A Captured Beast Within a Human Skin

By Uniasus

Chapter 9 – Sally

Sally. He decided to call her Sally. Or rather, she had picked the name herself and Sam didn't complain. Because these past couple of days the All Spark was more expressive, more able to communicate with him. Not in terms of words, but simple emotions. Optimus had said the All Spark was a semi-conscious force, but at this point Sam was pretty sure it was fully conscious. Self aware. The whole she-bang. It didn't seem right to not give her a name, and she had some how taken an attachment to 'Sally'. At least it was a simple name.

He had now been with the Swiss for a full week. Underground, no sun. He had asked once go outside, even if it was at night, but was denied. Sam was however better taken care of than he was with the Air Force. Lenz or one of the other doctors would still perform tests on him, though today had been free from anything much more than 'do you feel any different today compared to yesterday?'. And he had a bed, better food, plus a handful of books to read.

It wasn't quite working though. He wasn't sleeping a lot. He just, didn't feel the need to lay down and close his eyes. Usually he slept a good 9 hours on weekends, when Bee let him (it hurt to think about those times and the frightening concept that they might never happen again), but now he was surviving on 4-5. The strange thing was he was never felt tired because of it. And it did mean he went through books rather quickly. And Sally made math puzzles easy to solve and greatly decreased the time needed for jigsaws. Can you say boredom?

Lenz had explained the day after the tests that Sam's brain waves were abnormal, which was expected. Apparently he ran on a higher energy level. Sam had asked what that meant but the Swiss man didn't answer and left Sam wondering just how bad the side effects were. Though it was hard to imagine what applied to normal humans applied to him.

He was constantly cold, sometimes shivering so violently he had a hard time getting out of bed. Lenz said it was a fever, but fevers he had in the past never lasted this long. It even increased to some degree he wasn't privy to up to his fourth day and than remained stagnant. He always wore a heavy coat one of the WWF guards gave him, sometimes coupled with his blanket.

It was also getting to be common for him to see things out of the corner of his eyes, dark moving shapes or flashes of lights that came from nowhere. He figured it was the fever playing with his head and ignored them, but one of them never really went away. There was a consistent bronzy-blue shape that would appear in corners, a form instead of a small blob. Sam could actually look at its fuzzy outline for half a second before it dissolved.

He didn't know how he knew, but it was Sally. Maybe. He called it such, talked to the shape, referred to it by her name out loud, and the All Spark in his mind would answer in the simple sentences it had developed to use. The guards and scientists most likely thought he was mad.

But it would pass, like all fevers did, and then he would see if Lenz was done with him, would release him to Bumblebee so he could curl on up on faux leather seats like those hellish days in college. So he could hear the soothing hum of engines, feel the slight vibrations that he associated with safety. So he could go home. And things would be normal. No fever, no shapes, a Sally he could distract with work. And a Spidey to sleep on his hip, a Lilith to talk to Bee, an Ed in the sky to watch him. No worries, just peace and clam and definitely no governments. Or Swiss chocolate.

If only the room wasn't spinning so, if his heart wasn't beating so fast, if the floor wasn't rising up to meet him, if he could only get air into his lungs…

Dr. Eric Lenz had been thrilled to find out he would be able to study HCH 01. His staff was equally thrilled, and none of them had given a thought to how it was possible, only that it was. Smirnov had developed a slight liking of the subject, but it seemed nothing more than an amusement over the banter they shared. Which was a good thing considering how abnormal the hybrid was. By all means, he should be dead.

A fever for at least seven days, maybe more, and above 50°C for at least 4 days! Most would be dead by now, but the little hybrid's lungs kept on working. Eric didn't know if that should fascinate him or terrify him.

So he focused on other things, like how HCH's brain energy level increased, probably still was increasing, but the machine had broken and couldn't be used. How is heart had developed an irregular pattern. Nothing fatal, it only skipped every eighth beat regularly, though that could change. Insomnia, a constant need to eat, and he seemed to be talking to some imaginary girl named 'Sally'.

Seizures were a new thing.

Someone had opened the door to the hybrid's room to bring lunch just as he collapsed to the floor, limbs jerking and spazzing. Carter had gotten to the scene first, holding his tongue and doing a mediocre job of preventing herself from getting hit in the face by a trashing arm. By the time Smirnov arrived, the attack had subsided to faint twitches. All in all, a side effect they had anticipated for sometime considering his operating level. His neurochemistry was going to be disrupted sooner or later.

Eric stood up, leaving Carter to check vitals, and turned to order the guard to bring in another lunch. A hiss of air quickly being sucked in made him look at Smirnov, whom the sound had come from, to the hybrid on the floor.

He was calmly looking at him, eyes open. There was something different about them; they looked younger, brighter, like the polished nose of a stature. And even on the floor HCH's posture was vastly different from what he was used to seeing, an aggressive aloofness. But now he was more open, trusting.

Hybrid tilted his head. "Sparklings now?"

Eric watched as he sprang up with the energy of a toddler and then produced to wobble a bit before steadying himself and smiling at him. It was unnerving. He couldn't help it, he crossed himself. Carter was hissing something under her breath.

