Transformers MHA, Arc 2: Earthrise

by The Omni-Remnant

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

80. Metal Attraction, Part 2

A/N: Heya, everybody! Okay, finally back on track with regular Friday uploads. And on that note, welcome back to Transformers MHA! We're here with Part 2 of Metal Attraction, and I've gotta say, it felt REALLY refreshing to pace myself with a chapter this week. It's about a smidge longer than the last chapter, too, so that definitely helped a lot.

I hope you guys are excited, though, because this chapter is gonna be introducing quite a bit of stuff for a certain character, both in terms of development AND some new fancy accessories. So on that note, let's begin, shall we? This is…

Chapter 80: Metal Attraction, Part 2

…..

Strongarm had officially decided; this was unequivocally the most humiliating thing to have happened to her in her entire career. And she hadn't accepted that lightly, as there had been many other times where she had been humiliated. Her first day at boot camp, her first day on duty… and the very first time she had encountered the punk that was attached to her back. If it had been any other bot, she would've chalked it up as another day on the job, an unfortunate happenstance of bad luck. But because it was Sideswipe, she knew that the universe was out to get her, and she was not sitting well with it.

…Mostly because trying to sit with someone magnetically stuck to your back was incredibly awkward. "Gah! Hey, watch your leg!" Sideswipe bemoaned.

"Well, you watch your arm!" Strongarm fired back. "You're elbowing me in the side!"

"Yeah, well you're jabbing me in the skidplate!" The two adversaries glared at one another over their shoulders… and immediately tried pushing against one another despite the difficult angle. But, try as they might, they just couldn't get unstuck. "Grrrah! This is all your fault, you know!"

"MY vault?! You're the one who couldn't handle Skywarp!"

"Well if YOU hadn't let Swindle sneak under your radar and get the gauntlet, none of this would've happened!"

As the duo bickered with one another, Grimlock, Skywarp and Shadow Striker merely watched, the former bringing a hand up to his face. "Uuugh…" the Dinobot grumbled in frustration. "And thus, now we have the opposite of what I was hoping to teach."

Skywarp couldn't help but chuckle at the scene himself. "Heh, I knew they didn't get along, but this is kinda ridiculous. Funny, but ridiculous."

"Outlandish is what it is." Shadow sneered at the squabbling duo. "Never have I seen two bots argue zis much. I know many Decepticons who work better with one another zan those two." She eyed Grimlock inquisitively. "And zey are always like zis?"

"Pretty much." Grimlock sighed before reaching to his commlink, radioing in to the Autobot base. "Grimlock to base, we uh… have a sticky situation."

"This is Red Alert, Grimlock. You have mine and Prime's attention. Elaborate, if you would."

With the medic and Autobot leader listening in, Grimlock continued. "We found the source of that magnetic flux… a Polarity Gauntlet." He spared a brief glance down to the two stuck Decepticons. "Though we did run into some interference. Skywarp and Shadow Striker along with Swindle and Skullcruncher. And unfortunately… the latter two managed to make off with the gauntlet."

The news left Prime quite troubled. "…A Polarity Gauntlet, you say?"

In the background, Grimlock could hear Kaida speak up. "What's that?"

"A deceptively simple yet diabolical creation." Red Alert explained. "It must've been one of the many relics that Alpha Trion sent to Earth all those eons ago. And in the hands of Swindle… this is very concerning indeed."

"And I'm afraid it only gets worse from here, Prime. Before he left, Swindle made sure to get Strongarm, Sideswipe AND the Cons stuck in the worst way possible. Providing visual."

Both Autobots and Decepticons were immediately against the idea. "Wait, wait, wait, NO!" Sideswipe insisted, scrambling to his feet… only to immediately trip up and fall flat on his face.

Which, of course, left Strongarm on top of him, her arms and legs dangling in the air. "Gah! SIDESWIPE! You dolt!"

Skywarp had an easier time of things, given Shadow Striker's smaller stature. "Grimlock, I swear, if you—" *bleep* But it was too late. Grimlock had pressed the side of his helmet, projecting what he saw all the way back to base. "…I'm so going to kill you."

"Fat chance, you will."

…..

Back at Outpost Omega-1, Optimus, Red Alert and Bumblebee all watched the screen intently, with the four humans all gathered on their shoulders. Izuku and Mei were with Bee and Red respectively, while Shoto and Kaida sat upon Prime's massive shoulders. Eventually, though, Grimlock's feed came through… and what they saw was something that they ALL had to process for a moment. It was Strongarm and Sideswipe, as well as Skywarp and Shadow Striker, both groups stuck together back-to-back respectively. Prime's optics widened upon the realization. "Oh… you are stuck in that way."

"You all have been magnetized… together?" Red Alert followed up.

There was a short pause… before all of the kids sans Shoto broke out into uproarious laughter, with Bumblebee joining them with a wheezing buzz of his own. "Hahaha! You can't be serious!" Kaida guffawed, much to the bots' chagrin. "That has to be the FUNNIEST thing I've ever seen! Hahahaha!"

"Snrk—I-I gotta say…" Izuku said, trying and failing to contain his amusement. "That's ONE way to help you guys settle your arguments! Hahaha!"

On screen, the group of Bots and Cons deadpanned at them. "Yeah, yeah, go ahead and laugh." Sideswipe grimaced, getting his face shoved into the dirt by Strongarm's weight. "We're probably never gonna live this one down, are we?"

Strongarm sighed and shook her head. "Hah… nope. Not a chance."

Shadow Striker was none too pleased either. "Magnetized to my colleague's back and laughed at by Earth children. Truly, zis is what Shockwave brought me into ze Decepticon cause for."

"Hehehe, this is too rich! TOO rich!" Mei giggled, only to then realize the possibilities of this gauntlets power. "Ooh! Now I wanna see what ELSE this gauntlet can stick together! I've got some ideas…"

"Those ideas can wait until later, Mei." Red Alert asserted with a stern gaze. "The more pressing issue is getting the Polarity Gauntlet back from Swindle before he brings it to M.E.C.H."

Skywarp narrowed his optics. "And M.E.C.H. are… who, exactly?"

"A-Ahem… they're a syndicate of dangerous human beings who wanna take over the world." Izuku said, composing himself once he realized that things were getting serious. "They'll go to any lengths to get what they want… including kidnapping." He received incredulous stares from Shoto and Kaida at his remark, but he raised a hand to them. "I-I'll tell you later."

