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Catherine coughed and dirt came out of her mouth in a dry puff. She had to blink rapidly to keep even more dust and soil from falling into her eyes as she shifted, forcing the debris on her body to fall off. She attempted to support herself on her elbow, but fell back with a sharp hiss. Pain shot from her shoulder down her whole arm and she grimaced as she eased herself up with the other. She touched her right shoulder gently and hissed again. It wasn’t broken, but it was definitely hurt. She couldn’t even lift it all the way up without feeling some pain. She silently cursed as she got to her feet.
She staggered, nearly falling over as her legs suddenly felt like jelly. She managed to keep her balance, though, and attempted to look around. That was fruitless, however; her helmet’s night vision had been damaged. There was only a pitch, impenetrable blackness all around her and the scent of dirt and copper. Memories came next and she cursed louder before reaching out her good arm to search for something—anything. She found nothing for a while, but then she felt something dirtied, but solid and rough. It wasn’t rock-like roughness, though; rather, it felt like clothing.
A groan rang out in the dark, and she grasped onto the piece of clothing tighter. It was an arm, and, with a bit more groping she found the shoulder and many rocks covering it. She pushed them away quickly—the groans were getting stronger—and, once she felt enough was gone she pulled the soldier out. She was forced to stop, though, when he let out a pained cry.
“What’s wrong?” she spoke quickly, trying to look despite her inability to see.
“My leg—big… rock,” the soldier—a male, she realized—wheezed as he arched back into her.
“Okay. Hang on. I have to lay you down,” she replied, setting him down gently. She felt her way down to his legs, and there she found a rock. It was massive and too big for her to move no matter how much she pushed or pulled. She couldn’t do much without hurting him, either. With a curse she settled back onto her knees. She tossed of her helmet and ran a hand through her hair, not caring it was muddied and stained. She looked around, only to remember she couldn’t see. She could still hear, though, and the soldier’s groans had settled into pained breathing. She crawled her way back to him, helping him up and letting him lean on her lap.
“How are you holding up, soldier? Besides the leg, I mean,” she asked softly, and the man made a good effort in his weak chuckle.
“Feel like hell. What hit us, ma’am?”
She looked in what she figured was the rubble blocking their path, “A lot of shit luck.”
“Anyone else in here?” he inquired, his body shifting to look on either side despite not being able to actually see.
“I… I don’t think so. Just u—.”
A metallic groan and the sound of moving dirt and rocks made Catherine turn her head to the right, but it turned left as soon as a dim glow of blue appeared in the midst of the darkness. She held her breathe as more lights—car headlights—flickered on and was almost blinding through the falling debris. The form was metallic, and the frame shivered as it pulled out and more lights revealed themselves. As the last bits of debris began to drop away and the mech stood more upright she realized it was Sunstreaker. While she was relieved there was an Autobot with them, she sighed more in disappointment. Still, she and the soldier were going to need any help they could get.
“Who is that?” the soldier asked, and she squeezed his shoulder with comfort.
“It’s Sunstreaker,” she breathed as the golden-armor mech scowled, his optics narrowing unhappily. He turned to face the rubble and pried at it. It didn’t take long for Cybertronian to pour from his mouth, and Catherine doubted it was anything nice.
“Is that… is that good?” the soldier asked, straining to get a look at the mech. When the redhead didn’t answer he chuckled weakly again, “Well shit.”
Catherine’s fingers tightened around his sleeve after a moment, “Sunstreaker!”
The mech paused briefly to glance over at her before going back to his work. She closed her eyes to breathe in and out deeply, already sure of where this was going. She just wished he wouldn’t be so insufferable—especially not right now of all times! It was bad enough they were injured, but they were in their sorry state in enemy territory without knowing the way out. It was not the time to play asshole of the century!
“Sunstreaker!” she shouted this time, and he paused again to spare her a glare before going back to work. “God dammit Sunstreaker! Please, for just this once listen! We need your help!”
The golden-armored mech paused a third time, but didn’t look at her. Rather, he seemed to slouch and frowned in annoyance. She was fairly certain it wasn’t from her own words--- he had no doubt started ignoring her before her second plea, so it had to be something else. She sincerely hoped it was one of the others—preferably Sideswipe. Perhaps Prime, too; together they could at least get the mech to help them. Thankfully, it seemed whoever had spoken had gotten through, as the mech stopped his pillaging at the rubble and fully turned his optics to her. Grimacing, he leaned over.
"Fine. If only to get him to stop asking about you. What do you need?” he inquired with exasperation.
She let herself relax some, “First, I need you to help get this guy out. He’s caught under debris.”
