FicWad

Eight years previously...

'It was early evening on Rannoch as it's sun began its descent below the horizon for another day and there was not a cloud in sight for miles, Orion was with Nightracer and Jetfire as they stood beside the training shuttle that they had just landed.
"Another great lesson you two, keep this kind of pace up and you will be ready for the Autobot Academy nearly a year earlier than your supposed to." the tutor said with a proud smile as the pair of teenagers stood in front of him. Nightracer was managing to look like the praise had not gone to her head as she stood there in a calm manner, Orion though...well he had the biggest grin on his face and could not look more happy. The Femme simply smiled and shook her head slightly as she looked to the ground for a second.

'I could hit Orion for being so big-headed, if it weren't for the fact he was so cute doing it.' Nightracer thought as Jetfire looked at his holo-tool.

"Okay, so that's today's lesson over now. Two weeks from now, we will fly through Razor Canyon and I will see just how good your reflexes truly are."

Both Orion and Nightracer looked excited as their tutor gave them the news, making him look back with a cautious expression.

"Yeah I know, its Razor Canyon. But you shouldn't let your confidence get the better of you, or the canyon will chew you up and spit you back out." he said while giving Orion a knowing look, which made Nightracer chuckle in response.

"Looking forward to it." the young bot replied, while trying to ignore the Femme.

"Alright, the transport will be here to take you back to your parents in the city in fifteen minutes, so I will see you tomorrow. And again, great job today." Jetfire said with a smile before walking off and leaving the two youngsters alone next to the shuttle.

"So we have some time to waste before our ride shows up, what shall we do with it?" Orion asked, earning a delicious smile from Nightracer who got up close to him.

"Well since we are all alone, I thought we could make out until it arrives." she replied in a coy tone, gaining a similar smile from the bot as his cheeks reddened.

"I was just thinking the same thing."

The young Femme gave him a knowing smile as she put her arms around his neck and pulled him close.

"I bet you were...so kiss me already."

Orion happily obliged as he pulled her close and pressed his lips against hers, earning a little moan from Nightracer who then opened her mouth, letting the bot slip his tongue inside and it danced with her own. Then he returned the favour and the femme used her tongue to explore the inside of his mouth. The pair continued to kiss for a good few minutes, barely stopping for air as they enjoyed each other.

In fact they were so caught up in the act, they failed to notice two others, a Bot and a Turian around their age walking up to them.

"Get a room you two."

Both the Bot and Femme almost jumped as they pulled away, before looking around the air strip to see who had found them out. Then they saw the two new comers and both gave off an annoyed sigh as they recognised them.

"Why don't you come back in another ten minutes Shen, we will be done by then." Nightracer replied without even looking at him, as she was more interested in looking at her boyfriend who still had his arms around her waist.

"What and miss that look on your faces right now." the Turian said back in a teasing tone, while the blonde haired lad chuckled.

"Quickstrike, find this funny do you?" Orion asked, earning a nod from the blonde lad.

"Sure do Cuz, since you two sure do have a bad taste in making-out areas. I mean not far behind us there are some Geth engineers heading this way, I wonder what their reactions would have been to see you two like that?" he replied as the couple broke their embrace, but still held hands.

"I think their reaction would be 'analysing…analysing….analysing'." Shen replied in his best impression of a Geth voice. The others laughed out loud at the Turian, who bowed his head shyly and waved them off.

"Okay, not the best impression, I know."

"Its funny as hell though." Quickstrike replied as he took a deep breath and regained his composure, as did Orion and Nightracer.

"…So, what have you two been up to?" the young Darby asked while he gently squeezed the Femme's hand affectionately, making her smile grow a little wider.

"We were down at the shooting range, out doing each others scores." Quickstrike said back, earning a knowing look from Shen.

"You mean 'you' were trying to out do my score, don't you? I mean who here has actually had sniper training?"

"Oh boy, here we go again.." Nightracer replied with a tired tone, earning an eye roll from her Boyfriend.

"Yeah, we know your Dad is an Elite Sniper….." Quickstrike started to reply, only for the Turian to cut him off.

"…You mean the Elite Sniper, don't you."

Yeah well...can your Dad take on scores of enemies with just his bare hands?" the blonde bot said back before waiting for a come back from Shen, but the Turian just looked flustered.

"Ha, didn't think so.."

"Okay guys, but tell me this...which one of your Dads is a Prime?" Nightracer then asked, making both bots sigh and nod back in acceptance. The femme then turned back to Orion and saw him look down to the ground with a dejected expression, making her instantly regret her action.

"I'm sorry Orion, I didn't think."

"It's alright Ni." he replied as she gently squeezed his hand while placing her free hand on his shoulder affectionately.

'I should of thought about what I was going to say before I opened my mouth.' the femme thought, because it's not like she did not already know about Orion's frosty relationship with his Father...or rather how it had devolved to one. Since it was never like that before, and frankly it left Nightracer incredibly confused.

"Okay, so what are we doing now?" Orion then asked to the others, bringing the femme out of her thoughts just as Quickstrike and Shen looked at him.

"Well since we are all together, I think we should get the transport back to the city and grab a bite to eat before our parents turn up." the Blonde bot replied, Shen nodded in return.

"Yeah, I am starving."

Both Orion and Nightracer looked at each other before shrugging their shoulders in unison.

"Why not..."

"Great, lets go to the landing pad then and wait for the transport, it will be here in a few minutes." Quickstike said back, as he and Shen started to move away, with the couple just behind. But then Orion stopped and looked back at the shuttle, gaining a confused expression from Nightracer.

"Orion? What is it?" she asked as the others stopped too and looked back.

