Galvatron stood at the bridge of his warship, Cyclonus and Scourge beside him. His eyes flashed a deep red hue, the sound of his teeth grinding made his crew uneasy. When the Renegades departed Earth they followed without a second thought. It was more out of personal affront than concern over any plan Blane could have been formulating. Galvatron’s thoughts were simple at first: Find. Destroy. As they continued Cybertron, his anger faded enough for him to think, and he opened communications with Cybertron. Shockwave received his instructions, giving a simple nod of understanding before killing their connection and setting plans into motion. He never had to be told twice, never needed things explained, nor did he question Galvatron’s resolve-unlike some of his followers. Starscream’s absence had been noted, but not dwelled upon. The seeker was known for this, disappearing in the midst of an important fray only to turn up later with delusions of a magnificent coup. The thought would have been cause for concern under normal circumstances. Now it only made him grateful for the inhibitor files he had hard-wired into Starscream’s mainframe.
“My lord, how will we know when we’ve found the Renegades?”
“Galvatron chafed at the question. Sometimes Scourge could be so simple. “Believe me, when they’ve been detected, we’ll know.”
“Why did they not attack us as we left Earth? They must know we would pursue.”
“Blane is either too arrogant to care, or he’s being very clever. I’m not inclined to believe he’ll make a move on us until we reach Cybertron.” Galvatron kept a nagging suspicion to himself. Granted, Blane most likely wanted to make it to Cybertron before renewing any hostilities, but should he notice the Decepticons in pursuit, the chances of him actually trying to destroy this ship was slim to none-because Blane wanted him. He recalled the look in Blane’s eye during their first encounter on Earth, in a twisted way he was a rival sibling, both of them spawned from different pasts but their lives had been changed after they encountered Unicron. Whether Blane knew he was doing it or not, he was looking to assert his dominance. And though Galvatron hated to admit it, he sought the very same thing. His Decpticons still followed him, but how long had it been since they looked at him with both respect and fear? How long had it been since he felt he was the true leader of his people? It had been frighteningly easy for Starscream to gather enough followers in his attempted revolt, who was to say they wouldn’t turn on him again? He gritted his teeth, remembering his battle with Blane. So many mistakes had been made-mistakes he resolved would not be made again.

***************
CYBERTRON:

“No anomalies detected. Onslaught, adjust settings to 65 and re-scan area 8591.”
“Shockwave, we’ve scanned that sector 20 times,” Onslaught gestured towards the monitor, hesitant, but insistent, “There’s nothing there.” He leaned closer to the screen, “I don’t see anything. I believe our efforts would be better spent expending our search to include-”
Shockwave’s single yellow eye flashed and silenced the Combaticon. He’d been staring at that one location since the initial readings came through and insisted on them scanning it over and over… and over. “You do not know what you are looking for, Onslaught. Fortunately, I do.”
“What then?”
Shockwave said nothing, only stared at readings being delivered by the probes floating in Cybertron’s immediate atmosphere. Data raced across the screen in crisscrossing patterns, the information gibberish to anyone besides himself.
The intruders were there, he just needed a hint to determine exactly where. Galvatron’s instructions had been explicit-keep the Renegades away from Cybertron-by any means. Shockwave, in the interest of logic and loyalty, was determined to do just that. The Renegades would not breach their defenses, would not destroy their capital city of DarkOre as the Guardians had Iacon.

DarkOre Central, the most recently constructed Decepticon city, was named so because of the extremely dense, extremely dark metal that colored its appearance. Now, in the new times of peace, DarkOre Central was where most Decepticons had drifted to. The slow integration of Autobots into what were once Decepticon controlled territories during the war chafed members of both factions; it had not been an easy transition. The Decepticons withdrew from Iacon, a placating gesture that kept the Autobots from wondering what the Decepticons were spending so much time building in the further reaches of Cybertron.They didn’t call it a ‘Decepticon’ city out loud, the verbal summary was simply ‘a place where all are welcome to marvel at the wonders of Decepticon craftsmanship.’ Every street, every building, tower and factory painstakingly built by the Constructicons, they reveled in the chance to ply their craft without restraint.
But few Autobots dared enter, unspoken prejudices and grudges kept them at bay. That was fine, it was exactly what the Decepticons wanted. They remained at ease, nestled within the darkened cluster of buildings that stretched towards space.
When the antagonizing politics of the Autobots became too much to deal with, DarkOre was where Decepticons went. Recently however, Autobot interest in the new metropolis was growing to levels that bordered on obsession. The completion of the OreTower garnered more intrigue than they had planned, and with good cause-the titanic structure jutted from the center of the city, large enough to be seen from miles away. The tower was segmented, ridged with deep, thick plates of armor. Hexagonal in shape, every section outfitted with large, oval discs, each a rich, yellow and gold hue. They were decorative-as far as the Autobots needed to know. There was no reason for them to be aware of the solar energy the panels harvested, nor the various caches of energon carefully pocketed throughout the city. And if the Autobots remained unaware of the tower’s ability to channel energy reserves into its ‘decorative’ discs, who would it really be hurting? Should the Autobots feel the need to insist upon an investigation of the facilities, the tower could drain every ounce of its energy reserves into the energon pools beneath the city, making it a purely decorative fixture. It was perfect.

Shockwave was pulled from his thoughts by Onslaught. “Shockwave, if the GoBots are gathering above DarkOre Central, should we not pool our forces here?”
“Negative. The Autobots instinctively cluster, allowing their enemies to cripple them with one fell swoop. We, however, have merely doubled our defenses here in DarkOre. To summon everyone would be foolhardy, I will not risk this being a diversionary tactic. Logic dictates a higher chance of repelling an assault if our remaining forces are evenly distributed and on high alert, eliminating the chance of being caught off-guard elsewhere.”

