Unknown Regions - Andromeda Galaxy
3rd person POV...
Elita One looked out of the window of the ship with a wistful expression on her face, watching as the cosmos drifted by at incredible speed. Her mind was swirling with uneasy thoughts, nervous and uncertain of what to expect.
"Something on your mind, sister?" a voice asks.
She glances over her shoulder to see Chromia approach her with a concerned look in her optics.
"It's just... it's been so long since I've been home," Elita tells her quietly. "I don't know how much I missed."
From the pilots chair, Ironhide lets out a scoff.
"Well if it's any comfort, things haven't changed very much," he states gruffly.
"A lot can happen in a few thousand stellar cycles, Ironhide," she responds, giving him a look.
"Hmph," he grunts in reply, before becoming a bit thoughtful. "Well, I guess you haven't met Bumblebee yet. Prime's taken him under his wing. The kid's young, only 54 vorns, but he can scrap with the best of em'. He's a real treat too."
"What's this?" Chromia asks, grinning at her sparkmate. "Ironhide becoming a softie?"
"Don't push it, femme," he grumbles with a glare.
She and Elita just laugh at him good-naturedly at his response while he rolls his optics in exasperation. Soon enough however, the amusement dies down and Elita becomes more thoughtful and uneasy.
"How's Arcee?" she asks.
"That's... a bit of a complicated situation," Chromia replies, reluctant to get into details about Tailgate. "...but for the most part she's still fighting strong."
Elita looks at her warily, a bit worried and concerned, but nevertheless accepts her answer.
"And Optimus?" she asks carefully, dreading the answer. "How was he after... after I went under?"
"It was a rough time, I won't lie," Ironhide replies grimly. "But Prime is made of stern stuff, and he got past it; seeing as how you were never actually offline, I'm sure that helped. He was overjoyed when he felt you come out of stassis."
Elita nods in relief, saddened by the thought of how her sparkmate must've felt when it seemed like she was offline.
"I'm glad he was able to keep going," she comments with a smile, before becoming slightly bitter. "Even if it seemed like I was gone."
"Well in any case we're all glad to have you back," Chromia says happily, smacking her lightly on the back. "Everyone can't wait to see you again!"
Elita smiles at her sister in gratitude, nodding her head in agreement.
"I've got plenty of people to thank for it," she replies. "Who knows how much longer I would've been trapped in stasis underneath that island?"
"Thank Primus those Andromedans were crazy enough to help you," Ironhide grunts in amusement, shaking his head.
"So true," Elita laughs, a small smile on her face as she continues to stare out the window. "So true..."
SEVERAL YEARS LATER...
Cybertron - Milky Way Galaxy
Iacon, the last Autobot city on Cybertron, was under heavy siege by the Decepticons.
The Autobots desperately fought against the enemy forces, struggling to hold their positions, but their defense was slipping. The Decepticons were absolutely relentless in their assault, putting every scrap of their might into obliterating their foes. The cloudy skies of Cybertron were illuminated by the chaos of war as explosions racked the city, and energon bolts flew through the air. As always, the Decepticons dominated the skies, giving them a deadly advantage as they pushed through Iacon's defenses, destroying turrets and buildings alike. The situation had become so dire that even Ratchet was participating in the battle. The old medic was never one for warfare, but in these desperate circumstances he had picked up a spare gun to assist his allies.
"They've broken through the front lines!" he warns the others.
With him were several other bots he knew well, such as Ironhide, Arcee, and Bulkhead. Ultra Magnus was leading the Wreckers in battle elsewhere, Chromia with him; some of them were at the front lines while others were stationed at the opposite end of the city to repel attack from the other side.
"I've lost contact with the capital!" Arcee exclaims, panicking and frustrated.
The Hall of Records was already lost.
"We're not gonna last much longer!" Bulkhead shouts. "There's too many of them!"
A barrage of missiles come flying down the alley, throwing several Autobots flying.
"Stand fast!" Ironhide yells to the Autobots.
Another missile suddenly slams into Ironhide, throwing him against into a wall with a cry of pain, much to Ratchet's alarm.
"Ironhide!" he exclaims.
"Leaking lubricant..." Ironhide growls, painfully struggling to his feet.
His body was wracked with pain, sparking and groaning in protest, but he was more angry and annoyed than in pain. On top of a nearby building down the street, the offending trio of Decepticon seekers responsible continued firing their weapons at the Autobots, laughing with glee.
"Finish them!" one of them sneers.
