Acrophobia chapter 3
Title: A Spark 2 Spark (3/4)
Rating: T
Universe: Movie 07
Summary: Cut off from their comrades and trapped, Prowl and Jazz must learn to work together in order to survive.
Warnings: Angst, profanities, a little slash and maybe a smidging of gore.
Disclaimer: Not mine, I just toy with with them and hand them back in less than pristine condition.
"Blah" - comm. link
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The return to consciousness was slow at first as all his systems came back on-line in sequence. Like usual his audio and visual receptors were the last to reboot when he was forced into stasis lock or off-line. He discovered as his optical sensors returned to full operating capacity that he was in what looked like a cavern at first glance, but he quickly came to realise that it was an old bunker. The atmosphere was thick with smoke and dust which more than once threatened to clog his intakes as he pushed himself up into a sitting position. Prowl felt as though he had gone a few rounds with the Decepticons heavy hitters as his entire frame ached, but what hurt the most, after looking over every dent and scrape his armour had acquired, was his left forearm that was mangled and coated in dried energon. He clutched the useless limb close to his chest and decided it would be best to push his injuries aside for now and take stock of the situation he was currently in, Prowl ran a few diagnostics upon his systems and found much to his disgruntlement that most of his communication systems were down. All except his short range which wasn't much use to him unless any of his comrades were close by.
The tactician continued to scan his surroundings noting the streams of light filtering through the small gaps of debris, it unfortunately told him one thing; he was not getting out of there on his own. Prowl could vaguely recall the events that had taken place topside, he remembered being ordered by Optimus to lead a team to locate Ultra Magnus' team and provide support should they need it. Prime also assigned Jazz to his team and the tactician could see the saboteur's want to disobey a direct order, but he had simply agreed and left. Of course that made it a quiet and awkward trip upon the transport, however it didn't last for long when Starscream and his trine attacked the small vessel. They had been forced to abandon the transport and locate Magnus' team on foot. He recalled quite clearly meeting up with the other unit before ordering the retreat. However everything after that seemed a blur to him. The tactician remembered snippets of the battle that had taken place, but as to how he ended up buried beneath rubble was a complete blank to him.
The black and white mech quickly extended his sensors outward to make sure there was no Decepticon signatures close by and was relieved that they detected none. However they did pick up an all too familiar Autobot signal but a few clicks from where he was sat which possibly meant Jazz was down here with him. It also meant that he could very well be buried under the mountain of debris he had been lucky enough to have escaped being crushed by. The military strategist picked himself up from the debris cluttered floor, hissing in pain when he jostled his injured arm before willing his trembling and aching legs to move. He slowly sifted through the debris making sure not to disturb pieces that were acting as support structures. Prowl had to stop every now and again when his equilibrium circuits decided to take a leave of absence on him then he would move on once he had regained his bearings.
Prowl kept his sensors entirely focused upon the saboteur's energy signature so he could pinpoint his exact location. He gritted his denta as he forced his left arm to co-operate with him as he moved slabs of concrete and twisted metal girders that had once been part of the structure. He choked on clouds of dust before continuing to push forward and finally his efforts were rewarded when he pulled away a twisted metal panel and was finally able to spot the saboteur through the debris. Prowl squeezed himself through the gap earning himself a few more scrapes and dents to his armoured plating not to mention a nasty nick to his right sensory panel. The black and white mech clambered over small pieces of debris and dropped to his knees rather ungracefully when his equilibrium circuits momentarily off-lined, he waited until they on-lined and orientated themselves before coming up alongside the unconscious silver mech. Most of the debris could easily be shifted and Prowl took stock of each of the injuries Jazz had acquired, his gaze fell upon the freed right leg and the nasty laser burn decorating his thigh ,which thankfully was no longer leaking energon. But that didn't stop his optic ridges from furrowing into a frown when he saw a mixture of blue and white pooled under the silver mech. He managed to free the special ops mech from as much of the debris as he could only for his azure gaze to fall upon a pole a few inches thick sticking out of the silver mech's side. The 2IC grimaced when he noticed that it was liberally coated in energon and coolant told him one thing; a main fuel line had either been nicked or severed and the tactician just hoped it wasn't the latter one.
