Chapter 6

About two hours later, Jack got out of the white car with a groan as it came to a stop in the command center. Arcee came over and wrapped her arms around his shoulders and giving him a quick kiss on the lips.

"Hey babe, how was work?" she asked, still holding onto him.

"Ugh, same old, same old. Plus this time I didn't have my trusty motorcycle waiting for me in the parking lot." Jack answered, putting an arm around her waist.

"Well, you have me now" Arcee said softly, leaning in for another kiss as their lips met in the middle.

"Ah hem!" June coughed from the driver's seat. "As much as I love to watch you two get affectionate, I need to head to work."

Jack laughed at his mom's words as Arcee removed her arms but Jack still kept her close. "All right mom, I'll see you back at home tonight."

He closed the passenger's door and watched as his mom drove the white sedan out of the command center.

"So, what have you guys been doing so far?" Jack asked, smiling at his girlfriend in his arms.

"Thinking about you, learning human things, thinking about you..." Arcee answered, trailing off into thought.

Jack laughed. "No I meant what everyone has been doing, not just you. Although, it's great to know I'm on your mind all the time." His words earned him a quick kiss on the lips in which he eagerly answered with another.

"Well, Raf and Miko have been teaching us about video games and TV. Let me just say, you humans have way too much time on your hands. Also, I'm awesome at Call of Duty, just ask Bumblebee." Arcee said with a smirk.

"Hey, I heard that! Besides I wasn't trying!" Bumblebee yelled from the couch, quickly turning back to his game he was playing with Raf.

"Guess you have a rematch to get to later" Jack chuckled.

Arcee smiled and shrugged. "Maybe, if I feel like it. Anyways, later Miko took Wheeljack and Bulkhead to learn how to play the guitar..."

Right on cue, she was interrupted by a loud strum of notes from a room down one of the hallways, obviously Miko teaching the two wreckers about playing the guitar.

"...yup so that's what they've been doing." Arcee said, rolling her eyes. "Earlier, Agent Fowler came and we went over some human information we need for later. We also got our human names which was pretty cool. Oh! And he should be coming by in a couple minutes with a surprise."

Jack raised an eyebrow, curious to see what she was talking about but she just smiled and went on.

"Ratchet has been working on diagnosing the artifact to find out how long it would take to fix, hopefully not too long but then again it looked pretty busted up."

"Actually, the status report has just come in and as soon as everyone arrives, I can explain our situation" Ratchet said as he walked over, a slight frown on his face indicated the bad news but the couple decided to wait to find out with everyone else.

"So where's Optimus?" Jack asked, letting go of Arcee as the medic joined them.

"Not sure, he just disappeared when he was done talking with Agent Fowler." Arcee responded.

"Optimus usually goes for a drive when he does not have things to do so an educated guess would be that he went for a walk around the complex." Ratchet pointed out.

Just as he finished talking, Miko and the two wreckers behind her entered the control center. The two former Autobots listened as Miko gave them some tips about paying the guitar.

"...and then once you have a steady beat going, you just rock out!" the Japanese girl finished. The two wreckers laughed and agreed to continue their lesson the next time they're free.

"Hey, Jack's back" Bulkhead said, walking over to them with Miko and Wheeljack close behind. "How was work?"

Jack shrugged. "Boring as usual. Looks like I missed out on a lot during the two hours I was gone."

"You sure did! You totally missed us making up a name for everyone, except your girlfriend here created one herself" Miko stated, pointing at Arcee.

"And what name did you give yourself?" Jack questioned.

"Sadie. It seems like the right name for me" Arcee answered.

"Well I like it" Jack said with a grin, pulling his girlfriend in for a kiss.

Miko watched them and made a gagging noise. "Man, you two never quiet don't you. Anyways, meet Ryan and Cameron. Oh, and Ratchet's human name is Martin."

Jack thought about the names for a second before nodding in agreement. "Nice, they have a nice ring to it, good to meet you all. I'm Jack, how are you?"

The group laughed as Bulkhead and Wheeljack played along and pretended like they met Jack for the first time. While they were talking, the lift came down and Optimus stepped out. Ratchet saw the Prime and quickly motioned him over.

"Perfect, if we can all gather around, I can start to share the-"

The medic was cut off by the sound of car engines and the group quickly looked to where the sound came from. Out of the tunnel that leads to the secret door appeared a camouflage Jeep, a white Audi crossover, and a black Honda Civic. Raf and Bumblebee quickly paused they're game and joined the rest of the group to see who was driving the cars.

The vehicles came into a complete stop in front of them and one by one, the driver doors opened. The first man to walk out was the driver of the Jeep who wore a full military uniform and gave the group a nod. The person who emerged from the Audi was also a soldier who didn't bother giving them a greeting and just went straight to the Jeep to talk with the other military officer. The final man who came out of the Honda Civic was none other than Agent Fowler.

