Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers or any of the products/inventions that may be listed in this fiction. Transformers is property of Hasbro. The only thing I really own is my character Cassie.
A/N: Okay, here you go, folks! The next chapter has finally arrived! I'm sorry, I know I said I would update this past weekend, but things just got really hectic in my life. That, and the fact that I was severely hit by a bad case of "writer's block"! Uuuggghhh, I can't explain enough how frustrated I was with this chapter. Hopefully it can live up to the high expectations all of my faithfull reviewers have.
By the way, here's a list of all of the reviewers, and underlined names indicate those who have reviewed multiple times:
SS-lover06, blood shifter, SomeReallyRandomPerson, Elita One, LadyofMischiefMaking, Jazzy Kat, Lnzy1, DeltaGamma Liv, Dark Predator Dragon, Gabriel The Fallen, Zexion666, lysia1982, Goldendreams257, Fk306 animelover, Prime Revolver, Of-Light-and-Shadow, BadLuck92, IdiotOnParade, Taibade, Arken Elf, Krimson65. Thank you all so much!!!!
If you would like join this illustrious group of faithful readers, please READ & REVIEW!
Once again, a big thanks goes to Atheryne at dA for helping with this chapter. If you would like to see some of her amazing artwork, check out her page on deviantart.
One more thing, before I get any further into this story, I want to say that extremely talented Vaeru here on fanfiction is the inspiration behind the quotes I put at the beginning of each chapter. Her stories are incredible, and if you haven't read her TF fic "Juxaposition" yet, then shame on you! You don't know what you're missing! Go over to her profile and read it!!
Okay, I'll stop now. Enjoy the chapter!
"We cannot live for ourselves alone. Our lives are connected by a thousand invisible threads, and along these sympathetic fibers, our actions run as causes and return to us as results. "
--Hermann Melville
Chapter 9: Connections
The neatly trimmed, recently watered grass was forcibly shoved up Cassie's nose as she fell. Cassie struggled against the man, but he was too strong. He kept her pinned down to the ground as he called for backup, twisting her hands unmercifully behind her. The sound of hurried footsteps came nearer. Her tackler suddenly stood up, pulling her up with him.
"Well, well," she heard Simmons' voice snicker, "that was a valiant effort, but you're not getting away that easily, Cassandra Richards" he paused, "or should I call you N.B.E.?"
"What are you talking about?" Cassie yelled, confused. "What in the world is an N.B.E.?"
Simmons, however, wasn't paying attention to her. One of the agents handed him what looked like a miniature version of a metal detector attached to a black box. He held the end of the object up to Cassie, the metal disc attached at the end barely five inches from her chest. He clicked it on, the machine humming for a moment before becoming silent. Cassie watched as Simmons pushed a button on the handle.
The machine reacted immediately, beeping noisily, the meter hand spinning wildly. It didn't last long, though; a few seconds later, the black box suddenly burst into sparks, causing Simmons to drop it. Cassie watched as smoke poured out of the black box, the acrid smell of burnt wires stinging Cassie's nose. No one spoke; no one seemed to breathe, except for Cassie. Simmons remained motionless, staring down at the now-useless machinery.
"Restrain it and put it in the back, we're leaving now," Simmons ordered as he hurried away. Cassie squirmed in the muscled man's grip, trying to make one last attempt at escape, but he held on firmly, grunting a little as he struggled to restrain her. Cassie watched helplessly as another agent walked towards them, holding a huge pair of handcuffs and what looked like a large dog collar in his hands.
"What you're doing is illegal!" Cassie shouted, hoping the neighbors would hear her. "When my family finds out about this, you—"
"Silence, N.B.E.," the man holding her spat, pushing Cassie down on her knees, once again filling her nose and mouth with the stench and horrible taste of fresh grass. The other agent quickly sat on top of her and put the collar around her neck, causing her to cough from the sudden tightness around her throat. As she was choking, the same agent forced her wrists together and locked the handcuffs tightly.The agent who had tackled her jerked her to her feet, shoving her across the lawn and into the front yard. The large, black SUV Cassie had noticed earlier in the day was parked right in front of her house. They led her to the back and opened it. Cassie tried to fight back, bracing her legs against the bumper, but the man was just too strong. He pulled her legs up and dumped her roughly into the trunk, Cassie landing on her right side, her face squished against the back seat. She turned to right herself and start yelling again, but her bag was unceremoniously thrown on top of her, completely obscuring her vision. Cassie screamed, but the bag muffled any sounds she made. The doors slammed shut and the van rumbled to a start before taking off, the tires squealing slightly.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
They returned to the private airport in record time. Simmons gratefully stepped out of the SUV, wanting to get away from the N.B.E. The entire trip back it had done nothing but scream and yell at them, and he was looking forward to the peace and quiet of the plane. He stood outside the plane, watching as the men unloaded the N.B.E.; incredibly, it was still struggling against his men and fighting to break free.
"Why can't you keep it quiet?" Simmons yelled.
"Sir, we've tried, but it's very, uh, resilient," Stevens answered, walking over to Simmons.
