"You can't go back and change the beginning but you can start where you are and change the ending."
"Autobots," Ultra Magnus's words were calm, and clear as he spoke, everyone drawing their attention to the blue and red Autobot, "We remain vastly outnumbered, and, despite our munitions, do not currently possess the firepower necessary to compromise the Decepticon citadel."
"Uncle Sam's military does," Fowler offered to the Autobot Commander, before he let out a dejected sigh, "I just can't let them make a move as long as Megatron's ray guns are pointed at Washington."
"Then we must infiltrate Darkmount in order to nullify its fusion cannons," Ultra Magnus said.
Each and every one of the human looked nervous about that. From Nilsa's eager but nervous smile, to Hana's worried, terrified frown.
"Unfortunately, it seems the fortress is heavily shielded against unauthorized groundbridges," Ratchet sighed, his frustrations and sadness seemingly swelling from within that single sigh - not that anyone other than Pan really noticed it as she gave him a concerned look, "Even those originating from Decepticon technology."
"Guess we'll have to sneak past enemy lines," Wheeljack smirked, looking more than eager to finally go crush something, "Wrecker-style."
The deadpanned look on Ultra Magnus's face was laughable, Pan bit her lip as Alik snorted and tried to cover up his cuckles with coughing as Jack patted his boyfriend's back with an amused smile.
Ultra Magnus's optics glanced at the humans for a moment, before drawing back to look at Wheeljack, "I couldn't deal with "Wrecker-style" on Cybertron, and I refuse to deal with it here."
Wheeljack scowled, but didn't respond to the Commander, gritting his derma.
"This would be funny, if it wasn't such a bad time," Nilsa murmured to Carlos who smirked in response.
"Now, we require a means of thinning the Decepticon ranks to even the odds, If we're to have any hope of completing this mission," He paused, laying the final blow that hammered down the fact that not all of them might not survive the coming fight ahead.
"Or of surviving it."
Amusement turned to dread.
🖤
"I-I can't do this," Smokescreen stammered, Logan pitied his friend, "I mean, sure, who wouldn't wanna be a Prime? But I'm really not ready for that kind of responsibility."
"Smokescreen the choice is neither yours nor mine to make," Optimus told the young Autobot, "When it is time the Matrix of Leadership will present itself only to one whose spark is worthy."
🖤
"Because it worked so well last time..."
Starscream let out a triumphant laugh when Jackson Darby's cell phone signal appeared on the screen, "Ha! I knew the humans couldn't resist using their telecommunications. That is all they seem to do."
The rather stupid seeker turned to the vehicons, "Seek and destroy!" he ordered them, a smug grin on his faceplates.
The seeker didn't notice P.O.T. taking a picture of the scene before hiding herself in the shadows of the Decepticon warship once again.
🖤
"We have five bogeys converging right on top of Jack," Raf reported from on the Cybertronian computer, Pan beside him as Ratchet looked after them.
"Not anymore," Ratchet and Pan said together, smiles appearing on their faces as Pan's eyes glowed green and a lever was pulled down.
A groundbridge opened up, and Jack jumped through safely.
Ratchet held a digit to his com-link, "Miko, your turn," he told the girl.
🖤
"Hello, I need two large pies, Sicilian. You deliver, right?"
"Humans," Starscream smirked, "Standby to groundbridge."
Soundwave placed a servo on Starscream's shoulder pad, making the seeker turn to look at the screen that the silent 'con was pointing at, the seeker shook his helm, "Soundwave, why can't you accept a little good fortune? The Autobots couldn't possibly stay hidden forever."
P.O.T. rolled her optics, "Stupid seeker," she muttered quietly, and she could tell that Soundwave was in agreement with her words by the way his visor glanced at her hiding spot before going back to the screens in front of him.
P.O.T. highly doubted that the human's phones had been turned on by accident, there was something too "good fortune" about this.
🖤
Miko jumped through the ground bridge with a pout, "I really could have used that pizza," she grumbled.
Pan paused, confused. Wasn't Miko ordering a pie?
"And a pizza, from Domino's," Amalgamous supplied, his voice amused.
"I've tapped into the Decepticon communications network," Ratchet reported, the medic looked at Jack and Pan, "Are you ready, Jack, Alik?"
Jack coughed into his fist and Alik grinned beside his boyfriend. Jack's cheeks reddened slightly.
Pan smirked from her place beside Ratchet.
Jack tried first, "Decepticon command, do you read me?"
Ultra Magnus raised an optical ridge, "I remain unconvinced."
Ratchet sighed and looked at Alik, the boy nodded, "Decepticon command, do you read me?" his mimic of a Decepticon was almost on par.
"Where did the 'con come from?" Miko teased and Alik flushed.
"My mother had me do acting lessons when I was a kid," Alik shrugged, tucking his hands into his jeans pockets, "Sucks to be the son of a performer."
Nilsa snorted from beside Wheeljack, the woman had taken to the wrecker immediately, and the wrecker found that Nilsa was much like him in many more ways than one. "You should've seen my mother," her nose wrinkled in disgust.
Carlos and Hermes shuddered; a feat that didn't go unnoticed by the other humans and Autobots.
Ratchet got back on topic, "I will enhance your performance with static," he told Alik who nodded, thankful that the Decepticons would be less likely to recognize his voice. Especially a certain two Decepticons.
Alik nodded, waiting for the all-go to speak again. When Ratchet turned back from the computer to nod at him, Alik cleared his throat quietly, "Decepticon command, do you read? We are under Autobot attack!" He managed to convey just the right about of panic into his voice to actually make it believable.
"Nice," Nilsa clapped her hands when Ratchet - thankfully - ended the transmission, "Hana, dear, I'm stealing your child."
Hana looked over at the red haired women, eyes wide, "What? Why?" she asked, confused as Pan chuckled beside her.
"His acting skills," Hermes shrugged from beside Nilsa, Carlos snorted on Nilsa's other side as Hana just stared at them.
"You know that I'm not actually Hana's kid, right?" Alik asked them as the Autobot started getting prepared to go, "I'm legally an adult, as of last month."
"Oh, hush, kid," Carlos rolled his eyes, "You're a kid to us old folk."
"Fowler is ready for you three," Ratchet interrupted the conversation, groundbridge waiting.
"Thanks, Ratchie," Nilsa gave him a wave before heading through.
Carlos offered a farewell wave to everyone before following his best friend and Hermes chased after them, "Hey! Don't leave me behind with these losers."
His voice echoed and laughter came from the groundbridge before Ratchet managed to close it.
"Alik, I swear to Primus-"
"I am an adult, Hana! I'm not going to go throwing myself at the first person who comes by!" Alik threw his hands in the air, exasperated with everything,
Raf laughed quietly with Matthew, both boys sitting on the edge of the cliff-like platform, "The world is ending, and we're talking about Alik getting a job," Raf smiled.
"Yep," Matthew snorted, "It's the best "Conversation Before the World Ends" ever."
Here's Chapter Five!
Wow, it really has been a while since I've updated this, forget about just this fic, it's been a long time since I've updated any fic. My deepest apologies for the long wait, I just barely managed to scrape this together in the last half an hour 'cause I just needed to get this chapter out. And, I know it's not the full length of the episode, but I feel like the "filter" I've put in makes it seem slightly longer? Dunno.
Hope you all enjoyed!