A/N. Well... This (stubborn) chapter's a bit longer than the previous ones, and has two OCs (and deaths) in it. Hope it turned out ok. -.-


"Ok, the ones that landed in Vegas are leaving the city," Simmons informed the Autobots via his cell phone, which they'd gone and linked themselves to, along with his computer.

The Hummer guy, Ratchet, was in front of his SUV, turning on his sirens and top lights each time they encountered heavy traffic, usually when they passed by small cities and towns. Bumblebee and Jazz were right behind him, usually side by side in the same lane. Behind them was Ironhide, with Optimus Prime at the very back. All of them had turned on those weird holographic drivers of theirs, except for Optimus, who usually didn't bother to use one. He was tall enough that he usually didn't need to anyway.

"Can you possibly get us a better view of these Decepticons, so we can identify them?" Ironhide requested, growing impatient with the blurry, long-range video they were seeing from a spy satellite, as well as Simmons' not-very-helpful running commentary.

"I'll see what I can do, but it'll take time. --what the hell!" Simmons jerked in surprise when his comp suddenly went crazy, official-looking web pages flashing across the screen, before the Vegas image returned, this time of a much closer shot of the Decepticons. "Did you just hack into that satellite through my laptop?"

"Yeah, I did," Jazz answered, a grin evident in his tone. "So sue me."

"...I am gonna get into so much more trouble for this..." Simmons muttered. "So, who are we dealing with?"

Ratchet studied the images. "Thunderblast is one of them;.she's not one to ever turn your back on."

"The tallest one is Soundwave," Bumblebee added. "With the rest of his spies."

"Frenzy was one of his," Jazz told Sam.

"He'll be pissed, then," Mikaela remarked.

"That so?" Simmons' brow furrowed, then he shrugged.

"How many humans were slain in the city?" Optimus asked, dreading the answer.

Simmons made a quick phone call and relayed the question. "Eight dead at the zoo. Five of them were decapitated," he grimly told them, gripping the steering wheel tightly. "

"Over a dozen injured, some critically. More bodies have been found along Rancho Drive, no word on an exact number yet."

"Oh, no..." Maggie closed her eyes for a moment, hoping those poor people had at least died instantly, so they didn't suffer.

"...my god.." a horrified Mikaela whispered. "Who would do something like that?"

"Any number of Decepticons, I'm afraid," Bumblebee somberly replied, and put an arm around her.

"Jesus..." Sam muttered, swallowing convulsively. "Those bastards.."

"They'll pay for this, Sam. I promise," a very angry Jazz assured him.

"God, I hope so." Sam twisted around in his seat, staring worriedly at the now-silent Optimus. "This isn't your fault, Optimus. You gotta know that."

"You can't possibly be blaming yourself!" exclaimed Mikaela.

"No one could have predicted that they would have crash-landed there," Ratchet pointed out.

"Have you been able to contact Glen Whitman, Maggie?" Optimus asked, quickly changing the subject. At least a dozen deaths, he surmised, and it could get much, much worse, so easily...

"Not yet." Maggie looked out the window over at him. "His cell battery must've died. I left a message with his cousin, though. Glen'll probably go straight to him, to tell him all about the Expo."

"Yeah, probably," Jazz agreed. "Hang loose, guys. I'll zero in on those punks at the Hoover Dam."

"Thank you, Jazz," Optimus said, and fell silent again, waiting for more bad news he had a feeling was coming.


"So this is where Lord Megatron was held prisoner by the humans?" Shockwave studied the large stone structure from a nearby cliff as he waited patiently for the missing Decepticons to join them. Three of them had been knocked off course by that eternally reckless Seeker and crashed into a large city nearby.

"Yes," Starscream replied, annoyed by the delay Ramjet caused. "Inside, in a large room."

"It's a very simple and unimaginative design," Hook said, contemptuous of this example of human engineering.

Scrapper concurred. "Yes. It won't take long to reduce this Hoover Dam of theirs to a pile of rubble."

"We should show these creatures the proper way to build an obstruction!" declared Mixmaster.

"No, we've come to this planet to destroy," Scrapper patiently reminded him.

They turned around as Hardtop returned with Soundwave and his five remaining symbiotic partners. Only Rumble remained in robotic form. The other four, for whatever reason, had apparently decided to scan and copy biological life forms native to this world. Ravage had chosen a large feline as his alternate mode, while the other three opted for the forms of avian creatures.

"What did you crash into? A zoo?" a baffled Starscream asked.

