Oh my gosh, I am so sorry this is late, you guys. I totally forgot on Friday and yesterday I worked then spent time with family and, again, forgot. I hope this extra long chapter can make up for it!
Also, still looking for ideas, so if you want to see Kay do something or a specific scene in this story before Dark of the Moon, just send me a PM!
The trio of friends were silent in their running, focused purely on breathing. Kay was never more glad for Ironhide's training than at this moment, her muscles moving fluidly to carry her up a small dune. As they crested the dune, three more flares flew straight into the air, the city relatively close.
"Look, there it is," Sam panted. "We got a couple of miles." He glanced towards Kay. "Any chance you could teleport us?" Kay stared at the spot in the distance, attempting to focus her power. She felt it reach out for the spot but it didn't make it, snapping back towards her.
Kay shook her head, "too far. Sorry." Sam nodded then began down the opposite side of the dune. They made it another good distance by the end of it, entering the edges of the city.
"We still have a mile that way," Sam said. They ran through the remains of an ancient Egyptian city, hieroglyphs covering towering pillars and Pharaohs carved as guardians over archways. The three burst into a small clearing, looking around. "Come on," Sam stated, pointing and running. Kay didn't need to be told twice, making sure to keep within three paces of her friends. Not even five minutes later meteors began to rain from the sky, crashing to the ground all around them. Kay could feel the energon from each Cybertronian, noting slight differences from what she had been feeling around Bee and the twins. This ability to sense Cybertronians was new, but she wasn't stupid.
"Decepticons," she stated lowly, not at all happy about the situation.
"We have to keep going, you need to get to Optimus," Sam responded.
"Yeah, no pressure," Kay muttered, rounding another pillar. They pushed onwards, avoiding the straggling Decepticons while racing through the maze of the city towards the soldiers. They burst from a small alley between houses a few minutes later, Kay and Sam staring in the distance at the form of Starscream circling the area.
"Sam, Kay," Mikaela whispered behind the two. They turned, ducking into the house whose door Mikaela had opened as more footsteps approached. Sam quickly shut it.
"I don't think they saw us." Sam and Mikaela hid in one corner, Kay in another. There were Decepticons surrounding the house, lumbering around with short sentences to each other. Nothing major, simply speaking clear or not.
"Once it's clear, we run for Optimus as fast as we can, okay?" Sam said, looking between Kay and Mikaela.
"What if it doesn't work?" Mikaela suddenly asked, worry in her voice. "Kay's never done this before, you don't know if you can do it."
"It's gonna work," Sam stated.
"I'll make it work," Kay added, giving Mikaela a small, calming smile. It quickly disappeared as something landed harshly on the roof, the clear sounds of a Cybertronian. Rays of sun seeping through the roof allowed shadows, hinting towards the location of the Decepticon. Mikaela had shoved her hands over her mouth, struggling with her breathing and keeping herself calm in her fear. Sam had moved to hide beside Kay, his back to the wall and his body frozen. He reached for a fencing sword on the floor and stuck it into a small hole in the wall, pushing and creating a peephole that led the full way through the wall. He set the sword down then put his eye to the hole, waiting. More footsteps were joining, more presences flooding Kay's senses. At least three Decepticons outside, but the sensations Kay was getting were becoming more jumbled with each presence added. Dirt fell from the ceiling as a Decepticon pushed its weight against it.
Sam suddenly jerked back from the hole, reaching in and grabbing something in his fingers. Kay's heart freefell. A scout drone. They were screwed either way, now. Sam reached forward and captured its tiny head, pulling it off. Instantly the sounds of the Decepticons stopped, the three adults frozen in pure fear, and then the roof of the house disappeared.
They screamed together, running away from the missing ceiling and pressing against the wall. Starscream snarled, reaching in to try and grab someone. He missed but his hand ended up hitting a support, sending the wall behind the trio collapsing along with the humans.
