Ok, Just a warning for you guys: This chapter is suuppeerr long, and I was seriously considering spliting it into two parts like chapter 3...But, that didn't happen

Also, just to clear stuff up, The AllSpark shard won't be mentioned for awhile after this either, but I promise stuff will happen soon! If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me them at any time :) Enjoy!

Of The Heart And Spark

Part 1

Chapter 5

At first, when she had felt the cold metal against her side, there was an all-encompassing fear. She felt herself panicking and thrashing, screams bubbling in her throat as the man held fast to her.

Then Sol had arrived, his black and scarlet frame being all she needed. Fear turned to calm, and then anger. The struggling began, soon followed by the joyful reaction of one of her limbs being freed. That's when it actually happened, her skin splitting and the fierce, fiery pain had soon followed. Her blood could be felt slick on her fingers as it soaked her jacket. Her anger turned to an all out need for freedom; to be safely back with her Guardian. Some of the pressure lifted from her assailant's grip for a split second as he too seemed to notice the flashy Mustang. She suddenly was allowed to break away, throwing herself as far away as possible.

Before she could fall into her pain, he was there, upon the horrible man with a loud, roaring engine and squealing wheels. It was fuzzy after that, but she knew that she was soon in Sol's cabin, her hand firmly pressed on her side.

There was a dull knowing that Sol had repeatedly asked of her condition and she had grown irritated, snapping at him unintentionally. He was only there in concern. It wasn't his fault. However, she never had gotten the chance to apologize, for she was only able to lay her pulsing head on the steering wheel before her and slowly slip in and out of consciousness.

They had gotten to the base sometime after that, with her body forced to move once again. She felt lightheaded and slightly nauseated as she fell from the seats. The bright lights had hit her eyes and she squinted at them, the pain causing only a moan to leave her. Then the light was blocked, moved aside by a large, blue-eyed, metallic face.

More voices.

Shifting.

Another metallic face.

The medics had come and that was when she'd blacked out completely, unable to take any more. A confusing heaviness blanketed her to the point where she was almost numb.

Now it just felt like a pained stasis, her limbs seeming full of lead and lacking the ability to move. She wasn't able to enter that deep rest she sought so much for, but she was able to drift on the edge. The pain, it was so...so clear. But she couldn't groan, or scream, or even mutter a complaint. It was just there. And the crushing blackness wouldn't let her wake up so she could fight it.

She felt her body propped up on a stiff sort of cushion and a something scratchy laid over her. The air was cold and unforgiving, making the silent darkness even more frightening. The smells were so unfamiliar, yet she could almost place it. It was like soap and popsicle sticks, followed closely by sanitizer or a strong cleaner. It was too quiet, even her own breathing masked in quiet peace. There must be something to focus on; something to draw away her attentions from the memories; the pain. It was all so frustrating, this inability to move. A burning bubble was sitting in her throat, just waiting to release the scream inside. There was no time to tell, letting her know how long she had been here. But she could feel the stiffness in her spine; the pulsing sting of her side.

Would she even wake? That very thought crossed her mind and she wanted to cry, finding it absolutely infuriating that she couldn't even carry out such a simple task. Why? Why was she here? Was she dead? Where was she in the first place? Where was Sol? If this was death, then it put deep fear in her heart. An icy chill ran through her and she wanted to just curl into a ball. But, of course, she wasn't able to do that either.

Move. She needed to move. She would slowly go insane with the stillness. The blade...the blade was so sharp, the pain so deep...

What had the man wanted again? she wondered in a slurred, slowed way. My money? My body? Or was it something else? The man's breath down her neck was hot and wet, his words hurried before anyone could notice. 'Don't try anything', he'd said. 'You're going to listen to me, and do everything I say...' it was so recent, so distinct in her mind. Sadly, it was the most solid thing in her anxious thoughts at the moment. And even though she felt repulsed and sickened with the memory, she clung to it, just for some point of sanity that reminded her she was alive and she was lost. Was this the end of her life? What a pitiful ending. She hadn't even done all that much good in her life. Sure, she had given some and taken some, but who hadn't? Maybe the balance was so close that she'd been rejected by both Heaven and Hell. This...darkness must be an in-between. But when did eternity smell and feel like a doctor's office?

This just seemed like her own personal feel of what the brutality of life felt like. When her father had laid in the bed, slowly dying... she couldn't help it when her very religion and belief fell threatened. How could she believe? Her beloved father, suffering for something he didn't deserve. If there was a choice made whether it would be her or her father suffering, she wouldn't have hesitated. But that wasn't possible. And he was gone. And he would never come back. Never walking her down the aisle, or threatening her boyfriends, or seeing her proud letter of acceptance into her dream college, or growing old to see his grandkids, or...

The silence! It was so horrid, so mind-boggling and frightening that she began to wonder if she would slowly lose her mind. It made sense why she was here. But what didn't was where she actually was. There was a dull pain in her chest at the thought that she would be separated so soon from her amazing new turn in life. The Autobots, and all their amazing glory were waiting, generously watching over her and yet all it took for her to let them fail was simple stabbing. She wanted to know so much more, to gain their trust like Optimus had suddenly put in her. She wanted to meet a fembot, to spend more time with Bee, to understand why and when and who. It was enough to get a buzzing feeling to settled over her. She had a purpose here, she was sure. Everything happened for a reason. A painful wave washed over once again and she flinched.

Flinched.

Meaning moved. A slow, difficult knowing that she could move even slightly had hope flaring inside her. The darkness was not so crushing anymore, there was even a small tingling in her toes and fingertips. The black suddenly became grey, then smokey, then a muted pink. She wasn't dead. Good. One step at a time.

