Here's the second half of what was meant to be one whole chapter...it's a bit long but I didn't think you'd appreciate me holding this back a few more days.
Thank you for the reviews. I still love all of you xoxo
So, here comes the family reunion and we all know how fun those can be. Especially when you get your Uncle and cousin mixed up because you've only ever met them once when you were five, then to top it all off you have to spend the following week with your father and his 'other' family.......Can you tell I try to avoid these events?
Side question - Has anyone seen the movie 'Australia' yet? If you have, what did you think of it? I saw it today and thought Hugh Jackman looked very sexy :)
Enjoy!
#Comm. link#
Chapter 38
Cameron waited tensely for her family to arrive. The two weeks had passed with excruciating slowness and it was all she could do not to run out and meet them halfway. In a failed effort to make the time pass faster Cameron had thrown herself into doing all that she could to help the scientists get the shuttle ready. Jamie had then told her that she could help by assisting Sector Seven's scientists. Cameron still didn't like the fact that he'd lied to her about the organization's termination.
Needless to say two weeks as being part of the agency's science experiments had left her irritated, sore, and desperately craving interaction with humans who weren't holding needles or other lab toys.
She quickly made one last check to be sure that everything in the hangar was perfect; the decorations were done, the food was prepared, not that she could eat any of it, and the Decepticon's were hidden by an extremely large partition. Cameron was still curious where Ironhide and Prime had found it.
Jazz, as the most non-threatening of the Autobots next to Bumblebee, sat in a corner trying to look as innocent as possible. He would be the first robot her family would see, and then when they stopped freaking out she would introduce Optimus Prime and the others.
Bumblebee and Ironhide were out picking up their charges, meaning Sam, Mikaela and the Lennox's would be arriving soon.
Twisting her hands to hide her nervousness, Cameron jumped as hands slid down her arms.
"You have to stop doing that." She grumbled as she turned to face Ratchet.
He grinned. "It's not my fault that you can't sense me."
"I can sense you; I just have a lot on my mind at the moment."
He hugged her tightly. "Don't worry so much. It will turn out fine."
"I hope so." She sighed
Ratchet kissed her lightly. "Someone just entered the perimeter."
Excitement and nervousness ran through Cameron's body, battling for dominance. Excitement won as she felt Ironhide's unique energy signature. Will and Sarah were here. Moments later the big black Topkick rolled through the doors. Cameron bounced on her toes as she waited for her first guests to appear.
"Sarah, Will. Thank you so much for coming."
"What about me?"
Cameron twisted her head to see another passenger climbing from Ironhide's cab. "Sergeant Epps. I didn't think you were coming."
"Well, I figured that since I was around when they arrived, I should be here to say goodbye." He shrugged and moved further into the hangar, his gaze going straight to Jazz.
Cameron smiled. She had only met Robert Epps a hand full of times but he had always seemed like a good guy. Her estimation was right since he was now talking animatedly with Jazz.
Jonathan looked down at the steering wheel and tapped his fingers on the soft rubber cover. They'd been stuck in traffic for twenty minutes and it didn't look like they'd be moving anytime soon.
"Honey, what time did you say we were supposed to be there?" Alana asked.
Jon checked his watch. "About ten minutes ago."
"Where's your phone? I'll let Cameron know we'll be late. "
She didn't wait for an answer; instead she went straight for the centre console. She'd already dialed before Jon got a chance to say a word. He froze as Alana waited for it to pick up.
"Hello? Cameron?... Oh, sorry Slider, I was looking for my daughter. Is she there?... Oh, well could you let her know that we're stuck in traffic and we'll be late…Thank you dear. See you soon."
Alana hung up and looked directly at him. "Who's Slider and why does she have Cameron's phone?"
Jon thought about how to answer and decided that the truth would be the best way to handle it. Alana had been pretty good about the whole situation when he'd told her several days ago. Then again Jonathan had expected that Mitch would take it worse, maybe even tell his friends, that's why they hadn't told him until last night at dinner.
"Slider is Cameron's phone."
"What?" Mitch blurted from the backseat.
"You're saying that the phone we got her for her birthday is actually one of these robots?"
"Cool!" Mitch exclaimed. "Can I have one?"
"We didn't buy her a robot, she turned the phone into a robot…It's complicated."
Mitch poked his head between them. "What are the other robots like? Are they massive and have cool weapons, like guns that shoot lasers?"
Jon chuckled. He should have known that his son would have found this more exciting than frightening. "Mitch sit back in your seat, I've never seen them fighting but they are very tall."
"I can't believe you knew about Cameron and didn't tell me." Alana groused quietly.
He sighed. They'd discussed this several times. "It was classified information. I only found out after she disappeared the first time."
"How many times has she disappeared?"
"Only twice as far as I know." He returned his attention to the road as the cars around his started moving.
Alana dragged a hand through her hair. "My baby had better not be hurt or you're sleeping on the couch for a month."
Jon risked a glance at his wife. She looked more worried than angry. As soon as she saw Cameron she would calm down he was sure, and hopefully he wouldn't be sentenced to the couch.
