This, my readers, is the final chapter of NEST's Kitty 2: Rise of the Fallen. I really hope you enjoyed the story!

Starsong's POV

I gasped, lurching forward off the berth I was laying on. My head spun and I blinked a few times to see where I was. While staring at the familiar white-washed walls, Ratchet-the-Hatchet's med bay never looked so welcoming.

I glanced down at my chest, searching for any signs of the fatal wound I had been dealt. There was nothing, not even a scar remained of the stab wound. I knew even Ratchet wasn't this good.

I looked up at the ceiling and whispered a quiet "Thank you." to both the Primes and to Maia. I maneuvered myself to the edge of the berth and shakily stood. Walking seemed harder then I remembered. I took a few practice strides, walking in circles around the blocked-off room I was in before sitting on the berth again.

Angry footsteps echoed outside the door, and Ratchet's voice boomed "I thought I made it clear that you glitches needed to check in with me before going into that room!" The Hatchet stormed into the room, data-pad in hand, metaphorical steam shooting out his ears.

CLANG! The data pad hit the floor with a clatter as Ratchet stood in the doorway, staring at me like he was seeing a ghost. I guess he had, because I have been dead for a little over a week. I smiled shyly, because I wasn't sure if he was going to hug me or if he was going to kill me again.

"Hi, Ratch." I said, before launching myself at him. His arms wrapped around me in a bear hug, before releasing me.

"What the-? Star-? How-?" he stammered, unable to fit words together into a complete sentence. Guilt flooded me as I thought about how much it must have hurt him, and the other Autobots, to see their honorary kid sister dead.

"I'm sorry, Ratchet. I'll explain everything later." I said, trying to slip by him and out the door. I needed to see Sunny. I needed to see Sunny now. He had to know that I was okay, he had to know I was alive.

"No!" Ratchet said, grabbing my arm and directing me back towards the berth. "You need a checkup, because you shouldn't even be alive right now. And you are going to sit and listen to what has happened while you were dead."

I gulped. Now this was the Ratchet I knew, and I wasn't complaining about that. I would happily go to a hundred checkups if it meant living. I really didn't want to hear about the effects of my decision to have Elita return in my place.

"Ironhide hasn't been to the shooting range." I gasped. "Chromia refuses to speak. Elita hasn't left her new room because of the guilt." Energon tears began to well in my eyes. "Sunstreaker needs around-the-clock supervision to keep him from hurting himself." I flinched openly at that statement.

"Please… Stop." I whimpered, tears flowing down my cheeks. Ratchet paused his examination scan and looked at me.

"What I want to know it why in the Pit would you think that we wouldn't want you back?" he practically growled. I swallowed hard, my mind reeling with possible explanations as to why I opted to stay dead rather than return.

The truth seemed like my best option.

"I thought you guys would hate me." The Ratchet-patented questioning stare of doom. "I managed to get past the Decepticon communication block, and I got in touch with Ironhide. I told him about my father's identity, and he- as the human saying goes- hung up on me."

Ratchet scoffed. "And you thought because Ironhide left the comm. link drop that he- and the rest of us for that matter- hated you? I thought you were smarter than that, Starsong." I glared at him, and he smiled softly. "We really missed you. I consider you in many ways my niece, you are family."

I looked up, shocked that he would openly admit to seeing me as family. A feeling of warm fuzziness engulfed my spark, I don't know why. Ratchet chuckled slightly as he gently shoved me off the berth and towards the door.

"Go on, kid. Find that mech of your, and don't get seen!" he called after me as I ducked through the hallways, Bond style.

xXxXxXx

After managing to evade my saddened friends (Skids and Mudflap were quiet! QUIET!), I managed to find the room where Sunny was being kept. I peered around the corner of the door, making sure that I couldn't be detected. Sideswipe stood up and gave the other mech, who was facing the wall, a pitiful glance.

"Ironhide and Chromia will be here in a few minutes. You'll be okay until then, right?" he asked. A low moan answered him, and apparently that meant yes, because Sideswipe stood up and left the room leaving the other mech alone.

I couldn't believe that this was Sunny. His once bright, well-kept paint was dull and dingy. Dirt, sand, and dried Energon caked the surface, along with scratches and dents. Oh, Primus, what happened to my Sunny?

Your death echoed in the back of my mind, a silent accusation that I was the cause of the despair among the Autobots. I decided to make my presence known, and I crept around the corner and made my way to the mech in the room.

"Sunny?" I called quietly, and the mech flinched. "Sunny, please look at me." As I got closer, I could hear his mumbling. At first, I thought it was just that, incoherent mumbling, but as I got closer, I could make out what he was chanting something under his breath.

"She's not real, she's not here, she's dead" Sunny repeated over and over. My spark broke just a little bit more.

"Sunny!" I gasped when I stood in front of him. "I'm here! I'm real! Please look at me!" Sunny flinched at every statement.

"Your another delusion, the third one today. Please go away and let me grieve in peace." He whispered. I lifted my hand and placed it softly on his cheek, forcing him to look me in the eyes.

"Does this look fake?" I whispered. "Does this feel like your imagination?" I kissed him softly. "I'm back, Sunny. The prophesy is broken." I looked at him, watched his face shift from confusion to shock and to pure joy.

"You're alive!" he gasped, picking me up and twirling me around in the air. "You're alive." He whispered in a hushed tone, as if he said it too loud I would disappear.

"I'm alive." I confirmed. He leaned in to kiss me when I heard footsteps approaching. Sunny gently lowered me and offered his arm so I could lean on something. My knees shook and my stomach churned with anxiety.

