Chapter 10: True Colors

At the football field, Hank was doing practice runs for an upcoming game. "Gotta stay in shape. Gotta keep your head in the game." She said as she continued practicing. Suddenly, she stopped in her tracks as her eyes started glowing brilliant blue, making her gasp in horror. "Oh no! I gotta warn Rusty!" She exclaimed with worry as she headed towards the scrapyard.

Meanwhile, at the scrapyard, Fixit was teaching Russell how to operate the scrapyard's new proximity alarm. "The tricky part is to make sure the buffers integrated properly with the additional electrical load. After all, the proximity alarm has to encompass the entire scrapyard." He explained. But then, he noticed that Russell was paying more attention to his phone than to him. "Russell, are you listening?" He asked. "Yeah. Prox alarm, buffers and toads." Russell said. Suddenly, the proximity alarm went off, startling him. "What's that?" He asked. "It works!" Fixit cheered.

Just then, Team Bee came back, pushing a stasis pod towards the command center, but stopped when they heard the alarm. Gears, who obviously wasn't helping, was covered in twigs and branches. He sat down and covered his audio receivers to try and block out the alarm. "What's that sound?" Bumblebee asked. Fixit shut off the alarm and headed down the ramp. "It's our new pox-proximity alarm." He said. "Which I totally know how to operate because I was totally listening." Russell lied with a big smile. "You were hardly-" Fixit tried to argue, but stopped himself, finding it pointless. Denny and Katie looked at each other, knowing their son. "Anyway, how'd the mission go?" Fixit asked. "We wandered through 7 clicks of mud to find an empty pod." Bumblebee said. "I'm still cleaning the gunk of it out of my gears." Arcee said, finding mud in various places. Mirage unlocked the pod and opened it, revealing it to be filled with mud. "Well, to be accurate, the pod wasn't completely empty." She said.

"Gears, tell Fixit about how you lent a hand. Oh, that's right. You didn't!" Strongarm exclaimed. "Yeah. All you did was complain about getting all those twigs and branches stuck in your grill!" Sideswipe exclaimed. "Hey! If anyone slowed us down, it was Grimlock! I've seen fried circuits livelier than he was!" Gears exclaimed. "Hey! Talk that way about my buddy again and I'll slice out your optics!" Mirage said, pointing her wrist blade at Gears' throat. "Hey! Break it up!" Bumblebee ordered. "You stay out of this! It's your fault that these 2 convicts are running free with us in the first place!" Gears exclaimed. As the team continued arguing, Cinderray covered her ears. She couldn't take all this argument. "STOP!" She screamed. Suddenly, an energy pulse was released from her body, knocking the whole team in separate directions. As everyone recovered, they looked at Cinderray in shock. Even Cinderray was shocked herself. She had never done anything like that before. "I…I'm so sorry!" She cried before running out of the scrapyard. "Cinderray! Come back!" Bumblebee called. But she ignored his calls as she transformed and drove off. "Arcee, you're in charge of the team while I go after her." Bumblebee said. "You got it, Bee." Arcee said. Bumblebee transformed and drove off after Cinderray.

"Alright. Now, if all arguments are out of the way, let's get this pod cleaned up." Arcee said. "AUTOBOTS!" Hank's voice called. "Hey, was that…" Denny started to ask. "Hank?" Russell said, both surprised and shocked. "Autobots!" Hank's voice called again. The team turned around and saw her run up to them. "Autobots, I have to warn you! Something terrible is about to happen!" She exclaimed, panting out of breath. The Autobots were shocked by her appearance. But then, Grimlock walked up, getting a little too close to Gears. "Hey, Grimlock, quit crowding me!" Gears exclaimed, shoving Grimlock. Suddenly, Grimlock swatted him, knocking him down. "Grimlock!" Arcee exclaimed in shock. Grimlock growled as he walked up to Gears as he recovered. "What has gotten into…" Gears started to ask until Grimlock interrupted him by roaring. "…YOU?!"

(Intro)

Grimlock roared as he was about to attack again. Gears flipped out of the way, causing Grimlock to miss and run into a pig head statue with a chef's hat. Grimlock shook it off and turned back to Gears. "Some backfire you got there, Dinobot." Gears said, mockingly. As Grimlock charged towards him again, Arcee leapt in between them. "Break it up!" She ordered, putting a hand on Grimlock's fist. "Keep your hands…OFF OF ME AUTOBOT!" Grimlock exclaimed, violently swatting Arcee with his tail into the side of the hill, knocking her out. "Fixit, Nebula Rangers, get Denny, Katie, Russell and Hank into the command center!" Strongarm exclaimed. Fixit and the Nebula Rangers led the Clay family and Hank into the command center as Strongarm and Mirage prepared to engage Grimlock. But Sideswipe got in their way. "Wait! We can't hurt Grimlock! He's still our teammate!" He protested. "He's right. As much as I want to stop Grimlock, we can't hurt him." Strongarm said. "So, if we can't hurt him, what do we do?" Mirage asked. Strongarm noticed some of Denny's stuff behind Grimlock. "I got an idea!" She exclaimed. She took out her blaster and blasted the top shelf, knocking the stuff down on top of Grimlock, burying him and seemingly knocking him out. Denny cringed at his stuff getting damaged before fainting.

