Chapter Fourteen

...

Night had befallen the skies now, leaving traces of heaven looking down on earth through pinpricks of light above them. Optimus noted these familiar stars; these constellations, having remembered them in the distance of past memories before coming to this place, this peculiar planet. He noted the positions of the stars and logged them, sighting constellations as he always did when he was alone these nights. His headlights struggled against the darkness dogging around him, the ground flat for miles in any direction. So unlike his home; how so much space could be...empty, serene. So much unlike Cybertron.

Odd, how this emptiness filled him. For so long he'd been on this planet, familiarizing himself with its customs and practices, that he'd starting calling this place home. Far be it from him to ever forget Cybertron; Primus knew he couldn't, but Earth was beginning to feel comfortable...it was open, undeveloped, and intelligent. It held promises, even in the midst of an arising apocalypse.

He pitied these people, these humans who were subject to his war, which had flailed out control from Cybertron and into the expanse of the galaxy. He was grieved to think about the loss of life here at his hand, at Megaton's hand...the numbers were seemed to outweigh the numbers on Cybertron, though numerically they were so far apart. Perhaps what horrified Optimus the most was the realization his war had stretched into another ecosystem, another world, raging and ravaging and destroying; when all he had desired was the end the slavery of the chastes politically.

How had it gotten this far?

Now, as he drove, he listened to the movement of life within his cab. Here, he possessed the most valuable forms of living he could imagine, right in his grasp. Their fragility in even slumber was astounding; they were so easily broken but so resilient! Even in their understanding of their fragility did they dare the dangerous and go the low road; choosing dangers of war, violence, destruction, just as his people had.

And they were astounding. He listened as they breathed, a beautiful sound of life, he surmised. He could sit for hours and study them; the way their heart-rate slowed as they slept, the way they moved gently to reposition, how their eyes flittered. It was a beautiful picture of peace and serenity, one that he had not witnessed for many eons. It was almost as fascinating as analyzing data, as he had in the Hall of Records, and learning as the Cybertron evolved; learning alongside the growth of the very planet he was born from. The way these being moved and talked and processed and learned was magnificent.

Their capacity to love struck him more powerfully than anything. They had such a willingness to lay down their lives for one another, especially their kindred, it was almost dizzying to Optimus. He'd never once imagined such dedication; save his dedication to Cybertron and life, but never had he seen more loyalty to one individual than he had seen in people. They were a brave species, one very compelled to serve. He could hardly, to this day, believe that Mira and her family would still stand beside him, even at the loss of a husband, father, and friend. How Sam was willing to stand beside him after his world had come crashing down around him.

And yet, he adored these beings. He could live and die a thousand deaths in the pits for Mira if it was required of him. He felt no other desire for her than protection; to see her live and live well. Their conversations compelled him to learn, to ask, to teach. He found a freedom around her he'd never felt around his team...for a moment he could become the mech he'd left behind in the Hall of Records and observe rather than fight. He could be someone that did not have to lead mightily; he could lead carefully and in question. He did not have to have the answers, but could ask the questions and think. Half the reason he gave the Shield to Mira was because of her willingness to make mistakes and ask the questions no one else wanted to ask, and give the answers no one wanted to hear. The Shield was about taking chances and using your instinct, trusting the judgment the situation creates within you. It was about daring courage, and daring leadership. Mira was all of those things. She made Orion Pax come alive within him again; the boy ready to learn and ask, the humility of a librarian seeking the knowledge of another.

She, forever the author, was the book. He was the student.

Optimus Prime listened to his comrades breath in the peace of slumber for many hours, watching the time tick continually, unwilling to give him any grace. He fought exhaustion, unwilling to cave to its seductive fingers, unwilling to stop. He pushed on, compelled to a new level every hour, forgetting the trip meter and resolving to go to heaven and back if it was required. He would reunite them with Bryce and Bumblebee and analyze their next move, and find his team. He would find his team, and find out what Lockdown was doing here. He'd kill Lockdown, if it was necessary.

He was halfway through Colorado when dawn broke. He studied the horizon as he drove, unaware of his systems declaring malfunciton in the chassi, and astonished at the flare of color. Iacon provided little gateway into the sky among the rising buildings, and he never had seen so many tapestries in one sky before coming to this planet. It left him breathless.

As did most things in this little world.

...

