New girl in town

by Aurrawings

Samantha is the new girl, and though she finds it a bit hard to fit in in Jasper Nevada, her new friends are more than enough to make up for it. I realize it is a generic title...hope you like it anyway. I'm open to anyone's ideas and i will credit you fully.

1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Moving to a new school is never easy, especially when it's more than halfway across the country. My parents, both in the medical field, had been transferred from our city in Vermont all the way out to Arizona. Honestly, I didn't really care other than the heat. I went through the motions of my life and basically raised myself because my parents were always working.

I was daydreaming after school one Friday, sitting on the step outside the school as kids filtered past me to the buses and parent's cars. I had my own ride, but I didn't really want to leave yet. Almost last out were two boys, a kid about twelve that was wearing glasses and sported a spiky haircut and a teen with dark hair who I thought was about sixteen like me. I thought I had caught their names before, I was learning about people here quickly, though I wasn't much of a social person. My parents had cured me of that; they had signed me up for almost every extracurricular activity when we lived back in Vermont when I was younger so that they didn't have to take a break from their work life.

"Hey Jack, do you wanna go hang out tonight?" the smaller boy said, looking up at Jack.

"Sorry Raf, gotta work tonight. Maybe this weekend though, I'm off then." Jack said to Raf. Raf shrugged, waving goodbye as Jack got on a motorcycle that was parked along the sidewalk; actually, it looked a lot like mine, but a different color. Jack waved back, putting on a helmet that had been hanging off the handlebar before driving away. Soon after Jack left, a black and yellow muscle car pulled up and beeped its horn. Raf shouldered his backpack, glancing back at me.

"Hey, you're the new girl, right? I'm Raf." he said, giving the waiting car a 'one minute' gesture.

"Yeah, my name's Samantha, call me Sam." I said. Raf glanced at the car again, then back at me.

"I've gotta go, do you have a ride?" he asked. I nodded, pointing to my speed motorcycle parked in the lot. I had been able to pick my own car for my sweet 16, but I thought cars were too claustrophobic, I chose a bike instead. It was jet black, and a neon green stripe ran down the left side of it. It had become my best friend, since I didn't have any friends of my own.

"Okay then, I guess I'll see you next Monday. Bye." Raf said, jogging to the car and hopping in. The car sped off, the engine making an impressive roar, and I smiled to myself. Raf was likeable, especially since he was a kid, but I'd seen him in his spare time on a laptop. I think that kid could hack into anything if he had to. I sat on the step for a while, not really wanting to go home and be bored by myself. There were still a few cars in the lot, and a big green truck was parked by the curb.

A few minutes later, a girl who looked about fourteen crept out of the door, looking cautiously behind her. Her side swept bangs were dyed pink and she had her hair put up in what looked like spiky pom-poms on each side of her head. The tips of these were pink as well and the rest of her hair was held in a sort of reverse ponytail with the fastener at the end of her hair instead of at the top. She turned to run down the steps, not seeing me, and tripped over my backpack I had at the top of the stairs. I turned, breaking her fall, and she got up quickly and dusted herself off.

"Sorry about that, your name is Miko, right?" I apologized. The girl nodded, glancing back at the door again.

"Yeah, anyway, I have to go. I just snuck out of detention so... yeah, bye bye. See you Monday!" Miko called as she ran to the truck that was parked on the curb. As she hopped in, she shouted back to me.

"Your name is Samantha, right?" she said. I nodded, calling back as she shut the door.

"Yeah, just Sam though." I called. The truck sped off, leaving me alone again. I grabbed my backpack, unzipping it and shuffling around before I withdrew a battered old spiral notebook. I opened it to the back page, where I had written a list and annotated it in case anyone somehow got a hold of it. The page was labeled 'Things I can do because of my negligent parents.' Remember how I took a lot of extra classes? Yeah.

1. Archer- can hit bull's-eye easily from 100 yards

2. Judo- very good, could kick someone's butt if I had to

3. Medic- studied parent's old textbooks in spare time, have memorized countless treatments for injuries, complete human anatomy

4. Mechanic- parents too busy to take bike to shop, have to fix it myself

5. Straight A's- alone time means nothing to do but study

This was an example of my list, and I knew I could probably add to it. I sighed, snapping my notebook shut and sticking it back in my backpack. I shouldered my bag, heading to my bike that was all alone now in the parking lot. The sun was still blazing overhead and I put on my helmet that was hanging off my bike's handlebar. I rested a hand on the seat for a moment, it was blazing hot from sitting in the sun all day, but I'd just have to deal. I fired up my bike, listening contently to the engine when I revved it.

My parents didn't know, but I had installed a racing engine on my bike and turbo charged it as well. I always obeyed the speed limit back home and here as well when I was in town. But there were miles and miles of flat, open roads around the desert that I could just let loose and floor it. I mounted my bike, adjusting my helmet and easing onto the hot seat of my motorcycle. I made a face, it was almost burning the insides of my thighs, but I just wanted to go for a ride, a long one.

Taking out my phone, I sent my mom and dad both a quick text that I was going for a drive and didn't know when I'd be back. Mom sent back quickly; 'okay, be home by eleven though. Love you.' I tucked my phone in my backpack and eased my bike out onto the road.

Like I said, there were endless stretches of open road that hardly anyone used, and I spent hours taking my bike flat out. I had been basically going straight for a few miles at top speed before turning and heading back to the town. I experimented with different roads, always slowing down and heeding traffic when I was in the small town that contained my school, a few houses, and some fast-food joints. My bike was starting to stutter, and I frowned to see that the gas gauge was on 'E.'

I filled up at the town's only gas station, by now it was dark and I thought about going home, but when I checked my phone it said it was only 9 p.m. I put my helmet back on and flicked on the headlights on my bike as I left.

I got the feeling I was being followed just as I pulled out onto the open road, and I glanced back to see headlights. I intended to let him pass me and I'd go to a different stretch of road to have fun, and I slowed down to let him pass. I turned to glance at the car as I was still heading down the road, and right as I did, I was rammed from behind.

My bike skittered before sliding out from under me. I hit the dusty pavement and skidded, my shoulder and the side of my leg dragged painfully across the asphalt. The car rolled up, stopping smoothly before revving its engine. It was very sporty, mostly red, and had gold rims. The windows were blacked out so I couldn't see inside, but I shouted at the car as I got to my feet and started to walk over to my damaged bike.

"What the heck are you thinking? You ran me off the road you jerk!" I said angrily. From here, I could barely see my bike because the car's headlights weren't pointing at it and were aimed straight at me. I could see that a lot of the body of my motorcycle was crushed and it had a lot of scratches in the paint. I didn't appreciate this guy trashing my ride...

"Hello? Are you going to answer me or not?" I said. The car's engine roared and it lurched towards me, nudging me and knocking me to the ground. I couldn't see who was talking, but someone spoke back and was making no sense to me.

"It looks like Arcee found herself a new friend." a male voice said.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, getting to my feet again. The car was silent for a minute, replying to me just as he sped forward. Adding insult to injury, the driver's side door snapped open and slammed into me as he hit the throttle...

"They call me Knockout." the car replied as soon as the door hit me. I lost my feet once again, stars dancing in my eyes as the edges of my vision got blurry. I automatically assessed damage in my mind as I tried to regain my senses.

Abrased shoulder and leg, possible bruised hip, possible concussion... I thought what I saw next was because of my concussion, but the car suddenly transformed into about a 30 ft tall robot before it leaned down to me. I faintly saw it glance at my bike, then back to me.

"Oh, scrap... Megatron will have my head..." the robot, who I assumed was named Knockout for a reason, turned back into a car and tore off right as I lost consciousness.

...

I thought I had been out for a long time, and the next thing I knew I felt someone shaking my shoulder before quiet conversation reached my ears.

"Should we take her to a hospital, Jack?" a female voice said. Jack replied, and I tried to gain enough strength to open my eyes. It was now dark, and for some reason the first thing I thought was that I hoped I didn't miss my curfew.

"I don't know, she's out cold but she doesn't look hurt..." Jack said. I cracked my eyes open and groaned with pain and effort as I sat up. I looked around briefly for the source of the female voice, a hand to my throbbing head. Making an assumption, I just said what was on my mind.

"Did your motorcycle just talk?" I said. Jack gave me a look of 'you must be crazy' before helping me up.

"Of course not, you must have a concussion, you've been hearing things." Jack said. I gave him my 'you aren't telling the truth' look and spoke.

"Okay then, do you know of a 30 ft tall robot that turns into a car that's named Knockout?" I asked. Jack's face dropped, and he glanced back at his motorcycle.

"Can you keep a secret?" he asked.

"Totally." I said, rubbing my aching skull where it must have struck the ground.

"This is serious; you can't tell another person in the world." Jack said.

"Alright, I get it, my lips are sealed." I said. Jack glanced back at his bike, nodding.

"Okay, show her, Arcee." Jack said. With that, the bike instantly transformed into a giant robot, though she was female and much shorter than Knockout.

"Jack, do you know her?" Arcee asked. Jack looked at me, then nodded.

"Yeah, you're the new girl, Samantha, right?" he said. I nodded in return.

"Call me Sam... Oh crud, my phone!" I blurted, changing the subject as Arcee and Jack looked at me, confused. I dug through my backpack, and glancing at the time I saw it was only a quarter after ten. Relieved, I turned back to the pair.

"I think you should come with us, there's something you really ought to see." Jack said. Arcee nudged him.

"Jack, are you crazy? What will Optimus say?" Arcee slipped up. Jack gave her a considering look.

"There's more of you? Wait, are you good guys or bad guys?" I said, wary. Jack just glanced at Arcee.

"We're definitely the good guys. Alright, let's go, I don't think you're safe right now." Arcee answered. I thought a moment, then took my phone and started to send a quick text to my mom. I told her I'd made a friend and I was going to miss curfew, but I was okay. Mom quickly sent back that it would be fine. I put my phone away and Arcee transformed back into a motorcycle. Jack called his own mom and I could hear their conversation.

"Hey mom, I'm going to be coming home late just for tonight...Yes I know...The new girl at school, Sam, got run off the road. It was Knockout...Yeah I think she's okay, I'm gonna take her to the base, she's not safe." Jack was saying, pausing to let his mom speak. He turned to me briefly, covering his phone.

"Are you alright?" he asked. I nodded.

"I think so, just a bit banged up. I think I hit my head though." I said. Jack relayed this to his mom, explaining as he did so.

"Before you ask, my mom knows all about the Autobots, and she's a nurse so... What? Yeah, Arcee's with me...Okay, I will. See you, bye mom." Jack said, snapping his phone shut and tucking it in his pocket. Arcee revved her engine as she waited. Jak turned to me, glancing at my bike as he did.

"I'm not sure if your bike will even run, but my mom said to ride with Arcee. If you hit your head, she said it's not a good idea to be driving." Jack said. I nodded, agreeing, and Jack put on a helmet and got on Arcee. I retrieved my own helmet, regretfully leaving my speed bike, and gingerly sat behind Jak. I was actually a bit embarrassed, I hardly even knew Jack but here I was on a motorcycle, or rather a robot named Arcee, with him.