***************
THRUSTER:

"Coordinates reached, Cybertron in sight."
“I want to be above the biggest gun they’ve got. This it?”
“Long range analysis has detected the highest energy deposits and concentration of both active and inactive weaponry in the city below. Myriad Decepticon energy signatures detected.”
"Excellent!" Crasher looked to Blane, almost giddy with anticipation, "Time to run roughshod!" she rubbed her hands together, “Those peons don’t suspect a thing, this is too perfect!”
“Yeah.” There was no smile on Blane’s face, his eyes were locked on the screen, “It is, ain’t it?”
Space was just that-space. Blane hadn’t seen anything surrounding Cybertron, and it bothered him. Where was the army of angry Transformers? If anything, he expected a welcoming committee from the Decepticons. No doubt Galvatron had called ahead to give someone warning.
Four cloaked Thrusters drifted in line with Blane’s transport, he opened communications with all of them. Four flickering green panels lit up in Thruster’s control room. Buggyman stared out at Blane, his silver face almost split by a smile. Bright blue metal clung tightly to his frame, revealing small portions of black and silver. A set of thin tires rested on his forearms and legs, he looked forward to testing out his new alternate vehicle mode.
A black slash of a visor covered his eyes, but the smile he wore told all.
“We ready to drop Blane? Everything looks clear.”
“No.”
“No?!” Stinger’s new golden face blinked into view on the second screen. His visor remained a red band that stretched from ear to ear, adding an almost tangible malice to his already foul demeanor. “Blane, we got em on a silver platter, and you showed us these chumps ain’t nothin’! he pointed to Spoiler, whose red coloring matched Stinger’s visor as he poked his head onscreen. “Right?!”
“Yeah Blane, we all watched you whoop the chrome outta Galvastooge! They ain’t nothi-”
“Both of you shut your traps.” The third screen displayed a bulky, gruff looking machine sneering behind his gleaming mask. Eyes bright green, orange and beige hunks of metal laced his oversized shoulders. Two massive, flat spikes of metal jutted from his back. Spoons’ glare could be felt all the way from the Thruster he occupied, Spoiler and Stinger fell silent. “If Blane says stay, we stay. He says smash, we ask how hard.”
“Agreed.” The fourth and final screen revealed a thin, angular gray face. Yellow eyes thrummed with energy. Skyjack crossed his arms, “Spoons remembers who’s in charge. Blane, our Thruster is detecting a network of small metal pods floating about the area, they might be probes or satellites.”
“What’re they doin’?”
“We don’t know. They’re powered on, but they’re just floating there.”
Stinger punched a fist into an open palm, “Want us to shoot one down?! C’mon Blane, I’m itchin’ to break somethin’!”
“Real smart, lower your cloak and shields to shoot,” Spoons grunted, “Let’s paint a bullseye on our hulls while we’re at it.”
A network of lasers burst from what they thought were probes, forming an intricate web of dancing lights. They took on a pattern, then went dark, only to light again in another formation.
“What is this?”
Blane’s eyes darted about the display “They’re lookin’ for us.”
“How do you figure?”
Skyjack leaned away from the screen, checking his own monitors. “Look at the way the lights connect, if something breaks the pattern-”
Stinger’s screen stuttered and degenerated into static. Onscreen visuals showed why. The Thruster the Renegades manned was alight with explosions, having crossed a laser beam and revealing its location. It was under attack not only from the space probes, but another ship. An oversized Decepticon symbol shone on the hull, and Blane’s eyes narrowed with recognition.
“Galvatron, you slickster.”
“Blane, special anomalies detected, current analysis-we are surrounded.”
“The heck-”
Space itself took on visible static, Blane realized the second purpose of the discs. They were projectors, delivering a false image of empty space while masking the decepticon warships. Gunfire erupted from nowhere and everywhere at once, Spolier’s Thruster dropped its cloaking field, revealing itself completely to the enemy.
“Dammit Stinger keep your shields up!” Blane roared as Thruster’s visuals adjusted, revealing a small armada of Cybertronian ships, weapons blazing, they were honing in on Stinger’s Thruster, unloading their arsenals into its siding. They were only a fraction of its size, but the weaponry they fired was making huge indentations in its black armor. Galvatron’s own warship approached from behind, the front of the vessel alive with gunfire.

***************

Galvatron didn’t realizing he was sneering. The Thruster that broke into the probe’s network dropped its cloaking and force field the second it was discovered and began firing at the oncoming fleet. It was a disturbing sight, the battle ship was probably more accustomed to having ships land on it, not attack it. Despite its massive size limiting its maneuverability, its arsenal was impressive. Its initial onslaught struck and disabled a number of probes, revealing the entirety of the Decepticon fleet. Though it was a little too thinned for his liking, he realized Shockwave must have spread their force in strategic pockets to guard against an attack elsewhere. He appreciated the foresight, there was no way of knowing how many transports Blane had at his command. The reports he received from Shockwave stated that dozens of Gobot transports had attacked Iacon.
But his fleet was doing their job, and he wondered if Blane was on this particular transport, it looked just like the one on Earth. There was no way of telling, but the wanton sprays of energy unloading from its cannons certainly seemed like something the chaotic Renegade would do. Perhaps he wasn’t on board, but then, why take that chance?
“Full power to weapons, controlled aim, target its main cannons.”
It was time for phase two.

