TRANSFORMERS PRIME: MY WILD ADVENTURE. DARKNESS RISING: INTRODUCTIONS TO THE GREAT WAR
NOTE:
I have already worked on this story on Wattpad before jumping into here on Fanfiction. Expect publishing times once every week or two weeks. As always, constructive criticism is appreciated!
INFO:
- "text"- regular speaking
- "text"- Sean thinking to himself
- "TEXT" - story transition
Music links: the custom soundtrack for the story.
BEGIN STORY
Friday, November 25, 2010.
Within the last 24 hours, Sean Rodriguez, along with his friends and acquaintances, underwent a significant discovery, one that has answered one question on every human's mind: "Are We Alone in the Universe?"
Well, yes and no. Aliens from another world do exist, but they aren't green-skinned with large heads and black eyes. No, these aliens are robots the size of an apartment complex, and they can transform into vehicles. Most importantly: they are sentient, meaning they can talk on their own, much like humans. At least that's what the leader of the Autobot faction says.
Being the son of an army drill instructor, Sean was the most stressed about this situation than the other three kids. All his life, his father, Tyler, told him time and time again: "Sonny, I don't want you to be a soldier. Even though I am proud to serve this country, I can't bear seeing you get drafted and sent to the Middle East, and getting killed by the enemy. It's too dangerous, especially with how much damage they inflicted on the world."
But the fact that Sean got accidentally dragged into a conflict between alien robots would put his father's fears into fruition. And that is what stressed him the most.
Sean crossed his arms while paying attention to the Autobot leader. For the past 30 minutes, the leader, who introduced himself as Optimus Prime, explained in detail the war they are fighting, and the unfortunate situation not only they face, but also what the kids saw last night. For the most part, Jackson Darby and Rafael Esquivel have been asking questions about the "Decepticons" aka the Autobots' enemies. Eventually, Sean gained the courage to join in.
"So, those 'Cons' we saw last night," Raf nervously asked, "would they be like…newbies?"
Before Optimus could curve his metal brow, the blue female Autobot intervened. "No, they were merely armed scouts."
"How many of these guys are we talking?" Sean picked up, "as in the whole Decepticon army?"
"Thousands, if we're including those outside of your solar system," the red and white robot answered Sean's question. The reply earned a lot of shocked looks from the other three teenagers.
"At this point in time," Optimus joined in, "Megatron and the Decepticons have managed to conquer half of the galaxy. Wherever they conquer a planet and receive the largest plunder of resources, such as Energon, outposts would be established to house troops in reserve, so that they can secure entire systems while Megatron is away. As for Earth, we have at least a ship crew's worth of soldiers; about 1500 of them.
"And since you now know of our existence, I fear that as of last night, the Decepticons now know of yours," Optimus concluded.
Jack quickly responded: "Got it, we spot any strange vehicles call 9-1-1. Can we go now?"
'As much as I like to go, I fear these alien robots won't buy it, Jack.'
But Miko didn't like that at all. "Are you insane? I am living a dream here in Botswana, and I will not allow you, or anyone else to shatter it!"
At that moment, Sean felt tempted to scold her on behalf of the near-death experience last night. However, he held back, seeing how serious the Autobots were, so he waited for one of them to take the chance. The tall leader spoke with calm authority: "It is best that you four remain under our watch, at least until we can determine our enemy's intentions."
'Ugh,' Sean mentally grunted and pinched his temples. 'I hope they know about our parents waiting at home.'
"Optimus," cut the white and red Autobot, "with all due respect, the human children are in as much danger here as anywhere."
"Children?" Jack sensitively asked, though his complaint fell on deaf ears.
"They have no protective shell! If they get underfoot, they will go, squish," the medic further emphasized.
To demonstrate this, he stomped his mechanical foot toward the humans. The slight tremor startled the children.
"Then, for the time being, Ratchet, we must watch where we step," returned Optimus.
Immediately after he answered, an alarm started blaring with green lights. The red and white robot, now known to the teenagers as Ratchet, immediately walked over to the set of green giant monitor screens.
"What's that?"
Bumblebee turned to the kids and replied to Jack's question with whirs and beeps.
"A proximity sensor, someone's up top," Rafael translated for him.
Ratchet typed away at the large three monitors. At once, a video appeared on one of three screens, showing a lone helicopter with a man walking out.
