Chapter Thirteen:
Okelani stared at the wall pictures of Nicolei with red eyes. Even though she felt as if she would cry forever, the tears would no longer run. She'd cried nonstop for days on end, the people around her had tried to cheer her up and give her the prospect that he might possibly still be alive. But she knew the possibilities of that were slim to none. The Decepticons weren't well known for their mercy. But as Jazz had gently pointed out, there were worse things than death. Blackout had been present at his capture; the possibility of him becoming Blackout's toy was high. That fact alone brought another wail up into her throat, but she bit back the cry of despair. They'd already lost a dear friend to Blackout, he'd been a valuable warrior who had fought bravely and sacrificed himself so that they could escape, but he'd been captured in the end. Nicolei had been torn about the loss of his friend. What had made it worse was that the despicable Con had sent the barely recognizable body back to them along with footage of what had been done during pieces of his capture. Because of that, she had an idea of what Nicolei was going through.
And that thought scared her.
It had been nearly a month and a half since his capture, and still there was no body sent and no footage of his torture sent to torment his family and friends. Perhaps they were right, maybe he was still alive and had escaped…but she knew better than to delude herself. Perhaps he had found a way to kill himself and Blackout had just disposed of the body. Nicolei had always believed it would be better to die than be broken.
Another sob whelmed up in her throat as she tried to swallow it back. Her eyes burned and she rubbed them to try to alleviate some of the pain. She walked over to the mirror in the middle of all the pictures and stared at her reflection. She was her natural self right now, what no one except Nicolei had ever seen. It had been her true form that he'd fallen in love with after he'd seen it. He'd always begged her to reveal it to others, but she'd refused, reminding him that her kind weren't accepted. Her eyes were a soft dark blue, almost mistaken at first glance as black or dark brown. Her face was a fat almond shape; her ears were long like those of a deer and pierced in three places where her wedding laces were placed according to her kind. She wore them still, in refusal to believe that Nicolei was gone. She would never remove them until she had his dead body in front of her. Until then, she'd still have hope of his return. Her skin was a even bronze of a dark tan with a slight discoloration of a mottled mix that ran up the sides of her arms, legs, the sides of her neck and face and down her spine from the base of her skull to her tail which was a slender three-foot long that ended in delicate and well groomed tuft of hair that swayed gently from side to side as she stared at her reflection.
"Why did he have to leave me?" She whispered to her reflection as she stared in the mirror. But her reflection had no answer for her. She wiped her hands over her face and brushed her hair back out from her eyes.
A knock at the door startled her so fiercely that her skin shifted colors before she collected herself and shifted into her "normal" appearance. She walked to the door pressed the pad to open it. Elena gave her a welcoming smile. "Hey, how are you doing? You haven't been out of this room in almost three days, Lani…you really need to at least go out and about for a while. You have to face the world, Lani, you can't stay locked up in here." She told Okelani gently as she stepped in and away from the door so that it could close.
Okelani shook her head. "That's easy for you to say, you still have your husband." Okelani snapped, then instantly regretted it as a look of sad sympathy crossed Elena's face.
"I'm sorry…I know how much Nicolei meant to you. He meant a lot to us as well. Nicolei and Zanderos go way back…they were friends before you ever met Nicolei. Believe me, we miss him too…but we all just have to have faith that he'll be back some day. He's probably making Blackout's life a living hell right now. Who knows, maybe he's on his way back now and just crossing a vast distance. Who really knows? All we can do is hold out and hope for the best."
Okelani nodded feeling a little less than reassured and gave Elena her best smile she could muster. "I appreciate your trying to make me feel better, but I really just wanna be left alone…okay? I just need a little time…to myself, that's all." She told Elena who gave her a knowing grim smile.
Elena put a reassuring hand on Okelani's arm. "I understand. See you around soon?" Okelani nodded. "Alright, take care then." With that, she opened the door and left.
Okelani stood staring at the closed door for a long moment before she relaxed and resumed her natural form. She walked back to the pictures to look at her lost husband once more…
Dawn yawned as she looked up at Thundercracker with exhausted eyes. "I'm sure I could get them to stop torturing you if you'd let me…"
Thundercracker gave her a reassuring smile. "No. It's quite all right. It's part of the deal of being the 'bad guy'. I am just getting what they think I deserve, who am I to tell them differently. They won't listen to me, and they're sure to punish you for trying to stop them. I don't want to see them getting paranoid of you and treating you badly just because you tried to help me out of the kindness of your heart." He said softly, and then shook his head. "You're exhausted, why don't you go back to your room? They'll be here soon anyway; I don't want you to get caught here with me."
Dawn shook her head but agreed. "Fine. I guess." She sighed as she got wearily to her feet. "I'll see you later…" She muttered as she gathered her power around her and quickly vanished from view and scanners.
Thundercracker shook his head. That girl had some major talents. Too bad they were all going to waste with the Autobots…
Dawn stumbled down the hallways back to her apartment; she could feel her grip on her powers waning as she slowly got closer. She did her best to hurry, but it only exhausted her further. "Why did I have to spend so much energy healing him?" She asked herself as she stopped in front of her door and opened it still wrapped in her invisibility. As soon as the door opened, she stepped inside, dropped her little cover and stuck her head out the door to make it look as though she had opened it from inside and was peeking out.
