Transformers Short Story

Battle Has No Rewards

The shot blasted right next to Rose's ear as she recoiled from the missiles heat, the tips of her hair sizzling quietly upon impact. Rose spat a mixture of blood and dirt onto the ground before glaring at her attacker; Starscream. His door wings were raised in aggravation as he assumed another fighting stance, though Rose was pleased to see bright splashes of Energon leaking from his wounds, visibly showing his wear. She lifted her AK into her shoulder once more and fired a well-aimed shot for his chest plating transformer seams, knocking him back by a few inches. Starscream clawed at his chest plating with annoyance, before dislodging the shrapnel, refocusing his optics on her circling form. His paint job was splashed with vibrant blue streaks connected only by various wounds scattered across his frame. The tips of his door wings were frayed and a bit of wiring hung loosely around his left optic, which was flickering in and out every few seconds. The rest of the fighting party wasn't any better. As Rose dodged another shot from Starscream's blasters she noticed Bulkhead and Wheeljack fighting back to back against a group of Decepticon clones. Bulkhead's frame was in decent shape for the number of hits he was taking but Wheeljack, on the other hand, was missing half of his right shoulder plating and Energon was dripping down his frame in gushes as he shifted to accommodate his limb, which swung uselessly at his side. Optimus and Megatron were farther back from them, focusing on each other as if the frames of soldiers fighting all around them only existed outside their world. Rose saw a flash of red as Knockout crashed to the ground beside her, his usual pristine cherry coat a mixture of muddy browns as Acree wrestled him till he retreated to the opposing side. Acree's blue paint coat was chipped in a couple of spots but she sent a small smile to Rose before leaping off into battle again. A blast landed right next to her, craving the ground into a black caracoled callus, knocking Rose from her thoughts. Starscream's mouth plate twisted into a smirk and he mocked, "What's wrong Autobot pet?" Rose curled her lip in disgust, sending a shot to his flickering optic, a resounding cry of pain hitting her ears as she met her target, "Go cry to your master, Starscream." Starscream gripped his helm, grimacing as the fuse on his optic finally went dark, "You're fighting a losing battle, pet." Rose sighted her rifle in on his remaining optic, "You don't have much room to talk." "Decepticons, fall back!" Megatron's order drowned out Starscream's retort as he transformed into his alt-form, following the remaining soldiers back to their base. Rose sighed heavily before assessing the battlefield. Most of her soldiers were emerging from the mud to join up with their Autobot companions. Rose's eyes scanned over the terrain, watching as more soldiers and Autobots came into view; she had yet to find Lennox and their third in command, Price. She shook her shoulders to let out some of the tension and calmly made her way to the group, who were huddled around Optimus. She climbed over a couple of frames before shouting, "Anyone seen Lennox or Price?" Her soldiers looked around each other for a few minutes before Epps met her eyes worriedly, "I haven't seen them since the start of the fight, sorry..." Rose turned to meet the Autobots, "Anything?" Ironhide cased his cannons with a whirl, "I'll look for 'em." Rose nodded her head in thanks, knowing the weapons master was just as worried for his partner's safety as she was. A strangled shout pierced the quiet field as Ironhide was about to start his search. Rose strapped her gun to her chest plate before pushing herself into a sprint, following the voice as it called out again, every one slightly behind her. She reached a slight divot in the ground and skidded to a halt on the top of the ridge, peering down into the hole. Her second in command was hovering over another form, whose body was laying limply in the dirt. Rose slide down the embankment coming to rest at Lennox's side. Price. His body was practically buried in mud, covering the grotesque work of his wounds; one blast to his side and another to his chest. His eyes fluttered faintly with each weak rise of his chest and his breath rattled in his lungs as he slowly got weaker. Rose placed a comforting hand on her XO's shoulder, meeting his hollow eyes, before softly addressing their dying comrade, "Price, can you hear me?" Price made a horrible gurgling sound in his throat before going silent once more, his eyes landing on Rose's face. Rose gave him a soft smile, positioning his arms in a much more natural pose and sitting him up so he was resting against the dip, "John....it's been an honor serving with you." Price's throat gurgled again, surprising Rose with soft words, "I...don't....want...to...die." Rose's heart wrenched but she composed herself before answering