Chapter Six
...
Goosebumps raced up Cade's arms as two thoughts crossed his mind.
Thought one: Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobot movement, was standing in his barn, falling to pieces, wounded and saying he was in debt to Cade and his daughter, Tessa. What was the leader of an alien army doing here, in Texas? Cade knew the activity of alien's and the suspicions should be reported in-he drove by the blasted billboard every day. After seeing Tessa turn an even whiter shade, he wondered if she was contemplating the action.
Thought two: Mira Lennox. Optimus Prime had mentioned her by full name. Also, he possessed a recording of her voice in the explanation of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. He knew this woman, and she was obviously important-but why?
Cade could hardly form words. "Optimus...Optimus Prime?" he must've sounded like a awe-struck child, well, that's how he felt anyway. Crossing his arms over his chest, he wrinkled his brow. "From the Chicago War?"
"That is correct," he said softly, a shot of pain-the pain of grief-filling his voice. "Which again presents my question: where is the girl? It is vitally important she is not here," he tried to stand again, but shook the earth roughly as he stumbled to take a knee of rest. Cade and Tessa stabilized themselves, Lucas still unconscious where he fell.
"Mira doesn't live here," Tessa interjected quickly, some bravery returning to her squeaky, shaking voice, "she left. With the little boy."
Relief presented itself with a sigh in his voice. "Thank Primus," he closed his optics, "she cannot be permitted to be here, with me. The possibility presents more danger for her than one could imagine." He looked to the door and tried to stand again, "I, while forever grateful for your kindness, must leave." Cade, wrinkling a brow, held up his hands as if to stop the 40 foot Commander.
Optimus stumbled forward as he tried to stand yet again, this time an arm flailing out to stabilize himself. It interwrapped with a chain hanging from the ceiling used to hoist engines out of heavy machinery. Struggling, he tried to free himself, but instead ripped the chain from its anchor and shaking it free, sending the heavy metal cord flying through the air and crashing through the glass of the office. Tessa screamed, obviously overwhelmed.
"Oh God!" she exclaimed, "Oh God! Oh God oh GOD, no!" she hurried from the barn, Optimus and Cade watching her go. Cade reached for her but then turned around as Optimus finally aware he couldn't possibly leave, sank to his knee again, coughing. Cade realized he was in worse shape than he realized as well. Walking towards the Autobot Leader, he grabbed a welding apron and began tying it around himself.
"And where do you think you'll go?" Cade asked, almost daringly. He pulled himself up onto the lift to stand eye-level with Optimus, leaning against the railing with arms crossed over his chest. "And how far do you think you'll get?"
Optimus looked at him firmly. "I do not know," he began, "but if Mira is anywhere nearby, I must go. Her life is endangered if I stay."
"Mira is long gone." Cade comforted. "Last night...did not end well. So you're good there." He laid his hands out on either side of him, to express confusion and make a point. "How do you know her anyway? Is she a witness to Chicago?"
Optimus was quiet for a long moment. His optics betrayed him with emotion, however, as Cade realized Mira was far more than just a witness. He wouldn't look Cade in the eye when he stated the next phrase, very low and quiet, almost with...shame? "It is a very long story I'm afraid."
Bending down to grab some tools from the lift, he flipped a wrench in his hands and raised his brows. "I've got time."
...
The wind whipped ferociously through Mira's hair, loosening the clip from her hair. Frustrated, she yanked it out of her hair and tossed it on the passenger's seat. Gripping the wheel with both hands again, she felt the truck pull at the gravel with deep-threaded tires, kicking up stones which rattled against the underbelly and rocker-boards. Merrick was cowering the back of the truck at the loss of the semi, and she steadied her focus back on the road. Spotting the turn-off to Cade's driveway, she pulled in, hardly slowing.
The back end of the truck fishtailed, and she roared down the driveway.
"So," Cade lit the blow torch to life with spitting fire as he thought through most of what Optimus Prime had explained to him. "Mira...she's...like a leader?"
Optimus nodded. "Yes. She possess the Shield of the Matrix of Leadership, a lost artifact of my home, Iacon. With it she has almost as much potential as the Matrix itself. The Shield turns itself into a mechanical key compiled of Energon," he gestured to the spark within his chest when he explained the Matrix, "and may turn anything into a Cybertronian that Mira-and myself-may control, since the Shield is coded to both of our genomes. It holds unimaginable power."
Cade wrinkled his brow, gesturing to Optimus with the lit torch. "And, you gave this 'Shield' to her why? If she's a human-which she obviously is-and we're all trying to kill you off," he continued his thought, "then why give it to her?"
Optimus sighed, "Mira's allegiance with my team-and our cause-goes back farther than Chicago. She has been with us since we've arrived on this planet," he said gravely, "and has endangered herself more times than I would appreciate. She is as much an Autobot as I am." He reached up and touched the activation switch behind his antennae and focused his optics on the wall of the barn. A holographic image of pyramids appeared, encased by an immensely beautiful desert. In the lower right hand corner, the symboling from Optimus' undercarriage-Cybertronian-translated itself in the words Cairo, Egypt.
