red Alert had died for. He'd willingly given his life to save the Sparklings. And while losing him still hurt and Bumblebee knew he would still be upset about it for some time, he also knew that he would always be grateful to the older mech for what he'd done.

The young scout tucked a loose corner of one of Blaster's blankets back around his Sparkling before turning away from the damaged hallway and making his way to the other side of the hangar, heading towards an Autobot-sized chair that had been left against one wall, where he could sit and finish calming Blaster back into recharge.

The next day dawned cold and wet, with the sky still overcast, promising even more rain. Most of the residents of the base were not up and about yet, while those who were went about their tasks quietly. The atmosphere in the NEST base was still subdued, but there was a distinct change in it from what it had been the previous night. A hint of determination had joined the grief and righteous anger-the determination to do whatever was necessary to stop Galvatron and the Decepticons once and for all.

Now they just had to figure out what exactly they needed to do to accomplish that.

In the quarters she shared with her older sister, Arcee finally gave up trying to go back into recharge and got up off of her berth-with some difficulty as she was still sore from the injuries she had received in the battle yesterday-and walked over to one of the nearby cabinets to get some Energon. Chromia was still in recharge, but the pink-armored femme pulled out a second Energon cube for her, so it would be there for her when she woke up.

Taking her Energon with her, Arcee walked over to the single window in the room. She vented quietly, then lifted the cube up and sipped a little bit of the Energon as she looked out at the gloomy gray sky, which perfectly reflected the mood of all those on the base after what had happened. It wasn't truly dark outside anymore, but it was still relatively early. The pink-armored femme still felt physically tired, emotionally drained, and the healing injuries she bore were making themselves known by annoyingly sending small aches through her frame at regular intervals.

Even though she had taken part in the training with the others once Ratchet had given her the clear to return to regular duty, the battle yesterday had taken more out of her than she had thought it would. She hadn't been so worn down from a fight with the Decepticons in a very long time, and it wasn't something she enjoyed experiencing. Then again, this had been the first real battle she had taken part in since she and Chromia had returned to the Autobots-it seemed she was more out of practice than she had thought, even with all of the training sessions she had taken part in. The battle that had followed after their ill-fated meeting with Galvatron and the other Decepticons had been meant to demoralize them, too, and it had done exactly that.

And then there was what had happened to poor Red Alert…

Not all of the injuries that the Autobots and their human friends were suffering from in the aftermath of yesterday's events were physical.

With a little shake of her head, Arcee decided to take her Energon with her and go to the main hangar-the walk there would serve the purpose of at least beginning to exercise the aches out of her frame, as well as temporarily keep her processor off of what had happened yesterday at the base while she and the others had been gone. Arcee knew that she would need to face that pain eventually, they all would, but she didn't want to do so alone.

Taking care to be quiet, Arcee made her way over to the door; she did not want to run the risk of it waking Chromia up. Despite the fact that Chromia seemed to be much better and had been released to light duty, Arcee could still sense that something was off with her sister's health. However, every time she tried to bring it up, Chromia would shake her head and tell Arcee that there was nothing to worry about. Arcee didn't really believe that, but respected her older sister's desire not to talk about whatever the problem actually was. Regardless, Chromia still needed to take it easy-again Ratchet's orders-and Arcee would not disrupt that by accidently disturbing her recharge.

The pink-armored femme opened the door just as another Autobot was walking by. She smiled faintly when she saw who it was.

"Morning, Bumblebee."

Huh? Oh, hi, Arcee, Bumblebee greeted. His attention had been on Blaster, who was safe in the young scout's hold, and now there was a look of embarrassed worry on his faceplate as he looked at her. I was trying to be quiet walking down the hall, but…I didn't wake you up, did I? I didn't mean to. I'm sorry if I did. Did I wake Chromia up?

"I wasn't recharging. I woke up a while ago and couldn't fall back into recharge. You didn't wake me up, don't worry." She looked back over her shoulder, towards Chromia's berth and saw that her sister was still in recharge. "And you didn't wake Chromia, either. She's still recharging." Arcee returned her attention to her friend, noting with concern that he looked absolutely exhausted. "What are you doing up so early?"

Blaster woke up again, just a little bit ago. He was upset and his empty tanks weren't helping. He hasn't had the most peaceful night. Intense worry was visible in his optics as Bumblebee looked down at the Sparkling he was holding. The young scout was holding Blaster securely in one arm; the tiny Sparkling was wrapped up in his light blue blanket, holding an Energon bottle with both hands as he drank from it. He had the timid expression on his faceplate that Arcee had learned meant he was having separation anxiety-he was no doubt still upset about yesterday's events. Blaster also looked very tired, and it was now painfully obvious to Arcee that neither Bumblebee nor Blaster had gotten much recharge last night. However, the Sparkling's optics lit up when he saw Arcee, and he pulled the bottle out of his mouth so he could let out a happy squeak of greeting.

"Hi, Cee!"

"Hello, Blaster," Arcee said, smiling.

Blaster moved his head in an attempt to look around her into her quarters, then looked back up at her, then Bumblebee, then back at her again, a look of innocent curiosity on his faceplate as he tilted his head to one side. "Where Mia?"

"She's recharging, Sweetspark," Arcee explained, stepping out of her quarters and shutting the door behind her. "You can see her when she wakes up later."

"'kay," Blaster agreed, snuggling back against Bumblebee as he resumed drinking from his bottle.

Arcee smiled at the Sparkling again, then looked back at Bumblebee, her expression shifting into one of concern. "How is he?" She asked softly.

Bumblebee vented sadly. For the most part? Scared. Upset. He doesn't want me to put him down for very long, and he kept waking up last night. But it's not as bad as it was last time. At least this time…this time he wasn't actually taken, so while he's still scared and upset, he's not as scared or upset because he knows he's still safe and with me.

"That's good," Arcee replied.

I know. And I'm happy that Blaster is safe. I don't know what I would've done if…well, I'm trying not to think about it. But… He looked at her, sorrow visible in his optics. I…I do keep thinking about what happened to Red Alert. I mean, I'm grateful Blaster wasn't taken this time and that the other Sparklings are safe, and I told myself last night that I would remember that was why he did it…but still…it's hard to know that he's really gone.

Seeing the normally cheerful, upbeat Bumblebee so worried about Blaster and downcast about the previous day's events made Arcee feel a rush of sympathy alongside the own worry and sorrow she felt for little Blaster and the other Sparklings, and for what had happened to Red Alert. She put a hand on Bumblebee's arm. "I know, Bumblebee."

They were both quiet for a moment, then Arcee withdrew her hand from Bumblebee's arm. She thought she saw a brief flash of shyness and-a hint of self directed frustration?- in Bumblebee's optics when she did so, but it was gone so quickly she assumed she'd just been imagining things. She offered her friend a small smile.

"I'm going to the main hangar-I'm hoping the walk there will help ease the aches from my injuries. Do you want to come with me?"

Bumblebee perked up slightly at her offer. Sure. I'm still pretty sore myself; maybe it'll help me, too. He shifted his hold on Blaster, looking at the little Sparkling, who was holding the now-empty Energon bottle out at arm's length and studying it closely for some reason that only made sense to his young processor. And maybe a walk will help tire Blaster into back into recharge now that he's had some Energon.

"You look like you could use an extra hour or two of recharge yourself," Arcee commented, looking over her friend in concern. The exhaustion she could see in Bumblebee's expression and in the way he carried himself worried her a little.

I could. And I admit it would be nice. Bumblebee shook his head. But I'm used to going without recharge for a while. It's part of the package deal of raising a Sparkling, you know.

Arcee laughed quietly as she headed down the hall, Bumblebee walking beside her, welcoming the humor, as small as it was, as it briefly cut through the atmosphere of sorrow and anger that the base was wrapped up in. Bumblebee had always been able to cheer her up and make her laugh, even in gloomy situations like the one the Autobots were currently in. The fact that he could always see the bright side of things even when he himself was sad was one of the traits she most liked about him.

