CHAPTER 13
Megatron laughed in sadistic glee as he held June captive in his large servo. Jack screamed for her.
"MOM! Mom, hold on!"
The sterling warlord sneered down at the human boy as his grip tightened around the young woman.
"She is mine, son. Your mother belongs to ME."
"NO! Let her go!"
Megatron shrank down in size until he was about 8 feet tall. He held June against his chest in a possessive embrace and leered at Jack.
"June will be my Queen and together we will conquer the universe!"
Jack screamed in outrage when Megatron suddenly appeared human, and began to passionately kiss his mother…
"AHHHH!" Jack bolted upright from where he'd been sleeping on the couch. He shivered in disgust at the apparent nightmare he'd just suffered. "Eww…gross…Megatron and my mom?!" Jack had to fight back a wave of nausea at the horrific thought. Especially when he remembered Megatron growling out the word 'son'. It sent shivers racing down his spine and not in a good way. Jack stretched stiff muscles, a little disgusted that his clothes were sticking to his sweaty skin.
He was currently at the Autobot base. Since Demetri, MECH, and Megatron were all out to get him, Optimus encouraged Jack to remain with the Autobots where he would be safe. The missile silo lobby was currently devoid of any Cybertronians.
Jack got up and ran down the stairs until he made it to ground level. He began to briskly jog down a familiar corridor that led deeper into the base. There were other rooms that the Autobots turned into personal recharging quarters. Optimus's room was the first door he reached. The door was open and a soft light was coming from within. Jack cautiously entered and spotted Optimus, recharging.
He crept closer, feeling his cheeks burning from embarrassment. He was sixteen…and he was running to Optimus like a scared child because he'd had a bad dream. The boy paused, unsure about waking the Prime. He turned, ready to tip-toe his way back out into the hallway, when a soft, baritone voice broke the still silence.
"Is something wrong?"
Jack sheepishly rubbed his arm as a pair of bright, blue optics locked onto him from above.
"I…it's nothing," Jack dropped his gaze down to the floor. "Sorry to bother you, Optimus."
"You had another nightmare," Optimus wisely intoned with a small hum.
"Y-yes," the boy admitted.
"Would it help to speak of it?"
Jack shivered and climbed into Optimus's proffered hand. He held on to the Prime's large fingers as the titan lifted him off of the floor and brought him to his chest plates.
"It was about my mom…and Megatron. He KISSED her…" Jack made a face of pure disgust.
Optimus merely raised an optic ridge in silent question.
"Megatron said my mom belongs to him, forever…" Jack mumbled despondently.
"We will do everything in our power to bring your mother home safely," the sage promised softly with concerned optics.
"I know. I just…uhh…don't want to be alone right now," the teen admitted with a small frown.
"You may stay with me as long as you desire."
"Thanks, Optimus. Sorry again for disturbing your slee–err–recharge."
"I was already online," Optimus smiled fondly down at the child. "Get some rest."
Jack curled up in Prime's servo and rested his eyes. The warm metal and the powerful thrumming of the Autobot leader's spark soothed his fears, and before the teen knew it, he was fast asleep with not a care in the world. Safely guarded by the one he considered a father.
June wasn't hungry. She was starving. She had no real concept of passing time and for all she knew, she'd been a Decepticon "guest" for days now. The young woman wasn't sure. She wasn't at all happy when her two jailors returned to the medical bay where she was still being kept. They'd left her alone for some time. Time enough for June to realize escape was impossible.
"So what are we fishing for today, my liege?"
"The human will provide me with the location of the Autobot base."
"I'm not going to tell you anything!" the fiery woman snapped as she crossed her arms over her chest in clear defiance.
"Oh, my dear, you will reveal to me what I want to know. That, and so much more," the sterling demon sneered with a growing leer.
Before June could protest further, the shiny red mech–Knock Out–unscrewed the lid of her prison and dropped a foul-smelling, GIANT, cotton ball into her glass cage and then sealed the top so that she was trapped, forced to breathe the noxious fumes.
She held her breath for as long as she could and banged her fists futilely against the glass, even going so far as to kick it, as though in an attempt to break it. June despaired when her starving, burning lungs screamed for air, forcing her to inhale deeply. This was it. She was going to die. They were finally killing her!
Dizziness immediately assaulted her head and a heavy feeling began to weigh down her limbs. What the hell? Chloroform?! It was definitely a knock-out drug as dark spots began to dance across her vision. She fought the urge to shut her eyes but was no match for the powerful sleeping agent and soon slumped down unconscious, totally unaware of what was to come next…
"Unghh…." June groaned weakly. She heard electronic babbling above her head and winced as the onset of a headache, mercilessly pounded through her skull in unison with her heartbeat. Her limbs felt like lead and she was very sluggish trying to move. Something felt…different. She couldn't quite place it. The back of her neck was really sore, like she'd slept on it wrong. Clumsily, lifting a hand and placing it on the back of her neck, June froze when her fingers touched–
Metal.
