A/N: Gonna move slow after this one.
Rating: T (at the most for now)
Fandom: Transformers (Movie-verse)
Pairing(s): None
Warning(s): See first chapter.
Disclaimer: See first chapter.
-Chapter Two-
Maria slowly placed her supplies on the counter in her regular supply store and pulled out her wallet. The cashier took stock of the distracted woman's expression and voiced his concern.
"Yeh feelin' alright, Maria? Yer lookin' a bit pale t'day," the grayed man asked in his trucker-peppered accent.
"Yeah, I'm fine, Frank. Just having an off-day, that's all," Maria replied, brow creased with mild tension from that morning's scare. Frank's bushy eyebrow raised slightly, but instead of pressing he merely grunted in acknowledgment, handing her back her change.
"Well, jes' keep safe then. See yeh later, Maria," he waved goodbye as the scarred woman picked up her things and left.
"Yeah... See you later, Frank," she bid him farewell and walked out to her custom-restored vintage pickup truck, tossing the bag of supplies in the passenger's seat. As she pulled out of the parking lot and turned into traffic her mind wandered back to the morning's incident. She was trying not to dwell on it, but Maria could not help but wonder. The thought occurred that she still needed a microwave, so she took a detour to the nearest appliance store.
After buying herself a new microwave (cheap one, of course) Maria's drive home was nearly uneventful. That is, until her burn scar shocked her with pain again while on the road. It was less severe than before, but bad enough to make her swerve into thankfully empty lanes. While the pain subsided to a dull ache, the truck's radio crackled into static, jumping stations as it did. Eventually, like the microwave before it, the device fizzled and burned out. While the radio's music faded, the young woman had pulled over, hand instinctively covering her scar. She stared at the dead equipment, attempting to comprehend the situation. She recognized the pattern that was beginning to develop, but she was still unwilling to pass it off as anything but coincidence. 'Guess... I guess it wasn't as fixed as I thought it was,' she mentally rationalized.
Over the next few days, similar quandaries grew in frequency and degree. Maria's willful disregard of the relation between her scar pain and multiple electrical issues in her home cost her her cellphone, mp3 player, small kitchen t.v./radio, miscellaneous appliances, her fridge, several light bulbs, and the engine of a car brought in for a broken window. By now her veil of denial was falling fast and she was forced to face the possibility that something was happening. There was only one question on her mind as she sat at her kitchen table with her carefully made cup of coffee in her hands:
'Why does this stupid shit keep happening to me?'
"Autobots," Optimus Prime addressed his Cybertronian warriors and several human soldiers in a large bunker that NEST converted into their meeting base, "I have observed, over the past several weeks, a series of phenomena caught on our radar," he gestured to the large scanning system behind him. "After analyzing the data received from each small flare, I have determined that it's energy readings are similar to Allspark levels." At this announcement, a collective murmur swept through both human and Cybertronian soldiers. Aside from a few tiny shards, they had been sure their sacred relic had been totally obliterated in the fight. The droning ceased when the Autobot leader held up his robotic hand as a call for silence. "Yes, it is very surprising news. Additional investigation led to the conclusion that they are occurring in a sparsely populated area in the middle of the Earth community called Inyo, California. The narrowed down range is occupied by one human within an otherwise empty 10 mile radius." While Optimus delivered his findings, he switched through screens of satellite maps of California using a large computer behind him. When he reached the topic of the single human resident, the camera zoomed into a grainy areal view of a lone roof. "The human female," he continued, "is named Maria Ramirez. It is unknown why or how the outbursts are connected to her." He turned to face his men. "In any case, a dispatch team will be requested to locate and recruit - or arrest - her in order to find out." The peterbilt-in-disguise's bright blue optics swept over each occupant in the room. "Be prepared for anything. She might be working covertly for a potential enemy. She may not even be aware of what is going on. I want this handled as smoothly as possible. We must tread lightly, at first." He turned and addressed his team directly for his last order, emphasizing the end words, "I need those I bring with me on this mission to be able to act delicately." Optimus stood straighter, aura of authority increasing.
"Autobots, roll out."
-End Chapter Two-
A/N: You know, despite sitting on this story for months, now that I see it here I keep thinking of things to make it better, but it's a little too late to be changing the whole format now. Ah, well. Once again, I'm begging for reviews; critiques and suggestions too!