She pressed the button to close the door with a heavy sigh and stumbled to her bedroom. She paused for a second, debating with herself whether or not to get undressed, but decided that sleeping in her clothes would be uncomfortable. Within a few minutes she was dressed in a loose pair of pajama pants and its sleeveless mate. She pulled back the covers and just dived into bed, she was sleep before she even fully covered herself.
Dawn felt she'd only been asleep for a few minutes when there was a knock at the door. She groaned and pulled the covers over her head. "Go away…" She said groggily as she pretended not to hear. Again, the knock came, louder this time; Dawn buried herself deeper under her covers and planted her head underneath of her pillow. "Not answering…" She muttered as she tried in vain to go back to sleep.
She waited for the next knock and was relieved when silence answered her back. But before she could get comfortably back to sleep, a hand pulled back the covers and four blue optics blinked at her. "Dawn? Are you okay?"
Dawn groaned. "Metalstar? Please let me sleep…"
The little Autobot blinked at Dawn. "It's Prime…he needs to see you…you gotta wake up. Gotta answer the door." Metalstar said as she pulled lightly at one of Dawn's arms.
Dawn waved the little Autobot away. "Go answer the door yourself. I'm sleeping…" She grumbled as she tightened her pillow over her head. She could hear the scampering of Metalstar leaving the room, she sighed in relief and started to let herself drift back to sleep.
Maybe it was a long while, or perhaps a short while, Dawn wasn't sure, but either way, the interruption irritated her beyond reasoning. The sound of someone clearing their throat brought Dawn to peek out from under her pillow. All she could see was the chest plate of a certain mech…a red and blue chest plate. Groaning she pulled the pillow back a little more and looked up at him. "Optimus?" She asked groggily.
"Are you feeling alright? You're usually so punctual…I got worried when you didn't answer the door…and didn't come out of your room…" Optimus' deep voice spoke softly, aware that she had sensitive hearing when she first woke up.
"What time is it?" She asked as she pulled the pillow off of her head and looked around, then closed her eyes and sighed as she realized there were no windows to judge the time by.
"Nearly three in the afternoon." His answer hit her like a fly-away homerun hitter striking her in the face.
"What!?" She demanded as she sat up quickly, blinking the sleep from her eyes furiously.
"That's why we were so worried…you have never slept in this late before. I think you should see Ratchet…" Optimus said gently, the concern in his voice was touching. It caused Dawn's heart to leap into her throat. Perhaps everything that Thundercracker had been telling her had been wrong? Perhaps she really was cared for and loved here with the Autobots. "You have duties and responsibilities; you can't sleep in all day just because you felt like it." Dawn's hopes crumbled. Or not, she thought as she felt herself wilt down a little at Optimus scolding.
"I'm sorry…I just didn't sleep last night…I figured sleeping in one day wasn't going to make a difference…I mean, I'm not that important around here. This base is still operational without me…so what was the harm?" Dawn asked, getting a little defensive as she straightened herself up and frowned at the huge Autobot.
Optimus resisted the urge to put his fingers to the bridge of his nose and chose to sigh instead. "Alright, I supposed since you don't do this on a regular basis I will let this one time slide." Dawn looked relieved. "However, I did come here with a purpose. I have a mission for you. After all, I have been watching your progress in your training and I believe you're ready for your first assignment."
Dawn perked up at the news. "Really! You think so?" Dawn tried to hide her excitement, but it bled easily through.
Optimus smiled. "Yes. You've been working hard and I think it's time to see just how well that training has paid off." Dawn practically bounced up and down in her excitement. "You'll be accompanying Mirage on her mission to infiltrate a Decepticon outpost and to gather what information about the attack Stormchaser told us about. We have to have more information on the limits and powers of your sister." Optimus told her softly.
Dawn nodded and gave a little salute. "I'm your man! Err…girl…woman? I'm ready!" She said, her eyes shining brightly at the prospect of being useful, all thoughts and warnings that Thundercracker had given her about being used as a weapon by the Autobots forgotten in her exuberance.
Optimus smiled. "That's the spirit! You'll leave in three days time!" Dawn thought her face would break from the force of her smile, it made her face hurt, but she didn't care, she was just so happy to finally be able to field test her powers. I just hope she doesn't get caught…Optimus thought grimly as he nearly chuckled at the enthusiasm on Dawn's face as she chattered excitedly to Metalstar about how exciting this new adventure would be. Please, dear Primus let me not be making a mistake. He thought to himself as he sighed softly.
Back with the Decepticons…
Lyn sighed as she allowed her mind to slowly set down the huge mech sized table she'd been lifting with her powers. She was bored. They'd taken her to the rec room to get a little socialization in, to get the other mechs used to her presence, since she was going to be there for the rest of her life. It was Megatron's mood of the moment, as some of the mechs had called it. No one expected this phase to last, but while it did, they had to deal with Lyn's presence in their usual relaxing place.
Two mechs glared at her as they drank whatever they drank and talked with one another. "Yeah, I feel real welcome here…" Lyn muttered under her breath as she walked over to the corner away from everyone and slid down the wall. She sat down and stared at those around her, most of them were hostile, only a few had curious expressions, and even then, she didn't need to be a telepath to know that they were probably wondering what made her function and probably wanted to take her apart to find out.
