Fea:…..Alright here's the deal; I can't update as often as I (or any of you) want me to. To counter this when I DO update it will be with chapters that are a minimum of 25 pages long—about 9,000-10,000 words per chapter. I hope that this is an acceptable substitute.

And Arcee has been delayed until the next chapter…..(rubs back of head) got caught up in the sparklings.

Sorry.

Now: ppl ta thank! (A/N: I make it a point to reply to ALL of my reviews; even if it's a simple thanks. If you don't want—or can't wait for the chapter—to read all of them skip to the 'finish' in all caps. Thank you.)

Angel897: Well here's some more for ya!

AyameKitsune: Here! *thrusts chapter at you*

LGTracy: Vaguely; I have a general idea but I'm not sure how to incorporate him into the story yet. But he WILL show up at some point. Thanks for the worry!

Alalaya21:Why thank you!

Guest: Thank you; this is nowhere near soon but hopefully the length makes up for it!

Lady Syndra: Thanks; it's always a challenge trying to make them more caring (especially the Cons) without losing a core part of their personality.

Cool: Thank you.

Gemava:…..that is actually an awesome idea that for some inexplicable reason (I blame Sector Seven) hadn't occurred to me. I will be SURE to use it! Thank you!

WarriorKat21: Yes I live….though my job likes keeping me locked up on floating metal with no internet—or time to write.

XxShadowfangxX: Well I hope you're wait was well worth it!

Guest2: Spoke too soon…there are cute sparklings though.

Lina Marie: I KNOW!...I wish they were real. *pouts*

Mistra Rose: I know there are a LOT of the little ones; I try and describe as many as possible of them in one chapter without cutting the story; and don't worry—once all of their names have been used in the story at least once I will post a list of all of their names and descriptions.

DarkFyreNyx: Thank you! It's always nice to see someone say they like my OC; it's nice to know that they aren't ruining the cannon characters for everybody.

Guest3: Thank you for liking my story! I know this isn't soon but please enjoy!

Flamingfoxviper: Anything to keep my mechs happy! Lol

Guest4: 0_o *slowly hands over chapter* So…much…energy!

New Guest: YESSSSS! My story has ensnared yet another! My updates may be few and far between; but that passion for this story has not abated. It will just take longer than planned to finish. I hope you will stick around for the ride.

Guest5: I hope ya'll don't mind being referred to by numbers 'cause I don't know what else ta do. *More suspense funeral music* You will have to wait a little longer for the blow-up; though I assure you it's right around the corner….

New FanGuest: Creative….nice. I'm guessing your friend is the one above?*points* Don't worry: more cute sparklings in this AND the next chapter…I guarantee it.

Guest6: *laughs* I'm glad you like it.

MysticWriter3018: Let's just say that they haven't found out EVERYTHING yet and they already want to kill them. Imagine what will happen when they read the file? *grins*

Guest6: NOW! I'm updating it now!

I AM NEW: Updating; updating!

Guest7:…I was gone for far too long. Updates now; hopefully I'll hit chapter 20 by Christmas.

Guest8: Now; I'm updating now. It's nice to see how many people still follow this story!

Guest9: Thank you for saying so! Why yes; yes there WILL be an adult seeker soon—who that might be though is anyone's guess!

Transformer Fan: Of course they're in trouble; you'll just have to wait and see exactly HOW much.

TransFanLover: *throws chapter into air like a stack of money and runs away* Take it!

Transform Love: Thank you—here's a gift! *hands over chapter*

Prime Lover: Don't worry; what I have in mind is….judicious and twisted.

Guest10: Thanks!

NewReader: Danke!

LovePrime: Merci!

Transform12345: Efxaristo!

TransformPrime: Xie xie!

Transformer13580:Gracias! Updating now!

IvoryCrawler: lol…glad you're so impressed. Here's more!

Transformer15580: 'Raj is 'Raj and Dino is Dino. I personally have nothing against Dino; but him using shivs instead of a rifle bugs me to no end; he'll probably be used as a separate character entirely.

Scion Nexus Prime:…Thank you; both for the wicked awesome and….yea. It's nice ta hear; thanks!

AutobotReader: Who DOESN'T love sparklings? Here's some more sparkling cuteness for ya!

SparkFanLove: Thanks; I'm glad you like it. As I've said before the explosion isn't quite here; but it's coming.

*FINISHED!*

Fea:…..Wow; so many great reviews! Thank you ; ALL of you! I also want to thank the people who follow and read this story even through you might not always leave a review; any form of support is appreciated!

Now enough of my rambling; ON TO THE STORY!

Astrosecond—.498 seconds

Klik—1.2 minutes

Breem—8.3 minutes

Joor—1 hour

Orn— Cybertronian Day (4.8 days)

Diun— C. Month (121 Days)

Decivorn—C. Year (8.3 years)

Decavorn—C. Century (833 years)

Hekavorn—100,000 C. Years (8,333,333 years)

*Silverlight*Silverlight*Silverlight*Silverlight*S ilverlight*Silverlight*Silverlight*Silverlight*Sil verlight*

:What ahre we gonna do Prime?:

'What indeed?'

Optimus sunk on his shocks as he contemplated all of the information that Morwenna had given him in the past fifteen minutes, air brakes hissing in his alt modes approximation of a sigh as they came upon the gates into Nellis. Especially glad that gaining entrance to the base was going to take a minute on Keller's part—secretly relieved that, for once, he wasn't the one everyone was looking to for final approval—he turned his attention to the part of the problem that bothered him the most; what the humans would term as his 'sister'.

They were not sparked from the same bond; he knew as much about his actual sparkers as the sparklings around him knew of the Allspark, but the ones he called 'Sire' and 'Carrier'—she was all that remained of either generous mechs and he was loath to lose her. But this very same reason is what made him hesitate; while only a few of his upper chain of command knew about the relation between them, he didn't want it to appear that he approved of this venture for no other reason than there might be a CHANCE that she could be saved.

#...Orion?#

Optimus welcomed his mates support as the medic reached to him through their bond, megavorns of traveling together allowing the others to pick up on his—thought to be well hidden—stress.

:We all know tha' ya wouldn' put any of our lives at risk for pers'nal gain Op; but ya know as well as I tha' this could save multiple Cybertronian lives—not just hers.:

#What Jazz's saying's true Orion; and even if it WERE personal, none of us would blame you for wanting to hold on to the last piece of family you had—Primus knows we would do the same.#

#I reserve that kind of possessiveness for you love.#

Optimus couldn't help but smirk at the melting sensations that came through the bond, grateful that his alt mode prevented the others from seeing. Venting to try and loosen some of his cabling he once again went over the information, seeing the wisdom of Jazz's words as he looked at it objectively.

