Large chunks of Dark Energon were shooting out of the volcano and crashing down as Optimus stared at them while pinned by Megatron.
"Why is the blood of Unicron erupting from beneath the Earth?" Optimus asked in a weak tone.
"A question, Optimus, that you shall take to your grave." Megatron replied, preparing to kill his old foe.
But suddenly, a Ground Bridge appeared in front of them and Bulkhead immediately rammed Megatron away once he emerged out of it, followed by Jazz as he gave the Decepticon leader a swift kick to his face. As Bulkhead began repeatedly hitting Megatron with his wrecking ball, Arcee and Cliffjumper arrived out of the portal and they were both shocked to see all the Dark Energon that was spewing out of the volcano.
"Sweet Primus." Cliffjumper gasped before Ratchet rushed out of the Ground Bridge.
"Quickly! We must pull him through!" Ratchet stated.
The three of them approached Optimus to help him out, while Megatron grabbed Bulkhead's wrecking ball and then smacked him away. Jazz fired three shots from his blaster, but Megatron easily deflected them with his blade.
"Bulk! Jazz!" Arcee called out as she, Cliffjumper and Ratchet were pulling Optimus into the Ground Bridge. "We need to go, now!"
"Right!" Jazz replied before he and Bulkhead quickly transformed and drove towards them.
Megatron chased after them as his blade was emitting dark energy, but then Bulkhead and Jazz leaped into the Ground Bridge with their teammates and it closed up before the Decepticon leader could strike them. As he pulled his blade out, Megatron gritted his teeth in frustration before he saw some purple liquid on his finger and smiled deviously.
"This is merely the beginning! I now possess enough Dark Energon to reanimate Unicron himself! Hahahah! YES!" Megatron yelled in triumph before he began laughing maniacally, while many Dark Energon crystals were seen surrounding him.
At the autobot base.
Bumblebee opened the Ground Bridge and turned around to see Bulkhead, Cliffjumper and Ratchet helping Optimus walk inside with Arcee and Jazz following behind.
"Easy, Optimus. From the looks of things, you've been exposed to a mass amount of Dark Energon." Ratchet told him.
"I am not the only one." Optimus said, looking towards Gus as he still laid on the medical table with Emmiline and Camila by his side.
Bulkhead and Cliffjumper sat their leader against the platform as he looked towards Gus, who also noticed him.
"Hey." Gus greeted with a small smile as Optimus did the same.
"Gus' vitals aren't exactly steady, but he should make a full recovery." Camila explained, earning a nod from Optimus.
"So, Megatron found more of the Dark Energon?" Luz asked as she and the others approached the Bots.
"A volcano full." Cliffjumper answered.
"The whole bad stuff was pouring down like acid rain." Jazz said.
"The question is how?" Bulkhead asked.
"No, the question is what. As in what in the world is the blood of Unicron doing here on Earth?" Ratchet corrected.
"The Cons killed a Unicorn?" Willow asked confusingly, earning a few strange looks from the Autobots.
"You know, a fluffy horse with a horn on it's head and likes to prance around with sparkles floating off it's body?" Amity added.
"Unicron. An ancient evil, who's fossilised blood comprises the matter we call Dark Energon." Ratchet explained. "As lore would have it."
"So, are you saying that this Unicron is some kind of boogeyman?" Camila questioned.
"Boogeyman?" Wheeljack repeated.
"A make-believed horror figure that likes to stalk children by hiding in their closets." Vee said.
"No, Mrs Noceda, Unicron is very well." Ratchet admitted. "Was… that is… well, I do believe he once existed. I just don't subscribe to the theory that his primordial life force is the substance which… harmed Gus."
"Okay, Ratchet, I think that's enough." Hunter admitted, starting to get little creeped out by this tale.
"luz, can you help me get Gus into the car?" Camila asked as she started moving Gus on his medical table.
"Wait, what?" Gus asked confusingly.
"But, mom, I thought you said he was fine?" Luz questioned.
"I know I did, but I think it's just best if I take him back home for some special care." Camila replied. "At least until all of this is sorted out."
"Mama, I don't think it's really safe for Gus to leave the base." Luz admitted. "Not with everything that's happening, right now."
"And don't tell us that you're not trusting the Autobots to not look after us." Willow said with her arms crossed. "They've been doing it for nearly a month, now."
"Camila, it deeply grieves me that I have failed." Optimus said in self-guilt as he stood up. "But I will do everything in my power to ensure that no harm comes to Luz, our Witch friends or any Earth life form ever again."
