Fandom: Transformers IDW AU with a dose of Bayverse and G1
Author: gatekat, starsheild, ultrarodimus on LJ
Pairing: Drift/Wing/Windswept, Axe/Dai Atlas, Titanium/GoldenRod
Rating:
Codes: AU, Slash
Summary:
Disclaimer: The authors are only playing with their own twisted muses. Transformers belong to Hasbro. Fandom-side, check the inspirations page (gatekat-fics .livejournal. com/290 .html). We draw from a ton of amazing stories and authors you should read.
Notes: nanoklik = 1/8 second; klik = 496 nanokliks/62 seconds; breem = 8 kliks/8.27 minutes; groon = 9 breem/1.24 hours; joor = 6 groon/7.44 hours; orn = 42 joor/13.02 days; decaorn = 32 orns/1.14 years; metacycle = 8 decaorn/9.22 years; vorn = 9 metacycles/72 decaorn/83 years ::text:: comm chatter
~text~ hardline/bond chatter

Honors Demands 38: Leaving the Past Behind

Roughly a vorn after leaving New Crystal City, the Stellar Wind was approaching Cybertron.

There had been a short stop at a spaceport roughly halfway between the city of the Knights and the Transformer homeworld, during which messages had been transmitted back and forth from the ship to Cybertron. After taking on supplies and some consultation with the six passengers aboard, Titanium had set in a course for Cybertron itself.

GoldenRod sat at another console, contacting the spaceport for landing permission and an approach vector. There was some back-and-forth chatter before a vector was given, directing them to a section of the port for handling the larger personal spacecraft. The gold mech relayed the coordinates and approach vector to his mate, who entered them into the nav system.

"Here we go," Titanium muttered, starting the approach to the spaceport.

He was not happy about this in the least. The delay, to be honest, was relatively minor. But he trusted Prowl about as far as he could throw the Stellar Wind when it came to not trying to convince the Aerialbots to remain Autobots. The young jets couldn't see it, couldn't see Prowl for the old master tactician he was. To them, he was a friend and comrade, someone to be trusted.

GoldenRod rose from his console, draping himself over his mate's shoulder. "This is going to be rough, especially on the Aerials."

Armor plates bristled across Titanium's shoulders and upper back, his wings hiking up higher. "Prowl's a sneaky glitch. The Aerials are young enough not to see that, and certainly young enough not to recognize emotional warfare. I'm betting on seeing a lot of it." The big mech vented heavily. "Let's get this over with..."

Red optics flicked across the monitors as Titanium guided the ship into the spaceport, smaller craft and individual fliers darting out of the way. They could see the Autobot delegation waiting for them to one side of the docking bay as the Stellar Wind slid into place and settled down. Prowl, Jazz, Ironhide, Springer, Sunstreaker, Sideswipe, Skyfire, Cloudraker and Dogfight were among the gathering. Some obviously part of the official contingent, others part of those who had no doubt heard and wanted to see the missing mecha.

Titanium growled low in his throat briefly as he powered down the engines, the familiar faint vibration of the massive drives fading as the engines shut down. GoldenRod stepped back to let his mate rise from the pilot's chair and head for the main airlock, detouring to the common room to round up their passengers.

Ruby optics settled on Wing. "I'd bet half the welcoming committee's here to see you."

The white jet squeaked in surprise, his golden optics brightening in excitement as he jumped to his pedes. "Who?"

All around him the gestalt also rose in various states of good humor and relaxed expectation of getting yelled at, a metacycle in the brig and a smooth exit from service.

"I'd say a good half the crew, and the rest are waiting to pounce at the base." Titanium flicked his wings, then looked slightly sadly at the Aerials before leading the way to the airlock. "Atlas will blow every fuse he's got if anything happens to you, please remember... I prefer all my limbs attached."

GoldenRod was waiting, one hand on the control panel, ready to open the hatch and extend the boarding ramp. Blue optics flicked over the group before he activated the controls.

"I can hold my own in a fight, you know," Wing huffed, though there was no actual displeasure in him. "Besides, none of them are out to hurt me."

The Autobot contingent shifted, displaying various states of eagerness, though, predictably, it was Sideswipe that broke rank first and all but rushed them, aiming right for Wing with a wide grin on his face.

