Chapter 31-Schism
Tranquility was a different place after the Justine incident. There was a thin veil of gloom over the entire town that was caused by the tragedies brought about by Justine's rampage, and tensions rose from the recent crackdown on unregistered espers in accordance with the new law. There was a certain loathing towards espers both registered and unregistered, and they were all treated with scrutiny, as if they were Karaba members in disguise. Any Human Front members left in the town were oddly quiet, probably to avoid drawing Karaba's ire. It was no secret that the organization's member count had dropped drastically in the past few weeks.
Tranquility had become what many other towns and cities had changed into since the Brotherhood's declaration—a hot zone.
Brianna had loved Tranquility when she first moved there. It felt different from the larger cities and serene in a way. But now it was as if a grey canvas had fallen over the town, and everyone watched each other with suspicion. Others were calling for esper blood for the people killed during Justine's rampage, among them the mayor himself. So much distrust and hatred, caused by one girl.
Following Justine's death, her body hadn't been placed next to her mother, whom Justine grew to hate with a burning passion. Brianna and Darren both retrieved her remains and had her buried out by the lake where they first started training. It was to give Justine the final isolation she craved and to keep anyone from debasing her grave site.
"Hey, Justine," Brianna said to the lone grave marker by the lake. "How're you doing? I hope you haven't been cold out here."
Brianna put her hands into her pockets, though they weren't even close to being cold. "Things aren't going well in Tranquility. Darren and Annie moved to another school in New York to avoid the fallout of the…incident. The entire town's on edge and the ERD's patrolling the streets nonstop. A more jaded girl would say that you were lucky you weren't seeing all this crap going on."
"I never planned to make friends, Justine. I came here with a job to do and nothing else, but then I met you, Darren and the others, and you all just…I don't know, you grew on me." She admitted quietly. "Was it because I said you were stronger than them? Did that set you off? Did I make you think that you were some god? Why did you have to go and do all of that?"
Brianna screamed and punched the tree next to her. She didn't even feel the sting of the bark against her knuckles. Brianna took a deep breath, still fuming, when she heard someone behind her.
"What are you doing here, Gina?" Brianna hissed.
Gina walked up to the grave, laying some flowers by the tombstone. "I just came to pay my respects." She answered, not asking how Brianna knew she was there. "You look like you were having a rough time."
"I'm not in the mood right now, Gina. What do you want?"
Gina stared at the little gravestone in front of her and asked, "How is your dad?"
"Huh?" Brianna wasn't expecting that question.
"Your dad, how is he?" Gina repeated. "I'm sure he's pretty worried about you after hearing what happened."
"Yeah…he is."
The two girls stood in silence for a few minutes, staring at Justine's resting place together.
"I'm so sorry about Justine." Gina said. "I know you two were close. Darren said that you two bonded better than he and Justine ever did."
"She loved me." Brianna blurted out. "Justine confessed to me, right here, and I let her down. I was the first person she truly loved in years, and I just said no. She snapped from that and took it out on everyone else, including Darren."
Gina stared at her in shock, but Brianna didn't notice. "Justine didn't deserve any of this. She was just a lonely girl who got treated like garbage by everyone in that damn town. Those people…all of them are trash!"
"Brianna…"
"They deserved whatever's coming to them. Humans, espers, they're all the same. Trash is trash and there's no way around it." Brianna growled. "If this is what it means to be human, then I want no part of it anymore!"
Brianna marched away from the grave, cold tears running down her face. Gina watched her go with wide eyes before turning to the tree Brianna punched…and the large chunk of bark missing from the trunk.
XXXXXX
The past couple months had been extremely trying for the Autobots. Mainly because the Brotherhood had been cleanly giving them the runaround, and things were steadily spiraling out of control.
The Autobots relationship with the ERD was more fragile than Huffer's self-esteem, esper riots continued to rage across Osea, the Cons continued to raid esper containment facilities all over the world, legal and illegal, further adding to Karaba's already massive membership. The public was growing more discontented with the lack of progress made by the government and the Autobots, and nothing seemed to be going right.
And just when things couldn't get any worse, rumors start flying of a possible attack on the Golden Gate Bridge.
The country was in an uproar, and Optimus immediately had his Autobots on the scene. They had no idea if this attack was going to be by air or ground or sea. Hell, they weren't even sure if this wasn't just a diversion and the bridge wasn't going to be attacked at all. Still, they couldn't take any chances.
Optimus had placed checkpoints at key locations along the road leading to the bridge. Skyfire and Tomahawk patrolled the skies, while Prowl, Sunstreaker and Mirage waited at a checkpoint scanning the passing cars for any suspicious substances. They were also aided by the local police force, SWAT teams and Army recon.
"This is dull." Sunstreaker complained.
"Pipe down, Sunny, and keep your sensors on high. We aren't in the mood for your slag today." Mirage said.
"Big talk from Mr. Invisi-bitch." Sunstreaker sneered.
"Cut the chatter you two and pay attention." Prowl said.
"Base to relay, what's the sit rep?" Optimus called in.
"Negative activity, Prime. So far everything's…wait." Prowl spotted a white van moving way beyond the speed limit. "What's he playing at?"
The van sped right past the checkpoint, flanked by two cars, one black, one white. Prowl ordered his team to mobilize.
"Autobots, move out!" Prowl yelled. "I've got an unmarked white van speeding down the highway with two Cons flanking it! Scans show that it's Runabout and Runamuck! We're in pursuit!"
"Runabout and Runamuck? What the hell are they doing on Terra?" Mirage asked. "And how the hell did they get here without us knowing?"
"Feel free to ask them yourself after we kick their asses!" Sunstreaker growled.
The three Autobots sped after the van and its Decepticon escorts. Sunstreaker tried to take aim at the van with his heat cannons but it was weaving through traffic too quickly.
"Don't, Sunstreaker, you don't have a clear shot!" Prowl said. "You'll hit the humans!"
'You make it sound like a bad thing.' Sunstreaker thought, but still held his fire.
The twin Cons, Runabout and Runamuck, swerved and drove in reverse. Double-barreled laser cannons popped out of their hoods and opened fire on the trio.
"Prowl, we've got three more vans speeding down the highway too!" Sideswipe said. "They're all converging on the bridge!"
"All units, we have multiple hostiles converging on the bridge! Air team, keep an eye out for any airborne hostiles!" Prowl said. "Have SWAT halt traffic on the bridge and—"
A missile hit Prowl from behind and sent him tumbling down the highway. He transformed and rolled to a stop, narrowly avoiding getting hit by a speeding car. Prowl took out his rifle and pointed it at the sports car heading right for him.
"Mirage, Sunstreaker, go on ahead without me. Arcee, go support them!" Prowl said. He took aim as Fracture transformed and shot at him. "Don't let anybody else on that bridge!"
Arcee, followed by Hound, Jazz and Trailbreaker, all drove onto the bridge from both sides as SWAT teams locked the entire bridge down. The armored vans that made it onto the bridge were driven by humans armed with RPGs and missile launchers that they fired at the Autobots.
"Scrap!" Arcee grunted as she drove through enemy fire. She saw explosions lighting up the sky and saw Tomahawk and Skyfire engaging the Seekers. "Guys, do you have eyes on the van?"
"We're taking care of the convoys, but they're being aided by the Cons." Hound said. "SWAT teams are having the bridge locked down and are evacuating the civilians as we speak."
"Good. Mirage, waste them!"
Mirage, who had went invisible to get closer to the two Cons without them noticing, canceled his invisibility and pointed his neutron gun at the twins.
"Goodnight." Mirage pulled the trigger and fired an intense neutron beam at the Cons.
Runabout and Runamuck didn't know what hit them as they were blown sky high, brown to different parts of the bridge. Arcee, Sunstreaker and Hound rushed past him.
"Mirage, Trailbreaker, guard the bridge and make sure the civilians get out safely!" Arcee commanded.
"Got it!" Mirage nodded.
