Never Was
Disclaimer: A bizarre idea that came to me shortly after I watched the new Transformers Animated episode on Saturday on March 13th. I'm not so sure if it is a... "realistic idea", to begin with, but I will make it as "real" as I possibly can. This idea was bugging me so much, I had to put it down. So if you feel this isn't the best, you can tell me. It won't hurt my feelings, honest. This fic takes place before the events of Animated.
"Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, fearing, doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before."
-Edgar Allan Poe
"The utmost extent of man's knowledge, is to know that he knows nothing."
-Joseph Addison
By: VampireQueenAkasha
"Your reasoning is highly illogical."
-Shockwave, G1 Episode
Chapter Two: Teamwork or Die
Unknown Planet
Hot Shot kicked a pebble absently over the edge of a massive cliff. He watched it drop from the massive height and looked back at the other two. Shockwave was drawing calculations up in the dirt with a stick and Red Alert watched him.
"How are we gonna get off this planet?" he muttered.
"I explained it 14 times, I'm not going to explain it again..." Shockwave muttered.
Hot Shot smiled and shrugged. "Ehh, what's 15 times?"
"More times than I should have to!" Shockwave snapped, his single eye flickering with irritation. "I know Autobots are not that smart when it comes to processing information, but it does not take even the lowest processors 14 times to understand something!"
Hot Shot glared back. "And just what the slag is that supposed to mean?"
"Do you really need me to explain how to make sense of an insult?"
Red Alert held out two hands. "Okay, enough!" she said, "This is why we're not getting anywhere. The two of you can't stop arguing."
"He started it..." Hot Shot muttered, glaring at Shockwave.
Red Alert rolled her optics with disdain. "Forget who started it," she snapped. "We have to figure out a way across the gully here." She gestured to the cliff.
The other two didn't like the idea of having to cross this enormous cliff. It stretched for miles and going around it would take more time than they knew was necessary. So Shockwave was attempting to figure out a way to get them across.
"Well..." he began, rising. "I took notice to that small bridge of stone nearest here, but it doesn't possess stability and-"
Hot Shot grinned and rushed over to what Shockwave was talking about; a bridge of stone that had formed through rock movement and shifting plates, no doubt. He gave it the once-over before looking back at the Decepticon.
"Stability?" he said, "Shoot, we go one at a time, slowly, I'm sure we can make it."
Red Alert looked a bit uneasy as well. She studied the stone bridge with doubt. Maybe it wasn't a good idea. "I don't know, Hot Shot." she said, "Shockwave knows more about calculations than the both of us do. Maybe we should listen to-"
"A Decepticon?" Hot Shot finished, "No thanks. I choose life!"
Shockwave shook his head. "Very well, you can die if you wish." he said, mockingly.
Hot Shot crept carefully and easily across the slim, stoney pathway. Red Alert carefully followed behind. The two winced and did not dare to glance down at the chasm below. Finally, Hot Shot made it over and Red Alert was helped to his side. They looked over toward Shockwave.
"Come on!" Red Alert called, "It seems stable!"
Shockwave didn't budge for a few moments. He glanced down, observing the rickety stone path with unease. He knew very well that it could collapse at any given nano click. And he knew it would not be wise for him to cross it considering his size. But...maybe if he moved at just the precise speed, he could get across. After all, it wasn't so very far.
"Alright." he replied, "I suppose I can manage across."
He carefully placed a foot onto the stone and slowly inched his way across. The other two watched him carefully; Red Alert offering some form of encouragement to help the Decepticon get to their side without falling over into oblivion.
"Come on, Shockwave, you're close!" she called, "You can do it!"
"Silence yourself, Autobrat!" Shockwave snapped, arms waving slightly to steady himself, "You are not helping me!"
Hot Shot grinned. "What I wouldn't give for a handful of ball bearings right about now." he joked.
A suspicious crumbling sound caused Shockwave to hesitate and glance back. The rock was crumbling. Crumbling slowly and moving toward him. He gasped in horror.
"Shockwave, run!" Red Alert shouted.
