CHAPTER THREE: ROBOTS IN DISGUISE
"I love Peter; I always have, and I always will. I admit, when we first started dating – and when he first told me about being Spider-Man – I didn't take his responsibility as seriously as I probably should have...which caused us both a lot of heartache. But I get it, now; I understand why Peter does what he does...well, I like to think I do...and I love him even more for it. Still – and I'm really not trying to sound mean, here; I know the risks – I'd always thought that any trouble I'd ever get in would be related to him being Spider-Man...but, boy was I ever wrong..." – Mary-Jane Watson.
Triskelion, New York, November 12, 2007
The sun was just starting to appear on the horizon over New York City, with much of the sky still dark...but the Triskelion was still as busy as ever before, especially after the latest 'incident'.
As Nick Fury strode into the briefing room, he was glad to see that all of the Ultimates had gathered there; Cap, Wasp, and Iron Man were present, as was the mutant speedster Pietro "Quicksilver" Lensherr, clad in his usual black-and-silver bodysuit, and his probability-modulating twin sister Wanda "Scarlet Witch" Lensherr, in her regular black-and-red uniform. Also present was Thor, in his usual armored vest and pants, his war-hammer – "Mjolnir" – strapped to his back. Clint "Hawkeye" Barton, in his uniform, was also present.
"Thank you for coming on such short notice." Fury greeted. "I trust you've all read the briefing?"
Each of them nodded. "I still can't believe it." Scarlet Witch murmured.
"Nor I." Thor added. "And you say these foul machines – these 'Decepticons' – have returned?"
"We saw one with our own eyes, Thor." Cap said. "And it might have been the last thing we'd have ever seen, if that Autobot – Hound – hadn't shown up."
"Ever since the Transformers left Earth, the possibility that they might return was always a reality." Fury said. Scowling he added, "But the more time passed, that possibility became more and more far-fetched; some people in the government figured that they'd just destroy each other, out in space."
"But why now?" Hawkeye asked. "Why not a year ago, or five years ago?"
"We don't know." Fury said. "But I'm willing to bet that it has something to do with this 'AllSpark' that the Decepticon mentioned. Regardless of why, the fact is that they're back. Right now, we need to make contact with Optimus Prime and his Autobots."
"There have been reports of 'ghost cars' throughout New York City, these past few weeks." Quicksilver said. "That has to be them."
"But why haven't they contacted us?" Wasp asked.
"Knowing Optimus Prime, he was likely trying to keep us out of whatever fight was coming." Fury answered.
"Too bad it didn't work." Iron Man said. "Do we have any idea as to where they are?"
"None, so far." Fury said. "Our satellites are combing every inch of the planet...but we're dealing with robots that can change into vehicles; it's like looking for a needle in a haystack."
"And these Decepticons can do the same." Thor said.
"We might have walked right past one, and not even known it." Wanda said. "God..."
"They could be anywhere." Fury agreed. "And that's why we have to contact the Autobots A.S.A.P. Not only that, but we're going to need every bit of help we can get."
Cap's eyes narrowed warily. "General?"
Fury sighed. "The Pentagon has ordered me to speak with Giant Man...and, if he agrees, to reinstate him, albeit temporarily."
Wasp jumped from her seat. "General, are you joking?!" she shouted. "Hank betrayed the entire team!! And now you want to set him free?!"
Fury sighed; he figured that Wasp wouldn't be happy about this little deal with her ex-husband. "Believe me, Wasp, I'm not happy about this, either, but we're dealing with giant alien robots hell-bent on annihilating the human race and stripping Earth bare. Hank's abilities are going to be essential, whether we like it or not."
Wasp's eyes narrowed. "Fury...he almost killed me..."
"...which is why this is a provisional reinstatement, Dr. Van Dyne." Fury replied. "We're going to be watching him like a hawk."
Wasp turned to Cap. "Steve..."
Cap's expression was regretful, as he considered both her and Fury's words...before he turned to his girlfriend. "I'm sorry, Janet, but the General is right, as far as Hank's abilities are concerned; his ability to go giant will certainly help level the playing field." he said. Seeing Janet's hurt expression, Cap turned to Fury, his eyes narrowed. "But I want to make sure we're clear on this, General; even if he helps us, Hank is not to be allowed to get off, scot-free; if that's the price he asks, as far as I'm concerned, we're better off without him."
Janet smiled weakly. "Thank you."
Fury smiled grimly. "Don't worry about that, Captain; we won't be letting him off the hook." he replied. "The best he can hope for is getting his sentence lowered from life to seventy-five years; the U.S. government does not take kindly to traitors."
Wasp looked satisfied with that. "Good."
"What about the X-Men?" Wanda inquired. "Surely they would..?"
"I've attempted to contact the Institute several times," Fury replied, "but with Charles Xavier's death, Mr. Summers seems intent on keeping the Institute a place of learning, and nothing more."
Pietro's eyes narrowed. "Maybe we should talk to them."
"Not an option, right now, Quicksilver." Fury said. "We need every resource we have ready in case the Decepticons try anything, and if you and your sister try to force the Institute into anything, all we'll get is a fight we do not need. Now, Richards and his team are willing to assist us, but right now, they're the best chance we have of neutralizing whatever virus it was that the Decepticons put into our system, so, essentially, we're on our own."
"Which is why we need to contact the Autobots as soon as we can." Cap finished.
Fury nodded. "For the moment, all of you are on high alert; we have no idea when that virus is going to go off, but it's a safe bet that when it does, the Decepticons are going to launch a major offensive. We're stepping up our surveillance across the globe; once we locate the Autobots, we plan to make contact." he said. "This briefing is over." His expression turned grim. "Good luck to us all." With that, he headed out, while the Ultimates headed to their ready-posts.
XXXXXXXX
Parker residence, Queens
As the morning sun started to peek through the clouds, a very tired Spider-Man started to pick himself up from his stake-out perch across from his own house.
He'd been there all night...and the Camaro hadn't so much as budged.
'Last time I stake out a haunted car.' Spider-Man groaned, as he fired a web-line, swinging across to his home, unseen, before creeping in through the attic window. He quickly changed out of his costume, and flopped onto his bed, hoping to catch a few Z's...
"Peter! Breakfast!"
Slowly, Peter opened one bloodshot eye, groaning as he dragged himself back out of bed, before pulling on his street clothes and heading downstairs. As he walked into the kitchen, his Aunt May noticed his weary expression. "Oh, dear...rough night?" May asked.
"Sort of." Peter replied, smiling wearily as he started munching on his cereal. "I don't think I'm up to driving to school, today."
May nodded. "Did you want me to give you and Mary-Jane a lift to school, today?"
"Yeah...that would be great." Peter murmured, his eyes starting to pull themselves shut. Then, he remembered last night. "Aunt May?" he asked. "While I'm at school...could you just...keep an eye on my car? You know, just keep it in the garage?"
May smiled. "Of course, Peter. I won't let it leave the garage."
Peter smiled, relieved. "Thanks." After he had finished breakfast, Peter quickly gathered his things, and headed to the garage, getting into the family car...parked next to the Camaro. As Aunt May got in the driver's seat, Peter spared one look at his car...before his eyes shut, giving him a few moments of blessed slumber, as Aunt May drove them to the Watson residence, to pick up MJ before heading to Midtown High.
XXXXXXXX
Downtown New York City
As the noon sun rose high over New York City, a lone police car drove down the streets. None of the citizens paid it any mind; it was just another patrol car at work.