"Whats the hold up?" Shen asked while the young Darby looked over to the shuttle, a smile appearing on his face.
"What are you thinking?" the Femme asked, knowing fully well what that look meant from her Boyfriend.

"Why don't we forget about the transport and make our own way there."

His three friends all looked at him with a wide-eyed stare.

"And how are we going to do that Orion? The transport is the only way to and from here for non-pilots." Shen replied.
"But Ni and I are not non-pilots." the Bot said back with a confident tone in his voice, earning a half smile from the Femme.

"You want to fly the shuttle there instead, do you think we can?" she asked with slight trepidation in her voice, though her face betrayed that concern with the growing smile she had.

"Sure we can, and even Jetfire thinks so. He said as much during our last few flights, why else should he give us a chance to fly Razor Canyon." Orion replied.

"You guys have been offered that? Wow, I guess your progressing really fast in your training?" Quickstrike said, making the couple look at him and nod.

"Yeah, I was surprised too, but Orion is right. We have been excelling in our flight-skill."

The Femme then smiled at her boyfriend, who mirrored her expression.

"Alright, I'm in."

"Hey if Jetfire, the legendary Aerialbot thinks your ready for the Razor Canyon. Then I have no problem flying with you guys." Quickstrike said back with a smile. The three teens turned to the Turian.

"Shen, how about it. Want to fly with the slow and annoying transport, or come with us and get there faster?" Orion asked, while Shen looked back with an uncertain expression.

"Are you guys sure about this, I mean its not like we have permission."

"It's fine Shen, me and Orion have flown together lots of times. I wouldn't agree to this if I thought for a second that we couldn't do this easily." Nightracer replied with an encouraging tone, but the Turian was not buying it.

"So your not going along with this because Orion's your Boyfriend?" he asked in a matter-of-fact way, earning surprised looks from all three friends, who were taken back by his question.

"Shen?" Quickstrike asked back, while Orion and Nightracer just stood there, still in shock.

"Look, I had to ask the question. Because...I mean if we do this then we will be taking one hell of a risk. Flying a craft without a license while also underage, our parents would kill us." Shen said back in a calm and honest way, that immediately made the others feel a bit easier.

"I understand your concerns Shen, but we do have our training passes ad their range does go from here to the city." Orion said while showing bringing up the license details on his holo-tool.

"Yes but they are only valid during the day, which ends in another twenty five minutes." Nightracer added, earning a nod from her Boyfriend.

"So we better get moving then, all aboard." the Bot replied as he pressed a button on his holo-tool, opening the hatch on the shuttle.

Once on board, Shen and Quickstrike realised that this shuttle was not like the standard ones that they were used too as Orion and Nightracer sat down in the pilot and co-pilot seats and activated their holo-interfaces that lit up with a blue glow.

"Right then, lets get this show on the road." the Bot replied as he fired up the engines, gaining nervous glances from both his friends who had took their seats behind them, feeling the power vibrating though the vessel around them.

"No need for those faces guys, your in safe hands here." the Femme smiled back before suddenly the shuttle lifted off the ground and then soared up into the sky.

"Alright, we are on our way." Orion said as the others looked out of the shuttle's canopy at the brown rocky landscape which reminded Quickstrike of the Colorado Plateau back on Earth, which he visited a lot with his parents. They lived twenty five miles south of the area in a small town of Kayenta, and it was happy life that they were living.

"We should be reaching our destination in just several minutes." Orion said back as Shen got up off his seat and stood over Nightracer, who gave him a curious expression.

"What are you doing?"

"Well we have time for one song before we land right?" the Turian said as he scrolled through the radio stations on the holo-interface in front of him and the Femme.

"Because unfortunately neither the Geth or the Quarians have that much taste In music." he added, earning a smile from Quickstrike.

"Yeah, I mean have you heard Aunt Tali singing…..ugh. My ears are still recovering from that experience." Orion joked, earning an annoyed look from Shen.

"Hey, that's my Mom your talking about…." he said back before going quiet for a moment.

"…but your right."

"So are you going to pick a station then? Or just keep getting in my way." Nightracer said as she glared at the Turian, who ignored her and scrolled down the list on the holo-screen before stopping on one.

"There, that one will do. Activating now." Shen replied before a song burst onto the shuttle's speakers, instantly gaining smiles from Orion and Quickstrike.

"Turn it up." the blonde bot called as the trio started bobbing their heads to the song.

'Heaven only knows what you might find…Dare - dare to believe that you can survive, you hold the future in your hand…'

As the song carried on, Nightracer merely shook her head before giving a loving gaze to Orion.

"You do love your rock music." she said, gaining a smile back from the bot as they all just enjoyed the song as it moved on to another verse just as the shuttle was flying over a region not unlike the grand canyon.

"So is Razor Canyon anything like the one below us now?" Shen asked as he looked down at the area.

"A little, but this one is a slightly wider canyon to Razor which takes its name from the fact that the rock-like structure of the canyon walls can rip a ship in two." the Femme replied, earning wide-eyed looks from both the Turian and Quickstrike.

"And you two will be flying it soon…..wow! You must be really good." Shen said back.

"If we had more time, I could give you guys a preview by flying through this canyon." Orion replied, just as the song's chorus was about to start. But then both Orion and Nightracer's eyes widened when a Geth transport suddenly appeared from behind a monadnock and flew directly in front of them.

"Look out!" the femme screamed as Orion reacted instantly by pulling up the shuttle, with it narrowly missing the transport's hull by mere metres as it flew up and over. The Geth on board the other ship panicked as they watched the shuttle fly away.

"Emergency, emergency!" one cried out as it's single optic stayed fixed on the Teens shuttle.

Meanwhile everyone on the shuttle breathed a sigh of relief as Quickstrike got up and patted his cousin on his shoulder.

