Chapter Twelve: To Battle
Megatron dropped into root mode, propelling his body toward the pyramid. His weight created a loud crunch as rocks crumbled beneath him. Megatron clung to the tip of the pyramid that housed the Sun Harvester.
Perched high above, Megatron surveyed the scene unfolding below him. In the abandoned town's crumbling remnants, human soldiers hastily assembled their defences, their movements a flurry of urgency. Nearby, the Autobots positioned themselves strategically, their vibrant colours standing out against the dusty backdrop of the crumbling buildings and the unending sand.
Starscream returned from his scouting mission, his wings folding neatly against his back as he landed with a deft precision that showcased his agility. In stark contrast to Megatron's own heavy, thunderous thud, Starscream's arrival was marked by a silent elegance that Megatron had always silently envied.
Starscream shifted closer, briefly meeting Megatron's optics in acknowledgement before looking out over the sea of sand with distaste. "Lord Megatron, sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but the soldiers brought the body of Prime. They covered his frame with some tarp of sorts, but I would recognise Prime's shape anywhere."
Megatron contemplated Starscream's words, his optics narrowing in calculation as he surveyed the gathering of Autobots before him. His gaze settled on the tarp Starscream had mentioned. He could sparsely see it from his position, and Megatron hadn't paid much attention to it initially, which was an oversight he would amend while trying to keep the femme away.
"As anticipated," he rumbled, a hint of dark amusement lacing his tone. "The femme will undoubtedly make an attempt to resurrect Optimus."
Starscream edged forward as he cast a long, contemplative gaze across the vast, desolate desert. The golden sands rippled like waves under the relentless heat. "But the question remains," he murmured, his voice carrying a weight of intrigue, "is whether she possesses the Matrix."
Megatron paused momentarily as Starscream's gaze fixated on something in the distance too far for Megatron to see. There was a brief flicker of curiosity as he considered what had caught the Seeker's attention. Turning inward, he allowed a sly smirk to begin to spread across his face. Despite the weak bond they shared, Megatron could still sense the faint energy of the femme rushing toward them, allowing him to vaguely pinpoint her approach. The thrill of the hunt stirred within him, igniting a spark of anticipation—his fierce little sabre was finally entering the arena.
Leave it to his Second-in-Command to find their target.
No, leave it to the lead Chevalier to find the AllSpark and It's host.
"Matrix or not, we cannot allow Zelda to reach Optimus." Megatron sat back against the pyramid. "=Soundwave? Let us begin our assault.="
"=Affirmative.="
Jazz had pulled through and gotten them here. That was all Zelda could focus on. Get to the soldiers and Autobots, find Optimus, resurrect Optimus, and hope that, at some point along the way, they didn't all die.
Sunstreaker led the charge down the highway, and Zelda watched from Bumblebee's driver seat, her heart heavy in her chest.
Even with the flare from Will's men, the Autobots knew which direction they needed to go. Cybertronians weren't limited like humans, and faintly, the bonds muted by distance were beginning to brighten to Zelda, acting as a little built-in GPS of her own.
They were moving at incredible speeds, speeds no human alive would ever be able to mimic with present advancements. And the closer they grew, the deeper Zelda's dread grew. No. It wasn't necessarily dread of all things. Although Zelda wouldn't be amiss when saying she was terrified, being scared was rational, especially in a situation like this.
It was a matter of time. Zelda was clock-watching.
Her hand pressed against her chest at the thought. She hadn't dared glance at it since the bathroom at the tourist centre, but she didn't need to. Every use of the AllSpark, even the minute amount of power Zelda called upon, shortened what time she did have.
It was…so strange. An instinctive part of her that just…knew she was dying more than the festering bruise of necrosis on her chest.
Ratchet would kick her ass if she survived this by some miracle.
In the distance, she watched as flaming comets descended from space, aiming for their target destination. Decepticons, without a doubt.
Two aircraft soared overhead, one a red F-22 and the other something not of Earth's creation. Their missiles and blasters rained shots down onto the distant ruins where the Autobots and N.E.S.T soldiers were held up.
Starscream, and if Zelda hadn't the weak bond with Megatron, she could have easily guessed the second one to have been him.
