Irregularity

CHAPTER 16

Bumblebee was running through the halls of a building. Alarms blared in his audials, almost too loud for him, static building in his audials. He didn't stop running, even as he heard bots yelling for him to stop and even shooting at him. His Spark's beat was frantic, his venting just the same.

"Bee! Hurry up!"

Bumblebee turned to look back, but saw no one. He came to a screeching halt, panting, confused at the lack of bots. The hallway was darkened, as if the lights went out.

"Starscream?" He asked, "Ironhide?"

His voice echoed. Everything was still.

Suddenly, black tendrils snaked out of the darkness. Bumblebee stepped back, shocked, but felt something wrap around his leg in return. His gaze snapped to his leg, seeing a tendril curling around the limb, tightening its grip on him. It suddenly tugged, hard enough for the yellow bot to fall. His helm harshly hits the floor, leaving static in his vision and warnings of more hostiles approaching.

He quickly turned to upholster his pistol, but another tendril snakes around his arm and is pulled taut. His servo is forced away from his weapon, no matter how hard he fights back. He groaned, gritting his dentae, trying to keep his vents steady. It was impossible, especially as the darkness closed in on him, and he felt a familiar presence.

"YOU CANNOT ESCAPE FATE, SMALL ONE."

Bumblebee couldn't manage a retort. His vents felt like they were collapsing. The tendrils were pulling him apart, slowly, painfully. He couldn't even scream as they reached his face, materializing as clawed servos, and digging into his face.

Bumblebee awoke. He still felt the phantom touch of the tendrils pulling at his limbs, no matter how much he rubbed at his arms and knowing they weren't there. His breaths were still labored, vents wheezing and fans whirring loudly.

Something touched his shoulder, and he let out a loud squeak. Bumblebee whipped around, servos raised to defend himself, only to find Arcee. She flinched back, then the yellow bot lowered his servos. He sat criss-crossed on the berth, shaking servos clutching his helm.

"It's okay, Bee. It's okay. You're safe." The pink and white bot muttered to him, rubbing his back.

No, no, we're not safe. Unicron's after me.

He didn't dare speak his thoughts aloud (more like he couldn't speak them out loud), trying to regain his breathing. Arcee gradually scooted closer, hugging him close to her chassis, and muttering assurances. Eventually, Bumblebee managed to calm down enough for his fans to calm down to a barely-audible whirr. He gently pushed away from Arcee, who allowed him to. She looked at him worriedly, he knew, and avoided looking at her.

"Bee, are you okay?" She asked gently.

The yellow bot lifted a servo, moving it in a "so-so" manner. The pink and white bot hummed in acknowledgement.

"Do you want your meds?" Arcee asked again.

Bumblebee hesitated, but eventually nodded. The pink and white bot stood, offering a servo to her friend. He took it, servo still shaking, and was led out to the main room. Hot Rod was laying on the couch, in shutdown. The two bots passed him quietly, going to a cabinet near the Energon dispenser. Bumblebee hopped onto the counter while Arcee opened the cabinet, pulling out a bottle of pills and an empty cube. She filled the cube at the dispenser, while Bumblebee shook out one of the pills.

He was supposed to only take one per orn, but Arcee and Bumblebee decided by themselves that the yellow bot needed more if he were to function at least semi-normally.