Scratch that: this took longer than I thought. Other distractions got to me and my slow writing got slower. But now it's complete, and to be honest, the third and final part to Crossfire will probably be the quickest one to write... hopefully. I hope you enjoy.
Crossfire, Part 2
Autobot Hideout - Missile Silo
Both Aiko and Jackson rushed out of the medbay and to the main room as fast as they could. There, they saw all Autobots sans Jasper watching a beeping monitor, showing one purple point on a grid map.
"What's going on?" Jackson asked.
"Decepticon activity. It appeared out of nowhere, and I can't make much of it," Ratchet said as he was typing away at the keyboard, hearing a gritty, encrypted signal.
"A Decepticon beacon?" Ironhide asked while looking over Ratchet's shoulder.
Ratchet shooed Ironhide away, "Correct. I'm trying to undo the decryption to see where and what it's sending out, but it's proving difficult."
Jackson heard all this and turned to Optimus, "Any idea on what the 'Cons are doing, Prime?"
Optimus was in deep thought, his optics peering in the corner of his vision.
"Were it Megatron that did this, he would have attempted to set up another secure Energon Mine. But Starscream has all of Megatron's ambition with none of his patience… I imagine whatever he is planning will be rash." He said nothing more as he went deeper into thought.
Jackson's concern only grew with this answer. Meanwhile, while analyzing the encrypted signal on the monitor, Bumblebee then beeped inquisitively. Though neither of the two humans could understand it, all three Autobots perked up upon hearing it.
Ironhide chuckled, "Of course, the kid. He's already cracked their encryption before, he can do it again."
Ratchet scoffed, saying, "Nearly forgot he was a code-breaker in disguise… but where is he?"
Optimus turned to Aiko, and asked, "Division Major, you said you were searching for Jasper, correct?"
Aiko nodded her head while rushing for the landline, "Yes. Jackson said he was out with Ralph to grab something. He best not complain about being brought back, or I swear I'm gonna disassemble him."
While the phone rang, Aiko glanced back and saw Ratchet, Ironhide, and Bumblebee give her a surprised side-optic.
Aiko sighed, "It's hyperbole. I wouldn't actually–"
On the fourth ring, the line cut within a split-second, leaving a furious Aiko hanging.
"... I swear, I'm going to tear him apart and put him back together as a toaster, that little–!"
Ratchet then interjected, saying, "Major, wait! I'm getting a message from Jasper."
Aiko turned back in confusion, asking, "What is it?"
Ratchet squinted his optics, "It says… 'no physical phone, too suspicious… need escape, call Ralph… with parents…'." Ratchet tilted his headpiece, "What in Primus's name does that mean?"
Aiko's eyes widened in realization, but Jackson answered first with a scoff.
"He's dealing with the scolding of a lifetime, and he's asking for a way out."
In Kamilo…
"You doing okay in there, son?"
"I'm fine, dad!"
Jasper rubbed his eyes as he heard his dad shout that from the main room, all while in the kitchen pouring three glasses of water. He nearly dropped the glasses after accidentally dripping water onto his exposed hand, causing the holo-hand to almost short-circuit and drop its disguise. But eventually, after quite a few paper towels, he cautiously rushed back to the main room where his mom, dad, and Ralph were all sitting on the large couch. He handed all three of them a glass each.
"Thanks, sonny. I'm parched. All that driving didn't leave me much time for a water stop," Jasper's dad said before drinking down a large gulp from his glass.
"Haha… yeah, I believe you…" Jasper said with a crooked and nervous grin.
"Yeah, your father was very adamant that we come here as fast as possible. But since your father was in the car, it felt a loooooot longer than that."
"Oh yeah, and you switching from hot to cold to hot again was funny the first five times. I think our A/C hates us."
"Okay! Mom, Dad, I'm sure your trip was a long one, but I have to ask: why did you do it?" Jasper asked, quickly cringing from his decision.
The mom and dad both responded with blank stares at their son like dull daggers just scraping the surface.
"Sonny, we talked about this, didn't we? When it's your last year, you tell us and we'll be here the very same second to see you get on that stage and graduate. And what did you do?" Jasper's father said sternly.
Jasper laughed nervously through clenched teeth, no answer in his mind.