"Momma,"

Mira's body shook slightly as little, cold hands grabbed at the flesh of her arm. Jerked from her quiet darkness of slumber, she opened her eyes to find daybreak filtering into the cab of the still driving semi. She wondered how long Optimus had been going at it, and if he'd rested at all. She hadn't meant to fall asleep so...early.

Merrick was sitting on the floorboards, arms outstretched to the maximum to grab her arm. She realized she was leaning, half reclined against a warm source of comfort, until she took a deep breath and smelled the familiar scent of grinding sparks, welding dust, and a hint of cologne. Mira also felt a heavy, strong arm draped along her side, and found Cade's arm had fallen from the top of the seatback to rest upon her own. Recognizing the most awkward position, she pushed herself up with her left elbow and stretched her arms above her head.

Then, she heard it.

It was a tiny garbled noise, one that was unmistakable. She sighed. Merrick was hungry, and he was going to want breakfast. Mira straightened her glasses on her face and took in the scenery around them; a two-lane highway separated by a median, running alongside another two-lane highway going the opposite direction. They passed a state sign, one that read Wyoming, Hwy 4. They'd gotten to Wyoming already?

"Momma," Merrick asked again.

Mira waved him off, "Optimus?" she tapped on the dashboard slightly. The radio awakened and the lights flicked on, the cab shaking even more than it had yesturday. They needed out of this cab, to stretch...to breath. Optimus needed them out of this cab to...think.

"Good morning, Mira," he said dully. His voice was drained of any animation, filtered by exhaustion and duty. Her stomach dropped for him. Duty always came before pleasure with Optimus. He highly disregarded his own needs, which upset her. Perhaps the most important of them all, she was unwilling to let him suffer a moment longer. "Did you rest well?"

"Just great," she added quickly, "where are we?"

He brought up the See-All and pinpointed their location on a map of the U.S., "Right here," he clarified, "about an hour out of Montana. We'll be at Bryce's within the day." He focused in on the map, and she spotted the state-line. "We'll be crossing the border within the hour."

"Great," she brought out her phone. Merrick was standing now, an action she instantly chastised with a motherly glare and point back to the floor. Tessa and Cade were still asleep, but stirring. "Merrick!"

"Momma," he whined loudly now, "what's for breakfast? I'm starved." He wrapped his arms around his belly, "I wanna stop. My bottom hurts."

Mira looked to the radio, "Prime," she sighed, "we need a rest. As a mom, I would appreciate a truck stop any time."

He focused the map. "Understood. There's one off of highway 4 in about fifteen minutes." She looked to Merrick, who reached for the See-All screen in the windshield. She slapped his hand away and glared at him.

"Don't touch, Merrick," she hissed quietly.

Optimus retorted, "Do not chastise curiosity, Mira, "If our time together has taught you anything, I hope it would be that knowledge is power," he directed his next statement to Merrick, "what would you like to know, young one?"

Merrick gave her a smirk. "what is this?" he plastered his palm against the windshield, eyes bright with curiosity. Mira was half panicked he was going to set something off, perhaps Optimus' longsuffering, and sat rigidly as she awaited his reply, "is it a part of you, Optimus?"

He chuckled, "Yes, it is a part of me. The See-All screen is much like a giant computer," he explained gently, "it allows you to see whatever I am doing, at a human scale."

Cade stirred beside Mira as Optimus continued on quietly with the lesson, and she looked at him. He smiled at her and scratched his three-day stubble, and shifted his position. He looked around and then leaned towards her to ask the next question without interrupting, "Where are we?"

"Just out of Montana," she said hopefully. "We'll be stopping for breakfast in about ten minutes."

He nodded, "Okay. Sounds good."

She smiled at him, "Hopefully we'll be able to get freshened up. I'll put a call into Bryce when we get there, on a secure line and have him meet up with us somewhere at the border."

Cade gave her a crooked smile, "You're just all over it, aren't you?"

She shrugged. "That's my job."

...

As promised, they arrived at the truck-stop. Optimus parked the semi in the far corner of the lot and opened the doors for them, the four of them exiting quickly. Tessa immediately made a dash for the bathrooms to freshen up and do her hair, while Cade took Merrick's hand and escorted him into the bathroom. Mira hung around outside and closed the doors for the semi.

She positioned herself on the driver's side, placing a gentle hand on the front fender. Squatting to her haunches, she dared a look inside the fender and lowered herself to the ground, on her back. Crab-crawling until she reached the running-boards, a hiss of air unlocked from the brakes and Optimus rolled down the windows, the radio booming with command.

