CHAPTER 25

Shadowstar laughed again. "If you want him look for him yourself!"

Ratchet couldn't do that. He couldn't risk it. Not while she was still online. He knew time was running out. He had to decide something quickly, before the fembot figured out how to free herself from the sphere.

The old Autobot powered the magnets down. She fell heavily to the floor, landing on her back. As she attempted to get up he powered up the magnets again and held her down. "Not this time," he said, walking over to her, while keeping the items active. "I might not look like much but that doesn't mean I'm an idiot. I've got enough power to hold you there until Kingdom Come.. whatever that is." he raised his hand, increasing the power, and the energy field surrounded her body. She came up with it, floating in a pink energy bubble. "Now, tell me where Prowl is or I will drain your energy!"

She met his optics. "I'll see you in the Pit!"

Bumblebee and Sari were in the clear for now. The vampire hadn't followed them which meant Ratchet was keeping her occupied.

"Wait!" Sari suddenly shouted.

Bumblebee braked to a stop. Luckily Sari was strapped in or she would have smashed her face into the dashboard. "What?" he asked.

"Back up," she ordered urgently. "I thought I saw something."

"I don't know," he said uncertainly. "What if she-"

"Just for a minute," she pleaded. "It's important."

Bumblebee wondered what could be so important but he did what she asked and backed up until she ordered him to stop. She then opened the door and climbed out, running toward an open doorway. Bee quickly transformed and followed her, his hands turning into stingers in case of a sneak attack. He knew Ratchet wasn't likely to be beaten by the vampire fembot now that his guard was up but he didn't want to chance it There was still the chance that she could beat him and come after them.

The moment the two friends stepped into the room they stopped, frozen in horror. Optimus and Bulkhead hung suspended from the ceiling by large, thick chains. Both were out cold and Bumblebee could see the bite marks on their necks. "She did get them!" he exclaimed, taking a step back.

"Yes, but they're not dead." a voice spoke up behind them.

Both friends jumped then spun around to face the speaker. Prowl stood behind them with chains looped around his arm and resting on the floor. His expression was blank.

"Prowl!" Bumblebee exclaimed, surprise and relief written on his face.. "You're still you!"

Prowl frowned at him. "Of course I'm still me," he said. "Why would you think I wasn't?"

"Because that crazy freak kidnapped you and I thought she might have bitten you and made you one of her minions again," he explained.

"No," Prowl replied, sounding slightly annoyed. "She did not bite me. She didn't need to." he looked up at the two Autobots hanging from the ceiling. "She just knocked me out and tied me up in the basement."

"What basement?" Bumblebee demanded. "How come I'm the only one who didn't know about the basement?" Prowl ignored him, walking toward the unconscious Auobots suspended over them. "Prowl!"

He put up a hand for silence, all the while studying the chains. They didn't look any thicker than the ones Shadowstar had used on him. He pulled out a throwing star and threw it at them. The sharp blades of the weapon severed the chains easily. Both Autobots crashed to the floor. He ran over to check their vitals. They were alive, just offline.

"Sari," Prowl said, turning to the girl. "Do you think you can repair them?"

"I hope so," she replied, taking her key from around her neck.

"Good," the cyber ninja said, heading out of the room. "You do that."

"Where are you going!?" Bumblebee called after him.

"I have something I need to take care of."

Upon her words something inside him seemed to snap. In a fit of temper Ratchet slammed the femme against the wall. "Where is he!" he yelled. "Tell me!"

But she wasn't going to tell. She just glared at him and kept her mouth shut, her optics portraying a challenge.

He jerked the field away from the wall and slammed her into the floor. She hit it hard and he saw part of her frame dent. "Answer me!"

She looked right at him, smirking. "Find him yourself!"

Ratchet was getting sick of that answer. He raised his arms, the magnets lifting her off the floor. She hung suspended above him, her optics locked onto his. She was still smirking but that wouldn't last much longer. The medic had lost all patience with her. If he killed her this time he wouldn't feel the least bit guilty about it. Even if Prowl got mad at him later.

"Tell me or I will kill you!" he shouted.

Her optics flickered and he thought he saw a look of uncertainty on her face. His tone surprised her more than his words. It had changed. There was something sinister in it now. He no longer sounded like a compassionate Autobot bent on helping. He looked like a..

