All she could do was stare. Her mind wouldn't work, her body wouldn't move, all she could do was stare. He was perfectly eye level with her, an intense blue just like the eyes she knew of Orion focused solely on her. She didn't feel scared. She didn't feel angry. She didn't feel anything except the painful throbbing of her chest begging her to move closer.
She took a step.
The gears in her head began to whirr back into action. Her eyes finally moved from just his optics to him. She cast her eyes to the right of his head, finding red, blue, and the silver color of metal. Her eyes followed the painted flames of the armor to the massive and oddly gorgeous machine standing before her. She gazed up at the beast of metal with wonder unmatched by anything other than her.
She took a second step, letting out a long-held breath.
Her lips twitched as to make some sort of sound, but she found that she was left speechless. There were hardly any words to describe the red and blue being standing before her. Not a word could begin to depict his impeccable design. The familiar aura, the seemingly gentle look in his concerned cyan optics, it made her feel a kind of way that she hadn't felt in years. She hadn't the pleasure of feeling such a thing when she was a young girl, pressed against that wall, watching her mother's body sway as if in peace.
Safe. That was it. He made her feel safe. It was an unfamiliar feeling and an unusual one at that. But it was pleasant and warm. It blossomed in her belly and swelled up to her chest, flowering outwards to her arms and dancing along the tips of her fingers. It was a wonderful feeling, this safety. It was a powerful thing, this comfort.
Finally, her lips moved, and the dryness in the throat became clear with moisture. She took a third step, leaving hardly any room between her and the giant that presented himself. Her hand ached to move and her mind wondered what the metal felt like against her skin. Was it warm? Was it cold? What was he feeling? Slow with caution, she raised her hand. She leaned over the railing of the catwalk a short way and pressed her hand against what she assumed to be his cheek. The metal beneath her small hand was heated. The feeling spread across her palm and let tingling in her fingers as she withdrew her arm. She said the only thing that she could think of as a greeting.
"Hi," she breathed out slowly.
"Hello, Azrael,"
The voice she had come to recognize as Orion's wrapped her entire body in an odd, comforting cocoon of sound. His deep, rumbling voice provided a comfort she was far from used to, but there was something else. It was as if a shield had suddenly shot up around her. Multiple shields, even. That same emotions of safety washed over her all over again.
"What's your name?" she asked curiously. Her mind wanted to know everything there was about his mammoth of metal.
"My name is Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots," he stated smoothly, "And you are in danger, Azrael."
"What do you mean?"
"What he means is that the attack on your apartment wasn't an accident,"
She turned her head, finding her eyes landing on that boy she knew from high school. Only now, he seemed more confident, and he was grinning madly. Ace's eyes watered for the umpteenth time that day.
"Sammy," she whispered. Her chest felt restricted, but for a reason, she didn't understand. There was no wound on her body, no pain anywhere, but it was hard to breathe. Why?
"Hey, Ace,"
Before she understood what she was doing, Ace had run to Sam and flung her arms around him. The action was returned as Sam grabbed hold of Ace and held onto her tightly. They had always had that oddly romantic yet platonic partnership, and it seemed that nothing much had changed there. She pulled away to look at his brown eyes, her hands moving to his cheeks. She noted the scar going over his right eyebrow. She ran her finger across it.
"Bee couldn't save you from yourself, huh?" she teased lightheartedly.
Furious beeps of rage and protest sounded from below the catwalk. Ace laughed almost hysterically, wiping the tears from her eyes. Sam eventually released her from the embrace and allowed her to look back to the red and blue giant.
"Optimus, who would want to hurt me?" she asked softly, "I'm nobody, really. I don't understand."
"It would be better to show you elsewhere, Azrael,"
The giant turned away, and thunderous tremors followed with each step. Ace looked to Will and Epps, both of which nodded in unison.
"You're gonna want to see this one, Doc," Epps answered her unasked question.
Nervousness began bubbling to life in her stomach as she walked down the catwalk stairs with Sam, furious beeping still being shot at them by Bumblebee.
"Hold on," Ace said, placing her hands down on the illuminated tabletop projecting the image of the Decepticon that had attacked her apartment, "So you're telling me that children were put at risk because some giant metal robot from outer space wants me dead?"
Will nodded with nervousness written over his face. Ace's grimace turned into out-right fury.
"Who the hell does that to a bunch of kids, damn it?! You don't put fucking kids at risk!" she shouted, nearly shattering the table with her fist when she hit it, "Who in the ever-living name of God would try to hurt a child?!"
"You don't want to know, Doc," Epps said from the right side of Ace, "There are a lot of -"
"I know, Epps. I've locked away a good chunk of them myself," she hissed out. Her nails pulled at the edge of the metal surrounding the glowing table. She bit her lip, forcing down her anger for the time being, "I apologize. I... I've seen too many children harmed than there should be. I was out of line."
