My Life as a Teenage Autobot
Chapter 13: Fire in the Sky
A/N: The title of this chapter is a reference to a G1 episode of the same name.
The crew of the Nemesis waited patiently as the ship idled next to Trypticon, ready to defend the massive Decepticon should any foolish being try to stop them. "Lord Megatron, I am still receiving no response from the humans." A Vehicon reported. "They still have about sixty hours to respond. We will not fire until then." Megatron replied.
"Master, would it not be easier to simply raze each city one by one?" Starscream asked. "Besides, it's not like the Autobots can reach us all the way out here." Megatron shook his head. "We gave the humans a deadline and we will not attack until it expires. More importantly, I don't want to destroy the city until I have the location of the Autobot base."
Suddenly, a blip appeared on the warship's scanners. "Sir, I'm detecting a Ground Bridge portal about 500 miles from Earth's surface." A Vehicon announced. "Optimus; I knew you were bold, but this is just…" Megatron began before the Autobots flew out of the Ground Bridge at blinding speed. "Impossible!" Megatron yelled in astonishment. "Dreadwing, intercept and destroy the Autobots before they make it to Trypticon." Megatron ordered. Dreadwing nodded and made for the flight deck.
"Starscream, join Shockwave on Trypticon and be prepared to defend him in case the Autobots make it inside." Begrudgingly Starscream ground bridged onto Trypticon's observation deck. Meanwhile, Megatron continued to watch the Autobots fly toward Trypticon. He noticed that Wheeljack's ship, the Jackhammer, joined the group. "How is this possible? How did Optimus, Arcee, Bumblebee, and Bulkhead get the ability to fly?" Megatron wondered.
Dreadwing and an armada of Vehicon flyers blasted off from the flight deck of the Nemesis and headed toward the Autobots. "Attention all flyers, split the Autobot formation and engage in asymmetrical dogfights. Do not engage one on one." Dreadwing ordered.
Arcee spotted the incoming formation. "Optimus, we have incoming bogeys. Dreadwing is leading them." She warned. "Autobots, stay in formation until we are near Trypticon and the Nemesis." The Autobots maintained their V formation to maximize their ability to defend themselves. "They're in range!" Jetfire said. Optimus drew his blaster cannons "Autobots, open fire!" he commanded. The rest of the Autobots drew their weapons and fired on the Decepticons.
Two of the Vehicons exploded from the Autobots fire. "Return fire!" Dreadwing yelled. The Decepticons brought their own weapons to bear and commenced a counter attack. "The Autobots bobbed, weaved, and rolled to avoid the incoming blasters. Bulkhead was having a bit more trouble than the rest though. "Whoa, whoa, easy." He said to himself. He momentarily looked back to make sure the pulse rockets weren't the problem and when he looked forward again he slammed straight into a Vehicon. The Vehicon exploded and Bulkhead went spiraling out of control. "I've got him." Jenny assured. She broke formation and sped toward Bulkhead.
Jenny grabbed onto his back and righted him. "Thanks Jen. I guess I need more practice." Bulkhead said sheepishly. "Just watch where you're going next time." Jenny quipped. The two rejoined the formation and continued toward Trypticon. By now most of the first wave of Vehicons was destroyed.
"Lord Megatron," Dreadwing began. "Send another squadron; the first one has been decimated." Megatron sent the reinforcements but the Autobots pressed onward toward Trypticon. Meanwhile, on the Nemesis, Megatron contacted Shockwave. "How long does the main cannon need to fully charge?" the Decepticon leader asked. "According to my calculations it will take approximately one hour for the proton cannon to reach full charge." Shockwave responded.
"Then begin the process now." Megatron ordered. Shockwave complied and almost as soon as he gave the order, Trypticon's tail pointed down at Washington D.C. It began to split open, revealing the proton cannon that could level cities. It began to glow with power as it began the charge up sequence.
"Optimus, Trypticon has initiated the firing sequence."Ratchet advised. "I estimate that you have one hour before it fires." The Autobots were now about ten miles away from Trypticon. "Understood. Autobots, split into your assigned teams and complete your objectives." Optimus and Bulkhead broke off and headed for the Nemesis while the rest made for Trypticon.
"Jenny, you and Jetfire head for Trypticon's mouth." Arcee suggested. "We'll start distracting him." Team One hung back while Team Two focused on taking out Trypticon's defenses. "Incoming flak!" Wheeljack warned. The Jackhammer performed a tight barrel roll before unleashing a volley of homing missiles. "ACTIVATE ANTI MISSILE SYSTEMS." Trypticon bellowed. The point defense cannons around his body opened fire and destroyed the incoming missiles.
