Chapter Fifteen
June 13th, 2010
Jasper, Nevada
Autobot Outpost Omega One
Optimus was helping Arcee and Bulkhead retrieve their latest discovery when they got a message from Bumblebee, telling them that Jack and Raf were alright, that they're safe, and they have something that was of utmost importance for them to see. He was relieved to know that the boys were safe, but he had questions that needed to be addressed once they returned.
As the team returned, the humans (plus Tiger) were seated near the terminal, and Bumblebee was still seated on the berth he was supposed to be operated on. Ratchet had just come to, slowly sitting up and shaking the disorientation.
"Um, hey there," Bulkhead greeted nervously.
"So, how do you feel?" Arcee asked in stiff awkwardness.
"I feel fine," Ratchet felt unsure. "In fact, I feel as if nothing has changed at all."
"Oh, about that," Arcee started.
"Forget that! You're not gonna believe what Jack and the others did," Miko piped up.
Ratchet shook his head before scowling. "Will you quiet down for a minute? I can barely stand any loud noises right now."
"Sorry," Miko said more quietly.
"Where are Raf and Jack?" Optimus first asked.
Thor was beaming as we stood up. "Optimus, if you saw him now, you would be proud of what he and the others had accomplished. He would make a fine warrior one day."
"After that stunt he pulled earlier?" Arcee grumbled.
"You're going to think differently after this," Tiger smirked. She gestured for Miko, and a picture popped up on the terminal's screen. On it was a photo of a downed Nemesis.
"What?!" Ratchet cried in surprise.
Optimus couldn't believe what he saw either. "Jackson and the others had done this?"
"Yeah, go team!" Bulkhead cheered.
"He trashed the place like a rock star in a hotel room," Miko pumped up the mood.
Arcee wasn't sure what to feel at the moment but a sense of hope as she turned to her leader. "This might be our only chance now to hit the 'Cons while they're still vulnerable."
Ratchet shook his head. "Megatron's warship may be grounded, but let's not forget that we remain vastly outnumbered, even if we have two superhumans and human allies."
"Two?" Arcee frowned.
"Yes, the other one being Jack."
Arcee and Bulkhead stared at him. Ratchet looked between the two of them before glancing over at Bumblebee, who looked just as confused as they did. "None of you know this?"
"What are you talking about?" Arcee demanded.
Ratchet shook his head again. "Nothing, I'll let Jack be the one to tell you. Regardless, how are we supposed to take out Megatron and his army with every bit of firepower they possess?"
"We shall have to worry about that later. Right now, we must retrieve our human allies before Megatron decides to send out a search party for them," Optimus advised.
"Damage report," a frustrated Megatron ordered once they regained footing.
"The major systems are critically damaged. It'll take some time to get it back up in the air," Breakdown reported.
"Soundwave," Megatron turned to his most trusted soldier.
Soundwave's screened face displayed a recording feed of the power core's room. But as soon as the doors opened up the screen went static.
Megatron seethed at this, causing Breakdown and Knock Out to back away from him. If he had a spark, he would have considered human work decent. However, the fact he had been outsmarted and taken down by an inferior race only fueled the rage.
"See to it that the power core is repaired and replenished quickly! The Autobots will want to move swiftly to exploit any perceived weakness," Megatron commanded.
"Surely they're not foolish enough for a direct assault, my Liege," Knock Out said.
"Optimus has grown decidedly more ruthless since our last encounter," replied Megatron.
Airachnid stood idly by the controls, flexing out her claws. "If they find out in such a short time. How would you suggest to have this place airborne before they strike?"
Her commander glared icily at her before his optics lit up. He had an idea. "Soundwave, call the human commander in. I would like to have a word with him," he said, catching his main officers by surprise.
Soundwave nodded as he turned away. None of them noticed the dark smirk on Megatron's face. Perhaps it was a hasty and reckless choice, but he didn't abide to the human governments.