XXXXXX
The Autobot strike units were spread out along the highways, fighting Karaba insurgents. They were just low level agents with no offensive or purely defensive powers, but what they lacked offensively they made up for with their very evident fanaticism. They were also heavily armed. The ones defending the van were harder to deal with, protected by a group of more powers espers who began flooding out into the bridge and attacked the Autobots.
Most of the civilians had evacuated the bridge, but with so many abandoned cars in their way, Arcee's team were forced to transform and run for the target on foot, a task made difficult by the Karaba agents attacking them.
"Stupid humans and their stupid problems." Sunstreaker shot his heat cannon at an armored van and blew it right off the bridge. "I'm sick of getting caught up in their mess."
"Sunny, look out for the guy with the boomerangs!" Sideswipe yelled. Sunstreaker turned to him.
"What boomer—"
A purple energy boomerang slammed into his chest plate and exploded. He was knocked right off his feet and another one slammed into his face, sending him crashing on top of a car.
"I got him!" The call came from Moonracer, who had climbed atop one of the support cables and was firing down at the espers from above. Arcee and Hound met up with Jazz and Trailbreaker as they neared the first van, which was surrounded by SWAT and police officers.
"SWAT managed to pin the van in place before it could go any further." Jazz said. He pointed to the two men on their knees, restrained with containment collars to negate their powers. "They've apprehended the drivers but we still don't know what's in the van."
"Right. Trailbreaker?" Arcee turned to their resident outlier, who took his position in front of the humans as added protection in case it was a bomb.
Jazz slowly approached the van and began cutting it open with a laser cutter. But just as he got started, the van's doors were flung open and a swarm of drones came flying out.
"Drones!" Arcee yelled.
These small but high tech drones flew all over the place and everyone immediately started shooting at them. Arcee thought that the drones would attack, but instead they flew over their heads and began attaching themselves to the support cables along the bridge. Arcee realized what they were doing with horror.
"They're trying to take down the bridge! Destroy them!" She yelled, but it was too late. One by one the drones exploded, destroying each of the metal cables holding the bridge's weight.
"Everyone off the bridge!" Trailbreaker shouted. "Fallba—"
The van suddenly exploded, the explosion being far greater than a vehicle its size should give. Anyone within a foot of the vehicle were sent flying back from the powerful blast wave. Arcee landed on top of a car and looked up to see the cables snapping one by one.
"No…" She felt the bridge shake and looked up to see that the van's explosion had left behind a massive hole in the bridge. Stone cracked and the remaining cables groaned as the hole grew larger, debris falling to the water below as the bridge literally crumbled away. Then the bridge began to tilt downwards, causing everything on it to slide towards the gap.
"Arcee, we've got to run!" Moonracer screamed. "It's going to give way!"
With nothing supporting the bridge's weight, the middle section began collapsing into the bay. The two halves of the bridge sloped downward and everyone from Autobots to humans began sliding towards their doom. Jazz grabbed onto Moonracer and grappled onto a stable support beam, but everyone else was in free fall. Arcee heard the screams of the officers as they fell to their deaths. Falling uncontrollably, Arcee took out her sword and stabbed it into the stone, stopping just short of the hole.
"Cee!" Trailbreaker cried out as he went sliding past her with three police officers clinging to his shoulders. She reached out and grabbed his arm, holding onto him as he hung over the edge.
"Hold on!" She grunted. Large chunks of the bridge fell off into the bay below, along with all the vehicles that were near the hole.
Arcee saw a couple of men slid past her out of her reach and fall over the edge. She tried to ignore their screams as she struggled to pull herself back up onto the stable part of the bridge, pulling Trailbreaker up along with her. A little help from Jazz and Moonracer ensured that everyone got up safely.
"Cee!" Moonracer ran over to her. "Are you okay?"
"Y-Yeah." Arcee nodded, a bit shaky from the excitement.
"Primus…" She heard trailbreaker breath beside her.
Arcee and Moonracer looked out at the missing section of the once famed Golden Gate Bridge. Though the parts of the bridge supported by foundations were still standing, a massive chunk of the bridge's middle section was just one, falling into the water below. Along with a good number of the SWAT and police officers that went to support them.
No one said anything, but they knew that Karaba just got away with committing the largest terrorist attack to date on Osean soil.
XXXXXX
The Autumn Dance was a little school wide celebration for the first year students to celebrate the midpoint of their stay at the Institute. Now while it may seem insignificant to some, for the espers who had no choice but to go to Providence, be they kids handed over by the authorities or had no home to go back to period, this was a major accomplishment.
For Darren and Annie, it was a nice little reprieve from all the craziness that was their lives. Annie had noticed that she and Darren were drifting away a bit as they got more caught up with their own circle of friends (she had the Neo Knights and Dana, but Darren's only friends so far was some big guy made out of rock named Antonio and a blind psychic girl with no eyes named Ruth). This party was a good way to reconnect with him.
Sumeragi was kind enough to help Annie and Brittany get their own dresses for the party. Annie was one for dressing up, but she wanted to at least try to look good just this once for a party. It was the least she could do.
The dance was being held on a Friday night, right before the weekend, after which was a two day religious holiday (which everyone forgot due to the recent news of the Golden Gate Bridge being bombed). It gave everyone enough time to get ready.
"Darren!" Gina ran over to her boyfriend and gave him a big kiss.
"Hey Gina." Darren smiled, hugging her tightly. "You look beautiful."
Penny had helped Gina get a sky blue dress that went well with her "enhanced" figure. Her long hair was done up in a fancy bun with a few bangs framing her face and her eyes sparkled behind her glasses. Darren couldn't feel anymore lucky than he did right now to be her boyfriend.
"You're looking pretty handsome there yourself, good sir." Gina grinned, running a hand along his suit. "And you look better since the last time I saw you."
"I've been seeing a therapist and she's a big help." Darren said smiling. "Apparently I'm not the only esper in school with personal problems stemming from powers."
"That's good. You deserve some time off." Gina said, hugging his arm to her chest. "You and Annie."
They entered the school's gymnasium, which was where the party was being held. Gina was amazed at seeing so many espers in one place. Some of them didn't even look human (there was even a student whose body was little more than a skeleton encased in see through jelly).
"Darren, you came!" A stunning redhead in a green dress walked up to them. Her entire body was composed of smooth liquid metal that reflected the dim party lights perfectly.
"Hey, Dana." Darren waved her over. "Dana, this is Gina, my girlfriend."
"Hi there! Annie's told me a lot about you." Dana smiled at Gina. "Darren, you never said your girlfriend was this pretty. She's stunning!"
"Didn't need to." Darren grinned and pecked Gina on the cheek.
"Aww…" Dana cooed.
"So where's Annie? I haven't seen her since I got here." He asked. Dana smirked cheekily.
"Annie's with Brittany." She said coyly. "You might want to wait a bit before going to see her, if you catch my drift."
Darren and Gina shared a grin. "Fine with me." Darren said. "As long as she's having a good time."
XXXXXX
Rodimus drove along the quiet streets of Lower Manhattan in silence. The lack of noise fit the atmosphere of his little evening drive while he was on patrol. Aside from horrible music stations, everything else on the radio was about the recent Karaba attack on the Golden Gate Bridge.
The whole operation was a complete failure and was a show of how crafty the Brotherhood had become. The drones that took out the support cables on the bridge were outfitted with plasma charges, as was the van that was carrying them, all designed to do maximum damage. The fact that the Cons were willing to let Karaba use their weapons was bad enough, but the appearance of Runabout and Runamuck raised even more questions, like where did they come from.
Teletran-1 certainly didn't detect any ships carrying reinforcements in Terra's atmosphere, and the average warship needed to be within a planet's orbit in order to allow its passengers to safely perform an orbital jump. It had Optimus and Prowl puzzled. Now, Runabout and Runamuck were just your typical grunts, no one special, but the fact that they were even on Terra without anyone knowing made a lot of people nervous. It made the Autobots wonder who else did Megatron somehow sneak onto Terra without them knowing.
"Armorhide to reporting in. Anything suspicious on your side?"
"No, Armorhide, everything's clear here." Rodimus said.