:….But Jazz makes a good point; Ironhide.:

:Yea, Prime?:

:Tell Arcee about Morwenna's plan and have the rest of her team proceed to Earth; it will take them a couple of orns to arrive and we will be able to inform the local government and establish a firmer truce within that time-frame.:

Ironhide sent an affirmative as he readied the data-packet, pausing briefly to gently halt the large sparkling in front of him so that he wouldn't go rolling into anyone.

:Oh and Prime?:

:Yes Jazz?:

:…How many times have we told ya ta stop using bond-speak in the middle of an every-bot convo?!:

Prime couldn't stop his laugh at that, his bondmate sniggering as some of the more—attentive guards of the base jumped from their position next to him before backing up slightly, a few really looking like they really wanted to poke him with the end of their weapons (only because there were no sticks nearby).

#It's good to hear you laugh again.#

Optimus took a steadying intake of air and started his engine as Keller waved them forward, intakes hitching as Blackout barely gave himself enough lift to clear the fence-line.

:Morwenna—why didn't Blackout follow human protocol for a vehicle of his make when entering a military installation?:

There was silence for a few moments as she asked him; after their little 'conference' Frenzy had closed all of the comm lines between the 'Cons and the rest of the'bots, Morwenna's ear piece being the only line untouched.

Her voice was wry when she replied.

:He said, and I quote "You try being the only flyer in a bunch of grounders and see where those infernal squishies force YOU to land when you adhere to their backwards flight plans Prime. And besides; there's less of a chance of the squishies glitching and trying to shoot me—and getting crushed in return—if we're all together."

Apparently bullets sting and the pinging noise they make on his rotors is annoying.:

:So~….he entered that way 'cause he didn' want ta get shot at?:

They could practically hear her shrug.

:Pretty much….

By the way; did you receive the packet Frenzy data-burst you Prime?:

:Affirmative; though I would like an explanation as to why there is an attachment that says 'Do Not Open Until at Nellis?':

:…..Let's just say that it's not something that you should divide your processing power on and leave it at that.:

Optimus couldn't help but regard the seemingly innocuous packet warily as he followed Keller deeper into the base; what was in it that had Morwenna giving a warning like that? Following Keller into a long, tall hangar Optimus made sure to scan the area for any hidden devices that resembled the ones the blonde femme's men had earlier; not that he didn't trust Keller, but he had far too many experiences with an 'expendable' member of the enemies command being used as an instrument for his capture for him to feel completely as ease. It didn't help that the door clanged shut behind them as soon as the last mech was inside the hangar walls, though he was marginally relieved when Keller's car stopped just a short distance in front of him, the man himself exiting a few moments later.

"Colonel; has everyone in here signed a Secrecy Act document and been relieved of their weapons?"

"Yes sir."

"Good; Ms. Morrigan!"

Optimus 'watched' as Morwenna stepped out of Barricades alt mode, whispering something gently to the sparkling inside before turning her attention to Keller.

"Yes Mr. Secretary?"

"Would you please make sure that everyone has exited the 'specialized vehicles'?"

"Of course."

She nodded once before turning around, bending down to carefully settle Vultus onto one hip and put the re-packed bag on the ground as she re-activated her comm.

:Alright; I'm not going to go around to EVERY. SINGLE. ALT-MODE. so I'm going to ask that everyone that HAS someone in their alt mode to open their driver's side door. Please.:

Ironhide, Jazz, Hot Rod and Mirage all popped open their doors—Morwenna glared at those who gasped as Vultus and Frenzy came into view—, patiently waiting until all of their human companions had exited their forms before closing them again.

"Everyone's out now, Mr. Secretary."

Keller nodded before shifting his attention towards Prime, suppressing a smile of amusement as he spoke.

"While this may not be the best of accommodations that my government can provide you with it is the best we can do on such short notice: it fulfills both our need of having something relatively secure for our nations National Security while providing your people with enough height and space to stretch out comfortably.

Now; I am sure that you would like to get your people settled before our meeting with the President later this evening—Prime."

Optimus took that as his queue to transform, ignoring the buzz of shocked humans behind him as he knelt to look at Keller eye-to-optic.

"This space is more than adequate for a temporary arrangement, thank you Mr. Secretary."

Rising to his pedes as Keller nodded in agreement he turned to face his Autobots and three Decepticons, straightening his shoulder struts and linking his servos behind himself as he looked over them all.

"Autobots; TRANSFORM!"

There was a great canopy of sound as parts split and re-arranged themselves, everybot seeming to move in a choreographed dance as they twisted and bent into their bi-pedal form before standing at attention in front of Prime when they were done, the two larger 'Cons standings slightly off to one side as they looked around with feigned disinterest.

:Behave professionally.:

"Jazz."

"Yea Prime?"

"I would like you and Ironhide to attend the meeting with myself and the Secretary of Defense with this nations President; until then I would like you to run a quick perimeter check to make sure that there is nothing that could be inadvertently used to harm the sparklings."

"On it Prime."

Ironhide answered with a roll of his cannons and a sharp nod before going to the opposite end of the hanger as Jazz, both of them carefully maneuvering their way through a stunned group of military personnel on the way to their objective.

#And what—exactly—am I supposed to do while you're in a meeting?#

Optimus glanced over to where Ratchet was standing, subtly raising an optic ridge as he noticed his bondmates crossed arms and wide stance. He didn't want to risk his near infamous temper rising to the surface with so many humans around.

#You and I both know that you won't be happy until you've inspected and personally compiled a base-line medical record for each of the new-sparks; I am merely opening up the only conceivable slot of inactivity that we are likely to receive in the near future.#

Ratchet huffed as he straightened and moved towards the transport, the underlying warmth negating the bite of his words.

#Since you know me sooo well; I'm just going to be over here.#

Optimus shook his helm at the medic's sense of humor, looking down as Keller called up to him.

"Yes Mr. Secretary?"

"Please; just Keller will do.

If you'll follow me; we're actually going to meet with the President in a different hangar—not because of any problems on our end, but because the Secret Service has a tendency to be… overzealous when it comes to protecting the President."

Prime nodded in understanding.

"I have no problem allowing them this small measure of security as long as it does not impede our negotiations."

"I'll make sure that it doesn't; now, I actually have some questions and concerns to bring up before the start of the meeting—that is; if you're wiling?"

Optimus dipped his helm, motioning for Keller to show him the alternate location as he commed for Jazz and Ironhide to follow.

"Of course."

*Silverlight*Silverlight*Silverlight*Silverlight*S ilverlight*Silverlight*

"YOU'RE IT!"

"CHEAT! YOU AREN'T SUPPOSED TO FLY!"

Morwenna chuckled as she watched the sparklings—and Tom—in their game of tag, waving at Ratchet as she noticed the medic walking over.

"Need something?"

