Chapter 9
Shockblast Unleashed
This was it. Today was the day team's RWBY and OMega were gonna get to the bottom of things. Last night, they'd planned on figuring out just exactly what Roman Torchwick and the White Fang were up to. Once classes ended, they all gathered in team RWBY's room to prepare for their mission. Team RWBY even had new outfits just for the occasion.
"Alright guys, todays the day," Ruby said enthusiastically as she jumped off her bed, "the investigation begins!"
"Well, you seem excited," Optimus said, sharpening his sword.
"Yeah, we're finally gonna get back at Torchwick today!" she replied, tucking her weapon away.
"It's about time," Megatron said, cracking his knuckles, "I've been waiting to return the favor for him shooting at me!"
"Alright, everyone remember their roles?" Ruby asked, looking at everyone in the room.
"You and Optimus will head into town and try to find any White Fang activity, while I will head to the CCT and check the Schnee records for any other Dust robberies or inconsistencies," Weiss said, "Seeing as how I'm in the family, it shouldn't be a problem."
"The White Fang has regular faction meetings to hand out orders and recruit new members," Blake added, "If I can get in, I can hopefully find out what they're planning."
"I have an old friend on the shady side of town that typically knows everything going on in Vale. Megs and I should be able to get some info out of him pretty easy," Yang said, leading up against Megatron.
"Alright," Optimus said as he stood up and sheathed his sword, "once we're done, we'll meet up with Yang and Megatron and discuss what we found. Let's roll out!" The six of them grinned with looks of determination on their eyes. Little did they realize that there was more than six of them.
"Yeah!" a voice said from outside the window. Everyone jolted back upon seeing a certain monkey-tailed Faunus hanging from the windowsill.
"Sun!?" Blake said, surprised by his sudden appearance.
"How did you even get up there?" Weiss asked.
"I do it all the time," Sun replied, receiving a questioning look from Weiss.
"You what!?" she said, skeptical about his response.
"I climb trees all the time!" Sun explained, but Weiss was still a bit suspicious.
"Sun, what are you doing here?" Optimus asked as Sun flung himself into the room with his tail.
"I heard you were going after that guy from the docs. Torchwick, right?" Optimus was about to reply, but he was cut short when Blake stepped in.
"We were going to investigate the situation… as a team." She said, subtly hinting that she didn't want Sun to get involved.
"Now, wait a minute," Optimus said, getting other ideas, "Sun, since you're a Faunus, maybe you can go with Blake to scope out the White Fang initiations. She might need backup if something goes wrong." As much as Blake hated to admit it, Optimus was right.
"Cool," Sun said, walking over to Blake, "oh, I also brought Neptune with me." Sun pointed out the window, showing everyone that Neptune was standing on a ledge outside. Everyone looked at Neptune with both confusion and awe.
"How did you even manage that?" Optimus asked, looking around for a ladder or some rope that Neptune might have used.
"I have my ways," Neptune responded quite cryptically, "seriously though, can I come in? We're, like, really high up right now." Once Neptune was inside, Optimus and Ruby assigned him and Sun with their partners, being Blake and Weiss.
"Ok, now that that's settled, it's time to roll!" Optimus ordered receiving a resounding 'yeah' from the rest of the group.
(…)
Meanwhile, as our noble warriors surveyed the area for any unusual activity, Shockblast was currently looking over the new setup far from Vale. It was a large cavern buried beneath a demolished city, with ruins of another civilization underground.
"So, this is where the magic happens," Shockblast said, walking up behind Roman, who jumped at the sound of his voice, "quaint!"
"Shockblast, what a pleasant surprise," Roman spat through his teeth. "What, your girlfriend couldn't make it?"
"She's currently occupied. But as for me," Shockblast's cannon began to electrify, "I've come to see that you don't screw things up like last time!"
"Tch, what? You mean with Mega- WOAH!" Roman couldn't finish his sentence as Shockblast had nearly blasted him into oblivion. Luckily for him, Shockblast intentionally missed and blew a building-sized hole in the ceiling.
"YES, I MEAN THE TIME WITH MEGATRON! You'd better pull off this next mission, cause if you don't," Shockblast pointed his cannon at Roman, whom you could almost see shaking in his fancy shoes, "I. Won't. Miss." As Shockblast walked away, Roman regained his composure and glared daggers at his 'comrade.'
"Hmph, I bet you were too weak to finish him yourself," he said under his breath. However, this didn't go unnoticed. Shockblast swiftly turned to Roman and leapt into the air.
"TRANSFORM!" he shouted as his eye began to glow brighter. His torso rotated to the side, as did his head in the opposite direction. His arm bent backwards behind him and his cannon shifted in front of him. His legs split into a 180 and multiple panels opened in his shins and calves. He was now in the form of an armed satellite. His weapon was charged up, electricity forming on the end of it. The three claw-like appendages on the barrel opened, making way for the blast. His cannon fired upon numerous buildings, incinerating half the base. He cared not for any soldiers or equipment still inside those buildings as they went up in a ball of flames. He slowly descended back to Roman's level and transformed back into his route mode.
"S-sorry?" Roman laughed nervously, fearing Shockblast would do the same to him as he did the buildings. However, his death never came as Shockblast simply walked past him. But not before whispering something in his ear.
