Hi, everybody! This is Iniora saying, I've done as you asked and changed Inferno's name to... Blaze! I've also done a bit of editing on the chapters and, as an extra bonus, have a new chapter for you all.

Since I'm reposting everything, let me put up the disclaimers.

A) I do not own Energon.

B) I do not own the Invaders

C) I do not own the Gatekeepers concept – I just own the characters I introduce and a very few of their gates.

D) This may not be a disclaimer, but it still needs to be here anyway. Hot Shot (who shows up later) is the Hot Shot from Armada, only with the flame decals. Whoever drew the Energon Hot Shot needs to go stick his head in a toilet somewhere and give himself a swirl for that horrible rendition of everyone's favorite cocky bot – well, favorite right up there next to Hot Rod.

Now that that's done, let's get with the editing!

Gateway Future

Key to the Gate

There was an impenetrable silence that filled the halls and made any and all communication between neighboring units impossible. A small light flickered on at the end of the tunnel and began to grow in rhythm to the sound of strong metallic beatings echoing across the slivery smooth metallic floor. The shadows cast back against the growing light reviled a metallic monster at least forty feet high with a young teen dressed in what looked like a muscular tight-fitting space suite sitting on the metallic being's shoulder. The teen released an annoyed sigh at the same time the metal monster did, but unlike his metallic companion, the boy ran his hand through his rat-nest style brown hair.

"Man!" the robot huffed, "This bites!"

"No joke!" the boy sighed. A soft whimpering made the robot stop in his tracks and the boy blink in shock.

"Hey, Kicker, did you hear that...?" the robot whispered.

"Yeah, Ironhide, I did...." Kicker whispered. The moan echoed again, softer this time and followed by the sound of fabric ruffling in the wind. "Turn up the lights..."

Ironhide complied and soon a miniature sun was blazing on his left shoulder. He rotated his body in a slow, even pattern, shining the light across the floor in a cautious dance. His light passed over something black and tattered, making Kicker jump off his shoulder and shout,

"Ironhide, call a medic!" Ironhide soon saw why, for a small female child beaten, bruised, and covered in ashy-grey dust was reviled under the pile of black Ironhide's light had passed only moments before.

"No can do, Kicker; the com was kicked out, remember? We'll have to take her out ourselves." Ironhide countered. He slowly descended down to boy and child's height and gently scoped the wounded into his hand. Kicker took his accustomed perch on Ironhide's right shoulder again before the robot deemed it safe to proceed back the way he had come.

Voices. Soft, kind, scary voices. The kind of voices you want to see but are afraid of seeing. A soft blackness and a warm light echoed against her eyelids, making her wince. She raised her hand to block out the bright lights that now stung at her eyes like knives, only to have it caught by a stronger hand and richer voice.

"It'd be a bad idea to rub your eyes right now. Your arm's in a cast." the voice informed her. She wanted to pout then at the owner of the voice, for he had an edge of teasing wrapped secretively in his voice that she disliked. She heard the noise of chair legs scrapping against the surface of what seemed like a metallic floor followed by the soft hum of a generator slowing down. "I've dimmed the lights some. See if you can open your eyes now."

She tried opening her eyes again, only to see that she was in a white room on a flat bed lying directly under a bright science light bulb, which had been turned down to twilight brightness. The first thought to come to mind was that she was on a dissecting table. The second and most pressing was that she had to run, now!

She tried to get up off the table and to bolt for the door, but a strong being wearing a smooth metallic outfit grabbed her tight and deposited her back on the bed. She shut her eyes tight again and struggled to get out of the being's grip and away from the strange dissecting room.

"Hey! What's the big idea?! You shouldn't be up yet!" the voice ordered. Her one good hand made contact with his check, creating an echoing sound of flesh on flesh that seemed to reverberate through the whole room. Her eyes opened wide in shock, the lights snapped back on as if in reflex, and the being she had hit, a teen with rat-nest style brown hair, was looking wide eyed at the ground with a bright red pulsating bruise forming on his cheek. The boy's gloved hand slowly reached up to touch the spot he had been hit at, and with what seemed like the speed of a snail, he turned wide-eyed to face her. Thinking she was in for another beating, the girl shut her eyes tight and pulled herself back against the wall the table was imbedded in.

"Kicker!" The boy whirled around to face the metallic being that had flipped on the lights to full brightness upon hearing the slap and gave it a victory sign.

"Tell Red I know how she made it through the attack, Ironhide. She's got a hell of a lot of spunk!" Kicker laughed teasingly. Ironhide blinked, looking from the now formed black and blue bruise on Kicker's cheek to the huddling girl in bandages that was pulling the blanket she had been provided tight against her heart with her one good arm.

"That may not be the medical reason why she survived, but it is a reason." a different, aged voice chuckled from behind Ironhide. A silver metallic being walked in next, his features old and brimming with the wisdom of the ages and his eyes were hidden behind a single red visor. Instead of having two hands, he had one normal one and one that looked almost looked like a laser torch. This elder shooed kicker away from the scared girl and gently extended his normal hand. "Good morning, miss. You'll have to excuse Kicker for his lack of maturity; he's the spoiled kid around base."

