Chapter 21-Optimus Prime
Barricade hid behind a chunk of debris and opened his comm.
"Citadel this is Barricade. Multiple autobots on my location, and my squad is down. Request backup and aerial support immediately. Please resp..."
A giant blue arm reached down and grabbed him, dragging him out from cover, and across the ground.
"Hello Barricade." Ultra Magnus greeted, slamming him against the ground and stomping him down with his massive leg, pinning him in place.
"Ratchet, good to see you." Arcee said, patting the medic on the shoulder.
"What's going on?" Ratchet asked, looking around the ruined park in bewilderment. "Decepticons are swarming the air! And what is this nonsense about chief medical officer?!"
"The Citadel fell, Ratchet." Arcee replied sadly. "The decepticons took it. And the rest of Cybertron. It's...a long story. Zeta Prime is dead. So is Orion."
Ratchet's optics widened.
"Pax?" He asked. "How?"
Arcee sighed. "Megatron. How else?"
"Well...I can't be chief medical officer, that's Pharma's post..." Ratchet protested. "He's not the sharing type..."
"Pharma is dead. Altihex is gone." Ultra Magnus replied, looking at Ratchet with sad optics. "I'm sorry, Ratchet."
Ratchet's shoulder's slumped.
"Gone?" He asked, his optics blinking in disbelief. "An entire city gone, Magnus?"
"We'll have time to explain later." Arcee said anxiously, as she scanned the skies with her optics.
Across from them, by the wreckage, the autobots were getting acquainted with the three survivors.
"You got anybody else in that shuttle?" Jazz asked.
"No." Trailbreaker replied gravely, gesturing to it with his rifle. "Crash killed the rest."
Jazz nodded patting the soldiers shoulder panel, then turned to Wheeljack.
"What do you do?" He asked.
"Oh. I'm Wheeljack. I uh...I do science." The mech replied, his earwings flickering nervously.
"Yeah?" Jazz asked, arching an optic ridge. "Can you science away a planet full of decepticons?"
Wheeljack stared back at him blankly.
"That's just...not how science works."
"You think you've won?" Barricade hissed, as Ultra Magnus stomped down on him again. "Backup is on the way. Iacon is a decepticon city now. You're not welcome here."
"We'll see about that." Ultra Magnus replied, charging his rifle.
"Hey." Prowl said over the comm. "You have a lot of hostiles heading your way. You better get out of there."
Ultra Magnus looked around, audios listening closely for engines.
"What kind of hostiles?"
"Ground and air. They're coming in hot. Get clear. You have the survivors?"
"Yeah, only three." Ultra Magnus replied. "But we have a medic, a scientist, and a..." He paused, gesturing to Trailbreaker. "What do you do?"
Trailbreaker rolled his optics under his visor.
"Really, man? I'm a Forcefield guy. I make Forcefields. That's like...my whole thing."
Magnus nodded. "A Forcefield guy." He concluded.
"Well bring them back, and quick." Prowl replied. "Your window is closing."
"Alright, autobots its time to go!" Ultra Magnus shouted, kicking Barricade one more time for good measure.
The sound of jets filled the air. The sound of engines filled it soon after.
"We may have enjoyed this reunion a bit too long fellas." Arcee noted, pulling out her blasters.
"Nah, bring them on." Hound replied angrily, rifle raised. "I've been waiting for this chance. Ever since they fired that cannon."
"Autobots, retreat, that's an order!" Ultra Magnus shouted.
The jets came streaking in, seekers and cone heads, with a few generic fliers mixed in.
They blanketed Furman Park with laser fire, as the autobots dove for cover.
From around the corner, Brawl, Onslaught, Motormaster, and Octane came rolling in, rifles raised.
"Let's move, now!" Ultra Magnus commanded, transforming, and rolling out of the park, with the autobots following.
The convoy made their way out of the park amidst a shower of laser fire from above.
