Prowl stands alone atop I-11 and looks out at the skyline, scanning the air traffic for any aircraft that is out of the ordinary.
Torment's terms for releasing Nacelle unharmed had been clear when Prowl received them less than 2 hours ago: I-11. Come alone. And if there is any sight of law enforcement aside from himself, Nacelle will be returned to him as a corpse.
It had been too little time to plan anything surefire anyway, but he had gone to Topkick to ensure a perimeter free from any enforcer activity in the timespan, Topkick promising to keep a distance to not ruin the delicate transaction. Whatever Topkick plans to do about the criminals afterward is no longer of any concern to Prowl as long as he has Nacelle safely in his arms.
Where are you?
Where are you!
A dark spot suddenly pops into existence out of nowhere, and his attention zeroes in on it. As it gets closer, he recognizes it as a small assault aircraft and his spark pulse increases in anticipation while relief fills him.
There you are.
It is logical for the Polyhexian Cartel to hide their route to the rendezvous point by going into stealth mode. This way, no one will be able to trace the flight path back to where they had taken off, giving Torment and whoever is with him time to clear the perimeter before Nacelle can reveal the location.
He steps back to protect himself from the buffeting winds as the aircraft lands on the landing platform but immediately walks towards it when the rotors have stopped.
Seconds become a minute, and his spark feels like bursting as he impatiently waits for anything to happen. But finally, the ramp starts to lower and his optics focus solely on the all too slowly growing opening. Then he gets the first sight of Nacelle as a high-held pair of anxious wings slowly come more and more into view seconds before the ramp finally reveals Nacelle's face and the rest of his bondmate's beautiful frame.
He soaks in the view before him, relieved to see that Nacelle is physically okay. But the relief immediately fades away when Shade steps up beside Nacelle. Prowl's optics darken as he instantly recognizes the lethal black and silver carrier.
The look in Shade's optics is cold and deadly as he meets Prowl's gaze, and the next moment, the black and silver carrier focuses on Nacelle, reaching his hands around Nacelle's neck as if to choke him.
No!
NO!
Prowl is about to run to the defense of his bondmate but stops at the very last second at the calm radiating from Nacelle, who doesn't look like someone in immediate danger, as Shade simply unlocks and removes something from around his neck.
"Thank you, Shade." He hears Nacelle say, and then he receives the first private message from his bondmate in months.
-It is okay, Prowl. I still had the dampener on.-
Then Nacelle is in motion, and Prowl catches him in a fierce protective embrace, savoring the mingling of their fields and the strength of their bond this close to his bondmate. How he has yearned to feel this again, worried that it never would happen. That Talon would keep Nacelle as a hostage.
They stay glued together in silence for several minutes, enjoying the feeling of being in each other's arms, Nacelle's optics filling with tears as he clings to Prowl. Prowl hugs Nacelle close, inhaling the unique scent of his bondmate and feeling it calm him down, his frayed nerves gradually relaxing as his mind slows down from its previous all-time high caused by stress.
"I love you so, so much." He murmurs against Nacelle's neck, now painstakingly aware of how rarely he had voiced the words before all of this happened - too caught up in his work to pay his bondmate the attention he deserves.
But no more.
If there is one thing he has learned from all of this, it is to cherish every moment he has with Nacelle.
Their moment is disturbed by the rotors on the assault aircraft spinning into motion, and Nacelle looks up and turns his head to see Shade waving to him from the top of the ramp as it slowly begins to close.
"Until next time!" Shade's yell carries over the din of the powerful engines and has him laughing out loud with tears of happiness still running down his cheeks.
"I'll look forward to it!" He yells back, the wink Shade sends him letting him know the black and silver carrier heard him
Harsh winds buffet him and Prowl when the aircraft takes off, and he watches it until it only is a distant dot on the horizon. Then his attention shifts back to Prowl, who looks at him with his stern trade-mark expression.
"What was that about?" Prowl asks, not liking the implication in Shade's words or how Nacelle so casually talks to the lethal black and silver carrier.
If Nacelle knew just an inkling about what Shade had done...
Immediately sensing Prowl's change of demeanor, Nacelle faces his bondmate with a severe expression of his own.
"Athena has asked me to visit her now and then." He explains, voice firm with determination.
"Nacelle..."
He holds a digit to Prowl's lips, silencing him.
"I know what you are going to say. I am well aware of how dangerous it will be for me. They are criminals. Brutal killers. But Athena isn't, and she still needs me. It takes time to heal from what she has experienced, and now that I am gone, she has no one nearby who understands what she is fighting with. I can have some remote therapy sessions with her, but it is best for her if I can see her physically now and then to directly assess her."
