Chapter 4: Takeover
[Transformers Galaxy Force OST - Abort Mission!]
The Decepticon dropships landed on the side of Arzenal that was away from the Autobots and the Norma. Inside one, Dirge was having his thrusters and other parts of his body repaired. At the same time, he contacted Thrust and Ramjet via comm link. The other two seekers had already landed on Arzenal via the other dropships.
"Thrust, Ramjet." Dirge said. "This all the firepower we've got?"
"This is all that Starscream would even send." Thrust replied. "We were lucky to get three dropships worth of soldiers."
"No… This should be more than enough."
"What about Starscream's original mission?" Ramjet asked.
"We're abandoning that idiot's plan. If he wanted these humans that badly, he should've done so himself. We're taking this island and using it as a base until we locate Lord Megatron."
"The sooner the better. Two earth weeks without him, and the Decepticons are already falling apart."
"The Constructicons took a dropship and went solo yesterday." Thrust added on. "Barely anybody wants to be loyal to that arrogant piece of scrap."
"Optimus Prime and two other Autobots are all we need to worry about." Dirge said. "A bunch of human females in robotic suits should be of no challenge to the Decepticons."
"Scouts are reporting in." Ramjet reports. "Looks like the Autobots are already involved in a skirmish. You want us to move in and wipe 'em all out?"
"No… let them fight it out." Thrust suggests. "It'll mean less work for us once they finish tearing each other apart."
"Thrust is right." Dirge agreed." Have the dropships all land and send out soldiers in several directions. We'll surround them and ambush them once they've beaten each other down enough."
"Got it. We're moving into position."
"Those Autobots won't know what hit 'em when we get done with them." Ramjet stated. "Once we're away from Starscream, finding Lord Megatron will be a piece of cake!"
"Let's hope so, Ramjet." Dirge replied. "Decepticons, move out!"
The third dropship landed near the island as well, several Decepticon soldiers including Dirge stepping out.
[Transformers Devastation OST - Protect Mission]
Wheeljack and Bumblebee were driving as they avoided blaster fire from the Villkiss. Ange was forcing the Autobots as far away from Arzenal base as she could, with the two Autobots trying to stay in range of where Optimus would meet them.
"Salia? Salia, can you hear me?!"
In the Ragna-mail, Ange had been trying to get in contact with Salia. Having heard the voice of her friend bundled in static, Ange was trying to see if she could get through. However, the Villkiss was having trouble receiving the transmission from Salia's Arquebus.
"Dammit, one of our systems must be damaged!" Ange exclaimed, looking at her ring. "Why won't this thing work when I want it to?! Please you two, be alright. I'll be there soon!"
Villkiss transforms to Assault Mode, firing its energy rifle ahead of Bumblebee and Wheeljack to stop the Autobots' retreat. The two skid to a stop and transform, quickly running for cover.
"Wheeljack, think you can analyze that machine so I know where to shoot?" Bumblebee asked. "Prime's trying to talk some sense into them, but I don't think this one is going to listen as long she's able to fight us."
"She's got her eye on both of us." Wheeljack replied. "I don't think I could examine it long enough without being shot at. Try aiming for the legs."
"I'll try and see if I can lure her away."
Bumblebee pulled out his blasters and rolled out from cover. Firing, he aims at the Villkiss legs but misses as Ange retaliates. Bumblebee avoids the blaster and transforms, driving out of range, hoping to keep her attention on him. The Norma girl doesn't fall for it as the Villkiss fires in Wheeljack's direction. The scientist got out of the way and fired at the Villkiss before transforming and following Bumblebee.
"They're trying their best to stay within range of the base." Ange said. "I don't know what else is coming, but I can't let it link up with these two!"
Transforming to flight mode, the Villkiss gives chase.
"Optimus, how far out are you?" Wheeljack asked over the radio.
"I'll be there within a few minutes Wheeljack." the Autobot leader responded. "I will most likely be followed by the other humans."
"Are they shooting at you too?"
"Negative. I've managed to learn that it was Starscream, Skywarp, and Thundercracker that assaulted one of them. Furthermore, I'm detecting several more energy readings on the island."
"Several?"
Wheeljack begins scanning the area with his sensors. Optimus was right. He and Bumblebee were picking up numerous readings.
"There has to be over a dozen!" Wheeljack exclaimed. "Dirge must've done more than call for reinforcements. He called a whole army while underwater. Ah, I'm sorry Optimus. I knew I should've gone after him."
"There is no need to apologize, Wheeljack. It is better that you remained within range of our sensors. We wouldn't want anything to happen to you while you were deep underwater. But now we must reunite and make peace with the humans more than ever."
"I just hope this doesn't prove to be too bad for us…"
"If the Decepticons are here, then they must be after all of us." Bumblebee said, drifting one hundred eighty degrees and driving backwards, facing Ange. "Hey! Wait a minute! We need to talk!"
"Wheeljack, you and Bumblebee try to move as far away as possible from the other energy readings." Optimus ordered. "I'll alert the other humans to this."
"Got it." Wheeljack said. "Bumblebee, let's roll. I don't think she's listening."
Bumblebee turned back around and rolled out with Wheeljack, the Villkiss increasing speed as Ange kept up with them while shooting.
"Ange! Ange! Dammit Ange, why can't you hear me?!"
Salia continued to try and contact Ange in vain. Her words couldn't get through and neither could Ange's.
"Give it up, Salia." Hilda said. "We're gonna have to reach her and tell her physically to stop. Hey, Jill! What was that about something else on the island?"
"We're picking up more than just one problem landing on the island now." Jill stated. "Pamela and the others can't keep up with everything happening, but you need to get with Ange now!"