"Prowl, we're on the freeway, and heading back. We have a lot of optics on us right now." Ultra Magnus warned as he led the group down the cleared speedway, lasers and missiles pounding the ground around them.
"You have to lose them." Prowl replied. "They can't find this bunker."
"We're outnumbered." Ultra Magnus said, as he weaved out of the way of the laser fire. "We need backup."
Prowl sighed. He was silent a moment.
"Ugh. Okay. I'm sending the idiots and their baby sitter."
"Megatron." Soundwave called. "We have an autobot resistance group on the run, on the Iacon speedway. Ultra Magnus is among them."
Megatron turned to him, optics hard, betraying no mercy.
"And Prowl?" He asked, almost spitting the name out of his mouth.
"No." Soundwave stated.
"Bring me Ultra Magnus then." Megatron replied. "Kill the rest."
A missile hit Arcee in the side door, causing her to roll over and change form. The convoy slowed down to form a barrier around her.
"Magnus, we need to stop!" Hound called, sliding up next to her, rifle in hand.
"No. Keep going." Arcee commanded, pulling out her blasters. She fired up into the sky, knocking down two fliers, that crashed and exploded on either side of the highway.
The autobots skidded to a stop, and changed form.
"Autobots, we aren't gonna make it unless we try to take down those fliers!" Ultra Magnus shouted. "We need to try and hold this position!"
Starscream and Skywarp tore downward, changing form, and engaged the autobots in battle.
Jazz charged ahead, swinging his fist at Skywarp, who teleported aside, and sent the autobot slamming against the metal pavement.
He turned and got blasted in the chest by Arcee, and fell over the edge of the highway, transforming and coming around for another run.
Brawl and his squad had caught up now, and joined in the fight, as Ultra Magnus fired missiles at them.
The decepticons began deploying forcefields, as they moved to box the autobots in.
"These guys are heavy!" Magnus shouted. "We're gonna need more firepower! Take out those shields!"
"Looks like we got some backup" Mirage called, pointing to a trio of vehicles approaching from the opposing lane. Ultra Magnus followed his gaze, and grinned.
Ironhide was hauling down the highway in his van mode, like a box of vehicular rage. Sideswipe was rolling on one side of him, Sunstreaker on the other, the two sleek racers revving their engines excitedly.
As he got close, Ironhide let out an audible roar that drowned out his own engine, lasers erupting from his alt mode roof, and slamming into Starscream, who he swiftly rolled over with his large wheels.
The mech let out a cry of pain, as he tried to untangle himself from Ironhide's bumper.
Before he could, Ironhide changed form, kicking Starscream aside, and hurled himself at the decepticon forcefields.
Sideswipe and Sunstreaker dove in behind him, and they burst through them, slamming into the line of decepticons.
Brawl barely had time to react, before Ironhide had punched him against the freeway surface, and knocked him out cold.
Sideswipe and Sunstreaker jumped on Octane, who tried to change form, but was frozen mid change, as the twins assaulted him with punches.
Onslaught turned to fire at Ironhide, only to be hit in the chest with a rocket blast from Magnus.
"I told you we needed brawlers." Arcee said happily, charging in, and blasting Motormaster in the knees, before smacking him across the face with each of her guns.
The sky seemed to darken. Ultra Magnus looked up, as even more fliers appeared.
"This is getting ridiculous." He muttered. "AUTOBOTS, WE NEED A DEFENSIVE PERIMETER!" He shouted.
"What's that?" Sunstreaker asked.
"Oh for Primus...just spread out and don't let any cons get past you!" Ultra Magnus replied.
Ironhide pounded his fists together.
"COME ON!" He shouted. "I'll take all you punks!"
The jets closed in. And then they opened fire all at once. Skywarp and Thundercracker were leading them, as they pelted the highway with laser fire.
"MAGNUS, WE CANT STAY HERE!" Ratchet shouted, firing his small handgun into the sky.