Following the sudden appearance of three Karaba members in Esper Town, New York started severely cracking down on its esper population. Unregistered espers were arrested without a word, mostly with force, and registered espers were treated like ticking time bombs waiting to blow, treated with suspicion and monitored closely. The constant presence of police patrol cars and ERD units in the city only served to further agitate the people of Esper Town.
Wanting to keep an eye on the Minicons, Optimus assigned Rodimus and Armorhide to watch duty. They were warned not to transform anywhere near Esper Town, as many people there were starting t lean towards an anti-Autobot sentiment.
"Hey, Rodimus, do you think the Cons might really show up here?" Armorhide asked.
"Maybe. The chance is low, but no one's taking any chances." Rodimus said. "They seem pretty content to sit back and let the world tear itself apart."
"Ugh, I hate playing these guessing games with the Cons. It's getting annoying." Armorhide complained.
"Comes with the job, Armorhide. Makes you wish we were back to shooting at each other in a battlefield back on Cybertron, huh?" Rodimus said. "Keep your eyes open and scanners running. Cons or not, things are pretty lively in this city without them showing up."
Armorhide was pretty sure that wasn't a good thing.
XXXXXX
Annie stood off to the side, watching the other students have fun. For once she was actually fine with not being the part of the action. Parties weren't her thing, and neither was wearing dresses.
'Though even I have to admit that Karina has some good taste in clothing.' Annie thought, looking at her reflection in the window.
Sumeragi had bought Annie a dress that fit her style. It was a slender black dress, nothing too fancy, that left her shoulders and arms bare. Her hair was tied back into a ponytail with a few strands covering her right eye. A smidge of eye shadow and black lipstick made her look like a cute little goth girl with tiny bone spikes running along her arms and shoulders. Annie barely recognized herself in the mirror.
She looked different…beautiful.
"Hey there stranger." A tall form walked up to her. "You're looking a bit lonely."
Annie smiled at the newcomer. "Well I'm not lonely anymore."
Brittany had on a lavender/pink dress that flared out a bit at the hips and did a great job showing off her lithe, toned body. Her hair was brushed back and held back by a white hair band, giving her a more feminine appearance that Annie definitely liked.
After getting their drinks, the girls decided to hang out on the balcony away from the joyous partying going on inside.
"You're not a party girl?" Brittany asked.
"No, not much, surprisingly. Wearing dresses and dancing wasn't my thing compared to listening to Belkan shriek metal." Annie said. She was silent for a moment, enjoying the silence, until she noticed Brittany staring at her. "W-What?" She asked blushing.
"You look really pretty, Annie." Brittany complimented her.
"Oh please," Annie scoffed, her cheeks reddening. "Don't flatter me…"
"No, I'm serious, you really do look pretty." She said. "I didn't realize how good you look in dark colors."
Annie held a hand to her face to hide her blush, but Brittany grabbed her hand and laced their fingers together. Brittany smiled and moved closer to Annie.
"Why aren't you with Darren and Gina? Dana said they were looking for you earlier."
"I just wanted to give them some space. Gina's a better calming influence on him than I am." Annie said, looking down at her hands. "And…I'm starting to feel a little guilty for keeping my missions a secret from him."
"But Gina promised not to tell him, right?"
"Yeah, but it's still starting to eat away at me." She sighed. "It's been a rough year for the three of us. Darren's been through a lot and Gina is doing the best for him while I'm out playing hero."
"That's not true! You joined the Neo Knights because you wanted to make a difference. You wanted to save people. There's nothing wrong with that." Brittany lifted Annie's chin to look into her eyes. "You, Darren and Gina have done a lot for this world, more so than we all deserve, and that should be respected. You've kept fighting even after you were seriously injured, and it's just a testament to how strong you are. I couldn't have met a braver girl if I tried."
Annie stared wide-eyed at Brittany, who began to blush from the girl's gaze. Brittany secretly loved the color of Annie's eyes and the makeup only enhanced how vibrant they were.
Annie's eyes slid to Brittany's pink glossy lips and she mustered up the courage to do something she always wanted to do since realizing her feelings.
"B-Brittany?"
"Y-Yeah?"
"I…I love you."
Annie reached up and grasped the sides of Brittany's face and brought her down closer to her while tilting her own head upwards.
Their lips locked.
Brittany's eyes went wide as Annie pressed her lips against hers, but them they slid closed as she kissed her back. The werecheetah wrapped her arms around Annie and pulled her close, almost begging for more contact.
The two girls stood under the darkening sky, locked in their first kiss. For the two of them, even when the world slowly descended into chaos, everything was just perfect for them, just for this single night.
XXXXXX
Mayor Thomas Harding of New York City was having a public press conference regarding the recent developments of Karaba's presence in the city, as well as regulation of the registration law.
Jamie wasn't very fond of the mayor. The man was about as kiss ass as a politician can get, bending to public opinion in order to get the people behind him in such a blatant manner. Right now he was all anti-esper and gung-ho about imposing strict regulations on even registered espers. Jamie had no doubt that he'd be singing a different tune if people were all for supporting espers.
He stood in the crowd, disguised as a newspaper reporter. His clones were littered not only throughout the audience, but also the security detail, faculty and on stage. His awareness, the connection she shared showed that everyone was in position. He had to thank Natasha for getting him this close.
The blabbering crowd quieted as the mayor stepped up to the podium, trying to look strong and brave, but failing at it in Jamie's eyes.
"People of New York City, I've come to set things straight. We all know the chaos our country is going through, with the alien war ripping through our planet and the esper terrorists declaring war on humanity. And the recent Karaba appearance in the region of the city called Esper Town has everyone frightened and on edge. I want to put those fears to rest on what we plan to do.
"In a couple of days, the ERD will arrive in Esper Town and apprehend any suspect member of Karaba as well as arrest any unregistered espers who refuse to register with the system. Any resistance will be seen as interfering with government law enforcement and violators will be arrested on the spot."
'He actually think that that's gonna scare us.' Jamie thought grinning. He commanded his clones to get started on the countdown.
"Some may say that this treatment of espers is inhumane and going too far, but Osea has descended into a war started by the Brotherhood. We can no longer hold back." Harding said. "The espers of the world have joined together to threaten our way of life. I will not sit idle while rogue espers tear my city apart."
Before he could get to the climax of his speech, the entire stage suddenly went up in flames. The mayor, his aide, interpreter and anyone else within ten feet of him were completely incinerated as the phase charge went off right beside them. Seconds later, City Hall also exploded in a massive fireball that made the entire street shake.
Jamie grinned as the crowd panicked and ran from the towering flames. Phase charges were the best for when you wanted to make a statement.
XXXXXX
The city was in an uproar come Monday morning with the assassination of the mayor and his cabinet. The ERD's presence had never been so high in the city as it was now, and hate crimes against espers skyrocketed, only to immediately drop as those offenders were either killed or seriously injured in some manner.
Tensions were high in the Providence Institute, and Sumeragi had done her best to calm everyone down, though the student body and even some teachers were rightfully nervous. The students were worried that the ERD would come for them, whether they were minors or not. Some were even afraid that the school might get raided. Their fears weren't completely unfounded—Karaba had just assassinated another high profile politician.
But that was a concern for another day. Right now, the Neo Knights were focusing on a more immediate problem of their own.
"Good evening everyone. I hope you all had a good break." Sumeragi said as she entered the mission room.
"I know someone did." Hua muttered, smirking at Annie, who blushed and looked away.
"I'm sorry to call you here all of a sudden, but I've just detected another esper camp in the Alaskan wilderness."
"Another one?" Nathan raised a delicate brow. "I thought they learned their lesson after last time."
"Apparently not, but this facility is a big one. It's being controlled by DNAgent." Sumeragi revealed, much to the shock of the others.
"Those bastards? We finally got a lead on them?" Hua asked
"It appears so." Barnaby said.
"Wait, wait. Are we talking about the same DNAgent that studies espers for the government?' Annie asked. Kotetsu nodded.
"The very same. DNAgent has been a thorn in our side for months now. They're behind several kidnappings of esper children and teenagers, from orphans and runaways to even poaching people from ERD containment facilities." Kotetsu explained. "These people have connections to certain unsavory elements in the government and military, and they perform experiments on espers to create weapons and technology based on their powers."
