Chapter 1: 'She's Back'

"That.  Is.  ENOUGH!!!" yelled Overlord as he took a swipe at Springer.  His faceplate ripped off with Overlord's hand, then nothing.  The next thing he knew, he was in medical.  His faceplate had just been reattached a few mega cycles ago, but then… came the news.  Ratchet explained that many of his comrades were killed in the fight with Overlord's men.  Only he, Kup, Drift, Perceptor, and Blurr had survived.  "How long have I been out for?" he questioned.

"4 months," said Ratchet.  "Everyone thought you wouldn't make it so, I made it a priority to do what I could to get you functional again."

"How long do I have to stay in medical for?" asked Springer.

"Until I give the okay," stated Ratchet.  "Once cleared, Optimus Prime has requested that you and your team do recon missions until you are 100% combat ready.  

"Where am I at right now?" asked Springer

"Right now, you are nowhere near even being 50% ready for combat," stated Ratchet as he looked over his notes.  "I know you are not going to accept this readily, but I am not releasing you for any combat duty until you are at 100%.  Is that understood?"  Springer, begrudgingly nodded, and accepted the truth that he was really nowhere near close to even try any combat situation.  That fight with Overlord had taken too much out of him and Ratchet was only looking out for what was best for his health.

"Fine," said Springer flatly.  "But why recon missions?  Can't I just train those who want to be Wreckers?"

"You would still need to train them in a combat situation," said Ratchet.  "Even simulations would not do any good with the condition you are in right now.  Maybe in a few years, and when you are at 80%, then I may consider clearing you for combat duty."  Springer huffed, but knew that Ratchet was the best medic on Cybertron. Whatever he says… goes.

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It had been a year since Springer woke up and was at least 77% recovered.  He and his wreckers group had been placed on recon missions, each being completely uneventful.  This issue made everyone bored with each new mission rolling in for them to do.  Today, they were asked to recover an Autobot cargo ship that had been missing for 17 months, and had turned up just recently.  "How did they find the cargo ship?" asked Blurr.  "No one has been able to find it until now."

"There's an S.O.S. signal that was picked up," explained Optimus.  "Once we were able to determine the coordinance, this is what we found."  He brought up a satellite shot of the coordinance, and sure enough, there was the cargo ship; in pristine condition.  

"That's not normal," stated Kup.  

"There are no battle scars or any sign of a fight, or even any sign that a struggle occurred," said Optimus.  "By the look of thing, whatever happened to this ship, it may have happened on the inside.  I want you to not only recover the ship, but also see what happened and report it to me directly."

"We will Optimus," stated Springer as he stood up.  "We'll keep in contact and update you on our progress."  Optimus saluted them as they filed out of the briefing room.

"Looks like this is going to be one of those missions where we have no idea as to what is going on," said Blurr.

"That's why we will be locking and loading heavily for this one," said Springer as he gathered all of his weapons.

"Hold on a second lad," said Kup.  "Remember what Ratchet said.  You are not allowed to go into any combat situation."

"This isn't combat," said Springer.  "This is a recon mission where I am going to have to carry a weapon to protect myself."  Kup sighed and shook his head.

"Fine, but if Ratchet finds out, this was all your idea," he stated.  "I don't need him slagging me for your bull headedness."

"Fine," said Springer.  "Let's head out now so we can get this done and over with."  With nothing else to say, he and his Wreckers crew boarded their ship and left.

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As the hours ticked by, Springer and his crew finally came upon the ship.  Nothing was damaged on the outside and there was no sign that anyone had attacked.  "This is getting to be very unnerving," said Drift.  "I have a really bad feeling that this may be a trap."

"Until we go onboard the vessel, we won't know," stated Springer.  "Perceptor, find the docking area.  We'll set down there and spread out from there."

"I hope you're suggesting that you will remain here and guide us," said Kup, who was now worried.  He had never gone into a situation like this before, and if Ratchet heard that he let Springer do this… there would be no rest for him.

