Transformers Prime: Ordeal

~Act I, Chapter I~

~Michelangelo's POV~

"Michelangelo! If I ever catch you falling asleep in class again, I promise you'll have to catch up with so much homework, you won't even sleep at night!"

Hearing her seethe those words as she yelled after me gave me a good reason to run out of class as fast as possible when the school bell rang. Yeah, I already had my daily dose of scolding from my History teacher, so I didn't think I needed to hear another lecture from her about some little accident that happens to every student at least once in their life.

I was a little too much on my computer yesterday night, and by the time I went to bed, it was 3:00 am. Guilty as charged, I won't deny that. But I won't deny that I haven't tried as hard as I possibly could to stay awake in class. When it comes to the cranky, shriveled Miss Dawson's History lessons, unless you had your coffee, you're guaranteed to at least get distracted by the birds outside. I don't even remember the last thing she talked about before I fell asleep. Yeah, it was that boring. The only thing I learned today in History was that if President Lincoln was my History teacher and caught me taking a nap in class, he would have sent me out to work in the fields, to make up for the time I wasted on sleeping.

Well, if it means not ever coming back to her lessons, then hell yeah! Sign me up any time soon!

So, as you can clearly see, I had a great day until Miss Screw-you-I'm-Your-Teacher caught me dozing off in class and had me involved the last 15 minutes in an argument. I think that was a lot more interesting than what she had to teach. Sure, what I did was wrong, but I can't help it if she doesn't know how to teach history.

I barged out of the doors of our school after hearing another dissing remark from the janitor, telling us students the golden rule of NOT running in the halls. Pff, still can't believe that people like him treat us like 5th graders, even though we're all in high-school by now. But I didn't waste more time thinking about it, because nothing felt better than breathing that fresh air of freedom after a long day's work.

As I ran down the stairs, I looked eagerly around me. I was searching for my friend and we would usually meet up after class. It didn't take me long until I spotted a group of girls near the sidewalk. I knew I had found her, since Native-American girls with wavy, shoulder-length hair like hers is very hard to miss in this school. I slung my bag over my shoulders, put the most charming smirk on my face and walked up to the clique... Like a boss. "Hey, ladies."

The girls in the group giggled and laughed, and I even spotted one blushing. I still had the moves.

The Native-American girl turned around, her face showing a mix of amusement or annoyance. "Hey there, slacker."

Wow, she didn't miss a beat. That was one way to ruin my image.

I gasped, playing it up a little dramatically. "Rachel, I'm offended. Is that how you treat your oldest friend?"

She waved goodbye to her school friends as they left, and she had that mocking smile plastered on her face when she looked over to me. "I'd treat you better if stopped showing off in front of my friends."

"Oh, come on, they like it when I do that!"

"Yeah, because it looks funny."

"That's what you say, but you know I'm right." I stated, "Did you see Alice? I could tell, she was digging me."

Rachel thought differently, seeing as she was moaning in exasperation. "Oh, Mike... You should really focus more on your schoolwork. You DO know we have an exam next week, right?"

I scoffed at her remark, raising my fist. "Exam? You think I'm iffy because of some sheets? I've dealt with worse."

No joke, the exams looked like nothing compared to what I had been up against. I wasn't even referring to the History teacher, though she could remotely scarier than the exams. Just by looking at Rachel, she knew what I was talking about, showing discomfort as she pushed the strands of hair out of her face, anxiously looking around her.

A blaring honk made us jump, and we both spun our heads to a police car that just drove up the sidewalk. Other students were pointing their fingers in amazement, gossiping about who was in trouble with the law enforcement. It took me a couple of seconds to realize that a huge grin had spread across my face. I showed it off to Rachel. "I really enjoy this conversation we're having, you know, with you giving great advice and a heads-up for what I already know, but I gotta run. Gotta meet up with some... friends, and I don't wanna be rude and make them wait."

She rolled her eyes, sighing. "Always making up excuses to get away. Fine. Go ahead, I'm not holding you back."

"Thanks, Rach', you're the best."

"Heck yeah." she muttered.

I opened the door to the police car, but didn't go in just yet. There was something I wanted to try one last time. "You don't know what you're missing. These guys... They're really awesome. I'm sure you'd like them a lot. You should give them a chance."

