The Ground Bridge opened up in a back alley near Sumdac High School. Bumblebee rolled out in vehicle mode, pulling up into the parking lot. Melissa, Jeffrey, and Spike all climbed out, running up the set of concrete stairs as Jeffrey threw his shoulder into the doors, opening them with a loud bang.

"T-minus 2 minutes til class starts." Spike reported over the sounds of their sneakers against the linoleum.

"Metal to the pedal!" Melissa declared.

"Y'know that the saying is the other way around, right?" Jeffrey questioned as he caught up to his companions.

"Works either way for me." Melissa retorted.

The three skidded through the door of their physics class mere seconds before the bell rang. The teacher, Miss Nakadai, raised an eyebrow before crossing her arms.

"Cutting it a little close, you three." she chastised. "I hope this won't be a recurring issue."

"Sorry Miss Nakadai." Jeffrey apologized. "We uh... got caught in traffic."

"Well then, please take your seats so we can begin." Miss Nakadai requested.

The three walked slowly to their desks, situated in the far back of the classroom. The teacher merely chuckled, shaking her head as she turned to the smartboard to begin the lesson, the three scooted close together, Melissa in between the two of them.

"I can't believe we made it to class on time." Jeffrey let out. "I was pretty sure we were going to be in huge trouble."

"I'm just glad we didn't get arrested or anything." Spike declared.

"Agent Fowler wouldn't have arrested you." Melissa insisted. "He was simply going to take you somewhere he deemed safe. He knows all too well the damage the Decepticons can cause."

"So, should we be worried about that whole 'this isn't over' declaration?" Jeffrey asked.

"Nah, Fowler may talk a big game, but he won't do anything that could jeopardize the only chance your planet has of stopping the Cons." Melissa rationalized.

"I guess so." Jeffrey replied.

"I hope you three are discussing physics back there." Miss Nakadai called out, not even glancing over her shoulder as she drew a complex formula involving mass displacement.

"Sorry, ma'am!" the three called back in unison before turning their focus onto the lesson.

...

Not long after the kids made it to their class, Agent Fowler had boarded his personal helicopter, taking off from the Autobot base. Once he was airborne, he got in contact with his superiors.

"Sir!" He called into his microphone. "This is Agent Fowler. We have a situation. I'm en-route from the Autobot base. I'll brief you in person."

"Copy that, Agent." his superior replied. "I'll be waiting for you."

Fowler hung up, tightening his grip on the control stick as his eyes narrowed.

...

At the Decepticon base, Soundwave approached Megatron. The Decepticon leader was overseeing repairs to the Nemesis, working to get it airborne once again. When he heard the intelligence officer come in, he gave the bot a sideways glance.

"Soundwave, what is it?" Megatron asked.

Soundwave began playing back Fowler's call to his superior, the word 'Autobot' having prompted the Con to record it. When Megatron heard the full call, a vicious grin grew on his face plate.

"So, the Autobots have even more human allies." Megatron mused. "How unfortunate for them. Bring me this 'Fowler' so that he may divulge his knowledge of the Autobots to us."

"As you command, Lord Megatron." Soundwave told him. "Laserbeak, deploy."

The metal drone detached from his chest, hovering before the Con's featureless face-screen.

"Operation: Extraction."

Laserbeak then flew off to do as he was told.

...

Fowler glanced over to his GPS, taking note of his location. He had only been in the air for an hour and had already passed over Cleveland and Youngstown. Only Pittsburgh and Philadelphia were left before he would reach the Pentagon. Smiling, he rolled up his sleeve to glance at his watch.

"Heh, right on time." he declared.

An alarm began blaring from the control panel, drawing his attention. Quickly, he placed both hands on the stick before looking towards the source. His radar was flashing, warning him of an incoming projectile that was quickly approaching from behind. He turned pale,

"What is a military drone doing this far from Andrews Air Force Base?" He muttered to himself. "And why is it going at that speed?"

He quickly grabbed the radio, preparing to clear up the situation.

"U.S. Air Force, this is William Fowler, Special Agent of the Department of-" The soft hiss of the radio became a loud, ear-splitting scream that declared the call dropped and disconnected. "What in Uncle Sam's beard was-?"

A loud bang and a screech filled the cabin and the helicopter shook hard, his head slamming into the glass of the cockpit as the tail lurched upward. He fell back in his seat, gripping hard onto the cyclic as he pulled it back to steady himself. It was then he saw the target. The drone slowed itself before its wings opened up, revealing a pair of thick mechanical tentacles with sharp metal fingers. The sight was one Fowler had seen before, and one he'd hoped never to see in person.

