Sorry for the wait! I'm going to set up a schedule so you guys don't have to wait for so long.
Till All Are Gone Chapter 1 is the next chapter coming out, stay tuned! It'll be here by February 7th.
Recovery 14 will be here by February 16th.
0o0o0o0
"Bluestreak, your processor was badly damaged during your capture." First Aid explained, shining a light into the gray sniper's optics, "We had to almost completely rebuild it."
"Wh-" Bluestreak struggled to move. His limbs shook too badly and the pain in his helm made his tanks lurch. "Where's.. where's Wheeljack? And Jazz? And.. And Prowl?"
First Aid's gentle servos held him down, "All in good time."
"B-but-"
"Easy. Everything will.. Be explained in time." The medic glanced over his shoulder briefly, his gaze seeming to soften.
Bluestreak lifted his helm off the berth, straining to get a glimpse of what the CMO's chassis was blocking his view of.
Bubbles of white hot pain burst behind his optics, forcing the Datsun to lower his helm again.
"That's it. Just rest for now." First Aid advised, "You're not ready to move around just yet."
He plucked a syringe from his subspace, "I'm going to put you back into recharge now, okay?"
"But-" Bluestreak started to protest.
"No buts." First Aid said firmly, sliding the needle into the gunner's I.V tube and slowly ejecting the contents.
Bluestreak felt a numbness flow through his circuits. He panicked as memories of being on a similar operating table, surrounded by pain and fear and Decepticon faceplates leering down at him assaulted his processor. He arched his back and thrashed quivering limbs.
Have to escape.
There is no escape.
"Bluestreak! Bluestreak calm down!" First Aid pressed his servos to the side of the Datsun's helm, holding it against the berth so that he didn't hurt himself. "You're safe. You're among friends and comrades. You're safe. I promise."
The medic ran feather like servos over Bluestreak's helm, like Prowl would've done when the gunner was upset as a newspark. "It's going to be okay. Just rest. It's going to be
okay. I promise."
Bluestreak didn't hear anything after that. The sedative had kicked in, dragging him under.
0o0o0o0
"Rodimus. Please see reason! Retrieving Wheeljack's chassis means venturing within a mile of the Decepticon base. Now that's a place we really shouldn't go, offlined soldier or not. And Skyfire! He's recovering from severe chassis fatigue. He's in no state to-"
"Magnus." Rodimus cut him off, not even looking up, "Wheeljack deserves to be laid to rest in the Autobots' burial site. He deserves it."
The Matrix of Leadership lay in his lap. The Prime's digits traced over it, over the facets and grooves, as I'd trying to draw ancient wisdom from it. "And you don't have to send Skyfire. Send Cosmos, one of the Aerialbots. Somebody."
"Rodimus. Listen..."
"No. You listen." Rodimus stood up, the Matrix clenched in one fist, "It was my job to rescue everyone. My responsibility to bring my soldiers home safe and sound. And what happened? Jazz is dead. Wheeljack is dead. Prowl is catatonic, Bluestreak is crippled! Mirage has to wear a mask now and even Hound can't convince him to leave their quarters! I failed then, Magnus! So I'm gonna make damn sure Wheeljack gets brought home. Am I understood?"
"Yes Prime." Ultra Magnus said quietly. There was no arguing with him when he was like this. Never mind that Skyfire was the only flyer big enough to accommodate a bot who could travel by ocean, plus backup, just in case.
"Go then." Rodunus waved a servo, setting in his desk chair once again, laying the Matrix carefully in his lap, "Find Seaspray and someone who can fly."
"Yes sir." Ultra Magnus left the office with a frown.
0o0o0o0
"Feel the ocean breeze, Skyfire!" Seaspray gargled as he leaned as far as he could out of the big white jet's open hatch, "Isn't it won-dur-ful?"
"Careful, Seaspray." Skyfire warned, "If you fall, I won't be able to catch you."
The Autobot scientist sounded utterly exhausted, having been roused from a recovery recharge to fly a mission because he was the only one big enough to carry more than one passenger.
Speaking of.
"Don't worry! I'll catch you!" Sideswipe chirped, waving his gun, nearly hitting Sunstreaker with the barrel.
The golden warrior was deep in recharge, nestled up against Sideswipe in a rare display of vulnerability and innocence. He'd followed Sideswipe and Seaspray through briefing with Ultra Magnus, grumbling and complaining about being woken up at 2 in the morning, then he'd passed out cold as soon as Skyfire's landing gears left the ground. Sideswipe was much more awake, having downed a two cubes of high grade before they'd left.
"Thank you, Sideswipe." Seaspray laughed with delight as Skyfire flew low over the water, close to the surging waves so that the Autobots could begin their search.
