#g1 metroplex

City’s Heart | Part 5

Metroplex x Reader

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Ongoing…

——

Following that weird episode Slammer had, he has had a couple more. Every time it creeps you out, he’s just… there. One time he just started walking off towards a section of the city you’ve never explored. He did suddenly turn back around towards you and apologize immediately after that. But it doesn’t help the uncanny feeling you keep feeling around him now.

You’ve been trying to trick Slammer to get just a little bit of alone time recently. Taking a the very long route to the cafeteria, not going at all one day, ducking behind corners, and even using other bots to hide around. He found you, every single time. How he always seems to know where you are is just adding to the creepy feeling you get around him. The day you skipped lunch to avoid him, he brought the food to you after about an hour of you not showing up. Yes, he was sweet, but this was getting to be too much.

Laying in bed on your back you pat the wall. “Metroplex? Can we talk?” You ask, and shortly there after a light shows up on the wall and flashes once. “It’s kind of a vent. Is that alright?” The light blinks again so you continue. “You’ve probably noticed. There’s been a new bot around here recently. Slammer. He is… nice. But he kind of creeps me out a little bit? I feel bad saying that since he has been very nice, but he’s always there and-“ The light fades significantly, even starting to disappear back into the wall.

“Metroplex?” You sit up in bed and rest your hand on the wall again. “What’s up?” You’ve never seen him pull away from a conversation like this before, he’s always there, completely engrained in the conversations. The light goes away entirely, and your room feels weirdly empty. You catch the sound of footsteps walking away from your door now, and your stomach drops. Did Slammer somehow hear you through the door…?

——

If Metroplex was in his bot mode, he’d be smacking his head. Of course he would go and mess this up too… He wanted you to get closer to Slammer so he could feel a sense of normalcy… but in doing so he made you uncomfortable. Should he keep Slammer out and around you just to keep you safe? Or would you rather he keep Slammer away now? Was what he was doing really that bad…? He just wanted to be closer with you, to feel like a normal bot for once. The only reason he didn’t tell you Slammer was him was because he wanted to feel like a normal bot, not one with this much responsibility on his shoulders. One that couldn’t communicate with you. One that couldn’t even eat alongside you. When he was in control of Slammer, he could almost forget the responsibilities he feels as Metroplex. But he messed that up, and he definitely could not tell you that he was Slammer now. You would dislike him too now.

Should he try to control one of the other two…? Or would you catch on to that as well? Why is this so difficult? He never really worried about what others thought of him before this, just did his job as a protector and never expected anything else in return. But you? You treated him like he was someone, and that made his spark tighten. Despite his weakened state, he realizes that there is very little he wouldn’t do for you if you asked. However, he doesn’t want to admit what it is he thinks he’s feeling. You’re a human, you don’t deserve something like him. Something unable to hug you if you’re upset.

Upset. Like you are right now. Because of him. He focuses back in your room and can feel you walking back and forth. Metroplex isn’t sure how to solve this problem.

——

Peeking your head out of your room, you don’t see Slammer like usual. That pit in your gut rearing its ugly head again. Stepping out of your room you begin to walk towards the entrance, you need to just take a walk outside. Finally reaching the outdoors, you find a tree outside to sit under, the sun was getting a little lower in the sky. This reminds you of the other day when you sat on the balcony with Slammer. You get upset again and lean back on the tree and close your eyes. The weather was nice, and you just needed to clear your mind a little after the whirlwind of today. You’re afraid you upset both Slammer and Metroplex now.

You sit there for awhile, and you truthfully begin feeling a little better. You only open your eyes when you hear someone sit down beside you. Looking over you see a smaller First Aid, he has a sheepish expression on his face and apologizes softly. “Didn’t mean to bother you. I just thought you might want a little company.” He puts his arm around you and you lean into his side. “What’s going on in your processor?”

“Something weird happened recently, and I don’t really know if I messed something up… You know that bot that’s been hanging around me a lot recently? Slammer? Well… He’s been a bit overbearing recently, and doing things that have kind of creeped me out? And I vented to Metroplex about it, but I think Slammer heard me outside of the room. I haven’t seen him since then, and Metroplex hasn’t been responding to me. I kind of thought Metroplex would understand since I thought we were close, but I guess I somehow upset him? I asked if it was alright if I vented and he gave me the yes sign. Maybe I got him at a bad time?”

