Disclaimer: Not mine!
A/N: Long chapter is looooong. Do hope you enjoy it though. ^.^
- Chapter 9 -
When I woke the next morning, it was to an empty berth. I sat up and looked around, finding Magnus standing by the window, looking out at Jupiter. After a few moments of hesitation, I stood and walked over to him, resting a hand on his arm.
"It is a good thing Prowl is so good at tactics," Magnus commented. "He kept you both within range of security cameras the entire night, and the first thing he did this morning was send the footage to me."
"I had wondered a little about his choice of the conference room," I commented, slightly amused by how Prowl had anticipated something I hadn't even thought of - but then, I hadn't exactly been thinking straight.
"I apologize," Magnus said, turning to me.
"Don't," I said, shaking my head. "I'm the one that should be apologizing."
"Terry -"
"Magnus," I countered, giving Magnus a glare, and he chuckled, then wrapped an arm around me and pulled me close to his side.
"I will apologize for springing that on you. I got a little...caught up in the moment, I suppose," he said.
"And I'm sorry for running out like that. I just...I'm still human, Magnus. Mentally, if not physically. I can only take so much in one day, and you asking me to bond on top of everything just tipped me over the edge."
"I know," Magnus replied. He was silent for a moment. "For the record, the request still stands, but with an open-ended timeline." I looked up at him incredulously.
"Seriously?" I couldn't stop myself from asking, and Magnus nodded, looking over at me.
"I meant it when I said I didn't know what I'd do if you decided to leave," he said.
"Besides destroying your quarters and getting kicked off the shooting range, you mean?" I asked after a beat, trying to lighten the mood a bit.
"Yes, besides that. And thank you," Magnus said, chuckling.
"It was the least I could do," I murmured in reply. We stood in silence for a few more minutes, before the one question I couldn't figure out an answer to finally burst out. "Why? Why me? I mean, you're this super awesome alien soldier and are god-knows how old, and probably have a ton more prospects than just l'il ol' me, so why me?" Magnus looked down at me in amusement.
"'Super awesome alien soldier'?" he asked.
"I'm at a loss for adjectives right now, so sue me. Answer the question!" I said, poking him in the side, and in response, Magnus leaned down and kissed me.
"Because I love you," he said.
"Well, yes, but that doesn't -" I cut off as Magnus' chest armor suddenly slid back, and I found myself staring at his spark chamber. "Um..."
"Humans have such different and varied views on love," Magnus said. "It's refreshing, in some ways, to see a race with such openness when it comes to love - and yet, in some ways, they have lost out. To be able to look at someone and know they are meant for you, and you for them, is a frightening thing, but it is as freeing as it is constrictive. Knowing at the start whether or not you and your partner will last allows for much healthier relationships, and much less, as you put it, 'angst'."
"Um..." I was having trouble focusing on what Magnus was saying, my attention still caught on his spark chamber, just sitting there in front of me. Then Magnus' chest armor slid back into place, blocking my view, and I shook myself slightly before looking back up to his face. Magnus smiled faintly.
"That is why the request stands," he said.
"Huh-whu? Why? I think I missed something," I said, confused, and Magnus chuckled, then leaned against me, resting his forehead against mine.
"You are my sparkmate, Terry. I've known it from the moment I saw you. I may have been a little confused about how it was possible, but I knew it was you," he said.
I opened and closed my mouth a few times, different things to say popping into my head, but nothing seemed to fit. I finally settled on short, simple, and classic: "Oh." Magnus smiled, then kissed me lightly before stepping away.
"As much as I would love to stay here all day with you, Optimus refused to cancel my duties for the day," Magnus said.
"Eh, frag him. He caused this mess," I said dismissively, stepping up to Magnus and grabbing onto him. Magnus chuckled.
"He's a Prime, it would be disrespectful," he said.
"I'll just get Vector to give you the day off. Prime and one of the first thirteen - I think that trumps Optimus," I retorted.
"Optimus has the Matrix, though," Magnus pointed out. "Which was made by one of the first thirteen, and contains the knowledge of every Prime to have held it."
"Stop trying to undermine my attempts to get you the day off," I told Magnus, glaring up at him. Magnus chuckled.
"How about I solve this a different way," he said. "There's absolutely nothing stopping you from following me around all day."
"Ooooh, good point!" I said with a grin. "Can you have lots of meetings with Optimus? Where he needs to come to your office?" Magnus laughed, but didn't respond as he took my hand and pulled me after him out of his - our - quarters.
It was surprisingly calm after that - I mean, ignoring the fact that everyone was frantically trying to find the Fallen. We knew that the longer he was on Earth, the closer his master would be, and none of us really wanted to face Unicron. For all that everyone was panicking over Unicron and the Fallen, however, there wasn't much that Vector and I could do to help, and so we went back to working on The Lounge.
