Chapter 8 - Adapting

Maggie tried to assure herself that showing up at the crack of dawn only proved she was worried. True, none of the Autobots had called her after she and Will had left, and she didn't want to be in the way…but she was assigned to the base, it wouldn't hurt to show up a few hours early. Right?

As she pulled into the road, her nerves soothed when she spotted a blue Vespa heading in the same direction. Clearly she wasn't the only one worried.

She kept pace with the scooter, and was oddly surprised to find an area outside the base filled with cars, most belonging to Will' team, but a few military trucks with them. She greeted the girl once they were both parked outside.

"Hey, Mikaela, you hear anything?"

Mikaela shook her head. "Bumblebee sent me a message last night saying they had a breakthrough, but he didn't explain. I don't know if I should be relieved or worried."

Maggie sighed, scanning her hand on the palm reader. "Know the feeling. Sarah called me earlier saying Will was called out in the dead of night, but she didn't know why."

"Must be a big breakthrough though" Mikaela replied, nodding at the cars and trucks littered outside before walking in. "They never have this many people over at the same-"

"Heads up!"

Long used to such a phrase in these walls, both women ducked, narrowly missing the steel girder on Epp's shoulder.

"Careful, ladies," he chuckled. "Big construction project going on right now."

"Look where you're going, Epps," Will warned from behind him, the other end on his shoulder.

"Oh, come on! We've been at this hours, I'm allowed to be a little under the weather."

The two walked out, dumping the girder on the ground and heading back. Mikaela and Maggie quickly followed.

"What's going on?" Maggie asked.

"Honestly?" Will replied. "No idea. Optimus calls Keller in the early hours with a shopping list long as my…well…his arm. And since nobody without clearance is allowed to know about this place, we got roped into being the delivery men."

"Although, whatever they're building must be pretty important. I haven't seen Ratchet this fired up since he first moved in. The new guy is having to bear the brunt of it, poor mech."

Speaking of which…

"No, no, no, no, no! We'll need another several meters or we'll constantly be tripping over each other!"

"I am not trying to undermine your experience," came the rather calmer (though with more than an edge of irritation), reply. "But I have checked the calculations five times – this is a more than adequate for our purposes."

"Adequate isn't going to cut it. This is the only part that we know will work! It needs to be perfect."

Maggie gave a few harsh slams on the metal walls, echoing the sound to catch their attention. Both straightened when they recognised the two.

"Maggie? Mikaela? What are you doing here?"

Mikaela gave a nervous smile. "Did we come at a bad time? We were worried."

Ratchet seemed to still for a few moments, then shook it off. "No…no, we're just busy. We meant to call the two of you later, but since you're already here…"

"How is he?" Mikaela interrupted, and Ratchet winced.

"It's complicated. Make yourselves comfortable and let me explain. I have a request for both of you."

"Just be careful with him."

"I'll be as careful as I was with you."

"…For some reason that doesn't make me feel better."

Deuce groaned, trying to pull from the iron grip Bumblebee had on his shoulder. "Come on, Bee! Ratchet and Optimus said yes and everything!"

Ironhide laughed. "Least you know order of importance. Let's go kid; you've got a lot to learn and not a lot of time to learn it. Cut the leash, Bumblebee."

The Camaro gave one last whine, and loosened his grip, Deuce bolting to Ironhide's side with surprising speed. Judging from the grin on his face, this little revelation was enough to push anything else out of his mind – Ironhide managed to bite back the snicker as the mirror ears twitched intently.

"Don't too excited kid," he warned, heading for the door. "You're not gonna be celebrating soon."

"Don't care! Train, train, train!"

The Topkick laughed. "Whatever you say."

It was only after Ratchet had finished speaking that Maggie realised her mouth was open. She swallowed, and tried to go over what the medic had just asked them. "I'm sorry, you want us to what?"

Ratchet's gaze was unwavering. "Deuce's operation will be complicated. We'll need all the hands we can get. I've already talked to Bumblebee about giving him the same training."

Mikaela was already shaking her head. "You can't be serious, I can't even win a game of Operation, never mind something like this."

"You wouldn't be expected to do anything crucial," Rhinox butted in. "Just keep an eye on the usual regulators so Ratchet can concentrate fully on separating their sparks. It's not risky work, just difficult to follow at first."

"Why us?" Mikaela asked again. "Why can't you train the others, or Will's team?"

