This was my favorite episode when I was younger
)()()()()(
As Marty stepped out of Bulkhead's vehicle mode, the first thing she noticed was Optimius and Arcee standing in front of the ground bridge portal. It seemed they were heading out on a mission, which explained why they couldn't pick up Jack and Marty respectively.
"Miss us, doc bot?" Miko asked.
Ratchet saw her and groaned. "Shouldn't they be in school?"
"On a Saturday?" Miko asked. "We have the weekend off to spend with you." She smirked.
Ratchet rolled his eyes as Marty and Jack walked up to their guardians.
"We weren't expecting to carpool." The older boy said. "What gives?"
"Tag team, Jack." Arcee explained. "It's our turn for exploration duty."
Marty put her hands in her jacket pockets as Jack tried to guilt trip his guardian.
"Oh, too bad." He said nonchalantly. "It's a beautiful day for a ride. Would hate for you to feel guilty for leaving me indoors."
Arcee smirked. "Arctic exploration duty."
"Indoors where it's warm." Jack walked off to stairs just as Raf walked over. Marty recognized the excited gleam in his eyes.
Marty looked up at her guardian. "The arctic, huh?"
"I've always wanted to see snow." Raf said with a smile.
"Not much in the desert." Marty added.
"I would invite you to join," Optimius told the two. "but the conditions are much too extreme, even for we Autobots."
Raf's expression fell. "I... understand."
Marty felt a twinge of sympathy for the boy. Then again, she also had a small desire to see the snow.
Optimius and Arcee were about to step through the ground bridge when the former halted, turning around. "But, I will bring you back some snowballs."
Marty found herself smiling. "That'd be awesome."
Optimius nodded to her before him and Arcee disappeared into the ground bridge. When it closed, Ratchet made a startled noise and sparks crackled. Marty chalked it up to human tech problems as she and Raf walked up the stairs.
"So, what should we do today?" Miko asked.
Bee buzzed excitedly, bringing up his hands to mimic holding something.
"Video game tournament!" Raf translated. "Last one standing wins!"
"Bulkhead, Bumblebee! Here! Now!" Ratchet ordered.
Bee buzzed a groan as they walked away. Raf waved to him as he reached for a controller, but Miko already snagged it.
She plopped down next to Jack, waving the controller in his face. "Prepare to be destroyed."
Jack shrugged her off. "Yeah, not really my thing, Miko."
"Oh? Scared of loosing? To a girl?" She batted her eyelashes innocently, prompting Marty to roll hers.
Jack stared at her for a solid minute before grabbing the controller. "Bring it!"
They focused on the screen, the sounds of their racing game echoing through the base. Marty slipped her ear buds in and plugged the into her amp before grabbing her guitar. She noticed Raf walking away towards one of the many tunnels, but didn't think to much of it.
She rested her fingers on the frets in a familiar pattern, barely even feeling the strings. Years of playing had created layers of callouses on her fingers, armor for her hands.
Her hazel eyes closed as she strummed rhythmically. She had memorized the song to perfection and only needed her ears to play. The chords brought took her to a place she didn't know how to describe. Her mother had taught her how to play, yet she was gone.
Playing brought Marty a sense of peace, even if it was associated with her deadbeat of a mom. It was a strange feeling to have two parents, both alive and well, yet to be raised by extended family. Her father was always working overseas for some big wig company that Marty never took the time to learn. He would send her a card on her birthday, but she only saw him once or twice a year.
Her Uncle Joe was more of a dad to her.
She continued to strum until the sound cut out, along with the lights. Frowning, Marty pulled her ear buds out and stood, putting her guitar away.
"Great. Power failure." Jack said.
"Aw," Miko said with a sarcastic tone it wiped out our game."
"But I was winning!" Jack whined.
Miko tossed her controller and walked down the stairs, Marty on her tail. "Bummer."
The three teens approached the Bots. Ratchet was kneeled down on the ground, looking through large motherboards. "We most definitely have a problem." He said holding a board between his fingers. It had black holes taken out of the sided. "But what could have caused this?"
The lights flickered again.
"Or that?" Bulkhead asked.
