Chapter 11
When it was broadcasted for troops to head towards Predaking's kennel, only then did Knock Out begin to panic. 'That idiot really is going to do it.' He thought, and while every filament of his being wanted to run away from the psychotically angry mess Jack was going to be, Knock Out at least needed to show up for, well, for show.
And when he arrived just outside the kennel in a hall that was filled with Vehicons aiming for the door, a roar rang out through the ship that even had Knock Out's frame reverberating. The door was blown out as a large frame sailed through the air and crashed into the wall on the other side of the hall.
Knock Out glanced down at a dazed Predaking before he looked back up at the growling coming from inside the kennel. The red mech tensed as the front of a beast came slinking out the ruined door frame, and he found himself locking gazes with two glowing, angry green optics.
In a flash, the green optics flared brighter and the creature snarled before it barrelled out of the room towards him. Knock Out barely had time to register any of this as the beast opened its jaws before him-
-just as a green portal opened and the creature went through.
Knock Out could feel his spark pulsing erratically in its chamber as he let his vents open, which he hadn't even realized he'd closed in his terror, and the air was released with a harsh sigh. The red mech turned around as he saw Megatron approaching with Soundwave, Starscream, and Shockwave following along after him. Though he could see the grimly unfazed look on his leader's faceplate as he glared down at Predaking, Knock Out's attention was locked onto Soundwave. "Where did you send Jack?"
"That beast tried to eat you and you're worried about it?" Starscream snorted and Knock Out scowled at him.
"His name is Ripclaw now." Predaking said, and the red mech's attention snapped back to him in full force now that the shock was starting to wear off.
"You idiot!" he shouted and marched up to the Predacon. "Do you have any idea what you've just done? Synth-En is incredibly unstable, and causes insane amounts of aggression. Not to mention the damage Jack could cause to himself until his energon reserves burn out enough to retrieve him. If you were thinking with your processor instead of your spike this wouldn't have happened!"
Only when he was finished with his rant did Knock Out realize to his horror that he'd just laid out his feelings about Jack for all too see.
As Predaking's expression darkened, Knock Out knew he wouldn't be able to pass it off as 'friendly' concern. The Predacon rose to his pedes, and the red mech stepped back as Predaking towered over him with a cold look on his faceplate. "I warned you…"
"Enough!" Megatron said sharply, and Predaking reluctantly pulled back as Knock Out scrambled away from the Predacon. "While," he paused, and gave a significant glance to Predaking, "Ripclaw is off having his temper tantrum, there is still work to be done. Though know that for your disobedience," his optics narrowed at the Predacon, "you will not be permitted to see him until I have deemed you have been suitably punished."
Knock Out watched as Predaking narrowed his own optics, the yellow glowing bright. For a moment, the medic thought that the Predacon would actually attack, so it was with a bit of a disappointment that Predaking only gritted his denta together and nodded tightly. He may have wanted a mate enough to disregard orders, but apparently he was not willing to push it with Megatron himself.
"Knock Out," the medic looked up at the call, his leader glancing once more at Predaking, "how long will it take for the synthetic energon to burn out Ripclaw's energon reserves?"
The red mech vented as he thought back to his little experiments with Cylas to remember just what the estimated time frame had been. 'Let's see, if this idiot just injected him minutes ago, and if I recall the batch was about filled to the hilt of the syringe…' he calculated the odds in his processor. "Given that he has no restraints and will likely just mindlessly crush everything in sight, he should be ready for pick up by this evening."
"Then that is when he will be retrieved." Their leader decreed. "Now, clean this mess up!"
A/N: Sorry I can't post more, but I'm easing my way back into the story, and I thought something was better than nothing.