He did not need her to tell him that twice. Shockwave ran as fast as he could, panting through his speakers. Finally, he ltook a great jump and nearly fell to his doom. His servos grasped at the edge of the cliff, where Red Alert bent down to help him.
"Shockwave, are you alright?" she asked.
"I'd be much better above ground, if you don't mind." he muttered, dangling there.
Red Alert reached down and took his free hand. She winced and glared back at Hot Shot. "Can you give me a hand?"
Hot Shot sighed, as if the idea itself was too much for him. "Okay, fine." He moved over to her and put his arms around her waist and together, they tugged, grunting sharply. They managed to pull Shockwave up onto the ground with them and the mech toppled directly on top of them.
"Primus, that was a rather close call." Shockwave murmured, glancing back. He glared down at Hot Shot. "Now do you understand why calculations are important?"
Hot Shot's face was buried in his under arm. "Yeah...just great..." he muttered, which was muffled.
Meanwhile
Cybertron was silent after the exile of the Decepticon forces. In fact, too quiet for some. However, they used the time to perform repairs on the major cities that had received great damages from the battles that had happened constantly.
"Where are they?"
Ultra Magnus bellowed out as he entered the Intel headquarters.
Several scientists and Intel Division workers struggled to gather data quickly for him. Perceptor spoke in his blank, robotic tone of voice.
"We cannot be one hundred percent sure just yet." he replied.
Ultra Magnus tightened his lips. He wanted results now. Every second that ticked by was every second crucial to the survival of two of his best officers. They were trapped on a Primus-forsaken planet, or who knew where else? And they were trapped with a dangerous Decepticon.
"Do what you can, Perceptor, but I expect a full report in a few more cycles, understand?" he said.
Perceptor nodded his head once. "I understand."
"Good." Ultra Magnus replied, worry in his voice. "Let's just find them and bring them home."
Shockwave, Red Alert, and Hot Shot walked through a relatively open area. Shockwave consulted his data sensory map.
"I'm tired, and I'm kinda low on fuel over here..." Hot Shot griped. "When I get back to Cybertron, I'm gonna have flux shakes and..." The rest of what he was saying droned out over a faint rumble in the distance. A rumble he really didn't listen to.
"My scanners indicate a peculiar reading just over those mountains." Shockwave said, gesturing toward the mountains in the distance. "If we keep-"
The strange sound that had droned out Hot Shot's vocals was heard much louder this time, and repeated by the sounds of animal chirps. Shockwave looked up curiously. He could not pinpoint the origins in his database. Whatever it was.
"Do you two hear that?" he asked.
"Hear what?" Hot Shot asked, tired, "Your voice?"
The strange sound was closer now, louder, and repeated by many more sounds. The sounds of animals. Shockwave looked up and noticed a herd of carbon creatures passing through, several feet from them. They resembled giant birds.
"What is that?" Red Alert asked, amazed, "What are they?"
"Mm, I could say perhaps members of the 'Squamata' species..." Shockwave mused, "Then again...maybe even the class 'Aves' due to the feathers surrounding their neckline." He tilted his head. "Judging by their speed, they seem to be fleeing a potential predator."
Hot Shot grinned uneasily. "Ehh...they're coming this way..." he said, backing up and raising his torch.
Red Alert held out a restraining hand. "Don't hurt them!" she insisted.
They quickly turned and rushed out of they way, before the creatures could trample them. It was a real footrace, but the herd was by far faster, and Shockwave knew they were not going to make it. So he pushed Hot Shot and Red Alert behind an overturned tree and he dove as well.
Finally, the massive herd passed. Shockwave peered up, over the top root. He could have destroyed them without a second to spare. But why waste much needed energy? It would not be in character for him to destroy mindless animals without just cause.
"Hm. You're right. I should preserve my strength for more...worthy game." Shockwave murmured, his single optic lens falling on Hot Shot.
Hot Shot growled and leveled his torch at Shockwave. "Not before me, Decepti-scum!"
"Or..." Red Alert pressed, pushing them apart, "Maybe both of you should save your energy in case we cross paths with something dangerous. After all, we don't know what's on this planet. We may need all our weapons functional."
