Author's Notes: We're back baby! Here we are finally at the official Word's Unspoken sequel to see what these crazy kids have been up to in the past decade! That's right! A whole eleven years has passed since the events of Word's Unspoken. I HIGHLY recommend you give Word's Unspoken a read if you haven't already unless you want this story to make little to no sense.
Our girl Rhea is all grown up and dealing with all sorts of shenanigans involving both Autobot and Decepticons alike. But she's happy, as long as she has Soundwave and Laserbeak with her. Everything seems like it's just great… right? Although, the timeline is a little off, and, some people seem, apparently unrelated to the main story… Odd. But no matter! Rhea is becoming Cybertronian! Or at least, she's starting to. Shockwave is struggling to make her Cyberformation stick and Arcee is still working hard to talk her out of the change, all while both parties work to weave long lost colony worlds back into Cybertronian culture. Lots of odd things out there, waiting in the darkness of space. Let's hope our heroes can handle whatever they find.
A bit of a Trigger Warning for some chapters of this story, and I will make sure to add the warning in the author's notes of the appropriate chapter. Some characters in this tale will be exploring their shared journey of sexuality, and characters who have never had a sexuality at all will soon discover it! Excited for them! There will be nothing 'graphic' in that department, promise, so I am confident in the lower age rating. What I DO feel I need to warn you all about is the other aspect, which will be violent scenes of torture in later chapters and then resulting PTSD episodes that follow. Again, I will put an obvious warning in those chapters, so it doesn't just fall out of the sky. I trust you to know your limits with this. If depictions of violence, brutality, or similar unpleasantness triggers you, avoid those chapters.
So. With that all said, welcome back dear readers! Let us begin the newest chapter in our tale… Please sit back, get ready to drop a comment, and of course, enjoy!
Death is not an ending. It is merely a transformation. - Deng Ming-Dao
Prologue from the Past
It was going so well, but now she was cowering in the growing shadows of twilight.
A little girl sat hunched under a lone pine tree. Thick kinky hair twisted up into two black puffs on either side of her head. Palms pressed so hard to both her ears it was borderline painful. Tears stained her young chestnut face. The surrounding merriment drowned out her sorrow, her presence unseen in the looming shadow of the tree in the creeping darkness.
Everything was too much for her already stretched to the limit senses. The sweet scent of fried dough dusted in powdered sugar permeated the late-October day. Popcorn exploded from its protective shells, flinging peanut oil out into the ether. Cream churned over ice so cold it radiated waves of frosty steam. The milky froth thickened by a popping diesel engine housed in a bright green John Deer tractor. Other children unaffected by the chaos of the fair stood excited before the assortment of treats. Money in hand and smiling mouths watering.
Sweat still clung to her. The month had yet to shed its heat, but that was common for the region. The radiant heat carried over from the day allowed the smells to linger along the black tar streets of the famous southern state fair. Even in twilight, the warmth in the air permitted sounds to travel for miles.
It all cut through her brain like a hot serrated knife. The excited screams of people conquering their fears or chasing their thrills sailed behind speeding roller-coaster carts. Carnies shouted over the crowd about promised prizes or terrors to be seen in fun houses and freak shows. People stepped around her or far too close to her fearful huddle.
This day was supposed to be fun, and she ruined it. This was guaranteed to be the least crowded day of the fair so she would not drown in a sea of people. A fun place to explore instead of school with its sneering teachers and mocking children. Her dad left to get something that would cheer her up. Had he been gone for minutes? Hours? Years? She would be stuck here forever without him.
"Rhea?" A familiar voice muffled by her palms pressed to her ears. A soft and comforting voice. It promised safety.
The little girl cracked open her watery eyes and saw the face of her dad. An ice cream grasped in either hand, just like he promised to fetch. He was worried, but calm. His calm made her feel better.
The John Deer tractor popped again in its haste to churn out more ice cream.
Rhea screamed. She buried her ears once more with both hands. She shut her eyes and banished the chaotic world in favor of the darkness.
"Shoulder touch." Her dad explained, his voice muffled again. It was a warning of incoming contact to her skin. His callused hands rested on both her shoulders, just as he promised. She again opened her eyes and saw him smiling. To comfort her, he had to sacrifice both ice creams, now melting into the North Carolina clay. That upset her all over again.
"It's ok. That will make the ants happy." He tried to assure her with an awkward grin. He was grasping.
That upset her even more despite his good intentions. She didn't want the ants to have her ice cream. "Let's have a cool down time." He offered, and ever so carefully he lifted her from the grass. She clung to him; tiny arms coiled around his neck. He weaved them through the crowd back along the path. She hung on tighter as other patrons occasionally wandered to close. To many permeated the little imaginary bubble she had radiating around herself and her dad. The world was screaming in her ears, conflicting colors were blazing her retinas out of her head, and ants were eating her ice cream. Rhea started to cry again.
"Would you look at that Farris-wheel?" Her dad commented to distract her. She followed his pointing finger skyward. She easily spotted the massive metal construct of crossing beams lined with garish lights. It took unseen adventurers up to rival even a bird's limits. She figured those riding around and around could see everything to the edge of the horizon. They could finally see the monster trucks racing in the mud arena whose engines had been screaming all day long. From so far up high, they would be able to glimpse the bright lights of the Carter-Finley Stadium just outside the confines of the fairgrounds, its entrance guarded by the ever-vigilant pack of wolves immortalized in stone. She had wanted to ride on that Farris-wheel, but its height was insurmountable. She could only admire it from afar.
Those riding the towering Farris-wheel could also admire the lake at the edge of the fair. This lake was bordered by old log huts with smoking stone chimneys and an ever-turning water wheel. The carnies of the fair worked diligently here in the center stage floating in the lake. They prepared sharp smelling gunpowder in thick cardboard tubes. Everything needed to be perfect for tonight's grand finale, the fireworks show. Each night until the fair ended, the heavens would alight with the spectacle of a century. Coordinated colors matched with earth trembling booms. Every patron of the fair waited with bated breath for the night to fall and the explosions in the sky to begin. Every patron except Rhea. For her, it was like a countdown to her death.
