Transformers MHA, Arc 2: Earthrise

by The Omni-Remnant

After a rather intense adventure and the U.A. Sports Festival approaching fast, Izuku and his friends have two important things to do; improve their Quirks in time for the festival… and hide a bunch of giant alien robots. That proves to be easier said than done, especially when enemies on Earth and from beyond the stars end up coming for them…

45. The Spark

A/N: Well folks, we're here! It's finally time! It's Rise of the Beasts' opening weekend! VERY excited to go see the movie, and from what I hear, the general consensus from fans and movie-goers say that yes, it is a GOOD Transformers film, so that definitely gives me hope for my own movie-going experience. But of course, I'll be sure to judge it for myself, which means I hope to see NO SPOILERS in that review section, please and thank you. But, for now, let's shift focus back to our own little Beast Wars tribute here to commemorate this joyous occasion! This is…

Chapter 45: The Spark

…..

*Beep-Beep-Beep-Beep-Beep*

Nightra's optics snapped open at the small alert on her console, bringing her attention directly down to the screen. Giving a confused "Hmm?" she began typing in commands until she found what the sensors had picked up… something was falling down through the planet's atmosphere, and it was coming in hot and fast. The Decepticon hacker checked her surroundings to make sure she was alone before whispering; "Computer, identify."

The computer made a small note on the object, with Cybertronic text appearing above a line that pointed to the descending blip. "Object is Cybertronian Stasis Pod. Model; Protoform Transport."

"Ooh-hoo-hoo-hoo…" Nightra's voice warbled as she chuckled, rubbing her hands together. THIS was a golden opportunity. 'If I can get a hold of that pod, I'll have something VERY useful in my possession…' She leaned over the keyboard and began hastily typing in another command. "Calculate landing coordinates, rapido! Before anyone—" *VWOM* "EEP!"

"Nightra!" Skywarp's sudden arrival managed to make the hacker jump out of her seat without even standing up, causing her to haphazardly land back in it and then topple over. "GAH! For Primus' sake, would you grow a spinal structure?"

"Pha—WHAT?!" Nighta threw her legs forward and sat up, pointing an accusing finger at the black and purple Seeker. "You were the one who scared the oil outta me, cabron! The heck're you tryin' to do?!"

Skywarp grumbled, crossing his arms as he lifted his head up. "I was TRYING to make sure you were doing your JOB. You know, after the whole "kitty-cat" incident the other day?"

Stomping her foot in protest, Nightra got up, fixing her chair before plopping herself back down in front of her console. "Those gatitos were adorable, don't judge me!" She furrowed her eyeridges as she put her focus back on the incoming pod. "Anyway, leave me alone. Can't you see I AM working?"

"Ah, good… because here comes the boss."

That made the hacker do a double-take. "W-What?!" Sure enough, there were Starscream and Thundercracker, both of them entering the main bridge and setting their optics directly on her. "…You've gotta be kidding." Nightra deadpanned.

"Kidding about what, Nightra?" Starscream asked, raising an eyeridge at her. "I would HOPE that you're following your tasks much better than the day before." But then, he noticed the screen behind her, which piqued his interest. "Oh? And what is this? Did you find something?"

"Uh…"

*Bleep* Nightra couldn't prepare her fib of an answer before the computer beeped again and provided her with the results of its scan; "Stasis pod re-entry path: Erratic. Impossible to compute exact landing coordinates."

The Seeker brothers all recoiled at the news in shock, shouting out in unison; "A stasis pod?!"

"…Gah, goddamit." Nightra rubbed her optics in annoyance, knowing that there was no hiding THAT from them now. 'There goes my bargaining chip.' Nevertheless, she got right back into the flow of things and confirmed the situation. "Yes, a stasis pod. I was about to report it to you as soon as I got a hit on its landing site…" She went back to her work station as the three Seekers crowded around her, much to her chagrin. "…but it seems that wherever this thing's gonna land, we can't pinpoint the exact location."

Starscream pondered that with a hum. "Hm, I see… computer, give us the best estimate."

The screen changed to a layout of the globe, which spun around until it came up on the continent of Africa. There, the computer zoomed in on the northeastern part of the continent, showing images of a barren desert and several, triangular-shaped structures. "…Okay, the heck is this place?" Skywarp asked.

Nightra rolled her optics at his ignorance. "Uh, it's Egypt. You would KNOW this if any of you took the time to actually RESEARCH the planet."

"Huh, I think I saw those triangle things in an old movie I watched recently." Thundercracker noted. "They're called the Pyramids, I think."

"Hmph, I don't care what they're called. All I know is that a stasis pod is going to be landing in that wasteland and we should waste no time in retrieving it." But, prior to giving any orders, Starscream made an abrupt realization. "…Hm, but wait… no doubt the Autobots likely picked up on this signal as well. Even if we were to send an entire battalion of our forces there, we'd be met with heavy resistance."

At that, Nightra brightened up a bit. "Oh, but that's the FUN part, Starscream…" Raising her hand, Nightra brought up her own personal holographic interface, showing an image of North America… as well as SEVERAL Autobot signals occupying the southwest region of the United States. "Get this; most of the Autobots are on THIS continent. There's only like, one or two who aren't present. This can work to our advantage if we can cut off their communication to their base!"

"Ah, yes, excellent! Very good, very good INDEED, Nightra… um, just one eensy-teens-tiny question, though." Starscream's smile quickly disappeared as a serious scowl took over his features. "WHY did you not inform me of this little mobilization BEFORE hand?!"

Nightra yelped and leaned away as Starscream got right in her face. "I-I didn't think it was that big a deal! A-And after that whole incident with the rendezvous point the other day, I didn't think you'd want to concern yourself with to do with the Autobots for a while, so—"

"The fact that almost EVERY Aubobot is on this side of the globe IS, in fact, something I would want to concern myself with!" Starscream barked, pointing a finger straight down for emphasis. "Do I have to TELL you to use your head, Nightra?! Or must I kick you out and ask Megatron to send a better hacker?" Nightra vehemently shook her head, her expression petrified in fear. "Guh, I swear to Primus, it's like working with sparklings… oh well, at least this DOES present a fortuitous opportunity." His scowl deepened at Nightra. "You say that you can cut off their comm-links with their base?"

"Y-Yes, sir." Nightra affirmed. "I-I've just gotta get closer to them to make it work."

That proved to be less than ideal, especially since, in the Autobot's view, Nightra was supposed to be DEAD. Still… this was their best shot at getting a new member to their ranks. "…Very well, but remain in vehicular mode so that they don't notice you. Oh, and of course, this should go without saying but…" His hand shot down and grabbed Nightra by her collar strut, pulling her up with a yelp until she was eye-to-eye with the glaring Seeker. "Do… not… FAIL me this time. Are we clear?"

"¡S-Si, claro!" Nightra was thrown away from Starscream, wherein she transformed into her Santa Fe vehicle mode. "I-I'll go there right now!"

"Good." Without paying her any mind, Starscream turned back to his brothers. "Thundercracker, Skywarp, retrieve Barricade and Flatline. Knowing the Autobots, the only one who is likely left at their base is their medic, meaning that he is the only one qualified to handle the stasis pod to begin with." He narrowed his optics. "No doubt he will make a desperate attempt to save it and get it in their hands."

Skywarp pounded a fist into his palm eagerly. "Ah, so we'll be able to take out their doctor WHILE getting the pod? Heh, sounds good to me!"

Thundercracker saluted to his brother. "Right. And should any other Autobots show up with him… we'll take them out, ASAP."

"Just what I wanted to hear." Starscream waved his hand, motioning for all of them to move out. "Now go, Decepticons! And bring that pod to me as soon as possible!" Once the Seekers left the room, he glared pointedly down at the magenta and purple truck next to him. "And that means you as well, Nighta. Be sure that you cover isn't blown, understood?"

"Y-Yes, Starscream." With that, the Decepticon air commander began making his way out of the room, and Nightra's demeanor soured immediately. She had lost her chance. "Hmph… Tin Tyrant."

Little did she know that Starscream had similar sentiments to her. "Cantankerous cadet."

…..

"And so that's basically my plan. Whaddya think?" Kyoka asked this as she, Izuku, Bumblebee and Jazz were traversing across the Arizonan desert, having just recounted her plan regarding her internship with Snake Eyes just moments before. The four of them were out in the open air, with the two Autobots in their robot modes since there was absolutely, undisputedly no one else around. Why were they so sure? Because no sane person would be out THIS far out a dry desert on a hot-as-blazes day like today.