"It's Agent Fowler," Ratchet confirmed.
Sean looked up directly at the ceiling overhead. It was tall, hung with large light beams from the metal ceiling. It's odd how he couldn't hear the helicopter's blades echoing through the concrete and steel walls, but he guessed to himself two possible outcomes: either there was a large pad of canyon rock between the ceiling and the helipad, or the robots talking blocked off the noise.
Jack stammered, "I thought we were the only humans who know about you guys."
Optimus turned around and answered: "Special Agent Fowler is our designated liaison to the outside world, as he tends to visit only during issues. It may be best you do not meet him at this time."
'I mean, yeah, there was a big fight yesterday; I guarantee this guy's gonna blow off a lot of steam.'
Sean worriedly asked, "Where does he come in?" To which Bulkhead told him about the elevator and the second floor above their level. The teenagers quickly ran for cover behind a large crate that blocked off their view of the railing above. Though Sean, Raf, and Miko couldn't see well from their spot, Jack, who hid near the edge, had a good view when peeking.
The chime you usually hear when an elevator arrives beeped, and the doors opened up. Jack spotted an African-American male wearing a casual suit and tie approach the railing edge and eye the giant robots standing before him.
"Seven wrecks, 34 fender benders, a three-hour traffic jam, and a particular note: numerous reports of a speeding motorcycle of unknown make, and a black and yellow custom muscle car," the man explained.
Bumblebee and the blue female Autobot, Arcee, exchanged glances, while Sean just stared at Jack. Even though Jack told him his side of the encounter, Sean was surprised at the general viewpoint of the near-death experience.
"So, care to get anything off your tin chest, Prime?"
Optimus leaned closer and replied, "We have the situation under control, Agent Fowler."
"They're back, aren't they?" asked the agent.
"If you are referring to the Decepticons, I have doubts that they ever left. Your planet is much too valuable."
Fowler then concluded with a suggestion. "Then it is time to wake up the Pentagon."
Optimus retaliated: "Hear me, Agent Fowler: we are your best, possibly your only defense against the Decepticon threat."
"Says you," Fowler struck again.
"Hey fleshie, did anyone get splattered on that freeway?" Bulkhead sensitively asked, "Team Prime knows when to use force, and how much to use," he exclaimed while grabbing onto a nearby machine and crushing it with his fist. All the humans were astonished at his feat of strength, but Miko had wider eyes and almost caught herself redhanded saying "Woah!"
"Bulkhead, I NEEDED that!" Ratchet shouted.
"Enough!" Optimus shot down before returning to Fowler. "Military involvement will only result in catastrophe. Perhaps you can condone human casualties, Agent Fowler. I, however, cannot."
"Then do us both a favor, and handle this, Prime, under the radar," Fowler, at last, concluded before returning to the elevator. As he pushed the button, he spoke one final warning: "Or I will."
The doors shut, and the elevator carried him back to the top.
"Pretty big bearings, for a human," returned Bulkhead. "Agent Fowler is concerned for his world, Bulkhead, as he should be," Optimus explained.
Arcee said, "He's gone, you can come out now." And so the teenagers got out before Ratchet led them up to the railing platform where Fowler once stood. "Ep-ep! Remember: no protective shell."
Sean worriedly checked his watch as he set aside his backpack on a nearby chair. It has been now at least 45 minutes since they arrived at the remote base.
"Miko, right? I'm Jack," the dark-haired teen introduced himself to the foreign-exchange student. They shook hands before Miko suddenly performed a handshake move that involved a fist bump and an attempted explosion noise. When she saw them staring at her, she just shrugged, "what?"
"You're Raf," she pointed at the special needs kid, who nodded and waved, before Miko looked upon Sean. "And you are?"
"Sean. Sean Rodriguez," the blonde introduced himself.
"Miko Nakadai at your service!" she exclaimed at all four.
MEANWHILE, AT THE DECEPTICON'S LARGEST MINE. NEBRASKA, U.S.A
Indeed, Megatron has returned from a decade-long self-exile from his Decepticon brethren. In fact, he rejoined them two Earth hours ago, and now stood at a rocky surface surveying a large canyon hole, now filled with loyal soldiers mining Energon crystals from the walls and floor. His mighty presence gave a sense of fearful authority.
