ATE: Hey everyone! Sorry for taking so long with this chapter, but I was mainly busy writing another story for a friend of mine (and or future story), but I finally managed to get this done today (well, I finished this yesterday on April 30). Still I'd like to thank SeekerLuna, Sailor Shinzo, Crystalmaiden62, storygirl99210, Autobot-Bre, and Bumblebeecamaro38 for their reviews one the last chapter and I hope everyone else will enjoy this chapter. Speaking about this chapter, it covers the events of Episode 45 (Dash) of Transformers Armada, but I added my own tweaks to it so that I made it a little more interesting. You'll see was soon enough. Plus, if any of you remember the episode itself, you'll probably remember the part where there was an animation error concerning Jetfire having the same color scheme as Optimus, for which I easily came up with a perfect explanation to the whole thing. Enjoy!
Declaimer: I don't own Transformers or Transformers Armada. I only own my OCs Valerie and Astera.
WARNING: There's a bit up ahead that adds to the reason why this story is rated M.
Chapter 22 - Dash
From where he was hiding behind the rubble Jetfire could see a bunch of Decepticon soldiers all around the place. He was just lucky enough to get to the hiding place he was in without being spotted by them all. He was tempted to try to get a closer look, but he decided not to push his luck at the moment. That only left him with one thing to do: contact the Autobots onboard the Axalon.
"Come in, Autobots!" Jetfire said after pressing the button to turn on his comlink.
It took awhile but eventually he was able to see the others in the bridge, the footage occasionally flickering in and out.
"Jetfire, how did things look on the planet?" Optimus asked over the comlink.
The shuttle mech couldn't help but smile behind his face mask. Optimus, always straight to the point. Jetfire turned back to the area and sighed when he remembered all the Decepticons that were around.
"Cybertron's being overrun with Decepticons." He explained. "Luckily, my position's safe, but…I dunno for how much longer."
"Just stay out of sight."
"Roger." It was with that that Jetfire turned off his comlink. "What a rip-off." He grumbled quietly in irritation as he pulled his servo away so that it was at his side. "I'm the decorated flying ace, and thanks to these Decepticons, I've been grounded. Let's see if I can turn things around."
Jetfire ducked down so that his back was leaning against the rubble he was hiding behind so that he could be completely hidden from the Decepticon soldiers. The only way he would be able to scout safely around here without being discovered by Decepticons was to be a Decepticon. And Jetfire had the perfect disguise ready. He pressed a button that was concealed underneath some armor plating on his arm and the color scheme of his body changed. His coloration was similar to Optimus' (to some extent), but in the place of the usual red Autobot symbol on his chest was a purple Decepticon symbol.
Jetfire suddenly thought about Valerie and how scared she had been after they had retrieved her along with Hot Shot and Red Alert from that planet. No matter how hard he tried he couldn't forget what she told him:
He's after me, Jetfire. He's coming for me.
Just knowing that Sideways was after her was enough to make Jetfire overly protective of his sparkmate. Just recalling her fearful expressions made him realize just how grave her situation was at this time; which is why he would go to any lengths just to keep her safe. If he could he would've brought her with him on this reconnaissance mission, but sadly he wasn't able to due to a few good reasons that he (as much as he hated to admit it) would have agreed with: there was the fact that he was going into enemy territory and bringing her with him would've put her in danger if the Decepticons found out about her, then there was her well-being that he'd have to be concerned about, and lastly if he was forced to engage the enemy he'd have to constantly make sure nothing happened to her or that she wasn't killed while he was distracted, or the fact that she would've been considered a distraction and his mission would've been compromised. Jetfire sighed, knowing how hard it was to keep his sparkmate safe.
'I just hope Valerie's doing okay.' He thought before heading out into the open.
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"I wonder what's gonna happen now." Billy said as we all stared out the window at all the Mini-Cons floating around outside.
"Stressful times like these call for large quantities of comfort food." Fred announced.
I mentally sighed.
"I just wanna know if the Mini-Cons are still on our side or not." At least Billy decided to ignore Fred.
"Well, somehow I kinda doubt all those Mini-Cons are here just to fight the Decepticons." Rad stated.
I gaze shifted down to Cybertron's surface and I could see lights flickering, knowing full well that they were actually explosions going off due to the war taking place below.
"Those lights." Alexis started.
"Huh?" Rad said as I saw him turn to Alexis.
"Watching those lights flicker makes me wonder how many transformers are disappearing down there."
