Chapter 11

Agent 000 couldn't help but let out a laugh, the action causing him to spit out blood. He never thought he would see the day where he'd be outsmarted by his enemy and nearly killed. The explosion had done a number on him, probably because over a dozen explosives detonated at point blank range while he was in the air. His body was now covered in burn marks and so much blood that he didn't even know where it was coming from. It also didn't help that he already had a cut on his stomach from an earlier battle with Arcee and now, his left leg was probably broken in two. However, even through his pain and injuries, Agent 000 still found the strength to continue fighting.

"I have to say Autobots, you guys are full of surprises. That was an excellent strategy you just pulled off and if I had a hat, I'd be tipping it in your direction" he complimented, completely missing the looks of shock on their faces.

"I-impossible" Ratchet stammered.

The medic, along with everyone else, was more shocked at Agent 000's revealed identity than how he was able to survive the explosion. The blast had burned off the agent's mask, showing everyone his true identity. Now standing before them was a familiar face neither of them thought they would see, especially under these circumstances.

"A-are you seeing what I'm seeing Bulk?" Wheeljack asked his fellow wrecker.

"Yup" Bulkhead answered plainly.

The two of them stared in disbelief at Agent 000. They both seen plenty of things in their life time that would shock the mightiest of warriors, but nothing could compare to what they were looking at right now.

Optimus and Bumblebee were also frozen in place, none of them knowing what exactly to say or do. The only one who wasn't stationed in one spot was Arcee. The female had stumbled forward and was now practically crawling on her hands and knees; it looked like she was moving towards Agent 000 against her will. Tears started to drip from her optics as she got closer to the agent, getting a good look at the face she never thought she would see again.

"J-Jack? I-is it r-really you?" She stammered, still struggling to piece everything together.

Agent 000 gave her a look of confusion and disgust. "I've already told you female, I have not found your friend yet. Now if you don't move, you will be the first one to fall to my blade." After he finished, he punched her in the face, sending her flying back.

While all this was happening, Silas looked on along with the remaining MECH forces. He had recovered from the blast of the explosion and had noticed Agent 000's mask was no longer hiding his identity. The MECH leader smirked, he knew that it was only a matter of time before the Autobots found out about Agent 000 and he was interested in how this was going to play out.

Silas turned his attention back to the Autobots where Arcee had just recovered from the unexpected punch.

"Jack it's me, Arcee. Don't you remember me?" She asked Agent 000, a hint of sadness was heard in her voice as more tears fell from her optics.

"I don't know what you're talking about" Agent 000 replied with a snarl, although, he started to feel something weird inside of him. The same feeling he had when he first met the blue female, the feeling of someone trying to pry loose from their restraints.

"Ratchet, why doesn't Jack recognize Arcee?" Bulkhead questioned the medic.

"It looks as if Agent 000 is in control of Jack's body and does not realize who he really is" the medic stated.

"How is that possible? I do not believe MECH owns any means of using a cortical psychic patch" Optimus said.

"I am not entirely sure how Agent 000 managed to infiltrate Jack's mind unless..." Ratchet snapped his fingers and widened his optics as the pieces started to align in his mind.

"...unless Agent 000 was never a real organic specimen! If MECH truly did put Jack through an operation, there is a possibility that the substance they injected into him created a second persona, another being inside Jack's mind. While the science is very confusing and requires a high level of psychology to understand completely, my hypothesis may very well be the only logical explanation."

"So what you're telling me is Jack has become some sort of killer?" Wheeljack asked.

"No, no, no. Agent 000 is a second persona created by MECH that is now in control of Jack's body. If my hypothesis is correct, Jack's mind is still inside along with Agent 000's mind, both of them share one body but only one can keep control at once." Ratchet replied.

"Okay, so how do we pry Agent 000 out of Jack? Do we just scrap him until Jack returns?" Bulkhead questioned, smashing his fists together.

"I-I'm not entirely sure. However, I do know anything we do to Agent 000 will affect Jack as well. We cannot kill him, otherwise we kill Jack. Imagine a balancing scale; what you do to one side will affect the other" Ratchet explained.