First Aid vented a sigh. “You know. It isn’t really my place to say why exactly they’re both upset. But I think if you want some answers, you should go talk to Metroplex. Tell him you want to speak to Slammer, and then ask him to explain himself. There is more here than what meets the eye.” Sorry lol. You look at him a little confused, but you don’t dwell on it since it’s getting dark.

Tomorrow. You’ll try bringing something up to Metroplex tomorrow.

——

I struggled a bit to figure out where to go from chapter 4. I think it’s a bit harder for me to keep this as a slow burn, I want to jump right into the romance with him lol. I might end up updating this chapter before continuing.

City’s Heart | Part 4

Metroplex x Reader

1 | 2 | 3 | Current | 5 |ongoing…

——

Protection or overbearing? The lines have been quite blurred recently with the bot, Slammer, looming around you. He seems kind, but it’s overwhelming just how much he’s lingering in your presence. Going to the dining hall, you’re aware of the bot following along behind you. He’s always very quiet, and when he does talk it sounds forced. You feel a servo wrap around you and lift you up suddenly. “Hey?!” You startle, but just after you were picked up a couple of bots drive through really fast chasing one another and shouting playfully. “Oh… thank you.” How on earth he knew they were coming was beyond you. He doesn’t put you back down, instead he carries you the rest of the way. Setting you down on a tabletop, he disappears for a short time, coming back with your normal order and some energon. He sits down and slides the tray over to you, watching you to let you eat first before he does.

You look at the bot, then at the food. It is your exact order. That should creep you out, but for some odd reason something at the back of your mind is almost whispering and telling you that it is ok. “You didn’t poison this behind my back, did you?” You tease, but regret it almost immediately when Slammer looks like a kicked puppy, like it physically hurt him that you thought he’d do that. “I’m joking… If Metroplex hasn’t set off alarms, I trust you.” You begin eating, and he watches while sipping his energon. Another bot enters, and his attention is snapped over towards the new bot, relaxing when he sees First Aid.

“Aid!” You call, waving at the bot happily. He waves then looks at the other bot with you. “Slammer? What are you doing out of your sector. You never leave it!” He genuinely asks, patting Slammer on the shoulder and sitting down beside you. Slammer motions to you and finally answers. “Protecting the human.”

First Aid looks like he’s lost in thought, and you can tell when it hits him. Looking down at you he makes a “wait here” motion to you, and then motions for Slammer to follow him. The two go out of earshot from you to chat. You shrug and go back to eating.

——

Metroplex, through Slammer, listens to the medic. “Do they know who you actually kind of are? Or are you running the risk of creeping them out?” Slammer vents and looks back towards where you’re sat eating a sandwich. “Talking… is hard. My energy is very low…” He manages to say. First Aid rests his servo on Slammer’s shoulder again. “Would you like for me to tell them?”

While Metroplex is thankful for his friend, he doesn’t want to let you know yet. Secretly he’s hoping that you will become attached to Slammer so he actually has a way of feeling connected to you… But that also makes him fearful that you will forget about him. The real him. He’s so torn between telling you or not. He selfishly doesn’t want you to know, and willingly choose the false him.

First Aid watches the drones expressions while he thinks. “Please tell them eventually. And while you do that, I’ll try to figure out a way to get your energy back.” Slammer nods and begins to walk back into the cafeteria. He stops a few steps away and turns back to the medic. “Thank you.”

——

Slammer returns to your table, and sits back down. He looks like he’s in his own mind now. You place a hand on his servo, and he snaps out of it. “Are you okay?” The bot stares at you for a couple seconds before nodding. He sees you’re finished and he takes your tray to the wash rack. Scooping you back up, he takes you outside to a balcony you didn’t know was here. It’s dark outside still, but the sun is getting closer to rising. A bench forms behind you and you smile, sitting down. “Thank you Metroplex.” The bot beside you keeps standing.

You two watch as the sun rises. Slammer watches you more. Metroplex feels his spark do something weird, something he isn’t sure it’s ever done before. He can’t force Slammer to look away from you, he’s transfixes on the golden hue of the sun projecting on your features. When he does manage to tear his expression away, it’s only because in his distracted state he missed Ultra Magnus trying to get ahold of him.

