Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It’s fall 2017 on Earth. The leaves are crisping, and the birds are chirping. People walk around in large crowds wearing thick sweaters, with that occasional nip in the air. Yet everyone has a smile on their face. Everyone seems to be happy. And no transformers to be seen.

What is going on in space, though? It is a calm and soothing atmosphere to the far reaches of the galaxy itself, with billions of stars deep. A million miles from Earth, there is nothing important. But if you can fly a trillion there’s a unique planet that’s slowly approaching your location. It will grow bigger, bigger, and bigger. This is Cybertron, and it is soon revealed that Megatron is the one flying there with a jetpack, with only one arm left, screaming at the planet, “Optimus Prime, I am coming!”

Cybertron is littered with battles going on between the Autobots and Decepticons. Optimus Prime is at an Autobot command station, delivering reports to fellow soldiers, such as Bumblebee (a small yellow vehicle bot) and Silverbolt (a silver bot with several wings and jet engines on him). Prowl (a police bot) runs into the station, “Sir, many in my group have been taking casualties due to a heavy-duty ion cannon, six clicks away from us”. Optimus Prime looks at Silverbolt, “Do you think your men can take it?” Silverbolt speaks, “I don’t know Optimus. With the Energon shortage and everything, the Arielbots are pretty roughed up currently.”. Then, a huge blast from another closer ion cannon hits next to the command station. Optimus looks up from the command station and is horrified to see all the mangled bodies and soldiers who are still alive after the blast from the cannon. Optimus Prime looks to see if everyone else in the station is fine, and in which states all start getting up. Optimus Prime looks over to Silverbolt, who just looks back and replies, “Give us a couple of minutes and we'll be ready soon.” he coughs up some oil in his hand. Someone yells for a medic. Optimus Prime looks distraught when a soldier who is not injured calls for him. The soldier speaks, “Alpha Trion needs to see you now, sir.”

A few minutes before the command station explodes. An orange, upset Decepticon with propellers on his back walks down a hall with a blaring siren, while a bunch of foot soldiers run past him. Then he runs into his friend, who is a purple vehicle Decepticon (a vehicon), who nudges him, “Rotorbolt, why, so glum you lousy rustbucket you?”. Rotorbolt looks at, “Overdrive, I’m thinking of leaving the Decepticons”. Overdrive takes him into a nearby room with nobody in it, cuffing his mouth. He removes his hand from Rotorbolt’s mouth. Overdrive speaks, “Are you crazy? You can’t say that kind of stuff here.” Rotorbolt speaks, “Yeah, I know, but I think I might go neutral. Probably even work at that bar in the High Council Pavilions of Iacon, what’s it called….” Overdrive speaks, “Maccadam's”. Rotorbolt speaks, “Yeah that’s the one!” Overdrive speaks, “I don’t know Rotorbolt this all sounds like a bit much, I’m not even sure you’ve thought this through.” Rotorbolt speaks, “Overdrive we’re fighting a war full of death we’ve lost so many fellow soldiers. And too many on both sides of the Autobots and Decepticons take it way too seriously, or they just see it as blind firing at a purely bad enemy that is just our brothers and sisters. This has almost fully converted our friend Skywarp. Trust me, I’m no Autobot. But I’m also no longer a Decepticon”. Skywarp (another purple Decepticon who resembles an alien-like fighter jet) then runs in and speaks, “Guys have been looking everywhere, I wanna show some of these new weapons I designed!”. Rotorbolt opens his mouth but then Overdrive cuts him off, “Look I know you’re uncomfortable with this but lets at least go check out our assignment as our last hurrah as a trio if you want to leave. And if there’s anything that remotely bothers you…” Rotorbolt speaks, “Fine, let’s go.” Overdrive says, “I mean, we don’t have that much experience as soldiers. What kind of technology are they going to have us use?”

