!..!.!. !..!.! !..!.. !..!... !...!.! !..!...

Rodimus hauled himself up the command deck's stairs and dragged himself to his post where Swerve sat waiting in front of a monitor. He pointed at a digital topographic map of the Ark base. Within view of the mountainous surroundings, a pulsing red blob of pixels moved closer from the lower right corner of the screen. Swerve's finger jittered over the red shape.

"Trypticon?" Rodimus asked.

"Bingo. His trajectory's on track to breach the Ark in forty-five minutes."

"So Galvatron is making his final push…"

Swerve shook his head. "Not so sure about that. I'm reading many Decepticon signals 'cept for Trypticon and..."

"And?"

"Hm." Swerve clacked the keyboard with his fingers. "This can't be right. Let me run another scan."

"I'll take a team to the front lines and buy us some time," Rodimus said.

"Prime…" Swerve cast a raised brow at Rodimus. "That's what troops do. We need you here to command those troops."

This was the first time anybody had called him Prime at a time when it sounded like it fit. Swerve was right, he had been thinking like Hot Rod. He wanted to go out and fight Trypticon all on his own… but then who would lead the Autobots? "Right. Brace the hull. Get every able gunman to a gun and wait for my signal to fire."

"Alright. Now you're speaking my language."

A small speck showed up on Swerve's monitor. A small spaceship approached the Ark at intergalactic speed.

"Friendly or Baddie?" Rodimus asked. His fingers touched the keys, commandeering the automatic guns. He locked the targeting computer onto the approaching vessel.

Swerve scanned the monitor readings. "It's… it's a… a Junk vessel."

"No way. Wreck-Gar?"

"Yes. And he's got friends with him."

There was a moment's sigh of relief when the docking bay opened and the spaceship landed on the floor. Rodimus escaped the Command Deck to greet them. His circuits felt like they now pulsed at ten times the rate. It's the first good news he had heard.

The parked vessel's landing platform lowered. A tall, brown bot clamored down.

"We didn't want to settle for anything less. Only the best. And I wanted to be a Pepper too." Wreck-Gar emerged from the escape pod door as puffs of steam covered the ground in foamy wisps like an overflowing bubble bath.

Rodimus rushed toward him, embracing the crusty Junkion with both arms. Wreck-Gar's mustache and beard tickled his face.

"You picked the worst time to show up," Rodimus said.

Wreck-Gar swung his head side to side, his long red beard painting a red mark through the air. "What do you mean? It's prime time, baby. Don't touch that dial or you'll miss what's coming next."

"Who's that with you?"

"Just some jolly blokes who're itchin' to put up their dukes." Wreck-Gar made way to let the rest of the crew out. Repugnus, Grotusque and Double-Cross clamored down the loading ramp. "Introducing, Kid Dynamite, the Italian Stallion and the reigning champion, the Louisville Lip."

Rodimus staggered back when he realized how large and monstrous the three Autobots were. Compared to Wreck-Gar's tarnished and ramshackle body, the three were like a zoo of different animal bodies scrapped together at the last minute.

"Well, I'm sure glad you're on our side."

"Aww. That's cute," Repugnus said. He made a whistle. "The Prime's got the brass balls to look at us in the eye." He blinked his emerald insect eyes at him, all thousand of them. "Since you got yerselfs a mess, we'll take the payment in da rears."

Rodimus stiffened. "You mean… you'll only help us if we pay you?"

"Listen, Kid, this is a whack job and we're risking a limb or four fighting a million-year old dinosaur, so yeah. I think we deserve some comp, don't you?" He wriggled his fangs back and forth.

"I had no idea there were Autobots like you."

Double-Cross lowered his left head. "And now you know." The right head stayed up straight with a nonchalant grin, "And knowing's half the battle."

Wreck-Gar waved his hand to the cockpit. The pilot had yet to leave the ship. "And we got a freebie thrown in. After reaching Earth we picked him half-off up near the boonies."

