Chapter 9: Crescendo
Crescendo: gradually louder
"So, Will, how's Annabelle and Sarah?" Fig asked.
"They're alright. How's your mom?" Lennox answered.
"Eh, she's okay. Worried about Serena though." was the reply.
The two men were riding along the interstate toward Tranquility. Word had come from Secretary Keller just before they had left that Judy Witwicky had met with Serena and Hunter. She's also mentioned a third that had gone by the name "Lita" and could possibly be Elite-Femme.
Jazz revved his engine. "I'm worried about all three of em. That Society sounds like bad news."
"Keller said that he has teams on it." Lennox pointed out rather lacklusterly.
"Yeah, but if the special branch of the CIA didn't know about them, then I'd say it'd take a little more than just a couple of diggers to find them." Ironhide transmitted. Both humans were currently riding in Jazz. Ironhide's statement came through Jazz's radio.
"You have a point Hide." Lennox said. "But what I wanna know is how they found out about you."
"Easy," Fig said, "After Mission City you had a couple thousand people who saw them not to mention the dissolution of Sector Seven. I'm betting you my disability pay that they're the ones that banded together to make this Society."
Lennox cocked an eyebrow. That rather intelligent idea was uncharacteristic of Figueroa. Fig sensed the scrutiny and shrugged. "Hey, if huge alien robots had just either destroyed my home or put me out of a job, I'd be pissed as hell and I'd want payback."
Lennox nodded. "Ah."
They rode along for a few minutes before Fig pointed to a car going the opposite way. "Jazz! Hide!"
"What?" Lennox cried.
"That Mustang! I've seen it before, and the woman in the passengers seat! It's Serena!"
Jazz and Ironhide both made 180s and sped over middle area of the road to get on the other side. They sped up to catch the pink Mustang.
Inside of said 'Stang, Hunter and Serena were staring out the back window. "I'm sure of it." Hunter said, "That's the black truck that was in Mission City."
Elita heard that and opened up a closed frequency transmission. :This is Elite-Femme-One calling to any Autobots in the area.:
Jazz and Ironhide revved their engines and shook. Fig and Lennox both grabbed onto the doors in surprise. :This is Music-Lover to Elite-Femme-One.:
:This is Thick-Armor to Elite-Femme-One.:
Elita revved her engine and turned on her blinker, signaling the two vehicles behind her to follow her to the shoulder. The three vehicles made the stop. :It's good to see the two of you. Metal-Femme is here too Thick-Armor.:
:We already have her. She's back at the Hoover Dam standing guard over our wards.: Ironhide answered.
:It's good to see you too ma'am.: Jazz responded. :Now, I think it best for us to hurry out of here. First-and-Best has reports of a Society that wishes us harm.:
The humans hopped out and greeted each other.
"Jorge!" Serena said. "It's good to see you!"
"Hey Serena." Fig said with a grin. "Now girl, what're you doing with this chica right here?" he asked, pointing to Elita.
"She sorta fell into my lap." Serena said. She turned to Hunter. "Jorge, this is my friend Hunter Quinn. Hunter this is my neighbor's son Jorge Figueroa."
Hunter nodded to Fig as Fig pointed to Lennox. "This here is my buddy and former Captain, Will Lennox. Nice ta meet cha."
Will smiled. "A pleasure Ms. Mitchell. And it's also a pleasure to meet the bane of the Autobot's existence."
Hunter blushed. "I didn't know I was such a nuisance to them."
"Nah, we're cool with it." The humans glanced over at the suave black man with dreads and a distinctly Marley-esque look. The man standing beside him had the physique of a professional wrestler and a face that looked somewhat like Lennox. With them stood a beautiful woman who was grinning happily.
"So you two are wards of the Autobots?" the woman asked.
Fig and Lennox nodded. The woman bowed a little. "I am Elita-1."
"Nice to meet you ma'am." Lennox said.
Fig frowned. "OP's lady friend right?"
She laughed. "Yes." She gestured to Hunter and Serena. "Guys, these are my fellow Autobots Jazz and Ironhide."
More pleasantries were observed as two police cars pulled up. Four officers stepped out of the cars. "Is there a problem folks?"
"No officer, we're alright." Lennox answered.
The policeman nodded before he grabbed Serena and pulled her into a headlock. He whipped out a gun and shoved it against her temple. "Now, you three get in the back of the cruiser." The man's dark eyes turned to the three facsimiles. "And you three follow. If you make a move to transform or try to contact your friends I'll put a bullet in her brain."
"You know what we are?" Elita asked.
