Fire of Youth
Chapter 27
Miko yelped again once the flash faded. When her eyes opened she noticed she was no longer out on the hills. She was in some sort of cave-thing now, but the round shape made her think it wasn't natural. She wasn't great at geography, sure, but she knew what a real cave looked like. This didn't match. A closer look at the walls revealed what looked like stones or bricks or something, confirming her suspicion. Yup, someone had made this. Hang on. Was this one of those burial mounds Magnus had mentioned? At least she'd found one.
Oh, and she was still in the jaws of a giant green teleporting dog apparently. Couldn't forget that.
"Put me down, mutt!" she demanded fiercely. "I'm not dinner!"
She lurched her lower body and landed a kick on the dog's upper chest only to wince at the pain that shot up her foot. The dog didn't even flinch. She expected to be thrown like a rag doll or snapped up right then and there, but neither of those options played out. Instead, to her astonishment, the dog issued a whine and gently dropped her feet-first onto the stone floor. It backed away as if scared or nervous, tail down and metal ears back. Then it slowly approached and sniffed at her. She backed away. This thing had teleported her away from her friends into a burial mound, so she had no idea where the heck she even was – and it acted like it wanted to know if she was okay.
"Um...what's going on?" she asked. "Where am I? Who are you? Am I dinner or not?"
"Nae need te worry abou' that last bit, lassie." said a voice. She was a little relieved that it was a girl's voice and it sounded like it was trying not to laugh. "We daennot eat humans. Nae energy value. All ye'd do is mess up our insides."
Miko looked around wildly to find the new voice, sorely wishing she had night-vision like a cat or her phone to act as a flashlight. Ugh. Why'd she have to drop her phone? She'd be able to call for help if she had it and get the heck out of here. But here she was stranded in a burial mound who knew where, and the giant green dog was busy guarding the only exit. Great. Looked like she was stuck here for now. The dog didn't seem so bad though. Kinda friendly, actually.
Her eyes focused on a shadowy form near the wall that had bright green eyes that shone in the dark. When it moved forward she recognized what it was: a 'bot. A girl 'bot like Arcee, but way smaller. She was pitch black aside from a white splotch on her chest that seemed like it put out a very soft light. Since she hadn't seen it earlier did that mean she could control whether or not it lit up? Kinda cool if so. What she found even cooler was that she had a very obvious cat design to her body, the top of the cat's head on her chest. But Miko hesitated on noticing the purple 'Con crest on her upper arm. This was still a 'Con, no matter if she was saying she and her doggy friend weren't gonna eat her.
"Easy, lassie." the cat femme said in her purr of a voice. "We're nae going te hurt ye. Floodshed woulda stomped ye flat if Taggy here hadn't warped ye here te safety. Nasty blighter that one. Speakin' o' which – 'ow're yer paws, Taggy?"
The green dog whined and lay down. He displayed his paws as the cat femme came forward to look. Miko winced on seeing them. She knew what a dog's paws were supposed to look like, and this dog's paws looked like they'd been badly burned or melted or something. Some of the metal still smoked. The cat femme clicked and knelt to examine them more closely. Miko couldn't resist and crept a little closer to see for herself. She'd seen a lot of battle damage thanks to the 'Bots but this was new. Whatever that horse had been dripping could not only kill plants but melt alien metal. Yeesh. Nasty stuff.
"What've I told ye about boxin' with that blighter, ye namby ultze'o?" she scolded. Miko had to admit she certainly didn't sound evil. Actually, she sounded kinda like Jack's mom – if Jack's mom was a hardcore Scots woman turned cat Predacon.
A sigh escaped after she softly blew away the smoke. "I take it ye warped 'im someplace 'e can't get out of fer a while?" She gently massaged the paws. Why she was doing that Miko couldn't guess. Question for Ratchet once she got back maybe? If she got back...
A whine and a nod was the answer. The cat turned her focus back on her. Miko tensed and backed away.
"Easy, easy. Like I said, we daennot eat humans. Taggy was just trying te help, but 'e saw the Autos and panicked. He thought they might hurt 'im and ye as well."
"Hurt me?" Miko exclaimed. "They're my friends! They were coming to help me!"