"Nice shot, cadet." Sideswipe said. "Nice shot?! You missed the Dinobot!" Gears exclaimed. "That was the idea, knucklehead!" Strongarm exclaimed. "Yeah, we not gonna hurt our own teammate!" Mirage exclaimed. "That violent criminal assaulted me and Arcee without cause! And if you 3 aren't Bot enough to do your jobs, I'll do it myself!" Gears exclaimed before walking over to Grimlock. "No, Gears! Stop!" Strongarm ordered. Suddenly, Grimlock broke free from the stuff and sent Gears flying.

Meanwhile, Cinderray was sitting in the area where she, Bumblebee, Arcee and Sideswipe first fought Thunderhoof. She was still trying to get over the shock of what she did. "Cinderray!" Bumblebee's voice called. Cinderray turned to see him driving over. He transformed and looked around for a moment before walking over. "Wow. The sight where we first fought Thunderhoof. Your very first mission with us." He said. "Yeah. How time flies." Cinderray said with sadness. "What's wrong?" Bumblebee asked as he got close enough. "Well, I don't know what's wrong. I was feeling overwhelmed when you guys were fighting and then, just out of nowhere, that powerful energy wave just blasted right out of me. I've never done that before." Cinderray explained. "You sure it's not another secret power you have?" Bumblebee asked. "No. If it was, I would've known. But I didn't. So, I came out here to see if I could find some clue to unlocking my past." Cinderray said. "Cinderray, I promise that my team and I are gonna do what we can to help you recover your memories." Bumblebee said. "Thanks, Bee." Cinderray said, pulling him into a hug. Bumblebee blushed a bit as he hugged her back. "LIEUTENANT BUMBLEBEE!" Strongarm screamed over the com-link, interrupting the moment. "What's with the screaming, Strongarm?" Bumblebee asked.

"Grimlock's gone insane and started attacking us! We need you and Cinderray back here, ASAP!" Strongarm exclaimed as Mirage was trying hold Grimlock back. Just then, Grimlock knocked Mirage aside, knocking her out, and started to attack Strongarm, punching her repeatedly hard. Just then, Grimlock was hit by a cosmic blast. He turned to see Jack flying towards him. "Leave them alone!" Jack exclaimed, firing more cosmic blasts. "Back off, squishy." Grimlock said, grabbing Jack and throwing him at the rock wall. "Oh, that's it, tough guy!" Miko exclaimed as she charged up her fists with chi energy and ran towards Grimlock. "We got your back, Miko!" Raf exclaimed as he, Sierra and the Gonzalez Nonuplets backed her up. Miko leapt up with help from Raf's psychic powers and prepared to punch Grimlock with a powerful chi punch. But Grimlock caught her in midair and tossed her at Raf, not giving him time to catch her with his psychic powers.

Shawn, Nalu and Brook attacked Grimlock with their elemental powers. But Grimlock pushed through the attacks and swatted them with his tail, knocking them out. Dominick prepared to slam his fist into the ground to create an earthquake. But Grimlock grabbed his arm and held him up. "Not this time, Pebbles Brain." He muttered before flicking him into Denny's stuff. Denny just recovered and he cringed at the sight before fainting again. "Hey! No one does that to my brother!" Liana exclaimed. She let out a sonic scream at Grimlock. But Grimlock pushed through the scream, grabbed Liana and threw her at the command center. Suddenly, Grimlocks fists were locked in mana spheres. And then, the gravity around him was forcing him down. "Hey! What's happening?!" He asked as he struggled against the gravity. Mariposa and Henry were using their powers to hold him into place. "Now, girls!" Mariposa called. Teresa summoned roots from out of the ground and wrapped them around Grimlock. Sierra aided her by creating strings and ribbons out of thin air and tied them around Grimlock. Annika finished the job by firing her ice beam at Grimlock as he struggled against all the weight put on him, freezing him in place. "Whew! That was easy." Mariposa said. Suddenly, Grimlock actually broke free with a loud angry roar, sending the girls and Henry flying in separate directions and knocking them out.

Sideswipe transformed and drove towards Grimlock. "Grimlock, stop!" He exclaimed. But Grimlock turned onto him and stopped him in his tracks. Just then, he started to shake, like something was wrong with him. "Stop…fighting me! They don't stand a chance. And neither do you!" He exclaimed, apparently to himself. "Huh?" Sideswipe asked in confusion before Grimlock tossed him into the air. Luckily, he transformed and stuck the landing before leaping onto Grimlock's back. "Dude, what's this about?" He asked. "It's about me flattening you." Grimlock said. He flipped onto his back and crushed Sideswipe underneath him. Katie, Russell, Fixit and Hank gasped in horror. As Grimlock got off of Sideswipe, he started struggling with his own head. "Keep moving!" He exclaimed to himself again. "Who's Grimlock talking to?" Russell asked. "I think to himself. But why?" Katie asked. Grimlock started walking towards the command center, knocking Sideswipe out with one more swat from his tail.