"Yes, actually. Could you call the sparklings over for a baseline exam? Not all at once; Primus knows how restless they'd become if they were forced to be still long enough for me to examine them individually."

"…..Yea; let's NOT find out shall we? Now did you want someone specific or are you willing to start with just anyone?"

Ratchet opened his mouth to answer before pausing, seeming to consider something before re-focusing on her.

"If you could tell me the designation of the sparkling still in stasis we shall consider him the first."

A worried look crossed her face at that, turning to look at Ratchet fully as she stared up into his face.

"His name's Hornet; he's going to be okay, right?"

He nodded.

"Of course; admittedly a damage field stabilizer is something only a qualified medic should deal with because of its close proximity to the spark but it was a relatively simple fix—all we are waiting for now is for his systems to fully heal the imbalance before he will come out of stasis."

"Well that's a relief."

Both of them turned to look at Michael as he came up next to them, a shy Carbon digging his helm into his adopted Sire's shoulder as he noticed the medic's stare.

"You were supporting Hornet earlier were you not?"

"I was; I just wish I could've done more for him. After all; it's my fault he was hurt in the first place."

Ratchet's optics narrowed at the statement: Morwenna looked at him, horrified.

"How can you even say that?"

"It's true; if I had just kept a closer eye on him I could have—"

"That is NO reason to blame yourself and you know it. Even with the four of you there were still nearly forty sparklings to look after—we're lucky that this is ALL that's happened, especially considering his propensity for wandering off."

"And what if it hadn't been him, hmm?! What if it had been Carbon—or Vultus instead? Could you honestly tell me that you would still say that I wasn't at fault?!"

"….Yes; Carbon because you love him as dearly as if he were your own flesh and blood—I know nothing would harm him unless you were dying in a gutter somewhere. As for Vultus…"

She turned to look over at said sparkling as he played with the others, smiling softly at the care-free joy that was on those little faceplates.

"I can't say that I wouldn't be upset, but I wouldn't blame a man who gave up a career and nearly his life for them; you wouldn't be so careless, even if it was a sparkling that no one had yet adopted.

Now the person responsible, however…."

Michael couldn't help but laugh at the mischievous grin on her face, Carbon reaching up to pat his Sire's cheek comfortingly before timidly glancing up at Ratchet, ducking again when the medic smiled down at him.

"Sorry; he's really shy when meeting new people."

"*snort* Ya think? It took nearly two weeks for Ruth and James to be able to pick him up for any length of time and he STILL freaks out if Tom gets too close to him and Michael isn't there.

Then again…I hafta say that it's pretty normal considering everything that he went through; that they all went through."

Ratchet frowned: that's just it; he didn't KNOW what they all went through. And he highly doubted that asking her in front of all the sparklings was the wisest of decisions—he didn't want them to relive a trauma so intense that it caused their vocal processors and translation software to activate three decivorns EARLIER than normal. Not to mention that their motor and cognitive skills shouldn't be at the levels they so clearly were for another four. He could continue on the vein of discrepancies of these sparklings compared to those sparked on Cybertron but ruthlessly cut himself off, for that was the very problem—they were Earth-based sparklings, not Cybertronian ones. Who knows what the Allspark had to change about them just to ensure their survival in a world that—to the Allspark anyway—was completely antagonistic to its species?

Shaking his helm to get rid of the thought process—that had taken less than half a klik—he gestured down at the shy little mechling in the human mechs arms, readying his organic repair kit as he noticed that leg wound still hadn't been properly attended to.

"And just what IS the little scraplets name?"

"Carbon."

He raised a ridge.

"Why name him Carbon—or Hornet for that matter?"

"Cause of the way they look; Carbon is named after texturized carbon steel because his plating looks exactly like it and Hornet is named as such because his helm shape mimics that of the actual insect.

You'll find that a lot of the sparklings names are based on their appearance; the other half is based on their personality or something their capable of that is unique to them, though there are a few exceptions."

He nodded; at least the names made a little more sense now, though he also supposed some of them would be—strange compared to normal sparkling names because of the human element thrown in; they could make leaps of logic that astounded even him.

"Well then; Michael."

"Yes Ratchet?"

"Would Carbon remain calm enough for me to examine him outside of your hold or do I need to work around you?"

Michael thought about it for a minute, Morwenna getting temporarily dragged away as James dragged her over to meet his son—one of the 1st Lt's that were in the building.

"It depends on if I'm in his line of sight or not; if you did it on the ground there wouldn't be a problem—in your hand however…."

'Rolling' his optics Ratchet lowered a servo onto the ground, an annoyed snort escaping him when he didn't immediately get it.

"Are you waiting for a—an invitation or what? Get on."

: Never thought I'd see the day you actually tried NOT to curse Hatchet.:

The medic glared over at the amused golden mech, optics trying to burn a hole through those arrogant faceplates.

:You are SOOO fragging lucky I'm surrounded by sparklings right now Sunstreaker.:

The frontliner just smiled complacently before skating off and Ratchet huffed irritably; how two of these sparklings could adopt him as their carrier was beyond him.

Calibrating his scanners for their lowest setting he did a broad spectrum sweep across the tiny frame, frowning as it came back with barely repaired plating on wounds that should have been repaired three diuns ago—somebody had been harvesting his repair nanites too quickly for them to be replaced and he grimaced at the continual, aching pain that the sparkling must have been under for the past however long they had been out of that fragging Sectors clutches.

He switched to a more in depth scan while he grumbled silently, optics cycling to their widest setting as he went through the data.

%:THOSE FRAGGIN', GLITCH-BRAINED, PIT-SPAWN SLAGGING HUMANS!:%

Every bot jumped at the unexpected outburst and turned to stare at him in surprise as Morwenna came running up to him, comm piece in one hand while the other rubbed at her ear furiously before she put it back in—fragger nearly blew out her eardrum.

"What's going on Ratchet?"

:Those—those Primus damned FRAGGERS removed part of his slagging SPARK CASING—HIS SPARK CASING! I'm surprised he hasn't gone into STASIS-LOCK from the pain or loss of frakkin' spark energy through the fragged up slag that they put in place of the normal proto-metal!:

Morwenna closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose; and to think, this was only the beginning.

Ratchet had to forcefully stamp down the coding that demanded that he crush the two Sector agents responsible as he refocused on the mechling in his servo, derma thinning at the concerned look that Michael was giving him.

"What's wrong?"

"…I'm going to have to ask you to coax his chest plates open so that I can get at his spark casing; there is a significant breach in the Cybertronian metal that creates it and the—inferior containment materials that are in place are about to fail; I need to fix it before it does and his spark dissipates from the sudden trauma."