"How's that for weak?" He then walked off, still filled with rage. You could practically see his clenched fist cracking from the pressure.
(…)
Anyway, back to our heroes. Weiss and Neptune had finally made it to the transmit tower, to which Neptune had eagerly wanted to see. But he displayed his joyous emotions on the inside, being the resident cool-guy and all.
"Man, I wasn't expecting the tower to be this big," Neptune said, impressed at the sheer size of it.
"You should see the one in Atlas," Weiss remarked, taking this tower as something of minuscule importance.
"Wasn't that the first one?" Neptune asked.
"Indeed. Atlas developed the cross-continental transmit system to allow the four kingdoms to communicate with one another. It was their gift to the world after the great war."
"Huh, smart and pretty. Looks like I got the right partner," Neptune complimented Weiss, causing her to giggle. However, their moment of happiness was cut short when Weiss saw a familiar face. Just a few feet away, Penny could be seen just walking around near the tower.
"Not her," Weiss sighed.
"Who, the girl with the pink bow?" Neptune asked, pointing at Penny.
"Let's just go before she sees us," Weiss said as she and Neptune walked towards the tower, with Weiss hiding her face with her hand. Unfortunately for her, Penny looked in their general direction and spotted them. Taking notice of this, Weiss swiftly turned away, hoping that she wouldn't talk to them. Surprisingly enough, Penny just walked away, completely ignoring Weiss and Neptune. Weiss' expression grew confused as she watched Penny walk away.
"I'm guessing that's not normal for her?" Neptune assumed.
"Huh, that's odd," Weiss commented, "she'd normally pester us and act all weird when talking to us. Oh well, at least she's gone. Now, back to the task at hand."
"Whatever you say," Neptune said, winking at Weiss.
(…)
While Weiss ad Neptune were busy at the tower, Optimus and Ruby were flying just above Vale, looking for any unusual activity. Well, Optimus was doing the flying while Ruby was hanging on to his back for dear life.
"Hey, Optimus?" Ruby said.
"Yeah Ruby, what's up?" Optimus responded.
"I just wanted to thank you for the training we've been doing these past few days. I really appreciate it." Optimus smiled under his mask, as did Ruby.
"Well, I'm glad to help. Especially for one of my friends."
"Yeah… friends." Ruby's smile faded a bit as she tilted her head to the side.
"Is something wrong?" Optimus asked, taking note of his companions look. It took a minute for Ruby to reply, but she came through nonetheless.
"Optimus," Ruby began, almost timidly, "have you ever, um… *Sigh* have you ever had a crush on anyone?" she asked, finally. Optimus raised an eyebrow at her.
"Crush? I'm afraid I don't understand," he said, surprising Ruby.
"Y-you know, a crush. Something you get when you have, uh, feelings for someone." Optimus was beginning to understand it better. He was able to figure out what Ruby meant when she said the word 'like.'
"To be honest, I've never really had any romantic feelings towards someone," he admitted. Ruby's color somewhat turned grey after Optimus said that.
"O-oh, ok then."
"Do you have a crush on anyone?" Optimus asked. Ruby's face turned bright red.
"M-maybe," she halfway confessed.
"I see. Well, I'm sure this is something private, and that you'd be a bit uncomfortable talking about it. Is there anything else you'd like to talk about?"
"N-no," Ruby replied, "let's just get back on the task at hand." Optimus nodded at her as they both continued to observe the town below them.
(…)
Off in the middle of the Emerald Forest, a man-sized portal could be seen opening next to a small pond. If one witnessed this, they would probably be shocked to see a bulky, lion faunus stepping through.
"Vector Prime," the faunus said, speaking into a device on his wrist, "I made it through."
"Good," Vector Prime responded, his voice a bit staticky coming through the communicator, "we're counting on you to find Optimus, Leobreaker. Good luck, and may Primus guide you."
"Yeah, well, I just hope this is the right planet." Leobreaker surveyed the area, making sure it was secure. "Huh, this place reminds me of Jungle Planet." Leobreaker then noticed something a bit off about himself. He noticed this when he looked at his arm while communicating with Vector Prime, but it just now registered with him. He looked at his arm again, confirming what he saw was true. Once the realization fully registered, Leobreaker went wide eyed.
"I'm… I'm organic!?" he exclaimed, looking over his body. He then noticed the pond he appeared next to and dashed over to it, getting a good look at his reflection. He was even more surprised when he saw his new body completely. He was wearing a pair of golden gauntlets, simulating his claws in robot mode. He had white, tattered shorts and clawed feet, too big for any shoes. He wasn't wearing a shirt, though. But, instead, he had on a green pendant with his Autobot badge on it. Finally, hiss face. His hair was blond, as was his goatee, and styled in a ponytail fashion. His eyes were cat-like, with slit pupils and red around them. He also had two fangs protruding from his bottom jaw.
"What the slag happened? Vector Prime never told me about…" Leobreaker was cut short when he heard growling in the trees behind him. "Who's there?" he questioned, getting into a fighting stance. However, once his stalker showed themselves, Leobreaker was even more shocked. It was a Beowolf, something Leobreaker wasn't expecting on a planet almost identical to Earth, or so Vector Prime told him. The Beowolf snarled and showed off its fangs at the golden lion, who showed his claws and fangs in return. The Grimm lunged at Leobreaker, intending to bite his head clean off. Luckily, Leobreaker managed to avoid its attack and retaliate by punching it in the back. Leobreaker was surprised to find that the Beowolf was still able to stand after his attack.