"Scrap!" Wheeljack swore. "I have an idea. If we spread out and fire at once, we might be able to spread the AA." Arcee suggested. The three Autobots split up and attacked Trypticon from different angles. Now there were several targets that Trypticon's targeting system had to track. When Wheeljack fired his second volley of missiles, all but two of them took out at least a dozen of Trypticon's point defense turrets. This allowed Team Two to clear a path through the defenses.
"Alright Jetfire, you and Jenny should have a clear run." Arcee reported. "Thanks. Keep pounding him from the outside." Jenny said. She and Jetfire were almost at Trypticon's mouth and about to enter. They diverted all power to their engines and busted through the behemoth's metal teeth. "This is Jetfire, we're in." the scientist announced as he shifted into robot mode. Jenny folded away her wings but kept her mask up. "Excellent." Ratchet said. "Go straight ahead. You should come to a hallway that goes in two directions. Once you reach it, go right." Ratchet advised.
"LORD MEGATRON, I HAVE BEEN INFILTRATED." Trypticon reported. Megatron frowned. "Starscream! Trypticon has been infiltrated by the Autobots. Repel them at any cost!" he ordered. Just then a Vehicon picked up something on the scanner. "Two Autobots are approaching the Nemesis!" Megatron looked out the window and saw Bulkhead and Optimus on a direct course for the warship. The Nemesis opened fire with anti-aircraft cannons, but the two Autobots evaded them.
They landed on the flight deck and began to lay waste to the defending Vehicons with their own laser cannons. Megatron left the bridge and headed for the flight deck, but not before leaving Soundwave in charge. The Decepticon leader stormed up to the flight deck just in time to see Optimus and bulkhead land there. "Megatron, you will pay for raising Trypticon and using him to attack Earth." Optimus declared.
"I'll admit I am impressed by your new-found ability to fly, Optimus. However Trypticon will level Washington and every other city on Earth until the entire planet is burnt to a crisp." Megatron boasted. Optimus narrowed his eyes. "Bulkhead, we will take him together." Optimus said while drawing his sword. Bulkhead drew his Energon mace and shifted into a fighting stance. Megatron raised his right arm and fired at the two Autobots. They dodged out of the way and came at Megatron from two directions at once.
As they were about to strike, Megatron performed a roundhouse kick to Bulkhead's chest and punched Optimus in the face. The two slid backward. Optimus and Bulkhead activated their laser cannons and fired a furious volley at Megatron. A few shots hit their mark but the rest either missed or deflected off of Megatron's sword. Optimus charged Megatron again. This time Optimus turned around at the last second and hit Megatron with a quick blast from his rocket pack.
Megatron flew back and up off of the Nemesis. The blast left him partially stunned. "Quick, Bulkhead, into the Nemesis." Optimus ordered. The two Autobots made their way towards the bridge of the Decepticon warship. Meanwhile, inside Trypticon, Jetfire and Jenny were fighting their way past scores of Vehicons. Jetfire nailed one Vehicon with a twin barreled laser that deployed from his arm while Jenny hit two more with a salvo of four shoulder rockets.
"Nice shot Jen." Jetfire complimented after blasting another Vehicon. "You're not so bad yourself Jetfire." Jenny quipped. The two made slow and steady progress into Trypticon's inner workings. "All teams, I have good news. Optimus and Bulkhead are inside the Nemesis and on their way to the bridge." Ratchet reported. "Good luck Prime. I'm counting on you." Jenny reminded. "I know." The Autobot leader replied.
"We're at another fork mate. Which way?" Jetfire asked. "Turn left and keep going for 300 meters. You should arrive at a large locked door." The medic responded. Jetfire and Jenny headed in that direction and continued to fight off the Vehicon resistance.
Meanwhile, on the outside of Trypticon, Bumblebee, Arcee, and Wheeljack were busy fighting Dreadwing and his squadrons. Wheeljack slid in behind Dreadwing and began to fire his ship's cannons. "This is for Seaspray you slaghead!" he yelled. Dreadwing swerved out of the incoming fire and pulled a loop to evade. Wheeljack stuck with the Decepticon flyer, but couldn't pull enough lead for a shot.