"Huh, so I guess blowing Agent 000 wasn't the best idea" Wheeljack quipped followed by a series of sad beeps from Bumblebee.

"What has been done in the past should be forgotten. At the time, we were not aware of this new information so we cannot blame ourselves for what may have happened to Jack" Optimus insured the group. "Ratchet, is there any possible solutions for us to aid Jack in taking control over Agent 000?"

Ratchet thought for a moment before responding. "I believe the only way Jack can regain control over his body is by his own strength. Because he is most definitely locked inside of his self-conscious, there is nothing else we can do."

"If Jack's still in there, I'm going to get him out!" Arcee yelled at the medic.

Suddenly, they looked over to see Agent 000 stand up tall, no longer using his sword as a cane and instead pointing it right at them. He was slightly wincing when he put pressure on his broken leg but it was still incredible how he mustered up the strength to continue.

"Now that you had your fun, YOU'RE ALL GOING TO DIE!" he threatened and charged, running straight for the closest person who just so happened to be Arcee.

"Autobots stand down, we will not risk injuring our ally" Optimus commanded and deactivated his swords, everyone else followed.

Agent 000 saw them put away their weapons and was slightly startled at why they did. He stopped running and glared at them.

"COME ON! FIGHT ME YOU COWARDS! FIGHT ME!" the agent yelled, the feeling inside of him growing stronger.

"We shall not" Optimus stated.

"Jack you need to fight this!" Arcee cried out to Agent 000, "you're stronger than this; I know you can do it!"

"Break the little weasel's grasps kid, push through" Wheeljack quipped.

Agent 000 didn't understand who they were talking to. He turned around to look behind him if anyone was there but sure enough, there was no one. He turned back to the Autobots.

"Very well, if you don't draw your weapons, I'm just going to have to hurt you until you do!" The agent said.

He ran straight at Arcee, catching the female off guard and thrust his blade into her chest. He proceeded in lifting her up and throwing her to the ground a couple feet away. The agent ran over to the fallen female and lifted her up by the neck, tears still falling from her optics. He raised his sword to finish her, once and for all.

Silas came closer and saw that Agent 000 was about to finish off Arcee. "Yes! Do it! Kill them all!" he yelled.

"No! Jack you have to take control!" Bulkhead screamed.

"Jack, you've always been the stronger one out of all of us. You've always had my admiration and if you were a Cybertronian, you would have been an amazing wrecker" Wheeljack added.

The feeling inside of Agent 000 became stronger. He tried to bring his sword forward, but the feeling was holding him back.

"You have always shown great courage and strength in the direst of situations and although I don't show it, I respect you for your personality" Ratchet said quickly, unsure if Jack heard him at all, but if he is truly inside there, he needed to hear it.

Bumblebee let out a series of beeps, his eyes widened and he tried his best to make the agent understand him.

Agent 000 felt the feeling of restraints breaking inside of him. He wasn't sure what was going on inside of him. Suddenly, a wave of pain came into his head, like someone was trying to pry his mind out. He dropped Arcee and his katana, the blade digging into the ground. The agent dropped to his knees, grabbed his head with his hands and actually screamed from the pain and agony.

"Jack, ever since the day we met, I sensed something special inside of you. Your courage, bravery, and quick-thinking are a skill set not many beings in the universe have. You have the potential to be a Prime, and while you may be human, I believe that one day, the Matrix of Leadership will find its way into your hands." Optimus said, his words making Agent 000's pain and agony even worse.

Suddenly, Agent 000's screams started to fluctuate between a higher and lower register. Arcee stood up and looked at her human partner, ignoring the pain in her chest. She recognized the two voices; the lower one belonged to Agent 000 while the higher one belonged to the person she loved, Jack.

"Jack please, fight it" Arcee cried, she couldn't bare watch him suffer through the pain but she knew it was the only way he could take control. "Jack, fight for me! You are everything to me, my world, my universe, my life! Don't give up! I need you here with me Jack!"