Arcee rode a lot like my own bike did, and she was almost as fast. I thought we were just driving randomly out into the desert, but I heard Arcee talking I thought to herself. I realized she must have some sort of commlink to somewhere else.

"Arcee to Ratchet, I need a ground bridge on my position, Jack and I found a civilian that was run down. She's alright, but it was Knockout. He transformed in front of her... Thanks Ratch." Arcee said. Suddenly, a greenish, glowing portal opened right in front of us and Arcee didn't hesitate to go through. I had a sense of vertigo when we passed through, and the next thing I knew, Arcee shot into a large open room. She braked to a stop, and Jack got off after I did. I pulled my helmet off and my jaw dropped.

Standing in various spots around the room were more of the giant robots. I looked from bot to bot, sort of in a state of shock. Even more surprising, I saw Miko running down some steps from a platform, with Raf not far behind. I looked at Jack, then back at the two kids.

"Wait, they're in on it too? How many people know about you guys?" I stammered. The tallest robot, a blue and red one who I assumed was the leader, stepped forward and spoke.

"Jack's mother, special agent Fowler, a few military operatives, and the ones you see standing here are aware of us. An organization called MECH is also currently on the trail of Autobots and Decepticons alike." the tall robot said. I waved my hand, already starting to get a headache from the sensory overload and knock to the head.

"Wait, what's a Decepticon? I'm assuming you're Autobots...but what exactly are you? And what are your names because I've already met Arcee but I'm actually very intrigued to learn more about you right now." I said. An orange-ish and white bot spoke up.

"Decepticons are the bad intentioned Cybertronian race, allied under their leader Megatron. We on the other hand are autonomous mechanical beings from the planet Cybertron. Autobots for short. My name is Ratchet by the way." Ratchet said. The others introduced themselves, including the leader, who was called Optimus Prime, and the two other Autobots who were there. I looked closely at them, recognition registering as I realized what vehicles they transformed into.

"You two, I've seen you before...You guys pick up Miko and Raf from school every day, don't you?" I asked. Raf got my attention, introducing both of them as he pointed at them in turn.

"That's Bulkhead, he's with Miko, and Bumblebee's with me." Raf said, pointing to the big, green robot before pointing at a yellow and black Autobot that looked younger than the rest of them. Bumblebee made a low beeping sound, and I tilted my head curiously.

"What did he just say? Can't he talk?" I asked. Raf looked at me.

"He said hello, and no he can't talk, at least in English. His voice box got torn out by Megatron." Raf said. I immediately felt bad.

"Oh...sorry. Wait, how can you understand him?" I asked. Raf simply shrugged, and Optimus got my attention.

"I understand you encountered a Decepticon earlier tonight, Knockout, correct?" Optimus said.

"Yeah, I think that's what his name was, I think he confused my bike for Arcee, they do look identical except for the color, he ran me off the road and said something about Arcee having a new friend... When I tried to get up he hit me with his door and transformed right in front of me, I thought it was just because I had a concussion, but now I see that's not the case." I said. Optimus thought a moment, turning to the rest of his team.

"I need us all to keep a close watch on..." Optimus was saying, glancing back at me, "What is your name?" he asked.

"Samantha, just call me Sam." I replied. Optimus nodded.

"We'll need to keep our eyes on Sam, I want at least one Autobot on guard for her at all times." Optimus said. I interrupted.

"Why are you having them watch me? I'm okay, I think, and now that Knockout knows I'm not with Arcee he'll leave me alone, right?" I said. Arcee spoke up from behind me.

"You're not safe, for one. The fact you're even alive right now is surprising, it's not like a 'Con to show mercy. I'm surprised Knockout didn't kill you right there, but now that you know about our kind the Decepticons will probably try to finish the job. The less people that get involved in our affairs the better." Arcee said. I thought on it a moment, then agreed.

"Alright, but I should be getting home if that's okay, I need to fix my bike and even though my parents aren't home a lot they still care about me." I said. Optimus agreed with me.

"Very well. Bumblebee, escort the children home, it is late." Optimus said. Bumblebee emitted a series of beeps and buzzing noises before transforming and revving his engine. Raf hopped immediately into the passenger seat, and Jak and Miko climbed into the back, leaving one seat open for me next to Miko who was in the middle. I got in, shutting the door behind me, and Bumblebee took off out of the base. Thankfully, Knockout had wrecked me not too far from my house, only about a mile, and I asked to be let out by my totaled bike.

I looked at the wreckage sadly, and pulled the object of my care upright, small pieces of metal falling off of it. I gathered what I could and started to walk my bike back home. Miko stuck her head out the window and called at me.

"Hey, come hang with us tomorrow, I could use another girl friend and you need to learn more about these guys! What do you say?" Miko said. I glanced back.

"Uh, sure, but I don't think I'll have my bike fixed by then..." I said. She grinned.

"That's okay, I'll bring Bulkhead to come get you. See you at eight tomorrow!" Miko said, tucking her head inside and Bee sped off. Man, that girl was annoying...

...

I walked my injured bike into the garage and leaned it against the wall since the stand was broken. The damage to it was fixable, but it was going to take me a while. I walked into the house through the garage door, shutting it quietly behind me. My parents were home by now, and I tried to hide the scrapes and the knot on my head as I walked past the living room. Mom stood up quickly, blocking my path as she went into 'mother hen' mode. With her being a nurse, it was even worse.

"Oh my god, Samantha what happened?!" she said. I pushed her away.

"Mom, I'm fine, some jerk just ran me off the road. My bike got the worst of it..." I said, glancing towards the garage. Mom grabbed me anyway, hauling me into the kitchen and forcing me to sit on the counter. I rolled my eyes, groaning as she tried to doctor me.

"Mom, Mom...Mom! I'm okay, stop freaking out!" I said, interrupting her as she babbled about how I could have been killed and I was so lucky and blah blah blah. She ignored me, dumping peroxide onto a washrag and dabbing it on my scraped arm and leg. I sat, slumped, and gave up.

"Did you get hurt anywhere else?" Mom asked, looking me over. I wanted out of there, and trying to pull away I said a quick 'no.' Mom pulled my chin up, making me look her in the eye.

"Don't lie to me, Sam." she said. I sighed.

"I hit my head too." I said. She flipped again, and made me do a whole bunch of crap to make sure I didn't have a concussion. Satisfied, she finally let me go to bed, and I flopped, beat, onto my mattress and passed out.

...

Over the weekend, as well as the weeks that followed, I was suckered into going to the Autobot's base, where I did my best to learn all I could about them. I started to form ties with the Autobots as well as become good friends with Jack, Miko, and Raf. Miko soundly beat me in about every video game she had at the base, and who knew that Bumblebee could play either?

One day after school, soon after my seventeenth birthday, I had ridden my bike back to my house (I had eventually fixed it) to find a squad car parked out front, and an officer was knocking at my door. I pulled up, shutting off the engine to my motorcycle and pulling off my helmet. The officer turned, sympathy immediately crossing his face. I knew that look all too well, something was wrong.

"Something happened to my parents, didn't it?" I said. The officer took off his hat, looking me in the eye.

"Their car stalled in the middle of an intersection, the semi couldn't stop in time..." the officer said. I already knew they were dead, and I dropped to my knees in grief, clutching my helmet as I tried to come up with a way to cope. The officer laid a hand on my shoulder.

"I'm so sorry. Since you're seventeen, you don't have to go with Child Services if you have a place to stay..." the officer trailed off. I tried to hold in the tears I knew were inevitable, then shook my head and got to my feet.

"Yeah, I've got somewhere to go. Goodbye." I said curtly, pulling my helmet back on and starting my bike before whipping around and speeding down the road and into the desert. The tears clouding my vision made it dangerous to drive, but I rammed the accelerator to full throttle and headed for the Autobot's base. I couldn't seem to be going fast enough to focus solely on the road, so I flipped on the turbo on my bike, and my motorcycle roared down the road even faster. The wind whipped my hair that wasn't tucked into my helmet, and I found myself already at the large mesa that marked the Autobot's base.

I smashed on the brakes right as I came into the central hangar, Optimus and Ratchet were the only ones there, probably because the others were being picked up from school. Practically just letting the momentum of my bike throw me forward, I let it skid a few feet and automatically ran up the stairs to the platform where the kids and I would hang out. I yanked off my helmet, dropping it with a thud onto the metal floor and I simply collapsed into a sitting position on the floor, burying my face in my hands as I couldn't stop the sobs from coming even if I wanted to.

Ratchet and Optimus glanced at each other when I came in, totally confused at why I was so upset, and Optimus asked me gently.

"Sam, what is wrong?" he asked. I looked up, pulling myself together for a moment in order to coherently tell him, though my words still were shaky.

"My parents just...got killed in a car crash...earlier today. Their car...stalled...and a semi hit...them. I didn't know...where else to go...but here." I choked. Optimus gave me a look of sympathy, and spoke.

"I am glad you trust us enough to come here if you needed us, and no doubt this is hard for you..." Optimus was cut off as Bumblebee, Bulkhead, and Arcee with Jack pulled in. Miko and Raf got out of their guardian's car modes before they transformed, though it was Jack who noticed I was there first. I was curled in a tight ball now, my forehead resting on my knees and I tried to quiet the small sounds of my grief.

Jack quickly set my bike upright, then went up the stairs quickly, Miko and Raf trailing him. He knelt by me, comfortingly putting his hand on my shoulder.

"What's the matter?" Raf asked. Optimus answered for me, thank god, because I looked like a wreck.

"Her family was killed in an accident earlier today..." he said, which was answer enough because then the sympathy bug bit just about everyone. Miko sat next to me, getting my attention.

"Just go ahead and cry, it doesn't bother any of us here. Wait, do you have to go with the Child's Protection whatever? Cuz that would stink." Miko said, trying to brighten my mood. I wiped my face the best I could, and shook my head. I composed myself better than I had before, trying to shake off my grief, though losing your parents isn't exactly something that's easy.

"I'm seventeen now, I don't have to go with anyone, but I can't stay at my old house." I said. Miko tossed out an idea, which actually turned out to be what happened.

"Why don't you just move in here?" she said. Optimus didn't have to think about it long, and with their consent I moved in with the Autobots. I didn't take anything from home to remind me of my parents, just everything out of my closet and a pillow and blanket so I could sleep on the couch at the base.

Chapter 2

I continued going to school, usually riding there and back with whoever asked first if I wanted a ride, though sometimes I just took my bike. Weekends were good though, I got to hang out with my new friends, human and otherwise, and I learned even more about the Cybertronian world.

Something else, I found Ratchet is really good to ask about science and math questions. I had a Trigonometry question that had taken me an hour and I was stumped, Ratchet took one look at it and rattled off the answer without batting an optic. I just gaped at him, writing down the answer before I forgot it.

Thankfully, the end of the school year rolled around and I could spend my entire time with the Autobots, as well as my new human friends.

...

A man's image popped up on the screen in the hangar and spoke loudly.