Both the cat femme and the dog looked at her sharply. They shared a glance.
"Help ye?" repeated the cat femme incredulously.
Miko answered heatedly: "Yes! Help me! Now they're probably freaking out!"
There was an eerie silence in the chamber. The dog's metal ears folded back as he whined and put his head down. That wasn't the sound of a sparkless killer. That was the sound of someone who realized they'd just made a mistake and wished they could go back and change it. So if the Predacons here were so decent despite being 'Cons...why had the horse tried to kill her? Wasn't like a rock could hurt a 'bot. Maybe the horse just had anger issues? But the cat had said the horse wasn't generally nice. Then again, anyone who dripped killer chemicals had to be a less-than-nice person.
"Ye got a name, lassie?" the cat femme wondered.
Though still hesitant, she answered after a minute: "Miko."
The smile the cat femme gave her was winning. "I'm Catscratch. Ye've already met Tag-Along."
"And the freaky horse?"
"Floodshed." came a second new voice.
All three heads turned to the entrance of the mound to see a mech about the same size as Catscratch standing there. This little mech was colored a dark bronze with lighter hues around his optics and on his upper arms and lower legs. On his head were two curling horns that looked more like they belonged on a big-horned sheep. His feet were even more unusual. Miko was used to Cybertronian feet looking a lot like a human's, but these looked like actual freaking goat hooves – an obvious split in the middle with two, tipped oval halves on either side. She'd seen something like this before, in the museum the Harvester had been in and in her Art History class. She totally forgot what it was called. Kinda hard to think when your body and mind were both freaking out about the possibility of dying in a cave at the hands of metal alien beasts.
"Floodshed?" Miko repeated. "Cat-lady here mentioned him. What the heck is that guy's deal? I got spooked, I threw a rock. Then he tries to kill me. It was a rock."
"He's loyal." said the goat-mech. "As are we."
Miko's eyes widened. Uh-oh. If they were still loyal to the 'Cons, then she was neck-deep in trouble.
"Ramhorn!" Catscratch scolded. "Daen't spook the lass!"
The goat-mech issued a snort. Miko got the feeling he wasn't one of the friendliest of the tiny beasts, and Catscratch was like the group spokesbot. Nice to see a girl in charge of a bunch of guys. Tag-Along didn't seem so bad though – a little upset maybe, but he'd just been trying to help her according to the cat femme. He'd just read the situation wrong. Grimwing had been part of a misunderstanding himself. Hey, nobody was perfect. But still. These were Decepticons. Just because they weren't instantly killer nutjobs didn't mean she was safe with them, and they didn't trust the 'Bots...and she was with the 'Bots. That might label her as one of the bad guys.
She backed away when Ramhorn stepped into the gloom, sorely wishing she had her phone.
'Come on, Bulk. I need you...'
Bulkhead had stood there stunned. Time ticked by, but he was oblivious to it.
Miko. Miko had just been taken from right in front of his optics by a strange green dog that could teleport after being attacked by a green horse beast. This was just too much – too much for him to process right away.
He jolted out his shock when Magnus's field flared like a supernova. ~Urgent~ ~Find~ In a rumble of his engine he transformed and raced off to where he'd left his ship. In a bit of a daze, the green Wrecker and his white friend raced after him. Magnus had an idea, that was for sure. Whether that meant calling Ratchet to inform him and getting some ways of going forward from him or a way to figure this out on their own he'd have to wait and see. But Magnus never acted on impulse or in a sudden rush of movement. He thought things out before doing anything.
The hatch-ramp lowered down to let the semi in. Magnus skidded to a stop and instantly began working away on the ship's dashboard. A holographic display came to life and his helm snapped between it and the dash. What he was looking for or doing Bulkhead couldn't even begin to guess. But he felt he needed to point something out. Maybe he'd seen it wrong or seen something that hadn't even been there to start with, but it was worth a shot.
"Sir, the dog – it looked scared. And it attacked the other Pred."
