Normal Perspective:
Two weeks had passed since Michael's counterpart arrived in their world. Not much happened after that. Michael's strange memory fluxes had stopped, and he was now back to his normal self again, which everyone was pleased with.
One day, Miko, Bulkhead, Jessica, and Starscream were watching a compilation of videos Miko had recorded at a Monster Truck Rally that she had taken Bulkhead to the week before on the base's TV, which Michael had replaced following the destruction of the previous one.
Jack was working at the KO Burger. Vince was grounded for breaking his curfew again. And Raf was still trying to catch up on his schoolwork.
The poor preteen had been spending so much time at the base that he had fallen behind on his schoolwork, and the work had piled up. Whenever he finished one assignment, another three needed doing. He wasn't happy about it, but he knew he had to get it done, lest he wanted a lecture from his teacher, or worse, his mother.
Jessica wasn't all that into Monster Trucks like Miko and Bulkhead were, but decided to watch it anyway.
Starscream also watched, but only because he had nothing else to do.
"I fail to see how this is entertaining." The seeker said as he watched the monster trucks jump over ramps and crush scrapped vehicles on the TV.
"You don't find anything entertaining? Do you?" Jessica asked as she looked at him.
Starscream just snorted, knowing that anything he did find entertaining would probably either be offensive to the Autobots, or was something they couldn't do. He walked over to the other side of the room instead and stayed quiet.
Bulkhead and Miko kept being loud, and they had the TV blasting, which quickly annoyed Ratchet.
"Would you mind lowing the volume?" The CMO asked, sounding like he was trying not to yell at them.
"Hey Ratch, check out the Monster Truck Rally Miko took me to last week." Bulkhead said, not at all doing what the medic asked.
"I compiled some highlights with my cellphone!" Miko said as she held her phone up.
"Innocent vehicles battling for the pleasure of human spectators?" Ratchet asked, not at all seeing how that was fun or enjoyable, and he shuddered at the thought of it. "Bloodsport!"
"YEAH!" Bulkhead and Miko said together, which made Jessica wince slightly.
"You could be helping Optimus in the field right now." Ratchet said, knowing that it was true, yet the Wrecker was instead just watching TV.
"Ah he doesn't need my help to find some ancient educational... thingamabob." Bulkhead replied dismissively, not taking his optics off the TV.
"The 'thingamabob' to which you refer, happens to be a Cybertronian Data Cylinder." Ratchet said, and pressed something on the console that changed the channel on the TV to the screen on the console, which showed a blue replicated version of the Cylinder in question, interrupting the video compilation, much to Bulkhead and Miko's disappointment, but to Starscream's and Jessica's amusement. "And there is no telling what vast intelligence it may hold."
Ratchet then pressed something else, which made more Cylinders appear on the screen.
"During the Golden Age, dozens of these Cylinders were created." The CMO began, as Miko and Bulkhead grew more and more bored with each passing second. "Each containing the sum total of Cybertronian knowledge on any given subject. Stellar Cartography. Medicine. Ancient Mythology. When the war broke out, the Cylinders were hidden throughout the galaxies to keep them as far as possible from Decepticon reach. Detecting one signal here, on Earth, is the opportunity of a-"
"Ugggghhhhh! TMI dude!" Miko interrupted, wanting to just watch the monster truck videos she recorded instead.
"Switch it back! I wanna see the hoedown showdown!" Bulkhead demanded, just as uninterested.
Starscream, however, was intrigued by this information. Back when he had been Air Commander at Trypticon Station back on Cybertron, he had guarded one such Data Cylinder alongside the Dark Energon before Megatron took the station over. He knew what the Cylinder contained, but was never able to look into it since he had to guard it, and couldn't touch or open it.
Could the Cylinder that everyone found be the same one he had guarded?
Starscream shook his helm and headed for his room, dismissing the idea. As he left, the comm-link opened, with Optimus making the call.
"Ratchet!" The Prime said through the comm. "Decepticon ambush! The Cylinder is at risk! We require backup!"
"Backup is what I'm built for." Bulkhead declared, as he bashed his fists together. He ran for the Groundbridge as Miko ran to the stairs.
"Go bend some fenders, Bulk!" She cheered.
Ratchet activated the Groundbridge, and the Wrecker headed out. The CMO then walked over to the stairs.
"I have an important mission for you too, Miko." He said.
"Really?" Miko asked in excitement, but her excitement turned to disappointment as he handed her a broom. "Awwww...."
