Not only was Neira tired, but she was hungry. She sat with her knees to her chest in the container, her body protesting for sustenance. Did the Decepticons know that humans needed to eat to survive? She wouldn't dare ask them. Neira sighed before standing. She looked around. The place was empty, perhaps she could try escaping again.

No…you'd just get caught again, Neira told herself.

She observed the lab again. Metal devices, beeping machinery, stacks of a blue…something nearby. Neira closed her eyes, praying that the Autobots were on their way. Her thoughts were interrupted when the doors slid open. Megatron and Knockout entered the lab, conversing.

"How much longer, then?" Megatron asked.

"Not much longer my Lord, "replied Knockout, "if I can find a way to modify my tools. They are all made to work on a Cybertronian body, not a human's."

Megatron grumbled to himself before looking to Neira.

"Knockout told me of your escape attempt. You are quite rebellious, it seems."

"What do you want with me?" Neira asked, not breaking eye-contact.

She wasn't about to let this Con know she was scared.

"Why, you have Dark Energon within you," Megatron mused. "Something that shouldn't be possible. Energon on its own is detrimental to the human body, and yet here you stand with no visible signs of wear and decay. Unlike the Scout's human. What was his name? Raf?"

Neira's eyes widened. Raf had been infected with Dark Energon? Is that why they knew how devastating Dark Energon could be?

Her thoughts were interrupted by Megatron's chuckle. "It's amusing, really…that boy was quite resilient…"

"You could have killed him!" Neira raised her voice at him. "He's just a kid!"

"Yet he survived," he said. "But my concern isn't with him. Rather, with you. You have two options, girl. Heed me, and you will be spared pain. If not, I'm sure our resident doctor could find some use of you."

She glared at him, "I'm not afraid of you. You can't scare me into doing what you want."

Megatron watched her for a moment before smirking. Neira's chest then seized up, causing her to gasp aloud and collapse against the container. She struggled to bring air to her lungs as everything felt as though it was bound to explode. Neira held herself as she saw Megatron merely watching. The pressure was released, and Neira gasped for air.

"I will give you another chance, girl. What will it be?"

She held her chest, but her glare was defiant. "I won't be…your puppet…I'd rather die…than be under your thumb. So…go to hell."

Megatron's glare was intense, filled with rage and fury. He quickly turned, making a sound of displeasure.

"Knockout…feel free to use her as you deem fit, but don't kill her. I'll give her a cycle to reconsider."

"As you wish, my leige," Knockout said, bowing as the Decepticon leader stormed out of the lab.

The doctor turned to face Neira, smirking. "Now, where to begin with you…"

Neira only glared, but on the inside she was utterly terrified. It took Knockout less than ten minutes to set up something to act as a restraint, hanging Neira by her arms with chains. She struggled, cursing now and again. The Decepticon doctor was setting up various tools and devices as his partner watched on.

"Let me go!" Neira shouted at Knockout.

"Are you going to continue to scream, because it's becoming annoying," the doctor said in exasperation, turning and glaring at her.

"Not until you let me go!"

"Hmm, why don't you just shock her already?" Neira heard Breakdown say from his corner. "Maybe that will shut her up."

"Good idea," Knockout mused, grabbing a prod from one of the tables.

He neared, and Neira tried to pull away. The ends connected to her stomach, and she screamed in pain as she was shocked. She fell limp as her body convulsed, though she remained conscious.

"Not so talkative now, are you?" Knockout sneered.

She lifted her head up, glaring intensely at him. He only chuckled.

"It's cute how you think that will intimidate me," he mocked. "You're just a puny human. Eventually, you'll give in. Just wait."

She continued to glare. "And you…don't scare me…"

"Oh, you should be," he replied.

Knockout turned and eyed his tools. "Now which one should I use first…"

~*~

"Is everyone aware of the plan?" Optimus asked the Autobots.

They all nodded in response, earning them a satisfactory nod back.

"Good. Ratchet, open the ground bridge."

The medic bot nodded and opened the bridge. Optimus, Bulkhead, Bumblebee, and Arcee then passed through the bridge. On the other side, they snuck through the dark tunnels of an Energon mine. Their plan was simple in theory; sneak aboard the Decepticon warship when it picked up a load of the Energon, rescue Neira, and escape. In practice, this was going to be a challenge. They would quietly take the mine without the troops notifying the ship, while Fowler would remain on the other end to intercept any incoming transmissions. Arcee and Bumblebee would sneak aboard while Optimus and Bulkhead guarded the mine itself while they boarded.

