We'll meet again

Don't know where

Don't know when

But I know we'll nEvEr MeEt AgAiN.

oH, nEvEr AgAiN!

Outskirts of Geneva.

"Wheeljack of Iacon, you have disobeyed direct orders from your commander. In your selfishness and carelessness, you have endangered an innocent life, exposing her to the pain and the horrors of war. You have dishonored Bulkhead's memory and brought shame to the Autobot cause." Optimus extended his hand, his silent command unmistakable. Wheeljack's hand reached for his own Autobot insignia. He removed it from his frame and handed it to the Prime. "For your disrespect to this symbol, you have proven unworthy of your badge, unworthy of being a Wrecker, unworthy of the family you have disappointed. Henceforth you are banished from the Autobots. You may stay among us, Wheeljack, but never again participate on our missions, share our intelligence or view us as fellow comrades in battle. What is your choice?"

"Why ask a question when you already know the answer, chief?" without another word, Wheeljack turned around, transformed and took off.

Optimus and the other 'Bots assembled watched him go, feeling very little sympathy for the now ex-Autobot. With no Jackhammer and no allies, life was about to get much tougher, that he was certain of. But Wheeljack bore Prime and his team no ill-will. He knew he had screwed up big time and banishment was his just desert. His only regret was not saying goodbye to Miko, but he refused to act on it. That girl had suffered more than enough because of him.

4th November 2012.

Geneva, Autobot HQ.

Optimus left the med-bay and immediately, the medic went back to fixing a piece of equipment. Since they have moved in so recently, the new base was far from top efficiency and as the only scientist around, the responsibility fell solely on the old Bot's shoulders.

Thinking of responsibilities reminded Optimus of his own, as he spotted Wheeljack, alone, leaning against the wall. He traded looks with the Prime, both knowing the Wrecker would now face his judgment.

"Wheeljack." He spoke with authority. The sulking Wrecker gave a sideways look. Optimus was far from pleased.

"Face me when I speak to you." His tone left no room for insubordination and Wheeljack looked him in the eye. "What you have done today will have consequences. But to punish you right right now would help no one, so his sentence will be postponed until a time of my choosing. Do you understand?"

"Energy crystal, sir." Wheeljack accepted. He knew full well what the punishment will be. And he's more than willing to accept it. He knew he had spat on Bulkhead's memory by allowing Miko to join him. And to add rust to the dent, he had gotten her in a situation that Buckethead hurt her more.

"For the time being, you will be Ratchet's assistant in turning our new base fully operational. You will listen to his every instruction and not deviate."

"Understood, sir." in the following days, Wheeljack would be confined to base, listening to all of the old medic's orders. He was harsh and bossy, and didn't hide his discontentment with having Wheeljack around. Wheeljack didn't retort or complain even once. When he asked if Miko was alright, the only reply he got was that she was with friends, now.

As soon as they returned to base, Jack helped Miko get inside Bumblebee and they raced back to the humans' shared house. She had passed out on the journey, but the pain of the following operation would unfortunately reanimate her.

Between having worked part-time in the hospital occasionally and the knowledge passed down by his mother, the eldest took care to immobilize the fractured arm and built a makeshift sling. The fracture was simple and closed, no skin punctured. Regardless, the healing would be an experience she wouldn't remember fondly.

Hours later, she vomited the dinner Jack had prepared for her. She could barely get any rest from the pain in her swollen arm. And medicine was none-existent, making the hope for a quick recovery even more remote.

6th November 2012.

"And…it's done. Sensors indicate the groundbridge is running smoothly." Rafael casted a sideways glance to the swirling vortex they were so accustomed to.

"Energy efficiency is at its maximum." Ratchet's tone almost sounded something other than grumpy. Their joint tinkering with the groundbridge had, at last, worked wonders. "Now we may use the groundbridge more often without hampering our emerging reserves too much. Finally something goes perfectly without a hitch."

