Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Here’s the thing:  Bumblebee really liked recharge.  It was, he told himself, one weakness he could allow himself to have, and he guarded it zealously.  If a member of his team decided to disturb him for some non-battle related reason (Bulkhead throwing a lobbing ball at the wall opposite his berth; Smokescreen, most recently, literally barging into his berthroom to show him some Earth-rodent that had nibbled on the sports car’s tires) they were treated to his speciality:  a half-blurred, staticky, barely comprehensible rant in angry binary, starting with the wish that they would leave him alone but inevitably wandering off to other, less understandable topics-- like the deep injustice that out of all the berths they had, not one of them had spaces for his doorwings, forcing to lie on his abdominal plating, and he hated lying on his abdominal--

The bot usually made the wise choice, muttering an apology (Bulkhead) or simply backing away (Smokescreen).  Bumblebee always felt vaguely guilty later, but when compared to the sensation of being jerked from a pleasant recharge, he felt the guilt was preferable.  

Bumblebee really liked recharge.  But, he had to admit, he didn’t like it enough to go out and yell at the last mech he could have expected to wake him from it-- Optimus himself.

His Prime was standing at the control center, speaking to someone through the screen.  As Bee poked his head around the corner, Optimus repeated the thing which had jolted Bumblebee awake.  

He laughed.

Admittedly, it was a short laugh, and Optimus quickly schooled his faceplates back into neutrality after, but it still came out so alien- sounding on his leader’s vocalizer that Bumblebee let out a low whirr of shock.

Luckily, whoever it was Optimus was talking to-- Optimus was talking to someone, secretly, what was going on-- spoke at the same time Bumblebee did, and the Prime didn’t notice him.

“Yes, sir,” the bot was saying, “he really did.  The mech’s got a cracked processor--”

“Hey!” a second voice protested.  “It wasn’t my fault--”

“Despite that little oversight,” a third voice interjected, “we were able to quickly correct--”

“ Quickly correct,” the first bot grumbled.

“Moderately quickly correct,” the third bot amended, “and stay on top of the situation.”

A fourth voice jumped in, and Bumblebee shuttered his optics-- how many bots was Optimus talking to?  But if he asked himself that question, it would lead to others-- like who was his Prime was speaking to, and why was he doing it now, secretively, when everyone else was recharging?

“Thank you for checking in on us, Optimus Prime,” the fourth bot was saying.  “I know you’re busy.”

Optimus smiled slightly, and Bumblebee saw the same surprisingly tender expression that his leader sometimes wore while looking at Bee himself.  “You are welcome, Rescue Bots,” he said, inclining his helm slightly at the screen.  “I am glad to hear that you are functioning well on Griffin Rock.”

The two unexpected pieces of information burst into Bumblebee’s audio receptors, and his scouting protocols automatically sequestered them away in separate files for later perusal.  While this happened, Optimus exchanged more words with the mysterious mecha-- Rescue Bots-- and closed the connection.

He stood in front of the screen for a few kliks after, venting evenly, and from the look on his faceplating, thinking.  Before Bumblebee’s optics, he seemed to relax himself into an attitude he never allowed his team to see.  It was vulnerable, and achingly tired.

Bee felt suddenly disgusted with himself, standing behind a wall and watching his leader while the Prime thought himself alone.  He stepped out into view.

::Optimus,: : he said.

His Prime’s helm jerked into awareness, and he turned toward Bumblebee.  His optics widened as he took in the sight of the scout standing there.  Before he could speak, Bumblebee did.

::I. . . woke from recharge,:: he said, stepping closer to Optimus.  He hesitated, his scout programming recognizing the fact that he was speaking to a superior officer and offering the audio files to report.  He pushed the notifications aside.   ::You called them Rescue Bots.::

Optimus ex-vented.  “Yes, Bumblebee.”

He didn’t doubt his Prime.  He would never doubt him.  But he had to ask.   ::Why are they a secret?::

“For. . . many reasons,” his leader said.  “It was thought that Rescue Bots were no more, having been massacred during the war for Cybertron.”

He paused, perhaps expecting the scout to ask a question.  Bumblebee did not.  He tilted his helm to the side and waited for his leader to continue.

“They. . . recently came to Earth,” Optimus said.  “And. . . and I. . .” He hesitated again, shaking his helm.  “I should have brought them here.  It would have been four more bots that we need, desperately, but I. . .” He ex-vented again.  “I could not.  They are Rescue Bots, not warriors.  And they do not deserve a place in this war.”

