Normal Perspective:
A few weeks had passed since June found out about the Autobots. She came to the base many times in the weeks that followed, much to Jack's embarrassment. She got to know the 'Bots and other humans quite well, but Vince and Miko would often tease Jack about the fact that she always came to the base. Even Jessica and Michael teased him from time to time. Not much had changed other than that.
Michael had once again moved his room. Instead of living in his room by himself as he had been, he had moved into Bumblebee's room, which the two now shared, leaving his former room vacant again, and ready for someone else to use. He found it amusing how he had changed rooms so many times in the time he had lived there, but he was more than happy to be sharing a room with his boyfriend.
One day, Vince, Michael, and Jack were at the base with Cliffjumper, Ratchet, and Arcee. Optimus and Bumblebee had gone out on a scouting mission, and Bulkhead had taken Miko, Raf, and Jessica out.
Michael had a feeling that Bumblebee and Optimus didn't go out on a scouting mission as they had said. He knew that the Rescue Bots existed as, in his homeworld at least, the two shows were in the same continuity. He also knew that the two mechs visited them at Griffin Rock from time to time, but he wasn't entirely sure if such was the case here or not, or if the Rescue Bots were even on Earth at all.
Ratchet was at the console as usual when he picked something up heading towards the silo.
"Arcee, a vehicular form is approaching." He said, keeping his optics on the screen.
"Decepticon?" Arcee asked, concerned their base's location had been compromised.
Ratchet pulled up the visual feed, only to see a cream-colored car driving off the main road and towards the silo.
"Mom..." Jack sighed in annoyance, having recognized the car.
"Again?" Arcee asked in a deadpanned voice.
"This is like, the tenth time she's visited in the past week." Cliffjumper added with a small smirk.
"She worries." Jack replied.
"Worries so much that she visits every day, Darby?" Vince asked with a smirk. Jack just sighed.
June pulled into the silo and parked next to Vince's car, then she got out.
"Hi honey!" She said to Jack as she walked up to him.
"Hey!" Jack replied, but then felt uncomfortable with her hugging him with everyone, except Ratchet, watching.
"Finished my shift early at the hospital so I thought I'd swing by." June explained. "Good to see you again, Doctor." She said to Ratchet. The medic turned and nodded in greeting before turning back to his work. "Arcee." The femme just shrugged. "Vince. Michael." She greeted as she looked over at the two teens.
"Nice to see you again, Ma'am." Michael greeted back and smiled warmly, while Vince gave a small smile.
"Cliffjumper." She greeted, turning to the red mech, who just nodded and smiled in reply. "So, where's Optimus?" She asked, hoping to see the Prime.
"On a scouting mission with Bumblebee." Ratchet replied. "Sorry to disappoint." He added, knowing that if Michael's behavior around Bumblebee before they entered their relationship was any indication, June was acting the same way around Optimus, but was far more obvious.
"And I wore heels and everything..." June said with a dreamy look on her face, while Jack just looked at her in utter disbelief and embarrassment.
"MOM!"
Cliffjumper, Michael, and Vince desperately tried to keep themselves from laughing.
"That's odd." Ratchet muttered, as a signal appeared. "This an extremely unusual magnetic flux... for any planet..."
Just then, Bulkhead arrived back with Miko, Raf, and Jessica in tow, and all three kids were laughing and talking excitedly, as Bulkhead transformed after they disembarked.
"Did you feel the G's on that last turn?!" Miko asked in excitement. "Bulkhead's an animal!"
The three froze as their gazes fell upon June, who turned and looked at them upon noticing their arrival.
"Remember when this used to be a 'secret clubhouse'?" Miko asked in a low voice.
"Uh, don't worry Miss Darby." Raf said as the three walked up to her. "We were wearing seatbelts."
"I'm sure you were, Rafael." June replied, feeling at ease. "Hi Miko!" She greeted. "How's school going?"
"Why?" Miko asked defensively. "What'd you hear?"
"Good to see you again, Jessica." June greeted. The young girl just smiled.
"Let's do this thing, Jack." Arcee said, and walked ahead, carrying a coil of wire.
"But I just got here." June said in disappointment, then brightened up. "I brought sandwiches."
"Mom..." Jack sighed. "Look, I really need to help Arcee test out her upgraded tracking system."
"Well, just be careful." June advised.
"There's nothing to be careful about." Arcee said, trying to ease her concern. "It's a routine diagnostic."
"Are you sure you need Jack for that?" June asked.
This question made the blue femme freeze and growl in frustration.
