Shattered: Chapter 1

XXXXXXXXXX

"Parents, however old they and we may grow to be, serve among other things to shield us from a sense of our doom. As long as they are around, we can avoid the fact of our mortality; we can still be innocent children."

-Jane Howard

XXXXXXXXXX

Cybertron: Autobot Stronghold

The two young sparklings, a mech and a femme, sat huddled close together as they played on the cold metal floor of the underground bunker that sheltered them from the chaos outside. They did their best to block out the sounds of the vicious battle that raged just beyond the reinforced metal walls that surrounded them. The noise was getting harder and harder for them to ignore, however, as each new explosion seemed to creep closer and to their little sanctuary causing the walls of the bunker to shake and tremble under the strain.

Their scavenged toys were immediately forgotten as the screech of an incoming missile filtered down to their audio receptors followed by a tremendous shuddering impact that caused the entire structure to lurch violently around them. The sound had been deafening, causing the little blue femme to whine in fright and scoot closer to the slightly older yellow mech beside her. The little mech protectively wrapped one small arm around his friend's shoulders in an attempt to comfort her and keep her safe even though his large, blue optics held the same fear as hers did.

The femme cast a frightened glance up at the yellow mech. "That sounded really close…"

"It's okay." The mech gave her a reassuring squeeze. "We'll be safe in here. They wouldn't have left us here otherwise…" He put as much conviction into his voice as he could; wanting to console his friend as well as convince himself that what he said was true.

"Yeah…" The femme nodded hesitantly and, finding the little mech's embrace comforting, scooted even closer. "You're right."

The sparklings understood little about the battle going on just outside the bunker or the concept and reasoning behind it, innocent as they were. The terms Autobot and Decepticon still meant very little to them beyond knowing that the group of mechs and femmes they loved and interacted with on a daily basis were of the former designation. They had yet to grasp the hard reality of the war going on all around them. They just knew it was scary to listen to the distant sounds of explosions as they tried to recharge at night.

Vaguely, the little yellow mech understood that the war had cost him both of his creators. Not a cycle went by that he didn't think of them. He missed them terribly, but he was forever thankful to Primus for the group of rebel soldiers who had found him, alone and frightened, and had taken him in without question. One of them had even had a sparkling about his own age for him to play with. He and the little femme had become the best of friends almost immediately. He had lost one family it seemed, but he had gained another that cared about him just as much as his creators had. All things considered, he believed himself to be very fortunate.

"Everything will be alright. I know it will be." The little mech hugged his friend tighter as she whimpered. He wouldn't let anything happen to her.

The femme nodded stiffly, praying to Primus that her yellow friend was right. Truthfully, she worried constantly over her own creators. They were out there right now, both her mother and father, in battle with the Decepticons. Her biggest fear was that one day they would leave and not come back like so many others had, like her friend's creators. Just thinking about the possibility caused a pang of panic to race across her synapses. She didn't fully understand death at her age, but knew that when it happened to a mech they never came back. It had been her father that had finally been able to put her processor at ease, assuring her that she would never ever be alone.

Another sudden explosion rocked the bunker sending a rain of debris falling from the ceiling down around the two sparklings. They quickly scurried back to the far corner of the bunker, avoiding the larger chunks of metal that fell in their path. Once in the relative safety of the corner, the little mech pulled the femme into an almost crushing embrace. The tiny femme hugged him back just fiercely as their small frames trembled against one another in fear.

"Bumblebee?" The femme looked to the mech for some sort of reassurance.

"Shhh," the mech tried to soothe her. "It's going to be okay..."

Suddenly, the hatch above them flew open sending a small rain of debris onto the floor around them and exposing the dark, smoke filled sky for them to see. The acrid smell of hot, burning metal wafted down to where they both sat terrified of what lurked beyond the shadowy opening. Not knowing what to expect, the two sparklings huddled together even closer for protection. Much to their collective relief, they heard a familiar voice bellowing from above.

"They're advancing! Everyone get ready to move! The shuttle is on its way! Elita, get the sparklings!"

"Father!" The femme recognized the voice immediately and her optics brightened. She tried to make a break for the open hatch, but the yellow sparkling held her fast.

"Wait." The mech could vaguely make out the shape of someone moving around outside the hatch.

A tall, lithe figure dropped easily through the opening just as another missile hit causing the bunker to rattle dangerously. The pink femme eyed the creaking roof of the bunker warily as she frantically gestured to the sparklings to come to her. "Bumblebee, Sway...come to me! We have to go! Hurry!"

The sparklings scrambled across the floor as fast as their tiny limbs would allow and flung themselves into the safety of the femme's arms. Hoisting one sparkling up on each hip, the femme picked her way quickly back through the fallen rubble to the hatch.

Sway buried her face in her mother's neck, thankful just to be held by her. "What's happening?"

Elita looked at her young daughter. It pained her to see so much fear in her optics. "The Decepticons are coming this way. There's too many of them for us to hold off. We have to leave before they get any closer. Your father has called for an extraction. The shuttle will be here soon."

Bumblebee tightened his grip on the pink femme that had become like a second mother to him. "Where are we going to go?"

Elita tried her best to reassure the little mech she had become so fond of. "Somewhere safe, Bumblebee, somewhere safe."

"Elita?" Optimus Prime poked his head in through the hatch. "The shuttle's here! We have to go! Now! Hurry! Hand them up to me!"

Sway latched onto her mother's leg as she sat her down onto the ground so that she could pass Bumblebee up to her father's waiting hands. No sooner had Prime lifted the little mech to safety, another blast hit the bunker directly, sending Elita sprawling onto the ground and flinging Sway off into the corner of the collapsing room. The sparkling off lined immediately at the harsh impact as more of the battered structure crumbled down on top of her, effectively burying her alive.