Agent 000 had no idea of what was happening to him except the massive pain inside of his head. He felt his mind being ripped out as he tried to fight back and he felt himself lose control over his body.

The force inside of him grew stronger and Agent 000 knew it was only a matter of time before it took over. He used all his strength to push back but Arcee said something that gave the opposing force the final push.

"Jack! I love you! I love you with my entire spark!"

That was it, that was the final straw. Agent 000/Jack stopped screaming and fell on his hands and knees, breathing heavily as whomever it was tried to regain composure.

"Jack... is that you?" Arcee asked quietly, crawling up to the unknown person slowly.

Everyone held their breath, awaiting a response. Even Silas was bewildered at what just happened and waited to see what the outcome was.

All the Autobots gave a sigh of relief when they heard tears come from the hunched over body.

"Arcee... I-I'm sorry... I'm so sorry!" Jack cried, he looked up and saw his partner crawl over to him and give him a look of sorrow, relief, and love. Jack's dark purple eyes returned to his normal shade of black. His dark veins that ran through his body also returned to normal color as he shuddered with a flow of tears coming out of his eyes.

Arcee looked at him and immediately a wave of warmth overcame her body. She grabbed her human partner and pulled him into a tight embrace, both of them crying tears of sorrow and joy.

"Jack, I love you. I love you so much Jackson Darby" Arcee confessed while tears still flowed down her face.

"I-I'm sorry Arcee, I'm sorry" Jack said again, crying into her arms.

"It's ok Jack." She soothed the teen, "I'm here, I'm here with you and I'm not leaving you. Not now, not ever."

The two held their loving embrace as their tears slowly started to disperse. The Cybertronian and the human stayed in the same position, enjoying each other's warmth and affection. Arcee felt all her anger and all her worries wash away, just wanting to spend the rest of her life holding Jack.

While they continued to hug each other, Optimus smiled, happy to see that they finally got Jack back. Not forgetting their other mission, he quickly put two fingers up to his com-link and contacted Agent Fowler to proceed with the strike team. A couple minutes later, half a dozen military fighter jets flew by, dropping a bomb each onto the MECH base and destroying everything in the area, the warmth of the blast flowing over the Autobot leader. Once the dust settled, he saw that the MECH base was no more but scraps of concrete and metal; everything that was once inside blown to smithereens.

As the fireworks ended, Arcee and Jack separated, although the female still kept the teen in her arms. She looked straight into Jack's eyes and smiled, earning a smile from Jack as well.

"Come on" she whispered gently as she began to stand up, "Let's get you home".

"NO!"

Startled, everyone looked over to where the voice came from. Sure enough, Silas stood, glaring at the former Agent 000 and continued to yell at him.

"THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE! AGENT 000, I ORDER YOU TO KILL THEM ALL NOW! YOU ARE NOTHING MORE THAN A MECH ASSET, A SUCCESFUL EXPIREMENT MECH COMPLETED! YOU DO NOT HAVE EMOTIONS; YOU ARE ONLY ONE OF OUR MANY WEAPONS! AGENT 000, YOU TAKE ORDERS FROM ME AND NOW, I ORDER YOU TO TAKE CONTROL OVER THIS BOY!" Silas yelled, showing his anger and frustration.

"Cool it Silas, its over" Wheeljack quipped at the MECH leader. "Your army has been defeated and your precious Agent 000 go-"

Wheeljack didn't get to finish his sentence as a sudden scream filled the air.

Jack cried out in pain and agony as he held his head, just like Agent 000 did mere minutes ago. Arcee quickly put him on the ground, startled at the sudden scream and widened her optics in fear.

"ARCEE... HELP... ME!" Jack yelled, shutting his eyes from the pain.

"Jack! Jack, I'm here! You have to fight him!" Arcee ushered her partner, tears starting to fall from her optics again. Everything was going so well until Silas tried to get Agent 000 back in control.

