Spectre: Got a defense this week and will have to deal with the last modules this semester, so I'll to post this one. But I promise that things would get interesting at the next one.

Update: A lot of corrections corrected for this one, using Grammarly and the app's new AI Correction feature

66Shadow66: I'd blame it on the new autocorrect feature.

Starcofan09: Glad to hear it! I do intend to make this a sort of a serious story after an arc that I have in mind.

Hellcat1115: Time to find out what that is...

Yonyon586: I'm kind of the guy who likes to blend in a bit of realism in my stories. Because it's quite interesting if I say so myself.

MarioDS01: I get what ya mean, but this is to show Airachnid's struggles and of her facing the consequences of her actions. Which I imagine would be fun to write about on how she would earn her privileges in the future.

Chapter 6: A New Day

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

She felt the orange sunlight streaming through her eyelids amidst the uproar that invaded her ears. With mild frustration, she slowly opened them only for them to flutter almost immediately when she looked directly at the sunlight. Turning her head to her left, she looked at Jack's alarm clock reading 6:30 am while it beeped continuously, and she reached out to shut it down with a single slap above it.

Is it morning already?, Arcee thought as she went back down, feeling as if her body was reluctant to get up and her mind was weakly running in circles in a dazed manner. From what she could make out, this is what Miko and Raf referred to as being "groggy" when waking up. And as it felt so relaxing and rewarding to sleep, she couldn't help but think that it was too short for her, despite its duration last night and this morning. I could go ahead and recharge some more, but we have a schedule for today, so that's not going to slide for now...

She breathed in and out heavily as she yawned; to her amazement, it felt like a natural movement her body had performed. A second later, she felt her Spark, or rather the human term for it which is the heart, increase its pace and give her the boost she needed to get up and start the day.

As she did, Arcee heard soft humming from her other side, watching as Jack slowly shuffled out of his sleeping bag and met her gaze with his dazed blue eyes.

"Morning, partner," he greeted with a smile, slowly freeing an arm to reach for the strap of the sleeping bag. "Slept well?"

Arcee mutually returned that gesture with her own. "Sure did, but I feel that it ended too early", she replied, sounding bummed out at that, which Jack could relate to in every way.

"Tell me about it", the teen sarcastically said, finding it difficult to undo the rest of the sleeping bag's straps. "It's what I usually feel every time I wake up for school"

"But since you don't have any, I guess we could head over to the base to see what the others are up to," said Arcee, grabbing the wrist of her left arm, straightening her body as she stretched to loosen up the stiffness that her joints had endured during her resting process. As she did, the fabric of her tank top and shorts pressed tightly against her frame, causing the room's other occupant to quickly look away from the spectacle in embarrassment.

Especially when he realized that she wasn't wearing anything underneath her sleepwear. "Something wrong, partner?" she asked him, noticing his utter silence and the growing red hue on his face.

Jack quickly snapped to attention, shaking his head and wishing that she hadn't noticed. "Uh, yeah," he lamely said to her. "I'm just trying to get out of my sleeping bag."

That was a lame excuse, but it was worth the shot to not make himself look weird in front of her. "Need help with that?", she genuinely offered, squatting down to assist her partner in doing so.

"No!", he sputtered, taking her aback as he scrambled to get it off his body to get himself out of an embarrassing circumstance. "I-I can handle this, so don't worry about me!"

Arcee raised an eyebrow, wondering if his sudden outburst had anything to do with her course of action, but agreed to his request. So she stood up and took a step forward towards the washroom. "Well, guess I'll get cleaned up then-" she stopped mid-sentence, her eyes widening in complete astonishment.

When the sole of her bare foot made contact with an empty soda can lying around the floor. "Gaaah!"

Just as Jack managed to get his arm off the sleeping bag, he was stunned to find Arcee losing her balance, and falling forward. Towards him.

CRASH!

The teen groaned in mild pain, mentally thanking that he had not fully taken off his sleeping bag because it reduced the impact of someone else crashing into him. It didn't take a second for him to realize what was happening, and he quickly went to check on Arcee. "Are you all right?" he asked the bluenette, her weight pinning him to the floor and rendering him unable to move.

The bluenette raised her head slightly, his blue eyes meeting Arcee's, and realization again took over him as he noticed that her torso was pressed against his own and his nose was mere inches from hers. He glowered his head slightly, quickly looking away from her when he had a decent view of her cleavage that only serve for the red hue in his face to grow even brighter. "I'm all right, Jack", his mind shifted its focus on her words. "Guess we haven't cleaned your room entirely. But what about you?"

