This is my favourite chapter so far. I'm not exactly sure why, but it's probably because it's EPIC! :P

Anyway, I loved writing it, reading it and re-reading it. I have no problems with it and I hope you all like it!

Enjoy!

Chapter Eight: The Sound of Music

Blurr suddenly felt very warm, too warm. He opened his eyes slowly, seeing his still-human hands and realising the whole thing hadn't been a dream. He pushed himself from the floor and looked about him. He was back on Cybertron, in the Autobot High Council meeting hall! But something was wrong, the walls of the room were ablaze, the windows were shattered and where there should have been Ultra Magnus, Perceptor, Alpha Trion and the rest of them, every single one of them had been replaced by Longarm. Blurr could only stare at the multiple Longarms in shock as he stood up, and as he did so they sneered at him in perfect unison.

"Welcome back, Agent Blurr," they said together. "How nice of you to join us."

Still in perfect unison, they shifted into Shockwave, and those cycloptic faces all glared at him like a hunter with his prey. Blurr shivered slightly in fear, but swallowed his terror and looked at the one in Ultra Magnus' place with confidence.

"I remember you now," he said. "I remember that it was you who tried to kill me." If the Shockwaves had had mouths, they'd have been sneering.

"Well, at least it saves me explaining it for you," they said. The guns came up, glowing as they prepared to fire, but Blurr clearly remembered the realisation Prowl had had. Nothing here was real.

The guns fired but Blurr was already in the air, somersaulting impossibly high before landing back on the ground with grace. The Shockwaves all seemed stunned, but continued their united attack. Blurr dodged and leapt out of the way, imagining that he was an Autobot again. But then, as he thought that, something changed.

Blurr was suddenly the right height again, and his human flesh was changing to his usual blue and black body as he looked at himself. His armour seemed to sprout out of his body and all the colour literally left his face, leaving it white as it should be. He ran a servo over his helm, grinning as he felt his fin was back. Blurr looked up at Shockwave with a challenge in his optics.

"Think you can beat me now?" he taunted, but Shockwave only stared at him.

"You could be anything you wanted to be, Blurr," the Shockwaves declared. "But in here, I have control."

The ground shook violently, causing Blurr to wobble before he found his footing once more. But that wasn't enough, he realised, as a number of robotic arms burst through the floor and began to grab at him. He gasped in surprise, but then his optics narrowed as he concentrated on dodging the grabbing servos. Once again he set to leaping about, using his speed to dodge easily. From time to time he shot a glance at the Shockwaves, and every time they all had their single red optic trained on him.

Blurr found a perch high above the ground, running up the wall and leaping off to an enormous light fixture hanging from the ceiling. But as soon as he grabbed a hold of the light, it vanished. Blurr yelled in surprise as he fell to the floor. He landed with a thump and instantly the arms were on him, grabbing a hold of him with impossible strength. Blurr tried to pull back against them, but they were far too strong, and before long he felt that they weren't trying to pull him apart, but pull him below the floor.

With a sickening clarity Blurr realised he was sinking, the arms dragging him beneath the polished metal they'd sprouted from. He grew desperate, wrenching his arms away with vigour only to have them pulled back down harder. Blurr was up to his chest in the floor, and the arms were beginning to grab at his shoulders and cranial unit. Everything seemed lost, but he refused to give up. He pulled and struggled and even tried to bite the arms, but nothing worked.

But then everything just stopped. The arms were still clinging to him, keeping him in place, but he wasn't being dragged down anymore. He looked up at the Shockwave stood in Ultra Magnus' spot. There was a harsh glare to his optic, as there was to every other optic in the room, but then it softened into a mocking stare.

"What is there left for you, Blurr?" Shockwave purred. "You've nothing left. You can't be of any use to Intelligence without your memories." Blurr was about to retort, saying that he had them back, but something happened. He felt as if everything he knew was being torn out of his processor, all the memories he'd regained slipping away.

But then Shockwave pushed one button too many. He raised a servo to a door behind him. It slid open, revealing nothing but darkness, but out of it stepped a little red femme. Out of it stepped Flash Bang.

"Divine, isn't she?" Shockwave sneered. "To bad she doesn't want you."

