Disclaimer: *Checks a bunch of legal documents* Nope, I still don't own Transformers. But at least I still own Jaime, Ricky, Charlie and the plot of Free Falling.
Oh wow! You guys are awesome! Thank you so much for the reviews: Luna Uchiha666, Waterfront, IronHidescannonlover, Autobot AfterShock, Autobot Phoenix, Jazz's lil ninja, Booknchoc, PepperCornPie, Guest, Galem, JetCycle, Fallen Angel 1243, Cloud-Dancer 103, Shewolf-skittles-twist14, heavenslilagl420, RiverOfTheWolf, Abyss Prime, Demigod Princessa Of The Sea, and Answerthecall!
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Note: Didn't expect to get this chapter up so fast, but it's partly due to the Author's Note down at the bottom-Please read it! (I'm basically asking your opinion on an important plot point)
Ironhide's POV
Ironhide couldn't remember the last time he'd been so pissed. When he got his servos on that coward Starscream, he was going to rip. him. to. shreds.
"Keep your cool, Hide," Arcee murmured beside him as they scouted for Sam. Ironhide didn't answer. His engine only roared louder. Arcee suddenly veered left. What was she—
"Spotted Sam!" she called. Ironhide quickly scanned the area. Yes, right there!
"Sam!" Ironhide bellowed. Now they just had to get the boy to Optimus.
"Ironhide!" the weapons expert heard the teen shout back. The black mech closed in on Sam's location as Arcee stopped in front of the boy.
"Follow us to the pillars," she explained shortly. "We'll take you to," Ironhide felt a sudden flare on his sensors, "Optimus." Ironhide whirled around, his cannons blazing. Three Decepticons had just appeared, two on his right and one massive one to his left. The mech mentally berated himself for letting his guard down as he opened fire on the Cons. Ironnhide didn't take cover, instead the Autobot stood his ground. He didn't want them to get near the boy. Ironhide grounded his dentas together when he heard Arcee cry out. There was no way they could escort the boy now, now with Arcee down.
"Get out, Sam!" he ordered. "Get to the pillars!" They'd take care of these Deceptiscum. Elita roared over a rusted car, her plasma rifle blazing. Her shot caught the first Con right over his spark chamber. Ironhide fired a shell at the weakened armor and the metal buckled. The dying Con stumbled back and dropped to his knees, twitching sporadically. He felt two bullets tear into his armor, but he ignored it and kept firing. He directed his fire at the second Con, who was trying to sneak up on him. A well-aimed shot took care of him. Now for the last one.
"Argh!" Ironhide turned to see Chromia being hoisted into the air by the massive Decepticon, her servos clutching his hand which was wrapped around her throat. He gave his servo a quick squeeze—Ironhide heard a snap—and dropped her limp frame to the ground, energon pooling from her broken neck.
Ironhide's vision went red. He knew that she was just a drone. He knew that the blue femme wasn't really his sparkmate. But she still looked an awful lot like his precious Chromia. And no one laid a digit on his sparkmate. The weapons specialist let out a bloodcurdling war cry and charged the grinning Decepticon. The Con fired at Ironhide, who ducked at the last second, skidding underneath the Con's massive frame. Ironhide raised his cannons and fired from underneath, targeting the gaps in the mech's armor. The Decepticon roared in pain, stumbling back. Ironhide attacked the mech's knees, effectively sweeping out his legs from underneath him.
The cumbersome Decepticon struggled to get up, but Ironhide did not let up on his berserker attack. The weapons expert lunged at the mech and brought his fist down on his helm. The Decepticon barely had time to recuperate from the jarring assault to his head before Ironhide's cannon fired at pointblank range. The Decepticon's helm exploded into tiny pieces of flaming metal. The massive frame slumped to the ground and Ironhide stepped back, admiring—with some morbid fascination—his handiwork.
He was brought out of his dying range by a strangled moan. Ironhide glanced at the now offline frame of the Chromia drone, and the graying frame of the Elita drone before hurrying over to Arcee. He bent down and was relieved to see that she was still alive. The shot she had taken hadn't been as critical as he had previously thought. The shrapnel had torn through her left side and—although it was a few feet from her spark chamber—it was still close enough to become serious. He needed to stop the leaking or else she'd run out of energon and offline. The black mech quickly performed emergency repairs that would—hopefully—hold until Ratchet could look at the femme.
Will's POV
Will ran past a tank, explosions shooting up everywhere. Up ahead, a young redheaded first lieutenant slid onto his side on the sand. The major recognized the man from earlier. He'd sent the lieutenant and a small unit of soldiers to scout ahead to see if Ironhide and his group had found Sam. Will jumped over the man's legs and flopped onto his belly beside him.