"Like Ouroboros." Annie growled.
"Like Ouroboros, but with more resources and less fanaticism." Barnaby said. "We shoulder also go under the assumption that this might be a trap to lure the Brotherhood out to ambush them."
"Possibly, but we don't have anything else to go on except on faith. But there are espers in trouble and that is something I cannot ignore." Sumeragi said. "Everyone's on board for this mission. It's going to be a rough night, but it'll be worth it."
"Then we better go before we lose moonlight." Annie said.
XXXXXX
The camp was located in an isolated part of Alaska, far from civilization and deep in the wilderness. Thanks to Annie's connections (as she called her Minicon friends) the Neo Knights took a ground bridge via the Black Swan that transported them right into the heart of the Alaskan wilderness.
Barnaby set the jet down in a small clearing and the team disembarked. Annie started shivering as soon as she set foot on solid ground and rubbed her arms.
"Gods, it's so damn cold." She shivered.
"Honey, you're wearing a tank top and spandex tights. What did you think was going to happen?" Nathan smirked. Annie sent a glare at him.
"Screw you."
"Leave the girl alone, Nathan. Can't blame her for wanting to look good." Karina said, not even the least bit chilly despite wearing just as much clothing as Annie. Benefits of being a cryokinetic.
Nathan chuckled and began emitting light from his body, emanating a warm aura hot enough to melt the snow under him. Annie gave a relieved sigh as she was warmed up just by standing close to him.
"That's better." She sighed.
"The complex isn't too far from our position." Barnaby said. He led the team to the forest towards the coordinates of the base. "Once we get close enough, I'll scout out the perimeter for any security guards—"
"Incoming!" Kotetsu called out.
Kotetsu grabbed Barnaby and jumped back as something slammed into the ground near them. There was an explosion and Nathan and Annie were blasted off their feet. Karina raised a thick ice wall but it was destroyed by a volley of energy blasts.
"What's attacking us?" Hua yelled over the explosions and started firing lightning bolts in the general direction the attacks were coming from.
Barnaby and Kotetsu looked up and saw a large group of dark blue talos charging at them, firing laser blasts from their large rifles.
"Talos," Kotetsu growled, tensing his muscles. "Damn it, it was a trap!"
"We need to fall back before they surround us. Those talos are psi-shielded and their lobbing concussion bombs!" Barnaby said.
They had no idea how many talos were coming at them, but it was clear they were coming in bulk. Barnaby put up a telekinetic barrier to block the laser blasts. Then he heard a scream.
Karina was hit by a powerful taser that dropped her almost instantly. Soldiers were appearing from the trees and were closing in on their position. Hua lashed out with powerful lightning blasts that took out two soldiers before a third fired a rocket at her. The rocket hit the tree near her and the blast wave sent her flying headfirst into another tree, knocking her out.
Kotetsu had charged into the group of soldiers, punching and kicking them away with his superhuman strength. Kotetsu had no long range powers; his esper abilities were purely physical, granting him greater strength, speed, endurance and durability than the common man. When he really pushed himself, he could keep fighting for hours, and the soldiers were struggling to fight him as he tossed them around like ragdolls. Nathan joined the fight and was firing powerful beams of light from his hands at the talos.
"Damn it, we're outnumbered.' Barnaby thought. He waved his hand and sent two talos crashing into each other, but he was forced to block several bullets being shot at him from behind. The other talos began shooting laser blasts in his direction, forcing him to dodge. 'This ambush is too well-planned and the soldiers are far too equipped to fight us.'
"Barnaby, what are we going to do?" Annie asked, stabbing one soldier in the ribs with his bone spear before running over to him. "They're getting closer!"
"We're not getting out of this, Annie. They were prepared for us. The weapons they're using were made to fight Karaba's espers." He said, pushing her away. "You need to run."
"I'm not leaving you guys!" Annie protested.
"You're the only one capable of helping us. We can still win the day, but only if you remain free. Now go!" Barnaby telekinetic shoved her away from him and then broke the ground apart at her feet.
"Barnaby!" Annie cried out as the ground crumbled and she was sent sliding down the cliff-side.
With Annie safely out of the battle, Barnaby turned back to see Nathan get overpowered and taken out by several tranquilizer darts hitting him. Kotetsu continued to throw the men around while trying to regroup with Barnaby, but a shadow jumped out of the trees and slashed him across the back. To Barnaby's surprise, Kotetsu went down like a fallen oak tree.
"Kotetsu?!" Barnaby exclaimed. His attacker was a young woman, a teenager really, clad in a form fitting brown bodysuit and armed with a glowing purple shortsword.
"Lights out freak." The girl growled and rushed at him.
Barnaby uprooted the ground from underneath her feet, and threw her off balance. He ducked under a few darts and sent a boulder crashing into a few more soldiers. Focusing his power, Barnaby channeled telekinetic energy into the ground and roared, causing the around him to erupt like a bomb went off underground. Talos were thrown off their feet and he sent sharp pieces of stone into their cockpits, killing the pilots. Soldiers were sent crashing into trees and solid earth with bone crushing force. But the saboteur that took down Kotetsu was still coming at him.
"Come on!" Barnaby growled. He was going to make sure that these people lost enough people to regret targeting the Neo Knights!
But as the girl got closer, Barnaby's innate danger sense went off and he looked over his shoulder just in time to see another person land right behind him, a boy no older than the girl.
Barnaby tried to attack, but there was a quick flash of blue across his vision before he felt a sharp pain across his back and felt his body go numb. Cursing in his mind, Barnaby collapsed to his knees and everything went dark as he lost consciousness.
XXXXXX
The sound of bones snapping as they realigned filled the air alongside pained grunts and curses. Annie, covered in snow and close to freezing, pulled herself out of the pile of rubble and snow as her broken legs and arm slowly healed over.
"Shit." She coughed, wincing as her broken rib healed over. Regeneration was a great power to have, but it didn't take away the pain of feeling broken bones snapping back together. The small slide down the cliff had turned into a landslide with Annie caught in the middle, and she only remained conscious thanks to her hardening her skeleton so she didn't fracture her skull upon hitting the bottom.
Annie looked up, not hearing the sound of fighting anymore. Which meant that Barnaby was taken out too. She bit her lip, feeling a few more bones grow out of her spine from her nervousness.
"Okay, okay, think, Annie. What…what would Darren do in this situation?" She whispered to herself. "He would think of a plan…a plan." Annie's eyes lit up and she snapped her fingers. "Call for help!"
Annie reached into her pocket and pulled out her communicator. She could call the Autobots, but that might be a bad idea considering they already had their hands full. Same for the Minicons, if the people she thought were involved were behind this.
'Maybe the situation requires a bit of an inhuman touch.' Annie thought and dialed the code. She might be lacking in manpower, but that's fine. What she needed now was a walking powerhouse.
XXXXXX
Gina was watching a movie with Darren in his dorm room when she heard her communicator ringing. Darren looked at her confused.
"Who would be calling you on that?" Darren asked.
"Probably Sureshock or Rollbar…" Gina's eyes went wide when she saw Annie's name on the screen. Unfortunately for her, Darren also saw her name.
"Annie? What's she calling you for?" He asked.
"I better take this. She's probably just calling to annoy us." Gina said and stood up.
"Want me to scold her?" Darren smirked.
"No, I can handle her just fine." Gina laughed. "You just sit tight, I'll be right back."
Gina left the room and shut the door behind her. Making sure there was no one around, she answered the call. "Annie?"
"Oh thank god you're there, Gina." Annie said relieved. "You certainly took your damn time answering."
"You caught me in the middle of a movie date with Darren." Gina said. "Why are you calling? Did something happen?"
"Yeah, a lot of bad things. Long story short, I'm on a mission with the team and we got ambushed while hunting for some illegal esper camp in Alaska. I'm the only one who made it out and they're all captured." Annie explained in a single breath. "I didn't want to get the Autobots involved, so I called you. Please help me!"
