Thanks for all the lovely comments and reviews last chapter. Hope I didn't leave too many people waiting.
Chapter Twenty-Nine: Jail Visit
"Ya sure you're good now?" Jazz asked.
Ironhide nodded. "Yea. Ah can make it from here."
The two of them stood in the transformation lot of Optimus and Ironhide's apartment tower.
"Ya think you're gonna need an escort back ta the hospital?"
Ironhide shook his head. "No. Ah gotta make several calls before ah go back. It's gonna take at least a joor. Ah should be fine ta drive then by myself."
"Cool. I'm gonna head over ta Headquarters then. Prowl's probably gonna need some help. Contact us immediately if you or Optimus need anything. We'll probably stop by the hospital again later tonight ta check on ya guys and give ya an update."
"Alright," Ironhide nodded. He timidly met Jazz's optics. "Hey… ah just wanna say thanks. Yeh guys didn't need ta stop by this morning. We were both in a pretty dark place when yeh showed up. Ah know it may not have seemed like it at the time, but ah appreciate yeh two lookin out fer Optimus 'n me…"
"Don't worry 'bout it," Jazz smiled. "That's what friends do." He clapped Ironhide on the side of the arm encouragingly. "I'm just glad Star's back." Waving his hand towards the apartment tower, he said, "Go make your calls. Optimus'll be waiting for ya." Then, with a parting smile, Jazz transformed and sped out of the transformation lot.
Ironhide watched as Jazz turned onto the road and disappeared towards the highway. Cycling a deep intake of air Ironhide headed into the apartment tower. It was still early. There was no one else in the transformation lot or in the lobby. Ironhide was glad. He didn't feel like running into any other bots right now. All he wanted to do was make his calls, get the list of contact numbers off of Optimus's computer, pick up a few other things from their domicile, then go back to the hospital to be with his sparkmate and son.
The back of Ironhide's intake line constricted at the thought of Starfall. A part of him still couldn't believe that morning's turn of events. He'd been so sure he'd lost his son to the claws of death. The night before had been only a hellish glimpse of what life would have been like if Starfall hadn't been returned to them. Ironhide really didn't understand how Starfall was still alive – he had seen his son's body the night before. There had been no doubt at the time that Starfall had died. All that mattered to Ironhide now was that Starfall was back. Although his systems were still running a little sluggish from all the high-grade he'd drunk in the dark hours after Starfall's death, Ironhide felt surprisingly sober. It was like seeing Starfall alive had given him a rush of energy and purpose. He had been serious when he'd told Ratchet he had no intention of leaving the hospital again. Until Starfall was well enough to come home, Ironhide intended to stay by his son's berthside for as long as it took for the little seeker to recover.
With that mission in mind, Ironhide took the lift to the top floor and let himself into the dark apartment. He immediately went to Optimus's office. The sight that greeted him reminded him how deeply he'd slipped after losing Starfall: cables and wires hung down the front of the vid-com consol from where he'd torn them from their sockets in his grief. Ironhide's faceplates flushed with a rush of embarrassed shame, but it was short lived. He had been grieving the death of his son. While he might not have dealt with his grief in the best way, there were few bots that could have faulted him for reacting the way he did. In any case, it was all a moot point. Starfall was alive and waiting for him back at the hospital. He wanted to return to his family as quickly as he could.
Returning all the dislodged cables to their proper sockets, Ironhide repaired the damage he'd inflicted on the vid-com. It took him only a few klicks to find and download all of Optimus's contacts from the hard drive. He didn't know which contacts Optimus actually wanted, so he copied all of them onto a jump drive which he then safely stored in his subspace compartment.
That done, Ironhide searched the contact list. He quickly found the number he wanted. Clicking Cloudbreaker's name, the vid-com's screen went black as the line connected to the Vosian prince's office in the High Council tower. It rang only twice before the screen was filled with a blue and silver seeker's face.
"Lord Cloudbreaker's Office," the seeker greeted.
Ironhide recognized him from his and Optimus's trip to Vos. "Windsurfer, right?"
Windsurfer stared into the vid-com for a moment of silence before a look of startled recognition finally went across his face. "Consort Ironhide," he stammered. Almost immediately his facial plates flooded with pity. "Please let me be the first to extend my condolences to you and the Prime. I am so sorry about what happened to your son."
Even though Ironhide knew Starfall was safe in the hospital with Optimus watching over him, his spark still gave a painful lurch at the reminder of just how close he'd come to losing him. It took him a moment to find his voice.
"Can ah talk ta Cloudbreaker? There's somethin' ah gotta talk ta him about."
"Of course, sir," Windsurfer obediently nodded. "Please wait one moment. He is in a meeting with another council member right now, but I was given strict orders to get him if you or the Prime returned his call." The screen went black and a message box with the glyphs 'holding' written inside began to lazily flash.
Ironhide barely had to wait. Almost immediately the other side of the line picked up again. Cloudbreaker's face appeared on the screen. The Vosian prince looked extremely tired, as if he hadn't recharged all night. The protomatter around his optics looked gray and pinched with exhaustion. It looked like the usually handsome mech had aged several centuries overnight. Ironhide only then realized what kind of political fallout the Vosians were dealing with in the aftermath of Starfall's supposed death.