The easiest part was seizing the mine. They took out most of the soldiers without much issue. The stacks of the Energon cubes were lined up and ready to go just as the massive warship appeared overhead. Arcee and Bumblebee hid amongst the pile, with some stacked on top to fully conceal them. The retrieval tube descended, picking up the stack of Energon and taking it into the ship. Arcee and Bumblebee made eye contact and nodded. Once they were on the ship, they practiced the utmost stealth, quickly and quietly eliminating any Decepticons in their path. Arcee's eyes then widened when she heard screaming…

~*~

Two days in and Neira was all but ready to give in. She had been shocked, prodded, injected, and all manner of things done to her by Knockout. Her arms ached, bruised by the crude shackles as she laid on her side in the container again. Her stomach churned; the only sustenance she had been given was some discarded bottles of water and outdated packages of food that the Decepticons had scrounged around for when she complained about the fact that she'd die without them. Everything hurt, and she just wanted to curl up and die…the only thing that kept her going was that she had faith that the Autobots would come. Her hand clasped the necklace…her grandmother's necklace, and she sighed in what little relief she could pull out of it.

Knockout entered the lab again, and Neira knew she was bound for another round of "tests." She was fished out of the container and hung back up.

"…The Autobots…will come for me. You know that…"

Knockout laughed. "Will they? We'll see about that."

Neira closed her eyes and braced for the shock that she knew was coming. What she didn't expect was just how much worse it was. This time, Knockout used an Energon prod filled with Dark Energon. Her screams could be heard through the closed lab door…

~*~

"Hurry, Bee!" Arcee said as she followed the screams.

It led them to a laboratory, and the sight shook Arcee to her Spark. Neira was strung up by her arms while Knockout shocked her with a prod. Knockout turned just as the two Autobots aimed their weapons.

"Don't move," Arcee ordered.

The doctor smirked and positioned the prod near Neira again.

"I'd suggest you lower your weapons…or this next part could get a bit dicey."

It was a standoff. No one moved, though the tension in the room was intense. Neira then lifted her head, letting out a sudden scream that shook all of them to their Sparks. It was pain-filled, intense and ethereal as it bounced off the metallic walls. Knockout looked to her in surprise, as he hadn't shocked her yet. The Autobots took this opportunity to attack, taking Knockout by surprise. Arcee kicked him back while Bumblebee freed the human. He transformed into his vehicle form, buzzing to Arcee in affirmation when he had Neira. She nodded and dodged a swing, backflipping and transforming before speeding off.

"Optimus, we have her," she said over the com-link. "Requesting immediate ground bridge."

They sped down the hall, and a bridge opened up in front of them. The two made it through without issue. A collective sigh was made among the base. The two bots transformed, with Bumblebee holding Neira in his hands. She was barely conscious, looking around glassy-eyed as she was set on a gurney. Ratchet looked to Jack now.

"…Jack, I would recommend calling your mother."

~*~

Neira awoke suddenly, but collapsed as pain seared through her body.

"Easy, you're still recovering," Mrs. Darby's voice gently told her. "You've been through a lot in the last fourty-eight hours."

Neira closed her eyes, her body trembling. She could feel several IVs in her arms and hear the rythmic beeps of a vitals monitor. She also felt bandaging on her stomach. Her entire body relaxed once she realized she was back at the Autobot base. She looked around. She saw the kids watching anxiously, though relaxing when she made eye-contact with them. A bit aways she could see Optimus conversing with Arcee and Bumblebee. Arcee looked especially unnerved as she talked, and Optimus placed a hand on her shoulder in what she assumed was reassurance.

"It may take some time for you to recover," Mrs. Darby said, dragging Neira out of her thoughts. "I recommend you take it easy and rest. Drink plenty of water. I'll come by once every other day to redress your bandages. You…suffered pretty intense burns to your abdomen. I have you on some pain pills to help ease the pain."

Neira shivered a bit, thinking back to the red medic bot and his tools. Mrs. Darby gently placed a hand on her shoulder.

"If there's anything you need, please let me know. I'll do as much as I can."

"…Thank you. For everything…" Neira rasped out, her voice shot from screaming so much.

Mrs. Darby nodded and left. Neira just relaxed on the gurney, just happy to be back…