"The waves emitted by this crystal are off the charts. Dr. Hendrickson was right. This is quite a powerful artifact. We have to get it inside, if it's struck by lightning, it could trigger a teleportation." The Professor spoke as bolts of lightning started to hit the ground around them. The storm started to get worse as Julie stood nearby.
"For now, let's just put it back where we found it. Bots." Dr. Green replied, as Heatwave walked forward and picked the crystal up. As he did a bolt of lightning hit the crystal, causing Heatwave to drop it in shock and pain. The crystal fell on the ground, before landing back in the hole.
Julie ran towards the hole, where everyone else saw the crystal glowing a bright blue.
"Reactamine, oh dear." Doc Green cried, as they saw green crystals in the hole.
Julie felt a pain in her gut as everything lit a bright green and blue in front of them, Julie falling forward in the process.
~ ~ ~
High Tide stood on his ship with two new bots and Woodrow Burns. They had rescued him in the middle of the storm as his ship sank. In the meanwhile they had been given the direction to head to Griffin Rock and see the capsule opening for themselves per Optimus's order. As they saw land up ahead, having sailed in the middle of a storm for hours, they saw Griffin Rock light up entirely in a bright green light.
None of them knew what to do, as all they could do was sit there and watch. As fast as the light came, the entire island just disappeared. There was a giant, dry hole in the ground that was quickly being filled in by water until the hole had disappeared.
"What?" Woodrow gasped. "Where did Griffin Rock go?"
Nobody was able to answer the question, they saw several people in the water, holding onto pieces of driftwood and others struggling to swim.
"I'll call Optimus." High Tide spoke, as he turned and walked away.
"Seriously, does somebody wanna tell me where Griffin Rock went?" The young purple bot asked. Covered in white stripes and bearing a green colored autobot symbol. Beside him was a larger young bot who was green and blue, bearing a red version of the symbol.
"We'll worry about that later, right now people need our help." Woodrow replied.
~ ~ ~
4 Days
Julie got onto her knees, feeling the temperatures quickly drop around them. She looked up at the sky to see a storming blizzard.
"Daddy." Frankie cried as she ran to her father. Seeing everyone run up to the Greens and the Professor. Julie struggled to pull herself out and onto her feet. Walking over to the others.
"I'm here Francine." Her father replied as he hugged his daughter.
"Where did this blizzard come from?" Dani asked.
"I think the real question is where did we end up, Dani. As in, we are now in the Arctic." Julie spoke up, as they all turned and looked at her.
"Create a windbreak around them." Heatwave cried as the four bots surrounded them.
"How is that possible?" Kade asked.
"She's right. We're in...magnetic north. I don't know how, but Griffin Rock has been teleported to the Arctic." Graham replied, as he held a tablet in his hand.
"The properties of the quantum crystal were absorbed into the veins of reactamine underground." Doc Green explained.
"Basically making the whole island a teleportation device."
"Okay, but can't we like, reverse it and go home?" Kade asked.
"That crystal is history." Boulder replied as he turned around and looked at the crystal that was in the hole, "Unless Julie can replicate it and repair it."
"No, I can't. I'm able to do many things, but that isn't one of them. Or not at the current time anyways." Julie mumbled.
"This is not acceptable. Ice makes flying almost impossible. Then again, I could learn to love it here." Blades commented.
"No you couldn't. Cybertronians are able to be hurt by the cold just like humans. You may be more durable, but it will get to the point your systems will shut down." Julie argued as she looked up at him.
"We need to get people off this island fast." Heatwave spoke.
"To where?" Boulder asked.
"I don't believe there is an evacuation plan in place that covers this situation, and for that I apologize." Chase commented.
"We have to do something, nobody could survive these temperatures for long." Dani exclaimed.
"We could raise the dome, that would keep the blizzard out." Cody suggested.
"Is there enough power for that Doc?" Chief Burns asked.
"For a while at least, but first the four dome generators will have to be de-iced." Doc replied.
"Sounds like a plan to me. Rescue Bots, roll to the rescue." Heatwave ordered.
"When you all have accomplished that, I want all of you to meet me at the firehouse. There is something I must tell you guys, something that cannot wait." Julie spoke, as she looked at the bots and humans before her.
~ ~ ~
The two young bots that Woodrow now knew as Salvage, the green and blue bot, while the purple and white one was Blurr. Apparently they had arrived on Earth per Optimus's instruction and were assigned to work with High Tide and be trained under his leadership.
Woodrow went into one of the cranes of the ship that controlled an arm of High Tide's ship, using it to grab people and put them onto a ferry that usually transported people between Griffin Rock and the mainland. While Woodrow watched as the other three went out to help rescue the dozen of people that were out in the water. High Tide transformed into his submarine form while the other two were on surfboards, grabbing people out of the water.