"Huh, I guess you're tougher than I thought. Alright then, it's time to end this!" Leobreaker declared as a green aura engulfed his body. A brilliant light shot upward into the clouds, allowing Leobreaker's Cyber Key to descend from the sky. It inserted itself into his gauntlets, causing his golden claws to extend. He let out a mighty roar as he charged towards the Beowolf, the Grimm charged back. It jumped at Leobreaker, but her slid under it and cut open its underside with his claws. The Beowolf slid on the ground and into a tree, with Leobreaker standing triumphantly over its body.
"Ha, too easy," he said before walking towards the fallen Grimm. However, before he could get a good look at it, its body dissipated into nothingness. "Woah! That's weird." Leobreaker pondered over the beast for a moment, but was brought back to reality after noticing something that was off. He began to sniff the air around him, as if he smelled something familiar. His pupils shrank as he started to get jumpy. He jerked his head to one side of the forest, his sniffs intensifying. A grin formed on his face as he got into a sprinting stance.
"Don't worry, Optimus," he said as he started running, "I'm coming for you!"
(…)
Back in Vale, the shadier side to be more specific, Yang and Megatron had jus rode up to a large building. They were riding on Yang's motorcycle, Bumblebee. Yang was driving, of course, so she had Megatron sit in back, holding onto her waist. And she didn't mind that at all.
"So, this is the place?" Megatron asked as he and Yang got off her motorcycle.
"Yup," Yang replied, setting her helmet on the bike handle, "my friend's right in there. Don't worry, you'll like him."
"I doubt it," Megatron scoffed. Yang simply rolled her eyes at him.
"Just let me do the talking, alright?"
"Fine," Megatron grumbled. He hated taking orders from others, but he allowed it this time. He had begun to take a liking to Yang, even deciding to try and recruit her into the Decepticons. But that would have to wait. At the main entrance, two guards could be seen almost trembling once they saw the pair. Or, rather, once they saw Yang approaching. They made a mad dash inside the building, trying desperately to close the doors.
"I'll handle this," Yang said, calmly walking up to the door.
"Hurry, close the door! She's coming!" One of the guards said, finally managing to get inside.
"What are you idiots doing?" a tall man in a black and white suit said, presumably the head of this club. Suddenly, the doors burst open with a small explosion. In the midst of the smoke was Yang and Megatron as they walked into the club, with Yang leading up front.
"Guess who's back!" Yang said enthusiastically, only to have multiple guns pointed at her head. Megatron walked up beside her, with some of the grunts shifting their attention to him.
"I wouldn't try it if I were you," he said, flaring his bright, red eyes, "but if you do, then I wont hold back." Some of the grunts took a step back, slightly intimidated by Megatron's menacing presence. Before they could fire upon the two, the man in the black and white suit intervened.
"Stop, stop! Nobody shoot!" he ordered, to which his associates lowered their weapons. "Blondie," he said, "you're here. Why?" Megatron then stepped up to him.
"We are here to gather some information. So, tell us what we want and there won't be any trouble." The man was unphased by his threat.
"I'm not scared of you kid," he said. Megatron clenched his fists, and his eyes began to glow.
"You will be," Megatron replied. But before he could show his strength, Yang stepped in.
"you'll have to excuse my partner. He jus thinks he's better than everyone else. But trust me when I say that he can do a lot more damage than I can. Besides," Yang then pulled the man away and dragged him to the bar, "you still owe me a drink." Megatron followed soon after, both him and Yang taking a seat at the bar. Little did they realize that one of the people there had recognized Megatron. He pulled out his scroll and searched for a specific contact. Once he found it, he made a call to a certain one-eyed psychopath.
"What is it?" the voice on the other line said impatiently.
"He's here," the grunt said, "we'll send you our address, so you can deal with him." He then put his scroll back in his pocket while making sure neither Megatron nor Yang saw him.
(…)
At last, Leobreaker had made it to Vale. Lucky for him, Optimus' scent was still fresh and more present here.
"Argh, where the slag is he!?" Leobreaker said, growing more frustrated. He'd been searching for his leader all day, up until nightfall. Finally, his nose lead him to a dark alleyway, he noticed a claw mark on one of the walls next to him. "Huh, wonder why this is here." Leobreaker then noticed someone walking into a large building. The person was similar to him, in the sense that thy, too, had animalistic appendages. "This place sure is strange," he commented. However, his thoughts were interrupted when he heard two sets of footsteps behind him. He leapt up onto the rooftop above him and tried hiding himself as best he could. The people who were behind him also had animalistic features. The first one, the female, had a pair of cat ears, much like Leobreaker. The other, the male, had a long, blonde monkey tail.
"This is it," the girl said, peaking around the corner.
"You sure?" the monkey-boy asked. The cat-girl then gave him an annoyed glance. "Y-now, I'm just gonna take your word for it." For some reason, Leobreaker smelled Optimus' scent on the cat girl. He continued to observe them from above. Unfortunately, Leobreaker wasn't exactly the stealthiest of bots. His hand slipped and caught on the gutter, making a metal creaking sound. This didn't go unnoticed.