Ultra Magnus didn't even glance behind him as he answered: "Razorplume's words revealed that Predacons are as restricted to Energon as we are, but that does not by any means indicate the hound was trying to protect her. It could have viewed her as valuable collateral should we give them trouble. Or, as Starscream did, use her to prove their loyalty to Megatron. Or more simply it could have been defending its territory and taken the girl as a trespasser. Many of the creatures in Celtic lore are viewed as dangerous and untrustworthy."
"But sir...I think it was scared of us." Bulkhead repeated. "Really scared."
"Again, that reaction might have been instinctive owing to its small size." answered the other mech crisply. "And if the beast is still loyal to the Decepticon cause it will label us as the enemy, and many Decepticons, no matter their frame models, have been shown consistently to be cowards of the lowest order. It might have run because it was outnumbered."
Wheeljack grunted: "Hardshell sure wasn't a coward, and I got the scars to prove it. Neither was the Gwyllgi. That dragon wasn't a coward. And Megatron sure as the Pit isn't a coward. Your data's faulty."
Magnus flashed him a sideways glare.
"I was speaking generally, not specifically. And I'd watch your tone, soldier."
A tense silence fell. Wheeljack's frown deepened. Primus, this mech drove him up the wall. But...
"...What the slag are you even doing?" he wondered impatiently.
"If the beast can teleport that would mean it is employing the use of tachyons to transport itself great distances. It is a well established fact that tachyons leave distinct energy traces behind them – if you know in what wavelength to look for them. My ship had the necessary instruments. That trail will show us where the beast has been in the past hour, and since every beast bar the Gwyllgi has a home base it returns to, that will likely be one of the hot spots I am searching for. Should we find the beast, we most likely will find Miko."
Wheeljack's crossed arms fell to side. He blinked once. That...sounded more like something Ratchet would think to do. The old mech wasn't exactly a scientist by nature. He would've thought to just fan out because teleporting more than a few hundred klicks was dangerous, and this was an island.
"And if we don't find her with Fido?" he asked. A sideways glance showed that maybe he should have asked that privately. Bulk really had gone soft under Optimus's command. But he didn't fault the former Prime for that, not anymore. That had just been who he was. Couldn't exactly turn a soft-spoken librarian into a battle-hardened general overnight. Softening up a little on a planet of beings who could get squashed if you weren't careful wasn't a bad thing. Hindrance? Maybe. But not a true handicap. Humans could be pretty helpful. One had saved his aft.
The taller mech didn't answer right away. His focus was on the holographic display. The seconds ticked by in silence. On the display, multiple tachyon hot spots simmered to life in roughly a minute or so – and there were a handful of them in total. A press of a holo-key and a geographic map of the island with associated mounds, standing stones, and stone circles, overlapped the hot spots. One was over a body of water near the edge of the Scottish mainland they were presently on, known by the locals as Loch Monar. Another was just over the next knoll, where the abduction had taken place. Those two were connected. Was that were the beast had deposited the attacking equine? And the other connected hot spot...
"There." He pointed.
"What is that?" demanded Bulkhead. "Sir." he added.
"Barpa Langass, an old stone burial mound on the Isle of North Uist."
"She's on another island?" The dismay in his voice was hard to miss.
But Ultra Magnus did not respond. His expression had hardened. A flick of a switch replaced the tachyon scan with the satellite scan of the Energon deposit in the Hebrides Bluffs to their immediate east, on the Isle of Skye. If the female was on North Uist...that wasn't much of a jump to the Isle of Skye, and it was on the way...Bulkhead's words had got him ruminating, as well. The beast may have run on spotting the enemy and taken the girl as a hostage, yes. Or it might have taken her for another reason entirely. He'd rather avoid a misunderstanding on par with the one he'd had with Grimwing. Perhaps the beast hadn't meant any harm. It had attacked another of its kind, after all, one that had attacked first. And the way it had plucked the female off the ground – it had been careful, like it hadn't wanted to hurt her. The timing of the other beast's arrival made him pause and reflect as well. If it hadn't cared about the native, then why jump in at all? It had to have been nearby and observing them to have known about the attack in the first place.
'The beast's description in myth might hold some clues about its behavior.' he thought.
The scanner feed was replaced with a file detailing Scottish folklore and the creatures involved in the stories. In a blur each story and description was skimmed through. Then it stopped on a certain image and a certain story. An image displayed a large, mottled green, wolf-like canine with a braided tail. Piercing yellow eyes shone like lamps.