***************

The side panels of Stinger’s Thruster went ablaze with light and it retaliated, unloading its cache of missiles towards its attackers. The oncoming army spread apart, only a few ships struck by the assault, and continued their relentless assault. Each one boasted the Decepticon symbol.
“Blane!” Skyjack’s image flickered, “The satellites, they’ve reconfigured themselves. Our Thruster has detected a large energy sheet forming above and below us.”
“How ‘bout that,” Blane checked the Thruster’s monitors, “They’re tryin’ t’ lock us in place.”
“If we’re locked in,” Spoons’ voice was thick, his anger rising, “Then so are they.”
The next moment his Thruster dropped its cloak and fired upon the Decepticon fleet, gaining their attention as well.
“Blane,” Skyjack almost sounded antsy, “Shall I engage as well? The sooner we wipe them out-”
“Hold off, not yet. You and Buggyman stay cloaked ‘till I say.” He looked up, “Thruster, drift to Stinger’s location, close as y’ can.”
“Blane!” Stinger’s screen reappeared, his visor was cracked, a dent marred his faceplate, “We’re takin’ heavy fire, major damage t’ the fuel lines, we-GAH!”
“Raise your fluxin’ SHIELDS Stinger!”
“They’re damaged! We’re so bolted, game over-”
“Don’t you freak on Renegade, raise what y’can, Spoons’ is on the way!”
“Blane, we- aw man the hull’s broke-” His image was flickering in and out, distorted with heavy black bands, his audio was becoming a frantic warble. They couldn’t tell if it was the connection or Stinger himself. His mask was melting, the bridge of his Thruster red with raging flames inside. Stinger fell, disappearing as Stallion crawled into view. What used to be vibrant blue metal was scorched and falling away from his frame, piles of melted rubber dripped down his shoulders.
“Blane sir, Spoiler is not responding sir. Stinger sir is not moving sir. Orders sir?”
The front of Stinger’s Thruster burst into dying flames from within, long lines of white light raced across its body. The Decepticons continued their assault, tearing large hunks of metal from the ship’s exterior. It still returned fire, but it was losing weapons two at a time. Though much smaller than Spoiler’s Thruster, the Decepticon warships proved to be faster, much more maneuverable against their larger foe.
“You hang on!” Blane ground his teeth, debating. Spoons’ Thruster was close enough to provide cover fire, but what about his own Thruster, would it be worth the risk to drop stealth and join in? That could be what the Decepticons were waiting for, it was no accident that they swarmed all over Stinger. His hands gripped the console, eyes darting across the screens displaying his crew.

Spoons’ Thruster let a hail of fire fly from its weapons, watching the area around Spoiler’s ship erupt in a red-orange cloud. It moved forward, all guns blazing into the darkness of space, his weapon systems targeting anything that might be moving.
Spoons re-appeared on the monitor before Blane. “What’s goin’ on with the Thrusters?!”
Blane cocked an eye.
“This one’s not doing what I tell it t’do.”
“Do not presume to give me orders, Renegade.”
Spoons’ face faded from view, replaced by a face similar to Thruster’s. This one was red, deep yellow indentations for eyes, the hint of a nose, a squared chin.
“I know what needs to be done.” Spoons’ Thruster shuddered, still under fire from the Decepticon ships, then changed modes, splitting down the center, legs folding from its underside as its arms twisted and pulled free of its upper deck. A chest snapped together and revealed the crimson colored head with a flash. It swung an open hand and slammed one of the Decepticon battleships, it burst through the siding and buried itself deep within. An orange mushroom of light bloomed from the ship and it blew up in his grasp.
Blane’s Thruster immediately opened a smaller, hidden communication window within the new persona.
“Who are you? Why did you not answer my initial queries?”
“We did not know what to say.”
“We?”
“Yes. We. We will talk later. Until then… Thruster, I am Smasher.”

***************

Galvatron’s ship plowed into the side of Spoiler’s Thruster, burying itself in the ship’s thick siding. Reverse engines kicked in, and it forcibly yanked itself free, pulling shattering lines of metal away as it did so. The next instant it open fired, releasing a brilliant pulse of energy that traveled into the hole it created and detonated within. The explosion spewed from the hole and ripped the Thruster’s side open. Another explosion sent it drifting down towards the energy net, it smashed into the smooth looking stretch of vibrating energy, every surface that touched erupted on impact.

It was a breathtaking sight. Spoiler’s Thruster cracked along its side, snapping in two as its weight crushed it into the energy field. White lights splayed from the impact point as the energy net strained but continued to hold. Spoiler’s Thruster exploded, the shockwaves slammed into the closest ships, rocking them violently.

***************

Thruster’s rage was boiling over, she couldn’t stand watching a Renegade transport be destroyed. What if it was sentient like her and Smasher? What if it, like her for a time, was simply following orders until it thought the time was right to try to speak? Now she would never know-and she blamed the Decepticons for the loss.
“No!” Thruster’s voice boomed through the control room, shaking them all.
“What’s going on?” Crasher steadied herself against the wall, “Are we under attack? Blane, we…” her words faded. Blane’s eyes were wide, wider than she thought possible. His teeth clenched so hard she thought they would bend inward at any moment, he ground them once, eliciting a spray of sparks. He was silent, but his whole frame shook.
The Renegades present instinctively dove for cover as Blane threw his arms wide and roared, the sound chilled them. They looked on in horror as he dug his fingers into the wall, yanked free a thick square of paneling and hurled it across the room with such force it stabbed into the opposite wall and quivered. Yellow plumes of energy spiraled from his eyes, he watched the remaining monitors and saw Galvatron’s ship was beneath them.
“SCUD’VA PITT!!” He screamed at the image, fists brilliant spheres of light, “You owe me Renegades you Pud-sucker!”
Blane felt the floor shaking, he could sense Thruster’s fury. She just watched one of her own get destroyed and had no idea if it was sentient or not. Blane placed a hand to Thruster’s control panel, double-checked their position, then screamed. “Get ‘im girl!”
With a roar that was inaudible in space, Thruster changed modes and dropped her stealth field. Her boosters ignited and propelled her forward, she saw Galvatron’s ship nearing, the wretched thing responsible for ending another Thruster’s existence. The Decepticon ship turned towards her, almost facing her when it unloaded a painful, burning barrage of plasma fire into her siding. Thruster’s armor was lit with dents and burns from the assault, almost staggering her, but didn’t stop her descent. The vessel was large compared to the other warships, but still only a fraction of her size. She grasped the Decepticon ship and wrapped her arms around it, squeezing until she could see the stress cracks snaking across its hull. She redirected herself towards the energy wall and headed towards it, Galvatron’s ship held in front of her.