Standing at his side was a seeker, a Cybertronian capable of transforming into an aerial vehicle; in this case, a jet plane. Such was Starscream, the second-in-command of the Decepticons. Megatron towered over the seeker easily, as Starscream was only 38 feet tall while he was 64 feet high. The seeker was well known in the army not just for his fighting style-
No, his treacherous skills and weakly attitude are the best and well known from all of Cybertron, including a strong lustful desire for power. Though he has kept it to himself at the start, his attempted power seizure from the warmonger's supposed demise from Metroplex is what led to his downfall. After Soundwave rebuilt and revived the gladiator of Kaon, Megatron was informed of Starscream's treacherous act, and since then the two have been at odds with each other.
Ever since his arrival, Commander Starscream has, under pressure, acted with care towards his master. But what shook things up in his head was when Megatron revealed something new: a new power source known to increase manpower through the resurrection of corpses. It was known by all Cybertronians as the Blood of Unicron. But it was more commonly referred to as Dark Energon.
The corpse of Cliffjumper lay on the medical bed. However, the Decepticon leader, Megatron, has no plans on burying the cursed Autobot. In his hands held a glowing purple crystal, completely different from the blue shine of Energon.
"Let us see if the power born from darkness, can reignite the spark!" exclaimed the warmonger.
He thrust the purple crystal into the corpse's spark chamber. He and Starscream watched for results carefully.
The purple crystal slowly sunk into Cliffjumper's body, and he began to illuminate in a purple aura. His body began to twitch before uttering an unholy growl with purple eyes.
Then came the jerk movements. The creature thrashed at his containment-
He broke free and lunged at the first trooper he saw. Ripping and tearing away at the shell, the frightened trooper shot the corpse before getting his arm cannon ripped off.
A second trooper shot the corpse before being mercilessly mauled by the zombified Autobot.
While Megatron observed the situation with a hidden smirk, his second-in-command lost it completely. "That's your plan? Bring Autobots back from the dead to attack us?"
"That is no longer an Autobot, just a mindless beast; its only instinct to destroy anything in its path," the warmonger calmly explained, unphased by the horrific appearance of the zombie.
Cliffjumper spotted another prey and lept at Megatron. However, as a gladiator, he prepared himself for anything. With one dash of his arm sword, the zombie was sliced in half, reduced to only one arm and the head attached to half of the chest. The two halves slid off of each other as the Decepticon leader walked over smiling. "There, Starscream, lies the indestructible seed of my army. The ultimate weapon!"
Megatron kicked the zombie off the cliff as he explained further, "once I learn how to control it." Starscream was mildly impressed, but a lingering question remained: how can our glorious leader control an entire army of these infested corpses?
WE NOW RETURN TO THE AUTOBOT BASE.
If there was one good thing about the teenagers being on the second-level platform, it's that they no longer have to crank their heads up to see the alien robots. They are now at an eye-to-eye level- well, for the female robot that is.
That doesn't change the fact that Sean and the others can see those uncanny metal faces, though.
Sean and the other kids were watching them work while he leaned against the rails nervously. His watch told another thirty minutes had passed. Throughout that time, the alien robots and humans, despite their awkward introductions, started to get to know one another. Optimus introduced his comrades to the teens; Arcee, despite being the smallest Autobot, is the second-in-command and often works as their spy; Ratchet is the Autobot's medic; Bulkhead is the muscle of the team, as the humans expected from his earlier stunt. And last but not least: Bumblebee, who works as the scout for the team.
'I honestly still can't believe we're meeting aliens. All those conspiracy theorists are gonna freak out,' Sean pondered as looked at each of them, before turning his eyes toward his new friends. Rafael was talking away with the yellow scout robot about daily life, what it's like fighting, what was their home like, etc., and it still seemed so odd that Raf knew what Bumblebee was saying through all those beeps, clicks, and whirs.
Jack Darby was not really close in terms of friends to Sean as was Raf. He was more of a helpful acquaintance back in school. They rarely talked, only like once or twice per month, and that was whenever they worked together in class.
But Miko Nakadai? She's new. Given her reputation as easily distractable, and being a nerd on rock, monster trucks, and anime, she would be hard to control in the current situation. Not only that, but she's a foreign exchange student, meaning Miko won't be here in Jasper for long.
