From A Different Point of View
The darkness was the first thing that met my eyes.
As I was thrown back into my closet of a room the door closed behind me, leaving me in almost total darkness. Some light seeped in through the bottom of the door, but that didn't really count.
My knees scraped against the concrete floor and let yet another scratch-on-top-of-a-scratch. My hands caught myself before I scratched my elbows again, thankfully, and I quickly recovered, bringing my knees up to my chest and resting my chin on them, sighing.
Are you alright?
…yeah.
I grabbed my sock puppet plushy, the faint colors of red, gray, and white catching my eyes in this black hole. I held it to my chest and squeezed, taking it in, thankful for something that never changes.
As I sat there with my back against the cold wall, my battered up pants and shirt barely keeping me warm, and my sock puppet named Zero, I began reminiscing what led me up to this point:
Well, when a mommy and daddy love each other very much…no, never mind, you get that part. But ever since I came out of my mom's belly, she didn't want me. At least that's what I was told. I came out a little devil, they say. That it was an accident that I was conceived in the first place, and that my mom and dad's money combined couldn't pay for the abortion they desperately wanted. As my mom held me in her arms and my dad and the doctors gathered around for that family shot, I was red and bawling and my parents weren't even smiling. They threw away that picture, by the way. Not that it matters to me. It even took my parents an hour to come up with a name for me-you know, after they got serious and stopped laughing over names like 'failure,' 'dumbass,' and 'shitface.' One of the doctors suggested Terra, so they went with that. When asked for a middle name, they began laughing again, so the doctors skipped the middle name and just left me as Terra Bennett.
Stupid, right? Not like I had any say in the matter.
Terra Bennett. The girl with no middle name, no life, no…anything.
Anyways, ever since they brought me home, they already began planning on how to kill me with having it seem to be an accident, or somehow leaving me on another's footsteps. But, and praise the lord, my grandparents took me in until the age of 6, without any help from my parents. I fact, I call my grandparents Mom and Dad, and I call my real parents by their first names, Mari and Alex.
MUH-ree. Not Mary. Keep that in mind if you don't want a smack to the head.
Okay, so after Mom and Dad died (from a car crash), MUH-ree and Alex took me in to their home. They got enough inheritance money from Mom and Dad to buy an actual house, albeit smallish, it's still a house. Again, they plotted on leaving me to die, but Alex came up with a BRILLIANT idea-make me do all the work in the house. Yep. They didn't even bother to get me a room. They just put me in a dark closet and didn't even bother to say 'nighty night.' I got to keep one thing from Mom and Dad's house, and that was Zero. This is why I love him so much.
Anyways, getting off topic here. They made this filthy closet my room for the next 12 years-you know, until I turn 18 and they throw me out, just because they can. I don't even have a blanket in here, and I get to beg them to let me get new clothes every year. They let me out after the many parties with their drunken friends and make me clean up the whole place, if not clean up the whole place every day. It's annoying. I don't even know how they keep up this house. Mari's a stripper, I think-either that or she's just a whore. And Alex's a construction worker, that I do know. But, whatever.
Now I'm 14, almost 15. Now that you know my backstory, you're all probably wondering what that voice was earlier, that asked me if I was alright. I don't know when it all started. I think I've gone crazy, but he's bent on the fact that no, I am not crazy, I am just inhabiting another being.
Simple.
I think it was about almost a month ago, after all of that alien craziness in Chicago. I heard about it on the news when I was cleaning up the living room. They left the TV on, Mari and Alex, and I decided to listen to it. The news people told me that the human/Autobot alliance is active again, and people are already working on rebuilding Chicago. The bad guys are dead. The good guys won.
Until the day Optimus Prime stopped working.
A spark attack, he said. He told me he had a spark attack and died from all the stress and fighting that he had recently gone through, and the shock that he lost an arm.
Yeah. The voice inside my head is Optimus Prime. And he told me everything.
He told me about Cybertron, about its Golden Age, and about the Great War that destroyed it. He introduced me to many of his friends…and his enemies. The Decepticons were the bad guys, he said. They were bent on destroying worlds and stuff. And the Autobots were the good guys bent on destroying every last one of the bad guys.
So, you know, they can't destroy worlds and stuff.
Megatron is the leader of the bad guys. His Second in Command is Starscream. They're both no fun. They kill the innocent and destroy worlds, and stuff.
Megatron crash landed on Earth a long time ago and then along came Bumblebee, the Autobot scout. Nice to send the young guy to a planet you know nothing about. Nice Autobots. Anyways, he found this guy named Samuel James Witwicky, who is a descendant of Archibald Witwicky. Funny name. Anyway, these giant ass robots that can transform into cars need these glasses from this guy. There was a battle in Mission City, and…yeah. Then there was one in Egypt, Optimus died, he got revived. Yeah. Boring. I don't want to explain the rest. But then that battle in Chicago where he almost died and humankind got enslaved. Again.
It's like a never ending string of horror movies.
Not that I could ever watch them.
Anyway, a few days after that whole Chicago incident, Prime had a spark attack. And died, I guess. But, his mind went into my body.
Why my body? Why not someone else's?
I guess that's always the questions, huh?
Anyway, Prime has been in my body for, like, a few weeks. 3 weeks, 2 days, 18 hours, 24 minutes, and 34 seconds to be exact. Oops, 35.
You know, he can be really annoying at times.
He's been trying to figure out a way to get back in his own body but cannot think of one. Also, there's this whole issue with me getting hit every five seconds over here.
But don't worry, because when Prime gets back in his own body, he'll make sure to help me.
It's not like he can do anything to help me, though. I mean, he gives me advice, tells me when to run for it, but I never listen to him. I still think I'm crazy.
I'm crazy, I tell him for the millionth time. I don't even dare to ask him how many times I've told him. He'd actually tell me.
