Tests are done, and another update to celebrate! (grins) So here we go!

ch 12

Prowl's optics narrowed as he stared over Blaster's shoulder. "What do you mean, they're gone?" he demanded, voice cold and hard. Blaster shook his helm, unintentionally shifting away from Prowl.

"Just like I said, Prowl – Jazz sent out a distress signal, then I lost contact with them. It happened so fast I couldn't even establish comm. links."

"Why weren't comm. links already established?"

"We never establish comms unless we believe we have a problem." Blaster protested. "You know that, Prime knows it, everyone knows it! No one has said anything about it!"

"I never breathed a word about it because I mistakenly believed that should a time like this occur – when we are under constant threat from an unknown enemy – that everyone would establish comms before leaving the base." Prowl's hands clenched into fists. "Who went with Jazz?"

"The Twins."

Slag it! The situation just kept getting worse and worse, didn't it? "Anyone else?"

Blaster hesitated. "Um – Barricade."

That shocked Prowl to his core. He hadn't even felt distress coming from his mate, let alone sensed him call out. Granted, he was a skilled assassin and not threatened by much of anyone, but it was still unnerving to realize that his mate had been taken without his knowledge. Blaster opened his mouth to say more, but Prowl cut him off with a raised hand.

/Barricade?/

The wave of pain and relief that crashed over him drove him to his knees. He gripped the egde of the computer console tightly, struggling to not fall completely down. He was faintly aware of Blaster calling for him, but he shut out the noise. /Barricade, are you - /

/I'm fine./ Barricade cut him off. /I was scared they were using bond disruptors – apparently they don't have a clue. Comms are down. We can't get a hold of Blaster./

/Trust me, Blaster's aware of it./ Prowl said dryly, wrapping his essence tightly around Barricade's in a mental embrace. /Are you hurt?/

/Not badly. Jazz is pretty banged up, but at least he's still online. The Twins aren't, though. I don't know if they're okay./ Barricade didn't even give Prowl a chance to ask further questions. /It's Galvatron, Prowl. He made his move./

/I was afraid of that./ Prowl whispered. /Where are you?/

Barricade quickly transmitted coordinates. Prowl sent back reassurances laced with the black promise of vengeance. He wondered distantly if Barricade could sense the rising darkness inside of his mate, then decided it didn't matter. Nothing mattered right now except getting them back.

"Prowl!"

Optimus's voice jerked him back into the real world. Prowl's optics snapped up and focused in on Prime. He was still on his knees, and he slowly stood. Optimus stepped back and regarded him appraisingly. "Yes sir?"

"Blaster just informed me of the situation." Optimus said evenly. "Any ideas of how to find them?"

"I already know where they are." Prowl caught a glimpse of Ratchet behind Optimus, optics wide. Prowl nodded slightly.

Optimus frowned. "How? Comms are down – no one can establish contact with them – "

"Galvatron's forces didn't anticipate Barricade being bonded." Prowl cut him off. "Someone needs to go find Mirage – their bond is common knowledge to the 'Cons, which means Galvatron probably knows as well. I imagine Jazz has been fitted with a bond disruptor; someone needs to inform him that Jazz is still alive and safe."

"I'll do it." Ratchet said, turning around and leaving the comms room. Optimus dismissed Blaster with a wave of his hand. Prowl tensed.

"Sir – "

"How long?"

Prowl considered. "Since before we arrived back on base, sir." he relented. "He only intended to form a First Bond to stabilize my spark. Easily broken. He wound up bonding me instead."

"And you didn't see it fit to inform anyone of this?" Optimus growled.

Prowl lifted his chin. "My business is my own. I know Barricade would not betray us because Barricade will not betray me. I would have to turn my back on the Autobots before Barricade would harm any of us."

Optimus pinched the bridge of his nose. "I will discuss that faulty logic with you later." he muttered. "Right now we need to find our mechs. Where are they?"

Prowl gave him the coordinates. "I know the location." he said calmly. "I can guide you in."

"You're not going."

"Sir, with all due respect, that's my bondmate, my best friend, and the only two mechs on base that essentially amount to my sparklings for all the care I have put into them." Prowl snapped. "You can either let me come with you, or I'm going on my own and Primus help whoever gets in my way."

Optimus considered him for a moment. "You will not back down."

"No."

Prime heaved a sigh through his vents. "Fine. Come with me. We'll pick out the rescue team and be gone by nightfall."

/-/

Barricade glared at his restraints. Being chained up in an abandoned Enforcer building wasn't what he considered a good time. The Twins were nowhere to be found, and Jazz was calmly staring at him in a way that made him feel like a bug under Perceptor's gaze. Barricade turned his glare to Jazz.

"What?"

"Ya seem awfully calm fer a mech that's gonna die soon." Jazz said off-handedly. "Ya know, even Prowler's gotta admit, this ain' lookin' good fer ya. An' if it don' look good fer ya, he ain' likely ta stand in Prime's way when he orders ya executed."

Barricade gave him a dry look. "You really should have been a 'Con. You almost seem amused by that."

"I ain'. It'll break Prowler's spark."

"Why do you call him that?" Barricade growled, returning his attention to the restraints. "His name's Prowl."

"It's mah nickname fer him."

"Yeah, I get that, but don't nicknames generally involve shortening names?" Now he was just talking, anything to relieve the building silence and the steady fear that something had just gone terribly wrong. "Wheeljack is Jack, Ratchet is Ratch, Optimus is OP (sometimes) but Prowl as Prowler? That makes no sense."

Jazz chuckled. "That's why I call 'im that." he explained. "It's illogical. I wanted ta see if I could lock his processors up. Th' name just kinda stuck, ya know?"

Barricade grinned. "I can see that."

"Ya still haven't answered mah question."

"That's because Prowl isn't going to have me executed." Barricade said flatly. "Right now I'm more concerned with what happened to the Twins. Sunny was scared."

"Yeah." Jazz said reluctantly. "I ain' never seen Sunny scared before. Sides, yeah, but not Sunny." His cracked visor focused on Barricade. "So – ya got a plan, 'Con, or are we jus' gonna sit here an' rot?"

Barricade grinned. It wasn't a pleasant grin. "The plan is already in motion, Jazz. Just relax and let a pro show you how it's done."

Jazz snorted, only slightly unnerved. "Whatever."

At that moment another mech walked in, this one roughly the size of Megatron and a whole lot meaner-looking. He turned his glaring gaze to Jazz.

"I'm going to ask you one last time, Autobot – Where is Meister?"

Barricade's optics widened. Suddenly, he understood everything.