Updated - 25~05~2021

I have to admit this chapter was really entertaining to write. In the middle of the plot I found myself working as a M.E.C.H. agent! XD Just kidding!

The thing is that while making research, I had to look for a lot of car components and their function, and then translate it into Cybertronian anatomy. It was interesting figuring out how would said piece fit and had its funtion inside a concrete frame, and how would afect if damaged in both alt mode and robot form. (Don't worry, even if it looks like it, I promise there's no gore ahead, really).

I must also add I ended up drawing a quick map of the area they are supposed to be lost in, because I even lost myself in there too... My mind just started adding so many places and routes that I had no idea where the characters should go. Anyway, I found myself, and fortunately Arcee did too. Lucky Knockout, if it wasn't for her, he would probably never exit the forest (Don't worry, I'm not that cruel. I would have used some of my writer powers to guide him out).

Well... I think I extended enough with my thoughts (and I can't help but laugh while I write this, XD). Let's just head the story.

Don't know when I'll update again, but it shouldn't take me long. If everything goes as planned, next chapter should be last one, unless my mind comes up with something else.

Hope you like it,

Enjoy!

Chapter Text

Time seemed to stop for them as they fell. The humans reacted late, raising their weaponry, unsure about what they should do. Knockout dug his claws once again into the cliffside, slowing their fall for few clicks, before letting it go into free fall again. He repeated the action few more times, until the distance to the ground became acceptable to handle it. He pushed himself away from the rocky wall and let go of the femme so that he didn't land on her, angling themselves with the treetops below. Soon leaves embraced them, as tree brunches cracked like toothpicks under their weight. They hit the ground with a loud thud, not too far away from where the helicopter laid.

Knockout groaned in pain, but he finally incorporate. He felt dizzy, but he was alive. Some metrons away Arcee laid, sore, but barely bruised. The Autobot stood up slowly, making sure she wasn't hurt before turning to look at the aircraft. She gave few cautious steps towards it and proceeded to scan the interior, as the Decepticon approached her, limping. There was no sign of fire nor live signals inside. That meant, despite the rotor failure, they had gotten to land the aircraft without crashing it. They had gotten away alive, probably unharmed. The hunt wasn't over.

Arcee knew the humans up there would be staring down the canyon, trying to locate them. In other circumstances, the femme would have fired at the edge of the cliff, making it crumble down in an attempt to make their persecutors fold back, but due to the height of it, and the dense forest she didn't. Vegetation played a big role on their favor, and she didn't want to give their location away.

Anyway, if it had being hard for them to get all the way down, the humans would need much more time to catch up with them. They were not a threat any more, but she still feared there would be more posted ahead, covering the area.

"That was close." The mech gasped, resting his good servo on a trunk, and vending forwards. "I would have loved to see the faces of those fleshies as we fell." He laughed, nervously, before proceeding to check the sore arm he had used to stop the fall. "Alright, paint is completely gone, articulations distended, claws worn away... All in all... Still alive." The mech posted his back against the tree he was leaning on, letting himself slide down, only to find Arcee stop him midway.

"Don't relax just yet." Arcee warned him, pulling him up in two again. He staggered but finally managed to stand up. "This isn't over yet. Silas made it out form the helicopter. He could be ambushing us right now. We need to get moving before they get to us." She motioned him to follow her.

The mech groaned, aching, but followed the way she had disappeared. Arcee moved through the forest like a shadow, and advanced fast through the vegetation. On the contrary, Knockout struggled to keep up the pace, but he pushed himself to the limit, trying not to slow them down.

They had traveled few miles by now, forest still embracing them. Any other cybertronian would have gotten lost and disoriented in that dense vegetation, but thankfully, Arcee hadn't. Her steps were swift and fast, just like breeze, and moved easily through the irregular terrain. She made few calculations and concluded that, if they didn't stop, they would be reaching the nearest town by the sunset, which were good news. They would be able to use human tech to send messages to their factions. They only had to keep the pace.

Arcee thought they could have gotten far if it hadn't been because she sensed something wasn't right. She turned around just to find Knockout was getting behind, panting hard and struggling to keep up with her. She rushed to his side, and grabbed his wrist, pulling him to continue forwards, but he didn't move. Just fell onto a knee and stood there, recovering his vent.