The military strategist stepped over Jazz flattening his sensory panels to his back so he didn't scrape them on the underside of a large piece of concrete that originally had been the ceiling. He crouched beside the silver mech and gently slid one hand underneath the saboteur's back, Prowl was hoping that if the pole hadn't punctured all the way through that he might be able to pull the saboteur out from under the debris. But it seemed that Primus had definitely abandoned him this orn as the pole exited out through Jazz's left flank very close to his spinal struts and array, and pinned the silver mech to the concrete wall behind him. There was no way he would be able to move him now and decided that it would be best to try and patch up as much of the wound as possible; then see if he could bring Jazz around despite knowing that the saboteur would have a lecture for him the moment he on-lined. Prowl reached into his sub-space for the field kit he kept on him at all times, as one never knew when they might need it, and opened it. He removed two of the cleaning cloths he had stashed in there and wrapped them around the front of the pole before applying pressure to the puncture wound.
An agonised cry tore itself from Jazz's vocaliser and Prowl had no choice but to cover his mouth with his other hand to muffle his scream in case there were any Decepticons still lingering around. The saboteur's cry dissolved into small whimpers of pain, the tactician was about to apologise when suddenly Jazz found the energy in his weakened state to throw a punch that knocked the military strategist on his aft. Prowl gingerly touched his bottom lip component as he glanced at the silver mech with a mixture of hurt and surprise upon his facial plates.
“What th' slag do ya think ya were doin'?” The saboteur demanded grimacing as pain danced across the nerve receptors in his side.
“Treating your injury unless you fancy sitting there leaking out.” Prowl snapped back at him, he was done with the niceties as all it earned him was nasty remarks or simply being ignored. And now to add to the list; a punch to the face which may have been more instinct than premeditated. The silver mech attempted to shoot a glare in Prowl's direction, but it dissolved into a grimace Jazz was trying to hold back. The tactician knew the saboteur's pain receptors had to be still on-line and couldn't fathom why the silver mech had not yet shut them down “you need to shut down all redundant systems and take those receptors off-line.”
“Don't think I haven't already tried.” The silver mech bit back angrily, he knew he was at risk of leaking out completely. But there wasn't much else he could do when the command sequence to shut down the damaged area refused to respond to him.
Prowl appeared thoughtful for a moment "Then there is only one way." Jazz watched as the tactician placed his index and middle fingers upon a section of armour covering his forearm. The little added pressure had a section unseal itself before sliding back and under the black plating, the saboteur simply stared as the black and white mech uncoiled one of his few data cables. Jazz knew exactly what Prowl had in mind, the tactician wanted to connect to his systems and attempt to get the shut down sequence to on-line; a feat, the saboteur knew, that only medics were capable of.
"No." The silver mech told him plainly.
Prowl frowned at the special ops officer "Jazz its the only way, if nothing is done you will leak out completely and go off-line. You have to trust me on this."
The saboteur snorted at that "Load of good it did me th' last time you asked me ta trust you." The tactician grimaced at that, he knew exactly what Jazz was referring to. The incident that had started this whole fiasco between them; where apparently he had betrayed the saboteur's trust. Prowl's argument had been that he was trying to help Jazz conquer his phobia of heights. But it proved to be the black and white mech's undoing especially when the saboteur heard it had all been for a bet, although what the silver mech didn't comprehend was that one; the tactician was only really trying to help. And two; free up some time so he could spend it with Jazz without the twins interference by causing trouble on the base.
