Chapter 108 – UN Work
(JaPOV)
The group was splitting up to cover more area.
What were the fricking odds?
And he was riding with Prime, Kae, and the Vietnamese colonel.
"Where to next?" he asked with a broad grin.
"Ohhhh..." Sing stated mildly, looking at the map. He made a point of looking around, up at the sun. "This way." he stated cheerfully.
Mikaela laughed and looked up at Optimus.
"Permission to scout ahead?" she asked sweetly.
"Is there anything I can say that will convince you otherwise?" Optimus promptly rumbled with a snort.
Mikaela looked at him seriously for a moment.
"Probably not, no," she snorted.
"Communications," Optimus ordered calmly.
"Aye sir," Kae nodded calmly before a scanner ejected itself from her exo.
Jacobs couldn't help but stare as she glanced around before sprinting off.
"She is just like her little brother," Optimus snorted.
"Isn't it the other way around?" Sing asked curiously. "her little brother is like her?"
"Bumblebee's older, and bigger," Jacobs murmured with a snort.
"They are family?" Sing asked with a broad grin.
"Best way to explain it," Jacobs grinned.
"Kae to Optimus," her voice rang out over Optimus' speakers.
"Go ahead Kae," Optimus rumbled with a smile.
"Are you guys coming or you just gonna stand around all day gossiping like old ladies?" she called out over his speakers.
Above him, Optimus snorted, reaching up and covering his vocal processors.
Silence.
"Oh you didn't," Mikaela's voice stated flatly. "You put me on speaker you right prat!?"
"Sorry Kae," Optimus rumbled, he looked about ready to bust a gut. Jacobs couldn't help but laugh at him.
"I can feel you laughing Optimus," Mikaela's voice added wryly.
Optimus laughed aloud at that.
"Coming?" he rumbled, his hand dropped away from his throat and he knelt down somewhat, offering his hands.
Jacobs plonked into the hand immediately, closely followed by Mr. Sing.
Optimus casually lifted them to his shoulder, and Jacobs couldn't help but stare in shock as his shoulder shifted slightly.
"That's how Kae stays on your shoulder?" he demanded with a grin.
"Hmn? No," Optimus rumbled with a snort. "But I will be able to cover more ground if you are securely on my shoulder."
"So Kae could fall off?" Jacobs demanded incredulously.
"No, she is secured," Optimus rumbled with a snort. "However I have no doubt you would be more comfortable like this, Mikaela tends to magnetize herself to my frame, it lets her move about more freely."
Jacobs shrugged and buckled himself into the almost seat beside Mr. Sing.
Optimus took a couple of steps, glanced at them and took off running.
That. Had to be the best ride in the entire fragging world.
Optimus was running over the terrain the way Jacobs did an obstacle course.
And from twenty odd feet in the air, that was just-
"SO. FRIKKIN. COOL!" Jacobs howled.
"Kae to Optimus!" Mikaela called out.
"Go ahead Kae," Optimus rumbled with a grin.
"Found one! Piping co-ordinates!" Her voice sang cheerfully.
From above them.
"How'd you get up there that fast!?" Jacobs demanded, looking way up at a small figure looking down at them from the cliff edge.
"Like this," Optimus rumbled with a snort. His arms flew up and he froze, looking at Jacobs and Mr. Sing with a small frown. "Sorry, I forgot, I should probably put a field around you for this..." he rumbled musingly.
A bubble surrounded them, Jacobs reached out and poked it, it caused a distortion in their viewpoint.
"That's wild," he muttered in awe. "But what's it for?"
"Stray rocks," Optimus snorted, he took a step back and jumped.
Halfway up the cliff.
"Holy shit!" Jacobs grinned as Optimus idly pulled himself up the cliff face.
Except almost at the top, the cliff edge gave way somewhat, Optimus slipped.
But they didn't fall.
Kae had him.