They were too wrapped up in their pitiful little lives to notice the phrase written on its side...or that its driver never moved an inch as he drove...
"Barricade, report."
In vehicle-mode, Barricade suppressed his surprise. "I live to serve you, Lord Megatron." he answered his leader's transmission. "I have found no traces of the accursed Autobots, my Lord."
"That is disappointing, Barricade...but, at the moment, unimportant." Megatron answered. "I have found the link to the AllSpark that we have been searching for. The historical files we extracted mention a 'Lord Leopold Watson,' who lived less than two voruns ago; in his last few cycles of life, he told his relatives of a discovery he once made. The file also makes reference to several glyphs he once sketched, taken from his prosthetic lenses; the organic once saw our language."
Barricade felt his processors momentarily stall as he considered his ruler's words. "My Lord...he may have seen the AllSpark..!!"
"Precisely." Megatron confirmed. "At the very least, the insect may provide us with the next clue to the AllSpark's location. The organic may be gone...but his descendants remain."
"What are your orders, my Lord?" Barricade asked.
"One of Watson's spawn dwells in this city; in the settlement of Queens, to be precise – a 'Mary-Jane Watson;' I am sending you all available data on her, now." Megatron said. "Your orders are to apprehend the Watson female, and procure these lenses. If the female is not forthcoming with the lenses, you are to bring her here, so that we might...persuade her."
Barricade chuckled. "Gladly, my Lord." he agreed. Then, he paused. "There is but one question, Lord Megatron; if the data files are correct, this female is the spark-mate – or the organic equivalent of a spark-mate – of Peter Parker, the powered human designated 'Spider-Man'. As such, it is very likely that he will be with her."
"I am not interested in that insect, Barricade; only the lenses interest me."
"Of course, my Lord; I will apprehend the female." Barricade said. Under his vehicle-mode, he smiled, as he asked, "And if the Parker youth objects?"
Megatron's electronic voice portrayed ultimate disdain. "Eradicate him."
Barricade chuckled. "It shall be done, my Lord."
"For your sake, Barricade, it had best be done quickly. Megatron out."
As Megatron ended the transmission, Barricade turned, and drove towards Queens, savoring the task at hand. The human educational facility would be concluding activity in a few earth-hours; just enough time for him to get into position.
Soon, they would have a clue to the AllSpark...and he would get the chance to stomp a squishy.
Life was good.
XXXXXXXX
Midtown High
The morning passed fairly quickly, and as lunch-time came around, Peter wasn't feeling as tired as before. After heading to the cafeteria, Peter sat at his usual table with MJ and Kitty. "Hey, Tiger." MJ greeted as Peter sat down. Her expression became concerned. "Rough night?"
"You could say that." Peter said.
Kitty chuckled. "Yeah, seeing you start to doze off in Chem class was a bit of a red-flag."
Peter managed a wry smile. "So, what's new with you two?"
Kitty frowned. "Nothing, except that the Geography teacher is a racist prick." she muttered.
Mary-Jane nodded. "You'd think that the school would have screened for psychos like him." she agreed. To Peter, she asked, "So, what's wrong with the Camaro, Peter? You never told me why your Aunt May gave us a lift to school."
"I didn't want to say why in front of her; after her finding out about me, I didn't want to stress her any more than I already have." Peter said. He lowered his voice. "There is something weird about the Camaro."
Kitty looked concerned. "How weird?"
"'Driving-by-itself' kind of weird."
MJ gasped. "You mean...it is haunted?"
"I don't know," Peter said, "but...I don't think it's evil; my spider-sense has never gone off – well, at least not in a bad way – around it, and it actually saved my bacon from another car, last night."
Kitty chuckled. "Maybe Casper is haunting it."
Peter lightly chuckled at that, before his expression became serious again. "Regardless, until I figure out what's giving the Camaro wanderlust, I'm keeping it in the garage."
Mary-Jane smiled. "Then I guess we can walk home, today?"
Peter smiled back. "Nothing wrong with a little exercise, I suppose." he agreed. Just then, the lunch bell rang out, prompting them all to return to class.
XXXXXXXX
Parker residence
As mid-afternoon came around, May Parker had sat down in her living room, enjoying a nice cup of tea before she stepped out to run a few errands. She had been watching the afternoon news, which was still talking about the attack on the air base in the Middle East; no-one had claimed responsibility for it, which was quite odd.
'And we think our own problems are earth-shattering.' May thought sadly, finishing her tea. After she had washed the few dishes she had used, May put on her coat, picked up her purse, and headed towards the garage. She reached for the doorknob...when she heard what sounded like static...like a car's radio tuning. Slowly, she opened the door, quietly, so as not to alert anyone in the garage; if it was a prowler, she was in big trouble. She opened the door...
...and froze.
There was no-one in the garage...and the static was coming from the Camaro...but that was nothing compared to what she heard next.
"Bumblebee, this is Prime."
May quickly darted out of sight, her mind reeling; she recognized that commanding voice – she knew who that was...
"Bumblebee here, Prime." the Camaro replied, shocking May further. "What's the problem?"
"We have a Priority One alert, Bumblebee; Elita-One has intercepted a Decepticon transmission...from Megatron himself."
"Terrific." the Camaro muttered. "Did she get a fix on Slag-Face's position?"
"Negative, Bumblebee, but we now know what the Decepticons are after. Megatron has ordered Barricade to apprehend Mary-Jane Watson."
May suppressed a gasp at that revelation.
"Peter's spark-mate??" the Camaro asked. "Primus, what'd she do to get Megs fritzed?"
"The files that Frenzy stole from the Triskelion must have been about one of her ancestors...who may have encountered the AllSpark; this contact apparently left a coded imprint upon her ancestor's prosthetic lenses. Megatron has ordered Barricade to find her and retrieve the lenses...at all cost."
May suppressed another gasp, at the thought of that sweet girl being hunted by those monsters...
"Slag." the Camaro cursed.
"It gets worse, Bumblebee; Megatron has also ordered Barricade to destroy Peter if he interferes."
"And knowing Pete, he's not gonna sit idly by while that son-of-a-glitch goes after his femme." the Camaro finished.
"Bumblebee, you have to get to Peter and Mary-Jane before Barricade does, and get them to safety."
"I'm on it, Prime." the Camaro replied. "I'm assuming that we're going to make contact with him, now."
"Correct, Bumblebee; as soon as Peter and Mary-Jane are safe, contact us for further instruction. Our sensors have Peter and Mary-Jane heading away from their school...and Barricade is closing on them; you have to go now!!"
"You don't have to tell me twice, Commander; I'll get Pete and his femme clear of that scrap-head, and beat seven kinds of slag out of Barricade while I'm doing it!"
"Then get rolling, Autobot! Prime out."
As the transmission ended, May's head was spinning; her boy was in danger. She had to warn him..!
She turned to head back into the house...and her purse slipped off her shoulder, landing on the floor with a small thud.
The Camaro heard it. "Mrs. Parker???" it cried. May froze. "Oh, scrap. How much did you hear?"
May took a deep breath...and walked into the garage. "Everything." she murmured, trying very hard not to cry. "Those...those monsters are...are going to hurt Peter..!!!"
"Not while I'm here, ma'am." the Camaro answered. "I need you to open the garage door for me, Mrs. Parker; Pete's tough, but Barricade's got the element of surprise."
Nodding, May quickly opened the garage door. "Please...bring them both back safely." she pleaded.
