(This is something I wrote several years back) A Transformer Christmas Carol 2005 A Transformers Christmas Carol Chapter 1 It was one of the coldest days of the year. Temperatures were expected to reach below freezing on the Christmas Eve of 2004. However, that didn’t keep people from making the most of the last shopping day before Christmas. It also didn’t keep the children of St. Catherine’s Orphanage from enjoying a once in a lifetime Christmas party. The children at the orphanage didn’t experience Christmas the way other children did but they were happy nonetheless. However, the staff of St. Catherine’s had a special surprise in store for the children this year. This year, the special guests for the party were not guys dressed in clown or Barney costumes, but the heroic robots known as the Autobots. “Ok kids, who’s next, asked the yellow Autobot known as Bumblebee. He had decided to take some of the kids on a ride around the orphanage grounds for a couple of laps. A small group of eager children ran up to him all saying the exact same thing: “Me!” Besides Bumblebee, a small group of Autobots, including their friend Spike Whitwicky and his family, decided to join in the fun and show these kids a good time this Christmas. Jazz, along with Carly and Daniel, were demonstrating to a group of on looking kids a demonstration in the fine art of snow-bot construction. Blaster was having fun providing the Christmas music for the party. Warpath was on the receiving end of a barrage of snowballs from another group of kids. “Pow…you kids are going to have to do better than that, Zow, said Warpath as he dodged another volley of snowballs. However, he failed to notice one of the kids sneaking up behind him. “Warpath…catch”, shouted a little girl! He turned around and took the snowball straight in the optic. A little snow was no match for the Autobot but Warpath decided to give a good performance. “Zow…you got me…I…” Warpath was cut of as he forgot how close Blaster was and ended up stumbling over him and over toward Jazz. “Pow…incoming,” he shouted! Blaster transformed trying to catch Warpath but it was too late. Carly and the kids got away in the nick of time as Warpath collided into Jazz knocking them both into the snow-bot and burying them in the resulting snow pile. “Ah, man,” said Jazz as he was trying to free himself of the snow, “you could have gave me a warning.” “Sorry…bang…” “That’s all right…I have an idea.” Jazz got a couple the pair of sticks that were serving as the Snow-bot’s arms and placed them in Warpath’s head. “This will brighten things up.” The pair emerged from the snow in a scene that seemed like it was taken from a Christmas version of a Bugs Bunny cartoon. Emerging from the snow pile, Jazz with snow still clinging to his face like a beard and Warpath with the sticks in his head made them look like a Cybertronian version of Santa Claus and Rudolph. “Look at me kids, I’m Santa Jazz with my trusty sidekick Rudolph the red face deer-bot,” mused Jazz. The sight of those two was enough to send the entire group, humans and Autobots alike, into a fit of laughter. Well, all except for one Autobot: Sideswipe. The solemn Autobot sat in one corner of the grounds deep in thought. It had only been a year since he had lost his brother Sunstreaker during a mission on Cybertron. Everyone was convinced he was dead, but deep down he thought his brother was still alive. Since the accident, Sideswipe lost his usual joyful manner and replaced it with a look of seriousness and a mean streak that could almost rival his brother’s. Every Autobot took notice of this, including Optimus Prime. In fact, it was Prime himself that ordered Sideswipe to accompany the others to this party. He felt that some good cheer would help break through to Sideswipe. Unfortunately, it had the opposite effect on his demeanor making him even less cheerful and crueler. For the most part, the kids left Sideswipe alone, but one lone boy was brave enough to walk up to the grimfaced Autobot. “Tailwipe…you’re my favorite Autabot”, said Tim Davis. Tim Davis was only 7 years old. Three years ago, he and his parents where involved in a terrible crash. His parents were killed but Tim survived but must walk with a crutch for the rest of his life. Sideswipe looked down on the kid with a look of disgust. “It’s Sideswipe, junior.” “You my favorite of Autabots. I saw you on the news fighting Decepcons. They were like…pow and you were like…ZAP ZAP ZAP. It was…” “Buzz off kid. Get away,” said Sideswipe in a cruel tone! When those words reached Tim’s ear the boy began to