"What you got?" he hurriedly asked.
"I couldn't get to them, sir," the redhead answered. "They're 600 meters away and they're heading right for the pillars." Will distantly noted that Epps had slid up behind them, his walkie-talkie still in hand.
"All right," Will acknowledged, rising to his feet. "Precious cargo's coming!" He shouted to his nearby second lieutenant. Will and his soldiers continued to lay down suppressive fire, waiting for the Witwicky boy to make his appearance.
"Sam!" one of the Autobots shouted out. Will glanced up ahead and realized it was Sideswipe. The mech turned towards them. "Spotted Sam!" The prankster was suddenly thrust forward by a hit to the shoulder. Will leaned forward, straining to see though the blasts and the smoke. There! He could see Sam! His girlfriend Mikaela was with him. There was a looming shape behind them…Megatron! Will cursed upon seeing the Decepticon leader. Of course the Decepticon Leader was here. He'd mainly stayed unengaged from the battle. Will had hoped that the mech would continue to do so. But he was moving in now that Sam was in the open. They were fighting on borrowed time. They needed to get Sam to Optimus now! Megatron let loose a volley of shots. Sam and Mikaela hit the ground to avoid the blasts.
"Alright let's go!" Will ordered. "Come on!" he waved at his chosen small unit of soldiers.
"2-2 covering fire," the major heard his second lieutenant call over the comm. "Two civilians, 12 o'clock!" Will led his team, Epps and Ricky flanking him, along with two other soldiers.
"Cover for us!" Will snapped out the order as he passed by the group of soldier nearest to the pillars. Will pumped his legs as he raced towards Sam who was waving his hand in the air, shouting for their attention.
"Hold the air strike!" Epps ordered into the walkie-talkie to Will's right. "We're rescuing civilians!" Will and his sergeant broke off from their unit and took cover behind a crumbling wall. Ricky and the others took cover behind a nearby pillar.
"Keep firing!" Will shouted. Finally, finally, they started making some progress. Decepticons started dropping, largely in part because of the firing tanks. Falling pillars threatened to entomb Megatron. The two teenagers were sprinting towards Will now. "Come on!" he shouted, holding out his hand. Almost there! "Mikaela!" He pulled her in behind the wall. "Come on! Get in here!" he shouted at Sam, the whole reason they were in this warzone in the first place. "Look who showed up," he couldn't help but say once Sam was safely behind the wall. They finally had Sam with them. It was about time. "You better have a good reason for us to be here," he growled. If he was going to get his ass chewed out by his superiors, it was going to be for a damn good reason.
"Where's Optimus?" was the first thing the boy asked.
"He's right over there," Will pointed to the covered Prime as enemy fire caused the white sand to exploded skywards, "across the courtyard."
"I got to get to him right now." Will's head snapped back to the teen.
"Not with an air strike coming," he said in his commander tone. But Sam would not take no for an answer.
"I have to get to him right now," the boy repeated, a feverish look in his eyes. Will glanced at the sock that Sam was clutching tightly. Was that it? A sock? That's what the boy thought could bring back Optimus? Will wondered what was inside the sock. It seemed difficult to believe, but Sam had proved himself before. He deserved the benefit of the doubt. A grating noise caught Will's attention. The major glanced around the wall before rounding on the two teens.
"Go. Back, back, back, back. Go!" he hissed, keeping his voice low. A giant Cybertronian loomed over them, screeching something. The four pressed into the corner of their shelter, hoping to avoid detection.
"Incoming!" Will suppressed a groan. What now?! Clanging metal could be heard in the sky. "Stick the landing!" The ground suddenly shook as a massive object collided into the earth. Will felt like his teeth were rattling inside his mouth. A larger Decepticon closed in on their location. Before Will could even consider firing at the Con, it pulled out a sword looking weapon and charged the other small Decepticon. "Behold the glory of Jetfire!" And it sliced the Con cleanly in half. What the heck was going on? Sam must have noticed his confusion.
"That's Jetfire. He's an Autobot!" he whispered. Jetfire didn't let up.
"Now let me show you how we brought the pain in my day!" he took the Con's head and kicked it off in a shower of sparks. Will suddenly heard a sickeningly familiar tunneling sound. Seconds later, a large metal body launched out of the ground and over their shelter. Will pressed even harder into the wall. It was the large scorpion, the one that had pursued them in the desert while stationed in Qatar. The reason he was caught up in all this. The metal scorpion launched itself at the former Decepticon, ripping out his insides.
