Caro Transmutata Metallo 8

Transmutata Metallo

A Transformers Prime Fanfiction

::Warning:: References to Torture
   
    The massive Seeker leaned over the small Autobot, his ruby optics locked onto the blue visor and flaring with barely suppressed emotion.
    “You are sitting in a gathering place. There is music and laughter. Mechs you know are all around you but you are there with one in particular. Macadam’s. You are playing a game with him. Your close friend,” the Seeker paused and his face contorted in either intense pain or concentration.
    Jazz sat frozen and fascinated by the disjointed interrogation. This was not going in any direction he had suspected or had ever experienced. The crimson burning optics snapped open and bored into him.
    “Sets!” Alchem whispered triumphantly. “You are playing sets. You chose the better partner and he, your friend, is losing. His partner isn’t clever enough, isn’t fast enough. He is larger. A shield for the smaller one. Your friend has just acquired a pair of pets and the smaller one is much more-”
    The sound of rending metal filled the silent room and the Seeker jerked back in shock raising his servos to the torn mesh on his faceplates. The stasis cuffs clattered to the floor in the sudden silence. Jazz had retreated to the back wall blue visor blazing. Alchem stared at him, all emotion wiped from the Decepticon’s faceplates.
     It was a defensive reaction, the Autobot realized in a small corner of his processor. When faced with any sudden change or threat the mech erased all traces of emotion from his person. But the majority of the Autobot’s focus was centered of the swirling mass of confusion and no little fear that the Decepticon had suddenly awoken. Had all the long cycles of amateur torture been only a ruse to get him to let his guard down? Had other things been going on?
    He realized that the mech was speaking again.
    “Who won the final set?”
    Jazz glared at him, fighting to get his emotions under control. This situation, this was impossible.
    “What form was the final set?”
    The saboteur fought down a snarl. He had already given this mech far too much. The quiet questions continued for some time as energon seeped out of the lacerations on the larger mech’s faceplates. When Alchem finally stopped and stood he stared intently at Jazz and deliberately took a long swig of the medical grade. Alchem gathered the cuffs and left after setting the cube in the center of the floor. The message was clear to the Autobot; whatever information the tall mech had been after he had gotten it. Ever the pragmatist the Autobot took up the life giving liquid and drank it down slowly. In his newfound state of paranoia he spent the energy to filter it twice before letting it in his tanks. When it was done he sat back against the walls fighting to conceal his shaking.
     Desperate to distract himself the mech began sifting through the security cameras on the base. He snarled out a curse when he found them all down from one of the periodic and inexplicable  power surges the base experienced and switched to his own feeds. He caught sight of the Seeker as the mech was having Shard attend to his injuries. The smaller Decepticon was glaring at the injuries as if they were a personal affront to him and though he said nothing it was fairly clear that he would have been scolding his superior if he dared and Alchem in turn seemed only mildly amused.
    Just then Starscream approached the two. Lord Alchem hitched up his wings and his faceplates went blank. The Decepticon second in command grew agitated at the sight of the damage and insisted that the larger Seeker accompany him to Shockwaves lab. Shard protested but was brushed aside by Starscream. For a moment it looked like the trooper was going to make an issue of it but Alchem gave a subtle gesture for the smallest Seeker to stand down and followed the screechy flyer into Shockwave’s laboratory.
    Slumping back against the wall Jazz took a few moments to calm down before checking on Glyph and Tap Out. They were happily chatting about some incident that had occurred on the silicon world they had just left. Deciding that the base commanders were all busy for the foreseeable future Jazz risked contacting Prowl.
    *Report?*
    *I have a definite ETA on that supply ship. Cybertronian built but run by pirates. It will arrive in five cycles.*
    There was silence for a moment and Jazz nearly cracked a smile as he pictured the steady reliable mech adding this new information to his calculations. He had bypassed the block on his neural dampener some time ago and his battle computer was running at full speed.
    *Chance of successful escape for all Autobots stands at seventy-three point five percent.*
    *Almost too good to be true,* Jazz growled to himself.
    *Given the circumstances there is a ninety-nine point eight three seven percent chance that my calculations are correct.*
    Taking the gentle reprimand in stride the saboteur began exploring the still impenetrable security around the mad Decepticon’s lab. The medical grade had given his systems a boost and despite his emotional disquiet he felt more up to challenging the impressive system again. Besides, hidden behind those firewalls there might be something that would reveal how the pit that Seeker had gotten ahold of information that only two online mechs knew of. He began working on a small power access line. It would be difficult to get information out over it but it was the best bet he had at the moment.
    Sometime later, just as Jazz was beginning to make progress, he was distracted when the yellow Decepticon Gouge, wandered close to his cell. The mech paused at the door and stared as if he could see the mech on the other side with a thoughtful look in his optics. The Autobot released the data stream and focused on the moment. There was something cruel in the Con’s gaze that warned him off of the mech but this time the yellow one only turned and walked on. Jazz split his awareness between the hack and following the progress of the small Decepticon, growing concerned when the mech lingered in front of Glyph’s cell watching the powered down femme with a hungry gaze. The Autobot made a mental note to watch the mech carefully.

