Chapter 10
"Sir, we got 2 energon signals that appeared near the same spot from last time."
The MECH technician looked up at Silas, waiting for a command.
"Mounting an attack already?" he asked no one in particular. "Alright Prime, what are you up to?"
"Sir their moving quickly towards our position, what should we do?" the MECH technician asked.
"They must be going for an all out assault. Tell all units to get ready for an attack. I want our tanks and choppers to be prepared immediately and ready to counter-attack the Autobots." Silas commanded.
The MECH leader walked out of the room and headed for the armory as alarms blared throughout the facility. He was curious to see what Optimus was planning and would join the units on the ground.
...
Optimus and Bulkhead drove forward, not knowing exactly what might be up ahead. They ground bridged to the same coordinates as before and were hoping MECH would pick up their signal so they would prepare for an attack on the south side. If all went smoothly, Arcee and Ratchet who ground bridged to the north of the base would be able to launch a surprise attack from behind enemy lines.
"Bulkhead," Optimus said to the HUV next to him, "while I do not condemn human harm, MECH has gone too far and must be stopped. When we arrive, I will allow them one chance to surrender. If they do not, and that is what I suspect, we must use all our power in stopping them."
Before Bulkhead could respond, gun fire was heard from behind them. They looked in their side windows and saw three MECH Humvees, each with a manned machine gun on top following them. The two Autobots manoeuvred around the gun fire with the Humvees closing in on them.
One of the machine guns managed to pelt Bulkhead's backside with a couple shots, shattering his rear window.
"That's it!" the wrecker roared. He put on his brakes, catching the Humvee behind him off guard leading the car to smash into the wrecker's back. Bulkhead transformed and grabbed the Humvee with one hand and threw it at another, both vehicles smashing into each other. He took out his blaster and shot the tires of the last Humvee, sending it off course and smashing into a tree.
Quickly, he transformed and followed Optimus to the front gate where they were greeted with the end of over a dozen tanks, aiming at them. Helicopters swarmed them in the air while other tanks and Humvees pulled up from the sides. MECH soldiers were stationed behind the vehicles, each with an armed weapon, ready to fire at any moment.
"Optimus Prime" Silas greeted while steeping forward. Agent 000 was next to him, back in his full black outfit along with his weapons of choice. "I didn't think you would return so soon after the beating you took from Agent 000."
Optimus and Bulkhead transformed before responding, arming their blasters. "We know what you have been up to Silas, mixing dark energon with other chemicals to create a super soldier substance. I will no longer tolerate your inhuman schemes. Surrender now or you will face the consequences."
Silas let out a sinister chuckle before giving out an order.
"Fire."
All of a sudden, every vehicle and MECH soldier opened fire on the two Autobots, forcing them to back up slightly. Agent 000 unsheathed his blade but was stopped by Silas' arm.
"Not yet" the MECH leader ordered. "Back up for now until I give you the signal." Agent 000 didn't like being ordered around but did what he was told, letting out a snarl to show his disproval.
The MECH army slowly advanced while Optimus and Bulkhead backed up slightly. While their bullets didn't hurt their armor, the occasional bullet would find its way between two armor pieces, hitting the weaker material underneath. The tanks and helicopters on the other hand were stronger than before and actually hurt them. Their missiles doing significant damage to their armor.
"Bulkhead! Return fire!" Optimus yelled while covering his head with his arm. The two Autobots started shooting back, each blaster fire either destroyed a tank or killed a group of soldiers.
Over time, Optimus and Bulkhead started to wear down. Their armor was covered in scorch marks and s bit of energon leaked from areas where bullets penetrated their under armor. Unfortunately for them, they were in an open area with not many structures that can provide cover.
"Come on, come on, come on. Where are they?" Bulkhead yelled, frustrated that they were getting pinned down by MECH. A tank missile whizzed by, hitting Bulkhead in the shoulder joint, dislocating his right arm.
"SCRAP!" he yelled, firing back with his left arm.
Suddenly, a group of soldiers screamed as they flew through the air and landed with a thud.
"Silas we're being attacked from behind!" yelled a soldier through the radio, right before he was blasted off his feet.
