Meet Moonbeam Chapter 21

Luna looked out the window, their pursuit of the mech had led them to a darker side of Cybertron and Atom was shaking a bit in fear. She patted his door to comfort him and looked out the window.
"We should go that way." She said, pointing down an alley.
Atom stopped and transformed then pulled her out of his chest compartment and held her in his hand.
"A-are you sure this is the way? This isn't a very friendly neighborhood." Atom said nervously.
Luna looked out at the dimly lit path and clutched her shard in one hand.
"I'm sure." She said.
Atom looked down the alley nervously but nodded and walked forward cautiously, using his headlights to light the way.
Luna looked around as they moved through the alley, her senses were on high alert, searching for the mech and any potential dangers. The Allspark flickered and glowed momentarily when Luna stood up.
"Wait…" Luna said.
Atom stopped walking and looked at her nervously, she motioned for him to set her down and she quickly climbed off. She walked forward, clutching her shard tightly and looked around, she could hear her heart in her ears as she walked. She stopped when she had stepped only a few yards and she looked around before she looked up. A shadow moved and landed silently behind Atom, Luna's gaze followed it instantly.
Atom noticed her gaze and stiffened in fear.
"Hello." A voice said behind him.
Atom was so startled he yelped and tried to turn but stumbled on the refuse in the alley and fell forward.
He landed over Luna awkwardly and she squeaked in alarm. His arms broke his fall before he could crush her but when he realized the position he fell in his cheeks turned a bright energon pink.
Luna's cheeks turned deep red as Atom's lips pressed against her own, she quivered underneath him before he scooted back off of her. She sat up slowly and glanced nervously as Atom when the chuckling of the mech drew her attention. Her embarrassment faded once she recognized the mech, she remembered where she had seen him and blinked in surprise.
"Prowl?" she asked, shocked.
Atom turned to the mech, his cheeks still flushed before he looked back at Luna.
"Y-you know him?!" Atom squeaked in bewilderment.
Luna looked at Atom and felt her cheeks burn again.
"I-I-w-well…" she stuttered.
"Interesting…both of you." Prowl murmured, amused.
Luna flushed deeper and managed to stand.
"I believe you two were sent to find me?" he said, smiling.
Atom stood sheepishly and continued to blush and looked back at Luna and Prowl repeatedly.
"U-um…c-care to explain?" he squeaked.
Luna guessed he was embarrassed by the…erm 'contact' and was probably freaked for having that kind of contact with an organic.
"Um…I-er…" she stammered.
"When I was offline she could see me." Prowl stated.
Atom blinked and looked at Luna then at Prowl then back at Luna.
"Really?" he asked.
Luna looked down sheepishly and nodded.
"Y-yeah…" she murmured.
Atom vented quickly and rubbed the back of his helm with contained excitement. He looked at them before he shook his helm again and shifted from ped to ped.
"Wow…but for the…um…thing…c-can-do you want…let's not tell anybody about…erm that." He said, blushing.
Luna understood and quickly nodded her head and rubbed her arm self-consciously.
"Uh- okay, if you don't want to tell or um…anything." she said and she blushed.
Prowl just continued to chuckle.
"You two make an adorable couple." He mused.
Both Atom and Luna turned bright colors at that.
________________________________________
Lynx fell into light recharge as the ship flew through space, but she was awoken each time the ship shook and often worried she missed her stop. After a long while she was yet again awoken as the ship began to slow, it made the crates creak and their contents slush at the slowing force. She shuddered and almost expected the ship to continue when a sudden stop jerked the crates.
She gasped as the crates pressed against the wall again and she forced it back again and sighed. Her ears perked when she heard footsteps and she tried to scoot farther back . the footfalls stopped hear her and she was afraid her scooting had alerted the con of her presence.
The footfalls moved towards her position and she heard creaking as the bot took hold of a crate. She trembled as the crate in front of her moved back and was pulled out of its place, exposing the peds of the mech. She sat ready to attack if the mech bent down to look but the bot only walked away, she assumed he was unloading and she vented in relief. Slowly she crawled forward and peeked out, using her nose and ears as a guide before she sprinted out and hid behind the crates for cover.
Lynx followed an evasive path before she spotted the exit, she could tell it was dark out and that provided her cover. Quickly she bolted forward and leaped out then sprinted away.
"HEY! ANIMATRONIAN!" a voice shouted in alarm.
Lynx put herself into overdrive and sprinted, her feet were blurs of grey and blue as she ran. she jumped instinctively as the sound of gun fire cracked through the air and she missed being hit, barely. she made it to cover and continued to bolt, heading towards the light of the populace to gain cover.
She vented quickly as she tried to cool herself, she felt her systems begin to overheat but she refused to slow. She vented faster when a barrage of fire made miniature craters near her peds, she prayed she could reach safety and forced herself to go faster. She panted when she realized she was surrounded by buildings, tall metal ones and she races through what looked like streets, which were dimly lit.
