Finding Home
Chapter 18
By Voodoo Queen
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Author's Note: Hello, Dear Readers! How are you all today? Fantastic, I hope. I'm posting so I'm alive and well. Thanks so much to those who've taken the time to read and add this story to your follows and faves. I'm thrilled to have you along for the ride. Special thanks to those who've taken a moment to review: Autobot-Bre-Lightblast, The Whispering Sage, KayleeChiara, Bearloveforever, Maria B, rybkakoi, LaurenA007, Guest (it's a mystery...), Knightnerd, iGleep, sakurawriter, Edges05, adelphe24, MysticFire101, Jinx's Remix, jojoniles, Sirenix Prime, Shelbaky. You're the best and I appreciate each and every one of you!
Warning for this chapter: Starscream being freaking creepy and more than a little necrophile-ish. Nothing graphic but EWW! You'll understand when you get there. We'll be seeing more of the Decepticons in the near future. I promise.
Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers, just my own original characters and plot.
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"Hey, Squishie..." Sunstreaker poked the blanket-covered lump. "It's time to wake up."
The woman shifted slightly, mumbling incoherently. All the mech was able to catch was something about, "Five more minutes..."
"No can do, femme." Sunny snickered and poked her again, "We already let you sleep in later than you usually do. It's almost 5:30. Any longer and you'll be late for duty."
Amy's eyes blinked open tiredly and at first her sleep addled brain had a bit of trouble processing what was happening and where she was. Her first realization was that she wasn't in her bed. The place where she currently lay was much, much larger. It was also very firm, only a slight padding beneath her. A large, fluffy pillow of some sort had been wedged behind her head and instead of the standard issue, scratchy wool blanket she had on her bed, she was covered with something thick and soft and plush. She was warm and cozy and comfortable. She'd had the most gloriously sound sleep she'd had since being transferred to Diego Garcia. There'd been no dark abyss or disembodied voices haunting her dreams and she wanted nothing more than to curl back up in her comfy, little nest and sleep for another hour or two.
Another gentle poke to her side, however, insisted she rise. Groggily, she pushed the blanket off her face rolled over onto her back. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes before taking a look around the unfamiliar space eventually settling upon a broad, yellow chest. Confused at first, her eyes traveled upward, widening in realization, when they landed on the smirking face of the yellow twin. The mech was leaning against the wall next to the berth watching her growing bewilderment and dawning realization with great amusement.
"Good morning," Sunstreaker greeted in a smooth voice.
Amy sat bolt upright, her heart pounding. She fumbled for her watch, gaping at the time, and looked up at the mech in wide eyed embarrassment. "Have-have I been here all night?"
"Yep," the mech confirmed with a bland look. He pushed off the wall, reaching for a cube of strange, almost-glowing, pink liquid on the nearby table, and took a long drink. "Drooling and snoring away. I thought Ironhide was loud when he recharged," Sunny shuddered, "I'm surprised you didn't wake yourself up."
"Oh, my God." Amy kicked the blanket the rest of the way off and struggled to her feet. She felt her face blaze hot in embarrassment. She scrambled around trying to right her horribly wrinkled uniform and find her missing cover. "I-I'm so, so sorry...I didn't mean...I'll just...I'll get my stuff and get out of your way."
"Woah, woah, woah," Sunstreaker sat down his now half-empty cube of energon and crossed back over to the berth. "Pump your brakes, Squishie. I was only messing with you. You don't snore. Drooling," he grimaced, "that's another story entirely."
"My hat, " Amy carried on, shaking out the blanket, and ignoring the mech. "I can't find my hat."
"This hat?" Sunstreaker caught the woman's attention as he pulled her uniform cover out of subspace, pinching the brim between two of his fingers. When she reached for it, her jerked it out of her reach. "Uh-uh, Squishie." He pointed a finger at her. "Sit down and stop acting like a wing nut. Everything is fine. You're fine."
Amy opened her mouth to argue.
"No." Sunny cut her off before she could say anything. His face hardened. "Sit. Down."
Amy's mouth snapped shut and she sank back down onto her knees.
"Now," Sunstreaker drew air deep into his intakes and released it slowly, leaning in close to the woman he asked in a more gentle tone, "Mind telling me what your malfunction is or do you glitch out like this every morning?"