A surprised Rodimus didn't recognize the new face, but he had the unforgettable appearance of a large white Earth chicken.

"So, this is the young new Prime."

Rodimus extended his hand to shake the feathers. "Um… It's a pleasure."

"No time for all that, the name's Bomber, but that's not important. I need to tell you all I know. You're in bigger trouble than you think. I was worked over by them Decepticons."

"You worked with them?"

Bomber shifted from side to side. "Only cuz no one else would. But they Double-Crossed me— No offense."

"None taken," Double-Cross said. "Speak for yourself."

Bomber cleared his vocalizer. "Anyway, you're in real flamin' fryin' pan. They deceived me."

"What did you expect from a Decepticon?"

"You got a point there. A real sore point."

"Rodimus…" Swerve ran up to the huddled group. He had scampered in from the western corridor. "The energy reading revealed another spark inside Trypticon. It's a small life-form."

The Autobots headed to the Command Deck in front of Teletran – 1 and Swerve's console. It was now becoming crowded with the jumble of new allies. Double-Cross's draconian heads scraped their horns slightly on the ceiling.

"See? Lookit that." Swerve pointed at the glowing light in the corner.

Bomber stooped. "Why that's a Titan Master signal."

Wreck-Gar shoved his nose as close as he could to the monitor. "Who's that strange beast from the east."

"Trypticon," Rodimus said. "He's a colossal monster… and he's headed this way."

"This is bonkers. Are all your problems 'Ho-Ho-Ho' Green Giant-sized? Don't you have any bite-sized issues to deal with?"

"Like what?"

"Like dropping anvils on crafty mice or catching road-runners?"

"Lately, I guess, it seems all my problems have been larger than I can handle… Wait a minute." He turned back to Bomber. "What does it mean? You said there's a Titan Master signal coming from inside Trypticon."

"I bet it's that little, scrappy, purple Decepticon, Necro. He high-tailed it out of the Decepticons' ship. He's a regular little beast."

"Any idea what's going on? Why's he in there?"

"If I had to guess, fella, you've got some trouble. Necro must've reactivated Trypticon's neural processor. The Nebulon's like a living black box. So long as he's plugged in, Trypticon's in charge. His personality is fully operational."

This changed everything. A flash appeared in Rodimus's eyes. "Do you think Galvatron's controlling him?"

"Hard to say," Bomber said. "What reason would an overgrown lizard want to come to this place, anyway?"

Rodimus knew immediately. "Come with me." The Autobots followed him to the service ramp which lead down into a series of chambers beneath the ark. A heavy iron-loaded door slid aside to let the Autobots through. There, Rodimus splayed his hand open before a large room to present to them what had been hiding under the Ark.

A chamber, three stories deep, and as large as a reception hall, lay within. The sounds of scurrying and mumbling hushed as Rodimus led the way for the newcomers inside. This chamber held three floors. Its iron walls were lined with cells and within the cells peaked out curious little Transformer heads. Each cell was like a little family home, and the Transformers, with their different, brightly-colored heads, turned to look at Rodimus's strange allies. There were several scurrying and skittering movements in the corner, as smoke and noise came from a forge. Bomber saw a clutch of Transformers gathered in a den. They were small. Some were missing limbs, others were in the midst of repairing others, while another squad measured out glowing canisters to prepare energon for the rest. Some were in the middle of a poker game, others were huddled around a computer screen or a television.

Wreck-Gar made animated expressions of shock using his shoulders. "A Titan Master Sanctuary!"

"Nebulons?" Bomber asked.

"Yes," Rodimus said. "We've been harboring many here. Nebulos is no longer safe. Their planet's in the middle of a civil war."

"Don't you know what you've got here?"

It should have been obvious. "People who need a home."

"They have many secrets." Bomber winked at the Prime. "That's why Trypticon is on his way here. He's found their scent. He'll destroy them."

"That won't happen. Wreck-Gar?"

