A/N: Once again, thanks for the reviews! MEleeSmasher: Since the show rarely shows the kids' social lives outside the Autobots, I'll have to work on something like that. VFSNAKE: As I mentioned in the previous chapter, there's at least one more obstacle that the 'Bots will have to deal with. I hope none of you are too upset. Guardian of Azarath: The Shredder isn't going to use 'Bee's T-Cog because he destroyed it in case I didn't make that clear. Panther-Strife: What Shredder did was Ninpo: Ninja spells that allow them to harness spiritual energy. That's what allowed him to transform. As for the Ninja Tribunal, I'm not sure about putting them in due to the fact that they sort of remind me of the Primes, but let me know what the rest of you think.
Chapter 11
Jack sat on a medical bed while his mother looked him over. Since returning from the Nemesis, his head had been spinning. He had to get grip on his space-bridging ability and soon if he's forced to use it in the future. He looked over to see Ratchet fiddling with the Forge of Solus Prime, the relic of Iacon that he'd been able to retrieve from Megatron. With that artifact in their possession, the Autobots have seemingly gained a great advantage in this war.
The Forge could infuse any raw material with mystical energy, bringing any weapon or device into existence. With just a thought, the 'Bots could make a new computer that ran twice as fast as the one they had now. They could make new blasters, swords, and even new limbs to replace should any be destroyed. Most importantly, they could make Bumblebee a new T-Cog, especially since his was destroyed. Jack looked over to the scout, who was sitting in a corner, his face sullen.
After discovering MECH's location, the scout stormed their base to retrieve his missing bio-mech, only to discover they had brokered some kind of alliance with Starscream. After managing to retrieve his T-Cog, the scout was attacked by the Seeker and his bio-mech lost again. After a brief struggle, Starscream fried 'Bee's bio-mech and escaped, leaving the scout horrified. Though hopeful that Ratchet might be able to salvage it, that hope was soon dashed when the Shredder destroyed it completely. Now 'Bee was without a means of transforming unless the 'Bots managed to access the Forge.
"Jack," Optimus entered med bay, Arcee following. "How are you feeling?"
"Other than a killer headache, I'm fine."
"You're lucky that a 'killer headache' is all you managed to walk away with," Arcee said. "Going on to the Nemesis by yourself? You could have been killed!"
"But I wasn't," he replied.
"Even so," Optimus said. "I cannot condone such actions, even if they did result in the retrieval of the Forge from Decepticon hands. It is likely that Megatron will see this as an excuse for retaliation."
"I didn't think about that," Jack slumped his shoulders.
"You were merely concerned for Bumblebee's situation, as well as our own. Jack, while I can appreciate you putting yourself in harm's way for us, your actions do not fall into the category of a Prime. When making a decision, there are numerous factors to consider, such as what state the enemy will be left in and how they will be able to retaliate afterwards."
"Right," he sighed. "I'm sorry." The Prime nodded before going over to check on Ratchet. June also left to return to work after making sure her son was not hurt, giving her goodbyes as she left. That left Jack alone with Arcee, the latter still looking upset. He sighed, "All right, let me have it."
"If I let you 'have it', there would be much of you left," she hissed. "Forget being a Prime, you should have thought about what would happen to us if you were killed! When I thought you died, I just…" Her voice trailed off as it became more pained, "Losing a third partner… I don't know how that would have affected me. I'm already afraid of what Airachnid might have in store for you if, Primus forbid, she ever got her hands servos on you. And Megatron; he wants to make you pay for bringing back Optimus' memory. When I thought Saki had killed you, my world fell apart. Don't say this to anyone else, but I need you to keep me stable Jack. To keep me from losing whatever innocence I have left." She turned away from her partner, suddenly unable to face him when she felt two arms wrap around her waist.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I need you too."
ShadowStrike Rising
Ratchet continued to examine the Forge when Optimus came up from behind him, "Is everything all right, old friend?"
