I sat in the cage chamber of the Knight's Temenos just looking at the cage the Optimus from back home had been in and where I had last 'died'. The energon stain was still there. Most of the team was out scouting for energon and salvaging what they could from the old base, even after the Decepticons picked it clean. The kids were at the military base located at the opening of the Canyon my ship was hidden in, for modified schooling. Since Jasper was essentially destroyed and now a ghost town. A soft breeze blew through the open ship and I closed my optics while carefully running my digits over the blade of the Sun Saber that rested in my lap. Slow heavy pedsteps alerted me of a presence.
"Avalon, are you alright?" Optimus asked. "What is this area?"
"It's the place where I 'died' last." I pointed to the energon stain. "It was in that spot I lost my heart and gained my spark. The Optimus from my dimension was hanging above me upside down, and watched helplessly as my heart was turned into a hollow crystal that houses my soul and pumps energon through me."
"It was Lockdown who did that to you." Optimus stated.
"Because of his experiments, I'm afraid that I cannot create an actual sparkbond with anybot." I felt a few energon tears roll down my faceplates.
"Please do not leak." Optimus wiped them away. "I care not if you can or cannot sparkbond. For neither can I."
"You were sparkbonded to Elita-One early in the war. Then Starscream offlined her without Megatron knowing." I responded. Optimus was silent. "Ratchet told me a few days ago, when I asked him if there was a way I would be able to sparkbond with my crystalized spark."
"Megatron never wanted to hurt Elita, Whenever they met in battle, he always spared her." Optimus looked down saddened.
"I know it hurts. She was your first love and the one you gave your actual spark to. It's okay to miss her. I understand. Especially since I cant provide you with any heirs." I cupped Optimus' face in my servos. "I also understand the sacrifices we both have to make being in an unbondable relationship."
"Avalon, I simply want you by my side." Optimus pulled me into a hug and nuzzled my neck. Alarms went off ruining the quiet that had settled around us.
.:: Optimus, Avalon. An Autobot emergency beacon from a pod has entered Earth's atmosphere and landed::. Ratchet said over the comm.
"Let's go." Optimus rose to his peds and put on his ever present public stoic expression and helped me stand as I attached the Sun Saber to my back. After Darkmount, I've stayed in my Prime form except when I'm sleeping.
"Alright." I sighed following him to the bridge of my ship.
"I've already input the coordinates. You might want to hurry." Ratchet waved us through the bridge after giving me a med kit. "Avalon, the twins told me of your basic medic training under the Ratchet from your dimension."
"Okay." I clipped the kit over the Sun Saber and walked through the groundbridge after Optimus. When we came out the other side, I paused. "Red River Gorge?"
"Pardon?" Optimus gave me a confused look.
"A place in Kentucky. My parents used to take me camping here when I was little. I can't believe it's the same as the one back home was." I looked around in awe before my optics landed on the pod, lodged in the side of the gorge. "There's the pod. A pretty precarious spot."
"Agreed." Optimus began climbing down while I used my flight thrusters to fly down in front of the pod. I saw some dusty markings and wiped away the dirt, before reading it.
"Wait, this is a sparkling pod." I looked at Optimus as his optics widened.
"Open it, quickly." he ordered, knowing from his spot and amateur flying experience, I was the one who had to do it.
I pressed the button on the control panel and a soft hiss reached my audio receptors. Mist poured out of the pod's interior before a soft cry was emitted. Once the door was all the way open and the mist cleared, my optics landed on a delicate silver femmling with a blue visor laying by her tiny peds. She looked at me with optics much like Optimus' before bursting into tears. I immediately scooped her up into my arms and cradled her to my chassis. Her wing like audio finals wiggled as I placed her tiny visor over her optics. A small bruise was forming on her protoform; most likely from the crash. As soon as I had moved away from the pod, the rock gave way and the pod fell into the Red River.
"It's a femmling." I turned to Optimus who regarded the sparkling with an almost guilty look in his optics.
"Ratchet, we require a groundbridge at arrival coordinates." Optimus said into the comm. Jet engines sounded above.
"Shit." I cursed looking up and seeing Vehicon seekers. "We need to get her out of here, quickly."
"Let's get back to the top of the ridge." Optimus began climbing while I flew with the wailing sparkling.
"She must be starving." I noted pulling a scanner out of the med kit and using it on her. "I was right. Her energon levels are dangerously low."
"How do you know so much?" Optimus asked getting into a defensive stance.
"Baby Dinobots." I stated pulling a large blanket out of my subspace and swaddling the sparkling. "Where's that Groundbridge?"
.:: On its way!::. Came the reply over the comm. The seekers opened fire on us. I turned my back to it to shield the sparkling. Pained groans escaped my bared denta as the shots hit my backstrut.
Soon a bridge opened.
"It is ours." Optimus provided cover fire while I staggered to my peds and ran while clutching the sparkling close. Her wails grew louder due to the fighting. Once the three of us were safely back in the Knight's Temenos, I stumbled to the medbay where Ratchet was busy getting it ready.
"What in Primus' name is that sound... a sparkling?" Ratchet's annoyed expression became one of concerned shock as I carefully sat on a medical berth.
"Not just any sparkling." Optimus entered the medbay. "Elita and I's."
"What?" I looked at the elder Prime in surprise. Ratchet handed me a bottle of refined energon for the sparkling. "Then shouldn't she be older?"
"No. Arreis (Aries) was sent from Cybertron as soon as she was born... when Elita was offlined." Optimus clenched his servos.
