A continuation of my previous stories. This one is a little more graphic than the other two, so if you're sensitive about descriptions of gore (even Cybertronian gore), then you probably won't like this. Or maybe you will! As always it's got Hellraiser references.
Part 1
the-sweet-suffering-slog-t51163s100.phpPart 2
tear-your-soul-apart-slog-t89104.php----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kaon, abandoned shipping port. Dusk. These things always happen when it's gotten dark out. Arcer and his team were on the hunt for a serial killer. They were about four years out of the acadamy, and Arcer had just recently been selected as their captain. As this was his first command, he was understandably excited. His excitement was muted, however, as his thoughts returned to the task at hand. The one they were hunting was a serious threat in recent months, going from one killing to another, from city to city. He had been tracked to this abandoned shipping port, and they had him cornered. As the crew split up, Arcer and the teams' mechanic/scientist, Spanner, made their way to the administration building, up to the watchtower. Spanner was looking at the layout of the compound and the buildings that could be used as a possible hiding spot while Arcer checked on the main control console, which powered up for exactly less than a useful amount of time before sparks flew out and it powered down again.
"Gah! This console doesn't seem to have been used since this place was still in service. If you can get the camera system operational, do it, but concentrate on the maglocks on the gates. I want this area locked down as soon as possible. We'll use the admin building as a base to search the entire compound." He said as he moved from the console to the windows that overlooked the port. Every once in a while his eyes would be drawn to the flash of a spotlight from one of the search parties. "This is Arcer, we're setting up shop at the admin building. Spanner is working on the maglocks, until then I want Devcon and Crosswise to get back to the main gate to watch that the psychopath doesn't slip out on us."
"Really, guard duty? Come on Arcer, I'm better than that!" Devcon complained, causing Arcer to sigh and shake his head.
"Crosswise... I want you to shove your crossbow up Devcons aft if he doesn't start making for the main gate in 10 seconds."
"Oh I would SO do it too!" Crosswise replied with glee. Arcer chuckled and Devcon grumbled as they moved out.
"You can both suck a piston."
"That should be, "You can both suck a piston, SIR"" Arcer replied with a grin before turning off his comm. "Primus do I love bossing him around after the grief he gave me through training."
"You're starting to sound like a commander now. I've almost forgotten the times your shots went wide during our marksmanship training... Almost." Spanner said as he worked on the controls with a grin.
"I think I was always better at hand-to-hand combat anyway. How's the door coming?" Arcer asked as he kept his optics glued to the compound before him.
"It's not. There's no power going to the gates at all. Not really surprised to be honest, the valuable parts were probably all scavenged or used somewhere that hasn't been abandoned fo..."
"Arcer this is Crosswise." Spanner was interrupted. Arcer looked to his comm again. "Did Spanner get the gates working yet?."
"No, you and Devcon'll have to campout there while..."
"The gates are closed. Looks like there are cuts, or claw marks, on each side of the gate, like they were pulled shut by something.... strong. I think the hunters are being hunted." just as Crosswise finished reporting, the lights all over the compound began going out, leaving everything in darkness.
"This is Arcer, all teams return to the administration building now!"
"This is Blowout and Double Clutch, order received."
"This is Gearhead, order received, but Firecracker and I are checking out this warehouse first."
"Negative, Gearhead. Return to the admin. building!"
"..... Acknowledged, withdrawing."
On the ground, Gearhead signals for Firecracker to withdraw from the building, but there's no response. "Firecracker, let's go!" He insisted as he pointed his search light at the still Autobot, standing just in the shadow. "..... Firecracker!"
"Ssssssaaaaave meeeeeee..." came a hushed reply. Though it sounded displaced from where the mech was standing.
"... F-Firecracker?"
Arcer's head snapped to the side as he heard gunfire and saw the flashes. Over the radio came Gearhead's voice.
"CONTACT! CONTAAAHHHKK!"
"GEARHEAD!" Arcer called back. "Gearhead acknowledge!" There was silence, then Arcer looked to Spanner. "Stay here." The scientist nodded as the pink Autobot rushed out of the building and into the compound. "Decvon, Crosswise, get that gate open, we're pulling out once we can regroup. Blowout, Double Clutch, what's your position?"
Silence.
"Blowout report! Double Clutch!"
"Over here!"
Arcer turned to see the kneeling form of Double Clutch between two storage hangers. "Why didn't you reply? Where's Blowout?" He asked as he approached, turning the search light to him. The light caught the reflection of some liquid on the ground. He looked down at it and saw a growing pool of mech fluids. Stopping dead in his tracks, he looked back up to the kneeling Autobot. ".... Double Clutch.... say something..."
"..... Over here!"
The reply came from behind. Arcer spun around quickly, gun raised. A quick glance revealed nothing, but the the voice came again.
"Over here!"
He looked down and saw the small recorder on the ground, playing Double Clutch's voice again.
"Over here!"
Just as he turned back, a sharp pain struck the base of his cranial plating, and he fell. The body of Double Clutch then fell over backwards, revealing the entire front end of the bot had been sheered right off, then everything went dark.
"Over here!"
The world slowly came back into focus as he regained consciousness, the blurry, blobby shapes slowly changed to blobby, blurry shapes as he tried to stand. He realized quickly that his arms were tied back, his legs were restrained, and he was kneeling. "Wha..." He tried to clear his thoughts and his vision as he recalled what happened, where they were, and how he got to be here. He remembered the skinned face of his friend, and gritted his teeth in anger. "... Double Clutch..."
