Sideswipe was getting tired of this. In less than a year, he'd been in this darkness three times, meeting up with a guide to the Afterlife who never stuck around for long.

But this time, it seemed different. Normally, he could at least see himself, but now all he saw was black in all directions. He heard soft sounds around him, and the guide was nowhere to be seen. He tried to call out for her, but his voice seemed to catch in his voicebox, unable to utter a sound.

He sat up after realizing he was lying on his back, searching the darkness with his hands for something, anything.

"Sideswipe!"

Sideswipe felt a pair of arms wrap tightly around him, along with a familiar voice calling his name. "You're awake..."

"...Sunstreaker...!?"

Sideswipe felt his brother's armor with his fingers, he heard his brother's voice, but he still saw nothing. "W-What's going on? W-Where are we...!?"

"We're...We're in the Scrapyard, Sideswipe..."

"Why is it so dark? Why can't I see you, or anything else, for that matter?"

"It's going to be okay, Sideswipe...Your optics are damaged, but they're-"

"I'm blind!?" Sideswipe grabbed onto his brother tighter, his sparkbeat quickening as he began to panic.

"Not permanently!" Sunstreaker assured, placing a hand on the back of Sideswipe's helm. "...Ratchet says the damage can be repaired..."

"H-How did you get here? How did you know I was-"

"I'm your brother, remember...? I was at home when I suddenly felt like something was very wrong, all I could feel from you was pure terror. I called Bumblebee and he told me, and I was on the next Space-Bridge jump here to Earth...Strongarm said you were crying for me when she found you."

"Is she okay?"

"She's fine. You kept the attention off of her long enough for reinforcements to show up."

"At the cost of one of my important sensors..." Sideswipe sighed, letting Sunstreaker just hold him for several seconds. His ears pricked, however, as he heard footsteps coming towards them. "Who's that?"

"It's just me, Sideswipe..."

Bumblebee's voice responded, and then he felt the team leader place a hand on his shoulder. "...You alright? Anything else damaged?"

"I...No." Sideswipe turned his head in Bee's direction, "...I ache all over from the hits, but nothing as bad as losing my sight."

"And we'll get that fixed too, I promise."

"Did... Did they get away with the weapon?"

"No. Apparently it was knocked into the river at some point and Strongarm was able to obtain the Automator and bring it back."

"An Automator...!?" Sideswipe's chassis trembled at the word. He hated the thought of what might've happened if it had been used on him when he was out of it. "...Damn."

"Yeah...We have it sealed away until we can deal with Shockwave, and then Optimus and Ratchet will be taking it back to Cybertron to be properly dealt with."

"Thank Primus..."

Sideswipe's grip on Sunstreaker loosened a little as he calmed himself. "...How long do you think until my vision comes back?"

"Ratchet's...Not sure exactly. You took a nasty hit to the helm back there."

"I remember that much..."

It was then that Sideswipe remembered something else. "...Steeljaw."

"What?"

"When I was passing out, I...I remember that other con asking Fracture about Steeljaw... He said that he wouldn't be bothering them anymore."

He heard Bumblebee's chassis stiffen, "...Fracture must've decided to take him out to prevent him from interfering."

"I doubt he killed him." Strongarm's voice joined, "Steeljaw's not gonna go down that easily."

"You're right...But that still means that Steeljaw isn't a variable on the board for the moment. We need to work out what Shockwave's next move will be."

"Guess I'm benched, huh?"

"You'll be back in the field soon enough, Sideswipe." Bumblebee patted the sports car's shoulder, "But for now, you just focus on recovering. Flashdrive's here to help you if you need anything."

"Yeah...Sure..."

Sideswipe felt his brother and teammates leave his immediate vicinity, but he could tell they hadn't gone too far. It sucked not being able to see, hearing footsteps but not knowing who it was...

_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

"What do you mean, 'you lost the device'...!?"

Greasefire's voice was barely a hiss, but he was still checking to see if Shockwave was around.

"Don't worry." Fracture assured, "We'll just go back later tonight to get it."

"And if our adversaries find it first...!?"

Treadmark shrugged, "I don't think those tots will find it any easier, especially since we took one of them out." His optics shifted to the long slash on his teammate's neck; he knew that hadn't been there before. "What happened to you?"

"That last prisoner...She's got sharp claws for a genius bot."

Fracture chuckled, "You're just a glutton for punishment, aren't you?"

"Oh yeah? And what about those claw marks across your faceplate? Did your associate do that?"

"Cease this useless prattle."

The bounty hunters all became silent as Shockwave spoke from the ship's entrance. "Our focus should be on the next phase of my plan. The Autobots will no doubt have taken my Automator and placed in a safe place within their stronghold. All that is required is for us to lure them out and leave it unattended."

His helm turned as there was a rustling, and then his minicon subordinate stepped into the clearing, head lowered. "What did you uncover?"

"Nothing worth your while..." The panther muttered as he avoided the decepticon by several feet.

"Do not forget that I rescued you from ruin, minicon."

"I would not consider your actions fitting of the word 'rescue'... And I have not forgotten what you did to my fellow minicons."

"Return to your place, or I shall muzzle you as well."

The panther growled, but said nothing more before slinking back into the ship.

"What's our next move, Boss?" Fracture cooed with a grin.

"It is no secret that the Autobots are quite protective of the human race... And it just so happens that we are a short distance from an entire city full of them... Our next move is obvious."

__________________________________________________________________________________

That night, the Autobots all surrounded the Command Center, brainstorming while leaving Sideswipe asleep on the trailer with Flashdrive by his side in case he needed something.

Sunstreaker leaned against the stone, his head lowered as he listened to the rest of the bots whisper to one another.

"Shockwave is one of the most famous decepticons in history," Strongarm murmured, "...We can't let our guard down...Look what happened when I did."

"This is not your fault, Cadet." Sunstreaker informed, squeezing the cadet's shoulder. "You were ambushed, anyone could have been taken by surprise."
His optics shifted to Ratchet, "Do you have any idea when my brother's sight will return?"

Rathet sighed, "...I can't say that it will if he remains here. I know of a procedure that has an Eighty-Percent chance of restoring him, but I don't have the equipment here with me."

"So he'd have to go back to Cybertron for a definite solution..."
The Representative looked to his brother, his eyebrows furrowing. "...Do you think he'd agree to that?"

"If it was only temporary, then maybe..." Bumblebee rubbed his chin, "...He could live with you for that period?"

"Absolutely. To be honest, having some time together might be a good idea, considering our relationship is still a little rocky. I'm sure Starstriker wouldn't be against seeing him again either."

"When he wakes up, we'll explain the situation to him." Bumblebee gave a hard sigh, "...That still leaves us figuring out what Shockwave's going to do when he finds out we have the Automator."

"Maybe I should just take it back with me and Sideswipe." Sunstreaker suggested, "It would be off-world and he'd have no reason to remain here."

"It's a chance to lure him in." Strongarm informed, "To finally capture him and make him answer for his crimes."

"I don't think using it as bait is the best option." Ratchet argued, "We can't risk him getting his hands on it again."

"I agree with Ratchet. It stays where it is." He placed a hand on Strongarm's shoulder, "I know that what happened has made this very personal for you, it has for all of us. But we can't let our feelings get in the way of doing our job properly."

Strongarm nodded, clenching her jaw and returning to her solemn, calm expression. "Of course, Sir."

"Good. Now let's get started on preparing for a defense if he does show up..."