VI - Tunnel Vision II
A blue motorcycle and yellow muscle car with black stripes rolled out of a ground bridge and into an unassuming New York alleyway. The bridge vanished behind them. Jack tried to act casual, admiring the buildings as they drove out onto a busier street. One needn't look very hard to tell he was intimidated by their size. A police siren rang out in the distance, growing fainter with each passing second.
"Of course, it's no Cybertron." Miko quipped, poking her head out of Bumblebee's window.
"Alright, base, how do we get underground?" Arcee asked, flashing a mirror so the light hit Jack's eye, swiftly getting his attention.
He batted at it, "Well, we can't just jump the turnstiles and hope no one notices."
They turned onto another street and were suddenly met with barriers blocking off an open pit construction site, leading straight into a subway tunnel.
"Here's our ticket in." Arcee said, revving her engine enthusiastically.
The Vehicon operating the mining drill put the thing in reverse as its business end slowly stopped spinning. The dying sound echoed eerily through the subway tunnels. The dim, flickering lights overhead only added to the effect.
"Could we please pick up the pace?" Knock Out snapped at the other drones as they shambled into the newly dug hole in the wall. "The humidity down here is threatening to corrode my undercarriage!"
The Insecticon towering up behind him snarled at him in the guttural tones of its species.
The red mech spun around, "Must you hover?"
It snarled quietly in response and gave no indication of stepping back.
A safe distance behind the squabbling Decepticons, Arcee, Bumblebee, Jack, and Miko poked their heads and helms out from behind the wall of an intersection. The yellow scout ushered the children back, and they transformed out their blasters. Fortunately, the noise from the drill masked the sound from their transformation sequences, and the pair began to creep forwards. The humans followed behind them, one of them eager to see action, the other not wanting to be left behind.
The drones stood in the way of Knock Out's vision so he shoved one aside, "Well let me see it already!"
The unassuming container was wedged halfway in a broken section of concrete, but the lid faced up. Knock Out smirked, twirling his shock prod.
"Lock and load." Arcee whispered to Bumblebee, watching the scene from just on the edge of the corner.
What they didn't notice was the Insecticon prowling up on the ceiling behind them, looking as though it held no regard for the laws of physics. It jumped at them, but they heard and leapt out of the way. Bumblebee was already on his pedes, firing shots at it. Arcee rolled and jumped to hers as well, mirroring the scout. The Insecticon shot a bolt of red plasma at the tracks and it exploded at the yellow mech's pedes, launching him into the air. He landed next to Arcee, skidding a little before regaining his footing and resuming his assault. The Insecticon was unfazed by their attack, firing another blast of plasma at them. This time they both went flying.
Knock Out rushed out of the hole the drill had dug at the sound of the commotion, watching the Autobots land and fire furiously at their assailant. The three drones rushed out behind him, blasters already raised.
"Stop! What are you doing?" He barked at the Insecticon. Everyone, even the Autobots stopped in surprise.
"Excuse me?" Arcee said, lowering her blasters a fraction.
Knock Out tapped his shock prod's tip against his pede, which would have been excruciating had it been active. "What have you done with tall and screechy? You know, he did mention that he had been… consorting with you all a few times during his last visit."
Arcee trained her blasters on him. "Call off the bug and then we'll play nice."
The Insecticon took a few steps back, still hissing for a fight. The humans, still undetected, watched from the corner with wide eyes.
Arcee kept her blasters out, "What do you want with this relic?"
"I asked you a question first." He crossed his arms matter-of-factly. "Have you done anything to him?"
"Nothing physical, which is more than I can say for you if you don't answer me." She snapped.
"I'd be able to put the relic to use if I knew what it was before you rudely interrupted our little excavation." Knock Out replied cooly. He made to go and open the relic's container, but Arcee and Bumblebee both jerked their blasters.
"Don't even think about it!" She snapped.
"Too late."
"Why do you care about Starscream?"
"I am his physician, meaning he is my business."
[Not anymore.] Bumblebee buzzed.
"Starscream's our problem now," Arcee agreed. "Like we needed more." She grumbled.
The red mech twirled his shock prod, warning them not to get closer. "Yes, when I replaced his wings and T-Cog, he mentioned that he was having playdates with your party lately."
"More like sleepovers."
"So it's true then, isn't it?" Knock Out didn't mean it as a question.
"If you're saying that he would rather team up with Ratchet than you, yes." Arcee smirked.
The medic bit back a retort, "It seems that you Autobots are indebted to me, then." He smirked and continued before Arcee could interject, "Megatron would have terminated Starscream, then me for helping him if he had caught us. And out of the goodness of my spark, I risked my beautiful pa–"
"Save it." The femme growled, charging up her blasters.
"Ah, ah, ah, I wouldn't." The drones behind Knock Out mimicked her, and he stabbed his shock prod into the ground.
"Since you are indebted to me, and I am in a good mood, I'll let you pick which you lose," he smirked, twirling the prod at them, "the relic or your sparks."