"Do not ask," Soundwave growled, with an angry look at Ramjet, who was wisely keeping his distance from them.

"Claws useful!" Buzzsaw insisted, as he and the other two circled above Soundwave's head.

"They are," Ravage agreed, examining his own very sharp and red-stained ones. These will shred Autobot armor almost as easily as they have human flesh. The tail was also an effective weapon.

"That may be, but once we leave this world, you will delete those scans from your data banks," Soundwave instructed them.

"If you think they're strange, look what I found," Skywarp said, vastly amused as he dropped off Shrapnel and Thunderblast.

"What is that?" Starscream and Shockwave asked simultaneously.

"The humans call it a stag beetle, beetle," Shrapnel told them, scrambling over a large rock.

"That is a very inefficient alternate form," Shockwave criticized. He himself had not deigned to take one. Why hide from a race you were about to wipe out of existence?

"I like this form, form," protested Shrapnel, clacking his huge mandibles together.

"You didn't see the trail of human heads he left behind in that city, Shockwave," Thunderblast told him with a dark smile.

"I suppose you counted them?" Thundercracker asked sarcastically. The humans he'd seen when he'd flown through the city, looking for Ramjet, hardly seemed dangerous to him.

"Perhaps," she said, moving a little closer to Starscream, who glanced warily at her.

"Now that we're all finally here," Starscream began, casting one more glare at Ramjet before gesturing to Hoover Dam. "Destroy it.

"Wait." Soundwave stepped forward. "I think we should search the facility first. We may find information on where the Autobots are hiding." And perhaps Frenzy, too.

"Yes, let's search it," Sixshot seconded. What he had seen of the humans so far had done little to impress him as well. Where were the Autobots?

"We should also learn more about these humans," Shockwave sided with them, simply to further irritate Starscream, since he seemed to want to get the structure's demolishing over with immediately. "I am wondering why their so-called military has not challenged us yet."

"So am I. They were described as being formidable..." Thundercracker said, glancing at Starscream.

"There may be some humans inside, inside," Shrapnel said eagerly.

"Very well," Starscream sullenly relented. "Be quick about it. The humans must be planning something. They are treacherous."

"Yes, quick, quick." Shrapnel was the first to set off for the Dam.


"Shockwave is here?!" Completely taken aback, Optimus swerved slightly on the road.

"What..who's Shockwave?" Sam asked. That name didn't sound good at all.

"An ice-cold piece of slag," Ironhide growled.

"He's that one right there, with the single optic," Jazz's holoform pointed to the largest of the projected images in front of Sam.

"He was Megatron's military commander. It's very surprising that he would leave Cybertron and come to Earth," Ratchet explained. "Shockwave is completely devoid of emotion, functioning on pure logic instead."

"It's like the All Spark was having a bad day when it created him," Jazz remarked.

Sam rubbed the back of his neck, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in his stomach. "...so not good..."

"Wait a sec... Just who's in charge, then? Starscream or Shockwave?" asked Maggie.

"We honestly don't know at this point," Jazz replied.

"Better hope it's Starscream," stated Ironhide.

Optimus started to slow down. "We should deal with the Decepticon threat ourselves."

"We can't," Simmons argued. "No matter what goes down over there, you need to get to Kentucky. The sooner the better. Trust me"

"We wouldn't reach Hoover Dam before they leave it, sir," Bumblebee reasoned. "Especially with the Seekers there."

/I know how difficult this must be for you, but I do feel it's best to follow Simmons' advice/ Ratchet told Optimus over a private line.

/Very well. And, yes, it is difficult/ Optimus had to admit. This did give him a peculiar feeling of helplessness, to take orders instead of giving them, which he did not much care for. "We shall continue to the Mammoth Cave," he decided, and picked up speed.

"I'll tell our mouthpiece to talk to Starscream, and no one else." Simmons got on the phone again. "And advise the Air Force to target those Seekers you told me about. Especially that teleporting one; he could be a big problem."

"Think this Shockwave might keep his mouth shut?" Mikaela asked, trying to stay positive.

"Maybe... It's not like he'll feel insulted," Bumblebee commented.

Ironhide snorted. "And we all know how vain Starscream is."

Optimus listened to them speculate further on Shockwave and Starscream while focusing his attention back on the satellite images. The Decepticons had entered Hoover Dam.


"This must be where the All Spark was hidden," Starscream said, entering a huge room, the largest in the facility.

