Chapter 4
Trip

Salvation - Autobot Scout Ship
En route back to Cybertron...

At first, Stripes was a bit uneasy about leaving earth. Bumblebee couldn't blame him; It was natural to feel fear after leaving everything you've known behind. He walked down to the lower deck of the scout ship to the med bay, seeing Ratchet putting Stripes through repairs, his chest open. He wasn't complaining, either. Bumblebee knew a troubled soul when he saw one, and Stripes fit every definition of the term in his databanks.
"You'll need to take it easy for a few solar cycles while I repair your intake." Ratchet said to him.
"How long is a solar cycle?" Stripes asked, a little confused.
"Twenty-four hours." He answered, getting to work. "Now, just what were you doing all that time? Your intake is so jarred out of place it looks as if you were ramming cars out of your way in vehicle mode..."
Stripes put on an all-too-innocent-poker-face. He had gotten into a bit of a pursuit before he had been found, and had to ram his way through a roadblock. That's why he was at the scrapyard. He was hiding.
"So, I hear we've got a new bot." Bumblebee turned to see Knockout walking past him into the bay. Knockout then made the creepiest comment he would ever hear, his voice smooth.
"Wow! Looks like I'm not the only one who looks good in steel-belted radials..."
Stripes' fans immediately kicked in. His facial expression was predictable. He had what Miko or Jack would call an "omg!" look. Ratchet however, just looked at Knockout with irritation.
"How about you just help me with his repairs?" He said through his clenched jaw as patiently as possible.
"Of course." Knockout replied, walking up to the other side of the berth Stripes was laying on. "Let's see what we got..."
Stripes was immediately uncomfortable with Knockout hovering over him.
"We will have to put you into standby mode for the repairs." Ratchet said as he hooked Stripes up to a monitor.
"Standby? What is..."
He didn't get to finish as his optics faded out and closed. He was put into standby mode. Ratchet looked over to Bumblebee, whom was standing in the doorway.
"He'll be fine." Ratchet said. "Don't worry."

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Stripes was blinded by light all around him. There was a figure in the distance. What was going on? The figure walked up to him. It was an Autobot, colored blue and red, he could barely make it out through the stinging light. It had a look of happiness on its face, optics warm and welcoming.
"We've been waiting for you." It said in a deep voice. Other figures then walked up behind him. They circled around them, and they all bowed their heads. The light faded, and Stripes saw where he was.
He was in the middle of a grand Cybertronian city, on top of a large tower! His breath was taken away by his surroundings! He was so high up, he could see every part of the city! Towers of titanium with glass windows lit up better than the towers in new york city! They seemed to stretch on for miles upon miles, flying vehicles and monorails crisscrossing against the skyline, and the sky itself was full of stars that would make the milky way seem like a small tourist attraction! Stripes looked back to the blue and red Autobot, who said one thing.
"Welcome home."

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