::You didn’t tell the team because they would want them here,:: Bumblebee guessed.   ::Ratchet would want them here.  Fighting.::

Optimus nodded slowly.  “Will you also keep this to yourself, Bumblebee?  Until the time comes when I decide it is right to tell our whole team.”

There was never any question.   ::I will.::

“I am thankful.”  Optimus straightened up, and Bee could hear his cables straining with tension.  “Forgive me for waking you from recharge, Bumblebee.  You may return to your berth, if you wish.”

::What about you?:: Bee couldn’t help blurting out the question, and the words came out a screech in the binary.  He winced.  He’d had millenia to get used to the new vocoder, but it still managed to surprise him in unpleasant ways.

“I have nearly finished my duties for the night,” Optimus said, “and then I will recharge.”

Bumblebee knew he should argue.  His Prime was undoubtedly only telling him this so that Bee would go back to his berthroom and resume recharging-- Optimus wasn’t planning on doing it tonight.  The memory of his leader looking so horribly, pitifully tired flashed in his vision.  There was ample reason to argue with him, to try and convince him to go recharge.

But he didn’t argue.  He said, ::Yes sir,:: and turned around and went to his berthroom and powered down.  And when he awoke the next day, he didn’t speak of the incident at all.

___________________________________________________

::Anything new happening at your school?:: Bee asked, speeding a little around a curve in the way he knew Raf liked.  He expected his little human friend to tell him something involving math or its strange cousin, algebra.   Bumblebee never really understood when Raf talked about these things, but he supposed it was even-- Raf didn’t quite comprehend the war stories Bumblebee told him, either, and they still managed to get along very well.

What he didn’t expect was for the readings he was casually keeping on Raf’s vital signs to spike dramatically.  Bumblebee cursed, slammed on his brakes, and spun off into an empty parking lot.   ::Are you okay?!::

“Whoa, Bee-- what?”   Raf gasped, trying to fix his glasses.  “What do you mean?  What’s wrong?”

::Your pulse!  Spark-beat, or whatever it’s called!  It went up!  Way up!:: Bee knew he couldn’t transform, not while he was still in the town, but he wanted nothing more than to have access to his servos and hold Raf, make sure he was okay. . . ::Are you sick?  Hurt?  Oh, Primus, is it the Dark Energon again?::

“Bee, Bee, I’m fine!”  Raf held up his hands.  “Not dying.”

Bumblebee’s venting slowed.  Cautiously, he ran another scan on his friend.  The pulse was lowered somewhat, but adrenaline levels were up.  Bee took a moment to use a human search engine-- Google it was called, he thought-- and find out what that meant.  He determined, with a feeling of relief, that adrenaline only meant Raf was nervous.  But that still didn’t explain. . . ::Why did your pulse jump when I asked you how things were at your school?::

Raf chuckled awkwardly.  “Well. . . ah, I guess I should probably tell you, huh?”

::Um. . . that would be nice?::

“Don’t laugh.”

::I won’t!::   Now Bee was curious.   ::What is it, Raf?::

“There’s, um, there’s this, ah. . . this girl?  In my algebra class.”  Now Raf’s faceplates were turning pinkish red.  “I kinda. . . kinda like her.  Like, like her, like her.  She’s, she’s, ah, really smart?”

::Ohhh. . .:: Bee whirred, his chassis nearly vibrating with inheld excitement.   ::That’s so exciting!  Are you going to spark-bond with her?::

“Like. . . marry?”

::Spark-bond!::

“If that means what I think it means, then no,” Raf said.

::Aww.::

Raf chuckled.  “Sorry to scare you, Bee.  Maybe, um, we could go now?”

::Oh.  Yeah, okay.::   Bee pulled out of the parking lot and back out onto the road.   ::Sorry for freaking out,:: he said sheepishly.

“Don’t worry about it,” Raf said, smiling.  “Guardian-- that’s what you’re supposed to do, right?”

They drove in peaceful silence for a few kliks until Raf spoke up again.  “Bee, I don’t know everything about Cybertronian customs, but did. . . you ever like someone?  Like, like someone?”

Bumblebee let his engine hum pensively.   ::Well, I was one of the last mecha out of the Well, and by the time I was past sparkling-- ah, child-- um, youth. . .::

“Yeah,” Raf said, indicating he understood what Bee was trying to convey.