"I realise now that you will not forgive me for that." Prowl said as he held the saboteur's gaze "but I will also not sit here and watch you pass away in front of me when I know I can do something to prevent it from happening." Jazz held his gaze for a moment longer before glancing off to the side. The warnings and error messages were beginning to pop into his processor more frequently. He knew something had to be done soon or his systems would without a doubt force him into stasis lock to protect his higher processor functions and spark. He attempted to send the shut down sequence again only to receive an error in response from his traitorous overrides, he knew he was being far too stubborn for his own wellbeing and could faintly hear Ricohet chiding him. But his brother was no longer among the living, a fact he knew all too well. The saboteur had been close to forgiving the twins and Prowl, although not fully, when he had felt a pain in his spark. Immediately he knew something was wrong but with no communication with Ultra Magnus' team left him frustrated and worried, he had lost himself in his grief leaving him unstable. The saboteur wondered whether he had done something recently to be punished with the recent events, to have the one mech he had trusted and loved, to casually play upon his phobia of heights as if it was nothing so he could win a bet.
Then to lose the only family he had left in the world was a blow he was still reeling from, his brother, despite his gruff attitude, had genuinely cared about his little brother whether he showed it through small words or gestures. Ricochet had reminded him so much of Sunstreaker minus the vainness and self worshipping. But now he was gone, felled by a single stab wound delivered by a Decepticon who had cowardly struck his brother from behind rather than facing him head on. Jazz realised then that if he died, who would avenge Ricochet's death? He knew he had two options; one, continue being stubborn which would result in his death. Or two, allow the tactician access to his systems and carry out whichever miracle he had planned so he could live to fight and die another day. The saboteur glanced at the black and white mech knowing that Prowl would be waiting for his response.
Jazz released a shaky sigh from his intakes "Fine." Prowl looked at him some what surprised as the tactician half expected to argue with the silver mech about how valuable he was to the Autobot cause. To him. The black and white mech nodded and moved as close as he possibly could to the saboteur, Jazz jerked slightly to one side when he felt Prowl's leg brush against his hip only to hiss in pain when the motion pulled upon his injury. The special ops mech felt his fuel tanks churn unpleasantly and took in deep gulps of air to try and ward off the nausea he was feeling. The tactician apologised and settled to wait for the brief spell to pass "I'm cool." The black and white mech waited a couple of moments more just to make sure then moved his right arm and settled it upon Jazz's left shoulder. The silver mech tilted his head sideways and forward slightly so Prowl could connect the data cable to the access point behind the long silver fin. There was a soft hiss as the connection was made and the tactician immediately detected the saboteur's firewalls were up and ready to fend him off.
"Jazz you need to drop your firewalls or I'm going to hurt you." Prowl said as he glanced at the saboteur waiting for a response, for a brief moment the tactician wondered whether the silver mech had lost consciousness when nothing continued to happen. The black and white mech was about to prompt again when the saboteur's firewalls finally dropped allowing Prowl access to his systems. Their connection was quick and flawless although Prowl could tell that Jazz's defenses were ready to block him should he tread anywhere he wasn't supposed to. The tactician felt himself barraged by the warnings and error messages that were no doubt appearing in the silver mech's HUD, he took note of Jazz's rapidly dropping energy levels that suggested in a quarter of a joor, he would slip into stasis lock. Knowing time was of the essence he pressed on hoping that he would be able to deliver the fail safe that would allow him access to the saboteur's overrides. For a brief moment he began to doubt himself over whether he would succeed or not.
:: Then why are you tryin'?:: Prowl heard Jazz ask.
:: I swore to myself once that I would not allow any harm to come to you.:: The tactician responded :: and I would rather try and save you rather than realise later that may be I could have done something to prevent it from happening.::
:: You never did know when ta give up.:: He heard the saboteur say.
:: And I still don't.:: The black and white replied, there was a small perceptible chuckle before the silver mech went quiet. Prowl continued onwards bypassing several systems until he reached exactly what he was after. The tactician found the disarray the saboteur's command functions were in and fully understood why Jazz couldn't get the damaged area to shut down. The silver mech was receiving several crosswired signals that were in desperate need of reprogramming to set everything straight. The black and white mech delivered the fail safe that instantly gained him access to the saboteur's command fuctions, and started working on setting them right with Jazz's guidance.
