Transformers: Prime: Smokescreen's Destiny

Chapter 17: At the Prom

At the Autobot's Hidden Base in Jasper, Jack Darby was texting his mom, June Darby, about how he was invited by his crush, Sierra, to go to the school dance with him. But it wasn't just a regular school dance, it was junior prom. Arcee notices the happy look on Jack's face and is curious to know why he's happy.

"Jack?" Arcee said to her junior partner. "Oh, hey Arcee. Just texting mom." Jack said to his female Autobot guardian. "You seemed so happy today. Did something wonderful happen?" Arcee asked curiously. "Yes. There's this girl I really like in school. Her name is Sierra and she just invited me to the school dance which is coming soon. But it's not just any school dance, it's junior prom." Jack told Arcee.

"Well, that sounds nice. What's a junior prom?" Arcee asked. "A prom is a dance party for high school students like myself and it's a formal event typically held near the end of the school year where you dress up nicely in a tuxedo or a dress." Jack explained. "Oh, I see." Arcee said. "You ever had dance parties on Cybertron?" Jack asked. "Well...it's been millennia since we've attended a dance party or any party events. I remember back before The Great War began, I was hanging out with my female friends at Maccadam's Old Oil House which was basically a bar where Cybertronians would hang out at. Orion Pax before he became Optimus Prime and Jazz were regular patrons at Maccadam's before the war. Wheeljack enjoyed the establishment but after the Great War had broken out, Maccadam turned his bar into the hub of the spy net of the Autobot resistance and the rest is history." Arcee told her junior partner.

"Who's Maccadam?" Jack asked. "Maccadam was the bar owner, piano player, and manager of his Old Oil House...and he was a good friend of Optimus back when he was known as Orion Pax. He had strict in-house rules against fighting within his Oil House. No one knows where he is right now, but Macadam is presumably offline on Cybertron, but a few of us believe that he could still be alive somewhere." Arcee explained. "So, when are you going to attend junior prom with your girlfriend?" she asked. "I think it's tonight at 8:24 PM. Sierra and I aren't exactly dating yet, but we're taking it one step at a time." Jack replied. "I see...Are Miko and Raf attending the party with you?" Arcee asked. "I'm not sure," Jack said. "Would you like me to take you to your school tonight so that you can attend junior prom?" Arcee offered. "Sure," Jack answered.

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Meanwhile, on the Nemesis...

Knock Out was working at the med bay when Smokescreen came by to visit him. "Knock Out?" Smokescreen said to the medic. Knock Out turned around to look at the young bot. "Oh, hello Smokescreen. How may I help you?" Knock Out asked. "I was training with Dreadwing today and he told me how you lost your partner, Breakdown because he was killed by Airachnid. I came to tell you that I'm sorry for your loss." Smokescreen said. Knock Out paused before he replied, "Well...I appreciate your sympathy, Smokescreen. I will admit that I miss Breakdown, but I only wished that he wasn't dissected by Silas when he and M.E.C.H captured him." he said. "I've been told about that by Bulkhead. He even told me once that he teamed up with his archenemy to fight M.E.C.H one time long before Breakdown departed. Yet I wondered how he and Bulkhead became archenemies." Smokescreen said. "Well, you see...Breakdown wasn't always a Decepticon. He and I were from the planet Velocitron before we moved to Cybertron long before Breakdown and I became Decepticons. Before I met Breakdown and I became partners with him, he used to be a Wrecker before he joined the Decepticons after he was abandoned and left for dead by Bulkhead and the Wreckers during a Decepticon attack." Knock Out explained.

"Hold on. You and Breakdown are Velocitronians? And Breakdown used to be a Wrecker?!" Smokescreen exclaimed. Knock Out nodded. "Yes. Breakdown and Bulkhead used to be friends similar to how Big M and Big O used to be friends before they became enemies." He told Smokescreen. "Why did Bulkhead and the Wreckers abandoned Breakdown and left him for scrap?" Smokescreen asked. "My guess is that they assumed that Breakdown died when their base was under attack and set ablaze. When the Vehicons captured Breakdown, he resented the Wreckers who left him to die in the rubble and flames at the beginning of the Great War on Cybertron. Then he joined Megatron and his Decepticons before my master ordered me to tend to Breakdown's injuries. After Breakdown became a Decepticon, he revealed the location of the Wreckers who abandoned him and then he and Bulkhead became life-long archenemies with each other since then." Knock Out explained.