She turned her gaze up at the impossibly high ceiling. There were no evident lights on the ceiling, and she'd long since stopped trying to figure out how the room was so lit, it had nearly given her a headache trying to figure it all out…and she still didn't know. She let her eyes sweep across the room once again, her eyes stopping on a mech who was sitting all by himself in the corner away from the rest of them. Others seemed to be giving him a wide berth. She watched him curiously, he was looking down at his drink, swirling it gently. Lyn felt a twinge of honest sympathy for him. He was surrounded by his fellows and no one seemed to care to talk to him or to even try to go near him. "Probably wants to keep it that way too…" Lyn thought to herself as she sighed again and pulled her gaze away from him.
"This is soooo boring." She groaned as she closed her eyes and tilted her head back against the wall.
"It's not a good habit to talk to yourself." A voice sounded from in front of her, Lyn jumped and opened her eyes, her power leaping forward, ready to be used in her defense.
Lyn frowned. It was a small mech; in fact, it was probably only slightly larger than her, maybe six foot max. "Who're you? I've never seen you before?" Lyn asked, taking in his appearance.
"I'm…" Before he could finish, another smaller mech ran up to him and pulled him away.
"You know Soundwave's gonna get pissed that you're talking to it! Come on!" The other said urgently as he dragged the other away.
"Well, see ya 'round." The first one said as he let the other drag him away.
Lyn felt a twinge of sorrow. That had been the first time that someone had approached her since she'd been out there in the rec room. She was surrounded by living creatures that were intelligent, but she'd never quite felt this alone before…
Her eyes fell on the mech sitting alone again. She quickly looked away as she discovered he was looking at her. She couldn't really tell what intent he was looking at her with; after all, mech faces were kinda hard to read…Her first instinct was to look away, but she couldn't seem to pull her eyes away from him. He was kinda scary looking, she could see the various weaponry he had strewn about his body, and she was certain there was more that was hidden from view.
Lyn's heart dropped into her stomach as a smirk slowly moved across his face. He kept his eyes on her while he slowly sipped from his container. She pulled herself closer to the wall, suddenly wishing she were invisible.
"Hey, look, it's your pet." Lyn looked over at the voice which rose slightly above the drone of the room.
"She's not my pet." Starscream's voice grumbled as he walked over to her and knelt down. "I heard that Megatron had started making you do public appearances." Lyn tried to look up at him, but couldn't take her eyes off the mech staring at her. Starscream followed her gaze inconspicuously and noted the mech looking at her with open malice. "Come on, I was looking for you anyways." He said as he held out his hand for her, Lyn jumped to her feet and allowed him to gently pick her up.
"I told you she was your pet. Look how obedient she is with you! Isn't that just so cute, makes me want a cute little pet like that too!" Starscream's companion said sarcastically as he picked up Lyn and turned to his wingmate.
"For the last time…she's not my pet! Skywarp I swear, if you don't knock it off, I'll tear off a wing!" Starscream growled softly as he headed out of the rec room and into the hallway.
Skywarp followed with a smug smirk on his face. "Aw! You're defending her! How sweet! If she's not a pet, than is she a girlfriend?"
If Starscream had been a fleshling, Lyn was sure his face would have turned red. But whether through embarrassment or anger, she wasn't sure. "Skywarp!" He snapped in exaggerated agitation. "Do you mind cutting it out?!"
Skywarp held his hands up as he chuckled softly to himself. "Alright! Alright, you win. I'll leave you alone about her now." He followed his Air Commander as he made his way to the hanger bay he and Lyn usually frequented.
Lyn took the silence as her cue to ask Starscream a question. "Where have you been? Ever since I heard that your friend got captured, you've been gone."
Starscream was silent for a few minutes, and Lyn figured he wasn't going to answer. So when he spoke up, she was slightly surprised. "I've been trying to figure out a way to rescue him. But Lord Megatron has forbid me to do anything of the sort. I can't risk losing my other wingmate, so I have to abide by his rules…" Starscream grumbled softly, Lyn sighed in shared frustration.
While she didn't personally know either of Starscream's wingmates, she did feel for him. If she had two companions that she'd been with for as long as he had, she wouldn't want to lose them either. "Maybe I can help." Lyn said instinctively.
Starscream looked down at her curiously. Skywarp frowned at her. "And how are you…little fleshling, going to help? Got a way to force the Autobots to release Thundercracker?" Skywarp's voice dripped with venom, Lyn could tell how much he missed Thundercracker by his malice towards her.
Lyn took it all in stride. "I could make someone who is loyal to me that would help. Without Megatron's notice. He could go, get in, rescue Thundercracker, and get back before Megatron knew he existed, and then later, I'll just take the blame for it, saying I wanted to test something and didn't have time to wait for his approval. That this was the perfect opportunity." It wasn't really a lie; after all, she had been trying to get an audience with Megatron for almost a week now, to tell him how much her going out in the rec room was not helping matters. But he'd been too busy with the construction of the base on the planet below to bother with her.
Starscream cast a glance at Skywarp who was giving him a half smirk. He looked back to Lyn. "You could do that? For me? For us?" Starscream asked, and Lyn nodded.
"All I need is something to transform. Which I don't think will be hard, Megatron always has a huge supply of vehicles. I still haven't used all the vehicles that were swiped from that planet you guys were on a LONG time ago when you were trying to get the Allspark. Earth, was it?" Starscream nodded patiently. "I'm sure I can just use one of them. Tell him what I need and you guys can give him the information as to how to get there. I'm sure it couldn't be that hard to get something like that done."