"Prime! We've got a situation, the cons found a boatload of energon in a crater in Argentina, go stop them before they can take it and use it to their advantage!" the man said. Optimus walked up to the screen.

"Agent Fowler, I understand speed is of the essence, what are the Decepticons' present coordinates?" he said. Something flashed up on the screen and Optimus turned to his team.

"Autobots, transform and roll out!" Optimus called, turning into a semi and heading through the ground bridge that Ratchet had just opened. I was jerked out of my confusion by Miko grabbing my arm and dragging me to the bridge.

"Come on! You get to watch your first smackdown!" Miko said, running with me in tow, leaving Raf and Jack behind. We crossed out of the ground bridge, which still made me nauseous, and ran to the lip of a crater and peered down.

Shots were firing like crazy, and every once in a while I saw a large blue crystal get shattered as a shot hit it or a bot was thrown at it. Miko leaned over the edge of the crater, snapping pictures with her phone as I tried to call her back. I suppose it was extremely good luck on her part or extremely bad on mine what happened next. I would guess that a sizeable chunk of the energon crystals had been blown up, that would explain how the shards got over the top of the crater...

As soon as the explosion happened, Miko lost her balance and fell down the inside slope of the crater, sliding a few yards before she stopped herself and found cover. I, on the other hand, was not very lucky. The next thing I knew after the explosion, a sharp, stabbing pain struck between my ribs on my left side. I looked down, immediately going into shock, because a large blue shard was wedged between my ribs, directly into my heart from what I could tell. I only wondered how I wasn't dead, but every throb of my heart tore a fresh pain through my chest and I already knew I had gone into deep shock. My mind kept losing focus, though I stayed conscious, and I staggered before dropping to my knees and rolling over onto my back.

Miko climbed laboriously back over the edge of the crater, and nearly had a coronary when she saw me. She looked scared, guilty, and grossed out all at the same time. Tears already streaming down her face, she flipped open her phone and dialed a number.

"Ratchet! Call back the troops now, Sam's hurt!" she practically yelled into the phone. I could hear Ratchet on the other end.

"What? How did she get injured?" Ratchet said.

"I dragged her through the ground bridge, it's not her fault... She's got a freaking energon shard stuck in her chest, no she's not okay!" Miko said after Ratchet must have asked if I was alright. I grimaced, and I heard Ratchet say he'd tell Optimus. Miko shut her phone, looking at me helplessly. More firing erupted from the crater before a mess of jets rose into the sky and took off. The Autobots quickly appeared over the lip of the crater, almost in disbelief when they saw me.

Arcee picked me up carefully as the ground bridge opened. I grimaced when she did and she walked carefully through the space bridge. On the other side, Ratchet was already waiting and went quickly to his lab, having Arcee lay me on a table carefully. I saw Jack on the phone for a minute, then he snapped it shut.

"I called my mom, she'll be here soon if you open a ground bridge." Jack said. Ratchet had Bumblebee open a bridge as he worked the best as he could to try and help me. All he pretty much did was hook me up to a heart monitor as he waited for Jack's mom.

"Curse my ignorance, I still know so little about human medicine..." Ratchet muttered as he scanned me, taken aback as well as how I was still alive.

"How... how is this even possible? The shard is directly in your heart, yet you're still alive..." Ratchet was cut off as a white car roared into the hangar and Jack's mom got out quickly, grabbing a large bag and walking quickly to me. She glanced at the energon shard stuck in my chest before glancing at Ratchet and setting her bag on the table next to me.

"Please tell me that missed her heart..." Jack's mom said. She was still wearing the scrubs from her work, by the symbol on her nametag that read 'June Darby' I could tell she worked in the same hospital that both my parents had. Ratchet glanced at June, not saying anything.

"So it didn't... how is she still alive?" June said. Ratchet looked at the scans shaking his head.

"I have absolutely no idea, but she needs your help, Nurse Darby." June looked at me, unsure of how to start, then turned and started giving orders.

"I need to get that shard out of her, you said yourself energon was devastating to humans. Someone take the kids out of here, they don't need to see this." June said. Bulkhead took Jak, Miko, and Raf to a different part of the base and June snapped open her bag, rummaging in it quickly. She took my pulse, frowning when she did, and she pulled a small light from her bag and shone it in my eyes back and forth.

"She's in shock, that's no surprise... What's her name? How did she find out about you guys?" June said.

"Her name is Sam, I believe you heard of her from Jack, she's the one that was run off the road by Knockout a few weeks ago." Ratchet answered. June nodded, going back to work quickly. She pulled a vial of something and a syringe out of her bag, quickly filling it, explaining to Ratchet as she did.

"It's a sedative; I'm sure she's already in a lot of pain and she's not going to want to be awake when I get that shard out." June said, finding a vein on my arm and sliding the needle into my skin before pushing down on the plunger slowly. It was only a few seconds before I blacked out.

...

I woke sometime later, everyone was standing around me, and I could tell Miko had been crying. There was a bandage taped to the left side of my chest and man did I ache. June was sitting exhausted on the stairs, and I struggled to sit up. Jack held me back, calling for his mom. June got up quickly, coming over to the table where I lay.

"Thanks for saving my life." I said groggily since I was still trying to shake off the sedative. June was silent a moment, then looked at Ratchet. Ratchet nodded, pulling up something on a screen and speaking before stepping aside.

"There's something, Sam... I've never seen this before, or have any idea how it is possible, but... you are becoming Cybertronian." Ratchet said. The kids' mouths fell open, evidently they hadn't heard, and I looked at Ratchet like he was insane.

"As far as I can tell, it was because the energon shard directly pierced your heart, making it start to pump energon instead of blood. I don't know how either, but you no longer have a heart, but a Spark like the rest of us Autobots. In order to sustain itself though, a Spark needs a mechanical body, so it has begun making one." Ratchet said, showing me a scan of my body. He was right that energon now flowed through me, and I could see my heart was now indeed a Spark like all Cybertronians. There were also what appeared to be tendrils of metal spreading outward from my now Spark.

I gaped at the scan, unable to find words, and June went about taking my vitals, though she sort of slumped and looked up at Ratchet.

"Are you sure you aren't the one to be doing this now? She's becoming one of you, I don't know anything about your medicine..." June said. Ratchet shook his head.

"She's still mostly human right now, I think it best she be in your care, Nurse Darby." Ratchet said. June took my pulse and checked the bandage over my chest, satisfied, she stepped back. She spoke to Ratchet as well and myself simultaneously.

"She'll be okay now, just make sure she rests a lot and check to see how the stitches are healing, I'll be back to take them out when she's healed." June said. Ratchet, nodded, but looked a bit unsure about caring for me.

"Do not worry old friend, she is in good hands." Optimus said, looking at Ratchet. June hugged Jack goodbye, waving at the kids as she got in her car and went out of the base through the exit instead of the ground bridge. Miko stood by the table where I lay, thinking something over.

"I'm sorry Sam, if I hadn't taken you off base you wouldn't have gotten hurt... On the bright side, you're turning into an Autobot!" she chirped. I laughed shortly, Miko never hesitated to speak what was on her mind, which in this case was helping cheer me up.

"It's not your fault, you're lucky you fell in the crater when you did, or you'd be on a table like this too." I said. I gathered the nerve, then sat up with a grimace. Arcee took a step towards me.

"Sam, don't, you need to rest." Arcee said. I gave her a look.

"I'm okay, just a little sore. Besides, I think the fact that my parents were both in the medical field makes me hate anytime I have to do anything relating to a hospital." I said. My chest throbbed, but I ignored it and swung my legs over the side of the table. Ratchet tried to dissuade me as well, but I stepped off the table and stood still a moment, gaining my balance before taking a few experimental steps.

I glanced at Miko, trying to lighten the mood.

"Wanna go beat me in a video game?" I asked. Miko lit up, dashing up the stairs to the platform they had turned into a makeshift hangout area a while ago. I followed her, much slower, and eased onto the couch beside Miko. She tossed a controller at me, and I instinctively leaned quickly to catch it. A brief flash of pain seared my chest, but I didn't show it and settled back into the couch.

Let's just say that after about five races I gave up. Miko had given me the best car in the entire game, but she still beat me easily. I glanced over at Raf, who had sat next to me and now was tapping on his laptop that never seemed to leave his side.

"Hey Raf, wanna play? I'm done." I said. He looked up, glanced back down at his computer and closed whatever he was doing. I handed him the controller, which he took tentatively.

"Sure, Sam." Raf said. I glanced at his laptop, which was now closed and sitting on the floor.

"What were you just doing on your computer?" I asked. Raf glanced at me just as a race was starting, talking as he turned his car expertly through corners I had previously wiped out on.

"I hacked the school's database and was changing Miko's grades. She was failing Algebra." Raf said. Miko piped up from her spot beside me.

"Key word: was." Miko said. I laughed shortly, though it hurt when I did.

...

Eventually, Optimus made the kids go home, though it was a Saturday night. Ratchet used the scanner on his arm to see how I was doing before I went to bed.

"Your Cybertronian biology is spreading quickly, though your new Spark seems to be strong. Just-" Ratchet was saying before I interrupted him.

"Let me guess, 'take it easy for a while.' I know doc, my parents were both in the medical field, remember?" I said. Ratchet sighed, going back to his work as I climbed the stairs back up to the platform. I got Arcee, Bulkhead, and Bumblebee's attention.

"Night, guys." I said. I got a simultaneous 'good night' from all three, though of course Bumblebee couldn't talk.

"Don't let the scraplets bite." Bulkhead said. I gave him a questioning look, then shook my head and went up the stairs. I laid carefully on the couch instead of flopping on it like I normally would, my chest still hurt. I closed my eyes, the noise of the Autobots moving about not even bothering me as I fell asleep.

Chapter 3

I slept in the next morning until Bulkhead's steps jarred me awake. I sat up and stretched, the fact that it should've hurt like a mo-fo didn't register until a few seconds later. Experimentally, I got up from the couch, to my surprise I felt like I was normal again. The look on Ratchet's face was priceless when I took the steps two at a time and jogged up to him. He stuttered at me.

"How did you just...?" he asked. I shrugged.

"I dunno, but I feel great, like nothing ever happened." I said. I noted that my side ached slightly, but I remembered it was probably just the stitches pulling at my already healed skin. Ratchet scanned me again, examining the results before looking at me incredulously.

"By the All Spark... you're completely recovered..." Ratchet said. "Your Cybertronian biology has also spread to your entire body..." Ratchet muttered, looking back down at the scan. I glanced around, noting that Bulkhead was still there but Bumblebee and Arcee were gone.

"Where's Arcee and Bumblebee?" I asked. Ratchet shook off his disbelief to answer me, but Bulkhead piped up instead.

"Arcee took Jack to work and Bumblebee is out for a drive with Miko and Raf." Bulkhead said. I went over to my bike, slipping my helmet on as I started the engine.

"I'm gonna see if I can find Bee, I can't stand not doing anything. I'll stay in touch." I said, showing Ratchet I had my phone before I put it in my pocket. I revved my bike's engine to take off, but Ratchet called me back for a moment.

