Disclaimer: I own none of the Transformers characters. I do own my OCs so if you use them you need to ask me first, please and thank you.


Chapter 52

Jade let a sinister smile grow on her lips, or she did so in her darkened mind. The voices around her spoke of things that may have seemed insignificant to them, but were fountains of information to the captured woman.

She knew what was going on in the world outside of her hell. She knew exactly what was happening. The humans were going back on their treaty with the Autobots. There was a group making large machines, made out of a similar metal that all Cybertronians were made of, to hunt any living Cybertronian on Earth.

Soon, she would be free. The scum will get comfortable and lax in their procedures due to repeating them with no sign of why they needed to do them. Someone would slip up and forget to do something. At that moment she would strike with a burning vengeance, and she would get her revenge on these urchins of the human race.

Then she would find her children. She will keep them safe from the humans.

Those that stood in her way would perish in a gruesome and violent death.

By order of Optimus and Ironhide, Jazz and Barricade were not allowed to be left alone together. The reason: every time they were left alone they ended up arguing, sometimes they even came to physical blows over it. Their topic was, obviously, Jade and her kidnapping. Both felt guilt at being unable to protect her and apparently they dealt with their guilt and grief by verbally attacking each other while trying to pin the blame on the other for losing her in the first place.

Optimus sighed yet again as Ironhide let him know that he had separated the two yet again.

"Do I even want to know?" Ratchet asked with a raised metal eyebrow at the Autobot Commander who was currently sitting on one of his berths in medbay. There were still some glitches in his newly built arm so the medic was trying to fix said glitches.

"Ironhide just informed me that he had to separate Jazz and Barricade again."

Ratchet sighed as well, but he absently marveled at the fact that Jade's casual and dismissive question actually worked on more than the sparklings.

"It is hard to imagine that is has been several decacycles since the battle," Wheeljack quietly said from his own berth where Ground Hog was fixing his helm and arm. Damage from the battle that still hadn't been fixed yet.

The small mech gave a grunt while he worked. He didn't want to think about the battle again, too many died all for the lost cause of bringing Cybertron back. Their home planet was dead; there was no hope of bringing it back. It was better to make a new home somewhere else. With the humans actively against them and all of their kind he didn't feel much hope that Earth could be that new home.

"It has been a while, yes. Our main concern now is to protect the sparklings," Optimus grimly intoned.

Ratchet's helm shot up from the wires he was working on. "What about Jade?"

"While it is distressing that she is not with us, we must focus on safety. Jade cannot be rescued until we are all safe," the leader said with heavy remorse.

"You can't be serious!" Ratchet stood, for once ignoring his work for the moment. "We can't leave her in Project M's servos! Besides that the sparklings only ask about her! They'll never forgive us if we don't try!" he ranted.

"Ratchet!" Optimus' booming voice rang out making the medic stop his rant. "We have no choice!"

"Like hell!" Ratchet screamed back, unknowingly copying Jade's mannerisms by balling his hands into fists and stamping his right foot. "We can save her!"

"Enough! We aren't going to risk it!"

Silence enveloped the room. The other medic throughout the entire screaming match had concentrated on his patient who was staring in shock at the other two.

"Listen to yourselves; acting like sparklings yourselves," Wheeljack murmured in dismay. Was this really what had become of the Autobots? Turning tail and running while one of their own, though clearly neutral, was held captive and tortured; it was so disappointing. Even when the war had just started out and they had sparklings to deal with, they would still rescue an ally in trouble.

Perhaps the war truly does change people. After all, Wheeljack had never before seen Optimus kill anybot who begged for their spark until the last battle.

Ratchet snarled and quickly finished fixing Optimus' arm. When he was done he stormed over to his equipment, subspacing things he thought he would need for when "things hit the fan," as Jade said.

"Ratchet, what are you doing?" Ground Hog asked in curiosity as he finished the scientist's helm and moved onto his arm.

"I'm getting ready for when the humans chase us out. You heard what they think of us now. Better be prepared," the older medic grunted.

Looking at the older mech Ground Hog blinked. For an astrosecond he heard that response in Jade's voice. "You know, you sound like Jade," he said softly.

"Well the femme is smart. You prepare for the worst, especially when aggression is clearly shown to you. Then you regroup and fight back."

"Ratchet," the leader said reproachfully.

"No, Prime. I'll stay until everything hits the fan, then I protecting the sparklings and getting Jade back," the medic growled.

"If I didn't know better I would think you were Jade's sparkmate instead of Jazz," Wheeljack pointed out.

"One, they aren't sparkmates yet, though I'm not sure why they aren't. Two, I won't deny that I feel for Jade as a creator would their own sparkling," the medic said solemnly. He had denied it for too long and as the humans say, you don't realize what you have until you lose it. Jade was an annoying brat, but she was his annoying brat. The previously smothered bond within his spark flared as he accepted his paternal feelings toward the young femme.

He would get his daughter back and protect his grand-sparklings to the last beat of his spark.