They arrive at an ion cannon. Skywarp speaks, “Can someone please speak so I can input you into the AI system, Deceptitran?”. Rotorbolt speaks, “Hey, it’s me, Rotorbolt.”. Decepticon speaks, “Identity confirmed!”. Skywarp shows them to the control panel of the ion cannon, “As you can see, these are the controls. They are very simple to use. Go ahead, Rotor, try them out! Fire at those Autobots right down there!”. Rotorbolt looks at the control panel and speaks, “Look, I can’t do this, okay?”. Skywarp looks at the panel, messes with it, and speaks, “What do you mean? It has a very easy point-and-shoot mechanic but with control sticks. See now you give it a try, waste some sorry Autobot scum. Alright now you go Rotorbolt.” Overdrive looks at Rotorbolt who is very nervous. Overdrive says, “I want to try, why don’t I go?” Skywarp speaks, “Sorry, bu,d but the cannon needs Rotorbolt for it to work, the Deceptitran has Rotor’s ID as the first to use the cannon!” Overdrive speaks, “Fun.” Rotorbolt very slowly walks up to the control panel and is about to touch the control sticks when suddenly a giant fist punches through the cannon and crushes Rotorbolt's body, leaving him just barely alive, and the ion cannon shuts down. The giant fist pulls out from the tower, and Skywarp runs over to Rotorbolts and holds him. The owner of the giant fist is revealed to be Superiorion walking away. Superion dissipates into the Aerialbots, and Silverbolt speaks into a headset, “All Ion Cannons Taken Out, Repeat All Ion Cannons Taken Out.” Silverbolt and the rest of the Aerialbots fly away. Skywarp yells, “YOU'RE GOING TO BE OKAY, DON’T WORRY, WE WILL GET YOU FIXED UP RIGHT OVERDRIVE!”. Overdrive just stares in shock at Rotorbolts. Skywarp gets upset, Overdrive isn’t saying anything. Skywarp takes Rotorbolts and blasts off with him. Overdrive then transforms into a Cybertronian car to chase after them.

Optimus Prime arrives at an ancient Cybertronian library. He walks through it, looking at all the disheveled history and messed-up architecture within the library. Optimus Prime comes upon one lonely Cybertronian within the entire building, Alpha Trion, who messes with the rubble with his cane. He has a thick metal beard, is hunched over, and has a purple and red color scheme. Alpha Trion speaks, “Do you remember how long ago I built you?” Optimus Prime speaks, “About nine million years ago, just when Megatron came into the ranks of the Decepticons.” Alpha Trion speaks, “Exactly, both the Decepticons and Autobots existed as they do now. War has always been on Cybertron, as far as I remember, and there’s no hope in it as far as I remember, and there’s no hope in it ending anytime soon.” Walking around, Alpha Trion hands Optimus Prime an old Cybertronian astrological textbook. Alpha Trion speaks, “You remember your time on earth, correct?” Optimus Prime speaks, “Yes, of course it was definitely…the most important experience of my Autobot journey so far, but I cannot go back because I must attend to my duties on Cybertron.” Alpha Trion speaks, “Well, don’t you worry, I am very well informed on your accomplishments on Earth. But, in a war, when we are fighting our flesh and blood, I don’t believe brutally killing our enemies is the best way to resolve our problems.” Optimus Prime speaks, “But Alpha Trion, it’s hypocritical when I have witnessed our enemy doing similar actions to our comrades.” Alpha Trion speaks, “Orion, I understand millions of years of war can create horrifyingly severe trauma, but at the same time, when fighting our own family, we must spare them. That is why I am ordering you to go on a special mission. I will send out any last requests for the war before your mission. But you need to go on this mission as a Prime to truly distinguish yourself and seek out the well of sparks as it calls out to you, Prime."

Optimus Prime walks out of the library. He looks around at all the soldiers in the war and sees all the dead bodies of Autobots, and he looks at the more noticeable dead count of the Decepticons. He walks up to a Decepticon soldier who is just barely alive. He grabs the soldier's hand. The soldier is in shock, and he speaks, “You…you’re Optimus Prime.” Optimus Prime speaks, “Don’t worry, soldier, you're going to be just fine.” Then the soldier is immediately crushed by Megatron’s feet. Megatron holds an axe up to Optimus Prime and speaks, “YOU CUT OFF MY ARM, RUINED MY PLANS, BUT WORST OF ALL MADE ME, MEGATRON FEEL WEAK. I AM GOING TO KILL YOU, OPTIMUS!”. Optimus Prime speaks, “Look around, Megatron. Look at how many of our forces have died. I’m not going to fight Megatron because fighting leads to this. If you want to kill me, I guarantee it’s gonna be an easy kill because I’m not gonna fight. Optimus Prime jetpacks away. Megatron watches him. Megatron looked around and saw all the dead bodies. Decepticon foot soldier runs up to Megatron and speaks, “Lord Megatron, all our ion cannons were destroyed. And the Autobots are starting to infiltrate Koan section four. What are your orders?” Megatron looks under his feet to see the soldier he squished. He screams. Megatron speaks, “Get me someone, so I can fix this damn arm!”