"I can't get a good angle; can one of you help me out?" Wheeljack asked. Bee buzzed a response and headed for Wheeljack's position. Arcee followed him. Bumblebee attacked Dreadwing from the left with his blasters. Dreadwing broke right to evade but Arcee fired on him from the right. He reversed his turn but then went straight through Wheeljack's firing arc. A laser blast hit his wing which sent him spiraling out of control.
"Yeah! We got him!" Wheeljack exclaimed. "Don't celebrate yet. He's called in backup." Arcee countered. Sure enough, six Jet Vehicons bore down on the Autobots. They scattered in order to split the enemy's fire and regrouped to counter attack. While they were distracted Dreadwing took the opportunity to swing around the three Autobots and attack from behind.
The Jackhammer's scanners picked him up however. "Look out guys. Dreadwing's tryin' to pull a fast one." Wheeljack warned. Team Two turned around with three Vehicons still pursuing them. Dreadwing and the Vehicons fired everything they had left and the Autobots did the same. At the last second, Team Two split off while the Vehicons stayed their course. Dreadwing's ordinance destroyed the Vehicons while Dreadwing himself was able to evade the Autobots fire. Low on reinforcements and outnumbered, Dreadwing withdrew from combat and headed for the Nemesis.
Inside the Nemesis, Optimus and Bulkhead were having a relatively easy time fighting off the Vehicons inside the warship. Only ground Vehicons remained on board the Nemesis so they were easy pickings for the Autobot warriors. The two Autobots arrived at the bridge and Optimus immediately headed for the Spacebridge control panel. "Optimus duck!" Bulkhead yelled. The Autobot leader followed his subordinate's advice just as a devastating wave of sonic energy passed over him. Soundwave stepped out of the shadows and launched Laserbeak from his chest. It sped over to Bulkhead and blasted at him.
Optimus came out of his cover and began shooting at Soundwave. Soundwave dodged the blasts and used his long, tentacle like arms to use the helm console. He set the ship to list 40 degrees to starboard. He continued to fire his Sonic Blaster as the ship leaned ever more precariously to the left. The list was so sudden that it threw Knockout and Breakdown off guard. "Soundwave, what in Primus is going on?" Knockout asked in an irritated tone.
Soundwave showed them a live video feed of the bridge. Knockout and Breakdown could clearly make out Soundwave fighting Optimus and Bulkhead. Without another word, Knockout and Breakdown made a beeline for the bridge. On the way, they rallied any Vehicons that were still functional and told a few to wake up the Insecticons. In the meantime, Megatron came to and made his way toward the halls of the Nemesis. Eventually he came across Breakdown and Knockout.
"What is our status?" Megatron demanded. "Soundwave is under attack from Optimus Prime and Bulkhead. He is holding them off but we are on our way to relieve him." Knockout explained. Satisfied with Knockout's response, Megatron assumed leadership of the group that Knockout assembled.
Back on the Bridge, Bulkhead managed to disable Laserbeak and assisted Optimus with Soundwave. Realizing his tactical disadvantage, Soundwave bridged to a different area of the Nemesis. "All teams, we have control of the bridge… for now." Optimus reported. He accessed one of the consoles and sealed off the bridge.
Jenny smiled from cheek to cheek under her battle mask. Just a little more and I'm home free. She thought. Despite the fun and adventure she had with the Autobots, she wanted to get home as fast as possible. "Trypticon's Spark chamber should be directly ahead behind a large guarded door." Ratchet advised. Jenny snapped back to full attention. "This is it kid: The final push." Jetfire said.
They reached the door and stopped in their tracks to see Shockwave and Starscream guarding it. "Ah. So nice to finally meet you Jenny." Shockwave teased. "I must thank you for supplying Trypticon's new power supply." Jenny scowled at the Decepticon scientist. "Shut it Cyclops!" Jenny retorted. Starscream started to chuckle at Jenny's insult before Shockwave glared at him. "Stand down and you'll be spared." Jetfire promised.
"Tempting Jetfire, but I think we'll pass." Starscream replied. "Suit yourselves." Jenny quipped before she charged at Starscream. Jetfire followed suit and took aim at Shockwave. Starscream fired his blasters at Jenny, but she evaded them by running along one of the walls. She jumped off and delivered a right hook to Starscream's face. He struck Jenny with his claws but neither opponent did any major damage. Jenny then noticed something she should have during her first encounter with Starscream."Are those high heels?" She teased. "They're support struts!" Starscream yelled.
Shockwave charged his cannon's capacitors behind some cover while Jetfire blasted at his position. When the cannon reached full charge, Shockwave broke cover and returned fire. A powerful energon blast leapt out of Shockwave's cannon. Jetfire barely dodged it before firing another burst from his own weapon.
