CHAPTER 5: DARKNESS RISING V
WINDSWEPT P.O.V
"We cannot allow Megatron to send Dark Energon through his Spacebridge. If we fail, the dead of Cybertron will rise, swarm through his vortex and invade Earth, bending humankind to Megatron's twisted rule."
Optimus' explanation of what would happen to Earth if Megatron's army of undead soldiers appeared in my mind. I could see the Dark Energon flying through space, into the Spacebridge, plunging into the ground of what was our home planet. Arms of the undead rose up from the ground, reaching out through the portal.
The image shifted, moving to multiple towns on Earth. Terracons reigned supreme, destroying anything in sight. Humans were screaming, trying to find cover. One undead soldier appeared in my view and shot me, returning me to reality…
For now.
NORMAL P.O.V
The sun was breaking through to start a brand new day.
Or a brand new start in Jack Darby's case.
After learning about a team of Autonomous Robotic Organisms taking shelter at an abandoned military silo outside of Jasper, Nevada, and having seen the cold realities of the war between them and their enemies, the Decepticons, the sixteen-year-old boy had cut all ties connecting him to the Autobots, wanting no part in something that could get him killed.
He didn't just leave behind them, he also parted ways with his recently acquired blue motorcycle, which happened to transform into his former guardian Arcee. Now without a motorcycle, he was forced to race on his fixed pedal bike as quickly as he could to arrive on time for his work shift.
Jack locked his bike to the stand once he had parked it before looking up at the flickering logo of the K-O Drive-In. He released a heavy sigh - it was supposed to be an ordinary day. No motorcycle he had to ensure stayed as a motorcycle, no need to be concerned with protecting his friends suddenly, and no worries about being killed...
...So why did ordinary suddenly become lifeless?
"Nice bike."
At the familiar voice, Jack turned to his former guardian's vehicle form, "Arcee, really, Carly already tried," He began wandering up to the motorcycle. "Tell Optimus I respect him big time. But if you're at war with the Decepticons, there's nothing I can do to help."
"Optimus didn't send me and no one's asking for your help."
"Okay, so if we both agree that I'm not warrior material..."
"Jack, I just lost someone I cared about. Maybe it's the grief talking. Maybe you're growing on me. Whatever it is, I'm just not ready to say goodbye."
The pain in her words hurt the teenager. Arcee wasn't prepared to move on... perhaps she saw something in himself that his friend had spoken about. Or maybe he reminded her of her deceased partner.
A tinge of regret panged inside of him.
Had Jack Darby made a mistake leaving the Autobots?
WINDSWEPT'S P.O.V
Ratchet was busy pinpointing the location of the Spacebridge Megatron was planning to use to bring his army of undead to help him in our way. I sat on the crate I was resting on last night and watched him work with the tech on the screen. Cybertronian tech in this form wasn't hard to decode for me - I guess being taught by the very best helps...
I sighed internally with sadness - I considered the very best to be Alpha Trion... I missed him terribly, as well as all of my friends I made at Iacon. Some of them were dead, most... I had no idea where they were. Whether they had escaped Cybertron and were now just floating around in space... or stuck on our former homeworld somewhere...
Maybe one day I'll find the answers.
"Optimus. I have managed to pinpoint the location of Megatron's Space Bridge." My optics lit up. "High in Earth's orbit."
"Out of our reach."
"Okay, so you guys don't fly, but can't you just Groundbridge there?" Miko suggested from her position next to Bulkhead.
"The Groundbridge has limited range. Stretched all the way into the orbit, its vortex could snap and scatter us to the stars." Miko's eyes widened in horror at the words.
...Ratchet wasn't exactly exaggerating to be totally honest...
"Since Megatron is likely already in transit, I'm afraid we must take that risk," Optimus decided, facing the Groundbridge tunnel, "Reaching the Spacebridge first is our only means of stopping him."
There was a tooting horn sound coming from the entry/exit tunnel of the base before the familiar vehicle of Arcee arrived... And she had a passenger on board, who took off their helmet...
Jack?
"Hey! Guess who's back?"
I glanced down at Carly's beaming face on the crate beside me. Hmm, one must wonder what she had said to him.
"Autobots prepare for departure."
Arcee glanced our way in confusion, "Where to?"
"The final frontier!" Miko's answer was shrouded in mystery.
"Wha? Space?" Jack whispered in disbelief as I helped Carly join her friends, "I-I thought they didn't have a way to get there."
"They don't, really," Raf shrugged his answer while Bumblebee also placed him on the ground.
Carly nodded in agreement between her little brother and child...hood friend. That was what they referred to each other on this planet, right? "Groundbridging is their only option, even if it's risky."
Miko's eyes were widening again at the horrors Ratchet had described.
Nervously, Jack looked up at his guardian, "Be seeing you."
Arcee only smiled confidently in response, obviously not wanting to worry him. Behind us, Ratchet activated the Groundbridge, the swirls of green and blue appearing in the tunnel.
I glanced down at my leg injury briefly...
Ratchet's gonna let me go on this mission right?
"If you injure yourself again, I'm not patching you up." I lifted my helm to Ratchet's soft expression. Even if his tone was the exact opposite of his facial expressions, he still found a way to prove that he cared somehow.
"Go get 'em, 'Swept!" I looked at my charge smirking up at me.
I nodded - I was going to 'get them' indeed.
"Be careful, Bee," I heard Raf beg nearby.
"We'll be back before you know it!"
Miko's waving of her arms caught my optics, "I'm so jealous!"
"Don't even think about following me."
"Optimus, if you leave me stranded on a planet teeming with humans, I will never forgive you."
"Until we meet again, old friend." I think Optimus was trying to provide a touch of humour to Ratchet's threat.
The thought of our dear medic being left behind and surrounded by humans was an... interesting idea, though.