An arm wrapping around her shoulders drew Cameron back to her other guests. She smiled up at Sarah Lennox. "Thank you again for coming."
"You're certainly welcome." Sarah's warm smile did a great deal to calm her further as did her hug. "We'll do our best to help your mother and brother…adjust to the Autobots."
"That's not all they'll have to adjust to." Will said seriously. "I was informed today that, because you have been so accommodating recently, the shuttle will be ready within a couple of weeks."
"That leaves me even less time to say goodbye." Cameron replied dejectedly.
Sarah squeezed her shoulders comfortingly. "Don't worry, it'll be all right."
She smiled softly. "I'm being told that a lot lately."
"Then you should be listening and not borderline sulking." Sarah said with a smile.
A car horn out of their conversation. Bumblebee skidded into the hangar, narrowly missing the humans and Ironhide.
"Sam! Watch where your driving, you almost took us out." Will groused as Sam and Mikaela climbed out of the humming car.
Sam held out his hands defensively. "I wasn't the one driving."
#Keep pulling stunts like that squirt and I'll use your bumper for target practice.# Ironhide growled.
The bright camaro shook in response. Cameron laughed and rushed over to greet Sam and Mikaela. Surprise lifted her eyebrows as Judy and Ron Witwicky climbed out behind Sam and Mikaela.
"Hello Cameron, you look…different." Judy said as she stepped forward.
"Woah, was this a fancy dress party and Sam didn't tell me?" Ron grinned and pulled her into a short hug once Judy had released her.
"So, is everyone here?" Mikaela asked.
Cameron shook her head. "My family hasn't arrived yet. They were supposed to be here by now."
"There was an accident on the highway, maybe they got stuck." Sam said as they moved closer to the other humans.
She nodded and smiled. The introductions were fairly quick since they all knew each other from before Cameron had even arrived in the country.
Sam started picking at the food before anyone else and he was quickly scolded by his mother. Complaining that he hadn't eaten lunch the boy dug straight back in, earning him a glare from all the women.
A slight tugging on the leg of her pants caused Cameron to look down. Slider stood next to her, trying to get her attention.
"You could just climb up here."
The red femme must have taken that as permission because she was immediately sitting on her shoulder.
"Your mother called."
Slider now had all her attention. "What did she say?"
"They're struck on the highway. They won't be here for a little while."
Cameron's shoulders relaxed as she released a sigh. "Well at least I know they're coming."
"Does that mean we can stop hiding?" Bumblebee asked, still in his car-form.
"Sure. I don't know how long until they get here so we might as well relax."
The grinding of gears and hiss of hydraulics filled the hangar as the two Autobots transformed. Bumblebee sauntered over to sit next to Jazz, while Ironhide moved to stand next to Optimus and Ratchet, who was once again recharging.
"What's up with Ratchet?" Sam asked when he noticed where she was looking.
"He's recharging, his power-cells are depleted. He'll probably join the party a bit later."
Mikaela wrapped an arm around Sam's waist. "Power-cells?"
"Yeah, they're like really big batteries. He's been recharging most of the day so he should be done fairly soon. He usually doesn't have to recharge during the day but he's been working a lot longer hours now that the shuttle is almost ready."
Sam looked at her slyly. "I'm sure that's the only reason he's out of energy."
"You're insinuations are crude and baseless." Ratchet said as he materialized beside them. His Mr. Perfect hologram smiled charmingly. "Even if they are correct."
Sam almost snorted in his drink. Mikaela patted his back until he'd stopped coughing. She grinned at Ratchet.
"Sam told me about you two. I have to say, it was unexpected."
A sudden scowl appeared on his face and he growled. "Are we not allowed to form a relationship?"
Mikaela fish-mouthed for a moment, stunned by Ratchet's unexpected hostility. Cameron and Sam stared.
"Ratchet, you know that's not what she meant. What's gotten into you?" Cameron clutched at his arm.
Ratchet ducked his head. "My apologies Mikaela, I did not mean to react so harshly."
"Is something wrong Ratch?" Sam asked wrapping an arm around Mikaela.
"No, I just overheard Ironhide talking with Lennox about Chromia, then Mikaela said our relationship was unexpected and I assumed she meant it was unwelcome."
"What's Ironhide got to do with anything?" Cameron looked up at him.
"Who's Chromia?" Sam asked.
"Ironhide and Chromia's partnership was not accepted for quite some time, at least until they proved that it was a viable union."
"Who's Chro-"
"What do you mean by viable?" Mikaela butted in over Sam. He glared at her but didn't try to ask his question again.
"Chromia was a brand new design." Ratchet replied. "She was programmed explicitly for combat, with only basic socialization skills. It was generally believed that her model wouldn't be compatible with any existing transformers."
"So, because they didn't think she'd be able to make friends, they didn't think she'd be able to bond?"
Mr. Perfect's head shook, his face scrunched as he thought. "To her, making friends would be like you sailing a fifteen-foot yacht solo. It just didn't happen. It was impossible. So when Ironhide claimed to have bonded with her, no one believed him."
"Not even you?" Cameron asked sadly.
"I was skeptical at first but after running several tests on both sparks, I concluded that they were as bonded as possible. Then they proceeded to reign terror over an unsuspecting Cybertron."
