“Orion Pax, this has to be the dumbest idea you’ve ever had!” shouted Ironhide as Orion started packing. “You’re just gonna wander around with no vehicle mode for your current frame, no idea where you’re going, and you’re just hoping you’ll find something! Kid, this is nuts!”
“Actually, that café Aaron mentioned is a good start,” mused Amy. “I know the address. Look for a blue hedgehog named Misty.”
“About that,” continued Ironhide, who had a grievance against this whole thing, “are you really gonna take advice from a psycho that tried to kill us?!”
“Well,” answered Orion, “Amy DID just say that the café exists and I don’t think she would hang out with any bad witches. Besides, Misty might give me some magic hotspots across the planet.”
“You’re still going to go on a journey with no weapons and no backup!” wailed Ironhide.
“He’s not totally backup-less,” assured Teletraan. “Both Arks will track his position and get him out if he’s in a jam.”
“On top of that,” replied Orion, “I DID scan a vehicle mode. While it’s not as sleek as my original mode, it serves this frame well. Tails and Ratchet are making some gadgets for me in case I run into trouble.”
“Ask, and ye shall receive!” called Tails’ voice. He was riding the rolling table Ratchet was pushing. For someone so cranky, Ratchet had a grin on his face.
“Who ordered gadgets built by two geniuses?!” he cheered.
“Oooh, does somebody have new toys for me to play with?” asked Orion, acting like a child on Christmas.
“We certainly do!” replied Tails. “So, pay attention. These toys have one or two expensive accessories.”
“‘One or two’? Go on,” urged Orion with a grin.
“…There really is no point in giving you the standard safety lecture, is there?” sighed Ratchet.
“First off,” began Tails as he pointed to a circuit board, “that circuit board will connect you to both Arks and the base. Since the Energon density messes up the normal comms when you go the normal linear route, it sends the signal to the Arks and will direct the call to whoever you want to talk to. Simply tap your comms unit, say who you want to talk to, and you can enjoy a conversation wherever on Mobius you happen to be. Tap it again to close the channel. Hold it down for three seconds to initiate an emergency teleport to get you out of whatever mess you’re in.”
“As for your new weapons,” supplied Ratchet, “it should integrate well with your weapons systems. They’re designed to look like decorative smoke stacks since trucks no longer run on fossil fuels.” Orion took the two smoke stacks and put them on his upper arms. He then lowered a blue visor with an HUD targeting system. He saw a target board and locked onto the center to calibrate them. They rotated to point at the target and Orion fired. The two beams connected at the target and started a small fire.
“Vector tap dancing Prime!” yelped Ironhide as he took a fire extinguisher and emptied the contents onto the target board. Tails allowed himself an evil laugh.
“Good work, you two,” praised Orion. “I might keep them after I get my magic back.”
“Can’t you just wait to tell G.U.N. about this mess or are you gonna keep them in the dark?” asked Ironhide.
“What they don’t know won’t hurt them,” remarked a voice. Everyone turned and saw the weirdest sight ever! They saw Optimus Prime!
“What the?!” yelped Tails.
“Hello, Orion!” greeted the Optimus clone.
“Hello, Optimus!” returned Orion. “How are you doing?”
“I’m doing very well,” replied the Optimus clone. “How about you?”
“Fine, given the circumstances,” sighed Orion. “Do you want to explain, or should I?”
“Oh, you and Teletraan should BOTH do it,” encouraged the Optimus clone. “You two do it so well.”
“Thank you!” replied Orion. He turned back to the Autobots. “My friends, say hello to the Holo-droid!”
“I developed him as a decoy in case Egghead decided to invade,” supplied Teletraan. “Don’t worry, you can thank me later.”
“And Teletraan had developed a way to upload memories and mental patterns onto it,” continued Orion. “So, it’s like I never lost my magic!”
“Granted,” sighed Holo-Optimus, “I can’t use magic, but G.U.N. doesn’t need to know.”
“Don’t worry,” assured Orion. “I have planned for everything.”
“Kiddo, I really think you should…!” protested Ironhide.
“Ironhide,” interrupted Orion, “I get that you’re worried about me, but this needs to be done. Someone, somewhere on this planet, can help me fix my magic and I need to find that someone before things get really bad.”
“Well, if you’re sure…” sighed Ironhide.
“Look, G.U.N. will be told that there’s a problem that demands my undivided attention,” assured Orion, “that way, the whole thing can be uninterrupted. I won’t leave right now, but I will be going at 5:30 tomorrow morning.” Ironhide sighed.
“Good luck, then,” he bid.
5:30 came, Orion’s quiet alarm buzzed him awake. He got out of bed, grabbed his stuff and headed for the main doors.
“You sure you don’t want everyone here?” asked a voice in a quiet tone. Orion turned to see his best friend leaning against the wall.
“Let’s be honest, dude,” replied Orion in the same quiet tone, “they’ll just say I should take more time to prepare.”
“They’re right, you know,” remarked Jazz. “You shouldn’t leave until you’re absolutely ready.”
“I’ve got the ship and space colony monitoring my position,” assured Orion, “and a crew and friends that I can rely on. I’m good on all fronts.”
“Then, good luck,” bid Jazz. Orion gave a reassuring grin to Jazz and glanced around the base.
“I will be back,” he promised. “When I do, things will be different.” With that, he stepped through the doors, transformed into a futuristic semi-truck, summoned his trailer, and sped off into the early morning.