"N-nothing," Amy shook her head in denial. The worst thing, in her mind, was to stay somewhere she wasn't wanted. She'd been there and done that. In fact, her entire life had been that exact scenario and she knew the repercussions. "I-I just...I didn't mean to fall asleep. I don't want to be in the way or impose..."
"Impose?" Sunstreaker snorted. "Believe me, Squishie, if you weren't wanted here, I wouldn't have thought twice about picking you up and tossing your tiny aft out myself. Recharging, or no. Understand?"
"But-"
"Stop," the mech cut off whatever she was about to say. "It's a simple yes or no question."
Amy nodded, "Y-yes. I understand"
"Good. Its way too early for that slag. I haven't even finished my ration yet." Sunstreaker extended his hand, "Here's your hat."
"Thank you," Amy hugged the cover to her chest. "I'm sorry."
"Let's try this again," Sunny stood back up to his full height and eyed the femme with a raised brow. "Good morning."
"Good," Amy swallowed, her mouth dry. "Good morning."
"That's better." Sunstreaker seemed as though he was going to say more but was interrupted by the door to the room bursting open.
"Hey, Sunny." Sideswipe hustled his way in, shutting the door behind himself. "Is she up yet?
"Yeah," the mech answered as he regarded the human carefully. "She's definitely awake.
"Ames!" With bright optics, the silver twin greeted the woman. "Hope you don't mind, you dozed off on us last night and looked so peaceful that we didn't have the spark to wake you. Have a good sleep?"
"Uh," Amy pondered the question for a moment and decided, yes, she did have a good sleep. Now that her mind was eased somewhat that she hadn't been a burden, she felt more rested than she had in quite some time. She nodded, "Yeah, I did. Thanks."
"Glad to hear it," Sides grinned. "So did we. Really good. Oh, uh, we have something for you." The mech searched his subspace compartments, his face lighting up when he found what he was looking for. He handed Amy a bag which she cautiously accepted. He explained, "I went to the chow hall this morning and got you some breakfast so you could sleep in a little later. We thought you could use the extra rest."
Amy looked back and forth between the mechs. "You...you didn't have to do that."
"We wanted to," Sideswipe assured. "I asked one of the marines I know to grab some stuff that could be eaten on the go. I hope it's alright. I've heard it's the most important meal of the day."
Curious, Amy opened up the bag to examine its contents. She pulled out a bottle of orange juice, a banana, and a silver foil packet. She nodded and shot the mech a smile, "This is great. Thank you."
Sunstreaker retrieved his cube of energon and pressed another full one into his brother's hands as he examined the foil packet, rumbling in amusement. "Pop-tarts? Really?"
"Ah, frag me." Sideswipe vented in exasperation. He gave the woman a desperate look. "Please tell me they don't have to be popped."
Amy actually laughed, remembering the jar of popcorn from the previous evening. "No," she shook her head. "No popping required. They can be warmed up in a toaster if you want but I actually prefer them cold."
Relief washed over the mech, "Thank, Primus."
Sunstreaker shook his head and took another sip from his cube. "Human food is complicated. It takes too much time and preparation."
For the first time, Amy really noticed the strangely glowing liquid the mechs were ingesting. She peeled her banana, watching in fascination as the yellow twin seemed to drink down some of it down, his brother shortly following the action with his own cube of the stuff. She chewed a piece of her fruit slowly, swallowing before asking, "What is that stuff?"
"Energon," Sunny replied with a smirk. "Nice and simple. Just break the seal on the cube and you're good to go."
Amy looked back and forth between the mechs as she took a sip of her orange juice. "What's energon?"
"It's kind of like food, I guess. Maybe." Sideswipe clarified, "They mined it out of the ground back home. It was a primary energy source for just about everything. Ratchet found a way to synthesize a version of it that our systems can process from your planet's fossil fuels." Sideswipe shrugged. "It's not the greatest but beggars can't be choosers, right? It's better than starving to death."
Sunstreaker had finished his, placing the empty cube down on the edge of the berth as the three of them conversed. Amy leaned forward and gave it a sniff. Her nose wrinkled in distaste. "It smells like JP-5*."
Sides chuckled, "I guess it's an acquired taste."
