Chapter 11:

I perused the selection of video games available on the shelf. Unsurprisingly, most of them were racing oriented, or driving based. So, as I sat on the floor and began reading the back of the the game cases for the summary, my mind drifted.

Saturday was crazy. The Scraplets had done a lot of damage to the base, so all of Sunday everyone was trying to figure out what needed repair, and fixing what we could. There was a lot. Ratchet got the basics of communications back online, but the screens were still flickering. Power was fully fixed, of course, as well as the security systems as they were the two most important things to have up and running. Raf had a blast learning about the inner workings of everything, he had probably driven Ratchet insane with all of his questions but, surprisingly, Ratchet had allowed it and even answered some of the questions, though not without clear annoyance. Jack too had learned a lot helping Arcee with the power and security. Though, there was the incident when one of the security blasters frizzed and tried to kill them.

Ah, good times.

Now it was Monday. The kids were back in school and I was alone in the base hangar with Ratchet and Arcee. After the Scraplet event, I finally got an offer by Bulkhead to show me the rest of the base sometime. I was looking forward to it.

The glowy stick though… Ratchet had been baffled how I got it. When I told him I had just found it in my pocket, he was clearly concerned. There was a video feed he had set up to watch the stick just in case, but the Scraplet attack had caused it to frizz out. We wouldn't be able to check it out until after Ratchet gets the the video fixed, which, as he said, would have been easy if not for our current tech problems. I sighed. My problems weren't the main concern right now, so I'd have to wait.

And wait and wait and wait. Because none of these games are interesting and I was bored. I took my crutch and lifted myself back up walking over to the railing. Ratchet was currently servos deep in the Groundbridge control panels. It was on the frizz, sometimes working, sometimes not. Something about the "sensitive calibrations" were off. Arcee was currently cleaning her armor plating with a towel, leaning against the wall below me, a little to my right. She looked up when she noticed me staring, but didn't stop cleaning.

"Do you know if Agent Fowlers called?" I asked. The guy had just up and disappeared. Arcee shrugged.

"Not that I'm aware of. He'd usually call here or Optimus." So wait to ask Optimus. I groaned. I had a list of things I needed to ask the Agent: identity papers, a decent food supply, clothes, bandages, therapy, maybe getting a driver's license, school was probably halted until I could get back, but maybe I could get a phone or laptop or something? The Autobot base was lacking in the needed necessities for comfortable living. Mainly a steady supply of food and the lack of clean clothes was driving me insane. As appreciative as I was of Jack bringing me food, a PB & J wasn't a proper meal and I had to stretch the lunch to last all day. This couldn't be good for my health.

Well, if it's just for a little while longer, I could probably deal with it, but the work with the mysterious glow stick was very slow. Meaning the research into how I got here and how I can leave was going very very slowly.

"What do you know about traversing to alternate realities?" I asked the blue bot. Arcee smiled sadly at me and focused back onto the towel as she tried to get a spot between her right arm plating.

"Optimus should be coming back soon. You'll have to wait until then for updates on Agent Fowler." I groaned again, laying my head on the railing. I was bored. So bored.

"I usually have Jack do it but... would you like to help me do a routine diagnostic check? Wouldn't hurt to learn the ropes," Arcee offered. I stared at her.

Learn something that I can help Arcee with? Hell yes!

"Can I?" I asked now giddy, slightly leaning over the railing towards her. Arcee stretched and got off of the wall, turning around to face me.

"Sure." she said, her optics focused on my face, "but it isn't anything special," she warned. Not special?! Did she have any idea how many people would love to be in my place right now?! I quickly nodded my head and quickly began my way down the stairs. As I was more then halfway down the stairs, Arcee stopped me, holding out her left servos over the railing. I stared at the hand that was palm upward and flat.

"Huh?"

"It'll be quicker if I carry you," she answered my confusion.

Giant robot… wanted to carry me. She was right, that with my hobbling I would be slow, but… Hell, I'll do it for the experience!

I hesitently got onto Arcee's hand, making sure not to look down, and not thinking about how bad it would hurt if I fell. Not thinking of that at all, nope. I quickly sat down and held her thumb with my left hand, while my legs dangled over her palm, my crutch sat in my lap. Her hand rocked back and forth as she brought it back towards herself, and I felt the movement of her hand with each step she took. Arcee wasn't even that large compared to the other Bots, yet it was still terrifying. Each step reminded me of how small I was and how easily she could crush me. Arcee would never do that, I knew (that is, as long as I didn't get on her bad side), but the idea that she could brought my heart rate up a million beats. We quickly went down the hallway, and got to the end way faster then when I had gone alone two days ago. Looking below, I became a bit nauseous seeing the bathroom door below me, and clutched Arcee's thumb closer to me.

"Not much one for heights I assume?" She asked.

"Uh, no! It's fine, just uh, accidents can always happen?" I gulped and looked up at her. Her blue optics stared into mine. Being so close I could see the individual ring of light surrounding a circular lighted center. Her eyes were lined with the same blue as her plating in a winged fashion. Her left eyebrow (or eyeplate?) rose up. Then she smiled.

"I have good reflexes, there's nothing to worry about." I didn't find her assurance particularly comforting.

We turned right, and I took the chance to finally get a good look at the hallway. The walls were concrete, with the occasional pillar attached to the wall. The walls were divided into two parts, a lighter concrete top, and a darker concrete bottom, with the darker concrete making a band across the walls dividing the two colors. On the lighter concrete were lights lighting the hall. Above us was fluorescent bulbs, as well as metal tubes and shafts. I couldn't help the shudder that ran down me at the memory of the Scraplets that had come out in swarms from the piping.

