Chapter Text
Chapter 1: Origin
Before the war, specialized facilities were built to grow sparklings. No hot spots or bonding needed for the young sparks to form. VI machines took CNA, cybernucleic acid, from storage and combined them randomly into a 'Grow Capsule' filled with Age Acceleration fluid. This grade of fluid only accelerated age enough for sparklings to skip straight to the toddler stage so they could stand earlier then younger sparklings. This was an important part the development, the front lobby of these facilities were where singles and couples could adopt sparklings. The adoption ceremonies were held in drain rooms, the parent or parents were left alone in this room with a capsule so the first 'bot or 'bots the sparkling saw were its' 'parent' or 'parents', imprinting on them so they would think it was born from them. Five 'Grow Capsules' were fertilized at a time so five sparklings could be displayed at a time. Occasionally, special orders were made but most of the time the combinations were random.
Many of these facilities were built all over Cybertron. They were very important. Many couples wanted a sparkling without having to go through the pain of birth, many single bots wanted a companion but could not find a life partner or a pet. To walk into one of these facilities and choose a sparkling cost nothing. Even the sparklings that were not selected were still given a home, being taken in by any of the staff members. The government always needed more bots being released onto Cybertron, with so little hot spots being found, these facilities played an important role in growing the population provided the current numbers wanted to help raise those new citizens. A sparkling grown in a facility did not need a body to be built for it, rather it developed its' own exoskeleton, its' own armour, the spark being the first thing formed in the first four weeks of fertilization, the rest of the time spent in the capsule was used for coding and forming an armour design.
The VI machines cared for the sparklings as they rapidly developed, feeding them through feeding tubes and anything else that happens during their time spent together. The VIs themselves were not like AIs, they felt no really maternal connection to the sparklings under their care. They were simply designed to watch over the young and report any abnormalities. One abnormality was spark splitting, when one spark split into more sparks, creating twins or triplets. Twins were not as rare as triplets, triplets were usually caused by a gene relating to one of the donor parents. Triplet sparks were special in the way that one spark must split once then one of the halves must split again making two of the three sparklings weaker then the half sparked one. In extremely rare cases, quadruplets can be formed through spark splitting, but this so extraordinarily rare that few even think it's a myth.
One day, in one of the facilities between Iacon and Kaon in Rivet's Field, five capsules were being prepared for fertilization. The VIs thoroughly cleansed the 'Grow Capsules' of any trance of the previous occupants, to prevent contamination, before filling them up with fresh, unactivated AA fluid. From the spines of the capsules, two basic arms extended into the fluid. At the tips of these arms were syringes filled with just enough CNA to create new life. The pods surged electricity into the fluid to activate it, the syringes releasing the CNA close to each other so that they may combine. The arms retracted slowly so as to not disturb the CNA. The process had begun. Each capsule grew their sparkling as normal, except for one. Once the young sparks were nearing solidity, the last in the line up split into two, then one half split again. Once the second split was complete, the sparks solidified, stopping any more splitting from happening. There were now two extra sparklings being grown. Upon an annual scan, the fifth pod detected the abnormality and reported it to the head scientist. For the remainder of the process, there was no feedback from the scientist, no visitation, not a word. Once the process was complete, there were three seeker class sparklings floating in the capsule. Only then did the head scientist receive the report about the anomaly. He eventually made it to the capsule before it was sent to the lobby. The scientist stopped the capsule and examined the sparklings inside. Three seeker femmes, sisters. He input a command for the capsule to be delivered to his office. He wanted to analyze the fluid to see what the genetics were. Even if this was a rare anomaly, maybe there was something assisting the splitting process, a specific family gene maybe. He followed the capsule as it wheeled itself to the scientist's office. He opened the door for the capsule but was stopped before he could follow it.
“Perceptor! We need your help with something.” A younger scientist said, rushing up to the head scientist.
The older bot looked at the younger for a moment before shifting his glance to the capsule in his office. “I can't help. I have something I must do first. The anomaly report for those triplets came late. I must see what causes a three way split.” He explained.
“Triplets? Isn't that sort of thing random?”
“Maybe but I need to be sure. If I am wrong in thinking there is something more to it, I shall rush over to assist you in your dilemma.”
The younger scientist nodded and returned down the hall from whence he came. Perceptor entered his office and locked the door behind him. He did not want any disturbances while he worked. He walked over to the capsule and took manual control over a syringe arm. He extended it enough to take a sample of liquid before retracting it, ejecting the cartridge of fluid. He carried it over to his lab table and poured it into an analyzer. The machine began to it's job, the process being very slow, it gave Perceptor the opportunity to further examine the sparklings. They had different colour schemes from one another. One was mostly purple and black with red and yellow panels in some spots on her stomach. Down the middle of her chest, starting at the base of her neck and running down to the top of her abdomen, was her fuselage, the vents that made up her chest suggested that when she transformed they would move with the fuselage. Her wings were very long, coming out from her back, slanting to a one hundred degree angle and coming to a point above her head. The point at the ends of her wings were seated very high. Her shoulders sported a sharp pair of guards, looking like something you'd see on a knight or gladiator. Her shins were entirely purple, her knees protected by red diamond shaped panels. On her ankles were a pair of stabilizing wings, her thruster heels were stiletto in design. One feature was special and possibly redundant in a battle situation. From her forehead sprouted a crown-like display of panels and behind that was long black hair that floated statically in the fluid. All three seekers had the same design the difference was colour. Another was mostly red and black with spots of blue and yellow and the final sister was mostly blue and black with spots of purple and yellow.
Soon, the analyzer made a ding sound, indicating that it was done. The results of the scan showed that the triplets shared CNA with Megatron of Tarn and StarScream of Vos. This was a rather dangerous combination, with CNA from Megatron, the triplets will be unnaturally strong and most definitely rebellious. With CNA from StarScream, they will possess powerful abilities that could be used against their enemies. StarScream was a triplet himself, his brothers being ThunderCracker and Skywarp. Perceptor wondered if that was a factor in the splitting process. Regardless, he couldn't let these seekerlings to be adopted by someone from the outside. The danger of them meeting their true parents was too high. If they met their real parents, they could be drawn into something dangerous. He did not want see these three younglings become corrupted. He was going to raise them himself. Maybe they will remain pure, innocent.
He ordered the capsule to wheel itself into a private drain room, the capsule immediately responding by rolling into the conjoined room. Perceptor followed it closely, since he was the only one in his office he did not need to worry about the sparklings imprinting on another 'bot. The capsule parked itself and waited for Perceptor press the release button. His digit pressed the button and the capsule began to drain the AA fluid from inside, the liquid pouring out and onto the once clean floor, streaming down a nearby hole in the floor. Once the capsule was empty, the door opened and the triplets fell out onto the floor. Perceptor could not help them, they had to learn how to open their optics and how to stand on their own. If he helped them they would never learn anything on their own, they would expect him to help them with everything.
