Alexandra watched Optimus leave. She waited until she couldn't see him anymore to go find her father. Walking in the direction where she heard people, she soon found her very own search party. A female in camouflage was the first to break away from the party. She ran over to Alexandra and pulled her into a tight hug,

"Alex, my God! What were you thinking? Are you okay? No cuts or bruises or anything?" 

Mazikeen's relief was palpable as she embraced her younger sister.

"I'm okay, Maze. Really," 

Mazikeen pulled away and glared at her as she grabbed her ear, 

"OW MY EAR!"

"Good! Because after I'm through with you-"

Another man quickly joined them and pulled Alexandra into a small hug, away from the oldest daughter's hand,

"Alexandra, I thought I'd never see you again! What were you thinking? Are you okay? No cuts or bruises or anything?"

Alexandra was getting crushed by her father's bear hug,

"I'm okay, Dad, really." 

Alexandra's dad pulled away and held her shoulders firmly. He looked her straight in the eye narrowed his eyes, 

"Are you sure? Tell me what happened? We didn't hear from you for hours, and then it was getting dark and still no word. You have a lot of explaining to do, young lady. And don't think you won't go unpunished."

Alexandra sighed, 

"I thought the ear damage from Maze was enough,"

Mazikeen crossed her arms, 

"Oh, you are getting a military punishment later,"

Alexandra groaned as they started walking. Word spread that she was found and the other search parties were called off. Alexandra returned to her camp with her family where she was tackled by her mother.

"Alexandra, oh Alexandra, my baby." 

Her mother kept repeating with tears fresh in her eyes. Alexandra pretended to be choking,

"Choking...not...breathing,"  

Her mother gave her a playful slap on the cheek. Judy let her daughter go, only for Sam to walk up and give his little sister a nugie,

"Hey, where've ya been, shorty?" 

Sam was acting like her disappearance didn't bother him, but he was glad that his sister was safe and sound with them again; he just liked messing with her. Alexandra yelped as she tried getting out of her brother's trap,

"Sam, stop! You're messing up my hair!"

"Girls..." 

Sam rolled his eyes but he let her go. Now that the Witwicky family reunion was over, Judy, Ron, and Mazikeen wanted answers. Ron crossed his arms,

"Now what happened, Alexandra? Did you get lost or you just plain wanted to give us all heart attacks?" 

"Um..." 

Alexandra thought that she better not mention Optimus to her parents, so she twisted the truth,

"I took a hike, like how I usually do at home, and just kinda kept on going, not worrying about the time. I was listening to Leo, so I was kinda in my own little world. I didn't realize that I was lost until it was too late. And personally, I didn't want to hike around in the dark. I'm sorry."

Her father sighed,

"Alexandra, this place isn't our backyard. I know this might have confused you because our backyard looks just like this forest, but something really bad could have happened to you."

Mazikeen narrowed her eyes, and Sam raised his eyebrow,

"How did you survive the night? I mean, not only was it cold, but it also rained."

Oh no, Alexandra thought,

"I...a...I found a little cave. And I just curled up and stayed warm." 

She thought, 

"Yeah, that should work."

"And then when I woke up this morning, I came this way."

Judy slowly nodded, 

"How did you know which way to come?"

"I tried backtracking..." 

"Oh, I don't know, a good-natured alien robot said you guys were this way."

Mazikeen glared at her,

"And you couldn't do that yesterday when you noticed you were lost?"

Alexandra smiled nervously,

"I didn't notice until it got dark." 

Their conversation continued for several more long minutes. In the end, her family was just glad she was safe and back in their loving arms, but Alexandra was grounded and they took Leo away from her for a week. Also, Mazikeen did in fact threaten her with putting a tracking device in her arm...which Alexandra did believe. 

Down the road from Alexandra's camp, Optimus was trying to find a disguise for himself. It wouldn't be that hard because of all the vehicles in the area. When Alexandra went missing, her older sister called every emergency number. There were police cars, helicopters, fire trucks, motorcycles of all types, ambulances, and a bunch of vans with rescue equipment. It had been a while since Optimus last shopped for a new look, so he was rather enjoying himself. After looking around for a while, he finally found a big enough Earth vehicle that he could transform into. He scanned it and transformed.