Sure enough, Arcee and Ratchet came charging from the north side, catching the MECH army off guard. The Autobot's plan worked as the two let loose a barrage of blaster fire, destroying a group of tanks and Humvees.
"Autobots, target their vehicles!" Optimus commanded, shooting two helicopters from behind. Optimus and Bulkhead moved forward, knowing that the MECH army had to deal with forces on both sides.
"We're being flanked!" Silas shouted into the radio. "All units on the right, target the Autobots on the north side! Don't let them regroup!"
The battle waged on, Optimus and Bulkhead struggling without cover. Meanwhile, Arcee and Ratchet stood behind two buildings, aiming at the oncoming MECH vehicles. Arcee noticed Bulkhead's right arm limp to the side and motioned to Ratchet.
"Optimus" Arcee said through her com-link, "we'll clear a path so you and Bulkhead can take cover behind the buildings. Ratchet can fix Bulk's arm as long as you can get clear."
A missile hit the wall where Arcee was hiding, almost taking off the side of her face. She shook it off and fired back. Her and Ratchet aimed to the left side, destroying a couple vehicles leaving an opening for Optimus and Bulkhead.
The two male Autobots saw the opening and took it, both of them breaking into a sprint as they run and gunned down MECH forces. They took cover against the building Ratchet was hiding behind, their bodies battled and bruised.
The medic scanned Bulkhead's shoulder as Optimus provided cover fire. "It is only a dislocated joint, I'm going to have to pop it back in place but it will hurt." Bulkhead gave him a nod and Ratchet proceeded in pushing the arm back in place. A couple grunts from Bulkhead told him to hurry up as he found the spot and popped it in. They turned just in time for a barrage of helicopter missiles to miss their heads, blasting the ground around them and throwing them off their feet.
"Arcee, did you find Jack in the facility?" Optimus asked as he rolled over to Arcee's cover, blowing up a group of tanks.
"No, I couldn't find him anywhere. He must be-"
Arcee was cut off when she saw over two dozen small black balls bounce over, landing near the middle of the four Autobots. Her eyes widened as she knew what might happen if they didn't get clear.
"GRENADES!" she screamed.
The Autobots saw where she was looking and quickly dove out of their cover, running towards the MECH army. They sustained heavy fire as they got closer, trying as best they could to dodge the hundred bullets and missiles. The grenades behind them exploded, destroying the nearby buildings and blowing up the tanks that were near.
Optimus did a quick scan of the area. MECH's army was now reduced to half their size while a few helicopters still flew around top. He quickly finished off the remaining flyers before he turned his blasters into swords, charging into the heat of the battle. The others saw Optimus' play and followed, activating their own melee weapons and proceeded in destroying the MECH vehicles in close-combat.
"Agent 000, I believe that the Autobots have had enough fun" Silas said through his radio as he watched his soldiers helplessly defend against the big robots. "Show them what real power looks like."
Agent 000 dashed from the shadows, heading straight for Arcee. Finally, it was his turn and he intended on making it count. Ever since his talk with Arcee, something felt different inside of him, he couldn't quite put a finger on it. He didn't like the feeling and thought it would only be fair to go after the one who probably caused it.
The two-wheeler had her back turned to him; she was busy dealing with a tank. Quick as a ninja, Agent 000 ran up to her and stabbed her in the back, the end of the katana showing on the other side, underneath her right breastplate. Her eyes widened in panic and by instinct, starting pawing at the extended blade.
"Nice to see you again, Arcee" he said calmly, sliding the blade out of her, earning a groan of pain when he did. He spun the female around and kicked her in the chest, making her go flying for a couple meters and landing on her back with a hard thud. Energon leaked from her wound but she didn't seem to notice. The two-wheeler narrowed her optics as Agent 000 casually walked over, spinning his sword in his hand.
"I told you, the next time we meet," he came around to her neck and raised his sword, "be prepared to die!" Agent 000 slammed his sword down on her neck, smirking while he did. What he didn't know was that Arcee had blocked his fatal blow with her blade and swung the other around, cutting his stomach. The agent was taken by surprise and stumbled backwards, only to regain his balance and laugh.
"Guess you still have some fight in you, huh female?" he mocked.
Arcee spat out some energon from her mouth before responding. "I still owe you for slashing me last time."
