The blue bot was also dragging a couple vehicons out of the portal behind him.
After making sure Knockout was alright, he strapped them each on a berth and started draining them of their energon.
Next, he carefully stored them in vials for possible future transfusions. He removed the empty husks and placed them in a pile in the corner, where he would proceed to strip them for spare parts later.
That where Megatron stomped in: "Breakdown, how goes the...What in the pits of Kaon is that?!" The warlord pointed at the unconscious medic.
"My lord, that is Knockout, sir. I've gone out to retrieve him." Breakdown kneeled as he answered the question. When he dared to lift up his gaze and look at his master's face, he regretted it immediately, once he realised that it was a rhetorical question. To say Megatron's wasn't at all pleased, was an understatement.
"I've kicked him out from amongst our ranks for not delivering on his promises..." The warlord growled and grabbed hold of the blue bot's chin plate. "...are your loyalties about to expire as well, Breakdown?"
"N-no sir, NEVER! I brought him back because he's not outlived his usefulness yet, master." Breakdown blurted out.
Megatron let go of the mech's chinplate. "Explain yourself, Breakdown." He commanded.
"Yes my lord; Knockout has located the creature, sir. She has finally ventured outside of the confines of the Autobot's base...However she was not alone." The blue bot explained. "She was accompanied by Optimus Prime, and by the looks of it; they already started training her, teaching her field strategies.
"Interesting..." Megatron listened intently. "And what types of strategies have you picked up on?"
"A very peculiar one, but I think he's teaching her how to be a scout? It was a strange teaching method though; She was facing a tree, covering her optics and counting out loud, whilst the autobot looked for a suitable place to conceal himself..." Breakdown continued. "I think the point was for her to see if she can locate him?"
"Hmmm...Perhaps Optimus is thinking about promoting his current scout in the near future?" The Warlord thought out loud.
"Or maybe it could have been the other way around? Maybe she was the one sharing valuable strategies with the Prime? I'm not sure...when we got there, the activities were already underway." Breakdown added.
"Whatever that was, we must get our servos on that fleshling! The last thing we need is a spy that can easily slip in and out undetected." Megatron said. "And should it get to the point that we can't get the portable space bridge technology out of her, we can't risk it falling into the servo's our enemies!"
"But Prime doesn't strike me as the kind of bot who'd allow such experimentation to take place on their pets, Lord Megatron...even if it was their medic performing the procedures." Breakdown was confusing.
"No, but Prime has always had a way with fleshlings; He doesn't want to endanger them, but..." Megatron said. "Their other three pets willingly do whatever they can to give the Autobots the upper servo all on their own...and somehow Optimus does this without even trying."
The Warlord walked over to the berth where his medic was lying unconscious. He looked miserable; Knockout smelled like rotten fish, there were still traces of seaweed and Barnacles clinging onto him in places he couldn't reach to pick them out. He was covered in an unhealthy amount of rust for a bot his age and with an obsessive maintenance routine.
"What on Cybertron is all this...disgusting matter?" Megatron asked.
"They're called barnacle's sir...it is a type of organic with an external shell, which attaches itself permanently to a variety of surfaces." Breakdown explained.
Megatron tried pulling one off of Knockout's skin plates, and had successfully done it. "You call that permanent?" Next he crushed it between his digits. "Inferior protective shell; worthless lifeforms...This planet is crawling with them." He grumbled.
The warlord who was scrutinising the medic up close, closed his vents shut once the smell started offending his olfactory sensors and backed off quite a distance before opening them back up again. Considering all that's happened so far and based on what Breakdown just told him, Megatron decided to take him back into the faction once more.
"Very well, Breakdown, See to it that Knockout is brought back to perfect functioning condition, as well as his former lustre..." Megatron turned around and folded his servos behind his back as he walked to the door about to make his exit whilst giving Breakdown his orders. "As much as it brings me joy to see others suffer; as a decepticon, he represents not only the faction, but me as well...and I'm anything but weak and miserable."
Breakdown knelt deep again as his lord left the room. "All hail lord Megatron."
Getting back up to his feet, he went straight to work on cleaning up the medic who was still down and out. Patiently and with surprising gentleness and precision, he removed all the dirt, debris, Barnacles and sticky seaweed from his friend's exterior.
Knockout was still well...out, but he still put him under anesthesia before he manually transformed him and moved him to a decontamination unit, where he used a computer to control arms that helped him work on the interior of his vehicle mode.
Once he was clean and properly decontaminated, he brought him back out of the chamber to start buffing out all the scratches, and generally working the 'magic' the medic always boasted his large partner had when a rotary buffer was in his servos.
By the time Breakdown was completely finished, Knockout had fallen into a power down. This was welcomed by the blue bot, because the last thing he wanted was having to deal with Knockout as the medicine was wearing off. It would have made the decepticon act like a bot drunk on an excessive amount of energon.
