A/N: Thanks for the praise! For those of you wondering, I will not be killing Sunny. I can make Jack rack up a body count, but killing a child is a little overboard, even for my stories. I'm sorry if you wanted to see her die and see how her death would affect Jack.
Chapter 26
In the middle of a forest, Jack and Sunny had stopped by a creek to clean themselves. It had been three days since they left the village and the blood on them was starting to stink. They had found the creek and washed their clothes, though Sunny remained hidden behind a tree while her clothes dried. Jack had cleaned off his ninja outfit and returned to his regular form. He saw no need to wait for some big reveal to show Sunny how he actually looked.
They finished their business there and continued on their way, stopping at small resting hut when the sun went down. As Jack faded to sleep, the last images on his mind were those of Chen and his gang. They had terrorized that village for years, bullying the people with their numbers and weapons. When someone stood up to them, their philosophy was to kill that person and their family. That was what they had done to Sunny, and that would prove to be their final mistake.
Forgoing his search for a peaceful life, ShadowStrike slaughtered them like the animals they were. He killed them without remorse, without even a hint of mercy (to their credit, they never asked for it). He knew killing without hesitance wasn't something a Prime would do, but he didn't even know why he was still thinking like that. Maybe that selfless and merciful hero image was good to draw in a few followers (more than a few in the Autobots case), but it ultimately led to more trouble than solutions. Only recently had Optimus learned that lesson, what with Raf nearly getting killed by Megatron.
ShadowStrike wasn't going to wait for the Shredder, the 'Cons, MECH, or Oni-Kage to hurt Sunny before he knew it was time to kill them. He would find them, stop whatever their plans were, and put them out the world's misery. Cold, yes, but necessary. He and Sunny continued on their way, until they caught the sight of buildings in the distance. Picking the girl up, ShadowStrike used the speed technique's he learned from the Tribunal to quickly move into the city of Tokyo.
It looked exactly like its portrayals in American media; a large city filled with thousands of people moving through the streets. Several buildings towered over them, each one reaching further toward the heavens. At this, ShadowStrike inwardly groaned. He'd always hated big cities, the reason he'd stayed in Jasper. He preferred Jasper quiet nights to a big city's loud, obnoxious ramblings when people were trying to sleep.
"Wow," Sunny said in awe. "This place is so big." It was just like her father had told her when he visited the city. Large and full of people and surrounded by some of the biggest buildings in the world. She looked over to Jack, who was looking uncomfortable. She remembered her father telling that some people like to stay in small places.
It appeared that Jack was one of those people, "So now what?"
"We need to find some new clothes," he answered. "Ours are a little tattered. We also need to find a place to stay until we can get ourselves situated." They walked through the alleyways, avoiding as many people as possible. There was no telling who worked whom.
ShadowStrike Rising
Raf and Bumblebee were playing their usual game while Miko and Arcee watched. Bulkhead was helping Optimus with an energon run and Ratchet was discussing the current status of the medical system with June. Everyone's attention was immediately taken up by Agent Fowler's arrival. The man's face held unusually deep scowl as he entered base. Before anyone could say anything, Fowler moved to reveal Oroku Saki standing right behind him.
Everyone jumped as Ratchet and Bumblebee moved to shield the humans and Arcee from the man, their faces now fixed into scowls. The Prime Minister of Japan merely chuckled, "I am glad to see you still remember me. It has been a while since we last met."
"How dare you come here!" Ratchet hissed. "You trick us into going to rescue and nearly killed one of our comrades! Then you aided MECH in stealing Bumblebee's T-Cog, which you then destroyed!"
"I have no recollection of the events in question," he chuckled. "I remember being kidnapped by American terrorist, then helping out a science group with an important experiment. The event which you speak of must've been on some television show."
Miko ran from behind Bulkhead and headed straight for the man, "You've got some nerve showing your ugly mug around here, Bakamono!"
"Ah, yes," he rolled his eyes. "You. The spunky one."
"I'll show you spunky," she tried to lunge at him, only for Agent Fowler to stand in her way.
"I am going to have to ask that you stand down Ms. Nakadai," the special agent said, trying hard not to lose his cool.
"Have you lost your mind, Fowler!" the girl shrieked. "This asshole kidnapped us and tried to cut the 'Bots open. On top of that, he nearly killed Jack and you want to 'stand down'?"
"He does if he hopes to keep his job," Saki replied cooly. "Allowing harm to come to a foreign dignitary looks rather poor on one's resume, wouldn't you think?"
"What is he talking about Agent Fowler?" June asked.
"I have been appointed Mr. Saki's escort by the President and as such, I can't allow any harm to come to him. So if you would be so kind, Ms. Nakadai, please step back." The young girl did so, a deep scowl on her face at the man before her.