"Because Optimus is too large for such delicate work, Ironhide doesn't have the dexterity after fitting those cannons, and Jazz just doesn't have the hands for surgery," Ratchet replied. "Bumblebee is the only one that can actually be useful in such a short time. As for you – Maggie Madsen has a history with fine electronics, while you have already had some experience with Cybertronian circuitry."

"Will I even have time to be trained?" Maggie added. "Technically I'm only contracted to be here while I keep working on the anti-Decepticon firewall."

"So Optimus Prime has told me," Rhinox replied, walking over. "Unfortunately, due to the current situation, most of the excess systems are being taken offline to make space for simulations and programs for the procedure, so there is little you can work with in that respect."

"Meaning you will only get a few hours with Jazz each day before the systems shut down and we start up," Ratchet finished. "So free time wont be an issue. Will you help?"

They both wanted to ask for time. Time to think about it, time to worry about what would happen if they screwed up, time to have exactly what they had to do explained.

But when both women caught each other's eye, the decision was already made.

"When do you need us?"

One month later…

Ratchet was tenser than he'd ever been, hands moving minutely slow. On his opposite side, Rhinox kept the small body stable, keeping the systems online while the spark was raised, vulnerable to outside sources. Bumblebee was by his side, taking orders whenever something blipped, while Mikaela and Maggie manned the monitors.

They were halfway through, the core beginning to separate, when suddenly, his tool nicked the core, and the monitors started to flash red.

"His temperature's rising!" Mikaela yelled.

"The spark can't take the separation," Rhinox warned. "It's going to destabilise!"

Frantic, Ratchet tried to seal the tiny shard, but it was too late. The smaller spark shattered, and the larger began fluttering into spark collapse.

The tool dropped from his hand, and he heard the noise he had come to dread.

"SIMULATION FAILED. END PROGRAM."

Ratchet yanked the simulation visor off with roar, slamming it into the table. By the monitors, Maggie and Mikaela were taking their own customised visors off with more care, while Rhinox and Bumblebee watched Ratchet in sympathy.

"We have made improvements," Rhinox insisted.

"Not fast enough!" Ratchet snapped. "At this rate we wont actually complete a full simulation before the end of the year."

He sighed, and nodded at the two humans and scout. "We've been at this hours. Take a break, go see Jazz or see how Deuce is doing."

Both woman nodded, and headed out – Mikaela rubbing her temples while Maggie stretched. Bumblebee looked like he wanted to stay, but a glare from Ratchet had him leaving.

"We need to change the method," Rhinox said, after the three left. "We should go back to customising the energon sealer."

Ratchet shook his head. "We don't have time."

"We had far better results with that than we're having with the scalpel," Rhinox countered. "We haven't had a single simulation where Hax hasn't collapsed since we swapped."

"But he only has about 5% chance with that method anyway," Ratchet argued. "We just can't get him to stabilise – he's never existed without another to leech from."

"That's another issue – for now, just let us at least consider it again."

Crouch.

Stay still.

Scans constant.

Do not move until the right moment.

Deuce repeated the mantra in his head while the hovering orb's light scanned over the crumbled wall he was hiding behind. Ironhide had shown a surprising mechanical knack when it came to training – creating these little balls programmed only to hunt him down.

When the light vanished, and the little ball's 'bipbipbip!' started to fade, his legs burst upwards, heading for the next shelter…

Only to jerk back as something hit his right shoulder. He stared at the little red paint spot, and groaned, while Hax started screaming expletives in his head, almost drowning out the laughter behind him.

"You're getting better, kid. Almost made it to the halfway point this time."

Deuce slumped to the ground, leaning against the bricks while the scanning orbs shut down. Ironhide had put together this obstacle course two weeks into his tutelage – and he was beginning to loathe it with his very spark.

-Forget the course- Hax hissed. –Your drill instructor is a sadist! –

Deuce decided not to pass on the comment, and just glared up at said instructor, whose optic ridges had been raised in amusement.

"You're still acting too quickly. You focus so much on whatever is in your way you forget to watch your back. Its always when you're in the home straight that you drop your guard."

He activated the drones again, and helped pick the youngling up. "Let's go again."

"Urgh."

Another month later…

-Duck and cover! Duck and cover! –

Deuce shrieked and dived to the ground, just as the missile hit the mock building only a few metres from him.

-You know- Hax squeaked. –I don't think this is what Ratchet agreed to! –

-Oh come on, coward – Deuce giggled, though not without a slight tremor. –This is awesome, and Ratchets too distracted to notice. –

-And why do you think that is? – Hax snapped, just as Deuce snapped his head back down again.