"No humans, though, it seems. How disappointing," Thunderblast said, giving Shrapnel mandibles a pat of mock-sympathy, which he didn't appreciate. He snapped at her hand, hissing a warning.

"They appear to have evacuated shortly before our landing," Shockwave observed, examining some damaged, and crude-looking, scientific equipment.

"Search the rest of this facility," Starscream ordered. "You'll find all the information you need on the world on the humans' computers. Those are--"

"Yes, Lord Starscream," Skywarp interrupted and started for the large door, eager to leave this tomb-like room, then stopped and turned back around. "What do computers look like?"

Starscream gave him an annoyed look. "They look like this," he answered, tapping a fire-blackened computer tower with one finger. "This is a device the humans store information on, and usually use to access the Internet. Which I've already explained to you. Now go!"

Skywarp nodded and made his exit, followed by the others. Shrapnel scurried off after them, hoping to find an errant human or two, so he'd have more time to play with the soft-bodied creatures.

/I can guess what you're thinking/ Thunderblast sent to Starscream over a private line.

/Is that so?/

/Of course. You're waiting for an opportunity to rid of yourself of Shockwave. Of course, he intends the same with you/

/How very insightful of you, Thunderblast/ he said, sarcastically.

/Careful../ she said softly. /As much as I would enjoy seeing how this little competition plays out, I doubt either one of you will prevail before we're finished with this wretched planet. Not without some...help./ Thunderblast smiled wolfishly at him before sauntering off.

Starscream's optics narrowed in annoyance. This was one more complication he didn't need. She would turn around and make the same kind of offer to Shockwave, or even one of the other Decepticons, if he refuses. Thundercracker, for example, would probably jump at the chance. I do know one way to deal with that scheming female, he thought, surreptitiously watching Shockwave.

Shockwave inspected the damaged computer Starscream had pointed out, then straightened and opened a link to Soundwave. He should be able get this one operational again - it may contain useful information. /Soundwave. Report back./

/I'll be there shortly, Commander Shockwave./ Soundwave answered, drawn to one of the rooms at the back of the complex. Unlike most of the other doors, which his fellow Decepticons had to smash their way through, this one was large enough to allow him to enter unhindered. Unfortunately it was empty, save for a square container left atop a large steel table. All four of it's thick, glass-like sides, as well as it's top, were marred with numerous claw marks.

He walked over and placed a hand on it, his finely-tuned sensors picking up residual spark-energy. Yes...His friend had been confined in this tiny prison; there was even a lingering sense of rage, an echo of sorts. But where was Frenzy now? He called Ravage to him, over a private line.

"You found something?" Ravage asked, entering the room.

"Yes. Frenzy had been held prisoner here," Soundwave told him, pointing to the container. "I want you to track him."

Ravage nodded and leaped up onto the table, where he thoroughly inspected the box. "Frenzy was cold...frozen...humans used a powerful substance..." His olfactory sensors twitched, and he jumped back down to prowl around the room. "Frenzy was moved. Put into a larger box, filled with same substance. It's masking traces of him," he muttered, pacing to the door, then back to the table. "Sneaky humans hide him well. I cannot find trail."

"Very well.. Return to the others."

Ravage slunk out of the room, planning on just how he would kill the next humans he finds.

Soundwave turned away and surveyed the rest of the room. One of the walls consisted of empty shelves, curiously enough, with a few shards of broken glass scattered about. Something else must have been kept here.

He attempted to open a link to Frenzy, but was again met with complete silence. Wherever Frenzy was now, he was either still offline, and hopefully recharging, or he had been terminated. If the latter was the case, then he would personally hunt down and kill all of the humans responsible. Soundwave glared at the detestable container, destroying it before leaving the room.

/There is a large aerial vehicle approaching/ Dirge reported to them all, sounding decidedly bored with guard duty. /It does not appear to have weapons. Orders?/

/Do nothing, Dirge/ Starscream replied, before Shockwave had a chance to interfere yet again. His own audio sensors now picked up the sound of a helicopter.

"Shall I deal with them?" Thunderblast asked, eager for her own chance to kill humans.

Ravage also jumped at the chance. "Let me!"

Hardtop frowned as the humming noise grew louder. "Do they not know the meaning of stealth?"

"This is peculiar," Shockwave pointed out. "Perhaps it is not a battle they are seeking?"

"If they don't wish to fight, then they must want something from us," pondered Thundercracker.

Starscream turned to Ravage. "Bring the humans here, Ravage. Intact."

