Counterpart Conferences

By Michael Weyer

Another big one to add in as just connected as oddly fitting together.

Earth-1984

The base was quiet as the two figures raced about it. They stuck to the shadows, doing their best to ensure they weren't seen. One was clad in a dark suit of armor, the orange coloring somehow managing to blend into the surroundings along with the large helmet he wore. Beside him was a strikingly beautiful female form in a dark purple outfit, a mask across her face but her long hair let loose. The man peered around a corner than pulled back. He held up a fist, and then raised two fingers before making a slashing motion.

The woman just stared at him. "Dude, you know I can't understand your charades!"

Growling behind his mask, Slade Wilson hissed. "Two sentries up ahead."

"Then just say so!" Helena Bertinelli replied. She removed her crossbow as she followed him carefully around the base. It was a large area in the middle of this world's version of Virginia and was a very formidable fortress. The outer area was a huge series of walls painted white with long red stripes and dominated by a huge cannon pointing outward. There were sentries about in green uniforms but so far, the security was lax.

"Any idea what we're looking for, anyway?" Helena asked. "Or is this another dead end for that other Deathstroke?"

"He made a stop here," Slade told her. "The scanner STAR Labs put together confirmed that. We just need to follow him."

"Fine, fine. At least it's not that weird-ass world with the talking flying ponies. I'm still having nightmares about that."

Slade was quiet as Helena sighed. In the weeks since they began what she had taken to calling the most bizarre road trip in history, Helena had come to realize Slade had a lot of demons inside him. Given her own history, that was saying something. The man was not one for small talk, all business during their searches and Helena could respect that. He was a lot more professional than any of the Team Arrow weirdos and actually reminded her a lot of Oliver with his intensity. Yet at the same time, Helena knew getting much closer was not something Slade was open for.

They were moving toward the main building of the large base as Helena pulled a device out of her hip. She held it before the pad on a doorway and after a few second, a sharp buzz echoed as the door clicked. She smirked as she packed it. "Nice to know keypads work the same in most Earths." She slid the door open with Slade following her to enter a hallway. "Once again, I'm saying breaking into the main base of what looks like this world's version of Argus and that SHIELD thing Oliver mentioned rolled into one may not be a good idea."

"A military base has a communications area," Slade stated. "Best way to get an easy access to this world is through their files."

"Or we could see if they have a Wikipedia on this Earth but hey, why ask me?"

"You never struck me as the cautious type."

"Barreling in head-first landed me in prison. I'd figure you'd relate."

Slade was creeping around a corner as they saw a man pass by in a weird green and tan outfit with a beret, talking to a man with a dark shirt, camouflage pants and only his eyes seen behind his ski mask. "I'm telling you, Beach Head, this is just weird," the first man was saying. "These signals just aren't normal!"

"Dial-Tone, if this is just interference…"

"It isn't," the first man pressed. "Whatever these signals are, they're close by us. Maybe it's Cobra or maybe it's something else but I think it's important."

The figure named Beach Head seemed to mull it over before nodding. "All right, fine, we bring it to Flint but if this is just another one of Low-Light's practical jokes…" The two headed over still talking. Slade and Helena waited a few minutes before heading into the room they had just left from. It was quiet and most deserted with several large computer banks set about. "Huh," Helena said. "Looks like they've got a pretty good budget going."

Slade was focused, moving to one computer as he unlocked a device from his belt. "That's good. I was worried we'd be somewhere either too advanced or further behind than our Earth."

"Yeah, that would suck," Helena agreed. "I may not have chatted with Smoak much but she mentioned her nightmare is a world where trying to hack some '80s PC would be nearly impossible."

"Was that before or after you tried to kill her?" Slade mentioned as he put the device to the computer's side. It hummed to life as the screen flashed, the device going through thousands of possible encryption codes in a second.

"Hey, when it comes to folks holding grudges on you trying to kill them, you're way above me!" Helena was glancing about carefully. "Sure we're not spotted?"

"According to Cisco and Smoak, the scanner modulators in our suits should help," Slade stated. "Openly blocking the cameras or cutting them off would be too much but by managing to 'blur' us out, it should buy us some time."

Helena was moving by the door, carefully keeping an eye out for anyone coming. "Hopefully it works fast. The faster we're out of here, the better."

Slade was forced to agree with her on that. He was focused on the computer and Helena was focused on the door and its hallway to see if anyone was approaching. Thus, neither of them noticed the grate by the ceiling slowly pushing itself aside and a pair of feet dangling from it. The figure had dropped halfway to the floor before Slade's enhanced senses even registered he was there.

He was spinning around, his pistol pulled from his belt and already raised. A blur of silver cut through the air and the pistol was sliced in half. Standing before Slade was a figure in a tight black suit lined with small belts and pouches. His head was completely covered by a black mask as he spun his sharp katana in his hand. Deathstroke slid out his own sword and leapt forward, slashing outward. The black-garbed figure easily parried his strike before attacking with one of his own.

Huntress was pulling up her crossbow but the two men were twisting about too much to properly get a bead on the other man. It was at that point that the room lights dimmed to red and a loud alarm began to blare "Attention all Joes!" A strong voice echoed. "Intruder alert, computer section! This is no drill!"

Helena cursed. "Slade, we gotta move!"

