Queen's notes: omg I forgot how much I loved to write the drones, how they act and react to different things and people.

From the Depths

Bath time

Depth Charge stretched under the watchful blue optics of the Autobot medic. His own crimson gaze was dimmed as his armored pectoral wings flexed, working the oil deeper into the smaller joints that Ratchet just couldn't reach without taking armor apart. Then the mute Maximal Guard flicked his tail around to curl forward, out of the way as he sank down into the simple oil bath, for the first time in seemingly several lifetimes the mech's actions could almost be called lazy. Taking this moment to just enjoy his frame flooding with the oil, even if the fluid was a bit thicker than normal, but the Maximal liked the flooded feeling after so long with his beast mode.

But it was warm and as far as Depth Charge was concerned, this was the height of true luxury. Even as his drones brushed against him and darted way only to come back and rub up under his hands. Part of his mind was fill with their chitters and impressions, they were too active and exited to form true words right now, having been almost over stimulated by meeting Autobots when he was in the medical stasis. The two drones were trying to feel him in on all that happened but also exited that they were in a much bigger oil pool and with him. Getting the chance one more after so long to dart around his bigger frame and as Depth Charge caught the remora and pulled it closer to give it some more personal attention as he extended his claws to scratch down its plated belly and pectorals, until the little creature was limp, the drone's mind going numb in pleasure.

The manta mech gave a vibrating rumble in his way of chuckling, watching as the stark drone- Slipstream come back from examining the bottom of the oil bath at sensing what was going on. It wedged itself into the space between Depth Charge's right arm ad body, chirping demands in the mech's mind for the same attention.

Another mech chuckled, and red optics looked up to see Ratchet sitting down near the bath with a tired vent of air. "You take good care of them." Ratchet noted watching the interactions.

Depth Charge nodded slowly, turning the wiggly Stipstream over to be belly up and started rubbing without his claws until that drone too stilled and sank into his other hand. The remora drone, Deep Optics, was still happily limp but draped over the mech's left thigh. Red optics tilted back up once he had his drones settled to be able to pet both, getting flickering images of what happened since he came to the ark.

"I don't know if I can fix your vocal systems." Ratchet admitted, resting his forearms on his knees and stared at the clear amber oil. "But you're systems seem to have attempted to fix a decent amount, and you'll have better supplements now in your energon. You're voice may become completely different in the end."

The beast former shrugged, looking up at the mech with a soft sound, no blame was in his optics. Depth Charge had already written out his name, as his communication systems were jammed somehow. The mech hadn't really cared to ask, knowing if it was something physical his nanites would make short work of it in another few days, a week at most.

"Hmm?" Ratchet's optics flickered in a blink, looking down as that long prehensile tail wrapped around his left leg wetly, tugging to draw the medic's attention back to the present.

Depth Charge freed a hand to pat the surface of the oil bath with an tilt of the head. Offering to share the warm oil.

Ratchet shook his head, "I'm fine Depth Charge, you need it more."

The beast former snorted, there was a faint gargle in his system but it was natural. He flexed his tail and pulled the medic closer until his pede and ankle joint were in the warm oil. He arched an optic ridge as he moved, looking pointedly at the medic, the deep rooted shark like instincts that were in the far past of his beast mode only enhanced the tired movements in the medic he could see. Ratchet paused and blinked, optics flickering before he chuckled and moved around to let his legs drape into the oil pool almost up to his knees.

The medic shook his head at the pleased look on the new mech's face, "Alright, just because I have to keep an optic on you anyways." He leaned forward, and vented out a deep sigh- a handy expression he had picked up from the humans. "You were in stasis for some time in that cave." Ratchet reached down to dip his left hand into the warm oil, flexing his fingers.

Depth Charge nodded, shifting into the oil pool more, sinking down to just below his optic level. The ruby color dimming, though the beast-former's tail still remained loosely looped around the medic's leg.

Ratchet wondered if he wanted some form of contact, even though they didn't know each other that well. "How long were you on this world?"

Depth Charge was unmoving for a few kliks before he shrugged, glancing over at the medic, lifting a hand off Slipstream to tilt it back and forth.

"For a long time?"

Depth Charge nodded.

Ratchet considered as he hummed, working the oil into his right hand next, "Before the humans evolved?" He watched the blue and silver mech nod, "Where you the one to bring those humans to those islands?"

The beast-former nodded, and his energy field rippled with pleased pride as he thought of the little organics from so long ago. He moved and pulled something out of, not subspace as that was blocked for now, but one of the small carvings out from under his armor that Ratchet remembered seeing Wheeljack find. Depth Charge offered it up to the medic.