The black and purple Seeker's expression soured. "And Swindle's workin' for them… that two-timin' weasel." He looked back at Grimlock, but spoke to Optimus directly. "Listen, Prime, I know that our original mission was to retrieve the gauntlet for ourselves, but in light of Swindle and Skullcruncher being absolute bolt bags, I'm willin' to cut a deal here."

His statement took everyone aback, garnering a collective; "WHAT?!"

Shadow Striker was particularly dumbfounded. "You cannot be serious. You wish to call a truce? Do you know what would happen if Unicronus found out?"

"Can't be any worse than what'll happen if we come back emptyhanded." Skywarp countered, earning a relenting groan from the assassin on his back. "Besides, think about this; Megatron WOULD be happy if we came back with that gauntlet… but he'd be even HAPPIER if we showed up with a couple of deserters. He'd probably even give Starscream his position back…"

"Wait, Screamer's been stripped of his commanding post?" Sideswipe piped up, with the other Autobots growing intrigued as well.

Realizing what just left his vocal processor, Skywarp was met with an elbow to the side by Shadow Striker for misspeaking. "Excellent work, Skywarp." she said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Why not just tell zem EVERYTHING while we're at it?"

"Urk, yeah… that's on me." the Seeker said shamefully. "…But it's true. Starscream's failures have come back to bite him. But here's the thing; we'd rather NOT have Unicronus in charge. Starscream may be way too up his own exhaust port, but at least he's not a hard-aft tow-liner like Unicronus."

Optimus was still skeptical, however. "And in return for us aiding you in capturing Swindle, you would allow us to simply take the Polarity Gauntlet?"

Skywarp gave a shrug. "Yes, simple as that."

Raising an eyeridge, Prime furthered; "Even though you know how detrimental it would be to your side of the conflict if we were to have it?"

"Heh, well, let's face it, Prime. We ALL know you wouldn't risk bringing the gauntlet into battle yourself unless it was a last resort." Skywarp smirked. "Because if Megatron gets his hands on it, that'd be game over for you Bots."

Kaida furrowed her brows upon hearing that. "I'm not sure I follow…"

But Red Alert was quick to answer her. "Kaida, keep in mind, we are forged of metal alloy. If Megatron could repel us with a flick of a switch, we may never again have an opportunity to take him down."

"It'd be like an instant forcefield." Shoto concluded.

Clenched his fist for emphasis, Red added; "Worse yet, he could use it to meld us ALL into a scrap pile."

"And the gauntlet being in M.E.C.H.'s possession would be equally as disastrous." Optimus continued gravely. "Especially if they wish to study us in… greater detail." There was an uncomfortable silence for a moment after, but Prime quickly pushed on. "On that note… it would be prudent to take up Skywarp's offer."

The UA students did a doubletake at that. "Say WHAT now?!" Mei exclaimed.

Izuku was just as befuddled. "Prime, you're seriously saying we should ally with the Cons on this one? That hasn't exactly gone well in the past."

"I am well aware. And while it does present a great risk, retrieving that gauntlet before M.E.C.H. and Swindle get away takes priority." He scanned his gaze across the group, and while none of them seemed pleased about the situation, they knew that they didn't have many better options either. Turning his attention back to the screen, Prime met Skywarp's optics resolutely. "Skywarp. We will agree to a temporary ceasefire. But be warned; if you go back on your word, I will not hesitate to open our GroundBridge and send our forces after you."

The Seeker seemed pleased by the decision. "A wise choice, Prime. Though I wouldn't expect less coming from you." He gave a single nod. "And trust me, I'm not my brother. I know how to broker a deal and keep my word on it."

Just then, Sideswipe and Strongarm managed to stand up on their feet, though the way they walked made them resemble an awkward crab. "Okay, great, sure, but do ya think there's a way that we could get UNHITCHED first?!" the red Lambo Brother asked hopefully.

Red hummed ponderously. "It may simply be a residual magnetic charge providing your current… attraction."

"Ooh, they're attracted to one another, huh?" Kaida grinned cheekily, earning more chuckles from the youngsters.

…Which earned them a vengeful; "WE ARE NOT!" from the magnetized bots.

"AHEM." Red interjected, stopping things before they could escalate. "Whatever the case, given that you aren't currently magnetized to the Decepticons, I suspect that your magnetic frequencies are much different. Meaning that the only sure-fire way of reversing its effects is by retrieving the gauntlet." He typed into his console, bringing up the magnetic flux detector. "The good news is that it hasn't travelled far. I would strongly advise pursuit."

…..

"Roger that, doc." The Dinobot leader affirmed. "Grimlock out." Once the transmission ended, he regarded the bots in front of him, knowing that there'd be no easy way of following their target. "Well, at this point, I would advise that tracking Swindle down in your alt modes would be easier, but…"

Shadow Striker deadpanned at him. "Hmph, yes. I would likely be snapped in half if Skywarp attempted to transform." She glanced up, smirking when she saw the Seeker's wincing expression. Her sights shifted over to the two magnetized Autobots with the same amusement. "While ze two of you would likely just be reduced to a heap of scrap metal. Hmhm…"

Sideswipe and Strongarm snarled in unison, desperately trying to pull themselves off each other. "Gah! This is so stupid!" the latter bemoaned. "There HAS to be a way for us to get unstuck!" Strongarm whipped her head to the mech who was often the pain in her backside and snapped; "I hope you're happy, you know! This is all because of you!"

"Oh, here we go again!" Sideswipe rebutted. "Playing the blame game! Because everything just HAS to be my fault! It always has been, hasn't it?!"

"YES! It always has!" Strongarm glared at him. "Ever since you entered my life, it's been nothing but things going wrong! Whether it be my time at the academy, living in the same domicile on Cybertron, or even just dealing with you in space, you're ALWAYS getting on my nerves! WHY?!" By that point, Strongarm was practically screaming at Sideswipe, her vocal processor breaking at points as the other bots simply watched the drama unfold. "WHY does it always have to be ME that you pick on?!"

Over the course of her breakdown, Sideswipe saw the cadet's expression go from vengeful to upset… and it was then that something clicked. "S-Strongarm, I… you're right." His optics shifted down guiltily. "I… guess I have always been the one starting stuff."

That admittance didn't exactly make Strongarm happy, though. "Hah, so NOW you finally choose to acknowledge it? After all this time?"

Sideswipe pursed his lips, bringing his hand up to his neck. "I mean… yeah. Listen, I'll be brutally honest here; I can't stand your whole "rules and regulations" style. It just doesn't jive with me."

