It had been a couple of weeks since the return of Megatron. The city had suffered a major hit because of the ensuing battle, and construction was slow. Even worse, due to the actions of the Decepticons, the citizens of Chicago were more than a little afraid of the Autobots. Still, newly christened Optimus Prime was determined to repair everything he could, from the city itself to the trust of the people.

"Gotta say, this is a pretty big clean up job," Bulkhead voiced, scooping some rubble into Optimus' trailer. "Even for a bunch of maintenance bots like us."

"After everything we did, we're hardly maintenance bots anymore," Arsenal argued, air-lifting a rather large piece of rubble.

As they continued to work, a woman leaned on her horn, insisting on moving forward.

"One moment, Ma'am," Optimus replied, transforming and walking over to the debris wall they had formed around their work area.

He easily lifted it up, giving the woman the chance to move forward. However, one look at Optimus made her freeze stiff.

"Please don't hurt us!" she pleaded, putting her car into reverse and driving off.

Optimus watched her go, lowering the piece of rubble. Jazz took notice of the somber look on his faceplate and approached him.

"Don't let it get to you, sir," he insisted.

"He's right, Pa- uh, Prime," Ratchet spoke up, catching himself before using Optimus' old name. "What was it you said a while back? About broken trust?"

"That they take longer to heal than most wounds," Optimus recalled. "I know. I can only hope that our efforts help to mend the bond between our two races."

There was a loud thud off to the side, causing everyone to turn. The source proved to be Sentinel, who had slammed down a large pallet of repair supplied on the ground.

"Who gives a scrap what these organic bugs think about us?" he sneered. "We shouldn't have to lower ourselves to lowly janitors for this infested planet. We're the Elite Guard for Spark's sake! Just let the Decepticon and her glitch-ridden sellouts deal with this-"

"That's enough, Sentinel," Ultra Magnus silenced. "Optimus Prime is our leader now, and has insisted we tend to the human settlement. We will do as we're told."

"Orion Pax isn't fit to lead a parade, much less be a fragging Prime."

"Watch your glossa, kid," Ironhide warned, optics focusing on the blue bot. "You may not like him, but the Matrix chose Optimus for a reason, and since becoming a Prime, he stopped Megatron himself. I'd say he's more than earned a chance to prove himself. So mute it and get back to work."

Sentinel just grumbled to himself before getting back to work.

"I'm surprised you didn't say anything," Prowl noted as he approached Optimus. "Now that you're Prime, you shouldn't have to take his insults anymore."

"Maybe so, but I find them oddly refreshing. While I am honored to be chosen by the Matrix, I have gone from an Elite Guard washout to leader of our people in the time it took to blink. Adjusting to my new form, my new upgrades, and even my own voice synthesizer has been challenging."

"So Sentinel constantly berating you is your anchor to reality?"

"Essentially, yes."

"Could be worse!" Arsenal called out over her own engines. "I used to pick at my armor plating whenever I would get berated! Why do you think I have these gouges in my chestplate?"

"Fair enough!" Prowl called back before turning back to Optimus. "But if you need something stable, you can just let Bumblebee and Bulkhead get into their usual trouble. That'd be like old times. Maybe even better now that Cliffjumper's part of the mix."

"Speaking of my yellow chasied brother," Cliff spoke up, poking his head out of a rubble pile, "where is he? Ain't like him to just up and ditch work."

"Oh, he's keeping busy," Optimus reassured.

…

At Sumdac Industries, Bee's comm was connected to the building's telephone line, and it was going off like crazy. He struggled to juggle all of the incoming calls, as well as the literal mountains of paperwork that were spilling out of Isaac's office.

"Isaac Sumdac's office, please hold. Isaac Sumdac's office, please hold. Isaac Sumdac's office. Uh, no, Professor Sumdac still hasn't returned from his… extended vacation." He nearly lost his grip on the stack of papers he was holding, just barely managing to catch them again. "Yes, someone is filling in for him. Someone quite capable and competent."

