Well, I'm updating this story too. Does anyone happen to know a RochGadsec87?

Chapter Eleven: Hypothermia

The snowflakes fell so slowly, they were like wingless fairies dancing through the air. Mercy was about seventy-five yards into the forest now, and everything was dead looking. The only sound was the wind whistling through the treetops and the frozen earth crunching beneath the android's feet. Mercy wasn't exactly sure where she was going; it seemed like it had been ages since she last came out into that forest. When had been the last time she had come out here? It was with her father, he took her out to the river to teach her how to fish when she was only six years old.

A river.

Mercy stopped dead in her tracks. There was a river out here somewhere beneath the snow. Chances were it was swollen well above its banks and raging like any river would be in the spring time. But it was still winter, and there was still a good chance that the river was frozen over as well. Swallowing her fear back, the android slowly dragged one foot in front of the other and continued forward. There was no way she was going to let a river stop her from her escape.

Megatron got up from the couch angered since he had clearly heard Mercy 's message: "Goodbye, Master." He hoped, for Mercy's sake, that she was only messing with his mind and that she was not really gone. If she was, when he found her, she would be going through a living hell. The decepticon leader's hope of finding Mercy in her room dimmed though with every step he took towards it.

He reached it, and slowly reached out to take the doorknob in his hand. When the cold metal hit his own metal hand, he swiftly unlocked the door and flung it open. The curtains were blowing into the room and the screen to the window lay abandoned on the floor. Both fear and rage immediately began pulsing through his circuits as he ran over to the window and found Mercy's footprints. From the looks of it, she had only been gone for a few minutes. "Primus," he breathed, "don't let anything happen to that girl."

He was afraid something would happen to her, something that would prove to be fatal to both of them. And he was angry because Mercy had defied his authority again.

Jumping through the window, Megatron flew through the frozen world following the android's trail. It could be a game of cat and mouse, Megatron the cat and Mercy the mouse.

"Ready or not Mercy, here I come."

Mercy didn't need a second warning. When she heard Megatron's voice, she took off running into the forest. Though she had never seen Megatron fly before, she knew he could. And if the android didn't hurry, she was as good as caught. Tree roots and other unseen obstacles seemed to scatter out of Mercy's way, either they wanted to help, or they were afraid of upsetting the android. Mercy ran for what seemed like miles , unstopping, too afraid to stop and be found by her Master. The android was forced to a halt though when she came upon the river. The river, so alive and full of fury that Mercy could hear it screaming from beneath the ice that covered it. It was nearly deafened by the ice though, but the ice couldn't completely suppress its might. Glancing behind her swiftly, Mercy noticed that she had come deep into the forest and assumed that Megatron was only minutes behind her. The android knew she only had three options: give up, hide, or cross the river.

Mercy shuddered at the idea of giving up; that's the last thing she would do, and thus she immediately terminated that option. And then there was hiding, but that wouldn't work either, Megatron could easily follow her footprints and locate her. That left her with only one option remaining: to cross the river. The android knew she would have to bite back her fear of water in order to make it across, heck, she would have to risk her life on the thickness of the ice. If Mercy crossed the river safely, she could keep running and get out of the forest and hide. But if she fell through the ice, the icy water would cause her systems to freeze, which would immediately mean death. The android didn't have time to think about that now, Megatron was gaining on her and she had no more time to waste.

Shakily, she slid a foot out onto the ice and then slid her other foot up next to it. The ice held. With a bit of reassurance, Mercy took a couple more slow steps. There was no cracking, and the river wasn't that wide, it was only sixteen feet or so. With caution, Mercy advanced forward at a turtle's pace. Her heart was pounding wildly in her chest, out of fear and endurance to get to the other side. Slide this foot, and then the next, and repeat. That's how Mercy went, and before she knew it, she was nearly halfway across the river. The android knew she couldn't stop or else she could never make herself move forward again. She had to constantly tell herself that she was one step closer to safety with every step she took.