The seekerlings stayed there on the floor for a few moments before one started to move. It was the purple one who moved first. She managed to get on all fours and instantly began coughing up excess AA fluid. Once she was cleared of fluid, she opened her optics and waited for them to activate. They slowly lit up, revealing one ring of crimson in each optic. She looked around, confused. She had no name, no memories, she had no idea what was happening. She spotted her sisters and instantly helped them, feeling a strong connection to them. Her sisters looked at her and felt that same connection. Once they were all up, they looked at Perceptor. The blue seekerling hid behind the purple one while the red snarled at him. The purple seekerling placed a soft servo on the red one's shoulder to calm her. The triplets knew something was not right. They did not look like Perceptor, he was different, he was not their parent. The purple one said something to her sisters in modern Iaconic, a relatively new dialect that Perceptor was not familiar with yet. He knew modern Cybertronic but not this language. Teaching them would be difficult. He would need to bring someone in to help him teach them to speak modern Cybertronic or to teach him modern Iaconic. The triplets stood in an orderly line and bowed to Perceptor like he was royalty. In their minds, he was their master and they were his pawns. Perceptor did not like that. He was a scientist, not a king. He was not one for being worshipped. He knelt down and looked them over.
“Please, you do not need to do that.” He spoke softly. It was clear that they understood him, having stood straight up again. “I am not your master. I am your father.” He said, hoping they'd understand that they were to treat him like a father.
The seekerlings looked at each other before nodding to Perceptor. They babbled something to him but since he could not understand them, he could not respond. The purple seeker cleared her voice softly before speaking again. “Wh-what....ou-our....n-n-name...?” She struggled to say. She possessed a rather strange accent. Tarnian? Vosian? It was hard to tell. It may have been a combination of the two.
Her question reminded Perceptor that he had to name them. He thought hard about it. He pointed to the purple one and said, “You will be named Swiftica.” He then looked to the blue one. “You are StormScorch.” Now the red one, she grumbled quietly at him. “And you are Teleblitz.” He said, cautiously. “You three are my children. I will raise you to be perfect femmes.” He carefully picked them up and carried them out of the room. He put an 'away' sign on his office door before leaving and locking it.
The triplets wriggled out of Perceptor's arms and climbed up his chest and onto his shoulders. Teleblitz sat on the large cylinder on Perceptor's shoulder, StormScorch laid on the opposite shoulder, and Swiftica had one leg on each side as she stood just behind Perceptor's head. Perceptor almost chuckled at their excitement to see new things. He did not mind the other scientists looking at him with the triplets. He wasn't about to command them to return to his arms. He wasn't going to be that kind of father. He proceeded down the hall, toward his living quarters. Since he was the head scientist for this facility, he had the largest living quarters, multiple rooms and all.
Upon approaching the door, Perceptor noticed a young mechling that had been taken in by another scientist. A young bot named Proximity. He was not grown in the facility. He had recently been found wandering the streets with amnesia. Perceptor had looked up many files about Proximity. He was from a planet that was thought to be a myth, Velocitron. He stood no taller then Perceptor's knees and, because of his memory wipe, was highly curious about most everything. Proximity looked curiously at the triplets on Perceptor's shoulders, his helm tilting to the side slightly.
“Mr. Perceptor, who are they?” He asked in an innocent tone.
“They are my daughters, Proximity. I adopted them just today. They are too young right now to play with you. Give them a few years, young one.” Perceptor spoke in a kind tone. He did his best to always use that specific tone when talking to younglings.
Proximity fidgeted with his digits. “Okay. Have you seen my toy around here? The little blue car that my mommy got me?”
“I'm sorry, Prox. I have not. I've been very busy.”
Proximity sighed deeply. “I'll keep looking. Thank you anyway, Mr. Perceptor.” He scampered off to continue his search.
Perceptor smiled softly before opening the door to his room and walking in. He closed the door behind him and walked into a vacant room. The room was grey, bland, empty. Not a bit of furniture within the four walls, a large lone window peered out, giving a dazzling view of the bustling streets. He wondered if it would be satisfactory enough for the sparklings. The triplets stared out the window in awe. They had just been woken not a few minutes ago and now they are seeing that there is a whole world outside of the facility. They wanted to explore that world and to see more new things. Perceptor carefully picked the triplets up and put them on the floor. They looked at him with confusion.
“This will be your room. Tomorrow, I will go shopping for furniture. If you three would like to come along to pick out what you want, you are welcome to.” Perceptor told them softly.
The triplets looked at the window again before getting excited. They couldn't wait to go exploring outside. Perceptor smiled at their excitement. He loved sparklings, their endless energy was almost inspiring. Swiftica stopped in her tracks and looked at Perceptor with confusion. Since they had no bed, they had no where to sleep. She walked over to him and tilted her helm slightly.
“Wh-Where we sleep?” She asked, getting use to speaking Modern Cybertronic.
“For tonight, you will share my bed. There is more then enough room for all four of us.” He said softly, petting her helm gently.
Swiftica giggled at the petting before giving Perceptor a hug. Her sisters noticed this and joined her, hugging the older mech tightly. Perceptor hesitated at first but eventually returned their hugs with one of his own. He looked at the clock in his monocle and realized that it was time to refuel. He lifted the triplets and carried them into the living room area of his quarters. He sat them on the couch and turned on the wall monitor. He flipped through the channels until he found a suitable channel for them to watch. He then put the remote down on the coffee table and walked into the kitchen to prepare some energon for the four of them. The triplets watched the images on the monitor for a few seconds before Swiftica hopped off the couch and grabbed the remote. She had spotted a channel that interested her when Perceptor was looking around for a suitable one. She changed it to the channel and on the screen was an image of Megatron. Something about him made them feel like they were meant to be with him. Swiftica could hear Perceptor returning from the kitchen. She quickly changed it back to the previous channel and tossed the remote back onto the coffee table. Perceptor exited the kitchen and gave three of the cubes of energon to the triplets, the cubes being small enough contained just the right amount to fill them up, each one sporting a fun curly straw for them to sip from. Swiftica thanked Perceptor and took a sip of her energon. Her sisters sipped theirs while watching TV, Swiftica thinking about the image of Megatron. She looked to Perceptor and debated to herself whether she should bring it up to him or not. She eventually decided against it, it was better to keep it a secret until the time was right.