"Yeah, I noticed. What with you breaking rules all the time."

"To be fair, I don't break the rules, I bend 'em. …A lot." The young mech chortled a little, but knew that Strongarm didn't find any humor in what he was saying. "The point is… we may not be made to get along with our mindsets." He gave her a serious look. "But right now, the chips are down. Swindle having that gauntlet could mean things go belly up for all of us. So, if Skywarp and Prime can agree on putting things aside for a moment to fix this mess we're in… how about we do the same? Whaddya say?"

Strongarm's optics narrowed, both astonished and incredibly confused. "I… I don't get it. Where'd this all come from? Is there an angle you're playing here?"

Raising his hands, Sideswipe vehemently denied her claim. "N-No! Not now. Not this time." He rather glumly looked down again. "I just… seeing you like that made me feel awful, Strongarm. Yeah, I start a lot of scrap between us, but the last thing I want is to make you hate me or see you upset. 'Cause even though we're at each other's throats almost all the time…" He peered over his shoulder to her. "We're still teammates. Autobots. We may not be best friends or anything, but we're united in a common goal."

At that point, Strongarm's optics were wide open, mouth agape at the amount of maturity from her usually annoying rival. "…Who are you and what have you done with Sideswipe?"

"Haha, very funny." Sideswipe retorted, though not in a mean-spirited way.

"I'm serious, though, do you feel okay?" Despite herself, Strongarm couldn't help but smile, reaching around as best she could to feel Sideswipe's forehead. "Your processor isn't overheating or anything, right?"

"Ah, c'mon, ya can't give me more credit than that?"

"Well, sorry, but this shift in attitude just feels so… jarring to me."

All Sideswipe could offer was a shrug. "Eh, who knows? Maybe the magnetic connection is giving me some of your maturity."

Strongarm rolled her optics at the idea. "Hehe, that goes against all laws of science. By that token, I'd have some of your impulsiveness…" She trailed off as a thought lingered in her mind. "Then again…" She gave Sideswipe a tap on the arm as she stood up, which he took as a signal to move with her. "…getting some payback on Swindle DOES sound like a good idea right about now." she winked to him over her shoulder. "Wanna help me out with that?"

"Gladly." Sideswipe brought his fist up, as did Strongarm, the two knocking them together in unity. "Let's kick some Decepti-chops!" …But then he realized that he was right in Skywarp and Shadow Striker's line of sight when he said that. "Er, not yours, I should say."

The assassin still wasn't too amused. "Hmph, of course not. But now zat we have sat through your little feel-good moment, can we please get a move on?"

Skywarp was in full agreement with his partner. "Yeah. Swindle ain't gonna wait for us to get there, ya know." On that note, he started walking, bringing out the tracking device he was provided. "Let's go. The gauntlet is this—AH! Hey!"

Before he could get too far, Grimlock grabbed the Seeker's shoulder, glaring down at him. "Ah-ah, I will take point. We may have an agreement, but I'm keeping my eye on you." Grimlock leaned in until he was mere inches away from Skywarp's face, his visor changing from blue to red. "And keep in mind; if we encounter M.E.C.H. and you kill ANY of their forces… I won't hesitate to end you. Is that clear?"

"…Crystal." Skywarp acknowledged, doing his best to keep a brave appearance.

"Good." Grimlock nudged his chin toward his comrades. "Autobots, follow me. We're rolling."

"Right! …Okay, so let's take this nice and steady." Strongarm advised. "You wanna start?"

"Nah, you do it." Sideswipe declined. "Probably best if I follow your lead on this one."

With a grateful smile, Strongarm gave a thumbs up. "Alright, then let's go. One foot… two foot…"

Despite the weird crab-like walk that they had to do to keep up, Grimlock could only beam with pride as the duo began to move in unison. 'They're finally starting to get it. …Thank Primus, I thought this would take weeks.'

…..

Further off in the desert, at a seemingly abandoned gas station surrounded on all sides by old oil pumpjacks, Swindle and Skullcruncher had just pulled up, the latter climbing off of his protégé before he transformed. The Predacon, though, wasn't exactly all that impressed. "Kid, that had to be probably one of THE dumbest things I've ever seen you pull. We had a good deal goin'; our freedom for that gauntlet." He pointed down to Swindle's new trinket, which the con artist seemed very excited about. "And now we're probably gonna have Megatron's forces swarming our afts at any moment! What were you thinking?!"

"Hehe… I was thinking, Skully, that with THIS baby, we won't have to worry about any of that!" Lifting the Polarity Gauntlet aloft, Swindle proclaimed; "With it, we can make sure that our business never gets compromised by Megatron OR the Autobots. And they'll have no choice but to buy into our wares once we've reaccumulated what we've lost. Then, WE'LL be the ones reaping the rewards of this war!"

"Kid, yer either underestimatin' Prime and Megatron… or overestimating yourself." He pointed down at the gauntlet. "Unless you've got that thing on at ALL times, they WILL find a way to get that off a' ya."

"Then I'm gonna have to have some pretty reliable security…" Swindle strolled along the back of the gas station and reaching into its power box, pressing a certain switch that revealed a hidden bunker beneath the sands. "And thankfully… I've got some."

Rising out from the hatch came a lift that held a black M.E.C.H. helicopter, with two of the organization's agents standing in front of it, each armed with rifles. And, standing directly in front of them, was none other Silas. With his characteristic scowl, the scarred man made his way forward, looking up at his Cybertronian allies. "So, I take it that the recon mission was a success?" he inquired.

With a proud smile, Swindle showed off his prize. "Indeed, it was. And let me just say, it was well worth it to pick up this beauty."

Silas raised a curious brow at what appeared to be an oversized knuckle duster. "And that would be what, exactly?"

"A Polarity Gauntlet." Skullcruncher explained. "It's a pretty potent weapon that can be used to magnetize anything in its vicinity."

"And it also makes a handy insurance policy against bots who might get a bit too close, if ya know what I mean." Swindle winked.

The leader of M.E.C.H. found his interest piqued. "Really? Care to give a demonstration?" The request managed to make Swindle grin, and after taking a few steps away, he found the perfect target for an example; an inert pumpjack. Activating the gauntlet, Swindle concentrated on the massive bolt that held the main mechanism in place, sliding it out from its slot before instantly redirecting his target to the pump itself. With little effort, he made it float all the way over to their position and settled it down just a few feet away, with Silas quite enthralled. "Hm… impressive." he remarked.

