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Life is a Tree	By : CGH Category: Transformers > Transformers: Animated > AU/AR Views: 2358 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers: Beast Wars, nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 1-Life is a Tree
- 2-Ch 2
- 3-Ch 3
- 4-Ch 4
- 5-Ch 5
- 6-Ch 6
- 4
- 5
- 6
Jazz regained awareness to the floor under his back and wiry lips nuzzling his throat. He smelled steam, oil and hot metal rapidly cooling. The last thing he remembered was a mind-blowing overload. Was the heat he felt coming from himself or Prowl's body resting across his chest?
Fingers touched his lips. He kissed them. Their owner spoke, "Jazz?"
"Hey..." Jazz managed to smile. He was still tingling, and he'd never forget the feel of Prowl stiffening and moaning directly in his audio input sensor. "How was it?"
Prowl's lips outlined his cheekbone. "Wonderful, Jazz. Wonderful." And a ripple of naked happiness jumped between their Sparks like cloud to cloud lightning. I can feel you...
...good. Then you know you don't have to walk this life alone anymore. 'Cause I'll always be right here.
And that is a safe feeling.
Something crackled. Jazz's arms were suddenly empty. He felt Prowl clasp his hands and help him up. The abrupt change in body positioning without a visual reference sent his equilibrium chips scrambling for balance. Reality see-sawed and he wobbled with it.
"Easy, Jazz. Pay attention to your feet and your body will respond."
"I didn't have this trouble the first time I stood up." Jazz rubbed his head. He heard the click of Prowl putting his visor back on. His own shattered optics sent shooting pains through his forehead and his knees dully reminded him of their presence. Deciding to ignore them, he leaned over and caught Prowl in a static-filled lip-lock.
"Mm. You were also ankle deep in water, which gave you more of a horizontal reference point." Prowl's amusement tinkled through their newborn bond. He felt so much that his voice and face didn't reflect. It was almost like seeing him broken into facets instead of a single, smooth surface.
"Man! It's hard to believe how much changes when you lose your sight." Jazz held on when Prowl stepped off the tracks and into what felt like a void.
"Watch your head."
Jazz ducked when Prowl's elbow dropped. They had to walk several feet while doubled over, but Prowl kept talking anyway and the narrow passageway transformed his voice into thunder.
"I would be at the same disadvantage if I suddenly gained sight."
"Why?"
"Everything I know is by touch, sound, smell or taste. I wouldn't know how to interpret visual information. I..." Prowl paused, "...I didn't know you were showing me light until you named it." He straightened. "What kind of light was that?"
Jazz stood up as well. "That was the sun, Prowl."
"Ah. It was beautiful...but I don't feel like I'm missing anything by not seeing it."
Jazz frowned until he saw Prowl's point--and realized that, even if it was offered to him, he wouldn't want eyesight. It'd thrust him into a frightening world of colors, lights, movement and a million other visual things Jazz took for granted. Besides, experiencing the world as Prowl did let him realize there were so many beautiful things he didn't know existed because he was always intent on the input from his optics. Things like the sounds, sensations and smells of his lover crying out in ecstasy. This cavern made Prowl's hollow voice resonate like music, and every word he said literally rang.
The world was still a beautiful place. Not seeing it didn't mean it disappeared, it just presented itself in an entirely new manner.
Like the roar of rushing water...
"I hear it again. Hey, I thought we were closer than this!"
Prowl chuckled, "The narrow tunnel was acting like an amplifier. It had me fooled as well."
They continued onward. Something slimy squelched under Jazz's left foot.
"Guano," Prowl said.
"What's that? And what's that squeaky noise overhead?"
"Are you sure you want to know?"
"Um...it's not going to eat me, is it?"
"No." Prowl's smile showed in his voice, "Bats. They are nocturnal mammals and won't harm us. Though--"
Jazz stepped in another squishy puddle.
"--they leave a lot of feces. Sari calls it 'poop.'"
"Ew. Poop ain't dangerous, is it?"
"No, just unpleasant on the olfactory sensors."
Jazz squinted behind the flux, "I don't smell anything."
"Wait for it," Prowl said, his stride never breaking.
An odious stench assaulted Jazz's sensors. Waste sludge smelled better than this!
"Augh! Nasty!" Jazz let go of Prowl's arm and danced around, trying to shake the slimy goop off his heel.
"Catch up when you're ready. And a word of advice? Watch your head." Prowl snickered and passed into the next cavern. His laughter lingered around the rough walls before the rushing water drowned it out.
It wasn't until Prowl fell silent that Jazz realized his means of transportation went on without him. He had nothing to guide him but the squeaking bats overhead and the sound of water roaring at his left. Standing with nothing in arm's reach turned the innocent cavern into an endless void full of imagined holes ready to swallow him whole.