She dived into an alley and hoped her quick move would throw off any pursuers and she bolted through the neighborhood. She realized these streets were much like those at her own home and she felt slightly better at that thought. Another barrage of fire refocused her and she bolted towards the bright lights up ahead. She dived out of the darkness and into a brightly lit, but deserted road and ran towards the nearest sound of inhabitation. After a moment she felt her legs were freezing and she was forced to slow down. She trembled and forced herself to fall onto a pile of scraps and lay there, too weak to run any further.
As she began to fade into recharge she wondered how Splitz and Luna were doing and she prayed they were safe.
Luna looked down the entire drive back to Iacon, back to Optimus to report in their success at finding Prowl. The ninjabot was silent the entire ride and the duo found no reason to break the silence. As they drove Luna’s cheeks burned whenever Atom’s internal heat flared, she guessed it happened whenever he thought about that ‘intimate’ moment back in the alley.
Once they reached the building Optimus was in Atom transformed, letting Luna sit in his chest compartment again. Within moments Luna was beginning to feel overheated and she lightly tapped his chest plate, making him giggle in the process.
He quickly pulled her out, his cheeks bright and flushed as he held her.
“S-sorry…”She whispered, “I was getting…overheated.” She admitted.
Instantly his optics widened and the color drained from his faceplate, she realized he had not known she could tell when he overheated and he was embarrassed.
Prowl made a small chuckle of amusement before he continued to walk, leaving the two alone for a moment. Atom made a small stuttering sound before he hurried after the ninjabot, not wanting to be alone with her at the apex of their awkwardness.
Luna covered her blush by looking down the hall, away from Atom before they made it back to Optimus’s office. Atom entered it quickly and set Luna on his desk before backing against the wall, trying to conceal his blush and stay away from Luna.
Optimus looked at them in surprise then as Prowl walked in, a smile on his face.
“Prowl!” Optimus said, before coughing to calm himself and walked up to him.
“It’s great to have you back.” He said, holding out a servo to shake.
Prowl took it calmly and smiled up at the new Magnus.
“I see you have transcended to a higher status in my absence.” Prowl mused.
Optimus smiled and nodded in reply before looking at Atom and Luna curiously.
“What happened? Did you give them some difficulties?” he asked
Prowl looked at both of them as they flushed freshly before he smiled at Optimus.
“Let’s just say they had a bit of a run in that shocked them both.” He said, smiling calmly.
Luna and Atom looked at each other nervously before turning away shyly.
Optimus frowned in confusion when a beeping from his desk turned his attention. He motioned for them to wait a moment before he pushed a button on his desk.
“Yes?” he asked.
“Optimus, Trypticon Prison has had a breakout.” Mirage said, clearly upset.
“Who has escaped?” he asked, looking concerned.
“Cruz, he escaped about 2 breems before I arrived.” Mirage said.
Optimus looked surprised and replied.
“Any idea how or why?” Optimus asked urgently.
“I do, get the organic to safety, I’m afraid her life is in danger.” Mirage said.
“Understood, meet me at the Plaza, we will escort her to the council court, she will be safest there.” He said.
“I will meet you in a few cycles.” He said before ending the link and Optimus looked at Luna.
“We must get you to the council court, she will ride inside Atom while Prowl and I guide and prowl comes up behind.” He said, picking up Luna and handing her to Atom.
“Any objections?” he asked.
Both shook their head and looked at each other in shock before Optimus headed to the door.
“Good, let’s go.”
Luna quivered as Atom drove behind Optimus and in front of Prowl; she peeked from Atom’s window frequently to look for any sign of Mirage or anything that caught her eye.
“You n-need to stay down, you’re safest when you are not seen.” Atom explained.
Luna crouched down and sat back in the seat, curling her legs back up to her chest as she held herself, praying things were not as bad as Mirage had predicted.
“Who do you think is after you?” Atom asked.
Luna was silent for a moment; she began to think about Mirage’s message and wondered who on this world could possibly want to harm her? She remembered how Mirage had reacted when he had heard about Deecee; he must have been one of the bots to ‘rescue’ her. As she thought a question formed in her mind, Mirage knew about Deecee and he obviously knew this Cruz, maybe he was a Decepticon he had imprisoned.
The Allspark shard on her neck began to glow and she looked at it in surprise before it dimmed again. She frowned, wondering why it had begun to glow when another thought popped into her mind.
“Atom, can you ask Optimus how Mirage knew Cruz and Deecee?” she asked.
“Uh…sure.”
She waited and heard as Optimus answered his com.
“Yes?” he asked his voice clear in Atom’s speakers.
“Luna wants to know how Cruz and Deecee know Mirage.” He explained
Optimus was silent for a moment before he spoke.
“Deecee and Cruz are two of Mirage’s sparklings, Deecee was his charge when she was a sparkling until she disappeared as a youngling. Cruz had been accused of offlining her by evidence found during the search for her, he was accused of being a Decepticon and imprisoned in Trypticon prison.” He said.