"I know." Swindle deactivated the gauntlet, though kept a firm grip on it. "And well worth the fight I put up to get it."

…And just like that, Silas went from impressed to concerned. "Fight? What do you mean "fight"?"

His bravado forgotten about upon seeing that scowl, Swindle cleared his throat and elaborated. "Ah—Ahem, well, you see… we just, uh…"

"We weren't the only ones who picked up on that magnetic flux." Skullcruncher stated bluntly. "Some Autobots an' even a couple other Decepticons came to try an' take it from us."

Silas' expression hardened, though he didn't let his anger overtake him. "What?"

"Gah! Skully, c'mon!" Swindle chastised. "Ya can't just blurt it all out at once, ya gotta break this kinda news slowly!"

Skullcruncher pointed an accusing finger to his protégé. "Yeah, well, ya shoulda thought of that before ya went back on the deal we were about to cut with Skywarp, kid. Sure, we woulda lost the gauntlet, but now we're at risk of bein' discovered by Megatron!"

Upon hearing that, Silas' interest overtook his frustration. "Megatron? Your leader?"

"The Decepticon's leader." Swindle corrected with a snarl of his own. "He's no leader of mine, you hear me? I left their ranks for a reason!"

"That may be so, but once a soldier… always a soldier." Silas narrowed his eyes up at Swindle. "I would suggest you go back and try to renegotiate with your old teammates, perhaps try and cut a better deal. After all, you said that you'd be able to aid us in our strive for great technological advancements…" He nudged his head out toward the desert. "So, if we had some of the other Cons on our side…"

Swindle gave an amused laugh at the idea. "Ha! Now that's rich. Silas, buddy, you'd either have to be stupid or have a LOT of ball bearings to betray Megatron, and only ONE Con has tried that several times over at this point. Guess which category HE falls into."

But Silas shook his head. "I'm not suggesting betrayal… more of an alliance of convenience."

"…I think you're forgetting my main goal of trying to hide here on this planet." Swindle said, his anger and irritation growing by the nanosecond.

But just then, a new voice entered the conversation. "Yeah, and lotsa good THAT'S doin' for you." The group spun around at the arrival of Skywarp, who was holding his shotguns as he approached. "So, these are the little fleshbags you've allied with, eh, Swindle?"

"AAAAHH!" Belting out a frightened yell, Swindle swung his arm cannon up, aiming directly at the Seeker. "W-When did—HOW did you—I left you and her buried back there!"

"Heh, if you think a few rocks are gonna keep me down, you've got some very wishful thinking." Skywarp peered down to Silas and the M.E.C.H. agents, the latter two also aiming their weapons at them. "So… who're your friends?"

Silas raised his hand to his agents, signaling for them to stand down. "I am Silas. And we are M.E.C.H." He folded his arms across his chest expectantly. "Now what business do you have here, Decepticon? And how did you find this place?"

Holding up his tracer, Skywarp explained; "Well, findin' ya wasn't the hard part. That gauntlet's still putting out a strong magnetic flux." He put the tracer away as he continued. "But, more to the point, I'm here to continue our negotiations…"

Swindle and Skullcruncher's optics widened simultaneously, astonished by his reasoning. "…I'm sorry, what now?" the Croctobot uttered. "We left you an' yer femme friend back there fer scrap, and ya still want to negotiate?"

"Heh, well, c'mon, it's not like this is the FIRST time that Swindle's ever done something like this." Skywarp waved off.

"Ahem, be that as it may…" Swindle coughed into his hand, keeping his cannon raised. "I'm still not convinced. Especially since you're still keeping a firm grip on those lovely hand cannons of yours." Skywarp peered down to his shotguns, prompting Swindle to order; "Toss 'em to the ground and lift your hands into the air. Then I might consider opening talks back up."

The demand made Skywarp roll his optics, but he knew he didn't have much of a choice. "Hah… fine, if that's what it'll take." He dropped his shotguns and raised his arms. "There, better?"

Narrowing his optics, Swindle gave him another question. "One last thing… where's your sniper friend? And what happened to the Autobots?"

"The Bots were long gone by the time I dug myself out. And as for Shadow Striker… she's not that far behind."

Swindle's fear and concern spiked when he heard that. "Y-You're gonna have her stand down! NOW!" His head whipped around, trying to locate all of the high places he could find that a sniper would have a clear shot from. "Sh-She has to be somewhere around here!"

The sight made Skywarp laugh amusingly. "Hahaha! Oh boy, Swindle, you really haven't been paying attention." He saw the ex-Combaticon glare at him in confusion, making him smirk. "When I said Shadow Striker's not that far behind… I meant that VERY literally!" Spinning around, Skywarp shouted; "NOW!"

All at once, Swindle, Skullcruncher and Silas were all taken aback when the Seeker revealed Shadow stuck to his back, the assassin already armed with her rifle in its semi-auto mode. "With pleasure!" she exclaimed, opening fire upon her former allies. "Zis is for putting us in such an awkward position, you swine!"

Silas and the M.E.C.H. agents doubled back to cover as Swindle and Skullcruncher stumbled back, doing their best to shield themselves from the bullets. However, that's when Silas saw something come barreling down the hill from behind the gas station. At first, it appeared as some sort of… rolling red and blue blur. And then… *CRASH* "AUGH!" It barreled straight into Swindle, knocking him straight off his feet.

"Woo-hoo!" Sideswipe cheered as he and Strongarm came to a halt, the latter sliding up to her feet first. Once Sideswipe had settled onto the ground, he gave her a thumbs up. "Haha, see? Told ya it would work!"

"Not a bad strategy!" Strongarm commended. "A bit unorthodox, but effective!"

Skullcruncher couldn't believe what he was seeing. "Gettin' tricked by a buncha magnetized scrap brains. Never thought I'd see thi—AUGH!" But just then, Grimlock leapt down from the hill as well, tackling his old rival to the dirt and unleashing a volley of punches upon him. "AGH! Gah! Fer the love of—ACH!" Managing to catch a punch, Skullcruncher retaliated with one of his own before bringing his sword back out. "Do you Autobots even KNOW the meaning of the word "quit"?!"

"Not really." Grimlock rebutted, taking his own blade in hand. "Maybe it's time you learn it, though! RAUGH!" The two hulking bots proceeded to smash themselves into one another, their blades clashing while they took any opportunity to hit one another with their fists.