"What are you doing?" he demanded.

She hit the undercarriage sharply with a palm, "Checking you out under here. Seeing what we're dealing with."

He sighed. "I'm alright, Miriam. You shouldn't be concerning yourself with me. You have a son-"

"Merrick is with Cade," she interjected, "he's fine. If I don't watch out for you, who will?" She slid farther beneath the semi and took a look around. "Geez. How did you manage the rust under here? You're corroded, leaking exhaust in three places, and dripping..." she touched the liquid and brought it to her nose. The sweet smell of Energon, every Cybertronian's lifeforce, stung her senses. "You're leaking Energon, Optimus. You need a different form."

He sighed, frustrated now, "I will work on a different form," he said hastily, "if you promise me you'll get yourself looked after."

She patted the fender as she stood up, out form beneath the semi, "That's a deal. Give us thirty minutes."

"Go."

She chuckled and hurried for the truckstop, a shabby little diner with an attached convenience store. Grabbing the was of money she'd stuck in her cargoes, she entered the store and found Cade and Merrick deciding between orange juice and apple juice, a box of cereal tucked securely under Cade's arm. Tessa had tied her hair back into a ponytail, and had secured a blue and white plaid button down from somewhere and tied it around her waist. She was sporting a box of fruit snacks, and an iced coffee.

"Mom!" Merrick spotted her and dashed over, handing her an orange juice, "Can we get donuts, please?" His eyes were begging for the sugary goodness, and she touched his shoulder, nodding as they approached Cade and Tessa. Cade had a ballcap tucked over his eyes, and grabbed at the bill as if to secure it. He slyly used his little finger to point up to the corner, and Mira looked. Up, only to look away instantly. Security cameras.

"Tessa," she touched the girl's arm, "go wait outside with Merrick. I've got to make a call," Tessa nodded and handed Cade the food items, taking Merrick's hand and leading him outside. Mira touched Cade's arm and slipped him fifty dollars, "get some stuff for breakfast. I'll go make a call and freshen up," she looked to the counter, "the guy at the register looks like a dog. Don't get the wrong idea." She ended the conversation by squeezing his bicep with her fingertips, making it overly obvious to the clerk, and planting a kiss on the corner of his mouth, " we're going for a trucking family."

Cade gave her a curious stare below the ballcap, "What type of guy do you take me for?" he said sarcastically, with a smirk. She gave him and look and rolled her eyes. She swatted him playfully away, and he went down the aisle, scanning for food. She hurried to the restroom and locked the door behind her, slipping out her phone.

Grabbing the Shield from around her neck, she positioned it just outside the charging port of the Galaxy. It shifted into the appropriate cable-head, and Mira inserted it into the port. Instantly the line connected and secured, and she dialed Bryce. He picked up the first ring.

"Mira!" he sounded frantic, "what in blazes is going on? You have me pull a Crosswinds and then you don't call me!" She listened to him rant for a few moments, staring in the mirror and running some cold water. She plugged the sink with paper towels and then wet one, dabbing around her face and the back of her neck. He finally stopped to breath and she interjected.

"Something's happened, Bryce. I'm with Optimus," she hissed, "and the governments is after him. They tried to kill me, and Merrick. Something is going on," her voice dropped low, "where can you meet us?"

"Meet you? What do you mean? Where are you?"

She sighed, "I'm in Wyoming, almost at the border of Montana. Can you and 'Bee meet us somewhere at the border? We'll talk more then."

"Yeah. I know a place. We'll get there and wait for you. Bumblebee will send coordinates. Heard from anyone else?"

She could only assume he meant other Autobots. "No. Call me when you're at the border." She ended the call quickly when there was a knock on the door, and she quickly pooled water in her hands and washed her face, and her hair. Tying it back into its usual messy bun, she exited the restroom and found Cade waiting against the adjoining wall, grocery bag at hand. He looked up at her from under the ballcap and extended a hand.

"Come on, wifey. Let's hit the road." He led her out the door swiftly, where she found Merrick and Tessa sitting on the cement sidewalk running outside the building, munching on donuts and drinking apple juice. Cade and her took point, walking towards the semi, when all four of them froze.

