On the Nemesis, Megatron walked into a room where there was an entire hive of Insecticons resting peacefully on the walls.
"Who is the fiercest among you?" Megatron asked.
"There is no greater ferocity than an Insecticon hive. But, if you were to choose one among us…" A voice said before an Insecticon with yellow scar-like paint on his body and a more purple-coloured appearance landed in front of Megatron. "I am Hardshell."
"You will retrieve something for me, Hardshell. And annihilate everything that gets in your way." Megatron told the Insecticon warrior.
In a large volcanic area, a Ground Bridge appeared and emerging from it were three Insecticons, followed by Hardshell before it closed up behind them.
"Divid, and do not hesitate to conquer." Hardshell ordered.
The three Insecticons flew in separate directions and Hardshell transformed into his own flying insect form before taking off into another part of the volcanic area.
On Metroplex, it was currently the moment when Team One was departing for New York. "Miko and Jack will accompany Hot Rod, Jazz, Prowl, and Bumblebee." Optimus spoke up.
"Yes!" Miko cheered with her fist raised.
"Hot Rod, you shall lead." Optimus said as Hot Rod nodded. "Initiate transport, and triangulate coordinates of the other four relics." He ordered Ratchet and Fixit.
"That was some trick, Miko." Bulkhead complimented as Miko climbed down.
"You mean swiping intel from right under Megatron's nose?" Miko asked with a smirk. "Just doing my part for the Autobots." She said before she heard a honking sound as she turned and saw Bumblebee in his vehicle mode along with Jazz, Hot Rod, and Prowl while Jack was riding in Hot Rod while Bumblebee opened his door. "Oh, gotta go, Bulk! I'll tell you all about it when we get back." She said as she rushed towards Team One. "Wait up!" She called as she entered Bumblebee.
"Take care of her/him, Bumblebee/Miko." Both Bulkhead and Raf said as they looked at each other in surprise as Team One entered the Ground Bridge to New York.
"Bulkhead, Crosshairs and Grimlock, prepare for departure." Optimus said to the two Wreckers and Dinobot.
"You three are heading for the equator." Ratchet informed.
"All prep for tropical weather…" Bulkhead started as he and Crosshairs did a pose.
"Wrecker style." They both said as they shared a high five.
"Sweet! Another mission! And I hope there's a bit of pounding!" Grimlock said with a smirk as he slammed his fists together as the Ground Bridge opened up for them.
"Rafael, Agent Fowler, Fixit, and Kup will be your communications and transportation hub." Optimus said as he gestured to the veteran Autobot, Minicon, and human as the three shared a smile, nod, or a thumbs up.
"I can have cheeseburger!" Fowler mumbled loudly before falling back unconscious on his medical bed.
"Communications, Huh?" Bulkhead asked in an uncertain tone.
"Yeah, the fleshy would be a big help." Crosshairs said with a brow.
"Let's just go already to the pounding already? My fists are rusting here." Grimlock said as the three walked to the Ground Bridge.
"Be on your guard, you three." Optimus advised as the three Autobots walked into the Ground Bridge.
The Ground Bridge appeared in the volcanic area and Bulkhead, Crosshairs, and Grimlock emerged from it, getting a whiff of the atmosphere he was now in.
"Ugh! Smells worse than the Decepticon barracks." Bulkhead said in disgust.
"Phew! That's nasty." Grimlock added while covering his nose.
"Of all the places, it had to be a gassy volcano." Crosshair complained as the three were walking ahead to see the area with some smoke emitting from certain places. "Fine place to hide a relic."
The tree bots trekked their way through the volcanic pavement while searching for any signs of the relic or a capsule. Unfortunately, they found nothing and decided to contact the base.
"Base, we can't find any sign of the relic. Can you reconfirm coordinates?" Bulkhead asked.
On the Metroplex, Kup was checking the coordinates. "Triangulating your position, Bulkhead." Vee informed. "You're definitely at the right location."
