Hello everyone! Sorry for the delay. The combination of no time, schoolwork, and even less time is what does this to me. If in the future it's been awhile for me to post like this time, check my profile to see if I leave any notes. But any who! Here it is!

Before you read this chapter, please understand that I am not a car expert! It took a few articles and research to even create a basic way this plot could have happened into motion! If all my information or reasoning is not correct, please forgive me! I honestly don't know!

Also, we made it past 300 reviews! WOW! You guys are amazing! Thank you so much for all the love and support. This story wouldn't have come this far without you guys! :D!
As always, I own nothing!
~Mel

"Lise, can you hand me the Phillips?"

"..."

"Hey, Lise, you still up there?"

"..."

Mikaela rolled out from under the car she was working on atop the creeper she was currently lying on. Seeing that the brunette was not gone but was still right where she left her, sitting on a pile of boxes next to the vehicle, she sighed. Her older friend was staring into space for what seemed like the tenth time that day.

"LISE!"

The older girl suddenly then broke from her trace, startled from the abrupt calling of her name. She was so startled in fact that she almost fell off the stack she was sitting on, and had to right herself quickly before answering. When she did, she turned to her friend.

"What?"

"The Phillips?" Mikaela said again, holding her hand out. Alise blushed slightly, realizing she had asked multiple times.

"Sorry," she responded, reaching in the toolbox sitting next to her and getting the toll she asked for. As she handed it over to the girl, Mikaela looked up at her as she took the tool.

"A lot on your mind?" she asked her. Alise sighed.

"Yeah, you could say that," she responded.

If she was being true to herself, she would say that statement was an understatement. Bee had left to retrieve Sam and bring him to Optimus yesterday, and they hadn't heard from any of them since. With the thought of the All Spark piece being in Decepticon hands already lying heavily on her mind, her worry for both her boyfriend and her brother was also starting to take its toll on her. Little things were starting to bother her and make her nervous about the two, like her worrying that Sam would hurt himself before Bee would get to him. Or that because it was only a little after three in the afternoon, she knew that Bee still had a few hours worth of driving until he arrived to Princeton. This made her worry that Bee would be tired as he drove and hurt himself by falling asleep on the road, or be too tired to fight if he needed to. She tried putting these thoughts aside, but she found that they kept coming back, each with a scenario worse or more impractical than the last.

She had stayed with Mikaela that night. She had also brought supplies to stay over for a few days if needed since they didn't know how long she would need to stay there. They had woken up early to go to Mik's father's car shop, where she worked the next day, and Alise met her dad who was just leaving from the night shift. Mikaela had never spoken much about her parents to Alise. She hadn't heard a single thing about her mother, and the one time she commented about her dad, she used the term 'man-child.' Alise didn't understand why she would say that, but when she spoke to him, she could understand why. He was charismatic, and a smooth talker, and after he spoke to her, he turned and told his daughter that he was going out to party tonight and that she would have to take his shift. And before she could even reply, he walked out of the room with a "Thanks, Miky, love ya!" and shut the door behind him so he wouldn't be able to hear a response. Alise then knew why she didn't talk about him often. He wasn't an ideal father.

Mikaela sat up and moved closer to her. Stroking her arm, she tried to comfort her friend.

"They'll be okay, Lise," she said soothingly. "Watch, the Autobots will locate the All Spark, storm in, kick some Decepticon ass, and get it back before you know it! Lennox and Epps'll earn some gold stars, Optimus will make a speech, and Ironhide'll shoot something and won't stop talking about it. And everything will be back to normal in no time."

Alise looked over at the hopeful girl and smiled.

"I hope so, Mik," she admitted. "I guess I'll always just worry about them all, especially Bee and Sam."

"Yeah, same here."

She chuckled at the girl. "You're holding up pretty well though. At least unlike me who can't stop thinking about them. How are you so calm?"

Mikaela shrugged, but smirked. She then waved the Phillips screwdriver lightly in her hand. "I just keep my hands busy. Working on the cars really helps." She thought about this for a moment, and then smiled. "Wanna try?"

"Try? Working on the car?"

"Yeah! Come on, it'll take your mind off things!"

Alise chuckled. "I don't know, Mik. Technology doesn't like me enough for me to be playing with it."

"You're being ridiculous! Come on, just try it." She slid over another creeper that was near her feet and placed it next to her, patting the seat for her to get on. Alise sighed and shrugged, and then sat down on the creeper next to her friend. Mikaela laid back down and rolled under the car once more, Alise following suit. When they were both under the car, Mikaela started to speak.

