Chapter 1: Duty Calls!


She watched as a shooting star passed over the crescent moon with no trouble. The moon itself didn't seem to mind comets passing by, but it feared them colliding with its unsightly surface which had already taken enough damage.

Artemis looked down at the town below her hidden from most views by the godly mountains and open to the mellow lake, Wakatipu. Queenstown wasn't much but it was a beautiful sight during the winter as well as the summer. Her younger twin brothers, Conroy and Conrad, and her little sister, Jasmine, lived with her in a home nearby.

She remembered that she had moved there to protect her siblings from Tigressa after she became sixteen and laid off military jobs for a more subtle life for the time being.

In about two years, she had enough money to buy a permanent three-story mansion with a great view of the lake as well as a 30-foot outdoor pool with a 10-foot Jacuzzi next to it.

It also had an aquarium that had a built in water slide that lead to the pool from the second floor. Apparently, it was a majority of the inner walls as well as the ceiling but it still had thick wood lining the rims of the visible glass. Sharks, octopi, many ocean-based fish, crabs, and eels littered the connected tanks which were only connected through the ceiling that had several cylinder-like pathways leading to each one.

The house's color scheme was blue and black with the walls being blue and the furniture being black. The fabrics were a mixture with Artemis being obsessed with tiger stripes (guess why). The outside of the house was also blue with access to the lake by its right side.

A dream house she loved as well as her family. She occasionally got visits from Dexter and other military friends including the Cybertronian-protecting trio, but she feared that one day, her enemy would find her disguised as one of her companions and destroy everything she had.

The thought seemed ridiculous but it chilled her to no end. Artemis peered up to see the sun begin to rise and swiftly ran down the mountainside towards her ground bound home.

As she unlocked her door and went into her mansion, she couldn't help but think about her siblings' future. Would they be safe with her? The question alone didn't seem to sink in to her tired mind.

Right as she touched the 8-seat corner sofa, the twins ran down the stairs and jumped right next to her with a hug each.

Artemis was slightly startled by the movement but shrugged it off by drowsily put both arms around the boys.

"What are you two doing up so early?"

Conrad frowned, "It's almost eight, sis. We always get up around this time due to old habits."

Conroy sat silently, glaring at a blue-ringed octopus that seemed to be watching them.

"Let me guess," she sighed heavily while rubbing her eyes, "you boys want pancakes, eggs, and bacon, don't you?"

Conroy shook himself out of his staring contest with the octopus and sarcastically replied, "Gee, you know us all too well!"

Artemis merely got off the large couch and went straight to the kitchen where she grabbed a few pans from the small island and placed them on the stove which resided on the larger one.

Just before she could ignite the black stove, her 100" TV lit up with Dexter's image. Her four 50" flat screens then flashed different lists and what appeared to be locations marked by red signatures.

"Artemis, I need you to return to base immediately. Optimus has come up with a plan that I think you might not like."

Artemis quickly shuffled to the front of the screen before answering, "What does the big guy have in mind? Hopefully it doesn't include the Metal Heads for mutiny against their leader. That wouldn't work like a car without an engine."

Dexter couldn't help but chuckle slightly, "Eh…no, no. That's not the plan. Optimus has decided to try and recruit both Tigressa and her siblings by issuing a challenge to her."

"You're kidding, right? A challenge for her loyalty? What the hell is he going to do, out-race her? Out-smart her? She's not that stupid nor do I believe that she'd let him live during a race against her."

Dexter put his fingers on the edges of his eyes, "No, what he's going to do is slightly more of an artifact chase with a time limit. If Tigressa can't find the six relics he's hidden on this planet in five hours, she'll have to enlist with the Cybertronians and thus be under Optimus' control. This would give him the power to subdue the Metal Heads as well as Tigressa and her siblings."

Artemis was speechless for a minute before she finally broke the silence, "So, you expect Tigressa to honor her word on the deal? Besides, what happens if she wins?"

"Then, Optimus has told us, much to our horror, he'll give her the Matrix of Leadership," Dexter said, bowing his head in denial.

"W-what!? He promised her that? W-why, why would he do such a thing!?"She practically screamed.

Dexter sighed, "Yes, he did and the challenge will be considered by Tigressa herself tomorrow when the Autobots and Decepticons invade the cavern that she resides."

"Sometimes, I question Optimus' sanity and his wisdom big time," Artemis scolded while shaking her head.

Dexter nodded at the statement, "Yep. By the way, your presence will be needed this evening so at 4 PM, Ratchet will open a ground bridge to the base and we'll discuss our opinions on the plan. See you then."

The screen's visual on the mercenary faded but the other four TVs still had the location markers on them with a mixture of Cybertronian and English texts.

"So," Conrad started, "does this mean we get to go to the military base too?"

Artemis raised a brow before rolling her eyes and heading back to the stove for breakfast.


"I didn't do shit! You're the last one who even touched it!" Arcee retaliated.

Smokescreen huffed before searching under the medical berths. He mumbled something which was inaudible to humans but Arcee heard clearly.

As soon as he stood up and faced here, his mind became scrambled with a hard punch to the head. He lay on the ground, rubbing his helm frantically as he heard the femme's footsteps leave the opposite direction.

He knew she would blab to her "boyfriend" about what he said and frankly, he didn't want the big lug chasing after him.

"What did you say this time?" Bumblebee smirked.

Smokescreen merely snorted and walked past him in a fit of anger.

Suddenly, both froze as the alarm went off. The yellow mech quickly activated the control panel to see what the emergency was.

"All Autobots and Decepticons are needed at the coordinates posted. Let's just say, our metal abomination friends are back with some new enemy tactics as well as upgraded comrades."

Smokescreen hissed at the command. He hated Metal Heads more than their leader and it showed. He watched as Bumblebee set the coordinates and prepared the ground bridge for departure.

Arcee finally came back but didn't bother acknowledging the rookie's presence. All three bots then transformed and headed towards their new destination.