Author's Note: Unfortunately, due to the increase in college crap (homework mostly) and upcoming finals week, I may not be able to get another post up for another week…or two. Good news is, usually the next update after a long absence is usually a very, very lengthy chapter!

I would like to thank all of you for your marvelous reviews! ^_^

Chapter 5

First-Aid finally finished sanding and grinding the paint off of his armor. He never did find out who did it, since there were no witnesses but he did have his suspicions. Even though he was hot-headed and never feared an open confrontation with anyone, Hotshot still operated under his own code. Confronting a suspect without any proof whatsoever was a big no-no in the code he followed. If he so happened to interrogate who he thought did it, only to find out they were innocent…would make him look like a total dumb-aft.

Until he found at least one witness…Bluestreak and his little sparkling friends were off-limits. He was confident that a witness would be found soon enough. He was too close to give up his searching now.

He started questioning his fellow younglings but didn't get very far since most of them were scared of him. This appalling truth did not bring Hotshot any pride for once. Instead, he felt highly frustrated. Once he got around to asking caretakers, it became a little easier. Then he found him…the one witness he had been looking for.

"Why, yes I did. They were carrying paint, glue, and cotton-balls down the hall. They said it was for an art project they were making for their caretakers."

"Thank you"

The caretaker smiled at him before returning to his duties.

Now to confirm it!

"Starlight and Fireflare…may I ask you a question please?"

Hotshot stood innocently in the doorway of their common room.

They shared a glance with one another before looking back at him with confused looks on their faces.

"Of course, what do you need youngling?"

He proceeded to question them about the 'art project' that Bluestreak and the twins claimed they were making for them. They had no knowledge of the subject.

"If they are…that is so sweet of them. I hope we didn't ruin the surprise."

Hotshot struggled to contain his barely suppressed fury. His hands clenched into fists at his side.

"No, they finished their 'art-project' about an orn ago. Thank you for clearing that up for me."

He left in a huff, leaving two baffled, curious caretakers behind to discuss his odd appearance at their door.

Time to confront his adversary…

A thrill raced through his systems when he spotted the twins and Bluestreak walking around the corner heading back to their common room he had just vacated. The moment they looked up and saw him they froze in their tracks.

"I know it was you!"

He marched furiously over until he was standing directly in front of Bluestreak. Hotshot glared daggers at him and resisted the urge to punch him right then and there.

Now, he wasn't a bad youngling, who was always looking for a fight, he was just misunderstood. Perhaps his fiery personality had something to do with his dark past. When Hotshot first reached youngling status…he witnessed the deaths of his two creators at the hands of the Decepticons during a vicious attack on their city. After learning, that the Decepticons had attacked them only because they believed the city was sheltering Autobots did Hotshot's fury and hot-tempered personality truly develop. The youngling both hated and despised both of the warring factions and wanted nothing to do with either of them.

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't play stupid with me, you slagger…you know what I'm talking about!"

The blue youngling struggled to maintain a straight face.

"Yeah, I do. I never knew you wanted to join the circus, Hotshot. That's great!"

Sunny and Sides giggled from where they were standing a few feet away as they watched the two elder younglings escalating conversation and soon to be argument.

"So you don't deny it then!"

"Look, you don't have to be so defensive. It's the perfect career choice for you in my opinion."

"I didn't ask for your opinion!"

Bluestreak narrowed his optics at his arch-rival and stared Hotshot down.

Both younglings were at a stand-off, neither saying a word.

"We are going to settle this…once and for all, right now," Hotshot managed to growl out.

"Fine, so be it. It's not every day I get to put a sparkling in his place."

"TAKE THAT BACK!"

"YOU'RE A SPARKLING! SPARKLING, SPARKLING, SPARKLING, SPARKLING!!"

Just then Starlight and Fireflare peered out from around the common room door into the hall and spotted them.

"What's going on is everything alright?"

"We heard raised voices…"

Once Bluestreak noticed them he laughed weakly. Hotshot turned around and waved with a forced grin as he put an arm around his 'friend' for a second, with incredible effort.

"Just fine"

"We were, uh…"

"...working on the assignment for peace and social justice that…uh…"

"…that Peacemaker gave us for homework."