We turned left, than right, and right again. A long hall greeted us at the end of which were large garage doors, but it didn't look like the storage area we had gone to where the Scraplet pod was stored. I looked at Arcee curious.

"Those are our rooms," she explained. It surprised me, yet on second thought it seemed obvious. The Bots having rooms was never mentioned in the show from what I remembered, yet it made sense they'd want a private space of their own. We turned left at a branch in the hall, and the sound of metal scrapping echoed from a large open door near the middle of the hall. Before that though was another garage door.

"This one's mine. You are not allowed into here without my expressed permission, understood?" Arcee warned, optics narrowning and her finger pointing accusingly towards me. I nodded.

It didn't escape my notice that her room was further away from everyone elses. She was supposed to be the solo/loner type, so it wasn't surprising. That was an issue developed and explored in the series, if I wasn't mistaken.

And shouldn't it be obvious that I shouldn't go into someone else's room without their permission? There was a gut feeling within me that the strict warning had something to do with Miko.

"What's that noise?" I asked changing the subject, as the clanging echoed again. We walked over to the open doorway, and my eyes widened.

Inside was a large room with red mats in the center taking up most of the room. On the sides of the mats was a variety of equipment. Weights, giant punching bags, benches, and other equipment I'd never seen before. At the back of the room was a single row of windows opening up to what looked like a firing range, a metal door on the right of the room, directly in front of us. On the mats currently was Bumblebee and Bulkhead, there chassis moving up and down quickly..

Bumblebee threw a punch and Bulkhead blocked it with his left arm. Bulk then swung his right servos in an uppercut, the force of which pushed Bee back and almost made him lose his balance. He quickly got his bearings though and went for Bulk again. Prepared, Bulkhead again went to block the punch, but Bee swerved around Bulkhead at the last minute and swept his legs causing the large Bot to fall down, the room vibrates slightly at the sound.

"Whoa," came out of my mouth. The noise brought Bee's and Bulky's attention to me and Arcee at the doorway.

I couldn't help the smile that came onto my face, even as I tried to hide it behind my hand.

"Wow Bulkhead. What would Miko think if she heard you were beat by Bee?" I asked, knowing full well that Bulkhead would not hear the end of it if Miko knew what had transpired. Bulkhead seemed to balk at the idea, face getting serious.

"You..wouldn't dare," he panted out. I hummed in response. Bee offered a hand to Bulky, and helped him back up. They were both panting, though why or how I didn't have the slightest clue.

"And hey… didn't Ratch say not to exert yourselves. What with your wounds and all?" I asked, concerned.

"That?... That was...just a scratch," Bulkhead inisted, still trying to catch his breath (Seriously, is it that their overheated? Is that how?). I was not amused by the response. If they weren't careful the wounds could reopen, or unmend? Whatever! Ratch said not to and he was Doc Bot! I sighed.

Bee buzzed and whirred. I turned towards Arcee, who had been watching silently, to translate.

"He said that we've had worst injuries." I knew they were right, but was I wrong to worry?

"What is this place anyway?"

"The Training room. Very bearbones," Arcee responded. It didn't look barebones to me, then again they were probably used to some high-tech ninja training room or something like that.

"Maybe… maybe one day you could teach me some moves? Just to protect ourselves from...Decepticons?" I asked hopeful to Bee and Bulky. Okay I just wanted to be taught how to fight by the Autobots. They're cool and I want to mimic them. Not only that, but I really don't want to only be a burden. If I could learn some stuff, maybe I could at least be a bit more helpful.

Bulkhead and Bee looked at each other, then to Arcee, then to me.

"Rachel," Arcee brought my attention to her, "a word of advice? If you see a Decepticon? Run. Don't fight."

That hopeless, huh.

"Yeah. It's just... you human are..." Bulkhead brought his fingers together until there was barely any space between them, his optics squinted to further illustrate how small we are. "And you'd go…" Bulkhead squished his fingers together. Bee nodded his head and whirred in the affirmative.

Message received. Decepticons = Death. I nodded in understanding.

"Let's continue, I can show you how diagnostics are done," Arcee changed the subject. As we turned from the room, I waved the two Bots goodbye as they got back into position for more sparring. Arcee and I went a little further down the hall until we reached a thinner garage door. Arcee waved her hand near this little black box that was attached next to the door, and a green light flashed. The door opened and we quickly went inside before the door closed behind us. Lights flashed on in the room, temporarily making me blind before my eyes adjusted. I looked around to see a garage room like the others, but with a metal mesh platform with stairs leading up to it in the middle of the room. It wasn't very tall,maybe half the height of Arcee. Also, wires and tubes littered the floor, and a small human sized computer on the platform caught my attention.

Arcee slowly let her hand down, and I carefully got off, slightly dizzy from the whole carrying experience.

I think I'll try to stick to walking until I get used to that.

Once I was balanced and didn't feel like I was going to fall over the first step I took, I looked up to Arcee.

"So, how do we do this?"


Author's Note's: Back in action!

Get ready for foul fowls. Fowls are such foul creatures. Not hinting anything at all here for next chapter, nope. So, I hope you like a brief in-between chapter. Life isn't always exciting (except it totally is if you're living with giant alien robots. Even the mundane is still amazing).

Comment's are appreciated!

Self promotion: Undertale one-shot, read if interested, think i'm gonna go for it. Gonna probably randomly post first chapter this week. Announcements are on my profile. I has Tumblr good yes: readertra-unicorns, link in profile.

Also Note: I don't own Transformers, nor Prime. Just Rachel, who also wants to be able to kick Bulk's chassis.