Starscream thought about it for a moment. Sure, it sounded fairly simple, but if they were discovered and Megatron wasn't in a forgiving mood, he'd be condemning himself and Lyn to a most unsavory punishment. He was sure neither of them wanted that kind of attention…
Skywarp looked over at Starscream with an impatient expression. "What are you waiting for?! Let's do this! The faster we get Thunder back the better!" Skywarp nearly screeched at Starscream in Cybertronian.
Starscream gave his wingmate a pained expression. "I don't want to see her punished if we get caught. Our punishments will likely be time in the brig and I'll be publically humiliated…again, but she'll likely go to Blackout…"
Skywarp gave an exasperated sigh and leaned closer to Starscream, lowering his voice. "I know you care for your little pet here, but this is Thunder we're talking about. Megatron has no intentions of rescuing him. He's lost as far as Megatron is concerned. I don't care if your little pet gets caught and he rips her apart with his own hands, just as long as we get Thunder back!"
Starscream took a deep breath. While he agreed with everything that Skywarp was saying, he was still hesitate to put Lyn in that much danger, but…if she were willing to take the chances and suffer the consequences if caught, he would have no quells about doing this. "You're sure you want to do this? I mean, the consequences could be quite severe…Megatron doesn't like people going against his orders and doing things behind his back, that tends to…put a potato in his exhaust."
Lyn smirked at his attempted metaphor and folded her arms under her breasts. "But Megatron never told me I couldn't do this. He never said that I couldn't send people out to investigate the Autobots; he never told me that I couldn't rescue Thundercracker. So…I can't get into trouble for doing this. I'll simply take full credit for this, while you won't get the glory if this turns out well and Megatron praises for it, he also won't have an excuse to cut you down and punish you if it irks him either."
Starscream felt a smirk tug at the edges of his lips. The fleshling had a point. Megatron had never told Lyn what her limits were, he simply told her that she was to follow his orders, and he seldom ordered her around. So why would she not get ideas like this if he had never squelched them? "Alright, let's do this then!"
Lyn looked around the hanger bay until she located something that looked like it would be perfect and suited for her needs. She smiled. "That one, let's go over to that one, do you know what that is?" She asked Starscream, who got a thoughtful look as he studied the machine.
"I believe Earthlings called it an Apache Attack helicopter. It's built for speed and maneuverability. That would actually work really well; you really know how to choose your machinery. But…for space travel, that might make it a little more difficult. Helicopters don't move well in space, only in gravity fields of a planet." Starscream explained patiently as he scanned the hanger bay for something more space worthy that she might choose from.
Lyn sighed with the beginning edges of impatience. "He can choose an alt mode that is space worthy. I already know what I'm going to show him. But I needed to find a machine that had ingrained within the factors I needed. I have noticed, that if I create a big bulky machine that is slow in life, it is often really strong and can tank a lot of damage, but it's still slow and hard to maneuver verses others. Since this mech is gonna need to be fast and quick and cunning, I needed to choose a beginning model that had those traits built into it." Lyn explained to the two Seekers as she studied the Apache Helicopter.
Skywarp frowned at her. "But it's just a machine now, there is no spark and no life, how can if have traits that you require? Don't you have to put those sorta things into it?"
Lyn resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Alright, let me explain something to you. If it is big and bulky in its pre-life, it will be big and bulky in its mech life. This Apache Attack helicopters is sleek and fast, am I right? It is one of the best helicopters to fight in."
Starscream raised a ridge at her. "You seem to know a lot about this helicopter."
Lyn gave him a sly smile. "I've spent a lot of time shifting through the information that you guys obtained along with these machines."
Starscream and Skywarp's sparks jolted in alarm and they looked at each other sharply. "But how could you? It's all written in Cyber…" He was starting to say when Lyn just interrupted him and continued talking.
"Those traits are the kind of traits that I'm looking for in a mech. I need someone that will be a little more intelligent than the usual losers around here…no offense to you two and to a handful of others…but most of the mechs on this ship are complete idiots." Skywarp stifled a snicker, and Starscream gave a light chuckle. "But anyways, I've been hoping that I could find this helicopter and do this before Megatron had any ideas to use it for his own purposes. I need this mech to be loyal to me and not him. That would damper my plans if he went off to ask Megatron for permission…yeah…I don't think that would go over very well…" The two Seekers nodded their heads in agreement.
Lyn clapped her hands together lightly and smiled. "So! Are we ready to bring him to life and get back Thundercracker? I'm sure you two are missing him something fierce."
Starscream nodded his approval. "Whenever you are ready, feel free to bring him to life. Should you fail this first time, there are twelve other Apache's to make this attempt on." Starscream informed her.
Lyn nodded. "Okay, but I'm only gonna need this one." Lyn closed her eyes and focused on her power, this had to be done precisely.
Lyn focused everything she had on her power, focusing on the traits she wanted and the loyalty she needed this new mach to feel for her. She gathered her power in her until she felt she would burst from it. Finally, feeling that she had enough focus and enough power built up for this task, Lyn released her power into the helicopter. The force of the impact rumbled through the room like thunder, dust lifting from the energy as it rippled around them.
Starscream and Skywarp seemed to collectively hold their breaths as they waited. The Apache seemed to hum for a moment, than shiver. For a moment, Lyn feared she might not have directed enough power into the chopper…but just as the thought crossed her mind, the Apache transformed in a swift graceful motion and looked about him thoughtfully. Starscream cast a glance at Skywarp; it was easy to tell the two of them were impressed. True to his origins, he was a dark green, sleeker than most mechs, and he was only a few feet shorter than Starscream, which was slightly unexpected. Much like Blackout, he had his propellers attached to his back, but the bulky rotary motor wasn't visible, unlike Blackout. Clearly visible on his arms were twin pulse cannons, which Lyn noted that both Starscream and Skywarp were eyeing nervously. But what wasn't visible would have frightened the two seekers more. Hidden was an armament of disks that could fly out at a simple flick of his wrist.