Several Autobot commanders, such as Bumblebee, Hound, Drift, and various others, are at another command station discussing battle orders. Bumblebee speaks, “How’s the overall takeover of Koan section four going along?” Crosshair speaks, “It is turning out to be more of a costly battle the more we progress, but we most likely have a good chance of taking over the section soon.” Bumblebee speaks, “Not the best thing to hear, but the Decepticons are not giving up anytime soon.” Optimus then walks around the corner with Hound speaking up, “How’s it going, Prime? You kill any cons yet?!”. Optimus looks uneasy. He speaks, “My fellow Autobots, Alpha Trion is sending me out on a mission deep into Cybertron!”. Bumblebee speaks, “Can’t we come, Optimus?”. Optimus speaks, “Unfortunatly no. This one I must take alone! We will see each other my Autobots. Till all are one. Drift speaks, “But Prime, we need a leader here in the mean time who will lead us?”. Optimus speaks, “Bumblebee will!”. Crosshairs shouts, “This ridiculous!”. Hound speaks, “Bumblebee is nothing but an pathetic child. How does he have any experience in leadership, especially during this war?!” Optimus speaks. “I understand this is a controversial decision, but it nonetheless had much care and thought put into it. I want you all to show him the same respect as if I were still in a leadership position. I expect you to do great things, Bee, I know you won’t disappoint me as he surprised me on more than one occasion!”. There is a brief moment of silence. Optimus speaks, “Unfortunalty I am in a time crunch but do believe the worst situations can lead to best character within us. Even when times seem tough, just always remember Autobots, Roll Out!”. Optimus Prime leaves.

Silverbolt speaks, “You know it’s kinda aerialist whenever he says that because there are autobots that can fly.” Hound speaks, “Silverbolt you’re a little shit and Prime is a dumb shit.” Bumblebee speaks, “You can’t say that when you’re talking about Optimus Prime.” Hound speaks, “I know he shouldn’t have picked someone like you to be the leader.” Hound walks up to Bumblebee. Hound speaks, “You’re nothing but a child. I know a thousand other bots that would do a better job than you.” Hound puts his hand on Bumblebee, but Drift puts a sword up to Hound's neck. Drift speaks, “ Take your hand off him.” Hound speaks, “Looks like we got ourselves mutiny boys. What are you, rejoining the Decepticons?” Drift speaks, “Optimus chose Bee for a reason, and I’m not going to let anyone ruin that decision with disrespect.” Hound looks at them both intensely. Hound speaks, “If he fails, it’s on you!” Hound and the rest of the Autobots go away. Bumblebee speaks, “ Thanks for the help back there, I-” Drift speaks, “Just so you know, I don’t have much confidence in your character, but I will say that Optimus has surprised me on more than one occasion. And I owe him.” Drift walks away. Bumblebee speaks, “Well, this is going to be fun!”

Megatron (now with a repaired arm) and Motormaster discuss ways to hold back the intense Autobot forces in section four in a Decepticon medical laboratory. Motormaster (a large black and purple Decepticon warrior) speaks, “We could potentially send out Menasor, but that would heavily deplete our Energon supply.” Just then, Skywarp carries Rotorbolt in and puts him on a medibed. He hooks him up to a bunch of wires and lays his head down on him as he watches the life monitor beep from a hopeful rate to a more dreadful one. Rotorbolt’s lifeless body falls apart into pieces on the ground. Skywarp stares at his friend, who just died before his eyes. Overdrive rushes right into the medical lab, where he sees Skywarp on the floor with Rotorbolt. Overdrive walks up to Skywarp and places his hand on his friend's back. Skywarp speaks, “I screwed up. He’s dead because of me!” Overdrive speaks, “Actually…” Skywarp speaks, “What…?” Overdrive says, “He said he didn’t want to go into battle today, but I convinced him, so it’s my fault.” Skywarp yells, “Your right and you know what you didn’t help me whenever I was picking his body up whenever he was smashed with that freaking fist! You were the screwup, you're the one who killed our friend!” Overdrive speaks, “Look, Skywarp, you're right, I’m sorry. But we shouldn’t be fighting. Rotorbolt wouldn’t want this.” Skywarp yells, “What does it matter? You're the one who killed him.” Skywarp leaves the medical lab. Megatron walks up to Overdrive, who looks gloomy. Megatron speaks, “Soldier, I need you for a brief, but an important assignment. Come with me!” Overdrive speaks, “Yessir.” Megatron, Overdrive, and Motormaster walk into the escape pod room. Megatron messes with the controls of the escape pod. He then points his arm cannon at Overdrive. Megatron speaks, “Get in the escape pod, or I blow your damn head off.” Overdrive speaks, “OK, OK! Do I at least get to know what my failure was?” Megatron speaks, “Let’s just say we’re looking for much more professional acting Decepticons.” Megatron ejects the escape pod. Megatron walks down the corridor with Motormaster. Megatron speaks, “Wasn’t Skywarp one of Starscream's old colleagues?”. Motormaster speaks, “Yeah, so?”. Megatron walks away. Motormaster follows him. Motormaster speaks, “So, where are we going now?”. Megatron speaks, “I’m going to give Skywarp a promotion, I see potential in him.”. Motormaster speaks, “And what about the vehicon? Where is the pod taking him?” Megatron speaks, “For quite a while, the pod will be floating around in space, but it does have a destination, a very miserable destination.” The pod controls reveal the destination's name: EARTH.