"She's quite the femme." Ironhide said above them.
"I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that you were the only one stubborn and persistent enough to get that trigger-happy femme to accept you."
Ironhide chuckled. "Those were good times."
Cameron stared at the large mech. "I don't want to know." She said finally.
Ratchet turned her to face him. "You know, I didn't wake up just to tell you Ironhide's life story."
"I've done more in my life than bond with Chromia." Ironhide defended.
"Little before and not much since. " Ratchet teased.
The Weapons Specialist glared at the medic and went back to stand with Prime. Sam dragged Mikaela after him so he could finally get an answer to his question,
"Like I was saying," Ratchet caught her attention again. "I didn't come online to talk about Ironhide."
"What did you want to talk about?"
"Nothing. I thought that I would take advantage of your family's absence and spend time with you until you send me back into hiding. Jazz, if you please." Ratchet took her hand as music started to play from the side Jazz was camped in.
"Ratch, what are you doing?"
"Dancing with you. Isn't that what humans do at parties? Although I only have theoretical knowledge on the steps, I'm sure it can't be too hard. The humans seem to be adept at it even though most of the time they are on the verge of falling over."
Cameron smiled up into the handsome face of her bonded and felt peace flow through her. Somehow he always seemed to be able to make all her worries disappear, even if just for a few minutes.
Giving herself up to the music and Ratchet's leading steps, Cameron fell into the smooth movement. Soon enough she was aware of the Lennox's as well as Sam's parents dancing alongside them.
Cameron tipped her head back to look into his face.
"How are you able to do this? Isn't a hologram just light?"
"You question this now and not when I'm kissing you?" He ducked his head next to hers.
Cameron shrugged in his arms. "I don't think when you're kissing me." She felt hot breath against her ear and shivered. "Answer the question."
"Yes, a hologram or holoform is basically light. But since I have superior upgrades I am able to produce a hard-light holoform, which enables me to interact with my surroundings."
"Aww, my high-tech hero." She simpered teasingly.
She rested her head on his chest as their steps narrowed into a slow turning circle.
"I love you." Cameron whispered.
He looked down at her with so much tenderness that Cameron was sure she would die if he ever left her. His arm tightened around her waist and his hand pressed hers against his chest.
"I love you too. Never forget that."
Cameron smiled and kissed him softly.
Excitement bubbled in Alana's chest as she climbed out of the car. She was going to see her Cameron again. Her baby girl had been living all this time with giant robots. She must have felt so alone. Tears welled in her Alana's eyes as she thought of Cameron being all by herself with no one to comfort her.
Jon caught her elbow before she could race towards the hangars. Music and lights told her which one she'd find her daughter in.
"Alana, Mitch. Remember what I told you about them and please Mitch, behave yourself."
"Sure Dad." Their son replied, his eyes shining as he stared at the busy hangar.
A man appeared in the lit doorway.
"Oh good, Will's here." Jon waved to the man and propelled them forward. As they got closer, Alana recognized Will Lennox.
"Jon, Alana, you're here. Cameron's been waiting for you. Optimus was considering sending one of the Autobots out to look for you."
Alana cut in before Jonathan could reply. "Where is she?"
Will smiled. "She's inside."
Brushing off her husband's hand, Alana stormed through the door. She stopped just inside, searching for her daughter. Overall there weren't many people there, a couple men in suits and a handful of others in more casual clothing. When she couldn't find Cameron she turned to Jon.
"Where is she?"
He scanned the room before pointing towards the middle, at a group of people dancing.
"Cameron!"
The group turned as one but Alana only had eyes for her daughter. A silver haired Cameron stepped forward.
"Mum?"
Alana ran forward to meet Cameron halfway. She stopped long enough to grab Cameron's shoulders and study her face. The only difference in her appearance that Alana could pick out was the silver tone. Wrapping her arms around Cameron, mother and daughter hugged in the middle of the floor.
"Oh honey, I've missed you so much. Why on earth didn't you tell me what was going on? I can't say that I was happy when your father told me that you hadn't actually gone to New York."
Cameron grinned sheepishly. "I'm sorry Mum, I wasn't allowed to say anything to anyone. I'm just lucky that the Autobots are treating me well."
"Are they? I mean they're robots and they don't really know how to look after you like a mother does. They haven't tried to feed you oil or scrap metal or something like that have they?"
"Madam, if I didn't know you were uninformed of the situation, I would be highly offended at the suggestion that I do not take proper care of my patients."
Alana gasped and spun towards the voice that had come from nowhere. She stared for a moment at the strange sight. It was obviously one of the robots her husband had told her about. It was green, black and red with a bull-bar over its chest. The only difference Alana could see with this robot and the ones Jon had spoken about was that this one stood at least a foot taller than her but it could hardly be called giant.
Cameron stepped away from her and towards the robots. "Mum, this is Ratchet; he's the Chief Medical Officer for the Autobots. He's in charge of looking after me."
Alana smiled. "It's nice to meet you. I have to say I've never met an alien robot before; I wasn't quite sure what to expect. You're a lot smaller than I was told though."
