Alright, people. Here it is. A chapter almost completely about the CRC. Knock Out does make an appearance (with Bee in the background) because the street race from 'Speed Metal' (s1e11) happens during this chapter.
Side note: Raised the rating to T last chapter because I realized that violence is coming in future chapters. I may not get graphic but still... just to be safe.
In a large cavern somewhere deep beneath the frost-bitten regions of northern Canada, there stood a Cybertronian. He was a flyer, tall and slender. Dark gray in color, almost black, with some hints of forest green mixed in. A vehicon type mask sat atop his helm as his three clawed servos tapped at the keys on the computer console before him. To his right was a darkened ground bridge. To his left, a large doorway that led to the rest of the base. And a space bridge loomed in the darkness behind him. This was the receiving room for the Cybertronian Rebel Corps' base of operations. Everything coming or going went through this room. This was Alfa's domain.
Alfa stopped typing and looked up when the ground bridge activated by itself. That only happened when either the commander or the Madam activated their emergency protocols. He almost immediately assumed that it was the Madam since he knew where the commander had gone and he would have been informed if there was an actual emergency at that place. Alfa had guessed correctly when the tiny Cybertronian appeared out of the shining vortex still in her alternate mode and, even though his expression remained neutral, he was quite happy to see her.
"Hey, Alfa. I'm home." Liliy waved at the base's foremost bridge operator and her third-in-command.
"Welcome back, Madam," the dark gray mech greeted with a slight bow. "How long will you be staying this time?"
Liliy's comings and goings were a regular thing so he assumed she probably would not be staying for long.
"Three days," she answered. "Is Leecher here?"
"No," Alfa replied, checking his chronometer. "They are working a late shift today so they are still at the mine. Shall I send for them?"
"Nah. Just tell them I'm here when they return, ok?"
"As you wish." He bowed slightly again and returned to typing away on the keyboard.
Liliy smiled as she left the receiving room and entered the main hall of the CRC base. While the receiving room was a natural cavern, the rest of the base starting with the main hall had been dug out and lined with metal. It was like stepping off Earth and onto a Cybertronian ship. The hall was a big long room with several smaller rooms and hallways branching off it. At the far end was the doorway to the rec room. The communications hub was on the right upon entering the hall. A sleek flyer, black with flecks of pale gold, stood in the doorway listening to a shorter, boxy grounder of red and white who leaned against the door frame.
"Hello, Echo, Foxtrot," Liliy greeted them.
"Madam! You're back!" Foxtrot, the grounder, cried happily.
"How did you get the Autobots to let you out of their sight?" asked Echo.
"I just asked permission."
"Our proud leader?" Foxtrot sounded skeptical. "Ask for permission?"
"Oh, hush, Foxtrot," she said, waving him off. "Go find Delta and prepare the lab for me to maintenance those troops Leecher brought in a few days ago. I'll be in the medbay for a bit."
"Yes ma'am!" He saluted and ran off.
As Liliy turned to go to the medbay, Echo's concerned voice stopped her.
"Madam, did something happen?"
She kept her back to him. "Nothing much. Why do you ask?"
"Because you seem… tense." As he spoke he stepped toward her and went down on one knee. He reached out and ever so gently turned her around to face him. "Does it have to do with what happened tonight? The Decepticons showing up at the museum? I saw that Soundwave got pretty close…" He trailed off when he saw Liliy flinch and her right hand instinctively went to her left shoulder. "Oh. Madam, I am sorry."
Liliy shook her head. "Don't be, Echo. To be honest, yes. I came back tonight because of that. It scared me so bad I was shaking. I came back because… Because every time I see you guys, from Romeo's confident yet sometimes goofy smirk to Alfa's ever stoic expression, I know that everything is going to be alright. That I am not alone anymore."
Echo suddenly scooped Liliy up so she was sitting on his palms and lifted her up until his forehelm touched her forehead. As he moved her back, she observed that his optics shone little brighter and the corners of his mouth turned upward in a rare smile.
"I am sure I speak for us all when I say that we will always do our best to be there for you, Madam. As you have been for us."
Liliy smiled. This is what she came back for. "Thank you very much, Echo."