Zelda's mouth went dry. A rush of anxiety flooded her senses, and the memories of their last encounter surged to the forefront of her mind. She could almost hear the echoes of Megatron's words and the tension that had hung thick in the foundry. It played in her mind with agonising clarity. She shivered at the thought of facing a similar situation again; that singular experience had left her rattled. Once had been more than enough.
Another two F-22 fighters came soaring in their direction. One was blue, the other purple.
Zelda knew they couldn't be anyone but Thundercracker and Skywarp. Cybertronians so rarely had similar alt-modes. Seekers in Trines were the rare exception.
Of course, those two came heading straight for them, firing shot after shot. The Autobots manoeuvred around each, some missing by mere millimetres. Both sets of twins broke formation the moment they ended a quarry, beginning to zig-zag to kick up the sandy terrain to hide within. In the dust cloud that followed, Bumblebee broke hard.
They clambered out, and Zelda staggered, her knees like jello after so long sitting.
"We need to split up," Zelda said, considering their options. She turned to Bumblebee. "Bee, you, Sides, and Sunny will be the decoys. Lead the Decepticons away, okay? I'm heading for Optimus."
"I'll help draw their fire with Huey and Dewey over there," Simmons said, pointing toward Mudflaps and Skids. He squeezed Zelda's shoulder as he stepped around her. "You get to those soldiers. I hope this works out, kid."
Zelda nodded, hoping Simmons understood the depths of her gratitude for all he had done. "Thank you," she said.
She turned to Mikaela, who nodded. "I'm with you."
"Let's go," Zelda said, taking Mikaela's hand in hers and set off in a dead run.
As Sunstreaker and Sideswipe barrelled ahead, another thick cloud of tan dust erupted around them. Zelda, her heart pounding, guided Mikaela as they navigated their way toward the sandy embankment. The sun blazed overhead, casting long shadows on the uneven ground and illuminating the scattered remnants of the ruined town they were heading toward with Decepticons lying in wait.
With each step into the soft, grainy sand, it felt as if the earth itself conspired against them, the loose grains soaking up their energy and weighing them down. Zelda could feel the heat radiating from the sand beneath her feet, adding to the fatigue pulsing through her legs. Yet, amid the struggle, Zelda pushed on, fuelled by the image of Optimus waiting for them on the other side of the abandoned town.
The air was thick with the scent of hot sand and the distant echoes of battle, but Zelda remained undeterred, driven by determination as she urged Mikaela on, each weary step drawing them closer to their goal.
Mikaela had been right back at the tomb. The Matrix was gone—dust—and perhaps that was the best outcome. Now, no one could get their hands or servos on it. The Sun Harvester couldn't be turned on, so their sun would remain.
But a fool, Zelda was not. Even if the Sun Harvester couldn't be activated, The Fallen would still destroy her world in vengeance. He would condemn billions of lives in his vile belief of pompous grandeur.
As they approached the final crest of sand, Zelda barely had time to catch her breath before she and Mikaela topped the dunes and gazed down at the desolate town below. There were skeletal remains of buildings, many of them caved in or as if they might collapse at any moment. Thatched roofs now sagged and crumbled under the weight of neglect. Amidst the rubble, a chaotic array of debris scattered across the ground. Shattered glass glinted in the sunlight, while piles of other non-biodegradable waste lingered as a leftover of the once community.
Scattered and prowling throughout the ruins were Decepticons. Zelda stopped counting after seven and instead turned her attention to a nearby intact building. Crossing the frame, Zelda closed the door behind them. Both huffed desperately for air; their faces were sweat-soaked, and their shoes were worse for wear from the heat of the sand.
"What now?" Mikaela heaved, hands on her knees.
Zelda fell back against the wall, almost going crossed-eyed in her tiredness. She hadn't slept in over forty hours. It was coming back to bite her ass now.
"I saw the—soldiers in the—distance and I think Iron—Ironhide too," Zelda answered breathlessly.
"How are you feeling?" Mikaela asked, worried eyes looking Zelda over.
"Peachy," Zelda grinned weakly. Her chapped lips pulled at the motion. Mikaela grimaced, hearing Zelda's unsaid words.
