I did change the events slightly in this, but everything stays relatively the same

I don't own Transformers or any brands/movies/shows or anything like that referenced in this.

Chapter Nine: The Storm Within

Night falls over the abandoned courtyard. We're all just kinda sitting here, Ratchet, Bee, Skids, Mudflap, Mikeala and I, with no idea where to start what to do, or what to say. The small fire's cackles, the autobots' metal clanks, and the gate's creaking seem to be the only noises that dare be heard over the silence. I glance at Sam walking in from where I'm sitting next to Ratchet. He stops by us, and I purposely look away from his eyes. Sam hugs Mikeala, and I flick a pebble away, trying to focus on something else.

"There's nothing you could've done." Mikeala said gently to Sam.

"There's nothing anyone could have done." Ratchet murmured, grief overlapping with weariness in his vocal tones. He blamed himself, too, I knew it. I knew he feels like he should have been able to save Optimus.

"If you hate me, I understand." Sam muttered to Bumblebee and Ratchet, but mostly Bumblebee. He leaned against a wrecked, scrapped, junky car. "I messed up. I'm sorry."

"Young fella… you are.. the person I care about most in my life… if there's anything you need, I won't be far away." Bee says through his radio.

"He's dead because of me. He came in to protect-"

"Then it's my fault too." I said. "I was there too."

"No, Alex." My brother said sharply, and I flinched. "It wasn't. You weren't the one who chose to walk away. If I could go back and change this…"

"There's somethings you just can't change… his sacrifice for us would not have been in vain, hallelujah…" Bee responds.

"I'm going to make it right, I'm going to turn myself in." Sam said.

"But Sam-" I argue, but I fall silent after the look he gives me.

"We've got to stick together!" Bee transformed.

"You're not going to do that." Mikeala said. I leaned against Ratchet, elbows on my knees, resting my chin in my hands. Ratchet protectively scooped me up. We don't speak a word, but we don't have to.

"Yes, I am." Sam said.

"Everything we worked for will be wiped out, in one day… Do you want that?"

Sam glanced at Bee, seeming to understand what Bee was trying to tell him, then looked over at Ratchet, Skids and Mudflap. "You three,"

"Huh?" Skids asked, suddenly paying much more attention.

"You know the glyphs, the symbols rattling around in my head?" Sam asked.

"Oh that's old school!" Skids said. "Yeah, that, that's Cybertronian."

"No, no it's not Cybertronian." Ratchet interrupted. "At least, not the Cybertronian we speak and read."

"That's some serious stuff right there." Mudflap nodded.

"It's got to mean something, like a message or- or like a map to an energon source. Can you read this?" Sam asked.

"Read?" Skids asked.

"We don't really do much readin'." Mudflap said.

"I can't read it. Its from long before any of us came online." Ratchet responded. "but I've seen it before."

"If you guys can't read it, then we need to find somebody who can." Sam said.

"Oh look who came sashayin' back." Skids says.

"Hair growing like a chia-pet, look at him." Mudflap taunted.

"I had a bit of a mild panic attack earlier-" Leo tells us, as if we didn't notice.

"-A little?" I mumble

"That's 'cus you're a pussy." Mudflap says. Skids and Mudflap fist-bump.

"-I think I'm allowed that, considering what I've been through. I heard you have a problem, I think I know someone who can help."

"Who?" Sam

"Robo-warrior."

A little bit of a drive later, and the us four humans and four autobots are driving across the bridge to get into Manhattan.

"This guy, robo-warrior, everything about anything alien he's supposed to know. One time, we revenge hacked his site and maybe I saw some of your alien drawings or whatever." Leo told us.

We pull up to a deli.

"This is it?" I asked.

"Yeah, this is it. Deli, good front!" Leo nodded. "Wait here, I'll give you the go, no go. Alright?"

We walk in a few seconds later.

"It's him, It's him! That's the guy, right there! That's him!" Leo shouted and pointed.

"No freaking way." I say in shock.

The guy behind the counter is Agent Simmons, the guy from Sector Seven.

"No." Simmons' eyes widen.

"You've got to be kidding me." Sam mutters.

"Meat store's closed. Everybody out! Out right now!" Simmons yells. A lady seems like she's in no rush, so Simmons shoos her away. "That means you, lady, right now."

"Wait a minute. You know this guy?!" Leo demands.

"We're old friends." Sam responds.

"Or old enemies. Depending on the way you look at it." I mumbled.

"Old friends? You're the case that shut down Sector Seven, got the Kibosh disbanded. No more security clearance, no retirement, no nothing! All because of you, your sister, and your little criminal girlfriend. Look at her now, so mature." Simmons responds. Clearly, he looks at it as old enemies.

