Optimus, on the outside, was as calm and serious as he'd always been. On the outside, his expressions shifted little to none as he waited for Arcee and Bulkhead to return with their human charges and the youngling they'd discovered.
The youngling that had been watching them.
The youngling he'd been unconsciously bonding with and becoming closer to.
The youngling he could feel the distress of.
On the outside, Optimus was calm and serious.
On the inside, however, he was an absolutely worried mess he didn't know how to deal with.
It had been hours and there were no updates. Raf was able to tell him about the signal problem over his comm with Ratchet. Their vital signals hadn't shifted in any way, so by all appearances, they were okay.
But they had not moved, and Optimus could feel the youngling's distress until it blanked into nothing. That was not a good sign at all, which is why, hours after it happened, he was still a complete internal mess.
He took down more Decepticon drones in an attempt to sate his growing unease, especially when the connection came back and he could feel that it read "injured and scared".
If he could bridge to that mine right that second he would, without question. But this recon had turned into a mini-battle that, while completely doable, would take up time. He could not leave Bumblebee, his charge, to deal with such a thing alone.
So, seriously and calmly, he took care of every problem that came their way. Slowly, steadily completing the mission and ridding the planet of their most dangerous enemies.
It did not stop him from wanting to drop everything and drag himself and Bee back home, so he could answer that wailing cry for help that was continuously sounding off in his spark.
He sent whatever comfort he could through their strange bond. How he was able to, he wasn't sure. But he knew that it was received and that to some degree, it worked.
Ratchet had told him that there were more types of "bonds" than that of a sparkmate, the equivalent of a spouse in human terms. Sparkbonds varied between relationships, but each needed a significant connection for a link to be made.
Having siblings is one example, siring a child is another. Biological or not didn't matter much to cybertronians. Family was family regardless. Usually, young sparklings made such a connection with their parental units and siblings.
It would be the only connection made, as they were too young to discern any other.
The fact that Neo had made such a connection with him meant that his spark reminded them of his family. It was instinctive to link. But Optimus had told the old medic that it wasn't him that had linked with the young one first, but the matrix in his chest. The thing that made him a Prime all those years ago, from the spark of Primus himself.
So what did that mean if that is what the youngling connected to before bonding with him afterward?
Such theories had to wait, as he had no time to think of it more. He needed to focus on the task, get it done, and leave.
I'm coming, just wait for me. He thought. The moment he got the chance, he was going to the youngling. When he felt that the young child wasn't as scared anymore, he was thankful and hopeful.
He hoped that his team had found him and were bringing him home to base.
But something in him told him that wasn't the case, and he felt another sense of urgency spur within him. The moment he could... the very second he could...
He was going to that mine.
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✥﹤┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈﹥✥
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Everything was dark again. It was hard to move, and he could tell that something was wrong. No, everything was wrong. His home... it was all gone now. He had nowhere. What happened? Why? He could not process what was going on aside from the pain in his helm, and an internal message that kept repeating.
{Partial Bonds Acquired: All-Spark Type, Anti-Spark Type.}
{Compatibility Detected. Genesis Spark Is Reacting...}
{Genesis Spark Has Strengthened. Abilities Have Been Unlocked.}
What does that mean...? He wondered. He could feel something in him reaching toward something. And that something responded, creating a path between them. It was the same thing that happened with the big blue mech he liked. For some reason, he wondered where he was now. He wanted to see him.
He was scared.
He moved the rocks on him away with difficulty, his lights were flickering in and out, a sign that his body was not in a normal state. That reaction scared him, too. It had never happened before. A lot of things were happening that never happened before. He didn't feel safe anymore. Moving was exhausting, and he wanted the pain to go away.
Make it go away... He thought, collapsing near an opening in the wall, weeping at his pain and confusion. He didn't care for the gasp he heard when he did. Did he even hear it? He wasn't sure. Everything was in and out, and he instinctively reached for those two connections he'd felt.
Help...
He was scared. He wanted whatever was happening to stop. He wanted to go back to how things were when he was alone. At least then, he was safe.
