CHAPTER8

He was running.

He was hearing lasershots behind him. While he got past the corner of an alley, a laser crashed into a wall, a few inches away from his head. He transformed into his alt-mode, fastening his speed. He couldn't let them catch him up.

"He is here!"

Why?

Why were they after him?

There were two of them. Maybe three. It didn't matter. He only knew that his attackers were possessing an animalistic alt-mode. He could catch sight of one's tail. He wasn't stopping. A wall stopped him. He clenched his fists and glanced back at behind.

They were coming closer.

He looked up. A wall. He only needed to scale it.

If he could have chosen a flier alt-mode…

He jumped, as far as he could.

"We got him!"

He failed. However, he couldn't give up.

He tried again. He jumped again.

He managed to cling onto the wall.

Lasers were shot again.

They were still far. He could get out of this. He could jump on the other side. He could win some time.

He could do it.

He clawed onto the wall.

He was starting to climb it.

Yes…that's possible…

He lifted himself as high as he could…climbing was way faster than he imagined…in a few minutes, he carried one of his leg over the other side.

They were close, now…

He could…he could get out of this…

He was about to escape…

The only thing he could hear was someone pulling the trigger.

And while he'd still hope left, while he was just about to escape…a laser-shot came to violently strike his head.

He fell ahead, on the other side of the wall.

The bot didn't survive.
-

"What?"

The group looked up.

The blue laser'd come from above.

Who…

He noticed him.

Here, on a building roof.

They recognized him.

"You bastard!"

The most violent member of the group pointed his cannon at the shape then repeatedly shot. The bot easily dodged them then jumped on the wall. He faced them, granting them a victorious grin.

"Don't you share?" He questioned them.

"He was ours!"

"Yours, mine…the outcome is the same. He's dead."

Was his fault if they weren't good? If they weren't strategic enough? They were in group and they pretended to be stronger together. What a good joke.

"What? I'm the one who will be rich…unlike you"

"You are nothing at all!" The one who used his cannon growled. "We should be the only ones! You shouldn't exist! You are a shame to our profession!"

"Yeah. But I won. You can take the next one…maybe"

"There will not be a next one!"

Lasers went on again. The bot jumped. He was on the other side. The group rushed over to scale the wall as well. Unlike their victim, they'd an easier time.

Though as soon as they landed on the other side, they realized that the bot and their victim'd already vanished.

"Deadlock?"

"Yes, Master?"

Shadow Raker turned around to face him. He handed him a book that he'd lent to him.

"Put that away. I'm not one to like mess. In my room. I will read it later anyway."

"Very well, Master"

Deadlock grabbed it then headed for his Master's room. As soon as he far from him enough, he let out a sigh. He was tired of pretending. Shadow Raker will end up by discovering it anyway. Deadlock couldn't read. He tried as hard as he could yet he'd never went beyond the very first sentence. He managed to decrypt simplest words such as "yes" "no" "thanks" but no more. The rest of the book meddled in his processor.

He glanced back at the Cybertronian calendar. That's a special day today. Well, that's special to him. It'd stopped to be special after his parents' deaths as well as after the loss of his job as a miner. Today, that day didn't matter anymore. The only one thing that mattered was surviving and pleasing his Mentor. He didn't feast this day anymore. Why so? That's war…That's a trivial thing.

He opened the room's doors. He put the book down on the nightstand. The drawer wasn't shut. He was about to leave when his attention was drawn to something inside. He frowned then came closer.

Something shiny.

He reached out. Immediately after, he stopped then glanced back at behind. Nobody.

His Mentor hated people digging into his things. He definitely hated it. Most of the time, the room remained closed, especially during his absences. Was he afraid of robbers? Had he allowed Drift to come inside because, after eight months of training, he implicitly started to trust him?

Deadlock moved back from the drawer. If he indeed trusted him…he shouldn't stay here. That wasn't his room. That wasn't his business. If Shadow Raker walked on him…

He didn't dare imagine his reaction.

Yet, the thing was still shining.

He gulped. He checked back behind. He was alone. No witness.

No. That was a bad idea. He wouldn't do such a thing. He turned around then hurriedly left the room. He hastily closed the door, heading back for his Mentor.

He got past the kitchen. The door was opened. The Minicons were cooking. Lunch time was coming though most of time, they only got cubes of energon. He noticed Jetstorm standing up in front of a pot while Slipstream carried a plate full of cubes of energon to throw them inside. What were they doing?

Suddenly, he met Slipstream's optics. The Minicon let go of his plate to rush over to him. He politely greeted him though there was some awkwardness in his behaviour.

"Ha. Mister Deadlock…"

"What are you two doing?"

"I…Sorry. That's a surprise…"

"A surprise?"

What for? Slipstream didn't give him more details. He was about to close the doors.

"Sorry, Sir. I can't say more. Good training."

"But…"

The Minicon cut him in, closing the door behind him. Drift let out a frown. Did Shadow Raker know about this? Or was it on their own initiative?

He realized that his Mentor was still waiting for him. Deadlock hurriedly headed back for the Dojo. Shadow Raker gave him an irritated and eager expression though he replied nothing. They prepared themselves. Deadlock cleared his throat.

"Well…Do…we have something planned today?"

His mentor looked surprised.

"No. Why?"

Deadlock shook his head. He better shouldn't talk about it.

"…For nothing"

"By the way, I'm leaving tonight. Don't worry if I'll be a bit late tomorrow."

"Understood"

They started to warm up.