"I am not!" Kicker pouted instantly. The silver giant chuckled,

"See what I mean?" The girl smiled lightly as well, hiding her innocent giggle under the folds of the covers. "Would you mind coming with me for a moment? It's time to see how well your wounds have healed."

The girl nodded, slowly stretching her long thin body off the bed and into the silver giant's hand. Her black hair seemed to echo in the revived light of the room, tossing out into play the streaks of silvery white that streamed through its length. Her eyes were another mystery in themselves for one was a normal dark brown and the other looked almost a silver white, although it appeared as if she could see through both perfectly. Kicker couldn't help but stair after her, lost in the glow of her ivory skin. Ironhide came up behind him and tapped him 'gently' on the shoulder, making him double over in shock.

"Hey, come on! We've got to go relieve Demolisher on gate duty." Ironhide complained.

"Alright, alright! But next time don't send me sprawling!!" Kicker jumped, lunging up to his perch on Ironhide's shoulder.

"I didn't!"

"Yeah yah did!"

"Did not!"

"Did to!"

"Not!"

"To!"

"Not!"

"To!"

"Not!"

"To!"

"Not!"

"To!!"

"Will the both of you shut up?!"

"Sorry Jet Fire,"

It seemed a little strange to the girl that a giant robot so large and obviously powerful would be able to tend to her wounds and remove the cast on her arm and bandages on her head with such a gentle caress she almost giggled when he passed over her tickle spot on her belly. Her fight against laughter did not go unnoticed.

"A little ticklish I see," the robot chuckled lightly. Once her bandages were removed, the robot pulled back slightly behind a large metallic control panel. A small wire-like beam of energy covered the girl for a moment before disappearing as fast as it had appeared. "Good. All of your injuries have fully healed." He turned to look at her and added, "Looks like all your wounds needed was those four days asleep in bed."

"I've been asleep for four days!!??" the girl squeaked, then was instantly silent with a rosy red blush blooming on her cheeks. The giant smiled.

"Yes; you're lucky to be alive with the concussion you received from the falling debris." He bent down by her side again and smiled, "I'm sorry, I've forgotten to introduce myself. My name is Red Alert."

"Erin," she whispered. Red Alert could only smile at her shyness.

"Why don't you stay here for a while, Erin, and I'll go see if we have any spare cloths that would fit you?" Red Alert offered. Erin nodded a hasty thanks, her eyes not once leaving the ground in shyness. Red Alert's topic of cloths had made her painfully aware of her own attire, or lack there of.

Kicker stopped dead in his tracks. The girl he had stared after not more than half an hour ago was standing at the front of the base as if lost or waiting for someone. But it wasn't the fact the girl was outside – oh no, that wasn't what made his heart thump and his hands clammy. It was her newly acquired outfit; he instantly wanted to know where she had gotten it.

The black flowers tucked in a folded corner of her hair rustled in the wind as too did the long sleeves of her pure white kimono. Flower petals seemed to comprise the sash she wore around her waist creating a flowering bow behind her with long streamers that stopped only about half a foot away from the edges of her traditional sandals. This simple yet elegant sash tied the white of the sleeves and the black of the dress together like a masterpiece painting. In her hand held loose as if she hardly remembered it was there was a small oriental fan comprised of blue and sea green with small hints of red near the center. Kicker had seen such a fan before and knew that the interior was an Autobot symbol centered in the middle of a calm sea.

Kicker licked his hand and pushed back his hair, puffed up his chest, took one step foreword, and was stopped by Ironhide's foot crashing down before him, both blocking his view of the angel and squishing his dreams all in one sad moment.

"Don't even think about it, Kicker. Optimus is meeting with her now." Ironhide warned him. Kicker glared at the giant robot, his disgust echoing through more than just his eyes. Kicker's sudden outburst caused Erin to blink, looking over at the boy and robot in question. Kicker's cheeks suddenly went bright red and he began laughing embarrassedly upon noticing her blank stair at him. Erin's own cheeks blushed and she unfurled her fan, blocking the blush from view. The sound of a foot landing behind her, along with familiar laughing, caused her to turn around and look up. There, towering above her, was Optimus Prime.

"You'll have to excuse Kicker, Miss. Erin; there hasn't been a young fem on this base for quite a long while." Optimus laughed. Erin blushed twice as bad, almost burning a hole in the fan with the heat of her still rising blush. Optimus chuckled yet again. He nodded to Kicker in recognition of the fact that boys would be boys before ushering Erin inside. Kicker released a sigh he hadn't realized he'd been holding back.

"...Man...She's the cutest thing I've ever seen..." Kicker whispered.

"Cuter than your mother?" Ironhide blinked.

"Ew, Ironhide!"

"What? What I say??"

"...And that is what we believed happened to you." Optimus concluded solemnly. Erin looked down at the ground and he could tell she was fighting back tears.