::Well, by then, there was a war going on in earnest.  There wasn’t any time for. . . for relationships.  It’s called a spark-bond,:: he added, by way of explanation.  Passing the town’s limits, he sped up as he reached open road.   ::Everyone else on Team Prime is already bonded.  Arcee was bonded twice.  Smokescreen. . . I don’t know if he is.  But it doesn’t really matter.  Ever since I was sparked, I’ve never met someone I’d want to do it with.::

“But if you did meet someone?”

::Maybe.::   He clicked out his version of a laugh.   ::Gottta meet someone first!::

They talked about other things the rest of the way to the base, but Bee found it hard to get Raf’s question out of his mind.

_________________________________________________

It was a lune later-- according to the Earth calender, one month--  that Raf called from across the base that a mysterious comet was falling from the sky.

“It could be a Cybertronian escape pod,” the boy said, squinting at the screen.  “Or something. . . worse.”

::Where is it headed?::   Bee asked, hurrying over to where Raf sat.  In a strange happenstance, Ratchet was not at the base, delegating ground bridge duty to Bumblebee’s young friend.  Raf was inordinately proud of himself-- it had taken lunes (months) to learn enough about the ground bridge that Ratchet trusted him with it.  Bee didn’t feel like crushing his happiness by pointing out that Ratchet had also left Bumblebee at the base to help Raf if anything went wrong.

Raf turned around to watch Bee arrive.  “From what I can tell, it’s not heading toward any major cities,” he said.  “Let me triangulate the. . . umm. . .” His voice trailed off as he focused on his computer.

::It looks like it’s heading toward an island,:: Bumblebee said.

“Mm-hmm,” Raf murmured, his tiny human fingers moving so quickly that Bumblebee reset his optics, unsure if his processor was glitching and showing him the action in double-time.  “Hold on, Bee. . . okay.  It looks like the meteor landed on a little island called Griffin Rock.”

Bee stiffened.  The name clicked with the audio file he still had of Optimus saying the words, as if to tell him again that yes, it was the same thing.

“. . . because everyone else is on a mission?” Raf was saying.  Bee pushed the audio file away and tried to focus on his friend.   ::What?:: he asked.

Raf looked at him strangely.  “Should we call Ratchet or Optimus and tell them?”

Bumblebee was used to making up his mind quickly; war made swift decisions necessary.   ::No, send me.::

“Bee, what?!” Raf said.  “All by yourself?  Is that a good idea?”

::If the meteor’s dangerous, we can’t wait for help.  You know how to work the ground bridge, and I won’t take long.:: He offered Raf his version of a grin.   ::Just another scouting mission.::

Raf was smart.  He could obviously tell that Bee was hiding something.  But after all the time they’d spent together, Raf also trusted him.  He nodded.  “Okay.”

Bumblebee helped him a bit with the ground bridge (mostly so he could feel useful) and stood at the base of the swirling green tunnel.  Turning to face Raf, he waved, said ::Be right back, promise,:: and walked through.

Chapter Text

Bumblebee landed on the solid ground as he stepped out of the ground bridge. As the vortex closed behind him, the young scout began to check his surroundings. He was on what appeared to be a foggy island that was devoid of human inhabitants. Bumblebee began to walk towards the source of the meteor.

As Bumblebee kept marching past the tall trees, he kept himself on constant guard. The gray fog covering the area made the scout feel extra cautious. He made sure his weapons were on standby. The last thing he needed was for the Cons to discover the meteor and get there before he could. He felt as if a group of vehicons was about to jump on the scout.

Especially since it landed so close to the island called “Griffin Rock”, the place where Optimus had a group of Rescue Bots living there.

Rescue Bots.

Bumblebee was never involved with them whatsoever. But like many noble Cybertronians, he admired what they stood for. In the time of the War of Cybertron, Rescue Bots were the proud middle ground of the conflict. They both sought to save and rescue Autobots, Cons, and citizens.

But their role of neutrality ended bitterly when Megatron decided it would be best to eliminate all Rescue Bots. Millions of sparks were shot and extinguished. He and all Autobots mourned over their deaths, and many vowed to bring vengeance.

But now that he knew that there were still living Rescue Bots. It gave him a small glimmer of hope for their future. As long as Megatron never knew of them.

Suddenly Bumblebee paused when his tracking device began to beep. Four unknown Cybertronian life forms were now on the island with him. By the way they were moving, it seemed they have headed the same direction the meteor was.

