Here we go! Time skip to the beginning of the series.
Ironhide: Hey, I'm premiering!
Yes you are dear. As are a few new faces.
Cooper: I'm also in this chapter!
Yes Cooper. Yes you are. By the way, when I'm referring to a Constructicon, it's (')Con. When it's a Decepticon, it's just Con. The apostrophe is EVERYTHING. Now then, if I can start us?
C+I: Sure.
CHAPTAH!
STARTO!
Ironhide walked through the hallways of Ocean City with an irritated pace. He was one of several new recruits to serve under Optimus Prime, the commander of the Autobots. Ocean City was an ironic name, because the entire facility was underwater. They were currently waiting for the signal that meant the city was rising to the surface. Once up top, Ironhide and the other recruits would stand on the deck of the city, present themselves to Optimus and HotShot, and be trained by two of the most powerful bots there were.
While on his seventh time walking around the twenty-third level, Ironhide noticed a room with a large glass panel on it. There was an irridescent blue glow emitting from it and, naturally curious, Ironhide peered into the room with interest. At first, he didn't see anything, but then he realized he was not looking out into the water, but a room painted in inter-changing shades of blue. There was a large circular bed in the middle of the room, and in the bed Ironhide saw a human boy, with chin-length brown hair and tan skin. One of the boy's arms lay above the cover, by his side, and his head was tilted enough that Ironhide could tell he was asleep. He waved over a passing Constructicon.
"Who's that human in there?" The bot took one look in, turned his head to Ironhide, and snorted.
"You must be new if you don't know who that is." Ironhide felt a bit of irritation rise up.
"Then. Who. Is. He?" The 'Con glanced both directions, then leaned in.
"His name is Kicker. Dr. Jones, the guy who helped build Ocean City? That's his son." Ironhide had heard about the human scientist, but nothing about his family. "Kicker has a talent for finding Energon. Unfortunately, it leaves him so exhausted he'll fall asleep for long periods of time. Optimus had this room built to house him durings his little 'stasis' naps." Ironhide felt a small amount of confusion.
"Stasis naps?" The bot stared at Kicker, who continued to sleep, unaware of the two watching him.
"His naps can last from about two Earth weeks to almost three months, from what I've heard." Ironhide's jaw-plate dropped in shock.
"That's way too long! Isn't that dangerous for a human to sleep that long?" The 'Con shrugged.
"Between you and me, kid, he ain't really all that human. Kid can do things I've never seen another human pull off. He can do things you can only ever imagine of doing." Ironhide stared in awe at this impressive human. He turned to the mech.
"What are the chances he'll wake up while I'm around?" The bot shrugged, wiping off a wrench he had been carrying.
"Hard to say. He just fell asleep a week and a half ago, so if you manage to survive until next Tuesday, you might be able to see him in action." The 'Con walked off sniggering to himself. Ironhide spared him a raspberry, before turning back to the boy in the room.
'Well, he might have powers, but what I'm impressed with is that this room was made by Optimus himself. He must be something special in that case.' The new recruit stood, tilting his head from side to side to flex his hydrolics. 'I wish he'd wake up so I could see what he can do.' With that, Ironhide walked off as the signal sounded, telling everyone that they were rising to sunlight. If Ironhide had focused just a little bit longer, and stayed right he was...
He would've seen the hand, uncovered by the bedsheet, twitch ever so slightly.
[A[B[C[D]E]F]G]H]
The world around him was shifting blues, greens, and purples. He felt weightless, airy, light, and he definitely did not want to move away from such a comfortable state. Shifting around, feeling the coolness of the sheets he slept on, Kicker was fully content...
Until the sirens started blaring, that is.
His eyes opened to look around the room. The sound had pulled him from his state of bliss to a state of agitation. The blueness of his room never failed to calm him down, but he noticed that the dimness in the room was getting brighter. He looked upwards from the outside window and saw the surface fast approaching. Ocean City was being raised.
He sat up, yawning, and rubbed at his eyes. He swung his feet out from under the covers and walked towards the closet, throwing on a pair of green cargo pants, a red shirt, and a white jacket. He slipped on his red shoes, and brushed his hair slowly.
When he slipped out the door, he never noticed the red light that turned on inside the room after him.
[I[J[K[L]M]N]O]P]
"Optimus!" The prime turned at being addressed, seeing Demolisher running up to him in a panic. They were outside, waiting for the recruits from Cybertron to arrive.
"What is it, Demolisher?" The ex-Con panted for air as he hunched over, having run from the very base of the city to up here.
"It's Kicker! I heard his alarm going off, and when I looked into his room he was gone!" Optimus tensed up.
'Kicker...why have you woken up so soon? Is it because the city was raised?' The leader thought worriedly. He turned to Demolisher. "Go find him. If he's in trouble...Or, if he's seen trouble, we have to know."
The Con nodded and ran back into the main building. Optimus sighed as he remembered the first time something like this had happpened.
[FLASHBACK]
Ion flew towards Optimus after the Constricons had dug up all of the raw Energon that Kicker had found. For once, she looked seriously upset.
