This was a never-ending fight. More and more cons were amassing around their pedes. The sparks from torn limbs and pooling Energon made a familiar sight. The air was suffocating with the feel of death. Even with the elevator glowing an eerie yellow only a couple of paces away, it was out of reach. Grinding her denta she flipped over a con, snapping his neck easily while the others covered her blind spots.

Turning around she shot two cons coming up behind Bee's frame. They were down before the young scout even turned around. Bees' optics narrowed as he moved behind cover. Shots started to fire around her too close for comfort. Rushing she slammed into the cover next to Bee. The rocky wall crumbling and shaking under the constant shots.

"Bulkhead! Fall back!"

Arcee watched Bulkhead dodge shot after shot before fully slamming into the front line, taking out three before swinging back around and taking the rest.

"We can't give up! This is our best chance to get on the ship. Optimus is already up there!"

He stood proud next to the elevator waiting. His green frame reflects the sickly yellow while his blue optics burn into Arcee's own. Arcee knew he was right. This was their best chance and they had to support Optimus. Jack and June were up there. In a click, she was moving, rushing over to support Bulks back. Bee steps behind, ready to charge the elevator. They made up their processors, it was time to storm the Decepticon warship. Time to join Optimus on this suicide mission like they always do.


June wasn't sure how long she had been yelling, screaming for Megatron to get back here. She had lost control of her temper as soon as he left. He has taunted and manipulated her this whole time. Toying with her son's life and keeping her prisoner just to use her against him. He was a snake spewing lies and falsehoods to capture his prey. What was worse, she fell for it. Now she was going to die without seeing her son healthy again.

She screamed struggling against the cuffs. They secured them tighter than last time so the fighting was futile. Blood pooled around her wrists because of her pointless effort. Panting, she blew her hair from her face. It didn't do much besides moving an inch. The sweat from struggling made her hair stick. The black strands plastered to her pale skin. A large screeching caught her attention. Turning her head to the door she listened, attempting to halt another panic attack.

Something was different. Her eyebrows furrowed, squinting at the door. The blood from the cut on her cheek itched, long since dried. Wrist sore and torn. She was exhausted. She had to focus past the blistering anger over her situation. Feeling sorry for herself won't do any good.

Shouts came from outside, metal screamed against another. Metallic shouts ended abruptly leaving silence.

Then large footsteps clanged towards her door. They were different from Megatron's. Lighter and more precise. More seemed to follow close behind, rapidly approaching her door.

Then the door slid open. Tears burned her eyes.

"June!?"

Acree pushed past Optimus, releasing Junes' bonds quickly. June was in Arcee's servos being cradled gently. June was frozen against her embracer. The bot's plates were surprisingly warm. June could feel her frame shack around her, the relief was palpable.

"Thank the Allspark you're okay."

The whisper barely reached her ears.

She reached up and wrapped her arms around Arcee the best she could. She felt her body stop shaking. They had come. She was saved. The joy was allconsuming. Then that feeling stopped.

Jack.

She pulled away swiftly. Arcee blinked in surprise.

"Jack. They took Jack. Knockout, the red psychopath took him. I haven't seen him in hours. He wasn't... he... he's dying." June choked on her last words. They had to find him fast.

"Wait, that mad bot has him. Why?" Bulks shrill voice echoed in the empty room.

June froze. How was she meant to tell them? Jack wasn't human. They didn't know. Everything was different no matter how much she loathed it.

Looking from Arcee to Bulkheads wide optics she sighed. They still held a confused and worried look. Pursing her lips, she turned from their expecting optics. She couldn't do it. Not now when she had no clue even if he was alive.

"Arcee, take Bumblebee and Bulkhead to find Jack." Optimus's deep voice caused the others to stiffen. Arcee took a step back, optics not leaving Junes' frozen form on the berth.

"Okay...I'll contact you when we find him." The femmes drawl was chilling and the new guarded look hid what she was thinking. They rushed out for the hall, slowly their steps disappeared in the distance.

Once more the room was bathed in silence. June was trying to look everywhere besides the large bot. Considering the room was bare there wasn't much to occupy her attention. She could feel the strict stare burning her. The guilt from the secret she should have told long ago bubbled up. The combination of worry and fear made her eyes burn. Today was not a stress-free day, years of hidden emotions and questions were finally at the boiling point. 'Why didn't I just tell Jack before it got this mess up?'