"Consort Ironhide," Cloudbreaker sorrowfully greeted. Honest sympathy weighed his voice. "Please accept the Emirate's and my most spark-felt condolences in your time of loss. I cannot even begin to imagine-"
"Star ain't dead," Ironhide hastily cut Cloudbreaker off before the prince could go any farther.
The red and gold seeker stared at Ironhide through the vid-com. His optic ridges furrowed together in an expression of utter confusion. "But… the newsfeeds have been reporting all night that Starfall died at the hands of his kidnapper."
"There was a mistake. Ah just came from the hospital. Optimus is there with him now," Ironhide patiently explained. "He's beat up pretty bad, but… he's still alive." The old war mech fought to keep his voice from breaking but didn't completely succeed.
"That is wonderful news!" Cloudbreaker exclaimed, with a startled little laugh. The joyful relief he displayed was genuine. "Although it is terrible that Starfall is injured, I am relieved to hear the news reports were not correct. The Emirate was extremely upset when I contacted her about what happened. If there is anything I or the Emirate can do-"
"There is."
Cloudbreaker went quiet and stared at Ironhide through the vid-comm expectantly.
"Star's hurt really bad," Ironhide explained as calmly as he could. The memory of all those fresh weld marks and dents littering his son's body still made his spark pulse fast. "The mech that grabbed him focused on his wings the worst. We have the best medic in Iacon workin' on him, but he's not an expert on seekers. He said Star could lose his ability to fly if his wings aren't repaired right."
Ironhide had never allowed himself to ever beg for anything in his life – he had always considered it a disgraceful thing to do. Yet he found it surprisingly easy to meet Cloudbreaker's optics through the screen and beseechingly plead: "We need a Vosian medic. It's Star's only chance 'a gettin' his wings back. He's in constant pain and nothin' Ratchet does seems ta help him. His back hurts so bad he can't even stand layin' down on a berth. Will yeh help us? Optimus and ah will give whatever yeh want. We just need ta get in contact with someone who actually knows about seeker models."
"Of course we will help," Cloudbreaker readily announced. His optics gleamed with purpose, as though Ironhide's request had finally given him the opening he'd been waiting for to be of use. "I will contact my mother immediately. Give us a few joors to make arrangements, but I promise you the best medic in Vos will be in route to Iacon within the orn. Where is Starfall being cared for?"
"Iacon General."
"Our medic will be there by tomorrow morning. What is the best way to contact you after I make arrangements?"
"Optimus asked fer a vid-com ta be put in Star's room so he can contact people, but ah don't know if that's actually happened yet. Ah'm bringin' him all his contact numbers so he can start makin' calls. Once ah get ta the hospital though, ah'm not plannin' on leavin' again til Star gets discharged. Same fer Optimus. Yer best bet it ta wait fer Optimus ta call you."
"Have him contact me here at my office as soon as you get back to the hospital. I should have details about our medic coming to Iacon by then. I will have Windsurfer clear my schedule for the rest of the orn so that I will not be distracted. Is there anything else I can do to help? All of Vos's resources are at your disposal."
Ironhide was taken aback by how eager Cloudbreaker was to help. Apparently Optimus hadn't overestimated Starfall's importance to Vos's royal family.
"No. We just need the medic fer now."
Cloudbreaker held Ironhide's gaze through the vid-com. "If you think of anything else I can do to help in this ordeal do not hesitate to contact me."
"Ah will," Ironhide agreed. Holding Cloudbreaker's gaze, Ironhide was overwhelmed by a sudden rush of gratitude. Although many could argue Cloudbreaker was only being helpful to curry favors with Optimus, Ironhide did not believe there were any real ulterior motives behind Cloudbreaker's kindness. The Vosian prince had proved himself to be a honorable statesmech and father. Despite Ironhide's long history of distrust towards seekers, he trusted and respected Cloudbreaker. Even if Cloudbreaker was only helping Starfall for political gain, Ironhide would never be able to repay him for what he was promising to do. Without Cloudbreaker or the Emirate's help Starfall would never regain the use of his wings.
"Cloudbreaker… thank you. Optimus an' ah owe yeh."
"You owe me nothing. Cloudburst has become close friends with Starfall. I have hopes that they will someday become trinemates. That makes Starfall an extension of my own spark-line. There is nothing I wouldn't do for Starfall that I wouldn't do for my own son."
Ironhide gratefully nodded. "Thanks." He could find no other words to properly convey the full magnitude of his gratitude. "Ah'll have Optimus call yeh as soon as soon ah get back ta the hospital."
"Until then," Cloudbreaker nodded. The screen went black as he cut off his side of the connection.
A great burden seemed to suddenly lift off Ironhide's shoulders. He was still worried about Starfall, but at least now there were arrangements in the works to deal with his injuries. With Cloudbreaker's help, Starfall stood a chance of making a full recovery.