"Please don't let the reason I can't get through to her be because whatever it is has gotten to her…!" Salia said.
"No way in hell they've taken her out!" Hilda comments.
The two were interrupted by Optimus' horns blaring. The Autobot leader had slowed down as the Para-mail riders were starting to pass him.
"Is he… signaling us to come down?" Salia questioned.
"We're not really going down to him, right Salia?" Hilda asked. "We still don't know if we can-"
"The more I think about it… the more his kindness had to be too good to be true. I don't know if we can trust him, but I'll hear him out. Come on."
The Arquebus and Glaive flew down towards Optimus' level.
"I am not sure if you are aware of this, but it would seem that we may have a common threat approaching this island." the Autobot leader said.
"Those energy signatures…" Salia replied. "Hey, what the hell's going on?! What's with everybody targeting Arzenal?"
"I'm afraid that I am just as ill-advised as you are. I ended up on this island not by choice. Finding the other Autobots and finding answers are my main goals now that I've awakened. If my presence is the cause of the turmoil brought to this place, then I apologize."
"If you didn't know you'd be here, then I doubt anyone else would. I hope."
An explosion was heard in the distance.
"Salia, let's move!" Hilda yells out. "That's gotta be where Ange is!"
"Right!"
The Glaive and Arquebus took off, Optimus Prime speeding up as well.
Bumblebee and Wheeljack had managed to escape Ange's sight. The Ragna-mail flew over a small area, as Ange had a general idea of where the Autobots were located.
"For a bunch of bright colored machines, they're too damn good at hiding." She thought aloud. "They couldn't have slipped by me, I'm sure of it. So where the hell did they run off to?"
Ange surveyed her surroundings in the Villkiss, not missing anything. She spotted something, but it wasn't the Autobots that she was looking for.
"Him again?!"
Not too far from her, Ange spotted the Nu Gundam standing on top of a mountain peak, looking towards her.
"It's that Amuro Ray and his-Ngh!" Ange winces, her injuries still affecting her. "Last thing I need right now is his interference too!"
The Villkiss was about to fire at Nu Gundam, but Ange held off as she noticed that the mobile suit was just standing there. It didn't make any moves to attack.
"What's he doing?" Ange asked herself.
Bumblebee and Wheeljack were watching Ange from where they were hiding, the Nu Gundam being out of range of Wheeljack.
"What's she staring at?" Wheeljack wondered. "Ah, I can't get any closer or else she might see me."
"Wheeljack, over here!" Bumblebee quietly called out, hiding on the opposite end on a mountain from the scientist. "I think I know who got her attention."
Wheeljack silently made his way over to Bumblebee. The two Autobots laid eyes on the Nu Gundam standing afar off.
"Isn't that the uh, Nu Gundam?" Bumblebee asked.
"You're right, it's Amuro!" Wheeljack answered. "Looks like he made it after all!"
The Villkiss suddenly fires on Nu Gundam, the mobile suit activating its thrusters and dodging the attack as it flies towards the Ragna-mail. Bumblebee was about to interfere in order to aid the Gundam pilot, but was stopped by Wheeljack.
"Wait a minute, Bumblebee, we might not need to fight anymore." Wheeljack said. "Follow me. We'll..."
As the Autobots talked, the Nu Gundam and Villkiss were hovering face to face with each other.
"You come back for a rematch?" Ange asked.
"I just need you to listen to me." Amuro answered. "I'm not here to fight, okay?"
"Then why don't you just leave? Arzenal's dealt with enough shit already!"
"Because both of us need answers. There's too much we don't know to keep being enemies."
"He's right!"
Bumblebee and Wheeljack drove up behind Nu Gundam and transformed, weapons not in hand.
"Those guys again?" Ange thought.
"Bumblebee, Wheeljack, you're alright." Amuro said.
"Glad to see you caught up with us, Amuro." Wheeljack replied.
"He DOES know them…" Ange thought to herself. "And they're friendly with each other too. Is it just the ones that fly that are assholes?"
Everyone heard a horn blaring as Optimus Prime was approaching from behind the Villkiss. The Autobot leader stopped and transformed, standing before the four.
"Optimus, you're safe!" Bumblebee said.
"So this is Optimus Prime…" Amuro thought.
"That's…"
Ange recalled that while she was in the Decepticon Dropship, Salia and Hilda were at the same place Optimus was. More recently, she had trouble contacting Salia. Seeing as how they have yet to arrive, Ange could only assume the worst.
"Ange!"
Thankfully, her fears were not true. Flying in behind Optimus were both the Glaive and Arquebus. Ange sighed in relief, knowing that both Salia and Hilda were alright. The Para-mails transformed to assault mode and landed in front of the Villkiss.
Unknown to them, Decepticons were watching them from several angles. A scouting party led by the Seekers was watching from a safe distance.
"I was hoping at least one of those Autobots would be dead by now." Ramjet said. "Waiting was a terrible idea."
"Anymore possible enemies?" Dirge asked one of the Decepticon soldiers.
"None, sir." The grunt answered. "That's all that we've detected."
"Then we've wasted enough time. We'll wipe them out all at once." Dirge contacts the Decepticons at Arzenal over comms. "Decepticons, move out! Attack the Autobots at this location!"
Deception soldiers started transforming and leaving their hiding places. The dropships also began flying as well.
The situation between the seven had calmed down. While neither the Norma or Amuro stepped out of their cockpits, the tension seems to have lessened.
"What the hell's going on?!" Salia asked Ange. "We couldn't get through to you. What happened?"
"There's gotta be something wrong with your Para-mail." Ange replied. "The Villkiss was picking up nothing but static."
"Same thing was happening on our side." Hilda jumps in. "It can't just be our side."
