Confessions and Bonds (Part 2)
After Orion finished downloading the memories, the Magic Orb returned to the underground, and the empty space returned to its dim state.
Relying on the spark link, across a distance of five light-years, the steel fork cleaved open a spatial channel. She was a little sad at this moment because the energy level was about to drop significantly again.
At the other end of the spatial rift, as always, stood that purple Cybertronian heavy tank, only this time with many more figures.
Why is it so lively over there?
The ambulance driver was relieved to see that none of his companions were missing limbs and said, "Welcome back."
Grimlock hesitated, unsure of what to do. Once she calmed down, she realized she had done many things she shouldn't have. Would the Autobots accept her? And how much of the conversation on Cybertron had they overheard? She felt ashamed and guilty until Optimus Prime pushed her from behind, and only then did she cross the time portal.
When she finally stood on the floor of the Retribution ship, "Steel Fork," another, deeper, and steady voice rang out—it was Shockwave, who stretched out his only remaining hand.
The person whose name was called quickly hid behind the leader, peeking out with their head sculpted head, looking at the owner of the voice with resistance, while the wings behind them also lowered.
Shockwave took a step forward, and the hand stretched even further forward, "Come back to my side."
"No!"
Grimlock immediately refused; she wouldn't even show a head sculpt now, she didn't want to see the machine. Even setting aside her memories from her time as an Angel, there were no pleasant ones about her time with him. He was hypocritical, ruthless, and only thought about how to use her. But with the Autobots, she made true friends, friends she could call family. She could play and laugh with them, cry and groan together, and she could enjoy the affection of her leader. Optimus Prime would always, always tolerate her.
As an Autobot, Steel Fork really had no reason to go near Shockwave again.
“Steel Fork,” Shockwave called her name again, lowering his wings, hunching his antennae, and dimming his optics, putting on a pitiful look. He found that Steel Fork usually gave in when he did this. “I beg you to come back to me.”
"You just need a good assistant, right?"
This time, the shockwave attack didn't work, and the steel fork still didn't soften her stance. Instead, everyone looked at him with surprise, as if he had done something very strange. Well, it certainly didn't make much sense.
“I think the one who made the mistake should apologize first?” Optimus Prime said during the stalemate between the two. He wasn’t quite sure what had happened between them, but some principles would never change.
The red optical mirror remained motionless, the antennae on either side of the head sculpt rotated, and a surge of emotion emanated from the other end of the flame, causing Shockwave to ponder rapidly. Finally, he spoke first: "I don't believe I've made any mistakes; all my actions were the optimal solutions determined by logic. Steel Fork, as my companion, I believe you should stay with me."
Grimlock peeked out from behind Optimus Prime, revealing half of its head, and said, "I remember, didn't I just say that we're no longer partners?"
"The spark link cannot be broken by language; it will not disappear unless one of them dies. This is why the spark link signifies a spark mate."
The emotion coming from the other end... was it sadness?
Steel Fork glared at Shockwave defiantly and said, "You can just stick to your logic and your connection to the Spark."
Starscream, thinking he was speaking softly but actually loud enough for everyone to hear, said, "Even our Shockwave can't keep his partner."
Megatron raised an eyebrow: "I didn't expect you to have such a... story."
Whispers of derision and criticism: "Who would like someone who talks like that?"
Huh? Wait a minute.
Grimfork looked back and around. Whether it was the Autobots or the Decepticons, everyone was watching them with great interest. Soldiers who were further away were even peeking out in a human pyramid formation to watch the show.
The energy fluid surged back up onto the armor, and the energy in the fuel tank decreased even further. Steel Fork said in a low voice, "Let's go somewhere else to discuss this."
“No need. I can’t change your mind. I—” Shockwave said.
At this moment, a red pop-up window indicating that the energy surge was too low appeared in Steel Fork's field of vision once again. Survival instincts compelled her to loudly interrupt his unfinished words.
"Energy cubes! I need energy cubes, do you have any energy cubes!" The fuel tank kept howling at her, and Steel Fork felt like she was about to faint from hunger.
Optimus Prime's energy cubes had already been used up by her, and the other Autobots didn't bring any either.