We settled on an earthy colour scheme - browns, with fake Earth plants and imitation Cybertron crystals. Realizing that we were going to have to pick some music, and we could do that while working, we also started going through Jazz's collection on the Ark, as well as Earth's plethora of music, looking for a nice relaxing playlist. Between the completely unimportant work of finishing up The Lounge, and the constant music, we soon found ourselves gaining company as we worked, mechs joining us to have a break from the urgent search for the Fallen. I joked at one point that The Lounge appeared to already be in business and it wasn't even finished, to which Vector just shrugged and said 'why not?' I didn't comment further, instead turning my attention to the on-going issue of the energon dispenser - for one reason or another, we just couldn't get it to work.
Optimus had decided not to tell the humans about the Fallen's presence on Earth, probably hoping to have the problem solved before they needed to be informed, or at least have it in hand in some way before he had to tell them. I didn't blame him - from all available data, there was no way to tell how the humans would react to the news, and the last thing the already slightly panicky Autobots needed was panicked human allies. So the Cybertronians kept quiet, hacking into human computer systems to get the data they needed rather than ask for it.
Unfortunately, with the humans thinking there was nothing wrong, they soon turned their attention to something else that was much less important, and much harder to explain: me. Human me, who still made an occasional appearance when anyone from NEST was up on Ganymede. Major Lennox brought the first of the official requests to speak with me, and when I politely refused them, he brought a few more aggressive (but still polite) ones. Meeting with him in my human alt form, Lennox was extremely apologetic about the whole thing.
"If they could find some record of you it would help," he tried hopefully. "Since they've got nothing, they're swinging around all sorts of crazy ideas."
"Oooh, do they think I'm a Russian spy yet?" I asked brightly, and Lennox grinned.
"They'll get there eventually," he said. "Seriously. Anything you can give me will help."
"I'd love to help you, Major, really I would - but I don't think it would be exactly prudent right now," I told him politely. Prowl had cooked up that response for me - it made it seem as if there were reasons not to talk about my past, and not that there wasn't anything there to tell. Lennox sighed.
"They're just going to send me back, you know," he said. "Can't you at least come to Earth and have a chat with the guys sending me up here?"
"Prudence and such," I said with a shrug, then grinned. "Besides, I know you like making the trip."
"Yes, well, that's beside the point," Lennox replied with a chuckle. "You know, the Cybertronians, and any of their civilian charges like you, were a lot easier to deal with before Prowl showed up." I snickered.
"I'll pass that on," I said.
"Make sure you do," Lennox said, shaking his head, then said goodbye and headed out. As he predicted, he was back within the week, this time with some more strongly-worded political mumbo-jumbo.
"Basically if Terry doesn't show her face and answer some questions, they're going to start limiting Cybertronian movements on Earth," Lennox explained in brief, this time meeting with me, Prowl, and Optimus, the latter two having bridged in with Lennox specifically for this meeting. It would have been easier for me to bridge down to Earth, but Prowl didn't want me off Ganymede right now, just in case.
"I see," Optimus mused, glancing over at Prowl.
"And to start that off, they've sent along a request for information on that new femme that arrived, with an implied threat that if you don't give them the info now, she'll never see Earth," Lennox said with a sigh, handing over another sheaf of paper covered in really tiny text. I looked up at Optimus and Prowl, amused. They didn't seem amused at all, but I knew this was putting them in a tough place. Unfortunately, there was only one thing I could do.
"Perhaps it's time to go explain a few things?" I suggested.
"That would be inadvisable, as you well know," Prowl replied instantly.
"I'm not sure it would be," I said. "I've been thinking about it, actually, and there's one fact that's been pushed to the side in all of this."
"And that would be?" Prowl asked with a frown.
"Why did I end up in a radioactive wasteland when I went to the future?" I said, picking my words carefully - Optimus had shared some basic details about my trip to the future, but he hadn't told them a lot - basically just that I went to the future and received a message from myself that there were some bad things coming, but that I couldn't say what in order to protect the timeline. There had been no mention of where I'd been in the future, though there had been heavy implications that I'd been elsewhere, so no one had jumped to the 'nuked Earth' assumption when further details regarding the day had included why Magnus had come back heavily irradiated.
"Why did you?" Lennox asked curiously now. I didn't answer him, waiting for Optimus and Prowl as they thought over my statement.
"I believe Terry has a point," Optimus finally said, slowly. Internally, my comm system pinged, and I found myself invited into a conversation with all the command staff - apparently they were all discussing the meeting, even if only Optimus and Prowl were attending. I wondered how often they did that, and if anyone else knew.
"-we know this won't just cause panic sooner?" Ratchet was asking.
"We don't. It is, however, an opportunity to broach the topic early, to allow humans to get used to the idea," Optimus said.
"Plus there's really not another option, not unless we completely bullshit them or come up with something else," I piped up. "I can pass as Cybertronian easily enough, and they already know that you guys make use of deep-cover operatives. It won't be a problem making it seem believable, and they'll be off our backs."
"The benefits far outweigh the disadvantages," Magnus agreed with me. "At worst, the humans are a bit more paranoid, perhaps want to track us while we're on Earth. At best, they accept and request that they know of all Cybertronians with the capability for a humanoid alt-form."