GROAN, CRACK, SPLASH.

A sheet of ice collapsed downstream from Mercy and sunk into the freezing water. Mercy froze. What had she been thinking? Was it really worth risking her life to get away from Megatron? She must have had a momentary glitch to attempt a preposterous stunt like this. The android whimpered as her legs began to tremble from fright. She had to move, she just couldn't stand there and wait for death to come. No, she had about eight more feet to go, she could do it. Mercy closed her eyes and continued her shuffle across the ice.

CRACK.

The android felt panic sear through her circuits as water, as cold as the sun is hot, began pooling around her feet. The ice she was currently walking across was thinner and couldn't hold her weight. Fear prevented her from moving, the freezing water held her feet prisoner to the ice. What was she to do? Stand there and die? Megatron would come too late, she had to force herself to move.

The android shifted her weight...and the ice crumpled beneath her. Mercy plummeted into the freezing depths of the roaring river.

She sank right down to the bottom and the current, hungry and eager, swallowed her whole. Mercy felt her head throb and realized she must have hit it on the ice as she fell in. Her body was scraped mercilessly along the sharp rocky bottom of the river. Twigs and other hazardous debris in the water slammed into her and then continued on downstream. The android tried with all the strength she could muster to plant her feet into the ground and stop herself from being dragged down the river anymore. Her strenuous efforts failed completely and miserably.

In a second attempt, Mercy began kicking her legs and waving her arms around; even if she couldn't swim, it was best to try to at least stay warm. The android felt herself slowly float to the surface of the water, but there was no surface, just ice. She began pounding her fists against it, trying to break it and grab hold of it. Mercy was moving too fast though, and her fists would just scrape along the icy surface. The freezing water hindered her movements anyway. Despite herself, the android began to shiver, calmly at first and then more violently.

All at once she could feel her systems start to freeze. The energon flowing through her circuits was beginning to feel like liquid ice. Mercy knew death was dawning upon her now, and she couldn't fight it away. She was going to die, and her and Megatron were going to take a one way trip to the void, to darkness, to solitude, to a world of nothing.

Mercy was slammed against something suddenly. Her hair was entangled in something and she couldn't pull it free. Blindly, the android felt through the raging current and realized she had been pinned against a tree. The water wasn't flowing with her now, but against her. It had been against her since the very beginning. Mercy didn't bother to struggle, there wasn't any use in struggling. The water had already clearly won.

"Mercy, make this easier on yourself and tell me where in the pit you are."

The android felt her heart skip a beat. It was Megatron, a very angry and snarling Megatron, but Mercy couldn't have been happier to hear his devilishly wonderful voice. But when she tried to formulate her answer, she realized that he thoughts were delayed and her CPU was beginning to cease to function. If her CPU went, her heart and her life would leave the world hand in hand together.

Her thoughts stuttered but she managed to process, "I fell into…a deep and…cold…hell."

"What are you talking about? Are you injured?"

"Condition for survival…quickly…deteriorating…death imminent." Mercy really had no control over that thought. It just came out, like her CPU was speaking for itself. She felt like a radio station, transmitting and receiving messages with absolutely no control.

"Quit fooling around Mercy! Where the slag are you?"

"Fell…ice…cold…water…dying."

Megatron felt his mech-fluids churn. Was Mercy telling the truth or not? Was she really dying or not? He knew he couldn't risk not seeing if she was. He was terrified now, what if the android was telling the truth?

"Where are you Mercy?"

"Dying…under the ice."

That was it, Megatron didn't need anymore convincing. He flew faster along the trail of her footprints knowing he didn't have anytime to waste, Mercy didn't have anymore time to waste. The decepticon leader couldn't lose her and be sent back to the void for all eternity. Fear and adrenaline pushed him ever faster forward.

"Stay with me Mercy…please, I'm coming."

"Can't stay…awake."