Bulkhead's own curiosity got the better of him. He stepped forward.
"That's it! That's what got her!" he exclaimed.
"A Cù Sìth." Magnus muttered. "Odd. The creatures aren't generally viewed as friendly by the locals. There are no attacks associated with them, however. Merely abductions and 'warning bays that cause such fear the listener dies of fright soon after the third bay.' Hm. Apparently they were also viewed as soul stealers. It was thought to live in nooks and clefs of the highlands. That seems to be confirmed. It was in the area."
"And the horse?" Wheeljack pressed.
Ultra Magnus tossed him another warning glare but continued nonetheless: "That is less clear. We could either be dealing with a kelpie or an each-uisge. Both were equines, though the latter was viewed as the more dangerous of the two. The chemicals it was excreting from its mesh might explain why reports of natives being attacked label them as having been consumed by both creatures. Acid is detrimental enough on our species in high concentrations, but if a human were to be in contact with it..." He shook his helm grimly, trying not to picture the grisly result. "Little would be left of them."
"Then let's find Miko before it attacks again!" Bulkhead said. "Preds track. We know they can. It could follow the dog back to its hiding place easy."
"Agreed. But we have to secure the Energon in the Hebrides that Ratchet located for us as well. If we can deprive Shockwave of the resources he needs to clone, our opposition will be less severe."
"What?" the green Wrecker roared in dismay. "What about Miko?! We're just gonna leave her?!"
The taller mech turned to look at him.
"You yourself said the beast was afraid, and need I remind you it did not attempt to harm her. I suspect the beast was afraid of us and will conceal itself until we leave the general vicinity of its island. Owing to its behavior around her I suspect she is not in as much danger as might be assumed on a whim. It could very well be trying to keep her safe from the equine. Abductions are not the same as murder, soldier. There are no reports of a Cù Sìth attacking and killing a human directly. We are active targets here. She might be safer with the beast than with us. It can teleport out of danger whenever it wants to. If it rescued her once, I believe it might do so again."
Bulkhead didn't like it. They were going off assumptions, not facts. But he couldn't get across the water to get Miko without the use of the ship, and groundbridges were a no-go. Or...wait a klik...
"Gimme a klik, sir." he said. "I'll...comm the doc and tell him what's happened. Your ship's got an encrypted line. Won't be long."
The look of suspicion Ultra Magnus gave him nearly made him wither. He suspected. But he couldn't leave Miko on her own so far from home. He just couldn't. June and Fowler would barbecue him alive, then melt him down for spare parts. That wasn't even to mention Infernus would break down like an old rusted building after he possibly attempted to strangle Magnus over his comm. link. And if he told the doc, the kid'd find out by default. He'd keep this on the down low until they got it all sorted out. But for Magnus to believe him, he had to at least make to contact the base.
And he did. He hit the holo-key that controlled the ship's communication arrays and held it down. Magnus and Wheeljack made to leave as the signal worked through the base's encryption. A sideways glance after a moment showed Magnus was beyond the ramp now and getting farther, but Wheeljack was lagging behind. Once he was sure they were far enough away he slammed down on the control for the ramp.
"Sorry, guys." he muttered. "I'm not leaving her."
The ramp folded up.
Magnus was almost half a mile away from his ship when he recieved a notice of the hatch-ramp going up. He hit the brakes and whirled around to see it finish folding. Briefly he caught a glimpse of dour determination from the former construction worker inside. He felt his spark plummet in his chest.
He'd suspected. He had. He just hadn't thought the mech would go through with it. He hadn't stopped to consider just how powerful the bond was between him and the female native. He'd gotten a hint of it in his anger at his plan of campaign – and had horribly miscalculated just how deep that anger went.
The ship's thrusters oriented downwards and it lifted away from the grassy green hills beneath it. It spun to face towards the east.
"BULKHEAD!" Magnus bellowed as he raced towards his vessel. "BULKHEAD! STOP!"
There was no hesitation. The ship's thrusters rumbled like thunder, and with a loud cannon-like bang the Iron Will shot off towards the horizon.
