Sorry for taking so long with this chapter. Now that it's here, enjoy!
Chapter 4: Aftermath
The Ark, a few hours later…
"Ratchet?"
"What?" the medic answered, still cradling his face in his hands.
Behind his facemask Wheeljack frowned, struggling to think of any words that might ease the pain his friend felt. Realizing there was none he fell back on an old staple. "You did the best you could…"
"Yeah?" Ratchet replied, looking up at the engineer. "Tell that to Brawn and Sideswipe." His face suddenly took on an ashen expression again. "Primus, how am I going to tell Sunstreaker…?"
Wheeljack bowed his head at the mention of the deceased. Brawn had been designated a Class 5 casualty, meaning that the damage was so severe and his chances of pulling through so slim that operating on him would likely cost the lives of the other patients. He died without ever getting near the O.R. Sideswipe on the other hand had perished on the operating table despite Ratchet's best efforts to save him. He had been the last to be attended to.
The fate of the other Autobots had not been much better. Of the group which had set out for Los Angeles only Jazz and Mirage were still functional, their wounds consisting more of savage dents and bumps than fusion blasts. Everyone else on the taskforce had been place in stasis pods in order to allow them to heal. Whether or not they would come on line again was unknown.
The creature which had caused this mess was currently lying on a bio-bed, heavily sedated and pinned down by multiple heavy chains. Many of the remaining Autobots had wanted it destroyed then and there but Ratchet had stopped them on the grounds of finding out what it was and what it was doing here. It had not been a popular decision.
These events made the news Wheeljack had to impart to Ratchet that much harder.
"Look, this may not be the best time to tell you this but…"
"What?" Ratchet asked, looking up.
Wheeljack decided to get straight to the point. "I'll be blunt. We need to decide on a leader. With Prime, Ironhide and Prowl out of commission the fourth Autobot in the chain of command has to assume control of the army."
"And who would that be?" Ratchet asked, his gaze suddenly fixed on the monster lying strapped to the bio-bed.
Wheeljack fixed the medic with a steely gaze before delivering his response.
"You."
*****
Decepticon HQ…
"Are you SURE it was a fusion cannon?"
The tone of Megatron's voice made his mood quite clear. He wanted answers and he wanted them now.
Scrapper looked back to the rest of the Constructicons, all of whom had suddenly found tasks which required their immediate attention, then back to Megatron. Although he wasn't capable of feeling the cold, at least in the way that humans did, he could swear he felt a chill course through his body.
"Q-quite sure", he stammered, offering the data pad which confirmed this deduction to Megatron. When the commander didn't take it he lowered his arm slowly. "A fusion cannon leaves behind a distinct radioactive residue on the target's remains as opposed to the ion trail left by most types of laser rifle. We found the residue all over the Seekers' bodies."
Megatron leaned in closer to Scrapper, his every being radiating menace. "Given that I am in possession of the only fusion cannon ever created, who do you think did this?"
Scrapper suddenly felt as if he was inside a glacier. "We, um…w-we don't know j-just yet."
Megatron's face suddenly sprouted a smile, an unpleasant predatorial one. "Then, my dear Scrapper, you had better find out soon, unless you wish to experience that radioactive residue first hand."
Scrapper could only nod in acquiescence as Megatron and Soundwave strode out of the repair bay.
*****
The Ark…
"Please tell me you're kidding."
On Wheeljack's shake of the head Ratchet buried his face in his hands for the umpteenth time. "You mean to tell me that I'M the new Autobot leader?!?"
"Until such time as any of the three above you recover", Wheeljack replied.
Ratchet got to his feet and started to pace back and forth across the room as he always did when he was faced with a new problem.
"For Primus' sake 'Jack I'm a doctor! I don't know the first thing about leading an army!"
"Look", Wheeljack replied trying to calm the medic down. "I know this must be a difficult thing to have pressed upon you, but you have to consider the other Autobots. They're frightened, Ratch; they don't know what that thing is but they know its dangerous to them. They need someone to explain what's going on and keep the situation from getting out of hand. Let's face it, no one knows how to keep order in the midst of chaos like you do."
Ratchet stopped pacing but fell deathly quiet. He considered what Wheeljack had said for a moment, then sighed dejectedly.
"Alright, fine", he said. "I'll do it."
Wheeljack nodded, then turned to a storage drawer and pulled it open. "You'll have to take this first." He pulled out a glowing spherical object with a large handle on either side it and offered it to Ratchet.
The medic's optics widened as he recognized the object.
It was the Matrix.
To Be Continued…