"I know exactly what you are you alien monstrosity. Get ready to go!"
The three men obeyed and got into the back of the cruiser. The man dragged Serena to the first car and pulled her into the backseat. Elita, Jazz, and Ironhide obediently pulled out behind the first car. The second followed. Jazz cursed to himself.
With all the happiness, he'd never even noticed the jamming signal that had blanketed the area.
Jake stumbled into the road. He'd been running for a couple days now and had found nowhere to hide. The Society was right on his heels. He swayed, his fatigue blurring the scene before his eyes. Vaguely, he heard the blaring of the horn before his world went black.
It was sometime later that he felt himself surfacing. "Is he alright?" he heard a bubbly feminine voice ask.
"His vitals are alright and we didn't hit him. I think he just needed some rest. When he wakes up we'll feed him." another, more mature sounding woman said.
He groaned and heard a small chuckle. "He's coming to."
Jake opened his eyes to find two of the prettiest women he'd ever seen staring back at him. They smiled in tandem. "Are you alright?"
He glanced back and forth between them with a grin on his face. He was either dreaming or in heaven. "I think so."
The two girls shared a sidelong look before giggling. "So, stranger, what your name?"
"Jake."
"Well Jake, I'm Verbena and this is my sister Orchid." the girl on the right said cheerily.
Her sister slid her a rather caustic look. "Nice to meet you Jake."
:You named us after flowers?! :
:The names sounded pretty!:
:Vibrations you are hopeless!:
Jake sat up slowly. He examined the two girls closely. Both had dark skin and pretty brown eyes. They were kneeling with him on the side of the road. He spied a nice sports car and a motorcycle sitting beside him. He blanched when he saw the symbols on the vehicles. "You're holograms."
The sisters shared a look. "Great." Orchid muttered.
"I guess we're not as great actors as we thought." Verbena said.
Jake shook his head and gestured to their true bodies. "I recognize that marking."
"Ah."
The motorcycle rocked and changed. :Vibrations!:
The motorcycle-robot knelt as her facsimile faded away. "My true name is a Cybertronian word I truly doubt you could pronounce, but please, call me Vibes."
The car transformed as well. "Thank Primus that I don't have to use that stupid name. My name is Override."
Jake felt awed and afraid at the same time. Override cocked her head. "No need to get nervous. We won't hurt you."
"We're Autobots, sworn to protect those that cannot protect themselves." Vibes added.
Jake swallowed. "That's . . . . Nice."
Override held out one of her large hands. Jake recoiled. "I, uh, thought shaking hands was what new acquaintances were supposed to do." she said softly.
Jake stared at the outstretched hand and steeled himself. He reached out and placed his hand in hers. Override's hand was very different from a human hand as it was about twenty times larger, but Jake felt warmth. Jake smiled up at the robot. "It's nice to meet you. Welcome to Earth."
Override and Vibes nodded and took turns shaking his hand. "So, do you have somewhere you need to be Jake?" Vibes asked.
"Yeah, and how do you know about us?" Override added.
"I don't have any place to be really." he answered. He looked back. "I'm on the run. I know what you are because I worked for an organization that . . . Hunts you guys. I left because after the first one we caught I . . . I realized who I was dealing with. They took such glee in his pain. He was screaming and trying to get away. I had been told that we would only be studying them, I didn't realize that we would be trying to kill them."
Override stood. "Well, at least you realized the mistake in time."
"Yeah. Before I left I talked to someone who called himself Optimus Prime. I guess I'd like to try to find him."
Vibes shot a bit of exhaust. "Then you're with the right pair of femmes! He's the guy we're looking for too!"
Jake smiled. Override chuckled and transformed back into her vehicle mode. "Well then, since we're heading the same way, need a lift stranger?"
Barricade, Arcee, Glenn, and Maggie stopped shortly for the two humans to take care of their private needs and to obtain food. The two Cybertronians stayed parked in the fast food restaurant's parking lot as they went about it.
:Are you sure you want to go to Prime?:
:Worried about me?:
:Yes!:
Barricade fought down the happy little feeling in his processor. :I'll be fine Arcee. You Autobots are big on mercy.:
:But Cade, they'll think you kidnapped the humans and me and they'll -:
:Arcee, relax. I trust that you, Maggie, and Glenn will be able to convince Prime to leave me alone. And anyways it's not like I want to stick around the Autobots. I just want them to know that I'm not going to go insane like Scorponok and Scream.:
Arcee was silent for a few moments. :So, you're not going to stay?:
In an uncomfortable flash, Barricade knew what was running through her head. :Look, Arcee, I really like you, but the thing is -:
:I'm an Autobot and you're a Decepticon?:
:Well, there's that . . .:
:What else could there be?:
Barricade's connection went completely silent for a moment. Arcee thought he'd terminated the conversation, but when he spoke, it was with a distinct somberness. :Arcee, I don't know how Sound-Carrier or the other sane Decepticons are going to handle my decision to no longer fight. There has never been a Decepticon in history to retire. I can't be around you if they get hostile toward me. I can't have you in the crossfire.:
:Why, because I'd get in your way?: There was a wealth of righteous anger in her tone.