Thankfully, the Autobots had AC, but Kyoka had asked the group to stop so that she could explain her plan in full. …And it was evident by the looks on the bots' AND Izuku's faces that they were absolutely not prepared for what she had to say. "…I'm guessing it was a bit much?" Kyoka prompted.

"Uh, yeah, kinda!" Izuku exclaimed, his expression incredulous as he stared at his best friend. He wasn't afraid to speak his mind on the matter since hanging around the punk rocker had made him much more outspoken. "Kyoka, I'll admit, sometimes your plans are ingenious, but this one? It sounds like a fool's errand!"

Kyoka tightened her lips and furrowed her brow, placing her hands on her hips defiantly. "Izuku Midoriya, are you calling me a fool?"

"W-Well, u-um…" And just like that, Izuku began crumbling, realizing he probably screwed up. "N-Not directly per se… but Kyoka, you MUST realize how insane this plan sounds, right?"

"Zzrkt—HEY! You're crazy—zrrkt—GIRL!" Bumblebee echoed using part of a Buck Cherry song.

Jazz was also rather on the fence about this. "Gotta admit, Kyo, this sounds like somethin' only the most headstrong of bots would think they'd be able to pull off. An almost Wrecker-level mission." He locked his sights with his human companion's, asking her seriously; "You really think you can march into this Snake Eyes guy's place an' get the lowdown on who he is? What if it's a trap or somethin'?"

"That is why I'll have you accompany me, remember?" Kyoka emphasized by pointing finger guns up at Jazz with a knowing grin. "You've told me how good you are at espionage, which means you'd be able to get me outta any traps if this guy isn't on the up and up! You can even use your holoform to prevent 'em from finding out about your real self."

The Autobot first lieutenant winced as he saw the girl's point… but at the same time, he knew it was his job to try and talk her out of it. "Well… I guess, but you gotta think that Prime wouldn't let ya go through with it. Puttin' yourself in potential danger for the sake of an investigation that an experienced adult hero could do?" Even with his visor on, Kyoka could tell that Jazz's gaze was full of concern. "Don't ya think it might be too much of a risk?"

"…I know it's risky. But it's a risk I'm willing to take to make sure that the school is safe." Kyoka said with determination.

Izuku stepped forward again, raising an imploring hand to her. "Kyoka, please realize that we just want to make sure that YOU are safe. And I'm sure that Optimus would agree—"

"Izuku, I'm not just some porcelain doll, you know!" Her interruption took the green-haired boy aback, Izuku stepping away as she swiped a hand in front of herself. "I'm training to be a hero, so the way I see it is; if this Snake Eyes guy IS a hero, then great! I get to be trained by a mysterious professional. But if Snake Eyes isn't who they say they are, then Jazz can help me get out of there." She stepped to Izuku, getting right up close to drive her point home. "Either way, we learn more about a mysterious person who not even most heroes know about. And hopefully, we'll ensure the safety of the school as a result. Either way, I've already accepted the offer, so I'm going." She pointed a finger at his chest. "And there's nothing that you…" Kyoka moved her finger up to the Autobots. "…or they can do to stop me."

There was a long, awkward silence after Kyoka ended her mini-speech, her eyes still locked directly on Izuku as he let it all sink in. And, as he stared into her determined—and frankly, quite pretty—dark purple eyes, Izuku came upon a realization; '…What am I doing? I'm actively trying to STOP someone from doing something that could be considered heroism.' With a heavy sigh, Izuku brought a hand up to his forehead, craning his neck down in shame. "Great… now I'm the fool." he lamented.

If anything, that only made Kyoka more confused. The last thing she'd wanted to do was make him feel bad about himself, after all. "W-Wait, what? No, no, Izuku that's not what I meant at all!" she rested a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I just wanted to get my point across, that's all. I'm sorry if I—"

"Kyoka, it's okay, it has nothing to do with what you said." Izuku interjected, bringing his own hand up to grasp hers in reassurance. "I'm just upset with myself for trying to deny this from you. Here I am trying to become the world's greatest hero, a successor to All Might himself… but also trying to stop YOU from doing something inherently heroic." He gave a hollow chuckle as he shook his head. "If anything, I'm the idiot for doing that." Izuku put on a smile and nodded to Kyoka. "You should go for it, without question."

It was Jazz and Bumblebee's turn to be utterly surprised. "H-Hold on, back up, what?!" the former exclaimed.

"Zrrkt—ARE YOU NUTS?!" Bumblebee agreed.

Izuku briefly glanced up to the two Autobots. "Yeah, and I mean it. Kyoka deserves a chance to see her plan through…" He brought his attention back to the Earphone Jack user. "And I'll support it, one-hundred percent."

"Hah… wow, talk about a one-eighty." Kyoka mused, though still gave him a thankful smile in return. "But thanks, Green Bean. I appreciate your support. And don't worry, I promise that I'll be careful."

Letting out a short, apprehensive breath, Izuku nodded once again in understanding. "That's all I can ask of you… good luck."

There was a short pause after that as the two simply looked at one another for a few moments, all while Jazz and Bumblebee watched on. …However, the first lieutenant couldn't help but smirk as he cleared his vents and said; "Ahem, well, that was a REAL touchin' moment, that's for sure. Guess I'll have to go alone with this plan after all that… but uh, I think you're forgettin' somethin'."

The human duo peered up to him, confused. "Hm? Whaddya mean, Jazz?" Kyoka asked, only for Jazz to respond by pointing back down at them. She and Izuku were left perplexed… but only for a moment as they slowly realized…

They were still holding hands.

"A-Ah! S-Sorry!" Izuku apologized, his cheeks as red as a beat as he let go of Kyoka's hand and bowed many times in rapid succession. "I-I d-didn't know w-we were still—"

"N-No, i-it's okay, I-I didn't realize either!" Kyoka insisted, pulling her hand close to her chest out of embarrassment.

Bumblebee smiled under his protective mouth guard, bringing his hand up to hold back his hoarse, wheezing laughter. Jazz, on the other hand, simply chortled and transformed back into vehicle mode, opening his passenger door. "Hehe, c'mon now, we're burnin' daylight! Grimlock ain't gonna find himself, ya know!"

"Y-Yeah, of course!" Kyoka practically clamored to get into Jazz's alt. mode, slamming the door shut behind her as she moved into the back seat to curl into the fetal position. 'Oh god, oh god, I was gonna DIE of humiliation back there! UUUUGH, Izuku, WHY do you do this to ME?!' She buried herself in her knees, making a sheepish, squeaking noise in her mortification.

Izuku, meanwhile, was left shellshocked by how quickly Kyoka climbed into the Porsche as Jazz drove off, leaving him and Bumblebee behind. He brought his hand up in front of his face, still feeling the remnant warmth of the smaller hand he had held not ten seconds ago. "…Bee? Did I screw up?"

"Zkrt—Love is a fickle thing, sport." Bumblebee pat Izuku on the back. "Zrkt—It'll BREAK you down and SPIT you out before you can say—zrkt—I've got butterflies in my stomach!"

"…Thanks for the visual." Izuku deadpanned before sighing once again, running a hand through his hair. "Well, guess we should get on with the search. Let's go." With that, Bumblebee transformed and Izuku got in the passenger seat, the VW Beetle zooming off after Jazz as fast as he could.

About half an hour later, they finally made it to their destination; an abandoned dig site in the side of a large mountain out in the middle of nowhere. It was almost as if the mountain itself had risen out of the flatlands, which the teens couldn't help but be astonished by. "You don't see stuff like THIS everyday in Japan." Kyoka remarked, having emerged from her embarrassment cocoon.

"Yeah, no kiddin'. Makes me wonder how we woulda ever navigated THIS continent if we'd landed here instead a' Japan." Jazz pulled to a stop and opened his doors. "Now c'mon, let's get down to it." He watched Kyoka go to climb out… only for her to freeze mid-step when she saw Bumblebee stop next to them. Jazz hummed to himself before activating his holoform and reaching out to give Kyoka a supportive pat on the arm. "Listen, Kyo, I ain't Momo, so I can't exactly help ya in the romance department. But what I DO know is that… ya can't stay in me forever. I GOTTA transform."

"…Didn't Mina stay in Bulkhead once when HE transformed, though?" Kyoka countered hopefully.

Jazz rolled his eyes at that. "Heh, because Bulkhead's got the ROOM. I don't." Kyoka deflated with an annoyed grumble, which only made Jazz laugh more. "Hehe, I get ya, really I do. But hey, HE hasn't got outta Bee yet either, so Izuku's probably just as nervous as you are. Don't ya think?"

