Chapter 19-Polarity
Debbie Radcliffe always thought that having an esper brother was an odd experience. Things would randomly float off the table and shelves during the night (which happened whenever Darren was sleeping), sometimes she would catch him levitating a chair or a ball out of boredom, and more extreme cases was when Darren would control the water coming from the sink and bathtub. She got used to it, of course, and made sure he was being safe with them, but looking back on it, it was still a pretty strange thing to live with.
But that paled in comparison to the secret her little siblings were hiding from her. Making first contact with aliens and actually spending their afterschool time in a giant alien ship? How were they able to keep all this a secret?
Two days after almost getting killed by that psychotic huntress, the children introduced her to the Autobots, and now Gina was giving her a quick tour of the Ark with her Minicon partner Sureshock. It was a new experience talking to the human-sized robots-Minicons-that who were living out of a wing of the east wing of the Ark. it was odd how at home the children were with the Minicons and Autobots, who were just as amazing and varied as they were when she first met them.
Optimus Prime, the biggest of the group, but also the most gentle. He reminded her so much of her father and grandfather, brave and noble, as well as kind and gentle when they needed to be. Prowl was a bit more stand-offish and hard to talk to, though Annie assured her he was like that to everyone, even his own team. Ironhide was no different, though his tough exterior was mostly a front to hide a soft heart for friends and comrades. Wheeljack was an odd person but sociable and friendly, though she was worried about his tendency to make things go boom.
Bulkhead was Annie's best alien friend (her "BAF" if one were to head her ramblings) and Debbie could see that her sister had the big imposing mech wrapped around her little finger. Bumblebee was another friendly mech who loved learning more about Terra, courtesy of info session from Gina to keep him up to date on terran history and culture. Then there was Jazz, the stylish, music-loving mech who was more in love with Terra than Bumblebee. Ratchet, the medic who was like a stern but caring grandfather who knew how to do his job (and she noticed Gina liked to act as his assistant and student sometimes). Skyfire, the flirt and braggart who seemed a bit full of herself, but for good reason, and had a heart of gold.
And then there was Arcee, the kind and sweet femme who saved her family's life. Debbie didn't know her for long, but she was forever grateful for what the pink Autobot did to rescue her.
"And here's the Minicon/human area of the ship." Gina said as they entered one of the rooms reserved for Minicon and human use. The place looked a bit like a community area Debbie saw in downtown Tranquility. There were chairs and tables, a computer station with a large TV monitor installed into the wall and a small bar where the Minicons drank energon. "This is our little command center where the Minicons live and work to help the Autobots find the rest of their crew around the world."
"This is amazing. So this is what you've been doing afterschool." Debbie breathed. "Unbelievable."
"Yeah, hard to process, huh?" Annie said as she rolled in on Grindor. "But once the shock factor wears off, you get used to it."
Debbie doubted that, but she didn't say anything. Instead, she focused on something that concerned her. "Why are you helping the in the first place? They're giant alien soldiers who can change into cars. Why involve you with all these evil Decepticons and murderous terrorist groups?" She shook her head. "It's all too dangerous for a bunch of kids."
"To be fair, Debbie, it's our fault that the Cons are after the Minicons in the first place." Gina said. "We didn't know what we were getting into when we discovered Sparkplug's Minicon escape pod in the mountain, and we pretty much put Terra on the Decepticons' radar with that distress signal. Besides, the Minicons aren't warriors, Debbie. They're just refugees trying to escape a war."
The war, just hearing the thought made Debbie scowl. Just when she was getting comfortable, that one word reminded her of why she was so wary of letting the children around the Autobots. War was what took her father and mother from her, and the last thing she wanted was to lose Darren and Annie the same way.
Arcee left the armory with Emulator on her shoulder and greeted the children. "Hey, Debbie."
"Arcee." Debbie nodded up to her.
"I'd love to talk but I've got a mission to get started on." Arcee called the boys over. "Darren, Kevin, we're heading out."
"Sure thing, Arcee." Darren said as he walked over to them with Kevin and Mugen. Debbie blinked at them.
"Heading out?" She echoed. "Where are you going?"
"Recon duty." Arcee answered. "The kids help us out on our missions sometimes and keep us company."
Debbie didn't like the sound of that. "Missions? Darren, don't tell me you get involved in the fighting."
"It's not like that, sis," Annie said. "This is recon, just a little searching for energon deposits across the world. It's just some driving around with a scanner in hand in far off lands like Elladas and Belka. Nothing dangerous about that at all."
