Victoria found herself waking up in a particularly fowl mood.
Day four. She told herself. Only a few more days until I can escape this hellhole.
This had seemed like such a simple operation at first. All she had to do was con a few children and naive alien lifeforms. Agent Fowler should have been the only real problem and yet, it seemed now that wherever she turned, Optimus was watching her.
Without a doubt, if Victoria could have redone this whole operation, it would be Optimus she'd have wanted MECH to knock out of commission instead of Smokescreen.
The Prime was too observant for his own good.
Victoria sat up and slid off the top of the school building, landing lithely on the ground. She walked up to the tree that Raf always stuck around at and sat down.
Not long later, more students began to show up and Raf came running over. Jack and Miko weren't far behind.
Raf started talking and Victoria nodded along, replying to him with small, simple answers. Her eyes were glued to Jack, who was whispering something to Miko.
Optimus had brought Jack outside of the base yesterday and ever since he came back, Jack had been glancing at her more. Acting more nervous.
There was absolutely no doubt in Victoria's mind that Optimus knew something was up and he let Jack in on the secret. She was going to have to pull something big if she wanted to overturn whatever truths he'd uncovered.
Victoria passed by a group of kids in black and she suddenly froze, her eyes landing on Vince. The usually overconfident teenager had had a rough couple of days, but nothing to warrant this.
His eyes were red, his hair was messy, and his friends stood around him almost protectively, each of them wearing all black.
Mourning.
Vince was mourning.
A terrible suspicion came to mind and Victoria's eyes widened ever so slightly.
"Victoria?" Raf tugged on her sleeve gently. "Is something wrong?"
She turned back to him quickly and smiled tightly. "No. Nothing at all."
Raf nodded and kept walking. Victoria sent Vince one last glance and the boy caught her gaze. Their eyes locked for two long seconds before Victoria tore herself away and continued down the hall.
Scrap. Scrap. Scrap. Scrap. Scrap.
Victoria was in high alert as she followed Raf toward their first class. Every whisper in the hall seemed a little louder and Victoria was internally panicking.
The Autobots thought that she was staying with her mother and Vince. If Vince was in this kind of mourning, someone really close to him must have died.
And logically, the girl who lived with him should know who it was.
The worst part was that Vince seemed like the kind of guy who made short-term friends at school. He probably wouldn't care much if one of them died.
But on the other hand, if his mother died...
Victoria knew that Silas had set someone to watch the house in case the Autobots or their allies tried to speak with her. Silas and Victoria were fully aware that Ms. Raider absolutely hated MECH's guts.
The only reason they never killed her was because she was Silas's old lover. He had a weak link, but he refused to terminate her unless necessary.
If the Autobots went sniffing around though, the MECH agent had orders to kill her immediately.
And if Ms. Raider was dead and Victoria didn't know...
Victoria sat down in her seat next to Raf and leaned back, trying to overhear any conversation she could.
She was so screwed.
Victoria suddenly stood up. "Raf, I'm using the bathroom."
"But class is about to start." He said in surprise.
Victoria nodded curtly, grabbed her booksack, and ran at lightspeed out of the room. She headed straight for the principal's office and knocked the morse code for Red.
There was only a small pause before it swung open.
The principal was sitting at his desk and he glanced up briefly, a nervous look on his face.
Silas stood in the doorway.
"Red." He greeted, opening the door wider. "Glad you came."
Victoria nodded and stepped inside, the door locking behind her. "What happened?"
Silas scowled. "Ms. Raider is dead. She managed to spill a few clues before my agent killed her."
Victoria scowled as well. She'd need to know exactly what she said and prepare counterclaims to deter the Autobots from believing the woman.
"Unfortunately, Ms. Raider isn't stupid. She deactivated all of the bugs you dropped on your first day." Silas told her. "Which means we have no idea what she told Fowler, other than the things she yelled."
Victoria waited.
"First of all, she pointed a gun at him."
Victoria sighed in annoyance.
"She also stated that she didn't care how much money we had and that she didn't want anything to do with you." Silas explained.
Victoria bit her lip. "I need mascara, an eye dropper, and salt."