"Prime! Something's wrong with Kicker!" Dr. Jones and the other humans turned in surprise. "He said he was really tired, but now I can't get him to wake up at all! I think he's in a coma or something!" That sent them running. Kicker was laid out on an empty gurney used for Energon, snoring softly, but even after Rad shook him like a British nanny(1), he would not awaken. The humans quickly decided to take him back to Earth, but on the way back, about two Earth weeks later, Kicker woke up suddenly.
"Are you sure?" Optimus was on screen, giving the human boy a worried glance. Kicker was playing with HighWire, a Minicon that had bonded with Rad. Dr. Jones and Ion were standing in front of the screen.
"We're sure. He shows no signs of even remembering going to sleep." Dr. Jones reported, giving his son a confused wave as the boy looked up. Kicker stood up and darted over to the screen.
"Hi Optimus! Did I really go to sleep for so long?" The prime nodded, concern in his optics.
"You had everyone worried, young man." Ion scratched her head.
"I think it has to do with that thing from before. The power that Primus gave him, to sense Energon, might be too much for him to handle. His body shut down, in a way, to replenish his energy." She stated. Dr. Jones nodded.
"Because Kicker is human, not an Autobot, it makes sense. This detection power he has, it's amazing, but to have it at such a young age..." He trailed off, picking his son up into his arms and rocking him from side to side.
Ion shook her head. "I'm sure that's not the only power Primus gave him. There will be others, maybe even more powerful than his detection. Who knows? One thing for sure, I'm sticking around to watch him. There's an off chance Primus tried to 'format' Kicker to be like me." Dr. Jones was silent for a few moments, before he looked at her.
"Format? You mean, giving him the same powers? He might be like you in the future." Ion nodded, her gold eyes locked on Kicker, who waved to HighWire from his perch.
"If that's the case, Prime, he may be in danger. Imagine if the Cons found out about it. We can't let anyone know."
It wasn't a case of 'letting' people know, as they found out once back on Earth. Kicker's detection went wild, and several prevously undiscovered Energon mines were uncovered, and cities were built to house the mining crews and teams of bots that swarmed the areas. After going through some trial periods, Dr. Jones and Ion managed to gain some solid understanding of how Kicker's powers worked. If the deposit of Energon was big, after finding it, Kicker would sleep for at least two months. If it was small, the time shrunk to about three weeks, maybe less if it was in a mine already plundered.
Once Ocean City was established. Optimus had a safe room built especially for Kicker. It had a two-foot wall of glass that looked out into the depths of the sea, and was painted to match the colors. After sleeping for about two and a half weeks, Kicker awakened without warning and was several floors up before the bots found him. He was walking around in a daze, not understanding where he was. His father took him aside to explain, and after that Kicker just kept getting out without anyone knowing. Optimus finally had a silent alarm installed after the sixth time, when Kicker had almost made it out of the airlock. The boy was a magnet for trouble, it seemed. Not that Ion cared to help.
[END FLASHBACK]
Optimus stared at the main building, not letting his concern show wen HotShot came up to him, several recruits trailing behind him.
"Is it true? Kicker got out again?" The mech asked him. Optimus sighed, nodding.
"That kid is going to fry my circuits someday. But I sent Demolisher after him. He should be found within the hour. Hopefully."
[Q[R[S[T]U]V]W]
Outside of the city limits, perched on a cliff over-looking the sea-base, was a young boy. He had a telescope set up, and was looking through it, constantly swiping his orange hair out of his grass-green eyes.
He held up a recorder and pressed a button. "This is Cooper DeBellerio, student at Paberio College in West New Iacon on Earth. Today Sea-Base, also known as Ocean City, has just risen from its place underwater, and I am the first to document this momentous occasion. Why has the city been raised? Is it true that the leader of the Auobots, Optimus Prime, has occupied the city for ten years? If so, for what reason? As a reporter in the works, these questions are what I strive to answer." With that, he clicked it off and placed the recorder back into the small knapsack he was carrying. He proceeded to jump down from the cliff, onto the stretch of ground that led to the road, where an important looking car was heading towards the city bridge. Cooper ran out in front of it, watching the car stop. A red-haired woman stepped out from the back door.
"Are you trying to get yourself run over?" Cooper grinned, holding up a camera.
"If I say yes, does that constitute me a ride into Ocean City?" Alexis, the diplomat that she was, debated on it. Normally no one was allowed into the base-cities except the occupants already there, but she had the feeling he'd try to hitch a ride there anyway.
"I suppose so. But-" She said, as Copper began to cheer, "-If you get caught it's on your head, not mine. Got it?" He nodded cheerfully, getting into the back with her, mindful of his pack. Alexis shook her head, staring at Ocean City rising from the water gracefully. 'This is going to be interesting.'
READ AND REVIEW! Okay, so now the time has been established, and people have been introduced, we can get the ball rolling in the next chapter.
(1): Family Guy reference. Stewie is so cute when he says 'Shake me woman, shake me like a British nanny!' when he's teething.