Author: I am terribly, terribly sorry for my last 'post.' I went through some depression, doubts, started planning on re-writing the whole darn thing but when I dreamed I got kicked by a donkey one night, I finally decided to just continue with what I had started at, and see how it would turn out. I only hope that there are still people out there who are still willing to read this….
Some parts were written in a bit of a rush. Maybe you'll notice, maybe you won't.
Final Note: I now have, with Ashana beeing okay about it, gotten a new beta-reader. I owe Spidergirl a LOT (not sure what her name is on and she also edited some of this stuff, though it was mostly dumb mistakes on my part that I had overlooked when I send this to her. And may she continue to be my beta-reader.
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Chapter 2: Kobayashi Maru.
7 Days Later….
After circling around the planet, the two air fighters made their way into space, heading towards what looked like a small moon, in a tight formation.
One of the fighters resembled a jet, the area around its cockpit painted in red. Its main hull silver and its wings were black with the Decepticon symbol on them. Attached to both wings were two long green colored objects.
As for the other, if someone had looked at it in the middle of space, he or she would have done a double take just to be sure he or she had seen right. While the other fighter resembled a jet, the other one was a jet. An F-17 to be precise, which somehow didn't seem to have any problems flying in space. Its entire hull was painted black, with interspersing patches of white. The windows in the cockpit were yellow-orange and on each wing was the purple Decepticon insignia. The jet, like its companion, looked like it was build for speed and maneuverability.
As they approached the small moon, the leading fighter opened communication.
"Report."
"Negative finding, sir. I searched thoroughly in section 3-7G and 6-2B but did not detect any Energon signals nor any energy of any kind."
"Understood. We'll now head back to the Fortress; I'm in need of some re-charge. After that, we'll continue with your training."
"Yes sir."
The two fighters continued making their way towards the moon, still in flying in tight formation.
"Permission to speak, sir?"
A couple of seconds passed before the leading fighter replied. "Granted."
"Sir, we are now scanning the remaining planets in this sector and have yet to discover any Energon crystals. And the only energy sources that have been located were these crystals on that desert planet. So how come General Megatron did not give out the order to gather them, but instead ordered us to continue searching on the remaining planets?"
"That's because of the fact that a ton of those crystals barely hold a third of the energy contained in a handful of Energon crystals. General Megatron wants us to search and located Energon, instead of wasting time gathering scraps."
"Understood, sir."
Silence resumed as they continued their flight.
…
Even in space, the feeling of flying is…indescribable. I can go and move nearly 3 times faster after the energy core in my Mech was replaced by another type that Decepticon air units had, or so I was told.
I am still getting to know how my Mech works and it's limits. I have yet to have the chance to enter real combat, but until that time comes, I am to be trained hard. But what has me somewhat surprised is how…easy it is for me to fly. I cannot but wonder if I have past experience in flying. Perhaps something prior to my….
Staying on the Mech's subject, Demolisher mentioned something a couple of days ago about something called Unicron that might be able to upgrade my Mech, but a hard glare from General Megatron silenced him and I took it as a hint to not ask about it.
It has been nearly seven days since General Megatron became my Commanding Officer. His Second-In-Command, Starscream, has been assigned to train me since both of us are air units. So far, our training has been flight combat simulations.
Starscream is a highly skilled soldier in the air. So far I have not seen him fight on the ground, but I have been told that he is skilled at that as well. I assume that I will get to see him fight in both places sooner or later. However, what has me slightly concerned is my lack of knowledge regarding the Autobots, the side that we are meant to fight. So far, no one has taken his time to properly explain to me why-
WARNING! MISSILE DETECTED! EVADE! EVADE!
Spike abruptly stopped writing as warning sounds came from all around the cockpit. Quickly canceling the autopilot, he grabbed both the steering stick and the thrust-stick, pushed them to full power and spun the Mech.
A missile went through the space where the Mech's left wing had been less then a microsecond ago. It continued its passage into space for a few seconds until it exploded.
An all too familiar maniac laughter reached his sound sensors.
"Careful, Metal-Squishy, I almost got you this time! Hahaaa!" Cyclonus in his helicopter mode emerged from the moon's shadow, still giggling to himself as he approached Spike and Starscream.
A second later, Starscream transformed and had his green optics narrowed at Cyclonus in anger and annoyance.
"Cyclonus! That's the third time you've tried to do that! And I recall to have told you twice already to stop it!"
"Aw, come on Starscream! I'm just making sure our Metal-Squishy here is paying attention, that's all! Transform!" Cyclonus had a grin that matched his laugh.
"Hey, what's going on here?" asked an arriving Demolisher.
"Your 'partner' here tried for the third time to blow up Spike, that's what!" Starscream snapped. Demolisher simply looked at Cyclonus, his expression looking like someone had told him the same joke for the tenth time that day. Cyclonus' grin only widened.
Quickly shaking his head, Demolisher turned back to Starscream.
"We just finished searching those two planets. No Energon detected. How about you?"