The Camaro chuckled. "That's the plan, ma'am." he answered. Then, the Camaro's ignition spontaneously switched on, as the car roared to life, gunning its engine and peeling out onto the road, racing off, leaving May alone with her worry.
XXXXXXXX
Queens, a few minutes earlier
After class had let out, Peter and Mary-Jane had gathered their things at their lockers, and headed out of the school, walking home. Peter smiled, as he looped an arm around MJ's shoulders, letting her lean against him as they walked. "This is nice." he said. "No police sirens, no costumed psychos..."
"No ghost cars." MJ interjected, giggling.
"...just you and me, having a nice, normal walk." Peter finished.
MJ smiled. "Yeah, it is pretty nice." she said. Then, she smiled sheepishly. "Peter? I just remembered: I promised my Mom that I'd get home early; we're expecting more of Great-Great-Grandpa Leopold's stuff to arrive from England, and I promised I'd help organize it. Can we cut through the old section of Queens?"
"The abandoned part?" Peter asked. "I don't know, MJ; that place is pretty dangerous..."
Mary-Jane sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right..."
Peter felt his resolve start to falter. "Well...okay." he said. "I know a shortcut; we should be able to avoid most of the dangerous spots. We'll be in and out."
MJ smiled, and gave his arm an extra squeeze. "Thanks, Tiger." she cooed. With that, they both headed towards the old part of Queens.
After a few minutes of walking, Peter noticed that the streets were pretty empty; there wasn't a soul in sight. Peter was automatically on guard; this was always when something bad happened...
He hated being right.
Peter was nearly knocked off his feet as his spider-sense went ballistic; there was something really, really, really bad coming towards them. MJ noticed his reaction. "Peter?" she asked. "What's wrong?"
"Something's coming." Peter replied. "MJ, I need you to head to that corner and hide." He gestured to a street corner. "Just duck into an alley, and stay out of sight; chances are, whatever it is, it's gunning for me. I'll duck out of sight until I see what we're dealing with, and when it comes after me, I'll lead it away; when I do, you just head down 5th Street – it'll take you right to our neighborhood."
Mary-Jane looked stricken. "But, Peter..."
"No buts, MJ." Peter said firmly. "I need to make sure you're safe." Reluctantly, MJ nodded, and ran around the corner, hiding in a darkened alley. With his girlfriend safely hidden, Peter darted into another alley, and was about to don his costume...when his spider-sense flared up again...
...as a police car slowly drove by the alley.
Peter froze. 'Huh??' he thought. There was no mistaking it: that patrol car was setting off his spider-sense. Peter kept low, waiting for police officers to rush into the alley...but none came. Slowly peering out, Peter saw the car slowly starting to round the corner.
His eyes widened; whatever this car was, it wasn't after him.
It was after Mary-Jane!
Peter quickly darted out of the alley, calmly walking towards the car. "Excuse me, officer?" he called, causing the car to promptly stop, still a good distance from MJ's hiding spot. "I'm a little lost." Peter added, approaching the driver's side window, hoping to talk to the driver, giving MJ time to escape. "I was wondering: could you direct me to..?"
Suddenly, his spider-sense flared...seconds before the driver's side back door, slammed into him, knocking him down. Lightly coughing, Peter picked himself up, before he marched over to glare at the policeman in the driver's seat. "Okay, pal, I know you're not a real officer!" he accused. "So just lose the fake moustache and tell me what's going on?!" With that, he reached through the open window to rip that fake-looking moustache off the guy's face...
...and his hand passed right through the officer, as if he wasn't even there...seconds before he fizzled into nothingness, like a bad T.V. signal. Peter froze, automatically backing up, as his spider-sense went nuts, just screaming at him to get the hell away from that car..!!!
"You should have stayed out of it, organic."
Peter's eyes widened, as he heard that cold, metallic voice, coming from the police car...seconds before the car started to transform, metal and gears shifting and rearranging, grinding into new positions...as the car-thing stood up on legs that had folded out from where its trunk had been, its hood shifting back to form shoulders, with black-metal clawed hands, attached to powerful arms, all connected to a powerful black-metal torso...and then, a head emerged from the torso, with a spiked head-crest, a mouth full of razor-sharp metal teeth...and a pair of malevolent, glowing red eyes...
...and there, in the center of its chest, was the crest of a robotic face, dark purple, angular and menacing, glaring at him with evil intent.
Peter recognized it. He knew what this was; even as his conscious mind was shocked beyond belief, his logical brain understood what was happening...
The Decepticon roared in metallic rage, as it swung its metal fist at him. Peter's reflexes instantly kicked in; he darted to the side, as the robot's fist smashed the asphalt where he'd been seconds ago. "STAND STILL, INSECT!!" the Decepticon thundered, as his hands began to shift, forming automatic weapons, before taking aim at him...
'Aw, man,' Peter's mind thought under his extreme panic, 'I hate how these things can do that...'
The Decepticon opened fire, sending a spray of high-caliber rounds searing towards Peter; even with spider-agility, Peter was just barely able to flip, spin, and dart away from each and every one, only angering the mechanical maniac even further. After evading the last bullet, Peter's shock had faded to his usual level of on-the-job stress; he was just fighting another lunatic...
...who happened to be at least twenty feet tall and made of metal.
Darting away from another rain of bullets, Peter ran right at the Decepticon; if he could jump onto it, he might have a chance to find a weakness...
...but he quickly learned that he didn't have quite as much of a speed-advantage as he'd thought.
With swiftness that belied its size, the Decepticon re-formed its hand, before slamming Peter with a back-hand strike, sending him flying across the street, to crash into a wall, cratering it. Peter sagged to the ground, coughing, dazed...
"PETER!!!" Mary-Jane screamed, emerging from her hiding spot as she saw him fall.
"RUN, MJ!!!" Peter shouted.
MJ's scream bade the Decepticon to turn towards her, his optics narrowing as he spied his real target...and frightened human emerald met angry robotic red. "OH MY GOD!!!" MJ screamed, frozen to the spot.
The Decepticon let out a low snarl, as he stomped towards Mary-Jane, who frantically started to back up, trying to get away, until she was backed up against a broken-down car. The Decepticon slammed its metal fists down on either side of the car, as his voice boomed out over her shriek. "Are you 'MSN username Spydergurl229'?!!"
Mary-Jane froze. "W-W-What?"
"ARE YOU MARY-JANE WATSON?!!!"
MJ fought back tears. "Y-Yes."
"WHERE ARE YOUR ANCESTRAL ARTIFACTS?!!!"
MJ's eyes started to water. "M-My w-what?"
The Decepticon's tone grew angrier. "WHERE ARE THE OPTICAL ENHANCERS?!!!!"
Mary-Jane's eyes were watering, now. "I...I don't know what you're talking about..."
As Peter recovered from getting a metal fist in his gut, he saw the evil machine looming over MJ...and fear for her focused him like a laser. "Hey, Tin-Grin!!" he shouted, as he ran right at the Decepticon. "We're not through, here!!" And he punctuated the sentence by leaping into the air, unleashing a leaping kick on the machine's head.
Peter's momentum, combined with striking above the Decepticon's center of gravity, as well as the machine's surprise at being attacked, sent the metal monster flying to the side, a good ten feet away, as Peter landed in a graceful crouch, before checking on Mary-Jane. "MJ, are you okay?"
"P-Peter?!" MJ cried, still in the grip of hysterics. "W-What was that?!"