With a snort Sunstreaker reached over and tossed the rock aside without much effort or care that the man cringed when it briefly pressed on his legs. Still, the soldier was now free and Catherine helped him to his feet slowly and carefully. He couldn’t bear to put any weight on his bad leg—not to mention it was bloodied and looked almost ready to break—so she let him lean on her good arm. When he was settled she looked back to the golden mech.
“Now we need to get out as fast as possible. Do you have a copy of the map Prime made?”
Again he snorted, “Yeah, I got it.”
“Well, let’s see it so we can figure out where to go,” she spoke, frowning at his reluctance. Was he really going to act like an ass right now because he didn’t like her!?
“Fine,” he grumbled and, pressing just above of left helmet “fin”, a light blue holographic projection of the map appeared before them. It was still incomplete, but part of it was growing, she noticed, and knew it had to be from Prime’s end as they, too, tried to find their way out. She didn’t blame them for moving on—there was no way either of them was getting through the rubble, and the others no doubt had Decepticons on their tail. They would be on their own, which was not a promising situation, but they would make do. It was possible the enemy thought they were dead, too, which would help them out a lot.
“Okay. Um,” she started, eyes trailing over the paths until she found them. “Crap, it doesn’t look like this tunnel gets to the surface… We’ll have to keep going. Okay. Um… Sunstreaker, keep the map active while we walk, and let’s see if we can’t get out. You good to move, soldier?”
“Yes, ma’am. Sorry about having to lean on you, by the way,” he replied, but she shook her head.
“It’s fine. You’re my teammate—we’re supposed to help each other out. Now, c’mon. Let’s try this. And, uh, Sunstreaker—hey! Sunstreaker! Wait!” she shouted when the golden-armored mech suddenly took off, leaving them in the dark again. She cursed silently and started to try and race after, but the man stumbled as he tried to limp. She stopped to help him back up, and then went more slowly until he finally got the hang of it and kept up with her at a decent pace. They only managed to catch up with the golden-armored mech because he paused at a cross-junction of tunnels. He was frowning, unsure of where to go. He even began to speak lowly in Cybertronian and made angered gestures with his hands.
Catherine sighed as she shook her head and looked at the map. She focused on their location point first, and then the moving one of the other team. It was heading in what looked to be a northern direction, and, by some luck, the tunnel to their right appeared to be heading that way as well. While she couldn’t be sure, she supposed it was their best bet for getting out.
“We should go right,” she spoke up loudly, and the mech scoffed at her. She rolled her eyes in return, “It’s in the same direction as the others, so we may able to reach the surface or meet up with them.”
Sunstreaker opened his mouth to undoubtedly insult her in some way, but he closed it as something clicked in his mind. He frowned, obviously unhappy she was right, and took off in that direction. Again, she and the soldier struggled to keep up, but their spirits remained decently high. The soldier even managed to make a few quips about how much of an ass the golden-armored mech was, to which she laughed every so often. The mech in question either ignored them or just didn’t care as they continued on through the tunnels, all the while hoping Catherine was right and they would find the way out or the others.
The redhead hoped the others were all okay, and not just the group in the tunnels. The foreboding call on her radio was still fresh in her mind and she prayed everyone else was alright.
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-O-
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The world was dying. Or, at least that’s was it seemed like to Anthony. All around him were screams, and he was pretty sure he was screaming, too. Explosions burst everywhere as the metallic beast crushed and smacked the walls of their base. It did so with sickening ease, and countless people were crushed. He’d already slipped in a pool of blood earlier as he tried to escape and had nearly been crushed by a falling pillar, too. He’d tripped over multiple bodies as well and almost hurled everything in his stomach onto the floor. He was surprised he hadn’t already.
A blast burst apart the ground beside him, throwing and rolling him into something hard and metallic. He bit back a curse as he scrambled up while the metal behind him moved a little. He paused, heart beating fast with fear, but calmed some when he realized it was an Autobot—Bluestreak, to be exact. He was leaning back against the remains of one of the Command Center’s walls, and looked to be alright; his armor was only cracked or dented and the worst was a gash in his shoulders that wasn’t sparking or even leaking. Yet, he was frozen, optics wide and staring straight out at nothing. Anthony had never seen an Autobot’s optics so bright, and Bluestreak’s were blinding.
“Hey!” he called out, but it did nothing to reach the mech. He didn’t even so much as flinch and the Italian man was pretty sure the earlier movement had been solely reaction. He meant to call out again, but was distracted by another explosion which struck too close to home. His head snapped to the ruins of the base, where the worm-like beat was still on its rampage, which had spanned almost half the structure in a matter of seconds. All the while its master now walked calmly with weapon at the ready. Any humans left alive were screaming and running or drying. There weren’t any weapons in here, and, though there would be some soldiers already armed, he knew they would be no use against these guys—especially not the damned worm beast.
