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Description
Transformers: Mirror Universe

It was mid-December of 2009. It was cold and snowing outside. The snow covered everything. It was a light downfall, nothing that would cause any accidents. People walked along the sidewalks and cars drove down Court Street. The snow or cold didn’t stop some people from going to the bars. It was a typical night without the students in town at Lucky’s Sports Tavern. The bar was actually quite small but it would still get crowded especially when the Steelers were playing. It used to be a carry out but in 2004 it was remodeled and turned into a complete bar. People were in there getting drunk, playing pool, some even stood by and watched but most of all they were having a good time. Most of them were having a good time. Dustin was sitting at the bar. He leaned against it with his forearms resting on the edge while he slowly turned a bottle of beer that was sitting on the bar. He just sat there looking at bottle. He had been sitting there for about forty-five minutes and only took a few drinks from his beer. He was flat out depressed. He still wore his wedding ring on his left hand. He didn’t have the heart to take it off. Every time he would attempt it he would start crying. Some days he would just sit in his room and not come out. Sometimes it would be days before he’d report to Autobot City.  It’s been almost three months since the Decepticons killed his wife. The only good news is that the Decepticons hadn’t bothered him since he faced the Lyacons. He wasn’t surprised by that fact; after all he did send what was left of Weapon to them. He played back the memory of that dark day over and over again in his head. He tried to black it out but it wouldn’t happen, his mind kept playing that fateful day. Sometimes he thought that he could have saved her if he would have just taken the blast, but other times he was more rational by thinking it was a reflex to move. A tear started to swell up in his eye. He quickly closed his eyes to hide the tear. He hated crying and he hated to show emotion. He felt cold and alone. Then a warm, friendly and welcome voice called out to him.
“Hey, Dustin.” The voice said.
He turned around to see who had called his name. It was Liz and Katie, his two closest and dearest friends. They came up and sat down on either side of him. He enjoyed their company very much. Liz had a concerned look on her face. He knew exactly why she had that look and attempted to hide his feelings. But Liz knew better than that. Ever since they met Liz could easily tell if he was lying about his feelings. Katie was also concerned but Dustin could hide his emotions from her but she could usually tell anyway. Dustin leaned back in his stool so that he could see both Liz and Katie in his peripheral vision.
“How you doin? Alright?” Katie asked.
“Eh,” Dustin shrugged. “You know the same as usual.”
“Still thinkin’ about her?” Liz asked.
“Yeah,” Dustin said softly “I’ve been trying to get over her but it isn’t easy, you know. I need to have a clear head; I’ve got a universe to save.”
The two girls put their hands on his shoulders. That actually surprised Dustin, because they did it at the same time. They both have always said that they are the same person. Dustin fought back a grin. It seemed inappropriate at the time.
“Were you trying to fight back a grin?” Liz asked.

“Damn, she’s good.” Dustin thought to himself.
Dustin nodded. Liz laughed in triumph and Katie giggled.
“What were you grinning about?” Katie asked.
“Well, both of you put your hands on my shoulders at the same time and you guys keep telling me that you are the same person, so that thought popped in my head.”
The two girls laughed.
“Come on, Dustin let’s go get something to eat.” Katie said.
Dustin nodded. He took one last drink from his warm beer. As soon as the beer touched his tongue he cringed and forced himself to swallow it. He put a 5 dollar bill on the bar as a tip and the bartender came and snatched it up. The three of them walked out of the bar. It was still snowing. Dustin put his hands in his pockets of his leather jacket, while the other two slipped on their gloves. They began walking up the street. They walked up to Skipper’s Bar and Grill. There was hardly anyone in there. With the exception of the bartenders and waitstaff there were probably six people in there at the most. A waitress came over and greeted them. She had the same build as Liz but only taller. The waitress had short blonde hair and glasses.  She showed them to their table and handed them each a menu. Dustin just stared blankly at his, not really thinking about what he wanted to eat. Liz looked up at him then looked back down at her menu.
“What are you getting, Dustin?”
“I’m not really hungry.”
Liz set down her menu and gave him a look as if she didn’t believe him. She extended her right arm and held out her pinkie finger. She wanted him to interlock his pinkie finger with hers. If he did, it meant that he wasn’t hungry and if he didn’t that meant that he was being stubborn. She knew he was full of it otherwise she wouldn’t have done it.  He didn’t do it. He knew damn well that he was hungry. He hadn’t eaten anything for two days.  He picked up his menu and looked to see what was offered.
“I thought so.”
Katie grinned at the remark. The waitress finally returned and took their order then left again. Liz leaned forward resting her elbows on the table. She looked at Dustin, trying to figure out what he was thinking. She knew he was obviously thinking about Sarah. She didn’t want to pry but Dustin was her friend and she wanted him to feel better. Everytime she or Katie needed someone Dustin was always there for them. Whether it was rescuing them from the Decepticons or just being there to talk. He was always there for them and she wanted to return the favor.
“So, Dustin what’s been going on? We haven’t seen you for days.”
“Not a whole lot. Just  you know.”
“Transformer stuff?” Katie asked.
Dustin nodded.
“So, how is Cybertron? I would like to go there one day.” Liz asked.
“Not bad. It’s Cybertron. I’ve gotten used to it. Maybe later this week I’ll take you there.” Dustin said in a somewhat monotone voice.
Liz looked at Dustin trying to feel what he was feeling but she couldn’t. In fact, she thought that Dustin was doing quite well given his situation. His wife just died and he was not shedding a tear. However, keeping it in wasn’t healthy and if something were to happen to him she would do more than just cry.  Nevertheless, she did not want to think about that sort of thing because it scared her. She knew that it could happen at anytime now with the Autobot/Decepticon War. A war, which one of her closest friends was a part in. Even though she wasn’t with Dustin she was still scared that one day he might not come back. The waitress returned with their order. As they ate their food they continued to talk about the old days.

After they finished their meals, they walked outside. The snow had stopped for the moment. He gave both Katie and Liz a hug as they said their good-byes for the evening. He watched them walk away and to Liz’s car. He continued to watch them just to be sure nothing would happen, with the Decepticons out there you never could tell. They got into the car and he watched them drive off. Then he continued to his car. He got in and decided to go to Autobot City. He drove to the outskirts of Athens and arrived at Autobot City. He got out and his exosuit folded out over his body then he then transformed into Shortstop. He walked in and headed towards the control room. It’s been awhile since he was here last. Optimus Prime knew that he needed some time off. He walked in and Prime was standing at the giant computer screen. Prime looked up at him. He was a little surprised to see him, especially at this hour. Just then Prowl walked into the room. Shortstop greeted him by nodding his head. Prowl walked over to him.
“Shortstop, can I talk to you for a few astroseconds?”
“Sure thing. Let’s go outside.”
Actually, let’s go to my place.” Prowl said while pulling out his laser pistol.
Prime attempted to move but Prowl shook his head.
“It’s alright, Prime.” Shortstop assured him.
Prowl activated a keypad on his forearm and then the two Autobots vanished in mist of blue light.

