DEAR READERS: I apologize greatly for the long wait between Chapters 23 and 24. My computer was experiencing serious technical difficulties, which made posting anything virtually impossible. (Annoying, huh?) Fortunately, my computer is fixed now, so I shall certainly be updating more often. Enjoy Chapter 24!
"I need my parents' permission before I can visit Nebulos with you all," Blueberry was saying as she helped Tomato pack for the trip. They were in his bedroom with all his stuff laid out on his bed, trying to decide what to bring.
"Do you think your parents will let you come along?" Tomato asked.
"Maybe," Blueberry replied. "I can tell them I'm going there to study the wildlife—you know, like a science project."
"I can go with you," Tomato offered.
"Would you?" said Blueberry, and Tomato agreed.
…
Later on that solar cycle, the two of them went to visit the Elite Guard ship. Blueberry's parents were both there, and they were pleased to see "Hotwire", who they now thought of as a great boyfriend for their daughter, Blueberry.
"Why, Hotwire!" Blueberry's mother cried when she saw Tomato, drawing him into a warm hug. "What a wonderful surprise!"
"What brings you here?" her father asked.
"Well, my family is going to visit Nebulos soon, for a vacation," Tomato began.
"Yes, and I thought maybe I could come along," Blueberry added. "I mean, I know I've never been to another planet before, but…there are so many things there that we don't have here on Cybertron. I thought it would make a great science experiment."
"I don't know," said Blueberry's mother worriedly. "What if something happens to you there?"
"Oh, it's only Nebulos," Tomato insisted. "And she'll be with me. What harm could come to her there?"
"Yes, Hotwire is right, Mother," Blueberry said. "I'm not going to be young forever! I don't learn everything I need to learn in school, you know. I need to explore the galaxy before I can be a good resource for the Elite Guard."
"How long is your family going to be gone, Hotwire?" Blueberry's father asked pensively.
"Oh, maybe about a week or so," Tomato replied airily. "Not that long."
"Do you promise you'll be careful?" Blueberry's mother asked her daughter, bending down and giving her a kiss.
Blueberry smiled. "Don't worry."
"And Hotwire," Blueberry's father added sternly. "Do you promise to take good care of our daughter?"
"You have my word, sir," Tomato replied, giving Blueberry's father a classic four-fingered salute. Blueberry giggled.
"Then, permission granted," Blueberry's father said, smiling slightly.
"Have a wonderful time on the trip, you two," Blueberry's mother added.
…
As soon as the two of them had reached the Nemesis, they ran all the way to Tomato's room to finish his packing. Blueberry was going to pack later on, when she got back home.
"Well, I'm very excited." Blueberry plopped herself down on Tomato's bed during a little break in packing. "I've never left Cybertron before. Have you?"
"No," Tomato answered, and reached for Blueberry's servo. "I've lived on this ship almost all my life cycle…but I've never actually flown in it anywhere."
"What do you think it will be like?"
"I don't know," Tomato replied thoughtfully. "I bet it'll be fun, though."
"They say Nebulos has nice beaches," Blueberry whispered to her boyfriend. "The perfect place for some cuddling."
Tomato felt his spark beating rapidly again as he thought of himself and Blueberry lying down on the beach, holding hands as they watched the night descend on the planet. "Yes…that would be very romantic."
"That's just one of the reasons why I'm looking forward to this trip," Blueberry told Tomato sweetly.
"Yeah, me too," Tomato replied, but his voice was now shaky with nerves—time for an abrupt subject change! "Do you want to go get something to drink?"
"Okay, come on!" Blueberry got up from the bed and followed Tomato into the kitchen.
What was I thinking back there? Tomato wondered as he walked into the kitchen, following Blueberry. We were all alone in my bedroom, holding hands! Why didn't I kiss her while I had the chance?!
As this internal dialogue continued to bother Tomato, Blueberry took her place at the kitchen table. "What are you drinking?"
"Fizzy energon, as usual," Tomato told her. "What do you want?"
"Just some medium-grade oil, please," Blueberry replied, smiling. Just then, Tomato realized how much he loved her smile. Now he knew he was head-over-heels in love with her, and that there wasn't a thing he could do about it.
Tomato got Blueberry a barrel of medium-grade oil, and he himself opened his fizzy energon cube. As he proceeded to drink from it, he and Blueberry discussed the vacation.
"I'm so excited," Blueberry said. "I can't wait!"
"Well, Blueberry," Tomato reassured her, "we only have to wait a week."
ONE WEEK LATER...
Tomato, the other Decepticons, and Blueberry were getting ready to depart in just a few megacycles. They were all packing last-minute things and running around crazily.
"How come you femmes always have to pack so much more than mechs do?" Megatron asked Blackarachnia and Blueberry, sounding irritated. The two femmes were the only ones who had brought more than one suitcase, and Blueberry had brought three.
"I don't know, Megatron," Blueberry replied, walking up to Tomato and kissing him on the cheek. "I guess we just want to make sure we didn't forget anything."
"Who's bringing the beach stuff?" said Shockwave, rooting through a pile of trip essentials.
"I am!" cried Crazy Blitzwing, pouncing out of nowhere. "Umbrellas, beach towels, inflatable beach balls, cute hats…"
"Why do we need hats?" Tomato asked him.
"To keep our nice finish protected from the sun," Icy Blitzwing explained. Placing a straw hat on his head, he turned back to Crazy and screeched with laughter. "They are also the epitome of beach fashion!"
"Um…right," said Starscream, rolling his optics at Blitzwing.
Megatron pointed to something in Blitzwing's servo. "And what is that, dare I ask?"
"Why, this is a lei, my friend," Icy Blitzwing said, holding up a blue-and-red flower necklace and draping it around his neck. "I have one for everybody!"
"No thank you," Megatron told him angrily, but Blitzwing went to everybody else on the ship and gave them each a lei necklace for the trip.
"Why do we need these?" asked Tomato.
"For the tourist spirit, my friend!" Blitzwing cackled as he turned back into Crazy mode. (It seemed that Blitzwing was so excited about the trip that he couldn't stop switching back to the Crazy side of his personality.)
"I brought my Decepticon costume and fake ID," Blueberry told everyone. "You know, so I can get into Decepticon clubs too, like you all can."
"Good idea!" Tomato told her. "I almost forgot!"
"Well, if you all are done packing," Megatron said, "now might be a good time to get going."
"Fine with me!" Blueberry replied, gripping onto Tomato's servo.
Megatron gunned the motor, and the ship soared into the air and, soon after, space. With their GPS, they could easily navigate from Cybertron all the way to Nebulos, especially since the two planets were in the same galaxy.
"This is great!" cried Blueberry, looking out the windows as the ship cruised across the solar system.
"Hey, Megatron!" Starscream called, taking a big swig of dark energon. "How 'bout a little hyper speed?"
"I don't think so, Starscream," Megatron replied, still glaring at him.
"Oh, please?" Tomato begged. "I've never flown at hyper speed before!"
"Yeah, and it's terribly against the law in our culture!" Blueberry piped up.
"Wow, the Autobot culture sure has a lot of rules, doesn't it?" asked Tomato.
Blueberry shrugged. "I guess so."
"Oh, all right, we can go into hyper speed for a little." Megatron sighed and set the ship into hyper speed mode.
It was so incredibly fast! The sights from the windows were speeding by so fast that the tourists couldn't even see them. Tomato and Blueberry screamed happily, holding hands as they soared upwards. Blueberry cried, "I've never felt so online!"
At hyper speed, the thrill of traveling was even more exciting, and of course a lot less slow. Before they knew it, they were there—Nebulos.