"Jessica, you can assist her." Ratchet said, and headed back to the Groundbridge to close it.
"Okay." The green-eyed teen replied, and went to find another broom. Miko, however, didn't want to be stuck cleaning, and realized that Ratchet hadn't shut the bridge down. Smirking, she dropped the broom and made a run for it while he wasn't looking.
Jessica soon came back to see Miko running towards the open Groundbridge.
"Miko! Wait!" She cried, dropping her broom and giving chase.
Ratchet hadn't heard, however, as he was too focused on making sure Bulkhead got through.
The two girls exited the bridge at the destination point to see an all-out brawl before them. Knockout, Breakdown, Cyclonus, Barricade, and several Vehicons were taking on the Autobots, all Cybertronians desperate to take the Cylinder, which was on the ground in the middle of the chaos.
Bulkhead was taking on a drone, which he knocked back, with the girls right behind it. They quickly moved out of the way, just in time, and were able to hide behind a rock.
"Miko! This is crazy!" Jessica exclaimed, unhappy to be dragged into yet another danger zone.
The Japanese girl just ignored her as she watched the 'Bots take on the 'Cons.
Optimus was taking on Knockout, and was able to throw him back with a punch before calling out to his comrades.
"Autobots! Stand your ground! The artifact must not fall into enemy hands!" He called out, and ran to take on Cyclonus.
Miko and Jessica looked to see a large object on the ground near them, and they also saw Arcee running towards it only to be tackled by Knockout, who then made a run for the Cylinder.
"Come to papa!" He said with a smirk as he ran towards it. As he was about to reach it, Bulkhead punched him, throwing him away and to the ground.
"Run to mommy." The Wrecker taunted, only to be bashed on the helm and grabbed by Breakdown.
"Say uncle! SAY IT!" The ex-Stunticon said, as he held his nemesis by the helm, slightly squeezing it.
Miko and Jessica made a run for the Cylinder themselves and successfully reached it. Thinking quickly, Miko dialed the base's comm-link.
"Ratchet, come in!"
"Miko?" The CMO asked in surprise. "This is an emergency channel! We need to keep it open for the Auto-" He stopped short as he heard loud bangs through the comm. "Wait, where are you?"
"Doi! I'm with the thingamabob!" She answered in annoyance.
"Thingama... The Data Cylinder!" Ratchet exclaimed as he realized what she was referring to.
"Yes! Can you bridge it out of here?!" Miko asked, hoping to get it out of there before the Decepticons could take it.
"I will reactivate arrival coordinates." Ratchet said through the phone, and a bridge was soon sent, but it was too far away. The two girls looked at it before Miko spoke into the phone again.
"Dude! Can you open it any closer?!"
"Supply coordinates."
"Ummm.... Fifty yards...?"
"Precise coordinates!"
Miko was about to speak again when she and Jessica nearly got hit by something, only for the Cylinder to get hit instead. Knowing they needed to get the Cylinder out of there fast, the two girls tried to move it on their own by pushing it, but it was too heavy, even with their combined strength. The two then ran back, hoping to move it by getting a running charge at it.
"1." Miko said.
"2" Jessica added.
"3!" They both shouted together.
The two girls charged and kicked at the Cylinder, but it still didn't move. Instead, the security system activated, and the Cylinder began to charge up, much to their surprise.
"Woah...!"
Optimus soon noticed the noise and looked over. Bulkhead was near them, holding a drone off when he looked over to see the Cylinder charging up with Miko and Jessica right next to it.
"Miko?!"
The ground began to tremble as the Cylinder continued to charge up, with Miko and Jessica bracing themselves for what could happen.
"NO!" Bulkhead shouted, and tried to run over, but Breakdown ended up tripping him and making him fall, with his helm right in front of the Cylinder. A red laser fired right at the Wrecker as he looked up in front of him. Soon, the laser stopped, and Bulkhead felt woozy.
"Bulk!" Miko cried as she and Jessica ran over to him.
"You really took one for the team, Bulkhead." Knockout taunted as he picked up the now-empty Cylinder. "My team!"
A Groundbridge opened, and Knockout, Cyclonus, Breakdown, and Barricade all ran in, with the bridge closing behind them, leaving the Vehicons to fly back under their own power.
"Bulkhead, are you-" "I'm fine." Bulkhead said, cutting Optimus off. "Didn't even smart."
Evening was upon them when Bulkhead, Miko, and Jessica were sent back to the base, while the rest of the team looked for the Cylinder.
