A/N: OK, so I know I said that this was the last chapter of Plaything. But I figured it'll be way too long so I've decided to split it up. So this is the perspective of her friends back at the base. What's going to happen? Just read and find out. I also apologize for a lack of Arcee and Knock Out in this chapter. I promise to make it up!
Please don't kill me!

Also it seems I'm spoon feeding you guys one of my obsessions in this chapter. *Evil laugh*

I wrote this chapter to a song called Wolf & I by Oh Land. Check it out! When I listen to it I think of Arcee and Knock Out. Also I have Fan Art! Check out Savouring by Lecidre. I simply adore her! Her entire gallery is worth checking out, full of sexy humanized Transformers and Crack Pairings.

Please review! Tell me what you think! :D

"What do you mean Arcee's in trouble?"

Jack looked up desperately at each one of the Autobots, a sickening dead twisted in his chest that sent his heart galloping. Ratchet was at the space bridge console, fingers flying over the keys and bringing up a picture of Arcee on the screen. It displayed her comlink connection, spark pulse and other Cybertranian symbols and characters that went over Jack's head.

Optimus strode over to stand beside the medic, features taunt with worry. Bulkhead and Bumblebee hung back with Raf and Miko, watching pensively from the sidelines.

"Is she going to be OK?" When either Optimus Prime or Ratchet immediately reply, he turned around to look at Bulkhead. "Is she?"

His words hung in the air, unnoticed.

Bulkhead frowned and bent forward to kneel, beckoning him to him and after a moment of hesitation Jack briskly walked over into his awaited hand. He lifted him up to his shoulder.

"Hey! How come he gets to go up there?" Miko protested, crossing her over her chest. She leaned her weight on opposite hip and pinned them both with an incredulous look. "You said you didn't want us up there anymore since I almost fell and broke my-"

"I need silence!" Ratchet barked, shooting Miko a fierce glare. "This isn't the time for useless squabbling."

"She's about 5.64 kilometres away, Optimus." Ratchet plugged in another sequence into the console, and turned to look up at his leader. A handful of new energy readings popped up, each pulsing with their own unique spark signatures. Jack's eyes widened in horror as he recognised two specific images of two sparks, Starscream and Knock Out. His stomach flipped flopped in a way he only felt once before. He felt like he was a child again, unable to do anything as his mother broke the devastating news that his beloved pet golden doodle Maxy was hit and killed by a car. Unable to do anything but allow himself to get overwhelmed by fear and denial.

"I'm registering seven Decepticon energy signatures at her location, Optimus!"

"What are we doing standing around then?" Bulkhead demanded, slamming a fist into his palm, a resulting clang echoing throughout the hanger. Jack winced at the loudness. "We need a ground bridge! She needs back up!"

"Yeah!" Miko agree, hopping into the air and punching the air. "Let's go dent some Decepticon metal!"

"What is the status of her life signal, Ratchet?" Optimus asked.

Ratchet's fingers typed in a new command, and three bright yellow bar graphs appeared onto the screen. One by one they decreased in size, until the third bar was barely a foot in length.

"I'm afraid it doesn't look good, Optimus. We need to act quickly."

Jack felt the Bulkhead straighten to his full height, and after a quick glance at everyone around the room did he notice all the Autobots doing it too. Optimus turned to his soldiers, his optics sharp and focused.

"Autobots, time is of the essences. We must act quickly if we are to rescue Arcee from the Decepticons. Ratchet, I need you on the mission. We will need you in case Arcee needs emergency medical repairs. Raf, you will activate the ground bride. We will require an immediate receiving ground bridge once we get Arcee back."

He turned to the humans, and addressed them directly. "Under no circumstances are you to follow us. You are to remain here at the base and await our return."

Miko huffed, rolling her eyes. Raf merely nodded in understanding. Jack couldn't meet Optimus's gaze.

Bulkhead reached up and plucked Jack from his shoulder and set him down between Miko and Raf. By then Jack's limbs felt weightless, his head swam with dizziness like one would experience after a prominent head rush. Colours looked dull and flat, sounds ebbed away to toneless mummers. He tasted bile on his tongue and his stomach rolled with nausea. The steady beating of his heart was the only that kept him rooted to the earth.

Arcee is gonna be okay. Gonna be okay...gonna be okay.

Arcee is tough. She'll get through it...

Will she?

What happens if she doesn't?

I can't lose Arcee!

A bright green light burst into his perceptual vision and the roar of engines snapped him back to reality.

The Autobots had transformed and rolled out.

Raf was now at the controls, looking very small and insignificant beside the massive ground bridge controls. The ground bridge shimmered and efficiently dissolved once the Autobots crossed.