Michael paled dramatically before he was gently maneuvering Carbon onto his back, telling him what was planned and stroking his helm to keep him calm as Ratchet readied the limited supply of un-printed protoform metal, mixing it with a large—for the sparkling—dose of repair nanites that he programmed to go into overdrive for the next orn before settling down to their normal programming.

"Hurry Ratchet; I can't keep him calm for long."

Swiftly transforming one of his digits into a miniaturized injector Ratchet inserted the tip into the semi-viscous metal that surrounded the spark. His spark clenched in self-loathing as the tiny mechling let out a raw keen of pain before trying to fight out of Michaels hold, tears running down the humans face as he tried to comfort his sparkling through the pain. Those tiny chestplates closed with an audible squeal as soon as Ratchet had removed his finger, Carbon burrowing as much as he possibly could into Michael's chest while clicking and shaking horribly, flinching away as Ratchet tried to run a finger down his back strut soothingly.

Venting quietly Ratchet lowered Michael to the ground and backed away once the human had scrambled off his servo, barely controlling his wince as he noticed the wary look the remaining sparklings regarded him with.

And that wasn't taking the humans horrified surprise into account.

"Will he be alright?"

Ratchet was jerked out of his self-loathing to stare at the pearlescent-white sparkling that was looking up at him intently, the sapphire-blue optics underneath a grey chevron melting him in a way he didn't know was possible.

"Of course little one; unfortunately it's a proven fact that sometimes pain must be caused to heal an injury that would cause—unfortunate complications."

The sparkling was silent for so long after that Ratchet began to fear that he had used an explanation that was far above the sparkling current extrapolation abilities, mouth already open to try and explain it more simply when those optics looked back up at him uncertainly.

"…Is that like when caretaker had to re-brake her finger because it set wrong?"

Ratchet stiffened in surprise even as he made a note to more thoroughly examine the femme later—it would seem that the incident earlier today was not a singularity when it came to her—, a slight smile crossing his derma as he nodded his helm in affirmation.

"Exactly.

Now forgive me my rudeness, but I don't believe I've learned your designation yet little one. Would you be willing to share it with me?"

He smiled and Ratchet couldn't help but widen his own grin in response; the sparklings enthusiasm was infectious.

"My name's Apollo; what's yours?"

"Ratchet;…Apollo?"

"Yea?"

That chevroned helm tilted to one side in mild confusion, the action only serving to melt the CMO's spark just a little bit more.

"May I examine you?"

"…Could I watch you with everyone else?"

Ratchet found himself nodding his helm before he could help himself.

"Of course."

Smiling brilliantly Apollo clambered onto the proffered servo before him, giggling as the scanners swept across his frame. Ratchets spark eased in both happiness and relief; while he was running a little low on some trace minerals that were necessary for his development, it wasn't anything that a couple of laced rust sticks wouldn't cure. Thanking Primus that there was nothing else wrong with the little one he turned to Morwenna as he made sure the little sparkling had a good purchase on one shoulder, nodding his helm in the direction of the other sparklings as he spoke.

"I understand that they are wary of me, but are there any others that you believe to be a priority?"

Morwenna narrowed her eyes in thought as she scanned the abnormally subdued sparklings, widening them a second later as she noticed a certain set of fliers darting through the rafters.

"Silverbolt! Freefall! Get yourselves, your gestalt AND your trine down here NOW!"

Said sparklings froze in place before diving to land in front of her, optics staring at the floor as they fidgeted nervously.

"What have I said about how high you are allowed to fly?"

There was silence for a time as they used their various bonds to try and get someone to speak, Morwenna looming over them sternly as she waited for a reply. Finally Skydive took it upon himself to answer as he dared to glance up, flinching minutely at the impassive look on her face.

"That—that we weren't supposed to fly higher than the tallest mech here."

"And why is that?"

"…..So that if something happened and we started to fall they could catch us without hurting us before we hit the ground."

Morwenna nodded sharply.

"Now; what do you think a suitable punishment would be?"

There was a LOT of fidgeting at that question, Skylight being the one that answered this time.

"Umm;….no rust sticks for two duin?"

Morwenna couldn't help but soften at the absolutely defeated tone in his voice, stance relaxing completely as she crouched in front of them.

"Does everyone else agree that that's a fair punishment?"

Slowly all eight helms nodded in agreement, most of them jumping in surprise as she leaned forward and hugged them tightly.

"You guys know that I'm not angry at you right? That I worry and put rules in place because I DON'T want you to get hurt?"

Ratchet watched at how quickly Morwenna was to reassure the sparklings as they hugged her once again, eight different helms nodding in understanding even as those multiple pairs of wings relaxed in relief, orbital strut rising at the action. Even though he had seen it enough times that it should no longer surprise him Ratchet was still stunned at the level of trust that the sparklings—both consciously and not—placed in her and it made him more determined than ever to find out what had been done to them once he could corner her alone for a moment.

"Good; now, seeing as how neither Sunstreaker or Hot Rod has had any experience with seeker frames before I believe that you guys should go next—after all, we don't know if your wings 'grew back' correctly."

~I wouldn't make a mistake as deficient as that.~

Morwenna was barely able to keep herself from jumping in surprise.

'You could warn a human when you're about to do that. And I know you wouldn't; but it gives Ratchet the opening he needs to ask some questions I'm sure he's just been dying to say out loud.'

Ratchet froze; surely she hadn't meant it the way she said it.

"Grew back?"

"Yes; when they were first rescued none of them had any wings to speak of and Redwings rotaries were completely non-existent.

It wasn't until an unknown voice—that I now know is the Allspark—contacted me shortly after Freefall had thrown himself off a roof that we had any idea what was wrong, let alone how to fix it."

You could've heard a pin drop with how quiet it had gotten during her explanation, some of the Airmen who had been brave enough to interact with the little flyers paling dramatically—they had seen how sensitive those wings were when LIGHTLY gripped, but for them to be removed completely….

Ratchet had to actually offline his optics for a good klik, sending a hastily pulse of #later# down the bond as his anger became great enough for Optimus to pick up on it before restricting the flow, restoring his sight once he was reasonably certain that he could control his temper—though that didn't stop him from cursing up a storm over the comms.

Morwenna—for her part—was secretly glad that none of that was directed at her; some of that sounded like it would HURT….and what the frag was a Kendorian swamp monster?

"Trine first; get up on to my servo younglings—it's not you I'm irritated with."

Freefall and Skylight hesitated for an astrosecond as they looked up at him uncertainly, letting out a blat of surprised static as Starfire pushed them into the medics servo impatiently before climbing on as well. Raising them up to optic level Ratchet made sure to explain the basics of what he was doing to an attentive Apollo as he did an in-depth scan on the seeklets, modulating his field to be calm and soothing instead of the barely controlled spikes of murderous anger it had been before, taking note of individual designations and color schemes as he compiled their files.