The optical mirror dimmed for a moment, as if sighing. Shockwave then retrieved a blue cube, roughly the size of a palm in length, width, and height, from his subspace and handed it to Steel Fork. This was enough to alleviate her energy shortage. His chest armor was thick, and his subspace was large enough to hold many things. He was the one who knew best how energy-intensive Steel Fork's ability was, so upon seeing her, he placed energy blocks into his subspace for emergencies.
As Grimlock left Optimus Prime and busied himself absorbing the Energon cube, Shockwave said, "I can't prove I love you. There are no control programs in your body now, and I can no longer force you to do anything."
Steel Fork's gaze fell on his body, and she could tell that he wasn't lying now.
"My spark thirsts for you, that's a fact. If you insist on staying with the Autobots, we will become enemies. I hope we will never meet again on the battlefield, Autobot—Grimfork."
Shockwave turned to leave, but Steel Fork, having violently absorbed all its energy, grabbed him by the back and asked, "Is what you're saying true?"
All eyes were on her—the steel fork. She just wanted to finish what she was saying; she'd never had so many people staring at her before.
Steel Fork felt a little embarrassed about what she was about to say, after all, she was the one who had rejected him first. She had just turned on her microphone when the gazes fixed on her became even more intense. She released her back and turned to hug Shockwave, burying the head sculpt into her breastplate—she was now the same height as him and couldn't do that herself, so she buried her visor between the head sculpt and the breastplate. This created a recess, and with her arms wrapped around him, it conveniently blocked others' view—but this was nothing more than self-deception.
She finally managed to squeeze out what she wanted to say through the speaker: "I...don't go...I...I won't let that happen. I..."
I'll be your assistant, and I'll leave the Autobots. But I just can't bring myself to say those words.
She belatedly turned around, her brows furrowed, and looked apologetically at the Autobot leader, saying, "I'm sorry, I don't want to be separated from you, and I don't want to be separated from Shockwave. What should I do?"
Optimus Prime smiled gently, bending slightly to look directly at Steel Fork, calming her from her confusion and panic: "It's alright, Steel Fork. There's no need to rush into a choice. The Autobots and Decepticons are allied, aren't they? Go do what you want to do. Wear the Decepticon insignia, and we'll still be friends. I think the Decepticons will also need someone like you—a Cybertronian who doesn't pride himself on violence. Of course, the Autobots will always welcome your return."
"Leader...you're so kind!"
The cleaning fluid shimmered and began to cover the optical lens. The steel fork released the shockwave and lunged at the Autobot leader, who then firmly embraced it.
Seeing that one of his comrades was showing signs of defecting, Ratchet's worried gaze fell on the machine he was holding, and he asked the question that was on the minds of all the Autobots: "Optimus Prime, are you sure this is the right thing to do?"
Steel Fork, her eyes brimming with tears, peeked out from the embrace and looked at the ambulance. Perhaps if he had said a few more words, she would have stayed with the Autobots?
Shockwave darted between Optimus Prime and the Ratchet, saying to Grimlock, "We should go back to the Decepticons."
"But, but," she clung tightly to the steel fork, her arms refusing to loosen their grip, "I can't bear to part with them."
Perhaps a gentle leader wouldn't blame her for her hesitation and greed, her partner would give her enough patience, her friends would tolerate her willfulness, and the Decepticons would be too afraid to step forward because of her power.
Meanwhile, Jack—a hot-tempered friend who, due to years of being away, hadn't become very close with Grimlock—ran to the other side of Optimus Prime, tapped Grimlock's head sculpture, and spoke in a roguish manner.
"Haven't you had enough of this, kid? You've already made the choice to join the Decepticons, so why are you still crying while hugging Optimus Prime?" He tilted his head under the leader's gaze, feeling that he should make himself clearer.
"Here's a piece of advice: once you make a choice, you have to bear the consequences."
"I, I...!" The wings were drooping as low as possible. Of course, she knew this principle; it had been repeated countless times in human films and daily life. But when it came to her own situation, how difficult it was to appear decisive!
Finally, Steel Fork relaxed her grip, letting Shockwave pull her back to the Decepticons' side. She would continue to be Shockwave's assistant, just as she had been when they first met.
However, didn't "Master Apostle" cause a major disturbance for the Decepticons not long ago?
Steel Fork's words, "I am the Apostle" and "The Apostle is me," were clearly transmitted to all the Decepticon audio receivers present.
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