"Okay, so this car-"

"What if I mess up?" Alise asked worriedly, cutting her off. "This is someone's car!"

Mik chuckled. "That's why I'm here, Lise. I wouldn't let you mess up the car beyond repair. If you ruin something, I'll fix it."

"Are you pos-"

"Yes. Now stop talking and listen." Alise noticed and gave her, her full attention. "This car is experiencing transmission problems. The check engine light keeps turning on, fluids are leaking, and the transmission itself is failing. The leak isn't major, but it's more than minor and it's what's causing the problem." Grabbing a wrench that was lying next to her, Mikaela handed it to Alise. "Before we do anything, we need to drain the fluid already in the car. You're going to unhook the cap when I say 'go' okay?" Alise nodded in understanding.

Mikaela showed her where to place the wrench and in what direction to turn it in. When she was sure she was in the right position, Mik rolled out on the creeper and went to go get an oil pan to drain the fluid. However, at that moment, Bones, Mikaela's Mastiff entered the shop. Mikaela didn't like having him walk around the shop when she was working; it was far too hazardous for both her and him. So when he came in and sat on the ground aside of her, she almost had a heart attack. He was usually stayed in the office where he would be safe and sound, but she knew immediately that her father had forgotten to lock the door that Bones was famous for opening. With the oil pan still in her hand, she turned towards her beloved dog and shook her head.

"Bones," she sighed. "Bones, buddy you gotta go! Go back to the office!"

However, still under the car, Alise only heard the key word she was listening for.

"Go?" she called out, her hands clenching the wrench, ready to turn it.

Mikaela, still thinking about Bones, answered, her head not in the right place.

"Yes, go!" she answered back. However, realizing who she answered, she quickly turned around, wide-eyed. "Wait, wait-!"

"AAA!"

It was too late. Alise had already unscrewed the loose cap, releasing a stream of transmission fluid onto her shirt. The car quickly drained of all its fluid, being that there wasn't much in it, but it still covered her entire front. Alise looked down at herself the best she could while still under the car, and groaned. Her shirt was completely ruined, soaked with oil and dripping, and she smelled of the liquid. However, she couldn't think too badly about it, because to her, the situation was quite funny. She would do something wrong; this would happen to her.

"Lise?" Mik quickly, going to the end of the car where the two came out on the creepers. When she heard this, Alise slowly started to come out from under the car. When she was fully out, she looked up at Mikaela, not knowing what she would do. But instead of some sympathy or kindness towards her friend, she started to laugh wildly.

"You're lucky it was leaking!" she choked out, grabbing her stomach because it was starting to ache. "There would have been so much more!"

Alise looked up at her with a look of half amusement, half shock, her mouth hanging open slightly.

"Mikaela!" she yelled. "You were the one who told me to go!"

"No I didn't!" she yelled back, still laughing. "I was talking to Bones!" She gestured over to her dog next to her, who was now watching the scene in front of him. "Nice move, Lise!"

Alise blushed for a moment, and then laughed at her friend.

"You're going to pay for that, Mik!" she yelled, and then she started to chase after her friend with the oiled wrench, Bones following behind the two as they yelled.

When Alise was waken up the next morning, it was still dark outside and she groaned internally. She was sleeping on the couch in Mikaela's living room like the night before (not the most comfortable of spots, but manageable), and the digital clock on the table next to her read 3:35 in the morning. Turning her head, she saw that the source of what was waking her up was next to the clock. It was her second cell phone, the one that was a present from Bee. Immediately realizing what it was, she picked it up and answered it.

"Bee?" she asked, her voice a bit groggy from her just waking up.

"Hey, Lise," he said softly. Then his voice turned apologetic. "Did I wake you?" Before she answered, he looked up the time in South Gate over the internet and answered his own question. "I guess so. Sorry, belle."

"No, it's alright," she responded. "I've been waiting for you or Sam to call. How is he? He didn't show up to his and Mikaela's video chat date earlier, or something like that, so we figured he was with you. She was a bit upset, but I convinced her to kinda take it easy on him."

Bee paused a moment before answering.

"He's doing well," he started, and then stopped again. "But he's not going to help us."

Alise didn't answer. The shock in hearing that Sam wasn't going to help the Autobots was so great, she didn't know if she heard Bee right, or if she was understanding correctly.

"What?" she asked disbelievingly. "What do you mean he won't help?"

"He told Optimus he wanted to be normal, not an 'alien ambassador.' He's not going to speak with your government on our behalf."

Alise placed her hand over her mouth and shook her head. She knew Sam wanted to have a normal life, one without the Autobots as much. But to downright deny their request for help? She was starting to feel an anger towards her brother that she had never before.