It took him a few breems—mostly because he had scanned their wings five times before he was satisfied with the readouts—to finish with them, a soft vent escaping him as everything reported back in working order.

"Well I can definitely detect left-over traces of Allspark energy at the base of their wings and the core of their spinal structures, but if you hadn't told me about their 'lack' of extremities I would have never been able to tell that they had been removed in the first place; though I would like to scan the other flyers to make absolutely sure."

~He needn't bother.~

Morwenna raised an eyebrow as she watched Silverbolt, his gestalt and Redwing all clamber up onto Ratchets servo, Fireflight letting out a squeal at the scanners tickling sensation as it washed over him.

'Arrogant much?'

She got the distinct impression of a smug grin before it answered.

~I believe you would call it 'confidence in my abilities'.~

She rolled her eyes; barely a vessel for an hour and it was already developing an attitude—and getting more talkative.

*chuckle* I haven't been able to readily interact with anyone for hekavorns; excuse me for exercising that right now that I've been given it.~

'….Just don't do it while I'm in the middle of a conversation with someone else alright?'

It chuckled again.

~No promises.~

Wonderful; it was now official—she corrupted the Allspark.

Shaking her head to dismiss the behavior it was displaying she concentrated on Ratchet, an involuntary grin crossing her features as she noticed the pale yellow frame of a pouting Sunstream in his servo.

"Alright femmeling; I'm going to let you down now but if I even so much as suspect that you've been running on your leg before that fracture is fully healed I will hold you captive in my carrying chamber until it DOES—do I make myself clear?"

Sunstream nodded her helm slowly before she was let down, making a big show of walking as slow as possible so that the emergency yellow medic wouldn't follow through on his threat. Morwenna let out a snort of bemusement as Ratchet turned to her, eyes swiftly picking out his next patient.

"Airblast!"

A slightly taller sparkling with thick forearms looked over at the call of his designation, swiftly moving over to Morwenna's side once he realized that it was her who called while the two sparklings he was playing with followed at a safe distance.

"Yes Caretaker?"

She motioned up at Ratchet, pushing forward with her explanation when he opened his mouth to object.

"You're next; I know you've said that the gash on your protoform doesn't hurt but I would like you to get it looked at—if for no other reason than it will make me worry less."

Airblast took a deep vent of air before nodding in consent as he hauled himself into the medics' servo, optics roving listlessly as the scans washed over his frame.

Ratchet—for his part—was able to control his inevitable anger at the damage done to the small sparkling to a greater degree; just because he wanted to go on a murderous rampage against the humans didn't mean that the sparklings needed to see OR feel it.

"You're lucky your lower lumbar structure hasn't given out yet Airblast—while the initial cut may not have been that deep, time and a lack of treatment has nearly eroded your protoform all the way through; I'm amazed that you can still function, given the pain you must be in."

The small 'bot shrugged dismissively.

"Who's going to make sure we're all secure when caretaker isn't with us if I don't?"

Morwenna smiled sadly.

"That's what Hot Rod, Sunstreaker, James, Ruth, and Michael are for dear-spark; Ratchet and the others as well now that they are here."

"But they weren't always there—YOU weren't always there and someone had to take care of the little-sparks while we were waiting to be rescued."

Nobody had anything to say for a long moment; Morwenna had to take a long, deep breath to keep her voice from wavering when she spoke.

"You're right—we WEREN'T always there and that alone is reason enough for need for security; for you to feel like you had to ensure the safety of the others.

But; we ARE here NOW—we can't undo the damage done to you by your unsecure state, but we CAN provide the security you need NOW so that those things can no longer happen; and we can help you heal from that unsecure time and ensure that those responsible are never able to harm you—or anyone else—ever again.

You've had to be strong for so long Airblast; let us be strong for you now."

There were energon tears pooling in those optics—and he had to keep a few of his own from forming—as Ratchet silently flash-welded a piece of raw protoform into the gash so that it could be integrated into the structure, gently lowering him into the femme's arm as he began to sob, tears trailing down her own cheeks as she sought to comfort the distraught mechling.

"Ratchet?"

#Ratchet?#

The medic was shaken out of his rather depressing—and murderous—thoughts by Apollo and his bondmate, optics turning towards the white sparkling even as he reached out to Optimus.

#...They've been through so much Orion; how could anyone want to harm someone so young?#

"What is it Apollo?"

"Airblast will be ok; right?"

Ratchet glanced down at the amber sparkling in Morwenna's arms, relieved to note that his sobs had died down to the occasional whimper.

"I think he will be as long as your caretaker is here."

The mechling nodded.

"Good."

Prime, however, had no answer for his bondmate and could only offer a wordless burst of comfort/love/concern/understanding/empathy as the medic refocused himself on the two sparklings that were sadly staring at the miserably huddled form of Airblast, only turning their attention towards him when he extended his field over them softly.

"What are your designations little ones?"

They looked at each other before answering, their mismatched blue/yellow optics slightly unsettling.

The pale lavender femme went first.

"My name is Castra."

"Mine's Blindside."

Ratchet nodded.

"Is there anything that you can tell me ahead of time about what may be wrong with you?"

"We have each other's right optic; the—the agents that held us wanted to know if they would still work when transplanted into a different frame; both get helm-aches every once in a while.

The optic I got from Castra actually shorts out every once in a while; I got my designation from a short 'cause it's really hard to avoid things on that side when I can't see them."

"Do you have the same problem Castra?"

She shook her helm negatively, a brief look of discomfort flitting across her face as Ratchet scanned her even as he reached to pick up the dull grey sparkling.

"It feels weird."

Ratchets derma quirked in a half-smile.

"Not everyone likes the 'invasive' feeling that even the most basic of canner levels can cause; even fewer find it enjoyable like Fireflight did."

She nodded in understanding as he scanned Blindsides' cranial unit before moving on to the rest of his frame, spark unclenching at the relatively minor break in one of the optical sensory cables.

"There's definitely a small break in one of the sensory cables that make up your ocular bundle; thankfully it is a relatively easy fix, though I will need to open up part of your helm to fix it."

Asymmetric optics looked up at him uncertainly.

"It won't hurt like it did with Carbon; will it?"

Ratchet huffed.

"No; unlike him you do not suffer an injury to your spark chamber OR protoform; either injury is very painful and no amount of blockers will lessen the pain. With you however I just need to deaden the sensors around that optic for a few breem while I work on it and you'll be good as new."

Blindsides features lit up in relief as he relaxed into the medics servo, barely moving when Ratchet removed the plating from the right side of his helm to gently switch out the tiny cable for a new one, having the mechling online the optic and put it through a couple of tests before he was satisfied that it was in working order.