Jazz knew he could cry out for help. A word, and Prowl would be at his side again, leading him. But that meant giving up before he started.
He held both hands out--the left at waist level and the right near his forehead--to protect himself from obstacles. Then, orienting himself towards the hissing water, he shuffled forward at a snail's pace. It terrified him and his feet kept catching on small stones, but he didn't stop moving.
Jazz counted ten steps before something about the air flow suddenly changed. He stopped and stretched his right arm forward. His fingertips encountered the moist, spiky coolness of a stalactite. He grinned as he slipped around it and heard a second obstacle waiting on his left. Another stalactite, this one longer than the first. He heard swishing sounds when he walked between them.
So these were the sound shadows Prowl mentioned! How queer, he felt how they altered the ambient air circulation in the surrounding area.
I got it now, Jazz thought. My audios are eyes.
His confidence restored, Jazz continued on and easily dodged the nose and knee traps looming in his path. Did Prowl feel this free when he learned to interpret his visor and walked boldly in the daylight without fear of tripping?
A rock wall stopped Jazz in his tracks. Its rough surface was irregular like rolling hills that cracked down the middle. He leaned forward and sniffed--the fissures lacked the slimy scum of algae. That meant no place for sunlight to peek into the cavern. He moved left, trailing towards the chaotic, roaring water. Suddenly, his fingertips encountered moist air and a sharp curve. He swung his arm around it--aha, an opening! Something stood in the passageway. Jazz's probing hand located the blockage. When did rocks take the shape of Prowl's small, attractive aft?
He groped it. "Boo!"
"Hey!" Prowl's hand grasped reflexively at his forearm. If he was startled, it didn't show for long. "You made it." His voice sweetened into a smile, "Good job, Jazz."
Jazz kissed Prowl's hand. "I learned from the best."
"Hmph. Flatterer."
They laughed together, shaking off the tension as they walked slowly through one last rocky archway. All the roaring, rushing and burbling noises became crystal clear.
Jazz turned his head left to right. He heard and smelled the presence of an underground waterfall. The hissing cacophony echoed off the rock walls and drowned his sense of direction. Misty spray beaded on his armor until condensation trickled down his body. He was still sensitive from earlier, and each droplet felt like a caress.
"Sounds like the waterfall's pretty high up."
"It's the echo. We're about level with where the water is emerging. It's throwing up a lot of mist." Prowl replied, "Jazz, I'm a little concerned about letting you get wet again--and if you fall--"
"Prowl, I ain't gonna sit here on my aft and let you take all the action. It's my fault we're in this mess. I'd hate myself if you got hurt because of me. If we're gonna fall, let's fall together, okay?"
"Then I...wait!" The servos in Prowl's arm stiffened, "Do you sense that?"
"I--" Jazz turned his head and a warm, electrical pulse danced through his Spark. It had a distinctive signature--the harmonic throb of life itself. "Is that the shard?"
"It's behind the waterfall! It must have been swept along until it came to rest in here."
Jazz faced Prowl's voice. "But that water's fallin' pretty hard."
"I think we can reach it. Come on!"
"What--" Jazz didn't get to finish because Prowl jolted forward like a shot. The waterfall's roar grew closer. So close he felt stray droplets splash over his face and chest. It was cold and smelled fresh. "Prowl, can your oscillators see the shard?"
"Let me try it." A pause. "Yes, it's faint, but I can see it. It's a good-sized piece. We must work together to reach it. Here--this is the edge. I'll need you to lower me, the wall wears smooth towards the bottom."
Jazz stood there, flummoxed. "How in the Pit can you tell?"
"The water isn't splashing, it's flowing straight out of the waterfall and goes around a bend. The river is about thirty feet down. Now," Prowl knelt and placed Jazz's hand on the moist, jagged edge of what seemed like a bottomless abyss. "Swing yourself over and use your feet to find footholds. Don't give it your weight until you're sure it'll hold."
All that confidence Jazz felt earlier trickled away with the rushing river. Finding his way through a cavern was one thing. But climbing around above water to which he didn't know the depth? Reaching blindly for handholds and footholds that may not be there? He wasn't ready!
"I don't like this..."
"It's the only way," Prowl said gently. "What if I got in position and used my voice to guide you?"
That suggestion only gave Jazz visions of himself slipping and knocking Prowl down as he fell. He shook it off. They were working as a team--if he refused, they both failed this mission. He'd potentially lose his Elite Guard membership. Cowardice was never tolerated amidst such highly powerful and visible ranks. Of course, losing his rank was nothing to what Prowl could lose.
And he couldn't keep his fear out of their bond. He felt Prowl touch his hand.