It wasn't the semi she'd left, if the same semi at all. Mira wondered briefly if was even Optimus, and scanned the parking lot for his old form. She found no other semi's, only a minivan, and an Ford Escape. She almost dropped her phone when the doors popped open and Optimus' holoform was seated in the seat, one arm draped through the open window. He slipped a pair of generated sunglasses up from his eyes and into his hair and gestured for them to come.

Tessa and Merrick dashed for the updated vehicle, Cade approaching slowly. Mira just sat, amazed. It was a highly sophisticated Western Star, with six stacks running off the back and an extended sleeping cab. Mostly a deep, navy blue with screaming red flames, it was trimmed in sparkling silver chrome with a hood scoop. She'd never known Optimus to be one for flashy, but obviously he'd decided it was time for a bit of an upgrade. Only when everyone was loaded and comfortable, did she approach. At the truckside, she looked up into the cab: high tech, modified, and luxurious, her eyes widened at the deep, black leather interior finish and chrome lined gauges. The holoform gave her a small smile and extended a hand to her.

"I feel outdone," she touched her damp messy bun and straightened her glasses, then tucked her phone into her back pockets. "I guess I shouldn't be surprised, you always keep your promises." She took his hand and he pulled her into the cab effortlessly.

She seated herself and he jumped down from the cab, and he smiled up at her with gleaming eyes. With the new alternation mode must've come an upgraded holoform, because he was a different form than what "Cullen" had been. Taller, if possible, with broader shoulders and thicker arms. A blue and red leather jacket with an adjustable buckle-hem on the bottom, faded top-dollar blue jeans and black combat boots, with a black v-neck t-shirt. He proudly wore the Autobot insignia around his neck, which dangled from a silver chain, its shining glory only matched by the powerful iciness of his blue eyes. His hair was deep black-almost with a blue tinge. Surprisngly, he was unshaven with black stubble running along a strong jaw line and forming into a goatee around his mouth. He looked about Cade's age; forty, but a strong, military forty in comparison. If Mira hadn't known him to be Optimus Prime, the man would've taken her breath away and left her a swooning, schoolgirl mess of attraction. He smelled terrifically of grinding sparks, Energon...and Black Stetson aftershave. His smile was danergously attractive and caused his eyes to sparkle with life.

"You are never outdone, Mira. You are still more beautiful than a thousand constellations, my friend." He gave her a crooked half-smile, "Now let's roll." He thumped the door closed with a whisk and disappeared into the air on the breeze. She looked to Cade, who gave a curious look to her and then touched the steering wheel.

"Where'd you jack this from, Optimus?" Seatbelts clicked into place and Mira glanced behind her to see pilot seats directly behind her and Cade, one seating Tessa and the other Merrick, who was aglow with fascination. he looked to Mira, eyes wild with excitement.

"Cool, Mom!" She chuckled and reached behind her to pat his knee.

Optimus fired up the truck and shifted into reverse, the extravagant gearshift effortlessly gliding into place on the floor, "The form was running a load down the highway. I merely borrowed the idea."

"Merely is a generous adjective," Cade snorted, "You made the poor guy weep, I'm sure of it." They pulled back out onto the highway. Optimus got up to speed effortlessly, the truck riding smoothly, almost as if in a dream. Mira sat in amazement, hunger forgotten, taking in the cab. Of course she'd seen upgrades throughout the years...but good Primus!

"Mira," Optimus changed the subject, "I have received responding transmissions from the Autobots," he brought up a highly sophisticated See-All; one far different than the other. It was bigger, packed with more system readings and signatures, and he brought up the transmission feedings. She situated herself and fingered the Shield, watching as Optimus brought photographs of each Autobot up.

They split into categorized file listings; one following another. Each picture was of the alternation mode: one a Corvette racing model, another a Bugatti, and the last being an Oshkosh Defense tactical vehicle. Following each picture was a case-file, documented carefully with names, rank, class, and logs. A smile drifted onto Mira's lips as memories game washing over like a spring rain: her friends had returned, alive and well. Most of her friends, anyway.

"Well? What do they have to say?" Tessa, surpringly, asked from the backseat. Everyone in the cab looked to her and Optimus whisked away the information, bringing up a map with a marked location. Four blinking orbs, which Mira understood as the Autobots, were spread across the state of Montana, all headed for one location.

"They are regrouping," Optimus evaded the underlying question, "Bumblebee has sent coordinates for a secure rendezvous somewhere in the Montana wastelands. We should be there by evening."