After releasing the two of them Ratchet glanced at Morwenna; she was still trying to fully soothe Airblast and he didn't want to disturb her, helm whipping down in surprise as he felt a tapping against his pede and found Frenzy staring up at him.

"C-could y-ou check h-him next?"

The small symbiote held up an even smaller micro-bot for inspection even as Barricade and Blackout came to stand behind them, the sparklings that they had first arrived with—minus the white femmeling that Jazz had seemed to take a liking to—gathered in their arms or around their pedes. Their looks plainly stated that the only reason they were being this cooperative and stepping forward of their own volition was because of they worried for the sparklings—and he better not say anything about it.

"Of course; what's his designation?"

Frenzy almost seemed to hesitate before he told him, an inexplicable softness to his movements as he carefully stepped onto Ratchets servo.

"Hypernet; h-his des-signations-s Hypernet-t."

:I could fix that for you as well you know.:

The symbiote stared at him in obvious surprise as he scanned the tiny micro-bot, Ratchet blinking serendipitously at the newness of the small spark before turning his full attention to the 'Con.

"W-why?"

He rolled his optics.

"Because my coding as a medic demands that I heal all I may find injured, no matter the faction, caste or species."

:Even if half of them ARE glitch-heads.:

Barricade raised a ridge.

"And what about when you attack us?"

"I rarely attack without provocation; when I do it is usually because I have injured nearby that need protection or self-defense because you think it's a good idea to mess with a combat medic in the middle of a fight—just because I fix instead of destroy doesn't mean I can't get in a good hit or two."

The black-and-white quieted to think about his words as a data cable extended from Ratchet's wrist in a clear show of trust and invitation; trust that Frenzy wouldn't hack him the moment they uplinked and an invitation for Frenzy to trust him with his vocal routines in return.

A sharp nod from the symbiote had him clicking into position at the medical port located at the base of the cranial unit, patiently waiting for firewalls to be dropped and handshake protocols exchanged before diving into the coding for his vocal processors, ridge raising at the amount of human-born virus' that bogged down the coding even as he started the medical routine to remove the rather primitive lines of code.

"What in Primus did you do; go diving in a cyber cess-pool? There must be over thirty of these sl—stupid little 'Trojans' interspersed through here—and that's only ONE of the code-types I've found."

As immersed in the symbiotes code as he was he was able to determine Frenzy's underlying petulance even as he glared up at him.

"S-stupid s-squishie "w-web pag-pages" are ful-l of t-them; n-not my fa-ault th-hat they weren't-t marked."

Ratchet rolled his optics.

"That's why you SCAN first and update your firewalls regularly: even PRIME does this and he has nothing to DO with data collection! Use that thing inside your helm you call a processor every once in a while before your idiocy causes it to glitch from too many 'squishie' viruses'….

…..You can re-boot your vocal processor now and leave once you prove to me that it's not a glitched up pile of…of broken parts."

"The sparkling?"

"He's fine; going to need his first intake of energon soon but that is normal for a spark as new as his."

Frenzy nodded as he was lowered to the floor, striking off in the direction of the well-worn transport as a confused, wide-opticed sparkling was shoved in front of Ratchets faceplates.

"Him next."

"Blackout; be nice to the sparkling—you haven't even named him yet."

All three mechs looked down to where Morwenna was walking back towards them with Vultus resituated on her hip, Barricade relaxing as he noticed the amber sparkling from earlier curled up in Hot Rods servos.

"Bellātor; even named his symbiotic ohm-spider Swiftstep because the little scraplet's fast when he wants to be.

And the only reason I was being 'rough'—HUMAN—, was because the new-spark is practically recharging on his pedes and I wanted him to get checked out BEFORE he slipped into recharge."

Morwenna grinned even as she gently lowered Vultus to the floor, Blackout rolling his optics at the mischievous gleam in her eyes as she straightened again.

"Alright, alright; geez—you Decepticons can't take friendly ribbing can you?"

"Considering that most 'ribbing' that we've been subjected to has been decidedly UNfriendly I can't say we have."

"Well we'll just have to change that; won't we?

Now if you'll excuse me I actually must request that Vultus be next—it seems that the President is being decidedly stubborn on certain matters and Prime is not 'aware' enough of human culture to make understandable comparisons.

The sparklings are one such matter."

Ratchet quickly pulsed Optimus to make sure that everything was alright, getting a pulse of frustration/confusion/forced calm in return, carefully picking up the small silver sparkling immediately afterward so that he could run his scans, frowning at the mechlings elevated spark energy.

"Everything seems to be in working order except for the excess energy in his spark; it's almost as if…"

"As if WHAT Ratchet?"

The medic shook his helm pensively.

"It's as if someone used a high voltage current to attempt to re-start his spark, though he is far too young for a spark condition that would require that kind of treatment."

Vultus began to chirp agitatedly as soon as Ratchet finished his sentence, reaching desperately towards Morwenna; running towards her as soon as the medic had put him down, burying his helm into the side of her neck as she scooped him up onto one hip.

She looked up at the gathered mechs solemnly.

"Perhaps I should tell you how I found him."

Ratchet could only stare at the intensely serious femme as he slowly nodded his helm; he had a feeling that none of them were going to take what she had to say very well.

"I had just finished falling down a vertical piece of duct-work when I first heard his scream; at first I didn't know what it was because it startled me so badly after the tomb-like quietness of the rest of that particular building, but I quickly put two-and-two together.

Wielding the screwdriver I had been using to mark my way like a knife I slowly crept down the hallway towards his cry; what I saw made me want to kill the—the 'humans',"

Barricade was surprised—and amused at the level of venom she sneered the designation of her race with; it would seem that she hated members of her own species as much as he did certain Autobots. He wondered what the story behind THAT was.

"that were in the room.

Vultus was strapped down to an examining table by four strips of metal with crude, mechanical 'pincers' bussing with electricity ominously over his helm; there were tubes connected to his main energon lines that were slowly siphoning all of the pink liquid OUT of his frame—the plating around his spark-chamber and abdomen removed completely.

The lead 'scientist' that was conducting the—the 'testing' was annoyed that DESPITE his predicted outcomes Vultus' spark remained stubbornly resistance to change; in a fit at the fact that it wasn't going his way he ORDERED his assistant to up the voltage and amperage to the same amount that we use in our ELECTRIC CHAIRS and apply it to his spark to see how long he could survive—completely aware, completely capable of FEELING Every. Single. Thing that they had done to him since the beginning…..

Needless to say I lost it; rushed into the room and shoved the head scientist into the pincers while jumping onto the others back, smashing his face into the console until he stopped moving.

That was the first time I had actually killed somebody; but I CANNOT bring myself to feel guilty—not knowing what could've happened to MY SPARKLING if I had hesitated even a second.

