Well, hello everyone. Now that the holidays are over I was able to get back to writing. This chapter covers 'Project Predacon', 'Chain of Command', and 'Plus One' (s3 eps5,6,&7). The end is drawing near. Only a few more chapters to go. Thanks to everyone who has stuck with me this far. Please enjoy this chapter as well.
X-ray limped through the ground bridge, a cane in one servo to help steady himself, and the handle of an anti-grav cart in the other. The flat bed of the cart was loaded down with energon cubes, a gift to the Autobots from Liliy, along with the Forge of Solus Prime.
No one seemed to notice his arrival at the Autobots' new base. All the attention in the room was on the two mechs arguing in front of him. One of them was Wheeljack. The other was a tall mech X-ray had never seen before. He had a frame similar to Optimus Prime's old one. (Foxtrot had told him all about the Prime's new frame since X-ray was stuck in the med bay.) He also had a similar color scheme too except his was a lighter shade of blue and there was a lot less red. There were biolights all over his frame and he had shoulder pads that stood well above his helm. He was looming over Wheeljack and he spoke in a stern, authoritative tone that made X-ray immediately understand why Romeo nicknamed him 'Stiff'.
"Allow me to make myself clear," he was saying. "As Optimus Prime's second-in-command, I have no intention of tolerating Wrecker behavior."
"Some things never change," Wheeljack growled, glaring up at the taller mech.
"Jackie…" warned Bulkhead from somewhere on the other side of the room.
"Need I remind you that it was Optimus Prime himself who assigned me to command your Wreckers back on Cybertron, and get you loose cannons under control," Ultra Magnus continued. "An effective combat unit begins with discipline. If you won't accept that, feel free to choose the path of least resistance, as you did before."
X-ray snapped, his energon running hot as he moved forward. No one was going to talk to his partner like that. Not in front of him.
"Have you ever considered the fact that Wheeljack can be a team player," tone hard, he spoke up, drawing attention to himself as he approached them, "and it might just be your methods of 'discipline' that are actually the problem here?"
The two mechs were equally surprised by his presence. Despite the obvious appearance of being a recovering patient, with unpainted weld scars and leaning heavily on a cane, X-ray put himself between them and glared up at Ultra Magnus.
"X...?" Wheeljack hesitantly reached for him but didn't touch him, several emotions welling up at once.
X-ray ignored him in favor of continuing to berate the surprised commander. "I don't know if you have noticed but this isn't Cybertron. And this small band of Autobots you have been put in charge of" he waved his free servo at the other Autobots, "is not the army you commanded there either. You might want to reconsider your way of leading or you might lose them too."
Ultra Magnus glared down at him, mouth working. Finally he asked, "Who are you?"
"X-ray, Cybertronian Rebel Corps weapons engineer. And Wheeljack's boyfriend."
"Boyfriend?!" Miko shrieked.
"What the-?" Ratchet started.
"Jackie, when did this happen?" Bulkhead wanted to know.
Wheeljack ignored them all. He finally touched X-ray's arm to get his attention. "Hey, X. Are you sure you should be moving around so much? You were just in the med bay-"
X-ray turned to him. "I have been cleared to move about for a bit as long as I don't do anything strenuous. Besides, it's your fault I'm here. You left and didn't come back. You didn't even call. I was worried."
Looking away, Wheeljack went silent. X-ray turned to Ratchet.
"The Madam figured you guys were low on energon so she had me bring some over too." He jerked a thumb at the cart of energon. "If you guys need anything else, you have our number. Also I'm borrowing him for a bit." He grabbed Wheeljack's servo and turned toward a portal that opened up behind him.
Wheeljack followed him, if only to get away from Ultra Magnus.
X-ray stopped in the receiving room and turned to Wheeljack again, letting go of his servo.
"Seriously," he chided softly. "Do you know how worried I was when I woke up and you weren't there? I get that you wanted to help your friends but you didn't even call. You were told not to make me worry, weren't you?"
Wheeljack still wasn't looking at him. He was staring at the floor with his fists clenched at his sides.
"Oh, Wheeljack, my gallant spark. None of this was your fault."
"Starscream would not have hurt you if I hadn't said anything," Wheeljack replied quietly.
"Knowing him, he probably still would have. Besides, I also said things that made it worse too. I think he was just focusing on me because he knew it hurt you too." He put a servo on Wheeljack's shoulder. "Wheeljack, please look at me." He waited until the Wrecker raised his helm and looked him in the optics. "All that matters now is that we both made it out alive."
"Another positive note," interrupted a voice somewhere closer to the floor, "is that we got a little revenge for you two, as well as Tango and Oscar, before we left the Nemesis. I don't think the Screamer will be up and around for a while."
They both looked down.
"Liliy… And Miko?" Wheeljack said.
The human girl at least looked a little guilty about getting caught after following them through the ground bridge. "Hi."
"I'm gonna take Miko back now," Liliy said, her hand on the girl's shoulder to keep her from running off. "Wheeljack, if you would, make sure X-ray gets back to the med bay. He's been on his peds for long enough for today."
Wheeljack grinned. "Yes ma'am."
X-ray yelped when Wheeljack suddenly scooped him up. Despite being taller, X-ray really wasn't that much bigger than the Wrecker, so Wheeljack had no trouble carrying him. That didn't stop X-ray from clinging tightly to him out of fright.
