Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

“WOOO!!” Miko stood, slamming down her game controller onto the couch triumphantly. “I smoked you, Jack! Hows it feel to be a looooooser?”

Jack slouched back against the couch, glaring up at Miko as she commenced to make a rather wide range of faces at him while going nyeeeeeehhhhh! loudly. “You're acting a little too cocky for winning against a guy-” he raised his right arm, firmly sealed in a cast, “who's only using one hand.”

“Excuses!” Miko declared, completely ignoring his point. “Besides, you couldn't beat when when you had two hands anyway!” She pressed a thumb into her chest confidently. “I'm the best racer around here, y'know!”

“HA!”

Miko spun around immediately and fixed her glare on the red mech sitting across the room, not even trying to hide the devious grin on his face.

“What's so funny?” Miko said, folding her arms in front of her.

“You are.” Knockout replied, carefully keeping up that smug look as he lifted his optics towards the girl. “Playing that silly human game and then calling yourself a racer.” He looked back down to the datapad in his servos. “It's funny.”

With an irritated huff, Miko practically leapt over the couch and hurried up to the platform railing. “I'll have you know,” she began, “that I was all about street racing back in Tokyo!”

“What? How?” Jack spoke up, “You're fourteen. You can't drive!”

“I'm FIFTEEN!!” Miko corrected loudly, “And just because I didn't... y'know... participate doesn't mean I wasn't totally into it.”

“Riiight. Sure you were, Miko.”

Miko clenched her fists, puffing out her chest indignantly. “I was SO! Why do you think I'm so good at that game, huh??”

“I hardly think pressing a few teeny buttons constitutes any real knowledge of street racing.” Knockout said, tapping his digits absently against his datapad. “That's something you need to actually experience to get a good hang of. Trust me, I know.”

“Oh, and you're so awesome?!” Miko grumbled, turning away.

“Why yes. Yes I am.” Knockout purred, ruffling his plating slightly. “Thank you for noticing.”

“That's enough.” The voice of Ratchet echoed from down the hall as he approached. “I'm not interested in hearing you two bicker again!” he said, glaring in particular at Knockout. Then he turned his attention back to the humans as he stepped up to the groundbridge. “Anyway, it's getting rather late. You both should be heading home.”

Miko let out an exasperated groan and slowly made her way down the ramp to the floor. Jack hopped off the couch onto his wheelchair and followed after her. “Hey, Ratchet any chance you could like... drive me home?” he asked as he approached the medic. “The groundbridge is uh... not so friendly to broken bones.”

“I suppose, if it's for your physical well-being.” Ratchet shrugged. Looking back to the bridge controls he typed in a set of coordinates. “You on the other hand,” he said, glancing down at Miko. “will be bridging home.”

“Aww, but you'll be out anyway! How come only Jack gets to ride with you?”

“Because I'm an ambulance. Not a taxi.” Ratchet scoffed, pulling the activation lever. The groundbridge whirred to life and the green portal sprung open. “Now, off you go.” Ratchet continued, shooing her with his servos.

Miko let out an irritated sigh but hurried towards the machine regardless. “Alright. See you guys tomorrow, then!”

Once she had disappeared from sight, Ratchet switched off the bridge. He didn't look away until it was fully powered down and the green glow had vanished, but once it had, he turned towards Jack and transformed into his vehicle mode.

“Your turn, Jack. Let's get going.”

It was a little bit of a hassle trying to get Jack inside with his wheelchair. It might have gone more smoothly, except that it took them a little while before they realized Ratchet's back door had a ramp. (after watching them struggle, Knockout had had a good laugh at that discovery) After Jack was safely in the back of the ambulance, the brakes tight on his wheelchair, Ratchet closed his door and started for the exit. He paused as he was about to leave the room, though.

“Knockout.” he called back.

The red medic looked up.

“I'll be back in just a short while... don't go messing anything up. And don't go anywhere!”

“Honestly Ratchet,” Knockout shrugged, “Where would I go?”

Ratchet just mumbled something under his vents and started off again, disappearing down the hall.

“Try not to have too much fun, kiddies!” Knockout shouted after them. It didn't even make that much sense to say, but he knew it would bother Ratchet, and that was always fun.

Now with that devious smirk back on his face, Knockout looked down at his datapad again... and sighed. His smile faded again. It was so dull sitting around the Autobot base all the time, just pouring over datapads, writing down any intel he could remember or was specifically asked for... So boring. So tedious. So slow. He somewhat wished that little girl hadn't brought up street racing tonight. Scrap, did Knockout miss that! He hadn't been for ages it felt like...

His processor drifted back to all the recent races he'd taken part in. The roar of engines, the smell of burning rubber as they hit a particularly sharp turn, the look of utter devastation from the humans as he blew past them just in front of the finish line... Yeah, it was especially fun to mess with them like that. It sure would be fun to get out there again.

Suddenly, his daydreaming was interrupted by a quiet ahem from the ground below. He turned his optics down and was a little surprised (but not very) to see Miko standing there, hands on her hips, and looking very determined.

“What are you doing here?” Knockout began, “Didn't Ratchet send you home?”

“Nah. I hid between the side bar things in the groundbridge!” Miko said proudly, as if it was the most clever idea she'd ever thought of.

“Yes. Well...” Knockout looked away again. “Ratchet is just going to send you back through it when he gets back.”

“No, I'm not gonna be here.” Miko insisted, stepping closer to him. “Because you and me are gonna go street racing together!!”

This made Knockout pause for a moment. Hmm. He had just been thinking of going again... but no, wait! With Miko?! “Why would I bother taking you street racing?” he finally said, glaring at the girl.

“Because!” Miko started very confidently. Though after that she hesitated a moment as she thought. Then she started again, “Because if you bring a human with you, after you win you don't have to like... rush off or anything!” she said, lifting a finger knowingly. “Yeah, cause if you just go as a driverless vehicle, then once you win, you can't like... stick around for prizes or to rub it in some jerk's face or anything, right?! OH, plus it'll really tick off Ratchet if you leave!”

Knockout paused again. It was really fun watching the humans when they lost. They were such sore losers, it was hilarious! …also Ratchet being angry was also hilarious. “A fair point.” he replied, now obviously more intrigued by the idea. “But why exactly do you want to go?”

“Well... see, I've never actually...” Miko mumbled this, turning her gaze away. “I mean... I've seen movies and junk but... I wasn't really... telling the truth before.”

“Tell me something I don't know, sweetspark.”

Miko clenched her fists angrily, “Yeah, okay! So, are we gonna go or what?”

Knockout chuckled a bit at her anger, but then uncrossed his legs and stood up. “Alright, Miko.” he said, placing down his datapad. “The other Autobots don't seem to be around to stop us and I've got nothing better to do... Let's go street racing!”

“YES!!” Miko pumped her fist into the air as Knockout stepped over her towards the groundbridge. “So where are we gonna go? There's that ring somewhere in Jasper, right?”

“You're thinking too small.” Knockout said, typing in some coordinates. “If you want to really experience street racing, you want somewhere big.” He pulled the lever to activate the bridge again. “How about we start with Los Angeles?”

“Oh heck yes!” Miko was practically shaking with excitement. “This is gonna be so freakin' sweet!”

Transforming to his vehicle mode, Knockout popped open his driver side door. “Well, let's not waste any time, then.”

Miko started towards him but then paused, “Oh wait, hang on!” She spun back around and quickly climbed up the ladder to the platform.

“Let's go already! I put the bridge on a timer to close!”

“Just a sec I wanna grab- AH! There it is!” Miko came sliding back down the ladder, holding Jack's motorcycle helmet under one arm.

“What's that for? You don't think I would crash, do you?” Knockout sounded genuinely offended.

“No don't be stupid!” Miko said, sitting in the driver's seat and pulling the helmet over her head. “It's like a disguise! Nobody can see my face this way.”

“Who in Los Angeles is going to recognize you?” Knockout started for the portal.

“Nobody has to recognize me, they just have to have like, a camera phone or something and an internet connection.” Miko reasoned. “It'll come in handy, I'm sure.”

“Whatever.” With that the two of them disappeared through the portal and shortly after it powered down behind them.

Chapter Text

“Oh man, this is so sweet!” Miko pressed up against the driver-side door in Knockout's cabin, eagerly taking in the view as they sped along the freeway. “I haven't been to a real city since we were in New York... and that doesn't count 'cause it was just the subway.” She glanced devilishly at Knockout's dashboard, “Oh, but you remember that, don't you?”

“I swear to Primus, I will open my door and let you fall out if you bring that up again.”

Miko just laughed and sat back properly in the driver's seat. “Oh lighten up! I'm just teasing.” she reached forward, lightly flicking the Decepticon insignia on his main display. “By the way, you've still got this 'Con logo on your screen here. Don'tcha think you should switch that out?”

“Ratchet is working on updating my signal and comm frequencies. That'll get sorted out with the rest of it.” Knockout explained, “Until then I'm not officially Autobot... He likes to remind me of that.”

“So your comm doesn't work yet?” Miko raised an eyebrow nervously. “Well that's no good. What if we run into trouble?”

“You've got your cellphone, don't you?”

“Well duh! I always have my phone."

“Then we'll be fine. Besides, we're in an urban area: we won't run into any kind of trouble that would require backup.”

“If you say so.” Miko returned to staring out the window.

The freeway they were driving along was lined with palm trees, still lit up by the street lights and glowing windows of the buildings. It was nearly one in the morning by then, so traffic was minimal, but Miko could see there was still plenty happening on the streets just off the highway. She could only catch glances of the people since Knockout was going so fast, but they all seemed to be enjoying the night.