He sighed. No, you're not, Terra. His deep baritone voice gets me all of the time. I guess you can have any voice you want when you're a robot.
I know, I told him, smiling to myself, clutching Zero even closer. I just wanted to piss you off.
He sighed again, and I swear I could hear him face palm, if he even could. However this whole thing works.
I scraped my knee again, I tell him. Like he's my father. Like he could do anything about it. Now I have scrapes on my scrapes.
He chuckled. Is it bleeding?
I glanced down. Yes. Bad. Blood was pouring out of it, but I didn't feel anything because it was numb.
I wish I could help, he tells me. He says this about as much as I've said that I was crazy. Which says something.
I loudly sigh and lay down on my side, still clutching Zero, an arm around my legs that are held up to my chest. Time to get some sleep, partner.
Prime chuckled again.
I was talking to Zero.
He laughed.
I woke up to blinding light.
"Terra, get the fuck up!"
I groaned, rubbing my sore eyes, but quickly sat up. If I didn't, I'd probably get kicked again.
Mari was in the doorway, looking as ugly as ever. She had greasy, bleached blonde hair that fell to her waist that was all tangled. Bags were seen under her dreadful black eyes that, when you looked at them long enough, actually felt like you were being sucked into a black hole. She was wearing one of her stripper outfits-that, or she was just getting ready to go outside. She had on only a black bra thing, black thongs, black fishnet stockings, and knee-high high heeled black boots. A cigarette hung loosely out of her mouth, not even lit yet, and she had on a load of makeup.
Sometimes, I'm embarrassed that Prime has to look at this every day.
"I said, get the fuck up!" she repeated, and I obeyed, standing up and laying Zero down against the wall. I turned and faced her, my eyebrows raised in a 'now what?' kind of way. She narrowed her eyes at me. "I know what game you're playin.'" I just stood there with a blank expression on my face, staring at her, trying to hide my annoyance towards her 'knowing shit' about me.
She just shook her head and chuckled. "Get the fuck out and clean, bitch." She left the doorway and went to the kitchen, probably to light her smoke.
I looked back at Zero one last time before heading out the door. I had to squint for a few seconds more because of the sunlight shining through our windows. Alex sat on the old, beaten, wooden living room table, snorting some with drug through a straw. This is his morning run. Mari was rummaging through the drawers, exclaiming, "Where the fuck are the lighters, Alex!" in that high, screechy voice she has when she gets mad. I cringed.
Alex snorted more of the drug, finishing it off and wiping whatever remained on the floor. Don't worry, I'll clean it up. He turned to look at her. "It's right in front of your fucking face, Mari." He shook his head at his wife's usual idiocy, his somewhat shaggy light brown hair flopping around. His blue-green eyes caught mine and narrowed. "Aren't you supposed to be cleaning, you little bitch? What are you staring at?"
Somehow, they both found it hilarious and started laughing, Mari barely able to light her own cigarette. Finally, she did, and tossed the lighter back in the drawer and slammed it shut, causing it to come off its hinges. She jumped back, startled, and turned to glare at me as if it was my fault.
Oh, wait. I forgot. Everything is my fault in this house.
A little bit later, Mari was off to whatever she does during the day, as she strips for strangers during the night. Alex left for his construction job or whatever, and I stayed home. Like I had any choice in the matter.
I started off by cleaning up the usual junk lying on the floor in the house, all the way from upstairs to downstairs. I looked at the clock. 2 hours have passed. I went downstairs and into another closet-you know, the one that's not serving as my personal living quarters-to get some tools. I didn't know what the hell I needed, so I just took the whole bin of shit and went to the kitchen. I examined the drawer, trying to figure out what the hell was wrong with it, and, after an hour of doing random stuff, I finally fixed it.
5 hours have passed, and right now it was exactly 12:49. Alex comes home at 4, and Mari usually just stays out, doing whatever, until she has to go to her job and returns at 3 in the morning the next day. No wonder she has bags under her eyes-she's been spending so much time being a slut all day that she doesn't leave herself time to actually sleep.
Knowing that I have some extra time left, I walked over to the living room and turned on the piece of crap TV. It was small, but it'd make due. Turning on channel 8, the news channel, I sat on the floor in front of it. I don't know what I was hoping to see, I just like to see what new stuff is on in the world I can't have a part of.
Right now, there was a crash in the next town over or something. I don't know, somewhere in Nowhere, Maryland. How sad is it that I don't even know where I live?
You should run away, get out of here while you still have the chance, said Prime. They're not here. Run and find the nearest Police Station and tell them everything. I don't want to see you injured anymore.
I sighed and shook my head no, saying nothing. It's not like I didn't want to run away. I don't know. Just something was holding me back, and I didn't know what that something was. Something in the back of my head told me no, not yet. And no, it wasn't Optimus.
No, not yet, I tell him. Something's telling me to wait. And no, s'not you.
Prime didn't say anything more, just led on a disapproving silence.
I took the equally crappy controller and turned up the volume, fully focusing on what was being said by the newsman, Merin. George Merin was an old fellow with large, white eyebrows and fluffy white hair. His blue eyes were the most brilliant and radiant thing about him, excluding his red face. He was a little chubby but he never got up from his desk so you couldn't see his full body. He was a nasty son of a gun, always snappy, like a duck or a swan or something. Right now he was talking about some extremely important news broadcast that everyone needs to hear. Well, I'll be the judge of that.
"And now turning to important news regarding the human/Autobot alliance," said Merin, looking angrily at the screen. What the hell does he have to be angry about?
I held my breath, waiting for the news. Who knows? Maybe this guy will finally get back into his own body.
"The Autobot leader, Optimus Prime, was reported dead exactly three days following the events in Chicago," continued Merin.
Hey, man, you're on the news, I told Prime, grinning.