The bot beside you suddenly powers down momentarily, before it comes back online and stands there like nothing happened. But something feels off about him. Like he’s here but he isn’t. His gaze seems… emptier than before? “Slammer? Are you alright?” And the bot does not respond. He’s always quiet, but this time he is not responding at all. “Slammer?” You reach out and put a hand on his arm and theres nothing. He doesn’t even react, it’s like you aren’t even here. This bot has been so overbearing recently so this is extremely unsettling.

——

Metroplex is only half listening to what Ultra Magnus is saying. He wants to get back to Slammer so he can be near you more. He isn’t sure what is happening, but he is beginning to need to be near you and make sure you are ok. He tells himself he’s just protecting you, but he isn’t sure if he believes himself anymore. Unfortunately, now keeping the drone online as well as himself is making his energy drain even faster than it did before. Completely zoning out from Ultra Magnus now his processor returns to the conversation with First Aid earlier… Maybe he should actually tell you who he is sooner than later.

Once Ultra Magnus stops talking, he snaps back to it. He probably should have been listening, but theres nothing he can do about it now. It’s not like he could ask for it to be repeated since nobody here can speak to him. It gets lonely… even though he has so many bots living inside of him, and under his protection. He’s lonely. You’ve been one of the only people to actually interact with him in some way, aside from First Aid. Everybody else only interacts when they need something or want something from him.

His attention goes back to the drone where he sees you’re shaking the bot’s arm. He sinks his attention back into the drone where he now feels your hands on ‘his’ arm.

——

“Slammer. It’s not funny. What is going on?” You jerk back and yell in surprise when the bot’s head turns towards you. The bot reaches out and grabs your hand in his servo now. “I’m… sorry. Glitch in my processor...” He lies, feeling bad when he does so, but he isn’t ready to tell you who he is just yet… soon… but not right now. Right now? He just wanted to spend time with you, even if it’s something as simple as watching the sun rise, or eating together. Yeah… protection. He isn’t sure that’s what it is anymore.

——

City’s Heart | Part 3

Metroplex x Reader

Not proofread, will edit later

1 | 2 | Current | 4 | 5 | Ongoing…

——

“First Aid! Welcome back!” You grinned up at the medic. He crouched down and scooped you up, a habit he’s gathered in the time you’ve been here. “You seem like you’re settling in just fine.” He mentions. You two chat idly as he walks to your usual breakfast spot.

“Hey, I wanted to ask you something. And… It might be kind of stupid.” You look up from your breakfast. He hums and puts down his energon cube to give you his full attention. “I… had a dream a few nights ago, and there were these three bots. Since that night they always seem to creep into my dreams in some way or another.” Taking a second to figure out how to say what’s on your mind. “The first dream I had, I was laying in the grass just outside of this city, like really close to it. These three bots I’ve never seen before suddenly loom over me. There was a white one, red one, and a black one. They tried leading me through a hole in the ground in the city that just appeared. Before I got the chance to follow I was back in the grass and the one was there. He asked me if I trusted Metroplex, and then he was just gone.” Rubbing your neck you continue. “This is probably nothing. I just thought you might be able to help me… since you know more about Metroplex and those here than I do.”

First Aid lets you speak, then he scratches his helm. “Three bots… Three bots…” Lost in thought, trying to grasp at a distant image. “They sound familiar, but I’m sorry. I can’t remember exactly why.” A little disappointed, you smile and wave your hand. “That’s alright. Thank you though. And… thank you for not thinking I’m crazy.”

After breakfast, you’re wandering back to your room. At the other end of the hallway, a yellow bot you’ve never seen before comes around the corner. A wall immediately goes up right in front of you. Peeking around it, you catch a glimpse of a decepticon logo on the mystery bot. “Shit-“ You cover your mouth and hide behind the wall Metroplex had made. A light appears on the ground, then another, a path. Trusting him, you quietly try to sneak around and follow the path he’s laying out.