"Please Mercy, I swear I'm coming. Now talk to me, that's an order."

"It's so cold…and dark…can't see."

"Don't stop Mercy."

"S-S-So cold…"

"Mercy please!"

"I-I-I'm s-s-sorry, M-Master…"

He felt her connection die and knew she was unconscious. He didn't have much time now, only a few minutes.

"Mercy, please, please, please hold on."

Megatron realized he was begging…begging to Mercy, begging for Mercy.

It felt like an eternity had gone by before Megatron finally got to the river. He observed immediately that Mercy's footprints ended at a hole in the ice on the river. Knowing that he was more resistant to the cold than the android was, and that there was no time left to waste, Megatron dove through the ice and into the water. It was so dark beneath the ice, Megatron had to brighten his optic sensors just so he could see. Moving with the current, the decepticon leader desperately combed through the water looking for Mercy.

He wasn't sure how far he floated before he came across a fallen tree in the river before him. The decepticon leader tried to find a way around it, and as he looked, his optics fell upon Mercy. Elation stung its way through him as he rode the current over to her. Her limbs were stiff and felt like ice, and Megatron knew she was close to death. Quickly gathering her in his arms, he went to fly out of the river, but Mercy was pulled back. Megatron noticed Mercy's hair was caught tightly amongst the twigs on the tree. Without much thought, Megatron grabbed hold of her hair, and yanked. The twigs gave and Megatron burst through the ice with Mercy, flew above the treetops, and started flying as fast as he could back to the android's house.

By the time Megatron arrived back to the house and got Mercy inside, her hair was decorated in a heavy frost. Not to mention his own armor had frost formed on it as well. The decepticon leader disregarded the frost though, knowing he had to get Mercy warm. But how? He had to get her wet clothes off her first…and chances were pretty high she'd blow a circuit at him for that…if she survived.

He started carrying her to her bedroom, but he paused as he walked by the bathroom. The shower…if he put the water on the highest degree it could go, that might revive Mercy. Megatron then took Mercy into the bathroom and carefully laid her on the floor. Kneeling beside her, he tugged off her shoes and then her jeans--which was not an easy task since they were soaking wet--and then finally her jacket and shirt. Deciding not to embarrass Mercy any further, he left her bra and underwear on. She had chosen a good day to wear black undergarments.

Megatron then went to the shower and turned the water on to the hottest it could go. When the shower was ready, he took Mercy in his arms and went inside the shower with her. Megatron held Mercy up on her feet, but since she obviously couldn't stand without support, her body rested fully on his. Her body felt so cold, he could not decide if she was going to live or die. If Mercy had stayed a minute longer in that freezing water, Megatron knew he'd be back in the void right now.

And like the earth had melted away, Megatron suddenly saw himself holding Mercy inside the void. It was so familiar and so terrifying, he felt himself tense with unease. Had Mercy died? Was that why he was back here in the void now? Oh he hated death. He hated it completely and utterly, and not because it was painful, but because it was an end. Death meant never again talking to someone, never again trying to accomplish a dream, never again doing anything. And death was so cold…the void had no warmth whatsoever. And that's what Megatron hated about it…the void was a hell, but it wasn't any fiery abyss. It was hallow, nothing, just dark swirling masses of emptiness. There was no time and there was no escape. It was completely dark, darker than a night without a moon, and it was a terrible place to be sentenced to. An abyss…an abyss of nothing. But like waking up from a nightmare, Megatron looked around and saw that he was back in the shower with a still lifeless Mercy.

"Wake up Mercy, please wake up."

The android did nothing; she didn't flinch, breathe, make any sort of noise or anything. Megatron feared that at any moment he would find himself floating back through the void, still dead, with no way of living again. The decepticon leader didn't know how else to get the android warm. He clenched his teeth as "if only's" began running through his head. If only I had paid closer attention to Mercy. If only I hadn't locked her in her room. If only I hadn't acted as such a tyrant.