"Playing nice doesn't mean I have to play by the rules." Arcee fired her blasters and Bumblebee joined in. They felled the trio of drones before the Insecticon lunged at them. Arcee ducked, but Bumblebee was less fortunate. The Insecticon slammed into him, pinning him to the wall.
"Bee!" She cried out, transforming out her blades. She sprang on top of the Insecticon, just inside of its reach which distracted it long enough for the yellow scout to slip out of its grasp.
Bumblebee fell to the ground as she leapt off the the back of the Insecticon. She moved to help him but he got to his pedes instantly, unscathed by the look of it.
Then Knock Out slammed his circular saw into Arcee's back and she went flying. He brought his saw down towards her helm and she fell backwards. It missed by inches. She darted around behind him and a well-placed kick sent him sprawling on top of one of the drone's chassis.
The femme ran through the hole in the wall after making sure the bad doctor wasn't getting up and tugged fiercely on the container, but it wouldn't budge.
Meanwhile, Bumblebee was shooting bolts of blue plasma at the Insecticon while doing his best to keep himself between it and the two children. The pair of humans watched the scene with excitement and horror. The Insecticon crawled towards the scout on the concrete ceiling of the tunnel, heedless of his blaster fire. The yellow mech dodged a would-be lethal swipe to his helm from its vicious claws, taking a heavy punch to his chest plate that sent him flying into the concrete wall so hard that he cracked it.
On the other side of the tunnel, Arcee's outstretched fingers ghosted the lid of the container, only seconds away from opening it. She suddenly collapsed to the ground, blue webs of electricity coursing through her frame.
"Shock and Drop." Knock Out purred, twirling the prod before shutting it off.
The Insecticon dragged Bumblebee's limp chassis over and tossed him on top of Arcee. Neither moved in protest.
"Now, shall we see precisely what you are?" Knock Out stepped over them and unscrewed the lid with a flick of his wrist. He pulled out a device that looked like an alien watch turned torture device. "And what you do?" He smirked malevolently and walked towards Bumblebee, "And what better way to learn your power then to conduct an on-site experiment?" He was just reaching down to fasten it to Bumblebee's wrist when a ground bridge opened behind him. The two Decepticons both failed to notice it.
Seven charged out of it and landed a swift punch on the back of the red medic's helm. He crumpled on top of Bumblebee. The scout's optics flickered and powered on. Seven helped the yellow mech shove the red one off him and Bumblebee jumped to his pedes, already firing at the Insecticon once again.
When Seven looked back at her, Arcee was already standing, but so was Knock Out.
"Ah, Starscream, here to join the fun?" The medic purred, transforming out a drill.
"Joke's on you." Seven transformed out a blaster, shooting at Knock Out.
He sprang backwards, dodging the bolt of red plasma, "Seven, is it?" He smirked, "What have you done to your wings! Have you no sense of style?" Miko grinned somewhere far behind them, her eyes falling on the red stripes.
The Insecticon shoved Knock Out out of the way as if saying: Enough prattle. It charged at Arcee, but the femme jumped out of its path and did a flip and landing where the medic had stood.
Knock Out smirked at Seven, "It would appear that I am outnumbered." He transformed, racing off along the subway tracks in the tunnel. The other two Autobots were preoccupied with ensuring the Insecticon's annihilation, but both managed a glance at Seven.
"If I must," he sighed with false reluctance, but his optics burned with near enthusiasm.
He transformed, the flames from his thruster lighting up a small swath of the tunnel as he rapidly gained on the red sports car.
"Whoa." Miko breathed as he shot past her and Jack's hiding spot, blasting them both with a wave of heat.
Knock Out swerved around a corner, executing a hairpin turn that was impossible for Seven at the speeds the jet was flying. Not to mention the fact that his wings were already almost scraping the sides of the tunnel.
"Bee, go help Seven!" Arcee shouted over the din of clashing metal, firing a last shot that was doomed to miss at the Insecticon before transforming. She revved her engine, using the noise and her headlights to attract the 'Con. It transformed, wings thrumming until they were just a blur and it began pursuit. Bumblebee transformed and sped off in the opposite direction after Seven and Knock Out, determined to retrieve the prize.
Seven's comm unit pinged and he answered it. The scout chirped on the other end, [Got any idea of what the relic is?]
"No," the Seeker panted on the other side of the link, swinging around another corner of the tunnel to gain on the red Decepticon. "But if they want it this badly, I'm sure it isn't anything you–we are going to like." Bumblebee whirled in agreement, saying that was the reason they would have to try harder than ever to gain possession of it.
"Scrap." Arcee spun around and transformed, having reached a dead end in the tunnel.
The Insecticon charged at her but she sprang up above it, nearly colliding with the ceiling. She landed lightly, the third rail between her pedes. The femme smirked as an idea formed inside her helm and jumped away from the rail.
"Knock Out's shock prod isn't the only thing down here that can zap a bot." She said to herself quietly so the Insecticon wouldn't hear as it circled back over towards her. She positioned herself against the wall, "Come to Mama."
