Sheer Dumb Luck 9
Sheer Dumb Luck
Part Nine
By Dreaming of Everything AKA dream_it_all AKA dreams_of_all, betaed by the incomparable mmouse15
Series: Transformers 2007
Ratings/Warnings: M for sex and possible language, plus sexual themes. Warnings for multiple partner scenes and themes, plug-and-play, slash. Updated G1 characters.
Characters/Pairings: Ratchet, Constructicons, Ratchet/Constructicons. (Yes, all of them.)
Summary: The Constructicons found Ratchet and asked him to repair their sixth gestalt member. He couldn't say no, although he knew he needed to. Forced into an uneasy truce, he's almost starting to get attached...
Author's Notes for this chapter: Everyone should go and check out the absolutely incredible fanart Neurquadic drew of Scavenger for me! It is just about the coolest thing ever! Find it here, it is absolutely incredible! (Also, I'm sorry about the short chapter. Next chapter will be longer, I promise! Also, more interesting, if you know what I mean. And I bet you do. ;)
Edited 7/5/09 to change 'bought' to 'bout'--thank you, anon_decepticon! HTML also fixed, thank you for pointing that out, thank you again anon_decepticon and also snarechan!
Sheer Dumb Luck chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12
Sheer Dumb Luck @ FFnet
Sheer Dumb Luck: Chapter 9
It was over.
He had less than two hours of work left to do to Bonecrusher: just reattaching and reactivating removed or dormant systems, running the final scan and then hooking up the spark; it had stabilized nicely.
It was highly unlikely that his final double-check would find anything wrong: Ratchet was a very competent medic, and he’d done his best. He’d done everything he’d been able to think of, for Bonecrusher’s long term and short term health-
Ratchet turned as he caught the sound of footsteps, but not out of unease or nerves-he was simply curious. He felt comfortable with all five of the other mechs-even Mixmaster. Somehow, the edginess, the stress, had gotten set aside.
(He was a little more than friendly with one of them. How had that happened? Why wasn’t he worried that Scavenger would show up again-he should be worried, for two reasons: the potential awkwardness, and the potential of another bout of interfacing. It wasn't right.)
“Hey,” Long Haul said gruffly, drifting in. Ratchet suppressed a smile at the characteristically sulky greeting-it was familiar, no longer anything like insulting. He understood, more or less.
“Hello. Would you mind bringing me Bonecrusher’s shoulder armor?”
Long Haul made a noise of surprise, and the medic looked up again.
“What?”
“You’re almost done? Already?”
“I’ll finish today.” Ratchet tried to keep his voice neutral. “And what do mean, ‘already?’ It’s been a minor eternity. I almost never take this long to complete repairs.” Which wasn’t strictly true-it had taken far longer than he was used to, yes, but the time had gone quickly, despite everything that had happened, that had changed.
“So this is it.” Long Haul sounded-happy, content.
“Yes.” In contrast, Ratchet knew he sounded, despite his efforts, angry and defensive.
“You won’t have to keep on coming here.”
“No, I won’t.”
“Bonecrusher’ll function fine.” That was why he sounded so uncharacteristically joyful: they would be complete again. All they wanted, all they really asked for.
“Yes. There’s a slight chance that there will be further problems or complications-there always is-but it’s very low.”
“What happens if there is a problem?”
“You’ll need to find a medic.”
“We know where to find you. ...If there’s a problem, are you going to fix it?”
Ratchet paused, then answered very quietly. “Maybe. If you catch me on a good day.”
“Thanks.” Long Haul’s voice was soft.
“Hmph. I haven’t agreed to anything yet-now, would you hand me that armor? I haven’t got all day. I’m on shift later.”
All five Constructicons were present for the reactivation. Somehow, it felt-appropriate, even though Ratchet usually preferred to do the most complicated work without observation.
They’d all wandered in as he progressed, an apparent coincidence. He was sure it wasn't, even if having all five there wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. Ratchet couldn’t have protested, even if he’d wanted to, and he was pretty sure he didn't: he was finally done, their sixth agonizingly close to fully repaired. He couldn't protest.
Bonecrusher’s body was intact again, not a wire out of place, in better condition than he’d been in before he had (to all extents and purposes) died-in better condition than he’d been in for some time before that.
The only thing really missing was the spark.
Scavenger shifted uneasily, tail stirring against the floor in a brief, unsettling shiver.