"Jacks... he's not..." June choked on her breath, fighting the burn in her blue eyes as she looked upon the Autobot leader. What she saw in those optics made her freeze. The absolute understanding was a comfort. His optics screamed that he knew.

The large bot held out his servo for her. On shaky feet, she slumped into his protective embrace. Once more warm metal guarded her against the horrors residing in reality.

"Jackson isn't human."

It wasn't a question, it was the true statement that she's been denying for years. She knew she would keep doubting till she saw proof. Her lips pursed on her stone face expression.

"How did you find out?" She whispered but knew the Prime heard.

She felt the bot's chassis shift under his deep chuckle. They were moving swiftly out of the room, past all the fallen guards June refused to feel sympathy for.

"His optics."

That made sense to June. She remembered the first time she saw them. The gorgeous blue swirling with gold was a breathtaking sight. They glowed softly even in light. Some say eyes are the window to the soul but for Jack, his eyes told his true emotions scarily clearly. Though they were beautiful, they were also so alien to June. That was until she had seen Arcee's blue-violet optics. They were different but so similar. The connections between her son and the bots kept growing the more she learned. Her million questions for the Autobot medic weren't random.

"I have always found them so brilliant, but now all I wish to see is his dull blue eyes once more." She whispered faintly as the wind rushed past her, the thundering steps of Optimus echoing in the long corridors. The grip on her tightened gently as an almost reassurance.

"Some things are not meant to last. Younglings can't stay young forever no matter the carrier's desire for it."

Boy, did that statement sting. Closing her eyes she curled tightly, swaying with the bot's light jog.

'Jack, please be alive...'


Burning. Freezing. Heavy. Light.

Jack couldn't pick what he felt. The endless black void he suffered in didn't seem to care. Periodically he would rouse enough to understand. He remembered his mom's warm embrace as she cried. The vivid blue Energon dripped from him as he cried in joy over her being there. The joy was quickly soured by exhaustion and worry. Why was his mom on the Decepticons warship? What even was the point? Those questions followed him as his eyes became too heavy.

Then Megatron came in. Jack couldn't do anything besides listen to him torture his mom. He was far too weak to even speak at that point let alone open his heavy lids.

What was worse was waking enough to hear his mother scream and yell while he was ripped from her loving grasp. A warm metallic hand cradled his broken body and left where his mother's voice was. Then the black void.

Jack was unsure what was happening. He knew he wasn't human. What human could eat Energon and glow? Not a normal one.

Hunching over, he slid down till he was resting on his butt in the black void. The only light was provided by his continuing glowing. He had nothing to do but wait. He was still so helpless.

"Sitting around isn't going to change anything, you know?"

His head shot up so fast, scanning his surroundings rapidly. Standing he clenched his fists, body tense in the dark.

"You already know this, if you do nothing yah get nothing. So do something! Anything!"

The voice was young and joyous as it echoed in the void. Despite everything, Jack knew that voice. It was the voice of someone dear to him. A memory just out of reach. He gulped as his head pounded with the need to know. His hand painfully carded through his hair pulling on the ebony strands. 'Why can't I remember!?'

His frustration built to a boiling point as he screamed about everything wrong with his life. What has he done to deserve all this? He just wanted to save Optimus. He wanted to make his family happy and whole once more. He wanted to protect them. It was a simple thing but still out of reach.

"You can't protect everyone. It's a sad reality all living beings are faced with. If you try then you will save no one."

This voice was deep and held wisdom and age unlike the youthful one moments ago. It calmed his turbulent emotions. Jack froze and thought of those words.

'How was anyone meant to protect anyone if it forever fails!?' He shouted to himself. Was everything he did just delaying the enviable? His answer came with a hint of amusement in the ancient voice.

"You focus on the now, the present, and what you can do. Who you can affect then versus those you can't reach. It is a hard lesson to learn and an even harder one to experience so take the words of an old bot to your spark. They can save you when your spark wavers."

The voice drifted off like it was blown by a breeze. Jack took in a breath and wondered not for the first time who he was. Was he still Jack or was he someone he forgot? All he knew is he would never be the same person again. Megatron's explanation earlier guaranteed that.