"I'll head straight to the bridge," said Springer as he loaded every ounce of ammunition he could onto his person.  "Everyone else can search the ship and see if there is anyone onboard.  Like Ratchet said, I am not allowed to go into any kind of combat until he okays me."  Everyone nodded as Perceptor set their ship down in the docking area.  "Perceptor and Kup, you two take the lower decks.  Drift and Blurr, you take the upper decks.  I'll head straight to the bridge and shut off the signal so we don't get any Decepticons crashing in."  

Kup and Perceptor headed down towards the lower decks to find them completely abandoned.  The energy to fly the ship was at 97% maximum, but no one was there.  "This is really off," stated Perceptor.  "This ship has more than enough energy to fly straight to Cybertron and still have enough to power the weapons in case of attack."

"What gets me is, where is the crew?" asked Kup.

"I really wish I had an answer for that," replied Perceptor.

On the upper decks, Drift and Blurr found pretty much the same thing as in the lower decks.  "Sounds like Perceptor and Kup found the lower decks void of anyone," said Drift, as he got off his communicator.

"This is just too weird for me," said Blurr.  "You think that if something did happen, you would have seen it somewhere on the ship."

"Let's check some of the rooms," suggested Drift.  "Someone may be hiding and may also be responsible for sending that S.O.S. out."

As Springer made his way to the bridge, he kept feeling as if something was wrong.  He came across and checked many rooms on his way up, making sure that no one would jump out and harm him.  That would be fun trying to explain why he is injured on this mission.  Regardless of the issue, the real problem that nagged at him was why was there no one onboard?  Nothing was wrong with the ship.  There was plenty of energy to fly it to Cybertron.  Nothing was making sense.  Finally making it to the bridge, he entered the room cautiously.  "Good.  No one is here," he thought aloud.  Stepping over to the consul to shut off the signal, he suddenly found himself being slammed against the farthest wall, his arms and legs bound by some energon rope, and his communicator jammed.  "What the slag?!?!?!"

"Didn't your creators teach you better manors?" spoke a female voice.  Springer's optics darted around the room, trying to pinpoint where the voice came from.

"Who's there," he demanded.  "Show yourself!"

"I guess not," spoke the female voice again.   Springer looked up to find one of the ceiling panels sliding over, and a bot jumping down.  Looking a little closer, he realized…

"Arcee?" he gasped.

"I'm surprised that you remembered me," she stated.

"Arcee… how the… when did… what the slag is going on?" he asked.

"I'm glad you asked me," said Arcee with a devilish smirk.  "I'm sure that you remember hearing that I got stuck in that dimension with Jhiaxus, right?"  Springer only glowered at her.  "Well, Jhiaxus was able to get away from me and was able to reenter this dimension.  I followed him and I was able to reenter as well.  Sadly, he got away from me, and now I'm trying to locate him again.  Do you happen to know where he is?"

"How would I know," grumbled Springer.  "I was out for 6 months after the fight with Overlord, and it's only been a year since then that I've been functional enough to work."

"Oh," said Arcee solemnly.  "Then I have been gone much longer than I thought."

"What do you want with me?" asked Springer.

"Actually, this trap that you are in, it was supposed to be for Jhiaxus," said Arcee.  "You just got in the way is all."

"Then, would you mind letting me go?" asked Springer, as his patience was wearing thin.

"No," cooed Arcee.  "You know, I learned a lot about myself when I was in that dimension."

"Let me guess, you learned that you are crazy and need to be slagged as soon as possible," growled Springer.

"No," cooed Arcee again.  "I learned that I can reproduce.  But, there is a problem.  I need a mech to donate a part of himself to me."  Springer knew where this was leading.

"Don't you even think about it you-," he began, but was cut off by some energon rope wrapping itself around his mouth.

Too late," grinned Arcee.  "I already have chosen who I will take."  Springer began to struggle, but from where he was at, no one would hear his calls.

As Drift and Blurr searched the countless rooms, they found no one.  "This is just too creepy for me," said Blurr.  "Someone must still be here to have activated that S.O.S."

