50- Hard Knocks.
On the Nemesis, Soundwave continued his job on decoding the database as Megatron was laughing.
"You should have seen Optimus Prime's face when his precious Star Saber shattered like glass, and with it his dreams of an Autobot victory." Megatron boasted. "Granted, Optimus will be more determined than ever to discover the locations of the remaining Iacon entries before we can."
In that moment, Soundwave unlocked the next set of coordinates.
"Ah, very good. I see you have decoded the next set of coordinates." Megatron observed.
"Way to step things up, Soundwave." Knock Out congratulated as he entered the bridge. "I do hope this Iacon relic is something less sacred and more profane. Like an electro disruptor cannon, we could use one of those."
"Indeed, Knock Out. Dreadwing, report to the bridge immediately." Megatron called by com-link.
"Please, Lord Megatron, allow me the honor of retrieving this relic for you."
"I'm surprised you would risk your finish, so soon after your accident. Nonetheless, I remain unconvinced that you are the best choice for the task, since you failed to secure the phase shifter."
"I lacked the proper tools, but since Soundwave's currently occupied, I can't imagine he'll mind if I borrow this." Knock Out said pulling out the Resonance Blaster. "So that I might better secure your prize and heap some hurt on the Autobots."
At the Autobot base, Smokescreen was watching Optimus as he was decoding the Iacon database.
"I'm gonna be a great warrior someday, like Optimus." He said.
"Well, train hard and gain some wisdom along the way and I'm sure it'll happen." Bulkhead said.
"Oh, it will. It's my destiny."
"(He surely thinks he's special.)"
"How so?" Cliffjumper asked.
"Well, one minute I'm on security detail at Iacon, the next I wake up on the other side of the universe to find myself under Optimus's command. I mean, what are the chances? Right? Things happen for a reason." Smokescreen defended.
"We get it, Smokescreen. You're special, we're lucky to have you." Arcee said giving up.
"All I'm really saying is I've come a long way and this is one opportunity I don't plan on messing up."
"Autobots, the next Iacon coordinates have been decoded. Ratchet, ready the ground bridge." Optimus ordered, and Ratchet started the portal.
"Last one to the Omega Key has to scrub the energon tanks for a week." Smokescreen challenged as he ran to the ground bridge.
"Didn't know we were keeping score." Arcee said.
"Arcee, Bumblebee, prepare to roll out." Optimus called.
"(Yes! I'm already checked and ready to go.)"
"Wait! What about me?" Smokescreen asked in disbelief, before he heard Bulkhead cough. "I mean me, Bulkhead and Cliffjumper?"
"The three of you will remain here, in the event I'm able to decode a subsequent database entry before the others return." Optimus explained as he returned to his work.
"Optimus is right: considering the very fate of Cybertron is at stake, response time is critical." Ratchet supported as he activated the ground bridge.
"Keep your engines idling, kid. Come on Bee, destiny awaits."
"(You said it, Arcee.)"
"Don't provoke, Arcee." Cliff told her.
"I'm not."
The two Autobots changed to vehicle form and went through the portal.
"We call it a pit stop." Cliff reassured him as he saw him with a look of disappointment.
And Bulkhead slapped him in the back. "We'll get back in the race."
Mon Calamari
The portal took them to a desert shore of a beach. Once they arrived, they changed to robot form and started to check the place.
"Over there." Arcee said spotting the Omega Key, which was on top of a rock and already out of the box.
"Well well." Knock Out said coming out from behind the rocks. "Just the Autobots I wanted to see. And where are your little Jedi?"
"I'll handle the mad doctor, you grab the key." Arcee instructed as she pulled out her weapons before responding to Knock Out. "They are not here, sorry to disappoint you. Besides, the two of us can take care of one of the most inferior Decepticons of the ranks."
"(You got it.)"
"Are you sure about that? Anyway, I've been waiting to thank you both for all the memories." Knock Out said before he activated and fired the Resonance Blaster.
