Chapter 18: Shadowbox
(Alternative Title: The Other Sword, And A New Face Appears)
Rad glanced up at Rachel as she talked to her mother on the phone. He couldn't hear much, but from the grimace on the blonde's face, he could guess it was about her 'wrecked' car. He still didn't believe Rachel had been able to work with Smokescreen so fast, but it showed she was trying.
And she looked less haggard, which made him immensely happy.
Rachel blew her bangs out of her face as she came back from the hall, stowing her cell into her pocket. "That was close, almost thought I was going to let something slip." she ruffled Rad's hair before putting on her jacket. "So, the science carnival's still going on if you want to go."
Rad finished off his cereal, and shook his head. "Nah, I wanna go see how that girl you brought back is doing." He'd been dropped off at the apartment to rest after Red Alert discharged him, but saw Rachel picking up the disk with the ancient girl on it.
Rachel's smile turned sharp, and Rad stiffened. "I misspoke; you are going to the fair. You've had a hard day yesterday and I think you need some human interaction." she glanced at High Wire, who was sitting beside Rad and watching him carefully. "Right?"
The mini-con nodded. "Yes, Rad should have a nice day out."
Rad glowered at them. High Wire had barely left his side all day on Saturday, so he felt duped because both the mini-con and Rachel were in one mind on this. "Fine." he muttered. "At least I'll have High Wire with me."
"Yeah, no." Rachel crossed her arms. "He's coming with me after we drop you off at the fair. High Wire can't exactly go running around."
Rad leaned forward. "We could pretend he's a really advanced earth robot." Rachel glared at him, and the blond ducked his head. "Nevermind." Well, maybe being by himself could be fun. "I'll go get my hoodie."
When he reached his room, Rad saw Kero staring out the window. "Hey, what are you doing?"
Kero frowned as he looked at him, but blinked. "Hmm? Oh, nothing." he tilted his head. "Where are you going?"
Rad pulled on his hoodie. "To the science carnival. It's been going on all weekend and Rachel wants me to have fun."
Kero raised a brow as the blond pulled his key and the Sakura Cards out of the drawer. "And you think you'll need them?"
Rad snorted. "Those cards show up in the craziest places-I'd rather keep them on hand than not at all."
"Yeah..." Kero trailed off, and floated over to Rad, expression serious. "Let me go with you."
Rad blinked, frowning as he glanced at the door. "Why?"
Kero crossed his arms. "You really have to ask?" he gestured to the open room. "I'm stuck inside all day every day. How am I suppose to help you if I don't get some fresh air?"
"I thought you got your energy from the sun?" Rad questioned, but Kero's eyes widened and he clasped his stubby hands together, lip jutting out and he whimpered. The blond sighed. He supposed it wasn't fair, they were friends after all. "Fine, you can come with me-High Wire won't be there for you to try and argue with."
Kero grinned and curled into Rad's hoodie. "So sad, too bad." he sang.
Rad rolled his eyes and walked back out into the foyer where Rachel held the door open, key in hand. "Okay, I get it, I'm going."
Rachel shook her head as she locked the door behind them. Rad shoved his hands in his pockets while his cousin wheeled High Wire to the elevator. She hadn't noticed Kero, so that was good. "Be sure to text me when you get there."
Rad nodded as the elevator made it's way down the floors. "If it even goes through." he caught the glare Rachel sent him and amended his statement. "Yeah, I got it."
Rachel reached out to pet his hair. "Don't look so mad please, there's nothing wrong with having fun."
Rad pouted, but didn't object when Rachel reached into her pocket and gave him a handful of five dollar bills. "Why are you going to the Autobot base though?"
"Because if Alexis and Carlos are there I'm not letting them run around unsupervised." Rachel said dryly.
Snickering, Rad conceded to her point. "Good point." When they got outside, Rad waved Rachel off and made his way down the opposite sidewalk. "Try not to be noticed, okay?"
"You're the one talking to yourself." Kero retorted, snorting as he laid on Rad's shoulder like a regular plush doll.
Rad scrunched his nose, but smirked as he poked Kero on the forehead. "Smart aleck." Kero batted his finger away, but immediately went still, falling limply against his shoulder. Rad frowned, and heard the quiet engine in front of him. He adjusted his key around his neck, and saw at the corner was a yellow and purple motorcyle with a rider dressed completely in black. "That's a really cool bike you got there."
The rider glanced at him, visor so dark he couldn't see the eyes except for the lens flare. The hands tightened on the handlebars, and without a word the motorbike took off, tires squeeling.
Rad frowned as dust was kicked, coughing, but yelped as Kero reached up to whack him on the forehead this time. "What was that for?"
Kero glowered at him. "Stranger danger, don't they teach you kids that anymore?"
"Of course they do." Rad said offended. "I made sure to keep out of reach, didn't I?"
"That's not funny." Kero said flatly.
Rad sighed. "Yeah, saying anything was pretty stupid." he ran a hand through his hair, and kept going on his way.
"So what do Americans do for fun at these fairs?" Kero asked curiously.
"You're kidding; did you spend all your time here in a book?" Rad asked incredulously.
Kero scowled at him. "Things were going on, and then I was spending all my time keeping a bunch of angry cards back."
Rad winced. "Sorry for bringing it up." he coughed into his hand. "The science fair is where all the latest tech is showcased, and there's all sorts of carnival games where you win prizes."
Kero rubbed his chin. "Sounds like the festivals back in Japan, artificially at least. I'll need to see these games to know for sure-so you'd better not suck at it."
Rad glared at him, huffing indignantly. "Well it's not like you'll be able to do it. I can pass High Wire off as being an advanced robot, but you? What am I supposed to say? You're just an advaced child's plush toy?"
Kero growled and reached up to pull on Rad's hair, causing the blond to cringe. "Don't call me that!"