"The human capability for paranoia is what worries me," Prowl said. "They can be unreasonable about such things. Not to mention, if they involve their religion, it could get excessively messy."
"Religion? How?" I asked curiously.
"I believe there is a phrase in the Christian Bible - "made in His image"?" Prowl said pointedly.
"Oh. Point. How do you even know that?" I asked in surprise.
"I asked him to study the religious beliefs of humans in order to better understand their motivations," Optimus replied. "The report Prowl provided at the end was quite enlightening and helpful."
"Hmm. I bet it was," I said.
"Regardless, you need to make this decision Optimus - there will be no going back after this, not unless we want to admit we've lied to the humans," Magnus said firmly.
"I know," Optimus said with a sigh. There was a long pause, then - "Very well. All things considered, perhaps it is best to tell the humans that Terry is a Cybertronian deep-over operative with a human alt form." The conversation terminated, and I returned my attention to the outside world. My internal chronometer told me the conversation had taken only a few moments, but it was enough that Lennox was looking at me funny.
"Major Lennox, could you please return to Earth and tell your superiors Terry and I shall arrive to discuss the details of her background later this evening," Optimus requested politely, and Lennox nodded.
"Of course," he said, and said a polite goodbye before leaving, sending me odd looks the whole time. Ah well, his questions would be answered soon enough. Once he was gone, Magnus entered Optimus' office.
"Prowl, Terry, Magnus, please come up with a suitable background story. Due to our reluctance in speaking to them on the matter, the humans may want details of her life back on Cybertron," Optimus said. "You will also have to come up with a plausible reason for our initial reactions upon meeting her here on Earth. You have until evening, Eastern Standard Time. I will be speaking with Ratchet and Ironhide over comms about an explanation for her alt form."
"Of course," Prowl said with a nod, then motioned for Magnus and I to follow him. I transformed as I followed him out, knowing that Lennox would be out of sight by now, and we headed for the smaller conference room, Magnus and I sitting on one side of the table, and Prowl on the other.
"I suggest we start with a basic outline of Terry's fictional past by filling out a standard personnel profile for her, thus saving us the time composing it later. Once that's accomplished, we can move on to detailing her more recent history. If we still have time, we can go back and expand upon the fictional Cybertronian past," Prowl said. Magnus and I murmured an agreement. "Very well then." Prowl produced a data pad and tapped it a few times before placing it down in the middle of the table. "Name."
Silence.
"How about we come back to that one?" I suggested, grimacing. I didn't really want to name myself - all the ones I could think of were corny and horrible anyways - and neither Magnus nor Prowl was producing an answer.
"Perhaps a good idea," Prowl said after a moment, then looked at the pad again. "Date and location of creation."
"Praxis," Magnus stated, and we both looked at him in surprise.
"That's an...interesting choice," I said.
"Also not feasible, as the number of surviving Praxians is on record in several places, many of which we don't have the ability to alter," Prowl replied with a frown.
"We're going to claim she's a deep cover operative, right?" Magnus said, and Prowl nodded. "Special Ops makes a habit of wiping any records of their members' existences, above and beyond what is normally capable to wipe."
"Using that logic, she could be from any city on Cybertron," Prowl pointed out.
"True - however, being from Praxis gives her a ready-made excuse to be reticent about speaking of her home to humans," Magnus said. "Additionally, all known Praxian survivors are Autobots, so we won't have to worry about them asking her anything she won't know and blowing her cover."
"Because a Decepticon is gonna stop to chat about home," I said dubiously.
"We are making this background to last, are we not?" Magnus said. "No matter how much time-travelling you and Vector do, the future is still uncertain, and it would be best to avoid any possible issues now."
"Your logic is sound," Prowl said after a moment. "Praxis it is. Creation date..." Prowl filled something in without consulting either of us.
"I don't get a vote on how old I am?" I asked with amusement. Prowl gave me an arched look.
"Would you prefer a different date?" he asked, motioning to the pad. I looked down at it, but since I didn't even know the Cybertronian calendar, the date meant nothing to me.
"Nah, I'm good," I said, leaning back in my chair. Prowl snorted.
"Creators," he said, motioning to the pad, then pulled out another one. A few taps on it and he handed it to me. "This is a list of known bonded couples in Praxis at the time of creation listed for you. Pick."
"Er." I stared at the list for a moment, then flipped off my optics, scrolled up and down and up and down a random amount, then pointed at a random pair of names. I flipped my optics back on to find Prowl looking quite disturbed, while Magnus chuckled. "What?" I asked, glancing down at the pad. "Rhythm and Lightspark?"
"I thought he was from Iacon," Magnus asked, still chuckling.
"He was," Prowl said irritably. "His creators moved to Praxis shortly before the war began."
"Who?" I asked curiously, though I had a suspicion, given the names.
"Jazz," Prowl said curtly. "Apparently you have just become his long-lost sister."
"Isn't that a little...easy to see through?" I asked uncertainly. "I mean, Jazz would've mentioned any siblings, right?"
