Transformers Fan Fiction ❯ Fragments of Memory ❯ Utter Chaos ( Chapter 12 )

Chapter 12: Utter Chaos

 

 

His hands flew in a blur of motion, reconnecting and wiring, pouring what little Energon they had left into the lifeless shell. The spark was there, he could sense it. He had to work quickly now, the Decepticons knew they were on to them. The oculars flickered and finally held a dull red light. A gentle touch and the cranium of the small transformer slid open with a hiss. This would be the most delicate part; Ratchet mentally prepared himself. He would need every ounce of his skill to persuade the Decepticon's central processor to change his allegiance. Ratchet opened his own spark and reached out in a way not even comprehendible to the medic himself. You could not be taught how to touch someone else's core and manipulate it, one had to be born with it. Ratchet had been spotted at an early age and molded to fit his rare gift. He suggested with a push of his own mind, and felt the opposition. Push. The Decepticon was fighting back. Push. His resolve was wavering. Push. The bot fought against the alien presence and grasped desperately with his mind to retain himself. PUSH. Anymore would render him thoughtless, Ratchet knew. Release. With the ease of a hypodermic needle piercing flesh, Ratchet entered the Decepticon's processor and began rearranging his loyalties. After a short time Ratchet was finished and withdrew. He closed the circuitry and welded the last of protective armor together, and the new Autobot sat up, looking around shakily. The transformer knew exactly what was going on. Ratchet had seen it so. Optimus gave the new comrade his orders and was rewarded with a salute as he transformed into the Katana and sped away.

 

Arianna had managed to wiggle her way to the bars of her cell and pressed her face against them. Quite a commotion was going on somewhere above her and she was trying to peer up the stairwell. The door hung open and a shaft of golden light hit her face. The sun was setting, but the dying warmth was bliss. Shadows of enormous robots sped by in regular intervals and then she heard the monotone of Soundwave ordering all troops to fall out. After that, the sunlight was left undisrupted in the large door. Her legs now felt dead, and Arianna wondered how long it would take to be able to walk again. The blue hooded sweatshirt was caked in grime, and her jeans were torn from her efforts. She thought the stickyness all over her head might be from the old wound on her forehead reopening and spilling blood. Did you feel pain as a transformer? Yes, she answered her own question, remembering the groan Bumblebee emitted after diving off an overpass to save her life. That wasn't so long ago…but it seemed like a lifetime. Bumblebee…Bee, her Bee. What happened to him? Her head slipped to the ground. She was rewarded with an answer moments later when the last of the sunlight was blocked. She lifted her head again with great effort and saw her once-savior standing at the top of the stairs.

“Bu..B-“ it seemed she couldn't speak.

“Silence, human.” He barked, his lilting voice sounding odd in those harsh syllables.

“Bu…bee…” she emitted with more effort.

“Silence!” he snapped more sharply. He descended the transformer-sized stairs in a few bounds and wrenched open her cell. A large steel hand scooped her up and jammed her close to his chest; she tried to squawk indignantly but realized she hadn't the breath for it. A large exhale of air was all she managed.

 

 

The assault had come upon them, and every last Autobot lay their firepower upon the barrage of Decepticons approaching them. They had hid for as long as it took Ratchet to repair the transformer, and revealed themselves to aid in his departure. Wave after wave of inexperienced bots met their ends at the power of the millennia-hardened Autobots. Optimus Prime had never released such a furious power, except when his soul mate had been under attack. The thought of her, her demise far away from his comfort, drove his attack on more powerful than before. His plasma blasts were something the New Mexico soil would never recover from. Optimus was his given name, and Prime his namesake. And he was a sight to behold on that evening, as the outnumbered Autobot resistance took heart from their brilliant leader and poured every once of their spark's power into the attack. Decepticon forces seemed to diminish faster than they should have, and Prime thought that many were deflecting rather than face the wrath of his cornered battalion. His lips took up a deadly smirk behind his shield.