Wheeljack laughed. "Don't worry, X. I wouldn't drop a beautiful mech like you."
X-ray ducked his helm to hide his blush as Wheeljack carried him out of the room.
"Huh. That's a good idea." Liliy snatched up Miko and tossed her over her shoulder. "Alfa, a bridge please."
"Liliy! Put. Me. Down!" Miko squirmed and pounded on Liliy's back as they disappeared into the portal. "Put me down, slagit!"
"Miko! Language!" Ratchet admonished on the other side. He turned to look. "Oh. Welcome back, Liliy. I'm glad to see you're safe but what are you doing here?"
Liliy set Miko back on her feet. "I'm just making sure the oxygen breather gets back to the surface."
"What do you mean by that?" Miko demanded. "I just want to see your base."
"That's exactly it," Liliy replied. "Cybertronians don't need oxygen to survive so we never bothered to make sure the base maintained a breathable atmosphere for humans. Sure, there is air movement but, uh, not enough for you to survive long, little one."
"Well, you should fix that," Miko huffed, crossing her arms over her chest. "I want to come visit."
"We'll see."
"Liliy?" Raf appeared in the catwalks above them. He turned and called, "Hey, Jack, Liliy's back."
"What? She's back?" Jack was heard before he was seen. He came up next to Raf and looked down at her. "Liliy!"
"Hey, Raf, Jack." She waved up at them and smiled. "Long time, no see."
The other Autobots gathered at the sounds of commotion and greeted her.
"Welcome back, Liliy," commented Arcee.
"Glad to see that you're ok," added Bulkhead.
"We missed you," Bumblebee chipped in.
"Ah, and you must be the one my 'boys' have nicknamed 'Stiff'," Liliy said, looking up and down at Ultra Magnus. "My name's Liliy." When he just frowned at her, she turned to the medic. "By the way, Ratchet, where's Optimus?"
"He's out scouting recent Decepticon activity," replied Ratchet. "Hopefully, an energon mine. And I suppose we should thank you for the load you sent us."
"We have more, Ratchet. All you have to do is ask."
"I'd rather not have to rely on you."
"The way things are looking, you may not have a choice." Liliy looked around again. "Isn't there someone else missing too?"
"Oh yeah. Smokescreen," Bulkhead agreed. "He's been gone for a while."
"I better call him back to base," sighed Ratchet.
"No need," interrupted Liliy. "Here he comes."
Sure enough, the hanger doors were open just enough to admit a fast moving blue and gold sports car. He slammed on his brakes and did a full 360 before skidding to a halt mere inches from Liliy. Miko had jumped back at his approach but Liliy didn't move at all.
"So you're Smokescreen," observed Liliy.
Smokescreen transformed and looked down at her. "Ah. What gave me away?"
Liliy tapped her chest. "Your spark signal. By the way, my name's Liliy."
"Oh! So you're the Madam," he said, going down on one knee to see her better. "I didn't know you were human."
"Just as human as you are a fancy sports car."
"Point taken. Wait. You think my alt is fancy?"
"Where have you been, soldier?" demanded Ultra Magnus as he stepped closer.
Smokescreen stood up. "Scanning new war paint. Thought it'd be proactive to follow Optimus' lead. And Bumblebee's."
"Now you can look your best while stacking those empty cubes," Ultra Magnus ordered, glancing over at the pile in the corner.
"Yeah. Definitely a stiff," commented Liliy.
"Perhaps you are not aware that I am Optimus Prime's second in command," replied Ultra Magnus, glaring down at her.
Liliy smiled, a cold smile. "Oh, I am very aware, commander. And let me introduce myself again. I am Madam Liliy, the Lady Scythe, Leader of the Cybertronian Rebel Corps, your ally in this fight, and friend of Optimus Prime. If you want my respect, you are going to have to earn it, mister. You might start by fixing that attitude of yours."
"Cybertronian Rebel Corps? No wonder the members I've met so far were so disrespectful, with you as their leader," he shot back.
"Hmh." Liliy crossed her arms. "Respect should be mutual. I know that, despite the things he says, Ratchet respects me in his own way and I respect him as a medic and a friend. Even if he can be an idiot sometimes."
Ratchet just humphed but didn't deny what she said.
"I suspect that is why Wheeljack has such a problem with you," she continued. "You don't respect him."
"He is just a soldier," Ultra Magnus replied. "All he needs to do is follow orders."
"Ouch." Liliy grimaced. "If that's how you think, then I can see exactly why he hates you. That sort of attitude won't fly here on Earth. You might want to change that or you won't last long as commander."
His optic ridges drew even closer together. "Was that a threat?"
Liliy smirked. "Hardly. When I threaten, I like to get up in your face and do it."
"Ratchet, Optimus is requesting a ground bridge," Raf suddenly interrupted.
"Thank you, Raf. I'll get it." Ratchet set aside the tech he was working and moved to the ground bridge controls.
Optimus emerged from the portal. Liliy flinched slightly. She had seen Prime's new frame in Leech's memories but seeing it in person was different. Personally, she liked his old frame better.
"Optimus, did you find energon?" inquired Ratchet.
"No. But I did uncover this." He set the large skull he was carrying down on Ratchet's makeshift workbench.
"It cannot be," breathed Ratchet.
"Be what?" Jack wanted to know.