Lyn sighed in relief, than glanced worriedly around her; suddenly aware that time was precious. "I need your help, if you are willing." Lyn said softly to the newly created mech in front of her.
The mech seemed to study her for a moment, glancing momentarily at Starscream and Skywarp as if judging them a threat or not. Then he took a moment to study himself quickly, he was pleased to discover that he had a collection of deadly weapons at his disposal. He held an arsenal of blades that would be useful in more ways than even he could calculate in such a short time. His systems registered that all was green and perfect. He scanned through his data banks and discovered that he held a portion of memory imprinted upon him as to what Lyn had desired of him. After only a bare moment from when Lyn asked him, the new Mech looked down and nodded. "I will assist."
Lyn almost collapsed in relief. She'd never created something for the purpose of using it for any exact mission. This being her first attempt, she was grateful it went so well. "I need you to get a friend. But I need you to do so cautiously and with great care, I can't afford them to catch you too." Lyn said quickly, stepping closer to the transformed Apache.
The Apache looked down at her curiously. "I will do as you ask. I will rescue your friend. I have the information I need. But I do have one question."
Lyn frowned. "I'll answer if I can…"
The Apache was speaking before she could finish. "I keep repeatedly hearing the word "Allspark" and "we must retrieve the Allspark"…is this item of great importance to you as well?"
Lyn blinked, she didn't expect to be asked something like that. And honestly, to her…the Allspark was nothing. She had the power to create and destroy…why would she care about the Allspark. But…since that seemed to be Megatron's greatest desire, Lyn nodded. "Yes. Our enemies stole it. We have been trying to get it back. In fact, Thundercracker, the one we are sending you after was captured trying to retrieve it." She wasn't sure if that was true or not, but that's what she was going to fly with for now.
The Apache nodded. Starscream scowled for a moment, and then gave the new mech a strange look. "We all have designations…I am Starscream, this is Skywarp, and the young lady is Ashalyn…before you rush off to save the world…might we know your designation?" Starscream asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm and venom.
The Apache didn't seem affected or at least to care. "Blade." He answered flatly, than looked back at Lyn. "I will return soon with what you have requested. I will not return until I have completed this mission." He promised her as he cast a look at the other two Seekers and nodded.
Starscream bent and picked up Lyn. "Come, he cannot leave while you are here." Lyn nodded, casting one more glance back before the door slide shut and sealed behind them.
"Do you think Blade will succeed?" Lyn asked Starscream softly. Starscream remained silent, not daring to voice anything for fear of someone over hearing him.
Blade watched the seekers walk out with Lyn, he cycled a sigh through his vents…he understood the importance of his mission, he knew well what he was capable of, but he didn't know anything about the foe he would encounter. That was the one thing that worried him. As soon as the door sealed safely, he walked over to the seal and turned it off, instantly depressurizing the room. After a quick scan of a space fighter docked in the bay, he opened the hatch, transformed and raced out, the hatch closing automatically behind him. His mind focused on the destination Lyn had imprinted him with.
Back at the Autobots-
Dawn whimpered as she looked at herself in the mirror. "I don't think this is a good idea…" She muttered for the millionth time. Mirage laughed and shook her head as she adjusted one of the many straps on Dawn's outfit.
"You'll be fine! Remember, just follow me and stay quiet and everything will be fine. It's a simple recon mission. No fighting, just looking and listening. We'll be invisible the whole time I promise okay?" Mirage said as she walked away to gather the rest of Dawn's outfit.
"Is all this really necessary? I mean, why do I need all this if it's going to be a simple in and out mission…I don't like the fact that there is so much 'survival' stuff here…why do we need it? I mean, I really don't like this…" Dawn muttered, sending an uneasy look at Mirage.
Mirage sighed as she came back with a belt and started to hook it up to Dawn. "All this is usually not necessary, but you definitely don't want to not have it…then I can almost promise that we'll need it. You always wanna prepare for everything, because everything is here for a reason." She explained as she finished hooking up the massive utility belt to Dawn's waist.
Dawn shrugged uncomfortably against the growing weight of her suit. "This thing is hot…is it gonna be cold there?" She asked, glancing herself over in the mirror.
Mirage shrugged. "Don't know. I might be, but there's a good chance that it'll be raining and cold yes, that's usually the climate of the planet we'll be looking at."
Dawn frowned. "But I didn't think that mechs liked rain and stuff…"
Mirage gave her a grim smile. "They don't. They hate it. This is why we're going to be extra careful. There is nothing worse than a cranky group of Decepticons; they usually tend to be twice as evil and cruel. So…we'll be using extra cautions." Dawn gave Mirage a horrified look. "What?"
"What?! You need to ask!" Dawn pulled herself away from Mirage and backed away. "I am not a fighter! I know nothing about recon; I know absolutely nothing about the spy business! I am completely trusting you to keep me safe, and Optimus told me that there would be nothing to worry about…well…I don't consider cranky, soaked Decepticons a mild threat!" Dawn exclaimed as she stared in disbelief of Mirage's unnerving calm expression.