"Okay, okay, I'm coming. Just let me talk to Darren, okay?"
"Right, I'll hang tight." Annie said before hanging up.
"Jinkies, that girl is going to be the death of me." Gina growled. She opened the door and saw Darren still on the bed watching the movie.
"Annie needs my help with something for one of her classes." Gina said, thinking up the excuse on the spot. "I'm sorry, but—"
"It's okay, Gina. Go on ahead. We can finish our date later." Darren smiled.
"Thanks." Gina blew him a kiss and closed the door.
She completely missed Darren's darkening expression as soon as she took her eyes off him.
XXXXXX
Rodimus and Armorhide were once again on patrol, this time with Prowl and Bulkhead joining them. The bombing at City Hall was something that no one was expecting, considering how bold of a move it was. Optimus ordered Prowl to oversee all operations in the city to ensure that the Brotherhood didn't try anything else on their watch.
'Not that they really need to do anything at this point.' Rodimus thought.
"Prowl to team, is everything clear on your end?" Prowl asked.
"All clear on my side, Prowl." Bulkhead said.
"Everything's fine on my end, sir." Armorhide said.
"I'm ridin' through dullsville." Rodimus sighed.
"Get used to it, Rodimus. I'd rather—hold on." Prowl went quiet for a moment. "Guys, we've got a large ERD assault unit heading straight for Esper Town."
"That's not good." Bulkhead said.
"They're probably moving in to secure the area after the bombing." Prowl said. "Looks like we might see a fight erupt."
"What do we do?" Rodimus asked.
"Nothing. Unless Karaba or the Cons make an appearance, we stay in vehicle mode. No one interfere at all." Prowl ordered.
"But Prowl—" Rodimus tried to protest, but Prowl cut him off.
"No interference." Prowl said sternly. His voice was harder than steel. "Do I make myself clear?"
"…Yes, Prowl." Rodimus said. Once the call ended, Rodimus waited for a few seconds before swerving down a street and drove for Esper Town. "Good thing I'm bad at following orders."
XXXXXX
Gina arrived at Annie's location through the ground bridge straight from the Ark with Mjolnir floating behind her. She wore her white and blue bodysuit that felt just a bit tight on her after spending so long out of it. Beside her, Sara followed after her, keeping a keen eye out for their surroundings.
"Gina, Sara!" Annie jumped up to give them a hug. "So glad to have you here!"
"Did you doubt us, Annie?" Sara asked, blinking at the oddly chipper Neo Knight.
"To be honest, a little." Annie admitted guiltily. Then she saw Mjolnir and nearly squealed. "And Mjolnir! Oh, it's just like a family reunion!"
"So what are you planning to do?" Gina asked. "That compound is heavily guarded and we have no idea how many soldiers and talos they have."
"These people are connected to DNAgent, Gina. They've been experimenting and weaponizing espers for the military's secret black ops program." Annie swung her hammer and smiled. It's been too long since she held Mjolnir. "We're close to bringing these bastards to justice, but first I have to free the other Knights first."
"Do you have a plan?" Sara asked.
Annie looked in the direction of the compound and smirked. "Shock and awe."
XXXXXX
When the Neo Knights regained consciousness, they found themselves locked in holding cells. These were no ordinary holding cells. They were made to hold espers. The cells were made of mostly metal on all sides, but what really made them different was that there were no bars or doors keeping them locked in. instead there was a glowing green energy wall keeping the prisoners inside. And if the heat it was giving off was any indication, it was meant to violently repel anybody who tried to test them.
Barnaby, Hua and Kotetsu were trapped in their own cells, while Nathan and Karina were stuck together. Everyone had an inhibitor collar strapped to the necks that negated their powers. In addition they had all been dressed in full bodied black uniforms with a large red E on the back. It was a glorified prison uniform.
"Well," Hua said, doing some stretches. "This fucking blows."
"That's an understatement." Nathan huffed.
"I thought we could handle an ambush if it came at us, but the weapons and talos they were using was unreal." Kotetsu said. "Those talos looked a bit too sleek and shiny for my tastes."
"Probably illegal models that were made in secret, like the talos that attacked Esper Town." Karina said. "That seems to be the norm for a lot of organizations these days."
"Yo, Barnaby, you getting any readings from the boss lady?" Kotetsu asked.
"No, I can only assume that this entire prison is psi-shielded. No telepathy in or out." Barnaby said. "Right now all we can do is wait for Annie to come through for us."
"But Annie's all alone out there. How is she going to help us?" Hua asked.
"Remember that Annie has friends in high places. She know what to do. We just need to be patient." He said.
"Sounds like someone has a soft spot for the girl." Nathan said wryly.
Even Barnaby couldn't keep his smile hidden. "She's a resourceful and steadfast girl. I trust her to come through for us."
Everyone tensed when the doors opened up and two people entered the room. The first to enter was a middle aged woman with a narrow, aged face and short brown hair. Her companion was an older man wearing a dark gray business suit with short dark hair and glasses over his worn but keen eyes.
"Iceron and Sherisha Gowthrain of DNAgent." Barnaby said, his tone cold. "Only you two are smart enough to think of this."
"So you know of us. That's good, saves us the trouble of introductions." Iceron grinned.
"To be honest, I wasn't totally confident about our little plan working, but one can never overestimate a bleeding heart." Sherisha said.
"Get bent." Hua growled.
"I'd watch my mouth, dear. You're not in a position to be tossing around insults." Sherisha warned. Hua just gave her the finger.
"What did you expect? We weren't going to allow you keep harming innocent people." Kotetsu said, crossing his large arms. "So why are you here? Come to gloat at the famous Neo Knights?"
"That's part of the reason. But we're mainly here to educate you on our mission to make the world a better place." Iceron said.
"Now that's a load of bull." Karina sneered.
"Call it what you want. It doesn't change the impact on human society we'll have." Sherisha said. "Given your vigilante antics, I assume you all believe in the tenets of law and order. You must understand that in order for a civilization to flourish, there must be a rule of law and there must be authorities to enforce this rule. The ERD may be the governing force policing espers in this country, but they're painfully ill-equipped to deal with esper terrorists who know how to fight them. Now that the cybertronians have entered the picture, the foundation of civil authority is threatened."
"So you're undermining that authority to suit your own agenda?" Karina accused.
"I'm not underminding anything!" Sherisha hissed. "Since the Circum-Pacific War, the world got a lot smaller. Just defending physical borders is no longer enough when anybody with enough time and money can strike from across continents. At the same time the esper population exploded. Abilities and powers the likes of which we've never seen are springing up everywhere. All of a sudden there are individuals powerful enough to destroy armies, wipe out cities, and murder thousands. Just look at what you all can do! Not to mention Karaba!"
"So your entire reasoning is based off of fear." Kotetsu deduced. "Espers aren't walking weapons of mass destruction. They're human just like you!"
"And what happens when you grant humans too much power?" Sherisha asked. "They abuse it. With the ERD constantly fumbling around and aliens and sea people threatening the existence of our race, a new line of defense is needed, weapons capable of combating all of these threats with the flexibility and ease that talos lack."
"Espers." Hua spat.
"We've been experimenting on countless espers to create new weapons for national defense. Psi-shielding, inhibitor collars, energy weapons, all created from extensive research into esper physiology. We're going to ensure that we can properly police humans and espers with bombs and missiles."
"All while keeping this under the President and government's noses?"
"Considering the fantastic job they're doing so far, I think I'm good." She smirked. "And I have friends in high places."
Sherisha turned around and walked back to the door with her husband. "Enjoy your time, Neo Knights. You'll all be contributing to my efforts really soon."
XXXXXX
Sherisha and Iceron walked out of the prison block and headed to their research lab where one of the scientists were prepping for their operation.
"Now that we've finally caught the Neo Knights, what do we do now?" Iceron asked.
"First we'll give Pisces a call. I'm sure he'll be happy to know that he has one less annoyance to worry about." Sherisha said. "I'll call up a transport convoy to move our guests to a more secure location."
The pair stumbled when a loud explosion rattled the entrance, followed by a rumble.