She pressed her forehead up against the glass. “Man... I've missed the city.” she grumbled.

“Don't press your greasy organic flesh on my windows!”

Miko leaned back, away from the glass again. “I'm not greasy!” she insisted, rubbing her cheeks.

“Of course you are. You humans secrete your disgusting oils from everywhere.”

She didn't respond to that, she just leaned back in the seat further, continuing to wipe at her face with the back of her wrist. Finally she spoke up again, “So what's the plan, anyway?” she asked, “I mean we gotta find someone to race, right? How do we do that?”

“Usually I'll just roll around until I happen upon something that looks interesting...” Knockout hummed. Then he paused for a moment. “Hmm. Although, we are in a bit of a rush. We'll have to get you back before tomorrow morning, won't we?”

“Yeah, I guess that'd be preferable.” Miko shrugged. “Bulkhead gets mad when I miss school and stuff...”

“Right. Well, in that case-” Knockout's radio switched on. “We'll have to do a little snooping.”

“Pffft! They're not gonna advertise it on the freakin' radio, Knockout!”

“I'm not tuning in to your human entertainment frequencies! I'll pick up the EMR from nearby communication devices. If a human around here is talking about a race on their phone, I'll hear it."

"You can do that?!" Miko sat up, leaning forward with interest. “Where'd you learn that? Are you like a secret spy master or something? How does it work?”

“Primus, those Autobots don't tell you anything, do they?” Knockout mumbled, “Well, we Cybertronians can detect electromagnetic radiation. I know you humans have a very short range when it comes to seeing these things... you're limited to just colors, aren't you?”

“Wait, what's electromagnetic radiation mean?”

“Do you really need to be back in time for school tomorrow? It doesn't seem to be doing you much good.”

Miko folded her arms angrily across her chest. “Listen, if you're just gonna be a jerk about it, then-!”

“Oh, don't slip a piston!” Knockout interrupted her, “EMR is just a fancy way to say waves. You know, like radio waves or microwaves. I know you know what those are... Well, your communication devices use variations of those, and I can pick them up.”

“So you can like, eavesdrop on my cell phone calls?!” Miko's eyes widened.

“Don't worry, I have better things to do than listen in on you and Bulkhead prattling about... whatever it is you two get up to. Car wrecking spectacles and music and such.”

“Yeah, okay...” Miko mumbled, still suspicious. “Guess I should be careful what I say on the phone when you're around, though...”

“As flattered as I am by your paranoia, it's not a special skill of mine.” Knockout continued, “Most Cybertronians can do it to some degree. In fact, Soundwave could do it from a world away without even trying. So you'd do well to be careful what you say regardless of who's around... Now, if you don't mind, I'm not especially practiced at this, so you have to keep quiet so I can focus!”

“Alright...” Miko shrugged and scooted back in the seat again, waiting quietly. She started fiddling with her cellphone too. She'd have to remember to tell Jack and Raf not to say anything important and/or insulting over their phones anymore... Just in case the 'Bots (or maybe even the 'Cons) were listening in.

Several minutes went by as they listened to background chatter on the radio, most of it completely indiscernible anyway. Miko let out a quiet sigh. “This is taking forev-”

“Quiet!!” Knockout interrupted, “Listen.”

The volume on Knockout's radio increased as a voice started coming clearly through his speakers. “-ter tonight, yeah? Should make for an interesting race. Eight miles this time, on a straight stretch of road.”

Another voice answered. “ I dunno, man. Is M.D. gonna be there too? I'm sick'uv losin' to that guy... ”

“Whatever. If you change your mind, starting line's at Dixon Park. One hour.”

“Yeah, ok. Maybe I'll-”

The voice cut off as Knockout switched off his radio. “Dixon Park in one hour.” he repeated. “Alright, now we just have to find out where that is.”

“No worries, Doc Knock!” Miko flipped open her phone. “I got GPS on this thing, I'll just type it in aaaaand...”

“Got it.” Knockout preempted her declaration with his own. He then proceeded to swerve across two lanes to the freeway exit.

“Wha-? Can you see what I'm doing on my phone even if it's not a call?” she demanded, staring down at the tiny map on her screen.

“Why yes, I can.” Knockout purred, absolutely loving how much this was annoying her. “You know, you really shouldn't be so surprised about this. You've gotten communique from the 'Bots on your phone before, right? So you should've known we can tap into those networks.”

“Yeah, but that's just...” Miko shrugged, holding on tight to the handle on his door as he swerved around a corner, careful to not stop for that red light. “Getting phone calls from the 'Bots just... It seemed different. I dunno...”

“Well it's not just calls, you know. We can also-” Knockout suddenly cut himself off. Miko waited for a moment to see if he'd finish his sentence, but then her phone buzzed in her hand. Looking down, she saw a text message had popped up- “do this!”

Miko raised an eyebrow as she glared at Knockout's dashboard. “You think you're sooo cool right now, don't you?”

The medic just offered a short chuckle as he changed lanes. “On a more serious note,” he said after a minute, “we need to find you something more suitable to wear to this race.”

“What's wrong with what I'm wearing?”

“I haven't the time nor the patience to answer that question in full-”

“Quit makin' fun of me!” Miko punched his steering wheel lightly, forcing out a short honk.

“Ha ha!! You're almost as fun as Ratchet when you get riled up!” Knockout laughed. As he did, he slowed to a stop on the side of the city street. There weren't many cars around, and the street itself barely had any people on it either. Knockout continued, this time in a more serious tone. “If you're going to show up at a street race, you'll need to look like a street racer. Right now you just look like a kid wearing too many colors.”

“I like these colors!” Miko pouted.

“That's not the issue.” Knockout replied curtly. “The issue is that you look too young. Nobody is going to believe I'm your car and you're a racer if you show up looking like you lost a fight with a rainbow.”

Miko growled something inaudible and kicked her feet slightly. “Fine. Whatever... So what should we do?” she mumbled finally.

Knockout's passenger door popped open at the question. “Over there. See that restaurant patio?”

Miko crawled over to the passenger seat and looked out onto the sidewalk. Just across from her, she saw a number of short tables and chairs just outside what appeared to be a sports bar. The windows were still lit up and she could see some people moving around inside. “Yeah?” she asked.

“There's a jacket on that chair over there.”

There was indeed a black leather jacket slung over one of the chairs near the door. “What about it?”

“Grab it.”

Miko glared back at Knockout's dashboard again. “What?! That jacket prob'ly belongs to someone inside!”

“Maybe. But they're inside. And they left their jacket outside. Doesn't seem very responsible to me.” Knockout replied. “We'll be doing them a favor by taking it. Maybe they'll learn a lesson.”

“That's stealing!” Miko insisted. “It's against the law.”

“Guess what, sweetspark? Street racing is against your precious human laws too!” Knockout slowly rolled up the street just a bit so that his open passenger door was directly across from the jacket on the chair. “So... are you still willing to break some rules? Or shall we give Ratchet a call? I'm sure he's dying to know where-”

“No!” Miko cut him off.

Still crouching on Knockout's passenger seat, she turned back towards the open door and the jacket just across the sidewalk. She stared at it intently for a long moment... then, pulling in a deep breath and holding in, she bolted from the car. She snatched the jacket off the chair, pivoted around, and dashed back into Knockout's cabin, practically diving into his seat. The door slammed behind her and the red sports car peeled off down the road, tires squealing on the pavement.

Chapter Text

Miko started to fidget uncomfortably as she stared at her reflection. The jacket itself wasn't what made her uncomfortable, in fact it fit her well enough, but the idea of where it came from still bothered her.

Turning away from the darkened shop window, she shrugged her shoulders at Knockout on the street behind her. “I don't know about this...” she said, grabbing ahold of the jacket's zipper to take it off. “I think we should bring it back.”

“Having second thoughts about breaking the law?” Knockout's tone was obviously mocking her, “That's alright. Street racing really isn't for babies, anyway.”

Miko's cheeks flushed angrily, but she didn't look up. “I'm not a baby!” She growled.

“Really? Because you sure whine like one.” When Miko didn't respond, Knockout let out a quiet vent and continued, “Primus, you humans are so fickle... Look, if it bothers you that much then we'll put it back where we found it when we're done, alright?” his wheels gave an irritated twitch. “Does that satisfy your precious morals?”

“...Not really.” Miko mumbled, fiddling with the zipper again. “But I mean... I guess that's a little better.”

“Good enough. Now get in, we have to get going.” As Knockout spoke, his door opened for her.

Glancing down at the jacket one last time, Miko let out a frustrated sigh, zipped herself up again, and hopped into Knockout's driver seat. His door shut behind her and he took off down the empty street.

“Alright, listen up kiddo, here's what's going to happen,” he paused to turn back onto the expressway then spoke again, “these people at the race are going to patronize you a bit. That's just how these types of humans are; they're not especially nice. If you want to get in on this race, you'll have to make them respect you.”

“Right!” Miko finished fastening the seatbelt as she nodded in understanding, but then quietly added, “And erm... how am I going to do that?”

“You brag, of course! Let them know how badly they're going to get crushed, and stand up to any of the ones who think otherwise.” Knockout's voice was sounding more and more excited as he continued, “You won't even be lying either, so you don't have to compromise your annoying human morals.”

Suddenly, Miko shoved her foot forward and made contact with Knockout's brakes, but only for a brief second. It wasn't long enough to make them come to a full stop, but it slowed them down and made his tires screech uncomfortably.

“AH! What the frag-?!”

“You're the one who's patronizing me!” Miko interrupted him, “Not wanting to hurt other people isn't a bad thing, you jerk! Stop making it out to be fun or something.”