cry. Sideswipe’s words and Tim’s crying were overheard both by Spike and Bumblebee as they were taking a rest from giving rides. The pair immediately walked over. “You know buddy, you got some nerve,” said Spike as he lifted the boy up. “This boy was just trying to show you some harmless hero worship and this is how you treat him.” “It’s not my problem,” replied Sideswipe. “The kid was cramping my style”. “You are supposed to be an Autobot,” said Spike in a harsh tone, “but you sure haven’t acted like it as of late.” Spike then looked down at Tim. “C’mon Tim, let’s go play with the others.” As Spike and the still sobbing Tim walked off, Bumblebee sat down beside Sideswipe. “Why did you do that, Sideswipe? That isn’t like you.” “Hmph…I told Prime, I didn’t want to come here. Maybe this will make him think—“ “Sideswipe…I know you miss Sunstreaker. We all do. But that is no excuse for what you did to that boy. Don’t you have any Christmas spirit?” “Humph…Christmas spirit is a human emotion. It serves me no purpose.” “You are unbelievable Sideswipe.” Bumblebee then got up and left Sideswipe to be by himself again. After an hour more of playing, it was time for Christmas stories. Mrs. Kyle, an orphanage volunteer, started with the story of the Christmas Carol, a story that told of Ebenezer Scrooge and how, in one night, he was instantly changed for the better. Sideswipe heard every word of the story as he closed his optics. “Scrooge, he was a smart human before he changed his tune just because he experienced something that wasn’t real,” thought Sideswipe. What a weak human.” The story was finished and another was about to start when Jazz received an urgent transmission from Prime telling of Decepticons starting trouble in a tech lab about 10 miles away. “Sorry kids, but we have got to go,” said Jazz as he and the other Autobots transformed into vehicle mode. This brought a unified, “ahhh” from the kids as the disappointment registered on each of their faces. Sideswipe also transformed and drove up next to them. “Perfect, time to kick Decepticon A—“ “Spike, can you find a ride home,” asked Bumblebee. “It shouldn’t be a problem,” he replied. “Autobots, roll out, ordered Jazz as he and the other Autobots drove off while the children of the orphanage waved goodbye. *** It was already nightfall outside the Ark, when Prime and the Autobots from the orphanage party returned. The seekers had attempted to steal a new experimental energy rod from a nearby tech lab. The bots managed to stop them, but the energy rod was lost due to Sideswipe’s hotheadedness. After a thorough reprimand from Prime, Sideswipe decided to retire to his quarters and place himself in his CR Chamber for a nightly recharge and repair. His mind dwelled on the events of the day, including the party. His thoughts up to the time he entered the chamber where of the strange story of Scrooge he heard while he was at the orphanage. “Humph…a single event can not change someone like that…it’s so weak,” thought Sideswipe as he went offline. ---
Chapter 2 The chronometer in Sideswipe’s quarters read 21 cycles, approximately 9 p.m. in Earth standards. The night was young from a human point of view, but for an Autobot, the term “bedtime” did not hold the same meaning. A human could keep going but for robots, recharge schedules must be taken very seriously. They could go a few days and then download into a backup power supply, but the lack of energy can play tricks on robotic sensors. The battle tonight, then the following stress of having to be lectured by Optimus Prime, left Sideswipe drained physically as well as mentally. He was in the recharge chamber for approximately 30 minutes before he awoke to the sound of an unknown origin. Clank, rattle…Clank! He opened the recharge berth and decided to investigate the noise. “Who’s there,” asked Sideswipe in the empty quarters. There was no response. He walked over to the intercom to contact the medbay, which was located a short distance away. “Maybe Wheeljack is working on one of his crazy disasters.” Sideswipe clicked the button. “Sideswipe to medbay…Wheeljack can you keep it down in there? I’m trying to get some recharge time in.” He was answered in turn with nothing but static. “Sideswipe to—“ Out of the static, he was greeted by a voice other than Wheeljack’s. “Siiidddeeessswwiiipppeee,” said the strange voice. Sideswipe immediately moved his hand from the intercom and took a few steps back. The voice chilled him to the energon. “All right…if this is some sort of joke, its not….it’s not slaggin funny!” The strange sound that woke Sideswipe