The week flies by fast, and you know what they say: Time flies when you're having fun! Or in this instance, extremely busy. Thankfully, there have been no casualties.

Kevin and Rook checked off half the list at the autoshow, during which Knockout was having the time of his life despite Bumblebee serving as his babysitter. On Earth, Ben went about his days as he usually does, just with Gwen by his side instead of Rook. Sometimes, Starscream or Moonracer accompanied them, as both were going stir crazy, being stuck inside working on plans for the machine that is inevitably going to be built. Whenever they did go out, Steeljaw remained inside with Khyber, both working tirelessly, only taking breaks when necessary.

Those "breaks" have become concerningly frequent, and no matter what advice is bestowed upon Steeljaw, it never pans out. He is still very tired, hungry, and emotionally unstable. As if that isn't enough, he has started gaining weight, too. Everyone assumes that it's a mix of everything going on.

For Steeljaw, his only saving grace is the time he spends with Khyber. The hunter doesn't say anything, just minds his own business. However, Steeljaw can't help the sneaking suspicion that said hunter knows something about what is going on. Again, Khyber doesn't speak a word on the topic, but the swift glances that Steeljaw receives throughout the day and night are more than a little suspicious.

He'll ask about it tomorrow.

Little does he know that they are all going to get more than they bargained for.

The morning starts out normal. Carl and Steeljaw talk for a bit before the former has to head off to work. Bumblebee and Moonracer help Sandra with breakfast. Knockout and Starscream fight for primary hot shower rights. Ben and Rook pick up the Cybertronians at the usual time and bring them to HQ, but that's where the normalcy of the past week and a half ends. As soon as they arrive, Steeljaw is regurgitating everything he ate that morning, followed by labored breathing, shaky limbs, abdominal pain, a migraine…

"He's waking up."

"How do you know?"

"Hunter's intuition."

Steeljaw must've passed out because the last thing he remembered was getting out of the truck, and now, he's lying down in Khyber's workspace.

SJ: "Urgh… What's going on?"

MR: "Oh, bless the stars, you're awake!"

Moonracer lunges forward and wraps her arms around Steeljaw. He relishes in the warm, caring embrace, slowly leaning into it.

BEN: "Not a word, Khyber."

The hunter chuckles.

KHYBER: "No need to take the fun out of everything, Tennyson."

The Cybertronians ignore the conflict in the interest of checking in on their team-mate.

BB: "Steeljaw, are you alright?"

SJ: "You mean aside from everything else that seems to be wrong with me and only me?"

BB: "At least your attitude isn't gone, so I'll count that as a plus."

A red blur approaching him out of the corner of his eye triggers something in Steeljaw. Without a second thought, he jumps out of Moonracer's hold and attacks.

KO: "WHOA!"

Or, what his instincts were telling him was the enemy.

The shout breaks Steeljaw out of whatever mindset he's trapped in and returns to reality. In front of him is a startled Knockout, eyes wide and one hand clutching the other. He is leaning against a similarly expressed Starscream, who attempted to catch the fleeing doctor then lost his footing.

Even without looking around the room, Steeljaw knows that everyone else is just as shocked at his sudden, violent outburst.

SJ: "Sorry. I don't know what came over me."

KO: "Eh, it's probably me, not you. This only seems to happen when I try to help you… And I just realized that saying that probably doesn't help much."

Steeljaw lifts his gaze. Everyone seems to be settling down from the incident, but Knockout has yet to remove one hand from the other. Starscream helps him to his feet and continues to support him.

SJ: "Did I hurt you?"

KO: "Just a graze. Nothing to be worried about."

Steeljaw turns away from the others.

SJ: "I must be in a heap of trouble if you of all people aren't fussing about their looks."

KO: "My face is still perfect, even if I am currently a human, so I'm good."

That got a laugh out of Steeljaw.

For the next hour or two, nothing really happens. Ben leaves to do some stuff, and the Cybertronians decide to stay together inside. They want to finalize the details with Khyber while also keeping within close proximity of Steeljaw, in case he has another episode.

Soon, Ben returns with his family.