"Uh oh," Leobreaker said, realizing his mistake. He slowly crept backwards, trying harder to conceal himself.
"Blake," the monkey whispered to the cat girl, "I think we're being watched.
"Yeah, I noticed too," Blake whispered back.
"What do we do?" the monkey asked. Blake slowly reached for her weapon, which was strapped onto her back. After she grabbed it, she swiftly shrew it at the building to their left, narrowly avoiding Leobreaker.
"WOAH!" Leobreaker exclaimed, dodging Blake's weapon. She tugged on the rope attached to the handle, sending it back to her. She grabbed her other weapon and tried hitting Leobreaker again. He evaded it and jumped onto the ground in front of Blake and Sun.
"Who are you!?" Sun asked, demanding to know who he was and why he was spying on them. However, the response wasn't what he was expecting. Leobreaker pounced at Sun, but he whipped out his staff and blocked his attack. Leobreaker then grabbed a hold of Sun's staff and tried prying it from his hands. But Sun wasn't so willing to give up. He tugged back as hard as he could, but Leobreaker was smart about this. He let go of the staff, causing Sun to fall to the ground. However, Blake managed to grab hold of him from behind. This only gave the golden lion the chance to knock her on the ground as well. He grabbed her shoulders and threw her over him and next to Sun.
"So, you done yet?" Leobreaker said, crossing his arms. Sun jolted to his feet and swung his staff downwards, intending to hit Leobreaker on the head. But Leobreaker grabbed his staff once again and threw him into a wall. Sun slowly slid on his rear as Blake stood back up, facing Leobreaker.
"Yeah, we're done," Sun said defeated.
"A- Wha- SUN!" Blake shouted, not happy with her partner giving up so easily. She looked back at Leobreaker, a look of frustration in her eyes. "Why were you spying on us!?"
"How about you answer my question first!" Leobreaker said, getting angrier by the second. "Where's Optimus?" Blake's expression went from frustration to surprise in less than a second.
"Wait, you know Optimus Prime?" she asked, lowering her guard. She then noticed the Autobot symbol on his pendant. It was just like the one Optimus had. "Y-you're an Autobot, right?" Leobreaker lowered his guard as well, also surprised by Blake's question.
"Yeah, of course. So, I guess it's safe to assume that Optimus made friends with you?" he asked, still a bit skeptical about Blake and Sun.
"Yes, he is a friend of mine. I'm Blake, and this is Sun," Sun waved at Leobreaker as he stood back up, "and you?"
"The name's Leobreaker. I'm one of Optimus' most trusted soldiers, as well as his right-hand man. Literally!" Blake and Sun were confused by that last bit, but they decided to shrug it off for now.
"What are you doing here, Leobreaker?" Sun asked.
"I'm looking for Optimus, but you probably figured that out by now. I've been tracking his scent ever since I got to this place. And now, it's lead me to you two. More specifically, Blake," he replied, pointing to the cat Faunus. "You have Optimus' scent on you, meaning you must've made contact with him." Sun's jaw dropped.
"WHAT!?" Sun shouted. Luckily, no one else was around to hear him. "Y-you mean… Blake… and Optimus… They… They did…" Blake's face was beginning to turn red as she rushed in to try and explain things.
"N-no! We didn't do anything like that! Yes, we made physical contact, but…"
"(Sigh) I was too late," Sun said as he fell on his back. Leobreaker was just confused at this point.
"Anyway," he said, trying to get back on topic, "do you know where I can find Optimus?" Sun groaned at hearing that name. Blake's face got a bit redder, not only from embarrassment, but also from annoyance.
"Ugh, we didn't do anything like that, Sun," she explained, "got it?"
"Huh? You mean you and Optimus aren't, you know, a thing?" he asked, not wanting to wait much longer for confirmation. Blake rolled her eyes at him before speaking up.
"No, we are not an item." She said. Sun let out a heavy sigh of relief and regained his composure.
"As I was saying," Leobreaker said, "can you point me in the right direction, so I can find Optimus?"
"Sorry, I can't help you there," Blake said, Disappointing Leobreaker, "but we did agree to meet up with him and Ruby later." Leobreaker perked back up when she mentioned that. "Just stick with us and you'll see him later."
"Well, I've never been one for waiting, especially not now. But if I have to then I will. So, what are we doing here?"
"We're trying to find out any information on the White Fang. See if we can't figure out their next move," Blake explained.
"The White Fang?"
"Long story short, they're a group of Faunus who're trying to take over the world," Sun added.
"Then what are we waiting for? If anyone wants to take over the world, they're gonna have to deal with me!" Leobreaker exclaimed.
"Here, you're gonna need this," Blake said, handing him a red and white mask. Luckily, she brought a spare in case she lost one of the others. Leobreaker put the mask on, but found it to be a bit uncomfortable.
"I feel stupid with this thing on," he commented.
"Yeah, well, we're not trying to look fancy here," Sun said as the three walked towards the entrance of the building. Inside was a large crowd of Faunus. Most of them were already with the White Fang, but a small group of them were new recruits.
"What is all this?" Leobreaker whispered, observing the crown before him.