The two materialized in a metallic cave. The cave looked as if it had been there for years. Lights ran along side the gold metallic wall. Shortstop looked around to see if he could recognize it but couldn’t. He was guessing he was in the lower levels of Cybertron.
“Where are we?” Shortstop demanded.
“Well I guess you could say that we stepped through the looking glass.”
They began to walk through the corridors. They walked through a door.
Shortstop realized how far behind Prowl was, so he quickly turned around, grabbed his arm twisted it and held it behind his back. He grabbed Prowl’s pistol and aimed it at him.
“Nice move.” Prowl said.
“I’m glad you like it. Now tell me what is going on.”

“Ok, millions of years ago when the war raged on and the planet was out of resources the Autobots attempted to find energy elsewhere. But their plan was thwarted by the Decepticons. Optimus Prime was assassinated before he could board the Ark. The Decepticons have an alliance with the Quintisons. They have killed more than half of our forces. About a year ago a shuttle came to Cybertron with scientists and explorers. The Decepticons attacked the shuttle and it crashed. Only two humans survived. The Decepticons held them captive. One of them escaped and found us. He sided with us to fight the Decepticons, also became a Headmaster, with the help from Brainstorm. He was named Shortstop. Instead of an Earth car he was a Cybertronian sports car. He has helped us tremendously with the battle. But the other was taken prisoner. Since then she has started helping the Decepticons. Our resources tell us that she is building this sensor array that will locate our base. If she completes this array then we will not have a chance. Our Shortstop was killed on this mission.”
“Let me guess you want me to take his place.”
“You’re quick.”
“I’m not going to do it.”
“Look I’m not asking for a lifetime commitment. All I’m asking for is for you to complete this mission.”
“Why me?”
“Shortstop was certain he could convince her to side with us.”
“How did he plan to do that?”
“She was his wife.”
Prowl pulled out a hologram and activated it. An image of a girl appeared. Shortstops eyes went wide.
“Sarah.”
“You know her?”
“She was my wife too. But in my universe, she’s dead.”
“Not here she isn’t. Not yet anyway.”
“What do you mean?”
“Not all of us are Autobots. Starscream, Astrotrain, Runabout, Blitzwing and the Combaticons are on our side as well. Shortstop was in command. Starscream said that if Shortstop didn’t succeed on this mission. He was going to terminate her.”
Shortstop finally responded after a few moments.
“I can’t let her die again.” He said not taking his eyes off the hologram.
“You’re the only one who can save her.”
The two Autobots continued to walk through the cave’s tunnels and Prowl continued to explain.
“You see the reason why Sarah didn’t attempt to escape was because she and Shortstop never got along. In fact Shortstop never really got along with anybody. I wish I had more time to explain more. I haven’t told you half of what you should know. There will be some surprises.”
“Well I’m just going to have to improvise.”
Prowl smirked at the comment. They continued to walk through the tunnels to the hidden base.

The rest of the Autobots were standing around listening to Starscream babble.  They all stood in the Autobot base’s main room. The room was spherical and large. Multiple tunnels led from this room to other places.
“I knew he wouldn’t get anywhere near Iacon.” Starscream said.
“I say we teach ‘em a lesson by throwing everything we’ve got at them.” Runabout said.

“I disagree following your plan of action would result in significant loss of life.” Perceptor said.
“Easy for you to say. Those Decepticon pigbots didn’t kill your brother.”
“We have all suffered losses at the hands of the Decepticons. Logic dictates caution in the face of a superior enemy.”
“Logic won’t get us anywhere. We need to take action.”
“And we will, but we do it my way. I say we plant energon explosives all around this flesh creatures room and detonate them.” Starscream continued.
“Any bot that goes on the mission will not return.”
“I say it’s worth the risk.”
The other Autobots started agreeing with Starscream. They all looked like they could use a victory. They were battered and bruised.  Their moral was low especially with the loss of their best warrior. Just then their best warrior walked into the room.
“Does that mean you’re volunteering for the job?”
“Shortstop, you’re alive.” Runabout said.
Shortstop was taken back at seeing the mirror counterparts of Starscream, Perceptor, Runabout and other various Autobots. Prowl saw Shortstop’s hesitation and stepped in.
“Of course he’s alive. He’s alive because he’s too sly.” Prowl said.
Shortstop picked up on Prowl’s cue and snapped into mirror Shortstop’s role.
“I hope that doesn’t disappoint anyone.” Shortstop said walking up to Starscream.
“Glad you’re alright.” Starscream said softly with Shortstop only inches away from his face.
“I’m sure you are.”
“We thought you were terminated. The Decepticons said you were dead.” Perceptor said.
Shortstop turned back the group of Autobots and leaned onto the round metallic table.
“Just their propaganda machine working overtime. But you know what that tells me?” Shortstop motioned his warriors to get closer. “They’re scared.”
Shortstop walked up to Starscream and gets in his face again.
“And we’re going to give them a reason to stay scared.
All of the Autobots laughed.
“Well it’s about time you came back.”  A voice said.
It was Arcee, the female walked into the room. She walked up to Shortstop and kissed him.
“That’s to let you know I missed you.”
She slapped him across the face.
“And that’s for making me think you were dead.”
She began to walk away.
“I need to talk about Iacon’s schematics with you.”
Shortstop just stood there still rubbing his cheek.
“Are you coming or not?”
Shortstop walked up to Prowl.
“I thought you said I was married.”
“You are technically. But she’s your mistress.”

“I see what you mean by surprises.”
Shortstop followed Arcee down another tunnel.

Megatron sat in his throne room. He was admiring the update of the Autobot body count that Reflector had given him. He was proud of his accomplishments. He had assassinated Optimus Prime, and his forces were defeating the remaining Autobots. He had allied himself with the Quintisons. He wasn’t too fond of the five faced Transformer creators but they helped out tremendously. He knew that he still would have been victorious against the Autobots eventually but they brought that vision within arms reach more quickly than he anticipated. He was waiting for Skywarp and Thundercracker to report in. Just then a button on the arm of his throne flashed.  He touched the button and Skywarp’s image appeared on the screen.
“This is Skywarp reporting in.”
“What is the situation?”
“The situation is in our favor. We are finishing off the rest of the Autobots in this sector. We are ready to proceed.”
“Excellent. As soon as your finished there report back to Headquarters.”
“Yes, Mighty Megatron.”
The screen went blank.
“Soon, the Autobots will be finished and then we will go against our allies, the Quintisons.” Megaton thought to himself.