Shh, he commanded, too mesmerized by the fact that he's a celeb.
Grinning even wider, I began with a chorus of, MEH MEH MEH MEH MEH MEH-
Shh, he commanded yet again, clearly annoyed at my childish antics.
"The leader apparently died of a," Merin made air quotes, "'spark attack,' which is kind of like a heart attack. Only it's not a heart, it's a spark."
"Get on with it, Merin!" I yelled, earning another shh from Prime.
"Anyway," he continued, finally. "The leader was reported dead after failed attempts from the Autobot medic, Ratchet. But, apparently, he's not dead-his mind, or 'spirit,' was transferred into another body or thing, hopefully body. They can transfer it back, but they need the cooperation of the host to come clean. Also, starting tomorrow, secret government officials will be by each house scanning for energon readings, so if you see them, let them in. And, now, in other news-"
I clicked off the TV and threw the remote back on the couch. Did ya hear that?
Yes, he responded, a new energy, a new hope thriving through him. I suggest we comply and go to your government officials.
And by 'we,' you mean me, right?
…yes.
I thought about it for a moment, really giving a long, hard, few seconds to think. I finally came up with an answer. "Nope." Wow, that was hard.
What?
"I'm not letting you go back to your body, no matter how much I want you out of my own," I told him, speaking out loud. I stood up and headed upstairs. "You need to know a few things first."
I don't understand.
I rounded the corner by the stairs and went into the bathroom, closing the door behind me. "I didn't expect that you would."
I turned and looked at myself in the handheld mirror that was-as of now-smashed. Mari probably broke it yesterday because she looked too ugly in it. I saw myself staring back through the many faces of the glass. My eyes glowed a very bright blue, almost illuminating my entire face. It was unnatural human eyes that appeared after Prime showed up. He told me it was probably the effect of the transfer. Whatever. It's not like Mari or Alex actually took any notice that my dark green eyes turned a very inhuman blue in one night. My naturally blonde hair that I was so familiar with when I was younger grew greasy and dirty because of my poor treatment here. Now it just looks naturally sandy blonde. A cut formed alongside my prominent cheekbone and one above my eyebrow, along with a dark red mark on my cheek.
Sighing, I put the mirror back where I found it and undressed. Prime was used to this routine and told me that he 'promised not to look' whenever I took a shower. I don't know if that's possible, but with all I've been through, I really don't care if a giant alien robot looks at me naked. It's not like he cares or is affected. I turned on the shower to hot and got in with the clothes in my hands. I washed them quickly but efficiently before turning to myself. I scrubbed my hair as clean as I could muster and added shampoo and conditioner, only using a little in fear of getting in trouble. Taking some rose scented body wash I spread it along my body, thankful for a scent besides the scent of my own, iron-y blood. I also dabbed some on my clothes, too, for something to look forward to later.
I turned off the shower and roughly, effectively squeezed most of the water out of my clothes. Stepping out of the shower, I put the clothes on the counter and dried myself with the towel. Running my fingers through my hair to try to get rid of the water in it, I sighed, enjoying the feel of it. Finally, I put my clothes back on, feeling all nice and refreshed.
Terra, I advise that we seek out your authorities, Prime suggested urgently. I seek to be in my own body again.
I giggled. From what he told me, Prime was a 34 foot tall robot that can transform into a truck and make his arms into guns. Basically, he can kick ass. And now he was at the mercy of an almost-15-year-old. Not yet, Prime. May I remind you you're at my mercy.
I made my way out of the bathroom and back downstairs to where the computer was, Old Betsy. Really, it was an old hunk-a-junk in the living room with the name Betsy scrawled on the side in Sharpie. Also, it was older than me. Hence 'Old Betsy.' I turned her on and went to Google, stopping for a second as I got there.
What are you doing? Prime asked me, curious.
I need to show you what you're defending, I responded simply. This was my plan all along. Even though I don't get out much, whenever Mari and Alex are out, I usually just turn on the computer and search the Internet. It entertains me and sometimes helps me with my cleaning when I'm completely clueless. Google was my friend.
I typed in animal abuse videos on Google, bracing myself for what I knew I was about to see. But whatever I see, Prime sees, and I needed him to see this. Badly. I needed to teach him about the ways of humans, about the scumbags they really were. I made it a life lesson to show him the horrible trash of a species humans are, no matter how bad I don't want to see it myself.
But I guess that's where it all starts, right? People have to suck up and deal with it. They have to deal with how bad everyone is, because if no one will take to sucking up and watching it, then who will know? If you don't know, how will you make the change?
Taking a deep breath, I clicked search.
Two hours. It's been a full two hours.
Two hours of pure torture.
I've showed Optimus everything, even when he kept on telling me to stop, to close the page, to stop the video. Prime wasn't one to beg, but he wasn't one to like torture, and I'd bet you a million bucks that, if he could, he would get down on his knees and grovel. I've showed him videos on animal abuse, pictures, the slow destruction of Earth, what humans have accomplished in destroying the Earth (meaning the air, land, waters, and are currently working on the atmosphere, destroying everything on Earth). I've showed him how humans are always about themselves, and how all they care about is money, fame, beauty (all of the beauty and anti-aging products? You're going to get old, deal with it.), and sex (ew, yeah, I know, but I had to tell him, NOT show him). I've also showed him what is really going on in the world-war, destruction of Earth, torture of other animals, and money, fame, beauty, and sex. That's all the humans care about, and they know that they're destroying the Earth-they just don't care.
After the first hour of politely asking me to stop-such a gentleman, for a giant alien robot-Optimus Prime finally just stopped speaking. I knew he was hearing what I heard and seeing what I saw because that's just how it works, he said, though he can't control my body movement or feel what I feel and taste what I taste. But he has been known to change my decisions sometimes, because he's just like that.