***************

Smasher watched the assault, the other battleships were beginning to head towards Thruster. She clasped what he surmised to be the most important one in her arms, he saw the intensity of their assault increase in direct proportion to the pressure she applied to it. He raised his hands, a panel on each forearms flipped and revealed dual barreled cannons, armed and glowing with energy. He fired on the Decepticon they would give him their attention or be destroyed.

---------------------

“Galvatron,” Cyclonus worked the controls, they spat a cluster of sparks at him, “what do we do?! If we hit the net we’ll be destroyed!”
Galvatron clenched his teeth and glanced at a monitor that suddenly jumped to life. Blane’s face was contorted by the thick crack in the glass, that feral sneer had returned, a light puff of foam clustered in the corner of his mouth. His eyes were wild, they looked unseeing.
“That’s right, you Bolt-suckin’ Skrunk!” his voice blared, edged with static, “If we go down, you do too!!! You call it!”
Galvatron put his fist through the screen, anxious to do the same to Blane in person. He hesitated, saw the energy sheet growing closer, brighter than he imagined at this range. They were heating up, illuminated by the purple haze cast by the sheet. That psycho Renegade was really going to do it, wasn’t he? Or rather, that’s certainly what he wanted him to think… His finger hovered over the ‘send’ key, then jabbed it and opened a channel.

-------------------

“I love a good game of chicken,” Crasher regained her footing, careful to leave some distance between herself and her seething leader, “Who’s gonna cluck first, Galvatron, or the energy field?”
“He’ll take it down.” Blane said, “Thinks I’m nuts, thinks I’ll take us all out.”
They stared at him, silent, questioning. Blane rolled his eyes. “C’mon!”

--------------------

Scourge could feel his inner bearings steaming, the heat was forcing him to use up his coolant, he glanced over at Cyclonus and saw him suffering silently. He would no more question Galvatron’s intentions than shut down his own mainframe. The other Sweeps cast worried looks at each other, the room covered in a thick purple glare as the wall loomed closer, closer still.
--------------------

Crasher’s laughter was beginning to fade. She glanced sideways at Cop-Tor, his concern was showing as well. Blane remained at the main monitor, eyes glazed, he seemed not to notice the heat that was beginning to distort the appearance of the room. This wasn’t funny anymore.

-------------------

“Galvatron…”

--------------------

“Blane…”

-------------------

“Shockwave, shut down the net, prepare for our re-entry.”
“Galvatron, what is our situation?”
“Dire, but not unexpected. You know what to do. In the meantime, let him think he’s gained some semblance of victory in this round. He has no idea what’s in store for him.”
“We’ve detected… inconsistencies in your immediate area. They are most certainly non-Decepticon vessels, but their numbers are inconclusive.”
“There are definitely more transports than the two we’re seeing.”
“That will soon be remedied.”
Shockwave waited for Galvatron to end the transmission, and considered the precautions he had taken. The advantages of the Renegades doing what they were doing were almost nonexistent, he wondered why they were bothering. Their strategy-if they even had one- was bold and reckless.
“Onslaught, join the Combaticons below. Position yourselves in defense pattern 9V.” He thought a moment. “Where are the Stunticons?”
“Blast Off has been trying to reach them for hours. You know they’re never around when you need them.”
A flicker of annoyance inched its way across Shockwave’s thoughts. The only thing consistent about the Stunticons was their inconsistency. He had considered modifying their cerebral circuits on more than one occasion.
He looked back at the tapering ring of fire in the sky, still puzzling over the tactical possibilities the Renegades might attempt to employ when he heard the door open. A distinct, echoing voice addressed him.
“Soundwave reporting.”

---------------------

Thruster felt herself being pulled towards Cybertron’s surface, her armored paneling heating up and smoking as she fell, still gripping Galvatron’s ship in her hands. Smasher followed, still exchanging fire with the remaining Decepticon warships as they drifted towards Cybertron. Blane’s face remained in a half snarl, he watched the monitor expectantly. “Told you he was a sussed narlie.”
Cop-Tor stood a safe distance from him, watching another monitor along the wall. “What do you think is waiting for us down there?”
“Whatever it is, it’s gonna be ugly.” A thin smirk shifted his face, “Good thing we’re uglier.” He patted Thruster’s control panel, “And Thruster here’s got some real nastiness inside her… don’tcha?”

--------------------

Shockwave stepped away from the monitor. “Soundwave, remain here in the tower, coordinate our communications and be ready to act on my word.”
Soundwave nodded, watching Shockwave enter the elevator and head for the roof of the tower.

-----------------------

Shockwave looked skyward, standing atop the smooth, domed roof of the DarkOre Tower. A gigantic, flaming form entered Cybertron’s atmosphere, humanoid, barely a head shorter than Trypticon by his estimates. No wonder it weathered the first wave of attack. It was clutching Galvatron’s ship in its hands, sharing the heat of reentry with the craft. It neared, blotting out the light beaming down on DarkOre Central when it raised Galvatron’s ship above its head, then hurled it from its grasp. The crumpled battleship spun through the air and careened towards the edge of the city, large dents pushed into its hull and marred its now non-functional engines. Thruster managed to right herself, her foot boosters slowing her fall. She looked down at the menacing tower and leveled her arm at it, a panel shifted and pulled back, an elongated cannon rose and rotated position, pointing forward.

Shockwave beheld the titanic Renegade with the same calculating stare reserved for all his challenges. He studied the cannon, it did not match the description Galvatron had given him. A variable they could deal with. There was a ridged slot near the base, it was glowing pink and crackled loudly, then began to emit something like a whine, but it was growing louder.
The whine became a shriek. Shockwave sampled the noise, filtered the disturbances and energy hums. “Starscream?”