was getting closer and louder. Clank, rattle….CLANK, RATTLE. The noise then stopped. Judging from the pitch of the noise, the source was right outside his quarters. “Sssiiiiddddeeeessswwiiipppeee”, said the voice. “All right, this is not funny, I’m going to kick some tail…oh…by Primus, it cant be??!!” Sideswipe, with a look of shock fell backwards on the floor and backed himself up against the wall of his recharge chamber. Seemingly materializing through the door, was a face. A face that was half corroded by some sort of rust was staring at Sideswipe. The look reminded him of old human zombie movies he watched a while back. “Sssiiidddeeesswwiipppee”. Even though the face was half rusted off, he knew immediately the identity of this specter. The voice was a hint, but seeing his face, he knew beyond a shadow of a doubt, who this ghost was. “Sun…Sunstreaker? It can’t be.” The rest of Sunstreaker’s ghost materialized in his quarters. His face was not the only thing damaged by rust, his once gleaming polish was now coated with rust, some areas of his armor chipped away, revealing dead circuitry. As the ghost moved toward him, he could see large chains attached to the ghost’s frame. Clank, rattle…clank, rattle. “Sunstreaker, what happened to you? I…I must be going crazy. Yes, it’s the lack of energy…that must be—“ The ghost cut him off in mid sentence. “Shut up. Look at yourself, your pathetic. I thought my brother was tougher than this.” Even though he was frightened, that comment angered Sideswipe and gave him the strength to stand on his feet. “Pathetic…I could kick Sunstreaker’s…your…tailpipe any day of the week”! This sudden burst of anger brought something of a smile to the ghost’s rusted face. “Now, that is the Sideswipe I know.” “What…what do you want here”, asked Sideswipe. “Ever since my death during the supply mission on Cybertron, my suffering has been increased ten fold. I cannot find peace.” “Why is that, didn’t your spark join the matrix?” “No, it did not and for good reason. In life, I was a terrible Autobot. I was vain and cruel at times. If it wasn’t for the fact that their insignia was purple, I could have easily been mistaken for a Decepticon.” “But, you weren’t a Decepticon. You did your fair share of help.” “It wasn’t a lack of patriotism that condemned me bro. It was the vanity and cruelty you mentioned that has caused me this pain. What did my vanity get me in the afterlife…rust. My looks were very important to me in life and the rust is a result of this vain narcissistic behavior.” Sideswipe broke in. “What about the chains?” Sunstreaker’s ghost picked up some of the chains and with a sad look explained. These are the ultimate reward for my cruelty. For every time, I didn’t spare an enemy or hurt someone just for the fun of it added to this chain. Each incident resulting in a link and enlargement of the chain that weighs me down in the neither world. Sideswipe looked at the ghost, with a look of disgust. “You cannot be my brother…Sunstreaker would never allow himself to meet this kind of fate.” “But I am your brother, and my fate, despite my denials, was sealed. It’s too late for me. But it’s not too late for you. I convinced the keeper of the gate to allow me one chance to save you, to keep you from meeting the same fate.” “What are you going to do, ask me real nice to change? Why should I? I like it like this.” “You are being a fool, Sideswipe, but I anticipated your hardheadedness. For tonight, I have enlisted some assistance. You will be visited by three sparks.” Sideswipe immediately went for his laser rifle. “Get out imposter!” “Pay heed to their teachings, Sideswipe, do not ignore them. It’s not too late to change.” “I am not that weak!” “You have been warned. Farewell, brother.” Sideswipe fired his rifle and hit the door to his quarters as the ghost faded away. The lack of energy kept the door from being blasted of its track. The intercom crackled to life. “What was that blast”, said Cliffjumper on the other side of the radio. Sideswipe took a moment to clear his head then stood up and walked over to the intercom. “It’s my fault Cliffjumper…I…uh…thought I saw a rat.” “You…afraid of a rat,” asked Cliffjumper jokingly. “It was a big rat!” Sideswipe turned off the intercom and sat on the edge of his recharge chamber. “Was that real, or is my neural network working overtime.” Sideswipe thought over the experience and particularly, to Sunstreaker’s “prophesy”. “It cant be real. It’s just the lack of energy…lack of energy… Sideswipe than entered his recharge chamber and attempted to go back to “sleep”.