O
O

     Glyph came out of her energon conservation mode to hear Tap Out suddenly fall silent and give a growl. She unshuttered her optics and carefully ran through the reboot process. While doing that the femme took the time to review what had been going on around her while she had been powered down. The external recording program was a special mod she had installed as a student at the Hall of Science. Her personal experiments often required more energon than her stipend allowed and she had learned to scrimp on her intake to make up the difference. She had to fight back a chuckle at the string of creative cursing that her chassis guard had been unleashing on the Decepticon Seeker who now stood in front of her cell. Tap Out had made no effort to hide his distrust for Alchem but the mech had never bothered to respond. In fact if she had been reading his previous reactions correctly the Decepticon was entertained by the noise.
     Now the tall dangerous looking Seeker stood before her cell staring in at her with a cold intensity in his optics. Glyph smiled as she bounded to her peds. She felt a quick stab of guilt at actually enjoying the presence of a Deception but dismissed it. She was working her hardest and doing everything she could to get them free. There was no reason she shouldn’t enjoy her work.
    “I am ready!” she called out as she exited the cell. “Are we going to begin sorting the mining equipment this cycle? If that is the current plan in place then I have a few suggestions on how to most efficiently relocate the heavier pieces. The movement gears on the shelving units can be repurposed to,” Glyph drifted off as they passed the turn to the storage area and continued on.
    “Are we moving on to a different project?” the femme asked curiously but the tall mech only stared straight ahead.
    The Autobot followed mutely until they came to a set of spiraled door panels. Alchem entered a code and indicated she should precede him in. Without hesitating Glyph walked in. It was a room just large enough for the tall seeker to move around comfortably. There was an odd medical berth against one wall and a sealed and locked supply cabinet. All of the surfaces looked as if they had been scoured whith hot cleanser on a regular basis. The door cycled shut behind Alchem with a loud snap and the femme jumped a bit. Her visor tracked the mech to the cabinet. There he entered another code and opened the outer layer. The scientist gave a small noise of understanding as her vision fell on the gleaming medical equipment. For the storage space held an array of finely crafted surgical tools.
     “You wish for me to complete the repairs to your wings more thoroughly but in a more private setting. Of course that is logical. An unsanitary storage space is hardly the place for invasive repairs.”
     Without pausing in her happy chatter the femme hopped up on the medical berth and turned to the mech with a beaming smile.
    “Procure for me a flexible class thee joint spanner and let us begin. I knew that the adjustments to the joint tension would not be satisfactory with the inappropriate tools available to me at,” the femme drifted off as the mech approached her with a Cybertronium tipped scalpel in his servos and a cold dead look in his optics.
    She tilted her helm to the side and frowned thoughtfully.
    “That is not the proper tool Lord Alchem.”