The sonic beam hit Arcee very hard, knocking her down, and next, the beam pinned Bumblebee to the rock wall. As he tried to fight back the beam, Knock Out advanced to him, intensifying the beam, causing Bee's finish to crack.
"Who knew that sound waves could be such a… knock out?" Knock Out said as he surprisingly fired at Arcee before she could attack him from behind, pinning her against other rock wall and making her scream in pain. "What's that, dear? I can't hear you!"
"Bee, the relic!" She yelled.
"(Right, I got it.)" Bee nodded as he recovered slowly and headed for the relic.
"Scrap." Knock Out cursed as he saw Arcee going for it too. Then an idea came to his mind. "Hum, how low can it go?"
He aimed the weapon to the ground and fired, generating big sound waves on the ground that hit both Autobots and caused a rockfall.
"Soft whooper or death charge?" Knock Out smirked.
Moments later, when the dust cleared, Bumblebee pushed a boulder away, breaking free.
"(Oh, my head.)"
Arcee broke free too, very hurt, but Knock Out was no more. And unfortunately, the key's container was empty.
"Scrap." Arcee cursed.
Knock Out returned back to the Nemesis and showed the key to his leader.
"Hm, it appears identical to the one taken from me by Optimus Prime." Megatron observed as he took it. "Ah, perhaps it is a decoy the Autobots allowed you to seize as a means of sabotage."
"Unlikely, my liege, they battled too desperately for it." Knock Out reassured.
"Then pieces of a larger puzzle perhaps." Megatron said before he saw Soundwave finish with the next set. "Excellent, Soundwave. With any luck these new coordinates will shed some light on the subject."
"Soundwave's on fire, and so am I." Knock Out said preparing the sonic weapon and about to leave.
"Keep your vanity at check, doctor." Megatron stopped him.
"Haven't I proven myself?!"
"Your scientific expertise remains of greater use to me, analyzing our latest acquisition. I must know what this relic is, and what it can do."
Meanwhile, back to the Autobot base, Ratchet was healing Bee in the medical chamber after they returned, while Arcee waited for her turn.
"I'm sorry, Optimus. Knock Out was there, waiting for us." Arcee apologized. "Seems the Cons are improving their decoding skills."
"And it seems that with two keys already separated, no one currently possesses the means to revive Cybertron." Ratchet added.
"While our quest to restore our planet may have reached a stalemate, securing the remaining keys is still the most prudent course of action." Optimus reassured.
"Man, it must have been crazy with Knock Out going all sonic." Smokescreen said. "Oh, I wish I had been there, I would have…"
"Would have what? Recover the key like you did the first one?" Arcee interrupted a little mad while Ratchet was examining her.
"Maybe. Who knows? I just want us to be firing on all cylinders. You know, now that the Star Saber is gone. And I have a pretty good track record so far."
Arcee scoffed and limped away.
"Look kid, Arcee and Bumblebee are no slouches, and Optimus managed just fine for eons without the big sword. Speaking that way you're showing you have no respect for your teammates, especially when they're feeling down because a failure or defeat, something more common among Decepticons." Cliff explained.
"Of course, you wouldn't know about that: you've been locked in stasis the whole time we've been fighting this war." Bulkhead added.
"Exactly, and I'm ready to make up for lost time." Smokescreen defended.
"When Optimus says you're ready. You got to be in this for the long haul."
"Slow and steady wins the race." Cliff ended.
Barkhesh
Meanwhile, inside the Harbinger, Starscream and his Seekers were keeping a close eye for the red energon, which was being processed.
"It is not over yet?" Skywarp asked.
Starscream groaned. "Hurry up already!" He yelled as they saw another drop dripping in the container. "How is it possible that speed enhancing energon takes longer to process than regular energon?"
"Well, that's what you expect when you process energon from different nature than ordinary." Thundercracker said.
