Summary: Determined to find his leader, Bumblebee follows the pull of Dark Energon to the Decepticon warship: The Nemesis. However, there's only one entrance and no exit. Can he convince amnesiac Optimus Prime to save him from the 'Cons, or is this his last mission?

A/N: Originally, Season 2 was supposed to air on November 28th. Now, it's supposed to air "early 2012." Ok, what the frag? Anyway, due to the prolonged air date, I have decided to continue the oneshot "More Like Family" as an AU for the start of Season 2. I'm warning you, I'll be stopping before Optimus regains his memory, since:

1. I have absolutely no clue what the Prime team has planned and I'm not about to soil all their hard work in a "what if" attempt that may or may not make sense.

2. I'm not creative enough to think up a good place to hide Vector Sigma/how to use it to get Optimus' memory back.

3. I only want to do enough to display Bee's thoughts of his leader to touch upon what Father/Son relationship they have that the show hasn't shown already.

Also, this will be fairly short (as in 6 or 7 chapters at the most). Oh, and I hope this isn't too similar to Challenger2011's story "Remembrance." I have been developing this story since October and have finally come up with a plotline I'm happy with. This story has gone through multiple changes since its conception in early October and has drastically changed plot points to accommodate the season finale. I created this before I ever read Remembrance. From me to Challenger2011: I'm sorry if I have (even if inadvertently) plagiarized anything and please tell me if I do so.

How did he always find himself in these positions, hanging for his life at the mercy (or lack there) of the Decepticon leader? And as usual, why was Optimus the first one on the scene?

Well, he knew driving straight off the plateau hadn't been the brightest idea he'd thought of in stellar cycles, but that was just the way he worked. Of course, he hadn't taken much damage on that fall. He'd transformed mid-fall, rolled onto his shoulder, transformed and used the momentum from his fall to propel him forward, allowing him to gun his engine as soon as his tires hit the road.

Perhaps just following the slight pull of Dark Energon hadn't been the best well-thought out plan he'd ever concocted, but it would do. It would take a bit of time and concentration, but the light pull soon became a consistent tug as he approached his destination. After driving for hours on end, he stopped. He'd driven off-road for a while and his axels hurt like the Pit. Now he understood why the phrase "all-terrain" didn't apply to his alt.-mode. But the reason why he stopped wasn't to take a break.

The yellow muscle car found himself in a ravine, sedimentary rocks encompassing his form. The natural rift wasn't as deep as he originally thought; yet steep enough to provide a significant advantage for an ambush from above. Yet, the scout found his disadvantage perfect for his plan. It would make his story a bit more convincing.

Transforming, Bumblebee stretched his servos, fluttering his door-wings to relieve them of that terrible cramping feeling. Lifting his helm to the sky, he found what he was looking for.

Among the star-lit desert sky was a large, black silhouette. Nothing organic could ever hope to achieve a feat this monumental and disruptive to the Earth's environment. It struck fear into the sparks of Autobots, young and old alike. It was known as a terror, a nightmare, a Pit-spawned demon that could only be controlled by one of equal darkness and hatred.

The moon illuminated the heavily armed sides of the battleship, spikes protruding from each end of the behemoth. Inside were Bumblebee's worst fears and his only hope.

As the scout stared at the Nemesis, determination flooded through his spark. A plan formed within his processor: a risky, rash, and completely idiotic one, but it was a plan. He wavered on his pedes slightly, the Dark Energon finally taking its toll on his systems.

Unsheathing his blasters, he quickly sent a text comm. to Arcee containing his coordinates, before shielding his spark signature. He'd reveal himself once onboard the Decepticon warship, but now, he didn't need a service drone finding him before his plan could be put into action.

Taking careful aim, Bumblebee fired at the Nemesis. Although the plasma shots would do nothing to the ship, he just needed to be noticed. If his suspicions were correct, there would be sentries on guard above the ravine in case of a ground attack staged by the Autobots. Now that Megatron had Prime aboard, he would probably be expecting something any day now. The tyrant would be getting a wake-up call as Bee continued his distraction. His attack was earlier than scheduled.

Minutes later, Vehicons' visors were in view above him. Within seconds, Bumblebee found himself fruitlessly dodging the onslaught of lasers. Taking cover under an outcrop, the scout fired at his attackers. He had to make it look convincing, as if he really was so thick-headed to think that he could get Optimus back by himself.