"I'm all right," he said as he felt his torso being freed when she lifted herself up with her hands and knees. "Just glad nothing happened to you. Or else, we might have-"

A sound of rushing footsteps could be heard creaking against the floor that was getting closer until it reached the door of his room. "Jack?", the teen recognized the voice of his mother from the other side. Panicked of the position he was in, the door slammed open just as he tried to get himself off Arcee. "I heard crashing in the room. What happened-"

The nurse stopped mid-sentence, looking at the spectacle of her son halfway laying down and his roommate on all fours as they were too close in proximity. The strap on the left side of Arcee's tank top had fallen to expose a full shoulder while noticing that she had not put up any underwear for the night before. To say that she was shocked was an understatement, but she was frozen at the thought of her son trying to explore boundaries that aren't yet ready for him.

"Jackson Darby", June took a moment to remain calm, slightly narrowing her eyes at him. "What is going on here?"

"Mom, I-I can explain...", nervously he tried to wave his hand at June to make a point, his face distorting in sheer horror and discomfort at trying to convince his mother that this wasn't supposed to happen. "This isn't what it looks like..."

Arcee wasn't sure why Jack was acting like he was going to be in so much trouble, but it was better to be safe than sorry that she wouldn't leave him behind like that. "It was an accident, June", she explained to the nurse. "I tripped over a container while on my way to the washroom that I fell over to Jack"

He wasn't going to take his chances, and he quickly jumped in. "Yes! That's how it happened! I was trying to get out of my sleeping bag when she tripped over!"

June glanced over to Arcee, receiving a nod of agreement from the former two-wheeler and the sincerity of Jack's reasoning. To his unnerving unease, the nurse gave a rather forced smile. "Oh, no need, Jack", she replied in what appeared to be a sweet tone, but he quickly figured out it was out of courtesy to the guest. "Since it was an accident, then I'll let it slide. Oh, and breakfast is ready downstairs"

She slowly closed the door in his room, with Arcee watching as Jack breathed a huge sigh of relief. "Were you going to be in trouble for that?", the bluenette asked.

"Kinda, but I can't tell", he admitted, managing to get himself free from his sleeping bag. "But thanks for backing me up back there. I don't what I'm going to do if you didn't"

Arcee smirked at that, though she wasn't entirely sure why Jack would be in trouble for an accident that wasn't his fault. "Anytime partner", she then stood up and headed for the washroom to clean up, leaving to make sure that his room is thoroughly cleaned this time.

Breakfast was pleasant for the most part. Scrambled eggs, hotdogs, and waffles were on the table today alongside a container of fruit juice. The eggs were really good especially when put with a condiment that Jack and June refer to as 'ketchup' alongside the hotdogs, which she found to be pretty decent too. The waffles were the best part, feeling the soft edges with its sweet flavor that is exacerbated when Jack spread it with a spoonful of cream cheese. The fruit juice felt like a sweetened variant of water, tasting the orange flavor all around her mouth and down her throat, and she had gone down in about two glasses before she could feel her stomach holding on with the amount she had.

"So...you two, what do you plan to do today?", Arcee heard June's voice as soon as she finished her second glass of orange juice. She was unsure of what to do for the day since it was Jack who had the idea last night, so she glanced over at him to explain.

Jack cleared his throat for a moment. "We're planning to head over to the base to see how Ratchet is doing with the relic", his eyes wandered for a moment. "And maybe go around town sightseeing and help out Arcee on how everything works around here"

She raised an eyebrow at that, causing Jack to sink a bit on his chair after thinking this might something to do with earlier this morning. "And I'm wondering if you could drive us there"

June pinched her chin for a moment. "I guess I could take you two to the base, but I have a shift after lunch this afternoon, so you two might have to take the bus or have the Bots drive you home"

"We'll take what we could get, June", Arcee assured the nurse, not wanting to hinder her responsibilities. "I'm still wondering how Optimus and the rest are dealing with Airachnid right now. And I couldn't even imagine Raf or Miko even being near her"

Jack looked over his phone for a moment from the messages Miko sent him. "She's pretty quiet, but I can't say if that's a good thing or a bad thing. But they did tell me that she wasn't pleasant in engaging in conversations when they paid her a little visit to her last night"

Arcee looked down for a moment, worried at the possibility of Airachnid managing to escape. Would she tell the Decepticons of the base? Even despite saying that she had been working solo, it would be a way for the former spider bot to get back at her. Or the thought of her harming any of the three humans she was with, something that she could never live by if it did happen. She looked to find June gathering the dishes they used and putting them into the sink, deciding to shake off those thoughts for the moment.

