3.Aug.2006
Spiders In Love
Part Three
By: Syntia13
That was it. Tonight was the night. He was done with waiting. The Maximals, may
the Pit curse their stupidity, had left Taraxa uncovered in the last battle.
(What was she doing in a battle, anyway?) If not for the fact that Tarantulas
had accidentally stumbled, fell off the cliff, landed right next to her,
accidentally slipped, and accidentally tripped her up, Rampage would have got
her.
He shuddered at the memory of a rocket missile almost brushing his back.
Yes, tonight was the night. He had to get Raxa out of there, before Maximals got
her killed.
___________________________________________________________________________
Cheetor
was bored out of his mind. Watching monitors all night was so pointless! He was
fending off the sleep drawing sketches of Taraxa. She was so nice and
gorgeous... He really hoped she would stop treating him like a younger brother.
So what if he was two decades younger? That's no real difference for a
transformer! Maybe if he beat the slag out of some Preds she would--
As
if in answer to his thoughts, the radar beeped.
--Predacon unit, Tarantulas, detected--
Hey, that's great! That creep was constantly stalking Tara, if Cheetor could
take care of him...
But he was supposed to report any disturbances to Optimus. If he didn't, BigBot
would be mad at him again. But it was only one lousy Pred, he could do it!
He activated the lift.
When
he came back few clicks later, everything seemed to be OK except for his temper.
Stupid radar must have malfunctioned, there was no sign of any spiders around,
and the monitor didn't show one either. Rusted heap of scrap...
He yawned. Suddenly he felt so tired... no one would know if he closed his
optics for a nano, right? He never registered the strange, sweet odor in the
air.
___________________________________________________________________________
Taraxa
woke up suddenly, her spark pulsing anxiously. It took her a while to figure out
what was wrong. The air was tinted with the scent she knew.
"Tarantulas?"
she asked tentatively. He couldn't possibly be here, but... she tried to get up
to check her room, and discovered she couldn't move. As if she was... tied down?
She took a breath to--
"Please don't scream"
--gasp.
"I don't mean you any harm"
A
spider leg appeared over the edge of her bed, followed shortly by the rest of
the Predacon. She was watching him in stunned silence. Stunned, he noticed, but
not frightened. Was it courage or trust? Probably mix of both. Good for him.
"How
did you get in here?" she asked when she recovered enough to speak.
Two of his legs pointed towards the hatch she'd made. Oh slag, she'd forgot to
close it!
"But... the radars... Cheetor's on monitor duty..."
The male spider tilted his head. "Not any more" he denied with
amusement. That scared her.
"You've killed him?" she whispered hoarsely.
One of his legs caressed her face gently.
Yes, my beauty, I've killed them all, and you're the last living spark on
this ship...
"No." He stepped down from the bed and transformed. "I've put
a sleeping gas in your ventilation system"
Gah! Why did you tell her that?!
She closed her optics for a nano, relieved. "So, what are you doing
here?"
He
regarded her carefully. She was only moving her head, but there was no trace of
sleepiness in her voice. It would be about twenty cycles before the drug takes
full effect. He had to keep her calm till then. If she screamed, others might
wake up despite the soporific... and he didn't want to lose this chance. It
would be much easier if he could just go and kill them, but Sentinel was
guarding corridors, and though he could beat the system (even the rat had
managed it!), he couldn't do it quietly. So he was confined to this room. Her
room.
How
composed she seemed to be, even though there was an enemy in her base, in her
very room. Yes, she will make an excellent subordinate. But before he begins his
main task here, he may as well talk with her. He sat beside her.
She
was watching him warily. She could call for help at any time, but if she did and
the rest of the Maximals came, this time they would kill Tarantulas. She
didn't want that, and he surely knew it. Cunning spider. But why was he here? As
if reading her mind, he spoke.
"I
want you to come with me," he said in a low voice. She blinked.
"Go with you?"
He nodded.