A metallic roar cut the air, as the Decepticon leapt to its feet; the wheels on its forearms shifted around, shedding their rubber coating, as the hubs expanded into deadly, spinning spiked wheels, the wheels extending handles, becoming lethal flails.
'Terrific,' Peter thought, 'I just pissed off the giant, murderous robot. Brilliant move, Parker.' Fortunately, Peter still had clarity of thought under the situation – since these kinds of things happened to him every other day. As the Decepticon stomped towards him, Peter quickly yanked his web-shooters out of his knapsack, clipped them onto his wrist, and fired a web-glob at the Decepticon's optics. The Decepticon howled, unleashing venomous curses in what sounded like royally-pissed-off binary, trying to get the webbing off its optics. Peter took advantage of the break by firing web-lines at its forearms, then running right under its legs, before giving a good, solid pull, flipping the robot flat on its back. With his foe temporarily disabled, Peter started to walk towards Mary-Jane, to get her out of here...
Big mistake.
The Decepticon quickly shifted back to vehicle-mode, gunning its engine and racing towards Peter; Peter's spider-sense went off just in time for him to dodge the main force of the ram-attack, but the car still clipped him a good one, sending him sprawling to the side. The car then stopped, as the Decepticon shifted back to robot-mode, before pulling off the webbing. "It's been a while since I stomped one of your kind, squishy." he sneered. "I plan to enjoy this!" He lifted up his massive metal foot...
Peter quickly fired a web-line, and pulled himself away just as the Decepticon's foot smashed into the concrete. "I hate to disappoint you, Rust-Bucket," Peter shot back, flipping to his feet next to MJ, "but we're not quite so easy to squish, anymore!"
The Decepticon scowled...and then sneered, as his arm shifted into a deadly-looking arm-cannon. "Scrapping you the old-fashioned way will have to do, then." he snarled, as he took aim at Peter, who readied himself to grab MJ and dodge. This would be close..!
Suddenly, the roar of an engine cut the air, as the Camaro raced out of a nearby alley, knocking over the surprised Decepticon, and sliding over to Peter and Mary-Jane. The doors popped open, and the engine revved twice; it wanted them to get in.
A few minutes ago, Peter might have hesitated, but after seeing the Decepticon, new possibilities were popping into his head. If the police car was a Decepticon...then the Camaro had to be a..!
"MJ, get in the car." Peter instructed.
"What?!" Mary-Jane cried.
Out of the corner of his eye, Peter saw the Decepticon start to get up. "MJ, we have to go." he said. "This car isn't going to hurt us."
MJ shook her head. "I...I can't..."
Peter grabbed her by the shoulders. "Mary-Jane, trust me; if he's what I think he is, we'll be okay." he assured her. At those words, the frightened girl nodded, and got into the passenger seat, while Peter hopped into the driver's seat; the doors shut, and the seatbelts slid across their chests, as the Camaro floored it, racing away from the Decepticon.
As the Camaro sped through the streets, Peter tried to calm himself, to organize the thoughts that were racing through his head, the questions he wanted to ask his 'car'...but he put those thoughts aside, as he saw that MJ wasn't nearly as calm as he was.
Seeing a giant, murderous robot tended to freak one out. Heck, he'd been initially freaked at seeing it, and he saw weird stuff on a daily basis. For Mary-Jane, however...
"Oh my God...oh my God..." MJ whimpered, still in hysterics. "Peter...what was that thing?!"
"MJ..." Peter soothed.
"It...it just changed, Peter!! It changed and it started attacking you!!!"
"MJ..." Peter said. If he could just tell her what he'd realized.
"And what is with this car?!" Mary-Jane cried. "God, Peter, this whole mess started when you bought this stupid piece of junk!!!"
"WHO THE SLAGGIN' HELL ARE YOU CALLING A PIECE OF JUNK, LADY?!!!"
MJ froze when that voice came from the Camaro's radio, surprising both her and Peter, even though Peter had been expecting it. "MJ...that's what I was trying to tell you." Peter said. "I don't think my car is really a car."
"Oh my God...this car...it's just like that other one!!" MJ cried. "It's going to change and start attacking us!!"
"No, MJ, it isn't." Peter assured her, but it was no use; she was in full 'freak-out' mode. "Hey," he said to the Camaro, "can you pull over? She needs fresh air."
"Sure thing, Pete. I think we lost him." the Camaro replied, as it pulled into an empty construction site; by then, the sun was starting to set. The Camaro came to a stop, and Peter and MJ got out. Peter then simply held the woman he loved close, letting her cry. "It's okay, MJ." he whispered. "It's okay." After a few minutes, Mary-Jane's hysterics had subsided, and Peter released her from his embrace. "Like I said, MJ," Peter added, "my car isn't a car." With that, he fired a web-line at the Chevrolet insignia on its grille – the loose symbol he'd tried to inspect, the other day – and pulled.
The chevron came right off...revealing the crest of a bright red, plain, trustworthy robotic face underneath it.
MJ gasped. "It's...he's..."
"...an Autobot." Peter finished. 'Oh, duh!' he mentally berated himself. 'How dumb am I? Why didn't I see this, before?'
The Camaro chuckled. "I think he said the secret word." he said. "I'm surprised you didn't figure it out before, Pete."
Peter chuckled. "Hey, you guys have been gone a while; with so much other stuff that could be around, 'alien robot' isn't the solution that most readily comes to mind." he said. "So, which one are you..." But he stopped, as he considered the Camaro's paint job, his youthful-sounding voice...and it hit him. "Bumblebee!"
Bumblebee laughed. "Got it in one, web-head!"
Peter froze. "You...know about me?"
"Afraid so, Pete; Prime's had me watching your aft these past few kilo-cycles."
Mary-Jane was still a bit shocked. "Then...that other robot was..."
"...a Decepticon." Bumblebee confirmed. "Barricade, Megs' go-to-bot for infiltration; all 'Cons get their chips off lying, but Barricade takes it to a new level. Figures he'd scan a police car."
Suddenly, the 'police car' roared around the corner, heading into the construction site. "Speak of the Pit." Bumblebee muttered. "Listen, Pete, you take Mary-Jane and get out of here; I'll meet you two back at your house." Then, he chuckled. "Now, as an old pal of mine would say, it's time to bust some Decepti-chops!"
And with that, the Camaro started to change; massive metal arms extended out from under the hood, as the car folded in half, its dash becoming a torso, with massive metal legs standing up from the trunk, the doors of the Camaro shifting up like wings, as a head rose out of the powerful metal torso, almost human-like in appearance, with two bright blue optics. Then, a yellow metal face-mask slid down over Bumblebee's face, giving him an almost insect-like appearance. "Peter, Mary-Jane, get out of here NOW!"
Barricade raced straight towards Bumblebee as Peter and Mary-Jane retreated, transforming as he closed on his foe. "Autobot SCUM!!!" Barricade roared, as he tackled right into Bumblebee, his momentum knocking the slightly-smaller mech off his feet...but Bumblebee had been ready; instead of fighting the inertia, Bumblebee rolled with it, falling back, before kicking Barricade off in a throw, sending the Decepticon crashing to the ground a good twenty feet away. As Bumblebee got up, the enraged Barricade did the same, before morphing his hand into a cannon and firing at Bumblebee. Bumblebee quickly darted aside, causing Barricade to miss, his blast detonating against construction scaffolding. Bumblebee strafed around Barricade, his hand shifting into a plasma-cannon, as he fired through the openings between buildings; 'Bee's aim was dead-on, as several plasma-blasts connected, knocking Barricade flat on his cast-iron keister. Barricade snarled in fury...before he shifted into vehicle-mode, driving out of sight.
