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Episode 11 - Persuasion
[Elsewhere]
"Peeled some paint off Laserbeak," Smokescreen said half heartedly, disappointment clear in his tone as he watched Arcee pick up the bit of metal he shot off. "But if I were a better shot, Ratchet would still be here."
No one expected Laserbeak to have found Soundwave, but the tiny Con did and uploaded a new objective into the communications master, who had risen as though nothing had happened. Soundwave had taken out Bulkhead, Smokescreen, Finn and Agent Fowler without a second glance, before taking Ratchet and disappearing.
"Chin up, soldier," Ultra Magnus said. "We've combed the entire floor. For the moment, that remains our only clue."
"Nothing in the ground bridge log," Bulkhead reported. "If they bridged Ratchet out of here, they used theirs, not ours."
"Why take Ratchet prisoner, but leave these two behind?" Arcee asked.
"If Megatron intend to hold our medic hostage," Ultra Magnus said. "I find it curious that he's made no demands."
Optimus walked forward, saying his first words since returning to the base. "It would stand to reason that Ratchet must possess something the Decepticons want."
Then the Prime's eyes widened a bit. No one noticed, but he had realized something. Ratchet had told him that Amanda discovered the reason behind the Decepticon theft of a particle collider; to restore the Omega Lock. Ratchet was a medic and also a scientist as well who had a certain level of expertise in terms of the contraption. But he wasn't the only one with a connection to the Omega Lock.
The goddess always had a connection.
"Arcee," Optimus quickly strode forward. "Open the ground bridge and transport me to Amanda's home immediately."
[Amanda]
Laserbeak let off a stream of shots, all of which landing far enough to avoid my automatic shield but close enough to throw dirt into my face. I created a protective bubble around myself as he- it- whatever- flew overhead, and while it past me, I went on the offensive, launching lobs of silver dust at it. The damn tiny Con was tricky though, as it whizzed around so quickly that none of my hits made their mark. It swooped low, only missing me because I dived out of the way, and then it would fly high just to repeat everything over again.
"You stupid little bird," I muttered, hitting the ground hard in order to dodge a hit. "Just stay still for one second."
Then an idea hit me. First I ran towards the end of my driveway until I was out on the street, where there were boulders and trees lining the pavement. I stayed low, and as I waited for Laserbeak to circle around again, I collected a massive ball of silver dust. When the little devil creature flew back towards me, I let the silver dust go, engulfing it. The tiny Con fell to the ground, twitching.
"Ha!" I walked over to it. "Take that you-"
My triumph was cut off when a shadow fell over me. I turned slowly to see none other than Soundwave standing on the street around a mile away from me, with an unconscious Cybertronian tucked under his arm.
"Ratchet?" My voice came out with a waver, my heart racing.
Soundwave has Ratchet. Soundwave has Ratchet. Soundwave has Ratchet.
Stop. Focus.
Focus.
So I shoved my fear aside, and straightened, looking straight at the Con without a face.
"Let Ratchet go," I commanded, my voice far from the one before. This time, my powers were in my words.
Soundwave just stared blankly.
"I know your deal," I continued. "You do whatever Megatorn asks like the good dog you are. You're feared and you have a rep for being a badass. Well let me tell you something." I began collecting silver dust in my palms. "No one messes with Team Prime and gets away with it, no matter who you are."
I sent the blast towards the Con, who jumped out of the way. He threw aside Ratchet, who thudded into the dust next to the road, then faced me again. But I already had another blast speeding towards him, forcing him to move again. I kept this up, not letting him get his footing, and it was working until a ground bridge opened up.
And out of that ground bridge, Decepticon soldiers spilled out.
Two soldiers made their way to Ratchet, the rest joining Soundwave and surrounding me. My hands were coated in silver, and I was ready to take out whichever Con was dumb enough to move first. As it turned out, the pair with Ratchet were those dumb ones, as I saw how they were going to drag him to the open ground bridge.
"No!" I sent a blast towards those Cons, piercing one in the chest. That sent everyone into motion. The Cons around me charged, and I was forced to defend myself against the two dozen or so. I blasted them back when they got too close, but it was impossible for me to keep up. My eyes darted around, looking for a way- any way- out of the situation, but the Cons had me surrounded. That's when I saw another ground bridge open up, and this time an army grade vehicle charged through.