“Metroplex, we have to get help. I can’t deal with a decepticon!” You whispered, hoping he could hear you. The light trail abruptly changes direction, and you rush to catch back up. Coming to a stop in a secluded corner when the trail ends, you look back over your shoulder nervously. Suddenly, a loud alarm goes off, and you cover your ears. All exits to the outside slam shut, attempting to trap that yellow bot in. You hear loud steps running in your direction overtop of the alarm and your heart drops. “Metroplex-“ You hoped he would make another wall for you to hide behind, but nothing appears. “Metroplex!!” You yell desperately, the steps sounded right outside of the corner you were pushed into. You look around desperately for a hiding spot.

“Hey! There you are!” A voice you recognize snaps you out of it and you look over. A different light trail leading him towards you turn off when Blades sees you. He rushes over and scoops you up without warning. “Swindle’s here again. We don’t know what he’s after this time, but we need to get you somewhere safe. Decepticons of any kind don’t take kindly to humans.” He glances around a corner, then runs through the hallway. You don’t recognize this section of the city, you still have a lot left to explore eventually. A door slides open and Blades sets you down. “I’ll get you once this is over. Metroplex, seal this door.” The door shuts between you two, sealing shut with a hiss.

The alarm goes quiet in this room, you can hear it elsewhere, but not in this room. Looking around, you see a console with lots of buttons, levers and lights. There was one screen in the corner, and it was following the hallways that the bot, Swindle, was going through. A light on the wall beside you appears again. “Yeah, I’m ok.” It blinks once then disappears again. You take to looking around the room, there wasn’t really any furniture in here so you’ll have to sit on the floor. Whatever this room is, it looks fairly important. Sitting on the floor, you were in this room for quite some time, some shouting outside, and occasionally a bot running by. You’re not really sure how long you were sat in there, having gotten up and walking laps after your feet fell asleep. At some point Swindle managed to escape and the siren turn off shortly after. The door stays sealed just like Blades said, he eventually comes to collect you. Only then did the door slide open again.

——

Today one of Metroplex’s fears became a reality. He was unable to do as much as he wanted to about the threat in his walls to keep you safe. He had to rely on others to get you somewhere safe. His command center was the safest place besides his interior. He needs to do more for you… “What kind of a protector am I if I fail to protect those relying on me?” He thinks to himself wearily.

He remembers overhearing you mention something earlier, your dream. He didn’t mean to eavesdrop on your conversation with First Aid, it just happens unfortunately with him being the place you exist. You mentioned something about three bots… three bots that he knows quite well. He begins searching for his three drones, it’s been so long since he’s controlled them. It takes him quite some time to locate even one. He finds one of them, sinking his mind into it he has only one goal. He can finally protect you.

——

Sitting on your bed, you hear a knock on your door. Climbing down the stairs you press the new button that had appeared down low to let the door slide open. Standing there, you feel yourself get a horrible sense of deja vu. There was one of the bots from your dreams, the white one.

“Protect.” Is all it says, then turns and stations itself outside of your room like a guard. You creep out of your room to look up at the bot. “Who are you…?” You timidly ask the bot, somewhat creeped out that something you dreamed about seeing is now standing in front of you. The bot doesn’t answer right away, almost long enough to make you want to turn and go back in your room out of awkwardness and, honestly, fright.

“Slammer.” The bot finally says, glancing down at you. There’s something off about this bot, but you chalk it up to your nerves. He seemed dead set on acting as your personal bodyguard, so who are you to judge. Though, you’re not really sure how to treat him. Would it be polite to continue talking to him? Invite him in to just sit in your room? Or tell him to go away? Probably not that last one. And you don’t really want to invite him in since you don’t know him at all. You opt to try and talk to him a little more.

“Slammer. I can’t say I’ve heard of you before. Granted, theres a lot of you guys I haven’t heard of.” Trying to lighten the mood a little bit, the bot seems to be kind of paying attention to you, but you still can’t shake that uneasy feeling that something is off about him. “How come I haven’t seen you around?”

Once more, the bot takes forever to respond. Maybe he’s not a conversationalist? “Patrolling” Slammer responds and you nod slowly. Yeah, definitely not a conversationalist. These one word answers are hard to work with.