Optimus looked around at us, resting on the Groundbridge, "Autobots, roll out!"
At the sound of his command, we all proceeded to transform into our vehicle forms. Switching on our headlights, I twitched my rear-view mirror around to see Carly with the rest of the humans watching and waiting for us to head off to the battle.
I was not going to put it lightly: this was a dangerous mission. We were risking a lot for the planet that had become our only safe harbour during this war. If this were the last time I would see someone that was becoming a close friend to me, I wanted my last sight of Carly to be a good one. Seeing her smiling with her friends was good enough for me.
Optimus rolled out first, along with Bulkhead and Arcee behind him. I followed after Bumblebee. "Maximum overdrive!" Our leader commanded as we continued driving further and further into the Groundbridge.
Before we knew it, we were driving into space. Stars twinkled around us brightly as if they were wishing us the best for the upcoming battle. In my rear-view mirror, I could see the Earth. It was nothing but a small, round, blue and green ball.
"Autobots, transform-" We followed Optimus' order. "-And gravitise!"
We floated down towards the Decepticon Spacebridge. I could feel the electricity from the Spacebridge cackle below my pedes as it locked onto and pulled me down to secure me safely onto the 'Bridge. That electric cackle connecting us to the surface was the gravitational stabiliser every Cybertronian should've had on their pedes.
There was a sudden thud nearby. I turned to my left at Bulkhead wobbling during his landing, "Don't look down... or up... or left."
I heard a near-silent engine sound coming from behind us. I turned around to find the Decepticon Warship obviously marking its presence, appearing in front of Earth.
My facial expressions displayed confidence that we could defeat the Decepticons in their latest plan... but I felt worry deep within my spark. I wasn't certain that our attempts to stop Megatron's plans wouldn't be enough. Maybe Slipstream's warning was more than correct; maybe the Decepticons were stronger than they were before. Now with Dark Energon in their corner, what could go wrong for them now?
...Unless Megatron's 'relationship' with the Dark Energon forced him into some pretty drastic measures.
"So Megatron's packing enough Dark Energon to raise Cybertron's dead?" Arcee summarised in a questioning tone.
"And since we don't possess ready means of disabling the Spacebridge-" Optimus activated his blaster cannons. "-Nothing gets in or out!"
We activated our own weapons and stood in our battle stance, prepared for whatever Megatron had planned for us...
NORMAL P.O.V
Megatron chuckled at the Autobots sighted on the monitor, "Optimus Prime and Windswept never disappoint."
Slipstream smirked beside her leader. Surely that small team of Autobots couldn't be stupid enough to believe they could stop the rise of the army Megatron planned to bring forth from the Spacebridge?!
The Seeker had to stop herself from getting ahead of the situation. This was Optimus Prime's small, but passionate team they were fighting. They would do anything to keep their newfound home safe.
Beside her, the Decepticon Warlord looked over his shoulder, "Unlike you, Starscream!"
The silver Seeker stuttered in his breathing to keep himself calm from panicking, "No need for concern, Master. Soundwave and Rebecca are locking onto Cybertron's coordinates. Per my instructions."
Megatron only looked away and back at the scanners, choosing to keep more of a watchful eye on his enemies than the pathetic silver Decepticon behind him.
Slipstream performed a similar reaction, but not before rolling her eyes at the Cybertronian she was forced to call her twin.
WINDSWEPT'S P.O.V
No movement came from the Warship. Nothing moved around us. We were in some form of standstill... like the Decepticons were waiting for some form of movement from us first...
"Well, what are they waiting for?" Arcee must've thought the same as me.
I turned upwards to my leader, who looked like he was zooming his optics in closer onto the Warship, "It appears the Decepticons have sustained serious damage to their interstellar navigation system."
"Huh. That's my handy work."
I grinned at Bulkhead's admission and raised the side of my blaster out to him, "Nice one!"
"Great job Bulkhead," Optimus complimented as Bulkhead bumped my blaster with his wrecking ball as an alternative for a 'servo fist-bump', "Without the dish, Megatron will be unable to aim the Space Bridge at Cybertron."
"Don't the Decepticons know where their own planet is?" I heard Rafael question on the other side of the comms.
"Naturally," Ratchet began scoffing, "But Cybertron is many light-years away. To reach their target, their aim must be astronomically precise."
"If Megatron went to the trouble of rendezvousing with his Spacebridge, he must have an alternate targeting system. A remote one."
NORMAL P.O.V
"Hmph. From what I know of Earth's technology, I doubt there'd exist a single radio-telescope dish on this planet powerful enough to pinpoint Cybertron," Ratchet explained in disbelief.
"What about a whole bunch of LINKED radio-telescope dishes?" Behind the eldest teenagers and Ratchet, Raf was immediately typing in various commands as if he was searching for something.
"Like the giant-sized array in Texas!" Carly realised as the image of the rays appeared on the screen.
"Zip-buh-buh-buh-buh!" Ratchet suddenly babbled, bending down to meet eye-to-eye with the humans, Carly instinctively moving an arm out in front of her brother, "This is not child's play!"
"Good thinking, Raf and Carly." Carly grinned for two reasons - the first being that her brother had been complemented by the Autobot leader for his idea, and the second was because of Ratchet dropping his jaw in disbelief. "Ratchet, have Agent Fowler alert the array staff to the security hazard."
"You! Soldier! You're out of uniform! Put on some pants!"
"That may be a challenge," Ratchet replied after the Agent's immediate passing out.
Raf returned to the keyboard behind, quickly typing more commands into the keyboard. But no matter what he or even his sister typed into the system, nothing that he wanted to do worked, "I can't get past the array's firewalls. They're too thick!" He slammed his fists on the bench with a shake of his head.
"You actually think you can actually keep the Decepticons out?"
"IF we can get in, I believe so," Carly answered, confident of her younger sibling.
