A/N: Dear Readers:
Don't look so scared! Have no fear, my dear readers new and old, this story will find it's ending eventually. The status indicates that this particular little publication is 'incomplete', and it will remain that way until the day I upload the epilogue and run the final re-edit of the story. The vast number of reviews that you my dear readers have seen fit to leave (with the utmost gratitude from me, I might add) have assisted in my growth, and have proven to be the highlight of my day a vast majority of the time. I apologize that I often don't reply, but never think that your reviews are unappreciated - each is read with relish on my part, and often the questions prompt another chapter to emerge from my subconscious if the material isn't already present.
As to the updates: When I first began to upload this story I had 100+ chapters already written well ahead of the upload, and greedy for reviews put another chapter up on a daily basis. However I am not a linear person, there are scenes and chapters written proverbial years ahead of the current chapter, and a number of scenes in the process of construction in between... hell, to the re-readers [I know you're there :-)] the final re-edit will be a fresh and possibly better story all together, as the repeat-scenes which I was so fond of utilizing in the early days will be tidied up substantially, with a number of quips and actions added in for good measure. But until I get to the epilogue it'll be staying as-is for the time being. I digress. I am not a linear person, and as a result this story has written itself in fits and bursts, which are then shifted around until they can be tied together into the semblance of a linear timeline. (which I fail at sometimes, I admit)
What that all boils down to? I don't have much of a safety buffer-zone anymore, and each little burst of creativity could just as easily become the next chapter as twenty down the road, so to keep things as pretty, polished and linear as I can I've reduced updates to 1-2/ month. Have patience dear readers, the updates are coming, slow but sure, and of a quality you can enjoy, and I can be proud of.
With that said, shall we carry on to:
Chapter 218 – The Tale of Switch
(OPOV)
Someone was tapping on his helm, finally. His last log had the markings of one which would be incomplete... ah, yes, his Kae's human form dressed in the innocence of a new lover. Optimus synced his processors and lightly snagged the bot which would without doubt turn out to be his mate. Except it wasn't. This frame was smaller, petite.
"Wha-eep!" Lena squeaked above his chest. Optimus rapidly onlined his optics, releasing the femme.
"My apologies, Lena, where's Kae?" he asked curiously, looking around.
"She passed out in Med-bay, Ratchet asked me to wake you up," Lena informed him wryly, laying on top of him for a second and surveying her situation. "How do I get up without hurting you?"
Optimus chuckled and lightly caught the femme's shoulders, gently pushing her upright until her own servos and balances could manage.
"Thank you, now then," Lena began, comfortably resettling her armour. "Ratchet wants you to come take your mate to bed," she informed him with a small smirk.
"Thank you, Major," Optimus rumbled patiently, nodding to the femme.
"I'm just a captain."
"Now you're a Major."
"Field promotion for waking you up?" Lena asked in a stern, disbelieving tone.
"My mate is unconscious, and obviously there has been mutiny among the ranks," Optimus rumbled seriously. "Unless you are here to notify me of the abrogation of my status I must assume that you are my closest ally, thus worthy of promotion."
"Ironhide you're an ass!" Lena protested indignantly, turning to look outside of Optimus' visual range. Optimus took that opportunity to get himself back to his feet.
"See? That's why you never wake him up when he looks happy Major Banshee!" Ironhide laughed.
Lena let loose a quick, piercing shriek and Ironhide froze. Optimus looked down at the femme with a raised brow ridge.
"Okay, maybe I do enjoy getting the last word in," Lena shrugged with a little smirk, prancing her way back toward communications. "Which by the way is reason enough to prove that that field promotion is a terrible idea, Prime," she added cheerfully, Optimus smirked at the femme's back.
Obviously, Lena had not yet come across the concluded communications pertaining to her upcoming promotion. Will had fought long and hard to maintain the femme's standing as a serving member of the United States Armed forces; he'd fought and won.
