Optimus Prime was already in low spirits, having done what he had earlier. When he heard the tone of Ratchet's voice informing him that Jackson was found, he knew something had happened to him. Chris was forcing an employee to access a terminal, gathering whatever intel he could. Once he was done, he let the employee go. Not an act of mercy on his part, considering the employee's fate if Umbrella learned of his betrayal. Unfortunately for him, neither Chris nor Optimus had any mercy left to show him.

"Let's go, Prime."

"Ratchet, bridge us back."

"Yes, Optimus."

There it was again, the sound of sorrow in the medic's voice. Optimus felt dread in his spark of whatever was waiting for him. If they had brought any harm to Jackson, the Prime wasn't sure if what he would do next would allow him to keep calling himself a Prime. The ground bridge opened in front of them and the two walked through. When they both entered the main hall of the base, the atmosphere let the Autobot leader know just how bad it was.

All optics were on him, anticipating with worry of what his reaction would be. Arcee was the only Autobot looking away, as if trying to hide herself from Optimus. This was not a good sign. She'd only done such a thing when she felt that she had failed him. Ratchet walked up to Optimus looking the same as he did the day they were forced to leave Cybertron.

"Optimus, please hold on..."

"Where is he?" He cut Ratchet off.

The medic paused for a moment, which allowed Optimus to hear the sound of June crying. Pain shot through his frame at the hurtful sound. He braced himself for the worst.

"Over there."

He walked over to where June was sitting, obscuring his view of Jackson. Jill was by her side, comforting her to the best of her abilities. The agent looked behind her, eyes wet with sadness but face hardened with anger. He managed to get a good look at Jackson and saw the blood stained bandage over his eye. He didn't need to see under it to know that there was nothing beneath.

The sound of metal pressing against metal was suddenly heard. It was coming from Optimus' servos, balled so tightly that it was beginning to cause minor damage. Optimus felt something he didn't feel often, anger. Such anger he had only felt in the worst of situations, when the Decepticons committed their first act of war on Cybertron and took the lives of many innocents, when Megatron built Kaon over Vector Sigma, when he had brought his war mongering ways to Earth and planned to eradicate it's people, when he desecrated the remains of his own allies as well as the Autobots for his army, and now for what Umbrella had done to Jackson. Such feelings were unbecoming of a Prime, but Optimus was beyond angry at this point. What he felt wasn't just anger, it was rage. He wasn't aware of the looks he was receiving from the others. Those who knew him had never seen such an expression on his face before, not even Ratchet who remembered when he was still Orion Pax. All Optimus could think about was the faceless humans harming Jack, him screaming in pain as they removed his eye, begging for them to stop. By now, his metal teeth were bared and his rage had turned into hate. How he wanted to go back into that facility and cleanse this little blue planet of all things Umbrella.

June halted her sobs to look back at the Prime. The sight of her ceased his rage. She was so...broken. Never before had he'd seen such sadness upon a human, certainly not one he had come to know personally. Now his rage was replaced with sorrow. She was as much a victim as Jack was, seeing the person she loved the most with such harm inflicted upon him. He'd let her down, he'd let them down, and he felt weak because of it. The way she looked at him, it was almost as if she was waiting for reassurance. But the Prime was unable to give her the hope she needed, not yet.

"Ratchet?"

"Optimus?"

"I must speak with you, old friend, alone."

Optimus looked at Jackson again, letting the image burn into his memory. He couldn't allow himself to forget how he looked at this moment. Umbrella was never going to hurt him again. Optimus walked away from the medbay, much to June's disappointment, and proceeded down the hall. Ratchet followed behind him reluctantly, unsure of what he was thinking. Chris hadn't been able to see what became of Jackson until now. When he saw the teen, he looked away immediately.

"Jesus Christ." He said to himself in horror.

No matter how many times he'd seen it, sometimes to people younger than Jackson, Umbrella never ceased to shock him. He didn't deserve this, his mother didn't deserve this, Optimus didn't deserve this.

