Author's Note: Thanks so much for the reviews! They keep me very inspired! :D Just so you know, I will try to update as often as I can, mainly on my days off! Thanks for your patience! I already have the next chapter in the works but I already had to rewrite it like three times because I didn't like it, lol.
CHAPTER 10
June could only stare wide-eyed at the impossible scene playing out right in front of her. Her ambulance...was ALIVE. Not only was it alive but it had transformed from a vehicle, into a large robot. Now that her would-be assassin was preoccupied in hand-to-hand combat with her former ambulance, June took the opportunity to run.
The young woman barely registered it when her legs carried her all the way to her sedan. Her hands shook as she fumbled with her car keys, ducking as the red robot was punched in the face and landed a few meters away with a loud cry of outrage. The ground shook from the titan's fall. The red robot turned to look in her direction and that's when June's skin began to crawl when a wicked GRIN widened on her attacker's face. The mech raised a clenched hand and appeared ready to squash both woman and car like a bug, in one cruel hammer fist.
June screamed and cringed with closed eyelids, awaiting the inevitable agony...but it never came. Instead, the red and white robot with a chevron on his forehead, tackled the other bot with a loud screech of metal and knocked the impending fist of doom away.
The paramedic didn't even remember getting into her car or jamming the key into the ignition. She didn't bother waiting around to see just who was destined to be the victor in that giant robot deathmatch. She floored the accelerator and sped off in the opposite direction with only one destination in mind. A few minutes later, a pair of familiar high beams appeared behind her, blinding June in her rear and side view mirrors.
"OH MY GOD!" June screamed out a fervent prayer, when the flashy red sports car hit her rear bumper, nearly forcing the woman off of the road. She grit her teeth as she struggled to regain control.
"Where are the cops when you need them?" The paramedic yelped as she took a sharp right turn at a red light. It was strange that the police weren't out this evening. The deranged road raging Aston Martin, pulled up alongside her. Another scream tore its way out of her throat when the crazy car that could turn into a freaking robot, slammed into her driver's side. June choked on a sob as the car veered onto the sidewalk. She narrowly missed running into a street sign. It was trying to KILL her!
To her great relief, her pursuer was T-boned at the next intersection by her ambulance who had just decided to join the chase.
"JUNE! RUN!" She heard a familiar voice yell above the noisy screeching of burning rubber.
The woman didn't need to be told twice and shifted her ecru colored sedan into high gear before flooring it around the next left turn. She glanced in her rearview mirror and was relieved to see that neither vehicle was still pursuing her.
June Darby wasn't entirely sure what she had just witnessed back there, but when her car finally reached her home, she didn't stop until she was pulled entirely into her garage. She winced at the sharp screech of tires and the hard lurch as the car came to a shuddering stop.
Once the garage door closed behind her, she dared to twist the ignition key into the off position. Gripping the steering wheel in a near death grip, June rested her forehead against it as her erratic breathing began to slow. Tears leaked out of her eyes at that moment. Small shoulders began to shake, as a frightened sob tore out of her throat. She stayed that way for a good ten minutes, her fear soon turning into bone weary exhaustion.
Not trusting her own two feet, June leaned heavily against the car as she carefully slid out of the driver's seat. Her eyes widened at the huge dent in her door and was amazed to see her rear bumper was hanging at an odd angle. It was a miracle the thing hadn't fallen off! Brushing her bangs out of her damp eyes, the young woman briefly assessed the damage before turning and walking inside her home.
"How the hell am I going to explain this to my insurance?"
How the hell was she going to explain this to ANYONE?!
June thought about calling the police but had to almost immediately throw that idea out of the window. What exactly would she say? "Excuse me officer, my ambulance and a psychotic sports car turned into giant robots and fought in an apparent deathmatch, just before the red car tried to kill me by running me off the road!"
Ha. They would commit her to the psychiatric ward for sure and pump her full of anti-psychotics.
June growled to herself at the thought. She knew she wasn't crazy and had no family history of mental illness. Maybe she overworked herself? Maybe it was all a big hallucination caused by that cafeteria hot dog she ate for lunch at the hospital...