The Autobots were planning their attack on Iacon. Shortstop walked around the room preaching to his troops the reasoning behind keeping Sarah alive. Some of them wanted to keep her alive because they knew how big of a help she would become. But some others, including Starscream, wasn’t so optimistic.
“We need to get Sarah out of Iacon and soon.”
“We’ve been meaning to talk to you about that.” Starscream said.
“Starscream believes that you will not be able to persuade your former mate.” Perceptor said.
“Oh, I can be very persuasive.” Shortstop said as he ran a finger along Arcee’s chin.
Starscream began to speak his mind. Prowl walked up to Shortstop.
“Hit him. That’s what Shortstop would have done. Hit him.”
“not sure that you could convince her. Face it, the flesh bag hates you.”
Just then Shortstop spun around and punched Starscream in the face. The blow knocked him over. He walked over and picked the ex-Decepticon by the neck.
“What my wife thinks of me is none of your concern.”
“Anyone else want to disagree?” Arcee said while pulling out her pistol.
“Put it away, Arcee”
She looked confused and looked over to Prowl. Prowl just shook his head.
“No one is questioning you, but we can’t let her finish the array.” Starscream said while still in Shortstop’s grip.
“And there is only one sure way.” Astrotrain said.

“We have to terminate her.”
“You have been saying that all along.” Prowl said.
“Maybe it’s time he listened.”
“We’re going to do it my way. Let’s get to work.” Shortstop ordered.

At Iacon, Megatron was standing at the control board. He watched the security screen, watching to see if the Autobots were going to try anything stupid. Then Skywarp walked into the room to report.
“Mighty Megatron, we have an informant from the Autobot base.”
“Bring him to me.”
Skywarp stood aside to let in the traitor.
“Now tell Megatron what you told me.”
The traitor walked in. It was Runabout.
Megatron walked up to him.
“What information do you have for me that could be valuable?”
“It’s about Shortstop. He’s alive.”
Skywarp’s eyes went big. Then he picked up Runabout by his shoulders and held him against the wall.
“If you’re lying”
“I’m not lying. I saw him with my own optics. He is alive and ready to take you on.”
“Set him down, Skywarp.”
Skywarp did as he was told and set Runabout down.
“Like I said before, if you’re lying then I will personally rip out your servos and hand them to you.” Skywarp said as he pointed his arm barrel at Runabout’s face.

Meanwhile, Prowl and Shortstop were on their way to Iacon. They each were in their vehicle modes. Prowl finally spoke up to break the silence.
“How long ago did Sarah die?”
“Almost three months ago.”
“What happened?”
“Well, in my universe the Decepticons called upon the Lyacons to take me on. I took on the leader after I had defeated the others. As I had him in my sights he fired at me. I dodged the blast and it hit a corner of Autobot City. The wall collapsed on top of Sarah. I wasn’t able to save her.”
“Sorry to hear that.”
“So tell me about the Sarah of this universe.”
“Well I don’t know much other than what Shortstop told me. All I know is that they shouldn’t have been together in the first place. The story that I heard was that they met in school. I never met Sarah so I don’t know what she is like. What was your Sarah like?”

“She was the most kind and caring person I had ever met. We got together after I revealed my identity to her.  Being an Autobot wasn’t the reason we got together. She found me to be quite the gentleman and she liked my personality. The night we were supposed to go on our first date, I had battled a group of Decepticons by myself and I was wounded. I stumbled to her house and she helped me out.  We were together for awhile, and then the day after we were married, she was killed.”
A tear began to form at the corner of Shortstop’s eye. Just then Prowl stopped in his tracks. Shortstop did the same. They transformed into their robot mode.
“What’s going on, Prowl?”
“I’m picking up multiple Decepticon signatures. They are all around us.”
“Where are they I don’t see them.”
Just then seven Decepticons de-cloaked right in front of them, aiming their weapons at the two Autobots. Shortstop was surprised.
“They have cloaking devices. You’re right you didn’t tell me half of what I needed to know.”
“You know, Shortstop would have tried fight his way out of this.”
“Just be glad I’m not him.”
The Decepticons took the Autobots prisoner and took them to Iacon.

They arrived at Iacon. They walked through the loading hatch. Megatron, Skywarp and Thundercracker were waiting. The two prisoners walked up to them.
“You’re dead.” Thundercracker said.
“No kidding.” Shortstop replied.
“So you happened to survive the attack. Pity. You’re going to wish that you died.” Megatron said.
They two enemies stood inches from each other. Megatron being the taller one by at least a foot. He turned to Prowl, who was being quiet.
“Now what are we going to do about Prowl? Before the war you were a goods merchant with your twin Bluestreak. Now he’s head of security for the Autobots. You could have joined the Decepticons and could have been on the winning side. Why didn’t you join?”
“I wanted to be free and have peace.”
“BAH, Peace through tyranny.” Megatron shot back. “Take them away.”
The Decepticon soldiers escorted the Autobots to their cells. They put them in separate cells one next to the other. Prowl sat down on the ledge that stuck out of the metal wall. Shortstop paced around in his. He wanted to get Sarah down here but he didn’t know how. Just then the door to his cell opened. Skywarp had escorted Sarah to him. She stood there with her arms crossed, looking at him, disgusted by him. She didn’t want to see him but Skywarp insisted she would so that he could get pleasure out of seeing Shortstop in torment. But while she was down here she might as well see what he wanted. She turned to Skywarp.
“Leave us.”
“What? And miss this exciting event?”
“You heard her.” Shortstop said in a low maniacal voice.
“If you need any one to beat him into submission, don’t hesitate to call.”
Skywarp walked out the door and closed it behind him. He posted Ramjet and Dirge at the door. Sarah turned back to Shortstop. Shortstop’s head flew off and transformed into Dustin’s exosuit form the body transformed into vehicle mode. The cell was actually big enough to fit a car of that size without problem. Dustin’s armor slid off of his body. He came up to her. She still looked as the day he first laid eyes on her.  She looked at him impatiently.
“Skywarp said you wanted to see me. Well I’m here. What do you want?”
“I wanted to talk.”

