Hi everyone, welcome back! I do apologize for the delay. My last update with my previous story of "Fairy May Cry" was over 31K words, my biggest update yet, and it took over five days to do, so I needed to take some time off to rest and relax so I don't burn myself out. But now, I'm back!

And we are here at the climax of the UFN arc, and this is going to be one incredible chapter! I've got so much planned for it that you really don't want to miss a single thing! So, without further delay, let's get started!

Oh, one quick thing… Please DO NOT SPOIL "RISE OF THE BEASTS!" Thank you.

The New Prime

The medical bay was deathly silent, save for the sound of the monitors beeping as well as the heavy breathing of the barely living Optimus Prime, who had just dropped a bombshell that nobody had expected. Smokescreen, Perceptor, and especially Ratchet were completely stunned. Milly, Shirley, Rivalz, Nina, and Cecile appeared to be just as shocked as everyone else; the amnesiac Cera seemed more confused than anything, not completely knowing what was going on, but still rather surprised. Nunnally's eyes widened as she turned to look at her brother, wondering what he was thinking.

Lelouch's eyes were widened like dinner plates, his mouth hanging open as his face turned pale. Did he really just hear Optimus say that?! Was he really planning to pass the Matrix of Leadership, the collective wisdom of the original Primes, the last remaining piece of Primus' very spark, onto him?!

"W-wait… wait… a moment…" Cecile spoke up. "Is… that even possible? I don't fully understand how this Matrix of Leadership works but… can a non-Cybertronian even use it?" She looked towards Ratchet.

"Yeah, I mean… the thing's gotta be bigger than Lelouch's whole body, right?" Rivalz added. "Unless it gets plugged into his Knightmare or something…"

"I… I truly do not know." Ratchet confessed. "Something like this has never happened before. The passing of the Matrix is one thing but… to a human?!"

"There is no record in Cybertronian history that another type of lifeform ever wielded the Matrix." Perceptor said.

"And even if Lelouch can use it…? How's he supposed to use the Forge! I mean… look at it!" Smokescreen gestured to the Forge of Solus Prime that laid on the ground near them. "Unless he ends up growing really big or it shrinks some, I don't see how it's physically possible!"

"Alien magic… I guess." Milly said with a shrug. "Unless it really does plug into his Knightmare…"

"But wouldn't that make it easier to steal?" Nina wondered. "Optimus has the Matrix inside him, right? And it's not like Lelouch is going to live in his Knightmare forever…"

"Guys!" Shirley got all their attention. She gestured towards the young man and looked at all of them with a hard expression, silently telling them that they should think about how Lelouch thinks about this, as he is literally the center of this topic, not to mention his own emotional state. Something they all picked up on and looked towards him with sympathy.

"I… I…" Lelouch didn't know what to say at first, clearly still trying to process it all. "I can't… I'm not…" He felt a gentle grip on his hand and turned towards Nunnally, who looked at him with an expression of concern and empathy, which seemed enough for him to at least get his thoughts somewhat in order and speak properly. "I can't do it. I can't take it." He spoke to the gravely injured Prime. "Optimus… I'm… I'm truly flattered… but even if the differentiating species argument doesn't apply… I'm not worthy of such a gift. I'm… I'm not Prime material."

"Lelouch…" Optimus spoke weakly, looking towards him with understanding and concern. "The choice… is neither yours… nor mine… to make. When it is time… the Matrix of Leadership… will present itself only to one… who is truly worthy. As its… current wielder… I can feel the will… of the Matrix itself… and it… calls to you. We may be… of different species… and… you may not believe you are worthy… but I do. You… have grown… so much… you are indeed… worthy of the title… of Prime…"

Under any other circumstance, Lelouch would feel humbled and honored… but here, he only felt a cold emptiness forming in his heart.

"Well… if the Matrix has a will of its own…." His fists clenched. "Then I'm going to have to disappoint it. I reject the Matrix of Leadership."

While the humans present were certainly surprised to hear that, none were more shocked than Ratchet, Perceptor, and Smokescreen. Did they just hear that right?! Did Lelouch openly say that he rejects the Matrix!? Who in the name of Cybertron would ever reject something like that!?

"Not if it means I have to give up you in exchange!" Lelouch continued as his voice became much more emotional. "Optimus… you… you're the closest thing to a father that I've ever had! I don't doubt the Matrix's power… but what makes you think I'll accept power in the place of someone I care about?! I didn't give up on Suzaku, or Cornelia, or any of my other friends or family, and you encouraged me to do so! So what in the hell makes you think I am going to give you up just to wield some kind of godly power?!" Lelouch exclaimed as his face was filled to the brim with emotions, tears flowing down his eyes. "Over my dead body…!"

Shirley had covered her hand over her mouth as she felt her eyes water, Milly, Nina, and Cecile were also on the verge of crying as Rivalz tried to harden his face to avoid showing any emotional weakness, as hard as it was, with Smokescreen attempting to do the same. Perceptor looked serious, while Ratchet had a somewhat conflicted expression himself, but he wholeheartedly agreed with Lelouch. Nunnally didn't even stop herself from crying, not just at seeing her brother like this, but the implication that she may very well lose her father figure as well.

As for Optimus himself, he honestly never felt prouder to hear Lelouch say something like that. He was willing to reject power for the sake of someone he loved. That alone made him more worthy than he knows. Yet at the same time…

"Lelouch… I've always admired your drive… your unwillingness to give up…" Optimus weakly said. "But… even you know… that you cannot save everyone… and… you also have to learn… when to let go…"

The young man's teeth gritted with rage and sadness. And right before he could yell back…

"Zero!" T-AI contacted him urgently through the comms.

"What?!" Lelouch exclaimed, but quickly realized that he put his emotions into that response and tried to shove them down so he could speak more professionally, as best as he could anyway. "What is it, T-AI?"

"Damocles is almost within our airspace! ETA, fifteen minutes!"

"Get all civilians underground immediately, just as we planned! Ready the shields to maximum power and mobilize all our forces!" Lelouch ordered before addressing everyone else. "Megatron will be here soon."

"So… what do we do, then?" Cecile asked.

"Anything you can to keep Optimus alive!" Lelouch stated firmly. "Ratchet… if there are no other options, use the Forge. But, if possible, try to use only enough to put him in stable condition. I'm not going to sacrifice any chance of restoring your home."

"You don't have to tell me, and… thank you." Ratchet said sincerely. Of course, the medic would do anything and everything in his power to save his oldest friend, but he was also grateful that Lelouch was very considerate of Cybertron's future as well. The young man truly has grown since he first saw him.

"Is there anything we can do?" Shirley asked.

"Help Ratchet and Nina, that's all I can ask for now." Lelouch replied.

"Sure, leave it to us, buddy." Rivalz said with an assuring smile.

"You just go and give Megatron some hellish payback from all of us!" Milly stated with a determined grin.

"I… I don't know all that much about… all of this but… I'll try and help in any way that I can!" Cera offered her services, trying to put on a determined expression herself.

"Thank you… all of you." Lelouch nodded. "Smokescreen, let's go."

"Right." The young Autobot transformed and opened his driver's seat for Lelouch to get in. But before he could, Nunnally quickly ran up to hug him from behind.

"You come back, too! Alright, Lelouch?!" She cried. "You come back to me! To all of us!" She was already on the verge of losing a father, she couldn't bare to lose her big brother either.

Lelouch gently put his hands on Nunnally's and unwrapped himself so that he could look with an assuring smile. "I'll be back." He wrapped his pink-finger around hers. "I swear to you, Nunnally. I will return."

Nunnally smiled as she stifled back her tears. "And you'll eat a thousand needles if you don't…!"

Lelouch tried to push back his laugh at that before he let go and entered Smokescreen's vehicle mode, who drove off immediately, leaving everyone else to get to work immediately at keeping Optimus alive as long as they could.

Pretty much the entire forces that consisted of the Autobot-Black Knight alliance had gathered outside on Horai Island from nearly every Autobot to every single Black Knight Knightmare. This large force appeared to be led by Ironhide, Ultra Magnus, and Ohgi, as they stood alongside Jazz, Undertone, Wheeljack, Smokescreen, Windblade, Warpath, Drift, Tamaki, Cornelia, Guilford, Chigusa, Ashley, Jean, Sokkia, Zhou, Grimlock, Alice, Dalque, Sancia, and Lucretia; all the humans in their respective Knightmares, and even the former Vehicon now known as Steve was present as well.

Hovering just above them was the Ark, which was being operated solely by T-AI. Standing outside on the deck where Zero, Bumblebee, Suzaku, Elita-One, Kallen, Arcee, Rai, and Bulkhead, along with the Jetfire, Tohdoh, Leila, Akito, Sideswipe, Ryo, Grindcore, Yukiya, Strongarm, Ayano, Jeremiah, Nonette, Gino, Monica, Orpheus, Anya, Oldrin, Marrybell, Chiba, and Xingke, all of the humans present were in their respective Knightmares.

It was deathly silent as they all gazed up at the presence of a dark shadow that would loom over Horai Island.

Damocles had arrived. Its imposing figure caused everyone around to either shake with fear or look with hardened expressions. The Decepticon-built station may not be directly over the artificial island, but one of its cannons was already primed and aimed directly toward the gathered army, though it was likely to assume the main target was the Ark.

The second he saw the energy beginning to build up in one of the fusion cannons, Lelouch gave the order. "All Horai shields up to maximum power! Windblade, Smokescreen, the second that beam fires, you move in!"

"You got it." Smokescreen nodded.

"Right." Windblade said as well.

"Shields are up at maximum power!" Fixit reported as he, Rakshata, Lloyd, Euphemia, Kaguya, Sayoko, Diethard, Toto, Misty, Claus, and several other scientists and operators were in the main control facility for the island.

"Let's just hope they hold up." Lloyd gulped.

The cannon then opened fire. Just like when they first saw it, a massive beam of green fusion energy shot down at a diagonal angle towards Horai Island. Everyone braced themselves, expecting the absolute worst…

Fortunately, the beam had impacted the shields that had expanded over the whole artificial island. Waves of fusion energy spread out in all directions over the island. While nobody was harmed, the force of the impact was enough to send a tremor that shook up the area as even waves of water were blown back.

"Let's go!" Windblade transformed into her jet-mode, prompting Smokescreen to jump and wrap his arms and legs around her just before she shot straight up. "Better hope that thing of yours works, kid. Or else this will be short flight!"

"Yeah, and you and me both." Smokescreen activated the Phase Shifter.

They quickly flew through the shield together and into the beam, with Smokescreen closing his eyes and holding onto Windblade's jet-mode as tight as he could.

Fortunately, the Phase Shifter had worked! Even if he was the one wearing it, him holding onto Windblade at the moment of activation allowed them both to become intangible as they flew through the beam of deadly energy as if it weren't even there. Smokescreen even opened his optics to look in awe at what was the green neon energy that passed over them.

"Whoa…."

The beam had ceased it's firing just as the pair had phased directly into the station. And that was when the shields all over Horai Island completely shattered.

"Shields are down! I repeat, the shields are down!" Anna reported.

"How long until we get them back up?" Claus questioned.

"Probably a day at least." Toto responded. "Our shield generator overloaded the second the fusion blast ended! We were fortunate it happened when it did…"

"Or else we would have been dealt with serious damage." Misty added. "But we can't rely on the shields anymore."

"Do you hear that Zero?" Kaguya relayed the information to her leader. "Those cannons have to be shut down soon! We can't take another blast like that!"

"Understood." Lelouch replied. "Windblade, Smokescreen, tell me you two made it inside!"

"Yeah, we're inside. No damage reported. The Phase Shifter worked like a charm." Smokescreen said over the comms.

"We're looking for the power cores now." Windblade added. "Shields will take priority, but we'll disable any of the others if we see them."

"Good." Lelouch was already relieved. Their whole plan depended on whether or not the Phase Shifter could work. If it hadn't, they would have been in real trouble. "T-AI, commence the attack! Move the Ark in, now!"

"Moving in!"

The vessel was already quickly flying towards the hovering station. The Ark's weapons went online almost immediately as they all aimed at Damocles.

"Target locked! Firing now!" Upon T-AI's command, multiple heavy cannons opened fire while dozens of missiles. However, none of the explosive projectiles ever made contact with the station itself, thanks to the shield that surrounded it.