The voice in his head had a point. In the last two weeks the two medic-stroke-scientists had apparently made an impressive breakthrough. They'd been holed up in the med bay for days, not even letting in their in-training nurses up until yesterday.

And with Ratchet not keeping an eagle eye on Deuce's progress, Ironhide had been a little more creative with his training. Deuce's lessons had started to stick, and he was making it through the maze like a pro. So now it was taken up a level, with genuine ammo, and enough explosions to fill the sky on Independence Day.

Deuce loved it. Hax decidedly didn't.

-Okay, if the pattern stays consistent, there should be a break in three, two-

-One, gogogogogogogo! –

Deuce leapt out, immediately skidding to avoid a blast firing above him. His legs braced against a steel girder, and he jumped, back flipping over a scanner, and transformed, wheels skidding against the dust and sped towards another wall. He was almost there, when warning signals began to flash.

-Uh oh. –

Deuce tensed. –What's going on? –

-I do…ow. Somethi…is…ight –

Hax's voice faded out completely, and Deuce felt himself falling.

There was no stronger sense of pride than when a teacher watched a student come into his own. Deuce was quick to pick things up – a talent for evasion integrated in his processor. He'd struggled at first – Ironhide had had to work through his share of temper tantrums in the early weeks, but now the youngling could glide through the course, poking fun and mocking Ironhide's 'obvious' flaws in design.

So he'd upped the ante, with a strongly worded promise from his student that Ratchet would never find out, and brought in real ammo. It was all well in good getting the kid to jump through hoops, but too many mechs fell when the added distraction of injury was added to the mix.

But so far Deuce was performing perfectly, eagerly making his way through the course, speeding, jumping, flipping as if he'd been doing it stellar cycles.

Oh, wait. Spoke too soon.

He chuckled to himself as the bike wobbled – one of the shots must have razzled him more than he'd thought, and watched him get through a shaky transformation.

"Okay, kid" he said to himself more than anything. "Shake it off, stay where you are and continue."

Only Deuce didn't seem to be shaking it off. He was leaning against the wall, the slight tremor becoming a vicious shivering. His hands came to his head, and he collapsed.

Ironhide cursed and immediately shut down the weaponry.

"Slag! Deuce!"

He transformed for speed, but gingerly picked up the small frame when he was close enough. The youngling showed no injury – clearly the weaponry hadn't got in a shot he hadn't seen, but Deuce was out cold.

Hax. It had to be. Transforming once again, he angled Deuce so that he would end up lying in his bed, and sped back to the base.

More flashes.

More images.

People running…

Bumblebee staring at him in pain…

Mikaela crying…

Hax knew all of them, but they were going faster now. Harder to keep track of what was happening.

And with them unable to keep him distracted, he realised there was something else in the midst of the dark and memories.

"Somebody…somebody else is here…"

The images vanished, and he fell into the dark.

"Ratchet!"

The medic jerked up from the conversation he'd been having with Rhinox to glare at the topkick driving in the door.

"Ironhide, I've told you a hundred times not to transform in…Deuce!"

He stormed over, carefully picking up the small frame. "What did you do!"

His passenger gone, Ironhide transformed to match the glare. "Nothing! He was working through the course no problem, when he started to glitch. By the time I realised something was wrong, he'd gone into stasis."

"Perhaps Hax has left again?" Rhinox asked, getting two headshakes in reply.

"Doubtful," Ratchet replied. "We've been monitoring Deuce and his energy signals. If Hax were to leave, even for a moment, we'd pick up the transfer. He didn't do this."

"Not intentionally anyway," Ironhide finished.

Ratchet had Deuce down on the berth, and was beginning to scan, when suddenly, the youngling's optics snapped open. The medic relaxed when they twitched, and he turned to stare at the medic.

"…Rat-thet?"

Ratchet glared at him. "You scared us, kid. What happened?"

Deuce didn't answer, choosing to stare up at Ratchet incredulously. "Ratchet?"

The medic frowned. "Yes?"

Deuce pushed himself into a sitting position, confusion on his faceplates as he took in the other two in

the room. "Ironhide…Rhinox…how…?"

Ironhide was staring at him with narrowed optics. "Did you hit your processor on the way down runt? You're acting a little more spooked than usual."

But Deuce was already ignoring him, staring at his hand as if it was the most fascinating thing he'd ever seen.

A dark nervous feeling was tightening around Ratchet's spark.

"Deuce. What's wrong?"

Slowly, the youngling pulled his gaze from his hand, and stared up at the medic.

"I'm not Deuce," said Hax.

To be continued . . .