"Just…a tad…busy!" he snarled as he kept dueling with the ninja-garbed figure. The man was easily avoiding any hard strikes while making a few of his own on Slade. While Slade was stronger, this figure was obviously more skilled. Slade kicked at him but the man somersaulted over a desk before kicking a screen which Slade sliced down with a sword. The ninja was already leaping ahead to kick Slade in the gut with Slade barely countering his strike as they fought.

Helena used the opportunity to fire an arrow to her crossbolt. To her shock, the ninja managed to slice it in half right in mid-air. That did give Slade a chance to grab a device from his belt which Helena recognized. She raced into the hallway just as Slade threw the ball down, unleashing a loud bang and a blast of white light. Helena was running when she saw several figures racing around the corner with weapons. She fired off a specific bolt, striking it just before the group. It erupted into an explosion, driving several of them back.

She spun around to see a woman in a gray body-covering suit with a large tan leotard as covering. A red pad rested on one shoulder with various pouches about her uniform. In one hand was a crossbow not much different than Helena's own. Helena had hers raised up, carefully aiming it at the other woman. They stood, each sizing the other up carefully. "Nice bow," Helena noted.

"Yours too," the woman replied. Behind them, Slade was chasing the ninja out of the computer room, the black-garbed man running to put his feet on the wall and leap outward, slashing at Slade who just barely ducked the blow. Helena was carefully backing up as the woman's aim didn't waver. "Best not to press, red, or I'll mess up that beautiful face."

The woman just smirked. "Beauty may be skin deep but lethal is to the bone."

"Clearly, testosterone affects both genders equally on this world," Helena mused. She pulled the trigger, expecting the woman to dodge. Instead, she fired off her own crossbow, the bolt streaking toward Helena's as Helena's streaked toward her…

And they met in mid-air, dead on, each smashing into the other before landing fused together.

Helena's bow lowered, as did her jaw. She glanced up to see the red-haired woman giving the same expression as if asking "did that actually just happen?" Shaking it off, Helena charged ahead to tackle the woman, using the momentum to knock them into the wall. She blasted her with a punch but the woman avoided a follow-up blow to land one of her own. She kicked Helena back just as Slade and the other man moved behind them, still dueling with their swords. Helena managed to grab the woman and flip her over toward the ninja, who had to catch her. Slade and Helena immediately ran off down a hallway.

They burst through the doors of the hall to find themselves in an open air area. Standing before them were roughly two dozen people in various outfits, all aiming a variety of guns in their direction. Huntress and Deathstroke froze together, taking in the odds and instantly knowing how hopeless they were. With matching looks and sighs, each dropped their weapons and clasped their hands behind their heads.

"For the record, this is all your fault," Helena intoned as the soldiers moved to push them to the ground.

"We have anything yet?" General Clayton M. Abernathy demanded. The veteran officer was clad in his uniform of a dark brown jacket with light and dark green camouflage pants, a back holster at his hip and his usual helmet atop his head. Before him, Conrad "Duke" Hauser was standing with arms crossed in his own usual uniform of tan shirt with belt crossing over his chest and green pants. Shana "Scarlett" O'Hara was next to him, showing little wear from her fight with Huntress.

"Computer search shows nothing," she intoned. "Either they're new recruits for Cobra or they're good covering their tracks."

"Assuming they are Cobra," Duke pointed out. "There's a distinct lack of snake symbols on their outfits."

"Cobra Commander does have that obsessing branding all his operatives," Scarlett acknowledged. "They could be freelance mercs like the Dreadnoks."

"Cobra has been lying a bit too low for my liking," Duke stated. "I'm still half wondering if the Blip was one of their experiments backfiring."

"I still think it's a stupid name," Scarlett intoned. "Half the planet, including us, turns to dust then comes back a couple of days later, you'd think it'd be something more dramatic as a name."

"Let's see if Flint and Jaye can get anything out of them," Hawk intoned. "I need to check with Dial Tone about those signals he keeps ranting about." The other two nodded as he left.

Inside the windowless interrogation room, Slade and Helena sat, each stripped of their mask, helmet and weapons. They were handcuffed by their wrists to the table with each looking quite calm. Before them, Allison R. Hart-Burnett , code named "Lady Jaye" was giving them her best steely glare. Her green shirt and brown pants were professional while her short brown hair made her look more intimidating. Behind her, Dashiell "Flint" Fairborne stood with arms crossed, his beret placed perfectly on his head, his green fatigues and brown belts fitting over his athletic form. In the corner, Snake Eyes just stood stock still but clearly ready to move at an instant.

"Let's get this out of the way," Lady Jaye pressed. "You work for Cobra?"

"That's the third time you've asked," Helena said. "Is that a single name or some acronym?"

Flint snorted. "You're claiming to have never heard of Cobra?"

"We live very sheltered lives," Helena dryly stated. She glanced over at Snake Eyes. "So you're bad cop, he's good cop, what's he?"

"No cop at all."

"He ever talk?'

"No."

"Why not?"

"He doesn't say."

"Walked right into that one…" Helena shuffled in her seat as she looked over at Lady Jaye. "Listen, we don't care about you, or this Cobra or anything. We just wanted info and we can go."

Flint snorted. "You break into G.I. Joe headquarters and you think you can just walk out?"