Prowl found himself checking on what time he had half way through the reprogramming and found he was going to be cutting it fine. He attempted to speed up the process and with a three breem window left, the shut down sequence onlined and rerouted all vital fluids away from the area. Electrical signals going to torn nerve bundles ceased a few astro-seconds later, and last but not least the pain receptors went off-line giving Jazz the reprieve he needed. Now the 3IC could focus his attention and energy on his self repair system. The military strategist un-shuttered and on-lined his optics to meet the dimly lit gaze of the special ops mech, he disconnected the data cable from the silver mech's access point then shifted his arm from the other's shoulder. Prowl felt his spark flutter in its chamber when he saw a small smile christen Jazz's lip components, but the exhilaration that may be not all was lost between them disappeared when the debris above them shifted. The tactician on instinct extended his sensors outwards hoping for Autobot signals and not Decepticon, however he got neither. It suddenly dawned upon him that the support beam was finally giving way so it no longer had to hold up the tons of concrete above them.
"Don't suppose you have any cutting equipment?" The black and white mech inquired, he would be damned if he had managed to save Jazz one way only for him to be terminated another. The silver mech simply stared at him, thought processes slowed by the loss of energon and the rapid heating of his systems due to the lack of coolant in his lines "Jazz?" Prowl resisted the urge to shake the smaller mechanoid since he had managed to build a fragile understanding between him and the saboteur, and he did not want to lose it now that he had it back "Jazz?!"
"What? I slaggin' heard ya th' first time." The special ops officer snapped at him.
The tactician frowned at that but refrained from arguing with the silver mech "I asked if you had any cutting tools?" There was no verbal response but Jazz moved ever so slightly as he removed one of his portable kits from sub-space. Prowl quickly snagged it from him and opened it, he found exactly what he needed and powered up the high concentrated laser. Then with the same precision he used when firing his rifle, the tactician sliced through the metal pole and discarded the front part of it on the floor. However the next part was going to be exceptionally tricky as he needed to reach behind the saboteur and cut through the pole, he had considered pulling Jazz off it but he was worried that he might cause more harm than good to the silver mech's internals.
"Prowl just leave meh, I'm . . . I'm essentially a dead mech anyway." The saboteur told the tactician as he wrapped a clawed hand around the black and white's upper left arm.
"I'm going to ignore the fact that you just said that." Prowl replied with a tiny hint of anger in his voice, he didn't want to believe that the special ops mech had just suggested leaving him there to be crushed by tons on concrete and metal. He wanted him and the saboteur to live through this so they could sort out where they stood in terms of their relationship, even if Jazz decided to be just friends once again. Prowl reversed the hold the special ops officer had on him to pull Jazz forwards, just enough to clear a small space between the mech and the concrete slab behind him "don't move as I don't plan on explaining to Ratchet how you managed to gain a scorch mark on your aft." Jazz managed a small chuckle as he dug his claws into a seam on the tactician's shoulder when the pressure in his side grew almost unbearable. Prowl, although with some difficulty, managed to cut through the pole effectively freeing the saboteur. He discarded the cutting tool and gathered the silver mech to him before making the attempt to stand, Prowl prayed that his equilibrium circuits would not desert him. The tactician was granted the small reprieve as he all but dragged Jazz out of the rubble and across the room, he heard the distinct rumble of the debris shifting before the girder that had been holding it all up groaned under the weight then scraped against the concrete slab as it finally collapsed. Prowl tried to retreat as far as he possible could to the other side of the bunker, but instead settled for shielding Jazz's small frame with his own. Small pieces of concrete pinged off his armoured plating whilst thick dust billowed up from the floor.