Something metallic was on her neck…no…implanted inside her neck! As she used her partially numb fingers to feel along the metal ring, she whimpered as an alien sensation washed over her.
The hell?!
"You're welcome," Knock Out lazily drawled from somewhere above her.
"What…what did you do to me?" The woman's shriek came out as a whispered moan.
"You humans lack a medical port. I made one for you," the mad doctor elaborated smoothly as though it were the simplest thing in the world.
June was getting a pretty good idea of what the hell he'd done. Inside the metal ring implanted in the base of her neck, was a deep little hole that she began to suspect went all the way into her freaking BRAIN.
"W-wwhaat?" She croaked with tears in her eyes. If anything, this 'medical port' was just like the Matrix ports that the machines put into humans to keep them suspended in a virtual dreamworld. It felt exactly like that.
Her eyes widened and she whimpered when the big ass needle came into view again only it wasn't quite a needle anymore. It looked very Matrix-esque. Like how Neo plugged himself back into the Matrix as a free human. It was connected to the cortical psychic patch cable.
"Now, hold still…" Knock Out commanded firmly as he lowered the thing towards the base of her neck. June began to scream and struggled to get away, desperately choosing to crawl on her hands and knees when an attempt to stand epically failed. Her body shook as sobs escaped her throat, the air permeated with the scent of her fear.
A large silver hand blocked her escape route as a second pinned her down, exposing the back of her neck. She begged and pleaded, still weakened from the sedative. Her struggles renewed.
"N-no! Please! Don't do this! I won't tell you anything!"
"Shhh…it's alright. It will be over soon," rumbled a deep voice like thunder, vibrating the bones in her body. It was sickeningly sweet, like a parent trying to console a frightened child about to get their next tetanus shot.
"N-no! NO!" June felt an alien sensation wash over her mind. She felt metal sliding on metal and then a piercing white light overtook her vision. The cortical psychic patch slid through the port and into her brain.
She was standing in the ambulance bay at Jasper County hospital. Why was she here? Wasn't she a prisoner? Had it all been just a horrific nightmare? Dr. Ray appeared beside her with a clipboard frowning with concern.
"June…are you alright?"
"Ratchet?"
June remembered now. Dr. Ray was Ratchet's solid hologram, made possible when the medic himself invented and created the holo-emitters.
How very interesting…
A dominating presence pushed against her mind, probing and demanding.
Where are the Autobots?
The Autobots were probably back at their base. Where else would they be?
Show me!
June realized what was happening and fought against the patch, but pain like white-hot knives sliced into her mind, eliciting an agonized scream. She sobbed in despair as her mind began to replay the route she always took to get to the abandoned missile silo out in the middle of the desert. Unable to stop the memory stream, June was forced to relive it.
She drove her car straight through the rock wall of a huge plateau, large hangar-like doors opening at the last minute to grant her access, and through a long tunnel that eventually opened up into a more spacious area. A large, red Autobot symbol was painted on the atrium floor and just to her right were catwalks, a staircase, and a large network of computer monitors where Ratchet often worked.
The Autobot base.
June stood in stupefied horror.
Excellent! Well done.
"NO! NO!"
June turned around to see a smaller version of Megatron standing right behind her. He was at least 8 feet tall, but looked just as intimidating.
"What have I done?" June whispered.
She showed the leader of the Decepticons exactly what he wanted to see and was unable to put up a decent fight. Feeling anger mounting in her chest for feeling so useless and so used, it finally exploded out of the slight woman in the form of her fist. She struck Megatron's faceplates, feeling bones crunching, but that didn't stop her. Her skin cracked, and blood trickled from her wounded hands, but she didn't care as she continued her assault. She screamed in outrage.
"DAMN YOU! YOU MONSTER! I HATE YOU!"
June continued to punch the unmoving figure, disgusted with how weak she was and sank to her knees in clear defeat several minutes later. She hadn't even scratched the silver-tongued warlord! She'd probably broken both of her hands, though.
She was more than surprised when Megatron knelt down in front of her, ever so gently taking up her bloodied hands in his own large servos as though examining them.
"A pity you were born such a weak creature. You have the heart of a Decepticon…." Megatron purred.
"No. I'm nothing like you!"
"On the contrary. Your words and actions prove otherwise. Imagine all that we could accomplish together!"
June's eyes widened at that statement and her lip curled into one of disgust.
"Are you hitting on me?! Eww…gross! We aren't even the same species!"
"And why should that be a hindrance, my sweet?" Megatron grinned widely as the young woman slowly backed away from him, not even noticing that her once broken hands were now completely healed.
"Optimus was right…you ARE crazy!" June stared at the Decepticon leader completely dumbfounded.
The silver warlord gave her a toothy grin and then spoke.
"Knock Out! I have the information I require. Disconnect."
The world panned and disappeared as June felt a metal rod sliding out of her neck, returning to the world of the waking. She gasped like a fish out of water, trying and failing to get her bearings. A large metal finger stroked her back gently, like a human would a pet.