There was an ear-piercing blast of sound, and he saw the Decepticon fly back, though remained on his feet. Anthony’s hopes rose as he saw Blaster walk out from the wrecked—frame broken, bent, bleeding, and sparking, but intact—with a fierce gaze in his features. He wasn’t alone, either—Smokescreen and then Ratchet appeared next, both with weapons in hand. The Autobot liaison fired off a shot, but it was a superficial blow that barely event left a dent. He found out why in the next second when it burst and released a murky cloud, which sparked and fizzled. The Decepticon let out a pained cry as it hunkered down, frame sparking and single eye going dark.
“Alright, he’s down, but we’ve only got about a breem before he can move! Let’s go!” Smokescreen shouted, gesturing for his two fellow Autobots to move, and move they did. Blaster went right and Ratchet left, both rushing over to help free any humans or aid the wounded. The sight brought a sense of duty to Anthony and he turned to Bluestreak.
“Hey! Hey, hey, hey, ‘Blue! Wake up man!” he cried, pounding on the mech’s leg, but, again, it was no use.
A gut-wrenching shriek rang out through the air. The Italian man and fellow Autobots could only watch as a cataclysmic explosion appeared from the other half of the base and suddenly the worm-like beast was in the sky. It arched high, smoke and fire and metal bellowing from its jowls and body. Its ringed mouth turned towards them, or—more specifically—its master and, with another shriek, dived down towards them. Screams increased tenfold and everyone ran, but the beast was too fast and crashed down upon the last remains of the roof. No Autobots had been caught, but more than a handful of humans had. Their screams were now silent, but Anthony’s had increased as he now called out to Bluestreak in panic. He paused to yelp, though, when a hunk of metal crashed down near him. He could not move fast enough when the metal bounced up, and he barely had time to blink before it rammed into his face. He fell, unconscious at once, and it was then that Bluestreak finally moved.
His optics shook as he turned his head to the still form of Anthony, blood now pouring from his nose and gash across his face and chest. His scanners told him the man was alive, however, and he let his sights move up towards the NEST soldier’s attacker. His system hitched and his optics went even brighter. Had he a heart, it would have beat so fast it burst at the sight of the mangled, but still recognizable face and torso of Jolt. It looked like he had been chewed on, his armor mutilated and shredded so badly.
“No…” he uttered, shaking his head. “No, no, no, no! It’s just like—no! No! No!”
“Bluestreak!” a shout rang out and the young mech looked to find Hound, ragged, but functioning. Following behind him and coming out from his camouflage was Mirage, also dented here and there, but all together faring much better than their other comrade. The green-armored mech crouched beside the young sniper and shook his shoulders. “C’mon, ‘Blue, snap out of it! You can’t sit here!”
The young sniper looked to Jolt, “B-but… he…”
“He’s offline, Blue. Most…. Most of them… Look, it doesn’t matter. We’ve got to go. We can’t stay here. We have to hurry before Shockwave gets his beast on a rampage again!”
Bluestreak’s optics widened and then dimmed, some of his sanity finally returning. He looked to where the Decepticon was still in the midst of the cloud, the electrical properties of it forcing him into a temporary stasis lock. His beast, unsure of its direction without its master, had begun to coil around Shockwave protectively, but had not continued to strike out at them. If there was any time to escape, now would be it.
“Okay,” he nodded at last, his spark and processor calmed to a reasonable level. He paused, though, to pick up Anthony gently. “We have to get any surviving humans out, too.”
“We will. We must hurry, though,” Mirage replied, turning the young sniper the other way and pushing for him to hurry on. The sniper complied and rushed through the flames and debris to catch up with Blaster, Smokescreen, Ratchet, and the humans they had manage to rally together. There was no need for words as they all quickly filed out to the sandy beaches, making a beeline for the nearest and still intact landing pad. Already, planes had been prepped and everyone was rushing towards them. Many were heavily wounded, and those that weren’t helped those that were. The only Autobots already there were Springer, Wheeljack, and Warpath. The rest they could only imagine the worst, but there was no more time to spare for them.
“Quickly, take him!” Bluestreak urged the nearest human, handing off Anthony, whom was beginning to groan as he slowly came around. As ordered, he was swiftly brought into the plane, and, assuring himself the man would be safe, the sniper turned to the small band of Autobots that remained.
“They’re dead. All of them,” Hound spoke grimly in Cybertronian, and the mood was shared. “That slagging thing killed them all—the rest of us barely made it out of there.”
“We need to get off the island,” Mirage added next, but Blaster chortled pathetically.
“There ain’t exactly room for us, mech. We’re gonna have to stick this out and drive those two back to where they came from.”
Ratchet grimaced, “We’re not exactly the best ‘bots for the job, Blaster.”
“I say we just blast ‘em—that seemed to help get to that beast!” Warpath huffed, optics narrowing in the direction Shockwave and his pet had gone.