The two of them conversed quietly about random topics as they made their way to the main hangar, though Arcee knew that, like her, Bumblebee was actually thinking about what the Autobots were going to do to strike back against the Decepticons. However, neither of them voiced their thoughts on the matter, not wanting to discuss that particular topic around Blaster.

The thought of the approaching final stand was a source of anxiety and worry for the older Autobots, and there was no way they would subject any of the Sparklings to that, especially after what had happened last night.

An hour or so after the base began to fill with the sounds signifying that most, if not all, of its inhabitants were now awake, Optimus was sitting at his desk once again, looking over the datapad he had worked on late into the night. Trailbreaker was sitting on his lap, his blanket draped around his shoulders, drinking his morning Energon-a bit awkwardly seeing as how he could only hold the bottle with one hand, though he was somehow managing not to spill it. He had been very quiet since waking up, and kept looking up at his caretaker, as if he was trying to make sure he was still there. Every time that happened, Optimus would give the Sparkling a faint, reassuring smile.

The Autobot leader had stayed up relatively late, working to figure out the best way to combat the Decepticons, only stopping on it long enough to get some recharge, so that he would be rested and ready for what needed to be done. He was used to balancing long work hours with his recharge, and was perfectly able to function on less than a full recharge cycle, even more so since adopting Trailbreaker. This wasn't the first time that he had held off recharging so that he could find away to protect those he cared about. It wasn't the first time he'd stayed awake, mourning the loss of one of his Autobots, one of his friends.

And Optimus knew he had not been alone in doing so.

With a soft vent, he turned off the datapad. The plan was rough around the edges and needed refining-he would give it to Prowl for that-but it was the best hope the Autobots and their human allies had at the moment. In the meantime, he would speak with the others, tell them what they needed to do, and do his best to get all of them through it safely, to ensure that they lost no one else.

He sent a message over the short-range comms to all the Autobots on the base, telling them to make their way to the main hangar to discuss the previous day's events and what needed to be done about them, and to tell any humans they met on the way to come as well, receiving immediate agreement to his orders from all those he contacted, though Prowl had respectfully requested permission to remain where he was for the time being. Optimus granted the other mech that permission; he'd his doubts that Prowl would attend before he had even contacted him, but he understood why his Second-in-Command would make the choice not to and did not blame him for deciding to remain in his vigil over Red Alert. The Prime would simply have to seek him out once he spoke with the others. Task finished, he turned his full attention to Trailbreaker.

"Are you finished with your Energon, Trailbreaker?" Optimus questioned softly, looking at the Sparkling as he sat the datapad on his desk.

In response, Trailbreaker nodded, offering the now-empty bottle to Optimus, who took it.

Optimus sat the empty bottle on his desk-he would take proper care of it later-and, gently setting Trailbreaker on the floor, stood up. Taking care not to bump Trailbreaker's injured arm, the Prime took the blanket from around the Sparkling's shoulders, then walked over to Trailbreaker's berth and placed it back inside. That done, he returned to his desk, and, picking the datapad up off of its surface, he took Trailbreaker's right hand and led the Sparkling towards the door and out of their quarters.

Trailbreaker clung tightly to his caretaker's hand, practically gluing himself to the Prime's leg as they walked down the hall, in the direction of the main hangar. He was looking around nervously as he pressed against his caretaker, as if he expected that something was going to jump out and get him.

Optimus's Spark ached slightly at his Sparkling's actions; he knew that Trailbreaker was still scared from his encounter with Galvatron, but seeing it still filled the Autobot leader with both sympathy and sadness, alongside a faint thread of anger towards the one who had caused it. But anger would not help Trailbreaker, and Optimus brushed it aside, his expression softening as he looked down at the Sparkling.

"There is nothing to worry about, Trailbreaker," Optimus told him soothingly. "I am right here, and I promise that I will not let anything hurt you."

Trailbreaker relaxed at those words, slightly shifting away from his caretaker's leg, but he continued to cling tightly to Optimus's hand. "Where we going, Opt?"

"We are going to see your friends, little one," Optimus replied, giving the Sparkling a thoughtful look, once again noticing that Trailbreaker was speaking words fully that he, like the other Sparklings, had only spoken shortened versions of before. He still shortened some words, yes, but not as many as he had before his encounter with Galvatron-perhaps this was some effect of the trauma. The Autobot leader made a mental note to speak to Ratchet about Trailbreaker's suddenly improved vocal skills later. Hopefully it wasn't a sign of something negative in the Sparkling's development. "Would you like that?"

Trailbreaker nodded seriously. "Uh-huh."

Optimus gave the Sparkling a small smile, then turned his attention forwards as he and Trailbreaker entered the main hangar.

Only those Autobots who had Sparkling charges were there already, as were a small number of the human members of NEST. The human soldiers had been talking quietly with each other, but fell silent when they saw the Prime enter with his Sparkling charge. He nodded slightly at them before turning to look at where the other four Sparklings were and heading in that direction.

In light of the damage that had been done to the room the Sparklings had been in the day before, a few mats had been dragged to one side of the main hangar, alongside a handful of the large, soft blocks that had made up the perimeter of the play area when it had been fully set-up in the hangar. It was not as secure as the old play area had been, and was only a temporary one until the damage done to the door to the Sparkling room would be fixed later that day, but it would do for now, while they discussed what needed to be done.

Coming to a stop next to the temporary play area, Optimus gently lifted Trailbreaker up and set him inside. The red-and-blue armored Sparkling was immediately swarmed by the others, and soon all five Sparklings were clicking and squeaking as they huddled together, clinging to one another in what appeared to be a group attempt to comfort each other. Seeing the Sparklings' affection and concern for one another warmed Optimus's Spark in spite of the seriousness of the situation they were facing, and he looked up at those nearby. Ratchet, Sideswipe, and Bumblebee were there, of course, as were Sunstreaker, Sam, Carly, Wheelie, and Brains.

"Are we going to have a meeting, Optimus?" Ratchet asked, getting to the point immediately.

"Not a proper one. In the light of what happened yesterday, we have other matters to attend to at the moment." The Prime said, looking at the Sparklings before turning his focus to the other Autobots and humans near the makeshift play area. "But we must still discuss what needs to be done."

We can't leave them, Bumblebee said, looking back down at the Sparklings worriedly.

"We will not," Optimus reassured the younger Autobot. "We will speak with each other here, nearby." He turned to look at the humans and Autobots standing further away from the play area, and, seeing that they were still watching him to see what he was planning to do, motioned them over. Looking back at the Sparklings, he saw that they were still hugging each other and clicking quietly, the fact that they were all together apparently working to comfort them just as much as the fact that their caretakers were still nearby. "We shall just have to keep our voices down, that is all."

Before any of the others could reply to the Autobot leader's words, the sound of approaching footsteps-both human and Autobot-made-signaled the arrival of those Optimus had told to assemble in the main hangar. Mirage was leading the rest of the Autobots; Silverbolt, Diesel, Chromia, and Arcee were following him, with Computron flying alongside the Aerialbot commander. Firestorm was walking a little ways behind the Autobots, and, behind the old Seeker, came several more of the human members of NEST, Will Lennox-who had taken complete charge as the previous night's events had resulting in Director Mearing once again being called back to Washington to discuss what was going on-among their number.

However, the newest member of the Autobot ranks was missing.

"Where is Scattershot?" Optimus asked Ratchet in an undertone, concerned at the lack of the former Decepticon's presence. "Did he ever return to the medbay last night?"

"I assume he's still with Prowl," Ratchet replied evenly in the same quiet tone the Autobot leader had used.

Optimus felt a rush of sympathetic understanding for what Scattershot was going through, and made a mental note to speak with him as well as Prowl once he had discussed things with those currently in the main hangar. He turned his full attention to the others as they gathered around him, signaling for them to speak quietly by indicating the Sparklings with one hand. Seeing the numerous nods of understanding, he focused on the task at hand.