Bumblebee was prepared to thrash these cons. After following their signal for a while, he could finally hear their heavy footsteps. He climbed up one of the trees to see if he could spot them secretly. It might have caused some leaves to fall, but he made sure to make zero movements.

He could hear them right under him, so he quickly leaped over to another tree. And then another, just to get a good shot of these foes. But he finally noticed that these Cybertronians were not vehicons.

It was then he realized his presence was known, as one bot muttered: “Someone’s here.” He leaped in front of the tree Bumblebee hid on top of with searing bravery.

Know that running away was futile, the scout landed out of the tree and into the group in front of him. It took him less than a minute to realize that he finally met the Rescue Bots.

—————-

“It’s...it’s Bumblebee. It’s an honor.”

The two mechs grasped servos as a sign of greeting.

“I’m Heatwave” the fire truck mech greeted.

“Boulder.” Said the great shorter bot.

“And I am Chase, we have all heard many stories about you.”

Bumblebee held a bubble of excitement. These bots seemed to be around his age, so it made him feel less young. But he held his composure, for he could tell the Rescue Bots looked up to him.

:: Well it is nice to meet you too::

The first thing Bee realized was that all bots had their own human companions. But they seemed to have a connection to each other.

The second thing that Bumblebee realize was…

Bumblebee stopped himself for a second.

The last Rescue Bot before him seemed to be the most interesting. He was clearly a mech, though if he was a bit skinnier and had a less masculine voice, he could easily be mistaken for a fragile femme.

But by Primus was he cute.

Bumblebee then quickly walked over to the orange bot, who seemed to be speaking to his human allies. When he finally noticed the scout, Bumblebee gave a casual greeting of “hello there.”

But the bot’s response was so adorable. Or as Niko puts it, “kawaii.”

The cute bot was so starstruck that he accidentally greeted himself as Bumblebee. When he tried to correct it, he covered his face in blushing shame until the child of the group corrected him. He finally introduced himself as Blades.

Strange name for such a cute Mech.

Bumblebee turned around and faced the rest of the group.

:: I am glad to finally meet you Rescue Bots.::

He informed the group of his reason for coming to the island. It turns out they were also searching for the meteor. So it was decided that Bumblebee would accompany them to the location of the meteor.

Hm. Mr. Bee has a nice ring to it.

And thus, and a new group was formed.

—————-

Bumblebee, Heatwave, Chase, Boulder, and the Burns family walked throughout the forest. Blades was traveling with his companion by air. It seemed rather odd. Autobots never really had flight alts. The only Cybertronians who did were the-

Bumblebee shook his helm. He did not want to think of those brutes. Especially seeing how different the Rescue Bots were from Team Prime.

But judging by the fact that Blades kept bumping into treetops, made him think he chose the alt mode as a last minute resort.

Bumblebee decided to walk a bit of a distance from the group, secretly keeping an optic out for any possible Decepticons attacks.

He heard the sound of a helicopter whirling. Turning his helm he saw the orange and white mech himself. He seemed to pull out a rope with a hook and getting a bit too close to the-

“Bumblebee, grab onto my widge and-”

Blades didn't have time to finish for his hook got latched onto a tree. Resulting in the helicopter to be flying in circles. All the while screaming in distress, while his partner was struggling to be unhooked.

Bumblebee quickly ran up the tree that had ensnared the two.

:: It’s ok, I got you.::

He unhooked the widge from the tree, setting both of them free. Blades flew back into the air, confirming that he and Danni were safe.

Danni let out a sigh of relief.

Blades, however, was not as satisfied with being released.

“I can’t believe I did that! My one chance to work with a legend!” Blades howled in defeat.

:: Hey don’t worry about it:: Bumblebee beeped happily, as he climbed down the tree:: Some days you do the Rescuing, some days you get rescued.::

—————-

The rest of the team had finished inspecting the meteor. It was not dangerous or held anything that the Cons would want. Seeing that there was no reason to be concerned, they decided to meet at the boat.

Bumblebee was glad to at least go on a mission where no cons tried to take him out. Well, technically this wasn’t an assigned mission since neither Ratchet or Optimus-

Oh, Scrap!

Bumblebee realized he left Raf alone at Base. Even after promising to be back before the rest of the team did. It’s been hours, no doubt that his leader returned not too long ago. Oh he was in so much trouble.

Bumblebee turned to Blades, trying to not show any signs of panic.