As he said this, Flash Bang came to stand by Shockwave's side, wrapping her arms around one of Shockwave's and hanging off him like so many lusty femmes had hung from Blurr during his racing days. For a moment, Blurr couldn't do anything, he just stared, but as he took in the scene, he felt a raging anger build up inside him. He watched as Shockwave ran a claw beneath Flash Bang's pointed chin, making her faceplates heat up and causing her to shiver in pleasure. But then, his stroke turned to a grip. Shockwave gently laced his claws around her chin, looping his other servo around her waist and drawing her in.

Blurr didn't have to see Shockwave crush his featureless faceplate against Flash Bang's to start seeing red, but it worked anyway. Anger tore through Blurr like scissors through paper, and the next thing he knew a chainsaw erupted from his arm and he was using it to slash away at the arms holding him down. Metal, oil and cables went flying everywhere and Blurr was soon free, clambering through the deactivated arms and heading directly for the Shockwave that was holding Flash Bang.

He was nearly there, but just as he reached out to the barrier around the platform, the arms reactivated. Blurr was quickly submerged in the grappling arms, but this time he slashed them as they came, slicing through them before they could drag him down. He reached out as he made it forward, grabbing the barrier and pulling himself up, slashing at the arms that still clung to him. He pushed up against the barrier, leaping into the air. He flipped himself over and looked directly at Shockwave, who was still "kissing" Flash Bang. Blurr knew it wasn't real, but he just didn't care. He raised his chainsaw as he fell and, as soon as he was in reach, he brought it down through the Decepticon's cranial unit.

There was an ear splitting screech as the chainsaw tore through Shockwave, which was followed by an enormous howl of rage and finally a shockwave like the Decepticon before him was named after. Blurr was thrown backwards, straight into the arms, but they were completely dead now and snapped like brittle twigs as he landed on them. After he'd landed, Blurr looked around him, and saw that all the Shockwaves had gone, leaving Flash Bang alone. After a moment the arms withered away and vanished, leaving the floor perfectly smooth as it had been before. Blurr stood up again and looked over at the femme. She was just stood there, not looking at anything in particular. Blurr vaulted back over the barrier and onto the platform.

"Flash Bang?" he said quietly. She just continued to stare off into space, in the general direction of where Shockwave had been. Blurr waved a servo in front of her optics, but she did nothing. Blurr stood directly in front of her, as if commanding her attention. He snapped his digits and clapped his servos, but she didn't do anything at all. Blurr put his servos on her shoulders and shook her slightly. She moved like anyone would, but Blurr leapt back in horror as she began to melt, leaving liquid red all over his servos like human blood. Her red armour began to liquefy and drip to the floor, forming large puddles of molten metal. Blurr could only watch in horror as her circuits began to fizz and her optics offlined permanently. Chunks of her armour dropped to the ground and continued to melt, and all Blurr could do was offline his optics and scream.

That's when he woke up. He wasn't in his room; in fact he didn't have a clue where he was at all. His processor was aching terribly, and wherever he was, it was very dark. Only the faint glow of some nearby monitors gave light to the room. Blurr looked about him as he began to come round, but felt his cranial unit held in place by a number of cables. He reached up and pulled on one. It snapped off, making a fizzing sound, and instantly his processor ache felt noticeably better. He pulled the rest of them off and sighed in relief as the ache went completely. He shot one quick glance around the room, and his optics fell upon each of the other Autobots, all of who were strapped into units like the one he'd just freed himself from.

"Autobot escape: impossible," a voice said. It wasn't like anything Blurr had ever heard before, and sounded like it had been badly synthesised. Blurr looked up, only to reel back as a Decepticon lurched at him. He rolled off the berth as the Decepticon fell on it, stood up and then kicked him hard when he came for Blurr again. The Decepticon was thrown back by the force of Blurr's kick, and so Blurr took his chance. He shot a quick glance over his shoulder at the Autobots, and saw Flash Bang laid out on the berth furthest from him. He hesitated for a moment, unsure if he should go free her or not, but one last attempted attack from the Decepticon told Blurr he was in way over his cranial unit.

