Embers of a Flame

Chapter 4

::Target in sight, 3 clicks northwest.::

Willowisp is taking advantage of his airborne vehicle mode to scout out the area. ::It looks like... a spaceship? Under heavy Decepticon fire.::

::Approach cautiously,:: Optimus warns his troops over the comm.

::Hang on, spaceship? We haven't sent any vessels into space for quite some time, let alone them landing on Earth:: Lennox asks, the confusion clear in his voice.

Wisp can barely repress an annoyed sigh. ::It happens to be a Cybertronian vessel, general.::

The helicopter lowers himself and transforms back to join his friends on the ground. The ground-based Autobots can't utilize their vehicle forms, for the loose sand barely gives them any grip.

"Ugh, this stuff is gonna be stuck in my joints for weeks," Shrek complains.

"Oh stop whining, I thought you wanted to kick Con aft," Angel responds, even though she is just as annoyed with the miserable terrain.

"Stop bickering you two," Bumblemus interrupts. "We're on a mission here."

They stand at the foot of a large sand dune. The wind is drifting their way.

Shrek and Angel are still arguing, despite Bumblemus' efforts.

"Shut up you two," Wisp hisses. "Do you hear that?"

The bots perk their helms up, listening closely. Because of the wind, voices got carried much further.

"That sounds like a battle," Angel comments.

"My guess? Cons," Shrek says.

"We should check it out. If the Cons are fighting, there are Autobots that they are fighting," Wisp replies solemnly.

"Let's climb the hill and find out, then," Ironhide says, punching his fists together. "The Cons won't know what hit 'em."

Optimus nods, taking the lead and motioning with his servo for the others to follow.

When they reach the top of the dune, they get a peek at what is happening down below.

A crashed Cybertronian ship, with Decepticons attacking it. A handful of bots seemed to be opposing them.

"They look like Wreckers!" Shrek notes, rubbing his servos together. The Wreckers are his kind of bot.

"Wreckers? Oh Primus," Bumblemus sighs. Wreckers were known to be rowdy and loud most of the time, making a mess. But they were skilled fighters.

"Let's go help them." Wisp brings their attention back to the point. The Decepticons in front of them.

The others nod and quickly fan out under Optimus' and BP's command respectively.

With so many Autobots on the scene, the battle is quickly fought and our friends can have a better look at the new arrivals.

Wisp barely has time to feel his spark change before he is tackled to the ground. "Wispy!!" one of the Wreckers exclaims, hugging the other mech tight.

It is none other than Whirl himself. Who, according to the feeling in the medic's spark, is Willowisp's brother.

"Uhm, hi Whirl," Wisp chuckles, barely able to get a vent in under the other bot's weight. "I'm happy to see you too, but you're -umph- crushing me."

The blue mech quickly stands up, laughing a bit. "Sorry about that, Wispy. I just... it's been a long time."

A little helm perks up from behind Whirl's, looking over to Wisp with a narrowed red optic. The other is broken, with an old scar indicating why.

Whirl looks at the little bot on his shoulder. "Oh yeah! Wispy, you remember Syndrome right? Your Minicon."

"I do," Wisp says with a warm smile. He steps over, reaching out to the Minicon. "Hi Snippy."

The little bot mutters something inaudible and steps into Wisp's servo without further hesitation. The medic sets them on his shoulder safely.

"Snippy? What kind of nickname is that?" Shrek inquires. The rest of Wisp's team had been watching until now, minus Angel for some reason, who is nowhere to be found.

"Oh, you'll find out soon enough," Wisp says with a frankly devious smirk on his faceplate.

"Now, where is Angelblade?" Bumblemus wonders out loud. She has been looking out and about for the femme.

"You mean the pastel one? Over there." Whirl points towards a rock formation, where, indeed, their teammate is.

"Is she talking to someone? It looks like it," Wisp points out, tilting his helm in a telltale sign of confusion.

"Oh, that must be ol' Rodimus Prime, then. I wondered where he had snuck off to," Wheeljack replies.

The BP team shares a single look. One of repressed laughter but also concern.

Together with Whirl and Optimus, they walk over to the rock pile. Now they can see the fiery red and yellow frame of Rodimus Prime.

They're just able to pick up on the conversation.

"Rodimus. Prime." Angel says with her arms crossed. Her tone suggests that she is not at all amused by the red mech's cowardly behavior.

"In my defense, I didn't want to ruin the fun for the Wreckers!" Rodimus retorts, raising his servos in an accusing gesture.

"So you ran away? Very heroic, for a Prime," the femme replies, rolling her optics.

"I was... observing!" Rodimus protests, "I was ready to step in if you needed my help!"

"Pretty sure you were just hiding behind a rock, man," Shrek butts in, looking at the red mech with a bit of sympathy but also disdain.

Rodimus grunts, throwing his servos in the air. "What does a Prime need to do to get some respect around here?!"

"Join the line, buddy, you're not the only Prime," Angel says, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She gestures to Optimus and to Bumblemus.

Rodimus freezes. He doesn't recognize the femme, but he sure as scrap recognizes the mech. "Optimus, erhm. It's an honor, Sir," he quickly says.

"Welcome to Earth, Rodimus Prime," Optimus replies. His expression is neutral, like most of the time.

"Don't wanna break up the reunion, but do you bots have a place to stay? As much as I enjoy kicking Con aft, our crew is exhausted and low on Energon," Whirl butts in, gesturing back to the ship and the other Wreckers.

Optimus nods. "Of course, Whirl. We shall return to base at once." He directs his attention at his commlink.

::General Lennox, once again we bring home new arrivals.::

~~

Megatron was seething. Another attack deflected by the Autobots. And they seemed to multiply by the day. Where did so many new bots come from?

"Erhm, my Liege," Starscream says nervously, standing before his master as they overlook a lush valley.

"What is it, Starscream?" Megatron growls, turning his helm to the side to face his second-in-command.

"Soundwave has investigated the Autobot's records, as you, erhm, requested. And the results may interest you."

"Just get to the point already!"

Starscream cowers a little bit, wings drooping heavily. "Of four of them, there are barely any details. The records say they were on a mission, which was declared lost decades later. They are supposed to be dead," he quickly rambles off, to get it over with.

This has gotten Megatron's interest indeed. "Dead, you say? So where exactly did these four mystery bots come from, then?"

The warlord is silent for a couple of minutes, then he turns to Starscream fully. "Get me every last scrap of information on these bots, and quickly."

Starscream jumps to attention, then smiles slyly. "Right away... my Liege."