Helena and Slade exchanged baffled looks. "G.I. Joe?" Helena snorted. "That's really what you guys call yourselves?"

"At least make it a fun acronym," Slade threw in.

Lady Jaye leaned in. "This can go very, very bad unless you talk now."

Slade didn't look the least bit impressed as he smirked. "Lady, I've been in hells you can't even imagine. It'll take more than a threat of jail time to crack me."

"As for me, at least buy dinner first," Helena tossed in.

Jaye slammed a fist on the table for attention. "You and your boyfriend-"

"We're not together!" Both of them yelled at once. Jaye and Flint exchanged smirks as if saying "yeah, right" as they continued the interrogation.

Hawk was entering the main communications room of the Pit to find Breaker at his usual spot by the main computer with its huge viewscreen. Dial-Tone was hanging over his shoulder, both focused on the patterns of wavelengths on the screen. To the other gathered Joes, it just looked like odd waves but the two men seemed very concerned. "What am I looking at?" Hawk demanded.

"Some wavelength we've never seen before, General," Breaker stated. "It's been increasing in the last hour almost like…a signal."

"From here?" Hawk asked, instantly alert.

"I've had some parties scouring the base," Duke intoned. "It may be some new Cobra spy gadget."

"If it is, they've seriously upgraded," Breaker stated. "This…I can't make heads or tails out of it, neither can Dial-Tone." Given how these were two of the absolute best crypto-communications officers the Joes could get, that line spoke volumes.

"Looks like our guests were spreading something out," Hawk speculated.

"General!" He turned to see several Joes entering with Roadblock in the lead. "We just searched this whole base," the heavyset black-skinned Joe spoke up. "These two things looked outta place." In one hand, he held what appeared to be a classic Walther P-38 pistol with a large grip to it. The other hand held a small cassette boom box.

"The hell?" Breaker said at the latter. "I haven't seen one of those in years!"

Dial-Tone frowned as he glanced up at the screen to see the wavelengths only increasing. "General, whatever's giving out the signals is coming from that box!"

Hawk frowned deeply. "Take it to the lab and tear it apart. Also, check the gun too."

Duke shook his head. "This doesn't make sense. Why would they just leave those behind? The Walther may be old but it's still someone's weapons."

"That's where you are wrong, human. I am no one's weapon. I am my own."

Everyone blinked in confusion at the electronic voice that seemingly came out of nowhere. Without warning, the Walther seemed to leap out of Roadblock's hand and into the air. As it did…it began to transform.

It size seemed to grow as if by magic, a simple handgun suddenly ten times its normal size and getting lager. The handle shifted as a pair of legs appeared. The barrel shifted as well to produce a pair of arms while also mixing about, creating an artificial chest. Emblazoned on it was a symbol of what looked like a purple face with a very sinister appearance. The mid-section boasted several other buttons and levers in a strange body. The final part of the barrel was attached to its back while the silencer and scope seemed to merge into a huge cannon its right arm.

A head finally appeared at the top. A head bearing a twisted face, cold and merciless with dark red eyes that glowed with malice. It seemed to relish in the stunned looks of the Joes, unable to accept a pistol had turned into a twenty foot tall robot. "Soundwave," it spoke in a voice lined with absolute menace. "The time for concealment is past."

On cue, the cassette player also transformed, growing in size as it did. The sides flowed downward to form a huge pair of solid legs as arms shifted from the main body. On its right shoulder was now a huge Gatling gun cannon with another large rifle in the right hand that had merged from nowhere. Its chest appeared to be a clear glass plate of some sort bearing the same logo as his companion. "Send out the signal," the first robot ordered. "Then deal with these pests."

"As you command, Lord Megatron." The large blue figure nodded as he reached to tap a button on his shoulder. The glass plate at his chest opened up as the figure spoke in a strange monotone laced with an electronic echo. "Rumble. Ravage. Laserbeak." With each word, what looked like a massive cassette tape ejected from the chest plate, each transforming in mid-air. The first became a smaller version of Soundwave with what appeared to be pylons for arms. The second was a black panther-like creature that snarled as it charged forward. The last turned into what appeared to be a bird-like creature soaring outward.

To their credit, the Joes were fast to react. While dealing with shapeshifting robots was never in their training, they were moving fast, several already grabbing at rifles. Ravage was snarling as it leapt forward, its metallic claws slashing to drive some Joes back. Dial Tone was pulling out a gun but it wasn't fast enough before Ravage was on them both, its fangs sinking into Breaker's throat to tear it out. Laserbeak flew outward to fire off lasers from it shoulders and blast a hall in the wall. Rumble brought his pylons together and began slamming them over and over into the ground, creating a shockwave of quaking that drove everyone off balance.

Megatron lifted up his arm and unleashed a blast of fire from the cannon. It erupted through the roof as he kicked upward and flew outside. He turned his head to see several shapes flying toward the Pit. They appeared to be regular jets in colors of purple, gold and the leader in grey and red. As they closed in, each transformed into a robot bearing the same symbols. One jet was flying downward, briefly transforming into a robot form. Just as it hit the ground, its body shifted again, this time into a tank.

"Decepticons…Attack!"

As soon as the alarms and explosions blared, Flint, Lady Jaye and Snake Eyes were alert. Jaye was about to accuse Slade and Helena of pulling a breakout but the looks on their faces made her realize they had no more idea what was going on than her. The door burst in as Duke entered, holding a rifle. "Get going now!" he barked.