"Sweet lady liberty!" He exclaimed, gritting his teeth. "It's one of the 'Cons!"

It was then he noticed the trickling warm sensation rolling down his head. He slowly raised his hand to the source, pulling back twin fingers coated in blood. He snarled before turning to Laserbeak, who was closing in on the copter.

"You know robo freak, this was my favorite suit." He said, putting both hands on the stick before glancing at the gas meter. He could make it, but it would be close. "I'll be sure that you pay for that."

He looked up to where a series of switches were carefully labelled. He began flipping the weapons systems to activate. Rolling from the sides came two sets of six missiles and a rotary gun. He looked down, noting that he had over one thousands round and six missiles at his disposal. Unfortunately, he also had a crowded populace of people miles below that he couldn't afford to get caught in the crossfire.

"Damn, I gotta lure him away from the city." He picked up the radio, almost certain the robot menace was using it to listen in on him.

"Hey Drone-for-brains, let's play hide and seek." Fowler taunted. "You're it!"

The Apache fired a missile and it spun towards Laserbeak who lurched to the side. The missile veered past the drone, exploding a good mile away. Fowler pushed the stick forward quickly, nosediving down as Laserbeak. He quickly regained control of himself and set off in pursuit of the drone.

Laserbeak prepared the afterburners, Fowler swerved towards the city and hoped the drone would try anything. First thing was flying down Interstate 23. The crowded, back to back traffic of rush hour was clear to see from up here as they entered downtown. He turned hard left between two skyscrapers as Laserbeak followed. He stalled up, the engine screaming as Laserbeak followed.

"Yeah, keep following me, you overgrown bird." He murmured as he threw the stick back into his chest. The helicopter flipped into the air but as he looked down at the city, he didn't see Laserbeak.

"What the-?" Fowler let out, looking around for Laserbeak. "Where'd that 'Con-?"

Suddenly, he began losing altitude. He turned to look through the rear, black tentacles wrapped around the tail, squeezing the metal until finally the rotor gave way and the tail broke free. Engine fluid and fuel sprayed as the tail tumbled to the ground. The top propeller began to swerve and the helicopter was quickly beginning to spin into a nosedive. The agent gripped the stick, struggling to level himself out and not crash.

"Never an Autobot around when you need one." he grumbled.

He was closing in on a rooftop fast, struggling to hit a distress signal. Unfortunately, he was moving around too much and shaking too hard to get a good hit on the button. To make matters worse, Laserbeak's tentacles smashed through the windshield of the copter, making a grab for the agent. He struggled and tried to fight them off, but they eventually managed to pull him free of the cockpit. Fowler finally managed to hit the distress button, seconds before the copter crashed down on the roof. Fowler looked down at the wreck, then up at the drone holding him captive. He shot it a glare as it flew off with him, disappearing into the sky.

...

In the Autobot base, Ratchet and Optimus were in the midst of a debate about their new human allies. The Med-Bot was still very much against the idea of Jeffrey and Spike spending their time at base.

"Optimus, I know you think these humans can provide an invaluable resource, but allow me to plead to your sensors." he begged. "These humans aren't diplomats, they're children! We have no use for them, and besides, since Fowler arrived we've had nothing but trouble from the human authorities."

"And it is for that reason that building a positive human-Autobot relation is essential." Optimus rationalized. "And as for their youth, wasn't Melissa much younger when you befriended her?"

"He's got you there, Ratch." Bulkhead quipped.

Ratchet just growled, then an alarm began to blare. The med-bot's growl became a full-on groan at the noise.

"Back so soon, Fowler?" He questioned. "What does that fleshy want now?"

Prowl shut off the alarm, his optics widening slightly.

"You're half-right, Ratchet." he reported. "Agent Fowler's sending a distress signal."

"Can you trace it?" Optimus questioned.

Prowl shook his head.

"Location scan was incomplete." he answered.

Bulkhead gave a nonchalant shrug.

"Oh well." he let out.

"Bulkhead!" Prowl let out.

"What?" Bulkhead replied. "Fowler's a jerk."

"But he is also one of the few who know the location of our hidden base." Optimus pointed out. "I have no doubts that Megatron will do everything in his power to extract the information from him."

"Still think allowing those humans to stick around is a good idea?" Ratchet questioned.