"I hope she's alright," Raf said, looking back to his friends. His eyes were conflicted, brows knitted down and lips pulled thin across his face. He turned to look at his friends, seeking support.

"She'll be fine!" Miko placed a hand on Jack's shoulder. "She's a tough girl, give her credit! Next thing you'll know Optimus will be asking us to bridge them back with Arcee safe and sound! She's a fighter and a survivor, a tough cookie!"

A fighter.

A survivor.

Jack's been around Arcee enough to come up with an infinite amount of adjectives to describe Arcee as. Jack couldn't picture Arcee out there somewhere in the Nevada wastes, fighting against both Starscream and Knock Out and their Decepticon minions and come out on top. She was a skilled warrior, fast, agile and deadly, yes...but she was just one Autobot.

She couldn't take on the world by herself.

What if the Autobots don't make it in time? Dark doubts swirled around Jack, making goose bumps ripple across his skin. What if she doesn't survive this time?

What if she dies?

Jack's heart swiftly pumped an irregular beat, and all his breath was stolen away from his lungs.

Jack shrugged off Miko's hand and rounded on her, making her take a step back.

"How can you possibly know that, Miko?" Jack was normally laid back kid, never one to get worked up over anything too serious. He actually deemed it one of his best personality traits. But for some reason he was just...so angry and torn.

"Are you deaf? Ratchet just said her life signal was faint and to makes things worse, she's surrounded by 'Cons!" He snarled.

"This isn't something we can just joke about. Arcee could die out there! She could die and I won't be there help her! Won't be there to say goodbye! Life isn't like it is on the TV anymore! Open your goddamn eyes!"

Raff jogged over to the two teens, and abruptly took hold of Jack's left arm and pulled him away from Miko.

"Jack!" He tried to sooth, "take it easy. She's just trying to help!"

Jack met Miko's gaze, and he sagged under a sudden weight of guilt. Her features were closed off, distant, but her eyes betrayed a look of hurt.

"I'm sorry Miko," Jack muttered. He turned from them and walked over to the staircase leading up to a higher platform made especially for the humans. He plopped down and enfolded his head into his arms, sighing deeply.

Miko and Raff glanced at each other, unsure how to deal with their distraught friend.

For a long moment no one spoke and only thing that was heard was Jack's laboured breathing as he tried to calm down.

Miko's hands found the end of her pony tail, and she stroked it several times in an attempt to think of something to say. Raf on the other hand did know what to say but bit his tongue in silence. He could clearly see that Jack wasn't in the mood to be spoon fed false reassurances. Raf himself was feeling pretty twisted about the condition Arcee was in. They were all their friends, after all, but he knew Jack had a much deeper relationship to Arcee then any of the other kids. Like Raf to Bumblebee and Miko to Bulkhead, they all shared a deep linked relationship which blossomed into something many wouldn't comprehend.

Just the thought of what Jack was going through made him shudder in dread. He wouldn't know what to do with himself if he lost 'Bee.

She's gonna be okay...She has to be. She'll be fine...

Surrounded by 'Cons...

Life signal faint...

Raf hopped down from the ground bride controls and gestured for Miko to follow him. The girl unfolded her arms, curious, but complied. Raf sat down on Jack's left side and Miko to his right. Jack didn't take notice, absorbed in his morbid doubts. Raf knew better. In a dire situation like this the last thing Jack needed was to be sucked into a tunnel of worst case scenarios. He needed to be pulled back and to be distracted and take his mind away from it all.

But the problem he faced was how to get Jack's mind focused on something else.

He leaned forwards, peeking over Jack's folded arms to Miko. She met his gaze, and shrugged when she noticed his worried expression. He carefully raised an arm over Jack and pointed down at him while pinning Miko with determined look, do something!

Miko hiked her shoulders up, spreading her arms out, what should I do?

Raf glared, anything.

Miko slummed forwards, sighing dramatically. She straightened, peeking over at Jack. How to cheer him up? She wracked her brain for anything, thinking over to the past month that she knew might cheer him up. He didn't seem in the mood for one of her awesome rock and roll sessions, her skateboard was banned from base, as were her water guns...

She perked up, remembering something substantial. She and Bulkhead were working on a super secret project together on the ground bride computer, not even Ratchet knew about it. Bursting to her feet in a fit of inspiration, she skipped over to the ground bridge controls. Jack by then lifted his head from his arms, watching quizzically.

"Umm...Miko? What are you doing?"

"I know what'll cheer Jack up!" Miko went over, hesitating over the controls.

"I don't think you're supposed to touch that..."

"Aw, cool it Raf! Jack! Come over here! I want to show you something really neat!"

