title: "is it just me, or is he losing it?"

Summary: Knock Out wasn't there. Again. AU post-"Crossfire."

A/N: So, "Armada"...yeah, I'm still not sure what I saw. In all seriousness, I felt its structure was really unsound. Anyway, it didn't exactly give me any new info that I'd want to incorporate into this fic...not even how those Insecticons ended up Earth, seriously, are they ever gonna answer that, is anyone within in the show ever gonna ask that question? I hope it's answered eventually.

Disclaimer: I own nothing related to Transformers Prime.

chapter 5

Knock Out woke up to a throbbing head ache, the bounce of metal against his cheek. Still sprawled out, he moved a little, enough so that he could more easily spit out the mech fluid pooling inside his mouth.

The medic moved slowly, carefully, as he scanned his own body and his surroundings. Knock Out hoped his return to consciousness could escape his captor's notice for as long as possible. Sensors weren't picking up a lot of damage in his body, which was the bright side. His surroundings were mobile, that much was clear; the floor still bounced, and if Knock Out listened closely he could hear the familiar crunch of wheels on dirt over the low rumble of an engine. His current prison—for it was definitely some sort of prison, his hands were bound—was long on either side of him, closed off. It seemed like his space was rectangular.

Testing his restraints, the medic tried to comm the Nemesis.

He shouted as a wracking pain tore through his mental processor, tearing, clawing—

Knock Out panted when it stopped. He dimly noted his prison had also stopped moving.

Head still clouded by pain, the medic flinched as a door opened, letting in a burst of sudden pale light and the sounds of night insects chirping and owls hooting. Knock Out closed his eyes against the sight and sound.

"You're awake," said a familiar voice.

The medic let out a weak chuckle while his head still protested, so much so that he kept his eyes shut, against the pain and the light he was slowly adjusting to. "Ah, Optimus Prime, how nice to—"

Idiot idiot IDIOT thought Knock Out as he was caught completely unaware by the large hand suddenly wrapping around his throat and yanking him out of his prison onto the soft dirt.

The hand around his throat shook him. "Open your eyes, look at me!"

Knock Out did, first one eye, then quickly followed by the next one. He had glimpsed the yellow optic.

"B—?"

The medic gagged as the hand tightened, his throat dangerously cracking. His jaw clenched as he was shaken harder.

"Not Breakdown either! Do not mistake me for Breakdown or Optimus Prime!" Shouted Optimus Prime's voice with Breakdown's optic, but it wasn't either of them.

Knock Out squinted through the lingering pain in his head and the tight hand around his throat, but still he saw Breakdown's eye—glaring at him with such an intense level of anger and hate, something his partner had never aimed at him before.

Finally the hand released him with a final shake, and Knock Out fell to his knees, gasping.

"Look. At. Me." Ground out Optimus' voice, and Knock Out did. The voice's owner even looked like Optimus, but not quite. His paint job was dirtier and more unflattering than the Autobot leader's. And it had Breakdown's eye. Only MECH's Cybertronian prototype would have that. The one Knock Out had only seen as a veritable skeleton, but even then it had talked a bit. Was aware. Had noticed him. Recognized him.

Knock Out stared at the creature.

"Now do you recognize me?"

The medic nodded, trying to control himself.

He reminded himself to cycle his vents when the creature transformed a gun and aimed it for his head.

"I want my eye back."

Knock Out knew there were better ways to handle this. Against all better judgment and what most people would expect from him, he went with his spark's first instinct.

"It's not yours," Knock Out spat out, his own red eyes burning up at MECH's little science experiment.

MECH's creature shook with rage and his stolen eye narrowed dangerously and the blaster hummed. Knock Out closed his eyes, hoping it would be quick.

"I was made with them first—!" The creature's vents cycled fast. "Well, maybe technically not first, but it was first to me, those were my eyes, are my eyes!"

Knock Out's own eyes snapped open, surprised and alarmed by the creature's ranting, for it sounded like Optimus that ranted, and Knock Out could not remember that calm baritone ever being that frenzied before. There was something utterly unnerving about it.

The medic knew his chances were not good for escape; he was bound, unable to really effectively fight back, while his captor was fully armed and fully mobile. He couldn't even transform, and forget about running on foot—this creature was free to transform as well. It had Breakdown's other eye; clearly MECH had taken his remains, and if they had those, they could've installed their experiment with his T-Cog...

Though escape looked unlikely, Knock Out still instinctively recoiled from the creature that ranted with Optimus' voice and bore his partner's eye, a completely disconcerting mix.

Breakdown's optic flashed dangerously from Optimus' face, and the MECH creature quickly lunged forward and brutally backhanded Knock Out with his blaster. Apparently even the little distance the medic had gained was too far for the creature.

Knock Out tasted dirt in addition to the fresh spill of mech fluid in his mouth now, a truly disgusting taste.

A large rough hand pulled him up by his head from the dirt. The other grabbed his chin, squeezed his cheeks. The MECH creature looked down at him with Breakdown's eye, yet he used Optimus' larger frame to still keep him pinned to the ground.

"I could just take your eye, and Mother-Father would put it back in my head for me," snarled the MECH creature, and Knock Out was surprised by how...petulant, he sounded. Almost pouting.

Knock Out tried to talk, ended up mumbling instead, so tight was the creature's grip on his mouth. He wondered why MECH's creature didn't just take his eye in the first place. He wondered what the pit was going on. The last thing he remembered was fighting the Autobots.