Will winced in sympathy as the old bot pulled out the Con and slammed it against the wall. The Con did not give up. It tunneled back into the old bot and—this time—when he was pulled out he pulled something important looking out with him. The metal scorpion screeched again before charging the fallen bot. But the large jet—sprawled on the ground—raised his fist and smashed the scorpion's head. Will felt a smug sense of satisfaction, knowing that Con wouldn't be bothering anyone ever again. "I'm too old for this crap," he heard the former Con mutter.
"Okay," Will shifted his position. "We're gonna make a break through the B's on my command, okay?" he looked at the two teens who were staring back at him. "You guys stick with me, you understand? You stay on my ass." He was not losing these two. Not after he'd just lost— Don't.
"I hope these F-16s got good aim," Epps muttered.
"Yeah?" the major asked conversationally as he prepared to sprint. "Why is that?"
"I told them to hit the orange smoke," the sergeant responded. Will's shoulders slumped and he glanced to his right.
"You mean that orange smoke?" he asked. It was only a few feet away, and the wind was blowing it their way.
"It wasn't my best toss, okay?" Epps replied. Will glared at the man for stating the obvious.
"Run!" They charged through the orange smoke, sprinting towards the safe area.
"Incoming!" Epps shouted the warning, for any who didn't have a radio.
"Come on!" Will grabbed Mikaela's hand—and dragged her along—when he realized she couldn't run as fast as him. Explosions lit up behind them. They were almost there! He could see Ratchet's frame in the distance. All of a sudden, he saw a white flash of movement. He glanced over to see Sam breaking away from their group. No! He had told the kid to stick with him! He'd been crystal clear! "Sam!" he shouted, despite knowing it would do not good. The kid was determined to reach Optimus. It was at that moment that Will's heart plummeted. Behind the smoke and behind Sam—somehow—was Megatron. He could feel the heat from all the explosions caused by the airstrike. He and Epps hit the ground, the major dragged Mikaela to the ground as well. From his prone position on the white hot sand, Will watched with baited breath as the Decepticon leader aimed and fired at the boy. Sam was thrown into the air like a ragdoll and landed yards away, rolling limply. Seconds passed and the teen didn't move. No.
"Sam!" Mikaela screamed, trying to claw her way towards the still teen and stand at the same time. Will grabbed her, explosions were still hitting the ground. They needed to wait to approach the boy, otherwise they'd be hit with the crossfire. Fire was concentrated on the snarling Decepticon leader. Megatron was eventually pushed back and—after only a few moments of hesitation—he turned tail, transformed, and flew away. Mikaela took advantage of Will's distraction and broke away from his grip.
"Hold your fire!" he shouted, so the crazed girl wouldn't get hit. He chased after her and slid to Sam's side. "Stay back!" he ordered. He didn't need her aggravating the critical injuries the teen was likely to have.
"Sam!" she screeched, clawing desperately to get to her boyfriend.
"Mikaela!" Will pulled her away. "Stay back!" The major leaned over the boy, assessing the damage. He was only half-aware of his surroundings. Sam, he looked…oh God…
"—cking do something!" Mikaela shouted at him on the other side of the boy's body. Will immediately began to administer emergency CPR. One, two, three…The sound of helicopter blades cut the air. Will leaned over the boy's mouth, listening for any sign that he was breathing, any sign of life. But he found none. No breath caressed his cheek, there were no sounds in the back of his throat, no moving chest. Will slowly lifted his gaze to Mikaela, who watched him silently. He opened his mouth, but no words would come out. He just couldn't bare it. But his eyes must have said it all. He knew that she knew. No unnecessary words were needed. Will briefly took in his surroundings and realized a group of military dressed men were hurrying towards them. He realized that Epps must have called in an emergency paramedics unit.
"Come on, you got to move," he told Mikaela, prying her off the teen's unmoving body. "You got to move, come on." The paramedics wouldn't be able to help the boy if she was clinging to him. They gathered around him, readying their equipment.
"We got no pulse. Starting CPR!"
"I have to see my kid!" Will's head snapped up at the yell, seeing a middle age man being held to the ground by one of his NEST soldiers. "I got a son..." he struggled in the soldier's grip.
"Sammy!" a nearby red-haired woman struggled to get to the teen, but she was being pinned down by a redhead lieutenant. "Sam!" Will realized with a sinking feeling that the two were Sam's parents. What where they doing here? Their cries to their son cut through Will's heart, as well as their pleading looks of desperation. They were the frantic looks of a parent, denying the reality that their child was dead.