"Little One," A raspy, soft voice interrupted his fear. That connection he felt was reaching back for him. Languidly, he grasped onto it. He heard the mech gasp in surprise, but he was too dazed to care.
Unlike when he'd done so with the blue mech, this connection was dark like the void he knew before. But it was not lonely, and it was just as warm for him. It was just as safe for him. He could tell.
He could still feel his strange connection with the blue mech, even here. He could feel that they wanted to come to him. He could tell they were trying to. Somehow, they were able to send him a bit of comfort through their connection. How did they do that?
Neo was too out of it to properly try to answer that. All he knew was that bit of safety he felt made his tears stop, and dim blue optics found the fierce red ones doing the very same thing.
"Little One, can you hear me?" The mech called again. There was a tug on the connection with that call. Probing, worried. It must have been because he did not answer the first call. Wait, was there a second call after that? Neo wasn't sure, he was so low on energy and hurting.
If he was fully cognitive, he would have shied away from the attention, but right now? He craved the comfort of one of the two connections he'd made. So, he answered as best he could through that connection this time with a soft, fleeting tug.
He could see how the mech relaxed a bit at the small response from him. When he actually got the energy to turn in his complete direction, Neo couldn't understand why the gray mech was stuck in the wall.
"Eh...?" How'd he get there?
"Hm..." Megatron was not willing to answer that a small femme got the best of him and used his own blaster to bring a cave ceiling down on him. No. Never. So, he did not answer that question at all.
Neo whirred in concern. That did not look comfortable at all. The clicks and warbles he made were soft, as it took too much energy to make them louder. But the mech, somehow, understood him perfectly.
When was the last time someone showed such genuine concern for him? Megatron could hardly remember. "...I'm fine." He answered the feeling, "You are not, little one."
He could see the trickle of energon dripping from the wound in the youngling's helm. For him, that wouldn't be such a terrible injury, but that was not the case for one as young as the being before him. He needed to get out of this crevice, and he needed to do it very soon. Another youngling would not die if he had any say in it.
Neo, sensing those emotions, lifted his head tiredly, "O..ut...?" The cables on his head rose with minds of their own. The tips of them shifted into small drills, not unlike the one that Jack had driven off in.
Megatron was curious about the feat he was witnessing from the little bot. It reminded him of Soundwave and his cable attachments. "Little One...?"
"Out..." The cables plunged themselves into the rocks, easily tearing through them to make the opening Megatron had access to bigger. He was surprised, to say the least, no sparkling he'd ever seen was this strong! The cables made quick work of the rock wall, and the young child was barely cognitive!
Amazing. This youngling is amazing.
Neo was happy with the feeling of praise that was being sent through this new bond. Many feelings were being broadcast to him through the two connections. From the nice blue mech that was 'light' and 'warm' to him, it was worry, comfort, and a promise of protection.
This silver mech, who was 'dark' and 'warm', was filled with surprise and the impression of being proud of him. Neo wasn't sure why though, he was just getting rid of rocks.
To him, the rocks weren't very hard to get rid of, but they did hurt when he fell on them. But even though he didn't understand, he basked in that praise, as it made his detrimental fear of this situation recede, even if just a bit.
There was also the fact that this mech was very angry? Yes, he was angry. Not at him, but at something. What had made him mad? Was someone mean to him?
Neo didn't understand why, but he felt if someone was being mean to either of the mechs then he would bite them. Very hard, too. It was an instinctive protectiveness he didn't understand nor complain about.
The silver mech let out a small laugh. Why though? He was completely serious about biting the meanies.
The confusion at his amusement made Megatron laugh a bit more. This little one was protective? Of him? The thought amused him greatly.
He did not realize that Neo was being deadly serious. So much, in fact, that Starscream, who was debating leaving the cave entirely after ranting, felt a dangerous shiver go down his frame and reconsidered.
If he could tear through stone and energon as if they were cotton candy, what do you think he could do to living armor?
Speaking of biting... Hm... rocks...? Neo was terribly hungry right now. All of the energon in this area had been stripped, and only rocks remained. So, Neo did what he usually did when he got hungry and there was no energon, just like when he first woke.
