Chapter 2
"Hi ,Kat, hi!" the light brunette on the other end of the lockers waved wildly to her.
"Oh, hi Candace" Kattashley said aloofly as she opened her own locker.
"Watch'a doin' tonight?"
"nothing much, I think." Candace was a nice girl and she and Kat got along alright but they didn't know each other that long so things were still unfamiliar.
"wanna do something?"
"got plans this afternoon but how about we do the mall later on."
"sounds good" Candace gave a thumbs up "see you there."
That is how most of her conversations went with Candace; straight forward and no side-tracks.
The minute she stepped off of the city bus she was racing home on her already aching legs. Slamming her bedroom door, she threw her bag to the
floor and changed to a simple shirt and jeans. A quick good-bye kiss for Auntie Justine and a pat on Daisy's head and she was peddling her bicycle down the street.
Katrina's farm was not far from the city limits but one could easily miss it as it was neatly tucked away among wooded hills. It was not exactly a farm , to be specific , but more of an animal shelter of sorts. Katrina started it when she bought a horse that was destined for the glue factory from there her collection of doomed animals spread until it was home to a variety of dogs , cats , goats , horses and many others.
Breathless , Kat pulled up to the main house and leaned her bike on the front porch. The sheep barn was open and the joyous bleating from within told her that Marko , the farmhand , was hard at work. An elder woman with short , wavy hair and a rare elegance about her emerged from the biggest barn followed by a German Shepard and an old Beagle. Kat waved wildly as she ran up to her great aunt.
"well , look who we have here , Ginger." Katrina said to the Beagle who was nearly blind and was curiously sniffing at Kat as she gave the older woman a big hug. Together they walked into the house and had a light , late lunch. Kat thought the world of her great Aunt because the two were so alike in many ways. Most people , including close relatives , found her to be an irritable , cranky old woman but she was only like that on the surface. Underneath she was a kind woman. Kat once asked her why she was so hard on people , she told her to test a person's character and integrity but she said it with a sly smile which made Kat think maybe that wasn't quite the case. The bottom line was she had much more patience with animals then with people. Kat pointed this out to her , she only shrugged and smiled that secret smile of hers. After lunch they headed back out to the barns together with the entourage of cats and dogs in their wake. The biggest barn was the home of two horses , three ponies and a donkey. The ponies were lazy ,the donkey was mean and one horse was a brat but Hercules , the other horse , was a big softie and he made quick friends with Kat. As she stepped up to the fence bordering the barn he came trotting up to her snorting with excitement.
"hey there , handsome!" Kat patted his flaring nose "want to go for a nice ride?"
That was the other reason she came all the way out here. Horse-back riding was her thing , it made her feel so free. Katrina helped her saddle him and soon she was leading him to the back woods where there were countless trails through all of Katrina's property. Kat breathed in the air as Hercules first trotted then galloped. They were down this trail so many times that he knew exactly when she wanted him to walk , trot or gallop without her even directing him. They forded a small creek then raced through the tall grass of a rolling meadow before plunging back among trees.
As always , Kat felt her troubles and worries melt away and all that was left was pure bliss. The air was slightly moist from a light rain and the sun shone through the green leaves creating a glowing canopy overhead. Little birds flew away and squirrels chattered after them as they crashed through. The trail suddenly pulled a hard right then a hard left where a tree had fallen across it but none of it slowed Hercules down one bit as he leapt into the air as graceful as a professional ballerina. The trail began to climb a slope only then did Hercules slow to a walk. At the very top was the highway that looped around the farm. It was dead silent as it was a branch-off of the main route to the city but they didn't have to travel on it as the trail wen t along side of it hidden by the trees and bushes. It was a half hour or so later when she heard someone talking up ahead. She didn't see who it was as the road curved around a bend but it was a young man's voice and he seemed to be ranting at someone. Kat's eyes narrowed and the flame she inherited from her great aunt flared awake. It happened many times that she caught trespassers on the property. People who came to drink and smoke and litter the beautiful place with their garbage. Finally Kat rounded another bend and saw the young man. His hair was jet black and his build was a little on the scrawny side but there was something about the way he held his shoulders that suggested he wouldn't go down in any easy fight. He paced in front of a sleek-looking motorcycle with a flawless paint job the colour of the deep , blue sky. Kat knew just about nothing about bikes but this one looked expensive.