:: Hey Blades, do you think you can come back with you guys? I need to check in with Optimus.::

“Yes,” Blades peeped, “I think.”

Blades turned to Chief Burns.

“Can Bumblebee come back with us? He wants to us our com screen to check in with Optimus Prime.”

“Of course, glad to have you.” Chief Burns responded.

“Check in?” Chase began “Optimus is aware of your presence here is he not?”

The yellow scout flushed in embarrassment.

:: Weeeelllll….Not...Exactly.::

Chase looked down towards Kade to translate what he said.

Kade just responded with a snarky “Thanks. I got that one.”

Chapter Text

Bumblebee luckily was able to communicate with his leader without getting a loud bashing from Ratchet. In fact, only Optimus was at the base by himself, seeing that Ratchet was forced to drive a poor Raf who had just confessed about the scout running off without permission. This did allow Optimus to have the base to himself.

Prime did feel disappointed in Bumblebee’s departure, but he was relieved to hear the meteor was not dangerous.

The scout was then requested to stay with the Rescue team for a little while, so he could observe how the team functioned and how they worked with humans. Bee was excited to learn more of the team as well, so he agreed. Plus by the time he got back, maybe Ratchet would forget to nag on him for leaving Raf alone.

Before the call could end, Heatwave gave a noticeable cough to get Optimus’s attention.

“Optimus sir” Heatwave started “If any openings come up on your team…?”

The Prime interrupted the Rescue Bot before he could continue his question.

“Thank you for your continued interest Heatwave. Rescue Bots, Good luck.”

And with that, the call ended, with Heatwave giving a defeated sigh. Was that Rescue Bot wanting to join Team Prime? Did he even know of the Decepticons? The War? He figured to stay quiet about it.

Bumblebee was suddenly surrounded with Rescue Bots, as well as their human friend Cody. Each one wanting to be able to spend time with the scout.

Blades asked if he wanted to watch tv, and maybe karaoke?

Heatwave suggested they head to workout area and spar for a bit.

Chase requested they go over human law protocols or something along those lines.

Boulder seemed eager to show Bumblebee around Griffin Rock.

And Cody wanted to show off his go-kart.

Before Bumblebee could make a decision, the communication hub buzzed and the image of Chief Burns flashing on screen to inform the group of a recent event. The Police Chief said that there was a wall that was giving out and at risk of falling down a cliffside and onto the houses below.

Blades turned to the scout with beaming excitement“This is the perfect chance for you to see what we can do.” Bumblebee tried to cover the feeling of blush started to form beneath his faceplates. Blades was just too adorable, how could oe like him stay like this throughout these years?

The Chief, however, made the recommendation of he watching for a distance with Cody. Bumblebee had to agree with that. While he was on board with helping others, it would be an inconvenience to explain to the rest of Griffin Rock of why he was here. Plus, Optimus ordered him to observe the Rescue Bots, and the last thing he wanted to disobey the Prime twice in one day.

The Rescue Bots then transformed and rolled out. Or by how Heatwave put it, “Roll to the Rescue!” That’s a good tagline, maybe someday Bee could have one.

—————-

Bumblebee did as he was told and watched the 4 bots hold the wall in place. They were something to been seen. Despite how different they were in personality, they worked seamlessly in the end. Same could be said for their human partners, who were currently trying to use girders and cement to secure the wall.

He then turned to Cody

::They make a pretty good team, don’t they?::

Unfortunately, Cody couldn’t understand what he was saying. (Sigh) What did he expect? So the scout gave the human gesture of a thumb up and Cody finally understood. Cody reminded him a lot of Raf. Not by intelligence, but by enthusiasm and kindness. He wondered what he was doing right now?

But his train of thought (another human term) was interrupted by the sound of an uncomfortable grunt. Bee and Cody turned towards the screen to see in surprise as Boulder suddenly dropped a girder and transformed to his alt mode.

But he didn’t do it on purpose.

Not even a minute later did Heatwave do the same thing. Releasing his hold on the collapsing wall. With Chase following after.

The only one holding the wall now was Blades, and by the looks of it, he couldn’t hold on for much longer.

Without any hesitation, Bee made his way out of the firehouse, transformed, and drove quickly to the group’s location. Cody came along, sitting his passenger seat. They were in trouble and they needed help and fast.