…

Sari let out a growl of frustration at all the work she had in front of her. She faceplanted on her father's desk, completely and utterly exhausted.

"No wonder my dad acted so crazy. How'd he do all this?"

Just then, a call came in or her monitor, forcing her to begrudgingly answer it. She adjusted the phone book she was forced to sit on so she could properly see everything, then faced the caller, Porter C. Powell.

"Miss Sumdac, as chairman of your board of directors, I've been going over the books. You're still wasting resources looking for your father. I believe it's about time you accepted the fact that Isaac Sumdac is-"

"No!" Sari cut off, slamming her fist down on the table.

"Miss Sumdac, it's been six weeks, and there's been no sign of him. It's time for you to grow up and-"

"If I were missing, he'd do the same for me. End of story."

"Young lady, as touching as that is, there is no room in business for sentiment. A mere child can't be trusted to make sound business decisions."

"The last time I checked, this company was called Sumdac, making it my family's company. So as long as that name stays, I stay, and if you have any more objections to how I decided to run my company, then you can take them and shove it!"

She then hung up the call, letting out another angry growl before faceplanting once more.

"I'm guessing this is a bad time."

Sari bitterly lifted her head to see a portly, middle aged African American man in a three piece suit standing in front of her. He had a badge on his lapel, and stood with an air of authority.

"Please tell me you're not the IRS or Child Services..." Sari begged.

"Not exactly. Special Agent William Fowler of Sector Seven."

That got a confused look from Sari.

"Sector Seven?" She began looking over the various papers on her desk. "Is that some government contract I've misplaced?"

"Oh, I'm not here for Sumdac Industries. I'm here about your metal friends."

Sari stopped mid-search.

"The Autobots?" she asked. "What do you want with them? You're not gonna try and take them, are you? Because it's not their fault what happened. They tried to save everyone and-"

"Oh believe me, we know the details. But after their little throwdown with the Decepticons, Uncle Sam wants in on the action. I was told you could get me in contact with the Autobot leader."

Sari gave Agent Fowler a once-over, then hit her intercom button.

"Bee, come here for a second?"

"Uh, one sec. Just gotta-"

Just then, there was a loud crashing sound, as well as a loud yelp, revving tires, and even more crashing. After a moment, the door opened so Bumblebee could enter, several papers stuck to his tires, and on the horns on his helmet.

"I'll… clean that up," he promised.

"Don't sweat it," Sari assured him, waving him off. "I need you to do me a favor and deliver Agent Fowler here to Or- er… Optimus. Man, I am never gonna get used to that."

"Join the club," Bee replied as he transformed. "Shall we?"

"Well, at the risk of sounding cliche," Fowler replied. "Take me to your leader."

…

Back in the construction site, things were going well. Even Sentinel was getting things done under the watchful eye of Ultra Magnus. Just then, the sound of Bumblebee's patterned horn filled the air.

"Hey bossbot," he called over the comms. "I got a visitor for you just outside the barrier."

"Who?" Optimus replied.

"Some government agent who's pretty insistent on talking to you."

Optimus' optics narrowed a bit before he turned to the others.

"I need to tend to a private matter," he told the others. "Arsenal, take command until I return. Everyone will do everything she says." He made sure to look right at Sentinel. "That's an order."

"I got this, Prime," Arsenal assured, patting him on the shoulder plate. "Go take care of what you need to."

Optimus nodded before transforming and driving off.

"So it's not enough we're demoted to maintenance bots," Sentinel griped. "Now we're taking orders from a con?"

"Reformed con," Arsenal reminded. "Now get back to work. We need to get this overpass repaired by monday, or we're gonna have a lot of angry people in the morning rush laying on their horns."

"If this feels beneath you Sentinel, you could always go back to the ship," Cliffjumper jeered. "After all, somebody's gotta monitor for those Decepticon signals."

