Chapter 5: Shields
*Previous day*
Miko and Raf watched the Autobots drive straight back through the ground-bridge, before Ratchet shut it down.
"Cutting it a little close, wouldn't you say?" Ratchet asked with a raised optic brow, at the explosion that almost came back in with them. She turned her head towards the red-bot. "What happened to you?"
Raf could tell the red bot, was Cliffjumper. He frowned "I'm not sure, it's a bit blurry, but I remember someone stabbing me . . ." He looked horror stuck as he remembered. "Megatron, I think, he's back."
It was suddenly very quiet in the room. Arcee broke the silent.
"Ratchet," He pulled out a container with a strange, purple LIQUID substance in it. "This was on Cliffjumper, when Jade and I found him."
Ratchet, took the container. She frowned, examining it. "I'll have to give it a few tests. You, Cliffjumper and Jade should take a decontamination bath," She turned towards them. "Now!"
"Where is Jade?" Miko asked, as she couldn't see the older teenager anywhere.
Cliffjumper opened a compartment on his chest and pulled a sleeping Jade out. "She's alright, but tired."
"Hey, Optimus," Raf called, getting the Autobots' attention as he held up his phone. "I hate to bug, but no bars."
Miko pulled out her phone too. "He right, no bars."
"Security pro-caution," Optimus answered. "The silo walls isolate all radio waves."
"Well I need to get to mum's café, or I'll get ground for a year." Raf gulped, as he thought of no laptop of a year.
"Isn't that the 'Rose Café?" Miko asked.
Raf nodded. "Mum's late husband bought it for her as wedding gift."
"Earth customs," Optimus muttered. "I hadn't thought of it. But your safety still remands as a pro-caution. " He looked over at Bulkhead, "Bulkhead, accompany Miko home."
"Sweet! My host parents will freak!" She grinned at the thought, until Optimus spoke again.
"Maintain convert surveillance, in vehicle mode."
Bulkhead nodded. "Curb side duty, no problem."
"Aww…" Miko pouted for the second time that day.
Optimus turned to Bumblebee. "Bumblebee," They heard Optimus address the yellow 'bot. "You'll look after Rafael."
(Right,) He chirped.
Optimus then turned towards Arcee and Cliffjumper, who just entered the room. "Arcee, Cliffjumper, -take Jade home and keep an eye on her."
Miko turned to Raf, as Cliffjumper and Arcee left with Jade. "So what song, are you singing?"
Raf shifted a little as he didn't like to talk to anyone about his singing, "DJ Got Us Fallin' in Love, by Usher."
Miko raised an eyebrow; she couldn't see Raf sings that. "Ushers' ok." She shrugged.
"It was voted on the Café's webpage by the customs who are booking a table for this night." He flushed and added. "And I'm the only boy who can sing in my family. Not that I mind, the guy's songs ain't bad."
"I don't mind him either but I prefer the band Escape the Fate." Miko shrugged as she and Raf started to walk to the first floor where Bulkhead and Bumblebee were waiting for them. "See you, tomorrow?" She asked.
"Sure," Raf smiled, happy to make a new friend. He sat in Bumblebee's side seat.
Ratchet looked over at Optimus once the others had left to take their charges home.
"The guardian," She muttered. "Do you think she's one of June's children?"
Optimus sighed. "She has her mother's eyes." Ratchet sore she saw a glimpse of saddens in Optimus' eyes, but it didn't stay long. "My turn for patrol," He muttered. He transformed and drove out of the base.
*Current time*
Emerald Fowler had to admit that today was not the best day of her life. She had been yelled at by her boss about the Autobots blowing up a mountain and when she got to the bot's base they had humans with them, then she was flying back to the Pentagon; she got kidnapped by some Decepticon flying in the sky.
And now she was being terribly interrogated by some idiot called Starscream.
"Agent Fowler," Starscream's voice took Fowler away from her thoughts. "Tell me what I want to know and save your family the pain for grieving; tell me the location of the Autobot base."
"Sure, but you'll have to wait a bit." Emerald replied.
"And why is that?" Starscream growled.
"I've forgotten where it is." She answered, smiling.
Starscream turned to one of the other 'cons. "Bring the prod."
Rafael Esquivel paced back and forth, trying not to be scared. First off Optimus and Ratchet left on a recon mission, then Arcee had left to check on Jade and Cliffjumper, and then when Miko had formed a band with him, Bumblebee and Bulkhead, Agent Fowler had turned up and saw Miko and him.
*Flashblack*
"Since, when are you 'bots electric?" Fowler asked them with a raised eyebrow, as she looked down at the speaker and laptop that let off a lot of high pitched screeches. Her eyes followed cable that led under Bulkhead's foot. "Who's your friend, Bulkhead?"
