"Okay, the game is Poker" Optimus said and dealt the cards

Prime, Magnus, Rodimus and Kup were at a table in Magnus's quarters, a few bottles of high grade Energon were already open and there was plenty more in the fridge.  A large table with glasses and snacks was the playing surface and each Autobot bar Prime was grumbling

"You have an unfair advantage in this game Optimus" Kup grizzled

"Oh?" his leader said with humour

"That face plate of yours covers your mouth so we can't see any of the subtle movements in your face" Kup continued

"Oh shut up and play, old man" Rodimus said and looked at his cards

Magnus smiled: he knew the best way to figure out Prime was to watch his eyes, slight pigment changes indicated different moods and he was the only one who could pick it out during a game

This little ritual had started with Prime, Ironhide and Prowl on earth after Spike taught them to play, but since the death of the latter two, Prime had invited Rodimus, Magnus and Kup into the little club and they enjoyed it but usually 'lost their shirts' as humans said, but they were getting better.

"Okay, Jokers wild" Prime said and picked up his cards

[Let's see, two 2's, and two Kings.  Keep.  The 3 can go] Prime made his strategy

[YES.  Three 9's and an Ace.  Bye, bye 2] Rodimus was equally pleased

[Damn it.  I swear he rigs these cards] Kup grouched: he got a 7, Jack, 3, 2, 5: all totally useless

[Your ass is mine] Magnus was really happy: three Aces, two Kings.

"Okay, the opening bet is ten" Rodimus threw in the chips; the others did likewise and replaced their cards

"I fold" Kup said and showed his hand

"HA!" Rodimus broke the first rule of poker: never let an opponent what you feel

"Okay, I up you both for 1, 000" Magnus said

"Whoa, I gotta take the lady out tomorrow.  I'm out" Rodimus said.

"I'll raise you, 5, 000" Prime was confident

"I'll raise you 10, 000" Magnus said and put all his money in the middle

"I'll see you: 20, 000" Prime said

The tension was thick now as Prime laid his cards out: three Kings and two 2's.

"Full house, top that Magnus"

But Magnus just grinned and laid out his own hand down "Full house again, Aces beat 2's" he said and grabbed his loot from the table

"You, damn it" Prime griped and took a long glass of Energon.

Kup took a drag on his cigar; Rodimus did likewise with a cigarette but Magnus settled for a victory drink.  This game went on for a further five hours, until the four of them were totally rat arsed and singing at the top of their voices and out of tune 'We are the Champions' at 3 in the morning.

*************

Kup was the first to wake up, on Magnus's couch with a bottle of Ener-Gin in his hand, he looked bleary eyed around, wondering where Rodimus went

"Shit, I musta been really pissed last night" he said and dropped the bottle.

He staggered through the room and saw Prime passed out on the table, empty gin, scotch, and beer bottles lay around his feet and Magnus was on his bed snoring with a femme that had appeared in the night.  At second glance Kup recognised her as Avari, Magnus's girlfriend

"Lucky bastard" Kup grumbled and staggered back to the couch and turned on the morning news from Earth

There wasn't much to hear, usual bullshit; wars in little independent nations that wanted to be free of their main states and are willing to kill to achieve it.

"Ugghhh" a sickly sounding groan from the couch: Prime was awake

"If you feel half as bad as you look then you will feel like shit" Kup said as the Autobot leader stumbled into the room

"hjhglgljgkj" Prime mumbled some incoherent gibberish

"Please Repeat Request", the machine said

"Ener-coffee.  Extra strong" Prime said

The machine created the highly energising beverage for Prime and he drank it in less than a few seconds.  The high power drink soon put Prime to rights and all he needed was a few minutes of wake up time

"Must thank Perceptor for making this stuff" Prime said and sat down on the couch to join Kup

"They're still trying to blow each other up?" Prime asked

"Yeah" Kup answered

Prime looked downcast: the humans had voted that the Transformers were no longer welcome on Earth and had effectively banished them from it.  At first some of the Autobots were bitter and angry: but they soon learnt to live with it.  Spike and his family had gone with the Autobots back to Cybertron.  Also joining them had been a young stowaway that had been found by Prime: a girl a few years older than Daniel.

