death.

Will Lennox was a soldier. he expected death to happen in the line of work, not in a random Decepticon attack. he never expected he'd be stomped on by Starscream in a million years.

he was dead and he knew it, but he wasn't ready to die yet.

there was a voice in the back of his head, asking him if he was ready to die, saying it wasn't his time. offering him a second chance.

"William Lennox, should you except, you still have more to do on this Planet. we, the seven Primes, would like to offer you the opportunity to continue your life."

"continue? but... my body-"

"is beyond damaged. should you accept, we will provide a new one."

"I accept."

"before you accept, things will be different. you will be in pain, but you will not be in any harm. you will be handed back to your friends, but they will not recognize you. you will recognize them, but you will slowly regain memories over time."

"thats okay, I accept. I'm ready to go back."

"so be it, be safe little one."

there's a blinding flash of light and then everything goes dark.

~

the first thing Will registers is the pain, but its over almost as quickly as it begins. he whines and shifts, but two large hands are immediately rolling him onto his back. he feels heavy, his eyes take forever to open. everythings all blurry, but he can make out a familiar greenish-yellow figure.

"Ratchet?" he manages after a few minutes.

chirp!

Ratchet looks down immediately.

"hello there." Ratchet smiles.

"holy shit Ratchet you'll never believe what I've been through-"

chirp chirp twitter click.

the medic seems amused.

"you sure have a lot to say little one." Ratchet snorts, laying his servo on the little mech. Will blinks at him before looking down and grabbing Ratchets servo. the first thing he realizes, is that he's definitely smaller than Ratchet, but he's also definitely not human, not anymore.

"new body, thats right. I must be one of them now."

chirp click

"Ratchet, any information on our new guest?" a booming voice asks. Will immediately tilts his head as far back as he can, looking at the large mech.

"Prime, he seems healthy. there's not a scratch on him, considering where 'Jack found him. no idea where he came from." Ratchet shrugs. Optimus nods, reaching to touch Will. for some reason, Will doesn't want Optimus to touch him. he pulls his head away shooting the Prime a dirty look. he doesn't mind Ratchet but Optimus, he doesn't want to touch him. the Prime laughs.

"I see he's accepted you." Optimus snorts.

"probably an imprint. Jack will have a field day with that." Ratchet mutters.

"any idea on the markings on his frame?" Optimus ask.

"Allspark markings, but you knew that. not sure what they read, Jacks working on that." Ratchet says. something else catches Wills attention while they're talking. a grumpy black mech stalking around behind the Prime.

"IRONHIDE!"

screeeeeeech

it catches everyones attention. Ratchet looks up, optics landing on Ironhide. the big black mech has his optics on the sparkling in front of Ratchet. Ironhides been silent for the past week, since Wills death. the mech took it hard.

"Ironhide, I believe someone wants your attention." Optimus muses. the black mech huffs angry steam out his nose and stalks off, leaving Will to stare after him.

"don't worry about him, Ironhides grumpy." Ratchet chuckles.

grumpy or not, Wills main goal just stalked off down the hallway without even a word to him. that would have to change. he turns back to Ratchet when the medic scoops him up. Will cuddles back into him, looking up at Optimus.

"so, it seems he's chosen to stay with you, that means we don't have to find a guardian for him." Optimus chuckles.

"I told you, imprint. just hoping he'll get along with Jack." Ratchet mutters. Optimus nods in agreement. Will, however, squirms. he's almost the size of Ratchets arm and it feels weird. "don't squirm so much, I don't want to drop you." Ratchet murmurs.

"you won't drop me. I know you won't. you never have before." Will huffs.

*huff* chirp chirp click twitter click.

"oh he'll fit right in with you and all that attitude." Optimus snorts. Ratchet huffed at him. "I guess you should introduce him to the crew." Optimus says.

"yeah I guess so." Ratchet murmurs. he follows the Prime out of the medbay, with Will sitting in his arms.

"Ratchet? where'd you get a sparkling?" Bumblebee asks, walking over. Ratchet shifts to show the scout the sparkling.

"Jack found him and he wants to stay with me." Ratchet says.

"hey Bee!"

squeal chirp!

"he's fragging cute!" Bumblebee grins, reaching to pat the little sparklings head. Will narrows his optics at the mech.

"he doesn't like to be touched." Ratchet says.

"I see that." Bumblebee chuckles. Ratchet nods a little looking down at the sparkling. he's watching Bumblebee's doorwings. Will can't help but be mesmerised by them and the way the light in the base catches them. he assumes is the sparkling in him, but it makes Ratchet laugh.

"do that again scout." Ratchet says. Bumblebee looks confused.

"do what?" Bumblebee ask.

