Bumlebee had been at it for three days. He was determined and possibly obsessed. The longer he was at it, the more personal it became. Everything took root until he found himself acting contrary to normal. But he continued. His tires squealing underneath him, he shifted gears and pushed forward, moving out of the water-filled hole that had tried hard to slow him down.

It had rained all night, a misty shower of water that cleared some of the dust and grime off him that he had acquired. Unfortunately doing nothing for his emotions that could have used a good purging themselves.

He spotted him again. It was at least the umpteenth time, things once again pushing forward into the acceleration zone as Bee chased after his prey.

Barricade, the sadistic predator of the Decepticons, the hunter who had taken out more than a few of Bumblebee's friends and many an Autobot that had gotten in Megatron's way.

But this was different. Bee felt it in his mainframe. Things had taken on a new twist, for it wasn't just the Autobots that were being threatened by Barricade's presence, but his human friends as well.

Somehow a routine had started. Bumblebee would locate the hunter, would chase him, find him, and then, inconceivably, lose him. And then it would start over again and over and...

He had already lost Sideswipe more than a few times as well. Bumblebee was supposed to be teaching him the finer points of tracking. But the first time he saw the cop car, something overrode that duty as everything skyrocketed into a turbulent wave of speed and capture.

And here he was yet again, pavement gliding underneath and water spraying up his frame. Barricade was in front of him, weaving in and out of traffic, forcing Bumblebee to compensate as he tried to predict which way he was going to move, while at the same time avoid every obstruction, including moving ones.

The Con was playing with him. Bumblebee knew that. It was a sadistic little game they were involved in. A strange and darkly twisted chase that had already resulted in a couple of people's injuries and moderate property damage. For while Bee was careful and conscious of everyone around him, Barricade was hardly bothered by such a compunction.

Turning left and shooting into a right lane, he saw Barricade slowing down twenty tarnecs ahead of him even though the lights were still green. The Decepticon abruptly stopped, his actions getting more than a couple of honks. Bumblebee shifted into the lane the Con was in that was rapidly clearing from the hunter's lack of movement.

The light turned red.

Barricade shot into oncoming traffic, swerving when Sideswipe appeared in front and tried to block him. But he deftly evaded the Bot. Surrounding vehicles crashed and went off the road, horns honking once more as Bumblebee's engines revved with anger.

He managed to get away again. Bumblebee's receivers crackled, an altogether familiar voice coming through his receptors.

"Give up?"

It had been three days filled of taunting and chiding, three days of getting nowhere when that wasn't an option. Perhaps if Barricade knew that every word and comment only made Bumblebee that much more firm in his conviction, he wouldn't have uttered a syllable.

"You can't evade me forever," Bumblebee shot back.

A dark chuckle followed from that comment. "The longer you try to capture me, the more of these insects I will harm. I have been gentle so far. Terminate your actions or they will suffer more serious consequences," Barricade warned.

"I will not."

There was a short ominous pause followed by deep assured words. "You will."

Bumblebee got through the clogged traffic and back to following Barricade's signal. A thing that came and went, usually reappearing when the hunter wanted him to find him. Wanted to continue th...

The explosion came in front of the scout. The force of the blast was noticeable even from the distance he was at. Tires resisted as he was forced to reverse his momentum. Debris started to fall, chunks of cement and wood, a tire and the hood of a car. Bumblebee managed to move forward once more. People suddenly ran into the street in front of him, wild-looking humans that were covered in ash and soot. Some were tinted red and possibly burnt. His brakes reacting, Bee barely managed to avoid a male who wasn't looking where he was going. Wide eyes stared at the empty Camaro before the male ran off in a panic. The Bot had been conserving energy, his holo-form deactivated.

Bumblebee expected it to be bad. He knew from the sounds, the smell and even the way the area was now tinted yellow, all signs of a prota-explosion. But he had still been hoping and believing that...

There were bodies lying on the ground, burned and bloodied. Vehicles were on fire, some overturned, others warped and melded into one another. People were still running around, some limping, some being assisted, some trying to free others from vehicles that had doors that refused to budge.

He almost couldn't believe that Barricade went so far to make his point, almost.

"Bumblebee, sir?"

He barely noticed Sideswipe come up behind him. Rage was building quick, sorrow and grief spreading for the humans and reproach for himself.

"Better contact the others. We are going to need assistance," was all Bee could say.


He did the best he could. Helping as much as he could until the emergency units arrived. What he saw was horrid and painfully spark wrenching. Bumblebee would never get used to it, fighting a war most of his life, and yet there was no getting accustomed to the devastation, the unfortunate collateral damage.

The loss of lives.

His human form slowly made its way through the blast zone. Nobody noticed that an unmanned Camaro was following after. But everyone was preoccupied with far worthier things.

It was peaceful now, disturbingly so.

"What do you want? What are you doing here?" There was uncontrollable anger in Bumblebee's tone, a wave of personal affront underlined by heavy disgust.

Bee knew Barricade could hear him, knew with every fiber of his internal cabling that there was going to be an answer.

