Shards (Transformers Prime, Shattered Glass)

Chapter 23

"Hey Doc."

Knockout glanced up, looking for his assistant, before realizing that he was talking over the comms.

"Do you need something?"

"Where you at?"

"Oh," Knockout looked around "Lab."

"Lab?"

"Yes. Don't come in, I'm sanitizing some of Shockwave's questionable items."

"Really?" Knockout heard the click of glass against glass over the line "The main lab? The one I'm standing in? The one you're not in?"

Knockout heaved a sigh "That would be the one."

"So if you aren't in here, then where might you be?"

"Listen-" Knockout dug his elbow against the dusty wall of the canyon and looked down the road "I needed a bit of space-"

"Primus tell me you aren't," Breakdown cut him off "If you're racing again I swear...Swear to..."

"I'm not, I promise, I'm not, Breakdown."

"Yeah, you also said you were in the lab."

"Listen-"

"No, you listen. Come back right now."

"I'm not even in my altmode, I went for a walk, Breakdown, calm down."

"Yeah sure calm down, last time you went for a "walk" we found you upside in a ditch."

Knockout couldn't really argue with that, but he wasn't about to admit it.

"The human cheated."

"I don't care. Come back."

Knockout rolled his eyes and glared down at his feet "The commander gave me an hour. I still have twenty minutes left."

"You've been gone that long?"

"I've been off shift for fourty minutes yeah."

"You were supposed to power down."

"Well I didn't," Knockout began to loose interest in their conversation as he thought he caught the sound of a distant motor.

"Twenty minutes or I'm coming to drag you back."

"Go check on Megatron."

Breakdown huffed and probably would have gone on again, but Knockout cut the line.

He defintly heard a motor. But the echo off the canyon walls made it difficult to tell how far away the car was or if it was even coming towards him at all.

He paused a second, wondering if he should slip into the ditch and resume his walk or just transform and drive the last twenty minutes away. In which case would earn himself a lecture from his over-protective assistant who would doubtless be able to tell Knockout had been driving and would assume the worst.

Before he could decide the sudden wail of sirens startled him into immobility.

So when the car came speeding around the corner he just stared like a deer in the headlights.

Brakes squealed but that didn't make any difference as the car plowed headlong into Knockout's legs and they both went skidding off the road and into that ditch he should have jumped into in the first place.

Despite the burning pain in his lower legs, Knockout managed to keep still until the sirens went roaring past.

As soon as the sharp wails faded away he pulled himself out from beneath the vehicle. He was damaged, but it was nothing Breakdown couldn't fuss out.