Ratchet hummed in thought. "Might be the main grid. Hopefully, it isn't a substation malfunction."
"Hey, guys," Called Raf's voice. "Look what I found."
"We're busy!" Ratchet snapped as he looked at the boy. His eyes widened in terror and get let out an scream.
Bulkhead and Bee yelled in fright as they readied their weapons. The teens quickly stepped in front of Raf, arms out.
"Whoa! Hey, what's with you guys?" Miko asked.
"Scraplet!" Bulkhead screamed. "Scraplet!"
"What's a scraplet?" Raf asked, holding a small metal creature in his arms.
"The most dangerous vermin ever to crawl upon the face of Cybertron." Ratchet warned.
Marty frowned and looked at the thing in Raf's arms. "This? Seriously?"
"You're giant robots." Miko said. "Scrappy here is teeny."
"You have no idea the damage that teeny thing can do!" Bulkhead said shakily.
Raf looked down fondly at his new friend. "Aw, he wouldn't hurt anything."
The scraplet opened it's big eyes. It was adorable. It looked up at the Bots and suddenly opened it's mouth. Large, sharp teeth whirred to life as it sprung from Raf's arms. It latched onto Bee, chewing it's way through his paint. The scout watched with terror as he flung the creature off of him. The scraplet tumbled to the floor only to charge again.
A crowbar to the head stopped it. Raf shouted as he smashed the creature that hurt his guardian into tiny pieces. Jack grabbed his arm and took the crowbar. "Whoa, easy there, killer."
Raf panted, nodding before he ran over to Bee.
"I did not see that coming." Miko said, earning a nod from Marty.
"I'm sorry, Bumblebee." The boy apologized as Ratchet looked the scout over. "Is he gonna be okay?"
"Only a mesh wound," Ratchet said. "He'll live."
"Now do you believe me?" Bulkhead asked the kids. "All scraplets do is dismantle machinery and eat metal –Espcially living metal."
Marty put her hands in her pockets as they walked over to the Bots. "Well, bug squashed, game over, right?"
Ratchet shook his head. "No. When it comes to scraplets, there's never just one. And I fear I know how they got in here."
)()()()()(
"It's a trap," Ratchet said as he looked inside the large pod from the Arctic. "A scraplet trap."
"Unh, an empty scraplet trap." Bulkhead pointed out.
Ratchet transformed his light back into his hand. "Most likely ejected into space eons ago, only to wind up in the Arctic, where the temperature kept them in stasis."
"Until we brought the thaw." Jack said, metal pipe in his hand. Raf had his crowbar, Miko held a pipe wrench, and Marty had a baseball bat.
"Now they're wide awake and ready to brunch." Miko murmured.
Marty looked up at Ratchet. "So how many are we talking about?"
"Thousands. And the power malfunctions and ground bridge damage are sure signs that their infestation is well underway."
Marty furrowed her brow. If the ground bridge was down they wouldn't be able to bring back Optimius and Arcee. And the Arctic was deadly, even for them.
)()()()()(
Cold wind whipped around Optimius as he searched the cliff side for any more Cybertronian finds. One hand clung to the wall of ice while he scanned his surroundings.
A quick beep sounded from his insignia, reminding the Prime of the dangers of the cold. "Arcee," he said into the comm. "What's your status?"
"My sensor's going off." She replied. "Guess we should call for pickup before things get chilly."
Optimius switched the comm channel over. "Optimius to base, core temperature readings have reached the blue zone. Prepare to activate the ground bridge."
He flinched when rough static sounded instead of Ratchet's reply. Optimius frowned under his battle mask. They couldn't stay out there for much longer, and they had no way to reach the base.
)()()()()(
"Ratchet to Optimius, do you read me? We have a situation." The screens turned fuzzy with static. Ratchet slammed his fist down. "The scraplets have gotten into the com-link system! If we don't eradicate these creatures immediately, they will reduce the entire base to a scrap heap!"
Marty furrowed her brow as she stood with the other kids on the platforms.
"I say we bug out and let them keep it!" Bulkhead said.
Bee buzzed in nervous agreement.
"Evacuation is not an option." The medic's voice was grave. "If we don't get the ground bridge back online stat, Optimius and Arcee will perish."