Her fingers slowly clenched and a sore, parched feeling registered from her throat. She swallowed dryly. That only got another stab of pain. Her toes curled and there was yet another pulse from her side. She wanted to open her eyes so badly, to just see. A break abruptly came in her eyes and she shut it off, surprised at the brightness. It was so different from the dark, and yet she couldn't understand the need for that light. Once again, she broke them open, ignoring her pounding head and letting her lids open fully. Everything was just white; just fuzzy and milky and white.

But, as her tired lids blinked and blinked, the white faded into different colors and shapes. The light turned to a more comfortable tone and she blinked one more time. It took a moment before she could think of the surroundings. It was some sort of hospital room, just like she'd thought. But it was also different, more...enclosed.

The walls shown a beige color with no homey decorations to soften the blank surfaces. White cabinets were standing on the wall to her left, grey handles just begging to be opened on their faces. A long countertop sat beneath them, with different piles of bloody rags and viles of sickly yellow fluid next to a set of syringes. That was basically all that was there, the only other furnishing being a uncomfortable-looking waiting room chair at the foot of her bed. Sudden sound beside her had her looking to the source, seeing a tall metal door sliding aside to let a woman dressed in white through.

Glasses sat on her nose, with long brunette hair held back in a ponytail and light eyeshadow on her eyelids. There was a clipboard in her hand, to which she had looked at before she glanced up. She wore a long white coat over her shoulders with a light blue shirt and skirt beneath. "Miss Lennox, you're awake." she noted placidly. Fera blinked at the woman, not responding. "I didn't think the sedatives would wear off so soon. How do you feel?" she set the clipboard on the counter and proceeded to throw away the rags in a nearby trashcan, moving to roll a short doctor's stool towards her.

"Absolutely fine." Fera answered in bitter humor.

The woman gave a grin. "Well that's good. My name is Doctor Shelby by the way. I was the one that brought you here and dressed your wounds." she informed, crossing her legs and setting her hands on her knee. "How long have I been out?" Fera asked, attempting to move her arm. She had limited motion, only allowing her to slide it atop her stomach. "Only about 3 hours." Doctor Shelby said, lifting a wrist to check her watch. 3 hours?! Fera thought in shock. As if reading her mind, the doctor went on.

"We've contacted your mother and she thinks you are spending the next few days at my daughter's house as a new friend. If when the subject comes up, her name is Wendy and she doesn't go to your school."

Fera was speechless, unsure what to say. A fellow adult -a doctor no doubt- lying to another to try to keep a secret. "I'm sworn under federal secrecy about all of this. So if I had told your mother the truth, I would be put away for a long, long time. Don't think I enjoyed doing what I did." she leaned over Fera and pulled back the covers, carefully exposing Fera's injury. Fera looked down to find that her entire upper half had been wrapped in gauze, her injury already bleeding through. "Well, I guess we can change them." Doctor Shelby stated, letting the blanket fall over Fera's legs. Fera watched the doctor wheel away towards the counter where she opened a drawer and pulled out a fresh roll and some small scissors.

Looking back, the doctor stood. "Do you want some painkillers? Or some sedatives?" she offered. Fera immediately shook her head, dreading the darkness' presence. Not again.

The woman sat back on the stool, moving back towards Fera. She reached up and took Fera's shoulder in her hand, helping her to sit up. Fera winced with the movement, taking in a sharp breath as her side seized. Doctor Shelby stopped when she noticed the pained gasp of air, giving Fera time to recover. "I'm fine." she murmured, moving slower in attempt to avoid the affliction. The doctor said nothing, just allowed Fera to fully sit up and hang her legs over the side of the bed. She eventually moved to press the cold metal scissors against Fera's back, slipping them between the dirtied bandages to cut them off.

Silently, Fera sat with her back to the doctor, feeling the chilly air against her skin as one by one the strips fell away. It didn't take long until they were all removed, her wound now fully set to air. Fera glanced down at her side, her stomach knotting up at the sight of the slit. It was such a small wound; all being just a crevice in the skin. However, she knew better than that. It could easily have punctured her lung or another important organ.

Doctor Shelby quickly and silently went to work redressing the area and Fera became thankful for the sudden quiet. It was funny, the contentment she found in the lack of noise. Just earlier, she had nearly gone insane from it.

Her abdomen was now fully covered, nothing left exposed. Fera noted the relief from the dressing, feeling the comfort of the fabric and the soothing sense of the medication that had been lathered over the wound. It stung a little at first, but it soon was sending warm brushes throughout the pain, dulling it. "You can lie down now." Doctor Shelby said, shifting across the floor to remove her gloves and the ruined gauze. "Is it ok if I don't? I kind of like the feeling of being able to move again." Fera asked, looking over her shoulder. The woman turned towards Fera, rubbing sanitizer on her hands and taking a pause.

"Alright. However, if you feel anything, I suggest you lay down or call me in if it doesn't get better." she instructed. Fera nodded and returned her face back to the wall. She could hear the doctor as she left, and how it allowed the silence to return. It had been easy to deal with when company had been there, but what about now?

"Don't hate me. Please. I couldn't deal with the pain again." Rethalia whispered, clenching his hand with as much strength as she could muster. Shocked, Optimus looked down at her from his spot sitting on the edge of the observations table.

"Hate you? Rethalia, no matter what you do, I couldn't force myself to hate you. Ever." he assured her. She seemed to visibly relax, her shoulderbolts sagging. She had just come out of recharge, and had refused to return to it until she had spoken with Optimus first. It had been a quiet first few sparkbeats before either of them had spoken, just sitting in silence as they enjoyed each other's company. "But you feel something. You cannot hide it from me." she went on, barely audible.

