I know it has been awhile for this, and to those who have read the last few chapters, the wait is over, and to those who haven't, I invite you to take a look

Chapter 5: The Dawn Before the Storm

“Optimus?” Hot Rod whispers, “Dead?”

Prowl stands at the entrance way of the Ark’s medical bay, giving Hot Rod Steeljaw and Arcee a moment to take in the sight before them. Their leader, their hero, their protector, lifeless upon the examine table.

“Ratchet?” Prowl speaks up.

“The autopsy shows exactly what we feared Prowl,” Ratchet admits, closing up Prime’s chest, “his vital circuitry was ripped out by hand, causing the Spark to slowly flicker out. My guess, Megatron had fun before leaving the rest of us to ‘Rust In Peace.’”

“Does Elita know?” Arcee asks, “Did her team make it here before us?”

“Her team?” Prowl asks.

“We were separated from her, Chromia and Eject, they aren’t here?”

“No, they aren’t,” Prowl scowls, activating the Ark’s intercom, “Blaster, you there?”

“Look Out and Shout!” another voice comes back, “Somebody told me my little buddy Steeljaw was aboard!”


“Wake up Elita, we have much to discuss.”

Elita’s optics blink to life. A slight groan escapes her vents as her optics; meet a set of fiery red ones.

“Megatron,” she states coldly, “What do you want?”

“I want many things my dear. I want to know why you were trying to sneak off to Earth. I want to know where your Autobot comrades are, and I want to know where I can find, Alpha Trion.”

“Alpha Trion?” she questions, “Haven’t you heard? He was scraped Vorns ago.”

“I sincerely doubt that my dear. There is also one other thing I want.”

“And what may that be?”

“To tell you, Optimus Prime, is no more. I myself, crushed his Spark with my bare hands.”

“YOU MONSTER!” Elita-One screams, “I WILL PERSONALLY TAKE YOU APART BOLT BY BOLT!”

Elita tries to reach out at Megatron, but merely finds, her arms and legs chained by Energon bonds to the walls. She continues to struggle, to fight, her anger boiling over.

Megatron’s right hand slides into his forearm casing, and is replaced, by a glowing spiked ball, that falls to the floor, leashed by a glowing chain to the arm. Megatron whips the mace around, and brings it hard across Elita’s face. The metal on her cheek melts away, revealing crushed components beneath.

“I am going to have such fun with this interrogation.”

“The Matrix?”

There, hanging off Megatron’s chest, she sees the Matrix, chained about her attackers neck.

“Yes indeed. The fabled Autobot Matrix of Leadership. Passed from one Prime to another,” Megatron’s left hand holds the object up to his face, “Its power is infinite, but the secret to wielding such power, escapes me.”

“It escapes you Megatron, because it only works for an Autobot, not a Decepti-creep!”

Megatron lashes out again, this time, striking Elita’s chest. The metal housing at the point of impact melts away from the mace’s heat, the components beneath, dented from the impact.

“How dare you speak out of turn to your superior Elita-One!” Megatron yells, “I have half a cerebro chip to…”

“Megatron…” interrupts Soundwave, who’s been in the shadows the whole time, “Transmission from Earth. Communication lost with Ark security.”

“WHA?” Megatron shouts, stomping his foot so hard as he turns, leaving a huge dent in his wake.

“Your orders Megatron?”

“Leave Buzzsaw here to finish the interrogation of Elita-One and her companion,” Megatron orders, referring to Chromia, who is chained up on the other wall, “and contact Scrapper on Earth.”

“Scrapper’s orders?”

“Full scale assault on the Ark. The attack should make when we destroyed Omega Supreme look like droid play!”

“Buzzsaw Eject,” Soundwave commands, a large cassette sliding from his chest, transforming into the condor like Buzzsaw, “Operation, Interrogation.”

Buzzsaw hovers before Elita, grinning evilly as Megatron and Soundwave leave.

“Let’s see how much I have to cut from you, before you squeal for me Fem,” Buzzsaw taunts, his eyes glowing.

“I have only one thing to say to you Buzzsaw,” Elita admits with a grin.

“And what is that?”

“Now.”

“Now?”

Unknown to Buzzsaw, in the time it took him to question what Elita-One had said, a tiny compartment on Chromia’s shoulder opens and spits out a black cassette. The black cassette zooms through the air, transforming into the Autobot Eject, who tackles the unaware Decepticon.

