Co-Authered by Kitra and Omicron
"Human spoken dialogue"
"~Human speaking rough Cybertronian dialogue~"
"Cybertronian spoken dialogue."
::Cybertronian communication/Comm. Line dialogue::
-Bumblebee's translation dialogue-
Added note: Somehow I missed putting the proper chapter 9 up O.o so here's the update for that, look back at "Dark Energon" for the formally missing chapter!
Atlantis
Past Talks
The white knight kept watch over the surrogate carrier Bumblebee had been made into, his systems purring while he made sure Raphael didn't fall off of the yellow scouts armor. He kept humming the whole time, shifting from one song to the next fluently, going through a rather vast amount of songs, a lullaby here and a classic song there. All of them were solely Cybertronian though, from all over the dead planet.
He rarely glanced up from just watching the napping Bumblebee and his charge, when he did, he checked up on what Ratchet was doing with the civilian femme and the Knight's frame. Finding that they both were being stabilized, but neither brought out of stasis. Glancing to the contaminated Great Sword brought a surge of sadness over him, knowing that if it couldn't be cleansed it would never find a new bearer, and it's currently stasis locked bearer couldn't be woken without being in a lot of pain and the danger of turning insane at the swords hands.
The bond between Sword and Knight had its advantages as much as it had disadvantages.
Another glance had Wing regarding the red shock trooper that had gone with him and Jack. Cliffjumper didn't look fazed much, slowly returning to his fairly upbeat self, though the jet could tell that the red mech hadn't gotten over the unfortunate encounter with Deadlock.
That was a story Wing decided to investigate once he could leave Bumblebees side again. Deadlock had potential to leave the Decepticons behind, maybe even change sides, though Wing had no illusions that the grounder wanted to become an Autobot.
But a neutral, that would be enough for Wing. There just was something that told him Deadlock was a candidate for redemption.
Cliffjumper had been the one to walk off with Prime, giving him a full report on what happened as they set up a new room for the Great Sword. The trooper seemed the only one able to handle it now, growling right back at it at times, and helped fix it in place, well away from the dark energon they had. When the smaller red mech returned he checked in with ratchet, then Blaster on the Decepticon chatter before he started over where bumblebee and Wing lay.
Wings namesakes twitched and the white mech looked over his shoulder, chirping up at Cliffjumper, "Hey there!" He carefully extracted himself a bit, enough to sit up.
The red mech scratched a wing softly, "How's he doing?" He asked, worried but not overly as what happened was still a good thing. Cliffjumper liked sparklings.
"Calm and seems to be fine. He's napping the stress away." Wing answered quietly, petting the dozing human on Bumblebees chest quietly.
A low, loving purr came out of the trooper as he watched the scout, reaching over Wing to give Raphael a very light touch. "That's good..." He eyed the ground and then with a glance back at Ratchet motioned Wing to slowly get up and pick up the human as he moved around to pick the yellow mech up.
The jet purred and gently lifted Raphael, cradling the boy against his chest as he moved from his knees up to stand and walk over to the side, settling on one of the crates nearby, watching with bright curious optics.
The red mech, still rumbling and purring as he got a hold and started lifting Bumblebee up. Unlike Dai Atlas and Axe, who were still quite a bit larger than their creation Wing, Bumblebee was only a head shorter then Cliffjumper. The trooper had to do a little more maneuvering to get his own adopted creation up, brace, then lift.
"Miss you when you were a few more heads shorter." Cliffjumper grunted, then had his balance as he carried Bumblebee to his room.
The jet snickered. "A problem my creators never had, actually they sometime wished I had been a few heads taller. Made grabbing easier," Wing wasn't surprised that Bumblebee had grown up under the others watchful gaze.
"He's just right, just grew up too fast." Cliffjumper grinned back at Wing, "Come in you two. Family time, and you're invited."
Wing chirred amused, then shifted Raphael a bit again and followed the red mech. "You just want a harem of snugglers around you." He accused, grinning.
"Not me- though that's a good idea." The red mech shifted heading to his room as it was closer, and he had a wider ground level berth. Cliffjumper settled Bumblebee down, arranging him to be more comfortable and settled down between him and door. "Come on Wing," He said, waving at the flier to come over and join the cuddle, when the mech did come he could see Bumblebee starting to curl up against the trooper, nuzzling in his recharge.