To be on the safer side, he deposited him in the quarantine chamber in case he woke up. In the meantime he would start his work on disassembling the vehicons still piled up in the corner after he came back from disposing of the organic matter.
Knockout had woken up to what felt like a pounding sensation in his helm.
"Urgh...note to self, never trust random taps on the shoulderpads." He mumbled as he sat up.
"Hey, you're finally awake." A voice came from somewhere in the room.
The red bot was startled, for only now did he realise where he was!
"Breakdown? Are you mad?! If Megatron finds out I'm back aboard this ship, he'll have me stripped appart for spare parts!" Knockout whispered.
"Don't worry, they won't tell..." Breakdown pointed towards several vehicons piled up in the corner.
The con medic was surprised, he cocked his optical ridge as he turned his gaze back to his large companion.
"An unpleasant accident has befallen them on the way back..." Breakdown tried to smooth the situation a bit, but Knockout wasn't buying it.
He knows the big blue bot well enough at this point.
"Besides, Megatron already knows..." Breakdown added.
"What?!" Knockout hopped off the berth.
"Of course he does, nothing gets passed Soundwave after all..." Breakdown started explaining.
After filling the con medic in on the conversation he had with the Warlord, Knockout had calmed enough to notice the itching was gone at last! It felt so good to be clean again, he took a good whiff of air in his vents as the familiar smell of car polish hit his olfactory sensors in a pleasant manner.
It was his favorite, he always picked that particular one up whenever he goes 'shopping' as he would call it. Add another 5 minutes of admiring 'that handsome devil' in the reflection of the quarantine chamber wall, and 'Knock's was back to his old self again!
Breakdown only shook his helm as a smirk found its way onto his faceplate. He always hated to see his friend miserable, and although his smug behaviour does get on his nerves sometimes, he prefers this than to see the red bot sulking in depression.
"I told you I got your back..." He began.
"That was a very long drop. You also said you'd go down with me." Knockout groaned.
"IF I did, I wouldn't have been able to do this for you...and if I don't do it, no one will." Breakdown answered.
Knockout raised his index digit as he was about to say something, but changed his words halfway before they crossed his glossa. "Good Point...unless there was something in it for them, they would not."
"Besides, I did go down to the surface looking for you." The blue bot added. "And apparently you did find the creature, unfortunately the Prime wasn't far away either."
"By now they probably retreated back to their base as well." Knockout thought out loud.
"But we're not completely cut off from our quarry either." Breakdown reminded him.
"You surely must have burned out your diodes, my friend...last time I tried manually overriding the thing, I almost got discovered. I also clearly remember Megatron making it abundantly clear NOT to be discovered." The red mech said.
"I never said you need to manually override her, just keep an optic on her surroundings...anything that can lead us to finding either her, or the Autobot base." Breakdown explained.
"*sigh* Fine...but be patient; it's going to be a lot harder if she's awake..." Knockout sat down and tried connecting to Zucky's Psyche. "That's strange...she's not asleep..."
"Alright, then try again later..." Breakdown waved it off and was about to leave to start working on the pile of vehicons...
"Apparently she's in Stasis mode." Knockout revealed.
"What the?" The blue mech turned back around and approached the quarantine chamber. "What happened to her?"
"Hmmm...everything's dark...okay, let me try a light M.O..." The red mech mumbled to himself.
"Careful...remember last time..." Breakdown warned him.
"Sshhh!" The con medic hushed his companion before starting the M.O. This earned him a terrible burning sensation all over the front of his chassis! He hissed loudly as he retreated back out of the M.O.
"What did I tell you?!" The blue mech reprimanded him.
"Urgh...Metal burn. Severe metal burn. Apparently due to a round of Cube going horribly wrong." Knockout explained.
"Wait...how do you know all that?" Breakdown asked.
"Searched her memory of course...Oh, and no; Optimus Prime told her to keep her eyes closed, so she also has no idea how to get to the base." the con medic answered.
"Scrap!" The blue bot cursed.
"Ah-ah! All is not lost yet, my friend. I have an idea..." A devious grin grew on his faceplate as he envisioned it.
He asked Breakdown to lock him in his room that night in case Zucky turned the tables on him again, but for some reason Knockout was more confident about the plan working in his favor this time. However he would not reveal what it was and wished to only have absolute peace and quiet for this to work.
" You scratch my paint...I scratch yours..."The red mech snarled as he took a comfortable position to begin. He remembered last time when he accidentally ended up in her dream, and she tortured him the whole night. ["Nobody messes with Knockout and gets away with it, not even a Fleshie abomination like you!"]
Darkness...as far as the eyes can see. My whole body felt like it was on fire for a brief moment and then; nothing...
"Where am I?" My voice echoes throughout whatever this was supposed to be. Nobody answers... just quietness.
