*I don't own Transformers or anything affiliated with Transformers. I only own my original characters and plots. All rights go to Michael Bay and Steven Spielberg.*

There were dozens of military planes and helicopters around me as Ironhide pulled onto the base with the rest of the Autobots. The ride back here had taken a mere hour and a half instead of the normal two hours since we were going about sixty miles over the legal limit.

The ride itself had been fairly silent aside from the five minute argument Ironhide and I had at the beginning of the journey and my little breakdown afterwards. He didn't bother talking to me after that though. He knew that when I got like this, I needed my space and a certain amount of time to think about things.

I was still very much intent on getting out of this place though. There was no way I was just going to stay here when the people I cared about could be getting slaughtered at any given moment. I didn't know how I was going to leave but I had to come up with a plan and I had to come up with one fast.

Before Ironhide could even stop, I jumped out of the truck at the sight of my father who was walking with the rest of the soldiers. His eyes widened when he saw me but I ignored his expression and ran over to him, enveloping him in a hug. It wasn't long until he pulled me off of him.

His mouth opened to say something, but before he could, he was cut off by a loud crash. I turned around to see Optimus' lifeless body now laying on the ground. A pang of hurt hit my chest and I frowned. My dad looked just as upset as I was.

My focus was shifted towards a line of military cars that were making their way onto the grounds, their weapons raised at the Autobots who were now taking it upon themselves to transform and defend themselves.

"What is the meaning of this?" Sideswipe demanded.

"You dare point a gun at me? You want a piece of me? I will tear you apart," Ironhide claimed as he waved his cannons around.

My dad growled and ran over to one of the vehicles, very angrily bringing his hands down onto the hood. By now all of the soldiers were scurrying around the many vehicles, yelling for the weapons to be put away. I just stood there in the middle of the circle, not sure if I should speak or not.

"Tell them to lower their weapons!" my dad said to a tanned man.

"Tell them first," the man simply responded.

My dad continued arguing with him. "Tell them to lower the weapons."

The man stopped and looked at my dad. "Major, there's nothing I can do. Talk to him."

He gestured to the vehicle he was currently in front of. A small lanky man in a suit and glasses stepped out and approached my dad.

"Your NEST team is deactivated Major," the man informed him as he stepped towards the Autobots. My dad gave him a stern look. "You're to cease anti-Decepticon operations and return to Diego Garcia, pending further order."

My dad stepped towards the man and I inched myself closer. "No. We take our orders directly from Chairman Morshower," he retorted.

I was now standing behind my dad.

"Well, I'll see your Chairman of the Joint Chief of Staff and raise you a President of the United States. I have operational command now."

The lanky man's eyes met mine and his expression switched to that of anger. "Who is this? Did I not just see her face flashing on a television screen only twenty minutes ago?" he demanded.

I stiffened and everyone turned to me. Why was my face on a television screen?

"This is my daughter," my dad told him.

The man scoffed. "This isn't 'bring your family to work' day. This is a fully operational military base here. We don't need children running lose," he spat.

I raised my eyebrows. "Who do you think you are?"

I took a step forward but my dad held his arm out to restrict me. The man glared at me.

"Theodore Galloway. National Security Advisor to the President. Might I ask what you are doing on a classified military base?" he inquired.

So this was the disgusting insect Ironhide and my dad had been talking about. In my mind he had seemed a bit more threatening. The thought made me laugh.

"Is something funny, miss?"

I shrugged. I would get in trouble for this later but I didn't care. "I just figured you would be more threatening in person, that's all."

My dad stiffened in front of me and several of the soldiers could be heard trying to stifle their laughter. Galloway looked at me with such a fury in his eyes. I found it to be more amusing than anything else.

"Answer my question," he commanded.

"Ironhide brought me here. Is that a problem?"

He narrowed his eyes at me. "It is actually. No one granted him clearance to do so and I most certainly did not. We don't need children running around here."

I scoffed.

"I happen to be nineteen years old, thank you very much. And I don't care who you are. I don't need clearance from you or anyone else to be here and Ironhide happens to be protecting me. He doesn't need you telling him how to do so either," I retorted.

For some odd reason, this just made him angrier. He took a step forward but my dad placed a hand on his chest to keep him from coming any closer. In front of us, Ironhide had his cannons raised again, a low growl escaping his Cybertronian form. I smirked.

"I'd advise you to leave her alone," my dad told Galloway.

"It isn't like I couldn't take him or anything," I grumbled.