"Don't you want your stitches out? I could call June..." he said. I shook my head, and my voice was hard to hear because it was muffled by my helmet and nearly drowned out by my bike idling.

"Later, I'm fine for now. Besides, June's probably busy." I said before exiting the base. I opened up my motorcycle to near full throttle, crouching low behind the handlebars as everything raced by. Near town, I saw another bike coming from the opposite direction and slowed greatly, recognizing it as Arcee. She stopped as well, not bothering to deactivate the hologram she was using.

"Sam? How are you out like this?" she asked.

"Somehow I'm healed, I feel fine. I was just looking for Bumblebee and the kids if you happened to know where they were." I said, revving the engine on my bike.

"They're on the road heading north out of town, but before you go, how about a race? I want to see what that replica of me can do." Arcee said.

"Technically, you're a replica of my bike. Remember?" I said. I didn't mean to be mean, but I could tell simply by looking at Arcee that I was going to win. She wasn't turbocharged and I had a bit of a, ahem, special addition to my bike. I accepted anyway, telling myself I'd keep it fair and almost let her win.

"Sure. How far?" I asked. She seemed to look for a moment, judging distance.

"To the next mile marker and back here." Arcee said. I nodded.

"Ready when you are." I said, revving my bike as I waited.

"Go!" Arcee shouted and tore off. I pretended to get a bad start and let her get ahead of me. She wasn't going full throttle, yet, and we were at the mile marker quickly. I smashed the brakes and used my foot as a pivot point to turn. Now was when I showed what my bike could really do. I flicked on the turbo, pulling up next to Arcee, then hovered my thumb over a red button. I yelled over the wind at Arcee, who was now trying her hardest to beat me.

"See ya!" I said and pushed the button that activated my nitro. I gripped the handlebars tightly as I zipped past the finish line, braking before I hit the town and resumed the speed limit. I simply left Arcee in the dust before I went to find Bumblebee and the kids.

Quite a few miles later, I saw a green helicopter fly over, circle back and around me, then it left. I thought it was awkward, but up ahead I saw who I had been looking for. The taillights of a black and yellow Camaro shone as it pulled to a stop and I floored it up to Bee before stopping next to him. He hummed and beeped at me, and Raf was about to translate before I answered for him.

"Yeah I know, somehow I'm completely healed now. Mind if I drive with you?" I said. Bumblebee beeped at me before starting forward, and I followed beside him.

...

We basically spent our day on a Sunday drive, but my phone rang at about five-o-clock. I signaled Bee to stop and did the same, fishing my phone out of my back pocket I answered it.

"Hello?" I asked. Jack's voice was the one who answered me.

"Hey Sam. I, uh, just wanted to say I'm off work now, and my mom called me too. She wants you to come to our house for a little bit so she can take your stitches out." Jack said. I nodded, then answered him.

"Yeah, okay, just text me your address, I have GPS on my phone. I've just been out for a drive with Bee and the kids." I said. Jack answered back.

"Okay, I will. I'll be at the base when you get there from my place. Oh, by the way, would you happen to know why Arcee's upset? She's hardly talked to me at all." Jack said. I laughed slightly.

"Probably because she wanted to race me and I kicked her tailpipe." I said. Jack laughed back, wrapping it up.

"I gotta go, but see you soon." Jack said. He hung up, and I waited for a second for Jack's text. I got it, programmed it into my phone, and looked at the directions. They lived just inside of town, and it wouldn't be hard to get there. Bumblebee decided that it was time to head back to the base as well, so he drove with me until I had to turn off. I found Jack's house easily, and pulled into their driveway. I parked my bike, walking up to their front door and knocking.

June answered the door, opening it wider to let me in. I walked inside, surprised at how much their house resembled mine on the inside. She motioned me to the bathroom, having me sit on the edge of the tub she got a pair of scissors and tweezers and knelt next to me, examining the now-healed wound on my ribs.

"I don't believe it, but I guess it's true. Somehow you're completely healed." June said, starting to cut the threads in the stitches. She picked up the tweezers, giving me a warning.

"This might sting a bit." June said. Most of the stitches came out easily, but a few were stuck that she had to yank out. I didn't make a sound, it really didn't hurt that bad, and June stood, helping me up.

"There you go." June said. I dipped my head in thanks.

"Thank you, I should be getting back to the base now, though." I said. June walked with me to the door, and I turned to her just before I left.

"I have a question, June. Did you know a Dr. Eve Westerly or Dr. Matt Westerly?" I asked. June thought a moment, then nodded.

"Yes, they worked in the emergency department with me. They were so dedicated to their work, but I heard they both died in a car accident a while ago." June said. I looked up at her sadly.

"My last name is Westerly." I said. June didn't make the connection at first, but then her face took on that 'sympathy' look.

"Oh my gosh, Sam, those were your parents? I'm so sorr-" June was saying before I interrupted.

"I know, what happened I suppose was meant to be somehow. I've already grieved for them, and though they were hardly ever home, I knew it was for a good reason. Besides, the Autobots are great to be around, well, at least Arcee, Bulkhead, and Bumblebee. Optimus just kind of keeps to himself and Ratchet's always grumpy." I said. June chuckled at this, waving at me as I walked out the door and started my bike. I backed out of her driveway onto the road before turning to head to the base.

Chapter 4

Summer vacation was in full swing, and I had company from the kids more often. Sometimes they'd spend the night, but most of the time they'd go home late at night, only to be back the next day. I had had a sleepless night for some reason, and early the next morning Bulkhead asked me a favor, yawning as he did so.

"Hey Sam, could you pick up Miko for me today? I'm beat." Bulkhead asked. I chuckled, already walking for my bike.

"Sure big guy. You have a long night too?" I asked. Bulkhead nodded.

"Yeah, I couldn't seem to power down for very long. Anyway, thanks, I'm sure Miko will like the change of pace." Bulkhead said. I pulled on my helmet and mounted my bike, speeding out of the base, I pulled back a bit when I got on the open road. It was actually a really nice morning, the sun wasn't up yet but it was light enough to see. I enjoyed the slight coolness in the air that would soon give way to the day's heat.

Something reached my ears over the sound of my bike and I looked up to see the helicopter from the other day slow and fly straight at me. I slammed on the brakes, my bike swerving sharply. I gained control, skidding out of the way as the copter circled around again. I gunned the engine on my bike, trying to get the hell out of there. I had no freaking idea why they were trying to run me off the road, but once again I lost my bike.

A cable shot out from the helicopter, puncturing the back tire and bringing my bike to an instant stop. I, however, did not, and flew over the handlebars. I ducked and rolled, coming up covered in sand and grit. I could have been seriously hurt, but thanks to my tough internal structure I was fine. Yanking off my helmet so I could see better, I backed away as cables dropped from the copter to the ground. Thinking fast, I snapped a picture of the helicopter and the men who were now coming at me. I sent a fast text to Raf, including the picture, then shoved my phone into my pocket.

About a dozen guys in black uniforms were closing towards me, holding guns. My fight or flight instinct kicked in, as well as my judo training. When the first guy lunged at me, I swiped his feet out from under him, snatching his gun as he fell. I bashed the butt of the gun in another's face, and caught a blow right under my chin from yet another. Flipping one soldier over my head, I sprinted in the opposite direction, not getting far before an electrical pulse hit me.

It seemed like everything caved in on itself, and I was already blacking out before I hit the ground. I felt my knees hit the dirt before it all went dark.

...

"Sir, it's just as we initially expected... She's entirely of the extraterrestrial's makeup, at least internally..." a strange voice cut through the darkness, followed by another.

"Remarkable, I want to know how she works though. Take her apart piece by piece if you have to." a darker voice said. I forced my eyes open quickly, trying to jerk away but finding my hands pinned beside my head and my feet cuffed as well. I struggled to break free, only earning myself a cut on the wrist from the sharp shackle. I tried not to pay attention to the fact that energon instead of blood was running down my arm. The noise attracted attention, and a man with short graying hair walked up to me, eyeing where I had just cut myself. He had a scar running down the bridge of his nose that continued over his cheek.

I had always had a flighty tendency, and now that I couldn't run or fight I felt like a trapped animal, terrified. I continued to jerk against the cuffs that held me, not even stopping when I could feel the shackles grating against the metal just under my skin. A soldier came up behind the man, giving me a cautious glance.

"Silas, sir, we are ready to begin." the soldier said to Silas. Silas nodded, leaning closer to me. I pulled away as much as I could.

"You are very special, aren't you girl? Almost just like one of the aliens, though you look just like a human, very clever of them..." Silas said.

"What are you talking about?" I spat. Silas half-grinned, but not in a happy way.

"Those non-biologicals are making their kind look like humans now, they've gone too far. I suppose they'll just have to pay with your life, and your contribution to MECH's science." Silas said. My eyes widened and I thrashed again.

"What?! You're crazy! I got impaled through the heart with an energon shard, that's why I'm like this! Leave the Autobots out of this you jerk!" I said. Silas kept that creepy grin on his face.

"A feisty one, aren't you? You remind me a lot of Arcee. Even so, I'm going to find out what exactly you are." Silas said. I had already rubbed my wrists raw, energon was smeared around my arms and hands and the metal under my skin was now exposed. Silas leaned back, and a soldier took his place. The soldier stabbed me with a sort of prod, and my whole body immediately went numb, though I was still conscious. I tried to struggle, but my body wouldn't obey me.

...

Raf sat, tapping on his laptop. Bumblebee had brought him here a while ago, and he was waiting for Miko and Jack, as well as Sam. Bulkhead told Raf that Miko and Sam should've been back any minute, but they continued to be late. Raf's phone rang, and he answered it to hear Miko.

"Yo, Raf, do you know what the big deal is? I'm still stuck at home, now what's wrong with that picture?" Miko asked, annoyed. Raf's phone made a small melody, announcing he'd gotten a text. He told Miko he'd call her back and hung up, checking the text.

The sender's ID labeled the message was from Sam, and he opened it quickly.

"In trouble- get help!" the short text said. Sam was crafty enough to take a picture, it was a helicopter with men starting to slide down ropes from inside. Raf wondered why soldiers would want to kidnap Sam, but when he enlarged the picture he saw why.

The symbol for MECH was stamped on the underside of the chopper. Instantly, Raf turned to Ratchet.

...

I jerked as I felt yet another set of hands touch me, and I pulled against the cuffs on my already rubbed raw wrists. Just under my skin was entirely metal, and it screeched loudly against the cuffs. I couldn't feel anything, at least pain wise, but I wanted out of there now.

"Why is it you keep struggling? There's no way to escape." Silas called from a platform. I glared, twitching as I felt pressure on my side. A MECH agent was basically dissecting me alive, and I knew I had to get out of there, fast. Acutely aware of everything around me, the soft spatter of my glowing blue energon dripping to the floor reached my ears.

...

