On the Steelhaven, Ultra Magnus had summoned Optimus, Elita and Moonracer to listen to a report made by an orange mech named Ironhide
"Ironhide to Ultra Magnus!" he yelled. "We are under attack by Decepticons! They came out of nowhere! They already destroyed one of the space bridges! Requesting immediate backup!"
Then an explosion flashed on the screen, and all they saw next was static.
"We're getting reports of Decepticon uprisings like this from all along the rim of the galaxy," Ultra Magnus explained.
"Sounds like the Cons are getting wind that their leader isn't as offline as they thought he was," said Jazz.
"Wonder where they that idea," said Sentinel narrowing his eyes at Moonracer.
"I make no apologies, and I am free to report on whatever I want to my superiors," said Moonracer folding her arms. "Unless the Elite Guard thinks it's necessary to deny its citizens the right of free speech.
"That doesn't matter. The point is that we're needed elsewhere," said Ultra Magnus. "Optimus Prime, prepare your crew for departure in twelve mega-cycles."
"Uh, but sir, what about the Decepticons on this planet?" Optimus asked.
"Sentinel Prime informs me there are no Decepticons on this planet," said Ultra Magnus.
"With all due respect—"
"You'll get to tell your side of the story back at a public inquiry at Cybertron Command!" Sentinel interrupted.
"You mean a court-martial," said Optimus.
"More like an opportunity to set the record straight," said Ultra Magnus. "If word gets out that the AllSpark is gone and Megatron is online, it will cause panic amongst the Autobots and embolden the enemy."
"But the truth is—"
"It's our duty to quash these rumours once and for all! Understood?" said Ultra Magnus narrowing his eyes.
"Yes, sir…understood…" said Optimus saluting.
A few moments later, the three of them made their way back to base and explained the situation to everyone.
"First, I lose my dad, then my home, and now you guys?" Sari yelled.
"I'm afraid orders are orders," said Optimus.
"Well, they're stupid orders!" Sari said.
"Listen up, small human, Autobots are not organic babysitters," said Sentinel as he entered the plant. "The sooner you bunch of bolts learn that, the better."
"They aren't a bunch of bolts! They're my friends! And I need them!" Sari yelled and ran off with tears in her eyes.
"Sari, wait!" Bumblebee called.
"This isn't easy for her, Bumblebee," said Optimus. "Give her time."
"Unfortunately, time isn't something you bots don't have," said Sentinel. "As of now, you're all vital components in the war against the Decepticons."
"Yes, sir," they said as they saluted.
"Now that we don't have the AllSpark, our space bridges is our one advantage over the Cons. And we need you repair-grunts to keep 'em up and running," Sentinel explained. He then turned his eyes over to Moonracer. "Oh, and we been contacted by your boss, Uplink. Apparently, he had a new assignment for you, and that is to report on the battles."
"But the bigger story is here," said Moonracer.
"Based upon the word of a disgraced Elite Guard washout," Sentinel smirked. "Besides, you've already got a big story that the AllSpark is destroyed, and you have caused upheaval across the rim of the galaxy."
Moonracer clenched her fist, clearly annoyed,
Sentinel then moved to Optimus, and Elita whispered to them. "And Optimus… Elita? A little friendly advice do what Ultra Magnus wants."
"You mean lie?" Optimus frowned.
"Not likely," said Elita.
"Cut the high-and-mighty routine for once in your life cycles," said Sentinel. "Look, I have some pull with Cybertron Command. If you just keep quiet about Megatron and the AllSpark and take the fall for leading your crew awol, I could get you and Elita reinstated in the Elite Guard."
"That sounds a lot like a bribe," Optimus glared.
"Call it a favour for not mentioning my little incident with the Headmaster," said Sentinel.
"Yeah, well, unlike you, Sentinel, I don't think that saving my own hard drive is as important than protecting the truth," said Optimus removing Sentinel's arm and then walked away.