She gave me an apologetic smile. "Mike, we've been over this. I'm sure they're as great as you tell me, but... That world... I don't want any part of it."

I was a little disappointed, hoping for a different answer. I returned an understanding smile as I nodded my head. "All right. I'm not gonna force you; I'm just letting you know that if you ever change your mind, you're more than welcome to crash the party."

"And I appreciate the thought, thanks. I anyway don't have time for anything else. I'm too busy preparing for the school concert. Can you believe that the band's expecting me to learn three new songs by the end of this week?"

Right. There was this concert coming up a couple of months from now to celebrate the inauguration of this unfortunate building. "That doesn't sound like much."

"And that's why you'll never know what it's like to work as a musician." she said, mocking me, "Just go already. I'll see you around. And don't get too side-tracked as usual, Mike."

I could hardly say goodbye as she rushed off into the school, probably going to the music room where other musicians were practicing. The band was supervised by one of the school's music teacher, so he probably had a strict rule about punctuality.

Teachers... In the end, they're just monsters in disguise.

Another honk reminded me that someone was waiting. I scoffed in disbelief. I was holding onto the door handle, I was inches from being inside the car. And he still honked at me.

I shook my head and finally slid into the front seat, slamming the door shut. The engine immediately roared to life, and I was barely given enough time to strap myself as the car drove off, speeding down the street.

I glanced at the policeman sitting in the drivers seat, nodding my head. "Hey, Prowl. 'Sup?"

He fell silent, briefly glancing at me indifferently before focusing on the street. "I'm late for duty because of you."

Wow. Looks like teachers aren't the only ones getting edgy over punctuality.

"It's nice to see you too." I stated dryly, "By now, I figured you'd know how to greet people."

The man sighed heavily. "How was school?"

"I'll survive, thanks for asking. See, that wasn't so hard, was it?"

"It's a matter of being bothersome, not hard."

"Oh, so now you're telling me there's a difference?"

"Yes, there is. Being hard implies that the task is difficult to complete. Bothersome, on the other hand, indicates that it's too much of a bother to be looked into, but it doesn't mean it's impossible to do it."

It was my turn to fall silent. "And you plan on handling a team with THAT kind of attitude? You know, now I'm not the least bit surprised that Optimus promoted you to be my guardian."

With a strong, sudden jerk, my body lurched against the seat belt as the car ground to a screeching halt. "The hell, Prowl!" I hissed and grunted at him. When I looked out the window, I realized he had pulled up in front of my house. "Hey, what gives? I thought we were going to HQ."

"You are going home. I am on patrol duty for at least another two hours."

"I don't mind waiting in the car." I retorted.

"I do. The last thing I need is you as a distraction while I'm on duty."

I groaned and shook my head in disapproval. "You kiddin' me? Prowl, if you're expecting that we both get somewhere in this partnership, then you're gonna have to make more effort. The very least you can do is pretend to appreciate my company instead of getting rid of me."

The policeman glanced at me, his face expressionless, and stayed quiet. He turned back his attention to the road and, seconds later, the engine roared to life, tires spurting smoke as the car drove off. I talked to him, tried to bring him to say something, but he never gave into my attempt of conversation. He was known to be patient, never giving into the demands of others, no matter how much he was being nagged about it.

Freakin' unsociable robot doesn't even want to have fun every once in a while.

Yeah, you heard me right. I'm dealing with a robot here. The man next to me? A hologram, created by the car, which is actually Prowl. I'm not kidding. In reality, he's a robot capable of transforming into a police car and the other way around. The vehicle form is used as a camouflage in order to blend into our society. With that disguise, he comes off as an ordinary police car to anyone.

And guess what? He's my guardian, now. Pretty cool, huh?

Well, since Prowl's on patrol and he's not willing to put the effort into talking, I guess it's time you heard my story. This is how it all happened.

A couple of months ago, Rachel and I were on our way home. I was riding my bike, and I was trying to persuade her to hop on because, let's face it, it's fun and helps you get home faster. And she didn't want to, for reasons beyond my understanding.