"Uh-wait, wait, wait. Carly!" Jack appeared at her side, "What if we can get Raf all the way in? Like inside-the-building in?"
The teen narrowed her eyes in thought, "We could get into their internal networking from the other side of the firewall."
WINDSWEPT'S P.O.V
No.
No way.
Those humans have gone through too much over the last few days alone. There was no way they were going to risk their own lives for us when there was too much at stake!
"The risk is too great," Optimus declined before I had a chance to open my mouth about the situation, "The Decepticons will be there, perhaps even on-sight."
"Optimus, with all due respect, you said it yourself. This is bigger than the safety of four humans."
"Yeah! If we let the 'Cons win, we're fragged along with everyone else on our planet!"
Jack and Miko were right... Scrap it, they were right!
If we don't stop the Decepticons - which was still a strong possibility - then we allow them to take control of Earth and possibly more planets across the galaxy. Maybe even the galaxy itself!
I exchanged a glance with Optimus, and defeatedly shook my helm, "I think this one's out of your servos."
Optimus was looking at the Decepticon Warship, "Raf? Carly?"
NORMAL P.O.V
The Esquivel siblings shared an unspoken conversation over whether they wanted to risk their lives once more or not. They gave each other a nod of agreement.
"We wanna give it a shot."
"Surely, Lord Megatron. The Autobots are up to something."
"Really, Starscream?" Megatron gasped sarcastically, turning to the Seeker, their faces only inches away from each other.
Starscream only shrugged his shoulders with a sheepish chuckle in response.
Slipstream rolled her eyes at the staring contest and glanced at the monitor where the Autobots remained. If they were truly planning something without their knowledge, they didn't want to waste time before that plan had been enacted. She looked at the control panel below the monitor, and slammed the button in the middle of it down, sending alarms blaring, "Destroy them!"
WINDSWEPT'S P.O.V
Sudden engine noises caused us to pause in our huddled discussions. We looked up to see endless streams of Decepticon jets flying out from the Warship. Heading straight towards us.
"Here comes the welcoming committee."
The 'welcoming committee' Bulkhead had referred the incoming army to was pretty large… but we were Team Prime. We can handle anything those Decepticons can chuck at us. We've individually survived worse during the War for Cybertron. We're the living proof of surviving worse.
Optimus and I exchanged the same look with a nod.
Let's party.
NORMAL P.O.V
Swirls of green and blue suddenly appeared, forming into a portal. Out of it jumped four humans, each of them landing gingerly on their feet before their transportation disappeared behind them.
Each of them slumped over, catching their breaths and feeling slightly unwell from the trip. It wasn't the first time they had used the portal, but they hadn't used it for very long so the effects of it remained as they rubbed their heads in discontent.
"That'll take some getting used to," Jack shook his head warily.
"You do not have to say that again," Carly nodded, grabbing Raf's shoulder to stabilise herself.
"Whoa!" Miko's gasp caused the rest of them to look up at the place they had arrived at.
In front of them were rows and rows of satellite dishes, each one pointing towards the patchy white clouds and mostly blue skies. Sitting in front of them was a sole building, which could only mean that it was the hub for the controlling of the dishes. With determined looks plastered on their faces after recovering from the Groundbridge effects, the four began sprinting to the dishes. They had no time to waste. If they had any hope of stopping the Decepticons, now had to be the time.
WINDSWEPT P.O.V
The blaster fire began pouring down on us. We spread out and instantly fired back, shooting at double speed to take the incoming swarm down.
Two of the jets ranged up towards me and transformed right in front of me. I quickly backflipped out of their way before they used their easy advantage on me. I pointed my twin blasters at the one that continued shooting at me, his weaker firepower no match for mine and easily taking him out.
I could feel the optics of the other 'Con burning on me nearby. He probably thought he could surprise me as I remained distracted by his comrade.
Decepticon drones are so dumb.
I turned my torso to him threateningly, optics locking onto his. My confident ones could see the panic and fear in him as I swapped in my blasters for my fists. I charged toward him suddenly to scare him even further. He was unprepared for my rapid punching skills to his faceplates and upper torso. He quickly became dazed on his two feet, barely being able to stand. I leapt up, twisting in mid-air and kicked him in the torso, sending him to his other probably offline friend.
In the distance, I could see another pair of drones coming my way.
'Cons, time to meet your doom...
NORMAL P.O.V
Meanwhile, in the control room that oversaw the satellite dishes outside of the building in Texas, a door creaked open to reveal the Japanese exchange student named Miko Nakadai. She looked down both sides of the corridor, checking for anyone nearby. Happy with what looked to be no one in sight, she closed the door and returned to her friends at the computer, "Security sure is lax in this place."
After a moment of pressing commands, a bright grin came over Raf's face, "We're in!" The smile was soon replaced with a frustrated look, "...And so are the Decepticons."
"What?" Jack gasped, leaning on the chair Carly was sitting on.
"How can you tell?" Miko wanted to know.
"Schematics," was Carly's reply. "With the same alien equations and details we saw on their ship yesterday. But this time..."
"We can download them!" Raf finished as his sister plugged his USB into the computer.
"It's gotta be the Spacebridge," Miko believed.
"The Decepticons are syncing it to the dishes," Raf noticed, "But we can sync to them."
"Will they know?" Jack asked nervously.
"Even if the Decepticons see that we're in their system, they'll have no idea we're in the house."
Reassured, the humans decided not to worry about the threat of Decepticons for the moment, continuing to focus on Raf's progress.
In a few rooms away, what they didn't realise was that two of the Decepticon army were also 'in the house.'
The eyes and the ears of the Decepticons best known as Soundwave had tentacles connecting from himself to the wires where all the lines controlling the dishes were. Beside him, Rebecca smirked with glee at his quick progress. She put her hoverboard to good use and floated up the roof through the gap that Soundwave had destroyed to get into the building.