"And I'm not going to remain quiet while this planet is still in danger," said Elita bluntly, joining him.
"Then you two leave me no choice," said Sentinel narrowing his eyes. "Optimus Prime and Elita-1… I am placing you under protective custody until our departure from Earth!"
Both Optimus and Elita stopped in their tracks.
"What? You can't be serious." Optimus stared.
"I'm not going to have to use the stasis cuffs on both of you, am I Optimus?" Sentinel smiled and held out a stasis cuff.
On a garbage barge that was floating down, something began to move and seconds later, bursting out was Starscream.
"You dare strike me down, Megatron?!" he roared, aiming his null rays. "After all my years of loyal—Hey, wait. Where is everybody? How did I get here?"
Starscream eyed his surroundings and then began scanning for energy signatures. "I'm not picking up any Decepticon energy signals. Not even my own! I'm too young to be offline!"
He then finally calmed down to get a grasp of the situation. "All right, this obviously isn't the Well of AllSparks. So I can't be that offline. But, I am still on this pathetic primitive planet!" He then slammed his fist on the garbage. "I swear from here to Cybertron that I take YOU offline! MEGATRON!"
Starscream then transformed to his vehicle mode and took off.
Meanwhile, the Decepticons were marvelling at the new signal dam that Professor Sumdac had created for them.
"Fascinating," Blitzwing admired. "You are standing right in front of me, yet I cannot pick up your energy signature."
"Now, we can move about freely in vehicle mode, and those accursed Autobots won't even know we're there," Lugnut said.
"Impressive work Professor Sumdac."
"Your Decepticon dampeners function well, but now I have a new project for you," said Megatron approaching Professor Sumdac's cage. "A subspace communicator that will allow me to contact my Decepticon forces at the rim of the galaxy."
"I am afraid that is impossible," said Professor Sumdac.
"I will decide what is possible!" Megatron roared. "And I won't have Decepticons rebels blowing up space bridges whenever they feel like it! We'll need a coordinated effort to defeat the Autobots, not random acts of sabotage."
"But subspace communications would require some form of tachyon energy. No earth scientist has gone any further than the development stage yet."
"Then it is fortunate we don't need to rely on the feeble achievements of mere humans, isn't it? The Elite Guard possess a tachyon transmitter aboard their ship. All we have to do is steal it."
After Sentinel had taken Optimus and Elita, the other Autobots went to check in on Sari, who was sitting in her beanbag chair and the depressed.
"But we're her family. We can't just abandon her!" said Bumblebee. "Who's going to take care of her when we're gone?"
"We need a human that we can trust," said Ratchet.
Moments later, they were standing in front of Fanzone's house.
"Absolutely NOT!" Fanzone yelled.
"Come on, captain. She's a good kid," Bumblebee pleaded.
"You won't even know she's around," Bulkhead smiled.
"Why me?" Fanzone asked.
"You're tops on the list of humans we know personally," Bumblebee grinned.
"Although it is a shortlist," Bulkhead admitted, tapping his chin.
"And it does include Prometheus Black and Nanosec," Prowl added.
"Yeah, but still! You're number one!" said Bumblebee with thumbs-up.
Optimus and Elita were on the bridge of the Steekhaven, and Sentinel was standing next to them.
"Face it, Optimus, this deal is the only way you and Elita will ever going to get your career back on track," said Sentinel. "And rid yourself of the stench of those glitch detail losers you've been commanding."
"What about the stench of the lies you're asking me to tell?" Optimus frowned.
"NO ONE'S ASKING YOU TO LIE!" Sentinel yelled. Ultra Magnus looked at him, then turned back to the computer. "Look, just confirm what our scanners have been telling us all along. There are no Decepticons on Earth."
"If that's what you think, then Cybertron is going to be in trouble," Elita muttered. "Has it occurred to you that maybe the Decepticons are in hiding?"
"There's no way they can shield themselves from our scanners."