"And if things do get hairy, then we send them back via the ground bridge." Arcee said.
"If there's nothing dangerous about it, then why do you need them with you? From the looks of it, you have enough company as it is." Debbie said, pointing at Emulator, who was rolling around chasing her tail.
"I know that, but we can't keep the kids cooped up in the Ark forever." Arcee replied, starting to get annoyed.
Emulator looked up and poked Debbie, shocking her with her plug-like fingers. Debbie yelped and jumped back. "What was that for?!"
"Debbie, don't make a big deal about this. Us going along is totally different." Darren said.
"Oh? In what way? Because you're an esper?" Debbie said.
"You know what? Your sister's right, Darren." Arcee sighed and picked up Emulator into her hands. "Since she knows everything, I should probably leave you and Kevin behind. Wouldn't do to put you two in danger."
Darren stood there gaping as Arcee walked away. He frowned and glared at Debbie, who looked puzzled.
"What did I say?" Debbie asked confused. Darren shook his head and marched out the room, leaving her with the other Minicons. When she noticed them all staring, she growled at them. "What are you all looking at? Show's over!"
Kevin shook his head and whispered, "I'm so glad I'm an only child."
Gina nodded. "Amen to that."
Arcee marched into the shuttle bay where Jazz and Roadstorm were waiting for her to disembark. Roadstorm was lounging against Jazz's foot listening to some smooth jazz (heh) he downloaded directly into his brain, lazily waving to Arcee as she approached them. Jazz noticed the irritated look on his partner's face.
"You doin' okay, Cee?" He asked. "You lookin' a bit salty.'
"I'm fine, Jazz. Just fine." Arcee grunted. "Can we get going, please?"
"Sure thing." Jazz knew well enough to let her calm down first before prying further. Never poke an agitated tigress within biting distance.
"Not so fast, you two." Longarm, standing on a newly invented hovercraft made for traversing the ship easier created by Wheeljack, flew up to them. "Teletran just detected a strange reading in the Senca Mountains."
"How strange?" Arcee asked.
"Strange as in a magnetic anomaly that's growing by the second. I know you two were planning on doing recon, but-"
"Don't worry, little dude. We'll check it out. Just fire up the bridge and we're off." Jazz said.
Longarm steered his platform over to the console and pressed the button that activated the ground bridge. With their Minicons in tow, Arcee and Jazz transformed and drove into the vortex to their destination.
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On the Nemesis, that same anomaly was detected by Soundwave, who reported it to Megatron, who was very pleased with this new development.
"I recognize this type of anomaly. If it's caused by the weapon I believe it to be, then it's paramount we get it first." Megatron said. He was about to call Nightshade in when someone else volunteered for the mission.
"Lord Megatron, I wish to retrieve the weapon for you."
Megatron scowled and glared at Lugnut, who knelt before him. He remembered how Nightshade and Blackout went against orders and rescued Lugnut, which sparked a heated argument between them that ended with Nightshade still defending her reasons for the mission. It would've come to blows had Soundwave not broken them up.
"Why should I choose you, Lugnut?" Megatron asked. "When you, one of my strongest warriors, was taken down by humans."
"It is because of my loss that I wish to partake in this endeavor alone." Lugnut raised his head, revealing his new orange colored prosthetic eye implanted to replace his lost eye. "What I have lost that night is punishment enough for failing you. Rest assured, I will not do so again."
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The Senca Mountains was a chain of mountains in the northwest that was home to a diverse range of climates. It was home to small snow covered mountains, wide forests and a large lake that was in the center of the valley. It was a truly picturesque area, but one alien visitor didn't care about the scenery.
Lugnut trudged through the rocky canyon where the magnetic disturbance was detected. Each step he took made the ground tremble and it reflected his grim mood. On the ground, his Minicons partner Search drove along in his vehicle mode searching for the energy signal with his radar dish.
"So," Search began, not really liking the silence. He was used to Lugnut prattling on about Decepticon glory and all that slag, but he hadn't really been himself since that unfortunate encounter with the humans. "How was your day? Mine was great, I tried hitting on Songbird earlier and stuff, but she was like "No, let me brood here in the corner for another solar cycle" but I was like "Come on, girl, you gotta let me get a piece of tha-"
"We did not come here to chat." Lugnut growled. "We came here to retrieve something for Lord Megatron. Now shut up and do your job."
"Okay, fine." Search grumbled. He increased power to his sensors and managed to get a reading. "Found something. It's just over that hill."
