Hey everyone! Sorry I took so long to update, but I got a little writers block x.x Hopefully, this chapter will make up for it! Thank you to everyone who reviewed, followed and faved! I hope you'll all continue to review and read! If you have any ideas, feel free to share!
Enjoy!
Jack had become considerably bored in the past hour and a half. Lockdown wasn't capable of holding up a conversation as he worked over the apex armor, so Jack was left sitting on the shelf, only able to watch the mech work.
Jack sighed, legs swinging.
"Lockdown." He groaned, flopping back, slinging an arm over his eyes.
The mech glanced up.
"Yeah?"
"I'm bored."
Lockdown smirked, chuckling to himself as his gaze returned to his work.
"Sorry kid, not much I can do t' help ya."
"What're you doing anyway?" Jack asked, shifting a bit to look at the mech. Lockdown shrugged.
"Jus' a lil' somethin'. Nothin' t' worry 'bout."
Jack gave him a deadpan look.
"Everytime you say that, there's a reason to worry."
Lockdown laughed.
"Ah, prob'ly righ' on tha' account, Jack."
With a sigh, the teen sat up once more.
"Can you at least let me know if I should start looking for a place to hide?"
The mech's smirk widened.
"Now why would ya need t' hide from me?"
Jack rolled his eyes.
Lockdown glanced at Jack.
The young human was deeply asleep, chest rising and falling with soft breaths. He looked so innocent...It reminded Lockdown of the golden days, before the war.
The mech shook those thoughts away, returning his gaze to the metal under his hands. This was delicate work, therefore there was no time to daydream. He worked on, listening to the gentle whisper of each breath the teen took.
It had been vorns since he last had a target, let alone the chance to speak and interact with another being. Therefore, having Jack around was a real gift (not that he'd ever admit it aloud, lest he offline of embarrassment). The teen wasn't scared of him, or at least not to the point past ridiculous as others always did. Every time Jack would glare at him defiantly, Lockdown would feel pride swell in his chassis. He'd chosen a strong companion, a considerably harder feat now-a-days.
A small sound made the mech look away from his work, and he watched as Jack's nose scrunched slightly, seeming uncomfortable before he shifted about and settled down once more. Smirking, Lockdown returned to his 'pet project'.
Jack had a rather rude awakening in the form of a loud clanging. He lurched up, eyes wide with alarm and fear, a startled yell leaving his lips. He looked around quickly, and his gaze fell on Lockdown, who was pounding away at something on the workbench. Jack groaned.
"Ah c'mon! Can't I ever sleep in anymore?" He complained, flopping back down.
Lockdown looked up, then gave a bark of laughter.
"Sorry, kid. Didn't remember it'd be loud."
Jack lifted his head to glare at the mech.
"No kidding." He muttered before letting his head fall back down.
Lockdown smirked, shaking his head to himself as he returned to his work.
"Prob'ly best yer up anyways. Go 'head an' get dressed, yeah? We've got a busy day t'day."
Jack pushed himself back up, confusion now marring his expression.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
Lockdown's grin grew wider, but he merely waved a hand dismissively.
"Ah, nothin' fer ya t' worry 'bout. Jus' get ready fer a day outside th' ship."
The teen raised a brow, but decided to not question the mech anymore, knowing he'd probably not get any answers. Standing, he moved over to the boxes of his things, which Lockdown had apparently relocated to the shelf he was on. As he changed, Lockdown spoke once more.
"Y'know, ya never tol' me how ya got those scars."
Jack's head whipped around so fast that Jack's neck ached.
"W-what?!" He stammered, suddenly nervous.
"Yer scars." The hunter glanced over for a second. "I've got optics, y'know. What, ya thought I didn' notice?"
Jack's cheeks darkened.
"No! I thought you were actually trying to be considerate and not watch me while I got dressed!" He snapped, frowning.
The mech rolled his optics, fiddling with the device he held.
"It's not like I say anythin'. Jeez kid."
"Stop calling me kid, dammit!" Jack growled.
Lockdown rolled his optics once more.
"Fine. Jack."
He returned to his work again.
"Didn' answer my question yet." He pointed out.
Jack turned his gaze away, glaring at the ground and pulling on his shirt angrily.
"It's none of your business."
A raised brow, but no further prodding came from the mech.
While Lockdown finished his work, Jack ate, filling his empty belly. Once the teen was done, he walked to the edge of the shelf, peering down at the strange piece of metal pinched precariously between two large fingers. Instead of a hook like the mech usually sported on his left arm, a strange sort of tool was there (of Cybertronian origin, Jack guessed).
"Can you tell me what it is now?" Jack asked, leaning against one of the shelf's support beams. The mech grinned lopsidedly.
"Nope."
Jack groaned, banging his head against the beam lightly, much to Lockdown's amusement.