"The Villkiss' recovery systems should've taken care of any damages. I don't know why the problem would be it…"
"Maybe I could take a look at your machines." Wheeljack approached the girls with an offer to help. "If it's just a communication error, it's probably nothing I can't-"
The Autobot scientist stopped and slightly raised his hands as Hilda pointed her Glaive's rifle at him.
"No thanks." She said.
Wheeljack just slowly backs away, seeing that they were not going to allow him to help. Optimus placed a hand on Wheeljack's shoulder.
"Easy, Wheeljack." the Autobot leader said. "Don't be too hasty. We still have lots of work to do before we've reached that level of trust."
"Ah, you're right." the Autobot scientist shrugged. "My bad."
The Autobots suddenly jumped back as blaster fire came from above, nearly striking Optimus Prime. Amuro and the Norma girls all looked up alarmed.
"What the hell was that?" Amuro asked.
"So it was the Decepticons." Optimus said, pulling out his Ion Blaster.
[Transformers Devastation OST - Decepticons' Theme]
Heading in their direction, a large group of Decepticon soldiers were approaching from land and air. Behind them was one of the Decepticon dropships, its guns aimed at the group. Among the fliers were the three seekers leading the charge, Dirge, Thrust, and Ramjet.
"Blast them all into scrapheap!" Dirge yelled out orders. "Decepticons! Focus your fire low in order to avoid hitting our allies coming from the opposite direction."
The group of seven readied themselves for a fight. Bumblebee looked behind, and suddenly gestured to the others to do so. Another Decepticon dropship was flying in the air from the opposite direction, more Decepticon grunts coming at them from land and sky. The group was surrounded on both sides, their only way of escaping being to climb to the other side of the mountains or to try and fly out.
"You gotta be shitting me…!" Hilda said.
"What's going on out there?" Jill asked over radio, desiring further information. "You're out of our line of sight, we can't-"
"There's a lot of robots out here, Jill! And the majority of them I can confirm, sure as hell are not friendly!"
"Autobots, we must get to higher ground." Optimus ordered. "Quickly, climb. I'll cover you!"
"We need to-Ngh-Get out of here too!" Ange said, wincing mid-sentence. "Come on!"
The Villkiss fired its energy rifle towards one of the Decepticon forces, as it, alongside the Glaive and Arquebus, started to fly upwards and shoot at any Decepticon fliers that came close to them. Bumblebee and Wheeljack climbed the mountain as well. The Autobot scout was able to climb much quicker due to his acrobatic skills and agility, but still helped the scientist along the way by pulling him up. As Optimus bought them some time, he found himself standing back to back with the Nu Gundam.
"I don't recall seeing you before." the Autobot leader points out. "Are you with the others?"
"No, I'm not." Amuro replied. "My name's Amuro Ray. I ran into Bumblebee and Wheeljack a couple of weeks ago before we came here. I've heard a lot about you from those two, Optimus Prime."
"I see. If you're a friend of the Autobots, then I must ask that you escape with Bumblebee and Wheeljack. I do not wish for you to be injured fighting alongside me, or worse."
"You're as just as much a brave leader as they said you were." Nu Gundam raised its blaster. "I'm not going to run away and let you possibly die here. We'll get through this surprise attack by working together."
"Very well. If that is what you wish, then there is no changing your mind."
Optimus switches his free hand to his axe, while Nu Gundam pulls out one of its beam sabers. Both Autobot and mobile suit fought the Decepticon army from both angles as the others escaped.
"Just how many of these guys are there?!" Hilda exclaimed. "They're everywhere!"
"We almost got tricked by these guys…" Salia said.
"Huh?"
"Look closer, Hilda! They're all Decpeticons, wearing that same symbol as the blue one from earlier! We almost sided with a group that can easily destroy us anytime they wanted to!"
"Now that you mention it… you're right."
One of the Decepticon fliers transformed midair to try and attack the Glaive with a sword. However, he was quickly shot down by Villkiss' beam rifle.
"Then that crash site I checked out…" Ange thought to herself. "Was that what their plan was? Was that ship sent here to attack Arzenal. If so, then that means…"
Ange looked down at Optimus and Amuro through the Villkiss' camera, starting to realize who her allies would be and who her enemies were. The three pilots were floating up the mountainside faster than the two Autobots climbing. Just as they reached the peak…
"What the hell?!" Hilda suddenly shouted.
The Villkiss and Arquebus turned around to see what Hilda was looking at. She, Ange, and Salia all laid eyes upon the third of the third Decepticon dropship, and another set of soldiers waiting for them on the other side of the mountain. The dropship started to aim its gun at the three.
"It's a trap!" Salia called out to everyone below. "They're already on this side!"
The girls flew to the side and avoided the dropship's blast while descending. The attack alerted everyone below, letting them know what was on the other side.
"They've already predicted that we'd try and escape that way!" Amuro responded. "Is there any other option?"
"The only place we can go is up or down." Bumblebee said, pulling Wheeljack up. "And I don't think I'm a strong enough swimmer to escape all of these 'cons."
"The ocean's practically a death trap at this point!" Wheeljack exclaimed. "They'd pick those of us who can't fly off easily!"
"Our only option is to get to the other side of the mountain." Optimus comments while downing several Decepticon soldiers. "We must get to high ground and fight through the Decepticons blocking our path to open land."
"You want us to fight through that?" Ange argued, descending next to Optimus. "You haven't seen what's up there, but I have. They'll gun us down the moment they see us."
"You're correct. However, if we remain down here, we will surely be overrun."
"You girls would be fine if you fly around the sea to the other side." Wheeljack commented. "But we Autobots are stuck here."