Chapter Text

It’s many years later, and it is springtime in the year 2025 on Earth.

At about three in the afternoon, crowds are walking around in a small East Coast beach town. There are various old-school-style buildings still being run, a podcast covers what has happened over this period, “Even though it has been a while since the transformers left, we still feel many lasting impacts. Earth's larger cities can be maintained, but lower-income areas have become progressively run down, especially due to the effects of their battles. Fortunately, the giant metal spikes within the earth have significantly shrunk to the point where we can no longer see them anymore. People have speculated this due to the Transformers' departure from our planet. But some scientists fear the ominous threat of the spikes returning from our planet’s crust. Many hope for the transformer's return, but many also hold strong negative views toward them still. Whatever our future outcome may be, we still somehow have lasted quite a bit for a unique species, such as us, within the vastness of this universe. This is the TF Titan signing out!”

A young boy, about eleven years old, walks into a mobile home through a door. He shouts, “Dad! James! I’m home!” James is a tall sixteen-year-old and is in the back room, shouting random curse words at the TV while playing Call of Duty. The young kid waves his hand at him, “Hey, James!” James flicks him off. A dirty, muscular man about forty-four walks up to James, smacks his face, and takes his controller. The man has a name tag on top of a construction worker uniform that says Ray. Ray speaks, “You get this back when you’re more polite to your brother.” Ray turns to the younger boy, “Hey Coby, how was school today?” Coby speaks, “Fine. Went there, sat around, got yelled at a lot, ate disgusting food, and came back home. Can’t wait to repeat that for the next few years.” Ray speaks, “Just wait till you get as old as me, nothing but you have nothing but pain in your back and bills in the mail every day.” Coby speaks, “Yeah, I’ll just stick to getting yelled at. Thanks!” James speaks, “Here I’ll help you by getting back into place by asking why do you act like a dipshit?!” Ray speaks, “Hey, there’s no call for that kind of tone!” Coby speaks, “I’ll do you one better, James. Why does my brother have to look like a rat?” They both start trying to grab at each other, but Ray can hold them back. Ray speaks, “I’ve just about had enough of you two! Look, we all live under a small roof, which is bad enough, but even though there are just three of us, can’t we at least try to get along?” Ray hears his phone buzzing on the table, and the contact info reads: MANAGER. Ray speaks, “Look, I've got an important call to take, but when I get back, please no more arguing for today. Can we try that?” The two boys nod their heads. Ray rushes out of the room with the phone. James and Coby look at each other. James speaks, “You're nothing but a little bitch. You are the most worthless person in this family.” Coby walks around for a few seconds, feeling depressed. He then looks at a broken airsoft pistol. He walks over to it and starts messing with it. James speaks, “Hey don’t touch my shit!” Coby reveals he fixed the scraped pistol. James speaks, “Hey, how did you do that?” Coby speaks, “Just some stuff I’ve learned over the past couple of years.” Coby raises the pistol. Coby speaks, “So, how are you gonna fix your balls?” James speaks, “My what...” Coby then shoots a plastic BB into James' crotch. James screams and holds his crotch. Coby flicks him off. James speaks, “You asshat!” Coby speaks, “You're a big pansy, it’s not gonna do anything but bruise.” James speaks, “You shot me in my balls!” Coby speaks, “Were you even paying attention to the kind of stuff that you were calling me before this started?!” James speaks, “Well, it seems pretty deserved!” Ray runs into the room. Ray speaks, “What the hell is it now?!” James speaks, “Coby shot me with a BB in my balls, Dad!” Ray speaks, “ Alright fine. Coby…I want you to leave for a while.” Coby speaks, “But, why? He made me do it!” Ray speaks, “ I realize that, but at this point, I can’t stand you being around each other. So try and go find something to do, please, while I’m in the best mood I can be in for this situation, which is honestly not a good one”. James, still holding his balls, sticks his tongue out and gives a wicked smile at Coby. Coby leaves his house.