"I'm sorry, I've only heard a little about this… what are you talking about?" Ralph spoke up while holding his hand over his head.
With confusion, Jasper's mom asked, "And… who are you? I make no offense, but I don't think Jasper's ever mentioned you before."
"I'm Ralph. Jasper and I only just met," was Ralph's answer under the Mom's gaze.
"Oh, well that's nice of Jasper to make more friends. But I guess to explain, my husband Jason and I were very adamant on seeing our boy get his degree. I wanted to watch it, record it, keep it as a memory of dear Jay growing up."
"Mom, I am grown up," Jasper corrected.
"And yet you forget to invite us? Does Vivian and me being there make you feel embarrassed?" The dad, now Jason, said while sipping from his cup.
"What? No, definitely not. It just slipped my mind, Dad. I was–"
"He was job-hunting."
Ralph's interjection got everyone's attention in the moment of thickening tension.
"And did he…" The mom, now Vivian, asked with curiosity.
"He did. In fact, he works with me. I'm a work friend of his."
Such simple words somehow excited the couple to no degree, with wide smiles on their faces. Ralph also noticed Jasper sending him a thumbs up, a look of relief clear on his face.
"I knew he would get that job, Jason! And you said it would take him a month!"
"Guess I was wrong. Hey, what's the job about?"
"Cyber Security."
"Decoding."
Jasper and Ralph respectively answered and confused the couple, causing Jasper to quickly interject.
"The job tends to delve into both fields, but I'm still learning the ropes from this guy," Jasper elbowed Ralph at the end.
"That so? What's the job like?" Jason asked, sloshing his drink forward and causing Jasper to dodge the stray water spray.
"Uh… can't say. Haven't been there that long to really describe it."
"Oh, okay. What can you say about it, Ralph?" Jason quickly followed.
"Uh…" Was all Ralph could say, his conflict clear as he tried to think of an answer that didn't include massive, transforming robotic alien soldiers.
"Well… you see–"
A ring from Ralph's pocket saved him from having to continue. He pulled out his phone and found it to be an unorthodox numbering group: a clear sign it was from the missile silo.
"Hold on, I have to take this," Ralph then answered it, and asked, "Hello?... Oh, yes, he's right here… yes, ma'am."
Ralph held the phone to Jasper, who took it without a second thought, bracing himself for a pissed-off Aiko.
"Hellooooo?" Jasper nervously asked.
"You're being awfully coy, Jasper. Why are you speaking with your parents?"
"Wasn't really expecting it today. They kinda showed up before I could return back to ba– I mean, back to work."
"Well, you best come back. We need some of your decrypting skills for a signal. And don't think I didn't notice that you didn't finish mopping. We'll talk about that later."
As Jasper silently cursed to himself, Jasper's mom spoke up.
"Hun, is that work?" Vivian asked.
"Uh, yeah, my boss is wondering why I'm not there and needs me ASAP. I've gotta–"
Vivian quickly interjected, exclaiming, "Oh, my! Your boss is on the phone!? Hey, ask if we can talk with her."
"Hey, son, you can tell me… Is your boss good-looking?" Jason quickly asked in a low and joking whisper.
Mouth hanging open, Jasper merely exclaimed, "For the love of– Dad! I'm not answering that!" He shouted nervously, noticing a side glance from his mom and Ralph.
"Jasper, that signal won't decrypt itself, you know," Aiko stated.
Jasper, nearing his limit as he found himself between two conversations, came up with something.
"Miss, I'm going to put you on speaker right now," Jasper said as he held out the phone and pressed the speaker button, "You hear us?"
"Yes."
"Wow, what a strong voice. Hi, it's Jay–Jasper's parents. How are you?" Vivian asked.
"I'm fine. Though I am missing two of my… employees," Aiko said with a pause.
"That's wonderful. Where does our boy work?" Jason then asked.
… Uh oh.
"We have a secondary location in Kamilo that he works in along with Ralph," Aiko answered without missing a beat.
Jasper breathed a sigh of relief while staring at Ralph, who gave the 'okay' symbol. Aiko must have been prepared for questions like this.