Prowl 'coughed' several times to clear the dust from his intakes before glancing up and around, the debris that had been blocking their only possible escape route was now unblocked. But the climb looked treacherous and the tactician knew neither of them could afford to sustain any further injury. That and it could quite possibly open them up to an ambush from the Decepticons should they come back to locate them, whether to terminate them completely or capture them. With the latter on his processor, the black and white slid one of Jazz's arms across his shoulders before looping one around the silver mech's waist being mindful of the pole still wedged in the saboteur's side. Prowl guided his companion to the corner of the room where a wall of debris would shield them from prying optics, and set his precious load down against the cold metal plating of the wall.
The tactician stepped back and sat down upon the floor when he felt his equilibrium circuits leave him again, he tried to ignore the unpleasant churn his fuel tank gave before settling his gaze on Jazz. The saboteur had been unusually quiet which was just not like him, the silver mech could quite easily talk the audios off any mech or femme whether it was a simple conversation, to giving orders or on the minor occassion giving them an audio full. The black and white frowned in concern as he regarded the silver mech sat across from him until he realised he could barely hear any of Jazz's systems running, strained as they were. Prowl cursed violently under his breath at his brief lapse in memory when he remembered that the saboteur's energy levels were incredibly low, the tactician pushed himself up onto his feet and quickly closed the distance between himself and the special ops officer. But as fate would have it that orn, Prowl would not reach him in those few precious astro-seconds. The military strategist dropped to his knees and reached out to grab the silver mech as he slipped into stasis lock, the black and white gathered the limp form to him, still mentally berating himself for his stupidity in not noticing sooner. However his logic centre was quick to point out that it seemed illogical arguing with himself whilst Jazz was slowly slipping away in his arms, Prowl shook himself out of his reverie and accessed his sub-space for his spare repair kit.
The black and white mech rested the special ops officer in his lap as he opened the kit and searched through it for the transfusion kit. He knew his own energy levels were adequate to attempt a stunt like this, and with Jazz down and out for the count; it was the only solution. He found the sealed kit and tore open the flimsy plastic and set out the tubes and connectors on the spare part of his thigh. He connected each of the needle points to the long piece of tubing before stretching out his left arm. His optics searched his elbow joint fo the main energon line and quickly located it, Prowl curled up one edge of his lip components at the thought of having to insert the sharp point himself into the energon line. He took a deep breath of air into his intakes before inserting the sharp point into the line ignoring the sharp prick of pain that followed, almost immediately his own life fluid flowed into the tube and up to where the clamp was attached. The tactician gently tilted the saboteur's head back exposing the lines and tubes in his throat, Prowl gazed upon the delicate wires and cables that he had come intimately close with in the past before finally locating the singular thick tube that carried energon to the higher processor functions.
Prowl quickly and efficently inserted the other end of the tube into the exposed energon line before removing the clamp. He watched as his own life fluid flowed through the clear tube then accessed his diagnostics to keep a close watch upon his energon levels. The tactician decided he would allow them to fall to about 35% before disconnecting the transfusion. However he knew by allowing the levels to drop that far would mean he would have to sacrifice the function of his battle computer and logic circuits, but they were a sacrifice he was willing to make if it allowed Jazz to survive. Prowl glanced across to the wall of debris opposite him and clutched the saboteur close to him, pondering over their chances of actually surviving this ordeal. His logic circuits and battle computer unhelpfully gave him the odds before both fell off-line, which stated that Jazz would most definitely not survive especially if an infection set in.
The tactician stared off into space, something he would have considered an illogical thing to do if not a waste of energy, until his diagnostics informed him that his energy levels had fallen to the desired levels. Prowl could feel the effects as he reached to disengage the shunt from his arm, he was feeling exhausted if not a little light headed. He found that he had to shut down most of his redundant systems to keep energy fed to his vital components. The black and white mech replaced the clamp upon the tube before pulling the shunt from his elbow, he pressed his index finger upon the area until it stopped leaking. He then did the same to where he had placed the shunt on the silver mech before shifting Jazz completely so he was lying upon the floor. The tactician pushed himself up onto his knees and knelt beside the saboteur so he could attend to Jazz's injuries as best as he could. He unsealed packets of clean rags and gently pressed them into the torn open armour on the saboteur's side, then rolled the silver mech onto his side to repeat the same thing to the exit wound. The black and white also made sure that the wound on Jazz's right thigh was also bound after being liberally coated in some antiseptic he managed to locate within his first aid kit.