"I helped lose that thing, I wanna help find it." Bulkhead complained, and got up from the seat he was sitting on in the Medbay.
"Ep Ep, you're under my watch now. Optimus's orders." Ratchet said, and made the Wrecker sit back down. "And running a full scan of your neural net would be a finer use of your time."
"Come on Doc, there's nothing up there to scan." Bulkhead said, as he unplugged to cord connected to his helm.
"He seems fine to me." Miko added.
"Well, if you insist on making yourself useful, you can help Miko and Jessica tidy up," Ratchet said, and held out the broom Miko had earlier. He handed it to Bulkhead and walked away.
"Ugh! He's mad with power!" Miko complained.
"That's Ratchet." Bulkhead chuckled. "No vector squared all right."
"What?" Miko asked, completely confused by his words.
Instead of answering back, Bulkhead asked another question.
"Hey... we got any paint around here?" He asked as he played with the broom.
"Art project? Cool!" Miko said in excitement, and went off to find paint.
Soon enough, Miko, with help from Jessica, found dark white paint in one of the human closets. Miko was pleased, but Jessica was confused as to how the paint had not dried out after sitting for so many years, or why the 'Bots had it to begin with.
After bringing it to Bulkhead, the two girls watched as Bulkhead began to paint on the platform of the human area. After a while, Jessica began to notice that what Bulkhead was painting looked more like some kind of language or text rather than an actual picture.
"Ummm...." Jessica started, as Bulkhead began muttering unknown things as he painted. "Not to be rude or anything, but this is looking more like some kind of strange text than art."
Miko just smiled.
"It's art to me!" She said happily, and went off to find Ratchet, while Jessica went back to watching the green Wrecker paint on the wall, unsure.
Ratchet was working in the Medbay when Miko walked up to him.
"Seriously Ratch, you gotta see what Bulk's painting in here."
"Yes, I'm sure one hasn't truly lived until they beheld Bulkhead's take on 'Still Life with Lugnuts'." The medic said sarcastically as he followed Miko.
"See?" Miko said as she and Ratchet walked in to see what Bulkhead was painting. "Did I tell you or what?"
Ratchet looked at it intently, and was in shock as he recognized what the green mech had been painting.
"That is not art.... that is science!"
-----
Later, the rest of Team Prime had returned to the base after Ratchet had informed them of what was going on. Starscream also came back into the room to see what was happening.
"This hotspot you see here?" Ratchet said to the others as they looked at the screen. "It's information. Data. Living Energy."
"Hold on!" Miko interrupted. "It's alive, it's on fire, and it's in Bulkhead's brain?!"
"Chill Miko." Bulkhead said. "The data's only inhabiting a fraction of my brain. Infinitesimal by standard nueral net densities. Wait, how do I know all that?"
"How would you know anything with just a fraction of a brain?" Starscream snickered, which prompted the rest of the team to glare at the seeker, who fell silent.
"Based on what we witnessed during our skirmish," Optimus said, breaking the awkward silence. "the living data must have been programmed to eject when it sensed unauthorized access."
"A security measure." Ratchet realized.
"It would have jettisoned heavenward, lost to the stars." Optimus said.
"Except my fat engine block got in the way." Bulkhead added, knocking on his helm.
"Every 'Con there made a grab for it," Arcee said. "but the Cylinder doesn't go off until Miko and Jessica touch it?"
"The Cylinders originated from Cybertron's Golden Age." Ratchet explained. "Predating the Autobot-Decepticon division."
"So it wouldn't consider any native of Cybertron to be a threat." Optimus realized.
"Only alien lifeforms, such as humans." Ratchet put in.
"<:So.... what exactly was Bulkhead painting on the wall?:>" Bumblebee asked.
"Are we staring at genius or gibberish?" Arcee asked as she gestured to the paint adorning the wall next to her.
"Probably both." Cliffjumper chuckled.
"I do not wish to rally anyone's hopes," Ratchet spoke up, having found out what the equations Bulkhead had painted equaled to. "but these equations appear to be the formula for a Synthetic Energon."
"<:Woah! Really?! That's amazing!:>" Bumblebee cheered in delight.
"We hit the motherload?!" Arcee asked, unable to believe their luck.
"This is the key to solving everything!" Cliffjumper exclaimed happily.
"Miko, do you understand what this means?!" Bulkhead asked as he ran over to her.
"Ummm....." She said, not sure why it was such a big deal.