"Cobra?" Flint asked.

"No," Duke snapped. "I don't know what they are but they're not Cobra."

"Neither are we," Slade spoke up. He heard the explosions and looked to Duke. "I'm guessing you're going to need every person you can get right now."

Duke stared at him for a long moment, unsure. Snake Eyes was also staring before moving, his katana flashing to slice the cuffs off both people. "Snake?" Duke looked at him. The man simply stared back before making some motions with his hands. "Huh. Fine." Duke looked at Slade. "Snake Eyes is a good judge of character. Don't make him wrong."

Slade and Huntress were moving, sliding back on masks as they accepted their weapons. They followed Duke out the hallway and soon bursting into the main field of the base. The rest of the group had to pause in shock at the massive robots who were flying about, firing off laser cannons to blast apart vehicles and drive Joes back. They looked different in many ways but bore the same symbol on their bodies with several flying on their own power. "What the actual screaming shit?" Helena burst out.

A red jet transformed into a robot to smash down a tank as Ravage continued to prowl about, blood on its metallic fangs. Instantly, Lady Jaye had a spear in her hands, hurling it outward. It hit the beast, creating an explosion that caused it to howl in what seemed to be true pain.

Huntress and Deathstroke ran with the Joes, avoiding the chaos of the laser fire as they moved to where Hawk was trying to organize a resistance of Joes. Nearby, the grey and red jet had moved to join Megatron. "We have them on the run, Megatron," it said in an arrogant tone. "I told you we could easily achieve victory."

Megatron snorted. "As always Starscream….You talk so much…and yet think so small." He lifted his arm cannon and let out a single blast of purple energy. It struck the huge turret at the front of the Pit, causing a massive explosion that in seconds led the front part of the base to collapse on itself. Megatron lowered the cannon. "This is only the first step to the conquest of this planet."

"Did he just say 'this planet'?" Shipwreck blurted, his white sailor's cap long lost in the conflict and his blue uniform stained with dirt and blood. Behind him, the bodies of Sci Fi , Tollbooth and Tripwire were strewn about, the first two with laser blasts on them while the third barely looked like anything human after being literally underfoot of the Decepticon called Shockwave.

Road Block winced as a blast echoed over his head, rising up to unload from the massive M-60 in his hands. "These metal dudes are tough as rock, being from space ain't no shock!"

Slade looked to Duke. "Does he always do that?" The other man shrugged as he fired back.

"This may not be the time," Helena stated as she fired off a crossbow bolt. "But for an army, you guys really have a weird definition of uniforms." She waved a hand. "I mean, there's the Bruce Lee knockoff with no shirt, the guy dressed like Popeye and…is that guy in a parka? It's 80 degrees out!"

"This from the woman raiding the Baroness' closet!" Lady Jaye snapped. Before Helena could ask who the Baroness was, an explosion rocked her backward, landing hard on some debris. Flint was quick by her side as Helena grabbed a nearby rifle and began firing back. Bullets may not have been doing much against these robots but they were a lot better than her arrows.

Snake Eyes was firing off a submachine gun as he moved to leap onto a nearby fallen tank. He bounded off just as Thrust flew by. Landing on top of the small red jet, Snake Eyes spun his sword and jammed it into the main cockpit. The Decepticon let out a sharp yell as Snake Eyes reached to his belt and grabbed something from his pouch. He slapped down a pack of explosives, setting the five second timer quickly. He leapt back and managed to slide down a makeshift "ramp" of broken roadway. He was halfway there when the explosives went off, sending Thrust spinning before crashing into the ground. Snake Eyes calmly sheathed his sword into his scabbard as he marched off.

Two helicopters flew through the air, one an attack chopper while the other was a huge transport chopper. Each was flying through the air, avoiding the laser fire as it launched missiles at the Decepticons below. With a smirk, Starscream transformed himself into a jet and streaked outward. Inside the copter, Wild Bill let out a curse as the jet closed in, barely able to avoid it. Twisting about, Starscream transformed into his robot form to grab the Tomahawk's blades and bring it to a screeching stop. He smirked at the shocked Lift-Ticket before tossing the copter to the side, sending it spinning to a hard crash to the earth. Starscream's smirk was cut off by a pair of missiles slamming into his back. He was thrown forward as the Skystriker tore past the sky, Ace snarling as he sought to take the fight to the Decepticons.

Hawk snarled as he saw Megatron standing tall and looking almost proud of the carnage being bestowed upon his men. Seeing Dusty moving a tank over, Hawk leapt onto it grabbing an RPG. "Full on!" he ordered. Dusty nodded, knowing there was little chance they were going to survive this. But after seeing the damage already done, he wasn't going to argue with a chance for some payback.

Megatron just smirked as he raised his cannon and aimed it carefully at the main tank. To his credit, Hawk simply brought himself up. "You face your death with dignity, human," the robot stated with what sounded like actual respect. "I will make your end swift then."

The roar of a horn caught his attention as Megatron turned his head. The other Decepticons were swift to follow as a horde of vehicles slowly appeared over the horizon. There was an eclectic bunch of cars: A black and white police vehicle; a white ambulance and a red van that looked much alike; a small red Porsche alongside a red Lamborghini; a sleek white Porsche; an even sleeker red and gold sports car with a flame design; an odd blue pickup truck; an old-styled Army jeep; and a yellow VW Beetle.