My heart soared as Optimus plowed into the Decepticons approaching me, allowing me to attack them as they fought to keep their balance. The Prime rammed into four Cons, the element of surprise on his side, and I immediately sent blasts of silver dust at those Cons, ripping through their chests and heads. Once Optimus reached me, he transformed, dutifully protecting me as he unsheathed his guns.
"Amanda, are you hurt?" He asked while shooting the approaching Cons.
I shook my head, blocking a dozen shots from the Decepticons behind us. "I'm fine, but they have Ratchet!"
Through the legs of the Cons, I spotted Soundwave drag Ratchet towards his open ground bridge. That's when I moved.
"Optimus, cover me!" I called and sprinted towards that ground bridge. The Prime looked confused and worried for a split second before seeing my plan. He gave me a quick, stern look that told me not to do anything stupid before shooting the Cons in front of me.
Luckily, being the smallest one in the conflict, I was able to easily slip through the fight. Once clearing the battle, I threw my powers like a rope and latched onto Ratchet. I skidded to a stop and yanked back, caused the medic to drop out of Soundwave's grasp and jerked towards me. Soundwave was caught by surprise, unsure of what had happened until his faceless head turned to me. Robot tentacles emerged from his back and lashed towards me, but I jumped out of the way, pulling harder on my powers to bring Ratchet to me. And it was working until bullets from above me rained down. With my shield only at a fraction of my powers, a bullet managed to penetrate and hit me in the shoulder. I cried out, my powers abruptly cutting as I clutched my bleeding shoulder. Laserbeak flew above me and rejoined Soundwave, who had begun pulling Ratchet through the ground bridge again.
Just before the Con made away with our medic, Optimus appeared in front of me, guns firing rapidly at Soundwave. The Con responded by swinging his tentacles at Optimus, an electric one catching the Prime off guard. Optimus stumbled back, and Soundwave took that as his opportunity to disappear with Ratchet. The ground bridge closed, leaving me and Optimus with a bunch of dead Cons.
"Dammit!" I exclaimed, dropping to the ground and then wincing as the motion jarred my arm.
Optimus was silent before crouching next to me. "You're hurt."
"Doesn't matter," I waved away his concern, covering my injury with my other hand. "They got away with Ratchet. What do they even want with him?"
"I suspect that you were correct regarding the intention of Megatron. He wishes to rebuild the Omega Lock, and Ratchet has a certain level of expertise that no Decepticon has in that regard."
I looked at him sideways. "And why did they come after me?"
"Cleona has always had an influence on the powers of Cybertron," he didn't meet my gaze. "Particularly those that connect with Primus directly. It stands to reason that your powers would be required in order to truly activate the Omega Lock again."
My eyes dropped and swept over the carnage on the street around us. Then they went to Optimus, who looked dead tired.
"What happened?" I asked, suddenly realizing he was actually drained. "Optimus, what happened in Antarctica?"
"The Decepticons escaped with the particle collider-"
"I don't mean with the Cons. I mean with you."
He hesitated, clearly not willing to answer me at first. A quick glance at my expression told him that I wouldn't drop the subject, so he spoke, "The Predacon- Predaking- and I battled. Though I was able to best him previously in the energon mine, I was not able to while he was in his beast mode."
"Scrap," I winced again, closing my eyes. "And after that fight, you were forced here and faced off against all those Cons."
"Amanda," His sharp tone made me look up at him. "I will never regret fighting on your behalf, regardless of the injuries I may obtain."
My expression softened. "Thank you, Optimus."
We fell silent, both clearly trying to recover a bit from our battles. After a few minutes, I held out my hand.
"At least let me heal your injuries," I said, causing the Prime to look down at me sharply.
"You should not strain yourself," he began, but I shook my head.
"I won't. I've gotten good at this, including quick recoveries. I mean, I did just take out a bunch of those Cons, remember?"
He gave me a slight smile. "I remember. I am proud of you for standing your ground, Amanda."
Joy soared through me, making me forget about my own injury. "Thanks, Optimus. Now let me heal you. Something tells me you're going to have to be battle ready again very soon."