Soon enough, the Vehicons overwhelmed him. Coming out from the outcrop, he tried his best to take cover behind large rocks within the ravine, but Vehicons from above fired at his back. He fell to the ground when the shots became too much. His door wings were leaking energon down his back-plating. He could only watch as Vehicons stomped his helm into the ground, nearly cracking an optic on a rock beneath him. Two Vehicons held him down as he thrashed in their hold. Five more surrounded him as one leveled a laser to the spot between his optics. The gesture sent Bumblebee into a full-blown panic. This was not part of his plan!

He off-lined his optics, preparing for the pain. Instead, his audio receptors picked up the sound of a moving servo. On-lining one optic, the scout saw the Vehicon, one servo to its helm while the laser as pointed skyward. Quickly glancing at its comrades, the Vehicon produced some stasis cuffs from a subspace pocket. Bumblebee's vision was soon filled with the Vehicon's chassis as it leaned over to cuff the youngling's servos together. A soft "click" filled the air and Bumblebee was pulled harshly to his pedes. He felt a laser nudge the connecting joint for his door wings. He was painfully dragged forward, forced to keep pace with the rest of the Vehicons. Seconds later, the light green hue of a Ground Bridge blinded his optics. Bumblebee's spark sank, accepting the knowledge that this wasn't his Ground Bridge. Yet, a mix of determination and fear pushed him onwards. He had a task to complete before he could allow himself to just lay down and die. Of course, he didn't really want to die just yet. Still, it was an occupational hazard and Bumblebee would prepare himself for when the time came.

The Vehicons dragged him through as Bee struggled in their hold. Soon enough, he was inside the Nemesis' bridge. To his right was Soundwave. To his left was Airachnid. His optics widened as he looked forward. In front of him were Megatron and Optimus Prime. Both mechs stood side-by-side, one intimidating and ruthless while the other appeared confused and slightly doubtful.

"Optimus!" Bumblebee beeped, straining against the hold of the Vehicons. If he could, the scout would have smirked as the Vehicons tried to get a good grip on his servos again, the sudden jerk taking them by surprise.

Megatron let out a hearty laugh (Bumblebee shivered slightly) as Optimus watched the scene with indifference. There was emptiness in those optics, giving the Prime an incomplete appearance. A part of him was erased, gone, and that sent insecurity straight to Bumblebee's spark.

The Decepticon insignia didn't ease the scout's emotional agony at all.

"Well, looks like I've caught a bee." Megatron said, walking closer to the youngling, "Tell me scout, how are your little friends doing without your precious leader?"

"We're just fine, thank you very much!" Bee snapped, struggling once again. Turning his gaze to Optimus, he said, "I know you don't remember me, but please trust me! You don't belong here! When you walked through that Ground Bridge, you left more than your memories behind. You left your family and-" Panic filled the scout's processor. Looking down, he saw the large, claw-like servo of the Decepticon leader around his neck, right over his ruined voice modulator.

"I've done it once, scout. I have no qualms of repeating the past." It was no more than a whisper, but Bumblebee nodded out of fright and trauma.

Orion Pax noticed the fear the scout displayed, questioning Megatronus' connection with him. The mech was still a youngling, what affiliation could he have? Orion sighed. The scout was probably corrupted as a sparkling, now dragged into a war that should never have been his conflict to resolve. He pitied the youngling.

"Take him to the holding cells." Megatron ordered. With a slight nod, the Vehicons led Bumblebee away from the bridge. The scout could feel his spark call out to his leader, encouraging him to remember. But he knew it was futile. They didn't share any sort of spark-bond. They weren't brothers, they weren't spark-mates and Optimus wasn't his Creator. He may as well have been though, with their history.

Bumblebee's musings stopped as he was led to two electric cuffs. The receivers were bolted to the wall, low enough for Bumblebee to kneel, yet far enough away from each other to strain his shoulder joints. He resumed his earlier struggles as stasis cuffs were swapped for the prison. The bindings crackled to life, electricity coursing through the two ends, creating a near-unbreakable bond. Despite this fact Bumblebee continued to thrash and tug at the bonds. The pain came so quickly, he had no clue how to react. Electricity surged through his circuitry, reinforcing the pain already brought about from the Dark Energon.

It stopped as quickly as it came, leaving Bumblebee limp while he slowly cycled his vents. He barely registered the slamming of the door or the sound of the keypad accepting the lock code.