"Great flying Orion, for a second there I thought we were gonna be toast." he said with a smile, earning a similar expression from the young Darby.

"You don't think they identified us do you?" Shen said with a hint of worry in his voice.

"No, but it wasn't as if that collision was our fault. The transport just appeared out of nowhere." Nightracer replied while the young Darby kept his attention on flying the shuttle with his cousin standing over him as the song continued to play out on the radio.

"We should be well away by the time those Geth report it in right?"

"I don't know Quickstrike, we aren't exactly flying the tourist route back to the city." Orion said back, earning glances from Nightracer and Shen.

"What?" the Turian replied.

"What he said." the Femme added as she gestured at Shen.

"I said I would get us back to the city quickly, but we couldn't exactly fly back the safe way now, could we. We all the patrols in that area, we could easily be caught, so I decided to take us through the restricted area." the Bot replied, making the Turian's eyes widen in surprise.

"You mean we are in more trouble now than if we had just flown back the safe way?"

"Look, I am flying us at an altitude that keeps us from being detected by the Geth/Quarian sensors in this area, and I doubt that transport even had a chance to report us."

Nightracer was about to say something before her attention was caught by a flashing object appearing on the shuttle's sensor screen.

"Ugh, I think you might be wrong there Orion. Because our sensors say that a Geth gunship is approaching our rear."

And with that explanation from the femme and even though they could not see the back of the shuttle, Quickstrike and Shen looked back with worried expressions on their faces.

"Oh Scrap!" the blonde bot said just as the rock song entered another verse.

The larger gunship began gaining on the shuttle as a Geth voice spoke over the inter-com.

"Unidentified shuttle, we demand you land now!"

Shen began to panic as the synthesized voice blared out of the speakers.

"By the spirits! If they catch us, our parents are gonna kill us." he said, making Quickstrike place a hand on his shoulder in support.

"Only if they catch us, right Orion?" the Bot said, earning a nod from his cousin.

"Right, buckle up guys. I am taking us into the canyon." he said and as everyone did just that, he brought the shuttle into a sharp descent as it flew down at speed into the canyon, with the gunship in close pursuit as they both flew through the weaving-like shaped ravine.

"You do know that it will catch up to us eventually." Nightracer said as she saw the gunship closing on them on her holo-screen.

"Yeah, but I am hoping that this canyon's width will get small enough for just our shuttle." Orion replied as he brought the shuttle around a bend, bringing them out into a much wider part of the ravine.

"You were saying." Shen said as he pointed out at the now much wider canyon.

"Ni, put everything we have into the engines." Orion said, ignoring his panicking friend.

"That will only buy us about twenty more seconds." the Femme said back as she rerouted the power, giving the shuttle a sudden burst of speed.

"Yeah, but there is something ahead that might just give us an advantage." the young Darby replied as the others looked to what he meant, their eyes widening at the very sight of it.

"That hole in cliff up ahead." the Turian exclaimed, earning a raised eye brow from Nightracer.

"Its an extinct lava tube, but sensors say that it is barely big enough for the shuttle. Plus we don't know where it leads."

"If you guys have any better ideas, then you have about ten seconds to tell me." Orion said as he corrected their course and headed straight for the tube's opening. But everyone went quiet just as the Geth called again.

"Cease your evasive action and land now!"

"Think again, everybody hang on!" Orion said back as he flew the shuttle directly at the opening.

"No, no, no, no ,no, Noooooooooo!" Shen shouted as the shuttle flew directly into the lava tube, making the gunship slam on the breaks and stop before slamming into the cliff side. Meanwhile everyone on the shuttle held their breath, Shen was physically trembling as Orion kept his cool and focused on flying them through the small lava tube, the rocky walls zooming past the canopy of the shuttle as a white light appeared ahead of them, getting closer and closer before the shuttle then flew out the other side just as the song's final chorus began.

'Dare - dare to believe that you can survive….'

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief as Shen just collapsed in his chair.

"I think I nearly wet myself back there." he said with a sigh as both Nightracer and Quickstrike high fived before turning their attention to Orion.

"That was incredible flying back their Cuz, I don't think that Gunship will catch us up now."

"What did I tell you. My Orion's the best…..but I can do that too, just so you know" the Femme replied as she looked at Orion proudly and teasingly.

"Yeah, so you say." the Bot said back in a similar manner, before turning his attention back to his flying.

"So guys, should be back in sixty seconds." he added as they could see the city before them through the shuttle's canopy.

"Home in time for supper." Quickstrike quipped as their shuttle flew toward the city as the sun set behind the mountains in the distance.

PRIME EFFECT 4

The shuttle landed on the LZ at one of the ports that surrounded the city just as the night started to expand across the sky, pushing back the red hue and making the stars visible once again.
Everyone got up from their seats as Orion opened the hatch via a button on his holo-interface, while Nightracer turned round and helped Shen to his feet.

"You still feeling unwell?" she asked as the Turian placed his hand on his stomach, earning a noise from it.
"I guess I am just not ready for that kind of aggressive flying." he replied, earning a curious look from Orion which he did notice.

"Not that I can't appreciate such fine handling of a shuttle, and had it not been for your flying, we would all be in serious trouble right now. Thanks." he said earning a nod from his friend.

"Unfortunately, isn't for everyone...but your welcome Shen."

"I will always agree with my Father on this subject, if we Turians were meant to fly then the spirits would have given us wings." the Turian said back with a smile, gaining Quickstrike's attention as he stood by the open hatch.

"But there are plenty of Turians who are pilots.." he began to say before Shen cut him off.

"Have you met them? Because I have and I can say without a doubt that they are crazy, I mean really gone in the head." the Turian said as he gestured at his head brain with a finger in a circling motion.

