What a wonderful world! [Book 2]

{4} - Autobot Encounter

-A few days later, in the forest-

"Found you!" Cascade exclaimed, pulling aside the bushes to reveal Breakdown and his horrible attempt to hide.

"Aw man! I thought I had you stumped!" Breakdown chuckled, standing up and rubbing his back.

"Dad, I can literally see you no matter where you hide. It's pretty obvious!" Cascade giggled, earning a head rub from Breakdown.

"Well it's hard to be stealthy when you're this big!" Breakdown said, gesturing to his large frame. "Now go find Knocky!"

Cascade nodded and ran off in search of the red mech, searching high and low for him. He spotted a flash of red in a tree and smiled, walking over to it and shaking it.

There was a shout in surprise followed by Knockout falling out of the tree, landing on his back in the bushes. "Scrap! I thought that was a good hiding spot!" He laughed, standing up and brushing off his frame.

"Nope! Now it's my turn to hide! You count!" Cascade squeaked, darting off into the undergrowth.

Breakdown walked over and grinned at Knockout, covering his left optic and beginning to count. "One.... two.... three....."

As Breakdown counted, Cascade searched frantically for a good hiding spot. While he did, something caught his attention and distracted him. There was some bots moving through the forest, and they didn't look friendly at all. His optics widened and he froze in place, unsure of what to do.

"Nineteen...... twenty! Ready or not, here I come!" Breakdown chuckled, uncovering his optic and starting to look for Cascade.

Knockout followed him, his scarlet red optics scanning the thick undergrowth for any sign of their sparkling. Luckily, Cascade was pretty clumsy and left a small trail of broken twigs and disturbed rocks. He nodded to Breakdown silently, gesturing for him to follow.

Cascade finally snapped out of it and hid in a bush just as the Autobots came near. He overheard them talking about Breakdown and Knockout, realizing that his parents were in danger! He needed to tell them before something bad happened!

He carefully snuck around the Autobots, his pedesteps too light for them to hear. Once he was out of sight, he sprinted back to where he last saw Breakdown and Knockout.

"Primus, it's practically impossible to find him in this forest! Why did we agree to this?" Knockout chuckled, peering in a rotting log to see if Cascade was hiding in there.

"He'll eventually get impatient and come out." Breakdown replied, his head perking up when he heard Cascade yelling to get their attention.

Cascade ran up to them, panting heavily and leaning on his knees. "I saw the mean bots! They wanna hurt you!" He said, his optics wide with fear.

"The mean bots? Scrap... Autobots!" Knockout growled, scooping Cascade up into his arms. He turned to Breakdown, who was busy checking his scanner. "What are we going to do?"

"There's a cave nearby... you and Cas can hide in there. I'll distract the Autobots." Breakdown replied, three little dots popping up on his scanner.

"But what if you get hurt? I'm not leaving you!" Knockout protested, putting a hand on Breakdown's shoulder.

Breakdown smiled at Knockout and kissed his helm, bending down and kissing Cascade's helm as well. "I'll be fine, just get out of here. I love you."

Knockout sighed and went to walk away, glancing longingly at Breakdown. "I love you too..." he murmured, starting to run off towards the cave with Cascade.

Breakdown sighed in relief, knowing they'd be safe. He turned back towards the forest and changed his right hand into a hammer, narrowing his optic. "Come and get me, you bastards..." he growled lowly, widening his stance.