"Fear nothing, Starscream. We put the piece a long time from now, so it shouldn't take long to end." Slipstream reassured.
And she was right, because suddenly the machine beeped, signaling the process' end. Starscream took the container and saw that it was only a quarter full.
"An entire chunk of red energon and this is all we get?!" Skywarp asked in disbelief.
"I agree with you, brother. This is not enough for all four of us to share, only for one. There's enough here for one dose, maybe two." Starscream objected.
"Only if we administer it by the wrong way."
"What do you mean, Thundercracker?" Slipstream asked interested.
"Yeah, you're supposed to have a solution for every situation. Explain yourself." Skywarp demanded.
"Even with a mini-dose administrated, each one of us can experience this energon special properties for a while. If we ration it well, we may be able to use it for a couple of times. Of course, the effects will not endure so long." Thundercracker explained.
"Well, I guess you have a point there." Starscream supported.
Then the monitor beeped, catching everyone's attention.
"What is it?" Starscream asked.
"Decepticon movement. It seems our former companions are moving to another system, maybe looking for something." Slipstream told.
"While speed is hardly a suitable replacement for the might of the Apex Armor, it should provide us with enough of an edge to obtain a more formidable relic. Skywarp, you'll go this time, without red energon infusion. Thundercracker is right about using it correctly, and since Megatron is not still aware of your presence here, that's the reason it may be time for you to make use of your special ability to get the relic without anyone's knowing." Starscream explained, which Skywarp smirked, knowing what he was referring to.
Back with the Autobots…
"The next coordinates are ready." Optimus announced.
"There remains one set left to decode." Ratchet added, preparing the ground bridge.
"On it, Prime." Cliffjumper nodded as he and Bulkhead headed for the bridge.
"I'm gonna bring back that key." Smokescreen added getting more than ready, but he calmed down when he saw Arcee staring at him.
"Eh, boys? Forgetting something?" Arcee called holding the scanner device.
Bulkhead laughed nervously getting back for it, but when he grabbed it Arcee came closer.
"Make sure you keep an eye on "destiny child", okay?" She asked.
"Ha, compared to watching Han? Piece of cake." Bulkhead reassured before he joined the others and went through the portal.
Ajan Kloss
The portal took the trio inside a forest. The Autobots readied their weapons.
"Stay close." Cliffjumper advised.
"Stay focus." Bulkhead added.
"Gotcha." Smokey answered.
"We mean it."
"Me too."
"Shush." Cliff whispered as he heard a beeping noise.
"What is that?"
Then they heard a rustle from the hill top above them, and saw Dreadwing emerging from between the trees.
"One of the last sounds that you will ever hear." He said.
"Dreadwing." Cliffjumper cursed.
Dreadwing changed to his flying form and charged against them.
"Scrap." Bulkhead said as they jumped out of the way.
When Bulkhead got up, he heard the noise beeping faster, and saw a bomb attached to a tree in front of him, and many more around them.
"We gotta get out of here, now." He said grabbing both Cliffjumper and Smokescreen.
They ran through the forest with many explosions around them, jumping fallen trees and evading flying pieces of rocks. When they reached to a ledge they jumped as the final explosion was triggered, while Dreadwing circled around to see the results. The trio rolled down the hill and hit the ground hard, while Dreadwing transformed and landed in front of them.
"Smoke, we'll handle Dreadwing. Go get the relic." Cliff said as he passed the scanner to him.
"You got it." Smokey nodded as he started to run.
Dreadwing was about to go after him, but a laser shot from Cliffjumper stopped him.
"You love doing your dirty work from a distance, don't ya?" Bulkhead provoked.
"Too bad you don't have the ball bearings to fight up close and personal." Cliff challenged while Bulkhead smashed his fists.
"In this particular case, I will be all too happy to make an exception." Dreadwing said before he jumped high in the air against his opponents.
