Disclaimer: I don't own Transformers. And I'm not making a profit off of this fic. Just doing it because I'm so bored and felt like it.
This story is set in the movie verse on a 'what if' scenario. What if the Autobots had gotten to the cube and rescued it from earth and left with it? The Autobots are winning the war against the Decepticons now and word has reached them that the Decepticons have found two young girls whose race is unknown that have the abilities of the Allspark. Now it's the race against time to get to them before the Decepticons do. All this came from a crazy dream I had! Enjoy! Warning, it will be long! And probably many chapters! I don't know how to make short stories!
Children of the Allspark
Chapter one:
They had been best friends since birth, were able to finish each other's thoughts and sentences and knew when the other was in pain. They were twins, identical no less. Ashalyn and Ashadawna faced each other with a grim determination. Only one was going to win, there could be no second place.
Lips tightly pressed together, Ashalyn made her move. "Check mate." She said with a smirk.
Ashadawna shook her head and looked in vain at her sister's move. There was no escaping it, she was totally blocked in, the queen one way, a bishop the next and a pawn no less the other way. She scowled and tossed her hands in the air. "You're too good at this game, Lyn. Why'd you get all the smarts and me all the looks?"
Ashalyn's mouth dropped in shock. "You got all the looks?! Unless it escaped your noticed we're identical!"
Ashadawna feigned a hurt expression. "Yes, but I am the better looking of the two of us." Lyn lunged at her sister and knocked the small table and her sister down with her. They wrestled on the floor for a couple of seconds until Ashadawna yelped. "Alright! You win! I yield!" She squeaked as her twin had her arm pinned behind her back painfully.
Lyn smirked in triumph and released her sister. "I always win, you should know better than to challenge me." She held her head up with confidence.
Dawn rubbed her arm with a frown. "I didn't challenge you." She mumbled. "I only stated the obvious." With that, she suddenly leaped to her feet and raced away before the other could catch her.
"HEY! SOME OF US ARE TRYING TO WORK DOWN HERE!" A voice roared from downstairs, stopping both girls in their tracks.
"SORRY!" They both yelled in unison before smiling at one another.
"We'd better find something a little quieter to do, or he's gonna tear us a new one." Lyn suggested as she walked back over to the fallen table and up righted it.
Dawn nodded as she walked over and started to pick up the pieces of the chess board set. "Yeah, but it was fun though while it lasted." She said with a smile.
"I always win." Lyn said with a smirk as she helped her sister find all the pieces, putting them into the case where they belonged.
Dawn rolled her eyes. "Only because you're mean and ruthless, I'm not that rough with you!" She pointed out, but Lyn just shrugged.
"That's your fault. Get a backbone." She said as she straightened and locked eyes with her twin.
Dawn was frowning. Her sister was a mirror of herself in many ways, long white hair, intense blue eyes, slender, curves, and breasts that seemed to be the perfect size, and pale skin, but there were differences, however slight. For instance, Lyn had a black speck in her right eye; they were told once that it was the mark of something . . . but she couldn't remember what. And they both had a crescent moon shape on their abdomen, only Lyn's faced left, and Dawn's faced right. And the biggest difference of them all were the wings, Lyn's were dark grey with black trimming the tips, and Dawn's were white with bluish tips. At the moment, neither had their wings out, having the ability to 'retract' their wings at will back into themselves. No one was sure how exactly it was done, but no one knew exactly what race the twins were either. They were simply classified as "Unknowns". It didn't really bother them that badly, sure people made fun of them for it, but it was usually Lyn that made them pay for their remarks with her abilities while Dawn got teary eyed and upset. Lyn was always the stronger of the two . . . Dawn thought as Lyn frowned at her.
"What's the matter with you? Something wrong? Why're you looking at me like that?" Lyn asked, putting her hand on her right hip, cocking her hip to the side.
Dawn shook her head. "Just you. Why are you so aggressive?"
Lyn got a sassy smirk and relied back. "Why are you so submissive?" Dawn sighed and dropped it. It was the same statement she always made when confronted with how extremely aggressive she was towards everyone. Dawn had passed it off as a defense mechanism to protect her from the pain others caused by what they said and how they looked at the two. They mostly picked on Lyn; after all, she was the one they'd get a rise out of. So her need for defense was sort of her own making, Dawn had reasoned.
"Wanna go for a walk?" Dawn asked, looking longingly out the window at the beautiful day, but Lyn shook her head.
"Nah, but you can. I've got stuff to do around here." Lyn said offhandishly. Dawn shrugged and grabbed her jacket and headed for the stairs, Lyn watched her go in silence. A familiar ache formed in her chest at seeing her twin walk away from her. She'll be back, Lyn thought as she turned her attention back to her messy desk. She sighed and started to carefully rearrange the papers.
The sound of footsteps on the stairs brought her attention back, she frowned. It wasn't Dawn, didn't feel like her at all. The door knocked lightly. "Asha?" Lyn's frown deepened.
"She's not here; she went for a walk, what's up Kyle?" Lyn asked as she walked over to the door and opened it, inviting the other inside.