The two ran at each other and started to battle, speed and agility vs speed and agility. Agent 000 was quite surprised of how much of a challenge she started to be. Every swing would be paired and every kick would be blocked. While every so often, he would get a nice slash in, it was nowhere near fatal.
After he jumped up, dodging a low sweep and cutting the leg as it came across, Agent 000 backed up a bit to catch his breath. He really didn't expect this much from the female and clearly his cockiness had gotten the better of him.
Meanwhile, the Autobots continued to rampage through the MECH army, destroying tanks left and right. Not before too long, very few vehicles remained functional as most of the ground soldiers had backed up to take better shots at the giant robots. While Optimus finished off another tank, he noticed Arcee and Agent 000 off to the side. He saw the hole inside Arcee's chest along with other cuts along her limbs and Agent 000's stomach wound. The two had separated giving him the perfect shot, sending a blast at the oblivious Agent 000.
His shot hit its target, catching the agent off guard and sending him crashing into a nearby tree. The agent slowly got up, checking his left side to see a huge burn where the blast made contact.
"Ratchet with me! Arcee may need some medical attention!" the Prime commanded, heading for Arcee. As soon as the two-wheeler saw them coming, she collapsed to the ground, holding her chest wound. Ratchet changed his hand into a blowtorch and proceeded in welding Arcee's wound up.
"Optimus, I will need a couple minutes while I fix the damage" he said to the Autobot leader. "I would suggest calling for a groundbridge so we can deploy our counter-attack unit."
Optimus nodded as he put two fingers up to his com-link, all the while sending blaster fire towards Agent 000's direction, keeping him pinned down.
"Optimus to Omega One, do you copy?" he asked while letting off a couple more shots. "Deploy the counter-attack unit to my coordinates. Omega One, do you copy?" Optimus' optics slightly widened as he heard static from the other side. He turned to look at the medic while he welded Arcee's wound.
"Ratchet! MECH must have a disrupter nearby; I am unable to contact Omega One." He said. "We must destroy find the generator and destroy it immediately!" Optimus motioned for Bulkhead to come over. The green wrecker saw the hand gesture, jogging forward while limping slightly as Optimus provided cover fire.
When Bulkhead arrived, the group got into a semi-huddle, still firing at the MECH army to keep them back. Ratchet had just finished up with Arcee and quickly did a scan of the area. "There is currently a disrupter somewhere in the facility blocking our attempts at making contact with Omega One" the medic explained. "After doing a scan of the area, the only possible placement is up there", he pointed to a building on the far side of the base, on the top was a device that looked similar to a small electrical transformer.
"Good finding old friend," Optimus said while taking some shots. "Autobots, you must take down that disrupter in order for our counter-attack unit to arrive. Move quickly for we must bring it down as soon as possible. I will keep Agent 000 busy for the time being." The Prime turned to face Agent 000 who has been quietly watching them from afar. Judging by his stance, he was merely waiting for the perfect time to strike.
"Be careful Optimus" Ratchet warned, "We cannot afford to have you go down like last time." With that, the medic turned around and ran for the transformer, Bulkhead and Arcee not too far behind.
Silas fired at them as they ran, not knowing exactly where they were going until he glanced at the direction they were headed.
"They're going after the disrupter!" he shouted to his army. "Agent 000 will take care of Optimus, stop those Autobots from advancing and protect the transformer!" Silas jumped into the passenger seat of a Humvee and followed the three Autobots with his army right behind him.
...
Back at the Autobot base, Wheeljack was bouncing on his toes while practising some swings with his swords. He clearly wanted to go and fight and didn't bother hiding it.
"Come on kid" he said to Raf who was operating the groundbridge controls, "it's been way too long for Agent 000 to not show up. I say open the groundbridge so Bee and I can go and scrap those MECH soldiers!"
"You need to relax Wheeljack" Raf replied, "Optimus hasn't given us the signal yet, so until then, just sit back and wait."
The wrecker grunted, showing his displeasure. "Of course I get put on the back-up squad" he mumbled to himself, "there better be some things left for me to scrap when I get there."
...