It was then that Will remembered what he had witnessed earlier that day. Had it really been only hours ago that he had witnessed the explosion of the cargo plane with his adopted daughter onboard? Will's gaze drifted away from the heartbreaking sight of the two anxious parents. The yellow scout, Bumblebee, knelt in the sand. His baby blue optics shown with unshed tears. Can they even cry? he found himself wondering. The other Autobots gathered around in silence. Ironhide stood with a cross look on his face, his servo clutching his abdomen. Ratchet had stopped tending to Sideswipe's shoulder wound, and Jolt—although usually aloof—even seemed saddened by the boy's sudden death. Jazz stood next to the blue medic apprentice, a frown on his face. It was so strange to see such a serious expression on the—usually grinning—saboteur's face. And there was Prowl. Even the stoic SIC had a small disappointed frown.
"Clear. Ready to shock." Will grabbed Mikaela, keeping her out of the paramedics' way. She latched onto him with an iron grip. He recognized her need to anchor herself to something, something that would keep her from sinking into the pit of despair. He held her, even though he was losing feeling in his legs. "Clear! Ready to shock. One, two, three." Sam's body convulsed upwards from the force of the shock, but fell back to the ground lifelessly. No! Will clenched his teeth. He did not come all this way—lose his daughter—for nothing!
"Do it again!" Will commanded, unwilling to give up, though deep down he knew it was hopeless. No one survived such a blast. The paramedics tried again and again. But there was no change. They shook their heads, accepting what no one else was able to accept. Will leaned back, releasing his grip on Mikaela.
"No!" the girl let out a heart wrenching screech. She dragged herself to Sam's side and leaned over him, gently holding his face in her hands. "Okay, listen to my voice. I love you and I need you." Will closed his eyes. It couldn't just end this way. Not like this. "Please. Please, come back to me. Sam, please! I love you!" Will bowed his head. Optimus was still dead, so was Jaime, and now Sam. Could this day get any worse? He glanced down and saw the—now open—sock that the teen had been carrying. Black sparkling sand ran through his fingers. Sand? How was that supposed to bring the Prime back? Will hummed in thought. Maybe they could still try using the sand on Optimus?
"Sam!" Will glanced over at Mikaela, her tone of surprise catching his attention. What was she—Oh God. Sam was alive! His eyes were open, he was talking, and he was moving! How was he even breathing? The boy had been dead for at least several minutes! And now he was…Will felt hope swell in his chest. And now they could bring back Optimus! They still had a chance!
Moments later the boy was standing, a bright glowing metal object in hand. What was that? Will glanced down and noticed that most of the black sand he'd seen earlier had disappeared. The boy was soon limping up the Prime's frame. He positioned himself on the Autobot leader's chest plates before thrusting the metal object downwards. A blue light raced down the mech's frame. Seconds passed and—for an agonizing second—Will wondered if it hadn't worked. But his—and everyone else's—fears were put to rest when Optimus moved. He coughed some dirt up before rising, the tarp that had been covering him was pulled back by the wind. Will grinned upon seeing the Autobot leader's massive frame alive once more.
"Boy," Optimus spotted Sam. "You returned for me."
"A living Prime!" Jetfire called somewhere from behind the major. "I don't believe it!" A foreign noise cut the air. A second later, and a Decepticon—the very same one that had showed itself on TV—was on top of the Prime, pushing him back into the ground. It slashed its scepter at anyone near Optimus. Everyone lost their balance due to the sudden impact, and the Con grabbed the glowing blue object from Optimus.
"My Matrix!" it growled, stomping the weak Prime into the ground a second time, before disappearing in a flash of light.
"Get up! Get up! Get up! Get up!" Sam called to the Prime, his tone striving to be encouraging, but sounding panicked. Will didn't blame him. They needed Optimus up and fighting.
"Get up, Prime!" Ironhide shouted from across the courtyard. But it was obvious by the Prime's strained and jerky movements that a fight was out of the question.
"He's turning on the machine!" Sam continued, his pitch rising. "You got to stop him! Get up!…Optimus!" The Autobot leader didn't even have the strength to pull his knees underneath him like before.
"Move!" Ricky's voice snapped. Will glanced at what held Ricky's attention and cursed.
"Enemy target, top of pyramid. Engage!" Epps ordered into the walkie-talkie. "Engage! Engage!"
Jaime let out another sigh, fidgeting in her seat on the massive cargo plane. It seemed so big and empty now that she was the only one on it. The sound of her feet tapping echoed through the hull. Jaime groaned, pushing against the back of her seat. Why couldn't she sit still? Seconds later she was on her feet, pacing around the metal interior. Borrow him? That's what Will had said. Why would they need to borrow the Prime's body? The only reason she could think of was if they had learned of a way to bring him back. Jaime stopped.
They hadn't had they? Of course, she had been asleep most of the time…They'd tell her if they had found a way to bring Optimus back…right? And why would they need to airdrop into Egypt? Was there someone waiting for them there? But who? Everyone but Bee and the twins had been—Bee and the twins! They were with Sam and Mikaela! That's what Jazz had told her. Of course. Sam must have found some way to contact Will and tell him he'd found a way to bring Optimus back. That had to be it. Jaime found herself wondering what Sam had found. It must be pretty important and powerful if it—and not her—was the only thing that could bring it back.