Kyle gave her a weak smile. "Umm, there's someone trying to reach her, did she take her communicator with her?" Lyn nodded.
"What's up? Trouble? Because we've been here for the past week, you know." Lyn said quickly, trying to fight down the rising panic at being blamed for another 'incident' in the city.
Kyle quickly raised his hands and shook his head. "Oh no, it's not the government or anything, just an individual looking for Asha." He reassured her quickly.
"Just her?" Lyn sounded slightly offended.
Kyle shrugged. "Doesn't sound like a local; it's possible it's an outsider that doesn't know there are two of you." Lyn sighed. Outsiders were trouble. "I'll just ring her up downstairs and see if she'll give the guy a call back, he gave me a frequency, really strange one at that." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Could be one of your kind looking for some lost kids or something."
Lyn laughed. "After nearly twenty-one years? You've got to be kidding. I think if they wanted to find us they'd have looked us up a long time ago." She said with a small snort of disbelief.
Kyle, ever optimistic, shrugged and turned toward the door. "If ya need anything just come down and give me a holler, okay?" Lyn nodded and waved him away; he turned and disappeared down the stairs.
Lyn's frown deepened. This new stranger contacting Dawn couldn't be good news. Everyone in these parts knew that they were inseparable. But if they were from far away and didn't know anyone here, than it was possible they were only aware of Dawn . . . but why just Dawn and not her? Dawn kept to herself and was the quiet, shy one of the two of them. How would anyone have heard of her and not herself? Lyn shook her head and went back to her desk, leaving her door open. Too many questions, they'd all be answered when Dawn got back and told her how the call worked out. After all, Dawn didn't keep secrets from her, it was their agreement, there were to be no secrets. Ever.
Dawn was stopped in a café when her communicator went off. She unfastened it from her belt loop and answered it. "Dawn speaking."
"Hey, yo girl! You got a call while you were out, some foreigner lookin' for ya. I'll send you the frequency, says it's important you get back to 'im as fast as possible." Kyle's voice informed her as she looked around wearily at her surroundings. No one seemed interested in their conversation.
"A frequency huh? Wow . . . that is new. Huh, well send it on through and I'll give them a ring." Dawn told him as she watched her communicator blink as it received the information.
"All set Asha, just take care out there, okay? Don't wanna have another incident or nothing, which was the rule for being allowed in the city, remember?" Dawn sighed.
"I'm the good one, remember? I've never caused an incident, it's always been Lyn." Kyle snorted and said goodbye and the communicator went dead. She took a deep breath and keyed up the frequency to connect with her new mysterious 'friend', or at least she hoped she could consider this person a friend, they certainly didn't need any enemies . . . She looked around. Nah, it was too public here, she'd go somewhere a little more private, but where? A thought sprang into her head and she smiled. Of course, she thought as she started off toward her destination.
Meanwhile. . .
Jazz looked at Ratchet expectantly. "Well? Do you think she'll contact you back? She doesn't know you, probably paranoid if our information was correct, why would she contact you back?"
Ratchet sighed. "I chose her for a reason. She's the calmer of the two of them. She'll contact us. Don't worry; we just have to give them time to find her to tell her we tried to contact her. She'll contact us." He repeated, reassuring the smaller mechanoid.
"What if they got to them first? They probably told them that we're the bad guys, you know it's a possibility." Ironhide interjected.
"That's a risk we'll just have to take. Hopefully we got here first." Came the deep voice of Optimus from the front of the bridge.
"I haven't picked up the Nemesis on any scanners, and the planet's news hasn't spoken of anything being close to a decepticon threat either, so I think we got here first." Ratchet said as he scanned over the systems one last time. Still no visible threat.
"They could be hidin' behind that moon, you realize." Ironhide said as he gestured out the port view at the moon in the distance. "They could hide from radar and scanners that way."
"It is possible but I don't think so, if they were there, they'd have come out to fight us by now." Ratchet was saying when a small beeping caught his attention. It was his comm. He took a deep breath and looked at the others for support, Optimus nodded and he answered.
The communicator beeped a few times before a voice answered. "Is this Ashadawna?" She blinked in surprise, not what she'd been expecting, but obviously she had been expected to respond.
"Yes, this is she." She replied formally. "What do I do the honor of this . . . er . . . call?" She winced; she wasn't the one who was good at handling these situations. Maybe I should have let Lyn call them back? She thought as she listened to the response.
"My name is Ratchet, I have heard a lot about you." The voice told her.
Good, the mysterious person had a name, she thought, but answered immediately by muttering. "And nothing good I can imagine."
There was a slight pause, than the response. "On the contrary. I understand the powers you and your sister are experiencing and can tell you that you are in dire danger." Dawn swallowed hard; she looked around her and saw only the trees and flowers in the afternoon light. No immediate danger.
"Oh?" She tried to sound detached like Lyn always was, but winced at the fear she heard in her voice.
"There are beings that are aware of your unique powers and are more than likely in route to intercept you and your sister. We are here to offer you protection." There, Ratchet thought, it was as direct as he dared to be, he couldn't be any more direct than that. Now to see if she believed him as he calculated she would.
"Beings . . . what kind of beings?" She asked, and there was a pause on the other end.