"We will continue this debate later." Optimus told him. "In the meantime, is there any way we can locate Agent Fowler?"

"I'm afraid not." Prowl lamented. "Humans are not equipped with tracking software like us, and without a complete location scan, only Primus knows where Agent Fowler is."

...

With Agent Fowler, Laserbeak carried him for an unknown amount of time, eventually flying down into a small canyon deep in a heavily forested area. One large outcropping of rocks shimmered slightly, eventually becoming a still-under-construction Nemesis. It was still in rough shape, but the vehicons were working nonstop to get it air-worthy again.

Laserbeak flew through the open bay doors, eventually coming onto the main deck. Finally, the drone dropped Agent Fowler, retreating back on to Soundwave's chest. The intelligence officer ensured his drone was back in its proper place before grabbing Fowler, pulling him to his feet.

"Objective complete." he reported. "Target obtained."

"Excellent Soundwave." Megatron replied, stepping forward.

Fowler met Megatron's eye, struggling slightly in Soundwave's grasp.

"You treat all your guests this nice?" He quipped.

"Just those who call themselves friends to the Autobots." Megatron replied.

"Autobots?" Fowler repeated, feigning ignorance. "That one of those do-it-yourself car washing companies?"

"Amusing." Megatron remarked. "But you will find that the sense of humor is the first to be extinguished here. Starscream!"

Starscream approached, giving a small bow.

"Yes, Lord Megatron?" he asked.

"Take 'Agent Fowler' to the interrogation chamber." Megatron ordered. "I want the location of the Autobot base, and anything else he knows about them."

"As you wish, Lord Megatron." Starscream replied.

He took Fowler from Soundwave, carrying the agent off.

...

At the base, the Autobots were still pondering over their problem with Agent Fowler as Bumblebee came rolling in. Melissa, Jeffery, and Spike all vacated the bot, allowing him to return to robot mode.

"So there's an abandoned missile silo inside Mt. 20th street." Spike remarked. "I have to admit, that's pretty cool."

"I'm just glad we were able to go through the front door this time." Jeffrey voiced. "That Ground Bridge thing makes my entire body feel... fuzzy."

Melissa went to speak, then noticed how serious the other Autobots were. She walked over to then, transforming mid step into robot mode.

"What's the sit-rep?" she asked.

"Agent Fowler has been captured by whom we can only assume are the Decepticons." Optimus relayed.

"What?!" She, Jeffrey, and Spike all exclaimed, a shocked buzz from Bumblebee accompanying their cries.

"We got a distress signal a few cycles ago, but we were unable to trace the signal before it went offline." Ratchet spoke up.

"Well, why not use his tracker?" Spike offered up.

Ratchet cackled at the idea.

"Human beings don't have tracking programs!" Ratchet exclaimed.

"The ones that work for the government do." Spike corrected.

Ratchet's optics widened slightly before turning to the others with a slight, did-you-know-about this expression. The rest simply looked at Spike in surprise as he slid his backpack off his shoulder and made his way over to the computer terminal.

"Back in 2005, the US government started chipping their agents." He explained, pulling his laptop out of his backpack and booting it up. "All I need to do is hack into the Federal mainframe, pull up Agent Fowler's record, and I should find his tracker's ID number and start a GPS search."

"Do what you can, Spike." Optimus told him.

"Dude, since when could you do that?" Jeffrey questioned.

"Since forever." Spike replied. "Trust me, there's not a system on this planet I can't hack."

"Score one for Team Organic." Melissa complimented.

Even Ratchet had to give Spike some begrudging respect, watching and waiting for his search to bear fruit.

...

Two vehicons strung Agent Fowler up by his arms, suspending him in the middle of the interrogation chamber. Starscream walked around him, carrying a mechanical prod sparking with blue energy.

"Agent Fowler, I have one single request that would save your family the pain of grieving." Starscream informed him. "Tell me the location of the Autobot base."

"Sure thing." Fowler replied. "Right after you eat my star spangled shorts!"

Starscream let out a growl, but composed himself before holding up the rod.

"You know, there's one thing I'm quite curious about." He remarked. "How would an organic body react to a high concentration of Energon?"

He then jammed the prod into his chest, causing Fowler to cry out in pain and agony. The sound made Starscream chuckle as he removed the prod.

"As I suspected." he mused. "Not a pretty combination."

...

"I got him!" Spike cheered. "He's at latitude 62.4981° north, longitude 114.3603° west."

"Ratchet, plug in coordinates!" Prime ordered.