"The only reason we known the names of his creators is because we've seen his file," Prowl said, motioning between himself and Magnus. "Jazz was extremely reluctant to speak about his past to anyone. Soundwave may know more than any of us Autobots."
"Oh," I said after a moment.
"If you prefer, you can pick again," Prowl said, motioning to the pad. I looked down at it.
"No, you know, I think I'm good. If I picked Jazz's creators on the first go, I'm kinda scared who I might end up with on the second go. Maybe Elita's or something," I said.
"Elita's creators were safely on the other side of the planet," Magnus informed me encouragingly.
"I believe Ratchet had a bonded brother that lived in Praxis," Prowl commented.
"There ya go. All things considered, I'll stick with being related to Jazz," I said with a shudder, and Prowl smiled faintly.
"Very well," he said. "Education is next." Magnus rattled off a few official-sounding schools, and Prowl nodded, adding them to the datapad, then filled in the next few fields, which were date and location of recruitment. It was pretty easy stuff from there, stuff that I couldn't contribute to - education, training, assignments.
"The final entry will have to be a deep-cover scouting assignment," Prowl finally concluded the section. "All other information regarding it will be classified. If pressed, we can say that only Jazz knew the details. He had a few operatives like that."
"We'll just conveniently not mention that he left the information about them in an encrypted file in your personal databanks, coded to unlock itself and knock you on your aft from the data dump if you ever found out he was dead?" Magnus said dryly, and Prowl gave Magnus a weary look.
"Of course. Not that the humans are entitled to information that detailed about our special operations, anyways," he said, then turned business-like again. "That concludes the profile, except for the first field - a Cybertronian name." This time, as the silence settled, I received a comm request, and curious, I allowed it. There was no originator, no identification ping, but the voice on the other end was unmistakable.
"Y'should totally go with Sparkie." I cursed and nearly fell out of my chair.
"How the flying monkey fuck are you contacting me?" I demanded silently over the comm channel, not that it stopped Prowl and Magnus from looking at me strangely due to my facial expressions.
"Toldja, you have connections to the afterlife that others don't," Jazz replied impishly.
"Yeah, well -" I cut myself off, unable to think of anything to say to that. "I'm not calling myself Sparkie," I finally settled on.
"Spot?" Jazz suggested.
"Are you trying to imply that I'm a pet or something?" I asked dangerously, and Jazz laughed.
"Fine, fine. How 'bout Lifesong? My creators always said that they were gonna name their next creation that," he said. I was silent for a moment.
"You wouldn't mind?" I asked.
"Nah. They don't, either. They think you'd be a great addition to the family, in fact," Jazz said cheerfully.
"Wait, you're talking to them, and me? How does that...nevermind. I don't want to know," I said hurriedly. Jazz snickered.
"Tell Prowl that I still think green is a good colour on him," the ghostly mech said, then the connection was severed. I returned my attention to the conference room, finding the two mechs looking at me oddly again.
"Jazz suggests Lifesong. And wanted you to know that he still thinks green is a good colour on you, Prowl," I said after a moment. Prowl stared, while Magnus just looked confused.
"...what?" Magnus finally asked, looking between me and Prowl.
"Yeah. That was pretty much my reaction," I told Magnus cheerfully. Prowl, meanwhile, got over his shock, calmly picked up the datapad, and filled in the name.
"Reaction to what? What's this about Jazz?" Magnus asked with a frown.
"Well, either I'm going crazy and making really good guesses about in-jokes between Prowl and Jazz, or I have 'ties to the afterlife that others don't'," I said, complete with air-quotes. Magnus frowned.
"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked.
"I have no fragging clue," I said with a shake of my head.
"We will have to discuss this at a later date," Prowl interrupted. "We are on a time limit at the moment, and we had best establish the story of Terry here on Earth." Magnus hesitated, but finally nodded in acquiescence. "Good. Now. I believe we have two basic options here - one, that we had no idea who Terry was until she chose to reveal herself during the holiday you two took, or two, that we knew from the start and were just maintaining her cover."
"The second one won't work," Magnus said with a shake of his head. "Not with some of the things that have been said, or overheard. It's one thing to keep someone's cover when talking to other people, but I know some members of NEST have accidentally overheard a few supposedly private conversations at the base on earth - we have no idea if any of the ones regarding Terry have been overheard."
"I feel like I should be nosey or something and demand to know what those discussions were about," I mused, then thought about Epps's comment regarding Magnus and Ironhide getting in a fight. "But, I think I know, partly, and that's enough."
"Probably," Magnus said with a grimace, then returned to the topic at hand. "If we have to go with us not knowing who she was, do we need to plan anything else? Our actions wouldn't need any explaining."
"They'll want to know why she revealed herself," Prowl said. "And we're still not telling the humans that sparkmates are pre-destined." I wondered momentarily how Prowl had known about the whole sparkmates thing, and if he knew, who else knew. I decided to bring it up with Magnus later.