After zooming down the roadway as fast as he could, he finally made it to their location. In one swift move, Bee drove over a pile of debris like a ramp, jumped over the group, and transformed. He grabbed a girder and leaned it against the wall, holding the wall in place and saving Blades. That was a close one, thank Primus he made it in time.

But Blades didn’t seem to be as happy with being rescued for the second time today, as seen by his sad tone and his optics staring at the ground on defeat.

Bee transformed to let Cody out of the passenger seat. The boy ran out towards the now transformed bots with searing panic and concern.

“Guys, what happened”

Heatwave grumbl,ed “I wish I knew.”

“Let’s head back to the station” Chief Burns stat,ed “We’ll figure it out there.”

Graham, however, suggested that Bumblebee and Blades place in more girders to keep the wall secure. Bee transformed back to normal mode and beeped “On it.”

The two bots then walked towards the pile of girders and placed them under the wall. the team was then ready to head back to base. But what struck the scout as odd was that they didn’t leave immediately, as if something was preventing the Bots from driving on their own. Eventual,ly they did drive back, but they were moving like normal cars instead of robots in disguise.

Bee was going to question it, but at the moment as he drove back, he was worried for Blades. If he was a few kilks late, Blades would have been crushed by that wall and he could have joined the well of Allsparks early, as well as accidentally harm innocent bystanders. He was going to ask if Blades was okay but given by his now saddened mood, it seemed he wasn’t in the mood to talk. What was making him so sad? He was alive and okay, and not stuck in Alt Mode like his allies.

Was it because of him? Was it about Bumblebee?

—————-

By the time they got back to base, the humans were left in shock and horror.

On the drive back, the bots just...froze. They couldn’t speak, couldn’t control themselves, all was left was their still faces on their inner screens.

Blades though it was a prank at first, and tried to joke about it. But after a moment of nothing but dead silence, Blades realized they were not pulling anyone’s stabilizing servos.

Kade said what everyone was think.

“They’re just cars.”

Cody tried to deny this fact. Bumblebee felt his spark drop.

Graham then asked a question that hasn’t come to the scout’s processor.

“Why is Blades the only one who hasn’t been inflicted?”

Bee gave a shrug in confusion. He had no idea.

Cody then broke the silence with a realization.

“The Meteor!” the boy shouted as he turned towards Bee and Blades. “You two were up on the ridge while the others were down below!”

“There must've been something in that green dust?” Danni followed.

Suddenly Bumblebee got an idea.

::Maybe Optimus will know what to do?::

Blades translated the scout with concern.

They quickly headed to the communication room.

—————-

After explaining the situation to their leader (Who was currently alone at the t base, after communicating with Rachet of it) Optimus spoke of the matter. It turns out that meteor’s green dust contained a virus that caused the Bots to freeze in place and unable to move. What a scary thought.

“Blades?”Optimus turned towards the helicopter “Your Rescue Ship carried the antidote in its emergency response inventory.”

The Prime then held up a disk into view of the screen.

“Contained in a disk similar to these.”

“I know where those are” Blades whispered in growing excitement “We still have them!”

But the Prime had more to say.

“First we must know the precise cause of the paralysis. Using the wrong treatment could prove fatal.”

Cody then spoke up.

“We think it was some kind of microbe the meteor picked up in space.”

Optimus stared at the boy. Not in a harsh of frightening way, but in a way showed he was curious. It seemed this was the first time he had spoken or seen Cody. He showed gratitude in the fact that he was teaching the Rescue Bots the way of Earth. Bumblebee felt himself smile slightly, Prime was always the one to stand up for the little guy. Maybe it was because he was so big?

Cody beamed with pride after Optimus gave his thanks, Chief Burns put a hand on his son’s back to show how proud he was.

Optimus then turned towards the scout.

“Bumblebee” He began “Work with Chief Burns and his team to assure that the meteor is completely destroyed. We must prevent the same thing from happening to other Autobots. Either by accident...Or by those wishing to do us harm.”

Bumblebee gulped at what the Prime was implying. If the meteor's dust spreads back to Jasper, all of Team Prime would be frozen in place, unable to move. Or worse, if Megatron or any Decepticon were able to get a hold on it, and use it as a weapon?

“Time is of the essence, the longer the Bots are paralyzed, the higher the likelihood, they may remain that way forever.”

It would be the end of everything.

—————-

The situation just got so much worse. Now the 3 rescue bots were completely immobile and they were covered in gray and green moss.

Blades said it best. “The Virus is progressing, there’s no time left to lose.”