"Moron! Where's the whitefish?!" Simmons' mom yells.

"Hey! Don't touch me with the pig!"

"Yakov!" Simmons yells.

"What?" The guy with the meat pounder asks.

"You don't get Christmas bonuses standing around. You want those new teeth you saw on SkyMall?"

"It's my dream." The guy responds.

"Then help her out!" Simmons yells.

"You live with your mama?" Mikeala asks after the whole spectacle is over.

"No, my mama lives with me, it's a big difference. They got your faces all over the new, alien boy." Simmons tells us like we don't already know. "And NBE one's still kicking, huh? How'd that happen? Don't answer, I don't know what you're hiding but I don't want anything to do with it. So good-bye, you never saw me, I got bagels to schmear. Vanish." With that, Simmons starts walking away.

"Can you give me five seconds? Look, hold on, I need your help" Sam says.

"Really, you need my help?" Simmons takes off his hat.

"I need- look, I am slowly losing my mind." Sam says, snatching off his own hat. "I had a little crab 'bot plunge a device deep into the soft tissues of my brain, and started projecting symbols like a freaking home movie, and on top of that I'm a wanted fugitive, so you think you've got it rough?"

"You said it projected images off your brain?" Simmons asked.

"It was wild, you should've seen it." I mutter sarcastically.

"Meat locker, now!" Simmons leads us there.

"Dead pigs." Leo says.

"Yuck." Mikeala responds.

"Ew, gross." I frown.

"What you're about to see is top secret. Do not tell my mother." Simmons says in a serious tone.

"Swine flu, not good." Leo mutters.

"Next time you eat a goat or a pig, there's a story behind it." Simmons responded. "Sad little story."

"I think It'll be a while before then." I say with disgust as we all climb down the ladder into Simmons' basement.

"Okay, files, files. We're talking about symbols." Simmons muttered.

Leo reaches out to touch the glass case Frenzy's decapitated head, but Simmons smacks his hand with a folder. "Still radioactive, hands off."

"Ok, cube brain." Simmons says to my brother, and dramatically opens the files. "Any of these look like the symbols you saw?"

"Where'd you get these?" Sam asked.

"Before I got fired, I poached S-7's crown jewel." He climbed up a ladder to grab another file. "75 years of alien research which points to one inescapable fact. The Transformers, they've been here a long, long time. How do I know?" He tossed a book down, and Leo catches it. "Archaeologists found these unexplained markings in ancient ruins all over." He says as he climbs down.

"China, Egypt, Greece." He flips through pictures and sets them out for everyone to see. "Shot in 1932." He puts on a tape with more of the symbols. "These are the symbols you're seeing in your head?"

"Yeah." My brother nodded.

"Same ones over here, right?" Simmons explains. "So, tell me, how did they all end up all drawing the same things, huh? Aliens, and I think some of them stayed."

"Check this out, Project Black-Knife." He opens another folder and takes out more picture, this time of cares. "Robots in disguise, hiding here all along. We detected radioactive signatures all over the country. I pleaded on my knees with S-7 to investigate it, but they said the readings were infinitesimal, that I was obsessed. Me, can you imagine that?"

"Yeah." Leo mumbled.

"Megatron said that there was another Energon Source here, somewhere." I said.

"On earth? Another source"

"On earth. Okay?" Sam confirmed. "And that these symbols, maps in my head would lead him there."

"Did you talk to your Autobot friends about this?"

"Yeah, but the source is before them. Whatever the Energon source is, it predates them." I explained. "They don't know what it is."

"So, it comes before them?" Simmons asks.

"Yeah." Sam and I nod.

"Well, then we're porked, unless we can talk to a decepticon. I mean, I'm not on speaking terms with them." He jokes.

Mikeala and I exchange glances. Wheelie.

"Actually." She says. "We are."

Mikeala and Sam go to get Wheelie.

When they come back, Wheelie is banging on the box. "Let me out!"

"This is going to be a little bit sad." Mikeala explains.

"Open it." Sam orders, and Wheelie jumps out screaming.

"Hey, Behave!" Mikeala takes out her blow torch. Darn it, there's no grinders here.

"What is it, a decepticon?" Sam asked.

"Yeah," Mikeala responded.

"No," I responded with dry sarcasm. "it's a little science fair project."

"And you're training him?" Sam asked, ignoring me.

"I'm trying to."

"I've spent my whole adult life combing the planet for aliens, and you're carrying one around in your purse like a little Chihuahua." Simmons said, dumbfounded.