Both younglings stuttered together to come up with a plausible excuse for all of the shouting. The twins remained silent, simply observing the scene with perceptive optics.

"Oh…okay, if that's all then."

"Glad to see you two are finally getting along."

The two caretakers went back inside, leaving the two younglings to sigh with relief. Hotshot shoved Bluestreak away from him with clear disdain and brushed himself off, as if he had just been touched by something dirty.

"Why don't we take this outside, so no one can interfere?"

Bluestreak nodded his head in silent agreement and followed Hotshot out into the designated 'safe-zone' after passing through one of the airlocks. It was a common play area for the younglings when times were safe. Ever since Decepticon activity had tripled in the neighboring sectors, everyone was forced indoors until further notice.

The twins followed silently, both of the older younglings forgetting that they were even there. Once they got outside Hotshot led him further away from the facility until Bluestreak finally stopped.

"I'm not going any further, Hotshot. This is good enough."

"If we don't keep moving…the security vids are gonna spot us within half a breem!"

Bluestreak glanced back towards the facility and noticed that indeed, the cameras were about to sweep the area again. Slag-it-all…

They continued on until at last they were in the desired location.

"Where are we?"

The orange, yellow, and red colored youngling smirked.

"The East Crater of course."

The East Crater…the forbidden area.

Bluestreak sighed heavily, suddenly weary of their situation. The stress he was feeling managed to squeak through his youngling voice.

"Hotshot…let's get this over with…"

Bluestreak looked around warily, as if expecting a giant asteroid monster to pop out of the landscape around them.

The twins shivered and cowered down near a big rock when they heard that they were in the one place everyone feared to go. They remained unnoticed by their elders.

"Don't be, such a sparkling Blue…now fight me like a mech."

They wasted no time and flew at each other with angry shrieks and yells. It was clear to see that within the first breem, both younglings were equally matched. Hotshot was stunned by this unforeseen outcome. He never lost a fight. Of course, in all reality, he wasn't really losing…but then again he wasn't winning either. It was a stalemate. Neither could get the upper hand. If Hotshot went in for a punch, Bluestreak would dodge. If Bluestreak performed a takedown, Hotshot would sweep his legs out from under him and knock him down too. They wrestled, grappled and fought until at last, both were too tired to continue.

Their vents worked overtime to cool their vital systems down and they slumped down to the ground together.

"Why…won't…you just…QUIT!"

"I…could ask…the same…about you."

Both younglings shared a glare before first one and then the other started laughing.

"I admit…you're pretty good."

"You too"

The twins came out from where they had been watching, finally catching the elder youngling's attention. Bluestreak suddenly looked guilty when he realized he had completely forgotten all about them.

"Sunny…Sides…are you okay?"

He frowned when he noticed that they weren't looking at him but at something above his head.

The twins' optics went wide with wonder and their faces reflected the awe that they were feeling.

"What is that?" Sunny whispered as he pointed up.

Hotshot followed his finger and turned to look up at the sky. The flame colored youngling's vocal processor froze as terror filled his spark. His face contorted into that of stunned horror.

"Oh no…no…NO"

Bluestreak soon followed suit when he understood what the flaming marvel was that they were witnessing in the sky. At first, he had thought that it was just a bunch of shooting stars whizzing by…

"RUN!"

Hotshot yelled and ran past Bluestreak and the twins.

Sunny and Sides had the growing sense that something was terribly wrong…and that the beautiful sight heading right for them, was dangerous. They too, turned and fled after Hotshot while Bluestreak brought up the rear to make sure that they all made it back to the complex in time.

"We have to hurry!!"

Bluestreak stopped long enough to pick up Sunny and had Sides hop on his back as he ran, the idea of transforming into his alternate mode completely slipping his processor. Hotshot was getting further ahead as he was weighed down by the two younglings and he felt himself slowing.

"Hotshot! I can't keep up, wait!"

The flame colored youngling turned back impatiently just as the first meteor struck the surface of the asteroid in the East Crater they had just vacated. More followed suit as a shower of meteors began to rain down behind them. The warning klaxons and strobe lights sounded both inside and outside of the complex. Bluish-white energy built up in the tower arrays strategically placed around the Youth Sector as the energy shield crackled slowly to life.

