*you hear music from off-screen*

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELL DID THIS CHAPTER TAKE TOO LONG TO POST?

*clap clap*

YES!

WAS THIS CHAPTER WORTH THE LONG WAIT?

*clap clap*

PROLLY NOT!

IS THE AUTHOR SO VERY, VERY, VERY, VERY, SORRY?

*clap clap*

YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES!

enjoy!

"ALLSPARK!"

My heart dropped into my stomach.

He was coming.

"WHERE IS IT? WHERE?!"

Every ounce of whatever bravery I'd had before was now gone. I pressed myself flat to Bumblebee's hands as they curled around me, feeling like a dog cowering before an abusive master. I hated it, but some instinct – or some crazy delusion – screamed that his words applied to me.

I told myself that was impossible. He couldn't have known it was I who… He couldn't have seen me…right?

"I FELT ITS ENERGY!" He roared. "THE AUTOBOTS HAVE ALREADY HARNESSED ITS POWER!"

"Oh no," Sam stuttered from below. "Ohnoohnoohnoohno he's coming!"

As if he'd heard the boy, Megatron crossed onto our street. Without so much as a pause, he looked right at the lone Autobot at the far end of the street. Even from the distance, you could see his monstrous fangs part in a snarl. Then he charged.

That was all I got to see. On some unspoken cue, I slipped into one of Bumblebee's hands as they parted. His right whirred into a cannon as his left pulled me down and away. Injured and clearly at the disadvantage, he was still going to make one last stand against Megatron.

I curled into as tight a ball as possible, squeezed my eyes shut and awaited fate, listening to the thundering steps speed closer. This was unscripted. With Megatron no longer preoccupied with tearing Jazz in half, I had no idea what was going to happen. And from the way things looked, no hope for survival either.

It's all my fault.

Then came the roar of a powerful engine.

I opened my eyes to see the chain fences for the surrounding buildings being torn and plastic garbage bins flying out of the way.

WHOOSH! There was barely enough time to process the red and blue semi as it sped past us. Like the literal saving grace he was, Optimus Prime charged onto the scene, transforming for battle even as he raced forward.

Megatron saw him coming and came to a halt. Transforming in reverse, he tried to rise in his alien-jet mode, but even he could not escape the Prime. Optimus launched into the air and collided with Megatron with a titanic sound. Our hero clung on and did not let go, but the villain did not stop. Up they went, smashing clean through a building.

And then they were gone.

Nobody moved as we watched the building come down. Dust quickly covered the actual collapse, flooding up into the sky and out onto the street. We were far enough away not to get enveloped by the massive cloud, but the airy debris reached us in no time. It was strange to look at without screams of terror filling the air. Almost poetic.

The best word to describe what we felt would probably be awe. It didn't even need movie magic with prolonged shots and deep music for effect; it was amazing in itself. We had been in immediate danger and then suddenly we weren't. Optimus hadn't stopped to dramatically transform, showing off a studio's use of CGI. No words, no hesitation, only action. And we were saved.

Bumblebee broke the silence with three, pre-recorded words.

"That's my king."

The teenagers snapped out of it. Well, Mikaela did. She got right back to work without so much as a word. Sam was still dumbfounded.

"Whoa," he breathed, standing there agape.

"Sam." Mikaela's tone was almost as commanding as the soldiers', and it was enough to get the boy moving again.

Shaking myself out of the shock, I attempted to go help them. I was almost able to push myself out of Bumblebee's slackened hand before it readjusted its grip around me. I grunted in frustration. Darn it.

"You're staying right here." Bee's radio crackled.

"I gotta help!" This came out as more of a yelp than anything as Bumblebee's other hand came around to hold me too.

"Don't go running away from me *kzzt* Let them do their work *kzzt* You sit tight."

"But-"

"Iris." Mikaela's voice interrupted. I turned to watch her quickly secure another hook around Bumblebee's arm, hauling it into place with a strong yank. She looked back up at me, her face grim with determination. "We've got this."

I wanted to protest more. I felt completely useless, being held onto and protected like a baby. I couldn't just sit and do nothing! But then again, I had no hope for control anymore. We were off script now and I had no idea how far we would deviate. I had nothing to offer anymore. Whatever the heck had happened back there with Jazz; they didn't know about it, and I had no idea if or how I could do it again. Even if I somehow could and did, it obviously didn't have any sort of lasting effect. Megatron had gotten back up, fully functional, after all. That, and I felt…emptied. Like a drained battery. Some force on instinct said I didn't have it in me anymore.

So I sat still.

"Sam!" I turned my head at the sound of Lennox yelling, just in time to see a stray round detonate an explosion just behind the captain and his group of men. "Where's the Cube?"

The boy looked up briefly at the soldier. "Right there," he said, pointing to where it sat on the side of the truck. Once the Cube's position had been confirmed, both went back to work. "Take that, wrap it around the base, and then around his neck." Sam instructed, handing another hook to Mikaela, who turned to watch the soldiers run past. She kept doing so as she worked, like she was anticipating what was about to happen.

Right on cue, Lennox came running back. "Okay," he said, stopping where Sam stood on the base of the truck. He ignored the teenager's confusion and began giving instructions, heaving his gun onto the platform to free his hands. "I can't leave my guys back there, so here, take this flare. 'Kay there's a tall white building with statues on top. Go to the roof. Set the flare, single the chopper-"

"No, I can't do this!" Sam interrupted, only to get pulled down roughly by the collar.