"It's cool. I get it,"
"Now, the point is, Ace, that you can't go back out there," Will continued. He swiped across the table with his finger, bringing up more images of more red optic baring Cybertronians, "Every one of the 'Cons, we have seen in the past several weeks around your previous residence -"
"'Previous'," Ace repeated, "Unless you have a permanent residence for me, I'll be returning."
"The necessary actions for you to remain here, on base, have already been taken," Optimus, or "Orion", said. Something Ace recognized as a haloform had been activated so Optimus and Bumblebee could enter the small "meeting" room with the humans. Ace hardly realized that her hand had gripped onto his until he pulled it away to place it on her shoulder, "Don't worry, Azrael."
"We get that it's not the homiest place to stay, but it's the safest for you right now," Epps said, "Here, you can train, learn, and even work on a few cases of yours. You'll have access to the best computer systems on Earth."
She knew that she didn't have any other choice. Ace was more on the side of staying alive then meeting an early grave. She nodded slowly, comprehending the circumstance, but not liking them at all. She was being taken from what she knew. But then again, Ace had a habit of coming to know everything about anything when given the chance.
"Okay,"
"Like I was saying, these 'Cons all have been spotted around your previous residence in the past several weeks. As far as they know, you died in the fire while saving a young boy. Your body was pull from the flames and taken to the CME Office and named as one of the forty-one dead -"
"Will, do you not remember everything I already told you? They know I'm alive - I was meant to live. This is a warning of some kind. I know it. The Decepticon that attacked the building had planned for me to survive, and they are going to attack again on the given date," Ace started slowly and clearly, "The building was bombed on the Northern side. Think! It's mathematical. Imagen the numbers used to get to forty - the number of actual casualties. Fifteen and twenty-five. The numbers that create fifteen are three and twelve. Three; the third day of the week - Wednesday. Twelve, the twelfth month - December. Twenty-five, or it's the twenty-fifth - Christmas Day. The date given is Wednesday, December twenty-fifth. That is the next attack."
All eyes fell on her. Her mind recalled when she had explained this before, and remembered that at the end, she had asked if anyone had any questions. She looked at Lennox, her startling blue eyes glinting.
"Don't worry, Will. I'll teach you how to pick up on these things one day," she said teasingly, "Now then, back to the Decepticons. Do they have a known attack pattern?"
"No, not a well known one. They are known for using brute strength and force to get there way rather than a strategy," Optimus stated, "Would you happen to have gotten any clue as to where they might attack on this supposed date?"
"I'm going to let the fact that you just said 'supposed' to my face and continue to answer your question - and I have a vague idea. I'd have to observe more behavior before I decide anything."
"She is a rather strange one, old friend," Optimus admitted as he spoke with Ratchet in the Med-Bay, "Her mind is curious, and she seeks knowledge endlessly. I don't quite know how to describe her aside from 'breathtaking'."
"Of course she would seem this way to you," Ratchet scoffed as he peered at a data-pad with the Prime's spark readings, "She's your Destined One, designed or you. She would seem this way for any mech or femme if she were their Destined. But I do have one question."
"And what would that be?"
"When she first met you, she didn't run. Any idea why?"
"She's brave, and she's curious. Perhaps I didn't frighten her?"
"For a Prime, you are dense - your bond has already begun! The moment you made eye contact with her in your true form, the bond between you and Miss Echolyn began. You are going to see her more and more each day, and you are going to become more possessive the longer you fight your bond. Meanwhile, she will grow to crave your attention. And from what I've read about her, Optimus, she already craves affection. Most of her childhood, youth, and adult life are lacking in it."
Ratchet had been correct in stating that Optimus would become more possessive of the human femme. He didn't like leaving her alone for more than an hour if that long, and even less so when she was training because of a base full of mainly men. But for the moment, his obsession has subsided, and his haloform was sat alongside Azrael on the catwalk. She was looking around the base curiously, not having taken much time to do so before.
"Orion - er, Optimus, what was your home like?" she asked, "Bee's told me a little, but he seems to only have memories of war on Cybertron."
"You are welcome to call me Orion, Azrael,"
"Okay then. Orion, tell me about your planet. I've heard you talk about Earth before and that you enjoy the plant life immensely, but what was Cybertron like?"
"As for her being curious, well, that could be many things. It seems that she is simply gifted with curiosity. But, it wouldn't surprise me if throughout her life she has been looking for answers revolving around who she was or perhaps why she never felt whole," Ratchet stated. He set the data-pad down on his desk and stared the Prime straight in the optic, "Optimus, she will want to know everything about you, including the parts you would be more than happy to forget. You have to tell her, or this bond you have begun will easily shatter. To strengthen it, both of you must be willing to tell the truth and believe the other. But you, Optimus, have a much more difficult job to do."