"Uh oh..." Bulkhead, Cliffjumper, and Michael all said at once. Cliffjumper and Bulkhead, who had known Arcee for a long time by this point, knew that when Arcee got angry, it was asking for trouble. Michael already knew this, having watched this scene several times before back home during reruns of the show, but even with knowing to expect this, it felt very different when witnessing it in front of his own eyes.
Thankfully, Ratchet broke the tension.
"Bulkhead, I need you to go back in the field to investigate an odd magnetic disturbance."
"I'll go with!" Miko said in excitement as she ran for the Groundbridge.
"Woah!" Bulkhead exclaimed as he made her stop. "Stay put, Miko."
Miko just grumbled as she walked over to June, Jessica, and Raf.
"Why aren't you going with him?" June asked.
"Someone thinks it's not safe." Miko said in annoyance, as she threw a glare at Bulkhead.
"But it's safe for Jack to go with Arcee?" June asked, wondering how both cases were different.
"Mom, totally different." Jack said with certainty as he walked back over to his Mom.
"Oh really?" June asked, not seeing how that was the case. "How?"
"Mother knows best, Jack." Arcee said. "Wait up, Bulkhead. I'm going with." She said, dropping the coil of wire and walking over to the Groundbridge.
She was getting sick of June's nagging, and saw this as a perfect opportunity to get away from her.
"What the hell. I'll go too." Michael said, and jumped the railing in front of him. June shot a look at him as he did.
"Language!" She called out, having heard him swear.
Michael just looked at her blankly, then gave an innocent grin as he shifted forms and went through the Groundbridge with the others.
Jack tried to speak, wanting to call Arcee back, but gave up, and sighed.
"What'd I say?" June asked, as if she hadn't just annoyed the blue femme. Jack said nothing.
But the look on his face said it all.
-----
In a canyon and desert-like area, a Groundbridge opened and Arcee, Bulkhead, and Michael walked out of it. The three looked around for a moment before walking on. They were silent for a few minutes until Bulkhead spoke up.
"Don't take it so personal, Arcee." He said. "Jack's mother's just... protective."
"Well, I protected her son for months before she had a clue." Arcee responded in annoyance. "Suddenly she wakes up to reality and... I'm not enough!"
"Of course you're enough." Michael said. "Besides, it isn't so bad. June may be overprotective, but at least she doesn't ruin anything."
"She ruins the fun." Arcee deadpanned.
"No kidding." Came a familiar voice from behind them. They looked back, then down at the ground behind them. The "familiar voice" turned out to be Miko, who followed them so she too could get away from June. "Can't we ban her from the base?"
"Miko!" Bulkhead said in a tone of warning. "How did you...-" He cut himself off, realizing that it was a stupid question. Arcee then activated her comm.
"Gonna need a bridge."
"Wait! Don't send me back to helicopter mom!" Miko begged. Arcee looked at her, realizing that she was also tired of June. "It's just that... I miss the way things were..."
The three bots looked at each other before Arcee activated her comm. again.
"Strike that Ratchet, it's only recon." She said, and hung up. "She's safe with us." She said to the other two before walking ahead. Michael followed on while Bulkhead held his servo out for Miko to climb on.
"Suh-weet!" She said in excitement as she jumped into his servo, and climbed onto his chassis. "Crank up Track 7, Bulk."
"Track 7?" Arcee asked. Instead of a vocalized answer, her question was answered by the sound of rock music blasting from Bulkead's internal radio.
"Oh god..." Michael groaned, not wanting to nearly go deaf again.
"Isn't that a little loud for recon?" Arcee asked over the music. Bulkhead turned it off, realizing she was right, much to Miko's disappointment. "A scout should be silent but deadly."
Miko and Bulkhead looked at each other and struggled not to laugh, both of them knowing that Earth's meaning of the phrase was completely different from Cybertron's meaning. Michael also knew this, but wasn't amused by it.
He found it immature.
"What?" Arcee asked, not knowing why the two were laughing.
"'Silent but deadly' means something completely different on Earth." Bulkhead chuckled as he and Miko walked ahead, leaving Michael and Arcee behind them.
"Bulk, let's get our recon on!" Miko said in excitement.
"I always take point." The blue femme said in confusion.
I know..." Bulkhead replied, knowing that it was true. "But Miko likes to be up front so she can see."
"No matter where I turn, I'm the third wheel." She said to herself, although Michael heard her.
"No you're not." The Techno-Organic replied. "Besides, at least I'm with you." He added, smiling.
Arcee just rolled her optics and began walking on ahead, and Michael followed.