"Surprise!" He said with a smile, closing the door behind him and walking towards the former Autobots. "I told you I would get you some cars so there you go!"

"Awesome, new rides!" Miko exclaimed, running over to the vehicles to check them out with Raf not too far behind.

"Agent Fowler, have you created our identification along with our human information?" Optimus asked, not really paying any attention to the new vehicles.

"Yup, got them right in this folder." Agent Fowler responded, patting the file underneath his arm. The group crowded around him as he started to hand out cards and papers to everyone. "So we have things for Peter, Martin, Cameron, Ryan, Jason, and Sadie."

The Autobots eagerly took their documents and cards and started to read them over.

"This is so cool! It's like starting a new life!" Bumblebee exclaimed, looking at a picture of his human form on his identification pictures.

"Your right Bee, never thought this would happen" Bulkhead said, looking at his little picture in the corner of his driver's license and smiled.

"Hold on, why does it say my name is Cameron Prime?" Wheeljack asked looking up from his identification papers.

"Yeah, I'm Sadie Prime, what's up with that?" Arcee chimed in.

"Well, as a human you need a last name, and since I forgot to get one from you last time, I decided to make one up. "Agent Fowler answered, scratching his head. "Your all one big family now; the Prime family."

Wheeljack raised an eyebrow. "Wait, so does that mean Optimus is... what do the humans call it... my father?"

"Well, yes. While your human, Peter Prime here is your dad while you four are his kids. And you, Martin Prime, are the family's grandfather." Agent Fowler explained.

The Autobots looked at their papers and sure enough, everything Agent Fowler was telling them was shown, plus even more.

"Huh, I always wondered what I would be like if I was a Prime but I never thought it would be like this" Bulkhead pointed out, making the group chuckle.

"Why does it say I'm 16 years old?" Arcee questioned when she saw the information about her age.

"Me too" Bulkhead said.

"Same here" Wheeljack added.

"Well, I can't exactly write down your actual age, humans don't live that long. Besides, you three look 16 and Bumblebee here looks like he's 12." Agent Fowler answered. "Also, Optimus is 42 and Ratchet is 64."

The group burst out laughing when they heard Ratchet's age in which the medic merely grunted in response.

"Hold on, I still have more things to give you." Agent Fowler reached into his pocket and took out a bunch of cards. "When the government learned that you changed into humans, they wanted to thank you for all the work you've done. Here are your very own credit cards, each with well over 50 grand."

The agent handed out the cards in which the Autobots took and looked in awe. The card was mostly black with a few strips of white. In the bottom corner, the name American Express was plastered in a blue box and the words Bank of America was in the top right.

"What are these credit cards used for, Agent Fowler?" Optimus asked.

"Well, it's for you to buy things; food, clothes, accessories, you name it, you can buy it with that card, courtesy of Uncle Sam and the fine people in the white house." Agent Fowler answered.

"And those cars over there, they're for us?" Ratchet questioned, pointing towards the three vehicles parked in the communication center.

"The Audi and the Honda Civic are yours, the Jeep is ours." The agent said.

"I have to say, I'm excited to see what I can do with this" Wheeljack said, holding up the credit card into the light.

"Haha, you and me both Jackie." Bulkhead said, slapping his wrecker friend in the back.

"Isn't this cool babe?" Arcee asked, not getting a response. "Babe?... Jack?... Jack!"

She looked over at her boyfriend who had his back turned to her. Jack was staring at the black Honda Civic and it seemed like he was zoned out. He also had his teeth clenched and was flexing, making a very tight fist with her right hand.

"Jack you okay?" Arcee asked, walking around to the front of her boyfriend's view. Jack continued to stare towards the black Honda Civic as if Arcee wasn't even standing there.

"What's wrong with Jack?" Raf asked, waving a hand in front of his eyes, not getting any reaction.

"Ah, it's probably nothing. He's been zoning out a lot lately, you just gotta get him to snap back" Miko said, walking over to him and snapping her fingers in front of his face. "Jack! Hello, anyone in there?! JACK!" The Japanese girl clapped her hands, air from the force pushing out and blowing Jack's long hair slightly, although he still remained unmoved.

"Jack! It's Arcee! Can you hear me?!" Arcee yelled at her boyfriends face, she put her hands on his shoulders and gave him a little shake.

As soon as she made contact, Jack snapped back to reality... but not in a way the Autobots would have expected. Suddenly Jack's hand shot out and grabbed Arcee's arm and started to twist it until she winced in pain.

"Jack! What are you do-" Arcee managed before she as punched in the stomach and flipped over, landing on her back with a thud.