"I mean… I guess." Kyoka stared in reluctant silent for a few seconds before pursing her lips and bringing her hands up to her cheeks with a harsh SMACK! "Screw it! I'm not some bashful little girl with an elementary school crush! I'm gonna get the hell outta here and show him I'm NOT scared!"

"Atta girl! Go for it!" Jazz supported.

With that, Kyoka hopped out of Jazz, allowing him to transform. Bumblebee transformed nearly the exact same moment… and revealed Izuku on the other side of his leg. Oddly enough, the boy's cheeks were fairly red, though not inherently from shyness. Instead, they seemed to be… palm marks? Izuku's eyes widened when he saw her as well. "K-Kyoka, are you okay?"

"Huh? What're you talking about?" The boy pointed to his own cheeks, which made Kyoka reach into her purse and pull out a compact mirror. Sure enough, her own cheeks were just as pink and with palm-shaped marks as well. "O-Oh, um… well, you see…" But she shook her head, dismissing the point. "Let's just forget it. We've got a mission to get through."

"R-Right, gotcha."

The two humans awkwardly proceeded forward toward the abandoned dig site, all while Jazz and Bumblebee observed from behind. "Hehe… they're down BAD for each other." the lieutenant noted.

Bee lowered his volume as much as it could go and responded; "Zrkt—At least out loud~ I won't say I'm in… love~" …And then he immediately regretted his decision the moment Kyoka's head whipped around, her eyes wide in a death-piercing glare as her blush returned tenfold. Izuku didn't see it, but it was enough to put an innate fear into Jazz and Bumblebee. "Zrkt—I'm screwed."

"Rightfully so." Jazz shuddered as he turned his head away from his human companion's sights. "L-Let's just get this done, huh?" The four proceeded up the mountain face and it wasn't long before they stumbled upon the abandoned dig sight, distinguished by the rest of the terrain thanks to the significant indentations in the earth that were left behind. "Ahem, s-so, uh… guess humans don't leave much behind when it comes to diggin' up ancient beasts, huh?"

Izuku shook his head. "Nope. Paleontologists are always pretty thorough when it comes to picking up after their digs…" He walked over to a nearby hole in the mountainside, one that was long and wide enough to stick his whole arm in. "Though they're not AS committed to filling in holes, especially out in No-Man's Land like this."

Kyoka wiped her brow, once again feeling the affects of the desert heat. "Phew, how ANY scientist can stay out here for an extended period of time is beyond me." Her gaze trailed across the wide, open space, the flat land of the arid desert stretching for as far as she could see. "You guys really sure Grimlock could be buried somewhere out here? I mean, if he was, what're the chances that his body could stay intact out in these conditions?"

Jazz and Bumblebee both winced at her point. "Hmph… Prime had the same idea, believe it or not." With the human's attention on him, he explained; "In fact, I'm wonderin' if OP thinks Grim's even still alive. I mean, stasis lock IS a thing, for sure, but… to go sixty-five MILLION years without even a drop a' energon? It's possible, sure… but also really unlikely."

"So… are you guys are expecting to JUST find a body out here?" Kyoka inquired.

"Zrkt—If worse comes to worse." Bumblebee nodded. "Zkrt—But we can—zrkt—probe his mind—zrkt—if we find him."

Izuku tilted his head. "Probe his… mind?"

"If a bot's processor is still intact, even after goin' offline, then the info from it can be extracted and be replayed." Jazz clarified further. "Theoretically, if Grim really is… well, gone, then we could still get an idea on where the Ark is… but those are drastic measures."

That made the two students glance to one another in uncertainty, feeling genuinely uncomfortable hearing that. "…Are you willing to go that far to find the Ark, though?" Izuku pressed with a serious tone.

Jazz shook his head. "Nah, no way. Like I said, those are DRASTIC measures. Ones that're more likely to be used by Cons than Autobots. For us, it's disrespectful of the dead to do somethin' like that." The bot waved his hand, attempting to change the subject. "But let's backtrack to a more positive note; a bot CAN survive a long time in stasis lock, even without a pod. If we're lucky, we'll be able to find Grim an' he'll be alright… hopefully. Now, let's get to scanning. Bee?"

Bumblebee gave an affirmative buzz before flipping out his battle mask and visor, the two bots shifting their optics into scan mode. Within moments, their vision changed drastically, becoming shrouded in a coat of blue as several bits and pieces were highlighted in a bright green all around them. These objects metal ones, though they were FAR too small to be any piece of Cybertronian technology. More than likely they were bits and pieces of broken equipment that had managed to slip by the paleontologists.

However, something did manage to catch Jazz's optic; a high energy output coming from a small hole in the side of the mountain, which was instead highlighted in a brighter blue. "Ooh, well, well, well, whadda we got here?" He and Bumblebee approached the hole, noting that it couldn't have been any bigger than their fists. That, however, would have to change. "Bee, start diggin'. We might've just found what we've been lookin' for!" Bumblebee saluted and the two bots began using their hands to dig the hole deeper.

"You mean you guys found him already?!" Izuku exclaimed.

"We'll find out soon!" Jazz called back, the duo scooping handfuls of dirt and rock at an active pace.

"Huh, this might've been easier than we thought!" Kyoka smiled victoriously.

But, almost as soon as she said that, the hole suddenly collapsed inward, leading Bee and Jazz to take a step back as rock and sand crumbled around it. "Woah! Fall back!" The humans followed his orders and, after about half a minute, the rock stopped crumbling, leading to a slightly larger hole now going INTO the mountain. And from the stronger readings he was getting, Jazz knew there had to be SOMETHING big down in that hole. "Damn, don't think that's Grimlock, but I've got a good feelin' about this…" He tried to work his way into the hole… but one leg in and he already could tell he wasn't gonna fit. "Gah, seriously?"

"Zrkt—Leave it to me." Bumblebee transformed back into Beetle mode and opened his doors, ushering Izuku and Kyoka to get in. "Zrkt—Onward into the depths!"

"Hah, alright, Bee, we're coming!" The duo climbed into the front seats before Bee zoomed off into the hole, driving down the rather steep slope before coming to a very sudden stop. There, right before their very eyes, the trio were left astonished by the glowing crystalline substance before them.

"No way!" Kyoka exclaimed, getting out of Bee in order to call up; "JAZZ! You won't believe it! We FOUND a whole BUNCH of energon!"

Jazz was left astonished by the news. "No foolin'?! HA! Awesome! You guys stay right there, I'm gonna get Prime on the horn an' tell him!"

Izuku stepped out as Bumblebee transformed back into robot mode, the three taking a seat at the bottom of the small cave. The amount of energon was surprising, to be sure, but all the same, they were grateful to find it. "Well, we might not've found Grimlock, but I can guarantee that this is gonna help us out tremendously."

"Heh, yeah… bet the others are still frustrated they had to miss out, though." Kyoka pondered. "Wonder what they're up to right now?"

Back up top, Jazz had stepped away from the cave and activated his commlink, wanting to get a hold of Optimus as soon as possible. "Ey-yo, Prime! We've got some good—"

"CCCHHZZZZ—Jazz? I canno—CCCHHZZ—"

In an instant, Jazz's excitement turned to worry as the connection between comms began shorting out. "P-Prime? Can ya read me?" He then began trying the others, but to no avail. Each one he'd try, he got the same result; endless static. "Windblade? Sideswipe?! Bulk, you there?!" Jazz trailed off as he made one last try, this time to HQ: "Red, can you read me?! Something's gone—"

"CCCCHHHZZZZZZZ"

Jazz grimaced when nothing came through, leading him to look off into the distance with a despondent; "Oh… that ain't good."

…..

Across the word in the land of Egypt, Red Alert was hard at work, wasting little time in this incredibly important procedure. He was lasering through a panel of the stasis pod to access its internal circuitry, and once said panel fell off, he did a thorough scan to find out what was wrong. For the most part, everything seemed to be alright… except for one piece. His multi-tool shifted into a tiny grabber that he inserted into the innerworkings, where he pulled out a small, and very charred electronic chip. "…Gah, not good."

"W-What's not good?" Flare Up asked, rushing up the second she heard that.

"Hah, well… the pod's reentry certainly damaged it more extensively than I first thought. Its disabled the activation sequence burned out the locking chip." Red Alert raised his head with a short sigh. "If we don't do something quick… this protoform's spark will surely be extinguished."

"U-Um, excuse me, Red Alert?" The Sky Spy piped up, this time with Ibara's voice behind it. "But what exactly do you mean by the "spark" being "extinguished"? Is that an integral part of the protoform?"