"Fluttershy!" The red warrior cheered as he swept a now-grown Wing up and swung him around. "Do you have any idea the chaos you caused in taking off?"

"'Fluttershy'?" GoldenRod repeated, raising an optic rim and trying his very best not to laugh. "Dare I ask?"

Titanium grinned in a manner that clearly said Dai Atlas and Axe would be hearing that nickname, then gave Prowl a suspicious look before ignoring the black and white. "If he wasn't aware before, he certainly is now!"

Wing just laughed, delighted at the greeting as he was put down and held at arm's length.

"You do look good," Sunstreaker admitted gruffly as several others joined Sideswipe in greeting the long absent jet and checking out Wing's adult look.

It also made it obvious who was strictly security and who was here to meet and greet. Prowl, Springer and Dogfight were the ones holding back, waiting for the chaos to settle.

"You should see him fly." There was admiration in Skydive's voice as the Aerialbots emerged from the ship. Titanium obligingly moved his bulk out of the way, moving to stand on GoldenRod's other side.

A flash of blue startled mechs into jumping as another mech appeared out of nowhere. Taller than Titanium by at least half a head, the brilliant white and charcoal mech with gold trim, sapphire-blue optics, and bright red faction insignias appeared out of nowhere. "Thought I recognized your ship!"

"Titanus, what have I told you about teleporting?" Prowl vented.

Titanus, predictably, ignored Prowl completely, wading through the sea of mechs to clasp forearms with Titanium before looking at Wing curiously. "Hello again, little flit. It's certainly been a while."

"That it has," Wing grinned up at him. "You haven't changed a bit."

No one noticed that Jazz had slipped from the rambunctious gathering to stand at Prowl's side, his attention on the Autobot SIC.

"You certainly have." Titanus eyed Wing's frame admiringly. "And nope, watching everyone jump is too entertaining. 'Sides, it gets the rookies used to teleports. Makes it easier to handle Skywarp that way."

The big teleporter nodded to the Aerialbots, then took one step back and disappeared again, startling the closest Autobots. Titanium shook his helm, glancing around the crowd as he made his way down the boarding ramp. It was only then that he noted the TIC speaking quietly to the SIC, or the way Prowl's doorwings slowly settled into a more normal angle as his anger was smoothed.

"If everyone is satisfied that Wing is indeed Wing," Prowl locked optics on the Aerialbots.

"We're coming, sir," Silverbolt inclined his helm and lead his gestalt forward.

"If you will follow Dogfight to the base, Ratchet will check you out," Prowl told them. "I expect you in my office when he releases you."

"Yes, sir," Silverbolt nodded and lifted off, clearing the ground-bound mecha before transforming to follow Dogfight, Springer lifting off to take up the rear.

"And so it begins," Titanium muttered, watching the Aerialbots leave. His wings drooped briefly, then he turned and began herding the whole swarm out of the spaceport while GoldenRod locked down the ship. "There'll be plenty of opportunities to swap stories and interrogate Wing back at the base! Shoo!"

"You two are no longer Autobots, and Wing is no longer a dependent," Prowl's voice was hard.

Red optics turned to the black-and-white, regarding Prowl the same way Titanium would regard some new species of bug. "Your point?"

"None of you are cleared to be on base," Icy blue optics locked on red, not the least afraid of him.

GoldenRod placed a hand on his mate's arm. "We'll stay aboard the ship."

Titanium snorted, turning his back on Prowl and opening a comm line to Wing. ::Prowl's being an ass; the three of us aren't allowed on base because none of us are Autobots. We'll be staying aboard the ship while we're on Cybertron.::

Wing glanced at Prowl, his optics flicking in surprise, then a sad understanding as Prowl and Jazz transformed to make their way back to base with their guards. ::I understand,:: he replied. ::Mind if I have Autobot company or should I meet them in town?::

::They're welcome aboard as long as they behave,:: Titanium replied as he walked back up the boarding ramp, reentering the ship. ::Anyone but Prowl.::

Wing made a few quick arrangements and followed Titanium and GoldenRod on board. "I don't think that'll be an issue. I respect his tactical and command abilities, but we were never friends. I don't think he does friends."