"What the hell was that?" Sherisha demanded.
"Ma'am!" One of the soldiers ran up to them. "We're under attack!"
"I can see that you idiot!" Sherisha snarled. "But who is attacking us?"
"T-Three girls, ma'am." He stammered. "Three esper girls."
Sherisha and Iceron shared a shocked glance with each other. "Girls?"
XXXXXX
"Knock, knock!"
Annie leapt through the shattered and warped doors of the complex and swung her hammer, releasing a spider web of lightning bolts that tore apart the hall. The soldiers were unequipped to handle the power of a literal storm and were sent flying back from the force of Mjolnir's power.
"Not so tough now that someone has the drop on you, huh?" Annie yelled. She formed a bone shield from her wrist to block the bullets fired at her. Raising her arm, she fired five bone bullets from her fingertips, puncturing body armor and glass face masks.
Gina ran in and punched one soldier into the wall before spinning around and kicking another man in the chest. She shattered the rifle of another soldier and grabbed his arm, twisting it painfully behind him as she threw him to the ground.
"Where are the prisoners?" Gina demanded, putting pressure on his arm.
"I'm…not saying a word to you, freak!" He grunted. How the hell was this girl so strong?"
"Wrong answer." She applied only a small amount of pressure on his elbow, but it was enough to snap his bones. As the man screamed, she said, "Your shoulder is next. Where are they?"
The soldier wanted to continue resisting out of principle, but the girl was squeezing his arm in some pretty painful places. At this rate she was going to turn every bone in his arm into dust.
"In the first sub-level. Take the elevator lift to the sub-level. The prison block is straight down the hall from there!" He yelled.
"Thank you." Gina said and knocked him out with a punch to the back of the head. "Sara, take the elevator to the lower level and free the prisoners there."
"Understood." Sara said and ran down an adjacent corridor.
"We've got more incoming." Annie said, spinning Mjolnir in hand.
"Want me to handle this?" Gina asked.
Annie grinned. "Be my guest."
Gina stepped forwards, eyes glowing as she unleashed her power on the unsuspecting soldiers.
XXXXXX
The Defenders and the Minicons stood in the middle of the street along with a sizeable crowd of protesting espers. Standing across from them down the street were a squad of ERD troops arranged in tight formation with their rifles pointed at them. At the head of the unit was Commander John Lazer.
"What's wrong with you people?" Gar spat. "We've done nothing wrong!"
"That's for the president to decide." Lazer said. "Karaba making an appearance in Esper Town days before bombing City Hall is no coincidence. This area has been suspected of harboring Karaba sympathizers and I have been authorized to apprehend any suspects or unregistered espers. Which means I'm here to take all of you in."
"Maybe if you assholes did you jobs right, we wouldn't be in this mess!" Lyn shouted.
"Interfering with ERD business will land you prison time, girl." Lazer said, glaring at her. "Stand aside. It's time the ERD put this lawless cesspool in its place."
"You're not doing shit!"
"Go home, humans!"
"You've caused enough trouble!"
Lazer narrowed his eyes at the crowd as they hurled insults and jeers at him, and turned to his men. "Round them all up! I don't have time to cater to terrorists!"
The talos moved in and pointed their rifles at the mob. They began shooting canisters of tear gas into the crowd, causing everyone to scatter. But not everyone ran, however, and some espers began fighting back. Globs of acid, lightning bolts and even pieces of concrete were thrown at the Paladins.
"Fight back! Arrest all of them!" Lazer ordered. "Don't be afraid to use force!"
"Shut up!" Shelia slammed into Lazer and threw him to the ground. He reached for his gun, but she blasted it out of his hand.
Lazer kicked her off him and got to his feet, grabbing his gun and pointing it at her. Redline entered the fight, jumping in front of Shelia and taking two bullets to the chest harmlessly before Gar ran in and dropkicked Lazer in the chest. The captain slammed into the side of a car and coughed.
"F-Fire at will," Lazer growled. "Shoot anyone who resists!"
"Get ready team!" Gar said, preparing for a bloody fight. Redline and the other Minicons also grouped up to fight the talos.
Just as things began heating up drastically, the loud roar of a car engine made everyone pause. A bright red and orange sports car sped out of an alley and skidded to a halt in the street. It transformed into Rodimus, who stood tall before the espers while facing the ERD.
"You're not touching anyone here!" Rodimus declared. "Esper Town is under Autobot protection, and you're not taking one step forward!"
XXXXXX
The Neo Knights jumped as they heard more faint explosions coming from the upper levels. This was followed by more shouting and gunshots.
"What's going on?" Karina asked.
"Sounds like Annie's making her big breakout." Barnaby said.
"Annie? She sounds like she's lobbing grenades everywhere." Hua said. "How is she taking on all those soldiers?"
"She didn't come alone." Kotetsu grinned.
The two gods watching them were similarly worried about all the noise going on upstairs.
"Should we go check it out?" Asked one guard.
"Ms. Gowthrain said we're to stay put. Anyone comes in without confirmation is to be shot on sight."
There was a light knock on the door, and seconds later said door was completely blasted off its hinges. Sara ran into the room and kicked the first guard in the chest with enough force to shatter his ribs, and spun around to cut apart the second guard's rifle before clocking him in the jaw. She didn't even wait for him to hit the floor before turning to the stunned Knights.
"Are you the Neo Knights?" She asked.
"…Who wants to know?" Karina asked cautiously.
"My name is Sara, friend of Annie." Sara said, moving to unlock the cells. "I'm here to free you."
Kotetsu looked at the strange girl before shrugging. "I'll take it."
XXXXXX
"Lydia, Romeo, take them out!" Iceron said and his children ran forward to engage the two girls.
Sherisha and Iceron didn't stay long enough to see their children fight. After seeing the girls' powers first hand, it was clear that the chances of Lydia and Romeo winning were very slim. Still, they provided an ample distraction as they got into a jeep and drove down the service tunnel away from their crumbling base.
Sherisha drove the tunnel out into the road behind the complex, where a talos squad was waiting for them.
"Sir, we'll escort you to the helipad." The squad leader said. His talos ran alongside the jeep.
"Good. The base is compromised. Have the demo-team initiate emergency procedures." Sherisha commanded. "Wipe out this base and everything inside!"
"Incoming!" Someone shouted.
The callout came seconds before the pilot's talos was pierced by a green energy beam and exploded. The other four talos opened fire on the large mecha coming down on them from the sky. Bullets were ineffective as the talos glided through the air, firing particle beams that demolished the ground forces.
A stray beam hit near Sherisha's jeep and she was forced to a stop before they tipped over. At the same time, the squad leader's talos was blown in half and the upper body of the talos was sent sailing through the air right towards them.
"Move!" Iceron yelled, but it was too late. The heavy talos crashed right on top of them, crushing the ambitious pair under its weight, killing them immediately.
The red and gold talos stood among the burning remains of the talos and turned its head to the service tunnel the jeep just emerged from.
XXXXXX
"Look out!" Gina pushed Annie away as Lydia came down on them with her short sword. Lydia pressed her attack, forcing Annie on the defensive. Annie saw the girl's glowing shortsword and knew she didn't want to get hit by that thing.
Gina saw Romeo heading right for her and summoned a distortion halo that blasted him away. The boy grunted but managed to land on top of a jeep, his sword glowing just like his sister's.
"I'm going to guess that your sword is from some super ancient ruins isn't it?" She inquired. Romeo smirked.
"How'd you guess?" He said. "We got these babies from Elladas. Didn't think much of them until we saw what they can do."
"Don't look so smug. My friend's hammer is better than that toothpick you're swinging around." She remarked and charged at him.
Romeo slashed at her, but she ducked under his blade and grabbed his arm. Romeo dropped his sword into his other hand and thrust it at her chest, but she angled her body so it just barely touched her bodysuit, still gripping his arm. Spinning around, she threw him over her shoulder and into the floor, knocking the breath from him. Romeo wheezed but was still coherent enough to try to stab his sword into her arm. But Gina was faster, catching his wrist and squeezing until he dropped the blade.