Red Alert shook his head, his tone noticeably irritated. "It's not just a mere PART, Shiozaki. The spark of a Cybertronian is the bot's very core of what makes every single one unique. Without it… we are nothing."

"Woah… so like a human heart?" Tetsutetsu piped up.

"Sounds more like a brain to me if it's what makes 'em unique." Setsuna commented.

Mei scoffed a that notion. "Bah! Wrong! The brain is obviously a Cybertronian's processor. The spark is something else entirely… though considering that it IS what pumps energon through a Transformer, it's kinda closer to Metal Head's assessment."

Tetsu sounded pretty proud of himself for getting it right. "Ha! I knew it! …Wait, "Metal Head"?"

However, after mulling it over, it was Itsuka that came up with the closest deduction yet; "Actually… the more I think about it, the more it sounds like a Cybertronian spark is… like a human soul. Something that makes us all unique and distinct from one another? Yeah, pretty much fits the bill."

"I… that is actually quite the observation, Itsuka." Ibara mulled in astonishment. "I would've never guessed… that robotic beings could have their own souls."

"Well, we do." Red Alert said bluntly as he set his attention back to the protoform. "But now's not the time for this. We need to save this one, no matter what."

High Wire pumped his tiny fist down near Red Alert's foot. "Well then let's get in gear! …Uh, what do we do exactly?"

There was a long pause, Red Alert quite visibly frustrated. Not with any of them, however… because he was frustrated with himself. "…I wish I knew. I don't have any spare locking chips on me or at the base… this could be dangerous." He turned toward Flare Up once again. "If your pod doesn't have a functioning locking chip, your protoform is at risk of total destabilization. And without it, stasis lock isn't possible at all."

"So… it's hopeless?" Flare Up brought her hands up to her chest worriedly. "…No. There HAS to be a way!"

"And there is… though it involves a certain procedure." Red Alert pointed up to his head. "You see, once a protoform solidifies, they inherently form a locking chip inside their processors. It IS what enables stasis lock after all. So… if I could use my own—"

"Wait!" Flare Up raised her hand. "Red, as much as it's valiant of you to offer up your own locking chip, you DO know how hard it'd be to perform that kinda surgery on yourself, right?" Her tone became more confident as she placed a hand over her chest. "Please, let me take that place. Our new teammate deserves some sorta chance, an' you know WAY more about protoforms than I do. Please, let me do this."

Red Alert had to admit, he wasn't expecting Flare Up to offer herself up so swiftly and with such passion. Still, he was hesitant. "Are you sure, Flare Up? Because once I take that locking chip out, you won't be able to go into stasis lock if something bad happens."

Flare Up, instead of responding directly, simply turned her back toward Red Alert and sat down on the nearest rock. "…I'm ready for the procedure, Doc Bot. Do it."

"Hm… very well." In truth, while he kept a stoic demeanor, a part of Red Alert had to admit; he was proud of Flare Up for making such a brave contribution to this important undertaking. He stepped up behind her and produced a scalpel from his multi-tool. "This'll only take a nano-click… but you'll have to go into offline."

"I could use the snooze." Flare Up complied. "Repair mode." At those words, Flare Up's head hung low and her optics dimmed, taking her into a land of slumber…

…..

…Which was nothing but a large, black void. When Flare Up opened her "optics", she saw absolutely nothing, and no matter how far she walked, the scenery was the same. It felt like she had been moving for hours, but still nothing… until something bright flew past her head at breakneck speed. She whipped around and gasped as the orb of light spun back around and, from out of the ether, Red Alert spun into being. "Cheers, love." he spoke with a grin.

"R-Red, what IS this?!" Flare Up called out. In response, Red Alert held out his right hand and opened it, revealing something astonishing sitting within his palm… "A spark!"

The glowing, pulsating blue sphere of light kept beating as Red Alert raised his hand up, hoisting it high as it began to float on its own. "Yep. The very thing which makes us what we are. Every Cybertronian, Autobot or Decepticon has one. And each… is different." All of a sudden, from out of the inky black void, THOUSANDS of sparks began flying through all around them, making the area light up with incredible colors. "When a spark goes online… there's great joy." Flare Up marveled at the sight in awe before it abruptly stopped… and the spark that Red was holding before snuffed out, its particles falling around the somber medic. "When one's extinguished… the universe… weeps."

…..

*BLIP*

Flare Up's optics lit back up, awakened from her brief stasis nap. "Blimey! That was smashing!"

"Tell me later." Red Alert said, holding her locking chip in a small gripper from his multi-tool. "And please, give me some space. This procedure will be delicate." The Autobot scout stood back with the Mini-Cons as Red went back to the stasis pod, inserting the locking chip into the circuitry. Once he was certain it was in the correct position, he shifted his multi-tool into its soldering mode to fuse the chip into the circuitry proper. The others watched on in apprehension as he lasered in the final touches, before then moving to the console and typing in a command. As bits of code continued to fly by on the screen, the pod's computer spoke;

"STASIS LOCK RESTORED. IMPLEMENTING."

All at once, inside the pod, the protoform began to solidify into a definite shape once again, its featureless body now housing the spark securely. Red Alert let out a nervous sigh, though everyone else was celebrating. "WOO! HAHA, YES!" Mei exclaimed as the Sky Spy did a mid-air flip. "Way to go, Red!"

"Yes, very good work, indeed!" Sureshock praised as well. "Now the protoform shall surely survive, correct?"

"Hah… hopefully." Red Alert breathed out, beginning to feel a little woozy after all of that. "In reality, all I did was buy us some time…" He sat himself down on a rock, holding his head in his hand. "And even with my cooling vents on max, this desert sun is giving me heat flashes…"

Grindor tilted his head. "So, uh… whadda we do now, Big R?"

Red set his hand upon the console and typed in more commands. "Try and get the activation protocol back online. And hope the scanners can find SOMETHING in this wasteland." He sighed and looked down to his chest. "But if worse comes to it, we may have to just let the pod scan one of our alt. modes in order to get this protoform online. Then if they want to scan something else when they get back, they can."

"Uh, question?" Tetsu piped up from the Sky Spy. "Why not just bring it back through the GroundBridge? Then we can find an alt. mode here?"

The medic brought his attention to the drone with a serious demeanor. "That is extremely dangerous, Tetsutetsu. Exposing an unstable protoform to transwarp energy without the protection of the pod being completely sealed would spell disaster for it. It could absorb the surrounding energy and completely destabilize." He set his attention back on the pod. "And even then, there wouldn't be any time to do that. Stasis lock only slowed down the spark's deterioration. We need to get this protoform a vehicle mode and online as soon as we can, or it's finished."

There was a moment of tense silence to let everyone have that sink in. However, it didn't last long as a unexpected beeping started sounding from the Sky Spy. "AH! Oh, crap, NOW?!" Mei exclaimed before informing everyone; "Guys, bad news; we've got three Decepticon signals coming in and headed straight to your location!"

"…And now we have ANOTHER problem." Red bemoaned.

Flare Up, however, wasted no time in bringing out her pistols, her energy core beginning to glow bright blue. "Don't worry, Red. I can handle these Cons. You just keep doin' what you're doin' with the pod."

"We're coming with you, Flare Up!" High Wire raised his hands and called for his teammates. "Guys, you know what to do!" All at once, the trio transformed and merged into Safegaurd, the small combiner balling up a determined fist. "Don't worry, we'll be sure to protect the protoform with our very lives!"

"Smashing." Flare Up approved. "Now let's go kick some Decepti-cans."

…..

Not far away, Barricade was seriously regretting accepting this mission as the hot desert sun beat down directly on him. The worst part about it was that the sand was too thick to transform and roll, which meant he had to run to his destination. "Grr… this SUCKS!" He reached up and activated his commlink. "Ya think you could've bridged me any CLOSER to the freakin' pod, Flatline?! I'm dyin' out here!"

"Oh, don't be such a baby, Barricade." The Decepticon doctor admonished. "Believe me, I vould have been more zan happy to do so if ve had ze exact coordinates for ze pod's landing site, but unfortunately, zat is not ze case."

"But we HAVE the Autobots' signals, don't we? Wherever they are, that MUST be where the pod is, right?" There was a long pause following that, to which Barricade deadpanned; "…Did you send me out here on purpose, doc?"

"Vhat?! No! Of course not!" Flatline argued back. "Herr commander, vhat is ze meaning of zis?!"