So here he was, hanging at the mercy of the Decepticons, still clinging onto hope, not of restoring Prime's memory, but of bringing him home. And if he, Bumblebee, had to off-line in order to do so, then so be it. He would make any sacrifice necessary for Optimus Prime and the Autobots.

For when there was no sacrifice, there was no victory.

In another part of the state, night fell as tension rose. The Autobot base was in a frenzy, humans and Cybertronians alike confused, hurt and bewildered. Ratchet appeared to be mumbling to himself, the phrases "Vector Sigma" and "Circuit Key" constantly being repeated. Arcee had taken charge of the team, being Second In Command, and did her best to keep everyone together. Bulkhead wouldn't stop pacing or arguing that they needed to get Optimus back now.

Agent Fowler actually seemed to understand the depth of the situation and tried to talk to Arcee about possible strategies and solutions. June Darby was trying her best to help as well, providing comfort to those who appeared to need it. She wanted to help the Autobots in any way she could, she just didn't know how.

Jack sat in one of the chairs, studying the Key to Vector Sigma. He had no clue how important the artifact was, but, according to Ratchet's reaction, he decided that it was important enough to keep safe. That meant no more idly tapping the thing against the railing. As he studied the complex, soft glow of blue circuitry, Jack couldn't help but wonder what it did and why there was a slight pull to it. It reminded him of a compass needle, always magnetized to point north. Perhaps...the key knew where something was or was specifically designed to find it. He let out a sigh. There was no way in hell that the little thing could help them right now. But then again, why would Optimus Prime trust him with it if it wasn't valuable? Why would he leave it in the hands of a human? Sometimes, Cybertronian logic thoroughly confused Jack. So, he continued to twirl the key in his hands, questioning its purpose and what role he had to play.

Miko was surprisingly quiet, attempting to distract herself by drawing miscellaneous things in the base. She knew she was failing miserably, her mind wandering back to Bulkhead's explanation of the battle. At least this time she wasn't wracked with guilt for causing the whole thing. It was, however, ten times worse to feel as helpless and vulnerable as the others. Despite her slightly thick-headed appearance, she knew they all needed Optimus back or else they'd all fall apart. If that happened, nobody would come to pick up the pieces.

Raf worked furiously on his laptop, covering up conspiracy theories and researching for any clues about the Decepticons. Glancing around the base, he noticed an Autobot was missing, his guardian to be precise.

"Where's Bumblebee?" he asked. Arcee looked towards him and answered.

"He's on top of the base." Arcee explained, "When he's stressed or upset, he likes to go 'star gazing.' It calms him down."

"You think he's still up there?" Raf asked, "I haven't seen him since you guys got back."

"Come to think of it, he's been gone for longer than usual." Bulkhead commented.

"Normally, he doesn't have to deal with something this traumatic." Arcee replied, "Optimus practically adopted him. He's probably hurting more than we could possibly imagine."

"Arcee," Ratchet started, trying to hide the worry in his voice, "His spark signature's not there. He blocked it from us as well as his comm.-link."

"What the frag is he thinking?" Arcee demanded, walking over to Ratchet's monitors. She knew Bumblebee could be extremely rash, but to this extent? Would he seriously put something like this into action? The thing was: Bumblebee would easily consider and hastily do it.

"He's thinking of rescuing Optimus." Ratchet stated, "And he definitely does not want us to find him now."

"Bee has a plan, doesn't he?" Bulkhead was regretting an answer to his question.

"Just like at Tyger Pax. He's pulled this before and now he's doing it again." Arcee said, glaring at the monitor. Suddenly, her servo flew to her helm, faceplates donning a bewildered expression. "No, he didn't..." she murmured.

"What is it?" Ratchet inquired.

"He sent me coordinates." Arcee's voice faltered, realizing why she got the text.

"He didn't..." Ratchet huffed.

"He did..." There was no masking her fear now. She didn't feel weak for showing it, especially when it came to Bumblebee.

"What did Bee do?" Raf asked, sensing the Autobots' fear.

"He deliberately got himself captured by 'Cons." Arcee replied. "He found Optimus, but he has no way out."

"Isn't there anything we can do?" Jack asked, also worrying for the scout. Ratchet sighed before replying.

"No, at the moment, we can't do anything. Bumblebee is on his own."