Author's Note: Finally, Mikaela and Lennox interact in this chapter – but alas! Things are not going well between them. Mikaela's time at the NEST base does not go how she expected…
Chapter 3 – Looking for Somewhere to Crash
"What are you doing here?" Lennox asked. He then realized that everyone was still standing around looking at her, so he motioned her aside.
Mikaela gave him a tired smile. "Bumblebee is my guardian, remember? He ran into trouble when I was with him, so he had to bring me along."
He rubbed his eyes in an attempt to stave off his own fatigue. "I did forget, sorry. Are you alright?"
For the first time since their ordeal she took a look at her clothing – it was dirt-streaked and her appearance was generally disheveled. "I'm fine, I just look a mess."
"After being chased all across the place by Decepticons, you look pretty good," Will replied, and reached out to brush back some of her dark hair that was sticking out at a funny angle. He abruptly withdrew his hand. "Sorry, I shouldn't have… it was just…"
Mikaela chuckled. "It's okay." She let out a sigh. "So, what happens now?"
His eyes scanned the room. "Now? Well, we've got to debrief Bumblebee and get that information about the… Wait, first of all I need to find you a ride back to the city."
"Huh?"
"Bumblebee is going to have to stay at the base until this crisis is over; he may have to go out on an extended mission. I'm afraid that you will temporarily be without a car. I'll arrange for a transport home."
He already started to turn away, and Mikaela was very confused. "You mean right now?"
"Yes. Hopefully I can get a helicopter or something…" Will noticed a downcast look on her face. "I know that you want to help, but you need to go home."
"But, I can't go home now!" she began to protest, but he interrupted her.
"Mikaela, this isn't up for discussion. I won't have civilians anywhere near operations. I'm sending you back."
"I completely agree," a third voice chimed in.
Will and Mikaela turned to see a man in a suit approaching.
"What's this? A stowaway?"
"This is Councilor Darin Conley, from a multi-national council that monitors Cybertronian-Earth relations. He's here on a presidential order to oversee that all procedures involving this spacecraft are followed," Lennox explained.
Conley looked alarmed. "You're telling her classified information!"
Mikaela rolled her eyes. "I live with an Autobot – I already know all about this spaceship."
"Well, there's something I'll have to make a note of. Is there a file on this girl?"
"I have no idea, you'll have to look into it," Lennox replied with a hint of exasperation in his voice. "Paperwork isn't my expertise."
"In any case, I agree with you, Colonel, that we need to get her off the base immediately."
Mikaela was fed up with being talked over as though she weren't there. "As I have been trying to tell you, it's not safe for me to go home! The Decepticons that were after us saw me, and they'll have no trouble finding out where I live."
"And what would they want with you?" Conley asked.
"Oh I don't know, maybe to use me as leverage," she paused when she saw the man stare at her with boredom in his eyes. "Or maybe just kill me," Mikaela said more forcefully.
Lennox's eyebrows rose. "You've got a point there."
Conley sighed. "Colonel, with all due respect, it would be more of a liability to have her here. Send a small detachment to take her back to where she belongs, and they can assess her safety."
He clenched his jaw a bit. Will was concerned for her safety, but had to rationalize his fears with the probability that the Decepticons would leave her alone. "Mikaela, I appreciate the trouble that you've gone through tonight, and I'm glad that you're okay. I'm sending you back home, right now."
She opened her mouth to say something, but couldn't find the words she wanted. This wasn't the same Will Lennox that she knew; otherwise he wouldn't have sent her off like a package.
The corporal stopped outside the door and glanced at a wall clock with apprehension in his expression. His order was to wake the Colonel, and wake the Colonel he must. He took a deep breath and knocked on the door before opening it.
"Colonel Lennox?"
"Yes?" came the very groggy reply.
The soldier peered into the darkened room and saw the man lying on a cot, still wearing all of his uniform, including his boots. "I'm very sorry to have to wake you, sir, but there has been a development and you're needed in the control room.
Lennox sighed heavily and sat up, swung his feet down to the floor, and rubbed his hands on his face. "What time is it?"
"Oh Two Thirty Hours."
He'd only been asleep for an hour. Lennox stood and followed the other man back to the control room where the Cybertronian spaceship was being tracked. The moment he entered, another officer motioned him over.
"We've analyzed the data Autobot Bumblebee brought back, and it's not good."
"What kind of 'not good'?" Lennox asked.
"Our scientists and the Autobot ones have detected that the shuttle's orbit is decaying as we speak. It's coming down."
"Well, we knew that it would eventually. And all efforts to get its systems online have failed?"
"That is correct."
"How much longer until it makes contact with the surface?"
"Three hours."
"And where could it hit?"
"At this point, it could be anywhere along the latitudes the US is between."
"That's a huge area!"
"Yes it is. The scientists are working on all kinds of graphs and charts, but there are too many variables to know for certain."
"That also means that there may not be enough time to warn the public," Lennox said solemnly.
The officer grimaced a bit. "We'll just have to do our best."
Just then, a private ran up to him. "Colonel Lennox, there's a call for you."