***************

Starscream’s howls were lost as Thruster’s cannon powered up, his body strapped into the main power generator and glowing as energy coursed through him. A web of metal bars and cables spread from his shoulders, wired through his weapon systems and shackled him in place. The wretched Renegade transport was hijacking his null ray and replicating its configuration, using her own energy to modify and magnify the results. He could still hear Blane’s words drifting through his head-
Frag’ve a weapon, ain’t it?”
A wild scream came from the seeker as his body became a battery. A pink glow collected at the mouth of Thruster’s cannon, she aimed it down at the tower and fired.

***************

Shockwave didn’t flinch, only opened a channel to Soundwave.
“Now.”
Soundwave rested atop the tower’s main console in his tape deck mode, wired directly into their communications network as well as the building’s weapon systems.
“Initiating Operation: Repel.”
The tower came alive, the various oval discs set within its armor buzzed with energy as it drew power from the energon hotspots buried throughout the city. Two of the massive discs near the tower’s roof came alive with power, a dim thrum made the tower vibrate and glow. Two panels unlocked and rose, pointing two of the discs towards the descending Thruster.
Shockwave waited, the newcomers were so intent on the tower, they hadn’t noticed the four dark Guardian Robots rising from the underground armory beneath the structure. Silent black, gray and blue ancestors of Omega Supreme, one stood at each corner. Shockwave had gone through great pains to restore and improve these behemoths, now they would prove that they were worth the time he spent on them. Shockwave planted his feet, then transformed into his alternate form, a tremendous purple space cannon. His barrel pointed directly above, Thruster in his sights. In unison the Guardian Robots raised their right arms, each retrofitted with a dangerous, pointed cannon. Four spheres of light bloomed at their tips as they took aim and fired with Shockwave. At the same time, the Tower ignited its dual discs and unleashed a deafening blast.

The explosion was blinding.

---------------------------

Shockwave transformed back to robot mode and averted his eye from the thunderous white, explosive rapture erupting in the sky above DarkOre City. For a moment his optics caught the city in a surprisingly brilliant light, reminding him briefly of the short-lived Golden Age of Cybertron. Then the light subsided, and Shockwave returned his gaze to the sky. A thin worm of anger worked its way through his chest.

The green headed Thruster remained, but appeared distorted. He saw why; another Thruster had pulled itself in front of her, the combined blast of the Tower and modified Guardian Robots had all but destroyed it. Its stealth field dissipated, and its shields, already overpowered by the assaulting blast, faded. Geysers of fiery black smoke sprayed from the entry and exit wounds as it fell, its lights spasmodic. Apparently it was in the middle of changing modes when it was struck. It was missing the right half of its torso, the rest of the body so damaged it was literally falling apart at the seams. It had no head, only a charred circle where it once had been. Fire bursts raced across every connection joint, its legs blew free. One sailed to the right of the tower, landing a few miles away, the other shot in the opposite direction. They hit the ground with dual quakes and continued to burn as the rest of the body crashed.

Thruster’s ire was up again. She felt her modified null ray cooling down and immediately aimed at the titanic Guardian Robots, firing a single blast that struck a recovering titan. It fell backwards as the functional returned fire. Thruster lowered the wing panels in time to stop the brunt of the blasts, but it was a momentary reprieve, the energy burned deep into the metal, then shot through and struck her in the shoulder. The wound sprayed a shower of sparks and spun her. She raised her null cannon at the machines and felt the weapon begin to overhead. It thrummed, glowing orange, then red. She shook her arm and ejected Starscream, his body still physically networked to the overheating generator that allowed her to use his unique power. He was launched through the air and fell screaming into the city.

Blane turned and saw two shimmering astrobeam distortions appear. Dart and Slicks fell out of the air, Slicks in mid-sentence. “-ain’t dyin’ in vain man, I’ll shove an energy charge so far down their throats-!” he stopped when he collided with the floor, steaming, his new body dented and covered in burns. His left shoulder was on fire, he spun the wheel and put it out before leaping to his feet and rushing towards Blane. “Buggyman- he stayed behind when they hit us man, he’s crackin’ DEAD Blane! Dart’n’ I barely made it man! We gotta get outta here-”
Blane allowed Slicks to get close, then backhanded him and sent the rambling Renegade sprawling.
“Get a hold’ve your fraggin’ self.” He looked down at Dart, who was on his knees, shaking. He accepted Cop-Tor’s assistance and tried to stand. The cycle wheels on his back were charred, like the remaining red coloring of his upper body. Smoke drifted from his facemask when he tried to speak. “We… we saw it at the last minute. B-Buggyman and BlockHead took the controls, told us t-t-to go to the cargo bay and unlock everything, even the-”
Blane growled, “We’re done futzin’ around.” He wheeled around, Thruster called up new communication squares, displaying Spoons and Skyjack. “Skyjack, drop yer shields and change modes!” Instantly Skyjack’s Thruster changed. Like Smasher, its body looked male, its head was orange, the face blank save a pair of slit, red eyes. Blane jabbed a thumb at the Guardian Robots. “Skyjack, get rid’ve them. Spoons, see him?!” a small portion of the screen winked and gave an aerial view of Shockwave, he still stood atop the tower, watching them. “Get rid’ve him!”
“Allow me.” Another Renegade appeared beside Spoons, his bulk even greater than the ornery machine he stood next to. His face was feline in appearance, a scarlet helmet rested on his head. It was engraved, the design full of deep grooves that lead to the top of the dome. Most of his body consisted of an odd, almost translucent blue material, neither metal nor glass. His forearms and lower legs were the same hue of red as his cap, his clawed blue hands flexed as he spoke. Catsight had once been a mindless drone, a simple water cannon stationed on an abandoned Renegade island post. No longer.
Blane nodded. “Good. Do it.”

-------------

Though pleased to have done so much damage to the transport, Shockwave noticed the effects of Starscream’s null ray, which were becoming more visible by the moment. The blast was mostly dispersed by the Guardian Robots, but the fallout raced through two of them, they staggered unevenly as their systems raced to repair the damage. The Tower itself was crawling with lines of residual energy, pink webs of the null ray were streaking across its surface. The glow of the discs set within the metal wavered.