Chapter 3a Despite his best efforts, Sideswipe could not sleep peacefully. His thoughts of the encounter with “Sunstreaker’s Spirit” had unnerved more than anything he has ever encountered in his life. The very thought that the spirit was indeed Sunstreaker ultimately proved that his brother was in fact dead. He managed to get another cycle of sleep when all of a sudden a very bright light filled his quarters. His optic sensors alerted, Sideswipe immediately awoke and opened the recharge chamber hatch. “What, now. I can’t seem to get any…what is this light” He put his hand to his optics to shield them from the intense glow. The light then died down and floating right in front of Sideswipe was a spark floating in mid air. He reset his optics twice just to make sure he wasn’t registering an error in his optical relays. The spark moved closer. “What do you want,” Sideswipe asked in a nervous manner. The spark stopped right in front of the recharge chamber and a voice said, “Don’t worry, lad. I mean you no harm.” The spark then emitted a strange light that faded after a brief second. From within the light appeared an older Autobot. “I just want to talk,” said the old Autobot. “Who…are you?” “I am the Spark of History’s Past. But, you may refer to me as Kup, if you prefer.” “Kup, what kind of a goofy name is that?” “Hey, you young punk, don’t you have any respect for your elders?, asked Kup with a tone of agitation. Sideswipe shot up from the recharge chamber and moved toward Kup. “Respect? Why should I show respect when I don’t get the respect I deserve?” “You deserve? Respect is something that must be earned, lad. What have you done to deserve such a gift from an individual?” Sideswipe balled up his fists. Trying very hard not to explode he replied, “What have I done to deserve a…gift?” Sideswipe chuckled a little. “You really must not know who I am. I have done my part to save the miserable pukes that inhabit this planet. They should be kissing my skid…” Kup raised his hand to silence him. “You see, Sideswipe, this is what keeps you from reaching your greater potential as an Autobot.” “I already have potential, my past exploits should speak more than enough for my potential.” Kup rubbed his chin. He then smirked. “Past exploits, eh? Let’s just take a look at some of these past ‘exploits’ shall we?” “What are you talking—“ Before Sideswipe could finish, Kup waved his hand and his quarters instantly vanished. In its place was a robotic looking alleyway. “What the…where are we, Kup?” “Don’t you recognize it, my boy? This is Silicon Avenue.” “Silicon Avenue…this is my old home. But how did we get on Cybertron?! How did we get here?” “Never mind about that just observe,” said Kup as he pointed down the Avenue. Halfway down the alley, an Autobot was getting mugged by three larger bots. “Give me all of your Energon Chips, punk.”, said the largest of the three bots. “Here take them, just leave me be,” said the victim as he handed his chips to one of the larger muggers. The second mugger counted the haul, “one…two…three…only three chips? Oh, this will not due.” The third mugger unsheathed an energy blade. “Maybe we could sell him for spare parts.” The mugger was about to cut into the victim when a voice cut in: “Back off bozo.” Two new bots joined the scene. A yellow robot followed by an almost identical red robot. “You guys should be a worthy workout,” said the yellow bot. “What do you think Sideswipe?” Sideswipe was shocked. “Kup…that’s me back when Sunstreaker and I were only two years off the assembly line. But this was millions of years ago…how…” “Can’t you keep quiet and observe,” asked Kup. That’s the problem with punks nowadays, they never shut up.” “All right,” said Sideswipe in a cold tone as he looked on the scene that was taking place. “I think these three are beneath us, bro,” answered the younger Sideswipe. “Maybe there are some bots on the other side of town that don’t look like sissy-bots.” The first mugger lunged for Sunstreaker. “I’ll kick your tailpipe,” he screamed. It was the last thing he ever saw as Sunstreaker blasted him in the face and then grabbed his neck and snapped his spinal neck relays as he landed. “Oh c’mon guys,” said the younger Sunstreaker as he dropped the first mugger’s body. “You have got to do better than that.” “Why you…let’s take them at the same time,” said the second mugger to the third. “Right,” answered the third mugger. Then they both in unison charged the robotic twins. Sideswipe spun and tripped the third mugger. He then picked him up and slammed him head first into a nearby wall. The mugger fell stunned to the ground. ---