A few minutes go by, and Coby is now skateboarding down a street with a few old buildings in a suburban area that still seems to be open. Coby comes upon an office-like building and a man in his early thirties walking around it in a black suit. Coby walks up to him and gives him a high five. Coby laughs. The man speaks, “How are you doing, kiddo?” Coby speaks, “Could be doing better, Mr. Brown.” Mr. Brown speaks, “Ah, cheer up, bud, what's got you so glum?” Coby speaks, “Just getting into some trouble with my dad and my brother back at the house. Nothing to worry about.” Mr. Brown speaks, “Yes, I believe I’ve met your father, a local engineer. I’ve also seen him at the local flea market. Doesn’t he bring you to Arkeville's development office occasionally?” Coby speaks, “Yeah, occasionally.” Mr. Brown speaks, “You must be pretty clever for a boy your age to get into a place like that. And don’t worry, I’m sure things will work out with your family.” Coby just drifts off, “Yeah…I, guess.” Mr. Brown speaks, “So where were you headed?” Coby says, “I was thinking of going to the library…” Mr. Brown looks up at the building and then back to Coby, “Well, if you are thinking of going to this library, there isn’t much you can do there today because it’s closing early for renovations.” Coby speaks, “I guess I have nowhere important to be.” Mr. Brown speaks, “Cheer up, bud! The universe always has a journey for everyone out there.” Mr. Brown's watch starts beeping. He looks up, and a large meteor-like object (about the size of a car) enters the atmosphere. Coby also watches the meteor. Coby speaks with enthusiasm, “It certainly does, Mr. Brown. Sa,y what does that beeping mean?” Mr. Brown says, “Some cardio I have to do later. Hey, why don’t you run to the nearby arcade? I'd be willing to pay some cash if you need it.” Coby speaks with enthusiasm, “That meteor looks cool. I want to go see where it lands.” Mr. Brown speaks, “Coby, I…” Coby looked directly at Mr. Brown with a confused look. Mr. Brown speaks, “Coby, I need to get going.” Coby speaks with enthusiasm and waves back to Mr. Brown, “Alright, nice talking to you, Mr. Brown, hopefully, I’ll see you again soon.” Mr. Brown gets into a car and starts talking on the earpiece with someone, “This is Mr. Brown. They have returned. Repeat, the Transformers have returned.” Coby continues skateboarding, but in the direction of the meteor. He skates through a couple of slower streets and a couple of busy streets. He starts skateboarding up a large incline, which heavily speeds up the bearings of the skateboard to the point where it causes him to trip. Coby falls and scrapes his knees on the ground. He looks at the meteor and sees it is about to land within a few miles of him. A driver notices he has fallen on the ground and comes by to check on him, “Hey, kid, you alright?” Coby’s eyes light up, “Can you take me to where that meteor is going?” The driver speaks, “Look, kid, I've got somewhere to be and things to do.” Coby speaks, “Sir, would you be willing to help spark the youth of our new generation by introducing them to the wonders of the universe to him?” The driver has a stone-cold face: “No.” Coby speaks, “What about leaving a poor, injured child out here all alone? You could be taking me to my home for all you know?” The driver still has a stone-cold face, “Kid, you need to chill. I just came to check if you were fine.” Coby holds up his hand in a stopping gesture, “Wait!” Coby pulls out some cash, “What about for twenty bucks?” They follow the meteor, which eventually crashes into a nearby swamp. They arrive at the swamp, and the driver lets Coby go without one final message, “Hey, try not to get probed, bud. We know aliens exist now!” Coby laughs and gives him a thumbs up, “Will do.” The driver leaves.

Coby treks through the murky waters of the swamp. He sees what looks like the beginnings of a smoke trail coming out. He follows it. After clearing a few brushes for about a minute, he stumbles upon a high-tech pod covered in ice and many dents. Coby is fascinated and just starts touching it. The top has a pod hatch door that opens and speaks with an AI-like tone, “Cryogenic freezing hold going offline.” Smoke pours out of the pod door, and a giant robotic hand grabs onto the door. Coby is in shock when he sees the reveal of a Transformer (Overdrive) climbing out of the pod.

Chapter Text

In the same city, elsewhere, there are several large school buildings ranging from elementary to high school.