:No, because I couldn't bear it if you got hurt because of me.:
The words shocked the slag out of Arcee. :But I . . . . You . . . :
:Arcee, listen to me. Just because I am a Decepticon doesn't mean that I have no heart. You've seen that before now. We Decepticons aren't a different race from Autobots, we're all the same species. Decepticons love like you, hate like you, grieve, celebrate, everything. I am a downright nasty fellow who in turns hangs out with a lot of nasty fellows. I don't feel remorse for anything I've ever done because it was done in the name of war or in the name of my own self-interest. In my opinion, your Autobot ideals are a grand delusion and the Decepticon propaganda is just that - propaganda. If I had been created an Autobot, I would probably think much the same way. I do not mistakenly identify myself as only a Decepticon and I do not delude myself into thinking that I'm some noble being like Starscream and Megatron did.
:I know I have many faults. I know that have killed and I have terrorized humans and I've done a million other little things that would make any Autobot cringe away from me. That's why you're special to me. You didn't cringe away, you came closer trying to help me. Autobots try to act noble but when faced with a crippled Decepticon like me they'd kill me on the spot and say it was mercy. You didn't do that. You helped me in my time of need even though I was a Decepticon, even though I'd wronged you.
:That's why I can't loose you. You are special to me, special like Frenzy was, maybe even more special than Frenzy. You are my friend. It doesn't matter that you are an Autobot and that I am a Decepticon. We're both way past that.:
Arcee was speechless, but something had to be said. :Barricade, you've had your piece, not let me have mine. I have a confession. When I was stuttering a moment ago, I didn't even think about Autobots and Decepticons. I was thinking about what you were going to say. You haven't said what I'd hoped, but I'll give you the response that I was willing to give a few moments ago. Barricade, I love you. I love you because you admit that you are wrong. I love you because you know you've done wrong. I love you because you refuse to let it get in your way. And now that I know that I am a friend that you don't want to lose, I'm so happy I could burst.:
It was now Barricade's turn to be speechless. He realized that he was a fool. He should have gone with his instinct and just blurted it all out, but he was interrupted.
:Ah, how sweet.: For a moment Arcee believed that it was Starscream speaking, but Barricade laughed. :Well, well, if it ain't my buddy Sonic-Boom.:
:New name's Thundercracker friend.:
:And Skywarp here to fill out his duo.:
Barricade shot a bit of exhaust. :What, not on errands for your master Starscream?:
:To use an Earth idiom, man are you out of the loop.: Skywarp crowed. :Starscream is considered a dangerous entity and is to be killed on sight along with Scorponok. You are to be brought to Soundwave upon sighting.:
Barricade inched in front of Arcee. :Soundwave?:
:Sound-Carrier of course. Don't worry, it's nothing bad. You can even bring your Autobot girlfriend and the humans. We'll make it a party.:
:I'll give you a party.: Barricade growled.
:Hey, whoa there! Don't get your energon feed tubes in a tangle. We're under orders to be nice to Autobots and humans. Soundwave ain't interested in war any more. He wants to leave it alone. He sites Megatron and Starscream as examples of what war does to mechs.:
:I always knew that Soundwave was the real brain of our bunch. Alright, let me inform the humans and Arcee and we'll come.:
:I don't need informing, I heard the whole conversation.: Arcee snapped.
:Sorry, I thought we were on a secure frequency. We still have to tell Maggie and Glenn.:
:True.:
The two humans chose that time to make their appearance. The bundled into Barricade and shut the doors gently. They knew it hurt Barricade to slam the door.
"Maggie, Glenn, there's been a slight change of plans." Barricade said pleasantly.
Both humans glanced out his windshield and gulped. "Oh my." Maggie whispered.
"Meet my associates Thundercracker and Skywarp. We're to be escorted to the new leader of the Decepticons post haste."
Maggie touched his door. "You aren't betraying us are you?"
Barricade revved his engine. "They touch you or Arcee, they're dead." he said savagely.
Maggie sighed. "I believe you. Against all better judgment, I believe you."
