Having seen the Lamborghini in the parking space with the same shade of silver and blue custom stripe, Saphira felt like she was going mad because she felt the need to check on her own care back in the parking lot of her apartment building. It could easily be a coincidence, but she just had the feeling of needing to check the car when she got back. That was all she was thinking as she sat on the bus back to the bus stop by her apartment. She knew once she checked the lot, and found the car was still there, she knew she would relax and laugh at herself for being ridiculous.
When the bus came to a stop at her stop, Saphira got off the bus to make her way back to her apartment. She breathed in the cool, night air as she walked along the sidewalk quickly towards the apartment. She grimaced a little as the straps of her heels were rubbing against her skin a little bit as she walked, which threatened to form blisters on her feet. Thankfully, she did not have to walk too far to return to her apartment. She hummed softly to herself as she entered the building and made her way to the elevator. She knew it will likely seem strange she would go to the car lot after entering through the front door of the building, but there were not many people around so it was fine.
She stepped into the elevator and pressed the car lot button. She tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for the elevator to reach the bottom. She did wonder if it was possible to find the previous owner of the Porsche. Now that she had found a Lamborghini with the same color, marking and modified brand badge, it could be possible that the owner is in the city. But it might be a bit hard given the population of the city. She sighed deeply, deciding that if she ever came across the owner, she would ask. Going out of her way to find them would simply just be creepy.
When the elevator doors open, Saphira stepped out and made her way through the lot to where her car was parked. The car lot was quiet at the moment. There was no noise, no engine, so the car should still be parked in the same spot. The only noise she could hear was her heels on the pavement. She walked to the end row of the cars she was walking by, and she found it. The Porsche was still sitting in the park she had left it in.
I don't know why I even thought to check up on this car…it is still here. It was just a coincidence.
Saphira stared at the car for a moment, feeling that sense of paranoia leaving her before she turned and rolled her eyes. "Phew! Man, that was close!" Saphira jumped and turned as soon as she heard that.
"Hello?" Saphira looked around slowly before she walked back to her car to look around. "Is anyone here? I heard you." There was no response. Not even the sound of a scuffle. "Okay…I am going crazy tonight…"
Saphira decided to just get out of the parking lot and head up to her apartment. She felt a little too freaked out at the moment. She ran back to elevator to head up to her floor and slapped herself across the face a few times for good measure. She didn't want to seem like a crazy person. She figured she was just hearing things, and she scared herself. Yes, that was it. It was only her imagination, and no one was in the lot with her.
She shivered at the very thought of it, and she immediately wanted to shower to calm herself down. Once she returned to her apartment, she went to her room and stripped before getting into the shower to spend a half hour just scrubbing her skin under the hot shower. She felt a lot better by the end of it, and she calm down. She pushed that to the side, and the only thing that was on her mind right now was the thought of her boyfriend possibly cheating on her with Claudia.
She wouldn't even have a clue how they met. Saphira has not once mentioned Claudia's name to Dylan as she didn't like using people's names when ranting about them. She has only spoken about the woman's behaviour to Dylan without naming her, so he would not know who she is by name. But if they both knew each other…was she considered a side piece? Or maybe this was some kind of plan Claudia had to hurt her. She didn't know. But as she was going to have dinner with Dylan at the Italian restaurant the next day, she figured she might ask him some questions there.
So she ended up going to bed with various questions running through her head. The next day, it was Saturday, and Saphira intended on doing some shopping. It has been a while, and she did look forward to being able to find an outfit to wear for the dinner with her boyfriend. She ate a couple boiled eggs and a couple slices of toast for breakfast before she took her car out to the mall. She sang along to some of the radio tunes that were playing because she was looking forward to some TLC. She wasn't necessarily looking forward to tonight with the questions she would be throwing out at Dylan.
When she arrived at the mall, Saphira spent quite a few hours combing through the different stores to try on different outfits. She ended up buying some new clothes for casual wear, as well as new pyjamas, underwear, shoes and a few new dresses. She did also get some makeup as well, even though she had a lot of makeup at home already. She still was not sure about how she was going to feel about going to the restaurant later that night, but she had to go. It would be rude to stand him up.