Outside, they listened as Decepticons wove through the streets in search of them. Zelda gently took Mikaela's hand and squeezed when the younger woman began trembling.
Frenzy vibrated in her pocket, and her other hand came up to rest over him. Zelda had almost forgotten he was there in the chaos. He had been utterly silent for hours now, not long after the group had set off for Petra in the early morning.
Once silence surrounded them, the pair quietly exited the building. They took cover beneath awnings and archways, hiding in a doorway as a Deception passed by, heading toward another area.
Moments later, there was a whirl of two synchronised transformations, and pedes hit the sand, shaking everything around them. Dust rained down onto their heads from above, and Zelda pressed them back against the wall as the Decepticon stepped around the corner.
The purple colour…Skywarp? Zelda signalled Mikaela to stay there and slowly skirted closer. Was the other one Thundercracker?
"(Sightings place the femme here,)" the second Decepticon said, and Zelda froze in place.
"(Can't risk destroying anything. Ugh, so many places she could be hiding!)" Skywarp complained as he walked, his back to her now but the other one…
"(Or perhaps…)" Her heart raced as Thundercracker knelt, and two red optics peered from beneath the awning. "Hello there. You were standing too close if you were trying to stay hidden, femme."
It was instinct for Zelda to move, a startled scream escaping her lips before she even realised it. The awning was torn from its place, sending debris down as Zelda grabbed Mikaela and ran full speed in the opposite direction of the reaching servo.
"Look what you did, TC! You scared her off!" Skywarp complained. "We wants her unharmed, remember?"
Zelda so wanted to show a retort to that, even through the terror that grasped her at the comment, but with her breathlessness, Zelda didn't even try. Instead, she focused on getting her and Mikaela away from the two Seekers who were hunting them.
She led them into a concentrated area full of compacted buildings, weaving between alleyways and ruins.
"We got a half mile," Zelda noted as they ducked into a building, listening as one of the two Seekers flew overhead. It seemed the two had lost them for now. That was good. That made it at least the tiniest bit easier.
Turning her attention inward, Zelda could feel the Autobots definitively now, so she knew without a doubt that they also knew she was close by. She relayed that to Mikaela. "The Autobots know we're here, so I can bet the soldiers know as well. We just have to get to them. Ready to move?"
Mikaela nodded, and once again, they ran. This time, they sprinted toward older, more ancient Egyptian ruins with towering pillars covered in hieroglyphics. There, in the shade and offered protection of walls all around them, they paused briefly for a third time.
Zelda's knees trembled unsteadily beneath her, threatening to buckle as a wave of dizziness washed over her. As she struggled to regain her balance, she stumbled sideways, her shoulder colliding sharply with the solid surface of a pillar. The impact jolted her and left her teetering on the edge of collapse, but Mikaela's quick reflexes saved her.
With a firm grip, she caught Zelda around the waist, steadying her and preventing her from falling completely. Relief flooded through Zelda as she leaned against Mikaela, grateful for the support.
"Are you okay?" Mikaela questioned, her voice laced with concern that had intensified compared to the last time she had asked.
Zelda didn't know what she looked like, but Mikaela's face said it wasn't good. Zelda's face felt sunburnt, and she could feel a thin sheen of sweat forming on her forehead.
"No," Zelda gasped, her voice trembling with desperation. There was no point lying anymore. "If I stop now, I won't be able to move at all." She glanced at Mikaela, her eyes wide with urgency. "You have to promise me, no matter what happens, don't let me fall over. Do you understand?" The weight of her words hung in the air as the tension in her body coiled tighter, like a spring ready to snap.
Mikaela nodded quickly, a look of palpable fear in her wide eyes. "I'll do my best to try," she said, her voice trembling slightly.
Zelda heaved a breath, hearing the approaching sounds of a Decepticon because it couldn't be an Autobot—not when her bonds would have told her. "Good, because we need to run!"
They sprinted down the alley, adrenaline pumping through their veins as they rounded a sharp corner. Behind them, the sound of a violent explosion shattered the air, sending plumes of dust and debris swirling in every direction. The ground trembled slightly under their feet as remnants of their cover disintegrated, leaving only echoes of chaos in their wake. They pushed harder, glancing back only momentarily to witness the scene of destruction that fuelled their urgency.