Jaime sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. Why was she so jittery? The girl stumbled—trying to regain her balance—when the cargo plane tilted suddenly. What was going on? Jaime lashed her arm out and grabbed hold of a raised piece of metal to steady herself. She tilted her head…Was that an explosion she just heard? That couldn't be right. She knew the plane was far away from the drop site. Besides, if there was any chance of conflict—which there probably was since the Decepticons would try to prevent the Autobots and NEST soldiers from bringing Optimus back to life—Will had probably sent her to some nearby secure military base.
Jaime gulped. She heard a jet engine outside the plane, but that wasn't what had caused her sudden unease. What unnerved her was the sudden malicious intent she received from the jet. With a start, Jaime realized she was feeling the dark intent from a bond. A weak and underdeveloped—but still there—bond. The girl remembered the Primes' words and realized with a dark sense of foreboding, that it was likely a Decepticon.
It took all the girl's training to keep a lid on her emotions, for fear of broadcasting to the enemy. Why was he following this plane? Why was he targeting it? Shouldn't he be looking for Sam or the Prime? Unless, he viewed this plane as a threat? Perhaps he thought the pilots were going for reinforcements. Jaime's hand suddenly felt very clammy. If the Decepticon did view the cargo plane as a threat, there was one very likely course of action it would probably follow.
~ What are you waiting for? ~ The Allspark's voice made Jaime jump. ~ Get moving! ~
~ And do what? ~ A bewildered Jaime asked. She was trapped on the plane, with nowhere to go.
~ Get off this plane. ~
~ What? ~ Jaime gaped. ~ I can't jump off this plane! I'll die if I do ~
~ You will die if you stay on this plane ~ came the Allspark's blunt response.
~ But…I don't even have a... ~ Jaime's eyes landed on a nearby parachute.
~ Move! You are running out of time. ~ the voice urged her.
~ I don't even know how to put it on or operate it! ~ Jaime argued, but she still hurried over to the pack.
~ I can help you with that. ~ Jaime's eyebrows furrowed.
~ What do you mean ~ Suddenly, the girl knew exactly what to do. When her finger brushed up against the fabric, it was as if a switch had been flipped, and knowledge assaulted her mind. She knew what it was made up of, how to strap it on, and how to operate the device.
~ What did you just do? ~ She asked, unable to keep the awe out of her voice.
~ No time for questions ~ it told her. ~ Quickly child! You must hurry! ~ Jaime wordlessly strapped on the parachute with unnatural efficiency, her mind reeling. It was like her body was moving on autopilot as she strapped the device on. It was at that moment when Jaime realized something.
Where was Galloway? Shouldn't he be here too? He had been here on the plane earlier. She'd seen him board the aircraft. And she knew Will would not take the man into a possible warzone, no matter how much the man might have persisted. So where was he?
She remembered Epps and Ricky's grinning faces. Maybe they had thrown him out of the plane? She immediately dismissed the thought. Despite the man being a complete jerk, he was still a human being. Will wouldn't throw him out of a plane. She might—with a parachute of course, she wasn't a monster —but Will wouldn't. Whatever. He wasn't here so it wasn't her problem.
~ Okay ~ she thought when the large parachute was secured to her small body. It was slightly uncomfortable and bulky. But the straps were tight and would hold. It would have to do. ~ Now what? ~
~ Open the door ~ she was instructed. Jaime quickly hurried over to the switch. Moments later the metal door was groaning as it opened, the clear blue sky appearing. Jaime edged towards the opening and gulped. That was a really long drop.
~ Go! ~ The Allspark commanded.
~…Are you sure about this? ~ The girl hesitated. She'd never done anything like this before. This was absolutely freaking crazy! ~ Couldn't I just... ~
~ NOW! ~ The authority behind the order startled Jaime to leap into air. She curled into a ball, gasping for oxygen, as she plummeted towards the earth. The wind grabbed at her, tossed her around, buffeted her from side to side. Jaime clenched her teeth at the motion. She was free falling from over ten thousand feet! Scared, the girl reached up to pull the cord, to stop her too fast descent.
~ Not yet ~ the Allspark cautioned her. We can't draw his attention. ~
Whose attention? Her question was answered when a jet streaked far above her, still pursuing the cargo plane. She watched in morbid fascination as the jet fired at the cargo plane. The aircraft that she had just been on exploded in a cloud of flame. The girl gulped. If she had waited any longer to jump…Satisfied, the jet sharply turned and rocketed away from the falling Jaime. She fell closer and closer to the earth. Her fingers twitched with the need to yank the cord, but she waited. And waited. And waited.