"Yes, Lord Starscream," Ravage said, his red optics gleaming, nodding to Soundwave before bounding off. Once outside, he focused his sensors on the large black aerial vehicle, and the conversation taking place inside.

"There's something coming out now, Agent Morgan," the one with the helmet said. "It looks like a... What the hell is a big cat doing here??"

"That's one of the smaller ones, in disguise, according to my latest report. It might be a scout."

"You're kidding, right?"

"I wish. Most of the aliens are still in a humanoid form, and they're about ten times the size of this one." The passenger, Agent Morgan, tugged on something around his neck, looking very nervous. "Okay, here goes nothing..."

Ravage trotted over to the vehicle as the door opened and the dark-clothed Agent Morgan jumped out. It held both hands up, apparently in supplication. "So...take me to your leader?" it asked, with a weak smile that lasted for all of four astro-seconds.

"Both come," Ravage growled out in the human's language.

"You mean..both of us?" Agent Morgan glanced back at the pilot.

The pilot shook his head. "I'm under orders to remain outside."

"You refuse?"

"It's not that he's refusing," Morgan quickly said, unnerved by the way the thing's red eyes glowed brighter. "He can't leave the helicopter unattended."

"Both!" Ravage sprang to the operator's side of the helicopter, front claws catching on seams and ripping the flimsy metal door off. Before the human had time to react he sank his claws into it's upper torso, wrenching it from it's seat.

"Stop!" Morgan yelled, blanching as the pilot screamed in agony, both from the bone-deep gouging and from the safety straps that sliced into his flesh before snapping.

Ravage spun around on his hind legs, flinging the human to the concrete surface, almost at the feet of the other one. "Both," he growled again, flexing his claws, waiting to see if they intended to defy him again.

They didn't.

"This structure may be deserted, but I sensed that there are numerous recording devices hidden in every room. We are being watched," Soundwave said, and finally gave up on the damaged computer tower. Human technology was immensely inferior to that of Cybertron. He'd scanned every undamaged computer in this facility, downloading a great deal of information on humans, but found nothing pertaining to Frenzy, or the Autobots.

"It matters not, Soundwave, " Shockwave replied. "The humans are doomed, whatever they do."

"We shall see what our visitor has to say first, " Starscream reminded him.

"Very well."

Ravage returned moments later with two human males. One of them was supporting the other, who was leaking blood from deep gashes to his chest and shoulder.

"I said 'intact'!" Starscream scowled.

"Vehicle's operator resisted," Ravage explained, using his tail to 'accidentally' knock the creatures' legs out from under them.

"He's bleeding to death!" the uninjured human shouted, removing an outer garment and tearing it into strips to try to bind the other's wounds.

"Worry more about yourself," Ravage growled back at it.

"Can you not control your drone, Soundwave?" asked Shockwave.

"Ravage..." Soundwave warned, after glaring at Shockwave for his drone remark. Ravage obediently came over, but continued watching the humans.

"And yet he is not, even though his efforts to save his companion are futile," Shockwave said, observing the pool of blood that was widening on the floor. The other human's apparent lack of self-preservation was perplexing to him.

Hook scanned the now-unconscious human, stating, "He will expire in approximately two to three cycles."

The human finally looked up, it's skin turning white at the sight of at least a dozen much larger Decepticons, three of them towering right above it. Visibly swallowing, it slowly rose to it's feet. So, despite it's effort to conceal it's fear, the human was well aware of the peril it was in, Shockwave noted. "Why have you come here?" he asked, in it's language.

"I--I'm Agent Tom Morgan. I'm authorized to speak only with the one called Starscream." He gave the dying pilot one last quick look. Didn't even ask him his name. Dammit.

"Speak, then, Agent Tom Morgan," Starscream answered, stepping forward, appearing outwardly magnanimous.

"I'm here to...offer you a trade," Tom told the Decepticon leader. Keep to the script...Just keep to the script, he told himself.

"What sort of trade?" Thunderblast asked, leaning casually against a pillar.

"A simple one." He continued addressing the one called Starscream, as instructed. "My government is willing to provide you with the location of the Autobots, in exchange for you guarantee to leave this planet, and never return."

"You would betray your new allies so quickly?" Shockwave questioned, his single optic blinking in puzzlement.

"Starscream did say they are treacherous," Thunderblast pointed out.

Tom almost replied to the...female?, but kept his orders firmly in mind. It'd be really great to make it out of this meeting alive...