'Plus, she didn't take the warning by Optimus seriously. If we get involved in another crossfire, I have a bad feeling about her,' he frowned.
As soon as he turned back towards the robots, Ratchet, who stood nearby typing away at the giant monitors, grunted after a series of beeps were heard.
"Blasted Earth tech! Cliffjumper's signal popped back online!" he exclaimed to himself.
"Who's Cliffjumper?" Miko asked the medic. The other three teenagers leaned over with curiosity.
But the Autobots didn't answer the question, for the discovery drew their attention like flies. "How is that possible?" Optimus joined.
"It isn't; it's another bug! The system's chocked full of them!"
Arcee felt the most energetic, because she begged, "If there's any chance that he's still alive?"
Optimus concluded the hypothesis. "Ratchet, prepare sickbay, we may need it." As he turned toward the circular-shaped tunnel next to the entrance tunnel, metal plates shifted over his mouth to form a battle mask.
'O-oh, they're going to fight!' Sean's eyes widened as he watched the leader.
There was a shout. Optimus turned his optics at Miko, who then asked: "What can we do?"
'What the- Are you freaking kidding me? After what happened last night?'
"Remain with Ratchet," he replied before turning back around.
'Oh, thank God!'
"Aww!" Miko whined. Sean sighed in relief. Ratchet groaned as he pulled the strange-looking switch nearby. Noises of active alien tech machinery churned as the circular tunnel suddenly began glowing with a bright greenish-blue light. The kids gazed at the view before them. The ground started shaking as the group advanced to the tunnel.
"Autobots! Roll out!" Optimus exclaimed as he and the others began transforming into vehicles. Sean vaguely saw Bulkhead change into a green muscle car, almost like a Hummer; while Optimus Prime changed into a red and blue semi-truck. Within seconds flashes of light covered them, and they vanished.
"What, just happened?" Jack asked. Ratchet answered the young teenager: "I transported them to the designated coordinates via the ground bridge."
"What's a ground bridge?" Rafael asked.
Ratchet grew frustrated but contained it in his mind. "A scaled-down version of space bridge technology. Since we don't possess the means or the Energon required for intergalactic travel,"
Jack finished for the medic: "You're stuck here, on Earth."
"With the likes of you, yes. But I constructed the ground bridge to enable travel from here to anywhere on your planet."
Sean was lost for words. These Autobot guys are stuck on our planet, even though they are protecting it from the enemy. But at the same time, they have a portal-generating machine that guarantees an instant vacation to the beach!
But, as awe-inspiring this ground bridge was, there were other matters. His father must be worried sick. Hold on, he usually comes home around 5:30 pm. School ended at 3:15, and we drove to the base for about an hour, then we stayed at the base for an hour. The time confirmed his fears: 5:20 pm.
"Does it work for humans?" Rafael peeked into the conversation. Sean decided to distract himself and focused on the ensuing discussion. "Naturally," Ratchet replied. "You mean, I can just shoot on over and visit my parents in Tokyo?" Miko piped in.
"Within moments; in fact, allow me to send you there immediately, all three of you!" hope sparkled in Ratchet's optics. Sean noticed that the way he talked to him and the kids felt like he held a grudge against humans, despite being around for only an hour.
But Miko shot back: "Watch it, Ratchet."
Sean was getting a little anxious. He pulled out his cell phone to text his dad. However, there were no bars on the home screen.
Wait a minute...
He pulled up the settings app, clicked "WiFi," and searched relentlessly for a WiFi signal. But there was none.
'Aw crap. Well, I better use my time wisely if I need to help ease dad's stress,' Sean mentally sighed.
Grabbing a nearby chair, Sean unzipped his backpack and began working on his homework. First on the list was a worksheet on math equations, specifically on radical expressions. He began jotting down solutions on the worksheet.
"Optimus and the others will be gone for a while, so I strongly suggest you work on your schoolwork," the robot medic announced before turning to walk down a third hallway, this time not in a circular shape.
'At least these guys know we go to school.'
MEANWHILE, AT THE DECEPTICON MINE.
The ground bridge portal closed as Optimus and the others transformed and shifted their arms into cannons. Thank Primus, no Decepticons were waiting to attack, but the view of their destination took them off guard for a moment.