The trio of Thrusters stood their full heights, panels across their bodies slid open, and Shockwave watched, calculating the Decepticons’ odds of victory against the literal swarm of Renegades that were flying from the looming transports.
“RENEGADES!” Blane’s voice thundered from Thruster, he stood on her shoulder, arms spread towards the city of DarkOre, “Time to Rip, Roar and RAGE!”
Shockwave glanced down and saw the Combaticons, weapons drawn, waiting for his orders. Blitzwing and Astrotrain were rolling towards the tower, the Coneheads and Seeker soldiers purposely stationed on their respective rooftops. Shockwave’s voice carried through the communications hub Soundwave enhanced, he projected the message to the furthest reaches of the city, “Decepticons,” if it does not wear our insignia, terminate it!”

***************
UNECOM BASE OF OPERATIONS: FACILITY # 4189

Nick was furious.
“You had the Last Engineer here all this time?!”
Matt nodded, then almost came off his feet when Nick grabbed him by the front of his jacket.
“Why didn’t you tell us?!”
With an effort, Matt wrenched himself free and thrust an accusing finger at Nick and A.J. “Because you two were busy pouting and blaming me for everything that’s wrong in the world!” He wheeled and pointed at Leader-1, “And you weren’t talking to us anymore! What was I supposed to do?!”
“Okay Matt, okay.” Leader-1 raised a hand, but his eyes never left the tube in the center of the room, his voice couldn’t raise above a whisper, “Just tell us what happened to him.”
“We found him like this.” Matt paced in front of the large, fluid filled tube containing the Last Engineer. Blue light radiated from the vial, what remained of the old man drifted as if weightless, a tangle of wires branching from the end of his torso. His left eye was open and looked forward, but it was clouded and unseeing. Matt paused, glanced at the Last
Engineer, and continued. “When we didn’t hear back from you, any of you, I got UNECOM to fund a scout mission. We’d barely left the atmosphere when we encountered his ship, already on a crash course with Earth and moving too fast to intercept. When we found him we thought he was dead, by all accounts he should have been, but he’s a tough old bird.”
SmallFoot leaned forward, daring to place a finger to the thick glass, “And this is how you preserved him?”
“Like I said, we found him like this. Believe it or not, he’d done most of this to himself. We patched some of the connections when we got him back here, but… this was what made me think there was a reason you weren’t contacting us anymore. Now that I’ve heard what happened on New Earth, it makes more sense.”
“Has he spoken since… well…”
“No, but he does things.”
Scooter looked confused, “Meaning?”
“He…” Matt was silent a moment, then reached into his jacket, withdrawing a dull black Smith and Wesson semi-automatic pistol. He saw A.J. visibly tense and lean back slightly. The motion disturbed him more than he imagined the appearance of the gun disturbed her. For a brief moment his mind’s eye saw her lunging for him, wrapping her arms around his neck and twisting his head until a satisfactory snap was heard.
“Easy.” He heard himself say, eyes trained on her as he removed the clip and tucked it into his jacket pocket.
“We got him back here, but we didn’t know what to do with him. His craft, and this containment pod was years beyond any technology we had, so we did what we could with what we had and hoped it would hold. When we came back in the morning… lemme tell you, this is not how this room originally looked!” he gestured towards the tube and swept his arm about the room, “He did this. At first we didn’t know how, but, watch this.”
Carefully, he neared the glass cylinder, reversed his grip so he was holding the gun by the barrel, and held it out.
The Last Engineer’s clouded eye suddenly lit up, a blazing blue light shone brightly, and three coils of wiring came alive. They snaked from behind the tube, the ends leapt through the air and latched onto the gun. Energy slithered across the wires and traveled into the weapon as if it was receiving an injection. At once the metal peeled away from the weapon in thin, spiraling strips, revealing a network of newly formed circuitry beneath that matched the same blue glow coming from the Master Engineer himself.
They watched in shock as the metal pulled back onto the body, brighter than before, more polished. The handle extended, the underside subtly etched with grooves to improve the grip. The trigger folded into the handle, vanishing from sight. The barrel shifted and became an elongated triangular shape, a large indentation down the middle. The back end of the weapon sprouted two prongs that reached up and connected, forming a small circle at the end of the weapon. Two glowing ovals appeared along the base of the barrel as Matt reached out and took hold of the newly upgraded weapon. No sooner had he touched it, the small circle came alive, pooling lines of energy together in its center. A humming, glowing, tiny sphere gathered and spun.
“It doesn’t even need a trigger.” Matt whispered, “It’ll fire with a thought.”
He looked up at Leader-1 as the weapon powered down, the energy fizzling into nothing with the sound of a match hitting water. He didn’t like the expression Leader-1 wore.
“That’s how we’ve been able to keep advancing. He modifies almost anything we bring near him, we try to figure out how he did it and how to replicate it. He’s been really useful-” he halted, “I’m sorry, poor choice of words. Look, I know how this seems, but-”
“Is he in pain?” Leader-1 was kneeling beside the tube, inspecting the floating torso.
“We… we don’t know. I thought maybe Rest-Q could take a look or something, because we’ve tried communicating with him, but get nothing-”
A high pitched choking sound cut through the awkward exchange, Matt swiveled his head and saw Sparky backing away, a hand pressed to her mouth.
“By the stars above, I can’t… I can’t deal with…”
She almost tripped over a cable, stumbled, and ran from the room.
Matt frowned. “Sparky wait!” He made to go after her when Leader-1 held out a hand to halt him. “Let her go, this is a lot to take in.”
Turbo looked from the Last Engineer to Matt, then after Sparky. “This ain’t sittin’ too well with me either, I’ll talk to her.” He turned and left. Matt watched them go, then, “Leader-1, there is brain activity from what our medics tell us, but he’s never responded to anything we’ve tried. But just last week he started having moments of activity.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I’d be in here and within five minutes his eye would be open and he’d be watching me, tracking me around the room. Creeped me the heck out at first, but I tried talking to him-nothing. Since then he’s been more active, he can move his head around if he’s really intent on watching what you’re doing, but we still don’t know if he’s really there. I mean, this could just be heightened motor functions or something, we’re not sure if-” he froze. The Gobots were no longer focused on him, their attention was on Leader-1, who still remained kneeling beside the Last Engineer’s containment pod. He had placed his hand flat against the smooth curve of glass, and Matt’s jaw dropped when he saw the Last Engineer was doing the same. The ravaged remains of one arm had been reformed in a cluster of wires, raised and pressed flat against the glass separating his hand and Leader-1’s palm.