Luna’s eyes widened in shock at the revelation.
“And now because Deecee is proven to be a Decepticon-?” she asked.
“She might have been reprogrammed, but because she is a Decepticon the proof of her death, which was ruled Cruz’s fault, is now void, and he could have been freed had not he escaped the prison.” He said.
Luna frowned, so Deecee and Cruz were practically siblings, which connected them and could explain why Mirage had acted so strangely when she had first mentioned Deecee, but it only half explained why Mirage acted so desperate when Optimus told him to go to the prison.
“Is that why Mirage was so frantic to get to Trypticon Prison earlier? He was rushing to get Cruz?” she asked.
“Yes, Mirage has been fighting to get Cruz out for some time and has not had contact with him during all of that time.” He confirmed and explained.
“What about Cruz? What was his relationship with Deecee?” she asked.
“According to Mirage’s testimony he and Deecee were very close, the mech had idolized her and was known to go everywhere with her. It was his testimony to get Cruz released or at least get a shorter sentence.” He said.
Luna frowned and began to think, Deecee and Cruz had been close, maybe Deecee had turned him Decepticon before her disappearance and it just happened evidence pointed at Cruz. But maybe they had been normal bots and she had been captured, evidence just happened to point in his direction.
“How was he convicted?” she asked.
“His items were found during a search for her, Mirage used to be a tower mech and when the towers were destroyed Deecee had vanished. The search found her items nearby, along with a few of Cruz’s, covered in energon. He was found unharmed and the enforcement called him out as the only suspect and found him guilty of the crime. Back then it was the beginning of the war and anybody suspected of being a Decepticon was immediately shunned. Public opinion and the fear during that time did not allow him a fair trial and he was sentenced to life in prison.” He explained.
Luna’s eyes widened in shock, she felt empathy for Cruz, but she wondered why he chose to break out now, maybe he heard about Deecee?
She didn’t have time for any more questions because Optimus suddenly screeched to a stop. Atom swerved a bit to stop in time and Prowl just slowed, easily stopping behind Atom and transformed.
Luna looked out the window in fear, she wondered why they had stopped so suddenly when Optimus transformed and she spotted a figure ahead of them. It was a bot, she could tell he was young, he had purple black and grey armor, his optics were a dull purple and he seemed weak, he was scrawny and did not stand straight and swayed a bit as he stood.
Atom trembled nervously as the bot looked at Optimus, he was glaring and clearly looked angry. Luna studied his helm designs and realized she had seen a design similar to his before, she pondered as the bot sneered at Optimus.
“Hello, Prime, I heard you were coming this way.” He mused, lightly tapping his sharp digits against his side.
“Cruz…” Optimus whispered, clearly shocked.
Cruz sneered coldly and leaned to the side, peering around him at Prowl and Atom.
“I see you have an agenda, seeing you have such a nice team.” He said sarcastically.
“What do you want?” Optimus asked, sounding suspicious.
“What anybody wants.” He sneered.
“Revenge.” He growled.
Luna felt her eyes widen but the glowing of her shard distracted her and she looked at it curiously. Suddenly Optimus gasped, Luna looked up to see Cruz had vanished. She looked around, searching for him she out of the corner of her eye she spotted a shimmer in the light and it solidified into Cruz. He was holding up a claw, ready to strike at the unsuspecting Prime when Luna screamed out, making him turn his attention towards her.
Optimus spun around but Cruz regained his attention and struck at Optimus, knocking him back with the blow and scratching his armor then swung again, striking the Prime directly on his cheek and he fell, dazed. Prowl threw a pair of shruikan but Cruz only shimmered into nonexistence once again. Prowl looked around and searched for his assailant when he was suddenly thrown backwards but an unknown force and Luna felt Atom rock from side to side as something landed on top of him.
Atom yelped and began to transform when clawed digits dug under his chest armor, searching before they closed around Luna.
Luna screamed and felt herself yanked out and she blinked as everything shimmered around her. Atom looked shocked, holding his arms to his damaged chest plates and looked around franticly for Luna.
“Atom!” she screamed.
He looked in her direction but did not seem to see her as Cruz moved away from them. Prowl suddenly appeared from an alley and kicked Cruz down, forcing him to shimmer back into view and Luna rolled away from his grip.
She scrambled to her feet and rushed towards atom, ignoring the sounds of battle as Cruz fought Prowl.
Atom looked at her and reached for her, ready to pick her up when a shadow passed overhead and he looked up in shock.
Luna was nearly to him when a pair of slim and familiar claws lifted her up into the air, she yelped and turned to look over her shoulder to see who had grabbed her.
Deecee sneered at her, her optics glowing viscously before she threw Luna in the air and transformed, catching her in her cockpit before flying off.
Atom looked in horror before glancing back as Cruz vanished from underneath Prowl, letting the ninjabot fall onto plain ground and look around in surprise.
Optimus sat up, rubbing his chest painfully and looked at Atom, confused at the situation.