Author's Note: So, here is the long awaited "Bumblbee Meets Stinger" chapter! Just note that there are a wee bit of differences, but I referenced Youtube for the clip. Also, I decided to break KS I into a series of chapters, since the endeavor is exceptionally daunting, and I have limited amounts of time. Again, thanks for staying tuned and reviews are greatly appreciated, ya'll rock!
Chapter Twenty-Three
...
Bumblebee came to an abrupt stop at the scanning gate. Mira sat in the driver's seat, one hand draped over the wheel casually, an arm propped in the open window, fingers pressing against her temple. The heart within her chest seemed foreign, pumping like an energy cannon in bursts so hot and hard that she thought World War III might've erupted within her.
Never before had Mira been so concerned about a mission-the only things running through her head were A) She may not see Merrick again, B) She may never see any of the Autobots out of this, and finally C) She had no idea what lay inside that building regarding the Autobots-or weaponry development. A firm lump formed in her throat, and she pushed it down, suddenly realizing her mouth was dry. She finally felt a hot stare, and realized Cade was watching her. He reached over and touched her other hand, which was resting casually on the floor-shift.
"We got this," Cade said quietly, watching the guards sauntering in front of them with armed weapons, inspecting a flashy looking Ferrari. They waved him on, then logged something, speaking into their talkies before turning to the Camaro, "Stop shaking," he said with a chuckle.
The radio fizzled to a low volume, "Take a chill pill," the radio waves hummed softly, "we got 'dis." It ended abruptly when one of the guards-a firm, solid looking African American man armed to the hilt-lowered his head into her window. Mira had to move her head slightly back to keep their faces from touching.
"You here for scanning?" He asked roughly. He reminded her of Ironhide, and Mira could do nothing but nod. Forcing herself to pull together, she reached up and fingered the Shield now resting behind the jacket of her suit.
"We are, yes," She extended her badge, "Katrina McGuire, garage lead. Picked this up, thought we could use it for prototypes." It sounded professional, and she reached for the radio dial, hopefully signaling Bumblebee to record the conversation and send it via live comm feed to the others. The man looked at her badge, scanning it with a hand scanner, and waved them forward. They stepped away from the car, and Bumblebee gently drove them forward.
"We're in," Cade said from beside her, smiling awkwardly, "that's a start."
She nodded, "Once inside we'll figure out where we are and make our way through Scanning and into the labs," she looked to the radio, "I'm thinking I'll head to R and D, and you get into the weapons, if possible, Cade." He nodded beside her, looking out the window.
"Why R and D?"
Mira looked out the window and up along the huge skyscraper's exterior, "Assuming that KSI is using-" she glanced at the radio before continuing, "-what's left of the deceased Autobots for research on weapons and tech, I took a guess."
Cade shrugged a shoulder, "Sure. Makes since."
Bumblebee gently took a left, pulling into a garage shaped door. They were greeted by technicians in white jumpsuits, with hard-hats and clipboards, and escorted onto a freight elevator. The technician pressed the third floor, and the door closed behind them with a loud clatter.
Up they went, and finally Bumblebee pulled off the elevator. They must've hit the wrong floor, because they were not anywhere near the scanning area. Instead they had pulled into a huge showroom floor, with a brightly colored pink-and extremely expensive looking-robot in the middle of the floor, suspended by cables. Beside it sat a magenta colored Pagani sports car. Behind that set up was a huge screen, and upon looking around, the entire room was constructed of such screens which made up the walls. Extremely bright lights shone brightly above them, and two pathways extended down onto the showroom floor probably allowed for the Pagani-and other vehicles, assumedly-to be led onto the showroom floor.
The Pagani's doors were open, and the robot was held up by two support cranes with cables attaching into the shoulders of the machine. Curiosity instantly peaked Mira, who craned her neck out of the window to see. Finally, she yanked on the door handle, Bumblebee unallowing the door to open until he stopped.
Bumblebee-finally-stopped and opened the doors for them, Mira and Cade slipping out. They scanned the room, and upon realizing it was empty, circled around Bumblebee's front and met up before the robot. Mira's brow wrinkled and she took out the Shield. Pressing her thumb against the end, she commanded a scan. It obeyed.
"Send to all Autobot frequencies," she engaged it yet again in conversation. "Mark with dire importance."
"Command acknowledged." It replied. Then, replacing it around her neck, she tucked it back under her jacket and looked to Bumblebee.
"What do you think, 'Bee?" Cade asked beside the car. Mira circled around the Pagani, and then wrinkled her brow, tapping the comm in her ear. She bit her lower lip and then craned her neck back to see the entirety of the machine.
"I think they're making their own versions," she turned and then saw specks on screen which was entirely black, the sketches drawn in white through an online program. She saw the Pagani in a half-transformed state and shook her head, "someway they are. I'll bet it's through the corpses."