"I and my fellows need to meet with you. Today preferably. Would you permit this?" Ratchet asked, as Optimus nodded his approval.
It was Dawn's turn to pause. Meet them? Wasn't that dangerous? What if he turned out to be a bad guy who was looking for them? But what if he wasn't? What if he was telling the truth and only wanted to help? She took a deep breath. She would trust her gut, and her gut told her this person would help her. "Yes."
"Thank you. We must meet somewhere in private, away from prying eyes, do you know a place?" Ratchet had several in mind, but chose to let her decide on the best place, and would offer suggestions if hers were unreliable.
Another slight pause. "Um . . . yes, where I live is a wild area just a few miles west of it, farthest away from the city. There is a fairly large clearing next to the river. I can send you the coordinates if you'd like."
"Send them please." He responded, she typed them in and sent them, he scanned the area for them and found them to be among his top three places of choice. Excellent, this was working out well so far, he thought with a small smile. "Can you meet us there in. . ." A brief pause while he conferred with Optimus silently. "One hour?" He finished, asking her.
She thought about it for a moment, it might take her the entire hour to get there. "Alright, but it might take me a little while longer to get there. It's a good hour walk away from where I am now. But I'll meet you there. Should I bring my sister?"
"No, please, just you for now, having the two of your together are a beacon enough to bring their attention if they're looking for it." Ratchet said, hoping she'd accept the excuse, if Ashalyn were to get involved their meeting might go sour. Ashalyn was the aggressive one. Always looking for a fight.
Dawn seemed to pick up on that. "Alright. She'd probably be really suspicious of you and your friends anyways." She said with a sigh. It wasn't a lie, Lyn didn't get where she was today by being a faith-believer like herself. Lyn survived off of suspicion and paranoia.
"Very well. I will see you in approx one hour." The communicator went dead. She looked around and stood up. Better get started on getting there. She thought as she headed down the little path towards the main road which would lead her to the little off road and to her destination.
Lyn paced miserably. Her sister should have been back a long time ago. She'd tried to bring her up on the comm. But there was no answer. Worry getting the better of her, she snatched her jacket off the peg on the wall and hurried down stairs. Her sister always went into the city into downtown to think when she took her walks. Lyn shuddered. She couldn't stand the city, too many people, and too many variables for disaster waiting to happen. She preferred the lonely wild that was their practical backyard. She waved bye to Kyle, who nodded an acknowledgement and skidded to a halt. Her vehicle wasn't where she left it. She'd left it parked in the garage . . . but here it was, parked right outside. She was tempted to holler back at Kyle for taking her baby on a cruise ride without her permission but decided that finding Dawn was a more suitable course of action. After all, Dawn could be in serious trouble, people could be poking fun at her or worse. The 'or worse' sent a chill down her spine. She placed her hand on the panel and the door opened for her. She sat down and prepared to close the door when a funny series of things happened.
The door closed on its own, the vehicle started, and than proceeded to drive on its own. Lyn blinked in surprise as the safety belt latched around her of its own accord. "What the hell is going on?" She demanded, flipping switches trying to gain control of the vehicle.
"Stop that or you'll regret it." Came a deep, angry strange voice from somewhere in the dash.
Lyn stopped instantly, and took a deep breath and looked around her at the vehicle. On the dash was a symbol that her vehicle didn't have. This wasn't her vehicle . . . Cold dread washed over her, so where was she going? "Where are you taking me?" She demanded, smug that the only thing in her voice was anger and not the fear that was boiling beneath the surface.
"You'll find out soon enough." Was the growled response.
She slumped back in the seat and folded her arms over her chest. Fine. I guess I will. She thought bitterly as she watched the scenery. Whatever was going on probably wasn't good. And she had no doubt that it was probably centered on her strange powers. She contemplated using them to attack the computer components of the vehicle, but decided against that, as she knew nothing of her kidnapper and didn't want to just piss him off even more than he apparently already was.
She frowned. They were headed away from the city, towards the open wasteland that lay three hundred-fifty miles outside the city. Fear gnawed at her. The wastelands were dangerous . . . few came back from there; it was a dangerous place under the best of cases. "Are we headed toward the desert?" She asked, not trying to hide her fear this time.
There was smugness to the other's voice as he answered. "Yes."
"But it's dangerous there . . . people don't come back from there." She muttered fearfully.
"Don't worry; you'll be safe enough with us. Nothing will harm you." The voice seemed to soften a little, ever so slightly, but Lyn picked up on it instantly. She felt a little relieved that she wasn't going to be abandoned out there.
"As long as you don't leave me out there." She muttered darkly.
The other laughed. "It all depends on your attitude and your decisions." Was the only response.
The rest of the trip was done in silence. She watched as the familiar sites turned into the unforgiving sights of the desert. She sighed deeply, fear causing her stomach to clench as she fought back the waves of panic that tried to set in. This isn't doing me any good, she thought; I have to get a grip! With that, she roughly pushed aside her fear and took her anger in at the situation, letting her anger protect her. She felt her power boil up inside her chest, she embraced it and held on to it tightly, ready to use it should the need arise.