"Nu Gundam can fly as well, but splitting off is what they want us to do." Amuro added. "We'll be much easier targets if they can break us up and deal with us in small groups rather than all of us at once."
"Want my suggestion?" Hilda chimes in. "Move your asses! Only way out is to plow our way through everything that they're throwing at us!"
"That's asking to get killed!"
"And standing around here isn't?!"
Hilda grunted as Decepticon blaster fire struck the Glaive, forcing her to land.
"It seems that we have no other options." Optimus said. "Everyone, follow me! We will clear a path together!"
The Autobots took a running start and transformed, driving straight towards the Decepticon party on the right of the group. Their blasters were mounted on their hoods as they opened fire, shooting down any Decepticons in their path and ramming the others out of the way. The Norma girls and Amuro flew after them, Nu Gundam in front while the girls were flying behind him in Assault Mode. The dropship ascended slightly as the group all went straight past.
"They broke through!" Thrust shouted.
"Decepticons, don't let them get away!" Dirge ordered. "Seekers, prepare bombing runs on the island. We were gonna demolish whatever they've built here anyways so when the Autobots and their friends get out into the open, we'll hit them with everything we've got! Thrust, Ramjet, take squadrons and patrol the rest of the island in case they try to pull anything!"
The three split up, transforming and flying away. The dropships descended to let on the Decpeticons that could not fly, while the seeker Decepticons flew off to prepare for Dirge's plan.
The Autobots, Mail-riders, and Nu Gundam were hauling it as fast as they could, putting as much distance between them and the Decepticons as they could.
"The outer area shouldn't be too far ahead." Ange said. "Hopefully then, we'll actually be able to put up a better fight."
The four that could fly dodged blaster fire from pursuing Decepticon fliers, led by Ramjet.
"These guys don't give up!" Amuro exclaimed.
Nu Gundam turned around to face the Decepticons pursuing them. Firing its beam rifle, Amuro managed to shoot down several of the Decepticons with critical shots. Ramjet avoided the blasts while firing his own before circling around the mountain with other Decepticons.
"I think you chased them off!" Salia called out.
"Not a chance." Amuro replied. "Look."
Ramjet and the other Decepticons with him came back around the mountain, this time with a Decepticon dropship following right behind him.
"Shit, if they fire here then all of us won't be able to dodge that!" Hilda exclaimed. "We gotta find some way to dodge that!"
"What about the Autobots?" Salia questioned, looking back at the three driving on the ground. "We can fly but they'll be an easy target."
"I have an idea." Amuro said. "It might be dangerous to pull off, but it'll get us all out of the way." Nu Gundam started to fly low, catching up to the Autobots. "Optimus Prime! We're going to get you three over the mountain! I need you to transform and get into the air so we can push you up!"
"Very well!" Optimus responded. "Autobots, get ready!"
"How the hell are we supposed to push them up?" Hilda asked.
"We'll use our thrusters." Amuro said. "Nu Gundam should have enough power to push Optimus Prime on its own."
"The Villkiss can handle one too, I guess." Ange commented. "Salia, Hilda, you two work together."
"Right!" Both girls responded.
The Mail-riders all transformed to Assault Mode, flying low and got into position. The dropship finished coming around the mountain and was flying behind the group, aiming its guns downward.
"Now, do it now!" Amuro shouted.
"Autobots, transform!" Optimus ordered.
Optimus, Bumblebee, and Wheeljack all transformed, using the mountainside to propel them slightly upwards. The thrusters on the Nu Gundam, Villkiss, Glaive, and Arquebus kicked in at full power. Nu Gundam slammed into Optimus, pushing the Autobot leader up. Villkiss did the same to Wheeljack while the Glaive and Arquebus helped Bumblebee.
"This shall work nicely!" Optimus exclaimed.
"Up we go!" Bumblebee shouted.
"Think you could be a little easier?" Wheeljack asked.
The dropship fired its guns, the group of seven just missing the blast as the four fliers used the explosion to push themselves up faster. The group reached the top of the mountainside, the Autobots jumping off their respective helpers before transforming and rolling down the mountain.
"That worked perfectly." Optimus said. "Thank you for your assistance, Amuro."
"I'm just glad we didn't get caught up in that blast." Amuro sighed.
"Optimus look!" Bumblebee called out. "Decepticons out in front!"
The remaining two dropships were floating in the sky above the island, Decepticon soldiers firing on the mountain range to try and either hit the group or collapse the mountain on top of them.
"Looks like a fight is unavoidable." Optimus said. "Are there any other personnel on this island?"
"If this is where Ange and the others live, they must have a base nearby." Amuro commented, Nu Gundam facing Villkiss. "Right?"
"Yeah." Ange answered.
"The Decepticons don't know that, do they?!" Salia asked worriedly.
"I'm not gonna say yes, but… I wish I could say no…" Bumblebee replied.
"If they do then, Alektra and the others…"
"Our first priority shall be to secure the safety of any more humans on this island." Optimus said. "Once we've done so, the only option is to commandeer one of the Decepticons' dropships and flee this island."
"You wanna just hand Arzenal over to them?!" Hilda argued.
"We lack the firepower necessary to deal with this threat. And even if the Decepticons retreat from Arzenal, they may return with a much larger force. We would perish. Therefore, we must consider an escape plan."
"Dammit, I hate that you're right…!"
"We need to get back to Alektra and the others, right now." Ange said.
"Incoming!" Salia shouted.
Coming from the side was Ramjet, who was diving in by himself towards the group.
"Everyone, keep pushing forward!" Optimus said, slowing down.
"Optimus, what are you doing?" Wheeljack asked.
"Don't worry. I'll catch up to all of you momentarily."