"I don't know," he sighed. "You haven't been able to unlock it since Jack retrieved despite you being a Prime. I have run every test I can possibly think of that might pertain to the Forge, but none have given me a good reason for its defunctness."
"Perhaps it is matter of Solus Prime herself deciding whether or not we are worthy to wield her Forge," the Prime queried.
"Preposterous!" he scoffed. "If worthiness were the issue, then the Forge would be working at triple its capacity. We are Autobots and we fight for the side of good and you are a Prime, none are more worthy than you."
"Maybe there's another reason," Jack walked up. "There might be more to being worthy in Solus' eyes than just being good or being a Prime." The others entered, save for 'Bee and Raf, to give their two cents on the matter.
"Maybe there's a secret password," Miko chirped. "Like 'power to the Primes!" or something."
"I don't think it would be something like that, Miko," Bulkhead chuckled.
"Maybe the Primes don't think we're worthy enough to wield the Forge," Arcee said.
"That's crazy," Ratchet said. "With the Forge, we could have a decisive victory in this war. Why in Primus' name would they keep us from gaining such an edge?"
"That's it," Jack said absentmindedly. "It's because of the war."
"Huh?" Miko said.
"While the Thirteen have made it clear that they're on our side," he began, "I bet they're still not too keen on giving us every advantage."
"But why?" Bulkhead asked. "We're their descendants."
"So are the Decpeticons. I bet they're still conflicted with providing one side with the means to destroy the other."
"Well said Jack," Optimus replied. "Perhaps it is best that we ask them."
"But how?" Arcee asked.
"Through me and the Forge," Jack said. "I'm sure Solus is still in my mind and has been listening in on our conversation." Jack walked over to the Forge and placed his hand on it and closed his eyes. He felt a familiar energy fill him as he opened them and came face to face with Solus Prime.
"It would seem that you have a gift for reading people," she smiled. "Indeed, I have concerns with providing the Autobots with the use of the Forge, knowing they would use it to destroy the Decepticons."
"The 'Cons would have used to the Forge as weapon even if they couldn't access its power," Jack said. "Look, I don't know what you're going through and I hope I never have to, but at the very least, let the 'Bots use the Forge to make 'Bee a new T-Cog. They have enough disadvantages in this war without losing a warrior on the battlefield."
"True words of a Prime in the making," she smiled. "And how should I reward the brave hero for risking his life to retrieve my Forge?"
"I don't know," Jack chuckled. "A kiss would be nice." Before he could react, Souls cupped his face with her hands and pressed her lips against his. Jack's eyes bugged out as he unconsciously slid his arms around her waist. They pulled apart and Jack's face flushed.
"Was that sufficient?" she asked, a teasing smile adorning her features. Jack merely stuttered, not sure of what to make what had just happened. "You can inform the Autobots that I will allow them construct a new T-Cog for Bumblebee while the Thirteen and I debate on whether they may wield the Forge and its power." Jack nodded and was returned to the real world.
"So what did she say?" Miko asked.
"You can use the Forge to make 'Bee a new T-Cog," he replied, earning slight cheers from the others. "But they're still deciding on whether you can use the Forge fully."
"Very well," Optimus said, silencing anyone before they could protest and taking the Forge in hand. With a powerful thrust, he slammed the hammer into a wall, sending a powerful shockwave. Arcee and Bulkhead shielded their charges from the shockwave as the Prime continued to hammer away at the rock. Mystical energy poured from the hammer as a chunk of rock, transforming into a T-Cog. The Prime set the hammer down and picked up the T-Cog, allowing Ratchet to examine it.
"Fetch Bumblebee, now."
ShadowStrike Rising
'Bee lay on the medical berth as Ratchet began prepping for surgery, his thoughts in a whir. He now had a new T-Cog, ready to be implanted at any moment. All he could think of was if the Cog would work or not. He had never heard of the Forge or its abilities, so he had no idea of any repercussions of using a device created from mystical energy made from raw material. He watched as Ratchet attached a tube filled with anesthesia to his chest.