"Mira, with all her bravery and wisdom, chose to fight beside my Autobots out of pure allegiance and love," he began firmly, "and with a desire to see a race with hopelessness in their wake rise to be a people we once were. She fights beside us now for glory, nor fame, not even praise; she fought beside us because of honor. She wanted to see us return to what we were; a peaceful, unified race of science, knowledge, and imagination."
Cade's brows rose. "Wow," he breathed, watching the footage of Mira dive into the sand as a missile soared over her head and crashed into a stone obelisk. She whipped a look over her shoulder and called out with a silent scream, then pushed herself up and dashed for the pyramids again. "...and you trusted her?"
"I trust Mira with my life," Optimus interjected strongly, "she is brave. And wise. Mira desires to learn, to imagine. She was much like myself before I came here. She strives to become greater, stronger, wiser. She has fought beside me as if she was of my people by birth. She loves us," he breathed, "..she is my family."
Cade blinked at the bot, the footage fizzling away into electromagnetic sparkles. "Man. She's really something, isn't she?"
Optimus nodded. "Mira is the reason I am alive today, and perhaps luck," he mused, "and I owe her my life. Which is why I cannot, by any circumstances, allow myself to stay. If she were to know..."
Cade situated a welding helmet on his head before chuckling. "She isn't coming back."
Optimus gave him a look of surprise. "You seem confident in the assumption." As Cade flipped the helmet down and set the flame to a correct speed, he continued, "Mira is not one to shy away from trouble. She actually rallies around the very idea."
"She ain't comin' back. Not from what I saw in her eyes."
He blinked. "And what did you see?"
Cade flipped the helmet back up to stare at the bot. "I saw...fear. She was genuinely afraid of me. I've never seen that look in anyone before."
Optimus was silent a moment before he replied. "Mira fears rejection more than anything," he affirmed, "and she fears inadequacy. She doesn't realize her position of leadership, or her capacity for greatness. Her past is her enemy, Cade, and she has surrendered to it more than she has conquered it."
Cade thought on that a moment. "Yeah, it seems so."
"...and you must not hold it against her. Mira is the best human I know, and I have had the privilege of serving beside her, learning beside her, and teaching beside her. She is a remarkable person, but as does every one of us, she possess hurts and flaws that only she can change."
...
Unmerciful Pit she hated this.
Mira threw the truck into park and pushed open the door, trying her best to muster up any amount if courage she could. Just get the blasted truck, and get out. Eat as little crow as possible and it'll be fine. He understands your grief, she told herself, he lost a wife.
Striding towards the barn, she spotted no activity from the house, until Tessa peeked out the screen door and practically bolted for her. Mira stopped as Tessa skidded to a stop in front of her, confused as the girl's face was white as a sheet with fear. She was trembling and had been crying, and she grabbed Mira's arms with both hands and her voice shook.
"Mira! Thank God!" she grabbed her wrist and began jerking her towards the barn. "He's...he's been asking about you! It's been asking about you! You have to come and tell it to leave!" Her words were rushed together and frantic. Mira's brow had long since wrinkled and she stopped, grabbed Tessa by the arm and brought her around to face her.
Her lips trembled and Mira's heart broke. That man...what had he done to his child? She grabbed the girl and stroked her fingers across her palms, an action which was proven to calm frantic subjects. In this case it caused Tessa to let out a sob and have tears practically explode from her eyes. Her knees knocked together and she buckled forward, Mira catching her. "My life...is...is over. Over!"
Mira stood her up. "Tessa...what's wrong? Did your father hurt you? What happened...is he okay?" A twinge of something hit her heart at the thought of something happening to Cade-this poor girl didn't need another death in her life. Mira looked towards the barn. Tessa continued to bawl, shaking and sobbing and muttering under her breath, casting worried glances towards the barn. "TESSA!"
"Just...come!" she pulled Mira in the direction again. Releasing her hand, she jogged pathetically towards the barn and Mira ran behind her. Tessa, reaching for the doors, pulled them open with weak arms and theyfell the rest of the way, as if allowing Mira passage into a tomb or a relic. Tessa marched towards the back of the barn, where Cade-and the figure behind him-were shouting for her to close the doors. They silence as Mira's frame filled the doorway.
Her world began to spin as she looked beyond Cade, to the huge form behind the man. Two eyes-optics-stared at her like they had before, soft, but firm and commanding. A pool of warmth hit her stomach, but was instantly ratified by an icy sensation taking over her body. A mixture of tremors and gooseflesh laid siege to her nerves, and she felt her knees go weak. She stumbled forward, unable to contain the hundred different emotions racing through her. Her heart might as well have sprouted into a V8 engine it was pumping and beating so hard behind her ribs. Heat flared up her neck and blossomed into red on her cheeks and she opened her mouth to speak.
"P...Pr...Optimus?" It was a garbled mess of vowels and consonants, so mispronounced and weak it was scary. She removed her glasses and rubbed her eyes. Heat flared on her chest skin, so hot that it penetrated into her sternum, then raced down the softness of her breasts. She placed a hand to it and felt the humming of the Shield recognize its master. The massive form began to sway slight, reaching out a huge hand towards her.
"Mira!"
She swayed, and then the world went dark as her head cracked against the floor.