"Yet your scanners don't seem to pick my energy signature up," Elita pointed out.
"You're an anomaly; just face it, there are no Decepticons on Earth."
Meanwhile, Lugnut had just burst out of the ground inside the shield. He stepped out of the tunnel, followed by Blitzwing. They snuck towards the Elite Guard ship. Blitzwing jumped up, grabbed a small device on the ship's hull, and yanked it off.
"The tachyon transmitter," Lugnut breathed.
"YOU THINK I DON'T KNOW WHAT A TACHYON TRANSMITTER LOOKS LIKE?!" Blitzwing barked.
"Just GO!" Lugnut kicked Blitzwing into the hole and then jumped in after him.
"Last one in's rusty engine block!" Blitzwing laughed.
They both transformed into vehicle mode and flew out of the hole and into the sky. Unbeknownst to them, Starscream had been observing them from behind a blimp, and he then transformed into vehicle mode and began to follow.
Lugnut and Blitzwing then returned to Megatron with the tachyon transmitter.
"Oh, noble master. Our mission was victorious!" Lugnut kneeled and presented Megatron with the transmitter.
"Aah, if it isn't my old pal Megatron," a voice echoed through the mines, "And by 'old pal', I mean the piece of scum who tried to incinerate me INTO OBLIVION!" Starscream stepped from the shadows.
"Starscream. You're alive," said Megatron.
"What's the matter? You look like you've seen a ghost," Starscream smirked and aimed his null rays at him. "Well, maybe you have!"
Starscream fired his null blasters, but Megatron grabbed his sword, jumped up, and slashed Starscream to the ground.
"Is that the best you could do, Starscream?! And to think you actually believed you could take over as leader of the Decepticons. You couldn't lead a parade," Megatron insulted, aimed his cannon at Starscream's face and fired at point-blank. Megatron walked away from Starscream's body. "Make sure he's offline this time."
Lugnut nodded and examined his spark chamber, which was empty.
"His spark chamber is empty. His life force has been extinguished," Lugnut reported.
"Dump that piece of traitorous garbage where it belongs!"
Blitzwing and Lugnut carried Starscream's corpse to the ledge, swung him twice, and then let him plummet into the stream below. They took one last look before leaving.
However, no sooner had they left Starscream shot right up.
"Prepare to face the wrath of—! Huh? What am I doing down here?"He then looked down and noticed that his spark chamber was empty and began to panic. "And why is my spark chamber empty? Maybe I really am a ghost! Or maybe… something else is keeping me alive."
He called his way over to the river, looked reflection, and saw that a blue crystal was embedded in his forehead. "A piece of the AllSpark… indestructible… inextinguishable. Which makes little old Starscream…immortal." Starscream stood up and shouted to the sky. "Prepare yourself, Megatron, you pompous slag! For my vengeance will be swift and PAINFUL!"
Megatron sat on his throne, activated the tachyon transmitter and began his speech to every Decepticon colony. "Fellow Decepticons, take heed! Your leader Megatron still lives! Though we remain dispersed throughout the far reaches of the galaxy, exiled from our true home, we are all still Decepticons! United by a common purpose."
Starscream burst from the ceiling and fired at Megatron. His blasts merely bounced off Megatron's armour. Megatron grabbed his twin swords, ran towards Starscream, and slashed him into three pieces.
"The time has come for us to put aside our differences and act as one under my undisputed leadership. Only then can we cast off the shackles of Autobots oppression!"
Megatron stood in the darkness. Thinking of his next move. Starscream snuck out of the shadows and aimed his null blaster. But Megatron turned around and blasted Starscream in the face with his fusion cannon.
"Working together, we can raise up our glorious empire once more. And crush all who stand in our way!"
Megatron stared at the city of Detroit from the highest ledge. The moonlight showered all of the lands in a deep night blue. Starscream silently approached him with a detonator in his hand and then tossed it straight at him.