After taking stock of the situation, Silas knew that Swindle was vastly outnumbered. Sure, the Bots and Cons were stuck together, but that didn't automatically make it two-on-one. That was a four-on-one situation if ever he saw it. One of his agents quickly picked up on that as well. "What do we do about this, sir?"

"What else? We aid our asset." Silas pointed to him. "Man the chopper and concentrate all weapons on the magnetized bots. That's an order."

"Right. And the base, sir?"

"Its location has been compromised. Have everyone grab as much as they can and evac. And I want backup out here, stat!" Once the order was given, the other agent complied and radioed the other operatives still in the base, all while they loaded into the helicopter. Silas took the passenger side while his main agent took the pilot's chair, the remaining one going into the back to man the minigun that was inside. And just like that, they took to the sky, though not without being noticed.

As Skywarp retrieved his shotguns, he heard the chopper take off, leading him to peer up at the craft in amusement. "Ha! Would ya look at that, Swindle? Your supposed "allies" are taking off without ya!"

Swindle gasped and called up to the craft; "SILAS! What're you DOING?! We had a deal!"

"And I'm upholding it!" Silas assured as the minigun slid out slightly from the chopper, which took Skywarp and Sideswipe aback.

"Woah! The humans are armed!" the Seeker exclaimed.

As if on cue, the two femmes barely had any time to say; "Huh?!" before M.E.C.H. unleashed a hailstorm of bullets upon them, prompting Skywarp to tumble away while Sideswipe and Strongarm were forced to dive behind the gas station. "Gah! Scrap!" Strongarm winced.

"Tell me about it!" Sideswipe agreed. "Man, I hate how these guys aren't afraid to shoot at us!"

Just then, Strongarm noticed that the nearby bunker seemed to be moving again, and from the lift came two M.E.C.H. vehicles… with machine gun turrets attached to the back. And they instantly took aim at them. "…Double scrap! Sideswipe, ROLL!" The Lambo Brother didn't have to be told twice as he started tumbling again, with Strongarm going with the momentum while the armed cars chased after them.

The carnage didn't go unnoticed by Grimlock, though he knew that getting away from Skullcruncher would be hard at this point. "Gah! So, these M.E.C.H. people aren't afraid to fight the likes of us, huh?"

"Pretty gutsy humans, right?" Skullcruncher pushed hard against his rival. "They don't even have any of those fancy Quirks! But let's cut to the chase…" *Whrr-tschzz-tschzz-tschzz-chkt* "GRRAAAAUUUGGHH!" With a loud bellow, Skullcruncher transformed into alligator mode and bit down on Grimlock's arm, making him shout in pain.

"GAAAH! So THAT'S how you WANT IT?!" Throwing Skullcruncher off, Grimlock slammed his fists down into the dirt, transforming into his T-Rex mode once again. "GRRROOOOAAAAARRR! Then let's do it! You Skullcruncher will regret doing that! Me Grimlock want to munch metal!" Opening his maw, Grimlock unleashed a burning flame upon the Croctobot, making his opponent fall back.

For as surprised as Skullcruncher was at getting his thick hide burned, though, something else was burning in his mind when he heard Grimlock speak. "Augh! What's with the whole "Me Grimlock" thing?! You stupid or somethin'?!" His own jaw then hinged open and he unleashed a powerful green energy beam that cut straight through the fire… only for Grimlock to not be there at all. "W-What the—" *PING* "AUGH!"

And just like that, Grimlock's massive tail swung in from Skullcruncher's blind spot, knocking him several feet away. "…Ask Shockwave." the Dinobot growled bitterly before charging at his rival once more, intent on finishing their fight.

…..

As all of that was happening, though, the rest of the battlefield had devolved into chaos. Strongarm and Sideswipe were still rolling their way across the sands, trying their hardest to avoid the M.E.C.H. cars that were firing upon them. Skywarp and Shadow Striker, on the other hand, were being pursued by Silas in the minigun-armed helicopter, the former doing his best to deftly dodge the incoming fire. "Give it up, Skywarp." Silas advised from high above. "Just let Swindle take the gauntlet and we will let you leave in peace."

"Ha! You think YOU'RE the one in control here, little human?!" Skywarp balked before doing what he did best. He teleported away, taking the M.E.C.H. leader aback.

"What? Where did he—" *VWOOM* "AH!" All of a sudden, Skywarp appeared directly in front of their helicopter, flying in midair thanks to his feet-mounted thrusters. With an insidious smirk, Skywarp brought out his shotguns again, and Silas saw that he was aiming for the chopper's propellers. "EVASIVE MANEUVERS! Go! GO!"

The pilot didn't have to be told twice as he bobbed and weaved away from the Seeker, doing his best to avoid the incoming blasts. "Hahaha! That's it! Dance! Dance like the pathetic meat puppets you are!" Skywarp cackled… only to get dinged upside the head. *ding* "Agh! Hey!"

Shadow Striker scowled at her partner, clearly unimpressed. "Imbecile! Are you trying to get us killed?!"

"Ah, please, like these fleshies could do any—"

"I mean by GRIMLOCK!" Shadow Striker snapped. "He clearly said; NO hurting ze humans. And I would very much like my head to stay attacked, thank you."

Skywarp rolled his optics and sighed. "Hah, listen, Grimlock said we couldn't hurt 'em. I'm pretty sure shootin' 'em outta the sky doesn't technically "hurting", does it?" Judging by the scowl on the femme's features, he could tell she wasn't convinced. "Ugh, fine, I promise to warp them outta there before they hit the ground. Happy?

"I am never happy. But I am satisfied." On that note, Shadow Striker shifted her rifle into its sniper mode, taking aim at the ground. "Now keep steady. I am going to take out their ground vehicles…" *bang* *bang* With two carefully aimed blasts, she managed to take out the M.E.C.H. cars in one go, blowing up their engines and forcing the drivers to flee.

With an impressed chortle, Skywarp remarked; "Ya know, it's always amazing how good your aim is. Now, let's see if you can take out THEIR engine!" After getting an affirming nod from her, Skywarp increased the strength in his thrusters and shot off… only to then be ground to a halt in midair. "Ah! W-What the—"

Shadow Striker gasped as her rifle was pulled straight out of her hands, her lips curling into a sneer when she saw who was responsible. "Merde! SWINDLE!"

Catching the gun with one hand, Swindle wore a superior smile as he taunted the duo, all while using the Polarity Gauntlet to hold them back. "Ah-ah, I think you two have already done enough damage." He called up to his human partner in crime. "Silas! I've got them nice and still for you! Take the shot!"

