Chapter 105
When thou seest an eagle, thou seest a portion of genius; lift up thy head! -William Blake
-0-Autobot City, Mars, Seeker Compound
The sun was up and the day was beginning. Starscream had awakened early and had walked to the doorway to stand half in and half out, staring at the colors of the morning sky. Thundercracker was nearby watching him ready to explain something at the merest frown of confusion, to help him with something he couldn't grasp as of yet. His frailties were holding him hostage and it was painful in the extreme that this force of nature was so feeble. The doctors had said he would become better and they hoped so.
All of them on both sides of the aisle hoped so.
"Do you want to sit in the sun?" Thundercracker asked quietly as he walked up to stand beside Starscream.
"I want to fly," Starscream said softly. "Why can't I fly?"
"You're still weak and recovering," Thundercracker said as he slipped his arm around the Seeker. He waited for the shrug, for the hothead to rise up and assert himself but he didn't. He seemed to welcome the support, the warmth of another's touch. He was not himself for that reason alone. Only in intimacy did he suffer gentleness before, as if laying his guard down in the quiet of their company was the only safe place. Now he seemed to seek out and welcome comfort, doing so without the shameful sense of weakness that he always associated with empathy and intimacy outside of the berth.
For any number of reasons the idea of softness, of something that wasn't hard and brittle was anathema to him, leaving him vulnerable to attack from the one who was the source of all their suffering. He couldn't give, he couldn't submit. Megatron exploited that. He exploited weakness, so Starscream was hard. He was hard until he shattered, his injuries and insufficient nourishment combining to break him. The idea of it rankled, his weakness, illness and confusion. They were the enemy, too.
"I wish to fly," he said simply. He looked at Thundercracker, his optics searching him for deceit, for the hidden agenda that everyone in his life for so long always seemed to have. "I wish to fly."
"I will see to it, Starscream," Thundercracker said holding the Seeker with his servos, his gentle touch steadying the weaker mech, holding him still in his confused agitation. "You're only a few orns away from almost dying."
"He's near isn't he? I look for him, waiting for him to find me."
Thundercracker pulled Starscream into his embrace, the misery of eons of beatings, fights, blame and failure pressing down upon him. Starscream didn't pull away, he didn't take issue. He hesitantly tightened his arms and lay his helm on Thundercracker's shoulder. "Tell them I need to fly. Megatron can't catch me in the air. Will you do that?"
"I will, Starscream," Thundercracker said quietly.
Standing behind him with a grim look of misery on his face, Skywarp listened. He glanced upward watching the sun warming the air around them and the sky putting on a spectacular color display. He wondered if one morning he would look up to see Megatron. He stepped back into the shadows of their barracks, a cold frisson of fear coursing through his spark.
-0-Ops Center, Autobot City, Mars
He waited as Springer finished a task. When he was finished, the big green and yellow Wrecker walked to Thundercracker as the taller Decepticon looked down at the Autobot impassively. "You wanted to see me?" Springer asked.
"We would like the freedom to fly," Thundercracker said quietly. "We need to fly."
Springer agreed. "I know. Starscream isn't up to it is he?"
"He asks for permission to fly. I don't think he's ready but the moment he is I'd like him to know he could."
Springer considered that. "Does he remember me?"
"He hasn't spoken of you," Thundercracker said hesitantly. "We didn't allow him to harm you."
Springer looked at the big Decepticon, then took his arm to pull him to one side. He looked at Thundercracker with hard optics measuring his veracity. "What can you tell me about that?"
"Starscream was very ill. He was obsessed, as if he needed an enemy with Megatron gone."
"Where is he?"
Thundercracker shook his head. "I don't know. He was there when the Fallen fell, getting treatment and then assigning blame. He beat Starscream nearly to death then left. We don't know where he is."
"You would tell us if he came back …" Springer began eyeing the Seeker darkly.
Thundercracker nodded even as insult informed his face. "Starscream expects him, too. He wants to fly so he can't be caught. In the air, Megatron could never catch him."
"What happened then?"
"He captured you and was going to spark merge. He hit you with a null ray and was on his way when we staged an attack and diverted him. It took three blasts to bring him down, then we left leaving a comm device for you to use."
"You and Skywarp?"
Thundercracker nodded. "We cannot let Starscream fall that low. Megatron broke him. He was not himself."
Springer was silent a moment. "I hope you don't expect a thank you from me."
Thundercracker grinned slightly. "No. I don't."
Springer grinned slightly back. "I'll ask Prime."
"Soon?"
"Soon."
Thundercracker nodded then walked back to the door. He slipped through it to disappear. As he did Springer walked to the comm station to put a message through to Prime.
-0-Med Bay on Diego
"Stay away from blunt objects. I'm tired of putting your sorry aft back together," Ratchet grumbled at Bee who had, while dragging around the island with Sam and his mother, rebounded into a boulder. "You fragging mini-cons aren't invincible."