"Seekers always find what they want, femme!" Skywarp crooned and Zelda's feet stumbled as something within her lurched. "You might as well save yourself the hassle!"
Neither Zelda nor Mikaela stopped, sprinting onward toward a series of dilapidated buildings. They weaved between the structures and jumped over broken walls. An explosion erupted around them, catapulting them into a neighbouring courtyard as they screamed.
Black spots danced across Zelda's vision as she gasped for air, struggling to her feet against her body's protests. She staggered from the pain and the uneven sand.
"The Matrix! Give me the Matrix!" the Decepticon demanded, one hand smacking the ground beside her, forcing Mikaela to flee back with a scream.
Zelda almost fell from her feet again when Bumblebee came sailing over a rooftop, the Decepticon's arm promptly torn from its socket as Bumblebee's other servo grasped his face, yanking the Decepticon bodily away from her.
"Go, Zelda!" Bumblebee prompted as he stomped one pede into the Decepticon's helm and summoned his blaster.
Zelda moved, grabbed Mikaela's arm, and fled from the courtyard. Yet they didn't get far as Frenzy vibrated within her pocket, and then—Ravage. Ravage was there, leaping from an alleyway, blazing red optics locked onto Zelda.
She knew what Ravage wanted immediately, her hand drifting to Frenzy tucked into her breast pocket. With a deft motion, she held the red cassette tape between her fingers.
Ravage perked up with her earfins standing straight and her optics locked onto Frenzy.
Zelda lightly threw him, watching as Frenzy unfolded.
"Yo, kitty cat," Frenzy greeted. Before he even finished, Ravage was all over him, lapping at Frenzy with her glossa.
It was cute, but Zelda didn't have the time to admit the sight.
"You good?" Zelda asked, edging away.
"Wait!" Frenzy lurched around, servos still cupping Ravage's face. "Bond with Ravage!" he demanded.
What?
Zelda stared at him incredulously. "Right now? In my state?"
"This is gonna work out, isn't that what you said?" Frenzy questioned, unwavering in his stance.
Zelda looked toward Ravage, listening to the distant blaster fire and explosions, and slowly approached. She offered her hand, but Zelda let Ravage close the distance.
The alien feline met Zelda's gaze, searching for something. Whatever it was, Ravage found it because she nudged her nose against Zelda's palm, and their bond came alive. It was different to the others. Maybe it was because Ravage was four-legged and not two-legged.
But Zelda didn't have the time to mull that over. She withdrew, bowed her head to Ravage, spared Frenzy one final glance, and left, grabbing Mikaela's hand again.
They had to get to Optimus.
"Zelda!" Eden cried.
Eden, Will, and Rob were huddled a short distance away, seeking shelter behind a crumbling wall. A wave of relief surged through her as she spotted them, and without a second thought, Zelda pivoted on her heels, her heart racing as she sprinted toward her friends.
A sudden woosh echoed through the air, accompanied by the thrum of the weak bond. Zelda swiftly turned, her instincts kicking in as she grabbed Mikaela and yanked her against the hard surface of a wall. Just then, Megatron hurtled by like a missile, his massive form crashing through everything in his path. Walls and pillars exploded under the sheer force of his passage, sending a violent shower of rock and debris spiralling into the air, creating a chaotic whirlwind of destruction in his wake.
Shit. That was all Zelda could muster at the sight.
With the coast momentarily free of danger, Zelda and Mikaela seized the opportunity, sprinting towards Eden, Rob, and Will, who awaited them in the distance. The sun blazed overhead, almost blinding them as they navigated the sandy terrain beneath their feet.
Suddenly, Zelda's foot caught in the shifting sands, and she lost her balance, tumbling to the ground. Panic surged through her as she instinctively released her hold on Mikaela's wrist. "Go!" she urged, her voice strained yet urgent, her eyes wide as she fought to regain her footing.
"But—!" Mikaela stumbled, trying to stop and help Zelda.
"Go!" Zelda demanded.