"Grimlock's coming this way!" Russell said with worry. "What do we do?" Katie asked. "I'll handle this." Fixit said. "You'll handle a Dinobot? No offense, but have you seen you?" Russell asked. "You're right. I'm gonna be smooshed. But I am still the official caretaker of the Alchemor. And when I'm gone…I need you all to keep Denny Clay from touching my things." Fixit said before going to confront Grimlock. "Ugh…don't touch what now?" Denny asked as he recovered. As Grimlock started making his way up the ramp, Fixit prepared to engage him. "Grimlock, I don't know what's happening, but I order you to stand clown-*glitch*-stand brown-*glitch*-stand down! Right now!" He ordered, getting his taser attachment ready. But then, he started to rethink things as Grimlock stood over him. "Don't know if your optics are on the blink, but I just took apart 5 Bots and 13 little superheroes without even warming my coolant." Grimlock said. Arcee, Strongarm, Sideswipe, Gears, Mirage and the Nebula Rangers groaned from their pain. "What're you gonna do, squeaky?" Grimlock asked daringly. Fixit shocked his muzzle, but it had no effect. Grimlock just flicked him back towards the Clay family and Hank, knocking him out. As they checked on him, Grimlock roared as he turned his attention on them. "This isn't you, Grimlock!" Russell exclaimed. "He's right. Something's wrong with you." Hank said. "Yeah! EVERYONE'S IN MY WAY!" Grimlock exclaimed, preparing to smash the humans. But for some reason, he was stopping himself from smashing them. "Seriously?! You're not gonna let me smash these little things?!" He asked himself. "Dinobots! So hard to control!" Denny, Katie and Russell listened carefully. Even the Nebula Rangers heard him as they started to recover. "Fine! Where are the stasis pods?" He asked as he gave up and walked away to find the stasis pods.

After he left, the Clay family and Hank went to check up on Fixit. "Fixit, are you okay?" Denny asked. "Absolusely, posistively-*glitch-glitch*-not." Fixit said. "Ow. I can see why Dinobots are built for smashing." Liana groaned as she recovered. The rest of the Nebula Rangers struggled as they made into the command center. "What do we do now?" Katie asked. "Fixit, I need you to tell me how to work the proximity alarm." Russell said. "Oh, now you want to-" Fixit tried to say. "Fixit!" Russell exclaimed. "Why the proximity alarm? What's that gonna do?" Shawn asked as he rested himself by the control panel. "Because, maybe we can use it to scare Grimlock or whatever's commanding him away." Hank said. "Controls are on that panel." Fixit said. But as he tried to move, he couldn't. He looked down to see that his wheel functions were sparking with damage. "Your wheel functions are damaged. You won't be able to move until they're repaired." Denny said. "Must've been caused when Grimlock flicked you." Katie guessed. "Don't worry. We'll help the kids. You 2 work on Fixit's repairs." Jack said. Russell, Hank and the Nebula Rangers hurried over to the control panel while Denny and Katie worked on Fixit's wheels. "It's a very simple procedure. All you have to do is-" Fixit tried to say. But Russell and Hank ripped out some of the cables. "PUSH THE RED BUTTON!" Fixit panicked.

Just then, Bumblebee and Cinderray returned to the scrapyard, transformed and saw the damage Grimlock caused. "Grimlock did all this?" Bumblebee asked in shock. "But how? And why?" Cinderray asked with worry. "We don't know, but we don't think Grimlock was in control of his actions." Katie said. "Where's Grimlock now?" Bumblebee asked. "He's looking for the stasis pods." Hank said, revealing herself. Bumblebee was surprised to see her here, seeing his team in robot mode. "Hey, isn't she that girl Russell plays football with?" Cinderray asked, seeing Hank from the field when watching Russell's games. "Yep, that's me. I'm Henrietta, but you can call me Hank." Hank introduced. "I'm Cinderray." Cinderray introduced. "I know. I know who everyone is here. It's not exactly a secret." Hank said. "Why are you here? How do you even know about us? You didn't seem to have a clue the last time we saw you here." Bumblebee said. "Because…I saw everything that's happening right now. I have the power to see through time." Hank said. Everyone was shocked to hear that. "You have a power too?" Annika asked. "But that would mean that…" Raf started to say. "Yes. I was there when the meteor crashed in the bay. And I too was affected by the blast." Hank revealed.

Meanwhile, Grimlock was pushing his old trailer towards the stasis pods. "Now that the Autobots have been dealt with, I can pick up what I came for." He said. He looked around at Denny's collection. "And I thought Corvicons were hoarders." Just then, a few seconds later, he spotted the stasis pods. He chuckled, rolling his trailer over to them, eyeing the pod holding Underbite. "You're first up, Underbite." He said as he picked up Underbite's pod, struggling a bit with the pod's weight, and placed on the trailer. As he looked through the others, he eyed the pod holding Filch. "Filch. Could use some eyes in the sky." He said as he picked up Filch's pod. Suddenly, the proximity alarm went off, causing him to drop the pod on his foot. He screamed in pain.