After what seemed like an eternity, but only three hours and forty more minutes of driving, they pulled up to the sight she couldn't believe. Five huge mechs were waiting right where the talking vehicle pulled up to. "Get out." Came the deep metallic voice. The door opened and the safety restraint left her. She sighed, no guts, no glory, she thought as she climbed out of the vehicle.
No sooner than she got out did the vehicle undergo some strange transformation and become another mech among the other five. Not quite as tall as the others, he was still huge compared to her. "Well done, Barricade." The deep voice came from the tallest of the mechs, apparently their leader.
Barricade nodded once and fell back with the others as the larger mech walked over to her, stopping ten feet away, kneeled down as to not over shadow her so much and looked at her hard. He scanned her and was surprised at the power she contained; it was like scanning the Allspark itself! A smirk crept across his lips, this was the chance he'd been waiting for, and opportunities like this one didn't come by every day. He'd waited more than a few thousand eons for something like this to happen, and more hoped than expected it ever would.
"You must be the invulnerable Ashalyn." The large mech said softly as he continued to scan her, well aware of the power she was holding at the ready. I must use caution if I am to gain her trust, he thought as he watched her cock her head to the side and fold her arms over her chest protectively.
"What of it?" She asked, her fear forgotten as her curiosity over how this . . . mech got her know her name. "Who're you? Since you obviously know who I am . . ."
His smirk broadened. "I am called Megatron. I have traveled a long way to see you." He told her softly, watching her body language closely for any signs of stress or anger.
"Megatron huh? Nice to meet you." She said with a smirk, than added with a cocky smile. "I'd shake your hand, but . . . seeing as how I fit in your hand that's not going to work now is it?" Lyn tried the joke out; humor always smoothed things over in the past when there were awkward moments.
Megatron couldn't help but to chuckle. She had spunk. How many fleshlings had he come across that fainted at the mere sight of him, she seemed unafraid. He voiced his observation. "You seem unafraid, have you encountered my kind before?" He asked, thinking of the Autobots and the possibilities of them having gotten to the twins first.
But she shook her head. "No, but I figure this is a big universe, there are bound to be things in it I've never seen, so I've tried thinking of all the possibilities before and you just confirm one of them." Plus I've had dreams about things like you in the past . . . she thought to herself as she continued to watch Megatron.
Megatron couldn't help but be slightly impressed at how well she was handling the situation. "I see . . ." He said, ceasing his scans he watched her curiously.
"So, what am I here for? After all, you didn't go through all the trouble of bringing me here for no reason than to look at me." Lyn asked bluntly. She'd never been one for subtly.
Direct. I like that. Megatron thought as he chuckled softly to himself. "I have need of your unique abilities. You must by now know that you are beyond just simply special. You must realize how much you can do with your powers." He said softly to her. She felt herself oddly reassured by his voice. Had she known that this was one of the most feared persons in the universe, she might have felt differently, but she didn't know that.
"My powers are more of a nuisance if anything; there isn't much I can do with them." She lied smoothly as she watched the other carefully for any signs that might give her any indication what the other was thinking.
Megatron, who was still keeping an eye on her vitals, picked up the lie instantly. He frowned down at her. "Let's make an agreement, shall we? I will not lie to you, if you don't lie to me."
Lyn shifted uncomfortably. How had he known? She thought as she nodded her head reluctantly. "Fine. Agreed."
"Now, I will rephrase my statement. You must know by now what your powers are capable of and how powerful you are." Lyn nodded albeit reluctantly, so he continued. "I am certain your twin's powers are nearly identical to your own, am I correct in this assumption?"
Lyn shook her head. "She's weaker than me, her power isn't as potent. I got the brains, the power and the strength." Lyn said with a lift of her head as her pride swelled within her.
Megatron smirked. He was really starting to like her for a fleshling, she had what few of them had, a spirit that was strong and unbending. He just hoped it wouldn't be a spirit that he would have to break to bend it to his will. But he doubted it, the right words and she'd play right into his hand.
"So, you still haven't answered my question. Why am I here?" Lyn demanded, shifting her position wearily as she felt the ground beneath her tremble, fear blossomed in her stomach, but she did her best to ignore it.
Megatron sighed. "I am here because I need your abilities."
Lyn interrupted him impatiently. "You already stated such, what else? How do you need my abilities and more importantly . . . why?"
Megatron chose to ignore the interruption and continue on. "Our enemies have stolen something that was rightfully ours; it is a powerful artifact that gives life to our kind. They use it for their own purposes and do not share its power with us. I have need of your abilities because your powers are nearly identical to that of the artifact's power, if my information is correct. However, I do need to test that theory . . . if you do not mind, that is." Lyn shrugged, it wasn't the first time someone had wanted to see proof of her power for themselves, and she knew he would be more than capable of handling the side effects unlike the puny creatures that she lived around everyday. Demonstrations were nothing to her, she'd just do what he wanted her to and that would be it.
"Fine. How do you want me to prove it?" She asked him, glancing uneasily at the other mechs as they drew closer, interested in seeing her power in action for themselves.
