On a busy Chicago street, traffic was so bad that everything was at a stand still. This situation didn't sit well with many of the citizens caught in the jam. One guy even rolled down his window, leaning out of the car and shaking his fist.

"Move it!" He shouted. "For crying out loud, I could walk faster than this!"

"Hey, that's not a bad idea." Bulkhead's voice replied.

With that, Bulkhead transformed into robot mode and just walked down the street, much to the shock of many stunned drivers.

…

In the park, Prowl was looking around at the many trees that filled the area. He could see children playing on a playground, others climbing trees or simply chasing each other. He was standing so still that many birds landed on him, using him as a perch. One turn of his head was enough to send them all flying off, though he was surprised to find several white splotches on his frame, evidence of the birds using him as a bathroom.

Off to the side, Arsenal and Orion were sitting on a hill with Sari. They too were watching the children, Orion taking particular interest in a baby being carried by his mother. As he eyed the baby, he began speaking, drawing Arsenal and Sari's attention.

"The Autobots are programmed to respect the source of all life, and protect it at all cost." Orion shared. "For us, that's the Allspark. But you organics are life as well, so we're designated to protect you too. But something doesn't add up to me."

"What's that?" Sari asked.

"How is it you're able to make these… smaller organics?" Orion asked, pointing towards the baby.

Sari smirked, then began climbing up his arm. Arsenal saved her the effort, gently picking her up and placing her on Orion's shoulder. Once there, Sari whispered in Orion's audio resepter. The information he was told caused his optics to go wide. Arsenal looked confused.

"What?" She asked. "How are they made?"

"I… do not wish to repeat." He answered, his internals fans clicking on as he tried to cool his systems.

He then set Sari back on the ground before transforming and driving off.

"What was that about?" Arsenal asked.

Sari shrugged.

"I dunno." she answered. "Guess he couldn't handle the truth."

…

Back at the base, Bumblebee was in the midst of hooking up a large TV in the main part of the base. Once he was certain it was centered on the wall, he turned back to a massive couch he'd assembled from concrete blocks. He then sat down and picked up the remote for the TV, turning it on. Almost immediately, Ratchet confiscated the remote, turning it back off.

"Just what do you think you're doing, kid?" He questioned.

"Testing our new entertainment system." Bumblebee replied, snatching back the remote. "And it will be incomplete until I check all 5,486 channels Sari provided for us."

"The 'entertainment system' is not a priority." Ratchet snapped. "Besides, we still have to get the medical bay set up, as well as get back to the hanger and begin the repairs."

"Ugh, fine." Bumblebee relented, getting up. "Honestly, you'd think we'd get at least some semblance of a break."

"There's no rest for the likes of us." Ratchet lamented. "Such is the lot of 'heroes'."

"Fun." Bumblebee grumbled as he and Ratchet transformed and drove off.

…

Flying above the city, Ravage, Rumble, and Laserbeak continued their search for the Autobots. Their search led them to Chicago, where they spread out to cover more ground. They kept their scanners open for Autobot signatures, which bore fruit for Laserbeak. He managed to find not one, but two signatures, quickly banking to trail them. He cawwed in response, signaling Ravage and Rumble. They quickly banked as well, following not far behind.

…

Bumblebee and Ratchet continued driving down the street, making their way towards the hanger. As they were driving, Ratchet caught a glimpse of something in his rear view. He adjusted the mirrors, cursing when he got a better view.

"It can't be..." he let out.

"What is it?" Bumblebee asked.

"Kid, when I say go, I want you to put it in reverse and get the heck out of here as fast as you can." Ratchet insisted. "And whatever you do, do NOT go back to the hanger, or the base."

"Doc, what are you-?"

"GO!" Ratchet yelled.

Bumblebee immediately slammed into reverse, shooting backwards down the street. He paused for a brief moment to skid through a 180 before jamming into drive. He shot down the street, and immediately, one of the drones broke off to follow him. The other two continued their pursuit of Ratchet, who whiched on his sirens so he could bypass traffic.

"Arsenal!" Ratchet called out. "We have a situation here!"

"I read you, Ratchet." Arsenal replied. "What's going on?"

