A/N: Well as I've figured my career is sucking up all my time and most of my creativity. So as you the reader's have probably guessed the updates aren't very speedy and I don't foresee them becoming any more speedy. Luckily Labor Day weekend has given me some much needed time off and a brief surge of creativity. So here's a longer chapter for you to enjoy.
A Human Friend
Chapter 3: "Sorting the Vermin"
In Lana's city the next morning…
Thundercracker flew low above the burning city. Though it looked just like all the others they had decimated before, this one stung him more in the circuits. It had been Lana's home and now it was nothing but ruins. Had he not removed Lana before all of this came to pass she would've been among the scores of casualties. But she was safe for now.
It was then Megatron's voice dominated the Decepticon communiqué network, "Decepticons spread out and round up the human survivors immediately. Find them, capture them alive, and bring them to these coordinates."
So it had begun; the next step in the conquering phase. First, lay waste to the planet's strongholds and destroy their armed forces. Second, knock out all communications so the conquered would fall into scattered disarray. Then, round up the survivors for enslavement. It was the basic formula for conquest and every Decepticon was programmed with it. Thundercracker could only thank Primus Megatron hadn't instigated the "Extermination Protocol" as he so very easily could've done. But the Decepticon leader knew to harvest the vast resources of the planet he'd need hordes of slaves to do so. Some of the humans would live, but only to serve the Decepticon Empire.
Thundercracker had no qualms about fighting for their cause, nor did he mind attaining the resources they needed to get themselves home, but the manner it which it was being achieved made him feel unworthy. He was a Seeker, an elite soldier of the Decepticon High Command. Fighting and carry out Megatron's commands was an honor, but being ordered to butcher a species that could barely defend itself—he couldn't accept that as a just cause of action.
Thundercracker veered away from the city, knowing his fellow Decepticons would be carrying out the capturing orders. He, on the other hand, had other matters to attend to—matters he dreaded confronting.
…
Everything was so quiet. The night had been filled with explosions and distant rumblings and now in the crisp light of morning not even a bird could be heard. Lana sat huddled in the mineshaft entrance her eyes bloodshot from sleeplessness and crying. She shivered, wanting desperately to bathe in the new sun, but couldn't bring herself to leave the protection of the mine.
She looked out. Morning seemed so ironic. How cheerfully the sky gleamed; the cold dew twinkling on the rocks of the quarry like diamonds. Everything was beautiful and renewed. But on the horizon the blemish of smoke against the sky only reminded the young woman of the night's destruction. Lana shivered again. She knew she could've ran at any time, could've run anywhere, but she remained frozen to the ground unable to move. Her mind was the only thing moving; rolling and bucking with waves of confusion, rage, and betrayal.
What was going to happen to her? What would happen to the human race? How many of her friends lay dead in the city rubble? Did anyone survive?
Lana's throat was so raw from crying she just didn't have the energy to do it anymore.
Then she heard the distant rumble of a jet bouncing off the quarry walls. Immediately her body reacted. She clamored to her rubbery legs and moved as far back into the tunnel as she was able. Unfortunately she couldn't get out of sight of the entrance since the mine had been sealed. She pushed against the rubble that barred her admittance but she knew there was no hiding. She would have to face him.
…
Thundercracker circled the quarry a couple times before transforming and landing where he'd left Lana the night before.
"Lana? I'm back."
He wasn't sure if she was even there anymore. The big Decepticon carefully approached the ledge that led into the tunnel and bent over to peek inside. His supreme vision instantly found the young woman huddled in the back.
He smiled reassuringly, "It's all right Lana. It's just me."
Even in the darkness he could see the woman's piercing blue eyes glaring at him.
"I um…I brought you some food and water." he placed a flat of water bottles and a few cans and boxes near the entrance.
Lana didn't move, nor did she utter a single word. Her scathing eyes finally turned away from him. Thundercracker frowned not knowing what to say. He merely knelt down to be eye-level with the tunnel. Several long minutes ticked by before he lightly nudged one of the cans with his finger. The aluminum can rolled to the back of the mine.
"You should nourish yourself."
In seconds the can came flying out of the tunnel and bounced off of his hand. The mech shook his head and this time rolled one of the water bottles inside the mine.
"My scans tell me you're dehydrated." he mentioned.
The water bottle came flying out as well followed by a venomous, "I don't want ANYTHING from you!"
Thundercracker blinked slowly and sighed through his vents. He knew this was coming. He peeked inside the tunnel again, trying to soothe the angry woman.
"I'm trying to help you, Lana."