"Zero to all units, this is where we hold the line!" Zero contacted all his forces. "Tohdoh, Jetfire, and Marrybell will lead anyone on the Ark who can fly will intercept any Decepticon forces that are launched from Damocles! Sideswipe, Grindcore, Strongarm and the Black Wyverns will protect the Ark itself from any intruders! Ultra Magnus and Ohgi will lead the ground forces to neutralize any enemy that makes it to the island! We make our stand here! Bumblebee, Suzaku, Kallen, Arcee, Elita, Bulkhead, and Rai, you're all with me! Thanks to the schematics provided to us by Steve, we can get to the top of Damocles, that's where Megatron will likely be, and I'm certain he'll leave the door open for us, knowing him."

"Here they come." Bumblebee said as they saw a whole swarm of aerial Vehicons pour out from the sides of Damocles and gun their way straight toward the airborne Ark, which were being led by Thundercracker, Slipstream, and Sky-Byte.

"Leave them to us! All aerial units, attack now!" Tohdoh ordered as the Zangetsu was the first to take off, with Jetfire's Jet-mode flying next to them, and the small yet skilled team of chosen Black Knights flew from the Ark to engage the enemy.

"Now it's our turn to move in. Let's not keep Buckethead waiting." Kallen stated.

"Wait, something's coming from the top of the station!" Elita pointed out.

All eyes set toward what the blue female Autobot was pointing at. Something did emerge from the top of the station, though they couldn't get a good look at it from this distance.

"Is it Megatron?" Arcee asked.

"Nah… bigger." Bulkhead said, looking more confused than anything.

Suzaku used the Lancelot's systems to zoom in on the unidentified flying object heading in their direction, getting a clear view on his screen, but he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

"Is… is that… a dragon?"

It was the Predacon! The metallic dragon-like beast gave a roar as it hovered above the deck of the Ark, revealing its intimidating form to the sixteen remaining individuals onboard, right before its chest began to glow, the orange light traveling up its throat before it unleashed a blazing inferno down onto them.

"MOVE!" Lelouch exclaimed as all the Autobots and Knightmares scattered to avoid the large fireball that struck the haul and exploded. They all gazed up once more to the roaring Predacon that circled around them in the sky.

"A dragon!? Are you fucking kidding me?!" Kallen shouted incredulously.

"Let's blow it out of the sky!" Rai had his Raiden's Surger already charged with electricity.

"No, you all stay focused on Megatron!" Akito reminded. "Leave this to us!"

"He's right! We can't get distracted!" Elita agreed.

Lelouch gritted his teeth. He hated when an unknown variable appeared out of nowhere, but who could have expected a dragon!? You'd think after everything he's seen up till this point, from alien-godly magic to literal zombies, that he really wouldn't be surprised by anything anymore. Looks like he was wrong once again. But they still had a job to do.

"Alright, we'll leave it to you! Let's move!" Zero ordered as the Shinkiro picked up Bumblebee and flew forward, with Arcee hoping onto the Guren as it and the Lancelot, which had picked up Elita, flew next while the Raiden picked up Bulkhead. The group of eight flew in the direction that would lead them to the top of Damocles.

However, the Predacon also saw them and was about to fly in pursuit.

"We can't let that thing get in their way! Black Wyverns, form Hercules!" Leila ordered as the blue Geass sigil appeared in her eyes.

"Yeah!" Akito, Ryo, Yukiya and Ayano all shouted simultaneously as blue rings formed in each of their own eyes.

The Enigma of Combination glowed as all five separate Alexander units combined together to create the combiner known as Hercules, which shot into the air.

"Find a way to bring it down here so we can help!" Sideswipe contacted.

"Yeah, so we can introduce it to our fists!" Grindcore pounded his fists together.

The Predacon flew in pursuit of Zero's group and was ready to blast them out of the sky, only for the Hercules to fly up faster and draw its sword to slash up its side and draw its attention.

"Hey! Over here you oversized lizard!" Ayano shouted as the Hercules' left arm unveiled a large cannon to shoot the Predacon in the face, but this only angered the beast as it flew in pursuit of the Knightmare-Combiner.

"Oh, I think we got its attention!" Yukiya said. "So, now what?!"

"Back to the Ark! We'll overpower it with Sideswipe and the others!" Leila replied.

"Incoming!" Ryo warned as the Predacon had tucked its wings in to dive towards the fleeing Hercules, catching it with its enormous body and falling straight towards the outer haul of the Ark, slamming down the Combiner hard, and shaking everyone inside.

The Predacon had pinned the Hercules down with its claws and was ready to incarnate it, but Grindcore had rushed to deck it across the face and shake it off. When the Predacon turned towards him, multiple Energon blasts were shot at its side as Sideswipe and Strongarm ran around it while firing with their respective long-ranged weapons, but the Predacon was quick to swipe its tail at the both of them to send them flying and crashing into a nearby wall. Grindcore tried to rush it again and grab it by the throat.

"Hold still you lousy…!" Grindcore held on as tight as he could, but the Predacon shook its head around in all directions before sending Grindcore flying off.

But this gave the Hercules time to recover as it hovered above the metallic dragon and raised its sword high with both hands. Leila and her whole team gave mighty yells as they shot downward to bring the blade down hard onto the Predacon's skull. And it seemed that the blade did had managed to cut through and even draw Energon.

"We got it!" Ryo cheered.

"Headshot baby!" Yukiya exclaimed.

"No…" Akito's eyes widened in a panic as he saw the glow in the Predacon's throat. "We only scratched the surface!"

"Disband now!" Leila screamed, seeing what was about to happen next.

The Hercules had separated itself into the five Alexanders that made up its form just as the Predacon unleashed a fire blast from its mouth. The resulting explosion sent all five of them scattered in various directions across the Ark's haul. Though for the most part, despite the intense heat and powerful blast, four of the Alexanders were still operable.

"Leila!" Akito exclaimed in shock as it seemed that hers had taken the worst of it. It wasn't completely destroyed, but most of its limbs were blown off, and even Leila had been knocked unconscious as she laid in the broken cockpit.

"What kind of monster is that…?" Ayano's face paled at the roaring Predacon.

Strongarm had just recovered with Sideswipe to see what had happened before accessing her comms. "We need back up on the Ark, stat!"

"Send Grimlock! I repeat, send Grimlock!" Sideswipe added, feeling they would need their heaviest hitter for this.

The Predacon marched its way towards the downed Alexander that had Leila inside, only for Grindcore and the other units of the Black Wyverns to stand in its way.

"Don't think so, ugly." Grindcore challenged.

"You want Leila, you go through us!" Ryo added.

Once more, the Predacon let loose its demonic roar. But before it could go on the attack, a Groundbridge portal had opened in front of it, and the next thing it saw was a ramming metallic shoulder in its face, courtesy of the charging Grimlock. As it was pushed back, Grimlock pressed on as he charged right at its belly, where he caught a brief look at the unfamiliar insignia on its chest before grabbing and flipping it over on its back.

"Whoa…." Yukiya's eyes widened.

"Someone called?" Grimlock asked as he turned to the others.

"Thanks…" Ayano breathed in relief.

"What is that thing?" The Dinobot questioned.

"We don't know, some kind of robot dragon?" Ryo responded.

"Or a Cybertronian reptile." Akito deduced. "But we can't overpower it. It's tougher than anything we have."

Grimlock turned around to see the Predacon standing upright once more. "Nothing is tougher than me. I'll handle it." He yelled at the Predacon in challenging style, the beast roaring at him in response before they both charged at one another. Right as they were about to clash, Grimlock had jumped high into the air before falling and slamming both his arms and legs on the Predacon's back to knock it down. He then quickly grabbed it by the joints of its wings.

"Come on! Let's go for a ride!" He pulled up hard, causing the Predacon to roar as it took to the sky before attempting to shake him off, causing Grimlock to stomp down as he pulled even harder, this forced the Predacon to fall off the side of the Ark and back towards the ground.

"Can he really take that monster on by himself?" Ayo asked.

"Grimlock's the toughest bot alive. He'll handle it." Sideswipe said in assurance.

"Right now, we have to help Leila." Akito said.

However, another Groundbridge portal opened, drawing the attention of the seven heroes as Steeljaw and the Thanatos both stepped out.

"A shame, really." Steeljaw commented. "I was hoping that Predacon would tear you all to pieces."

"I'm actually thankful." Shin smiled malevolently. "Because it gives me the opportunity to do so with myself."

"Rah, not these guys again!" Ryo growled.

On the ground, Ultra Magnus and all his forces saw the explosions that rang above as the Ark and Damocles hovered in the air. The sounds of thunder that echoed through the sky made everyone else feel a little nervous. Of course, there was also the fact that Grimlock had to leave the main force to deal with this 'robo dragon', with the Irregulars flying off to provide aid. Even if they still had large numbers on their side, the fact that arguably their strongest players were not among them at the moment made them all a little nervous.

Cornelia happened to notice Steve looking rather tense, not that she could blame him. "Hey." She got his attention as the cockpit in her Knightmare opened, allowing her to stand up so she can speak to him directly. "One defector to another, you don't have to be here. You can leave any time you wish."

Steve shook his head. "I'm not sure there's anywhere in the world that's safe now. But… that doesn't matter. I'm here now, might as well see this thing through to the end."

Cornelia only smiled. "Alright. But, I got your back."

"Thanks." Steve nodded.

"Heads up everyone!" Ohgi got their attention as more than a few Groundbridge portals opened in front of them. Pouring out of them were multiple enemy Vehicons, all of whom were in their vehicle modes as they drove at high speeds, while also producing their blasters from their sides to open fire. They would soon be followed by several tank Vehicons. And those at the head of this attack force were none other than Knock Out and Fracture.

"Open fire!" Ultra Magnus ordered. "Do not let a single Decepticon make it past us!"

With that order, all the Autobots and Black Knight Knightmares fired. Shots of Energon and bullets, along with heavy blasts of energy all rained forward onto the Decepticon attack force, the front most forces of the Cons were taken out by the blast, save for Knock Out and Fracture who were quick enough to maneuver past the blasts. But the bulk of the enemy soon transformed upon closing the distance, the opposing forces clashing against each other.

Grimlock and the Predacon continued to wrestle and tumble through the sky, coming closer towards the ground, with the dragon-like beast trying to shake off the Dinobot, but he kept a firm grip on the joints of the wings. He had initially tried to yank them off but they were too strong even for him. So, Grimlock then transformed into his T-Rex and bit down on the Predacon's neck. The sudden shift in weight caused the Predacon to spiral out of control as they both crashed hard on the metallic ground of Horai Island. They were some distance away from the main battle, but far enough not to get caught up in it or vice versa.

Upon landing, Grimlock had transformed back into his normal Cybertronian mode as he stumbled a bit, slightly shaken from the fall, before straightening out as a shadow loomed over him. He turned around to look in shock as the Predacon had not only already recovered, it quickly rushed to headbutt him and send him rolling across the ground. But the Predacon didn't stop there. It had grabbed Grimlock with its claws and flown upwards before slamming him down and then proceeded to drag him across the ground as the Dinobot tried to wrench himself free. He even tried pounding the Predacon in the face, but that only angered the beast who then bit down onto Grimlock's shoulder and threw him off to the side.

The Predacon would have kept up its assault, only for something fast to dash past its face, slashing it up with a pair of blades. The Predacon turned towards the hovering Pegasus with a growl.

"Get the hell away from him!" Alice exclaimed.

Before the metallic beast got a chance to retaliate, it was pounded in the side by a volley of Energon fire, courtesy of Lucretia's Tungsten Knightmare. This allowed the Ryujin and Scorpio to come in directly at its front. Sancia's unit sliced at the neck area, causing the head to move up before Dalque's Knightmare thrusted its flamethrowers into its face to push it down from the force alone.

"Dragon meets dragon!" Dalque stated.

"Dalque, watch out!" Sancia warned as the Predacon's tail had come in to slam into the Ryujin and knock it down closer towards the recovering Grimlock as the rest of the Irregulars regrouped to face the beast.

"First zombies, then a giant worm monster, now this?! Where does Shockwave get all this stuff?!" Lucretia questioned.