“That's not what- uughh!” Knockout sped up, zooming past what few cars there were on the road in front of him. “You wouldn't even be here right now if I hadn't let you come along. So just sit still and do what I say!”

Miko said nothing but folded her arms in front of her tightly, glaring out at the city as they zoomed down the expressway. Her displeasure at having to steal the jacket had subsided a bit, but she still wasn't feeling very good about herself. Knockout certainly wasn't helping in that regard either. It wasn’t as though she didn’t expect him to be a jerk; they weren't exactly friends. She still didn’t like it, though. After letting her pout for a few minutes, Knockout finally spoke up again.

“Look, if you're going to throw a tantrum like a sparkling, then expect to be treated like one.” he grumbled, “Anyway, this whining isn't going to get you far with our waiting racer friends. What happened to that attitude of yours back at the base, hmm? You were much more impressive then. If you're half as cocky with them as you were with Jack, then here's a chance they won't think you're ten years old.”

“I'm fifteen!” Miko corrected immediately, but then a half-smile made it onto her face. “but... you really think it was impressive?”

“Confidence is everything, sweetspark. Don't forget it.”

Miko sighed and nodded. “Confidence. Right.” she hesitated, squirming in the seat a bit. “Uh... Sorry about the brakes, by the way.”

“Your apology is noted. Although if you do it again I'll be forced to retaliate, for the sake of my tires.”

“I'd like to see you try!” Miko laughed. She was starting to feel a better again as she thought about the race. She had wanted to come, after all. And since she was there, she may as well do the best she could to enjoy herself. "Hey! You have a radio, right? Could we-?"

"No."

"Come on! What good's a race if you don't have a good soundtrack going in the background?" She started to reach for the console, “Just lemme-”

"NO." Knockout interrupted her for a second time, "I've heard the scrap you and your partner call music. There is no chance I'm letting that awful noise come out of my speakers."

"You just can't handle how hard Bulk and I rock!" Miko threw up a pair of hand horns as she spoke.

"And I have no intention of trying. Hands away from the dash."

Miko sighed and tucked her hands into the pockets of her jacket. Too bad Bulkhead couldn't have taken her racing; he would have let her play music. Of course, he wasn't as fast as Knockout so it was better that he was the one who took her... Not that Bulkhead would have taken her in the first place...

She was quiet for a minute as she fidgeted with the soft fabric inside the pockets. Finally she spoke up again, but very quietly and almost to herself, "Bulkhead wouldn't approve of this."

"So what?"

"So I... I don't want to disappoint him."

"You want to quit? Now?"

Miko looked up quickly, "No! I just... I don't know. I feel kinda bad."

"Look kiddo, if you keep worrying what your partner would think of every little thing you do, then you'll drive yourself nuts." Knockout's voice was a bit harsher than a moment ago. "He's not here. So quit worrying about him and focus on yourself, alright?! That's what I'd do."

Miko noticed his shift in tone and decided it was best to change the subject. She may not have been Knockout's friend, but she knew enough to tell when something was upsetting him.

“Alright, just… forget I said anything, okay?” Miko said quickly, looking out the window. “So hey, the races you’ve been in before, did you win all of them?”

“Of course!” Knockout sounded almost offended by the question, “No Earth vehicle is faster than me.”

“Heh, yeah I imagine they have a hard time keeping up with you.” Miko smiled, “But if you’re so much faster, then why bother racing humans? Where’s the fun if you already know you’re gonna win?”

“It’s not ideal, to be sure, but when it’s assumed you’re going to win anyway, it becomes about the race itself rather than just the finish line… there aren’t even many Cybertronian opponents out there who could challenge me anyway, so I’m used to it.”

“You’re awfully confident, Knockout.”

"Pay attention, sweetspark. You might just learn something.”

As they were having this conversation, Knockout pulled off the highway and they found themselves in a city neighborhood. After driving down a few side streets, they finally came into view of a small park. A number of very vibrantly colored muscle cars were parked along the street. The owners of the vehicles seemed to be gathered in the small park, deep in discussion. Knockout dimmed his headlights slightly so as not to attract their attention.

"Alright kid, you ready for this?"

Miko took a deep breath in and nodded. "Yeah!" She reached over, picking up Jack's helmet off the floor of the passenger's side. "Let's wreck those guys!"

Without any further ado, Knockout flared his headlights and started towards the park. As he did, Miko noticed his engine seemed to be humming a bit louder than usual. His excitement was rather infectious too, because she was starting to feel somewhat giddy.

As he rolled to a stop on the outskirts of the park, he spoke up one last time, "Now, I can't exactly help you out there, so just remember: confidence is everything."

Miko shoved the helmet over her pigtails as she replied, "Confidence! I totally got this!"

Now looking through the darkened visor of the helmet, Miko opened Knockout's door and stepped out onto the street. By then, all the other racers had noticed her and had stopped their discussion to stare at the new girl and her car. After adjusting her jacket slightly, Miko strode up to the group, careful to give herself what she thought was a very confident stride.

"Hey there, guys!" She said as she stopped in front of the group. "A little birdie told me you've got a race here tonight." She paused to jab her thumb into her chest. "And I want in!"

It was quiet for a minute as the other racers, six in total, looked her over, some of them looking a bit shocked or otherwise surprised by her assertion.

Finally one of them spoke up, a tall man with long blonde hair covering most of his eyes. "Girl, what're you talking about?" He crossed his arms across his chest as he sneered at Miko. "What makes you think you can race with us? You're like, ten years old!"

Miko felt her temper flare, "I'm not ten! I'm fi- errr, twenty!" She straightened her posture to try and look taller. "And so what? Just 'cause I look young you won't let me race? You scared of getting beat by a little girl?"

The other racers seemed amused by that, and one girl with her mouth covered by a scarf even elbowed the blonde one to tease him. He didn't seem as amused as the others, though.

"Don't be stupid!" He elbowed right back then turned to Miko. "No way this skinny broad can handle a car like I can!"

Miko made a show of puffing out her chest and putting her hands on her hips before she replied. "Yeah, you're probably right. Maybe sometime you can give me a lesson on eating dust!"

This earned a laugh from the others. Good! She was making an impression.

"Seriously though, I'm a great racer!" Miko continued, "and I could wipe the floor with you guys. Just give me the chance!"

Another of the racers stepped forward at this. "You sure talk a big game..." she said, tilting her purple tinted shades down to better look over Miko. "I like that. I'm Shauna... Shauna Story. We could use some fresh blood in our circuit, anyway. So, if you don't screw this first race up, you're in!"

Miko smiled behind her helmet visor. That was easier than she'd thought it would be! "Sounds good to me." she said, "Where are we racing to?"

"We're lining up at the park corner and racing to the end of Hoover street. It's 7.8 miles."

"Great!" Miko punched her fist into her palm excitedly. "When do we start?"

"In a few minutes. Solon over there is collecting the entry fees," Shauna indicated a burly man wearing a green vest the group behind her, "so once he gives the go ahead, we line up."

"Ah. Right.. Entry fee..." Miko mumbled this, sort of to herself. She hadn't actually considered the possibility that there would be some sort of collection to race. It made sense, though. Unless you were Knockout and just did it for fun, why wouldn't like you want to race for money?

"How much is it to enter?" She asked uncertainly.

"It's just a short race tonight, so we're only putting up three thousand each."

Miko almost doubled over from the shock of this revelation. Three thousand dollars?! No way she had that kind of money! And unless Knockout had robbed a bank earlier, which she very seriously hoped he hadn't, it meant they weren't going to be apart of this race. All that trouble she went through was for nothing! Knockout would be disappointed too... Hopefully not disappointed enough to want to actually rob a bank or something. There was definitely a line to be drawn there.

Just as Miko was about to let the racers know she didn't have the funds, a pair of bright headlights came into view around a corner. Almost as quickly as the car came into view, it was parking with a screech of its tires at the edge of the grass over by Knockout. At the sight if this bright blue car, all the other racers let out a simultaneous groan.

"Aww man..." The girl in the scarf pushed the blonde guy. "Roxy I thought you said he wasn't coming tonight!"

"I thought he wasn't!" Roxy replied, then he looked to Solon. "Hey man, any chance we could-?"

"Nuh-uh!" Solon crossed his arms, "No withdrawals. Once I got your fee, you either you race or you forfeit. Thems the rules, Rox. You know that."

Roxy, along with most of the others, started grumbling irritably and headed towards their respective cars. Miko turned her head back around to watch as a tall, skinny man stepped out of the blue car. He had on a helmet like her, so she couldn't see his face, but he was looking over at Knockout.

"Well well, who do we have here?" He spoke in a heavy Australian accent.

"New challenger." Shauna explained. She didn't sound too happy to see this guy either, whoever he was. "C'mon, MD. Why not give her a chance to actually get in a good race before you compete in our circuit again?"

Miko eyed the car he was sporting. It wasn't like any vehicle she'd ever seen before. It seemed more like those fancy prototypes you saw at car shows with its smooth curves and hollow wheels. Not only was the frame beautiful, but the pale blue paint was metallic and shiny, obviously well taken care of. This guy probably didn't have any trouble coughing up three thousand dollars for one race.

Miko shifted her weight between her feet a bit nervously. "What makes you think I can't beat him?" She asked Shauna. "Who even is this guy?"

Finally pulling his attention away from Knockout, the new guy stepped away from his car and approached the two girls.

"Ah, so you must own that nice looking ride there, eh?" He gestured over his shoulder back at Knockout. " Well you should know, I'm the top racer around these parts. People call me Master Disaster. Nice to meetcha!"