Ratchet complied, immediately doing so and opening a Ground Bridge.

"So, what now?" Jeffrey asked.

"Now, we go and rescue Agent Fowler." Bulkhead answered. "No matter how much of a pain in the fender he is."

"What about me and Spike?" Jeffrey clarified. "What can we do?"

"Remain here with Ratchet." Optimus told them.

"What?" Spike questioned. "No way. We can help!"

"It's too risky." Optimus insisted. "The area will be crawling with Decepticons, ones who will no doubt be on the lookout for us."

"Then... wouldn't it make sense for us to come?" Jeffrey suggested.

Prowl seemed intrigued.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"I mean, the Decepticons will be expecting you guys, not a couple of humans." Jeffrey rationalized. "We can sneak in undetected while you guys draw the Decepticon's attention."

"That... is actually a sound plan." Prowl relented.

Optimus thought it over, still a bit uneasy with the idea.

"This mission has a high chance of going south." Optimus informed the boys. "I cannot in good conscience ask you to come."

"Good thing you ain't asking." Spike grinned. "Team Organic is coming, if you'll let us."

"And I think that's another point in their favor." Melissa quipped, smirking at Ratchet.

Optimus paused for a moment, then turned to Melissa.

"You will accompany them." he decided. "Remain in your organic mode unless engaged. Should the worst come to pass, you must make sure that you three escape alive."

"Will do." Melissa replied.

"Autobots, transform and roll out!" Optimus called out.

The Autobots all did as they were told, Melissa shrinking down into organic mode as Bulkhead pulled up. He opened up his doors and the three climbed in. Then one by one, they all shot through the Ground Bridge, leaving Ratchet alone in the base.

...

At the Decepticon base, Fowler was panting hard from Starscream's very generous use of the prod. His entire body ached, and it was getting harder and harder to keep his mouth shut.

"Agent Fowler, this bravado is aiding neither you, nor us." Starscream told him. "Just tell me what I want to know, and all this will end."

"Answer me this... 'Con." Fowler said through gritted teeth. "Do you bots have a hell?"

"As in an afterlife?" Starscream asked. "While there is the Well of All Sparks, there are rumors of a place similar to your 'Hell'. Some call it the Pit, others the Inferno. Why do you ask?"

"So I can say this, and you'll understand." Fowler told him, looking him in the eyes with a cold look. "Go to hell."

Starscream growled at this, jamming the prod into Fowler's stomach once again, his optics glowing with fury.

...

Just outside the Decepticons base, the ground bridge opened up and the bots came through. They ended up in the ravine where the Nemesis was parked. A few vehicons who weren't doing repairs were milling about, patrolling the area. Spike looked through Bulkhead's windshield at the Nemesis, letting out a whistle.

"That ship has seen better days." he remarked.

"Still, it's in better shape than ours." Prowl remarked. "And that's not a good thing."

"Even so, it doesn't look air ready just yet." Melissa pointed out. "So we don't have to worry about it taking off for now."

"Right now, we have our own mission." Optimus reminded. "Rescuing Agent Fowler."

"Guess we better draw out the 'Cons." Bulkhead declared.

He opened up his doors and the teens climbed out, allowing Bulkhead to shift into robot mode. The rest of the bots did the same, Prowl turning to the three.

"Wait until the battle is underway, then keep to the walls of the ravine." he recommended. "Stay out of sight and contact us the second you find Fowler."

"Not my first rescue op, Prowl." Melissa reminded him. "I know what to do."

"Just the first with fellow organics backing you up." Prowl reminded.

Melissa nodded, then all three of them took cover behind a small outcropping of rocks. Once the humans were in place, the Autobots drew their blasters and opened fire on the vehicons guarding the ravine. Two went down instantly but another three managed to avoid getting shot. They returned fire, slowly chipping away at the rocks the Autobots were using for cover. Prowl and Bulkhead peered out from behind the rocks and fired off a few more blasts, taking out two more. The final one was taken out by Optimus, the Vehicon falling with a loud crash.

"Now's our chance." Melissa declared, grabbing Spike and Jeffrey by the wrist. "Let's go!"

They ran along the side of the ravine as the Autobots charged forwards, weapons at the ready.

...

From the main bridge of the Nemesis, Megatron could see the firefight going on below. His optics narrowed at the sight. He then activated the communications on board the ship.

"The Autobots have arrived." He announced. "Crush them!"

"It would be my pleasure, Master." Lugnut declared.