Optimus let the vents on his chassis give a long, slow release of air before he spoke. The last time they had been together, it had been before Optimus' departure from Cybertron over 300 earth years ago. It had been only 17 of these years when they had landed on this planet. Utter pain and sadness had gripped Optimus' spark at being separated from his other half, but she was needed on Cybertron, and nothing was going to keep her from her loyalty. Even her sparkmate. As a Prime, it was her duty. But Optimus had still found himself sometimes, standing under the stars and holding his hand close to his spark, reveling in her memory. No one knew of his suffering and slowly declining status.

"Only disbelief Rethalia." he slowly rubbed his thumblink over the back of her hand, never taking his optics off hers. When Ratchet had left the two alone, he had curtly dismissed Solas, who had somehow followed them into the room. They then exited, leaving Optimus in the grasp of his weakened fembot sparkmate. The news given to them needed the time of the silence to sink in properly, mostly for Optimus, who had no prior knowledge of his sparkmate's condition.

A sparkling. Their sparkling.

It was just one thing that amazed Optimus of his sparkmate. One of the many. Now he had never felt more love for the fembot Prime, and never wanted to just stay by her side as he did now. He wished to sheild her from the worlds and alleviate her agony for her lost comrades. He wanted nothing more than to have his family unit safe in his arms. Optimus tried wrapping his processor around everything, finding just one thing after the other to shock and amaze him. Rethalia had mentioned the word "she" earlier, meaning that their young one was a fembot.

One more thing.

Rethalia forced herself up into a sitting position and Optimus raised a hand to urge her to lie back down. She ignored the gesture however and lifted her free terminal joints to tenderly grab his chin and bring them closer together. His vents whirred and hers hummed, their sparks beating in unmistakable rhythm. Their sore, anxious halves called for each other, buzzing with intensity. But they held back, only allowing their lip plating contact as they exercised vorns of perfected restraint. He could feel her pain; everything and anything she'd felt while they were apart: Agony, regret, grief, shock, sparkbreak, and utter joy. Everything. It was so sad yet so frighteningly beautiful.

Too soon, Rethalia pulled away and let their faceplates hover close together. The exhaust pipes on Optimus' back blew a hot cloud of air and the fog faded to nothing. Her optics were such a bright blue, so light that they mirrored the entrancing sky of Earth's upper view. Her black and pink helmet was slim against her cranial unit, showing the unique curves and dips of her faceplates. Suddenly, her lip plates moved into a small, wondrous grin. "Do you want to see her?" she asked with a purr. Optimus began to say something, but he stopped himself, nodding instead. Rethalia released his hand for the first time, laying back against the berth once more. Her slender terminal links slipped under the remaining of her functional abdominal slips and she lifted them open, exposing the inside circuitry and a few of her internal piping.

Optimus scanned the area carefully, noting the position of her tank, shifted up and lengthened in an arched shape to make room for the holding capsule. There was a long cord that disappeared beneath her chassis and connected to the capsule, providing the little one inside the nourishment it needed. The holding capsule itself was a series of overlapping slips of metal curving up and around from Rethalia's spinal support, towards her abdominal wall, and then back again. There was a series of protective pieces around the capsule that served as shock absorbers and extra protection against the almost indestructible hold.

Uncertain at first, Optimus started to reach towards the capsule, but hesitated, only continuing when Rethalia gave him a reassuring nod. He lightly touched the outer layer of the capsule, jerking back when a sharp nip zapped the tip of his links. His optic rideges knitted and he paused before touching the surface once more. A blue light flashed once and then the flat sheets split, retracting into one another to reveal the one beneath. The supports shifted to the side, allowing the capsule to fully open. Once it did, Optimus sat up in a shocked stature, stunned into silence.

There she was. His sparkling. Something Rethalia and he had created. Together.

The sparkling inside was definitely smaller than a mech sparkling, giving its class away the moment one saw her. She had a small, miniature shell already fitted on her, the colors being painted a dark midnight blue. she laid curled into a tight ball, her tiny chassis open to receive the sparkcable that connected her to her fembot creator. The connection suddenly broke and the small fembot's optics flickered on as her chassis closed. Her clenched terminal joints opened and she turned her small cranial unit to the side almost groggily. The Prime could only circulate through his vents, his optics glued to the sparkling. She was so...perfect.

He lifted a large hand, finding that the sparkling was barely bigger than his palm. She glanced up at his faceplates, her own optics widening. She chirped loudly and jumped up, grabbing his hand and pulling it close to snuggle greedily to her. Her small vocal processor thrummed against his links and she squeezed tightly to her mech creator. Optimus froze at this sudden grasp, so unsure of what to do. Rethalia chuckled at the sight, coming to shift on her side. She propped her cranial unit on her hand and watched them with a grin.

"Rethalia, this...is our sparkling?" Optimus asked, astonished. That caused another small laugh to come from the fembot, and their small sparkling buzzed happily with the sound. Vivid-blue optics of the sparkling turned to look up to him, innocence and joy radiating from their pools. The moment she'd seen him, she'd known he was one of her creators.

"Yes, she is. And you can pick her up you know, I'm sure you won't break her." Rethalia teased.

At his sparkmate's comment, Optimus awkwardly drew in the sparkling on his arm closer, his anxious optics following her every move as if she were a neural-fragmenting bomb. What was he to do? He didn't want to accidentally hurt her. She was so fragile...