Liliy zipped up to where Optimus set down the skull. "The ancient remains of a predacon. Well, ancient compared to humans, anyway. They aren't that old compared to our lifespans."
"Liliy!" Optimus started. Then he smiled. "It's good to see you safe."
She smiled back. "I'm glad to see you are still with us too."
"You and I need to talk later."
"Yes. It seems we do."
"Um, Liliy," interrupted Smokescreen, "you just said that these remains are not that old compared to us. What do you mean? Cause, I mean, predacons went extinct before... most life began on Cybertron, right?"
"I did mention it before but I guess you weren't here yet, were you. There were still predacons on this planet when I arrived," Liliy explain. "I even killed one. Lopped its helm right off." She made a slicing motion at her neck. "What a terrible mess that was. Anyway, it's obvious predacons aren't native to this planet. AND. If they went extinct on Cybertron, what are they doing here? The answer is Shockwave."
"Shockwave?"
"Yes. I also mentioned that previously as well. That I had heard that Shockwave was working on cloning early in the war." She gestured to the skull. "This is most likely one of his creations. And speaking of, what happened to the current predacon?"
"Oh. Don't worry. We put him on ice," Miko explained.
"I see…" Liliy paused, pulling down her visor. "Ah. There he is."
"Huh?"
She pushed her visor. "I used the SDS and checked the poles. He's still alive."
"Figures," said Ratchet. "The temperatures were only cold enough to put him in stasis. Hopefully he stays that way."
"But this doesn't look good for us," Arcee spoke up. "That predacon was trouble enough and if Shockwave is looking to clone another one, or more than one…"
"We could have Beast wars on our servos," Bulkhead added.
"And if Shockwave only needs a single strand of CNA to clone a beast…" Ratchet started.
"...He already possess what he needs to engender this one." Optimus finished. "Autobots, we must become beast hunters." He looked down at Liliy. "I hope that we can have your help with this, Liliy."
"The only thing I can promise is supplies," Liliy replied. "And maybe an occasional rescue if someone decides to try and get themselves killed."
"That is better than nothing. I very much appreciate any help you can give us."
"I already sent over a load of energon. Ratchet just needs to tell me if I can bring anything else."
Optimus and Liliy both looked at Ratchet.
He waved them off. "Yes. Yes. I understand."
"Anyway, O.P., you said we needed to talk. I suppose you meant privately?" Liliy asked.
"Preferably. Would you mind going for a drive?"
"Normally, no. But I guess it would be ok this time." She waved her left hand.
"I see," Optimus replied, understanding. He transformed down to his alt.
"Yeah." Liliy jumped down to the floor. "I still like your old frame better." She climbed into his cab and buckled in.
Optimus left the hanger. It wasn't until after they left the base and had been on the road for a bit that Optimus finally spoke.
"Leecher told me about Cybertron."
"Indeed. You seemed immensely relieved to hear the news."
"I thought I had doomed our planet. Our race. I-I had no idea what to do."
"And you think dying and leaving it all to an inexperienced rookie was the way to go?"
"I thought that the Forge was the only way to revive the planet. The only hope for Cybertron. What was I supposed to think? Or do? The others were not there. And even if they had been they may have made the same choice as Smokescreen."
"Maybe. But maybe not. Guess we'll never know."
"Have there been any changes on Cybertron yet?"
"None so far. Charlie reports everything is normal."
"Maybe it was not enough energy. Perhaps there is a way to give it more."
"I'll send Bravo over to the Lock site. Maybe he can find a way to rebuild it or something… By the way, if we are having this conversation in private, then you haven't told the others yet, have you?"
"No one knows but Smokescreen. And I told him not to tell anyone either."
"Better not to get their hopes up just yet?"
"Yes. They have had so much disappointment already. I want to wait until we have a more definite result before telling them."
"And shouldering all the responsibility yourself. Per usual."
Optimus was silent.
"Don't worry, O.P.. We won't let you do it alone this time. Leech and I have a hand in this now too."
"Thank you… Can I ask, why did you start calling me O.P.?"
"'Because those are your initials no matter who you are. This way I don't have to differentiate.' is what I told Orion Pax when he asked me the same thing. It was so I wouldn't accidentally call him Optimus. I was trying to make him think I was an ignorant human. Obviously, that line totally gave me away but I managed to distract him from realizing that until much later."
"...This is the first time you have actually spoken about anything that happened on the Nemesis."
Suddenly, Liliy hid her face in her hands. "That's because some of it is fragging embarrassing."
Her holo-layer flickered. Her left hand withdrew from her face to reveal a yellow-brown eye and black hair and slightly more masculine features.
"Yeah." The voice was Leech's. "She's super embarrassed by it because she had to act like an actual fleshling. Pretending to be scared of you and admitting that she was scared of Meg-" The right hand suddenly clamped over his mouth, cutting him off.
There was a bit of silence as her holo-layer flicked back and forth for a bit before it settled back on Liliy's appearance.
"Please ignore him, Optimus."
Prime's engine rumbled in amusement. "Let's return to the base for now." And commed for a ground bridge.
Wheeljack stayed with X-ray until he fell into recharge. He planted a gentle kiss on the mech's forehelm before he quietly left the room. Foxtrot looked up when he entered the med bay.
"He's in recharge now. I probably need to go back to the Autobot base," he said as he crossed the bay. "I'll come check on him later, I promise."