"Just try to save some for the rest of us!" The pixelated-face of Blitzwing demanded.

As the two went off to do as they were told, Megatron's optics focused in on one bot in the crowd. An evil smile spread across his faceplate as he found himself staring at the familiar red and blue color scheme of his oldest enemy.

...

Back outside, the firefight had escalated into an all-out battle, ditching the guns for straight up hand to hand combat. Prowl's hubcap throwing stars embedded themselves in optics and spark chambers as the ninja bot delivered precise kicks and jabs. Bulkhead formed his hand into a spiked mace, which he used to smash every Decepticon in sight. Bumblebee was watching his back, long blades slicing through any Vehicon foolish enough to get close. Prime had his axe in hand, swinging it with enough precision to sever multiple heads with one blow.

As this went on, the three teens rushed through the battlefield, skirting around fallen 'Cons and making their way to the Nemesis. They were just about to climb on board when the arrival of Blitzwing and Lugnut stalled their entrance. Jeffrey thought fast, pulling the pair under the gangplank seconds before the 'Cons would have spotted them.

"Prepare for extermination Autobots!" Lugnut declared. "For the glory of Megatron!"

"Oh scrap!" Bulkhead shouted. "It's Lughead!"

"Meaning Blitzwing isn't far behind." Prowl remarked.

As he said this, Blitzwing swept down from the sky, ramming right into the ninja-bot. His pixelated laughter grated in Prowl's audio receptors.

"Let's have a little fun, ninja-bot!" The crazed 'Con declared, flying off with his quarry.

Lugnut then leapt forward and reeled an arm back, a large button appearing on his fist. He went to bring it down, but Bulkhead moved to intercept, just barely holding the larger bot back.

"Oh no... you... don't!" He exclaimed. "No punching today!"

"Unhand me, Autobot scum!" Lugnut demanded, planting his foot on Bulkhead's chest plate and shoving him back.

Bulkhead went skidding back as Optimus charged forward, his axe glowing with power.

"Stand down, Lugnut." he told the oversized Decepticon. "You can't win this,"

Before Lugnut could make another move, a familiar aerial craft shot forth from the Nemesis. It transformed midair, revealing to be Megatron himself. The Decepticon leader landed right in front of Optimus, chuckling darkly.

"Optimus Prime." Megatron greeted. "It's been quite some time."

"Megatron." Optimus let out.

"Megatron?" Spike hissed.

"The Decepticon leader." Melissa hissed back. "Trust me, you don't want to be here when he starts fighting."

"Right." Jeffrey nodded. "Let's get inside."

The three snuck onto the vessel as Megatron prepared to face down Optimus.

"Shall we pick up where we left off?" Megatron proposed. "With me extinguishing your spark?"

"That is not how I remember it, Megatron." Prime remarked.

"Then allow me to jog your memory cortex." Megatron replied, extending a blade on one arm and readying a fusion cannon on the other.

He charged at Prime, swinging his blade at him and forcing Prime to block it with his axe. Bee tried to come to his aid, but was cut off by Breakdown's jeep. The 'Con transformed, punching his fist into his palm.

"I'm not done pounding you into the ground, scout." he sneered.

...

The teens kept close to one another as they made their way through the Nemesis. Thankfully, their plan had worked for the most part, and nearly all of the Decepticons were busy dealing with the Autobots. This only left a handful of Vehicons scattered around the ship, ones that were easy to dodge since they weren't looking for humans. After a little bit of searching, the trio came to a large room that seemed to be the data center for the ship. Melissa took a peek inside, spotting a Vehicon at the terminal.

"Bad news, there's a Vehicon guarding the place." Melissa declared.

"Is there good news?" Jeffrey asked.

"Yeah, there's a Vehicon guarding the place." she replied.

Melissa then transformed into her robot mode and drew her blade. The Vehicon heard her transformation and turned, only to get a blade right through the face-plate. The Vehicon fell as Melissa retracted her blade, turning back to the boys. She scooped them up, dropping them onto the terminal.

"I just need a moment to search for Fowler's location." she reported. "Shouldn't take too long."

She got right to work, typing away on the terminal. Spike took the opportunity to look around the room from their new vantage point. He looked among the screens, eventually coming across one that had what he could only describe as alien math.

"Hey Melissa." Spike spoke up. "What's that?"

She glanced over, her optics focusing on the screen.

"I'm not sure." she admitted. "I'm a soldier, not a scientist."