"You can do this, Jazz. I wouldn't suggest this if I thought it was beyond your ability."
Prowl believed in him. He was still reeling from his injury and Prowl believed in him.
"Okay. I'll do it."
Rocks crackled as Prowl swung himself over. Jazz startled when he felt warm lips press against his.
"For luck."
Jazz grinned, "See ya on the flip side, sexy."
Prowl blew an amused snort. Clinks and clanks signaled his descent. Jazz nervously chewed his bottom lip. If Prowl fell, would he be heard over the noise of the waterfall? Over a minute passed and nothing.
"Jazz!" Prowl's voice came from below and to the far right. How'd he get way over there?
Relief flooded him. "Still here."
"Good! I'm in position." Prowl had to shout over the waterfall's constant roar. "There is a large crack about two body lengths below you. Find it and you can shimmy sideways to me. Move slowly, it's slippery!"
"Okay. I'm on my way down." Jazz swallowed his fear and eased himself over the jagged edge. Wet rock loomed inches from his nose. He set his teeth and felt for the first handhold. There were many, he realized--they jutted out like slick spikes. He turned his head in an instinctive attempt to look around. He let his left leg drop, swinging it until another outcrop caught his toe.
"Jazz?"
"I'm--I'm okay." Jazz's fuel pump throbbed like a jackhammer. He pressed his cheek to the wet rock wall. For a moment he wasn't sure if the rumble he heard was the waterfall or energon rushing through his audio relays. He muttered a thousand prayers to Primus and lowered himself to the next set of hand-holds. Solid ground greeted his soles. "I think I found the crack. It's solid."
"Right. Now you have to drop and catch yourself."
Slag me, Jazz sighed. But he did it before he could think too much. For a split second he gave himself to oblivion. Then the solid crack greeted his fingers and he clung on with all his might. Cool air from the falling water fanned his wet back. How could such a seemingly innocent liquid sound so powerful?
"You made it!" Prowl cried, and Jazz felt the other mech's hand clasp one of his own. "Now come towards me and lower me down."
"Okay...let me get closer." Jazz shimmied sideways until their hips bumped. "You sure you wanna do this?"
"This is hardly the time to ask such a question," said Prowl. "Give me your left hand. I'm going to drop, so be ready...now!"
Jazz tightened his grip and braced his feet on the wall. Utilizing his training in balance and strength, he adjusted himself to hang almost parallel to the crack. Prowl's grasp on him did not waver.
"I can't reach it!" Prowl snarled, "I need another foot!"
"I can't get you any lower!" Jazz yelled back. "We need another method!"
Prowl grudgingly swung himself back up to the crack. Frustration bled through the bond. Jazz heard the grinding sounds of armor against rock. Prowl's feet pinged and he swore his ears detected something.
"Kick the rock again."
Prowl did so without question. He picked up on Jazz's lead immediately. "There's an echo. Faint, but..." His weight shifted. Jazz's audios picked up the swish of a throwing disk flying and the clang of it hitting something solid. Prowl's frustration became a bubbling triumph. "Jazz, I do believe you found a ledge behind the waterfall. All the noise makes it hard to guess--it may position us right above the shard."
And before Jazz said anything, Prowl kicked off the rock wall, back flipped and Jazz cringed in anticipation of a splash. The waterfall seemed to swallow the world--he didn't hear anything and wondered if Prowl somehow fell, or--
"Jazz!" Prowl called from at least ten feet down. "Kick off and jump to my voice!"
"Have you lost your motherboards?"
"Trust me!"
Primus, just don't let me fall.
He swung sideways towards the point from which Prowl jumped and pressed his feet against the wall. His arms trembled. There didn't seem to be enough air for his intake system. He trusted Prowl, but in moments like this he had trouble trusting himself. This would be so much easier if he'd seen this cave before and could trace it from a visual memory. Did leaping into the unknown ever scare Prowl this bad?
"I'm gonna do it. Stand back so I don't land on you."
"Just jump to my voice. Don't worry about me!"
"How wide is the ledge?"
"Six feet. It's triangular. Jump, Jazz!"
Steeling himself, Jazz fired the hydraulics in his legs and gave himself to the void. He flipped once, twice...the waterfall's roar was at his back...and then solid ground crashed into his feet. The impact sent blazing needles through his knee joints. He crumpled to sit on his aft, shaking, and Prowl's hands came to rest on his shoulders.
"Are you all right?" asked Prowl. Even shouting it was hard to hear him over the falls.
"Y-yeah. I did it..." Jazz barely managed a smile despite the ache in his legs. "I think I messed up my knees when I landed."