As they all stood on the deck of High Tide's ship, Woodrow paced back and forth. High Tide getting annoyed along with Blurr.
"How long are those humans gonna be dripping on my deck?" High Tide asked.
"Until we have a better plan." Woodrow replied.
"We can't just sit around, we should be doing something." Blurr remarked.
"Charlie!" Woodrow yelled.
~ ~ ~
Julie stood pacing in the bunker as she waited for everyone to show up as she had ordered them to. She knew what she had to do, but the others may not be okay with it.
As she heard the engines of approaching cars, she looked up at the open garage doors to see the bots transforming into their alt modes after they let the humans climb out. Blades landed outside and let Dani out, as he too transformed and walked into the garage.
"Julie, this had better be important." Kade grumbled as they all approached her.
"Kade, calm down." Chief Burns replied as he looked at his son. "What do you need to tell us Julie? We're all here to hear it."
"Minus the Professor, do you guys remember the day I told you that I was seeing things. I had told you all that I saw Prima while in the middle of being teleported back and forth from my sneezes."
"Yes, I remember." Chief Burns replied.
"How could we forget it? You disappeared and we had no idea where you went." Heatwave remarked, clearly annoyed. "What does this have to do with the situation?"
"I was seeing glimpses of the future. Several, including that I knew the island..."
"Was gonna be teleported." Graham finished.
Julie nodded in response as a tear ran down her face.
"Why didn't you warn us?" Kade yelled. "You have all these powers and you did nothing?"
"Kade." Cody exclaimed.
"He's right, Cody. Why would Julie just endanger human lives?" Dani remarked.
"I didn't..."
"I think it is illogical that Julie would do such a thing." Chase commented, interrupting Julie.
"Maybe she was scared, and didn't know what to do." Blades replied.
"I think this is diabolical." Kade commented. "Why has Julie been with us all this time, just to betray us?"
"ENOUGH! We don't know all the details yet, but we should let Julie explain herself. We have gone this far together, surely there is a reason that this happened." Heatwave yelled.
"I agree. Julie has helped us several times so far. She deserves a chance to explain herself." Chief Burns replied, as everyone looked at him, before they all turned and looked at her.
"Julie..." Kade mumbled as they looked at her.
Julie felt a few tears as they looked at her. She loved them like a family, but now before she was going to leave, it seemed they all would hate her. "I'm...I'm sorry I am a failure." She mumbled, as several tears shed down her face. "I didn't have any choice. Prima told me that I wasn't allowed to say anything."
"Well, you can tell us now." Dani demanded, as she glared at her.
"I...I know how to save this island...but it comes at a price. I was unable to prevent this from happening, because Primus and the Primes wouldn't let me, because..."
"Because this is a test." Heatwave replied.
Julie nodded. "Prima spoke with me, here actually, in the Arctic, telling me that there would be a test I had to face, but it wasn't for them. Instead, they said this was a test for myself. In the several days I have trained out at sea, I have also been training mentally, and I know what I must do."
"You said there is a price you must pay. What is the price?" Chief Burns asked.
Julie looked at the Chief, before looking away. Tears still fell from her eyes as she refused to respond.
"Oh..." Chief commented as he realized the answer.
"Wait, no. You can't do that." Kade yelled. "We still have 3 more days."
"What? What is gonna happen?" Blades asked.
"I am confused, what is it we are missing?" Chase asked as he looked at his teammates.
"It means that Julie is risking her life for the lives of all of us." Chief Burns answered. "I can't ask you to do that, Julie."
"With all due respect, Chie...Dad, I can't allow you to make that call for me. I know what my price is and I know what my duty is. It will risk the revelation of who I am to the island, but it is a sacrifice I am willing to make to ensure everyone is safe, including my family." Julie responded.
"I thought you can't die though." Chase replied.
"I can't, but it will drain my life all the same. Instead of dying, I will be put into a state of rest. One I will be unable to awaken from until either Primus, or something else awakens me."
"Like 'Sleeping Beauty.'" Dani commented.
"Except this time, she will not awaken in her home."
"You mean, you will vanish? Without saying goodbye?" Blades asked.
"Yes Blades. I may not get to see you before I leave. Primus said somehow there is a chance I may see you guys again, but that could be years from now, for both you and me.
"You can't do this Julie, there has to be another way." Dani replied.
"Another way that doesn't endanger human lives? Or even bot lives? There isn't one. Besides this is my test that I must follow through with. I am sorry that I hurt you guys, and still am, but I am not sorry about doing my duty. Will you guys help me or not?" Julie asked as she looked at Dani, before looking at everyone else in the room.