"Energon provides our fuel, our ammo, our lifeforce." Bulkhead explained. "With the natural stuff in such short supply here on Earth, this could solve a whole lot of problems."
"Such as providing us with the edge we need to turn the tide of this war." Optimus pointed out.
"Or handing us the key to revitalizing Cybertron." Ratchet said happily.
"We got the goods, and all Megatron got was an empty bucket." Arcee said.
"Too bad we couldn't put a bow on it before the 'Cons took it." Cliffjumper joked.
"How often do I get to use my noggin to save the day?" Bulkhead asked jokingly.
Unbeknownst to the others, Starscream was also very excited, though he didn't show it. The Cylinder that had been found was the very same one he had guarded all those centuries ago, and now his hard work of guarding it was going to pay off.
Michael however, was a little subdued. Of course, he was pleased and excited by the prospect of the Synthetic Energon being found, but he knew the trouble it was going to bring in the future, even if it did end up playing a key role later, and he knew the cost of it remaining within Bulkhead's mind.
In all the excitement, none of the Autobots, nor Starscream, realized that their luck was going to run out very quickly.
Later, Bulkhead was back to painting; this time on metal plates instead of the wall. To the surprise of everyone, Starscream also helped, eager to see the fruits of his labors from long ago. After having his cuffs removed, the seeker helped to paint out the formula by following along as Bulkhead transcribed it.
"Aren't you two done yet?" Miko asked, from where she and Jessica were sitting as they watched the two mechs paint. Miko was quickly becoming bored by the scene, but Bulkhead ignored her completely, while Starscream just snorted at her impatience and continued to follow along.
Michael, Cliffjumper, Bumblebee, and Arcee watched from a distance as the two mechs worked to write the formula, somewhat weirded out by the scene in front of them.
"Gotta admit, it's weird seeing Bulk in brainiac mode." Arcee admitted.
"Or to see Starscream so eager to work with us without having to tell him to." Cliffjumper added.
"<:Do you think this will last long?:>" Bumblebee asked, slightly concerned.
"Beats me." Cliffjumper said, as Arcee walked over and pulled the now painted plate away from Bulkhead, revealing another one empty one behind it.
"Break time!" Miko said, thinking the Wrecker would stop now. "How 'bout a lightning round of 'T.N.T Street Racer 7'?"
But Bulkhead just ignored her and went back to painting instead, much to Miko's disappointment.
Arcee, with help from Bumblebee, moved the plate near Ratchet so the CMO could log the physical data into their system, turning it into digital data once again.
"Got another round for you to log, Ratchet." Arcee said, but the CMO wasn't paying attention, as something caught his attention as he looked at the scans he took of Bulkhead's neural net.
"This scan is Bulkhead's neural net as you saw earlier." Ratchet said to Optimus, who was standing next to him, then the medic changed the screen to a more recent scan. "This scan was recorded just minutes ago. It is as I feared. The data seems to be actively and aggressively rewriting Bulkhead's neural net. I had hoped he was purging the data, but it seems he's merely transcribing it as it-"
"Consumes his mind..." Optimus finished grimly.
"From all indications," Ratchet went on. "by the time Bulkhead completes the formula, his own thoughts.... his memories.... will be wiped clean..."
"But if we stop him, goodbye Synthetic Energon..." Arcee said sadly, knowing that it was a lose-lose situation with seemingly no way out without sacrificing one of them.
"You assume we possess a means of stopping him." Ratchet said. "I don't exactly have instant access to the wisdom of the ancients."
"I will not allow another one of our own to be sacrificed." Optimus said firmly, knowing that Bulkhead was far more important than the Synthetic Energon. "No matter the cost."
"If the living data transmitted itself from the Cylinder, perhaps we could somehow coax it back inside..." Ratchet stated.
"How are we supposed to get it back from the Decepticons?" Acree asked.
"Megatron will bring it to us." Optimus replied.
Knowing that it would be pointless to try and argue given the circumstances, the others reluctantly agreed. Soon, Optimus, Michael, Bumblebee, Arcee, and Cliffjumper headed out to speak with Megatron at a remote location, not wanting to give up the location to their base. Bulkhead, Starscream, and Ratchet remained behind.
Ratchet went to the Medbay to work on logging the Synthetic Energon equations into their system, while Starscream went off to find more paint in the base, leaving Bulkhead to continue painting with the paint he still had left in the Command Center. Jessica continued to watch, unable to find anything else to do since Bulkhead's constant muttering distracted her, while Miko brought out her guitar.