"Guess so," Amy agreed as she ripped into her pop tarts. She pulled out a pastry and waved it, "I'll stick with these."
"Probably a wise decision," Sideswipe agreed.
"What's Jazz have you doing today, Squishie?"
"Oh, uh," Amy directed her attention toward Sunstreaker as he sat down on the berth next to her. She blushed, still embarrassed from her earlier outburst. "He said he was going to give me a crash course in declination buoying." Her face twisted in confusion. "I have no idea what that is."
"It's boring, it what it is," Sides chuckled as he seated himself as well, still working on his cube.
"It's simple," Sunstreaker assured as he explained, "It's basically just calculating coordinates to locate things floating around out there in space and then marking them on a map as reference points. We use it to help track Decepticon movement. Teletraan does most of the work. You'll catch on quick. And," he added with a smirk, "It is really boring."
"Great," Amy sniggered in amusement. "What about you guys?"
"Security detail," Sunstreaker vented unhappily.
"You don't sound very enthused about it." Amy curiously asked, "What all does that entail?"
"Basically just patrolling the island," Sideswipe provided. "Keeping an optic out for anything that shouldn't be there."
"Oh," Amy nodded. "That doesn't sound too bad."
"Some of its off-road," Sideswipe explained. "Sand, dirt paths, gravel, things like that. It can be really dusty, or muddy if it's been raining. Sunny doesn't like that."
Sunstreaker shot his brother a withering look over the top of Amy's head.
Sides laughed, ignoring the heated glare. "He likes to be clean and pretty."
"I can't say I blame him," Amy smiled softly in understanding. "I don't like to be dirty either. Speaking of which," she finished her banana and gingerly rose to her feet and gave herself a thorough once over. She frowned at the state of her slept-in uniform. She smoothed it as best she could then set about trying to fix her hair without the aid of either a mirror or a brush. She gave up after a moment, choosing to smash her cover down over her unruly blond locks instead. She needed to at least wash her face, a shower would have been preferable, and brush her teeth. She glanced at her watch and decided those things probably weren't going to happen this morning.
"Ugh," she stated solemnly, "I feel gross."
"You look fine," Sideswipe assured with a smile. "Doesn't she Sunny?"
Sunstreaker merely hummed in agreement and, for a brief moment, the two brothers held each other's gaze.
After a beat, Sideswipe nodded and looked down at the woman. "Ames, look, we know we you've got to get to work soon, so do we, but...we just wanted to let you know that we had a really great time with you last night. Best night we've had in a really long time, honest. It's been a while since we've had any company or conversation that didn't somehow revolve around fighting this slagging war."
Sunstreaker chimed in, "You're alright, Squishie, even if you do drool like you have a leaky gasket when you recharge."
"We hope you enjoyed yourself, too." Sides stated hopefully.
"Well, yeah." Amy blushed but nodded in agreement. "It was nice. I had a good time. It was really fun."
"Good," Sideswipe grinned, "We're glad and, uh, if you're alright with it...Sunny and I wanted to know what you thought about us maybe making this a thing?"
Amy looked between the mechs in confusion, "A thing?"
"Yeah," Sideswipe nodded. "You, know, a regular thing. Like...a standing engagement in the evenings after work. Duty permitting, of course," he quickly added. "It doesn't have to be just movies. This island is pretty small but I'm sure we could find other things that we could do together that would be just as fun."
"I don't know," Amy hesitated. It was tempting. It was a strange situation, yes, and felt oddly domestic for some reason. She really couldn't explain it. What she did know, however, was that she had woke up well-rested and she didn't feel like she had a hive of bees living in her chest. She felt better, as the twins had said she would. That, however, seemed like selfish reasoning to her and she hated feeling like some kind of charity case. "I'm happy to hang out once in a while but I'm sure you guys have more important things to do, things you want to do, once you're through for the day. I don't want to be underfoot and in your way all the time."
"Not this slag again," Sunstreaker rolled his optics. "We've been through this already. We're the ones asking, Squishie. If we didn't want you around, we wouldn't have offered."
"Yeah," Sideswipe agreed. "We enjoy your company. Way better than sitting around in the hangar listening to Lennox's boys talk shop or hanging out in the rec area watching Ironhide calibrate his cannons for the billionth time. Besides," the mech grinned, "If we're gonna be friends this would be a great opportunity to get to know each other better, don't you think? I mean, what else do you have to do?"
