A week had passed since Kelsey had discovered the true nature of her new car, and she intended to keep it a secret.
Following their somewhat awkward introduction, the pair had found themselves spending each evening chatting to each other. She had informed him that she was an average human teenager, whose main hobby was fixing up old cars. He had approved of that, citing the repairs to his paintjob - she had learnt early on that he was vain. Knock Out was apparently a medic, much like that old one who was part of Detroit's Autobot team (whose name Kelsey could never remember, in spite of Knock Out's curiosity). He was also on the run from a band of ruthless headhunters for a reason Kelsey couldn't quite make out; she knew the Decepticons were some sort of evil counterparts to the Autobots (hell, the leader of the Decepticons had almost levelled Detroit a few months back), so it seemed logical to her that they would hunt down Autobots. Oddly, despite her pressing, Knock Out seemed reluctant to go along with Kelsey's suggestion that they rendezvous with his fellow Autobots.
"What's that stuff you're so focussed on? Studies?" He asked her one day, as they both sat in her garage. Kelsey had revision notes spread over her knees, and was furtively flicking through them.
"I have exams coming up. I'm due to graduate high school this year."
"'High school'?"
Kelsey regarded Knock Out blankly, before remembering that aliens almost certainly didn't follow the American education system,
"Uhh, I'll explain later. How's your processor doing now?"
"Pretty much normal now. Should be able to go out for a test drive in the next solar cycle or so, thankfully - I'm sick of being cooped up in here." He flung his helm back as if to survey the rather low ceiling (by his standards).
"And then you'll be able to leave?" Kelsey asked. She didn't know why slight trepidation rang in her tone.
"Almost certainly. I'll be a free mech."
Kelsey didn't know why she felt slight disappointment. Knock Out turned out to be a rather shallow and sarcastic individual, but she nevertheless felt that this was the single most exciting thing to happen to her in all seventeen years of her life.
Knock Out noticed the look on her face and felt conflicted. While organics were still disgusting beyond belief, Kelsey seemed like a decent sort. Modest to a fault, but talented with a buffer.
"Why don't you accompany me on my test drive?" He ventured. In his opinion, it was a worthy reward for her so diligently maintaining his paint job for the past few solar cycles. "I'll warn you now though, if you can't handle the speed and spew organic gunk inside me, I'm leaving you in the middle of the highway."
Kelsey brightened, "Now? Really? Cool! And I promise I won't puke. Scout's honour."
Knock Out recognised neither term nor the gesture that accompanied it, but smirked nonetheless. He transformed - an action that never ceased to amaze Kelsey, and he knew it.
"Hop in, I guess." He flipped open the passenger side door, and Kelsey hesitantly obliged.
Kelsey couldn't help the slight discomfort she felt at literally sitting inside another being. Yes, the interior looked surprisingly like a real supercar's interior - faux leather seats, panelling, and so on - but the way the timbre of Knock Out's voice made said seats vibrate slightly caused a shiver of distaste to worm its way down her back.
An almighty roar filled the garage and Knock Out shot out, the acceleration forcing Kelsey back into the seat.
"So tell me about your studies."
They had been driving donuts down the back roads of the town for about fifteen minutes when Knock Out spoke up. Kelsey shot up from her slouched position, before slumping down again with a sigh, "I'm in my last year of full-time education. I don't know what sorta schools you have on your planet, but here we have important exams at the end of it, which decide whether I go to college or not."
"...And do you plan to?" If Knock Out had been a xenoanthropologist, he was sure he'd have come up with some more interesting questions for the tiny alien. Alas, the extent of his contact with extraterrestrials generally resided within the realm of business transactions for spare parts.
"Uhh, I'd like to. It'll be a world away from all the drama of high school. I can finally reinvent myself, you know?"
Knock Out did know what she meant. What a curious little organic.
"I've just always been little mousey Kelsey," she continued, getting more animated, "always the quiet one. Never invited to parties. Not that I scrub up well enough to be seen at parties..." she tailed off, "I don't even know why I'm telling you all this. You're a literal alien. And a cool one at that."