On the call, Starscream gave an annoyed sigh and chimed in. "Listen Barricade, if we want to retrieve that pod, we need to take the Autobots off their guard, meaning that we need to lead their combatants away before bridging Flatline directly TO Red Alert's location."

Barricade grit his metal teeth at that. "So what you're saying is that me and your brothers are the bait."

"See? You ARE learning! Now go do your job. Starscream out."

The call cut off, leaving Barricade to stomp his foot angrily in the sand. "GAAAAH! I hate that fragging piece of walking slag! If it weren't for him, maybe I'd be second-in-command on this mission! Getting to order people around, maybe actually SUCCEEDING in some plans…" He trailed off as another tantalizing thought crossed his mind. "…Getting to hang out with Swift all the time, hehe…" *PEWPEWPEW* "AGH!"

Barricade spun around as rapid laser fire flew past his head, where he spotted a smirking Flare Up standing high up on a large rock outcropping. "Might wanna get your head outta the clouds there, mate!" she said with a wink. "I'm the only femme you should have your mind on at the moment."

The Decepticon officer growled again, taking out his gun and yelling; "We'll see about that, Auto-bum!" In no time at all, things escalated into a fire fight between the duo, red and blue lasers being exchanged between sides. However, Flare Up was at a distinct advantage, which Barricade noticed immediately. Thanks to her lighter frame and Blinking ability, she was able to move much faster than him, even while running through sand. Him, on the other hand… "ACK!" *POMF* …He tripped on a rock and landed head-first in the dirt. "Grr… FRENZY!"

On cue, the little Mini-Con popped right out of Barricade's back, launching himself high into the air with a cackle. "HEHEHE! I'm on it, boss!" He transformed into his sawblade mode and then landed in the sand, activating circular saw to propel himself forward through the thick dirt. "Make way, lady, because I'm comin' to—" *CLANG* "AGH!"

Without warning, something kicked Frenzy out of the sand, forcing him to transform and confront whatever hit him. Of course, it was Safegaurd, the Mini-Con combiner standing over him. "That's as far as you go, you Mini-Maniac!"

"Oh, great, a spoil sport!" Frenzy took one of his guns off his back while shifting his left hand into its taser prod mode, hurling himself forward while firing wildly. "Well I'm not about to be spoiled!" But even then, his attack was futile as Safegaurd raised their hands and brought up their protective forcefield, the lasers bouncing off in several directions. With an angry yell, Safegaurd attempted to shove his taser prod into the shield… but all it did was re-route the electric shock right back into him, making him scream; "AI-AI-AI-AI-AIYAAOW!" and get sent flying back, his body smoking while he twitched on the ground.

"FRENZY!" Barricade went to help his comrade, but was immediately intercepted by Flare Up, the scout kicking him right in the side and landing right on top of him. She followed up by aiming a shot right for his hand, blasting his gun out of his grasp. "Gah! Why you—" *CLUNK* He didn't even get to finish his sentence. Flare Up stomped down on Barricade's head hard, enough so to knock him out instantly.

"Sorry 'bout that, luv," Flare Up sarcastically apologized, giving a thumbs-up to Safegaurd, "but we don't got time to play." *THOOM-THOOM* Just then, a pair of impactful landings came from directly behind the duo, a pair of shadows now cast right over them. Flare Up's optics widened as she slowly craned her head around, met with the sight of Thundercracker and Skywarp looming over the both of them.

"Hmph, what a pity." Skywarp scoffed, bringing out his shotguns. Thundercracker, meanwhile, held the Cybercaliber in his hand, the combined sword glowing as he pointed it at the Autobots. "Because we haven't gotten the chance to play yet."

Flare Up and Safegaurd glanced at one another, recognizing their disadvantage. "Uh… time out?" Flare Up asked, only to receive an answer in the form of several shotgun blasts. She let out a scream and immediately blinked away, speeding toward a destination several meters away.

Skywarp wasn't impressed, though. "Hmph, neat trick…" *VWOM* Once again, Flare Up yelped as Skywarp disappeared and then reappeared right in front of her, his face now dangerously close to hers. "But I can do somethin' like that too." And just like that, the battle was on, the two exchanging fire as they battled to see who could outpace the other with their instantaneous movement.

Thundercracker, meanwhile, went for a more easy-going approach. After all, the only ones standing in his way were a bunch of combined Mini-Cons. 'I may be a Decepticon, but I ain't about to torment these little guys…' Keeping a confident tenor, he lowered his blade and extended an appealing hand. "Alright, little guys, listen. I don't wanna hurt ya. And the last thing I wanna do is drag this whole conflict out. So, here's what's gonna happen; you take me to the stasis pod and I'll make sure all of you live through this fight."

"Apologies, but that's a bit hard to believe when your brother is currently on the warpath." Safeguard countered.

"Hmph, yes, but I'll get him to stop." Thundercracker groaned. "Skywarp's always been a "shoot first, speak later" bot."

"That much is obvious." Safegaurd put their hands to their hips defiantly. "But even so, we're not about to let YOU of all bots try and deal with us…" They pointed up to the sword he held in his hand. "Not after what you did to THEM!"

Thundercracker looked to the Cybercaliber… which started to jostle in his hand a little. "Ah… right, yeah. You guys wanna try talking it out?" The blue Seeker huffed in amusement and threw the blade into the air. "Be my guest."

All at once, the Cybercaliber separated and transformed into its three components; Sonar, Runway and Jetstorm. The trio landed in the sand, standing before the Mini-Con gestalt with Runway at the forefront. "Well, well… it's been a long time, guys." she said with her arms crossed. "How about we try this again, hm?"

Safeguard pursed their lips before they too separated, the Street Action team now confronting the Air Assault team face-to-face. "Runway… Jetstorm… Sonar…" High Wire stepped forward, his optics full of sadness as he gazed upon his old friends. "What happened to you?"

"What happened? Ha! We saw the light, that's what!" Jetstorm insisted with a raised fist. "Guys, I've got no idea what you're doin' over on the Autobot's side when the Cons are where it's at!"

"Are you even LISTENING to what you're saying, Jetstorm?!" Sureshock exclaimed, horrified by what she was hearing. "You would've never said this back on Cybertron! This whole conflict is the reason why we Mini-Cons wanted to leave the war behind, remember?!"

"Yeah, well… things change." Sonar said with a stoic voice. "Sometimes, when you know you can't beat 'em, why NOT join 'em right?"

Runway nodded in approval. "Exactly. This war was never going to end with the Autobots as the victor. The fact that Optimus Prime himself was forced to leave Cybertron is more than enough proof for that." She raised her hands to her Mini-Con brethren, hoping to convince them. "I implore all of you to consider your options. If you stick with the Autobots, you're going to be hunted down by Megatron anyway. So why not make the SMART choice and join the winning team before it's too late?"

Grindor stomped his foot in defiance. "You guys CAN'T be serious! Can't you see that you've been REPROGRAMED?! They're just makin' ya think all that scrap!"

Sonar mimicked his move, getting right in Grindor's grill. "Well, what if we LIKE thinking like this better, eh? They way I see it, YOU guys are the ones who need a reality check… an' I think we'll be the ones to give it to ya! Right Jetstorm?!"

Slamming his fists together, Jetstorm agreed whole-heartedly. "Heck yeah! We'll show you guys that Thundercracker's got our backs!"

"Indeed." Runway concurred, much to her disappointment. "I was really hoping that you guys would be more compliant, but it would seem we have no choice."

In response, Sureshock narrowed her sights at the Air Assault leader. "…Roller is alive as well."

"…I know." Runway turned her head away.

"Then what would he say if he saw you all here and now?"

Tightening her fists, Runway snapped. "SHUT IT! Air Assault Team, combine!" With that, the Mini-Con trio reformed into their sword mode and returned to Thundercracker's hand, who gave the weapon a twirl before pointing it down at the Mini-Cons.

"Last chance." Thundercracker reiterated. "Stand aside."

In response, the Street Action Team reformed themselves into Safeguard, who raised their fists in solidarity. "No… I don't think we will." Thundercracker grumbled before raising the Cybercaliber with a battle cry, which was met with Safeguard charging and leaping into the fray to meet the Seeker and their former companions head on.

…..

Back with the pod, Red Alert could hear all of the chaos going on even as he worked tirelessly on getting the activation protocol back online. It was only a minor distraction, though, diverting all of his focus onto the task set before him. However, that didn't stop the Sky Spy from observing the battle from a safe distance, which then lowered back down to report to the medic. "It looks like Flare Up and the others have their servos pretty full over there." Itsuka spoke up.