Soon, they had finished their energon and the program on the TV was finished. Perceptor gathered the cubes and put them away in the kitchen. He picked up the triplets and walked to his room. His room was very well organized, his desk was spotless, all the data-pads filed correctly in the drawers. On a shelf above his desk was a series of awards he had won along with a few certificates. His bed was very large, almost as though he once had a partner living with him. The blankets were placed perfectly on the surface, not a crease or lump anywhere to be found. The pillows looked plush from where the triplets were. There was a bedside table with a drawer on one side of the bed, a digital clock and a lamp called the surface home. What lay inside the drawer was a mystery to the triplets, a mystery that required a key and a passcode. Something of value was in that drawer. Swiftica hoped to discover the treasure of it sometime in the future. Perceptor put the triplets down on the bed before sitting on the side with the table. He picked up the clock and set the alarm. He had a meeting early in the morning and he wasn't going to miss it. He lifted the blanket and got under it. The triplets scooted under the blankets on the opposite side of the bed, huddling together into a tight ball. Perceptor looked over at them before scooting over and laying on his side, holding the triplet ball close. Even though he once had that whole bed to himself, he never slept on the opposite side of it. He was too use to sleeping on his side that he never felt the need to sleep on the whole bed. The other side was so much more comfortable then his side was. He soon found the triplet ball moving closer to him, it seemed like the triplets were warming up to him.
Early the next morning, the alarm clock went off, filling the room with a loud buzzer noise. Perceptor groaned as the buzzer woke him up. His optics came online and the first thing he saw was a small purple frame on his chest. He blinked a few times before remembering that he had adopted triplets the previous day. He then realized that all three of the triplets were laying on top of him. He looked over at the clock. It was still buzzing. He had to turn it off but he didn't want to wake the triplets. He carefully inched over to his side of the bed and reached over, pressing the snooze button. As soon as the buzzer stopped, the triplets woke up and stretched. Perceptor sighed and rested his helm back in his pillow. The triplets looked at Perceptor and started to shake him, thinking he went back to sleep and were trying to wake him again. Perceptor chuckled softly and slowly sat up.
“I'm up, I'm up.” He said and smiled at the triplets. They sat on the bed so he could get up. He got up off the bed and turned around. The seekerlings stood carefully and hopped onto Perceptor's chest, crawling up onto his shoulders. Perceptor smirked softly and walked into the living room. He was not allowed to bring sparklings into a meeting. He needed a bot-sitter to watch them while he was in the meeting. Who would be eligible, though? Who is responsible enough to watch three sparklings for an hour or two? Perceptor put the triplets down on the couch before spotting a picture of him and an orange therapist. He then remembered that that very therapist was visiting the facility that day. Who else was more responsible then him?
“You three stay right here. I need to call someone.” He said before walking into the kitchen. He opened a comm with the orange mech as he began to prepare some energon for the four of them.
The orange mech responded quickly. “Hello? This is Rung speaking. What can I assist you with?”
“Rung. It's me, Perceptor. Listen, I have a meeting this morning. I was hoping you could watch over my younglings.”
“Ah, Perceptor. You adopted some sparklings finally. I would happily watch over them for you. I'll be there soon.” Rung said with his usual kind tone.
“Thank you, Rung. This means a lot to me. I'll tell you the details when you arrive.” Perceptor responded before closing the comm. He carried the energon out to the triplets and gave each a cube.
A short amount of time passed before a knock came from the door. Perceptor stood and answered it, seeing the short orange therapist standing there. He smiled at him before taking a step outside. “Thank you again, Rung. These femmes are very important. They are the daughters of Megatron and StarScream. I need you to keep them off every channel that reports about Megatron. I don't want them to know who their real parents are. I fear that if they do find out, they will want to search for them, follow under them, or worse. I don't want them to turn out like Megatron.” Perceptor whispered the explanation.
“Calm down, Perceptor. You're gonna blow a gasket if you get any more stressed. I promise on my spark that they will not see his face or hear his name.” Rung reassured the taller mech.
Perceptor smiled at Rung. “Thank you.” He looked into the room. “I'll see you three soon.” He called to the triplets, whom waved to him.
Rung walked into the room as Perceptor left, closing the door behind him. He looked at the triplets and smiled warmly. “Looks like I'll be taking care of you three until Perceptor comes back. Now, I imagine that you do not have any toys yet so it seems we'll have to watch TV.” He said, sitting in the armchair, unsure how comfortable the seekerlings would be with him on the couch with them. He took the remote from the table and started to flip through the channels, finding a cute educational cartoon for them to watch. He put the remote on the squared arm rest of the armchair and placed both servos in his lap as he leaned back slightly. As they watched the cartoon, StormScorch crawled from the couch over to the armchair, climbing over the arm rest and slumping down beside Rung in the seat. The armchair was fitted to Perceptor's size so there was plenty of room for one sparkling to sit beside Rung. Rung looked at StormScorch with surprise. He had thought that they would not have been comfortable with him yet. Though, it was now obvious that they were very comfortable with him. They must not have imprinted on Perceptor. An imprinted sparkling would not be as comfortable with a new face as the triplets were. StormScorch cuddled up against Rung's side then continued to watch the cartoon. Rung was forced to place his arm on the arm rest so he wouldn't obstruct the blue femmes view of the TV. Swiftica giggled at the awkwardness that her blue sister had inflicted on the orange mech.
As they were watching TV, a sudden news flash interrupted the show. “We interrupt your regularly scheduled program to bring you this surprise news flash.” A calm voice stated flatly before the reporter came on the screen. “Disaster struck today as a large bomb was detonated a few streets down from Sparkling Facility B-998. The known casualties were low but many Cybertronians suffered severe injuries, the fatality count is still being tabulated as we speak. The suspected culprit of this and many other bombings is the infamous gladiator of Kaon, Meg-” Rung turned the TV off quickly before the reporter said Megatron's whole name. He knew that the report would be on every channel so he had to turn it off. He let out a sigh of relief as the triplets groaned at the black screen they were forced to look at. Swiftica looked at Rung with confused optics.
“Why you turn it off?” She asked, still trying to figure out proper sentences.
“I had to. You three are still too young to know about those sorts of things.” He said, making up his excuse quickly.
“But who he gonna say?” She fumbled with the words.
“Someone very bad. You'll understand in the future.” He said defensively. Lets just hope you have a future. He thought to himself.
The bomb had gone off not far from that facility. The likely-hood of the facility being the next target were high, frighteningly high. If Megatron did target that facility next, it could mean that every sparkling, fully formed and not, would be in grave danger. He knew having a facility so close to Kaon was a bad idea from the start, no one ever listened to him about that sort of thing.
He put the remote down and stood up, much to StormScorch's displeasure. He turned to the triplets and cleared his throat. “Now, since we cannot watch TV for a while, we will have to play a game together.” He said, walking to the door where there was a large duffle bag. He had dragged it in without anyone noticing when he arrived. He opened it and took out some board games. Checkers, chess, snakes and ladders, he even brought a puzzle book. The book looked new and contained word search puzzles. He showed the board games to the triplets and right away they chose snakes and ladders, the bright colours attracting their optics right away.