The satellite dishes started directing themselves up to the skies where the Spacebridge was, causing a graceful smile to appear on the enhanced human...
WINDSWEPT P.O.V
I punched the Decepticon in front of me with all of my strength - this one had been a fighter. I threw another punch at him, but a sudden shaking underneath forced me to miss the drone. The 'Con fell to the ground and knocked himself out.
"Whoa!" I heard Bulkhead murmur. He looked to be trying to regain his footing.
"What just happened?" I glanced toward our leader at Arcee's question.
"The Decepticons are locking on to Cybertron."
Scrap.
NORMAL P.O.V
"Lord Megatron, the Spacebridge is ready for activation!"
"Finally." Megatron's growl sent Starscream's shoulders slumping.
"They're locked on to Cybertron," Raf observed the satellite dishes displayed on the computer screen.
"Not for long," Carly promised.
While Miko and Jack glanced at each other hopefully, Raf worked on typing multiple commands into the computer.
Outside, the dishes that had been turned towards the skies under the Decepticon's command were returning to their original positions...
WINDSWEPT P.O.V
The Spacebridge stopped moving underneath our pedes.
"Raf and Carly did it!" Bumblebee threw his servos up in excitement beside me.
The excitement was contagious, "Yes!" I leapt up to high-five him. "That's our humans!"
I heard Optimus punch something down behind us, "Indeed, Bumblebee and Windswept. This can only be Raf and Carly's doing."
NORMAL P.O.V
"Starscream, what is happening?!"
It wasn't long before what had occurred to the dishes dawned upon the Decepticons inside the Nemesis.
Slipstream's eyes narrowed darkly at her twin, the colour of her eyes also growing darker, signifying the growing frustrations over her twin. She shouldn't have been shocked over Starscream's plans failing once again...
A nervous Starscream turned back to the controls in panic, immediately going to the monitor, "Soundwave, Rebecca; what is happening?"
Rebecca Rose sensed the urgency in Starscream immediately, and turned to the silent Decepticon with a snap of her fingers, "Bring up the security footage!"
Soundwave did as he was told, searching through the video feed coming from every camera in the facility. He nearly skipped the control room had he not uncovered four human figures appearing on the camera.
"Oohh," Rebecca hummed to herself as she studied the footage, "What do we have here?" An evil smirk was tugging at the corner of her lips.
For the enhanced human, it was inevitable that they would soon be forced to come up against the Autobots again. What she hadn't expected were the four humans on Soundwave's screen... Thinking they could outsmart them.
"Fools." The girl looked at Soundwave as she unhooked the cap on her belt loops to sit on her head, "I believe it's about time we blow the smoke on our own cover."
"The dishes are heading back towards Cybertron! I'll just undo that again."
Carly pursed her lips, "Let me try." Her younger brother pushed the keyboard in her direction, "I'll see if I can make it a more permanent lock for the dishes here." A smirk appeared on her face as she furiously typed commands into the keyboard, "We'll see what happens when they mess with Carlotta Esquivel!"
"Carlotta's your name?!" Carly thinned her lips at her friend's excitement. "You never told me your full first name!"
"Whoopsie..."
"What happens when the 'Cons realize they're being punked?"
"It's only virtual combat." Carly glanced at Jack momentarily. "Ever tried online gaming?"
"Yeah, Jack. What are the 'Cons gonna do?" Miko scoffed, "They're probably like a thousand miles away."
"Or they could be right behind you."
The four nearly jumped in surprise at the voice behind them. They turned to discover a tall, human figure standing in the doorway of the dark room, a Cybertronian claw waiting behind her.
"Sigue trabajando, tengo esto," Carly whispered to her brother before standing to protect him, "Who are you?"
"Oh? The Autobots haven't told you about me?" Rebecca pouted, placing a hand on her chest, "I'm a little bit disappointed."
"Guess you're not worth talking about," Miko snarled, joining her friend.
Rebecca laughed at their bravery, "Oh, you two are so adorable!" She looked over her nails proudly. "I suppose I better introduce myself, then. The name's Rebecca Rose... and since we'll be getting to see a bit more of each other in the future, I suppose an introduction out of you four is in order."
"You're gonna wish you never meet us in the future," Miko sneered.
"Seriously, you girls are cute," Rebecca complimented with a smirk, "But time's a wasting." Snapping her fingers, the tentacle behind her charged toward the humans.
Carly, whose focus and anger lay directly with the girl, ducked, but Miko and Jack were not lucky, being caught by the claw of the tentacle. The two screamed as they flew around the room while the brown-haired girl stood and looked for a way to help her friends.
"Aww, you're smart too?"
Gritting her teeth, Carly spun around and faced the brownish-red haired girl. She glanced around the room to look for something she could use as a weapon, immediately spotting a chair with wheels nearby. She grabbed it and threw it at Rebecca, who smirked and leapt out of the doorway before the chair slammed into the wall outside. Carly stormed to the doorway the girl had disappeared from.
"I'm smarter." The enhanaced human suddenly returned into her vision, grabbing her shoulders harshly and pushing her back through the doorway.
Carly tried to regain her footing at the strong force pushing her, but just as she was prepared to retaliate, she was swept off her feet suddenly by the Decepticon. She landed hard on the ground while Rebecca stood up.
"I won't let them lock on again." Hearing the determined whisper of the young boy at the computers, Rebecca pursed her lips and began stalking him.
Carly looked up at the Decepticon hunting down her brother and was filled with protective anger.
Nobody was going to mess with her family.
Rebecca found herself suddenly tackled to the ground, slamming against the vinyl floor. She looked up, finding the teenager with an angry look on her face.
"Stay away from my brother."
Rebecca laughed once more as she looked into the human's eyes. She could see a familiar sense of protection coming from her. It had been something she had seen in a person of her past, "You remind me a lot of someone."