“Really? You didn’t seem interested when we were married.”
“I made a lot of mistakes back then.”
Save the apologies Dustin. They're not going to work.  You are without a doubt, the most insensitive, self-absorbed, egotistical...
“You’ve made your point.”
“I doubt it. You never listened before. You were always trying to impress every woman who crossed your path.”
“Were there really that many?”
“And if it wasn’t women it was that damn transformer of yours. Sometimes I think that was the only thing you ever loved.”
“Maybe I loved you both.”
“Then why did you leave me to run off to play pirate to Megatron?”
“That’s a good question.”
“Do you know how many deaths you’ve caused? How much destruction?”
“I’m fighting to free the Autobots.”
“You’re fighting because you like to fight, Dustin.”
“I just hope that your captivity will bring an end to this senseless fighting.
“Who said I was captured?”
“Oh, and I suppose you just came here to see me?”
“Actually I came here to rescue you.”
“Rescue me?”
“Yeah I came to get you out of here so that you wouldn’t finish the sensor array. If you finish the array not only will they kill off the Autobots, they will kill you as well.”
“Kill me? They wouldn’t kill me. They need me.”
“Sarah, listen. I know the Decepticons. They will kill you.”
“You’re full of it.”
“Fine, don’t believe me. But I came to get you out of here and I’m going to do just that.”
The armor slid over his body again and he transformed back into the head of the mighty transformer. The car transformed back into the body and the two connected. Just then he walked past here and knocked on the door. Ramjet opened the door and Shortstop aimed his arm lasers at his face and fired. Ramjet’s face exploded and his lifeless body fell to the ground. Dirge fired his weapon at him but Shortstop avoided the photon blasts and ran up to Dirge and punched him in the face. Then, he fired his arm laser and hit him in the neck. He fell to the ground aswell. Shortstop faced Sarah, who was still standing in the cell. He aimed both of his arm lasers down both corridors waiting for more Decepticons to arrive.
“Come on I need an answer.”
“Do I have a choice?”
“Of course you have a choice. If you want you can to back to your quarters and forget we ever spoke.
Sarah walked out of the cell and up to Shortstop.
“Let’s get one thing straight. I still hate you.”
“I know.”
Shortstop walked over to Prowl’s cell and let him out. They all ran down the corridors looking for a way out. Sarah led them to the entry hatch. Then they stood there in horror. Runabout was stuck to the hatch. He had a metal rod shoved though his chest plate.

“Can’t get out that way.”
Just then, Thrust and Shockwave fired at them. Prowl and Shortstop returned fire. They were held behind a corner, unable to go anywhere. Finally, Megatron showed up. He was impressed by the maneuver they had just pulled.
“Impressive, Shortstop. But it won’t help you.”
Shortstop peeked around the corner to see how many Decepticons were there. There were about 10 or 12 that he saw.
“I can’t shoot around corners.” Prowl said.
“I can.” Shortstop said as he pulled out his spoiler and activated the boomerang sequence. He threw it around the corner. It took out Shockwave, Thrust, Pounce, Wingspan, Kickback, Bombshell and Shrapnel. The boomerang returned to him. While this was going on, Sarah was looking at him.
“Just leave me here, I’ll convince them to let you go just as long as I stay.”
“I came here to get you and I’m not leaving without you.”
Sarah looked at him as if there was something different about him. Shortstop noticed her staring at him.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“We need a diversion.” Prowl said.
“I have one.” Shortstop said as he punched the wall.
“What good will that do?” Sarah asked.
“Just watch.”
Shortstop pulled out a chunk of the wall. The chunk was about as big as his hand. He just held it there. Then, the chunk started to glow. He then threw it around the corner and it exploded. Smoke filled the corridor. The three of them took off running, while Shortstop fired down the corridor with his arm lasers. Then finally they had gotten away from them.
“Alright we need a door. Let’s make a door.”
Shortstop pulled out his spoiler and used it as a sword. He shoved it through the wall and made a huge gaping hole in it. The two of them transformed and left. To Dustin’s surprise Sarah had gotten into his car. As soon as they were clear, Dustin activated his comm. link.
“Starscream, we are clear. You are good to go.”
Starscream and the other Autobots flew and drove around Iacon. They each laid Energon explosives around the building. They all took off and then detonated them. The building collapsed and with all of the Decepticons inside. All that was left of Iacon was debris and a big cloud of dust and smoke.
They all returned to their underground base. Dustin remained in his exosuit form and talked to Sarah.
“What will you do now?”
“I might go to the planet of Junk and see if I can get the Junkions on our side.”
Already this wasn't easy for Dustin.  He was torn with emotion.  He knew he wasn’t saying good-bye to his Sarah, but it felt like it anyway.
“Sarah, there is so much I want to tell you. But I don’t know where to start.”
“You can start by telling me who you are and what happened to my husband.” She said with a slight smile.

Before Dustin could deny it, Sarah pressed on.
“Don’t bother. I don’t know who you are but you are not Dustin Zofchak.”
Dustin considered trying to continue the charade but thought better about it.
“When did you figure it out?”
“I think I suspected from the beginning. It was your eyes.”
“What about them?”
“They’re too kind. There was nothing kind about Dustin.”
Sarah paused for a moment.
“He’s dead isn’t he?”
“I’m sorry.” Dustin said sorrowfully.
“Don’t be.  So who are you, really?”
“It’s a long story. Talk to Prowl. He can fill you in on the details.”
“He seems like a good bot.”
“He does that. So what are you going to do now?”
“Oh, I’m sure Prowl can find something to keep me busy.   You’re not really going to visit the Junkions are you?”
Dustin shook his head.
“The deal was I get you out of Iacon and then I go home.”
“Will I see you again?”
“I don’t know.”
Sarah leaned over and kissed Dustin on the cheek.
“Thank youfor rescuing me.”
“It was my pleasure.”
They stood there looking at each other. Then Prowl came in, ruining the mood.
“Ready, Shortstop?”
Dustin put on his helmet to his exosuit and transformed into the head of Shortstop while the car transformed into the body.
“Take me home, Prowl.”
Dustin reluctantly walked out of the room with Prowl.

Part 2

Shortstop stepped onto the transporter pad. Prowl stood at the controls and pressed a few buttons. Nothing happened. Shortstop shifted his head, looking confused. Prowl didn’t know what was going on.
“Ummm.”
“What’s going on, Prowl?”
“I don’t know. It’s not working.”
“Well I can see that.”
Shortstop stepped off of the pad and walked over to the control board. Prowl was still trying to figure out what was wrong with it.  The power levels were still high enough to transport but for some reason it wouldn’t function.
“I’ve tried everything I know but it won’t work. I’d hate to state the obvious but you’re stuck here till I can get this thing operational.” Prowl said. Shortstop sighed.

Dustin walked slowly to his car. He stopped at a street corner to let cars pass by.  Once the cars stopped going by he preceded to walk across the street.  The Shortstop body in vehicle mode was visible and only feet away. He pulled out his keys to unlock his car. Somebody yelled to him.

“HEY DUSTIN!” The voice said.

He turned around to see a girl he used to work with. Her name was Kim. She was a very cute girl. He knew she had a crush on him when they worked together but that was over a year ago.  She had the same build as his friend Liz but she was darker tone to her skin and had shorter, darker hair.

“How you doing?” She asked.

Dustin nodded.

“I haven’t seen much of you since you joined the Autobots. I’ve seen you on the news and stuff but other than that no.”

“Yeah, I’ve been kinda busy.”

“I’m sorry about your wife. I don’t mean to bring it up but I want you to know if you need anyone I’m here if you need somebody.”

Dustin nodded.

Tears fell down Dustin’s face. He lifted his arm to wipe away the tears. He then dropped to his knees and cried. Kim knelt down and put her arms around him as he continued to cry.

