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Finding the Good Within	By : Scienceteacher Category: Transformers > G1 > Crossovers Views: 3108 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story

Chapter List
- 15
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Preparing for delivery

Hunter sat alone on the bridge, silently contemplating. She felt different. A slight pleasurable constant buzzing filled her grids. It didn’t seem to be interfering with her sensory scans whatsoever, but it was strangely – comforting. And it wasn’t the stimulator either; she had that device safely stowed away in her cockpit for future ‘fun’. But she was beginning to feel strange urges. A craving for more of the organic drink that Earth Seekers periodically needed. But she shouldn’t need any, for she hadn’t suffered any major damage. So her reserves should be full – shouldn’t they?

Cocking her head, she ran an internal scan. Her optics narrowed in thought as the readings came back. Her reserve was becoming depleted, and her battle processor was beginning to send a message that she also needed several different metal ions as well. Leaning forward, she put her elbows on the communications console and set her chin on top of her clasped hands. This situation with her systems was highly unusual; she had to figure it out. Delving deep in her memory banks, she brought up every comment that she’d ever heard dealing with reproduction back in her home dimension. For like all Earth mech femmes, she’d been forced to take those boring repro classes at the Academy.

She went over fact over fact. Theory over theory.. Until one matched up. She was going to bud! Frowning, she leaned back in her chair and snorted in disgust. Budding was normally an asexual method of reproduction, but from all appearances it seemed that it was the sexual means of reproduction here. The sparks within her were going to take more after their sires in temperament and intelligence, but more after her in potential capabilities and protoform structure.

Drumming her fingers on the console, she contemplated the fix she was in. If she’d known that this was going to be what happened, she would’ve allowed Onslaught to thrust his spark in her! Then she would’ve been ensured that her sparklings would be mentally strong, ready to fight. But no, because she would bud, she’d disgraced her strong Decepticon ancestry by infusing these Autobot sparks into it now. Slamming her fist into the bulkhead, she cursed herself for her lack of foresight. She’d just assumed that she’d be infusing the sparks into prebuilt protoforms, and in that case being half Autobot would not have been a major issue. On top of that, she wouldn’t have much time now to prepare. For if she was budding, there was no way to force the sparks into stasis.

Standing up, she paced back and forth. Her carbide thrusters tapped on the metal floor of the bridge in a strange musical Candice as she thought. Budding was the hardest method of reproduction on a femme. For every sparkling produced, she’d be incapacitated for a minimum of two day cycles in order to replenish her reserves and rebuild her weakened structures. And she was now carrying a minimum of three maturing sparks within her. Hunter groaned at the mere thought of being dependant on those freagin’ Autobot mechs for a minimum of six day cycles! It was so beneath her.

Sitting down in a huff, she contemplated her future course of action. First, she needed to acquire the supplies to make the carbon and metal ion rich beverages she would need to consume in great quantity. This would be reasonably easy since there were many organic species that sold to the intergalactic markets. Sliding over to the navigation consol, she looked up several trading ports, studied them, and then decided on which one to go to. Plugging in the new flight plan, she set the autopilot again.

After doing that, she leaned back and crossed her arms. A look of sheer disgust washed over her face. For now she needed to decide on how to handle the three males. True, she had their oaths to obey her, but that might change when she was incapacitated. They might take the protoform sparklings while she was helpless, and leave her to off line. Narrowing her optics she considered how the Autobot allies were treated in her home dimension. They were treated as equals by the Guardians. Granted, Armada Autobots were far, far superior to any of the weak, pathetic mechs of this fraggin’ dimension – but they still had the same weakness.. The same emotions.. Grinding her jaws against each other, Hunter knew she had to treat the mechs a little ‘nicer’. Make them believe that she’d just been a hard-aft at first in order to teach them to be strong. Make them believe that she was really ‘nice’.

Grunting in disgust, Hunter again stood up and paced. She was not happy with this situation - not happy at all! But she swore to herself that her next set of sparklings would only be sired by the strongest of mechs in this freagin’ dimension. Sure, these three pathetic weaklings would be forced to help raise them – she’d simply make them believe they were theirs. She knew better than to try and con a Decepticon into doing it. She couldn’t ensure a con’s loyalty when she was incapacitated. So she’d keep these three Autobots around since they were useful, controllable. Snickering at the thought of the three Autobots raising Onslaught’s future offspring as their own, Hunter felt her mood brighten a bit. It would all be worth it in the end.