"You don't feel like a third wheel when you hang out with 'Bee and Raf when they want to hang out together alone?" Arcee asked. "And Raf doesn't feel like he's intruding on your time with 'Bee when you two want time alone together?"
"Of course not." Michael replied. "Trust me, I love 'Bee very much, but I also enjoy the company of you guys too. Even Ratchet's. Even if he is a grump. Remember when I hung out with you and Jack when that whole thing with June happened a few weeks ago? I didn't feel like a third wheel then, and you definitely aren't a third wheel now. We're all in this together."
Arcee smiled slightly.
"I have to admit, you're right." She said, then looked ahead. "Come on, let's catch up and find the magnetic disturbance."
The two then ran over to Bulkhead and Miko, and the quartet walked on, eventually coming to a clearing.
"Mmmm... Looks like Ratchet's magnetic flux is coming from-" Bulkhead didn't finish, as the sound of fighting cut him off.
Down below, Airachnid and Breakdown were fighting over a device that Michael recognized.
The Polarity Gauntlet.
"Airachnid." Arcee said icily.
"And Breakdown." Miko added. "Both your arch-enemies, and they're mashing it up!"
"Over that." Bulkhead said, as he noticed the gauntlet on Breakdown's servo.
"The source of the magnetic disturbance." Arcee said
Michael wanted to explain to the two 'Bots what the device was, but his voice got caught in his throat as soon as he saw Airachnid. Ever since she had forced herself onto him a few weeks back, he had been wanting to stay as far away from her as he could, but he had forgotten that she would be here. He wasn't afraid of her or scarred by what she did; he just didn't want to face her again so soon in case she tried anything else with him.
"Alright. What's the plan?" Miko asked.
"You're staying here." Michael said.
Miko just crossed her arms and huffed, reluctantly climbing onto Bulkhead's servo and stepping off it once she was lowered to the ground.
"Miko, don't move." Bulkhead warned. "I mean it."
"Awwww!" Miko whined, but it went ignored.
Bulkhead and Arcee deployed their weapons, ready to fight.
"You comin', Michael?" Bulkhead asked.
"No I... think I'll stay here..." The xanadu-colored mech replied, as his optics flashed to pale green for a split second. "I'll just watch over Miko."
The two bots nodded, then glanced at each other and nodded again, then walked out from behind the rocks, while Miko and Michael watched.
In the clearing, Airachnid got the upper hand over Breakdown and was about to grab the Polarity Gauntlet when a single blue blaster shot struck it and tossed it away from her. The spider bot looked up in surprise, but then smirked as she saw who had arrived.
"Arcee." The femme said. "And look," She added as she noticed Bulkhead. "you've brought a new partner for me to snuff."
"That would be Bulkhead." Breakdown said as he got up.
"Who asked you?" Airachnid asked rudely.
"Launch me." Arcee ordered to Bulkhead, and the Wrecker complied, taking Arcee's pede in his servo and launching her high into the air. She fired down on the two 'Cons before crashing to the ground. Breakdown charged at her, but then Airachnind got in the way, wanting Arcee for herself.
"No! She's mine!" The black femme said, and jumped away with her spider legs. This left Breakdown wondering what to do, which allowed Bulkhead to strike him with his mace.
"Watch out for-" "Got it." Arcee said, cutting the Wrecker off as she deployed her arm blades. The four bots fought it out for the gauntlet as Michael and Miko watched from their place behind the rocks.
"Woah, they're really good together." Miko commented as she watched the pair fight the 'Cons.
"You aren't wrong." Michael said. "They do make a good team."
"Smackdown for the scrapbook." Miko sighed, and took out her phone. She snapped a few pics before turning the Techno-Organic. "So why aren't you fighting with them?"
Michael just sighed.
"I don't feel up to confronting Airachnid again so soon after what had happened between us." He said, and sighed.
"Dude, you're a strong guy. You shouldn't let her get to you. Besides, Bulk and Arcee won't let anything bad happen to you! You gotta face her eventually, and you can do it! You've faced danger before, and you've faced Megatron before when you helped 'Bee a few months ago. You can definitely stand up to her and face her again!" Miko said encouragingly. Michael just sighed again.
He knew she was right.
"Thanks, Miko." Michael said, and gave her a small smile. "Now it's my turn to ask a question."
"And what's that?" Miko asked.
"You have arachnophobia, don't you?"
"Unfortunately, yes." Miko said, sighing.
"So then how are you not freaking out at the sight of Airachnid?' Michael asked.