Megatron pointed behind him to the solitary massive tank sitting in the desert sands a few yards from one of the other mechs. "See that?" She nodded, trying hard not to swallow hard, the tank was huge . . . if he wanted her to do what she thought, there was gonna be trouble . . . "I want you to use your power and put the spark of life within it." She swallowed hard and felt the color leave her face, she'd never given something that big life before, it was intimidating. "But I want you to focus on giving it intelligence. I'm sure you know what I'm talking about." Lyn looked at him warily. She knew exactly what he was referring too. He stood and stepped out of her way, pointing to the massive tank behind him.
Lyn walked slowly toward it, well aware of the other five mechs looming over her as she walked past Barricade to get to the tank. It seemed to be the longest walk she'd ever taken, but as she closed the distance, she refocused her power, gathering it up within her until she felt she would burst. She'd given a vehicle intelligence once, it'd been impossibly smart and had decided that because the military had taken her away, it was going to attack; it had taken several tanks and LOTS of ammunition to take it down. If this thing went battle crazed it would take much, much more to take it down. This was reinforced and armored where the vehicle hadn't been. Upon standing in the tank's shadow, she wiped the sweat from her face with the back of her hand and felt the tickle of the sweat sliding down her back and between her breasts; she removed her jacket and tied it around her waist without a thought. Distantly she thought about how only a few miles meant the difference between the chilly air of the city and this hot and unbearable heat of the desert.
Looking at the mechs around her she wondered what would happen if the result wasn't to their liking. Would she ever get to see her twin again? Would they kill her? She reached out and touched the armor of the tank, flinching slightly at the scalding surface. But I have to touch it, she thought as she pressed her hand against the hot surface, putting aside the pain as she let the power wash through her. Her skin tingled; the air around her seemed to crackle with energy as she brought it to sharp focus before her. "No guts, no glory." She muttered as she released the power into the tank.
The tank shuddered, vibrating in a familiar way she had seen before as she stepped back warily. She wasn't really afraid for herself, none of her creations ever turned on her, it was others that they always attacked, but Barricade snatched her back quickly anyway, unaware of her lack of danger. The tank gave another shudder than suddenly underwent a transformation. Standing before them was a tank no longer, but a thirty-five foot mech. He seemed to hesitate, searching for something than raised a massive arm and pointed an ominous looking weapon at Barricade, who looked warily at the others. Another huge mech pointed his weapon at the transformed tank.
Megatron ignored the display and spoke directly to the tank. "What are you called?"
The tank looked at Megatron and seemed to hesitate for a moment, than spoke in a young tenor voice with the hint of the metallic sound their voices held. "Crisis."
Megatron smiled and gestured to the large mech to lower his weapon, he seemed reluctant. "Bonecrusher, there is no need for violence against a Brother." Bonecrusher hesitated a moment longer, than powered down his pulse cannon and relaxed.
Crisis remained pointing his weapon at Barricade as Megatron walked casually over and loomed over the tank. "No one will harm you, we could use someone of your talents." He followed Crisis' sight and it dawned on him that he was worried for Lyn. Unfortunate side effect, he mumbled to himself as he nodded to Barricade. "Release Ashalyn, she is in no danger." Barricade shrugged and obliged his leader, placing Lyn down on the ground. Megatron placed a large hand on the tank's arm and lowered his weapon. "No need for violence, she is in good hands."
Lyn watched in stunned silence. She hadn't expected this, and while she had been extremely worried in Barricade's hand, she had thought she had hidden it well until the tank had turned on Barricade. Her creations were always loyal to her. It was a 'side effect' that always seemed to get her creations killed. On five occasions had they not been loyal and those had been disastrous for everyone around her, especially herself. But that hadn't happened since she was a young child, at least a decade ago. "Crisis." She breathed, the tank looked over at her, and she felt herself blush under the sudden attention.
Megatron drew Crisis' attention once more to him. He released a sonic pulse of communication to the other as a faster way to communicate with little effort. The tank answered in his burst of sonic. Megatron smiled and clasped the tank on the back. "Welcome." He said as the tank looked sheepishly around at the others who were showing welcome as well. Lyn was a little confused, having not heard the sonic communication between them and gave a short breath of agitation.
"I've proven myself, what now?" She asked bluntly as she tried to ignore the six mechs, excluding the tank, as they looked at her.
Megatron looked thoughtful as Crisis walked over to stand beside Bonecrusher who was using sonic waves to debrief the newest Decepticon. "You have proven yourself to be most powerful. Far beyond what I expected. I am impressed, and that is no easy feat." He told her as he walked over to her and knelt down to be closer to her level so she wouldn't have to squint to look up at him.
"That's nice to know." She mumbled as she continued to look up at the huge mech.
Megatron continued. "I would like to recruit you to our cause. Wouldn't it be nice to use your powers as they were meant to be used, instead of hiding away like a refugee? Your powers were meant to be used to their maximum, wouldn't it be nice to allow yourself free reign instead of constantly suppressing yourself?" The idea sparked a familiar pang of regret in Lyn.
How many years had she longed to use her powers freely, and been forced to live the life of a normal? The offer was more than tempting. "Can I think on it?" She asked feebly, cursing herself mentally for sounding such.
