It's been a while since the last chapter. I hope you enjoy as I tied off some of those dangling threads.
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I appreciate your patience with this woven tale. Please be safe out there. Lots of hugs for everyone.
She found herself falling through space, startled by the flashes blinding her every few seconds.
Then she fell through a solid surface, sound returning like a boom.
"Warning, intruders on level 6," she heard as she fell through another surface, a floor, she hoped.
Mark raced by her, carrying a canister and muttering, "Got to stop them."
Before she could call out, she fell through another floor.
Cursing, she tried to twist, slow her progress. She flowed through three more floors without luck.
Then she tumbled into space again.
Flashes of weapon fire didn't blind her this time as ships bearing the Autobot marks fired upon three dark, spiky ships graffitied with the Decepticon marks.
The battle in space.
She fell into another ship, spotting two individuals tearing panels off the side of a hallway.
The universe wailed with metal shrieks these were two of the DJD team. Helex and Kaon.
Falling to the next level she smiled.
Annie and John worked on energy conduits, attempting to thwart the DJD infiltrators.
Knowing if she called out she'd distract John at the wrong moment, she let herself pass them on her way out of the ship.
She flinched as heat touched her skin from a near miss. Snarling in the silence of space, she examined her forearm.
Redden skin, like a severe sunburn.
Sarah hated sunburns.
Then she entered another ship, hearing shouts and screams.
Looking towards the worst of it, she gasped.
Frank was fighting off a tiny femme Cybertronian slightly taller than himself as a swarm of other Cybertronians of human size were swiftly taking chunks out of a tall beefy mech Cybertronian. Two more members of the DJD. Nickel was the femme. Tesarus, the mech, toppled to slam the floor.
Sarah yelled to Frank, "To your right!"
Frank ducked backwards as a creature like a metal fox leapt out of a corridor, slashing through the space he'd been in.
She fell through the floor again.
"Get me to where you need me!" Sarah called out, wondering which member of the DJD she'd be facing.
She floated through space only briefly this time, watching one of the enemy ships explode. She feared she'd get hit by shrapnel as pieces flew towards her.
Only she fell into another ship.
Optimus issued orders, Prowl relaying them as fast as he could.
Coyote sat on a console, calling to her, "You got a nasty one to stop. Tear his legs out for me."
Before she could ask for more details, she fell through the floor.
Blowing out a breath, she folded her arms, "Any time now."
"What the fuck!"
Sarah turned, locked eyes with Lennox, Epps and Sam.
"We've been called for a mission against a 'nasty one' per Coyote. Based on the other ships, we are facing off with the DJD."
"Why are we fighting them?"
"They came in with a dozen other ships and Prime is busy holding off the ship boarding teams that are remaining," Sarah drifted through another floor, then continued, "Up for some running and slagging, men?"
Epps snorted, "This is where I die, right?"
"Not before me," Sarah growled, slipping through another floor, then yelped.
She slammed into the floor, hearing three grunts with hers.
"Ow."
Hissing, Sarah pushed herself to standing, "Last time I request the scenic route."
Dusting herself off, she listened to the universe, for a clue to whom they would face, or would need to thwart.
"You have to be kidding me."
Whirling at Sam's horrified whisper, Sarah spotted what had gotten his attention.
A Cybertronian body twitched at the foot of another, energy flowing from under the mech's faceplates. The standing one had his back to them.
"Vos," Sarah breathed as the universe confirmed the identity of their opponent.
The mech reached down, gripped the face of the downed mech, then…
"Good god," Epps backed away as the drills, needles and hooks pulled free from the downed Cybertronian.
"Run!" Sarah hissed.
"Why?"
"He'll kill Prowl and Optimus if we don't draw his attention. Go. Now!" Sarah felt as if Vector had overlaid a possible future in her mind.
Vos turned, showing he had no optics and no face plates. He lifted the drill side of the mask and started to reattach it to his helm.
Sam ran by, followed by Epps.
"What are you planning?" Lennox stood beside her.
"Insulting him and bolting. Hows your laps these days, Lennox?"
"We need a weapon," Lennox grumbled then blinked, "Where's the nearest armory?"
Sarah nodded, "Behind us."
"Any our size?"
"Not powerful enough. But we can lead him into the firing chamber off of it."