Just then, Agent Fowler walked up behind Raf and Fixit after fully regaining his consciousness and walked down the steps.
"Uhh. Need…coffee." Fowler muttered weakly, still feeling the effect of Trypticon's electrical shock.
"Well, the coordinates are wrong, 'cause there's nothing out here." Bulkhead proclaimed, until he, Crosshairs, and Grimlock started to hear a distant buzzing noise.
"But something's coming." Grimlock said wearily.
"Something big," Crosshairs said, drawing his pistols.
The three Bots turned around and looked into the distance to see Hardshell flying towards his position. Crosshairs and Bulkhead quickly brought out their blasters and fired at the Insecticon warrior, who rammed straight into Bulkhead while Crosshairs was still firing at a few Insecticons while Grimlock punched another away.
The insecticon transformed on a stone wall before tossing the dark-green Wrecker away. Bulkhead crashed onto the ground and Hardshell charged straight at him, causing the Wrecker to block his attacks before punching him away before Crosshairs and Grimlock rushed to him.
"Leave it to Megatron to send a bug to do his dirty work." Bulkhead said, glaring at his new foe.
"You know a thing or two about dirty work yourself, Wreckers." Hardshell replied.
"Do we know you?" Crosshairs questioned with a brow.
"I know your kind, as I have crushed more than a few Wreckers in my time." Hardshell told him.
"Now you see, the thing about bugs your size…they make a bigger mess when I punch 'em!" Grimlock stated before changing into Dino mode and charging at Hardshell.
He managed to land some solid hits on Hardshell, until the Insecticon warrior grabbed one of his fists and struck him with his claws before tossing him on the other side of the floor.
Hardshell was about to stomp on Grimlock before Bulkhead tackled him out of the way and Crosshairs started firing his pistols at Hardshell. The Insecticon warrior was unfazed by the shots and he charged at Bulkhead, delivering a powerful punch to his face while Crosshairs kept firing before Hardshell grabbed him by the head and tossed him hard to the ground. Before Hardshell could attack again, Bulkhead quickly retaliated by hitting him with his wrecking balls and then struck him with a strong uppercut. This caused one of Hardshell's mandibles to fly off and he screeched painfully, falling onto the ground in a weakened state.
Bulkhead panted and wiped some Energon off his mouth before noticing a large trail ahead of Hardshell. "Looks like they showed us a trail." Crosshair muttered as he and Grimlock got behind Bulkhead while the paratrooper was rubbing his head.
Seeing their enemy was temporarily down, Bulkhead and Crosshairs transformed and drove down the volcanic trail while Grimlock was following behind them as he moved on foot.
At the Metroplex, Raf and Fixit were currently helping to upload the virus that Ratchet and his team use for Laserbeak.
"Ratchet, the virus is coded." Raf informed.
"Commencing the upload now." Fixit said to them.
"Raf, Kup, Fixit we have a beat on the relic." Bulkhead told him on the communication terminal.
"Raf and Fixit are busy. Kup and I will take it from here." Fowler replied, approaching the terminal.
"Fowler. How was your beauty sleep?" Bulkhead asked smugly.
"Fine. Dreamt I finally got a little respect from you." Fowler replied in sarcasm while Kup rolled his eyes playfully.
"Heh, keep dreaming fleshy," Crosshairs commented as he and Bulkhead kept driving up with Grimlock behind them.
"What's your status, fellas?" Kup asked as Bulkhead checked his GSP.
"We came up empty to provide coordinates. But we figured an old lava flow might have carried the relic downhill." Bulkhead theorized.
"Wouldn't that just burn it up?" Fowler questioned.
"If these relics survived interstellar transport, then we're pretty sure they can handle molten lava." Kup said to him.
"Aw, scrap." Bulkhead muttered, which got the two attention.
"What is it?" Fowler asked.
"What's wrong, Bulk?" Kup asked through.
As Bulkhead drove, some Energon leaked from his undercarriage. "I'm leaking Energon. That Insecticon hit me hard." Bulkhead explained.