While waiting for signs of an Autobot ground bridge to fire up, all attention was on Captain Marvel. They silently listened as she explained her newest mission, making Jack shier and more embarrassed. However, when she brought up her backstory before explaining her return, he could not help but feel he had something in common with her — both of them had been caught up in a war they shouldn't have been a part of, had lost a close one, and gained extraordinary power from a freak accident. Still, questions were best left for their own expert interrogator.
"And that was when you met Fury?" Romanoff inquired.
Danvers shook her head. "Not for another six years. That was after the Kree suppressed my memories, made me think I was one of them."
"I'm sorry for doubting you on this one," Hank said before revealing, "But there aren't any files that I've seen that mention about you."
"Of course there wouldn't be," an exasperated Stark sighed. "Saint Nick is an agent — or, rather, the agent. His secrets have secrets."
"You hit the nail on that one," Barton wryly agreed.
"He didn't want the people to panic after learning we're not alone in the universe," Danvers explained. She left out the part where the Kree armada had come, given that it would get them riled up for another fight with anyone. That, and she had found herself getting caught up in their version of "rough play."
Jack frowned at her. "What about me? What makes me so important enough for you to come back?"
"Someone contacted me. They never told me who they were, but they said that I needed to find you and help you with something."
Jack blinked in confusion. "Like what, though?"
Rhodes groaned. "Who knows? But if the guy that took you last night is in league with those guys now, they'll likely come after you as well."
Danvers scowled. "Given that Megatron is here as well, what other choice would there be?"
"Speaking of which," Raf turned to Jack, "what are you going to do when the Autobots see you like this?"
"Let's worry about that later. It probably won't be long before they find our location and get here," Jack said just as heavy footsteps vibrated against the ground.
"Whoo-hoo! Let's go check it out!" Bulkhead whooped as he emerged. Following after him was Optimus and Arcee. Bumblebee had charged out of there as well with Ratchet chasing after him.
"Bumblebee! You can't just come out here. You need to recover from surgery."
Bumblebee skidded to the halt. He looked at Ratchet before turning to the others.
"Yeah, about that," Bulkhead said. "Um, we didn't go through with it."
Ratchet sputtered, "What?"
"Oh, my god! I have a giant robotic doppelganger!" Janet squealed from her spot.
Bulkhead screamed when he saw the adults. Bumblebee ducked behind the former Wrecker to avoid their prying eyes.
"So, wait a minute. You're saying that Bumblebee is still without a t-cog?" Ratchet continued on, not even noticing what was happening.
"We will discuss this back at base," Optimus said. "We have much to handle, and we must do it swiftly before the Decepticons regroup."
"That's a good idea," Romanoff stated, slowly, before adding, "And Fowler should be contacted about this and see what he'll make of it."
Optimus looked at her before nodding. As he turned to the entire group, he said, "Autobots, let's return."
With that, all five Autobots and the humans made their way through the trees until they reached the ground bridge and found themselves in the familiar base of operations; though it wasn't that to six of the humans, as it was the first time that they were seeing it. To Jack, a pang of familiar aching punched at his chest as he stepped foot into the room.
As he came into view in the room, he saw Tiger at the console. The others were right by her side as well. However, upon seeing Raf and Jack, Sierra and Miko hurried down the stairs to get to them. Raf barely had time to utter a word as the girls trapped him in hugs.
"Uh, you guys are seeing that too, right?" Barton pointed at Tiger.
"Sentient robots exist, and you're surprised by that?" Romanoff glared at Barton.
The archer thought of this over, but he shrugged in response.
"Dude, you're wearing your outfit!" Miko exclaimed as she looked at Jack. All eyes were suddenly on him, and Jack looked down at the floor. His cheeks felt hot, but they burned hotter as she asked, "So, does everyone know now?"
Stark was surveying the room. "Love what you have done with the place. Guys, you have great taste, despite the fact that it's outdated."
"Tony," Hank said with a warning tone.
"What? These guys are highly advanced and they have to work with human computers."
"Ah, hush up," Barton said. He smiled as he waved at someone. "Hey, Arcee."
That got Jack to regain his nerve. He slowly raised his eyes up and nearly flinched. Bulkhead, Bumblebee, and Arcee were gaping at him like he had exploded in front of their eyes. Ratchet was shocked himself, but mild, and he was just staring at him. He didn't dare to see how Optimus was reacting.