Megatron looked down at her, her head was resting on his chest. She looked peaceful, and Megatron supposed death could make anyone look at peace if it chose to. The decepticon leader sighed heavily. There was no way he could revive Mercy, and thus prepared for his return to the void.

"Mercy I'm…Mercy I'm sorry."

Without warning, Mercy suddenly coughed and vomited freezing cold river water down Megatron's front. He was appalled, but at the same time elated. But his concern returned when Mercy began to shiver quite violently.

Pulling her closer to him, he asked, "Are you alright?"

"J-J-Jusssst freez-z-zing c-c-cold," she replied quietly, "Am I-I n-naked?"

Megatron smirked, "No. Let's just get you out of here and dried off."

Mercy shook her head and grasped his armor tighter. "N-No," she trembled, "I don't want t-to fall b-back into the river."

Megatron wasn't sure if she had lost perceptual contact with the environment or was hallucinating as he said, "Calm down Mercy, you're back home. You're no where near the river." He then leaned over and turned the shower off.

Mercy slowly and shakily let go of Megatron and pulled back the shower curtain. Grabbing a towel, she wrapped it around herself and then turned back to Megatron, who had exited the shower as well. "Can you help me?" she asked quietly.

"With what?"

"Could you get-t-t me s-some clothes? I d-don't-t care if they match or n-not, I just-t want something warm."

Sighing, Megatron pushed by Mercy and left the bathroom. Mercy thought for sure she had upset him, that he wasn't going to come back with clothes and that she'd have to get warm by herself. And she knew her systems were still trying to recover and begging for warmth…if she didn't get help from him, she'd feel cold for a long time, and she hated being cold. Just as her irrationality and poor judgment were just about to make her burst into tears, Megatron returned to the bathroom with a pile of clothes in hand.

She took the clothes and watched with tears in her eyes as he left the room and shut the door behind him. Mercy then blinked away the tears and quickly dried herself off with the towel. Digging through the clothes, she saw Megatron had gotten her a plain gray sweatshirt with black wind pants that had a red stripe down the side. He had also gotten her a plain red long-sleeved shirt. He had gotten her a pair of wool socks, and Mercy hadn't even known that she owned wool socks. Megatron even remembered her undergarments. For a moment it made her wonder: does he really care?

Though shaking and stumbling, it didn't take Mercy that long to get dressed. Once she had her dry clothes on, the android turned to the mirror only to see her hair was a complete disaster. Twigs and leaves had been woven into her hair so tightly, it felt like forever had gone by before she finally got one twig out. Not to mention her stiff, shaking hands were making the task nearly impossible. It didn't take her too long to become frustrated to the point of tears. She madly blinked them back and continued the endless fuss with her hair. Not realizing she had been in the bathroom for nearly forty-five minutes, it surprised the android when Megatron suddenly knocked on the door and asked, "Are you dressed?"

"Yes."

Without permission, the decepticon leader entered the bathroom and saw Mercy trying futilely to tame her wild mane. He made as if he rolled his optics and walked up to Mercy. The android watched him in the mirror as he picked up her brush and then said, "Come, this bathroom is much too cramped for me."

Mercy looked to him with uncertainty written upon her face. And then a phenomenon occurred. It was barely noticeable, but Megatron gave a small smile; not an evil smile, but one of understanding. Mercy felt numb, but not from her nearly frozen systems. Is that sympathy in his optics?

"Alright, I'll testify right now, I've never held one of these instruments you call a brush before, and I most certainly have never done anyone's hair because where I'm from, nobody has hair. So, since you're too cold to do your own disastrous hair, I will, and if turns out like hell…by the time I'm done with it, it'll look a lot better than the style you're showcasing currently," explained the decepticon leader.

Mercy couldn't help but smile as she said in response, "I didn't n-need a ssspeech."