Agent 000 and Optimus had their blades drawn and strafed in a circle, each one waiting for the other to make the first move. Optimus knew well enough of what the agent could do and didn't want to rush into anything. He also knew that he needed to keep him busy until the others can take out the disrupter and call in reinforcements. Things were not looking too good for him; he still didn't have a strategy for combating Agent 000 and to make matters worse, his intentions were to distract while the agent's intentions were to kill.
On Agent 000's side, he was busy studying his opponent. Looking at Optimus' battled and bruised body, he couldn't help but chuckle to himself. The Prime was greatly damaged against his battle with the MECH army and he could even see sparks flying out of his left arm.
"Well, well, well. It looks like it's just you and me old man. You're in no condition to fight, nonetheless have a rematch against me. Do you really expect to defeat me? Last time we fought, I cut your arm off and severed your lower torso. You are truly pathetic if you believe you have a chance of walking out of this battle in one piece." Agent 000 was testing the Prime's nerves. Earlier, he had read about how serious Optimus is so just for fun, he decided to have a go. Much to his displeasure, it didn't appear to have an effect on him.
"Why? Why kill hundreds of innocent men and women? Why side with MECH and join their inhuman acts to gain power?" Optimus asked, ignoring the agent's earlier attempt of making him crack.
"Why? Because of the joy, because of the thrill of killing and seeing blood spill. Because of the feeling inside when you take a life! That, is why I kill and why I joined MECH. Like I told the female, MECH will one day run out of usefulness and when they do, I will be sure to pay them a visit. I intend to end Silas' life, but not before I end yours!"
Agent 000 charged at Optimus, his dark veins pulsing as he felt the energy course through him. He began by swinging at the Prime, aiming for his legs to bring them down. However, every one of his attempts would be blocked by Optimus' two blades that extend from his arms. The agent tried to run up on an arm and try to cut it off like last time, but was forced to jump off as Optimus' other blade swept along the arm.
Agent 000 attempted to jump and slice the lower torso again, but was kicked on the side while in mid-air. The force of the kick knocked him to the ground where he rolled for a bit before showing excellent gymnastic skills and landing on his feet, facing his opponent.
"I have to say Optimus, I enjoy battling with you" he laughed as he wiped away some blood that came out of his mouth. "Your high level of combat and the challenge you provide will make it all the more better when I cut off your head!"
With that, Agent 000 charged.
...
Arcee, Ratchet and Bulkhead ran through the facility grounds, dodging and weaving around buildings to avoid getting hit by the machine gun fire.
"There it is!" Ratchet yelled, pointing at a building on the left. "We must take a left up ahead, otherwise we'll be trapped in a dead end!"
The Autobots turned the corner and ran into the barrel of a dozen tanks that opened fire on the unsuspecting Autobots. They tried to block the oncoming missiles but from point blank range, there wasn't much they could do. All three of them were hit, sending them into the wall of a nearby building. They got up slowly, only to have machine gun fire rain down on them.
"Quick, we got to move!" Arcee commanded, leading the team down the path. They jumped and manoeuvred around more missiles while shooting back with their own blasters. All three of them were greatly damaged as sparks could be seen flying out of their chests and limbs.
The Autobots continued down the path, not knowing exactly where they were going, until they got their answer.
"Scrap!" Arcee cursed, looking up at the wall in front of her. It was a dead end and now, there was no way for them to escape as MECH forces closed down on them. The three walls around them kept them inside while MECH covered the only exit path.
"Arcee, go and destroy the disrupter and call base for back-up! Ratchet and I will deal with these clowns." Bulkhead said between blaster fire.
"Yes, I agree with Bulkhead. Arcee, you must hurry, otherwise Optimus may be in great danger" Ratchet complied.
The medic and the wrecker provided cover fire for Arcee who stood behind them, thinking about how lucky she is to have teammates like that. Quickly, using her speed and agile form, Arcee jumped from wall to wall, dodging missiles and making her way up the buildings. Once she reached the top, she started sprinting for the disrupter, leaping from roof to roof as she continued to dodge missiles.
The two-wheeler saw the disrupter's building in the distance, the space in between it and the closest building was bigger than the other ones. She picked up speed, ready to make the leap of faith.