An hour passed quickly as Rung and the triplets played snakes and ladders. They were so deep into the game they almost didn't hear the door open as Perceptor returned from his meeting. Swiftica looked to the door and smiled widely before standing and running to Perceptor, hugging his leg tightly. Her sisters took notice and joined her. Perceptor chuckled softly before reaching down and lifting the triplets into his arms. He looked over at Rung, whom was putting the board game back into its box. The triplets crawled onto Perceptor's shoulders as Rung finished packing everything up, walking to the door.
“Looks like they enjoyed their time with you.” Perceptor said before looking at the triplets. “Say goodbye to Rung, girls.”
The triplets hopped off Perceptor and onto Rung, hugging him tightly. Rung grabbed onto them quickly so they didn't slip off of him before giving them a hug in return. He looked up at Perceptor with a more solemn expression. He had to tell Perceptor of what he saw on the TV. He put the triplets down in the armchair before taking a step outside of the room, Perceptor following him.
“Perceptor, there was a bombing not far from here. Megatron is suspected to be the cause of it. I fear that he may target this facility next. You must move the facility to a safe location.” Rung whispered, concern consuming his voice.
“Rung, I would love to just pack up the facility and move but that would most likely be a temporary fix for something that is inevitable. If anything, it would make us a greater target. At least if we stay here it is only a possibility that we will be bombed.”
“Perceptor, listen to reason. If you stay you'll be risking more unborn lives then you think. If you leave, you'll be giving yourself more time to grow more Cybertronians.”
“Cybertronians who may end up choosing the wrong side.” Perceptor cut in, strictly. “We both know that war is coming. We can't do anything to stop it. Even the younglings that are currently up and about hold a great amount of risk. The least I can do is make sure the enemy does not get their vile servos on these triplets.”
“And the most you can do?” Rung questioned Perceptor. When he did not get a reply, he continued. “The most you can do is send all of the CNA this facility has in storage to another facility in Iacon. Sparkling Facility G-430 is the one I recommend. Its right in the centre of Iacon, the safest place it could possibly be on Cybertron.”
Perceptor thought it over before reluctantly replying. “Fine. But any sparklings in the grow capsules will remain here. If they leave the facility, it'll look like we are abandoning the building.” Perceptor said before walking back into his quarters.
“Perceptor!” Rung called into the room. “Thank you...for listening to me.” He began to walk away. His time in this facility was done. He had to return to Iacon to continue his work.
Perceptor looked at the triplets. They were babbling about something, speaking their first language. He walked over to them and knelt down. They looked at him curiously before crawling into his shoulders. “Now, if I remember correctly, I said we would go shopping today.” he said and walked to the door. He passed the threshold before turning, closing the door and locking it. His argument with Rung had put him a bit of a bitter mood but it could be easily solved with some quality time with the triplets.
“Hey! Perceptor!” A voice called from just down the hall. Perceptor looked toward the voice and saw that it was Ratchet. He remembered that he had called for Ratchet to help him carry the furniture back. He could have called any number of other bots but he trusted Ratchet the most. He walked to the older bot and shook his servo as a greeting.
“Hey there, Ratchet. Thank you for helping me.” He said as the two of them started to walk to the exit. Ratchet followed him closely.
“It's no problem, Perceptor. I was just glad to here you took in some sparklings. I can't remember the last time you did that.” Ratchet said in a light tone, glancing at the triplets. “I heard that raising triplets can be difficult later on as they become teens.”
The two bots left the building, their talking becoming muffled as the triplets' attention was pulled to the cityscape. The seekerlings looked in every direction, trying to see all that they could as Perceptor and Ratchet walked down the street. The sky was light blue, even though most of it was obstructed by the tall buildings, highways, signs, and foot bridges. The buildings were a pleasing golden beige colour. They passed bots of all shapes, sizes and social statuses. Some were walking in robot mode others were driving on the road, a few could be seen inside stores and restaurants. The signs for the shops were bright and colourful, displaying strange arrangements of symbols that the triplets assumed were words. The seekerlings noticed that the older bots were walking toward a large building. They saw many bots walking out with boxes containing chairs, tables, mattresses, and various other kinds of furniture. This must have been the place they were going to get their bed and other things for their room. The building looked to be about three stories tall with very few if not any windows, probably to keep the furniture pristine in colour. Perceptor and Ratchet entered the building, passing through an in-between area, vents blowing cool air on them. They hadn't realized how hot it was outside until they entered that first line of doors. They passed the second set of doors into the main store. The lobby was very busy, lines of bots stood waiting to purchase the furniture they carried. Perceptor led Ratchet away from the check out counters and up a flight of stairs. At the top of the stairs were elaborate displays of furniture, set up in very appealing arrangements of similar colour or design. This first section was designed primarily for adult use, the beds far too large for the triplets to make full use of. The old bots ascended another flight of stairs to the sparkling section. This floor was more colourful, the displays consisting of more appropriately sized beds, toy boxes, stuffed animals and play sets. Perceptor picked up the triplets and put them down on the floor, allowing them to lead. Swiftica looked up at Perceptor to make sure it was alright.
“Go on. I want you three to love your room.” Perceptor said, using his kind voice.
Swiftica smiled widely before running around with her sisters, looking for the best furniture they could find and agree on. They squabbled over many before all three of them spotted the perfect display. The display contained a triple decker bed, each layer baring blankets in the colours that each of the seekerlings loved. It also had a large toy box that had two dividers in it, making three spaces for toys to be stored. A cute little dresser sat opposite the toy box, the top being decorated by adorable stuffed animals, a turbofox pup, equinoid, and cybear cub. This display almost seemed like it was made for the triplets. Perceptor and Ratchet approached the display and looked it over. Ratchet was concerned about the price tag while Perceptor was happy to see that the triplets loved it so much.
“Perceptor, are you sure you can afford all of this? None of this stuff is cheap, not to mention the fact that we have yet to buy paint for the walls and a new carpet for the floor.” Ratchet said, concern filling his voice.
“Nothing is too expensive for my daughters, Ratchet. Their happiness is all that matters to me.” Perceptor said, taking number cards from each piece of furniture in the display. “I want them to love every bit of their room. What they choose is what they get.”
The triplets cheered loudly and hugged Perceptor's legs. He laughed softly before picking them up. He spotted a bin that contained stuffed animals and walked to it. The triplets looked into the bin and grabbed one stuffed animal each. Swiftica grabbed an equinoid, StormScorch snuggled a turbofox and Teleblitz held a cybear. Perceptor smiled widely at them as Ratchet once again scrutinized the prices.
“You're gonna spoil these sparklings if you keep this up.”
“So they have expensive taste, so what. I have plenty of credits to spare. You know how I was. I never spent more then I needed. Now I have sparklings, it's time to splurge my riches on them.” Perceptor retorted. He wasn't easily swayed from his ideals. “You're only here because I need a truck to carry all this stuff.”
“I'm an ambulance.” Ratchet said, slightly offended.
“You can carry heavy loads. That's all I need you to do.” Perceptor said as he lead the other mech to the stairs.
