Chapter 17: Exodus

Cliffjumper waved people forward, as mechs and femmes ran for the escape ships.

"Come on people, orderly fashion! We've practiced this!" He shouted, turning and looking with worried optics at Hound.

"She's at capacity, go!" Hound shouted, as the green mech sealed the airlock on a ship, and backed away, watching it lift off.

"Hound...do you think Optimus can stop that thing?" He asked with worried optics.

Hound looked at his colleague with sad optics.

"Look at the sky, Cliffjumper." He said, gesturing to the orange, smoke filled air around them. "Does it even matter?"

Cliffjumper's optics sank, and his shoulders slumped.

"Of course it matters!" A strong voice called.

The mechs turned to Ultra Magnus, who stood atop a launch platform.

"Cybertron may be scarred, burning, broken, but it isn't dead. Not while we're here. So drop the negative attitude and let's help Prime any way we can. Hound, you're leading an attack squad, aerialbots, start hitting it from above! This isn't over yet!"

"Let's roll out!" Optimus shouted, waving his arm from inside Sky Lynx's frame, as the winged mech lifted off.

Sunstreaker revved his engine, and blasted out of the hangar, followed by Sideswipe, Prowl, and Bluestreak.

The others were already attacking from the ground.

Optimus turned to his team.

Jazz, Mirage, Bumblebee, and a forlorn looking Ratchet.

"Optimus. Our home..." Ratchet began.

"It can be fixed. There will be time for that later." Optimus replied quickly, gripping his rifle right. "Focus, old friend."

"Of course." Ratchet agreed, turning to watch as Trypticon tore through a fortress along the Iacon border.

"It's coming straight for the heart of the city." Bumblebee said, alarm in his optics.

"It is." Optimus agreed. "It's up to us to stop it." He opened his comm link.

"Calling all autobots. Our objective is clear. We are not slowing this thing down. We are not distracting it. We must bring it down. Now." He declared. "Any autobots within range, we...certainly aren't overstaffed." He finished.

"KEEP FIRING!" Ironhide shouted, laser beams cutting at the hide of the massive beast, as it crashed through a skyscraper, and entered Iacon. "Focus on the legs!"

"Why the legs?!" Brawn demanded, holding a massive chaingun in his arms.

"We gotta make that thing fall. Best bet is taking its legs out!" Ironhide shouted back, as the aerialbots swooped overhead, their sleek frames clashing with the apocalyptic sky behind them, as they showered the Titan in laser fire.

Arcee fired a grappling hook at the mech as it crashed by, and was yanked up towards it, just as the Titan bumped a massive building.

The femme looked up, optics wide as glass and chunks of metal came raining down.

She narrowly slipped between the falling debris, and found herself against the creatures leg.

She extended a blade from her arm and began slicing into the Titan's massive leg.

"Primus dammit!" She shouted, as the blade snapped. She pulled out her blasters and fired point blank.

No effect. She looked up as the aerialbots streaked in, hitting it in the side with a full barrage of missiles and lasers.

When the smoke cleared, the creature wasn't even dented.

Arcee felt the grip of hopelessness in her spark, as the creature plowed on ahead, destroying buildings, and the autobots picked helplessly at him from below.

Sunstreaker roared into the ruined sewer system, his wheels sliding across the slick surface.

"The bunker is ten meters ahead!" Prowl shouted. "We need to activate the old Citadel energon pumps, they're plugged into Metroplex!"

Sunstreaker skidded into the bunker, changing form, with Sideswipe, Prowl and Bluestreak.

"What are we looking for?" Bluestreak asked, running at the main console.

Sideswipe felt a sense of nostalgia as he looked around the old bunker, that had housed the autobots during the decepticon occupation a year ago. This had been home for over a month.

Prowl pushed past Bluestreak.

"Watch it Blue. I know this console better than I know the ridges of my own t cog." He said, as he began typing furiously.

"Blue?" Sideswipe asked. "You've never called anyone a nickname as long as I've known you."

"He called me stupid once." Sunstreaker countered.

"That isn't a nickname, to be fair." Prowl said, looking at Sunstreaker with a smirk.

The bunker began to shake violently.

"He's gotta be just about over us by now." Prowl continued. "Which means we don't have much time. This bunker can only take so much, and it took a ton during the occupation."

A support beam came crashing down, and Sunstreaker dove aside, shoving Sideswipe out of the way, as it crashed down, destroying a couple of recharge slabs.

Prowl opened a pair of pipelines, and diverted them toward Metroplex, as the bunker's shaking increased.

He reached for the last pipe opening hatch.

And the roof exploded.