She heard missiles aimed at her come from behind. Arcee didn't have much choice but jump, blades activated, ready to destroy the transformer in one swoop.
She jumped, heading straight for the disrupter. She could almost reach it, until a lucky missile flew by, hitting her in the stomach and launching her further in the air.
"No!" Arcee gasped, she wasn't going to land on the roof. Quickly, she changed her hand into a blaster and took three shots, all in mid-air before hitting the edge of a building and landing on the ground with a thud.
The two-wheeler looked up just in time to see her shots make contact; the first two hit the roof's platform but the last shot made direct contact with the disrupter, destroying it instantly.
The two-wheeler couldn't help but let out a happy laugh. She got up with a groan, her body ached and there was a hole in her stomach in which energon leaked from. Arcee forced herself up, knowing the fight was not over.
"Arcee to base, Optimus is fighting with Agent 000. Send the counter-attack unit to his coordinates immediately!" The second-in-command yelled into her com-link as she ran back to the location of Ratchet and Bulkhead. She heard blaster fire from that general direction so she knew they were still alive and fighting.
She could only hope the same was for Optimus.
...
Agent 000 and Optimus were in the heat of the battle, swords clashing against one another. They were covered in slice marks and their swords were stained with blood and energon. The two combatants were injured but it didn't seem like they were slowing down. However, Optimus was slowly starting to get over-whelmed by the agent's skill. He's been forced to back-up slightly and has now developed a defensive stance rather than an offensive one.
Agent 000 saw that he was wearing him down and took advantage of it. He took out his Desert Eagle and fired a round of shots at the Prime's face, forcing him to use one of his swords to block the bullets. The agent used the distraction to run forward and slice Optimus' leg, disabling it but not cutting it off. The Autobot leader fell to a knee, his optics widened slightly as Agent 000 was no longer in front of him. He tried to turn around but it was too late, the agent's katana came through his chest. If the blade was any closer to the middle, he would have struck Optimus' spark chamber. Instead, the sword was inserted slightly to the left; still causing an extreme amount of pain, but the Prime was lucky to be alive.
However, Agent 000 didn't just stop there. He dug his katana deeper in Optimus' body and started to turn it, causing the Autobot leader to groan in pain.
"How does it feel, Optimus, to have my blade strike you down not once, but twice!" the agent mocked. With inhuman strengths, he raised his sword, literally picking up Optimus. The Cybertronian was now lifted above Agent 000's head and in this position, he couldn't do anything to counter the agent's move.
Suddenly, Agent 000 whipped his sword forward, throwing the Prime in the air and hitting the side of a building. Optimus struggled to get up but his damaged leg was useless; he was at the agent's mercy. Unfortunately for Optimus, Agent 000 had no intention to stop his rampage. The man ran forward, and leaped in the air, punching Optimus in the faceplate so hard it shattered.
The Autobot leader fell to the side, only to feel himself being lifted up again. Sure enough, he looked down to see Agent 000 picking him up with his bare hands; one hand gripped his back plate while the other held onto his shoulder.
"What do you say Prime? Would you like a repeat performance?" the agent asked menacingly. Without waiting for a response, he tore Optimus' arm right off from his body, throwing it to the side. Agent 000 then proceeded in throwing him in the air as high as he could, watching the Autobot leader helplessly jet up through the sky, then fall to the ground.
Optimus' body was completely mangled up and he could barely lift himself off the ground. Energon poured from his wounds and all he could do was let out a couple grunts. He knew this was the end for him, although he never thought it would end like this; sliced, beaten, and ripped apart by an enhanced human. He wondered what the other Primes would say; maybe they would be disappointed in him and wouldn't think he deserves to possess the Matrix of Leadership. Nonetheless, he would get his answer soon enough as he knew he would be joining the All Spark in a few seconds. He closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable to happen.
Agent 000 watched the Prime struggle to get up, then accept defeat and close his eyes.
"How pathetic" he said to Optimus with a sneer. "Someone of your caliber should never give up, and you call yourself a leader."
"Very well" he said, casually making his way over to the downed Autobot. "If you truly accept defeat, I will end this."
Optimus attempted to respond but could only cough out energon; there was nothing left he could do. Agent 000 laughed at his futile attempt and continued.