Bulkhead was the first to speak. "Energon mine," he whistled.
"Judging by its scale, the Decepticons have been tunneling here for quite some time," Optimus observed before the sounds of drilling caught the Autobots' attention. Hiding behind some rocks, they watched troopers drilling into Energon crystals and gathering them inside supply crates. It looked really busy. However, they weren't here for sights.
"Let's find Cliffjumper!"
The ground shook as Optimus revealed himself to the enemy. Both sides activated their arm cannons and engaged in battle. Drilling machines drove to attack the Autobots, but were easily pushed aside and destroyed. They were dealing serious damage to the enemy. While Optimus led the charge, Arcee was the swift assassin who kicked arse, Bumblebee attacked from behind with blasterfire, and Bulkhead grabbed the Decepticon's heads and smashed them onto the ground. If you saw him attack like that, you'd probably say he was the Hulk from the Marvel comic books.
AT THE AUTOBOT BASE.
It's been another hour. Sean managed to finish his math worksheet, but now he's working on his science homework: update his project report on what he did over the weekend, or what he will do.
'Nah, I can do that once I get home.'
Wait, home? It's been three hours! Dad must be home already and worried sick!
Deciding for a rematch, Sean pulled out his cell phone. Again, no WiFi signal or network. And the worst part is? His phone is at 20% battery.
Dammit.
He pushed that aside and began working on his last math homework: solve at least five problems using a chosen radical expression.
"What is this anyway?"
"Broken, don't touch." Miko peeked at it again. "Don't touch that either," Ratchet ordered.
"Is there anything in here we can touch?" Jack piped in. "Err, I don't know, anything that doesn't involve machinery!" The medic sarcastically responded.
An error pops up. Ratchet mentally cursed to himself.
"How come you are using human computers?"
"It isn't by choice! It was handed down by the previous tenants when we inherited this former missile silo. I make modifications as I see fit."
'Now, wait just a minute! This used to be a missile silo?! Wow, that makes sense, given the size of this place!'
And just like that, multiple errors covered the screens, growing the medic's frustration.
"I think I can fix that," Rafael sat down at the chair behind Sean, who listened intently.
"Really? You know this is complex technology, don't you? I mean it isn't a child's toy!" Ratchet laughed to himself.
'You clearly do not know Rafael Esquivel, Ratchet.' The blonde smirked.
Raf plugged in his computer and began typing away. Sean counted in his head.
As soon as Rafael looked back at Ratchet, three seconds had passed. "Now try it!"
Ratchet took another turn at the monitors, just to see all the errors cleared instantly.
Sean sighed as he looked up at Ratchet, who keep in mind is very surprised, and took the opportunity to ask him. "Hey, err, Ratchet? Do you know if there's any WiFi here?"
"WiFi?" The medic asked, "err-um." He leaned closer to Sean, "what's WiFi?"
Both Rafael and Sean looked at him with wide eyes.
MEANWHILE, AT THE DECEPTICON MINE
-:CUSTOM MUSIC: Play "Kronos Unveiled" in The Incredibles 1 soundtrack by Michael Giacchino:-
The Autobots continued their assault in the caverns until an army of drillers and Decepticon bots arrived on scene. "Commander Starscream, we have the targets in sight."
"Well don't just stand there! Open fire!" And so the troopers activated their cannons and fired at the approaching enemy.
Optimus exclaimed, "Maximum Overdrive!" As they transformed into their vehicle forms, they increased speed. They dodged the incoming fire, eventually drifting Fast and Furious style against the troopers. "HOLY SCRAP-" shouted the commander before being smashed by Bulkhead against one of the drillers.
It took a while, but the army was wiped out. The Autobots continued trekking through the cave, before arriving at a massive opening. They quickly transformed into their robot forms and hid behind the crates.
The cave opening was circular, and had elevated pathways for miners to get extra work done. These pathways all surrounded the center point of interest. There in the center stood an elevator, and it led to a dark shadow. Looming above the mountain cave entrance was the Nemesis.
As for the cave itself, it opened up to a massive ravine that divided two mountain peaks.
Bulkhead whistled before saying, "Quite an operation," before being barraged by lasers. The Autobots returned fire at the enemy.