Though Jasper wondered if Aiko was prepared for his parents to continue asking questions. With one came more, and Jasper had to resist groaning aloud while his mom and dad nitpicked every part of his 'job'.
Now he truly wished that he stayed in the base.
"... So what do you think, Jasper? Can we meet Miss Aiko?"
Jasper was roused from his mind at his dad's question and had to stop himself from dropping Ralph's phone. Even Ralph, who was actually listening the whole time, was surprised. But thankfully, this is something Jasper can say 'no' to.
"Uh… No, Dad, that can't happen. Aiko couldn't possibly–"
"We can meet."
"... Huh?" Jasper stared at the phone.
"There's a Cap'n's Catches nearby. Bring your parents there, then return to work to decode. We'll have a nice, pleasant chat about you. See you soon."
Click.
The call ended. Jason and Vivian were glad. Ralph was stunned. And Jasper was staring at the phone in utter confusion.
What just happened?
Decepticon Warship - The Nemesis
In the medbay, Starscream kept tapping something in his servo onto the table he was leaning on, hearing it give off a dense 'tink' each time.
"Yet again, I am confused by your choices as Leader of the Decepticons. Imprisoning Barricade after a botched interrogation? I can understand that. But this? We had enough weapons to turn the Autobots into scrap. To turn the planet into glass... But you never used them. Why?"
Starscream stared right at Megatron's stoic, inactive faceplate, looking better with every cycle that the doctor worked on it. As usual, aside from the beeping of his medical devices, there was no response from the former Warlord.
Starscream sighed, "If only you weren't comatose. How I would love to hear your reasoning. But, I know you would be more likely to grind my faceplate into the floor instead. It's cycles like these where I wonder what your grand plan was."
Suddenly, the ship's comms came live, and Soundwave made an announcement.
"Lord Starscream, the soldiers have gathered to begin the mission."
"Hmm," Starscream fully stood from the table and started walking away from Megatron, "Oh well, I have my plan instead. Be sure to stay put for the good news."
Starscream left the medbay, his faceplate with a wide grin as the door sealed behind him, leaving only the cold beeping of medical equipment in the sterile lab.
Autobot Hideout - Missile Silo
"Jasper is incoming. Activating the ground bridge."
Ratchet sounded off the message on the screen to everyone as he pulled the switch, the ground bridge frame exploding in vibrant green waves of energy to form a portal. Eventually, a familiar light military truck came through with a deadpan Jasper Judge holoform in the driver's seat and Ralph in the shotgun seat. As the portal closed, the truck came to a complete stop in front of Ratchet, Optimus, Bumblebee, Jackson, and Ironhide.
"There he is… Hey, Jasper! How was the drive!?" Ironhide casually asked as he bumped the roof of Jasper's truck form.
Ralph quickly left before Jasper began to transform, quickly finding himself standing tall with the same blank look on his faceplate.
"It was… quick. Someone needed me for a decoding?" Jasper asked, his mind occupied.
"Right here," Ratchet said as he gestured to the monitor with an audio wave file.
"Go get 'em, code-breaker," said Ironhide in support.
Jasper gave a soft chuckle before stepping in Ratchet's place and viewing the looping audio file.
"Be careful not to harm yourself, Jasper," Optimus warned.
Jasper merely nodded as he placed his servos on each side of his headpiece, suddenly flinching as the floodgates of jumbled noise broke open and began to unravel in his processor.
"This may take a moment, people," Jasper said with a focused look in his optics.
As Jasper was decrypting, Jackson shifted towards Ralph and spoke up with a low tone.
"He's looking a little distant. I have to ask: why did the Major decide to meet up with his parents? She never gave me much of a reason. You have any ideas?"
Ralph's attention darted between Jackson and Jasper, still vigilantly decrypting the signal and seeming rather focused enough to not notice.
"Hard to say. When I asked her why, she said she wanted a–"
Ten minutes ago…
"–character reference?" Ralph asked, his head tilted as he did.
"Correct," Aiko affirmed.
Ralph was sitting under the evening sun at a table outside of Cap'n's Catches while speaking to his Major; she answered back while enjoying a meal she got minutes before they arrived. All the while, Jasper was trying to order for his parents at the server's counter, which was just far enough away from the unorthodox conversation.