We passed by the local junkyard, a familiar place we'd sometimes hang out at. For a tinkerer like me, that place is paradise. It's where I can find spare parts for any innovative plans I had in mind, ranging from constructing my own custom-made bike to upgrading any vehicles, or just making a little do-hickey as a last resort. I enjoyed creating my own things, and for a passionate genius like me, money falls short. In that junkyard, things were price-wise cheaper than on the market. The guy in charge of the place, Chris, a middle-aged man in his late 40s, would put up a reasonable price for the parts we found there. So, Rachel and I would go there quite often. She is, after all, my best friend.

You can say we know that junkyard very well, what we could find, how expensive things were and when the junkyard was open. We know for a fact that it was closed on Thursdays, because Chris would take the day off to get himself wasted to some spirits in a bar. So, in the middle of our argument, Rach' and I heard some rattling coming from inside the junkyard, and when we looked, we caught sight of a flare that only lasted a moment before it faded into the early evening. It was an unusual thing, and it was strange because that day was Thursday, and nobody was supposed to be there. I was curious by nature and investigated whenever something appeared in the corner of my eyes, or when my ears picked up something I judged to be unusual. So naturally, I was going to check it out.

Rachel held me back at first, telling me that it was a bad idea. She was always cautious, but she should have known by now that nothing could stop me once I got curious. Seeing as I wasn't even listening to her anymore and started moving towards the junkyard's fence, she let me go and followed me instead.

I placed my bike against the chain-link fence and started climbing, earning some angry, quiet ramblings from Rachel. I didn't even need to tell her anything before she copied my moves and went up the fence. Once I helped her down, we heard some voices in the distance. There was a conversation going on and we felt the ground tremble beneath our feet almost simultaneously. This was getting exciting for me, and I grew more anxious as I sneaked further into the junkyard, past stacks of scrapped cars with Rachel sticking to me like glue. Obviously, she didn't share my excitement. Along the way, she insisted with sharp whispers that we should get out, coming up with what I thought were lame excuses, channeled by childish fears. Maybe she was afraid, but I should know better than to question the judgment of my best friend, who has always been the voice of reason. I chose to ignore her and drew myself nearer to large piles of scraps and garbage. We hid ourselves there, looking in between those piles to see the open area ahead of us, and what was going on.

I don't know what the hell was happening, but I was wondering what the hell I was looking at. And I swear to you, this was the one time where I had no idea what to say.

Assembled in the heart of the area were a group of three freakin' ginormous robots. The shortest one was a blue-colored female robot. You could tell that much by looking at her body, if you know what I mean. The second was fairly tall, its metal plating consisting of a white and black paint job, and it had a visor on its face. Oh, I also remember seeing sirens attached to its back. And there was the final one, the tallest of the three, which was a massive robot with bulky, heavy-weight features. Altogether, they were huge, making lampposts look like freakin' midgets, at least the latter of the two did. They were talking to each other... in English, but I don't think even Rachel could understand what they were talking about. What mattered to us was how threateningly intimidating they looked to us, especially to Rachel who tugged at the back of my shirt.

I was too mesmerized by these robots to hear Rachel's panic-stricken voice or to even think what to do next, and she noticed that very quickly. She tried to snap me out of it by pulling me away from the incredible display of robots. Unfortunately, in doing so, I tripped over or kicked something, I don't remember which it was, but I knew that I had messed up when I heard some subsequent rattling coming from one of those scrapheaps.

One pile shook and tipped forward before finally crashing onto the ground with loud cracking and clunky sounds of used objects. I screwed up bad. With a grimace on my face, I looked at the rendered pile before me, then slowly lifted my head up, realizing that we weren't hidden anymore. The ice cold eyes of the robots were looking straight at us, and the green robot, one of the biggest, bulkiest robot I've ever seen, took one step towards us. The tremors of the ground forced our senses to kick in, and that was when we ran for our lives.

I don't think I've ever run as fast as I did that day, but we both sped towards the exit like there was no tomorrow, dashing past piles of scraps and stacks of wrecked cars. The fence, our way of exit, was in our view when a sudden shadow loomed to our right. A shriek made made me stop in my tracks, and as I turned around, I watched Rachel struggle in the grip of a new robot.