"You better keep your promise this time, mech. Otherwise…" He finished off with a shrug while pointing a laser scalpel in Wheeljack's direction.
Wheeljack glanced at the door hiding X-ray and smirked. "I understand."
"Welcome back, Wheeljack. How's X-ray?" Liliy asked as soon as the Wrecker arrived.
"Recharging."
"And you're not going to make him worry this time, right?"
"Don't worry. Foxtrot already threatened me with a laser scalpel."
"He's pretty handy with that laser scalpel too. You better take him seriously."
"Yeah. Especially considering he was probably trained how to use it by you."
Liliy just grinned.
On the other side of the room, Optimus approached Ratchet. The medic was working quietly at a small console, staring intently at the monitor.
"Synthetic energon?" Prime inquired, looking over Ratchet's shoulder.
"Indeed," Ratchet replied. He turned to Optimus. "I am concerned that without access to any energon reserves since our base was destroyed, our ability to deal with impending crises will be severely hampered."
"What about the energon from Liliy?"
"It will only go so far. And, despite her offer, I would rather not have to rely on her. Who knows how big her reserves are. After all, she has more bots to fuel."
"That is true."
"Just, please, manage your expectations. I am working with even more rudimentary hardware than before."
Agent Fowler emerged from his office and called for Optimus' attention. "Prime! Satellite surveillance has picked up two signs of Decepticon activity. One near an oil field outside of El Paso. The other near the Hebrides Bluffs in Scotland. Don't forget to pack your kilts."
Liliy snickered at that.
"We must divide our resources," Optimus said. "Ultra Magnus..." He turned to the commander and noticed that Wheeljack had returned. "Lead the Wreckers to the Bluffs."
Ultra Magnus was slightly surprised by the order until he looked over and also saw that Wheeljack had returned. "Yes, Optimus." He stepped closer to Optimus and lowered his voice a little. "Uh, what's a kilt?"
Liliy's snickers broke into full blown laughter. Optimus and Magnus turned to look at her.
"I'm sorry," she wheezed, holding her sides. "It's just… Hahaha. Oh man. Haa." She calmed down a little. "I just love it when the new guys come around. It's not really that important for your mission, Stiff. But if you're that worried about it, the humans have an information network called the World Wide Web. You can look it up later."
Optimus noticed how Magnus' optics narrowed and his servos clenched into fists as he glared at the little femme who was receiving a high five from Wheeljack.
"Liliy." Optimus waited until he had her attention. "Ultra Magnus is my second in command."
"Yeah. But he's also too stiff for the dynamic of your team, Optimus. Until he can loosen up…" She just shrugged.
"We'll talk about this later."
"It won't change anything but ok."
"Bulkhead, Wheeljack. Let's roll," Magnus ordered.
Wheeljack let out a disgruntled sigh. Liliy smiled at him sympathetically.
Ultra Magnus stopped next to the Forge of Solus Prime that was propped up against the wall. He turned to the Prime.
"Optimus, I know there are many emotions tied to the Forge."
"This is no time to stand on ceremony."
Ultra Magnus grabbed the handle and had to use both servos to lift the hammer. "Then I would be honored to put this to some practical use."
As the Scotland team was leaving, Liliy was the only one who noticed Miko going after them. The girl outright asked Wheeljack if she could go with him this time.
"Sure, why not," Wheeljack replied, reaching down and picking her up.
As he straightened, he glanced up and saw Liliy watching them. She rolled her eyes and waved them off. Wheeljack grinned and left the hanger. Liliy just let them go because she knew that Wheeljack and Bulkhead together would be enough to protect Miko but the other reason she let them go was because she knew that the girl's presence would annoy Ultra Magnus.
Out of curiosity, Liliy checked with the SDS on her phone to see who was at the two locations. There were just vehicons at the one in Scotland. And, while Liliy would have liked to have requested that the Autobots continue to try to hold back, seeing as how they couldn't even do that for Ucon, she wasn't going to bother. She also figured that the newest addition, the Stiff that he was, would object.
Checking the other location in Texas, Liliy quickly turned to call after Optimus before he left with Bumblebee and Smokescreen.
"Hey, O.P.! You guys be careful out there. It seems that Shockwave himself is at that location."
"Thank you for the warning, Liliy."
"Don't worry, we'll be fine!" added Smokescreen.
"Yeah…" she mumbled as they disappeared.
Liliy wandered over to the humans' living area and saw that the boys had slept through the whole ordeal. She took a seat on the couch next to Raf, careful not to wake him and glanced around the hanger. Arcee was running comms so Ratchet could focus on the Synth'N formula.
[Why not just give him the complete formula?] Leech's voice intruded on her processor.
[[I will,]] she thought back. [[Eventually.]] She pulled down her visor she could track both locations at once. She frowned when at least half the vehicon sparks were extinguished in Scotland. [[I'm wondering if it's a good idea to even keep helping them at all.]]
[You already promised.]
[[...Yeah.]]
After the Wreckers secured the Cons' dig site and Magnus found out that Wheeljack brought Miko along, which he was furious about, they entered the cave to find the predacon bone. While Ultra Magnus forged ahead, Bulkhead began to question his friend.
"So Jackie, what's this about you having a boyfriend? How long has that been going on?"