At that moment, her home phone rang. She walked into the kitchen and looked at the caller ID. The number was classified as "Unknown Caller". She felt her anxiety spike again when she remembered the eerie caller earlier that day and hesitated in answering it. Her hand hovered above the phone handle and she paused.
Hmm...maybe she should let it go to voicemail. If it really was important, perhaps she would answer.
The voicemail clicked on and the concerned voice of Dr. Ray filled the silence.
"June! June Darby, are you there?! Please, if you can hear me, answer the ph-"
June lifted the phone and pressed it against her ear with wide eyes.
"Dr. Ray! What's wrong?"
"...I need you to come outside. I promise I will explain everything…"
June took the wireless handset with her and peered out of the living room curtain and gasped when she saw her ambulance. It was sitting innocently in her driveway, the bolded number 117 shone clearly in the dim light of evening. Feeling her heart begin to race she backed away from the window and shook her head in utter denial, despite the fact Dr. Ray was unable to witness her reaction.
"N-no...I…"
"Please...please, just trust me," Dr. Ray pleaded.
June wanted to run as far away as she could but knew that running would not solve her problems. Trying to gather what courage she had left, she answered firmly.
"I'm not walking outside. The front door is unlocked."
"Very well. I will be in momentarily."
June ended the call and placed the phone back on the hook. She deliberately forced herself to take deep, slow, steady breaths as she heard Dr. Ray Atchel enter her humble abode and announce himself. She met him in the living room with crossed arms.
"Okay...what the HELL is going on?" the woman demanded.
"Ms. Darby...you are not safe here. Knock Out is still at large.
"Who the hell is Knock Out?"
"Please, come with me. I promise all of your questions will be answered in due time," he raised an inviting arm as though ready to usher her safely out.
June raised a suspicious eyebrow but finally relented. She had no reason not to trust Dr. Ray. In the short amount of time that she'd known him, he always remained trustworthy, friendly, and professional. With a short nod, she followed him outside and locked the front door behind her. He led her to the ambulance and opened the passenger door for her like a gentleman.
"Thank you," she mumbled tiredly as she stepped up on the running board and hauled herself into the side seat.
Dr. Ray got in on the driver's side and backed out of June's driveway. He drove them out of town. Out into the middle of nowhere, actually. They drove in silence for about ten minutes until the young woman's patience ran out. She wanted answers. NOW.
"Where are we going?"
"The Autobot base. It's the safest place for you right now."
"Autobot? What's that?"
Dr. Ray glanced at her.
"I'm an Autobot."
June just stared at him with a glare, silently demanding he elaborate.
"I'm not who or what you think I am…" Dr. Ray appeared hesitant as though internally warring with himself about something.
"What do you mean, by what?" she glared in suspicious confusion.
"I'm not human."
"Oh really…" June snickered as though she'd heard the joke of the century. Maybe Dr. Ray wasn't all there upstairs... Was she being kidnapped by a madman? She reached over and pinched Dr. Ray's arm, and was alarmed when he did not display a typical pain response. "The hell…?" She stared at him as though he'd grown a second head.
"We are almost there."
"Almost where?!"
"The Autobot base."
"Again...I have no idea what an Autobot IS."
Dr. Ray seemed to half-sigh and half-growl in frustration.
"Not everything is what it seems," he tried to explain.
"WATCH OUT!" June screamed as they drove off of the road and straight into a rocky mesa. She was stunned when rather than crashing, they went through a tunnel that hadn't been there before…they continued down the winding tunnel until a large underground cavern opened up.
June stared wide-eyed, as her jaw dropped in complete shock. Right in front of her stood four more giant robots. One of which looked very much like...Jack's motorcycle?!
The young woman stared incredulously as Jack, Miko, and Rafael came bounding down the silo staircase to greet her with happy smiles and friendly waves.
What the…THEY KNEW ABOUT THIS?! Her own son...had been keeping a very important secret from her...