"I want my property returned to me."

Bumblebee had no idea what Barricade was talking about, and found he didn't care. All he wanted to do was find the predator who had just killed three humans and injured countless others. The destruction had to stop.

"We have nothing that belongs to you." The Autobot deactivated his human form, engine roaring as he felt the Energon surge through his systems. His body heated exponentially as he prepared for a hopeful confrontation.

Making it through the last of the debris, he picked up speed, sensors at maximum. He was now past angered and working on bitterly disturbed.

"You do."

Bumblebee's tires screamed once more, skidding deeply against the empty street when without warning, Barricade sent him a picture.

"Property? You call that property?"

"Let's not talk semantics here. Ownership is clearly mine."

He was close, real close. Bumblebee felt it. Slowly, his tires moved forward. Going with his instincts, he turned right into an empty alleyway, little surprised when the shadowy figure of Barricade rested at the end. He stopped. Activating a link, he relayed information.

"No," he said calmly, more centered than he felt. The more he conversed with the Decepticon, trailed him, chased his signals, followed after his exhaust, the more he wanted to pummel him, blast him, or blow him to the pit, and now this. It was insane and full of brazen stupidity. The one thing he could have said and showed him...

"If I remain here, more will suffer."

"You will not get her."

"Then more will die."

"She is not yours."

"I stand behind what I say."

"As do I."

There was a hollow pause. Threats mixed and intertwined, hard promises weighing against one another. They were done talking to each other.

Bumblebee changed communication channels again and his voice rang out. "You got him, Sideswipe?"

"I do."

"Do it."

There was a flash of light at the end of the alley along with sparks and puffs of smoke. When it cleared, Barricade was gone, Sideswipe in his place. Strong headlights burned through the shadows that the alley held.

"I'm sorry, sir. I failed to capture him," Sideswipe said, his vocals troubled.

Bitterness rose up in Bee, but he pushed it down. He hadn't really expected the Bot to capture him.

"The Disabler?" he asked.

"I believe it worked."

"You believe?" Bee lashed out, unable to hide his dissatisfaction.

"Well, if I hadn't disabled his weapons, I do think he would have, well, fired at me. Don't you think so?"

He said nothing. Bumblebee backed up and reversed, ready and more than able to continue going after the Decepticon. But he was blocked by the one Bot who could stop his actions: Optimus Prime, and Ironhide was with him. Bumblebee was ignored while Optimus issued commands.

"Join Sideswipe, Ironhide. Get Charger and Prowl and see if you can locate Barricade."

Ironhide drove forward, angling around Bee before he shot down the alleyway.

"I'll go too. I know..." The scout started forward, tires halting immediately from what was said next.

"No, Bumblebee," Optimus directed.

"But sir, I think I..."

"You are going back to the base. That is an order. And to make sure you follow it this time I will be accompanying you myself."

"I..."

Prime cut his words of. "I would recommend not saying another word. Or I might have to get into that you have ignored communications about ceasing your actions, or the fact that you took it upon yourself to bring in Barricade alone when you were ordered to work with Sideswipe and coordinate with Ironhide and his team. Yet, perhaps it would be best if you did explain yourself. Especially considering that I have not seen you like this in a very long time." His words softened at the end with obvious concern in his tone.

"He's injured people and now killed. I refuse to let him get away with it!" Bumblebee's vocals were heated, his words heavy. Imagery flashed through his processor that he wished he could delete from his mainframe. But that would have dishonored the memory of those who had lost their lives.

Optimus' engine turned over. Rolling back, Prime turned himself around until he was slowly driving out into the street. Bumblebee followed, suddenly tired and worn through.

"Barricade is outnumbered and alone. Whatever purpose his presence here is serving will quickly seem unworthy as our forces surround him. And if you are trying to blame yourself for the things he has done, despite your rather..." Prime paused as if choosing his next word carefully. "...persistent behavior, we both know that a Decepticon does not need an excuse to cause havoc."

"He's after Alexis." Bumblebee didn't mean to blurt it out quite like he did. But it needed to be said. "Or at least he wants us to believe that."

There was a stretched out void followed by the saddened voice of Optimus. "Not surprising considering she was in his charge during her imprisonment."

Optimus' answer rather astounded Bee.

"Are you trying to say this is normal?"

"Decepticons take ownership of things seriously."

Bumblebee saw that Optimus was taking the long way back to their base. They converged onto a deserted road that was rocky and uneven, yet for reasons that were obvious, hardly traveled at all.

"He speaks of her as if she was a tool! Humans aren't something that are owned."

"Perhaps not to us," Optimus said softly, "yet Starscream did say that Barricade was damaged during our attack. She did fix him before, probably could do so again."

"But she no longer has the TR scanner," Bee argued.

"That doesn't matter. It was, after all, not really necessary to begin with."

"If he gets her, he will kill her when he is through with her." His vocals shuttered and stalled, deep emotion weighing down his words.

"Then we will make sure that doesn't happen. And in the meantime give him a couple of reasons why he shouldn't try," Prime vowed.


