Transformers Galaxy Force: Thunder Storm

Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers

Chapter 167

Naomi shook her head softly as she sat down on the park bench, handing her companion the extra ice cream cone. "You need to relax, Bud," she insisted. "Worrying isn't going to help."

Bud accepted the ice cream, but shook his head in frustration, "I'm beyond worried, Leena-chan. I feel infuriated, depressed, hopeless, and enraged all at the same time."

Four adjectives? That has to be a personal record, Naomi thought to herself. "I understand how you feel..."

"How?" Bud interrupted. "How could you understand? Have you ever met a family member for the first time and been betrayed by that same person in under two weeks? Have you ever been forced to sit back and watch as your older brother gets sent to the slammer for a crime he didn't commit? Have you ever experienced going to other worlds and helping them all unite under one banner, only to see everything that you and your friends worked, sacrificed, and even died for get torn apart because of a group of selfish bastards?" Bud was almost yelling by the end of his rant, and Naomi even felt a little afraid at his sudden outburst. Bud sighed and tried to calm down, "I'm sorry, Leena-chan, but how can anyone ever understand how I feel right now? I feel so... alone... abandoned..."

Finally understanding his frustration, Naomi pulled him into her arms, careful to not get ice cream on either of them. "You're not alone, Bud," she whispered. "You're right. I don't understand. I probably never will. What's happening right now is making everyone nervous. The entire galaxy seems to be on the edge of all out war. But you're not alone. I'm here for you. I'll always be here for you. Do you remember the story The Steadfast Tin Soldier?"

"Isn't that a tragedy?" Bud asked.

"I think the original is," Naomi admitted. "Some other retellings have different endings, but one thing remains the same: Never give up hope. 'It is better to die for love than live without knowing it.'"

Bud turned his head to look directly at her. "What's that quote from?"

Giggling, Naomi answered, "I don't know. My mom never told me." She leaned in and kissed him gently. It was supposed to last a long time, as the nearly empty park would make an excellent make out spot. Unfortunately, the sound of angry voices grabbed their attention and they broke apart to search for the disturbance.

"That's an outright lie!"

"Now, now, young man. You may think your friend is noble, but look at the facts. Surely you see..."

"All I see is a slut who wants fame and a dumb blond looking for an excuse to justify a new car purchase."

"Says the girl who can't see straight even with her glasses."

"I'd rather be blind than a wannabe whore!"

Not far from where Naomi and Bud had been sitting, Bill, Tyson, and Amy were arguing with Vanessa and Ella Dowilch. Surprisingly, Tyson was being held back by his two friends. Normally, the self-proclaimed rap artist didn't get violently angry.

"Coby never even so much as looked at you with any amount of desire his whole life! If anything, you were the one trying to get into his pants, not the other way around!" Tyson roared at Vanessa before turning toward Ella. "You print that and it's slander!"

The blond reporter snorted, "It is not. I resent that. Slander is spoken. In print, it's liable."

"It's still a wretched lie!" Amy growled.

"And the apparent fact that he didn't force himself on his so-called wife isn't a lie?" Dowilch retorted, a sickening smile on her face.

Bud snapped. He didn't even know he was moving. He didn't even hear Naomi's shout of, "Don't!" before it was too late. The boy who rarely got angry in his life, who could end up lost and be happy about it, who could actually sit down and teach Flame Convoy something about being a leader without being afraid, put weeks of frustration and anguish into a single fist delivered right to Ella Dowilch's nose.

The sound of breaking bone and cartilage, shocked the other four into silence as the reporter landed on her back three feet away. Fortunately for her, the extra hight afforded to her by her four-inch heals meant that while Bud had plenty of power, he had little leverage. A broken nose and a bruised pride where the only things she'd have to worry about. But first she had to deal with Bud, who was standing lividly above her.

"Go back to your hell-hole, you Destron bitch," he whispered, his tone making Naomi's blood freeze momentarily. "Stay away from my family."

Ella stood, holding her bleeding face, "I'll sue you for this. 'Rapist's Brother Attacks Reporter' sounds like a good title, hmm? Or how about 'Aggravated Assault: Does Crime Run in the Hanson/Simmons Family?'"

"Try it. I dare you," Bud glowered, folding his arms. "How about 'Ex-Reporter Gets Life for Multiple Harassment Charges'?"

For a brief moment, Ella was actually scared of the 14-year-old staring her down. Recovering quickly, she simply turned on her heals and walked away, answering, "We'll see." She wasn't about to let someone whom she saw as a spoiled brat beat her at her own game.

Vanessa fumed, "Why don't you run home, you little brat? You're not old enough to understand anything about the adult world of relationships."

Without hesitation, Naomi turned and smeared her entire ice cream cone all over Vanessa's exposed cleavage. As the older girl cried out in shock and humiliation, Naomi glared at her and said, "'Pride comes before fall'. Sure, Bud can be a brat some times, so can I in fact. We'll grow out of it. But you will never ever stop being a slut. You are not the center of the universe, nor will you ever be." She turned towards the others. "Lets go," she said.

They did so, leaving behind a spluttering Vanessa. Tyson got a far off look in his eye and said, "I want to fix that image in my mind forever. Vanessa: the World's Most Disgusting Ice Cream Sundae. That, Naomi, was pure genius!"

Amy looked at him accusingly, "Didn't you date her?" Bill, Bud, and Naomi turned towards him, interested in his answer.

"Only once," Tyson replied. "After that, I swore I would never date her again, even if she was standing naked in front of me and threatening me with an AK-47."