~ Now! ~ Her fingers obeyed and yanked the blue cord. She heard the parachute open above her. Her body was yanked sharply, but the harness held and her descent slowed. But not enough. The ground was rushing towards her and—although she was no expert—it was coming a little too fast. Had she pulled the cord too late?
~ How high up were we when I pulled the cord? ~ She asked uneasily.
~ Roughly two thousand feet ~ was the calm reply. Jaime's eyes bugged out.
~ WHAT? ARE YOU CRAZY? THAT'S LIKE THE MINIMUM HEIGHT FOR EXPERIENCED SKYDIVERS! ~
~ Do not fret, I calculated it perfectly. Any higher and the parachute would have caught unneeded attention. ~
~ Did you even consider that I would become a red stain? ~
~ You will not die. ~
~ You don't know that! ~
~ Your frame is much more durable than the average human. You will survive the landing. ~
Jaime snarled at the Allspark, refusing to continue the conversation. Great, just freaking fantastic! She'd jumped out of a plane to avoid a missile only to crash into the ground. Jaime braced herself for the coming impact.
Jazz's POV
The silver Pontiac solstice streaked across the white sand. He'd taken off the moment the cargo plane had exploded, racing towards the falling debris. His spark raced as he desperately hoped—no, prayed—that, somehow, Jaime would be okay. She just had to be. He'd ignored Prowl's command to wait. He ignored his comrades' pings, turning his comm. link off. They stopped trying to reach him soon enough. He knew they wouldn't blame him, understanding the workings of a guardian bond. The saboteur remembered when Jaime had asked him about the guardian bond they shared. The heat had been unbearable that day on base, and almost everyone had joined in on a water fight—encouraged by the Bubble Wrap Gang of course—to cool off.
Jaime lay on her back, stretched out on the wet hood of the Pontiac solstice. Soft jazz music drifted from the saboteur's speakers, his windows rolled down.
"Very funny, Jazz," the girl snorted at her guardian.
"Ah try," answered Jazz.
"…Jazz?"
"Yea?"
"…Is it…painful for a guardian to lose their charge?" she asked, still staring at the sky. Jazz couldn't help but tense at the innocent question.
"Why do ya ask?"
"Well…Bumblebee looked pretty upset when Jordon dunked Sam in that water tank. Like he thought he drowned or something." Oh yea, Jazz remembered. Some of the guys had really gotten into the water fight.
"Mmm…yea…it is." Jaime rolled over onto her stomach.
"Really painful?" she asked. Jazz hummed in thought, considering how to explain it to the girl. She had a fairly good understanding of how bonds worked. But she didn't really understand how precious and few they were since she shared a bond with every other bot on base.
"'magine, sharin' a guardian bond wit' Charlie," he explained. "like the one we 'ave." Jaime nodded, urging the saboteur to go on. "Now 'magine if—fo' whateva' reason, be it injury, illness, o' old age—ya lost 'im." Jaime frowned. Just the thought, he could tell, upset her.
"Ok, I guess that's—"
"Now," he cut her off, "magnify tha' by 'bout…oh…a thousan'."
"What?" she jerked back. "Don't you think that's a little…"
"Jaime," Jazz sighed, his accent becoming less pronounced. "Our species is a very…connected race. Many of the relationships we share wit' others 'as a bond, a direct link to tha' bot's very spark."
"Right…" she nodded. Jazz continued, trying to keep his tone light, despite the serious discussion. It didn't help that as he explained the repercussions of such a bond being broken, his processor kept on coming up with scenarios of such an event happening to the girl.
"The closuh the relationship, the stronguh the bond is. A guardian bond is a really strong bond, almos' as strong as a creatuh bond, stronguh in some cases. Ya 'umans 'ave a 'igh level of empathy, but we Cybuhtronians feel more deeply. Our emotions go so much more deepuh than yor human feelin's eva' could 'cause it feels like yo'r losin' a part of yaself. And Ah don' mean tha' figuratively."
"That's…" Jaime shook her head. "Then why even bother in the first place? Why set yourself up for so much pain?"
"…'cause yo'r worth it, Ah guess," Jazz murmured. Jaime grinned at him.
"You're such a sap," she teased.
"Pest," he chuckled. Jaime set her chin on the warm metal.
"That'd be awful though," she mumbled.
"Yea...so ya bettuh neva make meh go through it," Jazz's tone was equal parts teasing and serious.
"I won't," she grinned.
"Promise?"
"Best Friend's honor," she murmured, drifting off to sleep with the warm sunrays caressing her back.