"Explain this lack of loyalty to us," ordered Starscream, mulling it over. Killing the Autobots might satisfy most of his Decepticons' need for revenge, and hasten a return to Cybertron. It wouldn't be enough for Ravage, though. That one might need to be eliminated, too.

"Loyalty has nothing to do with this." Tom put as much anger as he could muster into his voice in order to convince them. "We didn't want any of your kind on our planet in the first place. We also don't want any more part of this war of yours, which has already resulted on dozens of casualties, and since it's the Autobots you're after--"

"Is that what you think, foolish human?" Ravage snarled, his optics glowing with malice. "When it was your people that tortured our leader, Megatron?"

"What?" Tom took a step back, surprised by the accusation. "We did not torture him! Megatron had been kept fr--"

"Of course you would deny that to our faces," Thunderblast interrupted, crossing her arms and looking around as she switched to Cybertronian. "Should we believe that anything it says to us isn't a lie?"

"There may be a way to discover if this human is telling the truth," Shockwave said. The man seemed to blame the Autobots for the recent events, which was completely illogical to him. "Soundwave, you informed me of an ability you'd discovered: sensing the thoughts of others."

"What?" Starscream turned to Soundwave. "Is that true?"

Soundwave stared at Shockwave, startled. "That was hundreds of vorns ago, during my travels. I've only attempted it twice, on species I'd discovered who were partly robotic," he said, defensively. "My success was limited."

"Do you agree to our terms?" Tom boldly spoke up, and hoped he wasn't about to get stomped on by a pissed-off alien robot. Instead, they ignored him, which made him even more nervous. They must be discussing his proposition among themselves, and coming up some kind of counter-offer. Yeah, that had to be it...

"Meaning that it did work, to some extent," Hook concluded.

"There is, then, a slim chance that you might also succeed with a purely organic creature," Shockwave coldly stated, his optic fixed on Soundwave. "We needed a solution to our dilemma. I have provided a possible one."

Soundwave stayed silent, growing aggravated with both of them. Shockwave had little real interest in the experiment's results; his goal was to make Starscream look inadequate as leader.

"Yes, do try," Hook requested, curious.

"I want the Autobots," Sixshot reminded them.

"I'd like to see a demonstration of his new talent, too," added Thunderblast, observing Soundwave's discomfort.

Starscream nodded, also curious, despite it being Shockwave's idea. "Proceed, Soundwave. Find out the location of the Autobots."

"...yes, Lord Starscream..." His processors grinding with resentment, Soundwave reviewed a map of the human brain, which he'd found on the Internet. He flexed his hand, activating one of his external sensors.

Tom watched as the giant robots continued to converse in their own strange language. Their expressions were a hell of a lot harder to read than a human's, but he could tell that two of them definitely weren't happy about something. He had the distinct feeling that this meeting had been rapidly going south almost from the moment it started. Suddenly one of them looked back down at him, and a thin, sharp-looking metal spike emerged from it's wrist. What the fuck?! Tom's brave front finally evaporated. He turned and made a break for the nearest door.

"Stop the human, Ravage," Soundwave ordered. "Bring it back."

Snarling, Ravage leaped after the human, catching up with it well before it reached the door and raking his claws down it's back. It fell, screaming and kicking it's legs out at him.

"Alive would be preferable," Starscream sardonically remarked.

Ravage made a snorting sound, but obeyed, snagging the human's garments to drag it back to Soundwave.

"Stop!" Tom shouted, kicking wildly now as the Decepticon with the spike picked him up, pinning his arms to his sides. "You can't do this!"

Soundwave ignored Agent Tom Morgan's struggles and placed the tip of the sensor against it's head, just behind an ear, judging this area to be the best point of entry. He considered attempting to run a deep scan, but humans were far less developed than the other species he'd previously encountered. The more direct approach was required, and he did wish to keep his contact with it's mind as brief as possible. "Where are the Autobots?" he inquired, at the same time driving the sensor in.

What made this quite difficult was how disjointed the human's thoughts were. A reaction to the pain, Soundwave had to assume. He only had a few astro-seconds to attempt to process them. Agent Tom Morgan convulsed twice, then went still. "The human has expired," Soundwave told the others, withdrawing his sensor and dropping it's body in distaste.

"That was interesting," Thunderblast mused, looking down at the human. "Somewhat messy, but interesting."

"Revolting, you mean," Thundercracker muttered to himself, turning away from the crumpled body.