"You want amplified?" Miko asked, despite knowing that what Bulkhead was talking about was completely different from her meaning, as she plugged her guitar into her amp.
Miko strummed her guitar, the amp blasting her music and making Bulkhead yell out, drop his broom, and cover his audio receptors.
"AAAHHH! WHAT IS THAT?!" The Wrecker yelled over the noise.
"Metal! You love this song!" Miko said, trying to pull her friend out of the state he was in.
"I'm trying to concentrate." Bulkhead said bluntly.
"Ugh! You're starting to sound just like Ratchet!" Miko said in annoyance.
"Who?" Bulkhead asked, not knowing who that was.
This caught Miko and Jessica off-guard. The two girls looked at each other in concern, knowing that Bulkhead forgetting who his friends were wasn't a good sign. They then headed over to the Medbay to see Ratchet, knowing that they needed to tell him about this.
"Ratch, I think Bulk's losing his mind!" Miko said as she ran over to the higher level near him.
Ratchet looked at her in surprise, shocked by how accurate her words were to the situation.
Miko studied his expression, and then it clicked.
"You... already know..." She said, surprised and upset that they kept it from her.
"Miko, we didn't want to frighten you." Ratchet said gently, knowing how much she cared for the Wrecker. "But rest assured, Optimus has a plan."
"Optimus isn't Bulkhead's doctor." Miko said truthfully. "I just need to know, when Bulk's done spittin' out that formula, he'll go back to being regular old Bulkhead, right?"
Ratchet didn't answer, and instead looked away, which confirmed Miko's fears.
Miko shut her eyes, trying not to cry, and walked out of the room, back to the Command Center. Jessica followed her, worried for her friend.
Miko sat on the couch, as Jessica sat next to her.
"Everything will be okay, Miko." The black-haired girl said gently. "Optimus can fix this."
"But what if he can't?" Miko asked, her voice wavering. "What if Optimus can't get the Cylinder back? What if the data consumes Bulkhead before Optimus can get it back? What if.... what if Bulkhead forgets about us... about me...?"
"He won't. Trust me." Jessica replied, giving a soft smile. "You're a very important part of his life. True, you may always get into trouble, and drag everyone else with you a lot of the time, but you bring life to this base, and it wouldn't be the same without you. Bulkhead would never forget that."
Miko said nothing, as tears welled up in her eyes. Jessica's smile faded to a sad frown, then she spoke up again.
"Listen, Michael once told me that memories are never truly lost. He told me that the power of memory is not to be taken lightly, and that it is a complicated thing. But I believe that even if the data does wipe Bulkhead's mind, he'll never truly forget you. He may not remember you in his mind, but he'll always remember you in his Spark."
Miko looked at her, and thought for a moment. Then a determined look crossed her face as an idea came to her. She got up from the couch and went over to Bulkhead.
If the data was going to make him forget, then she was going to make him remember.
She wasn't going down without a fight.
Meanwhile, high in the night sky, onboard the Nemesis, Knockout, Breakdown, Cyclonus, and Barricade all entered the bridge where Megatron was waiting.
"Lord Megatron, we've detected a familiar energy profile." Knockout said.
"The data." The silver mech answered.
"Bulkhead must've left the shielded radius of their base." Knockout deduced. "Barricade, Cyclonus, Breakdown, and I will-"
"Fail me again?" Megatron interrupted, knowing that it would undoubtedly be the case.
The four 'Cons looked at each other, but said nothing.
"I will see to this myself." The Warlord declared, and left.
Taking a squadron of Vehicons with him, Megatron headed out to investigate the signal. Soon, he arrived at the origin point, but was surprised to find that the data wasn't there. Instead, he found the Autobots waiting for him.
Michael's left optic went red as the Warlord transformed and landed on the ground.
"Optimus, you are certainly not the Autobot I expected to find here." Megatron said. "But let me guess, you rigged a transponder to mimic the frequency of the data I seek."
"Megatron, I have a proposal." Optimus said, as he walked forward.
In response to the distance being closed between their Master and the Prime, the Vehicons deployed and charged their blasters, but Megatron held up his servo, and they backed down.
"I'm... listening." Megatron said slowly.
"Surrender the Cylinder, and I will return it to you fully restored." Optimus proposed.
"This trinket right here?" Megatron asked as he pulled the Cylinder from his subspace. "And praytell, what trifles did it hold that you are so anxious to give away?"