June felt her head begin to spin as she slowly clambered down out of the ambulance. She craned her neck back to look up at the very tall, intimidating looking robots. She gave them a nervous half-smile and a short wave in greeting. When nobody spoke, June took the opportunity to rush forward and envelop her son Jack in a bear hug. She pulled away and turned around when she heard the clinking, grinding, and shifting of gears as her ambulance transformed back into the red and white robot from the fight.
Dr. Ray had completely vanished. When he spoke, his voice sounded just like…
"My name is not Dr. Ray. I'm Ratchet, Autobot chief medical officer," he introduced as he stared down at the stunned human femme.
June opened and closed her mouth like she was trying to speak but nothing came out. In seconds her eyes rolled up into her head and the woman fell in a dead faint. The concerned shouts of the three children were the last words June registered as everything suddenly went black.
On the Nemesis...
Razor sharp denta ground together in rage, as crimson optics burned furiously through the gloom of the Decepticon warship.
"You dare to report a FAILURE?!" silver fangs flashed in a snarl as the Lord of the Decepticons towered over his quaking subordinate. "What pray tell, is your excuse THIS time?"
"M-my liege...I did everything in my power to-ARGH!"
The sound of metal scraping across metal filled the empty space of the bridge. Knock Out yelled in pain as sharp talons raked across what was left of his unmarred chassis. He attempted to cower away but was roughly backhanded to the floor. The Decepticon medic let out another pained yelp as he roughly fell, sprawled on his back. He quickly got to his knees and bowed to his Lord and master.
"Lord Megatron...allow me to redeem myself! Thanks to Soundwave, we now know that the human femme works at the human med center! Please my liege, grant me another chance!" Knock Out pleaded as he continued to keep his helm bowed in supplication. "I swear on my spark that I will not fail you again!"
"If you weren't my only medical officer, I'd scrap you here and now! Fail me again, Knock Out...and it will be your spark," Megatron darkly purred in response to his groveling.
Knock Out continued to bow and remained silent, sensing that Megatron was not yet finished.
"Since I cannot trust you with a simple termination mission, you will RETRIEVE the human femme for me."
"Yes, master," Knock Out shakily rose to his pedes. He glowered at the smirking Starscream who looked to be highly amused at Knock Out's misfortune. No doubt the vain seeker was happy that he was not the one currently on the receiving end of their master's wrath.
"Soundwave! Send Laserbeak out on reconnaissance. I want to know the moment Optimus Prime's lapdog is beyond the confines of their base."
Soundwave nodded in silent acknowledgement and detached his drone from his chest plating. The little flyer chirped and flew out of the bridge and beyond the warship's confining hallways to the flight deck. The mini drone began his mission.
"Starscream!"
"Yes, my Lord?"
"Have you made progress in locating the human child's residence?"
"I estimate that he lives somewhere within the Jasper City limits. My seeker armada is searching the quadrant as we speak."
"I want more than an estimation, Starscream."
The seeker looked like he'd been slapped in the face and stood at rigid attention.
"Uh-ah...I will depart immediately, master," Starscream stuttered nervously.
"Good," Megatron growled with narrowed optics. He turned around to face the forward viewport, clasping clawed hands behind his formidable back. He listened to the slowly retreating steps of his first lieutenant and rumbled an afterthought, "And Starscream…" Megatron grinned with some amusement when he heard the clanking pedefalls come to a rapid halt, almost as though the seeker were cringing. "Do not return to the Nemesis until you've brought me something more substantial than a mere guess."
Starscream did not bother with a response, opting to swiftly exit the bridge to carry out Megatron's strict order. He was none too pleased with it no doubt, but Megatron did not care. Lip plates parted into a cruel smirk as he toyed with the possibilities of what to do with the human femme once she was at last in his claws…
TO BE CONTINUED!
Author's Note: So the reason I had June faint is because it was a bot and not her son that tried explaining the truth. And she met all the bots in one night. XD Thanks so much for your reviews! Because I plan on updating more frequently, the chapters may be a bit shorter than they used to be. ;)