Leading the vehicles was a bright red semi-truck pulling a huge trailer behind it. As it entered the base's grounds, it twisted about to smash Rumble, sending him flying off. It was as the vehicles came closer than one very important detail sank into the Joes.

"No one's driving them," Huntress whispered.

The lead truck jettisoned the trailer as it pulled forward. In mid-motion, it transformed, its rear end forming into a pair of solid blue struts as arms unfolded from its main body with fists appearing in them. The main driver's area became its chest as it rose up, a large blue head protruding outward, the pipes forming what looked like shoulder pads. On his chest was a red symbol that resembled a curved head.

The reaction of the Decepticons was a mix of shock and in a few cases, even horror with some backing up. Megatron simply stared at the lead figure with a face showing nothing but pure hatred as he hissed out a single word.

"Prime."

A massive cannon had appeared as if from nowhere in the figure's hand as its head had no visible mouth but its strong face plate flashed along with his eyes as he boomed out in a powerful voice "Autobots….Roll out!"

The VW was the first to transform into a squat but strong robot unleashing his own blaster. Beside him, the police car and jeep were following suit, each quite distinctive as their fired their blasters to drive the Decepticons away. "Just like old times, Prowl!" the jeep announced.

"You and I remember the old times much differently, Hound!" The "cop" ducked a cannon blast to fire off a barrage.

Slade Wilson was a professional despite all the weird occurrences of his life. Thus, he was able to accept this sudden turn much better than many of the other Joes. He took advantage of the new arrivals to lift one of the huge blasters dropped by Thrust. Duke was quick at his side to help, lifting up the front of the huge blaster as Slade gripped the rear. "Any experience with this kind of thing?" Duke asked having figured by now he was dealing with a veteran soldier.

"Ray guns are new to me," Slade admitted. "But I'm a fast learner." He and Duke aimed the blaster at a nearby black car with the Decepticon logo racing by. Slade pulled the trigger and felt a kickback as the blaster erupted to smash into Barricade and caused him to flip around before smashing into a rock outcropping. Slade and Duke exchanged satisfied nods.

The ambulance had changed into a robot that was moving over to where a fallen Cover Girl was clutching her side. Lifeline was at her side, trying to help bind the wound as best as he could. "Hold on," the robot said in a friendly tone. "Ironhide, I need cover!" The former red van nodded as he backed up, firing his blaster. Jazz had joined him, each laying down fire as Ratchet extended a finger with a miniature laser protruding from its tip. It moved over Cover Girl who hissed at first but relaxed as she felt her wound closing up. "That should help with healing," Ratchet stated. "You humans can be a lot easier to fix than we Cybertronians."

"Cyber…what?" Shipwreck was just blinking.

Cliffjumper leapt over a fallen tank, firing his blaster out as Bumblebee backed him up, his yellow frame highlighted in the flames. He saw Skywarp flying down firing at him and transformed into his VW form. He tore about the chaos of the battlefield, avoiding Joes before taking himself off a ramp. He transformed back in mid-air as he spun around, firing his blaster to drive Skywarp into a high dive to avoid being hit.

Road Block let out a whistle. "No idea who these cats are but they sure ain't no normal cars!"

Helena closed her eyes. "Wonderful, I'm going to die with the black commando Dr. Seuss."

Prime lashed out a boot to send Ravage flying off, the robotic panther smashing hard into Laserbeak to knock both down to the ground. He turned to see Megatron moving in, lashing out a fist. Prime took the blow and rolled with it, turning to hit right back at the Decepticon leader. Megatron just scowled and shook his head. "I always knew you were a fool, Prime…but to stand and defend these inferior fleshlings?"

"All life is worth defending, Megatron."

"Still so weak after so many millennia."

"And you are still so corrupt." Prime waved a hand about. "This planet has done nothing to you and you're ready to ravage it?"

"This planet may be quiet and weak, Prime," Megatron smirked. "But it's enough to gain enough energy to return to Cybertron and conquer it." He raised his cannon to fire off a blast Prime just managed to avoid.

"It's been three million years, Megatron!" Prime snapped. "We don't even know if Cybertron still exists!"

"Then this world will be the start of a new Decepticon empire. They will accept it…or they will be ground under my boot."

"Not while I function, Megatron."

"That can easily be remedied." He leapt forward as he and Prime exchanged blows.

Helena raced to avoid the crossfire of laser bolts exploding around her. That world with the talking ponies doesn't sound so bad…Nah, it still does. She heard the whine of a missile being fired and leapt forward just as an explosion erupted behind her, sending her flying off. The red and yellow car raced nearby, transforming into a younger-looking Autobot who easily caught her. "Hey," he said in a jovial tone. "Name's Hot Rod."

"Of course it is," Helena sighed. Hot Rod gave a short push with his hands to send Helena flying into the air while his body twisted about. Before she knew it, Helena was in the driver's seat of the car as Hot Rod took off. Above him, Blitzwing was chasing him, firing off blast after blast which Hot Rod barely avoided. Blitzwing flew ahead of him, landing to transform into his tank, the cannon aimed directly at Hot Rod.