“Our attacks were hardly effective. The armor on the Driller is seventy-five percent more effective than our own, and Shockwave’s no push over, either!” Wheeljack spoke next, tapping at his chin. “If I could have enough time I might be able to alter our weapon’s efficiency or make something to—“
A roar echoed through the skies and all turned to find the beast beginning to rise up from the ashes. Shockwave was regaining control of his body and he would be coming for them very soon. Not all the humans were loaded, though, and they were running out of time. Yet, if they attempted to fight the beats it surely meant death, but if they didn’t do something, then not only would they die, but the humans, too. No one would be escaping the island.
“Shockwave controls the beast,” Smokescreen spoke suddenly and quickly. “Whenever I disabled him the beast came running—I think there may be a protective programming that keeps it from going on a rampage if the host is damaged or in a vulnerable state. We need to take Shockwave out. If we do, the beast may retreat in order to protect him.”
“How can you be sure?” Springer barked back.
The tactician smiled grimly as he turned to leave, “I’m not. But it’s the best bet. Our communications are down. No one knows what’s going on here. We’re on our own. I know not all of you think much of the humans, but I’m willing to help protect them. I’ll do it myself if I have to, but I’m going to try and take down Shockwave.”
“Wait!” Bluestreak of all mechs called out and hurried to join Smokescreen’s side. “I’m coming, too. I can’t… I can’t let that happen again. I won’t watch my… my friends… and family die again. I won’t!”
“We’re with you, too!” Hound called, and, with the others right on his heels, they joined him. A flicker of hope filled Smokescreen’s spark, and, confidence growing even only a little, he led them at a sprint back into the fray, ignoring any cries from human allies.
“Remember, we need to aim for Shockwave, but we also need to make sure the Driller remains near us! We have to let the humans get away!” the tactician called out, and all shouted their agreement. Even if it meant death, they would give their all to take down the slagger and his beast, and ensure the safety of this planet and its people.
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-O-
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“Keep moving!” Prime cried out as he turned to fire again at the Decepticons on their heels. His fellow Autobots and the few remaining humans among them didn’t need to be told twice. The enemy had been on their tail relentlessly, never letting up and never giving them a chance to rest. While it wasn’t as taxing for the Cybertronian component of NEST, the organic part was suffering for it. They’d lost five more since the cave-in, and all were wounded in some way. They had done what they could to keep them safe, but the enemy was literally throwing themselves away and outnumbered them in both Decepticon and human numbers. To make matters worse, they weren’t sure they were anywhere near an exit.
Optimus spared another glance back and his optics made out at least three ‘Cons and eight or more humans racing after them. His processor whirled quickly and he thought back upon the map of the tunnels he had made. With no reassurance they were headed in the right direction or that these were the last of their enemies, he made a decision—one he did not truly wish to make. He had what remained of his group to think of along with the rest of NEST, and so he aimed at the ceiling and fired four rounds, all of white struck the same spot. The ceiling collapsed at once, burying Decepticon and enemy humans alike, and also effectively blocking their path. His soldiers stopped, the momentary danger passed, and the humans gladly took the moment to catch their breath. Only one out of the group could not sit still.
"No! What have you done?!” Sideswipe cried out, slamming against the rocks and clawing away at them just as he done with the first collapse not long before. He stopped quicker this time as he realized that it was just as useless. He turned to Prime instead, blue optics burning with rage. “We can’t get to them now! Catherine and Sunstreaker are still back there! They’re. Still. There! And you’ve blocked our only way to them! You’ve killed them! You’ve killed them!”
“Sideswipe, calm down!” Elita-1 spoke firmly, but the silver mech ignored her in favor of grabbing a piece of Prime’s armor.
“I wanted to stay, but you made me leave! You fragger! You’ve killed them both!” he snarled, shoving the larger mech. Prime let him shove the first time—deep in his spark he knew he deserved it—but before the silver mech could do it a second, he grabbed the mech’s smaller arm and met Sideswipe’s optics with a sorrowful, regretful, yet firm gaze.
“I am sorry I forced you to leave them, but I could not allow you to throw away your spark, Sideswipe. They are not offline—you know this to be true. You spoke with Sunstreaker barely kliks ago, and he confirmed Catherine was alive. We will find them once we are free of this maze. We will locate them with the map, which they are visible on, and we will rescue them. However, our first priority must be to escape so that we are able to rescue them. Do you understand, Sideswipe?”
The silver mech looked away, scowling and cursing lowly in Cybertronian, but the longer Prime kept his grip on the mech’s arms, the more Sideswipe’s shoulder began to fall and his rage cooled. When, at last, he was defeated, his optics flickered off and he pulled his arm away. Prime let him go then, and turned to the others, who had watched the spectacle either with confusion, curiosity, concern, or all three. There was no time for answers, nor did he plan to give them—it was not for all to understand—and so he gazed with purpose down the path they had started from. Unfortunately, there was a hidden uncertainty behind his optics.