"That's a waste of time and you know it! We've been scanning for solar cycles and not one trace of Megatron and his cronies."

"Only indicating that the Decepticons have chosen to lay low since their last defeat," Ultra Magnus cautioned.

"Trust me," Arsenal spoke up, "Megatron survived for fifty years as just a head, and four million stellar cycles with nothing but the Nemesis and a handful of fellow cons. He is a master of patience and strategy. He's not gone for good… not by a longshot."

…

Meanwhile, after their defeat on Dinobot Island, the Decepticons had relocated their base to a large mine in Shorewood Forest. All of them were still a bit worse for wear, trying to buff out their wounds from their previous battle, despite their limited resources after setting up their base.

"Bah! Why do we hide like cowards?!" Lugnut demanded. "We should stand and fight the accursed Autobots!"

As Lugnut spoke, his arm fell off at the socket, causing the other Decepticons to roll their optics.

"Probably because of that," Black Arachnia suggested.

"Conditions: sub-optimal," Soundwave agreed. "Chance of success: 32.7%"

"Soundwave speaks true,"Megatron concurred. "These carbon deposits will shield our energy signals while we recover from our last encounter with the Autobots."

"But the Autobots are nothing compared to your greatness, Lord Megatron," Lugnut praised, kneeling as he reattached his arm. "We need not fear them!"

"Perhaps, but we should not underestimate them, either. Even this young Prime managed to best me and shatter the AllSpark. Without it, my plans to reformat the Autobots is no longer feasible. We will need a new strategy if we are to reclaim Cybertron."

"At this point, that sounds crazy," Blitzwing's crazy face proclaimed. "Even to me!"

"Silence!" Lugnut demanded, smacking him. "You have no right to question the Master!"

"Still, how can we take Cybertron at this point?" Black Arachnia questioned.

"Fortunately, I've had some time to ponder that very question," Megatron replied as his Decepticons gathered around. "Three things led to our defeat in the War for Cybertron. The AllSpark, Zeta Prime's leadership, and the Autobots exclusive access to Space Bridge technology. The first is no longer a factor, and neither is the second, but the third… that we can use to our advantage. During my battle on board the Autobots ship, I was able to download the schematics to one of their Space Bridges."

As Megatron spoke, the plans for the Space Bridge appeared on a large computer screen.

"Intriguing," Blitzwing's icy face commented. "If we reverse engineer the technology, we could construct our own Space Bridge," he switched to his angry face. "Then beam ourselves to Cybertron, and conquer the planet from within."

"Viable," Soundwave noted. "However, current Decepticon roster lacks the necessary engineering talent to recreate the Space Bridge."

"Soundwave, have you forgotten about what else I managed to acquire after our battle?" Megatron questioned smugly. "The master of reverse engineering, Professor Isaac Sumdac."

All of the bots turned to a large energy cage set up in the corner of the mine. There, in a makeshift lab, sat Isaac Sumdac..

"You won't trick me into helping you this time, Megatron," Isaac insisted. "The Autobots will come for me."

"Professor," Megatron spoke. "If the Autobots were going to free you, they would have done so solar cycles ago. Besides, why would they help the organic insect who revived their greatest enemy? Face it, Sumdac, had I not rescued you, you would have been dead in that riverbed. Now the only thing that will guarantee you a safe return to your daughter, is how well you serve me."

Isaac felt a bolt of pure terror run through his body at that, eliciting a cruel chuckle from Megatron.

…

Meanwhile, Optimus met up with Bumblebee at the Burger Bot. He could spot Bee in the drive-thru, double checking to make sure he wasn't accidentally mistaking Fanzone's car again. Once Bee came through, his driver door opened and Fowler stepped out, holding a take-out bag.

"Sorry, but it was a long flight from Washington, and airplane food tastes like-"

"That's… alright. So, you wanted to see me?"

"Right. Special Agent William Fowler of Sector Seven. Mind if we talk face to- er, faceplate? I'd rather not spend the day talking to a semi-truck like some drugged-up hippie."