As if sensing his thoughts, the sparkling hummed and closed the distance between them, scrambling to his chassis and placing her audio receptor against it. Was she listening to the beats of his spark? He paused once more, just allowing the small fembot to adjust herself. She lifted a small hand, placing her terminal links on his chassis and directly over his spark. It jumped at the touch, his happiness soaring. No longer did he feel the disbelief or the uncertainty. It was only pure exhilaration. His lip plates moved into a large grin and he let himself envelope his sparkling in his large hands. It had been a very, very long time since he had felt this way.

He could feel her softly vibrate against him, her vents sending soft waves of warm air over his plating. Rethalia sighed and Optimus looked over at her. "I never thought I would see this." she admitted in a whimsical voice. She was looking at his hands, but then she glanced up at his optics. Their gazes met and he felt an overwhelming sense of love and pride over their link. "All this time holding her, I always tried finding some way of getting the information to you. About us. But it would always fail, and I was unable to tell you sooner." her vocal processor dipped into a saddened tone. Optimus was unable to give her a reassuring touch, his sparkling already cuddled in his grasp. But he did send the feeling through their link, getting a small smile from the sparkmate.

"She's already over halfway through the holding stage and I was thinking about asking Ratchet to create her first armor casing." she stated. Optimus quietly agreed, finding he saw none other better suited for the task. The medic deserved to do something of a lighter view than what he'd often been put through. The sparkling in Optimus' grasp fidgeted and he opened up his terminal joints, watching in curiosity as the small fembot looked up at him and gave a clear, unmistakable smile. He smiled back, pride and wonder overtaking his CPU. "It really is incredible. And I cannot come to believe that something so innocent could be created in a world of war." he commented, holding her closer. Rethalia said nothing, causing him to glance over at her.

She was now back on her spinal support, her optics aimed for the ceiling. "She doesn't even have a name yet. Silverlight suggested I wait for you so we could decide together..." the fembot Prime drew up her hands and placed them over her optics, masking her expression. The horrible sense of guilt and sadness could be sensed over their link and wafting from her frame.

Their sparkling popped up from her place in Optimus' hands and she peeked over at her fembot creator, seeming to feel the emotion. "But now everyone is gone...gone. Each one, killed right before me. Even Sunraider wasn't spared." she murmured the last part, unable to keep the shaking terror out of her vocal processor. Sunraider had been the trusted medic and second-in-command of Rethalia's small band of assigned Autobots. She had been a kind fembot, known for her uplifting and joyful attitude and willingness to give advice to any who was needing it. Optimus felt saddened as well, having known each of them personally. But it would be a bigger blow to Rethalia, who had been the one meant to lead them from harm and make sure they would live to see the next cycle.

Optimus shifted the sparkling to one hand and leaned down to pick up Rethalia's upper half, wordlessly bringing her as close as he could while she shuddered and trembled. She was left to have her moment of sorrow beside Optimus as their sparkling chipped sadly. Optimus could guess that she felt everything her fembot creator was, and he could sense her own mourning on top of that. There was no doubt that the young had known its creators' comrades.

Rethalia blew shuddering waves of air from her vents, unable to even circulate properly because of her horror. Her vocal processor whined and whimpered, all bravery and masked emotion expected in a Prime cast aside as she expelled her dark regret. Optimus understood all too well how what it was she was feeling. There had been many times when he himself had felt this way. But only once had he gone through something of this magnitude. He just hoped that Rethalia would be the strong being he knew and pull free of this shadow.

And he also knew this wasn't the first time she had suffered. There was no single incident like this that happened to a commanding officer. But unlike before, he was now here to help her through it. And no longer would he have to suffer alone as well. Now they had one another, and their sparkling, who was sitting patiently in Optimus' grasp. Rethalia shook again, her despondence clearly taking its toll. Fluid beaded down her faceplates, landing on Optimus' chassis and leg. Together they sat, longer and longer to ride out her sobs.

It went on like this, Optimus holding her as she cried, and their sparkling having amazing patience as she watched her creators quietly. Rethalia's silent sadness eventually faded and her systems forced her into a state of recharge.

Slowly, Optimus set her back down on the table before he made the hesitant move to place the sparkling back in her holder. But the sparkling wouldn't have it, wriggling violently out of his grasp. She struggled free and scaled and up his arm, climbing his chassis and slipping over to his shoulderbolt. Before he could react to any of this, his body trembled and his holding chamber program activated, the underused systems exploding from out of his upper spinal support, between his two exhaust pipes. His sparkling crawled into a ball and the plating shifted up and over the small one like a protective blanket. Optimus' frame gave one more jerk and then it stopped, leaving him in shock. He was filled with an unfamiliar warmth that both bewildered and pacified him.

The sparkling could be felt on his support, slipping into recharge as she was meant to do when held. Optimus turned his cranial unit to look over his shoulderbolt, attempting to get a glimpse at the chamber. He saw only a small part, for most of it was already deeply lodged into spinal support and attached to the neural relay. In this position, he could hear and feel everything the sparkling was experiencing. He felt the love and excitement she felt, along with the fading hyper that lingered in her small shell. But there was also sadness that could be felt because Tia was unhappy. He grinned at the name. Tia. Rethalia. And she knew his name too, but her vocal processors were not fully developed yet. Instead, she called him Mime.

The warmth never left him, and he became saddened at the thought that it would come time to return his sparkling to her Tia. But, he would love the nanoclicks that he did have her, relishing every beat of both their sparks. He reached over and grasped Rethalia's hand, calming her pulsing spark as she surely was going through that day's events in her files. The touch tranquilized her and Optimus glanced down at her peaceful expression, taking the moment to just listen to her whirring vents. It was so wonderful just having her here, with him, alive and well.