Alexandra was pacing back and forth. Her family was about to leave, and she was supposed to have met up with Optimus by then. Optimus said he would find a disguise so he could easily blend in with the humans. She probably should have asked him what he was supposed to look like because now he blended in too well; she couldn't even find him. Mazikeen glanced back at her, 

"Alex, time to go!"

"Just a minute, Maze..." 

"Optimus, where are you??"

Just then, a huge dented fire truck parked right in her line of vision. She thought. She went to stand next to the damaged fire engine so she could look around it for Optimus. While she was standing next to it, she almost jumped out of her skin. The dented fire truck started talking to her in a very familiar voice,

"So, Alexandra, you think this is a good disguise? I think it is because you fell for it."

When Alexandra recovered from her shock, she slapped his door,

"Ha ha, very funny. Anyways, back to the plan. That's the truck that I'm going to be in, so follow that one at a distance. Don't make it obvious that you're following us." 

She pointed at the truck that her sister was in.

"Do not worry; you will not detect me." 

It sounded like he was still trying to hold back laughter. Alexandra rolled her eyes, but then Optimus got serious,

"Are you sure that your backyard can conceal me? I don't want to raise human suspicion."

Alexandra shrugged,

"Now you gotta stop worrying. My backyard is the perfect place to hide a giant alien robot, though I'm not 100% sure because I've never had to hide one before, sssooo." 

"Well, I would hope not..."

"Optimus, it's not gonna get any better than that. No one goes into that forest, except me; my closest neighbors are miles away, and hardly anyone ever comes to my house. No humans are gonna know you're there. Trust me." 

Optimus couldn't deny the smile she gave him. He couldn't help but trust her either.

Cʏʙᴇʀᴛʀᴏɴ – Dᴇᴄᴇᴘᴛɪᴄᴏɴ Hᴇᴀᴅᴏ̨ᴜᴀʀᴛᴇʀs (Kᴀᴏɴ)

It had been several hours since the recent battle with the autobots abruptly ended. The disappearance of both leaders had both sides in a momentary ceasefire so that a search for them could be conducted. However, neither side was showing any progress.

After his third aerial search of the battlefield, Starscream sluggishly entered the command center. Exhausted from his search, he approached Soundwave, expecting that at least the third in command of the Decepticons had some clues about Megatron's whereabouts. The silent purple and black mech never turned away from the screen he was working on to acknowledge Starscream's presence. The rapid typing and total negligence of his presence annoyed the seeker.

"Soundwave," 

Starscream's voice all but growled at being dissed. He felt entitled to more respect since now that Megatron was gone, he was the new leader of the Decepticons,

"Look at me when I address you." 

His order was given so loudly that the other cons working turned their heads.

The masked mech finally spun around with the itch to clench his fist at being interrupted on such an important task. Soundwave, who was slightly taller than Starscream, glared down at Starscream's sneering face. A deep, monotone voice interrupted from beside the head of Decepticon officers,

"Starscream." 

They both turned away from each other to face the newcomer, Shockwave. This well-built, dark purple color-schemed mech sent chills down most Cybertronians' backs. His single red optic focused on Starscream, 

"We have yet to locate Lord Megatron, but there is something I require of you. If you would follow me." 

The scientist retreated back to his corner of the command center, waiting for Starscream to follow him. The seeker gave Soundwave one last dirty look before going after Shockwave, 

"What do you want?" 

Starscream didn't hide the irritableness in his voice. Shockwave appeared unfazed, 

"We do not know Megatron's whereabouts, but we discovered how he and Optimus Prime disappeared. It was through the means of a space bridge." 

The scientist stopped to let the news sink in, but Starscream didn't seem at all surprised that his leader disappeared through a technology that had been lost since Cybertron's early years, 

"Did you already know this information?"

Lifting an optic ridge, Starscream answered, 

"No...why?"

"No reason," 

A multitude of thoughts ran through Shockwave's processor.