If Knock Out weren't in vehicle mode, he would have raised an eyebrow, "Oh no I understand what you're talking about. Mostly. Why don't you think you'd 'scrub up' well enough? You humans can change your...clothes, right? And the fur on your head?"
"It's hair," she snorted, "and I'll never fit in with them because I'm not skinny enough, my hair is frizzy, my nose is too big-"
"You know," Knock Out interrupted, "if it's any consolation, all organics are equally ugly to me."
She blinked for a moment, but sensed the humour in his tone and slapped the dashboard lightly, "That's easy for you to say. What, are you gonna tell me you're one of the best looking bots on your planet?"
"Why yes, I am." He purred.
Kelsey rolled her eyes, "Oh, to have your confidence. And I guess your ability to turn into vehicles is cool too."
"Certainly! And you haven't spewed any of that organic gunk inside said vehicle mode yet!"
"Hey, aren't you a doctor? Doctors are supposed to be okay with gross stuff."
"First off, I'm a mechanical being. Admittedly we spew some stuff, but not half as much as you lot do. And we don't go squish underfoot. I'm surprised those Autobots haven't killed anything yet."
"Pretty sure the Decepticons did, though." Kelsey added, before being thrown forwards violently in her seat, "Hey, what gives?"
Knock Out had skidded to a stop - an achievement while going at 110 miles per hour down an empty highway - and was silent for a moment, "D-decepticons? Here? Who? You didn't mention they were here!"
Kelsey's eyes narrowed minutely, "I don't know, Mega-something? I don't really follow the news that much. I only grab bits and pieces from the radio while I'm in the garage."
"Megatron? Megatron is here? Primus, I am a dead bot walking. Why didn't you tell me this earlier?"
"Nah, the Autobots managed to fight 'em off when they invaded Detroit. And it slipped my mind, okay? Jeez. We don't all have supercomputers for brains."
Knock Out began driving again, slower this time. The road was an empty provincial highway, so there was no risk of him holding up traffic at least. He began thinking of all the ways he could evade the detection of both factions, who apparently resided way too close to his currently location for comfort. He could head to another continent, he supposed. But he had no prior knowledge of this planet other than what his background sensors had picked up from the humans' Internet while he was still in stasis.
"Knock Out? You okay? You're muttering something and it's not in English."
The former Decepticon snapped back to reality. What was wrong with him? He was on the run from the DJD, on a planet apparently teeming with others of his species, currently cavorting around with a little organic with self-esteem issues.
"Yes, I'm fine." He bit out tersely. He had to dump the girl somewhere so he could hightail out of there.
"The Decepticons are that bad, huh?" Kelsey asked, somewhat innocently.
Knock Out snorted, "The human blood already on their hands not enough to answer that question?"
The real question was why hadn't he crushed the organic when he'd had the chance?
"Well, duh, but I mean...we're just little pests to beings of your size, right? I'd expect you to not care for us, I guess. But you've had first-hand experience with the Decepticons, right? Being an Autobot and all..."
Knock Out exvented, the sound making a rattle in his engine, "The Decepticons are bad news, anywhere you go. They don't care for life that isn't their own; hell, they don't really care for the lives of other Decepticons." Not that the Autobots did, either...
"I, uh, feel like I'm prying. I'm sorry. I'm nosy." Kelsey curled up slightly, wondering if she had probed too far.
"Not at all. But..." he had been about to inform her of his past allegiance, but something stopped him.
She'd run. And she was too useful in avoiding other Cybertronians. Judging by their apparent association with humans, the Autobots of this planet clearly weren't as xenophobic as others, and would almost certainly go out of their way to preserve the life of a human like Kelsey. She could serve as a useful bargaining chip. He had to keep her for now. No matter how pitiful she came across.
Besides, she was a wonder with a buffer, wasn't she?
