Taylor awoke with a splitting headache. Her limbs felt heavy when she tried to move them, like thick pillars of wet cement. She managed to roll onto her side with a soft groan, lifting her eyelids. It was too dark to really tell where she was and it didn't help that her vision was currently spinning like she was on a merry-go-round.

"Ratchet...?" She croaked, her dry throat making her voice sound hoarse. Her body refused to let her sit up.

No answer.

Sucking in a breath through her teeth, she forced herself into a sitting position and propped herself up with her arms. Everything felt so heavy and sluggish. It took a few seconds for her vision to stop spinning and a wave of nausea came and gone before she could see clearly again.

Based on what she could see at that moment, she was inside a large, cavernous den that definitely seemed larger than Megatron's. There was an opening in the ceiling that allowed natural light to enter the otherwise dark den. Various plants and objects lined the ground near the walls, each in their own separate pile. Whoever lived here obviously liked being organized.

As she moved her hand to push herself up further, she brushed against something smooth and cold. She drew her hand back in fear and looked down. The skull of an animal sat beside her, but it wasn't just any ordinary skull. It mostly resembled a cat, but had features like horns and extra eye sockets that made it strange and unnerving to look at. It sent shivers down Taylor's spine and caused her to look elsewhere.

A hint of movement in the back of the den made her heart leap into her throat and she froze, her eyes glued to that area. A single red eye appeared in the darkness after a moment passed. Her breath hitched when it spotted her, its pupil dilating until the entire eye was nearly black. An enormous, dark shape rose out of the inky black darkness and lumbered into the light.

Shockwave.

The one-eyed dragon was massive. His scales were deep purple with streaks of dark grey. There were spines the size of an adult human along his back that got smaller as they went up his neck. A terrible scar and an empty eye socket were all that remained of his other eye, but that wasn't the only disfiguring feature he possessed. The scientist's left paw was deformed and twisted, preventing him from using it normally. He could still walk on it, but it was otherwise useless. Taylor couldn't help but feel a slight pang of pity for the dragon, but that was immediately forgotten when he approached her.

"I see you have awoken." Shockwave said, his voice deep and void of emotion. He maintained a neutral expression, though it was clear that he was disgusted by Taylor's presence. "Lord Megatron has granted me permission to study you. You are my first human subject, therefore it would be logical to study your kind."

Taylor swallowed hard, trying to keep herself from trembling. She was absolutely terrified. "W-Why do you want to study me?" She asked, her voice quavering in fear.

"Humans are a curious species. You are considered alien to my kind, yet we are familiar with you."

"What do you mean?"

The atmosphere suddenly grew tense, Shockwave's blank stare shifting into an intense glare of hatred. The larger scales along his back seemed to raise like a cat's hackles in an intimidating display of anger.

"Your kind took something from me. Your kind also took something from a close comrade. Humans take and take without ever considering the damage they are dealing. We are familiar with your species as a result of violence. I wish to learn more about your kind so that I can destroy your kind." His low growls reverberated throughout the den, similar to a menacing cave-like echo.

Taylor thought her heart had stopped, but was somewhat relieved when she felt it pounding in her chest again. She slowly exhaled through her nose, trying to release the tension that was suffocating her. Shockwave could kill her at any moment

"B-But not all humans are bad! We don't want to hurt you!" She cried, though she knew her efforts were futile.

"I do not care." Shockwave continued with a sharp hiss, baring his teeth in a rare show of anger. He rarely ever expressed any emotions unless he was truly upset. He stalked towards her, a glimmer of malicious intent within his single red eye. "You are a naive and foolish human. You do not know the full extent of the damage your fellow members have caused, and that shall be your downfall."