Barricade was casually driving towards east in order to regroup with his comrades. The sun had not even begun to set, the landscape he was driving through was full of green, and the meeting spot was classified as the "Foal Mountain." All three of these facts were making him so furious that, if he had the time and ammunition for it, he could scream towards the sky in pure agony and scorch the entire land (along with every living creature currently residing on it).

First of all, he had just been beaten and forced to retreat by an Autobot scum. Even though this opponent was the leader of the entire Autobot faction, the fact that his defeat took place in a beautiful day like this was irritating at best. On top of that, he wasn't really accustomed to sunny skies. His former residence, Kaon (the capital city of Decepticons on Cybertron), was always rainy and covered in storm clouds. Therefore, he was unable to immediately adapt to the brightness of this planet's sun and it was already starting to mess with his sensors.

Second, while he was not complaining about the color of the landscape, the surprising fertility of the land itself only served as a sad reminder of his home planet's miserable condition. He did remember the time when Cybertron's surface was rich with life like this and encountering an area with the same level of prosperity was causing his rage towards the Autobots to increase exponentially. If they had just surrendered without any fuss and accepted Megatron's rule, then every bot could still have a home to return to.

Finally, the name of the meeting place was plain stupid. In fact, the names of every single hill, mountain, lake, town, and city sounded incredibly stupid. What pathetic excuses for life forms came up with these idiotic names, anyway? The pair of alicorn princesses in charge of ruling the kingdom? In that case, he would go directly towards the capital after the meeting in order to teach those pretentious fools a lesson about naming places. Actually, Lord Megatron was already planning to colonize the planet and enslave its population after retrieving the AllSpark, anyway. So, maybe punishing those alicorns would not be really necessary after all.

With all those thoughts in his head, he headed towards the mountain at full speed and, soon enough, entered a large cave before transforming back to his robot form. Right after that, he noticed the presence of his old friend Brawl who approached him with curiosity.

"What happened? You said you were going to send the results soon. Where are they?"

"The interrogation was interrupted."

"Oh. Autobots?"

"Worse. Prime himself is here and I'm pretty sure he didn't come alone."

"What? How's that even possible? I thought Lugnut was in charge of destroying all the remaining escape pods."

"He was and it's not really like him to leave any job unfinished. The Autobots most likely finished him off before he could wreck the rest of those pods."

Brawl became silent for a handful of seconds before letting out a frustrated sigh.

"That's a real shame. He was a fine soldier and always good for a laugh or two. I'm going to miss that old sucker."

"Me too, but we have more important things to worry about right now. If the Autobots manage to ally themselves with this planet's inhabitants, we'll be in real trouble."

"Relax! I just demolished an entire empire of ponies all by myself and we have a whole legion of Decepticon troops at our disposal. So, who cares if Prime teams up with those weaklings. What we SHOULD worry about, on the other hand, is Lord Megatron. I imagine he won't be happy to learn that a bunch of Autobot stowaways escaped from the Nemesis and reached this planet in order to spoil our plans."

"Hmmm. You could be right. He is not going to like these news and will definitely take his anger out on something. That 'something' will probably be us right after we deliver the news."

Brawl once again sighed in frustration.

"I won't argue with you. After all, you know him much better than I do. I mean, you were one of the very first bots to join his cause, right?"

"Yes, besides Soundwave and Lugnut. Well, just Soundwave now that Lugnut is axed off. Speaking of Soundwave, where in the name of Primus is he, anyway? We could really use an assistance by him or one his minions."

"Didn't you hear? He went to assist the Stunticons on a mission to hunt down that huge troublemaker, Ironhide. Their last report came only two megacycles ago and it stated that they nearly cornered him in Caminus. I highly doubt that they can come here to help us any time soon."

"Ugh! Great! Just great! How exactly are we going to solve our problems, then! We are so screwed!"

He proceeded to punch one of the cave walls, causing a small shake. A worried Brawl immediately grabbed his shoulder.

"Hey! The last thing we need right now is getting buried alive inside a mountain. So, you'll do well to calm down a bit and... What's that thing on your back?"

Surprised by that question, Barricade quickly looked at his back and was shocked to discover a small device planted there. He instantly picked up the device and started examining it.

"Oh, scrap! This is one of those new tracking devices invented by that blasted Autobot engineer Wheeljack. Prime must have thrown it to my vehicle form's rear during my retreat. It becomes online fifteen cycles after it's planted and sends a signal directly to him when the target is located around a maximum range of sixty miles. It's already been five cycles since my escape and we're only forty miles away from that area. We have to crush this thing immediately!"

"Wait! Not yet!"