Carly shoved the girl harder to the ground just as there were large thuds and grunts behind her. She couldn't help her curiosity, glancing back at her friends now against the wall. Her eyes moved to the tentacle heading straight for Raf.
In desperation, the teenage girl began patting down the stronger human in an attempt to find something she could use to cause a distraction to the tentacle. When she found something sharp and metallic-like against her fingers, she felt a glimmer of hope while she saw Rebecca's face flicker with fear.
She pulled off the weapon and swung it towards the tentacle.
"Duck the tentacle!" The order was carried out as the tentacle swung out of the way, Raf jumping up onto the table to dodge it.
It gave the young boy an opportunity to pull out the USB from the computer, now full of Cybertronian data they could take back to the Autobot base and work on. He was able to leap off the table just as the tentacle came swinging back to him, this time knocking out the computer.
As quickly as she had thrown it, the boomerang returned to Carly. With it in her hand, she overlooked it for a moment, seeing the sharpness of each end and sharp, teeth-like razor blades on the inside of it. She ran a finger gently over one end and was met with blood almost immediately appearing on her skin. She looked down at a confused Rebecca, her lips curling into a smirk.
Forcing her enemy's hands above her head, she stabbed the boomerang into the wall hard, trapping the superpowered human's hands against it, "I think we have the same IQ." She pushed herself up and ran to help Raf flee from the tentacle to Miko and Jack.
The younger girl meanwhile was looking for anything she could use to fight back with, and soon spotted an axe resting against the wall. With a battle cry, she charged towards the tentacle with the weapon, leaping up to swing at the enemy. But it dodged her swing and retaliated by throwing her back to her friends, its claw watching the weapon sink into the ground.
Carly jumped to her friend's side to help her off the ground just as the claw pulled the axe up.
"You handed in an axe?!" Jack screeched.
"Not good," Raf whimpered.
The tentacle swung at them to finish them off when it was suddenly pulled out of the room...
Having been able to lock the satellite dishes back to Cybertron, Soundwave had retracted his tentacle and Rebecca back into the room he was in.
Rebecca landed on her feet softly, and grabbed a nearby cloth, "Timing's much appreciated." She wiped away the blood that had stained her wrists from the boomerang she had left behind. After a moment of wiping away the blood, she removed the cloth and watched the small stab wounds disappear from her skin.
She turned around in time to watch Soundwave strike one of the thick cables lying on the floor with the axe. A smirk appeared on her lips as she glanced up to the silent Decepticon, "Excellent work, Soundwave." They jumped onto the roof in preparation to leave.
A sudden bang from behind forced her to look down at where it had come from, discovering the four humans charging in.
Miko pulled her phone out from her pocket to take a picture of the Decepticon pair, unaware of the silent Soundwave doing the same. Happy with the result, the Decepticon transformed into his jet form, allowing Rebecca to climb into the cockpit.
The powered human waved smugly, "Until we meet again, humans." She settled into the seat just as Soundwave flew away from their crimes.
"Why are they leaving?" Miko asked.
Carly looked around and found the destroyed cable on the ground, "Oh no." She stepped over to the cable. "They cut the hard wire."
"The dishes are locked onto Cybertron." Raf joined his sister, bending down to overlook the axe that had destroyed the hard wire. "For good."
The Decepticons inside the Nemesis watched the monitor confirm the locking satellite dishes onto Cybertron.
"Now, Starscream?"
Said Decepticon chuckled, "Now."
"It is about time." Ignoring the glare from his twin, Starscream pressed a command on the keypad.
WINDSWEPT'S P.O.V
A sudden bright blue and green light filled my vision just as I was finishing off the last wave of Decepticons drones with the team. I looked behind me at the...
Activated... Spacebridge?
Didn't Carly and Rafael move the dishes back to Earth?
NORMAL P.O.V
On the roof of the Decepticon Warship, Megatron emerged with his entire Dark Energon stockpile on his back, "At last!"
Using all of his strength, the leader of the Decepticons threw his supply of the Blood of Unicron towards the green and blue activated portal...
WINDSWEPT'S P.O.V
I punched down one of the last remaining drones just as something high above caught my optic. I looked up to find a massive purple chunk of Energon flying towards the Spacebridge...
Dark Energon...
Megatron!
I heard sudden blaster fire coming from nearby. Optimus was firing at the Dark Energon crystals to no avail.
Scrap...
I could only imagine what that stockpile of Dark Energon would do. Fly like a meteor through our homeworld. Splashing down onto the ground. Infusing the entire planet with the so-called Blood of Unicron.
"ARISE, MY LEGION!" Megatron suddenly commanded behind us.
Those once dead Cybertronian warriors would return to life just like those ones on that battlefield yesterday. They'd groan and screech exactly the same and would be prepared to meet any of Megatron's demands as long as he still had the Dark Energon inside of him.
"So, how do we beat a whole planet of the undead?" Bulkhead asked nervously.
"Optimus!" Oh, Ratchet, how good it is to hear your voice!
...Don't tell him I said that... ever...
NORMAL P.O.V
"I'm registering a rapidly expanding mass in their Spacebridge vortex!" In front of the medic, Jack and Miko, along with a dazed but now mobile Agent Fowler, the Spacebridge schematics on the monitor were being surrounded by purple dots. As the screen continued to flash, more purple dots were rapidly circling the Spacebridge. "One with a peculiar energy signature!"
"Dark Energon... Ratchet, we must destroy the Space Bridge."
Ratchet's jaw nearly dropped in realisation.
WINDSWEPT P.O.V
...Wait, what?!
"There's enough live Energon coursing through it to achieve detonation."
I trusted Optimus' judgements, orders, everything and anything he said no matter what... But destroying the Spacebridge? We'd have to remain here to ensure its destruction for a start... we'd have to ensure the Decepticons didn't find a way to reverse the situation...