Then, suddenly, there was a soft ping, and the screen beside her lit to life. Instantly there was a white background, and an Asian woman slowly began to fade in. Dressed in white with long black hair, she hands her hands folded together properly, and the video must've glitched, because they came in halfway through her presentation. Cade came up beside Mira, and they listened.
"...introducing, Stinger..." her voice cut out again, and they both gave each other a look before turning around. Mira marched over to the other robot, slapped Bumblebee playfully on the fender, and then put her hands on her hips. Frowning, she shook her head absentmindedly.
"It looks like you, Bumblebee," Cade interjected. Bumblebee revved the engine as if in response and Mira tapped the earpiece.
"You get the transmission?" she asked into the comm, "Let's not use names here."
The transmission pinged in reply, "Yes, we did." That was Optimus, "What is your assumption?"
"I think they're duplicating," Mira replied quietly, scanning around for any signs of shadows, "I don't know why. Or how."
"That would be our first investigation to undertake. Proceed with caution, Mira. We don't know what the odds are and how high they are stacked against us."
Mira nodded, as if Optimus could see her, "Affirmative on that. I'll let you know."
The feed cut out, and she looked to Cade, "It does look like a futuristic Bumblebee," she looked back to the Camaro, "if Bumblebee had a better form."The engine revved hard again, and then the radio squealed. She put up her hands as if to settle the car down, "Sorry," she said apologetically. He quieted, and then all the screens around them lighted.
Suddenly, the room was amiss with sound and light, the woman appearing on every screen. All of them watched a separate one, as if flanked by the Asian woman and her program. Mira looked up to the robot again, and watched the presentation as the sound increased and the woman began to speak. "Inspired by Bumblebee, but better in everyway..."
"What!? Blerg..." the frequency switched quickly, "..sonnuva..." Instantly, the Camaro downshifted, brake still applied, and the tires began to squeal in protest. Mira and Cade both whipped around, charging towards the Camaro, which was already kicking up a cloud of smoke and leaving track marks on the floor.
"Bumblebee!" Mira screamed at him, "Stop! STOP! 'BEE!" The Camaro did not heed her warning, and soon whipped around and froze quickly before he could collide with her body. Cade practically whipped himself onto the hood of the Camaro, arms outstretched to hold onto either side. Panting heavily, he shot her a look of panic.
"Bumblebee," she growled at him. Then there was the sound of heavy doors closing behind them, followed by whispered sentences in Chinese and a man's voice trying to calm those whispers. Cade instantly scrambled off the car and hurried towards her, and Bumblebee popped the hood of the car to make it appear like they were fixing it.
There was a sound of heels on the granite floor, and Mira looked up to see a group of people, seemingly taking a tour. They were led by a man in a navy blue Armani suit, bald, with dark, drastic looking glasses on his face. She instantly recognized him from her internet search as Joshua Joyce, the company's owner. Mira's heart began to pick up and heat ran throughout her body, her trying desperately to calm herself. The smoke was settling and Joshua looked as if he would have a coronary heart attack of pure rage.
They continued to converse, Cade plunging his hands into the engine. He shot her a look of terror, his face pale and his eyes as wide as enlarged marbles. Then suddenly, the Camaro revved a little as if to get her attention, and she realized there was footfalls echoing off the walls. The bald man was approaching them, and spoke first.
"Hey, you," he pointed at her, "grease monkey. What in God's name is going on here?" He had a look of pure rage, confusion, and oddly collectiveness on his face. Mira straightened and came out from behind the hood, to meet him. She put a small smile on her face like most employees do to their managers and waited for him to stop. He did so, right in her face, and then looked at the Camaro with a frown. "What is this? We're not scanning vintage cars. What's this collective crap doing in my showroom?"
Mir was about to speak, "Sir, I-"
He then looked to the guests, a strikingly beautiful Asian woman with a black dress and tall heels leading the group of suited men, "Ah, ah, ah," he waved a finger in her face, inhaled a deep breath, and sighed, "Don't speak. Do you know what we make here?"
She shook her head, no.
"We make poetry. Poetry I tell you. Poetry to change the world, the nation. This," he pointed to the car, "this isn't poetry. This is pathetic." She nodded furiously as Cade came out beside her, hands in his pockets and head down. Joshua looked between the both of them and sighed, "You both work for me? Hm? Well, you get one mistake, one."
"It won't happen again, Mr. Joyce," Mira interjected properly. She shot a look to Cade who nodded in pretense. Joshua looked between them again, nodding slowly as if they were morons and he was trying to get across a message. Mira's stomach began to boil with impatient rage-she already did not like this man, and with-held the impulsive urge she had to punch him in his overly large nose.
"It certainly won't, I assure you. Now, get this pathetic thing off my showroom floor," he narrowed his eyes to her, "and yourselves. Now." Mira and Cade both nodded as if they were children being corrected by their father, and he turned on his heel and stalked off, mumbling under his breath. Finally, he reconnected with the Asian party and escorted them back the way they'd come.