Arcee watched in horror as her partner struggled to take dominance, his screams echoing inside her head. There was nothing worse than to see someone she cared about be tortured right in front of her and not being able to do anything. The situation reminder her of Tailgate's death and her dream she had of Jack being tortured, both of the experiences left scars inside of her.

Unlike last time, Jack's screaming didn't last as long. Once they died down, Jack/Agent 000 put their head down, not revealing who had won the battle for control.

"Yes, very good Agent 000. Perhaps you are still of use to MECH's cause. Kill the Autobots and make it quick!" Silas ordered Agent 000, although, what he got as a response was something completely different.

Laughter came from the agent as he hunched over, starting as a little chuckle but turning into a more sinister, almost sarcastic laughter. He got up and stared at the MECH leader, his facial expression definitely not showing any signs of humor. His dark purple pupils and veins had returned and he gave Silas a death glare.

"I AM NOT ONE OF YOUR ASSETS SILAS!" he boomed, startling the MECH leader slightly. He started to chuckle again. "How could I have been so stupid? My background, my origin, my life's meaning, it's all coming together now. I was never a living person; I'm just the result of an injected substance into the human body. I could never find Jack because I am Jack, and you Silas, are my creator."

"I-I am your creator! Now I command you to destroy these aliens now!" Silas stuttered, not quite sure how to respond to his creation that just found out about who he is.

The MECH leader's words caused Agent 000 to laugh again. "No, no, no. My dear Silas, you don't understand. If you created me..." the agent pulled out his gun and shot two soldiers before continuing. "...I think it's only fair that I uncreate you!"

Silas' eyes widened when he learned of Agent 000's intentions. He quickly turned around and ran towards the former MECH base. He knew well enough that he had no chance against a heartless killer that is Agent 000 and his only way of surviving was to find a way to escape his grasps.

"Protect me!" he yelled at his army as he ran past them. Most of the soldiers looked at each other with a confused and disbelief look. At that moment; they realized they were nothing but Silas' pawns, expendable soldiers that he could easily replace. The MECH agents who understood their rank in Silas' grand scheme dropped their weapons walked out of the Agent's way, and put their hands up, surrendering to the Autobots.

Instantly, Silas' MECH army went from around 50 soldiers to a mere two dozen. The remaining soldiers sneered at their former teammates as they raised their weapons and aimed at Agent 000.

The ruthless killer saw Silas' attempt to get away and laughed. "You think your foot soldiers are going to stop me?" He took aim at Silas' running figure and shot one bullet. The projectile flew through the air before hitting the MECH leader in the legs, tripping him and disabling his leg. All at once, MECH started to fire upon Agent 000, only to have their shots dodged or blocked.

Agent 000 charged at the men. "Fools!" he yelled as he ran towards them.

"No! Stop! Jack you must take control over Agent 000!" Optimus yelled to no avail, it was too late and he knew a bloodshed was about to occur.

With inhuman speed, Agent 000 went from one soldier to another, slicing their bodies into pieces before moving on to the next. He shot his Desert Eagle at the few who tried to run away while brutally killing the ones who stayed to fight. Not before too long, the ground was covered in blood and bodies as the Autobots looked at the horror of Agent 000's work.

Silas lay a few feet away; he had given up on attempting to run on his injured leg and has resorted to crawling on his arms. Agent 000 merely walked up to him and sliced off the MECH leader's legs, earning a scream of pain.

"Stop! Jack stop him!" Arcee yelled as the Autobots ran forward.

Agent 000 ignored her and continued to lash out on Silas. He beat on the unarmed man and stabbed him multiple times. Silas struggled to hold on to life itself and spat out blood as he continued to take punishment from the agent. Eventually, Agent 000 stopped and picked the MECH leader up by his neck and placed him on his stumps that once were connected to his legs, pointing his katana at his neck.

"That is enough, Agent 000" Optimus said with authority but got no reply.

"Have any last words Silas?" Agent 000 said with a smirk.

Silas tried to say something but could only spit out a mouth full of blood.

"Pathetic" the agent said.