"Accept my terms, and you will find out." Optimus said firmly.
Megatron didn't reply, and considered it.
Meanwhile, back at the base, Miko, and eventually Jessica, did their best to jog Bulkhead's memory. The two girls tried all sorts of ideas, but nothing worked.
"Do you remember when you watched Wheeljack lob his only grenade into the Decepticon heat exchanger?" Miko asked, remembering the story he had told her when Wheeljack had visited a few months ago.
"Who?" Bulkhead asked, not remembering who that was.
"Wheeljack! Your best bud?!" Miko exclaimed. "Besides me, of course." She added, and pulled up the picture she had taken of the two Wreckers together before Wheeljack left.
She showed the green Wrecker the picture, but he only looked down, unable to remember.
"Ooooohhhh.....! Do you even know who I am?!" Miko asked, as she was starting to become desperate.
"Of course!" Bulkhead said. "You're...." He trailed off, as he couldn't remember her either. After a moment of silence, he went back to talking to himself, speaking the equations to the Synthetic Energon formula out loud, while Miko looked sadly away. Ratchet came in to take the plate that Bulkhead had painted on, having finished logging the others in.
"Keep them coming Bulkhead." The CMO said, and went back to the Medbay. Miko then thought for a moment, remembering what they had done the week before.
It was a long shot, but she was becoming desperate.
Walking over to the computers, she logged in a familiar set of coordinates and activated the Groundbridge. Then she took the broom from Bulkhead, and lured him over to the portal with it.
Jessica knew what Miko was doing, so she didn't try to stop her, and instead decided to help. Taking the paint can, she ran over to Miko and waited for Bulkhead to follow.
"Come on. You wanna finish the formula, don't you?" Miko asked, knowing that it was all Bulkhead could think about. Taking the bait, the Wrecker followed them through the Groundbridge.
At that moment, Starscream came back into the room, having found many more paint cans. He was shocked to see Bulkhead leaving the base, and knew that with him acting the way he was, the formula was at risk.
Without thinking, the seeker dropped the paint cans and ran through the bridge.
Back at the meeting site, Megatron was still considering.
"Do you accept my proposal?" Optimus asked, knowing that time was running out the longer they waited.
Before Megatron could reply, his comm-link opened.
"Lord Megatron." Came Knockout's voice.
"Give me a moment." Megatron said to the Autobots, and walked away to take the call.
"Did you find what you were looking for?" Knockout asked through the comm.
"It's complicated." Megatron replied.
"Well, Cyclonus, Barricade, Breakdown, and I may have located the bogey... fully charged." Knockout explained.
"Proceed." Megatron said, now interested.
"Just one hitch: We don't have the Cylinder." Knockout said.
"Then bring me the head of Bulkhead."
-----
At a stadium built for Monster Truck Rallies, Miko and Jessica were trying to help make Bulkhead remember, while the Wrecker painted on the wall inside the Stadium with the paint and broom. Starscream sat on the bleachers, taking up a lot of space and crushing them, but not caring in the slightest.
"Look! You love Monster Trucks!" Miko said, trying to get Bulkhead to remember. "Remember when we snuck in here after the show last week?"
Bulkhead didn't reply, and continued painting on the wall.
"Is any of this ringing a bell?" Miko asked, trying again.
"Bell curve?" Bulkhead asked. "No no no, that wouldn't factor in."
"How about our Sunday morning dune bashings?" Miko asked, sounding desperate. "Rocking out to Slash Monkey? Helping me with my homework? Ha! Trick question! You know I don't do homework.... don't you...?"
Bulkhead said nothing.
"Okay, forget the past." Miko said, trying a different approach. "Starting now, we can make new memories."
Bulkhead only muttered something scientific, and ignored the young girl.
Miko was close to giving up, but decided to try one last time to reach him.
"Bulkhead, I know somewhere inside you'll always remember me." She said. "And I just want you to know... I'll never forget you."
"Boo-hoo!" Came a voice. "I'm shedding lubricant."
There, standing at the top of the stairs to the Stadium's entrance, were Knockout, Breakdown, Cyclonus, and Barricade.
Miko knew that they were in danger now, and had to get out of there.
"Follow us right now or these guys are gonna..." She stopped, then knew what to say to make him listen."Steal the formula!"
This got the Wrecker's attention.
"My equations?!" Bulkhead asked in surprise, not wanting the formula to be taken away from him.