"It's the initiations for the White Fang. Hopefully, we can find out their plan," Blake whispered back. However, Leobreaker's questions would have to wait as a Faunus of the White Fang stepped up on the stage. He was dressed differently from the others, presumably he was higher in rank.
"Thank you all for coming," he said, "for those of you who are joining us for the first time tonight, allow me to introduce two very special comrades of ours." Two people walked on stage. One of them was in a white coat and a black hat. He was also carrying a red cane in his hand. It was Roman. The other person was unknown. He was covered in a brown cloak, so no one could see him properly. "I can assure you," the Faunus continued, "they are the key to obtaining what we have fought for, for so long." The Faunus' who were already in the White Fang cheered for them, but the new members weren't so accepting.
"What are humans doing here?" a female Faunus asked.
"I'm glad you asked, dearie," Roman said, "Now, I'll be the first to admit, humans are the worst! Case in point." Roman then pointed to himself. "But you shouldn't say so about my, er, 'comrade' here. For he is neither human nor Faunus." The new recruits were stunned. How can there be a third race of beings like them.
"What do you think he means?" Sun whispered to Blake and Leobreaker.
"I don't know. Hopefully we'll find out soon," Blake responded.
"Now I know you must be confused," Roman continued, "that is why my associate will explain himself. So, why not take off that cloak and reveal yourself." The other person grabbed his cloak from the inside and threw it off his body. What was revealed shocked everyone beyond measure. It was some kind of Cyborg, with a cannon arm and a claw, as well as metal boots with tank treads.
"Woah, what is this guy?" Sun questioned, just as surprised as everyone else. However, Leobreaker was a bit more shocked when he noticed a familiar symbol on the cyborg's shoulder. It was the infamous Decepticon insignia.
"He's a Decepticon!" Leobreaker pointed out.
"You mean he's working for Megatron?" Blake asked.
"No," Leobreaker replied, "Optimus told me about this guy. His name is Shockblast. He betrayed Megatron a long time ago during the war between the Autobots and Unicron. I'll explain the rest later." Shockblast then spoke up, his voice sending chills down everyone's spines with how unstable he sounded.
"The name's Shockblast," the cyborg introduced, "and I bet you're all dying to know what happened to me to get like this." Shockblast then pointed to his mechanical appendages. "Well, I'll tell you what happened. The guy I called "master" put me in this situation! And do you know what he is? He's a low life human who deserves to be eradicated! Just like all the other pitiful humans in this world. But, to be more specific, the higher ups, the ones pulling the strings!" People began to cheer when Shockblast said that.
"Lucky for you, we're the best exterminators aro-" Roman was cut off when his scroll began to buzz. "Argh, what is it!?" he asked impatiently, feeling embarrassed for something like this to happen to him in front of all these people. Shockblast found it amusing though.
"He's here," the man on the other line said, which put a smile on Roman's face, "we'll send you our address, so you can deal with him." After hanging up, Roman let out chuckle and turned to face Shockblast.
"What's so funny," he said, sparks forming at the end of his cannon.
"I think I've just found your former "master" Shockblast. I suggest you'd better deal with him," Roman said with his smug grin. Shockblast's lone eye glowed a striking green as he face towards some of the soldiers off stage.
"Find Megatron and DESTROY HIM!" He shouted. The soldiers sprinted out of the building, not wanting to face Shockblast's wrath. His anger startled the crowd of newcomers, but the older members were used to it by now.
"Now then," Roman said, clearing his throat, "as I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted, we have just the thing to help in our little project." Roman then snapped his fingers, signaling the soldiers to remove the curtain behind him. Everyone cheered at the sight that was before them.
"Not good," Leobreaker said, ready to pounce at any moment. Behind the curtain was a giant robot, with a grey color scheme, blocky proportions, and guns for hands.
"How did he even get that?" Blake questioned, also preparing to strike.
"As some of you may have heard," Roman continued, "this right here is Atlas' new line of defense against all the scary things in the world. And thanks to my employer, we've managed to snag a few before they, uh, 'hit the shelves'."
"So unless you want to be stuck here, on the bench," Shockblast added, "I suggest coming with us, so you can get your hands on one of these!" Everyone began to cheer for Shockblast and Roman, eagerly anticipating their new toys.
"We should get out of here," Blake said, not wanting to stay any longer.
"I agree, let's get going while the going's good," Leobreaker said. But before they could walk out, Roman ordered all the new recruits to walk forward.
"Welp," Sun said, realizing that if they didn't do something fast, then they'd be discovered. With the crowd moving, it would be hard to slip past anyone due to everyone heading in the same direction.
(…)
Let's see if Megs and Yang are having better luck. He and Yang were standing at the bar, with the manager behind the table.
"I don't know," he said. Welp, that answers that. Time to go.
"How can you not know!?" Yang questioned. Nevermind then, I guess we're staying.
"I haven't talked to him. I haven't seen him since the night you first came here," the man explained, "he paid upfront, I lent him a few men, and none of them ever came back!"
"Listen, worm," Megatron insulted, "I don't care what happened to your men. So, tell us what we want to know, or else!" Megatron's eyes began to glow red.
"Hey, don't you talk to me that way! Who is this guy?"
"Someone who can beat even the toughest guys to a pulp. Trust me, I know," Yang threatened for Megatron, to which he grinned evilly.