"Where to? To the Predacons? I'm a Maximal."
"I'm no longer with Megatron. And you don't have to be a Maximal."
You have her, stupid! You don't have to persuade her!
"What? What do you mean?"
"I am skilled enough to reprogram you without any skill or memory
loss"
She shook her head. "No"
He frowned and leaned over her menacingly.
She didn't cower. "No," she repeated. "I don't want to be a
Predacon--"
She really thinks she have a choice?
He
leaned closer. He intended to whisper in her audio that she had no choice. He
intended to scare her. He certainly did not intend to kiss her. But that's what
he did.
It's
hard to tell which one of them was more surprised.
No, scrap that last sentence.
She was surprised. He was shocked. Especially when she kissed him back.
This
was crazy, she knew, but by now she was almost certain this was just a dream, so
no harm in doing what she wanted, right? But she wasn't going to agree to being
changed into something she didn't want to be, dream or not. So as soon as her
lips were free to speak, she finished the sentence.
"--not even for you". Funny, she didn't mean to say it so quietly.
He
stood up abruptly, frowning.
His expression turned so cold and distant it almost scared her.
"Well," he said and scooped her up in his arms.
"What are you doing?"
He didn't answer. Silently he carried her over to her desk. Usually it was full
of data-pads, plants and sketches, but now its top was clear. And on the chair
beside it... She inhaled sharply. The set of surgical tools gleamed ominously at
her.
No, no, he couldn't, he wouldn't...
"NO!"
this time she meant to scream, scream so loudly to make the whole base shake,
but the word came out barely as a squeal. She tried to fight, to get free, but
she only managed to shake her head frantically. "No!"
He
put her down on the impromptu operating table, ignoring her feeble attempts.
"No, please, don't!" she begged.
Not a dream. A nightmare.
No, he can't do this to me, he can't be such a monster, Primus, please, no...
"Please,
Ranty, don't..."
He finally responded.
"I will--" he put a finger on her lips to cut off further protests and
looked at her--
--looked
in those beautiful emerald optics, usually bright and smiling, now so full of
fear.
I
will do as I please. Go on, say it!
"I
will--"
So scared of him...
"--not reprogram you against your will," he finished with difficulty.
D'oh!
She
almost fainted with relief.
I
should have known, he wouldn't hurt me, even in a dream...
She
managed a small smile.
Tarantulas
was astonished how quickly her expression changed.
The fear was gone and... She. Was. Smiling. Smiling!
How he hated her! How dared she smile when he was writhing in torment inside?
"However,"
he rasped and held a scalpel up, so that she could see it. For all the trouble,
for all the pain she caused him, he wanted her to be afraid, he wanted
her to suffer--
Her
optics widened again in renewed terror.
--not...
Her
gaze was locked on the blade in his hand, descending slowly toward her--
He's just toying with me again, he won't hurt me, I know he won't...
--touching her chestplate--
Primus, don't let him hurt me!
--and cutting it.
Somebody help me!
She
tried to scream, but her voice box was just as unresponsive and numb as the rest
of her body. She only knew he did cut her because she heard the screech of
metal.
Why
didn't I call Optimus when I could? What had he done to me? What is he doing
to me?
Tarantulas
finished the first cut and glanced at her face. Her lips where moving silently.
*What
are you doing?*
What does it look like I'm doing, fool? Hurting
you, torturing, cutting to worthless little pieces...
"Protecting
you"
WILL YOU SHUT UP WITH THAT HONESTY ALREADY?! Since
when you ever tell the truth?
If
she heard him, she didn't give any sign of it. Her optics dimmed as a drug
finally knocked her off-line.
Tarantulas worked in silence.
She
wasn't sure if she heard him right. Her vision blurred, and she was left in the
darkness. How this could be called 'protecting her'? Did she mishear it, or was
it just a cruel joke, like everything he'd said? How
stupid she was to ever listen to him!