“Bad bird!” Eject yells, ripping Buzzsaw’s wings and weapons off.

“Don’t hurt me! Don’t hurt me!” Buzzsaw whines, flailing about.

“And how many Autobots begged for the same before you sent them to the Pit!” Eject screams, leveling his blaster at the Decepticon’s head.

“No please! Don’t fire!!!” Buzzsaw whines, shutting his optics.

Two shots ring out, Buzzsaw screams.

“I am not scrapped?!” Buzzsaw realizes, reactivating his optics.

He see Eject, still standing over him, weapon pointing behind him and smoking, Chromia and Elita coming closer, rubbing their now free wrists.

“Deactivate his vocalizer, we’ll take him with us,” Elita commands, picking her and Chromia’s weapons up.

“Transform Birdbrain,” Eject demands.

“What is the plan Elita?” Chromia asks, checking over her weapon.

“We head for Ultra Magnus, get the other Autobots, and head for the Ark.”

“But Prime is dead Elita!” Eject states.

“Yeah, but he wouldn’t be sending anyone there if there wasn’t a threat… the others are functioning.”


The F-14 flies low over the Indian Ocean, staying just high enough to miss the waves below.

“Would you please hurry Starscream,” the Baroness complains within the cockpit, “I am frightfully bored.”

“Quiet human!” the jet screams back, “we are on final approach to your, ‘Cobra Island.’ Let us just hope your pathetic Vipers were able to follow my plans for the new Decepticons, or this will all be for nothing!”

“Don’t you mean yours and Destro’s plans? He is the one who is mostly responsible for these new soldiers, you merely helped.”

“Pray Baroness, when I am in charge of the Decepticons… I forget about your contempt!”

And at that moment, not to their surprise, a large rock mass rises from the waves, and opens, revealing a hangar bay that Starscream glides into with ease.

“Hurry Flesh Creatures!” Starscream shouts, “Unload the Sparks from my cargo hold with care or face my fury!”

The Baroness forces the canopy of the cockpit open, watching as several Cobra Vipers go to work, unloading the five cylinders and loading them onto large transport beds. She jumps down onto one of the cylinders, and allows the Vipers to wheel her away as Starscream transforms after his cargo is unloaded.

“Now! Let me see these fearsome vehicles of Destro’s!” Starscream demands.

“Show him!” the Baroness orders to a group of engineers working behind a large drape.

The drape falls, revealing a massive green tank with a double-barreled torrent set atop, and a cockpit stretching out over the treads; a yellow jeep with a large missile launcher on the back; a two cockpit gray helicopter with treads; a maroon and brown single person rocket ship; and a gigantic blue low-built tank with treads to the side, and a wedge shaped three man cockpit with cannons on top.

“Oh these are good, very good,” Starscream smiles, examining the vehicles closely.

“Based on the information you gave us in regards to the five Decepticons that will inhabit these bodies,” a Tech-Viper states out loud, “we based theses bodies on what Destro felt would be the best fits. A Cobra HISS tank, a Stinger Jeep, Destro’s Dominator helicopter, the Stellar Stiletto rocket jet, and of course, Destro’s Demon assault vehicle and vehicle transport.”

“You flesh bags have done well… very well.”

“You alright?” Spike Witwicky asks, walking up Hot Rod.

Hot Rod sits outside the Ark, gazing blankly into the lava pit of the volcano.

“No, I am not,” Hot Rod responds.

“Optimus?”

“More then that Spike,” Hot Rod admits, “a part of me was so sure Prime was still alive, that I risked it all to come for him, and even though we found the others functioning…”

“You still feel like you failed.”

“Something like that.”

“I feel the same way every time we go out onto a mission. We are usually successful, and free so many people… but it never makes up for not being able to protect my dad when the Decepticons first showed up. It sucks.”

“What in Cybertron is that?!” comes a cry from the exterior of the volcano.

Spike and Hot Rod run to investigate, finding Trailbreaker and Spirit looking out towards the horizon.

“What’s up?” Hot Rod asks.

“The sky goes dark upon the horizon,” Spirit reveals, “Like the high noon Sun is being eclipsed… but the Sun is left untouched.”

A wall of black seems to overtake the skyline, growing thicker and thicker like clouds, but too dark, too quickly for it to be natural.