Cycling a deep intake of air, Ironhide searched the contact numbers for his next call. He quickly found Skyfire's number. If not for Optimus reminding him, Ironhide would have completely forgotten about contacting the scientist. Skyfire had just as many emotional ties to Starfall as he and Optimus did. By now he surely must have heard about Starfall's kidnapping. No doubt the giant mech was taking the news hard. Ironhide couldn't see Skyfire taking it any better than he or Optimus had. As one of only a handful of bots who knew Starfall's true identity and who had once been Starscream's lover and best friend, it seemed only appropriate he should be one of the first to be informed that Starfall still lived. Skyfire was a close friend of the Prime family. He deserved to be told the good news – not left to mourn Starfall's death alone until news of his resurrection finally leaked to the press. Unlike Optimus and himself, Skyfire didn't have anyone like Jazz or Prowl to come see him through such a dark time of loss. Except for Ironhide, Optimus, Jazz, Prowl, and Slipstream, no one else even knew of Starfall's connection to Starscream, or realized how Skyfire would be affected by Starfall's death. What a horrible thing, Ironhide thought with a frown. To grieve the loss of a loved one – for a second time no less! – and have no one else know or be in a position to offer any kind of comfort. Ironhide could only guess how lonely and dark such a situation must be. At least when he thought he'd lost Starfall he'd had Optimus. Skyfire had no one…
The vid-com rang several time with no answer. An automated message log kicked on. Ironhide cut the line and stubbornly dialed again. He was not going to let Skyfire ignore him. Not even a couple joors ago Ironhide had been in the same position as Skyfire was in. He knew how important it was to still have reason to hope.
Finally, on the fourth redial Skyfire answered.
"Yes?" he wearily croaked into the camera.
Ironhide couldn't help the jolt of shock that snapped through him at Skyfire's appearance. The scientist looked – in a single word – horrible. Abject misery lined every corner of his face. The giant mech's usually broad shoulders sagged as though a physical weight was pushing them down. His wings drooped down the length of his back. But the worst were his optics. It was like every ounce of life had been drained from Skyfire's soul. It was like the giant mech had been replaced by a soulless drone who still moved and functioned like a living mech but was devoid of that essentially spark of life that hoped or was capable of feeling happiness. Ironhide briefly wondered if he had looked like that when Jazz and Prowl found him that morning.
"Skyfire, it's Ironhide."
Skyfire flickered his optics, as if only then deciding to shake himself out of his daze and focus on his caller's face. "Ironhide?" Skyfire's face crumbled with a fresh rush of misery. The edges of his optics fuzzed with static. "I heard about what happened." The giant mech's voice broke as he spoke, as though he was only barely managing to hold his emotions together. His loss came across the vid-com connection like a physical presence. "I already know Star's gone," he sorrowfully announced as if in anticipation of Ironhide. "I heard about it last night on the newsfeed."
"Skyfire, listen ta me. Star ain't gone. He's still alive. Ah just came from the hospital. Optimus is there with him now. He's pretty beat up but he's still alive."
Not unlike Cloudbreaker, Skyfire stared at Ironhide for a pregnant length of silence with a look of incredulous disbelief. "Still alive? But all the newsfeeds said Star died."
"Optimus an' ah thought he did too. Ah don't know what happened but Ratchet called us this morning ta tell us he was still alive. Some medic found him in the morgue. Ratchet had ta do emergency surgery ta finishing repairin' him before he called us but he got 'im stable enough ta put in a room. Optimus's watchin' over him now."
Skyfire barely seemed able to comprehend what Ironhide was saying. "Star's not dead?"
"No."
"He's alright?"
"He's hurt, but he's still alive."
A sob of relief clicked in the back of Skyfire's throat line. "Thank Primus," he croaked past the knot in this throat line. Static-filled optics met Ironhide's through the vid-com screen. It hurt Ironhide to be witness to Skyfire's relief because it reminded him too much of his own reaction when he'd first heard his son was still alive. "It's a miracle. Primus must have heard my prayers."
"Ours too," Ironhide agreed in an extremely tight voice. His display of emotions didn't bother him as much as it would have if he had been talking with anyone else. If there was anyone else besides Optimus who could understand how happy he was to have Starfall back, it was Skyfire.
"Is it possible for me to see him?" Skyfire pleadingly asked. "I know I am not a family member, but I cannot say how much it would mean to me if I could see Star. I just want to see how he is."
Ironhide vented a tired breath of air. "That's probably not a good idea. Star's in really rough shape right now. The mech that grabbed him beat him up really bad. Ratchet patched him up but he's still covered with weld marks and dents. Ratchet says he's gonna probably hafta stay in the hospital fer the next couple deca-cycles. The worst is his back. The mech that took 'im hates seekers. When ah rescued him the mech was using an electro-knife on his wings. Ratchet wasn't able ta salvage them. Star doesn't have any wings right now. His back's all bandaged up. Worst thing is, nothing Ratchet gives him seems ta be doin' anything fer the pain. Optimus is holdin' him. Seems ta help a lil. When ah left Optimus just managed ta get him ta recharge. Ah don't know how long he's gonna stay like that though."
"Primus…" Skyfire breathed, horrified. The worst of his anguish seemed to have passed, only to be replaced by revulsion and worry. "What is Ratchet doing to repair them?"
Ironhide shook his helm. "Ratchet's not an expert on seekers. Optimus just had me call Cloudbreaker, Vos's new representative ta the High Council, fer help. The Emirate's gonna send a seeker medic ta Iacon ta work on Star. Medic should be here by ta-morrow. But til then, Star gonna hafta soldier through the worst 'a it. Ah'm hopin' someone holdin' him will help him sleep til then. Poor kid's hurtin' really bad."
"If there is anything I can do to help either you, Star, or Optimus, please do not hesitate to ask."