"There are a few matters of importance for us to discuss. First…" Optimus looked at Computron, who had landed on the section of balcony railing near him. "Computron, have repairs been made to the communication and security systems?"

The little dragon-formed mech nodded. "Yes, Prime. Everything is up and running fully-functional again. Finished the repairs up late last night. Just in time, too-the Wreckers contacted the base just as soon as the repairs were complete. They gave me a message to pass along to you, sir."

"That is good to hear." Optimus paused, then continued. "What was the message the Wreckers gave you?"

"They told me that they, along with their human companions, should be arriving here sometime this afternoon. Based on what they figured, that arrival should be on or around one," Computron reported. He frowned slightly, a look of concern flashing across his faceplate. "I know it takes at least two days to get from where the Wreckers were in Florida to here. But judging by how little time it's taking them, they must be pushing themselves to get here more than they should safely do. I know we need their help, but…"

Optimus nodded respectfully at the smaller Autobot. "Thank you, Computron. I will speak to them about that when they get here. But now, there is something else we need to discuss." His voice and expression hardened, though he still took care to keep his words quiet. "The Decepticons."

The Prime looked over all those assembled around him. "Last night, Galvatron saw fit to not only deceive us, but brutally murdered two of our own and attempted to take the Sparklings away from us, injuring two of them in the process. In doing so, he has made it very clear that as long as his Spark still pulses, he will not stop trying to destroy us and all who dwell on this planet, no matter what they do or how young they are. We cannot allow this." He held up the datapad he had been working on since the previous night.

"What's that, Optimus?" Sam asked, looking at the datapad Optimus held with a mixture of curiosity, worry, and determination on his face.

"A battle plan for facing the Decepticons." Optimus's voice was steady and confident, working to reassure his friends that there was something they could do to stop the Decepticons. "It is far from perfect, but I am going to give it to Prowl; he will be able to refine it to what we need. However, there is a part of it that can be carried out now. Not a battle strategy, but rather a recon mission."

The Autobot leader looked back at Computron. "Computron, I am reluctant to ask this of you, as it is very dangerous. However, you are both capable of flight and small enough to get around unseen."

Computron's nervousness at the requested mission was visible in the way he gripped the railing he was perched on tighter with his claws, but he still nodded resolutely. "What is it, sir?"

"We need to know what Galvatron and the other Decepticons are doing. Thanks to Bumblebee," Optimus nodded in the young scout's direction, "We know that they returned to the factory they were using as a base after they attacked us in the field, but we do not know if they have moved since then. I need you to fly there, and see if the Decepticons are still inside. Use the ventilation shafts-observe Galvatron and try to see what he is planning, if you can. But if there is even the slightest danger of you being discovered, leave immediately. Do not take any unnecessary risks. I do not want you to be hurt."

The small mech nodded, though his anxiety about his mission was clear to see. "Yes, sir. I'll do my best."

"Mirage," Optimus continued, looking at the red-armored mech next. "Go with Computron; you are to wait outside the base and assist him in getting away if needed."

"I will, Prime," Mirage replied in acceptance, a look of slightly eager anticipation on his faceplate.

"Optimus, if I may…" Ratchet spoke up then, before Optimus could say anything more. At the Prime's consenting nod, the medic turned to Computron. "I can help you, Computron. We might not have the signal dampeners that the Decepticons do, but I think I can come up with a way to mask your signal enough so that you will be harder for their scans to pick up. You won't be completely invisible to them, but it will help."

Computron relaxed, his wings drooping faintly with relief. Seeing this, Optimus felt a flash of regret at that fact that he had asked the smaller mech to undergo such a dangerous mission alone. Normally, he would have asked Bumblebee to go-as a scout, the young Autobot was used to carrying out missions like this on his own-and if it had been a simple observation task, Bumblebee would have the one going. However, it wasn't, and an Autobot of Computron's size was more suited to this type of reconnaissance. Computron was small enough and quick enough to slip into the Decepticon base unnoticed though the ventilation shafts, and Optimus also knew that Computron both understood that he needed to be the one to do this, and would do so willingly despite his nervousness. It had not been an easy decision for him to make, and he felt grateful that Ratchet had mentioned this extra security measure to help Computron. He had thought of something similar himself, but the medic had spoken up about it before the Autobot leader himself had.

"Thank you, Ratchet," Computron murmured gratefully.

"Yes, thank you, Ratchet," Optimus agreed, giving his old friend an appreciative look before once again turning to Computron. "Computron, please understand that I am reluctant to ask you to partake in this mission-I do not like the idea of putting you so close to danger with no one to assist you while you are actually inside the Decepticon base. But the fact remains that you are the best Autobot for what needs to be done, and I have every faith that you will succeed, especially with what Ratchet has suggested to help you. And remember-Mirage will be there to help if you need it."

Computron nodded, straightening up as the nervousness that had been present in his expression before faded completely. "Yes, sir. I won't let you down, I promise."

"And neither will I," Mirage said in agreement.

With Computron and Mirage both settled in what they had to do, Optimus turned his attention back to the group as a whole. "Once Computron has gathered the information we seek and both he and Mirage have returned, the Wreckers and the others arrive, and Prowl has had time to look over the battle plan, we will be able to know just how and where we must meet the Decepticons in battle. In the meantime, we will tend to those who need us the most now." The Prime glanced back at the Sparklings as he said this.

"I don't think we'll find a shortage of things to do while we wait," Will said pointedly. "We need to fix that gaping hole in the ceiling, as well as the busted medbay lock and door to the Sparklings' room."

"And we have a memorial service to arrange," Optimus added, voice subdued with quiet grief as, with the matter of the Decepticons dealt with for the time being, the pain from last night's events returned to the surface.

Silence fell in the hangar then, Autobots and humans alike looking down as they remembered the two friends that they had lost the previous night.

The silence stretched unbroken for several minutes, then, the gathered members of NEST dispersed. Those who had been assigned the various repair duties going to get what they needed to start work, while the others either returned to their quarters or, in the case of those Autobots with Sparkling charges and a few others, remained in the hangar.

After a few more minutes, Optimus turned to the Autobots and humans who had remained.

"I will go and speak with Prowl now." He looked at Trailbreaker, who was still huddled together with the other Sparklings, but was also watching him intently, giving Optimus the feeling that his Sparkling had been paying close attention to him throughout the entire discussion between the members of NEST, as if he was trying to make sure that his caretaker wasn't going to go anywhere. However, now, he did have to go elsewhere on the base. The Prime did not want to leave Trailbreaker behind, but where he was going was someplace that the Sparkling did not need to be.

Optimus knelt next to the play area, his voice gentle as he addressed Trailbreaker, who edged closer to the Prime, though he still made sure to stay relatively close to the other Sparklings. "I have to go speak with Prowl for a moment, Trailbreaker. You will have to stay here, but I promise you will be fine."

Trailbreaker was quiet for a moment, looking up at Optimus with trusting optics and an expression that told the Prime he was carefully thinking over what his caretaker had told him. Finally Trailbreaker nodded, the look on his faceplates shifting from thoughtful to incredibly serious. "Okay, Opt."

The Autobot leader gave his Sparkling charge a small smile, gently resting one hand on Trailbreaker's head. He was relieved that Trailbreaker was not panicking about the separation; apparently, his earlier promise that he would let nothing hurt the Sparkling had reassured him enough to keep him relatively calm, though it was obvious he was still anxious. "Thank you, little one. Stay with your friends; I will not be gone long."

He straightened up and looked at the others, nodding respectfully at them. "I will be back shortly."