"Insecticon?" Both Kup and Fowler asked in unison and in surprise.
"Some bugger just attacked us and knocked some gaskets loose on us." Crosshair explained. "Nothing to worry about."
"And believe me, he's in way worse shape than we are. After a serious punching we've given him." Grimlock said with a smirk.
At the same time, Hardshell finally recovered and he stood back up, while his three Insecticon troops joined up with him.
"The Wreckers and Dinobot left me alive." Hardshell said before he snarled menacingly. "The last mistake they will ever make."
Hardshell transformed and he flew off into the air in pursuit of the two Wreckers and Dinbot's as the other Insecticons followed him.
Back with the three Bots, they continue to follow down the trail before they nearly went past a container, which Grimlock noticed. "Yo bots!" He called as Crosshairs and Bulkhead stopped. "Is this it?" He asked while pointing to the container.
"Heh, good eye, Dinobutt," Bulkhead said, transforming and walking up to the pod with Crosshairs with him. Bulkhead then struggled to get the container free, but then he got the lid off as he fell to the ground. "Got the lid off." He said as he tossed the lid away.
"Okay, let's see what goodies we have here." Crosshairs said as he looked into the container, but what he saw made his eyes widened. "Oh no." He muttered as he backed away while covering his mouth and nose with his arm. "Not that. Anything but that."
"Crosshairs, what's wrong?" Bulkhead asked before he looked into the container and saw a green mist and an Energon Crystal that was also green. "Uh, oh." He muttered.
"Metroplex, we have a problem." Bulkhead spoke up.
"Bulkhead, what is it?" Fowler asked as he and Kup turned to the monitor.
"We found the relic. It's a cash of Energon." Bulkhead said.
"That's it?" Kup asked with a concerned frown.
"That's good, right?" Fowler asked, not liking the tone of his voice.
"No, no, no. Not this kind. It's known as Tox-En." Bulkhead answered while stepping far away from the green ore as Crosshairs and Grimlock were behind him. "Causes nausea and dizziness upon contact. Prolonged exposure weakens us to the point of paralysis."
"And then…it snuffs out our Sparks." Crosshairs finished grimly.
"Well, what're you talking to us for? Get far away from that Tox-En, pronto." Fowler ordered. "If it's as deadly as they say, the Cons won't want it either."
"No, Fowler. They'll want it even more." Kup said with a serious look as he had flashbacks about legions of Cybertronians rotting away in a cloud of Tox-En. "During the war for Cybertron, Megatron figured out a way to refine raw Tox-En, turning it into a weapon of mass-destruction. I witnessed an entire unit wiped out by the sickness."
"No way we can leave this stuff for the Cons to find and abuse." Bulkhead said seriously.
"Then let's grab it and get out of here." Grimlock told him.
"I agree with T-Rex there. Raf, Fixit, open a ground bridge." Fowler spoke through the commlink.
"Forget it. Even if we had a safe place to store it, this stuff's way too potent to risk exposing to the rest of us." Bulkhead said to him.
"So, what are we gonna do? Let Megatron get his claws on it to refine more to wipe us all out, or let it wipe us out on its own?" Crosshairs questioned only to then hear a familiar buzzing noise.
"Oh, scrap." Grimlock muttered in dread.
"Ugh, we'll call you back." Bulkhead said as they heard the Insecticons moving towards them as they turn to the Tox-En. "We're gonna have to take care of this."
"Wrecker style?" Crosshairs asked with a smirk as he held up a grenade.
"You know it, Cross." Bulkhead said with a smirk.
"Sweet." Grimlock said with a smirk as well.
Soon, Hardshell and the Insecticons flew above the volcanic pavement while searching for the relic capsule before they finally spotted it.
"There." Hardshell said as they all flew down to the capsule.
The Insecticons transformed and Hardshell stayed back while his minions approached the capsule. One of the Insecticons opened it up and was about to reach in for the Tox-En, but Crosshairs's grenade was revealed to be in it with the timer nearly up.