Her dad finagled his wallet from his back jeans pocket all while still juggling her now weeping eight-year-old body in his arms. He bought more ice cream, and this time handed her the cone. Then they headed back towards the lake that bordered the fair. The farther they walked, the more the sounds of chaos faded behind them. Were they leaving? Had she ruined the day again like she always did? Now her ice cream was melting onto her hands and making them sticky.
A small ink stamp would allow them safe passage back into the fairgrounds if they left and wished to return. Rhea screamed when the lady went to stamp the back of her hand. Her dad took the hit for her by having his hand stamped twice. They left the entrance and exit tent and headed on down the line of booths just outside along one of many parking lots. Their path was scrambled with tents selling insurance or beer. Someone was hocking tacky nick knacks to take home a little piece of the fair. A man stood on a box with a megaphone screaming about Jesus coming back to judge the world.
Then it went quiet. It was all behind them. Rhea peeked out from her dad's shoulder and through the curtain of his dreadlocks. The lights of the fair painted the darkening sky at their backs. Her head was still screaming. Her tummy hurt from eating too much food without any nutritional value. At least ice cream was made from milk. Dad said milk was good for her.
Her dad had navigated her through the storm. Even in the dark he had delivered them safely to a calm space. Where their journey had begun. A grassy hill, a decent hike from the fair. Only her dad was parked there, considering the walk. The familiar old Volkswagen van with its missing front rim was still there waiting for them. Beckoning them to safety like the lighthouse of Alexandria.
Her dad set her down in the grass, his forehead slick with sweat after carrying her the whole way. He found his keys in his pocket and the car blinked its headlights in greeting when he clicked the unlock button. As her dad rummaged in the car, Rhea watched the fair from her hilltop perch. Far as they were, this was a safe distance to see it all. She sniffed away her lingering sorrow and licked her melting ice cream.
Her dad gently draped a blanket over her shoulders just in time for the chill to finally make an appearance. It was the good blanket with the perfect texture that she could pet like a soft fuzzy animal. She wasted no time getting to work and gave the good blanket many pets to sooth her fingers. As she vigorously stroked the fabric, her dad sat by her side in the grass with a deep, exhausted sigh. "Not a bad day." He hummed thoughtfully. "Worth the three-hour drive from home?"
Rhea thought long and hard. She licked away the dripping cream before it could further sully her fingers. "It was loud." She stated the obvious. Her dad had warned her it would be so. But she wanted to come anyway. She thought she could handle it. She was mad that she couldn't.
He chuckled. "That it is… But we made it through. Should we leave before the fireworks start? That is going to be really loud, Re Re." He warned her. Though his tone was serious, he used her nickname, so this was possibly not life threatening. She knew fireworks were loud. She had seen them before. Well, she hadn't seen them in the traditional sense. Each Fourth of July she coward in her closet with her fluffy earmuffs until America's gunpowder themed birthday was done. She would have brought those same earmuffs here, but her therapist insisted she not. She got teased for wearing them to school or in public. This trip would be the perfect way to 'get over' her fear. Exposure therapy, the certified professional told her dad. That advice ended them up here, banished from the fair. Thanks a lot, Dr. Davis.
"I want to see them." She huffed. Much like she wanted to see the fair. She could be as resolved as she wanted. Once the noises started clashing, her brain stopped caring about what she wanted so bad before. She was going to cry all over again.
"Then we'll give it a try." Her dad agreed with far more confidence than she thought she deserved. As they waited for the sky to light up, her dad fetched from the van his transistor radio. The boxy device she helped him make. Though to be honest, she mostly just watched him piece it together from all the electronic stuff that lived in the garage. It was the only thing she didn't mind making a lot of noise.
He turned it on and let the static shuffle between radio frequencies. Though it mostly picked up stations from the nearby fairgrounds, it picked out other sources too. Rhea reached out for the device, and her dad handed it over. She turned the volume of the transistor down low and pressed it to her ear. She let the sound waves sooth her.
Her dad looked up to the sky. Rhea copied him. There weren't many stars to be seen with the fair and surrounding city's light polluting the air. But they still saw the occasional blinking airplane soaring overhead, painting the sky with a trailing tail of vapor. The moon was bright though, outshining everything below it with a pale, golden glow. No sign of any UFOs though. Every night she didn't see one she was disappointed. "Tomorrow the space station will be going overhead." Her dad said over the din of the transistor radio. "We should be able to pick up their messages for a minute or two. If we're lucky, they may be out on a spacewalk."
"Can they see farther into space then we can from here?" Rhea said with a sniff.
"For sure." Her dad promised, his gaze still aimed skyward. Then he smiled in that way which was so comforting to her. "I bet you'll see even farther than those on the space station one day, Re Re. I just got that feeling."
Wouldn't that be something? She sucked on her lower lip, trying to will the transistor to stretch its capabilities and eavesdrop on those people floating overhead in the space station. Or maybe if she was lucky, she would glean the blip of an alien broadcast calling out to her. "I don't want to leave you and Earth."
"Last I checked, me and Earth weren't going anywhere." He snickered. "You can do anything babe. And when you want to come home, it'll always be here." Though she didn't really believe it, the words were nice to hear, especially from him. She knew for sure, her dad was probably one of the few people on Earth that believed in her, and that included herself.
"Thanks dad."
A low boom trembled in the ground, paralyzing Rhea to the grassy hill. The next moment, the sky was filled with light. Showers of rainbow sparks, each screaming with flaring tails of fire rained down over the fair. Logic told her these were fireworks. Her inner fear insisted what the sounds and light was didn't matter. The world turned to chaos all over again.
She curled inward, the transistor falling into her lap. The astronauts on the space station felt farther than the deepest void of space where the sun couldn't reach. She closed her eyes to plunge herself into darkness and slammed her hands over her ears. She could still sort of hear the war in the sky. But here, in the darkness, she could think again. She felt her dad's gentle touch on her shoulder once more.
His hands slipped under hers, covering her ears for her. That was strange, since she sort of had that task handled… She peeked, not at the sky, but up at him.
"One step at a time." His muffled voice said between a break in the booms. His bright eyes glancing between her and the sky fire. He was hinting too her. He was shielding her from the sound so she could see the fireworks. "I'm here with you." She thought she heard him promise.