With one last glance at Trailbreaker, Optimus turned and headed out of the main hangar, making his way towards the room where Prowl-and Scattershot, if Ratchet had been correct in his assumptions-was still standing guard over Red Alert's body. He glanced briefly at the datapad he still carried in his right hand, knowing that the continued safety of his friends, allies, and family…and those of the entire planet…depended on the plan it contained. He knew that together he and Prowl would make it so that it would be successful and the Decepticon threat would finally be truly eradicated.

Optimus did not let himself dwell on what would happen otherwise.

Neither Scattershot nor Prowl had said anything to each other after the Autobot Second-in-Command had extended an offer to mentor the former Decepticon in Red Alert's place, but they didn't need to. After their earlier discussion, their thoughts were focused on the same thing, and through his own pain, Scattershot found himself amazed that he was grieving alongside another individual, that he was being allowed to grieve in the first place.

When he had been among the Decepticons, Scattershot had never seen any of the others mourn those who had been killed in battle. Such displays were considered a weakness, and the weak did not survive there. But he had never been as hard-Sparked as nearly all of the others. He'd had friends, actual friends-Are they okay? How many of them are still alive? I know I'm an Autobot now and they're still Decepticons, but they were the only friends I had for the longest time and I miss them. I really, really hope they won't get hurt in the battle that's coming, maybe I can convince them to stand down-among those considered useless by Megatron; they had learned to rely on each other since the others would not help them when they needed it, and rare, true friendships had formed among the lowest-ranked Decepticon soldiers. Of course, being useless didn't stop Megatron from throwing them on the frontlines as a living shield for the others, and Scattershot had lost track of the number of times he had hidden in empty storage rooms or the service tunnels beneath the pits in Kaon in order to safely grieve over a friend who had died on a patrol or raid.

But here, he didn't have to hide. The Autobots were far more open with their emotions, and grieving the loss of a friend wasn't considered a weakness-far from it. And, in some odd way, it was comforting to Scattershot to finally be able to mourn alongside others, to see that he wasn't the only one who felt sorrow over what had happened.

Losing Red Alert had hurt. Hurt in a way Scattershot had not experienced since his creators had been brutally murdered right in front of him as a Youngling. Well…losing his creators had hurt more because, well, they were his creators, but still…Red Alert had been his mentor. His friend. An Autobot who had extended the hand of friendship despite his own misgivings and had done his best to help Scattershot fit in. And now he was gone.

Yes, it hurt.

But knowing that he wasn't alone in feeling that pain helped ease it, just a little.

The sound of the door opening pulled Scattershot from his thoughts, and he looked up, straightening to attention when he saw Optimus Prime entering the room. Out of the corner of his optic, he saw Prowl do the same, stepping forward to greet the Autobot leader.

"Prime," Prowl said softly in greeting.

Optimus looked at his Second-in-Command, then at Scattershot. The expression on his faceplate was a mixture of sympathy, understanding, and pain. "Prowl, Scattershot. I know that the loss of Red Alert has hurt the both of you terribly. But know that you are not alone in your grief. We all feel his loss, we all mourn him, and we will honor him by remembering why he sacrificed his Spark." He looked over at the table where Red Alert's body lay. "I will personally arrange an honor watch. It will begin after Ratchet has had the chance to see to his damaged frame."

"What…what does that mean, sir?" Scattershot asked in a quiet voice, looking at the Prime with honest confusion. "'See to his damaged frame'?" A sudden trepidation flashed though his Spark as the words left his vocal processor and he tensed slightly; what if Optimus took his words the wrong way? He still knew so little about the majority of Autobot ways and customs.

"Among the Autobots, we do our best to repair the damage done to those who have fallen," Optimus replied, no judgment in his voice or expression as he explained the meaning behind his words to the former Decepticon, causing the tension to leave Scattershot as he listened to the Prime. "This way, they will be laid to rest as whole as possible, without the scars of their suffering."

"Oh…that's…" He looked down, considering, struggling to find the right words. Honorable? Respectful? A level of kindness the Decepticons would never…no, never did show? Relief and a new level of respect for the Autobots as a whole was filling his Spark at this new information, and Scattershot looked back up at the Autobot leader, settling for expressing his gratitude and respect for the way the lost Autobots were treated with a soft, "Thank you, sir."

Optimus gazed at him with a sad kindness in his optics, nodding in acknowledgement of his thanks, but he didn't say anything.

In the following silence, Scattershot noticed that Prowl was looking at him. He returned the older mech's gaze curiously, then blinked as Prowl turned to Optimus and began speaking. "Sir, I know that protocol dictates that I should receive your permission first, but I already asked Scattershot this, and he agreed. With your permission, sir, I would like to take Red Alert's place as Scattershot's mentor."

The Autobot leader regarded both Second-in-Command and former Decepticon for a long moment. The silence went unbroken long enough that Scattershot began to feel a little nervous again. He'd lost the bulk of his anxiety and fear around the other Autobots-mostly-and now knew that Optimus was a fair, even kind, leader, not a cruel one; still, he didn't know what the Prime's reaction to this would be, especially since Prowl had initially asked him about it instead of Optimus.

At last, the Prime looked directly at Scattershot and spoke, his voice warm with sympathy. "It can be hard to move on to a new mentor if your first one has been offlined, especially if it has happened so soon into your relationship."

"I know, sir." Scattershot's voice was quiet. "But…" He straightened up, the determination he had felt the previous night filling him again as he evenly met Optimus's optics. He knew the Prime was right, and that moving on with a new mentor would be hard, even though he'd formed somewhat of a friendship with Prowl already. But Red Alert had been incredibly brave- Scattershot would never forget him. He'd do his best to honor his friend's memory by being brave himself and working hard to become the Autobot Red Alert had told him that he could be. No more being frightened like I was last night. Being brave starts now. "I'm willing to try if Prowl is, sir."

As Scattershot continued to hold the Prime's optics evenly and respectfully, he was suddenly aware of how much he had actually changed since Red Alert had begun mentoring him. As of this moment, he wasn't the scared, helpless Youngling who had seen his creators murdered or the frightened, beaten down Decepticon who had been captured in the attack on the NEST base anymore.

He was an Autobot.

Sensing the change in the former Decepticon's demeanor, Optimus regarded him closely for another long moment before he spoke again. "Very well. Prowl." He turned to look at the black-and-white armored Autobot before speaking the words the assigning of a mentor and apprentice that the particular situation required. "I am assigning you to be Scattershot's mentor in Red Alert's place. I know that the loss of your first mentor will make this change difficult, Scattershot. However, I know that together, both you and Prowl can overcome it." Looking at both Prowl and Scattershot, Optimus nodded once.

Prowl offered Scattershot his right hand and the younger mech touched it with his left in the gesture of an apprentice greeting his new mentor-the very same gesture he and Red Alert had given each other after the older mech had agreed to mentor him.

The echo of that first greeting was enough to let Scattershot feel that maybe, just maybe, things would be alright again. Not right away, but eventually.

It was enough.

Optimus watched Prowl and Scattershot, relief filling his Spark at the sight of the two mechs performing the greeting of a mentor and apprentice. He knew that they would be able to help each other recover from what had happened the previous day. It was yet another step in the healing process that both Autobot and human would undergo in the days to come.

"Was there anything else you wanted to speak with us about, Optimus?" Prowl asked respectfully after a few moments had passed, lowering his hand and looking at the Autobot leader as Scattershot moved to stand beside him. Now that the solemn moment was over, Optimus could clearly see the exhaustion lining Prowl's faceplate, and he made the decision to address it as soon as he had given Prowl the other reason for his seeking the Second-in-Command out.

"Yes, there is." Optimus held out the momentarily-forgotten datapad that he had brought with him, offering it to Prowl. "This datapad contains a battle plan for facing the Decepticons that I wrote last night and this morning. Keep in mind that it is very rough," he explained as Prowl took the datapad and began looking through the information it contained. "I want you to look over it and make any changes you feel would improve it. Also, if you find any mistakes or discrepancies, please correct them."