"SHUT UP! YOU'LL NEVER HURT HER! I WON'T LET YOU!" Jack yelled before grabbing onto Arcee's arm and lifting his foot, prepared to snap the bone in half.

The Autobots didn't know what to make of this. Once second Jack was standing completely still, the next he had his girlfriend on the ground and was prepared to break her arm.

"Jack! It's me Arcee! Don't you remember?" Arcee begged, preparing for the worst.

Jack heard her words and started to blink faster as his mind returned. He looked at his hand grabbing Arcee's arm and his girlfriend lying on her back on the ground. Suddenly, he realized what happened and widened his eyes, quickly moving to help her off the ground and pulling her into a hug.

"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry" he repeated, holding her close.

"Jack, I'm fine, what just happened?" Arcee asked gently as they separated. Instead of answering, Jack turned to look at the black Honda Civic.

"Why is that here?" Jack asked through gritted teeth.

"What do you mean? It's the surprise Agent Fowler brought for us, two new cars!" Arcee answered, although that wasn't the answer Jack was looking for.

"Agent Fowler, why is that here?!" Jack repeated, his voice getting to be a little menacing.

The group looked at Agent Fowler, not really understanding what Jack was talking about. However, the agent knew exactly what he was talking about and started to get nervous.

"Huh, um you see..." Agent Fowler began, tugging at his collar and scratching his head. "Well, uh, we recovered it from the MECH base and surprisingly it was very much intact. Because the military didn't have any use for it, they decided to give it back... to you."

"That is not my car, the person you're looking for is Agent 000 and he's not here" Jack said, glaring at the agent.

"I'm sorry son but that is now your car. If you don't want it, trash it, do whatever you'd like to it. It's yours" Agent Fowler said.

Jack pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed.

"I-I need some time alone." He said, walking over to the medical bay.

"Wait, Jack hold on." Arcee said to her boyfriend but he ignored her, continuing his walk without turning back.

The former two-wheeler was about to run after him when she felt a hand on her shoulder stopping her.

"Arcee, I believe it would be best if Jack cleared his mind alone. Perhaps your involvement at this time is not the right thing to do" Optimus stated and although Arcee still wanted to go after him, she knew Optimus as right.

"I know Optimus. It's just... he's been acting very strange lately and no matter what I do, he won't tell me" Arcee said with a sad tone.

"You know commander, how he froze up just now was kind of like how he froze up this morning at breakfast. Remember how we greeted him but he didn't respond, only closing his eyes and sitting there?" Wheeljack pointed out.

"Yes, I remember Wheeljack. Jack must still be suffering from the events that took place a month ago. His mind must not have recovered and if we wish to help him, we need to give him space." Optimus said.

"Who do you think he was yelling at just now?" Miko asked, remembering how he was yelling about not letting someone hurt 'her'. Who that 'her' was, was still a mystery.

"Like Optimus has stated, it is best if we ignore what has just happened and allow Jack to recover." Ratchet said, not knowing a real answer to Miko's question. "Now, if we have finished with the recent event, I have some news I would like to share about the artifact."

Quickly the group shifted their focus from their own thoughts to Ratchet. They all wanted to know how long until they can return to their Cybertronian form.

"Go on old friend" Optimus said.

"Very well, first I should share the information regarding the artifact. After running a diagnostic and cross-referencing the data with our data base, I was able to conclude a logical assumption of what the artifact is." Ratchet explained.

"When I was a young Cybertronian, perhaps around the age of Bumblebee, there was a very skillful inventor named Que. He was known by his many inventions such as weapons or tools that would help with daily tasks. It is very likely that some of these creations were stored in the Iacon Hall of Records which is why this artifact is possibly one of these creations. Que was aware of the many extra-terrestrial species in the universe and wondered what it would be like to be like one of them. His curiosity led to the creation of the Genetic Exchanger, a device that allows one species to turn into another species. All that is needed for this exchange to happen is a sample of another species' genetic code. Although the power of the Genetic Exchanger was created for scientific research purposes only, the high-council deemed the creation dangerous; they believed that if one species could turn into another, the universe would become imbalanced. Much to Que's dismay, the Genetic Exchanger was shot into space, never to be seen again."

"Until we found it on Earth!" Miko finished.

"Yes, it seems the Genetic Exchanger found its way to Earth's atmosphere where it crashed onto the ground. In time, it was buried under the land as it expanded and only when Wheeljack's grenade created the crater was it uncovered. Also, when Miko made the decision to touch the Genetic Exchanger, she must have activated the sampler which scanned her DNA in her hand. When I took the artifact out of its container, it activated, turning any living organism that was not human into a human."

"Huh, so I guess it was my fault you turned human?" Miko asked.

"Precisely!" Ratchet yelled back, a little angry that all of this was caused because of Miko's curiosity and foolishness.