It was now after one in the afternoon, and with multiple bags in her hands, Saphira returned to the car and opened the hood to place the bags into the trunk. It still felt weird to have a car where the engine was in the back of the car, but she did not mind. Once that was done, Saphira stretched out her arms with a sigh and got into the car to return to the apartment so she could spend the time on getting herself ready for dinner.
Saphira sat in the car and stared at the wheel for a moment before her happy expression changed to sadness. "Should I even bother with this man? If he's cheating, I don't know if I really want to go tonight…" She shook her head as the words from Arthur and Nicholas replayed in her mind. "Well…it's better I end it amicably…"
She turned on the car and left the mall parking lot to drive back to her apartment. She returned to the apartment and unloaded the car before she would spend the rest of the afternoon just taking her time in getting ready. Although she mostly used that time to give herself TLC. She spent an hour in the bath with a scented bath bomb, and then she spent time curling her hair and applying makeup to her face. As the reservation for the restaurant was at seven, she wanted to be at the restaurant rather early.
When she was finished, Saphira stood in front of the mirror with a smile. She had curled her hair and sprayed hairspray to hold it, and there was glitter in the hairspray, so her hair was sparkling under the light. As for her dress, it was a new dress she had bought. It is a shoestring, V-neck black dress with a dark green, strap around the waist and green leaf patterns at the base of the dress that shimmer under the light. It was not a super long dress, the skirt of the dress was no longer than her knees. It was still a very pretty dress though.
She looked at the time and gasped when she saw it was fifteen minutes to six. With the traffic at this time of day, it was going to take at least an hour to get to the restaurant. Picking out her black heels, Saphira made sure she had enough money to pay for her meal before leaving the apartment to go down to the car lot to take her car. The bus would actually take a bit longer, so this would be easier. Plus, she knew where the restaurant was, and it wasn't in a super busy part of the city.
Once she reached the lot, Saphira ran over to the Porsche and unlocked the car before stepping inside. She let out a sigh of relief and put the key in to start it. She smiled hearing the rev of the engine before driving out of the lot to make her way through the city to the restaurant. She turned on the radio and tapped her fingers on the steering wheel as she listened to the music. But while she was listening to the music, her mind was elsewhere.
I am not even sure if I am going to ask if he is with someone else. I think I am just going to breakup…but I know he will ask why.
She went over the many things she would say to Dylan in her head. She wasn't a very confident girl when it came to confrontations, so she really was only playing out the scenario in her head where she would be confident. She was nervous even just over the fact she had to break up with Dylan. Even though it should be a clean and easy break. But given how Dylan reacted to her new car, she was not entirely sure how he would react to breaking up.
"Calling all autobots!" Saphira let out a shriek of surprise and glanced at the radio. She frowned as the small, blank screen by the volume dial turned on and showed an orange image of the strange, face symbol that was on the steering wheel, and the brand badge of the car. "Calling all autobots!"
"What the…" Saphira stared for a moment and glanced up as she was at a set of traffic lights, and it was red currently. "Okay…I am going crazy again." She slapped herself across the cheeks again a few times and took a deep breath. "I did not just hear a deep, strange voice through the radio. It was only my imagination."
Saphira suddenly had a bad feeling, and she did not like it at all. She took deep breaths as she waits for the lights to turn green. When they do, she drives forward and kept a tense grip on the steering wheel. She was not far from the restaurant, just ten more minutes and she would be there. She decided to focus her mind on the delicious food that would be provided at the restaurant. That was way better than thinking about a cheating boyfriend, and some strange voice coming through the radio of the car.
"Mirage!" She jumped and glanced at the radio again. "Can you hear me?!"
"What…w-w-what the h-hell is going on?" Saphira swallowed nervously as she did not know what to do. "Uggghh…just a few more minutes…just give me a few more minutes…"
Saphira groaned as the lights ahead change to red and she grits her teeth as she sat there behind another car, feeling impatient. She had one more set of lights to get to before she would turn left onto the street to the restaurant. She bit her lower lip nervously as she waited for the light to change to green, hoping that there were no other voices coming through the radio. Maybe her radio was picking up a strange frequency. That would explain it.
When the lights turned to green, she drove ahead ahead and drummed her fingers nervously on the steering. She put the indicator on and moved the car into the left turn lane, preparing to make the turn. She was thankful that the lights did not turn to red as she got there, and she was able to make the left turn. Which left another couple minutes before she would reach the restaurant. She glanced at the time on her watch, and saw it was almost fifteen minutes until seven. She would be there on time.