Usually, I'm a good judge of character, because I trust my instincts. When I saw the robots from before, somehow, I didn't feel like they were all that bad. With this new robot, something was different. I felt this strange vibe coming from it, a slender, gray and silver robot, who was now holding Rachel in his thin, sharp, claw-like hands. He was smirking, his crimson eyes glowing in the dark of the early evening, and he gave out a low, menacing order.

New robots appeared out of nowhere, and as I started to ask myself how they got here without being obvious, I saw a vehicle transform into a robot for the first time. Their paint job was of purple color, and each of them was identical to the other. Three of them came to me, their arms morphing into firearms.

I was just able to see the flare inside their barrels, charging up and ready to disintegrate me into dust when bolts of lasers tore through the air. Their attention was drawn by the three first robots I've seen, and in a matter of seconds, two of those robots were hit as they propelled from their spots. The blue, female robot was fast and agile, assaulting the third robot with several punches and a roundhouse kick in the face in just a matter of seconds. She was tough for a small one, hitting him hard until she pinned him to the ground and took him out with one final shot through the head. She then provided me with cover, firing with in-built weapons as she shielded me with her towering height from enemy fire. That was how I learned that there were two factions fighting against each other, and the blue robot that seemed to be protecting me was on my side, at least that's what I believed back then.

Knowing that I was more or less safe for the time being, I became worried about Rach'. I was hoping, begging that she was all right, but I couldn't see anything beyond the intimidating size of the robot that was protecting me. Moments later, a terrifying screech made my blood run cold. I had to know what was going on, so I jumped aside to get a clearer view. The gray robot was holding his face, covering his left eye as purple liquids streamed through his fingers. He had dropped Rachel to the ground, and she staggered to her feet and ran. The robot, in all his fury, screamed out to her when he himself was shot by the white and black-painted robot. The purple robot soldiers were distracted by the agonizing outburst of their leader that it caused them to be in complete disarray. The towering robot before me shrunk so quick, it took me time to realize she had transformed into a motorcycle. She zoomed towards that silver robot and reverted to her robotic form, battling him with guns, blades and metal fists. All the while, Rach' came running towards me, dodging fire and crumpling robot bodies.

And then, a massive explosion engulfed the area she was in, spurting clouds of dust. I held my breath, and shouted her name. She didn't answer.

A police car leaped out of that thick cloud and screeched to a halt before me, its door slinging open. Rachel was in there.

"Get in."

I was taken aback, unable to move a muscle, because I didn't see anybody else in there besides Rachel. I realized the car was one of them.

A nearby explosion shook the ground, forcing me out of my thoughts.

"If you don't want to die, then I suggest you get in right now!" that same voice urged as the car revved.

I had no other choice but to obey. Rachel was in there, and that car was our ticket out of here so I hopped in. The car screeched and tore off into the heat of battle. Explosions erupted from around us, adding another layer of mist that I could hardly see the robots battling each other. The car sped through that thick, brown cloud with debris and rubble being thrown against the windshield. It even rammed into several of robots before it burst through the barred entrance of the junkyard. I turned around, watching the area, having become a battlefield, disappear from my view as we distanced ourselves.

In a couple of minutes, the car ground to a halt, its doors popping open. Rachel and I barely got out when the car began to transform before our very eyes, rising to tower over us. It was one of the three first robots we saw, and I understood what the purpose of those sirens on his back were. I crawled over to Rachel, checking to see if she was all right, who nodded as her whole body shook. Her eyes were wide with shock and horror, unable to speak. I watched then the robot just stand there, sometimes observing us, other times looking elsewhere, waiting for something, quiet as the dead.

Introducing Prowl, my soon-to-be-guardian, the unsociable extraordinaire.

We were in the abandoned parking lot, which was around about 200 yards from where the junkyard was. Rach' and I barely exchanged words, unsure if we were safe enough or captured. Sometimes I would stare at the robot in amazement, sometimes in dismay.

The robot had suddenly brought his left hand to the side of his head and began talking to himself. I figured he was communicating with someone, and when he was done talking, he turned to us. "The battle's over and both of you are now safe. However, the Commander would like to have a word with you before you return to your abode."