"He does 'pain in the aft' pretty well, though," Titanium muttered to himself, then yelped as GoldenRod smacked him.

"Prowl's never been his favorite mech," the gold-armored ex-Autobot told Wing.

"He's never been anyone's favorite mech, except possibly Red Alert's," Wing chuckled. "You can't hate him that much, if you let him teach you."

Titanium snorted. "Considering how long I've been around, I have learned to tolerate mechs I don't like. To a point, anyway."

"Before this, what made you dislike him?" Wing asked, ever curious, as they entered the ship and mentally settled in for a metacycle long stay with a city outside for the exploring.

"A number of things... His attitude, for one. I'm fully aware of just how manipulative Prowl can be." The big triple glanced to the side at a flicker of green and amber. "He's not going to let the Aerials go, and he is going to fight dirty."

"I know," Wing murmured, his wings drooping. "I can't blame him either. I can hate it, but I can't hate him for looking out for his own. I did the same when I converted Drift ... maybe what I did was worse."

"Doubt Drift will complain, considering the result." Titanium slid an arm around the smaller mech's shoulders, ignoring a green-and-amber flicker from another direction. "It'll be worse for the Aerials, since they're not expecting anything like what's going to happen."

"True," Wing nodded, leaning into the touch, grateful for the support even as he needed to speak his guilt. "He understood manipulation very well, even if the form he practiced was more intimidation than processor games. Still, what I did was for myself more than the Knights, or even Drift. I need him."

"I know," Titanium replied softly. He looked at Wing for a moment, then leaned over to gently scoop the white jet up. "Drift knows, too, I'm fairly sure. He won't hold it against you."

GoldenRod moved closer, touching the tip of his spoiler to a gold-trimmed, purple-marked wing. "I admit that I manipulated Titan here to keep him with me, after I met him. He never held it against me, thank Primus."

Wing shivered and rested his helm against Titan's chest, beyond grateful for the comfort. "He doesn't. He knows and he doesn't mind. He knew then, even if he didn't know why I needed to keep him close, much less why he couldn't make himself leave. I was still raised to be better than that," he shuddered, not even sure why all this was coming up now of all times. "I knew what I should have done, and I couldn't."

Titanium made a deep purring sound as the trio reached the rec room, sitting down in one of the chairs and settling Wing on his lap. "You didn't mean harm. Drift's happy, and he's not angry with you about it."

"No, his spark, he says that he's grateful for what I did," Wing curled into the contact, the comfort of an elder, much as he sought out his creator's for comfort. "A Knight of Light should be better," he sighed, something relaxing inside him. "I guess I'm not done with my penance over that. I thought I'd come to terms with it."

"You're going to be beating yourself up over it for a long time," GoldenRod added softly, leaning over his mate's shoulder. "I did. It still bothers me sometimes, even though I know the big guy here forgave me a long time ago."

Titanium purred softly, holding Wing, offering the contact and comfort the young mech needed, not judging, merely listening.

Wing smiled at the golden mech. "A big part of Knight training, what we strive for, is to bring spark, processor and self-aware discipline in line and unified. I've finished the basic training, earned my right to bear a Great Sword twice, but I am far from a master. Even my creator struggles with his temper at times and he has been a full master, the Master of the Order, for a long time already. Most of us never stop working at it," he smiled faintly in a sort of dreamy wish. "It's said that when you fully master the art, you ascend to Primus among the stars, rather than extinguish and return to the Well."

Titanium's chuckle vibrated through his armor. "I'm well aware of Dai's temper; I admit to setting him off more than a few times when he and I served together." Light fingertips stroked over Wing's crest and audial flares. "You'll be a fine master." Long wings shifted. "I envy you that discipline. The art I master in is pure Pit Fighting, which is more about concentrated violence. I know enough Circuit-Su and informal Metallikato to get by, but most of the discipline has escaped me."

"It's not a functioning that many desire, and not many of them complete it to my level," Wing said gently. "Despite what you've seen, it's not an easy existence." He went silent for a moment. "It's hard enough Axe and Dai Atlas both wanted me to choose any other path. I know I hurt them that first time, but this is what I'm meant to be. What I've always meant to be. If you truly wish the discipline, you can learn it," Wing said without doubt. "If Drift can become a Knight, you can learn the discipline."