"Optimus, I understand that you and your Autobots mean a lot to Luz and her friends. I always thought that my daughter wouldn't make any friends with her love for fantasy, but I guess I was proven wrong after they all came back home." Camila explained, sighing to herself. "In the past, I would have just wanted Luz to just stay home and not get into any sort of nonsense. And that probably would've included her friends, too."
"What?!" Amity asked in shock.
"You're saying that we shouldn't see them anymore?!" Hunter demanded.
"That's not fair! We've been through so much with them!" Vee stated firmly.
"Guys, she's not done." Luz told them, making her friends shut their mouths.
"But, I've actually learned a bit that Luz is able to handle herself well when she's with people she trusts. And she clearly trusts you, which means the same goes for me." Camila said, putting on a small smile.
"Thank you for understanding." Optimus replied with a nod.
"Luz, if you or any of your friends want to come back home with me and Gus, you can get in the car." Camila offered.
Luz looked back at her friends and they gave her looks that meant they wished to stay at the base with their Autobot friends. The Hispanic girl then let out a sigh before turning towards her mother.
"Sorry, mama, but we're all gonna stay here." Luz told her. "Look after Gus for us, okay?"
"…Okay, Mija. Just please be okay." Camila replied, sighing in defeat.
"We all will." Luz assured. "And thanks for being reasonable."
Camila then helped Gus get into the back seat and the Illusionists witch boy looked at Wheeljack, who gave him a friendly smile.
"See you soon, pal." Wheeljack said.
"Sure, Jackie." Gus replied as Emmiline rested on his left arm.
"Ratchet, activate the Ground Bridge." Optimus instructed.
"There's no need. I can drive back home." Camila replied reassuringly before she got in the car and started up the engine.
The Hispanic woman then drove the car towards the main entrance and left the base, with Gus waving goodbye to his friends.
"Luz, your mom is one cool lady." Jazz commented with a cool smile.
"You should see her when she's wielding one of her chancla weapons." Luz quipped.
"Prime, do you copy?" Agent coulson asked as he appeared on the main screen.
"I hear you, Agent coulson." Optimus replied.
"You been watching the news? Mother Nature's got a twitch in her britches." coulson admitted.
"We already know about the volcano." Cliffjumper said.
"And the quakes? Seven major tremors at the same magnitude at the same time as that volcanic eruption." coulson explained before showing them a bunch of bad phenomenons on the global map. "All over the globe on different tectonic plates in theory, unrelated if they haven't happened…"
"At the exact same time." Ratchet finished.
"That's not all. Check out the human news." Amity told everyone as she turned up the volume on the hangout platform's TV.
"Freak storms unlike any the planet has ever seen. Tsunamis threaten the Canadian seaboard, while lighting storms pummel the Gobi Desert. Meanwhile, electromagnetic anomalies plague urban power grids." The anchorman explained. "These abnormal global phenomenons are leaving most to wonder… why now and what next?"
"Don't tell me the Cons built a weather machine?" coulson asked.
"One that powerful? Highly unlikely." Ratchet answered.
"To be honest, none of this started happening before Dark Energon began erupting from that volcano." Luz said in suspicion.
"You are correct, Luz. But I do not believe the appearance of Dark Energon at this point in time to be coincidental." Optimus added.
"So if all of these disasters are happening around the planet, does that also mean…" Willow asked, slowly getting a concerned look as Wheeljack quickly understood what she meant.
"I'm getting Gus and Camila back here!" Wheeljack stated before he transformed and drove off.
Meanwhile
Camila was driving her car on the badlands road as the sky above was full of dark clouds spewing out some lighting. Gus was looking out the passenger window as Emmiline was sleeping on his shoulder.
"One-one hundred, two-one hundred, three-one hundred…" Gus said to himself.
"Are you alright back there, Gus?" Camila asked.
"Yeah, there's just some lighting in the sky." Gus answered. "I'm counting every single one I see."
"It definitely looks like a storm is coming. I'm sure the forest will love it." Camila said jokingly.
But suddenly, Camila and Gus heard a very loud flash that was closely behind them and a bunch of lighting began striking down onto the road near the car. Camila began turning her vehicle to avoid the lighting strikes, but ended up steering out of control and the car crashed into a lamppost. Camila and Gus were fortunately uninjured as they quickly quickly sat straight with startled expressions.
"Gus, are you okay?" Camila questioned in concern.