"Something was bound to." Rafael was just a bit more upbeat than the medic. Before Bulkhead's ill-fated mission, Rafael had come to him asking for anything to do. The medic only agreed in the hope it would distract the child from the immeasurable loss he had suffered. And it seemed to work; at first the boy barely spoke while typing but over the course of hours they almost had a conversation. Then Bulkhead was killed in action and soon-after the children were once again in close proximity to Megatron, whom wasted no time reminding physically and verbally how vile he is. Now, his 'assistant' was once again in an introverted, work-drone mood.

Ratchet wanted to help him, like he wished he could help so many others who died on his table. But he couldn't. He was a medic. He could fix the body. But the mind…

"I think I'll call it a night." after their triumph, exhaustion finally caught up with the little one. He closed his laptop, packed it and went on his way without saying so much as a goodbye. Ratchet watched him go, despondently.

As the lad walked out of the HQ, he noticed the object leaned against the wall: the hilt of the Star Saber with a piece of the once mighty blade still attached to it. He frowned. Ratchet followed his gaze and sighed.

"It is not the first time the Star Saber was destroyed while in our position. The only solace is that the Dark Star Saber is also no more…and that the only means of repairing either blade is back in our vault."

"The Forge of Solus Prime." by this point, Raf already knew all the relics by heart. "So why hasn't Optimus repaired it, yet?"

The medic looked even more downcast. "Because the power of the forge is not infinite. We may only have another chance of using it."

'Using it for what?' was what Rafael would have asked next but a yawn cut him off and Ratchet went back to his work. Shrugging, he walked back to the house, as always, through the one path that had no remains of cyberformed victims.

CRACK!

He stopped. There was a cracking noise followed by that of metal hitting metal. Odd considering the landscape was little more than a graveyard devoid of life. The pair of sounds repeated in the same order. Ever curious and suspicious, Rafael followed the noises, which kept repeating in the same pattern.

Rafael cautiously followed the sounds - the last time heard something on these ghost streets, he stumbled upon the scraplet that now lay dissected in his room. He found the source to come from inside what had once been an abandoned decrepit house, now gigantified by the cyber-forming. The source of the noise was none other than Miko. The girl held an odd-looking gun and fired a shot at a makeshift scrap metal target. She fired repeatedly at the target but about only half the bullets hit it. She growled in frustration.

He was tempted to say something, to remind her she should be resting or to go tell Jack or one of the others. But something stopped him. Maybe it was the intensity in her eyes, or the way her hand shook just slightly after each shot. So he chose to stand and watch silently.

Miko repeated the exercise until her magazine became bare. As she turned, at last she realized the presence of her friend. "When did you get here?" she asked, her voice a little hoarse.

"Just a minute ago," Rafael approached. He hesitated, then asked. "Where did you learn to shoot? And where did you find that gun?" closer now, Rad realized the weapon looked odd because it was from cybertronian design. Looking at her face closely, it was noticeable the bags under her eyes, combined with the left arm on the sling and the scar on her forehead left from the drop of dark energon only worsened her outlook.

Miko's eyes dropped to the ground as she set the gun down carefully. "Wheeljack let me borrow it. Said it used to be from a minicon Wrecker. Then he taught me a thing or two, before…" Her voice trailed off and left unfinished sentence hanging in the air.

Rafael didn't push her. He understood that 'before' meant preceding Bulkhead's death, the latest turn for the worse they had endured. He simply nodded and sat down against a wall. Miko pondered continuing her 'training' but she was in no mood for it, so she sat beside her friend in silent company, both tired in similar yet different ways.

Minutes passed in quiet until the sound of footsteps approached and around the corner came Jack. His demeanor showed surprise and relief for finding them. He was about to speak when his eyes fell on the gun. Miko's expression became instantly guarded. "Are you gonna tell on me?" she asked, almost daring him.

Jack frowned, taking that as provocation. He opened his mouth for a retort but none came. He hesitated. Then sighed tiredly and shook his head, expression softening into neutrality. "...No. I came looking for you guys, that's all."

Miko blinked, clearly not expecting that. She gave him a long, searching look. "What for?"

"It's almost dinner time."

"Not really hungry," she replied flatly, her eyes distant.