"Help me…" Her eyes seemed to almost flash, "HELP ME?!"
Lana got up and became a fiery storm as she marched out of the mine shaft. Her eyes flashed, her arms whipped around with aggressive gestures.
"The ONLY thing you've DONE is destroyed my life, you fucking machine!" she shouted.
The Decepticon seemed to grimace.
"When were you going to tell me you were here to wipe out my species? Hmm?" the woman spat her sarcasm, "Or would telling me have spoiled your plan?"
"Lana I…" he tried.
The young woman seized up a can of food and flung it as hard as she could at the Decepticon. It pinged off of his chest.
She grabbed another one and chucked it, screaming with fury, "I TRUSTED YOU! But YOU…YOU MONSTER!"
Thundercracker deflected the flying cans with his hand, trying to say something but Lana kept up her barrage. Her chest heaved as she ran out of ammunition and energy. Sobs of rage threatened to strangle her.
"I thought you were my friend!" she croaked.
"We are friends!" Thundercracker insisted leaning forward.
"YAAAAAAGH!" Lana screamed raggedly.
The human lunged at the golden cockpit in front of her. Her fists and feet beat against the glass with such ferocity bruises instantly popped up on the surface of her skin. Thundercracker was almost stunned by the viciousness of her attack but allowed her to hit him until she couldn't swing her arms anymore. Exhausted and crying the woman stumbled back and collapsed.
She squeaked, "I hate you…I hate you."
Then she passed out.
Thundercracker tenderly plucked her up and held her in his hands. Her hurtful words bit at him like a virus. But what else did he expect? She was under a lot of stress and he'd certainly not proven his side of the friendship by helping destroy her home and her species. Still, he was not willing to give her up. He looked around. He couldn't leave her here alone. There weren't any resources for her and she would probably get caught if left out here. So Thundercracker opened his cockpit and placed her inside. If he kept her close to him there was less risk of her being captured or killed. He didn't care if she hated him for it. So he took off to rejoin the others.
…
Much later…
Lana awoke with a sore throat and a dry mouth. She smacked her leathery feeling tongue and was immediately startled by her lofty golden view. The consoles and glass dome left little doubt she was in Thundercracker's cockpit. She was about to fight her confinement but suddenly she noticed a disturbing scene below. There was a large crowd of humans all crammed into what looked like a transparent-walled corral. Men, women, children of all ages milling around like caged animals trying to find a way out. Near the pen were several Decepticons of various designs, but the one that stood out was their menacing silver leader. Lana gasped.
…
Megatron stood before the captured pen of humans, taking quick note of their numbers. These survivors were to be assessed as slaves for the harvest of Earth's resources and energy. He could already tell there would need to be some "pruning" of their numbers. With a forceful step forward, Megatron made his presence known to the masses. The humans receded backward, cowering away from the menacing silver giant.
"Humans, I am Megatron, leader of the Decepticons and conqueror of your planet Earth." he announced in a clear, dominant timbre. "You are now prisoners of the Decepticon Empire. The insignificant lives you led have just ended and from this day forward we are your masters."
Megatron paused, letting them stew in that realization for a moment. His cold words seeped into the very bones of the crowd, causing a uniform shudder of disbelief, outrage, and terror.Quite abruptly he leaned over and reached down into the crowd. The humans parted like scared mice from the huge black hand, but his intended target did not escape. He plucked up a small boy of about five-years-old with whitish-blonde hair and blue jean overalls. A collective gasp sucked all the surrounding air from the crowd and a few shouts of protest followed as the boy was lifted high above. Megatron held him by the overall straps and purposely dangled him over the terrified crowd. The little boy was crying out for his mother. Megatron ignored the high-pitched wailing and continued.
"Your new function shall be to harvest the energy resources from this planet." he explained. His tone dropped dangerously, "Disobey and we will smite you from existence."
The humans cried out when Megatron's hand suddenly flinched, his fingers enveloped the boy and hid him from sight. An eternity of seconds ticked by.
"Obey …" the metal warlord's hand opened illustratively to reveal the unharmed child, "…and you will be given life."
Then he curtly returned the child to the crowd and turned away.
"Soundwave." he barked.
"Yes, Megatron?"
He gestured to the large collection of humans, "I want you and your drones to sort these prisoners and then assess them as slaves."
The blue and white Con nodded, already creating criterion in his vast processor.
"And Soundwave…" he added, "Don't hesitate to cull the useless ones."