"What is that, Ratchet?"
"She is starved for affection - physical affection. Not only will you have to stimulate her with your presence, but a simple, casual touch would be more than enough to begin strengthening what you have already," the medic explained, "Don't rush her, don't force her, but you do have to push. Don't make her move fast, but when she is ready to let you in, press her on it."
Optimus stared at the curious femme with this odd sense of longing. She stared back at him with a soft, natural pull at her lips. With minor hesitation, the Prime brought his arm around his waist. He felt her stiffen at first, and he picked up her accelerating heart. But something seemed to have happened within her. Her heart slowed, and she leaned into his side with a soft breath of relief. Ace peered up at the haloform.
"I suppose from the start would be best," Optimus said reluctantly. She watched as his eyes sparkled with both hidden joy and masked pain, "Millenia ago, Cybertron was once a beautiful planet, full of life and love all around..."
Blue eyes glared at her in the mirror, storming and raging with self-hatred. The bitterness of her broken apart heart. Drops of blood spattered the ground in elegant drops while she watched the black gel that covered her arms she clawed at and scratched. She couldn't even remember what had happened - all she knew was that there was sudden stinging in her arms and then there was a shattered mirror with hateful blue eyes glaring back at her. She could see this terrible anger resonating in her eyes. She could feel this rising wrath in her chest and it was taking over all of her. She watched at her mouth turned into a vexatious sneer. This replica of herself leered at her a knock came to the door, she was finally knocked out of her trance and she shook her head free of her mental prison.
With a gulp of air, she called out nervously: "W-who's there?"
"Just me, Doc!" Epps said casually, "Ratchet's looking for you. Said something about wanting to run a few tests on that gel stuff."
"Ah, alright. Just give me another minute!" Ace shouted with more confidence.
Ace shook her head again and shook out her head of dark curls. Ratchet had mentioned before about running tests on the odd gel-like substance that was seemingly attached to her body. Ace pushed off of the skin as her arms began to heal rapidly. She looked away from the broken mirror and left her bathroom. She grabbed a jacket from the edge of her bed in her barracks to wear over her scratched up arms. Her dark green tank top and grey sweat pants made her look like any other soldier, and honestly, she acted like one, too. Orders were something she had to follow as a kid and they didn't get any easier as she got older.
She shoved her door open to find that Epps had left. It seemed that the soldier didn't spend much time with Ace anymore. When she first took notice, she considered the fact that he had many other duties to attend to aside from herself. But when she haw him throwing back shots with his pals and practically ignoring her, Ace started to feel abandoned. Not that she could blame Epps - she wasn't the most interesting person to be around. Once you figured Ace out - or thought you had at least - most lost interest. She'd learned not to take it too harshly.
With quick steps, Ace had made it to the Med-Bay in but a few minutes. She pushed open the human sized door in time for Will to be headed toward the door. The Major brightened up when he saw the young woman.
"Hey there, Ace. I was just coming to get you. I take it Epps already knocked?" Will asked as he joined Ace's side.
"Yes, he did," Ace answered formally, "I am aware that Ratchet was looking for me in order to run any possible tests on this gel inside me. The sooner we complete this, the sooner I can be out of here."
"In a rush?"
"Training. 'Hide suggested that he and I train together today so we could get a feel for one another. I agreed. It would be an excellent way for Ironhide and I to bond considering he is the weapons specialist - not to mention I have no other activities to do on the base," Ace stated matter-of-factly, "But, I don't see how this is of your concern. What has brought you in here today, Major Lennox?"
Will shook his head, "Number one, call me Will. Number two, I was just in here to make sure you're doing alright. Optimus said - I-I mean... damn it," Will muttered.
"Optimus said what, Major?" Ace wondered as she came to a stop. Will winced away from her tone, "Do tell what he said about me."
"He just said that he had an odd feeling about you. The Big Guy wants to know if you're okay, that's all,"
She knew he was lying about something, and it was something big if he was trying to cover for Optimus. And yet, hearing the name made her feel all the more assured. Ace sighed and let the subject drop with ease. Now was not the time to try and press Will for answers. He was a soldier - she'd need time to get that done. The woman walked forward toward the back of the Med-Bay where Ratchet was positioned as always. The Medic peered down at the human femme.
"Afternoon, Azrael," he greeted as his haloform fizzled to life, "Feeling alright as of late? No sudden heat flashes? No aching in the muscles or bones?"
"No, sir, nothing of the sort," Ace answered honestly, "You spoke of wanted to run tests on the gel?"