Description
Transformers: Mirror Universe

It was mid-December of 2009. It was cold and snowing outside. The snow covered everything. It was a light downfall, nothing that would cause any accidents. People walked along the sidewalks and cars drove down Court Street. The snow or cold didn’t stop some people from going to the bars. It was a typical night without the students in town at Lucky’s Sports Tavern. The bar was actually quite small but it would still get crowded especially when the Steelers were playing. It used to be a carry out but in 2004 it was remodeled and turned into a complete bar. People were in there getting drunk, playing pool, some even stood by and watched but most of all they were having a good time. Most of them were having a good time. Dustin was sitting at the bar. He leaned against it with his forearms resting on the edge while he slowly turned a bottle of beer that was sitting on the bar. He just sat there looking at bottle. He had been sitting there for about forty-five minutes and only took a few drinks from his beer. He was flat out depressed. He still wore his wedding ring on his left hand. He didn’t have the heart to take it off. Every time he would attempt it he would start crying. Some days he would just sit in his room and not come out. Sometimes it would be days before he’d report to Autobot City.  It’s been almost three months since the Decepticons killed his wife. The only good news is that the Decepticons hadn’t bothered him since he faced the Lyacons. He wasn’t surprised by that fact; after all he did send what was left of Weapon to them. He played back the memory of that dark day over and over again in his head. He tried to black it out but it wouldn’t happen, his mind kept playing that fateful day. Sometimes he thought that he could have saved her if he would have just taken the blast, but other times he was more rational by thinking it was a reflex to move. A tear started to swell up in his eye. He quickly closed his eyes to hide the tear. He hated crying and he hated to show emotion. He felt cold and alone. Then a warm, friendly and welcome voice called out to him.
“Hey, Dustin.” The voice said.
He turned around to see who had called his name. It was Liz and Katie, his two closest and dearest friends. They came up and sat down on either side of him. He enjoyed their company very much. Liz had a concerned look on her face. He knew exactly why she had that look and attempted to hide his feelings. But Liz knew better than that. Ever since they met Liz could easily tell if he was lying about his feelings. Katie was also concerned but Dustin could hide his emotions from her but she could usually tell anyway. Dustin leaned back in his stool so that he could see both Liz and Katie in his peripheral vision.
“How you doin? Alright?” Katie asked.
“Eh,” Dustin shrugged. “You know the same as usual.”
“Still thinkin’ about her?” Liz asked.
“Yeah,” Dustin said softly “I’ve been trying to get over her but it isn’t easy, you know. I need to have a clear head; I’ve got a universe to save.”
The two girls put their hands on his shoulders. That actually surprised Dustin, because they did it at the same time. They both have always said that they are the same person. Dustin fought back a grin. It seemed inappropriate at the time.
“Were you trying to fight back a grin?” Liz asked.

“Damn, she’s good.” Dustin thought to himself.
Dustin nodded. Liz laughed in triumph and Katie giggled.
“What were you grinning about?” Katie asked.
“Well, both of you put your hands on my shoulders at the same time and you guys keep telling me that you are the same person, so that thought popped in my head.”
The two girls laughed.
“Come on, Dustin let’s go get something to eat.” Katie said.
Dustin nodded. He took one last drink from his warm beer. As soon as the beer touched his tongue he cringed and forced himself to swallow it. He put a 5 dollar bill on the bar as a tip and the bartender came and snatched it up. The three of them walked out of the bar. It was still snowing. Dustin put his hands in his pockets of his leather jacket, while the other two slipped on their gloves. They began walking up the street. They walked up to Skipper’s Bar and Grill. There was hardly anyone in there. With the exception of the bartenders and waitstaff there were probably six people in there at the most. A waitress came over and greeted them. She had the same build as Liz but only taller. The waitress had short blonde hair and glasses.  She showed them to their table and handed them each a menu. Dustin just stared blankly at his, not really thinking about what he wanted to eat. Liz looked up at him then looked back down at her menu.
“What are you getting, Dustin?”
“I’m not really hungry.”
Liz set down her menu and gave him a look as if she didn’t believe him. She extended her right arm and held out her pinkie finger. She wanted him to interlock his pinkie finger with hers. If he did, it meant that he wasn’t hungry and if he didn’t that meant that he was being stubborn. She knew he was full of it otherwise she wouldn’t have done it.  He didn’t do it. He knew damn well that he was hungry. He hadn’t eaten anything for two days.  He picked up his menu and looked to see what was offered.
“I thought so.”
Katie grinned at the remark. The waitress finally returned and took their order then left again. Liz leaned forward resting her elbows on the table. She looked at Dustin, trying to figure out what he was thinking. She knew he was obviously thinking about Sarah. She didn’t want to pry but Dustin was her friend and she wanted him to feel better. Everytime she or Katie needed someone Dustin was always there for them. Whether it was rescuing them from the Decepticons or just being there to talk. He was always there for them and she wanted to return the favor.
“So, Dustin what’s been going on? We haven’t seen you for days.”
“Not a whole lot. Just  you know.”
“Transformer stuff?” Katie asked.
Dustin nodded.
“So, how is Cybertron? I would like to go there one day.” Liz asked.
“Not bad. It’s Cybertron. I’ve gotten used to it. Maybe later this week I’ll take you there.” Dustin said in a somewhat monotone voice.
Liz looked at Dustin trying to feel what he was feeling but she couldn’t. In fact, she thought that Dustin was doing quite well given his situation. His wife just died and he was not shedding a tear. However, keeping it in wasn’t healthy and if something were to happen to him she would do more than just cry.  Nevertheless, she did not want to think about that sort of thing because it scared her. She knew that it could happen at anytime now with the Autobot/Decepticon War. A war, which one of her closest friends was a part in. Even though she wasn’t with Dustin she was still scared that one day he might not come back. The waitress returned with their order. As they ate their food they continued to talk about the old days.

After they finished their meals, they walked outside. The snow had stopped for the moment. He gave both Katie and Liz a hug as they said their good-byes for the evening. He watched them walk away and to Liz’s car. He continued to watch them just to be sure nothing would happen, with the Decepticons out there you never could tell. They got into the car and he watched them drive off. Then he continued to his car. He got in and decided to go to Autobot City. He drove to the outskirts of Athens and arrived at Autobot City. He got out and his exosuit folded out over his body then he then transformed into Shortstop. He walked in and headed towards the control room. It’s been awhile since he was here last. Optimus Prime knew that he needed some time off. He walked in and Prime was standing at the giant computer screen. Prime looked up at him. He was a little surprised to see him, especially at this hour. Just then Prowl walked into the room. Shortstop greeted him by nodding his head. Prowl walked over to him.
“Shortstop, can I talk to you for a few astroseconds?”
“Sure thing. Let’s go outside.”
Actually, let’s go to my place.” Prowl said while pulling out his laser pistol.
Prime attempted to move but Prowl shook his head.
“It’s alright, Prime.” Shortstop assured him.
Prowl activated a keypad on his forearm and then the two Autobots vanished in mist of blue light.