Rad pinched Kero's cheek harsly. "Let go!" he hissed, but his eyes widened as he noticed a familiar man with dark hair walking around the other street. "Marty!" he whispered. Kero immediately went limp and Rad hurried to catch up with the older boy. "Hey!"
Marty blinked, but smiled when he saw Rad. He adjusted the bag of groceries in his arms. "Hello, Rad. Decided to get some exercise?"
Rad blushed, self-conscious patting his stomach. 'What's that supposed to mean?' Why did he feel so flustered around him? "Kinda. Ray wanted me to walk to the science fair. You?"
"Just getting some groceries." Marty shrugged. "Stocking up for when we leave for the exam."
Rad's eye twitched at the reminder, and knowing that the day was getting closer made him antsy. "Uh-huh. You thinking of going to the fair?"
"Maybe later, but science isn't really my thing." Marty replied.
Rad smirked. "Then what do you call paleontology then?"
"Cool." Marty replied teasingly.
Rad flushed deeply. "Y-yeah." he whispered. He straightened up. "Well, I'll see you later-or maybe not, you know, if you decide to go."
Marty nodded. "Later."
Rad's flush spread to his hairline, and stammered out a goodbye again. He sprinted, groaning as he couldn't believe he acted like that. He scowled as he heard Kero snickering at him. Thankfully the carnival music and cheers, machinery from rides whirling faintly, hit his ears.
He was almost there, and dang it, he was going to have fun.
Rachel stepped off High Wire as they arrived at the Autobot's base, and when they arrived in the comman center, she put her hands on her hips. "I made a joke with Rad you'd be here, but I didn't know I'd turn out to be right."
Carlos flushed, redness faintly standing out against his skin. He glanced at what everyone else was staring at, the blush deepening. "Well, Grindor said you'd brought her here yesterday."
Alexis crossed her arms. "And that Rad was in danger."
"Hey," Hot Shot said defensively, "me, Smokescreen and Rachel did a pretty good job of saving him."
"Yes, way to stay calm under pressure." Optimus said, clapping Hot Shot on the shoulder.
The yellow bot preened. "Thank you, sir!"
"I would be more reserved, Optimus-Hot Shot could get a big helm. Bigger, I mean." Red Alert said dryly. Rachel was surprised to hear his tone was more amused than it had been before.
Hot Shot heard it too, and grinned at him. "Another joke? I must be rubbing off on you." Smokescreen snickered, and Red Alert crossed his arms, lips pressed severely together.
Rachel saw the green-haired girl staring at nothing, a distant look in her eyes as she seemed to tune everything out. She wondered what was going through her head-did she have thoughts of her own, what was her capacity? "What do you think of the future?"
The girl blinked slowly as she looked over at Rachel. Her face was as impassive as ever. "It's certainly different. I will admit the Autobots so far appear better in comparison to the Decepticons. Though I have yet to go through all their files yet, so that judgement will be reserved until later."
Rachel stiffened, her eyes glancing up at the Autobots. "Um, should you really be insulting them? You know, right in front them after they set up your disk to their systems?"
"Trust must be earned," Optimus said calmly, "she has no reason other than your word. We wish for her to make her own decisions about us."
"I am grateful you are letting me keep an eye on the Star Saber components." The green-haired girl said. Rachel, Carlos and Alexis all flinched when abruptly the blank screen showed a room with two panels in it. "I will not fail this time."
"What just happened?" Alexis questioned.
"When I set up a seperate system for her," Red Alert explained, "I integrated coding from her disk to mingle with our bases controls."
"So, she can manipulate the bases's systems?" Alexis asked worriedly.
Sensing where this was going, Optimus said, "It's all about trust."
"But how was her disk comptible at all?" Rachel had assumed the Autobot's would just give the girl a computer to live on, but they went all out-although, she did have valuable information. Cynical to think, but no one but the kids probably considered it.
"I discovered that her disk was made from reverse engineered Cybertronian technology." Red Alert explained, and nodded to the girl, "and she told us that her people had found machinery from the crashed mini-con vessel along with the three components of the Star Saber."
"You keep mentioning that, but what it is?" Carlos asked scratching his cheek.
Alexis sighed heavily. "Obviously it's a sword, it's got the word 'saber' in it."
Carlos glared back at her. "I know that! I wanted to know what it did!"
"It was rumored to be the most powerful sword in the universe." Smokescreen started. "I never saw it in action, but before the mini-con exodus, it was so strong it could cut through anything."
"Almost anything." The girl whispered, her tone absent and she looked surprised-as though she just realized what she said.
Rachel furrowed her brow, but before she could follow it up with anything, an alarm blared-harsher and with short, rapid beeps than the regular siren. "Did you upgrade your mini-con alert system?"
Optimus' frame tensed, and the other Autobots all looked grim. "It's not the mini-con alert, it's the perimeter alarm." he looked at the girl. "Could you bring up the footage from the sky spy?"
The girl nodded, her brow furrowing in concentration. The screen shifted from the panels to a map of the surrounding area. A blip grew closer to the base, and the image zoomed in, causing Rachel to scowl at the screen. Cyclonus was flying around, but the girl let out a soft gasp.
"It's the final panel to the Star Saber." she whispered, her eyes locked on the small blue and white form inside the Decepticon's cockpit.
Optimus looked down at her. "Are you certain?" he sighed when the girl nodded. "Rachel, take the children to a secure room; I will not send you home until we are sure the Decepticons have not found the base."
"Aw man, we can't watch you kick Decepticon butt?" Carlos asked, but Grindo beeped and pulled him along with him.
Sureshock warbled, and Alexis threw her arms up. "I'm going, no need to think I'm like Carlos." she said, and the boy glared at her.
Rachel rubbed her brow, and followed after the kids and High Wire trailed alongside her. She glanced over her shoulder and saw the Autobots making their way to the base, and for the first time since she'd been there, the door closed after them. 'It's so weird to see it being used.' she thought, but shook her head as her group was taken to a familiar room. "Nostalgia getting to you?" she glanced between Sureshock and Grindor. "This is where you both were stored in."
