Hidden Spark on Earth (TFP)

Chapter 43

"I hope you are right, Saphira. Fowler, I will pin the responsibility on you if Saphira gets harmed. This was, after all, your idea." Fowler grimaced a little and nodded, understanding Ratchet's warning. "Take care, I will be watching your progress very closely."

Saphira smiled. "You have been doing that since the start, and I am grateful." She slipped her rifle back into her bag and held it, ready to move when she could. "When we reach the point, I will be ready. I will not let anyone down."

"Do not feel like you will let us down if this fails, Saphira," Optimus spoke in a reassuring tone, with a hint of love. "I had not wanted you to come along for the very reason we have now. This is not about proving yourself, Saphira. You already have done that time and time again."

"I know...still...I guess I still want this to go well," Saphira said, glancing at the side views again, the cars were still following them, but they had backed off for the moment. "At least they have gotten the message they are in danger if they get too close."

Optimus was relieved about that too. These men had shown they will not give up, this Dingus was a big prize it would seem. "How would have Mech gotten wind of this device, Fowler?"

"Um...I honestly have no idea. I might have to do some internal investigation, there wasn't exactly any talk through radio communications about it until I reached out to you." It was a good question to ask, and Fowler knew he would have to figure out how the Dingus information got leaked. "Mech could have someone on the inside of our ranks."

"And that is why you should not have been cocky about Silas," Saphira said bluntly. "This is bad. If you have someone in your ranks, Fowler, Mech could already know about the autobots and decepticons. That might even be a reason why they're chasing us, so they can see them for themselves."

Fowler gritted his teeth a little, it definitely seemed like this could be a lot worse than he had first thought. "I...didn't even think of that. That is a problem if they do know about the autobots."

Saphira looked out the window as the road turned onto a raised hill, beside the road is a lower valley with train tracks. She spotted the train that was travelling alongside them at the same pace. She smiled a little, though she was indeed quite nervous at the moment. She did not know if getting on that train would be any safer than she was right now, but at least she would be able to keep an eye on the Dingus.

"I guess I'll be catching the train shortly," Saphira muttered a little to herself, glancing to the dash and smiled, she hoped that Optimus felt comfortable knowing she was okay with this. She placed her hand on the dash, rubbing her thumb along it gently. "There's no turning back now."

Optimus did not respond. He knew she was trying to reassure him, and it was comforting, but Optimus was still very worried. Today did not turn out like it was supposed to. He was glad Saphira seemed confident about this, yet he knew she was likely nervous, despite the outward confidence she was trying to portray to them.

Fowler was observing Saphira curiously, he couldn't help but think their interaction was odd. She interacted with Optimus differently to the other kids. He knew that Arcee, Bee and Bulkhead were close friends with the kids, and they treated each other as friends. And yes, Optimus treated Saphira quite well. While Ratchet may have become an unintentional parental figure for Saphira, Fowler pondered a little about Saphira and Optimus. It was almost like that something else was going on. And he couldn't put his finger on it.

He looked ahead and saw the tunnels that go through the side of the mountain and smiled, they were almost there. "There's our destination point."

Optimus saw this too as they rounded the bend. "Autobots, keep a tight formation," He orders the autobots as they get closer to the hill down to the tracks.