Transformers fanfic (www.gazliter.co.uk)

The Build Team
By Daria Sigma

Autobot Earthbase (Wheeljack's lab) - January 2000

"Something unexpected and different." Hoist repeated Optimus Prime's words and sighed. Wheeljack looked at the blank padd in front of him. "I know. He makes it sound so easy, doesn't he?" Their leader had decided it was once more the time to construct some new Autobots to bolster their forces, and had sent the two of them down to Wheeljack's lab to work out the specifics."Doesn't this go against the grain, anyway? Didn't Optimus say that he wouldn't use the Matrix just to create more fighters?" Wheeljack grinned - of course, it was all in his voice, having metal bands for a 'mouth'. "He's said it before, too. Prowl made this big case about it, just before you were rebuilt. In the end, Optimus put his foot down. No. No super warriors. Not now, not ever. Then he commissioned Omega Supreme, Defensor and Superion in the space of a year." He cast a sideways look at Hoist.
"Not that you'd second-guess Optimus Prime, of course."
"Of course.' Wheeljack grinned again. 'Anyway: ideas."
"What can we do that we haven't already done?"
Wheeljack thought. 'A new spin on the Pretender concept?"
"Go on."
"Well, you've got your basic Pretender process, a Transformer and his -" "Or her," Hoist reminded him.
Wheeljack wasn't getting used to that in a hurry. '...or *her* augmented shell. Then Mega Pretenders like Vroom, whose shell also transforms. Not to mention Ultra Pretenders, where both the shell and the robot inside can transform, and there's a second shell, a vehicle, which adds even more!"

Hoist nodded. (Actually, he'd thought it was the Ultra Pretenders who were the transforming ones, and the Megas had the extra shell.) "Now," Wheeljack went on, "what if that vehicle shell could transform as well? And then maybe-"
"There could be another shell to enhance that one?" Hoist said flatly.
"Yes!" Wheeljack said, voice full of enthusiasm. 'And.' He saw Hoist's expression and trailed off, his head-lamps dimming. "You don't like it?"
"What were you going to call them?"
"Uber-Pretenders?"
"Russian-Doll-bots is more like it, Wheeljack. I'm sorry, but it sounds like the Pretenders are just too easy to get out of hand."
Wheeljack slumped and nodded. 'Got any ideas yourself?"
"Mmm. Deluxe Dinobots?"
"You're kidding."
"Why not? If you can have Deluxe Insecticons, you can have Deluxe Dinobots." He showed Wheeljack the doodles on his own padd. "And look: they could combine."
"Ha!"
"Ha? I am *not* gonna be the one who tells Grimlock there's a new team of Dinobots. *Or* that they can do something his can't. Trust me, Prime's next project would be building some new engineers.'There was a few moments' silence while the two robots pondered some more. "Think we can do anything more with binary bonding?' Wheeljack said at last. "Think we haven't done enough already? We've got little people that turn into Transformers' heads, that turn into their engines, their guns. What's next, Footmasters?"

Wheeljack nodded in agreement. "Doesn't stop there. Targetmasters with two little friends so they can have two guns, and Fortress Maximus even had a head whose head ransformed...we've probably gone as far as we can with that, too. Unless.we haven't had a Headmaster who's also a Targetmaster...*and* a Powermaster. That would keep the Decepticons guessing. And we could--"
"We could make them turn into a bus, because they'd need to just to get all their parts to a battle." Wheeljack waved the matter aside. "Yeah, I know. Doing it again. What was our last big 'surprise' of a new Transformer? Arcee?"
"Our female Autobot, yeah. Though she still says that the only reason we know she's female is because she's pink."
"Well, she's right. We're robots; we don't really have gender." Hoist said, then added, "Except Arcee, I guess."
"Right. So until we get a better handle on it, we don't want to just go and build a new team of all-pink robots. "They wouldn't be much use on stealth missions, for a start, thought Wheeljack. Unless they were on a planet made entirely of strawberry junket. Hoist broke into Wheeljack's dessert scenario. "One robot that separates into two vehicles?"
"Like the Duocons?"
"I suppose.'
"Been done: the Duocons."
"With each vehicle itself transforming.
"Slamdance. And he's cassettes, too."
Hoist continued to fish around, digging for a suggestion, then nodding as Wheeljack gave reminders. "Right. One vehicle, two robot modes?"
"Punch."
"Identical robots, but different vehicle modes?"
"Got 'em."
"Same vehicles, different robot modes."
"Why bother?"
"Really big Transformer?"
"Omega Supreme."
"Really small?"
"Micromasters."
"Multiple transforms?"
"Hazardous to get right. And the last couple of modes are never much cop anyway."
"Hmm,' said Hoist. 'There really is nothing new under the sun. Any sun."

Wheeljack sighed, Hoist shook his head, and both engineers sat silently staring at the furniture (or at least the 'projects' on top of it) for a few moments. Finally Hoist said, "You know probably really would surprise everyone, these days?" Wheeljack looked up. "What's that?" "An individual humanoid Autobot with no robotic or organic companions or accessories who transforms back and forth between vehicle and robot modes without connecting with any other Autobots in any way whatsoever." Wheeljack laughed out loud. "You know, I think you might just have something there." Hoist got to his feet. "Should we tell Prime? He wanted an update at 1900." Wheeljack stood also. "Why not? Hey, and if he doesn't like that, we'll keep the Deluxe Dinobots on the back-burner." "Oh, will we now? What about Grimlock?" "Just in case, we'll make sure to first build *ourselves* some highly concealing and very strong Uber-Pretender shells." Hoist groaned. Wheeljack clapped the door open. "That, or hey - the Decepticons are always recruiting." He laughed again. Hoist hit him with his padd, and the pair walked from the room.

ENDS