Carefully, Ratchet opened up the spark chamber again, the process just as seamless-more so-than it had been the first time. (This was the end to everything, mirroring what had happened at the start of all this.) He’d waited to start the security programs just for this, and almost everything else was running, or ready to start, automatically, as soon as the spark was reattached.
It was time.
Ratchet was careful as he moved the spark, still not wanting to damage-or damage to a further extent-anything so important-and so fragile. There were still contaminants, although most of them had been expelled over the past weeks, something that had surprised Ratchet but given him hope-
He thought again about how likely it was that Bonecrusher would be someone different when he onlined fully. No one-no one ever, as far as Ratchet knew-had ever survived this kind of damage. The long-range effects-there was no saying. The rest of his gestalt was confident that he was still the same mech: somehow, Ratchet found that comforting, too. Even though he had no reason to.
First, situate the spark chamber without removing the isolation valves. Ratchet risked a glance at the Decepticons. Mixmaster was shaking slightly.
Second, attach the necessary wires. He wasn’t used to this level of tension when he was with them. It was setting him on edge. It wouldn’t be a problem again-
Third, manually attach a second-level energon line to the spark chamber and open the line. A few more systems hummed to life, and the noise was almost painfully loud in the dead-silent room.
Fourth, initiate the transformation on the aligned isolation valves and check for leaks. Weld the primary lines as a failsafe. This time, Ratchet didn’t sneak another glance. He could still hear the creak of metal against metal, someone clenching a fist or holding someone else too tightly.
Fifth and sixth, close the chamber and activate all involuntary systems. Everything was working correctly. Seventh, wait.
“He’ll be fully online within seventy-two hours. It’s done.”
And it was.
He’d never seen the other five all so obviously happy, which made sense. Now Bonecrusher was back in his body, they probably had a much clearer sense of him through their gestalt bond. That would grow over the course of the next few days as he approached full functionality-it was a matter of hours, now.
“Hook-I left a list of instructions, warnings and expected progress. Scrapper, Mixmaster, Long Haul, Scavenger-good bye. I’m needed at the fire station.”
He left to a chorus of distracted good-byes and made his way to the entrance. He barely needed the arrows still painted on the walls.
--End chapter 9--
(...I'm so sorry. If it helps, this isn't the end?)
Part Nine
By Dreaming of Everything AKA dream_it_all AKA dreams_of_all, betaed by the incomparable mmouse15
Series: Transformers 2007
Ratings/Warnings: M for sex and possible language, plus sexual themes. Warnings for multiple partner scenes and themes, plug-and-play, slash. Updated G1 characters.
Characters/Pairings: Ratchet, Constructicons, Ratchet/Constructicons. (Yes, all of them.)
Summary: The Constructicons found Ratchet and asked him to repair their sixth gestalt member. He couldn't say no, although he knew he needed to. Forced into an uneasy truce, he's almost starting to get attached...
Author's Notes for this chapter: Everyone should go and check out the absolutely incredible fanart Neurquadic drew of Scavenger for me! It is just about the coolest thing ever! Find it here, it is absolutely incredible! (Also, I'm sorry about the short chapter. Next chapter will be longer, I promise! Also, more interesting, if you know what I mean. And I bet you do. ;)
Edited 7/5/09 to change 'bought' to 'bout'--thank you, anon_decepticon! HTML also fixed, thank you for pointing that out, thank you again anon_decepticon and also snarechan!
Sheer Dumb Luck chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12
Sheer Dumb Luck @ FFnet
Sheer Dumb Luck: Chapter 9
It was over.
He had less than two hours of work left to do to Bonecrusher: just reattaching and reactivating removed or dormant systems, running the final scan and then hooking up the spark; it had stabilized nicely.
It was highly unlikely that his final double-check would find anything wrong: Ratchet was a very competent medic, and he’d done his best. He’d done everything he’d been able to think of, for Bonecrusher’s long term and short term health-
Ratchet turned as he caught the sound of footsteps, but not out of unease or nerves-he was simply curious. He felt comfortable with all five of the other mechs-even Mixmaster. Somehow, the edginess, the stress, had gotten set aside.
(He was a little more than friendly with one of them. How had that happened? Why wasn’t he worried that Scavenger would show up again-he should be worried, for two reasons: the potential awkwardness, and the potential of another bout of interfacing. It wasn't right.)