Ironhide nodded. "As soon as Star's well enough fer visitors yeh'll be the first one ta know."
"Thank you," Skyfire murmured. "I… I am just so happy you called. I tried contacting you last night but no one picked up. For so long I feared the worst. All the newsfeeds were saying that Star was gone and there was no one else I could think of to call to talk about what happened."
"We thought the worst too," Ironhide confessed in a tight voice. "Jazz and Prowl stopped by ta see us before Ratchet called. Neither 'a us were doin' very well. We thought we'd lost Star."
"I was so certain I had lost him again…" Skyfire murmured. "It was hard when I lost Starscream, but believing Star was gone was the worst pain I've ever felt."
Ironhide could only mutely nod in understanding. "Listen, ah gotta go. Ah still need ta grab some things here from home before ah head back ta the hospital. Optimus is waitin' fer me. Ah wanna try an' get back before too many people find out about Star. Ah wanna avoid any reporters if ah can."
"Of course. I understand. Go," Skyfire urged. "Thank you for calling me. I truly appreciate it. Remember: if you need anything call me." Skyfire was no longer the lost and broken mech that had picked up the connection five klicks ago. Although still shaken, Ironhide's call seemed to have given him the reason he'd needed to pull himself together. Ironhide knew he would be alright now.
"We will. We're settin' up a vid-com there in case we need ta call anyone. We'll give yeh a call if there're any changes with Star."
"Thank you," Skyfire nodded. "Go. Star and Optimus need you. Take care of him until that medic arrives."
Ironhide nodded and cut off the connection. Leaning back in his chair Ironhide released a sigh that seemed to come from the very center of his being. He suddenly felt exhausted. Between the events of yesterday and that morning, his emotions had been stretched to their breaking point. Looking back on it Ironhide marveled how he had survived. Until only a few joors ago he felt like he had been locked in a hellish nightmare he thought he would never be able to escape. Although he knew Starfall was now safe, a long recovery still lay ahead. He only hoped he had the strength to see himself through it. Optimus and Star were going to need him more now than ever before. For them he had to remain strong.
Gathering his will power, Ironhide pushed himself out of the chair. He couldn't sit around wallowing like some sissy noble all day. His family needed him. With calm, collected focus, Ironhide swept through the domicile gathering things he thought he, Optimus, and Starfall would need for an extended stay in the hospital. From Starfall's room he picked out several data pads he was pretty sure his son hadn't read yet. Although he didn't think Starfall would be in any shape to read them himself, he or Optimus might be able to read them aloud to help distract Starfall from the worst of his pain. From the washrack he grabbed several canisters of polish and other detailing equipment. At some point Optimus was going to have to make an appearance in front of the press. When he did it would be good if he looked like a Prime and not like a haggard, worried father. Several other small personal things he grabbed from his and Optimus's room. All these he added to the jump drive already stowed away inside his subspace compartment.
His mission done, Ironhide left and locked the domicile behind him. He only briefly wondered when he would be back again. All he could hope for was that when he did it would be with his son.
It was still relatively early when Ironhide emerged from the domicile tower into the transformation lot. He saw only two or three other bots near the street. Transforming quickly before he could be noticed or approached, Ironhide pulled out and sped away down the street. He turned onto the highway that would lead him to the center of the city. Traffic was starting to pick up. Carefully weaving in and out of other bots clogging the road in vehicle-mode, Ironhide once again caught himself reflecting back on the day's events.
It had been a complete miracle what happened. Ironhide had never considered himself particularly religious but nothing he did could shake the feeling that there had been some kind of divine intervention in Starfall being returned to them. Nothing else could explain Starfall's resurrection. He had seen his son's body the night before. He had seen the ugly gray coloring of his armor and the lightless voids of his optics as he lay there on the emergency room table. His sparkchamber had been cold. Everything that had made his son unique and special was gone, leaving only an empty shell behind. How he could be brought back from such a state without some kind of mystical intervention went beyond Ironhide's comprehension of the universe.
It had been nearly overwhelming when he'd seen Starfall that morning. His son had looked so small and fragile laying on that berth – almost like a broken toy. If Optimus hadn't scooped him up when he'd started sobbing Ironhide probably would have done so himself. It had taken everything inside him not to grab his son and squeeze him to his chest when he'd first seen him laying there. Only the tubes and wires hooked to his tiny body and the painful looking weld marks and dents had stopped him. There had barely been anywhere on Starfall's body he hadn't somehow looked injured. The only place he'd felt safe enough touching without fear of causing Starfall any more pain had been a small section of armor on his hip plate. And his wings… Primus, his wings… How could anyone do something like that to a child?
A nearly uncontrollable surge of anger pulsed through Ironhide's spark. It took every ounce of control he had to continue driving straight.
That mech… Crosshairs. He had done all that to his son. He had gone out of his way to track Starfall down at his school and grab him off the street. He had brutally beaten and disfigured a helpless child simply because of what model he was. What kind of evil was festering inside a mech's spark to be able to commit such a crime? If it wasn't for a miracle of Primus, Starfall would still be dead.
An off ramp was coming up in the distance. That particular ramp would slingshot him to the western part of the city. Numerous business were located in that sector, along with Enforcer Headquarters.
Ironhide swerved into the right-hand lane at the last second. Several angry horns blared behind them. He ignored them. He was already speeding away down the ramp.