"Huh?" Wheelie growled. "Do you want a throwdown in public, 'fro-head?"

"I'm sorry. I'm so sorry about your eye. You know, if you're a good boy, then I'm not gonna torch your other eye. Okay, I'm not gonna torch it." Mikeala explains. She pointed to the symbols. "Just tell me what these symbols are, Please?"

"Alright. Ah, I know that, that's the language of the primes. I don't read it but these guys..." Wheelie knelt down and looked at the symbols, tapping them with his little fingers. "Where the frick did you find photos of these guys?"

"Is this them?" Sam asked.

"Yeah, seekers, pal. Oldest of the old. They've been here for thousands of years lookin' for something. I don't know what, nobody tells me nothing, but they'll translate those symbols for you, and I know where to find 'em."

"Show us." I demand.

"Yeah, chill out, Phoenix." Wheelie said, stretching his little arms, and projecting laser dots on the map on the wall. The closest one was in DC.

"The closest one's in Washington." Simmons pointed out.

"Road trip?" I suggest.

On the way there, I realize my grandparents must be worried sick. After all, I only left a voice-mail about where I went with Mikeala, and explained that it had to do with our alien friends. I never got to actually talk to them, since they didn't answer right away. Now if they tried to call my phone, they would be able to, since I ditched it.

"Sam!" I tapped his shoulder. "Grandma and grandpa must be worried sick!"

"About what?" He asked.

"Me!"

"You didn't tell them?"

"No! I only left a voicemail."

"They're fine, Alex." Sam muttered.

"No! They worry- they're… old. Old people worry a lot."

"Can't worry about that now." Sam said. "We're here."

We all get out of Bumblebee. Ratchet and the twins pull up behind us.

"Smithsonian Air and Space Museum." Simmons said. "Land of dreams in there. All I ever wanted to be was an astronaut."

Then he grabbed a case of undercover James Bond type stuff, though I think he'd be more like Johnny English.

"Watches synchronized, sharp mind and empty bladder." Simmons instructs and I face-palm. "you get caught, demand and attorney and don't ever say my name."

"Okay, take one of these pills, slip it under your tongue." Simmons tossed a pill container at my brother. "It's the high-concentrate polymer they put in Oreo cookies. Tricks the Polygraph every-time."

Simmons picked up a clunky taser, while Leo starts to have a panic attack. "Ok, let's get this show on the road."

"Whoa, Whoa!" Leo stutters when Simmons turns on the taser. "No, listen, I can't do this."

"I'm not some alien bounty hunter, guys. I'm not gonna do this." Leo freaks out. Simmons pushes him until he backs into Skids. "guards have gun, I don't want to die."

"Kid, kid, kid, you compromise this mission, you are dead to me." Simmons tells him. "Now, look into my eyes and get yourself together."

Inside the museum, Sam, Mikeala and I sneak past the guards as Leo walks out of the bathroom with his pants down. Oh my gosh, he's crazy and weird.

"Yo, baba! Bad news, bro, ran out of toilet paper. You got any out here, please tell me you do?"

"Sir! I suggest you get in there, the museum is closed!"

We sneak into the exhibits and hid by one of the jets. Once it was clear, we came out of hiding.

"You are an amateur, man, a rank amateur!" Simmons groused from across the Museum, rather loudly.

Sam starts going through a bag.

"We just downed five guards. Five guards." Simmons informs us. "Get your stuff and get out of here."

"Give me a second here." Sam tells him.

"I got to get the track, alright."

Mikeala lets Wheelie out. "Be good."

"I'm claustrophobic!"

Sam takes out the cube splinter and Simmons grabs some sort of tracker thing.

"This feels just like Men in Black!" I say.

"The consequences are real, kid." Simmons groused.

"You think I don't know that?" I responded.

We ran through the museum, until everyone got to the SR-71 Blackbird exhibit.

"You got what I got?" Simmons asked.

"Yeah."

"Blackbird."

"There he is." Wheelie said. "This guy's a legend. Like the chairmen of the board. Yo, freshmen, point the shard and watch the magic happen!"

The Allspark fragment flew out of the tweezers Sam held it in, and made the Blackbird flash with Allspark energy.

Mikeala and Sam ran towards it, but I could see a decepticon symbol by the landing gear. "IT'S A DECEPTICON!" I yelled.

"Decepticon?!" Simmons gasped. "Behind the MiG now!"

He transformed, yelling and babbling. Parts fall off him and pieces fall off.

"What sort of hideous mausoleum is this?" He exclaimed.

Wheelie runs into us but I grab his little RC truck mode and keep him from going anywhere.

"Answer me, pawns and knaves! Show yourselves or suffer my ininfinite wrath!"