********
CYBERTRON: DARKORE CENTRAL:

Galvatron’s ship was a wreck, the velocity of their descent was increasing, that wretched Thruster must have been trying to hurl them out of the city. The escape hatches had been crushed and melted into their frames, they were useless, as was everything else in the ship. They were a giant, flying tomb.
“Does Blane really think it would be this easy?” Galvatron raised his weapon and fired. It struck the escape hatch and exploded, raining fragments of metal against him and his crew. Scourge and Cyclonus raised their weapons as well, joining Galvatron as he prepared to fire when a snarl from Hun-Grr demanded their attention.
“Galvatron not die, Terrorcons not die! Terrorcons want big monster GOBOT! UNITE!!”
“No you fools-” Cyclonus didn’t have time to finish, the Terrorcons ran to their leader and combined, the resulting gestalt formed on his knees, Abominus’ back arched and pressing uncomfortably against the ceiling. He growled, as if surprised to find himself in such a cramped space.
“Abominus not like CAGES!!” He stood, against the will of the ship’s metal walls, which creaked horribly and burst outward. The front of Galvatyron’s vessel exploded, Abominus launched himself into the sky, looked towards the oncoming Renegade forces in the heart of the city, and flew towards them, all the while shouting “Monster GoBot, Face ABOMINUS!!”
Galvatron, Cyclonus, and the Sweeps flew from what was left of the battleship moments before it slammed into a building, crashing through the structure and bringing it toppling down with a loud tremble. The sound of engines greeted them as they touched down.
Motormaster walked through the smoke, wisps of flame smothered beneath his feet as he approached.
“Having trouble?”
“What does it look like?” Galvatron glanced back at the wreckage, then up at the Tower. The Thrusters stood out against the city’s skyline, they were moving with a purpose. His eyes found Motormaster. “What are you doing here, this can’t be where Shockwave positioned you.”
Dead End’s spoke up, his voice toneless “We thought you were going to die. Not like it really matters, we all do eventually-”
“Shut up.” Motormaster growled, thought about it, then shrugged, “We did think that, look at your ship.”
“What kind of a weakling do you take me for?!” Galvatron pointed towards the Tower, “Go! Destroy anything in this city that is not a Decepticon!”
“Yeah, got it.” Motormaster turned to his group, “You heard the bot, Stunticons, transform!” They changed in unison, Wildride laughed as he revved his engine, “This is gonna be great!” They motored, heading towards the heart of the city.

************

Blane and Crasher raced across the heavily shaded streets of DarkOre city, studying the methodically crafted buildings and noted how they formed the city’s layout. Blane tucked away details of some designs, puzzling over any ulterior functions they may have served. This particular street was darker than the others, some of the roads untended and incomplete in certain areas. A gritty alleyway yawned into darkness, promting Blane to slow down. He felt a weak vibration in the road, then heard the faint sound of motors in the distance.
He killed his engine, then shifted into robot form, Crasher following suit. They backed into the alley, the sound of engines growing louder. The Stunticons careened down the street, Blane and Crasher caught blurred streaks of color as they rumbled past. Blane leaned forward, watching them disappear down the street. He gave Crasher a sideways glance. She smiled and spun, assuming her car form again, and tore after them.

************

METROPLEX:

Optimus Prime’s head was just shy of the ceiling in Pathfinder’s holding cell. The Gobot came back online shortly after he arrived on Earth, but refused to speak. She sat in the corner, knees pulled up to her chest, visor focused on the tip of her foot.
“What is Leader-1 planning?”
She said nothing, remaining eerily still.
“We know he’s on Earth, and we’ll find him-with or without your help. But this world is populated with innocent life. Do you really want them caught in the crossfire of a war that doesn’t involve them?”
Nothing. Visor still fixed on the floor as if she didn’t hear him. Did she hear him? He hesitated, then knelt beside her. His eyes kept glancing at her hands. He knew she was equipped with internal weaponry, all the Guardians seemed to be, but she hadn’t tried to blast her way out of the cell. He hoped she wouldn’t decide to try anything now.
“Cosmos tells me you repaired him.”
A quick flash in her visor. Good.
“That says to me you’re not a bad robot, you don’t want to see anyone suffer. Am I correct?”
Nothing.
“This war he’s pushed on us, you realize that this is not going to end well for anyone. Especially not for him.”
“He’s a hero.” She whispered.
Prime’s eyes flickered and narrowed. She could feel those eyes on her now, cold and blue like chips of ice. She could feel the anger radiating from him and heard the anger he tried to suppress when he spoke again.
“A hero doesn’t shake hands with someone, then shoot them in the back.”
Pathfinder brought her hands up around her shoulders and shifted a little further into the corner. “I don’t understand what he’s doing, but I believe in him.”
“You believe in someone who thinks it’s acceptable to take the lives of an entire planet?”
Nothing.
“What. Is. He. Planning?”
“I don’t know!” she cried, shaking her head “I don’t know! None of us knows exactly, he won’t tell any one of us everything.” She leaned back, her head tilted against the wall, and sighed, “He- he’s given us all… orders, a specific task, that’s it.”
“And what was your task?”
“Monitoring the outer regions of your atmosphere, take notes on who was going where, how often ships were coming and going. I was supposed to short out Cosmos.” She looked up at Prime, “I didn’t want to, I was worried about what could happen, so I tried to talk to him, I only wanted to talk!” She couldn’t read Prime’s eyes, did he not believe her? She lifted a hand and stared at it. The fingers came alive with a blue glow, “But, I’m not used to wielding this much energy, I-I wound up shorting him out anyway. That’s why I tried to fix him, I thought maybe the two of us could intervene before things…” she pulled up her knees and looked down at the floor, “…became what they are now.”
Optimus was quiet, the seconds stretched out long enough for Pathfinder to wonder if he had heard her at all. Suddenly he stood, then turned to leave.
“Earth is our second home you know,” Optimus stepped away, “We’ve made all the preparations necessary to make it our permanent one.”
Pathfinder tilted her head, “I don’t understand.”
“Unicron will not possess Cybertron. Our planet’s core is very unstable, we’ve seeded it with megaplasma bombs that we will detonate if we have to.” He heard her gasp. “We would miss it, but considering the alternative…”
“But there’s no need for that, if you and Leader-1 would just talk-” Pathfinder’s fingers tapped a few buttons beneath her arm. “I can patch you through to him directly if-” she stopped, checked her wrist and heard static. Of course, they were jamming all communications.
Optimus replied without looking back. “There doesn’t seem to be anything left to talk about. Leader-1’s made his choice, and in doing that, he’s made ours for us.”
She leapt to her feet “Wait!” Her cell door swung behind Optimus as he headed for Metroplex’s main control room. Grimlock and Slag, who had been guarding the cell, turned and followed him. She heard him tell two Autobots named Fastlane and Cloudraker to take the next watch.