Her name was Sharon: the Decepticons had killed her parents but the Autobots had saved her from the same fate.  Since then she had lived in foster homes, some nice, others a living hell.  When she heard the Autobots were all leaving Earth, she jumped at the first opportunity to go with them by stowing away on Metroplex before he and Fortress Maximus left.  After being discovered, she had lived with Optimus Prime

"Makes me wish just once we'd been selfish and stayed on Earth" Kup said

"Yeah, but then the humans would of declared war upon us.  A war with them and the Decepticons are the last things we need.  Fortunately we are in the third golden age up here," Prime said

Kup said nothing and went for a coffee of his own: he learnt that it was never a good move to separate a Prime and his coffee after a night on the piss

"Ung, can't you boys take the poker game to Rodi's place?" Avari asked as she tried to get some normal Energon from the synthesiser

"Sorry Avari, we'll clean up before we leave" Optimus said

"You'd better" she said in a low voice

Kup looked at Optimus, not understanding the full extent of Avari's wrath.  Optimus leaned over and explained it

"We don't want to create disharmony in Magnus's home Kup, be fair, most of the mess is ours" Prime said

"Fine, but punish Rodimus for skipping duty here" Kup said as he began cleaning the table

"Will do, old man" Optimus said and chuckled

*************************

After about an hour of cleaning, the two wayward Transformers headed out to leave Avari and Magnus alone; it was their anniversary tomorrow

Prime hummed as he approached the small school that had been set up for Daniel and Sharon.  He was however stopped by Streetwise

"Sir, we just received a transmission from the Earth authorities," he said

"About what?" Prime asked

"Well, it regards Sharon actually, her foster parents have found out she's missing" he explained

[Only took them eight weeks] Prime thought darkly

"They want her back" Streetwise finished, awaiting the reaction of his leader

Now most Transformers are reasonable, and most would agree that Optimus Prime was one of the most reasonable beings to exist in the galaxy; but he was also in some ways, a parent and most parents when it comes to the wellbeing of their child: become highly irrational and totally unreasonable.  Prime was no different

"WHAT?" he bellowed

Streetwise couldn't help but flinch; he and others often forgot that Optimus Prime wasn't just a diplomat; he was a warrior as well, and a scary one at that

"Those two incompetents: I wouldn't trust them with a goddamn goldfish let alone my child" Optimus roared

Streetwise had to talk some sense into Prime before he did something he'd regret

"Let Sharon decide then, it's obvious that you and the foster parents won't come to anything amicable on the subject" he offered a suggestion

Prime simmered down; although Streetwise could still see that he was really pissed off underneath by the way Prime's fist was clenched.

[You'd think Galvatron's neck was in it] Streetwise thought

"That sounds reasonable enough" he said and continued on his way to the school

Streetwise sighed in relief and sped back to the Protectobot Main Building where a coffee and a won bet was waiting for him: Blades and First-Aid had bet him nearly 2000 credits that he couldn't tell Prime the news with out the leader taking a swing at him

[Thank Primus for my reasoning skills] he said to himself as he drove home

****************

Carly was in the process of explaining some scientific reactions when Rewind came in with his eyes wide

"Yes Rewind?" she asked

"Uh, Optimus Prime is here, he wants to speak with Sharon" the small Transformer said, eying the girl in question

"I didn't break anything Carly, I swear" Sharon said

"I don't think you're in trouble Sharon" Rewind said as he took the young girl outside

"Hi Sharon" Prime said

"Dad, what's wrong?" she asked

Prime transformed and opened his cab door

"Hop in, there is something important for us to discuss" Prime answered

"Okay" Sharon said and cast a confused look back at Rewind as she got in

Once she was safely buckled up, Optimus began to drive to the main communications room.  As soon as they were out of sight, Rewind went back inside and slumped down against a wall