"Up, up, up!" Sam screamed, scrambling to his feet and dragging Mikaela with him. Kay was just behind them, running for her life down the small alleyway. Buildings exploded around them, Starscream hitting walls to reach them. The trio ran up a set of stairs, their only way forward, another Decepticon with some construction type alt-form swinging a claw towards them. It destroyed the stairs just behind Kay, the woman feeling bits of concrete hit her back as she ascended. They reached the top of the roof then the edge, a doable jump between them and the next roof
"Go!" Kay shouted, releasing her power in the form of a small bubble around the three. They jumped together, Starscream firing two missiles at them in rapid succession. One hit the edge they were just on, blasting possibly fatal shrapnel upwards. The shrapnel hit Kay's shield instead of the humans, bouncing off loudly as the three landed on the angled roof. Mikaela and Sam went tumbling and fell to the ground, Kay skillfully landing on her feet. She had kept the shield going, however, cushioning the fall.
"Run!" Kay demanded, dragging both upwards while dropping the shield. They sprinted out of their new alleyway and down what could have been considered the area's road, quickly taking shelter behind a half wall. Sam swatted some chickens away while Kay scanned the area. They had lost the Decepticons for now, somehow. She wasn't going to complain.
"We got a half-mile. I don't think the soldiers know we're here," Sam noted, looking towards the arches in the distance with small clouds of smoke. Kay felt out for Alpha's bond instinctively but the wolf had closed it off to focus on her fighting. Kay could get through if she wanted but she was not going to risk distracting her. "Let's go." They took off again, running straight for Optimus. Sam vaulted a car at one point, continuing forward out of the cover of the small collection of houses. He got ahead but paused, holding a hand out for Mikaela. Kay was feeling the run but not feeling exhausted, keeping as close to both as she possibly could with her power ready to burst into a shield.
They cleared another hill, entering another small collection of houses. Voices reached Kay's ears, the woman looking up with wide eyes.
"Sam! Kay!"
"Dad!" Sam exclaimed, sudden terror all in his body. Ron and Judy were running towards the group, waving their arms. Sam began towards them as well but a Decepticon suddenly leapt over the building, landing behind Ron and Judy and causing everyone to tumble to the ground. A missile hit dangerously close to Mikaela, Kay terrified that she hadn't had a shield.
"Wait, wait!" Sam cried, hands in the air in surrender as he scrambled to his feet. Kay stood as well. The Decepticon pointed its cannon at Ron and Judy, snarling a demand for the Matrix in Cybertronian.
"Listen to me! I want you to run, run!" Ron demanded.
"Dad, stop! They don't want you, they want me!" Sam shouted back. Kay knew that was a lie; they wanted the Matrix, and she was now the Matrix. The Decepticon slammed an all-terrain chain on the ground beside Ron and Judy with a growl, still pointing one canon at them and adding another towards Kay.
"Sam Witwicky," the Decepticon growled out.
"Don't hurt them. This is what you want." Kay's eyes widened as Sam pulled the silver shell of the Matrix from his pocket, the object still dull. "You don't want them."
"Go, go!" Ron was still yelling.
"Please, stop! Stop!" Sam shouted back, still terrified about the situation.
"Listen to your father!" A small whistle suddenly sounded, Sam and Kay turning towards the source together. Bee stood just behind a wall, ready to strike. He held a finger up for quiet, Sam continuing as he looked away. Kay couldn't help the intense feeling of relief at seeing Bee.
"Just, don't hurt them," Sam continued to plead. "I know what you want. And I know that you need me because I know about the Matrix." The Decepticon was nearing, eyes locked on the silver prism. Sam was slowly turning and the Decepticon was following, his back going turning towards where Bee was climbing a building. Kay carefully brought up her power, ready to put a shield around the Witwicky's.
The Decepticon very suddenly spun towards her, reaching forward to snatch her upwards. Bee leapt while Kay threw herself backwards with a shout, scrambling away from the grasp of the Decepticon.
"Kay!" She scrambled towards Sam, her heart racing while she watched Bee take a couple of hits. He spun with the last one, his optics landing on where Kay and Sam were now a safe distance away. With a simple nod, his mask snapped down into place.
Bee turned and attacked the Decepticon, throwing strong kicks and punches. Mikaela was rushing forwards, the Decepticon's flailing tracks hitting the ground dangerously close. Kay put a shield around her and focused extra energy into it, hoping the boost would be enough to keep the shield from disintegrating after one hit.