"Well?" Starscream demanded.

"Did you learn the location of the Autobots?" asked Shockwave.

Soundwave almost said 'no', just to spite them. "Yes. There seems to be two locations that the Autobots are at."

"Two locations?" Starscream repeated. "Before I left Earth they'd been given only one."

"Perhaps more stray Autobots have come here," Shockwave speculated. "Two teams must be sent."

"Obviously, but as our new leader, I will choose who to send," Starscream reminded him.

Disgusted, Soundwave cleansed his sensor before retracting it back into his arm. This power struggle between those two had better end soon, or someone will have to end it for them. "Orders, Lord Starscream?"

"You and Sixshot will investigate the closest base. Thrust, Thunderblast and Shrapnel will go to the other one. Give them the coordinates. Go immediately, and be cautious; the humans have seen what just occurred here."

"If the Autobots are there, we'll bring you their spark casings as mementos," Thunderblast said, smiling at Starscream before following the others outside.


"What the hell was that?!" Simmons demanded. "Did you guys know he could do that??"

"No, we did not," Optimus answered, appalled and saddened by the humans' deaths.

"...I think I'm gonna be sick..." Sam groaned.

Jazz immediately skidded to a halt on the side of the road and popped open the door for Sam to get out. "I'm so gonna bust a cap in his aft!" he vowed.

"Get in line," Ironhide growled, pulling over along with the others.

"I...would never have thought that was possible," Ratchet murmured, stunned.

"This is a great time to find out! And he wasn't even supposed to know about the second base," Simmons added, and felt like throwing both phone and laptop out the window. "Somebody's got a damn big mouth..."

"God...I need some air. Now!" Mikaela opened the hastily unlocked door and hopped out, taking deep breaths.

"Mikaela." Bumblebee shifted his holoform to her side. "Are you all right?"

"--At this moment?" Mikaela shook her head, turned and hugged him. She'd managed to keep her breakfast from coming back up, but it was a close call. "--Jazz has the right idea..." she said in a low voice.

"Absolutely," Bumblebee agreed completely as he wrapped his arms around her.

"Maggie? Are you also ill?" Ironhide asked, disturbed by Sam's vomiting. That can't be good; fluids belonged inside, not out.

Ratchet turned to her; she looked far too pale. "Maggie?"

"I'm okay...I just need a minute.." Maggie kept her eyes closed a moment longer, trying to banish those horrible images from her mind. God, those things will stop at nothing... She opened her eyes and looked out at Sam, who'd straightened up now and was wiping his mouth. "I'll be right back, Ratch'."

"All right." He opened the door for her, watching all three humans in concern, and running a scan on Sam.

"Okay... They might have found out about the trap, so we'll have to target both bases now." Simmons got on the phone to confirm the obvious. Taking out a third of those things was better than nothing.

"Sam? I've got mouthwash and a bottle of water.." Maggie said, fishing them out of her bag.

"Thank you!" Sam gratefully took them and rinsed out his mouth.

"You alright, Sam?" Jazz's worried-looking holo joined them.

"I think so. Thanks, Maggie." Handing the mouthwash back to her, Sam slowly sipped the water and leaned against Jazz for support, who put an arm around him.

"You're welcome." Maggie stuffed the bottle back in her bag, then almost jumped out of her skin. Ironhide, deciding that he should follow Bumblebee and Jazz's example, activated his own holo right in front of her and hugged her.

He frowned at the odd squeaky noise she made. "You don't wish comforting?" Ironhide asked, puzzled. It is how humans respond under these circumstances, after all.

"I think it was the 'right-out-of-thin-air' part that spooked her, Ironhide," Bumblebee helpfully pointed out.

"Oh...Sorry."

"He's just got no finesse, period," Jazz said, matter-of-factly.

"He..uh..just doesn't like to waste any time," Maggie defended him, loosening the death grip she had on her bag.

"Typical male," Mikaela said dryly, then shook her head. Weird, the way we can joke at a time like this... She cleared her throat."We'd, um, we'd better press on, or we'll be late hooking up with Will."

"Yeah, right." Sam nodded. Will Lennox had better have a lot of guns for them. Big ones.7

"Thank you.." Maggie whispered, hugging Ironhide back. Finesse or not, she appreciated the gesture.

/They'll require sustenance within five hours, Optimus/ Ratchet informed him, after finishing his scans. /Especially Sam./

/We'll stop in one of the larger cities, when it becomes necessary/ he replied. /We'll be less conspicuous./

"Dammit! Can this day get any worse?" Simmons demanded, of no one in particular.