"What are you talking about? If we don't get rid of it as soon as possible, Prime will surely use it to hunt us down and turn us into scrap!"

"I know, but there's a way we can use it to our advantage."

Barricade gave him an incredulous look.

"How so?"

"Think about it. That device will lead both the Autobots AND Princess Twilight right to us, right? We can go to a place she cares about, ambush them as soon as they arrive, and force her to tell us the location of the AllSpark. It will be the perfect trap! What do you say?"

Barricade thought hard about this plan before a sadistic grin appeared on his face.

"Not a bad idea and I know the perfect place to spring this trap. Good thinking, comrade. For a bot who adores blasting things, you're quite the strategist."

"Heh! Lord Megatron didn't make me the commander of his ground forces for nothing. Once we find the AllSpark and present it to him, he'll declare us heroes and we'll finally have that long-overdue break."

"No kidding. I'm pretty much tired from all this fighting. My servos should've used a vacation ages ago."

"Yeah, as much as I like blasting stuff, I admit that this war has taken its toll on me. Luckily, the AllSpark will put a stop to it for good and those pesky Autobots will have no choice but to surrender."

"So, what are we waiting for? Let's cause a little more destruction and set up that ambush!"

"Lead the way, little buddy!"

They both transformed into their vehicle forms and headed out of the mountain at maximum speed.

Meanwhile, the discussion between Twilight and the Autobots was still ongoing. They had been talking for nearly ten minutes and haven't come to a solid conclusion yet. Even though Twilight preferred to get to know the Autobots a little better and ask questions about their culture, she eventually realized that it was not the right time. Spike, on the other hand, was silently observing them in awe. Their bold and colorful designs made them appear very heroic, in his opinion. Also, he thought that they could be great inspirations for an action figure series. More importantly, though, he simply could not wait to see the looks on the faces of the CMC when they get a good look at these multi-colored heroes.

"I know our original plan was to locate the AllSpark by exercising discretion", Optimus declared. "However, Twilight's suggestion convinced me to follow the opposite approach. We must contact Equestria's rulers directly and warn them about the imminent danger. The future of their land and people depends on it."

"I don't know about this, Optimus", replied Bumblebee. "Even if they listen to us, what happens if they also decide to rally their armies against the Decepticons? We'd be endangering countless lives and maybe leading them to their demise."

"Bumblebee has a valid point, old friend", added Ratchet. "Besides, they will most likely choose to melt us down or subject us to some unethical experiment before deciding to hear us out. Trust me, intelligent life forms always immediately fear and try to destroy beings from a planet other than their own."

Optimus countered, "This plan may carry great risk, Autobots, but we have little choice. The inhabitants of this world need to know how they can prepare for an imminent threat to their very lives and they can only accomplish this by knowing exactly what is coming to them."

Bumblebee thought hard about this for a moment before responding with, "Well, when you put it that way, I guess it could be worth a shot."

"Oh, and how exactly do you propose we do that?", Ratchet asked. "Simply climb up to the capital city and knock on the castle doors? Because, that sounds like a truly terrible idea, if you ask me."

Twilight elaborated, "I hate to admit it, Optimus, but your overly pessimistic friend here is kinda right about this. Every pony in Equestria is on edge now and the princesses are prepared to do anything in their power to keep the citizens safe from an alien attack."

"But we aren't gonna do anything of the sort, stated Bumblebee. "We'll just introduce ourselves as peacekeepers and explain to them how they can prepare against the real bad bots. Simple as that. Besides, we don't look anything like those Decepticon jerks. We'll be just fine."

Spike noted, "Uh, Bee, you do realize that both you and the Decepticons are giant metal aliens, right? I really don't think Celestia and Luna will make a distinction."

Bumblebee's whole face fell as soon as he heard that.

"Oh. Right. So, what do we do, then? I don't suppose your civilization has invented radio communication yet?"

"Nope, but we could use smoke signal if you want."

"Come on! That will never work!"

"Hey, it was just a suggestion! If you have a better one, I'd love to hear it!"

As this discussion continued, Twilight decided to think of a solution on her own. While she evaluated all the possible outcomes in her mind, she also took notice of the nearly wrecked train carts. Suddenly, a brilliant idea formed in her head and she quickly flew towards the middle of the conversation between her companions.

"Guys, I figured it out! Actions always speak louder than words and you can prove yourselves to be the good aliens by doing something nice for the ponies of Canterlot. For example, those carts over there are supposed to be attached to a train headed for the city. If you could restore them to their former glory and deliver them there in one piece, then I'm sure Celestia and Luna would agree to hear you out."