Optimus' tired skid to a stop as he transformed, the Autobot running and jumping in the air as Ramjet came towards him. Optimus was snatched into the air as Ramjet flew off, leaving the others to head out into the opening.
"So…" Bumblebee starts asking. "What are the odds we'll be able to get aboard one of those dropships?"
"Never tell me the odds." Hilda replied. "They'll just make me worry."
The girls fly on ahead, rushing straight towards Arzenal's command center while avoiding the Decepticons for as long as possible.
"Wait a minute!" Amuro called out. "Don't get too far ahead of us!"
"I don't think we have a chance but to split up now." Wheeljack said.
[Dynasty Warriors Gundam 2 OST - The Other Side Of Planet]
At Arzenal's command center, everyone was trying their hardest to keep calm. Jill gathered everybody in the base at the command center, where Decepticons could be seen flying all around the island. Some of them were even at the landing platforms.
"J-Jill, what's going on?!" Momikonasked. "Where's Ange, Salia, and Hulda?"
"There's so much going on that we can't keep an eye on them anymore!" Jill responded.
"We're trying!" Pamela reported. "But with these things orbiting us-"
The command center started rumbling due to the commotion being made by Decepticons on the landing platforms.
"Do you think that they'll get to us?" Oliver asked.
"Not without destroying everything in their way first." Jill replied. "Dammit, where are those girls?! We need to-"
"C-Commander!" Hikaru yelled.
All of the girls stepped back as one of the Decepticon fliers floated down in front of the command center. The grunt noticed the girls inside, and flew back enough to point his blaster directly at the command center.
"This place is now property of the Decepticons, in the name of our glorious leader Lord Megatron!" the Decepticon said, preparing to fire. "We don't need the likes of you humans running around here!"
"Get back! Everyone!" Jill shouted.
All of the girls quickly started running towards the exits. Before the Decepticon fired, a sniper shot came from the distance and shot off the flier's head. While he went down, he managed to pull the trigger just before going offline, the blast breaking the front of the command center and sending the girls inside flying into the doors and walls. Jill was the first one to get back up. The first thing she saw was Salia's Arquebus flying next to the command center, firing rounds from her sniper rifle towards more Decepticons.
"Salia…" she sighed. "Damn, that was close."
"Alektra! Everyone!" Salia exclaimed. "Are you alright?!"
"We are, thanks to you!" Zhao Mei said.
"Salia, what's going on?" Momoka asked. "What was that?"
"Whatever they were, they're out to kill us all, that's for sure." Salia said. "We're getting out of here one way or another, just stay put! I'll shoot off any Decepticons that try to come here."
"Decepti-"
The command center rumbled once again as the Decepticons on the landing platform fired on Salia. The Arquebus dodged the blast fire while firing sniper rounds, Salia aiming for their heads for an instant killshot.
"Is there nowhere safe on Arzenal anymore?!" She yells.
The rest of the girls in the command center were getting back up, as they all watched Salia continue to fire. Both the Villkiss and Hilda's Glaive flew past their view as well.
"We'll explain once the situation out here is under control." Salia said, this time through the command center's radio that was still functioning.
"Commander?" Hikaru asks Jill. "What do we do now?"
Jill knew that wasn't anything that they could do at this point. They're nothing but still targets in the command center, and leaving would mean more work for Salia to try and protect them.
"It's up to the three of them now." she answered.
Optimus Prime has managed to hang onto Ramjet for a long time now as the Decepticon tried dragging the Autobot through the mountains to knock him off. Not only did Optimus stay on, he used the opportunity to shoot down any Decepticons flying around him and Ramjet. Many fliers tried to aim for the Autobot leader, but Ramjet was unfortunately an unintentional shield.
"I said get off you piece of scrap!" Ramjet shouted.
The Deception changed course and started diving diagonally towards the ground. Optimus jumped off just as Ramjet transformed and landed on the ground hard. As Optimus turned around, the seeker ran at him with a sword in hand.
"I'll be sure to give Megatron your head!" He yelled.
Optimus stepped back to avoid Ramjet's swing, not even pulling out his Energon axe. As the Deception swung again, Optimus elbowed Ramjet's arm to knock his sword away. He hit the seeker with a left and right hook, then grabbed hold of Ramjet before throwing him near the edge of the island. Decepticon soldiers fired on Optimus as he ran towards Ramjet, the Autobot leader looking back and firing his Ion Blaster. Optimus downed several Decepticons before reaching Ramjet. The seeker took to the skies in order to avoid another attack, pulling his twin blasters and firing on the Autobot. Optimus avoided the blaster shots and fired at Ramjet's thrusters, shooting down the Decepticon as he crashed back to the ground. As Ramjet got back to his feet, Optimus ran over to him and kicked the Decepticon with both his feet, kicking Ramjet off the side of the island. Unable to activate his thrusters, he fell down, hit the edge of the landing platform, and then fell into the ocean below. Other Decepticons tried to open fire on Optimus, but were quickly taken down by the Autobot leader before he drove off.
"Optimus! These dropships aren't coming down!" Wheeljack radioed in. "We're not getting anywhere if we can't get to 'em!"
"We'll have to try and lure them down." Optimus replied. "Deal with as many Decepticons as you can to force the dropships to descend and attack!"
Bumblebee, Wheeljack, and the Nu Gundam had fought their way to the front of Arzenal as well, the Decepticons being relentless as they used many of the island's structures to hide behind and fire at them.
"That's…" Wheeljack starts to say. "Gonna be much easier said than done."
The three were forced to try and find cover as the Decepticons wouldn't let up. Optimus sped up as he rushed towards their position.
"I'm on my way!" he said. "Don't give up, Wheeljack. We'll survive this battle and live to see another day."
"Not if I have anything to say about it, Optimus!"