The two materialized in a metallic cave. The cave looked as if it had been there for years. Lights ran along side the gold metallic wall. Shortstop looked around to see if he could recognize it but couldn’t. He was guessing he was in the lower levels of Cybertron.
“Where are we?” Shortstop demanded.
“Well I guess you could say that we stepped through the looking glass.”
They began to walk through the corridors. They walked through a door.
Shortstop realized how far behind Prowl was, so he quickly turned around, grabbed his arm twisted it and held it behind his back. He grabbed Prowl’s pistol and aimed it at him.
“Nice move.” Prowl said.
“I’m glad you like it. Now tell me what is going on.”

“Ok, millions of years ago when the war raged on and the planet was out of resources the Autobots attempted to find energy elsewhere. But their plan was thwarted by the Decepticons. Optimus Prime was assassinated before he could board the Ark. The Decepticons have an alliance with the Quintisons. They have killed more than half of our forces. About a year ago a shuttle came to Cybertron with scientists and explorers. The Decepticons attacked the shuttle and it crashed. Only two humans survived. The Decepticons held them captive. One of them escaped and found us. He sided with us to fight the Decepticons, also became a Headmaster, with the help from Brainstorm. He was named Shortstop. Instead of an Earth car he was a Cybertronian sports car. He has helped us tremendously with the battle. But the other was taken prisoner. Since then she has started helping the Decepticons. Our resources tell us that she is building this sensor array that will locate our base. If she completes this array then we will not have a chance. Our Shortstop was killed on this mission.”
“Let me guess you want me to take his place.”
“You’re quick.”
“I’m not going to do it.”
“Look I’m not asking for a lifetime commitment. All I’m asking for is for you to complete this mission.”
“Why me?”
“Shortstop was certain he could convince her to side with us.”
“How did he plan to do that?”
“She was his wife.”
Prowl pulled out a hologram and activated it. An image of a girl appeared. Shortstops eyes went wide.
“Sarah.”
“You know her?”
“She was my wife too. But in my universe, she’s dead.”
“Not here she isn’t. Not yet anyway.”
“What do you mean?”
“Not all of us are Autobots. Starscream, Astrotrain, Runabout, Blitzwing and the Combaticons are on our side as well. Shortstop was in command. Starscream said that if Shortstop didn’t succeed on this mission. He was going to terminate her.”
Shortstop finally responded after a few moments.
“I can’t let her die again.” He said not taking his eyes off the hologram.
“You’re the only one who can save her.”
The two Autobots continued to walk through the cave’s tunnels and Prowl continued to explain.
“You see the reason why Sarah didn’t attempt to escape was because she and Shortstop never got along. In fact Shortstop never really got along with anybody. I wish I had more time to explain more. I haven’t told you half of what you should know. There will be some surprises.”
“Well I’m just going to have to improvise.”
Prowl smirked at the comment. They continued to walk through the tunnels to the hidden base.

The rest of the Autobots were standing around listening to Starscream babble.  They all stood in the Autobot base’s main room. The room was spherical and large. Multiple tunnels led from this room to other places.
“I knew he wouldn’t get anywhere near Iacon.” Starscream said.
“I say we teach ‘em a lesson by throwing everything we’ve got at them.” Runabout said.

“I disagree following your plan of action would result in significant loss of life.” Perceptor said.
“Easy for you to say. Those Decepticon pigbots didn’t kill your brother.”
“We have all suffered losses at the hands of the Decepticons. Logic dictates caution in the face of a superior enemy.”
“Logic won’t get us anywhere. We need to take action.”
“And we will, but we do it my way. I say we plant energon explosives all around this flesh creatures room and detonate them.” Starscream continued.
“Any bot that goes on the mission will not return.”
“I say it’s worth the risk.”
The other Autobots started agreeing with Starscream. They all looked like they could use a victory. They were battered and bruised.  Their moral was low especially with the loss of their best warrior. Just then their best warrior walked into the room.
“Does that mean you’re volunteering for the job?”
“Shortstop, you’re alive.” Runabout said.
Shortstop was taken back at seeing the mirror counterparts of Starscream, Perceptor, Runabout and other various Autobots. Prowl saw Shortstop’s hesitation and stepped in.
“Of course he’s alive. He’s alive because he’s too sly.” Prowl said.
Shortstop picked up on Prowl’s cue and snapped into mirror Shortstop’s role.
“I hope that doesn’t disappoint anyone.” Shortstop said walking up to Starscream.
“Glad you’re alright.” Starscream said softly with Shortstop only inches away from his face.
“I’m sure you are.”
“We thought you were terminated. The Decepticons said you were dead.” Perceptor said.
Shortstop turned back the group of Autobots and leaned onto the round metallic table.
“Just their propaganda machine working overtime. But you know what that tells me?” Shortstop motioned his warriors to get closer. “They’re scared.”
Shortstop walked up to Starscream and gets in his face again.
“And we’re going to give them a reason to stay scared.
All of the Autobots laughed.
“Well it’s about time you came back.”  A voice said.
It was Arcee, the female walked into the room. She walked up to Shortstop and kissed him.
“That’s to let you know I missed you.”
She slapped him across the face.
“And that’s for making me think you were dead.”
She began to walk away.
“I need to talk about Iacon’s schematics with you.”
Shortstop just stood there still rubbing his cheek.
“Are you coming or not?”
Shortstop walked up to Prowl.
“I thought you said I was married.”
“You are technically. But she’s your mistress.”

“I see what you mean by surprises.”
Shortstop followed Arcee down another tunnel.

Megatron sat in his throne room. He was admiring the update of the Autobot body count that Reflector had given him. He was proud of his accomplishments. He had assassinated Optimus Prime, and his forces were defeating the remaining Autobots. He had allied himself with the Quintisons. He wasn’t too fond of the five faced Transformer creators but they helped out tremendously. He knew that he still would have been victorious against the Autobots eventually but they brought that vision within arms reach more quickly than he anticipated. He was waiting for Skywarp and Thundercracker to report in. Just then a button on the arm of his throne flashed.  He touched the button and Skywarp’s image appeared on the screen.
“This is Skywarp reporting in.”
“What is the situation?”
“The situation is in our favor. We are finishing off the rest of the Autobots in this sector. We are ready to proceed.”
“Excellent. As soon as your finished there report back to Headquarters.”
“Yes, Mighty Megatron.”
The screen went blank.
“Soon, the Autobots will be finished and then we will go against our allies, the Quintisons.” Megaton thought to himself.