“Well uh… I’m going to go back in my room and lay down. You don’t have to stay out here all night. Theres plenty of other bots around that can protect me if anything happens.” You try to give the bot a way to leave if he wants to, but he seems almost glued to his assigned spot. “Goodnight then.” You back into your room and press the button. The door slides shut and you return to your bed to just lay down until dinner. There really isn’t all that much to do here, everything is either way too big for you, or it’s just too far for you to walk. You find yourself sleeping quite a lot out of pure boredom at times. Some people would call you lucky, but you just want some enrichment. Hell, even coloring books for children would be wonderful right now.

——

I dunno if I’m as proud of this one as some of the other chapters :’)

City’s Heart | Part 2

Metroplex x Reader

1 , current , 3, 4, 5, Ongoing…

—

Watching, always watching. There isn’t much else he can do other than raise some walls and build new rooms. He was tired constantly, never having enough energy anymore. He watches everyone, keeping them safe. It was an endless loop, sitting in silence day in and day out.

That was until you arrived, a human. He’s seen humans before, but that’s been in passing. You were staying here, in a room he made for you. Rodimus didn’t tell him anything about what to expect, and your height was certainly something new to take into account. When the door had shut behind you, you looked terrified. That made his spark ache. He never meant to frighten you, and you looked even more afraid when he was constructed you some new items around your room that would be helpful. He wanted to speak to you, tell you that he didn’t mean to scare you, but he could not. Cityspeakers could communicate with him, but there hasn’t been one of those in quite a long time.

Gradually you seemed to be trusting him more and more. Especially with the system you implemented, the small poles to let you know he was listening to you. He was more than willing to show you that he was respectful of your requests. He blocked off that portion of his surveillance until he could hear you tell him it was alright. Your small requests for things around the room he made you brought him some small semblance of joy. He got to help you make the room more comfortable, and you always thanked him for it. That is something many of the cybertronians under his protection did not do. First Aid always did, he was a kind bot.

He watches you wander down a hallway, deciding to explore today. You no longer were looking over your shoulders every couple seconds out of paranoia which was good. You wandered deeper into the city walls on your explorations, until it began getting dark. When you turn around he can see the slight panic starting to set in, you had gotten yourself lost. He watches as you slowly start trying to retrace your steps, and he puts a wall up in front of you when you begin to make a wrong turn. “Oh… thank you.” You go the correct way and the wall slides back down as you walk away from it. Metroplex continues to put up walls to guide you in the correct direction until you stop walking altogether. “Metroplex… can you somehow just… make a path back to my room or something that I can follow…? The walls are helping, but it’s really slow.” You looked up at some random buildings as you speak to him. A street light rises in front of you, to which you look at it then back at the building. “Thank you again.” He watches as you follow the street lights back to the original building you were staying at. Once inside he changes to lights on the floor to guide you.

Once he knows you are safely back in your room, he makes one of your pillars when you announce you’re going to change. He still doesn’t understand why it’s something you do, but if it makes you comfortable, then he will do it. The pillar slides back down once more when you’re done, and you climb up into the berth. It’s weird, having something so small under his protection. He watches you more than any of the cybertronians under his care, you’re so fragile compared to them all. He fears, though, that if a threat should ever arise he wouldn’t be able to do anything about it to stop it from harming you. He’s so tired he couldn’t transform to stop it, and he knows some of the bots living here aren’t as fond of humans as others.

——

That night while you slept, your dreams were quite weird. In your dream, you saw a bright light, flickering with tendrils extending out towards you. Reaching out towards it your fingers brush a tendril ever so slightly, and the scene of your dream changes. You’re back outside now, laying on the grass at the city outskirts. A shadow is cast over you and a black bot you’ve never seen before looks down at you… then a red one… and then white one too. They just stare at you, and you stare back. “Hello…?” You try to ask, but they keep staring, and then they just… walk away. The red turns around to see if you are following, which must be hinting for you to follow. Standing up you wearily follow along behind the three, and they begin walking deep into the city, far deeper than you’ve ever been before. A hole opens in the road, and they continue down it, you stay at the top until the one from before turns around again. The scene goes dark once more, and you find yourself back outside in the grass. Only one of the bots from before, the white one, stands beside you this time. “Human.” It says, and you turn towards it. “Trust… Metroplex?” That makes you pause, but you nod. “Uh… Yeah…?” You respond. The unfamiliar bot smiled at you and the dream fades away.