Optimus, Rattrap, help me!
"HELP
ME!"
The base didn't shake, but it was close. Taraxa sat up on her bed, trembling.
She
was alone, the sun was shining through the skylight, and her desk was littered
with the usual garbage.
Just a dream. It was just a dream. He could never get in here. Never.
All was safe and quiet...
Why was it so quiet?
Why no one reacted to her scream?
There
was a distant noise and a sound of dragging footsteps drawing near. She almost
shrieked again when her door opened. Rattrap leaned heavily against the frame.
"Ya screamed?" His optics were narrowed to near slits.
"Yes, I, I'm sorry. I've had a bad dream."
He winced at her voice.
"Yea, well, I 'ave a bad hangover, so be quiet." His voice was hoarse.
"Hangover?" he winced again, so she lowered her voice to whisper.
"From what?"
He shrugged, and grunted almost immediately.
"Donno. Maybe dat yesterday energon was tainted. I'm gonna sleep," and
he left.
Energon.
Of course. They'd found a new deposit yesterday, and had a little feast to
celebrate it. She didn't really need re-energizing, so she only tried a little.
From the looks of it, it spared her a splitting headache; but if she could, she
would trade Rattrap's hangover for that nightmare. Honestly.
She
got up and checked on the rest of her teammates. They were all fast asleep; only
Rattrap opened one optic and grumbled something unflattering at the sound of the
door opening. She let them rest. In the control room she found Cheetor, slumped
on the console and snoring loudly. She smiled. He's such a sweet kid. She left
him there as well, only making sure that Sentinel and auto-guns are on-line.
They were.
Well,
young lady, no more playing with Tarantulas for you. It was madness from the
beginning, and look what it did to you. I should delete all that pictures of him
you'd made...
No, not my pictures!
She
started to laugh, and because she really needed it, she continued until her
sides ached. She'd been acting like some silly three-decades-old girl!
She rubbed her sides and suddenly all traces of amusement disappeared from her
face. She swallowed hard. She didn't dare to look down. She didn't dare to move
her hand. It was a dream, just a dream, there could not be a thin, almost fully
healed but still perceptible scar on her chestplate...
She
very slowly looked down at herself. Nothing. But as she started breathing again,
light fall on her differently and she bit her hand to stop the scream.
It was there! And not one! Two, three, oh Primus, five long scars on her front
and one more on each side, and--
-she reached behind slowly and
traced her finger across her back plate-
--five more on her back.
What
he's done to me?
No, Sentinel was on-line, it was not possible!
She
curled on the floor, closing her spider legs around herself like a protective
cage. She wanted to crawl in some dark hole somewhere to never come out again.
But
then she stood up and gritted her teeth. Whatever he'd done, Rhinox can undo.
And next time she sees Ra-- Tarantulas, she will not lower her weapon settings.
She raised her chin and went to the rhino's lab. She needed to know.
Sometime
later she was staring at the screen.
--Reinforcement implants of unknown type.--
--Manufactured from improved transmetal alloys.--
--Pockets filled with mixture of energized mech fluids and dormant repair
nanites.--
She looked at the diagram. Twelve bars, closed around her internals and spark
cavity as a protective cage.
What
are you doing?
Protecting you.
He
took a risk of sneaking into their base, of getting killed, to protect her in
the best way he could.
"Ranty..."
she breathed. She hadn't even known that happiness could be so great it hurts.
___________________________________________________________________________
Tarantulas
was hurting as well, but not of happiness. He was sitting in his lair, banging
his head against the table.
Stupid, stupid, stupid, you had her and you left her to the Maximals, to that idiotic cat, stupid, why did you ever listen to her, it was one in a life-time opportunity and you wasted it, stupid, stupid, you HAD HER, she could be here right now, WHY did you left her to the Maxis? Stupid, stupid, stupid...
He
continued denting the desk until he knocked himself off-line.
_____________________________________________________
End of part three