He wasn't human. His human self was just an illusion to blend in. His real body or frame now rested with the Decepticons.

It was a petrifying thought. To know who you grew up staring at is not who you truly are. His dull blue eyes, pale skin, and ebony hair were nothing more than a defense. A defense created by something resting inside him. The knowledge was both stinging and reliving. Jack had never admitted even to himself how foreign and outplace he felt in his body. He always assumed since he was little that the problem would resolve with time. Now he knew time held no factor in it. He just didn't belong in this body. Looking down he examined his hands. The callousness he gained and scars littered them. Gently he traced them reliving how he gained them. Some new, others old, but they all led him to who he was now. Sure he wished his mother told him that he wasn't human. The silent question was between them for months and sadly was answered by buckethead.

He breathed in and looked up to see light filter through a door in front of him. The light was both warm and chilling. It was a warning. If he went through nothing can go back. Once you break something you can never fix it perfectly.

"What are you waiting for, an invitation? Come on or you're going to be left behind!"

The young voice was back and as youthful as ever. A small smile crossed his face. He chuckled.

"Yah, yah I know..." He muttered while walking through the glowing door. The light was blinding to the point Jack didn't notice his hands shifting to metallic servos. All he knew was this felt right. Something he was destined for.


Megatron oversaw the procedure being conducted on the young mech. If Prime was going to end up anywhere it was this place. His chivalrous processor couldn't condone leaving any youngling behind, especially his favorite one. The human female was useless for them now that they had their hostage.

"My lord, the process is complete. His processor was transferred without a problem. Vitals are stable. Should I bring him out of stasis?"

Knockout's red optics eyed him lazily as he buffed his servos with a cloth. Flicking over he looked upon the mechlings' previous body. The small human form was slowly dispersing. Parts of his previous peach skin were glowing blue and deteriorating. It was an interesting process to observe. It was also a process he can use to his advantage.

"No, take his frame to a containment cell. Then abandon the area, only leave the guards and his previous frame. After all, Prime and his forces did work so hard to find him. Might as well give them something." He chuckled menacingly imagining how they would react.

"But my lord, they will get the projector. That is a valuable piece of ancient technology we can't just let..."

"The projector has been damaged so we have no use for it. Besides, it would be used to make us look human. Truly a repulsive device. Let the Autobots weep over their lost friend. We have work to do."

Guards walked in to shoulder the mech's unconscious frame. They eased the large bot down from his restraints. Glinting on his chassis was a dented and scratched Autobot insignia. As they walked past he reached out and slashed the symbol leaving silvery lines to decorate over the symbol. He smiled when he heard the vain medic shudder behind him. Narrowing his optics he followed behind the existing bots. Sparks were being created from the unconscious mechlings dragging pedes.


The guards were down before either could yell. The glitching forms spark against the metallic walls. Slowly she surveyed the area, blaster at the ready. Bumblebees' light steps follow hers while Bulkhead clambers about ready for some wrecking. Turning she signaled that she was heading in. They simply nodded, tensing for action beyond the door.

Rushing, she took point and screens the room. Then she relaxed. The med bay was empty. Her optics squinted, confusion overtaking her.

'If Jack was taken by Knockout then where is he?'

"It's all-clear." Her struts slumped, blaster returning to her servo once more. Gently she scanned everything walking to one of the berths facing away from the entrance. Ideally, she let her digits scrap against the berth, memories of being on them so vivid. 'Did Jack have to be there too?' She was so zoned out that once she faced the front of the berth she almost missed the small form.

Arcee's spark shuddered, plates pulling tight on her frame. Optics were wide in disbelief, her face was awash with grief and pain. Almost in a daze, she reached out to touch his glowing form.

"No..."

Her digits gently cradled the body.

"No, no..."

She shakes her helm, servos quivering.

"Jack"

Her wail caught the attention of the others. Klicks later they were seeing what caused the agonized cry, but Arcee could care less. Her shins hit the floor with a screech, body curling around her junior partner. Closing her optics she relieved losing her partners. She couldn't lose another. Jack had to live.

With a newfound determination, she contacted Optimus. Ratchet or June could fix whatever the cons did. They had to.

It was time she got her partner home.