He did not know if the path would take them to the surface. He had only chosen this way because it had been the only one available to them. He had no knowledge of this way, and he could very well be leading his troops into another trap. He did know without a doubt that the humans could not continue on this way and they needed to be free of their prison. His Autobots could still go on, but even that was a dangerous venture. They needed a way out now, but all that lay before them was the path. Or was it?
Prime turned his optics to the pile of rubble and then looked to the ceiling, which was heavily weakened and indented from where the roof had fallen. His processor took in its depth and the distance to the surface based upon the map he had made and a flicker of hope emerged. There was not that much soil between them and the city streets, he realized, and their Cybertronian weaponry would have no trouble blasting through any man-made structure or cement. He knew what needed to be done, and so prepped his blaster.
“We’re getting out of here. I ask the humans step back to avoid harm,” he rumbled, and, pausing for a moment to let his organic companions do as asked, fired at the indent. The soil and rocks did as expected and crumpled further, increasing the pile. Understanding what he intended, the Femmes joined in, and so, too, did Sideswipe, though he still silently raved in his spark. Their blasts did their work quickly and effectively on the soil and it did not take long before they reached cement and that, too, burst. They had to turn away briefly when strong sunlight shot down into the tunnel, but their optics adjusted soon enough and they continued their barrage until a gaping hole was above them.
“Good work. Let us leave this place,” Optimus spoke as he crouched down to the humans, lowering his hand for them to stand upon. Behind him, Sideswipe helped thrust the Femmes out on the street where they, in turn, helped carry the humans out by taking them from Prime. When all the humans had been removed, the Autobot Commander than eased Sideswipe out, followed by himself. All were glad to finally be free, save for the silver mech, whom was staring at the holographic map of the tunnels anxiously. The dots serving as markers for Catherine, Sunstreaker, and another soldier were still there and moving steadily in the same direction they were, but they were fairly far off now. Any communication with them was difficult, if not impossible as well—even standing next to his troops, his comm. link fizzled and crackled. However, Sideswipe’s bonds had proven unaffected by Soundwave’s workings, and it was he that had gotten the small group moving.
“Is everyone well enough to continue on?” Prime inquired aloud, and, though tiredly, everyone nodded. “Then we will begin to search for Catherine’s group. We will not leave them behind.”
“O-Optimus, sir?” a soldier inquired, raising a hand, and then withdrew a little when the Autobot Commander turned his gaze onto him. “Er—well, um… W-what about the other two—the ones we sent earlier? Should we send someone to look for them, t-too?”
Prime paused only for a moment, “I do not wish to separate our group so readily, but, as I said, we will leave no one behind. Elita, take your sister with a group of the humans to find the other two and see if you can communicate with the NEST base. Sideswipe and the rest, you’re with me.”
A chorus of “roger” went out, and both groups began to move. However, the whine of jet engines made them pause, blood and Energon running cold not for their first and surely not for the last time that day. All eyes and optics turned to the sky as two aerial craft—one an Earth Jet, but bearing alien symbols, and the other alien-like—veered over the towering buildings. Optimus knew who it was at once, and a grim feeling set into his frame. The others, too, knew who it was and armed themselves while the air craft circled towards them. Unfortunately, it was not all they had to worry about.
Building walls and windows burst as a handful of Decepticons still in their Cybertronian forms leaped from the buildings—no doubt other entrances to the tunnels. Joining them were the traitorous humans and their weapons, all aimed at NEST. There scarcely time to blink when they opened fire and everyone leaped anywhere to avoid the blasts.
The Triplets scrambled up first and fired rapidly at their foes, managing to take down one ‘Con and a few humans before they were forced apart and partnered with a single ‘Con each. Chromia twirled around hers with ease, having trained to fight against mechs larger than her size. The mech soon traded lashing out wildly in favor of his gun, but the Femme was not to be taken by surprise. She quickly vaulted up, soaring over the mech, and, aiming carefully, made three destructive blows to the ‘Con’s face and chest. Their spark was snuffed and she quickly moved to help her sisters. Elita-1 was doing fine, having already finished her mech and moving onto the next, but Arcee struggled with her already wounded frame. Thankfully, with her sister’s timely arrival the ‘Con was put down and they went onto their next target.