Megatron was taken aback when the young one revealed his razor-like blue dentas, similar in a way to his own sharp teeth. "What are you—"
CHOMP-OMP-OMP—
He bit through the rocks near him as if they were nothing but fluff in his wake! What in the pits was he witnessing? Wait, that didn't matter right now, what mattered was the little one was eating rocks! ROCKS! Crushing them between those terror teeth like pieces of brittle candy! Megatron's marvel at the sight was subverted by his alarm at the action.
"No, don't eat that!" He almost yelled. He let out a sigh of relief when he saw the little one listen, and anger at the fact he could feel his confusion as to why he said stop. Where were his parental units to have allowed this little one to eat such things? If Megatron ever found them, he'd probably end them.
"Ah...?" Neo was confused. Did he not want to get out? Rocks were not as tasty as blue stones, but he was just fine using them for energy. He felt that he needed them right now more than ever. He was really hungry.
"As thankful as I am for your help, that is not something you eat, little one." He scolded gently. It was so unlike him to do so that he'd given himself whiplash. Severely. Because gentle? Him? Megatron?? Those two things were never in the same sentence in his regard. Ever.
Moments later Megatron freed himself from the rubble. Neo's work hadn't been in vain at all. His immediate action was to pick the youngling up. He realized how small he was in comparison to him, not even the size of his forearm. He had to tear himself away from that fact to address another.
His dim, blue optics held no fear, doubt, or hate when they looked at him. Most likely, he was too dazed and tired to care. Megatron watched as they whirled in distress. Normally, a sparkling would be wailing at the amount of pain those scratches he saw would cause. But this little one barely made a sound aside from warbles of discomfort.
"Mn..."
"Shh." He soothed, watching his unique lights flicker in dwindling energy.
The silver mech could tell he'd survived on his own for who knows how long. Most likely, he had to take care of any injury on his frame himself, too. Megatron saw the small dents and scratches that had healed over time. This little one was a survivor, and that thought alone almost made the Decepticon Lord both crack a smile and want to murder someone all at once.
Something in his spark was unspeakably proud of him for being so strong. The youngling could feel that through the strange bond he'd made, and Megatron watched a tired smile grace his little face, though it did not stay as his discomfort and subsequent pain made being happy a chore.
His anger stemmed from the fact that a youngling such as this shouldn't have had to survive in the first place. He should not have had to deal with anything alone until he was ready to be on his own, no sooner.
The fact that he had to live without that security left such a sour taste in Megatron's mouth he had to physically repress a growl of rage from escaping him. He did not want to distress the youngling further. The deception could clearly feel the little one had enough of that as is.
Even now, he could feel him asking for help through the bond he'd made. The fact that he was asking him, Megatron, astounded him.
When was the last time he was the one asked?
When was the last time someone, other than Soundwave, trusted him that much?
His troops regaled him with respect and fear, there was never this... pure intention as he was feeling from this youngling.
'What is this?'
His priorities had shifted at that moment, holding this small life close to his spark. He could just barely feel the traces of dark energon within him trembling with giddiness at the youngling being close.
As if he was supposed to be there, as if there was no other place that was right for him except near him.
Starscream no longer mattered. The Autobots no longer mattered. All that mattered was the youngling in his arms.
"You're safe now, little one... Rest."
Neo gave him one last look before slowly closing his eyes, drifting into a dreamless sleep in the arms of someone he knew would protect him. Just like the big blue mech, this one was safe, too. For him, at least.
The fear he had as everything crumbled around him steadily faded into security, and he listened to the strong hum in their chest as time blurred away.
Art By Me!
...Warm...
It was warm.
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But when he woke again...
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...the two mechs he'd connected with...
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...were fighting with the full intent of ending the other.
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...And something in him...
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..found the scene terrifyingly familiar...
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Σ̸̨̧̨͙̬̯̭̗̳͂̈́̕͜Я̶̘̯̭̳̮̟̌̾̈͗̂̏͘Я̶̪̯͎͇̗̺̠̤̥͛̈́͆͘Ө̶̨͎̖̣̦̽́̈Я̶̧̭͉̇̂̔̅̇̄͂͑̚
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Next Chapter: ꜰᴀᴍɪʟɪᴀʀ
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