"Rewind, what the hell just happened?" Carly asked

"Oh Primus please let him be reasonable about the girl, just once" Rewind said

"REWIND!" Carly bellowed

"Aggghhh, sorry" he said

"Well, I'm waiting" Carly hissed

"We just got a hail from Washington D.C., Sharon's foster parents want her back: they realised she was missing a few days ago" he explained

"Prime won't agree to that, and you know it" she responded

"I know, which is why I am going to kill Streetwise" Rewind said and grumbled

"He suggested to Prime that he let Sharon decide if she wants to go back to Earth or not" Rewind explained

Daniel groaned out loud

"If she says yes, what will Prime do, she's the first real reason he's had to keep himself going all this time.  With Elita's death and the banishment from Earth…" Carly stopped

"If he loses her, then he's going to flip out" Spike, who had been listening from another room, put his two cents worth in

"Hey come on now, Sharon loves Optimus like a father.  It'll take some drastic action to make her want to leave" Daniel, ever the optimist, piped up at that point

They all prayed his was right: Optimus had the loyalty of almost ten thousand well trained and superbly armed troops, not to mention battleships and other weapons that would reduce human armies to ash in seconds.  Thus far it had been a deep level of kindness towards other living beings and his honour that had kept Prime from just ignoring humans and trampling on them like the Decepticons.  Or using the force of his army against them, but everyone, even Prime has a breaking point.  His lover had been killed, many of his oldest friends murdered and maimed and he himself had been killed and resurrected.  Then came the exile from Earth

When they were leaving, the Autobots had been abused and spat on, one far left wing group had even gone so far as to splatter fake blood on Prime and label him a murderer.  Carly remembered to look in his eyes when he had been called that, not anger, but anxiety, fear and sadness.  Words had a deep effect on Prime

"Please stay Sharon, for all our sakes" Rewind said as he took out some Energon and drank it

*********************

Blaster and Ultra-Magnus waited patiently for Optimus Prime to arrive in the comm room; on the screen were the President of the United States, the Secretary General of the U.N. and some military brass from many other countries in the background.  Right at the front were two people, a husband and wife awaiting the arrival of Optimus Prime

"Well, we're waiting" the President said

"Hold your horses dude, the main man is never late on these events" Blaster replied

"If he isn't here in twenty minutes I'll…" the president started

"You'll what, Mr. Ryan?" Magnus asked from the console

"Don't get mouthy me toaster head" the President shot back

Before an argument could develop between the human and Ultra Magnus, Optimus Prime and Sharon walked in.  Prime saw Blaster and Magnus looking at him

"You two, out" he said and thumbed at the door

Blaster and Magnus took the hint and left quickly.  After a pause, Prime shook his head and sighed

"Rodimus, I know you're on the roof, get down and piss off" Prime said

A few seconds later, a loud thump sounded as an orange, red and yellow lump hit the ground.  Sharon laughed loudly as the bruised second in command left

"Uncle Rodimus, you ought to know that trick doesn't work on dad" she called to the retreating Rodimus Prime

Gasps and hushed whispers, which Prime's sensitive audio receptors picked up anyway, went awash over the humans on the screen

"He's brainwashed her"

"Has she been made into a cyborg to fit in?"

"Maybe they hurt and tortured her"

The last comment made Optimus snarl loudly, a deep and frightening sound

"To business gentlemen, if we can" Optimus said through clenched 'teeth'

"Give us back our daughter you metal freak", the mother screeched

Sharon just shook her head in disgust at the woman on the screen and frowned at her

"Please rephrase that request" Prime said

The father stepped up this time, although he spoke in a more polished manner with more clarity, his tone of voice meant the same thing

"My wife and I would like out foster daughter back, Optimus Prime.  There was a special state of emergency in our country for the past 2 months, total lockdown.  No one knew where anyone was" he explained

"And this affects me how?" Sharon asked

"I'm getting to that Sharon dear, once the emergency state was lifted, we discovered she was missing and after speaking to some people at the space centre, we discovered that she was on Cybertron with you" he added

Prime remained silent up to that point

"Sharon, the choice is yours.  If you wish to return to Earth, I will gladly take you there" Prime said, he was upset but he wouldn't force Sharon into doing anything she didn't want to

"Oh that's an easy one dad, I'm staying right here" Sharon said, turned on her heel and walked out of the room.