Chapter Text

Miko stared up at the new racer from behind her helmet visor. He pulled off his own helmet and looked her up and down, so she began to do the same. He was a bit thin, and despite having somewhat broad shoulders, his height combined with the black jumpsuit he wore made him look downright lanky. That, plus his thin mustache and the way his dark hair was slicked back, made Miko think the guy looked kind of slimy. Considering the reactions of the other racers, her first impression probably wasn't too far off.

Folding her arms across her chest, Miko continued to glare up at him even as he smirked at her. “Master Disaster, huh?” she asked, “What kind of name is that?”

“It's my racing alias, sweetheart.” he said, “You don't think we use our actual names out here, do ya?”

“Right... I know.” Miko said, trying not to be too obvious that she was lying. “It's just a weird alias.”

Master Disaster's gaze hardened just a bit and he leaned forward, looming over her. “Oh. And what is your name, then?”

“I'm Mmm-” Miko just barely stopped herself from blurting out her own name. No, this guy was right. She didn't want them knowing her real name, just in case. She had to think fast. Something that started with an M... Quickly glancing over Master Disaster's shoulder, she saw a bright full moon up in the sky. “-mmmoon... racer... Moonracer!” she finished more confidently. “That's my name.”

Beside her, Shauna smiled and let out a short laugh. “Heh. That's a cute one. I like it.”

“Yes. Very cute.” Master Disaster also smiled, but his was dripping with condescension. After letting that sit for a moment, he stepped past her over to Solon, pulling an envelope out of his jacket pocket and holding it out to him. As Solon opened the contents and flipped through the bills inside to count, he turned back around to look at Miko. “Hope all these leatherbacks haven't scared you off with their talk. I'm very interested to see that car of yours in action, Miss Moonracer.” Before either of the girls could add anything, he pushed past them and headed towards his own car.

Miko paused to wonder what kind of insult 'leatherback' was, but then snapped back as she remembered : they expected her to pay three thousand dollars to participate in this race.

“Ah... see, about that.” she mumbled, keeping her arms tight across her chest. “I didn't actually bring enough for the entry fee...” She looked up at Shauna feeling a bit embarrassed. “Sorry. I uh, didn't realize it would be so much.”

Shauna didn't react with the derision Miko expected. Instead she just shrugged and kept smiling. "Don't worry about it. To be honest you're probably better off sitting this one out. With Master Disaster here, you wouldn't have a very good race anyway." She turned to head toward her own car too, giving a slight wave over her shoulder back at Miko. "Maybe next time."

"Just a moment-"

Shauna and Miko both looked around at Master Disaster as he spoke. He was standing in front of his car, looking back at Miko with a sly grin on his face.

Placing his helmet down on the hood of his car, he continued, "It would be such a shame for you and your lovely vehicle here to have to sit out because of a silly mistake." He continued, moving towards Knockout. He stepped up beside the red Aston Martin placing a gloved hand firmly on the door handle. "May I?" Only giving a short glance back at Miko, he proceeded to open the car door without waiting for an answer and slipped into the drivers seat.

A jolt of panic ran through Miko as she watched this happen. Letting some stranger put his hands all over him? Oh no, Knockout was going to be so mad about this! He wouldn't be mad enough to transform and blow their cover, though... Right? Well actually, Miko wasn't so sure, and, in fact, she thought she noticed his side mirrors twitch angrily as Master Disaster began to touch around his interior cabin. Sh e hurried forward shouting for him to stop, but the racer ignored her, placing his hands on the steering wheel.

"Oh yes. This is one fine car you've got..." He said, his eyes were locked on the screen on Knockout's dashboard. Before Miko could come up next to him and see what he was looking at, he turned to face her, putting his feet out of the car and on the ground again.

"Well, Moonracer, since I'm feeling rather generous, I'll spot the money for this race so you can enter. How does that sound?"

Miko glared down at him, still sitting in Knockout's seat. She definitely didn't trust this guy. He had to be up to something.

"What's the catch?" She demanded.

"No catch, darling." Master Disaster stood up out of Knockout's seat, much to Miko's relief. "If you beat me you keep all the winnings fair and square, just like if you had paid the fee yourself."

"And if she loses?" Shauna, who had followed Miko over, spoke up from behind.

Master Disaster's smirk seemed to grow even more slimy, if that was possible. "If I win," he said, "then I'll take all the winnings, plus your lovely car here." He emphasized the word 'car' by running his hand along Knockout's frame. "What d'ya say, Moonracer?"

Miko tried not to flinch as his hand trailed slowly down and along the top of Knockout's window. He was going to be really ticked off by this. But hopefully, the ex-'Con was good at channeling his anger into speed, because according to this Master Disaster weirdo, the race was back on!

Before she had the chance to agree , Shauna took ahold of her shoulder and pulled her back. "No, she does NOT accept!" She said. When Miko tried to protest, she glared down at her and spoke over the girl. "No, listen kid, you can't beat this guy!" She continued, "That car of his is way too fast for any normal car to beat. You've got a nice ride, don't lose it over a stupid little race like this!"

Of course, Shauna had no way of knowing it, but Miko would be racing in a car that was anything but normal. She pulled her shoulder out of her grip and turned away.

"I know what I'm doing, Shauna," She said, holding a hand out for Master Disaster. "and I accept your deal."

With a loud burst of laughter, he grabbed ahold of her hand, shaking it firmly. "Very good!" He practically shouted, not at all able to conceal the excitement on his face. "This will be a good race, I'm sure of it!"

Releasing her hand, he dove back into his jacket pocket and pulled out a black wallet. "Solon," he said, looking towards him. Solon had been intrigued by the conversation and had slowly creept towards the group to better listen. "I'll be covering Moonracer's entry fee. In exchange, if I beat her, I'll take possession of her vehicle." He held out another stack of bills towards him.

"Oh..." Solon looked down at Miko, "Are you sure you wanna do that?"

"Yes I'm sure!" She said, "I know I can win."

Solon didn't reach out and take the money immediately, instead he looked over to Shauna for confirmation. She shrugged her shoulders and looked away.

"I already warned her..." She grumbled, "whatever happens next is her problem."

Solon grunted in understanding and finally reached out to take the cash from Master Disaster. "Alright, all the fees are in. Everybody line up!" He shouted as he turned towards their makeshift starting line.

Master Disaster stood where he was for a moment longer, glaring down at Miko with a devious smirk on his face, but then he finally stepped away from Knockout and headed back towards his own car.

"Hey, hang on a second."

He turned to look back as Miko spoke.

She folded her arms across her chest, glaring at him through her visor. "Why'd you wanna make a deal like that, anyway?" She asked, "I mean, if you lose you'll be out six thousand. And you don't know me. Why take the risk?"

"Oh it's no risk, sweetheart." He said, "And besides, I couldn't let you just leave. It'd be a shame to let such a beautiful creature just disappear into the night."

" That's super creepy. I'm way too young for you, dude."

"I wasn't talking about you ." His gaze moved over her shoulder towards Knockout. Keeping his eyes on the car he continued, "I'm very interested to see what you can do... I hope you put up a good fight."

Miko watched for a moment as he got into his shiny blue car. She was glad he hadn't actually been hitting on her or anything, but him talking to Knockout has been just as creepy. Finally, she turned and hopped into Knockout's driver seat, slamming the door behind her.

The ex-'Con's voice came through the speakers the moment the door closed.

"I don't remember giving you permission to gamble with me." He sounded annoyed.

"Sorry, but it was either that or not race at all." Miko shrugged, "and besides, weren't you just saying how you don't lose?"

"Well of course I'm not going to lose! It's just a matter of pride. Being treated like an inanimate object by you humans... It's embarrassing ." Knockout shifted into reverse and made his way around and over to the starting line.

"Don't worry," Miko said, reaching forward to grip his steering wheel, "I'll be sure to rub it in that weirdo's face real good once we wipe the floor with him!"

“Good.” Knockout's engine revved in anticipation as they pulled to a stop on the starting line, right next to Master Disaster. “That'll show him for putting his disgusting hands all over me.”

Miko glanced over at the racer, but he already had his helmet back on and was looking straight ahead at the road. She was suddenly aware of just how pleased she was that she and Knockout were able to race. From what the other racers were saying, this guy needed to be taken down a peg or two. And she had every confidence that Knockout would be able to do just that.

Solon was standing by the sidewalk in front of the cars, ready to prompt their start. “Alright,” he began, “Jean is waiting down by the finish line to mark the winner, so there's no disputing it.” he raised one arm. “On your marks... get set-” he dropped his arm, “GO!”

Without wasting a moment, Knockout sped off with a squeal of his tires, leaving the other racers in his dust. Miko looked excitedly out Knockout's window at the streetlights whipping past. She didn't know exactly how fast they were going, but the idea of speeding along a city street was thrilling. Rather than check Knockout's speedometer for an exact number, Miko looked into his mirrors to get a look at how far back they were and let out a loud laugh when she saw just how much faster they were going.

“Ha haa! I can't believe that guy thought he could win against us!” she said, taking her hands off the wheel and leaning back, “I wish I could see the look on his fa-” She paused halfway through her word as she continued to watch in Knockout's mirror. The bright blue car had been hanging back behind the other cars, but suddenly it was picking up speed.

“Hey Knockout, don't let that guy catch you!” Miko said, tapping her hand on his steering wheel. “I mean, if you want to toy with him that's fine, but I was kind of hoping we'd beat him by a mile at least.”

“Don't be ridiculous, he can't-” Knockout paused as his mirror flicked upward, as if he was only just now looking back. Apparently he hadn't even noticed the blue car was gaining on them. “Hmm. That's odd...” He didn't have anything more to say about it, he just picked up his own pace by a bit.

The blue car did the same, and the gap between them was steadily becoming shorter and shorter. Before too long, he was right behind Knockout. Miko turned around in her seat to look out the back window.