"Yeah," Miko added. "Why didn't you tell us? I thought we were best buds."
"Well, Bulk, you remember X from that incident with Dreadwing?"
"Yeah. The two of you seemed to get along pretty well."
"I jokingly mentioned dating after I got dragged back to their base to get away from Soundwave a while ago. He was just concerned about me but he got really flustered and ran off. When I went to find him, he asked for a sparring match-an actual sparring match, Bulkhead! With our fists! Stop looking at me like that!"
"Did you kick his tailpipes?" Miko asked, oblivious of what Bulkhead's expression implied.
"Nah. He kicked mine," sounding more proud about it than he normally would have. "But he also said yes when I asked him out for real. I mean, there was a… condition…" Trailing off, he glanced back toward the cave entrance. He had forgotten about that until now. Even if he hadn't actually promised X-ray that he would hold back, he still felt a little guilty. "...scrap."
"What's wrong?" asked Bulkhead.
"It's nothing-" Wheeljack started.
"Enough idle chatter!" Ultra Magnus called back to them since they had stopped. "Let's get moving, soldiers!"
"Ugh!" Wheeljack groaned. "Ya know, you did the smart thing, Bulk. Leaving the Wreckers when you did. When we were still bringing our A-game. Before the rust set in." And trudged after Magnus.
"Wait! I thought Wheeljack was the one who left the Wreckers?" Miko asked, confused.
"Jackie basically deserted once the Wreckers fell under Ultra Magnus' command. I transferred out before that. To join up with Optimus in the Battle of Thunderhead Pass. Sometimes I think Jackie feels like I deserted him."
"You don't want to be the one who breaks up the band, Bulk."
The ground suddenly shook, knocking Miko off the boulder she was perched on. Bulkhead caught her before she hit the ground and protected her from the rocks and dust coming off the ceiling.
"What was that?" Bulkhead wondered.
A roar came from the cave entrance. And the ground shook with every footfall.
"Whatever it is, it's big," observed Wheeljack. The sounds were coming closer very quickly. "And it's coming fast."
The next moment the predacon came barreling around the bend, screaming as it caught sight of them.
"The predacon…" said Magnus. He turned. "Let's roll!"
They all transformed and sped deeper into the cave.
"Frag!" Liliy swore under her breath when the predacon's signal showed up in Scotland.
Miko would have been fine if it was just the vehicons. But now that the predacon was there, she was concerned for the Bots safety as well. According to Hirry, it was a large dragon type, heavily armored and very persistent. Meaning, the only person in the CRC capable of taking it down was Liliy herself. Sighing, she got up from the couch and commed Alfa for a ground bridge.
"Having fun yet, Miko?" Liliy asked as she leaned over the edge and offered a hand to the girl climbing up the cave wall.
"Liliy! How did you know I was here?" Miko grabbed her hand.
Liliy easily pulled the girl up to the surface. "I saw you leave with Wheeljack. And he knows that I saw so it's fine. What are the Bots doing?"
"I think they're gonna fight the predacon. Ultra Magnus told me to go to his ship and call Optimus."
"Well, that might be kind of hard to do," Liliy said as they headed for the ship.
"Why?"
"Because someone got out of the med bay far quicker than anticipated."
The ship's hatch-lift started to lower. Liliy grabbed Miko and pulled her behind a boulder to hide.
"Given that this ship is currently unoccupied," they heard Starscream saying, "it would seem the Autobots did stumble upon our little mining operation."
Liliy peeked around the rock as the flyer stepped off the lift and saw that he was wearing the Apex Armor. "That explains a few things," she muttered.
"Not to worry," he continued to boast. "My predacon is no doubt dismantling the interlopers as we speak. It was a challenge, but I managed to tame the savage beast. Taught it to heed my every command."
Liliy made the 'yak yak yak' motion with her hand and Miko had to cover her mouth to stifle her giggles.
"You're not wearing the armor to protect yourself from it?" asked one of the two silver eradicons that were accompanying him.
Starscream turned to them. "From my beloved pet? Of course not. In fact, it's getting rather warm in here." He touched the circle in the center of the chest plate and the armor started to fold up and disappear until only the chest plate remained. He set the armor on a nearby boulder. "Aw, ventilation."
"Ho?" Upon seeing that, Liliy got an idea. "Miko, do you want to have some real fun?" she whispered.
"Huh? Like what?" the girl asked in a hushed tone, but there was definite excitement.
"Oh, I don't know." Liliy gestured vaguely. "Maybe beating the scrap out of Starscream?"
"You mean with that armor?" Miko peeked around the rock. Starscream had his back turned.
"Indeed. It doesn't belong to him anyway."
Miko looked up at her. "Do you think I can really use it?"
"I don't see why not."
Suddenly, an explosion in the cave shook the ground and smoke and dust billowed from the hole that Miko climbed out of. Miko and Liliy circled around the boulder they were hiding behind when the Cons went to investigate.
"Let's go."
They ran for the ship. Out of nowhere, Starscream's ped slammed down in front of them. Stopping, they turned to look up at him.
"Well, well. Miko, isn't it?" Starscream purred. "And who might you be?"
Liliy grabbed Miko and lifted her, her arm under her legs and other hand keeping her head down. She smiled her best unsettling smile and replied: "Your worst nightmare." Before zipping up to the top of the boulder where the Apex Armor still sat. She set Miko down on the center circle and stepped back as the armor activated.
