You pounced backward and hissed. You had been looking for a Decepticon and when a ship crashed in the middle of a forest you had found it. The Decepticon you were fighting was spider-like, its base color was black and was highlighted by gold and purple. "Well, well to think I would find a Shikari on this dirt mound," the con taunted as one of her sharp legs jabbed at you, it was safe to say you were having a tough time. "I had thought I'd never get to have a feline Shikari on my wall but here we are," she grinned as she launched a web at you.
You growled at her, menacingly and low as you lunged forwards and dodged her legs. You leaped at her face with your claws extended, with a hiss acid flew and sprayed over your left eye, but you didn't let the pain blind you as you clawed at her face, you had missed the blow that would kill her but and eye for an eye. You both had blood trickling down from your faces. "You'll pay for that!" she snapped as the two of you circled each other. You glanced over the con, the way she moved made you think she was more than a foot soldier, you knew she was trying to read your attack, like you she was a hunter. Unlike you Airachnid hunted for fun, you hunted to quench a thirst.
She jumped upwards and tried landing on you, you slide under her and slice one of her legs off. She hissed in pain as she twisted around quickly and sliced your shoulder. You growled as her legs tried stabbing you but you had leaped into the trees and landed on her shoulder, your claws cutting deeply, her acid like spit couldn't reach you as you raked your claws down her back. One of her legs kicked you out of the way but you recovered quickly, you were winning this fight. The Decepticon glared daggers at you, you roared, the boom shook the forest. In terms of wounds yours were lesser, the acid had just missed your eye and the cut on your shoulder wasn't too deep.
The spider ran, her legs allowed her easy navigation through the trees. You let her go, for you would teach her who the top predator was. You sunk into the shadow, it covered you like a blanket as you followed her silently. The Decepticon looked left and right, as if she was waiting for you, searching through the darkness. You circled around careful of any rocks or sticks that would give your presence away. You lunged at her, she stepped to side but you still managed to wrap your jaws around one of her legs and pulled it off. You threw it to the side as she spat acid at you, it melted a tree but it was better the tree than you. "Damned cat!" she growled as she ran at you, her nail like claws extended. She missed completely as did her legs as you ducked under all her attacks, sliding nimbly under her to slice her legs. Her back legs nicked you though. A deep cut had been inflicted to your left arm, it was much deeper than your right. You didn't miss the opportunity to rip another leg off though.
You turned to face her again but before you could leap she had drilled away, underground. You huffed, you were tired that was true but you would have won that fight. You were sure you could track her down again, you just needed to regain your strength.
You collapsed.
Jack followed Arcee through the dark and gloomy pine forest. "I really wished I packed some insect repellent," he complained as he swatted away the mosquitoes. "The mosquitoes out here on this routine recon are the size of vampire bats and they drink just about as much blood," he exaggerated.
"Quite the outdoorsman aren't you Jack," Arcee smiled as she looked up from the scanner.
"You wouldn't be making fun of my survival kit."
"Maybe," Arcee replied.
"I may not have stinger proof metal skin Arcee but in a pinch I can use my multi-function pocket knife and magnesium fire-started to cook up some freeze-dried mac n cheese."
"You have your tools, I have mine," Arcee said, waving the scanner, the scanner rapidly beeped for a short amount of time.
"That's odd, Ratchet satellite scans were accurate but subterranean energon deposits don't cause this kind of surge," Arcee wondered as she looked left and right. Arcee walked on, Jack looked around.
"Hey Arcee! Check this out!" he called out, she turned around to see what Jack had found. He pointed at a paw print, "do you think there are mountain lions are out here?" Jack asked. A mountain lion wouldn't phase Arcee but Jack would be a perfect snack.
Arcee counted five toes. "No cats, even large ones usually have four toes, this one has five, so what I'm thinking is that (y/n) passed through here, but it's strange, she usually doesn't leave tracks," Arcee wondered as she continued ahead.
"Do you think she's okay?" Jack asked. He had been meaning to thank her for helping out in Vince's rescue but she hadn't come back to base in awhile. Jack noticed a deep redish-purpleish color on the ground and smeared on the trees. He hoped it wasn't blood.
Arcee stopped at a clearing where a large object had clearly left it's mark. It had torn a trench into the ground and cleared away some trees. "What happened here?" Jack asked.
"Crash landing, may be what the cat was out here hunting, stay behind me, low and close," Arcee said firmly. She noticed that there were small paw indents, (y/n) had definitely investigated what was out here but hadn't reported it, Arcee wondered if she had already finished the job or something else had happened.
Arcee moved quicker keeping low she spotted claw marks in the ground and on trees.
"Autobot or Decepticon?" Jack asked as the two crouched near a fallen tree.
"Can't tell but if (y/n) is out here then there's something out here, wait here," Arcee ordered. She drew her blaster and walked ahead. She cautiously looked left and right. She crouched as she spotted a pool of a deep reddish color. She knew it was (y/n)'s blood but the question was what was she fighting and is (y/n) okay.