Cade nodded, "In the meantime," he dug around the grocery bag and retrieved a screwdriver, a pliers, and a wire-cutter, "I managed to weasel these away from some of the mechanics in the truck shop," she gave her an apologetic looks, "cost me twenty bucks, but I should be ready to tear that gun apart and get us some information," The gun instantly slid across the dash to him, out of nowhere, thanks to Optimus.

"Perfect. Get on it and we'll see where we need to be," Mira concluded. She looked out the window to the horizon, seeing the miles of road ahead of them. Excitement buzzed through her body like nervous energy ready to explode as she realized for the first time in three years she'd be seeing the team she'd left behind-most of them. Again, she thought about telling Optimus about Ratchet, but decided now was not the best timing either.

...

Savoy glanced over his shoulder and scanned the bustling streets of Chicago around him, as if someone had the nerve to be following him into a safety zone. Not many outsiders found their way into the futuristically fashionable KSI megabuilding, but with what was happening these days, James wasn't taking any chances.

He stepped into the building, greeted by two jet-black haired model-grade hostesses waiting to take his jacket. He politely declined and approached the front desk, showed his badge, and was directed up the stairs by a woman with spiraling red hair and a Bluetooth. He nodded his thanks and stepped up the slim, attractive architecture, and made his way to the end of the hallway which branched off to the right before leading to another stairwell.

Attinger had asked him to meet him here at KSI, to converse with Joshua Joyce, owner and operator of the company, to discuss business. James could only assume this business as Seed business; the promising revolution that would land the world with an entire new line of science; and would land big money in Savoy's pockets. Assuming money was what he wanted. He didn't want money as much as Attinger did; he wanted blood and steel, which is what he would get.

This Seed, or promised revolution, would transform the world, he'd heard. It was capable of making the very metals the blasted aliens were made of; metal that could be manipulated and shifted; which is what Joyce was looking for in the best interest of his company, since he'd invested every dime he had in this place toward the cause to end all other causes. It would give them an entire millinia of Transformer metal to play with and sell; revolutionize armies and countries and worlds with. It was the breakthrough of the world, Joyce promised, and would make them all sickeningly rich.

Assuming rich was what the trio wanted.

This Seed, though highly fanaticized as it seemed, came only once the so-called check was cashed at the hands of the holder. Lockdown, the Cybertronian Neutral, had promised them one Seed to change their world for one Prime and one girl; a fair price for the revolution of science, he'd said. He wanted human help not to raise suspicion, he said. Really, like all men in the business of hunting, this Lockdown wanted all the work done for him at a price he was comfortable paying. James thought the entire scenario screamed of chaos, but he didn't really care.

At the end of the hallway. he stopped at the glass doors and tucked his special edition in the waist of his black cargo pants. He smoothed the trenchcoat around him and brushed the dust off one of the arms, then pulled open the huge French doors. A bald man in glasses, the infamous Joshua Joyce, was rapidly gesturing to a blueprint on his desk, an ignorant Attinger looking out the window with arms crossed and back to the company owner. James approached the oversized, futuristic desk, gave them his best playboy smile, and extended his hands.

"How's the party, gents?"

Attinger rolled his eyes and glared at him, "What have you got?"

"Not much," he shrugged and placed his fingertips on the desktop, then sunk his weight forward, "But Lockdown is getting concerned. He doesn't think we can handle the job."

"I can handle it," Attinger growled, "any movement with the girl?"

He shrugged, "Haven't gotten anything. She's off the grid," he sighed, frustrated, "she disappeared. But, Lockdown's got his suspicions as to what the Prime has up his sleeve, you could say. We're basically camping out."

Attinger mumbled, "You assume by "camping out" this is a vacation," he turned on his heel, "the President and the White House administration is getting cold-feet. We have to get moving on this, otherwise we'll lose our funding and our authority."

Savoy gave him a smile, "Don't worry. Every hunter has to wait for his prey to settle down and make a move more or less stupid," he shrugged a shoulder, "we're waiting. I saw the look in Lennox's eye' she's not gunna stay down for long. Before you know it we'll have a lock, and your Seed. Just be patient."

"I'm not a patient man,"

Savoy gave him a wicked, somewhat luscious stare as passion roared in his eyes. Attinger, obviously taken aback by the stare, straightened his tie nervously and reached into his breastpocket, pulling out a hankie. Joyce left the office, not saying a word to the two authority figures, cell phone to his ear. Savoy chuckled.

"You're not a hunter."