"Don' get brain damage." He said, placing the small device aside and going to one of the many 'trophy shelves', retrieving his hook that he seemed to prefer more than anything else. Jack watched as the mech pulled off the Cybertronian tool on his left, replacing it with the hook. Lockdown then moved over to Jack, holding out his hand.
"Hop on."
With a sigh, Jack climbed into the hand. The large metal fingers curled slightly, probably to try and make sure that the youth didn't fall out. The mech then turned, heading out of the room. Jack felt his heart jump with happiness when he saw they were heading to the ships exit. He prefered being outside to staying in the ship.
The doors hissed open, and bright sunlight blinded Jack for a moment. He took in a deep breath, the chilly mid-morning air filling his lungs and staining his cheeks pink. He could hear the rustle of leaves as wind blew the tree's of the forest. The sight of the blue sky was a welcome one to Jack.
The grass crunched loudly under Lockdown's metal pedes as the hunter moved on. How the mech managed to get through the tree's, even Jack wasn't sure. All he knew was that Lockdown somehow managed it, and they stopped once in a small clearing.
"'Ere." Lockdown said, carefully picking Jack up and setting him down. Jack knew there was no chance of getting away if he ran, the mech was too close. So, he settled for sitting and relishing in the feel of the damp grass under his fingers.
Chuckling, Lockdown moved to one of the nearby tree's, sitting down. His optics then dimmed, and a moment later, his holoform flickered to life. Jack looked up at the human form through his hair, shoulders tense.
The holoform smiled crookedly as he went over to Jack, offering a hand.
"C'mon, up ya get."
Jack took the hand, allowing Lockdown to pull him up to his feet.
"A'righ, time t' get down t' business."
"Uh...What're we doing, exactly?" Jack asked shifting awkwardly on his feet.
"Well, our lil' conversation th' other day got me thinkin'."
"About?"
Lockdown smirked slightly.
"Ya had a good poin'. Ya almos' got 'way from me. Twice. Not many peopl' can say tha'."
Jack raised a brow, crossing his arms.
"Alright, I'm kind of lost here, so..."
The hunter chuckled, ruffling the teen's hair. He then turned, back facing the teen as he took a few steps away.
"It got me thinkin'..."
Jack yelped when the man suddenly whipped around, throwing a punch. Jack barely managed to move out of the way, stumbling, but he forced himself to stay on his feet, eyes locked on the holoform.
Another fist flew towards him, and Jack lurched away.
"H-hey! What the-?!"
A foot flew towards his head now, and Jack ducked.
"S-stop it!"
The holoform grinned. His hands were up, feet shifted in a fighting stance. Jack felt his heart thudding harshly against his ribs. What was going on?!
Lockdown lunged forward, hands latching onto the teen's shirt. Jack's trembling fingers scrabbled at the hands, then Jack shoved a hand forward into the holoform's throat, praying that Lockdown could feel like a human could through the holoform.
A choked gagging sound left the hunter's mouth, grip weakening on the teen's shirt. Jack took the chance, grabbing at the holoform's hands. Finding the thumbs of the other, he twisted them hard. Lockdown grunted in pain, hands releasing Jack completely.
The teen, now able to move, shoved the holoform away, stumbling back a couple steps himself.
The false human shook off the pain incredibly fast, and was on the youth once more.
"P-please! Stop!" Jack exclaimed, jerking to the side as another fist flew at him. "Wh-what's wrong w-with you?!"
Jack yelped as he found himself forced on the ground, a hand wrapped around his neck, the other gripping his wrists together painfully hard. Jack struggled in an attempt to escape the harsh grip, but then realized something.
The hand on his neck wasn't trying to choke him.
While it was in a position to do so, the fingers of the holoform's hand were limp, making no attempt to constrict the follow of air to his lungs. This wasn't at all an attempt to hurt him. It was some twisted game or something.
The moment the realization hit him, Jack immediately ceased his struggles, glaring angrily at Lockdown.
"What the frag is wrong with you?" The teen demanded, voice no more than a furious hiss.
Lockdown blinked, surprised that Jack had stopped fighting.
"Hey, c'mon. Figh' back! This is fer somethin' important!"
Jack scowled.
"No! Now get off! I'm not playing your stupid game!"
The hunter's face darkened.
"I said. Fight. Back."
The hand around Jack's throat bore down, and Jack gave a strangled gasp, trying to breathe.
"'Member th' rules, Jack?" He asked, voice quiet. "Do wha' I say. This ain't a game, kid. Trus' me, there's a method t' my madness. Now, fight back."
Jack felt his lungs burn with the need for air, and spots danced through his vision.
A jerk, and Jack's knee embedded itself in the holoform's gut. The second the hands that held him weakened, Jack pulled his own hands free and shoved the false man off.