"Yeah." Gus replied. "And so is Emmiline, here."
His chameleon Palisman let out a soft squeal in response. But then, they all began to hear some loud rumbling approaching them.
"Uh, what's that?" Gus asked in a worried tone.
When Gus and Camila looked ahead, they both gasped in horror at seeing a huge tornado that was heading straight for them.
"Oh no!" Camila gasped fearfully as she tried to start up the engine, but it proved to be very damaged. "Come on, come on! Not now!"
The tornado got even closer and the car was beginning to get sucked into it as it was now being lifted off the ground, causing Gus and Camila to look at each other in nervousness. But just then, Wheeljack drove right up to them and transformed before quickly grabbing the front of the car. He pulled out one of his swords and jabbed it into the ground to keep himself from getting sucked in.
"Hold on! I've got ya!" Wheeljack stated assuringly.
"Thanks a lot, Jackie!" Gus said in gratefulness.
"You can thank me later, pal! I need all three of you to climb on my arm!" Wheeljack replied.
As Gus, Camila and Emmiline quickly crawled out of the car to reach Wheeljack, the tornado was getting closer and it managed to force the swordsman Wrecker's blade out of the ground. Wheeljack quickly managed to tuck away his blade and held onto the car with both hands.
"Come on! Hurry!" Wheeljack urged.
Gus quickly held onto Emmiline and leaped onto Wheeljack's arm for safety. Camila was about to follow, until the entire car was pulled into the tornado with only the front hood staying in Wheeljack's grip, causing the three of them to look on in horror. But then, Camila appeared beneath the hood and smiled a little bit, much to Gus and Wheeljack's relief. The swordsman Wrecker immediately transformed and began driving back to base with Gus, Camila and Emmiline in the seats.
"Thank you." Camila said kindly.
"No problem, lady." Wheeljack replied.
"You're the best, Jackie." Gus complemented. "You are the best."
Meanwhile at the volcano,
a lot of Vehicon miners were extracting a huge amount of Dark Energon and carrying all of it to the Nemesis' elevator, while Megatron observed from the main deck.
"Rivers of your very lifeblood, rising from the depths to become one with me." Megatron said to himself.
But suddenly, the Decepticon leader gasped as he began to have another vision. This time, the volcano erupted and large purple cracks were formed in the ground. It spread across the entire Earth before exploding.
At the Autobot base.
everyone began hearing a car engine approaching from the main entrance.
"Here they come." Jazz told the others.
Wheeljack then arrived and he braked in the center, opening his doors and allowing Gus, Camila and Emmiline to get out.
"We're back." Gus said.
"And we are glad." Ratchet replied as Wheeljack transformed back to robot mode.
"Mom, are you alright?" Luz asked worriedly, rushing up to her mother.
"I will be, Mija." Camila reassured.
"Good." Luz said before they both hugged each other.
"World leaders are classifying these bizarre weather patterns as a global emergency." The anchorman on the TV news said, causing everyone to quickly approach it.
"Global?" Camila asked in surprise.
"And scientists believe the phenomenon is somehow related to the planetary alignment." The anchorman continued before coulson showed up from the elevator.
"What have you learned, Prime? And you better not blow smoke up my-" coulson soon stopped talking when he noticed Camila was in the base. "Mrs Noceda. What a nice surprise."
"Agent coulson." Camila greeted.
"We have learned this. As with the so-called magma from the volcano, these earthquakes originated far bellow the Earth's crust." Ratchet explained. "From the very center of the Earth's core, in fact."
"Quakes don't start there, do they?" coulson asked.
"Don't ask us. We're not even from Earth." Amity replied.
"Tiny tremors rising and falling in a consistent pattern. Almost like…" Ratchet said as he closely studied two waves on the screen, until his eyes widened in shock. "By the Allspark. If I convert these data points to audio files…"
"What? What is it?" coulson questioned impatiently.
"What're you trying to tell us, Ratchet?" Cliffjumper asked.
"Listen." Ratchet said before making the two waves join together.
Everyone began to listen very carefully when the waves were fused, hearing the sound of what was apparently a loud heartbeat. Hearing this made them quite surprised, but Optimus' eyes began to widen in horror.
On the nemesis
Soundwave was producing the exact same heartbeat noise to his fellow Decepticons.
"Stop, Soundwave! Turn it off!" Megatron ordered, clenching his head in agony. "I can still hear it pounding in my brain!"
At the same time at the autobot base.
"Hold on, that sounds like…" Gus said as he gained a look of realisation.