"Uh… right," Optimus replied before transforming. "Better?"

"Much. well, guess I'll get right to it. We've been monitoring the Chicago situation since day one. We simply held back since you and your crew had the situation well in hand, and none of your team presented themselves to be a threat. But when the big ship touched down and Megatron came busting out of Sumdac Systems, we knew we needed to take a more hands on approach."

Optimus bent down and held out a hand for Agent Fowler. Fowler stepped on it, leaning casually on one of Prime's fingers as he continued eating his burger.

"What exactly do you mean by a more 'hands on approach'?" Optimus questioned.

"Basically, I'm going to be your handler. I'll be assessing situations, seeing if there are times where the military can handle situations with a bit more tack and a bit less widespread destruction."

"With all due respect, Agent Fowler, I don't know if your military is up to the task of fighting the Decepticons. Sometimes, it's a miracle we're able to pull through."

Fowler took that in, fishing out a french fry and chewing on it.

"I will admit, I've seen some footage of your previous battles, and while you and your clearly have some form of training, you're not soldiers."

"Truth be told, the six of us that first arrived here were a Space Bridge repair crew. Hardly the stuff of heroes."

"Tell me about your crew. If we're going to be working with one another, I'd like to know what I can. Let's start with you. You were called Orion Pax before, but when you came out of that fissure in Main Street, you were bigger and going by a new name. Optimus Prime."

"Prime is the title designated to the leaders of the Autobots for generations. The Primes are chosen by the Matrix of Leadership, an artifact dating back to the days of Primus himself.

"Whoa. and how'd you get it?"

"I still wonder that same question. Ever since it chose me, I've wondered if I'm worthy of it. I mean, the last time I was the leader of something, someone I cared about… went offline. And since then, I've only ever been a co-commander."

"Well, it chose you for a reason. Maybe you just need to see what it saw.

"Maybe…"

"Let's move on. You mentioned that you were co-commander. Who's the other commander?"

"That'd be Arsenal. The flyer."

"The plane with the Decepticon symbol on her chest. I'll admit, my higher ups are more than a little concerned about her."

"Don't be. She's earned her place on my team a hundred times over. And then some. She's one of us."

"Alright then." Fowler took a swig of soda. "Moving on to the rest. How about that older bot, the ambulance."

"Ratchet. Our field medic, and a veteran from the War for Cybertron. He's a good friend, if a little too opinionated at times."

"Old war vet, huh? Having done a few tours myself, I can respect that. I can only imagine what he's seen."

"Sometimes, I'm surprised he can get off his berth," Optimus admitted.

"What about the big guy?"

"That would be Bulkhead. He's strong, and very mechanically efficient. He was a construction worker before enlisting, so whatever he breaks, he can fix with ease."

"That must come in handy."

"He may not be the most graceful, but he has the biggest spark out of anyone I know."

"And the little guy who follows him like a little chihuahua, the yellow one. He seems more like a rambunctious teenager than a soldier."

"That's a good descriptor for Bumblebee. He can be quite impulsive and eager to prove himself. Still, when push comes to shove, he's always willing to step up. He never slacks on his duties, and more often then not, obeys orders instantly."

"Which, if early reports are to be believed, can't be said for the motorcycle."

Optimus actually laughed a bit at that.

"That would be Prowl. He was the latest arrival to our team, not that he was happy about it. In truth, had we not ended up trapped here on Earth, he'd probably be back on Cybertron doing Primus knows what. It's probably for the best that he didn't make it back. Earth has been… good for him."

"From what I've seen of those new bots, I'm willing to believe it," Fowler remarked. "Tell me about them. They seemed pretty opposed to you and your team until your big upgrade."

"They're the Cybertron Elite Guard. The highest ranking officials in all of Cybertron."

"And they didn't like you? Why? From what I've seen, you bots may be a little rough around the edges, but you're good people- err… bots."