::. Showoff.:: Ironhide sent after her.
::. Lena can we unfreeze now?.:: Ratchet sent irritably.
::. What?.:: Lena sent curiously.
::. You're getting stronger, my mate.:: Jolt sent gently. Optimus chuckled quietly, striding into the med-bay and looking speculatively at his medic, servo half raised and wrench in hand. Definitely frozen.
::. What does that mean?.::
::. It means we need to figure out your freedom cry.::
::. My what?.::
"Oh slag it all," Sideswipe's voice stated with a low huff. Optimus turned to look at the predator curiously.
"There goes the window," Mudflap sighed irritably.
"The window for what?" Optimus asked curiously, turning back to observe his medic once more.
"A banshee hawk freedom cry behaves kind of like a system re-boot, a bot that freezes doesn't usually remember anything from the point that they were frozen until the freedom cry is sounded," Jolt's voice volunteered cheerfully, leading Lena under his arm as they rounded the med-bay corner. "Wanna come help paint Ironhide pink? Might be our only chance to-whoa!"
Optimus flashed around at the sound of armour meeting armour, striding forward and gently collecting Lena the next moment as Jolt scrambled to keep her from falling to the ground.
::. Oh slag it all, salvation has glitched.:: Ratchet announced irritably. Optimus chuckled and gently deposited the femme on one of the med-berths, scanning her and nodding to himself. The human within her had fainted - perfectly understandable considering the import of the newest change in her life.
"They are still active on the primary," Optimus informed the gathering gravely.
"They always are," Sideswipe shrugged with a grin. Optimus looked down at the younglings sternly for a long moment before he smirked.
"Have you any extra paint?" he asked curiously.
"What colour would you like?" Sunstreaker asked innocently, Optimus glanced at Ratchet and looked back at the younglings.
"White."
"Whoa wait, he gonna paint Ratchet!?" Skids demanded incredulously.
"White?" Mudflap asked curiously.
"White," Optimus nodded gravely. He promptly brought his holoform online and created a few dozen rolls of tape as the younglings scrambled back toward the predator's quarters.
::. Slagger.:: Ratchet sent to him irritably.
::. You don't mean that.:: Optimus rumbled in a mockingly hurt tone.
::. I truly do, you infantile youngling rip.:: Ratchet stated solemnly.
::. Use it as a learning experience Ratchet.:: Optimus rumbled sweetly.
::. I knew you were going to say that.:: Ratchet grumbled, but anyone could hear the touch of amusement creeping into his voice. ::. Clearly my spark-daughter is becoming a terrible influence on you. Right, to start off you're going to need to put some diamonds aiming toward my spark chamber and this time you're going to seal my chamber off properly so that Ironhide doesn't immediately assume I'm already doomed to a lingering death and thus certain that a cannon blast to the chest is the kindest thing he can do.::
"I promise," Optimus rumbled placatingly. "Why did Kae drop into stasis? I did not sense anything wrong..." he glanced at his mate worriedly.
::. Sunstreaker recited the prayer to Anabelle.:: Ratchet shrugged. ::. Kae's holoform must have been standing within audio-shot. Right, now don't forget, creeping salt-rot grows in a fractal pattern-.::
"I remember," Optimus rumbled placidly, taping off the correct pattern to mimic the disease.
::. Precisely how do you remember?.:: Ratchet demanded.
"Because it's the same pattern you taught Jazz to use on me," Optimus rumbled in amusement.
::. Remind me to tell the younglings The Tale of Switch.:: Ratchet grumbled in amusement.
"I will, Ratchet," Optimus rumbled placidly.
"Will what now?" Bumblebee asked with a grin.
::. Better yet, you tell them.:: Ratchet smirked. ::. It's your turn, youngling.::
"Online your holoform and do Ratchet's other arm to match will you?" Optimus asked with his holoform.