As Bumblebee slowly walked through the construction site, his plasma-cannon at the ready, humming with power, Peter and MJ watched from the alley they had hidden in. MJ breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God that thing is gone..."
Peter's eyes widened as his spider-sense started flaring up; that had been way too easy. "Barricade isn't gone yet, MJ." he whispered. He leapt to the wall, adhering to it. "You stay here; if anything goes wrong, you sneak out the back and run as fast as you can to my house...and don't stop for anything."
MJ looked stricken. "You're...you're going to fight that thing?!"
"Bumblebee saved my neck, Mary-Jane; he needs every edge he can get." Peter replied. He lightly smiled. "I'll be okay."
MJ smiled weakly. "Okay." she cooed. With that, Peter stealthily crept up the wall, to get a better view.
With the shadows of twilight settling over the city, Peter went unnoticed by Bumblebee – and, hopefully, Barricade – as he leapt to an adjacent building, looking down, trying to spot the Decepticon, listening to his spider-sense...
There!
The glint of black chrome betrayed Barricade's position, as the 'police car' lay hidden in the shadows of a darkened alley, its engine silent...as Bumblebee started to walk right in front of it..!
"BUMBLEBEE!!" Peter shouted. "TO YOUR LEFT!!!"
Instantly, Bumblebee turned as Barricade roared out of the alley, transforming and extending his spinning flails; Bumblebee didn't have enough time to get a target-lock...
...but Peter's warning had given him just enough time to tap a small unit at his waist.
Instantly, a faint blue force-field surrounded Bumblebee nano-seconds before Barricade's flails hit him; the impact sent Bumblebee flying, but the field blunted the blow considerably, preventing Bumblebee from taking any serious damage. Bumblebee hit the ground, skidding a few feet, before doing a hand-spring, coming back up, rolling back a few feet more from the wheels in his feet...before crossing his arms as Barricade opened fire at him with his machine-gun, keeping Bumblebee pinned as he advanced...as Bumblebee's field began to grow fainter, losing power...
Peter then spied a large crane in the alley that Barricade was attacking from, with a huge wrecking ball...a crane ideally positioned for a sneak attack...
Firing a web-line, Peter swung to the building across from the crane; the wrecking ball was resting on a rooftop; one good pull would send it hurtling down to the street below. Peter fired a web-line at the ball, and gave it a few good yanks, dragging it to the edge of the rooftop; by then, Barricade was almost in position...a few more steps...
Peter pulled on the line with all his might, yanking the huge metal ball off the roof, where it swung towards Barricade.
The Decepticon had only enough time to turn to look at the wrecking ball...and utter one expletive.
"Oh, slag."
WHAM!!!
The metal sphere knocked Barricade right off his feet, sending him sprawling, to land hard to the side; Bumblebee needed no other opening – he quickly dropped his force-field, and took aim at Barricade, as two small missile-launchers extended up from under his wings, while his plasma-cannon began to charge. Slowly, Barricade started to get up...and then Bumblebee let him have it.
Barricade howled in agony as plasma-blasts and missiles ripped into his armor, sending chunks of metal flying; as Bumblebee's barrage ended, the Decepticon staggered back, sparking pink fluid leaking from cracks in his chest-armor. "This isn't over, Autobot!" Barricade snarled, before he assumed vehicle-mode, and raced off...with black smoke leaking from his exhaust.
As Peter leapt down from the crane, Bumblebee laughed, his arm returning to normal, his missile-launchers retracting, and his face-mask shifting back up. "Pete, that was beautiful!" he crowed. "Barricade never even knew what hit him!"
Peter chuckled. "Nobody threatens MJ and gets away with it." he said. "You weren't too bad yourself, 'Bee." He then blinked. "But what was that field you used to block Barricade's shots?"
"Defense screen; one of Wheeljack's latest inventions – he based it off of Teletran One." Bumblebee answered. "It's not perfect; it only lasts for a short while, and it won't do anything against one of Megs' shots – not with that son-of-a-glitch shooting anti-matter – but it's better than nothing. Plus, 'jack's still tweakin' 'em."
By then, Mary-Jane had cautiously emerged from the alley; seeing Peter, she ran to him and hugged him. "Oh, God, Peter, are you okay?!"
"I'm fine, MJ." Peter replied, hugging her back. "I'm okay."
Slowly releasing her boyfriend, Mary-Jane looked up at Bumblebee. "Thank you...for saving us." she said. "I'm...I'm sorry I called you...a hunk of junk."
Bumblebee chuckled. "You were a little fritzed at the time, Mary-Jane; I wasn't offended."
Peter sighed. "Well, this is gonna be a heck of a story to tell Aunt May." he said. "So much for not stressing her any further..."
Bumblebee scratched his head. "Uh, yeah...about that..."
Peter groaned. "Tell me she didn't see you."
"Okay. I won't tell you."
Peter groaned in exasperation. Mary-Jane giggled. "Well, at least your car isn't haunted..."
"...it's just a fully armed, transforming alien robot." Peter lamented. "Aw, man, if this gets out, my insurance premiums are gonna go through the stratosphere..."
Bumblebee's expression became serious. "Peter, right now, that's the least of your problems." he said. "You two are gonna have to come with me; we need to talk to you."
Peter froze. "We??"
Bumblebee chuckled as he shifted back to vehicle-mode. "You didn't think I came here alone, did you?"
Peter and Mary-Jane looked at each other, their expressions mirroring their astonishment...and their agreement; if the Autobots wanted to talk to them, it had to be important. Nodding to each other, they both opened the Camaro's doors, getting in and buckling up, letting Bumblebee take them wherever he needed to.
As they drove, Peter smiled to himself, as he took back any negative thought he'd had about the Camaro.
His car was a kick-ass, shape-shifting robot.
You couldn't ask for a cooler set of wheels than that.
XXXXXXXX
Triskelion
"General Fury, we have contact!"
After getting that message, Nick Fury had raced to the Triskelion's command center. "Report!" he barked.
"Our satellites have picked something up, sir!" the lieutenant in charge reported. "A few minutes ago, we detected weapons-fire in a construction site in Queens; when we looked closer...this is what we saw."
The screen showed a zoomed-in image of Peter Parker and his girlfriend...talking to a large, yellow robot.
"We're assuming it's an Autobot, General, since any Decepticon would have blown Parker and the Watson girl away."
Fury frowned to himself. 'Dammit, Parker, why couldn't you have stayed out of this one?' he thought grimly. "Do we have their present location?"
"Negative, sir; after the Autobot went to vehicle-mode, we lost track of it – they're completely indistinguishable from regular cars from a satellite's perspective, General."
"Stark said his suit-scanners detected the Deception in Qatar." Fury said. "I want him in here and installing a similar scanning program into our system; we need to be able to find them."
As the staff on duty hurried to follow his orders, Fury sighed to himself. He'd hoped to keep Peter out of this...but now that he was involved...they were going to need his help...
"Sir, we have another problem." an aide reported. "The Pentagon has decided to call a press-conference regarding the...situation."
Fury scowled. 'Should've known this would happen, sooner or later.' he thought; the Transformers' return to Earth was – literally – too big for them to effectively cover up. "Who authorized it?"