Bee ripped the Decepticon back and landed another strong kick to its face. With a small leap he jumped upwards, pulling against the Decepticon's arms. The Decepticon crashed to the ground with a burst of sand and a harsh stomp from Bee, followed by a sharp wrench against its arm. Mikaela reached Kay's side just as the Decepticon let out a pained screech, Bee stomping on the shoulder joint again. The humans watched the fighting a bit longer, transfixed from their earlier terror. Bee had the upper hand when a puma-esque Decepticon appeared, firing at Bee with small cannons on his hips. It leapt forward and dug its claws into Bee, scraping off armor and distracting him from the other Decepticon. Kay watched in horror for the few moments the four-legged Con did significant damage but calmed as Bee got a grip on it and pulled it off. With a shout he ripped its spine out by its tail, returning to a strong attack against the first Decepticon.
"Come on," Sam said, scrambling towards his parents. Kay and Mikaela followed close, Kay now putting a shield around the entire group together. They watched as Bee finally finished the Decepticon, turning with an accomplished aura and a snap up of his battle mask.
"Bee?" Sam asked of his condition in the single word. Bee nodded once with an affirmative sound, his optics then switching to Kay. She gave him a relieved smile, the emotions genuine now that her mech was no longer fighting in front of her eyes, and a thumbs up.
"Seven out of ten," she said as Sam fought with his parents over leaving.
"What? At least an eight!" Bee shot back. Kay rose an eyebrow towards him.
"You could've finished that way sooner and you know it." Bee shrugged but Kay could see the smile in his optics even as he transformed, doors open. Kay refocused on the Witwicky's, realizing Sam was trying to get them to go with Bee. Missiles were starting to hit nearby, plumes of sand bursting upwards and raining down on the entire group.
"You come back!" Kay heard Ron shout at Sam, tears in his eyes. He grabbed Judy's hand. "Come on."
"Mikaela! Kay!" Judy shouted as they ran towards Bee. Kay gave them a smile with a shake of her head.
"Go with my parents," Sam tried with Mikaela.
"I'm not gonna go without you," Mikaela shot back. Ron and Judy leapt into Bee and the Bot shut his doors, screeching off into the distance. The trio turned and ran again, dodging explosions all around them. Kay glanced towards Sam, seeing the Matrix peeking slightly out of his pocket.
They reached the last collection of houses before Optimus, stopping behind a half wall. The Arcee triplets were racing around, Arcee herself looking over.
"Spotted them!"
"Sam! Kay!" Ironhide shouted as he appeared, covered in dents and signs of battle.
"Ironhide!" Sam shouted back, obvious relief in his voice. Chromia drove up, pausing by the hole in the wall.
"Follow us to the pillars. We'll take you to Optimus." Kay heard the firing of a missile, her instincts taking over before she even thought. She shot her hands up and a shield extended around Chromia, the missile exploding but the femme surviving with a simple knockback. Two Decepticons leapt out from cover, one massive and one regular sized. Ironhide and the triplets began an attack, Chromia giving a quick word of thanks to Kay as she raced off to help.
"Get out! Get to the pillars!" Ironhide ordered the three. They took off, Kay now fully glowing bright yellow and actively using her abilities to push missiles off course as they raced towards them. She was beginning to pass Sam and Mikaela, her body tired but her mind pushing past the wall. She forced herself to slow, keeping beside Mikaela.
They reached the lane of pillars, Kay and Mikaela pulling off their sweaters to wave wildly in the air. The number of explosions surrounding them was far larger, Decepticons on either side firing at the soldiers and Bots in front of them. Kay raised a small shield and pushed more power into it, pausing in the push as she watched Decepticons turn towards them.
Kay, stop using your power! Alpha suddenly shouted through the bond. We can all feel it! Kay quickly obeyed, Sam glancing towards her.
"We could really use that shield!" he gasped out.