"Listen to me! You're a solider now, alright? Everybody's a soldier until this is over. I need you to take this cube," Will shoved the Allspark into Sam's arms. "Get it into military hands while we hold them off, or a lot of people are gonna die." Immediately, he turned to Mikaela. "You gotta go, you need to go," he said, beginning to move her away.

She lifted her arms and shoved back. "No, I'm not leaving until I get Bumblebee out of here, okay?" Unlike Sam, she was unintimidated by the soldier. She held the captain's gaze for a moment, eye to eye, before setting right back to work.

While Epps notified the incoming Black Hawks to where to pick up Sam, Ironhide and Ratchet had made their way back to the Cube. They had heard the plan and were ready to comply. "Sam, we will protect you." The weapons specialist told the him.

Then the boy looked at me. His eyes were wide, and he looked very small holding the Cube. He was afraid, more so than before. I knew he felt the gravity of the situation. He was looking to me not for motivation or advice; for a straight answer. Sam wanted to know if he could do it.

My job couldn't have been easier.

"You've got this, Sam! No lie!" I called down from my position in Bumblebee's hands, slamming my fists down on his fingers for emphasis. "You're gonna wreck 'um! Now, get going!"

He gazed back at me, silent for a moment, before uttering an almost inaudible "Okay." Tucking the Cube under his arm like a football, Sam started running for his escorts.

Mikaela did not move as he rushed past her. She bit her lip, and then her face changed. "Sam!" she called after him, turning around. When the boy responded, she jogged back up to him. Mikaela gripped the edge of his collar tightly with her fists, as if this was the last time she'd be able to touch him. "No matter what happens," she said softly, so that if I hadn't seen the movie I wouldn't have known what she was saying. "I'm really glad I got in that car with you."

The teenagers held eye contact for a few moments, something passing between them that I'd never been able to decipher. Then Sam nodded and stepped back, looking more determined than before.

"Sam! Get to the building!" Ironhide urged.

"Move!" Ratchet added.

Sam and Mikaela parted, each running to their line of work, just as a thundering roar shook the street.

"DECEPTICONS, ATTACK!"

I soon lost sight of Sam, huge craters in the asphalt making it impossible to see very far, but I watched Ratchet and Ironhide follow him closely. I let out a breath I didn't know was holding, and relaxed my muscles a bit.

At an inquisitive noise, I turned back to Bumblebee. His eyes met mine, looking as if he were trying to discern whether I had been lying or not.

"He'll make it." I promised the Autobot. "He's got this in the bag."

After a moment, the Autobot nodded. Somehow, it seemed like that was good enough for him.

"Girl, get the tow truck outa here!" someone yelled as Mikaela went to fasten the chains behind Bumblebee's back.

"I'm going, I'm going!" she shot back.

"Get outta here, now!"

"Do you need any help?" I asked, stretching up to look over Bumblebee's shoulder. I figured I'd offer again since Sam was gone.

Mikaela didn't respond. She just lodged the final hook and went to a series of levers on the side. Once she pushed the right lever, there was a jolt. I clutched onto Bumblebee tighter as his whole body began to move. The winches pulled taut and hauled the Autobot upwards into a sitting position.

Feeling more useless by the second, I decided I could encourage if nothing else. "Good job!" I called to her.

The girl looked over at me with a tired smile. "Not much difference between shoulders and fenders." She breathed.

KRACK! What must have been a missile detonated extremely close to us. I was yanked down and away from the crux of the blast, but Bee could offer no such help to the teen.

"MIKAELA!" I yelled through the sounds of more rockets whistling by, exploding way to close for comfort. There was no way I could see her from my position, and I couldn't hear anything but the ringing in my ears. Oh God, is she dead?

My answer came not in a reply, but in a sudden jolting forward. Through the collateral noise I could not hear the tow truck's engine come to life, but at the speed we took forward, Mikaela must have floored it.

I hung on tight, as if I had a choice, as the buildings flew by. I turned my head to watch the far-off battle become even more distant. Away, away, away, until the fight could no longer be seen. We drove into the narrow alley between two buildings. There was another, perpendicular street ahead, but the vehicle slowed until it was moving forward only a foot at a time. Just short of the crossroad, we stopped.

Here it was quiet. The weapons, the destruction, even the sounds of massive bodies moving around; none of it could be heard anymore. But, like very distant thunder, you could feel it in your bones.

We sat silently for a while. Nothing I could say would influence Mikaela. Knowing what she would choose still gave me no right. It was her decision to make.

Hearing noises come from the cab, I started to climb over Bumblebee's shoulder. Through the back window, I saw Mikaela's face slowly pop up, looking out at us.

Bumblebee's giant head nodded beside me, and my eyes widened in anticipation. She could do this. She was much more than capable of doing this. And I was so ready.

Mikaela turned back around in the cab. She wrenched the gearshift and we were off again. Out of the alley and into the street, pulling a sharp turn. On our way back to the battle.

With awful screeching and showering of sparks, Bee used what was left of his legs to dig into the fast-moving asphalt below. Clinging to me with one hand and the side of the truck with the other, he helped Mikaela swing back around. The truck spun and soon we were facing the direction of the battle again, the truck itself in reverse.

"IRIS!" I jumped at the sound of my name, and saw Mikaela through the window again. "Get up here!" she called urgently.

Bee loosened his hold on me, the hand holding me coming down to the street. I used it to launch off of, propelling myself forward to respond as fast as possible. The cab's passenger door was flung open. Though not nearly as big as Optimus, the gap between the ground and the door was big enough to make me trip again, but my arm was caught and I did not fall again. Mikaela's now grimy hands hauled me up and into the seat. "Seatbelt," she muttered as I yanked my door shut.