Miko looked over at the spider bot and studied her appearance, and realized why Michael had asked her that.
"She's different." Miko replied.
"Even if she's far worse than a normal spider and a literal psychopath?" Michael asked with a raised optic ridge. Miko thought this over and realized that he wasn't actually wrong.
"Okay. Fair point." Miko conceded.
The two looked back at the fight to see Airachnid get thrown into Breakdown, dazing the two 'Cons.
Breakdown noticed the gauntlet was near him, and grabbed it.
"Thank you." He said to no one in particular, and activated it.
"Do you even know what that does?!" Airachnid asked, knowing that it was probably dangerous. "It isn't a toy!"
Not wanting to be around the device while it was active, the spider bot made her escape, which Arcee noticed. The blue femme deployed her blasters and shot at her, completely missing. The 'Con drilled into the ground while Arcee kept firing at her, even firing into the hole she dug, which did nothing.
Over by the rocks, Miko was now taking pictures of herself and Michael when her phone was pulled from her hand.
"HEY!" She cried out, and watched helplessly as her phone, along with change from her pockets, flew through the air and over to Breakdown.
Bulkhead prepared to charge at the blue mech, but the 'Con increased the gauntlet's power and radius, causing Bulkhead and Arcee to be pulled towards him.
"Hey!" Bulkhead cried as he was pulled off his pedes and across the ground, trying to stop himself but failing.
"Ugh! What's going...!" Arcee cried as she was pulled away from the hole Airachnid drilled.
Michael, who was further away, also got caught in the magnetic pull, and was pulled over the rocks and across the ground.
"Woah! Hey!" He cried out. He tried shifting forms to escape, but something in the magnetic force was interfering with his ability to shapeshift, trapping him in his Cybertronian form. Miko watched, helpless, as the three 'Bots were pulled across the ground towards Breakdown. They were then lifted off the ground. The blue 'Con chuckled, seeing that this was fun. Then he noticed a switch on it.
"What's this switch do?" He asked himself, and pressed it. Miko's phone then flew towards Bulkhead and became stuck to his chassis. Then, the three 'Bots were thrown back forcefully and they slammed into a pile of rocks. Miko, who had seen everything, made her way over to them to see if they were alright.
"Megatron's gonna love this." Breakdown chuckled. He transformed and drove off as Miko reached the 'Bots.
"Bulkhead!" Miko said in worry. The Wrecker, as well as Michael, who had landed on top of the Wrecker back-to-front, just groaned.
"The 'Cons are getting away!" She exclaimed, then she noticed her phone, which, surprisingly, had not gotten crushed by Michael when he landed on Bulkhead. "Hey! My phone!" Miko cried happily, and tried to pull it off, but it didn't move, remaining stuck to Bulkhead's chassis. "It's stuck!"
Bulkhead and Michael sat themselves up, but soon realized that the Techno-Organic was also stuck to Bulkhead, with both of their chassis' being stuck together. Both green mechs became increasingly uncomfortable at this situation, especially with how close their faceplates were to each other. Bulkhead just looked away uncomfortably, while Michael flushed a bright blue in embarrassment, as his optics turned pale green. Bulkhead then realized that Arcee wasn't there.
"Where's Arcee?" He asked.
"Ugh! Why don't you just marry her?!" Miko asked in annoyance, but her annoyance disappeared when the unseen femme spoke up.
"I'm right behind you."
Bulkhead pulled himself and Michael up to stand, revealing that Michael was now hanging off the ground, the tips of his pedes just touching the ground beneath him.
"Where?" Bulkhead asked, not seeing her at all.
"Let's just say... she's got your back..." Miko replied, finally finding her. Bulkhead swung around, trying to look for her, only to reveal that Arcee, like Michael, had also gotten stuck to the Wrecker; only she had gotten stuck to the Wrecker back-to-back. She tried to pull herself off of him, while Michael tried pushing against Bulkhead as he too tried to free himself, but to no avail.
"Scrap!"
-----
Meanwhile, at the base, Ratchet and Cliffjumper were standing by one of the consoles, waiting for any calls to come through. The humans, who were sitting by the computers near the CMO, sat talking. Optimus and Bumblebee soon called for a bridge, and the pair returned to the base.
Bumblebee smiled as he saw Raf, who smiled and waved back. He was about to ask where Michael was when another call came in; this time from the trio.
"Hey Ratchet? We have a situation..." Came Bulkhead's voice through the comm.
"What's the issue?" The CMO asked.
"We've been magnetized together." Michael answered, though it sounded like he was straining as he said it.