A mix of curiosity and courage invaded me, and I got up to my feet and started my first conversation with a robot. That was how I learned who he was. He hardly introduced himself before falling silent again. Even with time, some things never change.

Minutes later, more vehicles sped our way, lead by a semi red and blue painted truck. When it stopped, it underwent a jaw-dropping transforming sequence, wheels shifting to the side, a head popping out of its chest as it rose to its feet. The other robots did same.

He knelt down and began to introduce himself: Optimus Prime, the leader of the Autobots. Following next were Bulkhead and Arcee, the robots from the group, and another new face called Bumblebee. From the looks of things, they're a group of robotic aliens from another planet, but have become refugees here on Earth; their home world, Cybertron, was destroyed as a result of the war they waged against their enemies, the Decepticons, those guys from before who invited themselves to a festive brawl. And by accident, we had become involved. Leading that assault was Starscream, a Decepticon rogue who was trying to create his own league of armies, those who disfavored the current Decepticon leader called Megatron.

I was so absorbed by his story-telling, and that was unusual for me. Could have been his smooth, authoritative, baritone voice, could have been his intimidating size that forced my curiosity to pay attention to everything that was being told... Or it could have been the fact that I was so used to listening to my History teacher that everybody else except her made their story sound more interesting. Joke aside, seeing how small I was in comparison to them and having seen them fight so fiercely with their 2-ton fists and super-advanced weapons of complete annihilation, I should have been more afraid, but I wasn't. My entire body trembled, but it wasn't because I feared them. I was more amazed than afraid, because all of this was so exciting! The idea of meeting a whole new species from outer space, a bunch of robots with emotions and kick-ass moves was just... Overwhelming. I was hyped as hell!

Optimus Prime was continuing his story-telling about the war, going into details when he was suddenly interrupted by Rachel's scream. That made me jump, and I was ready to argue with her when I noticed that she was about to break into tears. She said she wanted to go home and didn't want to get involved in any of this.

I was shocked back then. How can someone NOT want to know more about this? I tried to reason with her, but she was in such a state, screaming at me and flinching as I tried to get close. Me, her best friend.

The leader of the Autobots drew his head closer to us, less than a feet away from our faces, his eyes searching as if he was trying to get a good look at us. I admit I was a little taken aback when I realized how HUGE he really was, but I couldn't help but feel more mesmerized by his metal-plated face, especially that azure, luminescent gleam of his gaze. I was so hypnotized by them that it took me 10 seconds or so to realize that Rachel had run off. The commander's voice brought me back down to Earth when he told me that, as a friend, I should see to it that she was all right. I agreed completely, and so I rushed after her and out of the parking lot. I didn't like the idea of postponing life-changing events, but I was loyal to the people I cared about. It was my duty as a friend to be there for her, even if I had to risk never meeting those robots again.

When I finally caught up with her, I watched her wiping her tears from her eyes, avoiding my gaze. I tried to slow her down by grabbing her arm, trying to understand why she was behaving like this, but she would rip out of my grip. With no other choice, I confronted her, blocking her way, demanding an explanation. I'll never forget how she reacted that day:

"What's there to explain, Mikey? We were nearly crushed and obliterated by rampaging killing machines, or did you forget that already? Did it cross your mind that in that type of battle, we're nothing more than collateral damage? We're just a bunch of insects that could have been easily step on, by accident no less! Did you ever think about that? No, of course not, and that's your major problem, Mike. You could never tell the difference between safe and dangerous because you're so stupid and irresponsible! If you want to go on with your big robot adventure, fine by me! I don't care what you do, but whatever trouble you get into, you will NOT drag me into it! I'm sick to the pit of my stomach of your recklessness! I don't want to deal with that or these damn robots ever again, do you hear me? NEVER!"

I watched her tread away from me, picking up the pace as she began to run. I was dumbfounded and paralyzed, struck by her words, offended by what she told me... She had never raised her voice against me in this way, nor did she ever say how she really felt about me.

My thoughts were interrupted by a loud honk, forcing me to turn around. Optimus Prime had caught up with me in his vehicle form, halting right next to me. I was too upset to find the right words to engage him in a conversation, but I didn't need to as he was first to speak. He told me that I shouldn't be offended by her strong reaction, as if he found out what had happened. In fact, he did; thanks to his super-advanced range of hearing, he overheard us. He stated that she had been emotionally compromised by the battles that had taken place, and may have been still distraught by them and the existence of gigantic species. As his words sunk in, I tried recalling not what she had said, but her face.