Onboard the Nemesis, a massive purple crystal hovered in a glass cylinder, illuminating its dark energy across the storage room. Standing nearby, watching the crystal with awe was the warmonger himself, Megatron.
"Blood of Unicron, how might I fathom the depths of your mystery- become worthy of wielding your astonishing power?" He asked himself.
His awe was interrupted by a broadcast from his second-in-command: Starscream. "Lord Megatron, intruders have been detected in the mines!" the seeker exclaimed.
"Optimus?"
"Indeed."
Megatron mentally sighed. He knew his former partner would arrive sooner or later. They were like brothers once, and brothers have a connection that is so strong that they can never be separated. Optimus Prime intervening in his plans is a common trait that occurred throughout their war. He knew to himself that once he comes back from his travels, that the Prime's arrival would be inevitable.
"I need more time to prepare an appropriate reception for my old friend. Ready the ship for departure," he ordered.
"B-but the Energon I mined...the Autobots would seize it!" Starscream stammered.
"Then blow the mines!" The warmonger clenched his fist.
Back at the mine, the Autobots continued their assault. The battle seemed continuous- almost never-ending laser fire lit the caverns. Nothing seemed to change, except Arcee, who managed to snipe two troopers from Barricade's battalion and spot a familiar friend.
"It's Cliff! I have a visual!"
Optimus ordered, "We'll cover you! Go!" And just like that, she was off. Transforming into her motorcycle form, she rode up the ramp, passing enemy troopers, before performing a set of acrobatics, jumping up to the elevator railings, before leaping over to the walkway edge, where her partner lay unconscious.
She managed to get up, only to see he was unconscious. Incoming fire struck the platform, breaking some of it off, where Cliff was. Her adrenaline kicked in.
Arcee mentally panicked, 'No, I'm not going to lose you again!'
"Cliff!"
Before Cliffjumper could fall, she grabbed onto his only arm, grunting due to his remaining body weight. The enemy troopers continued firing, before being sniped by Optimus.
"Come on, let's get you home, partner!" Hope sparkled in her optics.
The dismembered Cybertronian opened its optics before uttering a growl. What the hell happened to him?
Arcee was horrified at his appearance and suddenly lost her grip. Her hand was scratched as he fell down into the mine, growling an unholy menace. His body crashed into the Energon crystals on the floor below.
The female mentally cursed, before a peal of laughter filled the mine. The troopers suddenly left, having been given a silent order. She recognized the voice, as did the other Autobots.
Starscream walked onto one of the top levels of the mine before shouting "Prime! I'd stick around, but I'm squeamish." He pulled out a bomb and dropped it into the Energon crystals below. He jumped into the elevator before transforming into a military jet and blasting away.
"The joint's gonna blow!" Bulkhead shouted. Optimus followed suit: "Autobots! Roll out!"
They quickly transformed and drove back to the cavern depths, screeching with the highest speed. It wasn't long before the bomb detonated, exploding the Energon crystals, with perhaps the biggest Energon explosion since Cliffjumper was captured by the Decepticons.
The blue fire filled the caves and went after them. The Nemesis warship hovered away as the mountain exploded.
"Ratchet," Optimus exclaimed, "bridge us back now! Use the arrival coordinates!"
The green portal sprung to life, and the Autobots drove through.
THE AUTOBOT BASE
Sean's phone has already died, and his panic already overwhelmed his senses. Despite having finished the rest of his homework, the mere fact that his father is already home has him very worried. He was slowly getting tired.
"Hey, um, Raf? What time is it?"
Rafael looked at his computer, and his eyes widened. "It just struck 10:00 pm."
10:00? Holy crap! My dad is going to be so mad!
Just as he thought so, there was Optimus' voice on the monitor. Ratchet quickly typed on the keyboard, before pulling the switch.
The ground bridge ignited to life, brightening the room. Sean partially covered the view to block the emerald light, but then a familiar sound blossomed: vehicle engines.
Optimus Prime transformed and jumped into the room, just as the blue firewall came through. The portal luckily closed, so the Energon fire was cut off from engulfing everyone. The heatwave rushed in, and Sean felt as though he was splashed with the summer heat.
"Cutting it a bit close," Ratchet remarked. "How about Cliffjumper?"
He and the kids watched as they looked down, with some emotions. Bumblebee's door wings on his back curled down, and it gave away the answer.