"So, Jack?" Janet wrapped an arm around his shoulder and drew him closer. "Wanna introduce us to your science club or not?"
"Huh? Uh, sure." He introduced them all by name to them, including his human friends, though when he went to Optimus, he did a double take. The Autobot leader wasn't even looking at any one of them. His helm was bowed and not facing any of them, either visibly upset or he was just thinking of something that made him oblivious to what was happening. Glancing away, he looked to Ratchet for an answer, but the Autobot medic just shook his head.
"So, how long have you known each other?" Romanoff asked.
"Since last autumn," Miko answered right away. Then she frowned. "Or was it during the Winter Fest?" Then she looked at Jack and said, "Hey, I've been meaning to ask you: what is on that shelf that you've got here that's so secret?" She pointed over to the medical bay, and Jack saw how Sierra and Raf looked like they were ready to tackle her.
"Oh, just some spiders." Ratchet turned away, pretending to be interested with the consoles.
Miko laughed. "Ha-ha! Good one, doc." After a while when she looked at Jack, her face paled. "Wait, is he serious?" Then she shrieked, "There's been spiders living there this entire time?!"
"Ratchet!" Banner came into view and threw his arms out. "What the hell?"
"What? I couldn't resist there," Ratchet said.
A high squeak filled the following silence. Hank was gawking at Banner from here he stood. It only made him look away bashfully.
"Oh, my gosh," Janet gasped. "It's you! You're the guy who wrote that huge essay on robotics and something about how Alan Turing could have made a huge difference in technology if the government wasn't a bunch of—" She was cut off when Jack slapped a hand over her mouth.
"Yep, surprises," Barton grumbled.
"You actually read that?" Banner frowned. "I thought it was forgotten like a majority of my other papers."
"How did you manage to end up in the company of these guys? Especially near this place?" Romanoff questioned.
Jack groaned. Romanoff was pretty straight-to-the-point when it came to dealing with the people on S.H.I.E.L.D.'s list of persons of interest. Having learned of Banner's condition, this wasn't the approach that should have been taking. What he said next surprised him at how calmly he answered.
"I, uh, was just trying to get used to the Other Guy, I guess. Trying to learn from it, control it. I guess I got carried away the last time. And here I am now. Although, I can't say that's the strangest thing I've seen all year." He gave the Autobots a quick glance before looking away.
"I've read about what happened to you," Hank recalled the accident. "That much gamma radiation should have killed you."
Bruce winced.
"But frankly, I hardly am surprised by anything these days," Hank added.
Barton frowned as he looked at Thor. "So, who is this guy?"
Thor's eyes landed on him now. Jack had to pinch the bridge of his nose.
"I am Thor, son of Odin," he directly answered. He ignored the looks he got from the others.
"Thor?" Barton repeated.
"As in the Norse god of thunder?" Rhodes inserted.
Thor's eyes lit up. "So, you have heard of me?"
"Seriously, what is your name?" Janet said.
Miko and Raf frantically waved their arms, but it was too late. Thor started to make his way towards her, but Tiger held his arm.
"Thor, just calm down now," she said.
"But they do not believe me? Why don't they? Would they if I had my hammer and summoned lightning with it?"
"Wait a minute." Hank took a step forward. "That energy signature from a couple weeks ago — was that you?"
"What energy signature?" Thor was confused.
Ratchet sighed as he explained, "When you came down onto Earth, it created a cosmic energy flux unlike anything that even I have ever seen. Whatever it was that brought you here left half a mark on the ice."
Oh, so that's what all of that was, Romanoff and Barton both thought.
"Oh, you mean the Bifrost. It happens all the time given the power of the Odinforce," Thor said.
"Why don't you find him interesting and not Jack?" Hank glared at Stark.
"Well, you know that dying puts everything into a different perspective."
Dying? Jack looked at Rhodes, but he only shook his head.
"Besides, I got bored and I wanted to work along some of the most leading technicians and scientists of our day, not wanting to leave a bad legacy behind."