"HURRY! The shield's going up!!" Hotshot screamed at them, his processor going on the fritz with panic. The flame colored youngling was already in the safety zone right on the edge of the boundary line, the tell-tale hum of the shield preparing to fire up vibrated the very air.

Bluestreak still lagged behind and he locked optics with him…he wasn't going to make it. Something inside of Hotshot's spark broke at the pleading and despairing look and he knew he couldn't just leave them to die.

Hotshot appeared to be waging an internal battle with himself for a second. Then he dove, head first out of the safety boundary just as the shield went up. He rolled back up onto his feet and raced back to Bluestreak. He took one of the younglings from him and they veered away from the complex, running away from the meteor shower that was picking up in intensity just behind them.

Hotshot glanced back and saw that there was no way in the pit that they were going to be able to outrun it. As soon as he completed that thought, one of the meteors impacted the ground a few feet behind them, flinging the four younglings hazardously through the air to land in an unceremonious heap together a few yards ahead. They crawled back up and Hotshot noticed that they were close to one of the caves that dotted the asteroid. There was a chance that they could survive the meteor shower in there…it was shelter. Shelter, meant survival.

"Get up, come on!"

He tugged on Bluestreak, helping his new friend to his feet as he scooped up the smaller younglings and ran for it. Hotshot was a bit older and much stronger than Bluestreak and was able to run just fine with the twins. They were almost there, just a few more yards! Meteors continued to rain down all around them.

Suddenly a whistling sound pierced the air as a larger meteor behind them fragmented into more pieces. Bluestreak craned his neck around to look over his shoulder and his optics widened in terror.

That's when everything went to the pit.

Another meteor impacted a few feet in front of Hotshot, forcing him to dive to the side with the twins. Just as he got up, another impacted the overhang just above him, sending rocks falling down. Bluestreak saw it about to crush him and he sprinted for Hotshot and the twins while screaming a warning.

"HOTSHOT LOOK OUT!"

Hotshot looked up to see the danger, his joints locked up in fearful dread.

The blue youngling bodily tackled Hotshot, shoving the elder youngling and the twins into the mouth of the cave. Bluestreak tripped and fell, just as the landslide of rocks fell on top of him. The flame colored youngling shrieked when he witnessed the scene and scrambled to go back for him. Another meteor impact shook the ground, knocking him off of his feet. Sunny and Sides were clicking and whistling in panic, clinging to each other for comfort. They too, saw Bluestreak disappear under the rocks and wanted very much to go find him…but the scary sounds outside kept them frozen where they were.

Hotshot crawled back over and frantically dug through the rubble in a near frenzy sobbing pathetically. At last he uncovered the still and silent form of Bluestreak. He dragged him in to the cave near the back where it was safe as the meteor shower continued to hail down destruction from the sky.

"Why did you do it Bluestreak? After the way I've acted…you saved me. Why?"

The blue youngling's optics remained dark and when no response was forthcoming, Hotshot sobbed harder. In some small way, he knew that he should be where Bluestreak was now…it would be the least he deserved after all that he had said and done to everyone growing up in the Alpha-Sigma Youth Sector. He supposed that bullying others gave him strength. He hid his anguish and sorrow by trading them for rage. Whenever he was mean and angry to others…it made most of the pain in his spark, go away.

Bluestreak's injured and battered body remained motionless.

"Wake up…come on…don't be a sparkling Bluestreak!"

No response.

Hotshot was getting frantic now as all attempts at waking him failed.

"Please…please wake up! YOU ARE STRONGER THAN THIS!"

Just as his despair began to drown him, a dull dim light emanated from Bluestreak's blue optics. He groaned and struggled to get up but fell back down when his pain receptors came back online.

"Bluestreak, are you okay?"

Hotshot was pretty sure it was a dumb question to ask, considering he had just been buried under a small landslide of rocks, but still.

"No…hurts. Wanna' recharge…"

His optics dimmed dangerously low and that's when Hotshot felt something wet leaking beneath his knee joints where he was kneeling next to his newfound friend. He reached down to touch it and shivered when he realized what it was.

