Chapter 22

I do not own anything from Transformers.

A/N: Guys sorry for the delays. Like I said the previous chapter, I am published now, so that takes up most of my time. Give a looksee at my profile for info. Thank you for being so patient. After this story is done, my time on will be coming to an end. However, that doesn't mean I've forgotten my roots, and this fabulous group of people who make Transformers fanfiction such a success. I will tell you what I mean in the next chapter, so I'm not rambling here.

Gabby was bathed in the glow of red and yellow emergency lights. Her feet were silent walking on the hard concrete floor of the facility. Her body tense, but ready for any enemy to appear.

The shrill sounds of the sirens were hurting her ears. She needed to move on and move quickly.

Above her was the sound of fighting. Every so often the rumble of large metallic bodies would shake her to the core as she walked.

Up ahead she could see a lit doorway, and she moved against the wall. She had no specific plan of attack, and regrets of coming in here alone were nagging at her mind.

She leaned against the shiny wall, and breathed in and out to calm her already stressed senses.

Sweat trickled down the side of her face, and she swiped it away.

She held the gun tightly to hold off the shaking in her hands.

Despite the blaring of the sirens, Gabby strained her ears, and didn't hear any sounds of the cyborgs or humans in the facility.

She moved against the wall, and reached the doorway. She peeked around the corner, and smiled when she spotted the scientists inside the control room.

Her eyes moved along the rest of the facility, and it looked to her like the place was empty, and all of the guards had been sent to fight on the outside.

Gabby's eyes searched for Dr. Lockwood. She didn't notice him in the control room, but that didn't mean he wasn't there barking orders for the super weapon to destroy the Autobots.

Gabby moved towards a table to hide, when the gun clicked behind her.

Gabby froze in place. She tried to swallow, but the bile in her throat prevented that. Her heart pounded against her ribcage, and her stomach flipped.

"Gabrielle Ryan," the male voice said behind her.

The voice was filled with a mixture of amusement and disgust.

"Turn around," he said, "Slowly."

The cool metal against her neck made Gabby shiver. It was removed, and she did as she was told, and turned slowly with her hands in the air. One of her hands holding her gun.

Lockwood motioned his own gun, and told Gabby to put hers on the ground. She slowly lowered it, and Lockwood walked up and kicked it out of her reach.

Gabby cried out when Lockwood gripped her hair, and pointed the gun straight at her nose. "You should have done as you were told, Gabrielle."

"If you kill me then hellfire—no—Autobot fire will reign down on you. Not just from Optimus, but my daughter," Gabby whispered.

Gabby grit her teeth and squeezed her eyes shut. The pain of Lockwood pulling her hair was almost unbearable.

He dragged her behind him with the gun still pointed towards her face. She needed to make a plan to get out of this.

"There's something I want to show you," Lockwood commented.

Gabby couldn't think of a better way, and eased up her struggles as Lockwood guided her to the control room.

Lockwood forced her to open the glass door, and she was shoved inside. About ten heads of scientists turned her way. Some indifferent, and some in shock. Most showed fear at Lockwood.

One man stood up, and his fear turned to anger. "You have Gabrielle Ryan as a prisoner? I never agreed to this."

Before Gabby could react a gunshot rang out next to her ear. She screamed from the shock as the man fell to the ground with a huge hole in his chest.

Gabby swayed in place, and her hearing in her right ear was stifled from the gun being so close to her ear.

Everyone in the control gasped, and some stood in terror, with a few cries mixed in.

"The next time someone disobeys my orders, this is what happens," Lockwood growled.

Gabby was still in shock, and her stomach turned from seeing the dead man on the floor with the blood forming a pool beneath him. She had to turn away. She needed to keep her senses about her—her logic—or she would die right along side of him.

The rest of the scientists reluctantly went back to work, despite the dead body now lying behind them.

She could see some were looking a little green, and others had tears running down their cheeks.

She quickly observed some knobs, and controllers being used from two of them, and buttons being pushed with others.