Sean's eyes narrowed. 'Wait a minute...' he watched their expressions, 'you're not saying-'
Miko quickly walked over to the edge, "What was that explosion? Was there a fight? Can I come with you next time?"
The female walked in view, and it seemed like something snapped. "Look," she growled.
Miko, what the hell is wrong with you? Sean thought. Jack quickly stepped in before the blue bot would continue "Uh hey Miko, let's see what the bots hide in their sock drawers." "Seriously?"
Sean snorted in agreement. He thanked Jack for preventing a crisis. But at the same time, his curiosity drew him to the Autobots confronting the blue robot.
Optimus spoke first: "Arcee, what did you see?" The latter crossed her arms, "Not Cliff, at least...not anymore," Arcee's voice quivered, "He was mutated, butchered, like those Con experiments during the war."
Suddenly, she nearly fainted before catching herself on one of the nearby crates. Bumblebee offered assistance, but she raised her hand.
"Robots who get dizzy?" Miko piped in.
"Robots who can feel," Rafael continued his observation.
"Robots...who can die," Jack concluded.
'This does not look good,' Sean gulped.
The words from earlier raced through Sean's mind. "We are autonomous robotic organisms from the planet Cybertron..." Damn, they weren't kidding around. They're robotic in appearance, but they retain organic emotions, movements, actions, and speaking.
And trauma, too.
They watched as Ratchet pulled out what appeared to be a device for medical purposes, and scanned Arcee. It revealed something on her metal hand. Sean couldn't see well, but mentally deduced it was something that probably shouldn't be here.
"What is this?" "I don't know, Cliff was covered in it," Arcee answered. He pulled out a small swab and plucked the substance from her hand.
"Go take a decontamination bath, now," Ratchet ordered.
Bumblebee led Arcee to the giant glass tube on the far left. Shortly afterward, Jack pulled out his cellphone. "Err, Optimus, I hate to bug, but, no bars."
Sean was relieved that the kids are finally addressing the lingering issue. Optimus answered, "A security precaution, the silo walls isolate any radiowaves."
"Well, if I don't call my mom like right now, the cops would come out looking for me."
Optimus leaned forward, "Have you broken a law?"
"Curfew, it's after 10 pm."
"I better get home too," Rafael joined in with a worried look, "or I'll be grounded for a year."
"Earth customs, I hadn't considered," the Prime concluded. "But the issue of your safety remains." He turned to Bulkhead. "Bulkhead, accompany Miko home."
Miko shrieked, "Awesome! My host parents would freak!"
As if he wanted to shut down her expectations, Optimus continued, "And maintain covert surveillance- in vehicle form." "Curbside duty, got it," Bulkhead responded. They both looked at her, and Sean thought they purposefully intended that way as if they were saying 'Yeah, you thought so, knucklehead'
"Aww!"
"Bumblebee, you'll watch over Raf." Bumblebee and Rafael looked at each other with hope.
"Ratchet?"
"Busy!" The medic replied, just as Arcee got out of her bath.
"Arcee, you'll accompany Jack." Just as he said so, the young Darby nervously scratched his head.
"Phew, so dizzy," she said to herself. Ratchet shot down her excuse "You're fine, says your physician."
She shrugged and sighed.
The three quickly grabbed their backpacks and headed downstairs, with Jack just grabbing his own. Just as he turned to head downstairs, Optimus Prime, after careful consideration, looked at Sean.
"I will watch over you, Sean." The teenager grabbed his stuff and headed down. Just as he got to the main floor, Ratchet paused his work and stopped the leader, "Optimus, with all due respect, you're putting your life in peril just by guarding his home!"
"I appreciate the concern, old friend," Optimus Prime replied, "but this substance from Arcee requires your expertise. I can handle being Sean's guardian."
"But we know how unpredictable Starscream is. Please, let me take care of him. I'll study the substance inside my alt-mode," the medic begged.
"I believe it's best to examine it here at base rather than inside yourself dozens of clicks away from here. I do not trust it's anomalous properties, given Arcee's description of Cliffjumper," the leader slightly frowned.
The medic was defeated, and turned to work on the strange substance. Optimus meanwhile transformed into his truck mode and opened his passenger door.