Decepticon? Could the two fractions really be no different from the other?

He slammed her against the floor again. On impact, she heard something snap and a sharp pain lanced down her wing. No!

But before she could even turn to look at herself and access the damage, the medic yanked her into the air again. This time he deactivated the field and she flew across the room and into the wall, hard. She bounced off it, leaving a dent and hit the floor.

That pain lanced through her wing again. She pushed herself off the floor and turned her head to inspect the damage. A long crack was spidering down the metal. She clenched her teeth together as another shot of pain coursed through it. Seeker wings were the most sensitive parts of their bodies. Any damage to them, even light damage, could ground them for good. She pushed herself up, trying to stand. Even if she couldn't fly she could still take care of this hypocrite.

I just have to-

The magnetic field encased her feet preventing that. She took her focus off the wings and looked at Ratchet. He was coming toward her, the magnetic prongs on his arms still active. He wasn't going to let her get away.

She flipped herself over so she wouldn't be as vulnerable and looked him in the eyes. "Is this how it's going to be, doctor?" she asked him. "Are you going to rip my head open for the information?"

He stood over her. "No," he replied. "I won't have to because you're going to tell me."

"And if I don't?" she snapped. "You going to follow through on your threat?"

"Depends," he responded. "if you give it willingly."

"Then you'd better get started," she shot at him. "Because I'm not going to tell you."

He deactivated one of his magnets and slapped her across the face. It was hard enough to knock her over. She grabbed her cheek and glared at him.

"Don't play cute with me," he growled. "I'm already tired of dealing with you, you little bitch. Prowl might have wanted to help you but you're not worth it. If I kill you now I won't feel guilty about it and I doubt he would mind all that much."

She hissed at him and he slapped her again. "There will be no more of that!" he snapped. "I don't care if everyone else has let you get away with that I'm not going to. Now you're going to tell me what you did to Prowl or I'm going to rip off those wings of yours and feed them to you!"

"Go right ahead, you racist bigot!" she screamed at him. "Prove me right again!"

He almost did but when he realized that that was exactly what she wanted him to do, stopped himself. She was trying to force him become exactly what she always thought he was.

"You might have been right about a few of us, fembot," he replied, looking down at her, his expression changing slightly. "But not us all. If I kill you it's because you drove me to it."

She opened her mouth to reply but was interrupted.

"Ratchet!" a voice shouted then.

The medic turned his head and his optics widened in disbelief. There standing in the doorway was none other than Prowl himself.

"Prowl!" Ratchet exclaimed, relief washing over him. "You're alive!"

"Yes, I'm alive," he replied, walking forward. Ratchet noticed the chains looped around his arm. "Where were you?"

"She had me chained in the basement," the cyber ninja replied. "Don't worry. She didn't bite me or anything. I'm all right."

Ratchet looked relieved to hear that.

Shadowstar, seeing the medic was distracted, made her move. Shoving hard, she was able to break free from his grip. She hopped to her feet and thrust at him, hitting the older robot in the stomach plating and knocking him to the floor.

Prowl was already moving. He rushed toward the femme, putting himself between her and the medic. "It's over, Shadowstar," he told her.

She made a face, stepping back to put some space between them. "Over?" she asked. "It's not over until I say it is!"

He shook his head. "No, it's over," he repeated. "You have nothing to put yourself at an advantage. You can't fly and you're power is depleted because of Ratchet's magnets. Just give up before I am forced to terminate you."

"You terminate me?" she scoffed. "I'd like to see you try!"

Prowl honestly didn't want to do anything like that. He knew she wanted him to. It would just prove her views on Autobots right. Like Ratchet, Prowl wasn't about to give her the satisfaction. Instead he did something much more humanine.

He threw the end of the chain at her. He'd fasioned it into a loop and when it fell around her he pulled it tight, pinning her arms to her sides.

Shadowstar struggled to free herself but his words had proved to be true. Her energy was low and she couldn't break them. The fembot glared at him. "Release me at once!" she screamed.

"No," he answered, his voice flat, keeping a tight hold on the chain. "This is it. It's over."

"No! It's not over! I won't allow it!"