"Your statement about there being no Decepticons on this planet were just proven false!" Ratchet explained. "I'm being pursued by two of Soundwave's drones!"

"What?" Arsenal exclaimed. "How can you be sure?"

"Positive!" Ratchet confirmed.

"I'm en route now." Arsenal declared. "Lead them away from civilians as best you can!"

"Already working on it!" Ratchet replied.

Ratchet then sped off, with the two drones still maintaining pursuit.

…

Bumblebee continued speeding along the highway, burning rubber the entire time. The third drone kept on his fender, determined to keep up with the speeding yellow racer.

"Okay, I don't know who you are, but you are clearly not a friendly!" Bumblebee shouted.

Bumblebee decided to transform and shoot at the pursuing drone. The drone easily dodged his shots, then began firing back at him. Bumblebee quickly rolled out of the way of the blasts, transforming once more and driving off.

"Orion!" He cried out into his comms. "I'm in trouble! There's this weird thing after me that spooked Ratchet, and I think it's trying to kill me!"

"I'm aware of the situation." Orion replied. "Arsenal's helping Ratchet, and I'm on my way to you."

"Please hurry!" Bumblebee begged. "I'm too young to go offline!"

"Hang tight Bumblebee." Orion reassured. "Help's on the way."

…

Ratchet continued driving at top speeds to avoid his pursuers. the trailing drones. He was beginning to get tired, and he was sure if he kept up these speeds much longer, he'd end up frying a circuit.

"C'mon Arsenal, where are you?" he questioned.

Suddenly, Prowl's motorcycle form came zooming around a corner, leaping onto a nearby car and soaring into the air, transforming and throwing a hubcap at one of the drones. The impact caused the drone to drop to the ground and transform into Rumble. Ratchet came skidding to a stop, transforming and glaring at Rumble

"I knew it." He snarled. "That means the other one must be-"

Arsenal came charging out of the sky in robot mode, tackling the other drone into the street. When they hit, the drone transformed, revealing Laserbeak. The bird based con shot at Arsenal, forcing her to roll out of the way.

"Laserbeak." she sneered. "I always hated you."

"Well we ain't so fond of you." Rumble threw back.

Arsenal just activated her guns, an action matched by Ratchet's magnetic attachments and Prowl's hubcaps. Rumble responded by forming two massive pile drivers on each hand. He then knelt down and began slamming them into the ground. The resulting impacts caused the ground to shake, and the Autobots to be destabilized by the resulting tremors. Ratchet gained enough

"Oh no ya don't!" Ratchet shouted.

He aimed his magnets at Rumble, using them to pull the drone up into the air. Once he was off the ground and the Autobots were stabilized, Arsenal took her shot. Rumble dropped to the ground with a thud. Laserbeak swooped down and picked him up before taking off.

"He's getting away!" Prowl shouted.

"Let them go." Ratchet insisted. "We need to find Bumblebee. If Laserbeak and Rumble were here, that means the kid's got Ravage on his tailpipe!"

…

Back with Bumblebee, he kept trying every trick he knew to try and lose his tail. As he reached the docks, he came to a stop seconds before hitting the water. He transformed, looking at the drone nervously. It swooped down, transforming into Ravage,.a cat-like transformer which began stalking towards him.

"Nice kitty..." Bumblebee let out, backing away until his reached the very edge of the pier. "You don't have to do this..."

Ravage just growled as he leaped towards him. Before he could tackle though, Bulkhead's wrecking ball knocked him aside, sending him crashing into the other pier. Bumblebee watched him fall, then followed the wrecking ball back to Bulkhead.

"Nice timing, big guy!" He called out.

"Anytime." Bulkhead replied, retracting his hand. "What is that thing?"

"A Decepticon? Maybe?" Bumblebee answered. "But… I've never seen one like that before."

"It's certainly smaller than Megatron, that's for sure." Bulkhead replied.

"Though the cat thing is surprising." Bumblebee tacked on.

Ravage charged towards them as they were talking. As he leapt towards them, Orion's grappling line shot out and grabbed him by the leg, dragging him to the ground. Ravage fell hard, roaring indignantly and clawing at the cable.