On the other side of the call, Miko was trying to pull Arcee off of Bulkhead, but was having no luck. Michael was also trying to free himself again, but this time was using his swords by jamming them between himself and Bulkhead, with the two trying to use them to push themselves apart, but no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't get free.
Michael also attempted to shift forms to free himself, but something was preventing him from changing, trapping him in his Cybertronian form and leaving him stuck to Bulkhead.
"You've been magnetized?" Ratchet asked in surprise through the comm. "Together?"
"Ugh. They're inseparable." Miko groaned, giving up.
"I know I said we need we green boys need to stick together, Bulkhead, but this is not what I had in mind!" Michael groaned, as he also gave up.
"And the device that did this is on its way to Megatron." Bulkhead said in annoyance, as Arcee sighed.
"A Polarity Gauntlet." Ratchet deduced. "A deceptively simple but diabolical creation."
"Just tell me how you can unhitch us, Ratchet." Arcee said through the comm., wanting to be free as soon as possible.
"It may simply be a residual magnetic charge providing your current... attraction." Ratchet theorized. Cliffjumper snickered at the medic's choice of words, while Vince smirked.
"They're not attracted to each other!" Miko said into the comm., and Ratchet rolled his optics.
"Exactly!" Michael added firmly. "I've only got eyes for the one person that I'm attracted to, and that person is Bumblebee!"
Everyone in the room looked at Bumblebee upon hearing that. The scout's doorwings dropped as he flushed bright blue from both flattery and embarrassment as his cooling fans also kicked on.
"But I'm afraid that retrieving the gauntlet is our surest bet of reversing its effect." Ratchet said, bringing the conversation back into line. "Once Megatron gets his hands on the gauntlet..." The CMO added, then trailed off.
"He'll use it for a whole lot more than attaching notes and family photos to the fridge..." Jack finished.
"Jack, I'm not following." June said, not seeing how that was a bad thing.
"Madam, we are forged of metal alloy." Ratchet explained. "If Megatron could repel us with the flick of a switch, we may never again have another shot at him."
"Instant forcefield." Raf put in.
"Worse yet," Ratchet added. "He might use it to meld us all into a scrap pile."
"And the war's as good as lost." Jessica said, realizing how bad this sounded.
"The good news is the gauntlet hasn't traveled far." Ratchet said. "I would strongly advise pursuit."
"We can catch up faster on wheels!" Bulkhead said as he bashed his fists together, hugging Michael tightly in the process.
"Woah woah woah. And snap me in half?!" Arcee interjected.
"Or crush my frames into a pile of twisted metal?" Michael added.
"Riiiight..." Bulkhead said in a low voice.
"Suh-weet!" Miko said in excitement as she jumped down from the rock she was standing on. "I'll take point!"
"Not this time kid." Arcee said firmly.
"What?!" Miko asked in surprise. "But you said-"
"That was recon. This is war." The blue femme interrupted. "I'm not risking your wellbeing just so you can hit your daily adrenaline quota. Ratchet, Miko needs a bridge."
"Coming up." The CMO replied, and set about opening one.
"You think Jack's Mom is bad?!" Miko asked in anger, her voice going through the still-active comm. "You sound just like her!"
"Is that such a bad thing?" June asked, having heard Miko's comment.
"I-" Jack started, but then just sighed. "I'm gonna go over here." He said, and walked over to another part of the human area. June looked over at Raf, Vince, and Jessica, who just gave awkward grins in return.
A Groundbridge was sent, and Miko begrudgingly entered it, leaving the magnetized trio alone.
"Bulkhead, look, before we move forward, I want to make it clear that, while you're attractive, you aren't my type, and I see you as more of a brother than in a romantic way. The same goes for Arcee. I see her as an older sister." Michael said, wanting to get the uncomfortable feelings out of the way before they proceeded forwards. "Besides," Michael added. "I've only got optics for 'Bee."
"I see you in the same way." Bulkhead replied, and the two mechs smiled, glad to have the awkwardness out of the way, though that didn't make their situation any more uncomfortable.
"Agreed." Arcee added.
With the awkwardness out of the way, the three made their way along the path Breakdown had gone in search of the gauntlet. Navigation wasn't as difficult as the trio thought it was going to be. With Michael facing the wrong way, he had to put his helm on Bulkhead's shoulder-plate to allow the Wrecker to see ahead of them. Michael also had to wrap his legs around the larger mech's waist so the Wrecker didn't trip over them since they were hanging so low to the ground. Even with the awkwardness between them gone, Michael couldn't keep the blush of embarrassment off his faceplate, though his optics had gone back to normal.