Megatron smiled. "Of course, but don't wait too long, we can not stay here for long." He cautioned her, having no intentions of leaving her on this rock, she was coming with him whether she agreed to come along or not. If he had to take her by force, she would eventually learn to obey him, even if he had to break that spirit he admired so much in her. And if she went with them willingly? All for the better!
"I only need to talk to my twin." She said with a little more confidence; she puffed herself up and smirked. "I'm sure my sister will find this offer as tempting as I do." She stated as she looked back over to Crisis and the others, wishing she knew their names beyond Bonecrusher and Barricade, the others remained a mystery to her.
"I will have you returned here tomorrow than, I will expect your answer then." He told her as he stood and gestured to Barricade. "Take her home." Barricade underwent the fascinating transformation back into her vehicle's look-a-like and drove over to her, opening the door for her to climb in. "Remember, tomorrow afternoon, you need to come to a decision." She nodded as she climbed in.
"I already know my decision. I only have to talk to my twin." She said with a smile as the door closed and the safety belt latched itself across her and Barricade drove her back towards the city and her home in the late evening light.
Six hours priors. . .
Dawn approached the meeting place with apprehension. She had no idea who she was meeting with or what they would say. But the prospects of there being danger to her and her twin made the apprehension fade to a mere flutter in her stomach. She was late, and she knew it. It had taken her longer than she had originally thought to make the walk. She hadn't put the foot traffic into account and had been held up by unexpected construction along the way. She sighed, if it was that important, her 'friend' would still be waiting for her there, hopefully not angry about the prolonged absence.
Ratchet looked at the others nervously, they had discussed at length how best to address the young fleshling, should they be in an alt mode? Or should they be in their natural bipedal forms? The final decision had been their natural bipedal forms. So they stood in the clearing, large from Dawn's point of view, but just large enough to hold the five of them. What if she had been abducted by a Decepticon? How long should he wait before trying to contact her again to check on her progress? He scanned the area and sighed in relief as he found her approaching through the forest just south of them. "She's coming." He informed them unnecessarily, they too had been scanning the area for her.
"Let us hope we have made the proper decision." Optimus murmured as they watched and waited for her to appear through the trees.
"What if the Decepticons have swayed her first?" Ironhide asked for nearly the fiftieth time.
"I am 99.97 positive that they have not, and would not engage with young Ashadawna, perhaps her sister, but not her personally." Ratchet reassured the large Autobot for the fiftieth time.
The other grunted. Bumblebee shifted his weight and pointed as the trees moved ahead. "Here's the moment of truth." He said softly, grateful for the fact that his vocal processors were working again, having been restored by the Allspark shortly after regaining it.
They all watched in anticipation as Dawn emerged from the trees.
She stopped, her heart nearly leapt out of her chest. Panic set in. Should I run? Could I make it without being caught? She asked herself as she thought about the danger she had been warned of.
"It's alright, we're friends." Ratchet told her calmly, Dawn immediately recognized the voice as the one she had been communicating with and relaxed visibly. Not the threat then, the friends. She thought as she approached them with caution. "I am Ratchet, these, are my fellows I told you would be accompanying me." He gestured to the others. He pointed to each of them as he introduced her to them. "This is Ironhide, our weapons specialist, Bumblebee, our espionage specialist and scout, Jazz, the first lieutenant, and our leader Optimus Prime." Dawn smiled at each as she was introduced, for Optimus though, she gave a slight curtsey of respect. He smiled at the sign of reverence of authority and silently wondered if Ashalyn would have shown the same respect.
"It's nice to meet you all, but what are you to the group Ratchet?" Dawn asked, mentally noting each one's importance to the group.
Ratchet smiled. "I am the medic of the group." Dawn nodded, than looked at Optimus.
"So, you were stressing that it was important to talk to me today? What is this all about?" Her eyes locked with Optimus' blue optics.
Okay, she's direct and knows who has the answers. Optimus thought as he smiled lightly and stepped closer to her, kneeling down as to not over shadow her too much. "You and your sister are in grave danger, as Ratchet told you earlier. Our enemies have received word of your unique powers and abilities. They would use you to their own devices; your powers would be of great importance to them. They are called Decepticons, they are evil beyond imagining. We have warred with them for many, many years over an ancient artifact that is finally within our grasp. Without this artifact they can no longer gain power in their favor. You have a power which is not unlike our artifact, which we call the Allspark." Optimus explained softly, watching her closely to make sure this was making sense. She nodded for him to continue. "With your unique gifts, the Decepticons could regain a foothold in this war and the stakes will be raised high once more. It is important that we keep them from gaining control of you, as I am certain they will try to do."
Dawn stayed silent, letting his words sink in. After a few minutes, she spoke. "So, these Decepticons are evil and you are trying to stop them from what? What is their goal?"
A reasonable question to ask, giving her lack of knowledge about either side. "They want to conquer the known universe and destroy any who stand in their way." Optimus answered solemnly.
Dawn nodded, slowly mulling the information over in her mind. "And you and yours are not interested in using our powers." It wasn't a question.