The Insecticon stalked towards her, still in bug mode. Its pointy pedes missed the third rail by inches. It transformed and charged as Arcee darted away. Not a second later, the concrete wall she formerly stood in front of was in considerably more pain than she was.
Arcee slashed at the Insecticon and danced out of its reach. It charged at her and she transformed her blasters out again, firing rapid successions of shots. She hit a soft spot and it collapsed to the ground, plowing through the third rail. It shrieked as blue wires of electricity crackled through its frame, eventually falling silent.
"Shock and Drop." She transformed her blasters away and drove off in search of the others.
"Seven, Megatron doesn't know about your very existence, and I would imagine that you intend to keep it that way, hm?" Knock Out growled lowly and gunned his engine, swerving over the subway tracks.
"I also imagine that Megatron would express his deep disapproval if he ever found out the teensy fact that you had aided Starscream and I in the past."
"What he doesn't know–"
"Can't hurt you?" Seven finished smugly, toying with the car. He could have overtaken him in seconds, but where was the fun in that?
"Well, yes," he finished lamely. "As for you…" he transformed, the relic in one servo, shock prod in the other. He thrust upwards with the latter and it connected with the jet's fuselage. Seven fell out of the air and transformed, landing in a shower of sparks as blue electricity arced through his chassis.
Bumblebee transformed and leapt over the red mech, "Watch the paint!" and snatched the relic out of his grasp all in a fluid motion. He landed in front of the downed Seeker, the relic secured over his wrist while his blasters charged up.
Knock Out stared at him as if he were a ghost, dumbfounded, then snarled. "You–you… Megatron will terminate me!"
[Like that's my problem.] The scout shot back, scooping an unconscious Seven up.
The medic lunged forward with his shock prod. The yellow mech tried to sidestep, but his grip on Seven was too awkward, and there simply wasn't enough time. He flinched backwards, awaiting the blow and shock that never came. Seven slipped out of his arms. Knock Out stumbled right through him, not expecting the sudden turn of events either.
He gasped, optics shifting to the now-glowing device attached to the scout's wrist. "A-a phase shifter!?"
Bumblebee chirped in surprise, examining the shiny new contraption on his wrist in awe. He gave its center a twist to shut it off, then punched Knock Out in the faceplates. The red mech reeled backwards and fell into his car mode, driving off.
The scout shifted his attention back to Seven as Knock Out spun back around. The medic had every intention to ram the yellow Autobot with as much force as he could muster.
"Finish protector, here I come!" He gunned his engine, launching into the air. The scout, sensing the danger, fell to the ground.
Then Arcee drove in from behind an intersection not too far ahead, and Seven slowly got to his pedes, groaning quietly and clutching his helm. Seeing this, the medic whipped around again, tires squealing, and drove straight through Bumblebee.
"Eat my exhaust!" He shouted, swerving to avoid blaster shots that were behind schedule. Arcee transformed and opened fire, each shot missing his rear fenders by feet. He swerved around a corner and out of sight.
"Scrap." The femme sighed, transforming her blasters away. Seven made to transform again after him, but Bumblebee put a servo against his chest plate.
Arcee voiced the yellow mech's thoughts for him, "We got what we need; chasing him down now is pointless."
"Get your servos off me!" Seven snapped, pushing him away and stalking over to the intersection Knock Out had vanished behind.
The Seeker watched his taillights vanish into the darkness on the far end of the tunnel, the sound of his engine echoing back and bouncing around until it was unrecognizable. He could uncomfortably feel the other's optics on him.
"First Megatron, then you…" he murmured, watching the darkness.
"One relic down, three to go." Arcee smiled at the humans, "Let's hope the others are having similar luck." Seven could feel a change in the air as the pair of humans emerged from their hiding place, and as the other bots transformed to accommodate their riders.
"Ratchet, bridge us back." Arcee requested on the other side of a comm.
"Hey!" The agent shouted at the computer, putting the former call on hold. "I'm in the middle of a crisis here!"
"Look who's back." Arcee said, a smirk in her tone. Rafael activated the ground bridge and the femme rolled through with Jack. Bumblebee followed behind her with Miko, and I sulked behind them, dragging my pedes.
"Except Ratchet isn't yet." Raf corrected. Jack dismounted, Miko hopped out, and the bots transformed, walking towards the screens.
Special Agent Fowler turned back to the monitor, re-opening the comm link and grumbling patriotic nonsense under his breath.
"How did it go?" The younger human asked, closing his laptop.
"Fantastic." I said sarcastically, crossing my arms. Bumblebee held up his wrist, showing off the phase shifter.
"Is that the relic? Seems kind of… tiny."
Arcee stuck a servo through Bumblebee, "Good things come in small packages." The three humans smiled up at her. I scuffed one of my pedes against the ground, not wanting to speak or be spoken to for once.
"And I think Sev here feels betrayed." Miko looked at me, but her guess was startlingly accurate. The other humans smiled nervously up at me.
"It's nothing." I said in the best firm tone I could muster.