The teen was on his feet in moments, gasping in lungfuls of air as he tried to keep his balance.
He didn't get a chance to relax, the holoform standing and baring down on him once more, punching and kicking, trying to grab a hold of the youth. Jack twisted about, doing all he could to escape the barrage of attacks.
Jack yelped as he was shoved back into a tree head smacking painfully hard against the hard wood, bark biting into his back through his shirt. He stumbled forward, clutching at his pounding head with a hand. The holoform took a hold of the teen, arm locking around the youth's neck.
Jack squeezed his eyes shut, a lump in his throat as he waited for taunting, pain, something...but nothing of the kind happened. For a moment, Lockdown was still, seeming to inspect the Jack as the teen breathed heavily. Then, he carefully released him.
Stumbling a bit, Jack coughed roughly, still trying to relieve the burning in his lungs. He looked up at the holoform through his bangs, eyes shining slightly with pain-induced tears that had refuse to fall.
The mech seemed, not smug, like he usually was...but somewhat proud. Jack couldn't wrap his head around it. After another minute or so of silence, the hunter nodded.
"Good." His voice held approval. "Better th'n mos'."
"Wh-what the frag i-is wrong with y-you?" Jack managed, throat and lungs aching slightly in protest.
Lockdown shrugged.
"Depends who ya ask, really."
Jack frowned, sitting down, trying to make the insistent pounding leave his head.
The holoform that was Lockdown watched him, deep in thought.
The youth had good, strong instincts. What he lacked in strength, he made up for in speed and flexibility, which could be a dangerous combination. Jack also was more observant than many others, having realized that Lockdown didn't want to actually kill him early on in the fight. The teen was far from perfect, though. He was too easily caught and trapped. Against a large opponent like Lockdown himself, Jack would lose in the end.
Smirking, the hunter's holoform approached Jack, holding a hand to the teen.
"C'mon, Jack. On yer feet."
The young human looked at the hand, gaze full of suspicion and doubt. Lockdown sighed and crouched down to be more level with Jack.
"Look, I ain't gonna kill ya or anythin'. I wanna test ya a bit more, alrigh'? I just wanna see what you can do combat wise."
"Why?" Jack demanded. "You scared me, dammit! I thought you went insane! Or at least insaner!"
Lockdown blew out a sigh, rubbing the back of his neck.
"I needed t' see yer honest reaction. I wouldn'a gotten it if I'd warned ya."
Jack glared, then pointedly looked away with a huff.
Lockdown rolled his eyes with a sigh.
Jack yelped as he was lifted, and he squirmed.
"H-hey! Stop that! Put me down!"
Ignoring his protests, Lockdown went over to where his real form rested. Setting the teen down, the holoform vanished in a burst of static.
The real Lockdown's optics lit up one more, and he rolled his neck and shoulders a few times to loosen his slightly stiff joints. He then took a hold of Jack, lightly tossing the teen into the air.
By now, Jack knew what would already happen even before he landed in the passenger seat.
"I hate it when you do that." He muttered to the mech, looking out the window sullenly.
The hunter chuckled.
"I know. Tha's why I do it. Ya always 're in a talkin' mode when you ain't thrilled with somethin'."
Jack gaped incredulously.
"That's not true!" He protested.
"Yes it is."
"No it isn't!"
"Uh-huh."
"Nu-uh!"
"Uh-huh."
"Nu-uh!"
They went over a large tree root and Jack hissed out a curse when his already aching head hit the roof of the car.
"Dammit!"
"Ya done bein' stubborn?"
Jack scowled at the radio.
"Just shut up." He muttered, leaning his elbow on the armrest and planting his chin on his hand.
A bark of laughter was the mech's only reply, but otherwise Lockdown complied, simply switching on some music.
Arcee stood, leaning against a wall, arms crossed.
There had been no sign of Jack. Not in any way, shape or form. But she and the other's refused to think of him as dead, Jack was too strong, too cunning to be dead.
But no one understood how his life signal had just, well, vanished! Even the life signal of a dead Autobot soldier didn't just disappear like that! It would show their vital signs as gone, but Jack's life signal was just simply non-existent! It drove Ratchet crazy to no end.
Raf tirelessly scoured the internet for any indication that Jack had been seen somewhere. Miko was oddly silent, not even touching her precious guitar. June stayed in base ever since Jack's disappearance, waiting for any word on her son.
Everyone was worried sick.
For hours Optimus and Ratchet stared at the main monitor, looking for Jack. Bulkhead, Bumblebee, Smokescreen, Arcee, even Wheeljack and Ultra Magnus, all searched outside of base for their missing human ally.
But they couldn't find anything. Not even a hair.
All they could do was hope that Jack was alright.