The grey truck tore out of nowhere, turning into a robot whose face somehow managed to look grizzled despite being metallic. He grabbed the turret and lifted it up just as Blitzwing fired. The blast ripped into the air to nail Thundercracker, sending him flying downward to crash right into Blitzwing as Kup leapt away.

Helena had no idea a car could smirk but Hot Rod made an excellent impression of it. "Not bad for an old timer!"

Kup glared at him. "Old timer….That's something you'll never be if you get your head in the game!" They were cut off by Starscream tearing out of the sky to fly down and fire at both of them, Kup turning back into a car form to join Hot Rod in driving to avoid the firepower.

Shockwave was drawing a bead on Cliffjumper when a rocket hit him from behind. He spun around to see Dusty driving his tank on, another blast erupting from the cannon. Next to him was Duke inside a VAMP jeep with Falcon in the rear firing off a barrage of missiles. Slade was in the driver's seat, prepping an RPG to fire. "YO JOE!" Duke cried out as the remaining Joes had taken to whatever vehicles still worked to prepare to charge in.

Soundwave was cocking his head as if listening to something. "Megatron. Human military forces of this nation have been alerted. Reinforcements inbound. Threat level high."

Megatron snarled as he backed up, pointing at Prime. "This is not the end, Prime. This world will be ours and Cybertron as well." He called out as he leapt upward. "Decepticons, fall back!"

Starscream snarled. "Fall back? Against these…"

"Now, Starscream!" The Decepticon growled before transforming into a jet. Pulling themselves together as much as they could, Ravage, Rumble and Laserbeak each transformed back into a cassette and were allowed to once more enter Soundwave's chestplate. He leapt up to join Megatron as the other Decepticons flew through the air.

Hawk stepped out of his tank, staring upward at the fading forms. He glanced over as Duke's jeep pulled up and the second-in-command stepped out. "How many?"

"At least a dozen so far," Duke sighed. "Breaker, Sci Fi, Tripwire, Tool-Booth, Rapid Fire, Air Tight…Doc…" He shook his head. "We're figuring more later." He looked to where Ratchet was joining with Lifeline looking over the injured. "It might have been worse without them."

Hawk looked to where the other Autobots had gathered behind their obvious leader. "Who are you people?" he demanded. "Are you like them?'

"As with you Earthlings, we may hail from the same planet but we are not of the same kind," Prime announced. "We would never harm humans."

"Excellent policy, keep rolling with that," Helena stated. She had joined with Slade looking at the massive robots before them.

"I am Optimus Prime, leader of the Autobots," the former truck stated. "The force you just contended with was Megatron and the Decepticons. Three million of your years ago, a civil war between our sides consumed our home world of Cybertron. We and the Decepticons did battle upon a ship that crashed upon your world where we were all rendered offline."

"Question?" Helena asked, raising a hand. "You guys just…I mean…the whole turning into cars is just natural?"

"We Cybertronians are not mere robots," Prime answered. "Our vehicle forms were much different upon your world. Our ship had been trapped within a mountain for millennia when a recent quake allowed Teletran-1 to go online. It searched the databases of your world and provided us with new forms to emulate. Sadly, the Decepticons were the first to revive."

"What do they want?" Hawk demanded.

"Megatron is a cruel tyrant who wishes nothing but power," Prime stated. "He no doubt will attempt to access the energy gathering resources of your planet and use them for himself. That will also gain the power to create a gateway to return to Cybertron." He looked to Hawk. "We had anticipated Megatron to strike at your world's military to remove a possible threat. Sadly, it was only when he revealed himself that we were able to lock onto his location." He knelt down so he could look Hawk in the eye. "As a general, I know the loss of soldiers all too well. You have my sympathies and the regret we could not reach here earlier."

Hawk took that in, realizing Prime meant it. "What now?" he asked.

Prime rose up. "The Decepticons are our primary concern. Yet we know that working with the governments of this world was inevitable. Therefore, we are willing to offer aid when we can and accept it from you as well."

Flint seemed unsure. "I don't know about this, General. Two races of giant robots waging war on this planet? That's not going to go over very well."

"Especially after the whole dust thing," Lady Jaye added, still holding a hand to the cut on her head.

"We'll have to make do," Hawk announced. He looked around the ruins of the Pit. "Right now, we have to tend to our wounded and fallen, handle the mess here…"

"Bumblebee, Ironhide, Prowl, aid Ratchet with the wounded," Prime ordered the Autobots beside him. "Hound, Kup, Jazz can help with the clean-up." They all nodded as they began to move off, Prowl quickly picking up a fallen jeep to easily set it right.

Hawk nodded in appreciation before looking to Duke. "I've got to contact the Pentagon at once. Get on the line to call in every reserve we've got. That includes Sgt. Slaughter."

Helena scoffed. "I'm sorry…Sgt. Slaughter? As in the pro wrestler?"

She became aware of every Joe just giving her a completely baffled look. "The Sarge?" Beach Head snapped in as close to a laugh as he ever came to. "The roughest, toughest, meanest drill sergeant in the history of the U.S. military?"

"Silver Star, Purple Heart, Congressional Medal of Honor winner?" Scarlett added. "The Sarge a pro wrestler?"

