Quick note- Sorry about the long delay folks, I had a bit of a hang up trying to get this chapter just right. Many thanks to AngelsWind, TruebornChaos, Twi Silvermoon, Flyby Stardancer, Draange, Misfitz, Tiamat1972, DesertCat87, PuraJazzBot, ShadowShock, Tirya King, Football girl 11, and Sweetfires for your reviews :D
Part 5
When First Aid arrived the next morning the twins were still there, keeping vigil. "Do you have a spark for her?" He asked as he set up the equipment. Sunstreaker gave him a 'what kind of idiot are you' look and gestured to the transparisteel container that Sideswipe held. A shimmering silver blue spark bobbed and flickered within.
Several years earlier…
"Well, tomorrow I start construction, and within a month you'll have a sister." Ratchet announced with a tired smile, throwing himself into a chair in the main ward. The twins' answering grins were huge.
Sideswipe turned to the spark canister on the berth beside him. "Hear that sis? You'll be one of us in no time." He grinned, gently stroking the transparent wall of the chamber. The spark seemed to flicker slightly in response.
Ratchet watched the exchange curiously. "I don't know why you two keep doing that. She can't hear you." He commented.
"Carly and Spike talked to Daniel while he was still under construction." Sunstreaker pointed out.
"Yeah, but they're organics." Ratchet answered. "I doubt the same rules apply."
"But she recognises us!" Sideswipe insisted. "Look, you try it. Put your hand on the chamber and talk to her."
Feeling somewhat self-conscious, Ratchet hauled himself out of his seat and carefully touched his hand to the side of the chamber. "Hey Moonlight, my name's Ratchet. I'm the one who's building you." He said, watching carefully for any response. To his utter amazement, the spark flared a brilliant blue before settling down.
"Toldja." Sideswipe grinned. "Tomorrow, can we watch?"
"Yeah, why not. Just make sure you're not on duty first."
"Okay."
But tomorrow never came.
During the night, the Autobots were roused with the news that Iacon had fallen to the advancing hoards of Megatron's army. The handful of Autobot survivors fled to Earth, and Prime ordered the acceleration of construction of Autobot City and the Moonbase staging grounds. Before the year was out the Autobot forces were being redeployed in preparation for what would be one of the biggest Autobot-initiated assaults in the history of the war.
Ratchet stood in his repair bay in the Ark, sweeping his optics over it one last time. "You take good care of these boys First Aid." He said to his subordinate. "They'll give you a trailer load of scrap at times, but don't let it get to you, they're just seeing what you're made of."
"Take care Ratchet." First Aid replied. "The Ark will still be standing when you get back."
"Sideswipe is gonna be here without Prowl to watch him." The older medic pointed out.
"Ah. Point taken." First Aid replied, looking up as the double doors swung open to admit the twins. "I'll be back to see you off." The Protectobot said as he quietly left.
"I still can't believe this is happening." Sideswipe mumbled, hoisting himself up onto a berth, Moonlight's spark chamber nestled in the crook of his arm.
"Yeah." Sunstreaker murmured, seating himself beside his twin.
Ratchet watched them. Their looming separation was obviously going to be hard to handle, but he was confident the twins were strong enough to cope. "Just make sure you take care of the Ark, Sideswipe." He said gruffly. "Some of us would like a base to come home to."
Sideswipe grinned and held up his free hand. "I won't break a thing. Scout's honour." He replied with an impish grin. "I won't even throw a party either."
"Tracks and Trailbreaker will handle that." Ratchet grinned. "Make sure you take care of Moonlight."
"I will." Sideswipe promised. "Wanna say goodbye?" He asked, holding out the canister.
"Why not." Ratchet shrugged and touched the container. "Hey Moonlight, you behave yourself, y'hear? And keep Sideswipe in line, he won't have me on his tail for a bit." The spark flared again under the medic's touch, eliciting a fond smile from the CMO.
"All Autobots please report to the landing platform." Prowl's voice cracked over the PA system.
"That's our cue." Ratchet said. "Let's go."
0o0o0
Within the space of a few weeks, the darkest hour of Cybertron's time threw it's shadow over the war. Autobot City was broken, Unicron revealed, and a new Prime rose from the rubble to light the Matrix.
But Sideswipe cared little for such momentous events.
He had been part of the rearguard set to defend the Ark. He, along with Tracks, Trailbreaker and some of the Minibots, were ordered to hold their positions when the attack on the City had begun in case of a secondary wave.
The first time Sideswipe saw his brother was when Ultra Magnus brought him, along with scores of other wounded, to the Ark for treatment, the City's medical facilities being either inaccessible or inadequate to deal with the glut of patients.
Then the dead were recovered, and brought back to the Ark.
Sideswipe entered the cabin he shared with his twin, shoulders sagging. He hadn't believed it, he refused to believe it, right up to the point where he shoved his way through the crowd of mourners and beheld the shattered bodies of his commander, comrades and friends.
Now he sat in the gloom of his shared room, the only illumination coming from Moonlight's spark, resting on the bunk usually reserved for Sunstreaker. Slowly, Sideswipe reached out with one black hand and trailed his fingertips across the clear wall of the container. The spark flickered familiarly. "Hey 'light." He said softly. "I got some bad news. There was an attack. Sunny got hurt, but he'll be ok." Sideswipe paused, gathering his thoughts. "You remember Ratchet? He, he got caught in the first part of the attack. He…didn't make it. Ratchet's gone, so is Prime, and Ironhide, and Prowl, and Wheeljack, and…" He trailed off, unable to continue as the reality of the situation suddenly registered in Sideswipe's mind.
The silence was broken only by one warrior's dry sobs as he curled up beside his brother's bunk, shoulders shaking as he sought comfort from his sister's spark.