It was a dangerous statement. "No, we have our Allspark, your powers are not important to our cause, only to ensure your safety and freedom are our concerns." Optimus answered cautiously.
Dawn nodded. Were Lyn here this would have gone very sour very fast, she thought as she watched the large mech curiously. "If they are called Decepticons, what are you and your faction called?"
The question caught him a little off guard. "Autobots." He answered briefly. She nodded.
"I can guess that the Decepticons would try to lure us to their side first rather than just take us against our will, after all, our cooperation is better than forcing us to use our powers against our will." The others nodded. She took a deep breath. "What is required of us to do then?"
Optimus gave the others a quick glance. This was the moment of truth, of whether they would accept the help or shove it away. "We need you to come with us, so we can protect you from the Decepticons. We can not protect you on this planet. Our kind would not be understood or accepted. You are in grave danger here without the Decepticon threat, I'm sure you're aware of it." Dawn winced. How much did they know? The military had been increasingly hard on them not to use their powers and each time there was an incident the pressure had been increased on them. It was only a matter of time until actions were taken against them. Optimus was right; they were in grave danger without any threat from outsiders.
"I agree, but I still have to talk to my sister about all this. Regardless of what she decides, I'm with you. I don't wanna lose my freedom to either the government or the Decepticons." Dawn said as she frowned suddenly. "But it might be hard to sway Lyn to this decision. She's always been a fierce fighter, the idea of fighting on two fronts and using her powers on both might be entertaining for her." Optimus fought to hide the wince. It was what he was afraid of, and why they had approached Dawn rather than Lyn. Dawn was a pacifist. Lyn was far from it.
"We will meet here again some time soon, I will give you time to talk things over with Lyn. Contact us when you have reached an agreeable decision. We really need you both to effectively protect you from them, but if we can only rescue you, at least we will have accomplished something." Dawn felt a pang of sudden sympathy for the leader of the Autobots. He was fighting a war with someone who would offer Lyn exactly what she wanted. Unlimited access to her powers, and she didn't feel the Autobots would give the same offer.
Dawn nodded. "I should be getting back, I've been gone far longer than I normally am and Lyn will go crazy unless I pop up soon." She glanced at the others, they nodded their understanding.
"Very well. Remember. Contact us when you have reached a decision. We will be waiting." She nodded and gave a small curtsey to Optimus and turned to leave. "If there is trouble, do not hesitate to call upon us either." He called after her; she turned, flashed a smile and disappeared in a run through the tree line.
"Think there will be trouble?" Bumblebee asked, looking at his leader expectantly.
Optimus shook his head. "I hope not, but given our luck, there most likely will be." He said as he rubbed the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "Why do I get the bad feeling we're already too late?" He asked no one in particular, the others offered silent comfort to their leader as they waited for him to signal their departure back to the ship.
It was late afternoon when Dawn arrived at the manor. Kyle smiled at her and waved her over. She trotted over to him, looking up the stairs expecting to see Lyn pop her head out and yell at her for being so late. "What's up, Kyle?"
"Listen, I think Lyn went looking for you. She left in a big hurry. Better try to call her on her comm. I don't wanna see the two of you get into another fight, last one cost me nearly twenty thousand in damages." He offered a weak smile.
Dawn winced and chuckled weakly. "Yeah, sorry about that . . . we kinda got carried away."
"Yeah, well, be grateful that the manor is sealed from outsiders looking in, the two of you were sending enough energy to charge a city the size of Lumis." (Lumis is twenty-fold the size of NYC) He told her as he sighed and went back to his papers.
"I'll call her, alright?" Kyle nodded and Dawn trotted up the stairs, wincing at the still disheveled mess that was Lyn's desk. How can she live like that! Dawn wondered as she walked over and started to rearrange the papers with one hand while dialing Lyn with the other on her comm.
A beeping sounded to the left of the misshapen stack of folders. Dawn groaned. "She forgot the comm. . ." She would never hear the end of it when Lyn got back and discovered her already home. And she still had to talk to Lyn about the Autobots. Oh this was going to be a lovely time.
It was nearly dark when Lyn opened the door to the manor and crept up the stairs, she knew that Dawn was home because Kyle had asked her if she'd contacted her. Wonder how long she's been back? Lyn wondered as she opened their door and found Dawn deep in meditation on the floor in front of the huge bay window. "I'm back." She said softly as she sat down next to Dawn.
Dawn's eyes opened and Lyn frowned. They were full of worry. "Where've you been? I've been back for hours! And you didn't take the communicator with you!" Lyn sighed.
"Forgot all about it, was in such a hurry to come to your rescue. I figured those people in town were giving you a hard time, so I rushed off. But hey, listen, I've got a proposition for you." Lyn was saying when Dawn held up her hand.
"Actually, I've got a proposition for you as well, but can I say mine first?" Lyn pursed her lips together but nodded. "Alright, listen, I got word today that we're in danger." Lyn rolled her eyes. "No, listen, seriously! We're in danger from a group of beings called the Decepticons; they want us because of our power. They'll use us until we're of no more use to them. They're evil; they make our military here look like kids at play." Lyn did something unexpected, she stiffened. Dawn swallowed back a lump of fear. "The beings offering us protection are called the Autobots, I think we should go with them and let them protect us. They are only concerned with our freedom and well being. . ."