"I see," Prowl murmured as he continued looking over the information, his expression shifting to one of intense concentration. Next to him, Scattershot stretched up a little to see the datapad himself, and Prowl lowered it slightly so that it was closer to the slightly shorter mech's optic range.

The sight made Optimus smile slightly. "And Scattershot may help you, if you wish. He will be learning such things as your apprentice, after all."

"I'll get started on this right away," Prowl said, looking up from the datapad.

Optimus, however, shook his head. He'd known Prowl would say that, and while the plan needed revising, he could see that now was not the time for Prowl to do so. "No, you will not, Prowl. You did not get any recharge last night, did you?"

"No. I didn't…I couldn't." Prowl looked back at where Red Alert lay, then turned again to Optimus. 'But, Prime, this battle plan is needed. It is important. I must work on it as soon as possible."

"And you can. After you get some recharge." Optimus's voice was gentle but firm. "With a lack of recharge, you could make mistakes, mistakes that could be easily avoided."

Prowl's shoulders lowered slightly in defeat as he acknowledged the wisdom of what Optimus was saying. "And mistakes are something we can't afford right now. But…" He looked at Red Alert once again, pain resurfacing in his optics.

"I will stand watch until Ratchet comes for him," Optimus said quietly, his voice sympathetic. "He will not be left alone."

Prowl hesitated one more moment, then nodded. "Thank you, Prime."

Optimus inclined his head in Prowl's direction. "Go, take a few hours' recharge. After you have done so, then-and only then-can you start working on that datapad I have given you." He looked at Scattershot. "You, too, Scattershot. Go and get some rest. You can help Prowl later."

"Yes, sir," Scattershot said, before following his new mentor as the older mech headed towards the door.

Optimus watched the two other mechs as they left the room. Once the door shut behind them, the Autobot leader turned and took the few steps that brought him to the table where Red Alert had been laid out. Optimus stood respectfully by the fallen mech's side, once again holding onto the knowledge of why Red Alert had sacrificed himself and who he had saved in doing so. He would never forget that.

None of them would.

When the sound of the door opening once again disrupted the silence in the room, Optimus looked up, not surprised to see Ratchet standing there. The medic's expression weary, sad, and respectful all at once.

"I gave Computron the sensor modification. He and Mirage left for the Decepticon base a few minutes ago." Ratchet's voice was quiet as he entered the room, the door closing behind him as he walked towards Optimus. He looked over to Red Alert, coming to a halt beside the Autobot leader. "I can take over now, Optimus."

Optimus laid a hand on Ratchet's shoulder. This was not the first time Ratchet had done this. But the Prime knew it was not something that was easy for the medic to carry out-repetition did not take the edge off of something like this. "I know you will carry this out with the honor and respect he deserves."

"He didn't deserve this." Ratchet's voice was bitter as he gestured at Red Alert's frame, though Optimus could hear the deep pain beneath the surface of the medic's words.

"No, he did not," Optimus said, his own sorrow tingeing the edge of his voice. "But we must remember why he did it, old friend."

"I don't think I'll ever forget." Ratchet took a deep vent, then straightened up, visibly steadying himself for what he needed to do. "I'll let you know when I've finished. Then we can arrange the honor watch."

"Thank you, Ratchet." Optimus kept his hand on his old friend's shoulder for a moment, then removed it and turned away, exiting the room so that Ratchet could carry out the next step in honoring Red Alert's sacrifice.

He might have been very young, but Trailbreaker wasn't blind to the fact that all of the Autobots and humans, both those that had been in the hangar and left and those that were still here, were very, very upset about something. Even Prowl and Scattershot, who had briefly passed through the hangar on their way back to their individual quarters, had seemed downcast.

It wasn't something Trailbreaker had experienced often, and he didn't like it. He didn't like it when his friends or anyone else was upset; it was awful when his friends and family were sad, and it made him feel sad too.

Trailbreaker knew why his friends were upset. That strange mech who had hurt both him and Fireflight before Optimus and the others had driven him off was the reason for that. That had been really frightening for all of them, and it wasn't something that any of the Sparklings would get over soon-at their young ages they were unable to deal with trauma such as that as well as the older Autobots and humans were. Although too young to reason it out in such a technical way, Trailbreaker knew that was why his friends were still upset. He was still scared and anxious about it too, but Optimus had promised him that he wouldn't let anything hurt him, and his caretaker would never ever lie to him. Besides, even though Optimus had left-but he was going to come back soon because he said he would-the other older 'bots were here now, and if that scary mech tried to come near them again there was no doubt in Trailbreaker's young processor that they would chase him away.

But his friends were still scared, so Trailbreaker stayed close to them so they would feel better. It made him feel better, too. His friends were still here; that scary mech hadn't taken them away.

And that brought him back to what he was currently trying to puzzle out-why the other Autobots and humans seemed so sad.

Looking around the hangar once more, safe in the play area with his friends, Trailbreaker saw all the other Autobots who were still in the hangar-Bumblebee, Sideswipe, Sunstreaker, Arcee, Chromia, Wheelie, and Brains. Sam and Carly were there too, and a few humans that Trailbreaker knew by sight but hadn't interacted with enough to know their names yet. Some of those humans were fixing that big hole in the ceiling, and Diesel was there, too, helping them, it looked like. Optimus, Ratchet, Computron, Mirage, Prowl, Silverbolt, Firestorm, and Scattershot had been there earlier, but left. Trailbreaker knew that they were still on the base-though he had heard Optimus saying something about Mirage and Computron leaving for a little bit-and again, realizing that he and his friends were surrounded by the older Autobots and humans who would protect them made him feel a whole lot safer.

Suddenly, Trailbreaker realized something. He looked around the hangar again, a tiny frown on his faceplate. Where was Red Alert? He wasn't here, and the Sparkling couldn't remember seeing him earlier when all the other Autobots had been in the hangar. Trailbreaker knew that whenever the adults had those serious things Optimus called "meetings", all of the other Autobots showed up. But Red Alert didn't this time. And now that he was thinking about it, Trailbreaker realized he hadn't seen the older Autobot since the red-armored security officer and Scattershot had left him and his friends in that room, right before the scary mech had found them. Red Alert had told them to sit tight and that he and Scattershot would come back soon, but they hadn't. Instead that scary mech had come in, hurt him and Fireflight, and then Optimus had arrived with the others and made him go away. He'd seen Scattershot today, but not Red Alert.

Trailbreaker thought over this as best as he could.

Red Alert was missing. The others were sad about something. Was it Red Alert? That scary mech had hurt him and Fireflight, had he hurt Red Alert, too? Trailbreaker liked Red Alert, all of the Sparklings did; he was nice. He didn't want the older mech to be hurt.

But where was he?

The Sparkling's increasingly worried train of thought was cut off when he heard the familiar sound of his caretaker's footsteps approaching the main hangar from the direction of the medbay. Trailbreaker looked up at his caretaker as Optimus walked towards him. He could see the same look of sadness on the Prime's faceplate, and the sadness he felt at seeing his caretaker as upset as everyone else quickly brought the Sparkling's processor back to the question he'd been trying his best to find the answer to.

He'd ask Optimus. Optimus would know.

Trailbreaker carefully made his way over to the edge of the play area, doing his best to keep as close to his friends as possible while getting close to his caretaker as well. Optimus, seeing the Sparkling's actions as he arrived next to the play area, favored Trailbreaker with a faint, reassuring smile before turning to look at the other Autobots and humans near the play area.

"I have given the plans over to Prowl; he will look over and revise them after he has taken a few hours' recharge. Ratchet has also informed me that Computron and Mirage have left for the Decepticon base, and he is tending to…" Optimus cast a look in the direction of the Sparklings, choosing his next words carefully. "Other matters." He looked at Chromia and Arcee. "Chromia, Arcee, will you look after Beachcomber and First Aid until Ratchet comes for them, if he does not return before it is time for their afternoon recharge?"