My dad elbowed me in the ribs and Galloway just glared at me before looking back to my dad. "An alien blood feud has been brought to our shores for which our soldiers are paying the price," he gestured to the Autobots. "The secret is out! This is our war now and we will win it as we always have; with a coordinated military strategy."

"This fool is terribly misinformed," Ratchet mumbled.

I sighed and stepped in front of my dad. I did not have a care in the world towards what I was about to do. My dad grabbed my arm but I shook him off.

"Aside from your pesky insect personality, I've also been well informed of your indifference towards the Autobots and I can't necessarily say that I like it.

"Are you really so stupid as to believe that a simple army of humans alone are to defeat a massive threat such as the Decepticons?

"Yes, we are an advanced species but they are roughly a hundred times more advanced than us and I'm almost positive you would have realized that by now just by working along side the Autobots; I know I most certainly have in the past two years that I've spent with them.

"You would be wise to get your fat head out of your ass and open your eyes, Galloway. Without them here, we stand no chance against the Decepticons. The only reason we've even succeeded in past Decepticon wars is because of them and I know somewhere deep down in that stone cold heart of yours, you know that. Just think about that the next time you decide to make an ignorant claim about my family," I said to him.

The soldiers were silent, as were the Autobots and Galloway himself. I smirked and moved back behind my father, Galloway's eyes still on me. My dad broke the silence.

"You're going to need every asset that you've got," my dad said to Galloway as he gestured to the Autobots.

Galloway seemed to snap out of his trance long enough to answer my father.

"What we need is to draw out battle plans. But we'll explore every possible diplomatic solution," Galloway said.

"Like what? Like handing over Sam and my daughter?"

Galloway's eyes flashed to my own. "All options are being considered," he spat at me.

Excuse me?

His statement made not just my father mad, but also Epps and the four Autobots standing in front of me. I hadn't a clue as to what they were talking about though.

"Whatever the Decepticons are after, this is just the start," one of my dad's soldiers spoke.

My dad followed Galloway back over to the army vehicle.

"There is no negotiating with this. I'm not handing my daughter nor Sam over to some ancient, evil Decepticon leader," my dad seethed.

"I'm ordering you to stand down. Now get your assets back to base, get that insolent little girl of yours back to where she came from and take that pile of scrap metal back to Diego Garcia," Galloway exclaimed. I growled and walked up to my dad. Galloway shot me a look. "And you, little girl, would be wise to learn some manners," he baited.

I made a face and opened my mouth to speak, but before I could, my dad placed a hand over my mouth and pulled me to him. Galloway got into the military vehicle and drove off, allowing my dad to finally release me.

"I really don't like that dude. He's an asshole," Epps stated as the vehicles drove off.

"I would really like to jerk a knot in his tail," I stated. Epps snickered at my remark but my dad just stood there.

"Autobots, report to hangar for trasport," I heard a voice on the loud-speaker say. I groaned.

"Ironhide, we should leave this planet." I shot Ratchet a look. There was no way that was happening.

"That's not what Optimus would want," Hide replied.

Once my dad calmed down a bit, he hugged me tightly. "I'm so glad you're okay."

I pulled away from him and frowned. "How long am I going to be stuck here?" I asked him.

He began walking towards the building with the Autobots and I followed.

"Until this is over, I presume," he simply stated.

I groaned. "You and Ironhide are always so protective. I was perfectly fine with Bumblebee and the rest of them."

Hide grunted. "You're such a stubborn little brat," he retorted.

"And you're an exasperating brute but you don't see me complaining about it," I shot back.

Ironhide grunted again and my dad sighed. We soon entered the building and I was lead towards a different wing in the building. This must have been the housing department. My dad opened up a room door and gestured me inside.

I rolled my eyes and walked in. The room itself was fairly large but I didn't think nothing of it. I walked over to sit down on the large queen sized bed while my dad stood in the door way. I looked at him.

"What were you and Galloway talking about when you suggested handing Sam and I over?" I asked him.

He frowned and walked over to switch on the flat screen TV in the room. A metallic face with piercing red optics flashed across the screen and I scrunched my eyebrows up. It wasn't long before he began speaking.

"Citizens of the human hide, your leaders have withheld the truth. You are not alone in this universe. We have lived among you, hidden; but no more. As you've seen we can destroy your cities and we will unless you turn over these children," he started.

Suddenly mine and Sam's faces flashed across the screen, along with our ID's and social security numbers. My eyes widened.