Yes, Onslaught would make a good sire for future warriors. He was strong. He’d never be cowed into submission like these Autobots had been. If he was the type to take a mate – and actually be loyal to her – he’d stand by her side as an equal. Not like the sniveling cowards that these Autobots were…

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Mirage entered the bridge. His four astrohours of free time had been a blessing. Time well spent in the company of his old friends. He almost felt like his old self again. Like that Autobot Mirage who enjoyed laughing and joking in the peace between battles. But as he walked through those opened doors; his bright, cheerful blue optics dimmed slightly. The tension of uncertainty flowing through his systems…

Locking his wary optics on the back of the temperamental femme, he wondered what he would see when she turned to acknowledge him. His hands clenched and unclenched in anxiety as he wondered if he’d see the wonderful swirling amber – or the terrifying crimson swirling in her optics. But he felt his internal strength returning in full force. For soon, it’d be time to force her to negotiate. He now knew from the information that his comrades had gathered, that he could actually stand up to her in a ground fight. That he could handle a heck of a lot more damage than she could. That is, if it came down to that.

Her audios picked up the slight swoosh of the door as it slid open. Not turning around, she listened as the mech stepped in. For a few astrominutes she smirked as she pointedly ignored him and read through her emails. He didn’t step forward, didn’t even move a bearing as he waited for her acknowledgement. And as the time slowly passed, Hunter’s optics swirled to amber, with the strange blue streaks flowing through them. Her mood brightened even more, for she had truly trained this mech properly.

Turning her head slightly, her optics briefly locked with his. A slight smile graced her lips as she gave him an approving glance. “I assume you enjoyed your break?” she asked in a matter-of-fact tone. Nodding towards the navigational station, she indicated for him to take his normal station.

Mirage forced a warm smile on his face as he walked forward and took his seat. He brightened his optics to that of happiness. He wanted the femme caught completely unawares by the mechs’ plans. And since Hunter was still in her ‘good’ mood - it would be a good shift! “Yes ma-am, thank you,” he answered her. His optics locked with hers. He thought they were so beautiful when they swirled in the warm amber shade, his meta wondering slightly if his sparklings would have her optics – or his. Excitement spread through him as he saw that the strange blue-green tendrils were filling them more-and-more. Those must be the sparks of the half-Autobot sparklings within her! In a sense, he was able to see his own sparkling before it was even born! The realization filled him with an exhilaration he’d never experienced before.

Deciding she needed to make him truly ‘feel’ like a mate, Hunter considered her options. Thinking back to how overemotional these freagers were, she decided on the most ‘warm and fuzzy’ action she could think of. Without a word, she turned her optics back to her emails. But she extended her hand and curled her fingers around his hand sitting on his thigh. Continuing to read, she rubbed his fingers just as she’d observed her grandmother do with Optimus Prime so long ago. She smirked inside as she could literally feel the pathetic mech swell with happiness at her little show of affection.

Trying to be all business, Mirage found himself terribly distracted by her fingers lightly rubbing on his. Tingling electrical impulses raced through him as he glanced sideways at his temperamental ‘bond mate’. He couldn’t believe that she was showing affection towards him! Perhaps she was calming down now that he had learned to be strong? Perhaps she was growing to like him more?!? Shifting in his seat, Mirage couldn’t help but get an almost happy smile on his face. He knew the bitter femme had some gentleness in her. Perhaps.. Perhaps they’d finally gotten her to accept her position in this new dimension? Perhaps she realized that they could be friends.. That she wasn’t facing this alone.. Perhaps they wouldn’t have to follow through with their plans to force her to negotiate with them.

But then the happiness briefly left his optics as a flash of wariness flitted through. He remembered how easily the femme had manipulated him into doing the mission. Glancing down at her fingers rubbing on his, he realized that the Seeker was playing him again. Biting down on his lip, he decided to act the part of an unwary mech and bide his time.

“It will not be long now, Mirage,” she stated. Still not looking at him, she deleted a few more messages.