All of a sudden, he heard the noise of multiple vehicles followed by gun fire. He turned around to see Arcee, Ratchet, and Bulkhead transform into their bipedal forms, all of them damaged and injured. Behind them pulled over the remaining MECH army, although it looked more of a large squadron. All that remained of the MECH army was about 50 soldiers, a dozen Humvees, about 2 tanks, and of course, the leader himself, Silas.
Arcee looked at the agent with a glare but then noticed the downed Optimus behind him. "Get away from him!" she yelled, aiming her blaster at Agent 000. She was about to fire but a missile struck her arm, making her grunt in pain.
"Very good work Agent 000" Silas complimented, also seeing the defeated Prime. "Finish him" he ordered.
Agent 000 turned and walked towards Optimus again. Knowing what will happen if he reaches their leader, the Autobots broke into a sprint. They tried to fire their blasters but they were either too injured or out of energon. A soon as they started to run, MECH started to aim at them, only to be stopped by Silas.
"No, allow Agent 000 to deal with them, we will watch" he commanded to his remaining forces. On the inside, he was furious; thousands of MECH soldiers had been killed today and all but a few vehicles have been destroyed. He wanted to see one of the Autobots die and he knew if anyone would do it, it would be Agent 000.
The agent walked up to the Prime's head and raised his sword, ready to finish him once and for all. He knew the others weren't going to have enough time to stop him so they were just going to have to cope with having front row seats to their leader's death.
"No!" Arcee screamed, pulling ahead of the other two Autobots, desperately trying to stop Agent 000 from killing Optimus.
It was too late.
Agent 000 brought down the blade...
Onto another sword that appeared out of nowhere.
The metal of his katana clanged against the metal of the mysterious sword, startling him and making him back up. The sword was inserted into the ground, creating a wall between Agent 000 and Optimus.
This looks really familiar, almost as if it were-
Agent 000 didn't get to finish his thought as he had to jump out of the way of another sword, just barely breezing across his head. The agent looked at the direction of where the swords were flung and saw Wheeljack emerge from a swirling green vortex.
"So, you finally decided to join the party" Agent 000 stated.
"Wouldn't miss it for the world" Wheeljack quipped back. He looked and saw the others pulling Optimus out of the way and Arcee giving him a nod, telling him to start.
"While I would love to scrap you myself for ripping off my arm last time, I think my friend here would like to do that more that I do." Wheeljack moved out of the way and a large being jumped out from the groundbridge.
The person was encased in a blue tinted armor that encased his entire body and made him a couple feet taller than usual. Agent 000 looked into the little window near the top of the armor and just barely made out the figure inside. Sure enough, Bumblebee stood tall and proud, the Apex Armor giving him a much more bulky look and providing him with an indestructible shell.
"Ah, Bumblebee is it? I see you brought a new toy to play with. I'll be sure to destroy it after I rip out your heart and crush it in my hands!" Agent 000 threatened the scout.
Bumblebee replied with a series of angry beeps and stepped forward.
"I still don't understand you, but if it's a fight you want, I'll gladly give it to you" With that, Agent 000 charged.
Arcee, Bulkhead, and Wheeljack watched from the side while Ratchet did his best to heal Optimus' injuries. They were keeping their distance from the battle for they had rehearsed what will happen when the counter-attack unit arrived.
"You ready Jackie?" Bulkhead asked his fellow wrecker, looking down at a device in Wheeljack's hands that appeared to be a detonator.
"You know me Bulk," Wheeljack responded, hovering his finger over the detonator's button. "I'm always ready. We're just waiting for Bee to get into the right position."
They looked over to see Agent 000 take out his gun and let off a round of bullets aimed at the window, each one of them bouncing harmlessly off the glass like material.
Agent 000 put away his gun and ran forward with his sword, leaping into the air. Bumblebee didn't even bother trying to stop him; partially because the Apex Armor weighed him down but also because he knew the agent's katana would even make a scratch. Agent 000 fell towards Bumblebee's leg, attempting to slice it off just like last time. The problem was that this time, nothing happened at all. In fact, his blade didn't even go through the armor, only bouncing off and sending the agent towards the ground.
