"How many bullets do you have?"

"Four, you?"

"Eighteen, here take my magazine, I will still have one left"

"Thanks, now what?"

"No clue, all our plans so far have failed and I know for a fact that there's no backup on the way, not after what we heard earlier"

"Thanks for protecting the principal by the way"

"No problem, these guys will have to take him and you over my dead body, literally and at the moment that's very hard to do"

"Well either way you have our thanks, now like you said we need a new plan, but the enemy seems to adapt to our plans very quickly"

"Exactly, as it is I've barely kept them from killing us a few times and that's only...because...I think I have an idea, it's risky, more risk than any of our other plans so far but it's the only one I've got right now that has even a remote chance of working"

"Just what is your plan and how remote is remote?"

"It involves my powers and by remote I mean that I have only one shot at this, if I fail that's it, no other plans available at the moment"

"Sorry Kerenai-Masaki, not happening on my orders"

"Yes sir"

Both could tell that Clair wasn't happy, but orders were orders and she knew it

"I know you don't like it when I pull rank on you, but there's a reason I have to this time"

"What is it sir?"

"A specialized team that's going into action soon, your plans bought us time for them to gather intelligence on these guys and develop a plan to take them down as safely as possible for everyone"

"How new is this team?"

"It went active while you were on Cybertron dealing with that issue, so just under a month"

"They good?"

"They'd better be, they have almost as much training as an EDC officer, just more specialized than most of the EDC is, and they were picked from top police and military recruits as well"

"Fine, let me know the signal and I can actually coordinate with them making things much easier in the long run and you know it"

"Don't worry I will, in the meantime I think we should start moving again before we're found out"

"Right, and I think I finally have a good hiding spot"

"Oh?"

"Yep, but I can't tell you quite yet, and when this is over we are going to have a talk about weaponry"

"Oh?"

"Yep, it involves you, your guards, and how limited they are"

"Okay, makes sense, what were you doing here anyways?"

"Coffee, I really, really needed it, you?"

"Three guesses and the first two don't count"

(Sighs) "I should have known there was politics going on at the mall today, security was more visible than normal, that should have been a warning sign, one that I completely ignored apparently"

"Not entirely your fault though, not only did I ask them to be as discreet as possible this trip has been in the planning since you left for Cybertron, and after coming home you immediately sequestered yourself with your sick brother so it's no wonder you haven't been caught up yet"

"Okay you have a point, but still this should have been a priority, oh well too late now, okay when I give the word we move, will the specialized team be able to handle that?"

"Oh yeah they're good if we move"

"Good, we move in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, now!"

The group quickly moves from their current location to another real quickly and manages to get into the halls behind the store and uses those to their advantage in getting to the last floor of the building before going to the roof

"Okay we have a little bit of time before they discover us here, hopefully the extraction team can get us without any problems"

"Agreed"

Unfortunately while the specialized team managed to make it to their location without problems the evacuation was complicated in that somehow the enemy managed to get a blowtorch which meant fire raining down on them, but Clair had been practicing her manipulation ability with elements and was now proficient in that ability and as soon as she saw the flames coming towards her she captured said flames inside her shield and turned the weapon back on the enemy, ultimately allowing for their escape

"Okay what was that?"

"Something relatively new in regards to my abilities, I know you didn't notice the hazel eyes but I was using those powers on occasion to get us out alive, and that was of course part of my original plan before you ordered me not to use said plan. Now then full story later but for now...I really don't like this location"

"Uh, Kerenai-Masaki the building is on fire still, collapsing and it looks like there are more survivors than you first thought"

Clair turns to see exactly that situation and is shocked and unable to do something temporarily, fortunately her team was alerted to where she was and the situation so they arrived with her car and all of them knew exactly what was needed

"Armor on!"

They all put on their protective armor and started the evacuation process, fortunately the firefighters could also help with that so they were done relatively quickly and then simply stayed for traffic control reasons

"So, back to the station once this is done?"

"Sorry, I have to head back home, don't forget I have a little brother at home and there were...issues that popped up after the battle, I simply left because of a desperate need for coffee, never planned on this, and I have a report to give to the EDC now due to this situation too"

"Wait...you never want to have coffee at the time you would have wanted it"

"Better to get coffee than possibly kill someone with my abilities, especially someone unintended with how mad I was at the time"

"What made you so angry?"

"Sorry, not secure enough here"

"Understood, does it have to do with what was discussed at headquarters recently?"

"Yep"

"Got it, full debrief later than?"

"Exactly"

"Go home then, we'll report back to the Captain, and then you're coming back to the station right?"

"Yep, I am still a police officer after all, I just have special EDC duties to attend to that you guys don't have due to my unique situation"

Clair goes back and gives her report about the situation to her EDC superiors and then hears welcome news

"Prowl's awake, Jazz and he have talked and the bond is mutual now"

"How angry was Prowl?"

"Not as bad as it could have been, but not pleasant to hear to say the least"

"Okay then, now I have to get back to the station since I am technically still on my shift, I just originally came back because you needed me for answers and I needed answers myself in regards to what was happening to Prowl and Jazz, and then I needed the coffee I was so angry, does mean I have to work late but it is what it is, tell Daichi I won't be home before he goes to bed tonight"

"Will do"

Clair goes to the station and gets things settled, three days later everything would change, Clair and her unit received orders to report to an EDC moon base while the Japanese branch was ordered to America, China and to remain in Japan for reasons unknown. The group was also separated because Clair had to take care of a school function for the police first while Mark and Adam left immediately and arrived at the base safely, Clair however would not arrive at all and would in fact be thought dead due to an explosion

"Clair..."

"Looks like we have to take care of Daichi now"

"Her will?"

"Soon"

"Right"

A few days later it was confirmed that Clair had left Daichi in the care of the Cybertronians with the usual agreements in place as well for all EDC kids in regards to Captain Faireborn being medical at need meanwhile both units of Winspector continued their duties knowing that was what Clair would ultimately want, though it was hard on them because it really was too soon after Masaki's death in everyone's mind. At the same time all of this was happening Clair had been taken by a new enemy and was drugged, however what the enemy didn't know was that the drug was essentially ineffective due to previous exposure to said drug and the adaptive ability of her powers and body to handle poisons and foreign substances, but the enemy didn't know that while Clair didn't realize that she would be away from family for three very long years