"whatever you just did with your doorwings. he liked it." Ratchet chuckles. immediately Bumblebee's doorwings go up then back down, fluttering happily. the glyphs on the sparkling flash a soft blue before a pair of doorwings pop out on his back, leaving all three mechs to stare at him.

"oh... wow... uh..." Bumblebee trails.

"oh, uh, he's a mimic." Ratchet says.

"oh thats great, it'll be like having a little Mirage running around." Bumblebee mumbles.

"not quiet. most sparklings that have the mimic ability lose it as they get older, unlike the invisibility cloak." Ratchet says. Will squirms trying to look at the wings on his back.

"whats happening? why can't I see? whats going on?"

chirp! click chirp click twitter!

"easy sparkling don't panic. its alright." Ratchet says. "just relax and they'll go away." Ratchet assures gently.

"is he okay?" Optimus asks, watching Will squirm for his life.

"he's just scared. it'll go away if he calms down." Ratchet assures.

"what have you done to the sparkling?" Wheeljack demans, walking over. he snatches Will from Ratchets grasp and cuddles him.

"he mimiced Bumblebees wings and now he's freaking out." Ratchet frowns. Will squirms, trying to break free. the wings are uncomfortable on his back. they hurt and he doesn't like it.

"easy now little one. its okay." Wheeljack assures, running a finger gently between the wings on his back. after a couple gentle strokes between his wings, they're gone and Will sags back against Wheeljack, shooting Ratchet the nastiest look.

"you couldn't have done that!?"

squeal click!

"oh he's angry at you now." Wheeljack laughs.

"I didn't do anything." Ratchet huffs.

"he's cute." Bumblebee chuckles. Will gets still giving Wheeljack a comical look when his tanks rumble.

"and starving it sounds like." Optimus snorts.

"did you finish making sparkling energon earlier?" Ratchet asks, looking over at Wheeljack.

"yeah, I'll run and get it. here. hold him." Wheeljack says, pushing the little bot into Optimus servo. immediately he screams in protest.

"he doesn't like me." Optimus says, passing him quickly to Ratchet. the sparkling immediately gets quiet glaring daggers at Optimus.

"why does he do that?" Bumblebee asks.

"Allspark sparklings imprint on bots. me in this case and Wheeljack because he's my bonded. the sparkling sees the ones its imprinted on as safe and caregivers, sparklings get very uneasy and nervous very quickly so for their first few days, sometimes a week, they only want their creators or the ones they've imprinted on. its just sparkling nature scout." Ratchet explains. "give him a few days, he'll get used to you all. it'll be alright." Ratchet murmurs. he looks over when Wheeljack comes back, holding out a little cube.

"here. I wasn't expecting him to actually make it, so I'll have to make more later." WHeeljack says, handing it to Ratchet.

"here squirt." Ratchet murmurs, offering it towards the sparkling. Will turns his head away immediately. "what? hey, this isn't an option. you have to drink this or starve." Ratchet says.

"I have seen that shit burn human skin!"

click squeal!

"oh come on don't argue." Ratchet mutters. Will turns his head huffing.

"come on sparkling." Wheeljack chuckles, swooping the sparkling out of Ratchets arm. "you need to drink this." Wheeljack murmurs,

"is that a normal thing with sparklings?" Bumblebee ask.

"unfortunately common with Allspark sparklings." Ratchet murmurs. when he looks back over at Wheeljack, he's finally managed to get the sparkling to accept the cube.

"I'm gonna take him back to the medbay, maybe I can get him down for a stasis nap for a bit while we sparkling proof the base, don't forget how smart Allspark sparklings are. I give it a week and this little one will be crawling around." Wheeljack snorts.

"well get started on it right away. I'd hate for our new friend to get hurt here." Optimus assures, patting Wills head. the sparkling growls at him around the cube. "sorry." Optimus murmurs, pulling away.

"come on sparkling." Wheeljack chuckles, heading back towards the medbay. the walk has them walking straight past the big black mech that had caught his attention earlier. Will kicks the cube out of Wheeljacks servo, spilling it all over them both.

"Ironhide!"

squeal!

Ironhide immediately stops, turns, and stares at the sparkling.

"sparkling no!" Wheeljack groans. Will watches Ironhide with a chirp. the weapons specialist is silent, staring blankly at the sparkling, before heading off back down the hall.

"you can't ignore me forever!"

screech! click click twitter!

"Ironhide, could you at least say hi to him or something? he obviously likes you." Wheeljack frowns, turning to face him. Ironhide grunts, storming off. Wheeljack sighs softly. "don't worry about him sparkling. he's recently lost a friend.... come to think of it, Will would probably have a field day getting to meet a sparkling, everyone misses him...." Wheeljack murmurs, heading for the medbay. there's immediately a servo on his shoulder and he's being spun around. Ironhide gets in his faceplates.

