SOME WARNING FOR THIS CHAPTER: it gets violent in this one. Please read notes at the end.
Soundwave's Secret (Transformers)
Chapeter 40.
Spikes of terror pierced through his spine and neck. FirstAid ran. He knew he was hurting the twins. He was squeezing their smaller servos too hard. He could not lose a grip. One of the mechlings gasped in pain. Yet they both ran. He pushed them to run with all his might. His back was exposed. The turn could hide them. It was getting closer. They were getting closer. FirstAid made a clumsy but sharp turn. He used younglings' weight as a leverage against the fall. He pressed too hard on Rumble. The mechling lost his footing. First Aid pulled in despair. They could not fall. Rumble was quick to push himself up and towards him. They lost a precious click. FirstAid held back a gasped. They made the turn. He was not shot. He could have been. It was so close. So easy. The relief passed in an instant. He galped back his fear and ran.
'Cons wanted them alive.
They ran through the halls. Base around them rumbled. Wires teared up in the distance, sounds of systems breaking and failing. He ran the empty path with no cover. Another turn was the only thing that could hide them from site. They ran. And they stopped. In their path they were met by the debris. Dead end.
"Aid..."
FirstAid ignored Frenzy's call. Around them were doors. Doors to rooms that did not lead any further. Storages, offices, archives.
FirstAid felt Frenzy grasped his upper servo. Rumble bent around to look behind them. "Aid..."
But the space behind them was silent for now. FirstAid's optics franticly scanned the doors. Which one? Were they locked? He let go and moved. They had no time. The first door. Locked.
"Quick. Check the others." Younglings flinched but rushed to do so. First Aid reached for his comm testing the next door. Locked. His audios were met with static. Still he spoke, hoping for a voice to come through. No one answered. He moved to the next door. Locked. They had no time. He slammed into the pannel. It squeaked. He tried again. He had never done it before. Was he doing it right? He had no idea. His shoulder hurt. He tried again. The panel moved.
"This one."
He slammed harder. It opened. Rumble and Frenzy rushed in. First Aid jumped in after and closed the panel. Something clicked and the entrance locked. He turned around. Maintenance room.
In the dim light and the calm monotonous humming of the room's systems there was a moment of silence as three of them gasped for air. Rumble and Frenzy were cycling hard. Frenzy coughed. FirstAid stared. They glanced up at him. What now? They weren't safe. It was a pretence cover. A cough cutting his breathing FirstAid looked around still struggling to cool his systems. Wires laid over cable trays under the ceiling. Tubes of all sorts swirling all around the the walls. Grey standard electric control panels were fixed on walls. Shelving unites stood in rows around them with boxes and maintenance tools.
He had to hide the twins.
FirstAid grasped the view and rushed behind the closest shelf stands. The door was not automated, simply pushed inside. Not a sliding panel. Twins stared at him lost for a click as he started pushing the stall towards the entrance.
It looked light-weight and only had a few boxes but almost touched the low ceiling. It was not heavy enough to block the door for long. FirstAid was not fooling himself. He did not have ideas. They were trapped. It squeaked a sound too loud for them to afford, but FirstAid pushed. In a click mechlings grabbed the lower shelves. They pushed. The door was blocked FirstAid tried his commlink again. Rustling static hit his audio. He started opening the control panel boxes. They were not big enough to hide the twins.
"Comms don't work. I need to hide you."
The twins were watching him. Then shared a glance.
"Find vents."
"Vents?" Right. Vents. FirstAid looked up. Did this room have vents? It had to. Maintenance systems needed cooling. They looked around. Yes. It was right there under the ceiling in the far corner. FirstAid jumped up to reach the cover and pulled it down with his weight. He jumped again and held onto the edge to glance inside. It was a smaller type, probably for a smaller room. He could see the metallic tunnel turn upward in the end. He did not know how high it went but it was wide and deep enough to fit the two.
"Quick."
There were sounds in the hallway. His spark ran cold again as he held Rumble up pressing at the mechlings peds to push him in faster. Something broke in the hall. There was shouting. A few more clicks. They needed just a few more clicks. Please. FirstAid kneeled and Frenzy grabbed his shoulder to push himself up. FirstAid tried not to show his desperation when the mechling glanced inside the tunnel and slowed his climb to look at him, realising that First Aid would not follow.
"But you-"
"I'll be fine." He helped as Frenzy pulled his peds inside.
"We can't go further," Rumble's voice came from within, "It's too high to climb."
"Just sit still. No matter what you hear, don't make a sound."
He grabbed the cover from the floor his servos numb.
"Get as far in as you can."
Frenzy's bright red optics started at him as they both attempted putting the cover back. The fixings clicked in place.
"Get in and lower your audios."