I would rather DIE than let HIM—let ANY OF THEM go through what they were rescued from; what you hear—what you HEARD is barely the tip of the ice-berg when it comes to all of the immoral things done to them in the condemned name of human progression."

She took a deep breath at the end of her tirade, shoulders stiffly lowering and face becoming a mask of cool distain before she spoke again.

"I asked Frenzy to decrypt a computer tower I managed to obtain from that base and send a copy of it to Prime once he was done, though I also asked that a note be attached that he should wait until we were here AFTER his meeting with the President to actually open it.

I can ask him to send the same to you though I ask YOU to wait until you've finished checking all of the sparklings before opening it; I left the visuals with Michael should you feel strong enough to look at them.

Now; if you'll excuse me, I have a President to sway."

Morwenna left all Cybertronians who had heard her in a deadly brewing silence as she strode towards the hanger doors, features stonily set as she tried to repress all of her anger—it was the LAST thing she needed when trying to convince the nations President that the Autobots meant no harm.

Blackout had to use every last ounce of self-restraint he had to keep himself from causing the same destruction he did at Quatar; not that he doubted that he could accomplish it, but because he was positive that some of the sparklings would be caught in the cross-fire before they could be removed to safety—and that was the last thing he wanted. Drawing a deep in-vent of air he gently—if firmly—guided Bellātor forward once more, making sure that he was in the medics hands before turning his attention to the quietly seething Barricade.

:Don't do anything that might get us banned from the sparklings Barricade.:

The frontliner snorted at that.

:Please; like I would give these slaggin' half-glitched Autobots the satisfaction.:

:We surrendered to these 'half-glitched' Autobots if you recall.:

The fierce grin that appeared on those angled faceplates unnerved the rotary; whatever the black-and-white was thinking was bound to cause problems one way or another.

:Oh but we didn't; we surrendered to the human femme if you recall, and it's only because SHE asked that we try and behave that I haven't started popping the heads off these disgusting fleshlings. And I'm sure that if it weren't for the sparklings she'd let me.:

Blackout had to concede to his fellow Decepticons line of processing; MORWENNA was the one who had given them a chance at a different function—a chance to interact with the sparklings at an unrestricted level. He was certain that if it had been left to the Autobots they would've never even KNOWN about the sparklings, let alone be given a chance to change…..and all THREE Decepticons would probably now be offline.

He nodded once—his loyalty lay with the femme; the Autobots had yet to prove themselves.

Exchanging the nearly recharging SUV for the two micro-femmes—which had been named Venia and Tuērī—along with the four-armed mechling—Quasar—he gently led the new-spark to the hastily fortified part of the hangar, casting a significant glance in Jazz's, Hot Rod's and Sunstreaker's direction once the large sparkling was settled.

"You three should get your own charges examined; while I expect no problems from the little femmeling since her spark is as new as the other four Barricade and I have been guarding, the others should be scanned to eliminate any potential problems; after all, we don't know what was all done to them, though I think you'd agree that if it's anything like what Vultus and Carbon went through they should get medical attention sooner rather than later."

:An' why shou'd we trust anythin' YOU say 'Con?:

He glanced over at the black topkick.

:Because the human femme would agree with me.:

The Autobots were surprised at his answer, a tense silence hanging over them until Ironhide snorted dismissively.

"Go; Ah'll make sure they don't trah any funny bus'ness."

"Because we're so afraid of you 'hide.

The medic says to stop stalling and send someone over already; he just received the data packet from Frenzy and he wants to finish as quickly as possible in order to process the information contained in it."

They all watched the pseudo-cop walk towards the transport with three of the new-sparks before Sunstreaker threw his servos up in exasperation, moving towards Ratchet even as he shot an annoyed glare at the rest of the Autobots.

:Oh for the love of—! Would you two get a move on already; just because it was a 'Con that suggested it doesn't make it any less true; unless you're willing to put the sparklings through potential pain just to prove a point?:

Jazz looked up sharply.

:Ah course not!:

:Then stop acting like a bunch of slag-helmed Wreckers and get your afts OVER HERE!:

Hot Rod could help but laugh at the irony of it all as he followed the golden frontliner; here was one of their most volatile warriors berating THEM for acting like petulant sparklings.

Sunstreaker grumbled to himself as he opened his carrying chamber, gently pulsing waves of awake/patience/soothing/promise sleep after over his twins before gently removing them, the inverted frames sluggishly powering up so that they could be examined before falling back into recharge.

Sounddrive started letting out sounds of distress the moment he left his carriers servo and soothing EM field, only the safety of his brothers arm around his slim shoulders and Sunstreakers' comforting trill keeping him calm enough for Ratchet to scan him, though the moment the medic was done he was reaching desperately for the golden warrior with tiny sapphire blue servos. Humming gently Sunstreaker picked him up and held him near his spark; Lightwave wanted to prove he was mature enough to be a youngling and stubbornly remained in the medics' servo, even though both mechs could practically feel the longing pulsing through his field.

"So what's the diagnosis Ratch?"

"Physically there is nothing wrong with them—well, nothing wrong that a few supplement packs wouldn't fix. It's the psychological that worries me; they remind me of you and Sideswipe when you first came to us."

Sunstreaker had to consciously restrain himself from flinching; those weren't times he liked to remember.

"It isn't something they like to talk about Ratch; even I didn't find out about it until the creator/creation bond was established between us."

"Carrier; don't."

Sunstreaker smiled sadly at the loss coloring 'Waves tone, reaching to pull him into the same embrace as his brother before slipping them back into his carrying chamber, looking Ratchet squarely in the optics before rolling away.

:Let's just say that what they suffered through at those fleshlings servos is nearly identical to what Sideswipe and I suffered through in—in a certain gun-formers lab before we managed to escape to the pits and leave it at that.:

Ratchet froze: while the older split-sparks had only divulged the full story of their past once, it was forever burned into his processors because of the pure sadism that had gone into the experiments performed on them—it made him physically sick to his tanks to think of the smaller splits going through the same. Mechanically adding the—information to the smaller twins list he turned towards Jazz, one side of his mouth quirking up into a sad smile at the somber look in the saboteurs visor and body language as he watched Sunstreaker retreat to the transport.

:Things like this make meh wish ah was a 'Con again—if only ta crush the squishies that did that ta 'em; and to show no mercy ta that mono-opticed freak that replac'd meh.:

Only long decavorns of knowing the smaller silver mech kept Ratchet from berating him at the dark tone in his voice; he knew the saboteur would restrain himself—for now.

"Anyways; ya need ta scan the 'lil femme-bot, right Ratch?"

"That would be the entire point of you coming over here, Jazz."

The silver mech just grinned as he pulled the white femme from his carrying chamber before plopping her unceremoniously into Ratchets awaiting servo, large burnt orange optics shuttering rapidly in confusion even as the medic scanned her.