"Come one, Knockout, we can still make it. We're not far, but we need to get back on the move." She tried it, passing his good arm over her shoulder and pulling him up again.

"Can't..." He replied heavily. "... Need to rest." Arcee reminded silent, before helping him rest over a log.

"What's wrong?" She inquired, worried, before looking around, alert.

"Disorientation... Spinning helm... Buzzing audio receptors... Blurry sight... Dizziness... Definitely after-break shock..." He recited, optics closed, helm dangling before managing to lock optics with her. She held the gaze, realizing his optics were completely dimmed, and constantly trying to correct the gaze direction in fast sharp moves. "I think... I might have broken protoform at landing."

"Can you repair it?" The femme inquired, concerned.

"Sans my assistant?" His denta gritted, denying it, as pain shotted all over his frame. "I may need your help though."

The femme diverted her gaze, venting deep before nodding thoughtfully, finally fixing her optics on his again. "Alright, you're the medic, tell me what to do." He nodded.

"First... Find the origin of the pain." He hushed. "I think it might be somewhere over the left ankle, just above the tyre." Arcee turned her attention there, retrieving carefully one of his plates protecting that area and exposing the structure beneath, obtaining a groan. She frowned before looking at him again, who had his optics closed. "How does it look like?"

"I'm not certain, it looks normal to me..." She rested a servo, over it, making Knockout writhe, and traced the component. She obtained a yelp when she reached the damage area. "Okey, I can feel there's a crack up here. But good news, apart form that, I don't see energon leak."

"Those are not good news." Knockout grunted ventlessly, grimacing. "I'm a rear traction sports car... And rear drive axle is broken..." He cursed at his predicament, while Arcee directed him an uncertain gaze. "... Even if I transform... I would not be able to direct my engine's horsepower to rear wheels. In other words, I cannot drive..." He vented irately, banging his fist on the ground. "... Frag it!"

"Knockout, listen to me. While we're in the forest we may not need to drive, but we need to keep moving. We need to get you up in two again before those scavengers find us." She tried it, giving a quick glance around again. "I may not be a medic, but I can carry on basic reparations. Tell me what to do and let's solve the situation the best we can. We will have time to worry about other things later."

"Fine." He spatted, deciding not to start an argument. "Now, you need to check if it is unaligned... If it is, that I fear it is... You need to get it back into alignment."

"How do I check it?"

"You felt the crack, right?" She nodded. "Well... Then you need to find out if the surface on the crack is smooth or there's a ledge. Forget about visual... Use your digits to examine the area, gently." He remarked that last word, directing her a sharp look. "If you apply much pressure, I'll move... And if I move, I'll make it worse than what already is. Got it?"

She gave another nod, resting her servo on the axle and following his instructions. Her digits caressed the damaged area, as carefully as she could, while the doctor forced himself to remain still, even if his frame told him other. His jaw tightened when she reached the crack itself, and palpated. She finally managed to identify what she was looking for.

"There's an outgoing ledge on the external side of the axel." She informed, retrieving her servo.

"A left going protrusion." He concluded unwillingly as an expert, his optics wandering over the treetops, knowing well what was about to come. "Alright... Lift the pede up, and rest it on you right shoulder, making sure it has a good ground. Your left must go above the crack... And your right below the crack, almost overlapped." His serious voice tone had turned into an uneasy one, as it tremble in nervousness and fear, his audioreceptor low. Arcee followed every step carefully, but his reaction didn't went unnoticed for her.

"Now... When you're ready, you have to push it back in place... You'll have to apply force. The quicker you do it, the better. It must be a concise move..."

"Alright. Concise, swift and determined. Anything else I need to know?" She inquired, concentrated. While she watched him tremor.

"Yes, you have to be careful, ok? I need to conserve the pede. Let's just do it at count of... Of five." He tried to vent deeply, looking around anxious. "One... Two... Remember to be swift and..." He could never finish his sentence as Arcee locked the components in place in a single and steady push.

His pain cry filled the whole forest, as birds flew away scared, echoing through the woods. She would have killed him for letting everyone know where they were, but, she decided to let it go, as she knew how painful those kind of injuries could be. The medic panted, on verge of crying. She carefully placed his pede back on the ground.