When he returned to the command center with the 2 pods, he saw that Bumblebee and Cinderray were waiting for him. "I thought you 2 were gone!" He exclaimed. "Just got back." Cinderray said. "Put the pods back, Grimlock. We don't want to hurt you." Bumblebee said. "Well, that works fine for me because I WANNA HURT YOU!" Grimlock roared before charging towards the 2 Bots. Bumblebee and Cinderray got ready to fight. But Grimlock bashed Bumblebee with his head, knocking him out. Cinderray split into 2 and grabbed Grimlock's arms. "Take it easy, Grim!" Autobot Cinderray exclaimed. "We don't wanna hurt you!" Decepticon Cinderray exclaimed. Grimlock just roared as he just lifted both Cinderrays up and slammed them to the ground. Afterwards, he turned back to the command center as the proximity alarm continued blaring. "TURN THAT NOISE OFF!" He roared, smashing the control panel and picking up Russell. "Rusty!" Denny, Katie and Hank cried with worry. "Listen, human, I know you and your little family were trying to signal for help." Grimlock said. "We weren't! But help's coming anyway. Optimus Prime should be here any second." Russell said as he lied. "Optimus?!" Grimlock asked in shock as he dropped Russell. "That was our new proximity alarm. It means Optimus is close by." Russell lied again. "I can't beat Optimus mono-e-mono! But the boss will scrap me if I come back empty handed!" Grimlock panicked. But then he realized. "Oh, but I'm not empty handed. I have Underbite and Filch." Then he took his trailer with the pods and walked away. The Clay family, Hank and the Nebula Rangers watched him leave, knowing that something was really going on.

Later, the team slowly began to recover. "Well, his systems appear normal. Can you hear me, Sideswipe?" Fixit asked as he checked on Sideswipe. Sideswipe groaned as Bumblebee and Autobot Cinderray helped him stand up. "You okay, bro?" Mirage asked. "Where's Grimlock?" Sideswipe asked. "Russell scared him away. But Grimlock has Underbite and Filch." Fixit said. "Said he was taking them to some boss." Russell said. "I can't believe we fell for the old innocent T-Rex routine! He's been fooling us the whole time!" Gears exclaimed. "That's not true!" Sideswipe exclaimed. "Maybe we should interview Grimlock's known associates." Strongarm suggested. "Isn't that us?" Mirage asked. "I think maybe-" Russell tried to say. "What do you think, Bee?" Arcee asked. "I've seen Grimlock's rap sheet. The only crime on there is severe property damage due to Grimlock being…Grimlock." Bumblebee said. "That's what he wants us to think! He's a convict just like every other Decepticon in this whole universe!" Gears exclaimed. "If you'll just-" Russell tried to say. "There is no way Grimlock would attack us willingly! This boss must've forced him!" Strongarm exclaimed. "This is coming from you, Strongarm? The heads of the academy will be very disappointed to hear you talking like that." Gears said, mockingly. Strongarm growled at that.

"HEY!" Russell shouted, getting everyone's attention. "I don't think Grimlock's in control of himself. He wanted to hit me, Hank and my parents, but he couldn't. It was like there was a war going on inside of him." He explained. "He's right. Before Grimlock flipped me in my V-Mode, he was telling himself to stop fighting himself." Sideswipe said. "Exactly. Somebody must be messing with Grimlock's mind." Russell said. "Stuff it! Human opinions are not wanted here!" Gears snapped. Russell and Hank glared at him. "Hey, back off, Gears. They're just trying to help." Arcee said. "I do not need help from lower lifeforms. Just accept it. Grimlock's just a bad bot who's been playing us for suckers." Gears said. The team didn't like how he was talking. "Regardless, whatever's going on, our first priority should be to find Grim and those pods, and bring them all back here." Bumblebee said. "This isn't Grim's fault, Bee. What Russell and I are saying, and Hank's vision are at least possible, right? Tell me you know that." Sideswipe said. "Of course, I know that. That's why we need to find Grimlock and find out what's going on." Bumblebee said.

Later, Fixit was trying to locate Grimlock's signal. "I can't locate Grimlock's signal. Comm and tracking systems were damaged when he hit the console." He said. "Until we can get it repaired, there's no way we can track Grimlock." Denny said. "I know how to track him." Autobot Cinderray said. "How?" Arcee asked. "Before he took off with the pods, my Decepticon half started silently following him. She and I can track each other's sparks. If she's found where Grimlock was heading, she'll lead us right to him." Autobot Cinderray explained. "Okay. Before we go, Grim said he was meeting someone." Bumblebee said. "Therefore, they must've set up a rendezvous point somewhere." Arcee said. "It sounded like the original plan was for Grimlock to grab more than 2 pods." Russell said. "Are there any secluded areas nearby that are big enough to hide say…a dozen bots?" Strongarm asked. "There is one place. The Crown River dam." Katie said. "She's right. I've visited that place once before. It's huge." Nalu said. "And fully automated. No human personal." Fixit said. "And we're in luck. I can sense that my Decepticon half is on her way there right now." Autobot Cinderray said. "Good place to start. Fixit, you, Denny, Katie and Russell try to get the comms fixed. Autobots, let's Rev Up and Roll Out!" Bumblebee called. Team Bee transformed and the Nebula Rangers boarded their respected partners. "Hank, you're coming with us." Bumblebee said. "Me?" Hank asked in surprise. "You saw parts of what happened in your vision. So, we might need your help to find Grimlock." Bumblebee said. "I'll do what I can." Hank said. Bumblebee transformed and let Hank in the passenger seat before the team drove off.