“Hey,” Long Haul said gruffly, drifting in. Ratchet suppressed a smile at the characteristically sulky greeting-it was familiar, no longer anything like insulting. He understood, more or less.
“Hello. Would you mind bringing me Bonecrusher’s shoulder armor?”
Long Haul made a noise of surprise, and the medic looked up again.
“What?”
“You’re almost done? Already?”
“I’ll finish today.” Ratchet tried to keep his voice neutral. “And what do mean, ‘already?’ It’s been a minor eternity. I almost never take this long to complete repairs.” Which wasn’t strictly true-it had taken far longer than he was used to, yes, but the time had gone quickly, despite everything that had happened, that had changed.
“So this is it.” Long Haul sounded-happy, content.
“Yes.” In contrast, Ratchet knew he sounded, despite his efforts, angry and defensive.
“You won’t have to keep on coming here.”
“No, I won’t.”
“Bonecrusher’ll function fine.” That was why he sounded so uncharacteristically joyful: they would be complete again. All they wanted, all they really asked for.
“Yes. There’s a slight chance that there will be further problems or complications-there always is-but it’s very low.”
“What happens if there is a problem?”
“You’ll need to find a medic.”
“We know where to find you. ...If there’s a problem, are you going to fix it?”
Ratchet paused, then answered very quietly. “Maybe. If you catch me on a good day.”
“Thanks.” Long Haul’s voice was soft.
“Hmph. I haven’t agreed to anything yet-now, would you hand me that armor? I haven’t got all day. I’m on shift later.”
All five Constructicons were present for the reactivation. Somehow, it felt-appropriate, even though Ratchet usually preferred to do the most complicated work without observation.
They’d all wandered in as he progressed, an apparent coincidence. He was sure it wasn't, even if having all five there wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. Ratchet couldn’t have protested, even if he’d wanted to, and he was pretty sure he didn't: he was finally done, their sixth agonizingly close to fully repaired. He couldn't protest.
Bonecrusher’s body was intact again, not a wire out of place, in better condition than he’d been in before he had (to all extents and purposes) died-in better condition than he’d been in for some time before that.
The only thing really missing was the spark.
Scavenger shifted uneasily, tail stirring against the floor in a brief, unsettling shiver.
Carefully, Ratchet opened up the spark chamber again, the process just as seamless-more so-than it had been the first time. (This was the end to everything, mirroring what had happened at the start of all this.) He’d waited to start the security programs just for this, and almost everything else was running, or ready to start, automatically, as soon as the spark was reattached.
It was time.
Ratchet was careful as he moved the spark, still not wanting to damage-or damage to a further extent-anything so important-and so fragile. There were still contaminants, although most of them had been expelled over the past weeks, something that had surprised Ratchet but given him hope-
He thought again about how likely it was that Bonecrusher would be someone different when he onlined fully. No one-no one ever, as far as Ratchet knew-had ever survived this kind of damage. The long-range effects-there was no saying. The rest of his gestalt was confident that he was still the same mech: somehow, Ratchet found that comforting, too. Even though he had no reason to.
First, situate the spark chamber without removing the isolation valves. Ratchet risked a glance at the Decepticons. Mixmaster was shaking slightly.
Second, attach the necessary wires. He wasn’t used to this level of tension when he was with them. It was setting him on edge. It wouldn’t be a problem again-
Third, manually attach a second-level energon line to the spark chamber and open the line. A few more systems hummed to life, and the noise was almost painfully loud in the dead-silent room.
Fourth, initiate the transformation on the aligned isolation valves and check for leaks. Weld the primary lines as a failsafe. This time, Ratchet didn’t sneak another glance. He could still hear the creak of metal against metal, someone clenching a fist or holding someone else too tightly.
Fifth and sixth, close the chamber and activate all involuntary systems. Everything was working correctly. Seventh, wait.
“He’ll be fully online within seventy-two hours. It’s done.”
And it was.
He’d never seen the other five all so obviously happy, which made sense. Now Bonecrusher was back in his body, they probably had a much clearer sense of him through their gestalt bond. That would grow over the course of the next few days as he approached full functionality-it was a matter of hours, now.
“Hook-I left a list of instructions, warnings and expected progress. Scrapper, Mixmaster, Long Haul, Scavenger-good bye. I’m needed at the fire station.”
He left to a chorus of distracted good-byes and made his way to the entrance. He barely needed the arrows still painted on the walls.
--End chapter 9--
(...I'm so sorry. If it helps, this isn't the end?)