Didn't have to tell me twice. After clicking the old strap into place, I turned so that I was kneeling backwards on the seat. Sticking my arm and head firmly out the open window, I established myself as lookout.

"I'll drive, you shoot," Mikaela called up to Bumblebee, who answered her with appropriately angry, heavy metal music as his canon whirred to life.

Every hair on my body rose in anticipation. This was a scene I'd been waiting for. Going into it felt like going over the first crest in a rollercoaster, beginning the descent.

As Mikaela shifted the gear into reverse and floored the accelerator, what wrenched its way out of my throat must have been a ten-year old's equivalent of a battle cry.

We flew backward with incredible speed. With Mikaela behind the wheel and Bumblebee shoving and firing each and every object out of our way, there was no stopping us.

"Hard to port!" I yelled as Bee's pushing of another car sent the truck askew.

"What?!" Mikaela shouted back.

"Left! I mean left! WOO!" I yelled as we T-boned an abandoned car, sending it spinning away in a shower of sparks. "St- I mean right! Right!"

The scene of the battle was coming into view again. Little explosions riddled Devastator's armor, soldiers popping in and out of ruined buildings to continue their fire. But they did no more than disorient the Decepticon. When it got its bearings back, they'd really be in trouble.

"SHOOT SHOOT SHOOT!" Mikaela howled over her shoulder.

Not one to waste time, Bumblebee attacked with a barrage from his own weapon. These made a sizable difference, even knocking the Decepticon off its feet. That, with the help of Bee's shoulder-missiles, made quite the threat.

Devastator steadied himself enough to fire back a few times, but with the abuse he was receiving from Autobots and humans alike, his aim was anything but accurate.

"YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALEFT! LEFT LEFT!" I screamed, trying to remain helpful while enjoying the fight. "HOO! HANG ON!" I called back as Bee shoved another vehicle out of the way, sending us askew again. But not once did Mikaela stop, and we kept moving forward.

In no time flat, one of Bee's fires hit home. A big, blazing fireball exploded in the face of the tank. With one final roar, it keeled over and tumbled into one of the ruined buildings where the soldiers hid.

"YOU GOT HIM! AAAAHAAAA!" I cried, falling back into my seat as the truck screeched to a halt. I popped the door handle, kicking it open with my foot as my hands undid my buckle. Disregarding the rollback, I all but face-planted in my haste to leave the vehicle. "That was SO COOL!" I exclaimed, running around to the front.

Bee lifted the flaps of his facemask with a finger, almost curiously, checking out the soldiers in the building.

I could have shown more concern, but I knew they were fine and was too excited to feel anything else. "Favorite scene! Right there! WOO!" I yelled, skidding to a stop in front of the Autobot, lifting my arms over my head in celebration. "I mean, it was always fun to watch on TV, but WOW!"

The Autobot saw my enthusiasm and smiled. He lifted his canon in triumph, posing heroically while my cheers turned into laughter.

Our driver took her own time exiting the truck. As Bumblebee pulled his canon back into a regular hand, the teen rounded the corner and said, "Nice shot." What she did not expect was a little ball of adrenaline hurled at her.

"MIKAELA!" I yelled as I gripped her tightly around the middle. "That was so AWESOME! It's the mostest-, most abth-," my tongue moved faster than I could keep up with. "Absotuley-, where did you learn to do that?"

She gave a small, breathy laugh. "Demo-derbies, with Dad." She explained, mussing my hair a bit. "I'll take ya sometime, if we ever get outa here."

I snatched my arms away, jumped back and grinned, too giddy for words.

"That tank is definitely dead now. Alright, let's go!" Lennox ordered. "You girls alright?" he asked, jogging over to us.

"Didja see?" I couldn't contain my excitement, turning to the soldier gleefully. "Wasn't that cool?"

"Super cool," Lennox spared me a small grin before calling to his men. "We've got civilians under our care now. Our top priority is their safety now. Gotta get 'um outa the battle zone." Back at us, he said, "Stay close, but stay back."

Not really paying attention, I looked back at the body of Devastator sticking out of the ruined building. "Whoa, I breathed, walking towards it. "He's still twitching!"

I was stopped and pulled in reverse by the back of my shirt. Struggling to keep up with the sudden force, I looked back over my shoulder to see Bumblebee.

"Stay with the Elves," his radio told me, making me snort with amusement. "Be good *kzzt* don't go looking for trouble *kzzt* and I mean it!"

For some reason, I actually let out a smile. "Don't worry, Bumblebee," I told him. When he released his pinch on my shirt, I spun around and grabbed his metal finger for a second. "I'm not gonna go do anything stupid."

Looking into his face one last time, I let go of Bumblebee and went with the soldiers. We all started moving forward, Mikaela and I being pushed together. The teen took my hand, and together we went down the street. We ran in two loose lines, Mikaela and I restricted to the back except for one soldier covering our caboose.

Ahead, where the alley met the street again, a great thundering was approaching quickly. Not knowing its source, the soldiers pressed into the shadowy sides of the buildings, pushing Mikaela and I to do the same.

Blackout appeared, changing from helicopter to robot mode as he landed. The blades folded into a pair on his back, like wings on an insect. We watched quietly, pressing ourselves to the sides of the buildings as the Decepticon lumbered forward. More blades sprung from his right hand and spun into their own deadly propeller. Where was he heading? Right towards Optimus & Megatron's final battle. Figures. Megatron wasn't noble enough to take the Prime on with no back up. No 'leave him to me' for him.

Remembering what was next, I scanned the street for the… Wait a second. There was no motorcycle.