Arcee approached the ship. Entered the ship. She walked past an obvious trophy room where dead alien species were kept. Including one serpent, one avian and one canine, whoever was collecting these beasts was missing a feline, (y/n).
Memories she didn't want to remember can flooding back. Memories of a Decepticon, that inspired hate, fear and heart break. She shook her head to clear her mind of such thoughts as Jack ran over to her, "Arcee, what's wrong?"
"I know who this ship belongs to," she said gravely, "Arcee to base, I need a ground bridge asap," she called.
"wait wait why? whose ship is this?" Jack asked.
Arcee ignored his question as she tried to call base again ,"scrap commlinks dead, the ships got to be transmitting a high frequency scrambler pulse" she said.
"Arcee you're kind of freaking me out?!"
"Wait here," Arcee instructed as she walked deeper into the forest. She knelt to check some holes in the ground. Holes from spider like legs, which were followed by pawprints. She noticed a metal leg thrown to the side and small splatters of energon. She had a feeling she knew what happened.
Arcee felt her mind spiral as it threw her back to darker days and darker memories, memories of when she was captured by Airachnid, a memory where she could do nothing but watch as her partner was killed. A fight or flight instinct caught up.
"Arcee," Jack called out to her as he caught up.
Arcee transformed. "Climb on," she instructed as she drove off as fast as she could through the forest, she wasn't going easy on the bumps as Jack held on for dear life.
Arcee jumped a trench as Jack climbed off. "Was that really necessary?!"Jack asked.
"Arcee to base?" she asked again but still she couldn't get through.
"Look I've seen danger before-
"Wait here, I mean it, this time" Arcee cut off.
"Okay first you shut me out now you're ditching me! I thought I was you're partner?!" he snapped
Arcee transformed and glared at him.
"No Jack, you're a kid, you're only here because it was meant to be no risk, got it" Arcee snapped as she transformed and drove off.
Jack stared after Arcee. He knew something was up and something was wrong. He had to either find (y/n) or Arcee. He had a feeling you were in trouble as all the signs pointed to a fight and he didn't know if it was a fight you won or lost.
He looked down into the trench and his eyes widened, "shoot (y/n)!" he called out as he slid down the side. You were lying on your side. He didn't know how or why he nor Arcee didn't spot you.
You opened a single eye, "what the scrap?" you hissed as you tried to move but the adrenaline was gone and the extent of the fight without and food before hand was catching up to you.
"What happened to you?" Jack asked as he stood at your side. He noticed your eye was dried and caked with blood with the skin around it looking like a blister. Then there was your fur, it's golden hue was soaked with blood.
"It's no big deal, I just need to rest," you yawned, you tried to get to your feet but pain shit through your limbs, you gave up on your attempted at getting up, "I just need to rest and shred that con," you growled tiredly.
"You're not okay," he said as he tried to get a good look at your wounds.
"Like you care," you snapped under your breath. You flinched as he parted some fur to get a good look at the cuts.
"These cuts run deep, you need medical attention," he said.
"I said I'm fine," you roared at him as you got to you feet. But as soon as you did you collapsed again.
"Does it ever cross your mind that I'm your friend and don't want to see you dead," he yelled at her, first Arcee, now (y/n). He could see where (y/n) got her grumpiness from.
"Yeah right," you huffed, "like everyone else as soon as you find something worth more of your time I'm tossed to the side," you growled, as you laid your head on you paws.
"Wait is this about the racing incident, I'm sorry- I genuinely forgot to bring you food-
You roared and cut him off. "Save it, I don't want to hear your excuses," you growled, he owed you nothing, the food was just a favor so that she would do what he wanted her to do. "There's no such thing as doing things from sheer kindness," you snapped.
Jack sighed, "you may not believe I'm your friend nor trust me but one day you will, but first I gotta get Arcee so we can get you out of here," he said as he began scaling the other side of the wall.
"I don't need your help," you snapped.
"That's what friends do, we help out even if it's not wanted," he replied as he ran after Arcee.
He could tell you were hurt but whatever was going through your head, your stubbornness didn't want help.
Jack found Arcee fighting a Decepticon, he slid down the hill. He noticed that the con was missing a few spider like legs and had a large wound on her back and across her face. Jack knew where (y/n) had got her injuries from.
Airachnid had pinned Arcee to a rock wall with her webs. "Arcee!" Jack yelled as he ran to her and tried pulling the webs off. Airachnid hissed in delight, her attention turned to her new prey. Arcee quickly freed one arm and shot Airachnid in the back.
"I told you to wait for me!" Arcee grumbled as Jack tried helping her out.