Ralph scratched his head on the thought, and asked, "But why? Is he in a court case? What is… I don't understand, Major."
"Ralph, do you remember how closely you, Jackson, and I were investigated before we were ever given our security clearances?" Aiko asked.
Ralph groaned slightly and said, "Don't remind me. Those investigators treated my life like an open book and analyzed every page… Oh God, are you having investigators doing the same for him?"
"No, no, nothing like that. But I would like to do some investigating of my own. And if I wanna find the answers to my questions, then I focus on his uprising."
Like a flipped switch, Ralph made the connection as he peered back at the advancing Judge family, who seemed to be bickering among themselves.
Ralph returned his attention to Aiko, "I… think I see. But that doesn't answer the other question… Why?"
"Like I said, Ralph. Character reference. I wanna try and understand him so I can help him," Aiko said passingly before getting up to greet the family with a firm stance.
Present…
"That's about all I was told," Ralph confessed.
"Help him, huh? Well, no use in…" Jackson glanced at Jasper and lowered his voice at Ralph, "... no use in theorizing what she's planning. We have other things to worry about."
Jasper gave a slight snarl, surprising the two humans, only to realize he was snarling at the monitor.
"Perhaps we should leave this for after the search?" Ralph thought aloud.
Jackson agreed, saying, "Good point."
And that would have been that.
"So… what were his parents like?"
Both Ralph and Jackson turned around to find a crouched-down Ironhide, speaking at a volume level above the two.
Before either could awkwardly answer, Jasper perked up and the wavelength on the monitor was zoomed in on.
"Hold… I'm hearing something."
"What do you hear?" Optimus asked, stepping forward.
"I found out where the beacon's located, but I'm also noticing a lot of… chatter around it. The Decepticon's comms are rather busy, and they're talking about how it's dangerous to activate the crate's beacon… wait…"
Jasper hunched over even more, listening more deeply. Optimus took a step back to give him space. Meanwhile, Jackson and Ralph tried to listen in.
"'The Autobots may find out about the… combat modules'? What is a combat module?"
Jasper peered back just in time to see the optics of every Autobot widen just before looking back at Optimus, whose visor seemed to lower and intensify his stern expression.
And Jackson had a feeling why he was thinking that.
"It's a weapon, isn't it?" A simple question, yet one that perplexed Jasper.
"I mean, it does have 'combat' in the name, doesn't it? Heheh… heh."
Jasper's laugh died down as he felt the room's intensity remain the same. Involuntarily, he found his servo gravitating towards a nearby Rascal as Ratchet spoke up next.
"Combat modules were modular devices that could empower a soldier with abilities to turn any battle in their favor."
Ironhide joined in, saying, "When the Decepticons first designed them, it gave them an edge in the war for tens of many cycles. We would have lost had we not taken some for ourselves. The problem was… well…"
"Many were lost in the exodus to Earth," Optimus answered for Ironhide, then said, "Prolonged installations proved fatal, so they had to be stored separately. They were scattered with many other weapons to the stars during a skirmish, yet Starscream found them on Earth."
"So they are doing it? They're preparing to jumpstart the war?" Jackson asked while heading for the landline, "Aiko needs to hear about this."
Ratchet sighed, and said, "Bringing in your military would only worsen the problem. You should know that."
"Well, forgive me if I dislike the thought of Decepticons conquering my planet, eh?" Jackson said with a snark.
From nowhere, Ralph placed a hand on Jackson's shoulder and gave him a concerned look.
"Sir, bringing in any of our forces could lead to unneeded casualties. We have to tread carefully here."
Bumblebee beeped in agreement with his human companion, drawing a groan from Jackson as he let go of the phone.
"If they get their hands on those weapons, you Autobots will be outnumbered and outgunned. So what will you do?"
In this heated conversation, Jasper was petting Rascal with a panicked look. That was, until Optimus placed a servo on his shoulderpad, his faceplate looking more serious.
"Jasper, do you hear anything about the Decepticons' progress?"
Realizing what he meant, Jasper returned to listening in, sifting through more of the noise until he found what he wanted.
Jasper jolted his headpiece to Optimus and said, "They said they're still uncovering the crate right now."
Optimus nodded and turned to everyone else.