The booming explosions had lowered in tempo since he took over blocking her eardrums. His hands were bigger and better equipped for the task. And she trusted him. Rhea looked up to the sky and beheld the dancing manmade stars. And she decided she had never seen something more beautiful. She wondered if those beyond Earth could see it too.
Date: January 1, 2020
Rhea
The inability to breathe was a strange feeling to say the least. Rhea never thought something so second nature would be missed, but here she was. Soundwave had promised this would all be normal. She held onto his assurance and tried to remain calm. She wasn't in pain, or she didn't think she was. She had no clue how to understand the sensations she was experiencing. Maybe it was pain, but she would have no idea how to decipher the alien senses compared to her normal human instincts. Was she even human anymore?
Ok. Now she was no longer calm, but she had done this to herself. Overthinking everything, as usual. This was only a test. One of many. This was not the real deal. Or was it? She was still in the dark. Literally and figuratively. She didn't know what stage of the test they were in, and she couldn't see. Was that part of the test, or was she blind forever? She wanted to talk, but how would she manage that if she couldn't inhale?
Pinpricks of sensation ran along the side of her head. Waves of feeling cascaded from its source and down into her body. It made her spiraling train of thought crash to a stop.
What. Was. THAT?
The feeling wasn't totally alien. The electrical waves cascaded from her, sure, she'll call it skin for simplicity's sake. But she almost thought she felt it originated from thin, stroking fingers. Then it happened again, and she was sure this was the case. Someone was touching her. They ran gentle digits along her head, framing her face in a predictable, comforting rhythm. Rhea assumed who the culprit was, but this would be the first time she felt those fingers in the same relative size to her body.
She wanted to open her eyes and see him, but that simple action could be more challenging than she first bargained for. She couldn't even move her arms to reach out for him. She was panicking again.
"You are ok, Rhea." Soundwave's deep inflection promised in the darkness. His words were emphasized with another comforting stroke. His rich, baritone voice was familiar, but there was so much more to it than she was ever able to hear before. Like a frequency too low for her human ears to ever hope to detect. Now she could almost visualize his word's deeper meaning. Much like his touch, there was an electricity to his voice, able to caress the inside of her brain in real time as he spoke. Is this what Cybertronians heard all the time? "Take it slow. I'm here with you." He continued to assure her.
Now she really wanted to see him, and no amount of body swapping or alien hijinks was going to stop her. Rhea focused on the sensations in her face, the pulses of currents just under the surface that came to life with every twitch. Soundwave's fingers traced her eyes, (optics?) and that helped significantly to gain her bearings.
Light flooded her focus through two small cracks in the darkness.
Clarity assaulted her already stretched to the brink senses. Vibrant colors on a light spectrum she couldn't even identify made up the vast majority of what she witnessed. Though it was all hopelessly foreign to her, a familiar shape hovered just above. A face, not human, but one she had seen thousands of times over the course of years. She tried to focus on that face and found the two glowing globes of light set in it. A perfect anchor point so her mind didn't spiral farther into oblivion. That light was the subtle radiance of Soundwave's optics, gazing down at her.
And here she thought she knew Soundwave's optics.
Before, she thought their gentle trancing glow could be described as hauntingly beautiful. Now, she couldn't hope to concoct a series of words to describe the soulful features of her most cherished Cybertronian. A rich, velvety pigment that put all other shades of purple to shame. As if his eyes were made of stars themselves, splashed across the canvas of the night sky.
She needed to ground herself.
Then again, like the sweep of electrical waves across her face, Soundwave's fingers caressed her, and this time she was certain because she saw it happen. He sat just behind her, leaned over her face, gazing into her own wide optics. Both hands were busy tracing the contours of her cheeks, igniting the electricity just under the surface.
"Can you see me, Rhea?" He asked her gently. She still wasn't ready for how his voice echoed through her very core. Warm, rich, and comforting. It made her feel protected.
She also wanted to answer his question. Yes, she could see him, and hear him, and feel him. She had never experienced anything clearer than him in this moment. She wanted to share what she was experiencing before it overwhelmed her. But she still couldn't breathe. If she couldn't inhale, how would she talk? She tried anyway, lacking lungs be damned.
She made something happen, though she could hardly call it a 'breath.'
Something hollow resounded somewhere within her. It was more like an echoing gasp and resulting more out of habit than need. The sound was desperate, and it startled her. She had somehow managed to scare herself trying to breathe. Ok, so that's not how talking in this body is done. Noted. Cybertronian body: 1. Rhea: 0.
But ever the observant partner, Soundwave shifted his hands. They rested now where she felt a neck would be, running down grooves and resting just in the nook of the top of her torso. He must have guessed she was trying to talk, and something where he was touching would help her. "Focus here." He encouraged. His fingers traced lulling circles over her neck and chest. "Just think what you want to say and will it through here. No need for breath. Just speak."
She tried following his instructions. She did sort of feel something change inside, just under where he was touching. A sort of charge, like the buzz of Miko's live guitar, yet to be played, awaiting to be strung. She ended up with a few more of those hollow gasps. Old habits die hard, she supposed. At least she didn't spook herself again. But it helped her realize whatever she was doing was far from where she needed to be focusing on to achieve what she wanted.
The charge in her new voice box grew. Soundwave's careful ministrations helped her stay focused.
"Sss." Holy crap, she made a noise. Even better yet, it was the first syllable of the word she was trying to say. She tried again. This time she didn't think about it as hard. "Strange."
Her success rewarded her with a rare smile from Soundwave. Seeing that soft grin made something else stir within her, though she had no way of knowing what. Akin to heat perhaps and spreading out from her core. 'He's so handsome.' It was far from the first time she had this thought, but somehow that fact was more cemented in as she observed him now. She should really be staying on track…
She may be jumping the gun, but she wanted to touch him back. She shifted her thoughts inward. She could feel… her. Her body lay on her back, solid metal underneath. She thought the surface was cold. It wasn't the type of cold she was used to, like the occasional snowfall on the North Carolina coast. Shivering wouldn't help to stave off this feeling, but at least if it were uncomfortable by Cybertronian standards, she would have no way of knowing.
Focus.