…
Lana clenched her chest after watching the dramatic scene unfold. From Thundercracker's cockpit she could only view her fellow humans below. There were probably around five thousand of them all clustered together; frightened, confused, and totally helpless. From her high vantage in Thundercracker's cockpit she couldn't make out the faces. Some of her college friends and acquaintances were no doubt part of that crowd.
"What's going on?" she asked Thundercracker, "What are you going to do with them?"
The targeting screen in front of her silently scrolled a message, "They are going to be sorted."
Lana gasped quietly, "What do you mean?"
The blue Con didn't answer her as he solemnly watched the humans in the pen. Lana shook her head and noticed several children and even mothers with infants near the energy pen's edge. Her heart ached with panic.
"What are you going to do with them?"
No response but the look on Thundercracker's face was enough to clue her in that it wasn't going to be good.
All at once the Decepticon whom confiscated her as contraband began speaking in that monotonous humming voice, "Humans will divide into two groups: all females on the right, all males to the left. Move now."
The large group murmured and shifted, seeming unsure about such an order. Suddenly the air was assaulted by a high pitched keen that sent every human to the ground, covering their ears in agony. A collective scream of the masses and then the sound stopped.
"Divide NOW."Soundwave commanded with a bit more intensity.
Still recovering from the sound attack, the crowd began to sort itself as commanded. Lana could see the families immediately. Fathers reassuring their crying children that everything was going to be all right. Mothers and wives clinging to their loved ones, unwilling to be separated. Slowly, a narrow channel formed between the genders. It quickly became wider when Ravage stalked between them, snarling aggressively and lashing his tail. Rumble and Frenzy marched behind the cyber-panther, assessing the division to make sure it was correct. Buzzsaw, Laserbeak, and Ratbat sat on the high posts of the energy fence, their sharp eyes scanning.
Frenzy suddenly pointed, "I see a male in there with the females. Get him Laserbeak!"
With a screech the red and black condor swooped down and snagged the young boy by the shoulders and lifted him over the startled crowd. His mother screamed desperately as her son was flung into the mass of men. Luckily, several hands shot up and caught the boy to prevent injury. Buzzsaw swooped and snagged a straggling female from the male side and pitched her in the same way.
It took several minutes but finally when the crowd seemed properly gender sorted, Frenzy activated a fifth energy wall between the two sects. That sent both sides frantically pounding on the dividing wall. Apparently the separation of families was the cause of panic. Soundwave ignored the activity and sent his criterion assessments to each of his drones for the sorting. Frenzy, Laserbeak, and Ratbat took the female side while Rumble, Ravage, and Buzzsaw took the male side. Soundwave stood between them as the final judge of the assessment. Several more energy pens became active behind them.
Then the sorting began.
The flyers and Ravage were assigned the duty of bringing the humans to Rumble, Frenzy, or Soundwave to be scrutinized.
Lana watched with morbid fascination as the event started.
Ravage seized a man by his pants, tossed his head, and threw him before Rumble.
"All right, fleshy. You're first." the purple drone announced.
He looked the man over, roughly pulling his limbs and spinning him around; middle aged, sturdy frame, average brain size, seeming in good health.
Rumble sent the information to Soundwave and then said, "You'll do."
Brusquely, Rumble grabbed the man's shoulders and shoved him into one of the pens just as Ravage gave him the next one. He looked the next man over: an elder man, average frame, larger brain size, but deteriorating in the muscles.
"Hmm. Not so good. What's your function?" Rumble demanded.
The older man shook his head stammering in fear, "Wh-What?"
Rumble lightly tapped the side of his head, "Your function wise guy? What do ya do?"
"I…I'm a doctor.
Soundwave tipped his head a bit and Rumble shoved the doctor into a different enclosure. Meanwhile Frenzy was assessing a middle aged woman who was considerably overweight and appeared to have trouble moving. With a curt thrust he shoved her into a third pen.
Lana watched, trying to ascertain what the drones were doing and how the humans were being sorted.
Suddenly a mother was heard screaming as Laserbeak snatched up her little girl metal talons and brought her to Frenzy. She was probably only a couple years old. The drone caught the child and held her under the armpits with a smirk.
"Hey, hey! Look at this little scraplet! She ain't even big enough to lift a bolt." he tossed her up and caught her which made her scream even louder, "What should we do with it?"
Soundwave gave an emotionless stare before turning his head to Megatron, "What is to be done with the human offspring?"
The warlord turned to face him. His face was devoid of emotion but he appeared to be thinking.
"Keep them separate. In time they will make fine replacements for the older ones." he concluded.
"Some are not developed enough to function without their creator." Soundwave mentioned. "Projected mortality rate: ninety-nine percent."