She watched curiously as Cameron started laughing and the robot scowled at her.
"Do you find something funny Cameron?"
"I'm sorry sweetheart. It's just that Mum thinks you're really little when you're not." She sniggered again.
Alana looked on bewildered as the robot gave Cameron another glare, it lasted several seconds before melting into a smile, then it jumped and glared again.
"I'll get you back later." It growled.
"I'll hold you to that." She winked.
The robot made a humming sound, like an engine revving, before looking back to Alana.
"My apologies Mrs. Oakham. Cameron's behavior seems to have degenerated since she's been here. If you'll excuse me, I'll be back as soon as I can."
It then turned on its heel and walked away. Alana looked back at Cameron to find her watching the robot walk away.
"It was needed elsewhere?"
Cameron nodded. "Yeah, but don't worry, he'll be back. He can't stay away long."
Did Cameron just say he? Had she been saying he the entire time? Apparently robots had genders as well. Alana didn't say anything as her daughter kept talking.
"He's just lucky Optimus call him away." Cameron grinned.
Someone had called it? Him? Who was Optimus? The questions buzzed around Alana's head but no answers were forthcoming. Instead of sating her curiosity, she said. "He seems very polite."
Cameron nodded. "Oh, he is. He's always telling me I'm an idiot in the nicest way possible."
Alana smiled at her daughter's attitude. If Cameron was joking about someone, or in this case something, then she was comfortable being around them. "So, are the other robots bigger than the one I just met?"
Cameron smiled again. "Ratchet's not really that small, it was a hologram, but yes, the others are much bigger than that."
"Hologram?"
"Uh huh. He used it to avoid scaring you with his size."
"Oh my God! That's so cool." Mitch's excited yell caught both Cameron's and Alana's attention.
Cameron smiled as her mother turned to face her brother. Her mother had behaved completely naturally. No hysterics or crying, Cameron was proud. Not even the sight of her silver face had perturbed Alana. She turned to see what her brother was so excited about.
In the doorway stood Optimus Prime, Ironhide and Ratchet. The Autobot leader was infront looking, as always, commanding and powerful. Jazz stood up in his corner, making Mitch almost fall over himself in an excited frenzy.
#Can we come out yet?# Bumblebee asked.
#Why ask, you already have.# She grinned at them. #Something wrong Optimus?#
#Time is short and we did not wish to waste anymore.#
#You got bored and came out.# Cameron deducted.
The glint in his optics told her she was right. Turning to her family, she saw her brother clutched in her mother's arms. Alana's face showed borderline terror while Mitch wore a massive smile.
"Mum, I want you to meet Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots, Ironhide, on the right, and you've already met Ratchet."
"They're a lot bigger than I expected." Alana whispered.
"Over there is Jazz and Bumblebee."
Mitch, now free of their mother, bounced on his toes next to her. "This is so much better than any of my games."
#That's high praise coming from him.# She informed the Autobots.
"Can they do anything?"
Cameron grinned. "Do you remember that car I had when I moved back a few months ago?"
"Yeah."
"That's him." She pointed to Jazz.
Mitch hopped forward a few steps. "Could you show me, please?"
Jazz moved forward with a grin and transformed. Mitch cried out in astonishment. Cameron laughed and turned as Optimus spoke.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Alana and Mitch Oakham."
Alana nodded and murmured a reply. Mitch stared into the large face without saying anything.
Jonathan appeared next to them. "Hello Optimus Prime."
"Good evening Captain Oakham."
"If you'll excuse us for a moment I would like to introduce Alana to Secretary Keller and Sergeant Epps."
They walked away and Cameron moved back towards the Autobots. "I think that went well." She said as their holoforms shimmered into existence around her, Mitch gasped.
"Your parental unit seems to consider us unwelcome." Ironhide replied.
"Why do you say that?"
"She is not exchanging information with us."
"She's overwhelmed, give her time."
"How much time will she have to accept all of this before we're beyond her reach?" Bumblebee looked down at her.
Jazz wrapped an arm around the blonde's shoulders. "If she's anythin' like Cameron, she'll be adaptable."
Cameron smiled at the holograms but a heavy sadness settled in her heart. What if her mother didn't get used to having a metallic daughter? What if she said she wanted nothing to do with any of it? What if…?
A warmth touched her heart as Ratchet lent her his strength. "She will accept you, she is your mother. It is documented that human mothers are consistently accepting of their children's choices."
Ratchet wrapped an arm around her and rested his hand on her waist. Cameron relaxed into the protection of his body.
"I'm still worried. I want Mum, and Mitch, to be, maybe not happy but not sad when we go."
A tugging on her sleeve made Cameron look down. Mitch had a handful of her jacket.
"Don't worry Cam, I'll work on her."
She hugged him closely. "The only problem is, there's more than just me going into space for her to accept."
"Like what?"
Cameron hesitated. "My…boyfriend."
#I believe we established that I am more than a mere boyfriend.# Ratchet grumbled.
#I know, but it's a term he'll understand.#
"You have a boyfriend? Looking like that?"
She punched him lightly. "Yes, I do, and he loves the way I look."
"Got a thing for metal does he?" Mitch teased.