"Doesn't matter, we'll turn it to scrap like everything else." Alice's eyes narrowed.

"Watch yourselves." Grimlock advised as all five of them faced the roaring Predacon together. "This won't be a cakewalk."

Meanwhile, Zero's team had flown towards the top of Damocles, the four Knightmares carrying their respective Autobot allies as they spotted the courtyard that surrounded the black castle that was perched atop the massive station.

"Okay, did those guys seriously build a castle on top of that thing?" Rai questioned.

"They even got a fancy royal courtyard." Kallen looked with disgust.

"This thing was supposed to be made for Britannians, what do you expect?" Bulkhead replied.

"Let's stay focused." Elita told them. "Can you see any shields?"

Suzaku scanned the area with the Lancelot's sensors. "No shields in this area. Guess he is expecting us."

"Then let's not keep him waiting." Arcee said as the eight of them moved in. The four Autobots present were set down as the Knightmares landed beside them.

Not long after they touched down, the large door had opened as the leader of the Decepticons slowly stepped out, with his top scientist right behind him. The second they saw him, all humans and Cybertronians quickly felt a burning fire form in each of their stomachs. This was the same monster that had killed many of their closest friends, directly or indirectly, ruined countless lives, and had evaded justice so many times. He would not be getting away this time. They'll make sure of it.

"Welcome, all of you." Megatron greeted. "You know, aside from dear Ariel…" That comment caused Elita to narrow her eyes. "Those that stand before me, are among the few who helped started all of this. Three of Optimus' closest cohorts, who had first appeared before Britannia on the night of Suzaku's execution. Another one of the late Clovis' little experiments, and by extension, another child of the late Charles. The fearsome pilot of the red Knightmare who is always by Zero's side. And of course, our white knight and his new master. It's rather poetic, that it began with us, and now it'll end with us."

"Shut up." Lelouch growled. "I'm tired of listening to your voice."

"Is that so?" Megatron mused. "Tell me, Lelouch. How exactly do you plan to dispose of me, seeing as I am now immortal?"

"How about I put you in stasis and drop you into a black hole? Let's see if that works." Lelouch replied.

Megatron's smile only grew as he drew his blade. "Take your best shot." He was the first to charge forward as Shockwave provided cover fire with his cannon.

The heroes scattered as it looked like Megatron was heading straight for the Shinkiro, only for the Lancelot to bar his path as Suzaku had drawn his MVS blades and swung one of them at Megatron, who blocked it with his own blade before throwing a punch into the Lancelot's stomach. But as the white Knightmare went up, the black one fired a couple of Hadron blasts at the Decepticon leader. This pushed him back slightly as Bumblebee rushed to open fire with his own Energon blasters, prompting Megatron to quickly grab him by the head and slam him down, but this allowed Elita to come in with a jump and wrap her legs around his head before pulling herself down to yank him down as well, but he was quick to roll over and grab Elita and tried to throw her off the station entirely, but Suzaku quickly flew in to catch her before that happened. Bumblebee and the Shinkiro then charged in at Megatron from both sides.

Bulkhead gave a roar as swung his mace at Shockwave, who dodged the swing before backhanding him with his cannon to knock him back. The Raiden rolled forward to ram into Shockwave, pushing him back, but Shockwave dug his feet in and grabbed Rai's Knightmare by its chest unit before hauling him over to slam him into the ground. He then felt a shot to the back of his head and turned towards the smirking Arcee.

"Remember, me?" She said before firing, aiming at his eye…

Only for Shockwave to block the blast with his cannon and fired at the ground under Arcee to send her flying backwards.

"Yes. And I will not fall for the same trick twice." He readied his cannon again and fired, but the Guren landed in front of the downed Arcee and actually caught the blast in the Surger's active claw before Kallen let lose all that energy, both from Shockwave's attack, as well as the Surger's, sending an energy wave that pushed him back.

"I've got some tricks for ya, you damn cyclops." Kallen glared. "Wanna see em?"

Smokescreen held Windblade by her hand as they phased into a large chamber that contained an enormous tube of active energy that stretched from the floor up to the ceiling.

"Is this it?" Smokescreen asked. "Which core do you think this one is?"

Windblade looked around at some of the machines attached to the core at the floor and ceiling. "Probably the shields. Output seems to be going in all directions, which would only work if you needed to provide energy in the same area."

"Then let's take it down before any guards show up." Smokescreen had aimed his Energon blaster and was ready to open fire, only for a few blasts of Energon to come at them from above, causing them to step back.

The one who shot at them was none other than Soundwave, who leapt down from the ceiling before producing Ravage and Rumble. "Looks like we got some snoopy Autobots that need a serious pounding!" Rumble said enthusiastically as Ravage growled.

"Scrap." Windblade cursed as she drew her blades while Smokescreen opened fire.

Meanwhile, in the med-bay, Ratchet, Cecile, Perceptor, and the former Student Council else worked to the absolute best of their abilities to keep Optimus online as long as possible.

"His Energon flow is slowing down considerably." Perceptor reported.

"Can't we just inject more into him?" Rivalz asked.

"His internal processers are so severely traumatized, they're inoperable." Nina answered. "All it would do is just overflow his system!"

"Can't we fix them somehow?" Milly asked.

"They operate on a sub-micronic level, we don't have the means to repair them." Cecile answered.

"What about the Forge? Can't we use that?" Shirley asked, looking toward the ancient hammer.

"No, we can't, because only a Prime can wield it!" Ratchet stated. "None of us have that title, so we wouldn't even be able to use the Forge's power!"

As they continued to work and debate, Cera honestly felt completely useless. She had no idea what any of them were saying, so there was little she could do to help. She turned towards Nunnally, who remained close by weakened Optimus' face. She slowly walked towards the younger girl, even if she couldn't make sense out of all this science stuff, she could at least do this.

"We'll… figure it out." She tried to say to Nunnally. "I… I don't know how but… we will."

Nunnally turned to her with a teary-eyed smile.

"W-who….?" Optimus weakened voice drew their attention. "Stands… before me…?"

"Wha… Optimus! It's me… It's Nunnally…!" She tried to say, but he didn't appear to notice her or anyone else around him.

"W-who… beckons…" His voice was growing weaker, the light in his optics growing dimmer.

"Come Optimus." A familiar voice said as the Prime found himself in a dark void, walking toward a bright light in front of him.

"Is it truly you…? Alpha Trion…?" Optimus found himself facing the bright spectral form of his late mentor that stood within the light.

"I stand before you, my student. As such, it would seem that it is your time." Alpha Trion confirmed. But he noticed the look of uncertainty on Optimus' face. "Why do you hesitate?"

"I do not fear joining with the Allspark." Optimus said. "But, for the fate of the planet Earth and those who fight for it, and for the Matrix of Leadership."

"You know as well as I that you have found a worthy successor, one who will learn to be a Prime, as you once did." Alpha Trion replied. "And, it is that very same person who will guide his people out of the coming darkness."

"Alpha Trion, how is it possible for someone who is not a Cybertronian to bear the Matrix of Leadership?" Optimus asked.

"Do you ever wonder Optimus, why Megatron was never able to find it?" Alpha Trion responded with a question of his own. "He swore to claim the Matrix for himself and even destroyed Cybertron in order to do so, and yet he never found it. Rather, it presented itself to you."

"Because the core to our planet was dying." Optimus remembered. "Primus chose to pass a piece of his spark onto me so that there could still be a possibility to restore our home."

"Indeed. But as well, the Matrix of Leadership is not found, it is earned." Alpha Trion continued. "You were given the Matrix because you had earned it and proved yourself worthy as a true Prime. As such, the boy that you have mentored has grown into a being that has also earned the privilege to carry the Matrix. The difference in species does not matter."

"I had offered it to him, but he rejected it." Optimus said.

"And that makes him all the more worthy." Alpha Trion replied. "He chose to reject power for the sake of someone he cares for. That is why Megatron could never find it, because he only sought the Matrix for the power it wielded. And now, the time is come… for Lelouch to take the torch… and light a new future for his people and our own."

Meanwhile, the battles continue to rage across the sky and ground around Horai Island as the Autobots and Black Knight forces threw everything they had at the invading Decepticons with Damocles continuing to hang over them.

T-AI controlled the Ark and fired every known weapon she could at the station, but it's shields proved too be strong enough to protect it. Even if her main goal was to draw out the Decepticon army, she could at least keep up the barrage with the hopes of breaking through the barrier.

At the same time, the air forces all around and in-between the two opposing hovering objects continued to clash as more explosions lit up the sky.

"Decepticon scum! Take this! The storm of my loyalty!" Jeremiah's Siegfried launched a volley of missiles to take out several airborne Vehicons. Seemingly unaware of Slipstream leading a squadron of Seekers behind him.

"Concentrate all your fire on Orange! Blow that stain out of the sky!" She and her Seeker squadron let loose several more missiles at Jeremiah, many of them managing to hit as he was blown back with a growl. However, Slipstream's squadron was broken apart by a hadron blast from the Mordred.

"They're line is broken! Move in!" Anya exclaimed.

"Right!" Nonette flew forward in the Galeschin, followed by the Tristan Divider, and Florence Nero.

"Nice to have the gang back together." Gino smiled.

"Save it until after we win this!" Monica stated as they engaged the scattered Seekers, blowing them out of the sky with their long-ranged weapons while the Galeschin flew directly towards Slipstream's jet-mode, who proceeded to transform and grapple with the Knightmare as the two glared at one another.

Marrybell grunted as the side of her Lancelot Trial was rocked by an Energon blast from a flying Vehicon, but she was quick to retaliate and shoot it out of the sky. Oldrin and Orpheus were both quick to fly and surround her and provide covering fire.

"Weren't they just in-fighting?! Where do these Cons keep coming from?!" Orpheus questioned.

"Just keep firing!" Oldrin told her brother.

"Heads up, more incoming!" Marrybell warned as a line of jet Vehicons were barreling down on them, only for a Hadron blast to shoot above the trio of Knightmares and blow them away. The Knightmare responsible for that was the Agravain.

"Thanks…" Orpheus said to his uncle in a somewhat neutral yet grateful tone.

"Don't mention it." Oiagros smiled.

Amongst the fighting, Jetfire and Thundercracker both engaged in a dog fight as the latter chased the former in an attempt to shoot him down, but Jetfire transformed and let himself fly backwards. While Thundercracker was able to avoid Jetfire himself, the Aerialbot transformed again and turned the dog fight in his favor as he resumed fire, chasing the blue Seeker.

Tohdoh had sliced one Vehicon in half with his Knightmare's katana before firing a slash harken to take down another on the side.

"There's too many of them!"

"Colonel, watch out!" Chiba quickly flew in with her Akatsuki, brandishing her katana to fight off the charging Sky-Byte in his shark-mode but the force of his charge shattered her blade and sent her rolling across the sky. But Sky-Byte was forced to fall back as Xingke's Shen Hu had unleashed its baryon cannon, which also managed to obliterate a few other Vehicons.

Meanwhile, on the deck of the Ark, despite having the advantage in numbers, the remaining Black Wyverns and their Autobot friends were having a difficult time against Steeljaw and the Thanatos.

Grindcore gave a yell as he charged at Shin's advanced Knightmare, grabbing and tackling it to the ground. "Psycho, meet fist!" He tried to pound him while he was down, but Shin had swung up his Knightmare's sword to push back Grindcore before grabbing him by the face and throwing him down hard to the ground where Steeljaw had slashed his claws at Sideswipe, who parried them with his sword but was knocked down from the wolf-like Decepticon's onslaught.

However, Steeljaw was also forced back as Strongarm and Yukiya's Alexander fired at him with their long-distance weapons, forcing him to transform and drive in a semi-circle formation before gunning straight for them both and evading all their shots. He transformed back and used the momentum from his gathered speed to pounce onto both of them, but was then kicked back by Ayano in her Alexander as she pressed the attack with her Knightmare's sword, but Steeljaw was quick to catch the blade and punch her Knightmare down.

The Thanatos quickly descended from the ground and dropped its right foot onto Grindcore to further embed him into the ground but would soon find himself facing off against Ryo's Alexander as he drew his axe to hack and slash at him.