BEN: "Good news! We collected everything on the list!"

KHYBER: "Including the dwarf star?"

MAX: "It's en-route. Don't ask…"

KHYBER: "Where you found it, let alone how much you paid. Don't worry, it's not like I'm going to need one in the near future."

MAX: "Right. Anyway, did you finish those blueprints and add helpful notes?"

Khyber gathers the results of, quite literally, 24/7 work and hands them over to the Plumbers.

MAX: "Thank you. Now, while I'm not saying that I don't trust the people here to follow directions to the letter, I would prefer it if someone with prior knowledge of how this works lends their expertise."

And it's that day in the conference room all over again – Max makes a decision his family disagrees with, and the Cybertronians and Khyber do the smart thing and stay out of it.

Max spends the next 10 minutes making valid points until the others begrudgingly agree to the plan, as long as at least one of them is keeping an eye on Khyber. With that all settled, the Plumbers turn to leave.

MAX: "Wait a second…"

The Magister is looking over the documents when one catches his eye.

GWEN: "What is it, Grandpa?"

Silence. It is unsettling, except for one.

MAX: "Khyber, why are the dimensions for the machine so big?"

KHYBER: "We're not shoving them in a time capsule and shooting them out into space. All five of them are going to be teleported through dimensions at the same time. You can't pull that off with a small machine, and don't get me started on the energy output. The power of the dwarf star would most likely blow up anything smaller and more."

MAX: "So where do you suppose we build it? I know you wouldn't know, but we don't exactly have that kind of room here."

Khyber chuckles.

KHYBER: "Ah, yes, I forgot to mention a rather crucial detail."

MAX: "Which is?"

KHYBER: "The best way to ensure that the teleportation goes smoothly is to send them back from the exact same spot they arrived."

The Plumbers and the Cybertronians stiffen, allowing the information to sink in.

KHYBER: "It's not a sound theory…"

MAX: "But it is the only one we have right now that makes even the slightest bit of sense."

The Magister mulls over it some more.

MAX: "Okay. I will have to pull some strings with the government, but I can make it happen."

ROOK: "Excuse me, but if word gets out about a classified project being conducted in the middle of nowhere, we just might attract unwanted attention."

MAX: "Agreed. We'll have round the clock guard shifts, in case anyone is foolish enough to try something."

BEN: "Sweet! That means action may be in the near future for me!"

MAX: "No hold on just a sec, Ben. I'm sorry, but I can't have you anywhere near the machine."

BEN: "What? Why not?"

KEVIN: "Because he's afraid you'll break it."

BEN: "I won't break it!"

KEVIN: "Not intentionally."

BEN: "Shut up, Kevin!"

GWEN: "How about both of you shut up?"

ROOK: "I believe it is time to go."

BB: "What about us? Can we help?"

The Plumbers exchange looks of uncertainty. They don't want to bother the Cybertronians…

BB: "Starscream will assist Khyber, Moonracer will work with the builders, Knockout will treat any injuries that are bound to occur, and Steeljaw and I can be part of defensive measures."

The others are surprised by the immediate albeit accurate response.

MAX: "That sounds reasonable, if you're sure."

BB: "I'm sure, trust me. Right, guys?"

Bumblebee looks over his team. Despite their hesitance, all four nod.

MAX: "Alright, then. I guess we have more helping hands."

KHYBER: "Steeljaw isn't going anywhere."

The hunter's sudden claim garners a collection of questioning stares.

BB: "What do you mean Steeljaw isn't going anywhere?"

BEN: "What are you planning, Khyber?"

KHYBER: "Do you honestly not see it? I wouldn't expect the Cybertronians to understand, but the rest of you? I expected at least one of you to have figured it out by now."

BEN: "What are you talking about, skull face?"

Khyber's stunned gaze travels around the room till it lands on Steeljaw. The Loboan tries not to squirm underneath those dark red eyes, but he can't help it. Something about that look is making him feel submissive yet fiercely protective at the same time.

KHYBER: "You can not put yourself in harm's way in your condition."

SJ: "What condition?"

KHYBER: "You are expecting a pup."