"There, there…it's all over now," came the deep, rasping voice of the Decepticon leader. June wanted to swat his servo away but a biting weakness had seeped into her weary limbs. All she managed to do was pathetically flail one hand which flopped back down like a small sack of potatoes. Her body, her mind especially, felt so different now…
Unable to push Megatron away, June had no choice but to endure the humiliating petting.
"I hate you…" June mumbled beneath her breath. To her surprise, the Decepticon leader released a grating laugh.
"Oh, my dear. In due time, you will come to adore me."
"You really know how to raise the creep factor…" June grimaced as she weakly struggled to get out from beneath the Decepticon Lord's constant stroking. His actions ceased as another mech came lumbering into her field of vision. The mech in question was purple, with a one-armed cannon mounted where his left hand should be. He also had one distinguishing feature, one red optic. June had heard horror stories about the Decepticon scientist. She recognized him from a holographic image that Optimus had shared during a briefing with Agent Fowler weeks before.
Shockwave.
"Shockwave, how fares Project: Dominate Mind?"
"The algorithms and coding have been completed. However, getting them to merge with a human mind may prove difficult."
"Perhaps not anymore," Knock Out huffed as he pointed out his handiwork on June's neck.
That lone optic seemed to brighten in intensity as that chilling gaze settled on June.
"I see. Project: Dominate Mind will be completed on schedule, Lord Megatron."
"Woah, woah, WOAH! I'll die first before I let any one of you creeps dominate my mind! You won't get away with this!" June hissed defiantly as her fiery spirit soared once again to the surface.
"You don't have a choice!" Megatron snapped, as though it were obvious. "You will help me defeat the Autobots…starting with Optimus Prime. You will become our new ultimate weapon! Think of the glory! Your contribution to the Decepticon cause has already branded you a traitor in their eyes."
"No…that's not true," June whispered with wide eyes.
"Oh, really? Then why haven't the Autobots attempted to rescue you yet?" Megatron grinned with dark satisfaction.
"They don't know where we are!"
"Then why don't we remedy that situation, my dear? Soundwave! Dispatch Lazerbeak to monitor the coordinates June provided us with!"
The silent spy master nodded his head in understanding, his chest plating shifting to reveal a winged, bird-like drone. Lazerbeak squawked in triumph and flew out of the medical bay and towards the flight deck to carry out his Master's order.
"Megatron…please. Please don't hurt my son," June pleaded, desperation lacing her voice.
She could hear the pull of cables as the gigantic robot craned his neck down at her. His eyes–no, optics, she believed, blazed down at her. Hot and bright and intense. Although, all the human could make out was circular lenses, she swore she could see millenia of hatred and scorn in that alien gaze.
"And why, pray tell…" Megatron rumbled, his voice low and deep and grating, "should I spare him, after all the trouble he's caused me?"
"Because he is a child—"
"He is an insect! What difference does it make if he lives a few more solar cycles?"
June could not help but gape at the cruel words. An entire human lifetime, and Megatron compared the notion to the day of a fly. The Autobots had told her plenty of stories of how the Decepticon leader had no respect for life, but to actually hear it. June was chilled to the bones.
But as the concept rolled in her head, she could see the reason behind his madness. Cybertronians were immortal beings. They lived for thousands–millions–of years. Perhaps even more. A century passed in the blink of an eye to them.
Not for June. She would not have Jack's life thrown away over a fight that wasn't even his.
"He's MY child! He's all I have left…"
"Just what are you willing to sacrifice?" Megatron sneered at her, upper lip component curling as though fighting back a sadistic grin. He of course already knew the answer…he'd been within her mind.
"I'll do anything. Just please, don't allow any harm to come to him!"
"Anything?" the silver warlord slyly grinned.
June realized her mistake too late. She shuddered at the wicked possibilities simmering through his twisted mind. Feeling committed, June nodded her head. She promised herself a long time ago that she would do anything to keep Jack safe. Now that Megatron knew the location of the Autobot base–because of her–his safety was no longer guaranteed. So she was willing to make a deal with the devil.
"Yes. Name it."
"You will submit to me. You will give us your cooperation without complaint."
June raised an eyebrow.
"That's it? My full cooperation to spare Jack's life?"
"And whatever else I may require of you," Megatron chuckled darkly.
June felt her skin crawl and was tempted to back out of this insane deal. The young woman didn't like the prospect of what 'whatever else' might truly entail. She looked down at her feet, weighing the pros and cons. Eventually, a mother's overprotective love won out. She evenly met Megatron's hard stare.
"It's a deal."
TO BE CONTINUED!
Author's note: I just had two deaths in my family and it's been difficult getting back in the writing groove. Thanks so much for reading and a special thanks to Misgel for being my beta! Please review! And no, there will be no smut or graphic romantic scenes in this story. Sorry to disappoint those of you that were thinking I was going to make this a June/Megatron pairing. Like Jack said earlier…"ewww". XD