She was in tears. She was upset. It was a face that I've never seen before, and if I didn't know any better, I'd say she was... terrified, scared to death. And it hit me.

I am so stupid. I let her words get to me instead of trying to understand the humane reaction that I should have had too.

The leader explained that it would be best if I headed home to make sure that Rachel was all right and that I take time to recover from these events. He would find me, he said, giving me enough time until then to meet up once again. And with those last words, he drove off, the rest of the other vehicles driving up behind him. With one last wave of goodbye I headed out, trying to catch up with Rachel. She was quite fast, having already disappeared from my sight. Fortunately, the way home was past the junkyard, the place where I had left my bike. I rushed to the entrance, took my bike and pedaled as hard as I could.

I was half-way home when I finally caught up with Rachel. She told me to buzz off; it was a nice try. I kept up with her pace, pedaling as slowly as I could.

That ride home felt like one of the longest ones I've ever had. For a while, we just walked and stayed quiet. I was trying to come up with something to say, but honestly, after all that had happened back there... I couldn't find the words to express my thoughts. I was speechless. My mind was filled with the images of the battle, and it felt like reality had only caught up with me now, making me realize a terrible thought.

We really could have died.

My train of thought was interrupted by Rachel as she apologized for the harsh words brought up by her reaction. I still remember up to this day how that conversation went.

"Rach', you don't have to excuse yourself. You're right, we nearly died out there; I just didn't see that back there, and you know how long it takes for me to catch on. Can you forgive your stupid, reckless friend?"

"You are more than just stupid and reckless, but I forgive you because that's what friends do. I just... I want to live a normal life. I don't doubt that they're awesome, but I just have this bad feeling that if I involve myself too much in it, it could... change my life. It's also a huge responsibility to keep a secret like this one, and I already have enough responsibilities to take care of. You should think about that too, Mike. Do you really want to be with them? If you do, nothing could be the same ever again."

"I'm counting on it. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and you know I wouldn't want to miss out on something like that."

"But... What if you get hurt, Mike? What if you-"

"Rach', I don't want to hear it!"

This statement came out stronger than I expected, silencing her and leaving me perplexed. With a sigh, I continued. "We just discovered that we aren't the only living beings in the universe. This is a big thing for me, and I know that if I just pretend that nothing has ever happened, I'll live to regret it. I want every moment in my life to be worth living, no matter what happens. If I end up getting hurt because of it, then I'll put a huge smile on my face because I did something others didn't do."

I was really proud with what I said back then, and Rachel, for once, didn't contradict my decision. I was up to the challenge of a lifetime, and she understood, though she was surprised at first before putting up a nice smile on her face. She stayed with her own decision, keeping herself away from this adventure. And as we went home, we fell right back into the argument we had earlier, almost as if nothing had happened at the junkyard. After ten minutes or so, she arrived at her place, and I went to mine across the street. It was a little past nine, and I did get Mom and Dad a tad worried there. But once I explained that I was together with Rachel, they were immediately relieved. They trusted her as much as they trusted me; she was like the daughter they never had. They knew that as long as I was with her, I wouldn't get into trouble.

Hah. As if.

I recall being so excited that night that I could hardly sleep. My mind swirled with the thoughts of the robots. How could they find me? Would I meet them ever again?

The next day, after school, I walked Rachel home and, having dropped her off, was just in front of my house when a police car pulled up next to me, and a police officer sitting inside told me to get in. I quickly found out that the man was Prowl, and went in without any second thoughts. He drove me out of town, and when everything was clear, an iridescent, turquoise ring had flashed into existence a yard or two ahead of us. It was a portal, and as we went through it, we popped up in a completely different place.

I had arrived at their secret base. I got out of the car, recognizing the familiar faces of Arcee and Bulkhead, and standing before me was their leader, Optimus Prime, welcoming me. He introduced me to the rest of the team: Ratchet, the team's medic, and... three other teenagers. Huh. Looks like I'm not the only one who found out about the Autobots.