The trio was silent for a while until Bulkhead spoke up.
"Never had eyes in the back of my head before." He commented to Arcee. "Or blasters to cover my rear. And you get built-in shields." He added before hitting his chassis with a fist.
"Bulkhead? Michael?" Arcee spoke up. "You don't really think I sound like June do you?"
"Uh..." Bulkhead responded, unsure of how to answer that.
"Not really." Michael answered.
"She's overprotective." Arcee said. "I'm just... protective."
"Totally different." Bulkhead said.
"Agreed." Michael added. "Besides, I think I'd rather have you and June be worried about our wellbeings than not be concerned at all."
"What were your parents like?" Arcee asked. Michael thought back and slightly smiled, remembering.
"They were... great parents." Michael began. "They looked after me and my brother so well, and they always looked out for us. They were always there when we needed someone." He said, but then his smile faded. "After the accident took them away... I had to live with my grandparents, as you both already know. They were the complete opposite of you, June, and my parents. They didn't care about me at all, and I basically had to raise myself on my own. Though this did help me learn to become independent, it wasn't easy when I needed someone to be there for me when I needed them. I had to push forwards and get through things on my own. That changed when I met all of you. Now I have a boyfriend that loves and cares for me, and I have a new family to call my own. I wouldn't give you guys up for anything, but I just wish I could see my real family again one last time..."
Michael fell silent, as his optics once again turned a pale green. Bulkhead and Arcee had also gone silent, but Bulkhead did give the pastel-colored mech a hug, which comforted him, and helped him feel a little better.
The silence was broken by the sound of the scanner beeping, indicating that the gauntlet was nearby.
"The gauntlet's close..." Bulkhead muttered. The trio soon arrived at an abandoned gas station, which had oil pumps standing near it. Bulkhead deployed a blaster as they approached.
They found Breakdown, who had been webbed up to the side of the main building. He had also been gagged by webbing to keep him from yelling.
Bulkhead and Michael looked up to see Airachnid on the roof.
"Well well, if it isn't my Michael." Airachnid said in a seductive voice. Michael's optics flashed between red and pale green as he growled. But then he remembered what Miko had said, and he was able to calm himself down. His optics then returned to normal again as a sense of determination filled him.
He wasn't afraid of her, and he was going to prove it.
"I assume Arcee isn't too far behind?" Airachnid asked as she crawled next to the restrained Breakdown, not knowing that her word choice was literally the opposite.
"You might say that." Bulkhead answered.
Michael smirked as he remembered what Arcee had done in the original events. He looked over Bulkhead's shoulder-plate at the blue femme, who looked back at him. She smirked back as she deployed her blasters silently. Following her lead, he deployed his own blasters as silently as he could, and pointed them in the direction Arcee was facing under Bulkhead's arms, out of Airachnid's view.
"Blaster hands in the air and turn around." The black femme ordered.
"Whatever you say." Bulkhead replied, smirking. He whipped around, and Arcee and Michael fired at the spider bot, who was caught off guard by the surprise attack. One of the shots hit the gauntlet, which knocked it from Airachnid's servo and made it land on the ground.
Unfortunately, the gauntlet activated and began pulling anything that was metal towards it.
The webbing holding Breakdown was strong, but the gauntlet's magnetic pull was stronger, and the webbing began to strain and come loose.
Airachnid was able to resist the magnetic pull, but only just.
Michael, Arcee, and Bulkhead struggled against its pull, only to end with Bulkhead falling forward and landing on his front, crushing Michael underneath him due to his heavier weight. The xanadu-colored mech retracted his blasters and unsheathed his swords, jamming them into the dirt while Bulkhead tried to find a grip on the ground using his digits. Unfortunately, the two mech's grips were slipping.
At last, the webbing holding Breakdown could no longer take the strain, and was finally ripped off the building, and the blue 'Con was sent flying towards the gauntlet. Grabbing it, he finally turned it off.
Just as the gauntlet powered down, the three Autobots lost their grip and were sent flying back, with the three skidding along the ground and coming to a halt. Together, Bulkhead and Michael were able to get themselves to stand upright. The three 'Bots prepared themselves for the fight, knowing that with the three of them stuck together, it wasn't going to be easy.
"Still up for a truce, muscles?" Airachnid asked Breakdown.