"Then what are we supposed to do now?"

"We're not really sure, belle. We're trying to look into alternative solutions, but Sam was our best option. I don't want to ask this of you too, Lise, but we may need you to do what we wanted him to."

She became confused. "I thought I was a conflict of interest, though."

"Yes, but you've also been associated with us since before even Sam." He paused for a moment and when he continued, Alise could almost hear the smirk on his face. "Unless you forgot all about that night in the desert."

Despite the tension of the situation, she let small smile cross her face.

"Where the journey all began," she said with a chuckle. "Whatever you need, Bee, I'll help."

"Thank you, Lise."

She sighed. "So where's Sam now?"

"Back at school. He starts class in a few hours."

"Oh, that's right. It's Monday."

"Yeah. He said he was nervous, but excited on the car ride back."

"That's good." She paused for a moment. "So when are you getting back?"

"I'm going to start heading back in a few hours, belle. I haven't sedated in over 30 hours, and it's getting hard to concentrate on the road. I thought I'd park in a parking lot somewhere and sedate for a little."

"Do that. I don't want you driving off into a ditch somewhere."

He chuckled. "Alright, belle. I'll see you soon, okay? I love you."

"Love you, too, Bee. Be safe."

"Always am."

It was about 9 o'clock the next morning. Alise and Mikaela were back in the garage, and were joined by Bones because they weren't working on anything at the moment (and 'we' meaning Mikaela, since Alise wouldn't touch anymore tools.) Lise had told Mik about Bee's call the night before earlier, and though she was disappointed in Sam's answer, she understood why he said what he did. The two were sitting in seats next to each other, both incredibly bored.

"Soooo..."

"So."

"Yeah."

That was how most of their conversations were for the last hour or so. Suddenly, Bones got up and started to bark, and Mikaela jumped at the chance to do something.

"Hi, Bones!" she started to say to him. "Hi. Hi. Oh, you're such a good boy." She started to get up and fill his bowl with food, and she continued to talk to him endearingly, much to Lise's amusement. "What a good boy, you are. Hey, Bones. You hungry?" When she finished filling it, he started to eat. Just then, her phone started to go off. Picking it up, she opened the phone and pressed a button inside.

"Yes, Samuel?" she said tersely, taking her seat again. Alise was taken back at the greeting. Why's Sam calling? He's supposed to be in class! She waited for Mikaela to respond to whatever he was telling her.

"I can't believe you're gonna stand me up on our first web chat date!" she said into the phone line. Despite her confusion, Lise chuckled. Knew she was still hung up about that.

Sam then started to speak again.

"What, you finally hit puberty?" Mik responded to him. Lise sent her a confused look and she shrugged her shoulders. Sam then started to speak again, but this time for a longer length. Mikaela's face changed from confused and annoyed, to concerned and concentrated. At one point Alise actually heard Sam started to yell, "Watch the foot! Watch your foot!" over the line, and Mik had to flinch away from the phone he was so loud.

"Since what?" she asked when he stopped. He spoke again, and Mikaela started to sit up, Alise doing the same. "Yeah, I have it. It's in the shop safe. It's fine." There was more talking. "I'm not gonna touch it. Sam, it's fine. It's locked away. No one knows where it is."

However, right after she spoke, there was a noise on the other side of the room where Bones was. At first Lise thought it was him, until she heard a metallic voice whisper, "What are you looking at, slobber puss?" and some hisses of what sounded like pain. The two girls looked at each other uneasily. Someone, or something, was in there with them. As Mikaela told Sam, "Hold on," into the phone and slowly set it down, Alise reached around and grabbed a crowbar from the shelf behind her. Mikaela grabbed a long pair of tongs. The two started to make their way over to where the noise was coming from, and they could hear the voice even clearer now.

"Right to five, then tat-tat-tat-tat-tat..."

Alise peaked her head around the corner. With its ear against the safe Mikaela was just speaking about earlier, there was a small toy car sized Cybrotroian trying to crack the safe. It was blue in color, and a bit scrappy looking with two mouse traps attached to its feet, and upon further observation, she saw that its eyes were red; it was a Decepticon.

Suddenly, Mikaela started to run at the con, getting its attention and making it scream and fall back. Mik fearlessly grabbed it with the tongs and held it out in front of her as it thrashed and tried to get away. Alise quickly ran beside her, ready to strike the con with the crowbar if needed.

"Is that the best you got, huh?!" it screeched at them, carrying on and yelling. "Is that the best you can do? Ah!"