However, Megatron seemed to be plainly aware that he was behind him as he caught the detonator. He then tottered right back at Starscream's feet. Starscream danced around it for a few seconds until it blasted him away.
Starscream was once again landed in the river he had been tossed in several times before. As if on a timer, he jumped up and aimed his null rays. Then realised he was once again sitting in a river.
"Uhh, I think…I need…another approach," Starscream admitted, "A way to lure that egotistical trash out into the open. Catching him off guard! Wah! Oh!"
Suddenly his AllSpark fragment glowed and then sparked. It pointed to a nearby dump truck. Starscream curiously walked to the truck.
"Ooh, another AllSpark fragment?" He plucked the fragment out of the truck's side. "Perhaps this will do the trick."
On the Steelhaven, Ultra Magnus approached both Optimus and Elita on the bridge.
"Optimus Prime… Elita-1… Sentinel Prime has informed me about your reluctance to cooperate. I strongly urge both of you to reconsider," said Ultra Magnus.
"Commander, the ship's scanners are pickin' up a major spike in AllSpark energy," Jazz alerted.
"Probably another one of those fragments. I'll go check it out," said Sentinel.
"Negative. Stay here and keep your optics on Optimus and Elita-1," Ultra Magnus ordered. "Jazz and I will report back with our findings." Jazz nodded, then followed him out of the bridge. "Transform and roll out."
The two of them then transformed into their vehicle modes and drove off.
"Jazz gets all the action, and I'm stuck here playing nursemaid with an insubordinate washout and a tech-organic freak," Sentinel complained.
Optimus and Elita ignored him and walked up to the computer. Optimus then zoomed the camera on a train which was the source of the AllSpark energy.
"That's odd. Our sensors didn't pick up any surges in energy the last time an AllSpark turned up," Optimus frowned. "Only Sari's key was able to detect it."
"I have been running my own scans on the fragment we found, but it seems completely dormant," Elita explained. "I can only conclude that we receive a signal only from an outside source."
"Sounds as if someone wants us to find it. Run a thermal scan on that cloud bank," said Optimus. The scan then revealed a red dot flying through the blue clouds. He zoomed on it and recognised the harrier jet. "Starscream! Sentinel, you have to stop them! They're walking right into a Decepticon ambush!"
"More specifically, Starscream's ambush," said Elita.
"When are you two get it through your thick processors? There are no Decepticons on this planet. So keep your mouth shut, or I'll do it for you," said Sentinel brandishing a stasis cuff.
Optimus got an idea. "I'd like to see you try, you worthless crack shaft!"
"THAT'S IT!" Sentinel yelled and charged at him. Optimus grabbed him and flipped him head-over-heels causing Sentinel to scream. He landed with a thud. Once he got up, he went stiff and collapsed. He then realised he was wearing stasis cuffs. "You put me in stasis lock?"
"Well, someone's got to stop them from making a deadly mistake," said Optimus.
"Don't go anywhere; we'll have this sorted in no time," Elita smirked.
The two of them transformed into vehicle mode and drove off.
"When I get through with you two, THERE WON'T BE ENOUGH LEFT TO SALVAGE FOR PARTS!" Sentinel yelled.
Both Sari and Fanzone were on some swings talking.
"How do you feel about bedtimes?" Sari asked.
"What?" Fanzone replied.
"Cuz I'm not real big on 'em. In fact, I think I should get to stay up as late as I want. I also need my own phone. Oh yeah, and we should talk about my allowance cuz I'm going to need a big one." Sari said. Just then, Fanzone's swing snapped, causing him to hit the ground with a loud thud.
"This is why I hate kids," Fanzone muttered.
"I get the feeling this adoption is not going well," said Moonracer as she and the other Autobots watched.
"Autobots! We need to mobilise immediately! The Elite Guard is walking into a Decepticon trap!" said Optimus over the com-link
"Why is this our problem? The Elite Guard has done nothing but bust our solenoids since they got here." Bumblebee asked.