"There were many reasons for their disdain. Our pasts, our leadership, and various other factors. Thankfully, even before my 'upgrade', there were those who believed in me and my team."

"Right, like that red car, and the one who talks like a rapper."

"Cliffjumper and Jazz, yes. The former is Bumblebee's older brother, and the latter was apparently in the lower caste system before joining the Elite Guard. He understands rising above your station better than most bots."

"And the rest?" Fowler asked, taking another drink. "Like that red one with all the guns. Iron something?"

"Ironhide. A member of the Elite Guard's Wreckers unit. Said to be the strongest and most well respected soldiers during the Great War."

"Ah, robot Marines," Fowler noted. "So he's seen a thing or two."

"From what I've seen of him in the history vids, he doesn't care about where you came from, only what you do and what you choose to fight for. He's one of the few bots who actually sided with Arsenal when she joined the Autobots during the war." Optimus vented slightly. "If only all bots were as open as him."

"I get the feeling you're referring to the blue one with the big chin and bigger attitude problem."

"Sentinel. He and I have… history together. He doesn't hold me in high regard, and I doubt he ever will."

"Guys like him, they're bad eggs," Fowler insisted, shoving all his garbage into his take out bag. "Probably was born with the Cybertronian equivalent of a silver spoon in his mouth, and thinks the entire world should listen to him. Guys like that need a big dose of reality, or a swift kick to the soft spot."

Optimus chuckled a little in response.

"Maybe so."

"And that other guy. The one with the big hammer? What's his take on all this?"

"Ultra Magnus, a bot who has sworn his loyalty to the Primes. He's a traditionalist, but a good soldier, and a loyal one. If I'm honest, I'm relying heavily on him to help me transition into my new seat of power."

"At least you got someone in your corner. Not often a person can say that. Still, it sounds like save for that Sentinel guy, the bots you have are good ones. Reliable ones that actually give a damn."

"Indeed," Optimus nodded. "I'm quite lucky in that regard."

"I wish the humans you were with were the same way. According to our reports, Isaac Sumdac, the man who fished you out of the lake, was the one who rebuilt Megatron in his lab."

"Unknowingly. Megatron lied to him so he could use him to rebuild his body. Had he known the truth, I am certain the professor would have acted differently."

"Maybe so, but there are many people in the Pentagon who want to have a few words with him. Do you have any idea as to his status or whereabouts?"

"No. and believe me, I wish I did…"

…

Meanwhile, Isaac continued to toil away in his cell while his robotic assistant brought over some supplies.

"Space Bridges," he griped under his breath. "I don't know anything about Space Bridges. This isn't even my area of expertise. I know servo mechanics, not quantum physics."

Just then, his robotic assistant began to spark, twitching and spasming a bit before throwing the box of supplies it was carrying. It rebounded off the energy wall, scattering tools, scrap metal, and several papers. Isaac screamed at the sudden attack, dropping to the ground and covering his head.

"Sorry! I'm sorry! Please, don't hurt me!"

"You did that on purpose," Lugnut accused. "To impede the work of our glorious leader."

The oversized decepticon went over to the professor, deactivating the barrier with the full intention of squishing Sumdac. However, Megatron caught his fist, stopping him.

"I don't think so," Megatron replied, firing his Fusion Cannon at the robot.

The robot exploded into scrap, which began raining down on the poor, captive professor. Among the pieces was a strange, glowing shard that bounced off the work table and onto the floor. Soundwave approached, one of his tentacles extending and grabbing it. He held it up, all of the Decepticons gathering around.

"Is that..." Black Arachnia let out.

"It's a piece of the AllSpark!" Blitzwing's angry face declared in shock before switching to his icy one. "But how is this possible? I thought the new Prime destroyed it."