softly, "I know John...I know. I'm sorry it came to this." Price's eyes fluttered closed and he slurred, even more quietly, "Isssts...okay Rose....know you tried...just bring.....me...home..." His voice wavered and finally, he went quiet, his body shuddered before going completely still, finally at rest. Rose sighed softly, a small window into the pain she was feeling. She brushed her shoulders briefly against Lennox's, whose eyes never left Price's, even as Rose reached past him to lift the soldier's form gently into her arms. Rose stood up to her full height and narrowed her eyes down at her second. His hands were clasped tightly together and he was staring at the body in her arms, not meeting her eyes. Rose shifted Price's weight, his body slowly turning cold with his environment, "Lennox...come with me." Lennox flinched at her soft tone, before slowly rising to walk at her side, his body on autopilot, following her with a lost expression. Rose internally sighed again, why did it have to be him?  She turned to face the rest of her soldiers waiting at the crest of the hole and silently breezed past them, refusing their advances to help; this would be her burden to shoulder right now. Lennox trailed behind her, keeping his distance from the other soldiers and their Autobot counterparts. She met Optimus's sympathetic gaze with a neutral look, waiting for the green swirl of the ground bridge to appear before trudging forward, her body suddenly hit with a tired ache nothing could cure. She was greeted with the enthusiastic image of Misty and Ratchet, waiting patiently to receive any of the wounded and congratulate them on their win. Misty's mouth formed into a small line once she processed Rose's form. She tutted before reaching out to take the soldier in Rose's arms. Rose let her take Price, slowly sliding into a chair next to the medic's joint tables as she watched Mitsy set him gently aside, taking his dog tags off and placing them gently in Rose's numb hands. Mitsy did a once over before turning away to treat the minimal injuries among the soldiers, while Ratchet set to work replacing Wheeljack's shoulder plating. The base was eerily quiet, not even Skids or Mudflap's corny jokes could break the sudden lull. Rose leaned back into her chair, closing her eyes and blocking everyone out; she couldn't blame the two for trying to break the tension but now really wasn't the time. Skids wrinkled his nasal plating, his light tone egged on by his brother, "At least we won right?" Rose heard the sound of a chair hitting the deck accompanied by grunts as her soldiers held someone back. Rose tipped her head forward and opened her eyes, disappointed to see her XO struggling against Epps and Smith's steady hands. Skids flinched back from Lennox's anger and discreetly backed up to stand beside Mudflap. His brother hit the back of his helm with a stern look, whispering, "Too far." Skids rubbed the back of his neck guards with a guilty look and opened his intake to speak but Rose beat him to it, "That's enough. Epps, Smith take him up to my office. Lennox, sit in there for a while...I'll be up a little later." Both soldiers shared a look before practically dragging their XO into the joint hanger. Rose stood from her chair and fiddled with the tags in her hand, dangling them in front of her body to show the scorched edges to the group, "That's not winning." She accompanied her statement with a soft grimace before tiredly plopping herself back into her chair, a hand pinching her nose in exhaustion. Ironhide took a hesitant step toward the joint hanger and Rose waved him on, "Go see him." Ironhide nodded once before walking confidently to the joint hanger and out of sight. The base fell silent, except for the occasional sounds of Ratchet's tools fitting Wheeljack's plating into place. Rose watched his progress from her chair. The last seam was fit into place snugly and Wheeljeck experimentally flexed the silver metal, muttering his thanks, "Coat of paint and it'll be good as new...thanks Ratch." Ratchet huffed and moved to usher him out of the way so he could examine the rest of the bots. Bulkhead went first, his dents getting buffed out, and moving on to Acree, who was given the same treatment. Bumblebee, Smokescreen, and Ultra Magnus were practically spotless, although Optimus needed small repairs to his grill and corresponding armor. Smokescreen observed the room before blurting, "What will his family do with him?" Mitsy looked up from clearing her workspace and motioned to Price, blunt, "Take him home." Smokescreen examined the soldier's body from a distance and cleared his pipes, suddenly timid, "What happens now?" Mitsy paused and looked to where Smokescreen's gaze was pinned, "There will be a ceremony...Rose will hold it and we'll send them back their son..." Rose closed her eyes again, blocking out the rest of Mitsy's explanation; she was so tired. A few moments later someone called her name, which broke