Back on the bridge of Nemesis, Optimus and Bulkhead heard Megatron and his reinforcements coming toward the bridge. Knockout attempted to open the door but the pass code no longer worked. "It seems as though the Autobots have changed the lock." Knockout reported. "Then blast the door open." Megatron ordered. The Decepticons pointed their weapons at the door and opened fire.
"Blast door structural integrity down to 80%." Bulkhead announced. Optimus contacted Team One. "We have a situation. The Decepticons are attempting to retake the bridge." Optimus said. "Blast door structural integrity down to 63%." Bulkhead reported. Jenny wasn't prepared to receive that information. She momentarily lost focus, allowing Starscream an opening to punch her squarely in the face. She flew backwards into a wall and landed in a heap on the floor.
"Jenny?" Optimus said. "Structural integrity at 34%." Bulkhead continued. Jenny shook off the blow and found cover to think. In less time than it takes for a human to blink, Jenny reached her decision. "Blow the Bridge." She said quickly, not wanting to hesitate for fear that she wouldn't be able to say the words. Optimus keyed in the self destruct sequence and locked the system. "Bulkhead, the time has come for our departure." Optimus decided. The Two Autobots blasted the windows open and flew out of them. A few seconds later, the Decepticons broke through the door.
Caught off guard, some of the Vehicons were swept out of the bridge due to the explosive decompression. The emergency force fields activated and sealed the bridge off shortly thereafter. Knockout glanced at one of the consoles and gasped. "Lord Megatron, the Autobots have activated the Space Bridge's self destruct sequence!" Megatron activated his comm link. "Soundwave, can you override the command?" Soundwave replied with text on the bridge's main view screen. NEGATIVE. SYSTEM LOCKED OUT. NO TIME TO BREAK ENCRYPTION. SPACE BRIDGE DESTRUCTION: IMMINENT
A few seconds later, the space bridge collapsed in on itself, leaving only a few chuncks of debris. Megatron raced to the flight deck, shifted into vehicle mode and rocketed toward Optimus and Bulkhead. "Incoming boss!" Bulkhead warned. The duo barrel rolled out of the way as Megatron charged at them guns blazing. The Decepticon leader reversed course and charged at Optimus again. Optimus returned fire but Megatron seemed to shrug off his hits.
Two of Megatron's blasts damaged Optimus's right wing, but thankfully missed the rocket pack. Bulkhead fired his own cannons which hit Megatron in his engine and right wing root. Megatron went into a brief spin before Optimus grabbed hold of him and began punching him. Megatron shifted into robot mode and shoved Optimus away. "Bulkhead, assist the other teams. I will handle Megatron." Optimus ordered. Bulkhead did as he was told and headed for Trypticon.
Optimus and Megatron stood… er… hovered face to face. "It's you and me Megatron. One shall stand…" Optimus began. "And one shall fall." Megatron finished. The combatants drew their swords and charged at each other with breakneck speed. Finally their swords clashed and clanged as each opponent struggled for an advantage.
Back at the entrance to Trypticon's spark, Jenny was busy helping Jetfire deal with Shockwave and Starscream to keep her mind off the fact that she just ordered the destruction of her ticket home. "You alright kid?" Jetfire asked. Jenny dodged a missile from Starscream by cart wheeling out of its flight path. "Let's focus on what we have to do here." She replied. As the fight raged on, Jenny and Jetfire came to a realization. "This is getting us nowhere." Jetfire observed. "I know, but what are we supposed to do?" Jenny responded.
"I think I have an idea." Jetfire said. "Hey, Starscream! Why are you helping Shockwave anyway?" The Decepticon Air Commander paused for a moment. "What do you mean?" Starscream wondered. "Isn't he the one who usurped your rightful place as Megatron's first lieutenant?" Jetfire suggested. "Do not listen to him. He is trying to play us against each other." Shockwave reasoned. "He does have a point though. You were the one who allowed the Space Bridge to get destroyed and allow two Autobots to escape to Earth." Starscream began. "And even after that, Megatron made you the first lieutenant when he unearthed you."
"I've been doing all the work while you were in that pod, and Megatron still gives more respect to you!" Starscream yelled. While the two Decepticons bickered, Jenny and Jetfire snuck into Trypticon's Spark chamber. "I'll watch the door. You plant the charges." Jenny said. Jetfire nodded in acknowledgement and began his work. Jenny leaned up against the door to see if she could hear Shockwave and Starscream.