But, either way you look at it, he's stuck. He's the slave and I'm the master.
Old Betsy was heating up and almost at the point to overheat and die so I just turned her off. For a while-how long has it been? A few minutes?-I just sat there, silent. Prime was also silent. I couldn't tell if he was silent from shock or something, because it's not like I can read his facial expressions.
Old Betsy finally turned all of the way off, signaling that it has been exactly five minutes since either of us talked. Sighing, I stood up, pushing the chair in behind me. I made my way to the kitchen, the coolness of the tiles stinging my feet cold. I opened a drawer and got out a granola bar, not having eaten all day. Lately, I've been used to not eating. And by lately, I mean the past few years. It's actually not that hard. The growling in your stomach just goes away after a little while, though it left me a little bit boney. Only a little bit, though-I secretly eat Mari and Alex's leftovers when I clean up after one of their little meals.
Taking large bites of the granola bar, I finished it off in a minute and opened the fridge, grabbing the water filter and drinking right from it, not bothering to take out a glass and clean it because my back hurt. Putting the water filter back and closing the door, I grabbed another granola bar and chomped on it. I think I've earned it.
Prime was still silent, thinking. Shrugging, I checked the time: 3:23. Alex would be home a little after 4, or, maybe-who knows?-he heads to the bar and drinks himself drunk again. It wouldn't be a first. I'm just wondering how they get all the money to afford this all, besides the inheritance.
"Well, Prime?" I asked, wiping the crumbs from the bar off my fingers. Damn, I was still hungry, but they don't like it when I take even one more bar, so I didn't even think about taking another. If I drank enough water, the pain would go away, right? "Anything to say?"
Prime remained silent, and I was about to think of my victory speech inside my head before I reminded myself that he can hear my thoughts. Grade-A stalker, I'll tell you. Do you know how annoying that is, to have someone always reading your thoughts?
I walked back to my room and closed the door a little bit, letting in a little bit of light. I got used to the dark and it was better for my eyes, so whenever I got the chance, I enclosed myself in the darkness. In a way, it was comforting. I got over the whole 'OMG there's a ninja over there that's gonna attack me' thing. I mean, I had to-I had no choice. I'd had definitely go insane. Sitting down in my usual corner, I realized it got cold again. I shifted, trying to find a warmer spot, but I gave up for it was completely useless. Grabbing Zero I hugged him tight to my chest and sighed, stroking his short, soft fur.
We sat there for a while, doing nothing but staring in the dark, Prime deep in his thoughts. I couldn't read his thoughts, but he could read mine. How unfair was that?
After being in the silence for a few minutes I jumped when Prime asked, For how long has that…been going on for?
I sighed, cuddling Zero back to my chest after I jumped nearly ten feet in the air from his deep, baritone voice. "Um, like, forever, you know? Humans have always…been like that. I'd know-the Internet don't lie." I knew I'd probably be lectured on proper grammar again, 'like a sparkling,' but at least it'd get him talking again. To tell you the truth, him talking probably kept me sane at times.
Humans have always mistreated animals? he asked cautiously.
I nodded my head. "Yep. Always. In some religions, they do this thing where the kill an animal, or, like, toss it out of a building, or into fire, and stuff. It's, like, ritual or whatever for them. They do it a lot. Insane, right? They're also killing the planet, and are, if anything, halfway there. You know, like how you Cybertronians killed your planet, humans are killing Earth with other life forms on it and they don't care, too."
Optimus lowly growled at the mention of Cybertron, barely audible. He had told me all about the destruction of his planet, Cybertron, in Earth's atmosphere at the Chicago battle. He told me how the Autobots tried to help the planet, and the Decepticons to harm it. Being me, of course, I told him that I didn't believe him and I wanted both sides of the story, to which he told me that I would never get. So, until I got both sides of the story, I was just going to stick to the fact that both factions killed their planet in their stupid war that they stupidly let on for millions of years. Humans are just going to kill Earth in their sick greed. Which is worse?
I had tried my best to save my planet, said Optimus, disagreeing with my stubbornness.
"If you had really tried your best, than it would have been saved 'cause you'd had found a solution instead of war. Ever heard of a peace treaty? To come to terms with your enemy?" I chuckled. "Apparently not."
Terra, Megatron is a cold, vicious enemy-
"-was, remember?-"
-that would never come to terms with me on what was right. He only wanted to destroy worlds and rule the universe.
"Says you, his enemy. Enemies are always bashing each other."
Terra, if only you had met him, you'd have the notion of what I am talking about.
"But I can't meet him now, or ever, because you ripped his head off."
To save your world, Terra.
"No, for your own sick satisfaction. You just didn't want anyone to go against you in what you think is right. I know you enough to know that."
Optimus stayed silent, clearly pissed off that he had lost the argument. I stayed sitting in the cold corner, cuddling Zero, until the sound of an opening door caught my attention. I put Zero down and walked out of the room to see if Alex wanted anything more, like I always do.
Alex stumbled in the house, his feet barely placed firmly on the ground, clearly drunk. His eyes were half shut and bloodshot, his face a little pale. I guessed he had some Vodka and some more shots at that white drug at work with his buddies.
He slammed the door shut behind him, making me flinch at the noise. He messily took of his jacket and let it fall on the ground, making his way towards the kitchen. I walked over and picked it up, not caring to brush off the dirt and hung it sloppily on the hanger. When can he not come home drunk?
Alex got a can of beer out of the fridge and sat down at the table, opening it up with a hiss and drinking from it. I walked over to the drawer and commanded, "Look," waiting until he finally turned around and I opened the drawer and closed it again, testing it. He grunted, not caring, and turned around to finish his drink.
Annoyed, I walked over and pulled up a chair across the table, sitting down on it with my elbows on the table. "You know," I began, drawing little circles on the table. "The Autobot leader didn't die."