Wheeljack pulled up to him and transformed. He was irked beyond measure to see him smirking. Smirking! He could almost feel his spark erupt in fire when Wheeljack nodded and said:
"Nicely played, Bulk. Nicely played."
Ultra Magnus furiously loomed over him, engine rumbling in a threateningly low frequency as a disapproving frown contorted his faceplates. The white Wrecker's smirk didn't falter.
"What?" he wondered innocently. "Even you gotta admit that was a nice trick. That he pulled it off on you just makes it hilarious. I am literally restraining myself from laughing in your faceplates right now."
The blue and burgundy mech growled at him "You knew...and went along with his plan..." and stomped off like an angry mountain. His field was lit up like a supernova, nearly making Wheeljack laugh out loud. Not a lot of things got under Magnus's mesh, but being tricked by one of his own soldiers and having his ship stolen all in one fell swoop was obviously a surefire way to grind his gears.
'Hmmm...have to consider that...' Wheeljack thought a bit cheekily, blue optics narrowing.
Shrugging nonchalantly the white Wrecker drove after him. Might as well take this whole situation in stride. Bulk could handle himself. So could the kid.
"Ramhorn!"
Catscratch issued the exclamation just as she transformed and flung herself in front of the goat-mech. A yowling sound escaped her fanged maw and her back arched threateningly. A deep hiss sounding more like it belonged to a tiger was emitted then, followed by a low growl. Behind her, Miko had her back against the stone wall and was tenser than she'd ever felt. She'd never trusted goats. Every petting zoo she'd visited the things had tried to eat her shoes. One this size could ram her against the wall and break every bone in her body.
The goat-mech stopped mid-step. He blinked.
"What? I weren't going te hurt 'er." he argued simply. "I was going te ask 'er if she knew where the Autobots were headed so we can avoid them. If they're as mad as she suggests about this mess Tag-Along caused, they'll shoot first. I waen't lose another, not te them."
Catscratch issued another growling hiss but stepped aside. Miko was thankful she lingered nearby.
"Girls always look out for each other, huh?" she whispered.
A purr and a sharp glance at Ramhorn was her answer. Goat-mech seemed to get the message and kept a distance. Tag-Along watched from across the chamber, every so often licking at his corroded paws. The wide yellow optics were like someone watching a reality show on the TV. She nearly giggled. In a way she guessed this was entertainment for him, having no access to the web, a radio, or a TV. In a place like this she had to guess not much excitement came their way other than the occasional spat with that horse and his buddies.
"So." Ramhorn prompted. "Ye said ye were allies with them. Do ye know why they're 'ere? Where they're 'eaded?"
"How do I know you won't spit this info back to King 'Con and his pet whacko?" Miko shot back. "You said you're loyal. You defend your friends. I defend mine."
Ramhorn was dangerously silent for a while. Then: "Fair enough, lass. I swear on the sacrifice of Onyx Prime this waen't go further than this mound. So long as ye help us explain the situation to yer friends. We daennot want trouble. We've 'ad our fair share of it. Deal?"
He held out a hand. Miko nodded and shook it. Probably as good a bargain as she could get right now.
"You gotta tell me the story behind that horse and his pals, though. They'll go after my friends. I don't want them hurt. Okay?"
Ramhorn nodded. "Deal."
The hands were untangled and so she began to explain, keeping things as vague as she could. Decepticons were liars, and if Shockwave wanted info from them he could just pluck it out with that freaky patch thing of his. But he couldn't use it on her to get the full story. If she left some blanks...he'd lose time trying to figure out what those blanks were. And hey, maybe in the process she could help protect them. They weren't that bad, really. Bulk always said that King 'Con never went easy on traitors.
And she believed him.
The water of Loch Rannoch simmered and steamed as Floodshed stomped out of its depths, fuming. He bucked and shook himself, sending out a deadly sprinkling of once harmless freshwater now laced with hydroflouric acid. A few drops hit some of the nearby trees and their bark steamed and melted away. The grass beneath him withered. A violent snort escaped. A hoof stamped and scraped against the ground. He let out a frightening bellow and shook himself again.