OOOOOO
Jazz sat at his desk in Enforcer Headquarters' main bullpen. It was a large room filled with more than three dozen desks and workstations. Several other Enforcers bustled about the room going about their morning duties. Jazz was filling out a report on Starfall's kidnapping. He hadn't gotten a chance to write one the orn before after he and Prowl escorted Optimus and Ironhide home from the hospital. After they left the two grieving parents to themselves they had gone straight home. Even Prowl hadn't felt like doing anything official in the wake of Starfall's death.
That morning they'd been delayed even more by going with Optimus and Ironhide to the hospital, so there had been a sizeable backlog of work waiting for them when they'd finally gotten to Headquarters. Prowl had immediately disappeared into his office at the far end of the room. Jazz could see him sitting behind his desk through the open doorway. Prowl was talking with someone on the vid-com. He didn't look happy. His side of their sparkbond was also noticeably tense with frustration. Jazz didn't envy his sparkmate's position as Enforcer's captain at all. In the wake of Starfall's resurrection, Prowl had a veritable mountain of work ahead of him for how he planned to deal with Starfall's kidnapper, Crosshairs. Starfall's supposed murder was still top headlines in all of the newsfeeds. A muted tele-consol set up in the far corner of the bullpen was recapping highlights of the ordeal. It looked like word still hadn't leaked out about Starfall's return.
Once word the Prime's son was no longer dead began to circulate among the press Prowl was going to be swamped with reporters and elected officials calling and demanding to know what the Enforcer Department was going to do with Crosshairs. The mech was the new public enemy number one. Extra security was going to have to be set up for him whenever he was transferred to prison. Although the tele-consol was muted in the corner, Jazz had seen the interviews on the newsfeeds before he and Prowl had gone to check on Optimus and Ironhide. Starfall's kidnapping seemed to have ignited a powder keg of controversy among the planet's population. Minority models were screaming about discrimination and model-targeting and demanding that extreme judicial actions be taken against Crosshairs. Execution was only one of the punishments being talked about. Numerous creators of sparklings the same age as Starfall were being interviewed by reporters saying they no longer felt safe letting their children go to school. If the Prime's own son wasn't safe on supposedly secure school grounds then whose was? School administrators in other districts were meting out criticism left and right for the security protocols of District 11's academy. On the other side of things, the more extreme groups that had been protesting Vos rejoining the High Council were glorifying Crosshair's actions as though he was some kind of hero to their cause. And to add to the whole social firestorm, the politicians were all angling to try and take advantage of the tragedy in any way they could.
It was enough to make Jazz sick.
Crosshairs was currently locked in one of headquarters' interrogation rooms down the hallway in full stasis cuff restraints. He had yet to request any kind of legal counsel despite numerous suggestions that he do so. From what Jazz had heard from some of the other Enforcers that had brought him in the orn before, the mech seemed proud what he'd done. So far he'd done nothing to try and deny his guilt. Jazz hadn't gone in to interrogate Crosshairs yet. He was waiting for Prowl to finish up his paperwork to come play good cop to Jazz's bad. The former saboteur had no intention of being nice when he finally went in there to get Crosshairs' statement. Crosshairs had kidnapped, beaten, and nearly killed a defenseless young sparkling. Prowl would likely keep his cool through the interrogation – he was good at keeping his emotions in check like that, especially when he was working. But Jazz couldn't guarantee the same for himself. Every time he thought about Starfall laying on that hospital berth, hooked to machines and in so much pain he couldn't even bear to lay on his side, Jazz could only think of Kia and what he would do if someone ever did that to his daughter.
A blur of red movement suddenly caught Jazz's attention out of the corner of his optic. He looked up to see Ironhide striding into the bullpen. He was heading right for Jazz's desk. Ironhide looked like a mech on a mission. His body language was stiff and screamed danger. The intense look in Ironhide's optics made Jazz unconsciously tense in his seat.
"Ironhide, what're ya doing here? Why aren't ya at the hospital with-?"
"Where is he?" Ironhide growled between clenched dentas. His optics were nothing but thin slits of icy blue. Jazz didn't meed to ask who he was asking about.
"Interrogation room 3. Prowl 'n I haven't had a chance ta question Crosshairs yet. We were just about ta- Hey! Wait!"
Ironhide was already striding away down the hall, his hands clenched into fists.
"Aw, slag. PROWL!" Jazz yelled as he leapt up from his desk and hurried after Ironhide. He sent an alarmed pulse of urgency across his and Prowl's sparkbond. "Gonna need some help over here! NOW!"
Ironhide stormed around a bend in the hallway and disappeared from Jazz's sight. Interrogation room 3 stood at the end of that corridor. The sound of a door slamming open against the wall reverberated through the air. Jazz turned the corner just in time to make out the outline of the interrogation room's door standing open. The harsh florescent lights made a perfect rectangle of white at the end of the darker hallway. As he raced closer the dark silhouette of a mech – Crosshairs – sailed across the doorway from left to right and violently slammed into the wall beside the door. He crumbled into a limp pile of metal plating on the floor. Jazz was almost to the doorway when Ironhide reappeared and stepped in front of the prostrate form.
"So yeh like beatin' up on little sparklings, huh?" he roared, lifting Crosshairs off the ground by the front of his chest plate and burying his knuckles into the side of Crosshairs' face. "How's about beatin' up on someone yer own size?"