It had been two days since the impromptu sparring match. Jack had, since then, begrudgingly forgiven Lockdown and they returned to their regular routine.
So that's why now, Lockdown and Jack were found in the middle of a canyon in the far east of Nevada, the mech blasting to get to some energon crystals, while the human stood beside his pedes, holding onto the plating there to keep himself from stumbling as the ground shook with each blast.
"Almos' got it." Lockdown stated, squinting slightly at the canyon wall. "Two more blasts shoul' do it, yeah?"
He looked down at Jack, who simply shrugged in reply.
"How should I know? I've never had to shoot at a canyon."
The hunter chuckled.
"True, true." He conceded. He then lifted his blaster once more, aiming at the canyon wall.
But before he released a shot, the familiar sound of a groundgridge filled the air.
Jack looked up, alarmed and hopeful while Lockdown turned his gaze to the vortex, brow raised. He carefully turned, making sure he didn't accidentally step on Jack.
Several figures emerged from the vortex, all looking sad.
Jack felt his heart jump happily.
"ARCEE!"
The blue femme looked alarmed for a moment, optics lifting as she wondered if her processor was tricking her. She then saw Jack, and her face lit up.
"Jack?!"
The teen went to go to her, but Lockdown grabbed him before he could take a step.
The 'bots who had come, no doubt for the energon, looked at the mech, then immediately took defensive positions.
"Lockdown." Ultra Magnus growled quietly, recognizing him immediately.
The bounty hunter smiled lazily, but his optics were dark and anything but friendly.
"Well well well. Did'ja all c'mere jus' t' see lil' ol' me?" He teased, holding Jack in his fist as his blaster trained on the 'bots.
Jack struggled furiously, trying to get free.
"Arcee! Optimus!" He called, voice holding a tone of pleading.
Optimus' optics locked onto Jack, then returned to Lockdown's face.
"Return Jackson to us. Now."
Lockdown gave a bark of humorless laughter.
"Sorry, Prime. A pet's gotta stay with his master, now don't he?"
The 'bots showed anger and displeasure at the 'pet' reference to Jack.
"He's not a pet!" Arcee snapped, wanting more than anything to shoot the mech.
Lockdown's smirk widened, an odd look on the scarred and 'tattooed' face.
"Ah, now that, pretty lil' femme, is where ya'd be wrong." He stated, holding Jack up slightly. "Don'cha see his shiny collar?"
Optics fell to the black metal at the teen's collarbone, and Jack's cheeks darkened with embarrassment.
Lockdown, seeming now comfortable, began to pace back and forth leisurely.
"Funny how I snatched 'im up from righ' under yer olfact'ry sensors, ain'it? Ya mus' all wonder how I did it, yeah?"
"Obviously you kidnapped him." Bulkhead muttered, optics narrowed.
The hunter threw his helm back and laughed, the sound loud and callused.
"Ah, wasn' tha' simple, y'see. C'mon, use yer processors! Righ' before Jack 'vanished', wasn' energon dissapearin'? Now, who else 'side's a 'bot coulda known where tha' was?" Lockdown asked, feigning a thoughtful tone.
Blue optics glanced at Jack for only a second, but the mech caught the look and grinned.
"Tha's right. Lil' Jack 'ere found me dyin', an' bein' th' kind soul he is, took care o' me."
Lockdown stopped his casual pacing, smirking darkly.
"So, o' course I though' t' myself, 'now what a good, lil' pet he'd make'."
The 'bots shifted, their blasters raising slightly, and the hunter raised his hand that held the squirming teen in it.
"Ah ah ah! I wouldn' do tha', if I were y'all. When I get t' feelin' a lil' threatened, my grip can get a lil'..." The hand tightened, making Jack give a cry of pain. "Tight."
The 'bot's immediately lowered their weapons, fear flashing through several of their optics.
"I don' really need th' energon, so I guess ya can all have it this time. But I'm takin' Jack, 'm afraid."
The mech grinned, backing up a few steps. He then tossed Jack in the air.
Jack screamed with anger as he landed in the hunter's alt, kicking at the the doors, windows and dash.
"You fragger! Let me out! Let me-!"
"Shut it." Lockdown muttered. Seat belts snapped out, binding Jack's arms and legs, one wrapping around his mouth to silence him.
Jack struggled still, trying to get free.
The black and green car tore off, the 'bots setting chase.
Jack was trembling with anger as well as sadness and fear. What if the 'bots couldn't catch up? What if this was the last time he saw them?
Lockdown could feel the teen's shaking, and a rare feeling of guilt bit at his spark.
A seat belt slid out, gently passing over Jack's hair in what was meant to be a soothing manner.
Jack glanced at the rear-view mirror. The 'bots were falling farther and farther behind.
He squeezed his eye's shut, a single tear falling. He wished he could be sure that this wasn't goodbye.