"Oh, Optimus." I breathed. "A newborn in stasis that long? She could have died! What were you thinking?"
"Avalon..." Ratchet said in a warning tone. The sparkling made soft sounds as she nursed from the bottle.
"She was just born, and you abandoned her?" I felt tears brimming in my optics.
"I did what I thought was best! Losing Elita and being left with Arreis was too much!" Optimus yelled angrily.
"Well you could at least have sent two bots with her as foster parents. Abandonment is not something to take lightly." I snarled as anger began to build. "What kind of father does that. I though Cybertronians held sparklings in reverence since they're so rare!"
"Optimus, Avalon. Enough." Ratchet tried to stop us. I handed the medic Arreis before going up to the Autobot leader and slapping him.
"Maybe it's a good thing that I cant produce a sparkling." I hissed before taking Arreis and leaving the medbay. Arreis whimpered around the bottle and I gently stroked her tiny cheek. "I'll take care of you. Just like the parent you deserve."
"Optimus..." Was all Ratchet said as I entered the main area of the ship where the rest of the Team was spending their time after their missions.
"Is that a sparkling?" Arcee was the first to notice.
"Yes. The one Optimus abandoned the day she was born. Sent off into space, alone." I nodded cradling the dozing femmling close.
"Wait, that's Arreis?" Bulkhead looked at the tiny femme in astonishment. "He told us he sent her off planet for her safety."
"The sparkling is the same size that Bumblebee was when he was a sparkling." Ultra Magnes stated.
~How do you know what size I was as a sparkling?~ the scout looked at the Commander curiously.
"I knew your creators." the mech replied before walking off. Grimlock came over and sniffed Arreis. He gave a quite chuff.
"She's Prime's." I replied. He growled. "Don't worry. Arreis will be getting the proper love and care from someone who will give her what she needs."
Grimlock nudged my shoulder before walking off.
I looked down at the sleeping sparkling and sighed. What did I just do? Shaking my helm, I went to my quarters and sat on my berth. It must have been dark out, because the lights kicked on and the whirr of the generators could be heard. I was about to lay Arreis down on my mattress when a knock sounded on the door. Rising, I opened the door and looked down to see Ratchet. Not saying anything, I moved and the medic entered the room. My door closed with a hiss and Ratchet placed his medical kit on my berth. He motioned for me to lay Arreis down, and I complied. Nothing was said between us as he unswaddled her and did a very thorough scan. A resounding bang came from the room next to mine and Ratchet sighed.
"What you said really hurt him." Ratchet didn't look at me as he repaired any injuries that weren't that important for immediate care.
"It was my emotions that took over. I've always been the mother figure back home." I sighed.
"You left a servo shaped mark on his faceplates." Ratchet deadpanned.
"Well, he shouldn't have abandoned her. No matter what his intentions were. Arreis was too young to be alone." I replied. Ratchet sighed.
"While I agree with you. You do not know the whole story." Ratchet closed his kit and reswaddled Arreis.
"Then enlighten me." I sat on the berth and crossed my arms. Ratchet picked up Arreis and sat next to me.
"I had to do an emergency removal, on the middle of the battlefield. Optimus had begged Elita to stay at the base since she was carrying the last sparkling, but she was too stubborn. Megatron was there as well, worried for his sister." I stared at the medic.
"Elita was Megatron's sister?"
"Yes. He didn't know it was Starscream who blew the hole in Elita's chassis. All fighting ceased that day as Optimus and Megatron both agreed to send Arreis off planet so she did not have to know the ravages of war. They also agreed that once the war was over, the remaining leader would search for her and raise her in the best way possible. Megatron promised Optimus that if he encountered Arreis' pod, that he was return her to her sire." Ratchet looked at the sleeping sparkling.
"So the son of a bitch isn't that evil on the inside." I scoffed.
"Only when it comes to his family and sparklings. Megatron knows that Decepticon ranks are no place for a sparkling." Ratchet gave me a pointed look.
"Damn." I vented realizing what I did. "I really fucked up then. Me and jumping to conclusions."
I rose to my peds. Ratchet followed suit and looked at Arreis in his arms.
"Go talk to him. He's really angry with himself more so than you." Ratchet placed a servo on my shoulder briefly before leaving my room with the Sparkling.
"Alright." I murmured leaving my room and going to the door that is left of mine. Taking a deep vent, I gently rapped my knuckles on the metal surface.
"Who is it?" came the reply.
"Its me. Can we talk?" I asked rubbing my arms. There was no reply as the door slid open and Optimus was standing off to the side. Silently I walked in, very away of the elder Prime staring at me. "Optimus, I..."
"Avalon, I heard everything." Optimus cut me off.
"But I'm the one who jumped to conclusions." I defended.
"That may be so, but you are right. Arreis was too young to be sent away like that. Megatron and I both realized that too late." Optimus walked over to the berth against the wall and sat down. "We were too grief stricken to think clearly as we both sent the pod off planet."
I hesitantly moved over to his side.
"I'm sorry for slapping you so hard it left a handprint." I got on my kneeplates in front of him and took his servos in mine. "I had no right as your subordinate to do that."
No response.
"I'll be in my quarters. Ratchet is watching Arreis for a little while." I made to rise and drop his servos, but they held onto mine.
"Please. Do not leave me." Optimus pulled me close and our lip plates connected. This kiss held an urgency and need I had never experienced before. As the kiss deepened, my mind became befuddled.