What Lies Beneath

by JadeDaUnicorn

Summary:

Shortly after the death of his mother, Ratchet manages to avoid getting chained up to the ceiling and falls into a pile of junk instead. While trying to evade capture, part of the Chop Shop’s flooring unexpectedly caves in, sending Ratchet and Bigweld down below. The situation leads to the two reluctantly joining forces to find a way out, while the Robots back on the surface plan a rescue.

But as the duo explore, they find things that state one thing.

Gasket has secrets that she hides, even from her own son.

Chapter 1: Prologue: The Creaks Before The Fall

Ratchet ran.

 

He started running the moment he crawled out of the pile of junk he had fallen in. Behind him, he could hear his pursuers giving chase. He knew why they were chasing him.

 

So he kept on running.

 

He darted between cracks, climbed over obstacles, knocked over items, did anything, anything, to buy himself more time to escape.

 

But he was not as familiar with the Chop Shop as his mother was. To him, the place was a labyrinth, a maze with no way out.

 

Creak.

 

That sound, that little sound, should’ve signalled Ratchet to stop. But he had heard plenty of creaks while in the place, so he didn’t think much of it.

 

Creak.

 

Creak.

 

He crashed into someone, the force sending him falling onto his back. He immediately scrambled backwards, whatever order that was left in his panicking mind identifying who he crashed into.

 

Bigweld. He must’ve taken another path to cut Ratchet off.

 

He’s trapped.

 

Creak.

 

The louder creak made him pause. Bigweld paused too.

 

Creak.

 

They looked down at the floor just as the mob was starting to catch up. The floor was bending inwards.

 

CREAK.

 

CRASH!

 

The floor gave out, sending the two falling into the abyss down below.

 

The last thing Ratchet saw was the quickly fading light of the surface.

 

Then pain exploded from the back of his head, and he saw nothing but darkness.