"Only because I hate Bulkhead more than I hate you." The blue mech replied, and swung his hammer, hitting Michael in his back-struts. Bulkhead punched the blue mech in response, while Michael used his legs to kick Breakdown from behind him. He then deployed a blaster and unsheathed one of his blades, and helped Arcee attack Airachnid when he could, as Bulkhead's frame was large and prevented the Techno-Organic from getting a lot of hits in, but the trio did their best given their awkward positions.
Unfortunately, their fighting strategy, while their only option, wasn't perfect, as Arcee kept being swung around due to Bulkhead and Michael's constant movements.
"Bulkhead! Michael! Would you both stay still?!" She asked in annoyance.
"My bad!" The two mechs said at the same time, and Bulkhead punched Breakdown in the faceplate, knocking him away. Bulkhead then turned around to face Airachnid.
"Need a hand?" He asked the spider bot, and he and Michael attacked her.
"No, she's mine!" Arcee said, but her statement went ignored.
Unfortunately, the three had gotten distracted, and hadn't noticed Breakdown recover, or that he still had the gauntlet.
"Three 'Bots. One stone." He muttered, and activated it. Directing its pull to an oil pump, he pulled it apart and used the larger half of it as a weapon. Arcee and Michael noticed this.
"Bulk! Duck!" They cried. However, Bulkhead wasn't fast enough and was hit right in the faceplate by the pump, with Michael narrowly avoiding it. The three were thrown to the ground, with Arcee being crushed by the two mechs. Michael couldn't find the strength to get up as he had gotten tired due to the restricted way he had to fight. Bulkhead groaned, while Arcee tried to get up, but the mechs were too heavy.
"Bulkhead... Michael... Get...! Off...!" Arcee groaned in annoyance at their heavy weight.
"Pinned like a bug." Airachnid smirked as she pinned Arcee's arm to the ground with one of her legs. "Of course, I can think of one permanent way out of your predicament." She said, and got ready to land a killing blow. Arcee struggled to free herself again, but to no avail.
"I'll take topside." Breakdown remarked, and prepared to swing. At that moment, Michael slashed at Airachnid with his blade, making her jump back, and the Techno-Organic rolled off of Bulkhead, now free from being stuck to him, and just missed crushing Arcee's helm as he fell to the ground.
Right after, Breakdown swung his hammer, which Bulkhead caught, and the Wrecker threw the ex-Stunticon away, making him drop the gauntlet in the process. Bulkhead got up, as did Michael and Arcee, finally free from being stuck together.
"I'm free." Arcee said as she noticed it.
"So am I." Michael added, and the three charged at the 'Cons.
Arcee and Michael took on Breakdown, while Bulkhead took on Airachnid.
"Wanna dance?" The Wrecker mockingly asked.
"You're not my type." The spider bot remarked, and attacked the Wrecker. Michael overheard this and snorted.
'Oh, so he isn't her type, but yet she's obsessed with me?!' He thought in annoyance.
Airachnid drilled into the Wrecker's chassis. No damage was caused, but this did catch him off guard, and the femme got passed him.
"Scrap." He muttered.
Airachnid grabbed the gauntlet and activated it, pointing it at Arcee.
"Let's leave the boys to themselves."
Arcee was pulled away from Breakdown by the magnetic pull, attaching her to Airachnid at the servo. Michael left the ex-Stunticon to Bulkhead to assist Arcee. The blue femme attacked her from the front, while Michael tried to assist by keeping her other legs busy, but it was futile. Eventually, Arcee was pinned to the ground as the spider bot tried to stab her faceplate with one of her claws.
"One hand tied, five more to play with." Airachnid remarked.
"Quality, not quantity." Arcee shot back, and grabbed the gauntlet, deactivating it and pulling it off of Airachnid's servo, while the blue femme shoved the 'Con away. She then charged at Arcee, who used to gauntlet to physically repel her and toss her away.
"Opposites do not attract." The blue femme remarked. However, Airachnid wasn't the only one who had been polarized, as Bulkhead and Breakdown found out. Arcee turned the feature off, but then the gauntlet was swiped by Airachnid using her webbing.
"Always leave on a high note." She said. She transformed as began to take off.
"Bulkhead! Michael! The gauntlet!"
Bulkhead ran forwards, climbed on a building, and jumped, grabbing onto Airachnid as she tried to take off, taking the Wrecker with her. Unfortunately, he was too heavy for her and she couldn't keep control of her path. Breakdown tried to run as the two began to fly towards him, but Bulkhead threw Airachnid at him, causing both 'Cons to crash into the main building and make it collapse.
The 'Bots successfully retrieved the gauntlet, and walked over to the now-down 'Cons.