He was alone and appeared to be talking to his bike , unless , he had one of those earphone things , Kat couldn't tell from her view point , but after a few seconds of watching him she realized he actually was talking to his bike. 'Weirdo' she thought to herself rolling her eyes.
"hey , mister!" she shouted , causing him to jump and spin completely around "this is private property!"
The boy seemed frazzled beyond words for a while "oh...ah.. Sorry? I didn't know."
"well , now you do." Kat nudged Hercules forward as her eyes were drawn to the motorcycle again "and , by the way , cool bike , bro"
"umm.. thanks."
"must've set you back a couple of hundred Gs."
"not really , I mean , kind of yeah it did" the boy said quickly , running his hands through his thick hair. Kat narrowed her eyes again and studied him for a few seconds.
"did you steal it?"
"what?! no , I didn't!"
"because you seem unsure what to say."
"you startled me is all." She noticed him give Hercules a quick , cautious look-over.
"He won't bite." She informed him climbing down from the saddle. Now she stood only a head shorter than him and saw that he wasn't wearing any earphones.
"why were you talking to your bike?" she asked , her eyes narrowing again.
"I'm not , I'm talking to you."
"before you were."
"no , I wasn't. That would be silly."
"well , you were."
"okay, so what if I was, it set me back a few Gs, I can talk to it if I want."
"okay, whatever." she sighed, mentally shaking her head "c'mon, I'll escort you off the property."
They walked in silence, Kat leading Hercules by the bit, the strange boy pushing his expensive bike along by the handle. It didn't seem to be a difficult thing to do. Kat imagined that the bike would be heavy to push but the boy did it with one hand.
"so...ahhh." The boy ran a hand through his hair "you live here?"
"no, it's my Auntie's place."
Silence.
"that is one big horse." he jutted a thumb over his shoulder.
"that's why he's called Hercules." Kat beamed with pride as she was the one who came up with the name "because you're so big and strong and gentle." Kat stroked the horse's soft nose with every word.
"wait a minute! How come it's weird when I talk to my bike but it's not weird when you talk to your horse."
"He actually hears me. Your bike is just a bike. Hercules is Hercules. He has a personality and a name and everything."
"how do you know my bike doesn't hear me. With tech these days who knows."
"are you serious?! it's a machine .It doesn't have feelings!"
"you sure about that?"
"duh, yeah! But if you want to talk to it then ,fine, whatever. Can I ask a question though?"
"what"
"do you call it anything?"
"ummm.."
"do you call it Barbie?"
The boy suddenly jerked to a stop. Kat was almost sure it was the bike that stopped first.
"oh, no wait, it's Pixie Princess isn't it ,or is it Tinkerbell?"
"alright, enough with the names." the boy protested, pushing harder on the bike to get it to move again.
"well? let's hear it"
The boy looked hesitantly at his bike then at Kat then back again. "Her name's...um..Queen."
"Queen?!" Kat laughed openly before she could stop herself.
"As in Queen of the road or Queen of speed or even Queen of all things awesome" the boy tenderly patted his bike.
"oh, I get it." Kat nodded, halting Hercules as they reached the end of the trail "all the good names were taken already."
The boy looked at her and sighed. Kat smiled a sweet smile ,then waved a majestic hand to the direction of where the trail joined the highway .
"Off you go."
Without a word ,the boy settled on his ride, put his helmet on, waved good-bye and with a roar from 'Queen' was speeding down the highway.
Kat waited, arms crossed, until the roar was a distant sound.