However, a retaliatory barrage of blue Energon bolts cuts through the seekers, causing them to yell in pain before being destroyed. Coming out from behind the Autobot defense, Optimus Prime charges forward fearlessly. He jumps into the air to avoid an explosion and rolls across the ground upon landing, swiftly taking out a Decepticon. Switching his aim, he shoots another Decepticon attempting to charge at him, hitting the seeker in the shoulder, before grabbing the con and slamming him against the ground with a shout. Pausing for a moment, he takes notice of an individual missing from the Autobot lines.
"Where's Bumblebee?!" he questions.
Across the battlefield, Bumblebee races out in his vehicle form, activating two of his guns. He fires a barrage at a pair of seekers, driving up a ramp and then crashing into them. Transforming in midair he slams into another seeker, who yells in surprise as he's thrown off the building. Bumblebee stands on top of the 'Con as they fall, landing safely while the seeker's head pops clean off from the force of the impact. Rolling forwards, Bumblebee kicks the head so that it hurtles through the air, hitting another Decepticon that was attempting to blindside Optimus. The Prime glances back in surprise while Bumblebee stops in front of his foster-father with a cheerful expression.
::Sorry I'm late, hit a little traffic:: he says casually.
Another pair of Decepticons come running forward, but before Bumblebee could react they're intercepted by Elita One. The Femme Commander jumps through the air to cut through one of them, with her wrist blades, and doesn't spare a second glance before shooting the other with her Energon blaster.
"Then you should keep your eye on the road, youngling," Elita tells her foster-son with a teasing look.
Bumblebee mutters in annoyance while Optimus shakes his head, his optics shining with amusement.
"Get down! Incoming!" an Autobot yells in a panic.
The three turn around, alarm filling them at the sight of Decepticon forces amassing in front of them.
::Uhh, Optimus?:: Bumblebee asks nervously.
On a ridge up ahead, the Decepticons' communications chief himself drops down into the battle, his face visor staring at them with cold, malicious intent. He was a fairly thin Cybertronian, but his lack of apparent strength meant nothing compared to how deadly of a combatant he was, almost as dangerous as Megatron himself. Behind him, the Decepticons' second-in-command, Starscream, emerges with a sinister gleam in his red optics, and he's followed by Shockwave, one of the most feared Decepticons of all.
::DECEPTICONS, ATTACK!:: Soundwave orders, his robotic voice booming.
The Autobots who heard the order given widened their optics in complete astonishment, having never heard Soundwave talk before. Behind the three Decepticons, Starscream's personal seeker armanda takes to the air, numbering in the hundreds.
"Autobots, fall back!" Optimus shouts urgently. "Get to the tower!"
He and Elita start moving backwards, providing cover fire with their weapons as the rest of the Autobots begin to retreat, sprinting for the launch tower. Up on the ridge, Shockwave fires a blast from his cannon and glances at Starscream, his large red optic glowing brightly.
"Destroy the launch pad. Let none escape!" he orders.
Starscream nods his head in acknowledgement, taking a moment to roll his optics in annoyance at being given orders, and then takes to the sky with Skywarp and Thundercracker. Transforming into their jet modes, the Seeker trio blast through the air in the direction of the tower, swiftly avoiding enemy fire from the Autobots. Meanwhile, the Autobots begin splitting off to their escape pods for evacuation whilst Optimus and Elita rush around to ensure they took off safely.
"Cybertron has fallen. Get to the escape pods! There are other Autobots scattered across the galaxy!" Optimus orders. "We must reach them if we hope to survive!"
::Optimus, this is our home! We have to fight for it!:: Bumblebee protests.
From underneath the platform, Starscream, Skywalker, and Thundercracker, fly up into the sky. Optimus and Elita take a moment to watch them with concern before refocusing on Bumblebee, the latter laying a hand on his shoulder.
"We will, Bumblebee. But we can't remain here," Elita tells him. "We need refuge first before we can do anything more."
"Indeed," Optimus nods in agreement, displaying a hologram of a planet "I found a planet that's well hidden—Earth. You will travel there and establish a base for us."
::But what about the Andromeda galaxy?:: Bumblebee suggests hopefully. ::Elita, you have allies there. Maybe they could help us!::
"I know you want to visit them, but we can't risk bringing the war to them," she says regretfully. "Their galaxy has already suffered enough hardship."
Bumblebee looks down sadly in disappointment, but nods his head in understanding.