A visor drops down over Hot Rod’s optics and stretches out like binoculars.
“It isn’t an eclipse of this system’s star… its Insecticons, Insecticon clone drones.”

“RED ALERT!” Trailbreaker shouts, hitting an alarm button on his forearm, “We have company, big time!”

Prowl and Jazz come running out first, followed by most of the other’s inside.

“Looks like the Constructicons are leading them on the ground,” Hot Rod reports, still scanning.

“What do we do?” Flint asks, him and the other soldiers following close behind.

“We prepare for a full out battle,” Jazz replies.

“Roger that Jazz,” Prowl states, activating his Comm. Unit, “Wheeljack, Ratchet, you and the humans helping you continue working on our heavy hitters, we are going to need ASAP! Trailbreaker, get plugged back into the Decepticon battery and erect your force field… it won’t last long against that Armada, but it will buy us time. Everyone else, I need you ready for a fight, now!”

“I’d rather be home hunting cyber foxes,” the blue mech Mirage states, first to jump over the battery to the ground, transforming into his new AWE Striker mode.

Jazz, Brawn, Gears, Huffer, Hound, Bluestreak, Ironhide, Hot Rod, Arcee and Blaster follow, (Blaster becoming a large red Killer Whale Hovercraft) and wait. Bumblebee, Cliffjumper, Windcharger transform and hover above the grounded Autobots while Sunstreaker and Sideswipe prepare themselves to go airborne at a moments notice. Flint leads the Skye Havocs to join the Autobots on the ground while Lady Jaye leads her group back to the Skye Hawks to join Bumblebee and the others.

From the battery, Prowl shouts, “Everyone hold their fire until I give the word! We don’t need any wasted shots! The Clone Drones will be easy enough to destroy, but their numbers are overwhelming… and then we have our other problem…”

“Other problem?” Spike asks from his Skye Hawk.

“The Constructicons Spike,” Bumblebee replies, hovering close, “they may have never used it against you, but they hold the Decepticons most powerful weapon… Devastator.”

“I hate Decepticons,” Spike grunts, cracking his knuckles.

“Forcefield going up!” Trailbreaker announces in his APC mode, generating a protective barrier around the whole volcano.

“Here they come!” Cliffjumper shouts as the Clone Drones begin flying into the forcefield, exploding on contact.

“What are they doing?” Beachhead shouts from one of the Skye Havoc hovercrafts, “they’re going kamikazes!”

“They are lifeless drones,” Prowl replies, “they are fodder to wear on the forcefield to make it fall. ALL UNITS! BLAST THOSE BUGS!”

And with that, a firestorm of lasers and missiles are launched from the combine forces of the Autobots and the humans of the UERA.

Meanwhile, within the medical bay of the Ark…

“Hurry up Ratchet!” Wheeljack shouts, standing over a massive body, “they’re going to need these guys ASAP!”

“No kidding Wheeljack!” Ratchet shouts back, helping Hacker up onto the examination table, “but these five need a lot more care then anyone else did, I don’t know how we are ever going to get them back on their feet.”


“Is my transport ready?” Megatron demands, slamming his foot once more.

“I have everything prepped for you my lord,” Skywarp states, bowing.

“About time! Shockwave! Now is the time we must retrieve the target!”

“Yes Megatron,” Shockwave replies.

“Let us not waste another nano-second.”


“General sir!” comes a shouting soldier of the UERA, “We have a problem sir!”

“What is it McFadden?” General Abernathy asks, looking up from his desk.

“The Ark is under massive attack General!”

“Scramble everything we have! Immediately!”

Before McFadden can turn, the UERA base is rocked violently.

“What in God’s name is that?” Abernathy demands.

“I call it,” Destro smiles, sliding up behind General Abernathy, sticking a laser pistol into the small of the General’s back, “Betrayal. Long live Cobra.”

“You won’t get away with this Destro,” General Abernathy promises, hands rising up slowly, “You can’t beat the Decepticons without our help, you know that!”

As if on cue, a giant metal hand rips open the wall, tearing at it until its huge red optics fill the room with its scarlet stare.

“I think my new friend Bruticus would have to disagree with you General.”

 

  That rocked!

Update soon please!

 

I will, trying to decide whether or not the "heavy hitters" will be Joe tanks, or their more bestial forms