"MIRAGE!" Saphira placed her right hand on her ear with a grimace as the voice boomed through the radio. "Are you ignoring my commands?! Respond, Mirage! Arcee has important information, and you must attend. Roll out!"
Saphira pressed the button to turn off the radio as she hoped that would stop the voice coming through the radio. She was trembling a little as she was nervous. "Why the hell am I nervous?! Marcus never said that the radio's bugged! Great…I guess I should have had this serviced…at least I am almost there."
"And you're gonna have to make a late cancellation," Another voice spoke through the radio, startling Saphira. "Sorry girl, but I gotta listen to the boss."
"Huh?" Saphira gasped as she felt the car lurch suddenly as the throttle suddenly pressed down without her pressing it down, and the gearstick began to change gears on its own. She tried pressing the breaks, and nothing was working. "No, no, no! Stop! What the…" She looked out at the window as she saw the restaurant to the right. "Uh, c-c-come on! Just drop me off! The restaurants right there!" The car continued to drive and sped past the restaurant. "Please…oh great…" She took big breaths as she looked around fearfully as she realized she had no control of the car. "I'm being kidnapped."
Saphira grimaced as the car moved around the other cars in the street, and she had no idea where the Porsche was taking her. She didn't even know if Marcus knew that the car could drive on it's own. And she didn't know that it was even possible, either. Especially since self-driving cars were still considered science fiction. And she was inside one. She looked at the car door and saw that it was locked. She was trapped and going for the ride.
"Please…I-I did not do anything…" Saphira did not know if anything that she would say would even make the car turn around. "Um…uh…" She gasped as she saw red and blue lights flashing from behind. "Oh, that's just perfect! Now the cops are going to want to book me for speeding!"
Saphira doubted that she could convince the cops that she was essentially trapped in this car. She could see the cars behind her. She screamed when she Porsche drifts to the right and she gripped the seat of the car as she braced herself. She had no idea where the car was taking her, but she did not like that the authorities were now likely going to be looking out for her car. She tried pressing the breaks again, but there was no response at all.
She knew that it was pointless to try and stop, but she needed to. She glanced at the sideview mirror as the cops were getting closer. She screamed and her body was thrown to the right as the car made a sharp, left turn and she gripped the other seat tightly as it felt as though the car was turning around sharply. She saw the light of the headlights shine close at the window before she heard the sound of crashing, and the screeching of metal being dragged along the ground.
The car's tyres spun loudly as the rubber burned on the road before it drove forward again and made a right turn. Saphira pushed herself up to side upright, just as the car turned right again, and drop into what seemed like an old factory area. The car turned off its headlights and drove between two large truck trailers. She took deep breaths and she tried to open the door, but it was locked. She was feeling extremely terrified at the moment. She tried pulling up the lock of the car, but it remained down.
She slammed her hand on the door in frustration. "Let me out!" She shouts at the car. "Come on, please! I need to get to the restaurant!"
There was no response from the car, and she watched the lights to the cops drive by the factory area before the Porsche drives forward suddenly. She jumped when the car moved again and it drove towards a set of sheds. She did not know what this area was, but all she knew was that this was trespassing. And she was kidnapped by some kind of self-driving car. But…this car also spoke to her. It shouldn't do that.
Saphira glanced around as the car entered the large shed, she did not see anyone present within the shed at all. But she screamed as the car swerved suddenly, unbuckled the seatbelt and opened the door, causing her to be thrown out of the car. She lands on the ground and rolled a few times before she stopped, looking up as she heard a strange sound and gasped as the Porsche was transforming. She blinked in shock as she stared at the car. She was in disbelief. She grabbed her bag that had been thrown out with her and stood up slowly.
"Oh man, that felt good!" It spoke in a joyful tone. "I've been sitting and doing nothing for so long! Nothing like giving the police a little chase. Gives them something to do!" He let out a light laugh before he looked down at Saphira. Saphira gazed as when he was fully transformed, he seemed to have a humanoid appearance. He was tall, had blue optics and he seemed to be some kind of robot. "Ah, right. I should apologize. I did not want to spoil your date, especially since you only just got that dress today."