"What is it?" Optimus asked, turning his attention back to their 'guide'.

"Someone, a civilian, just drove up to your old base."

"What?!" Maggie whirled around. Oh, no... "Who?"

Simmons paused a moment, then delivered the news. "It's Glen Whitmann."


I was splurgin'
but when I get my car back
activate it, I'm back to Vegas cause
I always had a passion for flashin'
Before I had it, I closed my eyes and imagine

Glen waited until the song ended before turning off his car. "Yeah! Kanye's da man!" He grabbed his brand new cell phone, jumped out and jogged into the building. "Yo, peeps!"

That's funny, Glen thought when no one answered. There was always somebody here. He went out back to the pool, in case everyone was out there. No dice. He shrugged and went back in, to the living room to raid the fridge. "What the hell?!" he hollered, staring in shock at what was left of the computers.

Now this is just way too much! Glen pulled out his cell phone and dialed Maggie's number.

She answered on the first ring.

"Glen!"

"Hey, Maggie, what the hell's goin' on? Ain't nobody here. All our comps are junked! Did Ironhide run out of trees to blow up?" he asked in a rush, going for a much-needed soda fix. "And can you believe it? Somebody swiped my phone at the airport! Had to run all over town to find a good new one. I need Jazz to pimp it out for me. Where are you guys, anyway? Oh, man... Why's the fridge empty?"

"Glen, just listen to me! You have to get out of there!"

"So...you're acquainted with the Autobots?" a new voice spoke from the doorway.

"Glen!!"

"Uhh... Hang on a sec, Mags," Glen slowly turned around and lowered the phone. "Who are you?" he asked the purple...Autobot?

"My name is Thunderblast. And this..is Shrapnel." Thunderblast stepped side to let Shrapnel enter.

"What the--!" Glen backed up several feet when a giant, scary-looking beetle came into the room.. "Keep that thing away from me!"

"I don't think I will," Thunderblast drawled. "You see, he's been very eager to find another human to play with, and you are going to tell us everything you know about the Autobots."

Holy crap. Glen froze in terror as the beetle-thing stalked toward him, gnashing it's huge mandibles.


"Glen!" Maggie almost dropped the phone as two other, louder, voices were heard now.

"I don't know nothin'!" Glen insisted. "I'm just a sidekick...I--I clean their pool!"

"Hmm.. Now I wonder why I don't believe that. Shrapnel?"

"Aww, man...Not Glen..." Jazz muttered, shaking his head in denial. Slag it all. Is there some cosmic conspiracy going on here?

"No...No, no, no. We gotta go back!" Sam demanded, looking around at everyone. "We gotta help him!"

"We'd never get there in time," Ironhide stated in a grim, angry voice, arms tightening around Maggie when she started to struggle.

"I think what it needs is proper incentive, incentive."

"You've got to do something!" Maggie futilely tried to pry herself loose from Ironhide's grip. This can't be happening. Not Glen!

"Then by all means, give it some."

"What about the Air Force?" Mikaela looked frantically over at Simmons, who'd stayed in his SUV.

He shook his head, grimacing. "Negative. This wasn't planned as a search-and-rescue mission."

"No, wait! I'll tell ya whatever you wanna know! Wait, wait! No! Not my arm! Noo!"

Mikaela clapped a hand over her mouth, eyes widening in horror. "Oh, no..."

"...shit..." Sam fought back another wave of nausea, turning away, and Jazz put both arms around him this time. The boy's face had turned an unhealthy color again, prompting Ratchet to run another scan on him, as well as Maggie and Mikaela.

"Ironhide, please.." Optimus spoke quietly; no one should have to hear what was about to happen.

"Yeah..." Ironhide plucked the phone from Maggie's hand and crushed it, wishing it was Shrapnel's head.

"They're going to kill him!" she yelled, fists pounding on Ironhide's chest. How the hell do they manage to stay so bloody calm??

/A little help over here, Ratchet?/ Ironhide requested, having no idea what else he could possibly do for their distraught mate.

/Yes, of course. Sorry./ Contrite, Ratchet quickly shifted his holo over to them and embraced Maggie when Ironhide released her.

"There must be something you can do!" Maggie desperately appealed to Optimus. "Please!"

"I am sorry, Maggie. We cannot save him," he said, deeply regretful.