She found her hands, and she willed them to move. This was easier than talking. Cybertronian pistons must have been similar to muscles. She felt the jolt of each finger as she twitched them, radiating energy in her arms as she tested them. Now bursting with probably overinflated confidence, she pulled up. Like manipulating a dangling puppet's limb from the thinnest thread, Rhea felt her arm lift. Sluggishly slow but answering to her mental command regardless.
Then came movement in her line of sight. Shimmering bronze, edging with shaking, yet determined intent towards Soundwave's face. A hand with thin, pointed fingers. Her hand. Soundwave waited, deathly still and beyond patient, until she finally found her mark and rested her trembling fingers against his cheek above her. In contrast to everything else, the warmth under her phantom limb burst outward under her new palm.
Soundwave had always been warm, but in the way a car engine radiated heat just under the hood. This was different. It was a pulsing, living warmth she could feel. It emanated from him, into her fingers, and then back down into her core. Like she was feeling the warm hum of thunder. It chased away the strange cold at her back, feeding her unfamiliar body with a new sense of purpose. Feeling Soundwave's face was the most remarkable thing yet.
'Can she stand up yet?'
Rhea's whole form startled from the sudden and loud stimuli. It was Laserbeak's jarring voice, shriller than normal and very very enthusiastic. She was unable to move her head to find the source of the Minicon's pounding voice. It was all encompassing, echoing inside and outside her own head. She realized both were true. Unlike the translator she wore on her human ear like a blue tooth device, that would transmit Laserbeak's voice into recognizable English, she was now hearing him how Soundwave did. In her head, and apparently before she could control her new brain's internal volume.
"Absolutely not." A new voice intoned. They were just out of her visual focus, but otherwise not in her mind like Laserbeak was. A flat, authoritative male voice that tended to drone on in long strands of techno babble. She had gotten used to tuning out his rambling for the most part over the past few years, despite most of said "techno babble" being about this very moment, related to her transition. The Decepticon Scientist, Shockwave. The creator of the body she now inhabited. "I cannot unplug the subject from support to allow for free movement away from the berth. Not yet. That will come later once I have created a permanent hard link for the consciousness transfer."
'But I can feel her!' Laserbeak insisted, his voice rattling her brain. 'I can feel her through the bond! Doesn't that mean it's done?'
Rhea wasn't sure what had gone wrong. Maybe it was Laserbeak's too loud voice in her head, or Shockwave's clashing input, or she had simply reached the limit of her human ability to comprehend information. But a growing panic overtook the original feeling of wonder. She lost the ability to hold her hand to Soundwave's face. Her arm fell limp beside her head. Instead of making any type of familiar sound of flesh slapping a surface, a jarring metallic CLANK emanated from the motion. Vibration roiled up her fallen arm and into her head, making the world suddenly spin and the clarity from before now working against her as every little piece of input overwhelmed her. It was too much. Too much too fast and she couldn't slow down the world so her brain could catch up.
Soundwave's smile faded away. Like he saw the panic overtake her in real time even without her telling him. He broke their shared gaze and looked off into the opposite direction. No, she needed to see his optics to ground herself! "Stop the test." Soundwave ordered where Rhea thought she had heard Shockwave speaking.
She tried to bring back her voice, tell him she needed to look into his eyes and feel his face again to calm down. She already forgot how to talk. All she could produce were more of those pitiful hollow gasps.
Then the warmth of his touch vanished, and she was plunged into icy blackness.
The much more familiar pounding of a heartbeat shook her ribcage, threatening to spill out into her throat. There was light again, but it was muted, her ears ringing, and she knew for sure she was gasping. This time, breathing worked. She was back in her human body, seeing out of her subpar human eyes. Wired up and laying in the coffin-sized pod she had grown accustomed to being shoved in over the past few months when doing these tests.
The pod wheezed as it opened. The light outside the pod pierced into her sensitive retinas like cocktail swords. A sensation she was much more familiar with. Migraine splitting pain. Something all too human. It radiated in her skull and down her neck like she had landed headfirst off the Ferris-wheel at the state fair.
Despite the headache, her eyes adjusted. She once again saw Soundwave; his blue gray colors now dull compared to what she had experienced moments before. His massive 18-foot body loomed over her, as was normal. One more reminder she was back in her skin.
He wasn't smiling anymore, but instead wore worry on his usually pursed features.
His fingers, now far too big to caress her face as they had been, gently scooped her out of the pod, disconnecting her from the mess of wires in the process. "Are you alright?" He inquired, gentle and trying hard to not sound concerned. He was pulling it off, but she knew him too well to fall for it.
Despite her arms feeling numb, she brought a hand up to cradle her pounding head. Her other arm looped around his thumb, grounding herself to him. "That was crazy." She managed to huff. She winced against the painful drum solo taking place in her skull, the ache refusing to wane. She felt like she had front row seats to one of Miko's metal concerts… if the front row was right in front of the stage's ten-foot speaker systems.
"What's wrong?" His tone was flat, but he was struggling to keep the razor's edge out of his voice. It wasn't directed at her, despite their optic/eye contact.
"My head." Was all she could manage before another fresh wave of pain roiled her brain and snuffed her ability to fully express how much it hurt.
Soundwave's helm snapped up once again, now glaring bitterly at the other large form in the room. Rhea forced herself to follow his gaze, finding Shockwave typing away at the screen on his arm cannon.
"A cerebral rebound response, caused by the temporary consciousness transfer." Shockwave said flatly, not bothering to look up from his notes. "I did state that was a possible side effect following a true test."
"A temporary side effect I hope." Soundwave growled.
"Most likely." Shockwave blew off.
Rhea groaned, and that pulled Soundwave's attention back onto her. "I'm… Ok. I have Aspirin in my bag."
The buzz of Laserbeak's boosters echoed through the room. Rhea glanced up to see the small Cybertronian (still as big as a teenage elephant compared to her) come to a halt where she sat in Soundwave's hands. Hanging from his beak was her bag. He gave her a small chirp; one she knew to mean he was apologetic. It was all she could hear now without the translator in her ear. She had to take it out for the test.