Licking his lips, he narrowed his eyes at me. "Oh yeah? And did he tell you that?"
Remaining unchanged at the ironic comment, I continued. "Merin, the news guy, made an announcement that Prime's mind has inhabited another body." I looked up to find his gulping down more of his beer, not even caring to listen to me, so I raised my voice. "Government people are coming by houses to check for energon, their blood, activity."
This got his attention. "Government is coming? Here?"
I nodded my head. "Most likely soon. And they're gonna take me away."
Slamming his beer can down on the table his stood up so fast his chair fell back against the ground. "You don't know the fuck you're talking 'bout!" he yelled, loud. I stood up, unfazed, trying to refrain myself from putting my hands over my ears. He pointed to the direction of my room and commanded me to go there and I obeyed, closing the door behind me, grabbing Zero to my chest in my corner, wondering if I did the right thing.
I don't know how long it's been since I closed the door out on the world but a while after I started to hear the door open and close many times and many voices and I knew he was hosting another party.
I wonder what the guests think, when they are constantly invited to a non-ceremonial party by a drunk. Maybe they're drunk themselves, or they just don't care and want to get drunk. I don't know, whatever. I just know to avoid them at all costs.
I stop whatever I'm doing and think. Maybe that's it. Maybe Mari and Alex told me to avoid them not because they don't want their friends to know they have a kid, but because they know their friends would help me escape. So maybe that's what I need to do-show myself to them, or at least one of them.
Hope fluttered inside me, like a bird taking its first flight. I stood up, still hugging Zero close to my chest, my heart. That's it. I'm going to show myself to their friends. Maybe, finally, I can have a real family.
No. Mari and Alex are definitely not family.
Slowly, cautiously, I opened the door and peeked out. Not many people were here this time, since it was such a short notice, I guess. Mostly men were here, along with the occasional half-naked slut walking by. I slumped against the door frame, defeated. These people won't care about me! They'll only care about sex, service, money, alcohol, and drugs. Well, this explains how Mari and Alex got friends.
My grip on the side of the door increased until I almost knew I was going to break it. Man, was I so pissed off! Why can't anything just ever work for me, ever?
Terra, you should run, Optimus told me. I haven't talked to him much since that last fight we had a few hours ago, and he's just finally spoken up.
Should I run? I had a clear view of the door right now, and it wasn't blocked by anyone or anything. But where would I go? What would I do? The police station was definitely out of the question. They'd just take forever to arrest them all and then send me to an orphanage. From what I've heard and what I know, orphanages are no fun. They keep you tight and restricted. I like to be free, and at least I can do so when Mari and Alex leave for work.
But Optimus' words echoed in my head, and no he wasn't just repeating them. Terra, you should run. He's right, I should just run, just forget my life. It'd be me and Zero and him. My brain told me that it was the correct decision, and that if I stay here I'd be tormented further.
Tears filled the brims of my eyes as I made my decision. No, I will not stay here any longer. I will leave this very moment, but I will not leave here without a bang.
Taking a deep breath I pushed with door wide open with shaky hands. I walked out, my chin held high, Zero still and forever in my grasp. People were giving me weird looks and a group of half-naked women were pointing at Zero and laughing. Holding him closer, I walked to the living room where most of the people were.
A large hand grasping my shoulder caught my attention as it spun me around. It was Alex, steaming, his face red. "What the fuck are you doing?" he hissed.
Smirking and with the confidence I never knew I had, I said, "This."
Turning around I stepped up on the coffee table so I can be at least level or higher than the guests in the house. Clearing my throat, I loudly announced, "Attention!" A few stopped and glanced at me, laughing. Alex was beat red as he roughly grabbed my arm and tugged, almost pulling it out of its socket. I didn't hesitate as I kicked him as hard as I could in the unmentionables and he went crashing down to the ground, groaning. Turning my attention back to the audience, I continued, gesticulating:
"Now, all of you are probably wondering who the fuck I am. I know Mari and Alex never told y'all about me because, well, they're predictable. But, I will have you know that I am, in fact, their child. I was taken away from them at birth and placed with my grandparents, my real mom and dad, until they died a few years ago in a car accident. Ever since then, Mari and Alex took me in and gave me a dark, cold closet as a room and made me do chores and clean the house. They barely even let me shower and give me clean clothes and stuff. I once went to school. Once. For one year. First grade, never again. These people, these people who were supposed to be my loving mom and dad were nothing but. They hit me and called me all kinds of names. I'm fourteen, this is bullshit. This never should have happened." I looked down as Alex started to get up. I knew I was in deep shit, I just needed the word out. In a softer voice, I said, "And now he's going to kill me."
Alex laughed hard and loud, fully standing up now, but I'm pretty sure I permanently disabled him from having any more kids ever. Good. No one else should go through what I've gone through. "Precisely," hissed Alex, glaring at me.
Then he surprised me by walking out of the room. What the hell? He just said he was going to kill me and he just walks away? I shrugged. Hmmph, whatever. The audience was whispering among themselves, clearly shocked. I'm pretty sure I sobered them all up by that heartwarming speech, but it wasn't like they were going to bend over backwards to help me. Whoever hung out with Mari and Alex and went to their parties was no ally of mine.
Jumping off the table I landed on the ground with a thump. I walked over to the door, ignoring the bewildered stares of the people around me as I gripped the door handle. I turned the handle and opened the door a tad just as I heard a boom behind me and a click-click.
I slowly turned my head, afraid for what I'd find. I've heard that click-click before on YouTube videos about…and yes. Alex stood by the stairs, as crazy as ever, holding a gun.
I gasped and ran out the door, jumping down the steps to my house I hadn't seen in a long while just as a bullet bounced off the door, right where my head used to be. He laughed like a true lunatic at heart as he raced after me, sounds of shouting panic emanating from the house.