As she sat in recharge, he began to go over names that they could think of for their sparkling. A kind, peaceful moment he grimly reminded himself that would never last.

It wouldn't be until about an hour and a half later that Fera would have th ability to actually stand without swaying and take a few steps. The concrete was cold to the sole of her feet and it sent dull chills up her spine. Scanning the room, she found her clothes folded on the seat of the chair at the foot of her bed. She quickly took off the thin scrub bottoms she was wearing and slipped on her jeans, careful not to move too much or she would aggravate her wounds again. Her shirt was slung over the back of the chair, the fabric now washed and thoughtfully stitched. She pulled that over her head, but left the jacket, knowing it was probably unsalvageable. Her feet carried her to the door where she painfully pulled on her tennis shoes and she stepped close to the door, watching it slide aside.

The now familiar concrete wall before her made her roll her eyes. At least paint around here, she thought derisively. It's really just depressing. She let her hand fall off the doorframe as she moved down the right side of the pathway. On both sides of her body there were doors that most likely led to other medical dorms. The cold, soap-smelling air around her helped to clear her thoughts enough that she could read the signs above the doors. Every so often, she saw the last names of soldiers and their ranks above their rooms. Privates, sergeants, and even a commander were all on the list of injured. She pushed through two double doors that blocked off the other half of the hallway, seeing the entryway to the lobby just ahead. Before that was an attendant's desk with a woman watching a computer screen avidly. Back the way she'd come, Fera had seen the leisured forms of nurses and doctors going about their business. Thankfully however, hadn't been one of them.

Fera started down the corridor, her sights set ahead. She walked out into the larger space, feeling a dizzying wave for a moment at the sudden change. Just a short walk, she had told herself. Anything was better than that boring, thought-enforcing room. She noticed the scaffolds above were empty and even the ones closer to the ground were formless. Soldiers roaming the base walked past her, not even noticing her presence.

She stopped one of them by grabbing his arm. "Excuse me, could you tell me where everyone is?" she asked as politely as she could. The man nodded, bobbing brown eyes and shortly cropped blonde hair. "They're on a mission at the moment." he paused, "I guess it's alright to tell you now since you've been informed on everything." he explained, turning towards her. Apparently she was better known than she'd thought.

"About 11 years ago, a kid named Sam Witwicky was given the last sliver of the destroyed AllSpark. The enemy had no knowing that it existed until recently, and to not give details, it was stolen. Now some men have been deployed to figure out who has it." he finished and Fera thanked him, allowing him to walk on. When did the AllSpark become a sliver? And why did that Witwicky kid have it? She turned back towards the main space and looked around, wondering what to do. The AllSpark was destroyed? How? she wondered this as she walked over to a small bench beside a pile of storage boxes. Sighing, she laid her head back against the boxes and settled her shoulders to lean part of her wight against them. Her side was beginning to act up again and only if she sat perfectly still would it feel almost normal.

The heavy footsteps of an Autobot had her opening her eyes again, looking up to see Bumblebee striding into the room. He seemed bored, looking around for something to do. "Hey Bee." she called, wincing from the snap of pain. His head snapped in her direction and all the former boredom seemed to fade. He walked over to her and got low, setting a hand on the ground to steady himself. "Hey...fair...ah." he said over the radio. Fera grinned, realizing how hard it must be to sound out her name over random broadcasting signals. "You hear what happened?" she wondered, setting her back against the boxes. Bee shook his head, shifting himself to sit Indian-style.

"I got stabbed today." she chuckled in sick humor, seeing Bee's concerned expression. "You...did?" he sounded worried. Well, as worried as he could sound. Fera lifted a hand and waved it off, flinching at the sudden movement. "I'm fine now. Doctor Shelby fixed me up. You don't have to worry." she assured him.

Bee seemed skeptical at first, but then took her word for it, not egging it on. "Sam...was in trouble." he put in, changing the subject. Fera nodded, placing a hand on her leg. "I know, someone told me. Why didn't you go?" she asked, informed from Epps when she had first arrived that the bot once had a close relationship with the teen. In fact, Sam had been around her age when he met Bumblebee. Bee looked to the ground almost sadly. "Only soldiers...were allowed...to find out what happened." he informed her. Fera grunted, catching the small Autobot's attention. She painfully swayed forward, hiding a grimace and patted his knee and she sat back up. "That's not really fair. But don't worry, I'm sure you'll be able to see him again sometime. And maybe I'll get to see him too." she tried cheering the small cyberling up, but she knew it was all just for show. She really couldn't be sure when or even if Bee would see his old friend again.

The Autobot just nodded in agreement, his words cut off by the voice of a female. "Miss Lennox, I'm not certain your doctor approves of your moving about." it was Doctor Shelby with her hands on her hips and hr feet planted at the mouth of the human-only access hall. Bee gave a long, low buzz and he shrunk into his shoulders, as if he was the one in trouble. Fera ducked her head as well, wincing at the sarcasm in the doctor's voice. "Bye." Bee said briskly, standing to quickly scramble from the situation. Fera slipped off the bench and started towards the waiting woman.

"You're a sneaky one." Doctor Shelby commented, walking beside Fera as they headed back towards the medical hall again. It was a short walk, being only a few doors away before they were there. She could tell this was a smaller sized base, seeing as it was one of the lesser important of the others. Maybe the clusters on Bee's holographic map were other groups of Autobots. This thought caused a small, but strong surge of excitment through Fera. Of course there were more, and she couldn't wait to meet them.