Ironhide and Chromia entered the colorless room slowly. Due to the angle, Sunny's form completely blocked me from view. Energon tears pooled in my eyes once more as I saw the disheartened expressions on my adoptive parent's faces.

"Sunstreaker." Ironhide gruffly greeted. "You seem to be in a better mood today." Chomia nodded, but not speaking like I had expected her to.

"Yeah, I guess something good has happened today." Sunny said, with barely suppressed enthusiasm. Ironhide raised an eyebrow in a familiar expression of well-what-are-you-waiting-for-an-invitation?

Sunny seemed confused. "You haven't heard? Am I the first one who's heard?" The second question was directed at me, I could tell by the tone of voice.

Ironhide rolled his eyes, but somehow the familiar action seemed different, somehow saddened. "No, what is this oh-so-special surprise?" he grumbled.

I moved from my spot behind Sunny into full view of my adopted parents. "H-hi, Mom. H-hi, D-dad." I stammered, trying my best to get the words out before I dissolved into tears.

This was the first time that I have ever seen Ironhide and Chromia both slack-jawed and speechless, but I did not revel in the small victory (although I was thinking about it). Ironhide opened his arms, and I needed no further invitation as I ran forward into one of Ironhide's special hugs that only Chromia and I could get. Chomia joined in the hug a moment later, rubbing the back of my head as if I were a small child.

"Star," he gruffly said, "what were you thinking?" He released me, and I automatically drifted back to Sunny's side, and he wound an arm around me. Ironhide raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth to speak when Chromia smacked him on the arm and shook her head. I smiled, these were my parents!

"I don't think I was thinking. I thought you guys would be better off in the war without me." I said, trailing off. "Could you get all of the Autobots, and the humans, together in a hanger so I don't have to explain this more than once."

Ironhide opened his mouth to argue, but Chromia smacked him on the back of the head, effectively silencing him. "Of course we will, honey." She proceeded to drag Ironhide out of the room, he was reluctant to follow her, and I could hear their bickering as they made their way down the hallway.

"It's good to see them back to normal." Sunny stated, his arm tightening around me. I glanced up at him.

"What do you mean by that?" I asked, looking up at his dirty face. Sunny sighed, "They seemed… lifeless without you. There was no energy, no spark. They were just kind of… there. Empty shells of what they used to be like."

I nodded, then perked up. "Come on, you need to get cleaned up before I confront everyone! You're a mess!" I grabbed his wrist and pulled him towards the direction of the Autobot car wash (they had one installed a while back because of all the complaints from the Autobots about the sand.) Sunny chucked good-naturedly as we made sure there was no Autobot to see me. I left Sunny there, and waited.

xXxXxXx

After an hour (I had to drag Sunny away before he could get into repainting himself, and that would have taken all night), all of the Autobots on base had assembled in one of the larger hangers. Sunny stood with me as I waited outside in the hallway. This wasn't like any other assembly, everyone seemed to be standing around and making small talk about what the assembly had been called for. I silently giggled as Skids suggested that the Decepticons had developed a way to make zombies to fight us.

I walked into the room with Sunny at my side, and waited to see how long it would take people to notice me. I waited, looking around at the faces of my friends, and I noted a new arrival, a black-and-white police car with a stern look on his face. I got sick of waiting, so I searched for an adequate sound bit.

[Shut the hell up!] blared out of my radio, and I giggled at everyone's shocked expression. They all turned to Bumblebee, who shrugged his shoulders (which almost made Sam and Michaela fall) in denial. Everyone began to look around, searching for the culprit for the rude, but funny, quote. All eyes slowly fell on me.

Cries of "Star!", "Starsong!", and "You're alive!" filled the air as I was hugged by some of the younger bots. Michaela leaped off of Bee shoulder and onto mine, hugging the side of my face with all of her strength. Elita and Optimus stood off to the side, smiles on their faces, and I waved. Elita waved back, while Optimus silently nodded in my direction.

"Alright! Everyone quiet down, because I know that you are all wondering how the frag I'm back, and I right?" I yelled, and everyone backed away, so I could have some personal space. "Now, can you all be quiet until I finish my story?" I called, and everyone who I could see nodded.

"Okay, let's start with the basic fact that I died. I died because there was a stupid prophesy issued by the First Primes that I really don't want to explain right now. I was trapped in the Well of Sparks, and I saw Elita-1, and we talked. I had convinced myself that you would all hate me because of who my father is."

"Naw, Star, we don't hates you cuz of 'Hide!" one of the twins, Mudflap I think, called out.

"Not my adopted father. My real father. Megatron." Collective gasps filled the air, along with angry statements that I would never be hated because of that reason. I continued with my story, "So I gave my get-out-of-death-free chance to Elita, who was sent back to deliver my message. One of the Primes came and brought me to Maia-" more gasps, "-Prime. She has a portal, a viewing station is you will, which allows her to see what's happening here. She showed me Elita's return, and she gave me a chance to come back. A chance that the Primes wanted her to use on herself. So here I am!"

Sunny wrapped his arm around my shoulder, and I could feel the glare that undoubtedly belonged to Ironhide on Sunny. I smiled and leaned into the embrace, thankful for everything I had, everything that I had almost lost forever.

With a smile, I looked up at the ceiling and beyond. "Thank you, Maia." I whispered.

I knew she could hear me. I knew she was watching.

You're welcome.

That concludes this chapter of the NEST's Kitty story. Please review and vote on the poll on my profile, to vote on what I should write next!

If you have any ideas for Starsong's next adventure or a one-shot, please message me or leave a review. You will get credit!

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