::. Slagger.::
"Yes Sir!" Bumblebee's grinned gleefully. "Why isn't =big-sister= awake unless..." Bumblebee's eyes widened in shock. "Is her spark older than yours too sir!?"
"She couldn't possibly be!" Bluestreak stated in shock.
"No, she heard Sunstreaker say the guardian's prayer over Belle," Optimus rumbled patiently.
"But that really only works when..." Bumblebee frowned.
"When a spark's guardian says the prayer, or the spark has never heard it before," Optimus finished agreeably, rising and walking quietly toward his Kae.
"You never used it on big-sister?" Bumblebee asked curiously.
"At the time that she might truly have needed it: To sleep was to dream, and I had no desire to trap her into her nightmares," Optimus informed his young brother-in-bonding gently.
::. That's fair.:: Ratchet stated musingly.
"Good point," Bumblebee nodded gravely, looking at his sister.
::. I'll be sure to remind you of it.:: Optimus sent smugly to the medic.
::. Aft.::
"Remind me of what?" Kae mumbled from her workbench.
"Remind you that falling asleep on your workbench is no way to treat your spinal struts," Optimus rumbled soothingly as the spark of his mate began to fret over the timeline gap in her processors.
"W'happen'd?" his mate slurred tiredly, raising her helm slightly from her workbench.
"The guardian's prayer," Optimus rumbled softly, gently collecting his mate and carrying her from the med-bay.
"S'at what that does?" his Kae mumbled in a cheerful daze, curling up in his arms and burying her face into his neck. He loved it when she did that.
"It does," Optimus purred softly, striding into his quarters and gently setting his mate on her feet. "Release your armour," he added softly. His Kae hummed agreeably and within moments her armour released itself, floating haphazardly into the corner. Optimus chuckled and rearranged her armour a bit more neatly, gently tucking her into their berth.
"Optimus?" Kae mumbled, her optics coming online to look sleepily up at him. "Why'm I waking up?"
"Because Sunstreaker is only the first bot to recite the prayer within your audio shot," he murmured gently, lightly touching a kiss to her lip plating. "It is the guardian's prayer: Individually translated; unique to each, and I am your guardian ΩBeloved mate rest thy helm, cast thy thoughts past the next realm; slumber safely in thy berth, whilst all you love sing with peace and mirth. Safe and warm let thy spark wanderings soar, thy guardian with thee, forevermore.Ω" Optimus finished gently and smirked at the deeply contented smile on the faceplates of his unconscious mate before collecting her armour once more and striding back to the med-bay.
(LPOV)
"Okay, maybe I do enjoy getting in the last word," Lena shrugged with a little smirk, glancing up at Optimus' raised brow ridge before prancing her way back toward communications. "Which by the way is reason enough to prove that that field promotion is a terrible idea, Prime," she added cheerfully over her shoulder. Ironhide would unfreeze again in a breem or so; the weapons master almost always froze, but never for long.
::. Showoff.:: Ironhide sent after her, Lena smirked and carried on toward her mate.
::. Lena can we unfreeze now?.:: Ratchet sent irritably. Wait...
::. What?.:: Lena sent curiously.
::. You're getting stronger, my mate.:: Jolt sent gently. Lena stopped dead in her tracks.
::. What does that mean?.:: she demanded worriedly.
::. It means we need to figure out your freedom cry.:: her Jolt stated soothingly.
::. My what?.:: Lena asked with a frown. Jolt strode out of communications and toward her the next moment, poking his helm first into Wheeljack's shop for a second, then into central, grinning around himself the entire time.
"Your freedom cry," he informed her cheerfully.
"Oh slag it all," Sideswipe's voice stated with a low huff behind her. Lena turned to look curiously, Ironhide was still frozen, but Sideswipe was looking into the med-bay... weird.
"What do you mean my 'freedom cry'?" Lena asked with a frown, looking up at her Jolt as he gently touched the small of her back.
