Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers or any of the characters in it. The OCs in this story belong to me.

A/N: Sorry for the long wait for this chapter.

Pain radiating throughout her entire body was all that Elita could feel. Megatron's torture to her kept alternating to different things. At one point she would be stabbed with a blade and then at another point she would have electricity coursing through her frame. It was painful and disorienting, and it unfortunately kept her from being prepared for what would come. To make matters worse, as the torture went on she found herself focusing more and more on her bond with Optimus to try to escape the pain. It did help her a little, but Elita knew that it also allowed Optimus to feel her pain worse than he already could.

(I am coming Elita. It will be over soon. ) Optimus assured her over their bond. (Continue to focus on me.)

(No, you don't need to feel this anymore than you have to.)

(And you do not need to face this by yourself. How badly are you damaged?)

(I'm not sure. I know I'm losing energon, but I don't know how much I'm losing or what else is damaged. I'm not getting any reports… Optimus it feels like the pain is getting worse though.)

(Then I will not leave you. Focus on me and do not think about what is going on.)

(Do you remember when you first brought Bumblebee to the base?)

(Of course, the moment I stepped inside holding a tiny, crying sparkling you rushed over and took him from me.)

(He was scared and hungry, I felt like I needed to help him. So I grabbed some energon and started to feed him. While I was doing that he snuggled close to my spark and I decided that I would protect and care for him.)

(You wouldn't put him down for orns. When I went to our room a while after I brought him to the base, you both were in recharge with him cradled in your arms.)

(I seem to recall when I woke up we were both cradled in your arms.)

(I could feel how happy he was making you and wanted to have you both close.)

If she hadn't been searing with pain, Elita would have smiled at the memory. The feeling of a sparkling snuggled up close to her had been so wonderful. She and Optimus had tried to have a sparkling before, but it had never happened. When her sparkmate had found Bumblebee, she had felt like she would finally have a chance at being a mother and she hadn't been willing to give it up. That was why she had allowed herself to get captured if it meant he wouldn't be receiving any more harm from Megatron – she would not have a repeat of last time. Suddenly an alarm went off, causing Megatron to growl in anger and stab her with his blade again. Elita gasped in pain, unable to hold it back any longer.

"It appears my brother found a way to come for you sooner than I had anticipated."

Elita remained silent and offlined her optics to try to conserve her energy. She was getting tired, but she knew that she could not allow herself to fall into recharge or into stasis until Optimus found her and they made it back to the base.

The sound of alarms told Optimus that their presence aboard the Decepticons' ship had not gone unnoticed. The Autobot leader knew that they were going to have to hurry if they were going to be able to get to Elita and Aly and be able to get them off of the ship before the Decepticons could do anything drastic. He knew that he would be able to find Elita – their bond would lead him to her. Aly on the other hand, would not be as easy to find. She could be anywhere on the ship, and it seemed that splitting up would be the only way to find her.

"Jazz, go locate the bridge and check to see if Alyson is there. Bumblebee, Ironhide, you will search the rest of the ship for her. I will go get Elita."

Almost instantly Bumblebee took off in search of his human friend. Optimus was sure that the scout would be able to locate her. Of course what worried him is what the youngling would do once he had found her. There was no doubt in the Autobot leader's mind that Bumblebee would do whatever he could to save Aly, even if it meant harm befalling him.

"You're going alone?" Ironhide questioned.

"Yes. I know where she is at and I will be able to find her. I need you to help Bumblebee find Alyson and try to keep him from getting in over his head."

Ironhide nodded before walking off in the direction where Bumblebee had run off. Once the others had left for their search, Optimus headed in the direction where his spark was telling him he would find his sparkmate. He just hoped that he would be able to get to her and get her off of the Nemesis before Megatron or any of the other Decepticons could do anything else to her.

Only a short while later did Optimus walk into the room where Elita was strapped down to an interrogation table. Energon was leaking from her pink frame and her optics were closed. A mere few feet away from her stood Megatron – a satisfied smirk on his face. Optimus could tell that his brother had been looking forward to his arrival. And now he faced a dilemma. Megatron would not simply let them walk away, he would want a fight. But in Elita's current state, he was not certain how long she could hold on. He needed to get her off of the Nemesis as soon as possible so she could receive much needed repairs. The only question was how would he do that?

"Megatron, release Elita at once. Our quarrel has nothing to do with her." Optimus had extreme doubt that even attempting to reason with Megatron would work, but he needed to do something to ensure his sparkmate's freedom.

"Oh I disagree Optimus. It seems that I now possess the perfect leverage over you," Megatron stated as he unsheathed his blade and hovered it over Elita's spark chamber. "With one fatal blow to her, I could deliver more pain to you than if I even fought you myself. I find myself in a very enjoyable position. One more blow and I can finally watch you crumble."

Megatron started to raise his blade to deliver his final blow.

Everything appeared to be in slow motion for Optimus as the blade started to fall towards Elita.

"No!"