Of course! With the police perimeter, the motorcyclist couldn't have gotten through. No epic Lennox-sliding-under-the-Decepticon scene? Dang!

How was this going to work then? The whole reason Lennox did that in the movie was to distract Blackout from the incoming jets. Now he couldn't do that.

Oh no.

"Fighter jets in sixty seconds." Epps muttered, just loud enough for humans to hear, then went back to the radio. "We've got friendlies mixed with bad guys. Targets will be marked."

"Hey," Lennox's hand found Epps' shoulder. "I'm gonna see my little girl, you understand?"

I scowled in thought. How? This would become a disaster without the motorcycle!

Epps grinned. "What, like I don't wanna see mine?"

"Then bring the rain." The captain stood up, unslinging the rocket launcher on his back. "Let's kill these things."

As Mikaela and I started to get up, Donnelly grabbed our arms. "Stay here," he not so much ordered as pleaded. "And don't come out."

The teen and I settled back into the shadows, pressing close to the wall in the dirt. "Fig!" I hissed, reaching out to grab the soldier as he ran by. "For God's sake," I said when he stopped. "Tell Epps to aim his laser low!"

Fig cracked a smile at that, nodded, and continued on.

Mikaela and I edged closer to the corner of the building.

We peeked around the corner and watched the soldiers get to work. They headed to our left, going back further down the street, finding outthrusts of debris to set up behind.

"Move, move, move!" "Remember: Armor's weak below the chest." If Cybertronian's ears were as keen as I'd been lead to believe, Blackout must have been really focused on his task at hand. He didn't hear any of the muttered orders directly behind him.

A green pinprick of bright light appeared on Blackout's legs, flicking in and out over the armor. "Keep it low, keep it low," I mumbled to myself, grinding my teeth out of anxiety.

I watched Lennox ready his rocket launcher, his stance much like that of a runner at the starting line.

Oh, but it wasn't going to be enough! Lennox couldn't run that fast; Blackout would surely see him and stop him to death.

My teeth gritted. No. Lennox was going to see his baby girl, if I had anything to say about it. But there just wasn't enough stacked on our side. With the lack of speed, they needed something else.

They needed a distraction.

Adrenaline coursing through my veins, I tore my body out of Mikaela's arms and sprinted into the street with everything I had. I felt her hands claw at my clothing, trying to keep me there, but I escaped. Further back on the street, the soldiers were too far away to catch me and too smart to yell after me. But I heard someone's footsteps turn also into a run.

Thank goodness he was stalking, walking slowly to try and get the jump on Prime. That meant I actually had a chance to catch up. And the angry roar of incoming jets, piloted by humans this time, was quickly approaching, threatening to drown out all other sounds.

I wasn't afraid. Well, yes, I was, but that didn't matter. Far more prominent in my head was this crazy, absurd feeling of…of elation! Truth be told I was still shaking, but I didn't care. This was such a rush! Maybe it was from the joy ride a few moments ago, maybe it came from what I did before, or maybe I was just going insane. Whatever the cause, I felt unstoppable!

Here he comes, here he comes, here he comes!

"HEY BLACKOUT!" I yelled, just was he was turning to face the incoming threat, rounding the Decepticon's right side and running out in front.

His giant, insect-like face turned down at me. I felt that same red, cutting light that had been in Barricade's eyes. Shivers went up and down my spine; not just fear. Anticipation.

I took a huge breath. I had no time to be afraid.

But just enough time to be stupid.

"U! G! L! Y! YOU AIN'T GOT NO ALIBI, YOU UGLY!" I sang/screamed at the top of my lungs, clapping my hands in rhythm. "YOU UGLY!"

Blackout's optics narrowed at me in rage.

Oh yes. I was most definitely going to be squished.

But just as Blackout was lifting his foot, he was hit by another distraction. This came in the form of Lennox, sprinting between the two giant legs. He fired his rocket launcher twice up into the torso of the Decepticon, yelling and like a mad man.

I wasn't able to catch much more before 'Wild Bill' smacked into me at full force.

Everything went topsy-turvy and painful after that. Disoriented both by the sudden movement and immense sounds dominating everything, I had no idea what was going on.

When I could comprehend again, I found my face pressed against asphalt. I couldn't move my legs, and there was an immense weight on top.

It was Lennox. He took one hand and used it to push on my head, keeping me to the ground while he looked up. In a second he stopped, and I could move again. When I turned around, I saw the heaping, smoldering mass of metal that had been Blackout, leaking blue, sparking Energon.

"You got him!" I cried, shoving myself onto my feet, only to be grabbed again. I grunted as Lennox quickly threw me over his shoulder. Well, I probably deserved that.

"RUN! MOVE!" he called to his men, waving with his free hand before running down the street towards the fight. "I can't believe you did that, kid," I heard him mutter. "What the &$#% were you thinking?"

"The-ere was no-oh moh-ot-er-cy-cle-le!" I tried to explain while bouncing against his back. Geez, this was disorienting. "You-ou have to see-ee Ah-an-ah-abelle-ell-ell!" Yelping, I was yanked off his shoulder again. Feet back on the ground, my shoulders were grabbed.

Lennox's face was in front of me again. "Look, I appreciate your help, I really do," he told me in a rushed tone, yet it was bewildered at the same time. "I still can't believe what you just did. If you really do know what's going to happen and you just saved our $%#$ back there, thank you." He grabbed my head with both hands, making me look into his eyes. "But a warzone is no place for a kid. I wanna go see my little girl, but I don't wanna lose somebody else's in the process." He lifted his head. "Hey!" he shouted, half greeting, half summoning someone.