"Listen, I already told you everything! Torchwick hired my boys and I guess he wasn't happy with them! Which is something I can relate to!" he shouted.
"Hmph, come on, Megs," Yang huffed as she and Megatron walked away.
"Tch, if you had let me loose, I guarantee I could've gotten something useful out of that ignorant buffoon," Megatron scoffed.
"Ugh, let's just hope the others are doing better than us. Besides, it's not like we had the worst of luck," Yang said. Unfortunately, she jinxed it for themselves as the main door burst open. Multiple Faunus from the White Fang entered the room, all with their guns pointed at Megatron and Yang.
"You just had to say it, didn't you?" Megatron groaned, getting more annoyed.
"Now's not the time for that!" Yang retorted, her eyes turning red as she readied her gauntlets. Megatron prepared for battle as well, but instead of using his sword, he figured his cyber key would do better.
"CYBER KEY POWER!" He shouted as a purple aura surrounded him and shot up into the air. His cyber key inserted itself into one of his 'wings', releasing a claw-like weapon. It attached itself to Megatron's left arm, three spikes jutted out of it afterwards. The Faunus held their positions, waiting for Megatron and Yang to make their next move. The couple were also waiting or them to make a move, seeing if they could predict it ahead of time.
"Hey, here's an idea," Yang said, "how about we make this a competition."
"Go on," Megatron said, intrigued.
"I count around 18 troops. Let's see who can take out the most. If you win, then I'll buy you a drink afterwards."
"And if you win?"
"Then you have to take me out for dinner tomorrow."
"All too easy," Megatron scoffed. Just as the soldiers were about to fire, Megatron and Yang leapt into the air and propelled themselves in opposite directions, with Yang going left and Megatron going right. Yang aimed her foot at one of the troops upon descension and kicked him into a wall. To other troops aimed their guns at her, but she got to them first. Yang punched one of them in the chest, then grabbed his foot while he was mid-air and swung him into the other one.
"That's three for me," Yang said triumphantly. But she was disappointed when she saw that Megatron dashed towards five other soldiers and took them out with a single slash from his claw weapon. A purple explosion sent them flying onto the dance floor int the center of the room.
"Ha, I don't even have to try for this, unlike you," Megatron taunted, making Yang angrier than usual. Luckily, she was able to vent her anger by punching another soldier without even looking as he charged at her. The two jumped back into the center of the room, now facing each other.
"Is that sweat I see on your forehead?" Yang mocked.
"Tch, in your dreams!" Megatron mocked back before striking two more soldiers with a lightning blast. Yang was getting a lot angrier now. Her breath quickened, and her hair began to glow. She stomped her foot on the ground, causing the floor to shake.
"No way am I gonna lose to you AGAIN!" She shouted as she jumped into the air in a blaze of glory. It was almost as if she were on fire at the moment, due to her growing anger. She slammed her fist into the ground, creating a massive shockwave which rendered the remaining soldiers, as well as the club members, unconscious. Yang rose back to her feet, her eyes turning back to their normal purple.
"I guess you win," Megatron said, disappointed at the outcome. 'She must have cheated somehow. I never loose,' he thought.
"Which means," Yang then put her arm around Megatron's shoulder, "you get to take me out on a date tomorrow!" Unlike Megatron, Yang was very pleased with the outcome of their little wager.
"You know, Yang," Megatron said as they walked towards the exit, "I'm not exactly a nice guy, so I'll try and put this as best I can. I've started taking a bit of a liking towards you. You intrigue me, and I honestly wouldn't mind spending a bit more time with you."
"Naw, Megs," she said, locking her arm with his, "I knew under that hard, shiny armor was a big old softy."
"Don't get the wrong idea. I'm still as cold as ever."
"Probably not as cold as Ice Queen, though." Megatron rolled his eyes at Yang, but he still smiled, feeling that, somehow, he achieved a victory.
(…)
Meanwhile, Leobreaker, Sun, and Blake were trying to figure a way out of this mess.
"What now?" Leobreaker asked, not wanting to stay here much longer.
"I'm thinking," Blake replied, her brain scrambling for a decent plan. Unfortunately for them, Roman just so happened to look in their direction, and so did Shockblast. But what Shockblast noticed that Roman didn't was the Autobot symbol on Leobreaker's necklace.
"An Autobot? Here!?" he said, not believing his eye.
"We've been spotted!" Leobreaker pointed out, drawing Blake and Sun's attention to a very angry Shockblast. Luckily, Blake had finally came up with a plan once she saw the breaker box.
"They can't see in the dark," she said before firing her weapon at it, causing the lights to go out.
"Don't let them get away!" Roman shouted.
"Ugh, do I have to do everything myself!?" Shockblast said, charging up his weapon.
"Sun, Leo, the window!" The Faunus trio made a mad dash towards the window, breaking through it to the outside. However, Shockblast wasn't far behind. He blew a hole in the wall with a single blast from his cannon and started chasing after the three.
"I'm coming for you, AUTOBOT! TRANSFORM!" Shockblast then turned into his satellite mode and flew above the trio.
"You've gotta be kidding!" Leobreaker said, witnessing Shockblast's transformation.
"How the heck can he do that!?" Sun questioned. But ow was not the time for that. They jumped up onto a building and began sprinting from rooftop to rooftop. Shockblast charged up his weapon and fired at the building in front of them while they were jumping to it. Fortunately, they landed without a scratch and continued their escape.