Once finished with the saboteur's injuries, Prowl sat back and attended to his own although there wasn't much he could do but wrap his left forearm to ensure that it was kept as clean as possible. The tactician sighed deeply through his intakes as he clumsily finished tying the end of the rag in a knot before turning his attention to his energy levels, he removed one of the field rations from subspace and peeled the lid off the small cube. Prowl grimaced when he realised that he did not have any of the small field heating canisters with him, which meant he would have to drink the energon cold. He was tempted not to bother but knew he needed both his battle computer and logic circuits back on-line. The tactician raised the small cube to his lip components and gulped down the entire contents and grimaced at the bitter after taste.
"That was just nasty." Prowl said to no-one in particular, he knew if Jazz had been on-line the silver mech would have laughed himself stupid and made a comment about his behaviour. But as things were, the tactician only had himself for company until the saboteur came out of stasis, that's if he did.
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A few joors later . . . .
Returning to the land of the processing was never a fun experience as one always woke from stasis feeling disorientated if not groggy, two sensations Jazz despised the most. The other being cold although what comfused him was the strange burning sensation he could feel in his energon lines, he coudln't understand how he could be hot and cold at the same time. That was until his diagnostics told him that he was suffering from a low grade fever, however his sensors relayed that the temperature around him had dropped. The saboteur wrapped his arms about his frame and shivered before unshuttering and on-lining his optics, his gaze blurred for several astro-seconds then it cleared before he glanced around and felt his spark sink. He was still stuck in that Primus forsaken bunker and still mortally wounded, he also happened to notice that he was alone and wondered whether the tactician had taken his suggestion to mind and left him behind. However the silver mech knew Prowl far too well, the black and white mech would not leave him behind. Not even if it was for a few breems so he could contact their comrades. Jazz stiffly pushed himself up into a sitting position with some difficulty before attempting to extend his sensors, he was immediately met with warnings about some of them being damaged and incapable of performing the task.
"Prowl?" He called out, there was no response and Jazz feared that he really had been left alone until he heard footsteps upon the metal floor and concrete being crushed under foot. The saboteur attempted to swing himself around but his abused body refused to obey to the simplest of his commands, he couldn't even get his weapons system to come on-line in case it turned out not to be the tactician. However a sigh of relief escaped him when he saw the familiar frame of the black and white mech round the wall of debris.
"I'm glad to see you on-line." Prowl greeted him as he knelt down beside him, his optic ridges furrowed into a frown when he noticed how the silver mech had wrapped his arms around himself yet his sensors told him that Jazz's core temperature was still climbing "I was trying to locate a path out of here."
"Don't bother, we're stuck til a search an' rescue party find us." Jazz told him.
The tactician's frown deepened at that "Jazz . . . ." The black and white mech however did not get the chance to finish his sentence.
"Prowl I'm sure your battle computer an' logic circuits are already presentin' our odds to ya already." The saboteur said interrupting the tactician "as to a way out of 'ere, it would have been found by now an' you would be long gone."
"I have already told you, I will not leave you behind." Prowl replied sternly as he reached into his sub-space and retrieved another field ration, he peeled the lid off and offered it to the saboteur. Jazz eyed the pink liquid wandering that if he accepted the fluid, whether his fuel tank would be able to tolerate it since it seemed to be doing those small nauseous churns. He shakily raised his arms and took the energon from the tactician, however with the way his hands were trembling he knew he would lose half its contents before it even reached his mouth. Prowl sensing the silver mech's plights took hold of the cube and he sat beside the saboteur, and helped him steady it as he took a gulp of the cold bitter energon. Jazz grimaced at the horrible after taste and stuck his glossa out which prompted a small chuckle from the tactician "I will have to set a reminder about making sure I have a heating canister with me the next time I step out of the base."