"You know, Kelsey, I think I might just stick around for a while longer. To get to grips with this planet a bit more. Would you be interested in accompanying me to a big city? I'm sure I'd learn plenty about humans there." He felt no guilt that he was lying to her. After all, if she knew that he wanted to go to Detroit for recon purposes she'd undoubtedly pressure him into 'rejoining' the other Autobots.
At her rather eager agreement, he proceeded to inform her that he did not want to spook the other Autobots by suddenly appearing at their doorstep - especially in light of recent Decepticon attacks. He instead wanted to hide out at her place for a few more days while he contacted the Autobots remotely.
Kelsey sank comfortably into her seat, blithely content with what he'd told her.
Inputting the coordinates into his satellite navigation systems, they roared off in the direction of Detroit.
Knock Out's first experience of a human city wasn't as bad as he'd anticipated. Yes, there were weird smells, and yes, there were organics who didn't look where they were going, but he found himself rather enjoying the positive attention his vehicle mode was garnering.
Kelsey too was mesmerised by the skyscrapers; as a small-town girl, her trips into the city were rare. If she went for college here though...
"I didn't know humans had robotic slaves." Knock Out's dour tone broke her out of her thoughts.
"Huh? Oh. Well, we don't think of them as slaves. They're just droids. Not sentient or anything."
"To be fair, I've known Cybertronians who've had sentient organic pets, so I can't really comment." Before Kelsey could express her disgust, Knock Out continued, "So, where is it that the Autobots reside?"
"I'm not sure. And in case you can't tell, I'm don't exactly frequent this city that often. I do know that there are a tonne of old factory warehouses on the outskirts of the city, though. Detroit used to be the world's biggest automobile producer, you know."
Knock Out hummed noncommittally, "And tell me, is that usual human attire?"
Knock Out came to a standstill, and Kelsey was puzzled until she caught sight of the reason for said traffic. A middle-aged man bedecked in bright green tights was parading around the area wielding a bow and arrow.
She blinked, "Emphatically, no."
The man shouted something indistinct in a faux-English accent, before attempting to break into the bank van immediately in front of the pair.
"Well well, a show. How nice of the denizens of De-troit to entertain us so." Knock Out droned.
"It's Detroit." Kelsey corrected tersely. She sat tight, wary of how close the green-clad criminal was getting to them.
Sirens suddenly filled the air as a ragtag group of vehicles arrived on the scene. Onlookers whooped and cheered as the vehicles transformed into robot mode.
Knock Out gulped, "Scrap."
Kelsey was transfixed by what was going on before her. The giant blue and red one (their leader, as Kelsey was vaguely aware) had a rather tired expression on his face as he addressed the man, "Not you again."
"'Tis I!" The man bellowed, edging close enough to Knock Out that the bot edged back infinitesimally, "Angry Archer! And I defy you, machines!"
He slammed his robotic arm down on Knock Out's bonnet to punctuate his statement. Big mistake.
Kelsey was thrown from the passenger seat as Knock Out transformed, grabbing the man, "Just look what you've done to my paintjob!"
The man could only whimper in response. The gathered Autobots gaped.
Meanwhile, the rest of Detroit PD arrived to arrest the Angry Archer.
"Uh, thank you for your help." The red and blue bot smiled awkwardly, "The police can handle it from here."
The reality of what he had done hit Knock Out like a brick. He gave one last growl at the man, before putting him on the ground within reach of a handful of police officers.
"Curse you, foul robots! I shall have my revenge, I shall-!" the Angry Archer's ravings went ignored by the Autobots, who were still staring at Knock Out. Kelsey, blood trickling down from a split lip, edged closer to him.
"We weren't expecting any new arrivals." The leader explained, eyebrow raised.
The little yellow one nudged his leader urgently, "Prime, look at his optics!"
"He's a Decepticon." The lithe black one gasped, "And that human accompanying him is hurt."
Knock Out shrank back under the accusatory glares, optics wandering to Kelsey. A quick scan of her revealed no major damage, despite his lack of knowledge of organic medicine.