"Blake, now might be a good time to call in reinforcements!" Leobreaker shouted, now running on all fours.
"On it!"
(…)
"Everyone, if you can hear me, we need backup!" Blake shouted, which was then followed by Sun screaming.
"Sounds like they're in trouble," Neptune deducted as he and Weiss ran out of the tower.
(…)
"We're being chased by a cyborg with a gun for an arm!" Sun shouted. Luckily, Optimus and Ruby were flying just overhead when they got the call.
"Don't worry, Sun, we're nearby!" Optimus said as he descended to their location. But he nearly came to a halt when he saw their attacker. "It- It can't be!" He said.
"What is it?" Ruby questioned, looking down at the cyborg chasing their friends.
"Is that… Shockblast? Quick, contact Megatron!"
"On it."
(…)
"He turned into, like, a spaceship or whatever and he's shooting at us!" Sun continued to shout.
"Where are you guys?" Yang asked. Her question was then answered when she and Megatron heard screaming and loud gunshots behind them.
"I think that answers that," Megatron said. Suddenly, Yang got another contact on her scroll. It was Ruby.
"Yang, let me talk to Megatron!" Optimus demanded.
"What is it, Prime?" Megatron questioned, not wanting to wait any longer for a fight.
"Megatron," Optimus paused for a moment, most likely for dramatic timing, "it's Shockblast." Megatron's eyes widened with shock. He gritted his teeth and began to growl.
"You know that guy? Kinda 'shocking' isn't it?" Yang joked, putting her scroll away. But Megatron wasn't having it.
"Now's not the time for jokes," he said, charging up the thrusters on his back, "it's time to deal with that no-good traitor once and for all!"
(…)
Blake, Sun, and Leobreaker mad their way to the freeway, hoping they'd lose Shockblast there. They jumped from car to car, trying to keep themselves moving until they got to a more open space to fight.
"Optimus had better get here fast!" Sun said before jumping to the next car. Shockblast began to charge up his cannon, intending to blow out the bridge.
"Lights out!" he shouted, about to fire. However, his onslaught was put to a stop when he was hit with a red plasma blast.
"SHOCKBLAST!" a red and blue figure with a jetpack said from above. Shockblast was filled with hatred when he saw his attacker.
"YOU! TRANSFORM!" Shockblast went back to his route mode and hovered in front of Optimus and Ruby, who were still chasing after him. He fired a blast from his cannon at Optimus, but he narrowly avoided it, with it only singing his jacket. "I'LL KILL YOU, THEN EVERYONE ELSE IN THIS CITY!"
"Not if we can help it!" Leobreaker said as he pounce towards Shockblast. He evaded the ferocious feline in time. Luckily, Leobreaker caught onto Optimus' arms before falling.
"Optimus?" Leobreaker questioned, looking over his leader.
"Who… Leobreaker!?" Optimus finally recognized his friend and swing him onto his back with Ruby. "What are you doing here?"
"Vector Prime sent me here on a scouting mission. The others should be here in a few days."
"Others?" Ruby asked, already confused from the events transpiring. Especially at how today was full of perfect timing as Yang and Megatron came zooming into the fray. You could see a fire in Shockblast's single eye once he spotted Megatron. He let out a mighty war cry as he fired at Megatron. However, he dodged it, causing the blast to destroy the bridge, taking several cars with it. Yang tried to stop, but found that she couldn't as she and her motorcycle plummeted to the ground. Taking note of this, Megatron swooped down at great speeds and caught Yang in his arms.
"My hero," Yang said, holding onto Megatron while they landed. Shockblast began to fly after them, but was put off course when an electric trident impaled his cannon. Neptune and Weiss had finally made it to the fight. Wiess summoned one of her platform thingies and shot a blast of ice from her sword through it. It his Shockblast dead on, freezing half his body. He fell to the ground a few meters in front of Megatron and Yang's position.
"We gotta help them," Optimus said as he descended to the ground, with Blake and Wiess following behind. As Shockblast struggled to break free from the ice, Megatron walked in front of him, a purposeful grimace on his face.
"So, you're still alive?" he questioned, wondering how he could've survived being crushed by Unicron's fist.
"You can't get rid of me that easy, you miserable piece of slag!" Shockblast insulted, making Megatron angry. He summoned his energy sword and pointed it at Shockblast's throat.
"Surrender now, and I will spare your miserable life traitor!"
"Megatron wait!" Optimus grabbed hold of Megatron's shoulder after Ruby and Leobreaker got off his back. "He might have valuable information that we could use."
"I made the mistake of not seeing his destruction through the first time, I won't do so again!"
"Don't be a fool! He's working with Roman! If we can get him to talk, then maybe we can find out his next move!" Optimus argued.
"Uh, guys?" Ruby said, drawing their attention back to Shockblast, who was charging up his cannon in the ice.
"Everyone, get back!" Optimus shouted. But it as too late as Shockblast blasted his way through the ice, sending shards everywhere. One of the shards punctured Blake's thigh. She fell to the ground and clenched her leg, trying to block out the pain.
"Blake!" Ruby shouted as she rushed to her side.
"Argh, I'll be fine. Go help the others!" Blake said.