Megatron shook his head in compliance, "No you didn't. You're a brilliant girl, you would've assumed all that."

"What did I t-t-tell you about-t assume?" questioned Mercy and then she added, "And was t-that a c-c-compliment?"

"No, I was lying," Megatron replied sarcastically causing Mercy to roll her eyes. He smirked and then put an arm around the android's shoulders and led her out into the living room.

Mercy felt blind and dazed by this treatment she was receiving from him. It was so unlike Megatron, and so entirely out of his character that Mercy was left to believe some good spirit had suddenly possessed him. But how long would that good spirit stay? Probably not for long, not once it saw all the evil the decepticon leader had living inside of him.

Megatron directed Mercy over to the recliner chair. He took a seat in it and motioned for Mercy to sit between his legs. The android hesitated for a few moments before she slowly took her appointed seat on the chair. Megatron knew that in order to get the brush through Mercy's hair, he would have to remove all the debris from the purple locks first. Gently--a word the decepticon leader is not normally associated with--Megatron began freeing the tangled strands from twigs and leaves. It didn't take him more than fifteen minutes to complete the task, and then he took the brush in hand. Starting at the bottom of her hair, Megatron eased the brush through it. A few snarls tried to halt his progress, but it wasn't long before the decepticon leader had tamed the end of Mercy's hair. He then moved to the roots, and it wasn't too long before he had brushed out all of Mercy's hair.

Setting the brush on the coffee table next the chair--where the twigs and other debris from Mercy's hair currently laid--Megatron relaxed back into the chair. He pulled Mercy onto his lap and held her against him. He reclined the chair and sighed, "Let me know if this isn't doing enough to warm you. You've only got me concerned because you're still shivering quite violently."

Concerned?

"Well," said Mercy, "a blanket-t or t-two would be n-nice."

"You could've told me that before I got comfortable."

Comfortable?

"I c-can get them m-myself," Mercy stated sitting up and climbing out of the chair.

Megatron watched her go down the hallway and return a few seconds later with two fleece blankets. Mercy went to go settle herself on the couch until Megatron cleared his throat and motioned for her to come to him. The android realized that Megatron wanted her to use the heat from his body to get warm. Either that or he had totally lost his mind and wanted to physically feel her presence around him. Without much of an option, Mercy resettled herself against Megatron as he pulled the blankets over them.

Though the android felt out of her element and zone of comfort, she felt strangely at peace. Like she had gained a new acceptance or a goal she had been struggling to reach. And it prompted her to ask, "Are you c-cold too?"

"A bit. I'm more resistant to the cold than you are."

"You know…you're not the most comfortable thing to be lying against."

She heard Megatron smirk, "No, I suppose not."

There was a long pause before Mercy finally blurted, "Aren't you mad at me?"

"Mercy--

"I'm sorry M-Megatron, please d-don't yell," she exclaimed as tears began to leak out of her eyes, "I should've listened to you from th-the b-beginning and I never should have t-tested your authority. But please d-don't yell at me or hurt me anymore."

"Mercy, calm down. Yes I'm mad, but I think you learned your lesson on your own this time. I'm not going to yell and I'm not going to hurt you."

"Oh Megatron," she sobbed into his chest, "The water was so d-dark and it was so c-cold. And I was so scared, I thought for sure I was g-going to die, but you saved me, whether it was for y-your own personal gain or not, I don't care. You saved my life."

It was then Megatron recognized how lucky he was to be coming back to life through Mercy. Any other human female would have been terrified into submission by him, and should would've done everything he had said. It would be so boring, dull, lame. Heck, Megatron could've been stuck coming back though a human male, which would have been interesting as well, but somehow it didn't settle well with his "stomach." Even worse, he could've come back through a human older than the hills or a newborn. The decepticon leader shuddered at the thought.