Saphira stared at the robot in shock as she took deep breaths. "Uh…w-w-what…um…y-you c-c-could have d-d-dropped me off…" She took a step back from him as he walked closer to her. "I…y-y-you kidnapped me."
"Kidnapped? You said that before. And I cannot believe that you would think that I would do that to ya!" She squeezed her eyes shut and slapped herself across the cheeks as she was certain this was a dream. "Hey, hey, hey! I know you seem to do that to yourself when you think you are dreaming." She jumped back from him and opened her eyes back up. "Listen, I am doing you a favor. If that man that shouted at you the other day is really your boyfriend, I am doing you a favor by not letting you meet up with him."
She could not believe what she was hearing. "Um…I…I don't think you r-r-really have that right…" The bot seemed amused as he let out a light chuckle in amusement. "That i-is m-my decision…I d-d-don't need s-s-some kind of r-r-robot telling me w-w-what to do."
"Robot?! Aw, man!" The robot just laughed as though what she said was the funniest thing he has heard in a while. "I am not robot, young lady. In fact, I am from another planet, which makes me an alien to your planet."
"An alien?" Saphira now she knew she was dreaming. "Right…so…I guess E.T is around here somewhere?"
"E.T?! Are you seriously comparing me to that little ugly thing?!" The bot exclaimed in shock. "Nah, the name's Mirage." She stepped back when he held out his fist as he wanted her to fist bump it. "Come on, let's be cool and calm. I know this is a lot for you…"
"But someone called to you." Saphira backed away a little more from Mirage as she was still nervous. "I-Is th-the d-d-deeper v-v-voice your leader?" She jumped as she heard the sound of other engines approaching the shed. "Oh…I-I shouldn't be here!"
Saphira looked around quickly for a way out, though she decided to try and run back through the door Mirage had drove through. The bot was quick to step to the side to block her way. "Hey, woah, woah! I know this is a lot for you to take in, and I can see you are scared. But…" He glanced around as the sound of the engines were getting closer. "It is a little too late now."
"Right…but…I-I p-promise you th-that no one is going to believe me, because I-I am j-just a small, little, p-person…" Saphira tried to move around Mirage, but the bot was faster than her and she was getting more frustrated. "P-P-People a-a-are not l-likely to believe me…" She looked up at him and clasped her hands together. "I-I know th-this f-f-for a fact…I a-am u-used to it."
Mirage could not help but be confused by that. "Used to it? That's a little strange…" He rubbed his chin as he took his optics off her for one moment and she tried to run around him again. "Woah, you will make things worse for yourself if you run…Saphira, was it?" She looked at him in surprise when she spoke her name. "By the way, that is such a pretty name. And I am sorry that the dress is a little ruined, but it is still very pretty on you."
"Making things worse? W-What the hell are you talking about?! You could have let me out!" Saphira shook her head in frustration as this bot was really trying to keep her here. "This is your fault!" She jumped and turned around, widening her eyes as she saw a yellow, 1977 Camaro and a red and white Ducati 916. "I didn't realize there were so many like you."
"Oh, no, no! They're not like me," Mirage corrected with a light chuckle. "Don't worry, they are not going to squash you. Apparently, Miss Arcee, has some news for us." He shook his head with a roll of his optics. "There is always some kind of drama…"
"Drama?" Saphira jumped as the bike transformed suddenly, and Saphira looked up at the bot as she saw this seemed to be a female bot. She jumped up onto a catwalk, glancing down at Saphira and folded her arms. "Mirage? What have you done?"
"Well, well…" She turned her head to the camaro, widening her eyes as it transformed. "Who do we have here?"
"Calm down, calm down…" Mirage raised his hands to try and cool everything down. "I will explain it all, don't you worry." A roar of a truck engine behind him, made Mirage groan. "And here comes the big man himself."
Saphira looked past Mirage as she stepped back some more from him as she saw a red and blue freightliner truck rolling towards the open door. She lifts her hand to cover her eyes a little due to the bright light of the headlights, and blinking as the truck began to transform as well. She really could not believe what was happening right now. She was surrounded by robots. She watched as their leader completed his transformation, though his optics lock onto her and they narrow. He was clearly unhappy that she was there.