"The President, sir; he's given Secretary of Defense John Keller the go-ahead."
Fury nodded. John Keller was a good man, but a tough negotiator; Fury didn't know him personally, but he knew enough to know that it wasn't any good to try and talk him out of this – Keller's rationale would be that the public needed to be prepared for this situation. "I want to talk to him before he goes public."
"Sir?"
Fury smiled wryly. "I just need to make sure the SecDef has all the information about our friends' return."
XXXXXXXX
New York City outskirts
The sky had gone dark as the Camaro drove into an empty parking lot on the edges of the city, far from prying eyes. As Peter and Mary-Jane got out, Bumblebee transformed, as an antenna extended from his shoulder, emitting a high-pitched beeping tone for a few seconds, before it retracted.
Mary-Jane blinked. "Okay...what was that?"
"Locator signal." Bumblebee explained. "Tells the others where I am."
Peter looked wary. "And Barricade can't track it?"
"Not fast enough to get our position; Elita-One herself designs our codes – good luck trying to crack 'em." Bumblebee answered.
There was silence for a few minutes. "Um...is anyone coming?" Mary-Jane asked.
"Wait for it."
Just then, Peter heard the distinct sound of engines in the distance. Then, several vehicles emerged from the darkness, driving up to them: a black, 2007 GMC Topkick truck, a brand new, silver Pontiac Solstice, a bright, neon-yellow ambulance, and a white-and-blue patrol car.
Under normal circumstances, Peter wouldn't have paid a second thought to seeing any of those vehicles on the road...but after meeting Bumblebee, his mind was open to new possibilities. Still, he was a bit disappointed; he'd hoped to see an 18-wheeler among them...
"Is that him, Bumblebee?" the patrol car asked. "No offense, but...he's a little small."
The Topkick chuckled. "So was Bumblebee, Prowl, an' he turned out okay." it said, in what sounded like a Southern accent.
The Solstice revved in agreement. "Yeah, give the kid a chance, bro."
The ambulance revved in what sounded like a 'hmpf.' "I'm still not thrilled about this; putting this kind of strain on a human youth – additional abilities or no – is not healthy for..."
"I'm right here, you know!" Peter snapped, a little annoyed at the vehicles talking about him as if he wasn't there.
Bumblebee chuckled, shaking his head. "Adults. What are we gonna do, eh, Pete?"
"Didn't mean nothin' by it, son." the Topkick said.
"We were just concerned." the patrol car added. "This isn't like anything you've faced before..."
"He can handle it."
Peter froze at the sound of that wise, commanding voice, as he and MJ slowly turned around...in time to see the large, red-and-blue, flame-painted, 18-wheeler, semi-tractor-trailer truck, pulling a large, grey trailer, roll to a stop behind them.
"Oh my God..." Mary-Jane whispered. Peter would have shared her sentiment, if his voice hadn't frozen.
Slowly, the trailer automatically detached from the truck, which inched forward, allowing them to clearly see the red Autobot crest on its grille...before it began to change: its hood expanded, rotating and shifting back into the truck, as the engine morphed and rearranged, the cabin of the truck becoming a powerful torso, with two mighty arms extending from where the hood had been. The back section of the truck shifted into two massive blue leg struts, matching the red-and-blue hues of the rest of the mighty mech's armor, with the back wheels lightly spinning on the shin-struts. As the truck's exhaust pipes shifted into place, defining the robot warrior's shoulders, a blue, helm-clad head emerged, its bright blue optics shining, the twin antennae on the helm shifting into place, the mech's mouth covered by a silver face-plate. His change complete, he looked down at Peter and Mary-Jane, before slowly kneeling closer to their level, putting them at ease, his ancient, wise, gentle blue gaze meeting theirs.
"Optimus Prime..." Peter whispered, his mind reeling from the fact that he was face-to-face with the leader of the Autobots, and one of the greatest heroes the entire universe had ever known.
Following their commander's example, the rest of the vehicles promptly transformed; Peter and MJ watched in amazement as the Autobots assumed robot-mode: the Topkick became a large, intimidating black-armored mech, with large cannons built into his forearms. The Solstice shifted into a sleek, silver mech, with a helm almost resembling Optimus', with a blue visor instead of eyes. The ambulance became a stern, austere-looking robot, with broad shoulder-plating. And the police car transformed into a black-and-white mech, with 'wings' like Bumblebee's, and a visor and face-plate.
Peter gulped. "Uh...hi."
"They're...they're so big..." Mary-Jane murmured, moving closer to Peter nervously. Peter couldn't blame her; the Autobots were each fifteen feet tall, at least, and Optimus...he towered over thirty. It was like meeting the Empire State Building.
Then, Optimus' face-plate shifted, and slid back into his helm, revealing the rest of his face, as his mouth curved up in a light smile. "You two have nothing to fear from us." he said.
Peter managed to find his voice. "We...we know that, sir." he stammered. "It's just...we...never expected to actually meet you guys." He lightly smiled. "It's...it's an honor."
Prime softly chuckled. "The honor, Spider-Man, is ours." he replied.
Peter gulped. "But...how did you find out about me?"
"A word of advice, Peter; always do a sweep of the area before you talk about your secret." the white-and-black Autobot said. "Even if you're just talking to a statue; you're lucky that it was only Optimus that heard you."
Peter's eyes widened, as he remembered that day, when he'd visited the Autobot Memorial...the truck he'd seen for a moment at the end..."That was you!" he exclaimed.
Optimus nodded. "You seemed to have things well in hand, that day," he replied, "so I didn't think you needed any advice."
Bumblebee nodded. "That was when Optimus asked me to watch your back, Pete." he said.
Standing up, Optimus gestured to the other Autobots. "You've already met Bumblebee." he said. He then gestured to the black-armored Autobot. "This is Ironhide, our weapons specialist."
At that, Ironhide twitched his arms, as if flexing for a fast draw, and then his twin cannons flipped out, seconds before he flipped them back. "If you need 'Cons busted up, I'm yer mech."
Optimus then gestured to the black-and white Autobot. "This is Prowl, the Executive Officer of our ship, the Aeon."
Prowl nodded. "The Aeon was the only ship close enough to Earth to get here in time."
Optimus then gestured to the silver mech. "This is Jazz, one of our top gunners."
Jazz smiled. "What's happenin'?"
"And this is Ratchet, our chief medical officer." Optimus finished, gesturing to the neon-yellow mech.
Ratchet frowned worriedly as he looked to Peter and Mary-Jane. "Hmm...I'm detecting numerous genetic irregularities in your genome, Peter...although, given your unique nature, I'm assuming that's normal. Also, both your and Miss Watson's levels of epinephrine and norepinephrine are considerably high, which also isn't surprising, after your encounter with Barricade."
The mention of the Decepticon brought Peter's attention back to the real issue. "What was Barricade doing here?" he asked. "For that matter, why are you guys here?"
Optimus looked grim. "We came here, Peter, because we are looking for the AllSpark," he answered, "and we must find it before the Decepticons do."
Mary-Jane blinked. "The...'All Spark'??" she repeated. "What's that?"
"It is said to be the very thing that imparted life to all Transformers." Optimus answered. "Countless megavoruns ago, Primus, the All-Creator Himself, crafted mechanical life-forms in His image, before he took a piece of His own spark – His own life-force – and from it crafted the AllSpark. He then placed the AllSpark upon Cybertron, where it brought the gift of spark to Primus' creations...and our race was born." His tone became reverent. "Thus say we all."