"Let's finish this." Bulkhead said.
"And risk becoming triplets again?" Arcee asked. She began to walk off when Michael spoke up.
"Hang on Arcee." He called out, and walked over to the 'Cons. Bulkhead and Arcee watched in confusion as the Techno-Organic approached them.
Airachnid, who was semi-conscious, looked up as something loomed over her. Michael looked down at her with a stern expression.
"It would seem that the spider went down the drain." Michael said in a low voice, a dark smirk on his faceplate. He then knelt down and got in her faceplate. "Karma's a bitch, Airachnid. Just. Like. You."
Airachnid then went into stasis-lock, and Michael got up, feeling satisfied with himself.
The trio called for a bridge, and they headed back to the base. As they did, Michael couldn't help but smile.
He finally felt free from Airachnid's torment.
-----
It was evening by the time the trio arrived back at the base, none the worst for their adventure.
"Souvenir, but...-" Bulkhead said as Arcee handed the gauntlet to him.
"We don't advise-" Arcee continued.
"Indoor use." Michael finished.
"Ew. They even finish each other's sentences..." Miko groaned in disgust.
"Miko! Check it out! New battle scars!" Bulkhead said in excitement. Miko didn't say anything, but took pics of them with her phone which she was able to retrieve.
Somehow, throughout the entire fiasco with the gauntlet, her phone did not get lost or smashed, which baffled Michael greatly, but he decided not to comment on it.
"Arcee! Hey!" Jack called as he entered the room, but June stopped him before he could get closer to the femme.
"Let the adults talk." She said, and walked over to the femme as Jack sighed. "Arcee, I think I owe you an apology."
"You do?" Arcee asked in surprise.
"I worry, especially when I feel like I can't control things." June began. "Which, with a teenager, is all the time. Jack and I have always been close, especially after his dad left and... I guess it's hard to accept that all that's changing. I mean I knew it would someday, but you're not quite the type of girl I thought he'd be ditching me for."
"I think we've all been a little guilty of staying attached to the way things were." Arcee said, and smiled.
Jack smiled, happy that Arcee and his mom were finally getting along. Michael also smiled, and he looked over at Bumblebee. He then walked over to him.
"You know, 'Bee, there's one thing that the gauntlet doesn't need to attract me to."
"<:Oh? And what's that?:>" The scout asked.
"You." Michael replied, and kissed him on the cheek. Bumblebee blushed, and Michael giggled at his reaction.
The Techno-Organic looked over at the Polarity Gauntlet on the table near Ratchet. Michael then remembered an ability he spotted among the ones he looked through when he first gained his Keyblade. Going through his ability list, he came across the one that he wanted to try.
'Ability: Ability Assimilation.'
'Description: Pick up the object or relic that you want to absorb its power from, and focus on it. (Note: Not all abilities can be assimilated.)'
Michael raised an optic at this, not knowing how this ability worked. Following the description, he walked over to the Gauntlet and turned it on, which caught everyone's attention. Michael closed his optics, and focused. The gauntlet and his servo began to glow in a white light, which surprised everyone in the room. After a few moments, the glowing died down and Michael opened his optics. Looking at his HUD, he found that he had a new notification.
'New Ability Assimilated: Polarity Gauntlet.'
Michael grinned, and went to the ability to find that it now had a dropdown list. Going into it, he selected the Polarity Gauntlet's ability, and opened another dropdown list, which listed all the features the gauntlet itself contained. He smiled at this. He wasn't sure if he would use it in the future, but he was glad to have it anyway, and made a note to try this with all the future relics found.
After putting the gauntlet down, Michael headed to his and Bumblebee's room to rest, tired after the long day. As he walked to their room, he couldn't help but smile. He may not have his real family with him anymore, and he will always miss them.
But he would never give up the ever-growing new family that he had become so attached to.
~~~
A/N: Metal Attraction is now finished. This episode is honestly pretty funny, and I thought it would be even funnier if I pushed it further by having Michael join in on the mission and get stuck to Bulkhead and Arcee. What do you guys think? And what do you guys think of Michael's new assimilation ability? Let me know in the comments!
Next Chapter: Miko, Jack, Michael, and Jessica all decide to attend a rock concert. However, they, along with Bulkhead and Arcee, get sidetracked when they go on recon to an abandoned Energon mine. Things only go downhill for them all when they end up trapped inside it, and it's made even worse when Megatron and Starscream also end up trapped with them. Now the Autobots and the humans need to find a way out, but it isn't as easy as it seems.