Mechanical love

Chapter Twenty-six

The cranky old veteran could easily be described as one of the best friends she'd had in a very, very long while, and his companionship was something she enjoyed; especially the last fortnight with her mind weighing down about Optimus' aloof attitude.

She watched for the next half an hour as Ironhide fired the hell out of a set of clearly reinforced training dummies.

His sheer, raw power astounded her beyond belief because although she had worked on his weapons many times over, she'd never really sat down and watched their ferocity before.

She was currently mulling over the designs for her own weapon that she planned to build; having decided that a gun would be her best option.

She didn't plan to be able to kill a Decepticon, she just wanted to be able to hurt them, or use something effective enough to give them pause so that there would be time to react; escape even.

She wasn't expecting to be a hero, because it wasn't her role. The Autobots and the soldiers were the heroes.

Little grease monkey Carolina was just there to make sure that the robots stayed alive long enough for them to do so.

Even though she had a basic idea of what she wanted, Carolina still had yet to find something effective for the gun to shoot.

She needed something powerful; quick, something that would stop the enemy in its tracks even if only for a short while. But she had yet to learn what their weakness was.

She needed her attack to be able to count, and from what she'd heard about Decepticons that meant it would have to be perfect; she'd get one shot if she was lucky.

While she mulled thoughtfully for a moment over her notebook, her attention was ripped from her project by the sound of familiar hydraulics ringing through the training hangar; leaving her staring at an Autobot she knew well.

"Prime!" Ironhide called happily, lifting an arm to his leader in a gesture that was half-wave/half-salute, "Come to watch me blow the metal off these things?"

The black mech laughed in jest, the obvious respect and friendship between the two, centuries-old robots clear in his tone.

Optimus observed the surroundings before he responded, his eyes landing on Carolina; noticing the surprise in her eyes as she regarded him.

He felt a pang of guilt shoot through his chest plating at her obvious shock in seeing him. He knew he had been avoiding her the last few weeks, and he hated that he had; but as he felt his Spark writhe within its chamber, he was reminded of why.

He stayed aloof from her because of the commanding pull that his essence demanded of him; it wanted to be near her, a part of her.

Optimus stayed away not because he wanted to, but because he doubted his capability to control his actions. He wanted to keep things as human for Carolina as he could, but Spark's selfish yearning was making it difficult.

He didn't like being away from her, but if it was the only way to give her the time she needed to develop her desire to continue their relationship, he would do what was needed.

"I have seen you destroy far worse things than a training tool, Ironhide." Optimus said with a smile, partially directing some of his gaze to Carolina, to which she did return; despite her obvious wariness of his contact.

She was clearly bothered by his lack of presence of late, and he didn't blame her... Ironhide gave a sinister chuckle and addressed his leader once more.

"Well then, I have a better idea, Prime. Let me test out my new weapon...against you." Optimus opened his mouth to refuse but paused to think it over. Ironhide had yet to actually fight with the new weapon Carolina had installed for him.