But he had been blessed with Mercy. Mercy, who didn't fear him in the least, who didn't respect his authority, who didn't know how to learn the lesson, who was evil, who kept things interesting, who stood up for what she believed. She was so smart, and she knew how to feel. She could smile, she could pout, she could yell, she could stutter, and she wasn't afraid to cry. And Megatron could only do some of these things. He lost any heart that he may have had so long ago. War had destroyed him, most likely changed him into something he was not. Though he did not mind who he was, he was not proud of what he had become.

"You're welcome, Mercy."

Mercy felt his hand gently stroke through her hair. The android wasn't exactly sure how, but she knew Megatron was showing a side of himself that hardly anyone has seen. Only an exceptional few, perhaps close comrades or friends, possibly any lovers that he had had. But Mercy wasn't sure what category she fell into. Was she a comrade? Was she a friend? Was she more than all those? Or was she less than all that?

She had to satisfy her curiosity and therefore asked, "Megatron, how do you view me?"

"How do I view you?" he repeated letting his optics go offline.

"You know, like a friend."

"Well…" he trailed off to think about what to say, and after a few minutes replied, "I don't think there is a word in existence that could describe our relationship. We fight, we get along, we fall apart, we fall together, we understand, we don't understand. Look at this morning, look at us now. I'd have to say we're cooperative enemies."

Mercy smirked as she rested her head under his chin and remarked, "Talk about an oxymoron."

"I guess so. What do you say we move to a more comfortable place before I fall asleep?"

"If you insist."

"Alright then…your bed is big enough."

"Big enough?" questioned Mercy.

"For us," Megatron replied noticing that Mercy's shivering had died down a bit.

The android looked up at him like he couldn't be serious and Megatron smirked seeing her expression and said, "You worry at the thought of lying in the same bed with me, but you don't protest over the position we're in now."

She sighed, "I guess you've got a point."

The decepticon leader didn't say anything and proceeded to sit up in the chair, Mercy forced to move with him. He then took the android in his arms and carried her to her room. He laid her on the inside of the bed and then he laid down himself pulling the blankets over them. The decepticon leader noticed that Mercy slept with a lot of blankets, for security and warmth most likely. Megatron was just to settle into a comfortable position when Mercy inquired, "Um...are you going to leave the window open?"

Megatron looked at the window that was still missing the screen and which cold air was leaking through. Frowning, he got up from the bed and shut the window not even bothering with the screen. He then got back in the bed beside Mercy and covered back up. The android was lying on the side of the bed next to the wall, and she had always liked sleeping closer to the wall. If she slept without a wall next to her, she was always afraid she would fall off her bed. But now she had Megatron on the other side of her to completely prevent her from falling off the bed...and it felt odd. She rolled over on her side so that she was facing the wall.

It felt like they were sharing everything now...they were sharing the same house, the same room, the same bed, the same blankets, the same pillow, and the same life. And now...it felt like they were making progress in some unknown goal, it felt like they were getting closer together even though neither of them cared to get that close to the other.

Mercy felt Megatron's arms snake around her waist and pull her directly against him. He was facing her...looking at her...she could feel his optics staring into her back. She listened as he shifted and a shiver ran down her spine when she felt his breath hit the back of her head. Mercy slowly rolled over and looked at Megatron who was looking down at her. He looked angry and she went to sit up, but Megatron's hand caught her shoulder and held her firmly where she was. Her heart beat increased as she listened to the decepticon leader's hand drag so slowly from her shoulder, along her sweater, and to her exposed neck. Cupping her cheek in his hand, he leaned forward so that his face seemed only a breath away. His other arm held her so close to him, the android felt like she had the protection of a thousand armies. And slowly...ever so slowly, she could feel her frozen systems warming.

"Don't runaway again, not without me," breathed Megatron with utmost affection and compassion, and so close to the android that his lips grazed along Mercy's as he said it.

Her bottom lip quivered and she buried her head beneath Megatron's chin, sobbing.

And so ends this chapter...please review and no flames!