"For Primus sake, Kae," Optimus rumbled with a snort. "If I fell from this height I might damage a hose, if you fall from this height you damage-"
"Oh come off it, I've a digger for a great uncle," Mikaela snorted, hauling him up. "I'm anchored."
Wait...
"How the hell are you carrying Optimus!?" Jacobs demanded in shock.
"Temporal forcefields and a good portion of my frame is currently underground anchoring me," Mikaela snorted. "You saw me levitating Ratchet that one time."
"One time," Optimus snorted.
"Ignorance is bliss," Mikaela snorted. She grinned up at Jacobs and Sing on Optimus' shoulder. "How's the view up there?" she called up cheerfully.
"Why the hell do you ever come down from here?" Jacobs demanded with a laugh.
"I second that," Optimus rumbled in a musing tone.
"If he's always carrying me around, how would I learn to walk!?" Mikaela called up, the epitome of an innocent tone of voice. "Mines are this way." she added with a grin, striding forward, Optimus laughed and followed her.
She stopped at some line she'd decided on and looked up at them with a grin.
"Your shot," she stated cheerfully.
Optimus chuckled and turned his head, looking at Jacobs.
"Which would make it your shot," he rumbled with a smirk.
"Wait, what!?" Jacobs demanded with a broad grin.
"You need not worry about falling from my arm," Optimus rumbled mildly, raising his arm and bringing forth one of the biggest cannons Jacobs had ever seen. "I will have to take care of the aiming, of course..."
"Holy shit!" Jacobs crowed, he made to stand up and shrank back into Optimus' shoulder somewhat. That, was really high up.
"There is a forcefield along my arm, ensuring you do not fall," Optimus rumbled in a comforting tone. Jacobs nodded and half rose, walking somewhat crouched down Optimus' arm. Which was insane, and awesome.
"Uh, where?" Jacobs asked with a grin.
Optimus' other hand reached up and idly pointed to a rather safe looking spot on his forearm. Jacobs grinned and thought about it for a second before opting to lay on his stomach.
Which was an excellent view, then the weirdest thing he'd seen yet, a couple of binder cables crept from beneath Optimus' armour. Weird until they delicately wrapped themselves over his legs and the small of his back. Then Optimus began moving his arm, and Jacobs was bloody thankful for those binder cables holding him in place.
Then the wildest thing yet, a set of crosshairs and a...
"A trigger!?" Jacobs howled.
"You asked to fire my cannon," Optimus rumbled in an amused tone.
Jacobs' face hurt he was grinning so much.
"On your command!" he howled, setting himself up as Mikaela and Sing laughed at him. Through the crosshairs he found himself aiming for a rather innocent looking patch of ground, beneath him Optimus' arm warmed slightly, and light began emanating from beneath his armour. The slightest shift in the crosshairs.
"Fire!" Optimus commanded.
Jacobs pulled the trigger.
A blinding flash of light burst from the cannon beneath him, Optimus' arm jerked back the slightest bit.
And the field exploded!
Jacobs pushed himself up as much as the cables allowed him and began howling, punching the air as the landmines blew in a chain of explosions, the dust settled to reveal a massive crater in the middle of the field.
Best. Friggen. Day. Ever.
(OPOV)
Optimus could barely manage to snort back the laugher at the man's expression.
"A trigger!?" Jacobs howled, laying comfortably on his arm.
"You asked to fire my cannon," Optimus rumbled, smiling at the man. The grin on his face was practically infectious.
"On your command!" Jacobs howled, aiming himself behind the crosshairs. Optimus winked at his Kae as she and the Korean man laughed at Jacobs.
Optimus aimed carefully for the central mine, Kae had picked the perfect spot to fire from.
"Fire!" he commanded aloud.
Jacobs pulled the trigger. Optimus watched his shot critically for a moment before smirking. Ironhide had trained him well.
The field exploded. That was expected.
What was not expected was the sheer amusement to be had from watching Jacobs howling on his arm, punching the air as he shouted his glee.