Dirge swooped down with an army of seekers flying behind him, lined up in three rows. All of the Decepticons started firing missiles downward before flying off, forcing Optimus to try and stop before they hit the ground. The bombing run began shaking Arzenal as each barrage struck the ground. Optimus transformed as the explosions knocked into the air, sending him into the ground hard. The Autobot leader picks him back up to see Dirge's team coming back around for another run.
"You should've stayed down!" Dirge yelled.
"Not as long as there's Energon running through my veins." Optimus replied.
The Decepticons prepared to launch another barrage straight at Optimus. However, they were soon being shot down from behind. While they were preoccupied, Villkiss and Glaive came up from the rear and opened fire. Several seekers were shot down and crashed into the island. Dirge's formation was broken up as the Decepticons scattered, some of them being shot down by Optimus as he ran towards the others.
"I don't know how much longer we're gonna be able to keep this up." Hilda said to Ange. "We're gonna have to drop out of this battle at this rate!"
"We do that, then we might as well crash and die!" Ange exclaimed. "We don't have the luxury of just retreating to the base right now!"
Both Para-mail and Ragna-mail swerved out of the way as one of the dropships fired in their direction, the blast blowing up part of the mountain behind them.
"They really think we can take one of these things down and get outta here?" Hilda asked. "It's gonna be a miracle if we can even land on that ship."
More Decepticon fliers jumped out of the dropship, transforming and flying towards Ange and Hilda. The two switched to Flight Mode and flew off in different directions as they orbited around the dropship, shooting down whatever Decepticons they could. Suddenly a missile barrage was fired from the top of the dropship by Thrust, the missiles homing on the Villkiss. Ange saw them coming and switched to Assault Mode, the Villkiss pulling out it's sword. The Ragna-mail sliced the incoming missiles in half, each of them exploding in midair. Thrust gave the Ragna-mail no break as he fired another barrage before transforming. Villkiss sliced those missiles apart as well. Thrust used the explosion as cover as he transformed and maneuvered behind the Ragna-mail, shooting it in the back. The Villkiss turned around only for the same trick to be pulled as Thrust used his speed to constantly outmaneuver the Ragna-mail.
"What's the matter?" Thrust laughed and taunted. "Can't keep up with my speed?"
"He's too fast…!" Ange grunted as the Villkiss was repeatedly fired upon.
Thrust was forced to move out of the way as the Glaive came up, transforming and swinging its axe down. Hilda and Ange stood back to back with each other as Thrust retreated, more Decepticons surrounding them.
"You're right." Ange sighed, talking to Hilda. "Getting the hell out of here ain't gonna be as easy as we ran away from Arzenal."
As the grunts fired, Ange and Hilda separated before firing at the Decepticons. The two of them working together actually managed to shoot down over a dozen Decepticons very quickly, forcing the nearby dropship to direct its guns towards them.
"Are we really getting kicked by a bunch of humans in-" one grunt said, right as he was shot through the spark.
The dropship fired its guns and missed once again. Villkiss flies up to the dropship and fires its energy rifle straight into the gun, causing the weapons to explode.
"They've disarmed one of our dropships!" one of the grunts shouted to Thrust.
The seeker scoffed before transforming, and flying off in the opposite direction of the two girls. More Decepticons tried to attack them, both in the air and while in the dropship. The two kept on the defensive as they were actually thinning out the number of Decepticons around them.
"Where'd that other one go?" Ange asked herself, referring to Thrust. "I know we didn't get him so where did he-"
"Ange!" Hilda called out. "Incoming!"
Faster than the Villkiss turned around, Thrust was rocketing towards it in his alternate form. Just before reaching the Ragna-mail, he transformed and thrusted his foot out.
"Let's see how you like this!" Thrust exclaimed. "Time to put you in your place, pathetic human!"
By the time it turned around, the seeker's foot slammed into the chest of the Ragna-mail, pushing the Villkiss back until it slammed against the mountain. The cockpit was squished between Thrust's foot and the mountain on its back. The impact of the attack was enough that it actually knocked out Ange, evident by the Villkiss falling straight down after the Decepticon let up.
"Ange!"
Hilda rushed to attack Thrust, but the seeker transformed and escaped. Before she knew it, her Glaive was being fired on by multiple Decepticon grunts coming from behind the mountain. The redhead was nearly forced to land just to try and escape.
"There's still this many?!" She exclaims.
"Hang on!"
Nu Gundam suddenly flew up, slicing apart several Decepticons with its beam savers before hovering next to Hilda's Glaive. Switching to its beam rifle, both Gundam and Para-mail kept firing as they flew away from the Decepticons.
On the ground, Dirge and other Decepticon fliers were hammering Bumblebee and Wherljack with missile barrages. Optimus couldn't even get close to them thanks to Thrust's sudden interference. The seeker and Autobot leader were engaged in melee combat.
"Go ahead and surrender, Optimus!" Thrust boasted. "You and a bunch of humans can't stop this many Decepticons!"
"I will not allow myself to submit to Decepticons." Optimus said, pushing Thrust back. "Even if we lost this battle, we shall survive. And we shall prevail in the end!"
Optimus headbutts Thrust before grabbing and throwing the seeker behind him.
"We'll see about that!"
Thrust flips around midair, aiming his missile launcher towards the Arquebus.
"Let's see how many people you can't save!"
The Decepticon fired right before Optimus could knock him down. Pulling out his Ion Blaster, he fired at the missiles. Some of them were shot down, but the others got away.
The Arquebus was still resting next to the command center, Salia looking around to see the numerous Decepticons that were shot down by her.
"They've…" she started to say, breathing heavily. "They've stopped coming…"
"Salia!" Jill yelled. "Look out!"