"I'm afraid you'll have to come with us." The Prime's face melted into a frown, and the lumbering green Autobot behind him stomped over to Knock Out.
"I-I can explain. I'm an Autobot, really! I, uh- hey, watch the paint, you oaf!" He shrieked as the large Autobot roughly grabbed his arms behind his back and stasis cuffed him.
"Prowl," the Prime turned to the lithe one, "do you still have those blindfolds?"
The black mech nodded, before approaching Knock Out and slapping a pair of optic jammers on his face.
"Hey! I've defected! I'm an Autobot!"
"We can't have you know the location of our base until we're sure you're not lying." The black mech replied simply.
Kelsey was shaking. Knock Out was tall, but some of these Autobots were even taller.
"Here, hop in. I don't bite." The yellow one - now in hatchback form - popped open a door for the girl. She entered reluctantly, not wanted to be stranded in the middle of Detroit.
"I'm Bumblebee." He chirped.
"Kelsey." She muttered, dabbing at her lip with an old tissue, "Will he be okay?"
"Who, the Con?" Bumblebee asked incredulously, "Oh don't worry, Kel - can I call you Kel? - we'll make sure he's kept well away from you."
"No, that's not what I- ugh, never mind." Kelsey slunk further into the seat. At least her ride to the Autobot base was a lot more comfortable than Knock Out's; the red bot was being towed unceremoniously behind the Prime.
The Autobots' base (or at least that's where Kelsey assumed they were heading) was a mile or two out of the city centre, in the old manufacturing district. Indeed, Kelsey's interest piqued as they turned in to one of the abandoned car factories; she knew of her state's rich automotive heritage, but she couldn't help snorting lightly at the irony that a bunch of vehicular-based robots hung out there.
A great metal shutter slid upwards as the Autobots approached, and Bumblebee shot into the factory like a bolt of lightning, completing the manoeuvre with an ostentatious donut on the factory floor. Kelsey all but fell out of the seat.
"Bumblebee!" Came an irate mechanical voice.
"Oops. Sorry Kel." Bumblebee transformed and helped Kelsey regain her balance.
As she stood up straight, Kelsey looked around the building. A giant screen sat at one end, with what looked like a crudely-fashioned (but giant) seating arrangement. The other Autobots had arrived just before Bumblebee, and were nowhere in sight - presumably escorting Knock Out into their custody.
Kelsey was about to inquire about her companion's current status, but was interrupted by the owner of the irate voice approaching rapidly.
"She's fine, I swear, Ratchet-" Bumblebee made a placating gesture towards the red and white Autobot, whose careworn faceplates were etched with a frown.
"I should hope she is! We've got enough on our plates as it is WITHOUT an injured human, got it?" 'Ratchet' snapped at his yellow colleague, who brushed off the chastisement with the ease of a regular hellion.
"Rel-ax docbot, she's chill. Aren't you, Kel?"
Suddenly wilting at the attention cast upon her, she stuttered, "I-uh, yeah. Yeah. I'm good."
"Well, I'm still gonna give you a quick examination in my med bay. See if we can't get anything for your busted lip. Follow me." Ratchet spun on his heel and started heading down a corridor. Kelsey gave a quick glance at Bumblebee before hastily jogging to catch up with the medic's giant strides, said medic barking at her to keep up.
They soon approached a side room filled with what was presumably Cybertronian medical equipment. Unbeknownst to Kelsey, who stared in awe at the equipment, this was basic by Cybertronian standards; the earthbound Autobots had had to scrounge all they could.
"Here ya go, kid." Ratchet knelt down with a strained grinding noise, offering her a large hand upon which to be carried over to an examination table.
Kelsey felt a chill pass through her body as Ratchet scanned her. The device in his hand gave a satisfactory beep and he laid it down a few feet away from Kelsey.
"Looks like there's no lasting damage. We've got some human antiseptic solution in that little box over there," he gestured to a little box next to the medbay's door, "Now go on, Bumblebee will keep you occupied until Prime decides what to do with ya."