"You fraggin' sons of glitches! Let me go!" it screamed at them, eyes full of fury. "How much does it take for you to get it? I'm not an N.B.E., or whatever the hell you call it! I'm just a normal, seventeen-year-old girl!"
"Do we have any sedatives? I want to enjoy the flight back without any interruptions." Simmons asked as the N.B.E. continued its relentless tirade of shouts and curses.
"I will see what we have available, sir." Stevens grumbled as he hurried to help contain the N.B.E for the flight back. Simmons boarded the plane, the comforting silence of the plane music to his ears.
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"Let me go!! You freaks are out of your minds! Kidnapping is a federal offense!" Cassie shouted as she was carried to the back of the plane. She was thoroughly pissed off, and the fact that no one was listening to her made her even angrier. One of the men holding her opened a small door to what appeared to be a storage compartment, and with a giant heave, they tossed Cassie inside.
Cassie fell onto a large pile of pillows and blankets, making a soft phoomf as she landed. The men promptly slammed the door shut, the lock clicking loudly into place. Cassie turned over and started kicking the door, hoping the hard plastic would cave in.
"Oh, just you wait, you'll be sorry you ever messed with me!" Cassie screeched, her throat raw as she continued pounding the door and yelling insult after insult. The plane suddenly vibrated violently, sending Cassie rolling away from the door. She listened as the engine roared to life, and within a few moments, Cassie felt the plane take off, her chances going from very possible to almost non-existent.
Time for plan B. Cassie started twisting her wrists back and forth, hoping that the cuffs were loose enough to let one of her hands slip through. She struggled for some time, the metals restraints cutting painfully into her wrists as she relentlessly struggled to break free. Cassie slowly stopped moving. She had wasted too much energy on trying to escape earlier; now she lay silently, her sore wrists making her miserable state even worse.
Why? Cassie thought angrily, shoving her head into a large pillow. She was an average, law-abiding teenager, and to be forcibly removed from her home against her will was definitely not legal in any circumstance.
Cassie kicked the door one last time, her anger diminishing. A single tear fell, splashing noiselessly onto the blanket beneath her. All of the anger, confusion and pain that had been bottled up inside threatened to fall out, and Cassie could do nothing to stop it. The warm tears came in flows, her eyes becoming cloudy and unfocused. She cried silently, not wanting the anyone to hear her. Cassie could never remember crying so hard, not since...
Stop, she ordered herself. Don't think about that, it's not going to help you any. Tired, cold, hungry and emotionally spent, Cassie leaned against the soft pillow, easing herself into a fitful sleep.
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"Cassie? Yer leakin pretty badly. Are ya sure one of your fluid lines isn't broken?" Cassie looked up at the silver mech, wiping her eyes on the bottom of her shirt.
"No, I'm fine, Jazz, this is a normal reaction for humans when we're upset," she laughed weakly.
"Ah, I see tha' now. Whaz botherin' ya?" Cassie looked up, surprised at what she was hearing. This giant alien mech was worried about her.
"I don't know, just everything," Cassie sighed wearily. She told Jazz everything that had happened within the past few hours, glad that she could openly talk with someone who didn't look at her like she was some disgusting animal. She let it all spill out, glad that Jazz didn't interrupt her once. When she had finished, she looked to see Jazz sitting still, his bright blue eyes in what she guessed was deep thought.
"The human who captured you," Jazz finally said. "What was his name?"
"Simmons," Cassie answered.
'Slag, this is worse than I thought,' Jazz thought, pounding his fist to the floor.
"Why?" Cassie asked. "Do you know Simmons?"
"Yeah, I do," Jazz explained angrily. "Simmons is the same human who captured and tortured Bumblebee right after we landed here."
"Wait, wait, hold on a second," Cassie sputtered. "You mean that there are more of you? Here, on Earth? And this guy Simmons knows about all of you?"
"O' course. But that's not important right now." Jazz held up his hand, halting any of the questions he knew that Cassie would want to ask. "Right now, I need to contact the Autobots."
"And how are you going to do that? From what I can tell, you're stuck in my head, and I highly doubt that this Simmons guy will let me use my 'one phone call' to contact a bunch of giant mechs that probably don't even have a phone number to begin with," Cassie finished sarcastically.
"Good point."
Cassie stood up and began pacing around Jazz. She was extremely annoyed that didn't want to tell her anything other than the basics, almost as if he was trying to keep something from her. What was so important that she shouldn't know about? If anything, Jazz should've told her everything to begin with. Then maybe she wouldn't tied up and forced on a plane headed to who-knows-where right now.
"Cassie?" Jazz finally spoke. Cassie stopped pacing and looked at Jazz, her brown eyes staring up at his blue optics. " Do ya remember me tellin' ya that Autobots also, uh, 'sleep', as you humans say?"
"Yeah, you called it a 'recharge cycle', right?" Cassie answered, unsure of what sleeping had to do with anything.
"Good. I dunno if this is going to work or not, but I'm going to send a private communication to Bumblebee. The problem, tho', is my comms link isn't online."
"And what am I supposed to do about it? I'm no mechanic, and even if I was, there is no way I would know how to fix whatever a "comms link" is."