The look on Starscream's face when he realized what was happening was totally worth it. When the armor fully transformed, it stood about Arcee's height and Miko looked tiny under the glass hood.
"Hoo yeah!" Miko exclaimed. "What's a matter, Screamy? Can't pick on someone your own size?" She stepped toward the Con and he took a step back.
"Oh, he can," Liliy sneered. "He just prefers to stab them in the back."
Starscream glared at her. "You-"
He was interrupted by an animalistic growl. They all looked up. The predacon bone fell from the sky and bounced off the Apex Armor before rolling to a stop on the ground.
"What do ya know, it does fetch," Starscream commented.
Miko looked up again as the predacon descended and landed heavily on top of the ship.
"Scrap!" Miko exclaimed softly before promptly turning and running away, screaming.
"Miko!" Liliy called after her but predacon leapt and smashed the girl to the ground. Liliy just sighed and sat down to wait. She knew the Apex Armor was almost impenetrable, her blade being one of the few things that could pierce it. She also knew that Miko wasn't really being hurt despite all her screaming. Hearing Starscream chuckle maniacally, she looked up to see him stepping closer to her.
"Unless you want the whole of the CRC raining down on you, I suggest you stay away from me, you pompous, preening waste of metal."
"Wha-?! How dare you-" He was interrupted by his comm.
{Starscream! Status report!} Megatron demanded.
"Watch her!" Starscream mouthed at the eradicons, jabbing a digit at Liliy before he answered his leader.
"Hmh." Liliy leaned back on her hands and looked up at the eradicons. "So which squad are you two from?"
They looked at each other and the one who had questioned Starscream spoke, "We're from squad AD."
"From the Elite squads, huh? Should have figured that since you were silver. Do you guys have any other names or are you too good for that sort of thing?"
The eradicon who had spoken huffed and crossed his arms over his chassis. "That stuff is stupid."
The other eradicon shyly shuffled their ped on the ground. "I kind of like the name Adde."
"Oh!" Liliy smiled up at them. "That's a good name."
They all looked up when Starscream gasped. The predacon suddenly pounced on him, pinning him to the ground with one massive claw. The beast screamed in the flyer's face before grabbing the dropped bone in its mouth and flying away.
Liliy looked over at Miko. She was just lying in the middle of a scorched circle of earth, not moving.
[Is she ok?] Leech asked.
[[Yeah. I can read her vitals from here.]]
Now that the predacon was gone, Starscream went over to Miko to get the armor. He tutted thrice, tapping his heel on the ground.
"Even the strongest armor can't protect the weakest of creatures," he said, kneeling beside her.
As he reached for the armor, Miko suddenly reached up and grabbed his shoulders.
"It protected you, didn't it?" she shot back.
"Oh hoho! BURN!" Liliy yelled as Miko shoved Starscream away.
Miko got to her feet and grabbed Starscream's arm and started spinning him around.
"You guys should probably go help him," Liliy suggested to the eradicons.
[It won't help.]
[[Nah. But it gives Miko more people to fight. Screamer isn't much of a challenge when it comes to hand-to-hand.]]
The eradicons ran forward as Miko released Starscream. The seeker crashed into poor Adde, throwing them both back several feet. The other eradicon brought out his blaster and started shooting Miko. She guarded at first but then realized that the blasts were harmless so she ran forward and plowed into the Con, throwing him over her head. Starscream had recovered and he was angry. He fired one of his missiles at Miko. She simply caught it and let it explode in her face.
"Oh, this is too good," Liliy commented as Miko leapt from the cloud of smoke and slammed into Starscream feet first. He was down.
[The boys would love to see this.]
Miko was trading blows with the two eradicons now. She was climbing on top of them and throwing them around. She punched and kicked and pushed them back.
"Who's wrecking who now?" she jeered before she laid out Adde.
"Go, Miko! Woot, woot!" Liliy cheered.
Another flying kick sent the other eradicon sprawling too. Starscream, on the other hand, was finally getting back to his peds.
"You do know that I vanquished Cliffjumper, don't you?" he snared, flexing his claws.
"You mean you mercilessly stabbed an Autobot prisoner while he was helpless and injured," Liliy corrected.
He glared at her again. "How do you know what happened?"
Liliy shrugged. "ZZ-05 was there. He told me what happened."
"That scraplet! Next time I see him, I'll-" Flinching under Liliy's ominous stare, Starscream cut himself off.
Liliy was standing now. "You'll what?"
Starscream hesitated, taking a small step back. How could such a small being, and a human at that, make him feel so uneasy? It was not dissimilar to the feeling he got when standing near Megatron and watching the warlord's temper begin to boil. "Um-"
Luckily for him, the Autobots interrupted.
"Miko!" Bulkhead called as he and the others ran over.
Starscream saw the Autobots bearing down on them and ordered a retreat before transforming and flying off. The two eradicons followed suit.
"They got away with the bone," Miko told Bulkhead when he came up to her.
"Hey." Wheeljack called Miko's attention to him. "You brought your A-game, kid. Like a true Wrecker." He bumped her shoulder with his fist. Miko smiled up at him. He looked up at Bulkhead. "And I wanna remember us just like this." He turned a glare up at Ultra Magnus. "Before the rust sets in." And walked away.
