Rescue Bots: Recognized

Summary: Something's been building... Chase gets on Heatwave's already frayed nerves and during a confrontation they suddenly feel the mysterious force of recognition. The humans freak out when they find out and the bots even more so. but the longer they refuse to answer the call, the more dangerous it becomes for the both of them... thing is, they're still mad at each other.

Rating: Pg-13 (for now)

Disclaimer: All rights to Rescue Bots, characters and settings, belongs to Hasbro. However, the concept of recognition belongs to, as of 2015, Dark Horse Comics, Elfquest. However, this is NOT a crossover.

Chapter 1

Two years was but a blink of an optic for the bots who worked side by side with their partners on the rescue force on Griffin Rock, but for those humans a lot had changed. The bots did not expect this kind of growth in such a short time; however, they took it in stride and even turned it into a learning experience on the life cycles of humans plus the culture in between. Dani had married Taylor, having moved in with him a year back into a nearby home they were working to own, and were now expecting a baby. Graham was working side by side with his long time engineering girlfriend on an important project... while Kade was still building up the courage to ask Haley to marry him, subconsciously afraid of commitment as Heatwave teased. Cody was preparing to enter high school in the fall, growing into maturity quite better than his father or anyone could ever have expected as he still had the dream that one day he would take his place beside his siblings in the line of duty.

Yes A lot has changed... however a lot still remained the same.

Outside behind the Burn's family firehouse, a blue and white bot practiced evasive maneuvers on a small track set up while just a little ways away from him the other bots were working on a small project with Cody. Chase was certainly one of the more graceful bots on the team, completing objectives with a certain style and finesse that Boulder or Heatwave did not have and Blade's was too nervous to achieve his level of agility without tripping up half the time.

"Hey, Chase, come over here and check this out," Boulder waved in a friendly manner to his teammate. "Cody has a class called political science, but it is actually about history! Not politics or science."

Cody's voice chimed in, "Actually it has a little bit of politics, on how it came to be in this country."

"...Must I join? I have been slacking as of late on practicing and training in favor of writing up parking violations. I fear I may have been spoiling myself..." Chase spoke with a bit of effort though he did not miss a beat as he flipped out of vehicle mode over a gap and landed on his pedes on the other side. Though honestly he did not care for the subject either, he had learned a lot of history and politics brought a bad taste in his mouth so to speak. He was a very direct bot and the underhanded ways of politics was just not his style, he simply did not favor it. However, that did not mean he did not appreciate their part in creating the laws and rules they abide by today, though some of them were obviously made from plain common sense such as stealing.

"No worries Chase," Cody chuckled as he waved a hand at him. "This stuff isn't all that exciting anyways."

"I don't get how you could be so into training now when it takes a pep talk for you to break the speed limit in a pursuit." Heatwave's huff chimed in.

Chase paused in the middle of stretching for his next form and straightened out, "Are you suggesting I do not take my job seriously, Heatwave?"

"A little." The fire bot held up his servo, holding his thumb digit and index digit mere inches apart to accentuate his point.

However, the gesture was not what mattered. Heatwave managed to push the right button on getting on the police bot's angry side, as Chase had stopped what he was doing and stormed up to his teammate, "After all this time how dare you say I do not take my job seriously, I hold everyone up to the standards and regulations I put upon my self. The law is there for a reason and it is my job to defend it, I break those values who am I to tell people to uphold them?" He was much more stern than usual.

Heatwave leaned in, nearly butting helms, "Maybe you do it a little too well don't you think? You take it a little too far, you know that?"

A cough clearing an intake emanated from Blades who was on the other side near Cody, looking a little nervous, "Someone else might be taking something a little too far..."

"Guys, please we shouldn't fight. We're a team remember?" Boulder too looked worried and within a minute after he got over the shock of the suddenness of the argument did he begin to move in to break it up physically.