"Autobots, Starscream and the Decepticons have not acquired the weapons yet. If we strike fast, we can destroy them before that happens."
"Now we're talking," Ironhide said, extending his arm cannons, "I was itching to blast some 'Cons."
Optimus began marching for the ground bridge cradle, deadset with his movements.
"Ratchet, power the ground bridge. Ironhide and Bumblebee, arm yourselves. And Jasper, lead the way and stay out of combat as much as possible."
On that last part, Jasper seemed troubled, and reached out a servo.
"Wait, Optimu–Er, Sir, please reconsider. I can use my tank form, I've got practice with my blaster. I can give you supportive fire. I can help you."
"You are helping us. You're taking us right to them. Do not let your eagerness lead to trouble."
"I… Understood," Jasper relented as he put his servo down.
"Don't worry, Jasper," Ironhide said as he called out to him, "You'll get front row seats to a big battle. It'll be fun."
Jackson added in, "Yeah. Then after that, you can finish your maintenance duties before Aiko turns you to scrap."
Jasper seemed to only chuckle nervously as he stepped forward and assumed a rank with the other transformers as the ground bridge sparked to life and painted the room in a green glow.
"Autobots, roll out!"
Optimus sounded out as he transformed into his truck form and sped through the swirling vortex, disappearing along with all the other transformed Autobots tailing him. Quickly after, Ratchet deactivated the cradle and the portal died down, but his servo never left the switch.
"I can only hope that Starscream isn't crazy enough to abuse those weapons."
In the Desert…
Starscream shook out the reddish sand trying to invade his armor pieces as he stood atop an eroded cliffside. Looking down, he saw the miners and drones uncovering what they could under the scorching sun in search of the weapons crates. Higher-ups such as Brawl, Thrust, and Thundercracker were overseeing their own respective groups to ensure efficiency. And yet, Starscream could only sigh as he saw the red sands slowly undo their efforts.
"Curse this weather-mad planet. Megatron had to be mad to think of ever preserving this rock," Starscream spoke in a low tone.
"Lord Starscream," Soundwave announced as he stepped to his Lord's side.
Though shocked, Starscream stabilized himself and asked, "Soundwave. Show me the current position of the signal."
Wordlessly, Soundwave presses a button on the side of his visor to produce a red hologram, showing their surroundings in a grid-like design with one big blip just underneath them.
"Scans reveal the signal is emanating within the sands. Miners are closing in as fast as they can," Soundwave then announced.
"Not fast enough," Starscream muttered before turning to the cliff, "Decepticons! Speed is of the essence, so I need you at your fastest, then double that! The next time we see the Autobots, it will be with heavy weaponry!"
"Uh, Starscream!?" Brawl shouted from the lower ground.
Groaning, Starscream said, "For the last time, it is Lord–"
Starscream stopped himself when he saw Brawl holding something in his servo: a plasma grenade, turned inactive for cold storage.
Starscream was quick to forget the transgression of titles, and grinned.
"Perfect, Brawl. You found the weapons crate."
Brawl then corrected, "Well, that's just it, Starscream. I found this on its own."
Starscream tilted his head. On its own? Outside of a crate? Decepticon weaponry was not exactly left lying around on this rock, now was it?
"Must have been a breach. Or even worse, Autobots… Decepticons, investigate! Soundwave…" Starscream turned to his second-in-command.
"Laserbeak, Ravage, eject and search."
The greyish panther and flier popped out and immediately scoured the surrounding areas for anything unusual.
Meanwhile, Thrust and Thundercracker peered at each other.
"I bet I'll find my combat module before you," Thrust sneered.
Thundercracker scoffed, saying, "Oh, please. You'd lose your blasters if they weren't attached to your frame."
Thrust growled out, "You're gonna look real stupid when you come up empty."
Starscream sighed as he rubbed his optical ridge, grueling from the sight of his two Seekers inane rivalry. Though his attention was diverted quickly when he noticed something small in the red sands. Scooping it up and letting the sands fall away, he discovered a rusty, bent piece of rectangular metal. And oddly enough, it had six imprinted letters. Resembling a… license plate the fleshlings used for their vehicles.
Is it possible…?