"It's something alright." High Wire said, crossing his arms.
The door slid shut, and the girl appeared in on a screen over the wall where Sureshock and Grindor had first been in. "I hope this is not inconvenient to you all," her faced turned stern, "but you should really think of your own self-preservation."
"What?" Carlos asked.
Alexis' cheeks puffed out. "She said it wasn't smart to get involved in a robot war."
"Take that back!" Carlos snapped.
A high-pitched scream cut through the air, and all the humans jumped as the girl clutched her head. She fell to her knees and doubled over; Carlos ran up to her, momentarily forgetting he couldn't touch her as his arms went right through her. He jerked back when the girl's form fritzed, going in and out of focus like static on the television. A loud, ominious click followed it.
"What's going on?!" Carlos demanded, and knelt down in front of the girl. "Are you okay?"
"It is illogical for me to feel pain." The girl said, but her heavy 'breathing' belied the strain in her systems.
"That's not what we're seeing right now." Alexis' harsh edged softened. "You're hurt, what happened?"
The girl winced, and she got unsteadily back to her feet, her hologram becoming clear again. It did little to shake the terror behind her next words. "The Decepticons are in the base."
Every human and mini-con had the same horrified reaction, which echoed tenfold in the room. "WHAT?!"
Rad looked around with wide eyes, breathing in deep, and inhaled the scent of kettle corn, popcorn, and sizzling hambugers and hotdogs. He flushed as his stomach growled, but raised a brow when Kero's did as well.
The guardian did a small shrug. "Don't judge me."
"Wasn't gonna say anything." Rad replied quietly. The sights invaded his senses; parents pulled their children along with him, while other kids were getting balloons from people in animal costumes. "What to do first..."
The blond frowned as he noticed a motorbike by the edge of the fair, leaning on a kick stand. It was the same yellow and purple motorcycle from earlier, the completely covered rider leaning against the tree next to it, arms crossed as the driver looked out over the fair.
As if noticing they were being stared at, the rider turned their head straight at Rad, eyes locked with the visor.
Rad felt a sharp pinch at the back of his neck, and he broke contact and turned away, shielding Kero from sight. "What was that for?" he hissed softly.
"Quit staring, it's creepy." Kero retorted.
"Tell that to him." Rad jerked his head up, but his eyes widened when he noticed the rider and motorcyle was gone. "That was quick."
"No doubt you scared him off." Kero said snidely.
Rad scowled down at him, and from the corner of his eye saw a ring toss game. "I'll deal with you later, I'm gonna win me a key chain." he tugged the string his key was on. "Need something better to hold this."
"Yeah, I keep worrying it's gonna break and you won't notice." Kero shook his head. "And then we're would we be? How sad-a Cardcaptor defeated by their own cluelessness."
Rad flicked Kero on the forehead, and huffed as he marched over to the booth. Kero quickly kicked his shoulder before ducking back into the hoodie before the vendor noticed him. "How much?"
"Three dollars for three rings." The man replied.
Rad nodded and handed over a five, getting two dollars back and three rings. He shoved the coins into his pocket, but froze as he felt an odd sensation fall over him. He felt weird, as though something was following him, something which had always been there-since the day he was born there.
"Hey kid, you okay?"
Rad blinked, realizing he'd been staring around aimlessly. "Y-yeah." he said and absently tossed the first ring. It clinked off the top bottle, and Rad scowled. He aimed for a lower bottle, but that just wobbled the bottle. 'Last one, gotta make it count.' he aimed for the top one once more, and carefully tossed it.
The ring circled around the tip of the bottle, but for a moment the ring's shadow didn't move with it. Like lightning, the bottle was flung at Rad, causing him to jerk back as the plastic hit the counter in front of him.
"Whoa there!" The vendor picked the bottle up. "You got some force behind those throws."
"Y-yeah." Rad stammered, glancing at the space where the bottle had been. There was nothing out of the ordinary anymore-his first thought was to dismiss it, but that bottle had just been-well, thrown at him. "I'll try again after."
"Enjoy the rest of the fair." The vendor called after him.
"Kero," Rad said softy, "did you feel that?"
"How could I not?" Kero laid against his shoulder. "Be on your guard, this is one that definitely shouldn't be active during the day."
That alone made Rad uneasy. "Which is?"
"Shadow, and given he just tried to clock you with a bottle, he's not happy."
Rad sighed. Glow had been nice and gentle-figures it wouldn't last.
"Oh man, this can't he happening, it can't be!" Carlos gripped his hair, fear written across his face.
Alexis didn't look much better, shaking and curled into herself. "It was a bad idea to come here." she whispered.
Rachel saw even the mini-cons were affected, huddled together and warily watching the door like they expected the Decepticons to come barging in. She wouldn't deny that with a clear head she felt the same fear-like she could only be brave when desperate. 'No, when I need to protect someone.' she looked at the kids and mini-cons, and knew she couldn't afford to be afraid here either.
The blonde walked over to Alexis, and grabbed her shoulder. The girl blushed, and allowed Rachel to pull her over to Carlos. She gently but firmly pulled the boy to his feet, and grabbed them both by the hand, tugging them over to the group of smaller robots. Grindor immediately hugged Carlos, while Alexis wrapped her arms around Rachel and buried her head into the blonde's side.
Rachel stared at her, but only patted her back before looking at the green-haired girl. 'Clear head, keep a clear head.' she thought, but in the quiet room they could hear footsteps that didn't belong to the Autobots. "What happened? Why did you freak out, how did the Decepticons get into the base?"
The girl frowned, looking worried and worn down. "I saw through the sky spy that the Autobots had chased after the flying one, but inside I saw the other Decepticons had appeared in the base by some transportational means."
"Their warp gate." Rachel supplied. "Go on."