"Thanks, Laserbeak." She said, accepting the bag from him. She rummaged through her belongings, finding the bottle of pills and the translator. She hooked the device around her ear before popping three pills into her mouth. She winced against the conversation between Minicon symbiote and Host now feeding directly into her ear before she could adjust the volume.
'-I was not present for the conversation regarding keeping my composure during the duration of the test, if you recall, Master.' Laserbeak insisted, like a child caught holding the baseball while standing in front of the shattered picture window. 'I was tasked with keeping the meddlesome Autobot Arcee at bay while you set up. I plead ignorance.'
Soundwave gave his minicon a pointed look, one that meant he was far from convinced. Laserbeak was basically linked to Soundwave's mind. Everything Soundwave knew, Laserbeak would know, and vice versa. Unless Soundwave closed off their symbiotic bond on purpose, they shared one brain. That made lying to each other a challenging endeavor. Simply put, Laserbeak was too excited to stay quiet, and forgot about that rule, and now was lying about forgetting.
"Don't be mad at him, Wave. I was already teetering on a freak out before he started talking. It would have happened one way or another." Rhea insisted.
The sound of Shockwave's tinkering brought Rhea's focus back up. On the elevated berth where she had just been laying while not human, was her Cybertronian avatar. Shockwave was moving the avatar's, Rhea's, arm back to rest by its side. It was the same arm she had touched Soundwave with before it clanked back down to the table by her head.
Laserbeak flew over to land on the berth to examine the new Cybertronian's faceplates in closer detail. Rhea had seen the creation countless times before. She had a hand in designing it. But it was still surreal to behold. Considering the mind twisting paradox of it being her and yet not being her all at the same time. Or at least, it wasn't her, yet.
The body laying still on the table was beautiful, in its own alien sort of way. Currently, it was hooked up to so many wires it might as well have been a Cybertronian Christmas tree. In an abstract sense it kind of looked like her if she squinted and crossed her eyes. Bronze and black plating adorned the soulless Cybertronian with golden accents around the face and joints. It was also on the shorter side. That addition was either in homage to her human heritage or just to be amusing to see standing beside Soundwave by comparison. And despite the body being vacant, the optics were glowing golden yellow. The closest optic color they could get to her human hazel ones. But they were empty. A shell without a mind. Her mind.
Shockwave was taking extensive notes and fiddling with things beyond her understanding. He was also mumbling to himself, a common occurrence she had learned was normal for the stoic scientist.
"That was the closest it's gotten," Rhea commented out loud to the room. "I've never actually entered it before."
That single, unblinking optic flitted away from his work to gaze down at her in Soundwave's hands. "Your assertion is correct. However, the connection should have lasted longer than it did. This is due to an unforeseen error. I will have to recheck the connection ports and run a diagnostic. That will be done momentarily, and we will attempt the transfer again," He carried on tinkering, as if the three others in the lab had just vanished from the face of reality the moment he stopped talking to them.
"No, we will not," Soundwave clarified. That was enough to give Shockwave pause again. "This attempt had a negative effect on Rhea. More so than we anticipated. The next test will commence when she has recovered."
Shockwave stared at him from over the notes on his arm readouts. "We have already delayed this test by a significant margin. As I stated formerly, some discomfort is unavoidable. And we are behind the original deadline for the project's half-life. I am already limited with the subpar source of the consciousness transfer." Shockwave relayed.
Rhea would have been insulted from Shockwave's very complex way of calling her an idiot, if she wasn't about a million percent used to similar sentiments from him over the course of this little science fair project from Hell they were all participating in. Rhea didn't even have to look back up at Soundwave to know he would be glaring at Shockwave for the comment.
Shockwave clearly didn't hate her for her humanity, like some other Cybertronians. Starscream very quickly came to mind in that regard. But 'not hating her' was about as nice as the feelings he had for her could physically get. She had spent enough time with him over the past few years, and especially during these processes, to realize she wasn't much more than a means to an end.
When this project became the real deal, and Shockwave got involved, Rhea could tell even with the strict parameters Soundwave had laid down, including but not limited to dissecting Rhea's brain, Shockwave fully intended the process not to take longer than a few weeks. This was just another scientific conquest to him. He would bend the natural world to his whim, spit in the face of God in a sense, and then move on to the next ethically dubious project. Then it would just be up to Rhea and Soundwave to decide when to make the switch permanent.
That assumption came and went something like a year ago. The body's creation wasn't the problem. Shockwave had that done so fast Rhea was actually worried about the Decepticon scientist's recharge habits because there was no way he could have slept and gotten it done at the same time. But the mind transferring portion was clearly where the problem dwelled. Rhea's 'subpar consciousness' being the main factor as Shockwave would say.
Shockwave was, well, extremely hard to read. Forgetting the fact he was lacking a face, his voice and mannerisms were impossible to glean any sort of helpful info from. But Rhea was sure she was getting to understand him. And she was sure this was challenging him. Maybe it even frustrated him. How did she know? He had set aside most of his other projects to solely focus on it. As a chronic multitasker who juggled about one hundred different projects at a given time, that was odd.
"It could also be your calculations that are lacking," Soundwave pointed out. And as Rhea suspected, he sounded irritated.
"It is not," Shockwave assured him at once without having to check to confirm. He hadn't caught on to the fact Soundwave had just insulted him right back. "I suspect the process would go substantially faster, if my recommended testing schedule could commence," Shockwave hinted, not too subtly. She had glanced his recommended schedule. It included daily transfer attempts and a physical hook up to her actual brain. She imagined she would look like her poor Cybertronian avatar if it were up to Shockwave, tangled in wires and laying comatose on a metal slab.
"No," Soundwave stated again. "We will make it work, without resorting to anything more invasive," and he said it with his confident, 'Leader of the Decepticon's' voice, so Rhea assumed this was the last of the monotone argument.
"Understood," Shockwave said, returning to the empty body on the table and his many screens. He appeared unfazed, but again, Rhea couldn't really tell.
Soundwave turned from the scientist and the Rhea-less avatar on the table. With Rhea in hand, he headed for the door without further comment.
