A World Beyond Our Own | TFP AU

09 || Prey

"When I tell you to, you need to push as hard as you can."

"O-Okay... this doesn't seem like a good idea, though."

"You have to trust me, Taylor. Can you do that?"

The silver-haired girl bit her lip, raising her gaze to meet Ratchet's blue eyes. Of course she could trust him! She was just afraid that she might accidentally hurt him instead of helping him. "Yeah. Yeah, I can do that."

"Good." Ratchet said, his voice somewhat muffled because he had part of his hind leg in his mouth. Hopefully this would work. He needed her help in case he couldn't get enough leverage to pop his leg back into place. "Ready?"

"Ready."

"Alright. Go."

Upon Ratchet's command, Taylor pushed his leg with all her might. She was jerked forwards a bit when the medic pulled on his leg, but managed to keep her footing so she wouldn't fall. A few seconds later, she heard a sickening pop that made her want to gag.

"Did it work..?" She quietly asked, backing away from Ratchet's leg.

His face was twisted in pain, lips curled back in a silent snarl. He breathed heavily through his teeth in order to get through the pain. For a second, Taylor thought she had hurt him even further.

"I believe so." Ratchet finally muttered, letting out a strained sigh as he forced himself to relax. Turning his head, he could see that his leg's position looked somewhat normal now, but he would have to see if it could support his weight in order to know if it worked. He looked down at Taylor and sighed softly. "Thank you."

Taylor's heart fluttered when the medic thanked her and a slight blush tinted her cheeks pink. "You're welcome!" She replied, her cheerful attitude returning for a brief moment. Then she remembered where they were and deflated a bit, plopping down next to his foreleg with a sigh. "What do we do now?"

Ratchet gazed at the entrance of the den, a small frown on his face. Megatron would no doubt be returning soon, which didn't give them much time to come up with a plan of escape. He didn't want to crush Taylor's spirit with his usual pessimistic attitude, but he also didn't want to give her false hope.

"The best course of action at the moment would be to wait and weigh our options. We can't go anywhere while Megatron still has us trapped in his den." He mused, craning his neck to examine the wound on his tail. It was deep, but it should heal with time. Hopefully it wouldn't get infected.

Taylor nodded in agreement, leaning back against Ratchet's thick foreleg. Just the thought of being stuck in the den with Megatron made her shudder. "Maybe we could try and leave during the night?"

"While he's sleeping? I'd like to believe Megatron is a heavy sleeper, but I'd rather not find out that way."

"Right, that was a stupid idea." Taylor said with a sigh, shaking her head. She tilted her head back and stared at the ceiling of the den for a moment, studying the roots that dangled from the packed dirt and rock.

Ratchet opened his mouth to speak, but closed it instead. He knew Taylor was scared and frustrated. He was too. He needed to be strong for her so she wouldn't give up. She was strong-willed, though, so he wasn't too worried about that. The medic laid his head down beside the girl and stared at the wall, allowing his thoughts to consume him.

*
*
*

Ratchet's head perked up when he heard pawsteps, his entire body going rigid. Taylor had dozed off about an hour ago and was still asleep.

The medic stared at the entrance of the den with narrowed eyes, his pupils shrinking down to pinpricks. A large shadow loomed on the far wall by the entrance and Ratchet immediately knew who it was. However, he wasn't prepared to see a second shadow that was almost just as big. His heart sunk and he protectively curled his tail around Taylor's sleeping form.

Megatron's enormous form soon came into view. He was followed by Shockwave, the one-eyed dragon nearly matching him stride for stride with his scarred, thickset limbs. They descended on Ratchet like a pair of foxes hunting a rabbit, only their intent wasn't to kill.

"Ah, Ratchet." Megatron rumbled, a smirk sliding across his face. He paused when he was a few feet away from Ratchet, gesturing for Shockwave to do the same. He cast a glance at the medic's hind leg. "How is your leg?" He asked, fake concern dripping from his voice.

Ratchet hissed softly, silently praying that Taylor wouldn't wake up. He knew she would be terrified if she realized they were cornered by two of the most dangerous Decepticons.

"What do you want, Megatron?" He spat, his gaze switching between the silver warlord and the one-eyed scientist. By that time, Taylor had begun to wake up.

Megatron chuckled. "Shockwave has shown interest in your little friend and wishes to study her. If that's alright with you, of course." He sneered, knowing perfectly well that he wasn't going to give Ratchet a choice. Ratchet seemed to understand that because he bared his teeth.

"You wouldn't dare touch her!" The medic snarled, standing over Taylor in an attempt to protect her. However, his attempts were futile. He barely had time to react before Megatron struck him down with his paw and allowed Shockwave to snatch Taylor in his jaws.

Hearing all sorts of voices and snarling, Taylor lifted her head and rubbed her eyes. "Ratchet? What's going o— AAH!" She shrieked at the top of her lungs as she violently left the ground. She swung around in Shockwave's jaws before being thrown to the ground. Her head hit the ground and she immediately went limp.

"No!" Ratchet tried to get up and get to her, but Megatron lunged over and pinned him down before he could. "Taylor!" No matter how hard he struggled, Megatron's grip was too strong to escape. He could only watch helplessly as Taylor was carried out of sight.