"I smell the hydraulic fluid." Prowl's fingertips probed Jazz's knee joints, each touch making him wince. "You probably have a leak. Don't worry--we'll find a way out soon. But first, hang from this ledge and lower me down. I need to get that shard."
"Right." Jazz nodded. He let the pain keep his mind focused on their mission. Accomplishing this meant a lot to Prowl. Failure wasn't an option. He scooted back until he hung off the very tip of the ledge. Behind him, the waterfall flowed a mere foot from his back. He told himself not to fear it, that it probably didn't look as big and menacing as it sounded. "Gimme your hand."
Prowl was beside him. Jazz felt a gentle, narrow hand slide into his grasp. He set his teeth and let his arm drop, grunting as he struggled against Prowl's weight.
"Almost there!" Prowl called up. His legs kicked and Jazz tightened his grasp on the rocky outcropping. "Can you get me down one more inch?"
Jazz grimaced at an annoying trickle of water dripping like missiles on his face. He leaned back as far as he dared, "Stop swinging, we'll fall!"
"Got it! Swing me up!"
Something crackled. Jazz felt his fingers slip. No, not his fingers, the rocks!
Jazz's reality tunneled around the sound of stone giving way. Time dilated to a crawl. There was just him hanging in the air, weightless, lost between realizing what had happened and what was about to happen. His first instinct was to flail his arm for a handhold, but he didn't dare let go of Prowl's hand. Then, irrationally, he started to imagine the abyss below as an endless black hole, a grinder full of gnashing blades and a compactor ready to crush him flat. Finally, when he'd exhausted his imagination there was just one wish that Prowl would somehow survive and escape.
And then they were falling--Jazz in disbelief with pieces of rock still in his grasp and Prowl's voice yelling at him. He heard one loud splash a split second before he created his own. A world of cold, gurgling and tickling bubbles surrounded him so fast he almost didn't feel the pain of water entering his injuries. It washed the flux right out of his eye sockets. Warnings blared in his head. He lost all sense of up or down, his hands groping for purchase on something, anything. Arms wrapped around his waist and tugged. The dull roar disappeared with a pop and reality coalesced once more.
"Sh-shard..." Jazz choked through the agony in his head.
"I have it." Prowl said gently.
Jazz dimly realized Prowl was clinging to a rock somewhere in the bend of the underground river and using his body to block the raging water. It didn't do much good, but Jazz couldn't bring himself to say so.
"My oscillators are picking up daylight. This river goes outside, but we have to go underwater--"
"Let's do it. I think I can make it."
Fingers probed his face. "The flux..."
"Prowl, c'mon. I know what my systems can handle."
He heard Prowl sigh heavily. The fingertips moved to stroke his cheek. Jazz clasped them and laid his chin on Prowl's shoulder. He let his relief at knowing Prowl survived the fall seep like oil into their bond.
"I'll be okay. Limping, but okay. I promise."
Prowl snorted. "You're impossible, you know that?"
"Thanks, you look sexy, too."
And if Prowl had eyes, Jazz was sure he would've rolled them.
"I love you." Jazz added in a sing-song tone.
"I know." Prowl's voice was light, revealing his facial expression.
Jazz smiled back, kissed him and turned his back to the current. "Let's get going before I lose the use of my legs."
"Right," Prowl answered softly. "Just hold onto me in case you short out. I don't know how long we have to remain underwater--the surface is too chaotic to see anything other than the daylight seeping in."
No problem there. Jazz rather liked the excuse for wrapping his arms around Prowl. He brushed his lips against the space where Prowl's throat and jaw met. Then, once again, the world dissolved to a murmuring swirl of bubbles and gurgling. Pain shot lasers into his shattered optics and knee joints. There was no blocking it out. Feedback howled like demons through his audios. Imaginary acid splattered his neural network. He screamed a stream of bubbles while the world faded first into static, then to silence.
A nanosecond later, he looked up and saw in shades of gray. His body felt heavy, armored...he was in the junkyard. Not only that, he realized the darkness around him had morphed into the walls of the same compactor he used to operate. The sides were caked in oil, mech fluid and despair.
They began to close in without a sound.
Jazz cried out in terror as death came closer. He twisted to the side, grasping the walls and pushing ineffectively. Searing agony shot through his knees. There was no way he'd hold these walls off on his own.
Except he wasn't alone.
Someone's legs offered their strength right before his own failed. He looked over his shoulder in time to glimpse a smiling, but eyeless white visage shimmering dully in the misty halogen junkyard lamps.
"Get on my back."
Jazz did so without question. Every movement was agony, but somehow the smaller mech shouldered his weight. He let his optics lose focus while his blind companion scaled the slanted side of the compactor walls and emerged into silent oblivion.
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Life is a Tree