Bee smiled at Ratchet who was almost his 'mother' given the years and dings of life on the hunt. Slipping down, he limped out the door with Ratchet's optics watching him as he went. Looking back at the mess, Ratchet picked up his tools and walked to the back rooms where he put them away. As he did, he found he had nothing to do. There were patrols going out and coming back, Autobots coming and going to Autobot City. Here he was stuck on his aft pulling shifts in Med Bay fixing mini-cons who needed a balpeen hammer to the noggin.
He sighed then walked to the corridor heading for the Rec Room and company. It was mid morning and mid shift teams in the field and troops inbound from Mars were expected at regular intervals. It was a slow day and he felt the good of it. They didn't have too many of those kind. Best to kick back and not jinx things.
-0-Not so far away
They had traveled and traveled, stopping for energy for their shuttle and to synthesize energon for the passengers. They had a small capacity so they shared what they could and did without the rest of the time. The signal message was stronger and they were getting closer. They needed that. Their journey had been arduous and the younglings among them needed to know that this was not their life.
The five Autobot soldiers worked in seamless shifts flying the shuttle. Beyond the stars ahead was the source of their hope. Beyond the stars ahead was Optimus Prime and his Autobots. All they had to do was make it.
-0-Rec Room
Ratchet sat in the Rec Room, his peds on a chair and datapad in hand. He was writing another epic inspired in part by feedback from his first posted online story, 'The Virgin and the Other Virgin'. Considering how slow things were he felt he had time to explore his literary side. An update to the Wheeljack/Bumblebee story and then a new one, 'The Sexy Doctor and the Mom Van' would test both his typing ability and gag reflex. That one, 'The Sexy Doctor and the Mom Van' would be his magnum opus, the one immortalizing his great love, himself. Oh and that other guy, whatshisname … Ironhide.
He grinned.
-0-Cosmos, Autobot City Airfield, Mars
He waited at the airfield watching as streams of cargo were going out. Seven replacement soldiers, a line of homecoming soldiers stood nearby. He was busy, had company and even in the space runs he was connected to the Aerialbots and to the mechs at Autobot City. Life was good and he wasn't lonely any longer.
Sunstreaker and Sideswipe stood in line, their gear bags lying at their peds. Their shift at the colony was concluded and they were coming home. They were glad because the next night was New Years and the beach party was going to be huge. Everyone who wasn't on shift would be there including humans. The seven soldier femmes from the Army and Air Force would be there, too. They were even expecting the Senior Autobots and the kids. It would be great. Every scrap of wood, every loose pallet had been scavenged and stacked at the beach.
The line shifted and the last cargo was on loaded. The soldiers grabbed their gear and moved forward to enter the hold to settle among the crates filled with energon. The last one was in, the hold door closed and Cosmos rose happily into the air moving upward into the vacuum of space once more.
-0-Rec Room, nearly a joor later
Bluestreak entered the Rec Room and spotted Ratchet. He smiled as he walked over to sit with him. "Hi, Ratchet. How do you feel today?"
Ratchet smiled. "Good. You?"
"Sunny and Sideswipe are coming back today," Blue said. "Its been so long and we're hoping they'd be there for the beach party tomorrow night. Are you coming? Its going to be great. I asked Prowl to come and bring Optimus. Jazz and Mirage are going to be there and also Hound, Trailbreaker and all four kids. I hear that the femme soldiers are going to be there and even maybe Colonel Fulton."
Ratchet smiled. "I'll drag Ironhide."
"And Wheeljack and Perceptor, too, if you can. They just look at me like I'm crazy when I ask them. I don't think they get out enough. They're really nice those two."
"They are. They're just too nice for their own good," Ratchet said glancing over at the door as the sound of a shuttle landing drifted in. "I hear Cosmos, I think."
Bluestreak rose with a smile. "I have to go. I hope you come, Ratchet."
"Count on it, Blue," Ratchet replied watching as Bluestreak walked to the hangar door and stopped a moment to watch something Ratchet couldn't see. For a second or two, the youngling soldier watched something, then he was swept up by Sideswipe. He rolled up dropping his bag to grab Blue to kiss him senseless. He set Blue down, grinning broadly only to be bumped aside by Sunstreaker who dropped his bag and picked up Blue.
Sunny rolled away, leaving Sideswipe standing by himself with two bags. He glanced back to his frowning face and laughed loudly. Sideswipe scowled, picked up both and skated off to follow, the three disappearing down the road toward the barracks and quarters beyond.
Ratchet grinned, glad to see the youngsters back and pleased at the happiness that so many had achieved because of the first landings, their first sojourn here. They had come together, the four of them following Bumblebee's signal. All five of them had suffered and worked harder than they should have but now it was paying off.
There was hope for families here, for young soldiers to make plans for their life and find love. There were allies and sparklings, friends and space to live. There was a planet nearby that had the hope of them all including those who were coming. He considered the message that had been received days ago, one that was coming from a shuttle filled with refugees.
"We heard you."
That was all they could retrieve. The rest, garbled and static-filled was hopeless. But the best wasn't.
"We heard you."
Ratchet looked at his datapad smirking at the title of his magnum opus. Tomorrow night, he would drag his 'mom van' to a party on the beach that would celebrate the human's new year. And as they celebrated for the humans, they would be celebrating for themselves.