It took a few moments for Helena to make herself blink. "Oh my God, you're all serious." She gaped at Slade. "I take it back, this is way weirder than the world with the talking ponies."

Scarlett narrowed her eyes. "I know we've got bigger issues on our hands but don't think we haven't forgotten the mysteries about you two."

"Put that aside for now," Slade stated. "We can help here."

"Whoa, really?" Helena asked.

Slade nodded. "Our search can wait."

Helena pulled him to the side to lean in. "Slade…listen, I feel for them but this isn't our Earth. This isn't our fight."

Slade somehow seemed to be looking right at her through his mask. "I spent way too much of my life fighting for the wrong thing, Helena. I'm not passing up a chance to balance the scales doing something right. I'd think you'd appreciate that.""

Helena looked at him, then at the sight of the giant robots and unique soldiers around her. She finally let out an exasperated sigh. "What the hell? We've already got the weird outfits and code names so we fit right in around here." She pointed at Duke. "But I am not using that lame-ass battle cry of yours."

He just chuckled as he led them to meet the new alliance with the transforming cars.

The Pacific Ocean

According to the records Soundwave had found, the encampment had once been used by one of the many nation states of Earth during a huge global conflict some 75 years earlier. It was long abandoned but the buildings served as a fitting base of operations for the Decepticons. Thrust, Skywarp and others were being seen to for repairs for damage suffered during the battle as Megatron stood in the middle of the large command building. Soundwave and Shockwave had managed to put together a holographic computer display from stolen parts for a meeting table but it was being ignored as everyone was more interested in the conflict between the two figures in the middle of the room.

"Where were the reinforcements, Starscream?" Megatron demanded. "I wanted a full deployment to handle this base. The Constructicons alone would have assured it would have been destroyed before the Autobots ever arrived! Instead, it's you and a mere handful!"

"Who still nearly wiped out that entire human fighting force," Starscream defended himself. "How were we to anticipate the Autobots' arrival?"

Megatron scoffed. "That's always your problem, Starscream. You never look at the wider picture. You want the leadership so badly yet you have no idea what it entails."

"At least I know running away is not the way to win respect!" Starscream fired back. "When I become leader…"

"If."

"When…I won't let my pride and the ego to face Prime on equal terms overwhelm me! You keep wanting to achieve a great win over him, Megatron, that's why you didn't destroy the Autobots in Teletran-1! You want Prime at your feet and crushed by your hands and will ignore an easy victory for your ego!" He shook his head. "Why we still follow you…"

Not for the first time in the last several million years, Megatron had to restrain himself from simply blasting Starscream's head off. It was very tempting given his attitude but good foot soldiers were hard to come by. Also, Megatron felt Starscream's constant scheming was an excellent way to keep him on his toes and prevent from becoming too lax. But there was also the reason that Megatron would never admit to anyone: Deep down, he actually understood where Starscream was coming from. Were our positions reversed, would I not be doing everything it took to become leader?

Still, he was feeling the temptation, his fingers around his cannon flexing just as Soundwave spoke up. "Megatron. A transport is incoming."

Instantly, the Decepticons were moving, many piling out into the open air. The Constructicons and Insecticons had gathered, the former's green armor and the latter's darker colors striking against the jungle island. Above them, a vehicle flowed down from the air. It appeared to be a huge jet with VTOL engines, several smaller jets and helicopters flying alongside it. Each was painted a dark blue and bore a symbol of a bright red snake with its fangs showing.

Starscream was raising his gun but Megatron held up a hand. "No. Let's see what this is." He watched as the larger vehicle lowered itself onto the island, landing on the end of the ramp. The engines cooled before the large doors at the side slid open and a ramp way extended downward. The first men off the ship were all clad in blue uniforms with helmets, black masks over the lower half of their faces and the same snake symbol on their chests. With them was a strikingly beautiful woman in a tight black outfit, her eyes behind her large spectacles looking over the Decepticons.

Next to her was a man in a mostly black suit that had a large red collar opened to show the lighter undershirt underneath it. A pendant hung around his neck while his entire head was covered by a silver mask/helmet that somehow managed to capture a man's handsome features. Next to him was a lithe figure in a mostly white bodysuit with a black belt wrapped around his chest. His face was mostly covered by a white hood and mask with a pair of swords on his back.

The final figure strode out with an almost regal bearing. He was a strong man in a solid dark blue suit marked with a black belt, a darker cloak flowing behind him. His head was completely covered with a helmet and a solid faceplate that reflected the Decepticons upon its surface.

He stopped a few feet before Megatron, craning his head up to meet the Decepticon leader. "Good afternoon," he said in a surprisingly polite tone mixed with a low hiss to it. "I am-"

"We know who you are, fleshling," Megatron cut him off. "Indeed, once those G.I. Joes were disposed of, Cobra would have been our next target."

The man known only as Cobra Commander nodded. "I would expect as much. We have been aware of your actions for some time as well and realized you were not of this world."

"Oh?" Megatron mused. "You did not tell anyone of us?'

"Yes, what possible benefit would there be for me to sit back and watch G.I. Joe be completely wiped out? Cobra Commander dryly stated. "Congratulations are in order. You did more damage to them in ten minutes than my forces have been able to achieve in years."

"Human, the environment of this island means nothing to us but my patience can feel the heat," Megatron intoned. "Is there any reason why I should not obliterate you where you stand?"