He revved his engines and sped out the door, only to find himself in a dimly lit corridor with no obvious way out. But then he noticed the lift at the end, partially concealed in shadow. He charged forwards, lacing his digits through the wire gate in front of it and throwing it open.

"Eject: Ravage," the Decepticon said. "Operation: capture or destroy." Blurr looked over his shoulder as he entered the lift. He watched as the Decepticon's chest opened up and a smaller, feline Decepticon leapt out. It padded forwards, growling softly, before leaping at the wire just as Blurr slammed it shut. The feline's claws grabbed onto the wire and it began to pull away at the door just as the lift began its ascent.

Blurr was enveloped in light as the lift resurfaced in the Autobot base. It was completely empty, not even Sari was there. Blurr stepped off just as the lift descended again, but Blurr didn't realise this until Ravage leapt out and pounced on him, bringing Blurr to the ground. The Decepticon roared in Blurr's audio sensors and raised a paw, preparing to strike. But Blurr flipped over, throwing an elbow at the jaguar and knocking him off his back before standing up and speeding out the door.

I'll be back for you, Flash, Blurr thought as he ran, conscious of the Decepticon following him. It was surprisingly fast, but not quick enough to keep up with him. Blurr sped through the streets, thankful the city was deserted with everyone at home for Christmas – well, that's what he guessed. Ravage stayed close on his tail, however, climbing the fire escape of one building and then leaping from rooftop to rooftop with unsurpassed skill. Blurr only moved faster, but the jaguar's route kept him close. Blurr was at a loss of what to do. This Decepticon could see where Blurr was going, so where could he run to?

But then Blurr saw the glimmering water of Lake Erie up ahead, and he found himself skidding to a halt on the docks. There was a metallic clatter as Ravage landed behind him, cornering Blurr between the water and his vicious fangs. Blurr turned to face the jaguar, narrowing his optics at the beast as it padded forwards in a fearfully threatening yet beautifully graceful manner. Blurr was stood at the very end of one of the piers. There weren't any boats nearby, and he didn't fancy trying to swim. There was only one thing he could do as Ravage blocked the end of the dock.

Ravage pounced, leaping high into the air, aiming for Blurr's cranial unit. Blurr dodged effortlessly, and as the jaguar sailed passed, he activated his chainsaw and brought it upwards, slicing through Ravage in one easy blow. The two halves of the jaguar fizzed and sparked as they fell into the water. All Blurr did was stare at the sinking corpse coldly.

Blurr released his intakes in a sudden gush not too different from a sigh, dropping his shoulders in relief. He jumped in fright, however, as the water behind him exploded and something leapt out. He turned round to see if Ravage had survived, but was surprised to see it wasn't the jaguar at all. It was a bright orange Autobot and, after leaping out of the water, it landed on a raft with two other Cybertronians and Sari onboard. Blurr recognised one of the Cybertronians; he'd been there when Blurr had been glued to those two Starscream clones and dragged through the space bridge. The other one, however, wasn't like anything Blurr had ever seen before. It was another animal-like Cybertronian, but it was far bigger than Ravage and a lot more bulky. After a moment, Blurr guessed it must have been one of the Dinobots he'd heard the others talk about.

"Blurr?" Sari called out to him. "You got away from Soundwave?"

"If you mean the big Decepticon that had me wired into that berth, then yes I did," Blurr shouted back as the raft came closer. "Who are these bots?"

"Allow me to introduce the Substitute Autobots," Sari declared abashedly. "Scrapper, Snarl and now Wreck-Gar. They're gonna help me save the others. You in?" Blurr punched one servo into the palm of the other.

"Naturally," he answered. "That Decepti-creep's got Flash and I am going to get her back."

Sari grinned almost knowingly as the raft came to a halt by the pier. Blurr helped the other bots onto the pier before turning to Sari, but not before Wreck-Gar slipped and nearly fell back into the water that he'd leapt from. Blurr grabbed the mech and pulled him upright in a flash.

"So what's the plan? Storm the base? Back attack? Pre-emptive strike?" Blurr asked.