Lugnut nodded and climbed up the hill, sliding down the other side into the little canyon he found himself in and took out his mace. Search transformed and pointed to a certain spot near the hill. The Minicon ran to the side as Lugnut began pounding away at the stone with his weapon, sending rocks and dirt flying everywhere. It wasn't long before Lugnut managed to uncover his target.
It was a gauntlet of some kind, like an unfinished handle to a much larger weapon with two buttons on the sides of the hand guard. Lugnut reached into the hole and picked it up.
"What is that thing?" Search asked.
"I…do not know." Lugnut answered, also confused as to what this weapon was.
"You shouldn't play around with things you're too stupid to understand." A cocky voice sang behind him.
Lugnut spun around, deploying his shoulder cannon. He saw no one there, but he knew he was being watched and remained on high alert. He heard some rocks shift behind up and looked up the hill to see a black and red femme grinning down at him.
"Hello there!" Flamewar said.
Flamewar jumped down and kicked Lugnut in the face, knocking him back and making him drop the gauntlet. She ran forward and caught the device, looking it over with greedy eyes.
"This looks expensive." She noted. "I wonder what it does."
Pain erupted in her arm as she was hit in the side by a massive swing from Lugnut's mace. She hit the ground but still kept a hold on the gauntlet, jumping to her feet and leaping back to gain some distance. The two Cons faced each other.
"I've heard of a rogue Con roaming this land." Lugnut said. "I shall defeat you and bring your battered form to Lord Megatron to show him my worthiness of his honor."
"Oh shut up and suck a cog wheel, you sappy fool." Flamewar snorted.
Lugnut roared and charged at her with his mace. Flamewar grinned and leapt at him with her arm blades extended. Search stood back and watched the fireworks go off. This was going to be fun.
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Jazz and Arcee walked through the rocky plains of the Senca Mountains in silence. The tense silence and almost tangible agitation from Arcee unsettled Roadstorm, who was begging for something to distract him from Emulator's constant jittering. No sane femme should be acting like they chugged down two gallons of kremzeek and still form coherent thoughts.
"So, you gonna tell me what has you in a tizzy?" Jazz asked, scanning the area intently. "O are you going to stew in your anger for the rest of the mission?" When Arcee remained silent, he continued. "Cee, what did I tell you about letting your anger reign?"
"It clouds your thoughts and makes you do stupid things you wouldn't normally do." She sighed.
"And it's certainly not going to help you on this mission. So you might as well tell me what's going on." Jazz said. Arcee gave him a look and sighed.
"It's Debbie. I know she's worried about Annie and Darren, for good reason, but she's just so…suffocating." Arcee said. "I mean, Darren and I do recon all the time and she constantly thinks I'm taking him into a freaking warzone."
"Everything you guys touch does have a habit of exploding." Roadstorm muttered, earning a finger flick from Jazz. Arcee ignored him and continued her rant.
"I've been protecting them before she even had a clue about what was going on. Suddenly she wakes up and I'm not good enough."
"Cee," Jazz stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. "If this bothers you so much, then just talk to her. Make an effort to speak about your feelings instead of ranting about it like an angry nitrotiger." He told her. "Keeping these feelings bottled up won't make you any younger. It'll just lead to an early death."
Arcee pursed her lips and nodded. "Yeah…you're right. Thanks, Jazz."
"Anything for my favorite student." Jazz smiled.
"I'm your only student."
"I know." He smirked.
"Hush!" Emulator hissed. The two Autobots went quiet as the feline Minicon ran forward and hopped atop a boulder. "I hear noises-loud ones, nya." Her ears wiggled as she pointed deeper into the canyon. "I see two Cons fighting, nya."
Arcee and Jazz traded glances before they climbed the rocky slope to see the fight. It was Flamewar and Lugnut fighting each other ferociously with the mixture of brute force and tactical skill common in all Cons.
Flamewar attacked with quick attacks and blasts from her blaster arm, pelting Lugnut's thick armor with plasma blasts that burned his armor on impact. Lugnut ignored the stings of his burnt armor chipping off as he swung his mace at her with astounding speed to force her back a certain distance. He fired missiles from his shoulder cannon whenever she was within his sights to keep her on her toes.
"Flamewar and Lugnut, what a coincidence." Roadstorm said. Arcee narrowed her eyes.
"Yes, but I don't know if this is a blessing or a curse." She said.