"The AllSpark is life itself," Megatron elaborated. "It cannot be destroyed. At least, not entirely. Its energy survives in fragments such as these. They must be scattered throughout this entire city, if not the whole planet. Each one capable of instilling its life force into even the most basic of circuitry. Just imagine the possibilities…"

…

At a Sumdac assembly plant, one such shard had managed to embed itself into the control panel of a plant creating security drones. The extra surge of energy was leaking into the entire plant, and into the security bots it was creating.

…

Back at Sumdac Tower, Sari was beyond done. She was curled up in her chair, covering her ears from the incessant sound of the phones going off. Finally, she just groaned and grabbed it.

"Hello?" she answered.

"There's a problem at one of the assembly plants," Powell informed her. "Something's overloaded the system, and the drones it's creating are not obeying any of the shutdown commands."

"What?! Can't you fix it?"

Powell almost sounded smug as he spoke up.

"I thought the company's name was Sumdac."

"Ugh, fine. I'll get on it."

She hung up then hopped out of her chair. She got out to the main office, nearly choking when she saw the massive mess of papers Bee was still trying to clean up. When he saw Sari, he yelped and ended up dropping the ones he'd managed to collect.

"I uh… I can fix that..."

"Forget it, we need to get to the others. Something's wrong at one of the assembly plants, and apparently I'm the only one who can fix it!"

"Not the only one," Bee reassured, transforming into vehicle mode.

She smiled, hopping in so the two could take off.

…

Back with Optimus, he and Agent Fowler continued talking when he received a signal from Bumblebee.

"Bumblebee, what is it?"

"Got a problem at a Sumdac assembly plant. Sari needs our help. We should regroup with the others. Apparently, it's bad."

"Understood," Prime replied before switching to an open channel. "Calling all Autobots. We've got a situation at a Sumdac assembly plant. Regroup at the coordinates Bumblebee is sending."

Optimus then hung up and transformed into his vehicle mode.

"Sorry to cut our meeting short Agent Fowler-"

Just then, he felt his driver side door opening up, and Fowler getting in.

"Cutting it short, my foot," Fowler declared, closing the door and buckling himself in. "This is my chance to see how you bots operate. This isn't over, not yet."

"Alright then. But you'd better hang on."

Prime then hit the gas, accelerating towards the plant.

…

The rest of the Autobots made their way to the rendezvous, all of them in vehicle mode. As they drove, Arsenal flew overhead, looking down at Sentinel.

"Y'know, a snowplow doesn't exactly work now that it's spring, Sentinel," she told him. "Maybe you should look into a new vehicle mode that better blends in."

"You should consider yourselves lucky I chose to take an organic vehicle mode at all," Sentinel remarked. "We shouldn't have to lower ourselves to such clunky appearances. Maybe a filthy Con like you is okay with it, but I am an Elite Guard-"

"Red light!" Bulkhead shouted.

The Autobots all came to a stop, but Sentinel kept pressing forward, much to everyone's shock.

"Sentinel, red light means stop!" Ratchet shouted.

"He did attend that Human Traffic Law course Optimus created, right?" Sari questioned.

"What do you think?" Bee replied.

That's when they heard the familiar sound of a truck horn.

"What's really bad is that's a semi on its way..." Arsenal let out.

"Sometimes, a bot has to learn the rules the hard way," Ironhide voiced.

As the semi came barrelling forward, Sentinel let out a shriek of panic before slamming on the brakes. The semi shot past him, just narrowly avoiding hitting the blue Autobot. Sentinel was venting in terror, his frame shaking as he very slowly backed away from the intersection.

"Like I said, kid," Ratchet spoke up. "Red means stop."

…

Not long after that, the Autobots managed to arrive at the assembly plant. As they pulled up, Security Drones were storming out of the bay doors in droves. Just as the Autobots transformed, the drones opened fire on them. They were all forced to take cover behind several shipping containers, Bumblebee holding Sari close to his chestplate to shield her. As she hid in his grip, her key began to glow, pointing right at the door of the plant.

"Uh-oh…" she let out. "That can't be good."