"Kae! Kae Kae! Have you tried this!?" Jacobs howled.
"I have my own cannons, remember?" Mikaela called back with a laugh. "It's kinda fun to shoot 'em when there's nothing living on the other side, isn't it? My scan's aren't showing any more, are yours?" she asked cheerfully, looking up at him.
Oh right! Optimus snorted softly and scanned the field.
Perfect chain detonation, he couldn't help but feel somewhat proud of that.
"They have all detonated," he rumbled, putting on a calm, unaffected demeanour.
Just because he knew it would make Kae tease him all the more, she had this dear habit of continuously trying to make him laugh.
"Oh what, the great Optimus Prime is too mature and noble to grin at constructive destruction?" His Kae immediately began teasing him.
"It is all in the timing, my Kae," Optimus rumbled in a mockingly lofty, airy tone. "Whilst the young ones enjoy the fireworks, then may I allow myself a small smile."
"Drone shit, you were grinning just as much as Jacobs," Kae immediately shot at him. "But if you wanna play that card old-timer, see if you can keep up with the fleshy youngling!"
A challenge? He could never resist a sporting challenge.
"Colonel Sing! Which way to the next one!" Kae called up cheerfully.
"That way!" The man pointed with a grin, and she was off.
"That's cheating!" Optimus bellowed after her. "Quickly quickly," he immediately rumbled, lightly offering his hand to Jacobs, the man needed to get to his shoulder for him to run safely.
Jacobs was grinning as he jumped into Optimus' hand, scrambling into his shoulder.
"All pomp and ceremony until somebody challenges you to a race?" the man asked innocently.
"Would you deny your potential mate's challenge?" Optimus rumbled with a snort.
"OH! True," Jacobs grinned, squirming onto his shoulder. Optimus wound a couple of binder cables around the men, he wanted to run without losing them.
Although in all honesty, he just wanted to run.
He took a few careful steps forward, made sure the men were secure and took off, loving the feeling of his body working again. The terrain in this area was most enjoyable for running, gentle hills and the occasional rock face for climbing.
Although he supposed for the humans it would be a rather difficult run...
He felt hands on his shoulder, and turned to see his Kae grinning at him, half-locked to his frame the next moment. "Hi!" she stated cheerfully, squirming to peck a kiss to his jaw. Optimus beamed at his femme, he couldn't help it. "The next minefield is a half click that way," she added, plonking her chin onto his shoulder and pointing.
"Staying?" he rumbled teasingly.
"Just thought you'd want me to know where I'm going," she stated cheerfully, dropping from his frame the next second and darting around him.
Optimus laughed, he couldn't help it, driving himself to run somewhat faster and exulting in the sheer freedom it evoked within his spark.
By the time the sun began to touch the western horizon Optimus was logging the memory of the day, storing it in his permanent memories. Sometimes he had driven, sometimes they had run, his Kae bounding away and returning, sometimes perched on his shoulder and occasionally, cradled in his arms.
They were walking like that now, striding toward the encampment the Koreans had set up for the night. Ironhide was lounging against another rock face, smirking at him with both holoform and body. Bumblebee was bouncing, grinning at his big sister.
"Already found something that you want to try?" Optimus rumbled cheerfully to the scout.
"How many different kinda fuels are there on this planet!?" Bumblebee demanded gleefully.
"Millions!" Mikaela laughed, lightly jumping from his arm to the ground and disconnecting from her exo. "Millions of methods to prepare food passed down through generations of humans."
"You gotta show me!" Bumblebee chirped excitedly, his holoform rushing at her.
"I'm fluent in perhaps two of those facets," Mikaela laughed, winding her arm across his shoulders. "Why don't you ask them what their favourite foods are?"
Bumblebee grinned, and his holoform was off, pestering the Korean humans into introducing him to their favourite foods, many of them laughing and taking the excited holoform under their proverbial wings.