"You haven't counted to five!" The red mech pouted, whining.

"If I had waited for you to reach five, we would be have rusted." She scoffed, getting another sharp glare from him. His optics had finally steadied. "Now what, weld it?"

Knockout shook his helm a no, as he slowly recovered from the pain. "I'll take it from here." He murmured silently, calmer now. He extracted medical supplies out from his subspace and got down to reparations the best he could with his only good servo.

Arcee nodded and stood up, walking few steps away, scanning the area they were into. She brought up the holomap she had used before, trying to relocate themselves. She finally got an proximate idea and pondered some strategies.

She studied the map warily. She spotted a main road not far away from them that lead directly to the nearest town. Of course, she immediately discarded it. M.E.C.H. would be waiting for them to hit open road, where they would be easy targets; and Knockout was not in conditions to drive, neither to handle a chase. It was too risky.

The azure femme also had a look at some hillside minor road and a hiking trail on the west, but that would expose them too, so immediately dismissed those too. She sighed, raising her gaze to the afternoon sky. They were running out of options, and she had to find a way of getting them out from there before night set. In a futile attempt, she tried her comm. link once more, with the same static result. Nothing. She cursed.

Her gaze dropped again to the holomap. She zoomed it out and scrolled through it, hoping she would find something useful. She almost overlooked something that caught her gaze, and returning back to it, she grinned. She now knew what they had to do.

Meanwhile, the mech was almost done patching up his main wounds. He had applied some chemical products on the zone to keep it clean and dispel some of the pain until it became just a discomfort. Then, he had proceeded to secure both components of the broken piece in place by welding a flexible thin biometal sheet of his own invention, which allowed to keep everything firm in place while granting a range of movement with its flexibility. It was great to use instead of limb clamp, which he found bothersome and unaesthetic. It was a temporary solution until he could access to real treatment.

Then, he had moved to his arm, trying to ponder the amount of damage he had suffered and carry on few minor reparations and adjustments, so that he could still use the limb if the situation required it. Fortunately, he found there was no hidden damage, what, given the situation, he enormously thanked.

Arcee approached him slowly. He had made few more cures on his sore arm and worn out claws, and now was searching for any other wound that may needed reparation, not paying attention to her.

"How are you?" Arcee asked silently.

That took him by surprise, as he hadn't expected her to actually care about him. He didn't reply immediately. Instead, he raised his gaze to lock with her optics, examining them before answering quietly.

"I think I'll survive, at least until I reach the Nemesis." He silenced for a moment before bringing up a question she wasn't either expecting. "You hurt? Need reparations?"

Arcee too took a moment to reply, as she made a quick check on herself.

"No." The femme denied. "I'm a little tired and sore, but I think I'm not." She finally knelt in front of him. "I've studied the map, and I think I got a clear way for us away from those butchers." She informed, showing the holomap to him. "Taking into account the modus operandi of M.E.C.H. I have concluded that they'll have actives posted in all this area, which is perfect for ambushes." Arcee began, pointing it on the hologram. "They are really good at pacing rocky terrains like the one we've got here. That means we cannot stay put much longer, nor use the minor mountain trails bordering this hill. Neither hiking paths, and absolutely under no circumstances, the main road to the nearest town."

"Why not?" Knockout cocked his helm, frowning. "It should lead us directly into civilization, thus to any means of communication. Problem solved."

"Not an option, Knockout. There's where they want us to go." She insisted, making optic contact with him again. "On the bright side, the forest is bast, and it will take them time to comb it all. Our best option right now is to move in the opposite direction."

"No. If we do that, we'll never be able to contact our bases." The mech argued back, trying to hid his uneasiness. "I require immediate medical assistance. We cannot lose any more time. We must head towards the road." She shook her helm in disagreement.

"Look, I know you're desperate to get back to your faction, I'm too. But let's be honest. We're both here, stuck together." Her statement was firm, trying to talk some sense into him. "You said it before, they'll be expecting us to walk directly into their meticulously planned trap. The option that may look simplest may turn into the worse one. They'll be patrolling the nearest town to our actual location, but I don't think they'll be monitoring the whole... Country." She threw her servos in the air. "We only need to remain inside the forest..."