"Doing what's right is more important than our personal feelings right now," said Optimus.
"Prime's right. Let's move it!" said Ratchet.
The Autobots then transformed into vehicle mode and drove away.
"Hey, where are they going?" Sari asked.
"No idea, but I'm not gonna let them wreck my city again!" said Fanzone as he got up.
The Autobots drove along the highway and met up with Optimus and Elita.
"The Elite Guard's not responding to any of my emergency calls," said Optimus.
"So either they're ignoring us, or they're using different com frequency," said Elita.
"We'll have to cut across town and head them off."
He then led them off an exit while Fanzone's car followed close behind.
Starscream was flying directly over the train waiting for the trap to be sprung.
"It won't be long until Megatron arrives to get his greasy little servos on the AllSpark fragment," said Starscream. "Too bad I rigged it to blow up in his face and destroy half this city with it!"
Unbeknownst to Starscream, Megatron and Blitzwing flew up behind him in their vehicle modes.
"The spike in AllSpark energy seems to be originating from that train," said Megatron.
"It's fortunate we picked up that signal so easily," said Blitzwing.
"Perhaps a bit too fortunate."
"A trap? Laid by the Autobots?" Blitzwing asked, noting Ultra Magnus and Jazz drive alongside the train.
"Or by another Decepticon. An extremely persistent Decepticon who refuses to stay offline!"
Both Ultra Magnus and Jazz had managed to catch up with the train.
"That AllSpark fragment is going to overload the vehicle's engine! We must remove it before the entire thing explodes!" Ultra Magnus ordered. The people on board banged on the window in a panic.
"Stay cool, humans! We've got it under control!" Jazz said as he transformed into robot mode and ran to keep up with the train.
Then he jumped and landed on the train. He then tried to smack the AllSpark fragment with his energy nunchuck, but it didn't falter. Ultra Magnus soon jumped onto the train.
"Jazz! Stand back!" Ultra Magnus ordered. He then raised his hammer and tried to smack the fragment but still to no avail.
Starscream noticed ultra Magnus and Jazz on the train.
"The Autobot Elite Guard?" Starscream gasped. "This day just gets better and better. With one blow, I will destroy all my enemies at once!"
"It's no good commander! That SmallSpark doesn't wanna budge!"
Before they could try again, the fragment released an energy surge that blew the two off the train. Just then, the earthbound Autobots and Fanzone's car arrived.
"More Autobots? But where is Megatron?!" Starscream whined.
"Prowl uncouple the passenger cars and get the humans away from danger," Optimus ordered. Prowl transformed into vehicle mode and sped off. "Bumblebee, and Sari, try to use the key to pull out that AllSpark fragment!"
"On it!" they said in unison. Bumblebee transformed into vehicle mode and drove off.
Optimus turned to the others. "The rest of us will try to slow the engine down!"
"Hang on!" Bumblebee yelled as he drove onto the highway.
He drove off the ledge and transformed to robot mode before then landing on the train. Then Sari ran to the front of the train. She knelt down and held her key above the large fragment, which started to shake. Prowl caught up to the front of the train and transformed to robot mode, then jumped onto the train. He pulled out his shuriken and then slashed at the train car binds. The passenger cars then split from the leading car.
"Bumblebee! Sari! Get off! The engine's going to blow!" Prowl warned.
"Just a little bit more," said Sari. The fragment shook one more time and then floated into Sari's hand. "Got it!"
"BUT WE'RE STILL GONNA CRASH!" Bumblebee said
Sari looked up and saw the upcoming train station, which was blocked off. The two screamed and waited for the crash, and Bumblebee grabbed Sari and held on tight. They both closed their eyes and waited for their doom. Before they could crash, the train slowed to a stop. They opened their eyes and saw Ratchet's magnetic field held the train in the front while Bulkhead, Elita's webbing and Prime's grapplers held the train in the back.