"The Cybertronians can sense the Matrix energy," she forced as they dodged another explosion. A familiar growl echoed behind them, Kay looking back to meet the vicious snarl of Megatron. "Go!" she screamed, pushing harder against Sam and Mikaela. The turned the corner, Sam letting out a loud shout while Mikaela waved her shirt. Kay took quick count of everyone, noting Ratchet and Jolt fighting together, Sideswipe out front, and Jazz near Alpha, covering the wolf as she would run out for an attack then return to cover to wait for her next victim.
"Sam! Spotted Sam!" Sideswipe shouted before taking a hit to the shoulder. It didn't put him out of the fight. Sam turned, heading straight for Lennox in the distance. A series of explosions hit the ground behind them, each boom growing closer and closer. Kay grabbed Sam's hand and dragged the other two forward finally, closing the distance faster. One of them tripped, however, sending the entire line crashing to the ground. Kay stood first, roughly wiping the sand off her face while helping Mikaela up. Tanks fired straight over their heads, back into some Decepticon behind them. At this point Kay was becoming far too used to the adrenaline in her system.
Kay grabbed Sam's hand and dragged him forward, heading towards where she saw Lennox running. The trio rounded a dense conglomeration of shrubbery and debris, Kay's eyes landing on a 90 degree half wall.
"Come on!" she heard Lennox shout, the Major appearing from around the wall. "Kay!" Kay reached out for his outstretched hand, the Major hauling her quickly around the corner. Mikaela and Sam slid in beside them, everyone pressing against the brick.
"You better have a good reason for us to be here," Lennox said towards Sam, his eyes sparing less than a second on him.
"Where's Optimus?" Sam shot back without waiting.
"He's right over there, across the courtyard," Lennox responded. Kay looked towards the direction he gestured, seeing Optimus' pede sticking out from under a tarp.
"Kay needs to get to him right now," Sam stated, shifting to push her forward. Lennox pushed Kay back against the wall while Epps did the same for Sam.
"Not with an airstrike coming."
"She needs to get him!" Kay shushed both sharply as she felt a new presence grow stronger. Everyone looked behind Epps, a Decepticon quickly stalking up in the group.
"Go," Lennox commanded with a careful shove against Kay towards the other wall. She instantly obeyed, pushing herself into the brick while actively forcing her power down, knowing it was working by her new sensation of Cybertronians growing dull.
The Decepticon was an artillery type, it's massive gun appearing above the group's head and firing off multiple shots. Kay's ears rang after every explosion, slight pain echoing from deep inside. They stayed plastered for a few more moments, Lennox running through possible ways out through his head, when a familiar outline appeared in the sky, spewing black smoke as it raced towards the group. Jetfire transformed with a battle cry of, "Incoming!" crashing into the ground a few feet ahead of the group with a surprisingly clean somersault. He ran forward and swung out an axe, chopping the Decepticon clean in half.
"Behold the glory of Jetfire!" he exclaimed with his attack. He lifted the Decepticon into the wall, his head sticking out lightly. "Now, let me show you how we brought the pain in my day!" He raised his foot and stomped, the Decepticon's head bouncing to the ground very near Mikaela.
A second Decepticon suddenly burst from the ground, using its circular drills to dig into Jetfire's weakly protected stomach. The old Bot, standing very close to the humans, stumbled forward onto the wall above them. Everyone shrunk to the ground, Sam, Mikaela, and Kay covering their heads with their hands as debris rained down. Jetfire slammed the Decepticon into the wall very close to Sam and Mikaela. It fell to the ground and jumped up to attack once more but the old Bot simply smashed its head with his hand.
"I'm too old for this crap," he muttered, his torso sparking and gushing fluids and energon.
"We're gonna make a break through the B's on my command, okay?" Lennox said, looking between Sam and Mikaela beside him and Kay beside Epps. "You guys stick with me, you understand? You stay on my backside." Kay nodded, glancing towards the cloud of orange smoke that billowed from the grenade Epps threw. She caught his gaze, her eyes widening in shock.
"I hope these F-16s got good aim," Epps said quietly.
"Yeah? Why's that?" Lennox asked, switching weight between his legs as he watched for a good moment to run.
"I told them to hit the orange smoke." Lennox stopped, glancing towards the cloud of orange before looking back forward.
"You mean that orange smoke?"