"Quit trying to kill us all the time, you damn freak!" Ryo exclaimed as he brought his Knightmare's axe down, but the Thanatos easily blocked it with its sword before spinning around to swipe its tail and sever the Alexander's legs.

"But where's the fun in that?" Shin smirked.

"You have a very twisted perception of fun, brother." His attention was drawn by his younger half-brother's voice as his Alexander stood protectively in front of the one where the unconscious Leila continued to reside.

"Are you and Leila close at all, Akito?" Shin asked. "If so, I'd be more than happy to send you both to hell where you can spend eternity together."

"Not if I kill you first!" Akito rushed his older brother, his Alexander Liberte drawing its katana to engage in a brutal sword duel against the larger Thanatos.

At the same time, the forces on the ground didn't appear to be faring any better. Several of the Aktasukis piloted by the Black Knight forces were already taken down by the onslaught of Decepticon fire, but that didn't stop them from taking more than a few Cons down with them.

Ironhide let loose with everything he had from his cannons, blasting away any Vehicon he saw, but two tank Vehicons came at his sides and transformed to grab and tackle him and force him down as a third one transformed into a tank in front of him and prepared to fire, only for it to go up in a blaze of glory from a volley of missiles.

"Hell yeah! You like that!?" Tamaki exclaimed as he and Warpath stood in a line with several heavily armored Wrecker Akatsukis.

"Light em up!" Warpath ordered as he transformed into his own tank mode and they let loose a volley of explosive fire to blast away any incoming Vehicons, allowing Ironhide to transform and escape from the two that had him grappled, both of which were quickly blown away as well.

Chigusa and Guilford were forced to come back-to-back in their respective Knightmares as they tried to return fire from the surrounding Vehicons, but they were quickly outnumbered and would soon be overwhelmed. That is if it weren't for Wheeljack who drove in on one side and transformed to draw his blades slice a Vehicon in two. Half of the Vehicons were drawn to him as they opened fire, forcing the Wrecker on the defensive as he used his swords to parry the blasts. At the same time, Jazz came up to face the other half of the Vehicon group, launching Undertone at one Vehicon and knocked him down with a flying kick. Jazz then used his Energon grappler to haul in one Vehicon and pound him into the ground. All the Vehicons that were focused on Wheeljack and Jazz however were shot down by Chigusa and Guilford now that they had room to work.

Drift was knocked back as he used his katanas to parry the blades of Fracture, while Jetstorm and Safeguard were locked in combat against Airazor and Divebomb respectively. However, the old Autobot and his students all appeared to be quickly overwhelmed as Fracture kicked Drift down.

"I've waited a long time for this, Drift." Fracture tried to lunge his blade at him, but Drift brought his katana up to keep it at bay, but it was hard to push back.

Zhou, Ashley, Jean, and Sokkia were at the front line with Ultra Magnus to try and keep the invading Decepticons at bay. However, while they and the Akatsukis near them were able to shoot down the smaller Vehicons, the larger tank varieties were another story as they all transformed and fired their heavy artillery, already taking down more than half the forces that were beside them.

"Ugh! Fall back!" Ultra Magnus ordered as he and those near him were forced to retreat.

Steve had shot down one Vehicon with his own Energon blaster. But he was knocked down by a punch from a larger Tank Vehicon.

"Burn, traitor!" He readied his main weapon to blast him, only to have his head blown off by a lunge from a spear wielded by the custom Vincent piloted by Cornelia. The Knightmare offered its hand to Steve.

"I told you I would have your back." Cornelia said with a smile inside her cockpit.

Steve accepted the gesture and was helped to his feet. "Thanks… I appreciate that."

Ohgi grunted as he fired the Gawain Neuron's hadron cannons into a group of Vehicons, but still saw more incoming. "There's no end to them!" Suddenly, he found his Knightmare being brought down as most of its weapons were no longer operable.

"What the…?!" He tried to start them back up, but there was no response.

"Oops." Knock Out smirked as he casually walked in front of the downed Gawain with his buzz-saw hand. "Looks like someone disabled your weapons. Now how about the squishy little human inside?" He activated his buzz saw again and lunged it at him, but the Gawain threw out a punch to not only push back the saw but even knock down the red Decepticon, despite the arm receiving damaged from that.

"I'm not going down without a fight." Ohgi vowed as he pushed his Knightmare up.

"Ground forces are being pushed back!" Toto reported.

"Our guys in the air aren't doing much better!" Claus added.

"Leila is down, and Akito's team appears to be in trouble!" Misty said as well.

"But where are Grimlock and the Irregulars?!" Kaguya questioned.

Dalque screamed as her Ryujin was smacked down by a swipe of the Predacon's claws. It then hovered in the air and let loose an inferno, waving its head in multiple directions to send spiraling flames at the flying Knightmares piloted by the rest of the Irregulars as they tried their best to avoid them. However, Alice's Pegasus proved quick enough to avoid most of them as she gunned straight for the Predacon's face. But the beast had anticipated this as it pulled back its head to slam it onto the Pegasus and send Alice crashing to the ground.

But just before the Predacon could descend and feast upon its prey, Grimlock had rushed and jumped upwards to tackle and knock the beast down on its back. But the Predacon pushed back with its claws to knock Grimlock off. The Dinobot quickly transformed into his T-Rex mode and let loose a roar before blasting his own plasma breath at the Predacon, who retaliated with its own fire breath. The two blasts collided and pressed against one another in a heated struggle. Grimlock pressed with as much strength as he could, but when it seemed like his firepower was about to get an edge, the Predacon somehow increased its own power and its own fire breath became stronger and quickly overcame Grimlock's breath attack, blasting the mechanical T-Rex and knocking him down. The Predacon pressed the attack by flying forward to grab Grimlock with his claws and drag him hard across the ground.

However, the Tungsten flew in from above and fired its Energon gatling guns at the Predacon's wings to bring it down. The Pegasus, Scorpio, and Ryujin came at the Predacon from its sides, only for the beast to pull its wings back and throw them outward to push all three units back. But this gave Grimlock a chance to stand back up, still in his T-Rex mode, and bite down on the Predacon's neck, causing it to roar in pain before it pulling up, forcing Grimlock to let go. He tried to swing his tail at the Predacon, only for it to retaliate with its own tail swipe at its feet to knock him down once again.

"I… I can't believe… Grimlock is being overpowered…" Euphemia stuttered as she saw the whole fight over one of the many monitors in the control room.

"Him and the whole Irregulars…" Sayoko was in just as much awe.

"Oh my…" Lloyd looked in a mixture of terror and intrigued as he saw the rampaging Predacon. "I've never seen a Cybertronian like that before. Such savage and primal might."

"The way moves is very animalistic." Rakshata observed in a similar fashion. "Which suggests that this beast may be a wild animal native to Cybertron."

"That… is a Predacon." Fixit explained, catching everyone's attention.

"A what…?" Diethard questioned.

"I didn't think it would be possible though…" Fixit went on. "You could compare them to Earth's dinosaurs, in that they existed before our kind appeared on Cybertron. But they were all wiped out in the Great Cataclysm."

"It was probably Shockwave." Lloyd assumed. "He probably cloned one."

"Makes sense given all the other stuff we've seen him do." Rakshata added.

"Well, I'd be more worried about the fact that freaking Grimlock is getting tossed around like a rag doll!" Claus exclaimed.

"If that monster makes it past him and his team, it'll tear through all our forces like they're nothing!" Kaguya added.

"And Damocles won't just float idly by, either." Diethard said as he accessed the comms. "Smokescreen, Windblade, did you find the power cores?!"

"We found the one for the shield, but it's guarded by Soundwave…" Smokescreen reported.

"…And he's not really making it easy for us!" Smokescreen fired his Energon blaster as he ran from the charging Ravage that retaliated with Enegron blasts from its mouth. Rumble then proceeded to drive his pistons into the ground and send a tremor Smokescreen's way to trip him up and knock him down. Ravage used this to leap into the air and try and pounce on him, but Smokescreen quickly activated the Phase Shifter to phase through the ground and escape Ravage's attack.

Windblade swung both her blades at Soundwave who proved to be quick and nimble enough to dodge her strikes, using his ultra-thin arms to parry her strikes, before one of his tentacles shot from his chest to grab Windblade's sides and lift her up before slamming her to the ground.

Smokescreen phased up from the floor behind Soundwave and was ready to shoot him in the back of the head, only for the silent Decepticon to activate his own Resonance Blaster via a second tentacle and shoot the young Autobot back and slam him against the wall. But Soundwave didn't just stop there as he kept pressing on, adding more pressure as he focused the Resonance Blaster's sound on a single point in Smokescreen's chest, already causing it to crack.

"Hang on kid…" Windblade got back up and was ready to help, only for Ravage to leap at her from behind and bite down on her shoulder. She yelled in pain as she was pushed back down by a jumping Rumble who slammed his pistons into her.

"Worry about yourself, Autobot!" Rumble said.

At the top of Damocles, Kallen gave a yell as the Guren threw out its Surger claw towards Shockwave, but he batted it away with his cannon before delivering a powerful punch to knock it down. He aimed his cannon directly at the cockpit and charged a shot, only for Arcee to leap onto the Guren and land with her hands and delivered a double kick to push Shockwave back. Bulkhead's vehicle mode then rammed into Shockwave's side before he transformed to grab and shove him down. Bulkhead's right hand turned into his mace, which he used to slam into Shockwave repeatedly, but the Decepticon scientist transformed into his tank-mode to throw him off and proceed to fire at him, Arcee, and Kallen, forcing them to flee. However, a sphere of electricity shot at him from the side, courtesy of the Raiden, to throw Shockwave off before Rai pushed forward, lunging his Surger at him, but Shockwave transformed back and caught the active Surger claw in his hand and slammed his cannon down to knock the blue Knightmare down.

Bumblebee clashed his katana against Megatron's blade, but the Decepticon leader grabbed him by the face and slammed him down onto the ground.

"I'll remove more than your voice box this time!" Megatron vowed, only to get knocked back by the slash harkens from the incoming Lancelot, that flew forward with a spinning kick to knock down Megatron. But he rolled and quickly recovered to fire his fusion cannon, landing a successful hit to blast down Suzaku. Elita charged as she shot at him in the side and drew her arm blades as she closed the distance to slash at him, but Megatron parried with his own blade before throwing his other fist into her face to push her down. He then spotted the hovering Shinkiro charging its central cannon and rolled out of the way to avoid the blast before retaliating with multiple shots from his fusion cannon, forcing the Shinkiro to fly down and avoid them, giving Megatron a chance to rush and grab Lelouch's Knightmare before throwing it away.

"You can't beat me, Lelouch." Megatron told him. "You've put up a good fight, but it is time to stand down."

"Never!" Lelouch swore defiantly as he tried to retaliate with its arm-mounted Hadron cannons, but Megatron was already on him before he could fire and kicked him down hard and further pinned him down with his foot.

"You don't understand. You have to beat me, which is impossible." Megatron continued. "But I, don't. I just need to run out the clock until Damocles is ready to fire again." While keeping the Shinkiro pinned, Megatron turned around to fire at the incoming Lancelot, Bumblebee, and Elita to keep them at bay. "One last blast, and all your friends, allies, and family, they will be gone. You should have just let me win at the beginning."

Lelouch gritted his teeth, trying desperately to fight back. But with all his forces stretched so thinly, and the defenses that Megatron had protecting this station, he was fighting an uphill battle, and the top was still nowhere in sight. However, his attention was caught by a sudden ping on his Shinkiro's radar, which showed an Autobot emblem moving closer.

'An Autobot signal? Wait… it's not coming from Horai Island. But rather… from above…?'

"Lord Megatron!" A Decepticon technician contacted his leader. "A massive Autobot signal was detected entering the planet's atmosphere! You should have a visual at any moment!"

He would indeed see something that would not only draw his attention, but that of everyone else in the courtyard, halting all their fights as they saw what appeared to be a large Cybertronian ship flying down from the sky above. The flames around it from re-entry having been extinguished as it flew clear past Damocles. The ship wasn't nearly as big as the Ark, but it was still rather large, and it was something that Megatron recognized as he looked in shock.

"Impossible…"

The vessel had even drawn the attention of all the aerial battles taking place in-between Damocles and the Ark as it flew down, halting many of them.