Blast that Tag-Along. Every time he tried to keep those pesky meatbags away from the Energon deposit he and his fellow 'Cons guarded the little bugger would show up and warp him halfway across this sinking island into some body of water. He was really getting sick of it – took forever to get the smell out of his mesh and out of his nostrils.
Letting out a hellish whinny, he took off into the forest rimming the loch. A trio of hikers ahead of him screamed as he thundered over them, acid falling like light rain. They screamed more as it burned through their clothing and onto their skin. The sound alone made him feel a little better. To these pathetic little sacks of meat he was nothing short of a god of death.
"Kelpie!" one cried.
"It's real!" wailed another.
"Call for help! Someone!" shrieked the third.
A cell phone was whipped out. The emergency number was dialed amidst more screams.
He didn't bother to turn. The acid would take care of the witnesses. By the time help arrived they'd be dead. It had been centuries since he'd had the satisfaction of ending a native life thanks to the Seelies stopping him and Scorchmark's gang, or killing a Seelie for that matter. He'd forgotten how pleasing it was to bring death, and to see the panic that death caused. Everything he touched died.
When he hit the treeline his form flickered and left only a slight disturbance in the air, like a heat mirage over a blistering road. The grass continued to wither.
Location: Decepticon Warship Nemesis
Exact Geographic Coordinates: 63.266827, -13.199664
*Like this?*
Ravage positively beamed. This kid was a fantastic learner. Granted he was still speaking in his native Draconian dialect (learning Kaonian and then English took more than just a few solar cycles) but at least he was able to use short-band radio now. Remarkable progress for someone who hadn't been out of his hyper-evolution chamber for more than a deca-cycle or two at most. He had a good processor on him.
*Exactly. Very well done. Now, the frequency of short-band will change slightly to keep anyone from eavesdropping on the battlefield, but Soundwave generally does that fine-tuning for the troops automatically. You shouldn't need to worry about that. I think our next lesson should be –*
Their conversation was brought to a halt when Ravage detected the sounds of pedefalls headed their way. Seven from the sounds of them, quite light in comparison to Lord Megatron's or the Builder's. He recognized those easily: the pedefalls of Starscream's little armada. He rose to his paws as the doors to the hangar bay hissed and slide open to permit the grey flier and his re-painted squadron. After what the Seeker had done to the kid it took a surge of willpower not to growl and attack him outright. Just because they had beast frames did not make them mindless attack animals. The Builder at least understood they bore intelligence. Despite his effort a growl still worked through. His four red optics narrowed. He was pleased to see two of the armada fliers falter.
"Please." Starscream scoffed haughtily. "There's no need for that, Ravage. Lord Megatron has ordered me to collect you and the Draconian for a mission. You can understand basic Vosian, I assume?"
Ravage growled again. The mech was completely insufferable. Arrogant. No wonder the kid loathed him to a fault.
*I'd watch your tone, Seeker. This room is watched, true, but I will warn you that my kind used to feed on scrawny nothings like you. Wonderful little snacks. I'm sure the Builder would understand...After all, you ever wonder what happened to Autobots who were captured near his old cloning labs? The bodies weren't smelted down, I'll say that.*
Starscream faltered visibly. His red gaze quickly darted up to one of the surveillance cameras silently observing from a shadowed corner. He wasn't exactly reassured to know Soundwave was watching. He and Shockwave were buddy-buddy with each other, and Lord Megatron had a rather twisted sense of humor. What Ravage was implying was gruesome to say the least. Had Shockwave actually fed Autobots to his beasts? Was Ravage just concocting a lie to form the basis of a threat? It sure didn't sound like he was fabricating anything. The hound's tone had an uncomfortable ring of truth in it. Honestly, he wouldn't put that sort of thing past the one-eyed creep.
"Yes, yes. Impressive threat." he said dismissively. "Regardless, you are to follow me for this mission. Both of you."
A groundbridge swirled open between the two parties. Suggestively putting a hand on the metal rod on his side, Starscream strode into the portal. Screeching, the Draconian slunk around and followed behind. Ravage brought up the rear, all four red optics keenly watching the Seeker's movements. He'd make sure that rod wasn't used again. If he so much as looked at it the wrong way that whole, skinny arm of his was going to disappear into his maw, missile and all. They were both loyal Decepticons and deserved respect.