"It wasn't my best toss, okay?" Epps defended. The two caught each others' gaze.
"Run!" Lennox screamed, bursting forward. The rest of the group scrambled after him, Kay locking her gaze on Optimus and pushing herself forward. Sam was just behind her.
"Incoming!" Epps shouted in warning as they neared more people. Explosions rained around everyone, dirt and chunks of building lightly hitting Kay. She kept going. There was another bombardment behind them, heat scratching at the back of Kay's legs and throat. Sam peeled off more directly towards Optimus, Kay right beside him.
"Kay! Sam!" Lennox shouted after them. Kay kept going, releasing her hold on her power. Sensations of the Cybertronians around her flooded her, a specific one standing out. She had felt it earlier and had made a note of it subconsciously, that note sending out alarms in her mind. She turned her head, her heart free-falling as Megatron appeared out of the smoke of the most recent explosion and aimed his cannon at Sam. He fired.
Kay leapt before she put much thought into the situation, wrapping her arms tight around Sam. She put a shield around just the two of them, pouring as much energy as she could spare into it. The shot hit the two, heat engulfing them while the force sent them flying, but they were still alive. The change in momentum ripped Kay's grip off of Sam as they went through the air, the woman focusing more of the now split power on Sam.
Sam hit the ground roughly, rolling three times before coming to a stop. Kay hit farther back from him, smashing into a wall far harder than she had back at the temple. Her mouth was open in a gasp but no air was coming, her muscles paralyzed from the impact.
Finally she was able to breathe, coughing roughly. Pain echoed up her back, all along her spine and ribs where they had made contact with the wall. She watched Sam carefully push off the ground, his eyes traveling everywhere before landing on Kay. She saw his relief as he scrabbled forward, far less bruised from his landing on sand. Kay slowly shifted as he neared, hearing and feeling a couple of ribs shifting back into place.
"Are you okay?" Sam demanded, looking Kay over. She nodded, slowly rolling onto her knees and then standing.
"Sam! Kay!" Mikaela crashed into Kay with a big hug, her own grip the only thing keeping Kay from falling on her backside. She was recovering slower than she expected, but then again she was rarely thrown into walls with as much force as she had been mere moments ago. Mikaela let go of Kay and switched to Sam. Kay turned towards Optimus and marched up, carefully climbing his lifeless form to stand over his spark chamber. She could feel everyone's eyes confusedly on her but ignored it, instead focusing on forming the dagger from her dreams.
Bolts of energon sparked from her arms, meeting at her hands to form into a sharp, short javelin type thing. Kay raised it above her head and, with a roar of frustration and anger from the events of the past few days, slammed it downwards into Optimus' chest.
The mech jerked underneath her, a loud hum coming from his form as systems powered back up and a very human-like cough sending sand from his vents into the air. Kay carefully leapt off of his chest just as he pushed upwards, every joint and mechanical muscle strand groaning at the effort. More sand, dirt, and debris poured out from the cracks in his armor, kicking back up into the faces of the soldiers surrounding him and staring in awe. Sam stepped up beside Kay just as the Prime refocused on his surroundings, his optics landing on the two barely-legal adults.
"You returned for me," he said quietly, almost surprised.
"A living Prime! I don't believe it!" Jetfire forced out from where he was still downed and sparking.
A loud warble filled the air, a form appearing then disappearing. Optimus forced himself upwards, still weak, when it reappeared, pushing Optimus back down. Sam and Kay leapt out of the way in different directions, Kay choosing a more open spot to avoid hitting another piece of rock.
The form was the Fallen, and his eyes snapped to Kay almost instantly, scrutinizing her. Kay was confused for only a moment, then remembered his plan. She scrambled upwards, making it two steps in a run before the ancient Cybertronian had scooped her into his hold, finally enticing a terrified scream.
"Kay!" Her eyes locked on Sam's just as the Fallen teleported away, a different rush of energy filling her entire system. They appeared at the top of one of the pyramids, the sun harvesting machine right in her face. Kay didn't have time to even process what was going on before the Fallen gave her a fierce squeeze.
"What have you done to the Matrix, creature?" he demanded, glaring at her with a purely rage-filled gaze.