Jack would have insisted hadn't Rafael given him a pleading look not to start another of the two older teens' many arguments. Jack held his tongue; though he would rather have Miko eat something. But he, like Raf, could see the physical and mental fatigue in her posture. Instead, he offered a softer suggestion. "If you don't want to eat now, that's fine. But if you ever want to talk...we're here for you. Anytime you want." he spoke kindly and Rafael gave her a timid smile in agreement.

Miko laughed. She laughed for the first time since the world had ended. It wasn't the mirthful laughter so typical of her, no. This was devoid of joy.

She stood up and glared down at her friends. "Talk? Is that what everyone expects me to do? Talking is not gonna bring Bulkhead back! Or restore our planet. Even pounding Starscream into scrap metal didn't make me feel better. Nothing does!" and she threw the gun against the scrap target, breaking both. She was borderline hysterical, eyes red and tears threatening to spill. "And you guys…you're only better than me because you still have your partners. If Arcee or Bee were scrapped, you two would be a mess like me!"

The silence that followed was thick with unspoken words, with shared pain and the unbridgeable chasm that grief had opened between them. Rafael wanted to say something, anything, but no words felt adequate. Jack looked just as lost. Another period of silence followed and Miko sat away from them, and neither boy tried to convince her to rejoin them. Before they had been quiet and mourning together. This time, they were apart.

The three of them were startled by the sound of a vehicle approaching. It was Arcee who transformed and kneeled to their level. Her gentle gaze traveled over each one. "It's getting late. You should all be home."

Miko shook her head, not meeting Arcee's eyes. "I don't want to go back. Not yet."

"Miko…" Jack's protest was halted by a look from his partner, who took the figurative reins. "That's fine, Miko. We'll go for a ride, then. Just let me know when you're ready."

Miko groaned but gave in. "Fine. Let's just go anywhere else. Where I folks won't just show up to annoy me." she gave a bitter sideways glance at the boys, who in spite of it, didn't take it to heart. Jack casted a look on his partner; she had that expression that said she knew what she was doing. That was enough for him.

Eventually, Miko climbed onto Arcee's seat, grabbing the motorcycle's handlebar with her good hand. The femme went through the empty roads of the city with no destination in mind, not the house nor the HQ. She drove slow and steady, mindful of her passenger's injury.

The hum of Arcee's engine and the cold wind passing by were the only sounds as they journeyed through the barren landscape. The impromptu road-trip took them around Lake Léman, where the full moon was reflected on its peaceful surface. After a while, Arcee spoke up, her voice low and comforting. "You don't have to talk if you don't want to. Just know that when you're ready, I'll be here."

Miko closed her eyes against the wind, letting the steady rhythm of the ride ease some of the tension in her chest. She didn't feel like talking, not now, maybe not ever. Still, the ride made her feel a bit less bad.

12th November 2012.

Miko almost formed a smile that day after returning from another ride with Arcee. "You could have made it faster."

The 'Bot, still in vehicular mode, parked right outside the house and allowed Miko to climb off. "Jack would have my head if I sped up too much. He says that your arm is going to need peace and quiet."

"If I get any more 'peace and quiet,' I'm gonna puke and die." Miko made a face like she was actually going to hurl.

Stepping inside the house, the familiar creak of the door signaled her arrival. The air inside was thick with the smell of something good to eat, though she didn't care to identify. Usually Jack's dishes were good enough, regardless of what they were. In the kitchen, she found Jack and Raf were seated at the table, not preparing to serve lunch, though. Instead, they sat despondent and pensative.

Miko was immediately anxious. "Hey, guys. What's cooking?"

Jack's eyes met hers. "Optimus just called," he said, his voice flat, almost mechanical.

That was a surprise seeing as they hadn't seen much of the Prime lately. Following the cyberforming, his battle against Megatron had been the only time when they interacted. He'd been distant, either on missions or away at the base.

"He says that Bulkhead's funeral is scheduled for tomorrow."

The pause that followed felt like an eternity for Miko. She stood frozen while Jack continued: "Wheeljack recovered the body after they removed the Dark Energon, so …"

Her hands curled into fists. "I'm not going."