Location: Area Fifty-One
Exact Geographic Coordinates: Unavailable
Raf took turns surfing the web and watching Bluestreak's medical readings. At the young gunner's side, Infernus's expression displayed all the guilt he felt like an open book, helm downcast. Occasionally he would glance over at Arcee with that expression of his, but whenever she turned to look at him his helm would jerk away. On the table nearby sat the ginormous jaw 'Bee had managed to snag in El Paso. An idea came to him.
"Hey, Infernus?" he asked.
The Prime's helm jerked up. "Hm?"
"You got some info off that skull you found in the mountains when you touched it, right? And the Hydra skull when you were near it?"
He blinked. "...Um, yeah. I guess. Why?"
Ratchet was now watching both of them intently. He abandoned the sub-mesh chip. Bless that boy. He always knew what to do.
"Maybe you could get some off this one?"
"I dunno. I mean, I don't even know what triggered that the last time. And I was right next to it a few times and got nada."
*True. He didn't act funny or lock up when he rescued me.* trilled 'Bee. *Or when 'Cee brought it out of the little storage building thingy in the first place.*
Arcee winced. She was not looking forward to having to explain breaking-and-entering and property damage to Fowler. Thanks Primus the man was busy elsewhere at the moment. But she knew he'd be back. She was half tempted to ask Infernus if he could pull a favor with Vector Prime and have him speed up time so she could get the whole thing over with.
"Perhaps because you weren't actively trying." Ratchet hazarded. "Correct me if I'm wrong but the last time those visions came you were either desiring more information or else actively hunting for the remains. With your mind on other subjects and emotion clouding it perhaps any visions associated with this beast were blocked to prevent cognitive overload or some other detrimental reaction."
Infernus's expression went from guilty to puzzled. He looked over at the jaw with its few missing dental plates.
"I guess I can give it another shot. Not like I have anything to lose."
He stepped away from the medical berth and approached the jaw. Raf didn't spot any kind of reaction when he loomed over it other than a metal eyebrow raising like he was confused. His hand went up and hovered over the jaw for a while as if he as scared it might come to life and chomp it right off. His whole body tensed. The hand lowered down onto the rusted metal. Two burning blue optics shuttered. A minute passed. Two minutes. His optics un-shuttered, confusion swimming in them. Some of his tension slipped away. His mouth tightened into a slight diagonal line across his faceplates.
"Uh..." he started slowly. "I'm not getting anyth–"
He stopped abruptly. His whole body tensed all over again. His optics seemed to go blank, but now they were glowing. Just like they'd done the last time he'd touched a fossil and this had happened. It was like he'd suddenly gone into stasis lock or something.
"Just like with the mountain skull..." Raf heard Ratchet mutter. "Fascinating...Some connection with the Matrix, I wonder...?"
"Or something else." Grimwing suggested cryptically.
The Thunderbird drew up to the oblivious Prime and circled him a few times. He felt a peculiar kind of tingle in the air around him, one the others didn't seem able to detect. He'd felt that same tingle in the crater as Anaba had tended to him, his spark held in the hands of the Old One. It was not an unpleasant tingle by any means, but it brought old memories to the surface. He remembered a warm light, song, and laughter. He remembered...he remembered being ripped away from it with no warning. He remembered a wailing cry of pain and horror that shook the realm of light and turned its warmth cold. The next thing he remembered was waking in a strange tube filled with viscous yellow-bronze liquid – his very first memory. But what of the memories before, those vague inklings of happiness and contentment just on the rim of his unconscious?
His optics widened. In a flash he grabbed the jaw out from under the Prime's hand, holding it as far as he could from him.
"Grim?! What are you doing?!" Jack cried.
Infernus jolted back to life with a sound of surprise, staggering. Grimwing steadied him.
"What'd you do that for?" demanded the Prime. "The vision wasn't done! I thought you wanted info as much as they did!"
"I would advise you refrain from doing that persistently, Prime." said the Thunderbird grimly. "You are not connecting to the Matrix to gather this information."