The sun has barely moved, and only a couple of people are outside wandering around the campus. There's a sign that says “Welcome to Cape Colloris’s School District!” The middle and elementary school have left for the day, but inside the high school in classroom 136, a lonely, dirty blonde-haired junior girl about seventeen rests her head on her desk, watching her teacher mark down notes on a marker board. The girl hears giggling, and so she turns around to see a group of girls silently conversing right behind her. She politely whispers to them, “Hey Jasmine, what's so funny?” Jasmine, a dark-haired girl wearing a lot of makeup and bohemian-style fashion,n stops talking and politely smiles at her, “I didn't ask if you could join the conversation, Annie.” The girls next to Jasmine giggle. Annabelle shyly responds, “Sorry about that Jas...I didn't mean to be so rude-” Jasmine cuts her off, “I’m sorry, I have to stare at the only girl in the class who has the personality of a rock. Like, you seriously need to be fixed or something.” The teacher yells at them, “Jasmine! Annabelle! Can we please focus on the lecture!” Annabelle lays her head on her desk for a few seconds, but then quickly perks it up and looks towards Jasmine as she whispers, “The only person who needs to be fixed is you 'cause you are a bitch!” The teacher yells back as Jasmine looks incredibly disgusted, “Annabelle, what did I just say?” Annabelle responds, “Sorry, Ms. Jefferson, I was just reminding Jasmine about the upcoming essay.” Jasmine looks confused by her response. Ms. Jefferson replies, “That’s fine, but please no more talking. We have twenty minutes left, and I still have a lot to teach.” Jasmine tries to respond, but Ms. Jefferson gives her an aggressive look. Ms. Jefferson dismisses the students, and school ends for the day.

Annabelle waits outside at the school parking lot for her ride home when Jasmine and her friends come to greet her, “ Hey, look, I want to apologize for what I said back there. And I thought after…a bit, was it really funny what you said back there, Annie? I’m sorry, are we cool?” Annabelle sighs and shakes her hand, “Yeah, things are cool.” Jasmine speaks, “Great so, do you need a ride home, or do want to ride the shitty ass Hummer your mom has for a car?!” Annabelle's mom arrives to pick her up in a blue Hummer. Jasmine and her friend start laughing. Annabelle gets in the car, and Annabelle’s mom is revealed to be a hologram that Annabelle unphases is by. Once Annabelle and the blue hummer are a safe distance away from any cars and people, the blue hummer starts talking to her throw the radio, but using one singular female voice, “So, how was school, kiddo? Graduate yet? Am I done taking you to this shitty place?” Annabelle leans her arm on the door rest while looking out the window, “How long have you been on earth for Strongarm?” Strongarm studiously, “I was stationed out here as a part of a small Autobot surveillance team roughly five years ago.” Annabelle fiddles with her radio buttons, “Yeah, I know all about that story. And you still have a long way to go with understanding humans.” Strongarm studiously, “And the same could be said regarding you, Annie. Also, please stop pushing my buttons.”