"C'mon! C'mon!" Miko called, as she and Jessica ran off, with Bulkhead following them. Meanwhile, Starscream climbed to the top of the bleachers to get away from the 'Cons.
"Not like Bulkhead to run from a fight." Breakdown commented, and the four Decepticons jumped down to the lower level.
"I'm afraid our friend has had a little too much to think." Knockout said, and he and Breakdown headed outside the stadium. As they did, Knockout turned on his comm. "Lord Megatron, we're good."
On the other side of the call, Megatron smirked, and turned back to the Autobots.
"Optimus, upon careful consideration, if you want the Cylinder, you'll have to take it."
The Vehicons then began firing at them, with the Autobots returning fire.
Back at the Stadium, Barricade and Cyclonus smirked upon seeing Starscream there alone, seeing it as the perfect opportunity to take him back to the Warship with them, knowing the fate that will befall him upon his return.
"Well, well, if it isn't the traitor." Barricade sneered. "Megatron will be pleased to see you again once we take you back to the Warship."
"I'm not going back!" Starscream snapped. "And you can't make me!"
"We'll see about that." Cyclonus smirked.
The two 'Cons deployed their blasters and began firing at him.
Outside, Knockout and Breakdown found the parking lot reserved for monster trucks, and unfortunately for them, it was full.
"Okay then." Knockout said. "Fun and games."
The two 'Cons then began walking around the lot, searching for the Wrecker.
"Come out come out wherever you are." Knockout sang.
Near him, Bulkhead was hidden amongst the monster trucks in his vehicle mode. It wasn't completely ideal, since Knockout and Breakdown knew what his vehicle form looked like, but Miko and Jessica figured it would at least buy them some time, if only enough to call for help.
But that wouldn't be the case for long.
"Ugh! The 'Cons are scrambling the signal!" Miko muttered in annoyance, her call not going through.
"The trisector of the polygon is an integral subset." Bulkhead muttered.
"Shhh! Quiet!" Miko said, trying to keep them hidden. "And whatever you do: Keep. Still. We're gonna see if we can get far enough to call for backup."
Miko and Jessica then ran off to get out of the scrambler's radius, but hid under a monster truck when Knockout approached. The cherry-red mech looked underneath the two trucks next to him, but found nothing, not knowing that the two girls hid in the undercarriage of one of the trucks.
The duo then continued on.
Meanwhile, Breakdown had his hammer deployed and kept using it to hit the monster trucks, hoping that he would hit Bulkhead in the process.
"Bulkhead, is that you?" He asked as he looked inside one of the trucks, and cracked a window with his digit. Not having found him, the ex-Stunticon smashed the truck.
Turning around, he noticed Miko and Jessica running passed. Following them, he picked up one of the trucks and threw it aside.
"Breakdown, forget the humans." Knockout said, and pulled out a scanner. "Games are only fun to play... when you're winning." He smirked, and activated it, then the two proceeded onwards.
Underneath one of the trucks, Miko and Jessica hid, and tried to call again, but the signal was still scrambled.
"I think I'm warm." Knockout said, as he finally found Bulkhead, who then transformed and painted all over Knockout using the paint he had left.
But this only infuriated him.
"You painted my paint job! Prepare for surgery!" Knock yelled in anger. Breakdown then ran up and hit the Wrecker with his hammer, knocking him unconscious.
Just then, Barricade and Cyclonus walked over with Starscream in tow, the two mechs holding him up by his arms to keep him from escaping. Knockout then got ready to cut off Bulkhead's helm, and deployed his sawblade.
"Heads, you lose." He taunted, and activated his sawblade.
"NOOOOOOO!!!!"
Meanwhile, the Autobots had taken out the last of the Vehicons as Megatron watched. The Warlord then noticed that someone other than Bulkhead was missing, and smirked.
"I see that Starscream isn't here." Megatron said. "Optimus, since you want to Cylinder, I have my own proposal."
The Autobots waited silently, wondering what the terms were.
"I know that you still have Starscream as a prisoner, so I propose that you return him to me, and in exchange, you may have the Cylinder."
The Autobots looked at each other, and considered.
Megatron's terms only benefited one side, and they knew that if they agreed, Starscream's fate was sealed.
None of them, except for Michael and Optimus, really cared for the seeker. But he had made a lot of progress within the last few weeks, and was doing much better than when he had first arrived at their base.
Were they really going to give him up so easily just to save Bulkhead and waste all of that progress?
"No Megatron." Optimus said firmly. "We will not return Starscream to you. He is with us now, and he will not be going back with you."