Alexis had a point as we all turned to her. How many transformers were dying from this war? Hundreds, thousands, millions? Just how many were dying each day and possibly leaving loved ones behind? How many more would die before this war came to an end? It was sad that this war had been going on for millions of years now, and yet there were still battles raging on like a large inferno that refused to be doused by a drop of water. To think that Jetfire had lived through all this from the time he was born to the present day. He had never known true peace and the only time he had anything resembling it was when he was on Earth, but even then those times were short and few. Was it possible to say that all he had known most of his life was war? That the last 70,000 years had been dedicated to the conflict taking place below us?
"That's right." Carlos said as he turned back to the window. "Those flashing lights are from all the fighting that's going on."
"That's terrible." Fred said.
"Yeah." Rad agreed. "So we came all this way just to watch this? So what are we supposed to do? We left Earth thinking that we could be of some use out here, but I dunno." He placed his hands on the window before leaning forward in an attempt to get a closer look. "Ugh, at this rate, I just don't know anymore."
"Rad?" Carlos asked. "Huh?" He went quiet for a bit before talking again. "Hot Shot? Hey, Hot Shot!"
"Huh?" The rest of us said as we turned to see Hot Shot walking down the hallway before going around the corner. He didn't seem to notice or heard us.
"Huh? Hey, what's with him? Is he mad at us or something?" Carlos asked. "Hey, why is he ignoring us?"
We all decided to follow Hot Shot to wherever he was going and we eventually found him in the room with all the pods, which he happened to be standing next to one of them.
"Hot Shot!" Rad called out.
"Huh?" Hot Shot turned to look at us from where we stood in the doorway.
"Are you leaving?" He asked after taking a step forward.
We all turned to Rad.
"What? But what about the others, Rad?" Carlos asked.
"I think Hot Shot's going to take matters into his own hands. He's all geared up to head right through the Decepticon frontline."
"What?" We exclaimed.
"Is that true, Hot Shot?" Fred asked.
"You nuts?" Billy asked.
"Don't worry, I can do it." Hot Shot told us as he turned to face us completely.
"Hot Shot, don't go. It's far too dangerous." Alexis begged.
"Yeah, Galvatron wouldn't listen to Optimus so he sure won't listen to you!" Fred added.
"You can't change his mind, Alexis." Billy stated.
"Aw, come on!" Hot Shot protested slightly. "I gotta give it at least one more try. Don't I?"
I couldn't believe how persistent Hot Shot was being right now, but I didn't have time to say anything about it when I heard the sound of approaching footsteps.
"So that's what you're up to!" We turned around to see Red Alert standing behind us.. "I've been worried about you, Hot Shot. That's why I came back here."
"Sorry, Big Red. You can't talk me out of this one."
With that Hot Shot turned around to head over to the pod he had been standing next to earlier.
"You can't just leave. Please, don't go, Hot Shot." Carlos pleaded.
"C'mon, stay with us. Can't someone else go instead of you?" Alexis asked.
"No!" Hot Shot said as he suddenly stopped. "I'm the only one who can do this."
"You're not making any sense. What is it that you're hoping to accomplish?" I asked.
Hot Shot was quiet for a bit before he spoke.
"Right now we can't land on planet Cybertron. I'll do my best to persuade Galvatron. If I can't convince him, it'll at least buy us some time. Hopefully by then we'll be able to make our way back to our planet."
"But - you'll miss dinner!" Fred said.
"And you might not make it back!" Billy added.
"Let him go." Rad suddenly said, causing us to turn to him. He shook his lowered head. "He'll be all right, guys. Hot Shot's smart, he knows how to take care of himself. He should go." He looked up at Hot Shot. "If I were a Transformer, I'd do the same thing to save my friends. We should all give him our support. He could be our last chance for peace. The Autobots helped save the Earth and I really wish I could help save their planet." I was surprised when Rad suddenly got frustrated. "But there's nothing I can do! Errr, I wanna help out some way, but I can't do anything! I can't stand it!" Rad sighed as if letting out his frustration like he did made him feel better now that he voiced his thoughts.
"Aw, take it easy, Rad." Carlos said as if trying to calm his friend down.
Fred groaned for some reason that I hope to never know about.
"Hey, Red Alert... You gotta let Hot Shot go to the planet." Rad said after calming down.
"Well, I was going to go with him. But I'd probably just get in his way." Red Alert admitted, which was something that surprised me.
"That's right." Hot Shot said after turning to Red Alert.
"Red Alert!" We exclaimed as we turned to the transformer standing behind us with shocked expressions.
"You serious?" Billy asked.
"All right, I'll cover for you!" Red Alert said, surprising us with his determination.