"keep his name out of your mouth or I'll do it for you!" Ironhide shouts, cannons firing up.

"wa-wait! wait! sparkling! don't hurt the sparkling!" Wheeljack shouts. the sparkling in his arm screams at the cannon firing up near his face.

"Ironhide! don't you dare!" Ratchet shouts, tackling the black mech hard. "if you ever point a weapon at my bonded or that sparkling again! I swear I'll turn you into a fucking toaster!" Ratchet growls, punching the mech across his face hard. Wheeljack immediately covers the sparkling backing away as several other bots run over to break up the fight.

"Ironhide! Ratchet! what is going on?!" Optimus demands storming over. Ratchet looks absolutely enraged, being held back by Sunstreaker and Sideswipe while Ironhides sitting on the floor glaring at them.

"he pointed his cannon at Wheeljack and the sparkling!" Ratchet snaps, pointing at Ironhide.

"he said shit he shouldn't have!" Ironhide snaps back, gesturing towards Wheeljack.

"I just said that Wi-" Wheeljack starts.

"you keep Wills name out of your mouthplates!" Ironhide growls. Wheeljack steps back quickly, but Ratchet shoves the twins off him, standing protectively in front of his bonded.

"you fragging point your cannon at my bondmate or sparkling again and I'll shove it so far up your aft not even Primus will find it!" Ratchet shouts.

"everyone calm down now! Ratchet, take Wheeljack and the sparkling back to the medbay, Ironhide come with me." Optimus frowns. Ratchet turns and pushes Wheeljack towards the medbay, the sparkling is oddly silent in his arm.

"are you two okay?" Ratchet ask.

"we're fine Ratch.... I didn't mean to piss Ironhide off, I just... I said something about Will..." Wheeljack frowns.

"yeah I know, its alright. don't worry about it. Ironhides just... well he's Hide, but that doesn't excuse pointing a live cannon at a sparkling." Ratchet glares.

"agreed."

chirp!

"are you alright sparkling?" Ratchet asks, scooping up the little bot. he looks the little bot over gently, before cuddling him. "why is he sticky?" Ratchet ask.

"oh, he kicked the cube out of my hand when he saw Ironhide. I think he got excited, but it spilt all over both of us." Wheeljack frowns.

"go hit the wash racks, I'll throw him into a sink and clean him up." Ratchet says, heading for the medbay sink.

"sure you don't want help with that? I doubt he'll make it very easy." Wheeljack frowns.

"I don't think he'll make it too hard. he's probably in shock, that cannon was awful close to him." Ratchet frowns.

"alright, just be careful, don't drown him." Wheeljack teases.

"he can't drown, we don't breathe Wheeljack." Ratchet mutters. he plops the sparkling into the sink carefully, before turning the water on. Will turns his head away, bringing his arms up to stop the splash from hitting his face. "sorry little one." Ratchet frowns, moving him gently. Will glares up at him. "sorry, I didn't think about it." Ratchet mumbles.

"hey Ratchet?" a voice calls. Ratchet turns, looking down.

"Samuel, what are you doing here?" Ratchet asks, shutting the water off. he, while keeping one hand on the sparkling in the sink for safety, crouches down and picks Sam up carefully. he puts the young man on the counter.

"Bumblebee said there was a new Autobot, hanging out in here. I wanted to meet them." Sam says. Ratchet nods a little.

"oh well, he's not goung to be much for talking yet." Ratchet says, motioning to the the sink. two bright blue optics are poking out over the sink to look at him.

"I know I know your name... I've seen you before... this must be what those Primes meant, that I won't remember everything..."

chirp chirp click chirp twitter click.

Sam blinks in shock.

"what the hell?" Sam ask shocked.

"he's a sparkling." Ratchet snorts.

"oh so he's like, your version of a baby?" Sam ask.

"exactly." Ratchet says, turning back to the sparkling.

"well... where'd come from?" Sam ask, confused.

"we're not really sure. he's clearly Allspark sparked, Wheeljack found him a few days ago while cleaning up that battle with the cons. he brought him straight here to me, I patched him up. he's gonna stay with me and Jack, he's imprinted on us." Ratchet explains.

"hmm. how long will it take for him to be... well, old enough to do anything?" Sam asks curiously.

"well, he'll still be in youngling hood long after you're gone, like Bumblebee, but Earth years are slower than Cybertronian years, meaning he'll still be a youngling but not quiet as young as he is in human years, does that make since?" Ratchet ask.

"sort of." Sam says. "but I mean like, how long does it take for you guys to learn to walk and talk?" Sam ask.