They came to Fera's room and the doctor stood nearby as Fera moved atop the mattress. Her arms crossed over her chest and she wore the same look on her face that Fera's mother held all too often. "Now listen, I know that it is a little boring in here sometimes when you have nothing to do. However, your wound needs to heal, and you walking around with 30-foot giants isn't going to help." she said. Fera nodded and looked into the brown eyes of the doctor. She knew not to argue, especially with a medic with the licence to stick her with drugs.

"Yeah, I understand. I just don't like being cooped up, and I'd like the freedom to be able to move around sometimes." Fera explained. Doctor Shelby nodded, moving one hand to cup her chin.

"That's understandable." she agreed.

For a moment, she fell quiet. "How about this: I will come her once every two hours or so to check on you. If you feel like taking a walk, then I'll go on a walk with you. However, if you do not wish to, I will leave you to yourself." she suggested this and waited for Fera's response. Which, with her anxious legs, couldn't help but agree to. The doctor seemed pleased with herself for making her patient happy and she soon left after their conversation, going off to tend to her other patients after giving Fera some medication.

Fera let herself relax in the bed, relenting to the uncomfortable sheets, and she let the painkillers take effect. Soon, her eyes were too heavy to lift anymore., and she let them close. But before she went under, she swore she could hear the distant sound of a revving engine...

Now was a better time than any. To find something to do while in a stretch of peace with your enemies was particularly difficult. Arachnid was definitely in planning with something, but the methodical Decepticon fembot was widely known for her ability to patiently sit in wait for thousands of cycles. She would be planning something, yes. But with the shorter times Earth possessed in its own cycles, her meticulous ways would have to change. That didn't mean she wouldn't stop her insanely wicked tactics.

Sol thought of all the times he had seen the strange fembot on the field of battle, seeing her stab her enemies deeply to where their actual sparks are pushed out of the backs of their bodies. There was also the fact that she was the only one who was a fembot in the gladiator spectacles before the war. She was second only to Megatron himself in those battles. And to think now she was their leader... It made Sol's frame give a shudder as he drove through the lit hall of the exit tunnel. He even had the wondering thought if she had anything to do with the devastating Dark Hunt, where each fembot on Cybertron was hunted down in an attempt to either have them pledge allegiances with Megatron or die as a consequence. Some actually did join, but others saw that they hadn't needed to be forced to join anyone. And then there were those few who had already aligned themselves with the Autobot cause... There were only less then 13 fembots known as of now. Sunraider, Silverlight, and Windripper had brought down the original total of 16.

Solas focused instead on the road ahead, trying to push the thoughts to the back of his cranial unit. He could just delete the horrible memory, but that was extremely dangerous. Borderline idiotic.

When deleting memories or experiences, that event or thing could be linked to a similar occurence. Say if a Cybertronian lost both its creators. If it were to delete the memory of their creators' lament, they could delete their entire life cycle knowing their creators. Deleting the knowing of their deaths meant deleting their memories and anything associated with them. That couldn't happen. There could only be healing. Only time could heal.

His processor drifted to other things and it soon came to Fera. How much would it take to actually kill a human? They certainly couldn't just fall from what she had, could they? The thought made him nervous. But he continued around the city, finding himself actually driving between the tall buildings and highways. The large structure that had been built in honor of the freeing of a collection of human slaves called the "Arch" held itself proudly over the city below. It's shining surface was strangely similar to what would be found on Cybertron, sending a pang of homesickness through Sol. Sol started for the structure, heading northbound. He slowed and then took a right turn across a large, grassy area beside a walking trail.

He stopped, facing the river and just sitting before the structure. Humans looked at him as they walked past, seemingly confused at his alt mode. He pretended not to notice them, just watching the waves of water as they crashed together and lapped the shoreline. Water was a resource basically considered legendary on Cybertron, seeing as it was found so little and far-between. Sol stopped, shifting back through his files. Again, the Stone of Primus had crossed his CPU.

At the moment, the Decepticons didn't know about it. And they didn't know about Fera. Both of those things were factors the Autobots had that the Decepticons didn't. Two more things to help them win the endless war.

There was a brief thought that entered his CPU and he paused, just filing over it again and again. Why was Fera involved in all this? Yes, she was one of billions of humans that could be carrying the Stone. However, now that she was with the Autobots, that was no longer true. And yet Optimus had allowed her to stay at the base, even letting her keep the Stone. But why? There had to be some reason for letting her stay near them, contained in the small area.

By no means was the base tiny however, just of lesser free space than the other, larger locations of operation. It was a good system of available halls that led to a group of underground structures. There were a set of two of these buildings that served as barracks for either humans or Cybertronians. There was also the command center and meetings room in the very center of the hive, as well as officers' quarters and three other separate wings. She was safe there, but for how long?

The last thing Sol had seen of the small, ignorant female was when she had been wheeled off towards the medical bay. It was clear that the closest of all the structures had been purposefully placed not far away from the main entrance because of the injuries human soldiers took. The medbay for Cybertronians was split between the east and south wings, also nearby when required. Rethalia had been settled into a room in the south medbay for safer reasons. It probably left less of a risk of their sparkling being found out as well. Maybe Solas could visit them soon, just to see the miracle they'd created.

As soon as the thought crossed his circuits, he dismissed it. Ratchet had made it very clear that he didn't want any sentient being by that bay until he had everything fixed. That included Solas. He scanned over the memory file and nearly chuckled.

"Ok this is how it's going to go: No one knows of that sparkling. And they won't. Not until Optimus or Rethalia themselves announce it. Understand?" Ratchet had brought Sol out into the hallway, nearly dragging the shocked mech out the doors. Sol nodded, leaning against the wall. "Will they be ok? I mean truly. I don't want to hear that fake stuff you spew to make your patients feel better." Solas demanded, seeing that now that he knew what he did, there was no point in hiding anything.