I turned just in time to get a glimpse of Mikaela before I got caught up in a grip so strong I thought Blackout had come back to life.

"You and the kid gotta stay out of the line of fire, alright?" Lennox relinquished me to her. "Don't let her go."

"I won't." My blood ran cold at the underlying fierceness in Mikaela's words. Good grief, she was scarier than the helicopter monster too.

The Captain nodded as Mikaela tucked herself and I down behind an outthrust of debris, then he left to join his men in charging towards the battle between Optimus and Megatron.

Again the teen and I peeked out to watch the battle, but this time Mikaela had learned. She clutched me with both arms, one around my shoulder, the other around my middle. There was no chance of escaping her this time. No more personal bubble between us, I guess. Not that I minded.

"Take him out!" Lennox cried, and on his words the group of soldiers and S7 men began firing at the silver titan. At the time I didn't know what they were called, but handheld launchers plastered Megatron with mini sabot rounds. They didn't even make a dent in the Decepticon's armor, but they were sufficiently distracting.

"Laze targets!" Lennox yelled. "Hit 'em, hit 'em – hurry, Epps!"

"I'm on it!" the tech sergeant replied. "Rain's coming, get out your umbrellas!"

The angry roar of jets returned and with it came barrages of missiles. Mikaela pushed me down and we ducked for cover as the barrage hit Megatron. Great orange fireballs exploded tore through him, ripping through his outer armor. The whole street behind him filled with light and smoke, and missiles that hit their mark caused him to stumble and fall.

But still he did not stop. He'd seem as if he was going down, on his hands and knees, but up he would go again. He lunged forward, presumably for Sam, but got tripped up my Optimus' massive arm. Facedown in the rubble, Megatron continued crawling forward. He was absolutely consumed with rage and greed, transfixed to the point of insanity on the Cube.

"Mine!" he could be heard growling through the city. "All Sparkle!"

I had to see this.

"Mikaela," I grunted, grabbing her arm and pulling. "Look!"

The teenager understood my insinuation. There was a climax coming, and she wanted to see it too. And if this really meant the end, she didn't have to cling on to me anymore.

"Sam! Put the Cube in my chest NOW!" Optimus shouted.

We stood to our full heights and watched. Mikaela relinquished her grip on my torso and took my hand instead. She gave it a squeeze upon seeing our hero on the ground while the villain rose again. Sam could not be seen, but he was there, and I squeezed back to tell her so.

"Sam!" came Optimus again, the desperation rising in his voice.

As this happened, I began to walk towards the scene. My hand drifted out of Mikaela's, and for some reason, she did not try to get it back.

I felt like I had to witness it. The destruction of the All Spark was something like someone dying, a soul vanishing. It was such a sacred relic to the transformers, their literal giver of life. Its loss was such a tragedy, even if it needed to happen. Heck, I almost felt blessed that it had shocked me. Yeah, I know that sounds weird, but I didn't think so. Not now. I may not have been a Cybertronian, but it had touched me in some way. I had to watch it die. I owed it that much.

"No Sam!"

Every hair stood on end, and there was a blinding flash. My breath caught in my throat as I watched the All Spark disintegrate Megatron's spark. It filtered upwards, held by Sam's unseen hands, and burned into the Decepticon's chest. Energy arched uncontrollably in every direction, crackling like lightning, spewing power like nothing I'd ever seen before. When the entire Cube had been used up, it left a bright, burning hole in the middle of the beast, who reared up, clutching at his spark cavity. With a guttural roar, Megatron fell back to his knees, writhing in pain. Noises that sounded like breathless gasping rasped from the giant's fanged mouth, his eyes wide in both agony and shock. And then, back he fell, smashing back into the concrete with another massive convulsion.

Then, he was still.

My feet started forward again, but walking was becoming hard. Standing was becoming hard. Something like relief, only much, much stronger was flooding my soul. It exhausted me instantly, and as my eyes sought out Optimus, who stood up once again, my steps turned to staggers. I tried to keep my gaze steady, but everything began to spin. Noises got louder, colors blurred together, and my sense of balance was entirely gone.

Feeling my body fall to the concrete once more, my ears were able to pick out just a few more words among the noise. Practically a whisper, had it not come from such a massive source, I surely would have missed it. The deepness of his tone reverberated through my bones, and the deepness of his sorrow did the same through my heart.

"You left me no choice, brother."

The next thing I remember was just feeling. Listening.

The warm softness beneath me.

The rhythm, the rumbling of a powerful engine.

The sound, the feeling of my breath slowly pumping in and out.

The immense, all-encompassing feeling of security.

It felt like heaven.

Except for the pain, of course.

It wasn't until I started to focus on the pain that I really woke up. It was all a very dull ache, but I with my awareness of its presence came a question: Why? Why did I hurt? What had happened to hurt me?

I opened my eyes to see a shiny, polished dashboard covered in dials, knobs and switches of wood, metal, and custom flames, all of which glinted in the sun.

My eyes widened in realization. Optimus. I was back in Optimus.

I lifted my head and saw something that made me jump in my seat. Someone was driving Optimus. I sat, wide-eyed, staring at the man at the wheel. He looked like a truck driver, with a red flannel shirt and a white cowboy hat. He had dark hair under that hat, accompanying the dark mustache under his large nose. He was older, but his arms were thick with muscle, and the wrinkles around his eyes suggested that he smiled a lot.

Under different circumstances, I would have considered this man to look like a nice guy. But at the moment, I was terrified. Was I not really in Optimus? Who was this guy? Had he kidnapped me? Where were the others? What was going on?!