The jet carefully handed Raphael over before flopping next to them and cuddling half across Cliffjumpers legs, his head resting against Bumblebees plating where now a sparkling was hidden.
Wing purred softly, eyeing Cliffjumper thoughtfully. He asked quietly, making sure to keep his voice low and in a tone that was soothing, encouraging the scout and his charge to ignore it and keep napping. "So what's the story between you and Deadlock?"
The trooper didn't look surprised, he rumbled and let Raph settle back on Bumblebee, and offered Wing his other hand for a helm scratch too like the scout was getting. "It starts back just before the war itself. Dead lock isn't all that older then Bumblebee and you."
"I'm quite a bit younger. Going by what I've found out about the war through everyone here and the files I managed to look at... I was created when Cybertron was already deserted." Wing admitted, shifting so he was within easy reach for the warrior, churring at him, nudging the hand gently.
"Relatively, and Cybertron wasn't deserted in the Exodus that your creators left in Wing." Cliffjumper explained as he rubbed two helms now, one white, the other yellow. His hands gentle, "That was only really the first wave so to say. Most of those that left never returned or sent probs back to see what's going on."
"I was created several vorns after the city was established on Aelios and hidden. Which was dozens of vorns after they left. It took them and Achat over a dozen vorn alone to find a suitable planet and give up the search for Crystal City." Wing explained. Research had indicated that he had probably been created about two or three vorns after Prime had abandoned Cybertron.
Cliffjumper snorted after a pause, "Alertly, relatively speaking you're not that much younger. Still the same fragging age group." He pushed the white head lightly, then returned to the gentle rubbing
Wing snickered and nuzzled the hand. "So tell me about you and Deadlock." He urged the other mech on, deeply curious about the Decepticon that wasn't really sure he belonged with his kind.
"I found him," Cliffjumper said, "Back when I was a bouncer and body guard for clubs and mechs, before I met Arcee and Jazz." he rumbled, glancing at Bumblebee, "Little older when I found this one, but he was getting messed up from some mechs, wankers that were rejected by the Level Workers."
Wing tilted his head slightly, melting under the scritches to his audials. "You helped him find something worthwhile to do?" He asked curiously.
"I thought I did, I couldn't leave a sparkling in the gutters, so I took the spitting, biting thing home with me." Cliffjumper chuckled, "Took half an orn of off and on work to get him clean, and lots of food bribes."
The jet's namesakes wriggled out of their tuck, spreading and clicking into place as Wing shifted onto his belly, cooing softly. "So he's your adoption too, like Bee?"
The red mech nodded, "Not the first one, and hopefully Bee here won't be the last." Cliffjumper vented a bit harder than normal as he thought back, and then snorted softly, "He couldn't read back then, not even his own glyph. That's where 'Deadlock' came from, misreading. He was Driftlock back then."
"Hm. So he decided to stick to Deadlock?" Wing inquired, thinking about it a bit more. "Without a doubt the next one is in Bumblebees frame, that youngling will be raised by everyone. Though Bee will be the main creator, even if I'm not sure he realizes that." The jet grinned and purred.
"He switched back," Cliffjumper said, looking at Bumblebee, and for a moment it was clear he wanted both Bumblebee and Deadlock here with him. He reached down and rubbed the yellow scout over his belly.
Wings twitching slight, the knight glanced somewhere far away. "He's on the verge of breaking you know. He doesn't feel like a Decepticon, more like a beaten up pet that can't run away anymore and never saw a way out of the mess. Right now I think, if we manage to get the upper hand on him while he's alone... He might consider, if we manage to sneak up on him, it might be a good idea to drag him back to base as prisoner and remove that control chip he mentioned."
Golden optics focused back on Cliffjumper's face. "Without a leash he'll be free to choose. Though I can't say how long it might take him to at least go neutral."
"He's too much like me, loyal even when he doesn't realize it..." Cliffjumper thought about it, "Primus I do want the kid back, I taught him how to survive and fight, but not to hurt those weaker, to defend what you think is right." He shifted, heavy armor ruffling slightly as he looked down at Bumblebee, remembering finding the scout left for dead and voiceless by Megatron, and wrapped the two younger mechs closer in a reflex to hold what he still had, Wing and Raphael both getting snuggled.
