C159 Spark
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Leaving Bernie to deal with Sam and his dad, Peter made his way back to Bumblebee.
The dusty garage at the back of the lot was quiet as Peter stepped inside. The dim light filtered through the grimy windows, casting long shadows across the floor.
There, in the center of the room, was the old yellow Camaro. Despite its beaten-up exterior, Peter couldnât help but feel a sense of awe as he approached the car. This wasnât just any carâthis was Bumblebee, one of the most iconic Transformers in history.
Peter admired the car for a moment, running his hand along the faded yellow paint. Then, taking a deep breath, he pulled out the keys and spoke, his voice soft but hopeful. "Hello there, can you hear me?"
The Camaro remained still, its engine silent, showing no signs of life. Peter waited in anticipation, but there was no response. Bumblebee didnât move, didnât speakâhe just sat there like any other old car.ReÌaÌ£d new chapters at novelhall.com
Peter frowned, wondering if Bumblebee didnât realize he was talking to him. He cleared his throat and tried again. "Umm, this feels weird talking to a car, but I know youâre more than just a car. My scanners detected you as a living life form, so could you... talk to me? Can you understand me?"
Again, there was nothing. The silence in the garage was almost deafening as Peter waited for a response that never came. He couldnât help but feel a bit foolish standing there, talking to what appeared to be an inanimate object.
Frustration began to build as Peter tried to make sense of the situation. He knew Bumblebee was aliveâhis shipâs sensors had confirmed that. But for some reason, the Autobot wasnât responding.
At first, Peter wondered if Bumblebee was ignoring him because he wasnât Sam, but that didnât make sense. In this universe, Sam wasnât connected to the AllSpark, so Bumblebee had no reason to favor him.
In the movies, Bumblebee and the Autobots specifically sought out Sam because his great-great-great-grandfather discovered the AllSpark and left clues leading to its location.
However, in this universe, the AllSpark was discovered by the Nazis and later seized by Shield after the war, so Bumblebee and the Autobots would have no reason to favor or target Sam.
Peterâs mind raced as he considered other possibilities. What if Bumblebee wasnât ignoring him? What if he was injured or even... asleep? The idea struck Peter like a bolt of lightning, and his concern deepened.
With that thought in mind, Peter walked up to the car, placing his hand gently on the hood. "Iâm just going to give you a quick once-over to see if youâre alright. Pardon the intrusion."
As he said this, his hand began to glow faintly with the Force as he used Mech-Deru to scan Bumblebee. He didnât know much about Cybertronian technology, but he hoped that the Force would help him identify any abnormalities.
As Peterâs senses delved into the intricate systems of the car, he felt a strange mixture of advanced technology and organic life.
This was definitely Bumblebeeâhe could feel the life force emanating from the machine, though it was faint and weakened, which was concerning.
The deeper Peter probed, the more worried he became. He expected some kind of reaction from Bumblebee, maybe even a defensive response, but there was nothing.
The silence and stillness persisted, which only fueled Peterâs anxiety. Was Bumblebee... dead? But that didnât make senseâhis shipâs sensors had detected a life signal.
Something was wrong...
Then, after several minutes of careful probing, Peter finally found the source of the problem. âHuh, whatâs that?â
Hidden deep within the carâs chassis, connected to what seemed to be a neural network, was a spherical core that glowed with an electric light. It looked like some sort of central processorâpossibly a brain or heart, or both. But the core wasnât intact; it was cracked, its energy flickering weakly.
Peter shrugged nonchalantly, but there was a hint of a smile on his lips as he approached the driver's side door and pulled it open. He slid into the seat, the familiar, slightly worn interior greeting him, complete with a Cybertronian insignia on the steering wheel.
With a calm, steady hand, he inserted the key into the ignition, his fingers brushing against the worn metal as he turned it.
For a moment, there was nothing but silence, the tension hanging thick in the air...
Bernie stood nearby, arms crossed. "See? Like I said, itâs been nothing but a headache. Iâd eat my own shoe if you could get this thing running in such a shortâ"
But then, with a low, rumbling growl, the Camaroâs engine roared to life, the sound filling the garage with a deep, resonant purr.
Bernieâs jaw dropped in shock, his eyes wide with disbelief. "What theâ! How in the world...?"
Peter glanced over at Bernie with a knowing smile, keeping his voice casual. "Like I said, just a little bit of work. Sometimes all it takes is the right touch."
Bernie shook his head, still stunned by what he was seeing and hearing. "I canât believe it. Iâve been trying to get this thing running for years, and you... you just..." He trailed off, unable to find the words to express his astonishment.
Peter just smiled, feeling a sense of accomplishment as he listened to the steady rumble of Bumblebeeâs engine. Though the Autobot was still far from fully functional, this was a step in the right direction.
Bernie finally found his voice again, still shaking his head in amazement. "Well, Iâll be damned. If I hadnât seen it with my own eyes, I wouldnât have believed it."
"So, are you going to eat your shoe or what?" Peter asked, a sh*t-eating grin spreading across his face.
Bernie looked sheepish. "Well, I was just..."
Peter laughed, shaking his head good-naturedly. "I'm just kidding," he said, receiving a relieved sigh in return. "But hey, it looks like I won't be needing that tow truck after all."
Bernie chuckled, still shaking his head as he took a step back from the car. "I guess so."
With that, Peter gave Bernie a final nod before shifting the Camaro into gear. The engineâs purr grew louder as he guided Bumblebee out of the garage.
On his way out of the lot, something caught Peterâs eyeâa familiar face, sulking in the driverâs seat of a beat-up blue sedan. It was Sam Witwicky, slumped over the wheel, his expression a mixture of frustration and disappointment.
Samâs day had taken a nosedive. What should have been an exciting milestoneâgetting his first carâhad instead turned into a lesson in disappointment.
All the plans he had, the hopes of impressing Mikaela, the dreams of cruising down the road in something cool, had been crushed. And now, here he was, stuck with this old blue clunker while someone else drove off with the only car on the lot that had sparked any excitement in him.
Sam watched with bitter envy as Peterâs yellow Camaroââhisâ yellow Camaro, as far as he was concernedâroared to life and smoothly exited the lot. The sound of the engine was like a taunt, a reminder of what he could have had if things had just gone a little differently.
His grip tightened on the steering wheel, knuckles white as he glared after the disappearing car. It wasnât fairânone of it was. He had been so close, and yet, somehow, everything had slipped through his fingers.
Sam's thoughts churned, a mix of resentment and regret swirling in his mind. He couldnât help but feel like the universe was against him, that no matter what he did, things just wouldnât go his way.
As Peter's Camaro disappeared into the distance, Sam let out a heavy sigh, the weight of the dayâs events pressing down on him. He knew he should just be grateful that he had a car at all, but that didnât make the disappointment any easier to swallow.
For a moment, he sat there, lost in his thoughts, before finally turning the key in the ignition. The blue sedan sputtered to life with a groan, a far cry from the roar of the Camaro that had just left the lot. With one last glance at the empty garage where the yellow car had been, Sam shifted into gear and pulled out of the lot, heading home.
A/N: 2126 words :)????????