"That may be so, but I can't stop now." Red said as he finished putting in his command… only to get a less than stellar result;

"PROGRAM NOT ACCEPTED. SPARK WILL TERMINATE IN 4.8 CYCLES"

"GAH!" Red slammed his fist on the console, only for the Sky Spy to fly right in front of him.

"Hey, that won't help anything!" Mei reprimanded. "There's gotta be another way to input the program… right?"

Red took a deep intake of air, running every option he had through his processor. …Processor… HIS processor. The pod might not accept a manual input… but if it could be downloaded from a bot who KNEW the input… 'That could be the key!' With glimmer of hope in his spark, Red exclaimed; "That's it! Mei, take the Sky Spy to a safe distance. I'm gonna try something."

Mei wasn't all that sure what he was talking about, but if he was so sure about it, she wouldn't argue. "Uh… okay?" The Sky Spy propelled itself into the air and settled up on one of the many rock formations… where the group were met by a startling sight. "AH!" There, nesting atop the rocks… was a Peregrine Falcon. The bird of prey shrieked in surprise and leapt up, pecking and clawing at the Sky Spy with hostile intent. "AGH! NO! Bad! Bad birdie! ACK! Get off my baby, you overgrown pigeon!"

Down below, Red Alert had taken out a wire from his utility pack and plugged it into his arm, plugging the other end directly into the stasis pod's console. He began typing in a manual command whilst also giving a vocal one; "Download sequencer program through my central processor." The stasis pod blipped and replied;

"WARNING: PROCESS COULD CAUSE DAMAGE TO YOUR CIRUITRY."

"Just DO IT!" Red Alert barked, which forcibly started the procedure. On the console screen, layers upon layers of code began flying by as the program was downloaded through Red Alert… and immediately, he was met with a wave of pain unlike any he had felt before. "AAAAUUGH!" Then, right at the connection point on his arm, an energy surge made the wire forcefully disconnect itself from the medic, and was also powerful enough to send him SLAMMING into one of the rocky outcroppings. Thrown completely for a loop, Red Alert was forced to his hands and knees as his internal computer reported;

"CIRCUIT DAMAGE. COOLING SYSTEMS DOWN. OVERHEAT AND STASIS LOCK IMMANET."

His helm sparking from the process, Red Alert grumbled and spoke through his intense pain. "Override! B-Begin internal r-repairs…"

"DAMAGE TOO EXTENSIVE FOR ROBOT MODE. TRANSFORMATION REQUIRED FOR REPAIRS."

Red sighed and succumbed to the computer's wishes. "Trans…form…" Whrr-tschzz-tschzz-tschzz-chkt! Now in his Nissan Patrol mode once again, Red Alert felt an immediate sense of relief, also feeling his internal repair functions begin to start up. "Hah… well, I suppose this will mitigate things a bit. Now that I'm in vehicle mode, the pod should scan me and the protoform will—" But then, the pod's computer spoke up again, all while a scanner rose up and began searching the area.

"DNA SEQUENCERS ONLINE. SCANNING FOR COMPATIBLE LIFEFORMS."

If he were still in robot mode, Red Alert would've done a double take. "W-Wait, what? Compatible lifeforms? DNA scanners? What kind of pod is this—" *CHOOM* Just then, a bright light began shining from Red Alert's right, and he let out a gasp. A GroundBridge portal had opened up directly next to him… and through it stepped a certain Decepticon he was hoping he'd never have to see again.

"Mmm-hmhmhm… hah, vell, vell, vell… if it isn't my old friend, Red Alert?" Flatline chortled as he loomed over the incapacitated medic, sporting a sadistic grin. "Vhat a shocking turn of events zis is, no?"

"F-Flatline!" Red Alert attempted to shift himself into reverse… but his clutch was stuck. He couldn't move. "G-Get away!"

"Oh, I don't think I vill, mien fruend." Flatline strolled right past the Nissan emergency vehicle, getting up close and personal to the stasis pod. "For vhile your… unfortunate state is certainly one to be capitalized upon, I'm afraid zat vill have to vait." He laced his fingers together and pushed them out away from his body, his servos clanging as if he were cracking his knuckles. "For now, my objective is directly in front of me. It is time to bring a NEW Decepticon into ze vorld!"

"NO!" Red Alert shouted, watching as Flatline brought his hands down to the console.

…..

Little did the Autobot doctor know, though, that the teens were still watching via the Sky Spy. Mei was thankfully able to lose that falcon, but she and the others were left horrified when they saw Flatline emerge from that GroundBridge, with Red Alert incapable of defending himself or the pod. "NO! Red, you've gotta do something!" Mei pleaded.

"Dammit! This must've been the Con's plan all along!" Tetsu barked in anger.

Ibara clenched hand over her heart in dread. "Those other ones were just meant to distract Flare Up and the Mini-Cons while their medic goes in for the pod. Such underhanded trickery…"

Setsuna's determination shone through as she shouted at Mei; "We've gotta do something! Mei, doesn't that thing have any weapons on it?!"

The pink-haired inventor grimaced at such an obvious oversight. "Gah, no… but I probably should've put some in for a situation like this." Mei flunk her hands up to her head as she began pacing back and forth, trying to think of SOME way to help her robotic friend. "D'oh, what do I do, what do I do?! Ugh! I wish Prime and the others would here to help!"

"Well, they're not!" Tetsu jerked a thumb toward his chest. "But WE are! Mei, the Sky Spy has a tracker built into it, right? You've got its exact coordinates?"

"Uh… yeah, of course, I—wait." Mei's eyes widened as she realized what Tetsu was getting at. "No way! Absolutely NOT, Metal Head! There's no way I'm gonna send you guys into that warzone!"

"But what other CHOICE do we have?!" Setsuna countered, swiping her hand up to the screen where Flatline was closing in on the pod. "There's no knowing if Flare Up or Safeguard can get there in time, and I doubt they even KNOW that Con is here, so logically, WE'RE the only ones who can help Red and defend the pod!"

Mei bit her lip, seeing Setsuna's point in her words. Nevertheless, she was going to stand firm on Red's prior decision. "You guys have NO idea what you're getting into, though. You've never battled Decepticons, so you'd be going in at a disadvantage right off the bat."

Surprisingly, however, it was Itsuka who backed the other two up. "Maybe not… but I think it's safe to say that we're out of viable options at this point. I don't like disobeying orders either, but right now, Red Alert NEEDS help." Her gaze was sympathetic as she approached Mei and put a hand to her shoulder. "Otherwise… both he and the pod will be goners."

"I… I-I…" Mei screwed her eyes shut, not wanting to look at the screen as she thought everything over. In reality… she knew that her friend NEEDED to be saved, along with the pod. And without Optimus or the others… there really was only one possibility for victory left. With a heavy sigh, Mei settled a resolute gaze upon Itsuka and the others. "…Make sure they ALL come back alive."

As the inventor went over to the GroundBridge console, Itsuka gave her a nod in return. "Of course, we will." She faced her fellow 1-B students with a fist raised. "Alright, guys, you in or what?"

"Uh, d'ya even need to ASK, Kendo?" Tetsu gave a wild grin. "Of course, we are!"

"Let's bust some Decepti-chops!" Setsuna cheered.

Ibara was a bit less sure, but still, even she knew that this was the only choice left. "I don't look forward to the consequences of disobeying orders like this… but in the end, I'm sure it will be worth it. Let's go!"

…..

Back in Egypt, Flatline was about to set his fingers upon the pod's console when something entered his peripheral vision, bringing his optics up. "Huh? Vas ist das?" Before him was hovering some sort of miniature satellite, with a camera lens pointed straight at him. Flatline brought his optic closer to inspect whatever this was. "Oh, hello, and who would you be—" *CLANG* "ACH! Scheisse!"

Stumbling away from the portal, Flatline was met with a forceful shout from the Sky Spy projecting Mei's voice; "Hey, Doctor Jekyll! Stay away from my pal and the pod!"

"Mei! Don't be a hero!" Red Alert warned.

Flatline grumbled, clutching his hand in ire. "Dummkopfs! Human interlopers… allow me to show you vhat happens vhen idiots get in my way!" His hand transformed into an extremely sharp circular saw, which was spinning the moment it came out of his arm. But, as he raised it to slice the Sky Spy to pieces… another GroundBridge suddenly opened up in front of him, taking him aback. "AH! W-What ze—" CRASH! "AAAUGH!"