"The big one with antlers placed a disk into the system, and...and it hurt," the girl hugged herself, eyes wide as though it surprised her, "I felt a painful surge going through me-it attacked the systems and locked down all the doors and the transport-warp gate. I had to put myself on the seperate server Red Alert made for me just to remain in tact."
"So we're stuck." Rachel said darkly.
"Why are they here?" Carlos asked. "This can't be just for a sword!"
"They made a plan to lure the Autobots out and found a way to warp in. Since Cyclonus has the last component with him I don't doubt he's found his way in too with the other 'Cons." Rachel said frowning.
"What are they gonna do if they catch us?" Alexis asked, a tremor in her voice. "I don't wanna die!"
Rachel put her hands on the girl's shoulders and looked her square in the eyes. Alexis flushed deeper, but the blonde ignored that. "Listen," she said firmly, "you're not. Gonna. Die." she glanced over at Carlos, her gaze stern. "Neither of you. We'll get through this, and that means finding this disk and taking it out. Once the Autobots are back inside, they can deal with the Decepticons."
"Where's this disk and who's going to get it?" Carlos asked.
Alexis stiffened, and she grabbed Rachel's wrist. "No, you can't go out there. You say you'll come back but what about if you don't?! It's too terrifying to even consider the possibility!"
Rachel looked at her sadly; she must be getting transparent if Alexis could see her thought process so easily now. "Someone has too-the mini-cons will have to much to worry about with capture if they go out." she bit her lip. "I hope the other minis are okay though, plus, the Decepticons aren't searching for humans."
"You're not going alone." High Wire said firmly.
Rachel rubbed her brow. "I know you want to help, but it's too dangerous for you."
"It is for you too, but you're doing this because you feel a responsibility for all of us-well, so do I!" High Wire retorted. "I made a promise, and I'm not breaking it! I know this ship, and can help avoid detection better. Grindor and Sureshock will be able to protect their partners too." he explained, and the two other mini-cons nodded.
Rachel paced around the room, struggling to accept the explanation. She was torn between two minds-on the one hand, High Wire made sense, but on the other she didn't want him to get captured. 'High Wire isn't a child though,' she reminded herself, 'no matter how much he acts like one.' He could make his own choices, and that was ultimately the deciding factor.
"We can do this together then, but how do we get out of the room if it's locked?" Rachel questioned.
High Wire gestured to the space around them. "The Autobots made the ship, which is why it was made to their scale. But, we did our own modifications to our convenience to make it...homier I could say." he walked over to the wall where there were he grabbed the bottom of the wall and pulled it open.
Carlos blinked. "I thought the doors were all locked?" he glanced at the green-haired girl. "That's what you said, right?"
The girl nodded, looking confused herself. "There were no secret doors from what I gathered."
High Wire rubbed his neck. "They're not secret per say...you just need to know they're here." he looked sadly down at the ground. "I'd suggest we use these to escape, but the actual exits could be blocked off by the mountain and lead to a dead end. If the Decepticons find this room though, the kids can just hide in here."
"I still don't like this." Rachel said, but relayed what High Wire explained to them. She walked over to the wall, but felt a hand wrap around her wrist again. She furrowed her brow at Alexis. "What-?"
The brunette hugged her tightly. "Just try to stop being a hero after this, please." she whispered and looked up at Rachel with tears in her eyes. "You're too important to m-to Rad...to just die."
Rachel patted Alexis on the head, her heartstrings tugging. "I can't make that promise," she whispered, "just that I'll try my hardest to come back."
Alexis deflated, clearly not the answer she wanted, but it was the only one Rachel could give. Sureshock came up to Alexis and placed her hand on the girl's shoulder, beeping something that made Alexis let out what sounded like a mix between a sob and a laugh.
Rachel smiled briefly but was all business when she stared at the green-haired girl. "Before you transferred yourself-where did you see the disk being put in?"
'Just try to act casual, that won't make Shadow think you're onto him.' Rad repeated what Kero said to himself, but the Sakura Card hadn't shown himself since trying to bean him with a bottle. "What else can I do?"
"Talking to yourself? What, can't find anyone to stand you anymore?" A snide voice asked.
Rad's eye twitched, and he glared over his shoulder at Billy. An alone Billy, which made Rad smirk. "Pot, meet kettle."
Billy scowled at him and crossed his arms. "Fred's on one of the rides, but it looks like you're actually by yourself. Don't you know how sad that is?"
Rad glared back, but glanced at a fishing game. "What's sad is how I can kick your butt at that game over there."
The taller boy glanced at the game, scoffing. "Yeah right."
Rad shrugged and turned, but smiled to himself. "Your loss, can't wait to tell Alexis and Carlos how much of a wuss you are."
"That's it!" Billy grabbed the back of Rad's hoodie and dragged him over to the game. "When you lose, you're gonna buy both me and Fred lunch."
"And when you lose, you'll be buying me lunch." Rad retorted.
Both boys payed the vendor and recieved fishing rods with magnets for the hooks. The plastic fish were swished around by a water current vent in the small pool. Rad swirled his string around the water, while Billy rapidly drop it in and out. Rad flinched as he felt the cold, stalkery feeling wash over him.
The shadow of the fish jerked to the side, making an actual plastic fish move. It attached to Billy's magnet, and when the string pulled back, the fish flew out of the water and nailed Rad between the eyes.
"Ah!" The blond hissed, holding his forehead. Billy's triumphant howls grated on his nerves, even more so when he couldn't call foul. 'I don't know what hurts more, getting nailed in the head or losing to Billy.'
Billy grinned as he dangled a yo-yo in front of Rad's eyes, who glowered at it. "I like hamburgers, Fred likes nachos. You'd better have a lot of money on you." he grabbed Rad by his arm and pulled him along.
Rad wrenched his arm free, and frowned when he caught a shadow slithering away-too fast to know where it went. 'Crud. There went my chance.' he rubbed his brow. "You got lucky."