"Do not fear," I was both startled and reassured by the sudden presence of that deep, familiar voice. "You are safe now." Its presence stilled the rising of panic in me, but I remained confused. It was clearly Optimus' voice, and it did not come from the man in the driver's seat, but that didn't explain who he was.

I swallowed thickly and asked, "Who's that?"

"It's what you humans would call a hologram. I felt that an additional element of disguise would be needed in order to leave the city." The hologram turned and looked at me, giving me a warm smile. "What do you think of it?"

Now hold on a second. Now that I could see him head on, the guy looked familiar. He reminded me of Optimus himself, and even looked like the Prime's deep voice would match the guy's.

Then it hit me: Peter Cullen. Optimus had chosen a hologram that looked almost exactly like his voice actor from my world.

"… It's perfect." I all but whispered.

The hologram turned back to the front, continuing to mimic a human driving.

I sat silently for a while, and Optimus did not speak as it flooded all back. The battle, the driving, Jazz, the Cube, everything. Except, that's where it ended. At the Cube.

"Optimus…" I spoke up, the name feeling foreign in my mouth. Once again I wondered at the fact I was actually talking to its holder. I didn't think I'd ever get over it. "What happened?"

The Prime answered my question with a question. "What do you remember?"

Biting my lip, I tried to pick out which one of my memories had happened last. "The Cube." I decided. "I remember, I watched it go up into Megatron, and then he died, and then…" I trailed off.

"Mikaela Banes witnessed you falling to the ground after the event." Optimus explained. "She discovered you were unconscious and brought you straight to Ratchet."

I hadn't noticed that I was wearing a seatbelt, but I was twisting it anxiously. "What did he say?"

"You collapsed from exhaustion. Lack of sustenance was also a factor, as well as the after-effects of an adrenaline rush. Ratchet remarked that your fragile body had been put through quite the abuse in the past few days."

"Mm," was my only answer. I didn't want to talk about me. There were much more important things to talk about. "So, where are we going now?"

"We are awaiting contact from Captain Lennox. More humans were inbound shortly after the battle, those who I fear are not trustworthy. The Captain provided Samuel Witwicky with a form of communication, instructing him to call the number under 'Epps.' While awaiting further instructions, we are falling back to a more secluded area."

A strange but familiar scent caught my nose, and low and behold, I found a McDonald's bag and cup, of all things, between the passenger and driver's seat. The mere smell made my mouth water and my stomach ache. "Is that…?"

"For you, yes." Optimus replied. "Samuel purchased it in the hopes that you would regain your strength."

I could hardly keep myself from tearing the bag open. I sucked down most of the water in the cup right away. I was parched and so, so hungry. Inside the bag I found two McChickens and a large fry. How had he known…

"Bee!" I exclaimed, feeling awfully selfish for not asking before now. "Is he okay? Sam and Mikaela? Jazz? You?"

"We are all well, thank you. The outcome of the battle was quite incredible. We have emerged victorious and relatively unscathed. While the status on civilians is unknowable at this time, I am amazed at the lack of collateral damage. Our number of casualties is at a very improbable zero, which in part," Optimus' tone changed. "I have you to thank for."

Fumbling with the wrapper around a McChicken, I forced words out of my mouth quickly. "It wasn't just me! Sam did so much, but so did the soldiers. And Mikaela! Oh my gosh, she saved Bee, she saved the soldiers, she probably saved me a lot. They're heroes!"

"And so they too shall be honored, but do not forget yourself." Optimus replied. "My lieutenant tells me he owes you his life."

I paused with the sandwich in my mouth, mid bite.

"We are in your debt, Iris. Thank you. You honor us with your bravery."

How could I answer to that? I'm really not a hero, but I couldn't just not accept his gratitude. Either way, my face was cooking, and I was feeling extremely bashful.

Chewing gave me time to think. Then I had to swallow, and give a reply. "You're welcome," I said softly, bowing my head. "I don't even know how it happened. But…I'm just glad everyone's alive."

While my face burned what I'm sure was bright red, I began to feel something new rising inside of me. It was a warm, glowing feeling in my chest. Was this pride? Well, how couldn't it be? The great Optimus Prime himself was thanking me. Me! Who didn't deserve anything! If anything, I should be thanking him for the opportunity, for letting me tag along, for believing me. Whatever the feeling was, it certainly was positive. I felt…happy. Incredibly happy, and relieved. Now that I thought about it, I was overjoyed! We'd made it! We'd all made it! There had been a script, a written order, and we had defeated it.

I had defeated it.

My hands stuffed more food into my face as tears began to trickle down my cheeks. Don't cry, don't cry! I berated myself. You have nothing to cry about! I all but choked on my fries, forcing myself to slow down. Though coughing, I was careful to not make a mess in the Prime, making sure everything that came out of the bag went either into my mouth or back into the bag.

Optimus hadn't said anything while I ate, but now he spoke up. "Are you alright?" he asked.

His words brought more tears to my eyes. "I'm fine," I replied, clearing my throat. "I'm just…" I drew my bandaged hand across my eyes. "I'm so happy. Everything's okay." A wide, real grin broke out onto my face, and I murmured to myself. "We made it. Everyone's okay."

Everything in me seemed to still after that. A great overarching sense of peace filled me. I was brave enough to lean back in my chair again, and sigh.

Thank you, God.

Something caught my eye. It was what appeared to be a loose cord, dangling from the ceiling above the driver's seat, looping back up to the top again.

Was that…?

No. It couldn't be.