The Junkion stepped forward, and folded his arms in thought. "Autobot City is the place for me. We'll give them a ride while you stall Trypticon here."

"That sounds good. You can give the Nebulons a lift to the city while I divert Trypticon's attention." He turned to face the Nebulons. They had already been edging closer from curiosity.

Rodimus didn't need to ask for their attention. When he stood with his shoulders squared and his legs firm under him, it was clear he had something important to say. "I'm sorry to tell you this, but the Ark is no longer safe... not while Trypticon and the Deceptions are on their way here. They're looking for Titan Masters to seize."

Several in the crowd whispered with concerned tones.

"I'm not going to allow anything to happen to you, or any Autobot. But we can't stay here. If we head to Autobot City, we'll be much safer. Wreck-Gar here will take you there. I'm sorry to do this, but I need everyone to grab their things and evacuate the Ark in the next ten minutes."

The crowd's fear was worse than Rodimus expected. The silence was razor thin. Perhaps it could've sounded a little better. He had tried to sound like Optimus, but maybe it sounded fake. The effect wasn't reassuring.

Three rough-looking Titan Masters stepped forward. Rodimus struggled to remember their names since there were so many, but he now remembered how these mischievous three had been known for breaking things aboard the Ark. Shuffler, Lione and Toraizer.

"We prefer to stay." "If it helps the others…" "We want to fight too."

After saying so, another three, nodding joined the group.

"The Decepticons are on their way," Rodimus said. "We need to get all of you out of here."

Kirk, Loafer, and Rodney; the thee new Nebulons; shook their heads. "No way." "Not for us." "We're tired of running. Let us fight with you." "Yeah. We'll buy the others some time."

"Very well." Rodimus turned to the Autobots. "As for the rest of you, Find a weapon and seal off the entrances."

They nodded. Wreck-Gar, Bomber, Grotusque, Double-Cross and Repugnus followed him back to the bridge.

Bomber moved in close to Rodimus's shoulder so only the Prime could hear him. "Those Titan Masters are wily. You ought to know… they're known to power decapitated bots and move them around."

Rodimus said nothing.

"It's one of their little tricks. Using someone else's body. Moving it around. It's how the Titan Master process was developed."

"Good to know."

"Rodimus! Rodimus!"

Rodimus held the bridge of his nose between his fingers and released a drawn-out sigh.

It was Swerve, holding the arm of a frightened human. The marine suit was torn to shreds and the man wearing it was bruised and exhausted. It looked as though Swerve had found him outside the Ark, dazed and haggard.

Rodimus' expression changed. The mayor was the last person he expected to find at the Ark. Rodimus flinched, wondering what had happened to him.

The mayor shook as he approached. "My whole… city… went for a walk. Walked away. Walked like a… a…"

He sounded delirious. Rodimus and Swerve looked at each other confused. Swerve touched the man on the shoulder, shaking him slightly as though the mayor were a stuck machine unable to move forward until the words came out. Bloom jerked violently, grabbing Swerve on the leg to pin him.

Bloom's eyes widened like a madman's. "You need to protect me. They'll come for me!"

"Bloom!" Rodimus bellowed. "Get it together. We're all in danger. It's not just you. Haven't you realized the threat we're under?"

"It's worse than that," Bloom said. He bit the top of his own hand. "I've… I've… this is all my fault."

"How?" Rodimus asked.

The mayor stared at him with eyes so wide with fear that Rodimus could see most of the whites. "I allowed the Decepticons to make changes to my city. Deep underground…"

Swerve and Rodimus stopped moving, gripped by his words.

"I… they… promised me… said they'd improve my city. I had no idea what they were doing. They made my city into a monster. It's why I wanted you gone. When I saw you and the female on street... I thought if you knew you'd cause trouble for me."

The monitor was blinking more frequently. The large red blob was edging closer. Soon it would be over the defensive hills displayed on the topographic map.