I ran down the dark streets, the only thing illuminating the night was the moon and the streetlights. "You've crossed the last line!" he yelled from behind me, barely audible from my deep breathing and the distance between us. "Now you're gonna die!"
A shot boomed from behind me again, along with more maniacal laughter. I didn't even know he had a gun! I've cleaned every inch of that house and no gun! How could he hide a big gun like a rifle? What the hell black magic is this?
I bounded a corner, and then another, bullets still being shot and missing each time. I made it a thing to move side from side randomly so he couldn't actually hit me. Lights came on from the houses around us and some people opened their doors to see what the commotion was, only to shut it as quickly as they opened it when they saw a maniac shooting at me come bounding down their streets.
Panting hard, I turned another corner and then another, finding myself in an alleyway hiding behind a trash can. Out of options, I shrieked, "Prime, what do I do?"
Be completely silent, he advised, and I figured it was the right thing to do. I made my breathing calm down until I was practically holding my breath. Be silent, he'll pass.
I stayed as silent as I could, a tear finding its way down my cheek. The sound of booming footsteps came my way, slowing down as they neared. I bit on my knuckles, trying to subside the whimper that was forming its way out of my throat. I didn't dare to turn my head to see where he was but I could feel that he was near, that he had some sort of dangerous vibe ten feet around him.
I almost gave away my cover as he began making noise behind me, the sounds of metal on metal audible. Thinking someone came to save me I peeked around the edge of the trashcan, only to find him rummaging through piles of garbage about a few feet away. His gun was in one hand, poking at some things, as he threw things aside with his other.
Getting up to a crawling position, I inched my way in front of the trash can, on the other side of Alex, before breaking into a full-on run around the corner. A "Hey! There you are!" from Alex told me that I just gave my position away and another tear ran down my cheek, petrified. I was gonna die!
Looking around, I saw that I was in the middle of town, or I at least guessed it-there were a lot of shops around, all of them closed at this hour, whatever this hour is. There was one giant building that caught my attention-its lights were still on and shadows of people in the window showed human activity. I began running towards it and looked up at the concrete sign-Rockville Police. The police! Oh my Jesus this is a good day!
…er, kinda.
"Oh no you don't!" Alex boomed behind me, shooting even more bullets and missing. I practically leapt up the steps like a dog on all fours and bounded through the doors, catching everyone's attention. I practically made the whole place jump in shock as some screamed, some gasped, some pointed their guns at me, and even one dropped his damn coffee.
I ran in the middle of the room anyways, Alex still hot on my heels like a dumbass, and made it up to the desk. "Man's chasing me-with gun-shoot him!" was all I got out as the doors boomed open behind me. I spun around as Alex ran inside, and as if in slow motion I saw him stop, kneel, raise his gun to his eyes and pull the trigger.
Then I saw black.
The first thing I felt when I came to was a heavy weight, as if someone dripped a heavy blanket atop of me. I couldn't move no matter how much I've tried. I couldn't even open my eyes. I groaned, the sound appearing muffled through my closed lips. My fingers twitched and the muscles in my legs jolted. I had to make myself breathe slow breaths, but it didn't help as I found I was wheezing.
Whimpering, I tried to remain calm, but a tear left my closed eyes anyway. A ringing sound off in my right ear, and I could barely hear anything in my left. I willed my eyes to open, but it was as if someone glued them shut. I could just barely wiggle my fingers, but not much.
Something was pulling me away from consciousness, slowly forcing me back to sleep, back to that dark corner of my mind. I begged myself to stay awake, to give me more time to figure whatever this was out, but my body was forcing itself to shut down.
I heard two loud booming sounds, like giant footsteps, on my left before my faded attempts at consciousness turned out to be of no use at all.
When I awoke again, the heavy blanket wasn't there. I had more movement, more control over my body. The ringing in my right ear ceased, and I could hear clearly again-the sounds of people walking around, talking to each other, moving this and that.
I tested my fingers again and found I had a better range of movement. I twisted my wrists around and flexed my fingers to get the feel of it, then moved onto my feet and did the same. The wheezing from my lungs has left as well, and I gladly filled them with nice, fresh air.
Next was my eyes. Slowly, carefully, I raised my eyelids, only to shut them quickly and turn my head. Too bright. Who the hell would shine a bright lamp in my face? It took me a long while, but I finally was able to open my eyes and have them adjust to the light.
Finally able to see, I observed my surroundings. I was in a hospital room, lying on a white bed. White white, everything was white-the walls were white, the floor, the furniture. Seriously, this is a hospital, and all that blood could ruin all of this white. It was a small room, with a table here and there with documents on top. Why was I here again?
Oh, yeah. Alex. Alex was…chasing me with a gun. I was running from him through the streets until I found the police station. Did I ever make it? I remember running through the doors and up to the desk, quickly trying to tell the highly confused man about Alex before turning around and…
Alex shot me. Or, at least, I think he did. It seems most likely, as I passed out and woken up in a hospital. I remember him getting down on one knee, raising the gun, closing one eye and looking through the scope just as he pressed his finger down on the trigger…
I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to rid my mind of the memory, whimpering like a sad puppy dog.
"Are you alright?"
I jumped at the sound of the voice, startled. Opening my eyes I saw a doctor standing in front of me, his short, gray hair and wrinkles showing age. When did he get here? Was I too lost in my painful memories to notice him?
"I, umm…" I said, trailing off. What's wrong with me? Why the hell can't I speak? No, why is he asking me questions? I'm the one who woke up not knowing where I am and what the hell happened to me. "Where am I?"
"First, I need to know if you're alright," he responded, putting on the glasses that hung around his neck and taking out a pen and a clipboard. "I need to ask you a few questions, if you don't mind."
"Actually, I do mind," I protested, raising my voice.