Everyone in the room exchanged glances as they processed the words that Julie had told them. Julie stood there silently waiting as the bots spoke to each other, and the humans spoke to one another.
"Alright, we will help you. As much as we hate to see you go, there isn't anything we can do to prevent it. At least we can try and help you. What do you need all of us to do?" Chief Burns asked.
"I will transform and be carrying the island from the Arctic back to where Griffin Rock belongs, but in order to do so, I need you guys to ensure the safety of the humans and the island. Heatwave and Chief Burns, I will need one or both of you to contact Optimus Prime, we will need someone back home to clear out any rubble that is in the way of where the island needs to be. Doc, you, the Professor, and Graham need to make sure that the dome over the island stays up. No matter what. It will help prevent the island from crumbling apart while we move. Meaning less energy I have to use to maintain carrying it across the sea. Blades and Dani, you both scout over the land, keep an eye out for any other problems, if any come up.
"The rest of you ensure the safety and wellbeing of the citizens. There are some that will be questionable when they see me. I would turn invisible if I could, but I will already be straining a ton of energy as is, I must make sure my power and my strength maintains itself as we head back. If it ends up necessary, help our lead scientists with maintaining the energy. Do you guys all understand?"
"Yes." Several of them replied.
"Astronomically." Doc commented.
"What are you gonna transform into to carry the island?" Blades asked.
Julie and the others all looked at him in response.
"Nevermind."
"You all understand the tasks at hand. I will move as quickly as I can, but I can't promise anything when we arrive. I may vanish the second we land, or I may collapse into the sea. No matter what happens, I promise things will be okay. I am proud to have been a member of this team, even if it was brief. Know that I will miss you, if I don't see you guys again. My spark forever shall be with you in the stars." Julie turned toward the entrance, her wings shifting onto her back as she prepared to leave.
"Julie, wait!" Cody yelled, getting her attention as she spun around to be intervened by a sudden hug, causing her to step back a little bit to avoid falling. "Thank you."
"Why are you thanking me?" Julie asked.
"Because, ever since you got here you have done nothing, but give to us. I wish we could have had you here for your birthday, It would have been epic." Cody replied.
Cody wrapped her arms around the boy and hugged him back. "You're more than welcome, Cody. I am glad that I got to meet you."
Julie felt several more arms wrap around her, looking up to see the rest of the Burns coming and embracing her. Kade grabbed her by her neck and pulled her down to nudge her on the helm.
Shifting into her warrior form, she faced the four bots that she felt she had been with for years, but in reality it hadn't even been a year. As soon as she shifted, Blades ran towards her, resulting in nearly knocking her down if it wasn't for Boulder coming up behind her. Chase and Heatwave being the last ones to approach. Wrapping their arms around her as she hugged the four of them back. Turning toward the entrance, Julie walked out the garage doors, glancing at the people she saw as family, before she flew straight up toward the dome above the island.
~ ~ ~
"Woodrow, we finally got cell reception. Are you alright?"
"Uh...fine now, thanks to your new Rescue Bot recruits, but how and where are you?" Woodrow asked.
"Don't worry, we're safe and Griffin Rock is flying home. It's a long story."
"Anything we can do to help?"
"You can check the seafloor. Julie says the island must fit perfectly into the hole we left, or the island could fall apart."
"Finally, something to do." Blurr remarked, as he spun around and jumped off the deck, into the water.
"Did high octane brain forget who the submersible is around here?" High Tide asked as they watched Blurr leave.
"Woody, you're in charge while I'm gone. Take care of everyone."
"You can count on me, big bro." Woodrow replied as he hung up.
"Uh guys, you should probably see this. It'll take days to clear." Blurr interrupted.
Woodrow looked at the windows on Salvage's chassis revealing a whole bunch of rock, trash and clutter in the hole.
"Well, at least now you have lots to do, Blurr." Salvage replied.
"Not what I had in mind." Blurr mumbled.
"Come on, team. We got work to do." Woodrow exclaimed. Salvage nodding in response.
~ ~ ~
Blurr sat in his alt mode tugging on a large boulder, a rope with a hook attached to it as it slowly moved with his efforts. As he continued to tug on the rock, it eventually went flying, falling over a ledge.
"Oh yeah, that's what I thought. Yeah Blurr's in the...uh hey Optimus, uh, when'd you get here?"
"Just in time. Chief Burns informs me the island is nearly here." Optimus replied as Salvage and High Tide joined in with grabbing boulders and tossing them out of the hole.
"Ah, working together just like old times, eh OP?" High Tide asked as he held a boulder in his servos.
"And the stakes are just as high." Optimus replied.