You wake up and immediately rub your eyes with a groan. “What time is it…?” You asked yourself, looking over for something to tell you the time, and a clock slowly forms on the wall. “4am? Ughhh…” You huff and slump back onto the bed. You’re not tired anymore, the dream wasn’t scary, it was just weird. Those three bots especially. “I’ll ask First Aid later…” You mumble to yourself.

Laying there staring at the ceiling, a small light appeared beside you on the wall and flickered. “Hm?” Looking over at it, it became more stable. “What’s this for?” You sit up, and the light blinks once. “Are you trying to say something…?” The light flickers. “There has to be an easier way to do this…” You sigh, rubbing your face again, trying to think of what he could possibly be trying to do.

——

Trying to communicate with you, he makes a light appear to get your attention. Maybe you understand Morse code? He blinks the light a couple times, and by your confused expression he realizes you do not. He wanted to reach out to you, ask you if you were alright. But he could not speak to you, and this light trick is not working. He hides the light again after seeing what he believes was frustration. He didn’t mean to upset you, and so he backs away from you.

Trying to think of some other way to speak to you, his processor fuzzy. He needs to conserve his already low energy. He just wants to make sure you’re ok, you awoke suddenly and haven’t gone back to sleep yet. He doesn’t know how to write your words, so he’s stuck. Until he hears your voice calling his name quietly. His attention is immediately drawn back to you, and he feels the warmth of your hand setting where the light used to be. He cautiously brings it back.

——

“Ok. Let’s work out a system. We can work with yes or no questions first. One blink yes, two blinks no. Is that ok?” You ask, and you watch as the light blinks once. That makes you smile a bit. “Ok wonderful. Unfortunately it’s going to be me asking the questions…” You sit down. “We really have to figure out this communication thing. First Aid said that theres a thing called Cityspeakers? But that it’s super rare and I shouldn’t get my hopes up.” The light doesn’t do anything for couple seconds, then blinks once. The light right is beside your bed, so it’s easier to interact this way. “So… earlier when you started this light thing… did you want something?” The light once again stays solid for a few seconds, before blinking three times. “Is that… a kind of?” The light blinks once.

“Ok. Do you want me to go do something?” Two blinks, no. “Okay… did you want to talk?” One blink. Progress. “Hm… Did you have a question?” One blink. You think about what would have triggered a question, and then you remember just laying there. “Is it about me?” One blink. “Me not sleeping?” One blink. “Are you asking why I’m not sleeping?” Two blinks, all that progress basically undone. There’s so much that he could be trying to ask, this is way harder than you’d thought it would be. “Uh… what I dreamed about?” Two blinks. You sit there and think hard about what question he could be asking. “… are you asking if I’m ok…?” It was a shot in the dark. One blink. You feel yourself get a little mushy after the initial shock at guessing correctly, this massive sentient city is concerned about you?

“Yeah I’m ok. Just had a weird dream. I promise it’s nothing concerning.” You smiled at the light, having a fixed point to look at made it almost seem like you were communicating with a bot, as opposed to just speaking into the open room. “It just made me think a bit is all, I am feeling tired again though. So I might go back to bed until morning.” The light blinks once, and then slowly slides back into the wall.

“Goodnight Metroplex… and thank you for asking about me. It means a lot.” You don’t get a response, but you know he heard you, he always does.

——

City’s Heart | Part 1

Metroplex X Reader

Current, 2, 3, 4, 5, Ongoing…

——

Being friends with the Autobots isn’t really a big deal anymore. You hang around their base, interact with them on the daily basis, and you’ve taught many of them a lot about earth. As the war progressed, you got moved out of the Ark and to a different base, one that you feel like you would have seen before but somehow haven’t. It looks like a huge city, that doesn’t seem very hidden… Even less hidden than a crashed spaceship in the side of a mountain. “Not to question your judgement Rodimus… but are you sure this place is safe? It sticks out like a sore thumb.”

Rodimus nods, leading you further into the city. You suddenly feel like you’re being watched, and it makes you shiver. Sticking close to Rodimus, he leads you through all these twisting hallways, coming to a stop outside of a room. Theres a weird metallic shifting noise behind the door, and you silently question if Rodimus is really here to dispose of you in some weird cybertronian trash compactor. Trusting Rodimus’s judgement, you look up at him and wait for him to do something.