"As a matter of fact, I do." Ratchet replied and pulled Cameron against him.
Mitch's eyes widened. "But you're one of the robots."
"Yes I am. Is that a problem?"
Mitch shook his head quickly.
"Ratchet, be nice. He's my little brother."
Mitch looked up at her. "I'm going to look forward to seeing Mum's face when you tell her about this."
Cameron transferred her gaze over to where her parents were talking with the other adults. She wasn't looking forward to telling her mother but she had to do it. No secrets.
"Hey guys, what's with the not-so-happy faces?" Sam asked as he came over with Mikaela.
"Cameron's trying to decide on the best way to tell our Mum that she's dating the robot." Mitch replied.
Sam's eyes widened and a sympathetic look crossed Mikaela's face. "If it's anything like my Mom's face when I told her I was dating Sam…" She patted Cameron's shoulder. "Don't worry, it won't be that bad."
Barricade watched the festivities from the command centre. The converted military facility was hardly what Barricade would call adequate, but humans were primitive creatures and couldn't be faulted for their low place in evolution. He longed to once more be on Cybertron, memories of the sterling cities had begun to fade.
He watched avidly as the Allspark greeted a female human. The close bond between them was obvious, as was the admiration on the human sparklings face. It had been a long time since he'd seen an expression like that, especially in the Decepticon army.
Turning away from the monitor, Barricade faced the others. Frenzy sat nearby with Slider in his lap, their heads tilted towards each other. Scorponok was curled up in the corner, he was wrapped around an energon cube. The newer plates of armor could still be made out amongst the old.
They had all decided to stay out of the function tonight for various reasons. His own were obvious, he was a Decepticon and didn't feel the urge to socialize with Autobots and fleshbags. Frenzy no doubt stayed because had chosen to and Scorponok preferred not to show up when he was responsible for attacking some of the humans present. Barricade wasn't sure of Slider's motives but they probably had something to do with Frenzy.
He watched the couple a few moments longer. He and Frenzy had discussed their options concerning the femme, Barricade's advice had been to enjoy her then ditch her, the plan would have been perfect if Frenzy hadn't already bonded himself to the little Autobot.
All Barricade's plans for when they got back to Cybertron were in tatters. Soundwave wouldn't be eager to take on a mech with a bonded Autobot following behind, and Shockwave would probably just shoot them on sight. Plus, any chance of him being welcomed back was extremely reduced now that Thundercracker and Skywarp could testify that he was a traitor. The only other option was to become an Autobot and the very thought of that made his tanks rebel. He'd rather be a neutral than face Prowl again.
A hurried beeping coming from a console nearby broke into his thoughts. Slider was there tapping away before Barricade turned around. The monitor showed increasing levels of Cybertronian energy activity. Frowning slightly, he faced the security cameras. The Autobots and their holoforms were all gathered together around the Allspark but that wouldn't explain the readings, the only other Cybertronians were the captive Decepticons. He swung his gaze to their screen. Bright red optics glowed in their dark cell.
"Oh no." Slider groaned. "Talk about bad timing."
Barricade glared in confusion as the little femme leapt from the desk and out the door.
"The humans." Frenzy answered his unasked question. "They're s-separated from the human's by only a sh-sheet of metal."
Scorponok jumped to his feet and scurried after Slider.
"Where's he going?"
"To p-protect the Allspark. She's tak-ken Blackout's place in his life." The silver face tipped up to him. "'Cade, we h-have to h-help."
As much as Barricade wanted to deny it, Frenzy was right, they had to help. The humans would make trouble if Thundercracker and Skywarp broke out now and possibly killed someone before they could be stopped.
He sighed. "Looks like it's time we joined the Autobots."
Cameron knew something was wrong as soon as Slider appeared on her shoulder. Her creation had been taking advantage of some quiet time with Frenzy and wouldn't give that up unless it was for something important.
"What's up?"
"Decepticons."
The eyes of anyone within hearing distance widened. Cameron's immediately went to the partition that separated the Decepticon jets from everyone else. She could feel the malevolent energy radiating from them. Why hadn't she noticed it before?
"Jazz, Bumblebee, get everyone out of here." Prime ordered quickly.
The pair nodded and their holoforms disappeared. Their robotic forms thrummed as they took control again. There was a great deal of confusion as the two mechs tried to usher all the humans outside.
"Slider go with them, do what you can to keep everyone calm." Cameron ordered. The small femme nodded and took off after Bumblebee and Jazz.
"Holy Christ!" Came a scream from one of the men. "I thought we'd already put that one down."
Cameron turned her head quickly to see Scorponok race across the hangar and crouch over her, his barbed tail arched. All around her the Autobots were forming a protective ring. Optimus and Ironhide were directly infront of her with Ratchet to her left.
"Ratchet, why are they coming online? I thought you had put them in stasis." Optimus asked as they heard the shriek of metal being torn.
"I did. They must have fail-safe's encoded in their systems. Perhaps something that would wake them from an unplanned stasis after they hit Earth."
"You didn't check?" Ironhide grumbled.
Ratchet glared at him. "They're Decepticons, I wouldn't expect extensive planning from them."