"Oh, come on, Stark."
"What? You've claimed to have known everything, but you didn't know that robotic organisms from another world live on this planet, or that Banner has been with them for who knows how long, and then the fact that we have another person who may be from another world with more than we know of."
"It's not really all unicorns and rainbows as you put it," Thor uttered.
"It's not explaining why Jack is of all trades," Barton said.
"Look here, biscuit blocker," Stark pointed at him. "You've all upped me one, so I figured I should do the same to you all. I'm a man of free will, and I will do what I want and how I want to. Not letting Fury make me a soldier to join his fife or whatever you want to call it. Besides, who's to say he won't do the same to the kid?"
"Forget all of that. I wanna know how Jack got his powers," Janet said as she jostled Jack's a bit.
All eyes were on him now. Jack had at least the decency to look sheepish as he was once more the center of attention. He couldn't really conjure an explanation for his theory anyway, so he just shrugged.
Rhodes gawked at him. "You don't know?"
"How do you not know?" Barton cackled.
"As of right now, I don't know for sure," Jack retorted. "Because I really have no idea myself."
None of them noticed the grimace on Banner's face.
"I'll admit one thing," Bulkhead spoke. "If you told us that you two were the same person, I wouldn't have been so quick to believe it."
Bumblebee nodded in agreement.
"You still should've told us!" snapped Arcee, drawing everyone's eye and optic towards her. Before she could say anything else, Prime intervened.
"Easy, now. It will be best first to set a course of action first before we discuss this."
Jack nodded, but he didn't look at the Prime. While he felt grateful for Optimus's intervention, he couldn't bear to look at him directly in the eye.
"Arcee, where are you going?" he heard Ratchet ask. He looked up to find his guardian storming towards the tunnel.
"Out. I need a drive," she answered tersely before transforming and racing out of the base.
Everyone stared after her, too taken off guard by her sudden departure. They glanced at Jack, but he wasn't looking at any of them.
Jack watched as the last of the water filtered down the drain before shutting the shower off. He had been nervous about taking a shower each night since he had learned of his newfound strength, so he was extra cautious with what he touched and how hard he hit.
Arcee had not come back yet. Probably fuming or finding something to take out her anger on. He couldn't blame her, though. Her words still echoed in his ears. Truly she hated him now, for what would she do if he had gotten killed while performing vigilante work? That hatred had to have built up with the stunt he had just pulled.
He sighed as he dried himself off. He would have to deal with it later when she returned. He would have to apologize to her, and he needed to be sincere about it. The last thing he wanted was to lose another person that he held dear to him. They had been through a lot since Megatron's attempt to conquer Cybertron, and he didn't want to end it like this.
Miko had suggested on taking the humans on tour, and no one objected. Much to his disappointment, she hadn't come back yet. He feared the worst, but Ratchet told him that he had just contacted her, saying she was fine, and she was not far from Jasper. At least, that's what it was hours ago, and she still hadn't come back when the other kids were sent home.
After Jack finished dressing himself, he met Banner in the hallway. He ducked his head and slowly walked towards him.
"Ratchet wants to see you once he's done with his work," Banner informed him. "Oh, and watch out for Stark, because he's there too."
Jack nodded, grateful for the warning, and he scooted around him, continuing his way towards the main room. Most of the others had disappeared, having retired to the bunkers. Bulkhead noticed Jack coming in and he marched towards him. The teenager tensed, bracing for whatever he had to tell him.
"Hey, can you get Janet to leave me alone? Miko asked me a lot of questions when we first met, but this one's a pro!"
The request he had threw Jack off of his guard. That wasn't exactly what he was expecting from the former Wrecker.
"Ah, come on," Janet whined at his pedes. "Can't you at least tell me something about yourself?"
"Just tell her as little as possible," Hank advised. "She'll eventually leave you alone afterwards."
Janet looked offended when he said that. Jack nearly laughed at the childish display before heading to the sick bay. He found Ratchet in the sick bay, and Stark on the couch as he gingerly rubbed his cheek. Jack silently went up the stairs and sat in the chair next to Stark.
Stark looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "That's your cat's seat."