"Not now Boulder. He wants a fight, very well." Chase, held up a servo to stop Boulder from any action as he stood optic to optic with his frustrated teammate. "I'll be happy to give him an education in verbal assault."

Feeling the tension increase in the air and his spark palpitating anxiously, the copter bot shifted his optics back and forth to each of the bots then to the human beside him, "We should move..." Blades scooped up Cody into his servos and ushered him inside with Boulder right behind him. While out of the line of fire, they still watched the exchange from the windows inside the garage.

"What? Am I breaking the law pointing out what you need to work on?" Heatwave growled.

"If that is what we are doing then perhaps I should say a few pointers of my own," Chase pointed an index digit at the fire bot's chassis, brow furrowed in deep annoyance.

From inside the garage, the argument could be seen and barely heard through the door of the garage but as volumes raised it was getting pretty close to being audible to Cody. The teen looked up at Blades and Boulder, "What in the world is going on with those two?"

"I'm not exactly sure myself... Something's been building and building. I say its stress really." Blades answered thoughtfully, optics towards the ceiling and a digit to his chin as he contemplated on how to describe the atmosphere of the last couple weeks to Cody in a way the boy could understand.

Boulder glanced back out the window, "Chase blows off steam by doing work, and when Heatwave is stressed..." He trailed off.

"... He argues..." Cody finished with a somber sigh, brow furrowed with worry as his attention was on the pair outside whose argument looked to be increasing in intensity.

"Perhaps if you did not fantasize about leaving the team for Team Prime, you might actually be a more proficient leader... or at the very least dedicated to not turning on your own teammates." Chase was now fully drawn into the clash of wills Heatwave started, leaving no quarter.

Heatwave growled at that, his anger reaching a different level. He was feeling a twinge of hurt and guilt at the jab at his leadership, already having proven that he would never leave... but how could his team not know that? However Chase's comment would not go unanswered, Heatwave getting right into Chase's face so close that his amber yellow optics could see right into Chase's own light green optics and not much else.

"Really, cause of course when you g-" When something stopped Heatwave short.

*Zzzt*!

It was an unusual, but striking feeling that for a moment Heatwave thought he had just been slapped. However, Chase had not even moved or lifted a digit and judging by his expression was feeling the same sensational jolt. Both bots whipped their helms about, desperate for some sort of explanation or perpetrator to pop up from nowhere. They then looked back at each other with deeply astonished looks on their face plates and what came next shocked then even further.

A need. An earth moving, powerful need that took them both by surprise. Not the need to hurt, that was just anger. This was anything but was a passionate feeling of... love? But it felt like something more, coming from the spark right as their optics met.

Tension still hung in the air, both bots staring at each other as though they were waiting for one or the other to make a first move; whether it be a punch to the face plate or a hard kiss instead. A minute of this frozen pressure felt like eternity of anticipation... The feelings were so sudden and confusing that neither one of them made a move and then at last Heatwave spoke.

"Did we... just...?" Heatwave finally uttered out in awe and disbelief. He took a cautious step forward though he was still unsure what he should do, for the first time in a long while.

"I believe so." Chase confirmed with much of the same apprehension in his tone of voice as his teammate, however monotonous he tried to seem.

Back inside the garage, Blades, Cody, and Boulder had their faces planted against the garage door window glass.

"What are they doing?!" Blades whined, confused.

"Looks like they've stopped fighting and started staring at each other..." Cody seemed just as confused and concerned, pulling his head up to look at the bots for an answer.

"It's kind of creepy... Just saying." Blades commented, folding his arms over his chassis.

Boulder on the other hand, looking the least confused of the trio, watched with an amount of suspicion though not voicing his concern. At least, not in front of Cody.

"Look they're talking again." Cody pointed and all three resumed their observations.

Heatwave vented a heavy sigh, rubbing the rim of his helm, "This has to be some mistake-"

"I concur." Chase chimed in quickly, taking a step back.

Heatwave lifted his helm, his jaw dropping slightly open and optics widening as he was caught off guard by the out right rejection. He certainly wasn't expecting an agreement on his expression of disbelief, "Wait, what?"