"Goddamn you, Umbrella." He said as he turned his back to Jackson.

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The Prime and medic walked into an empty storage room, Optimus closing the entrance so they could speak in private. Ratchet was concerned at the nature of Optimus' expression. It was angry, of course, but also conflicted, indecisive.

"I'm going to do everything I can for him, Optimus. But he needs a real doctor and June is far too emotional to properly tend to his wound."

Optimus said nothing.

"Agent Valentine wishes to get in contact with a medic from the B.S.A.A. and bridge her here."

"Do what must be done, old friend."

Ratchet had never seen Optimus like this, even before he became a Prime. He sounded defeated, broken, weak.

"Ratchet?"

"What is it, Optimus?"

"You are my oldest friend, since my days as Orion Pax."

"Yes I am, Optimus."

"I trust your judgement more than anyone."

"Rightfully so."

"Ratchet...today, I took human lives, many human lives."

Ratchet was stunned into silence, unable to process what he had just heard. Optimus had always been adamant against taking human lives, even M.E.C.H.

"Optimus."

"The first instance was not intentional...I...forgot that I was on Earth, under attack from humans and not Decepticons. My actions were purely a reaction without intent."

"...And the other instance?"

Optimus paused.

"Mercy."

Ratchet was taken back by this answer.

"What?"

"Ratchet...I saw them...human test subjects."

Ratchet felt his spark falter for a second.

"From the ground to the ceiling...with no space in between them, the walls were lined with pods. In each of them, a human frozen in slumber."

Ratchet didn't want Optimus to continue, but he didn't stop him.

"They were infected with one of many viruses and kept in cryostasis to keep them from mutating. Human beings, imprisoned in their own bodies."

Ratchet looked away, trying his hardest not to envision it.

"Primus."

"Indeed, old friend. I...could not allow them to remain imprisoned any longer. I set them free the only way I knew how."

"I...I see."

"Do you believe that my actions were wrong, Ratchet?"

He took a moment to think, remembering the creature that came through the ground bridge with Arcee.

"No, Optimus. I don't believe so."

Optimus grunted to himself in a thought.

"I know that I should not ask you this, but what do think should be our next course of action?"

The answer was too obvious.

"Take down Umbrella, the same as M.E.C.H. and the Decepticons. Jack and Nurse Darby will never be safe until we do."

"But how do we go about doing that if human government is possibly protecting them?"

Ratchet didn't have an answer for that.

"What I am asking, old friend, is that if we go after Umbrella, should we take the final step in assuring that they will not rise again? Not just bring them down, but take them out."

Now Ratchet understood Optimus' inner conflict. He had to think about his answer again.

"Come with me, Optimus. There's something you need to see."

Ratchet opened the door to the storage room and lead Optimus out. They walked into another storage room, also closed off. It was empty inside, except for a white sheet draped over an unknown object. Ratchet walked over to it and removed the sheet. Optimus was completely taken back by what was underneath it. It was the creature that Arcee had killed.

"This hitched a ride on Arcee's back when she came through the ground bridge. You saw that one of her winglets was missing, this was the thing that removed it along with several others."

Ratchet looked at Optimus who was in a state of visual disbelief.

"I was told by Agent Valentine that I should incinerate it, but I felt that you needed to see it for yourself. When it came through the bridge, it went straight for the humans the moment it knew that they were there. Agent Valentine refers to it as a Licker Beta...Optimus...this thing...used to be human."

Optimus looked into Ratchet with disbelieving horror.

"Impossible."

"I thought so too, at first. But then I analyzed it before bringing it back here. It's barely there, but it does indeed have the faintest amount of human DNA..."

Optimus stared at the headless creature, not knowing what to make of it.

"Optimus, this is what Umbrella does. Those humans you found, this could have been their fate. And this is only one of the things they can do to a human, one of the lesser things, according to Valentine."

"This...this could have been Jackson?"

