4: THICKER THAN WATER
--Cybertron--
"Why do these things keep happening?"
Elita-One stood in what used to be the office of Optimus Prime -- the same Optimus Prime who, just under twenty-four hours ago, had vanished without a trace. It hadn't even been a year since she had reunited with him on Earth and already he was gone again.
Standing by her side, Jetfire scanned the room for any signs of break-in or struggle, but there were none. It was as if Prime had just gotten up and left. Without ever returning, which didn't really seem like something he'd do.
Turning back to Elita, he said, "I take it you've already checked the security footage?"
"Ironhide's gone through it. The footage gets corrupted around the same time he vanishes." Elita huffed as she folded her arms. "Which just figures."
"What did the footage show before that? Did anyone visit him at any point?"
Elita thought for a moment. "I know Metalhawk visited him to discuss his proposal for a Council of Worlds, but that was several hours earlier. After that... I think I was the last bot to see him."
Jetfire raised an inquisitive optic. "When would have this been?"
"At least five hours before he vanished. At least, that's when the footage cut out." Elita turned to meet Jetfire's gaze. "I assure you that--"
"I'm not accusing anyone of anything," the Autobot flier said. "We're going to need all the facts and info we can get if we want to solve this through. What were the two of you discussing?"
Elita looked away from him. "It's... a private matter."
Jetfire nodded in understanding. "Did you notice anything off about him?"
"What do you mean?"
"He didn't act or look any different than normal?"
The hesitation in her voice, as brief as it was, was telling. "No. He seemed fine."
Deciding not to press the matter further, Jetfire turned to leave. "Well, I'm going to have Security Forces investigate this, have them question anyone they can. If anything comes up, just radio me."
"Right," Elita murmured. "Thank you, Jetfire."
Once the flier was gone, Elita stood alone in the room for a long moment, staring at the holo-image of herself situated over Optimus' chair. Before she knew it, she was losing herself to a sea of memories....
--Chaar, Cycle 8815--
"Gear up, everyone. Ten minutes till touchdown."
Elita-One hummed to herself as she loaded her gun. It was a tune she had known since she was forged, taught by her caretaker. It was known as the Cadence of Astronema, first orchestrated during the Silver Age. For all her life it had held a special place in her spark -- and right now, it was the only thing keeping her mind off what awaited her and everyone else on the ship.
"This your first deployment?"
Elita lifted her optics to see a large gray mech with an orange chestplate. She could have sworn she had seen a bot with his build before but her addled mind made it hard for her to pinpoint when and where.
Still humming to herself, she managed a small nod.
The mech smiled. "Mine too. I've spent most of my time on Cybertron trying to keep the riots down. Never been on the field before." He then elbowed a red and blue mech sitting next to him. "But Orion here, he's seen it all, haven't you, pal?"
Orion glanced up at him. "I've only been on that one mission to Charrus. And by the time I got there, most of the 'Cons had already been dealt with."
"So? That's still more action than I've seen."
"Wait a second," Elita said, eliciting both bots' attention. "I know you two. You were both on that Stunticon operation last cycle."
Orion and his friend blinked as recognition dawned on them. "Hey, that's right," the latter said. "You were there as well, with your sister. What was your name again? Elite One?"
"Elita-One," she corrected, smiling. "And you're Roller, and he's Orion Pax."
Roller laughed, which drew him a glare from the commander at the helm. "Hey, look at that! Someone actually remembers me! Told you I'd find one, buddy."
Elita looked over to Orion with a confused look. "Am I missing something here?"
Orion shook his head. "Ignore him. He's just being... well, him."
Elita nodded before glancing around the compartment. Then, lowering her voice, she said, "So... how do you feel about... you know?"
Orion stared at her but said nothing, silently inviting her to finish her statement. Taking a deep breath, she did so.
"About your brother being the enemy?"
Roller opened his mouth, likely to admonish her, but Orion cut him off. "I get by," he said. "It's hard, but I get by. He is my brother, so I still... it's just hard sometimes, you know?"
"Yeah," Elita murmured. "I actually do...."
"All right, enough chatter!" the commander hollered from up front. "We're dropping in five... four..."
Roller lifted his gun and smirked at Elita. "How long do you reckon?"
"Three... two..."
Elita returned the smile but looked at Orion as she said, "Ten seconds."
"One!"
"Optimistic, aren't ya?"
The floor gave way beneath them and they all fell to the barren planet below.
--Present--
Elita was snapped back to reality by the sound of her comm buzzing. In her HUD, she saw the caller ID to be that of her sister Arcee. This surprised Elita; the two of them hadn't talked since their meetup at Maccadam's, and even then they hadn't spoke much to each other there. Why would she be calling her now?
Answering the comm, Elita said, "Arcee?"
"Hey, Elita. Are you in Iacon?"
"Yes, actually. Why? What do you need?"
"I need you to come down to the lab. There's something you need to see."
Elita slowly nodded to herself. She couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed that it wasn't a request for another get-together. Shaking the feeling, she responded, "I'll be right there."
As she ended the call, Elita took a moment to look around the office one last time before transforming and driving off.
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