"We are clearly incompatible with each other." Chase responded, lifting his servos up as though to set a distance between himself and Heatwave.

"Wait," Heatwave tried to take a step up and reach out, guilt started to seep inside him as he could see the situation slipping from his control. "I didn't mean-"

However, Chase shook his head and stopped him in the middle of his plea, "No. We can't... " transforming and taking off around the firehouse more likely to his favorite spot to watch oncoming traffic.

The spot was not so far from the Burns home, but Heatwave didn't know if he should go after him or let Chase, who was clearly more panicked than he was at the moment, have his space for the time being. The fire bot simply stared, face plate frozen in shock, getting a weird feeling in his tanks. It was that need to hold the enforcer close, still ever present, which could only mean one thing... and then the regret hit his tanks. How could he have been so stupid, mistaking the symptoms for dissatisfaction of Chase? Heatwave lashed out suddenly, the only way he knew how to relieve the build up of emotions, kneeling down and punching the ground with an angered grunt, "This is insane!"

Cody suddenly ran out to Heatwave, rushing to the bot's side with the others right behind him, "What just happened?!"

"I uh..." Heatwave stood up slowly and turned his head away so Cody nor the other bots could see his face contorted in guilt, but his optics had already conveyed a worry and nervousness that was rarely seen in the mech.

"They just need a bit of time to sort things out, right?" Boulder cut in, perhaps it might not be what he thought it was...

"I get that, but what happened?" Cody stressed as he turned to each of them, wanting an explanation.

"I'm kind of confused too," Blades piped up. "First you were arguing and then the next moment you guys were just... staring!"

Heatwave's gaze crossed over each of those present with slight apprehension,"It... well... It was recognition."

At that, Blades' mouth parted open in shock, "No way... That's impossible. There hasn't been a recognition in like... a million years!"

"Ahem.." Boulder cleared his intake, nudging both Heatwave and Blades while he was in the middle of the trio. "Remember when we revealed ourselves to the rest of the family, the agreement we made with the Chief? About what we can't say in front of..." He gave a side long glance at Cody to indicate who he meant.

"Wait... What can't you say? What's recognition?" Cody got the gist of the gesture so blatantly given in his direction, his voice now sounded concerned and a little irritated at the revelation that there were some things being kept from him. What's recognition? Why did the bots get so worked up over it? And why did his dad not want him to know about it? He gave his shot at trying to find out... "Please, tell me?"

A groan emanated from Heatwave as his servo rubbed his face plate... He really stepped in it deep now..

"Um..." Blades looked to the others nervously. "Maybe Cody's old enough now? Humans do have those birthdays that means they're growing older... and Cody's had two of them already." He held up two digits to signify his point.

Heatwave shook his head slowly with a grim expression, "I... don't want to take that chance," and he knelt down to Cody. "I know you want to know more, but you're gonna have to ask your dad for permission alright?"

Cody sighed dejected that it would have to come to that, turning to go indoors to find his father, "Fine..." dragging his feet along the way.

As Cody moved inside the the firehouse, Heatwave looked to Boulder and Blades, "What do we do? How do we tell everyone about this? This is big... I mean even bigger than me and Chase... oh Chase..." he clasped his helm with his servos. "How in the world do I fix this? How can we-...?"

Boulder placed his hand on Heatwave's shoulder plates, "One thing at a time, everything will be alright. I promise.." his gentle voice was so optimistic it could almost make Heatwave believe that everything was going to be fine. Almost.

Some where along the top of the Griffin Rock Dam, a 9 year old kid was taking a picture of the structure looking below to the bottom of it while on his school class field trip. He was leaning pretty far over the edge of the railing with out realizing it while his vision was focused on the lens of his camera and the awe of the expanse below... the rusted, painted over with flaking green metal starting to creak dangerously under the oblivious boy's weight...

End Chapter 1

T/Y