"None of your business," she snapped back, regretting it instantly by another sharp squeeze. She heard a set of cracks through her body, followed quickly by severe pain with every breath.
Her ribs were broken. Again.
The Fallen held her out towards the machine, surprise coming from everyone as Kay began to glow and the machine responded by opening a tall yet narrow chamber. Before she could protest she was pushed into it, barely fitting sideways. Every breath was a difficult undertaking, not only from the sudden lack of fresh air, but now there was another force keeping her lungs from expanding besides her two broken ribs.
Kay pushed out of mainly anger, her eyes widening more as the machine responded and adjusted the shape of the chamber so it was shorter and wider. She fell to her backside at the sudden disappearance of the wall behind her but quickly looked around, waiting. She could feel something there, pulling at her powers. It was a weak, incessant pull, but it was growing stronger by the second. Soon Kay's arms were sparking in the energy of the Matrix, very much against her will, and the whirring of the ancient machine powering up was echoing loudly around her.
There was something else as well, hidden under the rushing of energy throughout Kay's very being. She focused on that even as energy was being drained from her and was met with a harsh shove from her bond with Alpha. After more work than it had ever taken before, it was open.
Put a shield up! The command was forceful, loud, practically knocked Kay over physically, and effective. The woman snapped a shield of her own power up around her, definitely not the strongest thing, but existent. As she did so she felt the machine rock with a series of explosions, not from within it but from attacks on the pyramid. A few moments later there was a deep hum. Kay's shield strengthened of its own accord but did not use any of her own energy, instead rippling from the intensity of whatever was fueling it.
Alpha, are you feeling this? Kay only received shock in return, even after the hum disappeared and her shield reverted back to her own power. Alpha? Still the femme was being stubborn, not answering. Kay let out a small sigh, not having the energy to fight with the femme at the moment.
There was another deep hum, complete with a flare of her shield, two explosions, and a deep voice.
"Shield!" Kay didn't need to be told twice from Optimus, focusing the rest of her power she had left on a shield around herself. As she did so the device exploded around her, the momentum of Optimus' shot coupled with the explosion sending her flying forward. She hit the pyramid about halfway down but was not stopping, the momentum keeping on a fierce series of bounces and rolls. With every hit Kay felt a new bruise and a fierce toll on her shield but she was not letting go, curling up and taking every hit.
She finally came to a stop in the hot, soft sand. She rolled a final time then lay on her back, spread eagle and staring straight upwards. She felt Alpha and another presence nearing quickly, the unknown one far closer than Alpha. Before she could even force herself into a sitting position Bee was there, scooping her upwards with fear in his optics. As soon as he saw she was alive his entire body sagged in relief, the mech holding her close to his spark. Kay smiled and gave him as best a hug as she could back.
~You are not leaving my side ever again,~ he stated firmly, still refusing to let her go even as Alpha finally ran up. Kay laughed but it quickly turned into a short groan, her arms around her stomach.
"As okay as I am with that at the moment, I think I need to see Ratchet." Bee turned and began back towards the collection of soldiers and Autobots, Optimus walking in from a different side. Kay took the moment to listen. "Is it over?" she asked. Alpha, sticking close to Bee's heels and slightly perturbed he was not allowing her to touch Kay, let out a small affirmative.
The trio finally reached the rest of the group, Bee gently lowering Kay to the ground. Ratchet's holoform appeared as the tingling of a scan washed over Kay. She watched the frown appear on the holoform.
"Aren't I lucky?" she asked.
Ratchet rose an eyebrow, opened his mouth for a fierce retort, then said, "Oh, absolutely." Kay's jaw dropped, and from the sound of two bodies clanging into each other a very quick glance towards it, Jazz and Sideswipe we're equally as shocked.
"Was that-"
"-a sarcastic remark-"
"-from Ratchet?" the three demanded in order. Ratchet's true form sent a fearsome scowl towards Jazz and Sideswipe but his holoform gave Kay the tiniest of smirks, even as a regular army medic handed him a medpac and he pulled out a bandage wrap. Ratchet worked on tending the Autobots with his true form and checking over Kay, Sam, and Mikaela with his holoform. Bee went to collect the twins, Simmons, and Leo after a lot of convincing from Kay, Alpha letting out a successful huff. As soon as Ratchet was done with Kay, Alpha scooped Kay upwards and padded a small distance away.