Crosshairs weakly tried to shield himself with his hands, but they were shackled with stasis cuffs and offered little protection against Ironhide's angry assault. "H-help-!"
"Ironhide, stop!"
"Yeh think it's fun hurtin' lil kids?" Ironhide spat in Crosshair's face. Jazz didn't know if Ironhide was ignoring him or if he was just too consumed with rage to hear anyone else. All his attention seemed focused on the prisoner. "Well, guess wha', slagger, yeh picked the wrong kid ta mess with."
"What is going on in here?!" Prowl's voice sounded from the doorway. He pushed his way past Jazz into the interrogation room and pulled Ironhide away from Crosshairs by the shoulder. "What are you doing, Ironhide?"
Jazz hurried in half a step behind. He knelt down beside Crosshairs. A thin trail of mech fluid ran from the prisoner's nose, but otherwise he seemed uninjured.
"Damn mech almost killed my kid!" Ironhide snarled at Prowl. He violently ripped his arm out of Prowl's grip and rounded on the black and white Enforcer almost as if he intended to attack Prowl next.
"So you decide to attack a restrained prisoner?" Prowl demanded. "Are you still drunk or just out of your mind?"
"Star's layin' in a hospital right now cause 'a that mech," Ironhide spat, stabbing his index finger in Crosshairs' direction. "He's hurt so bad he can't even stand ta lay on a berth an' yer not even the least bit upset over that?"
"Of course I'm upset about Star being hurt," Prowl sternly countered, "but that doesn't give you the right to invade my interrogation room and attack a prisoner."
Crosshairs coughed where he sat on the floor between Prowl and Ironhide. With the back of one cuffed hand he wiped away the trail of mech fluid from his face. He defiantly looked up to meet Ironhide's gaze. "That seeker had to go. He's a danger to our entire society. The Prime doesn't see it. The politicians don't see it. He's a menace. It's because of that little devil with wings the rest of the them want to reopen their city. They want to try and infiltrate the High Council again just like they did before the Great War. If we don't stop them now they'll start a second Great War and kill thousands of us. Seekers killed my brother during the war. I couldn't let them do that to anyone else's brother. No one wants to listen to the bots that are trying to warn everybody about letting seekers out of their city again, but I heard what they were trying to say. I just did what the rest of them were too scared to do. I had to be the one to actually do something about what was happening. I'm just disappointed I didn't get a chance to finish the job."
"I strongly suggest ya shut your mouth before ya say something that'll get ya inta even worse trouble," Jazz counseled.
"Star didn't kill yer brother," Ironhide snarled down at him, his optics glaring murder. "He's just a lil kid. An innocent lil kid."
Crosshairs coolly returned his gaze. "He'll grow up someday. And when he does, other seekers will use him to destroy us. No seeker is innocent. They're all killers at spark. It's their prime directive. All they're capable of is destruction and death."
"Enough conspiracy theories," Prowl angrily cut in before Crosshairs could grandstand anymore of his warped beliefs. "Jazz, get the prisoner up. Ironhide, I want to see you walking out this door and out of this building within in the next five nano-klicks."
"That mech hurt my kid," Ironhide growled, as if that was some kind of argument to Prowl's orders. He still looked like he wanted to pounce on Crosshairs and finish the job he'd started.
"Don't make me arrest you," Prowl warned. "Optimus and Star need you at the hospital with them, not locked away in a cell because you were too angry to think about what you were doing." Prowl leaned closer, holding Ironhide's gaze. "Think of Star. He needs you right now. You remember what it felt like when you thought Star was gone? Go back to the hospital and be thankful for what you've been given back. Right now Star is your only concern. Jazz and I will take care of things here. Let the law work for you."
Ironhide looked ready to argue for a long breath of tense silence. Then, with an angry sigh of defeat, the old war mech turned and quietly walked out of the interrogation room.
OOOOOO
Prowl listened to Ironhide's footsteps recede down the hallway for a full ten-count before he let himself believe the other mech had truly listened to reason and wasn't going to charge back in and attack Crosshairs. Prowl silently chastised himself. He should have known Ironhide wouldn't let things stand as they were. Ironhide was too bullheaded and protective a father to let his son's attacker get away without some kind of physical retribution. He should have calculated such a scenario happening and had guards posted outside the interrogation room for Crosshairs' protection. It was just lucky for Crosshairs that Starfall wasn't dead. If Prowl hadn't had Starfall to use as a bargaining tool to talk Ironhide into quietly walking away, Crosshairs would probably have been a heap of dented metal and splatters of mech fluid on the wall right now. If Starfall had been dead not even an entire squadron of Enforcers would have been able to pull Ironhide off of Crosshairs.
As Jazz pulled Crosshairs up off the ground by the elbow, led him to the interrogation table, and none too gently shoved him down into the chair, Prowl studied the restrained mech. The entire social and political makeup of the city was in uproar right now because of him. Prowl had had to abruptly hang up on the Senate's majority leader in his haste to charge after Jazz and Ironhide to prevent any casualties from happening in his interrogation room. Everything from hereon out had to be done strictly by the book to avoid any incidents that could be used to cast doubt on Crosshairs' guilt. The last thing Prowl wanted was for his case against Crosshairs to somehow be weakened because of some judicial oversight or misconduct. He wanted to put this mech away for a very long time for what he'd done to his closest friends' son.