Did we even have a way of destroying it?
I looked up to my leader slowly, "Optimus, w-we don't have a way of taking down the Spacebridge... do we?"
NORMAL P.O.V
"If I knew how the Spacebridge was engineered, I might find a tactical way of accomplishing that feat."
"Um, would schematics help?" The medic glanced at the Esquivel siblings, the youngest one pulling out the USB that contained the Spacebridge data.
Ratchet returned to the monitors, "Optimus, I must say. The Spacebridge is our sole hope of ever returning to Cybertron. Are you certain its destruction is the only option?"
WINDSWEPT P.O.V
Everything we had fought for in the past was with the intention of finding a way to return home. To revitalise Cybertron.
...But if it were Megatron commanding it, then it was no longer my home.
I looked up at Optimus, and the look on his face said it all, "I am afraid so."
"Then by all means, let us light our darkest hour!"
"Autobots, take your positions and follow Ratchet's lead," Optimus instructed, watching Arcee, Bumblebee and Bulkhead take off. He turned to the purple glowing jet form of Megatron flying towards us, "While I make my stand."
I went to follow my teammates, but something purple and blue caught my optics coming from the warship before I could...
It was a very familiar jet…
I gritted my denta together. Slipstream would follow Megatron no matter what.
"I shall stand with you, Optimus," I decided, doing as I said beside him, "And help you defeat our enemies together."
He only nodded beside me, "Do not let revenge cloud your judgment, Windswept. Fight for what you believe in."
"Fight for our team and our new friends," I nodded in agreement.
Megatron and Slipstream transformed away from us.
"Your fellow Autobots are wise, Optimus. They know when to retreat."
"I hold no illusions about engaging your army, Megatron. But I might derail its objective… by removing its head." Optimus unfolded his blade.
Megatron cackled, "Highly unlikely, Optimus. As I am infused with their very might!"
"One shall stand!" Optimus began, "One shall fall!"
With lightning crackling around us, Optimus and Megatron charged toward each other to begin their sword fight.
"We have been at this one too many times, Windswept." My optics landed on my enemy, the hatred for her burning inside of me. "It is time we end it."
I nodded with a scowl - Slipstream was everything I hated. And I would do anything to get rid of her, "I agree."
Without hesitance, I charged at my enemy, activating my own bladed weapon in anger. She charged at me too with the same intense anger, activating her own blade. She was known as one of the rarest Seekers from Cybertron to carry a bladed weapon - most Seekers preferred their missile pods.
My enemy easily dodged the swing and pushed me back with her weapon. I dug my pedes into the surface to stop myself from sliding away too far from her. She attempted to take my distraction to her advantage, but before she could land a hit on me, I undercut her with a punch to her torso. She seemed relatively unaffected, gripping my shoulders and pushing me onto my back. I heard the deactivation sounds of her blade - she never seemed fussed about using a bladed weapon.
I could see the bodies of the Cybertronians I had loved and cared about for so long in her evil optics...
The ones she was responsible for...
That offlined because of her.
I grabbed her incoming fist before it touched my faceplates...
NORMAL P.O.V
The monitors showing the large amount of purple dots still surrounding the Spacebridge schematics were beginning to concern a still dazed Agent Fowler, "These things are getting closer!" He turned to the medic. "That's bad, right?"
"Ratchet, we're in position."
"Arcee." Ratchet moved to the small workstation Raf had set up. With his keyboards sitting before him and with his sister by his side if he needed her, he typed away furiously. "Pay close attention."
WINDSWEPT P.O.V
I regained the upper hand on my enemy. I sent punch after punch swinging toward her. No matter what though, she still found a way to dodge them.
My energy was depleting the more our battle raged on... But I was not going to give in. I was not going to let Slipstream get the better of me again.
A sudden punch in the face sent me flying away from her onto the ground. I felt all the remaining energy that I had whip out of me, and my cheek became sore from the hit. I climbed to my knees slowly just a dizzy feeling inside of my helm made its' presence. It was making it difficult to remember how to stand.
I looked to my enemy. She looked like she was also trying to regain her strength
Something whizzed past my audio receptors. I looked behind me and found part of Optimus' sword buried deep within the Spacebridge surface nearby.
Suddenly I was knocked back off my feet and flying through the air. I landed hard on my side on the ground. I opened my optics and saw Optimus struggling to lift himself off the ground beside me. He must've been the one who knocked me over while he fought with Megatron.
My initial instinct was to curl my body up in the pain that I had inflicted from my battle with Slipstream. But I wasn't going to look weak before my two most hated enemies. I wasn't going to show how easily I could be taken down in front of my leader. So I pushed myself off the ground onto my knees. That was far as I wanted to go, though; I needed to regain the little energy that I knew I had remaining somewhere inside of me.
I looked up at Megatron and Slipstream raising their weapons up high… Like they were planning on dealing us one last blow...
"Master?"
"StarSCREAM!" The anger coming from Slipstream could rival the anger I held for her.
"WHAT IS IT?!" Megatron suddenly demanded.
NORMAL P.O.V
"We do not wish to question your all-seeing wisdom, Lord Megatron," Rebecca began.
The monitor in front of the enhanced human was blurry, but it was clear that there were three visible beings near the Spacebridge failsafe.
"But we believe the Autobots are up to something again. Beneath your bridge this time."
The image on the screen cleared up to reveal the figures better. The screens scanned the feed, identifying the three beings as Arcee, Bulkhead and Bumblebee.
WINDSWEPT P.O.V
"Ah, misdirection, Optimus." Scrap. "You would've made a fine Decepticon." Megatron raised his sword again.
"Had you remained at your true home, dear Windswept, you could have become someone like me…"
Megatron and Slipstream swung their blades down for a second time.
I managed to catch her blade with mine.