"Huh?" I get the feeling that even Hot Shot was surprised by what Red Alert said.
I looked at Red Alert before turning to Hot Shot and then back to Red Alert.
"I hope you don't get in trouble for this." I said.
(Later…)
"What?!" Hoist exclaimed as he turned to face Red Alert in shock. "You let Hot Shot go off on his own to meet with Galvatron?!"
"I had to let him go, Hoist." Red Alert said, turning to look at Optimus. "If anything happens, I'll take full responsibility for it."
As you can see we were in the bridge and had told the other Autobots about Hot Shot. I had to give credit to Red Alert for sending out a decoy pod out of the whip while the real pod Hot Shot was in was disguised as a meteorite. It was very clever on his part.
"Didn't ya try to stop him?!" Sideswipe asked, holding his arms out.
Red Alert turned to Sideswipe.
"I made a decision and I'm standing by it." He stated.
"Hmm?"
"Well you were wrong!" Hoist said, causing Red Alert and Sideswipe to turn to him. "And I'm going after him!"
"No!" Scavenger told him, catching Hoist's attention. "I think it's important that we stay together right now. Hot Shot can take care of himself."
"What?! No way!" Alexis protested. "Hot Shot is doing this for all of you. He needs your help!"
"Yeah! She's right! You can't just leave him out there." Carlos agreed.
"It's too risky to follow him." Blurr told us and we turned to him. "The Decepticons will be all over us."
"But what if Hot Shot can convince Galvatron to join us?!" Rad asked. "Then we've still got a chance!"
"I doubt that will happen." Scavenger said.
"Huh?!" It was obvious that Rad was confused as he turned to Scavenger.
"He could get lucky, but Galvatron has already made his mind up and I don't think he'll be changing it now." He explained. "We'll just have to accept the situation we're in and adjust our strategy."
"Hmmm... Sounds good to me." Blurr calmly agreed.
My friends groaned quietly, but I didn't. I just couldn't understand why Rad contradicted himself just now. Wasn't he the one that told Red Alert that Hot Shot should be allowed to go by himself, or was he now having second thoughts about what he said? It makes me wonder how his thought process worked.
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Hot Shot grinned as the disguised pod he was in flew by the Decepticon ships after the decoy had been shot down.
"Hey, thanks a lot, Red Alert. I owe ya one." Hot Shot said as he continued his course to Cybertron. Eventually he managed to land on Cybertron without any problems. "It's all or nothin' now." He reached up and punched in the combination to open the pod's hatch as soon as it came to a stop and didn't hesitate to get out. "Let's do this, Hot Shot!"
Hot Shot then ran off and soon took cover behind some rubble when he spotted three Decepticon shoulders guarding the entrance leading into their base.
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"Give me a break! Everywhere I look, all I see are Decepticon ships!" Hoist complained. It was true. Just looking at the main monitor showed us all the Decepticon ships there were currently, putting us at a huge disadvantage by outnumbering us. I hung my head. Even I knew that the Axalon couldn't take them all on by itself. Suddenly a beeping sound started going and Hoist turned to where it was coming from. "Huh?"
"Optimus!"
I held back a gasp as my head shot up from hearing the familiar voice, and sure enough I saw Jetfire on the main monitor (the footage would flicker occasionally), but what confused me was the fact that the coloration of his body was completely different than what it usually was…and it almost made him look like Optimus.
"I've scouted a landing position. I'll mark the location." Jetfire announced.
The main monitor flickered twice before the image of Jetfire was replaced with what appeared to be diagram of a section of Cybertron that also showed the elevation of the surface, along a red arrow pointing out the location. I was completely in awe of it that it was hard to believe that the transformers used these kinds of things everyday and thought nothing of it.
"Locking onto the co-ordinates. It looks like fairly weak defenses from here." Sideswipe said before turning around in his chair to face Optimus. "This could be our big chance."
"All right. Let's go." Optimus said before turning his gaze away from Sideswipe in order to look up at the main monitor.
"Yessir!" Blurr said, acknowledging Optimus' order before piloting the Axalon on its course to Cybertron.
As the Axalon approached Cybertron the Decepticon ships started to fire on us.
"Oh man, this is a pretty rough welcoming." Hoist said. "I hope Hot Shot's doing better than we are - that he's made it through the Decepticons' frontlines okay."
I quietly cried out in fright as the ship shook more violently than before from the attack. Along with Alexis, Rad, Carlos, Billy, and Fred we all held onto something in an attempt to feel some sort of stability.
"Everything will be all right! Hang on!" Red Alert told us.
"I feel sick!" Billy complained.