Calmly striding to the interrogation table, Prowl took a seat directly across from the prisoner. Jazz took a place on the side of the room - leaning against the wall and crossing his arms across his chest, all the while silently glaring at the prisoner from behind his visor. Jazz usually liked to stand during interrogations. It gave him an intimidating presence even when Prowl did most of the talking. It was a technique they had developed together over the years.
"Well, now that we're all awake, do you feel like giving a statement about what happened yesterday?" Prowl asked. He took a recording device out of his subspace compartment and put it on the table between them.
"Why didn't you arrest him?" Crosshairs demanded, gesturing with his chin in the direction Ironhide had disappeared. "He attacked me."
"I didn't see anything," Jazz coolly shrugged from the side of the room. "Ironhide just happened ta wander in here by accident."
"Ironhide was told he wasn't supposed to be here and immediately shown out. No harm was done," Prowl agreed. "Now," he said, turning on the recording device with a flick of his thumb. A little red light on the side of the device began to blink. "Shall we talk about yesterday?"
"What do you want to know?" Crosshairs sneered. "I have nothing to hide. I'm proud of what I did. That little seeker had to die."
"You are aware that you are entitled to legal representation and that anything you say in front of myself and Enforcer Jazz can and will be used against you in a legal trial?"
"I'm aware of my rights. And I still don't want a counselor. I don't need to try and justify my actions."
"Are you saying you wish to make a formal confession and forego a trial?"
"I'll make whatever kind of statement you want me to, but I'm not going to confess to being guilty for something any sane bot would know I had to do. I want my day in court. The rest of the world needs to know what kind of danger we're in because of that little spawn of Unicron. The Prime is putting us all in danger by keeping that little seeker around. If others aren't educated soon about what's going on seekers are going to overrun us and lead us into a second Great War."
Prowl considered the mech sitting across from him with a thoughtful frown. He couldn't prevent Crosshairs from demanding a fair trial, but he wanted to avoid such a thing from happening if at all possible. A trial would cost the people thousands upon thousands of credits, not to mention give the firestorm of controversy already surrounding Starfall's kidnapping only more time to grow. The issue was big enough to threaten the stability of their society if it was allowed to snowball out of control. Although there was no chance in the seven pits Crosshairs would ever be acquitted given the evidence against him, no one needed a public spectacle that could drag on for lunar-cycles, if not orns. Constant media coverage was already whipping the public into a rabid frenzy. If Crosshairs' case went to trial it was also possible Starfall would be subpoenaed to testify. Although there was already enough evidence against Crosshairs from Jazz and other Enforcers' statements and the video feed of Crosshairs grabbing Starfall from his school, Starfall's amnesia could potentially cast doubt on Crosshairs' guilt. Any half-trained defense counselor could use that to build a case of reasonable doubt. Prowl also didn't want to have to put an already traumatized sparkling through even more emotional stress by dragging him in front of a packed courtroom and forcing him to answer questions. No one Starfall's age needed that kind of stress.
No… in order to avoid that he had to make Crosshairs realize going to trial was not in his best interest. There were several ways he could convince him of that. Perhaps he should start with the most obvious.
"If you want to go have your day in court, there is nothing I can do to stop you," Prowl calmly informed him. "But consider this: any trial you have will probably be several lunar-cycles from now. By then the press will have had time to whip the public into a rabid mob. People don't like hearing stories about sparklings almost getting beaten to death – seeker model or not. That's not to mention organized groups of minority models. They're already screaming for your head on a spike."
"War models don't scare me," Crosshairs spat, puffing himself up indignantly.
"They should," Prowl cautioned. "They might be a minority, but your attack on an under-aged member of their kind has swayed a lot of standard models' opinions in their favor. Not to mention the biggest thing of all: you attacked the son of the most powerful bot on this planet. Optimus Prime is a peace-loving mech, but even he has limits. Especially when it comes to his own child. This is the same Prime, I remind you, that single-handedly defeated Megatron in battle. Do you really think he's going to allow his son's attacker to get away with attempted murder? Not to mention the Prime's Consort… You remember him, right? He was the one that just stormed in here a few klicks ago to have a private conversation with you. If you go to trial you're going to see both of them again. After what you did to their son, do you really think anyone is going to stop them if they wanted to even the score a little bit on their son's behalf? Hell, the majority of people would probably even cheer them on…"
The first visible signs of fear shined in Crosshairs' optics. "I'd have to see the Consort again if I went to trail?"
"He was there when my Enforcers broke down the door and found you beating a defenseless sparkling. You really think he won't testify against you for what you did to his son?"
Crosshairs growled in the back of his throat line and slouched down into his chair. Prowl recognized signs of uncertainty and growing indecision when he saw it. Best to help nudge it along.
"Do you want to make a confession, plead guilty, and throw yourself at the mercy of the court? It would save you from having to appear in open court."
Crosshairs didn't answer for a long moment of angry silence. "Fine," he finally growled. "What do I have to do?"
"Just start talking into the recorder," Prowl said, gesturing to the recording device on the table. "Tell me why you decided to attack the Prime's son. Start from the beginning and leave nothing out."