"Well whatever it is, it looks important." Jeffrey remarked.

"I don't have time to download the info." Melissa said discouragingly before returning her optics to the other screens. "We need to be in and out as soon as possible."

"In that case." Spike reached into his pocket, pulling out his phone and snapping a picture.

About that time, Melissa got the info she was looking for.

"Got it!" she cheered. "Interrogation room Delta."

She grabbed the boys and deposited them on the floor, shrinking down to human size once again.

"We gotta run." She insisted. "No doubt the 'Cons are putting the jumper cables to Fowler as we speak."

...

Outside, the battle was in full swing. Blitzwing had transformed while still holding Prowl, slamming the ninja bot into the side of the canyon. Breakdown and Bumblebee were wrestling as well, the scout struggling to hold his own against the 'Con. Lugnut had forgone his attempts to use the punch, opting to simply try and bash Bulkhead's faceplate in. While this was going on, Megatron and Optimus continued their clash.

Megatron let out a battle cry as he launched himself forward, his sword swinging down just as Optimus combat rolled to the side. The blade cratered the earth as Megatron swung it sideways, clipping into the side of Optimus' chest plate. Optimus stumbled back just as Megatron stood up to full size. He smirked down at the injured Autobot before preparing a second swing. Optimus brought his axe up to block the blade, struggling to fight through the pain.

Lugnut grabbed onto the trunk of a downed tree, ripping it free from its vine entangled grave before swinging it hard. The tree trunk struck Bulkhead in the side of the head, exploding into shards on impact. Bulkhead merely rubbed the side of his head as Lugnut turned to the giant. Bulkhead quickly lunged and tackled the bot to the ground, placing both hands on his shoulders in a pin.

"That all you got, Lughead?" Bulkhead quipped.

"It. is-" A foot suddenly planted into Bulkhead's chest. "Lugnut!"

He gave the bot a hard kick, throwing the giant into the air and onto his back before getting to his feet once more. Bulkhead got back up, wiping the corner of his mouth before forming his wrecking ball with his hand.

"Now things are getting interesting." he checked, charging forward once again.

Breakdown was thrown hard against the side of the ship, his head leaving a faint mark against the thick, black, metal structure. He attempted to regain his stance but Bumblebee pressed his arm into the chest of Breakdown before punching him in the face. He did this once, then twice, then again and again until Breakdown freed a hand and pushed the Autobot off of him.

Blitzwing landed high above the edge of the ravine, smirking at the downed Prowl. The ninja bot had been dropped onto the top of the ravine, covered in dents and scrapes.

"This is where this ends, you Autobot scum!" His red, angry head spoke.

His face then turned to his blue one as he leveled an ice gun at Prowl.

"Prepare yourself for certain annihilation, you annoying speck." he taunted.

Prowl leapt out of the way, the ice striking the ground and forming upright icicle. The 'Con's face spun a third time, becoming his pixelated face.

"Hold still so I can turn you into a bot-sicle!" He said in his crazy voice.

"You know, I fear for you, Blitzwing." Prowl said calmly as Blitzwing's pixelated eye seemed to widen, simulating a raised eyebrow. "One of these days, you are going to lose that head of yours."

Prowl suddenly entered a dead sprint, earth kicking up in a cloud as he ran at Blitzwing. His arm flashed a ninja star hub cap as Blitzwing raised his arms in defense, the two forces colliding.

...

"Interrogation Room Alpha, Room Beta..." Melissa murmured as she walked down the hallway, reading the bizarre Cybertronian inscriptions on the door. "We have to be getting close."

"What are we even gonna do once we find him?" Jeffrey asked. "He's probably guarded."

"No doubt about it." Spike declared. "Like you said, they're putting the jumper cables to him."

"We'll figure out something." Melissa assured them. "Right now, we just need to make sure we don't get-"

Suddenly, the mechanical hiss of an opening door sounded and a great hand wrapped around her. The other grabbed both Jeffrey and Spike around their stomachs. They were lifted into the air, face to face with Starscream.

"-Caught." she finished.

"Organics." He hissed darkly. "Next time you wish to rescue someone, I suggest you try being stealthy about it."

From inside the room, Fowler looked up from his pained stupor, seeing the three teens in the 'Con's grip. His eyes widened and he struggled in his chains, trying harder than before to break free.

"Let them go you- you overgrown rust bucket!" He shouted.

"I don't believe you are in any position to be giving orders, human." Starscream retorted. "However, tell me what I want to know, and I may just let them live."