Annabelle and Strongarm arrive home, and Strongarm parks in a garage. Annabelle's house is a nice two-story, middle-class, well-kept home. Strongarm speaks, “Hey Annie, when will I be able to limber up and go meet the other Autobots?” Annabelle speaks, “If you guys are quiet and you make sure no one sees you, I’m sure it could be fine.” Annabelle sees her mom in the living room on the sofa. With the laptop out. Her mom is blonde as well and lying on the table that saying Detective. Annabelle curiously speaks, “Hey Mom, what are you looking at?” The mother says, “So, apparently, a couple of locals were in a fight with Dr. Arkeville this morning due to him supposedly 'stealing' some of their property for his experiments. So, I’m looking into the case along with him." Annabelle speaks, “But Mom, don't you like the guy? Why are you doing this if you don’t like him?" The mother speaks, "It's not a matter of whether I like him or not. It's a matter of what the facts say. And the fact from the cameras and witnesses that I've personally seen is that the case is closed. Sarah curiously speaks, “But anyways, besides that nonsense, how was your day at school? Are you and Strongarm getting along well?” Annabelle speaks, “Yeah, everything went fine, I guess.” The mother cautiously speaks, “But she’s still in the garage, do I need to speak to her about anything?” Annabelle speaks, “Yeah, she is. But it sounded like she was about to leave for you know what.” The mother then goes into the garage just as Strongarm pulls out of the garage. The mother waves her down in Strongarm comes back inside and closes the garage again. Strongarm angrily speaks, “What do you want, Sarah?!” Sarah calmly responds, “I wanted to thank you again for taking care of my daughter every day after school, even though you guys don’t get along that well.” Strongarm politely accepts her kindness, “Yeah, well, it’s no big deal. But don’t you think she’s a bit too shy? I saw a couple of other humans who seemed to be bothering her when I picked her up.” Sarah curiously responds, “She’s never told me anything about that.” Strongarm quickly finishes the conversation, “Well, maybe you should look into it. Anyway, I gotta get going. You know I got my usual deal.” Sarah perks up, “Ah, yes! Good luck!” Strongarm drives away. Annabelle goes to a small tent in the backyard where she unzips it and sees an older man who is sleeping in just a Hawaiian shirt, with thinning hair, in just and his underwear. He wears a tinfoil hat on his head and uses newspapers as a blanket. Annabelle joyfully shouts at him, “Hey, Grandpa Kelly, wake up!” Grandpa Kelly jumps up a wake and sees Annabelle staring at him through the tent’s entrance, “Don’t do that, Annie! The robots may be here, and coming to probe us!” Annabelle happily talks to him, “I’m sure they will, Gramps, I'm sure they will!” Grandpa Kelly speaks urgently while waving his hands, “No seriously like last night I was reading his website…what the hell was it… with leaked government documents one user said…4chan!” Annabelle's cheeks turn red, and she puts her hand to her face, “Oh my god.” Grandpa Kelly is now getting out of the tent and pointing to his underwear, “It’s the reason why I took off my pants earlier, and I’m just wearing my briefs now. User hunkermuffin68.9 said you don’t attract alien robots if you’re just wearing underwear and if they haven’t been clean for at least five days.” Sarah then walks up and speaks very intensely, “You haven’t cleaned your underwear in five days?!” Grandpa Kelly speaks very studiously, “Actually, they haven’t been cleaned in over a week. You've got to remember we’re fighting a war here against alien robots, Sarah.” Sarah gets very mad, “Firstly, they left the planet years ago. Secondly, clean your damn underwear, Dad!” Annabelle taps on Sarah’s shoulder, “Uh, Mom, you might want to look over there.” Sarah looks in the direction where Annabelle is pointing and sees her neighbor staring at them. She waves, and they wave back. Sarah speaks very awkwardly, “Hey Todd, how are you doing today?” Todd speaks with a very cheerful attitude, “I’m doing pretty fine, Sarah, but it looks like you guys are in quite a pickle. Do you need any help over there, Mr. Kelly?” Grandpa Kelly flicks Todd off, “Piss off Todd! I know you and your wife are both shapeshifting alien robots!” Sarah gets very offended, “Jesus, Dad!” Todd cheerfully speaks, “It seems like you guys are fine, so I’ll see you guys later.” Sarah, frustrated, speaks and points towards the house, “Dad, go inside the house and clean yourself up.” Grandpa Kelly, now upset, speaks, “But we need to be like this to protect ourselves from alien robots.” Sarah angrily speaks, “Do it or you are no longer allowed to live here anymore!” Grandpa Kelly walks inside the house. Annabelle gets defensive, perks up towards her mom, “Did you have to be so rude to him? He means well.” Sarah calms down significantly and whispers to her, “Look, I just want him to be a good influence on this family. And it’s not like I happen to take into account the fact that we have an alien robot in our garage. But to handle that kind of knowledge, he needs to be a responsible person, and he clearly isn’t showing it right now.” Annabelle pulls out her cell phone and sees on her home screen a picture of all three of them smiling together. Sarah puts her hand on Annabelle’s shoulder, “No matter what happens, we will always be a family.” Annabelle speaks cautiously, “But what if Grandpa Kelly is on to something? What if the Decepticons return?” Sarah reassures her, “I doubt it. No one has seen a transformer on Earth for the past six years. And Strongarm feels confident they will never come back after their most recent loss. So I’m pretty sure the Decepticons are gone for good.”

Somewhere in the Badlands, South Dakota, Daytrader, a transformer merchant with a large beard and a backpack full of junk, is seen talking to someone at a scrapyard, “Well, most of this stuff is junk, but it will sell. Next time I’ll be sure to get my hands on some of those premium-grade Cybertronian parts.” He walks into his very old junky spaceship and gets the pilot's seat while messing with the control panel. Eventually, after pressing a couple of buttons, the ship's engine gives a very bad shake that is felt throughout the entire ship. “Woah, I probably need to oil up some of those parts.” In the back storage room at the ship, a bunch of Cybertronian stuff falls off the shelves, including a couple of shards left over Allspark. One of them manages to stab itself into a metal head-like object: the head of Starscream. The head suddenly begins to transform and redevelop its limbs with the parts around itself. Starscream then awakens.