Hybrid repeated the action, failing to copy the finger position and simply used his full hands. Done, he smiled. As if a child looking for praise. He didn't get any however, and the smile slowly slipped from his face into a frown.

Something caught his attention, causing hope to bloom across HCH's face. Eric looked behind him to see what could invoke such a response. But he couldn't see anything that would, just an open doorway.

A yelp from Smirnov drew his attention to the younger man. Hybrid had stuck his hand in a pocket to pull out an iPod. He cradled in to his check, eyes closed, and seemed to snuggle into it. This went on for a full five minutes of silence, broken only occasionally by hybrid humming some melody Eric didn't know.

Hybrid brought the iPod down and looked at it disappointedly. Eric didn't know what he expected, for it to grow legs? He didn't think HCH was able to do that. Everything he awakened had already been built to move. iPod's didn't.

Smirnov snatched it back, causing the hybrid to look up in surprise. He looked like was going to cry, but than his features went slack and his eyes seemed to dim. Smirnov caught him as he started to fall, laying him gently on the floor. Hybrid blinked, once, twice, and then seemed to be back to normal. He looked around, frowning when he noticed all three scientists and a couple of guards in the room.

"Something wrong?" he asked.

"You had a seizure," Eric supplied, quickly deciding to not reveal what just happened, this seemingly split personality.

The hybrid's frown deepened, only be to replaced by embarrassment as his stomach growled. The guard with the lunch tray hastily came forward.

Eric gestured for the rest of the room to clear out. He headed towards the medical room himself, Carter and Smirnov on his heels. Smirnov was poking at his iPod and shaking his head.

"I can't turn it off."

He turned around to see Carter watch the younger Swiss man struggle before asking for the device. Smirnov watched her attempt, but the also seemed unable to make it work, flipping it over questioningly.

"Even I know how to turn these off," Eric said, taking the device from her. He held down the center button. Nothing happened.

"Maybe it can't register our touch," he suggested. As if on cue, the music player gave a little click and the screen went black. "You just didn't hold it down long enough." He handed the iPod back to Smirnov who pocketed it.

"So, HCH 01," Carter began once they were in the lab. "That was new."

"Yes," Eric agreed, "I hope it happens again because I have something I'd love to try."

It did happen, and much soon than he had expected. Three days later a guard came into the lab saying he had brought the hybrid's food and it had asked for 'sparklings'. The three of them rushed down the hallway.

Hybrid was sitting on his bed looking disappointedly at his breakfast tray. When Eric and his assistants walked in, he turned toward them with childlike happiness.

"Sparklings?"

"Dr. Lenz?" Smirnov asked, looking for direction. Eric ignored him.

"Yes hybrid, we'll take you to the sparklings."

Hybrid jumped off the bed, breakfast tray falling face down on the floor, but he didn't seem to notice. He practically skipped towards Eric, singing 'sparklings' the entire time. Eric stepped back hastily and a guard appeared at the hybrid's side to grab his elbow. HCH blinked at him in confusion and then returned his gaze to Eric.

"Follow me," the scientist said, turning on his heel. He heard the others fall into step, including the guards flanking the hybrid.

Eric was guessing 'sparklings' where robots to the hybrid's rattled mind. It was quite obvious he was going insane, talking to a 'Sally' all the time. He vaguely wondered who this 'Sally' was. A girlfriend perhaps? An aunt? Co-worker? The name of a robot? He shook his head; it wasn't that important of a mystery and he doubted HCH's answer would make sense at the moment.

Across the complex were another group of scientists working on a social entrepreneurship project for the government, namely self motorized solar panels that looked like palm trees. He looked over his shoulder to glance back at the hybrid. He had stopped in front of another door, eyeing it curiously.

"Come, hybrid!" Dr. Carter snapped at him.

HCH jumped, and then scampered after them. He then proceeded to childishly chastise Carter. "No, no. Sally." He pointed to himself. "Sally. No 'hybrid'." The last word was complete with finger quotes.

Eric fully turned to scan the hybrid, who seemed to cower under his gaze. "You're telling me your name is Sally?"

Hybrid shyly nodded.

He traded a look with Smirnov, or tried to since those sunglasses always got in the way. The younger scientist simply shook his head and then indicated that Eric should continue leading them wherever they were headed.

They burst into the room unannounced, starting the two scientists who were working there.

"Hey!" one of them said as the group marched in.

"You'll want to see this," he suggested, stepping aside to reveal the hybrid. Everyone on the campus knew there was something special about the boy, seeing as how the government went to such efforts to retrieve him. The scientist paled and took a few steps back, stopping his assistant from going any further forward.

Hybrid paid then no attention, heading straight towards the small collection of five solar robots with all the glee of a five-year-old heading towards an ice cream truck. He actually giggled.

Not knowing what else to do, Eric looked around for a chair to sit in, but found the four in the room already occupied by his assistants and the scientists who worked in this lab. He turned to the nearest guard. "Go grab me a chair." The guard did as directed.