Rafael stepped forward. "Miko, please."

"Are you kidding me?! I was finally starting to get over it. And Optimus waited until now to drop that bomb. What, did he think I was good enough now? That I didn't miss Bulk that much, anymore?"

"Miko!" It was Arcee who put an end to the imminent tirade, kindly but firm. She could not enter the house so settled for peeking inside through a window "We all miss Bulkhead and will continue to miss him for time to come. The funeral is not to remind us of the pain but for us to honor the good times we shared with him. And to promise to always treasure those memories."

Miko's knuckles turned white from all the clenching. "I don't care. I'm not going."

Arcee addressed all children. "You should all know we are preparing two services, Miko. One for Bulk and another in honor of humanity."

The humans looked at her with mixtures of surprise, anguish and reluctance.

The Autobot sighed sadly. "None of you have to come, but I think you'll regret it if you don't."

13th November 2012.

Sports Center Bout du Monte. Geneva.

It was a humid dawn with the promise of heat from the peaking sun on the horizon. The sports park at the margin of the river, now a wide empty space, had been chosen as the spot for the ceremony. The river added a touch of beauty and serenity to the place. Humans and Autobots alike felt it was fitting.

At the center of the gathering, there was a newly forged, pristine pedestal gleaming under the growing sunlight. Arcee had explained beforehand that the rite demanded the deceased body to be melted and reforged into a pedestal. A Cybertronian tradition that honors the fallen by repurposing their metal into something permanent and symbolic. That brought back a faint, almost forgotten memory to Miko; she was barely 9 years old while attending the funeral of her grandmother. All she remembered was the cremation ceremony and the walk all the way to the graveyard. The girl shook her head, pushing away distractions from the past. She looked back at the pedestal made from Bulkhead's remains and, strangely enough, was relieved. Fearing if she saw his frame again, she would break down and cry.

Looking back at the pedestal, the front was adorned with Cybertronian runes. Miko couldn't read it to save her life but she knew Bulk was from a city called Tetrahex, so it had to read 'Bulkhead from Tetrahex'. Another inscription was carved under that, written in english: 'Here lies Bulkhead. Brother, friend, teammate, hero and Wrecker. We shall meet him again in his next life.' She turned her sight downward; that lame eulogy didn't come close to describing her lost partner.

The ground shook as Optimus paced towards the pedestal. "Bulkhead was more than just a warrior; he was a friend, a protector, and a beacon of strength and endurance. In our shared struggles, he encountered horrors that tormented him until his last moment. Whether they were scraplets or toxic energon, he placed himself against those same horrors time and again. For his teammates and for his family. That is Bulkhead."

The Prime placed a hand on the inscription and a hologram manifested atop the pedestal. It was a perfect mimication of Bulkhead's image, standing firm, arm down and fists clenched. A visage looking distant but resolute. It captured the essence of the fallen - strong, loyal, unyielding.

Miko whispered so faintly. "It looks so much like him."

The Cybertronian attending began whispering and speaking to one another. Rafael and Jack looked up to them, surprised and a little aghast by the unorthodox behavior. Miko herself felt more than a little put out by that. Optimus, seeing that, frowned ever so slightly and proclaimed:

"Though Bulkhead was Cybertronian, he formed bonds with humanity that transcended our differences. In honor of those bonds, we will now observe a moment of silence, a human tradition, to reflect on his life and the impact he had on us all."

If any of the 'Bots was caught off guard by that declaration, none showed it. The moment of silence followed, but Miko didn't take it to reflect on anything. Instead she paced toward the house-sized pedestal. She knelt by the base and placed her cellphone on the floor, a picture of a smiling Bulkhead on display. Then she proceeded to light two incense sticks and place one on each side of the cell phone. Nobody even dared to ask or wonder what she was doing, they just observed. What she performed was a poor imitation of a mourning ritual of her people. Such traditions were never of any interest to her. Now, she was certainly the only person in the universe who knew of them.

The moment of silence passed and Optimus concluded the service with a few final words. "We will continue to fight in Bulkhead's honor, to protect what he stood for. His legacy will live on in our actions and in our memories."