"Now why, may I ask, are you here?" Ratchet asked curtly.
"I am here to 'speak' with the boy," he said. Everyone turned their head to Raf, who looked extremely worried, Bumblebee standing in front of him protectively. "No, not that one. Jack Darby, where is he?"
"Wouldn't you like to know," Miko spat. "Well sorry, he's not here at the moment."
"Where is he?" the PM asked, his tone growing darker.
"I'm sorry, are you hard of hearing?" Miko hissed. "He ain't here, so get lost."
"Young lady, I find you tone to be rather rude. I had thought your parents had raised you right," Saki replied, his dark eyes boring into her, but Miko remained strong.
"I was raised never to be nice to strangers."
"I see," Saki said, a dark grin crossing his face. He pulled out a phone and dialed a number, putting it on loud speaker so they could all hear, "Alpha Leader, do you copy?"
"I copy," a voice replied from the other line.
"Do you have Ms. Nakadai's parent's in your sights?"
"Affirmative, I see them with their two cats out in the front yard of their home."
"Good," Saki's grin widened. "Kill them."
"No!" Miko shrieked.
"Initial command confirmed," Alpha Leader replied. "Awaiting secondary confirmation or orders to cease action. If met with silence for the next thirty seconds, it will be taken as secondary confirmation."
Saki turned back to the others, "Now do you feel like letting me know where I may find Mr. Darby?"
"He's not here," Ratchet replied.
"So you've said," Saki growled. "I will ask you one last time. Where is he?"
"Ten seconds remaining," Alpha Leader said.
"We don't know where he is," June said. "He disappeared five months ago and we haven't been able to find him since."
"Alpha Leader," Saki said. "Belay previous command. Remain at the Nakadai residence and keep a firm watch on their comings and goings."
"Understood," he replied, ending the call. Saki turned to leave, Agent Fowler reluctantly on his heels. He turned back to the Autobots, amused by the glares he was met with.
"It's been a pleasure," he said as the elevator doors closed with a hiss.
ShadowStrike Rising
Jack and Sunny made their way through the alleys of Tokyo, avoiding as much contact with the population as possible. Jack had no way of knowing who was a member of the Foot Clan or possibly a member of MECH. Both groups had seen his face enough times to know what he looked like. The Foot must have been especially watchful considering their master's interest in him. Jack had to be more careful than ever since he had Sunny in tow.
He needed to find a nice spot for her to lay low while he conducted his own investigation into the Foot. On their way into the alleys, Jack had caught the sight of the largest building in Tokyo, a familiar symbol adorning it. It looked like the Shredder loved to advertise to his enemies, daring them to attack him in his own home. However, from a paper Jack had caught a glimpse of as they made their way through, he knew Saki was out of the country. This was the perfect time to find any weakness the Foot had and exploit it.
He and Sunny continued running through the alleys until a building caught Jack's eye. It was too small to stand out, but large enough to house a few hundred people. They came across a door and Jack checked it; it was locked. Fortunately, Jack possessed the universal key to any door; his sword. Jamming it open, he and Sunny quickly went inside and replaced the lock. While it was certainly nothing to look at, it would have to do.
"Judging from the looks of this place," Jack observed. "It's only recently been abandoned, so there might be some salvageable to eat." Sunny nodded and started looking around for a kitchen. They hadn't eaten anything since they were at the creek, catching a few, small, fish.
"I found the kitchen," she announced entering the room. Jack flicked the light switch and the room lit up, revealing a fridge still intact. Jack walked over and opened it; it had some edible food. The sword's universal translator allowed Jack to read the writing on the packaging.
"This looks good," he said. "Let's eat."
ShadowStrike Rising
Jack and Sunny had finished their meal and found a bedroom to stay in. Jack transformed and told Sunny not to leave the house, to which she agreed on the promise that he wasn't leaving her. He may have lost all care for his own life, but he wouldn't die unless he knew she was safe. And while she may have been secured at the house, she was far from safe. Jumping from roof to roof, ShadowStrike sped toward the center of Tokyo, where the PM's office stood.
That was the bad thing about advertising your headquarters to your enemies. Some of them might actually be stupid enough to try and attack, especially since the castle's king was gone. However, that didn't mean the Shredder's fortress was completely vulnerable. ShadowStrike figured he must have left ample security there, such as his daughter. And he knew from experience how tough she could be in a fight, though he had a feeling their confrontation might go over differently this time.
ShadowStrike Rising
A/N: Sorry if it's a little short, but I'll try to make it up to you with the next chapter. Next time: ShadowStrike infiltrates the Foot Clan's headquarters. There, he runs into the most unexpected of enemies. Also, did anyone catch the G1 reference I threw in Chapter 25?