He looked in my direction and held out his hand to calm me down. "Look, we're gonna get nowhere at this rate." I didn't say anything at that as I knew this was true. He seemed to stop and contemplate about something before smiling and starting again. "How about, I ask a question, you answer, and then you ask me a question and I answer?"
I relaxed a little at that, thinking it over before I nodded. That didn't seem like a bad idea at all.
He pushed his glasses back up on his nose and smiled again, nodding his head slightly. "Good, good. Now," he raised his clipboard the his face and clicked his pen, "how are you feeling?"
I took a deep breath. How was I feeling? "Better than when I woke up before." I turned my head as he gave me a look. "Like, I'm feeling fine. A little pain in my right arm and feeling a little nauseous, but not puke-nauseous, if that makes any sense. Also, I have a big headache." He nodded as wrote something down. "Now for my question. Where am I? And don't say in a hospital."
He laughed. "Well, you are in a hospital. A secret military hospital room." I nodded, ignoring the fact about what hospital I am in as he continued. "You said you're experiencing pain in your right arm. Where?"
I groggily lifted my left arm and pointed to my right shoulder without actually touching it, going down along my arm and stopping at my elbow. "Along those lines…" I muttered. "Now my turn: why am I here? I got shot, right?"
I waited until the doctor finished writing something before he looked up and said, "Yeah, you got shot. By your father."
"He's not my father," I growled, clenching my left hand into a fist.
The doctor only nodded as if he understood my situation, my anger, my hurt. "What type of pain do you feel?"
Emotional, I was tempted to say, but I didn't. "Throbbing." All of a sudden it came to me. I talked to myself in my mind. When I did that, a voice usually talked back to me…
Optimus? I asked myself. You there, Prime? Autobot? Mr. Robot? Hello?
When I got no answer I turned to the doc, my eyes narrowed. "Since you're a doctor, you most likely did scans on me, right?" He looked confused as he opened his mouth to speak but I cut him off. "So you've done an energon scan on me also, yes?"
The doctor froze for a second and then smiled. "Yes. Surprising, you know? I mean, what were the coincidences that Optimus Prime would end up in a little girl?" He chuckled at his own joke while I was busy restraining myself from strangling him. "Oh, don't worry. After the surgery to remove the bullet from your shoulder, while you were still passed out, we took the liberty to scan you as you were radiating some weird energy that disrupted the machines. We found him present and Ratchet, the Autobot Medic, teamed up with me and went through an extensive surgery to get him back in his own body."
I perked up. "Excuse me, sorry, what?"
"Ratchet linked Optimus Prime's mind up with yours, with help from me. Yes, that does mean a needle was in your head while you were sleeping, but everything is fine now. That would explain the headache you are currently experiencing." I was about to pass out again, but I forced my mouth shut. "The operation took an entire day to complete. Ratchet and I both didn't sleep until the job was done. We were too focused. You were out for three days. But we got Optimus' mind back in his own body, don't worry. But he's currently unable to move from the transfer. He's currently lying on his own Cybertronian-sized hospital bed. You should see it, it's huge!" He then laughed again like something was funny.
So Prime was back in his own body now? Thank God. WOW was that annoying!
But, he did try to help me, and always asked if I was okay. We even shared a few laughs, sometimes, despite that big fight we had. I looked down at my body. A light blanket was draped over me, and my shirt was gone-they had the decency to keep my pants on, though. Thank God, again, that I had a bra on. A tan ace bandage was wrapped around my shoulder and a little on my arm, explaining why I didn't have a shirt on. Wincing, I moved my right hand, getting used to the pain after a while. I touched my shoulder and hissed. It hurt if I touched it, but I could move.
I think I was going to take the doctor's advice and see exactly how big this bed was.
I sat up, despite the doctor trying to push me back down. "No, no no, stay sitting," he commanded, though I ignored him.
Holding up a hand I silenced him. "Hey, doc, what's your name?"
A little fazed, he replied, "Doctor Ovane."
I half smiled. "Look, Mister Ovane, I'd have you know that it only hurts when I touch it, and my headache is going away." Total lie, but what he doesn't know won't hurt him…it'd hurt me. "I'd love to see my friend in his time of need as well."
Doctor Ovane shook his head and put a hand on my shoulder, trying to get me to lie back down, but I shrugged it off. Standing up, I wrapped my left arm around his shoulders, making lean down a little because of the height difference. "Ovane, please," I asked, looking into his eyes.
After a long moment of considering, he sighed and wrapped his arm around my waist, helping me to stand better. "Alright alright," he said, guiding me to the door. "But only for a little. Prime has been through much, especially after that Chicago battle, and having his mind transferred to another being and transferred back?" He shook his head. "Insane. He can't move much and his head hurts like hell, so you'll have a heck of a time talking with him."
I gritted my teeth, holding back a wince. In truth, I could barely hear whatever the hell the doc was babbling on about, my head hurt so much. I was dizzy to say the least as I tried to put one foot in front of the other and seem presentable and able to see Prime. My drooping arm stung up to my elbow, the pain in my shoulder almost unbearable. I closed my eyes tight, trying to fight back tears, and I bit the inside of my lip so hard it bled to fight back the yelp trying to escape my throat.
After I put on a plain white tee Doctor Ovane lead me around many corners of the building, telling me all about the base. I tried to focus to keep my mind off the pain, but who could ignore a blazing signal in their mind, yelling at them about the pain emanating from their body?
After hearing him babble for what seemed like hours, I had a question of my own. "Hey, Ovane?" He stopped babbling and looked at me, leading me around another corner. Goddamn, this base was friggin' huge! "Whatever happened to my dear old daddy?" Heavy sarcasm, fellows.
Ovane licked his lips and looked away from me. "Uhh…the second he shot you in that police station, a few officers opened fire upon him…we couldn't save him."