The Autobots watched in horror at what was to come. While each of secretly would love to see Silas pay for his crimes, they all followed the same code of honor; never strike down an enemy who cannot fight back.

Agent 000 stepped forward to end Silas' life but his arm froze in mid-air.

"What?" he asked himself, only to widen his eyes at what was happening.

No! Stop! Silas deserves what he's getting! Why don't you agree with what I'm doing? You want revenge as much as I do! Agent 000 said into his mind.

Not like this. I won't allow you to kill him, came Jack's voice.

Suddenly, the pain in Agent 000's head returned as he held his head and screamed. His screaming only lasted for a couple seconds before it died down and Jack took control. His eyes and vein color returning to normal and the teen stared at Silas.

"Do... it,...you... won't" Silas managed to spit out.

"You're right Silas, even though half of me is telling me I should, I won't sink to Agent 000's level" Jack sneered back.

Jack looked at Silas one more time before moving his katana away from the man's neck. Instead of finishing him, Jack hit Silas on the head with the butt-end of his Desert Eagle, knocking the MECH leader unconscious.

"Ironic isn't it Silas?" Jack said to the unmoving body. "This all started with you knocking me out but this all ends with me knocking you out."

Jack looked at his handy work for a moment before turning around and seeing the relief looks on all the Autobots faces and the loving look Arcee was giving him. He smiled and stepped forward a couple steps before collapsing to the ground. He had forgotten about his broken leg and the many cuts, bruises, burns, and injuries on his body. The thought of how he looked right now made him grunt in pain.

Optimus and Ratchet watched as Arcee, Wheeljack, Bulkhead, and Bumblebee ran towards their fallen comrade.

"He really is something special, Optimus." Ratchet said to the Prime, obviously talking about Jack.

"I agree, old friend. On this day, Jack has shown an incredible amount of strength in his choices as well as how much he has matured. I am impressed in his choice of allowing Silas to live, even after the amount of suffering he was put through. However, I still stand by my words; one day, Jack will be given the honor of a Prime and the Matrix of Leadership will belong to him."

Ratchet thought for a moment about what he was just told. He agreed with Optimus statement about Jack one day becoming a Prime, but he didn't feel comfortable about the fact that Jack would inherit the Matrix of Leadership. It wasn't that he didn't think Jack deserved such an honor, but rather that he knew that if Optimus was saying Jack will be given the Matrix of Leadership eventually, he was referring to when he dies. Ratchet chose to ignore his thoughts, although, they would still bother him in the future.

"Optimus, Jack will never have a normal life again, will he?" The medic asked, stating the obvious.

"No old friend, I do not believe so." Optimus replied. "However, that is an issue that we will address when the time is right. For now, we should be thankful for his safe return."

Ratchet nodded and walked over to check on Jack's injuries while Optimus stood back and contacted Agent Fowler for the government to pick-up the prisoners.

After he made the call, Optimus couldn't help but smile at the group of Autobots aiding Jack back to his feet. He was proud to call them his family; Cybertronian or human, the bond they shared will overcome the most horrific of events.

...

The swirling green vortex in the Omega One base made everyone anxious at the result of the mission. Raf, Miko, June and Agent Fowler stood waiting, emotions of happiness and fear washed over the four humans as they saw the Autobots walk through one by one.

First Optimus appeared, smiling at them as Ratchet followed close behind. Bumblebee walked through making Raf sigh in relief. Bulkhead and Wheeljack came next; Miko yelled their names and quickly snapped a picture. All of them were battered, bruised, injured, and covered in energon but they still proudly stood together as they waited for the last two members of Team Prime to arrive.

Arcee walked through the groundbridge, smiling and moved to the side. The four humans held their breath as they hoped the person they were thinking of would walk in.

Sure enough, Jack appeared, walking in slowly and using his katana as a cane. He was deep in thought and didn't notice the others looking at him until he heard them run towards him. He looked up and mustered up a sly smile as his mother wrapped him in a hug.

"Jack, I'm so glad you're home" June said, tears starting to fall from her eyes. "You had me worried that I would never see you again."