"No! Wait!" Hardshell called out.
Unfortunately, the grenade exploded and sent the front Insecticon crashing back with pieces of the Tox-En stuck in its throat, causing it to cry out in agony while slowly going offline. Hardshell approached the downed Insecticon for a closed inspection, but backed away and covered his mouth once he identified the green ore that was on his minion's throat.
"Tox-En." Hardshell muttered.
"Wait, you're carrying it?!" Kup exclaimed as the three Autobots rushed up the volcano with Bulkhead actually holding the Tox-En. "In what line of junk code in your processor is making you bots do that?! Have you forgotten that it's dangerous to even be close to that stuff, let alone touch it!?"
"We know, Kup. But we need to put some distance between us and the bugs." Bulkhead said to him.
"Well, what now?" Fowler asked in wonder.
"And we're gonna get rid of this steaming pile the only way we can." Crosshairs said as they stopped and Bulkhead placed the Tox-En down, looking at the giant volcano ahead of them. "We're gonna lob it into the volcano."
"Awesome." Grimlock said with an excited look.
"What about your Insect problem?" Fowler asked.
"This isn't our first time unloading an enemy patrol, you know." Bulkhead told him before spitting out some Energon.
"Um, well, I was in a lot fights during the war, but uh, just for fun." Grimlock said with a shrug.
"Well, welcome to the big leagues, Dino." Crosshairs said with a smirk while still holding his pistol.
Hardshell and his two Insecticon soldiers continued to watch their fallen comrade get deactivated by the Tox-En before the strongest of the group contacted the Nemesis.
"Lord Megatron, the object we seek…it is Tox-En." Hardshell told his leader.
"Exactly how much is in your possession?" Megatron questioned.
"None, my lord." Hardshell answered. "Two Autobots and a Dinbot-"
"Are you not the fiercest, Insecticon?" Megatron asked firmly, not in the mood for excuses.
Back in Metroplex, Fowler and Kup were monitoring the team before seeing Bulkhead moving away from the group.
"Bulkhead, you're pulling away from your team." Kup informed
"I know. All part of the plan." Bulkhead answered.
"Wait, you're moving away from the volcano?" Fowler asked confusingly.
"Exactly." Bulkhead answered.
"I told Crosshairs and Grimlock to wait for me while taking care of something." Bulkhead said as he ran while leaving a trail of Energon in his path.
Hardshell and the two Insecticons were flying above the area in their secondary forms before the group leader spotted something on the ground.
"Below!" Hardshell called before they descended to the floor.
Once they arrived at the ground and transformed, Hardshell inspected the trail of Energon by picking up some of the blue liquid and tasting it from his fingers.
"Yes, the Wrecker leaks from his wounds. Find him and his comrades." Hardshell ordered.
The two Insecticons transformed and followed the trail in the air, with Hardshell doing the same thing behind them.
Meanwhile, Bulkhead was struggling up the volcano with the Tox-en on his roof.
"You left a false trail, Huh?" Fowler asked after figuring out Bulkhead's strategy. "I once pulled that trick when I got separated from my unit behind enemy lines."
"When were you ever behind enemy lines?" Bulkhead questioned, sounding a little more tired this time.
"I wasn't always a Bot-sitter." Fowler replied.
"Heh. Next you're gonna tell me your mother doesn't tuck you in at night." Bulkhead joked.
"Not since basic training." Fowler said.
"Training as what? A rodeo clown?" Bulkhead asked.
"You've been spending way too much time watching monster truck rallies with Miko. I was an army ranger. We could wreck with the best of them." Fowler explained.
"You were a Wrecker?" Kup asked in slight surprise
"Who knew you and I were so much alike." Bulkhead admitted with a sigh, kinda glad to hear he and Fowler have similar histories.
Just then, Fowler and Kup started getting a second communication with Optimus.
"Rafael, Fixit, has Agent Fowler regained consciousness?" Optimus asked.
"Stand by, Bulkhead. I'll be right back." Fowler said before switching to his new caller. "I'm here, Prime. What's your situation?"