"And I've gotta barf!" Fred added.
For some strange reason the Mini-Cons outside the Axalon started to gather together into groups.
"Here come the Mini-Cons!" Blurr said.
"What are they trying to do out there?" Sideswipe asked.
To all of our surprise the multiple groups of Mini-Cons that were outside were suddenly replaced with copies of the Axalon. Our surprise was replaced with a few cheers.
"That's the way!" Hoist said excitedly. "The Mini-Cons have got them really confused!"
"Good move…" Optimus said, sounding impressed.
"This battle could go either way. Both sides are equally powerful." Scavenger stated.
That was good. Now we actually had a chance of getting through this thanks to the Mini-Cons. The enemy ships seemed to be confused and started firing at the fake Axalons. Despite this turn of events I started feeling anxious. Why was I feeling this way?
'Maybe I should leave the bridge for a bit to get away from all this stimulation.' I thought to myself.
I carefully got out of my seat and left the bridge. After walking down the hallways I eventually stopped in front of the large window where I could see all the Decepticon ships firing at the Axalon copies as we passed them. I frowned slightly, knowing that the Mini-Cons were risking their lives just to help us reach Cybertron safely.
'I just…hope they'll be okay.'
I felt the blood drain from my face when I heard the familiar dark chuckle in my mind, causing fear to seize my body.
{This is war, sweet Valerie. And in wars there will always be casualties despite how hard you try to avoid them. It's a concept of war that those unfortunate enough get ensnared by it.} Sideways said.
I tensed up when I suddenly felt the sensation of arms wrapping around me from behind, but when I twisted around I found no one standing behind me and that I was still the only one here. It was like whoever was doing this was invisible. And I wasn't able to move around much either.
{Shh…} My breathing hitched when I heard his voice whisper right next to my ear and my heart started hammering inside my chest in fear. And it was then I realized that the 'invisible' arms wrapped around me were his. How was he doing this when he wasn't even here physically? {I'm not going to do anything to you…for now. Look out the window.} Not knowing what he'd do (and fearing the worse) if I didn't look out, I looked out the window and watched the conflict of the battle taking place outside. {Can you see it? The beauty of all this chaos and the elegance of war before your eyes? It's nothing short of art, beautiful and colorful art. Just like your dancing.}
'But my dancing doesn't cause chaos and war.' I said feebly. 'It makes people feel at peace and happy.'
{That's nothing more than the childish notions of a fool! And believe me, I know you're not a fool.}
I quietly gasped when I felt a hand move down to a certain area between my legs, but it felt as if I wasn't wearing my spacesuit to block the touch; I could feel it slowly rubbing me.
'N-no! Not again!' I cried fearfully.
{Can you honestly consider yourself a child after everything you've experienced thus far, along with all the atrocities you've witness? This fear of yours… It is so sweet, yet I can't seem to think of anything to compare it to. Maybe honey mixed with sugar. Yes, I believe that would be the best analogy that your human mind can comprehend.}
'Stop! Let me go!'
I was surprised to surprised when the hand pulled away, but my relief was short lived when I suddenly felt cold lips being pressed to the side of my neck (again, seeming as if it my spacesuit wasn't covering me). It was the same as the way Jetfire had always done it, but it was cold and lacking any emotion behind it. But even then it still made me feel extremely uncomfortable and I desperately wanted to get away from Sideways.
'Jetfire!'
The cold lips pulled away, only to feel a hand constrict my throat and causing me to gag.
{Even now you still call to that fool. But you need to remember that as soon as your time comes you'll belong to me and Unicron only. When that happens that Autobot will no longer be any of your concern.}
I knew Sideways left since the hold around me and my throat disappeared and I was left gasping for air I desperately needed. And despite how hard I tried not to cry a few tears fell from my eyes.
'Jetfire… I'm scared…' I thought.
More tears fell when I suddenly felt the reassurance he was sending me through our connection. He had no idea what happened between me and Sideways.
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Thrust stood in front of Galvatron in the Decepticon leader's throne room after having placed the Skyboom Shield and the Requiem Blaster on the pedestals of the new mini Hydra Cannon. All that was missing was the Star Saber.
"The mini version of the Hydra Cannon is complete!" Thrust told him.
"Excellent…" Galvatron said.
"Now, your Star Saber…"
"Very well."
"Perfect..." Thrust said quietly.
"Thrust!"
"H-!" Thrust stumbled over his words a bit and hoped that Galvatron hadn't heard what he said a while ago.
"Take it!" Galvatron said, holding the Star Saber out to Thrust. "But be careful."