Saphira did not know what to do. She still thought about running, but since Mirage prevented her from doing just that, she knew that it was likely a very bad idea. Even if they did not transform back into their vehicle mode, their size meant their strides were longer. They probably would only have to take two strides to catch her if she ran. So it was best not to, even though she was really scared. And she had no idea what would happen now.
The leader was still glaring at her as he knelt down in front of her, completely unimpressed with her presence. "You brought a human here?!" His voice was full of disdain and disgust when he spoke, and his voice sent shivers down her spine as she took another step back from him.
"Optimus, hey! Looking good man!" Mirage exclaimed as the leader straightened up, looking at Mirage with an expression that was like a father scolding a child. "Wait a sec! Are those new rims?" He points towards the bot's tyres on the back of his legs.
Optimus was not falling for it. He rolled his optics with a low growl. "You were told to stay hidden!"
"Yeah…about that…" Mirage glanced at Saphira with a small grin. "You see…I was hiding out at a boring neighbourhood, not too long ago. And then, well, the man whose garage I had been hiding in decided to sell me, and she bought me…" Saphira made a face that was full of confusion and shock at the choice of his words. "Anyway, the last few days, I've been keeping a low profile. Which is about time you asked why I had moved, and…"
"Spit it out, Mirage!" Optimus interrupts Mirage bluntly, making the bot jump in surprise. "I do not want a long story. Why did you bring this human girl here?"
Mirage rolled his optics with a sigh. "Fine…she was already in the car when you called all Optimus-like autobots roll out." Saphira honestly felt herself shrinking in fear as she listened to him continue speaking with Opimus. "Besides, I already told you I was hanging out with some fine wine. And I was meaning her the other day." That still did not satisfy Optimus as he clenched his fists slightly. "Okay, well…she had a date tonight. That is why is all dressed up like this. And I didn't have time to just drop her off, because you insisted that I be here. What is some important that I had to be here?"
"You should have dropped her off at the destination she wanted to be before coming here." Optimus leaned down, and Saphira shrieked as she felt his metal fingers wrap around her firmly as he picked her up. She stared at him nervously, not knowing what he was going to do. She flinched when his face plate opened to speak to her. "Who are you, human?"
"Uh…I-I…I…am…I…" Saphira trembled and swallowed nervously. "I-I…"
"Her name is Saphira," Mirage interrupts the girl gently after rolling his optics.
"I did not ask you what her name is, Mirage." Optimus was not happy that Mirage had answered the question. "I ask you again, human. Who are you?"
Saphira was not sure if she should be annoyed or not, but she took a moment. "Um…I-I…a-a-am…uh…" She glanced at Mirage who gestured for her to speak. "S-Sa-Saphira…th-that's my name…" She looked back at Optimus as he narrowed his optics at her. "Uh…th-this is s-s-so not real…" She slapped her cheeks again, seemingly surprising Optimus.
Mirage let out a light chuckle. "I told you before, slapping yourself isn't going to wake you up from this. This is no dream, Saphira. This is as real as the dirt you walk on, and the sky you see above you every day."
Saphira stopped slapping her cheeks for a moment and jumped when Optimus turned towards the female bot on the catwalk. "Arcee, confirm."
Arcee lifts her hand and pressed a button on her face, which made her optics glow and seemed to scan Saphira. "Saphira Dawn, high school dropout and runaway at the age of sixteen…" Saphira grimaced as that was rather private information. "Works within a large, transportation business in the city and is a great artist." She stopped scanning Saphira, seemingly satisfied with the findings. "Seems like she isn't anything too special."
Optimus seemed satisfied with the answer to the question, and he looked at Saphira with a frown. "At least she has no ties to the government." She swallowed nervously again as she did not know what is going to happen. "Regardless of her status…" She jumped as Optimus walked over to a higher catwalk and placed her on it. "I will deal with your mistake later, Mirage."
What does he mean by that?
Saphira was glad that she had kept her heels in her back, as she would have likely had fallen due to the gaps in the catwalk itself. She looked down at the bots as Arcee jumped off when her catwalk. "Okay, the reason why Optimus called you here, Mirage, was because I detected a decepticon presence in this city."
"Wait, another decepticon?" Mirage seemed to be extremely surprised by the news. "I have been traversing this city for months, and I did not detect anything. How come you detected one, Arcee? I honestly thought Optimus dumped the last of them into the river."
