The Day We Hailed The Heavens

Chapter 9

Chapter Nine

Crave

“GET BACK HERE IMMEDIATELY!”

Sunstreaker, Bumblebee, Miles, Sam and Sideswipe were almost tripping over their own feet as they fled from the hopping mad medic, convinced that they were quite literally running for their lives. Although Ratchet was as much of a pacifist as one could be in the middle of an intergalactic war, the twins had both had rather bad experiences with him when he was in this sort of mood, and Sam was absolutely certain that he was actually going to do as he was threatening to do – chop at least one limb from each of them with his gyratory saw.

“Quick men, flee!” the crimson twin shouted almost gleefully, snatching the boys up and thrusting them up into his shoulder armour without slowing his pace one iota.

They took him at his word – Bumblebee started playing a fast, remixed song from his radio in his exhilaration as they rounded another corner in the base, hearing the footfalls of the medical officer smashing behind them with the sounds of Hell crashing down, and Sunstreaker managed to smack him on the head as they fled.

“Silence, you aft-head - you’ll attract him!”

Sam was laughing so hard he thought he might rupture something as he clung for dear life to Sideswipe’s red armour next to Miles, bouncing like a rubber ball as the quintet of pranksters attempted to shake Ratchet off their tail. He had predicted that these guys would be fun, but he had never imagined that they would be quite this fun.

Almost three weeks had passed since their arrival, and Sam had never been more enthused about spending time with the Autobots. He and Miles had immediately clicked with the twins, who were already partners in crime with Bumblebee, and the five of them had pulled more pranks over the three weeks that had passed than Ironhide had cannons in his arsenal. As Ironhide had told Jade wearily, the jokes were usually at the expense of the grumpy soldier or Ratchet, who had proved to be the most entertaining – if terrifying – candidates.

Skyfire, who had just stepped out of his quarters, quickly stepped back to allow the three mechs to rampage past like a herd of elephants. “Where are you five off to in such a hurry?” he chuckled, and Sunstreaker pointed wildly behind them.

“Stop the maniac, big guy!” he almost shrieked, even as Ratchet rounded the corner with the fury of a thousand warriors in his look.

He raised his saw and wasted no time in springing after them – Bumblebee panicked and somehow, in his haste, ended up on the floor with Sunstreaker underneath him. Sideswipe skidded to a halt and Sam and Miles steadied themselves as the crimson mech looked between his fellow pranksters and the incoming threat that was the incensed Ratchet.

Sam put his hands in his hair in mock horror. “We can’t just leave them, Sides’!” he cried with faux anguish.

“It’s okay, I’ve got a plan!” Sideswipe responded enthusiastically before he rounded on Mikaela, who had just entered the corridor with a packet of potato chips in one hand. “The doctor will never fail to cooperate if we follow the damsel in distress exercise!”

And Mikaela, who had only left the safety of the human recreation area for a quick snack, soon found herself elevated twenty feet into the air and dangled in front of her rapidly approaching guardian like a tempting piece of meat. A rather pained expression appeared on her suntanned face and she twisted her neck to face her captor and give him a distinctly pitying look. “Sideswipe, please. We’ve tried this before.”

“And it worked!” he pointed out triumphantly. “Doc, stop in the name of the useless human commandments!”

Miles scratched his head. “Huh? It’s stop in the name of the law, man.”