Marty and Jack glanced at each other, both of them wearing the same worried expression.
"They will?"
"What?"
Miko scowled and turned to her guardian. "Bulkhead, you never run!"
"Miko, you haven't seen a swarm of these things devour a Bot. I have." Bulkhead's eyes betrayed his fear. "They pick you apart from the inside out, going for the small, juicy bits first– Fuse by fuse, circuit by circuit, till there's nothing left, and I mean nothing. Not even your optics."
"You have to let us help." Jack said.
Raf nodded. "We're not made of metal."
"Yeah. The scraplets can't hurt us." Miko said, pointing her thumb at herself.
"Typically, I find your fleshiness to be your least engaging quality." Ratchet said. "But it would appear to provide an advantage under these circumstances."
Marty nodded. "Okay, good. So we'll pair off–one bot one human. Me and Jack will watch your back while you repair the ground bridge." She said to Ratchet.
"And we go on a bug hunt." Miko grinned.
Bulkhead groaned softly and Bee shuddered, but even that did nothing to convey their displeasure.
)()()()()(
"I get to be your bodyguard for once." Miko stated as she and Bulkhead walked through the corridors of the base. "How cool is that?!"
"Raf found the first one here, right?" Bulkhead asked warily.
Suddenly, the lights cut out and a high pitched scream sounded. Miko tensed at the sound. When the lights flickered back on, she turned around to her guardian. "Did you just scream like a little girl?"
"No! Maybe. Can we talk about this later?"
Miko shrugged and continued on, pipe wrench in her hand. As they walked, Bulkhead turned at every little noise. "Take 'er easy, Bulkhead." She said. "Just stay focused. Everything's gonna be–"
Shots fired and Bulkhead screamed again. Miko turned quickly to see what was wrong, but her mouth fell agape when she saw her guardian tangled in cables that had fallen from the ceiling.
"AHHHHH! LOOK OUT!"
Miko bit her lip and sighed. "Okay. Wish I hadn't seen that. Bulkhead! You're fine. It's just a bunch of cables."
Bulkhead stopped screaming and opened is eyes. "Oh. Right. Cables." He grabbed one of them to assure himself, but he must have tugged something loose. Thousands of scraplets came raining down on him, earning more screams.
)()()()()(
"Don't these things ever stop eating?" Raf asked as he and Bee examined a fan vent that was chewed through. The scout readied his weapon and nodded to Raf before pulling off the vent.
Raf shouted as he readied his crowbar, but no scraplets were to be seen. Whirring sounded from the floor vent behind them. Bee looked back in fear as the vent exploded with the creatures.
)()()()()(
Marty gripped her baseball bat tightly as she and Jack stood guard. Ratchet was knelt over the panels in the floor trying his best to fix the ground bridge. Every moment it was down was another moment Optimius and Arcee were stuck, freezing to death.
"How's it going over there?" Jack asked.
"I've repaired the damaged conductors and rerouted the central conduits, but the ground bridge still won't receive power!" The medic grunted.
A soft clicking reached Marty's ears. She furrowed her brow and turned. She stifled a gasp when she saw the hundreds of scraplets sticking to the wall above them. Jack's grip on his pipe tightened.
In an instant, the creatures swarmed them, flying through the base.
Flying??
"They fly?!" Marty shouted. "You never said they could fly!"
Ratchet said nothing in response, seeing as the scraplets had already began to chew into his side.
"Ratchet!" Jack cried as the two teens rushed to help him. Marty swung vigorously at the creatures attacking Ratchet, but for every one she destroyed, three took its place.
"The fire extinguisher!" Ratchet cried.
Marty snapped her head to the red can of flame retardant. Of course! She ran over and grabbed it, spraying the scraplets with the freezing foam.
Together, Jack and Marty fought off the scraplets attacking Ratchet. His paint was marred, but he was alive.
But it wasn't over. Another swarm flew above them just as the others walked in, the Bots chewed to bits.
"Ratchet," Bulkhead said as he limped in. "Get the patch kit. We're leaking Energon like– Whoa!"