As Crosshairs began to talk, Prowl shared a spark pulse of triumph with his sparkmate. Out of the corner of his optic, Prowl saw the tiniest hint of a smirk snake across Jazz's face.
OOOOOO
Two Enforcers were stationed outside Starfall's room when Ironhide returned to the hospital. They both politely nodded to him as he passed. Ironhide spared them only a quick nod of acknowledgement. After leaving Enforcer Headquarters all Ironhide wanted to do was be with his family. The sooner the better.
Quietly keying the door open Ironhide slipped inside. A privacy curtain had been pulled across the front half of the room. The lights had been dimmed almost to complete darkness. Only the soft glow of a single bank of lights on the other side of the curtain offered any real source of illumination.
"Ratchet?" Optimus's voice softly called from the other side of the curtain. "Is that you?"
"It's me."
"'Hide," Optimus murmured in relief. The soft snick of Optimus's battle mask retracting sounded.
As Ironhide came around the side of the curtail he found Optimus in the same place he's left him beside Starfall's berth. A vid-com consol on a rolling stand stood pushed against the far wall. Starfall was still protectively held in Optimus's arms against his chest. His face was buried in the side of Optimus's neck cables, making Ironhide unable to see the little seeker's face. The machines hooked to him beeped a hypnotic rhythm. Coming up beside his sparkmate, Ironhide gently cupped the back of Starfall's head with his hand. The need to actually touch his son was nearly overwhelming. As he leaned away he noticed spots of purple fluid beginning to seep through the bio-metallic mesh covering Starfall's back where his wings used to be. Ironhide tried to push down the press of anger that rose in the back of his throat at the sight of those wet spots of purple. They made him wish Prowl and Jazz hadn't been able to pull him off of Crosshairs.
Ironhide noticed the strange little look Optimus was giving him out of the corner of his optic. No doubt he had felt the tension and some stray traces of emotion leaking across their sparkbond. If Optimus suspected anything about Ironhide's little side trip to Enforcer Headquarters he didn't seem willing to ask about it. Optimus looked emotionally drained and too tired to worry about anything else but his son right now.
"How's Star doin'?" Ironhide asked.
"He woke up again for a little bit not long after you left," Optimus softly whispered over Starfall's head. "It took me almost half a joor to get him back to sleep he was in so much pain." Optimus's optics were unbearably tired as he looked up at Ironhide as if it had been himself who'd had to endure so much pain. "Ratchet gave him another dose of pain medication when he brought us the vid-com, but it only seemed to make Star groggy instead of actually doing anything to make him more comfortable."
"Ah'm sorry it took me so long ta get back."
"Did you call Cloudbreaker?"
"Yea. He said he'll help us. Said he's gonna send the best medic Vos has. He said he should be here by ta-morrow morning. He wants yeh ta call him as soon as yeh get the vid-com up an' runnin' ta finish makin' arrangements."
"Good," Optimus sighed, relieved. "I will contact him in a joor or two."
"Ah also called Skyfire like yeh said."
"How is he?"
"About as good as we were doin' this mornin'," Ironhide sighed.
"I can understand why," Optimus murmured.
"He asked if he could stop by and see Star soon. Ah told him we'd arrange a time fer him ta come by once Star's a lil better and ready fer visitors."
Optimus nodded. He unconsciously hugged the sparkling in his arms tighter, cupping the back of his helm with his hand like one would a newspark.
Seeing his sparkmate holding their son like that made Ironhide suddenly desperate to hold Starfall himself.
"Can ah hold 'him fer a bit?" Ironhide asked. "Yeh've been holdin' him fer several joors now. Yeh gotta be tired."
"It's alright," Optimus shook his head. "I'm fine. Star seems to be comfortable for now."
"Optimus."
Optimus looked up at the soft intonation of his name. Ironhide didn't know what emotions were showing on his face, but Optimus seemed to hear the desperate need in his voice to hold their son.
"Alright," he softly agreed.
Very slowly Optimus stood from the chair. As he carefully transferred his precious cargo into Ironhide's arms Starfall gave a soft whimper in his sleep.
"Shh, it's alright, Star. Daddy's got yeh," Ironhide murmured as he took Optimus's place in the chair. He had to be careful not to get tangled in the numerous tubes and wires trailing off his son's body. Leaning back in the chair, Ironhide arranged Starfall in his arms. The injured sparkling was dead weight against his chest. Ironhide felt a little hitch in Starfall's ventilation cycle as he made them both comfortable.
"Daddy?" a groggy voice murmured into the side of Ironhide's throat cables. Tiny fingers curled around the edges of Ironhide's chest plates.
"It's me, Star. Daddy's here." Ironhide had to fight to speak around the lump in the back of his throat.
Ironhide felt Starfall relax against his front and almost immediately go limp again.
Cupping the back of his son's head Ironhide had to blink away the fuzz of static suddenly ringing his visual readout.
"Let me go call Cloudbreaker," Optimus softly said. He smiled at Ironhide with a knowing look and moved away to the vid-com on the other side of the room.
Ironhide could only hug his son closer. For the first time since getting Ratchet's call everything suddenly seemed real. For so long having Starfall back had seemed like a fantasy he was deluding himself with to prevent himself from having to feel the pain of losing his son. Starfall was really back. Primus had returned his son to them. They had a second chance together as a family. Everything was going to be alright now.
to be continued
Thoughts, comments, questions are welcome.