Lyn snapped, anger evident in her eyes causing them to cast an eerie gleam in the failing light as power filled Lyn's body. "I will not go running under someone else's skirts! And as for the 'Decepticon' threat? I believe I met them today, and they're not nearly as bad as your 'Autobots' make them out to be! I like them! They have promised me that I can finally use my powers as they were meant to be used! They have promised me freedoms that I have only dreamed of before! So you go to your precious Autobots and I will go to the Decepticons, if that is what they are called!" Dawn's eyes were filled with tears; her worst nightmares were being realized right now. She and her twin were headed in two different directions.
"Lyn! Please! Listen to reason! They're just going to use you! They're evil! They mean no good! Please come with me to the Autobots! They'll protect you! We'll be free from all this! Please Lyn!" She begged, but her sister had already whirled away and was shoving things into a bag. Dawn's tears flowed freely as she desperately tried to reach her sister's closed mind. "Please! Don't leave me like this! We're twins! We're meant to stay together! Don't go where I can't follow!" She pleaded as she tugged on the back of Lyn's shirt.
Lyn jerked out of her grip and zippered the bag shut. She swirled to face Dawn, her eyes shining with the power she clutched tightly to her. "Than follow me, because I will not become a slave again." She said darkly.
Dawn stood in her way of the door. "I'll not let you go! You don't have any idea what you're getting yourself into!" Lyn's eyes shone brightly as the power came to the surface, giving her eyes an unearthly silver shine.
"Get. Out. Of. My. Way." Lyn said through gritted teeth, barely holding onto her power.
"No, Lyn, I won't let you throw your life away!" She was about to say more when she felt a crushing weight grab her around her waist and chest, nearly lift her off the ground and squeeze.
"I warned you nicely; don't make me say it again." Lyn warned, Dawn gathered her own power and forced the grip off of her, but the other was simply too strong. Lyn readjusted her grip, lifting Dawn entirely off the ground and tossed her effortlessly into the opposite wall, Dawn slid down the wall groaning in pain.
The sound brought Kyle running up. "What's going on!" He demanded, but came face to face with a pissed off Lyn.
"Just go back downstairs, Kyle." Lyn growled, but Kyle pulled the taser wand from his belt and raised it threateningly.
"Don't make me disable you, Lyn, I don't wanna use force against you!" He warned as the taser wand whined with the electricity charging through it.
Lyn laughed, her eyes shining wickedly in the failing light. "Don't make me laugh, you don't stand a chance!" With that, Kyle lunged at Lyn, but she was quicker, she latched a tight hold of him around the chest and lifted him into the air, he gasped as the air was forced from his lungs with the pressure of her grip. Lyn smiled wickedly as she twisted his arm with her powers, forcing him to drop the wand. Dawn watched in horror as she tried to get back up to her feet, she knew she wasn't going to make it in time to save Kyle.
"Release me!" He gasps breathlessly as she squeezed tighter.
Lyn shook her head as she ran her tongue over her teeth in pleasure of the sight before her. How many times had he used that taser wand against her to stop her from using her powers against others or her sister? How many times had she wanted to do this to him? He had it coming for a long time now! He was a part of them! The government that held her and her sister in such high contempt! But she'd be their slave no longer! She squeezed tighter until she heard a series of pops and his mouth opened wide in pain and terror.
"Lyn! Stop it! You're gonna kill him!" Dawn pleaded as she stumbled to her feet, her ribs screaming in protest to the movement. But the look in Lyn's eyes stopped her cold in her tracks. Lyn was well aware of what she was doing. She was getting the revenge she had promised all those years ago when they'd first fallen into the government's hands.
Lyn looked at Kyle with a wicked grin. "Promise made." She shifted her power to enfold his heart; he made the only sound his air deprived lungs could make as she squeezed his heart into failure. "Promise kept." She said as she released him and let him fall to the floor with a thud.
Dawn's eyes were filled with tears as Lyn shouldered her bag and walked down the steps, casually stepping over Kyle's fallen form. Dawn rushed over to him and wept as she felt for the pulse she knew would be still. Lyn had promised them years ago she would kill her captors, they had laughed at her. Lyn always kept her promises . . .
Lyn smiled at the look-a-like car parked in front of the manor. "I accept." She said simply to Barricade who opened the door obligingly. "My sister isn't coming." She said as she got in. Barricade closed the door after her, wrapped the safety restraint across her and drove her to where he would meet up with the Decepticons. He sent word of his arrival, knowing they'd reach the point long before he did. They would be waiting for them.
We might not have gotten them both, but at least we got the strongest one. Barricade thought as he drove a silent Lyn, wondering why she was still wrapped in her power.
Dawn watched her sister go in distress. If she stayed here, with a dead Kyle, she'd be imprisoned and tortured until they got the answers they thought were the truth. She knew how their interrogations worked. She shuddered. No, she'd contact the Autobots, they'd know what to do. She picked up her communicator and swiftly dialed the frequency and hugged herself while she waited for a response.