Sideswipe managed to cripple a Decepticon, but could do no more as he was struck in the shoulder and swerved away to cover. A mech followed him, though, and he traded his guns in favor of his blades, which, with a single swipe, decapitated the mech. He returned one blade to a blaster, however, when a small squad of Cybertech wielding humans converged on him and fired. He cursed loudly as he knew he was wasting precious time. His bond mate and brother were down there in the tunnels still and he could do nothing to reach them! They could be in danger now and he could do nothing! With a battle cry he burst from the building and lunged onto the nearest Decepticon, digging his blade in deep into the neck and ripping it through the metal in a clean slice. The ‘Con fell dead and he looked for his next victim, only to have them tackle his side and their claws slash through his abdomen. He snarled and kicked them away so that he could spin up, but had to pause as he saw who it was.
“You!” he hissed, and the ‘Con, clad in armor that, when transformed, ironically made him out to be a police car.
Barricade replied with a toothy grin, “Surprised to see me, Autobot?”
“You slagger! I’ll kill you for what you’ve done!” the silver mech screamed and charged at the mech, whom threw him over his head with a laugh.
“You’re welcome to try! Let’s see if you can’t save yourself or your precious human and brother in time!” the Decepticon sneered, and Sideswipe attacked again.
Not far away, Optimus blew the head off a Decepticon and then the ground beneath Cybertech-wielding humans. He had already taken down two of the enemy mechs, but more were coming from the entrances. How many more would come he didn’t know, but it was to be the least of his worries as the sound of jet engines again reached his audio receptors. He looked up in time to see Megatron transform in mid-air and free-fall down, attempting to crush him. Prime leaped away, but was soon tackled and slashed by the Decepticon leader’s sharp claws. He grunted with effort as he shoved the mech off and then fired two blasts, which were easily dodged. Megatron lunged again, but this time the Autobot Commander met his claws with his hands and they began to grapple for dominance.
“Surrender, Prime!” the mech hissed.
Optimus’ optics narrowed, “And let you slaughter my troops? Never!”
“No matter!” Megatron chuckled and swung his leg so that is smashed against Prime’s side, forcing him down to one knee. The mech then followed with a kick to the chin, which sent the Autobot Commander to his back. The Decepticon quickly towered over his opponent, a newly-transformed gun in his hands and aimed at Optimus’ head. “I will have the Matrix one way or another!”
“Not on your spark,” the Autobot Commander spoke and twisted his legs. They tangled with Megatron’s, forcing the large mech down. He managed to fire a single shot, which tore through Optimus’ shoulder armor, but it hardly deterred him from lunging, grasping the Decepticon leader head, and smashing it into the ground. With a mighty roar and kick he was thrown off, but not without tearing wires and metal from the old wound he had received during the Egypt battles just stellar cycles ago, ruining any repairs. The Decepticon leader shrieked in agony, turned his enraged optics onto the Autobot Commander, and began to grapple once more.
High above them, Starscream watched from the skies, waiting patiently for the right time to strike. It was annoying to see the Autobots were doing so well against their soldiers, although their lumbering mechs were of such low class and processor speed it was to be expected. He didn’t like it, though. He supposed there was some joy in the fact all the NEST humans had been taken out—or, well, most of them. There were still a few alive, he noticed, and attempting to hide themselves in the rubble of a building. He shook his head at their pathetic nature. How stupid could they be? Of course, they were just insects. It was no matter; he would finish them soundly.
He raised his arm to fire a single missile, not needing to waste any more than that, but, just as he meant to release the weapon, there was a booming crack behind him. His audio receptors were deafened as he looked, and had to screech as a jet transformed into a green-armored Seeker that rammed into his torso. The blow cracked his armor and sent him spiraling downward, but he was soon freed. Both he and the Autobot quickly turned and fired their thrusters. Starscream’s were more powerful, though, and he began to gain lead on the Autobot Seeker. His assurance was denied, however, when a second, black-armored Autobot Seeker tore through the small Space bridge and rammed him like the other, though this time remained in aerial form. The Decepticon screamed with rage as he clawed at the black armor, and only grew louder when the jet transformed and he was suddenly rammed into the side of a building. He went in a good distance, taking out windows, desks, and pillars with him, while Skydive remained outside where his brother joined him.
Starscream shook his head as he stood, seething silently at the insult. How dare those two younglings have the gall to attack him?! Had they already forgotten what he had done to their brother? They obviously knew not the true meaning of power, but he would be happy to show them again. Oh, yes, he would relish and ripping them apart and showing the other two what it was to mess with Starscream!
With a metallic roar he fired his thrusters to maximum and shot out, ramming Skydive in return. He released the Seeker, though, and flipped to fire off two missiles, only one of which struck the mech. It burst on his shoulder, tearing the armor to pieces, but Skydive was more than capable of flight, as was his brother. With a sneer, Starscream transformed and took off towards the sky, and, as he expected, the two Aerialbots followed. The Decepticon Seeker didn’t worry, though; the skies were his domain and his domain alone. The two trespassers would pay dearly for their transgression, and he would gladly deliver the punishment.
