Chapter 1
The Alliance
Before time began there was the cube. We knew not where it came from, only that it had the power to create worlds and fill them with life. That is how our race was born. For a time we lived in harmony, but like all great power, some wanted it for good, others for evil. And so began the war. A war that ravaged our planet until it was consumed by death, and the cube was lost to the far reaches of space. We scattered across the galaxy, hoping to find it and rebuild our home, searching every star, every world. And just when all hope seemed lost, message of a new discovery drew us to an unknown planet called Earth. But we were already too late.
The cube had landed on Earth, bringing with it the Autobots and Decepticons, and unleashing our war upon the unsuspecting planet. The battle for the cube was short, and in the end it was destroyed. It terminated Megatron in the process, who we thought would be the last threat standing in the way of universal peace. But we soon found that this was not the case...
---
A private jet zipped through the evening air carrying a being who held the future of the United States and possibly the future of all other countries in his hands. It had only been a number of minutes since he left the Pentagon. His destination, an area on the other side of the country in the west. A specific area made legendary by the stride's the government makes to keep it hidden from all minds deemed unworthy to know it. And for this particular event, it was the only place considered secure enough.
The Secretary of Defense, John Keller, sat silently in his leather seat as he gazed out the small window at the passing world below. All the luxury in the world could not comfort him on this flight, though. He had a strange feeling in his stomach; almost like that which one would get in childhood when things went bump in the night. The mystery of not knowing what it was was the fear. Such was the fear now that he had to face, similar to what he had felt nearly half a year ago on the day of the invasion. Only this time it was not the fear of facing some unknown, advanced alien species. It was not being able to tell what would happen as a result of what decisions he had made over the past few months, and what decisions he would make tonight.
"Sir, we've got 15 minutes until we reach our destination. F-22's will be escorting us down." A male voice kept the Secretary updated on flight progress. It amazed him on how much technology has improved, and all over studying a certain being known as Megatron. Mr. Keller let out a heavy breath as he fingered the pages of a file on his lap. Any military nicknames had for the Cybertronians, as they were now being referred to among the privileged military, had been tossed. It was a tough switch to refer to these beings with actual identities. Names to be called by. He supposed it was because people were still having a rough time adjusting to the idea that an invasion had actually happened.
But here they were. And here it was happening.
Opening up the file he forced his tired eyes to read over the information one last time. It contained updates over what has been happening since the battle in Mission City, with the military and what the United States satellites have detected. What people and the press have been reporting as meteor crashes have become more frequent, landing all over west. Strangely enough, there were no remnants of any type of rock that the crater could have been created from. For the public, this had flown over their heads. But for the research analysts at the Pentagon these craters appearing over the face of North America only struck them with a fear concerning the first invasion. Twice there have been reports of violent attacks on the Highways of Mission City, and briefly inside the city itself at one time. The culprits were what survivors described as "giant robots". One young boy even went so far as to label them "gundam suits" after some popular cartoon show. To the Secretary's surprise the public had taken the government's silence on the topic as an attempt to hide new military advances rather than considering the obvious, an invasion. But given the situation the less people who knew, the better.
He turned the page again. Numerous snap shots of what appeared to be two blurry giants flooded the pages along with the story that described them. A report filled out by the Captain of a top secret flight group in the restricted Side 7 Air Force base. It was believed that a distress call was sent out which led to the involvement of a 5 man response group. Only 2 pilots out of the original group survived. Images from the Raptors had been confiscated and reviewed. The figures in the snap shots appeared to have the same exoskeletal figures as the invaders.
"5 minutes to arrival, Mr. Secretary. F22's will now be escorting us to the ground." The pilot's voice cackled over the radio.
John tapped his thumb on the cover of the file, returning his gaze to the outside window as the Raptors pulled up to the side. He would need this information. Every single word if he were to make a convincing enough story to gain the support he needed to pass the decision he would make in only a couple of hours.
---
Nearly 40,000 feet under the private jet a group of vehicles drove swiftly across the Mojave desert in the southern Nevada region. Their destination: Area 51; easily considered one of the most secretive places in the world. The brakes of a deep red semi-truck made a smooth stop in front of the first of many gates entering the territory. A guard wielding a gun hooked around his shoulders held up a hand to signal the halt before walking up to the side door.
"Identification and Access code." he said.