The Burns looked over the disk’s Blades acquired from the Rescue Ship, unsure of which one was the correct antidote.

Bee was getting worried. Not just for the Rescue Bots, but for his team. Who knows if Soundwave managed to intersect the radiation of the meteor. Honestly, he didn’t want to wait and find out.

The first plan of action was to determine which antidote had the closest properties of the meteor. In order to do that, they had to head back to the meteor and get a sample, while destroying it in the process.

“I’ll go” Blades volunteered “I can get off the island quickly.”

But Chief Burns was largely against it, fearing that the helicopter would end up just like the rest of his team. He was to stay here with Bee and Cody.

Bumblebee retaliated instantly. He turned to Blades as he spoke.

:: I have to go! Optimus told me to work with the team and the meteor is a threat to all Autobots.::

Blades translated the scout’s plea, adding a small sly tone to emphasis the Prime’s words.

Chief Burns had to let him help. Under the instructions that Bee stays on the boat at all times.

Bee could do that.

With the weather reports of winds increasing and them heading to the states, there was no time to lose.

Cody however still wanted to comfort his now frozen bot friends, even though it was unsure if they could hear or not.

—————-

They boarded the boat and sailed as quickly as they could towards the island. Bee tried to hide his fear by every time he felt the wind few through his system, the more he feared for his team. How long has the wind been blowing? How far does it go to? Did the cons get the attention of it? Was his team safe? Question after question kept flowing through his helm.

He was glad that at least Blades was back on Griffin Rock, safe for now.

Graham then informed the Bumblebee of his assignment. He was to find the meteor, obtain a small sample, and then plant the explosive device with the timer. Seems simple enough.

But of course, the mission couldn’t go as smoothly as he wished.

The currents were uncontrollable and the ship was heading towards a reef. The boat crashed into the reef of rocks, stopping the ship and knocking Graham off the boat and into the waves. The waves were so strong that he was struggling to keep his head up. Danni threw a life raft his wave, but he was swept away by another current.

Bumblebee knew what he had to do. He grabbed a rope and jumped into the water to retrieve the drowning human. But the rope wasn’t long enough, and Graham was getting deeper. Bumblebee had no choice but to let go of the rope. As fast as he could, he grabbed the human and tossed his back towards the rope. Which he grabbed onto and climbed to the surface.

But now Bumblebee was falling. He luckily hit the floor of the water, stopping him from descending. Luckily he avoided falling into an abyss they laid right next to him. He was unharmed but found that he couldn’t climb back up. He couldn’t swim back up either, with the current pressing down on him. He tried again, still no success.

:: Oh no::, he beeped quietly.

He couldn’t communicate with the group underwater.

He was trapped.

Now what was he supposed to do? There was a virus spreading meteor that needed to be destroyed, and the only cybertronian that could finish the job was trapped in the water. Was this to be his fate? Stranded in the water for the rest of his life? Trapped while his team and innocent Rescue Bots were infected and frozen? Would he ever see Raf again? Optimus? Ratchet?

Blades?

Bee tried to drive up the wall, but he still couldn’t move. He transformed out of alt mode and slammed a fist into the wall in irritation.

:: IT CAN’T END LIKE THIS!::

Suddenly Bee’s optics caught the sight of a hook attached to a wire gliding near his location. He recognized it. IT WAS BLADES!!

Bee reached out of it but it flew over the abyss. It was getting away. Bee had no choice. He ran back and took a leap of fate. With the tips of his servos, he grasped the hook as he was pulled towards the surface.

“LOOK WHAT I CAUGHT!?” Blades explained with pride. Bee held a small chuckle at the cute remark. Blades was his hero.

“The explosive device is about to blow!” Chief Burns shouted. “Can you take it out to sea?”

Bumblebee felt panic at the bomb getting close to the destination. But with the wind blowing strong towards Jasper, there was no time to get another one.

:: Blades! Are you thinking what I’m thinking?::

Blades responded confidently.

“I’m right there with you.”

Blades flew downward over the boat, allowing Bumblebee to grab the ticking bomb in one fell swoop. The helicopter zoomed towards the meteor location. Bee had one shot at this, and Primus knew he wasn’t going to waste the chance to save all Autobots.