After they left, Fixit and Denny opened up a panel to start the repairs. "Fixit, can you call up the Alchemor's prisoner manifest?" Russell asked. "Russell, Bee directly ordered us to repair the comm system." Fixit said. "This will only take a second." Russell said. "You think there might be a Decepticon messing with Grimlock's mind, son?" Denny asked. "Probably." Russell said. "And if there is, this Con might be in the manifest." Katie said. Fixit brought up the manifest and allowed Russell to look through the mugshots. "There!" Russell called, finding the culprit. "Whoa." Denny said. "This explains everything." Katie said. "Oh my. We need to let the team know what they're facing immediately or they may never make it back!" Fixit exclaimed with worry.

Meanwhile, the team was following a trail of Grimlock's footprints while following Autobot Cinderray's instinct. "And least Grimlock's easy to track. Even with Decepticon Cinderray leading us to him." Strongarm said. "I'll take point. I'd hate for our teammate to get nailed by an ill-tempered peace officer." Sideswipe said, glaring at Gears, who glared back as they continued. "So, what're we gonna do when we find Grimlock?" Jack asked. "Yeah. I actually hope it doesn't come down to another fight." Miko said with fear.
"He was just too strong. Even for us." Nalu said. "I don't know what's going to happen when we find Grimlock. But I promise, we'll do everything possible to make sure he doesn't get hurt." Bumblebee said. "I promise that too. Grimlock's still our friend, no matter what side he's truly on." Arcee said. Gears glared off to the side. He obviously had other plans.

"Stop!" Hank suddenly exclaimed as she stepped in front of the team. "What's wrong, Hank?" Sideswipe asked. "You nearly stepped into a trap." Hank said. She showed them by waving her hand over a laser trip wire. Suddenly, a misty wisp blew across the ground and froze it in an instant. The team gasped at this. "What happened?" Brook asked. "Well, it definitely wasn't me." Annika said. Strongarm looked through the bushes and found a small device. "It's a cryo-inducer from the stasis pods." She said. "Cryo-inducer?" Shawn asked. "It's what makes the Decepticons sleep in stasis pods for such long times." Mirage said. "Now if I'm not mistaken, 'friendly' Bots don't generally build traps like this for teammates. Right?" Gears asked, further proving his idiotic accusation. Bumblebee and Arcee just looked at the cryo-inducer.

Meanwhile, Fixit and the Clay family continued trying to fix up the communication system. The Clay family dodged the flying pieces that Fixit was removing. "Russell, Denny, Katie, I need a hyperspan regulator." Fixit said. The family looked through the toolbox, having no clue what to look for. "What does a hyperspan regulator look like?" Russell asked. "It looks like this." Fixit said, pulling out a hyperspan regulator attachment on his right arm. "Then, why don't you use that one?" Katie asked. Fixit looked at the hyperspan regulator on his arm. "Oh! Found one!" He cheered, using it to fix up the comms. "The comm system will either work or it will be caught in a fiery explosion. 50-50." He said. Denny, Katie and Russell crossed their fingers with worry as Fixit hesitantly activated the comms. But instead of an explosion, it tuned into a mariachi radio station. "Well, at least it didn't explode." Russell said. "That counts for something." Denny said. Fixit and Katie nodded in agreement.

Meanwhile, Grimlock brought the stasis pods straight to the dam's generator room. Decepticon Cinderray silently watched the Dinobot from the roof as he entered the facility. Inside, Steeljaw walked up to Grimlock, revealing himself to be the boss. "I didn't expect you so soon. Thunderhoof's still scouting for a larger base, but I'll be glad to help you with the pods. After all, a good leader is only first among equals." He said. "I, uh, had a little problem, boss. Only got 2 pods." Grimlock said. "Let me guess. You ran away?" Steeljaw guessed with disappointment. "The Autobots were all over me! But I took care of them. And I snagged Underbite and Filch." Grimlock said, revealing Underbite and Filch. "With Filch, we'll have eyes in the sky. And between Underbite and me, how much more muscle do you need?" He asked. "That's a rather cowardly way to justify failure, but as far as my intentions to make this world a home for all Decepticons, you, Underbite and Filch are a place to start." Steeljaw said. "Or end, Steeljaw!" Bumblebee exclaimed. The 2 Decepticons turned to see Team Bee, after Decepticon Cinderray remerged with her Autobot half back into an Autocon and the Nebula Rangers at the entrance, ready to fight. "You took care of them, did you?" Steeljaw asked in further disappointment. "Mostly." Grimlock said.