"What?" Miko asked as Wheeljack folded down to his wheels and started driving away. "Where's Wheeljack going?"
"Solo," Bulkhead said.
"Again?!"
"Jackie just broke up the band."
They looked up at the sudden squeal of brakes. Liliy was standing in Wheeljack's path. They were too far away to hear what was said but Wheeljack opened his driver door for a moment before closing it again when a ground bridge appeared.
"He's coming with me for a while so don't worry," Liliy shouted at them as Wheeljack disappeared. "See you guys later." And she disappeared into the portal too.
When X-ray woke up, he found Wheeljack sitting on a stool next to his berth, staring at the wall. He checked his chronometer and it had been several hours since he went into recharge.
"Short Stuff? Have you been there the whole time?"
Wheeljack jerked, startled from his musings. "Ah, no. I just got back actually," he said, tone soft. He didn't really look at X-ray.
"What's wrong?"
"It's nothing. I'm fine."
"Hm…" X-ray reached over and cupped Wheeljack's cheek, turning his helm so he could properly meet the Wrecker's optics. "Unfortunately, we have been together long enough that I can tell that you're not fine and it is something. What happened after you went back? Was it that commander again?"
"No… I mean, yeah, he was an annoying crankshaft, but, no, that's not it." He didn't turn away this time, but he did look down.
X-ray hooked his digits under Wheeljack's helm fin and ran them along the backside of it. "Then, what was it?"
Leaning his helm into X-ray's touch, Wheeljack sighed. "It's Bulkhead."
"Your Wrecker friend?"
"Yeah. It just burns me up when a Wrecker goes soft. You should have seen him trying to kiss up to Magnus to keep him from losing his cool whenever I did something the commander didn't like. Bulk's spent too much time around Optimus."
"And that's a bad thing?" X-ray was still rubbing the back of Wheeljack's fin and he began to wonder if this was what it was like to scratch a human's domesticated animal behind the ears because the mech seemed to be rather content despite talking about an unpleasant subject.
"Not really, I guess." Wheeljack draped his arm over X-ray's chassis and laid his helm on his armor. "But I miss the old Bulkhead."
"Look on the bright side, at least he's still alive. And he still wants to be your friend, right?"
"Yeah…" And closed his optics.
X-ray stopped his ministrations and took his servo away. Wheeljack opened his optics again in disappointment.
"Look, Wheeljack, you'll always have the Wreckers as you knew them. In here." He poked Wheeljack gently in the chestplates, right over his spark. "But times change, players come and go, and, if you can't adapt, you'll rust." He cupped his cheek again. "Don't push Bulkhead away. If something happened to him, you'd never forgive yourself. Trust me, I know."
"You lost friends too, huh?"
X-ray's servo fell to the berth. "Yeah…"
They lapsed into silence. Wheeljack watched at X-ray while the other mech stared at the ceiling, remembering times past.
"You're beautiful," Wheeljack stated.
X-ray looked down at him. "You're not too terrible yourself."
"Ouch." Wheeljack pushed up so he was leaning over X-ray by bracing himself on the berth, his servo under X-ray's arm. "So you think there are mechs out there more handsome than me?"
"Oh, I'm sure there are." X-ray smiled cheekily up at him. "I just don't care about them because I have you."
"Is that so?" Wheeljack leaned down and kissed him.
"Hm." Another kiss. "Yes."
Suddenly, the door slid open. They quickly pulled apart to find Oscar standing in the doorway with two cubes of energon in his servos.
"I brought your ration, X-ray," Oscar said, not caring that he had just interrupted them as he stepped into the room. He handed a cube to the mech who had slowly sat on the berth. Then he offered the other to the Wrecker. "And one for you as well, Wheeljack."
Wheeljack took the cube. "Uh, thanks."
Oscar turned to leave. He paused in the doorway again to glance back at the Wrecker. "By the way, keep the canoodling to a minimum. If you break him, you're gonna end up on the med berth in the next room."
"Oscar!" X-ray cried. But the door was already shut.
Wheeljack smiled. "Your friends really care about you."
"Of course. They're my family after all."
"Family, huh?" Wheeljack considered as he took a sip of his energon.
"Yeah." X-ray sipped his energon. "You should go talk to Bulkhead. The sooner you clear this up, the better you'll feel."
"Sure." Wheeljack sat back down and smirked at X-ray. "Just after I finish this cube."
Liliy's phone rang. She checked the caller id before answering. "What's up?"
{Hey, Liliy. Can I ask a favor?} Jack's voice answered.
"Sure, Jack. What is it?"
{Agent Fowler and my mom went to pick up a predacon bone from a museum.} he explained. {Fowler said it would be a milk run but I have a bad feeling about it. Could you have someone go keep an eye on them just in case the Cons show up?}
"Hm? Is it really because the Cons might show or is it because you don't trust Agent Fowler with your mom?"
There was a long moment of silence on the other end of the line. {...both?}
Liliy chuckled. "Alright, Jack. Send me the coordinates and I'll send someone over."
{Thanks a lot, Liliy.}
Hirry was already moving when Knock Out stopped in front of the humans.
"I have a bone to pick with both of you," Knock Out quipped, charging up the blaster that popped out of his fender.
Hirry transformed and leapt, grabbing the humans as she flipped over them. Folding back up around them, she landed on her tires.
"Catch me if you can, Doc," she challenged, peeling out of the parking lot.