Mikaela forged ahead, and in stark contrast, Zelda found herself stumbling back to the shelter of a wall, her back pressed against the sun-baked stone as she struggled to draw in a breath. The oppressive heat bore down on her like a heavy hand, and she could feel every muscle in her body shaking as if they might fail her at any moment. They probably were.
With a frantic motion, she wrestled with the zipper of her jacket, her fingers slick with sweat and shaking with fatigue. The fabric felt stifling against her skin, clinging to her as though it were alive. Finally, her determination won, and she yanked the jacket from her body, flinging it aside. Yet it did little to soothe the scorched sensation in her throat. Each breath felt like a fierce fire coursing through her lungs.
"Zelda!" Rob's deeper voice called after her.
The four figures were huddled tightly against the half-destroyed wall opposite her, their expressions a blend of tension and anxiety. Mikaela had successfully navigated the distance to join the three. A wave of relief surged through Zelda as she saw her friend with the soldiers, momentarily easing her stomach's tight knot of anxiety.
Zelda offered them a slight quirk of her lips, a weak attempt at a smile of greeting.
Gripping a small indentation in the rough wall, Zelda summoned her strength to pull herself upright. She carefully edged along the surface, relying on its solidity for balance. Each inhale was a battle; her chest felt heavy, as if the air had thickened, making her lightheaded. Her vision swam around her, colours and shapes swirling into a dizzying haze that threatened to engulf her completely.
"C'mon!" Will yelled, waving her on.
But it was apparent the three soldiers could see how unwell Zelda was by their worried and panicked expressions.
Zelda glanced around at the edge of the wall, hoping for a clear pass. Instead, half around the corner, Zelda was filled with dread. There sat Megatron, perched ominously on the rooftop of a dilapidated building barely a hundred yards away, his red optics locked onto her position as if he had been waiting.
An unspoken tension hung in the air, and she understood the futility of her situation. He wasn't going to let her pass. She distantly felt a thrum of his confidence, a certainty that seemed to echo through the ringing in her ears, amplifying her own dread. They were two beings locked in a moment of realisation—she knew he would stand in her way, and he knew that she knew it all too well.
And yet, Zelda was nothing if not a stubborn bitch.
Zelda sprang into action, a surge of adrenaline coursing through her veins as she heard the frantic shouts urging her to move faster. With determination etched in her bones, she ran out from behind the wall that had shielded her moments before. The cacophony of noise enveloped her, driving her forward into the fray.
Blasters, explosions, soaring.
Megatron sailed through the chaos, his massive form cutting a dark silhouette against the battlefield, his servo outstretched. In a surge of desperation, she threw herself into Eden's arms, collapsing with an urgency that spoke of her fragility. As her legs gave way, a cacophony of explosions erupted around them, each blast sending tremors through the ground and rattling their very bones. Megatron had missed her by a hair's inch and sailed past, crashing indiscriminately against the terrain where jagged shards of debris rained down like meteors.
"You're one crazy ass bitch!" Rob exclaimed over the chaos.
"That's Zelda alright," Eden assured, helping her back against the wall and into the shade.
Will took one look at her pale and sickly-sheened face. "Jesus Christ, Zelda."
"Where's Optimus," Zelda rasped.
The three shared unsure glances.
"He's over there, across the courtyard," Will pointed after a moment, and Zelda followed his finger, zoning in on the parachutes covering Optimus.
"I've gotta get to him right now," Zelda explained.
"Not with an air strike coming," Eden hissed, grabbing her arm when Zelda moved.
"I have to get to him right now," Zelda echoed desperately. "I don't have time!"
"What—" Rob didn't finish.
An explosion and blaster fire sailed around them, and then Jetfire leapt from a warp above them with a spark casing plucked from a chassis clutched in his servo.
"Behold the glory of Jetfire!" he crowed and threw the spark casing at the approaching Decepticon. It nailed the mech in the face. Jetfire followed it up with a blaster fire, finishing the Decepticon off. "Now let me show you how we brought the pain in my day!"
"Who the—"
"He's on our side!" Mikaela explained hurriedly.
Something erupted from the sand, revealing a scorpion-like Decepticon, but Jetfire caught it and, with an annoyed grunt, tore its tail off. "What an obnoxious pest!"