All three Autobots looked at each other in confusion for a while before Ratchet inquired, "Are you seriously suggesting that the key to getting inside the city is repairing these primitive means of transportation and presenting them to your rulers as some kind of a donation?"

Twilight gave him an unamused look.

"Seriously? What do you have to lose, anyway?"

"Well, our dignity, for one!"

Bumblebee quickly got in front of him to face Twilight.

"I think Ratchet is trying to say that none of us really know how to fix up this kind of stuff. He's a medical officer, Optimus is a commander, and though I worked as a construction worker before the war, it was more on space bridges and less on public transportation. I mean, we do have an engineer friend, but he's currently several light years away from here."

Twilight's expression turned to bewildered as soon as she heard that.

"Are you kidding me?! NONE of you know how to repair a couple of train carts?!"

"I do", replied Optimus and this surprised everyone around him. "I had conducted some research about Equestria before our arrival and one particularly interesting subject I came across was the mechanics of these trains. I believe I can partially restore these carts, but I might need some help in completing the process due to their crystal structure."

Everyone kept looking at him in confusion until Twilight eventually broke the silence with enthusiasm.

"I'll help you! I've learned a great deal about these crystals since my first visit to the Crystal Empire. Just ask me anything you want to know and I'll answer it in a second."

"Then, it's settled", Optimus declared. "Twilight and I will repair the carts and deliver them to Canterlot in order to gain the trust of Equestria's leaders. Ratchet, I want you to continue the search for the AllSpark in the meantime."

Ratchet nodded in agreement.

"Good luck, Optimus. You'll need it."

He transformed into his vehicle form and drove off towards the west. Just then, Optimus's blue eyes began to blink repeatedly. He pressed something on one of his horns and his eyes immediately projected a couple of lasers that created a holographic map of Equestria. After Twilight stared at it in awe for a bit, she noticed a small blinking red dot on it.

"Why is this map pointing towards Ponyville?"

Optimus replied, "Because the signal of the tracker I placed on Barricade is coming from there. Therefore, that must be his current location."

Both Twilight and Spike gasped in horror and yelled in unison, "Oh, no! Our friends!"

"Hey, don't worry, guys!", interrupted Bumblebee. "I'll just drive up to that town, get your friends out of trouble, and knock that rust bucket senseless. Easier done than said!"

"This seems like a rash course of action, Bumblebee", Optimus stated. "Barricade is a rather challenging opponent and it's unlikely that he will be there alone. Besides, you still have to get the civilians out of danger. You cannot accomplish all of these tasks by yourself."

"Hmmm. You're kinda right, actually. They ARE a bit too much for me to handle on my own. Wait, I got it! How about Spike joins me on this mission? He can help me evacuate the town and get everyone to safety. What do you say, Spike?"

At that moment, Spike became really excited by this proposal.

"A mission with you that involves saving Ponyville from Barricade? Of course, I say yes!"

"Spike, no!", exclaimed Twilight. "You barely survived our last encounter with Barricade. I simply can't put you at risk a second time."

"He won't be anywhere near Barricade", Bumblebee clarified. "He'll just be there to help with the town's evacuation and calm everybody down. It's not a very big role, but an important one, nonetheless."

Spike nodded in agreement and turned to Twilight once again.

"You can relax, Twilight. I'll find Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy as soon as we get to Ponyville. They'll keep me safe and help me get everything under control while Bee deals with the bad guys. It'll be totally fine."

Twilight let out a big nervous sigh.

"Alright, but stick close to them at all times. Also, make sure to check on Shining Armor and Cadence to see if they're feeling better."

"Will do! Hey, Bee, I think you should fight off the Decepticons AFTER we clear out the town. You know, to avoid accidental injuries. Do you have some sort of machine I can use to let you know when you can go into battle?"

"Way ahead of you, little buddy! Here, take this earpiece. It will establish clear communication between us throghout the entire operation."

Spike put the device on his ear and, after running a few tests, confirmed that he could hear Bumblebee loud and clear. Right before they headed out, Optimus approached the dutiful scout.

"You can call for backup any time you want, but if you remember to focus on the task ahead of you, I am confident that you will succeed. We both know that you accomplished more challenging missions than this one."

"Thanks, boss bot. I will not let you down."

"You never have and never will, old friend. Now, I believe you and your new partner have a town full of ponies to save."

"Yes, sir! We're on it! Come on, Spike! Let's roll out!"

He picked up Spike, transformed into his vehicle form, and drove off towards Ponyville at his top speed. As they disappeared into the horizon, Optimus let out a small groan, which earned him a curious look from Twilight.

"That is usually my line," he said, which caused her to chuckle a bit.