"I've been asking the same thing for hours," the Baroness muttered under her breath. Destro put a hand to her shoulder to calm her down.

"A few months ago, I would have handled this differently," Cobra Commander began. "I'd be ranting about some alien intrusion to our world. I would overreact, launch some attack and no doubt have gotten most of my forces wiped out. I would refuse to see my failures and continue to blame everyone else." He carefully paced about. "But being turned into dust and then back provides a wonderful sense of perspective. It made me realize how much time I'd wasted on simple foolish schemes for power and money. I thought that having all the money meant having all the power. Now I realize…once I have all the power, what matters money?"

"Money?" Starscream scoffed. "Wonderful, it's one of those worlds…" He looked at the white-clad ninja and smirked. "Is that fleshling supposed to be your protection?"

Storm Shadow gave absolutely no indication he was in the least bit intimidated by the Decepticon and Starscream suddenly couldn't help the odd feeling he might be at a disadvantage. Cobra Commander was continuing as if not noticing. "When things were set right and I was revived, I had an epiphany. I realized it was time to put away some of my more foolish desires and reassert my focus. So I decided it was time the dead weight in my organization might as well be…well, dead." He looked to Destro and the eye roll could be seen behind the faceplate. "Honestly, Condor, what was I thinking hiring that one?"

"At least removing Serpentor was a good thing," the Baroness noted. She saw Destro glare and rolled her eyes. "I know he was your pet project, darling but come on, that fool was more trouble than he was worth. At least the Commander is more predictable."

"Plus, he thankfully has cut down on those more annoying egotistical rants," Destro sighed, forced to acknowledge her point.

Cobra Commander looked back to Megatron. "You and I are far more alike than you know, Megatron."

He smirked. "Oh?"

"Why did you start whatever crusade you're on? Let me guess. You were some low-level worker on your planet, one of the masses ignored and pushed aside far too often. You realized how unfair the system was and that only those in charge benefited from it. Thus, you decided to rebel, at first just to get what you felt belonged to you." He leaned in. "But along the way, you saw the truth. You realized that personal power meant little if you had to conform to the old ways. That just becoming what you'd fought against would be continuing the cycle and setting up your eventual fall. That the only way to beat the system…was to tear it all down and make a new one with you in charge."

Megatron could not keep his surprise hidden thanks to Cobra Commander's succinct analysis of his past and motivations. The masked man nodded. "As I said…much alike…A key difference of course, is that I want this world to myself and I'm not a fan of you taking it over."

"Then it would appear we are at odds." Megatron flexed his cannon, ready to raise it up.

The other Cobra officers remained amazed at how much calmer their Commander was as shown by how he didn't react to the obvious threat. "Perhaps…Or, perhaps…an alliance may be better."

Megatron let out a metallic snort. "Human, I can blast you and your entire force to ash with little effort. What could you possibly offer to persuade me into joining with you?"

In answer, Cobra Commander removed his hand from its place underneath his cloak. In the palm rested a large cube roughly six inches in width and diameter. It seemed to pulse with light as well as power, the colors and swirling with obvious energy. The looks on the faces of the Decepticons transformed into absolute shock. Even Soundwave, whose expression never wavered, appeared thrown.

"The Allspark…" Starscream whispered.

"Yes and no," Cobra Commander announced. "The U.S. government located it in Arizona where it appeared to have crashed some millennia ago. I'm assuming it was during one of those conflicts of your people."

"We had thought it gone forever," Megatron stated, doing an excellent imitation of trying to catch breath for a machine. "How did…"

"Once we stole it from Area 51, it took quite a bit for us to crack what it was," Cobra Commander explained. "It was the first clue to discovering more of your people and its origins. We also did some…fine-tuning, integrating some other technologies. Right now, our tests of it have been limited, mostly as it's hard to tell what we're dealing with. Serpentor actually wanted to drop it into New York to set it off like a nuke and that was the final straw for me. Really, it's tricky figuring out how to properly test it" He looked up to Megatron. "However, I believe you can aid us in that."

Megatron looked to the Allspark, then to Cobra Commander. "I assume any attempt to take it and use it for myself would be for naught?"

"You would be correct," Cobra Commander confirmed. He pointed to the small keypad on its side. "Only my fingerprints open it and I change the code at least twice a day, sometimes as much as five. Admittedly, it's hell keeping it all straight but worth it." He looked back to Megatron. "The offer should be rather obvious but I shall make it anyway. You aid us in conquering this world and this shall be yours. You can then take it and whatever resources you need to conquer this Cybertron or whatever other world you wish. You can have your cosmic empire and leave what you no doubt refer to as a backward mudball to us 'inferior fleshlings' to run."

Megatron gazed at the box-like device, then to Cobra Commander. "Agreed." He returned his gaze to the device. "You said it was no longer the true Allspark…"

"Mindbender's official title for it is about thirty-seven letters long and would never work even as an acronym," Cobra Commander stated. He held it up as if admiring how it glowed brighter in the daytime. "However…I think 'Cosmic Cube' has a nice ring to it, don't you?"

Under the sun of a bright day, in the heart of an island paradise, two forces of pure malevolence made a dark pact that would ensure this world was never the same.

Wow, this ended up a lot longer than expected but does lay some very important seeds to come and hope you enjoy.