"Stay strong, Bumblebee. Perhaps one day, you will have the chance. But for now, we need you on Earth," Optimus says, laying a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Once we've gathered the others we'll join you. You must protect the planet. If the Decepticons find it, then our people are truly finished."
Bumblebee nods his head in acknowledgement.
"Now go," Optimus tells him, gesturing towards the escape pods.
At his order Bumblebee starts rushing for one of the last escape pods, and Optimus turns to look at Elita.
"Elita, you should—" he starts to say.
"No. We've been apart for far too long, Optimus," Elita states firmly, shaking her head. "I'm not about to risk that again by leaving you."
Optimus wants to protest, worried for his sparkmate's safety, but he also knows that there is no changing her mind. He also feels relief at not having to separate as well, and underneath his battle-mask he smiled. Just then, the three Decepticon seekers transformed into their bipedal modes above the launch pad, and released a heavy payload of missiles. They travel down the structure and then impact against the tower's weakest point, causing a massive explosion. Optimus and Elita stumble on their feet as the tower begins to topple over, and look over to see Bumblebee's escape pod coming online.
"Good luck soldier! We'll buy you some time!" Optimus calls out.
Seeing a seeker flying at the escape pod, Optimus fires his Energon blaster with a grunt and blows them out of the sky, ensuring Bumblebee was in the clear. Looking back at Elita, she nods at him with a smirk on her face, and he smiles back. Together, they both run to the edge of the collapsing platform and leap off into the air, falling to the ground. Optimus' fall was cut short by a seeker flying past him, which he grabbed onto. Elita also caught herself on another passing seeker, shooting out her grappling hook to grab his wing.
The two Decepticon seekers flail around in surprise and alarm, spiraling down the side of the falling tower. Optimus forces his unwilling ride downwards, letting go with a shout just as the seeker smashes into a building with a tremendous explosion. Similarly, Elita winds her grappling line to bring herself closer to the seeker, pulling on it with her other hand to force him towards the ground. Once she's in a close enough distance, she pulls with all of her might to throw the Seeker out of the air, where he smashes into the ground while Elita safely lands in a roll.
Upon hitting the ground, Optimus fired his gun at several attacking Decepticons, kicking one out of his way. Elita jumps off of the ground to kick a Seeker in the head, and then turns fast to strike another with one of her wrist blades. She shoots down a pair of seekers charging at her while Optimus slams one hard against the ground, rushing at another and jumping over to pull him into a headlock, shooting down another before throwing the seeker aside. Elita rolls underneath enemy fire and pops up, retaliating with her own shots to take out the offending seeker, and comes to a stop beside Optimus.
"So, what's our play?" she asks him.
"Duck!" he cries out in alarm.
Whipping her head around, she jumps away with a startled cry as the Cassetticon, Ravage, lunges forward with a vicious snarl. He ends up knocking down Optimus instead and attempts to chomp his head with his jaws. Optimus holds him back and then punches him in the jaw, throwing the Cassetticon aside. Ravage growls, but is then promptly shot in the head by Elita One. There's no time for them to celebrate however, as several dozen Decepticons took Ravage's strike to form up and move in for the kill.
"End of the line, Autobots," Starscream calls out smugly.
Optimus and Elita turn around to see the Seeker striding forwards casually, a smug and sinister smirk on his face. Flanking him are Shockwave and Soundwave, the latter clenching his fists in silent rage at the sight of Ravage's death, glaring at Elita One with his blank visor. Optimus and Elita both stand back to back, getting into fighting stances and looking around uneasily at realizing they're trapped.
At Starscream's signal, the hoard of Decepticons charges in...
THREE WEEKS LATER...
San Francisco, California - Earth
3rd person POV...
Even with the whole ordeal being over, Charlie still couldn't stop thinking about Bumblebee. She missed him, but she also knew that their separation was for the best, as him staying around her and her family would mean they'd be in constant danger. And while him being gone meant she didn't have a car for a while, she actually ended up fixing her red Corvette, and now had the best looking vehicle at school. Score.
Parking the Corvette outside of the house, she gathers her things and walks up to the door, opening it and stepping inside. She's instantly greeted by her younger brother, Otis, who stares up at her with an incredulous look on his face.
"What?" she asks warily.
"Are you going to get arrested again?" he asks.
Charlie raises an eyebrow at him weirdly, dropping her bag by the door while moving through the house.
"What are you talking about?" she scoffs.