"Thus say we all." the Autobots echoed.
"But...how did it get here?" Peter asked.
Optimus' expression turned sad. "The war." he said softly. "When Megatron first betrayed all of Cybertron, starting the Civil War, his first act was to capture the Elders of Cybertron; when they refused to tell him of its location, he murdered them. As the war raged across Cybertron, Megatron and the Decepticons searched tirelessly for the AllSpark...but they never found it, thank Primus."
"We managed to move the AllSpark every time Megs and those scrap-heads got close." Jazz added.
Optimus nodded. "And then, in the last hours of the war, Megatron learned of our plan, and assaulted the AllSpark's hiding place before we could gather all of our forces to repel them; we did everything we could to hold them off." he said. His gaze turned faraway. "We fought so fiercely...but it wasn't enough..."
"Fortunately, the AllSpark had plans of its own." Ratchet said. "When the Decepticons started breaking through our lines, it launched itself into space, leaving Cybertron and our war behind."
"That marked the end of the war on Cybertron." Optimus finished. "With our planet's resources utterly depleted, the Decepticons left, spreading the conflict across the cosmos, in search of new sources of energy...and in search of the AllSpark. We set out after them, to stop them, and to find the AllSpark ourselves, to ensure its unfathomable power never fell into Decepticon hands."
"And that was when your ship and Megatron's ship crashed on Earth." Peter finished.
Optimus nodded. "After we departed Earth, we met up with the rest of the Autobot Fleet, and continued the fight against Megatron...and we continued to search for the AllSpark...but to no avail. After so long, we assumed that the AllSpark was lost forever...until, a few Earth-months ago, we received a transmission from this system."
"There was no mistaking it." Bumblebee said. "The AllSpark was calling to us. It was here, all along; it must have somehow been hidden from our scanners the first time around."
"And so we came back." Optimus said. "If the AllSpark is here, we must find it; it is the hope of our race, the physical reminder of the Covenant that Primus made with our people – the promise that the sparks of those who follow the Covenant will return to the AllSpark, until the day of Primus' return, when He takes back the AllSpark to the Matrix, to live and rejoice for all days."
Slowly, Mary-Jane smiled. "Oh my God..." she whispered, "...Peter...this AllSpark...it's their Holy Grail..."
Ratchet nodded. "That would be an effective analogy, Miss Watson."
"But why was Barricade after Mary-Jane?" Peter asked.
"We have reason to believe that she holds a clue to the AllSpark's location." Optimus said.
"But...but I don't know anything about it!" MJ cried. "That...that monster kept asking me about 'ancestral artifacts' and 'optical enhancers'!"
"He was referring to the prosthetic lenses of your ancestor, Leopold Watson." Prowl explained.
MJ's eyes widened. "Great-Great-Grandpa Leopold's glasses?!" she cried. "Why??"
"We believe he may have encountered something on one of his expeditions." Bumblebee said. "We need to know, Mary-Jane."
"But I don't know!" MJ cried. "I don't know any..." but she paused. "Wait...there...there was an old family legend...Great-Great-Grandpa, on his deathbed, told his family about when he'd visited the North Pole...he said he'd seen a giant, metal man, who'd marked his glasses...but everyone thought he was delirious..."
"...and there is the last piece of the puzzle." Ratchet said.
"It's Alpha, Prahm. Has to be." Ironhide said.
"Who?" Peter asked.
"Alpha Trion, the sole surviving Elder of Cybertron." Optimus explained. "Before Megatron's attack, the Oracle computer warned the three Elders, but only Alpha heeded its warning, while Beta and Omega Trion ignored it. During the war, Alpha Trion acted as our mentor, and spiritual advisor."
"Being the oldest living Transformer tends to give a mech a pretty good handle on things." Bumblebee said.
"When the AllSpark departed Cybertron, Alpha Trion took the Oracle – the only thing that could detect the AllSpark – and went after it, to ensure its power was never misused." Optimus finished. "He must have tracked it here, and become trapped in the polar ice."
MJ blinked. "Wait...you mean...Great-Great-Grandpa Leopold was telling the truth??" she exclaimed. "Why would this 'Alpha Trion' guy have needed Great-Grandpa's glasses?"
"Alpha must have been trying to communicate with your ancestor." Prowl said. "He most likely scrambled his locator beacon's frequency so the Decepticons couldn't find him, and then etched the code onto the lenses, hoping that future generations could decode it and find him."
"Yeah, that sounds like Alpha." Jazz agreed.
"Oh." MJ said.
"Miss Watson," Optimus said, "it is imperative that we retrieve those glasses."
"Why? What's the rush?" MJ asked. "It's only that guy Barricade that's here, right? Bumblebee took care of him, already!"
The Autobots were silent.
MJ froze. "Please tell me that he's the only one here..."
Peter's eyes widened in realization. "Those meteors that fell a few days ago..." he murmured, "...they weren't meteors, were they?"
Optimus nodded grimly. "Several days ago, Peter, six Decepticons made planet-fall across Earth."
Peter was shocked silent. "Six?!" he choked out. "There are six of those metal maniacs stomping around?!"
"Afraid so, Pete." Bumblebee said. "And that's not counting Megs himself; the big slag-bag dropped by a couple kilo-cycles before."
"Don't forget, where Megatron goes, Soundwave follows...which means Frenzy, Rumble, and Ravage are here, as well." Ratchet piped up.
"One of them was Astrotrain, I'm sure of it." Prowl added. "And Megatron only uses him to move troops; I'd bet my aft that he was hauling the Constructicons."
"And Hound confirmed Scorponok, too." Ironhide finished. "He an' Blackout went disassembly-spree on that outpost in the Middle East."
"Oh, great!!" Peter cried. "Fifteen of them?! Plus Megatron?!"
"That, Peter, is why we must find the AllSpark before Megatron does." Optimus said.
"If Megatron finds it, he will use its power to impart life upon Earth's machines, transforming them and using them to rebuild his army." Ratchet added.
Optimus nodded. "And once he has done so, he will strip Earth bare of all resources, destroying all organic life in the process...before he leaves Earth, to do the same to every technological society in the universe. With the AllSpark's power in Decepticon hands, we would be utterly outnumbered and overpowered...and no world will be safe from him."
Peter and Mary-Jane didn't dare speak.
"Even if we find it, we will have to defend it until we can get it off Earth." Optimus continued. "Megatron will not let the AllSpark slip through his hands as easily as it did, last time; he and the Decepticons will attack without warning, with no thought given to the people of Earth; he is obsessed with the AllSpark, and he will not rest until he has it. This is a battle we cannot win alone; we have called for reinforcements, but we will need help from Earth's super-powered community...and you, Peter, have made powerful allies among them as Spider-Man."
At that, six pairs of blue optics gazed at them. "Peter Parker...Mary-Jane Watson...we need your help."
Peter was sobered at the revelation that Optimus had laid at their feet. This wasn't like anything he'd faced, before; the stakes were astronomical. If Megatron found that 'AllSpark,' Earth and the human race were done, the Autobots would lose the war, and every single sentient race in the universe would fall to the Decepticons.
"MJ," Peter murmured, "tell me you and your Mom didn't give those glasses to a museum."
Mary-Jane looked stricken. "They...they're still in the mail; we had asked them to be sent to us from England...if they didn't come today, they should be here, tomorrow..."
The Autobots nodded grimly. "We'll have to protect the both of you until we can locate Alpha Trion." Optimus said.