 

Starscream watched from far above, hovering in the darkening clouds. The advance of his Decepticons was a complete failure. Soundwave, Onslaught, Treadshot, Runamuck and Runabout were his last resort. They couldn't be let into battle just yet. He would need to send his most precious troops in after all. A short transmission sent his Seekers into a bombing run but Ironhide had suspected as much. A giant leap from the war-hardened transformer was rewarded with the touch of a jet, and he crunched his hand into its body. The Conehead Thrust was hurtled to the ground and exploded. He glanced at the others who were recovering from dodging the missiles. The weapons expert knew that despite their best efforts, the sheer might the Decepticons possessed could overwhelm them all. Only Prime's plan to bring the battle sooner than anticipated could possible prevent the transformation of Arianna.

 

Starscream looped in frustration. His aerial team could not be defeated so easily! He swooped down himself and joined in another wave of attack. Optimus Prime had predicted this and ordered his team to split. Bluestreak and Hot Rod fired on the approaching jets, now numbering five. The others, Prime included, kept the line of ground attacks to a minimum. It seemed that the Decepticons weren't so many in numbers as they had feared. Skywarp felt the burn of Hot Rod's fire and careened wildly to try and gain control again. His wing was crumpled and his attempts failed as a desperate maneuver sent him hurtling into the ground. Bluestreak blasted the circuitry of Dirge open but was only rewarded with his own injury. Thundercracker's well aimed missile hit the Autobot directly in the chest. Bluestreak fell back with a cry of pain as most of his midsection was torn asunder.

“NO!!!” howled Wheeljack, at the sight of his young friend falling backwards. The old inventor was too late to catch the tall and proud transformer before he crashed to the ground. Wheeljack slid to his knees and held up the Autobot's head. Bluestreak smiled and Energon poured from his mouth as he raised a hand to comfort his mentor. The motion was lost, however, when Bluestreak's spark died away. Wheeljack clutched the boy he had wished his own to his chest and rocked him. Hot Rod ripped him away.

“He's GONE!” the flame-bedecked transformer shouted over the sound of gunfire. “Avenge him if you must, but we have no time for grief!”

Wheeljack set Bluestreak's head down gently. He would do just that.

 

After what seemed like miles through winding corridors, and several more attempts at speaking, Arianna received a gag. One of the ties from around her knees was now wrapped tightly around her mouth, muffling her. So much for talking him down, she thought bitterly. She began working on the gag, a strip of duct tape, of all things. Her tongue tore as she tried to wet the sticky bond to her face and made little progress as the walk went on. Arianna realized, halfway through an attempt that made her choke back blood, that Bumblebee must be taking her to become a transformer. All rational thought left her as she saw a giant bay loom into sight, and elements of machinery that made the contraption unmistakable. This is where she would loose her humanity. She ran through a panicked list of reactions and settled on flailing wildly. Bumblebee almost dropped her as it seemed the blood from her battered mouth was the key to dissolving the hold on the duct tape. Arianna screamed wordlessly at first, Bumblebee making shushing noises and looking around in fear. Fear? Did she see that expression correctly? Wordlessness became language.

“PLEASE, NO! Bumblebee you CAN'T DO THIS to me, I'm HUMAN! PLEASE, NO I DON'T WANT TO LOOSE MYSELF!” Screams became hiccupping sobs, as her pleas went on much in the same fashion. He ripped another strip of tape from around her upper thighs and placed it firmly over her eyes.

“Then don't watch.” He said, his voice very quiet.

“BEE, NO! I LOVE YOU, PLEASE LISTEN TO ME!!!”

She was bumped by his armor swinging open.

“Oh God Oh God noooo-“ she wailed, her voice now too hoarse to emit something louder. She was set down on the cold ground, and Arianna guessed that Bumblebee had placed her inside the machine. A pair of metal fingers groped at her sweatshirt and tore it halfway off to get to the silver chain around her neck. With a tug, the fragment came loose. A door hissed shut and Arianna bit her lip, defeated.

“Oh please, please, no, please…” she cried “Not like this, I love you, please don't do this.” It came out in a whisper. She heard humming, a huge whirring noise, and a brilliant light began to shine; piercing even the cover of her blindfold. This was it. She was going to end up killing them all.