"Well I guess that means Ni and myself are crazy too." Orion replied as both teen pilots stared at Shen, who then waved his hands in front of himself in a defensive gesture.

"No, you guys are cool. But I can say that because I have known you for like forever. But other Turians who do fly...stay away is all I will say."

"Well can we get moving, because I am getting hungry." the Femme said, gaining a mischievous smile from Orion.
"Yeah, you don't want to see how Ni acts when her blood sugar level gets too low." he replied with a wink, to which Nigtracer replied with a half-hearted punch on his arm.

"Oww." the Bot replied as he feigned injury, earning an eye roll from the Femme.
"Lets go flyboy." she said back with a smile, earning a similar smile from the Bot.

And with that the four teens then climbed out of the shuttle and took in the cool evening air that was there to meet them.

"Well how does old saying go, 'red sky at night, shepherd's delight. Red sky at morning, Shepherd's warning'." Quickstrike said, gaining a knowing look from Shen.

"That doesn't really apply to Rannoch since every night and morning has a red sky."

"Your ruining my moment of being knowledgeable Shen." the blonde bot replied with an annoyed tone, as both Nightracer and Orion chuckled.

"Yeah, you don't want to do that Shen." The young Darby said back.

"Because Quckstrike doesn't get many of them." the Femme added.

"Ha, Ha. Funny guys, can we go get some food now?" Quickstrike replied as he tried to push the focus away from himself. The others replied with more laughter before the group began to walk away from the shuttle, but their happy moment soon ended when Nightracer's eyes fell on three people walking towards them from the terminal.

"Oh scrap." she said, earning confused looks from the others.

"What is it Ni?" Orion asked, making the femme point at the three Adults ahead and the moment the Teens saw them, they hearts/sparks sank.

"Oh scrap... Indeed." Shen replied as ahead of them were Garrus, Ironhide and Jack Darby, and none of them looked happy in the least.

"You guys look like you have had a good time?" Ironhide said as the teens joined their Parents.

"Tell us, was that before or after you took a shuttle for a joyride... and without permission?" Garrus added.

"Or... And this is the best bit, nearly hit a Geth transport and evaded a Gunship that was just trying to get you to land."Ironhide finished as the pair stared daggers at their kids. Orion though glanced up at his Dad, who had stayed quiet the whole time his friends had spoken. And the young bot could see the disappointment in Jack's eyes as he just looked back at his son in silence.

"Hey, it was that transport's fault for coming out of a blind spot. Orion's quick thinking and skill saved us." Nightracer spoke out, surprising everyone. But Ironhide wasn't going to let that fly, even if she wasn't his daughter.

"Don't give me attitude just because your mother isn't here. I have already informed her of what has happened and will be dropping you off as Quickstrike and I head home." the Bot replied, making the young Femme quieten up.

"That incident would not have happened if you had not taken the shuttle in the first place." he added as the four teens suddenly felt small in the presence of their elders.

"Shen, lets go." Garrus said in stern tone, making the younger Turian walk away from the others while hanging his head in shame.

"See you later guys." he said, while Ironhide looked at both Quickstrike and Nightracer.

"You two, come on." he said, making the femme look at Orion with a sorrowful expression.

"Sorry." she whispered, earning a nod from her boyfriend as she took his hand in hers for a second and gently squeezed it before letting go and walking off with Quickstrike and his Dad. and suddenly there was just Orion and his Father and it was now that Jack decided to speak.

"Lets go home." was all that he said, and that made His son feel even more nervous.

The flight home in the family shuttle had been the most quiet that Orion and his Dad had every undertaken, with Jack just focusing on piloting the shuttle and his son just looking to the ground. The journey lasted less than an hour from Rannoch to Earth, with the shuttle landing outside the family home just as the sun was beginning to set over the ocean view that greeted the pair as they stepped out of the vehicle.

Ravage was waiting by the porch and soon ss he laid eyes on Orion, he ran up to the young bot all excited. Even after all these years the old feline still had the energy of a young beast and if he was feeling up to it, Orion would have shown his pal some well deserved attention. But the Bot just looked down at Ravage with his glum expression, making the feline stop and tilt it's head with a confused expression.

"Sorry." Orion said as he walked past, earning a whine from the feline as it slumped onto it's belly.
"Not tonight Ravage." Jack said as he followed his son, gaining another whine as both he and his son walked onto the porch and then into the house.

As soon as he was inside, Orion took off his shoes and jacket and put them away. He did not look up at all, concentrating solely on these tasks as he knew who was waiting directly ahead at the connection between he hallway and the living room.

"Are you not going to look at me Orion?" a female voice said in a firm tone, gaining the bot's attention as he looked up from the shoe rack to see his Mom, Arcee standing there looking back at him with a sorely disappointed expression on her face. All Orion could do was glance back at her every now and then, as his mother's staring hurt him inside.

"I am sorry." he said in a faint voice.

"What?" Jack replied as he walked ahead of his Son and stood beside his Spark-mate.

"...Could you speak up, because we didn't quite catch that." he added as he gestured to Arcee while never taking his glaring eyes off Orion who still felt very small in before his parents.

"I am sorry." he said again, this time with a bit more volume to it. But though Arcee's expression softened ever so slightly, Jack's remained the same.

"And I guess that makes up for nearly getting your friends killed, hmm?" the Prime responded with a hint of sarcasm mixed in with the anger in his voice.

"Why did you do it Orion? Why did you take that shuttle instead of waiting for the transport..." Arcee said in a more calmer tone than her spark-mate was using, though Orion could still feel the disappointment she had in her voice.