"I promised I would keep you safe and I will. We'll be completely invisible. I'll be using my ability the whole time. We'll be perfectly safe. I promise you." Mirage said as she gently grabbed Dawn's arm and started to lead her back in front of the mirror.
"I don't like this idea…" Dawn muttered.
"Optimus wouldn't have decided to let you come with me if he didn't have faith that you'd be alright. You're too important to just send to your death or worse, capture." Mirage stated.
Dawn swallowed hard. I'm not that important…she thought as she thought back to the Allspark sitting safely behind heavy guard. They have their Allspark, they don't really need me…I'm a liability to them, if the Decepticons capture me; they'll have twice the power the Autobots do. Dawn thought grimly as she stayed silent while Mirage finished her suit.
After ten more minutes, Mirage stepped back and smiled. "There! You're ready. Okay! Go grab your bag and we'll head to the ship."
Dawn had a terrified moment as she grabbed her bag and started to head back to the door where Mirage was waiting. In her gut, she felt this was such a bad….bad idea. As she got to the door, she gave Mirage a shaky smile. "I think I'm ready…" She said nervously.
Mirage smiled and opened the door. "Alright! Let's get to the ship! They're probably thinking that we're not gonna show up." She said as she laughed clasping Dawn on the back.
As they started down the long hallway, Dawn felt doom closing in on her. "Hey girls! Headed to a big mission I hear?" A male voice sounded behind them, Dawn visibly perked up, Mirage smiled as she turned.
"Adrian! I was hoping I'd get to say good-bye before they shipped me off to my doom!" Dawn said with a wide grin as she hugged Adrian awkwardly.
Adrian smiled and did his best to hug her back through her massive suit and laughed. "Ah you'll do great! Don't worry, Mirage will take good care of you. She's never been caught in all her missions. And maybe you'll get to go on one when she brings her little talking creature." Mirage gave Adrian a sour look. "What? I think it's cute how you use that little thing."
"IT has a name you know…and SHE has feelings!" Mirage said with a massive frown as she started walking again down the hall.
Dawn laughed as Adrian led her after Mirage. "I'm kinda hoping this is a onetime only thing…I know I said I felt like a third wheel around here…but field work is really not my thing…"
Adrian gave Dawn a patient look. "You've been training really well in your special hologram room, I'm sure you're ready for field work. It would be good for you to exercise those skills in real-time."
Dawn gave Adrian a pained look. "Aw…now you're started to sound like Ironhide…" She groaned as she scuffed her feet for a few steps before walking normally again.
Adrian and Mirage gave each other a sideways look. They were silent for a while, and it stayed until they passed the Med bay, Ratchet stepped out and waved over at Adrian. "Alright, well, this is where I get to take my leave. I'll see you when you get back, Dawn. Good luck!" He said with a smile, waving and jogging over to Ratchet. Mirage shot him a bad look before looking over at Dawn again with a smile.
Dawn waved to Adrian, oblivious to the glare Mirage sent him and sighed. "If I make it back…they're gonna eat me…or step on me…" Dawn muttered as she walked with Mirage toward the hanger bay.
Adrian watched them go, glancing back at Ratchet with a sour look. "Why did you do that? I was gonna walk her all the way to the ship."
Ratchet shook his head. "It's cruel, what you're doing. She's actually falling in love with you. I hope you intend on telling her you really don't exist." Ratchet said with a dangerous look.
Adrian sighed. "Is it so wrong to give her something she wants? This is the only way I can be close to her. There is no harm in using a holomatter to interact with her."
Ratchet's expression turned dangerous. "Ironhide…a heart is a delicate thing. If you break it, she might never recover…fleshling females are just as sensitive as our femmes. When she discovers the truth, she's going to be hurt that you lied to her. You need to tell her yourself before she discovers on her own." Ratchet warned.
Ironhide's holomatter sighed and shook his head. "I don't know what to do…I want to be around her, and as myself, it's too awkward and she's seldom as open with me. This is just easier."
Ratchet shook his head. "Tell her when she comes back…don't draw it out anymore. It's not healthy for her, and it's definitely not good for you either. If there is a relationship, a true relationship between you, it will survive. But one built on lies isn't the type of relationship that usually survives."
Ironhide's holomatter nodded reluctantly. "Alright, I guess I'll take a day to think of how to tell her…but I don't want to lose what I have with her…"
Ratchet shook his head. "A relationship between a fleshling and a Mech is doomed to fail anyways, Ironhide…she's going to have a much shorter lifespan than you…and that is only one issue among the thousands…if you want, I'd be happy to go over them with you."
Ironhide's holomatter gave Ratchet a sour look. "I wish you'd make up your mind…one moment you're all for me trying to help her feel better, and the next you're telling me that I shouldn't be pursuing her at all because of our species differences…These things have worked out in the past you know…it could work out for us…"
Ratchet shook his head and waved his hand. "Fine. Don't listen to the medic…no one does anyway, I'm just here to patch you morons up when you get scrapped….sure, go. Leave." Ratchet muttered as he walked away. Adrian flickered and disappeared.
Dawn looked at the massive ship in front of her. Mirage stood with a pained look on her face. "We'll be back soon. Don't worry; I don't think Adrian is going anywhere…"
"And you're sure we're gonna be okay? This is gonna be easy and nothing is gonna happen?" Dawn asked, trying to quell the fury of knots that seemed to be the only thing keeping her stomach from leaping into her throat.