When the sound stops, he opens the large door, and inside is a rather barren room. It has the necessities, albeit cybertronian sized. “This is where you’re staying.” He motions around the room. “I will make sure that you get some human sized accommodations as well.” He goes to leave the room, stopping in the doorway. “Cafeteria is down the hall and make two left turns.” He leaves and the door shuts behind you. There’s feeling of being watched once again returns, and you suddenly feel very… VERY small. Looking around you realize you can’t do much of anything, everything is way too high up for you to reach.

The metallic shrieking noise starts again and you feel your heart sink as things start moving. He really DID leave you here to die. You quickly start looking around for an exit. You don’t really feel like dying today. Running over you try jumping to reach the door handle, a stupid idea as the handle is easily four times your height up. You begin pounding on the door and calling out for help, when the sound stops. Hesitantly you turn back around, and leading up to the berth is now a set of stairs you can use. Theres also more human sized items such as a desk, bathroom appliances, and a little table for you to eat at. “Uh…”

Hesitantly, you step away from the door and towards the stairs. “How…?” The metal shrieking begins again behind you, and without looking behind you sprint towards the berth and hide under it. The sound only lasted a short time and it was over. Peeking out you notice now a much smaller door attached to the larger one. It was almost comical looking, like something from a cartoon with a mouse door. You would be laughing if your heart wasn’t threatening to beat out of your chest.

Maybe you were so hungry you were seeing things, that’s got to be it. You carefully creep towards the new smaller portion of the door, looking around the room, you quickly leave. After the door is shut behind you, you feel like you can finally breathe. “I just got here… what is going on.” Rubbing the heel of your hand against your eyes, you gather yourself together and start for the cafeteria. “This place is massive…” You say dejectedly. It takes you twice as long to go a distance that these giant Cybertronians can in a matter of seconds, several of them walking past you like you weren’t even there. But yet, you still can’t shake the feeling of being watched. Looking over your shoulder confirms that there is nothing behind you. Just like the last 5 times you checked.

Following the scent of food, you find the cafeteria. Upon entering you notice a couple bots sitting around and chatting. You recognized one of them. First Aid, having seen him around before, only briefly. He spots you and seems to also share the same realization. He gets up and comes over to greet you, offering a hand for you to sit on so he could help you get yourself some food. He even offers to let you sit with his group you have since learned are called the Protectobots. It was fairly easy to fit in with the group once you all started talking.

“So how did a human like you end up here in this old place?” One of them, you haven’t yet figured out all their names yet, asked you. You shrugged, “Rodimus brought me here, said it was safer than the Ark at the moment. But I’m not so sure. I keep feeling like I’m being watched, the room I was given keeps making this loud screeching noise and things keep moving around. It’s honestly really unsettling… I feel like I’m going to get squished by all these weird moving walls…”

First Aid smiles at you, “Nah, Metroplex wouldn’t hurt a fly. I assure you, you’re safe and sound here.” He seems to notice your confused expression because his smile fell just a little bit. “Did Rodimus not tell you anything about this place?” You shook your head and he sighed. “This place, this city. It’s alive. His name is Metroplex, he’s a cybertronian like us, a titan, one of the last actually. He can control basically everything in this city, it is him. He can also sense us, watch us in a way. I can assure you though, he means no harm. The noise you’ve been hearing is him rearranging parts of himself to accommodate you.” First Aid explained, honestly leaving you more confused and a little concerned.

“Wait, so he can like… see me at all times?” First Aid nodded and you now looked more freaked out. “Even when I’m showering or changing?” That question made First Aid stop, now it was his turn to look confused. “Is that not an acceptable thing for humans…?” You shook your head quickly, and he looked at you sheepishly, trying to understand. “I’m sure if you tell him that it makes you uncomfortable, he would be respectful and turn his attention away from that spot until you were done. He might be large and intimidating, but I promise you he really is a… gentle giant, I believe the saying is.”

