Friend or Foe? IX
"Do you have room for one more mech?" The Seeker asked as he picked up Echo and held him close to his spark for warmth. The Autobots stood there stunned. None of them had expected such a turn of events. Optimus was the first to react to Thundercracker's question.
"I am sure we can find you a room to stay in," the red and blue mech said, a smile in his voice. The jet nodded in appreciation as Ratchet stepped forward to tend to his injuries.
"Optimus you can't be serious," Ironhide said through their personal line. "He's a 'Con." Optimus had expected such a reaction form the weapons specialist. Sighing he turned and started to walk back to the base, Ironhide beside him.
"He is a neutral now, he has no side in this war," the taller mech replied. "Thundercracker is putting his very life at stake to stay with Echo. Can you think of any Decepticon that would willingly go such a thing?" Ironhide's silence was all he needed.
"I still don't trust him," the black mech growled defensively.
"And I don't expect you to, but I do expect you to treat him civilly," Optimus said sternly, turning to glance at his long time friend. "Besides, you should be grateful that Thundercracker is going to be with us. You don't have to be around Echo anymore." That last sentence was said with such bitterness that Ironhide actually flinched when the Autobot leader said it. The two of them walked in silence the rest of the way back.
Once everyone was back on base, Ratchet had to almost drag Thundercracker into the med bay to finish repairing his wounds. Once the Seeker was seated on a table, he got a chance to look down at the bundle of wires in his arms. Echo was curled up into a small ball and was in a light recharge. A small smile flitted across the former Decepticon's face as he looked down at his charge. This didn't go unnoticed by Ratchet.
"Did you raise him all by yourself?" The CMO asked as he picked up a welder and started to close some of the cuts on his back. Thundercracker nodded in reply.
"Well you did a Pit of a job," the yellow mech said. "He's extremely clever and is obviously capable of defending himself, to a degree." The blue mech snorted slightly.
"Yah well he had had to learn fast to survive on our base," he muttered mostly to himself. "I couldn't be with him all the time, so I had to leave him with Shockwave on the rare occasion." Ratchet's optics widened considerably. Thundercracker sensed the medic's disapproval.
"Hey it was either him or Hook," he said in his defense.
"The lesser of two evils," the Hummer said as he smoothed out the weld marks. Ratchet sighed and sat the welder down as he picked up a data pad and recorded his first patient's injuries. At that moment the bay doors hissed open and Jazz walked in.
"What is it Jazz?" He asked, not looking up from the pad.
"I think I got a blown audio," he said rubbing the side of his helm where said audio was. "Everyth'n sounds weird." When the saboteur said that, Thundercracker couldn't help but let a small chuckle rumble deep in his chest. Ratchet cast the jet an angry look.
"Don't worry, its not blown," Thundercracker said as he got to his feet, still cradling Echo in his protective arms. "You just found out one of the reasons why I named him 'echo'."
"You named 'im?" Jazz said in surprise as he took a set on one of the tables. The jet nodded in confirmation.
"When we first found him, he had no name or faction. So we gave him the first," he said taking a seat on a crate across from Jazz as Ratchet repaired some minor damages from the battle.
"Wait," the medic said upon hearing this. "Echo is still a neutral?" The Seeker nodded.
"He's too young to wear a faction symbol. Frag he's not even in his second armor yet. The only reason Megatron wanted to keep him was so he could wipe his chips and make him a 'perfect soldier'. Like Pit I was gonna let that happen," he said as he narrowed his blood red optics angrily. No sooner had he said that the med bay doors hissed open and Optimus walked in.
The red and blue mech nodded to Jazz and Ratchet in greeting and smiled at Thundercracker. The jet knew that the Autobot leader wouldn't harm him or Echo, but he still couldn't help but be wary of the large mech. Optimus noticed this but understood the smaller mech's feelings.
"Would you mind bunking with another mech until we are able to clear a room for you?" Prime asked. Before Thundercracker could say anything the small bundle of wires in his arms stirred slightly.
Echo onlined his red optics and chirped happily when he saw his caretaker looking down at him. He squirmed in the jet's arms until the Seeker gave in and sat him in his lap. Upon doing this, Echo saw Jazz and let out an excited squeal. Jumping from Thundercracker's lap, the five foot tall mech ran across the room and hugged the saboteur's foot.
Jazz laughed and lifted his foot with the youngling still on it and picked him up. The little grey mech clicked happily and played with the silver Autobot's hands. Every mech in the room had a smile on their face. Echo didn't know it, but he had the amazing ability to make tension dissipate.
"I guess Echo chose my roommate for me," the Seeker said laughing slightly.
Once Ratchet was finished repairing Jazz, a second berth was moved into his room. Thundercracker was surprised how spacious their personal quarters were. His room had been half the size of Jazz's and he had shared his with Skywarp and Echo, then again Echo hardly took up any space.
"I really appreciate this Jazz," Thundercracker said once they finished rearranging the room.
"'Ey don' mention it," he said with a smile as he waved a clawed hand dismissively. "'Sides, I dunno any mech tha' can deny tha' face."
It was in the wee hours of the morning when Thundercracker was awakened by a certain youngling poking his arm. Sighing he checked the time. It's not even two yet, he moaned inwardly as he rubbed his optics tiredly. Rolling onto his side, he looked at Echo groggily.
"What is it Echo?" He asked, making sure to keep his voice low as to not wake Jazz. Said youngling simply took his guardian's large hand and placed it on his face. The jet's crimson optics widened considerably and ran a quick scan on the small bundle of wires. Sure enough, Echo was sick.