“What's going on here?” she demanded, “Are you doing this in purpose?”

“Sit down!” Knockout's seatbelt suddenly whipped forward, pulling her into the seat and strapping her in tight. Miko didn't say anything else, even about how that had kind of hurt, because Knockout sounded angry. And not the fun kind of angry where he was playing around either. Miko watched silently as Master Disaster swerved to the side, probably to pull up next to them, but Knockout responded by swerving to block him again. This repeated two or three more times before the other racer apparently got tired of it, and with one last swerve, he sped forward so fast that Knockout couldn't swerve in time to stop him, and the blue car pulled right up next to him.

Miko scrambled to get her hands back on Knockout's wheel as Master Disaster came into view through the side window. She stared in awe as the racer turned his head to look at her. She couldn't quite see his face through the helmet of his visor, but she could just picture that smug grin across his face. A moment after his gaze met hers, his hand moved down to shift gears, and the blue car took off out in front of Knockout!

Miko's mouth fell open as she watched him pull ahead. “No way!!” she shouted, “There's no way he's gonna beat us, right?!”

Knockout's only response came as ferocious growl as he pushed himself to go even faster. Miko's eyes finally fell on the speedometer. 230... 240... 270! She looked up again and saw the blue car just up ahead of them. Knockout was gaining ground but not nearly as fast as the blue car had caught up with them. She bit her lip nervously. This wasn't going at all how she had expected it to.

“Y-you're not just playing with him, are you?” she asked meekly.

“Shut up, Miko!!”

That certainly answered her question.

“But I thought you said there was no Earth vehicle faster than you!”

“I did...” Knockout's engine gave off a loud roar as he sped up even further. “but that's no Earth vehicle.”

Miko's eyes widened as she stared out at the car ahead of them. “Wh-what? No way! He can't be-”

Just as she started to speak, with a squeal of its tires, Master Disaster's car suddenly jolted forward with a burst of speed, leaving her and Knockout in a cloud of dust. At that moment, Miko realized she'd had it all backwards: Knockout wasn't toying with him, rather it was Master Disaster who had been toying with them!

“NO!!” Knockout's shout was nearly drowned out by the sound of his engine as he struggled to pick up even more speed.

Miko looked down at his speedometer again just as the needle crept past 300. Turning to look out the window again, she saw the streetlights had become just a blur of yellow. They were blasting down the road at a speed she didn't even think most cars could reach... she was starting to feel a little woozy watching it. Closing her eyes tight, she reached up to hold her head, but the helmet got in the way.

“Knockout, this is too fast! I'm gonna be sick!”

“No! I can catch him, I-”

“Knockout, STOP!”

For another few seconds, Knockout continued going at top speed when suddenly he engaged his brakes. His tires screeched against the pavement and he skidded around in a one-eighty until he finally came to a halt. Miko, having been somewhat jarred by the sudden stop, finally opened her eyes. Grasping ahold of the seatbelt wrapped around her, she looked out the window and spotted the blue car stopped just a ways off from them. Master Disaster was starting to get out of the car.

“Wh... what happened?” she mumbled.

Just after she finished asking the question, the other racer pulled off his helmet, and she saw that devious smirk back on his face.

He didn't really have to admit it after she saw that, but Knockout replied anyway.

“...I lost.”

Chapter Text

Miko felt like she was frozen in place. Master Disaster was staring straight at her and Knockout, still with that smug grin plastered across his face. He looked about to step towards them when another man who looked strikingly similar to Solon, probably Jean, hurried up to him and pulled his attention away.

Now that Master Disaster's eyes weren't boring into her, Miko felt she could move again. She didn't think, she just flung open Knockout's door and jumped out.

"Miko no!" She heard Knockout say in hushed tones. "Come back! We have to get out of here before-"

She slammed Knockouts door shut, silencing him before he could finish. The noise also caught the attention of the two men who looked over.

"Not yet," she said down to the sports car. "I'm gonna get to the bottom of this." With that, she stormed over to Master Disaster.

Knockout had mentioned his car was not from Earth, and if this Master Disaster guy really was palling around with an unknown Cybertronian, the Autobots needed to know about it. They might even turn out to be another Autobot. She figured that was the more likely scenario, considering this bot was hanging around with a human. And the Autobots could always use more allies.

As she walked towards the others, she felt her phone buzz in her pocket. She took it out and glanced down at the message.

“Miko get back here! We have to go!”

It was Knockout sending messages to her phone again. She ignored him, putting the phone back in her pocket just as she stepped up to Master Disaster. She looked up at him to see the racer’s smirk had returned.

“I must say, that race was much closer than usual.” He said, glancing over at Knockout, “That’s one fast car.”

“Not as fast as yours, apparently.” Miko folded her arms tightly across her chest, hoping her annoyance was apparent, “How did you meet-“ she paused, glancing over at the other guy standing not too far off from them. “I mean… How did you find that car?”

Master Disaster didn’t look fazed at all by her question. “Don’t know what you mean by that.” He said with a short shrug.

“Don’t play dumb with me!” Miko pointed a finger right in his face. It wasn’t especially intimidating, considering their size difference. “I know exactly what kind of car that is, and I wanna know where it came from and-“ she cut herself off. Her eyes glanced quickly over to the blue vehicle, and she continued in almost a whisper, “and… and whose side you’re on.”

This got a reaction out of him at last; Master Disaster threw his head back and let out a loud bark of a laugh. It took him another moment to compose himself, and as he did, the other racers started to arrive. Jean stepped away at last to greet them. Once he’d gone, Master Disaster spoke again.

“I’ll let you in on a little secret, darling,” he leaned in closer to loom over the girl, “I’m definitely not on your side.”

Miko’s heart started pounding in her chest. They were Decepticons! How was that possible? Decepticons didn’t team up with humans, especially for something stupid like to go street racing… Except for Knockout of course, but he wasn’t a Decepticon anymore. She was about to hurry back to Knockout so they could make their escape, but that thought made her pause. How exactly did this guy know they weren’t on the same side? Did he recognize Knockout somehow? If that was true, he probably thought he was still a Decepticon. Oh, and what if he had seen the Decepticon insignia that was still on the mech's dashboard? Maybe they were actually on the same side and he was just confused.

She was just about to voice this to him when he pushed past her and started towards Knockout. Her phone started buzzing in her pocket again, but she ignored it. She still wanted to find out more about this guy.

"So," he spoke calmly as though nothing about what he had just said were alarming or threatening, "as per our agreement, I'll be taking possession of this lovely car, then."

He was standing just in front of Knockout with one hand reaching towards the sports car's hood, but Miko quickly darted between them and held up her arms. "Hold on just a second, pal!" She said, "You haven't even answered my question. How did you find that car?"

Master Disaster glared down at her before placing a hand firmly on her shoulder, "Well, sweetheart, you two lost. So I don't believe I owe you any explanations." with that he gave her shoulder a hard shove, sending the girl to the ground.

Miko hit the pavement hard, but luckily, the helmet she was wearing stopped her from smashing her head on the ground. She wasn't hurt, but even so, Knockout suddenly shifted his wheels so they were pointed directly at the man standing in front of him and his engine gave a low, threatening rumble.

"Ooh, I see you've got some attitude." Master Disaster didn't appear frightened at all, and his reasoning became clear pretty quickly. He glanced over his shoulder at the other street racers. They had all exited their cars and were staring over at the exchange. "But you're not dumb enough to try anything with all these eyes watching. Isn't that right, Transformer ?" Reaching forward, he gave a light pat on Knockout's grill. It seemed to have the desired effect as Knockout's engine quieted immediately.

This only made Master Disaster's smirk grow wider. He quickly turned to head back towards the other racers. Once he had stepped away, Miko felt her phone buzz in her pocket again. She glanced over at Knockout, wondering if that was him texting her again. She ignored him and pulled herself to her feet, following after Master Disaster.

When he had finally reached the group of other racers, he finally spoke up. "Well, as you all can see and as Jean and Miss Moonracer here can testify, this race was mine." He stopped just in front of Solon, and held out an open hand. "So I'll be collecting my winnings, now." Just as Solon was reaching into his jacket, Master Disaster glanced back over at Miko. " All of my winnings."

"Congrats, M.D. Jean confirmed: you win... Again. " Solon didn't sound too pleased about it as he placed the envelope into Master Disaster's waiting palm. There was a simultaneous groan from all the other racers and most of them started slowly milling back to their own vehicles.

Only Shauna, Solon, and Jean remained behind. Shauna was looking piteously over at Miko and shaking her head slightly. "I did try to warn ya, kid." She mumbled, "Now look where you've gotten yourself."

Miko was about to respond, but just then Master Disaster finally stepped away, headed towards his own car. "Don't be so hard on her, Story." He said as he tucked the envelope into his jacket. "She certainly kicked the pants off the lot of you! Why, with a car like that, she ought to have won easily." He paused as he opened the side door of his own vehicle. Reaching in, he pulled out a tow line. "Too bad she wasn't expecting me."

Pulling open the driver's side door, he hopped into the seat and then slammed it shut again. It looked for a moment like he was just going to drive away, but a moment later, he was backing the car up so it was right in front of Knockout. Then he got up and out of the car again.

Miko glanced over at the remaining racers, then hurried after Master Disaster. "Look, you can stop showing off now." She said this quietly so only he could hear. "You beat us, okay? Stop acting like you're gonna take him. You know as well as I do he's not going to let you."

Master Disaster didn't pause in his work and continued attaching one end of the line to the back of his car. He only glanced down at Miko as he started over towards Knockout with the other end in hand. "I think you might be surprised at what he'll let me do, darling."

