Infancy

Springer looked dubiously at the frame Kup and Magnus were working on. "No offense, guys, but are you sure we should be wasting our time with this?"

"We need the extra troops, Springer," Magnus said. "This is the only way."

"It's not the only way," Hot Rod said. "We could always make a try for Vector Sigma, win him back from Shockwave."

"Too risky." Magnus frowned. "It'd cost us time and energon we don't have. Not to mention the idea is to get more troops, not to get the few we have killed."

Hot Rod's shoulders slumped. "Yeah, but this way's risky too. I mean, we don't know that it's going to work."

"We did this sort of kit-bashing all the time before the Emancipation," Kup said, voice calm as he continued welding armor into place. "For pretty much the same reason; they weren't about to let us have free access to Vector Sigma to create more rebels. Alpha Trion hand-hacked this personality component for us; I'll lay it against anything Vector Sigma could create, any day."

With that, Kup stood up and stepped back from the green and white Minibot, staring at it for a moment before finally nodding his head. "That'll do; Arcee, go ahead and install that component, let's bring the little guy online."

"Right," Arcee knelt down and carefully inserted the personality component into its cradle. Her delicate hands made quick work of the necessary connections.

"Done," she said, stepping back toward Hot Rod and Springer who each reached out to pat her on the back. She smiled at them, sliding an arm around each mech's waist as she watched the potential Minibot nervously. "I hope."

"You did good." Kup didn't turn toward her but watched as the Minibot came online, his optics brightening to full awareness. It was a moment he never tired of seeing. When the figure stood, Kup smiled -- not only at the feeling of pride in seeing the new creation's first steps, but also at the quiet and not-so-quiet exclamations of relief and joy behind him. It had worked. The new creation was as alive as any of them. Shockwave might hold Vector Sigma for now, but he would not be able to stop the Autobots from replenishing their ranks.

"What's your name, son?" Kup asked, following the old tradition in spirit if not to the letter.

"Tailgate," said the Minibot. "I'm Tailgate, I want to help free Cybertron."

Kup's smile broadened. "So do we, Tailgate. Welcome aboard."