"I know I'm not the best Creator or sire, but..." He sighed again.
Wing hummed softly and hugged the red mech, nuzzling him. "You've done well. Bee is living proof. As for Deadlock, I think he actually believed in Megatron's word in the beginning. And I know from the records that his goals were good, but he turned for the worse. By then Deadlock was probably too caught up in everything and by the time he realized he choose the wrong side, there was no turning back for him anymore." Wing explained his thoughts quietly.
"I do believe he might be afraid that you wouldn't take him back in after everything. That if even if he leaves their ranks, he might not find allies here either. He has no clue of the entire neutral city that is inbound. He doesn't know there's a third party that will allow him to join without more than having to prove that he means no harm."
"He had that chip put in him to start with," Cliffjumper shook his head, not blaming for that. He paused and thought aloud, "Doesn't fight like he used to."
"What do you mean? He doesn't fight like he used to? And why would he have wanted that chip?" Wing asked, optics blinking, unable to comprehend why anyone would volunteer for a control chip.
"I guess I said that wrong," Cliffjumper reached up to scratch and rub at the jagged, broken horn and around the base. "He didn't want it- no one did. But it was, and I guess still is Turmoil's favorite way of keeping those mechs he clams as 'his' behaving. Being good pieces of fodder he can toss out for Megatron, but more his own agenda."
"So he's made the mistake of catching that Turmoil's optic, eh? If the chip is removed, he should be free to leave that all behind." Wing churred and eyed Raph amused. "So what's with the doesn't fight like he used to?"
"Everyone fights in their own way- style or training aside." The front liner tried to explain, after all Wing was a sparkling of peace if not in every way that almost completely. "Some mechs are sparked for it, for a lack of a better way of putting it Wing. We fight, how we fight is a part of our sparks."
"So you mean he's not in it with all that he is?" Wing easily drew the most obvious conclusion, chirping demandingly for more scritches.
"Yes. Something's... broken." Cliffjumper rumbled low, sad as he reached for Wing. He blinked and purred as Raphael scooted over to try and hug his chest.
Wing crooned and went into an even more relaxed state, almost liquefying under the red mechs attention. "He wants the existence Megatron promised when he was still the rebel and not the war lord. Deadlock is sick and tired of fighting for mechs who hurt him. We'll need to get a hand on him when he's all alone out there again." The jet purred determined.
Cliffjumper paused to lift his hand up, rumbling a reassuring purr and he cupped his hand around Raphael. Rubbing the boy's back like he would a sparkling and then opened an armor pocket on Bumblebee with the knowledge of a caretaker of their creation's frame from being involved, "Go." He poked Raph in, and once Bumblebee was purring in his sleep, looked back at Wing. "If you're willing..." he wanted Deadlock back, safe- even though it clearly hurt if that meant he couldn't have his once charge at his side again.
"If he is willing, willing to give up everything he has for an unknown life and the knowledge there won't be a way back. If he follows me, he will never be allowed to leave the city if he decides he wants to return to the Decepticons. Neither my creators nor Achat will allow an enemy to leave again." The jet explained quietly, nuzzling Cliffjumper. "Deadlock has so much potential, I hope he sees that deep in his spark and allows change to happen."
"That's the thing, he hasn't seen himself as a good spark for a long time." The red mech wasn't all that pleased, he wanted Deadlock freed and given at a chance but at the same time... really. No caretaker wanted to hear or liked hearing of their charge or past charge held against their will.
"I will figure something out. Dai and Axe might have more ideas. The dealt with that kind of mech before in the military and they had few charges that didn't make it into productive members of society again. And those who didn't were more insane than Megatron." Wing said, clinging to Cliffjumper, offering all the reassurance he could that one day Deadlock would not only be free again but maybe even be able to come back to Cliffjumpers side.
The red mech rumbled, optics dimming as he shifted to rest his weight one both Wing and Bumblebee. It was reflex for him, to provided that extra sense of armor protecting who he was with. Wing decided to just fall silent and snuggle close for now, he had a feeling that there was nothing left to say anymore for now.