"What's her designation?"

"Spiresong; her names Spiresong."

Of course; leave it to a former composer to pick out a musically related name.

"Well you'll be glad to know that Spiresong is progressing normally for a new-spark; I would get a cube of low-grade into her soon and then let her fall back into recharge but nothing is physically wrong with her."

:Good ta hear; Ah'm just gonna go follow ya's suggestion an' go feed her.:

Ratchet looked at the saboteurs back suspiciously; the mech NEVER just went along with whatever he said—he was up to something. Unfortunately finding out WHAT was about as easy as re-igniting a spark when it came to that mech; it was easier to wait for him to make a move—and pray to
Primus that they could stop him before he actually DID anything.

"Alright Hot Rod; who do you have for me?"

Hot Rod chuckled as he opened his carrying chamber, the newly awakened frames of Piston Rod and Firestorm tumbling into his servo, the two mechling looking around for a bit before turning to each other, shrugging at their new location before looking up at their carrier expectantly.

"It isn't me you should be looking at dear-sparks; Ratchet is the one who wishes to speak with you."

Piston looked over his shoulder at the medic before turning back to Hot Rod.

"Is he the yellow mech that Apollo's sittin' on?"

Apollo chirped and waved down at the two; even though they clearly weren't split-sparked, they were nearly as close as 'Wave and 'Drive were—and that was saying something, considering Piston was a good decivorn older than 'Storm.

"I am."

The orange/white sparkling turned to look at him, absently waving back at Apollo as he took the medic in.

"*hn* My name's Piston Rod; 'lil bro next to me is Firestorm—whadda want to do to us?"

Ratchet was amused; it would seem that this little mech inherited the same attitude that Hot Rod had—before.

"I just want to scan you to make sure that there are no hidden injuries on your frame that may cause—problems later on."

"Like how the seekers havin' no wings caused problems? 'Cause I'll tell ya now; watchin' their wings reform was creepy."

"…..Something like that."

Piston shrugged in assent as he reached out to take a flame-colored servo in his own, trilling a gentle assurance to his smaller brother even as the slighter mechling stiffened when Ratchet's scanner passed through them, the glaring pout of the flame colored sparkling nearly breaking Ratchets resolve to not laugh at the endearing actions between the two.

"I'm pleased to say that other than some dents and scrapes there is nothing wrong with the two of you."

Piston snorted.

"That's cause the humans decided it was too much trouble to try and restrain me when they wanted ta 'xperiment on 'Storm; wanted to see how long we'd last without any fuel instead."

:They STARVED them?!:

Hot Rod raised a ridge in grim humor.

:Out of all the things you've seen and heard THIS is what you get hung up on? As—callous as it might seem my sparklin's got off easy compared to some; I'm THANKFUL that nothing more happened.:

"Experimented on 'Storm?"

The mechling grinned mischievously.

"They TRIED; usually ended up running out of the room cursin' 'cause I'd claw at their bodies 'till they left us alone."

:…..And he wasn't shot?:

:What can I say? Primus was looking out for him; the BOTH of them.:

:Obviously.:

"Can you tell me WHY they attempted to experiment on him?"

It was Firestorm who responded.

"Cause I can make the flicker-light."

Ratchet looked at Hot Rod with a raised ridge.

:Don't look at me; it's his secret to tell.:

The medic turned his attention back towards the suddenly talkative sparkling, curiosity piquing at the—intense looks some of the other sparklings were giving the flame-patterned mechling.

"What flicker-light Firestorm; can you show me?"

The little mechling was adorably serious as he nodded his helm, holding his servos out in front of his face as it screwed up in concentration. As the astroseconds ticked by Ratchet was prepared to tell Firestorm that he could try another time when Piston Rod held up a digit to his lippates, pointing to the brief flash of—something as he stared at his brothers' servos intently.

"Watch."

A fourteen-foot high explosion of flames had the medic rearing his helm back in shock, the humans that had slowly crept closer during his examinations of the sparklings leaping back in their own surprise as swearing filled the air, a couple of them running towards the CO2 bottles at either end of the hanger in trained reflex to any type of flame. Ratchet ignored them as he refocused his optics to filter the new light intensity even as he scanned every last sub-routine the small sparkling had, gently disrupting the little ones field as he noticed the alarming drop in his limited energon reserves while using whatever specialized mechanisms that allowed him to produce the flames.

"Careful sparklet; you're using more energon than you have the store for at the moment and I don't think that passing out from a lack of energon would be all that pleasant of an experience."

He turned to Hot Rod as he raised a ridge, jerking his helm in Firestorms direction.

"I assume this is what Morwenna meant by 'something uniquely capable to them'?"

"Yes; though I am surprised that he's the first one to show you what he's able to do—I thought that honor would go to Lightwave or Airblast as they are two of the more—attention oriented sparklings under our care."

:I want a complete list of all the sparklings and their abilities—especially ones that I've already examined. It might help me make sense of their scans when I go over them later.:

:Understood.:

Ratchet let out a huff of air as he returned the two sparklings back to their carrier—while it stung that no other sparkling felt safe enough to tell him about their abilities he could understand the reason why; after all, those abilities are probably what made the humans step up their 'specialized' treatment in the first place.

He looked over as Fixit walked up to him, jaw tightening at the smaller medics fidgeting.

"Uh, R-Ratchet sir?"

"Yes?"

"I—uh—I have the rest of the sparklings base-line scans. I thought that it would be more time-effective than-than you scanning every sparkling by yourself."

Ratchet nodded his helm in agreement, optics rolling in exasperation when the sports car did nothing more than stare at him timidly.

"Well what are you waiting for? Data-burst them to me!"

Fixit let out a squeak of surprise before bursting it all in one large file, Ratchets glare letting him know how well that worked out. Grumbling to himself Ratchet opened the file a section at a time, verifying Fixits method of collection before going over the information.

"...*hn* Good work; just next time let me know when you're going to do something like this BEFORE you actually do it—do I make myself clear?"

"O-Of course sir!"

Fixit gave a quick salute before scampering off towards their monitored section of the hanger, Ratchet sighing before glancing over at Hot Rod.

"If you'll excuse me; I have a data-packet to assimilate."

Hot Rod watched as Ratchet moved off to a fairly deserted part of the hangar, his spark clenching in dread at the medics inevitable reaction once he completely read through the file.

He hoped they were able to contain him when he did.

*Silverlight*Silverlight*Silverlight*Silverlight*S ilverlight*Silverlight*Silverlight*Silverlight*Sil verlight*

Fea: Next time—NOW we see what's going on with Arcee, what kind of meeting Optimus went through, the long awaited nuclear fall-out and yet ANOTHER Autobot is…..kinda introduced.

'Till all are one my mechlings!