Jazz magnified his visor's vision and saw the gauntlet the Cons were fighting over. It was in Lugnut's possession, but Flamewar was dead set on snatching it from his grasp. He didn't need any preliminary scans to know that device was what they came here for.
"And there's the source of the magnetic disturbance." Jazz said. He nodded at Arcee. "You wanna crash the party?"
"Do you have to ask?" She smirked.
Flamewar ducked under Lugnut's mace and kneed him in the chin before punching him in the eye. The mech hissed in pain as his very sensitive component erupted in burning pain that stalled him. Flamewar smirked and picked up the gauntlet he dropped, placing it over her hand.
"This is just the perfect gift for a girl like me. I deserve a little something for all the slag I've been through." Flamewar chuckled.
"The only thing you deserve is chains, you traitor!" Lugnut growled. Flamewar rolled her eyes and walked over to him.
"Spare me the scare tactics, Lugnut. I'm not low ranking Autobot rookie who jumps at her own shadow." She said and pointed the gauntlet at his face. "How about we give this thing a test run to see how effective it is on big, dumb Cons who don't know any better?"
"No you don't!" Search drove up to her and fired his arm cannons at her. Two laser blasts hit Flamewar's hand and knocked the weapon from her grasp.
"You little brat!"
Before she could make good on her threat to decapitate the Minicon, Jazz and Arcee chose to enter the party. Jazz took Arcee into his arms and threw her high into the air. She flew through the air and in her descent opened fire on the two Cons with her pistols, forcing them apart. Jazz slid down the hill firing his photon rifle at Lugnut with Roadstorm linked to his arm. The pair landed between the two adversaries, ready to fight.
"I wish I could say it's nice to see you, honey," Flamewar glowered. "But then I'd be lying."
"Wouldn't be the first time." Arcee said.
"Leave, Autobots!" Lugnut growled. "This does not concern you!"
"Anything that involves you, big guy, is our business." Jazz replied. "Let's get it!"
The Autobots charged at their opponents and attacked. Arcee leapt at Flamewar, firing her pistols. Flamewar rolled to the side and returned fire, though Arcee quickly closed the distance between them and slashed her flaming sword at her head. The huntress barely dodged it and lashed back with her arm blades, but Arcee grabbed her arm and punched her in the face, leaving a thin cut across her cheek.
Jazz danced around Lugnut with a series of jumps and flips that Lugnut could barely track. Lugnut swung his mace every which way trying to hit the Autobot, but he couldn't even graze him. Jazz fired his cryo-emitter at Lugnut's lower torso before jumping in close to deliver a punch to his frozen armor.
"Ngh!" Lugnut flinched as the stinging cold. "Stand still, Autobot!"
"That's not how it works, bro!" Jazz laughed.
Lugnut swung his mace one more time, but Jazz grappled it with his hook and pulled hard, wrenching it free from Lugnut's hands. He swung the heavy weapon around his body and threw it back at the Con, hitting him right in the face with the thick blunt end of the mace, knocking him over and into dreamland. Seeing his partner have trouble, Search ran to his aid.
"I got ya, big gu-ahh!"
Search was thrown to the ground as Emulator pounced on his back and pushed him face first into the dirt. He tried to push her off, but she flipped off him, grabbing his shoulders and using her body weight to throw him into a boulder. He stood up and fired his arm cannons, but she skillfully dodged the plasma blasts fired at her and leapt at him.
Before Search knew it, he was being assaulted by lightning fast punches and kicks that he couldn't even follow, and then took a sharp kick to the face that knocked him back to the ground. Emulator dug her plug-like extensions into his head and painfully electrocuted him. Emulator had more than enough electricity to burn off on him.
Flamewar and Arcee continued their dance of death. Like their previous battles, they were evenly matched in skill and weaponry, and neither femme gained an upper hand on the other. That is, until Flamewar spotted the gauntlet sitting by the fighting Minicons. She smirked at Arcee and kicked her in the chest, jumping into the air and firing a grapple from her wrist to snatch the gauntlet up.
"Slag!" Arcee ran at her before she used the gauntlet. She had no idea what that thing could do, but she knew on some level that it was dangerous in the hands of a psycho like Flamewar.
"Let's try this for a test run, shall we?" Flamewar pressed a button near the handle and the gauntlet powered up, forming an energy globe around her hand. Humming appreciatively, she pointed the gauntlet at Emulator and Search and fired a magnetic pulse that trapped them in a powerful magnetic field, lifting them off the ground.