Agent 000 it the ground and rolled, just in time to dodge Bumblebee's fist as it came crashing down. He quickly got to his feet and scanned the armor, trying to find a weak point. The agent was slightly frustrated that none of his weapons were making an impact and that for once in his life, he didn't know what to do. He did another look over the armor when he noticed the glowing blue circle in the middle of the chest.
That must be important, he thought to himself. Using his enhanced speed, he hopped onto Bumblebee's fist, ran up the scout's forearm and jumped.
Wheeljack saw that Agent 000 had jumped for Bumblebee's chest and knew this was the best chance they had.
"Quick Bee, now!" he yelled.
The scout heard him and quickly looked at the agent in mid-air before turning around. Strapped to his back was over a dozen explosives, all rigged to blow with one press of a button. Agent 000 was still in mid-air when he saw them, his eyes widening as he realized what was going to happen. He couldn't do anything while in the air and he knew that the Autobots were expecting him to jump, and he just fell right into their trap.
Wheeljack pressed the button on the detonator.
The explosion rocked the earth, engulfing Agent 000 and Bumblebee in the blast and knocking everyone else off their feet. A ball of fire sprouted where the explosives went off and dust filled the air, making it impossible to see what the outcome was. Smoke arose above the dust cloud and all went quiet.
Slowly, the dust cloud started to disappear as the smoke parted with the wind. There was still a ball of fire from where the explosion happened but the edges of a giant crater could be seen.
After a short moment, a figure emerged from the flames. Sure enough, Bumblebee stepped out, still wearing the Apex Armor and not a single scratch on his body. The Autobots cheered as the scout walked over. Their plan had worked and like always, Optimus was correct; the Apex Armor was truly indestructible.
"Where's Agent 000" Arcee asked while giving Bumblebee a high-five.
"Are you serious Arcee?" Bulkhead replied, he pointed to the aftermath of the explosion. "Who could have survived that?"
Bumblebee cut in on the celebration, letting off a couple beeps and shaking his head.
"That's impossible Bumblebee, we saw him get blown up during the explosion" Ratchet responded.
The scout shook his head again and pointed in a direction The Autobots looked over and gasped when they saw what he was pointing at.
Sure enough, Agent 000 was on his knees, struggling to get onto his feet. Miraculously, he managed to hold onto his katana and was using it as a cane. His head was down as it looked like he was using all his energy to just stay alive. The agent's shirt and pants had been reduced to mere scraps of clothing. His entire body was burned and blood covered his entire skin while dripping onto the ground. Agent 000's left leg was in a strange position, probably broken from when he landed on the ground.
Everyone watched as he coughed out blood and pushed himself up, practically putting his entire weight on his katana just to stand. He let out a little laugh and looked up with a grin.
This time, the Autobots not only gasped but stood there, unable to process what they were seeing. Even Optimus, who had regained consciousness before the explosion, had wide eyes and a look of shock on his face.
Arcee had it the worst; she stumbled forward, not knowing whether she should be getting closer or father back. Her emotions were a huge mix of happiness, fear, horror, joy, sorrow, anger, and disbelief. She couldn't believe what she was seeing and tears started to come out of her optics.
The explosion had burned off Agent 000's mask and when he looked up, his true identity was revealed. Even with his haircut and the multiple cuts and bruises on his face, he was still very recognizable.
For Arcee, his identity was unmistakeable. His jaw line and cheek bones she's stared at multiple times, his nose that she couldn't help but find small yet cute, his mouth that smiled at her and made her feel accomplished.
"I-is it r-really you?" Arcee asked through her uncontrollable sobs.
"Jack?"
Author's note: Well that's the chapter. I know I said I would post it sooner but it turned out to be a lot of writing. I truly hope you enjoyed it nonetheless and the final chapter will be published tomorrow.
Anyways, Agent 000 is Jack! How crazy is that? XD LOL Ok, in all honesty, it was pretty obvious, and even though I tried my best to make it seem like Agent 000 was his own character, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to put two and two together. Also, yes, I know that it was a bit cheesy but hey, I had fun writing it and I hope you guys had fun reading it.
Be sure to check in tomorrow for the finale where things are explained and happy endings all around!... well mostly but more on that tomorrow ;P