"Sore loser." Billy retorted, jerking his chin up haughtily.
Rad's eye twitched again, and he felt Kero serritipiously pat his neck. Taking a deep breath, the blond followed Billy to the food vendors. He grumbled as he pulled out his money, reluctantly paying for the hamburger and nachos. "Shouldn't you be waiting for Fred? His food's gonna get cold."
Billy shrugged. "He'll eat it," he said dismissivally, "let's sit over here."
Rad crossed his arms. "What, just to order me around if you want more food?"
Billy huffed. "Why else?" he snapped and plopped down at a picnic table.
The blond rolled his eyes and sat on the other side. He drummed his fingers against the wood, but kept his eyes out for anything suspicious. And though he didn't see Shadow again, he thought for a moment he saw a flash of purple from the corner of his eye, but then a familiar brown-haired girl caught his eye. "Kelly?"
The brunette saw him, her face flushing as her arms tightened around a plush teddy bear. She spoke quietly to the older version of herself, who adjusted the braid over her shoulder and nodded. Kelly beamed and rushed over to Rad, panting lightly as she sat beside him. "Hi!"
"So, you're having fun I take it?" Rad asked.
Kelly flushed, nodding shyly. "Yeah, I won this in an egg race." she hugged the bear, smiling. "Do you wanna try a game? You know, with me?" she asked, her voice growing softer.
Rad thought it over for a moment. Well, Shadow did seem to like screwing up his chances at these games. "Why no-"
"He's busy!" Billy snapped, and Rad glared at him.
Kelly's nose wrinkled, and she scowled at him. "I don't think I was talking to you." she said harshly. "So why don't you mind your own business!"
"Well I got him first so buzz off!" Billy retorted.
Kelly shot to her feet, and Billy did the same. They both glared at each other over the table, and Rad could just imagine the fire in their eyes.
"What are you two even fighting about?" Rad asked incredulously. He jerked back when Kelly and Billy turned their glares on him, and in unison shouted "Stay out of it!" before scowling back at each other.
Rad rolled his eyes and threw his hands up. "Whatever, I'm out of here." he said, but suspected that the two were too busy glowering to hear him. He waited until he was out of hearing range before speaking again. "That was weird."
"Yeah..." Kero trailed off, a frown on his face. He narrowed his eyes, brow creased. "It was." he glanced at something over the brim of Rad's hoodie, but Rad couldn't see what caught his attention.
"You sense Shadow?" Rad asked, but Kero shook his head and ducked back into the hoodie. Rad looked away, but a sudden jerk in the hoodie made him reel back sharply, seeing the small plush guardian flying off to the balloons. "Kero!" he called, his voice low but sharp. He clutched his hair when Kero ignored him. "I can't believe this."
A feeling of Rad fell over Rad, that dark forboding becoming more familiar. Rad looked over as screams erupted from a bounce house that had the side of it blown out, air leaving and the house quickly deflating. Rad saw the dark shadow slinking away, and glanced over at where Kero went.
At a crossroads, Rad groaned to himself, but took off after Shadow.
Kero's wings beat harshly, heart pounding as he ducked behind a wall. No one had seen him, but he could see his target. He knew he recognized that presence, and there was no way he was leaving without answers of his own.
Rad, Rachel-one of these things wasn't like the other. He was promised...why hadn't it happened?
Kero glided onto the top of a sign, and dropped limpy on his target's head.
The form froze, and slowly a hand reached up to pluck him off. Familiar eyes, ones he hadn't seen in years, gazed into his own.
A smiled curved their lip, playful and stern. Their voice was soft to avoid suspicion, but Kero wanted to reply so badly when he heard it. "Kero-chan, it's been a while."
Rachel let High Wire take the lead, simply because her cell phone's spotlight wasn't as strong as his. She grimaced as she took in the state-nothing had rusted, but it was dusty and the walls were covered in grime. "Yeah, if we survive this, you really gotta clean these tunnels."
"Yeah, but then we'd have to work, and it's not like humans are gonna use them." High Wire shrugged.
Rachel rolled her eyes. 'Figures, no matter what the species, laziness is universal.' she thought. "Wait, I hear something." she whispered, and quiet clangs echoed through the hall.
High Wire turned off his spotlight, and they stood stiffly in the darkness. Just as quietly, the two of them continued. There was no other light source, so it kept them in total darkness.
When they turned the corner, Rachel and High Wire shrieked as they collided with something. Shrill beeps rang out, and many spotlights turned on, revealing to Rachel the Autobot mini-cons.
She held her chest, panicking replaced with relief as her heart slowed down. "You're all okay," she still checked over them, "though I think you'd be safer with the Autobots outside."
Jolt crossed his arms, beeping. High Wire translated it promptly. "He said there's not much difference."
Longarm warbled, head downcast, and High Wire relayed it. "And now that the Decepticons are here things are a million times worse."
"We have a plan though." Rachel said. "High Wire and I are going to fix what's causing this, and then the Autobots can come back in. Stay safe, it makes me worried if the Decepticon mini-cons could have the same idea to try these tunnels."
Sparkplug nodded, and pointed down another hall.
"They heard the Decepticons down there, so we should be careful." High Wire said, and both he and Rachel passed by the other mini-cons as they let them pass.
Rachel frowned as she looked around again, and High Wire beeped as he found the wall panel. "So this is where things get really real." she said sardonically.
High Wire shrugged. "Yeah, but some things just require a bit of risk." he said before lifting the wall, and let Rachel go under it. He followed and let it gently settle back onto the ground. He looked at the blonde, and winced. "Er, sorry-maybe we do need to clean up."
Rachel deadpanned as she stared down at the dust on her jacket, and the grime which had coated her sleeves. "First, lets deal with problem 1." she said dryly, and the two of them continued onwards.
They both kept a close eye out for a slot in the wall, and High Wire beeped suddenly, drawing Rachel's attention. On the next wall over was a slot in the wall, with purple veins glowing even through the lines along the crease.