The group tensed further as the metal wall shuddered under a blow.
"Optimus, what's the plan?" Ironhide asked, his cannons humming to life.
"We'll have to fight; we also have to protect the humans. We have to keep the Decepticons contained; if they get loose they could do irreparable damage to everything we've worked for." His battle-mask snapped into place.
"I could take them down like I did before." Cameron suggested.
"No." Ratchet shifted more infront of her. "Stay out of it, don't get hurt."
Scorponok chattered in agreement above her head.
"But Ratchet, it would be stupid not to take advantage of my power."
"Ratchet's right. We can't risk them getting near, and possibly capturing you." Optimus said.
"That won't happen." Cameron denied.
"You've been caught three times already." Ironhide replied.
"Only twice, the third was intentional."
"This is not the time to be squabbling." Jazz appeared on her right. "Bumblebee's keeping an optic on the humans." He looked down. "Should Cameron be out there as well?"
"Yes." Ratchet replied at the same time as Cameron said. "No."
Their gazes locked. "I can help, I did last time."
Ratchet sighed. "Let us take them down and then you can take their strength again."
Cameron frowned uncertainly.
The petition crashed down and they were suddenly facing two very angry Decepticons.
"So, Barricade was working with the Autobots after all." Thundercracker sneered.
"They're doing better than Megatron at the moment."
They turned to see Barricade standing in the doorway. The jets growled at him. "Traitor."
Barricade lunged forward, tackling Thundercracker to the ground. Skywarp jumped back and aimed at the Autobots. A series of explosions rocked the hangar. Screams came from outside and smoke spread through the air. Ironhide let out a barrage of missiles at the purple seeker. The Decepticon cursed as he dodged each one.
Scorponok crouched down, causing Cameron to drop to the ground to avoid being hit by the lowering body. From her position on the floor Cameron had a good view of Barricade muttering as he plowed his fists into the seeker's softer face plates.
"'Cracker!"
A shot from Skywarp caught Barricade on the side of his head. He fell to the side in a heap.
"Barricade!" Cameron screamed as pink liquid started to spread across the floor.
Looking around for help Cameron saw that the Autobots were busy trying to contain the seekers. Both were trying to get into the air.
Desperate to do something, she crawled out from under Scorponok and ran towards the felled mech. Behind her the Companion squawked as he realised she was no longer there.
Jazz flew through the air, slamming into the wall and leaving a sizable dent. Cameron's eyes widened as the scene turned chaotic. Jazz was down for the count, Optimus and Ratchet struggled to keep Thundercracker on the ground, Ironhide was trading shots with Skywarp and Barricade was bleeding all over the floor.
A piece of concrete exploded near her feet as she continued to run. Scorponok did his best to shield her with his body but his attention was split between her and the action around them. Once they reached Barricade's side she called to him over the noise.
"Scorpy! Go and help the others."
The broad head shook and he crowded closer to her.
"They need your. I'll be fine, I promise."
He seemed to waver, wanting to do what she asked but at the same time wanting to protect her.
"I'll stay here, okay?"
Finally Scorponok accepted her terms and dove into the fight.
Cameron crouched by Barricade's shoulder, his optics were dark and the neon pool was growing. Fear for his life burned through her. Head wounds on humans, even minor ones, bled profusely. Was it the same for transformers?
Unsure of the answer Cameron erred on the side of caution. She moved closer to the wound and inspected it. The shot had only made a shallow groove in Barricade's head, it was fairly clean but energon poured steadily out of it. The severed ends of small pipes could be seen under the liquid.
"B-barricade!"
The stuttered shout came from Frenzy as he scurried to his Partner's side. The small silver body deftly avoided the pool of energon and stood on the other side of Barricade's head.
"Get up you Pit-spawned g-glitch, we have work to d-do."
"Frenzy!" Cameron stared, horrified that he would talk to his injured and unconscious friend that way.
Frenzy looked up at her. "It usually works w-when he's rech-charging."
She frowned in concern. "He isn't recharging."
Frenzy shrugged. "It w-was worth a t-try. Will he be a-all right?"
"I don't know yet." She shrugged. "Are you going back to the fight or outside?"
"W-why would I go outs-side? I'm not-t a coward."
Concrete exploded next to them and rained down in particles around their heads. Cameron leaned over the hole in Barricade's head to stop anything from falling in.
"Go! Stop them before they kill us." She shouted at Frenzy. He nodded jerkily and ran off to join the fray.
Turning her attention to Barricade, Cameron tried to figure out where to start.
Where the energon is pouring out, dumbass. Her mind chastised.
She inspected the hole again. It should be a fairly straight forward healing. Scorponok's tail and Bumblebee vocaliser had been more intricate.
A grimace crossed her face as she reached towards the wound. The energon flowed through her fingers in the most unsettling fashion. Pushing the Allspark's power into her hands Cameron focused on closing the exposed pipes. The neon liquid slowed down its leaking as the severed parts closed over. When it stopped completely she paid more attention to restoring Barricade's outer plating and returning some of the energy he'd lost.
She stood back as his optics came online. "Barricade? How are you feeling?"