Upon entering the living room however she comes to a stop, freezing up in shock and rapidly growing nervousness. Agent Burns is sitting on the couch, talking to her mother and stepfather. It was like a repeat of that chaotic day. Upon noticing her, Agent Burns stands up from the couch while her mother and stepfather look over.
"Ms. Watson," he greets.
"Wh- what?!" she sputters in surprise and growing panic.
"I think we should leave you both to talk," her mother says, patting her on the shoulder as they leave the living room.
Charlie doesn't pay any attention to them still staring at the government agent with a bewildered expression, still frozen in nervousness. Agent Burns clears his throat and then steps forward, holding up his badge.
"Your first name is Charlie, right?" he recalls thoughtfully. "Well, in case you're not aware, I work for the Strategic Home-"
"I don't care who you work for, why are you here?" she exclaims, cutting him off with a suspicious and anxious glare. "Gonna take me to your secret government prison or something?!"
"No, I'm not here to arrest you," he quickly reassures her. "I'm not chasing after the Autobots either."
"So what then?" Charlie demands.
"It's... a bit of a complicated topic," Burns admits. "If I'm being honest... I'm a bit impressed with how you handled yourself during the whole thing. Helping take down the Decepticons, keeping your friend safe from the government? That took guts."
"Hard to do anything else when you never even listened," she retorts, not completely forgiving just yet.
Burns grimaces in apology, letting out a defeated sigh.
"Yeah, sorry about that," he tells her. "But in any case, the things you did aren't something just anyone can do."
"So what do you want from me?" she demands warily.
"Would you consider signing up to be an agent?" he asks her, shrugging his shoulders with a hopeful expression.
Charlie blinks, taken by surprise at the offer.
"...excuse me?" she asks.
"You know, an agent. Help the government, particularly with matters regarding extra-terrestrials?" Burns continues to say, holding a card out to her.
Charlie cautiously takes the card from him and looks at it, noting the simple, but fancy looking 'eagle' sigil on it.
"Of course, you'd have to wait until you're old enough to actually sign up," he adds. "And you can always say no, if you want."
She looks up from the card and stares at him for a moment, and then looks back down, contemplating. Her, as a government agent to a secret spy organization? How in the world did could this have ever happened? She's just a teenager who got a car... that turned out to be an alien robot. But still, just a teenager.
One thing is for certain: that's the last thing she would've ever even thought to be a possibility.
SEVERAL YEARS LATER...
Jasper, Nevada - Earth
3rd person POV...
Above the dry deserts of Jasper, Nevada, the air seems to flicker for a moment before a swirling green and blue portal appears, sparks flickering around it. Two large robotic humanoids, one red with horns and the other smaller with a blue paint job, come flying out of the portal and tumble across the rocky ground. As soon as they're clear, the portal seems to implode in on itself, sparks flashing violently before it disappears completely.
Arcee and Cliffjumper lay beside each other for a moment, taking the time to recover from their intense escape.
"You think Shockwave survived?" Arcee asks.
"Hope so! I want a rematch!" Cliffjumper replies eagerly.
They both open their eyes and Arcee stands up on her feet. Cliffjumper lifts himself up with a groan as she approaches him.
"Let's find Optimus, partner," she says, holding out her hand to him with a smile.
Cliffjumper returns the grin, grabbing her hand and she pulls him to his feet. He chuckles as they look around at the barren rock surrounding them.
"Rich on Energon huh?" he says skeptically. "Hope the whole rock doesn't look like this. Reminds me of the time I was lost in the Sea of Rust, back on Cybertron, except back then I was separated from my unit with absolutely no one to talk to!"
"Talk at?" she corrects him.
"Admit it! You love the company!" he exclaims happily.
Just then, a groundbridge portal opened up directly in front of them. The two Autobots immediately froze, whipping out their blasters and aiming at the portal with narrowed optics. However, the cybertronian that greeted them wasn't a Decepticon, but someone far more welcoming. The tall, imposing, and yet gentle figure of Optimus Prime emerged from the bridge with a smile on his face.
"Arcee, Cliffjumper. Welcome to Earth," he greets them.
"Glad to be here sir," Cliffjumper replies with a nod, and Arcee smiles as well.
Author's Note: For those who have been familiar with my stories before, you'll recognize this as a previous story already done: I'm revising it, since there were too many conflicts in regard to its continuity, but I'm fixing that now! :D
For those who are new readers to me, hello! Hope I've gotten your interest! One thing I will advise is to be aware that this story is actually a part of a bigger universe (pun intended lol). My profile has the details.