"Negative. Has Megatron returned yet?" replied Starscream, looking a little less angry now.
"Nope. Still checking out that asteroid field. What is he expecting to find?" Demolisher asked no one in particular, but his gaze fell on Spike, who was still in his jet mode.
"What I wanna know is why he gets all the Terrorcons! Our job would be a lot easier and quicker if we had those Energon sniffers with us!" Cyclonus whined, earning a hard glare from Starscream.
"Because he is our leader and he does what he wants, Cyclonus." Starscream growled and Cyclonus raised his hands defensively. Before he spoke, Spike finally broke his silence.
"Sir, my Mech's energy levels are now at 35 percent. Requesting permission to go and recharge."
"Granted." Without another word, Spike flew of towards the Fortress. Cyclonus grinned and raised his hand and aimed another rocket at the retreating jet, but Demolisher knocked his hand away.
"Knock it off, it wasn't even funny the first time." Cyclonus pouted for a moment, then looked at the retreating jet before turning back to the other two Decepticons, his arms folded across his chest.
"I don't like him."
There was no need to reveal whom Cyclonus was talking about. It was a subject that had been repeatedly discussed behind Megatron's back.
"I think you've made that point more then obvious, Cyclonus." Starscream said dryly, knowing full well where the conversation would lead.
"Look Starscream, I-I'm not questioning Megatron's decision or anything, but you gotta admit, his decision on our…our newest member is a bit strange!" stated Demolisher, earning a glare from Cyclonus at the 'member' part. Demolisher ignored him and went on.
"I mean, to all of a sudden just show up with that human on our doorstep, telling us something about a memory loss because of some experiment that involved humans able to control these…these…well, seeing that lousy robot copy actually made me feel offended, you know!"
"Hah! Tell me about it!" Cyclonus barked.
Demolisher kept talking. "I mean, I can see the advantage to have one around, to see how it performs and stuff, since we have no idea how many have been made and…"
Realizing he was getting off the subject, Demolisher cleared his throat and spoke a bit more calmly.
"All I'm saying is, to have something around that is suppose to fight us and being controlled by a human who claims to have no memory, can be risky. That's all." Demolisher finished talking, but Starscream's expression did not change in the slightest.
There was an awkward silence.
"Umm….so…Starscream. What's uh….what's your take on him? Think he's trying to trick us?"
"You tell me, Demolisher. After all, did you not spent nearly 10 years around them on their home planet?"
"Uh…well, you see…" It was a subject Demolisher preferred not be brought up, as it was obviously an uncomfortable topic. "I, uh….m-mostly just kept to myself, y'know?"
Neither Starscream nor Cyclonus said anything, but simply looked at the stuttering Demolisher.
"I uh….g-gotta go and….and uh, recharge," the tank mumbled, before flying off towards the Fortress. Starscream and Cyclonus exchanged looks, then Starscream transformed as well and left, leaving Cyclonus alone.
"Man, can't wait to see Tidal Wave and Scorponok reaction on our newest 'member,'" he said to himself sarcastically, before transforming and flying towards the Fortress as well.
…
Squeezing his fists even tighter and clenching his jaws to the point of risking breaking his own teeth were all that prevented Spike from screaming out in pure pain as the cables slowly withdrew themselves one by one from his spine. When the final one had completely pulled, Spike gasped for air and breathed heavily, his face wet with cold sweat and his heart beating hard.
When his pace had slowed, he reached for his helmet, placed it on, and breathed the air in it, before pressing one of the buttons on the control panel next to him.
Outside, the cockpit on the Mech's chest slowly opened and Spike emerged. Spike jumped down without hesitation after looking down from his place. The long fall would have broken a normal person's legs when they hit the ground, but Spike landed without any signs of discomfort or pain. Standing upright, he looked up as the cockpit closed and the recharger started recharging the Mech.
Walking outside, he made his way through corridors that were made for far larger beings then himself until he reached a door that was surprisingly small compared to everything else. Spike pressed a small button next to it and the door opened, revealing a room that was smaller then a broom closet. Walking in, the door closed and air hissed in. Three seconds later, another door in front of him opened and he walked through.
The room held next to no furniture. A steel bed, a steel desk with a computer and an odd looking canister containing some blue sparkling goo sat next to it, it. Walking up to the computer and the canister, he removed the upper part of his black jumpsuit, exposing his chest.
The steel walls around him mirrored his image.
A young man looking to be around 20-21 years old was reflected back to him, with dark brown hair that was cut military style and a left eye that was an even darker brown then his hair. As for his right eye, well, the glass color in his cyber-eye was green.
And his right 'eye' was not the only thing metal on him. His entire right arm and nearly half the right side of his chest were metal. The arm itself looked like it had been pieced together from junk with stubby metal fingers and exposed wires in his 'elbow' area. The only things that seemed to keep the pieces together were the screws.