The Autobots gave a collective salute to the hologram. Optimus stepped forward and gave a look at Ratchet, then his optics traveled down to the unsuspecting children. The medic took the message. He quickly began to usher every other Autobot away, complaining about their chores to keep improving the new base of operations. The Prime was left alone with the humans, the very last humans in existence, he coldly reminded himself.

Then, in a move that surprised the children, he knelt and bowed his head on the ground. "Please, forgive me."

Even Miko was distracted from her grief by that out-of-the-blue move. "I offer my deepest apologies. Your world was caught in our war and I couldn't act in time to save it."

Jack and Raf shared an awkward look and the elder spoke. "Optimus, we…"

"Shut the hell up, Prime!" Miko's outburst caught everyone shell-shocked. Even though Optimus didn't move from his position, his head shook a little in surprise. "You wanna start a pity party over what you think is your latest screw-up? Go do it in private. Now look me in the eye!"

The Prime did so, lifting his head so his optics, gentle but downcast, were fixated on the girl. "You wanna 'apologize', Prime?" she made quotation marks with her fingers. "Then, never forget none of this is your fault." she gestured to their surroundings. "This is all Buckethead's fault. Buckethead aimed the Omega Lock at Earth. It was Buckethead who pulled the trigger. It was Buckethead who took away my partner. You never forget that."

Optimus had steel in his look. "Miko, I vow I will never forget that."

14th November 2012.

The next day passed monotonously. Miko hadn't left her room, though the boys could hear music playing from it. None wanted to bother her, though. Jack went out to find something useful to improve their shared residence. Rafael continued to assist Ratchet and the Bots in putting the new HQ at top functionality. Therefore, the youngest was the first to be notified when the mainframe flared up. The medic went for the console, his optics wide open.

"What is it, Ratchet?"

"We are receiving communication from deep space…several sources…all Autobot signals!"

Everyone gathered at HQ to hear the news, Miko being the last. When she arrived, almost dragged there. When she arrived, Wheeljack sported the biggest grin she ever saw on his face.

"What got you so cheerful?"

He chuckled. "Wreckers, kiddo! I just learnt some of my old squadron are alive and kicking on some planet and they're coming here."

"More Wreckers?" that broke some emotion to her voice. He kneeled close to her.

"You can bet, Miko. I sometimes thought we were the last of the bunch. But most of them stuck together and are now coming here."

"Cool."

He laughed jovially. "It's more than 'cool'. Just wait until I introduce you to every last one of them. Now this party…" he stopped himself when he spotted Optimus. The Prime was distracted, listening to a reply from the inbound Autobots and didn't mind him. The realization hit him like a punch from an Insecticon.

"Wheeljack?" Miko brought him back to reality. "You okay? You kinda zoned out on me."

The joy that had possessed him earlier dissipated. He realized what more Autobots, especially Wreckers, meant for his current situation.

"It's nothing, Miko. Just thinking… you'll have a blast meeting everyone."

15th November 2012.

More communications from beyond the stars had poured in, all from different Autobot cells who had heard the message and were inbound to arrive. To Team Prime in general was a much needed morale boost. The curtain of despair that had befallen them lifted a little more with each new message. Arcee rejoiced knowing Chromia was still kicking. Ratchet actually smiled when his old assistance, Red Alert, revealed himself on the screen. Wheeljack, most of all, was jubilant to learn the Wreckers, as a whole, were still a thing.

It almost made what the Wrecker was about to go through bearable. It was inevitable, really. Wheeljack knew there would be consequences for allowing Miko to get involved a second time. His sentence had only been postponed because Team Prime was short on mech-power. But with scores of Autobots on their way, that wasn't an issue anymore.

As he rode out of Geneva, he received a call. It was from Miko. He turned her down just to get another one immediately. With a heavy spark, he blocked her contact.

"Goodbye, kid."

I known this chapter took longer and it was shorter than usual. But that's because it was originally going to be longer, with scenes of other Autobots and Decepticons scattered throughout the universe. I opted to cut it in half and the next chapter will include all of those.