Will followed the young man to the phone and picked it up. "Lennox here."
"Colonel, this is the team transporting the civilian, Mikaela Banes."
His pulse quickened at the mention of her name. "Is everything okay?"
"No, we were ambushed by a 'Con out here, over by Angeles National Park, but Ironhide was able to fight it off; we're sure glad that you had him go with us."
"Any injuries?"
"Negative. The civilian is unharmed as well. Our vehicle is damaged, but it will get us back to base. That said – requesting permission to return to base, sir." "Permission granted. I'll send out Blazemaster to escort you in."
"Thank you, Lennox. Over and out."
Another hour later, Mikaela arrived back on the military base, and Lennox was there to personally greet the small team. She got out of the Humvee looking as tired as when she left, but this time there was annoyance on her face.
"I did warn you this might happen," she muttered as she briskly walked past him.
"It's protocol," he said in return. "I'm sorry."
Mikaela paused and looked back at him with an intense gaze. "Just be glad that no one got hurt." She turned and continued to follow the soldier who would show her to a place to sleep for the remainder of the early morning hours.
The room that had been arranged for her was completely empty aside from a cot and a couple blankets. The door had a lock, and the bathroom was down the hall. It wasn't much, though Mikaela was not expecting anything fancy; she was just relieved that she could finally rest without having to worry about Decepticons. She was about to close the door and shut out the rest of the world when Darin Conley appeared.
"What are you still doing here? Weren't you sent home a couple hours ago?"
"I guess you didn't get the message – my ride got attacked. You obviously haven't been around Decepticons much; they like to hold grudges."
"My knowledge of the aliens is none of your concern. Tomorrow you will be on the first transport back to the city. No more of this breach of security."
Mikaela could stand this man less and less with each passing minute; however, his haughty, self-important presence was enough to get on anyone's nerves.
Suddenly he stepped close to her and clasped her shoulder in his hand with a lingering feel. "Sleep well, Miss Banes."
Conley vanished before she fully reacted to his uncalled-for gesture. Had it been Lennox, she wouldn't have minded – in fact, her heart fluttered when he had touched her hair – but Conley was a complete stranger. Maybe it was just his own weird way of showing that he was sorry for being so rude to her, but she felt uncomfortable. Although she had inwardly recoiled at his action, she was determined not to dwell on it. Soon she would be far away from the N.E.S.T. base, and away from Darin Conley.
Lennox walked up to the weapons specialist, who was having some damage inspected by Ratchet. It didn't take long for Ironhide to wave off the Autobot medic, insisting that he was fine.
"How is the femme?" he asked, glancing down at Lennox.
"She's alright. Thanks for keeping her safe."
"I'm not surprised that Hatchet tried to go after her. The Dreads would have informed him of Bumblebee's guardian, and how protective he is of her."
"Mikaela told me as much. I should've listened to her."
"She's a smart femme, and she knows how to look after herself."
"I know…"
Just then, Chromia sped over to the two soldiers. "Good news – we've been able to establish some contact with the spacecraft!"
Lennox and some other soldiers hustled over to where the Autobots were gathered. Knock Out was hunched over an alien device, working intently.
"I can't access the full system controls; they're badly corrupted."
"Can you get the engines to respond?" Optimus asked.
"Negative."
"Are there any features that are still working that could help us to steer the ship?"
Knock Out peered at the viewscreen in front of him. "Not really, but… there is one thing we might do but it's an abnormal tactic." He glanced up at the Autobot leader and continued; "In cases of emergency, the ship can dismantle into separate units. Each section would be relatively intact and it would cause less damage than the entire spaceship crash-landing."
It was time for Lennox and Optimus to exchange a look. The Colonel ascended a nearby staircase that led to a viewing platform so that he and the Prime could have a face-to-face conversation.
"This seems like the best option," Will said plainly.
"I agree. If there is no way to bring down the ship safely in a controlled way, at least we can minimize the damage that the impact will have."
"So we go for it?"
"Go for what, exactly?" a third voice chimed in.
Lennox turned to see Conley strolling towards them. "Optimus and I are deciding on a plan for the spacecraft's entry into our atmosphere."
"And aren't you supposed to be consulting me?"
"You would be the first person to know."
"I'm here now so you might as well let me in on it."
Will stifled the urge to tell him off and briefly explained what he and his Autobot counterpart had been discussing.
"I guess that's reasonable. "I'll pass that information along to the higher-ups. You may proceed." Conley announced and strode off.
"I can't wait to get that guy out of my hair," Lennox muttered.
"Although I don't have that human feature, I share your sentiment," Optimus said in return, then he peered at him with his bright blue optics. "I must say that your energy levels seem depleted."
"I've been awake for the past twenty hours, and I've only managed to get an hour's rest here and there; I need to recharge… well, not literally."
"Lennox, allow me to oversee progress on this phase of the operation for a time. You can sleep for a little while. We will inform you the moment things change."
"Thanks, Optimus. I'll see you in a bit."