"A Cybertronian heartbeat." Luz finished.
"But, how is that possible?" Camila asked confusingly. "A heart is supposed to pump blood."
"That's true. There's nothing in the Earth to pump, except…" Willow began to say.
"The blood of Unicron!" Vee realised in fear.
At the volcano
more dark lava was spewing out of the hole before a bunch of purple mist spewed out. The scene zoomed in to reveal the face of a being who was truly full of pure evil.
"I awaken." The evil being said in a wise tone. "I… am Unicron."
Back at the Autobot base,
everyone was truly astonished to learn where the Dark Energon had come from and what was causing all these disastrous phenomenons.
"Wait a minute, you're saying that something is living down there, inside the Human Realm's planet?" Amity questioned surprisingly.
"But, how's that even possible?" Hunter asked.
"I fear that the Earth's very core is not comprised of magma, as Human science suggested, but of Dark Energon." Optimus answered.
"And if we're hearing a Spark, then Unicron is the rising darkness that the prophecy foretold." Ratchet added.
"So, how do we stop this thing from rising?" Fowler asked.
"That I am afraid was not foretold." Optimus said, shaking his head softly.
"But, how can something be inside our planet's core and be alive?" Camila questioned.
"I've done tons of human research, but none of it ever told me about a ancient robot demon living inside the Earth." Gus commented.
"Such a thing is not unprecedented." Optimus replied as he began telling the oldest tale in Cybertronian history. "Before the beginning, there was Primus and there was Unicron. One was the incarnation of creation, the other of destruction. For eons, Primus and Unicron battled. The balance of power shifted between them more times than could be counted. Only by creating the Thirteen, the original Primes who proceeded me, was Primus finally able to defeat Unicron and cast him out. Primus became one with the very core of our planet, creating life through the Well of All Sparks. While Unicron was never to be heard from again, until now."
"I guess he floated all the way across space until he decided to take shelter on Earth." Luz theorised
"If Unicron's a Cybertronian god, how do we destroy him?" Vee questioned.
"Maybe we can the hole this Uber Con left when he dug himself all the way down the Earth's core and fill it full of explosives?" Fowler suggested.
"Agent Fowler, I do not believe that Earth became Unicron's home, but rather that, with time and gravitational force, debris collected around the slumbering Titan." Optimus replied.
"Forming your Earth itself." Ratchet said, making the humans and witches gain shocked expressions.
"So what you're saying is that living inside the Earth… is a Cybertronian version of a Titan?" Amity asked while her jaw was dropping down.
"Just like how our home is basically the skeleton of a normal Titan?" Willow questioned with the same expression.
"That's just about right, you two." Cliffjumper answered.
"Sweet mother of Titan." Vee whispered, finding all of this pretty hard to believe.
"Yeah, it's really difficult to believe all of this." Bumblebee said while rubbing the back of his head.
"And he's only awakening now due to the magnetic pull created by the planetary alignment." Arcee said.
"Well, what happens now when Unicron wakes up from his billion-year sleep?" Hunter asked.
"Yeah, does he just do a morning stretch and then the Earth blows up into a bunch of space rocks?" Gus questioned.
However, Optimus said nothing in response.
"You don't know, do you?" Camila asked.
"My guess is that Unicron has transcended physical form as we know it. Nonetheless, we must find a way to ensure that this force of nature never fully awakens." Optimus announced. "The fate of this planet depends upon it."
"Optimus, if Unicron is able to fully wake up and destroy Earth in the end, does that mean he'll go looking for other dimensions and destroy them all?" Amity asked in concern.
"Unicron lives only to bring chaos to every known planet in the universe. And the world other dimensions will be next." Optimus admitted, making the realm defenders look at each other worriedly.
on the nemesis
Megatron stood quietly on the main deck as Airachnid approached him.
"Lord Megatron, our cargo hold is nearly filled with the dark substance. I recommend a retreat." Airachnid said. "The troops are growing weak from it's effects."
"And yet I grow stronger." Megatron muttered before he turned around. "Airachnid, you are in command until my return."
"Your return from where, master?" Airachnid asked.
"From my audience with Unicron." Megatron answered, leaving the main deck.
The Nemesis began to fly away from the volcano, but Megatron was seen leaving his warship in his vehicle mode and he flew straight towards the boiling mountain. Once he reached the top, Megatron transformed and landed on the volcano's edge while staring down into it.