"Ha!" I shouted, full of glee. "Why would you even try?" Then I burst out laughing, holding a wall to keep myself steady. After it died down, I turned back to Ovane, who looked at me as if I was insane. Maybe I was. "What about Mari? My 'mom?'" I asked, using air quotes around the word 'mom.'
"She was brought to justice, don't worry," Ovane said, urging me forward. "She's in for jail for a looong time."
We walked down a flight of stairs, round one corner, and then another. One our left was a very large metal door. For the Cybertronians, I guess. There was a huge metal panel many feet above our heads, but a smaller one right in front of our faces. It reminded me to a regular door with a doggy door on it, and we're the doggies.
Ovane punched some intelligent stuff on the panel and the door slid open, disappearing through the wall. He stepped back and ushered me inside. "Go on," he told me. "Go on in, it's fine."
The sound of booming footsteps coming close terrified me. The sound vibrated through my skull, causing me to grip it with the hand that wasn't gripping the wall. It sent shearing pain through my arm, but I ignored it as the gigantic beast made its appearance.
It stopped at the doorway, looking down at the both of us-me, who was terrified, and Ovane, the one who's probably seen these things before because he just smiled and waved like an idiot. The being was a giant robot, an Autobot no doubt. He was covered in a mint green paint and looked as if he could transform into an ambulance of some kind, which made me think. Mint green. Ambulance. Mints. This guy most be some sort of doctor! Muaha! I got it! This guy is Ratchet, the Medic.
I looked up at him. "Ratchet, right?" I asked, yelling up to him.
He leaned down towards me and made me back up a few feet. He chuckled. "I can hear very fine, thank you, no need to shout. And yes, I am Ratchet, the Autobot's Medic. And you shouldn't be out of bed." He looked over at Ovane and raised his 'eyebrows.'
"Heh," Ovane said awkwardly. "Well, she, I-"
"I wanted to go see Optimus," I intercepted, pointing to inside the door. "He in there?"
Ratchet nodded and stood back to his full height. "You may go see him. Meanwhile," he glanced down at Ovane, "Doctor Ovane and I need to go attend to something." Ovane nodded and followed him as I pressed my hands to my ears, ignoring the pain in my shoulder.
After they left, I took my hands off my ears and rubbed my aching shoulder with my uninjured arm. Taking a deep breath, I went inside.
I only took about five steps before I stopped and gasped, looking up at the massive creature about me. A giant robot, one that seemed it could be almost 40 feet tall, lay on an equally large slab of concrete in the middle of the room. The robot was decorated with red and blue pain, along with the same color flames. Wires stook out from all around it, connected to a large computer type thingy next to it. Its frame slowly moved up and down as all tension from it was released.
I walked up to it and stopped as I stood before the massive slab. "Optimus?" I asked, calling up to it. "Optimus Prime?"
After a second of stillness, the robot shifted and looked down at me. Once he recognized me, he smiled. "Terra," he said, his voice sounding of extreme tiredness. Optimus observed me for a few seconds, thinking, before shifting again and reaching down to me. He held out his palm on the ground for me as I awkwardly, painfully climbed on and he hoisted me up.
I felt like I was going to be sick but I stayed silent as he placed me on his chest, looking down at me and smiling. I gripped a piece of his metal and sat on my knees on his chest, awkwardly. Even more awkward was the silence between us, so I decided to break it. "Uh…hi, Prime. Um, how are you doing?"
"I am alright, how are you?" he asked, ever the gentleman for an alien robot.
I shrugged. "Meh. So, how are you liking being back in your own body?"
He half smiled. "How are you liking someone not reading your thoughts all of the time?"
I smiled and held up my hands. "Hey, you got me." Another silence. I took it upon myself to lay down on my back on his chest, trying to find a position between all this damn metal and settled with being in between his window things. I sighed, settling into place, the throbbing in my shoulder slowly fading away, along with this conversation. I had to do something about that. "Doctor Ovane told me you were in pain. Something with your head?"
"It is a mere processor ache, a result of being transferred into another body and then back in my own. It'll pass," he explained. Processor, what the hell? Guess it's alien robot for head, or somethin.' "But you shouldn't be the one talking, Terra. You've gotten shot in your shoulder."
My hand immediately rested on my right shoulder. "It's fine."
In truth, everything actually was fine. Alex was dead, that little bastard. Mari was in jail-ha! I hope she gets beaten up by all the tough women there, she won't stand a chance! I got my own body back and was probably never going to see that damn closet every again. Prime was back in his own body and we were chilling again, having nice conversation. I'd probably be able to stay here, with the Autobots, since there are no more Decepticon threats anymore. Everything. Was. Perfect.
But then I realized something. I gasped and bolted up to a sitting position, startling Optimus beneath me as he flinched, then I yelled:
"WHERE THE FUCK IS ZERO?"
Author's Note: Hey, guys, sorry! I just HAD to do this! The plot bunny wouldn't leave me alone until I did! It put me up to it, I swear! *holds up hands and backs away terrified* Don't worry, though, I'm going STRAIGHT back to 'Cameron' after having to put it up on hiatus for a few days. DON'T KILL ME!
ANYWHO, did you like it? HUH HUH HUH? I like it. I'm a proud nerd author. ^o^
I just HAD to kill Alex, too much of a jerk for me. And yeah, if you have not yet noticed, MUH-ree got life in prison. :D And now Terra is going to live with the Autobots for now, since she has no home and Optimus adopted her. I might-nah, I'm GONNA do one-shots after I AT LEAST add a few more chapters to 'Cameron.' Doing one-shots is going to be so much fun! :D Yay! I can't wait!
Sorry. I'm weird. -_-
Anywho...I hope you enjoyed the story and please review to give me feedback! :D
Okay alright bi ~ ;)