"Maybe if you had an ounce of loyalty, Megatron would have kept you as his first lieutenant." Shockwave argued. "What do you know? You're always off playing with your toys while I'm doing the dirty work." Starscream shot back. "Please, it was the Vehicons who did the most damage to Cliffjumper." Shockwave reminded. Starscream was taken aback. "You know about that?!" Jenny laughed softly at the bickering bots. "THIS IS TRYPTICON. 5 MINUTES TO FIRING." Trypticon boomed. Caught by surprise, Starscream and Shockwave looked around.
"Where did they…" Shockwave began. The two Decepticons looked at each other and shouted "The Spark chamber!" in unison. They tried to get the door open, but Jetfire locked out the controls. "You might want to pick up the pace Jetfire. Shockwave and Starscream got wise to us." Jenny warned. "Almost done, just a few more charges." He answered.
Meanwhile, back in space, Megatron and Optimus were still fighting ferociously. Eventually, Optimus got the upper hand when he blasted Megatron with his blaster and followed up with a blast from his pulse rockets. Megatron flew backwards once again. He shifted into his vehicle mode and charged at Optimus, intent on ramming him. Optimus dodged out of the way and blasted Megatron again.
Just then, a message came from Jetfire. "All teams, the charges are in place." He reported. Optimus got in one last punch before activating his comm link. "All teams fall back." He ordered. Optimus and Team Two along with Bulkhead flew back toward Earth. Jetfire pulled out the remote trigger but noticed a problem. "Aw scrap." He swore. "What is it?" Jenny asked. He showed her the trigger. "My remote trigger must have been damaged during the firefight." He said. Jenny thought for a moment before saying. "I'll blow the charges. You focus on getting out in one piece." Jenny said.
"You sure?" he asked. "Absolutely Jenny answered with finality. "Good luck." Jetfire said before blasting out of Trypticon through a maintenance hatch. As soon as Jetfire was clear, Jenny activated each of the charges manually. She began to fly out the same access hatch Jetfire used when the charges began to detonate. Shockwave and Starscream heard the explosions and immediately bridged out of Trypticon. "CRITICAL FALIURE IN MAIN POWER CELL. DEMISE IMMINENT." Trypticon realized.
Jenny was having trouble out running the explosions but she eventually made it out of Trypticon and started toward Earth. Before she could make it into ground bridge range however, Trypticon exploded in a brilliant ball of flame that seemed to stretch on for thousands of miles. The Nemesis was able to withdraw before the explosion could reach them.
All of the Autobots walked back into the base… except for Jenny. "Where is she?" Optimus asked. "My trigger wasn't working so she offered to activate the charges manually." Jetfire explained. "Wait, I have her!" Ratchet explained. "She's headed toward Earth, but at incredible speed." Jenny was able to activate her force field before Trypticon exploded. Unfortunately, the force from the blast sent her hurtling toward Earth. "Her life signal is still active, but she's moving too fast for me to get ground bridge lock." Ratchet explained. Jetfire thought for a moment. "Can you calculate her trajectory and place a ground bridge along her projected path?" Jetfire wondered.
"It's worth a try." Ratchet decided. He calculated Jenny's descent path and opened a Ground Bridge at 1000 ft. When Jenny made it into the lower atmosphere, she applied her airbrakes. This affected her trajectory a bit so Ratchet adjusted for it accordingly. Jenny fell through the Ground Bridge and flew out the other end into the base before hitting the wall. As the Autobots gathered around her Jenny checked herself for damage. Thanks to her force field, there was very little.
"Alright Jenny!" Bulkhead shouted. "Yeah way to go Jen!" Miko agreed. "Indeed we are all in your debt." Optimus added. "You did good kid." Arcee complimented. Before Jenny could respond, Fowler called and requested that the Autobots meet him at Nellis Air Force Base. There, he gave a speech to the Autobots. "Thanks to you, Trypticon has been destroyed and the world is saved. I owe to you my life, my liberty, and my future. The President has asked me to award you the Congressional Medal of Honor for Conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty."
The Autobots returned to their base happier than ever before. For Jenny, the joy was short-lived. She now had to face the possibility of being stuck in another dimension forever…
On the Nemesis…
"Trypticon's destruction is a huge blow to our cause. But we Decepticons must persevere in our quest for domination. One day, we will triumph over the Autobots and claim this planet as our own." Said Megatron.