"We don't have a choice." Magnus replied. "We can't lead them back to the bunker."
The throng of jets landed on the highway, changing form and firing rifles at the group of autobots.
Hound let out a cry as he was hit in the chest and knocked back. Jazz took a shot to the knee and collapsed, pain on his face as he gripped the bleeding appendage.
Ironhide threw himself into the throng, tearing into them with rage and ferocity, as he too was peppered with laser shots, and began to slow down.
"Magnus! We cannot survive if we stay here!" Ratchet shouted to the mech, grabbing his shoulder. "There are too many, and there's no cover!"
Before Ultra Magnus could reply, he was hit by laser fire, and collapsed down to one knee. He looked at Ratchet and nodded quietly.
"Prowl...we have to fall back..." he said into his comm, as the sky seemed to rain lasers. "We're taking a beating up here..."
There was silence on the other end.
"Get back here." Prowl agreed. "We'll have to take our chances."
"Autobots!" Ultra Magnus shouted, before another laser hit his chest, knocking him back.
Arcee turned and ran to his side, as Sunstreaker was sent flying from a laser shot, and nearly knocked her over. The yellow twin crashed against the freeway painfully.
"SUNNY!" Sideswipe shouted, firing over his shoulder as he ran to the mechs side.
"This burns..." Sunstreaker muttered. "Like...really really bad." He said, spitting out energon.
Arcee looked around, watching as the autobots crawled across the highway.
Jazz was gripping his leg, which spurted energon, while Hound was on his back, still firing into the throng of fliers.
Ironhide had been pulled back by Trailbreaker, who was putting up as many forcefields as he could to stop the blasting.
"Prowl...we're not gonna make it back." Arcee said sadly, firing her blasters at the approaching decepticons. "They've got us pinned."
"You have to. If you die, the autobots are over." Prowl replied. "If you don't get them back here, Megatron wins."
"I know." Arcee replied. "You'll have to find others. There will be other survivors, I know there will be."
Ratchet let out a cry as a shot hit his right arm, sending energon spattering across the highway. Wheeljack stood at his side, firing in desperation, but he too had been injured by laser fire, energon was dripping from his side.
"It's been an honor, Prowl." Arcee said, as she watched Skywarp and Thundercracker fly around for another bombing run. "I mean, mostly..." she trailed off.
Coming from far down the highway, she saw a vehicle approaching.
She squinted, trying to identity it. From afar, it looked so familiar.
Across the highway, a red and blue Cybertronian semi truck was rapidly approaching. It's engine roaring.
A second vehicle slid out from behind it. A small yellow Cybertronian car.
Arcee's optics brightened.
"Bumblebee? Who's your friend?" She asked quietly.
The truck rolled in. Horn blaring, grabbing the attention of the attacking decepticons.
Afterburners fired off underneath it, launching the truck upward.
As it rose, it changed form.
Optimus Prime deployed his energon axe as he rose, and with a swift swing, sliced Skywarp's wing off.
The seeker let out a cry as he was sent spiraling away, with Thundercracker dodging in cowardice.
Optimus landed in front of the autobots, with Bumblebee transforming at his side, a cheerful look on his face.
"It's all good guys!" Bumblebee shouted. "I found a Prime!"
Ironhide's optics widened, as he recognized the mech.
"It can't be..."
"Autobots...stand aside!" Optimus commanded, narrowing his optics. He charged into the throng of genericons and fliers, his axe slicing through them with ease, as he let out a roar of rage.
The wounded, battered autobots could do nothing but follow his command, and watch in awe as he tore through them.
Ultra Magnus stood up slowly, gripping his wounded side.
"Orion?" He asked.
The autobots who hadn't yet recognized him turned to Magnus, then back to the new mech.
Optimus sliced apart the last decepticon, then turned to face the others.
"Orion Pax's failure is what led to all of this." He lamented, his powerful voice shaking each autobot to the core. "My name is Optimus Prime. We need to move."