Chapter 3b The second charged Sunstreaker and collided with him shoulder first. “Your not so tough,” screamed the mugger. “I’m tougher than you think,” answered Sunstreaker. He then picked up the mugger and blasted him point blank with his retractable fist cannon. The mugger fell dead at his feet spilling the three energon chips as he landed on the ground. “Not, bad Sunstreaker,” said his brother as he helped him up. “Not bad? I was stunning.” Before Sideswipe could say anything else the remaining mugger awoke and drew a blaster. The elder Sideswipe looking on shouted, “Look out you two!” Kup looked over at him. “What are you doing?” “What I’m I doing? I’m warning them, he’s about to blast them.” “It won’t do any good. They can’t hear you nor see you.” Sideswipe was a little annoyed. “They can’t? And when in the Pit where you going to tell me that?” Kup scratched his head a little. “I…uh…guess it slipped my mind. When you are as old as I am, you’ll forget things too ya know.” “Hey, I’m a top-line Autobot, my neural circuitry is still under warranty.” Kup, a little annoyed, simply replied, “Just keep watching.” Sideswipe looked on as the mugger drew his blaster and fired. Fortunately, he only hit Sunstreaker in the shoulder. “Ow…why you little piece of slag,” screamed Sunstreaker. “Do you know how many energon chips it costs to keep this polish spotless?” He then grabbed the blaster in the mugger’s hand and crushed it, along with his hand. The mugger screamed in pain as Sunstreaker pushed him against the wall. “Hey, take it easy, I give up,” pleaded the mugger. “Be cool. I GIVE UP! I GIVE ACK! ….” That was the last thing the mugger said as Sunstreaker punched him right through the spark chamber, his fist coming out the other side of the body. “Now, I give up,” said Sunstreaker pulling out his fist The younger Sideswipe picked up the energon chips. “Not a bad, haul.” The victim picked himself up off the ground and walked up to Sideswipe. “Oh, thank you both. Those Energon Chips were all I had.” Sideswipe looked at the victim with a cold look. “Your chips? Well, were taking them now. Consider them a fee for rescuing a weak bot such as yourself.” Sunstreaker grabbed the chips from Sideswipe. “The only thing these chips will be used for will be for my new paint touch up.” Sunstreaker then ran off with Sideswipe in pursuit. The victim fell to his knees, even though those two saved his life, they took his life savings. When the scene had played out, Kup turned to Sideswipe. “You call this respect? Granted you saved the victims life, but you and your brother took from him his most precious possession next to his life.” “Hey, he was ungrateful, he didn’t even say ‘Thank you’”. “Thank you…THANK YOU,” shouted Kup?! “All you wanted was a Thank you? Doing what’s right doesn’t mean doing it simply for gratitude. Doing what’s right is its own reward! Plus, do you think those muggers deserved what they got?” Sideswipe was silent. “No snappy comeback, this time. Well, then how about some more ‘food for thought’ as humans put it. This poor spark was at the time a close friend of Orion Pax, who you know as Optimus Prime. Prime made it his business to track you two down. He intended to see you two vigilantes brought to justice, but upon meeting you, he decided the both of you had great potential. That’s why instead of being jailed, you were enlisted in the Autobot ranks. I would say Prime had great ‘respect’ for your skills to spare you the fate you could have received.” Sideswipe was still silent for a while as he pondered the revelation Kup had revealed. He was always resentful of Prime’s ‘drafting’ of him and Sunstreaker. But now he had a better understanding of why that occurred. “Kup…I…don’t…believe this! I still say this is all a cyber-dream. There is no way this little incident lead me and Sunstreaker to join the Autobots!” “Believe or not, the past is already written. I have showed you this event and told you the results exactly as it happened.” “Bah…that victim is as weak as the puny humans we are stuck with. Primus, I wish we never left Cybertron at times.” Kup looked at Sideswipe with a grim look. “Think about this as well Sideswipe. This incident lead to your joining with the Autobots, which lead to you being on the Ark that crashed on Earth. You have this incident to blame for your current accommodations.” Kup then turned his back on Sideswipe and began to walk away. “Where are you going,” asked Sideswipe. “My time is up and I must get going. Please, remember this Sideswipe and all that I have said. Learning from the past can be the key to the present and ultimately the future.” All of a sudden, another flash of light blinded Sideswipe. When the flash faded, he found himself back in his quarters. “Where…I’m back in my quarters.” He sat on the edge of his recharge chamber. Was I dreaming… No, I couldn’t have been…It’s the lack of energy…” Still, dream or not, he couldn’t help but think about the situation back at Silicon Avenue and the repercussions that it had on his present as well as his future.
Chapter 4 Sideswipe sat at the edge of his recharge chamber pondering the strange occurrence and whether he had imagined what he just saw. Ultimately, he decided it was some bad energon and decided to re-enter his recharge chamber. That’s when he heard the sound of a motor revving. “What the, said Sideswipe?” Sideswipe opened the door to his quarters and peered down both sides of the hall. “Heh, this is one strange night.” All of a sudden the hallway was filled with light as a red flamed car drove down the hall. “Out of my way,” said the car as it sped down the hallway toward the exit. “Who the pit was that? More importantly why isn’t anyone doing anything about it? Oh, well.” Sideswipe left his quarters, transformed, and chased after the strange looking vehicle. He finally managed to catch up to the vehicle as they left the Ark. All of a sudden the red flamed car hit the brakes, did a 180-degree spin, put on his high beams and revved his motor. Sideswipe came to a stop. “He can’t be serious. He really wants to play chicken with me? His funeral.” He too came