"Be careful, Seaspray. We're in Decepticon territory." Skyfire said as the small Autobot leapt joyfully into the ocean, transforming to his alt mode and skimming the waves like a dolphin, "Contact me immediately if you detect anything unusual."
"Will do!" Seaspray gunned his motors, soon disappearing from view.
"So what's our job? Surely Ole' Mags didn't drag us outta recharge for nothing?" Sideswipe asked as Skyfire pulled away from the water and back up into the night sky. He nudged his brother, "Up an at 'em, Sunshine. Gotta be bright eyed and bushy-tailed for our glorious mission!"
"Frag you." Sunstreaker muttered, only half out of recharge but still able to punch his Twin's chestplates with surprising force.
Sideswipe fell over, accidentally squeezing the trigger on his gun.
A few rounds flew from the barrel.
"Sideswipe-!" Skyfire cried out in pain as the bullets struck him. Smoke and energon gushed from the wounds.
Skyfire's engines faltered, "Going down!"
The Autobot scientist's entire chassis shuddered as he began to drop from the sky like a giant rock.
Sunstreaker yelped as he and Sideswipe were sent into the air from the momentum of Skyfire's downward spiral.
He still managed to smack his brother, "You left the safety of your gun off?! You dumb aft!"
"I thought I might've needed it!" Sideswipe had to shout over the sound of air rushing past their audio receptors, but as he looked at his gun incredulously, Sunstreaker could tell that what he'd said was a lie.
Must've been that high grade.
"Activate your jet pack! We need to get out of here before we hit the water!" Sunstreaker latched his arms around the red lambo's chestplates.
With a sputter, Sideswipe's jet pack activated and he managed to maneuver them out of Skyfire's hatch and into the chilly night air, right before the giant jet hit the water.
"Wave!" Sunstreaker warned. As soon as those words left his lips, a solid wall of water hit the pair like a battering ram.
Sunstreaker was wrenched away from Sideswipe and tossed into the raging ocean like a limp rag doll.
Sideswipe soared up above the waves, looking around in
Panic. He spotted Seaspray in the distance, but it would be too late by the time the mini-bot arrived.
"Sunstreaker! Skyfire!" Sideswipe shouted. He flew closer to the stormy ocean, dodging around waves that were as tall as him, and some taller.
There was no chance of Sunstreaker being able to hear him. He knew that. Being made of extremely heavy metal, Cybertronians sunk like stones unless they had something to keep them afloat.
Sideswipe was about to drop among the waves when he was suddenly rammed from behind. His jet pack crunched and exploded with a pop! and he was thrown into the icy water.
He got glimpses of dark blue, stormy
currents and watery streams of Skyfire's energon. Then suddenly he was entangled in a net, and hauled up over the rim of a boat.
"Got herself in a bit of a pickle, did we?" A low, gruff voice asked.
Sideswipe struggled in the net, "My brother- my friend! They're down there! You have to Ihelp them!/I"
"Easy there!" Rough hands brushed against the red warriors playing.
Sideswipe felt the net being pulled off. "Yer companions are safe. We're
pullin' 'em up now, with the 'elp of another friend of yers."
"Sideswipe! You okay" A gurgly voice asked. The clanking sounds of Seaspray hauling himself over the edge of the boat followed.
The red Lamborghini sat up, straining his neck cables to be able to see. "Yeah, I'm okay. Are Sunny and Skyfire okay?"
The sounds of mechs purging their tanks onto the deck of the ship answered his question.
"The name's Hank." The man who had retrieved Sideswipe from the water stood by his side, holding the
net. From the yellow slicker, rainboots, and hat, he was clearly a fisherman and the air of authority about him told Sideswipe that je was the ship's captain, "What're you fellas doin' out here?"
There were more sailors watching Seaspray tend to Sunstreaker and Skyfire, suspicion gleaming in their beady human optics.
"You guys part of them Autobots?" One of them asked.
"Yep," Sideswipe answered, not shifting his gaze from the others.
Sunny was sitting up, partially recovered from the unexpected dip and already wearing his trademark scowl.
Skyfire had passed out. Energon dribbled in a steady stream from somewhere within his frame.
The saltwater hadn't helped things, and if the energon flow couldn't be
stopped, then he wouldn't make it.
My fault.
Sideswipe turned away, "Yes, we are Autobots. We won't hurt you."
Hank chuckled, "Guess we ain't got much to worry about, then."
"Look, can you take us to shore?" the next voice to speak came from Sunstreaker. His optics were dimmed with some emotion that Sideswipe, for once, couldn't identify. "We appreciate that you've saved us- we really do. But as you can see- our friend is dying, and we need to contact our Prime."