~It's okay, don't panic~ her mate's spark whispered. Lena smiled and tucked herself a bit more securely into his guidance, but now she was flat out curious.
"Your shriek is getting strong enough to override the standard buffering-" Jolt chuckled, leading her toward the med-bay.
What?
"-They're going to stay frozen until you release them. A banshee hawk freedom cry behaves kind of like a system re-boot, a bot that freezes doesn't usually remember anything from the point they were frozen until the freedom cry is sounded," Jolt stated cheerfully.
What!? How the slag was she supposed to do that!?
"Wanna come help paint Ironhide pink? Might be our only chance..."
Lena's vision blurred, the way it had as a human, she couldn't breathe. Her Jolt was there, dimly she could feel the arms of her mate holding her from falling, but more worrisome was the fact that she couldn't breathe, she had no lungs and she couldn't breathe.
The darkness won for a little while.
Lena brought her optics online and stared at the sight before her. Apparently, Cybertronian or not, she could still faint. That sucked. Optimus and Bumblebee were busily painting Ratchet white. Completely white.
"What about his optics?" Lena immediately asked worriedly, starting up somewhat from her safe perch on the med-berth.
"They're taped off," Bumblebee's holo stated cheerfully.
"How am I supposed to unfreeze them?" she asked weakly.
"Well don't do it yet," Bumblebee laughed, the mech himself jumping up to sit beside her, playfully propping his helm on her shoulder for a moment. Lena stared at the scout in shock.
"I beg your pardon?" she frowned, even as her mate's spark worked to soothe her's away from an all-out panic attack.
"It is tradition, Lena," Optimus' voice rumbled soothingly, striding forward and gently taking her hand in his own, Lena looked down at the massive hand fairly cradling her entire servo and rapidly cycled her optics. "You have done nothing wrong, and anybot currently frozen will have no quarrel with you."
Lena vented a sigh and looked up at Optimus properly.
"You weren't affected," she stated calmly.
"I rarely am," Optimus shrugged, gently releasing her once more and patting her shoulder before turning away to survey his and Bumblebee's progress.
::. Youngling rip.:: Ratchet sent irritably over the Primary. Lena winced.
"It is bad luck to communicate whilst frozen," Optimus chided the medic teasingly. "Switch will have you when you wake."
"Who's Switch?" Bluestreak asked curiously, the youngling lounging on one of the benches nearby with a bright grin on his faceplates. Lena glanced around and relaxed somewhat, all of the younger bots were relaxed and grinning around her, curiosity predominant in the optics of the youngest.
Sunstreaker and Sideswipe were grinning viciously, vibrating in anticipation.
"Switch is the spark of mischief," Optimus rumbled with a smile, he looked critically at Ratchet for a long moment and nodded. "Tape off," he added patiently, nodding to Bee with a grin; the holoforms immediately began to peel the pattern away. "When I was a youngling, the elders said that Switch was the younger sibling of a Prime - who softened his brother's stern demeanour with laughter and pranks.
"But on one fateful Orn, Switch was killed by enemies seeking to weaken his brother. Full knowing the ramifications of this, Switch pleaded with our creator for leniency. The All-Spark heard his pleas and allowed his spark to bypass death; it was thus that Switch travelled back and forth from the Well, his spirit carried by the Banshee-hawks to continue to gentle his brother's humourless way. To this orn, long past the death of the brother Prime, the spirit of Switch still comes to wreak the greatest havoc when summoned by the scream of a fledgeling banshee-hawk; my mate would say it is our version of your All Hallows Evening, Lena."
"That's always been my favourite story," Sideswipe commented with a grin.
"Kae's awake?" Jolt asked curiously.
"She is dreaming through my optics," Optimus rumbled with a tender smile.
"I froze Ironhide, and Ratchet-" Lena began with a frown.
"-and Silvermoon and Prowl-" Bluestreak chimed in excitedly.