"It's okay mom, I'm here now." Jack replied, slightly wincing from the pain of his mom's hug as she was pressing hard on his wounds.

Once June released the hug, she backed up while smiling. The nurse was so happy to see her son that she didn't realise the blood that was now staining her shirt.

Miko and Raf walked up next, both of them smiling from ear to ear.

"Good to see that you're back, bro" Miko said as they wrapped Jack into a three way hug.

"What happened to you?" Raf asked when they separated, a little blood also staining the top of his shirt. The young genius had noticed Jack's injuries and was looking a bit concerned.

"It's fine Raf, I'll explain later" Jack said plainly, earning a nod from him.

June suddenly saw her son's mangled up leg and quickly pointed it out.

"Jack what happened to your leg? We need to take you to the emergencies right now!" The nurse exclaimed, only to have Jack shake his head as he started to limp towards a hallway on the left side.

"Mom, not right now. I need some time alone for a bit" Jack said blankly.

As he made his way to wherever he was going, he passed by Agent Fowler who gave him a salute.

"Good to have you back, son" the agent said.

Jack didn't respond and put his head down, not looking at Agent Fowler. He kept his head down as he slowly limped to a place where he could be alone and think for a bit.

Once he was gone, June looked up at Optimus with a concerned look.

"What happened to him?" she asked.

Optimus thought for a moment before answering. "Mrs. Darby, we have learned a number of things in our recent battle against MECH and I believe we should explain to you in detail after everyone has rested and treated from their injuries."

Ratchet nodded his head in agreement. "I agree Optimus. Bulkhead, Wheeljack, Bumblebee, I'll start to work on you three first."

The four Autobots walked into the medical bay, leaving their human allies, Optimus and Arcee in the command center.

"Okay but seriously, what's up with the injuries and the sword?" Miko asked, referring to Jack.

Optimus was about to answer, but Arcee beat him to it.

"Jack... has been through some tough times" the two-wheeler responded blankly. "Like Optimus said, we'll give you a full explanation once everyone is feeling better."

Miko crossed her arms and pouted. "Fine"

They all started towards the medical bay to check on everyone. As they left, Optimus looked at Arcee.

"Arcee, I understand Jack must be feeling overwhelmed by the recent events. Perhaps you can go and talk to him. I know your relationship has grown since the last time you two were together and I believe he can get through his struggle with your help"

"No problem, Optimus. I'll go talk to him" Arcee replied quietly and walked to the direction Jack went.

...

Jack sat on a couple crates in the storage room, deep in thought. In the past week, he's seen things he should not have seen and to make matters worse, he was technically the one who caused it. He knew that MECH and Agent 000 were to blame for the recent events that haunt him but he couldn't help but feel responsible.

He was so deep in his thoughts that he didn't hear Arcee open the door and come in.

"Hey" the two-wheeler said to him, closing the door and taking a seat next to her partner.

"Hey" he responded.

The two sat in silence for a moment before Arcee spoke.

"So,... do you want to talk about it?" She asked gently, it broke her spark to see him like this and even though the intense things have passed over, it's the memories that make the deeper scars.

"I... I don't know what to say Arcee. I-I'm sorry." He said, looking into her big blue optics.

"Shhhhh" Arcee said, pulling him into a hug. "You don't need to apologize. None of this was your fault."

"How can you say that?" Jack asked, shocking her slightly. "I killed so many people, I've taken so many lives. I brutally injured the Autobots and I almost killed you a couple hours ago! And what makes it worse is that I stood by and watched it, unable to do anything. Half of me wanted to stop but the other half liked it, I liked the feeling of spilling blood and I liked hearing the screams of pain!"

"Oh come here" Arcee said pulling him in closer. "Listen to me Jack, you weren't responsible for any of that, ok? That was Agent 000 who was put into your mind. He's the reason all of those bad things happened and you have no reason to feel like it was your fault"

Jack didn't respond, instead he stared at the other wall.