Using his left hand, he opened a small panel on his metal wrist, then reached to the canister and pulled out a tube and inserted it in the arm. The blue goo traveled through the tube and into the arm, giving Spike nutrients.
Spike began typing on the computer while more goo traveled through the tube, his metal fingers working just as fast as his left ones. Images of his Mech appeared on the screen, showing the inside workings, along with some data on the mechanism. After going over it, he exited and began typing again.
Day 7
No Energon signatures detected on the planets Starscream and I were send to scan. Neither Demolisher nor Cyclonus were unable to find anything. General Megatron has yet to return. Only two more planets remain unsearched in this sector. After Starscream has finished recharging, we will resume my training. Until that happens, I will be studying my Mech more closely, to familiarize myself more with it.
Final Note: For the third time since my arrival here, Cyclonus fired at me with the intention of destroying me. I am beginning to believe he has something against me.
…
…
The silver colored jet skillfully dodged the shots coming from the black jet. Increasing its speed, it headed towards the nearest moon with Spike pursuing closely. Spike fired more shots, but none hit Starscream as he continued what looked like a crash towards the moon. At the last moment, Starscream pulled back just before he would had hit the moon's surface. Spike did not stop his pursuit as both of them flew along the moon's surface.
A rocket was fired from the black jet, but just as it got dangerously close to Starscream, he took a sharp turn to the right so the only thing between the jet and the rocket was a large rock that blew into pieces when the rocket hit it. The pieces were thrown in several directions, many hitting Spike as he flew past the blast site, but managed to hold a steady course and continued his pursuit.
Both jets entered an area with a small narrowed canyon. Starscream flew down and entered it and Spike did not hesitate in following.
The path was just big enough for the jets and didn't give much space to maneuver, yet Starscream flew like he knew the area precisely while Spike tried his best to mimic the flying while still getting a clear shot.
Before he could do this, however, the other jet fired at one of the walls in its path. Several chunks of rocks that were larger then the two jets combined started falling down just as Starscream flew past them. Spike had two choices: slow down and wait until the rockslide was over, or increase speed and attempt to fly by before the rocks blocked the path.
Spike increased his speed and flew closer and closer to the ground as the rocks fell down. For just a split second, it looked like he had made it, but a large rock landed on the jet's back, pushing it to the ground and sending sparks everywhere as it got dragged across the surface. However, the jet's vibration made the rock fall off so it managed to lift off the ground, only to face another problem.
The canyon passage was reaching its dead end and at the speed Spike was going at, if he hit the wall destruction was all but certain.
He immediately started pulling up.
He got closer and closer to the wall.
The distance between the jet and the edge was as long as Spike's thumb, as he just barely managed to escape certain death.
Only to get shot.
…
100 DAMAGE. GAME OVER.
The message flashed repeatedly in front of Spike's eyes, as he slowed his Mech down to a standstill, then turned towards where Starscream was, on the moon's surface still in his jet mode and just a couple of feet away from the edge.
"Transform!" yelled Starscream as Spike made his way down on the ground. Without a word, Spike reached out and touched the transformation button, landing on two feet and standing at attention before Starscream.
"Tell me where you went wrong," Starscream said, in a stern but not angry tone. Reflecting on the events before, along with his actions and its consequences, Spike answered Starscream.
"Sir, waiting until the rocks had stopped falling would have been the better option, sir."
"For you, perhaps, but then you would have given your target plenty of time to escape with whatever data or information it had gathered, or to get reinforcements," Starscream stated, this time with a slightest edge in his voice. Taking in the new information, Spike experienced confusion in himself.
"But sir, the situation I was in offered only 2 choices. Risk following you or wait until the path was safe."
"But long before I even entered the canyon, you had a third option. Destroying your target before it lead you into a situation that favored it."
"What do you mean, sir?" In a way, Spike by now knew what lesson Starscream was teaching him about how to fight, but he also knew he had to ask him nonetheless to fully understand it.
Starscream said nothing, instead taking steps towards Spike, who did not waver even as Starscream's face was nearly touching his.
"Never take your time in killing your target. Never play with him, even if in a battle that seems to be all but won. Your opponent, should he be given the chance, could very easily learn your moves within seconds, find out what attacks you favor and just how brutal you are. When you know all these things about an opponent, you could very easily find a weak spot and use it to finish him off. Even if he has more firepower or even skills or experience, when you know who you are fighting against, his weakness becomes greater then yours. Remember that, soldier." Starscream's green optics were just slightly narrowed. It was situations like these when Spike truly felt like he was not in his Mech.
"Yes sir. I understand."
Starscream silently nodded, but before he could say anything else, the sounds of static were heard and Megatron's voice sounded.
"Starscream! Stop whatever you're doing and report back! Energon has finally been located and we're moving out to collect!"
"Understood, sir." Starscream responded as Megatron's transmission ended, then turned to Spike.
"You heard him. Let's move." Starscream jumped into the air, followed by a cry of "Transform!" Spike jumped up as well, and soon the two jets made their way towards the flying fortress.