"And how to you know they are not gonna give us hunt here?" He snapped back, cutting her again, beginning to get disturbed.

"Of course they will, the only difference is that it will make it harder to spot us in the woods." Arcee's optics intensified. "Knockout, we're dealing with a human organization highly trained and educated in military tactics. If they didn't have troubles tackling Breakdown, they won't have it with us. Right now, you have an advantage over them..." She emphasized her words by signaling out before pointing her digit towards herself.

"... And that advantage it's me, who happens to be a warrior whose spark depends every single click on her ability to anticipate to her enemies' tactics and come up with a plan that will fortunately allow her to live another cycle." She paused to let her words sink in his processor, as she vented deeply. "You might be a medic, an expert in your field, but I am a soldier, military is my thing. If we're about to survive, you should follow my lead."

Angered by her words, his impotence and his vulnerability, his gaze went as fierce as it could possibly go. The mech refused to understand her reasons. He just wanted to get back to safety, and forget about the whole incident.

"I don't take orders from you, Autobot." The Decepticon hissed, with an edge in his voice. "I'm not spending a single click more in this damned organic forest..."

The femme could feel her energon boil inside her veins as a retort began forming in her mind. Yet again, she never gave it voice. She stared for few clicks into those burning crimson optics, reading through him. It was then when she caught the slight hint of fear. Her expression softened in understanding. He was afraid. Right then and there, he didn't need a commander, he needed a partner. She vented deep before trying it again, giving them both a moment.

"Knockout, please, listen to me." Arcee began, serene. "I know you're injured, and I also know you're afraid. I'm too. I'm away from home, from family, from safety." His anger slowly disappeared, leaving just uncertainty in his gaze as she spoke as sincerely as she could. "I'm actually terrified. But I cannot allow it overwhelm me."

The mech diverted his gaze down, finally letting her see his most vulnerable facet. Arcee never thought she would see that on a Decepticon. She reached for his face, and cupped it with a servo, bringing his gaze up to her again, before resting her servo on his shoulder.

"Look at us, Knockout. We made it this far. We're here together, and as long as we remain by each other's side, everything will be fine. I know it's not easy, but all I ask you is to trust me the way I've trusted you." The red mech remained silent for few clicks, pondering her words, before shortly nodding. She grinned. "Let's get you up then."

Arcee offered him a servo, and carefully pulled him up. He shortly tested his reparations, and once satisfied, he turned to her. He vented deep and sighed.

"Which way?" Arcee responded by showing him the map once more and signaling the place she had spotted. "Wait, is that a..."

"Yep, it is, and we can use it." She smirked, putting the holomap away and starting to walk. "So, you coming?"

Knockout did not reply, he just smirked and followed her steps, side to side. They were finally heading home.

A group of five soldiers advanced through the forest. It was almost night, and the darkness was starting to embrace the place. They would soon need night-vision lenses to spot something ahead of them. Their head had decided to split the units so that they could cover a bigger area in less time. And apparently it had been a good tactic.

The group had just reached a clearance. For someone with no training at all, there was nothing of interest there, but for some high-trained soldiers like them, the place was just telling them a story, a story they carefully read till last detail. There, hidden at bare sight, there was a clear trail.

"Sir, I found something." A masked man replied over the radio, while one of his teammates investigated. "Looks like they had a stop here. The grass and the soil are pressed down in some areas all around the clearance. That suggests one of them had to rest, while the other one paced around." He informed, looking at the vegetation in front of him. "The bark of a tree here has being wore down. It was probably here where one of them sat down and eroded the surface."

"One of them is wounded... Good." Silas smirked at the guess. Finally some good news. "Which direction did they took?"

"We're not one hundred percent sure, Sir." The right hand of Silas replied, kneeling down and measuring the mark on the ground with his hand. "Some of the prints are wiped out, which means that they might be two hours ahead of us. But we can highly assure they went southwest."

"Well done." The leader replied triumphant. "You keep scouting the trail. The other groups shall reunite at my coordinates. We will reinforce resources here." He immediately ordered. "This time, they won't see us coming."