"If I've been on a deep cover mission on Earth all this time, the chances that I wouldn't know what happened in Mission City would be slim, right?" I asked. "So if I know Jazz, my superior and long-lost brother, is dead, wouldn't it make sense for me to reach out and connect to someone in the Autobots? The fact that we happened to, you know, fall in love is just coincidental, and when I finally revealed who I was, Magnus of course told Optimus, who told you, and together they all decided that my mission was no longer necessary, so we did our best to phase me off of Earth - except people got nosey."
"That would certainly work," Prowl said with a nod. "Our reluctance in informing the humans of this fact is, of course, due to your alt form."
"Of course," I said brightly.
"Very well, with that determined, I believe we still have time to go back and flesh out your back story a bit," Prowl said.
"What's there to flesh out?" I asked curiously. Prowl smiled faintly.
"Perhaps it's better to say that we need to flesh out your knowledge of Cybertron, in order to make your back story believable," he said. Thus followed a Q&A about all the common, every-day things about Cybertron. It was fun, as I got to ask all sorts of mundane questions I'd never thought to ask before. Eventually, of course, Optimus came and interrupted our little meeting - resulting in several embarrassing questions aimed his way about certain aspects of Cybertronian culture (they did actually have brothels, and I was going to get endless hours of amusement out of asking Optimus about the visit that he had reportedly made, but refused to speak about). Optimus, of course, quickly pulled me away from the dangerous influence of two mechs that knew more about him that he wanted, and we headed to Earth, me in my human alt-form.
It was weird, riding with Optimus to the NEST base. I was used to riding in a big truck by now, but I was also used to it being Magnus, who obviously didn't mind at all if I squirmed in his seat or anything like that - something that he could feel, and could possibly be taken as provocative by someone. I found myself sitting as still as possible in Optimus' seat, with both hands on the steering wheel holding on only enough to keep them there. Optimus obviously sensed my tension, and tried to lighten the mood by asking me about the background they'd made up for me, though I was sure Prowl had transmitted it to him. Fortunately, he never asked why I was so tense, as even I knew my reason was rather silly.
Finally, we reached the base, and I gratefully climbed out of Optimus' cab so he could transform. He didn't pick me up - I'd learned that smaller Cybertronians were normally very picky about who they let pick them up, and since we were going to let them know that I wasn't human anymore, it was time to conform to Cybertronian standards. At least in the future I'd be able to just transform and walk on my own...but for now, I got to watch Optimus take a couple steps into the hanger we were meeting in and be standing at the scaffolding that was being used for the meeting, while the rest of us took a minute or two to get there and climb the steps. I debated for a moment if I wanted to climb them, since I was going to have to transform, but I realized that even though I looked human, I was still made of Cybertronian metals, and a jump from the scaffolding wouldn't hurt me.
Up on the scaffolding, there were several computers, computer screens, and cameras. It seemed we weren't going to get to meet our questioners in person, but that was fine. I went to lean against the railing to the right of Optimus, and Lennox fell into a parade rest on the other side. Everyone else cleared the way, while the few technicians who were seated at the computers, out of sight of the cameras, began starting things up and connecting. The screens slowly blinked on, one by one, and once all five were on, Lennox introduced everyone. There were a couple of generals, a senator, the Secretary of Defense, and the Vice President. A nice turn-out, and a bit intimidating.
"Good evening gentlemen," Optimus said politely once they were all introduced.
"Good evening, Optimus. It's a pleasure to speak with you again," the Secretary of Defense said, smiling. The others had similar greetings for the Autobot leader, but none were as warm as the Secretary of Defense's.
"So. You've been putting us off for awhile, Optimus. What's so horrible about Miss Gorman's past that you refused to tell us until we started making threats?" the Secretary of Defense seemed to be in charge of the meeting, and I suspected it was since he seemed to know Optimus the best.
"The answer to that is, I'm afraid, quite complicated," Optimus admitted. "I shall endeavor to explain, but I'm afraid you will have to bear with me, as you may have difficulty understanding how everything connects until my explanation is complete."
"Of course," the Secretary of Defense said with a nod. Optimus paused, probably for the effect of gathering his thoughts, before he continued.
"Cybertron has always been a very insular society. For all that we have had space travel capabilities for millions of your years, there are very few cybernetic lifeforms, and even fewer that exist on the same size-scale as us. As a result, many organic races, and smaller races, are easily frightened by us. In the early ages of our space exploration, this resulted in insular tendencies that remain to this day. In later ages, it resulted in the invention of trans-scanning. Those two aspects are the primary reasons that Cybertronians tend to first appear in disguise to any new species - and why we often don't let new species know that we are there, in disguise, unless we have to.
"As you might imagine, this has led to a very developed scouting corps, where stealth and discretion were considered key. When the war began, this scouting corps, like most things on Cybertron, was split in half. Some of the scouts became Autobots, some Decepticons. Furthermore, many of the scouts found themselves in the Special Operations Division, where their abilities to remain undetected were put to use against other Cybertronians.