"Sovereign Soundwave," Shockwave said before they could make their escape. Soundwave paused at the sound of one of his many titles he answered to in place of 'Lord.' "I have calculated Rhea's average life expectancy compared to that of other humans of her age, ethnicity, health, and geological location. According to my research, the average is 77.28 Earth orbital cycles. 29 of those orbital cycles have already passed. That leaves us only 48.28 orbital cycles to finish the consciousness transfer. If you continue to want the human recipient to be this particular human, time is of the essence."
Again, Rhea couldn't tell if this was just a means of Shockwave pushing Soundwave into agreeing to more invasive testing, or he was worried about Rhea in his own, Shockwavey way. She almost laughed at that train of thought. Of course, it was the first option.
Soundwave was silent.
Rhea sighed. She had hoped he wouldn't have taken that comment to Spark. She rose her hand despite the fast motion worsening her already pounding head. "Um, just a reminder, I won't just drop dead the second I turn 77… '.28' or not."
Shockwave nodded. "Correct. It could be sooner."
Well ok, she had sort of walked right into that one.
"Your opinion is noted." Soundwave said flatly and carried on towards the entrance. Laserbeak glanced the avatar once more before flying after them. Rhea had done the same before the door slid shut between them, catching those strange glowing yellow eyes one more time.
"Cut him a break, he's frustrated," Rhea hummed.
Glancing up at his face, she could tell Soundwave was suppressing a smile. "You were able to tell?"
"I would have been able to tell even if that wasn't the tenth time he brought up wanting to do more testing. I mean, if we can just numb out my head I could take another whack at it."
Soundwave's expression soured all over again. "This was too much in one day. It already hurt you. Shockwave will get over it."
They arrived at their destination. One of Soundwave's permanent dwellings. A few hundred floors up from the lab, and far from most government commotion. The spacious, (she guessed it could be called an apartment) was sparsely furnished, though it had a massive, almost three walled glass view of the Kaon Capital below. Oh, and a comfortable amount of oxygen along with the rest of the building so she didn't implode in the Cybertronian atmosphere. That was a nice touch too.
The small specs of Cybertronian city dwellers hustled along the busy streets, oblivious to Rhea's spying. The place wasn't as grand as Starscream's personal dwelling, which she had only seen a few times. The housing was 'far from befitting a Decepticon Lord!' as Starscream felt the need to tell Soundwave, often, whenever it came up. The only thing it shared with Starscream's, and the other Decepticon Lord's, Sharpshot's dwelling, was the almost fortress like indestructibility, massive windows included. The three leaders of the mighty Decepticon cause also didn't share the same building. Not like it wouldn't make things more convenient for political issues. But it did make assassinating all three leaders with one impressive bomb that much harder.
Even if the building wasn't indestructible, Rhea would be far from concerned. She was only able to worry about Soundwave's safety for the first of at least ten assassination attempts on his life. The Autobot and Decepticon war was over, but there was still the occasional overzealous political lunatic after all. It was basically expected, and Rhea dreaded it. But then she just ended up feeling bad for the bot attempting the assassination. And the same result followed the next nine. It was very painful to watch, and not at all for Soundwave.
Of course, Soundwave didn't hog all the glory. Similar assassination attempts were made on Starscream a few years back, but Arcee had assured everyone, while laughing at the spectacle, that he was far too slippery to end up dead now. He had dodged Megatron's shots well enough, and even a few attempts Arcee made back in their war times. He was too quick and stubborn to catch.
Last but not least, there was the youngest of the three Decepticon Lords. And the shortest, and the most openly friendly. Sharpshot, a once considered lowly Vehicon trooper until Soundwave changed that on the day of the peace treaty signing eleven years ago. Basically, Sharpshot was impossible to hate. They were funny, inspiring, and somehow could even keep Starscream on track. And all of this without a face to boot. But as well liked as they were, there was still an attempt on their life.
Exactly one attempt. And that was all that was required to remind everyone Sharpshot had a very close and unexpected friendship with Grimlock, and a budding relationship with Silverwing. Who was Grimlock and Silverwing? Well, Grimlock was the most terrifying Cybertronian on this side of the galaxy. And that was even without him turning into a massive metal T-rex or calling on his band of similarly horrifying Dinobot friends. As for Silverwing, she was a cloned back from extinction Predacon, one of many among hundreds Shockwave had created not long after creating their leader, Predaking. Predacon was the Cybertronian word for massive transforming fire breathing dragons.
Long story short, lots of life lessons were learned. Rhea didn't need to worry about Soundwave. Starscream was too slippery to be killed. And most important of all, for the love of God, do not piss off Grimlock or Sharpshot's Predacon girlfriend.
So, yeah, Soundwave's apartment. It was perfect for him. It was quiet, had a place to recharge, a very impressive view of Kaon, and higher ceilings so Laserbeak could fly around. And since they didn't share a building, Starscream couldn't just waltz down the hallway to bug him.
Soundwave placed Rhea down on the shelf affixed to the window. He then sat himself on the adjoining 'couch' that only appeared like a couch in the very broadest meaning of the word. All Cybertronian furniture had no give and was the basic consistency of the metal flooring it sat on. She had long since asked if it was uncomfortable. Of course, Soundwave said it wasn't. She just had to take his word for it, until she could test it with her own Cybertronian butt. That is, if she didn't drop dead at 77.28 first, as some Con scientists believed she would.
"It never ceases to amaze me how much Kaon has grown in only eleven years." She said. Even despite her lingering migraine, the view was impressive as always.
"Agreed," Soundwave said just as Laserbeak perched on the back of the couch. "The peace time has done wonders for this world. So little time has passed, and its improvement has even surprised me."
Laserbeak chirped out of the blue, making Soundwave glance him suspiciously. 'At this time, I wish to officially apologize to you, Rhea, for my conduct in the lab.'
"Please don't," She held out a hand to him. He quickly abandoned Soundwave on the couch to instead land on the shelf next to her to retrieve her petting. She could never stay mad at the minicon. Going by Soundwave's light Sparked optic roll, he couldn't either. "I was excited too. It was ten layers of terrifying, even without any external stimuli. I'm glad you were there with me."
Laserbeak pushed the curve of his faceplates into her palm affectionately. 'I felt you,' he said excitedly. 'I mean, I really felt you. For the first time. I could feel your mind and Spark through the bond.'