Energon…

He was leaking energon from some injury or another.

Hotshot panicked and began to scream for help once the rumblings and crashing of the meteor shower finally died away. He struggled to the mouth of the cave and searched frantically for help even though they were far from the Youth Sector complex by now.

It was okay…the caretakers surely noticed they were missing and would send out a search party. But Hotshot knew…that Bluestreak was running out of time.

Sunny and Sides crawled over to Bluestreak's side and clicked worriedly for him, both afraid to touch him as they saw the extent of his battered frame.

"SOMEONE HELP US!!"

Hotshot continued to shriek and holler despite the fact that no one was around. He was afraid to pick up Bluestreak for fear of hurting him further. The landscape had been radically changed now that new craters dotted the ground in unfamiliar pockets, making their safe haven seem utterly foreign.

He considered running in the general direction of the blue-domed energy shield that was peeking above the top of a ridge. That idea was completely scrapped the second it disappeared once it deactivated and fizzled from view.

"PLEASE! Help…"

Hotshot sagged to his knees, as all prospect of a rescue slowly slipped away. That old, ache in his spark resurfaced until it threatened to pierce right through him. His rage…the tough, mech façade, the Hotshot that never feared anything…crumbled completely…leaving him totally exposed and vulnerable.

Please…not again. Why does every person I ever care about, have to die?!

"I'm so sorry Bluestreak…I don't know what to do," he whispered more to himself as the usually hot-tempered, overconfident, arrogant youngling lowered his head in defeat and looked at the ground in anguish.

A loud sound filled the air, breaking the silence. At first Hotshot thought it was another meteor shower as he felt a small rumble race through the ground beneath him but relaxed a notch when he spotted the ship flying overhead. He waved his arms and screamed trying to get its attention.

"OVER HERE! PLEASE COME BACK! WE NEED HELP!"

It flew over the complex but circled back around, heading straight for him. It landed nearby, sending a cloud of dust up around it.

Before long, he spotted a small contingent of Autobots running in their direction and he waved and jumped to get their attention.

"OVER HERE!"

One of them fired a signal flare into the air to let both the distant outline of Hotshot and the Youth Sector, know that they had found the missing younglings.

He raced back into the cave excitedly and knelt down next to a fading Bluestreak.

"Hang on Blue…help is coming. They are just outside!"

"Too…tired…"

"No…stay with me, okay? Please…Bluestreak, I have to tell you something," Hotshot pleaded as his spark wrenched painfully in his chest.

The blue youngling shuttered his optics in pain but opened them again to look at him. Hotshot continued and held one of Bluestreak's hands in his own as the injured youngling's dim optics stared dully up at him.

"Bluestreak…you can't die…because you are the first friend I've ever had."

Just then, the Autobots rushed into the cave some of them startled to see the condition that the blue youngling was in. One of them shouted for a medic. The medic didn't take too long to get there and he shoved his way through and knelt down next to Bluestreak grimly.

"Youngling…can you hear me?"

A soft click and a whir issued from Bluestreak, the youngling too drained for actual speech.

The medic performed a quick scan and then did some patch work, just enough to get him back to the ship. The medic gently scooped him up, mindful of his condition and carried him out, the other soldiers retrieving the other three younglings. Hotshot was too worried for Bluestreak to protest or pitch a fit. Under normal circumstances, the fiery youngling would be insulted that they were carrying him since he was perfectly capable of walking on his own two feet.

A com-link channel crackled into existence and the soldier carrying Sides responded to the hail.

::Mirage, another meteor shower is due to arrive within the next couple of breems. I suggest you get everyone moving::

::Thank you for the update, Prowl. We will be there shortly::

The medic carrying Bluestreak began to jog after overhearing the conversation. They soon arrived at the ship and boarded immediately. Sunny and Sides stared in total fascination at everything around them, since they had no memory of ever being on a starship before.

The medic took the fading youngling to the repair bay, as the little one's life now hung in the balance.

When the soldiers began to carry Hotshot away from the general direction of Bluestreak he began to kick and shriek, fighting his captors.

"That's enough!"

The barking tone of a superior officer lessened his tantrum although he still squirmed in an effort to get out of the iron grip of the Autobot holding him.

