Authors Notes: I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the story so far. As always, I love to hear what everyone thinks. Please comment!


Reha

Darrel's workshop door squealed on its hinges louder than the jingling bells on the handle. Both sounds announced Reha's presence.

The older man glanced up from his oil-stained newspaper, and his face fell. "Girl, you look sick as a dog! Where'd you catch something, you don't go out!"

Reha coughed, having to lean on the doorframe for support against the occasional wave of dizziness. "Crappy immune system," she explained away. She knew what ailed her, and it wasn't the common cold. It was the prolonged exposure to Soundwave's Energon, but she couldn't well explain that to Darrel. "I, um, need material for a high temperature distillery." She said, pinching the bridge of her nose and rubbing away the blur from her eyes.

"What temperatures you wanting to reach?" he asked while he offered her a chair.

She took up the invitation and crashed into the plastic lawn chair he had for his desk. "Over 3000 degrees, preferably." The makeshift distillery for Energon she and Laserbeak rigged made of scraps and duck tape had finally melted into a pile of useless slag.

Darrel whistled. "So hotter than hell! Girl, what you buildin' out there that needs that much heat?"

"Um, just messing around with different metals. Do you have anything that can withstand that temperature?" She was pressed for time and couldn't chat. Despite all her work, Soundwave had slipped into a coma like state Laserbeak had explained to be 'stasis lock'. He had been bleeding in his chest, the very place he had stubbornly stopped her from exploring. She assumed she would have noticed the hemorrhage sooner if he hadn't stopped her. Now their distiller was worthless, and Soundwave needed more Energon desperately.

"You'll probably need tungsten," piped a voice from one of the dusty aisles.

Reha turned. A young adolescent was the source of the explanation. A short boy, messy brown hair and boxy glasses that didn't fit his face quite right. He offered the two a warm smile. "Sorry for eaves dropping. But I have a metal foundry that gets to those temps, and tungsten is what I use."

'Of course,' Reha thought, chastising herself for not considering it. Her mind was foggy from the Energon exposure. She spun back around to face Darrel, "Yeah, you have any of that?"

"I may have a sheet left, kind of pricy though… let me check." He huffed as he pushed through his stacked inventory.

Even sick, Reha felt the eyes of Darrel's only customer on her. "What metal are you working with?" the young kid asked.

She squirmed, struggled to make something up. She felt like her brain had been through the Energon distiller. "Steel, some titanium too…"

"Oh yeah, then tungsten is what you need." He confirmed with a smile. "I hate melting titanium, takes forever and a reinforced sealed container. But it is always worth the hassle." He held out a hand for her to shake, a social custom that she hated more than life itself. "The name's Raf. I live in Jasper, a few towns over. Darrel is the best for scrap metal."

She offered Raf a weak handshake after staring at Raf's offering hand for probably too long. "Reha. I'm, just staying for a few months."

Raf dropped her hand, tilting his head as he observed her face. "You know, you look really familiar…"

Reha tried to hide her concern. Her face was plastered on missing posters everywhere, so she was sure he did in fact recognize her. "I get that a lot. Common face and all."

"One sheet of tungsten left," Darrel announced from the back. "I'll give ya a discount if you promise to go see a doctor. Really kid, you look like death warmed over."

Raf's phone buzzed in his pocket, providing a decent distraction for Reha not to promise anything to Darrel.

"This is Raf," he answered. His face lit up in response to the raspy voice on the other line. "Hi Ratchet. Yeah, of course I can help… So, none of Agent Fowler's techs could track them? I'll be happy to give it a try. Let me flag Jack down, he drove me here." He clicked the phone shut and counted out money for his scavenged items. "I got to run. A friend of mine is having a problem with their, eh, computer. Someone hacked into it. Good luck with your metal project Reha, and hope you feel better."

Raf left the store with a friendly wave over his shoulder. He ran to another older adolescent on the street corner who was leaned against a black motorcycle.

As the two boys sped off Darrel snickered. "That's the kid I mentioned. Told ya you're in good company with other nerds around here."

"Thanks Darrel," Reha huffed. She pushed the last bit of money she had at him and stumbled out the door with what she needed. Only after crumpling into her Foster parent's car and checking the bag did she notice Darrel had slipped a bottle of flu medicine in with the rolled metal sheet. She owed Darrel way more then she had ever paid him. Though the medicine would do little for what ailed her, it would knock her out that night. The promise of a blissful drug induced sleep was something she looked forward to as she drove off into the desert.

The car radio scanned through the stations; her own transistor still vigilant for police frequencies nearby for her to avoid. Her foggy mind failed to decide on a channel, so she let it loop. Political chatter, old rock, classical dotted with static, talk radio with a woman weeping…

Reha almost swerved off the road. Even being under the ill effects of a toxic alien substance, Reha recognized the woman crying on the radio, and it made her already uneasy stomach threaten to expel her breakfast of ramen and monster energy.