He couldn’t help but turn his head fully towards her. Did she mean – not long until ‘birth’?!? Is this what she meant?!? He hoped so! But were they ready? What did they need to do? He and the other mechs knew little about what to expect, or what was expected of them during this process. Should he dare to ask her?!? ‘-Wheeljack, Grapple – she says it won’t be long!-’ he silently radioed to his friends.

‘-Look for any hint that she’ll be incapacitated,-’ Wheeljack’s voice said inside his meta.

‘-Then it’ll be our time to negotiate!-’ Grapple agreed, the excitement obvious by his tone.

Silently agreeing with his two friends, Mirage vowed to stay strong when he faced her. He would be the mechs’ negotiator, the mechs’ leader in this. Studying her, he chewed on his bottom lip in uncertainty, even as he continued to enjoy her touch on his hand. She was so beautiful when she was calm. That distracting thought filled his meta. But then a strange comparison flashed through him as he studied her profile. She really did remind him of the Decepticon Seekers. He widened his optics in surprise. But yes, the more he thought about it, the more certain he was. After all, Grapple and Wheeljack were almost positive that she had a Decepticon as her sire. Was it a Seeker similar to Skywarp?!? He shook his head slightly, bringing himself back to reality. Perhaps one day she’d tell him.. Perhaps when his sparkling was born, he’d understand..

She turned her optics to him, hating the fact that this pathetic Autobot would be her and her sparklings only defense while she was incapacitated… That she would be forced to depend on him and the other two sloggers for her very functioning. But she had to ensure both her survival and that of her valuable offspring – and to do that, she had to prepare Mirage to take command during her convalescence. She had to make him truly fall in love with her now. Control his very soul through his emotions. “Yes, it won’t be long now, until you are a father,” she said, forcing her voice to fill with warmth.

Mirage forced a huge happy smile to cross his handsome face. He had to make her believe that he was still controlled by his emotions. Make her believe that she was still able to play him so easily. He made his hydraulic pressure shoot up a bit, knowing full well that the femme’s audios would pick up the muted whine. He commanded his engine to idle faster, knowing that it was a sign of an excited mech. Perhaps she’d think it was due to his excitement of her touch, of her fake warmth. But he also pretended to try and hide his reactions, make her think he was still afraid to show emotion around her. Nodding, he gave her his complete attention. His expression was one of eagerness to do anything she said.

Feeling him squeeze her hand, and the slight increase in the rpms of his engine, easily told the sharp-witted femme that he was doing his best to disguise his excitement. Although she still found the cold Decepticon mechs so much emotionally stronger, she felt a sense of accomplishment that she had seemingly taught this pathetic Autobot to control his emotions. Perhaps she could trust him to protect her? Unfortunately, she really had no choice – did she? “So, I assume you are pleased with this?” she asked as she locked optics with him.

Pretending to struggle at masking his ‘elation’, Mirage nodded. “Yes ma-am.. Yes ma-am I am,” he said. Slightly stumbling over his words because of his act of barely contained excitement, he cringed, hopeful she hadn’t spotted it. “What do we need to do Hunter? What will happen?” he dared to ask. But surely she knew they had to be told what to expect? So they’d know how to react. And he needed to know just how incapacitated she would be. So that the mechs could plan their negotiations.

She narrowed her optics slightly, not liking his boldness in the least. But before she reprimanded him with a backhand across the bridge – she stopped herself. His question was logical, so perhaps she’d continue to play the part of a ‘nice’ mate? Allow him to eagerly help her? Forcing her hydraulic pressure to lower back down to normal resting level, she nodded to him. “Fair enough questions Mirage. Can I count on you?” she asked, keeping her slight anger from entering her voice.

“Um, yes ma-am. I’ll do anything.. We’ll do anything,” he stated. His eagerness filled his voice as he mentioned his two friends. It would be the three of their responsibilities – wouldn’t it? They would have to work together. His eagerness was in earnest, for it wasn’t just the anticipation of the sparklings – it was the anticipation of the negotiations.

She leaned back and studied Mirage for a few moments before she began to explain. “I will bud, Mirage. The sparklings will actually physically separate from me. They will be in a protoform at this stage. They will be helpless. As will I,” she stated as a matter of fact.