Ratchet thought the same thing when he learned of it from Jill, the possibility horrified him beyond what he thought was possible.

"Yes Optimus, Jackson, June, Miko, Rafael...humans. It pains me to say this, but the loss of his eye was merciful compared to becoming a creature such as this. We were just fortunate enough that Bumblebee and Bulkhead found him before they could harm him any further."

Optimus was quiet again, thinking to himself as far as Ratchet could see.

"They will not. I now know what must be done."

"Are you certain, Optimus? That is a path you have long avoided."

"There is no other choice, my friend."

"Then I walk that path with you...And if Primus judges us for what we do, so be it. I will gladly condemn myself to put an end to horrors such as this."

"As will I, old friend."

Optimus then shifted his servo into his blaster. He took aim at the deceased creature before him. Blaster fire could be heard all the way to the main hall. He fired several blasts until there was only a charred stain on the ground. He shifted his blaster back and walked to the entrance.

"If we are going to destroy Umbrella, then we will need to work alongside the B.S.A.A. I am authorizing them complete access to Outpost Omega One."

"Understood, Optimus."

The two left the storage room and began walking back to the main hall.

"Can we do anything about Jackson's eye?"

"Optimus, there is no eye left to do anything for."

"Is it possible for him to receive a cybernetic implant?"

"A replacement optic? Perhaps back on Cybertron. But with what little resources and materials we have, even replacing Arcee's winglet will be difficult. Creating a human sized Cybertronian optic for Jack, I'm afraid we don't have the necessary components."

Optimus sighed.

"I see. And we are certain that his injury was the extent of Umbrella's actions towards him?"

"What do you mean?"

"Did they...administer another virus to Jackson?"

Ratchet mentally berated himself.

"I...have not checked."

Optimus was clearly not happy about that.

"He shows no signs of change and Agent Valentine assures me that any virus would have taken effect by now. I was going to take a blood sample the moment he was returned, but once I saw the injury, I was unwilling to risk anymore blood loss. I didn't want to poke around his injury for a blood sample either. I know it's foolish to assume, but he doesn't appear to be infected with any virus."

"Still, keep close watch over him."

"Of course, Optimus. He was already administered the vaccine, just in case. I am currently in the process of figuring out a way to replicate the second."

"Thank you, Ratchet."

As they neared the end of the storage hall, Optimus and Ratchet heard the sounds of gunfire coming from the one of the other rooms.

"What in the name of Primus is going on in there?" Ratchet asked.

"I will go check. Tell Agent Valentine to contact her medic. She is to be bridged to base as soon as possible."

"I'll do that, Optimus."

"Ratchet, do what can for Jackson. Don't give up on him yet."

"I won't, Optimus."

Ratchet walked on before stopping to say one last thing.

"I never cared for humans much, but I care for the children and for June. They are enough to show me the good in humanity...I won't give up on humans Optimus, not because of the actions of Umbrella."

With that, Ratchet left Optimus alone. The medic was right, the actions of Umbrella did not reflect the actions of all mankind, just as the Decepticons did not reflect on all Cybetronians. Team Prime's human companions were all Autobots at heart. Silas, M.E.C.H., Umbrella, and the unknown person who took Jackson's eye from him, they were human Decepticons, nothing more. And just like all Decepticons, the Autobots had to take them down by any means necessary.

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Optimus walked into the storage to find Agent Fowler emptying his gun into stacks of wooden boards left over from the silo's previous occupants.

"Agent Fowler!" Optimus yelled over the loud shooting.

Fowler didn't stop until his gun became empty.

"What are you doing?"

Fowler looked back at the Prime, surprised to see him in the room. Optimus saw that he wasn't happy in the slightest. The agent holstered his weapon and looked Optimus in his optics.

"What do you see when you look at me, Prime?"

Optimus wasn't sure what Fowler was asking him.

"I do not..."

"Do you see the same government liaison you've been dealing with since you first came to this rock, the overworked hothead who's always puttin' his foot up your asses every time you cause property damage and nearly blow your cover?"