"Over here!"
His head snapped up and to the side where the voice came from. There was the recorder, sitting on the corpses of his team. His eyes went wide as he looked over the lifeless bodies, eviscerated, skinned, flayed, and piled like garbage. "What? What in the..."
"Over here!"
"Over here!"
"Over here!"
"Over here!"
"Over here!"
"Over here!"
"Over here!"
"Over here!"
"Over here!"
"Over here!"
"Over here!"
"Over here!"
He closed his eyes tightly, trying to ignore the voice of his dead friend, trying to ignore the sight he just saw.
"Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here! Over here!"
"STOP IT!" He screamed as he pulled at his restraints while the recording played over and over again. Until it was suddenly silent. He panted, his wrists scraped up from the jagged metal bindings around them as he heard footfalls. He slowly looked up into the blood red optics of the one they came to find. "... Slog." he said as the killer looked down at the pink and white mech.
"Over here!"
"STOP IT!" He screamed again, turning away from him and the recorder.
"No tears please... it's a waste of good suffering." the gold and black creature replied as he crushed the recorder in his hand.
"Over h-"
"Th-thank... you..." A weak voice came from the other side of Arcer. His eyes popped open and he looked up to see Spanner, chained in the same way he was. His armor was shattered, his metallic flesh lacerated, leaking energon.
"Spanner... " Arcer said, clenching his fists. ".... Slog... let him go, he's not a fighter, he..."
"Inspiration, he is! The others, junk. All of them, trash, garbage, useless piles all! Reduced them to what they are, I have. No potential, I see in them, but you..." he said as he slowly raked a clawed hand down Arcers face. "Such art I could make from you..." Arcer pulled his head away from the energon stained hands of the maniac. "My easel, you are not. Spanner, however, watched him, I did. Waste his life, he has! Nothing, he would become, like your comrades. In a pile to burn, his life would be tossed had I not found him. Watched, waited, observed, and envisioned." As he continued to talk, Arcer looked down at the growing pool of energon Spanner was leaking, he wouldn't last long.
"Please.... if it's me you want then-"
"Not you I want, you I NEED! HIM I want! Art I could make of him. Nowhere his life was going, nowhere his life would lead. Now, work I must. Potential he has.... release it I will..." Slog continued as he extended the claws on his hands and approached the scientist. He trembled and looked to his friend.
"Arcer....l-look away..."
He would have replied, but the screams Spanner let out ripped his thoughts away. He turned his head away, only to see the carnage that was most of his team. He closed his eyes, and felt the warm splatter of fresh energon on him as Spanner continued to scream, begging Slog to stop. He heard metal rip, joints snap, wires strain and crackle as they were severed. The screams of his friend became gurggled, as if he were drowning, and he began screaming as well to try and drown out the sound of energon and mech fluids splattering on the floor.
It wasn't over quickly. He was trembling, and he could hear soft whimpers and sobs of Spanner. That he was still alive was a miracle, but he dared not to look. "It is finished..." Slog spoke as he stepped back. Arcer remained still. "Privileged, you are Arcer, my masterpiece to see! Look... LOOK!" Slog shouted as he grabbed Arcer's head and brought it up. "Behold! The Bridge to Nowhere!"
He didn't know why, but he opened his eyes. His breath was caught in his throat as he looked at the twitching, bleeding, and misshapen form before him that vaguely resembled half of a suspension bridge, with Spanners face at the very top. His eyes wide as he looked upon the agonized grimace of his friend. "S...s-spanner?" He whimpered.
"K.......khuuu.....k-k-k-k-KIIIIIILLLLL MEEEEEEE!"
Arcer ripped his head from Slogs grasp and looked away as Spanner began screaming. Over and over again, screaming to be killed. Slog laughed, Arcer screamed as Spanner slowly succumbed to the agony of his obscene form, his voice fading while Slog came around and brought Arcers face up so he could look him in the eyes. "Now you. To my master, I take you. Learned from him, I did. Make you like me, he will. Teach you, I shall." Slog said as he brought a stasis collar up and fastened it to Arcers neck. "We have such sights to show you."
----------------------------------------------------
"Report, soldiers." Kup said as the two survivors of the Kaon slaughter, Devcon and Crosswise, sat down in front of his desk.
"W-well... Sergent Kup... The mission went south, we were told to get the doors open again after they'd been sealed behind us. The lights went out, and the screaming... it was so close and.... we got out of there." Devcon said as he fidgeted in his seat, like he still expected to be ripped open.
"I see.... you left your post, you left your entire team behind to die. Instead of withdrawing and calling in for backup you both fled!" Kup said as he pounded his fist to his desk.
"I.... I ordered Crosswise to follow me, I didn't want to be caught alone with that.... thing there. He wanted to go back but I... I wouldn't let him. He's not at fault for his actions." Devcon replied, taking full responsibility for their abandoned position. Kup let out a sigh as he stood up from his seat and looked at the two.
"Crosswise... we'll finish your debriefing later. Go rest up." Once he left, Kup looked down to Devcon. "Not lookin' good for you kid. I know you got potential, but with THIS as your first mission... you'll be lucky if they trust you for guard duty of the janitors closet. You're dismissed." Devcon nodded and got up. Before leaving, he turned back to Kup.
"S-Sergent? When the recovery team went in... what did they find?" Kup looked at the picture he had of the graduating class, of which only Devcon and Crosswise were left. He had seen what was left of the team that had gone in and shook his head a bit.
"That's... classified... and trust me, you're better off not knowin'."