"Will you quit calling me that?" Tiger shouted from across the room.
Jack looked away and rubbed the back of his neck. Stark made a mental note that he looked slightly like someone else, but he couldn't quite tell who.
"Optimus has contacted Coulson and informed him what's happened," Ratchet said. "We'll have him bridged here once I'm finished up."
Jack nodded, swinging his feet on the bed. He tried to avoid conversation, but it seemed hard not to. Finally, Jack sighed and turned to the older man.
"Okay, I'm sorry for almost punching you on the Nemesis. I don't like being taken by surprise that way and, on a subconscious level, I was surprised that you found me and the Autobots, but I don't understand how you knew that it was me out there."
Stark frowned. How was he going to explain to Jack that he figured him out without getting sucker punched by him?
"I just want to say that I'm sorry about your mom first before going into detail about how I learned you were the Spider-Man." He caught Jack looking at him in confusion. "But I guess it's not really my place to say it now.
"But right now, I'm not trying to get you caught up in anything. I just saw you on the news and I did a quick thermal scan and search and that was how I learned about you. I didn't even know that you were in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s protection or whatever you want to call it until now."
Jack nodded silently but slowly.
"So, what do you plan on doing now?"
Stark paused at that. He said that he wanted to talk to the kid, but he didn't think he would get that far. He did have an idea.
"How about I take you and the others to Malibu for a week?"
Jack snorted. But the look Stark had killed the humor. "Are you serious? I can't just go with you. Fury and Phil might kill you."
Stark smirked and gave Jack a smug look. "C'mon. I can have you back home before they even notice."
"Mr. Stark, seriously, I really don't think that's a good idea."
"First of all, Mr. Stark is my dad. Just call me Tony. And trust me, I think you'll enjoy Malibu, so don't argue with me."
"Mis—Tony! I just can't be traveling around wherever. I've annoyed a lot of people already."
"What part of 'don't argue with me' do you not understand?"
"The not part."
"Do you like your living situation right now?"
Jack faltered. But Stark stood up and stretched before he gave an answer.
"From what I can tell, you don't have to be stuck in some smelly old hut with Saint Nick. Plus, having to get the chance to hang around with alien robots? Are you kidding me? How often do you get a chance like that?"
Jack stared at him, his jaw set tightly before he shook his head. He doubted that Stark would get away with it, much less get him away from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s radar.
"Yes, yes. Whatever you say," Ratchet spoke dismissively. "Jackson, cover over here."
Jack got up and hurried over to Ratchet's workplace. He stood next to the medical officer cautiously, peeking up at him from where he stood.
"I have taken the liberty of checking in on your blood," Ratchet said as he brought up an image. The video feed showed of a strand of human DNA. Nothing out of the ordinary there. "After the spider bit you, I had found this out the day before we learned where you went to."
Jack frowned up at him in confusion. Ratchet then pulled up another image, this time it caught the teen by surprise. He looked at Ratchet, then back at the screen. It became quite clear that there was something Jack knew that seemed out of place there.
"It's like as if…"
"Some of the bases were replaced," Stark's voice finished. Jack had been so consumed with the knowledge of his newfound abilities that he had forgotten Stark was there.
"I've run some diagnostics, and although I have never seen this before, I have studied the genetic makeups of Inhumans and Mutants for a while now. They have a marker that grants them extraordinary power simply through an extra chromosome or else through these crystalline objects. But on Cybertron, we have something known as techno-organics that are a fusion between machinery and living tissue."
"Yeah, but what does that have to do with Jack?" Stark questioned.
"I can safely say that the spider's bite has infected Jack in more ways, although not harmfully. The venom and the DNA strand of the spider had instead fused itself with Jack's own DNA via an unusual substance that it has been enhanced with. It had simply rearranged the genetic makeup to better accommodate to its new host. By the looks, the process has been completed hours after the bite around roughly the day after June's funeral."
Silence. Just silence. Nobody moved, nobody spoke, nobody breathed.