That may have been part of the reason the golden warrior wanted to leave so quickly, but anyone could see that it wasn't the whole of it. Thick waves of tension and anger radiated from him. Even the humans, with their primitive minds, could sense it.
0o0o0o0
The boat bobbed and tipped its way among the waves, making it's way laboriously towards the shore.
The humans didn't question Sunstreaker. Especially when there was a giant white robot dying on their deck, big enough so it's limbs dangled off the side of the ship, and several other robots also on board.
Especially when they caught a glimpse of the not that lurked beneath Sunny's surface. That side of him that could- and would- tear them to pieces without a second thought if they dared to disobey.
The fishermen helped Seaspray and Sideswipe unload Skyfire from the boat, dragging him onto the-thankfully- sandy shore using a few nets. Sunstreaker, who wasn't strong enough to help, stood to the side, reporting to Rodimus Prime via comm.
"Thank you!" Seaspray waved as the humans cast off in their life-saving fishing boat, "Goodbye!"
When the ship was out of sight, Sunstreaker rounded on Sideswipe.
"You stupid, reckless, insensitive, psychotic dumbaft!" He spat, smacking Sideswipe harshly with the back of his servo, "You know never to leave the safety off on your weapon!"
"But-" Sideswipe stumbled back, clutching at his leaking faceplates.
"No buts!" Sunstreaker's voice was filled with venom, "Now Skyfire's hurt, and Wheeljack- one of our caretakers, Sideswipe! When no one else would, he and Ratchet took us in- Wheeljack won't get a proper burial! Like he deserves! And it's all your fault!" Sunstreaker's faceplates were inches from Sideswipe's own as he glared at his Twin furiously.
"Now they're both dead." Sideswipe said hoarsely, "We should've been on that mission. To save Bluestreak. We could've protected him. Could've saved him. But we weren't, and we didn't. So now.. What does it matter?"
"And you wasted out chance to bring him home!" Sunstreaker backhanded Sideswipr again, sending the red mech sprawling, "Rodimus ordered us to. And Ratchet would've wanted it. Wheeljack would've wanted to be laid to rest beside him. And you failed. You failed them, Sideswipe! You. Failed."
Despair washed over Sideswipe; and he looked away from his livig brother, unwilling to grace him with a rare display of the years that were filling his optics.
"I know!" He shouted suddenly. Then, laying his helm on the wet sand, he said again, softer this time. "I know."
The tears spilled over. He hated this. He hated the fighting and he hated the war that made Sunny angry and he hated the war that had taken the only beings to ever act like- to ever be- their creators away from him.
His tears mingled with the energon staining his face.
Sunstreaker's faceplates softened when he saw his brother cry.
He crossed the sand and knelt down, helping Sideswipe sit up. He took a cleaning cloth from his subspace, cleaning away the energon and coolant years gently.
"I'm sorry." Sideswipe whispered.
"I'm sorry too." Sunstreaker offered his brother a smile, one that he saved especially for his brother.
"It's my fault. I-"
"Guys! Get over here!" Seaspray called, "I need your help!"
"Give us a minute." Sunstreaker responded, glancing over his shoulder at the mining. Seaspray was attempting to patch up Skyfire, but he was no field medic.
He turned back to Sideswipe. His brother's years had already disappeared, but he looked upset.
Sunstreaker gripped his shoulders and gave his Twin a shake, "Listen to me. It's not your fault. Shooting Skyfire was an accident. Understand?"
"But you said-"
"I know what I said. And I was a fool for letting my damned temper get out of control. Wheeljack and Ratchet.. They would be very proud of you. And humans are often buried at sea."
"Wheeljack would've been fascinated." Sideswipe smirked wryly.
"We wouldn't have found him." Sunstreaker shook his helm, "Rodimus is foolish."
The golden warrior glanced over his
shoulder again, "We have to help Seaspray." He turned back, "You ready?"
Sideswipe nodded, "Yeah."
0o0o0o0
As soon as the shore- and the robots- were out of sight, one of the fishermen turned to Hank, "Why didn't we take 'em to Jesse and Craig? They seem ta like them robots. And they offer rewards."
"More trouble than it's worth, Tom." Hank cut the engine as the boat neared a slew of bobbing red buoys peeking out of the ocean, "Haul up them traps!" He ordered the others
of the crew.
"We should've. We would've gotten enough money ta cover us fer a year." Tom mumbled.
"But then their buddies woulda come after us." Hank started as one of the sailors tending the lobster trap shouted, "It's caught on something!"
"Well pull it up!" Hank ordered, leaning over the rail and glaring as his men scrambled to help pull the trap- and it's unintentional quarry- up.
What was attached to it was a mass of rusted white, green, and red metal:
The remains of a robot.