"LET ME GO!"

"What is your name, little one?"

"I'm NOT little!!"

The Autobot Commander half smiled in amusement.

"I'm-not-little…that's a rather unusual name, don't you think?" He turned to address his second in command with a smile in his voice.

"MY NAME IS HOTSHOT! NOW LET ME GO!" the fiery youngling snarled, old memories resurfacing. The Autobots were partly to blame for his parents' deaths. He would be slagged if he were to just let them take him without a fight.

He kicked and struggled again although he was no match for the seasoned warrior's strength.

The twins remained silent, both shrinking away and instinctively seeking protection in the arms of the soldiers currently holding them. The one known as Mirage subconsciously began to massage the stressed youngling's cranial unit, immediately calming him some.

Sunny chirped and clicked in distress as he watched with frightened optics as Hotshot totally fritzed out. He had never seen the older youngling act like this before and this ferocious, near blood-thirsty side of Hotshot, scared him.

The Autobot Commander took notice of this and gestured to the twins, his voice resonating with a deep, calming influence.

"Hotshot…for the little ones sake…please calm down."

He stopped struggling in order to turn and look at the cringing Sunny and Sides, both quivering in the arms of other Autobots. When they met his optics, they buried their faces into their rescuer's chests with frightened squeaks. Hotshot's face fell when he realized that they were afraid of him.

He turned to glare daggers at the officers and growled low.

"Put me down. I need to see Bluestreak."

"I'm afraid that is currently impossible."

"WHY?!"

"Our CMO is doing everything he can to save your friend…but he does not need any distractions right now," the second in command spoke up from where he was standing next to the leader, with both hands clasped behind his back.

Tears watered up into Hotshot's optics and his face broke into one of desperate pleading, revealing a new side of him to the rest of the world.

"Please…PLEASE…I'll do anything. Just please…let me see him? I need to know that he's okay!"

The Autobot Commander cut off his second in command just as he was about to reply and nodded his head thoughtfully.

"I see no harm in you watching from the observation deck. If you happen to cause any distraction, you will be forced to leave, understood?"

Hotshot nodded his head with thankfulness shining in his optics.

"Thank you."

Those two words were filled with spark-felt meaning. This was the first time the youngling had ever been truly thankful for anything in his life.

The charismatic leader gave him a short nod before turning back to the bridge with his second following him closely. The three Autobot warriors carried them to the appropriate area and stood guard close by, in the event they caused mischief or tried to wander off on their own.

The twins refused to leave Hotshot, too overwhelmed with so many new faces out and about that they needed to be with a familiar member of their own group. They stuck to the elder youngling's side like glue.

The three younglings watched through the observation window as the CMO and another medic worked quickly and efficiently to save Bluestreak's life. Before long, the three little ones were fast in recharge…too exhausted from the day's frightening experience to stay awake any longer.

Meanwhile, the Autobot Commander got back in touch with the Youth Sector.

"We have the younglings in our care. The youngling by the designation Bluestreak is currently in the repair bay, in the best of hands. My CMO has recently informed me that he will make a complete recovery."

"Thank you, Ultra Magnus. We are in your debt."

"My officers tell me that another meteor shower is due to hit within the next breem. Our shields are currently offline and in need of repairs. If it is alright with you…we will keep them in our charge for a couple of orns until it passes."

"I see no harm in that. Very well, we will see you then."

Starlight broke the com-link connection and looked mournfully over at Fireflare.

"I'm going to miss them…"

"Don't worry, they will be back."

She gave him a soft smile and nodded her head.

"I know."

The two caretakers knew that it was going to be a long two orns without the four rambunctious younglings to fill the Sector with mischief and trouble.

Youth Sector Alpha-Sigma…was going to be a lot quieter without them around.

TO BE CONTINUED!

A/N: Okay, firstly…I understand that asteroids do not generally have much gravity but for sake of argument, this asteroid is huge (like the size of a small planet) so it has gravity enough for rocks to tumble down. Secondly, I know that scientifically, you can't hear sounds in space…then again this asteroid in the story has a thin atmosphere which makes sound possible. PLEASE REVIEW! ^.^