Mirage gave her a sad reassuring smile. "Yeah, everything's gonna be fine. Besides, between your obvious talents and my skill, we'll be okay even if there was trouble. Come on, we need to leave. Sooner we leave, the sooner we'll be back."
Dawn nodded and slowly walked up the ramp into the huge maw that was the ship. She couldn't help but feel that perhaps she was walking straight into death's hands. "Everything is gonna be fine…" She told herself as she followed Mirage and allowed the two people to store her bag and show her to her seat.
Back at the Decepticons Base:
Starscream scowled at Megatron as his leader glared back. "I want to know what's going on here. This Mech was found in our airspace, and he claimed that he was doing a mission for Ashalyn and you. I demand an explanation!"
Lyn looked back, a terrified expression on her face as she looked between the leader of the Decepticons and his second in command. She knew that they had a history of violence…and she didn't feel comfortable being stuck between them.
"I don't feel I need to report every single little movement I make to you, Lord Megatron. Do you feel so insecure and vulnerable that you're worried about a freshly minted Decepticon? Perhaps than it is time for a change in leadership." Starscream said with a cocky smile.
Megatron gave a feral growl that seemed to vibrate her bones. Lyn had never felt more terrified in her whole life. She was worried for Starscream's safety and just as worried for Blade's safety. She'd figured maybe he could slip out unnoticed, but she hadn't known that Megatron was uber paranoid about his territory and would have so many patrolling the perimeter. The fact that she underestimated the evil tyrant gave her additional reason to fear…it meant she didn't know as much about him as she thought she did. "I promise you Starscream, do not test me, I will have you dismantled and used for spare parts. I want to know what the purpose was behind his creation! You do not have permission to use Lyn in that way. You only have permissions to entertain her or to see to her wellbeing."
Lyn frowned, trying to overcome her fear to speak up for herself and Starscream. "It wasn't his fault. It was my idea."
Megatron stopped glaring at Starscream and turned his deep crimson eyes on Lyn. She swallowed hard as a new wave of terror swept through her. "I will pretend I didn't just hear that."
Lyn glanced over frightened at Starscream, he was giving her a pained look. She shook her head. "But I did just say that. It was my idea. I was the one that decided to create Blade. I made him so that he could infiltrate the Autobots base, and try to return with my sister, rescue your missing seeker and if possible…the Allspark."
Megatron's glare disappeared almost instantly, replaced with an interested look. "You do realize the chance of success is extraordinarily small. In fact, you realize you are probably sending him to his death."
Lyn took a deep shaky breath and nodded. "I understand the risks. I know that there are chances things could go wrong. But there are chances for things to work the way it's planned too. He's been properly informed of everything that he needs to know. He doesn't bare your symbol, he doesn't bare a signal that reflects any of the known Decepticons that the Autobots have on file. In fact, he's gotten the information he needs ingrained within him to reflect a "wild" signal or a neutral signal." Lyn fell silent, suddenly aware that she'd said a little more than she intended to say.
Megatron looked at Lyn with an intensity that made her feel somehow violated. "You created him with ingrain knowledge." It wasn't a question. Lyn tried her best to sink down into the desktop. She nodded, too scared to attempt to lie to the tyrant. "You know the difference in the signals a Decepticon and an Autobot give." Again, Lyn only nodded, she didn't know what to do…she'd never meant to let the evil leader know that she could do more than he originally thought. The last time he'd used her, it'd nearly cost Lyn her life. "You also know what a "wild" signal is. You know that there are neutral factions of our kind." Lyn froze, his eyes were glowing so dark crimson and she noticed that his good 'humor' was gone from his face. "How do you know all this information?"
Lyn felt her mouth go dry and her heart felt like it would jump into her throat. She shook her head, speaking any further would farther incriminate her and lead her deeper in the most dangerous of territories.
"I want an answer." Megatron's voice dropped, hitting a dangerous tone, Lyn glanced over at Starscream. Starscream seemed to look at her with a pleading look.
Lyn winced as she looked back at Megatron. "I…I did my research. I studied carefully the information I was going to need…I…uh…I just asked the right questions to various people."
Megatron studied Lyn, with each word she spoke, his anger seemed to grow. He was silent for a moment, than as he spoke, Lyn felt a cold chill run through her blood. "I suggest you not lie to me again. I will ask once more. How did you get all this information? Don't think to lie to me, I can feel the truth in your heart beat. I know for a fact that none of my men would tell you anything close to the information you know. It would be treason."
Lyn swallowed hard. "I…I did the research on my own. I found all the information on the terminal that was inside my room…"
Megatron roared and slammed his fist down on the desk just a few feet from Lyn, glaring at Starscream. "How dare you give Lyn access to our systems and translate none the less!"
Starscream's mouth opened in denial. "I didn't do any such thing! I have never translated nor given her any information based on our complex language!"
Megatron hesitated, something that Starscream hadn't seen him do in a long time. He looked from his extremely terrified second-in-command to the trembling fleshling waiting on his desktop. Her heart rate was increasing, a sure sign guilt. His second-in-command, who was always arrogant and constantly openly back-mouthing him, was actually denying having done something he was convicted of. He narrowed his optics at Lyn. "How did you access the terminal? How did you translate our language into yours? There is no way to translate it with any program. How did you do it?"
Lyn looked at Starscream with a terrified look. "Just tell him, Ashalyn. To be silent is not a wise decision." Starscream told her softly, casting a nervous glance at his leader.
