Chapter 115
-0-Morning
The garrison worked madly to gather up their belongings for the several trips by the Aerialbots and Cosmos that it would require to take them back to Diego Garcia. Civilians assisted moving gear and weapons to the airfield, helping with morning rations as they chatted and hung around. Several of them had made friends with members of the garrison, two of them romantically, so it was sad and glad times for all.
Hot Rod, Cliffjumper, Ultra Magnus and Blurr sat in the Rec Room shooting the breeze with Springer, Kup and the twins. A lot of ribbing was going on and the twins smirked as they preened. Details would not be forthcoming.
Probably.
-0-Ops Center
Prowl went through the overnight intel and found a glitch. Lydia Nast had made contact with 'High Flyer'. He frowned as he pulled up the entire file for review on the ride home. He sorted through the duty schedules and made corrections here and there.
Ultra Magnus would be city manager with Springer as not only security chief of the city but of the planet itself.
Hot Rod would stay with the garrison along with Blurr, Brawn and Cliffjumper. The hot headed nature of the mini-cons was not lost on Prowl so he left them here rather than risk a confrontation on Earth with a soldier.
Kup would also stay as Magnus' second, all of them deferring to either Prowl as second-in-command of the entire army and Prime or to Prime alone as civil leader. They would have to hit the ground running when they returned.
-0-Ratchet and Ironhide
They'd arisen earlier, fed, cuddled and exclaimed over their sparkling. When they were finished, they took the soldier's blanket and booties to put him into them.
"He looks cute. I never thought much of clothes. Had a cloak once in the army on Cybertron. You know how Sentinel was about the officer's corps."
Ratchet nodded. "I had one, too. I sorta liked it. All swishy and all."
"But mostly it was a processor ache," Ironhide said flipping the infant's bootie clad ped with his digit up and down, watching it flop gently. "These are cute, though."
"I know. I like the softness." Ratchet smiled as he sat beside Ironhide. "You're easily amused I see. You like flipping his ped up and down."
"It's cute. He has such skinny legs and big peds."
"I'd say he takes after you but that would be wrong," Ratchet said looking down at his own gangling physique. "He'll outgrow that. If you want a warrior you can't have gangling legs. The recoil will tip him over."
"Who says we want a warrior? Maybe he will never know war," Ironhide said as his expression turned serious.
"From your lips to Primus' audials, Ironhide," Ratchet said as he leaned on Ironhide happily.
-0-Bluestreak
He gathered his gear, the previous evening rattling around in his processor. He could hear and feel them, a sensation unlike anything he'd ever experienced. They could feel and hear him as well. They had a lifetime of experience with bonds and this was day one and a half for Blue.
It was strange, wonderful, loving and more than he'd expected. It was odder and more familiar than he'd expected. He wondered if this was how Prowl had felt when he bonded with Prime. Grinning, he considered the evening prior sitting on the berth that had been ground zero of their amour...
/... oh .../
That was his last coherent thought as Sunstreaker with a merciless expression of hunger on his face scooped him into his arms, the two falling on the berth together in one swift movement. Bluestreak had stepped back when he entered to look at them, both of them making clear by their expressions what they needed and wanted from him at this moment. At that point he was in the whirlwind and out of any control of the outcome.
Not that he cared at that moment.
Ending up in the cabin, having been scooped up by Sunstreaker and hoo-hawed through the Rec Room by one and all present, Bluestreak had mentally and emotionally danced around with pins and needles racing through his circuits when finally set down on his peds.
Skywarp had warned him of the special circumstances of a trine as opposed to one-on-one bonding and he was confronting it right out of the gate.
Sideswipe less exhibitionist and more prone to the alien concept of embarrassment than his brother followed them, shaking his head at Sunstreaker's brazenness. What Blue didn't know was the conversation they had all the way to the cabin, the back and forth and the aggravation between the two about what would happen next.
Sunstreaker knew what he wanted but Sideswipe was still off put by the proximity of his brother to his intimacy with Bluestreak. They'd often been aware of each others sexier moments but usually dialed them down with only a snark or two shared. But this would be different. This would be intimacy in front of the other and for Sideswipe, the more 'normal' of the two it would be strange in a long life filled with strange.
He watched as Sunstreaker and Bluestreak got down to business finding it oddly erotic in a train wreck sort of way. It had been too long for Sunny and he was rather perfunctory in his approach to scratching the gigantic itch that had been plaguing him for over six decaorns.
Moving toward the berth, Sideswipe knelt and stretched out lying down beside them as they tussled. Reaching out, stroking Blue's arm, he marveled at the expressions crossing the smaller mech's face.
He'd never 'faced with Blue, had never done more than kiss and hold him. He followed the rules Prowl had laid out for fear that they'd be toast if he didn't. It'd been torturous for Sunstreaker, himself in a relationship with Bluestreak for some time before Sideswipe had finally confessed. Now it was good to go and he'd be able to be with Blue as well with his brother watching most likely. A piercing sense of embarrassed self consciousness flitted through his spark at the thought.