"Now remain calm," he said. "And try to think happy thoughts. It'll be over before you know it." 'Bee nodded, his optics becoming heavy as he fell into stasis. Ratchet began making the final preparations as he looked down at Bumblebee's prone form. Seeing him like that reminded him of when the scout had been brought back to triage. After hours of surgery to repair the countless wounds inflicted upon him by Megatron, the medic found himself unable to fix Bumblebee's voice box.
He cursed himself to the depths of the Pits for being unable to do so as he watched how Bumblebee changed from that experience. Up until that point, he remained optimistic about the war, never truly believing they would ever lose. The medic watched with mortification as the scout's innocence fade as the war went on. He continued to dwell on these thoughts as Optimus came up from behind.
"Ratchet," he rumbled, "Is everything okay?"
"Fine," he sighed. "I am just wondering why our ancestors would find trouble choosing between us and the Decepticons after all the horrors they committed over the centuries. They've destroyed countless worlds beyond their own, ruined billions of lives, taken the innocence of many youths-"
"Ratchet," Optimus cut him off, "You did all that you could to repair Bumblebee's voice box."
"Apparently, it wasn't good enough."
"We cannot change what has happened, no matter great the desire," the Prime spoke. "We can only move forward and do our best to learn from our mistakes. I have faith that you will be able to implant Bumblebee's new T-Cog without fail." Having said what he needed to say, the Prime left his CMO to his thoughts.
ShadowStrike Rising
The command center was silent as everyone waited for word on Bumblebee's condition. It had been an hour since Ratchet entered med bay and began the surgery and there was still no word on 'Bee's condition. Raf kept his eyes glued on med bay while Miko and Bulkhead did their best to comfort the boy. Jack and Arcee sat in silence, waiting for whatever news the medic would share with them. Optimus kept himself busy by looking over the monitors for any Decepticon activity.
Finally, Ratchet emerged from med bay, Bumblebee in tow; the scout was staggering, still recovering from the anesthesia.
"'Bee!" Raf ran to his friend's side. "Is everything okay?"
"I did all that I could considering this T-Cog was not of natural origin," Ratchet sighed. 'Bee looked himself over and flexed his muscles, showing he was alright. "Easy now, the recovery process takes time." 'Bee complied and decided to see if everything he'd gone through for the past few days had paid. He attempted to transform, his parts flexing, but not shifting.
"It would seem that the T-Cog was incompatible," Ratchet sighed sadly.
'Bee gave a said beep before he felt something click and transformed, assuming his vehicle mode for the first time in days. Everyone gave a small cheer as Raf ran up to his friend, happy that he was whole again. 'Bee gave a beep and Raf complied, "Sure, anywhere you want!"
Once the boy was secured, the scout sped out of base to make up to the loss of time on the road as Ratchet called after them, "Take it easy now." No one could miss the happiness in the usually grumpy medic's voice.
ShadowStrike Rising
He'd been watching as those machines unearthed that device that seemed to call to him. He saw as the Shredder and Karai and the other machines fought them. He watched as the three factions battled for possession of that hammer, not caring who got it in the end. All he cared about was the presence that summoned him to that area. Then, he appeared; a ninja, like himself, Karai, and the Shredder.
Like him, that ninja seemed to have a thing for theatricality. He found himself intrigued by this ninja, the energy he gave off. While he was clearly still a novice, he had potential to be the opponent he'd been searching for. As he walked through the forest, the moon illuminating past the withered tree and the howls of the animals echoed throughout the area. He remembered the ninja's name, as said by that machine.
"ShadowStrike?" he pondered the name. "Intriguing."
ShadowStrike Rising
A/N: And there we go! I hope you enjoyed! Next Time: While the 'Bots are away, the ninja will play as ShadowStrike senses another artifact. Can he reach this weapon before the Shredder and Karai. And who is this mysterious new stranger who has taken an interest in the human Prime?