She laid her pounding head into Laserbeak. The warmth of his metal soothed the pain a little. "I was wondering what that feeling was when I was in that body," She noted.
She knew about the bond Laserbeak spoke of, and she had been told she would be inheriting it once she became Cybertronian. Though that part she was a tad foggy on. She really needed to stop glazing over when Shockwave rambled on. But, the bond was what connected Soundwave to Laserbeak, Spark and mind. It was what allowed them to speak to each other from even massive distances, and to feel what the other felt. Emotions, thoughts, even pain. That last part was sort of the double edge sword of the trick, but unless Soundwave locked off the connection to shield Laserbeak from said unpleasant stimuli, they were basically tethered forever.
And she would be too one day soon.
There had been a good deal of debate regarding what Rhea's Cybertronian avatar body would require to actually live. They couldn't take a new Spark from the newly recovered Well of All Sparks, where most other Cybertronian's were born from. That would have been a fully independent mind and would more than likely just snuff out Rhea's consciousness and a new Cybertronian would awaken in the body meant for her. So, Shockwave had transplanted a fragment of Soundwave's own Spark into the avatar for her consciousness to latch onto. And maybe even her soul if it felt like coming. This is what would allow her to inherit the bond Soundwave and Laserbeak shared. It was the reason why her Cybertronian self could hear Laserbeak in her head, and not just through the translator in her ear. She had felt his excitement… And Soundwave's love.
The whole Spark transfer thing was still confusing, but she understood the significance of it. Soundwave had been laid out for more than a week recovering after the procedure to harvest a piece of his Spark.
"So, when are we jumping back into the testing?" Rhea wondered mid Laserbeak pat.
"Only after you are feeling better," Soundwave insisted. "I promised you this process would be as painless as possible. I am confident you will not expire in the time Shockwave finds a way to make the connection stick."
"We had been close," She mused. Gazing out onto the Kaon Capital, the place in addition to Earth, would be her new home. Well, it technically already was. But soon, she would finally be proportional to the furniture.
"Indeed," Soundwave agreed, and this time he didn't bother hiding his smile. Those purple optics of his locked onto her. Her human eyes may not be able to make out all the detail she had seen through the avatar's optics, but that gaze still made her heart flutter.
Her phone buzzed in her bag just when Soundwave's soft flirtatious gaze turned to irritation. She recognized that look. Someone was contacting his personal commlink frequency. More than likely, it was one of the Autobots, hence why his expression was so sour. And it was at the same time she was getting a long series of texts back to back.
"Bumblebee," Soundwave grumbled, and he didn't need to clarify beyond that name. Rhea searched through her bag while he released a deep venting sigh, not answering the com.
She retrieved the phone, glanced at the screen, and winced in a similar fashion. "Miko. Also Arcee." She wasn't sure which was the scarier option. And here she thought they had kept this operation fairly under the radar. Now the headache was back full force, and the meds weren't putting a dent in it.
She clawed her way to her feet with the help of Laserbeak to keep her from toppling over. "Well, we both knew we couldn't run from them forever. Might as well get this out of the way."
Soundwave reached up to his helm. He switched off his commlink, then offered a hand for Rhea. She climbed into his palm without hesitation. "I'm willing to stall, at least long enough for one more intimately quiet moment with you before we have to face whatever awaits on Earth."
He had hoisted her close to his face, and she took the opportunity to lay a kiss at the corner of his mouth. "Always, even if we didn't have duties to shirk."
Soundwave rewarded her with a soft chuckle. "Thank you, my dear Conjunx Endura."
There went her heart fluttering again. She had to steady herself with a hand over her chest. She found the necklace hanging over her shirt and ran a thumb over its laser cut perfection. A gift from Soundwave, and a reiteration of the words he often whispered between them. He would protect her and love her until the end of time. The feelings were mutual, completely, but she hardly had a means of giving him a similar gift to symbolize her love in a Cybertronian standard.
In place of a massive engagement necklace with her heart blood in it, she ran her free palm along Soundwave's face, tracing the transformation seams running down from his optics. Going by the way he ever so gently leaned into her touch, she could tell it was good enough.
"No matter the form," Soundwave whispered, sending a cascade of chills down her spine. "I will always love you."
She leaned into him, closing her eyes as the assault of feelings and stimuli started to ravage her with a pounding heat in her chest. But she didn't want it to stop, so she ignored it. "For the quiet type, you always have a way with words."
Like distant thunder, his chuckle rumbled her body. "Being talkative is only comfortable when in your company, my dear." He traced his finger around the outline of her hair. Though the moment was somewhat spoiled as another body started to press in between their embrace.
Laserbeak's red optics flicked between them both. Rhea had to suppress a snorting laugh as Soundwave's grin turned down. It was either due to the comment about 'only being comfortable to speak his mind' around Rhea, or it was just his usual clinginess. The minicon had been a touch needier since the avatar project had started. She was sure it wasn't jealousy. Laserbeak would have spilled that sentiment a while ago if it was. Most couldn't hear him other than Soundwave and Rhea, save for some choice situations like in the lab through the computer system. Because of his outward silence, the minicon appeared stoic and empty. He was far from it.
Soundwave pursed his lips, then patted Laserbeak on the head to pacify him. Rhea took the chance to touch his wing too. "It's a different kind of bond, buddy," she promised Laserbeak.
"I suppose the sentiment goes for both of you," Soundwave said with a smile. "But you already knew that Laserbeak. Rhea, if this transition is going too fast, please tell me. I did promise to protect you, from any and all harm."
And that's when Rhea's phone rang in her bag again. It rung until it freed itself from the confines of her purse, paused, and then carried on its frantic vibration along the shelf attached to the window. They all just watched it as it migrated from one side of the large shelf to the other. Rhea knew that distinct buzz. Welp. Romantic moment over.
Reality in the form of Miko and a very angry Arcee was calling.
Soundwave patted them both. "I can protect you from anything, except from that one unhinged human," He clarified before standing, taking Rhea and Laserbeak with him.
Rhea snorted a laugh before retrieving her bag and her runaway phone. Yep. The usual suspects. A long string of texts from Miko, and Arcee had already filled up her voice mailbox. Rhea didn't have the energy to check either. She instead returned to Soundwave who waited for her to cover her ears before he activated a Spacebridge back to Earth.