Suddenly there was a loud sound and Thrust, Galvatron, and Starscream all turned to see Hot Shot on the floor while Wheeljack stood in the threshold of the large hole that was now in the wall from when he punched the Autobot.
"Huh?!" Both Galvatron and Thrust said.
Hot Shot lifted his head up from the floor so he could look up at the Decepticon leader.
"Galvatron!" Hot Shot said.
Much to his surprise Galvatron ran and jumped off the platform his throne was on while brandishing the Star Saber.
"An Autobot!" Galvatron yelled. Hot Shot could do nothing but stare at his impending doom with wide blue optics as the familiar blade of the Star Saber got closer. But what surprised him even more was when Wheeljack suddenly stepped in front of him and blocked the Star Saber with his own weapon. "Wheeljack! What is this?!"
"Wait, Galvatron! The Autobot wants to talk to you!" Wheeljack said.
"What is the meaning of this?" Galvatron demanded.
"You must believe me, Galvatron! I would never betray you. Please trust me."
"Would you get out of my way?!"
"No, I will not, sir! You must listen to what Hot Shot has to say to you!"
'Wheeljack…' Hot Shot thought in surprise.
"Aw, don't tell me you let this Autobot in here!"
"Yes, I did, but my loyalty is to you, just as it always has been."
"Galvatron! Get away from them!" Hot Shot turned to where the voice came from and saw that it was Thrust, who happened to be standing near some sort of machine. "It's some kind of trap!"
It was then that Demolishor, Cyclonus, and Tidal Wave entered the throne room through the hole in the wall, and they were immediately confused about what was taking place.
"What's going on?" Demolishor asked, turning to Cyclonus.
"I dunno!" Cyclonus answered.
Hot Shot heard Galvatron growl before lowering the Star Saber.
"What?! Don't trust Wheeljack, he's in league with the Autobots!" Thrust protested, causing Galvatron to turn and face him. "Optimus Prime can't be far behind! You must destroy them both at once!"
"Hmmm…" Galvatron hummed quietly in suspicious at this, but still managed to glare at him.
"Gah!" Thrust squeaked as he flinched in surprise.
"You may speak to me, Autobot." Galvatron said, turning to Hot Shot. "But you had better not try anything funny - or you will pay."
Hot Shot smiled at this as he felt hopeful, but when Galvatron glared at him with his red optics (while growling quietly) his smile disappeared. He knew that he shoulder press his luck, especially after having come this far already.
'Here goes nothing.' Hot Shot thought.
"This is a message to the great Galvatron, general of the Decepticon army." He started. "The Autobots and Decepticons have fought against one another for a long time. But there's another enemy that we both must be concerned about. The Mini-Cons have shown us that we all share a common foe, the one called Unicron."
"Oohh! Not more of that Unicron nonsense!" Thrust scoffed, only to have Galvatron suddenly point the Star Saber dangerously close to him.. "Gaah!"
"I'm going tired of listening to your drivel!" Galvatron said, clearly annoyed by Thrust.
"Huh?!" Starscream said quietly, taking a step forward in surprise.
Galvatron turned back to Hot Shot.
"You may go ahead and finish what you were saying. Now you won't be interrupted again. So just who is this Unicron?"
Hot Shot nodded. He appreciated the fact that Galvatron was making sure he wouldn't be interrupted again.
"He's the one who's responsible for creating the black hole. Somehow the Mini-Cons learned about the existence of Unicron and began to prepare for an attack a long time ago." Hot Shot explained.
"How would the Mini-Cons know so much about this Unicron character?" Cyclonus asked, making Hot Shot glance at him over his shoulder.
"I don't know the answer to that yet. I do know the reason the Mini-Cons came back to planet Cybertron and that was to fight Unicron." Hot Shot turned to look back up at Galvatron. "The Autobots are no longer interested in fighting the Decepticon army. Believe me! If we don't join forces now, both our armies and the Mini-Cons become victims of Unicron! Galvatron, we have a new enemy now!"
"Oh, that's rich! Galvatron, please let me blast him so we can launch the Hydra Cannon!" Thrust exclaimed, causing Galvatron to turn and glare at him as he growled quietly. "Galvatron! Don't tell me you actually believe this Autobot!"
"I have noticed you have been acting very nervous, Thrust. What's going on?" Galvatron asked.
"We - muh - uh, nothing! Nothing at all!" Thrust said a little too quickly for everyone's liking.
"This new device isn't exactly Transformer technology." Galvatron glanced at the mini Hydra Cannon. He turned to Thrust after hearing him gasp quietly. "I'm talking about the Hydra Cannon!"