Lyn took a deep shaky breath and tried to steady herself. "I just accessed it and started to read it."
Megatron looked at Starscream with a stern look. "And you're sure you haven't been teaching her our language. If you confess now, I will not punish you. But this is serious if no one has taught her."
Lyn frowned at Megatron. "I have not taught her anything about our language. Not the words whether they be written or spoken." Starscream answered back in Cybertronian.
Megatron looked back at Lyn and was about to speak, but Lyn spoke up first. "No one taught me. No one needed too. It's a gift I have. I understand languages after a time of being around it."
Megatron sat back and looked at Lyn thoughtfully. So she's omnilingual. Megatron remarked to Starscream using their sonic communication.
Indeed it seems so. Starscream answered back, just as equally intrigued as Megatron.
Lyn fidgeted uncomfortably. "Silence is usually not a good thing…please say something? Even if it's to yell at me?"
Megatron smirked. "You have a very unique gift. By chance does your twin have the same?"
Lyn fidgeted, they weren't yelled at her…in fact, so far, Megatron didn't even seem all that upset that she'd kept from him this ability…or really that she'd created Blade… "I don't think so. She's never shown me that she understood. But she is a really fast learner…it usually only takes one lesson to teach her anything." Lyn answered after a moment.
Megatron looked over at his second-in-command. This could be very dangerous or very good. With her able to read Cybertronian it means we will have to lock things down more securely. Restrict her access to things a little more, keep her more in check.
Starscream frowned down at Lyn. But Lord Megatron, she is already a prisoner here. What more do you want to take from her? She has no access to anything without one of us. What more precautions do you wish us to take?
Megatron stifled the sneer at his second. Pathetic fool! She said she accessed the terminal in her room! While it may take too much time to remove the terminal from her chambers, we can lock the access so she cannot use it until we complete the base on the planet and make her more suitable chambers!
Starscream snorted softly, bringing Lyn's attention back to him. "What? Am I missing something?" She asked nervously.
Megatron changed the subject as he looked at her intently. "So…even knowing the risks to your creation…you still wish to send him to his death? It is likely that Prime will automatically assume this is a Decepticon trick and have him destroyed."
Lyn swallowed hard and nodded. "I have faith in my creation. I know he will succeed." She said with as much confidence as she could muster while under the evil tyrant's intense stare.
"Very well then." Megatron said as he pressed a button on his desk. "Send in Blade." He said with a smirk as he looked at Lyn.
Starscream glanced over as Blade walked into the room. Blade seemed as silent as a shadow, Megatron did have to admit to himself that Blade was one of Lyn's finest creations thus far. The only one that came close to this was Incinerator. "Blade, Ashalyn here tells me that you are willing to complete the mission she has given you, is this true?"
Blade remained silent for a moment, studying the two Mechs and than looking at Lyn. After detecting that there was no ill intent towards her or himself, he nodded. "Yes." He stated simply.
"You are aware of the risks, are you not?" Megatron asked Blade, casting an evil smirk in Lyn's direction.
Blade nodded. "Yes."
Megatron refused to be deterred by Blade's short responses. "You realize than that the chances of a success are astronomically slim, then?" Again, Blade nodded. "That the risk of a horrible torture and death are likely to meet you long before you reach your destination?"
This time, Blade shook his head. "I promise you. I will be undetected until I reach my destination."
Megatron gave a roaring laugh, and Blade's look deteriorated into a strained look of tolerance for the tyrant. "Undetected? You were spotted leaving the hanger bay…so how do you expect to not be spotted during your entire trip? There have to be at least a dozen Autobot bases in between here and there!"
Blade remained silent, choosing not fall for the Decepticon leader's taunts. He gave Lyn a look and she instantly felt better, his look seemed to tell her all the reassurances she needed to hear without ever uttering a single word.
Megatron growled in irritation and waved his hand dismissively. "Fine, very well. You are free to do Lyn's mission. I doubt I see you return. But know this, if you betray me…you will wish to whatever god you pray too, that you were destroyed by the Autobots!"
Blade bowed slightly to Lyn, turned and left without a word or a sound. From the look on Megatron's face, Starscream knew that if Blade did return without success, he'd be met with a horrible fate at the hands of the pissed off Decepticon leader.
With Blade out of the door, Lyn felt her feeling of safety leave with him. Normally, she felt safe and secure with Starscream, but for some reason, that didn't mean anything in the presence of Megatron. "Is there anything else you wish of me?" Lyn asked as meekly as she could manage without her voice trembling from the terror she felt inside.
Megatron studied her for a moment, taking in her accelerated heart rate and her physical appearance. She was still quite beautiful for a fleshling, even with the cybernetic arm, in fact, it was that addition that seemed to make her more appealing. Suddenly disgusted with himself, he waved at Lyn and Starscream. "Leave. I have nothing more I wish to discuss with you."
Lyn looked up with an almost desperate expression at Starscream. Feeling sympathy for a fleshling was usually uncommon for the 'Con, but…Lyn had somehow found a way into his spark. He scooped her up and left the room as quickly as he could without being evident that he was rushing. Once they were clear of Megatron's office, Lyn looked up at Starscream with a fearful expression. "I'm in trouble aren't I?"
Starscream didn't look down at her as he walked back towards Lyn's chambers. "You have no idea." He answered softly. Lyn felt her heart drop. Somehow, she always seemed to get herself into deeper trouble…