"You heard him." Silas reiterated to the chopper's gunman, who realigned himself to aim straight for Skywarp's head. "Open fire!" The gunman's finger was about to pull the trigger, while Skywarp was desperately trying to break free from the gauntlet's hold with all the strength his thrusters could muster. But then, at the very last second…

"SWINDLE!" The con artist was taken off guard when Sideswipe and Strongarm called him out, the magnetized duo tackling him straight to the ground. And in the process, the gauntlet was deactivated… though not before the force of the shove realigned Skywarp in midair. He managed to escape the minigun's fire… but was sent blasting off into the distance, him and Shadow Striker screaming all the while.

Silas couldn't believe what he'd just seen. "…Tell me that didn't just happen."

Down below, Swindle was equally as aggravated, shouting as he worked to shove the two Autobots off of him. "GYAAAHH! That's IT! I've had it with you Auto-fools CONSTANTLY getting in my way!" Still clutching the Polarity Gauntlet, Swindle activated it once again, this time magnetically grabbing the large pumpjack that he had disassembled earlier. He raised the massive mechanism over his head, intent on using it as a hammer. "But NO MORE! I'm NOT about to let you get away with this!" Rather than swing it straight down, though, Swindle instead swiped it across at the two bots, knocking them several feet away. But then, once they made impact with a large outcropping…

*SCRRRRRAAAAPPE*

"AAAAUUUGGHH!" The pain that shot through Sideswipe and Strongarm's backs was immeasurable. They almost wondered for a moment if parts of their armor had been shorn off all at once. But thankfully, that wasn't the case, and with only a few grazes… they were free. "Ach! Augh, that's smarts! I—huh?" Sideswipe reached around, suddenly being very aware that he was free. "Hah… f-free? We're free!" He jogged right up to Strongarm and lent her a hand. "Strongarm, we're free!"

"I can see that!" the young cadet smiled, pumping her arms victoriously. "Yes! No more crab walking or rolling around!"

Swindle, though, only just comprehended his error, and it only got worse for him when the bots aimed their weapons at him. "Oh… ball bearings." *pew-pew-pew* *PA-CHOW* "No, no, NONONO—" *KA-BOOOOM*

Between Strongarm's crossbow and Sideswipe firing off his shoulder cannon, the result was an explosion that enveloped Swindle entirely. The Autobot duo laughed victoriously, sharing a high-five. "Haha! Hell yeah! We got 'em now!" Sideswipe pumped a fist.

"Come on, let's get that gauntlet!" Strongarm took point and Sideswipe followed after… but then things began falling apart. The gauntlet's magnetic force was felt upon them again, stopping them cold. Then, all at once, the pumpjack went careening straight into Sideswipe, sending him straight into the gas station. Strongarm could only watch as the building collapsed on top of him. "AH! Sideswipe! No—URK!"

She was suddenly silenced when Swindle came in and took her by the neck, bringing her as close as possible with the gauntlet. "Hah… hahaha… AHAHAHA! You know, it's funny! For a while, I actually considered sparing your lives!" The con grit his metal teeth into a rather frightful scowl. "But you know what? I'm officially at the END of my ROPE with you bots! So guess what?!" He raised the gauntlet up, focusing all of its power… on Strongarm's head. "Time to get my servos dirty…"

All at once, Strongarm could feel an incredible pressure pulling at her neck, to the point where it for her hurt to scream. Bit by bit, she could feel her joint connectors come undone along her collar struts, with wires and tubes slowly popping out of her neck. Her optics widened in terror as the pain became ever more intense. And that's when she realized… she was about to die. 'No… no, no, Primus please, NO!'

As that was happening, Sideswipe had managed to push some of the rubble off of him, though only just enough to where he could see what was happening. And when he did, he let out a horrified gasp. The sight of Strongarm with parts of her neck torn out left him appalled enough… but then he saw that it was Swindle doing it. He clenched his teeth and tried to move, however, the pumpjack was laying straight on top of him, and it was too heavy for him to move by himself. "AGH! Swindle! STOP! Don't you—ugh!"

"Ha! Sorry, kid, but you brought this upon yourself." On that note, Swindle upped the gauntlet's intensity, making Strongarm scream louder. "But don't worry, you'll join her soon enough!"

"S-S… SIDESWIPE!"

Strongarm's scream made the young warrior snap his head up, and when he saw the energon start leaking from her neck… something snapped. All at once, he could feel his emotions spiking, his spark pulsating in his ears while his processor constantly kept telling him; 'Save her, Save her, SAVE HER!' It was too the point that Sideswipe didn't even notice… that he now had a bright, blue aura surrounding him. With a vengeful cry, Sideswipe mustered all the strength he could, managing to push himself up as that same blue energy shot straight into the night sky.

High above, a swirling vortex opened up, and from out of it, a similarly blue, glowing object came flying down toward Sideswipe's arm. In the process, his arms themselves had retransformed themselves, with a large slot opening up for the glowing thing to go into. Before it disappeared, though, it briefly took physical form; becoming a big, blue key with silver edging around it, and in the center was an image that somewhat resembled a rising sun.

Once the key inserted itself, several things happened. For one, a pair of dual energon blades came shooting out from Sideswipe's forearms, settling over his wrists as they emitted a bright cyan light. He waisted no time in slicing through the pumpjack like it was butter, and from there, something else occurred. His legs had retransformed themselves as well, with his feet shifting up onto his shins while his wheels rotated down from his calves and locked into his ankles, essentially giving him wheels for feet. And to top it all off, a set of booster engines popped out of his calves, raring and revving to go.

"H-Huh?! What the frag?!" Swindle exclaimed, having seen the power-up. He immediately backed away from Strongarm in fear, leaving the femme to gaze upon the astonishing events before her.

"S…Sideswipe?" she uttered weakly.

*VWOOM* "Alright, just got back, saw that beam of light in the sky, what'd I mi—HOLY SLAG!" Skywarp went completely slack-jawed when he saw Sideswipe, to the point where he took a few cautious steps back.

However, that left Shadow Striker completely in the dark. "What? Skywarp, what is happening?! Show me!" The Seeker obliged and spun around, allowing her to see what had happened to the red Lambo Brother. "Oh… mon dieu. Is zat a…"

"Yeah… a Cyber Key."