"You no longer have any control of the situation." he yanked on the chain, pulling her off her feet. She hit the floor hard. "It's time. Give up. Nobody wants to bother with you anymore. You're not worth it."

She forced herself to sit up and looked right at him. The cyber ninja's expression was blank. Any emotions he might have had for her were gone. He no longer cared anymore. She'd done enough to push that out of him. The thought made her smile. Exactly. As it should be. "This isn't the end," she said in a low voice. "I won't allow it to end this way."

Prowl stepped toward her, winding the pain around his arm as he proceeded. "It's over," he said. "I figured it out already. Because of your past you think everything should happened the way you want it to. That is not how things work. The only reason things have been going the way you want them to is because the rest of us have not been cautious around you and have let our guard down too much." he smiled slightly. "You are not as powerful as you first seem. Nothing is going to go the way you want it anymore."

Her smile faded. "What are you saying?" she demanded.

"I'm saying." something activated on his arm. She stared at the EMP generator. "That this is it. It's over for you." he aimed the generator at her and fired. Instantly she deactivated and feel to the floor. "I'm sorry."

Ratchet finished the internal scan and turned off his equipment. "Okay, you can get off now," he said.

Prowl sat up and swung his legs off the table. "So, how is it?" he asked.

The medic shook his head. "To be honest I can't really tell you," he said. "I found the viruses she told me she gave you but.."

"But?"

"They're all in status. I can't tell how bad any of them are because they're not active."

"So is that bad or good?"

Ratchet smiled. "For you, it's good," he told him. "If they stay that way you won't have any problems, and if Shadowstar was right they won't activate unless she bites you again."

Prowl looked away. "Shadowstar.." After he'd deactivated her with the EMP he and Ratchet had taken her into the basement and this time chained her to a table so she would not be able to do anything if she got away. During the transfer the medic had told him about the viruses the fembot claimed to have given Prowl. The cyber ninja had agreed to have himself scanned to make sure none of them were doing anything to him.

By then the others were back online and were there to help. Bumblebee wanted to know why they didn't just put the energy vampire offline permanently. Prowl had told him that he thought that was something the Elite Gurard should take care of. After all she was still a Cybertronian, vampire or not.

Needless to say when the Guard got to the planet and found out about her they didn't know what to think. Out of the three only Ultra Magnus didn't seem to upset about the fact that they'd come upon a vampire. He'd even said something like they'd been looking for that one so in a way he was confirming what Prowl had seen in the femme's memories.

He looked back at Ratchet. "When are Ultra Magnus and the others taking her back to Cybertron?" he asked.

The medic met his optics. "Today," he replied. "Why?"

Prowl slid off the table. "I want to be there."

The medic frowned. "I wouldn't advise it."

The cyber ninja stared at him. "Why?"

Ratchet nodded. "They don't want you there.."

Prowl thought about that statement. "Is there a special reason?" he wanted to know. "Did he tell you why they don't want me to be there?"

Ratchet replied. "They think if you come it might complicate things."

"What?! Why would they think that?" Prowl demanded. "How would I complicate anything?"

"Because of your relationship with that vampire," the older robot explained. "That she seemed to be obsessed with you. When Optimus brought them to look at her he mentioned what had done you."

Prowl frowned. "He would only mention me because of the things she told me and all the stuff she did." he met the medic blue optics. "I told you everything and when they asked me about it I told them too. I explained what had happened. They understand the situation so why won't they allow me to watch them take her back?"

"That's why," Ratchet replied. "That is exactly why. If you come to see her off she might get ideas. That femme's thought processor is so messed up she might make something out of it. It's best if you just stayed away from it."

Prowl thought about that a moment then murmured. "I see." his feet hit the floor with a kind of finality. "Somehow I doubt that's the real reason."

"So what are you going to do?"

"Exactly what I planned." he started for the door. "and don't ask me to change my mind because I won't."

Ratchet watched him step out of the room, frowning. I don't understand why you want to watch that. What are exactly are you hoping to see?

An hour later Prowl arrived where the Elite Guard had landed their ship. He knew it had been advised against but when did he ever fully follow orders anyway? The cyber ninja wanted to see for himself them taking her back. In a way it would give finality to the whole thing and assure him that he wouldn't have to worry about her anymore.