Prime smiled and looked at the stunned people on the screen

"Well, I think that is settled.  Goodbye all" Prime said

"Wait a minute, refusal to return her will result in an act of war against all of Earth" President Ryan warned

That comment caused Optimus Prime to burst out into hysterical laughter so loud it hurt the human's ears.  The sound lasted for about ten minutes

"You are threatening me with military action.  Look around me Mr. Ryan, I have thousands of troops, battleships and powerful weapons at my disposal: my planet itself is armed" Prime gloated

He then leaned in closer to the screen; his usually light blue eyes were almost black now

"I have two of the most powerful portable battle stations in the galaxy under my command.  If you come for Sharon, and try to take her against her will, you will suffer the wrath of unstoppable enemy" he hissed, making his position clear

Then, without ceremony, Prime cut the transmission and blocked the signal from Earth.  Grumbling to himself, he left the room and went to take Sharon back to school.  On a small perch up in the roof of the communications room, Laserbeak sat and smiled to himself in spite of the current condition of the Decepticons: he had just found Prime's weakness.  With a smirk of triumph, he winged it out of the room and back into space

*********************

Back on Earth, President Ryan was shaking his head in contemplation: he knew Optimus Prime would never have hurt the girl, to do so would be a total violation of his character.  Ryan also knew that Prime was right: although Autobot technology had helped Earth's defences considerably, they were still at best, using peashooters against the Autobot army, who had almost 9 million years of military experience between them.

"And that still leaves Metroplex and Fortress Maximus, those two alone would flatten us like bugs" he sighed as he looked at their position realistically

"Well, what are you waiting for, rally the troops" Sharon's foster father said

"A full assault would simply be a waste of lives and resources", Ryan said, and if Prime wasn't lying about Cybertron, then they were well and truly screwed

"But that metal maniac has our child" the wife said

"Let's get something straight shall we: I have known Optimus Prime for a long time, he is not a maniac: he is a kind and caring being" Ryan looked at the pair before him

"I also know that he does not make idle threats or strike first.  If we do not attack him or his people, then he will leave us in peace"

"And if we attack him?" a general asked

"Then, to use his own words, we shall face the wrath of an unstoppable enemy" the President said and went to his office

***************************

On the burnt out husk that was Char; Galvatron sat upon his throne with a look of burning hatred

"I must find a weakness in Optimus Prime, not just his men, but someone who means more to him that his own life.  Elita 1 is dead and his other friends are almost as powerful as he is" Galvatron was alone in the room, the other Decepticons were elsewhere while he plotted and schemed

As he schemed and plotted, Laserbeak came in and landed on his leaders shoulder

"What is it Laserbeak?" Galvatron asked

Laserbeak transformed and slotted himself into the date reader in the throne Galvatron sat upon and played what he saw on a small screen attached to the arms of the chair.  Galvatron's face went from slightly puzzled to almost over joyed when he realised that Laserbeak had dropped a perfect subject in his lap

"That girl; if I take her I shall be able to bend Prime to my will with ease.  Well done Laserbeak" he congratulated his small spy and sent him back to Soundwave

"Cyclonus" Galvatron summoned his most trusted ally and best soldier

"Yes my lord?" Cyclonus addressed Galvatron

"Cyclonus I want you to assemble the best team of infiltration and special forces.  No more the five, so the very best" Galvatron ordered

"Yes sir" he said and went to complete the task

An hour later, five Decepticons of varying sizes stood before him in the main departure bay.  Galvatron examined the first one, a large seeker type with thick armour and a weapon almost as big as his arm

"Name?  Rank?  Function?" Galvatron said

"Nightflight.  Lieutenant.  Infiltration transportation, sir" the large seeker had a deep voice

"And how, pray tell, does such a large mechanism such as yourself evade detection?" Galvatron asked

