Chapter 1: All by Myself

The just-risen sun shone softly through the pine needles of the fir trees, summoning the early morning animal activity. Birds sang to each other while squirrels and chipmunks raced around the trunks of the trees, carrying pine nuts up to their nests. A herd of elk grazed in the long grasses of the shaded meadow, with the hum of bees tickling their ears.

A large buck lifted his head, alert for any danger upon his beloved herd. His deep chocolate eyes gazed at the young doe remaining a distance away from his warm protection. The longer she stayed away, the more vulnerability she brought upon herself.

The sound of snapping branches alerted them all, the buck snorting as he followed his fleeing herd. The young doeling remained planted in curiosity, staring at the figure passing by before pursuing the group.

Firespark watched the beautiful creatures as they ran on such graceful legs. As much as she wanted to sightsee, she had a mission to accomplish. Orange optics gazed up at the sky, following the rising smoke trail that would lead her to the emergency distress call.

Only a minute trek brought the pink femme to the wreckage. Racing over to the sealed metal doors, Firespark checked it over to see if it was possible to pry it open. There was a gap in between the middle of the seams. Gritting her denta, she tugged at the doors, moving it ever so slightly.

She paused when she heard a muffled call, "Help me, I'm in here!" The voice sounded feminine.

"Don't worry! I'm here to help! If you can, open the door on the other side!" Firespark shouted, returning to pulling at the door.

The doors screeched open halfway with the combined strength. "I don't think it'll open anymore. I'll see if I can squeeze through," the voice called out.

A dark purple body emerged through the broken doors and collapsed into Firespark's awaiting servos.

"My shelters' not far from here," Firespark coaxed to the weary femme. Wrapping an arm around her neck, they both made the trek through the woods and arrived at a cave entrance.

The cave was small compared to the Cybertronians, maybe once belonging to a bear. Both femmes shuffled inside with their servos pressed against the smooth-even walls. A soft crackling sound of a burning fire became apparent the further they ventured.

The tunnel opened up to a large cavern, lit by a large fire in the middle. A handmade waterfall flowed into a small trickling stream. By the waterfall, a great curtain of ivy hung down from the ceiling. Against one side of the cave wall was salvaged equipment from damaged escape pods, while the other side housed three berths lined against the wall.

Firespark directed the injured femme toward a small pad that was laid by the fire. Gently seating her, the pink femme walked over to a metal table adorned with medical equipment.

"Thank you for helping me," the new femme coughed, "Who are you?"

Surprised, Firespark turned around with a medkit in hand, then she smiled, "My name is Firespark. I'm just glad I made it in time." She sat beside the pad, "Now, where are you most injured?"

The purple femme gestured to her arm, one that she had been most sensitive of, "Just my arm, I guess it looks better than it feels,"

Firespark nodded, "It looks in decent shape considering what happened to you. Let me stop the energon leak first; then I'll take a look." With having said that, she reached toward the firepit and grabbed a long metal pole heated at one end. "Now, I'm no medic, but we'll take what we can get." Gently, Firespark pressed the heated end against the split metal, welding it together, preventing more energon from spilling.

Next, the pink femme dipped a small towel in the cold stream. "Since you know my name, what's yours?"

"Midnight, I'm an Autobot. What about you? I don't see any symbols on you." Midnight replied, narrowing her blue optics at her helper.

Firespark crouched next to her with a pained smile across her face, "I guess I'm what you'd call a neutral, and I think I'm doing alright." Remembering the damp washcloth, she handed it to the purple femme, "Wash off the energon so I'll have a cleaner area to work with."

Distrust mingled with curiosity filled Midnight's optics as she slowly took the fabric. "Right. So what's your story, too much of a coward to fight?"

Taken aback, Firespark opened her mouth, then closed it, calculating her words wisely. "I would fight if it were easy to decide; however, I have contacts on both sides. Besides, I'm nothing to any of them. What good would I do in assisting in a war?"

Firespark got up and wandered over to the curtain of green and pulled it aside, revealing a hidden storage shelf of energon. After obtaining a cube, she made her way back to Midnight. "Drink this while I work on your arm. You'll get your strength back soon enough."

Midnight was silent as she observed the former Decepticon's careful hands. The cube was half empty by the time she spoke again, "Do you have any family?" When Firespark paused in her work, Midnight looked away, "I'm sorry."

"No, it's fine. I do have a family, but I've lost contact with them over the years." Firespark replied as she continued repairing wires.

Midnight nodded, "Mine's the same way. I haven't heard from them for quite some time. Well, 100 years too long."

Welding the metal back together, Firespark stood up. "There, good as new. Try it out."

Midnight relaxed her arm to her side in astonishment. "It feels normal, maybe even better than normal." As an example, she curled her servo into a fist and brought it up to her face. "Thank you, Firespark, and I'm sorry if I seemed harsh."

Firespark rested a black servo on Midnight's purple shoulder plating. "I've forgiven you. You have some options here. You can stay with me overnight til you feel rested, or I can give you the Autobot's location now."

"I should probably stay here and rest up, huh? I need to be strong enough to make it to Optimus Prime." Midnight replied after giving it some thought.

"Very well, you may choose any berth. I hope you don't mind me going through your pod for supplies, do you?"

Midnight's blue optics sparkled with amusement, "As if I'm going to use it again anytime soon. Take whatever you find useful."

Firespark smiled, "Thank you. I'll return in a little bit."