Fowler waited for the Prime to answer, which was met with silence.

"Or do you look at me and see the same son of a bitch that did that to Jack?"

It was at this point that Optimus realized that Fowler was also conflicted by today's events. Fowler turned his back to Optimus, putting his hand on his head. He seemed to have trouble keeping still. Optimus could here him breathing harder than normal.

"I didn't know, Prime. They didn't tell me anything about what happened in Raccoon City. All they said was that it had to be done. And me, being the good little company man that I am, I didn't question it."

Fowler began pacing back and forth, sweat building up on his head and neck.

"You wanna keep me from going back to D.C. I'm not even sure that I wanna go back. I mean, who do I trust, Prime?! My colleagues, my superiors, the President?! I have no idea who knows what!"

Now his stress levels were rising, causing Optimus to worry.

"And the worst part is, I can't even get the truth outta them! If I go back and start askin' questions about Umbrella and Raccoon City, you may never hear from again! It's like everything I thought I stood for is a lie!"

"Agent Fowler!"

Fowler stopped himself, his breathing reaching alarming levels.

"Calm yourself. I fear risk to your health if you do not."

Fowler took a deep breath before covering his face with his hands. He ran them both down past his chin in an effort to collect himself.

"Poor June is out there crying by her son's side...He's just a kid...and somebody..."

Fowler's face was telling enough that he was no threat to the mother and son for Optimus.

"I wanna help, Prime. I wanna help you put an end to those bastards...I can't let them get away with what happened in Raccoon City, for what they did to Jack...So here's what I'm gonna do."

Optimus listened closely.

"I'm gonna head back to D.C. and I'm gonna act like this never happened. I'm not gonna say anything to anyone about Umbrella or anything that has to do with'em. I'm just gonna go about my business and act like nothin's changed. But I'm gonna dig around until I find the truth. I'm gonna find out who's who in my organization and just how deep Umbrella's roots go. And whatever I find, I'm handin' over to you. These people gotta fall, Optimus. I know you're not about killin' humans and if you need me to arrange a crew to get rid of them quietly, I can do that. But you gotta find'em and drag'em out for me to see. If I suddenly stop comin' around, then I've been found out. If that happens, you and the 'Bots gotta find a new place to rest your heads. I can't bury my head in the sand on this. I just can't do it...Can I count on you, Optimus?"

Optimus didn't doubt that the agent was telling the truth.

"As always, Agent Fowler."

"Thank you, Optimus."

Optimus nodded back to Fowler and allowed him to walk ahead back to the main hall. He was not the enemy, Umbrella was. True, he played the smallest part of the cover up of Raccoon City's destruction by never revealing the truth. But even without his knowledge of what had really happened, he could have risked losing his job, being brought up on charges, or worse. If Team Prime was going to stop Umbrella once and for all, they were going to need his help.

The pair entered the main hall together where the rest of the group was waiting. June was still by Jack's side, although she had fallen asleep in her chair. Both Rafael and Miko were also asleep on the couch that they regularly used. Everyone else was awake and alert. Fowler was seen before Optimus and was not receiving a particularly warm welcome from the Autobots. Bulkhead was glaring at him from under the living area, Bumblebee looking over his shoulder as he sat behind the couch where his charge was resting. Arcee casted a sideways glance his way for a brief moment. Optimus could see the distrust in her optics. Ratchet seemed to be ignoring him for the most part, but clearly uncomfortable with his presence.

"Optimus, sir."

Optimus looked down to see Jill Valentine at his pede.

"I've contacted one of the medics from my team and told her to find somewhere secluded. She should be calling back shortly. Are you sure you want to bring her here?"

"Can she help Jackson?"

"No one I trust more with the job."

"Then I will trust her as well, Agent Valentine."

Jill nodded in affirmation and walked back to the sleeping June and Jackson, acting as their protector while they slept.

"Ratchet, you may end the lockdown of the base."