First Aid walks you back to your room, waiting at your door which opens on its own. He notes how that seemed to cause you some sort of surprise, maybe even startle you to an extent. He spots the accommodations Metroplex had made you, including some new ones you seem to be taking in. “Um…. Thank you uh…” You looked around the room “…Metroplex” you finished. Nothing happened this time, and you thought that maybe the city had stopped watched you, having heard your conversation with First Aid. Looking at your door you notice First Aid still standing there. He seems a little awkward now that he was just lingering in your doorway. Snapping out of it he tries to think of something to say. “Oh uh, if you ever need me. I am four door down to your right, opposite side of the hallway! Just knock, or if it’s an emergency Metroplex can open the door for you.” And he leaves, letting the door shut behind him similarly to Rodimus. Now it was just you and the apparently sentient room you were staying in.

You became hyper aware of everything you were doing, touching, or saying. It felt really weird to know that you were sitting on a bed that was basically just part of a giant robot. As it got later, the room you were in was becoming exceptionally dark, something you haven’t been overly fond of since you were a kid. Deciding to test your luck, you meekly called out into the empty room. “Metroplex…? I uh… I don’t know if you can even hear me or whatever… If it isn’t too much trouble, is there anyway you could possible add a little light in my room…?” You felt kind of stupid speaking to a room, but it was worth a shot anyway. Nothing happened for long enough that you thought all of this might just be a big prank on you, and you aren’t actually stuck in some giant sentient city. And then you heard scraping again, and your room slowly lights up softly as some lights appear throughout your room. “… Thank you.” You weren’t sure if this giant robot could even talk, he hasn’t made any move to speak since you got here. He still never spoke, but you could feel a slight vibration, almost like a hum.

It took you a long time to fall asleep, overall feeling very unnerved by the thought of being watched. You even tried pulling the blanket up over your head, it helped a little bit but not a lot. You eventually just got so tired you fell asleep, quite a restless one however.

The morning came around, and you opened your eyes to stare at the ceiling. Honestly, you were hoping the whole sentient city thing was all just a dream. As soon as that thought crossed your mind, you heard the metal scraping as the stairs from before formed by your berth again. Sighing you swing your feet over the edge. “Thanks” You say into the open, at least wanting to be kind to the giant robot that could just will the walls to squish you if he got irritated by you. Walking down the stairs you go to your suitcase that you haven’t yet unpacked, and grabbed out some clothing.

“Hey uh… would you be able to uh… not watch me for a moment? I want to change.” Once you said it, you realized there was no real way to even know if he was respecting your wishes or not. “If you’re not watching could youuuu… make something appear? That way I know you heard me. Please.” Tagging on the plead, you waited in silence. It took a second, but nearby a very small pillar arose from the ground and you felt yourself relax a little. “Thank you.” Quickly changing. You announce you were done, and that pillar slid back down into the floor to look like nothing had ever been there to begin with.

At breakfast, you sat with First Aid again, he seemed to hang around here at meal times, despite not really having to refuel like humans do. “So, this place, Metroplex. Does it… he, talk?” You ask, looking up from your tray of less than stellar scrambled eggs. First Aid shook his head. “Not in the traditional sense anyway. There is something called a ‘Cityspeaker.’ It is quite rare amongst cybertronians, but it is the ability to communicate with titans, even those who have gone dormant. That is the only way to actually speak to them.” Having more questions than answers now, you just nod.

“So the answer is basically a no.” You put down your fork and continue, “But he can understand me. I noticed that this morning.” First Aid nods with a smile. “He can. I told you he is a good bot.”

“So does he transform like you guys?” You ask, now pushing your tray of half eaten mush to the side. Once more, First Aid nods. “He can, though it is extremely rare for him to. It requires more energy for a bot of his size to transform, and since he has humans and bots living inside him it causes more problems. But he will transform if the need ever arises.” It was your turn to nod. “How tall is he? If all of this is him, I imagine he has to be quite large.”

“Enormous. He makes already large bots look like a grain of rice in his servo.” Boy were you glad this guy was on your side, even if he unsettled you right now. It would take some some getting used to, but he hasn’t done anything to make you distrustful of him yet. First Aid seemed to trust him, and you trusted First Aid.

——

Well. My first multi chapter story has just gotten its first chapter! It is definitely difficult for me not to rush into the romantic parts, a lesson in patience for sure. I do have plans for this story, and it’s a nice mix up from my usual Ratchet content! We always need more Metroplex content in this fandom.