"I was sparked a gladiator in Kaon's worst pits," Titanium pointed out. "I'm a survivor. Probably too old to become a Knight and bear a Great Sword, but I would like to learn." He chuckled again. "I won't be as easy to throw around as Drift is, just to warn you."

"You're a willing student, and you aren't learning the Art itself," Wing chuckled. "If you wanted to be a Knight, that requires convincing Dai Atlas that you're worthy of it. But this, I don't need to throw you around and I don't need permission. It's like when I started to train Drift. I wasn't teaching him Metallikato or training him to be a Knight. I was trying to civilize him, just a bit, by using the only language and law he knew."

"He's teasing you," GoldenRod chuckled. "Anything you have to teach him, he'll be happy to learn." The gold mech shifted, casually nudging aside a green cycle with amber trim that had been lurking behind his leg. The bike promptly darted behind another piece of furniture.

"So are you going to introduce me to your shy friend?" Wing finally gave in and asked.

"Might as well come out," Titanium called. "He's not going to bite you."

Not one but seven of the bikes eased into view, gathering into a clump before transforming together, all of them connecting to form a single, slim mech, slightly taller than Windswept but shorter than Wing or Drift. Silver optics met Wing's gold with shy curiosity.

"Wing, this is Spindrift, or Spin, as everyone calls him," GoldenRod introduced. "He had to sneak out of Iacon; normally he's not allowed out of the base."

"Hello, Spindrift," Wing smiled at him. "Why are you restricted to base?"

"Because I'm probably the most vulnerable mech on Cybertron." Spindrift sat gingerly on a chair. "My armor is very light, too light to protect me from even light weapons. I'm classed as a pseudo-gestalt or combiner, because my body is made up of seven components that connect together. My spark is split between all seven parts. For most Cybertronians, a destroyed limb is an inconvenience. For me, a destroyed limb can be a fatal injury. Because of that, I'm restricted to the base."

"He's more suited to your city than he is to Cybertron," GoldenRod murmured to Wing. "Basically, he's an Autobot just to keep him functional at all."

Wing nodded and opened a secure comm with Titanium and GoldenRod. ::Just how well do you know him?::

::Quite well. Spin's older than you are, and he's been here a long time. He wants to be able to do something, anything, but his split spark and light armor make him too vulnerable for any kind of conflict. He has literally been locked in the Autobot base since they figured that out. Goldie and I have snuck him out and taken him on short trips a few times, always caught hell for it from stick-up-his-aft Prowl.:: Titanium shifted his wings.

::Spin's pretty much harmless,:: GoldenRod agreed. ::But the way they're keeping him restricted to the base is like keeping you in a cage, unable to get out and fly.::

Wing hummed his understanding. ::Just understand, it's my spark on the line if he comes with us. I have to vouch for him, which means I have to take his punishments until he's adapted to the city and been accepted as a citizen. Just like Dai Atlas is going to take both of yours.::

::We understand,:: Titanium murmured.

Spindrift shifted, curling into the chair. He figured that something was up, but wasn't sure what.

GoldenRod's blue optics met Spindrift's silver. "When we head out again, you're coming with us. And Prowl can go frag himself."

"I will vouch for you when we get home," Wing added. "You'll have time to adapt and find work. If all goes well, you will have citizenship in a century."

Spindrift perked up. "I won't be trapped inside anymore?"

"Where we're going, your lack of armor won't matter. Nor will how vulnerable your split spark makes you. There won't be any reason to keep you locked inside," the gold mech replied.

Spindrift practically glowed at that.

"It's the truth," Wing nodded. "You'll have to be more careful than many with the sandstorms, but they're less dangerous than the acid rain here."

"I'll be careful." Spindrift nodded. The shy mech was visibly relaxing. "It'll be worth it, to get out of this place. Thank you."

Wing inclined his helm. "Adapt well. It is a very different existence than war. It is also a secret so it can remain so."

Spindrift leaned forward. "I've never been let anywhere near a battlefield, so I have no personal experience with war. I've seen what it leaves behind, but I have never fought. And I can keep a secret."

"I'd still prefer if you remained on the ship until we leave, if possible," Wing glanced at Titanium.