The scraplets attacked, leaving no room for mercy. Marty panted as she sprayed the fire extinguisher on the swarm. There were so many, and the Bots were already so weak. How were they going to do this?!
)()()()()(
Optimius fought the urge to close his eyes as he and Arcee sat under the small overhang. It did little to shelter them from the cold, but it did dampen the raging winds. Arcee had curled in on herself, burying her face in her arms.
Optimius looked over to check on her and found her eyes were closed. "Arcee, wake up." He ordered.
Her head snapped up as she rubbed her eyes. "Just resting my eyes."
"The longer we remain alert, the longer we remain alive."
"What do you suggest? Wait." Arcee held up her finger. "How about a game? Let's play Who Screwed Things Up Back At Base?."
"Our predicament could be the result of a simple malfunction." Optimius reminded her. It wasn't often the comms stopped working, but Ratchet did complain about human technology often.
"Caused by Bulkhead." Arcee added. "Let's see. No com-link. Maybe even no power. The big lug probably tripped over a cord. He's never been too graceful." She smiled to herself, rubbing her hands over her shaking arms. "Remember when we first arrived on Earth and Bulkhead walked into those power lines? Who knew he could dance like that?"
"Bulkhead may be....too big for this world," Optimius said. "but his inner strength is without bounds. One should not be measured by size alone."
It wasn't something he took into consideration until they met the humans. But all of them proved that they weren't just kids that needed to be protected, that they could handle themselves in perilous situations. Jack giving sound advice. Miko with her optimistic and go getter views. Raf using his skills to fix and help their own technology. Martha with her ability to see situations clearly and without letting her emotions cloud her view.
And while he had faith that Ratchet would bring them home, Optimius worried he would never see his charge again. Especially after he had promised to bring her and Raf a snowball.
)()()()()(
The kids took care of the last of the scraplets as the Bots rested–or rather, didn't die–on the floor.
"We get them all?" Jack asked, hefting his steel pipe over his shoulder.
A faint but harsh whirring sounded from the tunnels.
"Hardly," Ratchet said. "These were just scouts."
Bee whirred weakly and Bulkhead let out a groan. "So, the rest of them know know we're in here?"
"And if we allow ourselves to become their next meal, Optimius and Arcee will never make it home. We must get the ground bridge operational." Ratchet's words sounded forced, like it took an incredible effort to get them out.
A worry crease formed in Marty's brow. The Bots were leaking Energon at a dangerous rate, and Optimius and Arcee were stuck in a frozen wasteland.
"Then we can use it to send the scraplets anywhere on Earth." Raf noted.
Marty glanced down at the empty fire extinguisher in her hands. "Why not back to the Arctic?"
Jack nodded. "Yeah, we already know they don't do cold."
"Sweet!" Miko pounded her wrench in her hand. "One stop shopping."
"Given the body mass of the scraplets, sub-zero temperature should freeze them on contact." Ratchet murmured to himself. "So think, Ratchet, think! If the ground bridge is still down, there must be a breach in the Energon fuel line." His eyes lit up as he realized the problem.
Bee buzzed a groan as he tried and failed to sit up.
"If we weren't breaching, one of us could get back over there and fix it." Bulkhead griped.
Marty clenched her fists. "Where do we find it and how do we fix it?" She wasn't going to lose Optimius. Not when she could do something about it.
)()()()()(
Marty tip-toed around the crawling scraplets that covered the floor of the tunnels. The others did the same as they advanced to the breach.
"Remember, we're okay." Jack reminded them. "We're not made of metal."
Marty's eyes found a blue puddle streaming from a pipe. "There's the breach. Come on. We have to work fast."
Jack grabbed the welder and mask from his tool box and prepped the area to work.
)()()()()(
As they sat weakly on the ground, a question made it's way to the front of Bulkhead's mind. "So, if we get–when we get the ground bridge open, do we send the creepy-crawlies out or bring our Bots in?"
"Optimius and Arcee will be fresh meat." Ratchet realized. "If we bring them in first, the scraplets will have no reason to leave. We'll need bait."
"Where are we gonna get bait?!" Bulkhead snapped. "The scraplets already helped themselves to everything in here!"