"If you resist us, we will destroy the world as you know it."

After that, the screen went black. My dad turned the TV off and I looked at him.

"That's been looping around the globe for the past half an hour," he told me.

I sighed and laid back on the bed. "I can't believe this is happening to me," I mumbled.

He walked over and sat down beside me. "I'm sorry. But this is the reason Hide and I are keeping you here. They can't track you here. You'll be safe. We're only trying to protect you, Azalea."

I sat back up. "I know that."

He smiled at me.

"Now, I have to help get the Autobots ready for transport, okay? You need to stay here. I'll see you in a little while," he assured me.

I nodded. Hopefully I'd be gone long before he returned.

He kissed the top of my head before heading out of my room. I let out a huff and swung back down onto my bed.

I needed to think of way to get to Sam without being caught. I could always call him and though my phone was back at school there was a telephone currently sitting on the side table in my room, but knowing Sam, he probably destroyed both his and Leo's in fear of being tracked so contacting him directly was out of the question.

I knew how to contact an Autobot's private communication link through a regular phone as well, but I would need a code from Bumblebee to achieve that and I didn't have one. Right now I was stuck in a hole.

I stared at the ceiling for about two minutes before realization hit me. I jumped up and grabbed the phone off of the bedside table before punching in the all too familiar code. The buzz on the end nearly caused me to squeal in excitement as it patched me through the line. There was a click and then a voice sounded.

"What the hell? Who's this and what do you want? This better not be no damn Decepticon. I'll bust your ass up," Mudflap's voice sounded.

I giggled. "Mudflap. It's me."

"Baby Lea?" he responded.

"Yes."

I heard murmuring on the line and then Mudflap spoke again. "What you want, baby girl?"

"I need a huge favor. I need you to come get me," I said to him.

"Come get you? Come get you from where?"

"I'm at the base in New Jersey. My dad and Ironhide are trying to keep me here but I can't stay here knowing that Sam is in trouble and that I'm one of the reasons Optimus is dead. Sam and I are both targets now and I refuse to leave him alone in this. I refuse to abandon him like that," I told him.

The line was silent for a moment.

"You know Hide will have your ass in a knot," he spoke.

I sighed. "I know that, but I don't care. Please come get me, Mudflap."

He let out a groan.

"You got one hour. I'm already on my way. Just be ready," he told me.

I squealed with excitement, quite thankful for his ability to speed without getting in trouble for it.

"Thank you Mudflap. I love you!" I exclaimed.

He just laughed before the line disconnected. I smiled and placed the phone back in its designated area. My door opened again and my dad walked in with Epps behind him. My dad gave me a look when he saw the smile on my face.

"Why are you so happy?" he asked me.

I just shrugged and propped my feet up onto my bed. Epps laughed and walked over to me.

"Good job today," he said.

I raised a brow. "With what?"

He sat down on my bed.

"Galloway. No one has the balls to stand up to him. Most of the soldiers were pretty shocked with your outburst," he answered.

I chuckled. "Well, somebody needed to put him in his place so I thought I would take my chances with it. I've never felt so good about anything in my life. I can now mark 'Tell federal officer off' off of my bucket list," I joked.

Epps laughed and my dad shook his head at me.

"We have to leave, Azalea. We came in here to see if you wanted to go with us or stay here," my dad said.

"Go where?"

"We have to head on back to Diego Garcia with the Autobots. Galloway's orders. I'd much rather you stay here since you'd be safer here, but if you want to come, you can," he told me.

This was just the perfect opportunity. "I think I'll be okay here. Like you said, they can't track me here."

He smiled at me.

"Okay. We'll be gone within a few hours. I've already got workers here to take care of you. You'll have everything you need. You don't need to worry, okay?" I nodded. "I love you, Lea."

I got up and hugged him. "I love you, daddy."

I pulled away from him and looked at my Uncle Epps. He laughed and stood up before engulfing me in a hug.

"I love you, Uncle Epps."

"I love you too, little girl."

I smiled and pulled away from him. "Both of you better stay safe. That's all I have to say to you," I told them. They nodded.

"And tell Hide I said I love him, okay?"

My dad nodded and ruffled my hair. "We'll see you as soon as possible, Lea."

"Bye dad. Bye Epps," I said as they walked to the door.

They gave me one last smile before heading out of the room. I sat back on my bed and stared at the ceiling. Now all I had left to do was wait on Mudflap to show up.

*Please vote and comment. It'd mean so much to me. I wanna know what you guys think.*