"Wait… is that…?" Jetfire seemed to recognize it as well.

"Cybertronian craft, identify yourself!" T-AI tried to make contact with the vessel as it seemed to be heading in the direction of Horai Island.

"Identity: Omega Supreme. Objective: Assist Autobot allies."

"And he ain't the only one. The calvary's coming in hot!" A new voice added as four more Autobot signals were detected within the vessel.

T-AI's eyes widened in shock. Though she herself never seen or heard Omega Supreme herself, all the records shown that things were about to turn in their favor. "Omega Supreme, drop all your forces to assist those on the ground! And then come back up here to help the others in the air!"

"Order acknowledged."

The Cybertronian ship had quickly made its way closer to the ground, causing most of the battles to stop as they ran to try and clear away from the large ship that looked like it was about to land. But it hovered in place for a moment as a bay door opened at the ship's underbelly to reveal four Autobots.

They all bore a near identical color scheme of red, silver, and yellow, showing they were all on the same team. One was leaner and thin compared to the others; another had spikes over most of his body; a third was slightly bulkier and had glowing spines over his arms, legs and shoulders; the fourth appeared to be the largest of them all, showing no other distinguishing features other than his size.

"Alright Dinobots, let's show these guys how it's done!" Swoop declared before jumping down and transforming into what one could only describe as a metallic pterodactyl just as Snarl, Sludge, and Slug all jumped down to join the fight as well, right before they transformed into their own respective Dino-modes of a stegosaurus, a triceratops, and a brontosaurus respectively. As they joined the fight, the vessel they arrived in flew back up towards the sky.

Swoop had flown above Ultra Magnus, Ashley, Jean, Zhou, and Sokkia as they held the line the best they could when they saw the flying Dinobot.

"Hold on… is that a robo-pterodactyl?" Ashley questioned as Swoop opened his mouth and shot rapid-fire Energon onto the Vehicons below, tearing apart most of them and even a few tank varieties. One Vehicon tried to shoot at him, but Swoop flown down and grabbed him by his talons before throwing him into the air just as Swoop transformed and fired his Energon blaster to gun him down while he was airborne. Swoop landed on one of the bigger Vehicons in his tank mode and fired into him until he exploded. He then transformed into his pterodactyl-mode again and fired more rapid-fire Energon from his mouth onto the last remaining tank until he too exploded.

Swoop then flew to the Ultra Magnus and transformed to salute to him. "Dinobots reporting for duty, Commander Magnus." He smirked.

"I'm assuming this is Grimlock's team?" Jean asked the surprised Autobot commander.

"That would be correct." Ultra Magnus confirmed.

"Grimlock? Where is he?" Swoop asked.

"In the middle of fighting a giant robot dragon." Ashley answered.

"He and his allies are holding the beast at bay." Magnus added. "Help us clear away most of the enemy here and then go provide aid."

"You got it." Swoop transformed again and flew off to engage in battle with Magnus and his group following.

Slug's triceratops-mode barreled his way through several Decepticon forces, running with such speed and power that he crushed any that dared stand in his way, trampling them under feet and impaling them on his spiked head. He soon found himself heading towards the group consisting of Ironhide, Ohgi, Cornelia, and Steve as they fought back against a group of Vehicons led by Knock Out.

The metallic dinosaur gave a roar as it engaged the Vehicons, much to the shock of the surprised Knock Out, who was the first to get slammed and sent skidding back. Slug rammed his horns to eviscerate one Vehicon before pulling back his rear feet to destroy a second. He lifted his front feet up briefly to smash a third in before transforming into his robot mode to punch down a fourth and firing powerful Energon blasts from his hands to destroy the last two surrounding him.

"Ugh! Look at what you've done!" Knock Out called to Slug and gestured to his semi-caved chest. "This is gonna take more than a buffer!"

"I can do worse if you wanna see?!" Slug fired his Energon blaster at him, forcing Knock Out to duck before transforming and driving away. He then looked towards Ironhide's group before spotting the Vehicon in their midst. "One more!"

"Stand down, Slug!" Ironhide said as he stood in front of Steve. "He's with us!"

"Really?" Slug looked in surprise.

"Y-Yes… I am." Steve confirmed nervously.

"Oh." Slug seemed to buy it as he lowered his blaster. "Sorry."

"Thanks for the help." Ohgi said.

"No problem." Slug nodded before transforming into his triceratops-mode again and rejoined the battle.

"Huh, that went better than expected." Cornelia commented.

"Slug is reasonable and even polite when he wants to be." Ironhide said. "But he can also be very insulting, and you do not want to get him angry at you."

"Noted." Cornelia accepted.

Jazz, Undertone, Chigusa, Guilford, and Wheeljack appeared to be surrounded by several Vehicons, including a few tankers, all of whom were ready to unleash a deadly inferno upon them, only for a large robotic stegosaurus to come barreling in and stomping through three of the Vehicons, including a tank that Snarl hauled up with his head to flip over before stomping down repeatedly to crush it.

The remaining five Vehicons opened fire, prompting Snarl to transform into his robot form as he extended blades on his arms, which took the form of stegosaurus' spines and glowed red right before he charged forward. He sliced up the one in the middle with an upwards swing before slamming his arm to the right to obliterate the one next to him. He brought his left arm down onto a third Vehicon to slice and crush him at once before rushing the last two destroy them the same vicious way. He then turned to the Autobots with a friendly smile.

"Hey Jazz."

"Sup, Snarl. Thanks for the save." Jazz greeted back as Undertone nodded.

"Not bad, for a wannabe Wrecker." Wheeljack cracked.

"Wannabe? How many times have we shown you guys up?" Snarl snarked back. "Love to chat more, but got Cons to crush." He transformed back into his stegosaurs mode and rejoined the fight.

"These are the Dinobots…?" Guilford looked nothing short of awed. "Incredible…"

'If they were present when Britannia was still around… I feel like we wouldn't have lasted a day!' Chigusa thought, being very grateful to be on the Bots' side now.

Tamaki, Warpath, and the remaining Wrecker Akatsukis tried to hold the line against a line of tank Vehicons, while nearby Drift was remaining pinned under Fracture's foot as Airazor and Divebomb had Safeguard and Jetstorm at their mercy.

"Got any last words, old bot?" Fracture said sadistically.

"Yes. Two actually." Drift said as he saw a shadow loom over them. "Behind you."

Fracture turned around just in time to see a large tail get slammed into him to send him flying up and over Tamaki and Warpath and crashed into the group of Vehicons they were fighting. All eyes then set on the robotic brontosaurs that let loose a roar before unleashing a plasma attack from its mouth onto them. Though it wasn't as powerful as Grimlock's it was still enough to roast most of the Vehicons.

Fracture tried to transform and flee, but as he did, Sludge's tail had come in to swipe him up into the air and fell down hard on the ground. The last thing Fracture would ever see would be Sludge's raised front feet before they were brought down to crush him completely.

"Master!" Airazor exclaimed in shock.

"No!" Divebomb was just as horrified.

But this left them open for Safeguard and Jetstorm to knock them back and aim their weapons at them, with Drift joining his students with his katanas drawn.

"I would advise you two, to surrender." Drift warned. The two Mini-Cons conceded and raised their hands in defeat.

Sludge transformed back into his robot form as he gazed at the Knightmares and Warpath.

"Holy shit… now that's what I'm taking about!" Tamaki exclaimed with a grin.

"Thanks man. We owe ya." Warpath gave a thumbs up.

"Yeah, you do." Sludge said rather rudely.

Grimlock was thrown back hard in his normal mode and struggled to get up as the four Irregulars stood their ground near him, but their units appeared to be heavily damaged, it was honestly a miracle they were even operable.

"Guys… I don't think we can win this…" Sancia said as the growling Predacon made its way toward them in a menacing formation.

"We can't… beat this thing…" Even Lucretia agreed.

"But… we have to keep going…" Dalque said.

"He's right." Alice said with a determined expression. "I won't let this monster get to Nunnally or anyone else on this island!"

"Then we make our stand here!" Grimlock said as he stood up, ready to face the beast.

"Or how about we lend a hand?"

Grimlock looked up in shock at the sound of the familiar voice and was surprised to see a robotic pterodactyl fly in. "What…?"

"Yahoo!" Swoop flew in and let loose more rapid-fire blasts from his mouth all across the Predacon's back as he flew above and past him. The Predacon roared in Swoop's direction and would have flown after him, but was caught off guard as the triceratops-mode and stegosaurs-mode of Slug and Snarl came in from both sides and sandwiched the Predacon, slamming into it with such dual force that it shook the mighty beast and allowed Sludge to charge in before transforming into his robot mode to leap up and bring both his fists down onto its face to disorient it before transforming again into his brontosaurus-mode to blast some fire point-blank.

"Grimlock…" Alice looked in awe with her friends. "Are… are they…?"

"My team…" He honestly couldn't believe it. For what felt like the first time in a very long time, Grimlock felt relief and joy. His team, his friends, they were here! Right when he arguably needed them most. "You're… you're here…?"

"Sorry it took so long Grim." Swoop said as he hovered above his leader in his pterodactyl-mode. "We found Omega Supreme and had to fix him up before we could leave Cybertron. Lucky we showed up when we did, things look pretty dicey here."

"I'll fill you in later." Grimlock said. "But for now…" He turned to the Irregulars. "Alice, you and your friends take a rest. Your Knightmares look like they're about to fall apart. My team and I can take it from here."

"You do that." Alice accepted.

"We'll just enjoy the show." Dalque said with a confident smile as she had a good idea what was about to happen next.

The Predacon had recovered from the assault as it growled dangerously at the regrouping five-Bot team. The pterodactyl-mode of Swoop, the triceratops-mode of Snarl, the stegosaurs-mode of Slug, and the brontosaurus of Sludge all stood (or hovered in Swoop's case) around Grimlock as he walked into the center before transforming into his T-Rex mode and roared.

"Dinobots… DESTROY!" Grimlock roared as they all charged at the Predacon, who charged forward in return.

"Oh my… Oh my… Oh my!" Lloyd looked absolutely giddy like a child. "These are the fabled Dinobots?!"

"Marvelous… simply marvelous…." Rakshata seemed calm on the surface, but her eyes danced with excitement as they saw the battle.

"Such incredible power…" Kaguya was in awe along with Diethard, Claus, Sayoko, and Toto as well as Misty.

"They've turned the tide!" Euphemia said with a wide smile. "Thanks to their help, we're pushing back all the enemy ground forces!"

"The arrival of Grimlock's team is definitely beneficial… but not as beneficial as who they brought with them." Fixit said with a knowing smile.

"What are you talking about?" Toto asked.

Fixit only gazed at the monitor that showed the ship the Dinobots had arrived in as it ascended back into the air.

Meanwhile, the Autobot vessel had flown back to rejoin the aerial battle that had already resumed. It soon hovered itself over the much larger Ark, drawing the attention of the Black Wyverns, Sideswipe, Grindcore, and Strongarm, as well as Steeljaw and Shin. Even Leila, who had regained consciousness, had emerged from her Knightmare's cockpit saw the ship.

The vessel then transformed, drawing the attention of every Autobot, human, and Decepticon in the air. The being stood slightly taller than the likes of Devastator as it stood on the haul of the Ark, a large glowing Autobot insignia on its chest as it revealed itself to all.

"I… Am… OMEGA SUPREME!"

All eyes and optics widened in absolute shock as they saw the massive Autobot.

"What the…?!" Ryo gasped.

"Holy…" Gino stuttered.

Even the ever-stoic Tohdoh was caught completely off-guard.

Leila covered her mouth as she looked up in awe.

Lloyd fell back on his rear as Rakshata dropped her pipe, both rendered completely speechless. Claus' mouth hung open as Diethard's eyes shook in pure amazement. Euphemia, Kaguya, Misty, Toto, and even Sayoko… they all had looks of shock and awe as they saw the mighty Autobot make his grand appearance.

Fixit only gave a simple smirk as he crossed his arms and nodded with approval.

"Oh no…" Thundercracker spoke for pretty much every other Decepticon present as to them, this was their worst nightmare coming back from the dead to haunt them. Even Steeljaw looked more than a little nervous while Shin looked enraged. How dare this abomination halt him in his mission?!