"Orion, do you know what this thing is?" Bulkhead asked.

"His name is Ravage, and he's a drone for the Decepticon Soundwave." Orion answered. "If he's here, then we're not the only Cybertronians on Earth."

"But… that's impossible!" Bumblebee exclaimed. "The only Decepticon that followed us through that Space Bridge was Megatron, and he was turned into a fireball somewhere over Cleveland!"

"Maybe, but the evidence shows otherwise." Orion replied, gesturing to Ravage.

Ravage finally managed to free himself, getting up and taking off.

"He's getting away!" Bumblebee called out.

"We won't catch him." Orion insisted, activating his comms. "Ratchet, Prowl, Arsenal, you bots alright?"

"We're fine." Ratchet assured him. "Can't say the same for Laserbeak and Rumble, but I doubt they'll be gone for too long."

"Ratchet's right." Arsenal agreed. "They were a scouting party. Once they report back to Soundwave, every Decepticon on the planet will know we're here."

"You mean we're gonna have to fight Decepticons, plural?" Bumblebee realized. "As in more than one?"

"Unfortunately." Orion lamented. "Let's convene back at base. This could be trouble."

…

Back on the moon, the drones returned to the remains of the Nemesis, Rumble still in the clutches of Laserbeak. The three plopped onto the ground, showing their damage to a surprised Soundwave.

"What happened?" He questioned. "Report."

Laserbeak opened his beak, showing off a holographic display of what he had witnessed. Ravage did the same, and after a moment, Rumble followed suit. It showed all six Autobots, giving Soundwave and the approaching Decepticons a clear view of their enemies. As they watched, Starscream scoffed at their pathetic fighting.

"It seems your drones have gotten rusty if they suffer such damage at the hands of such inept fighters." He sneered.

"Incorrect." Soundwave replied. "The Autobots possess some training. Fighting styles suggest Elite Guard Academy."

"I recognize that one." Blitzwing spoke up with his logical face, pointing at Ratchet. "He's the med-bot they put in charge of Project Omega."

"Impressive." Starscream commended. "But the others seem to be little more than barely trained protoforms."

"Not that one." Black Arachnia corrected, pointing at Orion. "I've dealt with this one. He's crafty."

Lugnut then focused his sole eye on one figure in the group, grinding his jaw hinge in anger.

"Look!" he shouted. "It is her! The traitorous glitch who dared to turn her back on our glorious leader!"

"Well well." Starscream let out. "Now we're getting somewhere."

He turned to Soundwave, taking control of the situation.

"Get your drones down to Knockout in Medical." He commanded. "Hopefully he can pound the dents out of them."

The drones made to walk off, but Ravage paused as if remembering something. He opened his mouth again, activating a hologram of Bumblebee alone.

"The only Decepticon that followed us through that Space Bridge was Megatron, and he was turned into a fireball somewhere over Cleveland!"

The Decepticons were dumbstruck upon hearing that. Lugnut just let out a roar of fury.

"They lie!" Lugnut cried out. "Megatron is indestructible! He could not have been defeated by a group of puny Autobots!"

"I don't wish to believe it either Lugnut," Starscream replied. "But if Megatron were truly online, wouldn't he have contacted us by now?"

Blitzwing switched into his rage face, shaking his fist.

"Disgusting Autobot!" He shouted. "I will pound them into scrap metal for what they've done!"

"Indeed." Starscream agreed. "But all of us going down at once would be a touch excessive. Plus it would show just how many of us there are on this planet. I will go down and deal with these Autobots myself."

"And make them all suffer, in the name of Megatron!" Lugnut shouted.
"Oh, naturally." Starscream replied before transforming and taking off.

Soundwave saw Starscream fly off and began questioning his intentions.

"Ratbat, eject." He ordered discreetly, launching another drone from his chest. "Operation: observation."

This drone, resembling a bat, let out a screech before flying after Starscream.

…

Back at base, Ratchet checked everyone over for damage. Thankfully, the worst he had to deal with were some worn tires on Bumblebee. While he worked, Sari came in, instantly sensing the tension in the air.