Ratchet paused, finally crossing his arms over his chassis. "Fine. Yes. They will be." his optics glanced over by the door and then back at Solas. "But, I will have to activate her shutdown program to allow a complete observation. She will regain some strength by the energon transfusions from Optimus, but just letting her recharge won't be enough. Her sparkcable is clipped, so I have to repair that as soon as possible. Other thea that, her amor is replaceable and so are the circuits and internal plating. She was lucky." he finished and waited, maybe expecting more. However, Sol just nodded, allowing the medic to take his leave.

Now, here he sat, thinking over everything and not allowing the deaths of peers to cloud his joy. A sparkling! And a fembot no less. But the true curiosity started up from her being created by two Primes. How would she turn out to be? Was she going to upgrade to a strong, noble being like her mech creator? Or caring and intelligent like her fembot creator? Solas hoped that she would somehow become like both, taking on each personality of her famous creators. That would be an interesting Cybertronian.

But then there was the still ongoing problem of keeping her, Fera, and the Stone of Primus safe. It was a surprising realization to find that all three had some connection to the future of his race. It just made him that more worried over his guarded's condition. No longer wanting to hear of an update, he comlinked Wheeljack.

"What is the human youngling's condition as of now?" he asked, trying to mask his concern. Wheeljack saw right through it, chuckling over the link. "Worried about her? You know its only been 2 days, right?" he teased. Sol snorted over the connection, slight agitation sparking in his frame. "Just answer the question." he went on. Wheeljack chuckled again, but responded anyway, "Last I heard she was wandering around base. Bee talked with her awhile before the "scary woman" came and took her back to her room."

Sol's seriousness broke and he cracked a small laugh. "Well at least she isn't dead. She's stronger than I'd thought she'd be." he noted, falling quiet. Wheeljack didn't immediately respond and Solas grew confused. "'Jack?" he called. The mech's connection snapped stronger and he answered with a distracted "Huh?" Solas could sense the withdrawal through the comlink. "Wheeljack, are you thinking of Rethalia's soldiers?" he wondered. The mech went absolutely silent, and Sol instantly knew he had hit a circuit. He could hear the sadness in Wheeljack's vocal tone as he answered, "Yeah. It really was a blow to the spark." he paused and then continued a moment later, "No one was spared, not even Sunraider. It just frags. It really does." their conversation slowly faded and the quiet drew on.

"Well they are gone in form but not in memory. As long as we have our files, we have our records. Nothing can change that." Sol said, awkwardly comforting. Wheeljack sighed over the connection, "You're right. Thanks for trying Solas." he acknowledged. "And Sol?" Solas didn't say anything, letting the technician finish. "Fera's out again." then the comlink went dead.

The dirt beneath Sol's wheels burst through the air and flung across his paint as he drew his body back and turned towards the main road again. The Arch shrunk behind him as he flew over the grassy field and on the blacktop. Cars honked and swerved, repeatedly getting into his way as he swung around and headed back in the direction of the base. It was located deep within Forest Park, a small area masked to look like a large sandstone bolder while hiding the true entrance. Sol began through the streets and highway 64 before he eventually came to the large vegetated area. The rubber wheels beneath him bounced over the uneven ground and his engine rumbled with the strain. Of course, it was no regular engine like the earth-bound vehicles, so it wouldn't fail. However, the shifting and bouncing was sending his sore parts into a whining fit.

Sol finally came to the bolder and stopped, letting the scanning systems below him filter through his form. He felt the slight tickle as the scanners brushed under his shape and then they stopped, a buzzing noise sounding. The boulder's surface popped out and up, lifting up by the supports and cables that would later fold back into hiding when the entrance closed again. The metallic secondary door parted as well, allowing a clear, dark view into the halls. Sol started forward again, the LED lights on both his sides flickering on as he passed.

He came to the base entrance, taking the time to stop and enter in his form code into his CPU. The conversion shaft clicked into place and he began the transformation, his body finally standing tall on his sole pads. Looking around, he saw Bee sitting with a group of soldiers off to the right of the room. Wheeljack was the only other of his comrades present, his body left to squat before two female humans. Immediately, Sol recognized Fera. He didn't know the other.

His steps carried him forward and the three looked up at him. "Hey, you came fast." Wheeljack noted, standing. Sol huffed, brushing off the action. "I had to make sure you wouldn't crush her you clumsy sparkling." he clapped an arm against Wheeljack's and their terminal links clenched the other's wrists. Wheeljack chuckled, the fins beside his head flashing. They pulled back and Sol looked down, seeing Fera and the unfamiliar female watching them. He got low and placed a fist on the ground, laying his other arm over his knee bolt. "You feeling better already?" he questioned Fera. She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes, their blue color blazing. "I'm not made of glass." she snapped sarcastically. Sol raised a placating hand and then turned his attention to the much less grouchy woman.

"My name is Doctor Shelby. I am the one assigned to be Fera's caretaker." she reported. Sol nodded in greeting, carefully taking note of the medic for future reference. "So can you...walk?" Sol wondered, turning his optics back on Fera. She dropped her arms, raising an optic ridge. "How do you figure I got out here? Yes, I can walk. The wound wasn't deep." she said that with an edge of irritation, as if that fact were obvious. Sol didn't understand the young female's anger yet he had a thought about it. She was completely bored. And nobody had been there to give her company.

Sol ignored the bitter tone in Fera's voice and he moved to Doctor Shelby. "Is she able to return home anytime soon?" he questioned. She shook her head, lifting a finger to push up the two round pieces of glass and wire on her nose. "Definitely not. First, she still needs assistance in redressing the wound and applying medication. Second, her body it too unpredictable at the moment for her to go anywhere. We still don't know if the area will become infected or if she could go into shock."