"The primary purpose of the scouting corps, however, was always to discover new resources - either in material goods, information, or allies - for the Cybertronian people. Though many of the scouts were absorbed in special ops missions, they also retained their primary objective, although for a different purpose now. Where once they sought resources in order to improve Cybertron, now they sought resources in order to help their side of the war, and to help rebuild Cybertron once the war was over. As these missions had a direct correlation to the ability of their given side to continue the fight, the once public scouting missions became top secret. Over the years, knowledge of these missions was restricted to fewer and fewer mechs, until many of them were known only by the head of Special Operations.
"Unfortunately, this had an unwelcome side affect. Jazz, as you know, was my head of Special Operations. When he died in the battle at Mission City, he was unable to completely transmit his stored files on these top secret missions. Thus, there are now an unknown number of deep cover scouts out in the galaxy, searching for new resources for Cybertron. I am fairly sure that Jazz planned for such an eventuality, setting time limits for missions - or, as we have recently learned, encouraging operatives to take the initiative and contact other Cybertronians nearby should it become obvious that knowledge of their presence has been lost."
"That's quite the interesting history of the Autobot Special Ops, Optimus, but what does it have to do with Miss Gorman?" For all that Optimus had asked for patience, the Vice President was obviously irritated by how what Optimus was saying seemed to have no bearing on my situation. The generals and Secretary of Defense, however, looked like they were starting to understand what was going on. In response, Optimus pinged my comm system with simple message: 'show them.' I grinned, then stepped forward.
"This, Mr. Vice President," I said, then turned and jumped off the railing. I heard Lennox make a gargled noise, but he fell silent quickly as I hit the ground - uninjured - and activated my transformation sequence. In moments, I was standing next to Optimus (albeit much shorter), staring back at the cameras.
"You're -" Lennox gaped.
"Autobot deep cover operative Lifesong, dispatched to Earth some time ago to investigate the possibility of allying with the native population and determining the feasibility of utilizing the planet's natural resources," I quipped. Prowl had said the details of my mission were to be top secret, but with the explanation Optimus had just given, I figured that would work. I grinned at the gaping mouths of everyone around me. "Also to find Jazz some new music. He was feeling the need to expand his collection, and he'd heard some interesting tunes coming from this corner of the galaxy."
"While I do recall the report about the so-called Pretender, Alice, and her ability to look like a human, I was unaware that others of your kind had similar capabilities, or that such a size change was possible," the Secretary of Defense spoke slowly, clearly picking his words carefully.
"Lifesong's ability to change size so drastically when she transforms is the result of an experimental transformation process involving subspace. We have very little idea how it actually works, as the project was the jurisdiction of Special Operations and, according to Jazz, terminated forcefully by the Decepticons. We were unaware until we discovered Lifesong here on Earth that there had been any successful trials," Optimus explained.
"Jazz didn't share that with you?" the Secretary of Defense asked curiously.
"I suspect he felt it to be in Lifesong's best interests - the Decepticons destroyed the project and killed the scientist responsible due to the potential power of this ability. The scientist wouldn't work for them, and they didn't want the Autobots to have it. If they'd found out that there had been a successful trial, which could possibly be reverse engineered, Lifesong would never have been safe. Considering she happens to be Jazz's sister, that was the last thing he would have wanted," Optimus said. "I suspect he would have informed us after that war was over, but while it continued, he didn't tell anyone. Lifesong herself had to inform us of the project when we discovered her."
"Yes, speaking of discovering her..." the Secretary of Defense trailed off.
"When Jazz first came to Earth, he and I had a brief exchange where he asked me to remain hidden - he didn't think his team would be on Earth for long, and my observations could still be useful in the future. So I remained hidden. However, despite your security, I was well aware of what happened at Mission City, and knew that with Jazz's death, the knowledge of my presence on this planet was likely lost. When Optimus sent his transmission calling the Autobots to Earth, I realized that we would maintain a presence on the planet. So I chose to wait, to see if I was approached by any possible successor to Jazz's position, who might be aware of me.
"It eventually became obvious that none of the Autobots knew of my presence, so when Magnus literally showed up on my doorstep, I chose to take the opportunity presented to me. Didn't hurt that he's not bad looking," I added the last with a grin. "At any rate, after assuring myself that he was on the level, I told him who I was. Magnus, of course, told Optimus and Prowl, and they decided to end my mission. So I returned to the Autobot base."
"Interesting...very interesting. I assume your reluctance to inform us of these events is due to Lifesong's transformation abilities?" the Secretary of Defense asked.
"Indeed. Lifesong's transformation capabilities are a very powerful tool, and while we have no intentions to misuse them, we did not want to cause unnecessary tension," Optimus said somberly.
"Had you informed us of this two years ago, Prime, we may not have believed you. You have proven true to your word though - thank you for telling us about this," the Vice President spoke formally. "You'll understand, however, if we request to be informed about any mission you send Lifesong on that will require use of her human alternate form?"