Fiddling with the diel, she brought the station back and listened, just as her own name was mentioned.

"It's been more than a month now," the sniffling voice of her foster mother Justine whimpered. "I'm just so worried about my poor baby, Reha. Thank you again for letting me take a few minutes to talk on your show."

"Of course," the host said, their own tone dripping with sympathy Justine did not deserve. "What can you tell the audience about your daughter, before she went missing that is."

"First of all, she is very sick. She has an extreme case of autism and signs of violent schizophrenia. She can't take care of herself." Justine said with a few well-placed sobs.

"It's called high functioning autism," Reha snapped to the empty car. "It's your money maker, Justine, yet you still can't get the diagnosis right?" As for the 'schizophrenia,' that went by the wayside once Reha detoxed from the array of meds she had been forced to take.

"Reha is almost eighteen, correct?" the host asked. "In a little bit, she is going to age out of the system. Won't she have the right to remain-"

"That's why we need to find her soon," Justine was quick to snap. "My husband Jim and I have been fighting with doctors to find the right diagnosis for years and convince the court she can't just age out of the foster system like any other child. Because of her mental illnesses, my husband and I were trying to gain indefinite adult guardianship of her, for the rest of her life. But… she vanished before that order was complete. That's why I'm so worried! She hasn't had access to her medications for more than a month. I can't sleep or eat. I just want my baby home."

Reha caught herself glaring in the rear-view mirror as she listened to Justine whine. Aging out of the foster system was what she had been counting down to while under Justine and Jim's 'care.' But then their equally as horrible doctor friend finally broke through the court system. They downplayed all Reha's claims of abuse. Denied the two foster parents were working the system for government funding.

Then the bomb shell. Before she would turn eighteen, they intended to have her deemed completely dependent on their care. Reha fell through the cracks like so many others, and she could no longer walk out the front door on her eighteenth birthday while giving her two foster parents the middle finger. She was to be their government cash cow for the rest of her life. That same night Justine and Jim celebrated their assumed victory, Reha was packing her bags to escape.

"I think someone took her in our car, since it went missing the same night she did." Justine continued to whine. "She couldn't just leave on her own. It's been a struggle to convince the police she didn't just run away! Wherever she is, whoever has her, please, please bring her home!"

"Black hearted harpy," Reha hissed.

"Again folks," the host intoned, interrupting Justine, to Reha's great relief. "Reha is a five-foot tall black girl with hazel brown eyes. She is seventeen years old. She was last seen in Northern California and may be with a tan 1998 sedan. If you have any information, please call your local police department or the Center for Missing and Exploited Children-."

Reha jammed her finger on the diel to shut off the station. "You have bigger issues now," Reha reminded herself. She scratched at the rough denim on her pants to extinguish her building anger. "Soundwave needs your help. Deal with Jim and Justine once he's better." She drove the rest of the way in silence, avoiding her own glaring gaze in the rear-view mirror. The sky rumbled, slowly turning dark. A storm was coming, despite Nevada never getting rain. If she didn't know better, Reha would assume Justine had sent the ominous clouds after her.

She pulled up next to her workstation behind the shack. Soundwave was still laying where she left him, the ever-loyal Laserbeak checking his vitals and sealing the last Energon veins while he fought against his own lingering tremor.

"I got stronger metal for the distillery," she announced to Laserbeak as she pushed her bodyweight into the door and got out. She handed the sheet of tungsten to Laserbeak when he flapped over to her. "How is he?"

Laserbeak used his tentacles to bend the usually unyielding metal into the desired shape. "Current status: Stable." His mechanical voice came through Reha's Transistor radio as always.

The sky rumbled ominously, and Reha let out a frustrated sigh. "Really? No rain in a month and it decides to start NOW?" The desert State only got ten inches of precipitation a year. Reha found it comical a storm was now threatening when they had a makeshift alien triage unit outside in the elements. It wasn't like she could bring Soundwave into the shack. However, the ridiculous mental image she had given herself did spark an idea.

She scavenged for four metal poles and yanked up the folded tarp she had been utilizing for a floor in the shack. Laserbeak must have deduced her intentions, because he left the Energon to process in the new distillery and helped her set up a tent over Soundwave's head and upper torso. It didn't cover all of him, but Reha figured protecting the only gaping hole left in his chest took precedence. She gave Soundwave's last holdout wound a look.

"He may have something else wrong in his chest, but he didn't let me get near it the last time," Reha pointed out with a huff. "Why the reluctance in that regard?"

Laserbeak considered her, then turned back to drive the final pole into the ground. "Damaged Spark Chamber. Master Soundwave has reason to prevent any unknown entity near that part of him."