"Urgh definitely that stuff is nasty when not heated up." The saboteur said as he settled back against the wall behind him, dim blue optics settled upon the wall of debris that sat between them and the rest of the room. Prowl placed the small cube of energon upon the floor and covered it back up in case Jazz wanted to finish its contents off a little bit later, several astro-seconds of silence passed between them which extended into breems and for once in his entire existence; Prowl felt uneasy about the silent awkwardness between him and the saboteur. Usually Jazz was the one to make small talk that would end up irritating Prowl to the point where he would tell the silver mech to shut up, now however the sabotuer was choosing to be quiet which unsettled the tactician greatly. He knew there had to be two things plaguing Jazz's mind; one being his impending deactivation when his wearied body could no longer function, and two; his late brother.
Prowl knew it was risky but he decided to tread along the lines of Ricochet's death despite what Jazz's reaction might be "I'm sorry about your brother." The saboteur's head snapped round to glance at him and blue optics flashed, the tactician steeled himself against a rant but instead watched as the silver mech's facial plates dissolved into a sad frown.
"He didn't deserve to die the way he did Prowl, not by a cowardly Decepticreep's hand." The saboteur replied as he felt the conflicted emotions around his sibling's death rampage through his spark, he was still finding it hard to accept that Ricochet was no longer amongst the processing. It just didn't seem right.
"I know Jazz, I know." And truly he did after his own creators had been mericlessly killed in the attack on Praxus, neither had been given a chance to fight for their survival. Only then to have acid rubbed in the already open wound when he discovered that Barricade hadn't been terminated, but defected to the Decepticons. Processor washed by Megatron's propaganda.
"He was all I had." There was a slight hitch in Jazz's voice and Prowl knew that if the silver mech had been back at his quarters in Iacon, he would have cried out his grief by now. The tactician wanted to tell the saboteur that he still had him, but they still needed to resolve that issue between them and now was not the time to do it "I've been such an aft."
"Jazz . . . ." Prowl began but did not continue as he knew better than to interfere when the silver mech was having a rant, he shifted a little closer so his left calf brushed against Jazz's left hip.
"I pushed every one who was ever close to me away, at first it was to teach ya an' th' twins but then . . . ." His sentence trailed off and Prowl felt his spark break at the words leaving the usually upbeat saboteur's vocaliser "there was no excuse for my behaviour toward ya an' the twins an' I regret any and every thing I ever said."
"Jazz, losing one's family is not easy." The tactician began as he stroked the back of his fingers down the silver mech's left forearm in a soothing manner, he half expected Jazz to pull away from the contact but he didn't "and although yes your behaviour was a little excessive, it was completely understandable." The special ops mech met his gaze and gave a small tired smile.
"If I remember correctly ya were a lil short tempered with every one after th' attack on Praxus." Jazz said.
A small smile graced the black and white mech's lip components "I don't think I have ever seen the twins so scared in their life." The saboteur chuckled before a muffled 'cough' escaped him followed by a groan, Prowl glanced at him concerned, worried that something more sinister was at work.
"I'm fine." The silver mech croaked "do me a favour, apologise ta th' twins fer me."
"Jazz we are going to make it out of here alive together." The tactician assured him although he himself was beginning to have doubts about Jazz's conditon "you need to rest, conserve your energy." The saboteur nodded and easily fell into recharge without protest. Prowl watched as the silver mech's entire frame went lax before pushing himself up onto his feet, he sat down beside the saboteur and shifted the 3IC to lie against him. Jazz made no protest at the close proximity, in fact he snuggled in closer in order to warm his chilled plating. Prowl attempted to shift only for a new pain to present itself, a dull ache was beginning to reverberate up his own spinal relays and he wandered whether he had managed to pull some muscle cables.
But decided to push it to the back of his mind for now as he attempted to access his communications systems again. Still he was met with static and the prospect of their comrades finding them and rescuing them was beginning to get further and further away. He wanted them to both get of this together so they could talk things over although once Jazz was significantly recovered The black and white mech wondered whether the saboteur would tell him that what they had was no longer salvagable and would prefer if they remained as friends. Prowl hoped deep within his spark that it wouldn't be the case, but he would respect the saboteur's decision regardless of what it was.