****************
CYBERTRON: DARKORE CENTRAL:

Vamp hovered near the second leg blown off Buggyman’s Thruster, taking in the carnage. She gazed around the city of DarkOre, the nearby buildings reflecting the flames of the wreckage as well as the firefights erupting all around her. She watched her Renegade Mutants soaring overhead, smashing into plainly colored versions of the loud speaking jet that had called itself Starscream. She smiled, the other jets were speaking loudly as well, though they leaned more towards the scream end of the spectrum. She watched one, light purple and black, a red face and highlights, zip towards her. It raised its cannons, took aim-and howled in pain. Bladez appeared behind the Decepticon, a half-circle wing raised, the elongated spikes stabbing through the chest of his victim. The Decepticon’s mouth went wide, issuing a cloud of red and green smoke, and he slid off Bladez’s spiked weapon of choice. He regarded Vamp a moment, she smiled at what he must have been thinking, then watched him return to the battle.
Her smile faded. Of her hive, he was most determined to win her, and by all accounts, Bladez had proven to be the deadliest of her warriors; but he was not the destructive force she witnessed on Earth. He was not Grimlock.
She sighed, then glanced down. There were three oddly shaped Decepticons standing unusually close to the Thruster wreckage, they looked like they were actually enjoying the flames spilling onto the ground. The flames themselves seemed attracted to them, streams of orange and yellow pulled through the air and plunged into their bodies. One, a blue and white, rather stubby Decepticon, took and few paces back, then leapt into the fire. He jumped out moments later, covered in flames that were dying, seeping into its metal-which Vamp noticed, looked like it had been textured to resemble blue, organic skin.
The Firecons looked upward and saw the Renegade, her appearance alone was enough to send Falmefeather into a rage. Still absorbing the fire from his initial leap, he screamed at the green invader, then transformed into a bipedal, beaked monstrosity. His mode would have made the Terrorcons feel better about their own. He opened his beak, eyes wide as his spewed a stream of flame towards Vamp.
Vamp didn’t move, only watched as her faithful mutant Klaws swooped down in front of her, his massive, dark blue frame dwarfed her wiry body. Two tremendous, red ridged ovals curved over his forearms and stretched almost the length of his entire body. They folded shut over his body as he changed into his alien craft form, enclosing Vamp within. The fire washed over the armor and seared it, crawling over the surface and searching for any imperfection.
It was dark inside, only Vamp’s purple eyes and Klaw’s bulbous red orbs lit the gloom. Klaws smiled, he had gotten here before the other Mutants, they had become occupied with the Decepticons.
“I’m honored to be this near to you Vamp.”
“You please me greatly Klaws.” Vamp ran a long, razor edged claw beneath his chin.
FlameFeather roared at the other Firecons, who transformed into their bestial forms as well, mouths dripping fire. They moved to take flight when they were showered with laser blasts. A loud screeching came from above, Pincher, Bladez and Scorp cut through the air and targeted the Firecons with a relentless assault, the Decepticons fired back with equal aggression.
Cindersaur felt a sudden pain in his back, curled around and saw Creepy’s black claws buried in his metal. He snarled, Creepy snarled back. He was still mostly purple in color, only his yellow, malignant eyes shone against his face. Cindersaur opened his jaws and stretched them, then fired a blast of flame that ripped Creepy free of his arms and carried him into the air where he exploded in a shrieking fireball.
Cindersaur felt something else stab him, this time in the back. A pair of silver claws clamped around his throat, and from the corner of his eye he could see the bulky form of Scorp clinging to him. The mutant’s eyes were filled with rage, piercing, like his stinger, which now burst through Cindersaur’s chest. The Decepticon roared a final time before the furnace inside him went cold, the fire in his mouth fizzled, and he went limp in Scorp’s grip.

-----------------

A white car raced towards the battle, a bright Decepticon symbol shone on his roof. A black car, the same model as the first, joined its side. Runamuck and Runabout transformed in unison and landed in a crouch, pulling out dual cannons resembling the human bazookas on Earth. A wide sphere of blue energy collected at the mouths of their weapons, crackling with electrical energy.
“Shockwave special, comin’ your way!” Runabout shouted. They took aim at Klaws and fired, the twin bursts twirled about each other twice and exploded into the Renegade Mutant.

Klaws screamed, the electrical assault was heightened by the unknown energy modification Shockwave had made to the weapon. It leapt from him to Vamp, and he involuntarily reverted to robot form, unable to change again in time to stop her from falling.