From out of the portal, Tetsutetsu came charging and leapt up right into Flatline's midsection, the metallized young man bowling him over with little effort. "Take that, ya freaky surgeon!" he said as he slid into a landing. "No one's gonna be taking THAT pod while we're around!"

"Ugh… vhat? A human?!" Flatline narrowed his optics as the teenager, clamoring onto his feet. "You have made a grave mistake coming here! I'll—huh?" But then, from under his legs, yet another human came dashing in front of him; a young female with green hair. "Another?!"

"Yeah, that's right, Decepti-jerk!" Setsuna jumped up and down, waving her arms in an attempt to make herself into as much of a nuisance as possible. "Why don't ya try seein' what that little saw of yours does to me, huh?!"

The Decepticon medic raised his hand to the side, bringing it in from Setsuna's left. "Perhaps I VILL, thank you very much!" He brought his weapon in… and successfully sliced through Setsuna at the waist, the two halves of her body falling down to the ground. "AHAHAHA! Yes, I—er… vait… aren't you fleshbags supposed to be messier vhen you—YAH!"

Stumbling back while giving the most high-pitched scream imaginable, Flatline stared with wide optics as Setsunas two halves both got up, with her legs remaining land bound while her upper torso floated up in the air. The Lizard Tail Splitter user wore a smirk as she flew right into Flatline's face, spooking him more. "HAHA! Made ya scream!"

"T-Tetsutetsu?!" Red Alert shouted. "Sestuna?! What are you—"

"Sorry, Red, but you need help whether ya wanna admit it or not." Tetsu replied with a serious scowl. "Feel free to punish us later, but right now, you're stuck and we're the only ones who can help!" He heard Red Alert eventually give an acknowledging grumble, which Tetsu took as the closest sign of approval he'd be getting.

Flatline, meanwhile, was still trying to get away as Setsuna stayed within inches of him, keeping her Cheshire grin. "S-Stay back! Stay avay, I tell you—huh?" Just then, he felt something begin wrapping around his hands… and his legs… and his whole body. He snapped his head down to see thousands upon thousands of thorny vines encircling him… and directly next to his leg, he found the plant's perpetrator.

"Apologies, doctor, but I'm afraid this house call must be put on hold." Ibara quipped with a cold stare.

"Nice one, Ibara! I'll take it from here!" At yet another female voice, Flatline turned his head… right into a pair of MASSIVE human hands smacking him across the face, before both came in and SLAMMED him on either side of his head. Now thoroughly disoriented, Flatline wobbled around and fell straight to the dessert floor, where Itsuka landed with her Big Fists raised. "Haha! Victory!"

"Hm, yes, though I hope you realize just how "lucky" that victory was." Red Alert noted, the medic beginning to regain his composure as his cooling systems were slowly repaired. "Now keep an eye out, we still have Seekers inbound—"

*CRUSH*

The 1-B students gasped and collectively brought their heads up, where they saw Skywarp and Flare Up come crashing down on top of a nearby rock formation. The impact was strong enough to shake the entire area, which managed to spook the nearby Peregrine Falcon away from its nest with a fearful shriek. "Gah, sorry, birdie—ACK!" Flare Up's apology was cut off when Skywarp clutched her by the neck, raising her up as she kicked and flailed in an attempt to escape.

Itsuka was understandably not happy to see that. "NO! Let her go, you big bully!"

"Hmhm, oh, I'll let her go alright." Skywarp snickered nefariously, keeping one of his shotguns aimed at Flare Up's chest. "Just as soon as you hand over that pod!"

There were a few tense moments of hesitation, the teens looking to one another for answers but finding none. "D-Don't do it, kids!" Flare Up advised. "I'll be fine. What matters is getting that pod outta—erk!"

"That's enough outta you! If you kids are SMART, you'll do what I say!" Skywarp bellowed.

"W-Whadda we do?!" Tetsu ran his hands through his hair, struggling to find a solution.

"I-I'm not sure…" Itsuka admitted, keeping her eyes locked on Flare Up in concern. "I… W-We need to—" But, right at that moment… the pod chimed in;

"COMPATIBLE DNA FOUND. BEGINNING SCANNING SEQUENCE."

Everyone's attention snapped right to the pod as its scanner began projecting a pair of large, golden beams of light that began trailing over the whole area. The humans shielded their eyes as the light washed over them and the Cybertronians… but then, they heard another shriek from above. Their sights went up and saw the falcon flying in circles above their heads, though it stopped in midair as the light came over it as well. Inside the pod, meanwhile, the protoform was beginning to take shape… as its spark started to beat faster and faster.

"NO!" Skywarp aimed his shotgun at the pod. "If we can't have it, then NOBODY can—"

"EEEYYYAAAAAARRKKK!" Everyone was forced to cover their ears and audio processors as an absolutely deafening shriek came from the pod, the inside shining brightly before the new Transformer practically shot itself into the air, surrounded by light and obscuring its appearance.

The group were left collectively stunned by what just happened. "…Okay, WHAT the hell was that?!" Tetsu exclaimed.

Whrr…tschzz-tschzz…tschzz…chkt! Everyone's attention was brought to Red Alert, who was able to finally, if slowly, transform himself back into robot mode. All the same, he immediately fell to one knee, tired out from just transforming. "Hah… hah… that… was proving my suspicions correct."

Skywarp moved his aim down to the medic. "What suspicions?! Tell me what—"

"EEEYYAAAARKK!" Another sharp, metallic screech suddenly came blasting in Skywarp's ear… and then he felt something grab onto his shoulders and swiftly pull him up into the air. With a pained yelp, the black and purple Seeker was left stunned when he saw a pair of massive talons digging into his shoulder joints, piercing through his armor and inner circuitry. …And then, he craned his head up, as did everyone else… and what they saw made their jaws drop.

It was a bird. A Giant. Metal. Bird. One whose feathers and body were the color of bronze and tannish brown, with silver detailing all throughout and with hints of gold in its talons and beak. Its eyes glowed a vibrant green as it hoisted Skywarp up, forcing him to let go of Flare Up. "Agh! H-Hey, let go of me you oversized Cyber-Turkey!" The metal falcon screeched in response and immediately dove down toward the ground… or more specifically, the fight going on between Safegaurd and Thundercracker. "A-Ah! Hey, wait, don't do—WOAH!"

"Huh? W-WHAT THE—" *CRASH* The Seeker brothers collided forcibly and were sent clattering to the ground, all while Safeguard did a double take at what happened.

"Uh… perhaps we should retreat and let them handle things…" On that note, the Street Action Team separated and transformed, driving back to where the others were.

"Agh! Gah! Skywarp, get OFF!" Thundercracker kicked his brother off of him and did a kip-up to his peds, spinning around to try and find the massive bird. "W-Where the pit did that thing come from?!"

With an angered growl, Skywarp cocked his shotguns, charging them up. "Grr… it was in the pod. We're too late."

Thundercracker deadpanned at that. "Oh, fantastic. Starscream's gonna LOVE hearing that." Then, out the corner of his optic, he saw the metal bird of prey come swooping back toward them once again. "There! It's coming in hot!" The brothers pointed their respective weapons at it as Thundercracker hollered; "HALT! You're not going anywhere!" At the bottom of its stoop, the metal bird made a sudden pull up, flapping in place as it narrowed its optics at the duo. And then… it spoke in a feminine voice, accompanied by a distinct, Egyptian accent;

"Airazor… MAXIMIZE!"

With another loud shriek, the metal bird began to transform, right as the Autobots and humans arrived on the scene. The falcon's head pulled a 180-degree spin before it and its wings both flipped forward, the head tucking in on the bird belly to form the robot mode chest. The wings, meanwhile, collapsed in on themselves and became a pair of slender robot-mode legs, with two-toed feet folding out from each wingtip.

The falcon's legs, meanwhile, moved out and transformed into a pair of arms, the talons moving to the forearms as a pair of hands emerged and a pair of feathered shoulder pads flared out. The tail feathers of the falcon then folded onto the back of the robot as a new pair of robot-mode wings came popping out of the back, along with a set of jet thrusters that kept her aloft.

Finally, the robot mode head shifted out from the torso. The helm in and of itself was rather bird-like in design, sleek and sharp with feather-like details along the sides. There was also a prominent beak-shaped visor on the front that covered the femme's optics, but kept her slim, silvery face exposed.

The Autobots and humans could only marvel at the transformation they just witnessed as Red Alert chuckled. "Heh… yep. She's a Maximal."