Cliffjumper charged first, but Dreadwing pushed him aside as Bulkhead tried to hit him with his wrecking ball. But he pivoted him aside in the last moment and sneakily planted a bomb on Bulkhead's back. Bulkhead swung his ball again, but Dreadwing jumped back and slammed his fists on Bulkhead's shoulders. Then, both Autobots tackled Dreadwing to a tree, but Dreadwing disposed of Cliffjumper with an uppercut before pushing Bulkhead back before he kicked him in the chest and again in the head. Suddenly, a rock hit him in the head: he spotted Cliffjumper throwing him pieces of rocks. That forced him to cover his face, but when he thought the Autobot was over and took a look, he saw coming a large tree trunk that caught him off guard. That allowed Bulkhead to jump and hit Dreadwing's face with his ball, followed by a punch in the torso and a shot from both his and Cliff's weapons. That sent the Decepticon to a rock, making him to collapse to his knees.
"An admirable effort, but you obviously forgot how our last encounter ended." Dreadwing said pulling out his detonator and pressing it.
"No, I didn't." Bulkhead answered.
Dreadwing got alarmed when he heard the beeping noise coming from his own back, so he tried to remove the bomb as fast as he could. Once he took it he launched it, but it exploded very near, making the impact force hit him hard. Once the smoke cleared, the Autobots saw Dreadwing lying on the floor unconscious.
"Well, that will teach him not to play with those things a lot." Cliff joked.
"Smoke, we're on our way." Bulkhead said by com-link.
Smokescreen was already where the scanner signaled where the relic was buried. Now he was setting aside the rocks until he saw the container, not realizing that something passed next to him so fast that like it was impossible to see. He opened it and the key came out.
"Destiny." He said taking the key.
Suddenly, he heard like something landing behind him, but before he could turn to check it, something smacked him in the back of his head, making him collapse. While he lay on the ground unconscious, a shadow passed near to him.
"Smokescreen!" Cliff called.
"Wake up!" Bulk said.
He finally came back. "What happened?"
"That's what we wanna know." Cliff said helping him up.
"The Omega Key!" Smokey said alarmed as he searched around, but there was no sign of it. "I had it! Until…something hit me from behind."
"Dreadwing must have had backup, that relic's long gone." Cliff deduced before pressing his com-link. "Ratchet, we need a bridge."
"I…I told Optimus I'd return with that key." Smokescreen said disappointed before the ground bridge appeared.
"Listen kid, Alpha Trion said we need all four keys to restore Cybertron, remember?"
"Bulk's right. We just need to hang on to the one we have and find a way to get the others back from Megatron." Cliff pacified as they entered the bridge.
But they were unaware that Skywarp heard everything from above them.
"The promise of a new Cybertron in the palm of a hand, when we obtain all four. Oh hohohohoho, Starscream's gonna love this." The Seeker said before he teleported himself out of the area.
The Autobots reported what happened back at base.
"Smokescreen was sucker-punched. It could have happened to any of us." Bulkhead explained putting a hand on Smokescreen's shoulder.
"But it didn't, because I was the one who dropped his guard. I was the one who blew it. Some great warrior I'm turning out to be." The young Autobot argued.
"You still don't get it, do you? A couple of victories aren't gonna make you a legend, and not every mission result in success. Not for me, not for Bee, not even for Optimus. We've gained relics and we've lost some. We've also lost friends, we've even lost a world, but this is one time we get a do-over. We have a chance to bring back Cybertron and everyone in this room needs to be in sync. This isn't about you or your destiny."
"Arcee, you've made your point."
"Optimus, he needs to hear this. You might actually become a great warrior one day, and I sincerely hope that you do, but greatness begins and ends with putting the team first, not your personal score card."
"There's nothing I wouldn't do for you guys." Smokey defended.
"Then stop trying to be a hero and start being an Autobot."
Smokescreen looked down before he looked to Optimus, who said nothing. "You know what? Maybe I'm just not good enough." And he changed to vehicle form and left base.