"That doesn't mean I can't walk around every so often." Fera put in. "I'd roam a lot less though if I had my violin, but I don't see that happening." she looked to Doctor Shelby and the doctor to her. "I didn't know you played." she said curiously. Fera shrugged, a wince crossing her face. "Since I was around 6 I think. I was working on a solo I found when this happened." she lifted her hands and waved them around her. Sol grunted, catching their attentions. "I have no idea what you're both talking about." he stood and Doctor Shelby set a hand on Fera's shoulder. Fera glanced between her and Sol. "Next time I get the chance, I promise I'll play for you." she then gave him a suddenly soft grin and turned to leave with her medic.

"Now can you hold still?! Just for one astrosecond while I reformat your spinal circuits." Ratchet was back with Rethalia and Optimus, seeming to come in barely half a breem after Rethalia had come out of her recharge. Their sparkling was placed back into her holding capsule and then the door had opened, leaving Rethalia to sit on the edge of the observation bench, her legs hanging off the side.

She giggled at Ratchet's scornful tone and he sighed dramatically. Optimus' lip plating came up into a grin as he heard his sparkmate's laugh. She immediately stopped and cleared her vocal processor.

"Sorry. It tickled." she placed her terminal joints on the lip of the bed and her optics glanced up at Optimus, a small smirk still present.

Ratchet set down his tools and closed the panel he had opened, coming around the table to face them both. "Rethalia, I had not completely covered your situation before your recharge earlier." he paused as the fembot sat straighter. Both her and her sparkmate's expressions had fallen quicker than it took to shutter the optic.

"Your sparkcable is clipped, allowing only half of the energy to get to your sparkling. However, this is an easy fix, as well as replacing a few other circuits and internal parts. Your abdominal slips were the most damaged, but can also be fixed. Your spinal support was also chipped, but the holding capsule actually may have saved your life." he pulled the tool cart around the table and set it beside the berth. "If it had not been there, your spinal support surely would have been sliced in half."

There was a flash of anxiety in Rethalia's chassis, but it was quickly soothed by Optimus. She immediately felt better and told herself how lucky she was to be in the presence of her sparkmate. Most wouldn't ever have the chance to understand such beautiful emotion.

The sparkling's movement inside her added to her temporary warmth. The little one was always reassuring her, taking the time to carefully understand its fembot creator's feelings and then carrying out the correct response. She was an extremely smart sparkling.

"I'll have to put you in shutdown until the operation is over. I don't want to stress your sparkling with the separation." he looked to Optimus at this and the leader nodded knowingly. Rethalia vented her air, her tanks growing tight and her CPU filling with nervous ticks.

Her optics found the ground and she gripped the edge of the bed. The sparkling had already been separated a few kalons ago, therefore it would be weakened from the lack of nutrition it was getting. She wouldn't be affected by this, would she?

Rethalia felt the comforting touch of her sparkmate through their link and then a gentle hand on her shoulder. "I promise I will get your sparkling back to you as soon as possible. The operation shouldn't take too long." Rethalia looked up to see the medic's calming expression, his tone sympathetic. "But Optimus?" he glanced over, Rethalia following his lead. "While you're holding the sparkling, you will not be able to stay in here. It would undoubtedly stress the young one." he reported.

Both Optimus and Rethalia straightened, surprise clear on their faceplates. "But won't the sparkling be even more anxious being taken so far away at such a young stage?" Rethalia wondered nervously. Ratchet shook his cranial unit sadly. "I wish Optimus could stay. If something would spike in your spark, he would be useful. But the sparkling would not take too well seeing its fembot creator in deep shutdown." the medic raised a reasoning hand and Rethalia nodded slowly. "I understand." she agreed softly. A silver hand suddenly slipped over her own and she grinned sadly at the touch. He was always there when she needed him most.

"It will only last for a sparkbeat. Our sparkling will be safe." he promised softly. Rethalia moved her free hand, placing it on her damaged abdominal slips. She then reached in and collected her precious sparkling, lifting it up and into her mech creator's arms. The midnight blue offspring of the Primes had awoke, quickly twisting to reach for its fembot creator with tiny terminal links. But Optimus simply shifted her on her back, allowing her to see who had taken her. She calmed in an instant, gazing up at her mech creator. Rethalia and Optimus shared one last nanoclick of contact, Rethalia allowing a small smile to cross her features. She reached up and touched their sparkling's cheekplate, causing the small one to look over once more. She didn't struggle like before, but she did seem anxious.

"The less time we have her out of her capsule, the better." Ratchet put in, breaking the family's moment. Rethalia almost glared at him, but she knew that was not befitting of a Prime. Instead, she merely released a long sigh from her vents and she dropped her arm. Her sparkling was lifted higher until she was out of view. Optimus then cast a last, darting look at her before he turned away. "Don't name her without me." she called as her sparkmate and sparkling left the room. The small offspring already vaulted over Optimus' shoulderbolt, her form tucking close and quickly masked by his holding chamber.

Rethalia had said nothing as she laid back against the operations table and proceeded to settle herself. Optimus still held a line of security for her to to hold on to as she worried about everything but herself.

Ratchet came close and opened the small access on her upper chassis. The small cavity held the connections between her jugular cables and her spark, with the shutdown port located behind. Ratchet flicked his optics to hers and connected the wire in his terminal joint into the port. As he entered in the shutdown code, he gave her a brisk nod. "Let's get this over with." and her optics went black.