"We going to talk about that power thing?" Kay asked, flashing Jazz a bright smile when he looked over.
"It was the Fallen, Kay." Kay paused, her pain medicine fogged mind turning the information over a couple of times before it clicked.
"It was what?" Alpha sat, now a great many paces away from everyone else. Even Optimus was back with the main group, shedding a strange conglomeration of Jetfire's parts from his body.
"Do you remember anything about how you got your powers?" Alpha asked quietly. Kay blinked.
"I'm pretty sure I was just born with it," Kay stated, though the humorless chuckle from Alpha had her doubting.
"I don't remember everything exactly myself, but I know neither of us were born with this," she said.
"What do you mean we weren't born with this?" Kay questioned. "What do you remember?" Alpha took a careful breath, resting her head on her metal paws.
"A lab, when I was just a pup. A lab in which everyday there were screams from Cybertronians and humans alike." Kay's jaw was practically on the ground in shock, listening to every word Alpha spoke. Alpha was tensing beneath Kay, her mind snapping back into whatever small memories she had. "There was a lot of failure. I think- I think you and I were the only successful subjects."
Kay reached down and gave Alpha as comforting a hug as she could, pulling the wolf out of her memories.
"We're going to figure this out, Alpha," Kay said quietly. "But not right now." Alpha glanced at her, her purple optics dark in the struggle of the fierce memories. "Right now, we have a lot of resting to do." In response, she pulled at a small flap of Alpha's armor and let go, the metal clanging comically as it wavered back and forth. Alpha nodded, shaking her head to rid herself of the memory for the time, then pushed herself to her feet and began back towards the group.
"Yeah. You're right." Kay smiled, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Of course I am."
"Careful there," Alpha shot back. "That sounds like overconfidence." Kay let out a scoff.
"Overconfidence? No such thing from me." The duo rejoined the group, Bee plucking Kay from Alpha's shoulders with a thankful beep. Kay gave a small laugh, making herself comfortable on Bee's shoulder.
The next few hours passed by in a blur of pain-medicine induced fog. Kay gave those that asked reassurance of her condition, though she kept herself plastered to Bee's shoulder. Faster than expected she found herself off of Bee's shoulder and in the med bay of an aircraft carrier headed straight for Diego Garcia. There, the next course of action was going to be determined.
Bee's holoform sat by Kay's bed, playing a game on Kay's surprisingly still alive phone while human medics gave her a once over. The medic associated with NEST gave them an 'I told you so' look as they found Ratchet's medical attention far better than expected, Kay well on the way to recovery.
"Alright. You're free to go." Kay thanked the medics and slipped off the bed, grabbing Bee's hand and dragging him along as the NEST medic showed her to the bunk room the civilians would all be piled into. Four sets of bunk beds crushed together, no one else in there.
"We have a five-day journey ahead of us, so I'd suggest getting comfortable quickly," the medic said, giving Kay a smile. Kay smiled back and thanked him, picking a lower bunk. She was not in the condition to be climbing bunks. As soon as she laid down Bee carefully climbed into the bunk with her, wrapping his arm around her waist and holding her close. Kay smiled, snuggling into the warm holoform.
"Five days stuck in a cramped cargo bay with only a flight deck to stretch your legs," Kay stated with a chuckle. "Sounds fun." Bee let out a small groan.
"Don't remind me." He was still smiling, however, and looking straight at Kay. She felt a fierce blush hit her cheeks at the look, quickly diverting her gaze. Bee laughed and reached down, placing a kiss on her forehead.
"How about we just do what you do best and sleep for the next five days?" Bee suggested. Kay huffed.
"I will fight you for that." She proceeded to curl up into Bee's chest. "Right after I take this nap." Bee laughed but didn't let go, placing another kiss to the top of Kay's head. Kay fell asleep with a large smile on her face, listening to the thrum of the mini spark inside Bee's holoform.