It wasn't very long before the light of Sunstreaker's spark filled the darkened room and with fumbling servos he triggered Bluestreak's own spark chamber. The lights were bright, mingling and combining. Sideswipe could see his own servo in the glow. The light surged, so did the two and with a mingled howl and cry they bonded together as swiftly and as inelegantly as could be expected.
Sideswipe marveling at the beauty of the moment reached out to touch Bluestreak. Sunstreaker, off lined and flattened out over Bluestreak was beyond his reach so Sideswipe waited, stroking his arm and Blue's one after the other.
A call from the hallway caught Blue's attention so he rose to look out, spotting Sideswipe down the hallway. "Blue, you coming?"
Blue smiled as he watched Sideswipe roll toward him to stop in the doorway. Smiling, he leaned down to kiss Bluestreak softly as his digits stroked Blue's neck gently. "We need to go soon, Blue."
Bluestreak grinned at Sideswipe. "I'll hurry."
He walked inside again as Sideswipe leaned on the doorway to watch. The emotions in his spark filtered through to Bluestreak who looked at him.
Blue smiled, the love returned, then he began again to gather up his gear quickly. Picking up the duffel, he walked to the door where Sideswipe took it and Blue's servo. Together on the first day of their new bond, the two walked out to the Rec Room and the gathering place beyond to return to Diego Garcia once more.
-0-Outside
Ratchet and Ironhide stood together with Prowl, Wheeljack, Perceptor, Prime and Ultra Magnus as well. The community was gathering to go and they buzzed with excitement at seeing the first sparkling born on Mars in their community and the fourth overall until Gear Shift separated.
Prime spoke briefly with Ironhide then stepped forward. "Are you ready to speak publicly, Ironhide?" he asked as he enjoyed Ironhide's discomfort.
"No."
"You'll be a champion," Ratchet said encouragingly.
"No."
Prime snorted then stepped forward, the crowd quieting down as he did. "Today is a great day for us all. We get to see our newest citizen and hear his name spoken. In Praxian culture all the important things are done in common. All the important things are done together to bind the community as one. So it is the duty and honor of Ironhide to introduce us to his sparkling."
A huge rumble accompanied that declaration as Prime stepped back to make room for Ironhide who stepped up reluctantly. He looked out at the crowd, then pulled Ratchet up to stand beside him to the general amusement of all. With his arm around Ratchet, he began.
"In Praxus when a sparkling is separated the family keeps them from everyone for three orns. I don't remember why," he said shaking his head.
People laughed and then he continued.
"I don't remember why and that's sad isn't it. We have all our traditions that we're ever going to have right here among us and already they're fading. There had to be a good reason but I can't remember it. How many Praxians are here today?" he asked as three servos went up. "There's five of us. Five. Maybe there's more, maybe more are coming and maybe one of them will remember. I hope so.
"We're all there is for now. We have to remember and observe. My sparkling will remember because Ratchet and I will teach him. He will know about Cybertron even if he never sees it in his lifetime. Its where and who we are. Our world and our identity. That's why Prowl and I want to make our family markers with Praxian customs." He gathered his emotions. "We do it for those who can't and those who never will."
It was quiet as everyone listened intently including Skywarp who was standing nearby out of view with Thundercracker. They'd been walking and halted to watch the garrison get ready to leave, coming upon the ceremony by accident.
"We thought a long time over what to call him. But it always came back to the same name. Our sparkling is going to be called Orion."
Prime listening solemnly startled, glancing at Prowl who was smiling. He looked at Ratchet and Ironhide who were looking at him and smiled with surprise and delight. The crowd also applauding settled down to listen again.
"When Bumblebee let us know the Allspark was here, the four of us came, Prime, Ratchet, Jazz and me. We didn't save it. But we did find allies, a home and every time one of you hear his call and come, I feel personally reborn. We're here because of leadership, the personal leadership of our Prime. He's our leader, our moral center and our beacon. It was his idea that created Autobot City, his patience and leadership that built the relationship with the humans and it'll be his leadership that allows us to be a people again, with a home and the chance of families.
"He was a working mech before he was chosen, a regular mech that the Matrix picked out of everyone else. He was one of us. No one fancy because you don't have to be fancy to have all the quality and qualities that are needed for big and small things both. You need empathy, integrity, courage, selflessness and dreams. He's our leader and so we name our son Orion in his honor so that part of him is never forgotten, the part of him that is us."
With that, Ironhide took the bundle from Ratchet who helped him separate the sparkling from it and handed it to Prime. He took it nervously, drawing an 'awww' moment from the crowd then looked at it with delight. Holding it up, Prime showed the crowd who exploded with happiness and shouts.
The sparkling for his part looked at them with round tiny optics, allowing himself to be passed to Prowl who exclaimed over him then handed him onward. All around the crowd he went, the most grizzled soldier and most petite femme holding and loving him. By the time he reached Ironhide and Ratchet once more his little optics were twirling and he was fussing.
Gathering him into their arms and his blanket, they waited for Prime. He turned from Prowl then walked to the steps to pause on the second one. With a huge grin on his face, he looked with great amusement to the assembled crowd. "Autobots! Roll out!" he said and they did, laughing, smiling and saying farewell to all.