"I know, but we've searched through so many rooms on this ship and have found no one," said Drift.  "Let me contact Perceptor and see if they found anything.  Hey Perceptor, have you and Kup found anything yet?"

"Nothing," said Perceptor.  "We've been through every deck in the lower part of this vessel and have found no sign or trace of anyone.  It's like they just abandoned the ship for no reason."

"But the escape pods are still here," interjected Kup.

"The escape pods are still on the ship?" questioned Blurr.

"Then the crew has to be somewhere on this ship," said Drift.  "Blurr and I will keep looking around the upper decks.  You and Perceptor start the engines up and get this ship ready to fly to Cybertron."

"Will do," said Kup.  "By the way, have you heard anything from Springer yet?"

"No," said Drift.  "He's most likely turned the signal off and is trying to figure out how to fly this ship."

"Well, if he doesn't contact anyone of us in an hour, I suggest we go check on him," said Kup.

"Okay," said Drift.  "I'll also let you know that when we find someone, we'll give you a call."

"Roger that," said Kup.  "Alright Perceptor, let's get these engines up and running so we can get out of here."  Perceptor nodded and got straight to work getting the engines online within the hour.

A half an hour passed as no one still heard from Springer.  Up in the bridge, Arcee finally finished up what she had done.  "Now that wasn't so bad, was it," she smirked.  Springer was almost unconscious from the ordeal and his body was having trouble recovering.  What Arcee had done to him, made his temper rise rapidly.  "If it helps any, once I'm gone and far from this ship, you will be released from your restraints.  If I do have any offspring, the next time we meet, I will let you know."  Arcee tried to tease Springer a little before leaving the bridge, but all it did was piss him off even further at her.  With no more words to speak, she left the bridge and made her way to the escape pods, and left.

Back on the upper decks, Drift found the meeting room, but it was jammed.  "Hey Blurr, give me a hand with this," he called out.

"Sure," nodded Blurr as the two pried open the doors.  Once there was enough room for them to fit through, Drift turned the lights on to find a massive pile of mechs, laying in the middle of the room.  Each was brutally killed… by hand.  "That's it!  We are calling Optimus and telling him to bring a team out here, NOW!"

"I'm heading to the bridge to see if Springer is okay," said Drift as he ran out of the room toward the bridge.  By this time, Arcee was no long gone, deactivating the trap that held Springer.  As he fell to the floor, he caught himself, angry that Arcee had defiled him like that.  Knowing that he would have to carry on as if nothing happened in front of his team, he picked himself up, and went about his duties, getting the ship ready to fly to Cybertron.  Shutting off the S.O.S. signal and figuring out how to fly the ship, Drift came barging in.  "Springer, there is a pile of dead Autobots in the meeting room!  We need to contact Optimus Prime about this!"

Springer tried his best to act surprised and called Optimus for medical back-up.  "It will take too long to get a medical team out there," explained Optimus.  "Have your men check for any Autobots that may still be alive.  Fly the cargo ship here and we'll have a medical staff standing by."

"Understood Optimus," said Springer.  "We'll be there within the hour.  Over and out."

"Is something wrong Springer?" asked Drift, feeling that something was amiss with his friend.
"It's nothing Drift," said Springer calmly.

"But Springer, you look like you have no energy left," he said, concerned for his ally.

"Drift, don't worry about me," said Springer calmly.  "What I need you to focus on now is seeing if any of those Autobots are still online."  Drift really didn't want to just leave, but it was an order.

"Yes Springer," said Drift with a quick salute.  "Just promise me you'll see Ratchet when we get back to Cybertron."

"Okay Drift," answered Springer, still deep in though.  "I'll speak with him when we get back." Drift sighed, relieved that he promised to speak with the head M.O. about his energy issue, and left to help search for any survivors.

As Springer landed the ship in the docking area, Drift and Perceptor reported to Ultra Magnus that there were no survivors aboard the vessel.  "Every Autobot was slaughtered?" asked Ultra Magnus, unable to comprehend what the two were telling him.

"That's right sir," said Perceptor.  "It's as if whoever did this had gone mad."