Almost every part of Prowl protests against letting his bondmate close to the criminals that had kept them apart for so long. But if he sets aside his feelings and looks at it from a purely logical standpoint, the chance of Nacelle getting kidnapped again is slim to non-existent. Because why let Nacelle go now only to kidnap him again when he visits Athena? No, Talon and Torment no longer have any interest in Nacelle. They gain nothing from kidnapping Nacelle again except for petty revenge. And while they aren't above something like that whenever it suits them, they are both too busy running the Polyhexian Cartel to waste time and energy on it.
Something else to consider is that Torment is interested in Athena getting the help she needs to cope with her traumatic experiences. In that case, Nacelle would like a gift sent from Primus. Because Nacelle is right, who else is there to help Athena?
He meets Nacelle's optics with a sound of resignation and nods in understanding.
"When you put it like that, how can I be against it?"
Nacelle pulls him into a deep passionate kiss, and Prowl drowns in his bondmate's affection.
How he has missed this.
"I need your spark," Nacelle whispers against his lips, setting a fire alight within Prowl.
"Whatever you need." He answers, breaking the kiss and leading Nacelle into the building to find an empty room to reaffirm their bond and strengthen it.
Nacelle feels as a newly-bonded again as he leads Prowl into the first empty patient room they find and hurriedly closes the door behind them and locks it. Prowl is on him the instant he turns around, and Nacelle makes an eager sound as his lips are caught in a hungry kiss. They could have merged right then and there against the closed door, and he couldn't have cared less. But listening to the tiny part of his processor that remains rational thinking, he breaks the kiss and pulls Prowl with him over to the nearest berth, where he lies down and pulls his bondmate on top of him.
Prowl rearranges himself on top of Nacelle, making sure not to put any crushing weight on his bondmate's more delicate frame, and then he is caught in the mesmerizing sight of Nacelle baring his spark to him. Another thing he should have done more before all of this happened.
When was the last time he saw his bondmate's fiery cobalt blue spark laid out before him like this?
Thinking back, he comes up with a depressing number of years ago, to a time before the creation of the Joint Investigation Unit.
More than a decade ago...
His head drops in shame.
He has genuinely neglected his bondmate in the pursuit of justice, hasn't he?
But no more!
His chestplates split apart and his spark chamber opens, revealing his yellow spark, and without hesitation, he lowers himself to bring their sparks into contact.
Forgive me, my beloved.
I didn't realize.
You don't have to apologize.
I love you. I love you. I love you.
We are together now.
I neglected you.
I could have pressed for it but was occupied too.
You are not the only one at fault.
But I promised you at our bonding...
And now we are here.
Together.
Whole.
United.
The milliseconds of shared consciousness shift into countless images of spontaneous memories being shared at an uncontrollable speed as their merge proceeds, and Prowl gets privy to some of Nacelle's experiences at the hands of the Polyhexian Cartel.
Fierce protectiveness rises within him at the short memory of Nacelle's encounter with Typhoon and the countless feelings associated with that single experience. That brief glimmer of what had happened had been enough to put him in Nacelle's place. He had known about it beforehand, but having Torment tell him loosely about what had happened to now 'see' it is entirely different. Torment had been honest about what had happened, had not held any information back, but had neither told him everything because, as a third party to the situation, he couldn't.
Typhoon still awaits sentencing, and with the knowledge Prowl now has gained, he is going to demand the most severe punishment that can be given in a case like that.
Shame.
Regret.
Not your fault.
Still shame.
Don't care.
Acceptance.
Will always love you.
Torrent aims his cannon at him, Prowl, his bondmate, and fires it. He barely manages to duck into safety while bullets fly in the air all around him. Talon stands a short distance away, returning the fire and sending Torrent's projectiles wide with precise shots, deflecting the attack aimed at the lesser armored among them. It is a nightmare of chaos. Energon soaks the ground where enemies have fallen, and he sees the grayed-out frames all over the battlefield. Unseeing, offline optics. Frames shot to pieces. Their internals on open grotesque display. Expressions contorted in agonized pain as their owners died a tortuous death at the hand of Talon and their team. So, so, so much death...
Sickening.
Ill.
It is okay.
Only a memory.
But real.
You were there.
Could have lost you!
I'm okay.
Safe.
Did not know.
Talon not telling.
For the best.
But you could have died!
Alliance.
Talon kept me safe.
Nevermore!
Accept.
No more.
The merge finishes, and they slowly come to their senses within their minds, Nacelle looking stricken at Prowl at the things he had witnessed in the glimmers of Prowl's memories.
He trembles in fear and shudders in revulsion at the same time.
He could have lost Prowl so easily.
A single uncontrolled stray shot could have ended his bondmate's life in the chaos that had unfolded.
"I am safe, Nacelle. Nothing happened except for Talon punching me too hard at the end, sending me to the hospital for a while."