Silas nodded. "Expect science homework then."
Victoria glanced at the window. "Optimus Prime is onto me. He's got Fowler and Jack with him, possibly Ratchet. I expect the suspicion circle will grow."
"I trust you'll deal with it accordingly." Silas replied. "If we interfere much more, it will only provide a connection."
"I have found something else that may be of use. Rafael Esquivel is being taught Cybertronian by Ratchet. None of our agents have that ability. He could be useful to us." Victoria stated.
Silas rubbed his chin. "Perhaps. We will need to keep one of them alive for information on the Decepticons anyway. He is the youngest and has the most potential."
"If it goes sideways, take Jack. Miko is useless." Victoria added.
"Understood. Do you have the guardians and their charges memorized?" Silas questioned.
"Raf and Bumblebee, Jack and Arcee, Miko and Bulkhead."
"What about you?"
Victoria frowned. "Smokescreen, but Optimus is filling in. I don't know if Smokescreen will take back over before the base is finished or not."
Silas nodded.
"Speaking of which, how is construction going?" Victoria asked.
"Faster than expected. I'd say two more days and we'll be ready to take the Autobots base by storm." Silas answered.
"Good. Which class do you want me to turn in my map to?" Victoria asked.
"First hour." Silas shrugged. "In case any problems present themselves."
Victoria nodded. "Is that all?"
Silas paused for a moment and thought. "Yes."
Victoria headed for the door, but Silas was struck with another thought and he stepped forward, putting his hand on her shoulder.
"Red." He stated. "If your mother's death is hurting you, all you need to do is tell me. We already know where the base is and you've provided ample information."
Victoria shook her head. "I'm not affected and we can't stop now. Each day I learn something new. I'll see the mission through."
She opened the door. "The Autobots don't have long before they're just another pawn of MECH."
Victoria shut the door behind her and headed back to class.
Raf looked up. "You okay?"
Victoria nodded.
There were only two days left before her mission would be over. There would be no more Autobots, no more government agents, no more anything that Victoria didn't need.
No more Rafael Esquivel making her feel like a horrible, terrible monster without even trying.
Victoria looked down.
Focus on the mission.
Just two more days.
▪️◾◼⬛◼◾▪️
When school was over, Victoria greeted Optimus with the same cheerful smile that she had worn every day for him.
Optimus on the other hand, failed to reply, immediately putting Victoria on edge. Her smile faltered.
"Is everything okay?"
Optimus turned a new direction, going off into the desert instead of toward the Autobot base.
"I should ask you the same question." He stated. "Your mother died yesterday."
Victoria's smile fell completely and she glared out the window. "My mom never loved me."
Optimus was quiet for a moment.
"If there is ever anything bothering you, Victoria, you can talk to me. I have eons of experience." He told her.
"I'm fine." Victoria assured him. "Where are we going?"
"I wanted to tell you about Cybertron." Optimus replied.
Victoria perked up. She was right to have told Silas that she needed to stay. Important information could be revealed right now.
"Cybertron was a planet much like Earth once." Optimus told her. "I never wanted to fight or seek fame, but power often presents itself to those most worthy, not those who desire it."
Optimus drove up to a canyon and stopped. "We must remember that throughout the galaxy, all sentient beings are trying to find the most precious commodity. Something that determines who and what we are."
Victoria leaned forward. There was an object that did that? If they could get their hands on this stuff-
"Happiness." Optimus stated. "Every living being searches for happiness. That emotion may seem to come from many different sources, but in the end, what matters most, is who makes us happy."
Optimus looked at Victoria, who had unintentionally switched her face to an emotionless facade.
He continued slowly. "No matter what you do, always remember that protecting happiness and joy is the most noble and important mission of all."
Victoria's eyes hardened. Optimus's underlying words weren't lost to her, but everything he said went against everything she had ever been taught.
The number one rule Silas had drilled into Victoria's head was to always chose MECH over yourself. Like any soldier in a war, you must sacrifice yourself for your cause and the betterment of the world.
MECH was going to fix the world.
There was no greater mission to fight for than peace.
But what is peace without joy?