Optimus moved out first, swinging his axe and slicing through two drones at once. Ratchet used his magnets to grab hold of a small group of drones and smashed them against the ground. Bulkhead activated his wrecking ball and swung it around, knocking numerous drones back. As he did so, two more drones approached from behind. Before they could strike, Prowl landed between them and spun around, his throwing stars in hand so he could slice them to pieces.

"Nice tekko kata five servos of doom technique," Jazz commended. "But what do you think of this?"

Jazz popped out his nunchucks and swung them around, taking out countless bots in rapid succession.

"Impressive," Prowl commended.

"Thanks. Now why not show me some more of what you can do."

Prowl nodded before leaping into the air, chucking his throwing stars at more drones. Before he could land though, one of the drones managed to get him in the back. He fell hard, the metal on his backplate smoking. He struggled to pick himself up as more drones pulled up. Before they could fire at him, numerous cannon blasts shot out, nailing the drones in groups. Prowl turned to see Ironhide's smoking cannons aiming at the drones.

"This is nuts!" Ironhide commented. "How can such puny bots have enough firepower to hurt Autobots!"

"No idea!" Cliffjumper commented as he blasted drones back behind Sentinel's shield. "But these things are rolling out faster than we can take 'em out!"

"Ultra Magnus, I recommend a tactical retreat!" Sentinel suggested. "This situation is becoming too volatile!"

"Negative," Magnus replied, swinging his hammer. "Until Optimus says otherwise, we will hold our positions!"

"Our fearless leader is going to be the death of us!"

"I hate to admit it, but Sentinel has a point!" Arsenal called from the skies. "The drones may be fragile, but they make up for it in numbers and firepower! This is a fight we can't win!"

"Then we need to take it out at the source!" Optimus decided. "We need to shut down that assembly line!"

"I can do it!" Sari called out. "I can use my key to make them all stop! This is my family's company after all! I can't let you do all the hard work!"

"Alright," Optimus agreed. "Prowl, you and I will sneak Sari in through the loading dock. Arsenal, you and the others hold the line!"

"Right!" Both Arsenal and Prowl called back.

Prowl quickly transformed and drove towards Sari, scooping her up onto his back and driving off. Optimus transformed and was about to follow when Agent Fowler climbed in.

"Figured you could use another set of human hands," Fowler replied.

"Thanks," Optimus replied before driving off.

Jazz transformed and followed after as well, leaving the remaining Autobots to fend off the oncoming drones.

…

Inside the plant, the machines were still hard at work, churning out more and more drones every minute. Sari immediately ran over to the controls, pulling her key off of her neck. Fowler took a look at it, raising an eyebrow.

"So, I assume that's the infamous 'Allspark key' I've heard about."

"Yeah, it let's me activate machinery and heal Autobots," Sari explained.

As she approached the panel, more drones approached them.

"Get to the control panel!" Optimus told her. "We'll hold them off!"

Optimus, Jazz, and Prowl went off to engage the drones. Prowl threw his shuriken, slicing the drones in half while Optimus tossed his axe into one. He then grabbed the axe and used his momentum to toss the drone into several others, causing them to explode. As the drones blasted at them, Jazz used his nunchucks to deflect the blasts, knocking them back at the drones themselves. While the Autobots fought the drones off, Fowler offered a boost to Sari so she could climb up to the panel. She then placed her key into a slot on the machine, turning it off. Production stopped and the machines all powered off.

"And that's why the company's name is Sumdac!" she cheered.

…

Back outside, the Autobots resumed their fight against the drones. Bulkhead grabbed a group of them and tossed them into the air, allowing Bumblebee and Cliffjumper to blast them to pieces.

Ratchet grabbed several with his electromagnets, smashing them hard into the ground until they shattered. Arsenal and Ironhide were back to back, opening fire on countless drones.

"Reminds me of the battle of Tyger Pax!" Ironhide recalled.

"I remember that battle," Arsenal quipped, smirking over her shoulder plate. "Though I think I was the one who dragged your smoking shell out of the crossfire!"