The Autobots were planning their attack on Iacon. Shortstop walked around the room preaching to his troops the reasoning behind keeping Sarah alive. Some of them wanted to keep her alive because they knew how big of a help she would become. But some others, including Starscream, wasn’t so optimistic.
“We need to get Sarah out of Iacon and soon.”
“We’ve been meaning to talk to you about that.” Starscream said.
“Starscream believes that you will not be able to persuade your former mate.” Perceptor said.
“Oh, I can be very persuasive.” Shortstop said as he ran a finger along Arcee’s chin.
Starscream began to speak his mind. Prowl walked up to Shortstop.
“Hit him. That’s what Shortstop would have done. Hit him.”
“not sure that you could convince her. Face it, the flesh bag hates you.”
Just then Shortstop spun around and punched Starscream in the face. The blow knocked him over. He walked over and picked the ex-Decepticon by the neck.
“What my wife thinks of me is none of your concern.”
“Anyone else want to disagree?” Arcee said while pulling out her pistol.
“Put it away, Arcee”
She looked confused and looked over to Prowl. Prowl just shook his head.
“No one is questioning you, but we can’t let her finish the array.” Starscream said while still in Shortstop’s grip.
“And there is only one sure way.” Astrotrain said.

“We have to terminate her.”
“You have been saying that all along.” Prowl said.
“Maybe it’s time he listened.”
“We’re going to do it my way. Let’s get to work.” Shortstop ordered.

At Iacon, Megatron was standing at the control board. He watched the security screen, watching to see if the Autobots were going to try anything stupid. Then Skywarp walked into the room to report.
“Mighty Megatron, we have an informant from the Autobot base.”
“Bring him to me.”
Skywarp stood aside to let in the traitor.
“Now tell Megatron what you told me.”
The traitor walked in. It was Runabout.
Megatron walked up to him.
“What information do you have for me that could be valuable?”
“It’s about Shortstop. He’s alive.”
Skywarp’s eyes went big. Then he picked up Runabout by his shoulders and held him against the wall.
“If you’re lying”
“I’m not lying. I saw him with my own optics. He is alive and ready to take you on.”
“Set him down, Skywarp.”
Skywarp did as he was told and set Runabout down.
“Like I said before, if you’re lying then I will personally rip out your servos and hand them to you.” Skywarp said as he pointed his arm barrel at Runabout’s face.

Meanwhile, Prowl and Shortstop were on their way to Iacon. They each were in their vehicle modes. Prowl finally spoke up to break the silence.
“How long ago did Sarah die?”
“Almost three months ago.”
“What happened?”
“Well, in my universe the Decepticons called upon the Lyacons to take me on. I took on the leader after I had defeated the others. As I had him in my sights he fired at me. I dodged the blast and it hit a corner of Autobot City. The wall collapsed on top of Sarah. I wasn’t able to save her.”
“Sorry to hear that.”
“So tell me about the Sarah of this universe.”
“Well I don’t know much other than what Shortstop told me. All I know is that they shouldn’t have been together in the first place. The story that I heard was that they met in school. I never met Sarah so I don’t know what she is like. What was your Sarah like?”

“She was the most kind and caring person I had ever met. We got together after I revealed my identity to her.  Being an Autobot wasn’t the reason we got together. She found me to be quite the gentleman and she liked my personality. The night we were supposed to go on our first date, I had battled a group of Decepticons by myself and I was wounded. I stumbled to her house and she helped me out.  We were together for awhile, and then the day after we were married, she was killed.”
A tear began to form at the corner of Shortstop’s eye. Just then Prowl stopped in his tracks. Shortstop did the same. They transformed into their robot mode.
“What’s going on, Prowl?”
“I’m picking up multiple Decepticon signatures. They are all around us.”
“Where are they I don’t see them.”
Just then seven Decepticons de-cloaked right in front of them, aiming their weapons at the two Autobots. Shortstop was surprised.
“They have cloaking devices. You’re right you didn’t tell me half of what I needed to know.”
“You know, Shortstop would have tried fight his way out of this.”
“Just be glad I’m not him.”
The Decepticons took the Autobots prisoner and took them to Iacon.

They arrived at Iacon. They walked through the loading hatch. Megatron, Skywarp and Thundercracker were waiting. The two prisoners walked up to them.
“You’re dead.” Thundercracker said.
“No kidding.” Shortstop replied.
“So you happened to survive the attack. Pity. You’re going to wish that you died.” Megatron said.
They two enemies stood inches from each other. Megatron being the taller one by at least a foot. He turned to Prowl, who was being quiet.
“Now what are we going to do about Prowl? Before the war you were a goods merchant with your twin Bluestreak. Now he’s head of security for the Autobots. You could have joined the Decepticons and could have been on the winning side. Why didn’t you join?”
“I wanted to be free and have peace.”
“BAH, Peace through tyranny.” Megatron shot back. “Take them away.”
The Decepticon soldiers escorted the Autobots to their cells. They put them in separate cells one next to the other. Prowl sat down on the ledge that stuck out of the metal wall. Shortstop paced around in his. He wanted to get Sarah down here but he didn’t know how. Just then the door to his cell opened. Skywarp had escorted Sarah to him. She stood there with her arms crossed, looking at him, disgusted by him. She didn’t want to see him but Skywarp insisted she would so that he could get pleasure out of seeing Shortstop in torment. But while she was down here she might as well see what he wanted. She turned to Skywarp.
“Leave us.”
“What? And miss this exciting event?”
“You heard her.” Shortstop said in a low maniacal voice.
“If you need any one to beat him into submission, don’t hesitate to call.”
Skywarp walked out the door and closed it behind him. He posted Ramjet and Dirge at the door. Sarah turned back to Shortstop. Shortstop’s head flew off and transformed into Dustin’s exosuit form the body transformed into vehicle mode. The cell was actually big enough to fit a car of that size without problem. Dustin’s armor slid off of his body. He came up to her. She still looked as the day he first laid eyes on her.  She looked at him impatiently.
“Skywarp said you wanted to see me. Well I’m here. What do you want?”
“I wanted to talk.”