"We require access to a research facility at our current location." Optimus explained.
"Let me make a call." Fowler replied, bringing his phone out.
"Keep it together, Bulkhead." Kup advised. "You sound a bit drained from the Tox-En."
"No, kidding." Bulkhead continued to drive up the volcano, but the Tox-En's effects were starting to weaken him. He tried to drive up another steep cliff, but ended up transforming and slid to the bottom with the Tox-En next to him.
"A dirty job…that only a Wrecker can do." Bulkhead told himself, standing up and grabbing the Tox-En before slowly walking up the cliff. "Come on."
"This is an emergency. Our satellites have detected dangerous solar flare activity. I need that entire station evacuated, immediately! Do you hear me? Get out of there, now!" Fowler ordered the station personnel before he switched back to Optimus. "Base is clear, Prime. Try not to wreck the joint."
"Many thanks, Agent Fowler." Optimus replied, hanging up and allowing Fowler turning back to Kup
"How's Bulkhead holding up?" Fowler asked.
"Ask him yourself." Kup said while gesturing to the console.
"Any word…from Miko?" Bulkhead asked as he weakly walked up the volcano.
"Don't worry about her. You need to focus on your own mission." Fowler reminded.
"Right. I…I need to…rest…just for a minute." Bulkhead muttered.
"I know it's tough, but I need you to stay the course." Fowler said.
Unfortunately, Bulkhead tripped up on a rock and he fell down. He tried to get back up with the Tox-En still in his hand, but the toxic effects were really making him weak and he fell back against a boulder in a very dizzy state.
"Bulkhead. Bulkhead? Bulkhead!" Fowler called on the com-link.
"Bulkhead, answer us, you rust-bucket!" Kup exclaimed in concern while slamming his fist down.
"Uh…I'm here." Bulkhead replied as he managed to slightly recover, much to Fowler and Kup's relief on the other side.
"You had us scared, two-ton." The special agent admitted.
"What's your status?" Kup asked, wanting to know how strong Bulkhead still was right now.
"I…I can't do it." Bulkhead said hopelessly, feeling too weak to make it towards the mountain.
"We do not wanna hear that kind of talk, especially from the likes of you." Fowler scolded. "We both know you made it through worse."
Bulkhead started having flashbacks after hearing this. From getting smashed around by Decepticons, to surviving giant explosions, getting used as bait for Dreadwing's plan and even that day when Scraplets invaded the Autobot base.
"Nah. Not worse than this." Bulkhead groaned. "Not even Scraplets."
"Hang on, Bulky, I'm sending your position to Cross and Grim to help you out." Kup informed.
"Look, soldier, you know as well as I do there's a mission. And the reason why you take the mission." Fowler told him in encouragement.
"Honour, duty." Bulkhead said.
"Family. Which is why you need to do whatever it takes to finish this job and come home safely." Fowler told him encouragingly.
"No Wrecker or any Bot left behind.." Kup added.
After hearing this, Bulkhead thought about some more flashbacks. This time, they were ones of him and Miko spending time together.
"Miko, I'm supposed to be protecting you." Bulkhead said on the first day he became Miko's guardian.
"Bulkhead, I'm strap tight inside a ten tons of metal muscles. I'm protected." Miko said before Bulkhead drove down the hill. "Whoo-hoo!"
"Miko, check it out, new battlescars." Bulkhead said while pointing to his arm that has a scar as Miko took a picture.
Then the time on the human's first mission to the Nemesis when Miko came out of Bulkhead's chassis, feeling a little sick. "Miko?!" Bulkhead asked in shock and surprise.
"I heaved on your floor mats. Sorry." Miko apologized.
"Before I became a warrior, I was a laborer. I could build stuff, I can break stuff." Bulkhead explains his origin while trying to teach Miko to be responsible.
I wanna be like you Bulk," Miko said with a grin.
"No. You need to stop, now." Bulkhead said as he was trying to held an entire ceiling of a collapsing mine from crushing him and Miko.