"The femmes and Wheeljack-" Bee added cheerfully.
"But..." Lena frowned, looking around herself.
"Banshee Hawks don't hunt younglings," Sunstreaker chuckled, touching her shoulder. "They scream, and whatever they can be bothered to eat freezes. There's a code inherent to being less than two hundred vorn old-"
"Then why's Optimus awake?" Blue asked curiously.
"Because he was already asleep?" Mudflap asked curiously.
"No, I'd roused him already..." Lena frowned.
"Because my mate is young," Optimus rumbled tolerantly, then he smirked. "My mate is young, deep in her recharge, and Switch has a great deal of work to do..." he added suggestively, looking around at them all with bright humour in his optics. "Kae's armour is in it's usual corner, and mine will join it shortly. I would request that you make the effort to bring Wingnut and Longbolt in on the night."
Lena shook her helm somewhat, the Prime wasn't angry, but really it took a hell of a lot to piss him off in the first place. He'd make it an order that no-bot give her grief if he had to, but how the slag was she supposed to figure out her freedom cry!?
"When'll Kae wake up?" Jolt asked Optimus curiously, Lena looked at her mate curiously, tucking herself into the circle of his arm.
"In a joor, possibly two," Optimus shrugged calmly. "If you do not wish to wait for my mate to rouse to take you flying, Lena, I have little doubt that one or several of the fliers would enjoy the distraction, and if learning your cry proves troublesome, take your ease in that they will unfreeze of their own accord."
Lena looked at the hopeful faceplates around her; evidently there was nothing to panic about, the Primes and her mate weren't going to leave her hanging… The 'bots would probably un-freeze in a joor or so. She and Optimus could man the base during the dayshift.
"Optimus is right, Switch has a lot of work to do around here," she stated cheerfully.
(BPOV)
Bumblebee grinned around himself, he'd never really had the chance to appease the spirit of Switch: he'd been a scout before he'd even been old enough to stay up with the rest of the younglings.
"Because my mate is young," Optimus rumbled tolerantly, then he smirked. "My mate is young, deep in her recharge, and Switch has a great deal of work to do..." he added suggestively, looking around at them all with bright humour in his optics. "My Kae's armour is in the corner, and mine will join it shortly. I would request that you make the effort to bring Wingnut and Longbolt in on the night."
Best Prime ever.
Instantly, Bee was comming the siblings in question and grinning at their response as their Prime continued to work to calm Lena.
"I'll get Wing and Longbolt to come help me paint you =Big-brother=" Bumblebee chirped gleefully, bouncing slightly in anticipation.
"Thank you, =Little-brother=" Optimus rumbled gravely, his tone at odds with the bright laughter shining in his optics. Bumblebee almost laughed at Lena's incredulous expression as Optimus shrugged out of his armour and neatly deposited it off to the side and out of the way. "In my experience, and that of my mate's: one cannot be numbered amongst the guilty party when one's armour has been repainted strange colours," Optimus informed the femme cheerfully.
"Why did you add sand to the paint on Ratchet?" Sunstreaker asked with a frown, inspecting the paint job Bumblebee and his brother in bonding had accomplished on the medic.
"Because painting Ratchet puce prompts only a grumpy medic-" Optimus stated patiently.
"No change," Sideswipe snorted.
"Whereas painting Ratchet with textured white in the fractal pattern of creeping salt-rot-"
"Will just prompt him to scan himself," Sunstreaker interjected in flat exasperation, crossing his servos. Bumblebee frowned, he hadn't thought of that... really it wasn't that good of a prank after all... unless...
"Indeed," Optimus nodded gravely. "It is not a prank on Ratchet-"
"It's a prank on Ironhide 'cause he's turned pink so many times he'll just be resigned!" Bumblebee piped up incredulously. Optimus grinned.
"Now then, what is Symphony's status?" he asked calmly.
"She's asleep!" Wingnut piped up happily, wheeling into the med-bay with a bright grin on her face.