The phone in Miko's pocket was buzzing again. She ignored it yet again.

"Look, I know you probably saw the 'Con badge on his dash, but he's not a 'Con." She was whispering now, glancing over at the others quickly to make sure they still couldn't hear. "He's an Autobot. Probably like the one you've got there. Can we just talk about this, please ? This could work out for all of us. I bet your friend wants to meet our team too."

"Oh I'm sure he'd want that." Master Disaster leaned down, attaching the hook line Knockout's front. Miko couldn't help but wince as she heard the metal scrape underneath his front bumper. "Here's the thing, though," Master Disaster stood up straight and leaned over to his own car, giving the back of it a quick pat, "I don't give a rat's ass what he wants."

Miko just stared up at him for a moment, shocked into silence. What did he mean by that? They weren't partners? Then why was the 'Bot letting this human drive him around? That didn't make any sense. Before she could ask any of these questions, Master Disaster gave her a quick, sarcastic salute and turned to head get back into his vehicle again.

As he opened the car door to get in, Miko finally tore her eyes away from him and looked down at Knockout. She was shocked he hadn't reacted to being hooked up to this other car. Though there were other humans around, she had thought for sure he would do something , even if it was just to move his bumper a bit to dislodge the hook. Even as she glared down at him, he didn't do anything. Suddenly she felt her phone buzz again.

Right! Knockout was doing something. He was trying to talk to her. Pulling out her phone, she flipped it open to see what he had been trying to say to her this whole time.

' Don't ignore me! This guy could be dangerous, we have to go while we can. '

' This weirdo just put something on my grill. Get it off me! Also I don't know what you're trying to accomplish but for the love of Primus can we please just go ? This is getting ridiculous! '

'Something's wrong, I can't move- Do something!!'

'DON'T YOU DARE LET HIM TAKE ME! DO SOMETHING MIKO!!! '

A chill ran through her whole body as she read the messages. Knockout couldn't move? What had Master Disaster done to him?! In a panic, Miko dropped her phone and lunged forward, grabbing ahold of the tow line.

"No!" She shouted, "You're not taking him!!"

Before she could undo the hook, she felt a pair of hands descend on her and yank her away. She struggled, but another set grabbed her from the other side and held her still.

"Easy, kid." It was the voice of Solon. "You bet the car, and he won the car fair and square. Them's the rules."

"No, you don't understand-!" Miko kicked out at Solon and Jean, but the much larger men held her firmly. She didn't have anything else to say, though. What could she possibly say to make them understand?

Master Disaster rolled down the window of his car. "It was fun competing with you, Moonracer." He called back, "And don't worry, we're going to take very good care of your friend."

As Master Disaster started to pull away with Knockout in tow, the hands holding her back finally let her go. Miko stumbled forward for a moment, but then broke out into a full sprint after the two cars. She made it about thirty yards before she stopped, realizing it was useless trying to give chase.

"KNOCKOUT!!" She screamed after them, "Don't worry, I'll get you back!"

There was no response.

After she watched them disappear around a corner, Miko pivoted around and ran back to the road where they had been parked not a moment ago. She didn't know who that Master Disaster freak was or what he was up to, but she did know she couldn't handle this alone. She needed to call for backup. She needed to get her phone!

As she hurried back over, she started mentally preparing herself for the scolding she would get from Ratchet when she called him up. She also started thinking of a way to cut it short so she could explain the severity of the situation and make Ratch get his rear in gear to save Knockout.

After reaching the spot where she thought she dropped her phone, she started frantically scanning the dark road for the little pink flip phone. It only took her about two seconds to finally spot it, but as she did, she felt her heart sink.

It must have been caught under Knockout's tire as he was towed away, because the plastic phone was lying crushed against the asphalt, completely useless.

Miko sank to her knees, staring down at the destroyed case of her phone. This was supposed to have just been a quick, fun outing so she could get the hang of street racing. How did this happen? How did she wind up stranded and alone in the middle of Los Angeles? How could things have gone so wrong? What was she going to do now? She felt tears welling up in her eyes and made to quickly wipe them away, forgetting she was still wearing Jack's helmet. In a fit of rage, she tore the helmet off and threw it, letting it bounces away across the street.

She sat there for another moment, wiping away tears and desperately holding back the sobs trying to escape from her. It wasn't working.

"Uh, hey..."

Miko's eyes shot up and, through her tears, she finally saw that Shauna Story was still there. The others, it appeared, had all left, but Shauna was standing next to her car looking down sadly at Miko.

"Look I'm not sorry or anything... I did warn you, but..." She mumbled looking away, "Well, Master Disaster is a jerk. So do you like... want me to bring you somewhere?"

It took another moment for Miko to realize what Shauna was offering. Pulling in a deep breath to calm herself, Miko pulled herself to her feet.

"Yes." She said, wiping her eyes one last time. "I want you to bring me to wherever that Master Disaster creep is taking my friend. "

Chapter Text

Miko was busy wiping her eyes, so she didn't notice the incredulous look Shauna had briefly given her as they drove along.

"Aliens." Shauna repeated. It was more of a statement than a question. "So uh... the reason both your cars are so fast is because-"

"Look, I don't expect you to believe me," Miko interrupted her. She knew full well how it sounded, but telling Shauna the truth was the only thing she could think to do. She had to make it clear that this is more important than just losing a fancy car. Once she'd cleaned the tears off her cheeks, she continued, "but I have to go after Master Disaster. I don't know what he's up to, but it can't be anything good."

Shauna nodded slightly and hummed a quiet agreement. "That guy never gets up to anything good." After a quick lane adjustment, she suddenly swerved down a new street and sped up. "Alright, Moonracer, I'll help you out. You're lucky I know where he lurks about after his races."

"So you do believe me?" Miko smiled over at Shauna.

"No, not in the slightest."

Miko's smile fell and she looked back out towards the road again. "Yeah... I guess I don't blame you. It does sound a little bit crazy."

"Completely crazy," Shauna corrected her, "but, you obviously care about getting this car back and you seem like a nice enough kid, so I'll help however I can... Also, Master Disaster is a jerk. The last thing all the racing circuits around here need is for him to have TWO super fast cars."

"Don't worry, once me and Knockout are done with him that guy's not gonna have enough brain function to compete in a race!"

"Knockout, huh? That your alien car? Cool name." Shauna was obviously sarcastic and she could tell, but Miko still ignored that and answered earnestly.

"Yeah." She nodded, glancing down at her hands folded in her lap, "That fancy blue car has a name too, I just don't know what it is... Master Disaster might not know either. He didn't seem to care about them besides how fast they could go."

Shauna didn't say anything and just hummed quiet affirmation, as she focused on the road, so Miko continued.

"I bet they'll be grateful if we can free them too." She smiled over at Shauna, "Hey, maybe they'll let you race with them once we get rid of Master Disaster!"

"Wait, no I'm not doing that!" Shauna raised one eyebrow and glanced over at Miko before looking back to the road. "Master Disaster is a slimeball, but I can't just take his car."

"Sure you can. You'd be doing them a favor!"

"Stealing isn't a favor, it's a crime."

"It's not stealing if the car is a sentient alien robot being imprisoned by some creep in a stupid jumpsuit." Miko insisted.

"Ah right, the aliens thing..." Shauna mumbled, then continued in a louder voice. "Yeah okay, if this sentient car were to want to race with me after I 'free' it from Master Disaster, then yes I theoretically would be alright with that."

Miko didn't respond after that. It was fun to think about, but she didn't actually know who that blue cybertronian was, so she wasn't going to get her hopes up about making a new friend, whether for her or Shauna. Instead she thought about her next move. Knockout's text said Master Disaster put something on his grill, that had to be the thing that was keeping him from moving. If she could just wait until he left or just turned his back for long enough, she could sneak up to Knockout and pull of whatever was paralyzing him. Then it would just be up to Knockout how many times he wanted to step on that creep!

Oh, that thought surprised her... Knockout may have rubbed off on her a little too much. It would be wrong to actually let him step on the guy. She had broken a lot of laws tonight but she wasn't quite ready to break one that big.

Also, the question still remained as to what Master Disaster knew about the Autobots and Decepticons, or what exactly he wanted to do with Knockout. He already had that super fast blue car, so if he just wanted to use cybertronians to win races and make money, he already had that covered. There had to be something more here that she was missing, but she couldn't put her finger on it.

Before she could come up with a plausible explanation, the car slowed to a stop just at the intersection of a street overlooking what appeared to be a warehouse or a storage facility. Numerous garage doors lined a long, dingy-looking building in a lot that stretched all the way down the street.

"Here we are." Shauna flicked off the car's ignition and looked towards Miko. "Master Disaster comes to this lot after races and stores his car in the garages here. He'll probably put yours in there too."

"Great!" Miko popped open the door and jumped out, intending to get a closer look.

Shauna quickly followed suit but looked a lot less enthused about it, "Whoa whoa, hold on girl!" she said, trying to keep her voice low now that they were out in the open. "You don't wanna just go charging in there or he'll see you. Your best bet is to wait it out until he's finished, then go in once he's left for the night."

Miko hesitated, glancing from Shauna back across the street to the high fence surrounding the warehouse. That would be the smart thing to do, but she still didn't know what Master Disaster was planning on doing with Knockout, so time might have been a factor.

"Nah, I'm going in now." Miko said, starting towards the fence. "I've gotta get in there and make sure he doesn't do anything bad to Knockout."

Shauna let out a quiet sigh. "Alright... well, at least be careful he doesn't see you." She pulled open her car door again. "I'll wait here so you can come back out if you need me. Good luck, Moonracer."