"Eh, semantics!"

"Hey, guys," Bumblebee called out. "I think the drones are lessening! Sari must have shut down the plant!"

"Then Autobots, stand back!" Ultra Magnus declared.

The Autobots obliged, allowing Ultra Magnus to raise his hammer, summoning a massive amount of energy. He slammed the hammer down on the ground, creating a massive shockwave that completely fried every drone in the area, as well as just about every piece of tech that wasn't Cybertronian. As the smoke cleared, all the drones were laying in small piles of scrap metal.

"And that's why we call him 'Ultra' Magnus," Bumblebee noted.

…

Back inside, Sari was trying to remove her key from the terminal, but it was locked down tight. She planted her feet, trying to pull it with all her might. As she did, a high pitch whine began to sound, emanating from the now glowing terminal.

"It's stuck!" she let out. "I can't get it out!"

"That panel's going to blow at any second!" Optimus noted. "Agent Fowler, get Sari back!"

Fowler scooped Sari up, pulling her away from the machine. Optimus stepped forward and took out his axe, giving it a hard swing. He cleaved the terminal in two, sending the key flying, along with a strange crystal shard. Both bounced across the ground, skidding across the concrete until they reached the two humans. Both looked down at it, Fowler setting Sari down so she could pick them both up.

"Optimus..." Sari began, holding out the crystal. "What is this?"

"I think…" Optimus responded, taking the crystal. "This is the Allspark…"

…

"Or at least a fragment of it," Optimus continued after they regrouped with the others.

"Guess your hunch about the energy being dispersed was right on the money," Jazz remarked.

"Meaning more of these fragments could exist elsewhere in this human settlement," Ultra Magnus presumed. "Perhaps even across the entire planet."

"Then it's our mission to find them before they end up in Decepticon hands," Optimus declared.

"We don't even know how many pieces there are," Bumblebee pointed out. "There could be hundreds, maybe even thousands."

"And if just one could give security drones the power to damage Autobots…" Prowl deduced.

"Imagine what more of these things could do," Bulkhead dreaded.

"Only making our mission all the more paramount," Optimus insisted. "Along with stopping the Decepticons, we must restore the Allspark, at all costs."

The Autobots all nodded and shot a thumbs up in response, except for Sentinel, who just glared at Optimus with pure malice and hatred. Sari meanwhile, just looked on at the damaged plant and broken drones.

"How the heck am I gonna explain this to Mr. Powell?"

…

Sometime later, Fowler was escorting Sari back to Sumdac Systems. The girl was clearly exhausted, rubbing her eyes.

"Being the CEO of an entire company is exhausting," she commented.

"Guess adult life doesn't agree with you," Fowler commented.

"Well, I'm only ten. I'm not supposed to be an adult for another eight years."

Fowler chuckled, ruffling her hair as they reached the office. When they opened the door, both were shocked to see Porter C. Powell sitting at Sari's desk.

"Hey, what are you doing here?" Sari let out.

Powell looked up, smirking slightly before turning to greet them.

"Ah, Miss Sumdac. I'm here to inform you that your services are no longer required. The board has unanimously named me CEO in your fathers absence."

"What? No way! This is my family's company! You can't do this!"

"Ah yes, your 'family's' company," Powell remarked, doing air quotes as he did.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Fowler questioned.

"Only that I decided to do a little looking, and found out something very interesting. There is no will, no birth certificate, no adoption papers, no social security number, for one 'Sari Sumdac'."

He held out a file, which showed an image of Sari, and almost nothing else. All it did contain were some mentions of her in news reports involving the Autobots, and nothing else. Fowler took the file, his eyes narrowing as he looked at it, while Sari just stared in horror.

"What are you saying? That I can't prove I'm Isaac Sumdac's daughter?"

Powell knitted his fingers together, resting his chin on them as he gave the confused child a vicious, and vindictive smirk.

"I'm saying you can't even prove you exist."