They descended all the way to the first floor where they could find the furniture in boxes, ready to be bought and assembled. Perceptor looked at the numbers on the cards and walked to the correct aisles. He spotted a flat cart and walked to it, pulling it back to the aisle he needed it to be in. As he found the furniture he needed, he put them on the cart, the last thing going on being the toy box. He pushed the cart to the check out area and looked for the shortest line, getting in it. Ratchet was not impressed with Perceptor's current attitude. He would not have let his sparklings choose whatever they wanted. He would have also gone to a cheaper furniture store. The furniture there was imported from Velocitron, making everything expensive. Eventually, they got to the cashier. Perceptor showed the scan bars on the boxes. The triplets did the same with the stuffed animals. Once everything was scanned, the price came up on the screen. The cashier seemed shocked at first, but eventually she returned to her professional expression.
“That'll be ten thousand credits, sir.” She said to Perceptor.
The bots around them looked at Perceptor with surprise, not expecting him to have enough to afford everything. He ignored them as he gave the cashier exactly enough in cash. He knew Ratchet would chew him out for carrying so much cash on him later. Once everything was paid for, Perceptor and Ratchet left the store with the cart. Outside, Ratchet transformed to allow Perceptor to load him with the boxes. The triplets climbed off Perceptor and watched as each box was loaded into Ratchet. As soon as everything was loaded, Perceptor pushed the cart against a wall for someone else to use. Swiftica and Teleblitz sat on top of Ratchet's alt form while StormScorch climbed up Perceptor and curled up on his shoulder. Perceptor began walking back toward the facility, Ratchet driving beside him on the road. As they proceeded to the facility, Swiftica noticed some jets passing over them. She watched them jealously as they soared overhead. They must have noticed her watching for they barrel rolled around each other, showing off their aerial talent. Swiftica almost whimpered as she continued to watch them as they disappeared beyond her line of sight. She looked at Teleblitz and examined her frame. She noticed her wings immediately before taking notice of her heel thrusters. Since she shared her sister's design, she obviously had those features as well. Since Ratchet wasn't driving too fast, she stood up and attempted to activate her heel thrusters, trying many codes before finally she was hovering in place as Ratchet drove out from under her. Ratchet stopped sharply at the sudden absence of weight on his roof. Perceptor stopped and looked at him before noticing that he was one sparkling short. He looked back and saw Swiftica hovering in the air. He felt so proud of her but at the same time very concerned. He had hoped that they would learn to fly later in life. He watched as she tried to move. She looked up at Perceptor, as though she were asking for help.
“Stay calm, Swiftica. Just lean forward.” He said, calmly. He had seen vids about seeker flight. He had never seen such elegant flight patterns, even at an aerial show. Seekers were suppose to be the most graceful and talented fliers on Cybertron. Looking at Swiftica struggling to get a grasp of simple hover movement made him realized that grace and talent had to be worked at, it wasn't a natural ability that was with seekers from the very beginning.
Swiftica did her best to do as he told her to, finding it more difficult then it seemed. She pointed her thrusters back slightly, finally managing to move forward. Once over Ratchet, she deactivated her thrusters, landing on his roof with a soft thud. A few bots had watched her struggling, murmuring to one another about it. She felt embarrassed because of it.
“It's alright, sweet spark. You'll get the hang of it. Lets just wait a few years before you try it again.” Perceptor said, trying to comfort her. He softly pet her helm before continuing to walk back to the facility.
“Perceptor...” Ratchet started, driving beside him. “...she needs to learn from a seeker. You are not a flier. You don't know how that sort of thing works. You can research and study it all your life but you could never practice it yourself. You're a microscope. You need to get a seeker to teach them flight.”
“Every seeker I know of is a follower of...” He began, stopping himself from saying the gladiator's name. “...him. I don't want them to know of him, any seeker who teaches them will undoubtably mention him somehow. I'd rather teach them myself then to risk that chance.”
Ratchet sighed at his response. “Perceptor...” He said, slightly annoyed. “If I told you of a flier who doesn't like what...he...is doing, will you at least consider letting him teach them?”
Perceptor thought it over before grumbling out an answer. “Fine. Who, might I ask, is this flier that you know?”
“His name is Skyfire. He's a very kind young mech, he adores peace whenever he can truly enjoy it.” Ratchet said. “He is more meant for space travel but he can also do atmospheric flight. You'd like him. He's a scientist like you, though he's more focused on space science.”
Perceptor listened as Ratchet explained Skyfire's dossier. This flier sounded alright though he was still worried about his allegiance. “And you are sure that he isn't following 'him'?” He asked just to check.
“Oh I am positive. When ever that mech is mentioned to him, he expresses just how much he dislikes him.” Ratchet assured the scientist.
“Even if he taught them, they'll still have to go to the flight academy to further develop their abilities.”
“Yes but he can teach them the basics. Hovering, gliding, flying in a straight line. Maybe even how to fly backwards. In order to qualify for the academy, they need to know the basics.”
They approached the facility's front doors. Perceptor had begun to think more seriously about Ratchet's friend, Skyfire. If he were to teach the triplets to fly, they would need an open space where they could learn in private. After the incident with Swiftica, she may want to keep out of public watch while she practiced. He placed StormScorch on top of Ratchet before walking into the facility to get one other bot to help carry the boxes in. He found an intern and led her outside. He handed her the lightest of the boxes, putting the other two down so Ratchet could transform. Once he was in robot mode, he took the heaviest of the boxes and walked in with everyone else. The triplets climbed up Perceptor and sat on his shoulders, Swiftica keeping her helm low. They carried the boxes into Perceptor's quarters and into the triplet's room, putting them down. He thanked the intern and saw her out of the room. They still had to get paint for the walls and buy the new carpet. They left the boxes in the triplets' room while they walked back out to the living room. The seekerlings sat on the couch and played with their stuffed animals while Ratchet and Perceptor walked to the kitchen for a private talk.
“Ratchet...” Perceptor hesitated before he continued, not turning to look at the other. “...I've decided....to give this Skyfire mech a try.”
“You will? Happy to hear you still trust my suggestions. I'll give him a call later. Just tell me a time and place and he'll meet you there.” Ratchet said with relief in his voice. Perceptor thought hard about a time and place to meet. To start the triplets' flying lessons.
“Tomorrow. That old abandoned protoform factory at 0900. I want the triplets to spend most if not all day learning to fly. If the High Council got wind of them, they will be taken from me and drafted into the aerial militia at this age. I don't want them to live a military life.” Perceptor said, turning to look at Ratchet. His expression was solemn and empty, yet inside he felt a great deal of protective love for his daughters. He would do anything and everything to keep them safe and innocent.
Ratchet was slightly surprised by this expression. He rarely saw it in this kind of environment about this kind of subject. “Alright. You really love these sparklings, don't you? You've probably only known them for a day and a half and yet it seems you have imprinted on them.”