"A better reason then just being stubborn?" Reha continued to prod.

"Master Soundwave's Spark Chamber contains his Spark, the connection to Primus and the All Spark. It is the life source of all Cybertronians. It is considered intimate, and not to be tampered with."

"Oh," Reha muttered. Had she come off unsympathetic? "Makes sense I guess." She inspected the tarp and was less than convinced it could withstand a half decent downpour. "Here, use this to cover his chest, just in case the tarp leaks." She shed her hoodie and tossed it to Laserbeak. It was the only one she had, and it had been helping against the chills produced from the Energon sickness. But Soundwave needed it more.

She watched Laserbeak carefully cover the wound over Soundwave's Spark Chamber. The rain started to patter around them and bounce off the tarp. She coughed, feeling woozy again. She sat down in the dirt next to Soundwave's arm, and once again found herself touching his metal skin. Smooth and comforting. Her fingers brushed the raised purple insignia he bore. She liked the pointed edges of the symbol best.

"I'm really happy I've been able to help," Reha began, though fidgeted. Her guilt had finally reached its peak. "I didn't call for help from the United States military, because of my own selfish reasons. But they are probably better qualified to help you guys."

To her surprise, Laserbeak stopped his work to address her, "No help from human governments. Our location must remain secret."

"Did you guys have a falling out with the human military?" she wondered, though now felt much less guilty for not calling.

"Will be captured." Laserbeak said.

"Not the first time the US military did someone dirty, I guess." Reha mused. After everything the Autobots had done for humanity too… "How did you guys get stuck in that Flux Dimension anyway?"

"A surprise trap from the enemy." Laserbeak said simply. "Master Soundwave is needed back on Cybertron. Once functional, we need to contact team and rendezvous."

"You are welcome to use anything I have to contact them. I get how it feels being away from home." She sighed, watching Laserbeak check on the Energon's progress under the smaller tarp they set up over the distiller. "I haven't thanked you yet, Laserbeak. I still haven't had the chance to thank Soundwave either."

Laserbeak stared at her, hesitating before he inquired, "Elaborate."

Reha felt herself smile. She tried to hide it behind her knees when she hugged them to her body. "For everything you and the other Autobots have done for Earth. I didn't get to read much about this war you're fighting in those Government files, but I really appreciate everything you have done. Human issues are hardly your problem, but you still defended us. And now after everything you did, the military flips on you. At least you have this human's thanks."

Laserbeak studied her in silence. At first, she wondered if she had somehow offended again.

"Acknowledged," Laserbeak finally answered, and quickly returned to his work.

Soundwave

Past the cracks in his visor, dull gray greeted Soundwave's activated optics. The sound of Earth's falling precipitation rattled the petroleum based protective cover he found himself under. He still felt horrid, but his mind was clearer, and when he moved, every circuit and join didn't scream in protest. That was progress.

Laserbeak's report greeted him in his mind. "The human designated {Reha} acquired adequate material for a proper Energon Distiller. This batch of Energon is almost ready for consumption."

Soundwave gave Laserbeak a quizzical look behind his visor, one which only Laserbeak would recognize. "You bothered to learn the organic's name?" He asked through their silent connection.

"With my own damage to contend with, she has been paramount in your survival and recovery, Master Soundwave." Laserbeak pointed out, their focus falling to the ground by Soundwave's side.

He turned, and saw the human, Reha, motionless under his arm. She was laid out on a white fibrous berth that had been drug to his side. Her small frame gave off an occasional tremble, her normal coloring paler than what Soundwave recalled. Energon toxicity, no doubt. "For a creature intelligent enough to repair me but ignorant to the obvious negative effects on their own system from Energon," Soundwave began to note with bemusement.

"Correction," Laserbeak interrupted, "She is definitely aware of the negative effects of Energon on her organic system. She wears protective armor while working on you. My evaluation: Her own self-preservation is not a priority to her."

Soundwave became aware of the foreign substance on his chest. Laid over his open wound was something of the humans. One of her thin and malleable articles of fibrous protective coverings. Yet another layer she had erected to shield his wound from the rain. With his armor and plating ripped away over his chest, such precipitation would damage wires and encourage rust.

"What is her ultimate objective in helping us?" Soundwave wondered. He was still baffled, unsure how to deduce the human's intentions as the arrangement seemed to only benefit him.

"Observation," Laserbeak said. "The human is under the impression we are Autobot affiliated. She is offering support as compensation for the Autobots previous actions on Earth that enhanced local human life."

Soundwave observed the small creature under his arm, finally understanding their strange circumstance. She was assisting what she thought was an ally of Earth and Humanity. Until he was fully functional, they would need to maintain that deception.