But before she could move to assist them, something felt weird.

She reached out of her belly, rubbing it slightly but the pain seemingly began to steadily increase at every moment. Almost naturally, Arcee bit her lip as she tried to endure it and waited for it to subside. Jack and June noticed Arcee's visible distress and moved in to assist her. "Arcee?", the teen held her shoulder, trying to get her attention. "Is there something wrong?"

"I think there's something wrong with my organic system...", the bluenette groaned, feeling it grumble momentarily. She felt something going up between her legs, threatening to burst at any moment but her instincts dictated that this isn't the place to do that.

Jack looked worried, but he figured out what was going on with her. "I'm guessing two glasses of juice is probably enough for you to go"

"Then what's going on with me?"

Jack glanced at June and cocked his head, a gesture that Arcee would guess says 'you're up' to the nurse. "Don't worry, Arcee", she assured her, getting ahold of her hand and pulling her out of her seat. "I'll make sure that we sort this thing out". With that, the nurse pulled Arcee into the bathroom, leaving Jack to deal with the dishes on his own.

June gently guided her into the washroom as the two stood by a fixed receptacle that Arcee guessed was for plumbing. "So...what are we doing here, June?" Breathing in, as if figuring out how to thoroughly explain this to her, June grasped her hands as she breathed out.

"Arcee, are you aware of waste disposal?", she meekly asked.

The bluenette lowered her head slightly.

She could hear June utter 'Okay, you've got this' to herself, deciding to brace how embarrassing this is going to be. "You see Arcee, the human body has a natural waste disposal system that ejects consumed food or beverages whose nutrients are absorbed by the digestive system where they would then leave the body"

"So...the food I've eaten is being extracted of its nutrients like Energon?", Arcee guessed, even though she already had an idea as to how that worked. "But why does it feel painful like what is happening right now?"

"Try to imagine the human organic system as a large garbage compactor and a sewer in one location', June suggested, causing Arcee to widen her eyes in shock at what she was trying to tell her. "And the food and drink you've taken that is inside you now, are waste awaiting ejection"

The bluenette began to pale, feeling a myriad of emotions that could be described as unease, disgust, and worry. She had studied human anatomy before, but never in this detail and Ratchet didn't feel like explaining it all when asked himself. "By Primus...I don't like the sound of that", she uttered in dismay. But Arcee felt that she was going to explode at any moment, and she had to withhold any more questions.

"Okay, then Arcee since we're here now, I'll have to ask you to breathe in and out", June instructed the bluenette, the latter heeding her instructions without hesitation. "And then..."

Twenty minutes later...

Drying up the last of the plates, Jack wiped the sweat off his forehead as a sound of a flush of a toilet reached his ears he finally sat on the living room's sofa, waiting as Arcee and June descended the stairs. He oddly looked at her, as if the experience was less than appealing, not that it ever was. "So, you know what to do if that happens?", the nurse queried her, patting her on the back.

"I know, June...", she struggled to come up with any words to respond with. "Thanks for your help"

The nurse nodded at that, relieved that it was over rather quickly. "I'll be fetching on what you'll be wearing for our little trip later, so make yourself comfortable for now"

June left towards her bedroom and her closet, leaving the two partners on the sofa in silence. Jack wasn't sure how to open up a conversation but it was worth a shot. "So...how did it go?", he asked, even though it wasn't the best one to begin with.

"I'm not sure if I want to talk about it, Jack...", she shuddered for a bit, trying to forget the queasy experience of releasing unwanted substances inside her. "Is this also a natural process for humans every after consumption?"

Jack wanted to laugh at that, but he was not stupid enough to risk her ire. "Yeah...but we kinda know as kids in early years, so it doesn't bother us too much"

"I'm not sure if I could look at humans the same way again...", she mumbled, closely leaning herself at the edge of the sofa.

The climate in the office space and her blanket felt relaxing and warm on the sofa, her new eyelids felt heavy and reluctant to open. Every once in a while, when she drifted out of slumber, she felt movement against her control, something stirring beneath the covers that went ignored as she fell asleep. It must not have been for long as she soon stirred against from her dreamlike slumber, eyes finally cracking open a bit.

Human recharging is convenient by itself yet frustrating when getting out from it, she frowned, glancing at the wall clock in the office space to read 7:30 AM. By human standards, she had overslept but it was worth killing the time she was spending here.