Perceptor broke optic contact with Ratchet. He did have a strong love for these sparklings, even for the short amount of time that they knew each other for. Was it possible for an adult to imprint on a sparkling? He wasn't sure but it sure felt like he had. He was not grown in a Sparkling Facility. He was one of the many old Cybertronians who was built in a protoform factory, an outdated form of body construction, used when there were plenty of active hot spots where sparks formed naturally in a planet's surface. The Sparkling Facilities were built when the last hot spot went cold. Perceptor was beginning his scientific career at that point in history, taking his first job at one of the said facilities. He watched as each protoform factory used up their stores of sparks and closed down. Even now, he still marvelled at the science behind sparkling growing, the fluid itself was, in a way, an advancement in technology. The fact that, over the course of a few months, it could make you age years ahead of your true age. The thing about these facilities that really intrigued him was the fact that spark splitting, something that was done brutally years ago when bots were desperate for more Cybertronians, had become natural despite its randomness. Unlike the brutal spark splitting of the past, this form of splitting created two or more identical sparks without restricting the range from which the siblings could travel away from each other. One sibling could be on Velocitron while the other remained on Cybertron and yet they could still feel each other's presence in the universe. He couldn't imagine having a sibling and having that sibling pass away. What that must feel like. It was probably pain with a hint of emptiness. If that was so, he never wanted to lose any of his three daughters. They depended on each other as much as they did him. And to be honest, he felt like he needed them too. Like they were born from his spark. He must have imprinted on them for he never felt so deeply for anyone. That was surely the reason he did not want them to know of their true parents. He did not wish them to leave him, to betray him. He wanted them to stay with him. Forever. It did not matter if they did not transform into something similar to him, they were his daughters and he loved them with all of his spark. He looked Ratchet straight in the optics, his expression sharp and serious.
“I have imprinted on them. They are my daughters. I pledge my spark to them. Without them, I would die from the loneliness. They are all of me and I them. I never want them to leave me standing on a dead planet as they fly to flourish without me.” Perceptor said, swearing to Primus that he would be the best father he could possibly be.
“Since this is the case, you must be more then you are, for their sake. Be more then anyone else. Be more then Cybertron itself, be more because your daughters need you to be.” Ratchet encouraged him, giving his dedication a push to help it on its way.
Perceptor nodded at Ratchet. “Thank you.” He said as he led Ratchet out. Once he was gone Perceptor looked to his daughters and smiled warmly, watching them play with their stuffed animals. He looked at the television monitor and hoped there was nothing being reported about Megatron. He sat in his armchair and turned the TV on. He was relieved to see that an educational cartoon was on. The triplets heard the cartoon and stopped playing to watch. Perceptor wasn't fond of cartoons for learning. He would have rather had them watch documentaries, real things rather then drawings. But he was uncertain of their interests, if they'd even like watching a documentary. He didn't want to change the channel on them right now. They seemed to be enjoying the cartoon. He'd ask them after the program was finished. He thought about this Skyfire that Ratchet had mentioned. He was going to teach his daughters something that could make them leave him behind. He wanted to know that they would stick by him, no matter what happened. Once the cartoon ended, he looked at the triplets and cleared his throat, getting their attention.
“Swiftica, StormScorch, Teleblitz...can you be honest with me? I love you three dearly and I want to know....Do you three trust me? Do you at all feel like I am your father?” He asked. He didn't know why but he felt very paranoid.
The triplets chittered and babbled to each other to formulate a unanimous reply that expressed how all three of them felt about Perceptor. The conversation was very short. Swiftica stood up and cleared her throat.
“We trust our daddy. We love our daddy. Percy is our daddy!” She said and ran to him, climbing into Perceptor's lap and hugging him tightly. Her sisters soon joined her. Perceptor smiled widely as tears came to his optics, his arms wrapping around his daughters in a tight, loving hug.
The next morning, Perceptor had woken before his alarm, his mind too full with thoughts about the day's events to come. He found that the triplets were up as well. They seemed to feel like something exciting was going to happen that day. He had not told them about their flying lessons. He sat on the edge of his bed and waited for the alarm clock to buzz, briskly turning it off. He stood and walked to the door. He had not assembled the triplet's bed so they had to sleep in his bed again the previous night. While the seekerlings were at flying lessons he would buy the new carpet and paint for their room. He had a feeling he knew what they wanted in terms of colour scheme. The triplets followed him out of the room closely before running to the couch where their stuffed animals sat. Perceptor proceeded into the kitchen to fetch four glasses of energon, quickly returning, giving the triplets theirs before sitting in his chair. He watched them for a moment before he heard a knock at the door. He wondered who it was. He had not asked Ratchet to send his friend to his quarters. Perceptor stood and answered it. There, outside of the door, was a tall white mech. According to his body details, it looked like a turned into a spacecraft.
“Hello. Are you Perceptor? I am Skyfire. Sorry I am not at the rendezvous point. I want to speak with you before I see the sparklings.” The mech said with a kind tone. He had a hint of an accent. No region on Cybertron would be best to use as reference for his British accent. Perceptor looked in at the triplets before stepping outside.
“I am Perceptor. Ratchet spoke your dossier to me. I don't want...Megatron nor StarScream to be mentioned in front of the triplets.”
“I can promise that the gladiator's name shall not pass my lips. StarScream on the other hand...” Skyfire paused, clearly remembering the seeker. “He and I were partners in science and then some. I will do my absolute best not to mention him. Ratchet told me of how deeply you love your daughters. I will do everything I can to teach them properly while also keeping them safe.”
“Keeping them safe? Just how dangerous are flying lessons?” Perceptor questioned the tall mech.
“At their age, they could crash into buildings, lose control and fly straight into space or the floor, they could accidentally burn each other and or themselves with their thrusters. Don't be too worried though. Every flyer faces these risks all the time. I've crashed into five buildings in the last four solar cycles. Flyers and seekers may have some weak spots but for the most part, they are armoured enough to recover from small crashes.” Skyfire assured Perceptor. He didn't want Perceptor to worry too much.
Perceptor thought over everything Skyfire told him. He knew that everyday life had many risks. He looked in at the triplets. If they aren't taught now... Perceptor started to think to himself. They'll want to learn when they get older. I can't stop them from wanting to fly. Never chain down a seeker. Perceptor looked up at Skyfire.
“Do your best to keep them safe. Be careful with Swiftica in particular. She's still embarrassed about yesterday. I'm sure Ratchet told you about it.”
“He did. She must have seen some flyers pass overhead. Atmospheric fliers can't help but to show off to young fliers. She was jealous of them.”
“Jealous? Seems I can't keep them completely innocent forever.” Perceptor muttered to himself. “I'll bring them out. I have not told them about their lessons yet.”
Skyfire nodded to Perceptor. “Take your time. I'm not going anywhere anytime soon.”