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-O-
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“Sunstreaker, wait! Stop!” Catherine called out and, after shouting again with more vehemence, the golden armored mech did. Relieved, the redhead finally eased the soldier down to the ground and sat down next to him, exhausted.
“What the frag is wrong with you now?” he asked roughly.
She scowled at him, “You’ll have to excuse us if we’re both hurt and tired because we’ve had to limp our way through here while you’re right as rain! We just need to take a break! Jesus!”
“We’re wasting time,” he grumbled agitatedly, turning back as if to move on. Thankfully, he didn’t, although she was sure it was out of reluctance to Sideswipe’s wishes.
“Well, you’re welcome to carry us if you want to save it,” she replied, and he looked at her with such disgust she had to throw up her arms in defense. “Geez. It was a joke. Look, we all want to get out of here fast, but you’re kind of going way too hard and we can barely keep up.”
“When my brother’s spark is in danger I don’t have time to slow down,” he growled, and Catherine perked up at once. She stood quickly and walked over towards him.
“Sideswipe’s in danger?! What’s going on out there?!”
“Now you care?” he snorted.
"I always care, but I can’t exactly feel when he’s in danger like you can. Now what the hell is going on?”
The golden-armored looked as if he was considering it, but he turned away in the end. She blinked once, then twice before stepping closer and pounding on his armor angrily. His head whipped towards her and for a minute she thought he might strike her, but he only gave a glare.
“Hey! I asked you what the hell is going on with Sideswipe! He’s your brother, but he’s also my bond mate and I want to know if he’s alright!”
“You don’t have the right to call him that,” he seethed, and she glared right back.
“Of course I have the fucking right! We bonded, Sunstreaker! I could feel him just like you can!”
He sneered again, “But now you can’t, can you? Now you’re just causing him pain and I’m stuck not being able to do anything about it! He’s hurting because of you!”
"We know that!” she shouted back, fists clenching as she bit back the ache in her heart. “But we’ve accepted it! I hate that I’m hurting him! I hate myself so much for it, but we’re still doing okay! All that matters is that we’ve got each other, but you don’t seem to get that! You’re just pent up on all this hate you have for me because you think I’m some god damned virus! Why can’t you just accept that we’re bonded?!”
“Why the frag should I?! Sideswipe went behind my back when I stellar cycles away and bonded with a fragging disgusting human of all things, and now he’s different and hurting, and he’s going to get himself killed because of you! It’s all been because of you! You’ve ruined everything!”
“I didn’t ask him to change, Sunstreaker! I would never ask him to change! But that’s what people do! They change! You honestly expected him to stay how he was after not being around him for Vorns or however long you call it? He’s you’re brother, god dammit! You shouldn’t be so indifferent to him changing!”
“Stop trying to make excuses! Slaggit it all you’re so pathetic! You’ve ruined his spark and that’s all that matters!” he snarled and turned away, huffing.
“It’s not ruined you stubborn ass!” she barked, eyes starting to sting. “It’s just… strained… He’s fine…Just—fuck!”
Rubbing at her eyes she stormed around to face the golden-armored mech again, who curled his lip at the sight of her and refused to meet her eyes. Catherine, however, kept her gaze fixated on his optics while she kept her fists clenched by her side.
“Sideswipe isn’t hurting because of me, Sunstreaker. He’s hurting because of us,” she spoke firmly, yet defeated, and the mech, for the first time, turned to her with optics that widened for a small moment. She closed her eyes to swallow and sigh, and then regained the firmness. “It took me ‘till just now to realize it, but it’s us. Us fighting all the time. God, you’ve haven’t seen it, but… but he’s been struggling to make us get along, but we just end up trying to bite each other’s heads off, and that’s hurting him. He wants us to be okay with each other so much! You haven’t seen it when you leave, but it breaks his spark to see us like that!”
He was a silent for a while before, “What are you getting at, human?”
“Look, I’m not asking us to be friends. I know for a fast that won’t happen, but… But we need to get along at the very least. We have got to stop fighting and bickering and being assholes to each other. You can still hate me for everything; you can think I’m a parasite or a virus or that I’m hurting Sideswipe on purpose, even if you’re wrong, but we have to get along. We can’t ignore each other anymore, we have to start actually talking and being civil, and we’ve got to stop the fighting. No more of that. Not for us—I don’t care if you hate me or not anymore—but we have to do it for Sideswipe, alright? For him.”
Sunstreaker stared at her for a very long time, the hidden thoughts and emotions tucked tightly behind his blue optics. His face remained unchanged the entire time, and Catherine could only watch fruitlessly for any signs of agreement. She prayed her words had gotten, through—that her request would reach his spark and that the fact it would be for Sideswipe would be enough. They didn’t need to get along for each other, but the golden-armored mech was right; her bond mate was hurting. She knew neither of them wanted that, but doing nothing about it wasn’t going to do anything. Fighting more certainly wasn’t going to help, either. Her proposition was all she should think to do, but Sunstreaker had to be the one to agree to it.