Thrust started laughing nervously.
"Why did you tell me to lead the Decepticons?! And I've always wanted to know why you encouraged me to turn against Galvatron, too." Starscream said, glaring at Thrust as he walked up the steps toward him. "Was it another one of your schemes to put you at a more favorable position with our leader?"
"Starscream! Whatever are you talking about?" Thrust asked, just as the seeker stopped in front of him.
"You've been plotting against me all along. Admit it!"
"Do you know what's going on here?" Demolishor asked.
"Eh, eh, uhh, don't ask me. Ask the big guy." Cyclonus said.
"Who knows?" Tidal Wave said.
"Thrust, what have you been plotting behind my back?" Galvatron asked, walking up the steps with the Star Saber.
"Wh - I - I haven't been plotting anything! I'm your loyal deputy, Galvatron!" Thrust said.
"You can't fool me anymore." Galvatron stopped and stood in front of Starscream a ways away from him. "I know you're more underhanded than that."
To everyone's surprise Thrust suddenly grabbed the Requiem Blaster and Skyboom Shield from the pedestals they were sitting on just before Galvatron slashed the Hydra Cannon with the Star Saber and leaving the machine useless.
Both Cyclonus and Demolishor gasped.
"Why'd he do that?" Demolishor asked.
"Heh, heh, heh! Galvatron, you were never worthy of controlling the Transformers!" Thrust said. "I've got news for you, you're nothing compared to my true master, UNICRON!"
"What?! Unicron?! You traitor." Galvatron growled.
"I was actually planning on getting a hold of all three weapons, including the Star Saber. But I'm sure Unicron will be happy with what I've got."
Thrust suddenly caused a strong wind to appear and it the force was so strong that it pushed everyone back. During all this chaos Thrust merely laughed before turning invisible in order to make his escape. As soon as the wind stopped Galvatron stood up with the Star Saber still in his servo.
"Hurry! Close the gates! Don't let him get away!" Galvatron demanded loudly in his anger.
Hot Shot watched as the other Decepticons in the room scrambled around and it was discovered that Thrust had escaped underground. This had all gone wrong and he had been so close to convincing Galvatron to team up with the Autobots.
"You almost had Galvatron convinced."
Hot Shot turned to look at his former friend before looking away and lowering his head in shame.
"Sorry, Wheeljack." Hot Shot said quietly. "Thrust. I didn't know."
"Hey, don't worry about it. It's a good thing we found out about Thrust now, rather than later, Hot Shot." Wheeljack told him. "Now we know the real enemy."
"Yeah, well I'd sure like to know what he plans to do with the Skyboom Shield and the Requiem Blaster."
Wheeljack turned to the hole.
"He must've gone to meet Unicron. That has to be it."
Hot Shot turned to Wheeljack.
"There's only one way to find out, Wheeljack." Hot Shot said, causing Wheeljack to turn to him.
"Right! Let's go together."
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Everyone on the Axalon were glad that they finally managed to land on Cybertron without much trouble, and it was thanks to the Mini-Cons. Optimus and the others (minus Red Alert and Blurr) were talking with a group of Autobot soldiers that had been in hiding.
"I'm issuing a withdrawal order to everyone stationed here." Optimus announced.
"A withdrawal order? Are you sure, sir?" An Autobot soldier asked.
"That's what I said. Now hurry up! You're all in great danger if you stay on the planet!"
"Uhh, but sir -" Another Autobot soldier (a blue one) started, only to be interrupted by Hoist who had been standing next to him.
"He said move out, soldier! And don't you ever question the commander's orders again!" Hoist told him.
"Yessir." The soldier said before saluting. "Right away, sir."
Optimus turned to both Jetfire and Sideswipe.
"Jetfire, Sideswipe, you two take the lead." Optimus ordered.
"Yessir!" Both Jetfire and Sideswipe said as they saluted. They then walked off.
The kids (who were wearing their helmets) stood in the doorway of the Axalon as they observed what was happening.
"Hey, where's Hot Shot?" Alexis asked, sounding worried.
"We should rescue him." Fred said.
"Yeah, we should!" Carlos agreed.
"We can't do that." Optimus told them before walking off.
"But Optimus!" Rad cried.
"Deep inside, Optimus appreciates what Hot Shot did for us today." Scavenger said after turning to the kids. "But he's the Commander of the Autobot army and he can't play favorites. It's a difficult position to be in."
After having said this Scavenger walked off to talk to Hoist. But it was then that the kids realized something.
"Wait, where's Valerie?" Billy asked.