"Flamewar!" Arcee roared, leaping at her.
Flamewar smirked and positioned the Minicons in front of her before turning the dial on the gauntlet and repelling the magnetic wave in the Autobot's direction. The two Minicons hit Arcee in the chest and the wave crashed into her with great force, sending her flying into the canyon wall.
"Cee!" Jazz ran at Flamewar, firing his cryo blaster. She dodged the icy blasts and when he leapt at her, she caught him in another magnetic field.
"I'm so sick of your little acrobatic routine." Flamewar smirked. "Maybe you should be a dear and sit still for a while."
Flamewar threw Jazz into a pile of boulders, causing them to dislodge and bury him in the ensuing rockslide. Laughing at the power this little gauntlet held, she twirled it on her finger giddily. As much as she wanted to finish the job, it was probably best that she move before something ruined her good mood.
"I'll be seeing you all in hell, my dears!" Flamewar saluted and folded into her motorcycle mode, speeding away from the battleground, not noticing Lugnut starting to wake up from his little nap.
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Debbie momentarily forgot how massive the ship was as she looked for Darren, but thanks to High Wire's help, she managed to navigate the Ark's vast golden halls and located her little brother in Wheeljack's workshop. The boy was working with Roll Bar and Liftor on some large device that looked like a slightly more advanced version of a generator of some kind. After studying the odd looking device for a second, she cleared her throat, getting the trio's attention.
"Hey," Debbie smiled sheepishly. "Can I borrow Darren for a minute?"
"Well, we're kinda busy building this new generator for Wheeljack and we need Darren to move it-ow!"
Liftor smiled at Darren after whacking Roll Bar up the head. "Go on, Darren. We can keep working without you."
Darren sighed and left the room with his sister, leaving the two Minicons to argue in hushed whispers. He gave them at least ten minutes before something exploded in their faces.
The two siblings walked down the hall at a slow pace, neither knowing how to clear the air between them. Debbie glanced at Darren, who was looking anywhere but at her, and she sighed.
"Have I said anything wrong?" She asked, earning a confused look from him. "I mean, did I offend the Autobots or something? If this is about what happened earlier, I'm sorry. I was just saying that they could do all that dangerous stuff alone since they're, you know…giant robots."
"They're not robots, Debbie. The politically correct term is mechanical aliens." Darren said. "And no, you didn't offend Arcee…I think. But just because they're big and powerful doesn't mean that they don't need our help. Annie, Gina and I helped the Bots locate and rescue nearly a dozen Minicons since we met them. We're actually helping people, and through it all I've gotten better with my powers."
Debbie definitely noticed the difference in that regard. Darren had become more skilled with his powers, moving things with natural ease and with astounding speed. To show her how precise he was, he telekinetically pulled a thin strip of metal from the floor and easily split the metal into smaller strips like it was plastic. Debbie stared at him in awe at how fluid he performed the move and smiled a bit when he shaped the metal into a tightly woven heart and levitated it into her hands.
"Thank you, Darren." She said softly, but got back to the topic at hand. "Look, I know you've done a lot for them, but did you forget how that girl-"
"Femme."
"Whatever!" Debbie sighed and turned to face her brother fully. "We were almost killed by that freak with the crossbow just so she could get back at Arcee. I know you love these Autobots, Darren, but I don't want you or Annie getting hurt for something you didn't do."
Darren chose to refrain from telling her about the many near death experiences he and the girls had over the past few months and tried a different approach. "But they've done a good job keeping us safe. The Autobots have our safety in the forefront of their minds all the time. Anything that happens to us is our fault, not theirs."
He placed a hand on Debbie's shoulder. "You should trust them more. There is no place safer than with the Autobots."
The brother-sister pair stared each other in the eyes and Debbie knew how serious he was. It was amazing how different the boy standing before her was compared to the quiet and uncertain boy he used to be back then. Working with the Autobots certainly helped with his self-confidence.
"Okay, then. Since you're so insistent that the Autobots can take care of you, then I'll take your word for it. But that doesn't mean I'll stop doting over you and Annie. You two are my baby siblings, after all." Debbie smiled.
Darren hugged his sister. "That's all I'm asking for, Debbie."
After a minute, Debbie frowned. "I supposed I should also apologize to Arcee. She looked a bit miffed earlier."
"That would be wise. Be glad she doesn't hold a grudge." Darren said.
A loud boom cut their talk short, followed by shouting from Roll Bar and Liftor. Darren shook his head-it took them nine minutes to blow themselves up. A new record.