"I feel your presence, share your very Spark!" Megatron called out. "I call upon you as my lord and master, mighty Unicron!"
Just then, the volcano started becoming more active and a bunch of smoke erupted from it before two purple eyes appeared from it while looking down at Megatron.
"Who speaks to me?" Unicron asked.
"Your servant most humble, Megatron, leader of the Decepticons." Megatron introduced, kneeling before the Cybertronian god. "And your very herald, the one who wielded the Dark Energon which binds us to awaken you once again. The prophecy has been fulfilled. It is only the beginning of what we shall accomplish, together. For you shall rule this planet, and those who walk upon it through me."
"Prideful fool!" Unicron said with a glare, much to Megatron's surprise. "How dare you think yourself capable of summoning my life force! I rise because I have deemed it my time!"
"Master, I did not mean to overstep-" Megatron began saying.
"Silence, worm! I have no need of your lowly assistance." Unicron proclaimed.
"Please, my lord, I exist only to serve you." Megatron said humbly as he got on both his knees.
"What is this I sense? The taint of Primus, here?" Unicron asked.
"That is Optimus, the last of the Primes, our sworn enemy." Megatron told him.
"You profess loyalty to me, yet allow a disciple of Primus to live?!" Unicron questioned angrily.
"I will destroy him for you!" Megatron stated. "His screams will be heard-"
"I grow weary of your prattle. Surely if you had the power to destroy this Prime, you would have done so already. I will deal with him myself." Unicron said before he disappeared with the volcanic smoke, leaving Megatron with a frown on his face.
Meanwhile
Optimus was seen walking through the inside of a canyon and searched for something, or rather someone.
"Ratchet, this epicentre is consistent with the findings of the others." Optimus said on the com-link. "Its terrain is rich in ore."
Back at the base
"So, what does that mean?" Luz asked curiously as everyone else was listening at the base.
"It follows that the natural metals in your Earth would be extensions of Unicron. His limbs, if you will." Ratchet explained.
"So, he did have his morning stretch." Camila admitted.
"That explains how all these quakes started." Amity said.
Just then, everyone heard the main console beeping and Ratchet saw what had triggered it.
"Optimus, I'm detecting a swell in Unicron's Spark activity." Ratchet informed.
Back with Optimus.
"Rest assured, Ratchet. I will proceed with vigilance." Optimus replied.
But then, the Autobot leader began hearing the sound of falling rocks behind him and turned around. What he saw was the face of Unicron perched into one of the cliff walls.
"Do you know me, Follower of Primus?" Unicron asked.
"Unicron. The Chaos Bringer." Optimus said.
"Good." Unicron said before breaking himself out of the wall and revealing his appearance to Optimus, which consisted of two large horns on his head, skeletal wings on his back, and a pair of sharp-looking weapons on his hands. "Now know me as Unicron, YOUR DESTROYER!"
The dark Cybertronian god charged at Optimus and threw his right weapon at him, causing Optimus to immediately block it with both of his blades. Optimus then jumped out of the way as Unicron began relentlessly attacking him with both of his bladed hands, until the Autobot leader soon placed his weapons away and stood in front of him.
"I humbly request your ear, Lord Unicron." Optimus said sincerely, causing Unicron to cease his attack.
"And what would a Prime be so compelled to say to me?" Unicron asked.
"I make this appeal not for myself, but for this planet which you constitute and the beings who inhabit it. Humankind relies upon you for life and sustenance. Your resurrection will only result in the destruction of the species which evolved from the seeds of your very greatness." Optimus explained.
"So this humankind of whom you speak, you consider them my progeny?" Unicron questioned.
"Indeed." Optimus answered.
"Parasites! They too shall know my wrathful hand once I am finished with you!" Unicron stated before he shifted his blades weapons into hands and blasted Optimus with two lighting bolts. "The line of Primus has grown weak in my absence, and thus you shall fall."
The dark Cybertronian god began to charge up another lighting attack, but Optimus wasn't going to give him a chance this time.
"That outcome is inevitable, but not on this day!" Optimus announced, bringing out his blasters and shooting Unicron multiple times.
This shots were enough to make Unicron fall down and lay on the ground motionlessly as Optimus approached him. Unicron's body was then reduced to large piles of rocks, but then even more Unicron's suddenly started to appear from different areas of the canyon and they surrounded Optimus.
"Yes, disciple of Primus. On this very day. For Unicron may be one, but we are all Unicron!" All of the Unicrons stated triumphantly as Optimus prepared himself for what may be his final battle