Over where Grimlock and Skullcruncher were scuffling, their fight was briefly brought to a halt when they saw the Cyber Key grant Sideswipe his new loadout. But that only lasted for a few moments as the Predacon latched onto Grimlock's leg. "GRAAAUUGHH! Really?!" Standing on one foot, Grimlock swung his leg around, trying to get the Croctobot to let go. "You Skullcruncher don't know when to give up! Well, me Grimlock don't know either!" Bringing that foot down, Grimlock unleashed a powerful seismic wave that finally managed to dislodge his opponent, allowing him to swing his tail down on him again.

Up in the M.E.C.H. helicopter, Silas was left completely mesmerized by what he had just seen. "Everytime I see these bots, they just keep bringing out more and more surprises…" He then noticed that more of his M.E.C.H. ground units were rolling through, driving straight for Sideswipe. "…Well, let's see how THIS goes, then."

The vehicles were approaching from behind the young Autobot, aiming their miniguns at him to try and take him by surprise. …But that would prove to be a mistake as Sideswipe took off like a shot, his engines roaring loud as he went skating around the incoming units. The agents inside the cars were taken off guard as he was suddenly behind them, almost instantaneously. "W-What?! How'd he do that?!" one driver exclaimed.

"I think the better question is… what's he gonna do to US?!" the other driver cried out as Sideswipe went leaping over top the vehicles. Their answer came pretty much in an instant as he launched the energon swords off his wrists and straight through their hoods, their engines failing. But before they could even stop, Sideswipe landed, spun around to readjust himself, and then, while rolling backwards between the cars, he reattached his blades to his arms… cleaving through the cars like a hot knife through butter.

Spinning back around, Sideswipe watched as the car halves went toppling over, their drivers jumping out before they exploded. "Hmph… damn, that felt good." His optics then found Swindle, who was completely petrified. "Now… what to do with you?"

Swindle was trembling so much he was sure that his armor plating would fall off at any moment. The contemptuous glare that Sideswipe was giving him was enough to leave any bot soiled, and the radiant aura surrounding him only emphasized it. And in that moment, Swindle started doing what he did best; barter. "Ahaha… n-now, hold on there, Autobot! L-Let's cut a deal, shall we? I'll happily give you the gauntlet and your friend in exchange for my free—"

*VROOOOM*

*SHHHHINK*

"AAAAAAAUUUUGGGHH!" Swindle's scream could be heard from miles around as Sideswipe closed the distance between them in less than two seconds, thanks to a powerful burst from his leg engines. Then, swinging one of his swords straight up, he sliced off Swindle's arm, freeing the gauntlet from his grasp.

"Shut. Up." Sideswipe snarled.

Despite the pain, Swindle was still intent on getting that gauntlet back. "Y-You… you impudent little—" *WHAM* "GYAAAAAHH!" But Sideswipe kicked the gauntlet away… before bringing that same foot right up to Swindle's head, the spinning tire only adding more power to the kick. Swindle's face resembled a giant skid mark as he was blown into the air.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Skywarp ran over and grabbed the Polarity Gauntlet, calling out to the Dinobot leader; "Grimlock! Get Skullcruncher over here!"

Grimlock growled in response. "You not me Grimlock's boss!" Begrudgingly, he leaned down and picked up the dazed Predacon with his jaws, who had been forced back into robot mode. "Buht me Grimlock dho it anyway! Bhecaush me Grimlock wantch to getch dis over with!" After muffling that out, Grimlock tossed Skullcruncher high into the air, prompting Skywarp to activate the Polarity Gauntlet.

Magnetically taking hold of the Croctobot in midair, the Seeker then swung him straight toward Swindle as he came falling down. The duo slammed into one another and were sent careening into the gas station pumps, though thankfully they had long since dried up. "Gah! Ugh! Skullcruncher, get off of me!" Swindle struggled beneath his mentor, though he lacked the strength thanks to a glaring absence. "I… ach! I have to get… my other arm—"

*VROOM*

"…Oh no." Swindle could only stare up in horror as Sideswipe skated his way over to them in the blink of an eye. …And he was holding Swindle's limp arm.

"Here ya go." He uttered in contempt, raising the arm above his head. "Enjoy."

"Wait, nonoNONO—" *WHA-PING* And on that note, Swindle was knocked out cold, his arm becoming magnetized to his unconscious body.

Up in the sky, the M.E.C.H. helicopter was circling over the scene, all while Silas pondered what to do. "Sir… what's our next move?" his pilot asked.

Once his mind was made up, Silas gave the word; "We're pulling out. Swindle and Skullcruncher have been incapacitated and we've suffered enough losses for now." He narrowed his eyes down to the bots as they reconvened below. "…But this isn't over. Not by a long shot."

As the helicopter flew away, another M.E.C.H. vehicle came around to pick up the remaining agents before driving off, which Skywarp was perturbed by. "What the—hey! Get back here!"

"NO!" Grimlock roared as he transformed back into his robot mode, grabbing Skywarp by the shoulder before he could teleport. "That's enough! Let them leave. We've got more important things to deal with, anyway."

"…Hmph, yeah, you're right." On that note, Skywarp used the Polarity Gauntlet to separate himself and Shadow Striker, who gave a relieved sigh as she fell to her feet. He then handed the device to Grimlock… while holding Shadow Striker back so she wouldn't snatch it right back. "Here ya go. It's yours." He peered down to the assassin with a piercing glare. "We have what we came for, after all."

Pursing her lips, Shadow folded her arms across her chest. "Hmph, and you call yourself a Decepticon. …But very well, I suppose it is an "even" trade." She went over to the unconscious Cons, where Sideswipe was still looming over them with his Cyber Key Power still going strong. …And it was only then that she realized something important. "So… how WILL we get zem to come with us?"

Just then, a weak voice piped up. "I-I… can… help you there."

"Ah!" Sideswipe was brought out of his vengeful trance and his power dissipated, the swords shifting back into his arms while his feet changed back to normal. He whirled around to see Strongarm hobbling her way over, one hand over her open wound while the other held a pair of stasis cuffs. "I—HAK-HAK—always keep a pair on me—HAAAAAK!" All at once, she collapsed to the ground while coughing up a ton of energon, the cuffs falling out of her hand.

"STRONGARM!" Sideswipe rushed to her side, keeping her steady through the ordeal. "Oh, Primus, no, please…"

Immediately, Grimlock reached up to his commlink, radioing back to base. "Grimlock to Red Alert, code red! Autobot in MAJOR need of repairs! Bridge us back, STAT!" Not two seconds after, the GroundBridge opened, and Sideswipe waisted no time in carrying Strongarm through. Grimlock picked up the stasis cuffs and tossed them to Skywarp. "Go, take them in. And… thanks for your cooperation."