Red hands carefully took the comparatively fragile carving, amazed at the light dexterity of Depth Charge had in his own thick fingers. The Autobot lifted the thin carving, running his scanners over it now, finding it was a bleached whale bone, but so delicately carved. Primitive maybe but also it had a rustic beauty as Ratchet lifted it and focused his optics to see the creatures depicted. Sharks, whales, manta rays, skates and even smaller fish and shrimp of veruse kinds warping the whole bone. "This is very beautiful Depth Charge... Did the primal humans make it for you?"

Depth Charge inclined his head, something a little gargling coming out of his voice box, a half word.

"...tool?" Ratchet guessed after a while, frowning as he got a shrug, "You taught the humans?" he rumbled his alternate's engine at the next nod. "You did well with those islands. They're very self sufficient, and very environmentally friendly." He praised, offering the carving bad with care, it seemed to have meaning to the blue mech, who looked suddenly grateful for a moment to hear that. It reflected in his field and posture, the curl of the pectoral wings wasn't as shield like Ratchet decided.

Something bumped against Ratchet's leg and he looked down in time to see the remora drone dart away while the shark one was coming up. As Depth Charge grumbled what must be a reassurance to the drones, as the remora was returning, the medic chuckled, twitching his right pede as he felt small shark denta start some exploratory nibbles. It didn't bother him, Ratchet could imagine Silpstream's mouth and nose were just as sensitive as the native sharks of this planet if not more, as the drone had no hands or limbs to investigate the world around it. He had also seen the shark drone nibbling on Jazz's fingers, and well as Wheeljack's when they were first reactivated.

"Excuse me young mechling, that's not a chew toy," Ratchet addressed the drone itself, forearms propped on his knees again for a moment as he leaned over to peer at the drone. Then reached down after a long tail was flicked at him, making a tiny splash, he felt the oil in his hand again as he ran his finger tips over the shark's back. Slick not just from the oil but smooth with flex metal joints and between armor plates to make it perfectly stream lined. The shark drone pause in poking the small nose and head into the medic's ankle joint to tilt and relax the posture of the pectoral fins, one of the silver optics looking up at him through the oil, "You're cute."

Depth Charge's optics narrowed slightly to reflect his smile, rubbing his fingers over the exposed belly of his remora, before nudging Deep Optics with a few prods and a mental push and assurance that all was fine. The remora swam back over to nudge its nose against Ratchet's other pede, examining the Autobot again now with its more assertive partner staying there.

"You take good care of them," Ratchet decided, watching the remora use its magnet to latch onto his leg, sitting there pleased with its own daring, but didn't disturb it as the Deep Optics drone had its tail over its master's tail. "Maybe after making sure there's no lingering problems you can take them to the open ocean." The medic offered, watching as not only the drones became exited at the idea, but Depth Charge seemed to perk up as well.

To the Reviews:

Guest 1, AquaJinx:
Huur, no, Depth Charge is not my character no matter how much I love and adore him. He's a 'Transmetal' [his shell and systems mutated by a massive dose of transwarp energy/radiation] Maximal from the first reboot of transformers since G1-G2, a show called Beast Wars. I grew up watching Beast Wars and Depth Charge, though he came in the last season became my favorite, and also why I researched manta rays for home-school projects and became one of my favorite animals/ The Romoa drone is cannon.

Though years ago I named it Deep Optics, and gave it more personality then what was depicted in the show, I created Slipstream as a symbiote or drone to depth Charge depending on the story, but I like giving the big flat fishie two creatures that are his companions since he was forced to live such a lonely existence after his colony was leveled and X... [you can look up Protoform X/Rampage's co-history with Depth Charge on line, my head cannons are basically the same]

MellifluousMondegreen:
Hello again! I still haven't given up, and I hope you like this chapter as well!

Shimmering Dawnstar:
Yesss... the big flat fishie and I live n.n

Gust 2, Giddy:
Thank you!

Gust 3, SS:
You're welcome?

Gust 4:
Yes, flexible pectoral 'wings.' In the show Depth Charge was flexing and moving them, in the ends, using them as physical shields, curling them up to fit in places or twitching the ends sometimes as he talked.

Plus natural manta rays are consistently moving their pectoral fins/wings, and when their really happy I remember them doing this twitchy dance above me when getting bubbles on their bellies, and at the time pets when you were still aloud to do so [very carefully though, mantas are basically flattened out sharks so their skin was sandpaper like].