"Wing and I just got finished painting all the drones!" Longbolt announced cheerfully.
"What!?" Lena practically shrieked. Bee winced and reached forward automatically, touching her shoulder. "Why are you picking on them!?" the femme demanded incredulously, twitching her shoulder somewhat to get out from beneath his hand and striding toward the youngest bots.
Scrap.
"We're not, they all heard you scream and started up a racket on the channels," Wingnut shrugged.
"They're all frozen too!?" Lena demanded in a panicked tone. Scrap-scrap-scrap-scrap Bee frantically tried to signal Wingnut to put a clamp on it to no avail.
"Sure they are, scared the bearings out of 'em 'til they realized it was just you," Wingnut continued with a laugh. "But they're fine now."
Bumblebee watched the femmeling incredulously for a long moment and rolled his optics; so much for their plan to keep Lena calm… unless... Bee reached out to the drone's network.
::. Is there anydrone willing to verify the tale of Switch to Lena on the Primary?.:: Bee sent out hopefully. ::. She thinks Wingnut and Longbolt are picking on your lot.::
::. They aren't pickin' on us!.:: Brains rasped cheerfully over the Primary. Lena jumped.
::. Brains where are you?.:: the femme asked worriedly.
::. I'm sittin' beside Symphony.:: Brains announced brightly. ::. And I'm a neon rainbow! Ain't no banshee-hawk gonna eat me!.::
::. Hear-hear!.:: Wheelie added cheerfully.
::. Had us worried for a bit, we don't got no younglings our own size around here.:: Ding added shyly.
::. You wanted to be painted!?.:: Lena demanded in shock.
::. Slag yeah! Painted drone's a drone what's vouched for by the younglings, they don't hunt 'em then, not unless they're arrowing for a biggun what's ready to die.:: Brains stated cheerfully.
::. Gotta appease Switch someway!.:: Wheelie added ::. Wingnut even made sure that we're positioned so's when we wake up we'll be laughing!.::
::. I'm in a boat!.:: Ding giggled in sudden counterpart.
"=I'm sorry thank you!=" Lena burst out in scout, dropping to her knees and wrapping Wingnut in a hug. Bumblebee cycled his processors in relief.
"Oh come on, you act like you've never done it before," Wingnut giggled, playfully patting Lena's side.
"I... uh... haven't..." Lena mumbled embarrassedly.
"We got an ORN!?" Wingnut shrieked excitedly, looking around with frenetic energy in every twitch. "Do we getta go on patrol!?"
"They're going to be frozen for an orn!?" Lena demanded in a full panic, whipping around frantically.
Jolt clapped a hand to his faceplates and Bumblebee rolled his optics.
"Unless you learn your freedom cry, maybe you should get on that," Longbolt stated in amusement.
::. Stop trying to glitch our salvation out mechling.:: Ratchet sent over the Primary with a scowl. Longbolt shied from the medic automatically.
"Lena," Optimus rumbled gently. Bee glanced at the Prime and smiled; Optimus was on his knees in front of the femme, carefully holding her upright. "Listen to your mate, calm down. Take a deep breath and sync your processors."
"I don't have lungs anymore," Lena whimpered softly. Optimus chuckled and gently hugged the femme, reaching out and collecting Jolt with his free arm.
"Online your holoform Lena," Optimus murmured gently, bringing his own holo online clad in the loose fitting fishing pants Kae had introduced them to for modesty sake.
Armour so comfortable it was ridiculous.
"How'm I supposed to unfreeze them?" Lena's holo whimpered softly.
"First by calming down," Optimus rumbled gently. "And then by having fun."
"C'mon Lena," Wingnut stated gently, catching hold of the femme's hand. "Chromia would never forgive us for letting the mechs paint her badly."
Bumblebee clapped a hand to his faceplates as Lena's optics darkened again, her holo winking out.