to a stop and revved his engine. The two revved their engines a final time and then both cars let off the brakes and sped toward each other at a high velocity with neither combatant backing down. At the last second before impact, the red flamed car transformed and somersaulted over Sideswipe who passed underneath. “What the, hey you coward, shouted Sideswipe.” The red flamed stranger looked over at Sideswipe. “Hey instead of worrying about me, watch where you’re going!” “What—SLAG!” Sideswipe hit the brakes, swerved, and transformed just before he collided nose first with a large boulder. The red flamed TF ran over to Sideswipe. “Hey buddy are you ok?” Sideswipe pointed his laser rifle at the stranger. “Yea, I’m fine, but can you say the same thing in a minute. Who are you and how did you get into the Ark?” The red flamed stranger put up his hands. “Hey, chill out there, buddy. I was just out to have a little fun. Besides it looked like you could use some too. You worry so much about the past you can’t enjoy the present. “That still doesn’t explain how you got into the Ark.” “No I don’t suppose it does. But at least allow me to introduce myself. I am the Spark of the Present, but my buds refer to me as Hot Rod.” “Hot Rod? What kind of name is that,” snorted Sideswipe? “What? Hey it sounds a lot better than Rodimus Major! Anyway, I am here because you seemed like you could use some loosening up about some things.” Sideswipe lowered his rifle for a moment. “Spark…of the Present? Oh, Primus…another hallucination!” “Oh, I’m no hallucination, I promise you. Besides, if I were a hallucination, could I do…this”? At that, Hot Rod raised a gun, shot Sideswipe’s laser rifle out of his grip, and replaced the gun in a blink of an optic. “Why you little punk, shouted Sideswipe gripping his hand. “Oh, don’t be such a whiny bot. It’s a static-discharge shot. You should get the feeling back in your hand shortly.” “I ought to rip out your manifold and tear you a new exhaust pipe!” Sideswipe then charged Hot Rod. “Still have some fight in you eh? Good. Feel like a race?” Hot Rod transformed back into car mode and made a dash for the city. “Your not getting away from me this time,” yelled Sideswipe as he transformed back into vehicle mode and gave chase. *** Both Hot Rod and Sideswipe sped down city streets, through back alleys, and even on the interstate. Sideswipe was quick, but he couldn’t believe the speed displayed by Hot Rod. Finally, Hot Rod slowed down in front of a building and transformed back to robot mode. Sideswipe arrived a few seconds afterwards and transformed as well. “Why…did you stop,” asked Sideswipe trying not to sound too exhausted. “Because there is something you need to see here. Follow me.” Despite his better judgment, Sideswipe followed Hot Rod through the outer gate and toward the building. “Where, are we?” “You don’t recognize this place and you were here not more than 24 Earth hours ago? You must be getting old,” teased Hot Rod. Sideswipe looked around a moment and then he realized where they were. “We’re at the orphanage? I had my fill of this place this morning. I’m outta here.” Sideswipe began to walk away but Hot Rod caught up to him and held him fast. “You’re not going anywhere. There is something here you need to see and your not bailing on me until you do!” Sideswipe put up a fight, but not being fully recharged he eventually gave in to Hot Rod. “All right, you win. What do you want me to see?” “Now, your talking some sense. Peer into that window over there and tell me what you see.” “Peer in the window? What do you take me for a peek-a-tron?” “We are invisible to everyone, Sideswipe, so no one will notice you. Besides, all that racing we did, don’t you think the Earth police forces would have been on to us?” Considering what Hot Rod just said, Sideswipe walked up to the window and peered inside. “I see a table, some chairs…there’s some edible food stuffs on the table…wait, here come the people from this morning. Looks like there getting ready to eat. But one of them doesn’t want to seem to eat, in fact he looks like he’s upset about something.” “So, he should be,” commented Hot Rod. “That’s Tim Davis.” “Who,” he responded puzzled? “You are cruel you know that. That’s the boy who tried to show you some admiration and you basically bit his head off…I believe that’s the Earth phrase for it.” “Bah, it will give the kid some character. Afterall—“ Before Sideswipe could finish Hot Rod gave him a quick punch to the jaw. “I can’t believe how dense you are. Don’t you remember anything about that kid? Tim Davis lost both of his parents in a car crash. Transformers don’t have parents, but you lost someone just as important to you.” Sideswipe got up and looked back in the window for a quick second before looking Hot Rod in the eye. “Sunstreaker…” “Exactly! You had your friends to turn to in order to deal with the anguish over his loss. Tim didn’t. Then he started watching some of the news broadcasts about you guys and immediately took a liking to you. You are his favorite of the Autobot forces. He finally got a chance to meet his idol and what did you do? You basically slap him in the face. And you have the ball bearings to ask me why he is mad?” “I…I had no idea. But how bad can things turn out. He will get over it in time…won’t he?” Sideswipe peered back into the window to get another glimpse of the boy. “I’m afraid you’re asking the wrong spark, my friend. I can only reflect upon what happens in the present…” “What’s that supposed to mean?” Sideswipe looked back up and realized Hot Rod was gone. “Where is…where did he go?” Sideswipe turned back to look into the window and received an immediate shock. The kids, adults, everything he had seen before was gone and the orphanage itself was a burned out shell. Sideswipe didn’t know what to think as he collapsed into the snow. ---