I let go of Wheelie and we all step out from the MiG.

"You little spinal-cord-based organisms," Jetfire groused, grumbling and not staying on a coherent train of thought for over a minute. "Behold, the eternal glory of Jetfire! Prepare for remote systems override."

"I'm telling you, this guy did not age well." Wheelie told me.

"Kinda makes you feel grateful for what you have, don't it?" I responded. He nodded.

"I don't think he's gonna hurt us." Mikeala says.

"I don't think he remembers how." I say, deadpan.

"I command these doors to open!" Jetfire yells, shaking his hand. "Fire, I said fire!"

A missile flies out of the back of his arm. It crashes into something.

"Bollocks!" He shouts. "Damn these worthless parts!"

We follow him out into the plane boneyard just outside the hangar. Ratchet, Bee, and the twins see us and drive over from the parking lot.

"Itchy, wretched, rust in my arse!" Jetfire complained as he hobbled around.

"The museum is going to very angry. Very angry. We gotta catch that plane!" Simmons yelled.

"He's not going very fast!" I shouted as our four autobot friends pull up behind us.

"Right, I'm on a mission." He says, turning around to keep walking away.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Sam shouted

"What do you want?" He asked.

"We just want to talk!" I yelled.

"I've got no time to talk! I'm on a mission, I'm a mercenary doom-bringer- What planet am I on?"

"Earth." I say. "The little blue marble."

"Earth? Terrible name for a planet. Might as well call it "Dirt". Planet "Dirt". Tell me, is that robot civil war still going on? Who's winning?"

"The Decepticons." Sam told him.

"Well, I changed sides to the autobots." Jetfire informed us.

"What do you mean, changed sides?" Sam asked incredulously.

"It's a choice, an intensely personal decision." Jetfire informed. "So much negativity. Who wants to live a life filled with hate? At least the Autobots want peace."

"You mean you don't have to work for those miserable freaking decepticons?" Wheelie asked.

"If the Decepticons had their way, they'd destroy the whole universe."

"I'm changing sides, I'm changing sides, too, warrior goddess." Wheelie tells Mikeala, hugging onto her leg. "Who's you're little autobot?"

"Aw, you're cute." Mikeala said.

"Name's Wheelie." He says, but then Ratchet honked his horn loudly, scaring the ever-living spark out of Wheelie before anything he does can get above a PG rating. Wheelie wasn't happy, and starts cussing him out colorfully in Cybertronian.

"What were you saying?" Sam asks Jetfire before we get too off-track.

"I told you my name was Jetfire!" He yelled, lunging toward us. We all fall back, yelling. "So stop judging me!"

"Nobody was judging you!" I yelled back. "So stop scaring the slag out of us!"

"Somebody shit the bed this morning." Wheelie muttered.

"No kidding." I muttered back.

"I have issues of my own!" Jetfire says.

"Are they world-ending issues?" I hissed. "Because if they aren't, then get in line! We've got world-ending issues right now!"

"It started with my mother!" Jetfire goes on, ignoring me. "My ancestors have been here for centuries. My father, he was a wheel, the first wheel. Do you know what he transformed into?"

"No." I respond irritably.

"Nothing! But he did so with honor, dignity- damn it!" Jetfire's parachute deploys, making a noise that reminds me of a fart, and the parachute caught the wind and he fell onto his back.

"What on earth is happening?" I blinked with bemusement. Is this even real? This definitely doesn't feel real. I must be dreaming or… nightmaring? Is that a real word? It should be, because it describes this perfectly. Actually, a fever dream would be more accurate.

"Bollocks." He complained. "My boosters are fried."

"I think we can help each other." Sam told him. "You know things I don't know, I know things you don't know, I do."

"I don't think he knows anything. Honestly, I don't." Leo tells him.

Sam starts tracing his symbols into the sand. "I could do this all day. It comes in waves, these vivid symbols. They're symbols, but they're in my mind. You see, all this is in my mind, and Megatron wants what's in my minds. Him and someone called the Fallen."

"The Fallen?!" Jetfire screeches, gesticulating wildly. "I know him! He left me here to rust! The original Decepticon, he's terrible to work for. It's all always apocalypse, chaos, crisis. These Transcriptions, they were part of my mission, the Fallen's search. I remember now! For the Daggers tip- and- and the key!"

"Wait, slow down, the Dagger's tip, the key?" I asked. "What are you talking about? Can't you explain what's going on?"

"No time to explain, everybody stay still or you'll die!" He shouted, kneeling over.

There's a blinding flash. And then suddenly we aren't in the museum's backyard anymore.