"But-"
"GO!" Ruby reluctantly complied as she charged Shockblast, Crescent Rose in hand. But he saw her attack coming from a mile away and fired at her. Ruby tried using her great speed to avoid the blast, but found that she couldn't. So, she tried blocking it with her weapon. Big mistake. Yes, she got out of it with only minor singes on her body, but her weapon wasn't so lucky. Ruby hit the ground with a thud and heard a clang sound in front of her. She looked up and was horrified. The blast had shattered both the blade and the gun portions of her weapon, leaving it a pile of scrap.
"NO!" she shouted in despair, clinging onto what was left of her weapon. But while Ruby was heartbroken, Yang was pissed.
"You'll pay for that you creep!" Yang's eyes glowed red as she swung her fist at Shockblast, only for him to avoid it and slam his fist into her stomach. Yang coughed up a few ounces of blood as she fell to the ground, gripping her stomach.
"Your turn, Frosty!" Shockblast shouted with a deranged grin as he fired a blast from his cannon at her. She tried blocking it by summoning a shield, but it was useless as the blast plowed right through it and knocked her unconscious.
"This ends HERE!" Megatron prepared a lighting blast for the former Decepticon, but Shockblast fired at his shoulder, severely injuring it. Sparks shot out of his arm as Megatron clutched it. Optimus looked at the destruction around him. His friends were defeated, innocent citizens were either injured or killed from Shockblast's rampage, and he and Leobreaker were the only ones left.
"Time to die, huntsmen and huntresses!" Shockblast said, charging up his weapon. Optimus couldn't take it anymore. He slammed his foot down on the pavement, causing it to crumble beneath his feet.
"Not while I'm still drawing breath!" Optimus declared. Suddenly, his Leobreaker's bodies began to glow. But not their usual red and green, rather, it was a glimmering white. They each took a deep breath and looked at each other in awe.
"What is this?" Leobreaker questioned.
"I think… I think it's our semblances!" Optimus explained
"Our what?"
"I'll explain later. Now, let's powerlinx!"
"You got it!" Optimus and Leobreaker then jumped high into the air, Optimus' chest glowing blue, as well as Leobreaker's. Optimus' jetpack launched itself off his body as his arm folded backwards. Leobreaker's transformation was a bit more complex, though. His forearms detached from his biceps and his legs fused together. His head tucked into his chest and his forearms connected to his feet, forming a giant arm of some kind. Leobreaker then linked himself to Optimus' right shoulder, and his jetpack reattached itself. Finally, the piece de resistance. A large hand formed on his lion arm made from large amounts of energy. Optimus has achieved his Savage Claw mode.
Shockblast, as well as the others, were stunned at the sight before them. It was like looking at a painting that was good enough to put beside the Mona Lisa.
"No. No. NO! NO! NO! NO! NO!" Shockblast as furious. He'd never been angrier in his life. He fired a barrage of laser blasts one after another, each of them hitting Prime at point blank range. At last, Shockblast ceased his attack, leaving a large smoke cloud before him. He laughed triumphantly, convinced that he'd just killed his most hated enemy, aside from Megatron. But when the dust settled, Optimus stood there, unscathed. He wiped the dust off his shoulder and raised his lion arm into the air.
"CYBER KEY POWER!" He shouted as Leobreaker's cyber key plugged into his hand. A set of long, golden claws flipped out from his wrist as lighting cam down behind him. "IT'S TIME TO FINISH THIS!" Optimus flew towards Shockblast at breakneck speeds and punched him square in the chest. The result as a massive explosion of red flames engulfing both off them.
"Woah," Ruby marveled at the sight before her. At last, the smoke cleared revealing Optimus standing tall and proud over a defeated Shockblast.
"It's over Shockblast," Optimus said, lifting up Shockblast by his shirt, "you've lost." Shockblast managed to break free, though, and aimed his cannon at Prime. But the thing is, there was no cannon to aim. Shockblast's eyes went as wide as dinner plates upon further inspection of what used to be his arm. He started to back away in fear as Optimus, Megatron, and Ruby surrounded him.
"We'll meet again, Prime," he growled before transforming, "and when we do, it will be your last." Shockblast then took to the skies, leaving the rest of them in their victory.
"Are you alright?" Optimus asked Ruby.
"No, my precious baby is dead!" Ruby whined. Meanwhile, Megatron went to check up on Yang.
"Are you injured?" he asked.
"Ha, I knew you cared," Yang said in between coughs, still recovering from that blow to her stomach.
"Well, even the worst of people can change. Even if the change is minor. Now get up, you aren't the only one who's injured," he said looking at Blake, who had pulled the ice out of her leg and Weiss, who had just regained consciousness. Optimus looked up into the sky, a grateful look on his face.
"What is it?" Ruby asked, drying her tears for her beloved weapon.
"Huh? Oh, it's nothing. I'm just thinking of an old friend." Ruby smiled at him before walking away to Weiss. "Thank you… Vector Prime."
(…)
Heyo, Vector Convoy here! I just wanted to say, thanks again to Silver Sparky xXPrimeXx or helping out. It's nice to have some help every once in a while. Anyway, posting new chapters like this will probably take a while. I'm nearing the end of school, which means that finals are coming. But I'm glad that you guys are still with me, thank you for your patience. Vector Convoy out!