Chapter 5 It didn’t take Sideswipe long to regain consciousness. However, unlike the last couple of times, he didn’t reawake in his quarters. His optics were met with the same sight before he passed out. The orphanage looked like a disaster area. “By Primus… Kids…Tim…are you in there?” His only response was an eerie silence. “This place was intact a moment ago.” He fell to his knees. “What happened…”? A voice broke the silence. “You wanted to know what could possibly go wrong. Well, here’s the answer you seek,” said the terrifying voice. Sideswipe immediately jumped to his feet. “Who’s there,” he called out? Just as he called out a mysterious fog rolled in. “Show yourself!” “Very well, Autobot.” Just then a strange figure emerged from the fog. “I am Quintesson, the Spark of the Future.” The very image of this figure made Sideswipe’s sensors twitch. Unlike the other two sparks, who had appeared in the form of normal Transformers, this entity was something else entirely. His bulbous body was lined with tentacles and seemed to float on a column of light. The skull like face was enough to give even the bravest of Autobots nightmares. Sideswipe was scared. “The…spark of the future?” The entity floated closer to Sideswipe. “Yes, you have been shown the tragedies of the past, the errors of the present, now I will show you the horror of the future. Starting with this place. Judging by your reaction, I trust you know of this place.” Sideswipe tried his best to keep his composure and his voice calm, but to no avail. “Yes, this was the orphanage the other Autobots and I visited. But what…what happened here.” “What could possibly happen, you asked. Well, allow me to tell you. The Earthling known as Tim Davis was responsible for the desolation you see before you.” “He…was. I don’t believe you. I can’t believe he did this.” “Believe it. After you insulted him, Tim’s life went down a dark path. He became a troublemaker and dabbled in what humans call narcotics. It was an incident with those same narcotics that caused a fire to break out and burn this place.” “Burned this place? Did everyone make it out safely?” The entity simply said, “No, there was some loss of life.” Sideswipe slammed his fist into the ground. “I…I couldn’t be responsible for this. It was Tim’s fault not mine.” “Your forgetting one of the previous lessons. A single incident can have repercussions on the future. What you see before you is another more horrid example.” Sideswipe was speechless for a moment. He could barely manage to speak when he asked, “Tim…what happened to Tim!?” “Allow me to show you.” At that the fog rolled over Sideswipe and the entity. When the fog receded they were at another location. “This is where Tim is now.” Sideswipe looked up at a gate that served as an entrance to a fenced in field with stone monuments. “Peaceful Memorial…this is a human cemetery! Tell me this is a joke.” “I’m afraid it is no joke. Unfortunately, the human known as Tim Davis passed away. “What?! I…don’t…don’t…oh Primus…” “Please try to keep your composure, there is more that I must show you.” At that, the fog returned and enveloped the pair. When the fog receded, they were in the middle of the Ark, among a group of Autobots in the medbay. Sideswipe looked up and noticed Ratchet and Wheeljack operating on an Autobot while the others looked on. “Jazz, Bumblebee, what’s going?” The pair ignored him. “Hey, don’t you hear me?” The entity spoke up, “It will do you no good, they cannot see you. We are merely observers. Now cast your optics toward the two medics.” Sideswipe, looked on. He saw both Ratchet and Wheeljack working furiously trying to repair an Autobot. “Who are they operating on, he asked as he took a couple of steps forward. The sight he saw made him sick to his fuel processor. “OPTIMUS!” Optimus Prime lay on the operating table a quarter of his body had been blasted away. “We’ve done all we can for him, now it’s only a matter of time,” said Ratchet as he ushered the other Autobots out of the operating chamber. “Well, he’s lucky,” said Jazz. He doesn’t deserve this…none of the ones in the ambush deserved it.” Cliffjumer spoke up. “Well, I know one who did. It served him right abandoning his post like that. I just hope Primus can forgive him when his spark passed on.” Jazz looked down on the red mini-bot. “Normally, I don’t feel like that, but I do feel a little angry about it. He had so much potential, but ever since he lost his brother, he’s been no good to the Autobots. Hopefully, he’s found peace.” Sideswipe heard every word Jazz said. “Lost his brother…Spark…who was Jazz speaking of just now…TELL ME!!!” The Spark simply pointed a tentacle toward a glass chamber toward the corner of the medbay. Sideswipe walked over to the table but couldn’t find the courage to look in. “I…can’t look.” “You must look,” shouted the Spark. “I can’t…I’m scared, all right!” Just then the glass chamber shattered and a burned out hand grabbed Sideswipe. “AHHH…what the…what is it?” The rest of the body rose up out of the chamber. He couldn’t believe what he was looking at…the corpse was himself. “Gah…no…NO,” he screamed as the corpse pulled him into the chamber. However, the inside of the chamber was gone and in its place was an open pit engulfed in fire and at its center was a large bat wing creature beckoning toward him.” “You have made your decision Sideswipe,” called the Spark of the Future. “Now, you belong to Unicron!” Sideswipe screamed. “No…it’s not too late. I can change, I promise…I CAN CHANGE!!!!!!!!!!!” Then all was dark. ---
