Transformers Prime: The Tesseract

Ten: Tesseract Revealed

"You're right...I know where the Tesseract is..."

"Where is it?" Ratchet asked.

"Hidden in my chest," Sunbeam explained.

"What?!" Ratchet questioned.

"You mean to tell us that you've had a cube with enough energy to wipe out planets just casually sitting in your chest all this time?!" Fowler yelled. Sunbeam nodded.

"Yeah."

"Why would anyone in their right mind give a weapon like that to a child?!" Ratchet wondered aloud.

"I'm not a child!" Sunbeam thought for a minute. "I think..."

"Well, we have to stop the Decepticons from getting it," Raf stated. Ratchet nodded.

"Agreed. Congratulations, Sunbeam. You're grounded until further notice," Ratchet remarked.

"Seriously?! Can I still go on walks with the kids...?" Sunbeam asked.

"Most likely not. Unless you'd rather we remove the Tesseract from you," Ratchet responded.

"Definitely not!" Sunbeam declined.

"That's what I thought," Ratchet agreed. "But, you still get to play with them here."

"Alright, that's good enough!" Sunbeam exclaimed. "Just not right at the moment. I promised Starscream a game."

"You what?!" Everyone yelled. Sunbeam grabbed a surgery game and left with a wave.

"See ya in a few!"

"What are you doing back?!" Starscream questioned. Sunbeam showed off the game.

"I picked a game for us to play!" She beamed.

"You can't be serious! I'm a Decepticon! I'm a major threat to you and your friends!"

"I know...which is why I'm gonna make sure you never leave this cell." Sunbeam's grin turned to a snarl similar to that of an untamed animal.

"Well...your mood shifted fast," Starscream remarked, a small bead of sweat running down his face.

"Don't worry. Those bars should protect you. Anyway, let's play!"

"Are you serious?! Why would I want to play with someone who just threatened me?!"

"Don't take it personal. Besides, that was more of a warning. Also, I'm the least of your problems if you try to escape."

"Well, forgive me for assuming you're a slightly bigger threat, given that you slaughtered humans." There was a pause.

"Ya know what...? I don't really feel like playing anymore..." with that, Sunbeam took the board game and left.

"Hey, Sunbeam! Look what I found!" Miko exclaimed, holding up her chewed up tennis ball. Sunbeam wiped her eyes and transformed into a dog.

"Let's play!" She suggested. So, her and the kids played fetch and tag for the rest of the afternoon, before Ratchet sent them home for the night.

"So your game with Starscream didn't take long," Ratchet pointed out once the kids had left. Sunbeam stared at the ground and fiddled with a pebble under her foot.

"Yeah...I guess it didn't...turns out he ain't all that fun," Sunbeam replied. "He's kinda mean."

"Well, he is a Decepticon."

"But...are all Decepticons like that?" Sunbeam asked, finally looking up from the ground.

"Honestly? I don't know," Ratchet admitted.

"I'll try to play with him again tomorrow," Sunbeam decided aloud.

"Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"No, but it is an idea."

"I swear, you and the kids'll drive me mad," Ratchet grumbled. Sunbeam smirked.

"Good. Sounds fun." Ratchet huffed at that.

"You'll be pleased to know that I contacted the rest of our team on Cybertron and informed them of the situation while you were preoccupied. That means you'll be able to bother them rather than me."

"Somethin' tells me that last part was more for you than me..." Sunbeam deadpanned.

"I don't know what you mean," Ratchet declined, but the slight smile on his face said otherwise.

"Yeah, I can tell." Suddenly, the groundbridge opened and Autobots began striding through, starting with Arcee.

"Arcee!" Sunbeam squealed and ran to Arcee and engulfed her in a crushing hug.

"Hey, Sunbeam. It's nice to see you again," Arcee replied with a smile.

"I have so much to show you!"

"Oh yeah?" Sunbeam nodded quickly.

"Sunbeam! Arcee! Other people have to come through!" Ratchet scolded the girls.

"Check this out!" Sunbeam transformed into a dog and pranced around in circles, tail wagging so hard it would seem that it might fall off.

"A dog! That makes sense," Arcee admitted, standing up and walking away from the portal. Sunbeam followed before transforming back to her original form.

They allowed the rest of the team through the bridge, and Ratchet explained the situation to them.

"Who're you?!" Sunbeam blurted upon seeing Knockout.

"I'm Knockout. Who are you?" Knockout introduced himself with a small curtsy. Sunbeam giggled.

"I'm Sunbeam! It's nice to meet you!"

"Cute."

"What?"

"So what's your deal? You must've been entrusted with the Tesseract for a reason."

"Not at all. The human scientists who made her just needed a stronger power source," Ratchet interjected.

"You were created by humans?!" Knockout began checking Sunbeam out to try and find any errors in her design. "Huh. The humans have really gotten good at this."

"Uhhh....thanks?" Sunbeam replied with a raised eyebrow.

"You're welcome, oh tiny one," Knockout responded, giving Sunbeam a complimentary pat on the head. "May I ask what vehicular form you have? I see no wings, so you can't be a flyer, but I also don't see wheels...so a vehicle is out of the question."

"I'm a dog," Sunbeam answered simply.

"What's a dog?" Sunbeam transformed to answer his question.

"Humans have the best pets!"

"Yep!" Sunbeam transformed back into a bot.

"But, I have to ask...if you're not Cybertronian, does that mean you're not alive?"

"Knockout!" Ratchet shouted.

"What? I'm only asking," Knockout responded.

"I...never thought of that...." Sunbeam admitted.

"Well, I wouldn't dwell on it too much. Being alive or not doesn't matter when you're an Autobot," Knockout remarked with a laugh before getting a wrench thrown at his head by Arcee.

"Something tells me you ain't been an Autobot for too long..." Sunbeam retorted with a bored expression.

"Why would you guess that?"

"Because Autobots are usually nice."

"Oof, point taken. I admit, I do have some catching up to do..."

"That's okay! We can learn together!"

"Agreed! It'd be nice to have a friend who understands my troubles."

"Couldn't agree more, Uh...." Sunbeam started, trying to remember Knockout's name.

"Knockout." The name's owner deadpanned.

"Right!" Sunbeam exclaimed with a snap.