"You're good, but I'm better." Gina said before lifting Romeo above her head and throwing him several feet across the room to land in the back end of a jeep.
Annie was having a harder time fighting Lydia, who was absolutely relentless in her assault. Annie was using Mjolnir to defend herself from Lydia's totally magical sword, and every time both weapons clashed they gave off sparks as if they were reacting to each other.
"You know how to blindly swing a hammer, but compared to me, you're second rate!" Lydia taunted her.
"At least my mom loves me, bitch." Annie growled, hissing when Lydia slashed a bit too close to her face, cutting a few strands of her hair.
Her remark cracked Lydia's taunting façade and she pressed her attack, swinging and slashing her sword faster now. Knowing that she wasn't going to last this long against her, Annie sent a sharp bone spike jutting out from her knee to stab into Lydia's side. The girl gasped in pain and paused, allowing Annie enough time to get behind her and pull her into a headlock.
Lydia struggled for a moment before grabbing Annie's hair and throwing her into the ground. Mjolnir flew from Annie's hand and Lydia brought her sword down on her face with a roar. Annie titled her head so the blade stabbed into the ground under her head and kicked Lydia in the face. Then she commanded Mjolnir to flew up and slam into the girl's chest. Lydia flew back a couple of feet before slamming hard into one of the abandoned trucks and was knocked out.
"Finally." Annie grunted. Gina walked over to her and held her up.
"Who were those guys?" Gina asked.
"I'm guessing the Gowthrain's children." Annie answered, recalling Mjolnir back to her. "Looks like those bastards aren't the loving family type, even to their children."
As the girls talked, Romeo pulled himself out of the jeep he was thrown into, covered in cuts and bruises. He saw that the girls were distracted and picked up his sword with the intention of killing at least one of them. Maybe he'll get both if he's lucky.
"Sara's probably freed your friends by now." Gina said. "Let's regroup and—"
"Gina!" Annie called out, seeing Romeo leap out of his hiding place with his sword thrusting at Gina's back.
Gina spun around, her eyes generating a distortion halo as fast as she can. But even though she was fast, Romeo was far too close for her to take out before he landed a possibly fatal blow.
But as Romeo got closer to her, something shot at him from the other side of the room. A long steel spear flew through the air and impaled Romeo through the chest. Romeo stared at the girls, his expression one of shock and pain as he registered the foot long spear in the middle of his chest. The spear's momentum threw him to the side and he landed on the ground, gasping and writhing in agony as he tried to pull the spear out.
Annie and Gina stared at the mortally wounded killer before slowly turning to the person who saved their lives. But they weren't prepared to see who their savior was.
It was Darren.
XXXXXX
The Defenders, Minicons, and ERD stared at Rodimus with varying levels of shock. The fighting had paused and everyone regrouped on the onset of this new development.
"Stand aside, Autobot." Lazer growled. "This is ERD business and you Autobots have interfered for the last time!"
"I'm not doing shit." Rodimus said, crossing his arms. "You people are done tormenting espers. This stops tonight."
"Need I remind you that interfering in human affairs is a breach of the Cybercord Treaty? Don't this will be an act of war against the ERD!"
"I'm not budging." Rodimus said steadfast.
Lazer gritted his teeth and gave the order. "Fire on the Autobot for breach of the Cybercord Treat!"
The Paladins pointed their rifles at Rodimus, who didn't seem very concerned about the guns pointing at him. Then his arm shot out and he tossed a grenade at them.
"Grenade!"
The ERD personnel scrambled to take cover, but instead of an explosion, the grenade released a small but strong pulsewave upon detonation that washed over the talos and the armored vans behind them. Lazer cursed as his talos units began falling over like toy robots one by one, and the soldiers ran to avoid getting crushed.
"What did you do?" Lazer snarled.
"EMP burst. Very useful against people who rely on their talos." Rodimus said. "And I'd think twice about shooting at me. There are a lot of angry espers at my back."
Lazer gritted his teeth. Now he was in a terrible position, his men outnumbered and overpowered by several angry espers wanting his head. Perhaps he could overpower them with his team, but with the Autobot in the way, there was little else he could do. Then, as if things couldn't get any worse, more Autobots arrived.
Prowl, Bulkhead and Armorhide drove down an opposite street and transformed to bipedal mode. Prowl didn't even wait to finish his transformation before pointing his blaster at Rodimus.
"What do you think you're doing, Rodimus?" Prowl asked coldly.
XXXXXX
Annie and Gina turned from the dying Romeo to the silent Darren. He slowly walked from the service tunnel, his face expressionless but his eyes displaying the quiet rage building behind them. Waves of telekinetic power flowed off his skin, and they could see his telekinetic armor surrounding his body like armor.
"I should have known," Darren said, not taking his eyes off Annie as he walked closer to them. "I should have known that you'd go behind my back to play hero. It's just typical that you'd think running around in spandex fighting people will make a difference."
Darren's pace increased and Annie clutched Mjolnir tighter as his tone grew more hostile.
"Was it fun being a Neo Knight, Annie? Was it fun constantly putting yourself in the firing line? I'm sure you had a blasting putting your loved ones' lives in danger to fulfil your sorry inferiority complex!"
Darren marched past Gina, but she caught his arm to stop him. He stopped, looked at the hand gripping his arm and looked up at her. She flinched at the look of pure, utter betrayal he gave her.
"Did you know?" He asked in a tight voice.
Gina bit her lip. "Darren…"
"I'm asking you…did you know?" He hissed.
"…Yes."
Darren jerked his arm out of her grip as if he were burned. The girls remained tense as he stared at them in utter loathing. For a moment Gina thought that he was going to rush at Annie first.
She wasn't expecting him to backhand her with a telekinetic punch.
Gina crashed into the wall, and Darren charged at Annie. He deflected a bone bullet fired at him and blocked her punch, gripping her first tightly. Annie grew a bone blade from her wrist and slashed at him, but he caught her arm and threw her to the ground.
They grappled each other for a moment before Gina leapt up and slammed into him, knocking him away. Darren rolled across the ground before pushing off and ramming her away instead. He punched the ground and had the stone wrap around her body in a stone cocoon.
Annie rushed at him from behind, shattering her bone claws against his telekinetic shield before he grabbed her by the shirt and threw her into the wall. He tried to punch her but she grabbed his wrist and held her at bay. At this point, Gina broke herself free and ran at the struggling siblings.
Annie kicked Darren away and Gina used a distortion halo to blast him further back without hurting him. She stood in front of Annie, ready to protect her.
"He's not going to stop." Gina said. "Run for the service tunnel and get to the elevator lift. It should still be there."
"But—"
"Just go!"
Annie ran for the tunnel and Gina turned back to Darren, who was getting back to his feet. The look of utter loathing on his face made him almost unrecognizable to her.
"Darren, please you have to stop this." Gina pleaded.
"Move!" He shouted and charged right through the flames at her, only for another distortion halo to blast him off balance.
"She was just trying to do the right thing!" She yelled.
Darren charged once again, plowing through the fire and flipping above Gina. He sprinted into the tunnel and pulled on the entrance, causing it to collapse and block the tunnel entrance with large chunks of debris. Knowing that would only hold her for a few minutes, he ran down the tunnel after his sister.
As for Annie, she was having her own problems. Darren had completely destroyed the elevator, so she was forced to use her bone claws to climb up the elevator shaft to the surface. It wasn't that long a climb, but she could already hear Darren coming for her.
She was halfway up when Darren suddenly leapt on her back and pulled her off the wall. She slammed against the other side of the shaft, but recovered and launched a kick to his face that threw him back. Annie pulled two spears from her ribs and threw them at Darren, who blasted them away. He wasn't expecting Gina to suddenly appear and kick him back down the shaft.
"Keep going." Gina said as she dug her fingers into the metal panels. "The surface isn't that far."
Gina gave Annie a boost up the shaft and looked down at Darren. He glared at her before slamming both hands into the sides of the shaft and causing the metal walls to ripple and shake. The panel Gina was holding on to was dislodged and she lost her balance, falling down the shaft. Darren jumped, shooting past her and leapt off the sides of the shaft to reach Annie, wrapping his arms around her neck in a chokehold.