Suddenly, the faint sound of the creatures grew closer. Bumblebee shook with fear as they true reality of the situation set in: they were going to be eaten alive.
)()()()()(
Optimius had given up on trying to stay awake. Everything in his frozen systems beckoned him to close his eyes, to let the tundra overtake him.
"You know the worst part?" Arcee asked weakly. "After battling Cons all these years– Getting smacked down, shot at, blown up– This is how our lights go out?"
It was rather ironic.
Optimius had never put too much thought into how he was to die, mainly because he was leading the war. Much like Arcee, he had assumed it would be in the heat of battle, not on the cold, lonely Arctic. But perhaps it wasn't as lonely as it seemed. After all, not many had the privilege of being with a loved one during the final moments.
"Arcee," Optimius addressed his long time friend. "This may not be the finish we planned, but if this is indeed the end–" Arcee's hand rested atop his. He welcomed her gesture, taking her smaller hand in his larger one. "–if we are to become one with the Allspark..."
"It's been an honor serving with you, Optimius Prime." Arcee said. Her words were bittersweet.
Optimius rested his head back on the snow, wishing he could die without regrets. But Marty's image was brought to the front of his mind. She never really showed her true emotions, but she'd opened up more to Optimius than to anyone else. He knew the ones who were supposed to love her the most left her. He couldn't do that to her, not like this.
)()()()()(
"Ratchet! All systems go!" Jack shouted as the kids ran back into the main hangar.
"Fire it up!" Miko cried.
Ratchet mustered all the strength he had left and stood. "Ground bridge... activated." He pulled the lever, falling as he did.
)()()()()(
A familiar whoosh sounded, prompting Optimius to lift his head. His eyes widened when he saw the ground bridge portal waiting for them.
It wasn't the end after all.
)()()()()(
Bulkhead looked at the portal, then back at the scraplets above them. "Bait, huh?" He stood and waved his arms, getting the creatures attention. "Ready for the main course? Come and get it!"
He limped into the portal, the scraplets following. Bee tried to sit up to watch him go, but Ratchet held him down to protect him from the barrage of creatures.
)()()()()(
Every step to the ground bridge was agony. Optimius and Arcee could barely even stand for two steps, but they were so close to going home.
A figure emerged from the portal. Optimius squinted to see it, surprised to see it was Bulkhead.
"Down! Down!" He cried before falling to the ground.
Behind him came hundreds of little metal balls. Too late Optimius realized they were scraplets. He tensed, waiting for them to dig into him. He was too weak to stop them. But instead of the expected pain, all he felt was the creatures hitting him and falling to the ground.
They had frozen to death.
"I'd invite you in," Bulkhead said. "but the place is a mess."
)()()()()(
Marty brushed her hair out of her eyes as she looked at her laptop. It was connected to Arcee's Energon IV drip and was monitoring her. Jack, Miko, and Raf worked with her, checking on the Bots' condition.
"Report bio-circuitry status." Ratchet said as he sat down next to Optimius.
"Levels are rising." Jack reported.
"Excellent. Rafael keep a close watch on Bumblebee's electro-pulse monitor. Miko, check Bulkhead's interface patch. Martha, how's Arcee's Energon thaw?"
"It's steady." Raf said.
Miko gave a thumbs up. "Looking good."
Marty nodded to Ratchet. "It's warming up steadily." She glanced to Optimius, offering a smile before turning back to her work.
"Perhaps you should get some rest yourself, old friend." Optimius told the medic. "You save quite a few lives today."
"It...wasn't all my doing." Ratchet admitted as he gazed down at the kids. "We're just fortunate that his infestation happened on a Saturday."
Optimius nodded. "Our human friends may be small, but they are strong."
An ear piercing shriek filled the air. Marty grabbed her baseball bat as the Jack and Raf grabbed their weapons.
"Scraplet?!" The brunette asked with an iron grip.
"Spider!" Miko screamed. "Is it on me?! Aah!" She ran off, reaching for places the spider could be. "Get it off! Get it off! Getitoff!!!"
"Did she just scream like a little girl?" Bulkhead asked as his usually fearless charge scampered off.