The window rolled down to reveal a dark haired man who pulled an ID from his wallet to hand to the guard, "Captain Lennox. We're here under direct order of Defense Secretary John Keller. Pass code: Whiskey027DeltaBravo NinerNiner3."
"Proceed to the next gate." The guard pointed the path leading to various other gates. The 18-wheeler pressed on followed by a car, a truck, and what looked like a Hummer H2 converted into an ambulance. Captain Lennox looked out of the front windshields, handing his ID and speaking the access code burned into his mind only when needed. He was called here to be a voice of reference for Mr. Keller, but would it even be worth it? Humans were afraid of what they didn't understand. What would the reactions of this small committee be once they heard the Secretary's proposal?
The 4 vehicle group made their final stop deep within the protection of Area 51 inside a hollowed out Air Craft hangar. All possible doors and windows were shut, and the building itself was lined with all types of security including a canine unit and fully armed guards. Defense Secretary Keller strolled up to the driver's side of the semi-truck just as the Captain swung open the door.
"Shut the door. No one goes in or out until I say so." he said to the two guards at the door.
"Yes, Mr. Secretary." they responded and instantly pressed a button that would close the last hangar door, locking them all inside.
That task done, the grey haired man turned his attention back to the young Captain Lennox and truck before him, "Are you ready for this?" he asked, eye brows raised slightly in a look that may have foreshadowed some vicious behavior.
"As ready as I'll ever be." The Captain breathed, straightening the coat of his dress uniform before focusing on the table of men yards away.
Keller glanced at the table slightly before turning back to the vehicles, "You're free to transform in whatever form you're most comfortable in." he said and then waved an arm towards the table, "Shall we?"
As he proceeded foreword with Captain Lennox at his side the group of Autobots transformed behind them.
"Gentlemen, " Secretary Keller spoke again, taking his place at the head of the table and motioning to the large Cybertronians beside the table, "This is Optimus Prime, the leader of the Autobots, and his men Ratchet, Ironhide, and Bumblebee. You remember they were the ones who aided us in the Mission City Invasion." Then he turned to the Autobots and motioned towards the long table of men, "The men and women of the concerning branches in the Department of Defense. Get comfortable. I suspect we'll all be here a while."
The Secretary set down his file on the oak table as he took a moment to rest his hands on the surface while everyone got comfortable. Captain Lennox eyed him from the other end in a lower ranking seat while the Autobots took seats around the table, Optimus kneeling on a single knee to get as level as he could with the humans.
Now that the attention seemed to be focused on him once more he began a brief recap, opening what would surely be hours of negotiation and convincing. "As you know, our country was attacked 7 months ago when a hostile alien group referred to as the Decepticons landed here on Earth. They came here looking for the All Spark: a massive cube structure concealed by the Hoover Dam. The cube was destroyed in the battle at Mission City, and since then these four Autobots have remained on our planet to help monitor activity."
He took a seat in the leather chair given to him at the head of the table, observing the serious looks on the faces with him before continuing, "I have invited Optimus Prime to join us this evening to help us decide on a solution."
Eyebrows began to knit together, but no one whispered among themselves just yet. "Solution, Mr. Secretary?" inquired the Secretary of the Army.
"Now I don't need to remind you what's been going on between now and the Invasion. You've all seen the same information I have." he said.
"And? With this cube gone there's no more threat to the Earth. Any other alien life forms can be disposed of with the proper military equipment and planning." said another secretary, receiving a nod from the Secretary of the Navy in response.
Captain Lennox felt his blood beginning to boil, but clenching his teeth before he spoke he kept his cool, "The only reason we've even lasted this long is because they choose to defend us. Without their help we'd be screwed."
"That the threat to Earth is gone is an incorrect statement." A deep voice spoke this time. Authoritative but gentle all the same. All arguing that was about to break out ceased, and now all eyes were on the Autobot commander towering over them.
"What do you mean?" asked the Secretary of the Army.
"When the All Spark and Megatron were destroyed, we too believed the threat to the Universe was over. That our war was over. However, back on our home planet, Cybertron, war between the Decepticons and Autobots was still waging."
Secretary Keller eyed one of the Chief Analysts across the table, but he could feel a touch of concern around all of them. "There are more?" The analyst asked.
Optimus Prime turned his blue optics on the man, a small look of sorrow, if one could so detect, showing through on the metal plates he tried to keep serious, "Not many. But there are survivors. On both sides."