Not Far Off…
"You know what this reminds me of?" Ironhide asked as he drove down rough red desert land.
Bumblebee beeped in an unsure manner, driving right beside him.
"When Jasper led us to that mine to rescue the humans. And that ended with an explosion and a cave-in! Hahaha!... Oh, that was an incredible fight."
"This will not be like the cave incident," Optimus declared as he led the two 'Bots, "For when we find their location, Ratchet is going to ground bridge him back immediately."
Jasper, who was ahead of all three of them in his truck form, couldn't resist as his holoform peered at Optimus through his side-view mirror.
"A shame," Jasper said over the radio, "Would have loved to have seen the battle."
"In battles like these, everything can change in a nanocycle. It would be too dangerous to even be nearby," Optimus explained.
Jasper grumbled, but agreed.
"Sorry buddy, guess you won't have front row seats," Ironhide said.
Jasper quickly chuckled, before his head jerked forward and he pumped his breaks to a full stop. The Autobots follow suit just behind him as he faces an upward sloping hill.
"It's up ahead."
Everyone transformed, with Optimus quickly taking the lead while staying low, with Bumblebee and Ironhide armed and alert. Slowly, the Autobot squadron closes in on the hill's peak, and peer over the edge…
"Decepticons," Optimus said as he lowered further down.
And what he saw was just that: Decepticons, be it miners or drones or the higher-ups that observed them. They were working in a dip of the desert removing tons of sand and rock in search of the weapons.
Ironhide grinned, "Ah, 'Cons. They haven't found their bounty just yet," Ironhide primed his arm cannon, "Let's make sure they never do."
But Optimus placed his servo on Ironhide's arm cannon, lowering it.
"Not yet, Ironhide. First, Jasper needs to return to base, then we can strike," Optimus placed a digit on his audio receptor, "Ratchet, we need a ground bridge for Jasper."
"Understood, Optimus."
Optimus turned his attention to Jasper, and said, "Jasper, the location of the ground bridge has been sent to you."
But Jasper never turned his optics to Optimus. Instead, he seemed to focus further on the scene in front of them. Bumblebee nudged his shoulder and beeped concerningly.
"... Why are Soundwave's little helpers searching outside the dig site?"
Jasper's words perplexed the Autobots, but Optimus was quick to notice as well: Laserbeak and Ravage were beyond the dig perimeter, searching for something that was not a weapon's drop. With even further analysis, Optimus noticed that Starscream was looking more and more agitated as he was speaking with Soundwave while waving around… something.
Something was wrong. Optimus knew that well.
"Jasper, can you listen to Starscream's comms?" Optimus asked.
He nodded and placed his servos on his head, quickly sifting through the hundreds of communications lines in the area until he heard familiar voices.
"–They took it. Those little insects stole our weapons!" Starscream screamed out.
Jasper's head tilted. Insects? What did that mean?
"They did not take everything, Lord Starscream. Only one crate is missing. And according to local reports, a group of humans discovered the weaponry and took it with them to salvage them," Soundwave calmly explained.
"What are you picking up?" Ironhide asked, his curiosity piqued.
Jasper turned to Ironhide, "Some humans picked up a weapons crate to salvage it. And oh boy, is Starscream pissed."
"Then those humans are in danger," Optimus said before getting on comms, "Sergeant Jackson, I need you to tell me of the nearest salvage operations."
"Wait, hold on…" Jasper's optics were back on Starscream and Soundwave.
"Location discovered," Soundwave said.
Immediately, Starscream went to the edge of the cliff and angrily pointed at his Seekers.
"Thrust! Thundercracker! Reach the location and reacquire our weapons!"
"Yes, Lord Starscream!"
The two Seekers jumped as they transformed, their thrusters on max as they reached the clouds and broke the sound barrier.
Jasper's optics were wide, "Oh no, those two are going to get the weapons back."
All three Autobots were shocked, but Optimus was quick to respond.
"Did they say where the weapons were located?"
Jasper, in a bit of a panic, said, "Uh, no… Wait!"
Jasper switched his attention to the sky, and picked up chatter between Thrust and Thundercracker.
"I can pick up where they are in the sky, but the signal isn't staying strong."