Ratchet looked at Optimus puzzled.

"But what about Agent Fowler?" He cast a not too kind look at Fowler as he said his name.

"We have no reason to detain him any longer."

None of the Autobots were happy to hear that and protested in their own way.

"What?! We can't let'em go!" Bulkhead claimed quite loudly.

"He's gonna run back and tell his bosses about June and Jack!" Bumblebee added as he walked to the rails

"Optimus, Agent Fowler may very well answer to someone in Umbrella, even if he doesn't know it." Ratchet warned.

"He's right, we can't trust him. He lied to you once already, Sir. Who knows what other secrets he's keeping."

Optimus tried to think of the best way to reason with his team. Agent Fowler stepped forward and stood before all of them.

"Then kill me."

The Autobots were taken back by his response.

"If you think I'm a danger to June and Jackson, then just deal with me right now. I wouldn't blame you if you did. It's what I'd do."

They all looked to Optimus for an answer. He wasn't sure if they were waiting for him to tell them what to do, or hoping to allow them to oblige Fowler.

"That will not be necessary, Agent Fowler."

"Sir." Arcee said in protest.

"Arcee, Agent Fowler is not the one responsible for what happened to Jackson. If fact, none of us are as exposed to Umbrella as he is."

Confusion came upon the 'Bot's faces.

"Agent Fowler was merely following orders to conceal the nature of Raccoon City's destruction, but he was not aware of what had happened in the city or of those responsible for it. He has agreed to risk his own safety to learn just how closely Umbrella works with the government. Should he be found out..."

"Then my bosses will hand me over to Umbrella on a silver platter. If you ever see me again, I won't be anything you could recognize."

That seemed to change their opinion on Fowler at least a little, but it wasn't enough to convince them. Arcee walked away from the beam she was leaning up against and stood over Fowler at threatening as possible.

"And what if he's lying? What if he does go back to his superiors? What if he works for Umbrella?"

Of course Arcee was going to stand her ground. It was her partner that had suffered at the hands of Umbrella. Fowler looked over to the sleeping Jackson, still unable to believe that someone would do such a thing.

"Everything I've ever done was to protect the citizens of this country."

He looked back to Arcee who still held her distrustful optics on Fowler.

"My loyalties are to my country and to humankind. If you think that I can look at what they did to Jack or that thing that came with you through the ground bridge and say that they were both for the greater good, then you haven't been paying attention to anything I've been on your asses about since we arranged this little setup. Either way, my offer still stands. Either let me go or take me out. Whatever you decide to do, you still have a mission to accomplish if you wanna protect the people from Umbrella."

He held his gaze at the domineering Arcee. She stayed in his path and neither budged for a good while. Finally, she averted her optics and walked away. She took a seat by June and Jill, watching her partner very closely. Fowler exhaled in relief and waited for confirmation that he could leave.

"Hangar access granted, Optimus." Ratchet said.

Fowler walked up the stairs and past Bumblebee, who still didn't seem too trusting of him. He saw Miko and Rafael sleeping on the couch, both huddled together closely. Even with their eyes closed, he could tell that they had both cried themselves to sleep. This only strengthened his resolve to do his part.

"Agent Fowler."

Fowler was already by the elevator when Optimus called for him. He stopped to listen.

"Protect yourself, be weary of those around you."

Fowler nodded to Prime and left the base through the elevator.

"Optimus, are you sure that was wise?" Ratchet questioned.

"I am not certain of anything, Ratchet. But I do believe that Fowler is as disgusted with this organization as we are. I trust his desire to help."

"Optimus."

Optimus turned his attention to Chris, who wasn't standing too far from Jackson.

"Ratchet says you want to form an alliance with the B.S.A.A. Me and Jill can arrange that with our third founder, but are you sure you want to reveal yourself to so many people?"

Optimus looked to his subordinates.

"I'm cool with that." Bulkhead claimed.

"For Raf, anything." Bumblebee added.