"I chose my side!" So did Optimus with Megatron.
I locked optics with Slipstream, "I will never become someone like you."
I forced her weapon away from me at the same time Optimus did to Meagtron. We threw in our swords for our blasters and fired at 'Cons before they could react. The force of our blasterfire together were unable to keep Megatron and Slipstream's stabilisers on the ground. We continued firing at them when they floated in mid-air until they transformed and flew away from us.
One went to the warship, the other straight to the open Spacebridge...
Megatron's army must be getting closer...
NORMAL P.O.V
"Starscream, my army approaches. Rendezvous with the Spacebridge for pickup."
"Be careful, my Lord."
"Do not warn me to be careful, Slipstream. I can sense my army. They will not bring harm to any of us."
The communications link between Megatron and Slipstream was cut before the latter could reveal that it wasn't the undead army she had been referring to...
"Now follow the line from the flow insulator to the Energon pump. There should be a valve."
At Ratchet's instruction, Arcee followed the line to the Energon pump and found it, "I see it." She pressed a button, activating the valve.
"Good. To turn all that power against itself, all you need do is reverse the current."
Arcee grabbed the sides of the activated valve and began twisting it. It took most of the small Autobots strength and ability, but she was soon able to reverse the current of the activated Spacebridge.
Letting go of the valve, she saw blue electricity crackling from the wiring of the Spacebridge, searching for stable ground to cling onto. Arcee took a step back, knowing she had done all she could for the moment...
"Current reversed."
"YES!" The dazed Agent Fowler cheered loudly before anyone could get excited. Hearing no one celebrating with him, he glanced down at the young boy beside him, "Right?"
Carly clasped the man's shoulder with a laugh, "Yes is the right answer!"
Jack smiled fondly at his childhood friend, something that Miko soon spotted beside him. She pointed at the boy before drawing a love heart and pointing at her best friend with a smirk. The smile on Jack's face disappeared in response, crossing his arms and shaking his head immediately while the exchange student only nodded with her smirk still in place.
"I'll ready the Groundbridge," Ratchet responded.
Megatron was unimpressed with the situation regarding the rest of Optimus' team, and knew he had to do something about it regardless of whether they had done something to his Spacebridge or not.
He was not going to allow anyone to stop his army from coming through.
Arcee was the first one of the Autobot trio to spot the Decepticon Warlord heading their way. She began firing at him, causing Bulkhead and Bumblebee to quickly do the same. In frustration, Megatron retaliated by firing back. While most of the shots avoided the male Autobots, one managed to hit Arcee.
The blue Autobot slammed on the ground hard, bouncing back up into the air and floating into space, having been knocked out from the Dark Energon-powered hit…
WINDSWEPT P.O.V
The surface of the Spacebridge suddenly started to break up in front of us. Purple electricity was sparkling through the cracks, heading towards Optimus and me.
The others must've been able to destroy the Spacebridge.
Optimus and I exchanged a knowing look.
It was time to go.
We spun around and began fleeing the area.
NORMAL P.O.V
Despite the Spacebridge starting to explode around him, Megatron took no notice. He flew closer to the open portal where his Dark Energon-powered army was appearing. He dodged the splitting surface below him and transformed, floating closer to see his army moving towards him on the other side of the portal.
His eyes glanced over his shoulder briefly to ensure that the Nemesis was waiting for him...
"Starscream! WHERE IS MY SHIP?"
"We would never make it, Lord Megatron! Don't be a fool!"
Slipstream watched the monitor in horror, seeing the Spacebridge getting smaller and smaller in front of her.
Rebecca remained silent, intrigued with the situation. If Optimus, one of his warriors and his 'lapdog' could destroy the original Terracon army, then how long could the new army last if the whole of Team Prime were fighting it?
Slipstream gripped the monitor, "Megatron, take flight and retreat!"
WINDSWEPT P.O.V
The surface of the Spacebridge continued to blow apart around Optimus and me quicker than we could run from it. It suddenly broke up between us, forcing me away from my leader.
"Optimus! The Groundbridge is ready and waiting!" Ratchet's timing couldn't have been any better.
"Autobots, jump!"
We leapt off the Spacebridge, flying down into the open portal below us, waiting as Ratchet had said.
NORMAL P.O.V
The rest of the Autobots entered the Groundbridge before it swirled shut.
Now alone, Megatron overlooked the incoming army, "My legion."
As one Terracon reached its hand out for the Warlord, an exploding noise widened Megatron's optics. He noticed the Spacebridge starting to self-destruct around him.
"NO!" He knew he should've been retreating, but everything that he had worked for was appearing right before him, reaching out to him.
He couldn't walk away from the achievements before him.
He reached his own hand out to the one reaching towards him. Just as the Terracon broke through to meet with Megatron, the Spacebridge exploded in a ball of bright blue light. An explosion that sent waves and waves of blue electric mist throughout the solar system.
The Spacebridge was destroyed, the Terracon soldiers along with it... and even the Decepticon leader himself.
"Decepticons, it is with deep sorrow that I note for the log that Megatron's spark has been extinguished." Starscream bowed his head in fake sorrow. "All hail Starscream-" He received a sudden hit from the side where his twin was. "And Slipstream!"
Rebecca smirked at the attention the new Decepticon leaders were earning with a smug look. All those wasted resources and time Megatron had used... all because of his endless quench for Dark Energon.
She knew the power would become too much for him. She knew all too well...
The Groundbridge portal continued to swirl in front of the humans. There was no one going out, but there wasn't anyone coming in either.
Raf glanced nervously at the medic, "Do you... think they're…?"
Ratchet looked at his wrist. "Five life signals," he confirmed just as he spotted one of the signal's health bars depleting rapidly, "One very faint."
The humans returned their attention to the Groundbridge...