Jack barely acknowledged this bit of news. He was too dumbstruck by what he was seeing. He quickly stuffed his hands into his pockets so the others wouldn't notice it. It just seemed better right now that he was starting to wonder what his mother had done, if she really was the person he thought she was. It only proved how much of a stranger she truly had been.
From where she stood, Tiger had a devastating and sympathetic look on her face. She saw just how puzzled and scared Jack had to have been feeling now, but was it really over the spider genetics that were a part of him? She pushed herself away from the wall and walked over, sharing a look with Hank as she came up to her ward.
"Jack?" She stopped right behind him. "Jack, are you okay?"
Jack turned to look at her. His bright blue eyes were pooled by a mixture of emotions. But she knew what he had to be thinking, that there was no way he could even survive a bite like that if it were possible. Despite the fuss he made the day he had come back to Jasper, it felt more like a wakeup call to him.
"Jack, look," Tiger said. "I understand how you feel. After my…own mutation, I was just as confused as you were. Trust me, I know how it can be to no longer—"
"No."
Tiger was surprised at the one word that was drawn from his mouth.
"This is worse. This just proves that Fury cannot know about them at all, or anyone at S.H.I.E.L.D. I have to do something about them." He glanced towards the corner at the bookcase.
Tiger let out a breath that she had been holding in. He was not afraid for himself, but for the spiders that he had come to treasure now that his mother was gone.
The familiar roar of Arcee's engines echoed from the tunnel before she was seen by their eyes. She barely stopped as she came to a halt as she transformed. She noticed how the room looked nearly empty, and she asked, "Did everyone retire for the night?"
"Yes. Optimus tried to contact Fowler earlier, but we couldn't get a hold of him. Luckily the Nemesis is still grounded, so they're not going anywhere for a while."
Jack lowered himself onto the ground and ran a hand through his hair. Tiger sat beside him with a sigh. "You're going to tire us all out before the summer's even over."
"More like the week," Jack said.
Tiger smirked. "That depends on much we juggle between here and Washington."
Jack looked up at her and smiled.
"Well, I'm going to retire myself," Arcee announced.
Jack quickly scrambled to his feet as he went after her. "Wait, Arcee. I know you're mad at me, and I'm really sorry for lying to you and for going after to save Raf, even if it meant getting killed."
Arcee halted in her tracks. He waited until she turned around to face him. Her face was neutral, but her optics told another story.
"Um, maybe we should retire for the night," Bulkhead suggested as he herded Hank and Janet towards the hallway.
"Stay!" Arcee abruptly said. She had no idea why she even said it, but suddenly everyone stayed frozen in their spots.
"Oh, someone's in major trouble," Stark stated to himself.
"Shut up, Stark. You're not in any position to say that," Tiger told him.
Jack had looked at the pair before returning his attention back to Arcee. He realized suddenly that he didn't exactly know what to say. He had a speech prepared for the past days, but now he didn't know what to say to her. He knew she wasn't happy with him, and he didn't dare guess what she would say to him.
"Look, Arcee. I—"
"Jack, why?" she interrupted with a calm yet commanding air.
"Huh?" the teen asked, not really understanding.
"Why did you lie about everything these past two weeks?"
Jack sunk his head and looked away.
"Jack, just answer the question and be honest," Hank said kindly.
"I…I…" Jack couldn't form an answer to prove that he was telling the truth.
"Why do you think? Probably so that he wouldn't be a test subject to S.H.I.E.L.D.," Ratchet scoffed.
"Nick Fury would never do that to me!" Jack got defensive, glaring at the medic angrily. Ratchet backed away, but he continued, "Not after everything he went through with my mom!"
Ratchet recovered and asked, "Then why did you lie to us?" After a beat, he looked at Bulkhead and asked, "What did he lie about?"
"Um, I'm not really sure for what," Bulkhead shrugged.
"How about the fact that he was the one that went up against MECH in the first place and for not saying exactly how he knew the person that almost took him last night?" Arcee revealed.
"What guy?" Ratchet asked.
"Yeah, what guy?" Janet asked. Then her eyes lit up. "Oh, that guy."