"I can't, Bulk. I had to get you out of here." Miko said as she kept digging through the boulders.
During the time when Bulkhead was losing his mind because of the information of Synthetic Energon, Miko tried to help him remember. "Bulkhead, I know somewhere inside you always remember me, and I just want you to know, I'll never forget you." She said sincerely.
All of these good memories about bonding with his young friend were enough to give Bulkhead the determination and motivation he needed to slowly get back up.
"You're both right, Fowler, Kup. I've gotta dig deep." Bulkhead said as he ignored the Tox-En effects and regained his strength. "For the other Bots. For Miko."
"That's the spirit Bulky," Bulkhead looked up and saw Grimlock and Crosshairs walking up to him, "Now, on your feet, big guy." Crosshairs said, holding out his hand.
Bulkhead nodded as he accepted the hand as he groaned while Crosshairs helped him up while Grimlock supported him. "Dang, you are really sick, huh?" Grimlock asked in concern.
"I'm fine. Now, let's… finish the job." Bulkhead said with determination.
"Well, if you need to get up there, let me carry the TE." Crosshairs said as he took the Tox-En out of Bulkhead's servos.
"Crosshairs, no! You'll end up like me." Bulkhead said to him as Crosshairs grunted a bit while holding the Tox-En.
"And you've been holding it longer than any of us." Crosshairs said to him. "Besides, long as we're close to it, we're infected anyway. Besides, I can last longer than you could for now. Now come on, we got a volcano to climb." He said as he took the lead with Grimlock helping Bulkhead along.
The Insecticons were still following the false Energon trail, but Hardshell started to realize Bulkhead had tricked them.
"There is no logic to his movements. His trail is meant to lead us astray." Hardshell said, inspecting the Energon trail. "To find the Wrecker and his comrades, must not follow."
Hardshell turned his attention towards the volcano, now knowing where the three Bots were going and chuckling sinisterly.
"We must anticipate." He said.
Soon, the three Bots made it to the top of the volcano as they looked at a hole that had tons of smoke emitting from it, knowing they had to toss the Tox-En in there.
"Almost there." Bulkhead said in exhaustion as he and his two comrades way to the hole.
"Just need to make it to the hole." Crosshairs said while still holding the Tox-En, feeling it affecting him now.
"That's right, soldiers! Dump that rock and come on home!" Fowler stated encouragingly.
However, his phone began to ring and he answered the call.
"Fowler. Miko, what is it?" Fowler questioned before hearing what the rebel japanese girl had to say. "What in the Sam Hill? I'm in the middle of a crisis here and you me to…uhh, put him on the line."
The three Bots are close to the steaming hole. "That's right, mechs! We're almost there!" Grimlock encouraged while Crosshairs and Bulkhead were slowing down from the effect of the Tox-En.
"Autobots!" Hardshell yelled as the three saw him flying in and landed in front of them between them and the hole as he transformed into bot-form. "Put down the rock and allow us to put you three out of your misery." He ordered as the remaining two Insecticons jumped in and shrieked at them.
"I got a better idea," Crosshairs said, drawing a pistol and firing at one Insecticon, blasting it away. Hardshell roared furiously and charged at the three Autobots with his extra appendages out, only for the light-green Wrecker to shove the Tox-En up his throat. "Fair warning, bugger! We're contagious!" He told the Insecticon warrior.
Grimlock charged at the Insecticon that Crosshairs shot down and started fighting it. "Yeah! Not so funny now, is it?!" He called out as he kept punching the down Insecticon.
Hardshell backed away and slightly collapsed on the floor, feeling the Tox-En's deadly scent in his systems. The remaining Insecticon transformed and filed at Bulkhead to tackle him, but Bulkhead quickly knocked the bug-like Cybertronian away. Seeing the Insecticon pinned down, Bulkhead took the Tox-En from Crosshairs and placed it onto the Insecticon's chest and it slowly got infected.