Hybrid didn't seem to have any plan; he kept running from one robot to another, playing with parts, circling them, touching them. But ever moving. He seemed to be trying to divide his equally between all of them, but about fifteen minutes into it stopped moving all together. Instead he just sat with his back resting against the center cylinder of one them, looking up at the under side of the solar panels three feet above his head. Eric had a feeling that if the things had hands, HCH would be holding them. As it was, he was absently rubbing one of the three protruding feet on wheels.

That lasted for five minutes, at which point the five solar 'petals' began twitching. Hybrid jumped up with a smile, pushed the robot over to the closet one, and then plopped down in a similar manner with his back against 1 and crossed legs propped up on a leg of 2.

Twenty minutes later, 1 was in the effort of awkwardly pushing 3 towards HCH while 2 was zooming in circles around the hybrid while he clapped. With a yawn he reached out to hug 3, which was now in front of him. 1 and 2 clamored around, waiting for their turn.

Eric stoop up, Carter and Smirnov rising as well as the guards. The solar scientists simply looked on in confusion.

Hybrid yawned again, turning to nuzzle 1.

And then Smirnov was striding forward, the needle Eric had given him earlier in his hand. He stuck it in hybrid's neck and the boy went down. One of the guards came over to pick him up and then started making his way back to HCH's room. The other scientists looked on, no doubt skeptical about the treatment of the hybrid, but Eric didn't say anything to them to ease their minds. He simply smiled, gave a small wave, and said 'thanks' as he walked through the door.

Yesterday had been boring, no new books, no new tests to ask questions about in Lenz's lab (not that they ever really gave him answers). Sally had been pretty quite, which was strange, but he wasn't complaining. Sam could tell she was happy about something, though what she wouldn't say, and he didn't question it. His fever was down, the winter coat laid ditched in the corner (though he still wore a sweater), and most of the things he saw out of the corner of his eyes was gone. Sally, of course, stayed.

Just like the day before that.

Today though? Not a good day. In fact it ranked in his Worst Five Day's Ever (one being of course the day he died, two that whole Mission City fiasco starting with meeting Barricade that was technically a couple days but he group them together, three when he realized just what exactly being placed in the Witness Protection Program at 18 would mean – no Mom, Dad, or Mikaela, four? this day, and five would have to be the time Miles forced him to go to the local roller coaster park).

It started pretty good, waking up with a long stretch to get the kinks out of his back, spending a couple of minutes working on a puzzle, and then hearing the door knock to announce breakfast.

Sam looked up to watch the guard come in with a tray of food. The guard paused, cautious (odd), and asked, "Sally?"

Sally filled his mind with happiness, something along the lines of finally being addressed by name. Feeling he was missing something, Sam repeated the name slowly, "Sally?"

He meant it as a question to the guard, but the All Spark answered instead, filling his head with images. An engineering lab and then two tall silver palm trees with three legs each like a desk chair and five 'palms' of solar panels. And then another lab, followed by an image of a mechanical bull, not the ride one at parties, but one with four legs made of pistons and eyes that could zoom as well as a professional photographer's camera.

With them came such a sense of pride, of ownership, as if the images of these robots moving around were a finger painting Sally was holding up Sam saying 'look what I did Daddy!' And then Sam's horror rose up and washed it all away, forcing her to the corner of his mind. Because she had taken over his body and woke up robots.

It was the whole body snatcher thing that made him angrier, he figured that he could only hold her back so much about sparklings but when his hold was fraying could help direct her to minimize potential problems to his body and not bring to life something dangerous. Like a military war machine…

Sally quickly confirmed only the bots she had shown him were sparklings, but Sam continued to mentally yell at her. So much could have gone wrong! Did she not know anything about responsibility, the requirements that came with activating something, the risks to themselves and others?

But look! she seemed to say, bringing to the front to of his (or was it more right to say their) mind the sense of connection he (they) felt to Spidey and Lilith, and a bit towards Ed. Wasn't this a good feeling, don't you want more?

Yes. No. Yes. No.

"God and Primus frag it all Sally, you stole my fucking body! Twice!" Sam yelled out loud. He needed to do something, make sure this never happened again, but a let's-chain-Sally's-control talk/mental effort wasn't what he wanted right now. What he wanted was something to punch.

Good thing there was a guard in the room.

Sam leaped, screaming like a hellion. He knew the training he got from NEST was a good thing, it allowed him to take out anyone without formal training and against those who did hold out long enough until someone could help him. But there was no Bumblebee here, no Lennox, no Airman Stacy even.

He got creamed, hands down.

Sam didn't mind the pain, the blood. It felt good, getting into a fight. Sally was crying, trying to get away from the rage Sam was projecting, confused as to what was going on but very aware it was her fault somehow.

When Lenz and the other scientist's arrived, the guard had Sam pressed up again the floor, knee in his back as he struggled to cough up blood. His right arm was broken, painfully so, bone sticking out through flesh. Sam grinned a bloody, malice grin at Lenz.

"You're never getting me to do that again." He hissed. Sam doubted he was a very frightening figure, obviously beaten, but still Lenz stepped back into Carter and Smirnov. Carter turned her eyes from him.

With a grunt, the guard brought Sam to his feet. He staggered, just getting his feet under him before he was shoved forward.

"Take him to hospital," he heard Smirnov say, "but knock him out before you leave."