“Really? You didn’t seem interested when we were married.”
“I made a lot of mistakes back then.”
Save the apologies Dustin. They're not going to work.  You are without a doubt, the most insensitive, self-absorbed, egotistical...
“You’ve made your point.”
“I doubt it. You never listened before. You were always trying to impress every woman who crossed your path.”
“Were there really that many?”
“And if it wasn’t women it was that damn transformer of yours. Sometimes I think that was the only thing you ever loved.”
“Maybe I loved you both.”
“Then why did you leave me to run off to play pirate to Megatron?”
“That’s a good question.”
“Do you know how many deaths you’ve caused? How much destruction?”
“I’m fighting to free the Autobots.”
“You’re fighting because you like to fight, Dustin.”
“I just hope that your captivity will bring an end to this senseless fighting.
“Who said I was captured?”
“Oh, and I suppose you just came here to see me?”
“Actually I came here to rescue you.”
“Rescue me?”
“Yeah I came to get you out of here so that you wouldn’t finish the sensor array. If you finish the array not only will they kill off the Autobots, they will kill you as well.”
“Kill me? They wouldn’t kill me. They need me.”
“Sarah, listen. I know the Decepticons. They will kill you.”
“You’re full of it.”
“Fine, don’t believe me. But I came to get you out of here and I’m going to do just that.”
The armor slid over his body again and he transformed back into the head of the mighty transformer. The car transformed back into the body and the two connected. Just then he walked past here and knocked on the door. Ramjet opened the door and Shortstop aimed his arm lasers at his face and fired. Ramjet’s face exploded and his lifeless body fell to the ground. Dirge fired his weapon at him but Shortstop avoided the photon blasts and ran up to Dirge and punched him in the face. Then, he fired his arm laser and hit him in the neck. He fell to the ground aswell. Shortstop faced Sarah, who was still standing in the cell. He aimed both of his arm lasers down both corridors waiting for more Decepticons to arrive.
“Come on I need an answer.”
“Do I have a choice?”
“Of course you have a choice. If you want you can to back to your quarters and forget we ever spoke.
Sarah walked out of the cell and up to Shortstop.
“Let’s get one thing straight. I still hate you.”
“I know.”
Shortstop walked over to Prowl’s cell and let him out. They all ran down the corridors looking for a way out. Sarah led them to the entry hatch. Then they stood there in horror. Runabout was stuck to the hatch. He had a metal rod shoved though his chest plate.

“Can’t get out that way.”
Just then, Thrust and Shockwave fired at them. Prowl and Shortstop returned fire. They were held behind a corner, unable to go anywhere. Finally, Megatron showed up. He was impressed by the maneuver they had just pulled.
“Impressive, Shortstop. But it won’t help you.”
Shortstop peeked around the corner to see how many Decepticons were there. There were about 10 or 12 that he saw.
“I can’t shoot around corners.” Prowl said.
“I can.” Shortstop said as he pulled out his spoiler and activated the boomerang sequence. He threw it around the corner. It took out Shockwave, Thrust, Pounce, Wingspan, Kickback, Bombshell and Shrapnel. The boomerang returned to him. While this was going on, Sarah was looking at him.
“Just leave me here, I’ll convince them to let you go just as long as I stay.”
“I came here to get you and I’m not leaving without you.”
Sarah looked at him as if there was something different about him. Shortstop noticed her staring at him.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
“We need a diversion.” Prowl said.
“I have one.” Shortstop said as he punched the wall.
“What good will that do?” Sarah asked.
“Just watch.”
Shortstop pulled out a chunk of the wall. The chunk was about as big as his hand. He just held it there. Then, the chunk started to glow. He then threw it around the corner and it exploded. Smoke filled the corridor. The three of them took off running, while Shortstop fired down the corridor with his arm lasers. Then finally they had gotten away from them.
“Alright we need a door. Let’s make a door.”
Shortstop pulled out his spoiler and used it as a sword. He shoved it through the wall and made a huge gaping hole in it. The two of them transformed and left. To Dustin’s surprise Sarah had gotten into his car. As soon as they were clear, Dustin activated his comm. link.
“Starscream, we are clear. You are good to go.”
Starscream and the other Autobots flew and drove around Iacon. They each laid Energon explosives around the building. They all took off and then detonated them. The building collapsed and with all of the Decepticons inside. All that was left of Iacon was debris and a big cloud of dust and smoke.
They all returned to their underground base. Dustin remained in his exosuit form and talked to Sarah.
“What will you do now?”
“I might go to the planet of Junk and see if I can get the Junkions on our side.”
Already this wasn't easy for Dustin.  He was torn with emotion.  He knew he wasn’t saying good-bye to his Sarah, but it felt like it anyway.
“Sarah, there is so much I want to tell you. But I don’t know where to start.”
“You can start by telling me who you are and what happened to my husband.” She said with a slight smile.

Before Dustin could deny it, Sarah pressed on.
“Don’t bother. I don’t know who you are but you are not Dustin Zofchak.”
Dustin considered trying to continue the charade but thought better about it.
“When did you figure it out?”
“I think I suspected from the beginning. It was your eyes.”
“What about them?”
“They’re too kind. There was nothing kind about Dustin.”
Sarah paused for a moment.
“He’s dead isn’t he?”
“I’m sorry.” Dustin said sorrowfully.
“Don’t be.  So who are you, really?”
“It’s a long story. Talk to Prowl. He can fill you in on the details.”
“He seems like a good bot.”
“He does that. So what are you going to do now?”
“Oh, I’m sure Prowl can find something to keep me busy.   You’re not really going to visit the Junkions are you?”
Dustin shook his head.
“The deal was I get you out of Iacon and then I go home.”
“Will I see you again?”
“I don’t know.”
Sarah leaned over and kissed Dustin on the cheek.
“Thank youfor rescuing me.”
“It was my pleasure.”
They stood there looking at each other. Then Prowl came in, ruining the mood.
“Ready, Shortstop?”
Dustin put on his helmet to his exosuit and transformed into the head of Shortstop while the car transformed into the body.
“Take me home, Prowl.”
Dustin reluctantly walked out of the room with Prowl.

Part 2

Shortstop stepped onto the transporter pad. Prowl stood at the controls and pressed a few buttons. Nothing happened. Shortstop shifted his head, looking confused. Prowl didn’t know what was going on.
“Ummm.”
“What’s going on, Prowl?”
“I don’t know. It’s not working.”
“Well I can see that.”
Shortstop stepped off of the pad and walked over to the control board. Prowl was still trying to figure out what was wrong with it.  The power levels were still high enough to transport but for some reason it wouldn’t function.
“I’ve tried everything I know but it won’t work. I’d hate to state the obvious but you’re stuck here till I can get this thing operational.” Prowl said. Shortstop sighed.

Dustin walked slowly to his car. He stopped at a street corner to let cars pass by.  Once the cars stopped going by he preceded to walk across the street.  The Shortstop body in vehicle mode was visible and only feet away. He pulled out his keys to unlock his car. Somebody yelled to him.

“HEY DUSTIN!” The voice said.

He turned around to see a girl he used to work with. Her name was Kim. She was a very cute girl. He knew she had a crush on him when they worked together but that was over a year ago.  She had the same build as his friend Liz but she was darker tone to her skin and had shorter, darker hair.

“How you doing?” She asked.

Dustin nodded.

“I haven’t seen much of you since you joined the Autobots. I’ve seen you on the news and stuff but other than that no.”

“Yeah, I’ve been kinda busy.”

“I’m sorry about your wife. I don’t mean to bring it up but I want you to know if you need anyone I’m here if you need somebody.”

Dustin nodded.

Tears fell down Dustin’s face. He lifted his arm to wipe away the tears. He then dropped to his knees and cried. Kim knelt down and put her arms around him as he continued to cry.