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Jetfire was relieved once he and Sideswipe were away from the others so they could deliver Optimus' commands to the other Autobot soldiers. It was strange since some of the soldiers had been ones he'd trained in the past, but he wasn't going to worry about that. He had bigger things to worry about and rookies weren't anywhere on the list. When they were alone Jetfire turned to Sideswipe.
"Hey, Sideswipe. I need you to do something for me." Jetfire said.
"What do you want me to do?" Sideswipe asked, looking confused.
"I'm going to open the compartment on my back and I want you to pull out whatever's inside."
Jetfire turned around so that his back was facing Sideswipe before opening his back compartment, only to hear the younger Autobot's gasp of surprise by what he found.
"Valerie?" He exclaimed. "What's she doing here, Jetfire?"
Knowing that Sideswipe already pulled Valerie out Jetfire closed the compartment before turning around to face them and seeing Valerie held in his servo.
"I just happened to bring her along with me, Sideswipe." Jetfire stated.
"I can see that, but is Optimus even aware of this?"
"No. And if you tell him about this, you can bet I'll make you regret it."
"Okay, I'm not going to say anything! But why did you bring her with you?"
"That's something personal that I'm not planning on telling you. All you need to know is that you can go ahead without me for a bit while I go and show her something."
In the end Sideswipe handed Valerie over to Jetfire before he left, leaving the two of them alone.
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As soon as Sideswipe left I looked up at Jetfire's face from where I was while being held in his hand. He glanced down at me with his gold optics before he started walking off through the area we were in.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
"Somewhere." Jetfire answered simply.
"But where?"
"You'll see soon enough, Skydancer. But I'm not gonna spoil the surprise."
I sighed at this, slumping my shoulders as I realized Jetfire wasn't going to tell me. I then remembered his appearance when he had contacted the Axalon earlier and looked back up at him.
"Why were your colors different?" I asked.
"Wha?" Jetfire looked down at me, looking confused. "Colors?"
"Yes. Your body was a different color than it usually was and it almost looked like Optimus'."
Jetfire's optics widened as he realized what I was talking about.
"Oh, that! That was merely a disguise that I came up with thousands of years ago in case I'd have to do reconnaissance in Decepticon territory. This is the first time I've really used it and it worked to my advantage."
Eventually we came upon a building that was still intact and I couldn't help but wondering why we were here. Jetfire went up to the door and pressed a switch that was placed right next to it like a doorbell would be on a normal house. But instead of hearing a dinging or a buzzing sound the large door (to me) in front of us hissed open before Jetfire walked in. He pressed another switch to close the door behind us and I was soon able to get a better look of the room we were in. Off to the left was what appeared to be a couch that faced a machine that reminded me of a TV, giving me the impression that this was a living room of someone's home.
'But whose home?' I thought, still looked around for any clues that could answer my question.
I eventually found my answer in the form of a photo hanging on a nearby wall after Jetfire walked a little further into the room and my eyes widened in surprise.
"This is…your home." I said, feeling sad as I stared at the photo of Astera and a baby Jetfire who looked as if he was learning to walk. And there was another photo of Astera gazing lovingly down at the form of a sleeping baby Jetfire that she cradled in her arms.
"Yeah. The same one I grew up in." Jetfire said, sounding nostalgic. "I…haven't come back here in 70,000 years."
"You mean you've avoided coming back to this place for so long?"
Jetfire was quiet as he started walking further into the house and into what looked like a kitchen. He pulled a chair out at the table and was about to sit down in it, but he suddenly jerked away from it as if he just burned himself. I glanced up at his face and was surprised to see the terrified look his wide optics expressed as he just stared at the chair, or better yet the table itself, before him. I noticed that he was shaking slightly in anxiousness. What was wrong with him? I've never seen him like this before. Sure I've seen him scared before, but nothing like this.
"Jetfire, what's wrong-?"
Jetfire suddenly ran out of the kitchen and down a hallway. Despite the fact that I was held in his hand I still held on for dear life from how sudden the actions were. He soon entered a room that had a single berth, a datapad sitting on a desk against the wall, and a few photos placed on a shelf and a wall. I soon found myself standing on top of the berth that Jetfire was now kneeling in front of as he held his head with both of his hands, his optics still wide with that terrified look in them and his body still shaking as he let out jagged breaths. I knew something was terribly wrong with Jetfire, but I couldn't sense what since he blocked his end of the connection from me.
"Too many memories… There's too many memories…" He muttered to himself.
"Jetfire, what are you talking about?" I asked quietly.