Chapter Text

Starscream awakens and looks at his new body. He frantically searches in a pile of scrap and finds a dirty mirror. He analyzes the rest of his body with it. Starscream was confused, “A mixture of new and old. I kinda like the red and blue on me.” He sees something glowing a bit from his forehead, and then it starts to dim away, as it appears to be the fragment of the old spark lodged in his forehead. Starscream intrigued, “So that’s what jolted me back to life!” He overhears Daytrader talking to someone on a mic, “…no I’m telling you, you're going to get the best deals, in this part of the entire intergalactic system!” Starscream's hand is now transformed into a large knife, and it is being held against Daytrader’s neck: “Take me to Cybertron.” Daytrader looks scared.

Once they arrive, Starscream forces Daytrader out of the ship. Daytrader panics, “Seriously, man, what the hell are we doing?! Why aren’t you letting me go? I took you to Cybertron! Hell, we are even at the Decepticon headquarters in Kaon for you!” Starscream stares at the building ominously, and Daytrader continues curiously, “Wait a minute, aren’t you supposed to be dead?” Starscream forcefully grabs his arm and looks directly at him, “Your ship is…repulsive, but I can get it from point A to point B very fast, especially in space. I need that. But right now I need to meet with someone and I am not letting out my sight!”

They go inside to a few Decepticons patrolling and doing their operations as normal. When they see Starscream and Daytrader walk in, most of them stop what they are doing and stare at them. Starscream yells at them, “What have you never seen a Decepticon come back from the dead before?! Get back to work!” They all immediately start working again. A young vehicon runs up to and shakes his hand enthusiastically, “Starscream, it’s an honor that you’re alive and well enough, some Autobot can!” Starscream awkwardly removes his hand, “Yeah, sure, kid. Also, where can I find Motormaster?” The young vehicon's eyes dial down, “ Oh him, I think he’s on the top floor.” Starscream and Daytrader walk away.

Motormaster sits with the rest of the Stunticons, looking out over Kaon. Starscream and Daytrader come into the room. Starscream speaks, “Motormaster, old buddy. Look at me, back from the dead!” Motormaster speaks, “It seems that the Allspark continues to work in mysterious ways”. Starscream speaks, “That it does, my friend, that it does! So…where’s Megatron?” Motormaster points to a tall tower far off in the distance. Starscream speaks, “Oh, thank the Allspark”. Motormaster speaks, “Megatron hasn’t left that tower and hasn't been in contact with any of us in the last few years. The war is tough, and we’ll probably run out of energon soon”. Starscream speaks, “Megatron is a fool of a leader who doesn’t even know how to operate his army. Do you know how constantly I’ve been battered and beaten by the big oath? Tell me when was the last time you saw him before he went into that infernal building?” Offroad speaks, “He was trying to kill Optimus for their last fight, but then Optimus got up and flew away. Starscream speaks, “My point still stands with what Offroad said, Megatron lost that fight with Optimus and a few others before that. Remember when he was a gladiator, and he was undefeatable; no prime would be able to stop him. Some leader he is today”. Motormaster speaks, “Alright, Starscream, what's your point?” Starscream speaks, “My point is Decepticons need a new, reliable leader. I am next in line…” Motormaster speaks, “I think this conversation will go on for long enough.” Motormaster looks at his fellow Stunticons, who start to walk towards Starscream. Starscream speaks, “Wait! What if I’m able to find you a decent supply of Energon?” Motormaster speaks, “And where do you plan on looking?” Daytrader speaks, “If you help, can you promise you won’t kill anybody including Autobots?” Blackjack speaks, “Depends on the situation, my guy.” Everyone in the room except Daytrader nods in agreement with Blackjack. Daytrader speaks, “Fine it…” Starscream covers his mouth and speaks, “Do we have a deal, Motormaster?” Motormaster speaks, “As long as we get the energon.” Starscream uncovers Daytrader's mouth and speaks, “Alright go on”. Daytrader just stares at them for a few seconds then Motormaster aggressively walks up to him and shoves a gun in his face. Daytrader speaks, “Alright, alright! The Energon is on Earth. It's been randomly appearing on Earth. I have some of the in my ship.” Motormaster speaks, “Was that so hard? Now, Starscream, I want you to go to Earth and keep constant tabs on the Energon. I am going to lend you Drag Strip and Dead End to help watch over things. Make sure also to keep a low profile because the humans don't believe we are coming back.” Motormaster points to Daytrader. Motormaster speaks, “Oh, and watch him. He can potentially be useful. Starscream puts his hand on Motormaster's shoulder and speaks, “The future for all Decepticons is now.” Starscream, Daytrader, Drag Strip, and Dead End head out.