Sean was initially shy, since he never rode in a semi-truck before. The closest vehicle he drove in that was familiar to a truck was one of those "Army Hummers" at his dad's military base. It was really called the HMMWV, but he was a little kid when he and dad rode in one.
Shortly after getting in, he watched the Autobots and kids leave one-by-one until it was just him and Optimus. The Prime slowly drove out of the base and onto the highway, about 30 or so feet behind Bulkhead. Sean heavily sighed.
"Are you alright, Sean?" his voice beamed through the radio, which slightly scared him.
'Yeah, I'm inside a robot. Not just any, but the leader of the Autobots themselves!' his mind screamed.
"Well, I'm just kind of nervous, about my dad."
"What about your father?"
"Well, he works for the country's military as a drill instructor. He helps train the soldiers, and mostly just yells at the top of his lungs to get them into shape. What I am concerned about the most is that he usually the latest time for me to come home is 5:00 pm, two hours after I get out of school. If I don't tell him where or how long it would take for me to come home, he would get angry. Can't blame him though." the kid shrugged.
"I see," the Prime answered. Drill instructor? Optimus and his fellow crew have been on Planet Earth for only three years, but this developing civilization already has a bunch of similarities with that of Cybertron. The only Autobot who would be close to being considered a drill instructor was Ultra Magnus.
And then there was Elit-
"ACHOO!" the teenager sneezed. Optimus quickly said, "excuse you."
"Thanks."
After 30 minutes of driving, Optimus finally pulled up to the neighborhood in Jasper. Sean gulped as he saw his father's car parked up the front of the house.
'Ah crap, here we go.'
Sean breathed heavily before grabbing his backpack and opening the door. "Thanks, Optimus," he sighed.
"You're welcome," the truck replied. He closed the door before heading over. Just as he was about to step on the front lawn, the front door opened, and a familiar face came out. Wearing dark brown pants with a white short-sleeved t-shirt, his father stood outside the front door, with his arms crossed.
"Hey Dad," Sean spoke first.
"Sean Rodriguez. You need to explain yourself to me and your mother, right now."
While Sean was let into the house and forced to explain why he was six hours late to home, Optimus Prime shot down a faint memory of his, when he was not strong as a leader, when he couldn't save one of his lieutenants. When he couldn't save Elita-One...
For the past five minutes, Sean had to explain why he was seven and a half hours late from home, and didn't even tell them where he went after school. Though he managed to come up with some convincing lies, his parents were not finished with him yet.
"Why were you brought back in a semi-truck?" Tyler Rodriguez demanded his son, while Charlotte, Sean's mother, crossed her arms nearby with an equally stern expression.
Sean quickly came up- 'No, that won't work on Dad!'
"Do any of your friends drive that?"
The blonde quickly nodded. "Y-yeah, Jack's father works as a truck driver, and offered to take me home."
His dad's brow curved before he finally sighed. "Who's Jack?"
"Jack Darby, we recently became friends. He was there with me and Rafael at the canal, and then I was invited to his house to hang out. My phone died on the way there."
While his dad seemed somewhat impressed he got a new friend, his mom asked, "Your phone died? Didn't you charge your phone overnight?"
"Well, it-"
"Forget it, Sean. It's almost 10:30, and you have homework to do tomorrow," Tyler sighed. "Next time, just charge your phone to full charge before bed. Got it?"
The blonde nodded quickly, before saying, "Actually, I finished my homework. All of it."
Both his parents stared at him. "Good for you, Sean," Charlotte smiled.
"You have finals next month. I suggest finishing up on any unfinished assignments and getting an early headstart on studying. Otherwise, good job," Tyler smirked. "As for me, I'm hitting it. Love you, Sean."
"Love you too, Dad." The blonde went to take his shower. As the hot water rushed down his bruised back, Sean Rodriguez still couldn't believe himself. He met aliens after school. Alien robots that can hide as vehicles, and are taller than humans. And they can teleport anywhere worldwide with the flick of a switch.
But as he rested on his bed after charging his phone, Sean pondered over the information he gathered from Optimus Prime and the other Autobots, while remembering the experience yesterday at the canal. 'Just two of those Decepticons knocked out the female robot, Arcee. If they were armed scouts, and there's more than a thousand of them on Earth, we're in a lot of trouble.'