"Hold this." Bulkhead said, turning away from the dying Insecticon and circling Hardshell with Crosshairs by his side while Grimlock is fighting the remaining Insecticon troop.
"Mr. Vogel, this is special agent William Fowler of the United States government." Fowler said, desperately trying to speed things along. "You are hereby deputized as honorary agents for the department of, umm, Interstellar Relations." He immediately hung up and turned back to Kup.
"Bulkhead, Crosshairs, Grimlock, you boys still with us?" Kup asked.
Back at the Volcano, the two green Autobots continued to circle Hardshell while Grimlock took care of the last Insecticon troop. "We're in the scrap and you two put us on hold?" Bulkhead questioned jokingly, still facing Hardshell.
"I want you to know Miko's safe, Bulkhead. Mission accomplished." Fowler informed.
"Ah, that's my girl." Bulkhead said, proud of his human friend.
"Now, let's finish this," Crosshairs said as he weakly held up his blasters and aimed them at Hardshell, which he fired, but some either unfazed him or missed as he groaned. "Scrap, I can't shoot straight. That Tox-En is messing with my aim." He said while rubbing his optics.
"Don't worry, you two, I got this covered." Bulkhead said before he charged at Hardshell.
"Bulky, wait!" Grimlock called out with his hand raised. "I wanted to punch him." He muttered while scratching his head.
Bulkhead then charged at Hardshell and punched him, causing the Insecticon warrior to retaliate with his own punch. The two of them kept trading blows before Hardshell saw his remaining Insecticon soldier toss away the Tox-En and stand up weakly, only to then collapse on the floor and deactivate.
"It's getting damp. Contact the Nemesis for a containment unit." Hardshell said as Bulkhead tried attacking again, only for him to quickly punch him to the ground.
Just then, Bulkhead started shouting in pain and his vision became blurry from the Tox-En's deadly effects. Hardshell began to approach his weakened opponent.
"Bulkhead, Crosshairs, Grimlock, do you read me?" Fowler asked in concern.
"We're here, but Bulkhead is getting scrap." Crosshairs muttered weakly as he tried to aim his pistol, but he couldn't keep his balance as he fell to his knees. "And I ain't doing so good either."
"What about Grim?" Kup asked.
"Unaffected and watching. But I'm thinking Bulk could use a hand." Grimlock said to them.
"Ratchet, come here!" Raf called out the second Ratchet and his team returned.
"You're going want to see this!" Fixit called next.
"Well, help him, Grimlock!" Fowler ordered.
"The Iacon Database?" Ratchet asked in awed as he saw the Iacon Database being downloaded.
"It's downloading to our mainframe!" Raf cheered.
"And it's being uploaded to the Autobot Omega Outpost as well so that Optimus should work on it from there if he's not available here." Fixit added with a smile, which made Ratchet give a joyful laugh.
"Rafael, Fixit, you two are geniuses!" Ratchet complimented with a smile, which frustrated Kup and Fowler.
"Will you keep it down?!" Fowler snapped.
"We're having an issue with Bulkhead's team here! So shut your yaps!" Kup snapped as well, which made the others surprised and silent by their outbursts. "Grimlock, get Bulkhead out there, now!" He yelled out firmly.
Bulkhead groaned in pain as Hardshell stood over him menacingly. "Your Spark is mine, Wrecker. First you, and then your comrades!" Hardshell said. He was about to smash both his fists onto Bulkhead, but then Grimlock charged in and grabbed Hardshell before he could slam his fists down on Bulkhead.
"Hey, bug face, no one messes with my buddies!" Grimlock yelled as he tossed Hardshell towards the Tox-En and then walked up to him and slammed his face next to it, causing the Insecticon warrior to groan as he struggled to break free. "You want a taste of this?! Don't ya!? Isn't it what you were looking for?!"
Grimlock let go as Hardshell stood up and punched Hardshell back as he staggered close to the hole as he turned and saw Bulkhead and Crosshairs standing beside their Dinbot friend as Bulkhead held up the Tox-En. "Catch!" Bulkhead yelled as he threw the Tox-En at Hardshell.