Ah, so she’d truly be helpless then. And it was killing her to admit this to him. Inside, Mirage smirked, just as he felt his two friends smirk as he relayed her words to them over the com link. But then he thought about her description of how the sparklings would separate from her. So she will kind’ve split up or something? Mirage tried to envision this concept in his meta, but he couldn’t. He was no scientist. But he tried to imagine having a protoform splitting out from his own chassis. It seemed like it would hurt. If she was in pain, it would make it even easier to negotiate with her. “Will you be in pain?” he asked the femme, mock concern in his voice.

She nodded, “extreme pain. My sensor grids may actually overload during the process.”

So she might actually shutdown? This would make it even easier for the mechs to take control. On the other hand, what if something went wrong with one of the sparklings? They wouldn’t have her guidance! But would this off-line her? Anxiety filled him, for even though she could be incredibly mean at times, and the mechs were planning to force her into negotiations – they had no clue about how to raise these new Guardians without her. His own sparklings needed her. “What should we do?” he asked with narrowed optics. This entire situation was getting very complicated now.

“Before it is time, we will have the supplies I need. Wheeljack will have to tube feed me, for I will be too weak and depleted to even move much. You will have to take command of the ship during this time, and Grapple will have to watch over the sparklings,” she stated. Leaning forward, she took his other hand gently in hers, rubbing her fingers on his. She hated the fact that she would have no control during this time, but knew she had to lay the framework down to ensure everything went smoothly.

“How long before you will recover?” he asked. He was terrified that the Decepticons might run across them during this time. And even though she was a known ‘ally’ – it wasn’t unheard of for the cons to turn on their allies for no reason. It would be all his fault if the helpless sparklings fell into their hands. And during this same period of time, he and the mechs would have to lay the groundwork for the way they wanted her to treat them. So he needed to know, so that he could make plans for both things.

“A minimum of two day cycles per sparkling. And I have at least three within me,” she stated flatly. Her tone was deadly serious as she locked optics with him. Their safety would be his responsibility.

So he’d have a minimum of six day cycles then; Six day cycles where he’d not only have to keep them all safe – but also negotiate with the femme. He gulped down his trepidation as the weight of the responsibilities sought to overwhelm him. But it was Hunter who faced the agony of the birth, the severe depletions of all her systems. In a sense, he felt strangely sympathetic towards the femme. Even as mean and cold as she was, the fact that Primus was forcing her to do this made him feel a little sorry for her. Not sorry enough to swerve from his plans of forcing her to agree to his terms by any means.

But he figured he owed her a fake show of ‘understanding’ since she was giving him a fake show of ‘warmth’. So not really caring if she would get mad, he dared to stand up.. Dared to put his arms around her and pull her tightly to his chest armor.. “I will protect you and the sparklings, I promise,” he said with conviction in his tone. He’d protect her from more than the Decepticons, and he’d protect their sparklings from turning into cold, harsh and cruel Guardians like herself.

As he surrounded her with his arms and murmured the words that she’d expect out of an Autobot who was blind to her manipulation, a thought flashed through Mirage’s meta. A brainstorm, if you will. A devious grin crossed his face, for there was another thing a typical Autobot would say in this situation. Being ‘overcome’ with excitement and ‘fooled’ by her fake display of warmth. “Hunter? Hunter.. Will you promise to love me?” he stammered, making sure his voice had a pleading edge to it.

“Oh yes, I love you Mirage. You know I do,” she whispered back. Her tone was full of fake warmth, with an apparent need to make him realize that she had always ‘loved’ him. Her face hidden in his arms, Hunter smirked in satisfaction of her manipulation. He was now hers completely. He would not betray her..

His chin set on top of her helm, Mirage smirked. For the bounty hunter was proud of keeping her word above all else, seeming to feel like it elevated her over the pathetic con ranks – just as her emotional control elevated her over the perceived weaknesses of the Autobot ranks. But she’d just given her oath on something she didn’t really understand. For when an Autobot asked for the oath of love, it meant an oath of equality, it meant an oath to never hit that mech, degrade that mech, or otherwise demean that mech whom it was given too. With such a seemingly simple question, he had made the negotiation and she had unwittedly agreed to it.

No, he didn’t really expect her to truly ‘love’ him. That was a dream long forgotten. He now had his secret bond mates to fill that void. But he would now force her to treat them fairly, and she had given him his weapon – her oath, her word – which she valued highly.
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Note: Sparklings come in just three more chapters.. But you'll never, never, look at Mirage the same way after the next two!
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Finding the Good Within