Both Raf and Miko cringed. They knew that they had been caught. They walked out from behind Bulkhead's foot.
"Hi," Miko said sheepishly.
Fowler smacked a hand against her forehead, "Great," She growled. "The Pentagon is going to love this." Fowler started to walk down towards the two young ones. "Sorry, kids, you'll have to come with me now."
Suddenly Bumblebee stepped in between her and the kids. (They stay with us.) He growled with a load of beeps.
Raf was unsure on how he could understand Bumblebee, but he was happy he could.
"I don't speak bleep," Fowler put on her glare.
"He said, 'They stay with us,'" Raf mumbled quietly.
Fowler's head snapped over to look at him. "Well, then," Fowler walked over to where the phone was. "Maybe you can tell the people at the Pentagon, how you can talk to the 'bots, when we get there." She grabbed the phone.
"Don't use that it's-," Bulkhead panicked, he then broke the phone. "Out of ordered," He finished.
Fowler glared at him. "I'll be back, Bigfoot." She growled, before storming off.
*End of Flashback*
A while later after that event, Fowler's helicopter let off a distress signal, Raf managed to track the government's location chip on Fowler, which Bulkhead and Bumblebee went to check out, while leaving Miko in charge.
One problem, Miko snuck off with the 'bots. Leaving Raf by himself.
"What do I do? What do I do?" He asked himself, over and over again, he didn't liking being alone at the base, it sacred him.
He looked over at the computer that controlled the Ground Bridge. The location was still locked in.
The Autobot Ground Bridge opened up.
"Ah, good," Bulkhead breathed a sigh of relieve, "They're here." He soon frowned as Raf jumped out of the Ground-Bridge. "Not good."
"Sweet," Miko chipped. "Raf can hang with Bee, and I can hang with you." She pointed at Bulkhead, who sighed; he somehow knew this girl was going to be a Pit load of more trouble than his ex.
"I'll ask one last time, Fowler." Starscream hissed pointing the prod at her. "Tell me when the Autobot Base is."
"Ok,"
Starscream's optics went wide. "Really?"
"Just joking, do your worst."
Starscream growled and jabbed her with the prod, sending an electric shock through her. However it didn't hurt, it was more like tickle. She flinched.
"As you can see, Energon and human nerve systems don't mix."
"To be honest with you," Emerald looked up at him. "I'm not human." It was then that a ripping sound could be heard, jet black wings shot out from her back. "And by the way," She smirked, as Starscream's jaw dropped. "That tickled."
Starscream snapped out of it. He pressed a button on the prod and jabbed her again. This time it did hurt. She hissed. "I'm sure that hurt, guardian." He gave her an evil look. "High-grade was never was good for guardians."
Raf shivered, his whole body felt like his bones were VIBRATING. That ground bridge was not built for humans, or whatever the hell he was. After all he had wings on his back which he was able to hide whenever he wanted, that and his blood was blue.
"Halt!" He heard someone yell, he looked up to see the Decepticon ship, a whole group of Decepticons had their guns pointed at him.
"Oh, no," He whispered. As they fired, a large blue bubble appeared around him, and the gunfire bounced off.
"Wow," He muttered.
Jade flinched, as the effect of shield she used surround Raf took its toll on her.
Jade didn't know why, but she could sense where Raf was at anytime and anywhere, since the day she first meet him. Ever since then she could tell when he was hurt, where he was. Everyone in Jasper thought that it was some kind of gift.
One time in school someone had shoved Raf into a LOCKER and Jade, who had been on the other side of the school at the time could feel his fear of the darkness, and his lost of hope that no one would come and help him. It was like something was calling Jade over to the locker where Raf was. Once she'd gotten him out, she snapped at the bullies who put him in there.
And right now she had known he was in trouble, that 'cons were pointing their guns at him. So she used her shield to stop them. Her shield she learned how to master years ago. She'd been in her garage when a stack of boxes fell on top of her. The shield formed around her, caused the boxes to bounce off it and hit the floor.
After that Jade started to practise using the shield on other objects, to protect them from stuff she'd chuck at them. However it would hurt her in the process. It wouldn't hurt badly, but it would leave a bruise or two.
And at the moment, she felt she had hit repeatedly by something.
"Raf, we need to bridge us back, "Cliffjumper called through the comlink. "Raf?"
"He won't be there." Jade told him, "He get's spooked easily when in dark places."
"Right, better speed things up then." It was then that Cliffjumper and Arcee speed up. They hoped they'd reach the base before anything too bad happened.