"Elita, get up!" Optimus tried to force his way through the hatch to reach his bond mate, but there was too much rubble in the way. "Elita!"

Elita sat up, dazed. The force of the impact had jumbled her processor. Feedback echoed through her neural relays. She shook her head to try to clear it. Someone was yelling at her. She looked up to see the face of her mate hovering above her. He was yelling something that she couldn't quite make out with all the static in her mind. "Wha-what?"

"Where's Sway?" Optimus' voice was full of urgency.

Elita looked around herself confused. "Sway..."

Optimus covered his head as another blast sent large chunks of metal raining down. "Our sparkling, Elita! Find our daughter!"

"Sway?" Something inside Elita's processor clicked suddenly. "Sway!" She searched around herself frantically; digging through the piles of the crumbled ceiling. "Sway, where are you? Sway! Answer me!" She reached out desperately through the bond she shared with the sparkling. Nothing but emptiness echoed back to her. She looked desperately up at her mate. A terrified cry worked its way out of her voice processor. "Optimus, I can't find her! She isn't answering!"

"Optimus!"

Optimus whipped around to see his weapons specialist hovering over him. "Ironhide..."

The burly mech had to yell to be heard over the sound of another incoming missile screaming overhead. "Optimus, the Decepticons have breached the perimeter! The shuttle can't wait much longer! We have to fall back!"

Optimus shook his head negative. "We-we can't find Sway..."

The other mech's optics grew wide. "Oh, Primus..." Ironhide knelt beside Prime and looked down into the hole. "Elita, what happened?"

Elita was openly sobbing now. "I-I c-can't find her. I can't…"

Another blast hit its mark causing the ground underneath Optimus and Ironhide to quake and screech with the sound of bending metal.

"Frag it all to the Pit!" Ironhide clawed at the rubble around the hatch. "This whole thing is going to give! Elita, you've gotta get outta there!"

Elita shook her head as moisture streamed down her faceplates. "I'm not leaving without my sparkling. We-we can't leave her! Optimus?" She looked up at her mate with pleading optics. "We can't..."

The ground made a loud groan as the metal that supported the structure underneath bent under the strain. Optimus felt as if his very spark was being ripped out its chamber at the thought of the decision he now faced. His and Elita's beautiful creation was somewhere in that crumbling pit but he had an entire crew to think about and not leaving now could cost them all their lives. He was never an overly religious mech but he closed his optics all the same and prayed to Primus for guidance.

"Optimus," Ironhide's urgent voice cut through his thought process causing his optics to snap open. "Scouts are reporting Decepticons about two clicks to the west and closing. Prowl has ordered everyone to fall back to the shuttle. We can't stay here. We have to move."

"Sway..." Optimus shuttered his optics and nodded. "Understood."

"Optimus, no!" Elita tried to back further into the bunker, but was stopped as her mate's arm shot inside and seized her and quickly hauled her out of the hole. As soon as she had cleared the opening, another explosion proved to be the final burden the structure was able to withstand as the bunker collapsed inward on itself, burying everything inside. "Primus, no!" Elita desperately tried to dig back through the debris. "Sway!"

"Optimus!" Ironhide quickly grabbed the hysterical femme and slung her over one broad shoulder. The rumble of approaching Decepticon forces could be heard getting closer. "We have to go! Now!" He used the other arm that wasn't keeping Elita from thrashing loose to roughly propel his Commander, now numb with the loss of his only sparkling, forward toward the waiting shuttle.

XXXXXXXXXX

Small blue optics slowly came online. It was pitch black inside the tiny, uncomfortably hot space. The little femme found herself curled up into a tight ball. She immediately found that she couldn't move. There was something incredibly heavy lying on top of her chest, pressing into her spark casing and making it extremely difficult for her energon pump to work. She could also feel something pressing sharply into the tender, malleable metal of protoform above her left knee joint, causing her excruciating pain and the cleansing fluid that kept her optics clean and lubricated to flow down her faceplates.

There were frightening messages flashing across her field of vision she had never seen before. Dire warnings of emergency stasis and fatal internal errors nearly swamped her. She didn't really know what any of the warnings meant but she was certain they entailed nothing good. Shifting as much as she was able to try to relieve some of the pressure on her chest cavity, she felt something tear. The searing pain was followed by the sensation of a warm, thick liquid flowing down her chest plating. Panic gripped the young femme. Where were her creators?

Sway strained her audio receptors for any sound. Other than the occasional creak and groan of the stressed metal surrounding her and her own stuttering cooling system, it seemed deathly quiet. All the explosions from earlier seemed to have stopped. A panicked cry worked its way out of her vocal processor when she realized she couldn't even hear the rumble of the shuttle's engines anymore. They couldn't have left her behind. They wouldn't. They loved her too much to just leave her here alone and hurt and scared. Didn't they?

Of course they love you. Don't be ridiculous.

Despite her terror, her unwavering faith in both of her creators told her that they would come searching for her. Yes, she told herself, they were probably looking for her right now. When they found her they would make everything all better, just as they always did. Tonight she would be once again snuggled safe in her father's arms as he told her and Bee stories about how Cybertron used to be before the war. Then, after their nightly energon ration, her mother would tuck them both in to recharge. Those were Sway's last conscious thoughts to run through her worried processor before her struggling body offlined all non-vital processes and sent her into emergency stasis in order to perform desperately needed maintenance on her battered systems.

XXXXXXXXXX

End of Chapter 1

XXXXXXXXXX