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Jazz pushed the rocks off him with a grunt and crawled out of the pile with a dusty Roadstorm in his hands. "You okay there, little dude?"
"Got dust in my servos and my head's ringing-all in all, I'm just peachy." Roadstorm growled.
Jazz stood up and pulled his leg free and looked around for Arcee. "Cee! You alright? Sound off!"
"Jazz, I'm over here!" Arcee called out. "But I have a bit of a…situation on my hands."
Jazz ran over to where he saw Arcee sitting on the ground with a frown on her face. He was about to inquire to her condition when he saw the reason she was so cross. Emulator and Search were stuck to her legs, their backs stuck to her thighs by some powerful force.
"In case you're wondering: yes, I did try to get them off. It didn't work." Arcee said dryly.
"Don't see that every day." Roadstorm whistled.
"Should I dare ask how this happened?" Jazz asked.
"I was hit by the Minicons when Flamewar hit me with that damn gauntlet. They're stuck to me and I can't pull them loose." Arcee said, standing up. Peppercat was trying to wriggle free, but Search just hung there like a limp noodle, not even trying to escape.
"This certainly counts as one of the more embarrassing moments of my life." Search droned.
"We should kill the bastard before he calls for help, nya!" Emulator hissed.
"Whoa, whoa, hold on there! I'm a victim here, I can't really do anything to you that won't get me killed as well." Search said. Emulator merely hissed and tried to pull free.
Arcee sighed, gaining the early signs of a headache as she called Longarm up. She explained the situation to him, as well as the weapon that caused it, and he in turn called Ratchet over for a more detail analysis of her condition.
"A polarity gauntlet." Ratchet hummed. "A deceptively simple but diabolical weapon. It manipulates natural magnetic forces in the environment with the push of a button. Considering that we're made of metal, it's a very dangerous weapon when used against us."
"I'm guessing Emulator and Search being stuck to Arcee's trunk is because of magnetism?" Roadstorm asked.
"Most likely. The gauntlet must have increased the magnetic forces between your bodies when you collided with each other. It could probably wear off on its own, but I'd rather have the weapon that caused it to reverse its effects."
"Easier said than done, doc. The gauntlet's with Flamewar, and she's long gone." Jazz said.
"I can still track the gauntlet's readings. It's not too far from your position, but you better hurry."
Search groaned. "If only Lugnut was here…hey, where is Lugnut?
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Flamewar drove through the valley that went on for miles through the mountains. Though she passed by one of the most beautiful natural sights in the country, her mind was on others things-namely escape. Hanging on one of her handlebars was the polarity gauntlet. She had to get as far away from those meddling Autobots and that dumb Con as much as possible lest she lose her new toy.
'With this on hand, I won't have to worry about either Bots or Cons.' Flamewar thought happily.
Sadly, her elation was cut short when a dark green and black bomber plane flew right over her. She skidded to a stop as the large aircraft flew past her and dived to the ground, reconfiguring into a very angry Lugnut. Flamewar tried to transform, but she wasn't fast enough to avoid Lugnut's mighty swing of his mace, hitting her dead center and flinging her across the valley into a steep gravel slope. The blow forced her back into robot mode and the gauntlet fell into a pond.
"Time for round two!" Lugnut charged at Flamewar, intent on crushing her chassis into scrap. Flamewar rolled out of the way of another hammer strike and fired a laser bolt at his face, which he dodged, to her surprise. "I know all of your tricks, witch. You will not get me again!"
"Then how about this?" Flamewar fired a net from her wrist and it wrapped around Lugnut's head, blinding him and trapping his mouth shut. He fumbled around, trying to pull it off, but this special batch was made for slippery prey. "How's that for a hat trick?"
Not too far from their location, Jazz ran across the rocky terrain, tracking the gauntlet's potent magnetic signal. Seeing that they were getting close to it, he was relieved to see that Flamewar didn't get too far, or else Lugnut would've gotten to it first.
"Stop right there, Autobot!"
Jazz froze and looked over his shoulder to see Flamewar standing on top of a small hill, the polarity gauntlet pointed at him. Behind her, Lugnut was on his knees still trying to get the net off his face.
"Disengage your Minicons or I turn you into a life-sized energon cube!" She commanded. Jazz's smirk was unseen by her as he took Roadstorm off his arm and placed him on the ground.
"What are you doing?" Roadstorm asked quietly.
"Trust me." Jazz whispered back.