The bunker collapsed downward, and a mountain of debris slammed down on top of Prowl, ripping through his armor and pinning him against the ground.

Optimus leaped from Sky Lynx, with the others, and they came crashing down atop Trypticon's lumbering form.

"Ow! Primus, these hips aren't what they used to be, Optimus!" Ratchet shouted angrily.

"We must find a way in." Mirage declared, storming across the metals.

"Mirage!" Optimus shouted, running up to him. He grabbed the smaller mech by the shoulder and turned him around.

"Sir, there's no time." Mirage stated angrily.

"Mirage..." Optimus repeated, his optics softening. "You cannot allow your last mission's outcome to effect this one. I need your head clear, as well as your decision making."

"It's clear, Optimus." Mirage replied. "I won't fail again."

Optimus deployed his energon axe. Then he looked down, and drove it into the metal.

He left a scratch in the mech's paint.

"Come on." He urged, swinging back and bringing the axe crashing down again.

"He's going straight for Metroplex!" Wheeljack shouted, firing a rifle up at the Titan. "We have to fall back, we can't even dent him!"

"We're not fallin back!" Ironhide shouted. "We hold this ground till there ain't none left!"

Ultra Magnus rumbled in, missiles erupting from his truck form, as Hound and Cliffjumper rolled in behind him, hitting Trypticon's tail, to little effect.

"AUTOBOTS, KEEP THE PRESSURE ON!" Ultra Magnus shouted, as he transformed up. "Keep it away from Metroplex!"

"Prowl!" Bluestreak shouted, running toward the debris, and hurling aside chunks of debris. "Prowl, get up!"

Prowl's optics were flickering as he looked up at Bluestreak.

"Hit...the button..." he pleaded. "Metroplex...we need Metroplex..." he pointed beyond the debris. "Hit the button!" He repeated.

"Not till you're free." Bluestreak replied, hurling aside more debris. "What are brothers for?"

Sunstreaker helped Sideswipe to his feet, and frowned, the twins exchanging a look.

"Wait. What?"

Arcee climbed up the side of the Titan, and saw the others grouped around Optimus, in its back. She ran towards them.

"The creatures metals are unbreachable." She warned, as she ran up.

"It's the only hope we have!" Optimus shouted, bringing his axe crashing down on it again.

"Prime..." Arcee began.

"Let him try." Jazz said, holding up a hand. "It's workin. The metal's bendin."

Arcee looked down and her optics widened.

Optimus was making a dent in the creature.

"Come on Optimus." Bumblebee coaxed desperately, looking up, to see the Metroplex's antennas. "He's right on top of Metroplex!"

"You're his brother?" Sideswipe asked. "Prowl, you have a brother? How did I not know that?"

"It's a secret." Bluestreak replied, lifting another chunk of metal off the mech. "Megatron has a target on Prowl, he didn't want the target on me."

"Except...you just blew it..." Prowl muttered weakly, as Bluestreak lifted the last piece of debris off him. "You just told the two chattiest mechs of all time that I'm your brother."

Bluestreak turned to them.

"You can keep a secret, right?" He asked, confidently.

"Umm..." Sunstreaker began.

"Not...historically..." Sideswipe continued.

"We can try..." Sunstreaker added, rubbing the back of his neck.

"We will." Sideswipe concluded. "It's a secret. We'll keep it."

Prowl let out a groan as he stood up, his chest crumpled. He looked at Bluestreak, and then the twins.

"Glad we have this all out in the open. Now can somebody hit the damn button?!"

"We've got no ground left!" Brawn shouted, firing a rocket up at the Titan. "Metroplex is a sitting duck Ironhide!"

"Then we're sittin with him!" Ironhide shouted, as he continued firing.

"Come on Metroplex!" Blaster shouted, firing grenades at the Titan, as Perceptor fired a sniper rifle, aiming for weak components and missing badly.

"He doesn't have the energon!" Perceptor shouted. "He physically cannot rise!"

"Optimus we have no time left!" Ultra Magnus shouted into the comm. "It's now or never, are you inside Trypticon yet?!"

There was suddenly a massive shaking, and the autobots had to steady themself.

Even Trypticon swung, looking off balance for a moment.

Then, with the sound of a massive T-cog firing, Metroplex changed form, rising up high over the defending autobots, his optics onlining, his arms extending.

He glared fiercely into the optics of Trypticon.

Trypticon let out what almost sounded like a chuckle.

"I wondered if you would find the courage, old friend." He hissed.

Metroplex cracked the rust out of his massive fists.

"It was never a matter of courage. And you are friend to no one." Metroplex snarled, rearing back and punching Trypticon across the face.