"Look at me Jack." Arcee used one of her alloy fingers to move his head to face her. She stared into those eyes and saw the darkness that still resides in him. "Jack, everything I said out there, I meant it. When you were taken by MECH, my whole world crumbled. I spent days inside my quarters crying, hoping you weren't hurt... or worse. You're my world Jack; my everything. Without you, I have nothing left and I had a taste of what that feels like when you were gone."

Tears started to appear in her optics as they slowly dripped down her face and onto the ground.

"I love you Jack, I want to be with you. I love you!" Arcee cried, closing her eyes and letting the tears come out.

This time, it was Jack who comforted the two-wheeler.

"Arcee... look at me." Arcee opened her eyes and felt Jack's fingers wiping the tears off her face. "I'm not going anywhere Arcee, you're my everything too. When I was being operated on, you were all I could think about. When I saw you get injured from Agent 000's sword, it devastated me. You're the reason I was able to break away from my restraints and take control again. Arcee, you mean so much to me and I would love to be with you... But..."

Arcee finished his sentence off for him. "But we can't be together, I know. Your human, I'm Cybertronian, it wouldn't work. Plus-"

She was cut off by Jack's finger against her mouth. "Arcee, that's not the reason we can't be together. I don't care if we're different species, you're everything to me Arcee and nothing will change that. It's just right now, I'm not... me. Everything is going to be different and if we get into a relationship now, I fear it will end badly."

"Jack..." Arcee started. She loved him and wanted to be with him, nothing was going to stop her. "Whatever is bothering you, we'll get through it together. Your never alone Jack, you have the Autobots, your family, me. I love you Jack and our relationship shouldn't be affected by that."

Jack thought for a moment before responding. "You-you're right Arcee. I can't get over the darkness inside of me alone. I just want our relationship to be steady; I don't know what I'd do without you Arcee."

Arcee locked eyes with him as she pulled him closer. She heard the sincerity in his voice and knew he doubted himself because he was scared for her safety.

"I'm here Jack, and I'm not going anywhere. If you're worried about our relationship not working out, we'll take it slow."

Jack smiled at her words, he loved her and she loved him. Although, he still hasn't told her that he loved her and he felt the darkness inside of him stopping him. However, he wasn't going to ruin their connection because of a strange feeling inside of him, even if he won't tell her about his feelings.

"Thank you Arcee" He replied softly.

The two leaned in and kissed, the sensation filling them up as they enjoyed the warmth of each other's lips. Their first kiss; and it's an amazing one.

...

As they kissed, Jack felt something inside of him but chose to ignore it; the feeling getting stronger, but not too the point where it would hurt.

Arcee and Jack gently separated, slowly opening their eyes and happily staring at each other. Jack was mesmerized by Arcee's big optics and was suddenly startled when he heard a familiar voice inside him.

I am still here Jackson Darby, and one day, I'll be free once again.

Agent 000's voice rang through his head as he quickly used his sub-conscious strength to push the agent deep inside of him, not allowing Agent 000 to bother him again... at least for now.

"Let's go get you checked up" Arcee said gently, breaking the silence and picking him up.

Jack merely nodded his head and smiled back. Although, he knew that wasn't the last time he would hear from Agent 000 and he also knew one day, the darkness would return.

And it will.

Author's note: That's the end of Transformers Prime: Operation 000. I want to thank everyone who has been following along and I hope you guys truly enjoyed it. I had a blast writing it and am excited to continue with my fanfiction series.

I would like to give a special thanks to JayBeeZZ, Retrokiller, and PyroWM1. These guys have supported me all the way and have given me motivation when they post a review. Definitely go and check these guys out because their stories are amazing. I want to especially thank JayBeeZZ; this guy is a legend. He's sent me advice and even helped me get over writer's block. I have to give him some credit for his help on making this story possible.

As for my Transformers Prime series, I'll be starting the next story in a couple days. I need some time to plan it out and hopefully, you guys will enjoy it as much as you enjoyed this one. Be sure to follow me if you haven't already so you'll get a notification for when it comes out.

Thanks again for reading and remember to send me a review on your thoughts,

Ilikepieguy123