Pulling in a deep breath, Miko looked back to nod at her and then turned back towards the fence. Once she'd reached it she immediately dug her fingers into the gaps in the chain link and hoisted herself up to start climbing over it. She tried to go quietly, but there was a bit of rattling that she couldn't help. At the top, she swung her legs over and jumped to the ground, landing heavily. After a quick glance around to make sure she hadn't been spotted, she hurried towards the warehouse to begin her search.

She made her way around one the first corner as quietly as she could. However, it was so late at night that the street was dead quiet, so it made the sound of her footsteps seem alarmingly loud. Miko was probably just thinking too much about it. If someone were inside they wouldn't be able to hear her just walking as long as she kept it down. Though it was probably good that she was concerned. She needed to take this seriously, because there was no way to call backup and she if she failed she might lose Knockout for good. She had only just become friends with the guy and he was an ex-Con' and everything, but even so she didn't want it to be her fault that he was kidnapped and maybe enslaved!

So far none of the storage garages she had passed by looked like they were unlocked, so it was unlikely anyone was going to be in them. It crossed her mind that if she did see one that was open, she wasn't sure what she would do. Master Disaster would certainly see her busting in, so she would have to find some way to be sneaky about freeing Knockout... of course, first she had to find them. She'd concern herself with details once she did.

As she was approaching the nearest corner of the building, she thought she started to hear something. It may have been a voice. Slowing to a stop just before the corner, she carefully took a peek around the edge.

There he was: Master Disaster was sitting on the hood of the blue car not twenty yards away, and just between them was Knockout. Miko felt a wave of relief wash over her when she spotted the red sports car. She wasn't too late; they were all still here!

Master Disaster's back was to Miko, but she could see he was holding a phone up to his ear and now she was able to make out his words.

"...definitely is! He's the red one... Yeah... No, no, I'll bring him to you. Meet at the regular place in twenty, yeah?"

The person he was speaking to must have hung up, because he lowered his phone and grumbled something that sounded like "Rude!" Before stowing the device in his pocket. Hopping off the hood, he gave the side of the car a little pat.

"Good race tonight, mate. Let's put you away til tomorrow." With that, he popped open the door and fell into the driver's seat. The car's engine roared to life and Master Disaster started backing the car up and into an open storage garage behind him.

This was her chance! Miko ducked low and ran as fast and as quietly as she could straight for Knockout. Once she reached his side she practically dove behind him, taking cover by one of his rear wheels where her feet would be out of view of the blue car and Master Disaster. She hoped she'd been fast enough that he didn't see her, but she hadn't been looking so she couldn't know. The blue car's engine was still running though, so that was a good sign.

Pulling herself together, she crept quickly forwards aiming to get that device off Knockout's grill before he even finished backing up that car. Unfortunately, she didn't even make it past his front doors before a voice interrupted her,

"Going somewhere, darling?"

Scrap, he'd seen her after all! Miko only froze for about half a second after she heard Master Disaster behind her. Then it occurred to her to just make a break for it,so without even glancing back at him, she leapt forward, trying to dash around Knockout before he could react.

Unfortunately she wasn't fast enough. Before she could reach Knockout's front grill to free him, Master Disaster seized her by the collar of her jacket, and with surprising strength, managed to drag her backwards and throw her away from the car. Her surprised shriek echoed a bit in the empty lot, but after she'd landed and skidded painfully along the asphalt a bit it was quiet again. Master Disaster didn't say anything further, just glared down at the girl looking quite smug.

Miko only glanced down at the scrapes on her hands and legs before returning his glare. She didn't speak either, just letting Master Disaster regard her while she tried to think of a way to get around him. This guy was stronger than he looked, so forcing her way past him wasn't going to cut it. She would have to distract him somehow. She couldn't think of a way to do that, though. So maybe the best thing to do at that moment was just to keep him talking until she did. Sitting up straight and, still glaring at him, Miko finally spoke up.

"Fine. You got me," She said, "I guess you're faster than me even without our cars. But what do you think you're going to do with him, huh? Your car already wins all your races, so what do you even need him for?"

A sneer spread across Master Disaster's face as she finished her question. Taking a step closer to the girl, he said, "Yes you're right. My blue friend is very useful for winning all those racers' money, so we won't need to use him for that No, we have other plans for him. Luckily, we can just pick up where we left off last time."

"Last time? What are you talking about?"

"Don't worry, I didn't really expect either of you to remember me," Master Disaster's sneer grew slightly wider, "most people don't without all the military gear and goggles... that's kind of the point, after all."

"G-goggles...?" Miko felt a sudden tightness in her throat as the realization dawned on her. "You're with MECH." It was a statement more than a question, but Master Disaster gave a short nod in response.

"Congrats, sweetheart, you figured it out! Took you long enough." He continued, reaching into an inner pocket of his jacket. "You know, I was going to just take off with the red one here, but since you've managed to follow me, I'll have to take you along so you don't manage it again. So do us a favor and come along quietly," He finally pulled his hand out of his jacket, now grasping a black handgun which he leveled at Miko. "or we can always just do this the hard way."

Miko's heart was pounding in her chest now. This was even more serious than she'd thought. She couldn't go along with this guy, he was going to hand both her and Knockout over to Silas for their experiments! But she also realized, as she stared down the barrel of his gun, that she didn't have much of a choice at the moment.

Slowly, she pulled herself up to her knees, keeping her hands up so he wouldn't get tempted to just shoot her right there. She opened her mouth to say something, but before she could even think of any words to say, a sudden screech of tires cut her off. Master Disaster finally looked away just as Shauna Story's car fishtailed around the corner out on the street, then turned sharply and came busting through the gate in the fence nearby, headed straight for them.

As she steered towards them, Master Disaster swore under his breath and turned his weapon towards the approaching car. Miko finally saw her chance! She launched herself at him, tackling his legs and sending Master Disaster to the ground before he could even get off a shot. His head hit the pavement hard, and the gun went flying out of his hand.

Miko didn't waste any time scrambling back to her feet and sprinting towards Knockout. She heard Master Disaster shout something from behind her, but she didn't pay attention. Reaching out, she grabbed ahold of Knockout's grill where she had seen Master Disaster touch him before and immediately felt a small rectangular device attached to the underside of one plate.

The second she pulled it off, she could hear his transformation sequence starting up, and she backed away quickly to make room as the sports car transformed back into Knockout. He wasn't looking down at her, though. His optics were blazing with fury and turned immediately on a very scared looking Master Disaster. When he saw that look, he started fumbling for the gun he had dropped. However, he had to stop and quickly pull his arm away because before he could get his hand around it, Knockout's pede came crashing down right next to him and onto the gun, crushing it.

"Whoa..."

Miko turned around and spotted Shauna had stepped out of her own vehicle and was staring at the robot towering over all of them.

"So uh... y-you weren't kidding about the aliens thing, huh?" She managed to mumble, not bothering to stop staring to look at Miko.

Now that Knockout was finally freed and Master Disaster disarmed, the situation seemed under control, so Miko leaned back, putting her hands victoriously on her hips as she smiled over at Shauna. "Sure wasn't." She said, "Hey, thanks for coming to help. You totally saved me, there!"

"Sure, I just... I heard you scream, so I figured I should..." Shauna trailed off a bit, still staring at Knockout in disbelief.

Miko was about to thank the woman, but she heard Master Disaster cry out so she looked back around and saw Knockout had snatched up the human and was holding him in a tight fist. Maybe now was not the time to relax after all!

"Knockout, no! Put him down!" Miko hurried over and thumped the plating on his leg with her fist.

He only glanced down at her before focusing back on the human in his servo. "This disgusting organic humiliated me, turned me into an inanimate object, and then he was going to hand me over to MECH?!!" Master Disaster whimpered slightly as Knockout tightened his grip. "Why shouldn't I just crush him right now? It's better than he deserves."

"Hey look, I know we broke a lot of rules tonight, both of us," Miko put her hand on his plating again, this time as a calming gesture. "But there are still some lines you just don't cross. You're an Autobot now, and an Autobot wouldn't do this. It's just not right."

Knockout turned and looked down at Miko, his optics were still bright and piercing from his anger. He didn't look as furious as he had before, but he still didn't seem convinced. Luckily, she wasn't done there.

"Also," Miko added, "he said he was going to meet guys from MECH. Aren't you interested in finding out where we can find Silas?"

Knockout's scowl quickly shifted into a sneer at those words. The angry glow hadn't gone from his optics, but even so, he held Master Disaster out away from his body, then finally released him. The man fell the fifteen feet to the hard asphalt and landed a bit awkwardly, getting a bit scraped up in the process, but he was otherwise unharmed.

While all this was happening, Shauna had finally pulled her gaze away from Knockout and was now eyeing the other blue car, still idling and with one door left open as it was pulled halfway into the storage unit. She glanced up at Knockout, then back again. Seeming to decide on something, she closed her car door quietly and hurried over to the blue car, kneeling down in front of it.

Now that Master Disaster was back on the ground, Miko stepped over to him, being careful not to get too close so Knockout could intervene if he tried anything.

"Alright, you creep!" She shouted, pointing down at him, "Here's what's gonna happen- you're gonna take me and Knockout over to where you were planning to meet with those other MECH nerds, and you're gonna help us."

"And if I refuse?"

"Then I'm gonna let Knockout break your legs."

"I should do that regardless." Knockout added, "It's not like that would kill him." He still had that twinge of anger in his voice, and Master Disaster visibly flinched at his words.

Seeing this, Miko turned, hands on her hips, and glared up at Knockout, "Don't say that in front of him, we want him to help!"

As she looked back, she noticed Shauna poking around the other car curiously. Master Disaster followed her gaze, and when he saw what she was about to do, he leapt to his feet.