Chapter 6 All of a sudden a buzzing sound rang out and Sideswipe awoke. “Noo…wha…I’m in the recharge chamber?” He activated the chamber hatch control and the lid rolled back and he rose up and sat on the edge of the chamber. “I’m…still alive. By Primus…it’s morning. What a weird night. It was a dream…but it seemed so real.” A chime rung out indicating there was someone at his door. “E…enter,” he barely managed to say. The door slid open and Ratchet walked in the room. “Sideswipe, are you all right? The med bay warning system in your recharge chamber indicated that your stress levels were elevated.” “Yes…yes, I’m fine Ratchet.” “Well, that’s good to know. But just to be on the safe side, stop by the med bay later on.” “All right. Ratchet wait! Did anything happen here last night?” Ratchet turned back to Sideswipe. “Weird…no nothing I can recall. Why do you ask?” “Oh...” Sideswipe thought about the ruckus about Hot Rod racing down the hallway but chose not to say anything. “Nevermind.” “All right, by the way, Sideswipe, as the humans put it, Merry Christmas.” Ratchet then left his quarters. “Christmas…Christmas! Today is Christmas! I haven’t missed it. I…I have some work to do.” At that Sideswipe dropped a note by Jazz’s quarters and then exited the Ark. “I hope it’s not too late.” Sideswipe transformed and drove into the city. *** Sideswipe entered the gates of the orphanage and transformed. “It’s still standing. That’s a relief.” He walked up to the front door and gently tapped on it. A middle-aged lady answered the door. “Yes, may I…oh my…you’re one of those Transformers I’ve seen on the news.” “Yes ma’am. I’m Sideswipe. I was wondering if I could speak to Tim Davis.” “Tim?” The lady’s expression turned to one of anger. “You’re that one that hurt his feelings yesterday! You are a cruel machine you know that!” Sideswipe looked down with an apologetic look. “Yes…that was me. I realize that I said some things I shouldn’t have and would like a chance to make amends if you will let me.” “I don’t know…allright. I’ll go get him, but I can’t promise you he’ll listen.” “Thank you, ma’am, I appreciate it.” Sideswipe sat down in the snow for a few minutes until the lady reappeared in the doorway with Tim next to her. Upon seeing Sideswipe he immediately began to cry and run back inside. “Tim…Tim,” said the lady. “Our friend here has something to say to you, don’t you Mr. Sideswipe.” “Indeed, Tim, I realize that I said some things that I shouldn’t have. I realize now how mean that was of me.” Tim was still sobbing but was standing in the doorway trying to be brave. Sideswipe continued. “What I want to say is…is that I am sorry. I too know what it is like to lose a close family member.” Sideswipe lowered his hand and moved his finger close to Tim. “Can you ever forgive me?” Tim was hesitant for a few minutes but immediately climbed on Sideswipe’s finger. “I forgive you Mr. Swipe.” “Kid…” Tim was about to get upset again. “Call me Sideswipe. Now what do you say we have some fun.” “Allright,” said Tim as Sideswipe put him back down on the ground. “Ok…what would you like to do—“ Before he could finish a snowball hit Sideswipe in the face. “What the…” Tim had a grin on his face that immediately dissipated any anger Sideswipe felt from the snowball. “Hey, you got me…HEY!!!” All of a sudden the other kids of the orphanage came running outside and began to hit Sideswipe with a barrage of snowballs. Instead of being upset, Sideswipe made a sound he hadn’t made in a long time. Sideswipe laughed. “Merry Christmas, Tim.” Tim looked up at Sideswipe with the same look he had shown before the incident yesterday. “Merry Christmas to you, Sideswipe…and God bless us…everyone!” True to his word, the Sideswipe of the past was no more. He always made a point to be more of an Autobot and to have fun and spend time at the orphanage. In fact, Sideswipe was made an official friend of the orphange. He made a point to stop by every now and then, especially on Christmas to see Tim. Three years later, Tim was adopted by a family and moved to New York. Even though Sideswipe would never see him again, he still continued to pay visits to the orphanage. The others laughed at the change of him but he always turned a muted audio receptor to it. Most important to Sideswipe was the lessons he learned that one fateful Christmas night and he would keep the spirit in his Spark each and every cycle he still functioned.... THE END!
Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww...................some sweet shit right here!!!
I know its frowned upon bringing up long dead threads, but considering the time of year it is, figured I would bump the thread for the 5th Anniversary of when I first wrote this.