"Naturally," Optimus said with a nod. "So long as you understand that she may frequently be in her alternate form for various reasons, not all of which are missions."
"Of course, the same as any of you," the Secretary of Defense said quickly, before anyone else could speak up. Probably because the generals were looking ready to protest - though, as it turned out, not entirely because of Optimus's statement.
"If what you're saying is true, Prime, then you obviously didn't find her up on the Moon. So what was up there?" one of them asked grouchily, and I mentally winced as I realized we seemed to have overlooked that little lie - or, I had. Optimus apparently had it covered.
"Lifesong's stockpile of supplies, actually," Optimus said. "In order for her to remain on Earth for so long, she had to have quite a collection of various spare parts and Energon. Apparently she caught a Decepticon sneaking around at one point, and after she chased him off, he passed on the information. Over the years, it grew from a stockpile to a major weapon. It has happened from time to time during our war - rumours making something grow out of proportion. Megatron isn't exactly known for checking out the truth behind rumours before going after them, and sometimes we Autobots have been guilty of the same mistake. We decided to use the opportunity presented to introduce her to you, though it didn't go quite as planned."
"I had rather thought I'd killed that particular 'Con," I put in, trying to help along the story. "Evidently not."
"I see." The general looked as if he didn't know whether or not to believe us, and I didn't blame him. It was a bit of a stretch. But they decided they'd let it pass, at least, and with a few last formalities, mostly Optimus reassuring them that Prowl would contact them with details about any mission I went on, connections were cut. So I was left transformed in a hanger with Optimus and what appeared to be half of NEST - they seemed to have come out of nowhere during the conference, whether or not they were cleared to be there. Lennox apparently just now noticed them, as he scowled at the crowd.
"Hey! This was a classified conference!" he snapped, and everybody quickly found other places to be. As they hurried out, Lennox turned his scowl to Optimus, crossing his arms across his chest. "So, Optimus. About this whole keeping me in the dark thing. I'm supposed to be one of your more official liaisons - it doesn't look too good when half the time I'm as surprised as my superiors when you start explaining something."
"I know, and I apologize, Major," Optimus began.
"No, I don't think you do, Optimus," Lennox interrupted. "I'm not just a liaison, I thought I was a friend. And yet you're keeping me in the dark, the same as everyone else. I don't appreciate it, and I can't help you if you continue to do it." Optimus grimaced.
"You must understand, Major," he said. "We have had a recent influx of...old business, I suppose you could say, and we are still very used to being an insular society. It doesn't come naturally to us to share these sorts of things. Our instincts are to keep to ourselves whatever possible, even if events involve other races."
"Alright. Then how about I make things easier for you by asking a few questions?" Lennox said, and from the sudden mildness of his tone, I knew Optimus was in trouble. "What the hell showed up in SanFran that you guys are all searching for frantically? And who is that Vector guy really? You say he's just another mech, but I find it rather convenient that he showed up right after Terry apparently takes a trip to the future - and I know you're holding out on me about that, but I'll let that slide, I hate that sort of sci-fi stuff. Not to mention that when they think we humans aren't looking, I've seen other Autobots treat him with the same sort of deference they show you, Optimus." Optimus, surprisingly, started chuckling.
"Yes, I do believe it was no accident that the Allspark landed here." he said through his chuckles. "It's late now, but why don't we have a meeting tomorrow morning, with whoever you wish, and we'll fill you in?"
"Sure," Lennox said pleasantly. "0900, in the usual hanger? I can get - Lifesong some quarters here on the base for the night, due to her alt form."
"That would be appreciated," Optimus said with a nod. We said our goodbyes, and headed outside. Optimus transformed once we got to the door, and I took my cue from him, climbing into his cab when he popped open the door. As we drove outside, I found myself appreciating his foresight - even hidden inside his cab as I was, half the NEST soldiers turned to stare as we passed.
"The meeting went well, at least," I said in an attempt to distract myself from the sudden attention as Optimus drove through the base.
"Remarkably well," Optimus replied. "I wonder that we might not have harmed our relations more by waiting than by telling them."
"I think with your introduction, they'll understand. If not, I'm sure Sam or someone can explain in more detail," I said dismissively.
"Or, perhaps, you?" Optimus suggested.
"Errr..." I realized now that I'd just been put in a perfect position as a human/Cybertronian liaison. "Fuck. You planned that, didn't you?" Optimus chuckled.
"Prowl did, actually. He realized when he arrived that while our relations are good, they teeter in a dangerous balance, where one misunderstanding can send them sliding into chaos. As someone who is both human and Cybertronian, you are in a unique position to stabilize that balance," Optimus said. "You can be assured that Magnus knew nothing of it, though."
"Well, that's something," I said with a sigh. "You realize I suck at talking to big official people, right?"
"Ratchet spoke rather highly of your ability to do so, following the events on the moon," Optimus commented.
"That - I had him there, prompting me!" I flailed verbally.
"Not for much, from what he said. We would have you accompany Prowl and I for the first little while, of course, so that you could learn," Optimus replied.