Finally in the medbay, Liliy frowned at the scan of her chest on the small monitor before her. She had known some damage had been done when she was very nearly crushed by Optimus, but now she knew how bad it was. The big mech had fallen over on top of her. If it hadn't been for her lightning fast reflexes and the stacks on his back, she would have been crushed flat. Still, her left shoulder had been caught under his armor plating, bending and smashing her own plates to the point where they nearly threatened to sever an important energon line and also trapping her in her alt-mode until they could be fixed. No one noticed because of her alt-mode's holoform exterior.
Sensing someone in the hall, she quickly erased the image and went over to her personal energon transfusion module. Leecher entered the medbay while she was hooking herself up.
"Seriously, Lil'?" Being her second-in-command and the mech who has known her since before they formed the CRC, Leecher was the only one who called her by her name. "What were you thinking telling the Autobots about the CRC?"
Liliy rolled her eyes. "It's not like I told them directly."
"But now they know about us!"
"It gets worse," she continued in mock seriousness.
"What?"
"I told Special Agent Fowler, their government liaison, that my last name is Scythe. And I'm from Canada." She appeared calm but she was secretly amused at his anger.
"In front of the Autobots?" They were incredulous.
"In front of the Autobots."
"LILIY!" they practically shouted in annoyance.
The machine beeped its finish. Liliy began to unhook the tubes from her side.
"It will be fine, Leech." Her amusement starting to trickle into her voice. "The Autobots aren't that bad. Besides, Prime technically already knows about us, remember? And I think you missed the part about the government liaison."
"The Prime might know but he doesn't remember. And what does the liaison have to do with anything?"
"That means someone from the US government is now aware of our presence. Let's hope it doesn't bring us trouble."
"We've been in tight spots before," Leecher grumbled.
"So true. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have six mechs to maintenance and less than 72 hours to do it. I'll be in the lab with Delta and Fox if you need me." And she left him in the medbay.
Liliy knew she should have told Leech about her injury and let them fix it but it would have taken time she didn't have. Maybe she could sneak out of the Autobot base later.
All of Liliy's 'boys', as she loved to call them, were happy to hear that their leader had returned but they were disappointed to hear that she would only be staying for three days. They all knew about the newest batch of troops and they also knew that maintenancing just one could easily take up to 12 hours or more. Every time they passed the lab door that had been locked almost since her arrival, they would sigh and move on.
On the last day of Liliy's stay, Lima was on comm duty. The little lime green femme stepped out of the comm center for a moment and looked around the main hall.
"Hey, Leecher," she called, spotting the commander. "Can you come here for a minute?"
"Sure, Lima." Leecher crossed the hall and entered the comm center. "What seems to be the problem?"
"I don't know if it is going to be a problem or not but the Madam said to be on the lookout for any Cons getting near Jasper, Nevada. Well, Knock Out is on his way there now."
Leecher looked up at the monitors. There was a map of Jasper and the surrounding area. A little red Decepticon symbol, labeled Knock Out, blinked along one of the roads leading to the small town.
"Should we send someone to keep an eye on him?" Lima wanted to know.
"I'll go," offered a voice from the doorway.
They turned to find Tango standing there.
"You?" Leecher sounded surprised.
"Romeo is in recharge right now and you need someone fast to keep up with Knock Out. Unless you want to send one of the flyers."
"No, you can go. I just weren't expecting you to volunteer for a mission."
"Sometimes, everyone needs to get a breath of fresh air, right?"
"Or a chance to skip out on mining duty," added Lima snidely. Tango just shrugged.
"Right. I'll inform Liliy later," said Leecher. "You can go, Tango."
Tango bridged to the highway outside of Jasper. The sun was just setting. He headed into town and pulled over a block from where Knock Out's signal sat. He sat there for about a hour. By then, it was totally dark. Then Tango followed him to the other edge of town. Another signal popped up on the Audi's radar as they neared one of the dry canals.
"Is that who I think it is?" he asked his comm.
{Yes. That would be Honey.} came Lima's answer. They used codenames for the Bots and Cons over the comms just in the off chance someone else was listening.
"Great. A Bot and a Con together with a bunch humans around. What could possibly go wrong?"