Cliffjumper was about to do something, but it was too late for that. He sighed before turning at Arcee mad. "What a way to smooth things, partner. You could have been quiet before saying something anyone could regret."
Arcee seemed surprised and confused.
"Cliffjumper's right. Next time Optimus advises you to stop, perhaps you should listen." Ratchet supported.
"I'll bring him back." Bulkhead offered, but Optimus put a hand in front of him to stop him.
"Smokescreen is young, Bulkhead, and has much to learn. But right now, he needs to clear his thoughts, and I need to finish decoding the final Iacon entry." Optimus said.
Inside the Nemesis, Soundwave was still decoding the final Iacon entry too while Megatron was arguing with Dreadwing.
"You've never even spied the relic?" Megatron asked mad.
"By the time I reached the location, it was gone. As were the Autobots." Dreadwing reported.
"It would serve us well to not only decode the final Iacon entry before Optimus Prime does, but to recapture those relics currently held by the Autobots." Megatron told him before turning to Soundwave. "Soundwave, despite your primary task, I trust that you have been making progress pinpointing the location of their base."
Soundwave nodded before showing a live feed of Laserbeak scouting Naboo's plains.
"Good. Given the recent accumulation of evidence, and thanks to the recent data apported by our former native ally, we possess a clear idea of where their native colleagues reside, and most important, in which planet of them their base could be. Laserbeak should soon determine whether the Autobots dwell in proximity."
Meanwhile, inside the Autobot base…
"Ah, the final entry has been decoded." Optimus announced with a smile.
"Has it?" Ratchet asked seeing something.
Optimus looked at the screen and saw all the codes morphing together.
"Hmm, perhaps it's a layer of secondary encryption." Optimus deduced.
On the Nemesis, Soundwave was showing the same result to Megatron.
"The coordinates are forming an image. Why would the final Iacon entry be different from the others?" Megatron asked.
Back with the Autobots…
"Maybe it's a picture of the relic." Bulkhead suggested.
"Of what possible use could that be to us without knowing its location?" Ratchet discussed.
"I trust that Alpha Trion had his reasons." Optimus said.
Once the codes finished morphing together and showed the image of a cybertronian, one that no one expected.
"Smokescreen?!" Cliffjumper asked surprised.
Back in the Nemesis…
"Prime's latest recruit is the final relic of Iacon?!" Megatron asked in disbelief.
Back with the Autobots…
"Is this that hotshot's idea of a joke?" Arcee asked.
"(I don't think so.)"
"Maybe he knows where the key is." Bulkhead suggested.
"And never bothered to mention it?" Arcee added.
"After how you acted before he left, it doesn't surprise me." Cliff pointed.
"A more likely possibility is that Smokescreen himself somehow is the key without knowing it." Ratchet deduced.
"Whatever the case, he could be in grave danger. Smokescreen, return to base immediately." Optimus called by com-link, but he earned no response.
"He may have deactivated his com-link." Ratchet realized.
"And…it's all my fault." Arcee admitted, feeling bad with herself and ashamed.
"Locate his position and prepare the ground bridge." Optimus ordered.
Smokescreen was driving all the way down the plains, unaware that Laserbeak was following him. Soundwave relayed it to Megatron.
"It seems our side project is already paying off."
Laserbeak fired at Smokescreen, making him serpentine before return to robot form. He saw the Minicon circle around.
"You picked the wrong day to mess with me, Con." Smokey said activating his weapon.
Then two full charged sonic shots hit him hard, knocking him out. The blast was made by Soundwave, after firing his improved sonic cannons. Next, a ground bridge appeared and the Autobots came out with their weapons ready.
"Smokescreen." Optimus spotted as Soundwave dragged Smokescreen through his own ground bridge, so they sprinted to them.
"No!" Bulkhead yield when the portal disappeared before they could reach them.
Not only the last Omega Key was gone, but Smokescreen with it.