Omega Supreme wasted no time in going on the attack. Energy turrets activated on his shoulders while missiles fired from his shoulders.

"All units move out of the way!" Jetfire ordered. Though he was confident Omega Supreme could avoid any friendly fire, it was better to be safe than sorry. And nobody argued as all the Black Knight Knightmares dodged the incoming storm of fire that already cleared away more than half of the Decepticon forces.

Steeljaw happened to turn towards the Sideswipe, Akito, and their friends as they looked ready to continue their fight. But he knew when it was time to withdraw.

"Shin, I think we should take our leave." The wolf-like Decepticon advised.

Even the cybernetic madman had to agree. He was insane, but not stupid. "Very well." He picked up Steeljaw and flew away, trying to get as much distance as they could.

"Yeah, you better run!" Grindcore called out.

"I think we should get inside." Leila said, getting all their attention as they only just now noticed she had regained consciousness.

"Leila." Akito breathed in relief.

"Yeah, don't wanna get in the way of the big guy." Sideswipe gestured to Omega Supreme.

"T-AI, we need entrance into the Ark. Our job is done here." Strongarm contacted.

"Rodger. Tohdoh, Jetfire, and everyone else are making their way to the ground to help Ultra Magnus and the others." T-AI reported as a Groundbridge portal opened in front of them. They wasted no time in stepping inside to safety as Omega Supreme had all but wiped out most of the Decepticon forces.

"Omega Supreme." T-AI made contact. "Focus all your firepower on the station in front of you! Bring down its shields!"

"Order received." Omega Supreme charged his main weapon, the drill-like gun, and fired a powerful energy blast at Damocles. Though the shields did appear to be holding, however.

Meanwhile, Thundercracker, Slipstream, and Sky-Byte regrouped as they flew around the station to get back inside. "Lord Megatron, Autobot reinforcements have arrived!" Thundercracker warned. "It's Omega Supreme!"

Megatron grunted in frustration as he and Shockwave regrouped to face their enemies, the Decepticon scientist having just received a similar alert himself.

"It would also appear the remainder of Grimlock's team has joined the battle. Our forces are being pushed back." Shockwave informed.

Zero, Bumblebee, Suzaku, Elita, Kallen, Arcee, Rai, and Bulkhead likewise had all regrouped and stood their ground against their mutual enemies. Though he could not see his face, Megatron could tell that Lelouch was smirking from within his Knightmare, likely having received the same report from his own forces.

"Don't look so smug, boy." Megatron told him. "I defeated Omega Supreme in the past, I can do so again."

"You'll have to get past us, first!" Kallen declared. "Rai, Firestorm!"

"Right!" The Guren and Raiden underwent their combination sequence as they merged together into the Combiner unit known as the Firestorm.

"Lelouch, let's do the same! Form the Silver King!" Suzaku stated.

"With pleasure." The Shinkiro and Lancelot went through the same sort of transformation as their respective Knightmares transformed into the Silver King. Both units stood together alongside their Autobot companions.

"We'll stand with you guys, till the very end." Bumblebee declared as he drew his katana, alongside Arcee with her Energon blasters, Bulkhead with his maces, and Elita with her own arm-blades.

"You still don't understand." Megatron said as he and Shockwave opened fire on their enemies, having them scatter before Megatron focused his attention on the Silver King and rushed it. The combined-Knightmare had drawn its mighty sword and tried to bring it down on Megatron, who locked the sword with his own blade as he continued. "You can pull whatever tricks you want, Lelouch! Gather as many allies to your side as you wish, but it won't matter!" He pushed forward, pushing the Silver King back somewhat. "Only one can truly stand against me… and you are no Optimus Prime."

Lelouch growled as he gripped his controls hard. "No…" With a mighty push, he and Suzaku had swung their blade to throw Megatron back. "I am… ZERO!"

"Take my hand and join me, Optimus." Alpha Trion's spirit offered his hand to his former student. "Join with the Allspark."

Optimus hesitated even still but walked forward. Though he did not offer his hand just yet, even as he saw the look of assurance in his late mentor's optics. As he said, he was not afraid to join with the Allspark, but more so for those he would be leaving behind. But even if he pushed his old mentor away, his body was beyond any hope of repair, and it would be more beneficial for all if the Forge was used to repair the core to Cybertron. He had complete and utter confidence in Lelouch and everyone else, not only did he firmly believe they could win this war, they could bring peace to both their worlds. So maybe… it was time to let go.

"Optimus…. No!" Ratchet exclaimed as he and everyone else in the med bay saw his optics power down, and the monitors hooked to his body stop working all together.

Less than a second later, his chest plate opened to reveal the Matrix of Leadership as it shined brightly with a divine bright-blue light upon them all and throughout the whole room.

"Is… is that…?" Cecile's eyes wavered at the sight of the relic.

"The Matrix of Leadership." Perceptor confirmed.

"B-But that means…" Nina already felt her eyes water.

"H-he's… gone…?" Rivalz couldn't believe it, none of them could. Was he really gone? Was Optimus Prime truly gone?

Shirley covered her mouth as tears were already flowing down her eyes. She remembered first laying eyes on Optimus when Lelouch and everyone brought her to the Ark and how in awe she was over not only his physical appearance but his kind and gentle nature as well. And now... he was gone. It was impossible to believe. Milly ran up to her from behind to hug and comfort her, despite the tears in her own eyes as well.

Cera felt the tears flowing down her eyes as well, much to her own surprise. She was no stranger to death, having seen it countless times with her past masters. But yet, this one seemed to have hit her where it hurts, but why? She only barely knew this metal giant. So why did it feel like she had just lost someone truly important to her?

"I refuse…"

All eyes set on Nunnally, a shadow cast over her eyes as her fists clenched shakily, her body trembling.

"It won't end like this!" She ran towards the Forge of Solus Prime and gripped the enormous handle and tried to pull it. However, due to the enormous size and weight of the Cybertronian hammer, she was unable to move it, but that didn't stop her from trying. "Come on! I won't let it end like this!"

Milly, Shirley, Nina, Rivalz, Perceptor, Cecile and even Cera looked to the desperate girl in sympathy.

"Nunnally…" Milly tried to reach out to her.

"No!" The younger girl turned around with a look that mixed sadness, desperation, and anger. Her eyes were livid as tears streamed down her eyes. Seeing such a look on her completely left Milly startled. "I am not letting him go! I refuse to let it end this way!" She tried once more to pull on the Forge, trying with all her might to move it.

Only to be surprised as the Forge itself had been pulled up, causing her to fall down. She gazed up in shock to see the handle of the Forge now in the hands of Ratchet.

"So do I." The Autobot medic said with determination. He gestured towards the mallet of the Forge, causing Nunnally to look in determination as she ran towards that side and pushed on the mallet. She would soon be joined by Shirley, Milly, Rivalz, Nina, Cecile, and even the amnesiac Cera, all of whom smiled towards her, allowing Nunnally to smile emotionally back at them as they pushed with the mallet while Ratchet had gripped the handle of the Forge, who was then aided by Perceptor as he also grabbed the handle.

With all of them working together, they had pulled the Forge of Solus Prime towards the body of their leader and friend, his only remaining hand lain out towards the side before the handle was dropped onto it.

The second the Forge touched the hand, it activated! Even if Optimus' body didn't seem to carry life into it, the power of the Matrix still channeled itself into the Forge somehow, as if the Matrix itself had willed the Forge to activate.

All eyes and optics looked in awe and wonder as the saw the Forge of Solus Prime glow, and that glow quickly spread over Optimus' body before it all exploded in a bright surge of light.

Grimlock's T-Rex mode roared at the Predacon before charging in with a headbutt to push it back, but the Predacon swiped its claw at him to push him back, which Grimlock retaliate with a tail swipe to push the Predacon back even further. It was about to unleash a fire blast on him, only for Swoop to fly in with his pterodactyl-mode and bombard with rapid fire Energon blasts from his mouth, drawing the Predacon's attention as it tried to shoot him down instead. This turned out to be a mistake as it left it open for Grimlock to nail it with his own plasma breath.

Slug charged in his triceratops-mode from the Predacon's side and rammed into it with enough force to push the Predacon back, but it dug its claws in to halt the slide. Before it had a chance to fight back, Snarl in his stegosaurs-mode had come in to join Slug in the charge, diving underneath the Predacon's underbelly as Slug followed his lead. Their combined strength was enough to flip the dragon-like beast up and on its back, exposing its underbelly for Sludge to run in with his brontosaurs-mode before leaping up to land on its underbelly and stomped on repeatedly to try and cave it in.

However, the Predacon flexed its wings and shot itself up in the air to shake Sludge off with the remaining Dinobots regrouping and then scattering to avoid the fireballs the airborne Predacon shot at them.

All the while Alice and her friends continued to watch. Though they wanted to join in, their Knightmares were so severely damaged that they would probably only get in the way and get themselves killed. But the Dinobots seemed to be holding their own for now, and with the rest of their allies quickly wrapping things up with the other Decepticons, it may be only a matter of time before they all join in and overwhelm the Predacon.

Speaking of which, with the arrival of Jetfire, Tohdoh, and the other aerial forces, the tide quickly turned in the favor of the Autobots and Black Knights. The Dinobots had already cut down the Decepticon forces to a manageable number already before going to help Grimlock, but now the number had decreased even more to the point where there were only about a dozen Vehicons left, including Knock Out, Airazor, and Divebomb.

All the Cons were surrounded on all sides, on the ground and in the air as all weapons were trained on them.

"Now might be a good time to surrender." Ultra Magnus advised.

Knock Out groaned as he raised his hands in defeat, prompting the remaining Vehicons to do so. "Please tell me that you all have a rotary buffer on hand."

"That takes care of all the Cons down here." Ohgi smiled.

"The airspace is cleared as well." Tohdoh added. "But Damocles is still airborne."

"T-AI, please tell me you and Omega Supreme have managed to breach those shields!" Euphemia hoped. "We still haven't heard anything from Smokescreen and Windblade!"

"Even if the enemy forces are rounded up, it won't matter if that station still hangs over us!" Diethard agreed.

"We're firing with everything we can, and we can't seem to break through!" T-AI reported as she still concentrated all the Ark's firepower, with Omega Supreme adding to it, on the Damocles but it's shields are holding.

"Observation. These shields are strong enough to withstand even fortress grade weaponry." Omega Supreme noted. "This may be the strongest Decepticon weapon ever devised. Warning. Power surge detected within its main weaponry." He had already detected a strong buildup of energy at the fusion cannons built onto the bottom of the fortress.

Back in the ruined courtyard above, Bulkhead had grappled with Shockwave, grabbing onto his cannon with both his hands and forcing him to misfire. Shockwave would have punched him down, but Arcee had leapt on top of Bulkhead's shoulder and performed a spin-kick of her own to knock the hand back before moving to grab it.

"We got him!" Bulkhead called out to the hovering Firestorm.

"Let's light em up!" Rai stated as the Firestorm's left hand surged with an intense amount of electricity, while the right hand did the same with a powerful energy that took the form of flames. The hands were brought together to create a large cluster of heat energy and electricity.

"Find the logic in this!" Kallen called out as the Firestorm threw the combined attack at Shockwave with Bulkhead and Arcee clearing the way just in time. The resulting explosion sent the Decepticon scientist flying backwards and crashing through the walls of the castle behind him.

At the same time, the Silver King clashed its sword against Megatron's blade who attempted to deliver a kick to it, but the Silver King flew upwards to avoid it before opening fire with a volley of energy bolts from its wings. Megatron stood his ground as he retaliated with his cannon to intercept most of the blasts while those around him hit the ground and lit up in an explosion. But out of the smoke, Megatron's Cybertronian jet-mode had flown out at speeds that Lelouch and Suzaku were unable to avoid as they were rammed out of the sky and crashed onto the ground. Megatron flew back down and opened fire while the Silver King was down, but Bumblebee and Elita provided covering fire as they rushed to protect the combined Knightmare, which was quick to stand back up as Megatron flew around before transforming and skidding to a halt.

"Lord Megatron, the fusion cannons are finished recharging and are ready to fire on command!" Thundercracker reported.

"Then charge two of them and fire immediately!" Megatron ordered. "Blast the Ark and Omega Supreme out of the sky and obliterate the island below!"