Skywarp gave a wordless nod as Grimlock rushed through the portal, turning back to Swindle and Skullcruncher as it closed. He went over and slapped the cuffs around the latter's wrists… only to realize there was nothing to hold Swindle. "…Scrap. We can't cuff 'em both, can we?"

"Ah, I do not believe zat will be an issue." Shadow Striker pointed down with a smirk. "See?"

Upon seeing what she meant, an amused smirk came to Skywarp's face. "Ah… hehe, Starscream's gonna get a kick outta this…"

…..

"You've been WHAT?!"

Back at the Darksyde, the very Seeker Commander in question was absolutely beside himself after what he'd been told. He was currently outside of the ship, and with him were Swift, Thundercracker, Barricade and Nightra, the latter four having requested his presence. Though from his reaction alone, they could tell that he was FAR from happy with them. "L-Listen, Screamer…" Swift started, raising her hands to try and calm the situation. "I know what we did looks pretty bad, but—"

"Bad? BAD?!" Starscream interrupted her, his hands flailing as he recounted what he'd just heard. "You're telling me that you went behind Unicronus' back, trying to find ways to get me back into Megatron's good graces, risking your own standings in the process, and you say this is JUST bad?!" His glare intensified as he loomed over the four… only to then faulter as he fell to his knees and gave an emotional cry. "GAAAAAAHH! It's… probably one of the most selfless things I've ever heard! Any other bot would've just left me to the cyberwolves!"

"So… you're not mad?" Barricade asked.

Lifting his head back up, Starscream's expression hardened. "Call it fifty-fifty. After all, from what you've told me, your first attempt was a bust." He shook his head with a sigh. "Megatron is NOT going to be happy to hear that Grimlock has returned."

"Ay… yeah, not the best news." Nightra admitted, only to give a wink. "But don't worry! Last I checked, that magnetic flux is long gone, so my guess is that Warp and Shadow have got THIS in the bag!"

As if on cue, Nightra's commlink clicked on; "Nightra, this is Skywarp. Mission complete. Shadow and I need a bridge."

The Decepticons all brightened up when they heard that, Starscream especially. "Ah, see? What'd I tell ya?" Typing into her wrist computer, Nightra activated the Darksyde's GroundBridge so that a portal opened directly in front of them, allowing Shadow Striker to step through. "Welcome back, chica! So, mission accomplished, eh?"

"In a way, yes." Shadow affirmed, only to notice that Starscream was with them. "W-Wait, why is he—"

"We told him everything." Thundercracker informed. "Today's our weekly report to Megatron, so we wanted him to be in on this just in case."

The assassin nodded in understanding. "I see… well, I have good news and bad news."

Starscream's metal brows furrowed in concern. "…Bad news first."

"Ze bad news is… zat we did not get ze gauntlet." Shadow informed regrettably. "Thanks to unforeseen circumstances, it was lost to ze Autobots." All at once, she saw Starscream's expression shift to that on anguish and rage, but she raise her hand to stop him. "BUT… ze good news is zat we have come back with something even better… or rather, someone better." She stepped aside and allowed Skywarp to come through the GroundBridge… though in front of him was a rather surprising sight to the gathered Decepticons.

There, with stasis cuffs slapped on his wrists, was Skullcruncher, the Predacon being held at gunpoint by Skywarp. "Special delivery." the black and purple Seeker smirked toward his sibling.

"W-Wha… Skullcruncher?" Starscream uttered incredulously. All he got from the Croctobot was a grunt of acknowledgement.

"Yep, but he's not even the best part about all this." Skywarp jabbed the muzzle of his shotgun into Skullcruncher's back. "Turn around, big guy." With another grunt, the former pirate complied… and what the Cons saw next made their jaws drop.

There, magnetized to the Predacon, was none other than Swindle, whose face was completely sour at the situation he was in. Down an arm, stuck to his mentor's back, and with absolutely no form of escape. Starscream, however, wore an absolutely joyous and insidious smirk, which many of his Decepticon allies shared. "Why… Swindle. What a pleasant surprise."

"Starscream!" For but a moment, Swindle put on his usual businessman smile. "What can I say…" But then, he glowered contemptuously at the other Decepticons, not even trying to hide his disdain. "…It's good to be back."

…..

A/N: And on that glorious pun, we end things with Swindle and Skullcruncher abandoned by M.E.C.H. and returned to the Decepticons… whether they like it or not. Yeah, with the arrival of Megatron's away team drawing ever nearer, it was time to get all of the Cons on Earth under one roof, and having the con artists serve as the way for Starscream to get back into Megatron's good graces was the perfect way to do so. And all it took was a little Bot/Con cooperation. It's rare, but it DOES happen (and in certain series, more often than one would think). Of course, this ALSO means that Swindle's gonna have to face the music about abandoning the Decepticon cause… uh oh.

On that note, though, as expected, Sideswipe and Strongarm were at each other's throats at first in this awkward situation. Indeed, they were chewing their heads off as per usual… at least until Sideswipe pushed one too many buttons and genuinely upset Strongarm for a moment there. And as a result, something clicked; "maybe being a jerk to my teammate all the time ISN'T such a good thing". Of course, he's not changing who he is fundamentally, but acknowledging that arguing won't get them anywhere is a good start. And in return, Strongarm seemed willing to go along with some unorthodox plans on his part, like bowling over Swindle with their bodies.

…Unfortunately, Swindle's patience boiled over, going so far as to try and KILL Strongarm then and there. But thankfully, it seems that Sideswipe's newly learned lessons have resulted in a reward that saved his friend before the deed could be done. And that reward… was CYBER KEY POWER! Indeed, Sides now has an Earth Cyber Key, one that gives him his Bayverse counterpart's arm blades and wheel feet! Swindle didn't stand a chance, and from there, things wrapped up like clockwork. But what about Strongarm? Well, you guys are gonna have to tune in next time to find out how she does. On that note…

And now, the Preview! When word gets out about what happened, the entire team swarms back to the base to see how Strongarm's doing. But as that happens, Swindle and Skullcruncher are brought before Megatron… wherein the former is then brought face-to-face… with his old commanding officer. This probably isn't gonna end well. Next Time; Bury the Hatchet. Watch as Sideswipe demonstrates his Cyber Key Power to everybody! Thanks for reading, everybody, and I'll see you all next time! Stay safe out there, and as always…

GO BEYOND! PLUS ULTRA!