"Of course," Chromia replied, while her sister nodded in agreement.

"Thank you." Optimus turned back to the play area to check on Trailbreaker, and noticed that the Sparkling was giving him a look that was almost hesitant, but also worried and sad. Seeing that he had his caretaker's full attention, Trailbreaker looked up at him.

"Opt?" He asked, his voice quiet, hesitant.

The Prime immediately lowered himself closer to Trailbreaker's level, looking him in the optics. "What is it, Trailbreaker?"

Trailbreaker looked down nervously for a moment before he looked back up at his caretaker. "Opt, where…where Red 'lert?"

A pang of grief and surprise shot through Optimus's Spark, and he just barely was able to prevent himself from rocking back at hearing the Sparkling's question. He mentally berated himself for not realizing that of course Trailbreaker would notice that Red Alert was gone. The Sparkling was young but perceptive and was able to figure out things remarkably well despite his age. No doubt he had noticed the sad atmosphere within the base and the fact that Red Alert was not there among all the others at the meeting or later, and had pieced them together as being related, something that the other Sparklings were most likely not old enough to do unless it was actually pointed out to them. But despite that, would Trailbreaker be able to fully understand why Red Alert was no longer there? Optimus had known that Red Alert's absence would have to be explained to the Sparklings at some point, but he had not expected it so soon. As the Prime considered how to best proceed, a memory of explaining a similar situation to Bumblebee on Cybertron long ago surfaced. But that had been different; Bumblebee had been older then than Trailbreaker was now-a Youngling, not a Sparkling- and had been able to understand the situation as it actually was. How could he explain this to a Sparkling?

"Trailbreaker…"

"You sad," Trailbreaker continued, looking up at his caretaker worriedly, and then he was pointing around the room with his right hand. "You all sad, see that. And Red 'lert gone. That why? He hurt, Opt?"

Out of the corner of his optic, Optimus noticed that the other four Sparklings were now paying attention to him and Trailbreaker, and realized that they had noticed the same things Trailbreaker had, and, now that the oldest Sparkling had voiced his worries, had also finally connected the sadness of the others to Red Alert not being there themselves. He would not lie to Trailbreaker, or any of the little Sparklings, but he knew that he had to choose his words very carefully.

"Yes, he was hurt." The Autobot leader was aware of the others nearby-both Autobot and human-were now also paying full attention to him, but he focused on Trailbreaker. "Trailbreaker, little one, you know about Sparks, right?"

Trailbreaker nodded, pointing at the place where his caretaker's armor covered his Spark Chamber before pointing at the place where his simple Sparkling armor covered his own tiny Spark. "Uh-huh. Sparks there, make us who we is."

"Who we are, yes," Optimus said quietly. "But sometimes, when a Cybertronian is hurt very badly, their Spark has to leave, and, when that happens, the Cybertronian has to leave, too."

Trailbreaker looked up at Optimus, his optics widening before narrowing slightly in thoughtfulness. "Red 'lert's Spark…his Spark leave? Red 'lert leave 'cause hurt?"

"Yes."

Trailbreaker was quiet for a moment before speaking again. "Leave the base?" At Optimus's nod, the Sparkling continued. "Where he go?"

Optimus heisted briefly before continuing, still carefully choosing how he worded his explanation to the Sparkling. "Red Alert has gone to a place where he is no longer hurting, little one."

"When come back?"

His own Spark heavy with the pain of Red Alert's loss and the guilt of having to tell his Sparkling, all of the Sparklings, about death so young, Optimus shook his head. "Red Alert is not coming back, Trailbreaker."

"Not come back?"

"No." Optimus's voice was soft, sad. "Red Alert had to leave us forever."

Trailbreaker fell silent at his caretaker's words, and, as he fully realized what he had just been told, his expression shifted to sadness. Wordlessly he reached for Optimus, and the Prime gathered his Sparkling into his arms, holding him close as he began to let out quiet whimpers. Optimus could hear the others moving to comfort their own charges-with Arcee and Chromia taking care of Beachcomber and First Aid-as they, too, began to cry as the Prime's words fully sunk in.

The Prime didn't think that any of the Sparklings, even Trailbreaker, truly understood exactly what had happened to Red Alert. But they did understand that a mech that had always been there, a mech that had taken care of them on several occasions, a mech that they had all liked, had left them and would not come back again. It was a harsh thing for such young Sparklings to have to learn, and Optimus once again felt combination of pain and guilt alongside the hint of anger towards Galvatron for what he had done. This was why they had to stop the Decepticons once and for all-so that the Sparklings and everyone else on Earth would never have to be subject to pain caused by Galvatron's actions ever again.

With a heavy vent, Optimus touched his helm to Trailbreaker's much smaller one in a comforting gesture, knowing that it would help soothe the Sparkling, even though he also knew it would be just as long of a path to healing from the loss of Red Alert for the Sparklings as it would for the older Autobots and humans on the NEST base.

And, for the Sparklings, this was only one of the first few steps to that far-off point of healing.

But every step counted.

It had taken Ratchet hardly any time at all to come up with and then upgrade Computron's sensors to mask his signature. It wasn't perfect, but it would hide the little mech enough for what he was going to do; only an exceptionally observant Decepticon would be able to pick up Computron's signal now, but, judging by what Optimus had told them of the state of the Decepticons as a whole, Ratchet and Computron thought it highly unlikely that looking for such a thing would be on the forefront of any 'con processor. Still, Ratchet had repeated the Prime's cautions to Computron before the other Autobot left, emphasizing just how carefully he needed to proceed.

"Don't worry, Ratchet, I'll be careful."

"You'd better," the medic had said sternly, though genuine concern had been bleeding into his voice. "I don't want to see you in the medbay as a result of you taking any unnecessary risks. After…"

"I know, Ratchet." Computron had dipped his head slightly. "I understand. Thank you for the upgrade."

"Get going, then," Ratchet had replied gruffly.

At that, Computron had nodded gratefully at the medic one more time, then turned and flew out of the medbay.

It seemed that conversation in the medbay had been hours ago, but in reality it had only been about thirty minutes, and Ratchet's warning about being cautious was still fresh in Computron's processor regardless of how much time it had felt like or had actually passed since then.

Computron's initial nervousness about the task Optimus had assigned to him hadn't exactly disappeared, but it had faded. Now that he was actually carrying it out, knowing that Mirage was there for backup and that the sensor upgrade Ratchet had given him masked him somewhat from the Decepticons, said nervousness had been pushed to the back of his processor where it wasn't bothering him. Not much, at least. In any case, the trip from the NEST base to the abandoned human factory that the Decepticons were using as their headquarters had helped him focus.

This is what I'm good at, the small black and silver mech told himself as he winged his way through the trees that surrounded the factory. Surveillance, recon, and spying missions in tight quarters, that's me.

He'd since left Mirage behind, but with the long-range comms back up and running that wouldn't matter-he'd be able to contact the other Autobot easily enough if things went wrong. Hopefully, though, that wouldn't be necessary. With his new sensor upgrade and natural talent when it came to spying in situations like this, he would most likely be able to get in, see what he needed to see and hear what he needed to hear, then get out with the Decepticons none the wiser.

Of course, it didn't hurt to have backup waiting, just in case.

The abandoned factory finally came into sight, and Computron slowed his approach, taking the time to circle around the building, carefully examining the entire outside of the structure and measuring his options on how to proceed very, very carefully.

Strangely enough, there were no guards outside, and he wasn't picking up any Decepticon signals near the entrances either. They must be using those signal dampeners again, Computron thought, but a wider scan made him blink in surprise as he picked up what appeared to be every Decepticon signal from the group that had attacked the Autobots yesterday, clustered together in several of the inner rooms of the factory.

No guards, and they aren't even bothering to mask their signals? A sense of unease filled Computron once again as he flew in the direction of an outside vent that his scan had told him would take him to a system of shafts that would eventually lead him to one of the rooms the Decepticons were in. What are they playing at here, exactly?