Kelsey modded quickly, and stepped onto Ratchet's proffered hand.
She was met with Bumblebee's feet as soon as she stepped out of the medbay, "Ack!"
Ratchet huffed, "Make sure you keep her entertained until Prime's finished questioning the 'Con. I'll be in the medbay."
"Come on Kel, let's go do something fun. You like video games?" Bumblebee turned to her.
She did a double take, "...Video games?"
"Duh!" Bumblebee rolled his optics back comically, "Don't tell me you don't know what video games are!"
"O-of course I do. I just...never mind." Kelsey shook her head. This day was emphatically not going to plan.
Bumblebee led her to the concrete couch and kindly offered her a cushion - goodness knows why they owned one - before flopping into a pile of giant tractor tyres and grabbing the nearby remote control,
"So what happened with you and the 'Con, huh? You sure had a lucky escape!" Bumblebee enquired as he set up the game - some gratuitously violent romp - without looking at her.
Kelsey felt uncharacteristically indignant, "I wasn't a hostage, if that's what you think. We were chatting. I found him and fixed him up. And why do you all keep calling him a "Con"? He said he was an Autobot."
"Kel," Bumblebee lazily inclined his head towards her, "that's what they ALL say. You see his red optics? That's the first sign he's trouble."
It was true that Knock Out's red eyes were certainly a contrast to the shades of blue the Autobots all seemed to possess. Several questions raced through Kelsey's mind.
"Has he told you what the Decepticons are?" Bumblebee raised a metal eyebrow with a twinge of pity.
"Yes. And he said he was one of you."
"Well," Bumblebee shrugged, "he did say he's defected. You'll have to see what Prime decides. Defecting's kinda a big deal."
'No kidding...' Kelsey thought, mind still reeling with the events of the past half an hour. Knock Out a Decepticon...?
"Where's Kelsey?" Knock Out inquired.
"Why do you wanna know? She's safe with us, away from you." Bulkhead narrowed his optics. Knock Out would've normally exercised caution when dealing with an irate mech of Bulkhead's size, but his outrage at this 'arrest' superseded any sense of caution.
"She wasn't a hostage! She found me when I first crashed onto this spark-forsaken planet!" Knock Out jostled against the grips of the Prime and Bulkhead as they put him in the cell and locked it.
"Right, for the sake of paperwork, what's your designation?" Optimus asked, regardless.
"Knock Out of Kalis." The red mech bit out.
"You'll be staying here for now. Our medic will give you a checkup to make sure you weren't damaged in your descent to Earth, and then we'll assess the credibility of your 'defection'". Optimus stated with authority.
Knock Out's respect for authority was tenuous at best.
"Please," he growled, rolling his optics, "I'm a medic myself! I'm sure I've done a better job than your two-bit repair crew medic."
"I assure you, Ratchet is more than qualified." Optimus replied succinctly, turning on his heel and motioning for Bulkhead to leave too.
"D-did you say Ratchet?" Knock Out asked.
Optimus turned round briefly with a puzzled expression on his face, "Yes, why?"
"No reason." Knock Out's field clamped shut noticeably. Optimus left it at that, and left the room.
Arriving outside the medbay, he entered after a sharp rap on the door,
"Ratchet? How's she doing?"
The medic turned to focus on the Prime, "Right as rain, as the humans would say. There really is no damage to her, other than heightened stress levels, although that's to be expected."
"Right. Good. Are you free to go to the brig and conduct a quick checkup? Official guidelines state that all prisoners must be checked over for damage before a formal arrest is made."
"Yeah, yeah." Ratchet gave a flippant wave of his servo as he prepared to leave Kelsey with the Prime, "What was his designation again?"
"Knock Out of Kalis." Optimus replied.
Ratchet froze, "You're kidding me."
Optimus quirked a brow, "You know him? He did say he was a medic..."
"Didn't think I'd ever see that kid again. A Con?" Ratchet left a baffled Optimus in the medbay as he himself hurried to the brig.