"Like this" Nightflight then went completely black, no outlines, markings or anything and even though Galvatron knew the seeker was speaking, he heard nothing

"Impressive" Soundwave intoned, not even he could pick up Nightflight's voice

"Okay, you, same question" Galvatron addressed a robot more his size

"Slipstream, private, saboteur, sir" this one sounded a little high horse

"Watch that tone with me" Galvatron warned

"Sir!" Slipstream went into butt-kissing mode

"Brown nose" someone muttered

Galvatron shook his head and came up an even smaller mech; this one was about the height of Swindle, with a long barrelled weapon and a scope almost as long

"Dead Centre.  Private.  Assassin" he drawled, his eyes seemed sharp

[Well fuck me, I would never have guessed] Galvatron thought sarcastically and moved on

"Nitron Charge.  Private.  D-" he was stopped by Galvatron

"Let me guess, demolitions" he said, Nitron Charge nodded

[That pack of Energon-bombs on his back would level a small city] Galvatron thought and came to the last of the five mech army

This one was of average height with a canon on his arm and a rifle slung over his back and a nasty scowl: Galvatron liked him on the spot

"Counter Strike.  Commander.  Deep infiltration and leader of the unit assembled before you" he said

Galvatron looked over the men and realised that Cyclonus may have assembled the most deadly unit of the Decepticon Army: they had a stealth mode of transport, and as Counter Strike explained, they were all equipped with devices akin to the late Autobot, Mirage, a cloaking device

"Well men, I have a mission for you.  Although it may not seem like it needs your high quality talents, I will be frank.  Bumbling soldiers should not do the work of infiltrators" he said

The group remained quiet as Galvatron paced in front of them, they were awaiting his orders

"I want you to capture a human living on Cybertron: her name is Sharon and she is the adopted child of Optimus Prime" this last part caused some whispers to rise from the group

"I know when I said capture a human you thought anyone could do it.  But to snatch a particular human from under the nose of Optimus Prime, that requires the skills of all present today" he boosted the egos of the small team

Counter Strike stepped forward and saluted his commanding officer with reverence and respect; his men followed suit

"We shall either come back with her or not at all" he promised

"Good, go" Galvatron ordered

Nightflight transformed into his plane mode, a rather large but flat bomber of black.  He opened a hatch at his rear: four vehicle stations were revealed, also a weapons rack: Slipstream transformed first, his alt mode was a rather flat and unobtrusive hover craft.  He floated in to his bay and was secured.

Next was Dead Centre; his alt mode was like an anti-aircraft placement with wheels; he drove in after securing his long rifle to its proper place

Nitron Charge was an APC with a turret on the roof which housed an Anti-Energon weapon.  Once Counter Strike made sure all of his team mate's explosives were properly secured, he unslung his own weapon.

But Galvatron stopped him

"What kind of weapon is that, I've never seen it before in the armouries" he asked

Before Counter Strike could reply, the Sweeps brought in a sorry looking mechanism not of Transformer origin

"He was trying to raid the Energon stores" one of the Sweeps said

"The penalty for that here is death you little toy soldier" Galvatron rose his gun as he spoke

"No, Lord Galvatron, may I?" Counter Strike asked

Galvatron saw that the commando was brandishing his rifle like he wanted to use it

"Very well" he agreed to the request; seeing was better than hearing where a weapon is concerned

Counter Strike ordered the Sweeps to be at least 25 feet from the robot victim.  He aimed for the head and fired: a blue bolt discharged from the rifle and hit the other machine: the other robot shook for a few seconds and then fell over: stone cold dead.

Then using a stick, A Sweep opened him up and lifted it up: Galvatron's eyes glinted when the ash which was once the inner workings of the criminal's mind fell out

"An Electro Magnetic Pulse gun, I designed, and built it myself: we all have small  pistols of such calibre, smaller models do less damage but a shot to the head or main chest unit is always fatal" Counter Strike said and did as his brethren

Galvatron watched as his team speed into the sky, knowing that this plan would cause Optimus Prime to resort to desperate measures…

…Galvatron was later going to wish he had never tried to test Optimus Prime