"Okay, look." Hank had to keep them on track. "Listen, Jack, you've kept some things lately. These past two weeks were fun but have been a torment. Especially when you took off and didn't tell anyone where you were until the last minute. And now this happened. We know why you ran away, but not about the part with you and whatever you want to call it. Especially with what's going on between you and the Vulture. Can you explain it to us? Is there a valid reason?"
Jack looked at them as he said, "I knew how you guys would react if I told you that I did all of that. I knew you guys wouldn't approve. But, Hank, for some reason you guys didn't seem to mind it. You not only managed to put it all together, but you didn't even stop me. And I thought you guys were okay with me and what I do. But with the Autobots, I didn't know exactly how to tell them."
"Hey, how can you tell them?" Janet shrugged. "I mean, you all live nearly on the other side of the country, so it's not like as if—"
"Now we're going to bed," Hank declared as he dragged Janet down the hallway.
"Uh, goodnight," Bulkhead called after them.
Arcee just glared at Jack again. "So, that's your only reason? That you thought we wouldn't be okay with this? Of course I wouldn't be when you're alone out there and putting yourself in danger like that. Do you really not trust us enough to help you? That it was something you just had to handle on your own?"
Jack's gaze hardened. "I don't see why I shouldn't. You guys were chewing my ass because I wanted to go back to where I was born. And besides, I think I can handle a lot of things on my own. I know how to do it a lot when the people I count on don't seem to have my back anymore."
"Okay, that's enough," Tiger intervened. She grasped Jack's shoulder, trying to get him to calm down before he said anything that would get him into trouble. She could sense that there was other issues Jack was holding back, and the fire was being stoked by them. She only hoped to dowse the flames before they combusted.
Jack whipped his head to her. "But that's just it! It's never enough. When is it enough for me to have a little bit for myself? To have something without people judging me for it?"
Tiger's eyes widened. So, that's where most of it laid out at.
The teenager took Tiger's hand and lifted it off of him. "The night Mom died, she told me that if I could achieve greatness, I have to have a moral obligation to them. Well, contrary to what you guys believe, I actually have thought about this. I did achieve something that day and I wanted to commit to it!"
"Commitment is more than just using your powers for good," Arcee retained that dangerous calmness. "It's about a sense of duty to those your loyal to. What about your responsibility to us? Is it responsible enough to put yourself in danger?"
Jack's fists tightened at his side. He was sick and tired of being told of what everyone else wanted and expected of him. He'd been doing it for so long that he wasn't sure what he wanted anymore.
"Oh, but it's okay when you do it?" he shot back.
"I'm a soldier, Jack. It's my duty to fight for the Autobots and against the Decepticons. It's a responsibility that I can't back out of whenever I choose."
"Yeah, and that's what got everyone else in trouble."
"That's enough!" Tiger grabbed his arm.
Jack yanked his arm away. "Stop it! I'm not going to stand here and take it when they can't take the responsibility themselves."
"But that doesn't mean that you're in the right. Raf would sometimes come up and ask me if you're okay, and Sierra gets worried. I don't care much about what Miko thinks considering she's an adrenaline junkie. I'll admit that you're pretty impressive, but what if your Mom had survived? You don't think that this wouldn't destroy her?"
"She is right," Ratchet put in.
Bulkhead frowned at him. "Yeah? Earlier you mentioned Jack being a superhuman or whatever. How did you know that he was?"
Ratchet was suddenly at a lost. Despite his opinion of the former Wrecker, Bulkhead had a pretty good memory. And a very observant mind that had exposed Makeshift masquerading as Wheeljack the first time the Autobot had crossed paths on Earth. Stark, however, turned to the bookshelves that housed the spiders and went over to investigate them.
Realizing that Ratchet was going to get into trouble because of him, Jack turned to Bulkhead. "Look, it doesn't matter if he knew it or not. I'm the one who did wrong here, so don't turn it onto anyone else."
"Jack," Tiger whispered.
"It's not!"
Ratchet stared at Jack, not expecting the child to come to his aide. Bulkhead looked disappointed and sad by all of this.