Without moving he looked around. Cameron's heart squeezed at the confused expression on his face.
He focused on her. "I'm still alive?"
Cameron nodded. "Yep. I'm a miracle worker. Can you get up?"
She didn't like pushing Barricade like this but the Decepticon seekers were causing more trouble than she expected.
Barricade lurched into a sitting position. "I'll be fine in a moment, just need to get my thoughts." He looked down at her. "Why did you help me?"
Cameron frowned. "Why wouldn't I?"
He stared at her for a moment before opening his mouth to speak.
"When I put you down, you're meant to stay down." A shadow fell over them.
Cameron looked up to see Skywarp standing over them. The ugly look on the jet's face, couple with the violence radiating from his spark, sent terror curling through her. Forgetting utterly that she could reduce the mighty seeker to a quivering mess of bolts, Cameron screamed as Skywarp swung a kick at Barricade. His foot clipped Barricade's shoulder and arm but caught Cameron full in the chest.
Her eyes widened as the thick foot propelled her off the ground and into the air. Pain spread across her middle in reaction to Skywarp's kick.
As she sailed through the air, Cameron got a good view of the fight. Optimus and Ratchet had Thundercracker on the ground and were in the process of disarming him; and Skywarp had just been levelled by a shot from one of Ironhide's cannons.
She sent a distressed pulse from her spark in a desperate attempt that someone would save her from going splat on the floor. It was too late, by the time Ratchet got a chance to look for her, she was already falling. The look of horrified terror on his face told Cameron exactly what she didn't want to know. This was going to hurt. A lot.
Bracing herself for impact, Cameron had all of two seconds before she slammed into the thick, strong metal of the hangar wall. The blow pushed all the air out of Cameron's body and dimmed her vision as pain washed over her. The world seemed to slow as she slid down the wall to collapse on the ground. A dizzy corner of her brain told her that she should have at least left a human-shaped dent in the metal.
She blacked out.
Mitch stared at the slumped figure on the ground. He'd been watching the fight covertly for a couple of minutes (his parents thought he was hiding in the car) and it had been the most awesome and terrifying thing he'd ever seen. That is, it had been until a purple and black robot had kicked Cameron clear across the shed. Then it had just been terrifying.
Now he was watching her and praying that she would get up. She didn't.
Mitch threw a look over at the group of people gathered near the cars. The yellow robot stood over them but was suddenly distracted and staring at the hangar. He must know about Cameron too, because most of the robots inside had frozen when she had been flying as well.
Plucking up his courage, Mitch made his move while no one was watching. He dashed into the hangar and hugged the wall until he was next to Cameron. She lay on her side, facing the robots, silver hair spread out like a fan around her head. A broken fan.
The part that had Mitch the most worried was that he couldn't see her chest moving, she wasn't breathing. Grabbing her shoulders Mitch shook her, hoping to bring some life back into her.
"Cameron! Cameron wake up. Get up!"
Her head lolled on her neck but she didn't open her eyes.
"Move it-t fleshie."
Mitch's eyes widened as a silver robot as tall as himself appeared next to him. Unsure of what to do Mitch shifted a little, allowing the robot to move closer. He couldn't remember seeing this one with the others that Cameron had introduced them to but maybe this was the small one his father had been talking about.
"Are you Slider?" He asked hesitantly.
The robot let out a peel of broken laughter. "Not a ch-chance, she's outside with the other f-fleshbags."
"Then who are you, and what are you doing to my sister?" Mitch asked as he noticed the robot running its hands over Cameron's face and chest.
"I'm t-trying to locate her sp-spark. It's the only way of b-bringing her back online."
Mitch averted his gaze, he didn't want to watch the robot groping Cameron.
"Why isn't it in the r-right place?" It muttered seemingly to itself. "…There it is."
The sound of shifting gears and metal drew Mitch's gaze back in time to see the silver robot stab something into Cameron's chest.
He grabbed one of the thin arms. "What are you doing?"
"Hacking into her s-system. D-doctor's orders."
Mitch was about to protest again when Cameron's eyes snapped open and her mouth opened on a soundless scream. The robot pulled his transformed arm out of her chest. Mitch noticed then that her eyes weren't right. There was no pupil or white, just a pair of bright blue orbs in her face.
"What happened?" Her voice sounded the same but he could detect something under it.
"Skywarp k-kicked you. Scorponok and Barric-cade are avenging you and the Autob-bots have taken down Thundercrack-ker."
Cameron nodded and stood. Mitch stepped back as his sister started to glow. It started with her body and moved steadily out to her extremities. She didn't look back at him as she stepped forward. She didn't even seem to notice Mitch at all. Her head turned slightly to face the silver robot.
"I'm sick of these guys. Quick or slow?"
"Q-quick. The humans are getting-ing nervous."
A slow smile curved on her lips and she move closer to the still fighting mechs.
Ratchet felt the surge of power that was unique to Cameron. His processor threatened to shut down in relief. The looks on Prime's and Ironhide's faces told him that they could see her and she was all right.
The image of her flying through the air was one of the most frightening thing's he'd ever seen, right up there with standing in the middle of Simfur as the Decepticons destroyed it and catching Prowl and Jazz in one of Iacon's storage rooms.
