Transformers Prime: Shrouded Truth (#4) [Completed]

Chapter 6

"It is so cramped in here," Slug grumbled. I rolled my eyes and shook my head. He was stuffed into the back of Optimus' trailer, waiting for us to arrive at our destination.

"Cool it Slug," Arcee said. I looked behind us, at Optimus and his trailer. Behind him drove Ratchet, and I could hear him grumbling over the coms.

Before we had left, Ratchet had hastily put together a local communication system, so the teams could communicate with each other if separated. It didn't have a huge range, but it was better than nothing.

"It's been so long though," Slug groaned. "I need to stretch."

"It's only been half an hour," Arcee said.

"It's too long."

"Two more hours of this is going to kill me," I muttered. "How does Wheeljack put up with him?"

"I have not a clue," Arcee sighed.

"After all of this, there has better be something for me to fight," Slug continued.

"I would rather not," I said.

"Come on, fighting doesn't make you feel powerful?"

"Yeah sure, but that doesn't mean I enjoy it, much less want a fight."

"Suit yourself," Slug grumbled.

"Oh Primus, end this now," I said, looking to the sky. Two more hours of this was not going to be fun.

•••••••••••

Much like I had expected, Slug had not shut up the whole ride. Even when Arcee had opened the door for him and let him struggle out, he didn't silence. If I hadn't known better, I would have said even Optimus was getting annoyed.

"This is the place," Alpha Trion said, taking control.

"There's nothing here," Arcee said, and she was right, there was nothing.

Lose dirt and hills were the only thing we could see for miles.

"The crash happened years ago, your earth would have covered up all evidence of the site," Alpha Trion said.

"How do we know the humans didn't get to it first?" Arcee asked.

"We do not," Optimus said. He started to walk away, in search of the ship. The rest of us split up too, searching for a sign or something. Slug grumbled as he walked.

"Where there any landmarks the covenant allowed you to see?" I asked Alpha Trion.

"Much like it is now, the area was barren of any particular items."

"So, if there is a random tree or rock formation, we know where in the wrong area," I muttered, eyes to the ground.

"There is that."

"Who's ship was this anyways? Con's? Our's?" I asked, looking for something to keep my mind busy while my eyes searched.

"I'm unsure. For all I know, it could have been a bounty hunter ship."

"You had those type of people on Cybertron? I paused. "Wait, that's a stupid question. Every civilization has those type of people."

"They did not tend to stick around all that much," Alpha Trion said.

I looked up at the shadow near me, seeing both Arcee and Optimus. The three of us had managed to make it the same area, still looking. I moved back, heading towards a new area.

The dirt moved around my feet, causing me to stop. Slowly, it parted, the dirt falling away in a small crack between my feet. I moved to one side, ready to call out, but was stopped.

A startled yell came from Arcee. I spun around, ready.

"I've got you." Optimus held Arcee's hand, holding her suspended in the air. The Autobot's eyes were wide, but they remained on her leader, trusting him. With one great pull, the leader of the Autobots pulled Arcee onto solid ground. Together, they stepped away from the hole. By now, everyone had come at the sound.

The crack that I had found ran to a gaping hole that had appeared underneath Arcee.

"I think we found the ship," Slug said, leaning to look over the edge. A faint metal glint could be seen beneath the rocks. This was definitely the ship.

"How do we get in if there is no door?" I couldn't help but ask.

"We make one," Slug said. He pulled a sword off of his back and shuffled carefully along the ground, tapping it with the tip of his blade. Eventually, it tinged as it hit the ship's haul. Bring it up, he moved to plunging it into the ship.

"Wait, that might not be smart," Ratchet started, but Slug wasn't listening.

He plunged it downwards, sinking into the metal.

"The structural integrity," Ratchet finished, seeing that it was pointless; Slug wasn't listening.

"How is that space travel worthy?" I demanded, watching as Slug cut through the metal.

"It's rusted and aged," Arcee pointed out.

"Okay, fair."

With one solid kick, a potion of the ship broke off, clanging as it fell down. Slug looked down, letting out a whistle. "This is going to be fun."

Optimus went first, turning on his head lights. Ratchet and Arcee followed his lead, I at their sides. I pulled out an orb of Energon, give me my own light. Slug was last to enter.

Together, our group walked forward. Optimus seemed to know where he was going, and soon he lead us into what looked like the central room. The window that looked to the outside was covered in dirt and cracked. Some of the dirt had seeped in, filling up the front of the ship.

"Find the ground bridge, and see if you can get anything running," Optimus commanded. Everyone split up, looking for anything. I wandered, somewhat unsure what I should be looking for.

"Emergency power systems are still functional," Arcee said. She typed a few things, then dim lights filled the room. The sounds of the ship running came to life. It didn't sound good, like it was going in die at any moment. It chugged and groaned, not healthy at all.

"That's the only thing that is," Slug said. "Everything else is either damaged or gone. The catalogue is still functional."

"It's a cargo ship," Ratchet said.

I looked to the bots at the computers. "That means there might be other stuff here that will be useful to us."

"More than likely," Ratchet said, scrolling through a handheld computer.

"Ground bridge is on level three," Arcee said.

"Let's move," Optimus commanded.

Together, we set off once again. Optimus and Ratchet took the lead, the medic showing Optimus the hand held computer and pointed at the screen. The rest of us hung back, our conversation only consisting of small talk. It wasn't a long walk to level three, but the giant stairs were what killed me. Finally, we halted in front of a large ground bridge.

"Okay we need to get to the power core," Ratchet said, instantly setting to work. Everyone did as he said, pulling out the tools Ratchet had given them.

Optimus set off, heading to the cargo bay to look at what this ship was carrying, leaving us to get the supplies.

I was in the middle of moving a panel when I heard a voice.