Starscream didn't like the vibe he was now getting from the Decepticon scientist, 

"Are you accusing me or something, Shockwave!"

"No, but you seem to have a guilty conscience." 

Starscream scoffed, 

"Don't act like you're not more interested in the space bridge than the disappearance of Megatron."

Again, Shockwave seemed unfazed by Starscream's accusations. 

"It is only logical for a scientist to be interested in a technology that has been lost for ages. However, your defensiveness is peculiar. I recommend that in this confusing time you surround yourself with allies and avoid making unnecessary enemies." 

Shockwave glances in Soundwave's direction, 

"You need loyal followers if you are to survive being the leader of the Decepticons. Megatron had his own select group."

Starscream sneered,

"And look where that got him."

Now, Shockwave was amused. Though no one could see this through his facial features since his head was his single red optic,

"You're correct. Having you as part of his comradeship was a mistake. Now learn from his error."

This advice struck Starscream as odd, but the scientist obviously seemed to know something. However, Starscream was going to take the advice. 

"Shockwave, I have new orders for you. Stop helping Soundwave search for Megatron and focus your efforts on replicating the space bridge technology." 

His order had heads turning from all around since locating Megatron should have been at the top of every Decepticon's priority list. Starscream decided to explain his order, 

"Just because Megatron is gone doesn't mean the world stops. Life goes on, and we need to focus on other things that will help the Decepticon cause. If Shockwave can recreate a space bridge, then we will be able to transport anything we want at a moment's notice. Just think how that could help our cause."

This realization made most of the Decepticons change their minds about Starscream's order. However, there were a few Decepticons who still disagreed. They were the ones loyal to Megatron himself, not the Decepticon cause. Nevertheless, those faithful to Megatron silently went along with Starscream so they could keep an eye on him. They had no hard evidence that he may have been behind their true leader's disappearance, but one thing was for sure: They no longer trusted Starscream.

Eᴀʀᴛʜ

Optimus had been following Alexandra for an hour, and in that time, much was on his mind. The past always haunted him. If it wasn't his harsh childhood, then it was about all of his past mistakes. Knowing he shouldn't dwell on the past, he thought about the war that ravaged his home planet and of all his responsibilities that he could no longer carry out. He felt bad his autobots. He was stuck on Earth, unable to help them fight a war that he felt that he was slightly responsible for. If Megatron-

HONK! HONK!

"Woah, what?" 

Optimus was too deep into his thoughts to realize he was going 20 below the speed limit. He was holding up traffic, 

"Oops, sorry," 

He sped up his pace, 

"Grouchy humans."

He then decided to learn more about humans and their laws on the informative World Wide Web. During his examination, his thoughts kept on returning to the war. 

"Stop it; think of something better, happier." 

He thought of Alexandra and her energetic ways,

"At least I won't get bored with her around."

Alexandra finally arrived at her house. She rushed her family into unpacking all the camping gear and helped out way more than usual. Her parents, Judy and Ron, exchanged confused looks but didn't complain. Once everything was unloaded, she literally pushed and shoved her family inside the house.

"You guys stay inside, okay? I'll rake the yard, sweep the back porch, and all that good stuff for you guys. Just count it as part of my apology for wandering off in that forest. Now stay inside, I want it to be a surprise." 

Alexandra was desperately trying to keep her family inside so they wouldn't see Optimus. Agreeing to stay inside, Sam, living like a true vampire, played Xbox in his room against his droid, Rover, with all the blinds shut while her parents locked themselves in their room, away from their loud kids, and watched an old classic movie. Mazikeen went to the basement, having said she needed to do some work before she went back to base the following day. None of them would see anything.

In the middle of her front yard, Alexandra sat cross-legged, waiting for Optimus. After a few minutes, the disguised alien decided to reveal himself. He drove right into the yard and parked in front of the sitting human,

"Now what?"

Alexandra rolled her eyes as she stood up,

"Really? That's the first thing you say to me after an hour or so drive? Not a 'hello' or a 'what's up' or something. Man, we need to work on your people skills. Come on, follow me." 

She walked to the backyard, and Optimus followed her silently in his vehicle form.