The meteor came into view, more green dust flaring off it. Bee didn’t care if he was going to get infected at this rate. He let go of Blade’s hook, punched a hole into the meteor, grabbing a sample, and inserted the explosive into the mark. With barely a second to lose, Blades transformed back to his alt mode as Bee grabbed his hook and they took off. The two bots felt the explosion from behind their backs.

As the ship got free from the rocks, both Blades and Bee jumped back onto the ship.

Blades gave a tired yet relieved “We did it!”

“But you were both exposed.” Danni shouted in concern.

“I’m fine.” Blades transformed out of vehicle mode “See? There was nothing to-”

Before Blades could finish his sentence, he began to feel woozy and transformed back into his alt mode. Confirming that he was now infected with the virus. And Bumblebee could feel the virus take himself.

The last thing he did before transforming completely into alt mode, was letting the sample roll out.

And then there was nothing but darkness.

—————-

Well being infected wasn’t all darkness.

It turns out the audio receptors were no infected by the virus, meaning that he could hear the humans work outside. Even though he couldn't move, the scout felt happy with the fact that no other Autobot would be infected with the virus. His team was safe and that’s all that mattered.

He could only pray that they had the correct antidote to cure the team and himself.

After a while, he heard the sound of transforming taking place within the firehouse, filling him with excitement and relief.

The next thing he knew was feeling a metal circle get attracted to his side and a liquid pouring in. And then he a Blades transformed. They were cured!!

:: Thank you guys, I’ll be sure to inform Optimus that everything is okay, i’m ready to head back.::

But this time, the one to translate him was not Blades or any other bot. It was Cody. It seems he found a way to translate it. Raf would love to hear this.

Before departing, Danni felt like it was a good idea to take a group photo. Seeing no harm in it, Bee stood there as everyone gathered around. Danni definitely would get along with Miko. After the flash of the camera took off, Bee said goodbye to the Rescue Bots as he was ready to transform and depart.

But then Bumblebee then had one more idea before he left. As he saw the helicopter about to walk away.

:: Can I have a picture of just me and Blades?::

Cody happily translated the request to his sister.

“Really?” Blades asked shyly.

Bumblebee just responded by putting his servo around Blades and smiling for the camera.

Danni gave an awe at the sight after the picture was taken.

Bee then turned to Blades with a warm smile.

:: Thank you for everything Blades.::

The scout then reached his servo out to shake hands with the bot.

But something unexpected happened.

Blades didn’t grab the servo, instead, he wrapped his arms tightly around Bee with one of his feet in the air. Blades was hugging him!

“You’re welcome!” Blades giggled.

Bumblebee was taken back by this sudden surprise of affection. It might have lasted a moment but it felt so much more. Bee could feel his spark beat increase, and his insides grow warm. He patted the mech back to show his appreciation, but his blush showed that he was nervous.

As he drove off, he still kept thinking about it.

—————-

:: RATCHET! I already told you that the meteor was destroyed and that I am cured of the virus! I don’t need to take this many showers!::

“Oh don’t give me that” Ratchet huffed “We can’t take any chances! If I say you need to be cleaned up, then you will!”

:: OPTIMUS!:: Bumblebee whined as he stared at his leader from within the dripping shower. Optimus didn’t even turn his helm to face the scout.

“Ratchet is just making sure you are alright. Besides, maybe this will teach you a lesson of sneaking out without permission.”

Bumblebee whirled in disappointment. When he was ground bridged back to base, he was expecting his team to be applauding him for saving their lives. While the team was proud in a way, both Optimus and Ratchet were not too happy with the scout’s decision to leave Raf alone at the base. After coming up with a reason why he stayed for a while (since Optimus wanted to keep the Rescue Bots a secret) Ratchet told Bumblebee to clean himself in the cybertronian sized shower. He was currently on his sixth one.

After 10 more showers, Bee was finally allowed to leave. But before he could run off, Optimus asked if he could have a private discussion with the scout outside of the base. After driving through the deserts of Nevada, they came to a stop near a cliffside. Optimus then asked what Bumblebee thought of the Rescue Team. Bee happily went over his findings of the team, how they worked, and even the humans they lived with. Optimus listened to every word.

:: Optimus?::

“Yes?”

:: When are you going to tell the team about the Rescue Bots?::

The Prime was quiet, then he spoke.

“I don’t know. Only time will tell.”

As they drove back, bee kept thinking about that hug from Blades. Such a small gesture he received made his spark do backflips. That cute mech had made him feel like he was the greatest thing in the universe.

Looks like Bee finally understood how Raf was feeling.