"'...yeah, like you have done 'so' many times before today?" Jack finished, earning the ever so slightest glance from Arcee before she returned her attention to their Son.

Orion looked to the ground and took a deep breath before returning his attention to them both, a resolute look on his face.

"Because I was tired of waiting for that transport and ...because I knew I could get us there quicker."

"So you thought what...that just because your one of the best 'trainee' pilots under Jetfire's tutelage, that that gave you the right to take a shuttle and fly it through restricted space." Jack replied with a sting in his voice, making, Do I even have to mention the fact that you nearly collided with a Geth transport or your evading a Geth gunship." he added while Orion hung his head.

"And yet you mention it anyway." he said under his breath.

"What did you say?" Jack replied while Arcee placed a hand on his chest, giving the Prime a look that said 'back off a little'.

"So I guess it completely escapes your attention that the Geth transport was completely in the wrong itself, with the way that it was travelling and that it was down to my skill that a collision was averted." Orion snapped back, regaining his father's attention immediately as he stepped toward his son, ignoring Arcee's silent plea.

"And there in lies the problem, you think that because your gifted that it puts you above the rules. That they don't even apply to you... I bet you didn't even think that you were in the wrong when you lead that gunship in a merry chase that nearly lead to the crew of that ship, nearly crashing into a cliff-face whole you performed a death defying stunt to impress your friends."

"I did what I did to keep us out of trouble." Orion spat back.

"Well how did that work out for you? Because you still ended up in a lot trouble, since a Quarian/Geth ground patrol saw the last part of that show and then reported it directly to their superiors and then to me." Jack said before looking away from his son as he took a deep breath, and tried to calm down somewhat.

"You know I thought, I…..we taught you better than that." he added while gesturing again to Arcee who was still quiet, observing both the Men in her life while they argued, as Jack started again.

"..I mean when I was your age, I never would have taken such a risk….and with my own friends also. What were you thinking?"

It was at this point, the anger that was boiling inside of Orion just exploded. Since he had heard this same story for nearly five years now and he had finally had enough.

"Oh here we go again, the old 'when I was your age' story. I don't know if you have noticed, but my life is nothing like yours was…..we are just nothing alike!" he said before he even had time to think what he had just said, making his Dad's eyes widen in shock at what he had just heard. Then they narrowed at him again as Jack clenched his fist.

"Why you…." he began to say before Arcee suddenly jumped in.

"Orion, go to your room!" she said, making both Men look at her in surprise.

"What?" they both replied in sync.

"You are hereby grounded from now until the day you graduate for the Academy, you will only be allowed outside these grounds for flight school and your studies. You will not spend time with your friends outside of these activities. Do I make myself clear?" the Femme added as she stared at Orion with a stern expression.

"Yes…..Mom." he answered sheepishly while Jack was still in shock.

"Then go to bed."

Orion nodded and turned around somberly before slowly making his way up stairs.

"And you…we need to talk." Arcee then said to Jack, motioning him to join her in the living room. Though neither parent had noticed that Orion had stopped at the top of the stairs as they went out of view and began eavesdropping.

"What is going on with you Jack? I mean you were really tearing Orion a new one."

"Arcee, after what he did today, what else could I do. I mean this isn't the first time either...but definitely the worst."
"Jack, what Orion did was so very wrong. I know that, but your handling of it is getting out of hand."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that for the last five years, you have really cme down upon Orion for even the littlest irresponsible action. In fact your not even letting him enjoy what is left of his teenage years. It's almost as if you want him to grow up to quickly."

"Arcee, we all grow up. That's life and it is time Orion did it too."

"No, there's more to it than that. I remember you saying that since you grew up without your own Father, this meant you had to grow up quicker and help your Mom, giving up on a lot of your childhood in the meantime. And on the day that Orion came into our lives, you swore that you would ensure that he'd not end up the same.

For a long moment Jack went quiet as did Arcee, making it hard for the younger Darby to listen from his spot at the top of the stairs.

"I did...but?"

"But what Jack? Talk to me...what is it that you aren't telling me?"

The Prime went quiet again for a moment before breathing a sigh.

"Arcee...I can't say." he replied, gaining a sigh from the femme that was somewhat less calm than his own.

"Okay, lets try this another way then shall we. Because I have had enough of this tip-toeing around whatever issue you've been concealing from me."

"Arcee, I really can't say..."

"Serious face Jack! Tell me!"

"But I swore.."

"To who?"

"The Aeons! I swore to the Aeons." the Prime replied, that last part really earning Orion's attention as he sat on the top step of the stairs.

"What? when?"

"Like you said, it was five years ago. I can't go into exact details, but lets just say that the Aeons showed me something.."

"Showed you what?" Arcee asked back, the tone of her voice far less hostile than before.

"Showed me something...something that has to come to pass."

"And what was that?" the femme asked and so Jack talked and talked while Orion sat at the top of the stairs and listened intently, his eyes growing wider with every word that he heard.

A few hours later and Orion was then sitting on roof of the house, next to his open window and looking up at the star filled night sky. Down on the ground, Ravage was sitting in one spot and looking up at the roof, as if sensing that Orion was there. The bot's parents had already gone to bed at this time of the night, but he found that he could not sleep as the conversation, or more importantly what he heard his Dad tell his mother was playing through his mind repeatedly, like a endless loop. And its details had worried Orion immensely.

'It can't be true, it has to be a mistake.' he thought as he continued to look skywards, praying that what he had heard was not so.

PRIME EFFECT 4

Suddenly everything went black again before Orion opened his eyes and looked at Liara, who was looking back with an understanding expression.

"So...now you know right?" he asked, gaining a nod from the Asari.

"Yes...I saw and felt everything you did in those memories, and I can now understand why you and your Father haven't seen eye to eye for years."