"Good. Raise your hands and turn around. I don't want you trying anything funny."
"Funny, that's what all my friends say when I invite them over for happy hour." Jazz said. He raised his hands and snapped his fingers. Arcee leapt over the hill and slammed her shoulder into Flamewar's back, violently jostling the Minicons on her legs. The gauntlet was knocked from Flamewar's hand and hit the ground, landing right on the button. At that point, all the bots in the area found themselves being drawn towards the gauntlet's powerful magnetic pull, one that felt like they were getting dragged down by the planet itself. Lugnut was the closest, and as he neared the gauntlet, he finally tore off the net and grabbed the gauntlet, pressing the button to stop its pull.
"That's better." Jazz said. Roadstorm powerlinked with him, but he didn't shift his arm into his weapon yet. He faced off against Lugnut, while Arcee faced Flamewar, who looked at her current appearance with no small amount of amusement.
"How did-"
"Don't talk, just fight!" Arcee growled. She didn't need her ex ribbing her on this.
"Lugnut, help me!" Search yelled. "They have me prisoner and are threatening to torture me if I don't stop talking!"
"Shut up or I'll rip out your voice box, nya!" Peppercat hissed.
"See what I mean?!"
Lugnut said nothing, but he planned to get his Minicon back from the clutches of those accursed Autobots. With his mace in one hand and the polarity gauntlet in the other, he growled and beckoned Jazz to come at him.
Round two of this odd three-way battle began. Jazz and Arcee charged their respective opponents at once. Jazz flipped through the air and fired his photon rifle at Lugnut. The Con roared and charged at Jazz, swinging his mace violently. The saboteur ducked and dodged the large weapon that could cave his chest in with a single strike and did a spin kick to knock Lugnut back. The brute took his hits with ease, but he could barely lay a finger on the agile mech.
Arcee and Flamewar fought as they always did, but the added weight of Arcee's unwanted passengers slowed her down. Flamewar swept her feet from under her and she felt on her right side, nearly crushing Emulator under her weight. She landed awkwardly to avoid hurting her Minicon, but Flamewar kicked her unprotected left side, mostly hitting Search, who was dishing out curses at both femmes for his pain.
"You're moving a little slow there, Cee." Flamewar smirked. "Did you gain some weight?"
"Don't even go there!" Arcee growled.
Arcee lashed out with a punch to her face, but Flamewar spun around to launch a kick at Emulator. Unfortunately for her, Emulator was fast enough to grab her foot and deliver a painful shock into the captured limb. Flamewar jumped back in pain and stumbled as she realized her foot was numb.
"Good job, Peppercat." Arcee praised.
Emulator's eyes lit up as she smiled. "Anytime, nya."
Jazz and Lugnut were engaged in a violent version of keep away. The cyber-ninja was trying to grab the gauntlet, but Lugnut was keeping him at arm's length. He tried hitting Jazz with the butt of his mace, but Jazz leaned back and kicked it from his hands. He leaped up and elbowed Lugnut in the head, but Lugnut caught his arm and threw him into the ground.
Lugnut used the gauntlet to magnetically lift his mace and throw it at Jazz. It hit the Autobot in the chest and sent him flying through the air, slamming into Arcee and sending both Autobots crashing into the slope. Flamewar looked at Lugnut, who fired a missile at her.
"I've had enough of you!" Lugnut growled. He charged at Flamewar, but stopped when he heard Search give a happy cry.
"I'm free!" Search cheered. He was covered in dirt and dents but he was free from his magnetic bond with Arcee, as was Peppercat. "Praise the Allspark!"
"Shut up and link with me, Search!" Lugnut snarled.
"Okay, okay, no need to be testy." Search transformed and sped up to Lugnut, linking to the Con's arm.
Lugnut glared bloody murder at Flamewar as his arm shifted into a pressure pad, which activated the devastating explosive punch he was best known for. One press and he could level almost a mile of the area around him in one massive gravity pressure wave. Wanting to get this irritating battle over with, he ran at Flamewar with the intent to end this traitorous witch for good.
"Not so fast, nya!"
And he would've been able to carry out his objective if Emulator hadn't thrown an expertly aimed rock at the big red button, hitting it with accuracy that would make Bumblebee proud. Lugnut didn't even have time to curse before he was engulfed in an explosion that rattled the valley with a thunderous boom. A minute later, Lugnut flew out of the towering pillar of smoke and crashed into the lake with a large splash.