Perceptor entered the living room and knelt in front of the couch where the triplets sat. He looked them in the optics and smiled softly. “Girls, today you three will learn to fly. Ratchet asked a friend of his to teach you the basics. I want you three to do your best and keep safe, listen to everything Skyfire teaches you.” He said, softly.
Swiftica and her sisters nodded before climbing onto his shoulders. He smiled wider, standing up and moving back toward the door. Skyfire looked at the triplets and smiled warmly as Perceptor stepped out and closed the door. The triplets examined him closely. He looked closer to how they looked then Perceptor did but he still seemed very different. They wondered if they'd ever meet anyone who looked almost exactly like them. At least this flier seemed nice. Only just then did they start to wonder why some bots had wings and others had wheels. The thought never crossed their minds until then.
“Ah, these must be your adorable daughters. Care to introduce me to them, Perceptor?” Skyfire said in an enthusiastic tone.
“Certainly. The old brick red one is Teleblitz. The royal blue one is StormScorch. And the honey flower purple one is Swiftica. Teleblitz is almost always in a perpetually sour mood, Storm is extremely shy and Swiftica is....hm...How would you describe yourself, Swift?” Perceptor explained, looking up at Swiftica upon asking his question.
Swiftica thought it over. “Adventurous.” She said in a cute voice. She looked up at Skyfire, her young red optics wide with happiness.
Skyfire looked into her optics and almost instantly saw StarScream's features in hers. He almost physically faltered at the rush of memories he experienced all at once. He then realized that these triplets were made from StarScream's CNA, allowing him to come to the conclusion that that was the reason for Perceptor's not wanting StarScream to be mentioned around the triplets. Once he regained his composure, he smiled at her.
“It is lovely to meet you three.” He said softly. “I am Skyfire, your flying teacher. I'll be teaching you the basics of flying and hovering.”
Swiftica tilted her helm at his sudden change in volume. Almost as though he were more nervous then he was originally. She wiggled her little frame like a digicat. She pounced off Perceptor's shoulder and straight at Skyfire's chest. Skyfire flinched for a moment before reaching out and catching Swiftica in his arms. She looked up at him and smiled widely, soft purring audible. She trusted him now. She knew she could count on him to catch her if she fell. She climbed up his chest, out of his arms, and up to his shoulder where she sat. Her sisters watched their leading sister before joining her, hopping off Perceptor and onto Skyfire. At that point, Skyfire was feeling slightly overwhelmed by the sudden weight of three young seekerlings. He smiled at them shyly before looking at Perceptor. Perceptor was giggling to himself. Skyfire blushed slightly and pouted, his cheeks puffing up slightly.
“What's so funny?” The spacecraft asked, his voice slightly embarrassed.
“You. You look so flustered. Too much cute for you?” Perceptor said with a humoured voice.
“I'm not flustered!” He paused for a moment. “They are cute though...” He muttered under his breath.
Perceptor rolled his optics slightly, a sly smirk on his lips. He checked the time and sighed deeply. “Girls, I've gotta go get the paint and carpet for your room. You four got the whole day for flying lessons. I'll see you three later. Maybe your room will be complete when you get home.” Perceptor teased slightly.
“Alright! Bye daddy!” Swiftica said with a happy tone.
The four of them watched as Perceptor walked away, Skyfire soon turning and heading for the exit. The triplets looked around at everything. Because Skyfire was so much taller then Perceptor, the seekerlings got a whole new view of the facility's corridors. Swiftica situated herself to the right of Skyfire's helm so she could watch everything at equal height to Skyfire. Her sisters watched every other direction from the spacecraft's shoulders. Skyfire left the facility and turned left, proceeding down the sidewalk.
“Mr. Skyfire...” Swiftica started. “Why do some bots have wings and others have wheels?” She asked, innocently.
Skyfire looked at her from his peripherals. “Well, Swiftica, every bot is created differently so they can perform specific jobs that others can't do. Trucks pull cargo, tanks use their cannons in mines, cars can do a wide range of jobs from simple transport to racing to law enforcement...”
“And jets? Spacecrafts? Seekers? What jobs do they get?” Swiftica asked, unaware of the dangerous waters she was treading in to.
“Spacecrafts, like myself, can deliver information or supplies to and from the moons. Jets are usually military, patrolling the skies for danger. Seekers...well...seekers are special. They have a natural ability to hunt down and find whatever it is they are looking for, hence the name 'seeker'.” He replied. “Sometimes they end up finding themselves in trouble...” He muttered afterward, hoping it was unintelligible to Swiftica.
Swiftica listened to him closely. She wondered if her and her sisters were seekers. There was only one way to find out but in order to do so, and to save time, she would need to learn to fly and to fly stealthily. She loved her adopted father, Perceptor, but she felt the overwhelming need to search out her true parents. She knew her sisters felt it too. They may have to wait a number of years, so they can practice in private. They would find their parents eventually but for the time being, they were more then happy to call Perceptor 'dad'.
After an hour or so, Skyfire walked up to an old factory. The walls looked as though they were oozing rust from the roof. The paint was peeling off the metal, making figuring out the original colour near impossible to discern. The roof itself looked as though it was going to collapse at any moment. They passed through the double doors of the old factory and into the wide open space inside. The steel columns were completely rusted and the ceiling supports above looked exactly like them. Almost everything in the factory looked rusted and weak, it was a wonder why the High Council never even bothered to have the building demolished and replaced with something new.
Skyfire walked to the middle of the factory and put the triplets down on the floor. They looked up at him, standing shoulder to shoulder with one another.
“Now, lets begin. Lets start with hovering. You obviously know that you have thrusters in your feet, specifically your heels. If you focus hard enough...” His own thrusters activated, lifting up just slightly off the ground. “...You will find yourself hovering in place. Give each other enough space then give it a try.”
The triplets side stepped a bit then they started to visualized themselves hovering. The sound of six small thrusters activating could just barely be heard over Skyfire's larger thrusters. The triplets then found themselves lifting up off the ground. They weakened the power of their thrusters enough to stay on one place rather then shooting straight up into the ceiling. Skyfire smiled and clapped his servos together.
“Well done, girls. Now lets move on to the next lesson.”
Half the day passed, it was time for the mid day fuelling. Skyfire was told to spend the whole day with the triplets so they could learn all they could, but Skyfire wasn't the kind of mech to let sparklings go hungry for a whole day. He decided to fly to the nearest cafe with the triplets. To let them fly in the open air rather then in that cramped old factory. Skyfire led the triplets through the factory doors and out into the open sky. The feeling they got from being up in the air made their sparks race and gave them an overwhelming feeling of freedom and exhilaration. They felt as though they could go anywhere and do anything. Skyfire led them over the street. He knew of one cafe near the factory, not that it seemed like they needed to return to the rickety old rust pile anyway.