"But now I guess you also understand why I have never taken any of the command promotions that I have been offered during my career." Orion replied somberly.

"I guess I would be concerned too, if I heard such information about my future. I take it things with your Mother got better? " Liara said back

"Yes, my Mom was still angry…..no, more disappointed with my actions. But after a month or so, things between us healed, it was with my Dad that ties were forever separated." he replied earning a nod from Liara, but then she noticed Orion looking back at the door at the far side of the room again.

"What I don't understand, is why are you constantly looking at your Father's study?" the Asari added, regaining Orion's attention.

"I am sorry Liara, I guess that even after so many years being at odds with my Dad…I miss how things used to be between us. And it has also been a very long time since I last went in that room." he replied with a somber face, this earned a slight smile from Liara as she offered him her hand.

"Then why don't you have a look, I will go with you." she said in a calm and warm manner, but the young Darby shook his head in response.

"We can't. Ever since my Dad and I started arguing, he has always locked the door and never let anyone in there, not even my Mom."

Liara though ignored Orion's words and walked over to the door and pressed the control panel beside it, which to the bot's surprise…..made the door open and grant them access.

"If that is the case, then why is the door unlocked?" the Asari asked as Orion joined her and together they entered the Prime's study.

The room itself looked like any other kind of study, there were a few shelves on the walls, a cupboard and a bookcase. As well as a large desk and chair, that had a computer terminal on it. But what Liara noticed was that there were also a few photos on the wall, ones that were of Orion that were not among the family ones in the living room.

"When were these taken?" she asked as Orion took a closer look at them.

"This one was after my first flying lesson with Jetfire, and that one was when I passed my blue belt qualification with Master Prowl. And this one here is the day I became an Autobot." the bot said as he looked at each photo, Liara gained his attention again.

"Looks like you were never far from his thoughts Orion, even during the last few years."

"I don't know what to say, we have been at each others throats for over ten years now. I'm finding it hard to think that he could ever be proud of what I have done in that time." Orion replied as he continued to stare wide eyed at the photos.

"He is your Father, of course he would be..." the Asari said as she looked around, before an object hanging on the wall behind them caught her eye.

"What's that?" she asked, making the bot turn around and see the said object which was a large Cybertronian long-sword.

"I am sure I have seen this before or something similar." the Asari added as she walked up to it for a further examination.

"That's the Star Saber, a blade that only a Prime or one that has the potential to be a Prime may wield. It was originally the weapon of the original Prime called Prima, and its last owner was the late Optimus Prime." Orion replied as he joined Liara's side and looked at the blade.

"I remember seeing your Father wielding a weapon that looked similar to this back when we worked together during the Reaper War."

"That was the holo-Star Saber, it was holo-blade that the Prime Armour granted my Dad to use, since the Star Saber itself belonged to Optimus." the bot explained as Liara brushed her fingers against the long blade.

"But why doesn't your Father use it now, since he is the Autobot Prime now?"

"Dad was thinking about it for a time, but around the same time that we began fighting and generally not getting on, all of a sudden said that the blade was not meant for him and that he was only a caretaker of it until the 'one' that it was meant for would need it." Orion said, earning a curious look from the Asari.

"Oh, that's cryptic." she replied before she looked at the blade with a thoughtful expression.

"Wait a minute, after what you let me see in your mind with your Father and everything he said to your Mother about you. Could it be that your the one this blade was meant for?"

Orion stared at Liara, his eyes widening as he thought about what she just said.

"After everything we have talked about here and what I let you see when we melded just now, how can you possibly think that I am the one he meant. Especially with how cryptic that sentence was." he replied in a concerned tone, but Liara just responded with a slight smile, one that she hoped would disarm the bot a little.

"It kind of makes sense, I mean I know after seeing and feeling your thoughts that you don't think you are worthy of such a fate like the one your Dad said is ahead of you, but maybe that is exactly why you are."

Orion though shook his head as he looked back at her.

"No, I am really not that kind of guy. I mean I am reckless, impatient and stubborn. I have made more mistakes in my life than most and I really don't want that kind of responsibility."

"Why? I mean I kind of already know, but I want to hear you say it aloud. So tell me why you don't think you are worthy." Liara said back with a firm tone, but with an understanding look in her eye as she stared back at the Bot. Orion suddenly felt kind of embarrassed at the way she was looking at him, so he turned his attention to the floor.

"Liara, how would you feel if you found out that you were going to join a lineage of great people, especially two that became literally legends due to the deeds that they accomplished. I mean my Dad saved the entire galaxy from the threat of Unicron and his Reapers, before playing a part in creating a great and powerful Galactic Alliance. And Optimus Prime before him, well he needs no introduction or recalling of the great deeds that were done by him. I just don't think that I have what it takes to be that kind of person, because what if I did try but the. Have it all blow up in my face. I mean that incident on Rannoch all those years ago is proof enough that I am not Prime material."

Liara felt heart ache for Orion as he looked down to the ground with a hurt and saddened expression, so she put her hand on his shoulder in a supportive gesture.

"Orion, look at me." she said in a soft voice. The bot slowly raised his head until their blue eyes met, and he felt a sudden calmness come over him as he almost lost himself in the dark blue of hers.

"Orion, you may not be the perfect paragon that you think is needed to be a Prime. But I know in my heart that you are still a good person, who cares greatly for his friends and family. Your also the type of person who will never give up, no matter how dire the circumstances."

As Liara spoke, Orion remained quiet as he listened intently.

"All of this I know from spending time with you and also from what I sensed while we melded, that is all the evidence I need to believe that you are exactly that which you think is impossible…..worthy."

The Asari then took a step in front of the young Darby as she then gestured to the blade.