"No! No no, Story don't-"

He wasn't able to finish his objection before Shauna removed her hand from between the plates of the blue car holding an identical device to the one Miko had pulled off of Knockout.

Immediately the car's engine revved powerfully and the opened drivers door slammed itself shut. A sudden lurch forward alerted Shauna that she needed to get out of the way, and fast. She dove out of the way as the vehicle took off and headed straight for Master Disaster.

He tried to run, taking a sharp angle away from the car and heading towards the gate, but they turned just as sharply, though they did fishtail slightly, and then circled around him. Their door popped open just as they did and Master Disaster was scooped up into their passenger seat.

It happened so quickly that neither Miko or Knockout were able to properly react, but once Master Disaster was caught, Miko snapped out of it and hurried forward holding her arms up gesturing for the car to stop. She wasn't sure who this cybertronian was, but they obviously didn't mean well, considering Master Disaster's reaction.

"Hey wait! Look, don't hurt him just yet." she shouted, "Don't you want to get the other guys who were imprisoning you too? Let us help, we can work together!"

There was a brief silence where they seemed to consider the idea. However, it wasn't long until the car's engine revved angrily one more time, followed by two words from an unknown voice:

"He's mine."

With that, the blue car swerved around and took off through the busted gate and down the road. Master Disaster could be heard screaming and pounding on the glass from inside, but the sound quickly faded as they both disappeared around a corner.

Miko spun around, rushing up to Knockout, "Come on, we gotta go after them!" She shouted, "That blue guy sounded like he was gonna kill him!"

Knockout didn't transform but rather just shrugged his shoulder plating. "Look kid, I'm not one to admit this easily... but there's no way I'm gonna be able to catch that guy. He's... faster than me." He mumbled this last part, as if it pained him. "Anyway, Master Disaster is a goner."

"...scrap." Miko turned to look after where they had disappeared. Then she groaned, "I guess you're right... Well, then I'm sorry. He ended up getting scrapped anyway. Maybe I shoulda just let you have the satisfaction 'stead of that blue guy."

"No, you were right to stop me." Knockout let out a quiet vent, "It wouldn't have done any good just squishing that one little MECH pawn... I mean, it would have felt nice in the moment but ultimately it'd be unsatisfying, knowing I could have gotten more out of him..."

"Hmm... Well... maybe we can still find MECH!" Miko looked unsure, but her voice still carried the excited tone she always spoke in, "They were going to meet somewhere, right? If we could just-"

"Let's not get carried away." Knockout interrupted her, "This city is massive. And to be perfectly blunt, if we had Master Disaster's intel we might have been able to pull something off, but as it stands, with them having that sort of technology..." he gestured down to the little rectangular device that Miko still had clutched in her hand. "I'm not liking our odds tonight."

Miko kicked at the asphalt in a pout, stuffing the device into her jacket pocket. "Yeah I guess you're right... I just got excited about actually going through with our revenge pact."

"Oh that's still on. Trust me," Knockout's voice grew dark again, "they're going to pay even more dearly for the way they humiliated me tonight."

"Uh, hey you two..."

Both Knockout and Miko looked around as Shauna Story approached them from behind. She had her hands folded tightly across her chest and was looking rather sheepish.

"Sorry about that..." she grumbled, "I got ahead of myself letting that other robot go, I guess... It was just an impulse. A bad one."

"Well, you did save me just now. And I wouldn't have gotten here at all without you, so I'd say we're even." Miko said with a slight smile. "Though maybe do me a favor and uh... don't tell anyone about us. It's kind of a secret that these guys even exist."

Shauna glanced up at Knockout again, "Tell you what, I'll do you this favor if you do me a favor and don't race in my circuit again." She said, "I don't think we need another alien robot showing up us regular drivers anymore."

Miko looked up at Knockout as well, "That's fine by me... I'm kind of over racing anyway."

Knockout looked away, " I suppose I can try to avoid any of your races just as a courtesy."

Shauna nodded in response, "Then I guess we're done here." she said, starting towards her own car. "I need to go home and try not to have nightmares about giant robots in disguise... Nice to meet you both, I guess."

Miko waved after her briefly, but then turned back to Knockout. "Home sounds pretty good about now, I think."

To signal his agreement, Knockout transformed back into his vehicle mode. Once he was a car again, he popped open the drivers door for her. Miko climbed inside and rested back on the seat, letting him close the door behind her. She was suddenly aware of how tired she was.

Stretching her arms out a bit, "Hey, what time is it?" she asked, her mouth still wide from yawning.

"Almost four in the morning." Knockout hadn't moved yet, they just sat parked in the lot for a moment. "Don't you have a clock on your phone?"

"Oh, yeah..." Miko frowned and forward slouched a bit as she spoke. "I dropped it when you got towed off and it was crushed..."

Knockout hummed in understanding and finally started driving towards the gate. "I was wondering why you tried to rescue me yourself instead of just calling Ratchet for help. I thought maybe you were just worried about getting in trouble with the Autobots."

"Pffft, yeah right! I never get in trouble with those guys."

"Yes, I remember..." Knockout grumbled this first sentence, but then continued in a louder tone, "Anyway, I suppose that means we'll have to drive all the way back... it's lucky we stayed on this continent."

Miko sighed and leaned back again, "That sucks.. I have school at eight o'clock. How far away is Jasper?"

"Normally, that trip would take about five hours." Knockout had sped up and was quickly approaching what looked to be an on ramp. He zipped up the ramp, picking up even more speed, and blasted out onto the empty highway. "...I can make it in three."

With a quiet chuckle, Miko rested her head against the base of his door window. "Thanks, KO. You're awesome."

"Yes I know."

Miko let her eyes droop almost shut as she stared out the window. The lines on the street were blurred into a single fuzzy image, and it was a bit hypnotic. Before she let her eyes close fully, she silently pulled off the jacket she'd been wearing and bunched it up under her head as a pillow. She could already tell she was going to fall asleep, and Knockout would murder her if she drooled on him.. probably not literally, but why risk it?

She'd almost forgotten that she snatched this jacket off a chair. The night had taken such an unexpected turn that she had forgotten she wanted to return this... not that such a small thing mattered much to her anymore. She had more pressing matters on her mind.

Speaking of which, as she tried to rest her head on the jacket, she felt something hard poke her ear. Sitting up again, she reached into the pocket and pulled out Master Disaster's paralyzing device.

"Oh, hey..." she said, waving it in front of Knockout's dashboard, "What should I do with this?"

"Put it in my glove box," Knockout said, "I'll want to have a look at that later."

 Miko nodded and did as he asked. As she was about to close the little drawer again, she paused.

"Who do you think that other cybertronian was?" she asked, still staring at the device.

"It's hard to tell just from a vehicle mode." Knockout replied, "But if we're going by stereotypes, the bright blue is more of an Autobot motif."

"You're bright red, though." Miko said, poking at the Decepticon insignia on his dashboard.

"Yes and just look at me! Palling around with humans and not killing people? Ugh. It's disgustingly Autobot..."

"Well..." Miko finally shut the glove box and leaned back, her tone growing serious, "He looked like he was going to kill Master Disaster, though."

"True," Knockout seemed to hesitate, but he continued, "but they might still... that is to say, they're not all like the ones you know. I'm still leaning towards Autobot."

With a quiet, agreeable hum, Miko leaned against her makeshift jacket pillow again. "If you say so..." she said, "You think we should tell the team about 'em?"

"They might not have revealed themself for a reason. Let's wait. If it becomes an issue we can bring it up later."

"Ok. I don't like keeping secrets from Bulkhead, though..."

"He'll get over it. Keeping secrets is just a small discretion compared to... well, compared to plenty of things."

Miko yawned silently and shut her eyes again. "Yeah, you're right... Bulkhead's a good partner." she mumbled, "He knows I got reasons for doing the things I do... I'm sure he'd understand."

Knockout didn't reply.

It stayed quiet for a bit longer, with only the sound of the road zooming by beneath them. Miko spoke one last time, "By the way, don't feel like it's disgusting that you're an Autobot... 'cause nobody else does.... or would."

"Just go to sleep already."

Back in the city, having zoomed through numerous intersections and around just as many corners, the blue vehicle seemed at last satisfied with the distance put between them and the other cybertronian. They finally came to a screeching halt right in the middle of the empty four lane road. Still in their passenger seat, Master Disaster was now curled up and pressing himself back into the seat, shaking fearfully.

Once the car had come to a stop, he clung to his knees even tighter. "L-look, zippy or whatever your name was- I'm sorry about all this really I am, but you don't need to kill me! Please, I-"

"That's quite enough!" a voice interrupted him suddenly, and then continued at an increasingly fast pace, "Listen up because I'm only going to say this once I know you work for that terrible organization and I very seriously disapprove but I'm going to make a one-time-exception-because-you-were-the-one-who-stopped-the-other-organics-in-your-group-from-pulling-me-apart-with-your-idea-to-use-me-to-win-races-for-profitandI'mbegrudginglygratefulandsoI'vedecidedtorescueyoufromthatothercybertronianandalsospareyourlifeinordertopayyoubackforsavingmine."

After a long moment where Master Disaster just kind of stared forward at the car's dashboard looking utterly bewildered, he cocked his head to the side and asked, "Huh?"

Then he couldn't help the startled shriek that escaped him when a second later, the passenger door next to him flung itself open.

"GET. OUT."

He didn't need time to process their words this time, and Master Disaster scrambled out of the car and bolted down the road. As he was running, he heard the car's engine roar behind him and the door slam shut again. Just before they drove off in the opposite direction, he heard them speak one last time:

"And the name's not zippy!"