"What's going on, guys?" She asked. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

"Something like that." Arsenal replied. "Decepticons."

"Decepti-what?" Sari repeated.

"Decepticons." Orion corrected. "They're… a piece of Cybertron's past that we had hoped wouldn't find us."

"Why?" Sari asked. "What are they?"

"Like us, but evil, cruel, and want to slag us into next week." Bumblebee answered.

Arsenal put a hand on her chest plate, covering the scratched symbol on her chest.

"They care nothing for life, be it organic or Cybertronian." She muttered. "If they're here… I fear what they plan to do to this planet."

"Whatever they're planning, we'll stand against it." Orion reassured.

"How?" Bulkhead questioned. "We barely stood a chance against one Decepticon, and then three mini-cons catch us off guard."

"We weren't ready before, but we are now." Orion replied.

"I'm kinda with the big guy." Bumblebee spoke up. "We're a repair crew made up of two Boot camp flunkies, an Elite Guard washout, a grumpy ninjabot with no people skills, and two war veterans."

"That maybe true," Orion admitted, "but we're also the only thing standing between the Decepticons and the Allspark. So like it or not, we have to try."

…

In the skies above Chicago, several jets streaked through the sky, following an unidentified energy signature that came on rader.

"Uh, got an unidentified bogey on radar." One of the pilots reported.

"Think it's one of the Autobots?" another pilot asked.

"This one came from the upper atmosphere." The first pilot answered. "Maybe it's a new bot."

"What should we do, then?" a third pilot asked.

Before the pilots could respond, a blast of energy shot out and hit one of the jets, destroying it. It began going down as Starscream emerged from the cloudbank in his Cybertronian vehicle mode.

"What is this?" Starscream questioned. "Don't tell me these are some sort of flying Autobot."

"Bogey sighted!" the second pilot cried out. "Engage!"

The pilots began firing on Starscream, their blasts doing little more than singing his paint job. He grunted in pain, doing a 180 and firing on them. One plane went down and the pilot ejected, much to Starscream's surprise.

"Oh, I see." he realized. "These are primitive machines the organics on this mudball created."

Starscream then looked at the last jet, an idea coming to him. He activated his scanner, adding the jet's specs to his repertoire.

"This just might come in handy." he mused.

He then transformed, taking on the form of the jet before flying off on his Autobot hunt.

…

Down in the city, the Autobots were on patrol for any sign of Decepticon activity. Unfortunately, most of them had no idea what they were looking for, a fact pointed out multiple times by Bumblebee.

"Why are we even doing this?" Bumblebee questioned. "Do we even know what the Decepticons look like? All we've seen are Megatron and those drones!"

"Just keep an eye out for anything out of the ordinary." Orion insisted.

"Boss bot, we don't know what ordinary is for Earth yet." Bumblebee rationalized. "Plus, there are so many robots out here, we might as well be walking through Iacon."

"We can't be caught off guard when the Decepticons make their move." Orion told him. "We keep patroling."

"We know that, Pax." Ratchet assured him. "But only a third of our group would even know what to look for, and personally I don't feel comfortable exposing ourselves like this."

"It's not like we have a lot of options regarding this." Orion replied.

"Too true." Arsenal agreed. "Thankfully, the skies seem… clear..."

She paused, noticing something on her radar.

"Hold on, I got something." She reported.

"What is it?" Orion asked.

"Energon signal." she answered. "It's in the air with me. And I think it-"

Suddenly a shot rang out, a laser slicing clean through Arsenal's wing. She screamed and began plummeting downward. Ratchet saw this and sped towards her location.

"Hold on!" He shouted. "I'm coming!"

He transformed mid-drive, activating his magnets. This allowed him to catch her and slow her descent. She still landed hard, but the crash was not nearly as destructive as it could have been. She sat up, clutching her broken wing as the rest of the Autobots came rushing in.

"What happened?" Prowl asked.

"Blindsided me." Arsenal replied, hissing in pain. "It had to be a Decepticon… but who?"

"I think we'll find out in a nanosecond." Orion replied, looking up and seeing the jet flying towards them.