her out of her thoughts and her eyes jolted open to Ratchet's holo-form face peering down at her with a look akin to worry. Rose rubbed her face and gave him a blank look. Ratchet held out his hand, "You need to take a shower." Rose glanced down at her body, where streaks of red, blue, and brown were hiding her armor and frame. She wrinkled her nose before excepting his hand, his calming presence filling her bond and soothing some of her pain, "Later. I've to arrange some things..." West interrupted her before she could finish, "I can do that." Rose hesitated but Epps interjected, "Good idea West. I'll get the ceremony set up." Rose furrowed her brow but Ratchet sent her a stern look, her protest dying in her throat. She nodded instead, "Sorry." Epps grimaced but quickly covered his outbreak with a cough; she never said sorry. Rose let Ratchet steer her back to his shared quarters. Once they were safely tucked away he tugged at the armor she was wearing with an impatient huff, "This needs to be washed...or thrown away." Rose shrugged off her chest plates and slung them over her arm, looking awkwardly for a place to set them. Ratchet patiently took them out of her hands and set them in a neat pile at the entrance, hardly flinching as dirt covered his clean floors. He motioned her to their washracks with a soft push. Rose squared her shoulders, "I got it Ratchet." Ratchet hummed his hand falling to her shoulder to steer her completely inside, "I know." He pointed to a bench on one side of the human-sized shower, "Sit down." Rose almost thought about protesting but, in the end, decided to heavily sit down on the bench and watch as Ratchet started the water. He fiddled with the temperature before checking the steady flow, nodding at the warmth. He glanced back at Rose, sighing before coming to sit at her side, where her heavy limbs were making it difficult to get her mud-clogged fitted suit off her body. Ratchet stopped her hands from ripping the zipper off and zipped it down so that when she was ready, she could easily peel it off her body. Rose glared at her hands, which were starting to grow fuzzy with the rising steam. Ratchet bumped his shoulder into hers and looked over her worn form. He wrinkled his nose, deep in thought before focusing again on his daughter with a set mind. He slowly reached up to turn her head toward him, letting his bond flow freely through them, providing fierce protection and love. Rose's tugged her face out of his hand and looked away, closing her eyes as Ratchet moved to pull her closer to him. He pulled her into a soft hug when she didn't pull away and whispered into her hair, "It's okay little one...just let it out." Rose squished her head deeper into Ratchet's chest and allowed her tears to flow slowly down her face in silence. Ratchet stroked her back in a comforting manner, allowing her the time she needed to grieve. Rose inhaled sharply before whispering softly, "I fucking hate this." Ratchet's hands stilled before rubbing circles on her back, his spark panging, sending her a comforting bond. Rose ground her teeth together to keep herself from sobbing but memories of Price kept floating to her. His transfer from the Marines into N.E.S.T., his nomination ceremony for 3rd in command, his stupid belief in breakfast, his optimistic smiles after every battle, and his very presence. She could feel her grief lodge in her throat and she tried to stifle her tears. Ratchet seemed to sense her struggle and sent a soothing bond, wrapping her in his warm features. Rose sighed harshly, wiping away her tears but more steadily filled their place so she soon gave up. Ratchet hummed softly, "I know you don't want to hear it...this...it's..." He stopped before giving up with a shrug, "I'm not good at this." His struggle earned a chuckle from his daughter who slowly pulled out of his form, wiping her tears away, "No shit." Ratchet looked her over again, his stoic expression breaking to show Rose how worried he was, "I'm sorry...I know you were close." Rose nodded slowly, "Very. I couldn't have picked a better third...but I...shit Ratch, why'd it have to be him?" Ratchet shook his head wearily, "It is outside of our control." He clenched his hands together as if remembering something himself. Rose took his hands and squeezed them lightly, "Thank you though...I don't think I said it yet." Ratchet wrinkled his nose, "You don't have to thank me...you shouldn't have to go through this alone." Rose took a deep breath, slowing her racing heart, quietly reflecting, "Sometimes it's better this way." Ratchet shook his head, "You and Optimus are the same." Rose bit her lip, trying to make the situation lighter, "I wonder why?" Ratchet cracked a small smile, "You look just like him too...if he were younger and still Orion..." He ended his statement with a sigh before suddenly rising from the bench, "I'll be in the other room if you need anything...take a shower before you stink up my home."