Jack and Raf looked at each other, sharing identical worried expressions. They both gathered to their feet and trotted over to the ground bridge controls. By then Miko was pressing buttons and pulling levers, and a small black window popped up onto the screen.

"Steam?" Raf asked incredulously. Jack on the other hand perked up, a smile twisting his lips.

"Yup! Me and Bulkhead downloaded it. Now we can play videogames! Common Jack, I just installed Team Fortress 2 and Skyrim!"

"Skyrim? Really? My mom won't lend me money to buy it."

"You haven't played it yet? Shame on you!"

By now Jack was thoroughly interested, his doubts momentarily banished from his mind. Raf huffed, scratching his hair. Whaddya know? She actually did it!

Miko logged onto Steam with her log in name, 'Purple-Monkey-Dish-Washer03' and summoned the game to play. A couple minutes later, a black background filled the screen and the official Skyrim symbol hung in suspension, rotating slowly. Miko selected 'load game' and they waited a few silent minutes for it to start.

"You're a cat?"

Miko glanced over her shoulder, pausing the game to look at Raf.

"I'm a Khajiit, not a cat. I am Miko! Dragonborn! Listener of the Dark Brotherhood, Arch-Mage of The College of Winterhold! Bard of Solitude! I just joined the Thieves Guild in Riften and working on this dumb quest..."

"You're that far? How come Ratchet doesn't know about this yet?"

Miko grinned. "I'm just that good."

Jack stepped forward, and Miko resumed her game. For ten minutes they watched Miko travel to Whiterun, a fictional city in the province of Skyrim. They watched her enter the city, which she told them she owned a house called the 'Breezehome'. She currently was on a quest to steal certain valuable artifacts from a home. They watched as she had to lock pick the house since it was locked, and did it successfully. Jack's interest perked up, silently watching in interest as she crept silently into the home. She was playing in third person, so they could see her odd feline character as she followed the arrow at the top of the screen which pointed her in the right direction to her directive.

She successfully stole two out of three objects, and was searching for the third.

"Oh..it's in the owner's room..."

"Is that bad?"

"Sorta. Let's just hope she won't wake up."

It would have worked if Miko hadn't accidentally hit the un-crouch button. Her character stood abruptly, knocking over something on the side table. The woman sleeping on the bed rose from sleep, and panicking, Miko stole the last artifact that would complete her quest.

"Hey! Thief!"

Miko's character bolted for the door, and after a load page, was outside of the house. By now all the guards were alerted of her thievery, and produced their weapons. Jack and Raf laughed and exclaimed together as Miko tried to escape what looked like fifteen different guards all bearing bows, swords and axes. She had no choice to defend herself as they closed in on her, using the thu'um shout to blow away her opponents.

All caught up in the adventure did she not notice that she hit a red prominent button, activating the ground bridge.

The teens all yelped as the ground bridge activated, swirling green and bright. For a moment neither of the kids knew what to do but only stare.

"Ummm...how do I turn this thing off?" Miko asked.

Raf instantly jump towards, brushing Miko away from the controls.

"I knew this was a bad idea! I need to turn it off."

"Where is it going?"

"It's set to the same coordinates Ratchet set it up to before he left with Optimus and the others."

Same coordinates.

Jack jolted. His eyes stretched in realization. All at once he was hit with remembrance (not that he forgot, he simply pushed it out of the way to make room for Skyrim) and Arcee's situation felt like it just decked him in the stomach.

Arcee...life signal faint...surround by 'Cons.

Partner...

Friend...

Mentor...

He watched as Raf's fingers worked their magic on the controls, watched as worry smoothed to relief as the ground bridge started to decompress in size, closing.

He had to act quickly.

Jack whirled around and jumped into action. He turned and leapt off the platform, and sprinted across to the ground bridge.

"Jack!" Miko cried. "What are you doing!"

Jack ignored them, pumping his legs as fast as he could, his heart beating the fastest it's ever had in its life.

He was seven feet away.

"YOU HEARD WHAT OPTIMUS SAID, JACK!" Miko leaped off after him, but he had gained too much of a lead for her to catch up with him.

"JACK!"

"JACK STOP! IT'S DANGEROUS!"

Five feet away.

He stole a glance over his shoulder, saw Miko's desperate attempt to catch up with him. Saw Raf's horrified expression.

Two feet away.

He almost felt bad. But he knew in his heart he needed to do this. He just had to go to Arcee.

Just as the bridge was a second from closing he crouched down onto his legs, like a spring being decompressed to its base, and leapt.

He soared through the bridge, and it closed seconds behind him.

Sorry for the kinda short chapter. I'll make up for it, don't you worry!

Now...what's going to happen to Arcee and Jack, ha?

Take a guess! I will give you cookies!