Come on Jaime, thought Jazz as he practically flew over the sand, don' go back on yor word now. Ya promised meh. Minutes dragged by as Jazz searched for the girl. Normally he'd use the bond they shared, but she'd raised her walls before the cargo plane even exploded. He couldn't even feel her right now. Either her defenses were absolutely superb…or he was denying the inevitable. He was mostly going on instinct right now while also calculating where the plane was when it exploded, how fast it had been moving, and so forth.
After what felt like hours, he passed the first smoldering plane part. Each time he passed by a twisted piece of metal, he paused to scan it, checking to see if Jaime was underneath it before moving on. Eventually, he ran out of leftover parts to check under. The mech was torn. He hadn't seen any sign of her body. But…would there even be anything left? Considering she'd been right in the center of the explosion? He wasn't as familiar with the limits of the human body as Ratchet. The longer he went without finding her, the more painful his spark ached. No, no, no, no, no! Where was she? She had to be here somewhere!
The saboteur was about to turn around to do another sweep—maybe he somehow missed her?—when a something in the distance caught his optic. What was that? A tarp? Jazz spun around and drove in that direction. Upon closer inspection, he realized it was a rather large piece of material, with cords attached. Wait a minute! He'd seen some of the soldiers use these before. It was a parachute! It even shared the same design. Yup, there was the NEST logo. So whose was it? Jazz scanned the ground for tracks and felt his spark swell with hope before gunning his engine.
Minutes later he was approaching a small stone hut with a well nearby. It must have belonged to some kind of hermit. Jazz activated his holoform and had it jump out of the driver's door.
"Jaime?" he called, his holoform jogging towards the small shelter while his alt mode scanned the interior. There was a pause. The scrap of wood, which served as a door, slowly cracked open, a green eye peering out. Suddenly the door was flung open.
"Jazz! Oh thank God it's you! I was afraid it was someone else!" Jaime stepped out of the hut and squeezed Jazz's holoform. Jazz returned it with his own bone crushing hug.
"Jazz," she gasped. "Can't…breathe…"
"Quit yor complainin' an' let meh jus' enjoy this moment, slaggit," the holoform growled, but slightly loosened his tight hold. He heard the girl snort in amusement into his chest. His spark stopped throbbing painfully and started singing in relief. Thank Primus she was okay. He'd thought he'd failed her as a guardian. He would have never forgiven himself for that.
"What are you doing here?" she mumbled into his chest. "Where are the others?"
"Ah came lookin' for ya as soon as the plane 'xploded," he growled. "The othuhs are at the coordinates."
"What coordinates?" she asked, looking up at him.
"The ones tha' Will got when they called," the mech explained.
"…Sam." Jazz nodded. He gazed at her frazzled appearance, tilting his head to the side.
"So…Ah'm guessin' tha' was yor parachute?" She nodded. "Jumped outta the plane 'fore it was 'it?"
"Ugh, yea," she frowned. Jazz cocked an eyebrow at her response.
"I'm never doing that again," she grumbled. "I nearly peed my pants." And despite what had just happened, what had almost happened, he laughed. He laughed so hard that he had to hunch over to support himself.
"It's not funny," Jaime scowled.
"Yor…yor face was jus'," Jazz gasped. The girl slouched, sulking even more.
"Seriously Jazz! I thought I was gonna splat on the ground!" Jazz stopped laughing, but the grin remained on his face.
"Aw c'mon…ya had—wha'—ten thousan' feet t' pull the cord." The girl shifted away, muttering under her breath. "Wha'?"
"I said," she sighed, "I waited till I was closer to the ground."
"Why?" he asked. If she was really that scared, wouldn't she have instinctively opened the parachute much sooner?
"To avoid unwanted attention," she rolled her eyes.
"Starscream," Jazz growled, remembering the reason for Jaime's near-death experience. The girl nodded, not noticing the saboteur's change in behavior. She did notice, however, when killer intent began to roll off his frame in waves.
"Jazz?" she asked uncertainly. A grin stretched across his face. "What are you doing?"
"Jus' thinkin' off all the ways Ah'm gonna offline 'im," the mech answered cheerfully. She considered him and the possibilities going through his mind. She knew how dangerous he really was. Despite his small size, Jazz was not a mech to mess with. His name made even some of the largest Decepticons falter. She almost felt bad for Starscream…almost.
Jazz glanced around before taking Jaime's shoulder and guiding her back to his waiting alt mode. His holoform disappeared and the silver sports car broke apart in a series of clicking and whirring parts.
"What is it?" Jaime asked, sensing the mech's change in mood.