Bumblebee and Arcee stepped forth as Steeljaw readied his claws. "Savor the daylight. Things are about to get rather dark." He said. He leapt for them, but Bumblebee and Arcee tackled him into a bunch of wheeled wires. But Steeljaw flipped them over, sending Arcee flying into the wall. He tried to claw at Bumblebee, but he blocked it and pushed him off. "Get clear, Lieutenant!" Strongarm exclaimed, not getting a clear shot. "I'm trying!" Bumblebee exclaimed as Steeljaw pushed him up against the one of the generators. "Grim, tell us you were just playing along with Steeljaw. You were just leading us straight to him all along, right?" Sideswipe asked with hope. But Grimlock grabbed him and lifted him up. "I could tell you that. But I'd be lying." Grimlock said sinisterly.

Sideswipe got out his sword and pried himself free of Grimlock's grip. Strongarm, Mirage, Cinderray and the Nebula Rangers backed him up. Hank hid behind one of the generators to watch from safety. "Please, Grimlock, we know this isn't you." Strongarm said. "We know that underneath all of your loving to smash character, you're still part of the team." Mirage said. Grimlock didn't seem to be listening as he glared at them. Just then, Gears leapt onto his back and started brutally punching his head. "Gears, stop it! That's police brutality!" Strongarm exclaimed. But Gears ignored her and continued hitting him. Steeljaw swatted Bumblebee with his tail, knocking him into one of the generators. "Bee!" Arcee cried as she rushed over to help her friend. As Steeljaw charged towards them, Arcee leapt up and kicked him, knocking him back.

Meanwhile, Grimlock grabbed Gears and threw him at the team, knocking him out. "You all fight like you don't wanna hurt me, unlike your friend. But I got no problem hurting all of you." He said. He charged towards them. "Rangers, get to cover!" Jack ordered. The Nebula Rangers took cover as Grimlock started throwing punches at Team Bee. But they dodged each punch. As Sideswipe landed on a roll of wires, Grimlock lunged for him. But Sideswipe leapt over him, causing him to bite the roll. "You good, bro?" Mirage asked, which he nodded that he's good. Just then, Grimlock threw the roll at the team. "DUCK!" Strongarm exclaimed. The Bots ducked to dodge the roll, but it hit Bumblebee, Arcee and Steeljaw, knocking them into several other rolls. Grimlock cringed as Steeljaw recovered and marched angrily towards him. "Get a grip on yourself!" Steeljaw exclaimed. "Like this?!" Sideswipe asked as he leapt onto Steeljaw and grabbed his ears. Steeljaw struggled as Sideswipe pulled on his ears. "What did you do to Grimlock, Steeljaw? Some kind of mind control?" Sideswipe asked. Steeljaw managed to grab Sideswipe and get him off his back, slamming him onto the floor. "Oh, is it so hard to believe that Dinobot would choose me over all of you?" He asked. "Yeah, it kinda is." Sideswipe said. Steeljaw prepared to stab him with his claws, but Sideswipe dodged them and kicked him in the nose before leaping back onto his feet and getting his sword out. Strongarm got behind Steeljaw and aimed her blaster at him. Mirage got on Sideswipe's left and readied her wrist blades. "3 against 1. My kind of challenge." Steeljaw said.

Meanwhile, Bumblebee and Arcee recovered. "You whole, Cee?" Bumblebee asked. "Just got my bell rung, Bee." Arcee said. Suddenly, Grimlock grabbed them and slammed their heads together, making a bell ringing sound and knocking them out again. "I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF YOU, DECEPTICON!" Gears exclaimed as he recovered and tackled Grimlock, brutally punching him again. Cinderray helped Bumblebee and Arcee recover. "Gears! We said not to hurt Grimlock!" Bumblebee exclaimed. But Gears ignored him and continued his brutal assault. But Grimlock punched him off, knocking him out again. "That guy has serious problems." Miko said as she and the Nebula Rangers rushed over to Bumblebee, Arcee and Cinderray.

Meanwhile, Steeljaw blocked every attack from Strongarm, Sideswipe and Mirage. "Whatever you've done with Grimlock, undo it! Now!" Sideswipe exclaimed. "I'd do it, Con! We can get very angry!" Strongarm exclaimed. "And you won't like us when we're angry!" Mirage exclaimed. Steeljaw just chuckled. "I believe you 3 have more pressing concerns." He said. Strongarm, Sideswipe and Mirage turned to see Grimlock slamming Bumblebee and Arcee repeatedly on the floor, humming to himself while Cinderray tried getting a grip on his head and the Nebula Rangers used their powers on him to no effect. "Oh, I doubt they're going to survive this." Steeljaw said sinisterly. "This isn't over, Steeljaw." Sideswipe said. "That's a promise." Strongarm said. The 3 Autobots pulled away from Steeljaw and rushed over to help their teammates. Grimlock saw them coming and threw Arcee at them. But Sideswipe caught her. "Nice catch." Strongarm said. "Yeah. Thanks, Sideswipe." Arcee said. "Anything for a teammate." Sideswipe said. But then, he and Strongarm got knocked down by Bumblebee while Arcee and Mirage got knocked down by Cinderray. "Bots!" Jack cried before Grimlock swatted him and the Rangers with his tail. Hank gasped in horror when Grimlock marched over to them.