Her hopes failed her, though, when he turned away, “You’ve rested enough.”
Catherine closed her eyes to bite back tears, and again she rubbed them way as she moved back to the soldier. He had watched and heard the whole thing, but was quiet even as she helped him up once more. She silently thanked him for not asking any questions—she wasn’t sure she could handle that right now, and slowly continued on, following after the golden-armored mech.
The redhead’s mind wandered on through the mud it had gathered, though enough of it remained focused on following Sunstreaker. The soldier, again, remained quiet, though in part because he was biting back the pain. The Autobot, as usual, ignored them and continued on, still heading the same way they were already going. They hadn’t hit anymore cross roads, so they had to be on the right track. At least, that’s what they hoped. For both the redhead and the golden-armored mech, it was the hope they could find Sideswipe and help with whatever danger he was in above all else.
They continued on as such, Sunstreaker in the lead, and Catherine and the soldier hobbling along. The tunnel had gotten wider and taller now, allowing for the mech to stand upright as he walked. He had, thankfully, slowed down a bit, and for it the two humans were grateful as they, again, were growing tired. The air had gotten warmer, too, which they hoped was a sign that they were, indeed, getting closer to the surface. Catherine would have loved more than anything to be out of the dark, stank tunnels and into the fresh air. Not to mention so she could actually see if she was about to trip over anything or not. She could go for some water, too, and food. Oh, and some medical aid would be nice, although her shoulder was starting to feel better and could move a bit more now.
“Ah, shit. I can barely feel my leg now,” the soldier spoke softly, and Catherine paused to look down at the limb. It was still a bloodied mess and it was beginning to drag against the metal floor. She looked back and could just barely make out the stains of blood droplets, and she pursed her lip in concern. How much blood had he lost? If it was too much he might die, and she couldn’t let that happen.
“Sunstreaker!” she called out and the mech stopped and looked back at her with exasperation.
“What is it?”
“I need you to carry him.”
He looked at her like she was crazy, “Ugh. No!”
“Please! He’s losing too much blood just from walking.”
“No. I am not getting any of his disgusting organic fluid on me.”
“Sunstreaker, plea—,” she began, but the soldier was the one to cut her off.
“Don’t worry about it, ma’am. I’ll be fine. I might not be twenty anymore, but I still got some life in me. You just worry about yourself, alright?”
The redhead sighed, “Alright. C’mon then, soldier. We’ve got a team to get you back to.”
They continued on, then, but not for too much longer. This time, though, it was because the golden-armored mech had stopped, rather than the two organics. They, of course, stopped behind him, curious as he looked down the path ahead of them. He wasn’t looking at the map, however; no, there was something else in the darkness he was trying to make out, but somehow couldn’t. Or, so Catherine assumed so in the way the mech lowered to a slight crouch; ready to pounce. Her heart beat fast as she let her wounded arm trail down to her thigh where her right-hand blade had managed to remain attached to its holster.
“What is it?” she asked just barely above a whisper, but Sunstreaker remained silent. She followed his lead, and squeezed the soldier’s shoulder tightly when he meant to inquire next. He, too, fell silent and tried to peer into the darkness. Barely a few second later, the holographic map vanished and the mech’s arms transformed into guns. Catherine’s heartbeat soared and she quickly drew her blade, although it sent a small sting of pain through her arm. She almost broke her own rule of being quiet, but was instead cut off by the sudden firing of Sunstreaker’s weapon. It struck something hidden in the hall and a mechanical shriek rang out. A blast was returned and it struck the golden-armored mech dead on. Only, the blow didn’t go through him; rather it sent a mechanical surge through his body that made him scream as she’d never heard any Cybertronian scream before. His body convulsed and jerked, his optics flickering wildly. When the scream stopped his body remained suspended for a brief moment, and then he collapsed, leaving Catherine and the soldier in the dark.
“Sunstreaker!” she cried out, attempting to move towards him, but was hindered by the soldier’s extra weight. Sudden sounds of movement in the dark stopped her as well and she prepared her blade, though she knew it was futile. Sure enough, pairs of thin, green lights appeared in the dark, along with a set of red optics, and, though she attempted to slash at the nearest, they evaded her easily. She tried to continue her fruitless barrage, but a strong blow to the back of her head sent her and the soldier to the ground where, barely conscious, she felt she was being dragged along the ground to God-knows where. In the last bits of her remaining self-awareness she managed to look back at the soldier and Sunstreaker. Her comrade was being dragged as well, completely out, and she could just barely make out a Decepticon grabbing the golden-armored mech roughly and dragging him, too.
A few seconds later, and everything went black.
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