The only problem was the fact it was almost seven feet off the ground.
Rachel took in the height diferrence, and glanced at High Wire. "So, you mind getting a bit dirty?"
"No." High Wire said wryly, and Rachel nodded.
She carefully climbed onto High Wire's back, and then onto his shoulders. He gripped her ankles securely and she leaned against the wall for extra measure. Her fingers pressed against the raised indent, and pushed-but nothing happened. "Come on! Work, damn it!"
Rachel slammed her fist against the button, but only got it to inch in. The pressure wasn't enough. She gasped as footsteps quickened to their position. "Oh crap."
"Hurry, put your back into it!" High Wire ordered.
Rachel gritted her teeth, and slammed both her hands against the button. The glow dimmed, and she ducked before the disk shot out. It clattered to the floor, but Rachel and High Wire's cheer was cut off sharply when a figure turned the corner.
"Insect!"
"Ah!" Rachel screeched and jumped from the mini-cons shoulder, a smoking dark spot against the wall above her. She saw Megatron's hateful glare, and High Wire quaked behind her. "Damn it."
"You can't just stop getting in my way, well no more!" Megatron glowered and his hand clenched. "I couldn't crush that brat, but I will enjoying tearing you apart so much more!"
A barrage of laser fire from the ceiling made Megatron step back, glaring at the guns mounted on the walls. The green-haired girl's voice rang through the hall. "I will not allow harm to come to her or the mini-con. You will leave or I will continue to fire."
Megatron scoffed. "What can you do-"
Laser fire cut him off, plinking off his body and he roared as he shielding his face. Rachel and High Wire didn't waste a moment to run the other way. They could hear the shots grow fainter, but both screamed as they turned the corner-only to find it was Hot Shot.
He jerked back at the sound, but his face softened in relief. "You're okay! Are the kids and the other minis fine too?"
Rachel nodded. "They're hiding out in the tunnels."
Hot Shot frowned. "Tunnels?" he repeated, but shook his head. "Anyway, get to safety, I'll handle Megatron. He's probably going for the other parts of the Star Saber."
"No need to tell us twice." Rachel said, and High Wire beeped in agreement.
Rad pulled the key from his neck, and made sure the area was clear. He'd seen Shadow take off for the hot air balloon rides, but no one was around at least. "Key of the star, with powers burning bright; reveal the staff and shine your light," the golden circled appeared under him, "release!" The key elongated, and Rad clutched the wand tightly.
He did another paranoid look around the area, but with the area still clear Rad broke for the shadow snaking along the ground. Rad pulled out card, but winced as he realized he didn't know how Rain could help him-didn't know how any of his cards could help him. 'Darn it, Kero, where the heck are you!'
How was he supposed to be beat a shadow that was actually running around broad freaking daylight? Rad gritted his teeth, and pulled out the rest of the Sakura Cards. He looked over each one, biting his lip as he felt his head pound as he couldn't think straight. 'How, what-how, what?!'
Rad started breathing heavily, but a sense of calm began to wash over him. It reminded him of Glow, with a reassuring warmth growing inside of him. The blond's breathing slowed, and he took in a calming breath. 'Okay, okay, just go through this step by step-work it out and see what you can do.'
Nodding to himself, Rad looked over the cards again. Glow could work against Shadow, but he didn't know how strong the lights were. None of the others would work as well, not unless Shadow had a physically form. 'Which means I need to get him into that.' Which was where Glow could come in.
Where would be lead him too? Rad frowned and looked around, his eyes spying a building by the balloon rides. Rad nodded to himself, and put all cards for now back into his pocket except for three. The blond concentrated, his brows knitting as he felt for the dark, cold, stalkerish feeling Shadow gave off.
His eyes snapped open, and Rad threw a card into the air. "Dash!" he yelled and shot forward to avoid the dark tendrils that had lunged for him. Rad whirled around and jogged in place, grimacing as he saw the sweeping darkness along the ground. "Come on, what's the matter-too slow?"
The shadows boiled, and Rad super sped into the building. He used his second card as he rushed up the stairs. He yelped as a spike slammed into the wall just above him. The circle appeared under him, moving in place with him. "Lock!" he yelled, and all around him a pulse emitted from the card and the walls all glowed for a moment.
Rad narrowed his eyes down at the swirling mass that was prodding at the windows and door. Neither broke. "Only one of us is leaving, so why don't you show me what ya got?" he jumped back when a tendril shot up at him, piercing through the wood where he'd stood.
The blond ducked behind a wall, and threw his third card into the air. "Glow, spread your light and make Shadow move!" he pointed the wand at the card, and dozens of bright orbs flew out of the card, and Rad felt the floor tremble as he saw through the cracks how the light was making Shadow swerve and coil away.
It lasted until Shadow couldn't take anymore and slid through the cracks to the floor Rad was on. The mass came together, and Rad readied his next card when a cloaked form appeared. "So this is what you look like, huh?"
Shadow thrust out an arm, and Rad jumped to the side as the sharpened point pierced the wood, but Shadow didn't stop as he aimed the other arm at Rad. The blond ducked and the point pierced the pillar frame.
"Windy, trap Shadow!" Rad didn't have anything fancier to say, because he was really sick of thinking. The spirit burst from the card, and began to wrap around Shadow's body, her own tendrils keeping the black masses trapped in the wood. Rad stood in front of the window, holding out his staff as the wings at the tip glowed. "Return to your power confine, Sakura Card!"
The spirit thrashed in Windy's grip, but was slowly vaccuumed into the shell card. The arms were the last to be sucked in, and Rad grinned as the card floated to him. Windy, Glow and Lock followed, and he smiled gratefully at them. "Thank you." he placed the cards into his pocket, and couldn't help but jump in cheer. "Yes-ahh!" The wood cracked under his foot, and Rad jerked back-realizing too late the only thing behind him was a window.