"Okay, I'm gonna regret asking this, but does Grimlock look like he's playing for our team right now?" Strongarm asked as she and the team recovered. As Grimlock was about to throw a punch, Bumblebee and Arcee grabbed his right arm. When Grimlock tried to punch them with his left arm, Sideswipe and Mirage grabbed it while Strongarm leapt onto his back, Cinderray grabbed his tail, and the Nebula Rangers leapt onto him from all sides. Gears recovered and leapt at Grimlock's belly. Grimlock tried shaking them off with no avail. "Farewell, brother. I need Decepticons who don't turn certain tasks into debacles." Steeljaw said as he took Underbite and Filch, and took off. "I can finish this, Steeljaw! Wait for me!" Grimlock cried, finally knocking the team off of him. But the team quickly recovered as Grimlock let out a loud roar. "I'm going after Steeljaw!" Cinderray exclaimed before taking off after Steeljaw.

"Sideswipe, Mirage, can you 2 keep him busy?" Bumblebee asked. "Wish we didn't have to, but yeah." Sideswipe said as he and Mirage charged for Grimlock. Sideswipe slid under Grimlock to get his attention. Grimlock tried to chomp into him, but Sideswipe bounced off his head and leapt over him. Mirage slashed at his tail, making him turn towards her. Bumblebee noticed the rolls of wires behind him, thinking of an idea. "Arcee, Strongarm, Gears, with me." He said, taking a wire in his hand. Arcee, Strongarm and Gears each took a wire in their hands. "Annika, Sierra, at the ready." Bumblebee said. Annika and Sierra nodded. Bumblebee, Arcee, Strongarm and Gears transformed and drove towards Grimlock with the wires being towed behind them. As Grimlock charged towards Sideswipe and Mirage, Sideswipe wedged his sword into his mouth. Bumblebee, Arcee, Strongarm and Gears drove around Grimlock, wrapping the wires around his feet. "Now!" Bumblebee called. Sierra summoned several strings from thin air, wrapping them around Grimlock's torso before Annika froze the wires and strings in ice. "You know what we always like best about you, Grimlock?! Your height!" Sideswipe exclaimed, giving Grimlock a gentle push and knocked him down. Team Bee watched their friend as he struggled against his snares and Sideswipe's sword in his mouth. "I'm sorry, Grimlock. But you have the right to remain silent." Strongarm said regretfully as she removed Sideswipe's sword from Grimlock's mouth. "What're we waiting for? Let's finish him already!" Gears exclaimed, aiming his blaster at Grimlock's head. "Put. That. Away." Arcee ordered sternly as she grabbed the blaster. "Why would Grimlock do this to us?" Dominick asked. "It wasn't Grimlock's fault. The true culprit should be revealed right about now." Hank said.

Just then, Team Bee's com-links started making static noises. "Right on cue." Hank said. "Lieutenants, can you hear me? Is it working? Russell, it's not-" Fixit said on the com-link. "Go ahead, Fixit." Bumblebee said. Suddenly, the mariachi music tuned in. "Sorry about that." Fixit said, turning the music off. "What's up, Fixit?" Arcee asked. "Grimlock is not Grimlock! I mean, Grimlock is Grimlock, but he's not Grimlock." Fixit said, not making any sense. "How can he not be Grimlock, but still be Grimlock? Can you be a little more specific?" Mirage asked.

Meanwhile, back at the scrapyard, Fixit and the Clay family had the file of a Decepticon Cybertick named Minitron up. "There's a Cybertick named Minitron, who can control any Bot he bites. He must be hiding somewhere on Grimlock's plating." Russell said. "Controlling Grimlock from the very start." Katie said.

"Minitron?! Ugh, I should've known he was behind this! He once took control of a friend of mine, framing him for many crimes." Mirage explained. Sideswipe smiled proudly at Gears, who now felt guilty about what he said and did with his brutal actions. The team started searching all over Grimlock's body for Minitron. The searching felt like tickling to Grimlock. "Get off of me! No! Oh, that tickles! Stop! Stop it!" He shrieked. "Enough with the tricks, Minitron. We know you're- Sweet Solus Prime!" Strongarm exclaimed in surprise. "What? Is it on me? Where?" Bumblebee asked before spotting Minitron on his shoulder. "OKAY! Get it off! Just get it off! Get it off! Get it off!" He exclaimed. Minitron crawled onto his back and bit him, slowly taking his mind. The team tackled him. But they noticed that Minitron suddenly disappeared. "Where'd he go?" Sideswipe asked. "He was there a second ago." Mirage said. Suddenly, Strongarm punched them both, knocking them down. Minitron was controlling her as he crawled onto her torso. But then, Bumblebee and Arcee grabbed her. "This is getting ridiculous!" Bumblebee exclaimed. Suddenly, Sideswipe kicked them, being controlled by Minitron now. "Ridiculous for you, kinda fun for me." He said. Mirage tackled her own brother and knocked him right on top of the others. The whole team started wrestling in a dust cloud, trying to get a hold on Minitron.