Amy swallowed and shook her head. The short answer was that she had nothing. No family, no friends on the base other than the aliens she'd been sent there to assist, and no pressing appointments that would prevent her from saying yes to their simple request. She nibbled her lip, "If you really want to..."
"Trust me," Sides assured. "We want to."
"Primus, femme," Sunstreaker groused as he stood and stalked over to the door. "We're going to sit around here and rust waiting on you to make up your mind. Just say alright already before we're all late to our duty stations."
"Yeah...alright," Amy finally agreed after another moment of hesitation.. "That...sounds like fun."
"Great," Sideswipe smiled. "We have that security detail today and a supply offload tonight so we won't be finished till really late but the rest of the week we're free and clear after 6 PM. So, how about starting tomorrow we meet up outside the MWR Office about six thirty-ish? Do you know where that is?"
"Yeah," Amy nodded. "I've seen it. I know where that is. I can do that."
"It's a date then," Sideswipe winked at the woman and shot his brother a knowing glance. "Let's go ahead and sneak you out of here, then . We don't want Jazz getting all glitchy because you were late. We're still on his scrap list as it is."
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Starscream cursed as he worked, his optics blazing red in the deep shadows of the abandoned factory, as he dragged his grisly cargo towards the industrial smelter. So much work, so many resources...wasted. He didn't understand why Megatron wasted his time attempting to build a new army. They had both the time and opportunity to decimate the Autobot ranks now. Prime and his compatriots were weak, leaning on the human fleshlings for support. Their numbers dwindled, only a handful of their troops making it to Earth. If they acted now, they could end this war once and for all, crown themselves the victors and rule this dustball of a planet as they were destined. Instead, Megatron chased foolish projects that had already been proven to fail even under the best of conditions.
He dropped his load, cursing once again at the waste of it all. He glared down heatedly at the lifeless protoforms, the latest two to succumb to death. Not that they'd ever truly been alive. They were sparkless...soulless. Their once shiny, silver exolayer was a drab, sickly gray, their pliant frames now stiff and brittle. The time he'd spent nursing them inside the pods a complete misuse of his time and skill, not that Megatron gave a flying frag. The Decepticon warlord had no clue the kind of effort that went into an undertaking such as this. He didn't care for things like science or facts. He simply wanted bodies to fill is ranks.
Starscream hefted the first body, what would have been a formidable mech had it survived incubation long enough for the Seeker to find some way of sparking it. It's wide, stocky frame would have suited it well as a heavy gunner. He would have been a great asset to the Decepticon cause. Now, however, the only thing it was suited for was to be melted down in the smelter. He heaved the empty shell over the side, watching in morbid fascination as the the body was consumed by the fiery-hot, roiling, liquidized metal within.
How many living souls had he seen meet this same fate? Kicking and screaming, crying out for mercy as their bodies melted away under the intense heat. Their sparks were always the last to go, burning defiantly even as the delicate chamber that housed them fell away. Eventually, the extreme heat would prove too much. It was always fascinating to watch as the spark itself virtually exploded under such drastic circumstances, seeming to shatter outward into thousands of tiny, glowing embers which would slowly burn out until there was nothing left at all. It was as if they had never been.
This task lacked the same...climactic satisfaction.
He pulled his optics away from the scene, intent on finishing what he started and moving on to something new. He paused though as he took in the crumpled form of the second shell. A frown creased his faceplates. This truly was a shame. Of the twelve protoforms he'd been able to artificially gestate and accelerate the growth of, only eight had survived the process and developed properly. Of those eight, he'd been astonished when two of them had bifurcated themselves and took on femme traits. The Decepticon ranks spread thin throughout the known galaxy, he couldn't recall the last time he'd entertained company of the femme variety. To say the demise of the would-be femme was a disappointment would have been a gross understatement.
With a grunt of frustration, he lifted the smaller, slighter frame with ease. He took a moment to savor how it felt in his arms, cold and stiff though it was, absent of even a whisper of life. It's optics were dark and dead but it's finely formed faceplates were frozen in what looked like a pained and frightened scream despite the fact that it had been incapable of feeling such terror. It was nothing he hadn't seen on the face of a femme before. In fact, he found the horror etched upon its features to be quite arousing. A rough groan worked its way out of his vocalizer.