"Well, in that case," Megatron said. "No one gets it!"
The Warlord then crushed the Cylinder, and dropped it to the ground. Then he took off, back to the Warship.
Before the Autobots could say anything, Optimus's comm. came on.
"Optimus!" Came Ratchet's voice. "Bulkhead, Miko, Jessica, and Starscream have abandoned base! I have their Groundbridge coordinates!"
"Bridge us back!" Optimus said urgently. "Immediately!"
Back at the Stadium, Knockout was close to cutting off Bulkhead's helm, but Miko and Jessica, in an attempt to stop him, picked up two metal pipes, and charged towards them. Knockout moved to avoid being hit, causing the two girls to hit Bulkhead's helm instead.
The same charging sound that had come from the Cylinder started up again, and the Wrecker's optics opened, showing them to be a fiery red. Then, two lasers shot out of his optics and headed skywards as the data was released.
"Again?!" Breakdown exclaimed.
"Get down!" Knockout called, and the four 'Cons moved to avoid getting hit by the beams.
"We did it again?" Miko asked as she and Jessica watched the lasers.
Soon, the lasers stopped, and the energy disappeared into the distance.
"Bulkhead...?" Miko asked, fearing the worst.
Knockout scanned him, revealing that the data was now gone.
"Dead battery." Knockout groaned. "Megatron's going to peal our paint for losing that data."
"So we're gonna have to peal you." Breakdown threatened.
Miko and Jessica stepped back as Knockout deployed his sawblade again, and was about to reach the two girls when a Groundbridge opened, and the Autobots came charging out.
"Or peal out of here." Knockout said, and he and Breakdown took off running. Cyclonus and Barricade threw Starscream to the side and also took off.
Crashing through a wall, the three grounders fled while Cyclonus fled in his jet mode.
The Autobots then turned their attention to Bulkhead and Starscream. Miko was crying by Bulkhead's helm, fearing that he was now completely gone, as Jessica sat with her, rubbing her back.
Michael looked on sadly. He knew Bulkhead was still alive.
But that didn't mean it didn't the scene before him didn't make his Spark hurt.
-----
Later, with help from the others, Bulkhead was taken back to the base and was being checked over.
He hadn't woken up, however.
The Autobots were not pleased to hear that Starscream had left their base without their permission, but did commend him on his efforts to keep the data, Bulkhead, and the humans safe. They decided to be lenient with him, and only punish him lightly by not giving him an Energon cube for two days.
Seeing as this punishment was better than what Megatron would've done to him had he been taken back to the Warship, the seeker agreed, and didn't complain.
Everyone was now surrounding Bulkhead in the Medbay, waiting for a diagnosis.
"The data has been fully expelled." Ratchet diagnosed. "But Bulkhead remains completely unresponsive."
"Because the energy took Bulkhead's mind with it... heavenward... Lost to the stars..." Miko said sadly, and started to cry again. "It's my fault you'll never know the rest of the formula... and it's my fault that Bulkhead is gone forever...."
"Miko," Optimus spoke up. "Your quick thinking prevented the formula from falling into Decepticon hands."
"If anyone would've backed that play... it's Bulkhead..." Arcee said, her voice wavering.
"It's simply too early to know the extent of his condition." Ratchet said gently. "Something as simple as a familiar sight or smell, perhaps even a sound could trigger Bulkhead's awakening."
This gave Miko an idea.
Grabbing her guitar and amp, she got herself ready, and strummed the instrument, the sound echoing through the base.
Nothing happened.... at first.
Slowly, Bulkhead's optics opened as the monitor began beeping. He groaned as he awakened.
"Bulkhead...?" Miko asked, hoping she heard correctly.
Bulkhead's optics fully opened. He then sat up and mimicked the sound and movements Miko had made.
"I love that song!" He laughed, then looked down at Miko. "Miko."
Everyone, especially Miko, grinned.
Bulkhead was back.
~~~
A/N: T.M.I. is now done. Not much to say, though it was hard trying to figure out how to fit Starscream and his past as an Energon seeker into this, but I made it work.
Next Chapter: Ratchet is able to create a variant of the Synthetic Energon from the equations of the formula he still had, though it is still incomplete, leaving the Energon unstable. Wanting to be more helpful to the war effort, The CMO tests it on himself. At first, things seem fine, but it slowly begins to bring out a side of Ratchet none of the others had seen before, and it slowly begins to strain the Team's relationship with him.