At the evening, Deadlock didn't train up. His blades were laying down on the floor near him, he watched an extremely beautiful sunset, right behind the forest's trees. Orange and purple trails were appearing in the sky. The orange bot closed his optics. That's such a show that made him so peaceful…so calm…In the past, he could forget his life conditions just by watching the sky. He'd forgotten about his life as a homeless bot, about his needs, about his loneliness…

Of course, now was different. He had something…He had someone. However, he kept watching this sight.

He wondered how it must be, on other planets…

Was it that beautiful?

Did Shadow Raker do the same thing? Did he enjoy sunset?

Did Minicons enjoy it too?

"…Mister Deadlock."

Deadlock turned around. Jetstorm was standing up in front of him. As usual, he didn't stare into his optics. After eight months of training, he was still formal toward him.

As Shadow Raker had ordered him to, he hadn't kept on training them. After all, they had no experience and they weren't his Minicons. It didn't matter.

"…What's going on?"

"We have something to show you"

"What is it?"

He stood up. He hoped that wasn't something serious. Shadow Raker was missing. He was the one in charge to keep a watch on the mansion.

He followed Jetstorm. The Minicon led him to the kitchen. Deadlock caught sight of Slipstream, displaying his back to him.

"What's wrong?" He questioned them.

Slipstream turned around to smile. Deadlock let out a sigh out of impatience. He ordered him to reply. The Minicon nodded then moved aside, revealing something behind him.

An energon cake. Deadlock's optics widened in amazement. He stared at them in disbelief.

"…What does it mean?"

"That's your Creation's Day, right?" Slipstream asked.

His Creation's Day…

He hardly understood…How did they know? Why baking a cake? For him?

Jetstorm was the one to answer as soon as he questioned them.

"That's something we felt"

"A Creation's Day is a day of feast" Slipstream added. "That's a normal tradition to bake a cake."

Silence fell down. Drift stared at the cake, not saying anything.

"…You don't like it?"

"That's just…I don't know what to say…"

That's the very first time a person ever baked a cake for him…

A cake…and they were the ones who'd had such an idea.

He approvingly gave them a nod. Slipstream displayed a grin. Even Jetstorm looked up back at him to stare into his optics…for the first time…

He'd never done it before.

He couldn't put any word on his feelings…Joy, happiness…In any case, that's an emotion that'd become alien to him.

He grabbed a knife to cut it. He served a part for each of them.

"We can taste it too?" Slipstream asked.

"Of course"

That's a stupid question. Slipstream and Jetstorm lunged on their parts as if they were starved. Drift tasted his.

The first time he feasted his Creation's Day with people…

"Afterward…We'll go to train together."

"What?"

"You heard well. I'll show you some technics I've learned."

Shadow Raker wasn't supposed to know about it.

He thought they were tools…but that wasn't true.

They couldn't be tools…and he couldn't let them get themselves killed on a battlefield because they could only use their disk form.

No…They must be learning other technics…

They must get stronger…else they would die.

"However…you don't say anything to Shadow Raker."

"Why?" Slipstream questioned him.

They are my Minicons! Did you hear me?

He didn't wish to make him angry again.

"…Just say nothing. That's all. Did you hear me?"

Slipstream and Jetstorm remained silent. Deadlock felt idiot. He was such a dumb. He ordered them to lie to their own Master.

He'd no right…

"Forget what I just said" He spoke up.

"Okay" Slipstream replied.

Both Minicons bowed.

"We won't tell him"

"No…Just forget what I said. That's a bad idea"

They didn't hear him.

"We just swore an oath" Slipstream explained.

"But-"

"We are not allowed to break it"

An oath…

Shadow Raker'd apparently taught them the meaning of an oath. This thing called honour. To Deadlock, this notion sounded so strange…

Unless it meant something completely special about Minicons' bonds with their Master?

He shouldn't think about it. However, he couldn't leave them like this without doing anything.

"Very well…finish your cake. We'll go to it right afterward"

Despite Shadow Raker's words, he already was at the Dojo when Deadlock came. Deadlock was just in time. Nevertheless, his Mentor appeared without any sword at servo. Instead, a small box in his arms.

"What is it?" Deadlock asked, confused.

Shadow Raker smiled.

"Was yesterday your Creation's Day, right?"

How did he know? Deadlock remained quiet. Had he felt it like Minicons did? Or had he stumbled across it?

Deadlock hesitated. He stared at the box. He didn't know how to react. That wasn't the same feeling he'd got when Minicons showed him their energon cake.

"Come on" Shadow Raker insisted. "You can take it"

He allowed him. The orange bot took a long breath. He gently grabbed it out of Shadow Raker's servos. He slowly opened it.

Shanix.

They were shiny…As shiny as the things in Shadow Raker's drawer.

"Impressed, right?"

Indeed. Shanix…such a rare money these days. Deadlock had stolen them from his victims to survive. Anything Deadlock had collected as reward for his days as a miner were just Cybertronian money of low quality.

That's…amazing.

And Shadow Raker gave them to him.

To him…while he'd never been able to keep money long…he'd always fought hard to gain some…

Deadlock bowed to him.

"…I-I don't deserve them, Master"

"Of course you do. I give them to you. You can think it's a reward for…your good results."

A cake…Shanix…

Deadlock couldn't hope for a better Creation's Day.

Shadow Raker gently ordered him to stand up. They will start soon. Deadlock obeyed then put his Shanix inside his chassis. His Shanix.

"By the way, Minicons baked a cake yesterday, right?" His Master asked.

Deadlock nodded. He didn't talk about their secret training session after this.

Shadow Raker snarled.

"A cake…There is a lack of energon on Cybertron. What were they thinking about?"

Deadlock replied nothing. He didn't dare.