{Stay close to them. Interfere at your own discretion.} Leecher ordered.
"Roger that."
Tango joined the race lineup behind Knock Out.
"Make it mean but keep it clean," the announcer said.
The young female human signaled the start and the cars took off.
Bumblebee and a black car with flame decals fought for the lead at first but Bumblebee was able to pull ahead. Knock Out pulled alongside the black car and bumped it. The driver fought to control his car and Tango had to swerve to avoid him. Bumblebee took notice of Knock Out's actions and sped up. Knock Out and Tango quickly gave chase. Bumblebee swerved up onto the slanted canal wall to take the next turn easier at high speeds. Knock Out followed him, activating his blasters that popped out of his rear fenders. Tango floored his accelerator and swerved up into Knock Out just as the Con fired his blasters. The Audi grunted as the shot left a scorch mark across his door but he continued to turn his wheels, forcing the Ashton Martin up and over the edge of the canal. Bumblebee left them behind as they skid to a stop in the dust, nearly facing each other.
Knock Out just sat stunned for a full minute, trying comprehend what had happened. Tango's only movement was his side mirror twisting to examine the damage to his orange and silver paint job. The Con's engine revved angrily.
"Who in the Pit are you?" Knock Out growled.
"I've heard that you are an automobile enthusiast," Tango replied nonchalantly. "What do you think of my alt?"
"Hmm…" Intrigued, Knock Out slowly drove in a circle around the Audi. "Not bad. Sleek design. Definitely built for speed. And I think your paint job looks better with the scorch mark."
Tango snorted. "Of course you'd say that."
"You haven't answered my question."
"Beat me in a race and I'll tell you."
Knock Out stared at him for a long moment. "Alright."
"Great. First one to these coordinates," Tango transmitted the location to the Con, "wins."
"Go!" Tires spinning on the loose dirt, Knock Out twisted around, smacking Tango's nose with his rear end as he did.
"Hey!" Tango yelled as he shifted into gear and sped after him.
The coordinates were an intersection. Tango was the first to pass through it with a triumphant toot of his horn. He skid to a halt on the other side. Knock Out slammed on his brakes and transformed in the intersection.
"You cheated!"
"I cheated?" Tango stayed in his alt-mode. "You shot me twice in the aft and cracked my headlight when you smacked me at the start. And you claim that I cheated?"
"A lot of good it did me," Knock Out muttered. Louder, he asked, "So what do you want from me, Autobot?"
Tango transformed to his peds so fast it startled Knock Out. He advanced on him with a piercing glare.
"Let's get one thing straight, Decepticon!" They were chestplate to chestplate. "I. Am not. An Autobot!"
Tango was basically the same height as Knock Out, maybe a smidge shorter. The doorwings on his back flared wide to make him look bigger. But thing that caught Knock Out's attention most was the mask hanging lopsided off the top of the orange mech's helm.
"You're a vehicon?" Knock Out asked, taking a step back, shocked.
"Was," corrected Tango. "I was a vehicon. Until I was saved by a Neutral and asked to join them."
"Was a vehicon? But… that's not…" He noticed that the bright orange mech was still glaring at him. "Do you intend to fight me?"
"No." His gaze softened slightly. "My mission is already complete."
"Mission?"
"Yes. All I was supposed to do was keep you from hurting anyone and I did just that."
"Except I hurt you."
"Nothing permanent and it's mostly cosmetic. Anyway, since my job is done, I should probably be going now."
"I still want to know your name. You are… interesting."
Before Tango could respond, Knock Out's comm beeped.
"Maybe some other time," Tango replied with a smirk. Then he transformed and sped away.
Knock Out stared after him until his comm beeped again. He grumbled before answering with a sharp 'What?'. It was Breakdown advising him to get back to the Nemesis and Starscream could be heard yelling angrily in the background. The red mech sighed.
"Very well. Send me a ground bridge."
In the lab back at the CRC base, things were getting finished up.
"There. That should do it," Liliy said, tapping one final key. She checked her choronmeter. "You two can take care of the paint jobs later, right?"
"Yes, ma'am. That's the easy part," replied Delta, her chief lab assistant.