Once he spotted the sign for the cafe he led the seekerlings down and landed carefully on the sidewalk, the triplets landing, in a sitting position, on Skyfire's shoulders. He smiled at them before walking into Maccadam's new oil house. Despite being known as a bar, Maccadam's was also a cafe which meant that they would have to be wary of the surrounding bots. He knew the place had energon that was safe for younglings because he was not one to get overcharged. He sat in a booth and waited for a waiter or waitress. The triplets sat across from him, babbling to each other in modern Iaconic. Skyfire listened to them. He knew a bit of modern Iaconic but not enough to understand what they were saying to each other. The words he understood in their conversation were too few for him to make sense of. Soon a waiter approached their table and handed them menus. The menus for the triplets were colourful and had a bunch of fun learning activities for them. The waiter placed a glass container of colourful lead crayons on the table for the triplets to use. The triplets first chose their drinks before proceeding to colour and play the games on the menus. Skyfire ordered his drink before watching the triplets play. They were so precious and it upset him that they had to be 'born' during that time. Everyone on Cybertron knew war was coming. Everyone but the sparklings that were being born. At least they will know something about peace before they are thrust into wartimes.
“Mr. Skyfire?” A young voice called to him. He had begun to space out before the voice brought him back to reality. He looked at Swiftica, she was looking up at him with curious optics. “Wanna play this X and O game with me?” She asked him, smiling softly.
“Sure, Swiftica, I'd love to.” He said and they began playing. In the end, It was Swiftica who had won the game, due in part to Skyfire letting her win. She knew he let her win but the feeling of winning was to too good to call him out on it.
The waiter eventually returned to their table to place their drinks in front of them. As they started to drink, Skyfire noticed an orange mech sitting in a booth all on his own. He was tinkering with a model ship. What kind of ship he did not know. It was unlike any that he had seen. The mech looked familiar to him though. He could have sworn he had seen him from somewhere, he just couldn't remember where. He remembered that the mech had a simple name. Ring? Rang? Rong? What was it? Rung? Yeah. It was Rung. He had only met Rung once and it wasn't even a long conversation. It was a simple greeting before they went their separate ways. He debated going over and saying hello but he decided against it. It looked like he was busy anyway. He'd hate to interrupt him when he was so focused on his model ship.
Some time passed, he noticed that Rung had got up and left. Perfect timing too. It looked like two bots had gotten overcharged and were about to wreck the bar. He scooped up the triplets, after placing some credits down on the table, and left Maccadam's. He let the seekerlings take flight first before joining them and leading them back toward the facility, taking them back home. Once they got there, he carried them inside, heading straight for Perceptor's quarters. He ended up passing Proximity on the way.
“Excuse me, sir. Have you seen my toy car? I've been looking for it for a month and I still haven't found it.” Proximity had asked.
“I'm sorry, I have not seen it. Try retracing your steps. Maybe if you remember when you had it last it will help you figure out where you might have left it.” Skyfire said, kindly.
Proximity nodded and moved along. Skyfire continued his walk to Perceptor's quarters. He noticed that the door was unlocked, meaning Perceptor was in and most likely doing the final set up of the triplets' room. He entered the living room, set the triplets down and led them to their room. The door was wide open and inside was their fully completed room. The colours of the walls and carpet matched the bed room set they had gotten. The triplets were ecstatic and happily scampered around their room. Skyfire watched them with a wide smile before Perceptor joined him, walking out from his room to see that they had returned early.
“I thought I said you had them for the whole day. You're back too early. The paint isn't completely dry yet.” Perceptor said, slightly annoyed at Skyfire.
“We're back early because they had learned all they needed to learn about flying. They even flew all the way back here from Maccadam's in Iacon.”
“You took them to Iacon?” He paused. “You took them to Maccadam's!?” His voice had elevated to a more shocked tone.
“Don't worry. I carried them out before a fight broke out. They are perfectly fine. No damage whatsoever.” He assured the fearful microscope.
Perceptor calmed down and watched his daughters play in their newly renovated room. When he saw his sparklings playing and enjoying themselves, it filled his spark with joy. Even just seeing his little ones made him happy. The whole time they were gone, he worried about them, often pacing the room thinking of all the danger they were in out there without him. He was glad he could trust Skyfire with his little ones. Which reminded him that he had another thing to worry about. The upcoming war. He did not want them to see one bit of it. He wanted them to be taken as far from the war as possible.
“Skyfire...the day the war is made official....I want you to take them off planet. Away from Cybertron. Away from the fighting. Away to somewhere safe.” Perceptor's tone was solemn and slow.
Skyfire looked at him with surprise. “Me? Take them away from the only home they've ever known? Away from you? Why me?”
“Because you have proven to be trustworthy. Please. I do not trust any other flyers.”
“But...” Skyfire trailed off. “Once the war is official, I can not leave Cybertron. But I can arrange for a small shuttle to transport them to another planet. I feel a strong sense of duty to fight to protect my home.”
Perceptor was slightly disappointed but also relieved to hear that Skyfire will at least help in a small way. “Thank you, Skyfire. This means a lot to me. I don't want them to see war. I barely want to see it myself. But like you, I feel a sense of duty to protect Cybertron.”
“Maybe one day you will see them again.” Skyfire said, looking on the bright side of taking the triplets off-world. “When you do see them again, they will be all grown up. Thanks to you for giving them the chance to live a full life.”
Perceptor smiled up at Skyfire. “Thank you for brightening my look on this. Maybe you could also take another youngling to space. Proximity. He's not Cybertronian so he should not be forced to stay and, possibly, die on Cybertron.”
“Of course, I shall send him with the triplets. I know the exact bot I will choose to pilot the shuttle. An old friend of mine from the academy. He's an amazing pilot, though he is a chatter box.”
“An old friend of yours? What's his name?” Perceptor had to ask. He was most-likely going to do some research on the mech to see if his reputation was justified.
“This may sound strange but his name is Wheatley.” Skyfire said, rubbing the back of his neck. There were worse names then 'Wheatley' on Cybertron. He wouldn't point any out but they were out there.
“Wheatley?” He paused. He was going to comment on the name but he did not want to provoke Skyfire. “You trust him? With all your spark?”
Skyfire nodded. “I do. He and I have known each other for a long time. So long, in fact, that he made me his Amica Endura. His only Amica Endura.”
“Wow. What an honour that must be.” Perceptor thought things over. “Alright. If you trust him then so do I.” He smiled up at Skyfire, receiving a smile in return.
“I should be off now. I got things to do elsewhere. See you next time, Perceptor.” He leaned into the room. “Bye girls.”
The triplets looked to the door before flying toward it and hugging Skyfire tightly. “Goodbye!” They said in unison before hugging their carrier, having not noticed him when he had joined Skyfire in the hall. Perceptor returned the hug he got from his daughters before following Skyfire to the door. Once the spacecraft was gone, Perceptor carried the girls to the couch and turned the TV monitor on to a cartoon for them to watch, so as to keep them from touching the fresh paint in their room.