"oh well, he's Allspark sparked, so I'd give him about a week before he starts crawling, maybe a month or two before he starts walking. talking will take a while longer, I believe three or four months for him to begin talking, but it can take a while. he'll still have sparkling chatter until he's almost an Earth year old." Ratchet says. Sam nods, meeting the little optics again. they haven't come off him since he came into the sparklings sight.

"he's staring at me." Sam says.

"well, you're the first human he's met." Ratchet chuckles, looking over the sparkling. he rubs the sparklings head gently, listening to him chirp happily.

"whats his name?" Sam ask.

"he won't get a name until about the time he starts talking. by then he'll have grown into his abilities and will get a name from that." Ratchet says, cleaning the sparkling up. Will doesn't put up a fight, too busy staring at Sam, but he does fling bubbles at the bigger mech, not intentionally. he can't help it, everything looks so weird in this new body. "sparkling stop that, you're going to drown Sam." Ratchet laughs. Sams doing his best to avoid getting soaked. "Sam are you okay?" Ratchet ask.

"I'm fine! just trying to stay dry! Bee's gotta take me home in a bit. he and Optimus both don't think its safe that I stay here, y'know with Ironhide being like that.... Bumblebee told me he tried to shoot Wheeljack for saying Wills name." Sam frowns. Ratchet nods a little.

"yeah... Ironhides... he's not handling everything very well. he's trying, but he pointed a live cannon at my bondmate and the sparkling. I couldn't let that stand." Ratchet frowns. Sam nods a little.

"I can't believe he almost shot at Wheeljack...." Sam trails.

"he's grieving. the person he cared about most was murdered less than a month ago." Ratchet frowns. "I'm not excusing his behavior, but I'm not as angry as I could be." Ratchet murmurs. Sam nods watching the medic let the water out.

"what are you going to dry him off with? oh... it is a him right?" Sam asks.

"yes, he is a him and I don't know. I can't throw him in the rack dryer. it'd probably be too hot for him.... at least by himself. hold on." Ratchet says, scooping up the little bot. "Jack! hey! i need you to dry the sparkling!" Ratchet says, heading into the medbay washrack. he comes back a minute later sans sparkling.

"so you and Wheeljack are basically adopting him?" Sam asks.

"we kinda have to. he imprinted on us, he adopted us first." Ratchet snorts.

"imprinted?" Sam ask.

"its difficult to explain Sam, but to keep things simple, yes we're keeping the sparkling." Ratchet assures.

"how come he's covered in allspark symbols?" Sam ask. Ratchet frowns.

"I can only assume he was sparked by a fragment that he obsorbed after being sparked." Ratchet shrugs. a loud wail catches his attention.

"sorry! sorry! sorry!" Wheeljack yelps.

"don't hurt the sparkling!" Ratchet shouts, heading back towards them. "you slagging idiot!" Ratchet growls. Sam watches him come back with the sparkling in his arm, sparkling rubbing his head.

"Ratchet? what happened?" Sam ask.

"that slagging idiot managed to knock the sparkling in the head while in the dryer. he's fine, thankfully sparklings are durable, but that doesn't mean it didn't hurt." Ratchet frowns.

"but at least he's dry right?" Sam asks. Ratchet and the sparkling both glare at Sam, the sparkling sniffling.

"you're as bad as Wheeljack!" Ratchet frowns.

"sorry." Sam mumbles. Ratchet shakes his head, carefully putting Sam on the ground.

"go on Sam, I've gotta get this sparkling down for a nap, he's getting grumpy." Ratchet mutters. Sam nods and leaves the medbay, glancing back silently to watch Ratchet sit down and look at his files. Sam watches him a moment before leaving.

its quiet for a few minutes, just long enough for Ratchet to get the sparkling asleep, before Wheeljack comes back.

"sorry I-" Wheeljack starts.

"shh. don't wake him." Ratchet murmurs, not looking up from his datafile.

"sorry... I didn't mean to hurt him." Wheeljack says softly.

"I know Jack, but you should apologize to him when he wakes up." Ratchet says.

"sounds like he's not the only one who needs a nap. whens the last time you got sleep Ratchet?" Wheeljack frowns.

"I haven't recharged properly since you brought him in. he was in rough condition. I was afraid he'd offline." Ratchet says.

"well, take him and go lay down." Wheeljack says. "I'm not a perfect medic, but I can handle minor things and if anything happens I can wake you." Wheeljack says. Ratchet wants to argue, but he doesn't have it in him to do so.

"alright Jack, you win. come on sparkling." Ratchet murmurs, getting up. the sparkling makes no acknowledgement of his movements, just snores quietly. Ratchet heads to his and Wheeljacks berth, laying down with the sparkling on his chest plate. he lets the sparkling make himself comfortable, before he settles down into his own recharge. "goodnight sparkling." Ratchet murmurs.