"What are you doing here, you little freak?" Mikaela yelled at him, jerking him as she said so. All of a sudden, she reached behind herself and grabbed a blow torch off the table behind her. Showing no mercy towards the con, she turned it on and pointed it straight in his eye.

"Aaa! That's my eye, you crazy bitch!" it screamed in pain.

"You gonna talk now, matchbox?" Alise yelled at him, raising the crowbar higher in a position to swing.

"Who wants to know?" he spat back.

"Us. We're under NEST and close Autobot protection, jackass. Spill."

He looked up at them menacingly, his good eye glowing. "I seek knowledge from the Cube. The Fallen demands me!"

The fallen... The name hit Alise like a slap in the face. If the Fallen sent this con, that meant he had to be alive and on the move. More importantly, a problem to the Autobots.

"What knowledge?" Mikaela quickly asked.

"You got the shard," it told them. Then it started to thrash some more. "I need the shard, gimme the shard! I need the shard, gimme the shard! They're gonna whack me! I'm gonna be dead without that shard!"

He wouldn't stop yelling, so Alise whacked him with the crowbar to get him to shut up. It wasn't enough to knock him out, but it was enough to make it hurt.

"Aaaa!"

"They'll be the least of your problems if you don't stop talking to us like that."

For good measure, Mikaela shook him again, making his head fly back a little.

"Easy, warrior goddesses, I'm just a little salvage-scrap drone!"

"And we're your worst nightmare," Mikaela ended, and with that, she flung the con into an open toolbox, quickly closing it and locking him in.

"Hey, hey, hey!" he was yelling and banging from the inside, but he couldn't get out.

After a moment, Alise and Mikaela looked at each other wearily.

"Dammit," Alise finally muttered, and she pulled her phone out of her pocket and started to dial Lennox's number. She needed to get a message to Bee, but she still wasn't able to call him with her special phone; he could still only call her.

"We need to get to Sam," Mikaela said.

"Already on it," Lise answered with the phone to her ear. "Tell him we're on our way." Mik nodded, and got back on the phone with him.

The phone was dialing, but after three rings, it went to voicemail.

"Leave a message," Will's voice answered, and Alise was mentally cursing him for not picking up. If he couldn't put them on a secure line, she had to use code to get a message through to him.

They told her a few words that they used in cases like this, code names for the different Autobots, their code names, a few of the major Decepticons, and even situations. Whenever Will called, they didn't need to use these things because they were on a secure line. But if she was calling, they couldn't even use their own names. She was quickly trying to recall all the codes as the beep on the line went off.

"Cap, it's Google Translate," she quickly said. "We have a problem. The cat got the mice. Well, sorta. Not really. More like the mice got the cat, but either way something's up. I need you to get a message to Buzz. Tell him and that me and the Mechanic are flying out to Ladiesman with the cat in tow. Yes, the cat in tow. I'll explain when you call."

She then hung up the phone quickly. She was glad she was able to remember all the codes, considering she had only heard them once before, maybe twice. Cap was Lennox's name, Epps's was Rain (not to be confused with the Rain), and Wash's was PITA, after Ironhide suggested that his code name be 'Pain in the Aft.' Alise was humorously named Google Translate, while Sam was Ladiesman, and Mikaela was the Mechanic, both for obvious reasons. Bee was Buzz, 'Hide was Tank, Optimus was Big Buddha, and Ratchet was Pulse. The situation Alise had told over the phone was "The Cat and the Mouse," meaning her having a run in with a Decepticon. She and Mikaela were the mice, and the con was the cat.

She turned around to Mikaela and saw that she was already off the phone with Sam.

"He knows we're coming," she said simply. Lise nodded.

"Then we better get going."

The too girls both got minimum supplies together for the trip, both packing small bags. Mikaela also brought a chain and metal collar to put around the con if they needed to, and Alise put an extra lock on the tool box the small con was in just to be certain. Mik lastly wrote a note on the table for her father to tell him they'd be gone for the next few days and to feed Bones.

"Will he be okay with you leaving like this?" Lise asked her.

"I'm 18, I can leave on my own," she said quickly. "I've been on my own mostly anyway."

The two quickly got their stuff together and Mikaela wheeled over one of her usable motorcycles. Though Alise was a little weary of riding on the bike, she knew they had no time and had to leave now. The two put on helmets, and as Mik got in the front and started it up, Alise grabbed the toolbox with the con inside and got on the back.

"This is cruelty!" he started to shout. "Just wait until the big boys come along-"

"Shut up!" Alise and Mikaela both shouted in unison, and the con stopped.

With that, Mik threw up the kick stop, and the two started to drive to the airport.