"Big weapon?" Lennox grinned.
"Yeah. Ready?" She said as Vos turned to walk away from them.
"Go!"
Sarah put full volume into her voice, "Hey, Vos!"
The mech whirled, his body language surprised.
She yelled a lengthy string of words in what she thought was English insulting his family lineage.
"What did you say?" Lennox asked.
"Run!" Sarah turned and bolted, then added, "I told him his mother was a scraplet and his father a toaster oven, I think?"
Heavy footfalls followed them.
"I hope you know how to open the door quickly," Lennox followed her around the corner, almost slipped on the near frictionless floor.
"Sam's found it already and gotten Epps in," she nodded to the human sized opening where Epps leaned out of, waving frantically.
"How did he know?" Lennox then shook his head, "Explain inside."
Something flew by her side, tearing into Epps shoulder.
He ducked back, cursing as Lennox gripped the doorway and leapt inside.
Sarah twisted, facing Vos who pulled a needle from his fingers.
"Your Primal Vernacular is atrocious."
She slipped in, hitting the lock button.
The door sealed.
She tapped a few keys and enabled the lock on the big door.
"Over here," Sam called.
They raced to ramp, joining Sam at the top.
Lennox pulled out a bandage and started on Epps shoulder, Epps' cursing getting louder.
"You thinking a laser blast or a missile?" Sam pointed at the board.
Sarah listened to the universe, then flinched as the wall dented.
"Try laser."
The wall caved more from the next blow as Sam keyed up the weapon.
"How are we going to get that big fragging monster into the path of the laser?" Epps asked, looking around, "I don't see anything to bait him into it."
Sam pulled up a schematic and pointed, "Here. It says it's an observer spot for microminicons."
Lennox asked, "What are microminicons?"
"They are our size. Frank is helping a bunch of them to take down Nickel and Terasus. DJD members on his ship," Sarah explained, "Anything human would be incinerated by the laser. That can't be safe for us."
"It says there is a shield. I can get it up if someone can get to it."
The wall screamed as a hole appeared.
"I mocked him."
Lennox grabbed her arm, "I'm military. This is my job."
She opened her mouth, then was blown off her feet as the wall exploded.
She hit floor roughly, coughed.
Klaxons blared, along with a voice saying, "Breach in Armory Eleven. Suppression systems online."
"I got you, Sam," she heard above her head.
Wincing through the pain, she pushed to her feet.
She looked up, then started running for the chamber as Vos stomped into the armory.
Zigzagging, throwing her body in the direction the universe yelled at her, she dodge needles flying through the air.
Ducking around the edge of the firing chamber opening, she raced over to the spot observers could use. Ignoring the universe detailing all the things a microminicon could diagnosis from the spot for both lasers and missile launches, she panted.
She leapt up, grabbed the edge of the platform over her head, Sarah pulled herself up, turning to face Vos as she pressed against the cool metal.
Vos stepped into the chamber, cocked his helm.
Then he pushed the needle back into his finger, retracting it.
His footsteps echoed in the bay, making her heart pound.
"Come on, Sam. Get this going," Sarah prayed.
Vos gripped his mask, pulled it free.
The drills whirred to life as he stopped in front of her.
He seemed to be pleased as he growled, "Wear my face."
Sarah tried to sink through the wall like she'd down earlier, only the walls weren't letting her fall out of danger.
The noise from the drills deafened her as they crept closer.
No way out.
Sarah wondered if she died here as spirit, would she die truly.
Sarah stood silent, knowing Sam wouldn't be able to hear her over Vos' mask.
If he could get the shield up in time.
The universe said nothing. Not if help would be in time, nor what her fate was.
Sarah refused to close her eyes, flashes of Chinook and Rustwind, then Ratchet crossing her vision.
She wanted to see her children grow up. To tease Ratchet into a smile.
Then the drills screamed, slowing. Vos cocked his head, the cords in his arm straining as he pressed on the mask. It didn't move forward.
The door behind Vos closed, drawing his attention from his mask.
Blinding light whited out her vision, followed by scorching heat on her skin.
She tried to bring up her arms to protect her head, but she couldn't feel anything but agony and the cold metal at her back.
Then she was falling, the ringing in her ears unbearable.