"Yeah, I'd rather not waste fuel on this giant glitch-head!" Hot Shot sneered, gesturing at Shockwave.
Red Alert rolled her optics.
O
The trio discovered a cave in their journey. The large, gaping mouth of it cast a dark shadow down upon them. They walked inside.
"This cave is enormous!" Hot Shot gasped. He called into it. "Echo!"
Shockwave raised his clawed hand toward the walls if the caverns. He collected a handful of mineral deposits and carefully placed them onto the flat surface of his palm. He studied them carefully, calculating the metal and elements in it.
"Hm..." he mused.
Hot Shot scowled and glanced back at him. "Hey, spook show baby!" he hollered, "Let's move it already!" He plopped himself down onto a steam vent without realizing what it was. "Well, I guess this is our home-away from home, eh, Red? Home-"
The steam vent erupted, sending Hot Shot into the air with a yelp of pain, holding his burned aft. Red Alert rolled her optics.
Hot Shot grimaced and gazed down into the vent. It suddenly went off again, scorching his face.
Shockwave continued to study the caves and then turned to the two. "We will rest here for the night. It would not be wise to travel through the darkened forests at night when we fail to understand exactly what it was that's out there."
"Okay." Red Alert replied, sitting down onto a rock. "Since we're resting now, I think it's best I split up rations for all of us."
That got their attention and they sat down beside her. "You carried rations with you?" Hot Shot said.
"Of course. A good doctor always does." Red Alert replied. She removed a side container and opened it, revealing quite a few Energon sticks inside. She began to split them up evenly between all three of them. "One for Hot Shot...One for Shockwave...One for me..."
Hot Shot yawned and stretched, his joints grinding. "Well, while you split the fuel, I'm gonna try and get myself comfy." He struggled to get himself comfortable, wriggling around like an imbecile.
Shockwave stared at him, his single lens looking up from the top of his head; a simple display of annoyance. Finally, he growled. "Will you desist?" he snapped, angrily.
Hot Shot shrugged innocently. "All right, all right. I was trying to relax." he protested, with a grumble. He rested his head on the ground and glared in Shockwave's direction. "Lousy little leech, trying to tell me what to do...I'll show him."
Shortly after he drifted off to sleep, Red Alert offered Shockwave his share of the Energon sticks. He took them, after much hesitation. "Thank you..." he said, quietly.
"Well, he offline." Red Alert murmured, smiling over at Hot Shot, "Enjoy the silence while you still can. It won't last."
Shockwave remained silent.
"Is something wrong?" Red Alert asked, glancing at him. She stared down at the tattered wiring and wanted to kick herself for forgetting. "Do those wounds still cause you pain at all?"
Shockwave looked down. The pain had diminished so much, he barely noticed his wounds anymore. He had been more concerned with procuring a reasonable energy source that the damages had simply slipped his mind at the moment. Now they were much more noticeable.
"No." he replied, "Decepticons are made of stronger metal than Autobots."
Red Alert managed a small chuckle. "Well, be that as it may, Decepticon or Autobot, you cannot move around while you're wounded." She reached into a compartment and removed a soldering tool and several pieces of discarded wires.
Shockwave made a sound that resembled a snort. But nonetheless, he would allow her to repair him...while keeping his gun leveled at her head. Just in case.
Red Alert carefully made repairs, keeping her gaze from the Decepticon. "Shockwave, you can relax, you know. I'm a doctor, not a turncoat."
Shockwave said nothing.
"Shockwave...can I ask you something?" Red Alert asked.
"Alright..."
Red Alert stopped what she was doing to look up at him. "Is there any chance for us to be comrades, just for now?"
Shockwave poked at an Energon stick before he placed them into a compartment on his leg. "Maybe we can. But the idea that we are comrades temporarily changes nothing. We will be simply using each other's skills to benefit ourselves, including you."
Red Alert smiled. "It would be strange no other way."
O
Note-Hot Shot's "Spookshow Baby" remark was just the title of Rob Zombie's song.