Coming towards her was Thrust's missile. Aiming her sniper rifle, Salia pulled the trigger to start shooting them down.
CLICK
Only to find out that she was out of ammo.
"I'm empty?" She asked, surprised. "Dammit!"
Salia threw her Arquebus' sniper rifle towards the missiles, taking out several while losing her ranged weapon. One missile got past, forcing her to sacrifice the Arquebus' right arm to protect the command center. Debris flung inside but the girls were all hidden safely.
"Salia, your arm!" Zhao Mei called out.
"It's fine!" Salia exclaimed.
The Arquebus pulls out its sword with its left hand.
"I gotta get to the others. One arm and alone isn't gonna cut it." Salia turns to the command center. "Everyone! Stay safe!"
No one could stop her as the Arquebus flew off.
While the fighting was going on, Ramjet was busy climbing up the side of the island.
"Come on, you pieces of scrap!" He said, complaining about his broken thrusters. "Work already! This island's too slagging tall to be climbing!"
The side of the island suddenly started to fall apart, causing Ramjet to fall back to the ground. The seeker groaned, restarting his climb.
[Transformers G1 OST - S.O.S Dinobots]
"You can't hide forever Autobots!"
The Decepticons would not let up on the hidden Bumblebee and Wheeljack, firing their blasters in the direction the two were in. Suddenly, a grenade was thrown up into the air. Before the Decepticons could react, Bumblebee shot the grenade. The grunts that were firing now ceased as they were blinded by one of Wheeljack's EMP Grenades. The soldiers on the ground were rubbing their eyes while the fliers were spiraling out of control.
"Ugh! My optics!" one of them shouted.
Bumblebee and Wheeljack made a run for it and shot down any Decepticon that was in their way. The soldiers were unable to see the Autobots transform and drive off.
"Phew! That was close!" Bumblebee sighed. "I think I'm starting to run low on ammo."
"You and me both." Wheeljack said."Let's just hope we still have enough to-"
Wheeljack stopped talking as he and Bumblebee saw more Decepticons flying towards them, Dirge leading them and firing another barrage of missiles.
"Uh-oh.
"We might be low on ammo, but it looks like they have plenty to spare!" Bumblebee exclaimed.
The two Autobots floored it as they hoped to get ahead of where the missiles would hit. Swerving out of the way, they managed to avoid the explosion as the seekers flew over them, turning around for another attack.
"Switch to your blasters, men!" Dirge ordered. "Let's see how they dodge consecutive fire! Take out those Autobots!"
The Decepticon fliers started firing their blasters, Wheeljack and Bumblebee doing their best to avoid.
"This reminds me of those old scavenging missions we had to do together back on Cybertron." Wheeljack said. "Decepticons chased us back to Iacon just like this!"
"Let's hope my rear doesn't get hit like back then." Bumblebee laughed.
The Autobots were able to keep themselves ahead of the Decepticons behind them, the fliers not letting up. Fortunately for the two of them, reinforcements came to the Autobots' aid as the Glaive and Nu Gundam came from behind and went to work with melee weapons. Some seekers transformed to try and fight to no avail, while Dirge and the others just sped up.
"Incoming!"
However, they were alarmed as they heard Thrust's shouting. Before they could react, the seeker in question came flying through the air after being thrown by Optimus. He crashed into Dirge, sending both of them spiraling to the ground while the other Decepticons were shot by the Autobot leader. Nu Gundam and the Glaive flew out of the way while Bumblebee and Wheeljack drove past their leader. Another grunt flew around behind Optimus and tried to rush him, only to be taken out by the Arquebus who just arrived.
"Salia, you alright?!" Hilda asked, taking note of the Arquebus' missing arm.
"I'm fine." Salia answered. "Be honest… How bad is it?"
Decepticons were beginning to back the group against the side of the mountain.
"We're on the verge of throwing away our guns, Ange's out of it, and we can't reach her." Hilda said. "Arzenal's practically hell for us right now."
Everyone could see the number of Decepticons had thinned out greatly compared to when they first arrived. But at the same time, it didn't look like the fighting would stop anytime. Dirge and Thrust flew back up to the rest of the Decepticons.
"It's over." Dirge said. "Take no prisoners! I want every last one of their sparks extinguished!"
"It's been fun, Autobots!" Thrust boasted, aiming his blaster with the rest of the Decepticons. "For us!"
Decepticons had the group surrounded completely. The two dropships with their guns working were aimed at the group. The remaining one was flying back to the rest of the Decepticons, carrying others including the recently picked up Ramjet.
"Say your prayers, Autobots!" Ramjet exclaimed, aiming specifically at Optimus.
"Any last words before you kick the bucket?" Dirge asked.
Mostly nobody listened to his last statement, the group having their weapons out and ready to fight till their last breath. However, Bumblebee did have something he wanted to say.
"Uh yeah…" the Autobot scout points behind the Decepticons. "What's that?"
"Yeah, right." Dirge said. "Like we'd fall for the oldest trick in the-"
"Wait a minute, he's not kidding!" Thrust cuts him off. "There's something in the sky!"
The Decepticons started to turn around.
"Is that Ange?!" Salia exclaimed.
"What's she doing?" Amuro asked. "She's a sitting duck like that."
[Cross Ange OST - Towagatari ~Hikari no Uta~]
Floating up into the sky was the Villkiss, its body being surprisingly still as it flew higher than even the dropships. Ange said not a word upon waking up and just looked at the army of Decepticons surrounding her teammates and other allies. It didn't take long for Salia and HIlda to figure out what Ange's doing.
"That's probably the only solution to this." Salia said.
"Get out of there." Ange said over radio.
"Ange…!"