Lockwood pushed her towards a computer monitor, and gasped.

Orianna was fighting her doppelganger, and she was losing!

She'd try to stand, but the prototype overpowered her twice while Gabby watched in horror.

"Now, you will tell me how she came to be," Lockwood snarled. "Or I order the kill, and I will dissect her in human form."

Gabby scowled at him. " I told you a million times, I don't know."

"Yes, you do!" Lockwood yelled into Gabby's ear.

He yanked on her hair, and turned her to face him. Gabby had to prepare, she needed to do something now or Orianna might be lost to her forever. She felt the tears pool in her eyes over the thought of losing her daughter. Her emotions ran ragged throughout her mind over the horrible thoughts she had over what Lockwood could do to Orianna if she didn't act quickly.

"You will never know. I will make sure of it. You will no longer hurt my family," Gabby whispered.

Her knee came up into Lockwood's groin.

His eyes went wide, and his face turned red. He cursed, sputtered, and leaned over in pain.

That was enough for Gabby to wrestle the gun out of his hands, and point it at him.

"You bitch!" He moaned.

Gabby ignored him, and waved the gun around. "Now that I'm in charge, this little operation is going to be shut down."

She kicked Lockwood over and stepped on this back with her left foot.

She pointed the gun at the rest of the scientists, and said, "Shut it down."

With fearful looks each scientist started to press buttons on the control panel. Gabby turned to watch the monitor as Orianna looked perplexed as the super weapon was no longer fighting back.

She smiled slightly, but kept on her guard. Any moment, any of the cyborgs could rush in from some other entrance and overpower her.

"No," Lockwood moaned from beneath her.

She dug her boot into his back telling him to shut up. "Now, we are going to destroy this control center, and all will be well with the world."

Gabby only thought she was in complete control.

Lockwood rose from the floor forcing Gabby to lose her balance. Before she realized what was happening she started to fall backwards, and landed on her behind.

She couldn't believe how stupid she'd been. She was so worried about the super weapon shutting down to save her daughter that she forgot that Lockwood was under her foot.

The gun fell out of her hand and out of sight. She lay there in a daze for a few seconds before white, hot pain pierced her right arm.

She screamed, her hand automatically going to the wound. She'd been shot before, so she knew that pain well.

Her left hand now covered in blood, and her right arm pretty much useless even though it was nothing more than a superficial wound.

Dizziness swept through her, and she thought she might faint. She tried to focus, and could see Lockwood standing above her with a wild and insane look in his eyes.

"You betrayed your own people for one of them," he snarled. "There are not good robots, and bad robots. It is us against them, and who pays the price? We do. So many deaths because of them. So, that is where we fight fire with fire."

He breathed deeply, and fixed his shirt collar. "No more procreating with them Gabrielle Ryan. You have ensured that humanity is at stake with your half-breed."

Gabby clutched her arm, and groaned in pain. She looked up at Lockwood, trying suck in air. Sweat rolled down her face, and her heart fluttered around her chest.

"Go to hell," she muttered through gritted teeth.

"You first," he said, and Gabby heard the familiar click of the gun.

"No, you first."

Lockwood cried out in shock and surprise as a strong hand grabbed his neck from behind and lifted him off the ground by inches.

Barricade was telling the other people to run. He had a rifle fixed on Lockwood in human form. His arrogant smirk showing with glowing crimson eyes.

Gabby was struggling through the pain, but she managed to sit up at Optimus turned Lockwood around and threw him against the console like he was a ragdoll.

Optimus's eyes glowed a deep oceanic blue as he grabbed Lockwood by the shirt, and lifted him to his face.

Gabby felt light arms wrap around her. She turned to see Orianna hugging her from behind.

Gabby's eyes filled with tears as her daughter spoke. "Mother, you're hurt."

"It's just a flesh wound," Gabby answered.

Orianna put pressure on the wound over Gabby's hand. Gabby cringed slightly, but ignored it because of her daughter's touch.