The white Draconian blinked once. "What? What do you mean? I thought that was how this worked!"
"You are not connecting to the Matrix." repeated Grimwing. "You are connecting with the Allspark through the Old One himself. That is dangerous."
All eyes and optics riveted on the Thunderbird in shocked surprise.
"Wha...? How do you know that?" Infernus wondered.
"I felt it. There was an energy in the air around you that seemed to affect my nervous system. I felt that same energy and physical reaction the day I nearly died. It is...hard to forget. Returning from near death is not something readily forgotten, Prime. You in particular should be well aware of that. Primes have always held a unique connection with death."
Infernus shuddered a little in remembrance. Yeah. He knew. Probably as well as Grimwing did.
"I worry the more you connect the deeper your harmonization will become. Pleasant as that may sound at first, that is unspeakably dangerous. If you fully harmonize...I fear you will have no choice but to enter the same way Onyx did in the beginning. Seeing as the core is dark, the Well dry, and we have no ready means of reaching Cybertron..."
That eerily mirrored the warning the mist-mech had given him during his strange encounter with it in the mist-woven darkness. He shivered internally at the uncanny similarity. Why hadn't the Thirteen warned him about this, though?
'This has never been witnessed before.' Prima answered simply. 'At least not to the extent that you display. Flash-visions and out-of-frame experiences are not uncommon for a Prime, but directly peering into the memories of the dead and, through them, into the past...we thought only Onyx could perform such a feat. Onyx was the reason you could perform the link the first time. This and the incident at Lerna proves you can do so on your own.'
'Perhaps his fire granted him an inkling of the same ability...?' pondered Solus. 'Some kind of power transference from the Mask that none of us expected?'
There was a murmur of agreement. Great. So he was apparently a psychic now. Peachy. He cast a humorous mental frown at Onyx, earning a snort. He got the weirdest feeling the great silver-winged dragon may have actually done it purpose.
"Thanks. For the warning, I mean. I-I didn't know." He dropped pronouns in order to thank both parties in one go. Nobody seemed to think twice about it.
"Nor did we." Ratchet admitted. "Optimus never said anything even resembling what you have, Grimwing. Curious that you sensed that energy. I couldn't pick up anything."
Grimwing managed a wry smile. "You can thank me best by refraining from performing the beʼjitłʼó frequently. And you, healer, by ensuring he does not."
Infernus returned the smile. "Deal. Won't say I'm not gonna do it at all, but I'll try not to do it on a day-to-day basis or anything."
He went over to stand at Bluestreak's side once more. He thought about the sights he and he alone had seen. It certainly hadn't been what he'd been expecting.
Author's Note: I'll clarify the vision a little later...;)
*Ho-kay. Clarification for Kaleia and Julien Craig: Okay, let me try to explain here since you two are a little lost:
I'll clarify who/what the "Old One" is later – or rather Grimwing will. Now, what happens with the whole "linking up/vision" thing is this: whenever Infernus touched that fossil the first time, Onyx helped him out by acting as a sort of safety net for him and also sort of doing it for him. He's already merged with the Allspark according to lore and acts kind of like a dragon watch-dog/Cerberus of the place, acts as a guide for returning sparks, and helps the Well create new Cybertronians, the Well being what's left of Solus Prime after she was murdered. Onyx was also described as the most "spiritually attuned" of the Thirteen, that power being amplified owing to his artifact, the Triptych Mask. Because Onyx was the one to change him, some of that power rubbed off on Infernus, giving him a ghost of the same ability (no pun intended).
As for the linking itself...
Harmonization, as Grimwing said, sounds like a good thing – but it's actually dangerous. Lore says a spark merges with the Allspark a Cybertronian goes offline, meaning its energy syncs to it. "One with the Allspark" is frequently used in the series. I think you get where I'm going with this, hopefully. If he harmonizes fully while still online...that's basically the same as being dead. That's a paradox akin to Schrodinger's Cat. Think to Predacons Rising with Optimus. In my mind, there's actually a reason why they can't stick around once that happens, but I'll let the resident doctor elaborate on that later on.
Make sense? Yes? No? Maybe? o.o I'll talk a bit more about this in the series, don't worry. This is just like an overview.