"Here's my counter offer." Melissa piped up. "Let us all go, and you won't have to explain to Megatron why the Nemesis looks worse than it already does."

"What do you think you can possibly do to me, human?" Starscream taunted. "Spit on me?"

Melissa then leaned back as hard as she could, transforming in the 'Con's grip. Before he even had a chance to register surprise, she socked him right in the center of his face plate. He lost his grip on Jeffrey and Spike, allowing Melissa to catch them in her outstretched hand. They landed with a soft thud as Starscream fell hard to the ground. With her free hand, Melissa tore through the chains holding Fowler, gathering him in the other hand.

"That answer your question?" She quipped.

She then transformed a second time, this time taking on her vehicle mode, a B-2 stealth bomber. In doing so, she deposited her three charges into her cockpit, the cover slamming down before she rushed out of the room. She'd made it quite a ways down the narrow hallway before Starscream finally managed to scramble to his feet. He quickly reached the door, slamming his hand on an electronic panel on the side. The lights dimmed and red lights began flashing as the alarms were triggered.

The alarms quickly reached Melissa's audio receptors, the bot letting out a curse. She sped herself up as the organics arranged themselves inside. Jeffrey and Spike got Fowler set up in the rearmost seat, the two boys looking at him with worried expressions.

"Agent Fowler, are you alright?" Jeffrey asked.

"They..." He panted briefly before spitting out some blood with a red tinted smile. "They haven't broken this old eagle yet."

The two boys sighed in relief before Spike turned to Jeffrey.

"We need to get out of here soon." Spike insisted. "With that alarm going off, it's only a matter of time before we-"

"Hold on there." They heard Agent Fowler murmur.

They turned cautiously as he slowly looked around the cockpit.

"This is a Northrop Grumman Spirit Special." He realized.

"Ahhh... what?" Jeffrey asked, confused about what this had to do with anything.

"This is a specialized piece of all American engineering that is classified to anyone not in the United States Air Force!" He clarified. "How in Uncle Sam's beard did you even get the schematics for this?!"

"Well, Fowler's back to normal." Melissa sighed as she began gaining speed.

Suddenly, the whole plane shook as her rear exploded. A devilish laugh filled her intercom.

"You really didn't think it would be that easy, did you little bird?" Starscream's grating voice taunted.

"Scrap, Starscream's up already. He's stronger than I remember." She tried to regain her lost speed. "Everyone buckle up, this is gonna get messy!"

A second missile screamed passed her, as a third struck her in the boosters.

She turned down a corridor quickly, Starscream quickly morphing his legs out to kick off the wall to prevent crashing, leaving a nasty dent in the panel. He fired two more missiles, each missing her as she barrel rolled before exploding into expensive electronic equipment. She stalled up into an exhaust vent before Starscream, again, reformed his legs to stop into the wall. The impact cracked the computer screens he landed on and broke the keypads before reshaping his engines and flying after her.

"Well, hopefully that slows down this Decepticons a bit longer." Jeffrey remarked.

"We still have to get outta here though, Mels." Spike declared, looking over the array of switches and dials in front of him. "What do we do?"

"We need to lose Starscream somehow." Melissa replied. "Usually I'm the one doing the chasing, not the other way around."

"Hey Mels, how much do you know about Starscream?" Spike asked as he glanced at her radars.

"I've only been fighting with the guy for the past 15,000 stellar cycles." she quipped. "What do you need to know?"

"How well can he corner?" Spike asked.

Jeffrey glanced out the window, seeing Starscream leave a nasty gash in one of the walls as he tried to chase after them.

"From my angle, I'd say they're not his strong suit." He remarked.

"That they aren't." Melissa agreed. "Strap yourselves in, things are gonna get rough."

Melissa made a sharp turn, then a steep left before nose diving through another vent before coming out into a long hallway, all the while hearing the scrapes and dings of Starscream behind them. The hallway was the last thing that Melissa wanted. It was the guts of the Nemesis, with no doors for miles. She swore under her breath as Starscream came down.

"Looks like it's the end of the line for you, birdie." Starscream quipped before attempting another missile launch. "Clever trick using the darkness to your advantage, but now you're mine."

The missile went straight, but Melissa dodged it skillfully, knocking it into her wing and sending it into the wall. The wall exploded and light shone in. Starscream's night vision was suddenly pure white and the intercom exploded in a pained scream as he ran into the wall before regaining himself. Melissa looked at the small hole, then as Starscream. An idea formed in a matter of nanokliks.

