10. Fog
Fog swirled around the still form of a mech lying on the ground. Blue optics suddenly flared to life illuminating the area, the mech lay still for a moment before sitting up. He shook his head in an attempt to clear his mind, and tried to figure out who he was, where he was and how he had gotten there. A name surfaced…Yoketron…the mech thought about it before coming to a decision...My name is Yoketron…when nothing else became apparent the mech decided that staying where he was wouldn't get him any answers so he stood up and looked around. Fog and mist cloaked the area in all directions to form a veil impenetrable to his optics. Deciding that one direction was as good as the others the mech began to walk forward into the fog. He wasn't sure how far he had been walking when his path was barred by the silhouette of another mech.
Somehow Yoketron found he wasn't afraid of the mech but nevertheless halted his steps. Seeing this, the other mech made an amused sound before speaking, "Not afraid of me, little one? Good, that makes my job so much easier." Yoketron was slightly offended at being called "little one" but decided not to press the issue in favor of asking, "Who are you?" the other mech smiled and replied, "I have been called many names, but that is not what is important. What is important is who you are." Yoketron frowned at this and replied, "I know who I am, I am Yoketron." The mech shook his head, "A name has little meaning if one does not know the history behind it." Yoketron sighed, knowing the mech was right.
A half remembered story crossed his mind and a dismal prospect occurred to him, "This is not the well of all sparks, is it?" The mech shook his head and spoke, "Nor is this the pit." Yoketron's confusion increased as he processed that statement, looking at the mech he asked, "Then where am I?" The mech smiled again and replied, "You are at the crossroads, the point between life and death." Yoketron started at this but before could speak the mech went on. "From here you have a choice, you may continue on into death or you may return the way you came." With these words spoken the mech receded back into the fog. Yoketron called after him, "But how will I find the way?!" The mech's voice floated back to him, "Listen carefully and you will know."
Yoketron forced himself to calm down; he knew panicking wouldn't get him anywhere. As he considered the other mech's advice he became aware of a voice echoing through the mist. It never rose above a whisper in volume but the emotion it carried was tremendous, from what Yoketron could tell the speaker was desperate. The mech's parting words flashed across Yoketron's cpu, and he desperately tried to identify the owner of the voice. A jumble of images suddenly flashed through his mind…a slender black and gold mech, bike alt…temperamental and stubborn…student…my student…his name is...is.. Prowl! With that thought everything rushed back, but Yoketron paid his memories no heed as his student's voice crystallized and took on directionality. As the words clarified he realized with a pang that his student was praying. Yoketron didn't hesitate any longer than it took to identify the direction the voice was coming from, before taking off at a dead run. He felt he had just about reached it when the foggy world spun to black and consciousness left him. As the blackness lifted the first thing Yoketron was aware of was pain, every inch of him hurt. It took him several tries to get his optics to online and when he did he was promptly blinded by the light. It took a few seconds for his optics to focus, when they did they where drawn to form beside his bed. Black and white plating was topped by an expression of joy and relief.
Jazz's spark leaped as Yoketron onlined. Seeing the questions in his sensei's optics he was quick to reassure, "Take it easy, sensei. The medics tell me you're going to pull through just fine. You'll have to thank Prowl when he wakes up; he kept your spark stable till the medics got here. " Yoketron could only nod in response as he slipped back into recharge.