The whole situation screamed danger, but Computron ignored it and wrenched aside the grating covering the vent, catching it in his back claws before it could clatter to the ground far below and give away his presence, carefully lowering it to a nearby overhang above the window directly below the vent. The others were counting on him to find out what Galvatron and the rest of the Decepticons were up to; he couldn't turn back just because of the unease he felt at the lack of Decepticon guards. Besides, the fact that there weren't any guards was working in his favor.

Computron paused, hovering directly in front of the now grate-free vent, looking into the dark shaft beyond. This was it. Taking a deep vent, he flew into the dark opening and landed on the metal that made up the entirety of the shaft. He took a moment to adjust his optics to the darkness, as well as dim them so there was no chance of their blue glow giving him away, then carefully, quietly began to head forward, taking the path along the ventilation shaft that would lead him to the room his scans told him held the most Decepticons, and, undoubtedly, Galvatron.

It wasn't far, and, true to what his scan had told him, the room was full of Decepticons. He could hear them moving around and talking in low, anxious voices. That made him pause, remembering what Optimus had told him about how the Decepticons had seemed almost…afraid.

Afraid of their leader.

Curious in spite of himself, Computron quietly edged closer to the vent that led into the room, sharpening his audios as well as optics as he peered through the grate covering the vent, settling down to wait for any information that lay beyond his hiding place to make itself known.

Howlback had always been careful about protecting Ratbat. But after being forced to watch Cyclonus punish him for something he had not done, she had become even more so. After Megatron had returned as Galvatron and she had both sensed and seen how unstable he was, she had taken yet more care to protect her secret younger brother, keeping him close to her so that she could prevent him from being hurt by any of the other Decepticons, sharing her Energon rations with him as the Decepticons' remaining supply of Energon-most of it had gone to fuel the Space Bridge-dwindled more and more and Galvatron and Cyclonus did nothing to change it, and tending to his injured wing and chest armor as best as she could, though she took care to pretend that she was doing it out of necessity to preserve the Decepticon Espionage unit, not because she loved him.

So, when the door to the room she, Ratbat, and a fair number of other Decepticons were in abruptly slammed open and Galvatron stormed inside accompanied by Cyclonus, the cat-formed Decepticon ever so slightly moved to shield Ratbat from their Leader's menacing red gaze as she herself watched Galvatron warily. It was the first time since he had returned to the base the previous day that he had shown himself to the other Decepticons, and the look on his faceplates was one of such fury that all those in the room drew back from him immediately and Howlback felt a stab of unwelcome fear in her Spark.

Her misgivings about the direction the Decepticons were heading had only increased after what had happened yesterday. Oh, not the battle with the Autobots and humans, that had nothing to do with it. In fact, she had enjoyed being able to take her frustration and anger out on them again, though, sadly, she had not been able to confront Bumblebee again in that fight. No, it had been the meeting that had preceded that battle, that and what had followed directly after, both before Galvatron had ordered them after the Autobots and humans and after Galvatron had returned from the Autobot base empty-handed.

Galvatron's behavior was becoming more and more erratic. What little rationality he had once had directly after being reborn was fading and it was obvious that his processor and sanity were rapidly deteriorating. He still had moments of rationality, yes, but they were growing fewer and farther between. Combined with his refusal to look for more Energon himself or let any of the others do so, his abrupt laughter, the way his mood swiftly changed, the way he seemed to be in pain from his processor frequently, and the way he had returned to the base yesterday, roaring inside in his alt mode before Transforming and locking himself into a room alone…all that pointed to something far more sinister being at work here. Howlback didn't like it. It honestly scared her, and she could see that, especially after Galvatron had boldly announced his intentions to destroy Unicron despite the fact that the Destroyer had brought him back to life, it terrified the rest of the Decepticons as well.

Howlback was good at reading between the lines; she had been hesitant about it before, but now there was no doubt in her own processor that a heavy price had been paid indeed when Cyclonus had convinced Unicron to revive Megatron. Galvatron's mind was no longer truly his own, and it was literally destroying him from the inside out.

Her thoughts were cut off as Galvatron suddenly let out a snarl of rage and stormed towards one of the Decepticons nearest the door. Howlback watched, her entire frame tense as she maintained her protective stance in front of Ratbat, following the Decepticon leader's progression into the room so that she could see who it was he was heading for. Her frame tensed even further when she saw who it was that was the focus of Galvatron's fury.

It was Salvo.

"You," Galvatron hissed, closing the remaining distance between himself and Salvo rapidly, ignoring the other Decepticons who scrambled to get out of his way, coming to a stop and looming over the smaller Decepticon with murder in his optics. "You let the traitor Scattershot get away with his life yesterday. Because of your failure, he was able to get away from me when I attacked the Autobot base and warn Optimus!"

"I was following your orders, Lord Galvatron," Salvo said hurriedly, and the fact that fear was edging the normally calm and collected Decepticon's words showed that he was aware of how much danger he was in. "You said that we were not to attack any of the Autobots-"

"Autobots, you fool, not traitors!" Galvatron's optics flashed, and the smaller, black-armored Decepticon flinched despite himself and unconsciously took a step back. Galvatron followed him, grabbing Salvo before he could retreat any further, lifting him up and slamming him against the wall mercilessly. He held Salvo there, glaring at him savagely. "Scattershot warned Optimus. Optimus returned to the base before I could take any of the Sparklings, which allowed time for yet another…unavoidable circumstance…to intervene. And now we have no leverage to hold against the Autobots, because of you."

"But when I told Cyclonus about it, you heard then, and you said letting Scattershot and the Autobot with him go fit in to your plan! You didn't say that I should have-"

Galvatron pulled Salvo back and slammed him against the wall again, with even more force, causing Salvo's voice to cut off into a pain-filled hiss. "Stop making excuses!" He leaned in closer, optics glinting dementedly. "But you're as good as a traitor yourself, aren't you, Salvo? This isn't the first time you've intentionally undermined me, is it now? Cyclonus told me that you were the one who took charge of the Decepticons after my untimely demise in Chicago. And yet, once you had led the others to a secure location where you could regain your strength, did you try to find a way to revive me? No, you did not, not once, I know. If Cyclonus hadn't taken over when he did, you would have been happy to let me rust in that cave, wouldn't you?"

The room fell silent at that accusation, all optics on Galvatron and Salvo as the other Decepticons watched the confrontation, every one of them too terrified to move lest Galvatron's fury be redirected to them. Even Cyclonus, Howlback noted, looked uneasy about what was transpiring before him in the room.

Knowing by the silence of the others that none of them were going to help him, Salvo frantically shook his head, all pretense at being calm gone now as he realized where this conversation was going. "No, no! We would have, I would have, I swear it, Lord Galvatron! But we were weak; we needed to recover our strength before we could make any move! And we no longer have the All-Spark shard, it was lost in Egypt! I thought there was no way to revive you, but as soon as Cyclonus said that he-"

But Galvatron was past listening now, his voice rising in volume so that it drowned out Salvo's pleas. "Thought you would take my place as the leader of the Decepticons, didn't you?" He slammed Salvo into the wall again and again, emphasizing each sentence with his attacks. "Thought that as long as I was gone you would lead unopposed? Didn't you? Didn't you?!" He leaned in closer, snarling. "Well, Salvo, no one but me leads the Decepticons and no one will ever follow you again." The Decepticon leader's voice continued to rise in volume until it became a furious roar of anger. "No one, no one, NO ONE!"