Knock Out yelled "Wha-!?" before going after her with a growl.
"Who are you?" Fowler asked from her passenger seat, still clutching the crate with the predacon bone.
"I'm Hirry. Liliy sent me to watch over you," she replied, weaving her way in and out of traffic. "Something about a favor for one of the children."
"It must have been Jack," said June, sitting in the driver seat. She was holding onto the door for dear life as Hirry raced along. "He was worried about me."
"Can't you just bridge us out of here?" asked Fowler. He had one hand braced on the dash now.
"In the middle of the city?" Hirry shot back, narrowly missing another vehicle as she weaved back out of oncoming traffic. There were horns blaring in her wake. "What would you prefer to cover up? A car chase or an alien abduction on the side of a busy highway?"
Fowler grimaced. "You... have a point."
"Don't worry. I'll call for backup once we are closer to the outskirts."
Suddenly, a big, blue SUV slammed into the side of the Hummer.
"Guh! Breakdown. I guess I'm calling now." She switched to the comms. "Tango, your crush and his partner are on my six. Could you do something about them please?"
{With pleasure.} the mech replied.
"Thank you. I'm almost to the open road. Hurry up." And dropped the comm.
"Crush?" Fowler asked.
"Yeah. Tango has a crush on a Con. Ya got a problem with that, fleshy?"
"No… It's just weird to hear it. Same with hearing Wheeljack had a boyfriend."
"Well, technically, the two mechs chasing us are bonded. The Cybertronian equivalent of being married."
Fowler made a face.
"What?"
"It's just weird. Two guys..."
"Ah. That's what you mean." Hirry had stopped weaving about as much now. Traffic was clearing up the farther they went. "Well, the way you humans classify sex and gender and what not does not really apply to us. Yes, we do have mech and femme frames but those can easily be modified. You can't even tell the difference between the mech and femme vehicons, you know. Also, humans might require the different sexes for reproduction, but love isn't always about reproducing. The Madam-"
Her comm crackled, interrupting her. {Hirry, your tail is clear. Go ahead and bridge.}
"Thanks, Tango." She switched channels. "Alfa, I need a bridge to the Autobot base."
Knock Out could keep up with Hirry, sure. He was pretty certain she was the femme who had punched him in the face after Romeo took the relic from him. But he had no idea how to stop her now.
So, he called in Breakdown.
The bruiser had come around the corner and slammed into the side of the yellow vehicle that was almost the same size as him. She swerved a bit but kept up her pace. And then, even with Breakdown's help, she stayed just out of their reach.
Finally, they were out of the city and there was no more traffic. Knock Out brought out his blasters. Just as he was firing, a familiar orange car slammed into his side, driving him into the side of Breakdown. Startled, Breakdown slammed on his brakes and ended up dragging Knock Out with him because the sports car Con's blaster got stuck on his running board.
Making sure the two had stopped, Tango commed Hirry that she was clear to bridge as he also pulled over. After she was gone, he transformed and walked back to the Cons, not bothered by the fact that his passenger door was sporting a blaster mark this time.
"Really, I thought the two of you would have known better by now," he said, putting his servos on his hips.
"Tango!" the two chorused together.
"What's the matter? Are you two stuck or something?"
"Actually…" Breakdown hedged.
Tango came around the back of Knock Out and saw the predicament. "Oh dear." He covered his mouth with his servo to hide his smile. "It seems you are."
"Well, don't just stand there laughing," Knock Out demanded. "Help us out."
"Yes. Yes." He was still chuckling. "Don't get your gears in a twist."
Tango got them unstuck and they finally transformed.
"Tango, are you ok?" Breakdown inquired. "What did Starscream do to you?"
"Yeah." Knock Out agreed. "And, just so you know, I did my best to make him as uncomfortable as possible while I patched him up after your commander's attack."
Tango stared at Knock Out. "Wow. I didn't think you had it in you to be genuinely sweet on anyone but Breakdown." He was covering his mouth again. "I'm kind of embarrassed."
"Well- It was- I-" Knock Out sputtered. "...You're welcome?"
"Ha ha." Tango grabbed Knock Out by the shoulder and pulled him closer to plant a kiss on the corner of his mouth. "Thank you, Knock Out." Leaving Knock Out startled, he gestured for Breakdown to lean down. "You too, mech." He gave him a peck as well. "Thank you."
Breakdown smiled. "You're welcome."
"So what are you doing here," Knock Out demanded after gathering his wits enough to change the subject, "besides scaring the slag out of me?"
Tango shrugged. "That's all. Hirry called me specifically for backup because you," he poked Knock Out in the chestplates, "were chasing her."
"Thanks to you the humans got away with the bone. What am I supposed to tell Megatron?" Knock Out grumbled, crossing his arms.
"I don't know. The truth?" Tango gestured vaguely.
"Do you know how much trouble I'm going to be in?" Knock Out shot back.
Tango grinned. "If you wanted the bone that badly, you should have got there first."
Knock Out raised his fist with a growl. "I ought to knock you upside the helm."
"Ha! You have to catch me first!" Tango snapped down to his wheels and sped away from them.
"Get back here, you slaggard!" Knock Out yelled, transforming to go after him.
Breakdown shook his helm and sighed. What was he going to do with these two, he thought as he also transformed and went after them.
To be continued...