"B-But Lord Megatron… our forces are still down there… the Predacon included…!"

"I gave you an order! Fire!" Megatron exclaimed. It didn't matter if any of his soldiers died in the blast, the Predacon included. It would destroy the enemy base, and he would sift through the rubble to capture C.C. and initiate Neo Ragnarök.

"NO!" Lelouch exclaimed in horror as he and Suzaku flew forward in the Silver King to reengage Megatron.

"Euphie, T-AI, Damocles cannons are ready to fire again!" Suzaku warned. "The Ark and Horai Island are being targeted! You need to get out of there!"

"Horai Island's shields were overloaded in the last blast, we can't get them back!" Euphie exclaimed in a panic, as everyone in the control room were in a similar state.

"Won't Damocles' own shields be down when it fires?!" Claus questioned. "The big bot and the Ark can shoot it down, right?!"

"The Ark is too close! It and Omega Supreme won't be able to avoid it!" Fixit stated.

"Then… can the Ark come down and shield us!?" Kaguya questioned. "If it's at maximum power…!"

"It won't be enough!" Lloyd replied as he pulled on his hair in fear. "Even if the Ark is fast enough to reach us, it'll go down in flames from a blast like that, and crush everyone else below!"

"Then let's Groundbridge everyone out of here!" Diethard stated.

"No time! And what about the civilians?! They won't be protected even if they're underground!" Anna replied.

"I hate to say this… but I think this might be it for us…" Rakshata seemed resigned to it.

Euphie and Kaguya all looked towards one another, as well as everyone else in the room in fear. Was this it? Was this really the end for them?

Two of the fusion cannons were already taking aim and ready to fire. One was pointing downward straight for Horai Island at the same angle as before, while the other was moved slightly upward, going straight for the Ark as T-AI tried to pull it out of the way.

"Omega Supreme, you have to clear out!" T-AI stated from the bridge as Leila, Akito, Sideswipe, Ryo, Strongarm, Ayano, Grindcore, and Yukiya had also arrived to look at the screen to see what was going on outside. "Take evasive action!"

"Negative." Omega Supreme replied as he placed his tractor-beam hand on the haul of the Ark. "I am transferring my own shields' power to that of the Ark's to further increase its defenses. I was built to protect all Autobots from Decepticon tyranny. I will serve my function."

T-AI could see the increase on the shield's power level beyond maximum power. "Shields are up at two hundred percent!"

"Can't we use that to protect Horai Island?!" Leila questioned.

"We won't make it in time!" T-AI answered.

"Then let's blow the thing out of the sky! Ram it!" Grindcore shouted.

Akito's eyes widened as his face paled at the sight of the cannon's energy surging at the hole that was pointing directly at them. "Too late…"

Both fusion cannons fired simultaneously. The Ark was struck first being the closest. With shields at maximum power provided by Omega Supreme, it seemed to take most of the damage, but the force of the resulting blast was enough to send the mighty Autobot vessel, with the enormous robot holding on to its top, spiraling out of the sky and straight towards the ocean below.

The second beam was already making its way straight to the island as everyone, human, Autobot, and Decepticon looked up in clear horror at the sight of the deadly green light. Even the Predacon had its attention drawn toward it. The Decepticons, especially Knock Out, were beyond terrified! They were still down here! Were they really about to be sacrificed just like that?!

Is this really the end? Were they all really going to die here. Some, such as Tohdoh, Ironhide, and Ultra Magnus seemed resigned to it as their eyes closed. Everyone else looked towards those closest to them, friends and loved ones, hoping to find some solace in each other's gaze in their final moments; this included Drift with Safeguard and Jetstorm; Cornelia and Guilford and even Steve; Gino, Nonette, and Anya; Ohgi and Chigusa; Orpheus with Monica, Oldrin, Marrybell, and even Oiagros; Jazz, Undertone, Jetfire, and Wheeljack; Chiba and Zhou; Ashley and Jean; even Tamaki and Warpath.

Even the Dinobots looked at one another, with Grimlock not only gazing at his team, but Alice and the others as they looked in fear and sadness at their immanent end.

'Your highness… I'm sorry.' Xingke thought.

'Lelouch… Nunnally… forgive me. I failed you again…' Jeremiah and Marianne both prayed simultaneously.

*FLASH!*

Something truly unexpected had just happened. Something that none of them had seen coming.

Something had suddenly arrived right before the blast could hit.

And in that instant, a bright blue energy barrier had expanded in a semi-curved shape to protect not only all those below, but even most of the island itself. The deadly energy waves from the fusion blast washed over the barrier like water to stone. The light show was almost beautiful in a way.

All eyes, from those on the battlefield, to those in the control room, were drawn by the phenomena.

A few seconds later, the last of the energy waves had vanished and the barrier had retracted back to its source: the Sky-Boom Shield…

Which was wielded by none other than Optimus Prime!

The leader of the free Autobots was alive! Not only that, but he was also looking better than ever! His chassis appeared to have undergone a huge overhaul. He was much larger now, his body appearing bulkier, and he even hovered in the air courtesy of a jetpack now equipped to his back. In one hand he held the Sky-Boom Shield, and in the other, he held the Star Saber, both glowing brightly in his grip.

"O-Optimus…" Ohgi felt his heart stop for a moment. They all did.

Nobody could believe what and who they were seeing! Many of them had seen their mighty leader on the brink of death, but now he was back and appeared even stronger! Nearly every human present felt tears of joy coming down their eyes, Cornelia being one of them, as even Tohdoh couldn't stop himself from smiling. Every Autobot looked in either amazement or simply smiled, especially those that knew him.

"Can't keep a good bot down." Ironhide was beyond happy to see his oldest friend back in action.

All the captive Decepticons themselves couldn't help but be amazed. Despite him being the enemy leader, they all felt a profound sense of gratitude in the fact that their lives were spared. While it was likely to assume that he did it to save his own allies, they were still grateful to at least be alive. Though Knock Out couldn't help but smirk.

"Nice new build." The red Decepticon commented.

"Whoa… is that Prime?!" Swoop questioned.

"What in the Allspark happened to him?!" Sludge questioned as well.

Alice almost felt herself crying when she saw him. It was so easy to understand why Nunnally looks up to him so.

Grimlock said nothing, but underneath his faceplate, he felt himself smile eagerly. But his attention and everyone else's was caught by the roar of the Predacon as it set its eyes on Optimus and would have gone on the attack had the Grimlock not leapt up to grab it by its neck and pull it back down.

"Gawk later! Crush this thing now!" Grimlock ordered as the rest of the Dinobots piled on top of the beast.

Optimus' attention was also drawn by the roar as he caught a glimpse of the Predacon. That was certainly a surprise, but it seems that Grimlock and his team could handle it. It was a pleasant surprise to see them alive and well again. While still hovering, he turned back to all his forces.

"You have all done exceptionally well here. But now you can take a rest. I will finish this." Optimus said.

"Optimus… Lelouch, Bumblebee and the others… they're on top of that thing! Fighting Megatron!" Ohgi informed him.

"Understood." Optimus nodded before flying straight up towards Damocles.

"Whoa, since when can he fly?!" Gino questioned.

"I'm not complaining." Jazz grinned.

Tamaki gave a hardy laugh. "Watch out Megatron! You are so screwed now!"

"I… I don't believe it…" Toto stuttered.

"Holy crap…" Claus muttered as everyone in the control room looked in absolute shock. Lloyd and Rakshata felt their jaws drop, Anna covered her mouth as tears were in her eyes, Sayoko's eyes danced in awe, Diethard shook in his spot as he felt he was looking at some sort of god made flesh. Kaguya couldn't help but cry alongside Euphemia as they held each other in relief and joy.

"By the Allspark…" Fixit was just as awed as everyone.

"This is T-AI reporting in from the Ark!" They were immediately contacted by the artificial intelligence. "The blast for Horai Island was adverted?! How!"

Overjoyed, Fixit accessed the comms to reply. "T-AI, you won't' believe this…"

"…Optimus has returned!"

From the bridge of the Ark, T-AI's holographic form looked in shock as the recovering humans and Bots present were just as surprised to hear that. But that surprise soon turned into joy.

"Awesome!" Yukiya pumped his fist.

"Yes!" Sideswipe shared a high-five with the laughing Ryo.

"Booyah!" Grindcore pulled Strongarm into a hug.

"Is he really back!?" The emotional Ayano looked toward the screen as T-AI was able to restore visual feed and show everyone the image of the airborne Optimus making his way up towards Damocles.

Leila wasted no time leaping into Akito's arms in joy as she cried, and he didn't hesitate to return the embrace himself with a happy smile of his own.

The Ark appeared to be heavily damaged from the blast, despite the doubling of the shields' power, but it was still in one piece even as it laid in the ocean's water. Omega Supreme had slowly stood back up and saw the flying Optimus as well. He too smiled at the sight of him.

With the Star Saber in hand, and as he flown closer, Optimus had spun his body and the glowing sword while airborne before swinging the Star Saber outward to send a powerful energy wave straight towards the Damocles station.

The second it impacted the shields, they were shattered, causing the entire station to rock, shaking up every part of it, including the top where Lelouch and his team all were, briefly interrupting their battle with Megatron.

Inside, Smokescreen and Windblade were knocked off their feet, as were Soundwave and his Mini-Cons. Smokescreen happened to spot the shield generator beginning to overload. Some kind of energy feedback caused the tubes of energy to surge out of control as electricity sparked out from the power core itself. Soundwave had briefly turned his attention towards it, and that left an opening.

With a mighty yell, Smokescreen charged forward, slammed his arm into Soundwave and pushed him into the overloading power core right as he activated his Phase Shifter and phased through the overloaded device and out on the other side. He even fired at it for good measure. Soundwave had ejected Laserbeak just in time as the generator exploded, sending Soundwave flying and crashing in a heap across the ground.

"Soundwave!" Rumble exclaimed in shock, and this shock had left him open for Windblade to bring one of her blades down onto him. He tried to defend himself with his pistons, only to get crushed underneath Windblade's strike, ending the Mini-Con.

Ravage snarled at her and was ready to fight back, but a chirp from Laserbeak drew it's attention. The remaining two Mini-Cons made eye-contact before running off and disappearing into two cable holes in the wall and ceiling respectively.

Windblade gave an impressed whistle. "Nice move there." She complemented Smokescreen.

"Thanks, but what about him?" He gestured to the unresponsive Soundwave, which Windblade scanned with a hand-held device.

"Still alive, but he's out. Let's take him with us." She and Smokescreen hauled up the defeated Decepticon. "Con's surveillance chief has gotta have all kinds of juicy info."

Smokescreen smirked along with Windblade before he accessed his comms. "Hey, our job is done! We need a Groundbridge!"

A portal opened in front of them, allowing the two to enter and leave the station with their captive.

"What was that…?" Rai questioned as the shaking stopped.

They would all soon get their answer as they saw the flying form of Optimus appear from below and hover above them all. The minute they all saw him, everything stopped.

Arcee, Kallen, Bulkhead, and Rai all looked in clear shock as their eyes had widened, with Kallen feeling her eyes water. Bumblebee and Elita seemed just as shocked at first before they both found themselves smiling, something Suzaku did as well before glancing back towards his co-pilot and friend.

Lelouch's eyes wavered and had become almost like circles as his mouth had formed into a perfect o. "Optimus…"

Of course, none were more shocked then Megatron as he had seen his greatest enemy was now much stronger than before, and that shock is what left him open for Optimus to attack.

"Megatron… Begone!" With a swing of the Star Saber, Optimus had sent an energy wave straight at Megatron, landing a direct hit that exploded on him and created a large and gaping crevice in the courtyard that led deeper into the station.

"Optimus…!" Arcee stuttered. "Y-you're…. you're here…!"

"How… How are you…?" Bulkhead stuttered as well.

"I'm afraid there is little time to explain." Optimus said. "You have all done well to hold the line, but I can take it from here. Clear the station."

"You got it." Bumblebee smirked as he answered his comms. "We need a Groundbridge up here!"

A portal opened for the group as they proceeded to leave. "Optimus… it's good to have you back." Elita said to him before she entered the portal with Bulkhead right beside her.

"Go to town and tear this place apart!" Kallen stated as the Firestorm entered the portal next with Arcee and Bumblebee following.