Jetfire staggered as Decepticon thrashed wildly, and the group watched, eyes wide, as Jetfire pulled it apart before his optics were locking onto Zelda, expression tight. "You gotta get to that Prime of yours. Quickly now!"
And then, the Seeker was gone in another crackle of a warp.
Will leapt into action the second Jetfire vanished, whirling around to Zelda and Mikaela. "We're going to make a break for it on my command, okay? You guys stick with me, you understand? You stay on my ass."
Rob threw smoke grenades behind them, and a billow of orange smoke rose into the air. "I hope these F-16s have good aim."
Lennox paused for a beat. "Yeah? Why is that?"
"I told them to hit the orange smoke."
Eden gave him a long look. "You mean that orange smoke?"
"It wasn't my best toss, okay?" Rob defended.
"Run!"
With her wrist in Eden's grasp, Zelda was forced to her feet as everyone ran as overheard, planes soared.
Ahead of them, Ratchet and Jazz were fighting, keeping the area around Optimus clear of any Decepticons. Relief swept through Zelda at the sight of them both and she wanted to cry.
Megatron burst back onto the scene, firing his blaster and sending the group through the air, separating them. Just as quickly as Megatron had arrived, he vanished before Autobots and humans in the vicinity could aim at him.
With a determined effort, Zelda rolled onto her front, the rough ground scraping against her skin as she staggered to her feet. Disoriented but resolute, she scanned her surroundings, noting that she had been hurled some distance from her companions, who were also regaining their balance.
"Run!" Will shouted over all the chaos.
"Zelda! This way!" Eden cried.
Zelda's heart raced as she stood frozen, torn between the instinct to run toward Optimus and the harsh reality of the danger surrounding them. She could see the chaos unfolding, the flashes of light from blaster fire across the battlefield. The heavy hum of machinery and the thud of combat reverberated in her chest.
Despite the fear curling in her stomach, she couldn't ignore that Optimus was so close. Yet the path to him was fraught with peril, but so was the one toward the others. In that crucial instant, Zelda made up her mind.
With a deep breath, she propelled herself forward, her feet pounding against the ground as she sprinted toward Optimus. Waning adrenaline fuelled her every step.
A swirling portal tore through the fabric of reality, and from its depths emerged a towering mech, exuding an aura of pure malevolence. He loomed larger than Jetfire, his form an ancient amalgamation of towering metal and forgotten technology reminiscent of the long-lost six Primes whose bodies made up the tomb.
Zelda felt a chilled dread wash over her as if she were gazing directly into the very embodiment of death itself. Around him, a tempest of dark energy coiled and writhed, a storm of malice that seemed to pulse with a life of its own. Clarity washed over Zelda; everything she had feared and questioned suddenly fell into place.
If Megatron was a raging tornado, then The Fallen—he was the eye of the storm.
Zelda barely had a moment to react as The Fallen locked his gaze on her. In a heartbeat, he had raised his blaster and pulled the trigger, sending a bolt of energy hurtling toward her.
A fierce whirlwind of sound engulfed her, a chaotic symphony of destruction as the world around her erupted in a violent explosion. Gritty sand swirled through the air, mingling with a cloud of choking dust and flying debris that obscured her vision. Jagged shards of shrapnel and heavy rocks struck her from all directions, piercing her skin, yet Zelda pressed on resolutely. Despite the relentless barrage, she pushed through the chaos.
But it was futile. That overwhelming sense of death overflowed. The clock's hand had finally struck zero for Zelda.
She went airborne, her body weightless as waves of searing agony rippled through her entire being. The pain was like fire coursing through her veins, an unbearable torment that left no room for her mind to grasp the reality of the situation. Time seemed to stretch infinitely; there was no moment to comprehend the chaos that unfolded around her, no fleeting seconds to gather her thoughts for a final farewell. Just as abruptly as she had been launched into the sky, she plummeted back toward the ground, the world spinning in a darkening blur.
Mikaela's anguished wail pierced the sounds of battle, and chills ran down the spines of every Cybertronian linked to Zelda, no matter how close or far they were. Panic sparked in their optics, and the harsh reality of the moment pressed down like a weight, twisting their sparks in profound disbelief.
Zelda Larsson was dead.