Airazor blasted forward with astonishing speed, slamming both Seekers in their chests and sending Thundercracker back into the ground. He was hit so hard that his body made a large rut as it skid across the ground. Meanwhile, Airazor pulled Skywarp back up into the air, where both got into a brief tussle before separating. With an enraged yell, Skywarp transformed into jet mode and began blasting at Airazor with intense laser-fire, only to find that the Maximal was quite adept at dodging them all. In response, she reached to her sides and produced a pair of blades before flying straight at him, and when Skywarp went to barrel roll away… she sliced clean through one of his wings.

"AAAAAAGGH!" Whrr-tschzz-tschzz-tschzz-chkt! Skywarp managed to transform again before hitting the ground, taking out his shotguns and shooting at Airazor immediately. "You think THIS can take ME out?! I'll fragging KILL you, Maximal!"

"Pfft, pitiful." Airazor scoffed as she kept bobbing and weaving with the greatest of ease. "You are nothing but a spite-filled excuse for a bot… and for that, you must be punished." With a graceful turn and twirl in midair, Airazor flew up and then flexed her arms and legs… which resulted in a whole BUNCH of rocket launchers popping out of her limbs and body. Skywarp barely had time to gawk at what he just saw… before she unleashed them all at once, her voice echoing as she proclaimed;

"JUSTICE RAINS FROM ABOVE!"

"Not today!" Skywarp said as he teleported away from the missiles and reappeared a few feet away… but then they immediately changed course, much to his dismay. "…Heat seekers. Oh, scrap—AAAAGGH!"

*BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM*

The rocket assault was merciless as multiple explosions engulfed Skywarp entirely, leaving everyone stunned. Thundercracker, Barricade and Flatline, the latter two having just recovered, were left slackjawked when the smoke and dust finally cleared… and revealed a very dismembered Skywarp laying upon the ground in almost too many pieces to count. His head was still attached to his torso, but even then, that wasn't the most shocking part. …That being that he was STILL ALIVE. "AAAAAGH! GYAAAAH! PRIMUUUUS!"

The three still standing Decepticons slowly tracked their optics back over to Airazor, who was now hovering in the air directly before them. They saw that the empty rocket launchers on her body were starting to replenish themselves, and even with her own optics obscured, they could tell that she was glaring at them. "Would anyone else like to try me?"

"N-Nein, ma'am!" Flatline assured as he and the others zipped right over to Skywarp, they along with the Mini-Cons working to quickly pick up the pieces of their suffering teammate. "V-Ve vill be taking our leave, thank you!"

"You'd better. Otherwise, I WILL track you down and reduce you to scrap as well." Airazor snarled. "Now LEAVE!" The group of evil-doer bots screamed and Flatline hastily called for a GroundBridge, wherein they all disappeared one by one with the mutilated Skywarp.

"I WON'T FORGET THIS, BIRD-BOT! YOU HEAR ME?! I WO—" Skywarp's rambling was cut off as the GroundBridge closed, leading Airazor to sigh in relief.

Lowering herself down to the ground, she flew closer to the gathered humans and Autobots, landing in the soft sand with astounding elegance. Startlingly as well, she was fairly tall, almost Red Alert's height in robot mode. Then, to everyone's further surprise, her visor made a hissing noise as it shifted up and onto her forehead, revealing her green optics for everyone to see. "Is everyone alright here? No injuries?"

Flare Up rotated her shoulder struts with a short groan. "Ah, nothin' that can't be fixed, luv. We owe you one, though! You saved us all back there!"

"Yeah, you were amazing!" Setsuna bounced enthusiastically, bringing Airazor's sights down to her. "I knew Transformers could become awesome vehicles and stuff, but I had no idea that they could become ANIMALS, too!"

Itsuka nodded as well. "No kidding. No matter how many new things we learn about you Cybertronians, you just keep on amazing us." She extended her hand up to the bird bot. "You said your name was Airazor, right? It's a pleasure to meet you. Welcome to Earth."

"Earth…" Airazor scanned her optics across the area, noting the natural wonder of the planet around her. …It almost seemed familiar in a way. "So that is the name of this planet." With a smile upon her lips, she knelt down and took hold of Itsuka's hand. "But indeed, I am Airazor. It is a pleasure to meet you all." But then, she noticed the blue legs of the Autobot medic, which garnered her attention back up to meet his visored gaze. After a moment's hesitation, she spoke up again. "You are… Red Alert."

The medic was left quite astonished by that. "How'd you know?"

"I-I… I am not sure… but I believe I owe you my life."

Red Alert couldn't help but smile at that. "Let's say we're even."

"So Air—can I call you Air?" Flare Up asked as she zipped up next to the Maximal with a slight head tilt. "I don't think I recognize ya from Cybertron… you from one a' the colony planets? An' how'd your pod get 'ere in the first place?"

Her questions made Airazor's metal brow furrow, her hand going up to her head as she tried to search her memory… only to come up with nothing. "Cybertron… colony planet? I-I'm sorry, but I cannot seem to remember anything."

"Hm, your memory circuits might've been affected by your pod's condition." Red Alert informed regrettably. "Your pod sustained significant damage upon re-entry. It's honestly a miracle that we were able to get you online in the first place."

Suddenly, the Sky Spy came rocketing over Red Alert's head and flew right up to Airazor, who pulled her head back in shock. "Ah-ha! Well, luckily for you, me and my friends just so happen to be experts in helping bots recover their memories!" Mei declared proudly. "Come back to base and we'll see about helping you out with that!"

Airazor blinked confusedly, but nonetheless was grateful for the help. "O-Oh, thank you… strange floating machine?" At that very moment, a GroundBridge opened up only a few feet from the group, which made Airazor's optics widen further in wonder. "Oh… wow."

"Haha! Oh man, wait until the Autobots get back and here about this!" Tetsu cheered as he, his classmates and the Mini-Cons strolled through the portal, with the Sky Spy following after. "Come on, Airazor, we'll give ya a tour of the base!"

The Maximal was hesitant, but a supportive grin and wink from Flare Up helped bolster her confidence. "C'mon, luv, the team's gonna love ya!" Slowly but surely, Airazor returned the smile and followed Flare Up to the portal, leaving Red Alert to take up the rear.

The medic kept his own smile, thankful that everything worked out in the end. "…When a spark goes online, there's great joy." His words didn't go unnoticed by Flare Up, who while surprised, simply kept smiling at their victory, as well as their new friend.

…..

A/N: Well, there you have it! Another successful mission for the Autobots complete with a new teammate to boot! And yes, as I'm sure you all predicted, fresh off of her big screen debut, here's Airazor! Though admittedly, she IS fairly different than any incarnation of Airazor we've seen before. For one, as you probably noticed, she transforms a lot differently than how she did in the show. And that's because I based her on her recent Rise of the Beasts Core Series Deluxe Class toy (NOT the Studio Series one, the one that comes in those Buzzworthy Bumblebee 3-Packs), which honestly, is probably one of Airazor's best looking toys. Very sleek and with a unique transformation to boot.

But also, her characterization is a smidge different. Because while she's still the kind and caring Airazor we know… she's also one of the Autobots who've been injected with a bit of an Overwatch character as well, and I think you can probably guess who just by the accent and the blatantly obvious Ultimate sound. Yeah, I mean, how could I not, right? Airazor and Pharah basically share the same freaking helmet design, it was probably the most obvious choice. Which means that yes…

Airazor – voiced by Jen Cohn

But with all that said, the Autobots now have even more air support! Which, going up against the Decepticons, you definitely need. Speaking of which, Starscream's very likely not going to be happy at the state his brother is in… and this means he had Nightra go to the trouble of blocking off all of the Autobots' comm signals for nothing. …Yeah, he's gonna be pissed. Also, wouldn't ya know it, but the 1-B students DID provide some on-site help after all! Red might not have wanted to admit it, but… he did kinda need it.

That aside, though, hey, even if they didn't find Grimlock, Izuku, Kyoka, Jazz and Bee still managed to find some energon, so that's cool. And to add to that, seems that Jazz and Izuku have come to accept Kyoka's plan regarding Snake Eyes… with the addition of another little moment between the green and purple-haired duo to boot. Hey, you know me, not about to let something like that pass me by. So, with that, we come to…

And now, the Preview! The Autobots and 1-A students return to base, where they discover what the heck happened and meet Airazor to boot, much to everyone's shock. But, after things have settled and everyone's returned home… Kyoka's met with an unexpected guest… at her window. Needless to say, she's freaking out. Next Time; Planning Ahead. …Is that a ninja girl outside her bedroom?! Thanks for reading everybody and I'll catch you all next time! Stay safe out there, and remember;

GO BEYOND! PLUS ULTRA!