"Bumblebee, you're with Ratchet and I." Optimus said as soon as he heard what had happened to Sam. He transformed, and Raf opened a ground bridge to an area outside of MECH's headquarters. Ratchet and Bumblebee followed him in vehicle mode, and Optimus drove through the bridge.

On the other side, Optimus transformed as the bridge closed behind he and his troops.

"Speed is of the essence, we do not know what they would want with Sam or what they have done with her already. Bumblebee, scout ahead, if it gets too dangerous I fear we may have to storm the base." Optimus said. Bumblebee nodded, emitting a high pitched sequence of beeps as he ran for the base.

...

My objective was working, though I had no idea what I'd do when I got free. Judging escapes while the agent dug further into my side, I locked my gaze on the tunnel that I was pretty sure ran all the way out of the base. Not obviously, rather subtlety, I glanced around.

There was the agent busy taking me apart, a few soldiers that were unarmed on the platform, and Silas, though none were blocking my escape route. I took a breath, closing my eyes and sliding my hands downward. With most of my skin torn from my wrists and energon slicking my hands, I slid my hands out of the cuffs almost imperceptibly.

In a movement like a cobra's strike, I slammed the side of my hand into the agent's neck, making him black out instantly. I broke the cuffs around my feet, leaping up and sprinting like a cheetah into the tunnel. I heard commotion behind me, but I was too busy trying to run and hold a hand to my incised side. The feeling was starting to return to my body, and now my wrists and side were starting to burn. Turning a corner sharply, I ran smack into something with a metallic crash as I stumbled back.

Looking up, I was insanely relieved. Bumblebee gave me a surprised look, then made a low noise.

"Bumblebee, we need to get out of here, like now!" I said. He pointed at my side and wrists, making a higher pitched whirr.

"I'll tell you later, now let's go!" I said, starting to run. Bumblebee transformed, driving slowly next to me and opening the passenger door. I jumped in without complaint, and he tore off, swerving to a stop in front of Optimus and Ratchet, who must have come along. I got out of Bumblebee's vehicle mode, a hand still pressed to my side.

"Sam, are you alright?" Optimus asked. I felt a bit bad for being sarcastic, but retorted anyway.

"Oh yeah, I'm fine. I just kind of got dissected by MECH back there." I said. Optimus glanced up at the headquarters, where soldiers were just starting to appear out of the tunnel.

"Raf, bridge us back to base, we retrieved Sam." Optimus said into his commlink. A swirling green ground bridge opened up and I sprinted through it with the rest of the Autobots. It shut behind us, allowing no one else entry into the base. I slowed to a stop, still shaking from the ordeal. Jack and Miko weren't there, and I felt bad for not picking up Miko that day. Raf, on the other hand, widened his eyes when he saw me.

"Oh my gosh, Sam are you okay?" Raf asked.

"Yeah, I think I'll be alright. The deal with me first getting hurt must have been a one time deal though, otherwise I think my wrists would have healed by now." I said, holding out my arm that wasn't clamped against my side. Ratchet frowned, kneeling down to me.

"I should really see if I can repair you, Samantha." Ratchet said. I hated whenever someone called me by my full name and I inwardly sighed.

"Please call me Sam... and fine, because this doesn't exactly feel nice." I said, glancing down at where the stupid MECH agent had slit my side. Ratchet had me sit on one of the tables in the med-bay and gathered a few things.

I had to say, for a giant robot he did have a light touch. He bandaged my wrist that wasn't still pressed to my side before motioning for the other one. Reluctantly, I released the pressure I'd had on my side and held my wrist out. I felt energon trickle down my side, and Ratchet quickly dressed my wrist before turning his attention to the deeper wound. I explained as he felt carefully around the incision.

"MECH was trying to dissect me like a biology experiment, the guy cutting into me got fairly far before I could slip out." I said.

"It appears as though they were performing an exploratory operation, you're right in the fact that they got a good ways into your circuitry. It won't be hard to repair, but I can warn it won't be pleasant." Ratchet said. I sighed.

"Don't worry about me, I'm a tough girl." I said, trying to lighten the mood with a small smile. Ratchet looked at me doubtfully, examining my side closer as I pulled my arm forward out of the way. I saw his optics widen and he leaned back a moment.

"By the All Spark, you've developed a T-cog as well..." Ratchet said. I gave him a confused look, and he explained as he turned his hand into a laser/torch thing.

"A T-cog is the organ that allows us to scan vehicles and transform, as well as use our weapons and upgrades." Ratchet said. He started sealing the incision on my side closed, and I grimaced but didn't flinch.

"So I can transform?" I asked. Ratchet didn't look up, but continued repairing me.

"I assume so, internally, you are one of us. Aside from your human skin, you are entirely Cybertronian." Ratchet glanced up. "Have you noticed your eyes recently? They have the same hue as our optics as well." he said. I was weirded out and amazed at the same time.

"Cool. I guess I really am one of you now." Ratchet closed up the slit in my side and laid a bandage over it. I slid from the table and landed solidly on my feet. I thanked Ratchet, and he simply nodded as he cleaned up his lab.

I walked back into the main hangar, Raf was tapping something in on his laptop, Arcee was gone, as well as Bulkhead, but Bumblebee and Optimus were still there. All three of them turned when I walked in, and Optimus looked relieved.

"It appears Ratchet has successfully repaired you." Optimus said. I nodded, glancing at my wrists and then down at my side.

"Yeah, I wasn't hurt too badly, just surface wounds." I said. Bumblebee beeped and droned something, which Raf quickly translated.

"Bumblebee asked if you're okay." Raf said. I nodded.

"Yeah I'm fine, like I said-" I was saying as Bumblebee made a different pitched set of whirrs and beeps.

"Bumblebee said that he meant when you ran into his foot." Raf said, looking at me questioningly. I didn't remember that, but then it came back and I gave a small laugh.

"Yeah I'm okay. I don't think I've ever been so relived to smash my face into something metal." I said. Raf smirked, and I had a feeling Bumblebee would be smiling as well. Optimus turned and left, leaving Bumblebee, Raf, and I alone. My side didn't actually hurt that much, but for some reason the oddly fast rate of healing I'd had when I'd been impaled wasn't happening now.

I was itching to see if I could transform, but decided to wait. I trotted up the steps to where Raf was sitting and he kept working on something. I walked up and stood behind him, trying to figure out what he was working on.

"What are you doing there?" I said. I couldn't make heads or tails of the symbols on the screen, and Raf didn't look up as he spoke.

"Trying to decode the Iacon data file that we got from the Decepticon warship recently. Optimus showed me how; it just takes a long time." Raf said. I was confused, and Raf eventually shut his laptop, sighing.

"Okay, two things, how can you read and decode Cybertronian, and how does Optimus know how to decode it in the first place?" I asked. Raf shrugged at the first part of my question, then went on a long back story of before Optimus was made a Prime. I actually found myself drawn in, the fact that Optimus wasn't always the strong leader he is now was almost unbelievable.

"Wow..." I said. I tilted my head, smiling slightly as I asked Raf something.

"Hey Raf, you ever ridden on a motorcycle?" I asked. He shook his head.

"Wanna go for a drive?" I asked. Raf considered, then nodded.

"Sure." he said. Raf called to Bumblebee, "Hey Bee, we're going for a drive, wanna come?" Bumblebee made a high pitched beep before transforming into his vehicle mode. I laughed.

"I guess that's a yes." I said. Raf set his laptop on the couch before following me down to where I had parked my bike. I only had one helmet, so I gave it to Raf and put my hair up in a ponytail so it wouldn't fly into my face.

I mounted my bike, pulling Raf up behind me and adjusting the helmet on his head because it was a little big. Bumblebee revved his engine, waiting to go.

"Hold on tight and whatever you do, don't fall off. Believe me, it doesn't feel good to hit the ground when you were going ninety miles an hour." I said. Raf gave me a thumbs up, and I started my speed bike. I decided I wasn't going to go flat out since Raf had never ridden before, but I still was going pretty fast as I left the base. Raf had his small arms around my waist, and Bumblebee was following a few car lengths behind us.

Turning onto the road that would lead to the town, I accelerated, making my bike go as fast as it could without the turbo and nitrous. I slowed after a few seconds, looking behind me, I called over the wind.

"Having fun back there?" I asked. The visor on my helmet was blacked out, so I couldn't see his face, but I saw him nod. Smiling, I kept on towards the town. Raf leaned out from behind me, shouting over the wind but muffled because of my helmet.

"Is that Bulkhead?" he asked. I saw a glint about a mile in front of us, and squinting, I saw it was a large green truck. I was assured it was Bulkhead when a certain fourteen year old stuck her head out of the window and waved. I pulled to a stop, Bumblebee doing the same, and Bulkhead met up with us.

Miko talked to us from the window, glancing at my bandaged wrists and side.

"What are you guys doing?" she asked.

"Recovering from a bad day. We'll have story time later if you want." I said, grinning. I leaned around, flipping the visor up on my helmet that Raf was wearing.

"Should we go back now?" I asked him. Raf shrugged, but Miko answered for him.

"Of course we should! I want to hear all about it! Besides, hanging around with a chick who's actually a bot is totally awesome! Let's go, Bulk." Miko said, clicking her seatbelt back on as Bulkhead drove off. I gave a sort of WTH glance at Raf.

"Why does she always have to be like that?" I asked. Raf gave a good natured shrug, and I jokingly flipped the visor back down on the helmet.

"Come on boy genius, we better be getting back." I said, revving my bike and spinning around to go back to the base. I took off at an easy pace at first, then yelled over at Bumblebee.

"Hey Bee, race you back to the base!" I called. Bumblebee droned a single tone before hitting the gas.

"Cheater!" I yelled, opening my bike up to full throttle. I craned around briefly to Raf.

"Whatever you do, don't let go!" I called.

"Wasn't planning on it!" Raf said. I caught up quickly with Bumblebee, though he was actually giving my bike a run for it's money. Nearing the base with him about a car length ahead of me, I flicked on the turbo and barely beat him as I shot into the tunnel for the base. I pulled to a stop, and Raf slid off my bike, handing me my helmet. I put it on one of my handlebars and climbed off.

Bumblebee pulled in behind us, and I walked over to him curiously.

"You're really fast, Bee. Could you do me a favor?" I asked. Bumblebee whirred and I spoke again.

"Pop the hood real quick?" I asked. Bumblebee complied, the latch clicking open and I lifted the hood of his car mode. I saw the reason why he was able to almost beat me and gave a low whistle.

"Wow, you've got a V-8, double-carb, small block." I looked over the motor and shook my head in awe before glancing up at Bee. "I'd guess around 360 horsepower or more. Where the heck did you find a car like this to scan?" I asked. Bumblebee transformed and shrugged, going off in a series of beeps and whirrs. Raf translated for me.

"Bee said he can't remember, but he said thanks for the compliment." Raf said. Miko appeared out of nowhere, tapping on my shoulder and scaring the crap out of me. I jumped when she touched me, and she laughed.

"Ha ha, scaredy bot! Come on, I wanna hear what happened!" Miko said, grabbing my arm and dragging me up to the platform. She plunked me on the couch and sat in front of me, her chin in her hands.