I mean, yes, Optimus was disguised as a semi-truck, but that didn't mean he had all the features of one. Sure, everything looked like it would in a real truck. Felt that way too. Sounded that way, smelt that way… But there was no way. No way that cord could actually be his-

"Would you like to pull it?"

All but jumping in my seat, I realized I had been staring. Not eating, not talking, nothing but staring. Geez, was I really that obvious? How pathetic was I! My face burned even hotter as I struggled to come up with words.

"I would not mind."

Oh my gosh, really, what's more reassuring than Optimus' deep voice speaking softly? Nothing, that's what, let me tell you. And I had to admit… I could not deny, that I… I wanted to.

Gulping, I all but stammered out, "Really? Are…are you sure?"

"Come, little one. You have my permission."

My heart leapt in my throat, pounding like a hummingbird's. Slowly, I undid my seatbelt as the hologram in the driver's seat disappeared. Timid as a mouse, a cautiously crawled over the divide between the seats, and knelt in front of the giant wheel. The window beside it was open, and it blew thick, warm air into my face, buffeting my hair and cheeks. This alone was enough to send adrenaline through my veins again. Carefully, I got into a crouch. I held on to the back of the seat for support, and stretched upwards until my fingers made contact with the cord.

I paused. After all I had gone through, after all that had happened, was I really going to do this? Had I really come this far? Had I really earned this right?

…

Yes. I had been given an impossible task, but I had completed it. I had won.

I made a fist around the cord, and pulled down, hard.

HOOOOONK! The mighty horn blasted, filling my eardrums and my heart. The mere volume startled me, making me let go of the cord. I didn't think anything I could do could ever make a sound that loud. I paused, but then a smile spread across my face.

I grabbed the cord with both fists and pulled again.

HOOOOOOOOOOOONK! HONK HONK! HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONK!

My laughter could barely be heard as I pulled the cord, filling the whole desert with the sound of victory.

My victory.

Eventually, Optimus stopped driving. He pulled off the highway and rolled into a flat part in the desert. One of those huge rocks that begged to be climbed loomed ahead, and it was behind there that he came to a halt.

Having finished my food, I crumpled up the bag and took it with me as I jumped out the self-opened door. My feet made a puff of dust as they hit the ground, making a little cloud in the air. I knew to quickly make room, because I doubted Optimus wanted to stay in vehicle form.

Stepping a good distance away, I saw other vehicles heading off the highway towards us. I counted Ratchet, Jazz, Ironhide, and Bee. No military vehicles, just the Autobots. They too pulled around the rock, coming up front as the Prime was transforming.

Ratchet's sudden proximity nearly made me jump out of my skin. "Good! The juvenile female is conscious." He said, coming towards me very quickly. I tried to back away to allow room, but was stopped by something behind me. The medic gently cupped my back with his hand, pulling me forward. "You've been putting too much stress on your body the past few days. Hrm," he used one of his fingers to carefully lift one of my arms for his scanner. "We'll have to keep an eye on these wounds to ensure they heal properly." The bright blue lights of his eyes flashed into mine. "You have some recovering to do, my dear, and I must insist that you properly nourish and rest yourself."

"Uh," I replied intelligently. "Okay. Sam got me some-, Sam!" I cried, noticing just in time to see the teenagers running over to me.

"Iris!" I heard Sam yell as I was suddenly swept up. I realized Sam was hugging me tight to his chest, lifting me into the air. "Oh my gosh, you're okay! Did you see what happened? Do you know what I did? It was bat-$&%# crazy!"

"Sam!" I heard Ratchet say as I struggled to breathe. "You are cutting off the girl's oxygen supply. I heavily advise you to desist."

"Oh, sorry," Sam placed me back on the ground, taking me by the shoulders. I looked up and found an incredible smile on my face. "You were right! We made it! Everyone's okay!"

Oh, good grief, I thought as I grinned back. Here come the waterworks again.

Mikaela's hand took Sam's in a very gentle gesture, then pulled him out of the way. "Come here," she said softly, wrapping her arms around me and holding me close. "Are you feeling better?"

"Yeah," I squeaked against her chest. Don't you dare cry, stupid!

"There's the lil' girl who saved my life!" I heard Jazz say.

My face went hot again, but I turned to face the silver Autobot. His mask was up again, so I could see his eyes along with his grin. He smiled with his whole face, like the best smilers do. He came down in front of me, turning a crouch into a suave bow. "Little lady," he said, "I still don't know how you did it, but I just gotta say thank you. I woulda been Megatron-meat back there if you can't come save my butt." He brought one of his hands forward, curled into a first, up to me. "I owe you my spark."

Oh geez, I was about to start giggling like a maniac. Or burst into flames. Or both. Either way, I managed to hold both in and return the first-bump with a grin.

"What's all this talk about?" Ironhide asked, looming over Jazz. "Don't tell me you needed this tiny thing to save your hide."

"Yo, 'Hide!" Jazz greeted, ignoring the implied insult. "Man, you shoulda seen it! It wasn't like anything I'd ever seen before! One second I thought I was a gonner, the next, boom! Big bright light! I turned around, and there was Megatron on the ground, with this little tike sitting on top!"

I didn't know whether to be amused or afraid of Ironhide's face, especially when it turned to me. "How?" he asked.

I shrugged.

"Huh," the weapons specialist grunted. "So, you're not stupid." He told me. "You're brave and stupid."

I figured that was the closest I'd get to a compliment out of him.

"Hey, lay off, Ironhide," an unfamiliar voice interjected. It sounded younger that the other Autobots, but it was also warm, and held a slight British accent. "I think we owe the kid a lot."