"Heading for the base is probably our best bet," Sari replied. "After that, no idea. Substitute Autobots, roll out!" Everyone but Blurr shot ahead of her, leaving the two staring after them with slight surprise.

"Wait for me!" Sari shouted after them as she powered up her new jetpack. "I'm your leader!"

Blurr transformed to go after them and caught up just as Sari managed to stop them and took to complaining about their inability to follow orders. But Blurr wasn't paying attention to them; he was listening to a strange music that had filled the air. There was a moment of eerie calm before the sound of six vehicles – Optimus Prime and his crew – joined the almost haunting melody floating through the air. Blurr froze as his optics fell on Flash Bang and Sari glowered angrily at Soundwave hovering in the air with his enormous guitar in servo.

"Flash…?" Blurr said quietly. She didn't move, she didn't do anything, and the image of her melting in the virtual reality struck Blurr again. He shook it off as a wave of sound filled the air and Optimus' crew suddenly charged him and the other Substitutes.

"Flash Bang, stop!" Blurr yelled as he was tackled to the ground by the femme. She was about to throw one of her flash bang charges into his faceplate when he forced her off with his knee and rolled away. He stood up, only to be charged by her again. This time he dodged, and Flash Bang went careening down an alley, falling into an open dumpster. Blurr shot a quick glance at the other Substitutes before going after her. The others could manage without him for now.

Flash Bang managed to pull herself free of the dumpster and took one more charge at Blurr. Blurr braced himself as she came at him, grabbing her by the shoulders and shoving her backwards down the alley once more. This time, however, Blurr chased after her. Flash Bang was sprawled out on the pavement, gradually picking herself up as Blurr approached. She turned and glared angrily at him, and that's when he noticed her optics had turned Decepticon red.

"Flash Bang, what did he do to you?" Blurr asked her softly, but she just leapt at him again. This time, Burr put his chainsaw between himself and her, hoping she wouldn't be crazy enough to charge right onto it. She didn't, thankfully, but she did shove Blurr back against a wall, pressing the weapon towards Blurr's throat.

Meanwhile, Sari had realised how best to defeat Soundwave.

"Divide up! Attack on your own!" she yelled to the Substitutes. Scrapper and Wreck-Gar protested to this but she spat at them to do it. The group divided up and the effects were obvious instantly. The possessed Autobots began to struggle, their ability to coordinate their own attacks fell apart, and after a while they just stopped being of any good at all as Soundwave did his best to keep them all going. Blurr noticed the sudden change in Flash Bang's attacks, too, as her pressure on his chainsaw was growing weaker. Blurr took his chance and shoved back, eventually pinning her against the opposite wall, but she continued to resist.

"Flash Bang, stop this now!" Blurr yelled, the rotating chainsaw getting closer to his throat. "I'm not going to hurt you and I'll be slagged if I'm going to let you slice me up." But Flash Bang didn't stop. She was weaker, and Blurr could certainly overpower her, but he didn't want to hurt her and he had no idea of how to break her free of Soundwave's music. But then a thought came to him. It was daring, and it probably just a cheesy and idealistic way of getting out of the situation, but it was all he could think of.

Acting quickly, he deactivated his chainsaw, but kept her where she was by grabbing her wrists and holding them against the wall. She struggled against him, but everything seemed to stop as Blurr crushed his lip modules against hers.

For Blurr, it was an amazing sensation. He hadn't realised just how much she meant to him until Soundwave's virtual reality showed her in Shockwave's embrace. But now he could feel the sensation of love rushing through his circuits, and he just didn't want to stop. But after a moment, he forced himself to pull away. He looked at her and she looked back at him, her optics blue once more. She just stared, mouth open slightly in shock, and after a while she pushed him away with her servos and ran. Blurr didn't move to follow her; he just stared at the wall where she'd been. Bumblebee, himself once more, appeared at the end of the alley.

"Blurr, you okay?" he asked. Blurr turned and walked passed him, not bothering to answer.

It should have been ironic that there was mistletoe hanging from a window above where they'd been.

Wow, my first sad-ish bit. Makes a change, my writing is usually depressing as slag :P

Anyway, I increased the age rating just to be safe, more for the chapter after next but even so.

Please review!

:D