Saphira had no idea what or who decepticons were, but it sounded like these guys were in the middle of some kind of fight. She didn't know if she really liked that. Saphira began looking around for a way to get down. She did see a ladder, but it was broken halfway down, which meant she would likely have to hurt herself to get down. That seemed like a stupid idea, so she looked around for some other way to get down from here.
Arcee nodded to Mirage's questions. "Yes. It would seem that Transit could still be here, which might mean their ship is hidden on this planet somewhere. Bumblebee and I detected the presence of the decepticon along the freeway, but we could not locate the vehicle mode he has taken on."
"Even if you were no able to find Transit himself, the fact that we are now aware of his presence in this city, means we can look for him. If we are ever going to get off this planet, we need to find their ship." Optimus lifts his hand to rub his chin for a moment. "I think that Transit will likely be hiding in plain sight. I am not sure exactly…what kind of vehicles were on the freeway that you and Bee were travelling on?"
"Beetles…a few buses, small trucks…" Saphira looked at Bumblebee as she heard his response seemed to be coming from the radio, that seemed odd. She didn't know if that meant he could not talk properly, or if something else was going on. "Traffic report from the sky helicopter…"
"Seems like we are trying to find a needle in a haystack." Mirage folded his arms with a slight frown. "Are you going to tell me that we have to go and scan every, single vehicle we pass just to locate this guy?"
"It will be a start." Arcee pressed her hand to the button on the side of her head again to bring up a hologram of the city. "There are so many people who live in this city, and there were just as many vehicles that they use. We can probably rule out trains and aircraft, which leaves us with trucks, buses and cars, as we know he's too big to take on a motorbike form. It does not narrow it down by much, but it is a start."
Saphira noticed a long pipe that was bolted against the beam by the catwalk. It was connected to the ceiling, and dropped all the way down to the ground. And it was close enough for her to reach out to it. She glanced back at the bots to make sure they weren't watching before she grabbed onto the pipe and climbed onto the railing carefully before pushing her legs off and wrap them around the pipe, sliding down carefully to the ground.
Mirage let out a soft groan and rubbed his face with his hands. "Aw, man! And I was just getting comfortable." He looked at Optimus with a slight frown. "If Transit really is here somewhere in this city, he is bound to show himself one way or another, Prime. I don't see why we have to go and scan every, single, vehicle just to locate this guy."
Optimus frowned at Mirage and placed his hand on his hip. "Are you telling me that you would rather spend time fraternizing with that human?" The bot simply shrugged with a slight nod. "Mirage, I know that Bumblebee once had a human who was good to him, but we are not to associate with them. That is the rule, and you know it."
"Yeah, yeah…I get it." Mirage rolled his optics at Optimus in irritation, turning around and looking at Bumblebee. "It is a shame we haven't managed to convince the big man that not all humans are bad. In fact, if you watch them go about their day-to-day life…"
"I do not care if most humans are harmless to us, Mirage. It is a rule I have put down, and it is a rule you will follow." Optimus looked at Arcee who also seemed annoyed by Mirage's attitude. "Arcee, after you detected the decepticon, were you able to track the signal?"
"A little, but it was lost very quickly." The femme shrugged a little as she seemed guilty about failing Optimus with that piece of information. "I did try to locate him, but he either noticed our signals, or he simply kept driving."
Saphira managed to reach the bottom of the pipe and placed her feet on the ground quietly. So far, the bots did not notice that she had gotten down from the pipe. She glanced over to a slightly ajar door to the side of the building, and she tiptoes slowly over to the door. She saw it was open just wide enough for her to slip through, and that is what she did. She pressed herself against the door frame a little as she slid through the door. She let out a sigh of relief, before getting annoying as she felt drops of rain on her head.
That's just great…at least this place is still close to the restaurant. I am so late!
Saphira ran from the door, wanting to get out of this area as quickly as possible. She knew she will know her way to the restaurant once she reached the main road. And so far, none of the bots have noticed she had disappeared. She hoped that when they do, it would be too late. But the only thing that she did know was that Mirage knew where she lived. She did not know if he would tell Optimus her address, but she could not be too sure. Especially since Mirage essentially kidnapped her, and apparently, he was doing it as a favor to her. She very much doubted that, and she wasn't about to stick around and find out what Optimus intended to do to her after referring to her as Mirage's mistake.