"Tell me everything that happened to you today." Miko said. I gave her a look, glancing down at the tunnel into the base when I heard an engine. Arcee pulled in with Jack, who dismounted before Arcee transformed. Miko waved Jack up, and he did, giving me a concerned look when he saw I was bandaged up.

"Long story..." I said.

"Which you're going to tell right now." Miko said. I sighed, and started telling the chain of events that had led to me ending up back at the base. Arcee and Bulkhead were listening as well, they hadn't known I was kidnapped. The two Autobots seemed appalled by the end of my description, and Arcee got Optimus' attention.

"Optimus, we can't let MECH do this. Look at them, they kidnapped Sam, she's Jack's age, and she could've been killed by them. We..." Arcee was saying. Optimus turned, interrupting her.

"I understand, Arcee, but we cannot risk attacking their facility. We shall have to be on our guard. Though, it seems our newest friend is quite resilient. You heard her, she managed to escape on her own; Bumblebee just aided her in getting away." Optimus said. Arcee sighed, walking off, and Miko got up from where she'd been sitting.

"Well, it sounds like you've had a long day. Do you want to take a nap or something?" Miko said. I looked at her funny then shook my head.

"I'm fine..." I said. Miko glanced at my bandaged wounds and stepped closer to me.

"Cool, look." she said, pointing at me. I glanced at my wrists to see that the bandage had soaked through and glowing blue energon was staining them. I rolled my eyes, which according to Ratchet were blue now.

"Yes, I bleed energon now, we've established this already." I said.

"Does it hurt?" Jack asked from behind me. I turned.

"Not really, kind of like when you get an Indian burn, but it doesn't hurt much." I said.

...

Later that night, Jack and Raf decided to go home, but Miko wanted to stay the night, so she stayed behind. I was ready to turn in, but Miko was bouncing off the walls, almost literally. Bulkhead got her to calm down somewhat by having her play her guitar, though the bust-your-ears loud music I wasn't into.

After Miko got tired, I curiously went over and picked up her guitar. Remember how I had a lot of free time? I adjusted her amp and strummed once to make sure it was where I wanted it before I started playing.

I was actually really good at guitar, and I played the intro to Linkin Park's 'New Divide' before Miko stopped me.

"You can play? Awesome!" Miko said.

I set her guitar down, yawning as I flopped onto the couch.

"Yeah, I can do piano too. Anyway, I'm bushed, stay up if you want but I'm going to sleep." I said. I rolled over, falling asleep almost immediately.

Chapter 5

I woke the next morning to the sound of voices, and I cracked open an eye to find I was on the floor, not the couch. I heard who I thought was Miko go running down the stairs, calling for Ratchet and I sat up.

Shaking off sleep, I did a double-take when I saw why Miko was freaking out. For one, the floor was a lot farther away than I remember. Another thing, I was entirely made of metal. The curves and plating vaguely suggested the clothes I'd been wearing, but I was entirely a steel gray color. My wrists looked okay now, but I felt along my side and found the raised seam where Ratchet had welded it back together.

"Whoa..." I muttered. I went carefully down the stairs, able to take about six at a time now. I judged I was a bit shorter than Arcee, but pretty dang close. I tried to gain a sense of equilibrium; I wasn't used to being nearly eighteen feet tall. Miko came running back, Ratchet following.

"Miko, what is so important that you can't...oh..." Ratchet said as he came in and saw me. I gave him a sheepish look.

"Uh...do you have any idea why I look like this now?" I said. Ratchet shook his head, optics wide, and motioned me over. I walked carefully, not enjoying how I couldn't be quiet now that I weighed half a ton. Ratchet scanned me, and looked at the results.

"It appears that your Spark is functioning optimally, what happened to you must have been a finalization of your becoming Cybertronian." he said. I glanced down at myself, wondering why I was colorless and generic-looking.

"Why don't I look like you, I mean, I don't have color or features or anything?" I asked. Ratchet gave a faint smile at this.

"That I can answer. You don't have a vehicle mode yet, all Cybertronians look somewhat like you before we scan an alternate mode. And by the way, you do have features; your face resembles what it was when you were human." Ratchet said. I shifted my weight uneasily.

"So how exactly do I scan a vehicle mode?" I asked.

"When you find one you like, it should happen automatically. As for transforming, I find it a bit hard to explain. I suppose it comes naturally after you scan a vehicle." Ratchet said.

"Would my bike work? You know, as a reference?" I asked. Ratchet nodded. Curiously, I walked over to where I'd parked my bike. Instantly, a 3-D image of it appeared in front of my vision and a green scanner flashed down my bike's frame, transferring data to my new systems. I watched as black paneling appeared and shifted onto my frame, details grafted on quickly.

After things stopped shifting and latched into place, I took a good look at myself. Because my bike was jet black, so was I, and the lime-green pinstripe that had been on my bike now ran up both of my arms. Actually, I looked a lot like Arcee, which wasn't hard to imagine because our vehicle modes were the same.

Ratchet walked up, nodding.

"Just as I said. You should have the same weapons as well, see if you do, then I'd say you could go for a drive. Take someone with you though, you aren't used to your vehicle mode yet and someone to give you pointers would be helpful." Ratchet said. I was surprised that equipping my weapons was almost as natural as walking, and first equipped my blasters before switching to the sort of arm blades that Arcee used.

"Cool. Wait, I should have a hologram too, right? A motorcycle driving itself isn't exactly 'robots in disguise.'" I said. Ratchet gestured.

"See for yourself." he said. I stood, a bit unsure of what to do, then figured out how to transform. I activated my hologram, which looked like Arcee's, and drove in a slow circle.

"Wow... this is so amazing!" I exclaimed. Miko looked at me somewhat jealously.

"No fair! I wish I could do that..." Miko said, crossing her arms. I deactivated the hologram and drove up to her.

"How 'bout a ride?" I asked. Miko looked begrudgingly at me, then dropped her arms and climbed on.

"Fine, but don't baby me." Miko said. I laughed, pulling beside my old bike and stopping.

"You still have to wear a helmet." I said. Miko leaned down and picked it up from the floor, putting it on. It's a bit hard to describe being a motorcycle, it wasn't like I just turned into a bike, I was like a bike with sentient feelings and control of its systems. I started to pull out, calling to see if Bumblebee wanted to come with me and give me some tips. I was surprised at something else; I could understand him now. What I heard sounded like English, but with a sort of electronic tinge to it.

"Sure, whatever you need, Sam." Bumblebee said. I would have gaped had I been in robot mode, and drove over to him after he transformed into a Camaro.

"Holy crap...I can actually understand you. Say something else." I said. Bumblebee pulled around me slightly, heading for the door.

"Like what?" he said. I laughed, following him out.

...

Bee gave me pointers while we were driving, though I found it easier than I thought. All the same techniques I had used when controlling my bike before were the same, though now I was my bike. Even more awesome, I had the turbo engine and nitrous that my bike had had as well. I went flat out as fast as I could with the turbo and nitro once, just so Miko could see how it felt.

I could hear her laughing insanely over the wind and I laughed too, going back to the base. Bee drove next to me, asking me questions and chatting as we went.

"You don't know how good it feels to have someone else that can understand me. It gets a bit frustrating when I can tell someone something as clear as day, but they won't get it because my voice box was torn out." Bumblebee said. I felt sympathetic.

"I know what you mean, but at least Raf and I can understand you, as well as the rest of the team." I said. Bumblebee was silent for a moment, then spoke up again.

"Did it hurt?" Bee asked. I would have given him a look, had I possessed a face at the moment. Miko interrupted before I could reply.

"Dude, I feel left out, what is he saying?" Miko said. I ignored her for a minute.

"Did what hurt, Bee?" I said.

"When you first got turned, you know, when the energon shard got stuck in your chest." Bee said. I didn't want to lie to him, so I didn't.

"Yeah, a lot actually." I said. Miko kicked me impatiently, and I replied to her quickly. "It's nothing important." I said. Bee got my attention, though he sounded somewhat down.

"I...I was the one that blew up that crystal...It's my fault you're like this..." Bumblebee said. I pulled closer to him.

"Hey, it's not your fault. Besides, this is the coolest thing that could ever have happened to me, if anything I should thank you." I said. Bee was quiet, then said one more thing as we pulled back into the base.

"Thanks for that... You know, I could give you some combat training if Optimus says so." Bumblebee said. I pulled in, nearly dumping Miko onto the floor, and she got off me quickly, pulling off the helmet and just tossing it towards my old bike before leaving. I transformed and glanced after her, turning my gaze back to Bee when he transformed.

"That sounds cool. When do you want to start?" I asked. Bee shrugged.

"How about now?" Bumblebee said.

"Sure, where's Optim-" I was saying right as Optimus walked in, Arcee trailing him. Bumblebee turned and I put a hand on my hip, half-conscious of the metal on metal noise it made.

"Optimus, would it be okay for me to give Sam combat training?" Bumblebee asked. Optimus nodded.

"Very well, go easy on Sam for a while, she's new to being one of us." Optimus said. Bumblebee motioned me to follow him, and I hurried to catch up, stopping a moment in front of Arcee. We looked at each other for a moment before we both cracked a smile.

"Is it just me, or am I seeing double?" I joked. Arcee grinned, talking over her shoulder as she walked away.

"Just know I could still kick your tailpipe in a fight, speed isn't everything." Arcee joked. I caught up with Bumblebee, following him into a large empty room.

"This is where we train, do target practice, whatever. Okay, show me what you've got; come at me." Bee said, making a 'bring it on' gesture. I hesitated a moment before advancing. Bumblebee wasn't the tallest of bots, but he was still bigger than me. When I got close, he launched a punch at my head, which I quickly and instinctively dodged. My judo training kicked in, and I circled him, waiting for him to give me an opening.

Bumblebee lunged at me, and I leapt out of the way, hitting him across the back of his knees before swiping his feet out from under him. He hit the floor with a crash, and I stood over him with a hand on my hip.

"Like that?" I asked, holding out my hand to help him up. He looked at me somewhat shocked.

"Where did you learn to fight like that?" Bee asked. I shrugged.

"I'm a black belt in Judo. I didn't hurt you, did I?" I asked. Bumblebee shook his head, taking my hand and I hauled him to his feet.

"Okay...you seem to have the fighting part down. Are you a good shot?" Bumblebee asked. I shrugged again.

"I'm good at archery, but I don't know about blasters." I said, equipping one of my blasters and looking at it. Bee turned me to face a solid metal portion of the wall. There was a target that had been painted on it, though there were scorch marks and dents riddling the area around it and on it.

"Just see if you can hit the target." Bee said, stepping back. I raised my weapon, trying to attribute the mechanics of it to archery, aimed, and fired at the wall. I had missed completely, but my shot was exactly where I'd aimed. Obviously, these shots were much more powerful than an arrow, I wouldn't have to aim above where I wanted to hit it.

"I think I've got it, let me try again." I said. Bee nodded, gesturing to the target. I aimed again and fired, this time hitting the bull's-eye dead on. I grinned, turning to Bee.