The blond's eyes widened in horror as he crashed through the glass. "Craaap!" he screamed, quickly reaching into his pocket. Something collided with his form, and the sharpness of it caused his wand to fall from his grasp. "Damn it, not again!" he looked up, but flinched when he fond a visor staring back at him. "Huh?"
Confusion set in further when the mystery person was able to spring board off the wall and into the hands of a giant robot. Rad's mind stalled, seeing that he was being held bridal style by the rider, but both of them were being held now by a purple and yellow bot. The robot put the dark-clad rider on the ground, who in turn set Rad on his feet.
"W-what?" Rad questioned, his eyes widening again as the rider's suit dissolved, revealing a mini-con that jumped towards the larger robot. The mini-con transfomed into a helmet and landed on top of the bot's head, with Rad's eye turning to the familiar red decal on his chest. "Autobot?"
The bot nodded. "Got in one." he glanced down at the staff lying a few feet away. "That yours?"
Rad stiffened, and quickly picked it up, but resisted shrinking it. "Yeah," he said slowly, "so..." he furrowed his brow, "you're the motorcycle I've been seeing all day?"
"Sorry about the cloak and dagger thing, but I wasn't sure if you knew the other Autobots or not." The bot explained. "Wouldn't wanna accidently find myself with the Decepticons."
Rad smiled shakily, but both the robot and his mini-con did save him. "Y-yeah. So, thanks for the save."
"No problem, but what were you doing up there?" The bot questioned.
The blond bit his lip. "Nothing, just checking it out." he answered quietly, and not-so-subtly changed the subject. "You wanna meet with the rest of the Autobots?"
"Sounds like a plan." The robot replied, and Rad watched the fact the mini-con once more had a hologram over its body to make it seem like a rider, while the bot transformed into a now very familiar purple and yellow motorbike. "Hop on."
"Sure-" Rad stopped, his eyes catching sight of the yellow plush toy hanging over a low tree brance. The blond's eye twitched. 'Now you show up?' he rolled his eyes and grabbed Kero before getting onto the motorcycle behind the rider, wrapping one arm around their waist while the other held his wand and Kero securely. "Oh, I didn't catch your name. Mine's Rad."
"Name's Sideways."
Hot Shot could feel his spark pulsing heatedly in his chest. The glass chamber was still a bit sore from when Starscream almost ripped it apart, but there was no way he was going to let Megatron get near those Star Saber mini-cons. He hoped Rachel and High Wire were some place safe at least, along with the other minis and kids. 'Guess Rad lucked out when he decided not to come in today.'
The mech turned at the corner, but found no sign of Megatron, just smoking remains of the cannons that had been mounted on the wall. "Hey, where'd Megatron go?"
The girl's voice rang over the intercom, frustrated. "He has the final mini-con part, he's heading to the other pieces. The rest of the Decepticons were dispatched by your comrades, but this one proves to be harder to deter."
Hot Shot grimaced. "Don't we know it." he replied. "Just keep trying to hold him off. I'll go get the other components and regroup with the other Autobots."
"Just hurry." Was the strained reply.
Hot Shot didn't waste any time in standing around, and took off down another corridor for the room where the mini-con panels were being held. He couldn't let Megatron get his hands on them, on the Star Saber-that would spell trouble for all of them! 'Come on, move faster!' he shouted at himself, pushing his leg struts to the limit.
He felt something snap in his right leg, and Hot Shot bit back the scream of pain. 'Red Alert can fix it after, don't think about it.' It stung though, but he finally made it to the room wih no Megatron in sight. 'A couple lasers isn't enough to make him give-though it would save us a lot of trouble.' he thought, and winced when he saw the remaining two components glowing. Hot Shot pressed the lock, and stood guard in front of the panels, blaster at the ready.
"Hot Shot, he's still going for the mini-cons," the girl said, "I informed Optimus, Red Alert and Smokescreen of the sitaution; they're ETA is three minutes."
Hot Shot jerked up at the crash against the door, furious roars on the other side. "Yeah, tell them I don't have three minutes."
"Open this door right now, little Autobot, and I may spare your life." Megatron said.
Hot Shot scowled. "Somehow I don't believe you." his arms still ached from their encounter in the antartic.
"Then you've sealed your fate." Megatron growled.
Hot Shot flinched when a hard object slammed against the door, followed by a barrage of laser fire. The door began to creak, and the yellow bot kept a digit on the trigger, tensing as a black servo burst through the door. Hot Shot fired, but all that happened when the laser hit was an irritated "How annoying" from the other side.
"Scrap!" Hot Shot snapped as the digits dug into the metal and Megatron roared as he began to pull the door open. It might have been useless, but Hot Shot didn't let up shooting the servo until it was pulled open-there was no way he was getting close to the Decepticon unless he had too.
"Go, join your brethren and become my ultimate weapon!" Megatron ordered and Hot Shot saw him drop a white and blue mini-con onto the floor.
The yellow mech looked between Megatron and the smaller bot, but gritted his denta as he dove for the mini-con. Hot Shot yelped as his bad leg was grabbed by the ankle, and he turned back to find Megatron had reached out and grasped his pede.
"Let's not interfere." he said smirking.
Hot Shot scowled at him, but looked fearfully as the final Star Saber mini-con dashed straight for the wall where the other two panels where located. His lips twisted into a scowl, and he turned and fired at Megatron. "Let go, let go!"
The Decepticon snarled as he began dragging Hot Shot to himself. "Such persistence; how adorable." he sneered.
Hot Shot shuddered. "Don't call me that, Decepticreep!" his blaster was knocked out of his grip as Megatron lunged forward and grabbed his wrist, and Hot Shot screeched as his other leg buckled under the strain of the Decepticon's leg pinning it down.
"Stop, please don't this!" Hot Shot gritted his denta, and he strained to look back. The green-haired girl had physically appeared in front of the other two panels, with the third mini-con posed as though surprised to see her.