"Yes, yes, but that may come later. As of now, I'd like to run a simple check-up on you. I'm still adjusting to the human way of medicine in some cases, so if a question seems peculiar to you, just answer," Ratchet instructed. Ace noted the undertone of excitement in his voice as he asked, "Now then, tell me: what have your dreams been of lately?"
Ace lifted a brow, "I assume this is one of those peculiar questions?"
"Yes, it is. Check-ups do happen to ask questions of the mental state. Dreams often portray the mental state from what I've read in The Messages of Dreams -"
"I'm aware," Ace chuckled, "I was one of the authors."
"Optimus, I am telling you! If Azrael is already onto the dream phase of Cybertron and you are onto the stasis-deprived stage then this cannot be fought off much longer!" Ratchet hissed to the Autobot leader, "This human femme is they one for you. If you do not engage in some sort of physical or romantic relationship, neither of you are going to last much longer. You're growing weaker and weaker as it is. Why do you continue to fight this?!"
"Azrael deserves a fate better than I, old friend," Optimus sighed heavily, "She is stronger than any of us could ever know. I fear that if I do anything to take that from her, she will fall and never rise."
"You still do not understand it, do you?" Ratchet grumbled, "You two are made for one another. You're supposed to click together perfectly. You wouldn't draw her strength away from her - you'd make her stronger. For Primus' sake, just do something before you collapse."
That was exactly what Optimus was doing. Perhaps it wasn't well thought out, perhaps it wasn't even part of any kind of plan, but he was going to do something. He knew he was getting closer as he marched toward the training room. His haloform's blue eyes glinted with a human emotion. It was a curious thing, and one that he hadn't felt before, but one he could mostly understand. It was a craving for her, for this woman. He craved Azrael. It was all his processor could thing about. Azrael, her blue eyes, her dark hair, her sweet scent. What he cared for the most about her was the way her skin felt against his haloform. Her soft flesh that his fingers had grazed over but a few times.
He pushed open the training room door, finding Azrael and Samuel conversing, a grin on Samuel's face and a shy smile on Azrael's. That smile made him feel this deep rumbling of jealousy within his tanks.
"So, what do you say? I know Bee would be glad to spend a day with you, and... I would, too," Samuel said.
"I-I don't know, Sam," Azrael sighed, "I... it wouldn't be like a date, would it? I'm not really... I'm kind of hooked on someone."
"No, not a date. That ended in pain for both of us," Samuel shook his head, "But before you say no, think about Bumblebee. You two have hardly spent time together, and I really want to bring back our weird relationship minus the dating part."
Azrael laughed with a nod, "Okay, it's not a date!"
Samuel joined her. Optimus felt his tanks release the pressure building up in them as the conversation unfolded. A friendship between Samuel and Azrael was something he could understand, but he would not lose Azrael to any male or mech. He couldn't let her go no matter how hard he tried to tell himself that she deserved someone better than himself. Someone human, someone capable of presenting her more human emotions rather than his own complex ones. He waited until Samuel wrapped Azrael in a hug with a kiss to her forehead. He watched as another smile fluttered to her lips and her eyes shut in tranquility.
"You're still getting them, aren't you," Samuel stated.
"Less often. I haven't had one since I've been here," Azrael said softly, "Sammy, don't worry about it. You know I'll go to you if something comes up."
"And... the scratching? Do you still do that?"
"Not as much but... you know old habits die hard,"
Samuel sighed for the umpteenth time, "How scared are they?"
"It got pretty bad, Sam. I don't know what to tell you aside from... it was Hell for a long time. And I still have my bad days," Ace murmured with an air of reluctance, "You know I'll come to you."
"But that's the thing, Azzie, you wouldn't," Samuel sighed, "Just... at least got to Optimus, okay?"
"Of course I will,"
Optimus perked up when he heard Azrael's compliance with Samuel's wish. It wouldn't surprise the Prime to know that Samuel had been made aware of his and Azrael's bond. The more he reviewed everything Samuel had been saying, the more thankful he began to feel. Samuel was trying to steer Azrael to him.
"You said that you're already hooked on someone. Mind if I ask who?" Sam asked playfully.
Optimus slinked back into the doorway rather than possibly being spotted by Azrael.
"Well, I'm not entirely sure," she admitted with this light air to her voice, "I... It's odd, I admit. It's kind of what I felt for you, only... Sam, it's so much stronger with him."
"Who?" he pressed.
"I... It's Orion..." she whispered as if she'd only just realized the weight of her words, "I think I'm in love with Orion."
Muahaha! Yes, I am evil. And I realize that this might be pretty quick considering that there's only seven chapters so far, but this is taking course over a few weeks plus the whole Destined Conjunx Endura thing which would begin to develop all the more stronger of a pull between Optimus and Ace. Anyways, if there are any questions you'd like to ask to suggestions about this story in particular, don't be shy to leave a review or PM me!
~The Doctor is out