"I don't want to," I said with a pout, aware I was being childish. Optimus was silent for a moment.
"We cannot, of course, make you. It would be of great help to us, however," he said seriously, and I immediately felt bad for my childish complaints.
"Alright, alright," I sighed. "Let me...get used to the idea for a bit."
"Of course," Optimus agreed, then turned to his left and suddenly sped up a bit. "Lennox has contacted me with the details of your arrangements for the night - you'll be staying in the barracks."
"Well that will be interesting."
"Think of it as a trial run as a liaison between us and the humans," Optimus suggested, and I snorted.
"Because it's going to be even remotely similar," I said.
"You will be attempting to fit it and help the humans understand who we are. It is exactly what you will be doing, should you accept," Optimus said. I realized he was right, and sighed.
"Alright then. Though I doubt there will be much socializing in the barracks," I said.
"Perhaps not, but you will have some free time before the meeting tomorrow," Optimus replied. "You don't need to worry about energon, either - there will be some at the meeting. For some reason the humans seem to be uncomfortable with having their traditional coffee at meetings when we have nothing, despite us not having to refuel as often or with such a variety of substances as them."
"It's part of the manners that are drummed into everyone as a kid," I said with a shrug. "We're taught to share and not be greedy, and in the grown up world of meetings, that means offering refreshments to others if we're having them."
"Mmm, Sam has said that, as well, but I still don't completely understand, I'm afraid." Optimus sounded genuinely puzzled, and I suspected that I could explain the custom of offering refreshments to him until I fell into stasis and still not get anywhere. I had apparently found my first cultural barrier, and as Optimus pulled to a stop in front of a building labeled as 'Women's Barracks' I decided to just let it go with a laugh.
"Just accept it and it'll be fine, Optimus," I said.
"Very well," Optimus replied, and we said our goodnights before I hopped out. As he drove away, I stood and stared at the door to the barracks for a bit. This was going to be my first night on Earth since that last night in my apartment with Magnus, a night that seemed a lifetime ago. It was going to be weird, even without the NEST soldiers staring at me. Shaking myself, I figured I might as well get things over with, and headed inside. Where I promptly realized I had no idea which room was mine. Fortunately, Lennox seemed to have anticipated that, and a corporal approached me when I entered.
"Lifesong. I'm Corporal Sibley. Major Lennox asked me to show you to your room for the night," she said, holding out a hand. I shook it, observing her carefully. Her expression and tone were neutral, so I couldn't tell what she thought of me. She was being polite, though, and there was no reason I shouldn't do the same. Even if I found being referred to as 'Lifesong' to be very, very strange.
"Of course, thank you," I said.
"This way, then," she said, motioning down the hall, and with a nod, I followed her as she set off. We went a fair distance through the building, and I wondered for a bit if that was on purpose, before telling myself I was being paranoid. I wasn't, however, being paranoid about how many conversations halted when we passed by, and resumed in whispers after we were gone. I felt like flapping my arms and quacking, just to give them something entertaining to stare at, at least. Finally, we reached our destination, Sibley turning right and entering a room, me following.
The room was simple, with a twin-sized bed and a bedside table with an alarm clock and a small lamp. A dresser stood to one side for clothes, and on top of it was a phone. There were no decorations in the room, unless one counted the curtains over the window, and besides the lamp, it was lit only by an overhead light.
"Sorry for the quality, but they were the best we could get ready on short notice," Sibley apologized as I stepped into the room.
"No worries. It's better than some apartments I've had," I said, thinking of some of my earlier apartments after arriving in this reality. Even the later apartments hadn't been that good. Turning to give Sibley a reassuring smile, I caught a flash of curiosity on her face before she smoothed it into neutrality again.
"Was there anything special you needed for tonight?" Sibley asked.
"No, not really, thank you," I said.
"Alright, if you find there is something you need, the phone will connect you to the base switchboard," Sibley said, motioning to the phone, and I nodded.
"Thanks, I'll keep that in mind," I said.
"Goodnight then, Lifesong," Sibley said, and I returned the farewell before Sibley left. I caught another curious look as she shut the door behind her on her way out, and smiled faintly. She very good at putting her curiosity aside to do her job. Looking around the room again, my gaze settled on the bed, and I suddenly wondered just how heavy my human alt form was. I hadn't had any troubles so far, but until today, I hadn't interacted with any human construction. The scaffolding I'd been on for the meeting hadn't even creaked, but one never knew. I went over to the bed and cautiously sat on the edge. It sagged perhaps a bit more than normal, and squeaked slightly when I moved on it, but otherwise didn't seem to have any problems, and so I stretched out, letting myself relax. It was surprisingly comfortable, but very different - both from what I'd become used to, and from my previous experiences as a human.
I pondered over that for a bit, then glanced at the clock - it was barely 9pm. Or rather, barely 2100, according to the clock. I felt silly trying to recharge this early, and considered heading outside, maybe wandering around a bit. Then I remembered that on a military base, they got up ridiculously early. I decided I might as well take the recharge while I could get it.