"Don't be so negative," said Bulkhead.
"NO! This can't be happening!" Starscream exclaimed and flew away.
"Now that's what I call teamwork!" Bumblebee smiled as he and Sari jumped off the train.
"Heh, and nothing got blown up! Now there's a first," said Fanzone.
Moonracer then saw Ultra Magnus and Jazz arriving and turned to Optimus. "I hope you've got a strong case to support you, or you and Elita will be spending the rest of your life in the stockade."
Once Ultra Magnus and Jazz drove up to them, they transformed into robot mode.
"Commander, the AllSpark fragment has been safely recovered," said Optimus handing Ultra Magnus the fragment.
"What are you doing here, Optimus Prime?" Ultra Magnus asked angrily.
"Sir, I had reason to believe this was a Decepticon trap and felt like it was my duty to warn you," said Optimus.
"We did try to persuade Sentinel to send your warning, but he refused," said Elita. "We figured this was the only way to prevent you from going offline."
"Only one problem with that story. WHERE ARE THE DECEPTICONS?" Ultra Magnus yelled.
"Agh! This day couldn't possibly get any worse!" Starscream screamed. Just then, Megatron and Blitzwing dropped down from a cloud. "I stand corrected…" Starscream made a u-turn and flew as fast as he could.
"STARSCREEEEAAM!" Megatron yelled angrily, transforming into vehicle mode, and chased after Starscream, followed by Blitzwing.
"Sorry! You must have me confused with some other harrier jet!"
On the ground, Sentinel had just arrived.
"Optimus Prime, you are under arrest for assaulting an Elite guard officer!" Sentinel said as he transformed to robot mode. "Add that to the other charges against you, and you can just kiss your career goodbye. Now, what have you got to say for yourself?"
"Incoming!" Optimus yelled, pointing to an object falling from the sky.
That object turned out to be Starscream, who had just been taken out by Megatron. A few moments later, he crashed into the ground creating a crater
"What is that thing?" Sentinel asked, hiding behind Optimus.
"Oh, that's right. You haven't seen one up close. It's called a 'Decepticon'," Optimus smiled.
"Not just any Decepticon; that's Starscream," said Elita.
"Megatron's former second-in-command?" said Moonracer, and then detaching from her back was a drone with a camera. "I've got to get this on camera.
"Oh no, not again!" Starscream moaned as he rose from the crater.
"He's still online! Everyone stand back!" Ultra Magnus warned.
When he turned around, he found himself face to face with Starscream's null ray. Starscream then shot Ultra Magnus into the train station wall, causing him to drop the AllSpark fragment.
"Commander!" Sentinel cried.
"At least this won't be a total loss," Starscream sneered, picked up the fragment, and walked away.
Bulkhead charged and launched his wrecking ball. He hit Starscream square on his back, knocking him down, but Starscream nearly got up and continued walking. Ratchet and Bumblebee fired an electromagnetic pulse at Starscream, causing an explosion. When the smoke cleared, Starscream just stood there and then turned around to face. He fired at Bulkhead, Bumblebee and Ratchet, knocking the three of them down.
"Ultra Magnus is down, and the Decepticon's getting away! What's our next move, Sentinel?" Jazz asked.
"Er…right. Okay, uh," Sentinel blathered.
"Ratchet, you and Sari take care of Ultra Magnus. Bumblebee, Prowl, Bulkhead and Fanzone evacuate the humans from the area. Sentinel, Elita, Moonracer and Jazz, we'll take down Starscream," Optimus ordered as his crew followed his commands.
"Stand down, Optimus! You've got no right to assume command!" Sentinel said, staring him in the face.
"Yeah? Well, some bot has to!" Optimus stared back.
"Hey! How about we settle the whole head honcho' deal later? Right now, we got to stop fighting each other and start fighting the bad guy. Dig?" said Jazz as he tried to push Optimus and Sentinel apart
"Fine!" the two Primes said in unison.