"What?" The creature asked, finally letting go of his mouth, and sounding much calmer, curious even. Knock Out panted, and mulled over what to say, now that he had the chance.

"I can't give you Breakdown's eye."

The creature definitely pouted. "Then I'll just have to take yours."

"So any optic will do?"

"Yes. I only need two eyes, like everyone else."

"Well now, I know a Cybertronian who was born with only one eye—"

The creature blinked at him, even more curious. Knock Out's spark twisted at the sight. Now that was a look Breakdown would give him.

"Really?"

"Uh huh."

"That's—that is interesti—" MECH's creature shook himself, and insisted with a snarl, "That's good for him or her or whatever, but not me, I want two eyes!"

"And you will have them! Just not Breakdown's or mine."

"Ah. All right. Someone else's. And you will insert them for me?"

"Of course."

The creatue nodded. "Good. Whose?"

Knock Out said the first name to pop into his mind. "Airachnid's."

The medic's spark froze at that. Was he really...? Yes, this was his opportunity, and his hand was being forced more than usual. Spare Breakdown's remains and himself while targeting Airachnid at the same time? Yes, there was an opportunity here.

Knock Out opened his mouth to explain to MECH's creature, but he cut him off. "Ah, her."

It was the medic's turn to blink curiously at the creature. "You know her?"

"What records I have indicate that Mother-Father—"

"Is that MECH?" Knock Out remembered Breakdown telling him their apparent leader's name. "Silas?"

"Both, of course."

Knock Out sighed. "Of course." He felt exhausted. "What records?"

"Records that Mother-Father and Airachnid had worked together for a time to target Jack Darby and Arcee."

The medic had no clue who Jack Darby was, but he could guess what MECH wanted with Arcee and...to the pit with all that, Airachnid had worked with those nasty little skinjobs—?

Knock Out felt his vision blinded by a growing rage for a moment. Then it unclouded as his anger cooled, but didn't vanish.

"So you and I will get Airachnid's eye?"

Knock Out nodded at the creature. "Yes. Both, actually. So that your new eyes will match, and I can have both Breakdown's back—all of his remains too. I want your help in retrieving those."

The creature nodded back. "All right." Then he blinked, slowly. "I will try to help you secure the rest of Breakdown's remains, but I'm uncertain of their current state, my records don't include that infromation." Finally the creature said, "My name is Nemesis Prime, by the way."

Knock Out blinked again, slowly this time. "After the ship?" His voice was very dry.

"Uh huh." Then the creature looked down at his chest, starting to shift. "Now, Knock Out—"

"Wait, N-Nemesis, how did you know the ship's—?"

Knock Out's question died in his throat as Nemesis' chest opened up and out popped a female human's upper torso, breathing in the fresh air deeply.

"—what do I do with her?"

The medic worked his mouth soundlessly for a moment.

"What you could do with her is to let her go!"

The human woman snapped, eyes flashing up at Nemesis.

Nemesis just looked down at her and calmly said, "You're my only guarantee that the Autobots will leave us alone."

"She's...your...hostage?" Knock Out finally said. He was feeling particularly slow right now. Which was strange, he'd come up with a similar plan himself while under Starscream's reign; abduct a human and lure the Autobots into a trap for Breakdown to total them—

Knock Out took a breath. Reminded himself to control his thoughts and emotions better.

"Yes, she is. Her name is June Darby. Mother of Jack Darby, whom I mentioned before."

The human grumbled, finally looking at Knock Out. "I thought you were his hostage too, but it sounds like you guys just struck a deal."

"Er, yes. That we did." And to Knock Out's alarm he realized a total human stranger may have an idea of his genuine attachment to another person. Scrap.

Knock Out shook himself, and tried to refocus on Nemesis, but still his gaze drifted to the human. Actually, she was easier to focus on, than Breakdown's eye staring out from Optimus' face.

"You, ah, took a human hostage without knowing how to—?"

Again, Nemesis pouted. "I know she must be fed. I just wasn't sure exactly how..." The MECH creature shook himself, and grumbled, "Either way, you can help me feed her now."

Knock Out was silent a moment, then tried to gently suggest, "She might just slow us down. Perhaps it would be better to simply leave her...?"

"I like that plan," June said eagerly, nodding. "That's a good plan."

To the medic's relief, Nemesis did not explode again. After the initial mistake over identity, Knock Out noticed the creature had kept its calm for the most part. Instead, Nemesis seemed to hesitate, thinking things over.

Finally he shook his head. "No, that's just something we'll have to deal with. I cannot trust the Autobots to leave us alone after returning their human to them."

And with that Nemeis transformed and reconnected to his trailer. Even his alt mode was very similar to Optimus.'

When Knock Out crouched down, he noted that June was restrained by a seat belt in Nemesis' cab, and glowering out the window.

"So first we get June food, and then you'll take us to Airachnid."

Knock Out transformed, checking to see if his nav system was functional. It was, and he searched; when he found the most suitable place for the human to refuel, he marked it, the nav line on his systems now pointing to it.

"Easier said than done. We'll have to find her, I don't know exactly where she is," the medic reluctantly admitted, hoping it wasn't a deal breaker with Nemesis.

But all the creature said was that he understood, and soon he was following Knock Out's lead.