Something hit the door. The shelves rumbled. First Aid flinched and rushed away from the vents. He stared at the pathetic barricade as the cursing continued behind the door. He pressed all his weight at the structure. This was not the best angle to push. He did not know how to improve his chances. The only thing separating him from the 'Cons trembled under his grasp. Another hit and the door made a sound. FirstAid felt the force transfer from the shelf through his servos. Please, give up. Try a different door. This one is locked. They were not here. The next hit throwed him away towards the wall and the shelf fell to the ground. It got tossed away in a click and a massive figure bent in the doorframe and rose towering.
FirstAid could only watch as two more followed. He stumbled back hitting the wall, his peds barely holding his frame. For a moment they ignored him. The first 'Con kicked the shelf with the curse and the massive structure went scattering away like a sparkling's toy. Then the red optics locked on his.
"Where are they?" Before even looking around, the mech started walking at him. From the corner of his optics FirstAid managed to notice the other two starting their search. He was about to answer that he did not know. But there was no point. Was there? None the less, his vocaliser refused to work. He was cornered. The wall was hard, but he tried to press at it further, to push, to gain some more distance, more time and only had a moment to close his optics as the a black shadow of the towering mech's fist blocked the light and hit his helm.
All-consuming force cut his sensors. FirstAid lost his link with the world. The force went through his helm, piercing through his systems and thoughts. He knew he collapsed. He felt his servos impact the floor sending a jolt of blunt pain as they attempted to soften the fall. He saw darkness. And blinding lights. He could barely focus on his servos trembling trying to hold his fallen frame. Suddenly he was very weak. FirstAid had seen mechs fight. One fist blow was not enough to kill yet FirstAid wondered how he was still alive. Right side of his helm was burning, his back was freezing. It hurt. It hurt so much. More than he had imagined it would. How could he still be online? How could a mech withstand such a blow? He could not breath. He was terrified to move. To somehow attract more attention. To cause more damage to himself. It was possible. He was from medical, he knew how it worked. Once the blackness dissolved, he heard the mech shouting at him. He did not understand. Another blow. His chaises hit the floor. He felt pieces of his audio receptors pierce inside his helm. He did not know if that's what happened, but it felt like it. He was lost in the ringing. He was going to die.
He tried to lift his servos knowing far well it was meaningless. The blow would be too strong. He still tried. Stop. He did not speak though. His lifted servo conveyed the unspoken plea. His back was exposed. His side was too. He tried to prepare his frame for the next blow. Something grabbed him. It jerked him up. He lost another breath. The world swung around unclear, processor threateningly pulsed.
"Speak."
He felt cool wetness running down the side of his helm. He did not speak. He was slammed into the wall. The whole frame felt the force go through him. His vocaliser made a cracking sound. The dent on his helm scratched the uneven wall. Still, he pressed at it, focusing at the ceiling in desperate attempt to make the swirling insides of his processor stop.
"Where are Soundwave's symbiots?"
If he spoke... Not the location of the twins but anything else. Would they slow? Would they stop? Would anyone find him if he stretched the time? FirstAid squeezed his optics and grimaced from pain, movement further disturbing his damaged faceplate. The 'Con had a death grip on him, crushing the side of his neck and shoulder. Mech's servo was big enough to grab them all. Pushing at the angles that FIrstAid knew were damaging the lesser protected parts. No. He was not getting out of this.
The mech growled and lifted him of the ground. FirstAid gasped and tried to grab the offending servo. The force tossed him on the floor again. He crashed hard. It was loud. Twins. Don't listen. A blow came. Then another. Then another. There was a pause.
"Scrap. He's a medic..."
FirstAid moved, in pain, slow, hoping to pull his limbs closer. Being spread on the floor seemed worse. He lifted himself on servos and knees, holding his head down. He felt sick. Dizzy. Shacking. Energon was dripping down his face to the floor. Some was dripping from his mouth. He gulped the goo and tried to cycle through returning the energon. Please, just leave me be.
"Na, too young. Apprentice more likely."
Someone was still ransacking the place. Another mech casually approached, now standing next to their comrade and stared at him.
"Hey, Autobot."
FirstAid saw a shadow of the new mech and then felt a light kick at his side. He moved his pulsing helm enough to reveal his blue optics.
"Heard what he said. Better talk."
FirstAid just stared, trying to vent. More gooed energon and cooler ran down his thought.
"I'm done waiting."
He flinched again turning away as the first 'Con who growled and raised a ped. First Aid's servos sled from under him scratching the floor as a force pushed him to the floor. Chocking on his energon, he gasped trying to keep still, a massive ped pinning his broken frame. His venting short and raptured, FirstAid stared at the grey wall.
"Now listen here, you piece of scrap metal. I can make it very painful for ya. You don't want that, trust me. So speak. Where did you hide them?"
"Mech..."
"Keep searching!"