Getting up, Airachnid felt the need to stretch the delicate human limbs just as Cybertronians do with their joints. With a moment's notice, she felt the pressure leaving her new body and went over to the washroom to clean out the yellow substances of her eyes that were becoming an annoyance. Drying herself with a tissue paper, Airachnid stared at her reflection in the mirror, silently seething at the way she looked no thanks to Arcee's interference. She heard a knock on her door, prompting her to head over there.

The small window of the door opened, revealing a larger human with a dark complexion wearing a suit befitting an official, looking around to see where she was until he found her sitting on the couch. "Hmm, I remember you", Airachnid remarked at seeing the man. "You were there when Sylas and his men were failing at making sure Arcee was being dissected for parts."

"And you trying to kill Jack and his mother", Fowler added, finding himself to be unease when he looked at the Autbots' prisoner, tense at her possible moves. "Yep, you got that right, Spidey"

She rolled her eyes at the nickname. "My actual name would suffice, fleshling", she dryly commented. "Surely it's not that difficult for you to remember?"

"Miko's idea, and I kinda like it too"

That little runt and her big mouth, she felt like wanting to strangle that insect already. "Let's not waste our time and get straight to the point", she suggested, clearly not in the mood for any company. "Now what do you want?"

Fowler sighed, wondering how to deal with her. "Even though you're under Autobot jurisdiction if that's even a thing, you're still entitled to basic needs given your little accident with Arcee", he went over to his side, fetching a large paper bag alongside a bundle tied around three objects. Books to be exact.

"So we've got something to make sure you're up and running", he brought up a large paper bag, placing it on the table close to her as she watched in unnerving silence. "And a little something for past time"

"Or rather something to keep me distracted?", she retorted disdainfully.

"Well, you could say that", Fowler shrugged his shoulders. "But hey, it's a little better than sitting around doing nothing, don't ya think?"

Airachnid grunted at that, but he had a point. "Fresh out of the diner, so best that you eat it hot", he advised her, gesturing at the bag with the former Decepticon watching as the Agent made his way out of the door. "Oh and Prime also told me to tell you that you'd be having a little chat with them in a little while. So better be ready at that"

He left the office space and he closed the door behind him. Scoffing at her predicament, Airachnid would rather pretend that she was deaf for all of what Prime had in mind for her.

At the very least, she had something to do while being caged even though the subjects that she figured inside weren't in her particular interest. But for now, her organic system was already crying out for its needs. And had to admit, this is quite better than the meal she had taken the night before.

The food given to her was rather different, but she had a bit of familiarity with what they are; a couple of eggs that are cooked in a form they called a 'Sunny Side', three strips of bacon, a hashbrown, a medium-sized piece of meat called a 'steak' and two containers; one of which she felt was quite hot on the surface when fingers made contact with it. And another container is a transparent liquid they refer to as water, which is the standard liquid that humans need and analogous to energon.

Sure enough, it had its appeal, using the utensils of plastic material to help with the consumption process and she quickly adapted to how to use them. The white part of the egg had a mild and slightly sweet taste, with a soft and delicate texture. But she took a liking to the yellow part, feeling the richness and mildly thick texture that complimented the white ones. The bacon was certainly a treat, noting how crispy and crunchy, with a slightly chewy texture. The same goes for the steak, indulging in the meaty substance that was way better than the burger she had taken last night. She decided to save the Hash Browns for later, in case she felt like having a bite.

And she turned her attention to one of the containers a distance away from her, sighing in mild frustration. If there's one thing she sorely missed, it would be her appendages that made any activity any less difficult than it wasn't any problem for her. Now that they're gone, everything just felt a little taxing in doing things and she moved to retrieve the cup with her hands, proceeding to take a sip with it.

SLAG! Only for her to nearly drop her cup when the bitter and acidic liquid turned out to be scorching hot when she tried to take a sip, feeling her tongue being singed by the heat, prompting her to take the other container, which it thankfully didn't share the same temperature as the first one and she felt her tongue being cooled off. What was inside in that cup!?

Airachnid took a moment to breathe in, not allowing her impulses to do anything rash at the moment. Even from last night before she fell asleep and while eating, she had focused her mind on figuring out how to get the scrap of out this place.

I still have time, and certainly would not waste it at things like these. I have to get out of here and find a way to change back...