Laserbeak returned to his docking port on Soundwave's chest with a chirp of annoyance, 'We could continue ignoring those back on Earth,' he suggested. It was a tempting offer. They were supposed to tell everyone when this first consciousness transfer test was to happen. Knowing how much drama that would have caused, they both decided to keep it to themselves and deal with the consequences of that decision later.
Later had unfortunately arrived.
"And bring about the second Autobot and Decepticon war?" Rhea hummed, sitting between Laserbeak's wing and Soundwave's shoulder. "No thanks. I already have enough trouble sleeping."
She glanced Soundwave's face and saw him smiling. He probably shared the sentiment. She leaned against his shoulder and closed her eyes. They traveled through the portal to take them back to Earth across the universe where a group of angry Autobots and overly excitable humans awaited. Rhea's head already pulsed just thinking about it.
But, no matter what. Headache or none. Miko's too loud questioning or Arcee's angry shouting at Soundwave. Even the uncomfortable process of changing herself into an alien. All that really mattered was Rhea knew she would soon have Soundwave forever.
Date: Present Day and Time, September 20th, 2021
Lieutenant Colonel of the USA Air Force: Steven Welker
Steven jolted awake, drenched in sweat, and tasting blood. He was out of breath, feeling as though he had just escaped the tendrils of a living nightmare. As he waited for his pounding heart to calm, he probed the ragged flesh inside his mouth with his tongue. He must have bitten the inside of his cheek in his struggle to wake up.
He panted through the lingering fear. His body ached, as if the phantom pain from the shadowed tormentors he faced in the dream had leaked beyond the barrier of the nightmare realm and entered reality. He was never much of a dreamer, but it had been so vivid, so horrific… Unable to move to defend himself from the implements of torture, held in the claws of some otherworldly monsters.
He reached over the thin sheets, now soaked in his sweat, seeking the comfort of his partner. It was a rare show of vulnerability that would have been unthinkable for the 45-year-old military man in most other scenarios. But he was shaken to his core and needed her warmth.
His thin fingers brushed only the cold empty pillow next to his.
Steven turned, heart sinking for reasons he was not fully certain of. Odd… His girlfriend wasn't asleep by his side. She didn't wake up so early, thanks to her ear plugs which protected her through the piercing shrill of his daily alarm. She never woke up before him.
His bedroom cast an eerie blue hue of the too early morning. He was used to his days starting before dawn, but a glance at his alarm clock showed it was a full hour before he was meant to get up for work. It seemed to be a day destined for oddities.
"Hun?" He called into the shadows of their quiet house. Nothing replied. Panic inched up the back of his neck.
He flicked on the lamp that rested on his bedside table to chase the shadows of dawn away at the expense of his still sensitive corneas. The action revealed the details of his sparce bedroom, but it didn't decipher his girlfriend's location.
Steven ventured from the bed, slipping on his inside sandals, and not making up the bedding. Under normal circumstances he would have, but he was still shaken from his nightmare, and now he was worried. Searching the bathroom revealed nothing but a recently mopped linoleum floor and his girlfriend's new hair relaxer, still yet to be unpacked from the grocery bag it came home in last night.
He left his room, the silence he usually yearned for in day-to-day life now uncomfortable. He wanted to hear clanking in the kitchen, or the tick tick of his girlfriend's laptop's keyboard. Nothing. As he wandered from room to room, Steven felt like a ghost in his own house. Searching for some intangible purpose from a forgotten life before.
The house was empty, save for himself.
She had to have gone out… despite this not making any sense for any number of reasons. The early hour or not waking him up to say anything. However, sometimes she did tend to wander off to work on her software projects if she was feeling particularly adventurous. But this was rare, and never happened so early. And much like Steven, she was not exactly a fan of people, or crowds.
Then he froze in the archway of the kitchen, feeling like ice had been injected into his veins. Her laptop was just where she left it before going to bed, charging on the kitchen table. They had known each other for over 11 years, and she never left that laptop behind. She loved it more than she tolerated him.
Now in a full panic, Steven snatched his cellphone from its charging port on the counter and found her name in his fast contacts. He called her, each ring prolonged agony. She didn't pick up. He tried again, but this time checked the house while it rang. Both doors were locked tight. He had installed both dead bolts himself, and they were untouched. The windows were sealed shut and the security alarm not tripped. There was no evidence of forced entry.
With the phone cradled between his shoulder and ear, he shoved the blinds open to look outside. Their car was parked there in the driveway, exactly where he left it. Now he stood stupefied in the living room, the phone still ringing into the void. There was no note to explain her strange absence. He found her keys and wallet still in the closet. Her laptop abandoned, and now that he looked, her shoes still parked next to the front door. His girlfriend was just, gone. As if some otherworldly force had beamed her from the bed and out of existence while he had been fighting for his life in his nightmares.
The shrill alarm in the bedroom cleaved the quiet into pieces. It was officially time for Steven, the punctual military man to get ready for work. Drone operations and test flights along with paperwork to file awaited him. But his once comforting routine now seemed shallow and secondary by comparison.
He reasoned staying in the house wouldn't glean any more answers. His missing partner could be anywhere on the military base. Maybe some suddenly awakening sleepwalking condition? A panic attack that forced her out… But without her keys to lock the doors behind her? Or her shoes? He ignored those glaring logical factors. Someone else must have seen her.
He got ready as fast as he could. He spit the remainder of toothpaste and blood from his self-inflicted nighttime bite into the sink, pulled a comb through his salt and pepper hair, and yanked on his uniform he had laid out the night before as always. Some familiar things had not changed at least.
Glancing at the mirror, his gunmetal gray eyes were bloodshot from a terrible night's sleep and worry. Washing his face didn't fix the problem. Normally, such a shitty outer appearance would be cause for concern, but he had bigger things to worry about.
He skipped breakfast and headed for the door, trying to ring his girlfriend's cell again. She didn't pick up.
He pushed down his panic and tried to remain levelheaded. He convinced himself it would be ok. There would be a perfectly reasonable explanation for everything once he found her. He just needed to expand his search.
The faster he started looking, the faster he could assure Rhea was safe.