Prowl transformed and looked toward the ship just as the three Elite Guard Autobots parked themselves and transformed. Sentinel and Optimus took Shadowstar out of the back of the red and blue Prime's trailer. Her hands were cuffed in front of her. With a nod from Magnus they escorted her toward the ship by her arms.

She let them, not putting up any kind of resistance. Her head stayed down most of the way until they passed by the area where Prowl was standing. As they walked by she tensed and looked up, seeming to sense him presence. She turned her head toward him and looked him right in the optics. He stared back without flinching.

Suddenly she broke free from the Prime's grasps and ran toward him. Sentinel and Optimus instantly went after her, shouting. The femme ignored them, her optics focused solely on her target.

Prowl stepped back, tensing. She wasn't going to damage him this time. He pulled out one of his throwing stars in case she tried to damage him.

But that wasn't her intent.

As soon as she reached him she lifted her hands, grabbed his face, and kissed him right on the lip components. He was so surprised he had no idea how to react and just stood there like a statue. The star slipped out of his hand and clattered to the ground.

At that moment Optimus and Sentinel reached them and grabbed her, pulling her away from him. She let them, smiling at Prowl. "Something to remember me by," she whispered before they took her away.

Once Shadowstar was safely on the ship Optimus disembarked and headed over to where Prowl had been standing. He was still there but this time he was sitting. His head was turned toward the ship and he was watching his commander come toward him. As the Prime got closer he stood and faced him.

When Optimus reached him he demanded before the cyber ninja could speak. "Why did you come here?"

Prowl's optics flashed. "I wanted to see-"

"You wanted to see us take her away?" he cut him off. "That was a bad idea! We told you not to come. You should have listened to us."

Prowl's expression changed. "What happened?" he asked.

The taller robot shook his head and turned away. "Nothing happened," he replied. "She was on her best behavior. She let us take her to a cell and didn't say a word." he looked at Prowl. "But she couldn't keep that smile off her face." he shuddered. 'It was unnerving."

"I see," the cyber ninja turned away. "That must mean she had something on her mind."

"Yeah, you," Optimus stepped closer to his friend. "This all began with you and it ends with you."

"I know." for a moment neither spoke then he asked. "So what happens now?"

"They take her back to Cybertron and put her back in the stockade until her trial," Optimus face grew serious. "Aside from being a Decepticon she's facing charges for what she did to you. They might ask you to return to the planet in the future."

Prowl turned to him. "I can't do that," he wasn't sure he could face her again. "You will have to stand in for me. She did go after you all as well."

Optimus nodded. "That's understandable," he agreed. "I told them you might not want to go."

"But it's so strange," Prowl replied. "What was her intention? I know all she wanted was to have her spark completed but her obsession with me began before she knew about the key." The memory of her kiss flashed through his processor briefly. Something about it made his thoughts linger a little longer than he should have. He looked back toward the ship when he heard the engines firing up. "It makes no sense."

"Maybe we'll never know," Optimus answered. "I think maybe she just wanted to mess around with you. See what you were made of. If you think it was something more you might as well forget about that thought."

"Love is not in her vocabulary anyway," Prowl told him. "Whatever motivated her it wasn't anything like that. You're probably right. She just wanted something to play with."

"And she got what she wanted. Even if though it didn't last."

"No it didn't," Prowl lifted his head and watched the ship take off into the sky. "and maybe that is for the best."

Optimus watched the ship disappear then put his hand on Prowl's shoulder. "I think it would be best if we forget about this," he suggested when his friend looked at him. "We have other things to worry about now."

Prowl nodded. "Yes, you're right." But he knew he couldn't forget it, but given time he could get over it. He transformed into vehicle mode. "Let's go home."

The End?

A/N

It was going to have two chapters left but I don't have enough ideas for two. Let me explain something. Shadowstar might have seemed powerful but to be honest she really isn't . The only reason she seemed that way was because she takes advantage of people who let their guard down. If the Autobots had been on their guard the whole time she never would have been such a problem. That's all I wanted to say. I hope it made sense.

Another thing. I doubt I'll be making a sequel. I guess you'll have to decide her fate for yourself.

This did not end the way I wanted it to but what the heck? It's fine the way it is. I'm just glad I finished it.