But Minitron escaped the team and made his way back to Grimlock. "Get him!" Jack exclaimed. Hank and the Nebula Rangers tried to grab Minitron, but he moved too quickly for them to grab. As he leapt for him, Grimlock broke his left arm free from the team's trap and caught him. "Gotcha." He said, snarling at the tiny Decepticon, who squirmed and squeaked for his life. "Grimlock, we know he hurt you, but he's no longer a threat. We can't squish him." Bumblebee said. Minitron nodded eagerly. "Oh, I can definitely squish him." Grimlock said. But then, he flicked Minitron into the wall, knocking him out. "But then again, I'm not a bad guy." The team smiled at that.

Meanwhile, Steeljaw was almost away from the dam with the stasis pods. "You're not going anywhere, Steeljaw." Cinderray's voice said. Steeljaw turned around to see her. "You. You must be that Autocon that Thunderhoof told me about. I heard your kind are very rare." He said. "Save the flattery for the judge, Con. Now give me the pods." Cinderray said. "I also heard from the Dinobot that you suffer from a case of amnesia. And I might be able to help where your Autobot friends cannot. All you have to do…is join me and help me make this a world for all Decepticons." Steeljaw said as he offered her. Cinderray became hesitant. If she joined him, he could help her recover her memories. But then, she also remembered the promise Bumblebee made to her. She shook her head and glared at Steeljaw. "Forget it, Steeljaw. I already have a team that I can trust." She said, rejecting his offer. Steeljaw growled at that before he noticed Team Bee coming towards them. "Next time we meet, Autocon, you will be joining me." He said before disappearing into the forest. Cinderray just stood there, not finding the strength to follow him.

Later that night, after the team returned to the scrapyard, Grimlock held out Minitron in his hand. Bumblebee took him and locked him in a small stasis pod. He and Arcee smiled at Grimlock, who smiled back. "Listen, Grimlock, I…I'm sorry for what I did. I was-" Gears tried to say. "Just doing your job." Grimlock said. "It's your job now too, Grimlock. You're one of us." Bumblebee said. "Yes. We'll get Fixit to change that Decepticon symbol." Arcee said. "Oh yeah!" Grimlock cheered excitedly. But then, he cleared his throat and stood at attention. "I mean, oh yeah. Thank you, sir and ma'am." He said. Bumblebee and Arcee nodded. "And thank you all too." Grimlock said, bringing Strongarm, Sideswipe, Mirage and Russell into a big group hug. "No problem!" Sideswipe struggled. "Anytime!" Mirage struggled. "Anything for a teammate!" Strongarm struggled. "Can I have my lungs back?!" Russell struggled, not being able to breath. "In a minute." Grimlock said as he continued hugging them. "And don't think you're off the hook, Gears. For your acts of false accusations and police brutality, you're benched from going on missions until further notice." Arcee declared. "I deserve it. I'll be by the old gas pumps, polishing them." Gears said, walking away. "And Hank, you did the right thing by coming to warn us about what was about to happen." Bumblebee said. "Thank you, sir." Hank said. "And if you'd like, we could use you and your time powers on the Nebula Rangers." Jack said. "You mean it?" Hank asked, getting excited. "Yeah. Anyone as special as you is always welcome on our team." Arcee said. "I'll do my best to help when I can." Hank said with a salute.

Just then, Bumblebee noticed a troubled look on Cinderray's face. "What's wrong?" He asked. "I can't get over what Steeljaw said to me about joining his crew." Cinderray said. "Well, I'm just glad you made the right choice." Bumblebee assured. "Bumblebee's right. The only thing we need to worry about is the fact that Steeljaw still has Underbite and Filch." Arcee said. "And Underbite now has all the time in the world to consume metal and increase his strength." Fixit said. "And Filch will now be out looking for anything shiny." Denny said. "Good thing we're getting stronger all the time too." Bumblebee said as he watched Grimlock continue hugging his friends. "Grimlock. Seriously! Oxygen! Room…getting…darker." Russell said, running out of breath.

Wow! Wasn't that something? Grimlock suddenly went rogue and started attacking his teammates. After escaping with the stasis pods containing Underbite and Filch, Team Bee and the Nebula Rangers, now joined by Russell's friend Hank, followed him to the Crown River Dam, where he met up with Steeljaw. After Steeljaw got away with the pods, the team discovered that there was a Decepticon named Minitron controlling Grimlock. But thanks to Grimlock, they managed to capture him. But before Steeljaw got too far away, he made an offer to Cinderray to help reclaim her lost memories. What new challenges will the team face with Hank joining the team? Will Cinderray ever remember her past or where she received her powers? Leave a review if you'd like.