"Bloom... Because of your decisions, I have lost comrades." His shoulders shook. "Lost my friend… Streetwise. Because of greed." Rodimus sighed deeply. "Your sins… are too much… This is what your life will be remembered for."

Bloom pulled away from them. His jaw wagged open, as though expecting a more sympathetic comment from the leader of the Autobots. Instead, he had been reprimanded. For a moment, his face displayed a mask of terror and frustration. His black eyebrows then resumed their familiar arched scowl. "Your race is a blight. Every last one. You did this."

He pointed to Swerve and Rodimus with a shaky finger. "You did this. And you." He stared at his own hands. "I was tricked by you. Manipulated by your technology."

Rodimus signaled to Swerve. It was time to go. They had wasted enough time with the mayor.

From the shadow of the stairwell another Autobot emerged, giving Bloom a start. "Who… who are you?"

It was Blades, with one arm held over his body from his injury. "I couldn't help overhear. I heard it all. About how you betrayed your own kind. Then you betrayed mine." Blades stepped toward the mayor.

"Stay away…" the mayor said. "Stay back!"

But Blades would do no such thing as he pulled out his knife.

Swerve resumed his post. "Trypticon's entered firing range."

"Battle Stations," Rodimus said. "Wait for my signal to fire. Listen everyone. Our fallen comrades will not have died in vain. The Ark is our base… We'll protect it to the last Autobot. Trypticon will be killed, right here. He won't make it past those mountains."

Swerve turned around in his swivel chair. "A little overkill, isn't it? Optimus would've"—

"I'm not Optimus."

The klaxons continued to blare, like a beating heart. Red alarm lights came in waves painting the Prime's face red in steady, sick intervals.

"… Right. You're right, Rodimus."

Rodimus felt the ground beneath his heels shake. A couple micro-cycles later, there was a second tremor, a little stronger than the first. Then came a third and it was strong enough to loosen dust from the roof and land on his head. Swerve changed the main screen to the south pointing camera. They had an outside view, grainy and blue, watching the road leading to the Ark. A black, rising shadow appeared over the hill's ridge, swirling in the heat.

Swerve's face lit up in confusion. "The frequency's being jammed."

"What the…"

The channel image was replaced like a grainy video recorded over the initial broadcast. The image became clear, as a triple-pronged helmet came into focus. Galvatron's face showed up, startling the Autobots in the Command Deck.

"Ah. Optimus's replacement. Hard to recognize you when you're not scurrying for cover."

Rodimus advanced to the screen. "Big talk, Galvatron."

"Do you like my new weapon?"

Rodimus shook his head. "Why don't you face me in person? And call off your big beast? Maybe you're too scared to face me." He smirked. "You know you'll get flung into space again."

"Pathetic," Galvatron said. His lips curved upward into a triumphant grin. "You have much to learn about being a leader… but training time is over."

"What do you want?"

"It's up to you, Hot Rod. You can surrender now and face your destiny like a brave Autobot… or you can continue to employ that heroic nonsense and put all your allies' lives at risk. Think about what a Prime would do in your shoes. Consider how much less pain your Autobots would suffer if not for your pride. Would you trade them for your arrogance? You don't have the might nor leadership qualities to get them through any hardship." Galvatron reclined slightly, retreating from the camera. "I'm not without mercy. Think about your choice now… What would Prime do?"

Rodimus turned to look over his left shoulder. Behind him stood Swerve and Wreck-Gar, Bomber and his accomplices. There were also the six Nebulons. Their worried, metallic faces gnawed at him. In his mind's eye he thought of Arcee and Leinad, of Magnus and Kup… of Springer and Blurr... of Optimus.

He reached across the console for the control switch. "I am a Prime." Then he flicked the screen off and video image fizzled out.

Wreck-Gar crossed his arms and tsked tsked at the floor. "Who's that big ugly guy, anyway?"

"He's Galvatron… leader of the Decepticons."