"How?" Bumblebee asked. "There are gonna be times when I can't keep an optic on them, like school."
Optimus looked thoughtful...and then smiled knowingly. "Roller." he said.
At that, Optimus' trailer opened its back door...as a little six-wheeled mini-car – almost resembling a remote-controlled race-car with a single electronic eye – darted out, stopping at Mary-Jane's feet. "This is Roller, my mobile unit." Optimus explained. "He goes into the places that the rest of me cannot go. Whatever he sees, I see." He smiled. "Between Bumblebee and Roller keeping an optic on you and Peter, Miss Watson, we should be able to keep you both safe." At that, Roller let out an agreeing electronic squeak.
MJ smiled. "Well...he's a cute little fella," she said, "but he's kinda conspicuous..."
Optimus chuckled, as Roller began to change: his wheels retracted into his main chassis, which retracted in on itself, extending a ceramic shell around itself, before Roller propped himself up, extending a strap...
...and where Roller had once been now rested a stylish, red-and-blue backpack.
"I think we can avoid that problem." Optimus said.
Slowly, Mary-Jane lifted the Roller-pack onto her shoulder...and smiled. "He's not even heavy!"
Optimus chuckled. "He should also function just as a normal backpack would." he said. "This way, if the Decepticons try anything while Bumblebee is unavailable, we'll know about it."
"Uh, Prime?" Bumblebee said. "Don't you think that maybe Pete and Mary-Jane should head back home before anyone gets suspicious?"
MJ gasped. "Oh, God, my Mom's gonna freak!!"
"Bumblebee, make sure that Peter and Mary-Jane return home safely." Optimus ordered. "With any luck, Mary-Jane will have the glasses after she returns home."
MJ nodded. "I'll notify Peter and 'Bee as soon as I can get a hold of them, sir."
Optimus nodded, before turning to Peter. "Starting tomorrow, Peter, we'll need you to contact your friends, the Fantastic Four, as well as the Ultimates; after failing to apprehend the glasses, the Decepticons will certainly try again."
Peter nodded. "No problem, Optimus." he replied. Chuckling, he added, "Usually, it's Fury who contacts me. It'll be nice to put the shoe on the other foot, this time!"
Optimus lightly chuckled. "Bumblebee, get them home." he instructed. Then, glancing to the other Autobots, he finished, "Autobots, roll out!" With that, Optimus promptly shifted back to vehicle-mode, linking with his trailer as his comrades all assumed vehicle-mode, before they all drove off, leaving Peter and Mary-Jane with Bumblebee.
"Wow." Mary-Jane murmured.
"Yeah." Peter agreed. Bumblebee just chuckled, as he, too, assumed vehicle-mode. Peter and MJ then climbed into the Camaro, letting their new friend drive them home.
After dropping MJ at her house, the Camaro parked itself in the garage, letting Peter hop out. "Well, looks like I'll have to tell Aunt May what happened." Peter said, sighing.
"Yeah." Bumblebee agreed. "Good luck with that, and if you need me, I'll be right here."
"Thanks." Peter replied, as he started to open the door...
...and came face-to-face with his Aunt.
May quickly hugged her nephew, tears slowly running down her face. "Oh, Peter, thank heavens you're okay!" she cried. "I was worried sick!"
Peter smiled sheepishly. "I'm...sorry I worried you, Aunt May." he said, returning the hug. "I wasn't trying to, this time."
"I know, I know." May whispered, releasing Peter.
Gulping, Peter gestured to the Camaro. "Aunt May...this is Bumblebee..."
"We've met." May said, smiling at the Camaro. "Thank you for bringing him home."
Bumblebee chuckled. "No problem, ma'am."
Turning back to Peter, May asked, "But what happened? Where were you?" Peter lowered his eyes; after learning what he had, he was tempted not to tell her...but, after keeping his secret for so long, he knew better. Peter took a deep breath...and told his Aunt everything.
May's eyes were wide as Peter finished. "Optimus and the Autobots need my help," he finished, "and, with what's at stake, I don't see how I can say 'no'."
May weakly smiled. "I had a feeling you were going to say that." she replied. "And I'm not going to try and stop you."
Peter smiled. "Thanks." he replied. With that, Peter and his Aunt stepped inside.
As they walked into the kitchen, the phone promptly rang. Peter picked it up. "Hello?"
"Hey, Tiger."
"Hey, MJ." Peter answered. "Did your Mom freak out?"
"Not as much as I thought...but still enough that I didn't want to tell her about our new friends; not yet, anyway."
"Any sign of the glasses?"
"None, yet." MJ sighed. "They must have gotten delayed." Her tone turned worried. "Peter, I think you might want to check the news. Call me when you do, okay?"
"Okay." Peter agreed, mildly confused. "Bye."
"Bye."
After hanging up, Peter walked into the living room to switch on the news...but Aunt May had beaten him to it. There was a special bulletin on all the channels; the Pentagon had called a press conference, with the Secretary of Defense, John Keller – a tall, stately man with white hair and steely blue eyes – speaking. "My fellow Americans," he began, "as you know, two days ago, the SOCCENT Air Base in Qatar was attacked; until now, we never knew who was responsible, but we had simply assumed that it was perpetrated by insurgents hostile to our presence in the country." His expression became graver.
"We were wrong."
"Over twenty years ago, our planet was a battleground for two factions of giant, shape-shifting robots known as Transformers." the Secretary continued. "For ten years, we all fought alongside the Autobots, in order to drive the evil Decepticons off of our planet, until the Decepticons fled the Earth, never to be heard from again...until now. We have irrefutable proof that it was a Decepticon who, for reasons yet unknown, attacked the air base. We don't know why they have come back; all we know is that, for the second time in fifty years, we are facing war against a technological civilization vastly superior to our own. The Decepticons can assume any mechanical shape: they could be anything, and they could be anywhere. These next few weeks will likely be the greatest challenge we will have to face..."
The Secretary's tone lightened. "...but we will not have to face it alone." he said. "Our sources tell us that our old friends have returned, to help us in this dark hour. We have confirmation that the Autobots have returned to Earth, and our forces are preparing to work with them, to drive these invaders off our world, once more." He looked out towards them, his expression earnest. "If there was ever a time that we, as a people – as a species – needed to put our differences aside, it is now; humanity must stand together...or we will fall together. Thank you." With that, the Secretary stepped down, to a barrage of questions.
Peter and his Aunt were both silent for a few seconds, before Peter sighed to himself. "Well, it's official." he said. "It's really hit the fan, now."
May weakly smiled. "You certainly have your work cut out for you."
"Yeah, as usual." Peter said. Now, not only did he have to help the Autobots locate the long-lost AllSpark and help organize his fellow super-humans against Megatron – the harbinger of universal death – and his forces, he had to do so while the entire world was freaking out about it.
Peter sighed to himself again. 'It's never easy, is it?'
XXXXXXXX
Author's Note: For anyone who's wondering, this story takes place around where the "Ultimate Knights" story arc would have started. I wasn't entirely sure about the state of the rest of the Ultimate universe at this point in time, so I did some research and asked around; kudos to slickboy444 for helping me with the details! I hope you all enjoy!
Coming Soon:
As the entire world reacts to the return of the Transformers, the Decepticons make their move.
Can Optimus Prime and the Autobots help unite a world so divided?
Can Peter and Mary-Jane survive long enough to help locate the AllSpark?
Find out in "Opening Shots," coming to your computer soon…