It didn't last long, as the mini-con began beeping and letting out shrill screeches, waving their fists angrily at her. The girl tensed up, unlikely to understand the words but the body language spoke volumes. The mini-con recognized her, and that wasn't good.
"Please, I'm sorry for all that my people did, but being with the Decepticons isn't right either!" she pleaded, hands clapsed.
"Stop wasting time and get on with it!" Megatron snarled.
The mini-con nodded and walked through the girl, who had an ashamed and terrified look on her face. She closed her eyes tightly and fritzed out. The other two panels activated and they briefly conversed with each other before the three of them began to combine into a sword with an ornate handle, a wide blade, and a pointed tip.
"Yes, it's mine!" Megatron lifted his servo to catch the sword as it sailed towards him.
"Not a chance!" Hot Shot shouted. He reached past Megatron's arm to grab his antler and pulled on it. The motion didn't get him to move, but sure got his servo too-and let the Star Saber flew fight past to imbede itself into the wall.
"What?!" he glared down at Hot Shot. "You little brat!" he lifted the yellow mech up by the neck, but before he could do more, a barrage of laser fire barrelled into his side. He glared over at the door, where Optimus stood with his wrist cannon aimed at the Decepticon, who smiled darkly. "Well, this is familiar, but I seem to recall it being with your berth warmer."
Hot Shot's anger spiked. "Don't call him that!" he slammed his fist into Megatron's optic and felt it crack. When the grip loosened around his neck, he pulled himself free and grabbed the handle of the Star Saber and tugged it free from the wall. The held the sword out in front of him, and along the blade it broke into a buzzing blue glow. "You have no right to say anything about Red or Optimus!"
Megatron glared at him through a cracked optic, before turning it on the Prime. "What a good little lackey you've got there." he said darkly, and Optimus tensed up before sneering back at the yellow mech. "Do you think you have any idea how to use the sword's power?"
Hot Shot gritted his teeth. 'No,' he admitted to himself, 'but I won't let you take it!'
"Your soldiers have all fled," Optimus said, "do you think you have any chance?"
Megatron narrowed his optics. "I will never pass up a chance!" he snarled, and lunged for the sword.
Hot Shot reactively reeled it back, and sliced it in a downward arch. He tensed up when Megatron stiffened, staggering back. 'Did...did I get him?'
His answer came when one of Megatron's antler began to slide, and fell clean off. The Decepticon made a strangled noise, and a creak rang out before a large piece of his tread followed suit. Oil began to seep out, and Megatron glared viciously at Hot Shot. "Enjoy your victory while it lasts." he spat, and he warped away.
Hot Shot vented deeply, and leaned back against the wall. "I can't believe I did that." he whispered, dazed and in disbelief. "I actually made Megatron run away." he paused, and glanced down at the sword. "Well, we did."
The yellow mech looked up when a servo was placed on his shoulder, and Optimus stared down at him. "You did well," he said firmly, "are you injured?"
"Yeah." Hot Shot replied. "But before we go see Red Alert...I was wondering if I could make sure the kids are okay."
Optimus paused, his gold optics thoughtful. "Very well." he nodded, and added somewhat ruefully, "Though Red Alert will not be pleased with either of us."
Hot Shot grinned, but groaned when the perimeter alarm went off again. "What now?"
"A purple and yellow motorcycle is nearing the base, with a rider and young blond boy." The green-haired girl reported.
"Blond-Rad!" Hot Shot said in realization. "We have to get out there!"
Optimus nodded, and allowed Hot Shot to lean against him as they briskly made for the exit.
Rachel's blood pumped loudly through her ears, her legs aching as she sprinted for the entrance. The threat of the Decepticons had passed, but once she heard the description of the motorbike, and that Rad was with it, she got angry and scared all over again. High Wire jogged to keep up with her, while the kids used their mini-cons as transport. She might have done the same if she was thinking clearly, but she wasn't.
And the moment she stepped outside, her eyes locked on the parked bike and Rad, who furrowed his brow.
"Ray, what happened to you?"
"That doesn't matter-get away from that bike!" Rachel snapped.
The blond flinched. "What-why?"
"Because that was the bike that kept trying to run me over!" Rachel yelled. Behind her, both Carlos and Alexis stared.
Rad's jaw went slack, and he looked at the headlights for some reason. "You...you did?"
And the most shocking part-the bike spoke back. "Yeah, I might have come across that yellow-haired human a few times. I didn't know I was breaking any rules though."
Rad looked earnestly at Rachel, shifting the staff and plush toy into his other hand as he stepped off the motorbike. "See? He just didn't know any better. Plus, he saved me from-" he paused, "well, I kinda thought this house was part of the show, turns out the floorboards were really unstable and I fell out the window."
Rachel's heart panged. "What?!" she scrutinzed his appearance, and turned a suspicious eye to the motorbike. "And you saved him? Why?"
The bot didn't reply at first. His rider jumped off, revealing itself to be a mini-con, and when the robot transformed-it became his helmet of all things. Rachel's eyes were drawn to the red insignia on his chest that he gestured to. "Isn't this reason enough?"
"And didn't you just get over your issues with Smokescreen?" Rad asked pointedly.
"If it means that much to you, I'm really sorry about almost running you over." The robot said.
Rachel glowered at him, but she was torn. On the one hand, Rad was right-this bot was likely new to earth and probably didn't know about traffic rules...or basic decency to not hit the thing by the crosswalk. She still felt angry though; she'd been carry it since she'd almost got run down the first time. 'Smokescreen turned out to be not-so-bad, maybe this bot won't be so bad either.' she thought. "Fine, I accept your apology." she placed her hand on her chest. "And you did save Rad, so...I guess that makes you okay."
The blonde gave a lopsided smile. "What's your name then?"
"Sideways," the bot replied, "and believe me, you won't regret it."