"Come on team, let's give Charlie a place to land." Woodrow exclaimed, sitting in Salvage's cabin. As they moved boulders, Woodrow recognized some green crystal sitting underneath. "Reactamine, I didn't know it was down here. That's powerful stuff."
"These rocks are for moving, not studying." Blurr grumbled. "Hey Salvage, race ya."
"You're on." Salvage transformed into a dump truck, arms on the front as he used them to help speed up the process of tossing the rubble out of the way.
Blurr in his bipedal form beside him doing the same with his own servos.
~ ~ ~
3 Days
Julie was flying, her front claws dug slightly into the front of the island, as her back back legs held onto it from the sides. Her tail wrapped gently over the back to help support the grip. She had been flying for the entire night and now halfway into the day as she carried the island. Using her powers to make sure the island stayed solid and didn't end up crumbling to pieces in her claws. Her wings spread out as she flapped, panting as she could feel her powers starting to ware down, but she couldn't give up.
This was a test against her strength and her loyalty, to see how much she was willing to sacrifice and how far she was willing to go. She knew it was. The Primes had worked her into exhaustion for days, no rest and no substance to burn off as she had fought against them individually. Some of the Primes had been a lot tougher than the others,
As she flew, she could feel herself getting closer to their destination, but her mind was so tired, it felt like it was still decades away from reach. She knew the humans had been startled to see a large dragon above them, helping to carry the humans. This was the largest form she had ever taken on, having been a large griffin and a dragon before, she was much bigger now, but t was necessary. She had to be the same size, if not bigger than Griffin Rock in order to carry it and fly it back to the sea. In order to fit back into the sea bed where it belonged.
"She can't take much more of this." Kade spoke, as they watched her.
"It is her choice, son. We have to respect it." Chief Burns replied.
"She is gonna shut off, she could shut off any second." Dani commented.
"I know, but there is not much else we can do, but sit and wait." Chief Burns remarked. "We're almost there. We've made it this far. We'll get there.
The dome started to falter, as it was slowly powering down, causing Julie to lose her grip. Her front claws slipped as she fell with the island.
"Hold on!" Chief Burns yelled. As they had been doing everything they could to keep the energy from running out. Using extra batteries, to even having the citizens using themselves to help power the dome.
"I have one last trick I can do, Chief, if the dome gives way, there is one last option." Julie roared above them, as she tried to regain her grip on it. Her claws grabbed onto what was left of the dome as the island started to glow from her touch, her energy giving a final push.
"Spark energy." Chase mumbled as they looked up at her.
"What will that do?" Cody asked.
"If she had a chance before of surviving, she won't now. She is giving up the energy in her spark in order to help Griffin Rock stay in the air. To stop it from crumbling to pieces." Heatwave replied.
"She is giving up her immortality." Graham commented as he and the others realized what was happening.
"Julie, there has to be another way." Cody yelled.
"You have done everything you can, Cody Burns. You and the rest of your family. Let me give you what I can." Julie replied, as she faltered.
Julie looked out across the sea, she was almost there, but she was running on fumes. She looked down to see Chief Burns rushing to the firehouse, giving her a small shred of hope that they were truly trying to help her.
"Optimus, we're about a mile away, but we're losing Julie." Chief Burns spoke on the monitor. "Is there anything you can do to give us an extra push. If we can get there quicker, we may buy enough time to save Julie."
"Chief Burns, help is rolling out." Optimus replied.
Julie could barely flap her wings. She gave up most of her spark's energy to keep going, but she was so exhausted it felt like her skin had been submerged into boiling heat. Like she had the dark energon in her spark once again. As she flapped her wings, they cramped in pain so suddenly that she was unable to move them. They were spread out to the sides as it kept them from falling, but there wasn't anything else she could do. Stretching her neck, she dug her fangs into the dirt of the island, closing her optics in hope as she heard the others yelling her name.
It wasn't until she felt something tug on her and the island, that she looked up to see three blue Cybertronian ropes attached to the island, pulling her as her wings helped them to glide in the air.
Feeling the island ram into something, Julie struggled to lift her head to see a much bigger Cybertronian grab the side of the island, similar in color to High Tide's ship. The bot nodded its head at her as it gave a strong push to the island. Julie, taking a breath, started to flap her wings just a few beats more as she could see the cleaned out hole from where Griffin Rock used to sit. Flapping her wings, she flew upwards a little bit, turning the island to make sure that it would sit correctly into place.
As soon as her claws let go, her wings collapsed in on her, her body quickly shrinking down, as Julie gasped. Falling quickly towards the water, her tail knocking down a few poles on the island accidentally as she fell, gradually shifting back into herself. Her body plummeted into the ground, causing her body to crash violently into the sea floor, her body crushing through some it, leaving a crater with her body collapsed, not even moving from her vents, if there were any vents.