Once they'd gone, Bumblebee transformed. This startled Mira, and he brought himself around in a slick turn, facing the robot-"Stinger". He flickered his optics in an enraged look, and Mira looked up at him and then to Cade, sighing. Touching the bridge of her nose, the cool metal of her glasses resting there, she sighed. "Watch him. Bumblebee," he shifted to look down at her impatiently, "behave, please."
He waved her off. "Yeah, yeah, yeah." Mira jogged towards one of the speck boards and began inspecting it. She kept a keen ear open, listening as Cade argued with the robot and Bumblebee replied with clips from the internet. The entire conversation was humorous, but extremely irrelevant and annoying.
"Bumblebee! Chillax!" Cade challenged him, most obviously coming undone.
Bumblebee rebutted, "I'm perfectly calm dude, perfectly calm." He stepped forward a few steps, and then Mira heard metal on metal and the stiff shifting of unmovable parts. She checked over her shoulder, realizing Bumblebee had reached out-reached out!-and touched the Stinger robot, examining it furiously with interest.
"No, no, Bumblebee!" Mira watched as Cade ran for Bumblebee, grabbing at his hair as if he were having a mental breakdown. His face was read and he was jumping around like a bug, head craned back to watch the giant yellow and black robot with mad interest and concern, "'Bee ya gotta stop this, man! You'll, you'll BREAK IT! Get back into a car, right now! Bumblebee!"
"I'm not touching it, I'm not touching it!" The mech replied, waving Cade off. He took a step forward, plunging his huge hands around the robot's face and pulled it forward towards him, Bumblebee looking over the robot's shoulders and down its back with mad ferocity. Cade was continually going mad, and Mira started to chuckle, trying to suppress laughter. "I'm barely touching it, barely!"
"BUMBLE-BEE!" Cade drew out the word into two syllables. The madness of his tone was raising her concern, and Mira turned away from the sketchboard, where Bumblebee was waving Cade off as if he were nothing.
"Get outta my face, okay? Then I won't pulverize you," Mira's brows rose as Bumblebee made his way across the floor, Cade turning to her and flapping his hands dramatically off his thighs, exasperated. She jogged over to him, grabbed his wrist, and pulled him towards Bumblebee as the clips on the screen resumed.
"'Bee," she asked kindly up to him, where he was watching the screen intently. The clips played and drew her attention, and the three of them watched carefully and listened. Her brows rose at some of the comments, and then a picture of Bumblebee appeared and evolved into Stinger, surprisingly.
"...The 'Bumble-beee...'" The man on the clip said, his voice dripping with disgust. He was older, with greying hair, until the clip switched and another man, a lead designer, took over the interview. He continued the man's previous dialogue,
"But really, this alien's design was intrepid," he wrinkled his nose, "...and antique." Mira's heart broke for poor Bumblebee, and she looked up to him, where he whizzed and whirred and looked down at her, a look of hurt on his face. She smiled weakly at him and then turned back to the clip, then jumped when she heard Bumblebee's reply.
"BLERP!"
Her brow's rose, "Bumblebee, I've never heard such language from you!" She whispered harshly. He glared at her and took a step closer to the screen, where the same man was laughing and shaking his head, waving the interviewer off and he stared straight at Bumblebee now, almost as if he was mocking him in real life.
"...you mean ugly."
This enraged Bumblebee, who reeled back as if he was going to hit the screen. Mira stepped between the screen and him, hands extended towards the sky.
"No! Bumblebee, no!" He then turned from her, engraged, letting out a pop of air from his system and stalking towards the suspended Stinger robot. Then, he scanned the radio for clips.
"Oh HECK no!" He said strongly. Then, he manuevered and round-housed the Stinger robot, cutting the cable's loose and sending the robot flying forward towards the ground. Cade dashed out of the way. "Bettah than me?" A British clip, then "WOOOOOAH!" A rodeo cheer as the robot clanged to the ground, lifeless and limp. A squeal erupted from Mira, who clapped her hands over her mouth as the room went quiet for a brief moment. Cade shot Mira a look, and both of them glared up at Bumblebee, who shrugged his shoulders.
Then, there was the sound of the door closing. Bumblebee dropped into his alternation mode, Mira and Cade swallowing thickly. Another tourist group moved, while a massive man in a business suit approach them, furious. He extended his arms out and stomped up to them, "What happened? What did you two do?"
Mira looked to the Camaro beside her and glared, "Sir, we uh-"
The radio crackled to life, "I told ya homeboy, can't touch dis..." Mira glowered at the car, showed her badge, to the man, and interjected.
"Sir, there was s faulty cable," she explained, "I have the situation contained." Cade showed his badge and the man scowled at them both. Shaking his head, he pointed in the direction of the first hangar door, and sighed.
"In my office. Fifteen minutes."