"Hey, you'll break him and he won't be able to talk."
"Oh, I will break him. Piece by piece. You hear me, Autoscum? Where are Soundwave's pests?"
A servo grabbed his helm from behind and forced his chaises up. FirstAid's dentas vibrated from tremors. His face was wet from both energon and cooler. And in this most terrifying and agonising moment of his life, he was alone with a 'Con breathing in his face, merciless grasp of his servos crushing the back of his helm, able to cause any harm it wanted.
"Speak!"
More cooler left his optics but no word left his vocaliser.
"Scrap, he is tougher than he looks."
"Slagging'-"
"Wait, let me try again."
Something scattered across the room in the distance, third 'Cons still in search of the twins. They were hidden. And he was alone. The second 'Con kneeled at his side, somehow sympathetic and honestly First Aid did not care if it was pretense or real. He was not going to speak but, at least, when this 'Con talked, he got a break. He did not want it to hurt. It hurt. And surprising himself, FirstAid was somehow enduring. But he did not want to offline. That's what they were going to do to him in the end. The hope of being spared was far too thin. He just wanted out. Somewhere. Anywhere. Soundwave would hug him. He would be safe. He backstabbed her. At least he got to save the twins. Hopefully. If he could endure. If he did not speak. If Decepticons do not see the vent. If they do not realize, where he hid them. Please, let them be safe. Let this not be in vain. It was so hard. He did not want to. Was he a mech now? He was terrified.
"Listen mech, what's it to you? They are Decepticons anyway. Just tell us where they hid, and we'll leave you be. We have no use for ya. Come on. Save us some time and cut yourself some slack. You're beat up pretty bad already."
His neck was bent backwards at an uncomfortable angle, and it was hard to gulp the collected liquids. His joint tensed and pushed unnaturally as the goo slipped down his through. The 'Con was waiting, expecting him to contemplate the proposal. The servo jerked him backwards just strong enough to make a warning.
"So..."
They were expecting him to speak. He was not going to. The mech sighed. Then he was hit again.
"There's nothing here."
"Keep looking."
"Where? We checked the whole place."
"What's going on here?"
He heard a new voice. From the floor he dared a glance. At the entrance stood another massive mech. Red optics. Another 'Con. No Autobot knew he was here. No one was coming for him.
"Breakdown, sir."
"What are you three idiots doing?! You have your orders!"
"Sir, Soundwave's symbiots. We saw them."
"And this slagger is going to tell me where he hid them." FirstAid whimpered as the mech lifted him closer to his face. He could feel the breath on his wet faceplate. Red terrifying optics glaring at him as a death grip clasped his collar.
"Stand down. We don't have time for this."
"But, sir-"
"They had nowhere else to go, the path is blocked- "
"And that is why we don't have time. Do you three want to get slagged?"
"But the symbiots-"
"What symbiots? Look around, there's nothing here. You lost them. Get back to your position, I'll finish it here."
"Yessir."
He was tossed down once again. Three towering frames moved leaving the room. FirstAid rasped trying to vent. The new 'Con was watching him in the center of the room unmoving. He dared a look at the mech. His spark was pumping, his frame hurt. Any moment now. The mech would move. A tiny spark of barely existing hope still was lit by his will to live. FirstAid watched the drack massive figure of a Decepticon wrecker. The mech moved. FirstAid didn't.
The 'Con kneeled by his side, carefully scanning him. FirstAid tensed, trying to prepare his frame.
"Easy. I ain't going to hurt ya."
And he didn't. Lightly moving to turn FirstAid's frame, the mech frowned checking the hidden side of his chases. Meeting the youngster's optics again he grimaced at the site of his helm. "That feels bad but you'll live."
With a final glance and a nod he stood up looking around.
"Twins, if you're here, stay hidden."
FirstAid watched as the figure headed towards the exit. And the mech left. He heard the door shutting close and then scrapping sound behind it, the source of which FirstAId could not identify. After, there was silence.
In the monotony of systems humming a whimper escaped his vocaliser but he was quick to cut it short. FirstAid listened to silence. For any movement behind the door. Like that he waited, his frame anticipating a change any klick, never allowing itself to release the tension from the aching frame. Any moment a sound could return. Any moment another 'Con could enter. So FirstAid vented as silently as he could, gulping the collected energon with more noise than he wanted to make. Something was ringing. Most likely in his helm. He would hiccup once in a while. Energon would get in his ventilation system, and he would have to cough. And in that small battle of keeping his ruined frame silent FirstAid laid on the cold floor, his joints locked, waiting.
Tell me if you cried... I almost did. I had imagined it different at first. This chapter showed went into more detail than I expected. I thought that not showing would lead to the possibility of you guys imagining the situation to be even worse and longer. So I kept what I wrote. I hope this one's fine.