"No, Listen, I really, really do like your haircut. No, I mean it! You looked just fine in the picture. No, it isn't too short. What? You do not look like a drowned ferret. Who said that anyway?"

Bee found her. He didn't expect her to be so far out. The Autobot could hear Alexis speaking clearly and could discern the tip of her shoe that was sticking out past a tree that she was leaning against.

Finally, he was standing beside her. Alexis was distracted but obviously felt his presence, for her shoulders rose for a second before dropping.

Again, his emotions surfaced like a rocket, exploding within him, his solemn, mournful mood shifting for a moment as his anxiety was alleviated from the sight of Alexis.

She talked for a couple of moments longer, giving him sidelong glances until she finally ended the call. "Yeah, I miss you too, Mikey. Okay, yeah. I know I will. I won't forget... me too. Bye."

Alexis pressed a button, and the phone collapsed against her palm. Alexis smiled up at him, a warm penetrating action that made his insides curl.

"Man, Bumblebee, these phones that Optimus gave us are excellent. I can't believe I..." She paused. Shifting, she put the device in one of her pockets before she used her right hand to push her body to a standing position. "What's wrong, Bumblebee?"

Standing in front of him, her eyes full of overflowing sympathy, something broke inside. Everything he had been through the last couple days escalated. Death and life swirled within until he was leaning toward her, bodies lightly touching. Alexis stiffened, her eyes opening wider until they softened once more, her hands wrapping around him until she was embracing him.

They stayed like that for a couple of long moments, moments that Bumblebee recorded and logged. He memorized every little detail as he allowed his processor to drift to warmer thoughts. Parting, but still close, Bumblebee kept her left hand wrapped firmly in his.

"Everything okay?" she asked.

"It's been a rough couple of days."

Alexis frowned, "So I've heard."

Walking back toward the base, they talked a little. Bee became preoccupied with how her hand fit perfectly within the folds of his own. They went to her room. Bee stood there as she let go of him and sat down. Alexis brought her laptop toward her, her hand reaching to rest on a wireless mouse.

Bumblebee came up behind her and saw that she was checking her e-mail. He diverted his gaze.

"I hope you don't mind." Alexis smiled up at him. "Mikey was going to send me a video of his new dog. He wanted me to... This is strange. I..."

His eyes went back down to her computer screen where images were filing it. There were pictures of Mikaela and Alexis, others of Alexis and Mikaela and Sam and some of just Alexis. He didn't know why it disturbed her so much. Until it came to another group of pictures that showed Alexis sitting against a tree talking on the phone, the same tree that he had found her at earlier, which meant...

"These pictures, how could anyone take these? And look, it was e-mailed from my own e-mail address and sent to me. How could... why would...?" Her voice halted, and her body stiffened in the chair. Text came into view as her finger used the scroll button to zip past the pictures.

"I FOUND YOU." Was all it said, but everything was understood. Both knew where it came from.

"Barricade," she whispered. Turning to look at him, her skin paled and flushed. Staring for a little while longer, she flung the mouse off the table and shut her laptop lid with a burst of strength. "This just doesn't make any sense. I mean, why is this happening to me? First Starscream on the base and harassing me, now Barricade is seemingly after me. I mean I am nothing. Nothing I tell you! I am not this important. I don't deserve this kind of attention!"

Bumblebee felt her anxiety, felt it himself as well. It still angered him how close Starscream had gotten to her and how he threatened her and how he hadn't been there to protect her.

Alexis was standing at that point, hand waving in front of her as she went to the bed. She threw her body down upon it and then shot back up. Throwing the blanket to the side, she threw herself back down before wrapping the blankets around her. Not even a minute after, she threw the blankets off her, feet springing forward as she jumped back to her feet and kicked the sheets and comforter away.

She started to pace. "I mean Starscream is practically living next door. Barricade is who knows how close, all I need is Hitler's ghost living under my bed, and I would have a complete set." Alexis was raving a little, upset. Her voice wavered with strong emotions. "Why, Bumblebee? Why is this happening to me?" She was in front of him with eyes firmly placed upon his face and her mouth dragging south. "I need to know!" Alexis half screamed, desperation apparent in the tone of her voice. "Please tell me!"

He placed his hand on her elbow and led her back to the bed where she sat down slowly. An expectant look settled on him as Alexis waited for whatever he was about to say.

Bumblebee started to speak, his voice soft. He leaned down to be more on her level. What he said next was difficult, what he revealed was hard, but he needed her to know more of what was going on and what had happened.

Speaking to Optimus was next, for Barricade knew where their base was located, gained knowledge that would cause nothing but trouble for them. But Bumblebee knew it was just a matter of time, and the conflict that awaited him and the rest of the Autobots was never truly avoidable. He just didn't want to lose anyone else because of it.

But there was no avoiding that either. And for the first time in a long time, he felt undeniable dread. But he would continue to protect his human friends, no matter what the cost or sacrifice. Even if it meant his very spark, he would ensure their safety.