"No, Lord Galvatron! Please, have mer-"

Galvatron slammed Salvo to the ground hard, putting his full strength behind the blow, once again cutting off the other mech's pleading as he let out a hiss of pain. Salvo attempted to push himself back to his feet, but before he was even close to halfway back up, Galvatron was on him, clawed fingers digging ruthlessly into the smaller Decepticon's chassis, ignoring his howls of pain as he continued prying apart Salvo's armor just as he had done to Red Alert, twisting the armor away until Salvo's Spark Chamber was visible. Aware of the horrified gazes of the other Decepticons, Galvatron drew a clawed hand back, pausing as he locked ruthless optics with terrified, pain-filled ones in a brief moment of cold, calm focus.

"Mercy is for the weak."

In one swift motion, he reached into Salvo's Spark Chamber and violently tore into the smaller Decepticon's Spark, digging his claws into the casing so that it buckled and dented in his grip. Salvo let out one last pain-filled scream that abruptly ceased as Galvatron crushed his Spark out of existence. A few moments of silence passed, then, shaking the Energon off one hand as if bored, Galvatron stood. He laughed, then glared around as the other Decepticons drew further away from him.

"Clean that up," He snapped at one of the Decepticons closest to him, gesturing dismissively at Salvo's inert frame. "As for the rest of you…" He narrowed his optics as they drew away from him again, though the Decepticon he had ordered to dispose of Salvo's remains hurriedly carried out his orders. "I expect complete and total obedience and loyalty if you wish to avoid his fate." He gestured in Salvo's direction again. "And as I have no qualms about doing the same to each and every one of you, I suggest you take my order seriously. Cyclonus, come with me; we have battle plans to discuss."

He spun around and walked back towards the door, Cyclonus following obediently. Galvatron, however, paused before he exited the room, and Cyclonus stopped walking, too, watching the Decepticon leader's back apprehensively. "We will attack the Autobots and their human pets in three days-be ready to move out on a moment's notice. We will attack the city to draw them out. Nothing brings Optimus Prime running faster than the screams and cries of the weak in pain." Galvatron laughed again as he left the room, Cyclonus following and slamming the door shut behind them, leaving a horrified, tense silence behind.

Howlback turned her head away, unable to watch the Decepticon cleaning up Salvo's remains any longer, shuttering her optic in anger, fear, and unease. Why had Galvatron done that? Salvo had been loyal, he had never intended to take Galvatron's place as leader, had honestly believed there was no way to revive Megatron until Cyclonus had told him that there was, and he had been following Galvatron's orders when he let Scattershot go yesterday.

The Decepticon leader pinning the blame on others was nothing new, but it had never before ended like this. Before, it had always involved a beating and threats of worse, but no further than that unless the Decepticon involved really had turned traitor, and had been caught.

So why did Galvatron go so far this time, suddenly deciding that Salvo had disobeyed orders even though he hadn't, had become a traitor, and was seeking to usurp him as Decepticon leader, killing him in a way that none of the Decepticons had done or seen before?

There was one thing Howlback was sure of, though. Finally, she was certain of it, and the feel of Ratbat leaning against her side, trembling with fear, cemented that fact. She had sworn to protect her brother, the only living family she had besides the Sparkling who was currently beyond her reach.

As long as Galvatron continues to lose his mind, being with the Decepticons isn't safe anymore. Not for Ratbat, not for me. But what do I do? What do we do?

If they left, they would both forfeit their positions in the Decepticon army and be branded as traitors and deserters, to be killed on sight. Not only that, she wouldn't be able to get revenge for Soundwave's death. She'd been looking forward to it for so long, bringing an end to the Autobot who'd caused her so much pain.

But Ratbat's safety was more important than revenge, and she knew that even as traitors with a death order on their helms, they would be safer then than they were now, as they would be far away from Galvatron and his increasing madness.

What should we do? She asked Ratbat over a private comm, her usual confidence in her own judgment over matters overtaken by a swell of uncertainty.

You don't have to decide now, Ratbat told her, continuing to lean against her side. Any Decepticons who saw it would think it was because the small cassette was terrified from what had happened, but while that was true, Howlback knew it was also both a gesture of trust and an attempt to comfort her. We can wait and see where things go from here. But whatever you decide, I'll stay with you, no matter what. I promise.

Howlback sent him a feeling of gratitude across their cassette bond, lifting her head and looking over at the door. Stay or leave-she would have to decide soon, she knew.

What they had just witnessed was proof enough of that.

Computron drew back from the vent grate, optics wide, horrified and disgusted at what he had seen. He walked backwards, away from the grate, until he was far enough away that he felt it safe to turn around and move as quickly as he safely could back the direction he had come.

As he moved, thoughts tumbled around in his processor in a storm of fear and uncertainty. Why did Galvatron do that? He's never been merciful, but still, why would he kill one of his own soldiers when the Decepticon forces are so decimated as it is? Okay, fair enough, they still outnumber us, but there are fewer than them than before. So why?

It hit Computron just as he saw the light of outside entering the opening of the vent he had used to enter the factory ahead.

Optimus was right, Galvatron was mentally unstable. But it seemed to have gotten worse in the short time between yesterday's events and what had just happened. Galvatron was losing his processor. Very rapidly, too, judging by what Computron had seen. He had become a danger to his own followers as well as his enemies.

The little Autobot emerged into the sunlight. Shaking his head at the brightness, he quickly adjusted his optics back to what they had been before he had entered the factory. No longer in the terrible atmosphere of the Decepticon base and the horrors of what he had witnessed, a determination filled Computron.

Optimus has to know about this now.

Running a scan to confirm that there were still no Decepticons on guard outside-there weren't-Computron launched himself from the vent. He flapped his wings to gain altitude as he turned in the direction of the NEST base and where he had left Mirage. He began to fly as fast as he could, initiating a comm with Mirage once the factory was out of sight behind some trees, both alerting the other Autobot that he was returning and reassuring him that he was fine, taking the time to cobble together a report of all he had seen and heard while in the Decepticon base while he spoke to Mirage, sending the report to Mirage once it was finished so he would Know the reason they had to hurry back to base, and then, ignoring the choice curses in both Cybertronian and Italian coming from Mirage as he looked over Computron's report, the small Autobot turned his attention to who else needed to know what he had discovered.

He would be able to better explain things later, but Optimus needed this information immediately. As he caught sight of the familiar red armor of Mirage through the trees, he opened a long-range comm with Optimus.

Optimus Prime, sir?

Optimus responded immediately. Computron, are you all right? You are not injured, are you?

No, no, I'm fine, sir, Computron assured the Autobot leader, knowing that Optimus was worried for his safety even though he could not hear that worry over the comm. The Decepticons never noticed me, Ratchet's sensor modification worked perfectly. He paused. Sir, I have information, and it doesn't look good.

Optimus was silent for a moment, the answered. Proceed to send your report, Computron.

Computron did so, landing on Mirage's shoulder and signalling for the other Autobot to wait as he listened for the Prime's response, opening his comm with Mirage so that the red-armored mech would be able to hear it too.

After a few minutes, Optimus replied over both Autobots' frequencies, obviously knowing that Computron had opened his with Mirage just in case the Prime had orders for him, too. I see. Computron, Mirage, return to the Autobot base; we will discuss this in more detail when you return.

Mirage and Computron looked at each other; it was obvious even over the comm that Optimus Prime was troubled, and, Computron knew, rightly so.

Yes, sir, Computron replied.

We're on our way, Mirage added as he Transformed back into vehicle mode, opening a door so that Computron could hop inside. It was true that Computron could fly back to the base faster than Mirage could drive there, but after what Computron had seen, they both knew that it made more sense for them to travel together for safety. After what Galvatron had done to one of his own, there was no telling what he would do to the two Autobots if he caught them so close to the Deception base. Better to stick together for protection than to risk otherwise.

As the Decepticon base fell further and further behind them as Mirage drove away, heading towards the road that would take them back to the base, Computron only felt slightly better. He was still uneasy, and, going by Mirage's silence, so was he.

This brings a whole new level to the playing field, one we never even considered, Computron thought, looking over his shoulder in the direction they had come from. I just hope we can find a way to overcome it.