As the great leader continued Captain Lennox allowed his eyes a quick peek at the other Autobots surrounding the table. The glow of their optics faced the floor and some heads were down. They wouldn't hesitate to show remorse for their fallen brethren.
"During the war one of my men constructed a ship around the time the cube was lost. It was made to be a powerful weapon, capable of ending the war on Cybertron. But the cube's energy was needed to power it, and when the All Spark was lost there was no way to activate the ship. Cybertron was already in an energy crisis as it was, and with constant Decepticon attacks the Autobots had no choice but to pilot the ship away from Cybertron."
The Secretary of the Army felt his eyes narrow, "And the ship? Where is it now?"
Optimus hesitated for a moment, choosing his next words carefully so that they would bring the least amount of conflict but tell all truth at the same time. It seemed like an impossible task. "The Ark, the ship, had been searching the galaxy for energy. After the Invasion on your planet I sent out a transmission to gain contact with any surviving Autobots. The Ark managed to intercept the transmission, along with a Decepticon ship known as the Nemesis."
He paused again, letting the information soak into the heads of the military leaders around him before he continued, "Recently you may have noticed a change in the space around your planet. What you may have thought to be a newly formed star was the destruction of the Nemesis and part of the Ark. Damaged, one of my own soldiers, Ultra Magnus, piloted the ship to the only planet in the solar system that showed active energy. It crash landed in the northwestern part of what is known as the Mojave desert."
"You mean that thing is here?" One of the Secretary's stood up in protest before turning his glare on Secretary Keller. A tall man, one who clearly worked-out in his younger days, but age was beginning to show around his midsection. "And you want to side with the ones that put our planet in danger, again?"
"No one meant for this to happen!" Captain Lennox abruptly stood to his feet, eyes pinned dangerously on the secretary only a few seats ahead of him, "But it did. The Decepticons would have come to Earth regardless of the Ark anyway."
All eyes now focused on Captain Lennox with an incredulous look; one which Optimus pulled away when he began to give an answer only he could. "With Earth's technology, energy is being produced; what we call Energon. The Decepticons would have come to Earth and enslaved the planet, harvesting all of its energy, whether the Ark was here or not."
"Forget the energy. How did that ship manage to slip into our atmosphere and i crash /i in our own deserts without any trace? Not even a signal?" A man ripened by many catered meals thundered his voice across the table. Such a question began to raise whispers over the few invited to the meeting. It was a disturbing and unsettling thought: that an alien ship considered to be a powerful weapon of unknown capabilities had dove in plain sight and crash landed in their own lands without so much as a 'bleep' from a monitor. Optimus kept his vocal processors silent. It was too early to answer such a question, and would maybe even cause more trouble than it would quell.
Secretary Keller stood to his feet, a grave and stern look on his face wrinkled by years of decision making, "Settle down!" The authority in his voice almost resembled that of a father calming his children. A silence fell to the room as all heads turned to him, "Why or how the Decepticons are coming to Earth is no longer important. What is important is that they are here and more will be coming." He paused a moment to make sure he had everyone's attention. He could even feel the glow of optics in the room on him. "Captain Lennox is right; no one asked for this to happen, no one wanted this to happen and no one meant for this to happen; for our planet to be caught up in all of this. But we need to swallow our pride and realize that, whether we like or not, we are at war and we won't be able to handle all of this on our own."
The looks of the aged and stern faces around him began to soften as the words sunk in. Some even looked guilty, while some remained stubborn. But with the softening looks that appeared to show more interest and understanding and the quelled whispers, he now lowered his voice.
"Now Optimus Prime and his men have been kind enough to protect us from these minor attacks over the past few months without a request. I think it's more than safe to say that the Autobots are not our enemy." He took hold of the file in his hand and slid it down the length of the table for anyone who wished to review it, "Meanwhile the Decepticons have already begun attacking our cities and other establishments for energy. Separate, we struggle to combat the Decepticon forces."
Secretary Keller straightened up. This was the part that was most crucial to this meeting and the future of the United States. By the looks on some faces, he could tell that some already knew what he was about to say.
"We've both discussed this..., " and he eyed Optimus slightly, receiving a subtle nod in return, as he spoke on, "...and we both agree that the wisest plan of action would be to form an alliance between the United States and the Autobots."
Whispers began to trickle through the table, questioning the judgment as well as expressing support for it.