Something in me rose at the sound of those words. Turning towards its source, I saw a black and yellow figure come out from behind the giant black robot. The wing-like features on his back rose, and he gave me his best rendition of a smile. "Hi, Iris."

"Bee!" I was running. My feet were pounding in the dust, kicking up a cloud around me as I ran. "You're okay! You've got your legs back! You can talk!" The dust puffed up into my face as I skidded to a halt, blurring out his features in the sun. Then, a giant hand came down and scooped me up from behind.

"Yeah, I can talk!" he said on the way up out of the dust cloud, high above it actually. "You're not gonna be able to shut me up now!"

I laughed at his words. My ascent came slowed to a stop, and I looked up at my friend. His blue optics were just about the kindest things I'd ever seen.

No longer could I hold back. I launched myself forward, and my arms wrapped around his neck as best they could. I turned by face to the side and squeezed with all my might, safe in the knowledge that I could hug him as tightly as I wanted and it wouldn't hurt him. Knowing it was only a matter of time before the embarrassment set in, I made use of the time I had. When it did arrive, I pulled myself back.

Bumblebee's face wasn't bad. It wasn't annoyed, or disgusted, or angry. He looked happy too, if inquisitive. "What was that?" he asked.

My face was burning, and bright red I'm sure. "What was what?"

"That thing you just did. Sam and Mikaela did it to you, now you did it to me." Bee elaborated. "The squeezing thing with your arms. What's it called?"

Could my face get any hotter? "Oh," I replied, wringing my hands. "That's um… That's called a hug. It's uh… It's something humans do when we, when we, um…" And now I was looking away. C'mon, why so shy? I'd been hanging out with Bee since I'd gotten here. I'd cried for him, laughed with him, fought for him, and he certainly didn't dislike me, but… "We do it when we care about someone, like…our friends."

Ohhhhhhhhhh no he's not answering. Ohhhhhhhh no this is awkward. OHHHHHHHHHHH WHAT DID I DO?

"You'd consider me your friend, Iris?" Bee asked me.

Well, he deserved an answer, so I lifted my head to look at him. "Yeah," I replied, my voice very soft. I felt like a glass figure, about to shatter. "Is…is that okay?"

Bee's cheek-plates rose in the biggest mouthless smile I'd ever seen. "Duh!" he exclaimed. "Of course it's okay! I'm proud to be your friend."

…

I was going to burst. I was going to combust into a bright little ball of pure joy. I'd never, ever been happier in my entire life.

Before tears could burst out of my eyes, I leapt forward and demonstrated what a hug is again. I felt Bee's hands move, holding my tiny body and pressing it closer, as gently as possible. He was trying to imitate the gesture. "So this is a hug, huh?" he asked no one in particular. "Nice."

The other conversations that had been happening around us were interrupted by a suddenly loud, yelling Ratchet.

"Samuel Witwicky, you fed the child what?!"

Bumblebee and I pulled away and looked at each other. I felt laughter bubbling up inside me, coming out in a snort as I tried to force it back. As I threw my hands over my mouth, Bee's voice betrayed him a similar sound. His shoulders were shaking, and his optics were shining.

"I told you not to tell him," I snickered, my voice rising in pitch.

"But he found out anyway!"

At the same time, we burst out into raucous laughter. We were being stared at by Cybertronians and humans alike, one of which who was rather steamed, but we didn't care. Laughing childishly, freely, at something only we understood.

There wasn't a better feeling in the world.

Alright, assuming that wasn't TOO terrible and you guys don't hate me ENTIRELY, I want your input on something.

What do you think about Bumblebee having a mouth? See, in Transformers Prime Bee couldn't talk for a long time, and he had this thingy over his mouth so it looked like he didn't have one. When he could talk again, it got removed. Should I do that here? OR, see, I've always liked the idea of Cybertronians' faces not being strictly human-like. For example, if you look at the Autobot's faces in Age of Extinction, their faces are basically just metal-plated human faces. Not really any differences in basic structure. In my opinion, they got too 'humanized' or whatever. So I don't want that to happen to Bee. BUT, on the other hands, don't most Cybertronians have the same basic features? Two eyes, two arms, two legs, a mouth; you know, for the MOST part.

Long story short, should I write Bee with a mouth, *click* or no? I'll prolly go with the majority vote here. Just keep in mind I could do some gags with Bee not having a mouth. Just something to think about.

2nd and MUCH LESS IMPORTANT THING: when I'm writing the Autobots, I sometimes have different voices for them in my mind than the ones they had in the movie. Optimus, Ratchet, and Ironhide all stay the same for the most part, but Jazz and Bee never sound like they did. I've always got G1 or Animated Jazz's voice in my head, perhaps blending with the movie version. For Bee, it's almost always Prime's version, although Animated's sneaks in there sometimes too (BUT WE DON'T TALK ABOUT THAT). For this, I decided to blend that Prime voice with a little bit of the British accent he had in the movie.

MY USELESS POINT BEING, it honestly doesn't matter to me how you hear their voices. Hear them how you'd like! But just out of curiosity, I'd like to know what you hear. Who's voice pops up when this character speaks, you know? Just the first one that comes to your mind. Just an experiment, thanks!

One more thing: I'm gonna try REALLY hard to reply to any questions you have in the reviews from now on, as long as the answers don't reveal any key plot-points. But other than that, ask away! I am a lonely egg who would like to talk to you more.

Thbbt, well that's about it, folks! Sorry again for the wait. I really, truly regret letting it take this long. I'm trying to be better about it, I promise.

Love you!