The Witwicky family's backyard wasn't the usual backyard with a fence around it and maybe a pool. No, they had a porch, some yard space with a picnic table, a boxing dummy, and then it was a complete wild forest.

At the edge of the forest, Alexandra turned to Optimus, 

"In we go. But you might wanna go robot mode because it's gonna be hard to drive in there." 

Optimus complied and transformed. Alexandra just stared in awe as she watched the first transformation in her life. It was something she had never seen before, and Optimus made it look awesome. When his transformation was complete, Alexandra heard him hiss in pain. She totally forgot he was in serious pain, 

"You wanna take a quick break? You must be tired from all that driving and walking from earlier."

"No, we go forward," 

"Okay we will, but one quick question. When you transform, does it usually hurt, or is it because of your injuries?"

"Transforming is very similar to walking. It can be difficult at times because of injury and it must be taught. So to answer your question, no, it does not normally hurt."

"Oooohhhh!" 

The simplicity of it dawned on Alexandra, 

"Aliens...so cool...anyways, let's go." 

She had to walk fast, almost jog, to stay ahead of Optimus. She had to be jumping over things, while Optimus had to duck under things. They got pretty deep into the forest before Alexandra slowed her pace. She stopped at a part of the forest where the treetops were thick with leaves and pines. The trees were spread far enough for Optimus to easily slip through them. In this heavily shaded place, there were little rock beds here and there. The plant life in this part was beautiful, and there was even a small creek nearby. This place had enough tree cover that satellites from above, or even planes, wouldn't be able to see or detect him. 

"I usually come here when I need to get away. I think this is a good spot for a guy your size." 

Alexandra thought about her words and quickly turned frantically back at Optimus in horror,

"I'm not calling you fat!" 

To her surprise, the leader actually laughed. Alexandra smiled in relief, 

"Glad to know I amuse you, but do you think this is a good spot?"

Optimus surveyed the area. It was far enough that people wouldn't easily come by, close enough for Alexandra to make plenty of visits, and big enough for several bots to move around. He couldn't see any bad sides to this spot. He also could easily keep a vigilant watch on Alexandra's house. 

"It'll do just fine, thank you, Alexandra,"

"That's good! Especially since I really didn't have anywhere else to hide ya. Well, I gotta get back to the house. I volunteered to do a bunch of chores, and now I gotta go do them. I'll see if I can come back later today; if not, for sure tomorrow." 

She punched his leg again, forgetting what happened the last time she did that. She winced and started rubbing her hand, 

"Make yourself at home."

She then walked away. 

Alexandra wasn't able to come back that day; she was cornered by Mazikeen and forced to spend some time with her as her older sister tried teaching her self-defense again.

Optimus knew that Alexandra would have come back if she could, so he didn't mind. Alone with no distractions, he was able to make his temporary home a little more comfortable. He made an A-frame shelter with a bed that was made of leaves. He even made rock furniture, which wasn't very comfortable, but it was something to sit on other than the floor. If he ever got dirty, he had his own little creek to wash himself. He could live with his injuries, but he wasn't sure how long he could go without energon. Not wanting to think about it, he hacked into the nearest satellite. He needed to get a message out to his Autobots. Embedding a Cybertronian message into the satellite data, he silently prayed for it to work. But in the back of his mind, he knew the signal was too weak. If his race were ever able to receive the message, it wouldn't be for a long time.

Sᴏᴍᴇᴡʜᴇʀᴇ Eʟsᴇ

On Jupiter's most volcanic moon, Lo and Behold, there sat a very damaged Decepticon leader. Optimus had inflicted serious damage on Megatron, and the lava that was slowly engulfing him wasn't helping. He was lucky to have been gifted with the self-regenerating armor of Unicron, but it was burning his already painful body. So when he woke up, he wasn't a happy camper...at all.

The enraged Megatron roared to the stars. He was grinding his fangs as he tried clawing his way out of the lava. One of Megatron's turquoise optics was cracked, but they both were burning with fury towards Optimus. His mouth was bleeding, but he still managed to spit, 

"I will crush your spark, Optimus Prime."