When the Insecticon warrior caught it, he stumbled back even more from its poisonous touch and fell into the lava hole with a shout of despair. The three Autobots approached the lava hole and looked down into it to see the Tox-En get destroyed in the fiery magma, and possibly Hardshell as well. The three bots let out a sigh of relief as they turned around and Bulkhead contacted the base.
"Fowler, Kup…mission accomplished." Bulkhead announced exhaustingly. "But you might have to…tuck us in."
Fowler and Kup were glad they pulled through. "Raf, Fixit, open a bridge, now!" Fowler ordered as Fixit went towards the Ground Bridge and began to open it for the three Autobots.
The Ground Bridge appeared in front of Bulkhead and his team as they walked towards it. "Finally. We can… go home and rest." Crosshairs said as he was the first to enter the Ground Bridge.
"Nice work… Grim." Bulkhead said with a smile to the Dinobot. "And not even a single effect of Tox-En."
"Nothing except a little headache," Grimlock said, rubbing his head, "Well, let's go home and see if the others got their relics." Grimlock said as he walked towards the portal.
What they didn't see was Hardshell, smoldering, managing to just barely survive the magma. Hardshell managed to limp his way out and aimed his blaster at Grimlock while his back was turned.
Bulkhead heard the sound of transforming and turned to see Hardshell, still alive and getting ready to fire at Grimlock. "Grimlock, watch out!" Bulkhead exclaimed as Grimlock didn't react in time just as Hardshell fired at the Dinobot, thinking fast, Bulkhead knocked Grimlock out of the way with his remaining strength as he was blasted from behind as he gave a painful yell and flung through the Ground Bridge from impact.
"Bulkhead!" Grimlock yelled in shock as he turned to Hardshell with a fierce glare, "You darn dirty bug! What kinda warrior shoots a bot in the back!?at kinda warrior shoots a bot in the back!?" He demanded in rage. he demanded in rage.
"I be more worried about your fallen friend, Dinobot." Hardshell said with an evil proud tone as Grimlock growled at him as he looked at the Ground Bridge and back to the Insecticon as he sighed.
"This isn't over, Hardshell." Grimlock growled as he went into bot-form and rushed into the Ground Bridge as Hardshell gave an evil chuckle.
"Bulk!" Grimlock shouted as he exited the Ground Bridge and rushed towards the group while looking down at Bulkhead, who was unresponsive and stiff while his back was smoldering. "Oh, dang! No!" He cried out as he joined the group, who looked down in horror at Bulkhead's condition.
Just then, the console beeped. "Elita to Metroplex, we're requesting a Ground Bridge." Elita's voice spoke up as Ratchet rushed to the controls.
"Elita! Return to base immediately!" Ratchet exclaimed as he frantically type on the controls.
"R-Ratchet? What's going on?" Elita asked in confusion and worry.
"No time! Just hurry! I'm opening a Ground Bridge!" Ratchet called as he flipped the switch, opening the Ground Bridge as he rushed back to Bulkhead while the Female Autobots rushed in and were shocked at seeing Bulkhead.
"Sweet Solus Prime." Acree whispered in horror.
"Oh no." Elita muttered in dread as they all looked down at Bulkhead's critical condition while his back was still smoldering as Ratchet and Fixit rushed to stabilize him.
Okay, this just got real. Now we know that while the others have been fighting underground, in the snow, in the desert, and in the mountains, Bulk's been fighting for his life.
Thanks to him, Crosshairs and Grimlock the Tox-En was destroyed…but at a great price.
On a side note, I've been getting some mixed comments about the incarnation of Grimlock I've decided to use, some people prefer his WOC/FOC counterpart to his RID one. So I'd like you all to post in the comments how we can make Grimlock seem more like his OG version.
Stay tuned because our favorite Dinobot, Rebel girl and wandering Wrecker are going out to show Hardshell what happens when you shoot an Autobot in the back in, "Hurt".