"Jus' got a comm. from Prowluh," he said, once he'd finished his transformation. "Bunch of Cons landed and are givin' 'em some trouble. 'Sides, Ah don' like havin' ya out in the open like this." He lowered his servo and Jaime climbed onto it, clutching onto the closest digit as he brought the servo to his chest. He only paused a moment before his chest plates opened.
"Jazz," Jaime's eyes widened. "What are you—"
"Puttin' ya somewhere safe," he reassured her.
"In your spark chamber?!" Jazz snorted.
"Naw…I like ya Jaime, but not tha' much," he teased before explaining. "Ya see that chamber next to it?" Jaime leaned forward, peering inside.
"Yea…"
"Tha', is called a sparklin' hold. It's a chambuh used t' carry 'round sparklin's an' protect 'em. Don' give meh tha' look," he added when she leveled him with a glared. "Ah'm not sayin' tha' yo'r a sparklin' or nothin', but—righ' now—it's probably the safest place fo' ya t' be." She gave him the dirtiest look that she could muster before acquiescing.
"Fine," she groaned before crawling into the dark chamber. "Just don't break me or anything by moving too fast." Jazz barked out a laugh.
"Don' worry 'bout it sweetspark. It's made jus' fo' tha' purpose. Ah c'n roll 'round all Ah want, an' ya'll jus' roll 'round in tha' squishy lil' chambuh."
"If I get any broken bones, I'm coming after you with Judy's baseball bat," she threatened darkly, as his chest plates closed.
"Ah 'ave no doubt," he murmured with a soft smile, glad to have his charge back.
Guest: Quick! Emergency CPR! Wouldn't want you to miss the upcoming chapters :) Ah, God, I loved typing up that scene :D It's a good video to watch whenever you're low and need something to smile (or laugh) at. Thanks, but I don't have Netflix. Luckily, my friend gave me the Transformers Movie collection for my birthday (Squeeee!) So I have all three *Grins* And I tend to watch one of them at least every other week. ;D Thanks!
Galem: Heh, yea...Haha! Thanks. He's one of my favorite characters just because of that scene :D Yes! I totally agree! :)
Author's Note: Yay! Both Optimus and Jaime are back! Now the bots can quit chasing me around with death threats :) *Ahem* Now that we are reaching the end of Revenge of the Fallen, I have some questions for you. I want to hear how you guys feel/what ideas you have, because I am somewhat undecided. For now, there are two important factors that I am unsure about.
One of them is Mikaela. As we all know, after Revenge of the Fallen, she leaves Sam and Sam ends up meeting and falling in love with Carly. So I'm wondering if I should bring in Carly or not. Now before you tell me how much you hate Carly and all that, I want you to think about it. First of all, Mikaela is NOT going to be cut from the story. Period. She will continue to be in the story as a female figure in Jaime's life and a friend of the bots whether she is Sam's girlfriend or not. I kinda have mixed feelings about Carly. She likes Sam for who he is, not because he has robot alien friends. And I do love Mikaela. But the main reason they got together is because they went through the events leading up to and Mission City together (because she saw a different side of Sam other than his bumbling self). Carly became his girlfriend for a different reason (at least I'm assuming so). And I feel like it would be interesting to play around with Jaime's feelings toward this new girl Sam's seeing. Regardless, I'd like to hear your opinion. Tell me what you think in a review, or a pm. I'm not asking which one you like better. I'm asking which one you think would be better suited to be his girlfriend and WHY. Be as detailed as you want! :D The second one I'll ask you guys about when it's more relevant.
Skids: Yo, who's Carly?
Mudflap: Dat sounds like a femme.
Hubero: *Whirls around* How did you two get in here?
Skids: De door
Mudflap: Careful Skidz, don' wanna fry de poor squishy's brain.
Hubero: *Eye twitches*
Skids: 'Ey look bro! She's changin' colors!
Mudflap: Yo, dat's pretty coo'
Hubero: *Resists the urge to act rashly* You're not supposed to be in here! Didn't you read the sign.
Skids: Ah, we don' do much readin'
Hubero: It says stay out! This room is for me and the readers only.
Mudflap: Aw, bu we's jus' wanted ta' do the end note wit' ya.
Skids: Yea, 'ow come ya neva let us?
Hubero: Out!
Mudflap: But-
Hubero: *grabs the nearby metal bat*
Skids: Look bro! It's de Judy bat!
Mudflap: Save yo'self!
[The twins dash out of the room]
P.S. I have not forgotten about Jolt's story! I am still working on chapters. I have PAGES of material to post. The problem is, it's mostly about events happening to Jolt right before/after he joins the Autobots. Not much of when he's younger. So bare with me :) There will be some chapters of him when he's younger (so you get an idea of his personality and such) but it's mostly gonna be [spoiler alert] after Moonlight's death. Okay? Okay.