He strolled back to the room that he had crashed in earlier. The door was locked, but he quickly found someone with a key to open it. The room was completely dark inside and he didn't bother to turn on the light. Will went over to the cot with his hands outstretched so as not to trip onto it. He touched a blanket on the edge and knew he was close. Still feeling around, he felt something that he couldn't account for – firm yet curved.
Before he knew what was happening, there was a scream and he was falling backwards. His face stung and he was suddenly winded. An assailant continued hitting him, and kicked him in the side. Lennox scrambled on hands and knees back to the door, where there was a crack of light beaming underneath. Fumbling at the handle, he finally got it open and basically fell out into the hallway. Will jumped to his feet and spun around to face his attacker.
"Lennox?!"
"Mikaela?!"
The young woman glared at him. "What was that all about?" she demanded.
"I was just looking to catch some shut-eye," he replied, stumbling over his words.
"So you thought you'd climb in with me?!" she shouted and gave him a hard push.
Will held up his palms towards her, expressing innocence. "I swear I had no idea that you were already in there!"
"So why were you feeling me up, then?" staring up at him with furious eyes.
"I-I wasn't!" Will stammered and glanced around nervously. Someone was bound to show up any moment to see what the commotion was about. "I mean, I wasn't intentionally trying to touch you! Like I said, I didn't know you were sleeping there – I was just looking for the bed."
"In the dark?"
"Yes, in the dark. I'm sorry. I guess I scared you pretty bad."
Mikaela let out a breath she wasn't even aware that she was holding in. "Yeah, you did. I thought you were some creep."
"I'm sorry," he repeated. Will looked at the ground, feeling mortified.
"Did I hurt you much?" she asked, suddenly realizing that she hadn't held back in defending herself.
Will rubbed his side. "I'll live." He looked up to give her a sheepish smile, and she gave him an awkward one in return. "Well, I guess I'll go find somewhere unoccupied to crash."
After they both reiterated their apologies he sauntered down the hallway, and Mikaela returned to the room, making sure to once more lock the door behind her. She flopped onto the cot and gazed at the light illuminating the bottom of the door until she fell asleep again.
"Are you sure of the trajectories?"
"Unless something causes a change in course, these are the approximate coordinates of the crash zones."
Optimus put a giant hand to his chin. "I think the time has come to rouse Colonel Lennox. We need to move."
Seven minutes later Lennox walked into the hangar still looking half-asleep. "So the mid-flight dismantling went well?"
"Yes, it appears to have," the Prime concurred. "We now have the locations of where each piece could come down."
"The parts of the ship won't be close together?"
"Each unit has thrusters that can help guide it to the surface, but since we couldn't completely change the default settings, the thrusters on all three units will propel them far away from each other. According to our calculations, a main section will come down in the Midwestern area of the United States, and the two other large sections will land in northern Africa and western China."
"Those are all sparsely populated areas – good job!" Lennox commended the Autobots' efforts.
Conley walked over. "It's going to be a diplomatic issue to get into western China."
"Isn't that what you're here for?" Lennox retorted.
He scowled but didn't respond.
Optimus' optics shifted back and forth between the two men. "Any other small pieces that break off will probably land in the oceans; however, it won't be long until the Decepticons figure out where the main sections will drop. We need to strategize and move out right away."
"I agree. If we scramble teams from the N.E.S.T. bases nearest to the landing sites, then we'll have some defense in place for when the Decepticons show up."
"In the meantime, if we can split into two or three teams then we can begin heading to the sites immediately."
"If you all split up, how am I supposed to keep track of all the aspects of this operation?" Conley asked.
"Don't you worry, Councilor; you're staying with me," Lennox said. Next he waved over a soldier standing nearby. "I need you to wake up the civilian, the young woman, and arrange a transport home for her."
The moment the man left, Conley turned and glared at him. "You're going to try and send her back again? Is that the best use of your resources, Colonel?"
Lennox looked at him with a confused expression. "Everyone's leaving – do you expect me to leave her here in the empty N.E.S.T. facilities?"
"She was exposed to classified information, don't you remember?"
"Ms. Banes doesn't know where we're deploying the teams."
"But she does know enough about the alien spacecraft that those Decepticons might believe that she has more information. If we release her now, it will endanger the mission."
"A few hours ago you were all for sending her home. Just what do you think should be done?" Lennox asked, throwing his hands up in frustration.
"It would be best if I take her into protective custody."
"What? Can you even do that?"
"Well, if I deem her a threat to the mission, yes. Besides, it's for her own good. If she's under my watch, she'll be safe from the Decepticons. So, unless you want to waste time by arguing over the legality of this and getting proper authorization, I suggest that you do your job and let me do mine."
Will got right in his face and stared him down. "If she's your responsibility then you better take good care of her."
"Of course," he replied.
Lennox turned and marched off. He was fuming, but he couldn't allow his emotions to get the better of him at such a crucial time. This turn of events made him even more determined than ever to protect Mikaela; yet he was also more fearful than ever that he could fail.
A.N.: What do you think of Darin Conley? In my mind he looks like actor Peter Sarsgaard because I find him a little creepy.