"Then assign females to care for them. I want healthy future slaves."
Frenzy pointed to the apparent mother of the child, "Get that one Ratbat. She can take care of the scraplets."
Ratbat shrieked and swooped down to grab the mother. She struggled violently until the purple metal bat deposited her on the ground right in front of Frenzy. She scrambled to her feet and held out her arms pleadingly for her child. The red drone snorted with disdain and dropped the child in her arms. Then he shoved her into a forth enclosure.
"Next!" he barked.
The next man Ravage threw to Rumble decided he wasn't going to be pushed around. With swinging fists the man hit the purple mech, fighting for all he was worth.
"Oh ho! SO we've got a fighter?" Rumble smirked.
The man-sized Decepticon leaned forward, and pointed to his chin, "Come on fleshy. Hit me right here."
Impressively the man's foot flew up and slammed the mech across the face. But, Rumble merely turned his head a bit. A dark smile lifted his mouth plates.
"Not bad fleshy."
Suddenly Rumble gave the man a sound backhand across the jaw. Blood and teeth dropped from the man's broken mouth as he stumbled back.
"Rumble. Do not damage the slaves." Soundwave sternly reprimanded the brawler over their channel.
"Don't worry, Boss… he can still work." Rumble replied, shoving the injured man into the first pen.
The sorting continued. Each human was assessed and herded into one of the four enclosures. Lana watched and determined that the very young children as well as a few mothers were put in the forth pen. But she was having trouble deciding the other pens' designations.
"Why are they being sorted?" Lana asked in the cockpit.
The targeting screen blinked and scrolled, "They are being sorted according to their function."
"I see one pen for the children …but what about the other ones?" she pressed.
"The first pen is for humans who are strong enough for the manual work. The second is for the useful specialists of your species: doctors, engineers, or mechanics." Thundercracker explained with text.
He stopped.
Lana felt a ball of worms wriggling in her guts as she stared at the third pen, "And…the third?"
Thundercracker's screen remained blank.
The young woman took careful note of the people in the third pen. She saw lots of old people, the significantly overweight, wounded individuals and—Lana shook her head.
"No…OH Thundercracker NO!" she stammered as the harsh realization bored into her. "You can't!"
But the Seeker made no reply to her protests.
The sorting continued well into the evening until at last the four pens were filled to capacity.
Rumble shoved the last man into the first pen, "That's all of 'em Boss."
"Sorting complete Megatron." Soundwave announced.
Megatron was passed the statistics of the slave count. There appeared to be an acceptable number of healthy manual laborers and specialists. The pen of young ones was promising as well. However, there was a disappointing number of undesirables. Megatron frowned slightly, his optics glowing a bit brighter.
"Have Astrotrain and the Stunticons transport these workers to the oil refineries and power plants. Make sure the 'specialists' are divided equally amongst the locations." he commanded, "Have the available Constructicons build a Nursery Unit to contain the young ones. Proceed delicately. I want these future slaves healthy and ready to fall in when the time comes."
Soundwave was already sending out the orders.
Megatron turned slowly from the pens of humans, "I have business elsewhere."
"And these humans?" Soundwave mentioned the third pen.
The silver mech stopped and delivered his dark reply, "I'm sure you know what to do with defective cogs."
Barely distinguishable was the malignant glow brightening Soundwave's visor, "Yes, Megatron."
Lana was about to protest when Thundercracker turned away from the scene to face Megatron.
"Thundercracker, Skywarp, you are to go to Beijing, China with the Insecticons." he commanded.
Skywarp pulled a disgusted face at the mention of their techno-organic "allies". The Insecticons were creepy, shifty, and not to be trusted. But, Megatron valued their unique abilities and often they served as cannon fodder for the Decepticon ranks. Still, it didn't mean the Seeker had to like them.
"We must demonstrate that our reach is widespread and that no landmass on this mud ball is safe. Our conquering will be absolute." Megatron continued with a wide sweeping gesture, "Now go."
Both Seekers clicked their heels together smartly and launched from the ground.
Lana craned her neck back to see what was happening. Soundwave merely moved his hand and turned his head. All of his drones lunged forward and…that's all she saw before Thundercracker flew into the sky.
"No! TC! You can't let them kill all those people!" she pleaded, banging on his console. "Please! Do something!"
"I can't Lana." his voice stated quietly. "I'm…sorry."
A/N: Ok…Rumble vs. Frenzy color debate. The comics seem to INSIST Rumble is red and Frenzy is blue. I go by the G1 cartoon where Rumble is blue and Frenzy is red. JUST so you're not confused.