Everyone readied their weapons as the jet transformed in mid-air, revealing itself to be Starscream. He hovered in the air above him, his face-plate seething with malice, pride, and an ego the size of Chicago.

"Greetings Autobots." He spoke. "Prepare to perish at the hand of Starscream! Exalted leader of the Decepticons!"

"I thought that was Megatron?" Bulkhead recalled, much to Starscream's annoyance.

"Silence!" He shouted, firing on Bulkhead.

The blast knocked him back, but the massive bot quickly retaliated with a swing of his mace. Starscream flew over it before blasting at him again. Bulkhead scrambled to get out of the way as Bumblebee came screeching in. Using the tires on his heels, he zoomed around in a circle, shooting at Starscream with this stingers. These seemed to do some damage on Starscream, much to his anger and annoyance. He blasted on the road in front of Bumblebee, causing him to trip and crash into a wall. Prowl ran forward, throwing his hubcaps at Starscream. They managed to hit a weak point in between his wings, causing him to spiral out for a minute. Luckily for the Decepticon, this spinning dislodged the hubcaps, allowing him to regain control.

"Insolent Autobots!" he screamed, firing wildly on Prowl.

Prowl tried to leap around the blasts, but managed to get hit by one in the leg. He fell hard, his leg sparking and clearly malfunctioning. Starscream leveled a shot with his head, but Orion's axe came out of nowhere, connecting with his arm and causing the blast to go wide.

"You dare!" Starscream let out, aiming his other blaster at him.

He shot, sending the axe flying out of Orion's hands. He went for it, but a blast connected with his shoulder, sending him to the ground. By this point, Starscream just began cackling.

"And to think, you actually believed you were the ones to defeat Megatron." Starscream scoffed.

"Last time I checked, we did." Arsenal spat. "Orion sent him out the airlock. He burnt to a crisp."

"Only because I crippled him so even a bunch of Autobot fools could destroy him!" Starscream boasted.

"The shots from the Nemesis..." Ratchet recalled. "That was you!"

"Shoulda known." Arsenal snarled. "You've always vied for Megatron's position. How did you do it? Voice modulation chip? Convince the bridge Megatron himself ordered the attack?"

"The perfect tool to cripple your vessel and weaken Megatron to the point of guaranteed termination." Starscream bragged. "His fate was sealed before he even reached your ship."

"He's lying!" Bulkhead proclaimed, then turned to the others with a curious look. "Isn't he?"

"I'm afraid not." Ratchet answered. "I wondered why that battle seemed so easy."

"You thought that was easy?" Bumblebee asked.

"Now, die Autobots!" Starscream shrieked.

Realizing how outclassed they were, the Autobots transformed and wheeled to safety, taking solace under an overpass. There, they took a moment to catch their breath, so to speak, and try and come up with a plan.

"This guy won't let up." Bumblebee remarked.

"He's not Megatron's Second in Command for nothing." Arsenal pointed out. "He may be a cowardly, backstabbing braggart, but he's a capable fighter."

"What we need is a plan." Orion voiced. "A way to take him down once and for all."

"If my wing wasn't busted, I'd fly up there and give him a taste of my blasters." Arsenal snarled.

"We need to bring him down to our level."

"What we need to do is find a way to get the drop on him." Orion proposed. "We can lure him into a trap if we work together."

"What makes you think we stand a chance?" Bulkhead questioned. "He's a full blown Decepticon, and we're just a bunch of misfits."

"No, we're not." Prowl insisted. "We are more than what everyone says we are. If a bunch of misfits is all we were, then none of us would have survived against the nanite creature."

"Prowl's right." Arsenal agreed. "We've faced down bad odds before, and we came out on top. Besides, if we do go down, I'm going to do my damnedest to take that son of a glitch with me."

She held out her hand, palm down.

"Who's with me?" she asked

They all looked at each other for a few moments before turning towards Arsenal nodding. One by one, they added their hands. They raised them once, then got down to business.

"Alright, if we can lead Starscream towards the business district, we can use the parking garages as a staging ground for our assault." Orion strategized. "From there, we use a coordinated attack to drag him down and take him out. All we need is bait."