"Good kitty!" Jazz smiled. He spotted the polarity gauntlet sitting on the ground next to him and went to grab it, but a grappling line snatched it up first and it was pulled into Flamewar's hands.
"I'll be seeing you all in hell!" Flamewar jeered and shifted to vehicle mode, driving down the mountain slope at high speeds and not stopping even as she hit ground level. She thought she was home free, but Arcee had other ideas.
"Peppercat!" Arcee called out. Emulator changed into her beast mode, a large red cat the size of a cheetah, and attached herself to Arcee's right thigh.
Arcee felt a surge of energy course through her body and channeled it into her legs. Empowered by the linkage, Arcee sprinted forward at dizzying speeds, chasing after Flamewar and easily catching up to her in record breaking time. Flamewar tried to go faster, but Arcee grabbed the back of her alt mode and dug her feet into the ground to slow her down. Once Flamewar lost traction, Arcee spun the huntress around three times before throwing her at Jazz.
Flamewar spun uncontrollably in the air and transformed mid-spin. Unfortunately, she did so just in time for her face to meet the back of Jazz's heel as he spin-kicked her in the air and knocked her over to the lake. Lugnut was just swimming back to the surface when Flamewar flew at him.
"Scrap." Lugnut said as Flamewar slammed into his face and they both hit the lake again.
Jazz smirked at his awesome finisher and patted himself on the back as Arcee jogged over to him with the polarity gauntlet in hand. Emulator separated from Arcee and climbed onto her shoulder.
"You did good, Emulator." Arcee smiled at her.
"I did good too, y'know. But don't mind the Minicon hipster dragged into this mess." Roadstorm grumbled. Jazz chuckled and looked at the gauntlet.
"Let's get back to the Ark before that thing gets us stuck together or something." He said. Arcee nodded, but Emulator pointed at the lake.
"What about them, nya?" Peppercat asked.
"Them?" Arcee glared at the lake and sighed. Honestly, she didn't care about them anymore. They got what they came here for and that's that. "Let Lugnut deal with their rabid dog."
Despite the general craziness that came with these kinds of missions, they managed to win the day. Now, the two Autobots and their partners were content with just going home and resting from this unpleasant affair.
XXXXXX
"One polarity gauntlet for the vault." Arcee smiled as she handed Ratchet the gauntlet. "Though I wouldn't advise indoor use."
"Arcee?"
Arcee looked down and saw Debbie walking up to her. Seeing that she wanted to talk, Arcee knelt down to her while Jazz and Ratchet left the room to give them a moment.
"Yes, Debbie?"
"I just wanted to say sorry for offending you earlier. I know that you're fully capable of protecting the kids. It's just that," Debbie took a deep breath. "After our parents died, and grandpa followed them afterwards, I've been a little overprotective of the twins. Darren and Annie are the only family I have left and I'm constantly scared that I'm going to lose them as well. It's hard, considering that they're growing up too fast, and with how much of a hassle Annie is-"
"Debbie," Arcee cut her off. "It's fine, I know how you feel. You lose someone the first time and it makes it harder to lose someone else. I lost someone I loved as well and I don't want to go through that again, just like you. I promise-we all promise-to keep your family safe."
"Thanks, Arcee." Debbie smiled.
They shared a friendly smile, fully understanding each other. Jazz looked at the scene from the doorway smiling as well. He couldn't help but think that coming to Terra was a great help for Arcee and he hoped it continued like that.
XXXXXX
Megatron was not happy, and an unhappy Megatron meant certain death for the poor bastard who ruined his already ugly mood. He gave Lugnut this important mission because it shouldn't have been a problem for a mech of his size and power, but here he stood, alone and bruised with nothing to show for his efforts. Being constantly disappointed by his own soldiers was getting old.
"The fact that you returned here after failing your mission to stand before me must speak wonders for your courage, Lugnut-or your lack of sanity." Megatron growled.
Lugnut said nothing, standing at attention before his leader, his eye on the ground.
"You better have a good reason for failing as you have that doesn't involve the Autobots humiliating you." Megatron said, marching up to Lugnut. "You dare return empty handed after assuring me of your victory?"
"No, my liege," Lugnut said and looked behind him. "I dare not."
He stepped aside to allow Blackout to drag a handcuffed Flamewar into the bridge. He pushed her to Megatron's feet, where the warlord looked down at her in amusement.
"Flamewar, it's been a long time." He smirked. Flamewar glared up at him with a sneer.
"Not long enough…Lord Megatron."