"We'll cast a majority vote. If you favor the alliance simply say 'yes'; if not say 'no'."
With that said the Secretary of Defense continued standing and went around the table. The votes were mixed, some 'yes' and some 'no'. However he felt a weight lifted from his shoulders when he discovered that only two men out of the ten sitting at the table had voted against the alliance, and it was for financial precautions. Secretary Keller held back a grin. There would be some things to work out, yes, but that would come with time. As he signed the papers written for the Alliance he noticed that his hand was slightly shaky, but whether this was for excitement or nerves he couldn't tell. Nor would he care to tell. The paper was passed on to Optimus Prime, an awkward signing to say the least, so instead he imprinted a pattern of small Cybertronian symbols on the paper. It seemed the easiest way, though not the most discreet. After four witnesses from the table signed, two humans including Captain Lennox and two Autobots including Ironhide and Ratchet, Secretary Keller stood once again.
"The United States-Autobot Alliance has been passed. Congratulations ladies and gentlemen. This document and all things discussed here today will be classified at top-secret, as well as any future discussions between us. Optimus I'd request that you and your men stay in disguise as much as you can while you're in public. Everything concerning Cybertron and Earth still needs to remain as low key as possible."
Optimus simply nodded his head in response before facing the table of chiefs and secretaries, "It's been a pleasure meeting with you all. Secretary Keller, you know how to contact us in case of emergency." After formal good-byes had been exchanged the Autobots present rose to their feet and stepped to the door. "Autobots, transform and roll out."
---
Far from Earth in a darker part of the galaxy was a planet characterized by the war that had eaten away at its surface for millions of years, though it was barely clinging to its very existence. It was known as Cybertron, and most of its inhabitants had either fled or been killed. The few Autobots and Decepticons that did remain, however, had essentially halved the planet in an unspoken truce. Because both sides had virtually run out of troops they had separated far from each other to their own territories to lick their battle wounds and recover.
In one particular territory, marked by the hanging and scoured carcasses of previous Autobots, the time of the unspoken truce was being put to use. The infamous Starscream overlooked the progress of working drones below. Autobots would have been used as slaved, but it seemed all would rather die at the end of Starscream's blaster rather than be enslaved.
"Move faster! Don't stop working until I say so or I'll turn you into scrap metal myself!" he yelled from above. The Decepticon turned away from the edge to face a system of monitors. It had been months since he'd escaped from Earth after the battle for the All Spark, and since Megatron had been permanently put offline. Tragic? He couldn't say that he felt any remorse for the fallen Decepticon leader, for he had benefitted wonderfully from his destruction. He had claimed leadership of the Decepticons since he was Megatron's Second in Command.
Now that all of the remaining Decepticons on Cybertron knew that he, Starscream, was the leader, he was having them build a new ship to replace the destroyed Nemesis. But who was taking care of his affairs on Earth? Just before he'd left the Milky Way galaxy he had sent out a transmission to any Decepticons that may have already left Cybertron in search of Earth. A loyal Decepticon warrior had picked up the transmission, one which Starscream had appointed his new Second in Command. This Decepticon, this Dreadmoon, was left in charge of Decepticons on Earth while he rebuilt a ship on Cybertron.
Starscream's metal fingers moved swiftly across the control panel of the main screen. "Dreadmoon, report." he ordered.
A comm link opened to a computer based on Earth. The fact that it even opened to an image of Dreadmoon staring back at him showed progress.
"A base of operations for the Decepticons has been set up in what the Humans call the 'Barringer Crater', located in the desert areas of the west. We've been able to obtain energy from a few of the Human communities; enough to get the base running well and sustain ourselves with Energon." he said.
Starscream's metallic lips curled into a vicious smirk. If such steady success was kept up, they would be able to defeat the Autobots once and for all without any trouble. Red optics turned to the soldier before him as he put on pause the dreams of conquest and victory, "Good work, Dreadmoon. Report back to me again in 2 Earth weeks. In the meantime obtain all the Energon you can without drawing too much attention to yourselves."
Once he heard a short 'yes, Starscream' from Dreadmoon he cut the link and returned to the ledge overlooking the mindless working drones. Once this ship was built he would be able to return to Earth and take control of the planet's energy as he pleased.
"Soon.." he began, his words breaking apart by his own insane cackle, "The destruction of the Autobots will be at hand!"