"...So many...innocent lives..." he thought he heard her whisper, though her lips never seemed to move. A small tear confirmed his suspicions that she had been deeply touched by the loss of life. Without a word, she rose from her seat and started for the door.

"...Thank you...Good bye..." Erin whispered softly. Before Optimus could stop her from leaving, she had bolted for the door. He released a gentle sigh before slamming his fist down into the table and cursing at himself for telling her in such an emotionless manner. Now she probably believed that it was her fault so many had died in the Energon Raid.

Erin ran out the door as fast as she could, her eyes shut tight against the tears that threatened to fall. There was a loud thud as she ran head first into a hard metallic leg. She sniffled back her tears, looking up at the being she had run into. He was tall and red with hints of silver and gold adding interesting flares to his armor. Similar to Red Alert, this robot had both of his eyes hidden behind a red visor, only this visor seemed less kind and more demanding like a warrior that had seen far too many of his friends fall on the battle field. Despite his dark looks, the robot chuckled lightly at Erin and offered her a digit up.

"Yah don't have to be afraid of me kid," the robot smiled. Erin sniffled again, looking up wide-eyed at the giant. As if guessing her mode, the robot smiled, "Prime told yah about that base you were found at, huh?"

Erin lowered her eyes and nodded, "Yes," so softly the robot had to strain his audio receptors to hear her. He smiled at her gently, lifting her off the ground and depositing her gently on his shoulder. She sat there for a few moments, staring blankly at the corner of his optic visor. He looked back at her and smiled,

"I bet you're hungry, huh? I'll take yah down to the mess hall." As he began to walk down the hall, the rhythmic pattern of his feet against the metal echoed more than just a gentle clang.

"...You don't like being grounded..." Erin whispered. The robot looked back at her with a puzzled look before raising his left hand and chuckling,

"Yeah. The name's Jet Fire; I'm the Air Commander around here." Jet Fire introduced himself.

"My name's Erin Topaz..." Erin answered. She curled in against Jet Fire's ear and closed her eyes, listening to the sounds of his feet echo against the wall. When they arrived at their destination, Jet Fire set her down as carefully as if she were a China doll.

Jet Fire directed her to a seat that seemed to have been specially designed for a human and Transformer to sit at the same height. Once seated, the chair Erin was in levitated to the main portion of the table and made it so that she was sitting even with Jet Fire's chest. A small menu popped out of the table in front of her while another larger menu jumped out in front of Jet Fire. The sudden appearance of a fold out menu in her hands startled her slightly, making her jump a few inches out of her chair. Jet Fire simply laughed, taking the larger menu of the two and opening it before him.

"I'll have the unleaded," Jet Fire joked. He tapped his finger against the menu and returned it to the slot it had ejected from. Erin blinked, looking at the menu. Her mouth almost watered in shock at the variety of foods they had to choose from. She tapped her finger against the picture of the chicken strips and caramel cream soda and returned the menu to the slot it had come from.

"So, Erin, why were you running from Prime's office?" Jet Fire questioned calmly. Erin looked up at him for a moment, looking past the crimson red of his visor straight back into his optics. Her oddly colored eyes twinkled slightly on the verge of tears, making Jet Fire blink. "Oh...I get it..." He reached his hand across the table and laid a digit on her shoulder. "That attack wasn't your fault."

"...Wasn't it...?" Erin whispered, turning her gaze from him. He pushed her chin up to look at him in the optic again.

"It wasn't. The Decepticons and Terracons have been running raids like that for months now. They're getting desperate to steal as much Energon from us as they can." Jet Fire explained, a soft smile on his lips.

"Energon?" Erin blinked. Right on cue, their meals arrived via a floating robotic waiter. Small cubes by Jet Fire's standards that glowed an err purple color were placed before Jet Fire, where as a small basket of chicken strips battered and fried to perfection and a tall caramel cream root bear float were set delicately before Erin.

"This is Energon," Jet Fire explained. He lifted one of the cubes up off his plate and took a bite out of it. Erin watched with wide eyes as the purple glow flooded halfway out of the cube and down Jet Fire's gullet much like her caramel cream float had vanished down her own gullet a few moments ago. "It's pure refined energy that's clean burning, meaning that it doesn't cause any excess pollution. This is what powers all Transformers, along with everything else we've got here at base. How's the meal?"

This sudden topic jump made Erin blink. She looked blankly down at the half eaten basket, then back up at Jet Fire with an embarrassed rosy blush.

"I never even noticed I'd eaten it..." she whispered, blushing. Jet Fire blinked at that one.

"From the way you gulped that down, I'd say you hadn't had anything to eat in a while." Erin hid her face as well she could, diverting her eyes from Jet Fire's stern truth-telling glare. Jet Fire laughed, "Ah, I'm just joking with yah! Kicker's twice as fast an eater as you, so I shouldn't be surprise. You are just growing kids after all!"

Erin forced a small embarrassed laugh, all the while fighting back a sigh of relieve. For a few moments, she had feared that Jet Fire had hit the bull's eye about her past. Caution was going to have to be the name of her game, at least till she could slip away into the past again.