Optimus lowered his gaze, and quickly answered, "Then we have to split up. Bumblebee, remain with me to deal with the main force. Ironhide, follow Jasper in tracking the Seekers. When you do find them, send Jasper back to base. Understood?"
Ironhide and Bumblebee nodded with assurance, while Jasper hesitantly nodded.
"These weapons can be devastating in Decepticon hands. We cannot allow them in their hands. We must stop them no matter what. Roll out!"
Jasper and Ironhide transformed and floored it, leaving Bumblebee and Optimus to formulate a plan.
Then Jackson came to the comms.
"Optimus, I heard. I ordered evacuations of all the nearest salvage operations."
"Understood, Sergeant Jackson."
"But I have to ask, are you going to try and take the weapon for yourselves?" Jackson asked.
"The main objective is to ensure the Decepticons can never use them."
"But those weapons could be rather useful in stopping the Decepticons. Wouldn't it be best to try to take them?"
"... Such weapons could lead to many lives lost in vain. This war will be won with their surrender, not their destruction."
"... I understand."
The comms deactivated, and Optimus began formulating a plan with Bumblebee.
Meanwhile, Jasper once again led the tracking with Ironhide just behind kicking up red sand. But somehow, this was different. Optimus's words echoed in his headpiece over and over as his holoform gripped his driving wheel tight: 'We must stop them no matter what'. No matter what…
"You following their signal?" Ironhide asked as he floored it.
"Still am. We seem to be keeping up with them."
"... So your parents… What's up with them?"
Jasper nearly lost his focus with Ironhide's abrupt and casual question, but shook the shock from his mind.
"I… There's nothing 'up' with them. I don't understand–"
"Sorry if its a tough question. I was just curious. I have no idea what parents are like."
"Wait a second… you don't have parents?"
"Not at all."
"Then how were you born… made… created?"
"The Well of Sparks makes all Cybertronians. That's not the same for organics, right?"
Jasper could barely make it past the casual mentioning of the Well of… Sparks? But still, he continued.
"No. Two people come together to make another. It's about as child-friendly as I can make it."
"So they're like your makers?"
"Y-yes, of course. But they also raise us until we're old enough to make our decisions."
"That sounds like a lot of dedication."
"It is… parents are supposed to give their kid a lot of love and attention while trying to give them the best chances at life."
"Sounds interesting… and you could be anything?"
"Well, yeah, it's whatever you like to do, preferably. But it's usually going to be something that is good. That will make your parents proud… You hope you make them proud, at least."
"Sounds like a lot of pressure."
"Huh? No, not at all. It's just… hard to know if what you're doing is the right thing."
"... Jasper?"
Jasper refocused from his tandem, and said, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say–"
"I see them."
Jasper looked forward and brought himself to a stop. Far away, past the haze of a light red sand storm, two large figures were tearing up a junkyard. Thrust and Thundercracker.
"It's them. Seems like they're still looking for the weapons. Perfect." Ironhide said to himself before turning to Jasper and saying, "Thank you, Jasper, but now's the time for Ratchet to call you back. I'll tell him to form a ground bridge for you."
"... Don't."
"What?"
"It's just the two of them. You were able to handle three Seekers on your own. Now it's just two of them. Maybe… I can help you."
"Jasper–"
"Think about it. I rain down tank shells on them from afar, you take them on up close. It would be a cinch. We might even take them down and get whatever weapons they have. It's foolproof."
"Your safety is a priority, Jasper. I can't just allow that."
"Ironhide, you heard what Optimus said. These weapons can do a lot of damage. We have to stop them no matter what."
"You don't think I can?"
"It's not that, I just think… I can't just let you do it all alone. It's not right."
Ironhide was silent, and Jasper was slowly regretting his words. Did he upset him? Was he too persistent? Did he do something wrong? He just wanted to–
Ironhide then gave a long sigh, and said, "Wait for my que. And if there's the slightest sign of danger, retreat. Got it?"
Jasper wordlessly nodded over and over, as he steeled his expression.
"I'm never going to hear the end of it from Optimus," Ironhide muttered to himself.
In the Junkyard…
"Where did these fleshbags put it!?" Thrust yelled out as he shoveled through the scrap piles.
Thundercracker peered back, "Just keep looking. I don't like this place. It's like a graveyard."