Meet Jack, Miko and Raf, high schoolers from Jasper, Nevada.

I returned my attention to Optimus Prime, who was asking about Rachel. He couldn't hide his disappointment when I explained that she decided not to come, nor could I. Regardless of that, he was glad to have me there, and so were the others, with the exception of the medical officer who just scoffed exasperatedly. Then, the unpredictable happened.

Optimus Prime appointed Prowl to be my guardian.

We both stared at each other before protesting almost simultaneously, though I did it out of sheer surprise. Prowl had the oddest ways of saying how we didn't fit together, from "compatibility" to "illogical", and to some extent, I had to agree with him. He really looked like a bore and seemed complicated enough to get along with.

Nonetheless, once an order by a Prime is given, it had to be followed to the end, and Prowl was loyal to the Autobot commander, or at least that's what I've seen. So he accepted the role as guardian, and has been since then watching over me.

In the following months, I spent my days with the Autobots, getting to know this whole new family. They're loads of fun, especially the three other guys. Miko is one crazy nutcase, but she makes sure that that it doesn't get too boring at the Autobot HQ. The little squirt, Raf, is one hell of a smart kid, able to hack into servers and do some high-tech reprogramming. And he's good with video games, which is why we play a lot together. Now Jack is the oldest and probably the only one who is levelheaded, but we both get along well. You can talk to him about anything. He's a good friend.

When it comes to the Autobots, they're on a whole new level. I don't know them as well as the other guys do, but I do know for a fact that the medic called Ratchet is a grouchy bot always looking for reasons to nag somebody, and that I can't understand a word Bumblebee says. And Arcee... She looks tough for a femmebot. That's all I know.

The only ones I could get more or less to know are Bulkhead, Prowl and Optimus Prime. I hang out most of the time with Miko and her guardian when mine isn't busy with whatever he does as the team's military strategist. One thing's for certain: Bulkhead is an awesome 'Bot who promises epic moments.

I don't see the Autobot Commander that often, but there are times when I meet him on the rooftop of the base, outside, staring out into the horizon. He offers me his hand, allowing me to climb on it, and lifts me up to show what he's looking at. The view from there is unlike anything I've ever seen, especially when the sun's going down; you don't have this kind of sunset in my town. The time I've spent with him has been more than just a rewarding experience as we get into a conversation and talk about what's on our minds.

And then there's Prowl, my guardian. His apathetic behavior towards others makes him incredibly obnoxious, and secluding himself in his own room, doing his own business related to missions, doesn't render him any nicer. He's always up to something in there, but keeps it all to himself, which makes me more than often pissed about it. However, despite his faults, there are times when we get along. We can agree on some battle tactics and strategies (hours of playing strategy games finally pay off), and he likes showing off his strategic thinking without being too much of a jerk. He sets his priorities on the mission and any task that's been given to him, and sees to it that they are all complete. That makes him not only a busy robot, but also an easily unlikable teammate. What others actually don't see is that his loyalty doesn't only lie in the mission, but also in his friends. There was this one time when I caught him off guard while he was having some personal issue, and that was when I discovered his true colors. Ever since then, I've seen him from a different perspective, and he's a lot more awesome than I ever dreamed of expecting.

If you can't socialize with him, you can give him credit for his reliability and accountability. And I can relate to that.

So, that's the story. What prevents this story from being great is the fact that Rachel isn't included. With all the good that's come from meeting those guys, I know that it'd be a lot more fun if she was around. Somehow, I can't blame her. I haven't noticed that much of a difference in my life just yet, but she is a lot more sensitive than I am. And when things get overwhelming, she just can't take it.

So now I'm stuck in this car, waiting for the patrol to come to an end. An hour and a half had gone by, and the ride felt painfully longer than I had imagined it to be. That was Prowl's intention, demonstrating how 'exciting' patrolling can be.

He could try all he wanted, but he wasn't going to get rid of me that easily.

I was deep in thought when the cellphone in my pocket vibrated to life as it played one of my favorite rock songs. I reached deep into my pocket, pulled out the gadget, its screen blinking with the initials of my best friend. I couldn't hide my surprise.

"Hmm, I wonder what she has to tell me."