"Well partners don't ditch their partners, besides I found (y/n), she's pretty beaten up," he said as he tried to pull the webs off Arcee. Arcee's eyes widened and went to Airachnids, now that she got a better look it was obvious the ex-con had a run in with the cat. Arcee frowned.
"Get this through your head you're not my partner you're a liability," she snapped.
"I don't believe you. I can see it in your eyes, you're afraid Arcee and you're never afraid," Jack admitted. As he tried to pull the webs off her.
"How bad is (y/n)?" Arcee asked barely over a whisper.
"Pretty beat up, there's a wound around her left eye and she's got two deep cuts," Jack explained, "she said they she was resting but I can tell she's hurt," Jack relayed.
Arcee swallowed her pride, "You're right Jack! I am afraid of losing you," Arcee admitted as Airachnid got back up, there was nothing between Jack and Airachnid.
"You sure have trouble hanging on to your partners don't you, we both know what happened to tailgate but I recently picked up some Decepticon chatter regarding the passing of cliff jumper at some point you have to ask is it them or is it me?" Airachnid taunted.
"Do you get it now Jack? She's not interested in me she hunts indigenous and rare species and she's on Earth which means humans! you! RUN!" Arcee pleaded as Airachnid made sure her webs would hold.
Jack ran. The slope he had come down was slowing him but he knew he had to lure Airachnid to (y/n), she may be down but he had a feeling that no matter how injured she was she would finish what she started.
Night quickly fell and he didn't know his way back to where he found (y/n). He had to think like (y/n) what would she do? He knew they hunted cons all the time so obviously they would know how to evade one. He began to run lightly hoping that he would leave less tracks to be followed. He couldn't silence his breathing as the run was taking it's toll he knew he couldn't stop.
"That's the spirit Jack, play hard to get," Airachnid taunted as she followed. Jack felt like a fly in the spider's web, no matter how much he tried to escape, the spider was coming.
Jack hid under a fallen tree, he could hear Arachnid's hissing as she walked over him. "Hello Jack," she greeted as she looked down.
Jack yelled but his yells were drowned out by a booming roar. (Y/n) slammed into Airachnids side sending her into a tree. She stood in front of Jack growling menacingly. "Well, well you really want to be apart of my collection," Airachnid growled.
"I would take your life but it is not mine to take, it belongs to Arcee," you growled as the two of you circled each other. Jack's eye's widened it was the first time he had properly seen you in your element, hunting and preparing to kill but due to what you said, you were pulling your punches. He watched as Airachnid opened fire at you but you were too quick you jumped into the trees and rebounded to dash past and slice Airachnids side. Before she could react you shoved her into the ground and leaped away.
You grabbed the back of Jack's shirt in you mouth and bounded away. You would regret saving this selfish human later but a part of you wondered what if he wasn't lying? If he died you wouldn't be able to find out. You also owed Arcee a life debt.
You put him down near Airachnids ship. "There's an energon leak at the base of the engines, energon is very flammable, if this ship is destroyed we should be able to contact base," you reasoned.
"What about you?" Jack asked.
"I'd be more worried about yourself," you growled. Jack blinked and you had vanished. He wished he had that power as he ran into the ship. Airachnid followed him in. He did what (y/n) asked and ran to where the energon leaked. He used his fire starter to light it up. "Jack!" he heard Airachnid scowl as the ship exploded.
The blast knocked Jack over. But he continued running, he knew Airachnid was coming.
He yelped as he felt a web catch his ankle he looked up and Airachnid hung in the trees above him. (y/n) tackled him out the way of the next web. She stood in front of him protectively. "Well, Aren't you a special human Jack, special enough to earn the loyalty of Shikari," Airachnid teased again.
"I owe my loyalty to no one," you growled.
"hmph,"Airachnid said as she went in to attack. But she was punched to the side by Arcee. Arcee jabbed at Airachnid as she laid in blow after blow on the weakened Decepticon. Airachnid fell unconscious and Arcee turned to Jack and (y/n).
"You two okay?" Arcee asked as she checked over (y/n) and Jack.
"Yeah of course," Jack replied. They heard a whirring and Airachnid had gotten away.
Arcee turned back to traced (y/n) and kneeled down, her finger around (y/n)'s wound, "you won't lose and eye but those cuts will need attention," Arcee said. (Y/n) shook her off.
"I'm fine," you growled as you backed away from her.
"What was that loyalty thing Airachnid mentioned?" Jack asked you. You growled.
"It's nothing," you replied but it was everything. It was instinctual as you had learned over time it was that drive to protect, like a strong blanket of protection that you had placed over Arcee, the Burns family and now Jack. You would never admit it but you would do anything for them.
You felt Arcee gently pick you up and you struggled to get out of her grin. She smiled at you, "come one I haven't picked you up since you were little," she chuckled as she scratched behind your ears.
You huffed at her, "I'm tired and I don't feel like walking," you grumbled.
"Sure," Jack said as the three of you went back to base.