"He WHAT?!" Nacelle sits up abruptly, throwing Prowl off of him.
Prowl shrinks back at the outburst, realizing that Nacelle hadn't known about that tidbit of information.
"We believe, based on Flux's reaction, that Talon hadn't intended to send me to the hospital, only to incapacitate me for a short time, but ended up causing severe damage that needed immediate treatment. Aurora witnessed my arrival at the hospital and Flux's angry outbursts at Talon and could tell me what had happened when I woke up from my coma."
Tears fill Nacelle's optics as he realizes that Talon has been close to killing his bondmate. Whether intended or not, he should have been informed!
Why hadn't they...
His breathing is shaky as he is caught up in his uncontrolled emotions, and Prowl blessedly lets him cry until he has regained control over them again. These feelings need to come out, or they will build up and grow within him and become unhealthy.
"Nevermore!" He finally says with determination, looking Prowl directly into the optics. "I don't want you in the line of fire under any circumstances, no matter what it is! Is that understood?!"
"Nacelle..."
"No! Promise it!"
"I... can't."
"Yes, you can!"
"It is part of my work. I'm an enforcer, I'm-"
"-not meant to die in pointless encounters with criminals massively outmatching you in self-protection and weaponry!" Nacelle counters fiercely, refusing to accept Prowl's stupid arguments of duty.
Instead of continuing the argument, knowing they will get nowhere, Prowl decides to direct Nacelle's focus elsewhere.
"Where are Thundercracker and Skywarp?"
Nacelle blinks, his processor abruptly shifting gear at the unexpected question.
"Back at the Neuropsychiatric Laboratory." He answers after a pause.
"So Torment took you all there?"
"Yes, me, Thundercracker, Skywarp and Athena. We met Hotspot and a team of specialists that assisted in Thundercracker's surgical procedure."
"And they are all still there?"
"As far as I know."
"Don't you think it is time to return to them?"
Nacelle checks his chronometer and realizes almost an hour has passed since Shade removed the collar from around his neck.
He has been away for far longer than he expected to be and begins to worry about Thundercracker. He hadn't announced his departure, but hopefully, Athena or Torment had explained why he had left.
"Yes, let's return to them."
-Get out of Praxus NOW! I have just received Intel that Prowl has been in contact with Topkick. The Joint Investigation Unit knows you are within the city-state, and it is only a matter of time before they discover your location!-
Torment narrows his optics as he receives Talon's warning.
He had hoped Prowl had been wise enough to keep it all a secret, but, of course, the enforcer couldn't follow instructions without trying to find loopholes. He should have worded his terms differently to avoid a situation like this.
Shade had reported no sightings of enforcers when he dropped Nacelle off at the rendezvous point. But if Topkick knew where they would be at a particular time, he could simply observe from a distance and trace their route from the rendezvous point and back to their current location.
He stares incredulously at his hands as they begin to shake with an emotion he isn't used to and clenches them hard to stop them.
The Joint Investigation Unit isn't knocking down the door to the Neuropsychiatric Laboratory solely because he had decided to use the stealth-capable assault aircraft to drop off Nacelle.
A single random circumstance is the only reason he remains free, and they are not out of danger yet.
No doubt Topkick is on the hunt for him. He is a too significant player in the criminal underworld for the Joint Investigation Unit's Commander to let slip out of his hands when he is this vulnerable and ripe for the taking.
He looks at Athena, who is in deep conversation with Hotspot and Thundercracker, knowing that she won't like him pushing their departure to now. But she can always come back whenever necessary with Ripstorm and Turborazor as protection.
It is him Topkick wants, not her.
She is still a civilian in the optics of law enforcement.
Her only 'crime' is falling in love with a wanted criminal.
"Athena?" He calls out softly, getting her attention.
She looks quizzically at him.
"We need to leave before planned. Prowl tattled to Topkick, which means the Joint Investigation Unit undoubtedly is looking for me."
At first, she is clearly about to protest, but when he explains why they must leave, her face goes white in fear, and worry fills her optics.
"Then..." Athena looks at Hotspot, conveying her apology with her optics.
"Go," Hotspot says softly in understanding. "I will take care of Thundercracker and Skywarp until Nacelle comes to pick them up."
"Will I see you again?" Thundercracker asks, worried.
Athena smiles reassuringly at him.
"Of course. I will be here when you are ready to receive the next batch of memories."
Thundercracker looks at Torment, silently asking the question again.
"It is not likely we will meet again, no. And for that reason, I have something I need to talk to you about in privacy." Torment answers, walking out of the surgical room, expecting Thundercracker to follow him without needing to be prompted.
When they are out of hearing distance, Torment looks assessingly at Thundercracker.