"But I guess there is only one sure way for you to know….so pick up the Star Saber."

Orion looked at her in surprise yet again, funny how many times she has made him do that today.

"Liara, I…" he stammered, but Liara just looked at him.

"This is the only way that you will know for sure, either you can lift it or you can't. One way or another, you will finally know. So do it."

The Bot could see in the Asari's eyes that she would not budge unless he at least attempted it, so he took a step toward the Star Saber as it hung on the wall and reached out and grasped his hand around it's hilt. Once his grip was firm, he prepared to lift it off the wall, knowing that in fact that he would not even make it move an inch.

But then his eyes widened in shock as he effortlessly lifted the Star Saber off the wall and held it in front of himself with both hands around its hilt. He looked over to Liara and saw that she too was wide eyed at the sight before her, but she smiled as their eyes met.

"I think you have your answer Orion."

The Bot returned the smile, though with a nervousness to it that Liara could understand as she watches him staring back at the blade. But then as if the whole situation was not already surprising enough, the Star Saber began to glow a light blue.

"Why's it doing that?" she asked, but Orion would not answer as he stood there and stared at the glowing blade like he was in some kind of trance.

"Orion?" the Asari asked, before noticing that his eyes were now glowing too, with the same light blue light.

"Dad?" he said out loud.

"Hello son." a familiar voice spoke back as Orion found himself standing in a white spot-light, which was completely surrounded by darkness. He looked over to see another spot-light appear in front of him and reveal his Father, Jackson Prime before him.

"Dad..."

"If you are seeing this message now, then that means you now have the Star Saber in your possession."

"Message?" Orion asked, but he did not get a response from his Dad who then carried on talking.

"Now I do not know why or even when this has occurred, but I want you to know that I am glad that it did. I want to apologise so very much for the way that I have been treating you in the last several years, I know that this would mean even more for both of us that I do this in person. But I also know that you would not give me the time of day to do this, and I wouldn't blame you." Jack said, earning an understanding expression from his Son as he listened.

"But there is a reason behind my behavior though even now as I look back, I find that I was seriously out of line. You see I had something happen to me, something that I can not explain fully. This is because I made a vow to the Aeons that I would not divulge the very things I saw at that time, because no one should know the details of their future. But I still had to ensure that what I saw will come to pass, so I have instead left you something, something that will give you an idea or what is to come. Plus I know that even while you now stand there with the very Star Saber in your hands, that you will still have doubts. You are as stubborn as both myself and your Mother, but what I have left should remedy that. You will find it inside a lock-box that is connected to the underside of my desk, the combination code is sixteen, eighteen, nine, thirteen and five."

Orion nodded as he took in the information that his Dad was passing on to him.

"Now it is time for me to go, but I want you to know that despite my behavior to you...I am in fact proud, so very proud of the man you have become. For I have kept a close eye on you and I can understand your reluctance with certain situations that have come upon you. But your choices have ended up shaping you into a better soldier than and like I said, I am proud of you son. So I Love you Orion, See you when I see you." Jack then said before he faded away, as Orion felt a tear run down his cheek just as he found himself back in the study with Liara staring back at him in confusion.

"I love you too Dad." he said softly before he was suddenly hit by bout of fatigue which caused him to drop to his knees as he breathed heavily, while using the Star Saber to keep himself upright.

"What happened?" Liara asked as she knelt down beside the Bot.

"I was given a message, through the blade." he replied between breathes.

"It was your Father right?" she asked, earning a nod from Orion.

"Yeah and you were right...about my Dad, thank you." he said back with a warm smile, which made the Asari blush as she mirrored his.

"I know...and your more than welcome Orion."

The Bot nodded before turning his attention to his Dad's desk, getting back to his feet and walking over to it.

"What are you doing now?" Liara asked with a curious tone as she stood and watched the young Darby placed the blade on the desk, then bent down and reached under it as if searching for something.

"My Dad said he left something here for me, I've just got to..." he said before a loud click could be heard, gaining a smirk from him.

"...Found it." Orion added as he pulled out a metallic box and then placed it on the desk next to the Star-saber.

"Whats in it?" the Asari asked as she joined his side, while the bot punched in the code on the keypad.

"No idea.." he replied as there was another click-like sound and the box unlocked itself. He then removed the lid and he then felt his spark jump into his throat as he recognised the object inside the box.

"By the Allspark.." was all he could say as he looked down at the glass panel that was nestled on a black silk like cloth, which had Cybertronian lettering scrolling down its width.

"What is that?" Liara asked as Orion picked up the glass panel that was the size of a page.

"Its...a page from the 'Covenant of Primus', a book of the Primes that contains prophecies of the future."

Liara's eyes widened as she comprehended what Orion just said while taking in all the detail of the page.

"Really? Can you read it?"

"From what I remember from school, there are only two types of people who can read the Covenant. Those that have trained themselves to decipher the code, like Alpha Trion. And those that the prophecies are about."

As he said this, his eyes widened in amazement as certain letters stopped scrolling down and formed words and those words formed a passage, a passage that then translated into English. Orion looked at the page and read it, while Liara could not see it at all.

'A Prime will rise and connect the past to the future, thereby completing the 'Trinity of Primes', which will defend all of creation against the heart of Darkness.'

Orion then went quiet as he stood there and looked down at the page, the prophecy repeating itself in his mind. Liara though looked at him with a concerned expression.

"Orion, Orion are you all right?"

And suddenly as if those words had woken him up, Orion placed the page back in the box and picked up the Star-Saber from the table and walked out of the room without saying a word. Liara followed as her concerned look changed to one of confusion.

"Orion, whats going on? Where are you going?" she asked as he opened the back-door and stepped into the yard behind the house.