"I'll do it." Arsenal offered. "He hates me almost as much as he hates Megatron."

"You sure?" Prowl asked. "Your wing is still damaged."

"It'll hold me long enough." Arsenal reassured. "You guys just make sure to do your thing fast."

The others nodded in response as Arsenal went out to confront Starscream. She stepped out from under the overpass, climbing up before raising the volume of her voice modulator.

"Hey!" she shouted. "Over here you oversized exhaust port!"

Starscream growled in response, opening fire on her. Thinking fast, she transformed into her jet mode and took off, with Starscream flying after her. Her speed wasn't as great as it usually was, and she left a trail of energon in her wake as she flew. Even so, it was enough for the others to get into position.

Arsenal rounded a corner, then quickly dropped in altitude, taking cover behind a billboard. Starscream failed to react quick enough and ended up getting clotheslined by Orion's grapnel. This stopped his forward momentum and bought Ratchet a chance to grab Starscream's feet with his magnets. As Starscream was being pulled down, Bulkhead came up and swung his mace at him, knocking him to the ground. Bumblebee zipped in as well, firing his stingers quickly retaliated by blasting at him, but a hubcap whizzed through the air, jamming the weapon's barrel and rendering it inoperable.

"No!" Starscream cried out. "This is impossible!"

As he worked to pull the hubcap out, Orion ran up and struck Starscream with his axe, knocking him back. The con sat up, rubbing his head as he found himself staring up at the six gathering Autobots. A flicker of terror past through him as his voice synthesizer glitched out for a moment.

"N-no." He stammered. "This can't be happening! You're just a bunch of weaklings!"

"Says the con we just clobbered." Bulkhead remarked, pounding his fist into his palm.

Starscream looked left and right, trying to figure out a plan. After a few kliks, her merely transformed into jet mode before shooting off into the sky. Everyone braced themselves as the heat of his afterburners hit them, but it was clear who had won.

"Wow, you weren't kidding when you said he was cowardly." Bumblebee remarked.

"Good job everyone." Orion congratulated. "Something tells me the Cons will think twice before underestimating us again."

"And when they do rear their ugly faceplates, we'll be ready for them." Arsenal declared.

…

Starscream returned to the Nemesis, venting harshly as he transformed into robot mode.

"Nice work, Screamer." Black Arachnia remarked. "You really showed them."

"So much for our fearless leader!" Blitzwing's random face taunted.

"Silence!" Starscream yelled. "Just get Knockout up from medical and get me patched up!"

He stalked off in a huff under the watchful gaze of Soundwave. Once he was gone, Ratbat came flying in. Soundwave opened his chestplate and the bat-shaped drone quickly mounted itself. His chestplate closed and Soundwave's visor lit up.

"Downloading data file." he announced.

The data downloaded into his processor, including a bird's-eye view of the fight, and Starscream's entire confession. As he heard Starscream describe how he destroyed Megatron, the intelligence officer's fists clenched hard, the metal of his finger hinges screeching slightly. He silently walked off, deciding to continue his observations before taking any action.

…

Isaac Sumdac sat in his lab, watching a news broadcast about the attack from earlier, as well as the aftermath.

"In the wake of a devastating clash of the titans, the Autobots prove themselves even greater heroes than first imagined by not only saving the city, but offering their aid in the repairs needed. When asked about their efforts, the Autobot Bumblebee had this to say."

The screen switched to Bumblebee, who was using his stingers to weld some steel I-beams together for one of the damaged overpasses.

"Personally, I find it a little ironic." He shared. "We started out with fixing bridges."

The screen turned back to the reporter, who had a hopeful smile on his face.

"Speaking for a grateful city, this reporter can only offer two words to our giant cybernetic protectors: Thank you."

Isaac turned off the TV, sighing as he got off his chair, which was shaped like a massive metal hand.

"I wouldn't know where to begin thanking them." He said quietly as he made his way towards the door of his lab. "But if they ever learned the secret behind my robotics empire, would they ever forgive me?"

He prepared to leave, but glanced back one final time at his lab, focusing on something in the corner of the room. There, connected to several wires and panels across the entire wall, was the offline head of Megatron himself.