"This almost reminds me of Arcee's work," muttered Magnus as he watched each mutilated body being brought out on stretchers.

"But, isn't Arcee trapped in a dimension somewhere with Jhiaxus?" asked Perceptor.

"A dimension where you only exist," spoke Magnus solemnly.  "That's the last I heard about those two.  If this is her work though, then Jhiaxus is back as well."

"And he is still wanted for his crimes in genetics," confirmed Perceptor.

"Well, this is turning out better and better," grumbled Blurr.  "Knowing that those two are back, we're going to have a bigger problem than the Decepticons themselves."

"I remember hearing about her," spoke Drift.  "She tore up so many galaxies looking for Jhiaxus to slag him.  If he got away from her, then she's going to go tear up the galaxies again to finish the job."

"I'm going to go put out an "All Points Bulletin" so other Autobots can be warned about her possibility being back.  And if anyone sees her, to not engage her, but call for help."  As Ultra Magnus walked off to warn everyone, Blurr looked around.

"Hey… where's Springer?" he asked.  "I haven't seen him since we landed on the cargo ship."

"I asked him to go see Ratchet," said Drift.  "When I saw him on the bridge, he looked really drained."

"That's a little off for him," said Kup as he walked up.  "He looked just fine when we started this recon mission."

"I know, but maybe something's on his mind," suggested Drift.

"Well, whatever the reason, he's should be fine," said Kup.  "He survived getting his face ripped off by Overlord.  He's going to have no problem pulling through this energy problem."  Kup's words eased everyone's mind, and they went about getting paid for the mission.

Over in medical, Ratchet had just completed a scan of Springer.  "Other than just being exhausted, you are just fine," said Ratchet as he looked over his notes.  "You also seem agitated according to the scan.  Is something on your mind?"  Springer sighed heavily, but knew that he had to get what happened off his chest and soon.

"Ratchet, could you keep a secret for me?" he asked.

"Sure," answered Ratchet, setting the data pad down.  "What's up?"

"Something… happened on that ship," said Springer.  "Yeah, I know about the body count.  That's going to take me at least a few days to sort out."

"It's not that," said Springer.  "It's something a lot more personal."

"Okay," said Ratchet, trying to figure out what he was trying to get at.  "What then is it?"

"Arcee was on that ship," said Springer.  Ratchet didn't even know what to say to that.

"Arcee is back?" asked Ratchet, trying to comprehend what he just heard.

"Yeah," said Springer.  "She's back and so is Jhiaxus.  But there is something much deeper that I really need to tell you."  Ratchet took a seat and leaned in to hear what he had to say.  "Apparently, Arcee can reproduce.  Well… that is what she told me."  Only a blank stare fell over Ratchet's face.  He could not believe what he was hearing.

"Did she say anything else to you?" asked Ratchet, still in shock.

"Yeah," replied Springer.  "She said, 'If I do have any offspring, the next time we meet, I will let you know'.  So, if you find a sparkling with Arcee's CNA, you know it's most likely going to be mine."

"Sweet Primus," said Ratchet as he rubbed his hand across his face.  "This isn't good.  If that sparkling is born the chances of it surviving with her around is practically 0%."

"All I can say is this, Primus have mercy on that child," said Springer.  Ratchet signed and came to a conclusion.

"Springer, you know that I will have to tell Ultra Magnus and Optimus about Arcee's return," said Ratchet.  "But, I will only say that you were attacked by her, knocked out, and have no memory of what happened after.  That way no one will know about what she did to you."

"I appreciate it Doc," said Springer, placing a hand on Ratchet's shoulder.

"Just take it easy for right now," ordered Ratchet.  "I'll place you on light duty for a while and come back in about 2 months.  We'll see how you're doing and if things go well, I'll place you back on regular duty, with the exception of fighting."

"I can live with that," said Springer.  

"Good," said Ratchet.  "I'll report to Ultra Magnus and Optimus Prime about Arcee.  Anything else is patient confidentiality."  Springer smiled, knowing that the M.O. would keep this under his helm, and left to report to his boss to get paid for his mission.