"But it takes the longest," grumbled Foxtrot. Delta elbowed his red and white companion. Fox glared up at the slightly taller white and blue mech before adding, "But we will do it."
"Good," Liliy said with a smile. "Now, I know the guys just went off to the mine a couple hours ago but what do you say we call them back and have a party?"
"I'd say, you're on!" cheered Fox as he hurried toward the door.
"Absolutely," added Delta. He offered the small femme his servo. "Madam?"
Liliy's smile got bigger as she stepped onto the waiting servo with a nod. The mech smiled as well as he left the room carrying her. Parties were the best part of Liliy's homecoming.
In the hall outside the lab, Foxtrot ran into Tango who was on his way to the medbay. Fox excitedly grabbed Tango by the shoulders and shook him.
"Guess what, Tango? Party time!" the Jeep crowed before taking off down the hallway again.
Tango turned to watch him go with a smile and missed Delta exiting the lab with Liliy.
"Tango, what happened to your door wing?" the femme asked concerned.
In spite of himself, Tango flinched slightly at the question. Before he could turn to address her, Delta was right beside him and he could feel a small hand gently touching the sensitive panel. The doorwing twitched under Liliy's touch.
"This is a blaster mark. Tango, what did you do?"
"Commander Leecher was supposed to inform you of my mission but I guess they didn't have time before they left for the mines." He turned to face her and Delta. "Knock Out showed up in Jasper and I had to head him off when he tried to attack Bumblebee during a human street race."
Liliy raised an eyebrow. "Is that so? Delta, do you mind starting the party without me? Tango needs a quick wash and wax."
"Certainly, ma'am." The tow truck transferred the femme to Tango and went to find Foxtrot.
"To the washracks, Tango. I haven't noticed any injures to warrant a visit to the medbay yet."
"Yes, ma'am."
In the washracks, Liliy had Tango transform down to his alt-mode so she could reach better. She tried her hardest not to laugh at the two scorch marks on his rear end but she immediately sobered up when she noticed the cracked headlight.
"Seems like you had quite an adventure," she said as she poured warm soapy water over him and started scrubbing. "How much does he know?"
"That I'm not an Autobot. That I used to be a vehicon but I joined a Neutral. That's it."
"You didn't tell him your name?"
"No. He lost the race so I didn't have to tell him."
"Did he seem interested in you?"
"A little."
"Just remember he is still a Decepticon."
"I know."
Clean and freshly waxed, Tango entered the rec room with Liliy sitting on his shoulder. Upbeat music pulsed from the sound system. There was a video game tournament going on the huge monitor on the back wall. And everyone had a cube of high grade.
"Heey! There they are!" shouted Foxtrot, spotting them.
"Madam!" several voices cried happily.
The little femme smiled as she looked over the group of mechs. She caught Echo's optic and nodded. Yes, everything was going to be alright.
Some time later, Liliy waited near the entrance to the museum parking lot. It was closed due to a 'sudden need' for renovations. She waited for two hours. No one showed so she called the Autobot base.
"Hey. Did you guys forget about me?" she asked when Ratchet answered.
There was a moment of silence.
{I'm sorry, Liliy. I will be right there,} said Prime.
{Why don't I just bridge her back? Liliy, go find a secluded alley.} Ratchet suggested.
"Found one. Do you have my coordinates?"
Her answer was a ground bridge opening. She passed through it and smiled up at the big mechs.
"I'm back."
All members of the CRC, aside from Liliy, have a vehicon-type mask. Leecher never takes their's off for reasons you'll learn later.
In case you wanted to know the alt-modes and jobs of the members you met in this chapter:
Alfa: B-2 Spirit [Bridge Operator/Third-in-command]
Delta: (hook-type) Tow Truck [Lab Technician]
Echo: F-117 Nighthawk [Communications Officer]
Foxtrot: Jeep Wrangler [Medic]
Lima: VW Beetle (new) [Communications Assistant] (edit: femme)
Tango: Audi R8 [Computer Technician]
and...
Leecher is an El Camino if you don't remember from Ch 4.
Also everyone has to help with energon gathering.
Feel free to review or ask a question.