"Due to your special circumstances when you came to us, we didn't dampen your systems, which means you now know the precise location of our underground stronghold and the exact coordinates for the entrance into the tunnel leading down into it. You have developed a lot in the time we have spent together. I am sure you now understand my predicament at having someone outside my organization know sensitive information like that. Under normal circumstances, it would be intolerable, but this is not normal circumstances, and Talon and I have agreed to trust you as a friend to never reveal the information you know. We trust that you will take this information to your grave and never reveal to anyone that you possess this information. Not to Nacelle. Not to Hotspot. Not to anyone. In the wrong hands, this information will mean the death of us, and as our friend, I know you don't want that to happen."
Thundercracker understands Torment's worry fully, and his request is only logical. As his processor healed from the damage done to it, his thought processes deepened, and he asked questions to get a deeper understanding of the world around him. One of those had been about the collars both Nacelle and Skywarp wore while he didn't. Shade had been open about explaining why Nacelle and Skywarp were wearing them and why Thundercracker wasn't. It had filled him with warmth to know that while Hailstorm could seem cold and inapproachable, he had been considerate enough to accept Nacelle's request to not collar him at their capture.
"I promise never to reveal any secrets about my stay in your stronghold. Your secrets are safe with me, and I will take them with me to the grave, as you put it."
Torment nods, satisfied.
"And in return, I will ensure that you and Skywarp never lack anything. You will not see me, but I will always be there in the shadows, watching over and protecting you and your family."
It is the least he can do.
Mainly because he feels guilty for not hindering what happened to Thundercracker in his current and previous versions, and this way, he can start to redeem himself for not stopping Torrent earlier.
Thundercracker and Skywarp and, to some extent, Nacelle too have become some of what he considers his closest friends, and whatever they need, whenever they need it, if it is something he can give, it will be theirs.
All they have to do is reach out and ask.
When they arrive at the Neuropsychiatric Laboratory, Nacelle immediately notices the missing presence of the passenger aircraft in front of the building complex, knowing that Torment and Athena likely are long gone.
That fact gets confirmed when they enter and only see Hotspot with Thundercracker and Skywarp.
"When did they leave?" Prowl demands to know.
"Not long ago," Hotspot answers darkly. "Torment wanted me to give you a message: Until we meet again."
It is clear what Hotspot thinks of Torment at this moment, and Prowl shares his opinion.
No good deed goes unpunished.
It had been naive to think there wouldn't be consequences, and there is no doubt about the meaning behind the message. From now on, he will be hunted by the Polyhexian Cartel, and nowhere will be safe. He will have to take precautions everywhere he goes, watching his shadow like a hawk.
He has no illusions about what will happen when he once again faces his long-time enemy; he has seen all too often what happens to those who get involved voluntarily or involuntarily with high-ranking members of the criminal underworld. They all end up in early graves.
He looks at Nacelle, seeing the fear in his beloved's optics. He could tell him nothing would happen, but they both now know it will be a lie. After his experiences with the Polyhexian Cartel, Nacelle now has firsthand knowledge about the dangers Prowl goes out to face daily. Nothing he can say will calm his bondmate down or ease the fear Torment's message has caused.
::We will handle it when it happens.::
Not if, because he knows the skills of those he is against.
If Talon wants something, he gets it, simple as that.
::I won't accept it! And neither will Athena!::
Sadness fills Prowl's spark.
Athena will never get to know before the deed has been done, and Torment is a skilled master at manipulation. It is naive to think that Torment will take her feelings into consideration. Prowl is too dangerous a liability and easy to get rid of now that he once again is a simple investigative enforcer without the protection he had had as Director of the Joint Investigation Unit. There is no reason for the criminals to not do it.
His death will be orchestrated to look like an accident, and Athena will be none the wiser.
"THUNDECRACKER!" Skywarp yells all of a sudden, drawing all of their attention towards the blue seeker who has stiffened in a painful-looking back-bent position, his optics blinking offline and online in rapid succession while his whole frame begins to shake violently.
"SEIZURE!" Hotspot yells as Skywarp barely manages to catch Thundercracker before the blue seeker collapses on the floor.
"How is this possible, Hotspot?! Every test showed no critical damage to his processor!" Nacelle says worriedly as he kneels beside Thundercracker when Skywarp gently lowers the blue seeker to the floor.
Thundercracker continues to shake in violent cramps, and Nacelle does the only thing he can do in the current situation, sacrificing the digits on his left hand to keep the blue seeker's airways open and prevent him from swallowing his tongue.
"I don't know yet! I will need a scan of his processor to determine why this is happening." Hotspot says as he kneels to replace Nacelle's digits with a tool designed to fill out that specific function. "Come! Help me get him into the scanner in the room next door. It is best to get the images while the seizure is happening."