The tactician rested his chin upon the silver mech's helm after making sure the long fins wouldn't jab him in the throat, and was about to enter recharge himself when he heard the shuffling and crunching of concrete as someone stepped on it. Prowl drew his rifle from subspace and gently shifted Jazz so he could get to his feet. He bit back a small moan of pain as the new ache presented itself more in his back, but he tried to ignore it as much as possible as he pressed himself flat against the wall of debris and extended his sensors outward. Initially he was met with nothing and he frowned; something was down here with them. The military strategist peered round the wall only for his gaze to fall upon a gold felinoid creature 'sniffing' around, Prowl felt his fuel pump skip a beat when he recognised the beast transformer to be Steeljaw which meant Blaster couldn't be too far away. He was cautious at first as it could very well be a ruse by the Decepticons to lure him out of hiding in order to capture or terminate him, but the gold felinoid appeared too real to be holographic. That and the reason he might not of have been able to pick up Steeljaw on his scanners, was due to the fact that the gold tracker was fitted with a signal dampener like the rest of the special ops squad.
"Steeljaw." He called, the creature's ears swivelled round in the direction of the voice before blue optics met his own.
"Yo Prowl, ya still swingin' down there man?" A voice inquired from above, the tactician glanced up to see the relieved faces of Blaster and Hound.
"I am still very much alive." The 2IC told the communciations specialist.
"Where's Jazz?" Hound asked, concerned that the chief of special ops hadn't greeted them.
Prowl glanced across to where the silver mech was hidden behind the wall of debris and the direction in which Steeljaw was heading in "Down here with me, but he urgently requires medical attention."
"What's that fragger done to himself?" Ratchet demanded over the comm. link.
"He has a serious laser burn to his right thigh and a pole speared him through his left side and has exited out of his back very close to his spinal relays." Prowl informed the medic, the 2IC heard the CMO swear vehemently under his breath before ordering the medical personnel to have various bits of equipment prepped and ready to receive a critical patient.
"And yourself? Have you sustained any injuries I should be worried about?" Ratchet asked a couple of breems later.
"I severely damaged my left forearm and have numerous scrapes and dents but other than that I'm perfectly fine." The tactician replied although he knew he was neglecting telling the CMO about the strange pain in his back but he was more concerned that Jazz was seen to first.
"Alright sit tight, the Protectobots are moving in to have the pair of you moved out of there." The medic told him before signing off.
Getting them out of there consisted of two teams, one to remain on the surface and keep watch of the ground stability and the climbing equipment whilst the second team abseiled down to them. Prowl was ushered into a harness and strapped to Groove before the Protectobot gave the signal to be lifted. The tacitician had wanted to remain behind and see to it that Jazz was moved out first but it did little to argue against Ratchet. He glanced down in concern when he heard raised voices and panicked screams before it went eerily quiet.
However he had to concentrate his attention upon what was going on above him when the lip of the cavern came into view and several arms reached down to pluck him and Groove out and settle them on the ground. First Aid helped Prowl out of his harness and started guiding him toward the transport which was sat a few clicks away, the tactician glanced around realising that the entire city had been levelled. But his attention was once again drawn away from events happening around him when hot white pain spiked up through his spinal relays doubling him over. He heard First Aid call out to him when he stumbled and collapsed onto his knees, he tried taking in deep intakes of air to help with the unrelenting pain. But it did all of nothing as several warning messages about imminent stasis lock entered his CPU, right before he slipped into blessed unconsciousness.
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A/N: Okay so originally I was going to split this chapter in half when I realised how long it was getting but I decided against it.
And you didn't think Prowl was going to get out of being seriously injured did you? Mwhaha *shrinks back when Prowl muse glares at her*
Any how read & review! and shall see you all in the last chapter!