Jack lowered his head, trying to calm down. "You were right that I do have a responsibility to the ones I love. Seeing Raf get taken like that, I couldn't just stand there and let him be on that ship on his own, all alone and at their mercy." He didn't see Bulkhead's optics dim as he continued, "At the same time, it was nice to have people over there that don't really expect a lot from you. They don't see me acting in a certain way. Yeah, they do care about my safety, but they don't expect anything from me. But that doesn't mean I couldn't have a sense of loyalty, right?"
Tiger's brows raised up at his words.
"I know it was stupid with what I did, but what if I hadn't? I was so caught up with what I was doing, feeling like I had gotten a piece of my childhood back …I had to do it. It was my choice, I did it, and I'm not going to feel ashamed for being proud of what I've done."
Tiger wasn't exactly sure how to say to it. However, from noticing Arcee's expression, she had a feeling she'd misinterpreted Jack's words, and she was right with what the femme said next.
"I see. I can understand that you would accept about me not taking you to heart as a partner, but by the time I do, you turn around and decided to play hero for the glory."
"Arcee!"
Everyone immediately turned to the door. Optimus was standing in the doorway, glaring Arcee like never before, a rare sight for even Jack.
Not wanting to stick around even longer to make it any uglier, Jack mumbled about going to bed, rushing past the Autobots as he hurried down the hallway. Optimus broke his gaze as his optics followed the teenager down the hallways towards the human bunkers.
Tiger sat down on the steps, pressing a finger to her temple. "Can this get any messier?"
"Prime!"
Everyone cringed at the sudden voice.
"What did you do this time?" Fowler's voice rang throughout the room as a video feed with his face popped up.
"I'm sorry, Agent Fowler. But we have all been in the base as of lately."
"Really? Have you seen the news? It's all over TV!" When no one responded he asked, "You don't know what's going on?"
"Do we look like we know?" Ratchet groaned.
Fowler didn't respond. Instead, a video feed popped up on the screen. Arcee froze at the face that was plastered on the screen — Megatron. What was he doing live on TV? Wasn't he also smart enough to not show the Cybertronians' existence on Earth? If not, how would they be able to fix this mess?
"Attention, citizens of Earth," the Deception warlord rasped. "Your leaders have withheld the truth. You are not alone in this wretched universe. We have lived among you, hidden. But no more! As you will see soon, we will destroy your cities and all of your precious monuments. That is, unless you report the whereabouts of these fellow members of my race."
Images of the Autobots, one of their profiles and another of their vehicular forms, flashed on the screen. Arcee grasped the doorway's frame to support herself. Her spark hammered in its casing, despite the adrenaline had settled long ago. She felt like she was living in that nightmare again.
"If you resist, we will destroy the world as you know it." He stopped and listened to whoever it was in the background. He sighed annoyingly and rolled his optics. "Fine, we won't destroy your precious planet. But you get the message."
And then he was gone.
"I had to ask," Tiger groaned.
"How recent was this?" Optimus inquired.
"Just got it now. It's all over the network! I'm a sitting duck here trying to figure out what to do. Please tell me you have an idea," Fowler begged.
Optimus stood there with an emotionless expression, as if not caring what would happen if a plan was not formulated. In reality, he was as concerned as the specialist. Megatron had revealed their existence to the entire world after all those years. There was only one reason that he could think of that had the Decepticon leader go down that path.
"Agent Fowler, I can only do what I am allowed to for now," Optimus finally answered.
"I…understand," Fowler sighed. "My department's doing what we can on our end, and I'll be over first thing in the morning. However, if this gets out of our hand…all I can say is good luck."
The feed cut off.
"That's it?" Stark asked. "They'll just leave you at that asshole's mercy?"
"What about Miko and the others?" Bulkhead asked. "If the Decepticons—"
"Going out there is the last thing we are to do," Optimus said.
"So, we're just going to sit here and do nothing?" Tiger questioned.
"Well, unless you have any ideas of going out without being executed on the spot, then by all means," Ratchet said.
"I do not like the thought of containment myself, but I do not wish to jeopardize the children or anyone in the city. And ourselves as well. As I have feared, this has become catastrophic," Optimus spoke forebodingly.