"I want to see what this can do." he simply replied while entering the large area between the four holo-emitters, he then stabbed the Star-Saber into the ground and the activated his holo-tool.

"Computer, load up Jackson Prime 'Husk' battle scenario level intermediate."

Then suddenly the air inside of the holo-emitters began to sparkle as Liara stopped on the steps and looked at the bot as he looked back and smiled.

"I have watched my Dad use this hundreds of times, what better place to try out the Star-Saber." he said before noticing that his holo-tool was beeping at him, so he pulled the blade out of the ground and took a defensive stance.

"Enable."

Suddenly several Husks materialized out of nowhere, attacking the Bot instantly. But he simply cut them down, one after another with the mighty sword. One of the Husks rushed Orion from his right but he kicked it in the chest, making it fall back before slicing it's head off. The defeated Husk then turned to pixels as it disappeared, but the young Darby was not given a moment to breath as another Husk launched itself at him from his front. The Bot then swung the blade down and sliced the hologram in half, both sides falling away and turning to pixels while he turned his attention to the other Husks that were readying themselves to attack.

Orion couldn't say that he was entirely comfortable with such a large sword, even one that felt as light to him as one of the training staff's he used during Master Prowl's lessons when he was younger. But the other Husks attacked and one by one, Orion took them out of the game, leaving pixels in the air where they used to stand.

As this was happening, Liara had taken a seat on the steps of the back door and watched in silent amazement at the young Darby's fighting prowess. Though she had seen him fight before, it was still a sight to behold from one so young when compared to herself and other Asari who had spent centuries perfecting their fighting styles. Suddenly one of the newest wave of Husks leapt onto Orion's back, but he was ready for it and used the creature's inertia to throw it into the others, knocking them down to the ground like bowling pins.

The Bot then smiled as an idea came to mind, so just as the Husks charged at him. Orion concentrated and spun the blade around him before slashing the air in front of him, but then went wide-eyed with confusion when nothing happened.

'What the…?' he thought before suddenly feeling like something had smashed into his face, as the Bot found himself hitting the floor hard.

"Orion!" Liara shouted as she stood up on the step and looked to see her friend on his front, the Husks standing around him as though they were waiting for him to make a move.

The young Man then got onto his hands and knees with a grimace before giving the Asari a thumbs up to show he was alright, earning a sigh of relief from the blue woman as she looked on. Orion then looked at the Star-Saber as it rested on the ground next to him.

'Stupid Orion! Your not a Prime yet, the saber won't let you use it to its full potential because you haven't earned the right yet.' he thought as he took a breath, then he took hold of the sword by its hilt and got on his knees, holding the blade of the saber with his free hand. The Husks just stood around him and watched, as did Liara.

'What's he doing?' she thought.

But Orion closed his eyes and concentrated on his thoughts on the relic of the Primes in his hand.

'I have never believed in destiny, rather I would prefer to forge my own path in life. Though t seems that destiny has other plans and that my life is to become intertwined with that of the Primes, but that is not important right now, for at this moment a mad man has taken my parents hostage and is currently unleashing chaos upon the innocents of our galaxy. So please...help me to end the threat that he poses and rescue my parents, and...I will leave it to you to decide if I am worthy of the destiny that is before me.'

Suddenly the Star Saber began to shift and change its form right there in the young bot's hands, as a slight smile grew on his face. Once the transformation had ended, gone was the overly large long-sword that the Star-Saber once was, and in its place was what could only be described as a hybrid of a Cybertronian blade and an Japanese Katanna.

Orion then gripped the new blade by its hilt and it glowed a faint blue, making his smile even wider as he looked up at the Husks staring down at him.

'Thank you.' he thought before launching to his feet and swiping at all the holograms in one swooping action, leaving nothing but pixels in his wake. Liara stared in complete shock as Orion systematically took down one Husk after another with the new looking Star Saber, holding it with both hands around its hilt. But then two husks attacked from either side of the Bot, so he switched to one hand on the saber as the activated his holo-armblades with his other and swiped at one of the two, taking it's head off before side kicking the other.

This made the hologram stumble backwards as Orion then sliced across its chest with the saber, making it grimace before spinning around so that his back was to the creature. And then with both hands on the Star Saber's hilt which he had flipped around, he then stabbed back into the Husk, right through its heart.

For what felt like a long moment he stood there in mid-action with the Husk impaled on the Star Saber, before he then took a step forward and withdrew the blade from the Husk who then fell backwards and exploded into a cloud of pixels. Liara took a step toward the holo-field as a score appeared on the outer edges in front of her and looked like a screen.

'Congratulations, a new time record and second place on the scoreboard.'

"Orion, that was amazing." the Asari said as the Bot walked out of the holo-field which then deactivated, shutting down the holo-emitters again.

"That was definitely something." he replied in equal amazement while he looked down at the Star Saber.

"So I guess you must have a destiny then." Liara said with a half smile, gaining a nod from the Bot who returned the smile.

"It looks that way." he said before his face went serious and he looked out towards the ocean.

"What is it?"

"We should head back and help with the repairs to the Normandy, we need to get back out there, find the Predacons and stop them." the Bot replied.

"And we will, but you heard what Rodimus said. The ship will still be in the drydock for another few days, so how about that tour you said you would give me. I would like to see the whole area where you grew up at least, I mean even future Primes need to a breather every now and then...right?" she asked with a smile, making the Orion's expression soften into a similar smile.

"Your right, let me just put the saber back indoors.." he replied as the two headed for the house.

"...and I know I have said this already, but thank you." he added in a warm tone, which made the Asari blush in return.

"Don't mention it she said with a radiant smile as they entered the house.