All that was left was the Silver King as the cockpit on the chest opened up to reveal the smiling face of Suzaku and the emotional one of Lelouch as they addressed their leader.

"It's good to have you back, Optimus." Suzaku said honestly before smiling toward his friend as he tried to push back the joyous emotions he felt. Lelouch had nothing to say, but there was nothing for him to say. Optimus simply smiled at the young hero as he gave a single nod, something Lelouch returned before the cockpit closed and the Silver King entered the portal, which closed behind them.

Getting serious once more, Optimus flew upwards slightly as he put the Sky-Boom Shield away and held the Star Saber in both hands, hanging it up high before swinging downward to send a powerful wave of energy to slice and tear up much of the courtyard in one strike, exposing more of the insides to Damocles, allowing Optimus to fly inside to finish the job.

The Predacon had charged at Slug, who was in his triceratops-mode, who had also charged at the beast in response. They clashed their heads together and while the horns did pierce through the Predacon's head slightly, it was only a flesh wound at best and the Predacon quickly hauled up to send Slug flying and crashing to the ground. Grimlock then came to the side to bite down on the Predacon's right shoulder area while Sludge did the same for the left, both still in their respective Dino-modes. The Predacon struggled and tried to bite at Grimlock, only for Swoop to fly in via his pterodactyl-mode and grab the Predacon's horns to haul the head straight up, the snarling and screaming beast trying hard to escape the Dinobots' grip, but they held firm. Snarl then charged in with his stegosaurus-mode, his spines lighting up with intense energy as he rammed himself into the Predacon's exposed underbelly with explosive force to push it back.

The metallic dragon got back up and roared at the five Dinobots, who roared at him in response. It would have gone on the attack again, only to get blasted from all directions.

Nearly all the Autobots and Black Knights had arrived to provide aid for their Dinobot companions. Ironhide, Tohdoh, Ohgi, Ultra Magnus, Jetfire, Gino, Anya, Monica, Nonette, Jazz, Warpath, Wheeljack, Tamaki, and Cornelia had come to surround the Predacon from all sides and bombard it with their long-ranged weapons (the others had stayed behind to guard the prisoners). Even Alice and all her friends joined in to surround and pound the Predacon with whatever long-ranged weapons they had.

"Keep your distance! Don't get too close or that thing will rip you to shreds!" Ironhide ordered as he continued to pound with his Energon cannons.

A Groundbridge portal then opened as Bumblebee, Elita, Arcee, and Bulkhead emerged and joined the others to shoot at the pinned Predacon while the Silver King and Firestorm flew upward, their respective energy wings glowing brightly before raining down bolts of energy onto the metallic beast, covering it in an explosive inferno.

All Bots and Knightmares stood back slightly as they saw the resulting smoke slowly began to clear… revealing the Predacon was still alive, albeit greatly injured as it appeared to be bleeding Energon on various parts of its body.

"You're kidding… Just how much punishment can that thing take?!" Kallen questioned.

The Predacon stood defensively and growled at the surrounding enemies. However, its sensors picked up a beacon that drew its attention towards the besieged Damocles. Its own predatory eyes picked up a few vessels flying away from the station. This included the jet-modes of Thundercracker and Slipstream, the Thanatos, Sky-Byte's shark-mode, and a small ship that was flown by Shockwave with Steeljaw inside.

Picking up on its creator's signal, the Predacon took to the skies and flew away.

"It's running away!" Ohgi stated.

"Should we pursue?" Tohdoh questioned.

"No. We can't afford to abandon our base or the prisoners." Ultra Magnus replied. "We'll deal with it later."

While Lelouch did silently agree with Ultra Magnus, he couldn't help but look with seriousness at the fleeing Predacon. It took the combined might of most of his heavy hitters, as well as Grimlock's whole team, to push it back. No doubt that beast was going to be trouble for them from this point forward.

Multiple explosions erupted from within Damocles, followed by waves of energy that were blasted outward from every direction.

Optimus Prime had hovered within the devastated insides of Damocles, already destroyed the power core that provided the energy needed to keep it afloat, its remains falling down from all around him as he swung the Star Saber to his right to send a wave to cleave through more of it before swinging it downward and flying in the same direction, clearing the way for himself as he pointed the Star Saber forward, its tip glowing brightly and increased the speed of his descent. A surge of energy formed at the tip of the mighty blade before it spread upward around Optimus, almost akin to a glowing meteor at the speed of a missile. Optimus barreled through the bottom of Damocles before blasting his way from the center point of the four fusion cannons at the bottom of the station. A large explosion rocked that whole area and spread to the cannons as they exploded too and broke apart, their remains falling from the besieged station.

Optimus then drew the Sky-Boom Shield as Damocles broke apart even more from the explosions and proceeded to fall. The Sky-Boom Shield activated to project a large barrier to not only protect Optimus himself, but even cause the largest pieces of the station to fall away from Horai Island and avoid crushing anybody below.

All the Autobots and Black Knights, including those in the control room, as well as captive Decepticons, watched as they saw Damocles break apart and it's remains fall toward the ocean.

Among those watching included Nunnally, Ratchet, Perceptor, Shirley, Nina, Cecile, Milly, Rivalz, and even the amnesiac Cera, all of whom stood atop a building and watched Damocles fall with relief and pride.

"Now that's a sight I won't soon forget." Milly said with a smile.

"Wish we had popcorn." Rivalz commented.

Nunnally smiled emotionally, happy to know that it all worked out. She felt Shirley wrap an arm around her shoulder and pulled her in close. They both gazed up towards Ratchet, who merely smiled towards the two of them. Nunnally then turned towards Cera and offered the immortal her hand, which Cera slowly took with a smile of her own.

Sometime later, after all the captured Decepticons were properly secured, the unmasked Zero stood at the edge of the stage where the UFN charter was recently ratified, and standing beside him was the newly upgrade form of Optimus Prime. They both looked outward to see the entirety of the Black Knight-Autobot alliance that had gathered together.

Bumblebee, Ohgi, Kallen, Arcee, Suzaku, Bulkhead, Rai, Ironhide, Tamaki, Wheeljack, Tohdoh, Chiba, Ratchet, Fixit, Elita-One, Euphemia, Cornelia, Lloyd, Rakshata, Cecile, Jazz, Undertone, Chigusa, Ultra Magnus, Guilford, Jetfire, Kaguya, Windblade, Smokescreen, Leila, Akito, Sideswipe, Ryo, Grindcore, Yukiya, Strongarm, Ayano, Anna, Claus, Sophie, Ashley, Jean, Xingke, Tianzi, Zhou, Perceptor, Diethard, Warpath, Drift, Safeguard, Jetstorm, Oiagros, Orpheus, Oldrin, Marrybell, Sokkia, Gino, Monica, Nonette, Anya, Jeremiah, Sayoko, and even the holographic form of T-AI, they had all stood together as one, and even Steve stood among them. Grimlock stood off to the side, with Alice, Swoop, Dalque, Snarl, Lucretia, Sludge, Sancia, Slug, and Misty. On the far side of the stage were Shirley, Rivalz, Milly, and Nina, with the amnesiac Cera, still somewhat nervous, hiding behind them. Even Omega Supreme was present, standing all the way at the back due to his enormous size.

"You… all of you…" Lelouch began. "Have shown what it truly means to be a knight, regardless of your origin. To stand for a cause that's bigger than just yourself. Our backs were against the wall, facing overwhelming evil, and yet you all stood your ground, laying down your lives for each other and those who couldn't defend themselves. The world will know of your selfless heroism. But while we have indeed won a great victory, the war is not over. But I am truly honored that I get to see to its end, fighting alongside each and every one of you." He stood straight and raised his fist. "Till all are one."

"Till all are one!" They all called out together, raising their fists with their leader.

Steve hesitated for a moment, happening to cast a glance at Cornelia, who gave him a smile and a nod, before he too raised his fist into the air. "Till all are one!"

Lelouch then turned towards Optimus with a smile, who in turn smiled towards him as well as he gave a simple nod.

"Optimus Prime, Omega Supreme is reporting for duty." The giant Autobot spoke out.

"And he's not the only one." Swoop stepped forward with Sludge, Snarl, and Slug, with Grimlock being behind his team. "Grimlock gave us the gist and you can count on us to join the fight."

"Welcome to Earth, Omega Supreme, Lightning-Strike Collation Force…" Optimus began.

"Call us Dinobots." Grimlock interrupted. "It stuck." He said mostly towards Swoop as he was the one who came up with the name, and he couldn't help but give a trollish grin in response.

"Very well." Optimus smiled. "Welcome to Earth, Dinobots. And… to the Autobot-Black Knight Alliance."

"Okay, if nobody else is gonna say it, I will." Tamaki stepped forward. "Optimus 2.0 is flipping awesome!" A grin formed on his face. "Now if only we could fix up your bod." He joked towards Ratchet, who scoffed in annoyance.

"Is it true?" Ultra Magnus asked. "The Forge of Solus Prime has been drained of its power?"

"It has." Perceptor confirmed.

"Then any hope of repairing Cybertron's core has truly been lost." Ultra Magnus said.

"I'm sorry…" Nunnally apologized. "I couldn't…"

"I assume full responsibility." Ratchet stepped forward.

"No, we were all responsible." Shirley said. "We all took part in it."

"And I believe I speak for everyone when I say that we are glad you did." Ultra Magnus said with a smile. "Despite our best efforts, we couldn't have won that battle. By restoring Optimus, you gave us the advantage we needed to emerge victorious. Now we have a chance to win this war. Even if it is too late for Cybertron, it is not too late for Earth."

"And honestly, any one of us would have done the same in a heartbeat." Ohgi agreed. "So great job, all of you."

Ratchet and Perceptor nodded while Nunnally, Shirley, Rivalz, Milly, and Nina all exchanged smiles with each other, even Lloyd gave Cecile something of a friendly nudge to the side, earning a smile from her.

Lelouch then stepped towards the group, offering his sister a hand with a smile of his own. The look in his eyes showed just how grateful he was to her for the choice she made, not only in helping to save everyone on Horai Island, but Optimus as well. Nunnally accepted her brother's hand before she turned around towards Cera as they both offered her their free hands with encouraging smiles. Cera then smiled back as she accepted their hands, and they all joined the ensuing celebration.

Megatron's optics slowly opened as he stood up from the hard ground he had been laying on. A brief glance at his surroundings told him he was in front of the artificial Thought Elevator that laid hidden beneath Darkmount.

"You have awoken." Shockwave stepped out from the shadows. "Even after a direct hit from the Star Saber, your body was still able to regenerate. It would seem that your Code has made you truly immortal, Lord Megatron."

"It would seem that way." Megatron glanced to his palm to see the Code emblem. "And Damocles?"

"Completely destroyed. The battle was lost." Shockwave revealed, causing Megatron to grunt in frustration. "However, a number of our forces were captured, with Soundwave being among them."

That count Megatron's attention. "Is that so?" He looked more curious than upset at that. "And what of his Mini-Cons?"

"Rumble was terminated in the battle. Although, Ravage and Laserbeak are still online, and are awaiting their controller's command within the vicinity of Horai Island." Shockwave answered.

A sinister grin fell on Megatron's face. "Then all is not lost." He glanced towards the artificial Thought Elevator. "Neo Ragnarök has only been delayed. They may have won the battle… but the war still be mine!"

Done.

Had you guys going there for the title, didn't I?

The New Prime… the new Optimus Prime to be specific. LOL

But seriously, that was one eventful chapter. It was battle after battle as the Autobots and Black Knights stood their ground with everything they had, even with the arrival of the Dinobots and Omega Supreme, they were on the verge of losing. But Optimus Prime is back and better than ever! And it was Nunnally (with Ratchet and everyone else) who brought him back!

Damocles has been destroyed, and the heroes have gained new allies and had even captured some valuable war prisoners.

Although… if Megatron's reaction is anything to indicate, that might not necessarily be a good thing.

With this chapter completed, only one arc remains for this story. We will finally unveil the mystery of Neo Ragnarök and what Megatron's endgame is. Truths will be revealed and one more battle waits to be waged, one that will decide the fate of all.

Until then, stay safe and stay healthy out there. Thanks for everything. I love you all.