"Wow...Uh, I think you've got this stuff down. We should go tell Optimus, maybe next time there's a fight he'll let you come." Bumblebee said. I smiled, following him out of the training room. We walked down the dim halls, our footfalls seeming loud in the still space. I nonchalantly commented as we made our way back to the main hangar.

"This place seems so much bigger on the inside..." I said. Bumblebee glanced around, nodded once, and we walked back into the main hangar. I went over to the platform; Jack and Raf had arrived while Bee and I had been in the training room. Both of them looked up at the sound of my approach and they did a double-take.

"Arcee?" Jack asked. I smirked.

"Guess again." I said. Jack looked confused, then his jaw dropped.

"Sam?! Wow, you uh, look different. B-but I like it...uh...what happened, exactly?" Jack stuttered. I laughed, I may have looked like Arcee but I had opposite of her personality. Where she was solemn and unsmiling, I was a happy and joking character. I answered Jack.

"No idea, I woke up like this. I scanned my bike as a vehicle mode, that's why I look so much like Arcee. I gotta say though, once you go black, you never go back." I joked. Jack smirked at my pun.

"Ha. Really though, you do look good in black, I think it's your color." Jack said. Raf and Miko snickered, and I rolled my optics.

...

"Prime! We've got a situation!" a man said when he appeared on the screen in the main hangar. I now knew his name to be William Fowler, he was a military agent that basically got assigned to babysit the Autobots. Optimus and Arcee were gone on a patrol, but Ratchet answered.

"Optimus isn't here, what is the problem, Agent Fowler?" Ratchet asked. I walked up behind Ratchet, and Agent Fowler gave me a look.

"When did Arcee get a makeover?" he asked. I facepalmed myself, letting Ratchet answer for me.

"That is not Arcee. Her name is Sam, she's the one who was turned into an Autobot after she was injured badly a while ago." Ratchet said. Fowler looked at me a moment, then shook his head.

"Okay, whatever. The 'Cons sent their medic and Dreadwing to ransack a military base, at the moment they're winning, so I suggest you get over there now and stop 'em!" Agent Fowler said. Ratchet nodded, and Fowler disappeared from the screen.

"Wait, so who's butt do we need to kick?" I said. Ratchet gave me a 'huh?' glance, then shook it off, ordering the remaining bots as well as me.

"Knockout and Dreadwing are attacking a military base. Sam, go with Bulkhead and Bumblebee, help as much as you can, just be careful." Ratchet said. I nodded, transforming and racing after Bulkhead and Bee as they went through a ground bridge that Ratchet opened.

We burst onto the scene to encounter heavy gunfire and fleeing soldiers, and I transformed back after Bulk and Bumblebee did. I shadowed Bee as he charged for Knockout, arming my blades as I did so. Bee landed a solid punch on Knockout before I hit him in the back of the knee and flipped him over my head. He hit the ground hard, but didn't lose his grip on the weapon he'd been holding. A sort of spear was clutched in his hand, and he glared as he regained his feet.

Bumblebee and I stood side by side, ready to fight. I glanced up at a loud crash to see Bulkhead and Breakdown clashing. I thought he could handle himself, so I stayed with Bee.

"Well well, I like the new paint job Arcee." Knockout said. I smirked.

"I'm not Arcee." I said. Knockout looked confused, then realization spread on his face.

"That voice...oh, you're that human I ran off the road a while ago. Erg, I knew I should have just killed you then, look at the annoyance I've left myself." Knockout sneered. Jeez, he had the alternate mode of a street car, and boy did he have the attitude of a racer. My grin dropped, and I switched to a glare.

"Enough talk." I said. I ran at him, dodging a blow and slicing my blade up his chest. He stumbled back, looking in disgust at the scratch in his armor. He looked up, angry, and glared.

"You scratch my paint, I scratch yours." Knockout said, raising the spear he was holding. The thing started to spark with electricity, and he ran at me, spinning his weapon in his hand. I was just about to dodge out of the way when Bee jumped in front of me. Knockout instantly rammed the butt of the spear into Bee's chest and electrocuted him. Bumblebee stiffened and dropped to the ground, his optics flickering.

"Bee!" I cried, distracted. Knockout caught me right under the chin and I staggered from the blow. Moving like lightening, I kicked the spear out of his hand, though he caught my foot after he dropped his weapon. Knockout slammed me to the ground, and I hissed in pain before he planted a foot on my chest and pinned me to the dirt. He turned his hand into a saw, lowering it for my throat.

"It appears your time as an Autobot will be short-lived." Knockout said. I tried to keep his hand from my neck, but he was stronger. I had just felt the saw dig into my neck when Knockout's weight was suddenly removed from my body, accompanied with a loud crash. I looked up to see Bulkhead standing over me. He had broken away from Dreadwing and knocked the 'Con's medic off of me.

I got up quickly, voicing my thanks, and faced Knockout again as Bulkhead clashed with Dreadwing. Knockout glared, now having a sizeable dent in his shiny red armor. I decided just to drop him as fast as I could and see if Bumblebee was alright. I equipped my blasters in place of my blades and fired repeatedly, scoring a few hits but getting the reaction that I wanted, confusion.

I ran up, swiped Knockout's feet out from under him, and brought my heel down against his temple, hard. I thought he'd be down for a while, and went to check on Bee. He had just started to sit up when I reached him, and he rubbed a hand against his head.

"You okay? That thing looks pretty potent." I said. Bee nodded, not looking up a the moment.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Nice job with Knockou- Sam! Watch out!" Bumblebee broke off, desperately pointing behind me. I didn't even have time to turn as something jabbed into my back and gave me the nastiest shock I've ever felt. My legs gave out almost instantly, but Knockout didn't let up. He forced me to the ground, pushing the spear further and continually shocking me.

Bee blasted him away, and I must have blacked out for a little while because when I woke up, Knockout and Dreadwing were gone. I groaned, I had a throbbing headache, and I sat up slowly. The first one I saw was Bee, who was looking at me concernedly.

"Are you okay? Come on, let's get you back to the base." Bee said, helping me up. I put a hand to my head, looking around.

"Where's Knockout and Dreadwing?" I said as the three of us walked to the ground bridge that had just opened up.

"Ah, don't worry about those two rust buckets. They got called back right after Knockout decided to zap you." Bulkhead said. I nodded, and Bee helped me walk back to the ground bridge. I glanced at Bumblebee.

"Are you sure you're okay? Knockout shocked you too." I asked. Bee nodded.

"Yeah, I'm alright. Unlike you, he didn't pin me down and try to fry my circuits." Bee said. I leaned on him as I stumbled through the ground bridge, Bulkhead behind us. I felt the odd sensation of being transported and then we were walking into the main hangar of the base. Ratchet frowned when he saw me, and he hurried over.

"You're injured, what happened? Primus, I knew I should have made you stay here, you aren't ready for a combat situation..." Ratchet muttered. Bulkhead spoke up for me.

"Uh, Ratch? Sam was kicking some serious tailpipe, even after Bumblebee went down. Knockout got the drop on her, otherwise she'd have been fine." Bulkhead said.

"Yeah, what Bulk said. Knockout had that stupid energy spear, he got me with it and then Sam went into overdrive and knocked him off his feet. Knockout came up behind her though and got her with the spear, he pinned her down and wouldn't let up with the jolt." Bumblebee added. Ratchet looked me over concernedly.

"How long did he shock you?" Ratchet said. I shrugged, pushing away from Bumblebee and standing the best I could on my own.

"I don't know, ten seconds maybe?" I said. Ratchet scanned me quickly, the beam going from blue to red in a few places. Ratchet sighed, relieved.

"Some of your circuits are damaged, but you'll be able to recover on your own." Ratchet said. I dipped my head, walking carefully to the platform where the kids were hanging out. Miko perked up when she saw me, going to the railing and pulling out her phone before flipping it open.

"You mind if I get a picture?" she asked. I shook my head.

"I don't care, go ahead. You want me to smile?" I asked. Miko shrugged.

"Whatever you want." Miko said. I did a small pose, just putting most of my weight on one leg and placing a hand on my hip. I gave a small grin as Miko said, "Say Autobot!" and she snapped a picture. She looked at the screen, satisfied. "That's a keeper." Miko said.

...

About a week later, the damage done by Knockout was completely healed, and Bulkhead, Bee, and I were relaxing in the base while the kids were busy and Optimus had taken Ratchet out on patrol; Arcee was keeping an eye on Jack while he was at work. I was sitting on the ground, my arm resting across one of my knees as I listened to Bulkhead and Bee's war stories about being back on Cybertron. Bee especially was a good storyteller, the detail and vivid pictures he could create in my mind was astounding. I found myself with almost the same emotions as Bumblebee when he told me that Megatron had ripped out his voice box after Bee refused to give any intel.

Most of Bulkhead's tales were of him being a Wrecker, but I still enjoyed it. He enthusiastically went on about some Autobot I'd never heard of.

"Oh, Sam, you have got to meet Wheeljack one of these days. He may not be the easiest to get along with, but he's a close friend of mine." Bulk said. I shrugged.

"Sure, I'm up for anything." I said. Coincidently, at that exact moment the lights in the hangar dimmed and flickered before going back on reserve power.

"Except maybe that." I said, getting to my feet. I looked around. "What just happened?" I asked. The two bots in front of me shrugged.

"I dunno, we should go check it out. It looks like the main power grid is glitching or something." Bulkhead said. I nodded, following Bulk as he started down the hall. After about a minute, Bulkhead made a noise I never thought could come out of him and he jumped behind me. I gave him a WTF face, he had screamed like a six year old girl.

"Uh, why did you just scream like a little girl?" I asked. Bulkhead pointed past me, terrified at something, and I followed his finger to see a tiny, sort of cute mechanical creature skittering around on the ground. Its large head that was taken up mostly by its huge blue optics only added to its harmless appearance. I turned around to look at Bulkhead before looking back at the creature.

"Why exactly are you scared of the tiny, harmless little thing?" I said. Bulkhead shook his head, backing away and motioning me to do the same.

"Aw scrap, I thought we got rid of these things before, one of them must have gotten left behind." Bulkhead said, explaining. "That's a scraplet, they eat anything metal, but their favorite is Cybertronians. And wherever there's one scraplet, there's a whole bunch more..." Bulkhead said. I still didn't see how it was so terrifying, and I stepped towards the scraplet even as Bulkhead called me back. The cute thing looked at me, its blue optics wide, before its head seemed to come unhinged and an impossibly huge mouth opened, filled with large sharp teeth.

The scraplet ran at me faster than I thought it could, leaping, it fastened onto my arm and started gnawing on it before I could swat it away and stomp the life out of it. I examined the shallow wound on my forearm before looking back at Bulkhead.

"Okay, I believe you now, let's just bridge out of here or something. What did you do the last time this happened?" I asked. Bulkhead hurried back to the main hangar, me running to keep up.

"I lured them through the ground bridge and we sent them to the arctic, a scraplet's one weakness is that they can't handle when it gets too cold." Bulkhead said.