WINDSWEPT P.O.V
Optimus was the first breakthrough from the portal before I could. Our frames were scarred with battle wounds from our fights with Megatron and Slipstream, but apart from that, we were relatively intact.
We were okay.
I looked at the humans.
They looked nervous and uncertain...
Wait... where's Carly?
"Swept!" I turned my helm down to my human friend jumping down the last four steps and running towards him with excitement.
My spark leapt up and down. I had no idea I would feel this much excitement over seeing my new friend. I bent down to meet with Carly, who was beaming and patting my leg where the patch-
Scrap... I forgot about that!
I observed the patch around my lower leg, looking a little second-hand but otherwise still in good condition. There were small tears at the corners, meaning that there were some small patches of Energon pooling at the sides, but it wouldn't be too much of a concern.
"Bulkhead!" Miko's sudden squeal made me look in the direction of the Groundbridge where my teammate was coming through. When she had reached the bottom of the steps, Bulkhead bent down and held out his servo for her to hug.
I smiled softly at them before my optics caught sight of Jack and Raf coming down the stairs. Their faces were scared...
Like they knew someone was hurt...
My helm turned back to the Groundbridge. Something was wrong. It involved either Bumblebee or Arcee...
...Primus please don't take either of them away...
Bumblebee rushed into the base... with Arcee in his arms...
"No..." The word slipped out before I could stop myself. "Arcee!" I went to rush towards my unconscious friend, but I was soon stopped by Bulkhead putting his arm out in front of me. As much as I wanted to push past him, I no longer had the strength to do so.
Everything was gone from inside me. There was nothing but fear for my friend.
Jack joined our friend's side, looking at her with deep concern. It wasn't fair - he had only just come back to the team... and Primus was considering taking Arcee away from him.
Carly gently rubbed Jack's arm beside him, Miko squeezing his wrist and shoulder on his other side. Rafael appeared in front of Carly, also showing concern.
"We lost one this week. By the All Spark, don't let it be two."
Please Primus... don't take away another friend...
Jack moved from his schoolmates to place his hand on his guardians'... Maybe he was hoping that it would bring her back to life somehow...
Arcee's optics slowly opened.
"Arcee?" Jack's voice cracked from emotion.
"Jack, really? There are other motorcycles in the world." That's our Arcee.
"But you're my first," Jack's sad smile was instantly mirrored by Arcee.
"And Megatron?" I glanced towards Ratchet, who looked much more relieved knowing Arcee was going to be okay.
"Not even he could have survived Ground Zero." Hopefully...
At least that would make us tick off one of the 'Cons on the 'to destroy list'...
You're next, Slipstream.
"Prime!" Agent Fowler was re-adjusting his dirt-covered suit. "I didn't get to thank you bots for the save. I owe you one." He wandered into the elevator, pressing a button and looking at us. He definitely appeared much better than when we had last seen him. "We all do." The doors closed in front of him.
Bumblebee helped Arcee to her feet. She was smiling at the humans like she was reassuring them that she'd be okay. I removed my grip on Bulkhead and walked over to her slowly, observing her slightly. I wanted to make sure she was alright...
I gently touched her shoulder with uncertainty. She gave me a small nod as if she was curious about my action. I pulled her into a hug almost immediately, "You gave us quite a scare." My voice was cracking through the private communication link.
I wouldn't know what to do without my best friend...
"I'm not leaving yet, 'Swept. Gotta find Cliff's killer first."
That was definitely Arcee's way of telling me she was going to be alright.
"And she's back," I quietly chuckled as we let go of each other.
"So..." We looked over at Miko walking up to Optimus, "Is this the part where you say goodbye and tell us we need to forget we ever saw you?"
I glanced up to Optimus, my spark pounding harder in concern for his answer...
NORMAL P.O.V
"Without a means of leaving this world, we Autobots take strength in the bonds we have forged with our four young friends.
Miko and Carly sat on the steps, giggling as the former wrote something in her book. Spotting something over her friend's shoulder, the Japanese exchange student waved at the figure. Carly looked and found her brother running up the steps to greet them. Gathering up their things, the brown-haired siblings greeted each other with a hug.
Jack appeared from inside the school, carrying his bag in his hand. Greeting the girls and Raf with a smile, the four humans looked at the sight before them.
"True warriors."
Their guardians were parked up in the parking lot in front of the school, waiting for their new friends.
"If not in body…"
Bulkhead and Bumblebee opened their doors for Miko and Raf. Arcee and Windswept flashed their headlights at Jack and Carly. With big smiles, the four humans raced down the stairs with one another to see who could get to their guardians first.
"...Then in spirit."
As the sun slowly began to set on what was another normal school day, four vehicles drove down the road to what everyone thought was now their second home.
"My name is Optimus Prime. And I send this message. Though we did not choose to be of Earth, it would seem that we are here to stay."
Bumblebee and Rafael were ahead of the pack of small Autobots, their eager and young personalities just urging the scout to be in the lead of what he determined was a race to the Autobot base. Arcee and Windswept trailed after him with Jack and Carly, choosing to race each other rather than race the speedy Autobot ahead of them - they already had a score to settle of their own. And at the back of the pack was Bulkhead, who was rocking out to the music Miko was no doubt likely playing in his vehicle.
"If you approach this planet with hostile intent, know this…"
That week was a week that forever changed the lives of both the Autobots and their newfound friends. It was the start of a new adventure for the two groups. No one else would be able to experience the exciting and scary challenges they were going to face ahead of them. No one would understand because no one would know. Except for them.
"We will defend ourselves. We will defend humanity."
But it didn't matter what would occur in the future. Because whatever they would face, they would face them together. They would stick together like glue. The Decepticons may bring them harm, but they will dodge them, even fight them if they had no choice. It didn't matter. As long as they had each other, they would be able to get through anything.
"We will defend our home."
They wouldn't have it any other way.