"That the best you got, Starscream?" Melissa chuckled. "You always were a lousy shot!"

"You will not get away!" Starscream shouted, as the full array of his weapon systems manifested. "Not again! Not like on Cybertron!"

The missiles erupted like flares. The whole room was filled with flaming tails of rockets as they approached Melissa. She focused, doing math in her mainframe before she spoke.

"I would like to apologize in advance for this." she said softly.

Before anyone could ask what she meant, she flipped upside down, avoiding one half of the missile as she then spun again, deftly avoiding the others in one swift motion. The rockets slammed into the wall connecting the outer hull, tearing it open. The pitch black guts was suddenly filled with a blinding white light. Starscream's pained cries echoed as he crashed into the wall, reforming as a robot and falling to the ground. His optics were pixelated in blindness, but Melissa had no such handicap. She then flew through the hole in the side of the Nemesis, immediately connecting her comms to the rest of the Autobots.

"Melissa to Autobots, I have Agent Fowler." she shouted. "It's time to blow this oil stand!"

...

Back outside, Optimus perked when Melissa's call went through.

"Agreed!" He replied. "Autobots, fall back!"

Prowl managed to get himself free first, sliding in between Blitzwing's legs before transforming into vehicle mode. He sped off of the edge of the ravine, heading back down to where the rest of his team was. Blitzwing's red face spun forward as he looked in between his legs at the retreating two wheeler.

"Hey!" He shouted. "Get back here! I wasn't done pounding you into scrap metal!"

"But I'm done with you!" Prowl declared.

Bulkhead delivered a final uppercut to Lugnut, sending the 'Con stumbling backwards as he transformed as well, following Prowl out of the ravine. Bumblebee let out a happy chirp, throwing Breakdown over his shoulder and following his friends, transforming after a few steps. Megatron brought his blade down on Optimus' axe again, Optimus grunting as he tried to keep the 'Con off of him. Unfortunately, the wound in his side was leaking Energon badly, and he knew he needed to get away. Mustering what strength he had, he shoved Megatron off before morphing his hand into a blaster and shooting him back. Megatron managed to block the blast, but it gave Optimus the time he needed to transform, rolling after his fellow Autobots.

"Ratchet!" He called through the comm link. "Bridge us back! Use the arrival coordinates... Now!"

The ground bridge portal opened and every bot zipped through. Melissa went through last, the portal shutting behind them. Megatron watched the portal close, snarling slightly.

...

Ratchet looked over Optimus upon his return to base, patching up his side. Jeffrey and Spike did the same to Agent Fowler, sitting him down and following his instructions on how to use the silo's med kit.

"Thanks for coming for me." Fowler told the entire group. "You saved my life."

"It's what we do." Prowl informed him.

"Honestly, you should be thanking these two." Bulkhead said, pointing to Jeffrey and Spike. "They're the ones that figured out how to find you, and it was their plan that got you out."

Melissa, in robot mode, gave Ratchet a huge grin. The med-bot rolled his optics, but smiled good-naturedly.

"Hey, it was no big." Spike insisted. "I just didn't want to be that guy that's always relying on others to bail him out."

"For better or worse, Team Organic is part of this." Jeffrey agreed. "The least we can do is make ourselves useful."

Fowler chuckled.

"I suppose so." he allowed. "Besides, after that little incident with your Decepticons, it's clear that the US Government is hopelessly, hilariously, outgunned and outmatched. If we want a chance of saving our world, it's clear that we need to leave it to those better equipped to handle their threat."

"I promise we will do everything in our power to stop the Decepticons and their plans." Optimus reassured.

Spike suddenly perked up, fishing into his pocket and pulling out his cellphone.

"Speaking of their plans." he remarked, opening his photos and showing the picture of the alien math. "Will this be useful in any way?"

Ratchet bend down, looking at the photo.

"This equation does look familiar." he admitted. "I'll need to study it further to figure out exactly what it's for."

"And yet another point for Team Organic." Melissa chuckled, ribbing Ratchet gently. "Still think it's a bad idea for them to stick around?"

"I never said that." Ratchet insisted. "I was just unsure how adequately they'd perform in the field."

"I'd say these two have earned their place." Bulkhead declared, picking up Spike.

"Agreed." Optimus declared.

Bumblebee picked up Jeffrey, buzzing happily. The two boys exchanged grins, knowing that their lives had officially changed for the better.