And rightfully so. Within this junkyard were many stacks of multiple cars, trucks, and other vehicles that were rusted and mangled beyond repair. Piles of scrap and vehicle parts were strewn about and looked too close to Cybertronian body parts. Thundercracker knew they weren't body parts, but that did not ease him very well. Either way, he wanted out of there as quickly as possible. It was just him and Thrust. No backup. But he couldn't complain. He could only do his job, and satisfy his Lieutenant-now-Lord.
If only they had Slipstream helping them…
While Thundercracker cautiously scanned the junk, he heard something else: the roar of an engine. He turned to the noise and found a hard-packed road that led to the Junkyard. And on that road was a black pick-up truck. A very familiar black pick-up truck.
"Uh, Thrust… search faster."
"Thundercracker, you say that one more time–"
"We've got an incoming Autobot!"
Thrust's optics widened as he turned to see that same black pick-up truck transform into Ironhide, arm cannons primed and already firing at them.
"Find it, now!" Thundercracker ordered as he aimed his arm-blasters at the incoming Ironhide.
A firefight ensued, energy blasts and rounds flying at a sprinting Ironhide and a crouching Thundercracker.
Thrust scoffed and got back up and primed his own blasters.
"We can take him! It's just one 'Bot!"
But then a loud and deep bang was heard in the distance. Thrust jumped back as a tank shell toppled a vehicle stack over and sent shrapnel everywhere. A confused Thrust looked around and saw something far away atop a red desert mound: a tank form. Singular barrel.
"Triple-changer" was all Thrust could scream out as another tank round came flying at him. Then another. And another. Thrust struggled to keep out of the path of destruction as he took cover.
Ironhide shouted, "Keep the barrage going, Hollowpoint!"
Ironhide rushing at them while that tank 'Bot… Hollowpoint… was raining down hot metal on him? This was bad. Simple as that. If they wanted to keep their chances high, they would retreat to the skies as fast as possible and take no chances. But then the weapons would be in the hands of the Autobots… and they couldn't allow that. Starscream would be furious over that. Just what were they going to–
Then Thrust saw something. Uncovered after another scrap pile was blown away from the tank. Something that was shinier and newer than the other junk: a metal surface with familiar grooves and a Decepticon logo.
Thrust rushed for it while keeping his headpiece low, opened it up… and grinned.
Thundercracker cursed as Ironhide got even closer, a wide grin on the Autobot. He had to do it: he had to call for a retreat.
"Thrust!? This is getting bad! We'll have to retreat, now! Call for reinforcements later!"
"No need for that…"
Confused, Thundercracker turned to his comrade and found something in his servo. And Ironhide, though being far away, recognized it with widened optics.
"A spry little target, aren't you?"
Jasper, now Hollowpoint, was blasting tank round after tank round at Thrust, not giving him a single second of respite. Ironhide's suggestion; keep Thrust off of him while he took out Thundercracker. Hollowpoint thought he could just take out Thrust himself, but longshotting a 'Con with his tank form was much harder than hitting still targets from thirty feet away.
At least Thrust was unable to fire back, he thought.
"Hollowpoint, you need to retreat!"
Confused, Hollowpoint asked, "Why? We've got them on the ropes."
And in his processor, that was true. Thundercracker was too preoccupied while Thrust was under suppressing fire, just searching through the piles and yelling at his partner.
"No, you need to go, now! They found them!"
While Ironhide shouted over the comms, Thrust seemed to insert something into his chestpiece. Was… was he looking at Hollowpoint?
"What!? They found what!?"
Half a mile. Half a mile of desert was between Hollowpoint and the Decepticons. Too far for them to blast him, but not far enough for him to rain lead on them.
And yet, somehow, Thrust was able to cover that in five seconds by firing off every single thruster on his body. Like a dark-red, metal blur.
In five seconds, Thrust sped right in front of Hollowpoint's tank form. And all he could do was give a short scream and transform to block with his arms.
Both of Thrust's blasters fired off, sending Hollowpoint flying back and out of Ironhide's sight.
"Hollowpoint!" Ironhide screamed out as he transformed and floored it for his comrade.
The Decepticons had found the combat modules.