"No, I don't need you to fix it; I need you to contact Bumblebee. I don't know why, but you are able to communicate privately to me without actually speakin', which should be impossible for anythin' other than a Cybertronian to do."
"Okay, so let me make sure I understand what's going on," Cassie started, not fully understanding what she was hearing. "Somehow, I'm able to talk to you with my mind, which I shouldn't be able to do, but can anyway."
"Yes."
"And you want me to 'mentally communicate', or 'send a private comm.' to Bumblebee, another Autobot, who can hopefully get me out of this mess?"
"Yes."
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-Bumblebee?-
Bumblebee shifted slightly in his recharge cycle
-Who is this?-
-You can hear me? Wow, I guess he was right...-
-Who are you?- Bumblebee transmitted again, his processors whirring faintly. He was receiving a private comm. in the middle of a recharge cycle, which was highly unusual. The signal was Cybertronian, and it was definitely an Autobot, yet at the same time it wasn't. The comm. link was weak, cutting in and out occasionally. It also sounded very young, and if he was guessing right, the voice was distinctly that of a femme.
-Uhhhh, my head hurts. I can't do this much longer- the voice whined, sounding strained.
-How did you get access to my comm. link?- Bumblebee asked curiously.
-Need...help...captured...he said...Autobots...- the link ended abruptly.
-Autobot, respond- Bumblebee ordered, but the link was gone.
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"Hey, Bee? Wake up. No time to sleep right now."
Sam shook the yellow mech, or what he could reach of Bumblebee, which happened to be his foot. Bumblebee didn't move.
"Mikaela, help me, we need to wake him up." Sam said as he rapped his knuckles hard on the lower part of Bee's leg. The only thing he succeeded in doing was hurting his knuckles on the hard, yellow metal of Bumblebee's skin.
"Give him a break, Sam, he hasn't slept for a few days now, and even giant mechs need to rest every now and then."
"I know, but Optimus ordered me to wake him up, said something about a meeting." Sam shouted, hoping his voice would jar Bee from his slumber. Sam was so preoccupied with waking Bumblebee up that he didn't notice Sergeant Lennox walking in silently behind him.
Lennox had just come from a meeting with Defense Secretary Keller and other important military officials about the current status of the newly relocated Autobots, and Ironhide had offered to take Lennox to the meeting. No one else except Keller and Lennox knew that Ironhide was there, and they wanted to keep it that way; Lennox respected the Autobots wishes to remain hidden from as many people as possible. It had been quite a task to keep it a secret, though; there were many witnesses at the Mission City battle, but thankfully, most of them had accepted some type of bribe and were keeping their mouths shut.
"How's it going, kid?" Lennox said as he and wrapped his arm playfully around Sam's neck.
"Hey, let go! You'll mess with the hair," Sam coughed, attempting to throw off the adult. Lennox complied and let of him, but not before he roughed up Sam's hair.
"So, having problems waking up the Bumblebee?" Lennox said, surprisingly calm.
"Yeah, Optimus wanted him in some important meeting." Mikaela explained.
"Watch this." Lennox said, pulling out a handheld foghorn out of one of his many pockets. "I did this to Ironhide a week ago; it was priceless. It's something else, watching a huge black, pickup truck roll over on its own," he smirked as he started inching towards Bumblebee, his boots making no noise as he walked. "You should probably step back a few feet; this is going to be pretty loud."
Sam and Mikaela obeyed, moving all the way to the door.
"Get ready to run," Lennox whispered, silently slithering closer to Bumblebee. He held the foghorn above his head, only a few inches away.
"Wait, Sergeant Lennox, I don't think that this is a good-" Mikaela started to say.
"Ssshhh, Mikaela!!" Sam hissed. This was too good to pass up.
"Now!" he shouted, running backwards and pushing the button at the same time. The small room was suddenly filled with a screeching sound, loud enough to be heard a mile away. It worked perfectly; Bumblebee jerked awake, and tumbled off his metal bed, the ground shaking violently from the impact.
"RUN!" Lennox yelled, laughing and almost tripping over his own feet in his hurry to get out. Sam and Mikaela were already out the door and down the hallway, their sides hurting from the laughter. All three of them disappeared into the meeting room just as Bumblebee ran out of his quarters.
"Bumblebee, what's wrong?" Bumblebee turned to see Ironhide walking towards him
"Ironhide, something must be wrong with the security systems. I was in recharge and suddenly I heard this loud, terrible sound and..." Bumblebee stopped. Why didn't Ironhide seem more concerned? Whenever the security system started going off, he was the first one to pull out his cannons.
"Ah, so that's where he went," Ironhide chuckled. "Well, I was going to wake you myself, but it looks like Lennox took care of that. Optimus wanted to talk with all of us, so I suggest you get your aft in there soon." Ironhide left Bumblebee standing there, still wondering what had just happened.
Bumblebee hurried after Ironhide, his processor still trying to determine the origin of the unknown communication. Maybe Optimus would know...
Next Chapter: More Autobots action and a new arrival.
Chapter 10 is in progress, so hopefully it will be up by Saturday.
I like feedback a lot, so tell me what you liked or didn't like about this chapter, and I will takes notes.
PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!!!!