He twisted his grip on Thundercracker, keeping his body firmly pressed against the ground. The Decepticon thrashed under their hands but was unable to free himself.
Ratchet felt Cameron getting closer, the tendrils of her power snaked around them, curling through their systems. He only noticed something was wrong when he tried to move but couldn't. A glance at Optimus proved that it wasn't a solitary occurrence. On the periphery of his vision a blue-glowing figure appeared. Cameron was moving slowly but steadily past them. She stopped in the very middle of all the fighting mechs. Her face was averted from him but Ratchet got the impression that she was scowling. The words that came out of her mouth were not in English, they were Cybertronian.
"I'm so very disappointed in you all. We've worked so hard to make sure everything went well, to make sure we could get off this planet."
She walked up to Thundercracker and tapped on the top of his helmet. The Decepticon's optics flickered each time she touched him.
"And then you decide to start a brawl in the middle of my party. I would have thought you were all smarter than that. Sabotaging my plans is something I might have expected from Starscream."
Cameron wandered over to Barricade and Skywarp. She didn't touch either of them but Ratchet could see the uncertainly in Barricade's optics.
"Now listen to me carefully because I'll only say this once. Do anything else that could potentially ruin our chances of leaving and I will deactivate you. That means everyone…I'm going to release you now and I want you all to stop fighting and just stand quietly."
The threads of energy slowly left Ratchet's body, leaving him feeling shaky. He straightened carefully, one hand remaining on Thundercracker's shoulder until he couldn't touch it anymore. Next to him Optimus Prime stood calmly, battle mask in place, his optics never betraying his emotions. Ironhide growled softly as he released his hold on the thick neck. The Decepticon at their feet snarled but didn't seem inclined to risk being deactivated by the angry Allspark.
On her other side, Barricade stepped back and Scorponok cowered on the floor. Skywarp was quick to his feet but watched the glowing human warily.
They both realise that she's serious. Ratchet's thoughts raced as he tried to figure out what she'd do next. Needless to say, Cameron didn't always do what you expected her to. Wanting to be closer to her in case the Decepticons decided to do something stupid Ratchet found that his feet wouldn't move, again.
"Look at how easy it is to stand next to each other and not be fighting. It certainly makes me feel better."
The sight of the organic-shaped Allspark speaking a mostly electronic language was strange indeed.
"While we're all playing nice I want to make a deal with my two seekers. Behave for the next few earth weeks and help us leave this planet and I will allow you your freedom once we reach Cybertron."
The Autobots stared at Cameron incredulously even as the Decepticons nodded after a moment of silent conversation.
"If you betray my trust I will punish you. I hope that by now you can tell that I have all of the Allspark's power under my control and I do exactly as I promise."
Again the seekers nodded.
"Good. You have two choices now. Get along with the Autobots or go back into stasis until we need you."
The Decepticons looked at each other and the air was filled with the soft hum of communication.
"Stasis." Thundercracker replied finally.
"Fine." Cameron held a hand out to each mech and they eased to the floor before their optics faded completely.
The radiating glow around Cameron eased and Ratchet found that he could move again. Immediately he was kneeling next to his bonded as she leaned against a stack of boxes, weariness evident on her face. He gathered her close and relaxed only when she returned his embrace. A comforting wave rolled over him through their bond and Ratchet had to stop from laughing. She was trying to make him feel better after she'd just expended all that energy. She was amazing and never ceased to surprise him.
"I wouldn't have deactivated you." Cameron whispered.
He smiled. "I know."
"Everyone else maybe, but not you."
She snuggled against the underside of his jaw and released a long sigh. Ratchet looked up to see Bumblebee walking back through the doors with the humans.
Alana walked straight up to them, darting a curious yet scared glance at the Decepticons. "Cameron Abigail Oakham. Get down here and explain what exactly just happened."
Pulling her away from him Ratchet saw that Cameron was smiling tiredly. "Madam, I have to ask that this evening be ended soon." He said as he placed Cameron on the ground. "Cameron is weary."
Immediately Scorponok was hovering nearby. Cameron stumbled for a moment but gained her balance before Alana reached her. "Darling, are you all right?"
"I'm fine. We were just having a discussion."
"I will want to run some tests later." Ratchet said to her back.
The concerned frown melted off Alana's face as she held Cameron close, running a hand over her hair in a soothing manner. The gesture was so natural between creator and progeny that Ratchet felt sad. Cameron would have to leave all this behind forever.
"It's all right Ratch. I'll call it a night soon, but if I fall asleep out here can you be sure to take me to bed?"
Ratchet subdued his chuckle and nodded. He turned away, intending to help Optimus and Ironhide move the jets back to their corner. As he moved away he heard Cameron say. "Mum, there's more that I have to tell you."
A muffled snicker near his foot caused Ratchet to look down. Cameron's younger sibling was standing next to a wall, watching the two women walking away.
"You find something entertaining?"
"Duh. Cam's about to tell Mum everything. I can't wait for the show." The child rushed away and Ratchet had the pre-emptory feeling that he should prepare to hide from her mother.
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TammyCat