Everyone's attention was on Villkiss, as Ange's voice echoed across Arzenal.
"Hajimari no hikari kilari kirari (With light of the beginning Sparkle, sparkle)
Owari no hikari lulala rira (The light of the end lu la la li la)"
"Is she… singing?" Dirge asked.
Seeing the Decepticons were distracted, the Arquebus drops its sword and suddenly grabs Optimus' Ion Blaster. Immediately, Salia fired at both Dirge and Thrust's thrusters to inhibit their flight capabilities.
"Scrap! That hurt!" Thrust yelled.
"We need to move, now." Salia said to the others. "Come on! Before Ange fires!"
"Kaesan el ragna sunadokei wo (The hourglass El Ragna that does not turn)
Toki wa afuren lulala rira (Time does not flow from it lu la la li la)"
Salia fired the Ion Blaster again, stopping any Decepticons that tried to turn and shoot them. The others did the same to help Salia. Optimus looked up at the Villkiss, watching as the white Ragna-mail started to turn golden.
"Everyone, I'll cover you!" Optimus said, activating his shield as Salia hands him his blaster. "Get behind Ange as quickly as you can!"
Nu Gundam, the Glaive and Arquebus jetted off first, flying through the stunned Decepticons. Bumblebee, Wheeljack, and Optimus rolled out right after. The group quickly made their way behind the Villkiss, the Decepticons firing after them until Thrust looked up and noticed what the golden Ragna-mail was doing.
"I-I don't like the looks of that…!" He said.
"Ikuoku amata no inochi no honou (The flames of countless lives,)
Sururi ochite wa hoshi ni (fall through and become stars)
Nagare nagarete wa utsukushiku (They fly beautifully and fade away)
Mata seitoshi no yurikago de yawaku awadatsu (in the cradle of life and death)"
The Villkiss' shoulders opened up to reveal two hidden weapons, both charging and looking like they would fire an extremely powerful attack. The Decepticons didn't have to look long to realize; Those weapons could take them all out.
"What in the Allspark are those?!" Ramjet asked in a panic. "Get us out of here! Forget the Autobots!"
"Decepticons, fall back!" Dirge said, trying to fly but unable to thanks to Salia. "Get away from that golden machine!"
"Hey! Wait for us!" Thrust yells, trying to signal down one of the dropships that were flying off.
As they continued to move away, the group stared at the Decepticons trying to escape and up at the Villkiss charging.
"By the Allspark…" Optimus said, amazed.
"What on earth is that form…?" Amuro questioned. "And those weapons mounted on the shoulders…"
"That's the best feature about Villkiss." Hilda said. "Those guys are dead, they'll never get away."
"No way they could survive the Convergence Cannons." Salia added on.
"Utae! (Sing!)"
The Villkiss' convergence cannons fired.
"Utae ima futatsu no negai wa (Sing, the two wishes are now,)
Tsuyoku tsuyoku ten no onjiki to kirameku (strongly strongly, shining in heavenly gold)
Towa wo kataran (It speaks of eternity!)"
Everyone watched the energy wave consume the area in front of them. The dropships that were trying to flee weren't fast enough to escape the cannon's attack. Ramjet tried to jump out and land in the ocean, but he wasn't fast enough and was caught in the energy wave with the dropships. Any other Decepticon fliers were taken out, obliterated in one strike from the Villkiss' weapon. Dirge, Thrust, and several other soldiers attempted to run away into the ocean and successfully got over and around the mountains before the blast. As the cannons destroyed the mountains behind them, they soon realized that they could not escape. Dirge and Thrust look back one last time as they were consumed by the blast. No Decepticon within range of Arzenal and in Villkiss' line of fire was able to escape.
"Well, color me surprised…" Wheeljack said.
"She… She got all of them…" Amuro stated in awe.
"Hell yeah!" Hilda shouted. "That's what I'm talking about!"
The convergence cannons finally died down. The mountains of Arzenal were reduced to mere rubble. As for the Decepticons… there was no trace of them. Dirge, Thrust, Ramjet, none of them. The invading Decepticons were no more. The Villkiss floated down slowly and landed, everyone rushing over to it.
"Ange!" Hilda called out. "You're alright!"
As they all arrived, Ange was surprisingly quiet.
"Ange?" Salia asked worriedly.
"Is everything alright?" Optimus asks with concern.
"I'm fine…" Ange replied. "But…"
The Villkiss turns around to face everyone.
"About that escape plan…"
Everyone looked confused for a moment before they realized. In the fight to survive, they started to prioritize stealing a dropship less and less. And now, all three of them were vaporized by the convergence cannons. Ange just sighed, seeing how she messed that up. Everyone was quiet for a moment…
[Transformers G1 OST - Victory Finale]
That silence was broken as Amuro began laughing. After the realization, his response was to laugh. Ange was confused, and even more so when the Autobots joined in. Bumblebee, and Wheeljack started laughing, while Optimus let out a chuckle. Soon, Salia and Hilda decided to do the same. Ange wasn't sure why exactly they were all laughing. Suddenly, she realized it. She realized why everybody started to laugh, and she started laughing too. The seven of them stood on Arzenal, laughing.
The radios of the Para-mails and Ragna-mail were still on, letting everybody in the command center hear the entire conversation, and the group laughter.
"What are they doing?" Oliver asked. "Why are they laughing?"
"Can you blame them…?" Pamela responded, chuckling. "After all of that, what else can we do but have a good laugh?"
The girls all thought about it for a moment, and started to understand what Pamela meant. They all started laughing too. While they laughed, Jill was standing at the edge of the command center, looking out the broken windows into the distance. While she didn't laugh, she smiled slightly. Just like everyone else, she was glad this was all over.