Mother and daughter met foreheads. Then Gabby turned to see Optimus squeezing Lockwood's throat.

He was turning blue underneath Optimus's strong hands. Optimus was muttering that he would never hurt his family or his race again.

Gabby shot up and glared at Barricade who did nothing to stop Optimus.

"He deserves it," Barricade said.

Gabby's eyes met her daughter's shocked ones.

She leaned over Optimus and whispered, "You are not a killer. You are the strong leader of the Autobots, and you do not harm humans."

"Father…" Orianna started.

He turned to look at Gabby with a scowl on his face. His look calmed at her words, and his hands were taken off of Lockwood's neck. Lockwood turned over clutching his neck, trying to form words, but the pain kept him from speaking.

"You will never hurt my family again. You will face your crimes," Optimus swore at Lockwood.

Gabby looked between him, Orianna, Barricade, and Optimus.

Gabby turned when a voice said, "He may not kill humans, but I do."

Gabby reeled back in shock at the gun fired, and blood spattered all around her and Optimus.

Gabby didn't need to look down to see. She only had to look at the face of Barricade's holoform to know what he did.

His face showed no emotion. Not even regret. She turned to make sure Orianna was okay, and Orianna had a strange, knowing look on her face that Gabby couldn't figure out.

"Barricade…" Optimust stuttered. "What—what have you… done?"

"I fixed a problem."

Barricade's answer was so simple that Gabby couldn't help but admire his state of mind.

"Barricade! By Primus, you made things worse for us," Optimus yelled.

"Gathering from the looks of your sparkling, I doubt I have made it worse," Barricade answered calmly.

Gabby's mouth stayed open in shock. Orianna walked up beside her, and nodded silently at Barricade. Gabby turned to her daughter, and narrowed her eyes. Orianna knew what would happen. Gabby didn't know how or why, but Orianna knew.

"You better get out of here," Optimuts growled.

Barricade nodded silently, and threw down the rifle at Optimus' feet. He stared longingly at Gabby for a few moments. Gabby felt her insides turn to mush. There was so much she wanted to say. She didn't know if she'd ever see Barricade again, and he would always hold a special place inside of her even if he was a Decepticon.

Then, he was gone, and Gabby, Optimus, and Orianna were left with silence throughout the secret facility.

Gabby turned her gaze upon her beautiful daughter.

Her white-blonde hair flowed softly past her shoulders. Her oceanic blue eyes just like her father's optics, and holoform eyes. She had some cuts and bruises, but didn't look seriously injured. Her blue, and white one-piece suit was torn in and dirty in a few places. Her face covered in dust, and grime.

Despite the pain in her arm, emotion racked Gabby's body. She was happy to see Orianna's eyes well up as well. That made her human.

"We've missed you," Gabby said in a shaking voice.

A family torn apart by evil in the universe embraced after years apart.

Gabby was placed on a stretcher, and rushed to the hospital. Optimus was relieved it was indeed just a flesh wound, and Ratchet said she would be released within hours after being patched up.

Their time of upheaval was not finished. They would have many questions that would need answering, and why Richard Lockwood was dead. Optimus expected massive cover-ups by the U.S. government concerning this super weapon project.

"Are you going to follow Gabby to the hospital?" Lennox asked.

Optimus nodded, back in robotic mode. "Yes, but there is something myself, my sparkling, and the rest of the Autobots must do first."

Realization played across Will's face, and he ran to call off his men from being near the super weapon.

"Ready father?" Orianna asked, though she wanted to be with her mother.

"We must destroy it, and we can join your mother," he said to his sparkling, with a smile through his faceplates.

When they received an all clear, the super weapon exploded rocking the ground beneath robotic forms and humans. No evidence, and no one would even get the chance to find out how the super weapon ticked. For now, Optimus thought, but it didn't mean there wasn't a chance that another could not be built based on his sparkling.

Optimus looked up to see a jet scream across the sky, and smiled. A daughter anxious to be with her mother.