"He was kind of cute." She decided out loud. Hercules snorted and shook his mane.
"I'm not saying I would go out with him" She said, turning back for home. "but a girl can look ,can't she?"
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"really ,Jack?" Arcee spoke up as she zoomed down the nearly empty road back to the city.
"She caught me off guard. I don't even know how long she was standing there and I was a little busy trying to keep you from losing it."
"yeah, boy! could I've scared her a good one!"
"that's my girl."
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"Are you sure?" Ironhide asked again ,his striking ,black paint job nearly completely covered in brown desert dust.
"Yes I'm sure!" Ratchet barked fiddling with the key pad trying to make the resolution better for the image on the screen.
"well, I don't know what you're seeing ,but all I see is a blurry outline" Bulkhead reported to the Cybertronian doctor.
"just give me a minute..." Ratchet slowly turned the dial trying for what seemed the hundredth time to find the best depth for the image.
"wait! go back!" Ironhide suddenly stepped closer.
"there." Ratchet let go of the dial with final satisfaction.
There the image was in all it's morbid glory. They were all stunned in horror for at least ten seconds. Fowler never saw them in such a state. The image ,though clearly of Decepticon origin, didn't mean much to him. It was a black figure with spiny fingers and pieces of twisted metal jutting out from it. Other than that he couldn't see anything.
"would somebody please explain" he ordered.
"Deathstrike" Ironhide growled deep inside his throat, spinning his plasma cannons online in supressed rage.
Fowler consciously stepped back from the edge of the catwalk ,eyes fixated on the newest member of the team. He wasn't to sure about this Ironhide just yet.
"He's not exactly a Decepticon" Ratchet stepped forward servos out in assurance for the Human while still keeping an optic on Ironhide.
"He's worse." Bulkhead added "a bounty hunter. Likes to keep...trophies" the mountain of an Autobot shuddered "He was known to run errands for the DJD from time
to-"
"for the how much?" Agent Fowler interrupted.
"Decepticon Justice Division." Ratchet explained "Basically their job was to hunt down any Decepticons who ,by their actions or inactions frustrated the goals of Megatron and introduce them to unremitting pain before finally ending their suffering in some creative way. Had the 'pleasure' of meeting a few 'cons who begged me to extinguish their sparks before 'they' caught up with them. You ,Agent Fowler, would probably have called them war criminals but they were so much worse. Deathstrike must have followed you from deep space on your way to Earth." he turned to Ironhide and Bulkhead.
"but what ,in Uncle Sam's beard, is he doing here."
"to hunt us down!" Bulkhead huffed in exasperation "to hunt us down like..like...a-"
"Bulkhead, please!" Ratchet rolled his optics, a habit he picked up from Miko "the bounties on all our heads must've sky rocketed since the fall of Megatron."
"but that doesn't explain why he bombed the Quatar base clean out of existence."
"no it doesn't" Ratchet tapped his chin ridge ,another habit he picked up from somewhere.
"The Quatar base wasn't just destroyed" Fowler elaborated "ever since the attack we're having no luck getting communications back up."
"That's it!" Ironhide had been quiet and still for some time that the others almost forgot he was standing there "knocking out global communications on this primitive planet would be the easiest way to gain control. No communication ,no supporting military, no order."
"yes, and now that the 'cons know the Humans are advanced enough to hurt them that would be key." Ratchet added "especially since this 'primitive planet' is the battleground where Megatron fell for the last time."
"so, why are they still sticking around?" Fowler thought out loud.
"Decepticons are bullies above all things and Earth is where their leader was killed. They're looking for revenge."
"and the only way to get rid of a bully is to send an even bigger bully after him." Ironhide rumbled ,spinning his cannons again but this time out of pride of them.
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Sorry for the 'update drought' internet doesn't work. I had to haul my hundred-year-old-fifteen-pound laptop to work so I could post the rest of the chapter for you all. Take care!