"Whatever it takes, sir. I'll do it to protect Jack." Arcee stated.

"You already know where I stand on the matter, Optimus." Ratchet reminded.

Optimus looked back at Chris.

"We are willing, Agent Redfield."

"Then consider our teams aligned."

Optimus looked back to his team, Bumblebee had come down from the living area.

"Autobots, there is something we must discuss."

The team were caught off guard at the changed in Optimus' demeanor.

"You all know of my policy against taking human lives. When we first came to this planet, I had made certain that you all understood that we were its people's guests. We were not conquerors or authority of any kind. As such, we would not enforce our will upon them, most certainly not our laws or our punishment. But Umbrella poses a great threat to humankind and this planet's leadership is either unable or unwilling to bring them to justice. We must take these matters into our own servos. We must be willing to do what is necessary to ensure that another city does not suffer the same fate as Raccoon City, that humans will not continue to fall victim to Umbrella's viruses. We must take action as if they were Decepticons."

It was becoming clear what Optimus Prime was saying.

"As of this moment, I am removing our restrictions against killing human beings. If they are working for Umbrella, then they must be terminated."

No one at base protested in the slightest, not even the two agents. It was understood by everyone that this is what had to be done. If Umbrella was going to fall, the Autobots would make sure that they would not get back up.

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In the more rural part of Doolin, Ireland stood what appeared to be an old castle. It was not a well known historical castle, though it looked like it had been there for centuries. It was actually an entrance to another Umbrella facility, or more accurately, a base. No experiments were actually conducted there. It was merely a safe house for when one of the facilities had to be abandoned for any number of reasons.

In the main entrance which looked like a typical castle hall, Albert Wesker stood. He was not happy at the moment, having been forced to allow that yellow robotic being take Jackson Darby away from him. That was certainly a shock to his system, the existence of sentient mechanical beings. He had many questions of the origins of these beings, but the most pressing was how to stop them. If they were protecting Jackson Darby, he was going to need to know much more about them and how to destroy them. That's when he remembered a certain terrorist leader obsessed with technological marvels. If anyone knew of these being's existence, it was him and his followers. Of course, he did not want to form an alliance with these men, thinking very little of them.

"Russell."

The same masked agent from the facility approached Wesker.

"Captain Wesker?"

"Contact our asset. Tell her I have a job if she's interested."

"Of course, Captain."

"How goes the cleanup?"

"Aside from the loss of one Tyrant, one shipment of Hunter B.O.W.s, and several of our employees, our losses are quite minimal."

"I wouldn't call the loss of very promising subject such as Jackson Darby minimal."

"Of course not, Captain."

"I want everything moved to our Siberian base, then I want the facility completely sterilized. Leave no trace of us ever having been there."

"Already on it, Captain."

"And what of Joshua Darby, the boy's father?"

"Imprisoned as you ordered."

"His state of being?"

"Minor injuries from his interrogation, otherwise completely sound."

"I want him moved immediately, then looked after closely. Treat all his injuries and make sure that he is kept in good health. No one is to bring any harm to him. Is that in any way unclear?"

"Not at all, Captain."

"You have your orders, get them done."

"Yes, Captain."

He may not have the son, but he had plans for the father. Oh, he most certainly had plans for him.

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Got this up sooner than I thought. Kinda short though. So Optimus made a decision and it seems like Team Prime is behind him one hundred percent. Do you think he made the right choice? This chapter is mostly centers around Optimus and how he's dealing with what was done to Jack. Next chapter will follow the others, Jill, Arcee, and June in particular. Expect a heavy case of the feels. I wanted to make it absolutely clear where Fowler's loyalty lies. Even though he's a company man, he knows where to draw to line in his dedication to the job. Also wanted to really shine a light on how much Optimus trusts Ratchet with his personal shortcomings. If anyone was going to help him come to a decision, it was him. A few more characters are gonna show up next chapter. I'm still trying to figure out a way to work the Decepticons into the story. Anyway, peace out. Catch you next chapter.