ANH. Imperial Shuttle near Imperial Blockade. Out of the frying pan . . .

[astrotechmech]

Random paces up and down the small "corridor" behind the pilots' chairs. It isn't enough that they're using probably very-much-illegally-bought Imperial codes to sneak past the Imperial blockade led by Nemesis Prime's imposing vessel and onto the forested moon holding the shield generator for Unicron's two bodies using Random's ship-clearing formula. But they're also doing it in a ship that he's fixed before while in Imperial service. Not the one he used to get his formula written, but it was still unnerving to be in a ship whose weak points you're all too familiar with.

Especially if you know where the Imperials need to hit in order to instantly blow it up.

All he needs to complete this nightmare is for his old Imperial CO to pop out of one of the shuttle's compartments.

Comments

[astrotechmech]

Random intakes carefully, trying to urge the nausea and the dizziness of being upright away. He's also trying to calm himself down after the excitement of the realization of the danger around them. The latter will probably be helped after the Autotroopers are finally out of the immediate area.

Kia's hand feels cold to him, but comforting.

Then something finally clicks about the way Link is speaking, and Random tilts his head in confusion.

[random_xtras]

Link notices Random's expression and lifts his browplates. "I'm keeping you from feeling most of the pain and sick til someone can get over here with a painkiller. I don't think anyone would like to hear you screaming right now."

"Fire in the hole!" Random and Kia are abruptly yanked away from Link as Jetfire scoops them up and bolts away from the entrance to the Imperial installation.

[astrotechmech]

That . . . would explain the discrepancy between how he feels and what his readouts suggest he should be feeling right now.

Unfortunately, Random doesn't have much time to think this through when he's suddenly carried off, and he's distracted by a volley of pain, dizziness, and more nausea.

No, he's not screaming his head off again, but he does not feel good right now and wants everything to stop moving so much.

[random_xtras]

"Go! Go! Go!" yells Arcee, herding the last stragglers from both sides away from impending boom. Then she nearly trips over her sudden pause as she gets a look at Murphy, who is flailing and cussing as he legs it for the forest as fast as he can go. "How did you get covered in..?"

Random may not be screaming, but Kia's in full scoldy mode as she yells and rips Jetfire a new one for yanking them up like that. None of the racing shuttle bot's attempts to explain that the Minicons rigged the place while they weren't looking are doing any good to appease the little silver lady's ire.

And she's doing it without cusswords, though some of the sharpest words she's using are in Minicon, and some language Jetfire's never heard before.

-Oh please no,- Random might hear, as a measure of the pain is once more muted. -Say it isn't so. I can't have taught Kia how to vituperate in Primal Vernacular.-

[astrotechmech]

Random's too busy vainly waiting for his systems to settle again. Too much jarring movement from Jetfire's run and too much noise from Kia's censure of Jetfire.

The resumption of the pain muting, and the voice in his head--Link? . . . Or Primus?--helps him remember that someone else is helping him through this. And that he needs some outside help right now.

"M-medic," Random manages to croak, wishing for Fixer because she'd be able to know how to help him without freaking him out too much but realizing he was probably going to have to settle for a weird Minicon doctor.

[random_xtras]

"S...soon, Randy." Jetfire stops and gasps, then goes to his knees with a slightly uncoordinated jolt and lays the injured astrotech in a bed of soft ferns before pulling the angry Kia off his arm and laying her beside Random. This done, he puts himself on hands and knees over them just an instant before an explosion shakes the ground and throws pieces of pasticrete, metal, and dirt flying.

[astrotechmech]

Random is already struggling with all of the movement. The resumption of the pain muting helps for a few moments, but when Jetfire stops and falls, that's when Random's systems have decided they've had enough.

The blackness takes Random even before he's set down on the ground.

He did try to warn you, Jetfire.

[random_xtras]

There's a moment of startled silence as the echoes die down. And then.

"Oh great, Jetfire. What the *beeeeeep* did you do to Random?"

"I ...what? OW! Stop hittin' me!"

"Both of you just STOPPIT!"

"Awk. Princess, you made Kia yell!"

"I made???? Wait... now how could Random have purged that far?"

"Wait, what? Ewwww. OW! Murphy, what the slag? Quit kickin' my ankle!"

More fussing follows, and then the poor hurt astrotech is gently lifted by a careful Panda, and carried back to the Minicon village.