"Did you even consider the risks?" Darren growled at her. "Did you even care about the consequences?"
"I always care!" She grunted.
Annie kicked off the wall and the twins went falling back down the shaft, not stopping until they both landed at the very bottom near the hangar area where the base's vehicles and talos were stored.
Annie groaned in pain, feeling her skin and bones healing from her fall. She got to her feet and saw Darren standing atop of a jeep, his face displaying cold rage. She hardened her bones and raised her fists.
"This doesn't change anything. I know I hurt you, but I don't regret joining the Neo Knights." Annie said.
"I don't care." Darren sneered. "I'm done talking. Since you like fighting so much, I'm going to beat you down until you get the message!"
He leapt at her and threw a punch at her face, but she caught his arm and spun him around to wrap her arm around his neck. He grunted and shoved her arms away from him before pinning her to the floor and punching her in the face repeatedly, ignoring the stinging pain of his knuckles hitting her hardened cheekbones. Suddenly Gina descended upon him with a kick that knocked him off Annie and the two girls began attacking him at the same time.
Fighting an inhuman and an esper at the same time was tough. Every blow he took from the two girls weakened his TK armor and staggered him. A solid punch from Gina brought him down to one knee, but he scored a TK blast to Annie's chest that knocked her back into one of the vehicles. Gina was on him in a heartbeat, pushing him back towards the hangar doors with a barrage of punches. He tried to hit her with a TK blast, but she deflected his arm and elbowed him in the chest. He stumbled back, wheezing from the blow to his chest, and Gina pinned him to the wall, forcing his head and arm against it to subdue him.
Gina used her strength to keep him against the wall, but Darren was forcing himself against her hold, his muscles straining, veins bulging against his skin. His eyes flared with power and he roared in pure anger as his power exploded outward, slamming against Gina with tremendous force and sending her smashing straight through the hanger doors and into the cold snow outside.
Darren turned and ran at Annie, who also came at him with her blades. The two siblings clashed in a ferocious assault fueled by intense emotions that would leave more than just physical scars.
XXXXXX
"What do you think you're doing, Rodimus?"
Rodimus didn't falter under Prowl's glare. "Doing my job, Prowl."
"Really? Because it looks like you're pointing your weapons at human authorities."
"I'm just doing what we should've done from the start: standing up for these people." Rodimus said. "Look around you, Prowl. All of this started when the government started locking up their own people because they were espers. We should've made a stand, showed these people our support and that we're on their side."
"The treaty dictates that we were not to get involved in human affairs, especially politics, Rodimus." Prowl said firmly. "We were following the law."
"And look where that's gotten us!" Rodimus said. "More and more espers are starting to hate us every day and they're flocking to the Brotherhood because they think we don't care about them. They think that we won't protect them, and that's what Megatron's using as propaganda to turn them against us. How are you not seeing this?"
Prowl didn't reply to that, but Rodimus knew that a mech as smart as Prowl had seen this coming already. Bulkhead and Armorhide stood to the side uneasily as they watched this tense exchange.
"Rodimus…" Bulkhead began, but Rodimus cut him off.
"Bulkhead, what if they came for Annie, or Darren and Gina? Would you sit still while they were being treated like this?" He asked.
Bulkhead's eyes hardened. "No, I wouldn't."
"We're Autobots, guys. Helping people should also be our job, not just fighting the Cons. These people need to know that we're there for them, and I'm doing that right now."
"Even still, Rodimus, you attacked an ERD unit, and that's going to cause problems. I can't let that slide." Prowl replied.
Rodimus scowled and extended his arm cannons. "Then it looks like we're going to have a problem."
"Wait!" Armorhide got between them before they could come to blows. "Rodimus, Prowl, let's just talk about this!"
"There's nothing to talk about, Armorhide. Rodimus is disobeying orders and I'm required to bring him in." Prowl said.
"Please, we can't fight like this, not in front of these people." Armorhide pointed to the espers and ERD troops still watching them. "We're supposed to be protecting all life on this planet. How would it look if two Autobots just started duking it out in public like this?"
Prowl gritted his teeth when he realized that Armorhide was right. Rodimus's actions were already going to give them all headaches later this week. The last thing anyone need was to give the Brotherhood more propaganda to work on by watching two Autobots fighting. Not to mention many of the espers and even the Minicons were prepared to fight him.
"Prowl, maybe you can bring Optimus here so they can talk it out or something." Armorhide suggested. You'll only continue to make it worse, was what was left unsaid but clearly implied.
Prowl sent Armorhide a glare before holstering his blaster. "Fine, we'll do that, but this doesn't excuse your actions, Rodimus."
"So long as these people are safe, I'll do what needs to be done." Rodimus said.
Bulkhead released a shaky sigh. That was close. They avoided causing another scandal that was going to bite them in the ass later on. Hopefully things went smoothly from here on out.
XXXXXX
Annie found herself on the defensive as she weathered through Darren's telekinetic assault. His power had grown since coming to Providence, but he was unfocused in his anger. Annie learned from Bulkhead that an angry enemy was a reckless one, and knew that it was only a matter of time before he made a mistake.
Darren punched Annie into a jeep, still wailing on her with his punches. Her bones were hard as steel at this point and his knuckles were aching and bleeding from his constant barrage, but he still kept attacking. When he charged up for a more powerful attack, that was when she struck.
Annie's fist shot out and caught him in the ribs, and her follow-up punch got his chin. She kicked him in the chest and then elbowed his face before growing a thick bony plate out of her forearm to bring it down on his head, knocking him down.
"Stay down," Annie panted. "Final warning."
Darren spat blood out through his teeth, his TK armor flickering like a dying candlelight as he glared up at her. "You never learn, do you?"
He curled his fingers and Annie screamed as every bone protrusion on her body was ripped out of her skin at the same time. She stumbled back in pain and Darren rushed her, thrusting two fists into her chest hard enough to make her cough up blood before grabbing her hair and slamming her to the ground.
Annie groaned as her bleeding wounds healed slowly. She was exhausted, but so was Darren. Annie noticed this as she weakly got to her feet and raised her fists.
"I can do this all day, bro." She said.
Darren scowled and prepared to strike. But a pair of hands grabbed him from behind and threw him aside. Darren spun around, but Gina ducked under his kick and landed an uppercut that threw him off his feet. She ran forward and delivered another strong punch to his face that shattered his TK armor and sent him spiraling…right into Annie's incoming spiked covered fist.
"Annie, wait!" Gina yelled.
Annie's fist slammed into Darren's cheek and the small but sharp bony spikes left two deep, bloody gouges in his face. Blood splattered across the ground as Darren fell down, and this time he didn't get back up.
"No…" Annie gasped, just realizing what she just did.
Gina stared down at Darren with tears in her eyes and she limped over to Annie, pulling her away from her wounded brother. Darren groaned in pain as he tried to stand up, but his entire body ached painfully, and blood poured from the wounds in his face.
"You…" He grunted, his bleeding cuts stinging from the tears leaking from his eyes. "Go ahead, run! Go on and keep playing hero!"
Gina pulled Annie along, trying to ignore Darren's rage filled cries.
"You're just a rabid dog. You're not sister of mine!" Darren shouted, his voice echoing throughout the room. "Do you hear me? You're dead to me!"
As the distance between them grew, in more ways than one, neither Annie nor Darren could hear the other as each twin cried silent tears.
Annie cried for her brother as she left him alone in the darkness. There was no coming back from this now.
I had been watching Captain America: Civil War for the first time when I was writing this chapter and the mood of the final battle stuck with me as Darren and Annie finally came to blows. Not a happy moment for anybody, and Darren will carry his own visible scars as a grim reminder of this fight. Next chapter things sort of calm down, only to blow up again when a face from Cybertron's distant past reappears with plans of his own for his race. Also, I will be putting my Sofia story on hold for a bit to work on this story for a while, to lighten my workload. Be sure to check out the official Transformers Titan website on WordPress. Thanks for reading, please leave a review and Happy Holidays everybody!