She made a small, strangled sound and buried her face against Ratchet's shoulder, shuddering. "It's too late..." he murmured, rubbing her back in an effort to calm her; her heart was beating alarmingly fast.

Maggie squeezed her eyes shut, gulping down several deep breaths in an effort to get control of herself, and trying not to think of what Glen was going through this very moment. Oh, God... She jerked her head around and yelled over at Simmons. "Tell the Air Force to attack the base now! Don't wait one more second!"

"Right. I'm on it." He immediately got back on the phone and followed her order.

"I'm so sorry, Maggie," Mikaela said with a heavy, dejected sigh. This was so damn unfair! Glen never hurt anyone in his life. Bumblebee echoed her sigh, circling his arms around her waist.

"We will miss him," Optimus stated, in a low, respectful voice.

Sam bowed his head. "Rest in peace, Glen."

Maggie watched them take a moment of silence, feeling strangely disconnected from everything now. This must be what Glen meant by shutting down... She gave herself a mental shake and held onto Ratchet tightly. After another minute she drew back a little and turned around, wiping away tears. "We should get...back on the road."

"Are you certain you're ready to continue on?" Optimus asked, not wanting to put more stress on her, or the others.

"I..." Maggie wiped her eyes again and looked over at him. "I'm sure."

"Me, too," Sam said, swallowing past the lump in his throat, and wanting to get as far away from California as possible, fast. "We're close to Utah now, right?"

"Yeah," Ironhide answered. "About an hour away from our rendezvous point with Will, but he'd wait for us."

"We'll still make it there on schedule, if we keep going twice the speed limit," Jazz estimated.

"We really should get out of here..." Mikaela trailed off and looked nervously up at the sky, half-expecting one of those Seeker things to appear right above them.

"I have to agree," Ratchet said, not letting go of Maggie just yet. Her heart rate was slowing to a more normal level, which was good.

"All right. Everyone, roll out," Optimus ordered.

"Yes, sir." Bumblebee and Jazz both nodded and followed a miserable-looking Mikaela and Sam back to the cars.

Ratchet and Ironhide both helped an unresisting Maggie into the Hummer. She closed her eyes, leaning back in the seat. God, if only this horrible day could just be started over, like in the movies...

"You're exhausted," Ironhide stated, with a worried frown. "You should sleep." He nodded in emphasis before moving his holoform back into the truck.

"--he can be as bossy as you..." Maggie muttered, rubbing her forehead. How could this have happened? Glen was dead because of some petty thief? It just didn't seem real.

"He's concerned about you," Ratchet assured her. "He's also right. You need to recharge, after such a traumatic experience."

Spoken like a true medic. She stared numbly at the passing scenery. "I don't think I can sleep right now."

Ratchet ran another quick scan on Maggie. "Your neck and shoulder muscles are very tense," he said, fretting over her. "I can help you with that."

"Fine.." Maggie sighed, letting him coax her up and to the back of the vehicle. Now that he mentioned it, her shoulders were starting to ache. Might as well take him up on his offer. "What did you have in mind?"

"I've studied all styles of massages," he told her. "They have much therapeutic value to humans."

"That's certainly true," she said, managing a fleeting smile. "I'd like that, thank you."

"You're welcome." Ratchet waited for her to lie down on the cot.

Maggie sat down to remove her shirt, wincing a little in the process, then stretched out on her stomach. He immediately started on her right shoulder, which bothered her the most. She let out a deep sigh; Ratchet knew just how much pressure to apply, and where, making her almost melt under his hands. He also seemed to pause every few seconds -- talking to the others about the base attack, she realized, with a flash of rage. "I hope they get blown to pieces!"

"They will be," Ratchet said in a soothing voice, leaning down to kiss the back of her neck before working on that area next, rubbing more slowly.

"Good. " She rested her head on her arms and gazed out the back windows, seeing Optimus behind them now. Everyone must've traded places in the convoy, Maggie thought wearily, then closed her eyes and took Ironhide's advice.

Ratchet waited until she was completely relaxed, and sound asleep, before returning his holoform to the driver's seat.

/We should not separate/ Ironhide repeated. /There's safety in numbers, as the humans say./

/Glen did know what disguises we're using./ Jazz said in a subdued voice.

/He would not have been able to tell the Decepticons where we are going./ Ratchet paused briefly. /I do not sense an immediate danger to us./

/Then we'll stay together, for now/ Optimus decided. /Keep on the alert for Seekers./

A few minutes later they were crossing the border into Utah.