"That sounds easy enough, we just need to get their attention and send 'em through. Come on, let's go open that bridge." I said. I jogged to the controls for the ground bridge and programmed the coordinates, but for some reason the bridge wouldn't open when I pulled down the lever.

"Oh scrap. It looks like they must have chewed through the power lines to the ground bridge, we need to call Ratchet and the kids." Bumblebee said.

"Why the kids...? Oh, they're not made of metal, duh." I said, answering my own question. Bumblebee nodded, calling Raf and explaining. I heard Raf say he'd get the others and be there fast. Bumblebee hung up and turned to Bulk and I. I asked,

"So, do we get out of here or not?" Bumblebee shook his head.

"No, we just have to stick it out until the kids get here, we can't risk any of the scraplets getting outside, they'd wreak havoc on any town they came to." Bumblebee said. Bulkhead whined in fear, and I gave him a look.

"I never thought such a big, bad, bot could be scared, huh Bulkhead?" I said. Bulkhead still looked at me fearfully.

"You would be too if you've dealt with them before. I've seen these things eat a bot alive, there's nothing left when they're done, not even your optics." Bulkhead said. I made a grossed-out face.

"Ew. And for the record, one of those buggers did come at me, you saw it." I said, holding up my arm and showing the shallow wound that was mostly paint damage. Bumblebee put a hand to his ear when someone called again, and I could hear Raf talking.

"Optimus and Ratchet picked up Miko and I, we'll be there shortly. Hang on just a bit longer you guys." Raf said before hanging up. I was relieved that they were already en route, but this was dashed when Bulkhead screamed like a little girl again.

"Scraplets!" he yelled, pointing up at a vent. Dozens, maybe hundreds, of scraplets were crawling out of the vent and over the walls. Bumblebee and Bulkhead armed their weapons, and I did the same, equipping my blasters. We would never be able to kill them all, but we had to try if we wanted to stay alive. We started picking them off, but soon all of them reverted to their almost demonic form and started flying through the air at us.

Fear wasn't strong enough of a word to describe what the three of us felt. It was like I was in a giant cloud of aggressive mosquitoes, though these mosquitoes chewed right through my armor trying to eat me instead of sucking blood. They were also almost as impossible to kill. I could blast one, but five more came to take its place. It wasn't long before we were all being eaten alive, and our energon dripped from our multiplying wounds to pool on the floor. Bumblebee was the first one to go down, and I briefly cleared myself of scraplets to go to his aid. I equipped my blades, stabbing and slashing every blasted scraplet off of him.

They retaliated, and I heard a thud as Bulkhead went down as well. I could only think of saving my friends, I didn't even notice the hoard of scraplets that were attacking me as well. I cleared off Bulkhead briefly, trying to swipe the scraplets off of myself before stumbling back to Bumblebee. I gave a final effort, equipping my blasters again and killing every scraplet attached to me before going on a shooting spree. I didn't miss a single scraplet, nor did I kill them all, but after a short while they started to retreat, pulling back into the vent. The pests that had reattached themselves to me released me and crawled back into the vent.

I de-equipped my blasters, stumbling from energon loss and sprawling forward, landing halfway against Bumblebee on my side. The last thing I saw before I blacked out was his optics remaining dark.

...

"Sam? Bumblebee?" I heard dimly. I willed my optics to come on and groaned, trying to sit up. My entire body ached and burned, and I could see why. Bumblebee and I were lying in a puddle of where our energon had leaked and mixed on the ground. I grimaced and sat up, noting it was Raf that had woken us all up. Bulkhead was on the ground but awake, and I turned around when Bumblebee groaned to see him sit up as well.

"You guys look awful, but don't worry; Miko and I fixed the ground bridge. We can send the scraplets to the Arctic and then Ratchet can fix you guys. Are you guys okay?" Raf asked. Bulkhead spoke up.

"Yeah, we're a little chewed up, but we'd have been a lot worse if it wasn't for Sam. I've never seen anything like it, she wouldn't go down, and she just blasted about a hundred scraplets before they left. She was more concerned about us than herself, she didn't even try to get those pests off of her after Bumblebee and I went down." Bulkhead said. I looked at the floor in modesty.

"I was just going with my instincts." I said. Bumblebee nudged me, and I winced in pain.

"Sorry. And don't be modest, if it wasn't for you we'd all be dead. Even so, I think you're the one that was injured the worst." Bumblebee said. Raf nodded.

"Bee's right, you do look pretty bad. We need to hurry up and get the scraplets out of here so Ratchet can come in." Raf said. Miko stepped up from behind Bulkhead.

"About that, there's some bad news." Miko said. "One of you guys is going to have to be bait, the scraplets just won't fly into the Arctic by themselves."

Bumblebee shifted, getting shakily to his feet.

"I'll do it." Bee said. Raf looked at him concernedly.

"Are you sure, Bee?" he asked. Bumblebee nodded, walking near the ground bridge. Raf went and programmed the coordinates before opening the bridge.

"The scraplets should be attracted by the energy from the ground bridge, once they see you, hurry and lead them through before they latch onto you." Raf said. Seemingly right on queue, scraplets started pouring into the main hangar. Bulkhead and I got down low, and Bumblebee waved, getting the small parasites' attention. They turned evil instantly, heading for him. Bee turned, limping through the ground bridge as hundreds of scraplets blindly followed him. About a minute after the last one disappeared, Bumblebee came back and the ground bridge closed behind him. He tripped and went to his knees, but we were all relieved.

Raf called Ratchet and Optimus in from his phone, which was a good thing because we were all leaking energon like a broken faucet. Ratchet took in the scene as soon as he walked in, and his brow furrowed as he went into 'medic' mode.

"Which one of you is hurt the worst?" he asked. Bumblebee and Bulkhead both pointed at me, and I sighed. Ratchet knelt by me, examining my wounds, before standing and helping me up. I grimaced, limping heavily to the med-bay and sitting on the table Ratchet left me by.

"Scraplet attacks usually are heavily damaging if not fatal, all three of you need energon transfusions and treatment for your wounds." Ratchet said, not talking to anyone in particular. He hung something up and turned to me, wordlessly taking my arm and jabbing a needle into it before leaving. I flinched when he did so, and looked down to see the needle was attached to a tube, which was in turn connected to a container of liquid energon. Ratchet came back helping Bulkhead, and Bee was limping along behind them. I shifted painfully, and Ratchet sat Bulkhead down and put Bumblebee on a table like I was.

We all looked terrible, scraplet bites and trails marked our armor everywhere, and though I admit I was hurt the worst, Bumblebee didn't look good either.

"How is it that you three aren't piles of scrap by now?" Ratchet asked, setting up energon drips for Bumblebee and Bulkhead. Bulkhead spoke for me again.

"It was Sam, she saved our tails back there. She went in a sort of zone after Bumblebee and I went down, she was unstoppable, Ratchet. I've never seen a bot able to keep going after they're covered in scraplets, but she managed it on top of warding 'em off me and Bumblebee." Bulkhead said. Ratchet looked surprised, tending to Bee quickly before going back to me.

Ratchet laid me back on the table, turning his hand into a torch and starting to weld the deeper scraplet wounds closed on my body. I held still the best I could, but I'd liken the pain to dumping alcohol in an open wound. Ratchet admired my stillness as well.

"You're quite the soldier, most bots I know wouldn't stay as quiet as you are when they're being put back together." Ratchet said.

"Uh, thanks? I'm just glad those two are okay." I said, nodding towards Bee and Bulkhead. Ratchet glanced up at them before going back to work.

"May I ask what it was that compelled you to protect them?" Ratchet said. I shrugged.

"Instinct? I saw them being attacked and had to help them. Besides, you guys are my family now. You took me in and helped me after I got turned into one of you. This may not be the life I had planned on...but it's a pretty great one regardless." I said. Ratchet didn't look at me, but cracked a rare grin. Bumblebee caught it and spoke in mock horror.

"Ratchet just smiled? Primus, it's the end of the world!" Bee said. This earned mutual laughs from Bulkhead and I, but Ratchet almost ended up giving me a scorch mark when I moved.

"Would you hold still?!" Ratchet snapped. I gave him a sheepish look and froze, letting him continue his work.

…...

A couple painful hours for me and painstaking for Ratchet later, the scraplet wounds were soldered shut and I had regained the large volume of energon that I'd lost. I was definitely going to need a paint job, but I was feeling much better. I swung my legs over the side of the table where I'd been laying, and surprisingly Ratchet didn't protest. I glanced at the I.V in my arm, and Ratchet wordlessly pulled it out. I stood, testing my strength and balance, and, satisfied as I could be, turned to Ratchet.

"Thanks, you saved my life." I said. Ratchet gave a small smile, putting a hand on my shoulder.

"No, my friend, you saved all our lives." Ratchet said. I looked away, rubbing the back of my neck.

"Thanks. So, uh...how about a touch-up on the paint?" I asked. Ratchet good-naturedly rolled his optics.

"I'm sure Jack would be more than willing to help you." Ratchet said. I nodded, going off to find him.

After searching a few minutes, I didn't see him, or Arcee for that matter, but I did find Optimus and asked him. Optimus turned, giving me a soft look as I approached.

"Your bravery was very admirable, Sam. You not only saved Bumblebee and Bulkhead, but the rest of us as well by getting rid of the scraplets." Optimus said. I humbly ducked my head.

"Thank you. I'd gladly give my life for any of you." I said.

"And we would readily do the same, young friend." Optimus said. I changed the subject, asking him what I had been wondering.

"Have you seen Jack? Or Arcee for that matter?" I asked. Optimus nodded.

"Check the top of the mesa." he said. I nodded my thanks, heading for the trail that wound all the way to the top of the mesa the base was built in. The sun was just starting to set, and I located Arcee standing near a cairn of stones. Jack was by her side. I walked quietly up to them, something about their mood was somber and I didn't want to disturb them.

"Hey..." I said. Arcee glanced behind her, turning a bit when she saw it was me.

"Hey Sam." she said, an edge of something I hadn't heard in her voice before, sadness. I could tell instantly, and I walked up to her side.

"Is something wrong?" I asked. Arcee started to shake her head, then sighed.

"Today is what's wrong. I guess I'll just always remember this date having bad associated with it." Arcee said. I moved in front of her, showing I was willing to listen. She hung her head.

"One year ago today, my partner Cliffjumper was killed." she said, turning to the cairn behind her. I gave her a look of sympathy.

"I'm so sorry. Was it a Decepticon...?" I asked. She nodded.

"Starscream... I swear on my life, the next time I get him alone he's going to wish he never murdered my partner." Arcee said. I put a hand on my shoulder.

"At least there's something good out of this day." I said, trying to cheer her up.

"And what is that?" she said, staring out at the sunset.

"You still have your team. Optimus, Ratchet, Bumblebee, Bulkhead, me. Even though the three of us are a bit chewed up right now, we're alive, and that's all that matters." I said, continuing and looking down at Jack. "Besides, I was going to ask Jack if he didn't mind giving me a new paint job." I said.