The five of them ran to Starscream, who heard them coming and fired at them. Sentinel activated his shield and covered them. Jazz leapt from behind it and threw his energy nunchuck, which merely bounced off Starscream's shoulder.
"Don't waste my time," he said and shot down Jazz, then continued shooting Sentinel's shield.
Elita quickly downloaded Moonracer's powers, and the two of them skated across the ground. The two of them practically danced around Starscream as he attempted to blast them.
While they were distracted, Optimus Optimus grabbed the stasis cuff off Sentinel. "Keep him distracted!"
He then transformed to vehicle mode and drove away.
Starscream finally managed to blast the two femmes and then concentrated upon Sentinel Shield, blasting it with an onslaught of null, walking close with every shot. The blasts were starting to push Sentinel backwards, and his shield began to crack. Starscream then changed the blasts into a continuous stream of null energy.
"How long…do you think you can keep this up, Autobot?" Starscream sneered.
"Long enough for me to do this!" Optimus yelled as he transformed to robot mode and jumped over Starscream's head. He then slapped the stasis cuff on Starscream, causing him to go rigid, and he fell to the ground.
"Yeesh, Optimus, think you could have a drawn that one out any longer?" Sentinel asked as he deactivated his shield
"You're welcome, Sentinel," said Optimus.
The Autobots carried Starscream aboard the Elite Guard's ship with a mouth clamp attached to his jaw.
"Well, Optimus Prime, it would appear you and Elita-1 were right about the Decepticons." Ultra Magnus admitted.
"Hang on, so there was one Decepticon that doesn't mean the entire planet is crawling with them," Sentinel defended.
"Actually, human media contradicts your claim," said Moonracer and then brought out news footage of every Decepticon attacks before their arrival on the monitor.
Ultra Magnus's eyes widened upon seeing Megatron. "Megatron, so he is still online."
"Over the past few days, I've been surveying this planet and have discovered there are ways to hide one's energy signature. They could be hiding within the large amounts of moisture on this planet or in carbon deposits within mines."
"So you're saying the Decepticons on this planet could have found a way to hide their energy signatures," Ultra Magnus concluded. "Verifying Optimus claims even further."
"But sir, that doesn't change the fact that they disobeyed a direct order!" Sentinel reminded.
"That may be Sentinel Prime. But there are times when following your gut is more important than acting by the book. Wouldn't you agree, Optimus Prime?" Ultra Magnus asked.
Optimus merely smiled.
"Given the recent events, I've decided to let you and your crew remain here on earth to collect more AllSpark fragments. And keep them out of the hands of any Decepticons that may still remain on this planet. I think you may need a few more stasis cuffs for the job."
"And Uplink has also had a rethink," Moonracer added. "He wants me stationed here to report upon the Decepticon battles here on Earth and the culture of the local inhabitants."
At the Autobot base, Elita gave Optimus their newest fragment into the AllSpark's container, which now held four fragments. Meanwhile, the others brought in a box bearing the Elite Guard's colours and found that it contained several stasis cuffs. Moonracer also set up her equipment at the base.
The next day the earthbound Autobots, Sari and Fanzone, watched the Elite Guard's ship fly away back to Cybertron.
"You guys are staying on Earth? How great is that? Don't worry, Captain Fanzone. We can still hang out," said Sari.
"O,h great. I'll clear my calendar," said Fanzone sarcastically.
Meanwhile, at the Decepticons' hidden base, Megatron looked at Lugnut and Blitzwing and their new tachyon transmitter.
"Send out a message to our double agent on Cybertron," he ordered. "Tell him that communications with our rebel forces has been restored. And the Autobot's space bridge technology is within my grasp. The uprisings on the edge of the galaxy will continue to draw the Autobot forces away from Cybertron. Leaving it virtually defenceless. And once my space bridge is operational, I will conquer a weakened Cybertron from within."