Titanium nodded. "Plenty of room aboard. As long as he lays low, no one should notice. If he goes back into the base now, he might not get another chance to get out."

"I don't have much in the way of personal stuff, and I'm in the habit of keeping it in subspace anyway." Spindrift relaxed, uncurling from the ball he'd settled into.

Wing nodded. "May I see? There is quite the list of prohibited items to bring to the city."

Spindrift slid off the chair and sidled over shyly. Perching on the arm of Titanium's chair, he showed Wing a datapad containing several bookfiles, a holocube of images from a hundred different planets, a small sculpture, and what appeared to be a Transformer-sized Earth-style snow globe. He also produced a small, very basic laser pistol, which he handed GoldenRod to be either locked in the ship's armory or otherwise disposed of.

"The pistol you won't get back, but the rest seems fine," Wing said with evident relief. "Did you travel before the war?"

"I don't want it back," Spindrift replied firmly. "I wanted to travel, but I never got the chance. By the time my spark adapted to my adult frame... or frames, depending on how you look at it... The war had already flared up. Most of this I got when these two snuck me out of the base and took me on short trips with them. Though where either of them managed to find a snow globe that big..."

"We'll be in dock for a metacycle, possibly two, and it's a long flight after that," Wing said, intentionally vague. "Please think about civilian work you can and would like to do. Things will go much smoother on arrival if I can introduce you as someone who will be productive sooner rather than later."

"I can be in seven places at once, though my components are only parts of my body and don't have their own individual forms." Spindrift frowned thoughtfully.

"With his speed, though, he'd be excellent for courier work," GoldenRod commented. "Multiple deliveries as long as no one minds his parts can't transform on their own."

"Can your components communicate without comms?" Wing asked even as he nodded acceptance of the suggestion. "Courier work would be easy to arrange and enough to satisfy the Council and Circle. You wouldn't have to always be a courier," he added. "It's just your starting function to earn your keep."

"Each of his four limbs, the two halves of his body, and the component that makes up his helm, neck, and upper chest contains a piece of his spark, so they are always in constant communication," Titanium explained. "When his parts separate they act like the separate components of a regular gestalt, only more closely bonded and with less independence. Each component has a separate processor and CPU, so they can act on their own of their own volition. They just don't have their own complete robot forms."

"That's better than I could explain it," Spindrift admitted. "But yes, when separate my components are always chattering to each other through the spark bond."

"Then there is definitely a place for you in emergency response too," Wing smiled. "Not a full time function, but something when you're needed. If comms aren't working, that ability can save lives. It's a nice stipend for being on call all the time too."

"I like the sound of that." Spindrift's smile was shy, but bright. "Being able to be out and about and doing something useful for once in my life..."

Wing actually purred. "That's a good attitude to have. It'll go a long way to making the folks in charge happy to see you. Though I'm curious. Why wasn't your armor upgraded?"

"My frame's too light, I think... At least, that's what my creators were always saying. Heavy armor would slow me down, or put too much stress on my frame and spark. I was built for speed." Spindrift shifted. "It was a choice between speed and protection, and my creators chose to make me fast while sacrificing protection."

Wing nodded. "I was just curious, since it's done so much to harm you. That lack of protection won't matter much where we're going. What are your energon and maintenance needs?"

"My energon needs are slightly higher than one would expect for my size, since I have to split my fuel among seven tanks when I separate, but I'm fairly fuel-efficient. Maintenance-wise... Mostly the connection points that take the most wear and tear." Spindrift detached one leg to point out the relevant parts before reattaching the limb after Wing had a chance to scrutinize it.

"So somewhat specialized, but nothing a competent medic can't handle," Wing hummed. "Still, it's all likely lower than my needs and easily within what the city can provide. I wouldn't want to bring you, just to find out we can't provide what you require."

"I'm pretty sure I can wrangle his schematics out of Ratchet if I catch him in the right mood," GoldenRod piped up. "It might even be in the regular database."

"Anything you can get will be helpful, though we rebuilt Drift without even an original scan," Wing chuckled. "Don't put yourself too far out for it."

Spindrift seemed to have relaxed all the way. He'd need to work on his shyness, though.

GoldenRod nodded. "I'll see what I can do."