"There's too many memories in this place… They won't go away…"
My eyes widened when I started to realize what Jetfire was saying. Was he remembering what happened here 70,000 years ago? Had he been avoiding his old home because of the memories he was being assaulted by before my eyes? Were they really that strong to have such an affect on him? I honestly didn't know what to do, but I had to help him somehow. It was hard for me to see him like this while he was being tormented by what must've occurred here so long ago. Had coming here made him realize he hadn't accepted Astera's death?
"I couldn't save her… I was right there and I still couldn't save her… I was weak…! I WAS TOO WEAK!"
I jumped when Jetfire suddenly yelled before he leaned his forehead against the side of the berth I stood on. I became sad as I found myself gazing at the broken soldier I had seen a while back, the same one that was still dwelling in the past. I thought I wouldn't see him again, but there he was in front of me, still unable to come to terms with what happened and blaming himself for it.
"Jetfire…" I said quietly, slowly going over to his head and placing both of my hands on top of it. I was surprised when he lifted his head up to look at me with that sorrowful look in his gold optics. I've never seen him look so lost before, but I managed to pull his head closer to me as I spread my arms around the front of his face mask. I pressed the side of my face (although the helmet I wore prevented me from doing a better job with this) against his face mask before closing my eyes. "Shh… It's okay, Jetfire. You did what you could back then, and she knows you tried. You can't keep dwelling in the past or else it'll make the pain even more worse that it already is. I know it's hard to do right now, but you need to accept what happened if you want to move forward."
"I…I can't! It hurts too much!"
"I know it hurts right now, Jetfire. But once you've overcome the pain you'll be even more stronger than you were before. You've always told me to be strong and brave whenever I felt weak or scared. You told me to think of my name whenever I felt that way. Now it's your turn to think of my name." I sighed quietly. "Just think of my name, Jetfire. Remember what it means and how it makes you feel."
I didn't know if what I said would help Jetfire, but I suddenly felt his end of the connection start to open little by little. Was it working? I started humming the Cybertronian Lullaby to him, hoping that it would help him through this. Before long I felt his face mask nuzzling me before a large hand was placed against my back (as if to give me a hug) and I soon noticed that he felt calm and somewhat relaxed.
"Thank you, Valerie." Jetfire said quietly. "The memories of that day might not go away, but the majority of the pain is gone. I owe you so much that I'm indebt."
I opened my eyes and pulled my head away to look at him, seeing that he was gazing at me with his optics. I gave him a small smile, knowing full well what he meant.
"You don't owe me anything." I told him. "You've done so much for me already that I'm just returning the favor. Now we're even."
"Even…" Jetfire pulled his head away before he scooped me up in his hand and held me close to his spark. "You've grown and matured so much since day 1, Even now I'm still learning from you and usually I'm the one coaching you."
"There's still a lot we can learn from each other. That's how we come to understand each other."
"You're right." Jetfire was quiet as he seemed to be thinking. "You're my second chance…"
"Huh?" I looked up at Jetfire's face in confusion.
"I wasn't able to protect Mom 70,000, but this time I'll be able to protect you. I swear I'll always protect you. You're too valuable for me to lose."
I smiled before spreading my arms out along his chest. I was aware that he would always protect me, but… I shook my head. I didn't want to think about that right now. This was a happy moment and I didn't want to ruin it with what's to come.
"Thank you, Jetfire." I said. I then glanced around the room we were in. "Whose room is this?"
"Mine!" Jetfire answered. I felt my face heat up at this and he chuckled. "I'm surprised, Skydancer. Usually I'm the one to have those kinds of thoughts, but I never expected you to have them!"
"W-what? I-I'm not…!"
"I was kidding! You don't need to get so flustered or anything."
It still didn't stop my face from feeling so warm.
"Why do you always tease me?" I asked.
"Because you're so fun to tease and your reactions are entertaining to watch. Although there is another way I could tease you…"
My face got even warmer as I realized what he was implying. Jetfire laughed at my reaction before he left the room to show me the rest of his old home.
ATE: That's it for this chapter. I'll be honest with all of you guys. When I was writing the last scene it took an unpredictable turn as the idea literally came out of nowhere. It was a good thing that I finished the chapter before I had to go take my second to last final for this semester. At least this Wednesday will be my last final and I'll be free as a bird for the summer! Also I got another drawing done awhile back to show Jetfire in his "Decepticon Disguise". Here's a link (get rid of the spaces):
http : / aerith -the- evenstar .deviant art. com /art/ Jetfire -Decepticon- Disguise -2994 670 98
Please remember to review! ;D