I decided to start walking: I walk and walk for what feels like hours. The only ambience if you can call it that, is the sound of my own footsteps. Still nothing, just blackness all throughout this place.
"This can't be it...can it?" I stopped and looked around for any changes...there are none. I then collapse to the floor, hugging my legs closely. The silence is choking me and my mind is about to implode from the fear that it's causing me.
"I know I'm an introvert and all, but whatever this is; it's not cool! I know there's someone out there!" I felt an earthquake and like something landing with a thud next to me!
"Uh...okay..." I tried reaching out to feel for it as I can't see in the pitch darkness. I find nothing. Next I felt a few smaller tremors and what felt like a hand touching my hair. I whine a bit from fear. I can't even see who or what this is, it could be evil for all I know and is only acting friendly to catch me off guard.
"What do you want from me? Why can't I see you?!" I ask.
Suddenly I heard a buzzing sound...like a Cellphone!
"Miko?!" I call out. "Miko, is that you?"
No coherent answer, but some barely audible mumbling. No use, I can't tell what they're saying and I can't even tell who's voice that was.
There was another shuffling... "What now?" I whine.
"Bee and I have been working on a new upgrade for the track... maybe you wanna try it out sometime?" It's Rafael!
"*Gasp* RAF! Raf, I'm here! Y-yes, of course, but I need help getting out of here first!" I cry out desperately.
"See you tomorrow...and thanks for the save back there." The boy said.
"Wait! Take me with you!" I scream harder but I can only hear the sounds of his footsteps as he walks away. I run after the sound and keep running, but feel like I'm not going anywhere.
"He's...gone. He's going home...Hey, that must mean I'm at the base! I'm NOT dead!" As much as it was supposed to make me feel better, the knowledge that there was no way I can interact with then deflated my hopes.
For the next however long it took, my only company was the mumbling that was coming from somewhere afar. "*sigh* They must think I'm..." I didn't want to think about it, but I couldn't stop my mind from dwelling on it.
["What if I don't wake up tomorrow morning?"]
"And Raf sounded so hopeful...bless him..." A tear rolled down my cheek as I sat back down.
I sat there trying to listen in on the conversations going on around me, and the heavy pedsteps the bots make when they walk. I still couldn't tell what they were saying. I lay down to rest my eyes for a bit from the darkness, as stupid as that may sound, and without realizing it I fall asleep; or whatever the equivalent of it is in here.
"Wakey Wakey..." I hear a clear male voice after who knows how long.
"Wha...?" I open my eyes to find myself looking up at an unusual young man looking me in the eyes at a too close for comfort distance.
"GYAAAH!" I jump up onto my feet and take a defensive stance keeping my distance.
"Wh-who are you?!" I ask as I look him over. He's a fairly young individual, healthy looking, spiffier dress wear than what I was expecting and handsome too.
He was wearing a white dress shirt with a red necktie, a waistcoat and a pair of dress pants all in red, a pair of shiny black shoes, and a red and black leather Jacket. Nice combination, not gonna lie. That wasn't the unusual part, no...it's his creepy red irises that got to me. He also had a petit Goatee adorning his already pointy looking chin and was sporting a slick cherry red hairdo that topped everything off... Yeah, he overdid it with the red. ^^;
"Nice Cosplay outfit by the way..." I added. "I'm not familiar with that particular anime character, though..."
"Interesting..." He said as he approached. "You don't know me?"
"You didn't answer my question!" I warned as I bore my claws and teeth at him.
"Oh please, is that supposed to scare me?" He crossed his arms and chuckled at me.
"Dude, unlike you're getup, this is NOT a costume... I am a real dragon." I answered.
"You sure?" He produced a mirror out of nowhere and showed it to me.
"WHAT?" I was staring back at a human being...a normal human being! "But how? When did I?!"
"Hm, I dunno...you tell me." He mockingly shrugged."
"Shut up, you!" I growled.
"Oooh...A bit cranky are we? How's about I shed some light on this situation, hm?" He snapped his fingers and the Blackness just melted away.
"How'd you do that?" I was confused. "You are not supposed to be able to do that...not in here at least!"
"Where am I allowed that luxury then?" He asked as he looked around nonchalantly. "If not here?"
"Well, duh...Your own head. This is my mind, and speaking of which, how did you even get in h..." I froze.
There was no way anyone could get inside my head, unless they were some kind of telepathy or whatever. Those don't exist in this universe, as far as I'm aware at least. Unless...Oh, no.
The young man in red turned to look at me as a grin overtook his features.
"Surprise..." He finally said as he was done chuckling to himself.
My blood started boiling...he did it again! "DAMNIT! What part of stay out of my head, don't you understand?!" I was screaming now or at least that was the point...you see; he muted my screams.
["What?! How come I can't...did he just mute my voice?!"]
"Cool..."
["GRRRR! How dare he?!"]
"So it turns out I can manipulate this world of yours." He mocked as he loomed over my small frame.