The Seeker took a cautious look around the deserted factory. Megatron still lurked around somewhere and it would do no good for him to be caught slacking in his duties. The repercussions should he be caught...best not to think about. Still, his optics wandered back to the shell. It had been so long...too long. He shifted, pressing his frame firmly against the smaller one, pinning it between himself and the smelter. The pressure was teasing and not nearly enough to satisfy the discomfort that was rapidly building behind his interface panel. He groaned in dissatisfaction, abruptly pulling away. His cooling system had kicked in but whether from his proximity to the smelter or his near-painful arousal, he couldn't say.
"Starscream!"
The sound of the Decepticon leader bellowing his name startled him and he fumbled, nearly dropping the lifeless protoform and tripping into the smelter himself. He recovered quickly, though, and only had a slight warble in his voice as he responded, "I'm back here, my Lord! Disposing of the garbage!"
"Barricade has returned," Megatron informed. "He's brought information that may assist us with our project!"
Starscream took one last, longing look at the would-be femme. He pulled it close once more, his glossa sliding out from between his lip plates. He licked a single trail up the side of its faceplates, leaving a wet, oily sheen behind before hefting the lifeless body up over the lip of the smelter and letting it go. He watched as it, too, was claimed by the by the heat and flaming, liquid metal.
Starscream sneered as he turned away, "I'm on my way, Sire!"
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Amy lay in her bed, staring up at the ceiling. She was tired. It had been a long day and she'd been looking forward to retreating back to her barracks for a nice, hot shower before crawling into bed. Now, though, she just felt restless. A glance at her alarm clock told her it was going on one in the morning. She knew she needed the rest but her brain didn't seem to want to cooperate. She had too many thoughts rolling around in there to rest. Some, probably too ridiculous to even be entertained but they were there.
Most bothersome, at least in the dark of her small, solitary space, was the strange feeling in her chest. She wouldn't say that she'd gotten used to the strange electrical buzzing, far from it, but the pang of longing she felt now was a very physical thing. Was it normal to miss the physical presence of someone as much as she missed having Sideswipe and Sunstreaker nearby after just one night of hanging out together? She could only assume it was all part of the strange spark-friendship thing they'd explained to her. Was this normal? If so, she wondered how Cybertronians managed to befriend anyone at all if you couldn't even sleep for want of the other person. Certainly she missed Jazz, as well, when he wasn't around...looking forward to seeing him every day but it wasn't anything like this.
She wondered what the pair were currently doing. She knew they were assisting with supplies that Galloway had finally released to the Autobots after holding them hostage for months. According to Jazz, it was a lot of stuff and was going to be an all night evolution. She hoped they didn't work too hard and that they were able to get some rest before the night was through. The worry she felt seemed out of place. If anyone was capable of looking after themselves, she figured it would be a pair of huge sentient robots. Therefore, it seemed crazy to her to be fretting over them.
She sighed wearily and rolled onto her side, curling up into a ball. She pulled her blanket up snug around her body seeking the comfort she'd felt that morning when she'd fallen asleep in the twins' quarters. It didn't come. Maybe, she tiredly mused, her restful night had had more to do with having company while she slept and less to do with the accommodations. She did feel oddly lonesome, which was also an entirely absurd thing to feel if she thought about it. She'd spent her entire life alone. She was used to it. Solitary had become her natural state of being. It was all she knew. To feel anything else was unsettling.
She flopped back over onto her back, rearranging the covers once again to no avail. She stretched, twisted, and turned but just couldn't seem to find a comfortable position. Giving up, she thought to force herself to sleep. She squeezed her eyes closed. Even in her awake state she could feel the black abyss of her eerie repetitive dream beckoning her, waiting for her to drift off so that it could claim her once again. It was a useless endeavor. She gave another weary sigh and opened her eyes. She focused once again on the ceiling tiles as her heart gave another pining squeeze. It was going to be a long night.
End of Chapter 18
*JP-5 is a yellow kerosene-based jet fuel developed in 1952 for use in aircraft stationed aboard aircraft carriers...The More You Know :)