"How long until you have it fixed, Ratchet?" Bulkhead asked.

"Well, I was getting to that. The damage to both the outer, and inner circuitry is critical. A strong hypothesis would be that the impact when it first hit the Earth, the outer shell was destroyed. Not to mention Wheeljack's grenade and the small activation, the Genetic Exchanger was barely able to work. When it was activated for the second time, the inner systems were fried. As it stands, the Genetic Exchanger is equivalent to a large piece of metal. After running my diagnostic, I discovered that surprisingly, all of the important systems are still intact and with some time, I will be able to repair the damages. Under normal circumstances, the Genetic Exchanger would take 3 to 4 months-"

"3 to 4 months?!" Arcee yelled, cutting him off. "You expect us to sit around here for 3 to 4 months?!"

Ratchet started to get nervous because he wasn't done talking. He scratched his head and cleared his throat before continuing. "Actually Arcee, it would take 3 to 4 months if I was still an Autobot. However, now that I am human, the repairs may take up to..." Ratchet looked around, preparing for the worst. "...5 to 6 months..."

"WHAT?!" everyone yelled at the medic who flinched at the sudden exclamation.

"Are you serious? It'll take half a year for you to fix the Genetic Exchanger?" Bulkhead asked.

"The 'cons can take over the entire planet in that time!" Wheeljack quipped.

"Look, it was only a diagnostic. Once I start getting to work, the repairs may be faster than predicted. However, unless any of you understand the science needed to repair the Genetic Exchanger, we have no choice but to wait. I will be working as much as I can but I cannot promise anything" the medic explained.

"Doc, would it be faster if you had a team?" Agent Fowler asked.

"Perhaps, although the question becomes is this team originated from Earth? You understand why we keep our technology to ourselves and not with the government. Having a team working on technology this advanced would be devastating. They would be exposed to all the secrets that lie inside the systems and that is something neither you, nor the government would want" Ratchet answered.

"Old friend, I am willing to aid you when you need my assistance. While I may not have your level of scientific expertise, the Matrix of Leadership allows me to possess the wisdom of the Primes and that includes Solis Prime." Optimus stated, putting a hand on his friend's shoulder.

"Well, if you are going to be human for half a year, I might as well enroll you in school" Agent Fowler said, pointing at the four younger Autobot humans.

"School? Are you serious Agent Fowler?" Arcee questioned.

"Yes, I am. If you want to blend in for half a year, you'll need to go to school. Otherwise it would look very suspicious if you're walking around town while school is going on." Agent Fowler answered.

The four humans groaned and complained but they knew he was right.

"Prime, I think I should be heading off now. I'll talk to you all tomorrow about school and any documents we need to fill out." Agent Fowler said as he walked over to the Jeep.

"Very well Agent Fowler, be sure to contact your government about our situation." Optimus said, earning a nod from the agent.

As soon as the three military officers got into the Jeep, it drove off towards the exit.

"5 to 6 months... I can't believe it!" Arcee mumbled to herself.

"So what do we do now?" Bulkhead asked.

Miko thought for a moment before an idea popped into her mind. "I know! Let's go to the mall!"

"And why would that be a good idea?" Ratchet asked.

"Well if you want to blend in, you're going to need clothes to fit you and Jack's just aren't working. Besides it's almost time for lunch and I know just the place to go!" Miko answered.

"I believe Miko has a good point. Autobots, we are heading for the mall." Optimus said.

"Hold on, shouldn't we get Jack first?" Arcee asked.

Right on cue, Jack walked over. He had heard the entire conversation so he didn't need re-explaining. "Hey guys, sorry about before. Just lost my mind there for a second" he said blankly.

"Don't worry about it bro, forgive and forget right?" Miko said patting him on the back. "We're heading for the mall so if you want to take your new car, that would be pretty cool."

Jack looked up and grinned. "All right then, when are we leaving?"

Optimus gave Jack the keys to his car before heading towards the white crossover. Ratchet, Bumblebee and Raf followed him while Arcee, Miko, Bulkhead, and Wheeljack went with Jack to his Honda Civic. They all clambered in, happy that there was room for everyone.

Jack put the keys into the slot but before he turned the engine on, he grabbed the wheel and took a deep breath.

"Hey babe, I'm here okay? You don't have to worry." Arcee comforted his boyfriend as she looked at him from the passenger seat.

"Yeah I know, thanks 'Cee" Jack said, looking over.

"Anytime" Arcee responded with a smile and they shared a kiss.

"Gross! Come on, let's go! You two can do your kissing thing later!" Miko yelled from the back earning a snicker from Bulkhead and Wheeljack.

"Alright then! To the mall!" Jack said, breaking the kiss and turning the engine on.

The black Honda Civic roared to life and headed for the exit with the white Audi following right behind.

...