She leaned onto the sofa, carefully calculating her chances of success with the different plans she had been formulating within her mind even in the night before. And so far, she hadn't had much success with any definite result if she were to recall every one of them.

Plan A: Hold one of the human pets hostage and force them to adhere to what she needed. Because even despite her new form, she should be able to overpower the human insects that they keep as pets, and given how they treated them, they would not risk anything that would happen to them if she managed to get her hands on them.

No, scratch that. For all her limited capabilities no thanks to her new body, it wouldn't be far-fetched that they might have taught those three a trick or two that would catch her off guard. And then there is the human from earlier who acts as their informant, and she seriously doubted that he would let that slide and would be adamant about putting her in a tight security prison, hence destroying any chance of getting out.

Plan B: Find any Decepticon personnel and tell them the location of their base, and maybe have them help her with her dilemma in exchange.

Not possible. Either they would simply laugh at a human who had bizarre claims and blast her to oblivion, or their 'medic' would have a new pet project for whatever experiments he had in mind if she went through with his. And how would she even know where their base is exactly? What's the use of a location if she couldn't provide any path leading up to it? Let alone somehow get outside the base.

Plan C: Lead the Autobots astray towards a location under the guise of an artifact and alert the Decepticons, and hope for their imminent demise once they ran into each other.

Megatron and his so-called 'elites' were already bested like it was weekly basis by the Autobots from what she had heard in tapping on their comms. So best not to get her hopes up. And it wouldn't be hard for them to think that she purposefully led to a trap. So throw that in the trash.

Plan D: Look for Silas and his organization where she would offer her assistance in utilizing Cybertronian technology.

No. They wouldn't believe her, and they make sure that outsiders would be silenced given how secretive their organization is from their human government. So that wouldn't slide either. And what good would they make for her? They were also unreliable insects when she worked with them once.

Exhaling her breath in frustration, Airachnid leaned against the wall, thinking as to how she would make the best out of the luck that Unicron himself had blessed her with. There has got to be something that would improve her chances and her current conditions, but what exactly?

She widened her eyes momentarily. There is another one...

Plan E, the least likely option she would even try if she had to. Gain the trust of the Autobots and their human allies by actually cooperating with them and there might be something in it for her. Biding her time before she could properly strike by taking elements out of the first few plans.

That sounded easier said than done. Except there was no way Arcee would even believe it for a second. But that would be her problem, but for the rest...there may be a slim chance. Slim, but still a chance nonetheless.

She smirked at the thought of gaining the trust of her friends and then breaking them once the time is right. What would be better than to see the Autobot watch her world shifting away from her? And later destroy it right in front of her?

It wasn't the most clever of plans, but after thorough analysis and thought, it might be her best shot. Airachnid grabbed the cup from earlier, noticing that the heat slowly died down. Taking her chances, she sipped from it and indulged in its sweet flavor, relaxing herself and her mind as she did.

"Whoah! Hold on a nano click, doc!", the console's communication terminal blared out from the other line, while Ratchet, Optimus, and Bulkhead stood by as they made contact with Wheeljack in the Jackhammer. "What happened to Arcee again?"

"We couldn't believe it either, Jackie", Bulkhead decided to speak up. "But you'll get the whole story once you've managed to get over here"

Optimus stepped in to address the Wrecker. "And since Arcee would not be able to conduct any missions, we are hoping that you'd be able to assist us, even if temporarily"

Wheeljack seemed to ponder for a moment before he turned back to the screen. "I'll see what I can do and I'll be changing course en route to base", he replied, before he nearly forgot what he was about to say. "Oh, and I ran into an old friend looking for the team", his statement caught the three off guard. "He could help you guys out in the base"

The three looked at one another, not expecting this to happen too soon. "Extra hands are always welcome, Jackie", Bulkhead expressed his relief at that. "So where is he now?"

"He's at the Jackhammer's cargo bay working on some of the weapons and tech he brought with him", the three saw Wheeljack glancing at his left, indicating that he had heard someone's voice within the ship. "Says he can't wait to meet the big boss once we've landed"

Optimus gave a nod of approval to the Wrecker. "Then we will await your arrival. Proceed with caution, and be careful, Wheeljack"

Wheeljack returned the gesture of his own with a smirk before the line between them was terminated.

Spectre: Another chapter but with an abrupt end. I was actually planning Airachnid to have the same predicament as Arcee but I have to withhold that for now as well as her interrogation by the Autobots but I felt that it would take too long and I decided to transfer the incomplete content on a new document.

And we're also having a new addition in the base. But try to guess who it is!